It took Rose a moment to realize that she was still alive. Immersed in complete darkness, she felt Herbert's grip loosen enough for her to slip away. She took one step to the side, then realized that she had no way of escaping. With no wand, and nothing of use in her Seer's kit-

The phoenix feather.

She ripped the top of her bag open and began groping around inside it. Luckily, the phoenix feather was close to the top. She pulled it out- but nothing happened.

"Lumos!" someone cried from the all-consuming blackness.

Panicking, Rose tried putting the feather over her eyes. Nothing but darkness.

"Your forehead, Rose!" another voice cried out. "Put it– oof!"

Rose slapped the phoenix feather on her forehead. Instantly, the blackness disappeared.

Herbert was groping around near Contessa, obviously trying to mount up. The dragon seemed agitated by the sudden blackness and kept shaking Herbert off of her back. On the other side of the clearing stood a group that Rose would know anywhere.

"Incarcerous," cried Scorpius, pointing his wand towards Herbert, who stiffened like a board and flew back against a nearby tree. Crying out, he struggled to break free. Scorpius uttered another incantation, and thin, spindly branches began dropping out of the tree and winding themselves around Herbert. When they stopped, only his head was clear of foliage.

Rose refocused her attention on the others at the edge of the clearing. Scorpius kept his wand drawn, and was wearing an odd headband that seemed to shimmer in the darkness. Albus, Lorcan, and Lysander stood by his side. Barely visible beyond them were James and Marco, who was leaning on a tree for support.

"Rose?" called Albus desperately, waving his hands in front of his face as if he could wipe away the darkness. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine!" said Rose, her voice only shaking a little.

"It worked," said Scorpius, his voice full of relief.

"Can we leave, then?" complained James. "I'm not loving the darkness."

But as he spoke, the black began to fade away. Rose lowered her phoenix feather and found that she could still see.

"Contessa," said Marco with relief. "Is she okay?"

"She seemed fine to me," said Rose, "but be careful. Herbert was feeding her hegolith before."

This startled everyone but Lysander, who nodded. "I was afraid of that. Did he give her a lot?"

"Not too much, but it may be enough to set her off." Rose touched her locket, which had just begun to cool. "She should be safe for now, though."

By this time, the darkness had completely cleared away. Rose stowed the phoenix feather back in her bag with hands that trembled slightly.

This meant that Herbert was once again able to see. He whipped his head around, taking in the additions to the group.

"Expelliarmus," said Scorpius, seeing Herbert struggling against his bonds. From beneath the foliage shot his wand, soaring in an arc to Scorpius's waiting hand.

Rose crossed the clearing to where the others stood. Their faces were all mirrors of concern. She tried to smile, but feared it looked more like a grimace.

"Don't worry about me," said Rose quickly, feeling heat rise to her cheeks. "I'm fine. But what do we do with him?"

All the while, Herbert was attempting to free himself from his bonds. "You stupid little girl!" he howled. "The Adderhead will show you no mercy after this!"

Unexpectedly, Scorpius pointed his wand at Tobias. "Don't even threaten her with him," he ordered coldly. "That Adderhead of yours can go rot in hell with the rest of you."

Herbert howled wordlessly.

"We should get back to the castle," said Lysander worriedly. "Can we lead Contessa through the forest?"

"I'll ride her," said Giovanni gravely. "You'll walk back along the way we came."

They watched as Giovanni quickly climbed atop Contessa, who remained perfectly still as he adjusted himself. At his command, Contessa stood and leapt into the air. Her wings beat furiously, pulling both dragon and Rider into the air. Barely missing the trees surrounding the clearing, Contessa rose into the sky and began to fly away.

Someone had put a silencing spell on Herbert. Now his mouth moved, but thankfully, they could not hear him screaming.

"Nice binding spell, by the way," commented Lysander, looking at Herbert studiously. "I like how you use the branches."

"My father taught me," said Scorpius, looking at James defiantly. "He said I should know how to defend myself. And my friends."

There was a moment where Rose thought that James was going to start throwing hexes at Scorpius, but just as it came, the moment passed. Instead, James nodded slowly.

"Not a bad idea," he said, his tone remarkably civil. "For a Malfoy, at least."

Before Rose could reprimand him for his backhanded compliment, James grinned and pulled a folded square of parchment from his robes.

