Gray: Scorpius Malfoy and the Crux of the Alchemist

by Fiery Gray

UNDER EDITING! (VI): While the Shadow War continues far away from the walls of Hogwarts, Scorpius is left facing the frustration of being stuck inside starting his first year of NEWT classes. He finds himself drawn to the mysterious new Alchemy professor, the subject itself shedding light on certain things while Shadows and a defector lurk closer then he realizes. COMPLETE

6. Chapter 6: Secrets Spilled

Parts (22-26)

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VI

Chapter 6

Secrets Spilled

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Part 1: Talking in the Trees

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Rojer headed off and Scorpius followed shakily, still unnerved from losing his mind as well as in pain from his elbow and chest, it hurt to breathe. He also started to feel very anxious, they were in the Forbidden Forest which was home to a number of dark and dangerous things while he was injured and didn't even have his wand. He felt naked without his wand. It didn't help they were moving quite slowly, Rojer seemed to know the way but he also had a severe limp dragging their speed down. It seemed worse than usual even, it also appeared to be paining him as he kept rubbing it with a cringe. Rojer didn't look the slightest bit perturbed however, looking so unfazed he could've been teaching another class. They walked in silence, Rojer not making any attempt at conversation before coming to a halt.

"What?! What's wrong?! What's happening?!" Scorpius hissed in panic as quietly as possible while Rojer started plucking some random berries.

"I am hungry, I have been tracking you for this long time. I do not like to be hungry," Rojer stated casually as he popped them into his mouth, "Do not be jumpy."

"There's all kinds of things in the forest, I'm injured and I don't have my wand," Scorpius pointed out as Rojer munched on the berries, "My friend and I fought off a Bicorn once."

"Hmm," Rojer mused through a mouthful of berries before he started rifling through his robes, something else worrying occurred to him.

"Are you sure those berries are safe to eat?" Scorpius asked worriedly, "They could be poisonous."

"They are not. I do not know the name for them in English but I have had them many of times before, since I was a boy I eat these," Rojer shook his head and Scorpius felt a jolt of guilt at the mention of his childhood, Ashylos had died in a forest when Rojer was a child. Rojer seemed to find what he was looking for and held out a wand to him, Scorpius recognized it immediately as his own, "Here."

"My wand?" Scorpius wondered in surprise as he took it with his good arm.

"I picked this up before I went after you."

"What about Michael?"

"I sealed the werewolfs in so they could not get out and attack others in the school, this is the last I see of him," Rojer answered with a dismissive shrug as he started walking again, Scorpius following and keeping his wand held tight.

"That was brave of you," Scorpius offered and Rojer gave a derisive snort.

"It is not brave or difficult to seal the door."

"Facing off against a werewolf is though."

"Not if you have no fear. There is no courage if there is no fear to overcome, I do not fear werewolfs. I didn't care. This is not courage."

Scorpius decided to give up arguing with him because he didn't have the strength, the slow silence resumed and the ache ate away at his ribs. And his arm, the bite was burning painfully and he didn't think having walked on it had helped any. He knew he should feel pleased to have finally succeeded at transforming but he couldn't even think of Thestrals without feeling terrified of how he'd lost his mind, he was also worried about Michael. And Hugo, had the poor kid severed his arm or turned into a werewolf? And the assassin, someone was definitely out to get Lysander along with he and Lorcan, maybe even Michael. Damn, the pain.

"Do you know how much further or longer until we get out of here?" Scorpius asked finally to break it.

"No."

"Can we rest a minute then? The pain is pretty bad."

"Pain? You do not know the meaning of the word," Rojer scoffed but he stopped nonetheless while Scorpius felt a pang of guilt, his eyes glittering darkly as he glanced at him before making a bird-like caw sound that he'd heard Cassia do. He heard a twittering of birds overhead and felt sick as he remembered eating one, "There is a stream near to us, we can rest there. If you want, I can look at your wounds. I know how to heal and I have some elixirs with me."

"You always carry around healing elixirs with you?" Scorpius wondered as they started walking again, veering off into another direction.

"I do not have trust in healers or doctors so I always treat my own self. You do not know when something could happen that you might have need," Rojer shrugged, "You may one night just go to carry your empty plate down to wash in the kitchens and have to go stop a werewolf going crazy then run after a boy who turns into a Thestral without making sure his mind intact and flies into a large, dangerous forest. You never know."

"Fair point," Scorpius admitted with a weak smile although he wasn't sure if Rojer had meant to be humorous, he never seemed to notice when he said something amusing. He noticed Rojer rubbing his leg again, "Does your leg pain you?"

"Always. Especially a lot when you walk for a long time like now."

"You didn't have to, you know?" Scorpius pointed out guiltily although he supposed he should count himself lucky it was Rojer, others wouldn't be so apathetic to the fact he was an animagus, "You could've just told the Aurors or something and they'd have sent out a search party."

"I did not think of that," Rojer admitted thoughtfully before shaking his head, "No, I do not like this idea. If you want something done then you do it by yourself, you cannot have faith in strangers. Now speaking to them would have been brave."

"You're scared of Aurors but not werewolves?"

"Absolutely. Humankind are the worst of all creatures and Aurors have the training to fight, I do not like this," Rojer explained as they came through a thicket into a small clearing with a stream, Scorpius didn't think it was the same one he'd been at before. The alchemist glanced at it for a moment as if lost in memory and Scorpius felt another wave of guilt, he knew Rojer was thinking of Ashylos' death. Rojer had been playing in a stream in a forest right before it happened after all, it had to remind him. Scorpius regretted saying anything, "Here this is."

"It's alright, I'm feeling much better," Scorpius lied and Rojer slid his eyes to him disapproving.

"Come on," Rojer insisted and led them over, he jerked his wand lazily at two rocks by the side and enlarged to make them big enough to sit on. They both did, Rojer very slowly and seeming to be cautious with his leg as it seemed painful to bend it, "How is your chest hurt?"

"Some cuts from the claws and I'm pretty sure some of my ribs are broken," Scorpius reluctantly admitted.

Rojer looked bored as he waved his wand over Scorpius with a golden light. He flicked it again and Scorpius cried out in pain as he felt his ribs snapping for a second, then the pain was gone and he was breathing unhindered once more.

"Now they are not broken," Rojer commented while Scorpius could only feel surprise.

"It was that easy to heal my ribs?" Scorpius wondered and Rojer nodded as he conjured a cloth, he soaked it in the stream, "Why didn't you do that sooner?"

"Last time I tried to use healing on you, you hit me in the face. I do not like to be hit," Rojer complained as he withdrew another vial, sprinkling it over the dripping cloth, "I do not blame you, if it had been me then I would have hit me too and I would not have stopped the struggling."

"I am sorry about that, you know?" Scorpius apologized as Rojer handed him the cloth.

"I know, you tell me this before. You need to clean the wounds on your chest with that, they already look dirty and it is not good if they get infected. They are curse wounds and the curse wounds cannot be healed so easily nor can infections that arising from them."

"Like this?" Scorpius wondered worriedly as he awkwardly pressed the wet cloth on the wounds, cringing at the pain it caused to touch them and Rojer nodded.

"Can I look at your elbow?" Rojer queried and Scorpius inclined his head in agreement, "This is where there was the bite."

Scorpius raised his injured arm up to let the alchemist look at it, all the while continuing to try clean his chest with the cloth with his other hand. He cringed in pain as Rojer pulled up his sleeve to get a better look at the wound, despite him doing it as carefully as possible. Rojer waved his wand over it and Scorpius jolted in pain as he felt it snapping back properly into place, he hadn't realized it had been broken. It continued to ache though, the bite still stinging very painfully. Rojer took the cloth off him when he was done and washed it off again in the stream, getting rid of the dirt and dried blood before doing the same as before. This time, he started cleaning out the wounds on Scorpius' arm. It hurt even worse than the claw wounds and he had to grit his teeth through it.

"Does this still hurt?" Rojer questioned when he was finished cleaning the arm and Scorpius nodded, "Alright."

Rojer sighed as he took out his wand this time and started tracing invisible lines with it over the bite, Scorpius was oddly reminded of what he'd done when he'd been poisoned. Finally he searched in his robes for yet another vial, he poured the silvery contents over Scorpius' injured elbow. The liquid seemed thicker than water but thinner than syrup, it was shimmering and oddly seemed to move where Rojer had traced with his wand in the shape of some alchemical symbols. Scorpius gave a sharp intake of breathe as it started to melt into his flesh, it was freezing cold and he was definitely reminded of the poison cure now.

He didn't mind it so much though, it didn't start hurtling through his veins like last time and instead he saw traces oozing into the wounds on his arm. The cold became a very good thing as it seemed to numb the pain, soothing the burning and washing the ache away all together. He'd been so focused on that, he hadn't noticed Rojer getting bandages and was slightly surprised when the alchemist started wrapping it around his elbow to bandage the wound.

"That's the same stuff you used to get the poison out of me, isn't it?" Scorpius wondered curiously and Rojer nodded without pausing in his work.

"I told you this has other uses," Rojer pointed out as if it were blatantly obvious, "You just need to direct it correctly is all, it can be used to purge the body of foreign bad things like poison or decay from necrosis. This can also be used to numb pain due to the coldness of the temperature, it can latch onto pain receivers and stop the hurt. Is very good, will stop the pain for you and act as a plug against infection then purge any bad away."

"It's very effective."

"I know, this is why I use it for my leg at night so I can sleep. Or if the pain is particularly unbearable."

"Why not just use it all the time?"

"Because then it would kill me, the main is Mercury," Rojer told him as he finished bandaging it and Scorpius recalled from class that it was poisonous, "Constant use results in death, you have to pace the usage of it. Is this alright now or do you need your chest done as well?"

"No, I'm good. Thank you," Scorpius offered truthfully.

He was grateful for Rojer's help after all. He'd practically saved his life. Again. He felt a wave of guilt crashing painfully against him once more as he gazed into the stream, Rojer had saved his life twice and he'd murdered his father. He couldn't keep doing this, he had to tell him. He had to tell him now.

"Did you want five minutes more or can we on moving?" Rojer questioned obliviously and Scorpius wiped at the tears pricking his eyes.

"I killed your father," Scorpius blurted out, to which Rojer gave a snort of amusement.

"Scorpius, I don't know who you killed but my father died a long time before even your grandfather was born. Besides, I saw the man who murdered my father and he was not you."

"That's right. You watched your father die, right in front of you. You were only seven years old, in a forest, in Europe. He was telling you off about going outside when it wasn't safe," Scorpius told him and watched as any kind of prior amusement bled off Rojer's face, "Grindelwald's men hit him in the back with a Killing Curse. He didn't have a chance, didn't see it coming. Ashylos, his name was Ashylos and you were his last child."

"How d-"

"I know because Ashylos showed me, I knew him," Scorpius cut him off and launched into an explanation of meeting Ashylos' spirit, the Scepter, the Shadows… Once he started, he couldn't stop and he was crying by the time he was talking about sacrificing Ashylos to save Professor Ashain. All the while, Rojer listened in stoic silence, "… And I'm so sorry, Rojer, I'm sorry."

