As it turned out, Professor Folsom was indeed in his fifties. During the last week of October, James and Sirius devised a plan to distract the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor and invade his office. I was sitting in class, dreading the next few hours during my double DADA block, wondering where the two Marauders were. The ancient clock, as large the wheel on a tractor trailer, hung above the entrance to the class, so that only Professor Folsom could keep track of the time. If any students looked back to check the hour, they would automatically be fined five points from their House for "clock watching" rather than learning.

It didn't help Professor Folsom's waning popularity, especially since whenever a Slytherin turned to see what time it was, they lost no points whatsoever.

I knew it had been at least ten or fifteen minutes since the beginning of class. Professor Folsom was standing perfectly still at the front of the classroom, in front of the chalkboard so that every student would not be able to see a portion of the notes he had written in his intricate calligraphy. "No talking." Professor Folsom corrected softly in his falsely sweet voice every few minutes when a student would ask him to move so that they could finish the notes.

Thankfully, I had read about today's material several times: werewolves and their relation to humans and other animals. I copied most of my notes from memory, hardly looking up.

I didn't hear Folsom move, but my nose began to burn as if I needed to sneeze. An unpleasantly strong cloud of perfume – which smelled like rotting lilacs – engulfed me. I stopped breathing, waiting until the stench passed.

It didn't.

"Writing a novel, are we, Miss Amber?"

My right hand, which was busily scrawling notes about werewolves onto my roll of parchment, stilled. I turned slightly and caught sight of Professor Folsom, towering above me, in my peripheral vision. I made it a point nowadays not to look directly into his eyes. It seemed to enable him to access my mind.

"Well?" He said quietly. "Mind sharing what you have so generously written about your story?"

My cheeks burned in spite of myself. "It's not a story. They're my notes."

"Really." Professor Folsom said airily. He picked up my roll of parchment in his long, dead-white hands. I watched him adjust his half-moon spectacles and scan through my writing. His eyebrows lifted higher with each passing second.

"Good, isn't it?" I challenged quietly.

"Five points from Ravenclaw." Professor Folsom announced immediately. Avery, Mulciber, and Snape snickered.

"For what?" I countered. "For being right? For actually doing the assignment above and beyond the expectations?"

"For being excessive." Folsom drawled, as if talking to a dumb child. "And another five, for your cheek."

Seething, I narrowed my eyes and stared straight ahead at the blackboard, which was now completely visible. I could hear students furiously scribbling down what was written with their quills before Folsom returned to his position.

"I would be very, very careful, Miss Amber." Folsom went on slowly. "And remember who the student and teacher are in this class."

I was silent.

"Well?" Folsom pressed. "How do you respond respectfully to me?"

I refused to move my head. I wanted more than anything to hex him. My right hand twitched, longing to snatch my ash wand and cast a jinx so nasty that he would be in the infirmary for weeks.

I could make his bones turn to glass. I could dye his hair pink. I could push him in front of the Whomping Willow…

Professor Folsom looked smug. "I suppose if you don't respect me, I'll have to deduct another fi-"

"SIR! PROFESSOR FOLSOM!"

The entire class snapped their heads up, turning to the direction of the noise. Professor Folsom's eyes bulged as James and Sirius burst into the classroom, panting hard, wands out.

"What is the meaning of this?" Folsom half-snarled, clearly trying to stay calm. "You two are late for my class, and-"

"We had to come get you!" Sirius panted. He jerked his thumb out towards the door. "Sir, it's gotten loose, it's in the castle!"

Now the students' eyes bulged. Snape looked intrigued.

"What's loose?" Folsom demanded.

"One of Hagrid's pets!" James yelled. "It's coming after us!"

Folsom looked supremely disapproving. "Lying is not tolerated in this class. Fifty points will be taken from Gryff-"

There was a wall-shaking roar that rattled the windows and sent several pictures of dark witches and wizards crashing to the floor. Several girls screamed in fright.

Now Folsom looked absolutely floored. He had drawn his wand and was heading towards the door. He paused and listened. "What…"

"It's horrible!" Sirius wailed. "It's a… a…"

"DRAGON!" James screeched as a jet of fire blasted in front of the door. Several students screamed in terror and dove under their desks. Folsom bolted out of the classroom in the direction of the dragon.

I gaped at the boys. How on earth had they gotten chased by a dragon in Hogwarts?!

