News of what transpired on Halloween spread throughout the castle and with Herido gone Draco's preening had become unbearable. Both Daphne and Hermione had taken to smacking the back of his head several times a day, but it did nothing to quell his attitude. Even when the twins had spelled his hair bright pink, he'd only been upset for half an hour before a tide of Slytherin girls reassured him that he looked so cool as a 'bad boy' and suddenly the change in style had been his idea all along.

"You know Longbottom, you should dye your hair, too." He suggested with an overplayed air of authority. Daphne stabbed her fork into a sausage to gain their attention and then pointed it threateningly at the Gryffindor.

"Neville, you are absolutely not to dye your hair!" She spoke with the same serious tone Hermione used when discussing schoolwork. Said girl took the fork from Daphne's hand and placed it gently down.

"She's right, don't listen to Draco. He doesn't know what he's talking about." He started to puff himself up ready to respond but she turned to the blonde girl instead. "And you shouldn't point with your cutlery. Really, Daphne, I thought you would know better." Daphne's was overcome with disbelief for a second or two.

"I do know better." She said, tossing an impeccable lock over her shoulder. "I don't need etiquette advice from you." She ignored the snickering from the twins as they whispered something about the girls sharing a sausage – she reminded herself she was too classy to pay attention to it. "But it's only Neville."

"Yes, I know more about style than he ever will!" Draco had to get a word in and took the first opportunity.

"What?" Hermione let out an exasperated sigh. "We weren't talking you, Draco." He threw his nose in the air and turned to make a point of joining in whatever conversation the twins were having.

"But Daphne, if even Hermione knows basic table manners then…" Blaise started but the brunette was on him in a flash.

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked with dramatically faked offence. Blaise just raised an eyebrow and answered calmly.

"Well, Addams said you grew up somewhere called 'suburban Hell' and Longbottom was surely provided with all the training a young heir needs." He shrugged as though that explained everything.

"I didn't grow up in…"

"Guys!" Neville finally interrupted. "I can decide what I am or aren't offended by." Well, he was getting better at it anyway. "And don't you think it's my choice whether or not I dye my hair?"

"No!" They all declared together as they turned to face him. Even the Weasleys seemed sure about this.

It seemed that Draco's acceptance of Hermione into his world had been a catalyst for them all to break down their own barriers and accept one another. They finally accepted that if Heri had seen something worthwhile in them, they were at least worth a look – or the benefit of the doubt – and so far they all liked what they saw. Neville had come a long way since that night in Gryffindor Tower. He'd had to. As soon as he started to hang out with Slytherins he'd become a target for his own house, so he'd learned quickly to defend himself and constantly reminded himself not to let other people put him down. Ron was currently the only Gryffindor in his year on friendly terms with him, though even that was tentative. And of course they saw less of the twins as they already had their own friends to socialise with, but all together their little group had become pretty solid. They all shared a dark secret. And they defended each other when necessary, Slytherin or Gryffindor, it didn't matter between them.

The teachers didn't know what to make of it.

Daphne had just started defending her authority over what he was to do with his hair when she was interrupted by Hermione.

"That's Pugsley's falcon!" They turned to observe the majestic bird as it swooped down beside her. She took the letter as it helped itself to her breakfast.

"It's from Heri." She said unnecessarily. She skimmed through the letter, her face breaking into a huge grin and then screwing up in distaste. Daphne leaned back to read over her shoulder.

"What kind of a name is Pubert?" She asked, rather loudly. Hermione hushed her and batted the question away.

"An Addams name. It's a boy!" She finally declared, waving the letter about before it was snatched up by Draco and then passed around.

A few days before, Heri had been collected by Professor Snape during Charms and he'd explained only that his mother was having a baby before fleeing the classroom. The letter confirmed their suspicion that he'd gone home to welcome his new sibling.

They all started to debate what to get the new Addams, when Ron approached to ask if Neville was ready to head to class.

"In a min." He responded. "Hey, Ron, Heri's got a new baby brother!"

"Oh, great." The younger Weasley said, his words dripping with sarcasm. George jumped up and pulled him to sit on the Slytherin bench.

"Are you saying…" He said as he sat down beside him and threw a heavy arm over his shoulder.

"That you don't think…" Fred replied from his other side.

"That brothers…"

"Aren't the most bested best thing…"

"In the whole world…"

"And shouldn't be celebrated?" … one of the twins finished.

Ron shrugged off the arm.

"Gerroff!" He cried. "Yes! Brothers are ten a penny. If he wanted another, he should have taken one of you!" The others laughed.

"He's got you there!" Blaise quipped. Ron quickly turned to glare at them all.

"Shut up!" It was one thing for him to bemoan his large family, but no one else had any business commenting on it.

"Easy there, little brother." Fred soothed.

"And we did offer…" George added regretfully.