"Hmm… Well this I did not expect," Rojer admitted, looking at a loss for words while his eyes drifted and he seemed to soak in the news. Scorpius wiped his eyes miserably, Rojer sighed and glanced black to him, "I forgive you."

"You forgive me?" Scorpius wondered in absolute shock and Rojer nodded.

"My father died when I was a child and he didn't die because of you, he died because I was a insolent little brat who did not do as he was told. My choice cost him his life not yours," Rojer told him seriously, staring off into the stream guiltily, "He would have forgiven you, he would have wanted you to save Ashain. My father was a good man, the best. He lived for a long life, he did not wish to die but he accepted death and would rather the younger have a chance. In a way I think he is glad, Pancratius sacrificed his soul to stop Herpo and he often felt this should have been his fate too. He'd think it quite fitting in a way, I know he would. You should not feel bad, I understand."

"I still feel bad," Scorpius sniffed, "He was a good person, a hero… And I destroyed his soul."

"He was right, you know?" Rojer commented, finally meeting his eyes. The dark chestnut identical to Ashylos and flecked with unshed tears, "I know the magic you would have to do to repair his soul and it would take longer then you had even if you were an expert at this. You could not have saved them both, you are deluding yourself if you believe different to this. Life is not fair, bad things happen to good people and good things happen to bad, choices are not easy. You could either destroy him or allow Ashain to perish, you would have feel bad either way. I understand and I forgive you, besides his soul would not have been there if not for me."

"You shouldn't blame yourself either," Scorpius pointed out, "Ashylos didn't hold it against you, he didn't blame you."

"I could say the same about you," Rojer insisted quite truthfully as he idly played with his hands, "I guess the both of us just killed him, it is not so easy to forgive yourself."

"I guess," Scorpius admitted with a sigh, feeling oddly relieved to just have gotten it out in the open and Rojer had taken it much better then he'd thought apart from blaming himself as well, "He was worried about you, you know? Ashylos. He didn't know what happened to you, he regretted not being able to find out. He thought you were most likely dead though, considering how he left you."

"Are you asking me how is it I survived?" Rojer questioned quite bluntly, tearing his eyes away from his hands and Scorpius gave a gesture somewhere between a nod and a shrug. He was kind of curious but he also respected if Rojer didn't want to say, "They did not try to kill me, instead they wished to capture me. Avara – my father's bird companion and closest friend – died trying to protect me, they caught me after she died. I think they wanted information, to know if there was others in the forest but I do not know. I could only speak bird and Ancient Greek, I still do not know what language they were using. At first they ask nicely but I did not understand so they got more violent, I was beaten and tortured but of course, I still did not know."

"Is that how your leg was crippled?" Scorpius wondered curiously but Rojer shook his head.

"Not yet. They kept me prisoner for a few weeks, I do not know exactly how long but eventually they gave up on getting anything useful out of me. Instead they took me to a place for… I do not know, safe keeping or something. They took me to a muggle place, a Nazi concentration camp. Do you know what this is?" Rojer continued and paused to query it but Scorpius shook his head, "While Grindelwald raised a magical war, the muggles also fought a massive war call the World War Two. The Nazi side gathered the people they did not like into camps, the majority were the Jewish but there was also Gypsies, homosexuals, prisoners of the war, criminals even sex criminals even those that hurt children… and erm… others, lots of people were there. I was branded mentally ill because they thought I could only speak gibberish, I found out later anyway because I did not know the language.

"They… They do not treat you well. You are starved and kept barely alive, forced to do work, the conditions were so bad people died all of the days from it and that's not even counting the people they killed. They killed so many people, extermination they call it. The guards were sadistic and cruel on top of all this, people are monsters. When I first went there, I would beg for my life but by the time I left there, I would beg for my death. Death was the only way out of that nightmare, the only way. I deserved it though, this was the punishment for my father's life. I do not know if it is because of my father or magic in general but I was resilient, I kept surviving no matter how bad it was.

"German was their language that they spoke, I learned to speak it there. There was a man who was kind to me or at least he did pretend to be, he also helped me learn to read a bit in the language. I hate languages, it is awful to be trapped in a land of people that you cannot even communicate with, to not understand at all," Rojer stopped to shake his head and sigh before seeming to force himself to continue, "And this is where my leg was crippled, where I got this burns as well. On top of all of that, they did experiments. Medical experiments they call them, is just another way to torture. This is why I cannot trust anyone in this profession. They put me in freezing conditions to test survival or something, they burn me with mustard gas to test treatment and my leg…

"When I was just nine they did a experiment on my leg, they just cut pieces out of it. They didn't even give me anesthetic or anything for the pain, they just started hacking away like the butchers they were. It was agony and ever since then my leg is still broken, it hurts because the nerves are there damaged and it cannot move correctly because they cut out some of the muscles needed to move it right. It is sad, magic could have repaired this damage but by the time I was in magical hands it was too late. They did nothing for the pain or to help me walk, I had to deal with it or I would die. The pain is bad and never ending, even to sleep I would have to wait until I was exhausted and weak my body could not physically cope with consciousness because the pain was unbearable. I use to lie awake crying the pain was so bad or praying to the Gods for a mercy I did not deserve, I never got a reprieve."

"You got out eventually though?" Scorpius wondered while Rojer rubbed his leg and looked upset, he knew that had to be the case but nonetheless felt morbidly interested.

"Yes," Rojer nodded, still looking solemn, "The Nazis lost the war and the camp was liberated when I was twelve, I had five years in that place. I was so weak and starved I threw up the food the soldiers would try to give to me, I was completely broken. It was only after that I got mixed up in the magical world again, they thought I was Polish I think or that I would be best there so they come and give me a place in Bratuslaw. They did not believe me when I said I was the son of an Ancient Greek hero so I never told anyone again, they thought I was insane like the Nazis thought and had forgotten my true past. I was sent to stay with a family, a farmer and his wife who should of teach me Polish before the term started. They were not kind to me either, I had to work from dawn to dusk and was beaten every day and I was still not fed properly because things were rough and they did not wish to waste food on me. If I do well, I was beaten as incentive to do better and if I do bad then I was beaten as punishment for it. The work was torture on my leg, sometimes I would collapse because I literally could not stand it and he would beat me while I was down then leave me there. I'd have to drag myself back inside or just lie there outside in the cold until I could bear to move, even freedom is not free."

"I'm sorry," Scorpius offered genuinely and apologetically, Rojer gave a half shrug as he stood.

"I deserved it. Come on, we can share our pasts more some other time. You know how I lived and I know what became of my father's soul, we should get back and the birds warn a Bicorn is coming for a drink. The forest is not a good place for this."

Scorpius didn't need telling twice, feeling quite overwhelmed by all that happened and could use some time to digest it all. He thought Rojer did too because they walked back in a more introspective silence then before. Hogwarts was very much a sight for sore eyes, Scorpius didn't think he'd ever been so glad to see the castle as he was when he left the tree line and followed Rojer back inside. It was daylight, he hadn't noticed so much in the forest but it was day, he had no idea what time but it was day. Rojer led him back to the Hospital Wing and was just about to leave when Weedy Larry called to me.

"Young Master Malfoy! And… Alchemy person," the Headmaster greeted them, somewhat enthusiastically, "It is a relief to see you alright, Mr Malfoy."

"I wouldn't be if not for Professor Voltur," Scorpius decided to emphasize the name, quite offended Weedy Larry didn't seem to know it. He should treat his workers with respect and the headmaster redirected his focus to the alchemist.

"What in the devil happened?"

"Devil?" Rojer repeated in confusion.

"What happened!?" Weedy Larry demanded more forcefully and pronounced.

"There was a werewolf attacked the boy," Rojer told him, his accented being especially pronounced for some reason, "He went out the window into the forest so I sealed in the werewolf and went to get him back so I did this."

"You couldn't give me more details?"

"Details?" Rojer repeated in mock confusion, Scorpius was very much aware he knew the meaning of the word. He was just playing up his language barrier to avoid speaking to Weedy Larry.

"Oh go on with you," Weedy Larry snapped and waved his arm dismissively, "And buy a bloody English dictionary while you're at it!"

"Dic-tion-ary?"

"Just go!" Weedy Larry practically yelled and Rojer limped off immediately, Scorpius realized this was actually quite fortuitous as it meant it wasn't common knowledge he was an animagus since the headmaster didn't seem to know this already. He knew it was illegal to keep it a secret but… maybe it was best to keep a lid on it for now, it was also illegal to aid fugitives like Varanian after all, "And you, find a bed and I'll have the temporary Healer come look at you. On behalf of Hogwarts, I apologize for the inconvenience this caused you… And deduct thirty-five points from Gryffindor for your non-compliance with the curfew."

On that note, Weedy Larry stalked off - good riddance in Scorpius' opinion - and Scorpius was left on his own in the Hospital Wing. Not quite alone anyway, he saw Marigold in a bed near his office. He was very much asleep, he had a stitched wound running down his face, a nose that looked broken or incorrectly set and a bandaged arm in a sling. He also saw Hugo sleeping soundly a few beds down, he immediately spotted the Hufflepuff had both arms.

"You chose to be a werewolf," Scorpius said more to himself then anyone but the boy stirred slightly anyway, he shrugged as much as possible as his eyes struggled to stay open.

"I didn't want to lose my wand arm, takes months before it heals enough for a prosthetic. Full moon is once a month but amputation is for life," Hugo explained and sighed weakly, "At least it seemed like the best choice in the minute I had to decide."

"Fair enough, at least you're alive," Scorpius offered and Hugo nodded as his eyes flickered shut.

"Glad you're alive too. Michael's down the far end by the window if you want to see him."

"Thanks, get some rest."

Hugo tried to nod but fell asleep half way through, Scorpius did feel bad for the poor boy. He continued on up the room, he didn't see Michael but there was a bed cordoned off. Scorpius rounded it and saw his friend lying on his side facing the window, his shoulders were shaking as he silently sobbed. Scorpius moved in front of him so Michael could see his face, he tried to speak but he was crying too hard and Scorpius really didn't know what to say. He had somehow suspected Michael would take this badly. He approached his friend and sat down on the bed, he gently eased Michael up before pulling him into a tight hug and letting his friend cry uncontrollably into his shoulder.

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Part 2: Prejudice

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Following the full moon, Scorpius soon quickly realized Hogwarts and the Wizarding World in general was all riled up. Scorpius was pleased to see that the Prophet article about it was surprisingly pro-werewolf, placing the blame on whoever had sabotaged the Wolfsbane and he thought things would've been worse if they had crucified Michael – which they very well could've – but it still couldn't erase all the damage. The wounds of the werewolf issue had been reopened and several werewolves had actually been attacked as 'retribution' for the attack, thankfully no deaths though. Still, it wasn't good and Scorpius knew this was only going to make Michael feel even worse.