James and Sirius's gaze alighted on me. They rushed over, excitement glittering in their eyes. They had scorch marks on their cheeks and their robes were smoldering. Parts of their eyebrows were singed off.

"What the hell is going on?!" I bellowed, staring at them in utter disbelief. "A dragon?"

"Well, not actually a real dragon." Sirius admitted sheepishly, grinning.

"We transfigured a candle into a juvenile Hungarian Horntail." James whispered to me triumphantly. "He won't know the difference!"

I could only stare at them, completely lost for words.

"Come on, quickly!" Sirius said, grabbing my wrist, the same wrist he had grabbed last spring when he had made the Unbreakable Vow with me, "we need to hurry before he comes back!"

"Wait… what?" I said, trying to keep up, but stunned by the fact that not only had these two successfully turned a simple candle into a terrifying young dragon, but they also were in the process of kidnapping me.

"No time for questions!" James shouted as we tore to the front of the classroom and up the small stone spiral stairs. I felt the blood drain from my face as James pointed his wand at the door and said, "Alohamora!".

The oak door swung open.

"Come on, come on!" Sirius urged, dragging me inside. I followed helplessly.

"What are you doing?" I hissed finally as James and Sirius dashed to Folsom's large desk, flipping through papers and pushing aside scrolls.

"Keep watch!" Sirius said excitedly. "If the dragon is silent, then we need to get out of here, fast."

"Look!" James said breathlessly. "That git forget to shut all the shelves!"

"You guys!" I whispered fiercely. "Stop! What if he comes back before we can get out?"

"Just be quiet and keep watch!" James instructed. "Come on, keep looking, Sirius!"

I glanced nervously out the office door. Several students, who had taken refuge under their desks, were staring at me like I was the dragon.

I took a deep breath to steady my racing heart. I could still hear the transfigured candle/dragon crashing in the halls and the shouts of several adult voices. I could smell the acrid tang of smoke and fire.

"You are so getting expelled for this!" I hissed.

"Not if they don't find out it was us." James said in a sing-song voice, still searching in the drawers.

"And they won't." Sirius chortled back.

For the first time, I noticed the decorations in Folsom's office. A huge map of Great Britain lay stretched across an entire wall. A huge, hideous bat was etched into the corner. An equally horrifying wolf crouched in the opposite corner. The map had at least fifty small red dots in various, random places. Several portraits of older, wealthy looking people hung on the other walls. The chandelier cast a dim, almost sickly glow to the room. The blood-red, round rug beneath my feet was ornate and intricate, probably imported from India or the Far East.

Disturbingly, chains hung on either side of the door. Suddenly, one of them began to swing violently. The others remained completely still.

"Harkstone, get over here!" Sirius said suddenly. "Quick!"

Snapping to attention, I dashed to their side. Littered on Folsom's desk were student papers, a few novels, and a large glass goblet that held a ruby-red liquid inside.

I stared, transfixed. "What do you think that is?"

"No time!" James said tightly. "Look." He pointed to the bottom shelf, which Folsom hadn't sealed. Lying there was a folder that read M.C. FOLSOM, IMPORTANT FINANCIAL INFORMATION.

"Who leaves that kind of junk just there?" Sirius snorted. He glanced at me. "Can you check it for hexes?"

I worried my lip. "I might not have time."

The ground shook with another roar from the dragon.

"Well, just do it!" James ordered. "Before he comes back!"

Angry at being told what to do, angry that I could get into even more trouble with Folsom than before, I obliged. I muttered several spells, hovering my wand over the folder. Nothing happened.

"Just grab it." Sirius said. "Hurry."

James snatched the folder, stuffing it into his robes. "Come on, let's get out of here!"

But my attention was diverted to what was lying in the bottom desk drawer. Beneath the folder was a newspaper article, folded over to a specific page. The obituary section. Dated 9 April 1972.

My stomach dropped. My hand gripped my wand so tightly that I was worried it would snap. But it was hard, just as Ollivander said when he had sold it to me last fall, and it didn't yield to my emotions.

"Harkstone, come on!" James urged. "We need to go."

But I couldn't stop staring or reading. Because the picture on the obituary page was that of my sister.

Virginia Grace Harkstone, second and middle daughter of Walter and Lena Harkstone, passed away at her home today, after a lifelong struggle with an unknown illness. She is survived by her younger sister Naomi Harkstone and her older sister, Amber Harkstone…

The article went on, but I couldn't see it. My vision was blurred with tears.

