Welcome back! It's been a while since I've written a chapter for this fic that was over 10k words, but here we are. I hope you enjoy it, nonetheless!

Chapter Twenty-Six

The Minister and the Portrait

Cassie stared into the glassy eyes of Professor Staghart, a scream building in her throat.

His body was completely still, weighing like lead in her arms. Blood trickled from almost every orifice, but even those red streams were slowing, congealing. It seeped into her robes, and her stockings, and stuck to her hands, drying and cracking on her skin. He was dead, and all that remained of him was a lifeless corpse and the blood she knelt in.

Several pairs of footsteps clattered into the room, and she looked up, numb, as Professors McGonagall, Flitwick, and the Arithmancy teacher, Professor Vector, rushed in. They halted in their tracks when they saw Cassie cradling Staghart in her arms, and Professor Flitwick uttered a "Great Merlin!" while Professor Vector gasped.

Professor McGonagall's face was white. "Miss Alderfair, what…?"

She faltered, and Cassie clutched Staghart tighter. "Professor, please, we have to get Madam Pomfrey – Avery—"

"Mr. Avery has gone to fetch Madam Pomfrey from the hospital wing," McGonagall said, inching closer to the pool of blood cooling on the floor. "But Miss Alderfair…"

Cassie didn't need the note of sympathy in her professor's voice to know that Staghart was gone, that he had died in her arms while she had only watched, helpless, but she couldn't fathom what else she could do at that moment. She looked back at McGonagall and opened her mouth to speak, but all that issued was a wail.

"Hush, child, and come away from there," McGonagall said, offering her hand to Cassie. She teetered on the edge of the blood pool, not daring to come closer, but she gestured for Cassie. "Come. There's nothing else you can do for him. Come, Miss Alderfair."

Cassie didn't register getting to her feet, but somehow, she stumbled over Staghart's body and clasped McGonagall's hand, allowing her teacher to steer her away from the grisly scene. McGonagall rubbed her hands briskly over Cassie's unfeeling arms while speaking to the shocked Professors Flitwick and Vector.

"Fetch the headmaster," she ordered, "and have someone contact the Ministry. Floo, owl, I don't care how you do it, just do it."

The two teachers nodded and scurried off, and McGonagall's hands went from comforting to grasping Cassie's shoulders in a steel grip.

"Miss Alderfair." Her voice was low and rushed, and her dark eyes searched Cassie's intently. "You need to tell me what happened here. Now."

When Cassie said nothing, her professor gave her a shake. "Now, Miss Alderfair!"

The urgency in her tone snapped Cassie out of her daze. "I-I stayed after class. I had a question. H-he looked ill, and then he just collapsed…"

McGonagall's grip tightened. "Is that all? You noticed nothing else strange or out of place?"

She shook her head. Her eyes searched for Staghart's body once more, but McGonagall moved to block her view. "What about Mr. Avery?"

"He…also had a question and stayed behind." Cassie's fingernails bit into her palms at the lie, but the pain sparked some sense back into her. "Professor, I need to speak with the headmaster. Immediately."

"He will be here soon," she said, "and I'm certain he will want to speak with you, too."

McGonagall's eyes were hard as flint, and an awful realization sunk into Cassie then. "Professor, you don't think I did this, do you?"

"Of course not, Miss Alderfair." Her tone made Cassie feel as if she had just confidently blurted out the wrong answer in class. "But I fear that this death was no natural thing, and having you as one of the only eyewitnesses is not going to look well to certain eyes within the Ministry."

Cassie's already numb fingers warmed like she'd just plunged them into boiling water after she'd been out in the bitter cold with no gloves. "What do you mean?"

McGonagall didn't have time to answer, for just then, Professor Dumbledore swept into the room with Professor Flitwick panting behind him. Madam Pomfrey was only a few steps behind, and she pushed past everyone to kneel next to Staghart's head. She checked his pulse briefly, but after a few moments, she looked at the headmaster and shook her head, her face drawn and grim.

Professor Dumbledore looked grave, and his voice was heavy when he spoke. "Minerva, please take Miss Alderfair to my office and have her cleaned up. The Aurors will want to speak with her, as do I."

Professor McGonagall nodded and took Cassie's elbow gently. Cassie tried to make eye contact with the headmaster as she was steered out of the classroom, but he didn't look at her. All she heard him say was "Seal the room. We don't want the students to see this" before she was urged into the corridor.

Every door was shut, and the castle was eerily quiet as McGonagall escorted her to the headmaster's office.

"Where is everyone?" Cassie whispered into the silence.

"When Mr. Avery began shouting for help, we instructed the students to stay put wherever they were and not to move until their Heads of Houses came for them," she replied curtly.

It was a small blessing, Cassie thought as she looked down at her red hands. Dark spots were barely visible on her black robes, but her hands and the coppery stench that emanated from her clothes were enough to double her over and retch right there in the corridor.

"Come," Professor McGonagall said after she had Vanished Cassie's sick with her wand. "I'll fetch you water once we make it to the headmaster's office. Lean on me if you must, Miss Alderfair."

"I'm fine," Cassie rasped. The response was automatic; her stomach still churned, she was cold all over, and she didn't think she had ever been so far from fine before. Professor Staghart's body convulsed every time she shut her eyes, and his wet choking rang in her ears as they stopped outside of the golden gargoyle guarding Professor Dumbledore's office.

"Peppermint bark," Professor McGonagall said, and the gargoyle sprang aside. She herded Cassie up the spiral staircase and deposited her in the large, familiar room that gleamed and whistled with shining silver instruments and gilded moving portraits of previous headmasters and headmistresses.

One of the grand chairs in front of the desk was already occupied, and Avery jumped to his feet when Cassie and McGonagall entered.

"Are you all right?" Avery asked when he took in the blood on Cassie's hands and robes.

Cassie could not formulate an answer quickly enough before Professor McGonagall swished her wand, materializing a small copper basin and a washcloth. She then pointed her wand at Cassie's robes. "Scourgify."

The dark splotches disappeared, but the scent of blood remained. Cassie watched as her teacher pointed her wand at the basin next and said "Aguamenti." Clear water filled the basin, and McGonagall dipped the cloth in it, wrung it out, and handed it to Cassie.

"Stay here," she told Cassie and Avery. "Under no circumstances are you to leave this room, is that understood?"

"Why?" Avery demanded. "Are we suspects?"

"You're witnesses," the professor said. "You will need to provide statements to the authorities."

"Because our teacher keeled over for no reason?" he snapped. "Isn't it too early to suspect foul play?" His eyes narrowed into chips of blue ice. "Unless you or the headmaster already know something. Am I right?"

"Wait here, Mr. Avery." Professor McGonagall gave him a warning look. "And look after Miss Alderfair, hm?"