Michael had cried himself to sleep on Scorpius' shoulder, his body succumbing to the toll the full moon took. He slept through the rest of the day and night, when Scorpius left the Hospital Wing he was still sleeping. Scorpius was kept the rest of the day – missing his classes, he also had to hide the fact his arm had been bitten to avoid letting the other guy know he was an animagus – and overnight for observation but was allowed out the next day, unfortunately Marigold's replacement didn't let him go before the Hufflepuff versus Ravenclaw Quidditch match though so he missed Orous' first match as Captain.

Hufflepuff lost 90 to 180, Vern had done his job and Orous seemingly had trained his Chasers well but ultimately Sequoia had caught the Snitch. Orous had been close though apparently, the older boy's longer arms apparently coming in useful. Scorpius was quite disappointed, he'd wanted his friends to do well and he thought poor Hugo could use a win after turning. Michael was released the next day, he went straight to the dormitory to lie down and cover himself in drapes to sleep some more. Scorpius gave him space but after Michael still 'slept' through dinner as well as lunch, he was just avoiding having to face the world.

"Michael, you can't just stay in your bed forever. Come on, you have to eat," Scorpius urged him as he pulled back the drapes, seeing Michael lying on his side staring with tired, guilt-ridden eyes at nothing.

"I'm not hungry," Michael mumbled quietly and Scorpius sighed as he sat down on the bedside beside him.

"It's not your fault, you know?" Scorpius offered gently, "The Wolfsbane was tampered with, Professor Vipera confirmed."

"I know it was sabotaged but it doesn't matter. It just goes to show what I'm capable of when not restrained, it shows deep down I'm a monster."

"You shouldn't look at it like that because that's not the way it is, you're not a monster. I know you and this wasn't you, it's just the condition You're more then your condition."

"Those were my own claws, my own teeth, I felt my own body doing those things and liking- And what the hell happened to you?" Michael changed mid-sentence, seeming to realize something for the first time and actually sat up to look at him in surprise, "I bit you and you… you turned into a Thestral? What… What was… Why?"

"I erm… I've been training to become an animagus," Scorpius admitted quietly and nervously, Michael's jaw dropped, "It stopped me turning into a werewolf since only humans can be turned. Or something like that."

"You're an animagus?!"

"Yes. Sort of. That was the first time I transformed fully," Scorpius pointed out and Michael continued to look bewildered.

"Then- Then why did you run away when Rojer told you to turn back? He said something about you having your mind or not, animagi keep their minds when they transform."

"When you're still learning, you need to use a spell to keep your mind from going… animal. Mine wore off so I lost my mind, Thestral instincts took over and erm… well, a castle isn't their natural habitat. Rojer tracked me down and brought me back though, otherwise I- I might still be eating birds. It's a risk of the training until you adapt to it."

"Why would do you something so stupid and risky?!" Michael snapped, looking annoyed, "What even is the point?!"

"These guys- the Marauders became them when they found out their friend was a werewolf in the times before Wolfsbane, animagi can be around werewolves more safely so they learned to be around their friend so the transformation would be more bearable. I figured that- that I could try do the same to help you, especially since you attack yourself and all."

"You did that for me?" Michael wondered, looked stunned and Scorpius nodded. Michael gaped at him for a moment before anger returned, he scoffed, "Well that's just stupid! You think losing my best friend in a Thestral mind is going to help me?! You think staying with me would help?! I'm a freaking monster, the last thing I want is for people – or Thestrals – to be around me! Nothing can help me! Why would you even waste time on this?! There's so much more to life."

"No, that is life," Scorpius said firmly, slightly hurt by Michael's reaction but nonetheless he didn't regret it. He would help Michael whether his friend wanted it or not, "Friends, family are the things in life that make it worthwhile, if I have to fight for them or to help them then I'll do it. And you fall into that category whether you like it or not."

"You're an idiot."

"If that makes me an idiot then so be it," Scorpius insisted and Michael just looked in him in disbelief before shaking his head.

"Well whatever, if you want to waste your own life then waste your own life but don't blame me," Michael told him as he lay back down on his side, adding so quietly Scorpius barely heard him, "I have enough to be blamed for."

"Are you going to come to dinner now?"

"No."

Scorpius sighed heavily but left his friend be to go to dinner, he swiped what he could from the table though and conjured a plate to put it on when he got back to the dormitory. He left it by Michael's bedside, recalling Michael doing similar back in their First Year. Michael glanced at him with red, tear-stained eyes but said nothing as Scorpius left it. The next day, the plate was empty.

---

Carver was the most difficult baby and he quickly became the least favorite of Xerxes' children, he was a fussy, colicky and big baby who cried incessantly. And it didn't help his mother was a complete moron, not only did Xerxes have to care for the boy while she worked but she also frequently showed up at his door with their screaming son wanting his help. He had to show her how to change a diaper not once, not twice but three times and he was sure she wasn't doing it right. She didn't know how to feed him either, confused by the fact babies only drank milk and didn't have any solid foods yet, she didn't know to burp him until he mentioned it. Carver ended up in the hospital twice from her trying to bathe him, the first time he nearly drowned in the bath tub because she thought she could leave him in there and the second because she tried to shower him with her and dropped the poor child because they were slippery in the shower.

Xerxes thought Carver should consider himself lucky to be alive, Maeghan was completely lacking in maternal instinct and everything she did was wrong. He thought it was a good thing he was such a brilliant man and father because if left to her own devices, he was sure Maeghan would've killed Carver accidentally by now. Aside from the shower incident, she'd dropped him twice more, once because he was too heavy and another in shock because she saw a spider. She also forgot him, twice she'd left him on the Knight Bus, once at the park, once in Gringotts and multiple times with Xerxes for days at a time even, she'd also came over to drop him off more than once and forgotten Carver. She claimed she wasn't used to motherhood and was so sleep deprived from Carver's crying that she found it hard to remember things or got confused. And if he complained, she liked to point out how she'd been the one to have to go through pregnancy and childbirth.

Xerxes thought she was the worst mother in the world, sure his mother had abandoned him but at least she hadn't been as stupid as Maeghan and actually had a brain. He had to try really hard to resist the urge to point it out to her, if he called out on her poor parenting then she'd break down crying or storm off crying, insisting she was doing her best – her best sucked – and trying to be a good mother, something she failed completely at. He didn't want to be stuck with her crying or for her to leave Carver behind in her anger, didn't she notice he also had Ethan to deal with? The poor boy was an angel compared to his brother, or brothers because Stephan did nothing but act up whenever Xerxes had him.

He was so busy juggling his sons that he was reduced to trying to seduce some of his female clients because he couldn't get out, he did succeed with two. A married woman, Jada Kalya, who felt neglected by her absent husband and Alexis "Alzay" Loren who was a rather kind of a psychopath with Daddy issues, good thing he wasn't sleeping with her because of her personality. It was a hectic year but after turning one, Carver finally seemed to be getting over his colic and being more manageable. He considered Stephan the average on baby skills, Carver started walking sooner but talking later while Ethan started talking sooner but walking later. He thought that meant they kind of evened out.

That was also the year Senna started pushing the organization she worked for and the school Stephan attended, asking him if he was truly happy and promising he could have more. The pay would be much better, steady students and it was some kind of strange sect school. Xerxes ultimately decided it wouldn't hurt to try it, it was expensive paying for himself and contributing to Maeghan for Carver on top of that. Senna told him more and Xerxes realized that he'd been wrong, it did hurt to try it. He wasn't stupid, an 'organization' called the Soul Eaters hell-bent on world domination was not going to let him just walk away with the knowledge he had. He wasn't sure how he felt about that, on one hand it made sense in a practical way but it was undoubtedly dark. He'd already decided to go with it though so he didn't have to worry, he'd rather be with them then against them.

It was better for him to accept the job in the current moment, if it all crumbled then he could play the victim – it wasn't a lie they'd have killed him – and go back to his previous life and if it succeeded then he was already in a good position. Xerxes knew maybe he should care more but he wasn't really interested in the politics of the world, he just wanted to his live his life, as long as he and his sons were comfortable then he was happy. The school called 'The Training Tower' very imaginatively was on island now unplottable and invisible, not a particularly warm climate either but he would be given some nice quarters there. It was supposed to specifically train children to be elite soldiers for them, the methods were rather harsh but his children didn't have to use the blood quill so he could live with it. As long as he didn't think about it too much or get close to the children then it would be fine.

He did warm up to their beliefs a bit when he realized where the children came from, some were from magical families sent because the selfish parents were lured by the thought of elite children or relatives of Soul Eaters or promised to straighten out misbehaving youths, orphans were lapped up from any walk of life and then there was muggle-borns. They often tricked parents into sending away their magical children, the muggles were pretty ignorant and would need to send them away anyway to learn. This was obviously quite mean but it was the fact that the blood purity of the student was irrelevant once they were in training, being pureblooded was obviously best but he didn't have anything against them, just like violet eyes was obviously the best color to have but he didn't hate those with different eye colors.

Having to move did mean an end to his relationships with Alzay and Jada, Alzay didn't really care but then she did not get attached to the people slept with anymore– in fact, she less than did. Everyone was just a tool to be used at her disposal – then he did but Jada was very upset. It would mean more time with Stephan but it would mean less time with Carver, he also had to bid his son a more temporary farewell and tried encourage Maeghan to send him there. He'd rather his sons be close to him and Maeghan continued to be terrible at motherhood like thinking starting to talk meant he understood English completely, she was quite angry until he had to explain it was learned. Unlike Carver, he was glad to be rid of the idiotic Maeghan. He traveled to the Training Tower with Ethan just before the boy turned two, the perfect age to start on the Soul Eater program.

---

Michael had to leave the dormitory because of classes the next day, he'd only eat when Scorpius put food on his plate and didn't really do anything unless Scorpius pushed him too, he barely even spoke. The other students weren't helping, people stared at Michael when he passed them in the corridors, pointing and whispering. And they were the nice ones, some opening called out slurs and insults against Michael and werewolves in generals. It persisted even after several different teachers had punished them for it and some people were harassed just for being supportive of werewolves. There was support too outside of his friends, Sequoia and both Notts were known to give detentions and deduct points for showing prejudice against werewolves like that. The Koray kids both threatened trouble with their father if they did anything around them, a couple of people from Alchemy class – not Elm – made a point to call people out on it, so did Martha despite Michael's dislike of her and the Quidditch team seemed supportive too.

"I'll punch anyone who insults my teammate," Kemen Arkaitz, the new hulking Beater had promised Scorpius, "You mess with one of us, you mess with all of us. That's what teamwork's all about."

He did too, more than one person found a fist in their face for it. Albus also got into several fights for his friend, refusing to take crap from anyone and Orous got into trouble for dueling over it. Michael had a habit of guiltily agreeing with their cruel words against himself, sometimes fighting off tears. Finally, they did actually bring Michael to tears and while Scorpius moved him away to console him, Maurice withdrew his wand. Scorpius didn't see what he did but he knew six people went to the Hospital Wing that night and when they got out, Michael received six apologies. And it wasn't even just Michael getting crap for it, Hugo may have been a victim of the attack but he was a werewolf now and was treated accordingly. Scorpius didn't even realize until he spotted the head of bushy-red hair randomly walking by the Great Hall in pajamas, they were looking a little torn too.

