The windowless corridor seemed to stretch for miles, no end in sight. Her heels clicked against the smooth stone floor, the muffled whispers becoming clearer with each step.

"Don't put limitations on yourself. You're capable of more than you realize and concentration is key."

"Hogwarts is off the table for now. It's a matter of safety. You've made great strides but your magic is evolving faster than you're learning control and if you're allowed around others, you could do damage not only to your classmates but to yourself. You need to remain hidden."

"It'll be our secret. He thinks you aren't ready but I bet you could do it without breaking a sweat. Try it on this painting…absorb its magic and use that to create fire. Don't take too much or he'll know what we're up to. You know I wouldn't hurt you, maravilla."

The walls of the corridor crumbled to pieces, revealing a dark cavern. A fire crackled from within, illuminating a set of runes. All of the voices mixed together, sounding like warbled birds.

"It's not your fault he locked me away. He's giving me another chance. When I come back, I'll teach you everything. Forget about Ilvermorny…or Hogwarts…they're a waste of your gifts."

"Chimaera is the way."

"This isn't your fault. All of this can be fixed and it will be like it never happened. Deep breaths and count back from ten."

"T—three…two…one."

Snapping out of the dream, she looked around the steel room, shivering from the cold. A ball of light flickered above her head, growing fainter by the second. Six strangers were lying face-down on the floor, the bits of visible skin ghostly white and blackened veins on the back of their hands. There were indents in the walls, marked by thin red lines that extended to the meeting point between the floor and wall. Unable to figure out her location, she hopped down from the cot and stumbled over to the door.

She retracted her hand the moment it grasped the handle, something pricking her thumb. Wiping away the drop of blood, she made another attempt, maintaining her grip despite the increasingly burning sensation, and just as the handle began to budge, she was lifted off her feet and landed harshly in the middle of a dirt path. A metal pole in front of her had signs in every direction, Hogwarts written on the top sign. Brushing the dirt from her backside, she followed the road to the enormous castle in the distance. The burning sensation lingered in her hand, the pain twice as bad in her fingertips.

"Katrina?"

Landing on the grass, a boy abandoned his sleek black and silver broom and sped towards her. A fluttery feeling swelled inside her chest.

About to rest his hand on her arm, he instead passed it through his white-blonde hair. "Where have you been? Snape told me you were having a panic attack from watching the dueling seminar and when you went to the hospital wing, your wounds were opening again. He said you went to St. Mungo's but Pansy's uncle is a healer there and when I asked, he didn't know anything about it. Why were you coming up from Hogsmeade? Were the healers too lazy to bring you to the castle? My father always says they're incompetent. It's a wonder why he donates to them."

She smiled at the boy. "Hello. Do I know you?"

His relief became uncertainty. "If you're trying to mess with me, it's not funny. You shouldn't joke about—you're being serious. Katrina, it's me. It's Draco."

"It's nice to meet you. Who's Katrina?" she asked, curiously.

"That's your name. Come sit down," he said, leading her to a wooden bench. "Were you hit with a memory charm? Don't answer that. If you were, you wouldn't know it."

A light shined on the end of a thin, polished stick. "Wow, how'd you do that?"

"It's magic. You can do it too. Just sit and watch my wand." He held the wand over her eyes. "Definitely a memory charm. How did this—we need to get you to Dumbledore but he's in a meeting with the professors. I've been reading a few NEWT level books lately. Maybe I can fix this. What's the last thing you remember? I need you to think really hard. Think about the seminar. You were talking to Davies and got upset."

Struggling with details as basic as her name, Katrina tried to do as she was told, her mind drawing blanks. As she started to remember the smell of smoke and a sense of dread creeping down her spine, she froze, her hand against her cheek. Her eyes flickered to Draco, his face a combination of fear and hopefulness, and she traced a circle on his chest, through the dark green material.

There was something off about the color. "Why are you wearing this?"

Draco lifted his gaze from her hand lightly pressed on his chest. "T—they're my quidditch robes. I'm the seeker for Slytherin. Remember how I told you about making this impossible catch in my third year against Davies? Ringing any bells?"