"Amber?" Sirius said, using my first name for the first time ever. "You alright?"

"No." I said very quietly, wondering if someone could actually explode from rage. "No. I'm not okay."

James craned his neck. "Virginia Harkstone?" He went quiet, reading. Then his eyes widened. "Oh, my God…"

"What?" Sirius snapped up the paper, reading. "No way…"

"I'm going to kill him." The creep was spying on me. He was researching my background, for whatever reason. Wand drawn, I marched out the door.

"No!" James and Sirius both grabbed an arm; I struggled hard against them. "Harkstone, you can't!" James said forcefully. "Come on! Think about it! If you attack him now, he wins! You'll get expelled!"

"Just wait." Sirius said ominously. "We'll get him back. Sick jerk."

My chest heaved. The torrent of rage and raw grief was dizzying. I fell into my seat, staring at the floor and seeing absolutely nothing.

He knew. Folsom was stalking me. Why else would have the story reporting my younger sister's death in his desk?

A new thought, even worse than the others before, slid inside of my mind like a black cloud. What if he knew? What if Folsom knew that it was my fault that she had died? Because of that Tree…

I shut my eyes tightly, trying not to be sick.

"Come on," James said, forcing me to my feet. "We need to move. I can't hear our little fiery friend anymore."

Sure enough, the roaring and shaking had ceased. Now the only sound was the rising babble of students, confused and frightened. Sirius hauled me out of the room. The boys flanked either side of me, moments before Folsom burst into the room, his black cape flowing behind him.

"Professor?" A student piped up meekly. "Is everything alright?"

It was Destiny Shay, a second year Hufflepuff.

"Silence!" Folsom snarled, his back turned. Destiny's eyes widened, tears filling them. Folsom didn't notice or care.

"Students are to return to their Houses immediately." Folsom went on, sounding furiously. I noticed that his long hair, which was usually tied back immaculately in his ponytail, was in disarray. His lipstick was smudged. Folsom was one of those people who I found extremely unattractive, especially when they lost control.

"Sir?" Another student hedged.

"GET OUT!" Folsom ordered, his voice so loud that I jumped. I was staring at him, shaking with the effort of restraining myself. I wanted to rake my fingers down his face, make him scream in pain for having the gall to check up on me…

"Let's go." Sirius said quickly. He and James flanked me, pushing me along out of the door with the other students. I noticed Folsom clutched a broken candle in one hand, his wand in the other.

Outside, the hall was an absolute war zone. Scorch marks blackened the walls and floor; some tapestries that had hung were now nothing more than singed rods holding nothing. The burn of smoky air hurt my throat, but that also could have been the tears gathering in my eyes.

He's studying me like some creature… he's reading up on my family like we're just bits of information in a textbook…

"What a mess." James said gleefully, ushering me to a tiny alcove behind a tapestry that had survived the fire. Thankfully, no other students had given us a second glance. They were all too focused on following Folsom's orders to return to their common rooms.

When the pitter-patter had stopped, James pulled out the file and a piece of parchment. He muttered an incantation and black spots and lines appeared on the second piece of paper. He pulled out a quill and added the alcove where we stood to the map.

"Why did you steal his folder?" I asked as Sirius pulled it free from James and flipped it open.

"The bigger question is… why does this open so easily?" Sirius muttered. He narrowed his eyes as James finished adding the new detail to the map. "Oh, look! Full name: Mackenzie Clarence Folsom. Born, 5 February 1926. D-"

The file exploded into flames.

I stared at the ashes slowly falling to the floor, like gray snow. Sirius' mouth was open. James swore.

"Of course it would self-destruct!" James moaned. "Come on, Sirius! Why didn't you think more carefully?"

"Don't come yelling at me!" Sirius retorted. "I didn't know! Harkstone was supposed to check it first!"

"I did!" I said slowly. "I didn't…"

"Didn't what?" James demanded. "Do your job? Help us find out more about Folsom? We might not have even needed to get his official file from the Ministry! We could have learned all of his personal and private information from this file! But it's gone now, thanks to you two idiots!"

Sirius opened his mouth to argue, but before he could, I burst into tears.

James looked alarmed. "Harkstone… I… just calm down… er, I didn't mean it…"

"Bloody hell." Sirius murmured. "Crybaby's back."

"He had my sister's obituary in there!" I sobbed, trying to suppress my emotions, but failing. Badly.

