A/N: Hi, all! Just want to say thanks for the reviews; a lot of you gave some really useful feedback. This chapter is a little different, so hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Copyright J.K. Rowling

Chapter 24: The Threat

(The Quidditch World Cup: July, 2014)

"I can see them!"

"Where? Where?" James Potter snatched the Omnioculars off his eight-year-old brother and then pronounced, with all the authority of his own nine years, "Those are the reserves, Al."

"But they – oh." Albus scowled, reluctant to admit that his brother was right as he took a look through the Omnioculars they were sharing. Soon, however, he was distracted as the VIP box around them erupted in cheers, and his father leaned across Neville Longbottom to grasp Albus's shoulder briefly.

"Here they come!"

Albus leapt out of his seat in sheer excitement as the seven Brazilian players lifted off into the air, quickly followed by the Bulgarians. He could hear his mother's voice commentating from the journalists' enclosure.

"Brazil takes possession of the Quaffle straight away, and this promises to be a very exciting game…"

The 427th Quidditch World Cup final had begun. Albus sat back down with a broad grin on his face. His skin was tingling with excitement, the roar of the vast stadium ringing in his ears, and the Argentinian sun blazed down on them from a hard blue sky.

James elbowed him. "Look, Al, it's your boyfriend!"

One of the Brazilian Chasers, Gonçalo Flores, was skillfully weaving around the Bulgarian Beaters, and Albus shot James a glare. "Shut up, he's brilliant."

His brother snorted. "Are you joking? Vassileva is way better than Flores. Why do you think the rest of us are supporting Bulgaria?" With a wave of his hand, he indicated his Bulgarian red.

Albus stuck his chin up defiantly. "Brazil's going to win. Krum's way too old to play Seeker."

"No, he's not! He's the best flier on the team." James looked annoyed now, too. He pushed the Omnioculars into Albus's hands again. "Look at him now."

Albus looked. "He's not doing anything."

"He is!" James grabbed the Omnioculars again.

"Boys," Harry Potter cut in, leaning across Professor Longbottom to look at them reproachfully. "Do you want me to take those off you?"

James and Albus both slouched in their seats, avoiding each other's gazes.

"What do you say?" their father continued, over the clamour of the crowd.

Albus was the first to speak. "Sorry," he muttered.

"Sorry," James responded quickly.

Satisfied, their father returned to the game. The boys were silent for a minute.

"We should probably try to get on," the older brother said at last in an undertone, assuming an air of maturity which was soon dispelled by his adding, "I don't want him to take the Omnioculars off us. Then we won't be able to follow what's happening."

"Yeah," Albus agreed, and after a moment's deliberation, "Krum is a pretty good player."

"Pretty good?" James rounded on him, eyebrows raised, then caught himself and sighed. "Fine. Flores isn't half-bad either."

Albus grinned, and at that moment, there was a collective groan all around them. "What is it? What is it?"

James peered through the Omnioculars, then shoved them at Albus, outraged. "That was a foul!"

"It was not," Albus insisted, after he had watched the replay.

"It was, too!"

"Flores was blocking the Quaffle!"

"No, he wasn't! He was just flying past the - " Albus broke off as their father reached over and firmly took the Omnioculars from his grip. Slumping in his seat, he sighed.

"That was your fault," James said sullenly.

"No, it wasn't!"

"Yes, it was!"

"No, it -"

"Boys."

(Present Day: February, 2023)

Things were proceeding in their normal pattern at Hogwarts, and everyone except Scorpius Malfoy was caught up in it.

It should have frustrated him to see all of the students and professors going about their business every day at school as though nothing had changed, but how were they to know? A Muggle breaching the defences of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, one of the greatest magical strongholds in the world? He would never have believed such a thing, had he not witnessed it with his own eyes. And even then, Scorpius was still not entirely sure that he believed it.

Godfrey Hobspawn was standing by his desk, and took a seat when Scorpius entered his office. "Sir?"

"Sit, Mr Malfoy." The Headmaster attempted a smile as the younger wizard complied, though his face was ghostly pale, and he appeared to have aged a year since Scorpius had last seen him. "I wanted to give you the latest news regarding the… Muggle incident."

That's what he's calling it? "Yes, professor?"

"The Aurors have been questioning him over the past few days." Hobspawn paused and ran a hand over his bald head before continuing, more than a little agitated, "His name is Tom Barnes; he is from Leeds; he was holidaying in the Dufftown region with his family when he stumbled across the castle – and you. He has no previous knowledge of the wizarding world, no magical connections, as far as we can tell."

"So no one told him about Hogwarts," Scorpius said, though he had already figured as much.

"Apparently not. Somehow, unbeknownst to himself, he managed to slip past the Muggle-Repelling charms on the border of the grounds, as well as the Fidelius Charm on the castle itself."

"But the Fidelius Charm is one of the strongest spells in existence," Scorpius pointed out. "You can't just slip past it."

"This man did."

Scorpius narrowed his eyes. "There's no way he could have… unless the charm itself has been weakened somehow."

Hobspawn bowed his head, neither confirming nor denying what the younger wizard had just said. "A detachment of the Aurors has been sent to do a perimeter check. I hope not to find that to be the case."