"Hey, Ron, why don't you come help us pick out a gift later? We have a pretty good idea about where to look?" Neville offered – trying for the umpteenth time to include the boy.

After a short discussion it was agreed that Ron could be shown the Room of Requirement. Well, actually it was only after the twins had vouched for him that the others agreed he could join them.

"So you can't tell anybody about it!" Fred repeated for the third time. It was the most serious Ron had ever seen the twins.

"Yes, yes, I get it. No telling." He rolled his eyes. "Don't tell me you guys are afraid of him too!" Ron scoffed but he was curious.

"Of course not!"

"But would you like it…"

"If we betrayed one of your friends?"

"I'm not a snitch!" The youngest brother defended as they made their way through the halls of Hogwarts. He would keep their secret about this amazing magic room they'd told him about if only because he was so excited to be out after curfew.

"We're nearly here." Neville informed him. Ron had noticed the recent change in the Longbottom boy and was more than a little jealous. The boy had become stronger since he'd joined Addams' small group.

After Halloween, Herido had realised that the other's may have been feeling left out, so he'd offered to take them along one night and involve them in the lessons and practice he'd been having with Hermione. Most of them had been ecstatic to learn some dark arts from an Addams. Only Neville had been hesitant, but he soon saw the wisdom of widening his repertoire and learned that not all dark magic was inherently harmful. Heri had asked Hermione if she minded giving the cutting of Cleopatra she'd received from his mother to Neville, and she'd been more than happy to oblige. Neville fed the plant hamburger and his own blood and it was already a loyal guardian of his bed and belongings (something he needed, what with the current animosity from his fellow Gryffindors).

The Lions met their Slytherin friends in a corridor on the seventh floor, and as Hermione paced back and forth, asking for a place to find a gift Ron shifted uncomfortably. He always felt like a traitor around the Slytherins, but if even Neville liked them, they couldn't be that bad, could they?

When the group entered the room they were a little surprised. This place was a mess! And Ron was a little confused about why they wanted to keep this a secret – it was just of room full of junk as far as he could tell.

At first.

After they split up to look for a gift, he began to really look at items around him. There was so much! Ok it was old, but there were trunks, for example, that were much nicer than his own. It was an Aladdin's Cave!

When Blaise called out to the others he was too busy searching through a stack of books to respond. He didn't care as much as his oldest brothers about school, but he thought it would be nice to have decent books to work with. It would be nice to have decent anything to be honest.

He placed yet another book to one side and suddenly pulled his hand away, yelping in pain as he did.

Cradling his right hand in his left he studied his palm. It felt like he'd been stung, but looked black and… charred? He wondered whether he should go see Madam Pomfrey as it certainly didn't look healthy, but then he'd have to explain what happened and the others would be furious. So he curled his fist and tried to ignore the stinging pain, deciding that he would go tomorrow instead. He was sure it could keep until then.

Standing, he cast a wary eye over the now abandoned books – he'd lost all enthusiasm for them – and tried to reassure himself that it was just a bug. An unusual insect bite. After all, there couldn't be anything dangerous at Hogwarts.

By Lunch the following day, Heri was back at Hogwarts, smoking a cigarette beneath the Whomping Willow and gazing without focus out at the Forbidden Forest.

The tree began to twist in agitation when he felt his friends approaching.

"How did you know I was back?" He asked without turning around. Had he looked at them he would have laughed. They were all stepping gingerly closer and closer, wands out and trying to keep all the tree's branches in their sight at once. They should have known that the Willow wouldn't even drop a leaf with Addams standing beneath.

"Conspiratorial whisperings along the Head Table." George said.

"Reckoned there could only be one person responsible for that." Joked Fred.

They all reached the centre and started to relax a little.

"Heri?" Daphne tried. Something felt very off about him. There was a darkness there that set them a bit on edge. Daphne felt more like she was approaching someone who's just lost a family member, not gained one.

He finally turned and they all noticed how dark his eyes were. Neville looked away first.

"Must you smoke?" Hermione chastised. Anything to break the silence. Heri gave her a cocky smile and took a long drag. She huffed. "They will destroy your teeth!"

"Yeah… that's the worst thing they can do." Draco scoffed. She sent him a mean glare, but Heri finally smiled and they felt better for it.

"So how's the baby?" Daphne asked as she snatched up Blaise's cloak and laid it down, deciding she might as well get comfortable. The others followed her example and soon they were all sat together, the threat from above forgotten.

"Oh, he's in perfect health." Heri replied as he finally doused the fag.

"You don't sound too pleased about that." The blonde's observance sounded like an accusation, so he took out a few photos and passed them out.

"Of course I am!" He defended. Nothing was as important as family.

"Then why… hang on, this baby has a moustache! He was born with a moustache?" Cue insane cackling from the twins. Heri screwed up his face and stomped one foot rather petulantly – not that any of his friends would say so.