She spun on her heel and exited the office. Immediately, the portraits began murmuring amongst themselves, casting Cassie and Avery surreptitious looks. Avery scoffed.

"Typical," he said. "Refusing to tell us anything… I mean, how can they think that we're responsible for something like this?"

"Avery," Cassie said quietly. "Think about it."

He turned on her with a scowl. "Think about what?"

"You're a part of this now," she said. She twisted the washcloth anxiously in her hands, and water droplets snaked down her wrists, slithering underneath her sleeves and creating small paths in the dried blood caked on her skin. "Just before Staghart… He told us that Kane would try anything to get the locket."

He stared at her. "Even if you're suggesting that Kane somehow caused Staghart's death, I don't see how killing him gets Kane closer to your locket."

"Staghart just said that we now had three descendants," she said. "Kane's side also has three descendants: him, my brother, and Amarion Bloodbane."

"Bloodbane?" Avery frowned. "He's a Death Eater. I've met him before. He's a descendant too?"

Cassie nodded. "Kane knew that Staghart was at Hogwarts, and Will would've told him that I'm here, too. What if Kane killed Staghart to keep him from finding more descendants and recruiting them to his side instead of Kane's? He knew Staghart would never join him, so Kane got rid of his biggest threat."

"I just found out that I'm this bloody descendant last night!" Avery hissed. "How could Kane possibly have known that?"

"Maybe he didn't." Cassie twisted the washcloth tighter, her brain vaulting from question to answer faster than she could keep track of. "Maybe he doesn't. He just wanted Staghart out of the way. The timing could have been entirely coincidental."

Avery threw her a dubious glance. "And we just happened to be there when he snuffed it?"

"You don't sound too concerned that our teacher was just killed!" she snapped.

"I barely knew the bloke!" he retorted. "And I still have half a mind that this descendant shit is just the ravings of a crackpot lunatic!"

"Well, it's not," she said. "I got a mark on my seventeenth birthday, same as you. I spoke to one of the Seven Elders myself using this locket, their spellbook." She held up the clockwork locket, its silver surface dulled by the smudged blood on it. "I—"

She flashed back to Staghart's last moments. He'd reached for her locket and whispered something. "Office. Portrait."

"You what?" Avery said, staring at her.

"A clue," she said, the realization dawning on her. "Staghart. He may have left a clue as to how he died. He was trying to say something about a portrait and an office. His office?"

"How should I know?" Avery sat down heavily in the chair again and gave a dull laugh. "If I'd known about any of this before now, I would've sent Evangeline far, far away from you."

Cassie looked down at the wrung-out cloth in her hands. "If it were up to me, you wouldn't be involved in any part of this."

"Because you still don't trust me?" he asked scathingly.

"Because you don't deserve to be caught up in this mess," she said. She shook her head. "None of you do. But it seems that all I ever do is drag everyone down with me."

Tears brimmed in her eyes, and Avery looked away, staring at the headmaster's desk. "I made my own foolish and selfish choices to end up where I am. You don't have to blame yourself for that."

She bit her lip, trying to keep the tears at bay. She wouldn't dare let herself cry in front of Avery, of all people. She didn't even know what she was crying for. Staghart? Herself?

Avery sighed. "You should clean yourself up while you can. I have a feeling we're going to be here for a while."

She nodded and began to scrub at her hands. Blood peeled and flaked away, and when she dipped the cloth into the water again, the clear liquid took on a rust-colored hue. It was silent save for her scrubbing and wringing, and they still hadn't spoken by the time she'd finished cleaning the blood off. Red still burrowed, out of reach, under her fingernails, but at least her skin was its normal shade again and no longer sticky to the touch.

She set the washcloth down and took the seat next to Avery, who stared moodily out the window at the darkening sky. She wondered what her friends were doing then, if they knew what had happened yet. Were they still shut in classrooms, or had they been allowed to go to dinner, or back to Gryffindor Tower? And where was Professor Dumbledore, or McGonagall?

To her surprise, Avery was the one who finally broke the silence.

"So, your locket." She glanced over. He lounged in his chair carelessly, his elbow resting on one of the arms and propping his chin in his hand. An errant curl fell across his forehead and into his pale blue eyes, locked on her. "It's some sort of spellbook?"

"Something like that." She didn't have the energy to spare for details. She'd cleaned Staghart's blood off it, and it gleamed innocuously against her chest again.

One of his eyebrows ticked up. "Is that why Carlisle wanted it?"

Cassie rested her head against the back of her chair and closed her eyes. "No. She wanted it so she could find the Gauntlet of Gryffindor for Voldemort."

There was a beat of silence as he absorbed that information. "So, she didn't know it was a spellbook. Did you?"

"Not until a short time ago. My ancestor – Norvina Alderfair, one of the Seven Elders – confirmed it for me just before I imprisoned her inside the locket forever."

Another pause. "Does your brother know?"

"Most likely. He went to Azkaban on his own to find Kane, and Kane probably told him what the locket really was. Bet he regrets giving it to me now."

"What's he planning to do with it?"

She shrugged, her eyes still shut. "Destroy the world and build a new one? Start a war between magical and nonmagical peoples? Who knows? He's always been one step ahead of me, and he doesn't seem keen on letting me know his true intentions now, if he ever was truthful with me to begin with."

Avery was quiet for so long that she cracked open an eye and peeked at him. He'd gone to staring back out the window, appearing deep in thought.

"Well?" she asked. "What are you thinking about?"

"What's wrong with it?" he said, his gaze still on the distant horizon.

"What's wrong with what?"

"Building a new world. A better world." He turned and met her eyes. "Isn't that what you're fighting for, anyway? Why you went up against Carlisle and the Dark Lord?"

She frowned. "Will wants to purge the old to usher in the new. He would have no problems killing people if it helped him reach his goal."

"And you don't think that's agreeable?"

She cast him a scathing look. "Killing is wrong. There are better ways to go about things than murdering anyone who opposes you."

"What's your plan, then?" he retorted. "Ask the Dark Lord nicely to stop killing and stand down? Call a ceasefire and sign a peace treaty? Let him live out the rest of his days in comfort and harmony?"

She looked away. "He'll go to Azkaban where he belongs."

She didn't dare tell him what she had told Regulus Black under the effects of the Truth Serum. That if she had the chance, she would kill Voldemort without hesitation.

"And when the next Dark Lord rises? And the next? And the next? Because there will always be more to take his place. Anti-Muggle and -Muggle-born discrimination won't end with him. The wheel may turn, but it will never stop."

"You mean it won't stop because I refuse to kill those who disagree with me?" she demanded. "What use is peace and tolerance if there's nothing behind it but senseless violence?"