The boys looked at each other again, aghast. "Your sister died?" James said slowly.

"Yes!" I sobbed, hands covering my face, wanting to run from this room and kill Folsom, but knowing it was futile. He was a Professor of Dark Arts; he could end my fight with a single well-cast spell. "But… but it's not something we need to talk about. It's not…"

"Not a big deal?" Sirius said doubtfully. "Was it murder?"

The Murder Tree…

"No. She was sick." I fought hard to control my emotions, which had completely spiraled out of proportion. "So… so Folsom was in the same year as The Dark Lord."

"That's what it looks like." James said grimly. He glanced at me, adjusting his glasses. "Harkstone… do you want to talk about your sis-"
"I said NO!" I exploded. Red sparks erupted from the tip of my wand, making the floor shudder and dust fall from the cracks of stone in the ceiling above. Sirius and James jumped, faces paling.

"Bloody hell." James muttered. "I'm sorry. I didn't-"

"I said enough." I spat, holding my wand level to his face. "Don't make me jinx you, Potter. I'm pretty good with charms, and I think a good Silencing Charm would suit you well."

Sirius had reached for his own wand, but James waved him off, never losing eye contact with me.

"Fair enough, Harkstone." He said easily. "No need for that."

Slowly, I lowered my wand. It was still hot in my hands, as if it was ready to burst into flame.

"So, anyway," James said, dusting the ashes of the now-non-existant file off of his hands, "this means that we need to do more digging. And we need to keep going after whatever Folsom is hiding."

"How do we know he's even hiding anything in the first place?" Sirius argued. "What if he's just a weird bloke who wears lipstick and stalks some of his students?"

"Something's not right about him." I said quietly. "He's doing something he doesn't want anyone else to know about. Think about it. Why else would he be gathering information on me?"

"To use it against you?" Sirius suggested.

"Exactly." I sniffled, passing a shaky hand through my hair. "He thinks I'm a threat, for whatever reason."
"Or a brat who he wants to put in her place." James said, putting his hands up at the withering look I gave him. "I'm not trying to say that to hurt you, Harkstone. I'm just saying that you might be overthinking this a bit. If he'd go after anyone, wouldn't it be Dumbledore?"

At that, I snorted. "Don't be ridiculous. No one's stronger than Dumbledore. Even the Dark Lord."

"He's up to something, can we all agree on that?" Sirius put in. "And we definitely need that file on him. The sealed one at the Ministry."

"And I need to learn how to open it properly." I added. "I have a feeling that exploding papers aren't the worst things that can happen when people snoop."

An uncomfortable silence stretched between the three of us. Distantly, I could hear students moving from class to class, their elephantine steps echoing around the stone corridors.

"Remind me again why you just transfigured a candle into a dragon." I said, itching to be rid of these boys and their contagious bad luck.

"We needed that file. And it proved that you were right. He is old. And he's hiding something. Something that we need to investigate." James said.

"Why can't we just tell Dumbledore our suspicions?" I countered, weary. I just wanted to lose myself in my studies and forget that I had ever joined this group. That on top of that, I had also made an Unbreakable Vow with them.

"Because he wouldn't have hired Folsom in the first place if he thought he was shady." James responded.

"Or," Sirius said thoughtfully, "he doesn't trust Folsom and hired him to keep a close eye on him."

"Do you honestly think Dumbledore would hire a friend of the Dark Lord to teach the Defense Against the Dark Arts?" I said incredulously. "Honestly, Sirius."

"It's not that far-fetched." Sirius defended. "We should practice our skills tonight, anyway. Let's meet in the Shrieking Shack. Amber, you can teach us some more charms. Like that Silencing One. Or Protego."

I tossed my hair back, irritated. "It's Harkstone. And that's fine. But if you two idiots pull one more harebrained trick like you just did with Folsom again without consulting me or the rest of the Marauders… then I'll tell McGonagall about the candle."

"You wouldn't." James said immediately. "You made a Vow with us. You can't break your word to keep our secrets."

"It's not a secret if you didn't clear it with me or Remus or Peter beforehand." I reminded him. "It's only valid with Sirius."

Both boys looked mutinous.

"So, meet us later at eleven at the Shack." Sirius continued, while James furiously rolled his wand between his fingers. "We have Quidditch practice tonight, so we'd better go. It starts soon."