"I don't have one," she said, showing him her empty hands. "Do you live in that big castle?"

"Graham, don't you dare ignore me!" she heard.

A group of boys, dressed similarly to Draco and carrying the same brooms, descended down the hill, the most muscular boy being berated by a girl in a matching long-sleeved dress. They were arguing about another girl acting flirtatious with him during breakfast. The tall, dark-haired boy to his right joked that the angered girl, Selene, would hex the other boy's affectionate mother. Raising the pitch of his voice to imitate her, he stopped at the sight of Draco and Katrina.

"Scandal. Draco's taking girls to the pitch before practice. What will Pansy say?" he teased. "When did you get out of St. Mungo's, mini Potter? Going to freak out in the Great Hall again?"

"I thought my name was Katrina," she said to a tense Draco. She turned to the puzzled teenagers. "Hello. Nice to meet you."

Draco explained that she was affected by a memory charm. A sympathetic Selene sat beside her on the bench.

"She's not faking it, you troll," she hissed at the heckling boy. "She didn't forget everything. On the surface, she did but whatever memories are still there are buried deep inside her subconscious. There's a reason she was able to find her way here."

"What if those lunatics who attacked her did this?" suggested Draco. "Made her forget so they could try to snatch her again…"

"Then why not just take her?" replied the muscular boy, sounding skeptical. "Don't bring it up. That's the last thing we want her to remember, unless you want to be questioned by that dolt Robards."

"You're being paranoid over nothing. He already questioned her and any other witnesses and after a week, they have no leads. Stop bringing it up before it does become a problem." Selene faced Katrina, taking out a wand. "If we make a simple connection, I can use that to reverse the charm. Katrina, tell me what you saw when you woke up. Describe the hospital room. What was on the walls?"

Her mind was, once again, blank. The earliest memory she could recall was meeting Drew…no, Draco. A sudden hunger brewed inside her, diverting her focus to Selene's hand inches from hers on the bench. Some invisible energy was radiating from her hand, enticing Katrina. Shaken out of her unusual thoughts by Selene's voice, she heard her tell the boys to begin their quidditch practice while she kept an eye on Katrina until someone named Snape finished his meeting. She joined Selene in the stands surrounding the field, watching the boys fly around on their brooms and toss around a red ball. Cheering for Graham, the muscular boy, Selene blew him a kiss.

"Why did you do that?" Katrina asked, as Graham's cheeks reddened from the gesture.

Graham chucked the ball at the snickering boy she had called a troll. "Because he's my boyfriend. Well, technically he's my fiancé but he's too embarrassed to say so in front of his friends," she said, throwing back her curly chestnut brown hair and showing off a diamond ring that sparkled in the sunlight.

Katrina admired the ring. "Do I have one? A boyfriend?"

"Not that I know of and trust me, I'd know it. The walls of Hogwarts are notoriously thin and if a boy did manage to break through your shell, it would be big news," said Selene, taking out a compact mirror to check her face. "With everything you've been through, I doubt you're ready for a relationship. I've never seen you so much as high five a person and relationships are a bit more intimate. Plus I know someone who's hoping to take you off the market."

"Cayden?" Selene closed her mirror. "That name keeps popping up in my head. Is he another friend of mine?"

"Don't think there's a Hogwarts student with that name. He could be one of the healers who was treating you at St. Mungo's," she said, watching Graham perform a fancy maneuver on his broom. "Once Snape is out of his meeting, he'll sort out your memories. We'll sit and watch their practice where you're in absolutely no danger…except cheesy lines from boys who consider their mere presence a gift to girls."

Katrina could not get the name out of her thoughts. There had to be a reason that it survived whatever magic had affected her. Was he, as Selene believed, someone who had been helping her or of greater significance? As the practice continued, Draco searching for an object called a golden snitch, Selene complained about an invasion from the Ravenclaws. Seven teenagers, five boys and two girls, walked towards the pitch, wearing robes like Draco and his friends except theirs were sapphire blue. The shorter of the two girls was wiping her tear-stained cheeks, a common occurrence according to Selene. Half-listening to her empathize with the tearful girl, Katrina was drawn to the dark-haired boy in the middle, that inner dread resurfacing as she noticed his green eyes.