"And the Muggle?"

"He has been sent back to his family, memories wiped."

Scorpius swallowed. Of course the Muggle's memories should be wiped; they would endanger everyone if left intact. But all the same, he could not help thinking of the man's eyes becoming blank and empty as he returned to his old world, with a little piece of him missing.

"Of course, I must ask that you tell no one what I have told you."

Scorpius looked back at the Headmaster, and nodded his head. "Who else knows?"

"Only myself and the Aurors at this time," Hobspawn said quietly. "And I promise you, Mr Malfoy, that we will do everything in our power to find out who is responsible for this. We already have an idea."

"Who?"

Suddenly, the Headmaster looked very weary. He ran a hand over his bald head again. "You may have heard about the traitor Auror, Geoffrey Alderton, who went on the run some months ago. Since then, we have discovered that he is involved with an organisation known as the Truthseekers, and was employed as their representative here in the castle. Many of the strange occurrences in the castle before Christmas were, I'm sad to say, due to his influence." Hobspawn sighed. "I thought I knew Alderton well. A good lad, and a very talented Auror. Came first in all his training. But, of course, there was that business with his father some years ago…"

"So he was responsible for the werewolf scare at Hallowe'en?" Scorpius asked quickly.

"We think so. He is also thought to have framed Gregory Goyle for the attempted attack on a student in Herbology class at the beginning of the year. Involving a Manticore, you remember. Goyle is now facing another hearing in response to this." Hobspawn waved a hand. "But none of this has been confirmed yet, which is why I am only telling you, Scorpius. The students will have their answers, too, in due course."

"And you think Alderton still has an influence on events in the castle, sir?"

Hobspawn nodded grimly. "We know him to have remained within striking distance of Hogwarts, though the Aurors haven't yet managed to find his hiding place. Most likely, he's under the protection of some of his fellow Truthseekers. Alderton seems the most likely candidate for this recent stunt with the Muggle, considering what his organisation stands for. And we have reason to think that he was responsible for another attack on a student, much more recent, and disturbing."

"Tony Mason," Scorpius said, more to himself than to the Headmaster, who nodded anyway.

"The use of an Unforgivable on an individual is such a serious crime that it requires careful consideration on the part of the investigators. It is not their opinion, or mine, that a student of Hogwarts could have been responsible for such an act."

Lily Potter was sick of her dormitory. She was sick of having her meals brought to her by friends and cousins; sick of spending the entire day in her pyjamas and skipping training. She was sick of crying while listening to the Sirens and eating an inordinate amount of sweets. Well, maybe she wasn't quite sick of the sweets part.

At any rate, she was ready to face Hogwarts again: ready to face the curious glances, the whispers that were at once sympathetic and condemnatory. She was ready even to face Carlos Santini, if it should come down to it. As long as she didn't have to talk to him.

She was unprepared, however, to face her brother James, and consequently found herself shrinking back as she descended into the common room that morning to find him there. A strange mixture of annoyance, apprehension and concern crossed his face when he saw her. She simply kept walking.

"Lily." A few people were watching them as they passed the notice board. "Lily, you've been avoiding me."

Lily pressed her lips together, attempting to collect herself. She squeezed out of the portrait hole, almost losing her balance as she emerged on the other side, and James followed nimbly after.

"Lily."

"Fine," she said tightly, turning to face him as they rounded a corner in the corridor. "Let's talk."

"I - "

"I heard what you did to Carlos." She folded her arms. "You put him in the hospital wing, and now they've banned you from the final." A pause. "You're lucky they didn't do a lot worse. After Hugo attacked that Slytherin, he got a suspension."

"What Hugo did was more serious," James said at once. "He stole Polyjuice Potion from Nott's stores and impersonated another student. I just got myself in a brawl. Or maybe two. And besides…" He glowered, "… it was worth it."

"Don't you realise that's exactly what Carlos wanted? To make you so angry about me that you'd forget everything else? And now you're no longer his competition for the Quidditch Cup. Things have worked out fine for him."

"I know, but what he did to you – my baby sister - "

"It was my decision too," Lily said quietly. "And I'm not a baby."

"No, but you're under age." James stared at her. "I couldn't let him get away with it. I had to do something."

"No, you didn't. You didn't have to do anything at all. I didn't want you to do anything." Lily's voice shook. "But you didn't bother asking me what I wanted."

"Because Santini went too far!" her brother retorted. "When he was trying to get at me all year with his petty little spies and schedules, I had to put up with it, but after he used you like that, you couldn't just expect me to stand by and watch!"

"That's just it," Lily said hoarsely, stepping right up to her brother. "That's your problem, James. You think it's all about you. But it was my heart that got broken – my decision to go out with Carlos in the first place - "

"He manipulated you; it wasn't your decision!"

"It was," Lily insisted, in tears now. "You don't know what you're talking about! You don't understand that this has nothing to do with you. Maybe if you actually thought about someone else for a change – thought about what I wanted – but no, you never do that."

"I do!" James shouted. "That's all I do!"

