A/N: I've been gone again, not because of my studies this time, but because it's been very difficult for me to continue after the last chapter. I'm sure some of you will remember the reason why. But the important thing is, your kind reviews and PMs have allowed me to pick the pen back up (or shall I say the Microsoft Word) and get to writing. For that, I thank my amazing readers - however small of a group you may be, know that you are making a huge difference in my life - and for that, I am beyond grateful. Thank you lots! xxx In this chapter, we see Lola face her saviour and her demons all at once. Next chapter, redemption, perhaps?

Feeling exhausted and a little shaken up, Lola collapsed onto her bed in the Gryffindor Tower. She was having difficulty believing that the charges against her had been dropped. Fudge's booming voice still echoed in her ears –

"In view of the nature of these accusations, and the age of the defendant, the Court believes there to be a lack of evidence in proving, without a reasonable doubt, that the defendant is responsible for the events of the morning of October the thirteenth. Therefore, unless further evidence is brought before the Court, the defendant is cleared of all charges and is free to go."

And like that, she had walked out of the gloomy courtroom, escorted by her Professors, feeling the glare of Professor Quirrell on her back.

What now? she thought to herself. Lola wanted to feel optimistic, to celebrate her proven innocence, but she knew for sure she was a target now, and she knew all too well what Voldemort was like - he wouldn't rest until Lola was absolutely destroyed. The thought sent shivers down her spine.

Lola jumped when she felt something brush up against her leg – but it was only her cat, Prince, who had come by to say hello. Lola realised how neglectful she had been towards her pet as she stroked his ginger fur.

"I'm sorry," she sighed as tears welled up in her eyes, all the emotions she had been repressing since the trial building up in her chest. "I will be better. I promise."

Prince curled up next to Lola's pillow and began licking his paws.

Lola continued to play with Prince and didn't look up when the door to the dorm room opened. She wasn't ready to face the world, wasn't ready to face the girls who had all witnessed what 'she' had done to her best friend. She might have convinced a room full of people of her innocence, but she didn't know what to say to them – or to Fay.

Someone walked over to the end of Lola's bed and threw a piece of folded parchment on it.

"I've been asked to give you this."

Lola recognised Lavender's voice at once, which sounded forcefully defiant, as if to say "I'm not scared of you, and I'm not here because I want to be."

But before she could do anything about it, she heard Lavender walk back over to the door and leave.

Lola closed her eyes, her fingers trembling with a feeling she couldn't identify yet, before picking up the parchment. The writing was short and rushed. It read:

In my office. Now.

-SS

Down in the dungeons, Severus paced up and down the dusky room, lost in a million thoughts at once. He had risked his career many times over petty things before, be it taunting his students ruthlessly or unrightfully deducting house points from those he disliked – but he had never broken the law over something which wouldn't benefit him directly – not for anyone. He needed answers now, needed to know if his gut feeling had been right, or had he been a fool?

"Come in," he ordered rigidly when Lola Allen knocked on the door.

Lola walked in, feeling more anxious than she had felt when walking into the courtroom. Somehow, the thought of being interrogated by Severus Snape was scarier than the prospect of being prosecuted by the Minister of Magic. She sat down quietly, looking down at her fingers.

"Talk!" Snape demanded, his voice as sharp as a knife.

Lola was ready to speak the truth – well, not really the truth. She couldn't tell him the real story, or at least the story she knew as real (because frankly, she was beginning to think she had lost her mind), as she would straight away be admitted to a mental institution. She had thought long and hard about what her story would be when she was in the cell the night before, and she was finally feeling brave enough to open her mouth – so she did.

"The second day I came to Hogwarts, I was feeling very self-conscious about my lack of knowledge. I don't come from a magical family, I don't know loads about this world – I wanted a head start. On the train, I heard someone talking about the restricted section in the library and how we aren't allowed to go there without permission. I thought, great! I will go there secretly and learn lots of stuff that nobody else knows!" She hated presenting herself as a pathetically conniving idiot, driven by vapid ambition, but she knew what Snape thought of her and her peers and she knew he would buy it. "I left my bed at midnight, stole a lamp from the Common Room and made my way to the library. It was locked, so I couldn't get in. As I was standing there, wondering how to get in, I heard someone's voice – Filch, talking to his cat. I panicked, left the lamp and started running. I hid behind a statue which overlooked one of the classrooms – that's when I saw Professor Quirrell."