Everything within her told her to get far away from him. Not caring about her lack of memories, she ran down the wooden steps and towards the dirt path she had landed in before finding Draco. Sprinting past the metal pole, she moved through a crowded village, red and yellow leaves crunching beneath her heels, and did not stop until she was in a mountainous area, recognizing a circular crack in the ground.

Her ears perked at the soft crunch of a leaf. "Ka—"

Without hesitation, she smacked a hand that was near her shoulder and swept her attacker's leg, knocking them to the ground. Draco was beneath her, one of her knees digging into his throat. Relaxing slightly, she shifted her knee, allowing him to release a shaky breath while he remained on his back.

"How the—you—where did that come from?" he asked, winded. "I didn't mean to frighten you. Why did you run?"

"I saw…" An image of the dark-haired boy, lying on his back like Draco and his shirt torn, flashed through her mind. "I've been here."

Draco sat up, holding his knee. "You're remembering? That's good. Maybe we don't need Snape. These men in masks were trying to kidnap you. Davies came to your rescue and I found you bleeding pretty badly but of course, everyone thinks he's such a—you were running from Davies, weren't you? Why were you scared of him? What did he say to you before you went to the hospital wing? Come on, he has to be sparking something in your mind. It can't be coincidence. Think about the day he saved you. He was chasing off those maniacs and then—"

"I saved him," she finished. Her fingers grazed her side. "He was unconscious and I fought but then my magic stopped working and I was bleeding. I couldn't see his face. He was going to take me but then…they disappeared…no, they…he grabbed me and…you were bleeding too…"

"Slow down," said Draco, gently. "You're not making sense. One memory at a time so let's focus on Hogsmeade. You were out here with those people in masks and Davies—"

"Harry was angry so I showed him…Jace was…y—you were dying…" He was acting like she spoke gibberish. "Everyone was hurt…Roger grabbed—no, he was pretending and he wouldn't stop…I broke everything and no one could help…I wanted it to stop…there was blood everywhere and I fixed it…that's what he wanted…he was inside…chimaera…he's not dead…"

Katrina stiffened as he carefully placed his hand over hers, a scarlet red glove preventing any skin to skin contact. "Katrina, I wasn't dying or bleeding anywhere, believe me. The only time I bled this year was when Daphne was aiming at Theodore to get back her Witch Weekly and she jinxed me instead. Unless you were hiding in the common room, you weren't there for that. Your memories must be meshing together and you're thinking about yourself. What do you mean Davies was pretend—"
Cutting him off, she simultaneously pushed him onto his back and reached out, catching a glowing arrow that had been aimed at Draco's chest. The arrow disintegrated in her hand, intensifying the burning feeling that had subsided during quidditch practice. An older man was standing by a broken wooden sign, a patch, with an engraved M, on the right-hand side of his black cloak.

"Why are you trying to hurt my boyfriend?" she asked, glaring.

As he stood up, fighting the pain in his knee, he looked at her, stunned. "Did you say—whoa, whoa, put your wand down." He moved between her and the man, who had not yet spoken a word. "Katrina, that's Savage. He's an auror, a good guy. They've been stationed in Hogsmeade since those men attacked you. He must've thought we were trespassing."

Katrina refused to lower her wand, sensing the same uneasiness that lingered around the dark-haired boy. "Actually, your little girlfriend has quicker reflexes than I expected. I won't miss again" insisted Savage.

Knocking Draco aside to avoid a stinging hex, she appeared in front of Savage, noting an odd gleam in his eyes. His wand flew out of his hand, landing in the dewy grass. As he started towards her, she grabbed his wrist in a vice-like grip, a strange energy seeping through the fabric of her glove. Savage's knees began to buckle, his arm turning pale as a sheet. A voice in her head was urging her to take his other wrist but before she could, her hands were pinned behind her back, something sharp pricking her neck.

