A week passes with no sign from Tumms. Even though everyone acts cheery and carefree, an undercurrent of fear and worry is in every student and professor's expression.

For some reason, I feel like this whole thing is my fault. After all, I'm the last one to see him.

I remember that day, at the end of the day's classes, when I decided to ask Tumms a question…

"Professor Tumms?" I ask, skipping up to his work area, where he's cleaning up an acidic potion Albus accidentally spilled while trying to show Tumms his work.

"Yes, my dear?" Tumms asks distractedly, shaking his head at the big hole in his desk. He mutters, "This class is going to be the death of me someday…"

"What do you think about becoming an Auror?" I ask, smiling.

Tumms looks up at me, finally interested. "Well, Miss Lockwood, I think that becoming an Auror is a decision you should wait to make. You're only fifteen years old. You still have a little time to think. You need to stop making decisions at a whim and start thinking things through." For some reason, this seems to have a double meaning.

He smiles deeply. "Miss Lockwood, you are one of my most talented—and favorite—students. You have a keen sense of what's right and wrong, and you also make spectacular potions. I think that if you think about becoming an Auror deeply enough and believe it's the right choice, you will be a fantastic one."

I beam at him. "Thank you, Professor Tumms!" I give him a hug, wave goodbye, and run out of the room.

The last thing I see is a look of surprise, fondness, and an out-of-place regret all mingling together on his face.

Now that I think about it, something was wrong that day. Something Professor Tumms didn't want me to know about. Something was off.

I immediately go to the library to find Rose (Al is at Quidditch practice). I find her in the middle of huge piles of books. She's poring over one called How to Train Your Hippogriff.

"Uh, Rose," I say, startling her a little. She looks up at me. "Last time I checked, you don't have a hippogriff. You hate them, even." One day, we were visiting Hagrid (I'm good friends with Hagrid as well; he takes me to Diagon Alley every year), and his hippogriff—he's finally allowed to keep one as a pet—nipped Rose's bottom hard enough that she had to visit Miss Pomfrey. She hasn't come to Hagrid's house with me and Al since.

She says, "I know, Em. That's why I'm reading about the nasty creatures." A look of extreme evil and mischievousness creeps up on her face. "I need to find their weakness and use it to my advantage." She tries laughing evilly, but it just comes out as a normal laugh with a squeak.

I laugh. "Rose, even if you knew their weakness, you still wouldn't go through with using it against them. You're too nice."

She scowls. "Drat. You're right." She grins at me. "Oh, well. Maybe next time!"

I laugh again, and then grow serious. I tell her about my encounter with Tumms.

The first thing Rose does is grow starry-eyed and exclaim, "Oh, Emmeline, you want to be an Auror? That's great!"

I smile and say, "Thanks, but that's not what I was getting at. Something was wrong with him. Tumms seemed…troubled."

Rose shrugs. "He might have just forgotten to take the tea of the kettle again." I remember in third year when he started the professors' quarters on fire. I stifle a laugh.

"I wish that's all that happened, but I think there was something else. He looked as if he would never see me again."

Rose finally stops joking around. She frowns. "Hmm…" she says, tapping her chin. "Maybe you are onto something. We should tell Al at dinner. He might know; my uncle tells him stories about Muggle detectives, although I have no idea why."

"Ooh, you mean like Sherlock Homes?" I ask, excited. "I love those!"

Rose tilts her head to the side. "Who's Merlock, and why does he have phones? What's a 'phones'?"

I sigh. "Never mind."

That night at dinner, Rose and I told Al about my encounter with Tumms.

Al, munching on some crackers that went with his soup, mumbles, "'Ou worry a 'ot, Emma-ween."

I push his jaw up with my hand. "Chew with your mouth closed and listen to me for once, Sherlock."

Albus looks hurt. He finishes chewing and says, "I listen to you…"

Rose gives him a look and says, "You really don't."

"I do too!"

I sigh. "Whatever. Let's just get to business. Something was wrong because Tumms wasn't as confused as usual. He had a…purpose. He knew something was going to happen, but he wouldn't say what. I would've asked, but I know it wouldn't have done any good. Anyway, the next thing I know, he's gone. Vanished. He wouldn't disappear like that without good reason."

"Someone might have taken him," Rose points out.

I say, "You're right. I think he went with someone, but I don't think it was by force."

Albus adds, "The bartender at the Three Broomsticks hates Tumms ever since he blew up the entire bar because he slipped some sort of tonic in his butterbeer that, apparently, turned out not to be a tonic."

Rose and I laugh and say together, "Classic Tumms."

I also say, "But how do you know that, Al? Underage wizards aren't allowed in there."

Al grins. "My dad told me. He wanted me to figure out what else the supposed tonic could be. He quizzes me on stuff like that constantly."

Rose smiles. "Gotta love Mr. Potter. I have an idea. We go to Hogsmeade next week, sneak into the Three Broomsticks, and see if we can find out anything. If not, we might as well grab a couple butterbeers while we're there."

I tease, "Wow, Rose, you're getting naughtier each day. First eavesdropping, now sneaking into a restaurant? We've definitely made some progress."

Rose rolls her eyes and Al laughs, spitting his crackers all over Scorpius, who was sitting nearby.

Scorpius scowls and says, "That's disgusting, Potter! You'll pay." He raises his wand and points it at Albus.

Before anyone else can move, Rose has her hand on the twerp's arm. "Scorp," she says quietly. "Put it down. It was a mistake."

No one heard her but Scorpius…and me.

"Scorp, please."

Scorpius's cold expression softens at Rose's voice and touch. He slowly lowers his wand and puts it back in his pocket. He rips his arm away from Rose and stalks off.

"Well, that was weird," Albus says, still crunching on those crackers.

I flick my vegetables at him. They land on his forehead as I say, "You're an idiot."

Albus eyes twinkle as he says, "Look in the mirror, Em. Look. In. The. Mirror."

The way he looks at me makes my stomach flutter and my heart ache. I ignore that and say, "That comeback was horrible."

Al says indignantly, "Well, you don't expect me to come up with an amazing comeback while I'm figuring out how to get into the Three Broomsticks at the same time, do you?"

I grin. "I don't expect you to walk and chew gum at the same time, so I see your point."

He glares at me, but his eyes are warm. "Thank you. And, I did come up with an idea, so you better thank me later."

He pauses for a second. "It's later."

(A/N: I'm sorry for such a long wait and such a horrible chapter! I was on vacation, but now I'm baack! I'm cranking out the next chapter, and I promise it will be good. Just stay with me a little while longer. And for the people wondering about James and Emmeline vs. Albus and Emmeline, I have some information that will please you…later. Byebye for now!)

Note: HP is owned by J.K. Rowling. I do not own it. All other characters (i.e. Emmeline) are mine.