Black Magick

by Rhiannon Thanatos

Mihnea and Constance have spent their young lives growing up within the walls of the Hellsing Organization. When they receive an opportunity to attend a school of magic, they encounter more than they ever thought possible. Sequel to Blood Heritage. Trigger warning for sensitive readers, as some controversial/disturbing material is covered in later chapters.

56. Catching the Scent p1

I don't own Hellsing or Harry Potter, and I'm not making any money from this.

"I can't believe you two bring those things to school."

Mihnea paused in loading his gun and shot a sideways look at Hermione. One of his brows went up.

"What, Granger, are you going to turn us in?" he challenged.

Hermione gaped at him open mouthed for a moment, then pressed her lips together in a firm line. More than two weeks had passed since she reported Harry's broom, but she was still sensitive about people inferring that she was a tattletale. The girl glared pointedly at him to show how little she appreciated the comment, then went back to pouring through her notes for Ancient Runes. Constance made a face at her cousin and gave him a backhanded smack to the shoulder.

"That wasn't necessary." she told him quietly.

"What?" he said. "Just because you pussyfoot around to keep everyone happy doesn't mean that I have to."

Connie gave him a hard look. "Don't be an ass."

He just shrugged in response and turned his attention back to sliding the clip into his weapon. There was no word yet on how much progress the teachers had made with the Firebolt and Harry, understandably, was getting antsy. The first Quiddich match of the new year was fast approaching and the boy was worried to the point of distraction about getting it back in time to use it. Since brooding would only make everyone more anxious, they tried to find entertaining ways to pass the time. Constance had gotten a letter from Mihnea about meeting up for target practice after classes on Friday and because she didn't see the point in hiding what she was doing any longer, she filled her friends in on her plans. They all were interested and asked if they could come along to watch. Mihnea had been mildly irritated at the thought of having an audience around, but eventually gave up arguing and agreed. So Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and the twins met up with Connie and Mihnea on Friday afternoon and they inconspicuously made their way out to the Forbidden Forest to get set up. Of everyone, Hermione was the most nervous about it, but Connie pointed out that with them being such a large group, there really wasn't much to worry about.

When Fred called out to them, she glanced up from Persephone to pinpoint his position. He had volunteered to tack their target onto a tree and she wanted to make sure he put it a far enough distance away. She waved a hand at him.

"Further back!"

Fred walked backwards until he came upon a tree that was roughly a hundred meters away. Constance gave him the thumbs up sign and he put up the target before jogging back to join them.

"Okay, so do we need to cast a muffling charm or something?" he asked, looking specifically at the gun in Connie's lap. "That thing was really loud when you used it at our house."

"Nope." Mihnea replied before she had a chance to say anything. "That's what the silencers are for."

Ron looked confused. "What's a silencer?"

Constance held up Persephone to show him what they were talking about. "This." she said, pointing at it. "When it's screwed onto the end of the barrel it supresses the noise. The only reason it wasn't attached at the Burrow is because I had just cleaned my gun a few days before and I didn't think I would need it for anything."

They all seemed to accept her answer at face value. The girl was thankful no one asked any complicated questions about how the weapons worked. While she was comfortable using them, she didn't know enough about firearm design and engineering to explain all the fine details of their working mechanics. That was a task for her dad or aunt Syn. But then, they had spent a good deal of time with those two at the manor, so it was entirely possible they had already questioned them about it.

Once she and Mihnea were loaded up and had their silencers screwed into position, they instructed the others to stand back out of the way while they took turns shooting at the target. Connie had to begrudgingly agree that her new glasses had a positive effect on her aim. She could see the lines on the parchment so much clearer and her shots were more accurate than they had been in the past. Maybe there was something to these things after all. During the pauses between shots, she noticed that Hermione was paying just as much attention to the goings on as the others were. Oh, she continued to make out like she was more focused on her studying, of course, but the girl still shot long gazes in their direction out of the corner of her eye. Constance wondered if Hermione was attempting to keep a low profile to avoid further conflicts with Harry and Ron, or if she was just irritated at the idea of Mihnea siding with the boys instead of her.

When the two of them finished emptying out their clips, the boys all wore similar expectant looks on their faces. Like they wanted to have a go for themselves, but weren't sure if they were allowed to and didn't know if they should ask. Finally, the question that was clearly pouring through all of their minds came from an unexpected source.

Ginny cleared her throat and pushed herself away from the tree she had been propped up against. "Could I try?"

Connie and Mihnea both paused in surprise and looked at each other. They had been expecting one of the guys to request a chance to shoot, but not Ginny. Constance herself never would have thought the younger girl would be the first to ask.

"Sure!" she replied, turning back to her. "That's not a problem."

The twins both looked taken aback. "Hey, you mean it's okay for us to try one of those things out?" Fred asked.

"Syn made out like the firelegs she makes are alive and don't like being used by people they don't belong to." George added.

Constance rolled her eyes at the sound of his mistake. "It's 'firearms', George." she corrected. "And they usually are like that but Persephone is very laid back. This is just a practice session, so I'm sure she won't mind."

"Huh." Harry said. He still found the whole notion of referring to guns as living things strange, but otherwise appeared thoughtful. He glanced at Mihnea. "What about yours, then?"

Her cousin made a face and held up a hand, palm outward. "Don't go there, Potter. None of you would be able to handle my gun."

Fred scoffed like he found that a bit offensive. "What's the big deal? They can't be that different."

Mihnea quirked a brow. "I think you're forgetting something important." he said, then pointed at himself. "I'm not human."

Hermione suddenly decided to drop the pretense of studying she was putting on and set her textbook and notes aside to get involved in the conversation.

"You're half human." she pointed out.

Mihnea shot a passive, sideways glance at her. "I never said I wasn't. Being half human isn't the same as being a full one."

"All the same, it's still a part of who you are, so you can't pretend it's not there."

Constance watched as her cousin noticeably paused and gave the girl a long, confused look. "What the hell does that have to do with anything?" he demanded in bewilderment. "I'm trying to explain why my gun can't be used by an ordinary person and you have to butt in and turn it into a philosphical debate that has nothing to do with my point. If you want to engage in a rhetorical battle of wits, that's fine, but you'd best find someone else to challenge because I would chew your ass up and hand it back to you. If you have nothing valid or relevant to say, then I suggest you keep your mouth shut and stick your pretty little nose back in those books of yours."

Mihnea didn't sound truly angry - just irritated at having the subject derailed along a tangent. Hermione gaped at him in surprise for a long moment before her ears turned red with embarrassment and her mouth snapped shut. Ron looked back and forth between the two of them, then nudged Harry in the ribs.

"I have no idea what he just said, but it sounds like they speak the same language." he whispered.

Harry silently nodded in agreement while Mihnea huffed and turned back to Fred to finish his explanation.

"Venom is a high caliber combat pistol that's heavier and more powerful than Connie's." he told him. "It's not something a novice should start out with. It's designed to be a left-handed weapon so it would be too cumbersome for any of you to use, and my mom just modified it to fire custom built 454. Casull rounds. I'm still getting used to the difference in recoil myself. If you don't hold it exactly right, there's a real possibility that the force of the shot could break the bones in your hand. This gun wasn't meant to be used by ordinary humans." he paused and shrugged. "Sorry, but that's just the way it is."

Fred and George blinked at each other. "Okie dokie... Connie's it is, then."

Constance rolled her eyes at their blase response. "Well, if you guys want to try as well, you'll have to wait your turn. Ginny asked first." She gave the younger girl a warm smile. "I have to reload anyway, so you can watch while I go over what you need to know."

Ginny's head bobbed with interest and she followed her over to the tree where the bag containing their ammo was located. The boys and Hermione gathered around as well - wanting to partake of the brief lesson so they'd be prepared when their turn came. Meanwhile, Mihnea thought a hundred meters was too far a target for a beginner, so he drew out a set of concentric circles on a new piece of parchment and ran down to tack it to a tree less than twenty meters away. An absurdly easy target for the two of them, but it would provide enough of a challenge for someone who had never shot before. Constance got a new clip loaded, explained everything about how the sights worked and the proper way to hold the weapon, then passed Persephone to Ginny.

The girl's eyes widened as she tested out it's weight. "Oh!" she exclaimed. "It's heavier than I thought it would be."

Connie couldn't supress a small smirk of bemusement. "Most guns are like that. You get used to it eventually." she told her. "Now remember, it's dangerous while it's loaded so be careful not to point it at anyone and keep the safety on until you're ready to fire."

The girl nodded seriously, then everyone moved back to give her space. Ginny lifted her arms, and upon adjusting to using the sights, flipped off the safety. But when she put her finger on the trigger, nothing happened. The gun lowered a hair and she looked back at them with a puzzled expression.

"Am I doing something wrong?" she questioned. "It's not doing anything."

It looked like she was doing everything correctly, so Constance didn't know what the problem could be. Mihnea, though, thought of something she hadn't.

"The trigger doesn't just slide back when it's touched." he said. "You have to put some force behind it or it won't move."

Ginny blinked at him. "Oh... I see."

The girl lifted Persephone a second time, took aim, then jerked back on the trigger. The gun immediately recoiled at the force of the shot - shocking Ginny so much that she dropped the weapon and jumped back away from it. Her brothers all gave starts at the sight.

"Whoa there, are you okay?" Ron exclaimed. "What happened?"

Ginny looked around at them with wild eyes and thrust a quivering finger toward the gun laying on the ground. "It moved!" she said. "It jerked back like it was trying to get away from me!"

Connie laughed and shared a look with her cousin. "That's normal, Ginny." she said reassuringly. "I warned you it had a bit of a kick."

"Well, yes, but I didn't expect 'a bit' to be that much!" the girl replied. She put a hand to her chest and took a deep breath to calm her nerves. "Scared me half to death! Did I hit anything, at least?"