"Hugo, what are you doing in your pajamas?" Scorpius wondered in confusion, Hugo glanced ashamedly at his bare feet while two Hufflepuffs passed snickering.

"When I woke up, all my clothes were gone and everyone's gone to breakfast," Hugo answered quietly, "I'm trying to find a teacher to ask for help."

"Someone hid your clothes?" Scorpius deduced and Hugo started to nod, making Scorpius catch sight of a strange shadow on the younger boy's face. He cupped Hugo's chin and raised his face to look at him, noticing a black eye and a split lip, "Someone beat you up?"

"My roommates ganged up, said they didn't want to die or be werewolves and if I didn't get out of their dormitory then I'd pay," Hugo recounted, wrestling to keep the tears behind his eyes while a few more students passing snickered at him, "I stayed so I had to pay. They do worse every night, last night they beat me up."

"Gee, Lorc, aren't you glad you sent Hugo to meet that secret admirer instead of you? You'd freak if you were beat up and face the humiliation of walking out in public in your pajamas," Lysander commented thoughtlessly as the Scamander twins reached them, Lorcan's face twisted up guiltily, "I mean, assuming they were taken and by students and not Mushanons. They're invisible trolls who feed off cloth."

"Don't see why you're upset," Elm commented casually in passing with a cruel smirk, "Last I checked, dogs don't need to wear clothes. Filthy mongrels don't deserve to pretend they're people, Sanford should be ashamed."

Scorpius hadn't realized he'd moved to punch Elm until he felt his fist collide with the Ravenclaw's jaw, Elm staggered back. Scorpius was filled with rage and didn't regret it, he didn't like Elm and this time was very aware as he cocked his fist back for a second blow. Elm ducked so Scorpius grabbed his collar and slammed him against the wall, keeping him in place to ensure the next blow met its target. He raised his fist again but felt someone pull him back, finding it to be Corin.

"Corin, let me go!" Scorpius snapped at him angrily but Corin didn't budge.

"I'm going to release him in five so I suggest you aren't here by then, one-" Corin started to say but Elm didn't need telling twice, he bolted and only then did Corin let him go, "Bigger fish."

"Bigger fish, he-"

"It was just announced on the wireless, Egypt fell to the Shadows," Maurice spoke up from behind his towering friend, looking grim and in a second, Scorpius did too.

"Come on, Hugo, my Father will sort this out," Corin offered to Hugo behind him, the red-head nodded and allowed himself to be led away.

"I'll help," Lorcan insisted stupidly and followed them, Lysander stayed to watch them with interest.

"That's three countries now?" Lysander queried and Maurice nodded, the blond sighed sadly, "They're dropping faster than Fire Beetles in Antarctica. You know, because Fire Beetles need heat and Antarctica is cold-"

"We get it," Scorpius interjected Lysander nodded, he turned to leave before pausing abruptly.

"You- You don't think they'll be coming here next, do you?" Lysander questioned anxiously, "That would be very bad for Lorcan. He's already very high-strung, he walks me to everywhere because he's scared they'll try to kill me."

"I don't know," Maurice admitted and Lysander left with an uncharacteristically worried expression, "It would be bad for the whole country if they do, it'll be easy pickings when everyone's too busy fighting amongst themselves about werewolves to stop them."

For once, Maurice may have been wrong. The news of the Shadows taking Egypt actually did put a damper on the werewolf hate, it gave people something else to talk about at least and fear replaced anger. Or at least diminished it somewhat. Scorpius was glad for the slight reprieve leading into the next week, it gave him a chance to refocus on his subjects – this was especially good considering Michael's depressive withdrawal extended to classes. He struggled to focus and pay attention, he nearly blew himself in Alchemy. Scorpius hadn't really spoken to Rojer since the forest, he'd been busy with Michael. Not that Rojer seemed to mind or give any indication that anything remotely noteworthy had happened between them, he'd also stopped his animagi training for the same reason. And maybe a little - just a little - because he was terrified of losing his mind.

Scorpius was helping Michael a lot with the classwork, his Dyslexia also kept him behind on homework so he was slow to do anything. He was spending twice as much time helping Michael with his homework as he was his own, Abby and Albus lacked the studiousness to help, Maurice was focused on the Shadow assassin and protecting the Scamanders, the others were too young and Rose… Rose seemed oddly reluctant to help him, always claiming to be too busy. In fact, if he didn't know any better then he'd say she was avoiding Michael.

At any rate, he didn't have time to dwell on that and was glad for more time as well as in general because it was wrong. Now they knew Hugo was also being targeted, they could try stick up for him too but he had a feeling the poor kid was worse off. Michael at least had a lot of friends around him all the time but Hugo didn't, his friends were either in different years or different houses so he had to go his own way more often and alone meant more likely to be targeted. He knew the staff had been made aware of his roommates but he wasn't sure what was being done about it, he'd been meaning to ask but he hadn't seen Hugo.

There was also another reason it was good: Quidditch. The Gryffindor versus Slytherin match was that weekend, Scorpius showered his team in practices to try prepare them despite the increasingly colder temperatures as Novemeber neared its end. Even Michael's Quidditch performance was being affected by his unhappiness, he seemed a bit off his game but he still seemed more focused then usual these days and Scorpius thought it was one of the few things that could take his mind off his werewolf issues. He wanted to win, not just for himself but because he thought it might be good for Michael, a win might warm at least the Gryffindors back up to Michael since he was their star Chaser. Plus on n a personal level, maybe it would help Michael to get a win to feel like a victor, to succeed, to focus on some aspect of his life other than his condition. Winning might be harder said than done though, Slytherin were good and he really wasn't sure how his Captainship compared to Grozda Krum. He supposed time would tell.

---

Part 3: Out

---

The day of the match finally came and Scorpius felt himself unusually wracked with nerves, it was his first game as Captain after all. Michael won the award for most anxious before a game though, his stress driving him to lose his dinner the night before and whatever remnants had been left before breakfast. Scorpius allowed Michael to not eat, he was looking green enough as he sat there shivering silently with his face in his hands.

"You okay, buddy?" Albus asked him anxiously and patted the taller boy's shoulder.

"Just nervous about playing in front of everyone," Michael mumbled into his hands, "More than usual since everyone hates me and all. Not that I blame them."

They finished breakfast and Scorpius led his team down to the lockers, Michael still looking equal chance as likely to vomit as he was to get on his broom and play. He thought it felt oddly empty without Molly, she'd always been there. He also thought it felt strangely quiet, everyone was just sitting around nervously or pacing wildly in Rufus Rhett's case, Roxy was trying to comfort Michael who sat clinging to a bucket as if expecting to hurl again. It dawned on Scorpius why, Molly had given a speech before matches and now she was gone. And he was the Captain, he was supposed to be the one building up their morale.

"Okay team!" Scorpius said with more confidence then he felt, swinging his fist as he stood and the six pairs of eyes turned to him. Now he felt nervous again, he cleared his throat and shifted awkwardly, "So this is our first match! This year. Against Slytherin. They are a good team, supposedly have found a new talented Seeker, led by the daughter of a world famous Quidditch star-"

"Who is my girlfriend," Albus offered proudly, "She's the greatest."

"Are you trying to make us feel worse?" Montague the new Chaser wondered, looking rather worried and Scorpius' cheeks tinged crimson.

"No, of course not," Scorpius insisted, "If you'd let me finish, I was going to say it doesn't matter who she is because she's not her father and our team is pretty good too."

"Only pretty good?"

"Very good?"

"Very good isn't great through, is it?" Kemen Arkaitz, the new Beater, spoke up.

"Very good is very good."

"But it's not as good as great."

"Well who said they were great?" Scorpius demanded in irritation.

"Al did," Rufus pointed out.

"Well my point is that we can beat them!" Scorpius snapped in frustration, he jabbed his finger at the exit, "So get out there and let's win this!"

"Err… Aren't you supposed to walk out first though?" Rufus questioned curiously and Scorpius sighed heavily.

"You're not good at inspiring people, are you?" Montague wondered with an eyebrow rising.

Scorpius decided to give up for the day and just went over ready to walk out, little Rufus Rhett the replacement Keeper standing nervously by his side. They went out as usual onto the pitch, Scorpius finding it felt weird to be the first one out. He also noticed the cheering seemed diminished and… and was that booing? Boos were drowning out the cheers and it only took him a second to realize why, at least if the banner of a snake devouring a wolf's head was anything to go by. They were booing because of Michael. He also got another surprise when he noticed a familiar face on the Slytherin team: Lorcan Scamander.

"Lorcan? You're their new Seeker?" Scorpius couldn't help blurting out in shock.

"Well you guys suggested I get a hobby…" Lorcan pointed out sheepishly.

"Captains, shake hands!" Krum – the Flying Instructor who would also act as referee – barked, effectively ending their discussion.

Grozda stepped forward and Scorpius stupidly started to wonder why Molly was taking so long before recalling he was the Captain, he hoped the slight delay in his movement went unnoticed. He stepped forward and clasped the bony hand the sallow-skinned Grozda offered, her expression was deathly serious and her shake extremely firm. They walked back to their respective spots, he caught Albus trying not to smile at his girlfriend and resisted the urge to roll his eyes as they mounted their brooms. The equally sallow-skinned Krum released the balls, threw the Quaffle into the air and the game launched into action.

Literally, Michael drove straight in and tore off with the Quaffle before anyone else could grab it. Grozda tried to tackle it off him when she'd caught up but he passed with perfect timing to Montague who tossed it through the unguarded – the Keeper hadn't gotten into position yet – hoop, securing Gryffindor the first point of the match. And it was far from the last. Michael was on fire, he streamed through the skies and scored goal after goal. The new Slytherin Keeper wasn't as good as the old one, combined with the fact Albus had improved and Montague was proving to be a good replacement to Latimer gave them the advantage as it rested on the Chasers to keep the Quaffle away much more. Rufus Rhett had been trained well by Molly and was also serving well as Keeper, much better the Slytherin, three times better if the score was anything to go by. The Slytherin Beaters were good but Roxy and Kemen were also proving to be a good team, keeping each other occupied.

Scorpius felt really quite proud of his team, it would take a Snitch catch for Slytherin to win. Which made him feel rather bad for not catching it yet, he felt like he was the only one of his team not pulling his weight and Lorcan wasn't doing much better. It was a cloudy day but still quite visible yet the Snitch was being quite elusive, the only time either of them saw it was from a distance and had lost sight of it in the chaos of the Chasers long before drawing close enough for it to matter. And kept on going, the minutes were seeping into hours. Finally, Scorpius caught sight of it when it started to rain when he caught a glimpse of gold above him. Thankfully, out of the way of the Chasers.

Scorpius didn't hesitate before shooting towards it, however Lorcan had seen it too and also bolted. For a second he was confident, he was closer than Lorcan but the younger boy was also on a newer, faster broom due to Scorpius' refusal to give up his The Dart broom for sentimental value. Lorcan reached him as he was closing in on the Snitch, he swiped at it but Lorcan's broom pushed him ahead and his fingers brushed it first. The small golden ball fell into Lorcan's smaller hands, the Slytherin grinned at his victory and just for a moment he looked like his happier, carefree twin.