"Then you'd willingly embrace a society that keeps allowing Death Eaters to recruit and slaughter? You'd uphold a status quo that will do nothing but churn out more and more people like them and the Dark Lord all for the sake of peace without violence?"

"Well, what are you fighting for?" she snapped. "You were the one who joined Voldemort in the first place! If you're not fighting for pure-blood supremacy, then why join up at all?"

"Because he at least wanted change!" He slammed his fist on the arm of his chair, and Cassie jumped, startled. "The same as your brother, the same as this Kane, the same as you and I! You claim you want change but all you'd be doing is sweeping the Dark Lord and his followers under the rug, letting them breed and mutate until they came back stronger than before. Nothing would change except the name and the banner."

"And your solution is what?" she said hotly, sitting up straight in her seat. "Kill them all? Butcher your way to peace? Because that sounds an awful lot like tyranny to me."

"Destroy the system," he said, his eyes wide and wild. "Tear the whole thing down and create something else, something better, because whatever we have now doesn't work. It never has and it never will. Only by eliminating the rules and laws we currently have dictating our society can we truly transform it into something good for everyone."

"That still sounds like violence and death," she said, unnerved by the glint in his gaze. It was far too reminiscent of Will, how he looked that day in their family mausoleum, that ice crept down her spine.

"Sometimes it's necessary," Avery said. "If you can't handle that, then don't claim you're fighting for a better world. You're only fighting for your own convenience."

Cassie said nothing, cowed into silence by that glint in his eyes. She looked away, feeling oddly small and ashamed. She'd never known the truth of Avery's motivations, the extent of his beliefs, but the glimpse she'd just gotten unsettled her. He'd given her answers, but she suddenly felt as if she knew him even less than she did before.

Outside the office door, the spiral stone staircase groaned to life, and the sound of agitated voices made both Cassie and Avery tense. The door opened, and Professor Dumbledore swept inside, closely followed by the Auror Alastor Moody, Professors McGonagall and Slughorn, and a witch Cassie had only ever seen in photographs splashed across the pages of the Daily Prophet.

Minister Millicent Bagnold was shorter and bonier than Cassie had been led to believe, and though she was the smallest person present, the iron in her gaze gilded the room in sudden tensity and snapped Cassie to attention. Panic built in her chest, rendering her momentarily speechless, although she could not place why. She'd met plenty of important figures before due to her parents, but the sight of the new Minister awakened an intense anxiety and dread in her that she could not explain.

Professor Dumbledore took the seat behind his desk and gestured at Cassie and Avery. "Minister, it is my pleasure to introduce you to Cassie Alderfair and Edmond Avery."

Across the room, Moody snorted. He had taken a post near the headmaster's floor-to-ceiling cabinets, leaning heavily on them for support. He seemed more rundown and grizzled since the last time Cassie had seen him at the Potter's; a new scar that had not been there before ran from his left ear to the corner of his mouth, puckered and raw, and his thin brown hair was shaggier and greyer.

"Some pleasure," the Auror stated in wry amusement.

Professor Dumbledore carried on as if Moody hadn't spoken. "These two were with Professor Staghart when he passed."

"Indeed." Minister Bagnold turned and faced Cassie and Avery for the first time. Her grey hair was styled in an immaculate updo, resting above her thin face like an angry storm cloud. Eyes the color of tempered steel scanned them critically and without warmth. Her robes, though expensive, were brown and devoid of life, and Cassie wondered if she had ever smiled before as she took in her pursed lips. "And why were they with him, I wonder?"

"This is a school." Professor Dumbledore's voice was courteous, but his gaze did not hold its familiar geniality. "They are students, and Professor Staghart was their teacher. Their class was the last one he taught before his untimely demise."

"Miss Alderfair has already confirmed that she and Mr. Avery stayed behind to ask a question," Professor McGonagall interjected. She and Professor Slughorn stood behind Cassie and Avery, facing the Minister. "Surely, there is nothing unusual about that, Minister. As Professor Dumbledore has said, this is a school."

Bagnold's flat stare turned to McGonagall. "I am aware that Hogwarts is a school, Minerva. I am also aware that Miss Alderfair and Mr. Avery, students though they are, have family members associated with Death Eaters and He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named."

Professor Slughorn sputtered. "Minister, you're not suggesting…?"

"I am not suggesting anything," she said, "merely making an observation of fact." She turned to Moody. "Alastor, you examined the body. Was your assumption of foul play correct?"

Moody nodded. "Poison, most likely. Undetectable, and probably slow-acting. Ingested maybe the night before or up to a week ago. Hard to be sure." He glanced at Slughorn. "Know anything like that?"

The Potions teacher swallowed, but his chest puffed slightly at the question. "After the many years that I have studied potions and poisons, Angel's Trumpet Draught, Bloodroot Poison, and Moonseed Poison are the first ones to come to mind. Although given the…symptoms…Professor Staghart exhibited, I would say the Bloodroot may be the culprit."

"All undetectable," Bagnold said, and Slughorn nodded. "Horace, I seem to recall studying Undetectable Poisons here at Hogwarts in my third year. Is that lesson still taught?"

"Er, yes," Slughorn said, surprised. "As a matter of fact, it is."

"So, it's reasonable to say that students may have some understanding of Undetectable Poisons and how they work?" she asked.

Slughorn's proud expression faltered. "Well…"

The minister's lips tightened in what Cassie could only assume was her attempt at a placating grin. "It is a simple yes or no question, Horace."

"Yes, Minister." He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "However, these poisons are extremely advanced; even a veteran potioneer such as myself may find them difficult to brew—"

"Thank you, Horace," the minister interrupted. "You have answered my question to my satisfaction."

"Minister," McGonagall said, uneasy. "Forgive me, but it almost sounds like you are accusing Miss Alderfair and Mr. Avery of poisoning their own teacher."

"I believe it is too early in the Ministry's investigation to rule out anything, Minerva," the older witch said, and Cassie's stomach plummeted to her feet.

"We didn't do anything!" she blurted out. "We were just there when it happened!"

Bagnold turned her unfeeling gaze on Cassie. "Believe me, Miss Alderfair, I want nothing more than to find the culprit, but given your affiliations…"

"You mean my brother?" she said, her fists clenching. "Begging your pardon, Minister, but I have nothing to do with him."

Bagnold's eyebrows raised slightly. "Your brother escaped an inescapable prison with help from outside allies and fled with one Erebus Kane—a wizard with a connection to the very man who died in this castle tonight. You can see how all of this is beginning to look very suspicious, Miss Alderfair. Who's to say that you and Mr. Avery did not give Staghart that poison on the orders of your brother or Erebus Kane?"

"That's a lie," Avery snarled, leaning around Cassie to glare at the minister.