"Oh, please. It's the same with Albus – you never - " She ground to a halt, her eyes suddenly wide.

Her brother raised an eyebrow. "What about Albus?" When she didn't respond, he seized her arm, a little roughly. "What about Albus, sis? I'm dying to know."

Grimacing, Lily wrenched her arm out of his grip, glaring up at him. "He likes Summer."

James was very still. She went on, her voice cool, "Didn't you know? He's been crazy about her all year. When you started going out with her - "

"I don't believe you," her brother said, a frighteningly blank expression in his eyes that should have worried Lily, had she not felt too angry to care.

"Ask him yourself," she said as she walked off.

"So are you ready to hand up your project?" Albus Potter inquired of Rose Weasley as they sat together at breakfast. He took a slice of ham from one of the plates in the centre of the table. "For Charms?"

His cousin nodded happily. "Yeah, finally. Tony was such a help."

"Well, I should hope so, since he was doing the project too," Albus teased, and Rose rolled her eyes.

"You know what I mean. He did more than his share."

"Good for him." Albus cast a dubious glance towards the Hufflepuff table, where Tony Mason was sitting with his friends, and then found himself meeting Penny Alderton's eye briefly. She was sitting right across from him. He looked away again, discomfited. "Are you presenting the project today?"

"Yeah." Rose tapped her cereal spoon against her bowl. "In front of the whole class. I'm a little nervous."

"You'll be fine," Albus said absently. He could still feel Penny's gaze on him; it made his skin prickle.

Rose had begun to contradict him when James Potter came right up to the table and jerked on Albus's arm, none too gently. "Come with me."

Sighing, his brother got to his feet. "If this is about flying with you tonight, I already told you that I've got loads of homework and I can't - "

"This has nothing to do with that." James's voice was unusually quiet, as his eyes flickered over the other occupants of the table, most of whom were watching the exchange curiously. "Just come on."

Rose bit her lip as she watched the Potter brothers depart the hall. She had some idea of what might be bothering James.

"Something troubling you?"

She swallowed her cereal too fast as Scorpius Malfoy sat himself in the newly-vacated seat beside her. He waved his wand discreetly, muttering, "Anapneo," as she began to choke, and her throat unblocked itself, but still she stared at him. She was not the only one at the table to do so.

Scorpius looked unconcerned by the attention as he tucked his wand back into his pocket. "I didn't mean to startle you."

"What are you doing here?" she spluttered.

"I wanted to catch you before you disappeared. You've been doing that a lot lately."

"Can you blame me?" she said coldly, keeping her voice as low as possible.

"If it makes any difference, I'm sorry for what I said to you."

"You know, I'm getting tired of your moods, Scorpius. Either be friends with me or don't. But all this see-sawing back and forth…"

Scorpius frowned. "What's a see-saw?"

"Don't try to be cute," Rose growled. "It's a Muggle thing, as I'm sure you're well aware…"

"I don't think I've ever tried to be cute in my entire life," Scorpius mused. "And speaking of Muggles…"

He leaned closer, causing Rose to nearly upset her bowl of cereal, but at that moment, Tony Mason appeared behind her chair.

"Ready for Charms?" the Hufflepuff said brightly, then, on noticing her companion, "Oh, hullo, Malfoy."

"Hi, Mason," Scorpius replied in a not unfriendly tone, and got to his feet, offering Tony his seat. "I'll see you later, Rose."

"Not if I can help it," Rose muttered to herself once he had gone.

"Sit down."

They had entered a disused classroom on the ground floor. Albus huffed impatiently, straightening his glasses. "No, James, what's this about?"

"Fine." His brother swung around to face him. "Why didn't you tell me that you liked Summer?"

Albus blinked at James. "What?"

"Lily told me." James leaned his back against a nearby desk, studied his hands for a moment, then resumed, "Look, I'd like to have a mature discussion about this; I'd like to – what?" His head snapped up at his brother's snort of derision.

"A mature discussion? With you?"

"What's so funny about that?" James demanded. "You know, Al, I'm trying here; I'm trying to see your point of view -"

"Oh, are you?"

"Yes, and what I can't figure out is why you didn't tell me how you felt about her!"

Albus looked at his brother incredulously, then turned towards the door. "Come off it, James…"

"No!" Springing forward, James caught his brother's arm. "Why the hell didn't you tell me, Albus? Merlin's sake, I've been with Summer for months, and you never said a bloody word!"

Albus shook off his brother's hand and glared at him. "You never asked!"

"Right, so now I'm supposed to run it by you first before I ask a bird out?"

"No! But you should have known that I wasn't OK with it."

"Why? Because you've been acting like the world's biggest prick all year?" James gave a bitter little laugh. "I just took that as normal."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Then, before his brother could respond, Albus held up his hand. "No, I'm not going to let you goad me. I've got better things to do."

"Oh, what a surprise," his brother mocked. "Albus has better things to do."

"When it comes to talking to you, yeah."

James pressed a hand to his heart. "Oh, that hurt. That really hurt, Al."

"I don't have time for this." Albus made a move for the door again, but James blocked him.