"And Scamander catches the Snitch!" the female commentator whose name he didn't know and commentary he didn't pay attention to called out but her next words shocked them both, "Too bad it's too late, Gryffindor wins 230 to 220 thanks to the last goal by an impressive last goal Michael Sanford."

"Well… Well done," Scorpius offered awkwardly to the younger boy while Lorcan's face fell, "Good catch."

"In the end it didn't even matter," Lorcan scoffed bitterly.

Scorpius opened his mouth to say something comforting but in that moment, Lorcan's broom jerked abruptly and his body was thrown clean off. He tried to grab the broom but it slipped right through his fingers and he started to drop like a stone, Scorpius dove after him to try help. He tried to catch Lorcan but the boy's terror at being touched kicked in, he screamed and there was a burst of light that flung Scorpius off his broom, sending him spiraling. He considering transforming but it was too late.

In the next instance his body hit the ground, which was surprisingly soft and bouncy like a cross between a cushion and a trampoline. He bounced back into the air from the force he the ground at before finally landing, it was grass though and now regular ground again. He glanced over and saw Lorcan lying a few feet away, the Slytherin scrambling for his wand and looking around in panic as his amber eyes filled with tears. He seemed unharmed though, presumably the bouncy ground had applied to him as well. Lorcan started crawling over to him quickly while their brooms dropped at different places near the.

"I-I'm sorry," Lorcan apologized, his face and voice both riddled with guilt as tears spilled from his eyes as he started shaking, "I'm so sorry, Scorpius, I'm so sorry. I c-couldn't even handle touch to save my life, I'm so sorry. Are you alright? I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Scorpius brushed it off, understanding even if he felt really shaken, "I don't blame you. I blame this assassin."

"Scorpius!" Michael cried as he landed, practically jumping off his broom to get to the normal ground, "Lorcan! Are you okay!?"

"We're okay," Scorpius assured his friend as the others started landing.

"What in the bloody hell was that?!" Albus demanded of no one in particular.

"Lorcan's broom just threw him off, someone must've cursed it. Probably the same someone who went after Lysander twice, screwed up the Wolfsbane and poisoned me."

"I really hate that person!" Albus yelled angrily as people started pouring onto the pitch.

"Are you two okay?!" Professor Ashain demanded as he reached him first, Scorpius also caught sight of his friends, other staff – not Rojer – and a few other faces he recognized, Martha's face was stained by tears.

"We're okay," Lorcan offered and hastily wiped his eyes, "Did- Did you save us?"

"My son did, our magic wasn't working. Got to love those accidental underage magic usages," Professor Ashain explained and clapped his son on the back affectionately, giving him a proud smile. Antonius didn't seem to notice though, his young face white and his expression anxiety ridden as he eyed the crowd. Scorpius knew what the boy was thinking, the assassin was still out there.

---

Xerxes found himself rather enjoying his new position. His living quarters were nicer than his British apartment, the pay was better, the work was doable, he saw more of Stephan and Ethan being in training gave him more free time to himself while still being able to see the boy. He also found Jada was apparently having a hard time letting him go, she wrote love letters to him frequently and begged him to come back. Being the kind person he was, he obliged. He did return to England every few weeks to see Carver, it wasn't hard to arrange to meet her too when he made time to look for women again now that he finally had the time. Jada was kind of boring but easy or at least he thought, she started asking him if he wanted her to leave her husband for him and assuring him she was really quite willing to do that. He kept refusing, he didn't love her and had no intention of marrying her so leaving her husband was quite pointless. He really underestimated her tenacity though.

"I'm pregnant," Jada announced to him when he was in England for Carver's second birthday, Xerxes could only blink in shock.

"I guess this means you're definitely staying with your husband then?" Xerxes guessed in confusion, if she was ending it with him then she seemed strangely cheerful and he didn't see why she'd think he'd be happy for her pregnancy. He wasn't unhappy, he just didn't give a damn if it had nothing to do with him.

"It's yours, my husband hasn't touched me in months."

"But I-I was careful?" Xerxes stammered out in shock, he was quite sure he had been.

"I know, I countered the spell," Jada told him casually and smiled, "Now I'm pregnant with your baby, I have to leave my husband and we can be together, be a family."

"I'm not marrying you," Xerxes scoffed determinedly and her face fell, "I already have three children and I didn't marry their mothers, I'll support you financially and be involved in raising them but we won't be doing it as a couple."

"But I love you."

"Well I don't love you, I never said I did," Xerxes pointed out quite truthfully while she started crying.

"I left my husband for you!" Jada sobbed as she buried her face I her hands.

"Well that was stupid of you," Xerxes stated as he stood to leave, she wasn't going to sleep with him when she was all upset and angry so he figured he'd leave. It wasn't like it was his fault she was upset, he hadn't told her to sabotage his contraceptive spells and leave her husband. It was her own dumb choices, "I'll be in touch when you've talked about this with your husband and in advance, I'd recommend Viola for a girl. Andreas, Aldous or Everard are my top picks for a boy."

Xerxes didn't feel as happy about this pregnancy as the others, mostly because it had been deliberate on her part but he did get more excited when that discomfort eased with time. Jada's husband kicked her out and she was forced to stay with her family, she stopped sending him love letters. It really got him thinking though, she'd left her husband just like his mother had left his father and he didn't think he agreed with that. In a marriage, he thought people should stay together and stay loyal, if they didn't then they shouldn't be getting married in the first place. This was probably why he doubted he would ever get married. And if he was going to marry any of his children's mothers then it would have been Edythe without question, but she was dead, he still missed her sometimes.

The whole thing got him thinking of his own mother a lot though again, he hadn't seen her in over twenty years now. He was onto his fourth child and his mother had never met any of her grandchildren, did she even care? And so he decided to use his extra free time to start looking for her again, he asked some of the other staff for help or advice and it turned out to be far more productive then he could've hoped. Within a week, one of them came back to him with an address. He'd found his mother.

---

Everyone was on edge in the wake of another attempt, it was getting ridiculous. Maurice now had to cover the bases of both Scamanders since both were definitely targets, he also objected to Scorpius going anywhere alone in case attention ever turned back to him since he'd been the first target. Whenever he saw Lorcan, the poor boy's head would never stop swiveling and his wand hand twitching in readiness for attack. He didn't look like he was sleeping either, the bags beneath his eyes were black and his eyes bloodshot. On the bright side, the win from Michael seemed to have eased the prejudice a bit more amongst Gryffindors at least. It was something and the attempt seemed to ease Michael out of his shell a bit more, if only so he could worry about it so he still remained rather unhappy. He wasn't sleeping much either, Scorpius heard him tossing and turning, once he even woke up sobbing.

November eased into December and with it came the first flakes of the year, the Black Lake became a sheet of ice and the grass covered by a snuggly blanket of soft snow. Scorpius supposed he should count himself lucky that the icy weather had only hit after the Quidditch match as opposed to before, Professor Hagrid took the weather as a perfect opportunity to showcase some of the creatures who lived in the colder environments and Professor Longbottom did the same for plants so there was no reprieve from the weather. The start of December also meant the next full moon was drawing near, Hugo and Scorpius' first since their respective transformations. Professor Vipera had taken it upon herself to make the Wolfsbane with her own two hands and giving it to them in person, ensuring that there was no chance of it being tampered with. He knew Michael was still paranoid though and Hugo walked around as pale as one of the ghosts, Scorpius himself was anxious about it.

He hadn't attempted transforming since losing his mind after all, whenever he thought about it his stomach tied up in knots at the thought of a repeat of the process. He knew he shouldn't put it off, the more he practiced it the sooner he mastered it and then he wouldn't have to worry about it at all yet still he was afraid. And he knew he shouldn't be, he'd done it to be there for Michael and he wanted to be whatever Michael thought. He also had the challenge of Marigold, he had bravely agreed to keep watch over them despite being mauled by Michael and Scorpius didn't want anyone to know of his ability. The Aurors were taking precaution though, they'd be there to make sure they transformed with their minds before returning to their posts. Despite himself, Scorpius did feel a sliver of pity for the Aurors who did guard outside even in the poor weather. The week of the full moon though, there was a surprising development and it was not about werewolves at all but rather the assassin.

"I know who the assassin is," Maurice told him abruptly when Scorpius was on his way back to the Common Room after finishing some homework in Library, Scorpius stopped in his tracks to look at the approaching boy in shock, "I was just with Cassia-"

"Why with Cassia?" Scorpius wondered in surprise.

"I'm still teaching her Occlumency like last year, she can do it but I'm not stopping until she is a Master Occlumens. Besides, it doesn't hurt to practice especially considering her young age," Maurice explained quickly, "And we also use the sessions now to work out who the assassin is, I told you she's been tracking everyone and today she revealed the name of the girl you helped on the train."

"It's not Martha."

"Oh but it is, didn't you know her last name is Seneca?" Maurice said very firmly, looking at him expectantly as if the name was supposed to mean something. Scorpius just looked at him in confusion, the name sounded vaguely familiar but didn't ring any bells of alarm, "Did I emphasize it wrong? Her name is Martha Seneca."

"So what?"

"So, her father is Xerxes Seneca," Maurice told him and again Scorpius drew a blank, Maurice looked incredibly frustrated, "Xerxes was a Shadow! He's Pyrrhus Florian's half-brother, Viola Kalya and Carver Edwards' father! She's a Shadow as well, Cassia says she's extremely talented at Defense Against the Dark Arts. She's been trained just like they were, she's a Shadow just like they are and she has to be the one trying to kill you."

"But Martha's a good kid," Scorpius insisted, finding it hard to believe the poor girl was secretly the assassin, "She's a Hufflepuff."

"And? Viola was a Slytherin, Carver was a Gryffindor, if he gets a Ravenclaw then he'll have hit the quadfecta! The girl is a Shadow and she's trying to kill you."

"She watches most of the practices, why did she wait until the game to jinx a broom if she's trying to kill me?"

"I don't know, let's ask her."

"We don't where she is," Scorpius pointed out but Maurice was already nonverbally summoning the Marauder's Map from his pocket, "Maurice don't, I'm sure she's good."

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," Maurice stated as he tapped the map, he glanced at it before handing it to Scorpius and stalking off, "I'm just going to talk to her."

"Maurice!" Scorpius hissed as he shoved it back in his pocket and chased after the younger boy, trying to grab his arm to get his attention. Maurice looked but didn't stop, "She's an eleven year old kid not-"

"You realize I'm still deaf, right? I don't know what you're saying and I don't care, this girl is guilty. I know it."

"Maurice," Scorpius said stupidly, trying to physically yank him back to force him to use his necklace to listen.

"Hey Martha! We want to talk to you!" Maurice bellowed suddenly and Scorpius glanced up in surprise, noticing Martha walking down with Auriga Koray while the deaf boy put a hand to his necklace.

"She's a white soul," Scorpius pointed out in an annoyed whisper while Auriga seemed to do the same to Martha except not in annoyance.

"Just because she hasn't killed yet, it doesn't mean she isn't trying."