"I'll lead the way," he said.

"How did you all find me?" asked Rose as they began to walk.

"You never came back from seeing Marco," explained Lorcan.

"It was a trap," said Rose. "I came down and it was Herbert, not Marco."

"We know," said Albus. "Lorcan came back to lunch, but he could tell there was something wrong. We came down and found Giovanni, who was all in a panic because Contessa was gone."

"We used the map to find you two," said James. "Turns out it does show the forest."

"And I used the Peruvian Darkness Powder," said Lorcan. "I keep it in my Seer's pack in case of emergencies."

James snorted. "You keep the Darkness Powder in case of Divination emergencies?"

Lorcan shrugged.

"Well, good thing he did," retorted Rose. "Herbert snapped my wand. I didn't know what to do."

"Go back a bit," said Scorpius. "You went down to see Marco, and then what happened?

Rose told the whole story, from the moment she arrived to Herbert using the Imperious Curse on her.

"He did what?" snapped James angrily.

"I'm fine," Rose reassured him, "don't worry. It was just... the oddest feeling. I knew what I was doing, but it didn't matter."

Albus groaned when she got to the part about mentioning Trijuska . "Oh, Rose, you didn't."

"If you hadn't arrived when you did," she said softly, "I don't know what would've happened. He was… furious." That reminded her – "Scorpius, who is the Adderhead?"

"I was wondering that myself," said Lysander. "I've never heard that name before."

Scorpius took a moment to answer. "I'm not sure," he said, "but... nevermind."

"Tell us, Scorpius," said Rose firmly. "I think I have the right to know after everything that has happened."

"Fine," sighed Scorpius. "I've heard the term around the common room sometimes, always with the older boys. James Baena said it once to Alistair last year and Alastair was pissed."

Rose's entire body went cold. Would it always come back to Alistair?

"Herbert said that he was supposed to be opening the dragons' minds to magical influence. You think they were –"

"Trying to make them into weapons?" finished Lysander. "My thoughts exactly. It certainly made them dangerous."

"But not controllable," finished Rose. "That's ultimately what he wanted."

"I suppose Louis had nothing to do with it, then," said Albus wearily. "How could we get everything so backwards?"

"Easily, with this bloke involved," muttered James, shooting a glare at Scorpius.

Rose ignored his response. "I feel terrible about it now," she said, realizing what she would've been accusing her cousin of.

"Don't," said Lorcan with a sad smile. "After all, he never has to know."

However, by the time they emerged from the forest, there seem to be a great deal of people who knew what happened.

"Miss Weasley!" cried Professor McGonagall. She had a simple handkerchief and was using it to blot her face. "Mister Potter – Mister Scamander – Mister Malfoy –"

"Let's not interrogate them just now," said Professor Evariste with a slight smile. "I believe they are being waited for in the hospital wing."

"Of course," said Professor McGonagall. "Hazen, would you mind escorting them?"

Rose spied Contessa over by Hagrid's hut. Hagrid was petting Contessa, while Giovanni spoke with a group of Ministry witches and wizards.

"If you will allow me to," Giovanni was saying, "I will bring you to the boy."

Rose was surprised by another figure running down from the castle. She saw who it was a moment before he enveloped her in a hug.

"Rose," said Uncle Charlie thankfully. "Albus, James, all of you! You have no idea how happy I am to see you."

"We're all fine," said Rose, "no need to squeeze us to death!"

Charlie Weasley released his neice. "I've just got down from the Owlery. I've sent owls off to all of your parents. Well- er-"

Rose could tell that Uncle Charlie had just caught sight of Scorpius.

"I'll send an owl when we get back to the castle," said Scorpius quickly.

"You'll see to that," Professor McGonagall told Professor Evariste. "Hazen, let's see these children to the hospital wing, now. Madam Chang must be frantic with waiting."

To his credit, Professor Evariste refrained from asking questions as he walked the group into the castle. Instead, he hummed tunelessly until they reached the second floor.

"I'll be serving tea at three o'clock tomorrow," he told Rose, his voice low. "Please, feel free to inform the others."

By the others, Rose knew he only meant Albus and Scorpius. Tea was starting to become a bit of a tradition with the four of them.

Madam Chang relegated each of the students to separate beds. "No talking, now." she ordered. "I need to concentrate."