"How was I supposed to notice you liked her?" He threw up his hands in exasperation, leaning against the desk again while his brother remained standing. "I swear, you didn't give so much as a hint, Al."

"Really? What about the night you two got together in the first place? I was trying to chat Summer up, and you just took over."

James's forehead creased as he attempted to recall the incident. "That? I was just being friendly. You should have told me to sod off."

"You wouldn't have listened." Albus stared James down, feeling the frustration boil up within him. "Admit it. You wanted Summer for yourself, and you weren't going to let anyone get in your way."

A pause. Then, averting his gaze, his brother said quietly, "That's not true, Al. If I'd known you liked Summer, of course I wouldn't have made a move on her."

"Why do I find that hard to believe?"

"Merlin, Al, do you really think I'm that selfish?"

Albus paused for a moment, as though he were considering, then, "Yeah, I do."

"You're the one who never seems to have time for anyone else. You're the one who quit the Quidditch team after a year because you wanted to 'focus on your studies'."

"You call that selfish? I quit the team because of you."

It was as though he had slapped James. All the colour drained out of his face, and he took a step away from Albus, who went on quietly, "You were impossible. You made me miserable."

"I – " His brother was staring down at the floor now. "Al, I had no idea."

"Yeah, well, that's no great shock."

James winced at this, but kept his eyes on the floor. Albus reached for the handle of the door yet again, but his brother said, in a voice so low that he had to strain to hear him, "Wait."

Albus turned back. James was looking up at him, eyes blazing.

"I may be selfish," he said softly. "I may be arrogant, and inconsiderate, and all those things, but you, Albus, you're cold."

The younger brother blinked at the elder, and opened his mouth to speak, but James continued, "I say the wrong thing. Often. And I end up hurting people's feelings but I try. People know I care. I don't tell them like you do, but I show them."

"Like the way you showed Summer that you cared by making fun of her before the Hufflepuff match, in front of everyone?"

James shook his head, a muscle jumping in his jaw. "I'm not perfect. I make mistakes, but then I do my best to make up for them. I did my best to make up to Summer for that. And I want to do my best to make it up to you, too, Albus, but Merlin, you make it so hard."

"Well, I'm sorry to inconvenience you, but - "

"You don't make mistakes," James interrupted. "I make mistakes, but you don't. You do everything right. It's always been that way. I used to envy you for it, for being the golden child, but, Merlin…" He paused, and shook his head again, "I'd hate to be like you. To be too scared to risk other people's opinions and do something for myself. That's the real reason why you didn't tell me or Summer about how you felt, isn't it?"

"You don't know anything about it," Albus snapped. "What it's like."

James pushed off the desk with his hands, and shrugged. "You're right. I don't. But I can guess." He did not turn as he made for the door. "After all, you seem to be such an expert on me."

"I just don't understand it," Lisa Harvey said, propping her chin on her hands as she watched Rose Weasley and Tony Mason strolling across the near-empty courtyard at lunchtime. "He could have any witch he wanted. Why her? I mean, no offence to Rose or anything…"

"It's OK," Diana Turpin said with a smile. "Jackie's not here, so we don't have to pretend to like Rose Weasley. I've never liked her. I think Tony Mason was only with her to get help with his Charms project, to be honest, and now that's over..."

Scorpius Malfoy, who was seated on a nearby bench and occupied in reading one of his textbooks, sighed rather audibly at this, and Diana looked over, her smile broadening.

"Eavesdropping, are we, Scorpius?" she demanded in mock severity, while Lisa Harvey raised her eyebrows at them.

"You weren't exactly making an effort to keep your voices down," Scorpius retorted.

The Ravenclaw girl waved a hand. "They're too far away to hear us."

"I'm not."

"But what do you care if we talk about Rose Weasley?"

Scorpius shrugged, looking back at his book.

"Looks like someone has a little crush," Lisa Harvey said in a sing-song voice.

"Don't be ridiculous," he said at once, seeing what trap he had landed himself in, but Diana Turpin's eyes widened as she looked between him and her friend.

"Rose Weasley? Really?" She tilted her head to the side, considering. "You two would make a rather sweet couple."

Scorpius rolled his eyes. "I do not have a crush on Rose Weasley."

"Whatever you say…" Diana winked while Lisa giggled beside her, and he was more than a little relieved when the pair rose from their spot and made their way back into the castle a few minutes later, still laughing amongst themselves.

The worst thing, Scorpius reflected as he returned to his book, was that Lisa Harvey was not far wrong in her conjecture. Recently, he had noticed within himself a certain, undeniable, well, inclination for Rose Weasley's company. He would not go so far as to call it a crush (mainly because the word reminded him of moony-eyed, lovesick teenagers among whose ranks he definitely did not wish to be counted), but he found that he enjoyed talking to her, looking at her, listening to her speak… rather more than was perfectly reasonable.

He was eager to tell her about his discovery of the Muggle by the lake, of course, but it was more than that. Scorpius snapped his book shut and leaned back on the bench, turning his face up towards the sky. Yes, it was more that that.

It was quite natural, he supposed, that some feelings of attraction, at least on his side, should be tangled up in his and Weasley's friendship, new and fresh as it was. They had been thrown together quite often this year, and he had grown to respect her and even like her. But that, he knew, was as far as it could ever go.

