Slowly, Rowena found herself regaining consciousness, becoming aware first that she existed, and second that she was on something solid. Upon further consideration, that something solid felt crisp, cool, and comfortable; she soon formed the concept that it was a bed. The moment she was aware of her eyelids, she tried to open them, but the effort was too much. She had better luck with her vocal chords, which created some sort of incomprehensible sound.

"Ro?" came a weak voice to her left. At least her ears seemed to be working. She tried her eyes again, and found them much more up to the task than they had been moments before. They opened, but she was nearly blinded by the bright whiteness of the room she assumed was the hospital wing.

Several strong blinks later, she seemed to have adjusted to the light, and tried rolling onto her side. In the bed next to hers lay Rhys, looking far worse for the wear than she'd ever seen him. His reddish brown hair was matted to his head with streaks of blood; a cut on his upper lip had it swollen to more than twice its size, and a gash on his cheek was purplish. "Rhys? You okay? What happened?" Her voice was raspy, and the noise tickled her throat.

"I can't remember," he said, his words foggy from behind his swollen lip.

Just then, the nurse came over and stood between their beds. "Are you two doing better?" she asked. "I thought sleep would be the best thing for you, but now you're awake, let me take care of some of your injuries. I have some essence of murtlap here that should help with most of your surface wounds."

As she treated them, there was a knock at the outer door, but it opened before the matron had a chance to answer. "Can I come in now?" Genevieve asked, once she was well inside the room. "I could hear you talking."

"Well, since you're already here... Do you two mind having a visitor?"

"I think it will be good for us," Rowena said, trying to smile, but found those muscles painful to move. She did her best to hide her reaction to the pain; she had a feeling she had something very important to tell Genevieve, though she couldn't quite remember what it was.

Genevieve sat down by Rowena's bed and chatted with her, but the effort to stay awake and focused was too much and Rowena found herself slipping in and out of consciousness. When she was awake, she couldn't shake the feeling that she needed to be saying something to Genevieve, but whatever that something was couldn't make its way to her tongue. When she was asleep, she dreamt of shattering stones, curses, and time spent with her father reading from Beedle the Bard as a child. Genevieve must have given up on her bedside vigil at some point, because when Rowena finally woke up fully conscious, it was dark outside and she and Rhys were alone.

As the evening progressed, memories of what had last happened began to trickle into her mind. She remembered being in the Forest, something about a Thestral, something about her mother... Then, in one moment, the trickle became a flood. She remembered snapping out of hypnosis or the Imperius curse, shivering in her nightgown in the middle of the Forbidden Forest. She remembered Rhys there under her Invisibility Cloak, and the fight that followed to destroy the Resurrection Stone.

She remembered succeeding.

Then she remembered that her mother still existed, still fought them, even after the Stone shattered.

The thought sent a chill down her spine even from the safety of the hospital wing. Morgana had mentioned something the night before, something about the Stone not being her only safety net. Rowena had no idea what she could possibly have meant, but the idea of it was repulsing. She couldn't understand her mother's thought process. From what she had gathered, Morgana was enthralled with the tale of Harry Potter, and wanted as much to do with it as possible. Why, then, did she seem to treat living as a final reward, almost like Voldemort had? Mythical or real, he seemed like the wrong example to follow.

If growing up with her mother would have meant being indoctrinated into whatever it was Morgana believed, Rowena was glad it was just her father with her growing up. He never emphasized their last name or their heritage, didn't try to convince her that Harry was real - or a myth. He let Rowena form her own opinions about her family tree and the history of the wizarding world. With Morgana around... Rowena remembered what she had seen in the Pensieve and shuddered.

The next few days passed in a blur of waking and sleeping. Rowena felt herself getting stronger with every dose of disgusting potion she swallowed, and Rhys seemed to be doing better as well. Under the close supervision of the matron, their discussions about the Forest were all but non-existent, but Rowena didn't mind. She appreciated the time to process things alone. When Genevieve came in on a day she said was Friday, the matron was finally ready to let them go. As they packed their things and headed off, Rowena was more worried about having missed an entire week of school than she was about what happened in the Forest.

"Genevieve, what happened in Care of Magical Creatures this week? Did we miss anything important?" she asked as the three of them walked to the Entrance Hall together.

"Well, we were studying the properties of unicorn blood in a classroom. Professor Finney kept us out of the Forest, said it became a dangerous place. I'm guessing that has something to do with you two? I asked him about it after class and all he said... he said he found the two of you unconscious at the edge of the Forest and that he took you straightaway to the hospital wing." Genevieve sounded as though there was a lump in her throat as she relayed this information. She paused, swallowed, and continued. "Is that true?"

"Well, I'm not sure who found us, but that sounds right," Rowena said simply. Based on her reaction to Professor Finney's story, she wasn't sure Genevieve would want to hear the details.