She fought against whoever was holding her, wanting to feed the hunger growing within her body. "It's all right. I've got you. Take it easy, kitty cat."

A drowsiness overcame her, causing her head to sag onto their shoulder. When she awoke, she was lying on a bed covered in silk sheets, her cheek resting against something firm.

She lifted her head to see Lukas. "Sleeping beauty awakes." He brushed the hair out of her face. "You had everyone worried. We weren't sure where you'd run off to but you're home now, Katrina. You're lucky I found you when I did or Malfoy might've done something terrible. He's a real snake, trying to trick you when he knows your mind's all jumbled."

"I remember you…L—Lukas?" she said, tentatively. "I—I was looking for you. I don't know w—I think I do but I don't. I remember wanting to be with you."

Moving his hand through her tousled hair, he curled a few strands around his fingers. "Don't strain yourself. That memory charm Cayden cast did a number on you. If you're remembering me, that's a good sign. You knew I'd keep you safe, like I always do."

"That auror. We should—" He shook his head. "But he could hurt Draco."

"It was a trap set by Malfoy," he explained. "His father cast an imperius curse on Savage to get to you. He's not your friend. Look at the pain he's put you in…your hands must still be burning. Let me get a potion to help with that. It tastes awful so I'll have the house elves prepare your favorite breakfast to make it easier to swallow. Why don't you take a shower and I'll put out a change of clothes?"

"I—I don't want you to leave," she pleaded.

"I'd never do that." He delicately kissed her forehead. "I'll be in the kitchen."
Once he left the room, Katrina entered the connecting bathroom and stared at herself in the ornate mirror. A wisp of black smoke lingered in her emerald green eyes. She absentmindedly twisted the wolf charm on her bracelet. Hearing Lukas call out to her, after what felt like hours, she changed out of her clothes, tossing her white button down blouse, black pleated skirt, and gloves onto the tile floor.

"You don't have to be afraid. It's only us," he assured her. "I sent a message to my uncle but he's on a top-secret assignment so it might be awhile before he gets it. He'll be able to reverse that memory charm and you'll be good as new."

She opened the door. "No rush. At least we're together."

"Always so optimis—"

As he turned towards her, he almost dropped the silver goblet. He lowered it onto the tray of food, his expression matching the hunger she had experienced when touching Savage as he glanced over her short lacy black robe.

"I'm remembering more. How you take care of me and you were right about that Malfoy guy. You saved me and now I want to return the favor." Pushing him down on the bed, she untied the robe and straddled his lap. "Don't you want to play with your kitty cat?"

"More than anything," he replied, reaching for her waist.

Katrina smacked his hand with the belt of her robe. "No touching. That's against the rules. I said I wanted to take care of you. You just enjoy it," she whispered, nipping his earlobe. "Your little kitty wants to please you."

"Kat," he groaned.

Taking his hand, she left a trail of kisses down his forearm, stopping at his tattoo. She shivered from the tingling sensation that tickled her lips.

"You feel so much better than Savage or Andrews," she said, grinding her hips. "It feels too good to stop. Promise me you won't tell Kane? It can be a secret. Like how you're working for Cayden…"

Just as she held a knife from the tray to his throat, he headbutted her and flipped her over, pouring the contents of the silver goblet. Noticing that her siphon abilities were no longer affecting him, despite her hand on his wrist, she realized that it was Cayden's potion. The fast-acting venom weakened her and he pinned her hands above her head, the knife falling from her grasp. Peeking out of his left sleeve was a chimaera tattoo.

"If that mudblood friend of hers does convince Dumbledore to put on a play, you should try out," he said, with a quiet chuckle. "That was some impeccable acting, kitty cat. You really had me fooled. It was draining Savage, wasn't it? It reversed the memory charm I cast while Kane had you locked up until you weren't panicking over almost killing some of your worthless classmates. I was doing you a favor."