Mihnea chuckled and pointed at a tree a solid foot away from the target. "If you consider that hitting something." he told her. He pressed a finger to his lips thoughtfully. "You wont be able to hit anything you aim at jerking around like that. Do you mind if I show you a trick?"

The girl looked like she wasn't sure about attempting a second shot, but curiosity won out in the end. She slowly nodded in response to his offer and Mihnea strode over to retrieve the gun and handed it back to her. He carefully positioned her hands in the right places then stepped beside her.

"Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and keep your left foot half a step back." he instructed, falling into the stance to demonstrate. "Let most of your weight fall back on that foot. When you aim, lock your elbows so your arms stay steady."

Ginny readjusted the way she was standing to mirror him. "Like this?"

"Very good." he replied with a nod. He walked behind her and took her head into his hands, turning it toward the target. "Now, think of a person you hate. Someone who makes your blood boil whenever you see them. Imagine their face in the center of that target and aim here." he tapped his finger against the space between her eyebrows. "Right between the eyes so you'll blow their brains out."

"Oh my God, that is so disgusting." Hermione muttered in disapproval. "Do you have to turn it into something violent?"

Mihnea's eyes flicked in her direction. "It's called 'stress relief', Granger. The same principle as sticking someone's picture on a dart board. Your focus is better and your aim more accurate when you imagine hurting someone you don't like. Maybe if you tried it a time or two, your knickers wouldn't be in such a twist all the time."

Hermione's mouth dropped open in shock, while Harry and Ron exchanged a look and let out mutual snorts of laughter. The girl's eyes quickly snapped toward them harshly and they both simpered down. Constance didn't appreciate her cousin picking at her friend so much and she shot a hard glare at him to signal him to stop. Mihnea just shrugged at her and went back to giving Ginny instructions.

"When you're ready to fire, take deep breath in through your nose and slowly exhale through your mouth." he said calmly. "As you breathe out, give the trigger a squeeze. Don't jerk back on it. Put every other thought out of your head and make every movement deliberate."

Ginny intently drank in every word he spoke. When he was sure she understood, Mihnea manually readjusted her posture so she was standing up straight, then stepped back and told her to take the shot. Following his lessons to a 'T', the girl focused her gaze down the barrel at the target, took a deep breath, and fired. The bullet didn't strike the center of the parchment, but it did leave a hole about an inch outside of the bulls-eye zone.

"I... I hit it." she said with a blank expression. Her features slowly lit up with the realization of what she'd done. "I hit it!"

Constance couldn't help but smile at the girl's proud, enthusiastic response to the accomplishment. It was nice to see her bubbling with happiness about it. Since there was plenty of ammo and she could always write home to have more sent, she told Ginny to go ahead and use the remaining rounds before handing the gun off to someone else. She never managed to get a bulls-eye, but her shots remained in the same general area, slowly growing closer. With a bit of practice, she had no doubt that the girl would become a good shot. Once her turn was over, each of the boys stepped up to have a go. Fred went first, followed by George. Their aim was slightly better than their sister's, but neither of them ever hit the center. That was to be expected during a first attempt. When Ron's turn came around, he quickly decided that he didn't like the feeling of the gun's recoil and passed it off to Harry after just two shots. ("Bleeding thing moving about makes me nervous." he said.) Of everyone, Harry wound up doing the best. It was his first time using a firearm as well, but it seemed that his 'seeker's eye' worked to his advantage. His forth shot struck the target a couple of centimeters right of dead center.

"Wow, Harry!" Connie exclaimed. "That's really good! There aren't many people who can do that their first time."

The boy turned to grin at her with a restrained sense of pride. "I didn't think I'd hit that close, but I guess it's not that different from getting a fix on the snitch. At least that thing isn't moving around." he said, then looked down at the gun in his hands. "I see what you guys mean about the kick. It feels really odd."

"Odd doesn't even come close." Ron commented with a faux shudder. "I have no idea how a person could get used to that. Made my hand go all wonky and shaky." he shook his head and peered over at Hermione. "Well?"

The bushy haired girl blinked at him. "Well, what?"

"Are you going to have to a go or not?" he prodded. "Everyone else has done it."

Hermione studied him for a moment then wrinkled her nose. "No offense, but I'm not interested."

"Oh come off it, Granger!" Fred told her, making a face. "You know you're just as interested as the rest of us. You just wont say so. At least try it once."

Ginny nodded in agreement. "It's really not that bad." she assured her. "I thought it was kind of fun once I got the hang of it."

Hermione just crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head. "Shooting a gun is serious business. It's not something you play around with." she paused to look at Connie. "I understand why your parents would want you to have them with you, but that doesn't change the fact those guns are weapons. With something that dangerous an adult should be around to make sure nothing goes wrong."

Constance wanted to groan and beat her head against a tree trunk in frustration. She wasn't still going on about that nonsense, was she?"

"Hermione..." she began slowly. "Having an adult around doesn't magically make everything safe. Mihnea and I have more training in how to use firearms than most of them do."

"I know that and I'm not saying you don't." she insisted. "It's just that I would feel more comfortable about all this if we had some kind of supervision, is all."

Connie continued to stare at her, half offended and half confused about her attitude. But when she opened her mouth to say something, Mihnea stepped over and took hold of her arm to make her stop.

"Don't bother." he said. "Granger is scared, so leave it alone."

It was said quietly, but Hermione was close enough to hear the comment. She bristled with indignation. "Excuse me?" she demanded. "What did you say?"

Mihnea's head turned toward her and he arched a brow. "You're the one talking about being uncomfortable because there's not an adult around." he pointed out. "That's just a nice way of saying you're scared."

"Scared of shooting a gun?" she went on incredulously. "I most certainly am not!"

"Prove it then." he challenged. "Unless you're afraid of making a fool of yourself..."

Hermione glared him down and everyone felt the atmosphere shift and become more tense. Mihnea had found one of the girl's sensitive spots and was deliberately pushing her buttons to get a rise out of her. The tactic worked. With a deep huff of resentment, Hermione squared her shoulders and strode over to Harry.

"Give me that thing." she demanded.

Harry handed Persephone over without argument and grabbed Ron's arm to pull him back out of the way. They all watched as she fell into proper firing stance and raised the gun with both hands to take aim.

"If there are nine rounds in the clip, then there are three shots left for me?" she asked.

Constance gave a start when she realized the question was directed at her. She took a moment to think about it. Ron had shot twice and Harry took four...

"That's right." she confirmed.

Hermione hummed thoughtfully, not looking away from where she was aiming. She tilted her head a bit, closed her right eye, then fired off three shots in quick succession. Everyone else had taken a fair bit of time between shots to adjust to the recoil, so seeing that she was comfortable enough to go so fast was positively shocking. A person with zero experience didn't act that way.

"Sweet Merlin, Hermione!" Ron exclaimed with wide eyes. "What the bloody hell was that?"

The girl didn't respond. She only shot a look at him and handed the gun back to Constance. Meanwhile, George had placed a hand up to his brow to peer down at the target.

"Uh... that was cool and all, but you know you missed, right?" he pointed toward the parchment. "There aren't any new holes."

"I didn't miss anything." Hermione replied simply. "I wasn't aiming for that one."

Connie blinked at her in surprise and looked down at the target one hundred meters away. Though it was difficult to make out, there were three new holes situated in the middle of the centermost circle. Hermione had not only hit the target that she and Mihnea used, but made three highly accurate shots in a row. There was no way in hell she didn't know what she was doing. She looked back at her friend in astonishment.

"You never told me you knew how to shoot!" she said in an almost accusing fashion.

The girl shrugged. "I've been skeet shooting with my parents a few times. I never thought it was worth mentioning." She frowned pointedly at Mihnea. "Say I'm afraid of shooting a gun again."

Her cousin was just as taken aback as everyone else. He took a small step back and looked her up and down appraisingly. "I stand corrected."

Fred and George both stared at Hermione in shock, like they weren't sure whether to be intimidated or impressed. "Who are you, girl?" they asked in unision.

Hermione looked a bit confused by the question, then decided to take it as a compliment. She smiled at them. "The same person I've always been."

Ron and Harry exchanged a glance. "I am never making you mad again." the ginger haired boy declared. "Ever."

Ginny snorted. "Yes, you will."

"Oh, shut it, Gin." Ron said, making a face at her. "I wasn't talking to you."

"Maybe not, but I was talking to you." she retorted, planting her hands on her hips. "You know it's the truth."

Mihnea rolled his eyes at the display of sibling rivalry and turned his attention back to Hermione. "Skeet shooting, huh? How many times is 'a few'?"

"Two or three." the girl replied.

One of his eyebrows quickly shot up. "Two or three?" he repeated.

"That's right." she confirmed with a sniff.

He continued to study her intently. If Hermione had gotten that good after being on a range so little, then she had taken to weapons like a fish to water. It was unusual, but some people just had a natural knack for it.

"Rifle or shotgun?" he questioned at last.

"Rifle." she reported. "I've used a .44 and a .30-06, but I didn't like the way either of them handled. I have a personal preference for the M1 carbine."

Mihnea's head tilted sideways. "That's a military grade rifle."

"That was first used by American troops during World War II and continued to be used up to the Vietnam era." Hermione said as if reading from a book. "Yes, I'm aware of that."

Connie noticed her cousin's brow go a notch higher. He was impressed by her knowledge and was trying not to show it. Mihnea cleared his throat.

"Well, I don't know who your instructor was but they did a piss poor job of teaching you the right way to shoot." he told her.

Hermione's mouth fell open. "Excuse me? I shot perfectly fine, thank you!"

Harry appeared confused. "She did better than any of us." he pointed out.

"And she had to close one of her eyes to manage it." Mihnea stated plainly. "Which is the stupidest thing a person can do."