The feelings would pass, at any rate, he was sure, once he and Rose became better friends. Then, he would get used to the sight of Rose and Mason together. Then, he would not wake up every morning feeling unaccountably excited to see her, because the novelty of her company would have worn off.

But until then, perhaps it would be better for both of them if they stayed away from each other.

"What are you doing?"

Scorpius jerked upright in his seat, cursing inwardly as he beheld Rose Weasley standing before him, frowning. Damn it. "Just – er – thinking."

She regarded him suspiciously for a moment longer, then, remembering herself, moved away. His resolution already forgotten, Scorpius rose to his feet, tucking his book under his arm, and followed after her.

Albus sat alone at a desk in the library, his hand shaking as he attempted to finish an essay. The parchment blurred before him as his eyes filled with tears, and he blinked them away hurriedly. Not that there was anyone around to see him.

Taking a deep breath, he pressed the heel of his hand to his forehead, as though doing so would banish the image of James's hurt, angry face from his mind. It helped, but the words lingered.

I'd hate to be like you…

He was roused by a sort of scuffling to his right, as though someone were hurriedly replacing a book on the next shelf over. Blinking, he raised his head and looked, but no one emerged from the stacks to confront him. Probably just Madam Pince, skulking as usual.

Even so, he needed to get himself together. Albus picked up the quill again and blotted it on the parchment. What was he supposed to be writing about again?

"Albus?"

He jumped, and looked up to see that Summer Birchgrove had just entered the library, and was making a beeline for his desk. She slipped into the chair across from him, smiling.

"I was hoping someone would be here. How are - " Her smile faded as she looked at him more closely. "Is something wrong?"

"Nothing," Albus said gruffly.

"You look upset." Summer bit her lip, rising from her chair and moving to his side of the table. She reached out a tentative hand and placed it on his shoulder. Albus closed his eyes for a moment, breathing in her scent, then opened them again and shrugged her off.

"I'm fine. Look, Summer, it isn't the best time."

Summer knelt beside his chair, bringing herself level with him, though she did not attempt to touch him again. "Tell me what's happened," she said gently.

Albus met her blue eyes, and shook his head. "I don't want to."

She looked confused. "Why not?"

"Because it's you," he snapped at her, and she flinched, drawing back from him. There was something deeply satisfying about the confusion in her eyes.

"But I thought –"

"You thought what, we were friends?" Albus scoffed. "Open your eyes, Summer. We were never friends. That was never what I wanted."

She went red; not the sweet, pretty blush he had seen before, but the dull flush of humiliation. A few seconds passed with her still kneeling there, her mouth opening and closing like that of a fish. Then Albus rose to his feet, throwing his things into his satchel haphazardly. "Don't look so surprised," he told Summer as she continued to stare at him. "I'm sure you had some idea."

She shook her head slowly, and swallowed. "I – I didn't."

He snorted, and fixed the strap of his satchel on his shoulder. She straightened up as he moved from the table. "Albus." He did not turn. "Albus. This isn't like you."

"Silence in the library!" Madam Pince said sharply from her desk, but neither of them paid her any mind.

Albus lifted his hands and shrugged at Summer. "Well, clearly you don't know me as well as you thought."

Halfway up the staircase to the West Tower, on the sill of a long, narrow window that overlooked the forest and the steely-grey mountains beyond, Rose sat with her legs folded beneath her. Scorpius, who had caught up with her on the third floor and insisted on telling her his story, was seated on the adjacent step. A shaft of dull sunlight fell across them both, and they were silent for a time.

"So you're telling me," Rose said at last, fixing her gaze out the window, "that a Muggle got past the castle defences?"

Scorpius nodded. "I figured the defences must have been weakened, somehow, to allow for it. Hobspawn all but confirmed it, when I spoke to him."

"It takes a great number of powerful witches and wizards to weaken Hogwarts' defensive charms," Rose said. "During the Battle of Hogwarts, it took Voldemort and a whole army of Death Eaters to make a dent in them."

"I know."

"And Hobspawn thinks that Geoffrey Alderton had something to do with this Muggle appearing out of nowhere?"

"He does." Scorpius frowned. "He thinks that Alderton's behind pretty much everything that has happened this year, actually. Zabini and Pinkstone don't seem to have registered on his radar at all."

"Chances are that they have, and Hobspawn was just giving you a simpler version of things," Rose pointed out. "Seeing as he doesn't know how much you know."

"Maybe, yeah. He said something else, though…" Scorpius screwed up his features as he remembered. "About how he didn't believe any student could have been responsible for the attack on Tony Mason, because it involved the use of an Unforgivable."

Rose leaned her chin on her hand. "Ottelby and Bole wouldn't have a problem with using one."

She had been expecting Scorpius to contradict her, but he didn't. He didn't say anything. She went on, "You know, they've been working with Alderton."

He turned to look at her in surprise. "Since when?"

"I spotted them meeting with him in Hogsmeade, a couple of months ago."

Scorpius blew out a breath. "That's why you were so sure they were involved in Mason's attack, but you wouldn't give me a reason."