"By brainwashing me?" she countered, disgusted. "You're the one who's helping that lunatic. It was you that day in Hogsmeade. I had a hunch when I grabbed you. What about his agenda is so appealing? You're in the papers every other week for some daring mission, you're not struggling for money or attention…so tell me, what's so worth betraying your team and Kane, the man who helped raise you?"

His thumb traced her bottom lip. "You. You're worth more than all that. I'd kill my uncle without a second thought if it meant I could have you, Katrina, but you'd hate me for that because you were trapped with him day after day and now you have an undeserved loyalty to him. He doesn't give damn about you. If he couldn't keep you under his thumb, he'd slit your throat before you took another step. It's what he did to Cayden years ago. What makes you different?"

"I don't want anything to do with him or you," she spat.

He grabbed her throat roughly. "I'm trying to protect you! Why can't you understand that?! I'm doing this because I love you. Every time some pathetic girl throws herself at me, I think of you. How I wish it was you in my bed, the one screaming my name…" Still weak from the venom, she tugged at his hand. "But how can I expect you to love me back when you've been sheltered all this time? Maybe Cayden's right. How can you understand love from a man who only cares for himself? Maybe I'll take what I want until all of his manipulations are stripped away and you can see the truth…that you love me too."

Following a loud bang, a jet of red light zipped past the open door and as Lukas apparated, it struck the headboard, creating a small burn mark. The last thing she expected was for Snape to walk into the room and though she hastily covered her robe with the blanket, it did not scene any less awkward. Kane and Jace were the next to enter, prepared to fight Lukas, and she blushed as she met Jace's gaze. Under the impression that something improper had happened, he was prevented from asking questions, due to Kane ordering him to inspect the lower floor of the house. Not yet acknowledging her, Kane headed into the bathroom.

"Judging by your expression, you've regained your memories," said Snape, having a staring contest with the nearest wall. "How did you achieve that? Did you make contact with Carlisle while he kept you here?"

"No. Someone—I'm guessing Lukas—he cast an imperius curse on an auror that was in Hogsmeade. He tried to attack Malfoy and I stopped him. I siphoned him and then my memories came back," she admitted. "I remembered Kane bringing me home because of what I did to the Great Hall and then Lukas coming in with my dinner. He must've cast the memory charm when I was eating but then I went to Hogwarts before he could take me to Cayden. I wasn't sure until I saw his tattoo and he blamed my memory loss on him."

"And yet when you contacted Kane using your bracelet, you chose not to lock yourself in the bathroom until he arrived?" he asked, taking off his cloak.

She pulled the cloak over her head. "Well, I wanted to catch him off guard before Kane showed up. I didn't know he had the venom in that goblet but Kane always says that it's easy for a woman to distract a man."

If Snape was staring any harder, there would be two eye-shaped holes in the wall. Leaving the bathroom, he tossed her clothes onto the bed and told her to meet them downstairs. She changed back into her uniform, keeping on Snape's cloak. Halfway down the staircase, Jace blocked her, warning that Kane and Snape were having a 'heated discussion'.

"Snape ordered me out and soundproofed the room." Jace frowned, looking at her neck. "That scumbag—"

"It's fine," she said, healing the assumed bruises with her wand. "He didn't do anything else, thank Merlin."

"When I find him, he'll need a cane to stand for trial," he muttered.

"Being chucked in Azkaban will be punishment enough. Why did Snape come with you?" she asked, wondering how the potions professor ended up tagging along with him and Kane.

He clearly appreciated the change of topic. "Malfoy. Your magic must've been interfering with that traitor's memory charm and you knocked us out in your sleep. We all woke up with massive headaches and I was barely able to see straight before Kane was dragging me out the door to find you and he got a message through the fire from Snape. Malfoy was waiting for him outside Dumbledore's office and said that Savage was acting weird and Lukas knocked him out and offered to take you back to St. Mungo's instead of taking you to the hospital wing. We were already suspicious that he searched for you without waking us first and then Kane got your distress signal."