"Okay, I'll catch up with you later," Martha said finally to Auriga, the girls waving in farewell as they parted with Martha moving over to them and Auriga heading on down the stairs, "What is it?"

Before Scorpius could react, Maurice grabbed her roughly and pulled her through the nearest door. Scorpius scrambled after them, finding an empty classroom while Maurice slammed Martha against the wall with one hand and aimed his wand at her neck with the other. The pairs of gray eyes in the room both widened in shock while Maurice let go of her to grab his necklace, he flicked his wand at the door and it locked before turning it back to her neck.

"I know who you are and I know what you did!" Maurice yelled at her angrily, "You're Xerxes Seneca's daughter, you're a Shadow! Why are you trying to kill Scorpius and the Scamanders?!"

"Let her go! You said you were just going to talk to her," Scorpius insisted indignantly.

"I am just talking to her!" Maurice snapped, sparing him an angry look before returning his attention to the small girl, "Now answer me!"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Martha whispered fearfully.

"Crucio!"

Maurice blasted the girl with the Unforgivable Curse, moving his translator hand to hold her back in place to stop her falling to the ground. Instead she was pinned against the wall, writhing and screaming in agony. Scorpius jumped in without hesitation, grabbing Maurice and forcefully throwing him off her while Martha crumpled to the ground in tears.

"NO!" Scorpius yelled at him furiously, refusing to allow the torture of an eleven year old who he still didn't think was guilty. He turned back to Martha and helped the shaking girl to her feet, the residual effects of the curse still rippling through her, "Are you okay?"

"I-" Martha started to answer but Maurice grabbed her from him again, shoving her back against the wall and aiming his wand again but this time with a different spell.

"Legilimens!" Maurice cast, narrowing his eyes but Martha squeezed hers shut and a second later Maurice was pushed back, "You're an Occlumens?!"

"My Father is Xerxes Seneca, of course I'm an Occlumens!" Martha yelled back and leaned weakly back against the wall, breathing heavily while Maurice grabbed his necklace.

"So you admit it?!" Maurice snapped triumphantly while Scorpius could only watch the unfolding scene in shock, "You're Xerxes Seneca's child?"

"Yes I am," Martha affirmed, looking slightly more sure of herself, "But so what?"

"He's a Shadow."

"He's dead."

"You were trained."

"So were you," Martha countered fiercely although she still shook from the after effects of the curse, "But you got out and so did I, I never even got around to taking the Test. I'm not a Shadow, I'm nothing to do with them anymore. I'm just trying to live a normal life away from all that pain and brainwashing, just like you are."

"I don't believe you," Maurice told her firmly while Scorpius found he did, she'd just admitted to the family connection and her words sounded genuine, "It's too much of a coincidence, you're trying to kill them. I know it, I just don't know why."

"I'm not trying to kill Scorpius and I've never even met the Scamanders."

"I don't believe you."

"Well I do," Scorpius spoke up and tore open the door, he took Martha's hand to lead her out while Maurice narrowed his eyes darkly, "And we're done here."

"Thank you," Martha offered quietly as they left.

"I'm sorry about that," Scorpius told her apologetically as she stared down at her shoes.

"It's okay, I'm used to being tortured. Its part of our training," Martha explained calmly while in contrast looked rather upset, "Not a part I miss."

"Well it's over now," Scorpius assured her and rubbed her shoulder gently, she glanced at him solemnly.

"I wish it were over."

---

Martha Seneca crept down the vacant halls of Hogwarts, it was dark now and way past curfew. She wasn't concerned though, if she got caught then Auriga would just have her father get her off. She had been in the Ravenclaw Common Room working on a big homework project with her anyway, despite sometimes taking advantage of her father's teacher status she genuinely wanted to impress him with her work. Martha found it all rather easy, being in schooling since the day she turned two seemed to have given her an unfair advantage in Hogwarts. Not that she minded, it freed her mind up to focus on her task. Her horrible, horrible task.

She sighed heavily, it was the full moon and exactly a month ago she had tried to use to kill the Scamanders with Michael. He was nice enough but he was suspicious of her, at best she'd hoped he'd be expelled out the way or at least distracted by what he'd done. That had gone badly. Just like all her other attempts. And now Maurice suspected her, quite rightly. And Scorpius didn't, she felt guilty that he had so much faith in her innocence and quite sick with herself if she could lie that well. She didn't want to kill Scorpius, he was so good to her, so kind and sweet and so handsome… You shouldn't develop crushes on people you were supposed to kill, that was why you shouldn't really date or think about that stuff.

It's not like she'd chosen to feel that way though and now it just made it harder, she'd put off killing him to focus on the Scamanders because she kept chickening out. She'd have to eventually, she'd have to betray that faith and trust. She truly did feel sick to her stomach about it, she lay awake at night with her stomach churning and her mind wracked by guilt. And that was when she wasn't crying for her dead father and the fact she was aiding his killer, her own uncle who she also cared about. She had to kill the Scamanders first though which Scorpius seemed averse too, it wasn't like she had anything against them except maybe Lorcan for nearly killing Scorpius too. They just had to die, Carver said it was the only way to end the Shadow Master and the war with it.

What were a few lives and her own torment about it to end the war? The Shadows had already broken Ethan, how long before it destroyed Carver, Andreas, Davin and Rocio's spirits too? Or else they actually became brainwashed into loyalty like Stephan and Viola? Xerxes junior and the unborn one would surely be thrown into the Training Tower when they were old enough too. The war had to end, it had to end if she was to save her family. No matter what. She was torn from her thoughts by a sound, she froze and spun expecting a Prefect but saw no one. Her cloudy eyes skimmed the darkness but nothing, she reluctantly started to walk on but stayed alert. She heard a sound again, this time unmistakably a spell being cast.

"Protego!" Martha cried and slammed up a shield in the direction of the noise, her shield caught the spell but it was shattered and the force still blew her back into an empty room while her attacker followed, "Lumos! Petrificus Totalis!"

The first spell lit up her wand to see in the gloom, however her attacker was wearing all black and had his face covered by a mask like a ninja. He leaped out of the way of her spell and raised his wand, she was faster though.

"Expelliarmus!" Martha cast and with practiced perfection.

The spell hit the attacker and sent his wand soaring while the man himself fell back. Or boy, he was lanky and teen-sized which was backed up by the fact he'd had to speak a spell to attack her in the first place. He didn't know non-verbal magic yet and being slower than her meant he hadn't been trained, it wasn't Maurice. Did the Shadows have someone within Hogwarts? She didn't know, she didn't even know how they'd figure her out. She approached the downed boy cautiously, trying not to show her anxiety or fear and kept her wand aimed on him.

"Who are you? Why did you attack me?" Martha demanded and abruptly the boy jerked his leg.

Martha was taken by surprise as her legs were swept out from under her, she still had her wand but the boy lunged on her before she'd had the chance to use it. He was stronger than her, he ripped her wand away and threw it. She started to focus on wandless magic to get him off her but he smashed his fist into her face, her head thudded painfully against the stone but she spotted his wand lying nearby. She tried to reach it but he was already scrambling for it, his arms were longer and within seconds he was now straddling her with a wand in her face. She tried to refocus but he muttered a spell, the world went black.

She blinked a few times but the world stayed black, he'd blinded her. She started to panic, she couldn't use wandless magic if she couldn't see. And then she felt him hit her, again and again, again and again. Her head continued to throb after he stopped and she heard a scraping sound, metal dragging across stone. There was a second's silence before she something cold and sharp stabbed into her shoulder, she screamed in pain.

"Oh, what's the matter? Does that hurt?!" the attacker snapped, "Don't like it when someone's hurting you, huh?! But you're fine with trying to kill innocent people who've done nothing wrong, Lorcan's been through enough and dragging Michael into it like that was sick! You're sick, you're a sick person! You evil, heartless bitch!"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Martha whispered fearfully, tasting the salty blood in her mouth as she spoke and screamed again as she felt the blade tearing through her flesh.

"I don't like sick people and neither do the Soul Eaters," the attacker hissed and she felt her trickling blood run suddenly colder as her heart ran faster, "That's right, the Soul Eaters. They also don't like it when people try to kill those the Master wants to live. You're going to tell me why, you're going to tell me who, you're going to tell me everything and then maybe I'll be kind enough to end your agony. You've been trained to resist the Cruciatus Curse but can you resist this?"

The blade ripped through her arm once more and Martha screamed in agony into the silent night.

---

Part 4: Morbid Interest

---

The night of the full moon, Scorpius finally worked up the courage to try transforming again. Even if he wasn't sure he could get to Michael, he really needed to because Wyatt had mentioned losing your progress if you didn't do it. It also meant enlisting his friends help to make sure he could be turned back, forcing him to speak to Maurice who he was still rather annoyed with for confronting Martha and Albus for the Invisibility Cloak. There was no way he would be turning into a Thestral while their dorm mates slept, it was too big and risky. Albus opted to come along as well so the pair were under the cloak, Maurice chose to use a Disillusionment Charm instead. A good one, Scorpius couldn't see him at all.

"I still can't believe you waited a month to tell me about how you actually transformed," Albus complained at him once they'd safely reached their destination.

They called it the Room That Didn't Exist, also known as the Room of Requirement which could adapt to the user's wishes. It was currently a large space with a handful of comfortable chairs for Albus and Maurice to sit on plus a fireplace to keep them warm against the cold night, the deaf boy removed his charm as they threw off the cloak.

"I just didn't want to talk about it," Scorpius brushed it off, still uncomfortable at the thought of losing his mind, "Rojer saved me anyway."

"Why didn't Rojer say anything?" Albus wondered as he settle down in one of the chairs along with Maurice, the latter putting a hand to his necklace to gaze around solemnly.

"I don't know, I don't think he really cared."

"I'm surprised you aren't freaking out that he's saved you twice now and you killed Ashylos."

"Well I finally told him about it."

"And you didn't think to mention that either?!" Albus burst out, throwing his hands up in the air in exasperation.

"I thought you all wanted me to stop talking about Rojer?" Scorpius wondered incredulously.

"It still would've been nice to know the conclusion of your obsession, what happened? How did he react?"

"He err… He forgave me. He has his own guilt issues about Ashylos' death though."

"Told you," Maurice said smugly with a smirk, "Was I right about him being captured and tortured about Grindelwald's men too?"

"Yes," Scorpius grudgingly admitted and Maurice fist pumped the air, "But it's not how his leg was crippled, he got that in a Nazi concentration camp."

"What's that?"

"Mother of Merlin, stop the presses! A momentous event has occurred, Maurice Rivers doesn't know something! That's right people, the boy doesn't know!" Albus exclaimed in mock shock, Maurice threw him a scowl.

"Do you know what it is?"

"No," Albus scoffed and slouched lazily into his chair was he withdrew a brown bag, "But I'm not an all-knowing genius like you are."

"I'm not an all-knowing genius," Maurice insisted while Albus withdrew a hand of popcorn and shoved it into his mouth, "Are you eating popcorn?"

"One of my best mates is turning into a Thestral, I think it's a popcorn worthy event and I wouldn't miss it," Albus said through a mouthful of popcorn while Scorpius sat on the floor, putting the spells on himself in readiness, "Feels like ages since we were in this room, doesn't it?"

