Chapter 25

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The next day the Doctor caught Rose's eye at dinner, wiggling his fingers at her. A small smile curved her lips as she finished, swinging her bag over her shoulder as she made her way over to the door to join him. "So, is that the new summons? Be a good Rose, come to Doctor! That's a good Rose." He choked and she bumped his arm with her shoulder. Her fingers tangled with his. "Relax, I'm just teasin'. I don't mind."

His lips went out in a full-on pout. The Doctor really was quite talented at pouting, Rose reflected, though he'd deny it heartily if she ever said anything. It was probably those giant puppy-dog eyes. "You've been spending too much time with Donna."

She giggled and didn't answer. They turned to go up to the library, and two people stepped out of the shadows to block their path. Rose frowned. "Patrick? Rajesh? What are you doing?"

Patrick snorted. "What are we doing? What are you doing, spending all your time with a filthy Slytherin?"

The Doctor raised his eyebrows, rocking back on his heels. "Well I admit I might not shower every day, but that hardly makes me filthy."

Patrick scowled. "What are you talking about?"

The Doctor gave him a pitying look.

Rajesh spoke up, tightening his fists. "Look, maybe you weren't here during the war, but we were. We know what the Slytherins are like, and you shouldn't be anywhere near them."

Rose's eyes narrowed. "An' so every Slytherin is the same, is that it?"

He scowled. "There's a reason they're all in the same house."

"Y'know, you're sounding a lot like the blood purists right now."

Rajesh paled, and Patrick flushed with anger. "You don't know anything. You weren't here."

"For god's sake, I was twelve! It wasn't exactly my choice to leave!"

"You got it easy. And maybe you don't know what this war was about, but we do." He gestured angrily at the Doctor. "And people like him lost."

"People like who?" They all spun at the light male voice, and Harry Potter walked up behind them. Patrick and Rajesh's eyes widened as he nodded comfortably at Rose and the Doctor. "Hope you don't mind me interrupting, but Auror Hopkins suggested I talk to you two next."

Rose couldn't help smirking. "Quite all right with me. Doctor?"

He grinned and bounced on his heels. "'S fine with me."

"Right, then. We'll just go talk elsewhere." Harry pinned both the Gryffindor boys with a glare. "And for your information, it was people like John Mott here I was fighting for."

He turned and left, and Rose and the Doctor followed. He tightened his grip on her hand, and she glanced up at him and frowned. She knew that set of his shoulders, the tightening in his jaw. She leaned closer to him and spoke softly. "Look, whatever you're thinkin', I want you to stop. Them bein' idiots isn't your fault."

He stared straight ahead. "As if they'd bother you if we weren't together."

"Actually, they would. I wasn't here for the hard times, Doctor. That's enough to turn 'em all against me, even if you weren't in the picture."

He blinked and looked down at her. "But you weren't the only student who was pulled out—there were plenty more from Gryffindor who stayed with their families during the War."

Her jaw tightened. "Yeah, but I'm guessin' their families weren't a single mum from the council estates." She shrugged. "If it weren't for my dad's savings, I wouldn't be able to come here at all."

"Why would that matter?"

She glanced up at him, annoyed, and blinked. He looked honestly confused. She sighed and leaned against his shoulder. "You know what, I don't understand it, either."

Harry cleared his throat. They'd reached the Auror's small temporary office, and he ushered them inside. "Have a seat." He did so himself and leaned forward. "I tried to talk with Rosier's house elf yesterday, but she wouldn't tell me anything about 'the Master'. You've known him for years, haven't you, Mr. Mott?"

The Doctor's mouth twisted. "In the same way that you know Draco Malfoy, perhaps."

Harry blinked. "Ah." He paused. "So, being in the same house didn't help?"

"Did you always get along with everyone in your house?"

Harry winced. "Point taken." He tapped his quill on his paper, twirling it absently. "So, walk me through the events of Saturday night."

"Well, there was the Valentine's ball, right? Rose and I went—we'd taken a break from the dancing when Rose noticed Koschei leaving with one of the decorators."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "And why was that noteworthy, Miss Tyler?"

She shrugged. "Hermione and I were at breakfast when Jeff Llewelyn brought in the decorators. She wasn't too happy about it, and neither was Auror Hopkins—Lucius Malfoy was paying for them, and none of them had background checks done on them yet. I knew about the Death Eaters hanging around here, so I kept an eye on them, and when one of 'em made a point of catching Koschei's eye, I thought it'd be best to follow."

He suppressed a smile. "Well, that's… enterprising."

The Doctor frowned. "If she hadn't noticed, we wouldn't have arrived in time to interrupt them."

"Right, yeah. No offense meant, Miss Tyler."

The door creaked open, and Auror Hopkins strode in. "Ah. Started without me, I see."

Harry got to his feet, frowning a little. "I thought you were going to interview Professor Snape."

She waved a hand. "I did that last night. Now, where were we?"

"Just going over the timeline." He turned back to the Doctor and Rose. "So, you followed him, and…?"

The Doctor cleared his throat. "We heard them talking about their plans, and we realized the decorator was a Death Eater. Martha was with us, so she went back to fetch help, and then Professor Snape showed up and we interrupted them."

Harry's eyes narrowed. "And you're sure you don't know what Lestrange wanted?"

Celeste coughed into her hand. "We've already ascertained that, Mr. Potter, from all the witnesses. From what Mr. Snape told me, the mental barriers set up would prevent them from speaking openly about their focus."

He frowned. "How was a Hogwarts student that deeply ensorcelled?"

She shrugged. "We think it was most likely Lestrange's work. It's not clear whether Rosier knew about it or not. I believe Professor Smith was next on your list, Potter. I can finish here."

He was watching her carefully, but he nodded. "We'll meet up later to compare notes?"

"Of course, Potter."

"Well, then." He nodded at the Doctor and Rose. "It was nice to meet you both. If I have any more questions, you'll be around?"

Rose's lips quirked up. "'M not plannin' on dropping out, if that's what you're asking."

"Right." He nodded awkwardly and left, and Hopkins warded the door and sat down with a sigh.

"That was close." She glanced up at Rose. "You might want to work on your poker face, Miss Tyler." The Doctor and Rose glanced at each other, nervous, and she caught their look and let out a soft breath. "Yes, I know. And no, I'm not planning on telling." Her jaw tightened. "Snape told me about the rite yesterday. I'm not going to jeopardize this peace for anything, protocol be damned. The bastard's gone, and as long as I breathe, I'll ensure that he stays gone." She gave both of them a hard look. "As far as the rest of the world is concerned, you interrupted them before they could conduct their business." Rose nodded immediately, and the Doctor glanced at her before nodding as well. "Good. Now, the rite would have to be performed on the night of the spring equinox—this year, that falls on March 19."

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "'The hour of the rite draws near'? According to whom, a turtle?"

She leaned forward. "Be serious. Lestrange has most likely been looking for the heir since Voldemort's defeat, and now he knows who you are. Snape's enchantment is the only thing keeping him from telling the Aurors exactly what it was he was looking for, and believe me, they're asking." She leaned back, watching them. "Until the equinox has passed, you must stay within these walls. We can't protect you if we don't know where you are. Now go away. I've got reports to falsify."

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