The charm wore off from the door, allowing them to hear the conversation. "Yes, stand behind Dumbledore as your shield, just as you've done for the past fourteen years. I won't be lectured by the pitiful likes of you. Let's not pretend that you're objecting to my teachings out of some holier than thou mortality. You simply can't separate the past from the present. If you believe your wise leader can't see it, you're deluding yourself."

When the door opened, both men were unreadable yet carried a distinct charged tension between them. Kane instructed Jace to return to Hogwarts with Snape and wait for him in Dumbledore's office. Jace gave Katrina's arm a quick squeeze before he and Snape, who was continuing to avoid any eye contact, apparated out of the house.

Kane gripped her chin, twisting her head side to side. "Impressive. You siphoned and managed to contain your hunger on your own."

"Were you talking to Professor Snape about me?" she asked, as he released her chin. "I—is he mad that I tried to restrain Lukas myself? I would've had him if—"

"You did nothing wrong, no matter what halfwits tell you." He took a vial of yellow liquid from Snape's cloak. "Clever to ingest the potion so we can fully break down its components. Best not to mention that to Jace. I'll inform Albus that you wish to recover from the ordeal at home and we'll work on an antidote."

"You mean I'll work on it. Last potion you tried to decipher from those kooks in Barcelona, you almost lost a thumb," she pointed out.

Amused, Kane put the vial in his back pocket. "Did you get any useful information out of my ungrateful nephew? He's always been a wild one but to abandon all he's learned…"

"For me." It was her first time revealing Lukas's feelings to a person other than Jace. "He said that he loves me and having me would be worth betraying the team. For some reason, he's convinced that working for Cayden equals us having a happily ever after."

"Interesting." It was the mild reaction she expected from him. "Birds of a foolish feather flock together, I suppose."

Dumbledore was not as easily swayed by Kane's deceptions, like the affable President Kowalski, conceding to his request on the condition that Katrina return to Hogwarts by Monday morning. It did not give her much of a chance to study the potion that she had to painfully extract from her body, unbeknownst to everyone except Kane. While her guardian was hardly a connoisseur of potions, Cayden's skill was nothing to scoff at, the contents of the potion incredibly complex. Unable to remain at home, she and Kane planned to exchange notes through their two-way mirrors.

Lukas was nowhere to be found, evading detection and his absence being explained away by Mr. Moore as family business. The members of the task force had not taken his new allegiances well, some worse than others, and were determined to bring him to justice. Considering Cayden's alliance with Voldemort, Kane tasked Katrina with listening for any possible clues to their whereabouts from the children of suspected death eaters but she doubted that Cayden would be careless enough to let his secrets be exposed by lewd toads like Adrian Pucey.

Early Monday morning, Katrina returned to the castle and went to the library for potions research. Madam Pince was too busy dusting the shelves to watch her with hawkish intensity. Against her better judgement, she slowly inched towards the restricted section, certain that Cayden's potion involved dark magic.

"Katrina?" She turned from the shelf she had been feigning interest in, closest to the thick red rope that guarded her target, to find Draco, his bag sitting atop their usual table. "They let you out of St. Mungo's? No wonky memory charms?"

"Nope, memories intact. You're here early, or even more surprising, at all," she commented. "What are you doing in here?"

"Could ask you the same." He glanced at the shelves behind her. "Why are you looking at books on niffler care?"

"Thank you," she said, to distract him. "For um—I remember you helping me when I wasn't exactly myself. It must've been such a burden so thank you for not letting me wander around alone and end up in the Forbidden Forest or something."

"It wasn't a burden. You remember everything?" As she nodded, he stepped closer. "Like calling me your boyfriend?"

"When I was completely out of my mind?" Her remark did not erase his smug smirk. "I could hardly keep track of my own name. I wouldn't read into it."

"If you say so," he taunted. "If you're worried about Carlisle getting jealous, I wouldn't be. He was practically devouring the face of that Aubrey girl who works with him at MACUSA. The one who wanted to throttle Chambers at the dueling seminar? Theo had to switch seats with his mother to save his eyesight."

Maybe finding Lukas would not be that difficult. If he was with Aubrey, it was likely that she was part of Chimaera.