"We'll say 'hi' to Locke if we see him." Sirius winked as I opened my mouth to protest. Both boys darted away as I drew my wand to hex them. "Yeah, you'd better run." I muttered, watching the tails of their robes disappear around the corner.

I stowed my wand and kicked at the scorched remains of Folsom's file. How long until he noticed it was missing? Was there any way for him to know that we were the ones who had nicked it and been the ones to trigger its destruction?

I stowed my wand in my robes and exited the hiding place. I walked towards the staircase, still blackened and bearing marks of the transfigured dragon. I had taken a single step down before I realized that I had left my book bag in the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. I had too many assignments to leave it there overnight. I had to retrieve it.

As I wandered back into the empty classroom, another thought formed in my mind: how on Earth had Sirius and James been able to complete such an advanced transfiguration? Surely, only seventh-years were capable of that level of skill?

But they had also been able to perform and complete an Unbreakable Vow. And now James wanted to map out the entire school, including every corridor and hidden tunnel. And he was doing it. For all of their mischief and headaches that James and Sirius caused, Remus was right. They were smart. Too smart. What other kinds of magic were they capable of? If they could master Transfiguration at twelve years old, then they could certainly manage a heist into the Ministry of Magic or Sirius's house within a year. Maybe not even that long.

I had arrived at my vacant seat. I bent down and slipped my textbook inside of my book bag and draped it over my shoulder. I turned to leave and found my feet rooted to the spot.

Professor Folsom swept in front of me. He had cleaned up his face, but his blue eyes were blazing. The candle light reflected white off the lenses of his glasses, so much more sinister than James'. I instinctively tried to take a step back, but I couldn't move.

We have direct eye contact. I can't get away! Panic flared inside. I threw up a mental wall, bracing myself for an inquisition. But nothing came.

Professor Folsom continued to stare at me. His thin eyebrows furrowed slightly. "Quite an interesting day of class, don't you think, Miss Amber?"

"My name is Miss Harkstone, if you don't mind." I said, trying to sound polite.

Folsom let out a soft exhale that passed as a laugh. "I do mind, actually. As your teacher and superior, I will call you whatever I want. I could even call you Miss Hag, if I wanted."

Anger bubbled, hot like fire. I narrowed my eyes. "Do I have permission to leave, sir?"

"Trying to sound polite. You're not fooling me, Miss Amber. I know you can't stand me. Just as I can't stand you. It's too bad you and your little gang of boys don't wander off into the Forbidden Forest. I know plenty of creatures that would love to meet you and… well, let's say that the mermaids had the right idea."

I went cold inside, as if I had been thrown into icy water. Instantly, I flashed back to that day over a year ago when Remus had saved my life. The jealous mermaids had tried to drown me. I thought that only a few people had known that. Remus, myself, Lily, McGonagall, Pomfrey and Flitwick. Maybe he had heard it from them.

But Folsom was also clearly investigating my background. How else had my sister's obituary ended up in his desk drawer?

"Is that a threat?" I said quietly.

Folsom raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Why, Miss Amber, are you insinuating that I would threaten a student?"

I suppressed a sarcastic laugh. "Of course not, Mr. Mackenize."

Folsom's eyes widened so that I could see the circles of his irises. I felt a flare of triumph, which quickly turned to fear when he leaned down close to my face. So close that I could smell his overpowering, cloying perfume. So close that I could see the tiny pores on his face. So close that I could see his neck, his jugular, where his pulse should have been.

There was none.

"I would be very, very careful with what you look for, Miss Amber." Folsom said quietly, his voice dripping with fake sweetness. His eyes were chips of ice. "Otherwise, your sister won't be the only Harkstone in the obituary section."

My insides twisted. I couldn't tell if I was shaking due to cold or terror. But by the look in Folsom's eyes, I knew I was pushing his limits, and that I needed to back off. Now.

"Are we clear, Miss Harkstone?" Folsom went on softly, never blinking.

"Crystal." I replied, trying to sound calmer than I felt.

He stepped back and straightened. "Then you may leave. And just remember… people who go digging for answers get dirty."

Move, Amber. Move. Get out of here. I willed my feet to move, but they wouldn't budge.

"What's that?" I said suddenly, pointing to the window. "Is that a bat?"

Folsom turned his head a fraction of a degree, but his eyes broke contact as he scanned the spot for a bat, and I seized my chance. I ran out of the room and straight for Ravenclaw Tower. I didn't dare look back.