Hermione got even more upset if that were possible. "Now look here! I have a dominant left eye and I was taught that closing the weaker one improves focus. If I made an accurate shot, then what does it matter how I did it?"

"Eye dominance only determines how you hold the gun." Mihnea countered. "Closing one of your eyes cuts your range of vision in half and makes you vulnerable. Having good aim doesn't count for much if you can only see half of what's around you. It's stupid and someone who has a reputation for knowing everything should know better. You wouldn't close an eye while casting a spell, would you?"

Trust Mihnea to focus on the one mistake she had made. But then, he did have a point. It was a bad habit to have. However, someone who had only been out shooting a handful of times probably wouldn't know that. Her cousin turned away like the conversation was over and Hermione glared at the back of his head.

"Does he always have to find something wrong?" she muttered under her breath.

Connie sighed and told her she thought it was his way of giving her constructive criticism, even if it did come across as picking on her. She had to admit it sounded a bit harsh, but he did that to people. Since everyone had gotten a turn and the sky was beginning to darken, they all mutually decided that it was time for them to start packing things up to return to the castle. Mihnea went off to pull down the targets while Connie returned all of their used clips back to the bags they had brought. The others focused on searching out all of the expended shells that had fallen to the ground so there would be no traces left of what they had been up to. Once they were sure all of the metal casings from the bullets had been recovered, the girl collected them and placed them into the bags as well. They would be able to throw them out later. She then pushed herself upright and looked back down toward where Mihnea was. He was taking way too long to pull down two sheets of parchment.

"Mihnea!" she called out. "What are you doing?"

It looked like he had already gotten the hundred meter target down and had come back for the closer one. However, he was just standing there frozen, his back turned to them with his hand resting on the parchment, but not moving. His head was turned toward the left, like he was looking for something. At the sound of her voice he shook his head and turned to crook a finger at her.

"Come here a second." he said. When he noticed the others curiously look over, his eyes narrowed. "Alone."

Connie's brows furrowed. That was... odd to say the least. She looked around at her companions and told them to hang tight while she went to see what he wanted, then trotted over. As soon as she was close enough, Mihnea grabbed her hand and pulled her next to him so that both of them had their backs turned toward the collection of wizards behind them.

"Keep your voice down and don't do anything suspicous." he whispered, then gave her a long, searching look. "Please tell me you know something about someone from home being here."

Constance went still and stared at him. What on earth would make him think that? "Of course not." she replied quietly. "If any of them came to the school for some reason, they would let us know so we wouldn't be shocked senseless if we saw them."

Her cousin nodded and shoved a hand back through his hair in irritation. "Yeah... I know. I'm just trying to make myself feel better."

The girl's brows furrowed when his eyes darted toward the left again. "What's going on?" she prodded.

"Something really fucking weird, is what." he replied. He looked back at her and dropped his voice even further. "We're not alone anymore. I haven't noticed anything until just now, but I smell something over there," he jerked his head to the left. "That shouldn't be. And it's a hell of a lot closer than I'm comfortable with."

Her eyes went wide. "Please say you're joking!" she hissed. "How close are we talking about?"

"I'm dead serious. About a hundred and fifty meters or so. The scent isn't moving, so whoever it is is staying in one spot."

"Whoever?" she repeated. "You mean a person has snuck up on us and gotten that close without you noticing! How the hell did that happen, Mihnea?"

"I don't know!" he snapped quietly. "If there weren't spells all over the grounds preventing it, I would swear someone apparated because the smell just popped up out of nowhere. If they had walked I would have picked up on it before now." he paused and looked at her with a confused expression that made her nervous. "It's familiar, Connie. I can't tell you how, but it's like I know it from somewhere. When I first noticed, I thought I'd look over and see mom standing there. But... it's not her. It's too different to be anyone I recognize. It reminds me of home, but I can't figure out why. It's seriously freaking me out."

That had to be the most disturbing thing Constance had ever heard him say. Even if he couldn't identify a particular scent, Mihnea never got so spooked. If it was enough to rattle his nerves, then it was something to be worried about.

"I don't like this, Mihnea." she said. "What if it has something to do with Sirius Black? We have Harry with us!"

"That's what I'm worried about." he admitted. He shot a quick glance over his shoulder at the others, then back to the trees on their left. He took a long, deep breath. "Everything is packed up and ready to go?"

Connie quickly nodded and told him that everything they brought could be grabbed in a matter of seconds. Her cousin was thoughtful for a moment, then looked at her intently.

"Get the others back to the castle. Don't tell them anything until you're out of the forest so they don't panic."

From the way he was talking, she gathered he intended to stay behind and track this mystery person down. She knew he was capable of taking care of himself, but she hated the thought of just walking away and leaving him there alone.

"I am not leaving you here by yourself!" she whispered furiously. "What if...?"

"Yes, you are." Mihnea retorted before she could finish. "If it were just the two of us I wouldn't say a word, but we have other people to worry about. You have to stay with them in case something gets past me."

Constance still didn't like the plan, but what he said made sense. He could track things by scent for miles if he had to. She couldn't. Her presence would only slow him down and leave all of her friends defenseless. Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, she asked if he had enough bullets. Mihnea revealed that Venom was fully loaded and he had another clip in his pocket. Knowing that he had ammunition made her feel a small bit better. The girl gave his arm a solid squeeze, instructed him to be careful and to give her a full report when he came back, then turned around and relaxed her face into a bland expression to hide her concern. She jogged back to the others and slung her bag onto her shoulder.

"Everybody ready?" she asked.

They all nodded in response, but appeared curious about the private conversation she had shared with her cousin. George asked what it was about, but she put him off, saying that it was nothing and Mihnea needed to be left alone for a while. He would catch up with them later. The others thought it was weird and not wanting to lie outright, Connie told them she would explain when they got back to the castle. She made damn sure to keep Harry right next to her as they made their way through the forest. The only thing that stopped her from linking her arm with his to keep him from getting too far ahead was the knowledge that it would probably tip them off that something was wrong. After a long walk along the forest path, they exited the line of trees not far from Hagrid's hut.

"Okay, what's going on?" George demanded once they were out in the open. "You're acting weird and Mihnea looked like he was vamping out or something."

Constance paused mid step. "...Vamping out?"

"Yeah, vamping out. He looked like a wild animal that wanted to chase after after something." he asserted. "Do you guys have some special term for that?"

"Um... not really. I've just never heard it described that way..." she said, then shook her head and took his hand to pull him along. "I said I'd explain when we got back to the castle."

"Oh no." Fred said firmly. "I'm not playing this game anymore. The castle is right over there, so start talking."

The girl huffed in irritation. "Okay, fine!" she exclaimed. "But we have to keep moving because we don't need to be near the forest."

"Don't need to be near..." Harry began, then nervously looked back at the trees they had just exited from. "What's wrong? Does Bassarab have something going on with him that's... dangerous to be around?"

"Mihnea isn't what I'm worried about." she insisted. "He smelled something weird."

Ron's face twisted up in confusion. "Smelled something? I didn't smell anything wonky..."

"You wouldn't have been able to." Connie told him. "None of us would because we're human. Mihnea has vampiric senses that are keener than ours and he can sniff things out better than a bloodhound. He smelled something in the forest that shouldn't have been there, so we needed to leave. Now can we please get a move on?"

Hermione's mouth fell open. "Wait a minute! Something is out there that made you nervous enough to think that we needed to leave, and you left him by himself?" she exclaimed. "What if it's Black out there? He could get hurt!"

Constance didn't like being reminded of that fact. "Mihnea knows how to take care of himself." she said firmly. "If Black is out there and he runs into him, I imagine he'll kill him."

Everyone gaped at her and Ginny swallowed. "You really think he'd do that?" she whispered. "Kill a person...?"

"A murderer, Ginny." The girl pointed out. "Mihnea has killed bigger, scarier things with his bare hands, so a human being wouldn't be much trouble for him." she paused to sigh. "And he couldn't tell what it was, so it's possible nothing will happen. We just didn't need to stick around to find out."

That seemed to sober everyone up enough to goad them into following her directions. Keeping close together, they headed up to the nearest entrance of the castle and went inside. Once there, they agreed to wait around for Mihnea's return. Most of the other students were busy doing other things or preparing to head up to the dormitories for the night, so they didn't have to worry about anyone wondering what they were doing just standing there. However, it was getting pretty dark and if her cousin didn't make it back soon, a teacher would show up to usher them upstairs before they got any news.

About twenty mintutes passed before Connie finally caught sight of a tall, dark shape making it's way toward the entrance. The growing shadows made it impossible to see any features, but she knew it had to be him from the absence of sound coming from his footsteps. When he stepped through the door and was illuminated by the interior lights, Mihnea's expression was confused and frustrated. He caught sight of them huddled together in conversation against a nearby wall and walked over.

Constance studied him searchingly. "Well? Did you find anything?"

Mihnea shook his head. "It disappeared."

The girl blinked. "Disa... what do you mean, 'it disappeared'?" she demanded.

"Just what I said." he snapped at her. "I started tracking them as soon as you guys left. Whoever it was knew I was there because they kept moving around and I never got close enough to see who it was. They tried following you at a distance, but as soon as you were out of the forest, they doubled back to run further in, then just... vanished. It was the same as how it showed up. One minute the smell was there and the next it was gone."

That wasn't possible. Smells didn't appear and disappear with no explanation and it made the entire situation that much stranger. Mihnea could track anything, so if something was able to evade and escape him like that...

Hermione's lips pursed together thoughtfully. "Are you sure you weren't just imagining it?" she questioned. "I mean... I don't know much about how things like this work, but surely smells can be carried through the air from other places, or..."

