It had been a long and slow week for Professor Grabiner. He noticed Tori in his class again as diligent as always, taking notes and following along but never asking questions. Maybe he was on edge because his wife had forgotten him, or maybe it was because of the stupid pranks that seniors were forcing freshman to pull on him this week. Whatever the case, he yelled more than the usual amount and dealt out harsher punishments than he usually felt inclined to do. During Thursday's class, he even lit a student's notebook on fire. He had looked specifically at Tori then, trying to gauge her reaction, but she had looked just as frightened as the rest of them and averted his gaze. That was when he knew that something was seriously wrong.

He had requested meetings with Potsdam at least every day since her memory disappeared, but it wasn't until another week had gone by that she finally decided to speak with him, which he was less than happy about. He was about to argue with her on this when he stepped into her office; however, he noticed immediately that the tips of her hair had turned a menacing dark shade of purple and her mouth was set in a firm line. She seemed to drop all pleasantries and take this whole matter seriously, for which he was most grateful.

"I had to speak with Tori myself. There are protocols set in place, Hieronymous. This is a very serious issue. Memories don't just disappear without us knowing about it."

"I don't care how it happened right now. I want to know how you plan to go about remedying this situation."

Potsdam sighed. "You should care about both, but I must inform you that several things are happening right now. I have spoken to The Council and we have developed an immediate, if not extreme, course of action, but we all understand the severity of this situation. Someone has used memory magic on an underage student. We are all taking this very seriously; I need you to know that."

He waits patiently for her to continue. "First, and most importantly, we cannot tip Tori off that anything is wrong. It seems that you are right. She remembers nothing about her time spent with you this summer, or the wedding. When speaking to her about her time she spent in the mornings with you as a treasurer, she appeared confused and couldn't seem to recall anything beyond basic routine."

"Meaning?"

"It means several things. It may mean her memories have been wiped, but usually if they have been, the brain just fills it in with new memories. The fact that she's struggling to remember something means her memories might still be there, just shielded. It's much, much easier than actually wiping someone's memory, as it involves suspending memories of a certain nature around a specific person. In this case, anything that has to do with any time she had romantic feelings for you. But it would take a certain amount of time and magical ability to actually go through and shield each memory from her."

"Can you fix it?"

"I'm afraid not. This is a very dangerous situation, probably more so than if her memory had been wiped. Each memory charm leaves its own personal mark. We assume simply that her memory was shielded, but we don't know how, or why, or with what magic." She pauses, holding her hands out in front of her. "Think of it this way. Her memories are shielded, like they are trapped in a bubble. It's important that she doesn't dwell on these memories, or try to fish them out, or she could go too deep into the bubble and become stuck."

"Stuck?"

"In a persistent vegetative state. A coma. She'd be unlikely to wake up if pushed too hard, Hieronymous."

He frowned, knotting his fingers together. He was angry, but this was a much different type of anger than he displayed in the classroom. This was, quite clearly, personal in nature. Someone wasn't just targeting him; they were targeting her as well. "For someone to erase all of her romantic feelings for me, and not all memories of me entirely-"

"I know what it suggests," she said darkly, the tips of her hair starting to spark. Potsdam never revealed this side of herself to her students. It was important that she was welcoming to them, that they could come to her with all of their problems. Heck, it was one of the many reasons she knew as much as she did. But one of her students had been attacked and violated, perhaps in an attempt to attack one of her fellow teachers. There was no time for cheerful guises now.

"Then what are we going to do?" For the first time, he didn't sound angry. He sounded hopeless. He sounded deflated. He sounded sad.

"A little memory messing of our own," Potsdam replied, and Grabiner waited for her to elaborate. "This is very serious, and as I said, I have already obtained the Council's approval. We are to meet with each student and compel the truth from them to see if they know anything. After that, they will have their memories wiped of the compulsion and the marriage as well."

"You can't be serious," Grabiner exclaimed. "We've already had one girl's memory wiped. And now you want to do it to the whole school?"

"This is quite different," Potsdam replied patiently. "Most of what most people know of your marriage are only rumors. They heard it, discussed it, laughed about it, and moved on with their day. These memories are so fleeting, there is almost nothing to erase. It did not change their lives in any significant way, and therefore their lives will not be altered as a result. Their brains will simply fill it in with another conversation, or just forget it entirely. For most people, this is quite a simple matter. It may be a bit harder on her roommates, and we have a special situation for how to address this with Minnie, since she was a witness to your marriage, but we are taking necessary precautions. This is to prevent any danger to Tori's life as well. If anyone teases her about it, or asks to her about it, she could-"

"I know."

"I doubt the compulsion will get to the bottom of this," Potsdam continued. "But someone might have seen something, know something. No detail is too small. If they don't know anything, then there's no harm in letting them….forget. It's better for their own protection anyway. We still don't know who did this or who could be targeted next."

"And as for me?" Grabiner asked. "I refuse to have my memory wiped."

"Well, of course," Potsdam answered, letting her tone lighten slightly. "Silly man, none of the staff will have their memories wiped, although they will all have to submit to a truth compulsion, including you." He glanced at her nervously. "Which will, of course, be personally conducted by myself to ensure…confidentiality."

He grimaced. He didn't like it, but it was better than nothing. "Everyone is aware of the danger this poses to you," Potsdam continued. "Everyone will keep a close eye on Tori's behavior, but you most of all."

"Her behavior?" he echoed.

"In the end, she's still just a teenage girl," Potsdam replied. "Yes, she has taken her vows, but she does not remember them. If she kisses someone else-"

"-she would break her vows and die," Grabiner finished for her. It wasn't just her vows Tori had to be worried about. Yes she would lose her magic, but if the marriage was broken instead of properly dissolved, the Manus would be back to claim her life due to that stupid stunt she pulled that had gotten them in this mess in the first place.

"And you, in failing to protect her, will have broken your oath. You could lose your magic," Potsdam finished. "And your memory would then be wiped."

"You can't-" he started, but he was silenced with one look from her.

"We've had to do it before," she said firmly. "We have done it before. Or do I have to remind you?" He couldn't meet her eyes. He remembered how upset she was. How she had begged and how she had pleaded. But rules were rules and for that The Council made no exceptions. If you broke an oath, or a vow, or even a promise, your magic and your memories would both disappear. There were no exceptions. That's how they had all survived within the magical community for as long as they had without any interference from non-magical folk, and there could be no exceptions. Professor Petunia Potsdam knew that better than he could understand right now.

"Keep an eye on her." Her expression darkened. "You know the consequences if you don't."