However, as usual, Rhys decided it was prudent to tell the whole story. "That's only the ending, Gen! You have no idea... it was so crazy. Sunday evening I was in the Common Room and I fell asleep there. I woke up when I heard these strange footsteps - it was Rowena, but she looked strange, like she was under the Imperius curse or something, or hypnotized. I put on the Invisibility Cloak and followed her, and Morgana was there and-"

"Rhys Finnegan. She doesn't need a play-by-play, okay?" Rowena rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. "We got down there, and she wanted me to unite the Hallows and bring her back to life. Except she didn't seem to know what the incantation was for doing it, which I found strange. Anyway, I had no intention of bringing her back to life at this point, and instead Rhys diverted her and I destroyed the Resurrection Stone."

"So... she's gone?" Genevieve asked hopefully as they pushed open the large doors of the Entrance Hall and stepped out toward the grounds and into the sunshine.

"She should have been. But she wasn't. She was almost... almost substantial. I swore she left footprints in the mud. I don't remember exactly how it all happened - we blacked out at the end, I think - but she said something about how the Stone wasn't her only plan for returning to life and she wouldn't entrust it all to her daughter. She said something else was in place that was tethering her to earth."

Genevieve conjured chairs for them as they reached the muddy shores of the lake and they sat down, facing each other. "What do you think is keeping her here?"

"I have no idea. Once I remembered what had happened, I spent much of my time in the hospital wing trying to think of what it could be."

"Me, too," Rhys said. "Maybe she's a ghost?"

"No," Genevieve said thoughtfully. "Ghosts don't interact with earth, and it seems like Morgana can do that now. What if she never really died and was just pretending?"

"She's too insubstantial for that to be the case. She appears and disappears and until last night, it didn't seem like the elements were interacting with her. The only thing I can think of," Rowena continued, "is that the Stone didn't shatter enough for its powers to be destroyed. I mean, it was already split when I got it. What if the shattering just multiplied her powers and kept her here?"

"That sounds possible. But how would we go about dealing with that? We could try finding all the pieces in the Forest. Could we put it back together maybe?"

"No, Rhys. I used the Confringo spell - it shattered into hundreds of pieces, if not more. I doubt we could find them all. And even then, what would we do with them when we found them?"

"I don't know. But I still think it wouldn't hurt to have them," Rhys said defensively.

Genevieve said, "I agree with you, but I don't think that's an option. Remember what I was telling you about Care of Magical Creatures? The Forest isn't even being used for classes right now - anyone caught within fifty feet of it is getting a month's worth of detentions with Professor Finney."

There was a brief pause between the three of them, but then Rhys exclaimed, "That's okay! We have Ro's Cloak! We could just go out and get the pieces under it."

"I guess that would work," Genevieve said, "But it would still be dangerous. You two have gotten into a lot of trouble in the Forest recently."

Rowena sighed. "It won't work."

"What are you talking about? That Cloak is perfect."

"Yes, of course it is! But I also don't know where it is. I am sure I had it when we got onto the Thestrals, but I haven't seen it since. I looked everywhere in my satchel once I was able to move around a bit in the hospital wing. I think it's been confiscated."

"Well shit, Rowena, what are we going to do now?" Rhys was standing now, pacing back and forth in front of his chair and creating a track in the mud. "That was our only chance for getting the Stone back. What if that's what is making her stronger? You know once she realizes we're fine she'll probably come back for us. She wasn't thrilled at all that you tried to kill her - I'm sure she'll want revenge. We don't even know how to fight her and our only option was to go into the Forest, but you go and lose your bloody Cloak!"

"Rhys, calm down!" Rowena stood as well, looking down on him as she felt her cheeks beginning to flush with anger. "I was unconscious! What was I supposed to do, grip it in my bloody sleep? And I don't know about you, but I was disoriented for days in the hospital - I didn't even remember why I was there, let alone that I had a Cloak to protect!"

"Well you should have! We wouldn't even be in this mess if it weren't for you!" He was gasping for air. When he spoke again, it was closer to pouting than screaming. "And you should protect your Cloak."

"You two need to stop fighting!" Genevieve said, standing up to push them apart, though she was shorter than both Rhys and Rowena. "It won't solve anything. The Cloak is gone. Arguing about it won't do anything, and I'm guessing Headmaster Malfoy wouldn't give it back if we did ask for it. We're just going to have to find another way."

Rowena sighed. "You're right. Gen, did you say you knew the homework for Care of Magical Creatures and Charms? Could you write it down for me? I'm going to go back to the Common Room for a bit before dinner. I feel like I have a lot of catch-up work to do to stay on top of things. Let's just forget about Morgana for now."

Genevieve pulled a quill and parchment out of her bag and began to write, while Rhys said, "I'll go back there, too. It would be nice to get some work done before dinner."

The trio trudged back toward the Entrance Hall, makeshift chairs Vanished behind them by Genevieve's spellwork. They were silent, each lost in their own thoughts as they made their way back inside. "Well, goodbye then," Genevieve said airily when they reached the staircase that led to Ravenclaw tower.

Rowena and Rhys continued on without speaking for the last few minutes before reaching the Fat Lady. However, once they were inside, Rhys turned to Rowena before she could escape up the stairs to the girls' dormitories. "Ro, we need to talk."

"If this is about the Cloak-"

"It's not, but I am sorry for blowing up at you. It's just that I really want her gone, you know? I think life was better before Morgana was in it."