It had been an exorbitantly long day. As Madam Chang began examining Albus, Rose drifted off to sleep. After the day she had had, she deserved it.

Rose only woke once Madam Chang tapped her.

"Rose? Rose, you need to wake up."

Rose groaned and tried to bat the prodding hand away. "Go away," she moaned, then started. Laughter sounded from all around her.

"Albus told me that you took the worst of it," said Madam Chang as Rose sat upward and looked around.

The room was full of Weasleys. Dominique and Louis were arguing quietly in a corner, while Lucy was sitting on the floor with a book. Roxanne and Fred were on the edge of Albus' bed, and Rose could hear him explaining the afternoon's event.

"Yes," said Madam Chang, seeing how Rose looked around, "your cousins were quite persistent about seeing you all. The headmistress finally told me to admit them."

"Persistence is an understatement," said Rose. "I hope they didn't cause you to much of a problem."

Madam Chang smiled sweetly. "Oh, don't worry about them," she said dismissively. "I heard that you were the center of all this afternoon's excitement."

"Albus spilled everything!" James called from the other side of the room. He and Lysander had pushed their beds together and were in the midst of a game of wizards chess.

"I told them the story as it happened," replied Albus. "Rose, can you throw something at him for me?"

"There was just a minor altercation," said Rose simply.

"Well," said Madam Chang, "it sounds to me like you took quite a bruising. Oh, here's another one on your cheek. I almost didn't see it because of this nasty rash you have."

Rose touched her face gingerly, and felt a large patch of raised bumps spread across her cheek and down her neck.

"It's the hegolith again," said Rose, "but this will be the last time. I'm sure of it."

Despite Rose insisting that all she needed was a good night's sleep back in her own bed, Madam Chang decided that she should stay overnight for observation.

"And don't think I'll let you sneak away when my back is turned," she said, glaring pointedly at Albus, who pretended not to notice.

Most of the cousins had already left at this point. Lorcan had excused himself a few minutes earlier, telling Rose that he would explain her absence to Professor Trelawney.

"Tell her I won't be coming back at all," Rose called after him.

"I should get going," said Lysander, the next to rise. "Someone has to find out what the rest of the school is saying, right?"

"I should leave too," said Scorpius, "but I'll come see you in the morning, alright?"

It was James' turn to glare, but he refrained from speaking, which Rose appreciated. She really did want to get some rest.

"You should all be getting back to your common rooms," said Madam Chang firmly. "She'll be here in the morning."

After everyone else had left, Madam Chang returned to Rose's bedside with a steaming mug.

"Tea," she said, "and some potion to make sure your insides aren't bruised. You may have some odd dreams, but you should sleep soundly enough."

"Thank you," said Rose, taking the mug.

Madam Chang turned back to her office, then said, "This school can be a dangerous place. I'm glad that you weren't seriously injured. Get some sleep."

As soon as Rose had finished the spiced tea, she felt her eyelids begin to droop. She tried to remember the last time she had been given any sort of sleeping potion, but before she could recall a specific instance, she was asleep.

She was soaring through the air on Contessa's back once more, her legs firmly attached to the saddle, her arms flung out in the wind. It was the height of spring- all of the trees were thick with leaves, and Rose could see flowers littering the gardens around the castles. With a whoop, she leaned forward and began to lead Contessa back towards the grass. All of the Riders were waiting for her: Marco leaning on his twisted wooden cane, burly Schunverri, Maria and Rodolfo with matching grins, and Giovanni, who waved her forward.

She hit the ground with a thump that reverberated through her body.

But she was no longer outside. Rose blinked, adjusting to the sudden darkness. She was back in her bed in the Hospital Wing, a single candle lit in a window adjacent to Rose's bed.

There was a squeak that Rose recognized as the main doors to the Hospital Wing, followed by clacking footsteps, which stopped directly beside Roses bed. A rustle of fabric, and then a soft sigh."

"You worthless little girl," said a reedy voice. Rose fought to recognize it. A memory stirred- a dark room in the dungeons, a ring of chairs, a line of drinks. And, of course, the only other female present.

Rose's heart began to race. She was torn between turning and confronting to the other girl and pretending she was asleep.