Snape, who had looked bored and disappointed up to that point, suddenly looked interested. Lola, feeling relieved, continued.

"He was speaking to himself – weirdly, his stutter was gone – and he was going on and on about some corridor and traps – he was far away so I couldn't really hear him –"

Snape quickly walked over to Lola, leaned on his desk and stared right into her eyes. "Did you hear him say anything else? Anything about a stone?"

Lola faked an expression of deep thought. "Yes, actually," she said after a while. "He did mumble about a stone and cursed a lot."

"I knew it!" yelled Snape, punching the air. "That son of a –"

"But that's not all, sir," Lola said quickly, fearing she would lose his attention. "I heard a second voice – a very old, tired voice. It sounded mumbled, I couldn't understand anything it was saying, but I got the impression that this voice was giving Quirrell his instructions. Every time the voice spoke, Quirrell went all apologetic and said 'Yes, my Lord'".

A dark expression passed over Snape's face, momentarily irking Lola, before he took a few steps backwards. Half a minute passed without any movement occurred in the room, before Severus spoke, his voice colder than ice.

"Did you – did you see the owner of this voice?"

"That's the thing," Lola said as she looked up from her lap. "I could see the whole room – there was nobody else there."

Hermione was a clever girl.

Back at her old school, everyone knew that she would one day be the school valedictorian. She was class president, the ultimate teacher's pet and frankly, too brilliant for her age, as everybody pointed out. It had always come easily to her, her biggest secret being her unbreakable bond with books. But nobody had even been able to match her intellect, nobody had her brains, her patience or her ambition – however, that all changed when she stepped foot at Hogwarts.

She knew it the minute she saw her – the air of confidence oozing out of her, the smug look on her face screaming "I know more than you!". She was prettier (not that it mattered to Hermione, but she knew it mattered to a lot of other people), she liked books and most of all – she was ambitious, too. Even though she had never come across a worthy opponent before, Hermione knew all too well the dangers of underestimating an enemy – but there was nothing to underestimate about Lola Allen.

Hermione was clever enough to know, from the minute she laid eyes on her, that Lola was and would always be the only person she would ever feel threatened by. Maybe it was their similarities, or maybe it was their differences – she didn't know, didn't need to know – because one thing was for sure: Hermione would die rather than let someone else become "the best".

So when she saw Lola do the absolute unspeakable that morning, she cooperated fully with the Ministry officials – she even asked if she could testify against her. Of course, she hid her real motives behind her concern for Fay, which was partly true; Hermione wasn't a total sociopath, she did have feelings and did feel sorry for what happened to Fay. But she would be lying if she said she wished it had never happened.

But when Lola returned the next day, looking and acting like nothing had ever happened, Hermione felt devastated. How was it possible? She had spent hours in the library looking up cases where Unforgivable Curses were used – not that anyone Lola's age had done it before so she couldn't find an exact replica – but they all ended up in the same place; Azkaban.

Hermione had initially thought - well, hoped - that Lola had just been allowed to return so that she could pack her stuff, but Lola was in her bed, fast asleep, by the time she and the girls returned from their Astronomy session that Wednesday evening.

Fay took one look at Lola's sleeping figure and left the room without a word.

"How could they let her back in here?" whispered Lavender disapprovingly as they watched Lola's chest rise and fall peacefully. "After what she did to Fay…"

"No idea," said Hermione, through gritted teeth.

Lavender was beside herself. "She's a freak! Surely, they can't let her stay with us… What are they thinking?"

"I don't feel safe here…" Parvati admitted quietly. "I don't care if they took pity on her – she is mentally insane. We all know this. We were there, we saw her eyes. What if she… she decides to do that to one of us this time…"

Hermione bit her lip. She, too, was feeling unnerved about Lola's return, but for totally different reasons.

"Let's get changed and go downstairs," Hermione said authoritatively. "And somebody please take Fay's pyjamas, too. We sleep in the Common Room tonight. Then we go speak to Professor McGonagall tomorrow."

When the girls all changed into their pyjamas and left, Lola finally felt like it was okay for her to open her teary eyes. Not knowing what else to do, she turned on her side, curled up her legs and sobbed into her pillow for the rest of that night.

A/N: Sorry for the sad ending, but I, too, am feeling quite gloomy these days. Expressing it through this story helps. I'm going through some difficult times at the moment and I appreciate anybody who has stuck around - and continues to stick around - to read more of this story. You all make my day. Thank you!