"Watch your tone, boy," said Moody. He glanced at Bagnold. "I thought this was collecting witness statements, not an interrogation."

"I concur," Professor Dumbledore said, speaking for the first time since he had introduced Cassie and Avery. "Minister, I would appreciate you refraining from making any more accusations against my students unless you have evidence against them that is not merely circumstantial. Otherwise, this conversation is at an end."

Cassie had to marvel at the headmaster's calm demeanor as Bagnold switched her iron gaze to him. She seemed on the verge of arguing before mustering a grimace of unconvincing politeness.

"Of course, Albus," she said coolly. "I apologize for overstepping my bounds." She turned to Moody. "Alastor, please collect Miss Alderfair and Mr. Avery's statements. It is getting late, and they should be off to bed soon. They have had an exhausting day, I'm sure." Her voice sounded anything but sympathetic. "I myself should be getting back to the Ministry. There is still much to do before I retire for the evening."

"Minerva and Horace would be glad to escort you from the castle," the headmaster said with a pleasant smile. "Good evening, Millicent."

Bagnold stalked from the room without a glance back, following the two professors out of the office. When the door had closed, Moody clucked his tongue.

"Between her and Crouch, my job's become hell," he said. He jerked his chin at Cassie and Avery. "Well, you two? What happened?"

"We stayed after class because we had a question," Cassie said, already tired of repeating the same thing. "While we were talking, Professor Staghart looked ill. He asked if we could open the window for some fresh air, but before we could, he collapsed and began coughing." She shuddered. "There was blood everywhere. I told Avery to run and get help. I tried to think of something to do for him, but my mind was blank. It was over in minutes. I couldn't help him."

She wiped her nose on her sleeve at the end of her recount. Moody looked at Avery. "This true?"

Avery nodded. "It's true."

Moody grunted. "What kind of questions were you asking him?"

"It was about our homework," lied Avery smoothly. "We were having some trouble understanding our essay on Time-Turners."

"Very well." Moody's deep-set eyes studied them carefully. "Anything else you want to add to your statements?"

They shook their heads, and he straightened with a grunt. "Right, then. We're finished here. I think I'll go, too, Albus. And no bloody escorts," he added when the headmaster opened his mouth. "I know the way out."

He stomped out with a limp, and Cassie and Avery waited for Professor Dumbledore to speak.

"You both should get some rest," he said. His genial attitude was gone, replaced by an inscrutable expression. "Mr. Avery, you are free to go. Miss Alderfair, if you wouldn't mind staying behind a moment more? I promise I'll make it quick."

Cassie nodded and stayed seated while Avery stood, his eyes traveling between her and the headmaster.

"Goodnight, Mr. Avery," said Dumbledore, and the dismissal was clear.

"Goodnight, sir," he said, sullen, but left the room with no argument.

Cassie and the headmaster sat in silence. In the castle's depths, the clock doled out eleven mournful chimes. Finally, Cassie couldn't restrain herself anymore.

"Professor, we didn't do it," she said. "You have to believe me. I swear—"

He held up a hand, and she shut her mouth instantly.

"I know you did not do this, Miss Alderfair," he said calmly. "But after so many years as a teacher in this castle, I know when a student lies." He sat back in his chair and clasped his hands over his stomach. "Now, you will tell me what you were really asking Professor Staghart."

Cassie's mouth flapped a few times uselessly before she spoke. "It's hard to explain, sir."

"Does it have to do with the Seven Elders?"

Her head jerked up. "How did you—?"

"After our last conversation at Potter Manor, I had my archivist at the Order look into Amarion Bloodbane and his connection to the Seven Elders that you had pointed out," he said. "It wasn't long before other names began to surface; Kane, Staghart…Alderfair."

He gave her a significant look over the rims of his half-moon spectacles.

"My theory is that you and Staghart knew of this connection and sought to work together toward some goal. As to how Mr. Avery fits into this…" He spread his hands. "Well, I thought I would allow you to enlighten me."

Cassie rapped her knuckles on the wooden arms of her chair as she crossed her legs and sat back. "We found out that Avery is a descendant of the Seven, too. We were just trying to figure out what that meant. Staghart said we were three versus three now."

"The other three being your brother, Erebus Kane, and Amarion Bloodbane?"

She nodded. "Staghart hates – hated – Kane. He wanted to prevent Kane from getting the Seven's spellbook."

"Spellbook?" he echoed.

Cassie hesitated before pulling the locket out from underneath her collar. "This."

Professor Dumbledore gave no sign of shock or surprise, but his piercing blue eyes narrowed infinitesimally. "Oh?"

"It was created by the Seven," she explained. "I know that because I used it to communicate with my ancestor Norvina Alderfair. Supposedly, it has a huge amount of magic, but it can't be used without all seven descendants combined. Staghart, Avery, and I were going to devise a plan to keep it away from Will and Kane."

The headmaster nodded thoughtfully. "And this spellbook came to be in your possession after your brother gifted it to you last year, correct?"

"Yes. I don't think he quite knew what it was, or else I can't imagine him willingly giving it to me."

She neglected to mention that he had given it to her initially with a clue inside of it warning her about Voldemort and his quest to retrieve the Gauntlet of Gryffindor, unsure now of what Will's true intentions had been. She had an awful feeling that she would never know. Then a sudden thought gave her pause.

"Sir," she said, "how did you know that my brother was the one who gave me this locket?"

He only gave her a mysterious smile that she found unnerving. Had Professor Dumbledore been watching her? And for just how long?

"It's late, Miss Alderfair," he said, "and you need rest. That will be all for tonight. I'm certain we will speak again soon."

She wanted to object, but she got to her feet, her desire to be far away from the headmaster outweighing all the questions piling on her tongue. "All right. Goodnight, sir."

"Goodnight, Miss Alderfair," he said as she made to leave. "Take care of yourself."

She only nodded and closed the door on his smiling face.

Dragging herself to Gryffindor Tower took longer than she expected, and it was nearly midnight by the time she arrived outside the portrait hole, awakening the Fat Lady from a light doze that the painting had the audacity to look annoyed about.

"A little late for a stroll, dear, hm?" She sniffed, giving Cassie a judgmental once-over. "Password?"

"Dittany." Cassie's voice rang so hollow that she hardly recognized it. The portrait swung forward without another word, and she clambered through the tunnel and into the common room.

"Cassie!"

She looked up and was greeted by Alice hurtling for her at full speed. Before she could blink, Alice had thrown her arms around her neck and engulfed her in a tight embrace. Belatedly, Cassie raised her hands and patted them awkwardly on Alice's back, her limbs too sluggish to accomplish much else. Over Alice's head, Marlene, Lily, and the Marauders had gotten to their feet, standing in a semi-circle in front of the great fireplace, their expressions equally concerned and relieved. Cassie ducked her head and rested her chin atop Alice's hair, savoring the moment before she was bombarded with questions.