"Always showing up where you're not wanted," continued Lisana Blackwell, her voice low and almost lazy. "What is it he needs with you?"

Rose could feel Lisana standing by her bedside for a few silent minutes. She prayed that the other girl could not her her erratic heartbeat. Rose knew that revealing that she was awake would get her nowhere, especially since her wand was still in the bag under her cot.

Finally, a swoosh of fabric and more quiet footfalls, followed by a faint creaking of the door. Lisana had gone.

Rose lay on her side, still not willing to move. Her mind was trying to sort out what she had just heard, but it was like fighting through molasses. Even as she tried to make sense of things, she felt herself falling back into a dream. Before she succumbed to sleep, she wrapped one hand around her locket, reassured by its cool metal. She was safe.

"Madam Chang, I'm fine."

Madam Chang sighed, then pinched the bridge of her nose. "Fine. You may go, I suppose."

Albus and Scorpius exchanged a victorious look.

"Thank you, Madam Chang!" said Albus gleefully. "Come on, Rose, there are some people who want to see you."

Rose had already changed out of the hospital pajamas Madam Chang had provided and back into her usual set of robes. Her stomach growled, but she didn't want to admit she was hungry and risk Madam Chang insisting she stay there for lunch.

Tobias Krimp was hovering outside of the Hospital Wing. It looked like he had just convinced himself to leave when Rose emerged with Albus and Scorpius.

"Rose!" he cried, looking relieved. "I heard about what happened with Herbert, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she said, "and I think the dragons will be too."

"I hope so!" said Tobias with a grin.

It was then that Rose became acutely aware of the change in Scorpius' physicality. He seemed tense beside her, like a cat ready to spring.

"This is my cousin Albus," said Rose awkwardly, "and- and Scorpius you know."

Tobias nodded to them jerkily, his expression unreadable.

"I'm glad you're alright," he said, then suddenly turned and hurried down the corridor. Scorpius didn't relax until the older Slytherin boy had turned a corner and was out of sight.

"I don't like him," muttered Scorpius, unclenching his fists.

"I noticed," said Rose dryly. "C'mon, let's go grab lunch."

Scorpius and Albus exchanged an amused look.

"What?"

"You missed lunch," said Albus. "You didn't wake up until after one. It's just about time for tea with Professor Evariste."

Rose groaned. "Alright," she said, "but he better have something to eat."

The door was ajar when they reached the office. Professor Evariste was already pouring tea into four brightly colored mugs. He looked up as they entered, then set the pot down on doily.

"The house heads have a meeting with Professor McGonagall in an hour, but I wanted to speak with three of you first. How are you?"

"As good as I can be," said Rose as they all sat. "Still a bit shocked. Shaken."

"Hungry," added Albus pointedly.

Professor Evariste chuckled. With a wave of his wand, a platter of pastries appeared on his desk.

"Please, eat," he said. "You've sustained a fair bit of trauma, you'll need your energy. Word around the castle is that you are currently wandless, correct?"

Rose nodded glumly. "Yes, sir. Herbert snapped it."

"Don't start with calling me sir now," said Professor Evariste with a wave of his hand. "It's horribly formal, and formality gives me nasty headaches. Now, tell me your side of the tale. I'm sure that half of what I've heard simply cannot be true."

Rose looked Albus and Scorpius, unsure of where to begin. She was embarrassed about their theory about Louis, horrified that she had thought her relative guilty of such a thing. Albus and Scorpius looked equally unsure.

"Now we're on to something," said Professor Evariste, leaning forward. "So, what is it you are all so reluctant to tell me? Come, now, out with it."

"We knew someone was messing with the dragons," said Scorpius. "Problem was, we picked the wrong person."

"We thought it was our cousin Louis," said Albus glumly. "We put all the pieces together and thought that it was him."

"We knew that he was - well -" stuttered Rose, unable to push the words out.

"Out with it," ordered Professor Evariste. "If it's important, then I must know."

"He was taking hegolith," said Scorpius, the least reluctant to speak about it. "We knew it was affecting him, and we thought he was feeding into the dragons."

At that, Professor Evariste's eyebrows shot up. "Feeding into the dragons?" he said. "Now, really?"

"But it was actually Herbert Chornell," said Rose, "and we were wrong about Louis."

"Now, tell me how Herbert got you into the forest."