Rose nodded.

"Why? Why didn't you just tell me everything you knew?"

"Have you told me everything you know?" she challenged.

A shadow passed over his face. "No."

"So why did you tell me about this? About seeing the Muggle? Didn't Hobspawn swear you to secrecy?"

"He did," Scorpius said, avoiding her gaze. "But I thought you deserved to know."

Rose pressed her forehead against the window pane, staring out. "Merlin, when did everything get so complicated?"

"I have no idea." Scorpius watched her thoughtfully. "Look, I think it's time we start putting things together." Seeing her reluctance, he continued, "I know you said you wanted to focus on ordinary things, Rose, and I understand why. But this – this involves us. You, and me, and our families, and our friends now… It's affecting everyone. We can't expect to go back to our lives just yet." Not that there was much of his life to get back to.

Besides that, if things did go back to normal, he and Rose would have no reason to be friends – or allies, or whatever they were – anymore.

Scorpius cast this unpleasant thought away, and caught Rose's eye. "So what do you say?"

She was silent. He said, more quietly, "I meant what I said this morning. I am sorry, Rose. It was unfair of me to suggest that you're only going out with Mason because he was attacked. And as for not believing you about Orchid and Torrance… I know for a fact that Torrance has been working with Zabini." She turned towards him suddenly at this, and he nodded in confirmation. "He was the one who got my cousin, Tobias, to draw that symbol in the North Tower, and in return, he arranged for Tobias to meet with Zabini in Hogsmeade at Hallowe'en."

"Zabini was in Hogsmeade that day?" Rose breathed, aghast.

"That's not all." Scorpius kept his eyes on her. "He got Tobias to send you that note, the one that you received after Andromeda's death, warning you that you were being watched." She stiffened. "That's how Zabini gets his fun, apparently."

There was a silence, during which Rose shifted her position on the sill, turning herself away from Scorpius so that he could not see her face. "I don't want to hear any more," she said, in a brittle voice.

"Sorry," he muttered. "I shouldn't have - "

"No." Her shoulders heaved as she sighed. "Don't be sorry. I'm glad you told me. I just wish…"

Rose did not finish her sentence, but Scorpius understood. He placed a hand on her shoulder, gently brushing back her hair as he did so. She did not say anything, but after a moment, she reached her own hand up and rested it over his. They stared out through the window together, watching the sluggish clouds retreat across the bleak sky.

"Sending a letter, are we?"

Albus Potter twisted around, keeping a hold on the piece of parchment. His other hand reached for the handle of his wand as soon as he saw who was standing by the door of the Owlery: Torrance Bole and Orchid Ottelby.

"I don't think that's any of your business," he said in a calm voice, though he felt anything but that. All day, his heart had been contracting painfully in his chest, and a permanent lump seemed to be forming in his throat.

Neither of the Slytherins smiled at his words. That should have been his first warning. But Albus, feeling that ignoring them would be the best policy, moved back to his owl and tied the piece of parchment to its leg. The owl's wings flapped, and it rose into the air – and shot away across the Owlery, colliding with the stone wall in a burst of feathers.

Albus's eyes widened, and he turned to see that Ottelby was holding out her wand, still pointed towards the unfortunate owl. She cocked her head. "That wasn't a letter to your father, by any chance, was it?"

Bole clicked his tongue when Albus did not reply. "You see, Potter, it is our business if you write to him or not."

"We don't want you to get our friend into any trouble," Ottelby supplied.

"Penny's already in trouble," Albus said quietly. His owl was twitching on the stone floor, making pathetic little hooting noises, and he moved towards it, never keeping his eyes off Bole and Ottelby or his hand off his wand.

"That's where you're mistaken." Bole exchanged a glance with his girlfriend, then, for the first time, his lips curved in a smirk as he looked back at Albus. "Your father never got any of your important little letters."

Albus, who had now knelt to tend to his owl, pulled short and stared at Bole for a moment, then shook his head. The owl was still twitching madly, nipping at his fingers, and he pulled out his wand in an attempt to calm it.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Ottelby called out, at the same moment that Albus jerked his hand upwards and moved his wand in a sharp, straight line.

"Impedimenta!" A turquoise light shot out of the tip, and both figures in the doorway froze as Albus leapt to his feet and slipped past them. He held out his wand as he ran, his footsteps loud on the staircase, echoing around the deserted tower, then the step beneath him turned slippery under his feet and he pitched forward into the emptiness.

He was airborne for a moment before crashing down onto the staircase once more, his forehead striking the edge of a lower step. His glasses broke as he rolled down, faster and faster, panic rising within him, and then he managed to get a grip on his wand again. "Arresto Momentum!"

Twisting around as he came to a stop, Albus squinted upwards and saw the blurry figures of Ottelby and Bole at the top of the staircase. Wildly, he shot a jinx at them, which they dodged easily.

"Two against one, Potter?" Bole said. "You're really going to risk it?"

"The Aurors will be here any minute!" he shouted back to them. There was something wet and sticky on his forehead, and he put his free hand up. His fingers came away bloody.