"Are you going to be busy after your first lesson?" She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "I uh was hoping you could help me catch up on what I missed. We could go somewhere quieter like the Astronomy Tower or—"

"Yes," he replied, rather quickly. "It's quiet, like you said, and there's a lot that you missed so we wouldn't want to be interrupted. I'll meet you up there."

"Okay. I should go find my brother. He's probably waiting for me in the common room. Bye," she said, with a small wave.

Instead of the Gryffindor common room, she continued down the grand staircase, writing a message to Kane. She slipped the mirror into her robes, almost colliding with someone as she reached the second floor. Her heart raced, seeing Roger. Though she knew that he had been possessed by Cayden, the sight of him put her on edge, part of her wary that, at any moment, it could happen again, and in addition to a possible possession, she was still sore over the misplaced attention he received for 'rescuing' her in Hogsmeade.

"Katrina, you're back," he said, relieved. "But I knew that already. McGonagall was talking to me and Patricia about checking on you. Not that you need a bodyguard or anything."

"Great. I'm hungry," she mumbled.

"Wait." He moved in front of her. "Either I'm going crazy or things have been weird between us. Did I upset you somehow?"

"I don't want to talk right now," she said, walking past him.

"Too bad. We have to talk about this" Freezing on the steps, she watched as he pulled out a stack of parchment from his bag, the notes she had gathered on Cayden and possible incidents related to Chimaera. "I asked Harry if he heard from St. Mungo's and instead, he showed me these. Robberies, killings, attacks and sightings of people in masks like the ones who attacked you. Why are you obsessing over them? You can't move on if you—"

"Roger, give them to me," she insisted.

"So you can drive yourself mad? There are aurors guarding Hogsmeade so it can't happen again but these notes you've written, it's like you want to find them. Talk to me, Katrina," he said, hiding the papers behind his back. "Don't push me away. I'm your friend. Who's Cayden? Did he work with the death eater who kidnapped you? Was he there the day of the attack? We could've shown these to the aurors to help them—"

Casting a sleeping spell, she levitated Roger into an empty classroom and removed any memories of Cayden. The bell rang, signaling the end of breakfast. Stuffing the papers into her bag, she headed to History of Magic where the Gryffindors greeted her, having not seen her since Kane brought her home. Sophie, trying her hardest not to squeeze the life out of Katrina, was happy to settle for bumping elbows. As they entered the classroom, Binns floating through the chalkboard, she grabbed Harry's arm. It was a miracle that she restrained herself enough to not bash his face into the door.

"You walk in that room, I'll break your arm," she hissed. "What the hell are you playing at? Blabbing about Cayden to Roger. Is it a boneheaded scheme you made up to break our friendship? It wasn't enough that I was giving him the cold shoulder?"

If it were not for her humorless expression, he would have laughed at her. "I wouldn't do that," he said, concerned. "I didn't say anything to Roger. I've spent the past week hounding McGonagall to tell me how you were, scared out of my mind that you were worse off than she said, Katrina. Why would I tell him about a cousin he knows nothing about?"

"Well, someone did and if it wasn't you, then it was someone in this castle who knows about him and where I was hiding my research," she said, releasing his arm. "I knocked him out and erased those memories but it's a problem."

"It had to be a Slytherin. Maybe it was Malfoy," he suggested. "You spend all those hours with him in the library, studying, so what if he hexed your quill or parchment to find those papers? He could've been brewing polyjuice potion. Snape wouldn't care if he went through his private stores to get the ingredients."

Binns was droning on about clashes between giant clans. "Don't spiral into conspiracy theories. We can't rule anyone out but we have to be smart about this. No charging at Slytherins in the middle of the corridor. I don't need you in the hospital wing."

To the Gryffindors, Katrina appeared to be as spaced out as the rest of them, aside from Hermione, but in actuality, her mind was in overdrive, attempting to figure out who would be skilled enough to impersonate Harry. She had ruled out a minion of Cayden's breaking into the castle, Kane fortifying its enchantments to detect a wizard despite the use of disguising charms or potions. Cayden himself would be unable to 'puppet' Harry, not being blood related or in the same room, the strain of such dark magic too much of a risk.