"Yes, yes! He's a handsome devil. You don't need to rub it in." He huffed.

"Why is he in a kiln?!" Neville asked in horror as he stared at a picture of the newborn. Heri took out another cigarette and replied in a tone that was altogether too innocent.

"I thought he might like it." The others just looked at him until he continued. "He's fine!" Green eyes darkened once more. "It turns out he has an… affinity for fire." Taking a comforting drag he all but spat out his next confession. "He's a fire elemental."

A collective gasp was heard. Elementals were incredibly rare, though they supposed that if anyone was to be gifted it would be an Addams.

Hermione forced out a laugh.

"You're not jealous of your baby brother, are you?" The others didn't know whether she was brave or stupid, but when he turned those sharp, dark eyes on her, even she look down, unable to hold them.

"Of course I am." His reply surprised them. "He's got to go." The last statement was said under his breath, but they all heard.

"Well…" Daphne searched for a way to respond.

"We should head to class." Hermione suggested and everyone quickly stood.

"And I said I'd visit Ron. He's been ill all day." Neville added. Heri looked up, very much interested in this new, more pleasant topic.

"Oh?" He pressed.

It was that evening when Heri made his way to visit Ron, finding him in an induced coma surrounded by his brothers and professors Snape, Quirrell and Dumbledore. The boy was a pleasant shade of green.

"Mr Addams." Dumbledore greeted with a severity that was rare with students.

"Headmaster." He returned the greeting and studied the patient. He could hear the brothers being told of the intention to place him in St Mungo's in the morning. The twins had none of their usual mischievous joviality. That was a shame.

Heri lifted the boy's hand. It was heavily bandaged, but even without his Sight he could tell Ron had been cursed and that the curse was centred in his hand.

He reached out to unwrap it, but was stopped by Dumbledore.

"Don't touch that, Herido." Heri removed his wrist from the old man's grip and grinned as he turned once more to the curse. "He's been cursed."

"Obviously."

"What do you know of it?" Did the old coot honestly think Herido had something to do with this?

"Professor, Herido wasn't even here when Ron got sick!" One of the twins defended as he started to unwrap the limb.

"Mr Addams!" Dumbledore chastised a little more forcefully and was immediately followed by Snape.

"We don't know what it is yet. It's very old and very dark. You could be cursed too…" Snape knew it was a lost cause as he watched the dark boy's grin widen with each word spoken and each bit of blackened skin revealed to him.

Quirrell was fascinated. Being the defence teacher he'd been called in for a consult, but he truly had no idea what was happening to the young Weasley, and while he was curious to learn all he could, there was no way he was going anywhere near the boy. Herido Addams seemed to be just as excited about the idea of being cursed as he was about studying it.

"Any thoughts?" He asked. Oh, how he'd love to know Herido's thoughts.

"It kinda looks like a black spot, no? Have you heard of the old sailors stories of the black spot that summons the kraken?" Several heads nodded. "Well I don't think it's anything to do with that." Snape wanted to bang his head against the wall, and by the looks on the others' faces he wasn't the only one.

"Well," the headmaster started, "any ideas of what it might be?" Heri turned his wide grin to the old man.

"Why should I have any idea?"

All those present doubted their own observation skills before conceding that they had indeed just heard the powerful old warlock huff in exasperation. He was about to press the child into giving him more when Heri took out his cell phone. Most everyone was stumped.

Heri took a quick photo of the hand. He could see the twins were clearly upset, but if he was going to restore them he'd need help figuring out what happened to their brother.

As the flash went off all the adults drew their wands, startled by the blinding light and odd noise.

"What is that?" Snape demanded and Heri couldn't be help but laugh, shaking his head and straightening up to leave.

"Muggle magic." He replied distractedly. "Night all." And with that he actually started to whistle a jaunty tune as he left a room of full of confusion and disbelief.

He entered the Slytherin common room to find Kounna, but spotted Daphne sitting alone painting her toe nails. He only considered a moment before inviting her for an evening stroll. A bit of company couldn't hurt.

"Oh, yes, ok." She decided to go along. She had nothing better to do. "Just let me finish this and I'm all yours." Heri waved one hand and all her nails were painted and dry and looked better than she could have done them. "D-did you really just..."

"Wednesday paints her nails." He said by way of explanation and she just stood and headed to her dorm to get ready.

"Ok, whatever." She'd already given up trying to figure out his family and if she started trying to reconcile the boy who she knew was capable of such darkness with the boy who paints his little sister's nails, she'd go crazy. It was best to just accept him as he came.

After five minutes he sent Kounna in to hurry her along, but she was still another 10 minutes after that. He glared when she finally returned.

"Salazar, Heri! You're so impatient." She moaned unconcerned as she handed Kounna back to him.