"Your daddy's cronies are otherwise occupied, I'm afraid," Ottelby crooned, moving down a step towards him, her wand still out. "Haven't you noticed that there are fewer of them in the castle every week? Looks like the Ministry's starting to give up Hogwarts as a lost cause."

"That's ridiculous," Albus snapped back, attempting to pull himself into a more secure position on the step and searching frantically through his mind for every defensive hex and jinx that he had ever been taught. What was it that his dad always told him? Clear your mind… Well, that wasn't going to happen. Don't let your enemy see your fear… Too late for that. Know… know…

"Ridiculous?" Torrance Bole repeated, in a tone of voice that was dangerously low. From here, his features were shadowed. "Are you calling my girlfriend ridiculous?"

Know when to run from a fight. That was it; that was his father's wonderful advice. Albus stared up at the two Slytherins, who seemed to be biding their time as they moved towards him. They had the higher ground; he was outnumbered.

But a part of him – the Gryffindor part, he supposed – shrank back at the idea of running again. Rose's words from long ago came back to him at that moment. Someone has to stand up to them.

And so, gathering his courage, Albus Potter raised his wand a fraction and shouted, "Stupe- "

He had not finished the incantation when his wand was yanked out of his hand and he was blasted backwards with the force of two disarming spells. His head knocked onto the cold stone ground hard as he landed at the foot of the staircase, and he cried out loud in pain.

Some immeasurable amount of time later that might only have been seconds, Orchid Ottleby's exultant face loomed above him, and then Bole's appeared beside her. "Do you want to go first?" she was saying softly, but her boyfriend shook his head, smiling.

"You do the honours, sweetheart."

"You see that?" Ottelby asked Albus once her boyfriend had stepped back to allow her some space. "That's why I love him."

"Do your worst," Albus said defiantly – or tried to say, at any rate, but it came out as more of an incoherent groan. Spots were still dancing across his vision and his head was throbbing. Ottelby smiled then, too, and slashed her wand through the air.

"This calls for a visit to the library," Rose said to Scorpius. They had finally risen from their seat by the window, separating their hands a little awkwardly. "A lot of visits, in fact."

He nodded briskly as they began to descend the staircase together. "We need to find out how the defensive spells around Hogwarts are being weakened. And we should read up more on Pinkstone, too. Whatever we can get about her, and the Truthseekers."

"And that symbol that keeps popping up everywhere," Rose reminded him. "Zabini, too. We need to know more about him."

"No, we don't," Scorpius said, a little too quickly, and she glanced over at him. His whole demeanour had changed; while he had looked thoughtful before, he was now glowering. "Zabini's simple enough to figure out, really. He likes power, and he enjoys hurting people."

"Right," was all Rose said. It was probably too close to home for Scorpius, she reasoned. Blaise Zabini was his uncle, after all. Then, she stopped. "Hang on. I forgot to check on Duke."

Scorpius cast a glance upwards. The tightly spiralling staircase to the Owlery was just visible in the gloom, a few landings higher from where they stood. "I'll go with you. I'm expecting a letter from my aunt."

Silence reigned between them as they climbed up through the tower, until Scorpius pulled short, stiffening. Rose looked at him questioningly, and after a moment, he shrugged. "Thought I heard something. Never mind."

They reached the bottom of the spiral staircase, and it was Rose who stopped this time, staring at Scorpius. "I hear it, too."

A soft, barely discernible moan, it could have been mistaken as the wind, but there was something human about it. Rose and Scorpius both listened for a moment more, and then she hurried forward, towards the broom closet in the corner of the stairwell. With a twitch of her wand, the door flew open and someone knocked into her.

Rose screamed, wrestling with whoever was in her arms for a moment. Then her knees gave out beneath her as she saw who it was, and she was looking down at Albus. He was barely conscious; his glasses were gone, and his robes were torn with blood in several places – too many places for Rose to count.

"Al," she squeaked, and he stirred, eyelashes fluttering, and moaned again.

"Whoever did this must have stuffed him in there," Scorpius said. She had not heard him come up, but there he was, kneeling on the stone beside her. He sounded a little dazed. "Merlin, that's a lot of blood."

"He's already lost quite a bit," Rose said, rolling up her sleeves. "Looks like the Sectumsempra curse. You need to get help, Scorpius. Now."

"Help. Right. Yes." He rose to his feet with something of an effort, and took off, his footsteps echoing in the cold silence until they faded entirely.

Rose propped Albus up in her arms as gently as she could. Her forearms were already speckled with red. Scorpius was right; it was a lot of blood – a lot of… Focus. She forced herself to breathe in deeply, through her nose, the way she had seen Healers do. Yes, that was it. Some semblance of calm began to settle over her, and she produced her wand, touching it to the first gash, which sliced across Albus's shoulder.

"Vulnera Sanentur," she murmured, in a voice that was not quite her own, and was relieved to see the flow of blood from the opening ease somewhat. Mechanically, she moved her wand to the next deep gash, in his thigh, and then the next, and then the next until she lost count, repeating, "Vulnera Sanentur," twice more, as clearly as she could. The skin around some of the cuts was beginning to knit together now – but there were still too many – and Albus's skin was turning paler and paler, his eyes rolling up in his head until she could only see their whites.