So Rose recounted the events of the previous day, starting with the planned intervention. She was vague about the location of the discussion, knowing that they were not supposed to be snooping around the castle like that, and it was certainly not permissible to be in a storage area.

"We planned to confront him about it during lunch," said Rose, "so when I saw Marco it out the window, I thought I had plenty of time."

"I thought Giovanni found you in the woods?" said Professor Evariste.

"Yes," said Rose, "but I thought I saw Marco out with Contessa. When I went down, though, it turned out to be Herbert."

Talking about it didn't lessen the weight on her chest. As she went through the events, she found that it became gradually harder to find the proper words. When she came to the moment where she had uttered Trijuska, she found the scene ineffable.

"Drink some more tea," said Professor Evariste softly.

Rose didn't realize that her hands were shaking until she reached for her mug of tea. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Scorpius and Albus exchange a glance. They must've been worrying about her, how she was dealing with at all.

Professor Evariste sighed. "Albus, could you please tell us what happens next? I believe you were there at that point."

"Well, we heard Rose talking to Contessa," he said, "but I couldn't make out what she was saying until she said Trijuska. I recognized it from last year."

"From your adventures with Dmitri Romolov and Alistair Trimble?" said Professor Evariste. "I believe you mentioned it last year."

"It's on a necklace that Rafael wore," said Albus, "and it was then passed onto Dmitri. Alistair has the same one."

"A connection," murmured Professor Evariste. "How... interesting."

"I threw the Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder at them," continued Scorpius. "I had a phoenix headband that my mother bought for me, and I knew Rose had her phoenix feather with her, so she would be able to see."

Rose ignored the rest of the conversation. A sudden wave of exhaustion had hit her, and she remembered that her sleep had been anything but peaceful. She still wasn't sure what her dreams had been about- she remembered something about flying, and...perhaps something about Alistair? After she had begun to get up in the morning, everything had faded just out of her reach.

The rest of her day was no less stressful. An owl found Rose just as she had settled back in her dormitory. Kara had been sitting on her bed when Rose had arrived, but for once, the girl didn't seem to have the need to catch up on the latest gossip. She offered Rose an almost sympathetic smile, then slipped out of the room and went downstairs.

Rose took the note from the owl, read it, and groaned. As tempted as she was to crawl under her blankets and ignore it, she forced herself to get back up and return to the common room. Albus was sitting with Liam O'Grady, chatting animatedly and unwrapping a chocolate.

"Professor McGonagall sent a note," said Rose wearily. She wants to see us in an hour."

"Right after she's through with the house heads," said Albus, "got it."

Rose curled up in a chair by Albus', only half listening to his conversation with Liam. The other boy had stared at her for a bit, but quickly lost interest after realizing that she wasn't about to do anything interesting. The most she moved was to turn and look at the clock. When almost an hour had passed, she tapped Albus on the shoulder. Albus excused himself from his conversation, and together they left the common room.

When they reached the owl statue, however, Rose and Albus found a group already assembled. Lorcan, Lysander, and James were leaning against the wall, apparently waiting for the same thing as she and Albus were. When they saw Rose, they straightened.

"Good to see you're still alive," said James lightly. "How was the night in the Hospital Wing?"

"Lovely," lied Rose. "Are you all waiting for Professor McGonagall?"

Lorcan nodded as Lysander said, "Her owl came to find us."

"Us too," said Albus. "Are we supposed to go up, or...?" He had no way to finish the sentence.

"We don't know the password," replied Lysander. "I'm sure she'll let us in when she's ready."

Scorpius rounded the corner, looking I'm surprised to see a group already assembled.

"Waiting for McGonagall?" he asked.

"How did you ever guess?" muttered James.

"Don't start now," said Rose, "not with things going so well. Can't you two just not talk or something?"

Scorpius' eyebrows shot up. "Someone missed her beauty sleep," he muttered.

For a moment, it looks like James was going to say something. Then he jammed his mouth shut, his eyebrows coming together angrily.

At that moment, the stone owl spread its wings. As it did, it swiveled to reveal a tall, twisted staircase. Voices echoed down the stairwell, gradually becoming clearer.

"Tell them they all have detention," said one descending voice. "That'll shut them up."

"I still say the Weasley girl is in danger," said another - Rose recognized it as Professor Slughorn's voice.