Alice pulled back and looked Cassie over quickly. "Are you all right? Are you hurt? Lessons were canceled for the rest of the day, and when you didn't show, we were all so worried." She lowered her voice. "People are saying that Professor Staghart collapsed suddenly. Is that true?"

"It is." Cassie suppressed a shudder. "H-he died. Right in front of me."

The blood drained from Alice's face, and Lily uttered a horrified gasp behind her. "What? How?"

"Moody suspects poison," Cassie said.

"Moody?" said James. "Alastor Moody? He was here?"

Cassie nodded. "He came to question Avery and me. Along with the Minister of Magic."

Everyone blinked, stunned. Remus's brows furrowed. "The Minister came herself?"

"Avery and I were the only witnesses." Her voice turned bitter. "Apparently, given our familial associations, the Minister deemed us suspects instead."

"But you're not," Lily said, aghast. "She must have realized that, or else…"

"She certainly wants to pin it on one of us, or both," Cassie said, "but she has no proof. Besides, she isn't leading the investigation; Moody is."

"The investigation?" Marlene echoed. Her eyes were wide and scared. "Then someone killed Staghart on purpose?"

"I don't know how," Cassie said slowly, "but yes. It was murder."

The room swelled in the silence that followed. The other students were abed at that hour, and the tower seemed larger, darker, threatening to swallow them whole. Not even the roaring flames in the hearth could keep the sudden chill at bay.

"Kane has to be behind it, right?" James said, breaking the silence. "Or Voldemort? Or…"

His eyes darted to Cassie and then away again. She couldn't tell whether she wanted to agree with James or argue. The ink blotch danced behind her eyelids, taunting her, whispering gleefully that Will, as always, seemed to be five steps ahead of her. There was a future he could see, a distant horizon that to her was shrouded in mist and shadow. Or perhaps she was only thinking that because she didn't know what else to think at all. A part of her that was somehow still in denial after all this time.

"For now," she said quietly, "I just want to go to bed."

"Of course," Lily said, moving beside her and gently linking Cassie's arm with hers. "You must be exhausted. We should all get some rest."

The others nodded, and after a quick glance, the Marauders started for the boys' staircase. She sensed Sirius's gaze on her, but she shrank toward Lily, not having the strength to meet his eyes. After a slight hesitation, he followed the other boys to their dormitory, and the girls silently departed for their own.

They washed and changed into their nightclothes with minimal conversation, and Cassie crawled beneath her covers after a hushed "Goodnight" and drew the curtains on her four-poster shut.

She waited for what felt like hours until the dormitory had filled with the soft, even breaths of her sleeping roommates before kicking off her covers and poking her head out of the curtains. No one stirred, and she slipped out of bed, donning her slippers and robe. She snatched her wand from the bedside table and tucked it into her sleeve, and after one last check to ensure the girls were still asleep, snuck out of the dormitory.

Instead of immediately starting for the portrait hole, she ducked up the boys' staircase and tiptoed to a familiar door. She jimmied the knob open as quietly as she could and then waited, listening in case the noise had woken anyone. When all she heard was Peter's loud snores and Sirius's sleepy grunts, she nudged the door open and headed for the bed nearest the window.

The curtains were drawn, and she pushed them aside carefully. In the bed, James was fast asleep, his limbs tangled in the sheets and his mouth hanging wide open. Before she could doubt her decision, Cassie clamped her hand over his mouth.

James jerked awake immediately, thrashing about with a muffled shout as Cassie fought to keep her hand firm.

"James!" she hissed. "Calm down, it's me!"

His sleepy gaze fastened on her, and he stopped wriggling. He seized her wrist and yanked her hand from his mouth.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he yelled in a strained whisper. "You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

"I need the map," she said, "and preferably the Invisibility Cloak, too."

His eyes narrowed. "Why?"

She stared down at him with an arched eyebrow. "Why do you think? I'm going to find out who killed Staghart. And let go of me."

She tugged her wrist, but he held fast. "Don't you think it's a bit soon to start snooping?"

"Now's a perfect time," she argued. "The fresher the crime scene, the better, right?"

"The Aurors will have picked it clean already," he said. "I doubt there's anything you could find that they couldn't."

"I have a clue," she insisted. "They don't."

James glared at her. She glared back. He opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, Remus's sleep-muddled voice cut in.

"James?" he mumbled. "That you?"

Faster than she could even squeak out a protest, James had vaulted her onto his bed with one hand while the other snapped his curtains closed. Cassie sat up, prepared to strangle him, but he slapped a pillow over her face before she got the chance.

"Yeah, mate, it's me," said James with an exaggerated fake yawn. "What's up?"

"You're talking in your sleep again," Remus said. "Shut up."

"Right. Sorry. Won't happen again. 'Night."

Remus muttered something unintelligible before falling back asleep within seconds. Cassie clawed at James's hand until he removed the pillow, and she heaved a lungful of air.

"You prick!" she said once she could breathe again. "You could have suffocated me!"

"You're welcome," he said, holding the pillow out of her reach when she grabbed for it with the intent of walloping him with it.

"For almost killing me?"

"I assume you were wanting to keep your little venture quiet for the time being if you only woke me up instead of barging in here wand blazing." He looked down at her and quirked his lips. "Or am I wrong?"

She glanced away, crossing her arms.

"You're not," she grumbled.

"Sorry, what was that? Cassie Alderfair admitting that I'm right?"

"Are you going to lend me the map and cloak or not?"

"I'm not," he said cheerfully.

"James, c'mon!" She scrambled to her knees and stared at him, imploring. "I know what I'm looking for! C'mon, please?"

He squeezed her cheeks together with a wicked grin. "Hold on, I'm enjoying this. Say that again."

"Say what again?"

He mimicked her voice and pulled a pleading expression. "'Please, James, may I please borrow your most treasured items? Please, please, please?'"

She pouted, and he looked positively gleeful. "I'm not begging. I'll Stun you if I have to."

He squeezed her cheeks again. "Fine. I'll give them to you on one condition since you look so adorable right now."

"You are mentally deranged."

"You have to take me with you," he said, ignoring her comment.

She deliberated briefly before shrugging. "All right. If that's all."

"That was a disappointingly fast agreement," he said, finally releasing her face. "Maybe I should upcharge those conditions."

"I'd feel better with another person with me." She didn't meet his eyes. "Hurry up and get ready, then."