A knock came on the Gryffindor sixth year girls' dormitory door, and Penny Alderton got off her bed, frowning. She padded across, opened it, and recoiled as though she had been struck.

"How did you get in here?" She was suddenly thankful that the dormitory was empty.

Smiling at her confusion, Orchid Ottelby stepped over the threshold and reached out, placing her hands on Penny's shoulders. "You're welcome."

"For what?" The savage gleam in Orchid's eye made Penny a little afraid.

Orchid's fingers dug into the skin of her shoulders painfully. "We took care of Albus Potter for you."

"You – oh." Penny gulped. "What did you do?"

"Roughed him up a bit. Quite a bit." Orchid let go of her shoulders and mimed slashing with her wand, and Penny felt a little sick. "Topped it all off with a Memory Charm, so he won't remember what we did, or what you did, for that matter."

"That's – good." Catching Orchid's raised eyebrows, Penny added hastily, "I mean, thank you."

"All in a day's work." Orchid shrugged. "Anyway, must dash. Torrance is waiting downstairs with our brooms. He's so handy."

"Wait, you're – you're going?" Penny stared at the Slytherin girl, who nodded matter-of-factly.

"Yeah. You mightn't be seeing us for another while. It's been nice knowing you, Alderton."

"I don't understand. Why are you two leaving the castle – leaving school – when you've just wiped Albus's memories? Surely there's no need…"

Orchid smiled again, a little sadly. "It's a bit more complicated than that, Penny dear. You see, it's only a matter of time before they catch up to me and Torrance, memory charm or no memory charm. What are the words of that old Muggle song again?" She paused deliberately, then, recollecting, "'You've got to know when to walk away, and know when to run.' That's good advice, Penny. Because, you see…" She leaned in closer, and said sweetly, "It's only a matter of time before they catch up to you, too."

If she had felt a little fear before, Penny was now immobilised with it. "But… don't you still have work to do here?"

"Oh, don't worry. We've left things in good hands." And, with a toss of her ponytail, Orchid Ottelby had left.

The light was dwindling around them now, and it seemed that Scorpius had been gone for hours. Rose was shivering, but the sweat stood out on her forehead, dripping into her eyes. She did not have time to wipe it away – did not have time to cast a Lumos charm – did not have time for anything except touching her wand to Albus's wounds and willing the skin to stitch itself together. Please hurry. Hurry, hurry, hurry.

At last, she heard pounding footsteps against the stone again – more than one pair. An Auror pushed her out of the way in a swirl of dark robes, kneeling beside Albus. Wildly, she made to surge forward again, but Scorpius took her arm, restraining her. "It's OK, Rose, he used to be a Healer. He can help. More Aurors are coming to bring Albus to Madam Pomfrey. And… I managed to catch your cousin."

As if on cue, James hurtled around the corner and came to a halt on the stone as soon as he saw Albus. His face ashen, he started forward, then stopped again.

"James…" Rose heard herself saying, when he made a choking noise in his throat. "James, he'll be all right… James…" She didn't believe it, but she kept saying it, anyway, like a prayer, as the Auror leaned over Albus. Someone was gripping her hand tightly – Scorpius.

"You don't understand," James mumbled, once he had found his voice. "The things I said to him… Merlin… Al." His voice rose in pitch, desperate, as a pool of blood gathered around his brother's form. "Al, I didn't mean it. I didn't mean any of it - "

Loud voices rang in their ears, and they were suddenly surrounded by Aurors, who raised their wands in unison and began to hover Albus away, the healing Auror still attending to him. James followed blindly, but Rose was too tired to move.

"You're covered in blood," Scorpius said, a funny catch to his voice. "It's all over you."

She looked down and felt, numbly, that he was right. Her robes and forearms were soaked in red. "I should go after them."

"No, you've done enough."

Whether she had taken a step towards him then, or if it had been the other way around, Rose could never recall, but suddenly Scorpius was holding her close to him, one hand placed flat against the back of her head as she sobbed and trembled into his shoulder. He was warm and solid and comforting, and he murmured to her as if he were calming a spooked Thestral, and paid no heed as the blood from her robes soaked into his own clothes.

Darkness fell over Hogwarts, and the enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall revealed a clear, purple sky. Below it, students eagerly tucked into their dinners, unaware of what was going on in the rest of the castle. They did not attribute any particular reason to the numerous absences among the tables that day.

Over the next few weeks, however, the stories would spread. Students would whisper to each other in the corridors about the two Slytherins who had fled the castle on the same night that Albus Potter had been attacked; they would tell each in hushed tones about how Rose Weasley had supposedly snatched her cousin from the jaws of death, how James Potter had sat by his brother's bed in the hospital wing for two days straight, how Hobspawn and the Aurors had called a meeting with a stricken Harry Potter when he arrived at the castle to see his son, and how they had not emerged from the Headmaster's office for hours.

The stories could not be forgotten once heard, for they were not mere nuggets of Hogwarts gossip. They were more than that; they were truths, and they were about to change everything.