Rowena snorted. "And you think I don't?! I can't wait to get out of this mess. I wish I had the Cloak, too, you know."

"Yeah, I know. Can we sit down a minute?" he asked, gesturing to the couch by the fire they had sat on six days before, just hours before Rowena was led into the Forest.

She sat down beside him, curling one leg beneath her as she turned to face him. "What is it?"

"When we were recovering in the hospital wing, I wasn't just trying to remember what happened in the Forest, and what to do about it. I was also thinking about Sunday night, before you were Imperiused, before Genevieve came for us."

Rowena tried to roll her mind back over those events. It was less than a week ago, but anything that happened before their stay in hospital felt like a lifetime ago. The image was foggy, but she remembered sitting in the Common Room - she had just realized that Rhys had the wand, and they traded and... "Oh. You mean, the... the mistletoe?"

He was talking fast again, words spilling out and overlapping. "Yeah, I'm so sorry about that. There probably was a better way I could have told you - and it, well, I know that there was just so much going on, but we figured out the whole Hallows thing and it made sense at the-"

"Rhys, stop, okay? I wasn't offended. Don't worry about it. In case you didn't notice, I was planning to kiss you back."

"Well, it's mistletoe. Not like you had much of a choice."

"Maybe not. But I still didn't mind. And even if you had without mistletoe- never mind for now. Let's just figure out what's going on with Morgana first. We can talk about a -, or-, well, you know - after all this is settled, okay?"

Rhys exhaled deeply, like he had been holding his breath while she spoke. "Okay. Shall we go to dinner then?"

"Sounds good to me. I could do with an extra helping of chocolate for dessert."

They ate with relative peace between them, filling up on their choice of food for the first time in nearly a week. But as the puddings appeared on the table and Rowena helped herself to an extra-large chunk of dark chocolate, a lone owl flew through the window and landed in front of her. "What are you doing getting mail at dinner?"

"How should I know?" Rowena answered as she untied the parchment from the owl's leg. She recognized her father's handwriting immediately.

Rowena,

Headmaster Malfoy wrote me earlier this week to let me know that you were found unconscious at the edge of the Forbidden Forest with Mr. Finnegan. He wrote again this morning to let me know you are feeling better and gave me express permission to take you home for the weekend where you will be out of trouble.

I have reason to believe you visited recently, and I assume this visit was without teacher permission or knowledge. I must admit I am surprised at your recent behavior, as it is nothing like you used to be. Your recklessness must stop, and I'm sure you understand why.

When you're home this weekend, I hope to spend time with you like we used to do before you went to Hogwarts. Read Beedle the Bard, look through old family albums, remind you why it is so imperative that your family comes first. I love you, despite your behavior over the past month, and I can't wait to see you. I will pick you up at Hogsmeade Station on Saturday at 8 in the morning. Please be there and be ready. I understand that you will have a professor for a guard as you go.

Aquila

"What's that about?" Rhys asked when he reached the bottom of the parchment.

"I have no idea. It doesn't really even sound like him - taking me out of school because of recklessness or whatnot. He was far worse; I haven't forgotten all his stories about the Cloak." She folded the note and placed it in the pocket of her khakis, trying to make sense of the whole thing. Though she was close with him, he'd never explicitly asked her to spend time with him, and she didn't see how his suggestions - remarkably detailed, considering he said he just wanted her home - would constitute a punishment for her behavior.

"Could it be - is it maybe another trick of Morgana's?"

"I doubt it - it's definitely his handwriting, at least. I'm not sure how she would forge that. But the language... it's too formal for how he usually writes me."

"Well, are you going to go?"

"What choice do I have? It looks like someone is going to meet me and escort me there. I don't know how I can get out of it. And obviously he'd find out soon enough that I didn't make it. I think I have to go."

"Let me go with you," Rhys said, his voice serious and his eyes narrowed.

"I can't, Rhys. How can I explain to him why you're there? Especially since his letter implied that you are getting me into trouble." She laughed. "Seems more to be the other way around, doesn't it?"

A note from Headmaster Malfoy that evening verified that she had permission to leave. She sighed and packed her trunk, stuffing things in haphazardly. She levitated her trunk into the Common Room, where Rhys was waiting for her. "Which wand should I take with me?"

"Huh? Oh, the wand? Take mine. Without your Cloak or anything... I just think it would be a good idea."

Rowena smiled and sat beside him, holding out her own wand. "Trade?"

They switched wands, then sat in silence for a few moments, both studying the dying embers of the fire. "Hey, Ro?"

"Yeah, Rhys?"

"Keep safe, okay? And write me if something happens."

"I will. Hopefully it's just like his letter says, and I'll just be sitting there in an armchair reading fairy tales with him."

Rhys laughed and reached out to squeeze her hand gently. "Let's hope so. There's nothing harmful in readingfairy tales," he said lightly.

Rowena's laugh was dark. "Yeah, it's just believing in them we have to look out for."

That night, Rowena's sleep was fitful; she tossed and turned, images blurring together in the state between wake and sleep of her mother, her father, Kneazles, Hallows, and what it meant to be going home.