"No, I go here twice a week with Cassia," Maurice told him and looked slightly surprised, "Don't you take Grozda here? It's the perfect place for some privacy for… you know."

"Grozda's way too busy with NEWTs and Quidditch practices to hang out with me, the most I can do is to keep sending her things to show I still care. I'll tell you, having a girlfriend is expensive especially in winter when you can't even pick flowers. I tried to ask Abby for help getting flowers and she got all mad at me for no reason, I blame Pentakel," Albus informed them before frowning at Maurice, "What do you mean by 'you know' anyway?"

"You know."

"If I knew then I wouldn't have asked."

"Can we please just focus? You're supposed to be helping me with my animagus training," Scorpius interrupted irritably as he finished with the spells, he effectively drew the attention of both boys back though.

"Go for it, Scor," Albus offered encouragingly as he shoved another handful of popcorn into his mouth.

Scorpius focused and just like before, he felt his entire body morphing into a Thestral. He thought it was more painful than last time, although admittedly the injuries from Michael had probably taken away from it. He transformed all the same though, gazing at his friends' souls as Albus whooped with delight and clapped before Scorpius felt his body shifting back already into his human form.

"That was awesome!" Albus exclaimed excitedly while Maurice frowned.

"Why am I here if you can just turn back?" Maurice complained.

"In case I get stuck like I did before," Scorpius insisted and Maurice sighed, he gestured for him to carry on though while Albus continued stuffing his face with popcorn.

Scorpius transformed a few more times, turning into a Thestral every time but thankfully keeping his mind before bouncing back into his human form. After a while though, he started to notice a very distinct smell coming from somewhere outside the room. Blood. As a Thestral, he found himself very drawn to investigate it and as a human, concerned.

"What's wrong?" Albus queried after Scorpius stayed as a Thestral for longer than usual, ignoring the urge to turn back seemed to have repressed it.

"I smell blood," Scorpius told them, "We have to check it out, I'll turn back into a Thestral and then you guys follow me."

"Okay," Maurice agreed while Albus put aside his bag of popcorn.

Scorpius transformed his now aching body once more into a Thestral and trotted over to the door, his friends followed and Maurice opened it for him. With the door open, the smell was much stronger and he headed off at a slight canter while his friends ran slowly after him. If someone was in danger, they'd die by the time the three reached them. When he got to the Grand Staircase, he jumped and spread his wings to glide down to the correct floor and gallop where his nose was leading him, he had to get there.

He found the correct door and glanced back for his friends but they were far behind him now, instead he rose up on his hind legs and kicked down the door with his front ones. He was met with the sight of dark, masked figure leaning over a small, bloody body with a crimson knife in his hand. The assailant had a white soul and seemed surprised to see him – or if he couldn't see Thestrals then the door being knocked down – and hastily ran, Scorpius reared up again to jump on him but the boy threw himself out of the way.

He was already scrambling to his feet into a run and Scorpius was about to go after him but he was distracted as the victim's head lolled in his direction, it was Martha and she was already lying in a pool of blood. He was very torn, he didn't need to be a healing expert to know she needed help and might die if he went after her attacker but then if he didn't, the attacker would probably get away. Why did his friends have to run so slowly?! Scorpius irritably decided on life and charged in to Martha, the scent of blood quite alluring to his Thestral instincts. He wanted to change back and for a wonder, he actually did.

---

It took Xerxes several days to work up the courage to go to see his mother, he apparated to the street she lived on but it took him several more days of staring at the grubby apartment block and walking up to the door before he finally had the courage to knock. He'd spent so long without his mother, wondering how she was and what he would say when he saw her, what she would say and what she would think of him. But now he actually had the chance and the door was right in front of him, he found himself wrought with nerves with his stomach twisting and untwisting into various knots. He didn't know how he felt or what he expected but he finally couldn't wait anymore.

Hecate didn't live in a nice place, the front door was falling off its hinges and the lock broken already. Inside was even worse, the stench of urine was so overpowering it made his nostrils want to shrivel up. The walls were all graffitied or stained or both, discarded garbage littered the halls. Rats were gnawing on some of it and didn't seem the slightest bit concerned by the presence of a human moving through their territory, he saw some cockroaches scattering though. Xerxes felt rather disgusted and dirty just from being there, his crisp, clean clothes felt very out of place. Did people really live here? Did his mother really? She'd come from such a wealthy family and now she lived in his dump? He shook his head and continued on to get to her door, the wood was rotting and the number had fallen off the door, leaving behind a number shaped space a lighter shade then the rest of the door. He wrapped on it.

"It's open!" a hoarse female voice called and Xerxes nervously pushed the door open with his sweating hands, finding the handle so loose he feared it would fall off.

Xerxes wasn't sure what he was expecting but he found the room bare, it was a small room with ratty floorboards and no furniture beyond a single mattress wedged in the corner under the window. There was a door opposite in as poor condition as the entrance, beyond he caught a glimpse of what looked like a bathroom. There was a woman lying on the mattress, a frail, skeletal thing with violet eyes sunken into a gaunt, once beautiful face, her red hair dull and dirty. She clutched a threadbare blanket around herself and had a clothes helping prop her up her ragged pillow, there was a cardboard box by the mattress as if in place of a bedside table upon which rested her wand. His mother.

"Well? What the hell do you want?" Hecate demanded of him in the same rasping voice, eyes narrowing on him sharply.

"Don't you recognize your own son?" Xerxes spat at her in his mother tongue for the first time in a long time, feeling a blade of hurt and anger piercing his hurt while she broke into a horrific cough. He closed the door behind himself and approached her, she squinted at him when the coughing fit as passed.

"Xerxes?" Hecate wondered weakly while her bulged in surprise, he nodded, "Look how big you got."

"Of course I got bigger, it's been twenty-one years. And six months," Xerxes snapped rather testily as she leaned back, still ogling him, "Not that I'm counting."

"That long, huh?"

"Yes, that long. Don't you pay attention to the time?"

"My mind's going, Xerxes, I can't keep track of much these days," Hecate admitted and started coughing again.

"You're not that old, don't play the senile card," Xerxes barked at her indignantly as the fit passed.

"It's not because I'm old, it's because I'm sick. You're lucky you caught me on a good day," Hecate pointed out testily, "And from your tone, I'm guessing you aren't too happy with me."

"You left me!" Xerxes yelled at her before he could stop himself, tears pricking his yes, "I was your son and you left me! No cards, no letters, no contact, you just walked away like I was a bad one night stand!"

"Oh get over it already, it was twenty-one and a half years ago apparently," Hecate brushed it off with a roll of her eyes and another cough, tears leaked from his eyes.

"Don't you care? Don't you care at all?"

"At all? Yeah. But if you're going to stand there blubbering like a baby just because Mummy and Daddy didn't love you enough as a child, don't expect sympathy. Get over yourself, go grab a beer and shove your dick in someone, whatever makes you happy, move on. Don't be such a spoiled little brat, the world doesn't exist to serve you and newsflash: neither do your parents."

"I know that, you left and Dad threw me out," Xerxes pointed out bitterly as he blinked away tears, Hecate looked at him curiously, "You both abandoned me."

"What did you do?"

"I only had an affair with the Minister's wife," Xerxes admitted and Hecate laughed before it became another violent cough, "I don't see why he was mad at me, I wasn't the one married."

"That'll do it," Hecate prompted when it stopped, smiling in amusement, "Hektor always was a controlling, uptight prude, not that he was complaining when he was screwing me out of wedlock. I bet it threw you on your ass, eh? Found it harder without a house of servants I'll bet."

"I did okay for myself thank you very much, can't say the same for you," Xerxes snapped and gestured to the dump she lived in, her eyes flicked around before turning back to him without her smile.

"Fair point," she conceded and paused to start coughing again, he patiently waited for it to pass, "I'm too sick to do anything now though and the guy I left your father for left me."

"What did you do?"

"I only cheated on him, once or twice," Hecate admitted testily and Xerxes found it was his turn to smile in amusement, "That he knew about anyway."

"Well I can see where I get it from."

"Wonder if your brother has got it too."

"What?" Xerxes wondered in shock as she burst into another fit of coughing, feeling rather like he'd just had cold water thrown on him, "What do you mean brother? You had another child?"

"You have a half-brother," Hecate told him, her raspy tone disinterested and her expression looking rather like she regretted saying anything while Xerxes looked around for signs of him, "He isn't here! I left him."

"You left him too?" Xerxes stated incredulously while she turned away in shame, he felt his anger returning, "For the love of… I have three kids and another on the way, all by different women and I haven't turned my back on a single one of them. You had two and you couldn't even stick around for one of us."

"I had to, okay?" Hecate snapped defensively, "After whatshisname left me, I had nothing and I wound up on the streets because I was too proud to work like a filthy commoner. I had to rely on the kindness of others and this one guy was always really generous with his donation, Linden Florian. He was always good to me and we got to talking, eventually we got to dating and he let me live with him. Nice enough guy, was fine with an open relationship too but he stayed faithful, was too busy with the son his wife had walked out on. All he wanted was more kids so I bore him a son as thanks, called him Pyrrhus because the first magic he did was fire. It was only then that I realized there was something horribly wrong with him?"

"What?" Xerxes wondered with an anxious curiosity.

"He was a half-blood. Linden was a muggle, making Pyrrhus a half-blood," Hecate told him, sounding as if it was a horrible disease, "I'm a pure-blood from an ancient and noble pure-blood family, I couldn't be seen with such an impure child. So I left him, I'm sure Linden took good care of him, he was so happy to have another son. I ran back to Greece with my tail between my legs, my family disowned me anyway out of shame and your father had already remarried, didn't want me back either so I came back to England but stayed away from Linden and Pyrrhus."

"You didn't think to see me while you were there?!" Xerxes blurted out angrily.

"You were away at magic school!" Hecate countered before bursting into another fit of coughing while Xerxes felt another sliver of anger but at a different target, his father and grandparents hadn't mentioned this. He was getting off point though, he had a brother. A brother who had also been abandoned, maybe he would have more in common with this Pyrrhus then with his father's two kids. He wanted to meet him.

"How old is Pyrrhus?"

"I don't know," Hecate shrugged as the coughing fit passed, "Somewhere between ten and the mid-teens. Why?"

"Because I want to meet him," Xerxes told her seriously and she burst into another fit of coughing, "Seriously, what is wrong with you!?"

"I'm dying," Hecate croaked and he felt another wave of shock crash into him once more, "Its terminal and incurable, its destroying my brain so my mind is dying and so are my basic motor skills so it's hard to do things or even move very well, I also have this cough but my lungs are shot too."

"You-You- You're dying?" Xerxes repeated in shock and she scowled.

"What are you deaf? Dying. Don't be so shocked, I've been dying for a while now and I'm okay with it. It's just a slow and painful process, a shitty end to a shitty life but I did have a few good times," Hecate told him casually while he continued to gape at her, "There's actually something you could do, you know to help me."

"What?"