He fumbled for his glasses while she slipped out of his bed. She cast a look to Sirius's drawn curtains and briefly wondered if she should wake him, as well. Before she could decide, James swung on his nightrobe and jerked his chin toward the door, his wand between his teeth and his hands full with the Marauder's Map and Invisibility Cloak.

Cassie followed him out of the dormitory and into the common room. James handed her the map. "Hold this."

She obeyed, and soon the silvery cloak had settled over them. She touched a fingertip to the featherlight material.

"I'll never get used to this," she admitted.

"Werewolves, Animagi, and ancient hags with mythical powers, and this is what still shocks you?"

"This and that constantly chattering mouth of yours."

"You're a comedian," he said as they passed through the portrait hole into the corridor.

"Who's there?" the Fat Lady uttered sleepily at the sound of James's voice.

"No one," James said. "Go back to dreaming about your opera debut."

"Quite right," she said, and soon the portrait was asleep again.

"Where's Filch?" Cassie asked once they were out of earshot.

James opened the map after muttering the passphrase, and Cassie illuminated her wand. He consulted the map with an expert sweep of his eyes.

"Lurking in the trophy room with that blasted cat. The Bloody Baron is in the dungeons – that's good – and Peeves is in the North Tower – probably stealing all the crystal balls from the Divination classroom again…"

"So, we're clear?"

"Yeah. Well, the Grey Lady is on the third floor, but she won't notice us. Wouldn't say anything if she did, anyway."

"All right, then. Let's go."

They covered ground quickly thanks to the map and cloak and not having to worry about obstructions. When they reached the third-floor corridor, James tugged on her sleeve and pointed to one of the alcoves.

A translucent figure stood by the window, long dress fluttering in an invisible breeze. It was the Grey Lady, the ghost of Ravenclaw House, and she looked out the glass to the moonlit grounds beyond, as melancholy as ever.

As she and James crept by, Cassie glanced at the ghost. She'd only seen glimpses of the Grey Lady at feasts, and cold nestled in her gut when the ghost half-turned as they passed her. She had an imperious face and beautiful features, but something about her struck Cassie as familiar.

She wanted to stop, but James nudged her on silently when her steps faltered. Shaking off her sudden discomfort, she followed him down the corridor and left the ghost behind.

They came to the door of the Defense classroom, and Cassie hesitated, her heart rate quickening and her mouth going dry.

"You sure you want to do this?" James asked.

She nodded, rolling her shoulders back. "We're looking for a portrait in his office."

"Well, that should be easy," he said. He studied the door. "Hopefully."

She gave him a sardonic look. "Is anything ever easy for us?"

"Not with that attitude." He pointed his wand at the door. "Alohomora."

The door unlocked with a click, and at her nod, he pushed it open. Cassie braced herself for the body, the pools of blood, but when the door opened, the classroom looked the same as it always did, and Professor Staghart's body was nowhere to be seen. The tight coil that had manifested in her gut loosened, and her muscles relaxed slightly.

They stepped inside and removed the cloak once James shut it behind them. Taking the staircase behind the teacher's desk, they came to the office door, and Cassie was able to open it freely without any magic.

The office bore the signs of an organized search, but most of Staghart's belongings were still intact. Some books and boxes had been removed, but everything else still rested where it had been the last time Cassie had been inside.

James looked around. "A portrait, eh? I don't see any on the walls."

Cassie's gaze fell on the desk. Empty pockets of space dotted the otherwise cluttered surface, but she walked behind it and pushed the vacant chair out of her way. On the right-hand corner sat a small but ornate oval frame, gilded in bronze, and wrought with metal ferns. James came to stand beside her and blew out a shallow breath.

"Is this what he meant?" he asked as he and Cassie examined the portrait.

Cassie didn't answer, too distracted by the woman in the portrait and her peaceful expression as she blinked up at Cassie and James.

She was young, only in her late twenties or early thirties, and quite pretty, with blonde curls framing her slim face and just brushing the length of her jaw. She had a prominent nose, narrow shoulders, and eyes of a deep blue that cut like sapphires, at odds with the almost playful smile she gave them.

"Who is she?" James said.

"I think she's Griselda Kane," Cassie answered. "Aren't you?" she asked the portrait.

The woman blinked slowly and continued to smile.

"Kane," said James. "As in, like, Erebus Kane?"

The woman gave no reaction to the name, but Cassie nodded.

"Griselda was one of Kane's sisters. Staghart told me about her. They, er, were involved, apparently, when Staghart and Kane worked as Curse-Breakers together."

"Why isn't she saying anything?" James leaned down to meet Griselda's stare. "Oi. Did Staghart want you to tell us something? Something important, maybe?"

He enunciated the word meaningfully, but Griselda still held the same placid smile.

Cassie huffed. "You could ask more nicely, James."

"She's a portrait, Cassie. She might resemble the person she was when she was alive, but they're hardly the same thing—"

"Cassie?" They both spun toward Griselda when a soft, lyrical voice issued from the portrait. "You are Cassie Alderfair?"

"Er, that's right." She exchanged a look with James. "And you're Griselda?"

The woman nodded. Her smile was gone, and she suddenly looked serious, business-like. "Lochan told me you might come. He said I wasn't to speak with anyone but you. He left instructions for you."

"You can trust him, too," said Cassie swiftly, indicating James. He gave a cheery wave, and though Griselda did not look convinced, she nodded again. "What do you mean, Staghart left me instructions?" Her heart sank like lead in her chest. "Did he know he was going to die?"

Griselda's expression turned sorrowful. "He suspected, I think. A day or two ago, he made his preparations." She used a dainty hand to single out Cassie. "He said he was too careless, thinking he was safe at Hogwarts when my brother was free. He had a drink at The Three Broomsticks several nights ago, and someone working for my brother must have slipped the poison in his cup there. He said it might have been Bloodroot based on his symptoms prior to…"

"I'm sorry," Cassie said when she trailed off. She swallowed, her throat suddenly thick. "I was there with him. Until the end."

"I'm glad." Griselda's smile was small but warm. "He must have placed a lot of faith in you if you were the one he entrusted this information to."

Cassie swallowed heavily again. "What did he leave behind?"

"Our blood." Griselda straightened her prim shoulders, facing Cassie squarely. "Vials of it. One containing my blood, one his own, and two more with my sisters' blood. When I realized my brother's ambitions all those years ago, I gave Lochan the vials to protect. The last of our blood, untainted. Do you understand?"

Something unpleasant squirmed in Cassie's gut, and she nodded. "Kane wanted to use your blood to access the power of the Seven. You didn't want to help him. I understand."

"Bloodroot Poison stays dormant for up to a year depending on the dose," Griselda said. "One drop a day in my morning tea. It made it even more undetectable than it usually is. My brother only discovered the truth when I was the last left alive. I had given my sisters the mercy of a quick death, but I wanted to watch him unravel. My final revenge. Or so Lochan told me," she added, brushing an invisible speck of dust off her sleeve. "I don't remember it now, of course. I'm only a portrait, after all."