After History of Magic, she lied about having to meet Dumbledore in his office and sneaked up to the Astronomy Tower. Draco arrived minutes later, as she laid a checkered blanket on the floor.

"It's colder up here than I thought," she said, lighting the torches around the room.

He joined her on the blanket, taking his bag off his shoulder. "You did pick the spot. I'm not insinuating anything but if people were to pass by, they might think this is a date."

"Remember when I told you I like you better when you don't talk?" She retrieved a container of frosted brownies from her bag. "Do you want one? I uh made them to…thank you again, for being there for me."

"I didn't know you bake. They're not poisoned, are they?" he joked, biting into a brownie. "Wow. These are amazing."

"Hilarious," she said, sarcastically.

"I'm serious. Best I've ever had, but don't tell my mother that." He stifled a yawn. "Sorry. Late night listening to a match in the common room. Where do you want to start?"

In an instant, he collapsed onto the floor, his eyes shut and the partially eaten brownie rolling onto the blanket. Resting her head in his lap, she tapped his forehead with her wand, the charm sending her into his memory of Lukas. She was in a fancy restaurant, Draco, Theodore, Pansy, and Daphne sitting around a long table with their families. They appeared to be having brunch. Draco was paying more attention to the eggs on his plate than the babbling Pansy, who was gushing over their shared family plans for Christmas vacation.

Theodore nudged his side, breaking him out of his stupor. "As if having to listen to my father insinuate I'm a disappointment compared to my older brother didn't make this unbearable, look who's here. This place has definitely lowered its standards if they're letting in Carlisle."

He nodded towards a well-dressed couple in their twenties being given a nearby table. Katrina was, at first, confused why Theodore would believe the man, who was thin and lanky, to be Lukas, until she stood behind Draco, touching the sides of his head. Now seeing what he saw, the couple transformed into Lukas and Aubrey. It was a complex charm that altered perception, allowing a witch or wizard to alter their appearance around specific people to avoid enemies.

"How long are you going to sulk?" Aubrey asked him, flipping through her menu. "You deserved it for being unable to keep your twig in your pants. If you ask me, he was being lenient."

"I didn't ask you," Lukas snarled. "The plan was to bring her to him. I had to ensure that the memory charm hadn't failed."

"Yeah, that's why. Where is he?" Ignoring Lukas's harsh glare, her eyes darted around the restaurant. "I hate when people are late. I bet he doesn't even have it."

Katrina spotted a third place setting on the table. "Why are you here?"

"My thoughts exactly," said a familiar voice.

With a tug on her navel, she was brought back to the Astronomy Tower, an unconscious Draco on her lap and a furious Snape standing across from her.

"P—professor, I was—" she stuttered, struggling to find a good excuse.

"I'm well aware of what you were doing. When I inquired Miss Dunbar and Miss Roper of your whereabouts, they said something rather interesting…that you were meeting with the headmaster, who is not in his office, and here I find you, engaging in magic far beyond your understanding," he said, seething with a silent anger. "Did Carlisle put you up to this?"

"No. I—Malfoy told me he saw Lukas and I wanted to find out what he was doing." Shrinking under his gaze, she scooted back, placing Draco's head on the blanket. "It was my idea. I've done it before and I was only going to do it for a couple minutes. He's fine. If you just let me try again, I can find Lukas."

"And why is that your responsibility?" He did not wait for an answer. "Despite what Carlisle thinks, you are not one of his soldiers. You are meant to be focusing on your studies, not searching for rogue aurors and former pupils or delving into your classmate's memories!"

"Kane's not making me do anything," she argued. "I told you it was my idea. Why is it so bad that I want to help?"

"Because I won't see you put in danger, Lily!" he shouted.

Katrina's eyes widened at his words. Snape's face was ghostly pale, his body rigid as a plank as his thoughts seemed to catch up with what had come out of his mouth.