Mihnea whirled to face her, his nostrils flaring with irritation. "It wasn't my imagination!" he said, upset at being questioned. "There wasn't any wind. Not even a hint of a breeze, and the scent was too strong. I would have been able to tell if it had been carried from somewhere else. It appeared out of nowhere, then vanished like they dropped off the face of the earth. There are no circumstances where that happens naturally. None. Someone was there."

The bushy haired girl's eyes widened and she quickly stepped back at the forcefulness of his tone. Connie immediately stepped between them and held out her hands.

"Okay, calm down!" she said, then looked pointedly at her cousin. "Could you tell anything about why it seemed familiar?"

He shut his eyes and took a deep breath to get his temper under control. "Not a damn thing." he reported. "It's the weirdest thing I've ever come across before, and I don't like it."

"But what are we supposed to do about it?" Ginny spoke up. "Tell a teacher?"

Fred put a hand on his sister's shoulder to pull her back. "If we tell someone, we'd have to explain what all of us were doing in the Forbidden Forest." he pointed out.

George nodded in agreement and shot a look at Mihnea. "And if it was just a smell, it's not something they'd be able to pick up on anyway."

Harry and Ron looked at each other. "We can't just sit around knowing something is out there and not do something!" the ginger haired boy exclaimed.

"Do you have a better idea, Weasley?" Mihnea challenged. "Our hands are tied and there's not much we can do. And I'd like to see what plan a thirteen year old wizard with no battle training or field experience has that can outdo countless protective wards and hoards of dementors."

Ron's mouth opened and shut several times before he finally gave up trying to come up with a rebuttal. There was nothing he could say and everyone knew it. As silence fell around them, Constance cleared her throat.

"We can't go into the forest anymore." she decided. "At least not until we know whatever was out there wont bother us." she looked at her cousin. "Start doing perimeter checks when you can. We may not be able to do much about a strange smell in the woods, but if something comes out onto the school grounds, I want to know about it."

Mihnea inclined his head seriously. "Absolutely." he agreed. "I can take care of that."

Good. She thought. In the meantime, all they could do was hunker down, remain watchful, and pray that nothing else happened. But if it did, they needed to be prepared.

---

The next morning brought with it the promise of the first Quiddich game of the new year. It was Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw, so it was bound to be a good one. Everyone tried to put the odd events of the night before out of their minds as they grabbed a bite to eat for breakfast.

And somehow, Constance got pulled into her first real 'hang out session' with Luna.

To be fair, you couldn't really describe it as her being forced into anything. She had noticed the girl quietly working on something at one of the tables and asked if there was anything she could do to help. Luna had been pleasantly surprised to find someone speaking to her and happily accepted her offer. Exactly what they were working on, Connie couldn't say. It looked like a giant sculpted bird that they were sticking feathers into to make it look more realistic. Aside from that, she had no idea what the purpose of it was. And while Luna hadn't complained (yet), Constance was beginning to think she was doing little more than making a mess of things.

"I have no idea how you do this." she said, frustrated that she wasn't able to make her section look as good as the part Luna was working on. "Maybe I should get out of the way and let you do it..."

"Oh, no, it's fine." Luna assured her with a kind smile. "You just have to pay attention to the way the feathers lay. They interlock with each other to form a covering just like on a real bird." she pulled her hands away from the section of wing she was focused on. "See?"

Connie peered at it and found that it was absolutely perfect. Just like every other part the girl had laid her hands on. Her instructions were simple enough in theory, but putting them into practice was more difficult than she imagined it would be. The feathers laid out across the table were all different sizes, and one had to choose which was best suited to the body part being worked on. If you handled them too much, the filaments of the feathers would break apart and become ragged looking and if they weren't inserted in just the right way, they wouldn't lay down flat. The tediousness of it became downright annoying after a while. Connie also couldn't help but notice that a few small sections she had worked on looked better than they had when she gave up on them. She strongly suspected that Luna had gone back and reworked them while she wasn't looking and hadn't said anything about it. Fixing her mistakes so she wouldn't think she was doing as badly as she was. The thoughtfulness of the action was touching, but she was still slightly irritated at not being able to perform as well as her. Maybe she should just admit that she was hopeless at this 'artistic' thing and be done with it.

Connie finally decided to sit back and let the girl put the finishing touches on the bird herself so she wouldn't muck it up. "I'm sorry I'm not helping very much." she apologized.

Luna shook her head. "You really have been helping, I promise. I couldn't have gotten this much done by myself."

She wasn't sure whether to believe her or not, but chose not to argue. "So, is there any particular reason why you're making this? Or did you just wake up this morning and decide to make an eagle sculpture?"

"Oh, no, nothing like that." the blonde girl replied. "I'm doing this for the game. I try to show support for my house when they play."

Ah... so she was making an emblem of the Ravenclaw mascot? The choice of subject matter certainly made more sense now. But how she planned on using the thing, Connie had no clue.

"Um... what are you going to do with it?" she prodded gently.

"Wear it, of course." Luna replied, as if that should have been obvious.

She leaned over to rifle through the bag sitting on the ground between her feet and pulled out what looked like a handknitted cap. The girl laid it on the table in front of her, then carefully picked up the eagle and positioned it to sit on top, hooking the taloned feet into small loops designed to hold it steady. She then drew her wand and delicately waved it over the bird's head, murmuring a few quiet words Connie couldn't make out. The spell took effect and the sculpture appeared to come to life - stretching out it's broad wings to flap as it let out a loud screech. It was one of the most stunning things Constance had ever seen before. Odd, yes, but still beautiful in a strange way.

"That's amazing." she breathed, taking in the sight. She shook her head and peered at the younger blonde curiously. "What spell was that? I haven't heard of something like this before."

Luna shrugged nonchalantly. "I came up with it myself." she told her. "Loads of people have done similar things before so I can't say I invented it, but craftsmen tend to be secretive about the spells they develop for personal use. I just studied the effects and experimented until I figured out how to make it do what I wanted. It takes time, but it's not that hard."

She made it sound like it was nothing, but Constance couldn't help but be impressed. In her own experience - as well as being present during some of Fred and George's experiments with spell creation - coming up with new types of magic was labor intensive and tricky. It was one of those things in life that was difficult to do if you didn't have a talent for it. But then, Ginny had once said that Luna was brilliant with spells, so maybe she shouldn't have been surprised.

"Won't it be heavy though?" Connie asked. "A full sized eagle is a big bird to have flapping around on your head."

The girl smiled and shook her head in response. "I've had trouble with that before, so I came up with something to fix it." she replied. "I worked in another spell to modify the weight distribution, so once the cap is on, you don't notice that anything is there. It helps with keeping it from throwing you off balance as well." she picked up the newly finished hat and held it out in offering. "Try it and see."

For a brief moment, Constance wasn't sure about putting such an odd looking thing on her head in the middle of the Great Hall. Luna might be able to pull it off, but she was sure she'd look rediculous. To hell with it. she thought. She was curious about testing it out for herself and other people's opinions didn't matter anyway. Connie took the eagle decorated cap into her hands and carefully positioned it onto her head. Sure enough, it didn't feel any different that putting on a normal hat. She could clearly hear the squawking and flapping of wings above her, but it had no effect on her posture or balance.

"Merlin's beard, what do you have on your head?" A distinctive voice called out from her right. "Don't say you've let the Ravenclaws suck you in!"

Connie glanced sideways and saw that George had finally come down with the rest of the Gryffindor team and was bounding over to see what she had gotten herself into. Feeling a twinge of embarrassment at him seeing her in such a fashion, she quickly reached up to pull the cap off.

"Luna is showing me something." she shouted back at him, then turned to pass the hat back to her. "That's very clever. I never would have thought of it."

The girl smiled brightly. "Thank you." she said graciously. "That's very nice of you to say, but it's really not that much. And you helped a lot." she gave her a sincere look and reached out to touch her hand. "I suppose if the teams are coming down, we'll be heading off to the pitch soon."

Constance nodded in agreement and told her she would catch up with her later. Luna thanked her again for offering assistance, then packed up her things and went off to join the Ravenclaws on the opposite side of the room. The girl watched her go, noting that her eccentric headware made her stick out in a crowd like a sore thumb, though Luna herself seemed to pay the odd looks of her housemates no mind. She found it astonishing that a person could move about with so little care for what others thought of her. There was more to the blonde girl than first met the eye, and she was beginning to see why Mihnea liked her so much. She was interesting, if nothing else. Shaking her head, Connie turned on her heel to meet George and find her friends before they had to leave.

"What?" she asked when she grew close enough to see his expression of interest. "She's nice."

George took the smallest of steps back and held up his hands. "I didn't say a word." he promised. "It's just not everyday you see a giant blue and bronze bird on your girl's head flapping like it's about to carry her off." he extended his broom to gently poke her in the shoulder with the tip. "I was just making sure the Ravenclaws weren't trying to drag you off to the dark side."

One of her brows went up. "The dark side?"

"Whatever you want to call it." he ammended. "It's definitely the weird side. Every last one of them has something odd about them. You're weird enough as it is, so it wouldn't take much to send you flying over the edge. You can't blame a bloke for being worried."

Connie's mouth fell open in mock outrage at the tease and she gave him a playful punch to the arm. "Shut your mouth, George Weasley! I am not weird!"

"Could have fooled me..." he began, then laughed and skipped back out of the way before she could hit him again. "Calm down, I'm playing! Hey, check it out." he held out his arms and did a little twirl to show off the new additions to his uniform. "This is the first time we get to use the new stuff mom and dad gave us. What do you think?"

She took a step back and looked him up and down, really taking in the full picture he presented for the first time. Back home she'd often heard feminine comments praising the appeal of a man in uniform, but hadn't really understood what they meant until now. Constance had seen her boyfriend play Quiddich dozens of times before, so she was no stranger to outift the team wore. But now, with the gleaming crimson and gold robes and all the new gear that wasn't so worn and heavily used, George looked good. Positively dashing, in her opinion. So much so that for a split second, she had to consciously remind herself of how to breathe.