The other Slytherins ignored them, already used to the Parseltongue, but she thought he sounded a bit snide when he talked to the snake.

She was right. He was impatient and now he was annoyed. His precious Kounna was infinitely loyal, but seemed to have developed a soft spot for the blonde that he'd never seen from her before. She'd have bitten anyone else for taking so long after she'd gone to retrieve them.

He was starting to regret inviting Daphne even more when he tried in vain to explain the reason for their walk. After half an hour he'd been reduced to: 'Muggle communication magic doesn't reach Hogwarts, so we have to find somewhere it does reach so that we can use this magical muggle device to send a photo to my family in America.'

"But muggles don't have magic. That's what makes them muggles!" Was the obvious response.

"No, they don't. So they made their own." He handed her the phone, after finally getting signal enough to send a multimedia message. Thankfully they hadn't had to go too far from the shrieking shack so they had time to let her play around with his phone before heading back. Well, he thought they did.

By the time he'd explored the place and returned to her, disappointed at not finding a single supernatural occurrence, Daphne was hooked: online and learning. He sighed.

"Only you could discover Vogue in such a small..." He was surprised at the intensity in her eyes when she looked up at him. There were tears there and the unsure look of a lost child.

And he understood.

She was experiencing culture shock, coupled with having everything she knew about the world turned on its head. Yes, muggles were weak, but they were also amazing!

In the end he spent all night helping her explore the muggle world via the internet.

He woke up against a log, far into the wilderness beyond the shrieking shack, Daphne leaning against him, lying soft in his arms and still cradling his phone in hers.

He watched as she blinked awake and barely contained his mirth as her eyes bugged and she leapt away, only to be enveloped by the November chill and immediately run straight back into the circle of warmth Heri had created around them, only just missing the snake. In it all she still hadn't let go of his phone.

"Morning." He said, very much amused as he looked up at her. She was quiet and he wondered whether she still hadn't gotten over the culture shock from last night.

She was actually struggling to accept that she'd spent the night outside and probably miles from where she was supposed to be. Daphne Greengrass did not do things like this! Anything could have happened to them out here; people would surely know she was missing by now and she'd be in a world of trouble if the staff knew she'd left Hogwarts.

"We should hurry back!" She decided, turning to brave the cold once more. Heri sighed.

"Very well." After standing and stretching, he had to jog to catch up to her brisk pace. "Are you ever going to return my phone?" He asked, still amused by her air of concern. He thought she'd gotten over her anxiety disorder in the last few months, but evidently not.

She looked down at her hands, almost surprised to find the muggle device there and tried to turn it on.

"It's dead." He explained, only realising his mistake when she turned to him with a look of horror. "No, I mean the battery ran out…" And now confusion, "Its energy ran out, the… magic that powers it. It just needs to be recharged… it needs its energy replacing." Christ alive, wizards were hard work. Not only did they know nothing of the muggle world, they therefore lacked the vocabulary to even explain it to them.

She finally handed it back and took his arm to steady herself as they took the uneven path up to the shack.

"I learned a lot last night." She spoke quietly, like admitting such a thing was some great sin.

"Hmm, who knew there was hair and make-up tutorials on YouTube?!"

"I know right!" Was her enthusiastic response to what he'd meant as sarcasm. Next time he would take her into the dark web, he thought with a wicked gleam in his eye.

As they opened the door, several bats flew at them, obviously upset about being disturbed so early in the morning. While Daphne let out a shriek, Heri acted on instinct and speared each one to the walls before she knew what was happening. He winced: his mother would kill him if she found out – she did a lot for the protection of bats. Whoops.

"I'm never going anywhere with you ever again!" She'd had enough now. "Except that fashion show you said you'd take me to in Italy." Heri groaned. He had said that, hadn't he? But he had been so tired at the time… oh well it could turn out to be fun. He'd always wanted to open a fast food shop back stage at an event like that – all those models needed to learn how to enjoy life and appreciate the simple things. He considered the chaos the smell of frying meat and onions could cause as he looked at his blonde friend.

"You could be a model." Thankfully the girl was obviously used to hearing such things and didn't notice how corny that had sounded. She probably could though. In a few years anyway. Her hair was wind swept and she had small flecks of bat's blood across her face, which was reddened from the cold: she could surely make a fortune in the muggle world.

As they finally entered Hogwarts, he considered that he might have been wrong in thinking a little company couldn't hurt! He'd accomplished his original task, but now he'd have to hurry to get to Ron before they took him away to the hospital. He'd had no intention of introducing Daphne of all people to the muggle world, but maybe expanding her horizons would do her some good.

And it'd kept her sufficiently distracted while he'd 'explored' the area.

He smirked as he made his way to Ron. He was too good a friend really.

Next chapter we'll be back home for the holidays! Hope you are enjoying and thank you all for reading and especially those that take the time to review. Xx