"I think we should all be thankful that the year is coming to an end," said Professor McGonagall in her unmistakably clear voice. "Things will be easier next year, even with-"

The four heads of houses appeared, followed directly by Professor McGonagall. All of them looked surprised to see the waiting students, except Professors McGonagall and Evariste.

"I will await your return to make announcements to the common room," said Professor Evariste casually. "Your cousins reported on your survival, but I'm sure some of your housemates won't believe it until they see you for themselves."

Professor McGonagall sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "All of you, follow me, please," she said, then turned and went back up the staircase.

Scorpius and Albus exchanged a nervous look. No one moved for a moment, then Lysander took the first step. The others followed behind him.

It was Rose's second visit to the Headmistress' office, but she was too distracted to examine the various artifacts displayed around the room. The dominating feature was a large collection of moving portraits that covered most of the wall space. Rose scanned them, recognizing pictures from chocolate frog cards and her own readings.

"Welcome!" cried one of the former headmasters, a balding man with an overbearing smile. "Too good to see you all."

The other portraits began to give their own words of welcome. They only ceased upon Professor McGonagall's sitting.

"I will try to make this short," she told the students. "You all must be quite weary. Miss Weasley, I am very glad to see that you are well."

"Thank you, Professor," said Rose quietly.

"The rest of you shall receive no punishment for venturing into the Forbidden Forest," continued Professor McGonagall. "You were with an adult and had a good reason to... worry."

"Professor," said Rose, "is Maria going to be all right?"

Professor McGonagall lowered her eyes. "Maria will live," she said, "but she may be in St. Mungo's for quite some time. There was extensive muscular damage, and repairing muscle is more complicated than mending bones. I'm sure she will be glad to hear that the dragons will no longer be lashing out."

"What about what about Herbert?" said James. "What'll happen to him?"

"He has been taken to St. Mungo's as well," replied Professor McGonagall, "and is currently residing in the ward for the criminally insane. He will most likely be tried as an adult. You may be asked to testify when it reaches that stage."

Rose swallowed, fighting back a sudden wave of emotion.

"Good," said James with a dirty look. "I hope he rots there."

"James!" said Rose warningly.

"It's all right," said Professor McGonagall, "I understand how difficult this must be for all of you. Mr. Chornell will probably remain in St. Mungo's for quite some time while they decide if he's fit to try."

James looked satisfied with this, but it somehow only made Rose feel worse. She felt responsible for Herbert being in so much trouble- which was wholly unreasonable, she was aware. He had made his own terrible decisions and put a lot of people she cared about it harm's way. Still, the weight of his situation felt like it was resting on her.

Professor McGonagall went through the motions, thanking them all for their service to the school. Rose nodded mutely, her mind surprisingly blank. She felt nothing as Professor McGonagall patted her on the shoulder before dismissing them all.

Scorpius put his hand on Rose's arm when they reached the bottom of the staircase. "Are you all right?" he asked softly.

Before Rose could respond, James was there, wand drawn.

"Get your hand off of her," he growled.

Something inside of Rose snapped. She felt color rush to her face, angry color. She went from feeling nothing to feeling every particle in the air. She was on fire.

"Stop! she screamed, "James Sirius Potter, you stop this right now!"

James took an automatic step back, clearly confused.

"I am sick of this behavior!" continued Rose angrily. "You are constantly causing problems, and honestly, I have no time for it anymore! I want to go and sleep, but will I? No! First, I had to go and deal with the common room full of people chattering at me!"

She was aware of hot tears streaming down her face, but she made no move to brush them aside.

"You have no idea what I'm feeling right now, James! But none of that matters, so long as you get what you want around and try to scare off someone who is at least trying to understand! Scorpius was right there with you when you came to help me, and I would very much appreciate it if you could stop treating him like he's the enemy!"

James clenched his jaw, but the hurt showed through in his eyes.

"I'm sorry," he said tightly.

Rose his breathing had become labored and hard. She tried to slow it to no avail. Before she could control herself, she began sobbing.

"I don't understand," she sobbed as someone's arms - she didn't care whose – wrapped around her. "I don't understand!"

"None of us do," said Lysander from nearby. "But we're here for you, Rose. We'll help you figure it out."

And for the moment, it was enough.