"You look... nice." she told him.

George arched an unimpressed brow. "That's it?" he prodded. "How nice?"

"Really nice."

He stuck out his bottom lip at her in a pout. "Come on, Connie, you've got to give me something better than that!" he complained. "Fred keeps going on and on about Angelina saying he looked 'positively shaggable', and all I get is 'really nice'. You're cutting me off at the knees here!"

No matter how much she wished she could be suprised to hear that Angelina Johnson had said something like that, she knew it was probably true. And trust the twins to turn getting comments from girls on how good they looked into a competition. Even if it was pure silliness on their part, she didn't like the idea of Fred getting something George didn't. Maybe she could do a bit better.

"Well, perhaps you should make sure Fred knows that when I say 'really nice', what I mean is that I might need to conjure a bucket so I don't drool everywhere while I watch you play." she offered.

George went still and stared at her for a second before his whole face lit up. "Now that's more like it!" he said approvingly. "I can definitely work with that."

He had damn well better be able to work with that. Connie thought. She laughed at his enthusiasm and let him pull her closer so he could slide his arm around her waist. Together, they walked back to where all of the others were. The rest of the Quiddich team was chattering amongst themselves, and she noticed that Ron and Hermione were both badgering Harry about eating something before going out to the pitch. The boy normally had an air of excited expectation before a game, but this time he was more subdued. However, just as Oliver Wood was rounding everyone up to head off, McGonagall showed up to give them all a lovely surprise.

"Mr. Wood!" the older witch called out as she approached. "A moment of your time, if you please."

Oliver halted mid step and he and the entire team turned around to face her. "Sure." he said. "Is anything wrong, Professor? I want us to run a few drills before we start..."

McGonagall held up a hand to stop him. "This wont take long." she assured him, then looked over the lot of them. "I need to speak to Pot... ah, there you are." her eyes landed on Harry and she cleared her throat. "Mr. Potter, I've just been made aware that you won't be required to use one of Madam Hooch's Cleansweeps today."

Harry stared at her. "Um... that's great, Professor, but I sort of have to..." he paused as the meaning of her words began to sink in. "Wait... Is this what I think it means, Professor?"

McGonagall's face remained unreadable as she studied his now hopeful expression. She excused herself for a brief moment, then quickly returned holding a broomstick that was instantly recognizable. The Firebolt he had recieved two weeks ago.

"I still find the appearance of this broom to be highly suspicious." she told him. "However, Professors Dumbledore and Flitwick, as well as myself, have thoroughly examined it, and we have found no reason why it shouldn't be returned to you. Therefore," the woman held the broom out toward him. "You will be using it during the game today. Take care of it, Mr. Potter."

Harry was so excited about the return of his gift that his hands were visibly shaking. He took the broomstick from her and pulled it back to cradle against his chest like a precious thing deserving of worship.

"Thank you, Professor!" he exclaimed.

His fellow teammates suddenly became more animated when they saw the reason they had been asked to stay behind. As Oliver tried to get his team to calm down and focus on the task ahead, Connie saw the smallest of smiles pulling at McGonagall's lips. The woman coughed to draw their attention back to her.

"You should be aware that the entire staff has been wagering on the outcome of this game. I normally don't indulge in gambling myself, but this time I couldn't resist the urge to place an embarrassingly large bet with Professor Flitwick." she informed them, then paused to look at Harry seriously. "I'm trusting you to ensure that I'm not made out to look like a fool, Potter. If Gryffindor loses, I will not be pleased. Filius would never let me live it down."

It seemed that the student body weren't the only ones in a tizzy about Harry's new broom. The teachers had to be just as excited in seeing it perform if they were going so far as to place bets on who would win the game. Everyone knew McGonagall and Snape had a running competition going on between themselves since their houses had the biggest rivalry, but no one made a huge deal out of Gryffindor facing one of the other houses before. It sounded like this had just become a huge deal. Even with the knowledge that McGonagall was placing most of the responsibility on him, Harry didn't appear the least bit worried. He gave the woman a wide grin and told her she had nothing to worry about. He would make sure they won. McGonagall inclined her head and finally sent them off on their way.

The game itself proved to be one of the most interesting Constance had witnessed so far. If for no other reason than every student in the stands seemed to be more fixated on seeing Harry fly the Firebolt than watching the game itself. Word had quickly spread of it being returned to him, so when the teams walked out onto the field to greet each other, the crowds erupted into the loudest cheers she'd ever heard from them before. She, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny had to form a huddle and do a fair bit of shoving to get to the front of the stands to get a good view. When Madam Hooch released the balls and tossed up the Quaffle to begin the game, Harry shot off like a bullet. He moved so fast it was nearly impossible to keep up with where he was. There was no concievable way any other broom would ever be able to keep up with him. Even Lee, who should have been providing commentary on the plays made by the teams, forgot all about his duties and used his loudspeaker to fill everyone in on his opinion of how wonderful the Firebolt was.

"And Potter catches sight of the golden snitch and makes a hard left bank! An impossible manuever for any other broomstick. That'll be the Firebolt's ingenious new breaking system at work! And just look at the incredible acceleration..."

"Mr. Jordan!" McGonagall's irritated voice screeched over the speakers. "This isn't a Firebolt commercial! Focus on the game!"

"You see folks? Even McGonagall's excited about this one!" Lee went on as if it were nothing. "Potter goes into a steep drop with Chang on his tail. Poor girl may as well pack it in now because the Firebolt's speed is just too much for that Comet 260 of hers to keep up with..."

McGonagall finally got fed up with the boy refusing to listen her and grabbed the microphone in an attempt to take it away from him. While she and Lee engaged in a rather heated tug of war, they missed out on seeing Angelina steal the Quaffle to make a goal and George making a spectacular hit to a bludger that then nearly knocked the Ravenclaw keeper off their broom. And still Harry buzzed around, the snitch inches from his grasp while Cho Chang desperately tried to keep up with him. He made a sharp right turn, flew through a hoop of one of the Gryffindor goal posts, then directed the broom straight down. He was flying so fast it looked like he would plow into the ground before he had a chance to pull it back up again. Everyone drew in a sharp, nervous breath at the sight. But finally, after getting so close that his robes grazed the grass, Harry swooped back up into the air and flew high above the pitch with his arm raised over his head in triumph. After only fifteen minutes into the game and one goal made, he had caught the snitch. No one could remember a Quiddich game ever being completed so fast and the enitre stadium erupted into loud cheers and chants of Harry's name. All the Ravenclaws looked pissed that they hadn't gotten a chance to get a single goal, but they would just have to get over it, wouldn't they?

Everyone was so excited to get out onto the field that Connie and the others had to fight just to get out of the stands. Once they succeeded in getting to the ground, they all rushed over to where the teams were exchanging post game handshakes. The moment he was free, Harry found himself staggering under the weight of Ron, Hermione, and Connie throwing themselves at him.

"Oh my God guys, get off!" he cried out. "I can't breathe!"

They all jumped back, but Hermione was jibbering at him in jubilation. "Oh, Harry, that was so amazing!" she cried out. "I've never seen anything like it!"

"You've got to be the best damn flier there's ever been!" Ron added. "We've never beaten anyone that badly before! And I don't think Ravenclaw has ever walked away from a game with no points!"

Harry just beamed at the massive amounts of praise coming at him from all sides. After putting up with it for a while, Oliver Wood finally stepped in to get the crowd of students to back off and give him him some room. But the captain was pleased by the outcome himself. He slapped Harry on the back with a wide grin and announced that they would be throwing a celebration party in the common room. Constance couldn't imagine them ever being able to do that without sneaking around, but McGonagall was so happy at winning her bet with Flitwick that she allowed it. When they got back to the castle and commenced plastering every available surface in the common room with team banners and house colors, the older woman surprised them by sending up house elves with refreshments for them. Lee and a couple of guys rigged a radio up with a set of speakers to play loud, upbeat music, while Fred and George broke out some of their fireworks that were relatively safe to set off indoors. They laughed and danced and carried on for hours. As it got later and things started to settle down, the group of friends wound up gathering together near the table laid out with food to watch the goings on around them.

"Who's that girl over there?" Ron questioned, discretely motioning his head toward a short girl with long, russet colored hair across the room.

"Hmm?" Ginny peered over to get a look for herself. "Oh, I know her name but I can't remember!" she said with a small note of frustration. "Faith something or other. She's a first year. Why?"

Her brother shrugged and lightly pulled at the sleeve of Harry's shirt. "She's been staring at you off and on for the past hour."

Ginny frowned and glared down at the floor while Harry's eyes immediately shot up from his plate to look around. "What? Where?"

Ron did his little head motion thing again and Harry caught sight of the girl in question. He blinked when she smiled at him and grew visibly uncomfortable. "Oh man..." he muttered, then did a quick side step so that he was half hidden behind Ron.

Connie watched his reaction with amusement. Was Harry Potter hiding from a girl? That was just too good to pass up. "What's wrong, Harry?" she prodded. She glanced sideways to get a better look at this 'Faith' person. "She's kind of cute."

"I don't care how she looks." Harry said, giving her a look to show that he didn't appreciate her comment. "I don't like being stared at. Especially if it's a first year."

Fred laughed at him. "That's just girls for you, mate." he said helpfully. "You do something amazing and they're going to stare."

He shot a meaningful look at his twin and George cleared his throat. "You know, I think you don't like girls looking at you because there's another one you already have your eye on."

Harry gave a start and stared at him in horror while Connie and Hermione looked at each other with raised brows. That was an interesting piece of information...

"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. "There's a girl you've taken a liking to?"