"So, Kane killed Staghart using the same poison you used on yourself and your sisters?" James asked Griselda. "Brutal."

"Where are the vials now?" Cassie said. "Why did you leave them behind? Wouldn't it have been better not to have them at all if you don't want Kane to use them?"

"We left them in case another descendant had a purpose for them." She gave Cassie a significant look. "Lochan told me you were opposed to my brother and yours. For that reason, he left our blood to you.

As for where the vials are, we hid them long ago in a place only Lochan and I knew how to get to, but—"

"Great," said James, "don't tell us and we'll just leave them right where they are. Right, Cass?"

But Cassie didn't answer him. Instead, she turned back to Griselda.

"Only the power of all seven descendants can access the spellbook," she said, "and that power resides in our blood, yes?"

Griselda nodded. "That was what Lochan said, yes."

James looked at her, appalled. "Cassie, no. We don't need that blood. If what she's saying is true, the location of those vials died with her and Staghart. Let's just leave it alone."

"What if Kane or my brother somehow found out?" she said. "They have three descendants already. With four more descendants' blood, they could use the spellbook."

"But you have the spellbook," he argued. "If we can't pitch it, then at least do what Miranda did with Gryffindor's gauntlet and hide it!"

"There are three of us still, too," said Cassie, more to herself than James as the pieces came together in her mind. "Me, Avery, and his sister."

James reeled. "What?"

"With our blood and those four vials, we could use the Seven Elders' power to destroy the locket for good," she surmised. "James, don't you see? I can finally end this! If I just know where to find the vials—"

James's face had turned white in anger. "No. It's too dangerous, Cassie. We don't need those vials. And if Avery's somehow a descendant now, too, then I sure as hell don't want them anywhere near him."

"I thought you wanted this?" she snapped, thrusting a finger at him. "You, Sirius, the others – everyone's always yammering on about a way to stop all this madness! Well, here it is. Our chance. And now you're saying no?"

His nostrils flared, and his eyes slitted behind his glasses. "We'll find another way. One that doesn't involve finding some weirdos' blood and using it to open a spellbook we know nothing about."

"What do you want from me, then?" she cried. "Don't do this, Cassie – don't do that, Cassie – I mean, really? What am I supposed to do?"

"Not throw yourself headfirst into any risky scheme that comes along and get yourself killed!" he bellowed.

Cassie stared at him, a maelstrom of emotions she couldn't name churning inside of her. Finally, she whirled on Griselda.

"Tell me the location," she demanded.

"Don't you dare tell her," James snarled at the portrait.

Griselda looked between them calmly. "Even if I knew the exact location, I could not say. They were moved." She gestured at James. "Before you interrupted me earlier, I was going to say that Lochan had relocated them from their original hiding place to here, inside Hogwarts Castle."

"They're in the castle?" Cassie echoed, astonished. "Why?"

"Hogwarts is almost as secure as Gringotts," said James grudgingly. "And it's the one place Kane and Will can't step foot inside."

"Did he leave me any clue as to where he hid them?" Cassie asked, but Griselda shook her head.

"Only that you could find them if you thought about it hard enough," she said. "He said it would require a great deal of wit, but that he was confident in your abilities."

James snorted, sounding far more pleased than Cassie liked. "Some clue."

"Is that all?" she insisted. "There was nothing else?"

"I'm afraid not." Griselda looked sympathetic. "I hope I was of some help. Lochan had limited time to plan once he discovered Kane had poisoned him."

"No, you helped tremendously," Cassie said. "Thank you, Griselda. Er, do you have somewhere to go now that Staghart's…?"

Griselda smiled, and it lit up her pretty features. "I have another portrait frame. No need to worry about me. But thank you, Cassie Alderfair, and I wish you luck."

"Thanks," Cassie said, and with another smile, Griselda Kane walked out of frame, leaving only an empty stretch of brown canvas behind.

Cassie turned to James, not quite meeting his gaze. "We should go before someone notices we're gone."

He followed her silently out of the office and back into the classroom. After consulting the map, he swung the Invisibility Cloak over them once more, and they exited the classroom, Cassie using her wand to lock the door behind them.

They were halfway down the corridor, and, thankfully, the Grey Lady had gone, for just then Cassie's stomach rumbled so loudly that it almost certainly echoed. She stopped abruptly, clapping her hands over her midsection, and stared down at it in mortification.

"Good Godric, was that you?" James said. "I thought a troll had got in! Didn't you eat dinner?"

Cassie shook her head, embarrassed. "No."

James sighed, checked his wristwatch, and sighed again. "C'mon. We'll nip to the kitchens before we go back."

She tried to protest, but James cut her off. "No buts. You're starving. Let's go."

"I thought you were angry with me?" she asked as he steered them toward the kitchens.

He went to run a hand through his hair, remembered they were covered with the cloak, and dropped it with another sigh. "I'm not angry. Well, not at you. Just—" He shook his head. "Wait until we get you some food. Then we'll talk."

The trek to the kitchens was short and tense. When they reached the portrait of the fruit ten minutes later, they hadn't spoken a word to each other. James took off the cloak and tickled the pear that would allow them access to the kitchens, and Cassie followed him through the short tunnel after the pear let out a shrill giggle, and the portrait opened.

"Master James and Mistress Cassie!" squeaked a familiar voice, and Pandy the house-elf rushed toward them, his protuberant brown eyes shining with excitement. "Welcome, welcome! What can we do for you?"

James jerked his thumb at Cassie. "This one skipped out on dinner. You have any leftover stew for her?"

"Of course!" said Pandy with a deep bow. "It will be our pleasure to heat some. And for you, Master James?"

"I wouldn't mind another bowl myself," he said. "That was some good stuff."

Pandy beamed at the praise. "Thank you, sir, thank you! We'll have it right out!"

He led the charge with several other house-elves while Cassie and James sat at one of the long tables, and in no time at all, the house-elves deposited two bowls of steaming stew before them and a loaf of warm bread slathered with butter.

"Thank you," Cassie managed before she set upon the food like a starved animal. Periodically, she had to remind herself to breathe, and James watched her with a mixture of amusement and concern, eating his own food with far more restraint.

Cassie finished her stew in record time, and Pandy quickly filled another bowl for her. This time, Cassie ate much more slowly and took the time to savor the rich flavor. Once she deemed herself no longer in danger of starvation, she snuck a glance at James from beneath her lashes.