"No!" he replied, though he said it much too quickly. He looked back at George with a deep huff. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, you don't, huh?" George challenged.

Fred grinned knowingly. "Seems to me that it took a looooong time for you to shake Chang's hand after the game..."

"Chang?" Constance repeated. "You mean Cho Chang, the Ravenclaw seeker?"

"Yep." George confirmed. He jerked his thumb toward Harry. "We were shaking hands with everyone as nice as you please but when he got to Cho, he grabbed her hand and wouldn't let go. Kept yammering on and on about something or other and wouldn't shut up."

Harry's mouth open and closed several times in shock. "Don't make it out to be something it wasn't!" he said. "I whizzed by her pretty fast during the game and nearly knocked her off her broom, so I apologized. That's all I was doing."

"Uh huh." Fred said, looking like he didn't believe a word of it. His lips spread into a wide smile and he thrust a twirling finger into the younger boy's face. "You fancy her."

"I do not!"

That's what he said, but every visible inch of Harry's skin had turned a bright shade of red in embarrassment. Everyone noticed it and the twins took that as a cue to intensify their teasing.

"Would you look at that, Georgie?" Fred said, putting a hand to his mouth like he was looking at something he found adorable. "He's gone all red faced now! Our little Harry knows that girls exist now! How cute is that?"

George nodded somberly and sniffled as he wiped a non-existant tear from his eye. "They grow up so fast..."

"Shut up!" Harry exclaimed, rushing forward to give the pair of them a hard shove. "It's not like that at all! I..." he hesitated, then squared his shoulders resolutely. "I respect her as a person. Cho is nice. She's a great seeker and an awesome flier." he suddenly got this faraway look in his eyes, like he momentary forgot where he was and who he was talking to. "I've never seen anyone ride a broom like she does..."

Hermione gasped and clamped a hand over her mouth to stiffle her loud giggle, while Connie's lips formed an 'o' of surprise. No matter what his intentions had been, that comment came dangerously close to being perverted. Harry didn't even realize how dirty it sounded until Fred grabbed it and started running.

"Ooooooh! It sounds like you're jealous of that broom of hers!" he said with an excited glint in his eyes. "I didn't know you had it in you. And with an older woman too!"

Harry blinked at him, his eyes going wide as he realized how his words had come across. "No no no no no!" he exclaimed, waving his hands wildly. "I didn't mean it that way!"

"Right..." George said, giving him a mock understanding pat on the shoulder. "Because you respect her as a person."

"Can't say girls like Chang are really my type, but if they were, I wouldn't mind 'respecting her person' either." Fred announced. "She does have an awfully nice person, doesn't she?"

When Harry began sputtering in protest, a look of mortification written across his features, they laughed good naturedly at him. Ron was the only one who didn't - which was probably due to his being uncomfortable with the whole thing. Ginny found some way of excusing herself to get away from them, but if she had been around, she probably wouldn't have liked it much either. Eventually, the twins dropped their teasing of Harry when Fred got distracted by the sight of Angelina standing in the corner with a group of her friends and went over to talk to her. Constance then deftly commented that she was thirsty and asked George if he'd go fetch something to drink from one of tables. The moment he was gone, she attempted to wipe the grin off of her face so Harry would stop acting weird.

"You know it's okay, right?" she prodded gently.

Hermione nodded in agreement. "There's nothing wrong with saying you like someone."

Ron, however, crossed his arms over his chest and sniffed. "If you're into that sort of thing."

Harry seemed to have calmed down and was about to say something to girls, but stopped and gave the ginger haired boy next to him a look of reproach. "You have a problem with Cho?" he demanded.

Ron looked at him oddly and took a step back. "You're the one going on about not liking her!" he said defensively. "And I never said I had a problem with her. It's just... well... she's a Ravenclaw, isn't she? And she talks funny."

Connie gaped at him. "No she doesn't." she countered. "I'll admit I haven't heard her talk all that much, but it sounds like she just has a thick accent."

"Exactly." Ron said, pointing at her. "Have you ever heard an asian girl talk that way? Chang opens her mouth and this heavy Scottish accent comes out that doesn't fit with how she looks. It's weird."

"Honestly, Ronald!" Hermione said chidingly. "That's the most idiotic thing I've ever heard. It doesn't matter one bit if she's asian, white, black, or purple with green polka dots. If someone lives in a particular place their whole life, it shows in their speech patterns. Have you ever considered that someone like Cho might think that we talk funny?"

"Bleeding hell, 'Mione, will you calm down!" the boy protested. "All I said was that it sounded weird!"

The two of them began bickering back and forth like they always did and when George got back with Connie's drink, he arched a brow and asked her what was going on. She quietly explained the nature of the argument, all the while noticing that Harry had taken the opportunity to slip away while they were distracted. She supposed it wasn't unusual, given how much they had been playing with him. Since everyone else was occupied with other things, the girl decided to just enjoy the rest of the party with George. There was another thought brewing around in her mind anyway.

"How many of those indoor fireworks do you have left?" she questioned.

George cocked his head to the side thoughtfully. "A few dozen." he replied. "And we've got the stuff to make loads more if we need to. Why?"

Connie's lips pulled into an evil looking grin and she gestured for him to lean down so she could whisper her idea into his ear. George listened intently and watched as she pointed to where Fred and Lee were engaged in a flirting competition with a gaggle of girls. His whole face lit up and he smirked in approval.

"Oh, you are wicked!" he said quietly, then gave her a quick kiss. "Hang tight. I'll get the stuff."

They had to sneak into a relatively quiet corner to hook all of the fireworks together and Constance had to manuever them into position without raising suspicion, but the effort was well worth it. Once they stood back out of the way and George cast the spell to light the fuses, the mass of fireworks hidden under the table next to Lee exploded in one fell swoop - scaring the living daylights out of everyone nearby. The girls around them scattered with loud screams as multicolored sparklers danced through the air and chased them around the room.

"Damn it, George!" Fred shouted, ducking to avoid being struck in the face by a stray sparkler. "You're dead!"

"It was her idea!" George fired back, thrusting an accusing finger at Connie.

Of course, that didn't deter them from going after him, but Constance found herself having to dash around the room and climb over furniture to keep from being tackled in revenge. All in all, it wasn't a bad way to add a little spice to the party.

---

Since the majority of Ravenclaw house was sullen over their loss of the game, Mihnea invited Luna down to his room to assist him with something he'd been working on. The girl had immediately been interested because she'd never seen another house's dormitory before. He assured her it wasn't terribly exciting, but once he succeeded in sneaking her through the common area to his room, Luna declared that Slytherin house felt rather like sunken pirate's ship. Given that the few windows all looked out onto the bottom of the Black Lake and the giant squid could occasionally be seen swimming by, it wasn't that bad of a comparison. He was going to have to remember that.

Ever since he'd recieved his Christmas present, he'd been thinking about how to modify it. His car was better than he could have asked for, but the interior was far too small. There was only so much he could do with a vehicle that had only two seats and no trunk. Not that he planned on driving around with dozens of people, but having the option to put extra things in it without having to worry about space constraints would be nice. Mihnea came up with the idea of an undetectable extension charm - similar to whatever the hell his mother did to expand her office, but with an added benefit. If anyone searched his car, they would find no magical traces to provoke suspicion. A difficult task, but not impossible. Maybe it was paranoid, but he wasn't going to take any chances with his new toy. He had too much to worry about now. He wanted Luna's insight because with the way her mind worked, she was bound to think of something he hadn't considered. They had made a good deal of progress in his opinion, but the hour was getting late. Mihnea wasn't sure of when Luna normally went to bed and he didn't want her staying up on his account.

"Am I keeping you awake?" he asked.

Luna was sitting cross-legged across from him on the bed with a pile of his papers and notebooks in her lap. She looked up from the notes she was reading through and smiled. "No, you're not." she replied. "It's a weekend, so I don't mind. I usually stay up a bit later this time of year anyway. The manglerants come out when it's cold and I've been looking to see if there are any around the castle."

Mihnea slowly arched a brow. "Manglewrants?"

"Mmhmm." the girl hummed as she went back to the notebook. "I'm not quite sure what they look like because all you can really make out are blue lights floating about. They're quite pretty if you ever get the chance to watch them."

"Oh." he said. "So they're like fireflies?"

"A bit, yes." she confirmed.

Hmm... Magical fireflies that only came out in cold weather? It was an interesting idea, to be sure. Weird blue lights floating around could be attributed to many different things, but if Luna chose to believe they were some sort of animal or insect, he wasn't going to dispute it. There was no harm in having a sense of whimsy. It made life more entertaining and she might just be right.

"I didn't see you during the game." Luna commented idly. "Did you sit with the Gryffindors?"

Mihnea shook his head. "No, I was busy with something else, so I didn't go." he replied, then coughed and looked at her sideways. "I heard you guys lost."

The girl shrugged in response. "Gryffindor has a great team, so I was expecting it." she told him. "It was really something to see Harry fly that new broom of his though. It's a shame you missed it."

It really was, he thought. But a Quiddich game would be the most opportune time for someone to sneak around without being caught due to everyone being distracted and gathered away from the castle. Mihnea had been focused on checking the perimeter of the grounds to make sure nothing was out of place. There hadn't been a single sign of weirdness to be found. Despite that, his absence had probably been a good thing. Having to choose which house to support would have been an odd position to be in...

His thoughts were interrupted by a questioning meow from the floor. Mihnea glanced down and saw Pixie batting her paw against the comforter hanging over the side of the mattress. Seeing that she had his attention, the cat lowered her head to grab something with her teeth, then leapt up onto the bed with them. Mihnea reached out to scratch between her ears, noting the pale green harness dangling from her mouth.

"Time for a wardrobe change?" he asked.

Pixie meowed in response and dropped the straps of leather on top of his feet before sitting back on her haunches to look at him expectantly. He chuckled at her and gently dragged the animal into his lap to work on unhooking the one she was already wearing. Luna watched the display with a passive smile on her face, then turned her eyes toward the harness Pixie had brought up.

"I don't recall ever seeing that one before." she commented. "Is it new?"

Mihnea had paid only enough attention to identify the color, so he looked over it at it to confirm which one it was. His cat had about three different green harnesses now.

"This looks like the one my sister got her Christmas." he replied, then leaned down to speak directly to his cat. "And I'll bet the only reason you want it now is so Seras won't get to see that you like it."

Pixie didn't bother looking back at him, but her posture noticeably straightened, as if preening herself in satisfaction. He gave her a playful tap on the head and pulled the old harness free. Luna put her hand to her mouth to cover a small giggle, then looked at him curiously.

"Sister? You've never mentioned having a sister before." she said. "Is she like you? Half vampire, I mean?"

The question made Mihnea halt for a moment as he considered how he should respond. It would be simple enough to give the girl a brief response with few details. But this was a conversation he'd been thinking about having, and this might be the best way to start. Lord knows it would be easier than bringing everything to a screeching halt and trying to find a way to begin without making things awkward. He cleared his throat and picked up the green harness to replace the one he'd just taken off.

"No, Seras isn't like me." he said as he prodded at Pixie to get her to put her legs through the straps. "She's my dad's fledgling. She was around a long time before I happened."

"Oh!" the girl said, her eyes lighting up with understanding. "I see. So he took her in like a daughter when he made her? Do you have any other brothers or sisters?"

He shook his head. "No, just her. Now, Seras has been with this guy Pip for as long as I can remember, so he's like my brother-in-law." Mihnea paused again, feeling the need to explain. "They aren't married or anything, so technically he's not really my brother-in-law, but that's just what we say to keep things simple..."

"Well, of course they wouldn't be." Luna said knowledgably. "Marriage is a human institution. Vampires take mates."

With all the times she had surprised him in the past, he should have known she would come back with something like that. He sat up a bit straighter and smiled approvingly at her.

"That's right." he confirmed. "Anyway, those two are the only ones I have in the way of 'siblings'. The rest is just my mom and dad, my aunt and uncle, and Connie."

He watched as the blonde pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Hmm. Your letters made it sound like all of you are really close. Do you live near each other?"

Mihnea's shoulders lifted. "We all live in the same house, actually." he told her. "It's a big manor just outside of London. And I realize that probably sounds strange, but our parents all..." he searched his mind for the right words. "Work together, so it's best if everyone stays in one place."

Luna immediately began shaking her head. "Oh, no, I don't think it's strange." she assured him. "It sounds nice." She set all the objects in her lap to the side, then put her hands behind her, leaning back to rest her weight on her arms. She studied him intently for what felt like a long time. "You know you could tell me anything and it wouldn't bother me, don't you?"

The question came out of nowhere and Mihnea couldn't help but stop what he was doing to blink at her in surprise. "Yes..." he said slowly. "Why?"

The girl shrugged. "You seem nervous." she told him. "Like there's something you want to say, but don't know how. I know some people know things deep down but don't really accept them until they hear them out loud, so I thought you hearing me say that might help."

Was he nervous? Hell, with what he was about to do, it would be freakishly weird if he wasn't. How she picked up on it was beyond him but with the way Luna could seemingly get inside his head and know what he was thinking, it wasn't too much of a stretch to imagine that she could. Pixie was beginning to get annoyed with all of his starting and stopping, so Mihnea looked down to focus on finishing with her harness. He fastened the final strap, then gave her a pat and instructed her to get off the bed. For once, his cat didn't whine or cuddle up to him in an attempt to change his mind. She could tell when he was serious about something. He watched her pad over to her bed in the far corner, then turned back and took a deep breath.

"Luna... what would you say if I told you that my family has been exiled from the magical world for more than a thousand years and Connie and I coming to school here is... technically illegal?" he asked.

If she found the question shocking, Luna didn't show it. Rather, she simply readjusted her position to sit upright again and calmly clasped her hands in her lap.

"I would say that Professor Dumbledore must have invited you to come here for a reason." she replied. "I believe that he is a very wise, knowledgeable man who knows when laws should be obeyed and when they shouldn't. And I believe that the magical world has been wrong about a lot of things before, so a family being forced into exile doesn't necessarily mean they deserved it."

That took a small weight off of his shoulders, but Mihnea wasn't quite through yet. "And... what would you say if I told you the most powerful vampire in existence - who was supposedly killed over a century ago - is still alive and working for the descendant of the man who defeated him?"

Luna tucked a stray lock of hair back behind one ear and sniffed. "If it's Count Dracula you're talking about, I wouldn't find that unreasonable." she replied. "I've always thought that story of how he was killed was a bit far fetched. If the things people say about him are true, then he was too powerful to be killed by a muggle that way. My dad thinks that since Abraham VanHelsing was such close friends with the Newsoms, he might have asked one of them to find a way to bind his powers and make him a servant..."

Mihnea's eyes grew wide with shock and he leapt forward, digging his fingers into her shoulders in an iron grip. "He hasn't published that anywhere, has he?" he demanded, his face inches away from hers.

The girl stared at him, taken aback by his reaction. "Of course he hasn't." she said calmly. "My father is an editor, not an author. He only publishes stories that other people have written, and we've never met anyone who believed something like that. Some people suspect that the Hellsing Organization might have vampires working for them, but no one thinks Dracula could be one of them. Dad thinks it's possibility, but it was only an idea he had once. He's not sure how much he really believes it."

He searched her face, looking for the smallest sign of untruth and could find none. Thank God. Alucard was one of Hellsing's biggest and most closely guarded secrets. If the magical world discovered his true identity - even in the form of a rumor - there was no telling what sort of damage it would cause. Their whole reputation could be made out to be based on a lie.

"Don't ever let him do it." he told her seriously. "If you ever hear about him getting a story about it, or find something that even comes close to mentioning that, you make sure it goes missing. If people knew, it would be very, very, bad. Do you understand me?"

Luna slowly nodded. "I understand. It's unlikely that it would ever happen but if it does, I'll do my best." she said sincerely. Her eyes flicked down at his hands. "Would you please let go now? You're hurting me."

Mihnea blinked and suddenly realized how tight a grip he had on her arms. Jesus, he should have been more careful. She was going to have bruises now. He quickly let her go and sat back, sucking a deep breath through his nostrils.

"I'm sorry." he said.

The blonde crossed her arms over her chest to rub her hands over the spots he had grabbed. "Don't be." she said. "It's fine." she dropped her hands into her lap and peered at him. "He's your father, isn't he?"

There was no point in asking who she was talking about. Mihnea knew. And after hearing her giving an accurate and detailed description of his dad's place within the Hellsing family ranks, he couldn't find it within himself to be shocked anymore. The question itself didn't bear any traces of fear or nervousness. Only curiosity. And Luna just sat there, calm and complacent, waiting for his response.

"He is." he replied with a swift nod. "But he hasn't been Dracula for a long time. He's Alucard now."

Luna inclined her head in acceptance. "And your mom?"

"My mother is Syn Newsom, the only female nahual there's ever been. She and my dad are mated to each other - which shouldn't be possible, but they did it. She and my uncle Edmund are cousins but they think of each other as brother and sister. He's married to Sir Integral Hellsing, my aunt."

"Connie's parents." she said. It was a statement rather than a question.

"Right." he confirmed. There was a long stretch of silence and her complete lack of reaction made him feel that twinge of nervousness begin to come back. "You aren't saying anything."

Luna blinked. "Why would I say anything?" she asked, as if she genuinely couldn't understand his concern. "This is who you are. No one can control where they come from." she took a breath and folded her legs beneath her to sit more comfortably. "It makes sense, actually. There's never been a human/vampire hybrid with a vampire as the father before. It seems to me that the vampire king and a powerful sorceress would be the only combination to make it possible. From the way you talk and write about them, it sounds like you love your family very much and they love you. That's the only thing that should matter. I think it's interesting."

Interesting. Of all the adjectives she could have used, she chose 'interesting'. The corner of Mihnea's mouth twitched.

"They are definitely interesting." he admitted.

She gave him a reassuring smile of her own. "I suppose with what happened over the holidays, all of the Weasleys know? If you knew where they were and how they were doing, then I imagine Hellsing dealt with the vampires then took them back to your house."

It was actually kind of nice that he didn't have to explain all of that. Mihnea told her that she was correct, and that Potter and Granger had been with them as well. However, he cautioned her about openly talking to any of them about it because the oldest Weasley brother, Percy, had remained at school and didn't know all the details of what had transpired. They intended to keep it that way since he displayed loyalty to the Ministry of Magic and might agree to act as a spy for them. Luna didn't like the Ministry or the things they did much herself, so she understood the sentiment.

"I know you and your dad are really close, but you can't tell him anything either." he went on. "Not that I think he would deliberately do something that would cause us problems, but if he runs a magazine and this is something he's interested in..."

Luna leaned forward to take his hands into hers reassuringly. "Don't be silly. I love my dad more than anything in the world, but this really isn't any of his business so of course I won't tell him. You asked me not to say anything about what you were and I've kept my promise. Why would you think I would go back on it now?"

Mihnea shook his head and looked down at her hands. "I don't believe you would break a promise." he told her. "I just... I don't want you to think I'm forcing you to lie to him. That's not what this is about."

"I know." she said. "And you're not forcing me to lie to anyone. You're asking me to keep a secret. There's a difference. And personally, I think that if telling someone something I know would hurt a friend or their family, then lying or refusing to talk about it isn't wrong. One is a lot more important than the other. Everyone may think I'm crazy, but I'm not stupid." she smiled at him and finally let go of his hands to sit back and shrug. "Like I said, my dad isn't sure whether to believe his idea or not and it's only a passing interest. It's really not that hard to divert his attention to something else, so you have nothing to worry about. I'll take care of it."