He sat silently, his chin propped in one hand while he used his other to spoon stew into his mouth. His hazel eyes were troubled behind his glasses, and Cassie set down her own spoon with a clink.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I get why you would be angry, James, really. It is dangerous right now, but I just…want it to not be," she finished lamely.

"You don't need to apologize," he said, his eyes on his bowl. "I told you I'm not angry with you. I'm angry because, well, it's just unfair."

"What do you mean?"

He swept his spoon around his head, indicating the castle around them. "We're in school. We should be worrying about homework, and Quidditch, and who fancies who, not…"

She glanced down. It was a sentiment they had all expressed before, but it continued to ring true. "I know."

"I want us to be safe," said James quietly, "and happy. That's all."

Cassie nodded, her throat tight. "Yeah."

They finished the rest of their meal in silence, but it was no longer tense. It just felt…utterly sad to Cassie.

She understood James's concern all too well, but unbeknownst to him, she now had a secret weapon she could use. Dumbledore and the Order could do things she couldn't, and the longer she mulled it over, the more she determined that she was ready to accept Dumbledore's Order resources. She could find the vials hidden in the castle and then hand them over to the Order so they could destroy the locket once and for all. Even if it was in her possession, it was still too dangerous for it to even exist. She just needed to convince James – and the others – that finding the vials would be beneficial for them all.

"James," she said finally, "I know you disapprove, but I'm going to find those vials. And it would be a lot easier if I knew that you were on my side. You don't have to help if you don't want to, but I need to know that you won't try and stop me."

He sighed and rubbed his eyes beneath his glasses. "I knew you weren't going to give it up that easily. But as much as I hate it, a part of me agrees that it's time to end this for good."

"It may not stop Will or Kane or Voldemort," she warned, "but it would take a dangerous weapon off the table for them."

"Yeah, I know." He scraped the bottom of the bowl with his spoon. "Then let's find those vials as fast as possible. If they really are here in Hogwarts, then that already puts the odds in our favor."

She nodded. "What do we do about Avery? He knows almost everything."

"I'll never trust him," said James with a scowl, "but we can use him. If he has a connection to you and the Seven now, then we'll exploit that."

"Agreed." Cassie looked at him. "Thank you, James. You know I can't do this without you."

"Confessing your love already?" he said with a wry grin. "At least let me get over Evans first. Then we can elope."

She tore off a piece of bread and chucked it at him. He dodged it with a laugh. "In your dreams, Potter."

"You don't want to know what my dreams are really about."

"I shudder at the mere thought." She put the rest of the bread in her mouth and chewed thoughtfully. "What'd the Amortentia smell like to you? Lily?"

"Yeah. It smelled just like her." He looked surprised at her question. "What'd it smell like to you? Sirius?"

She didn't want to let on that his easy answer only confused her more, so she just shrugged. "I reckon."

He gave her an odd look. "You're not sure?"

"Yes. No. Maybe?" She glanced around the room, suddenly wishing she'd never brought the topic up. "It was all…confused. It smelled like a lot of things but nothing at the same time."

James studied her carefully. "I think you should be asking yourself why."

"I don't want to," she admitted. "I just want things to go back to normal between us. Ever since that night with Snape, nothing's been the same, and I can't stand it. I want to move past it, but a part of me just feels like he broke something irreparable that night." She ran a hand through her hair. "How am I still the one who can't forgive when he did nothing to me directly?"

"You were angry on Remus's behalf," he said. "I get it."

"You were, too," she pointed out, "and now you're fine."

"Well…" James trailed off, looking sheepish. "You know, never mind. It's a weird question."

"What is?"

"It's just…well…"

Cassie stared at him. James never seemed uncomfortable with anything, but right then, he was almost squirming in his seat. "James? Spit it out."

"I mean, er, it's not because you…" He shook his head vigorously. "All right, fine. D'you fancy Remus?"

The blunt question shocked her so much that her face and neck immediately heated to a blistering degree, and she nearly upended her empty bowl. "What?"

"I wouldn't judge you if you did," he added quickly. "Like, I know you and Sirius – but you and Remus – look, you've always been close, so I'm saying it's not weird if you—"

He gestured vaguely, and Cassie slapped her hands to her face in an attempt to cool her blazing skin. "James, we are so not having this discussion!"

"Why not?" he said, and he sounded almost offended. "Friends talk about this stuff."

She floundered for something to say. "It's not like – I'm not – I've never thought about—"

James held up his hands. "All right, all right, calm down before you start hyperventilating. Forget I asked."

"You can't just spring something like that on me," she said, slowly lowering her hands as her heart rate calmed, and her blush lessened. "Especially when we were just talking about – other things. Like vials of blood and defeating Dark wizards and—"

He shook his head. "Right, sorry. I forgot we aren't normal." He eyed her shrewdly. "But if he fancied you, would you consider it?"

She let out a noise quite like that of a cat being strangled. "James—"

"Incredible. I think you're starting to turn purple."

"Worry about your own love life!" she snapped, standing and snatching up her dishes. "Or rather, your lack of one!"

It was a childish insult, but as she marched away to bring her dishes to the magically-scrubbing brush at the sink, she scoffed at James's notion. She and Remus… Honestly, what sorts of thoughts rattled around in that empty skull of his? She and Remus were…

Unbidden, she remembered the way Remus had tucked her hair behind her ear the day before, and the soft look in his eyes when he'd done it. A thought had crossed her mind then, a shadow of something that loomed in her brain, had loomed for quite some time, but every time it grew, she shrank away from it, confining herself to a smaller and smaller corner, clinging to the vestiges of the threads that connected her to Sirius, fearing for her heart and that shadow that eclipsed it more and more each day.

It was a traitorous thought, a treasonous conspirator that threatened to betray her and everything around her, and she refused to let James's words spread its contagion. There was too much at stake and losing the ones she loved because of an emotion she hardly understood in its entirety was something she would not allow to happen.

She brushed past James on her way to the portrait hole and refused to meet his eyes. "Let's go."

They said nothing on their way back to Gryffindor Tower besides offering a simple "Goodnight" when they separated for their dormitories. Cassie climbed into her bed and drew the covers to her chin, staring at the crimson canopy above her until tendrils of dawn light crept beneath her hangings and reached for her face like a lover's caress.

She turned onto her side, shut her eyes, and refused to let any thought forth until sleep finally claimed her.

Please review! I love hearing your thoughts!

Next Chapter: The Test

I have a pretty vague idea for this story's outline, but when Tumblr recently rolled out their polls feature, I thought it would be fun to ask my followers who Cassie should end up with at the end of the series, and the results were hilarious, honestly. Remus was the clear winner, Sirius and James tied for second, Alice came in third, and Avery (surprisingly) received zero votes lol. I might do one again in the future, and you are always welcome to follow and vote on my blog nejires-hado!

Until next time!