He hadn't really thought of Luna being a strategic sort of person before and was struck by how much thought she had already put into how to do what he asked. Mihnea truly believed that she would do everything in her power to keep the secret from getting out. It was positively astonishing. Why had he been worried about this again?

"I want you to come visit me over the summer." he told her. "Everyone wants to meet you and I think you'd enjoy it."

His words made Luna's eyes go wide and she suddenly pushed herself up onto her knees to jibber at him in excitement. "You're inviting me to your house? I've never been invited to visit someone's house before! Are you sure? It won't be any trouble, will it?"

He laughed at her enthusiasm. "I wouldn't be inviting you if it wasn't okay." he said. "My dad was the one to suggest it. He said you sounded interesting and he wants to see you for himself."

The blonde's eyes grew bigger, if that were possible. "He wants to see me?" she repeated, looking bewildered. "But... why? I'm not that interesting."

"Oh, hush, Luna." Mihnea chided. "You put yourself down too much. I think you're interesting. Most of my family hasn't even seen you yet and they think so too." he paused to study her. "So, do you want to come?"

"Oh course!" she exclaimed in a rush of breath. "I'd love to! I'll have to ask my dad, but I'm sure he won't mind. You said you live near London? How would I get there? I would imagine with the problems Hellsing has with the Ministry, you wouldn't have a floo connection."

"No, we don't." he admitted. "Mom and uncle Ed have come up with a way for us to floo out if we have to, but no one is able to floo in. I can come pick you up from your house. I have a car."

"A muggle car?" she questioned. "How exciting! I've never ridden in one of those before!"

Mihnea gave her a wide grin and warned that aunt Integra often accused him of being a speed demon. Luna didn't find that the least bit worrisome. She thought it sounded like fun. The rest of their time was spent in conversation about the upcoming visit - with her asking all sorts of questions about what she should do and how she should act. She mentioned hearing that 'high ranking' muggles followed strict traditions and with his aunt and uncle being knights, she wanted to make sure she followed the correct protocol. Part of him could understand where the concern came from, but he told her that there was no need to dress or behave differently than normal. Hellsing manor was their home, not a formal event, so they usually didn't bother with all the stuffy rules. So long as she treated everyone with respect, it would be fine. With that out of the way, Luna then began questioning him about the specific people in his house and how they were. Trying to get an idea of what they were like. So Mihnea wound up telling her stories. Little tidbits of information he thought she would find interesting. Luna sat in rapt attention, soaking up every word he spoke like a dried out sponge doused with water. There was never any judgement from her. Only curiosity and interest in what he had to say. It was rather pleasant, he thought, to be so open and met with only trusting acceptance. But after a while he noticed her attempt to stifle a yawn behind her hand. She was getting tired. Mihnea glanced at the clock sitting on the bedside table and gave a start.

"Good God, it's nearly three in the morning." he said. "You need to get to bed."

Luna frowned, but appeared thoughtful all the same. "I suppose I should." she agreed. She swung her legs around to let them dangle over the edge of the mattress in preparation to stand. "It wouldn't do any good to say I could find my own way back, would it?"

Mihnea stood up himself and crossed his arms over his chest. "You're not going anywhere without me."

The girl shrugged and let out a long sigh. "That's what I thought you would say." she commented blandly. "Suit yourself."

With the way she was, Luna probably thought he was being an overprotective worry wort, but after what happened yesterday, he didn't want to take a chance on her going anywhere alone. Working together, they gathered up all the materials and notebooks they had been using and put them back into their proper places. Mihnea stuck his head out in the hallway to see if the coast was clear while Luna went over to give Pixie a final pet to say goodnight. There were no sounds coming from outside - indicating that the rest of Slytherin house was asleep. Good. he thought. That would make things simpler. Once Luna was ready, he took her hand and they quietly stepped out in the hallway. Getting upstairs and through the common room took hardly any effort, and within minutes they were passing through the blank expanse of wall that served as the portal to Slytherin house.

But the second they found themselves in dungeon hallway outside, Mihnea noticed something that made his blood run cold. That damn smell. The one he'd picked up on in the Forbidden Forest and hadn't been able to track down. Alien, and yet strangely familiar. It was a scent that made his insides knot up because it didn't belong at Hogwarts - much lessinsidethe castle itself...

He felt Luna touch his arm. "Mihnea?" she whispered quietly. "What's wrong?"

He shook his head and glanced down at her. She could see that something had him rattled and concern was written across her features. Damn it, he had Luna to worry about too. Fearing that if he told her what was going on she would insist on staying with him, he decided to do the next best thing.

"Luna, do you trust me?"

She looked at him oddly, then nodded. "Yes."

Mihnea inclined his head. "Then don't ask any questions. We need to get back to your dormitory fast." he turned and crouched low to the ground. "Jump on. I'm going to carry you."

Luna opened her mouth like she was about to protest, but decided against it. She stepped forward and after taking a moment to figure out the best way to go about it, carefully climbed onto his back. Mihnea hooked his arms under and around her knees to keep her steady, then instructed to her stay quiet and hold on. Once he felt her arms lock securely around his neck, he dashed off at full speed. He ran through numerous hallways and up flights of stairs until they reached Ravenclaw tower. At the top of the tight spiral staircase, he finally came to a halt and bent so she could climb down more easily. Luna appeared breathless and a bit weak in the knees from their excursion and he had to keep a hold on her arms for a moment to keep her from stumbling.

"Are you okay there?" he asked.

Luna nodded in response. "I'm fine. I had no idea you could run so fast!" she pressed a hand to her chest as she caught her breath. "That was fun!"

Had circumstances been different, he might have teased her about it. But now there were more important things to be worried about. Mihnea gave her a small smile that was obviously forced and pointed to the door of her dormitory.

"I need you to go inside and stay there, no matter what happens." he told her in a low voice.

The girl went still and took a step back to study him. "You sense something that doesn't belong, don't you?"

There was that damn perceptiveness of hers again. He was starting to wonder if perhaps she noticed too much for her own good.

"Yes." he said simply, not bothering to give her more than that.

Luna continued to watch him, then let her shoulders slump. "Okay." she said. She then walked forward and wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. "I don't know what you plan on doing, but please be careful."

She was worried about him, now? "I always am." he told her. He returned the embrace, then pulled back to turn her toward the door. "Go on."

It was nice that she didn't prod any further or try to talk him out of doing something stupid. He just told her he would be fine and she accepted it without question. Mihnea watched as she answered the riddle offered by the bronze knocker, then waited until she was inside and the door securely shut behind her to turn and head back downstairs. When his feet touched the floor of the main hallway he paused to inhale deeply, getting a fix on where the scent was coming from, then veered left.

Mihnea didn't know who this person was or what they were doing in the castle, but he was determined not to let them get away from him again.

---

A.N: I have an important announcement to make. As I'm sure all of you have noticed, my updates have been a little (okay, very) erratic and I haven't been doing a good job of answering messages and reviews. I apologize profusely and humbly beg for forgiveness. I want to assure you that I am reading/keeping track of things that are sent to me and I'm not ignoring anyone. Without going into all the gritty details, I'm not in very good shape right now and I simply haven't had the energy to formulate the responses that you guys deserve. Starting May 2, I am going to be having a series of six to eight surgeries that will be spread out over the next several months. So basically there are going to be long periods of time where I feel like I've been run over by a monster truck with shorter spans of time spaced between where I'm more myself.

What this means for Black Magick - I am not going on hiatus and I will be making updates. That being said, I'm still going to be feeling shitty and probably loaded up on pain medication. I don't know how that will affect my writing ability, so here's my plan:

I am setting up a tentative schedule of putting up an update every three weeks. Once I get into the swing of things and see how much I can handle, I might move that up to every two weeks. However, if I start getting overwhelmed, I'll have to move things back to one update per month. If I wind up doing more frequent updates, those chapters will be shorter. Updates that take more time to complete will be made longer to make up for me forcing you guys to wait for them. This chapter (obviously) and the next have been written and are ready to go. I have the rest planned out in detail, but they haven't been fleshed out yet. I'll be working on them whenever possible and I'll put them up as I finish. But I want to emphasize that I'm not going to publish something crappy just to meet my self-imposed deadlines. If quality means taking a bit more time to work on it, then that's what I'm going to do. I've also noticed that some of my older chapters have glaring (and downright humiliating) mistakes, so I'm going to be going back to do some intensive editing to fix them. If any of you have noticed something like spelling, grammar, etc. that needs to be changed, please let me know. I'm working without a beta, so your input would be much appreciated. :)

Again, I apologize for this whole mess. You guys have been the most amazing readers an author could ask for and I don't want to let you down. I will do my best to answer messages and comment on reviews as I can, but if I'm not able to, please don't think I don't care what you have to say. Even if I don't respond, I always read what's sent to me and they are the highlight of my day.

In other news, I have just recently joined the Pottermore bandwagon (It's about time too. I've been waiting forever!), so if any of you guys HAPPEN to be on there as well, feel free to add me. Just send me a PM or something here so I know who you are. ~points to self~ This Slytherin doesn't believe in house discrimination, so all are welcome. I could use some buddies in Gryffindor anyway, since the only friends I have who aren't in my own house are Hufflepuffs or Ravenclaws. :D (This Slytherin is also terrible at dueling and brewing potions so far. Professor Snape would be so ashamed.)

~cough cough~ Okie dokie, so with that bit of business out of the way, I will step down from the podium and hope that you guys don't get too irritated at me leaving you with a cliffhanger. The next chapter isn't far away, I promises. :D