"Kill me. It would be kinder and easier than this," Hecate pleaded and Xerxes couldn't deal with that in that moment, his mother, his half-brother, her dying… It was too much and he walked away to try process it, he needed time.

---

The smell of blood was much more sickening to his human senses, her face was completely battered as if it had taken a beating and her body riddled all over with more than two dozen knife wounds, holes and cuts and stabs. He also felt extremely disgusted and angry at her attacker, she was eleven years old. She was just a child, people shouldn't hurt children. Her chest was rising and falling though, indicating she still lived and her eyes were open as much as possible with the swelling. He scrambled over to her, having to kneel in the sticky blood. He also found his eyesight wasn't as good in the dark as a human, he picked – presumably – her wand up and lit it up. Her eyes looked strangely white and glazed as if she couldn't see, he cast a counter spell in case and her eyes returned to their usual cloudy gray that widened in surprise.

"Sc-Scorpius?" Martha wondered shakily and he noticed her face was already damp from tears.

"I chased off your attacker, you're going to be okay now," Scorpius assured her gently, wishing Michael was there or that he knew more about healing spells, "I'm going to get you to the Hospital Wing, okay?"

"Okay," Martha agreed weakly, "I don't think I can get up though."

"I'll carry you then," Scorpius offered and made to pick her up, she cried out in pain though and he let her down guiltily, "I'm sorry, does that hurt?"

"Ev-Everything hurts," Martha whimpered as fresh tears rolled down her cheeks, "Just do it and quickly like ripping off a Band-Aid."

"Ready?" Scorpius asked and Martha just squeezed her eyes shut as she nodded again, he gritted his teeth and scooped her up even as she screamed in pain. He felt horrible as her already battered face screwed up and she cried quietly as he started moving, slower then he would've liked because he feared dropping her or that jostling would aggravate her wounds more. He decided to try distracting her through conversation, "Do you know who attacked you?"

"Shadows," Martha muttered in answer as her eyes opened as much as possible again, fearfully flickering around in the dark, "Don't know who specifically. They were untrained and incapable of non-verbal magic so not NEWT level, seemed male, seemed a teenager, lanky, I'd guess Third to Fifth Year. Of course they could always have been using Polyjuice, if they did that then it could be anyone from a little First Year girl to the Headmaster."

"Well noticed," Scorpius complimented her observation skills, he wished he'd brought the Map because then he would've been able to quickly check but he didn't like transforming with any items on him.

"I didn't tell him, I didn't tell him anything," Martha admitted quietly as her eyes struggled to stay open, worrying him greatly, "He tortured me but I didn't tell him."

"We're nearly there."

"You should have left me, you should have left me to die," Martha whispered tearfully, "You shouldn't be saving me, I don't deserve it."

"Yes you do, it's not your fault your father was a Shadow," Scorpius assured her gently and her eyes met his weakly, fighting to stay open.

"I need… I need to tell you something."

"You just need to focus on staying awake, stay with me," Scorpius pleaded, not sure if she'd pass out or just die if she fell asleep.

She opened her mouth to speak but her strength finally failed her, her head lolled into the crook of her arm as she lost consciousness. Scorpius picked up the pace now her discomfort wasn't an issue, hoping it wasn't too late as he crossed the final stretch of his journey to the Hospital Wing. The two werewolves were there and seemed as far away from each other as possible, somehow Scorpius suspected this was Michael's doing. Hugo was near the door, smaller then Michael and with bushy fur of a reddish and brown coloring. He was curled up on the bed, sniffing the air as he could probably smell the blood as well. Michael was in the far opposite corner, stretched out as Marigold bandaged his front leg.

"You have got to stop attacking yourself," Marigold was complaining of Michael as he worked.

"Marigold!" Scorpius yelled to get his attention and the Head Healer jolted jumpily in surprise before moving over to him, Michael's mismatched eyes flickering in their direction, "I found her like this, she was attacked. She was conscious when I found her but now I don't know."

"Get her onto a bed," Marigold commanded immediately as he strode over to them briskly while Scorpius laid her down on the bed opposite Hugo, he scanned her quickly before jumping into action, "She's alive. Barely. But I can work with barely, get out of my way!"

Scorpius didn't object and stepped well out of the way near door after putting her bloody wand on the bedside, watching anxiously as Marigold fussed over her with a variety of spell flashes and potions he summoned over to himself. He was only distracted by Maurice and Albus joining him, out of breath nonetheless. The latter's emerald eyes practically bulging out of their sockets when they saw Scorpius, his clothes stained and sticky from Martha's blood.

"Why did you run off like that?! Are you okay?! We found blood!" Albus hissed at him worriedly while Maurice had caught sight of Martha.

"It's not mine, its Martha's," Scorpius explained and Albus seemed to relax slightly, he nodded his head in the First Year's direction, "It was the Shadows, I think she was tortured for information. Do you still think she's guilty, Maurice?"

"Maybe," Maurice said cautiously while Albus gave the girl a sympathetic look, "There must be some reason they're after her. Although considering how injured she is, our assailant is not talented at torture. You can't get information out of the dead, you need to cause as much pain while doing the least harm as possible."

"Just for once in your life can't you just be a human person?!" Albus snapped at him irritably, "A First Year just got mutilated, show some basic human decency and not casually discuss the finer points of torture!"

"I am a human person," Maurice protested, looking somewhat hurt by the accusation that he wasn't.

"Would you have done this to her?" Scorpius questioned worriedly of his friend, "Would you have tortured her like this?"

"Like this?" Maurice repeated, looking indignant, "No, I told you, this technique is very poor and sloppy. I'm much better at it."

"Mate, that is not something to be proud of," Albus commented with a sad shake of his head.

---

Part 5: Unexpected Encounters

---

In the wake of Martha's attack, things were very tense in Hogwarts. The fact the Aurors were patrolling the grounds very much meant that her attacker was someone within Hogwarts, the Aurors started interrogating students and teachers alike. Scorpius was no exception to this and while he was quite sure Cistro would've loved him to be guilty, the fact he had been the one to get her help and his friends' testimony – they pretended to have been sneaking down to the kitchen for a midnight snack – made her release him as they had no evidence. Weedy Larry gave a speech about how wrong it was to brutally assault eleven year old girls with knives, ensuring them it was – shockingly – a crime and encouraging anyone who knew anything to come forwards.

Martha was alive but Marigold had put her in a magically induced coma for the time being so no one could talk to her about it, she was very weak and needed rest while the blood she'd lost was replenished. Marigold told Scorpius he'd gotten lucky, if he'd been a few minutes later then she would've have died. As it stood, she still wasn't guaranteed survival but she was hanging in there. Scorpius felt bad for her, she could die and the closest thing she'd got to family caring was a get well card to 'Marsha Santana' – they had literally written that in the card – from her foster parents. On the bright side, Scorpius supposed it was good she wasn't conscious because her attacker couldn't come after her again. She'd said she hadn't told him anything so if they wanted the information, they'd have to wait for her to wake up to try again so until then she was safe. And hopefully she'd stay safe, it was only two weeks to the Christmas break so her attacker would likely be gone then since they were likely a student. The Aurors didn't seem to have any luck tracking the attacker down and neither did they.

It wasn't a fun week, Scorpius felt many days in the Hospital visiting her since he was there for Michael anyway. He was especially wiped after this full moon and Marigold wanted to make sure the wounds he'd inflicted upon himself as a werewolf didn't get infected, Scorpius was almost disappointed there wouldn't be a full moon over the holidays because the Malfoy Manor was ideal to spend the full moon together without worrying about Marigold. Classes were standing to wind down as the Christmas decorations went up, it depressed Scorpius to see them because he knew Calderon was not the one putting them up. Rojer alone didn't seem to notice Christmas existed and didn't cut them the slightest bit of slack with work, not that Scorpius really minded because he liked to work. He was looking forward to the break though, he was dying to see how things were with Varanian and the war, talk to Wyatt about his progress and find out how Molly was since she hadn't replied to any of letters. Plus Michael would be staying with him, Scorpius really hoped it would help him take his mind off things.

First though was the last Hogsmeade trip of the term, Scorpius found himself quite disappointed with that. Albus was going with Grozda and some of her Slytherin friends, Abby and Rose were double dating with Sequoia and Corin while Orous and Vern did the same with Lily and Olivia. Even if he went with them he'd still be a fifth wheel, he'd written to Molly to ask her to meet him but she'd not written back as usual. Sometimes he wondered if the only one still invested in their relationship, was she really that busy or had she just stopped caring? Michael also wanted to stay in Hogwarts and after last time, Scorpius was inclined to let him especially after the rough week.

Scorpius supposed it was still a good chance to get his Christmas shopping done, he'd still have Maurice. Maurice was not the best companion for shopping though since you spent a good deal of time walking, you could only really hold a conversation with Maurice when he was stationary so he was in for a very silent trip. Which got even quieter when Maurice told him he'd decided to stay as well, keep Michael company. If Scorpius hadn't already resolved to buy the Christmas presents, he'd have blown it off to stay as well. He couldn't even bring his leather jacket because he knew Cistro was probably going to chuck in the snow like before, he hated the trip before he'd even stepped foot outside.

It was snowing and the ground was already white, he shoved his hands into his pockets and walked very alone to Hogsmeade. Cistro was acting as a guard at the gates of the rundown town again, she did again make him be searched excessively before allowing him through. He was starting to rethink his decision, he'd be there forever if she searched through everything he bought. And he did buy a lot, what was the point in having money if you didn't spend it on the people who mattered to you? Even if none of them had time for him. He also got his baby brother Sol gifts in advance, he got some for Lysel Leebin as well just in case and even something for Maurene to not leave her out. He still found himself feeling rather sad and lonely to be walking around by himself, he was relieved to be done and headed over to the Hog's Head for a nice Butterbeer to warm himself up before the long walk back.

However, he was shocked to walk in the door and literally see a ghost, or at least a man he knew to be dead. Logan Leebin, Leebin's Auror father he'd seen in Rooke's memory. There was no mistaking him, he had the same sharp, striking strange shade of cyan colored eyes. He looked older but his coarse face had been worn and lined with age anyway, he had the same angular features and quite a flat nose. He maintained a robust figure and faded canescent hair hanging around his head, admittedly more gray then in the memory now. His scar from his eyebrow was missing though, Scorpius noticed, or maybe it had just healed? He looked as gruff as in the memory, he sat alone at a table in dark robes with a smoky glass of Firewhisky.

"Erm… H-Hey, excuse me," Scorpius stammered out as he approached the man, he was spared an irritated glance, "Ar-Are you Logan Leebin?"

"No," the man barked in the same rough tone Logan had used, "Now if you don't mind, I'm trying to enjoy my lunch."

"But you-you look just like him."

"Boy, I don't think you were born when Logan was alive," the man complained as he sipped his glass.

"I saw him in a memory," Scorpius admitted and earned himself a glance, the man sighed.

"I'm Hogan Leebin, Logan was my brother. My identical, twin brother hence the similarity," the man explained and Scorpius vaguely recalled hearing Logan had had a brother, he hadn't realized it was a twin though, "That's right, so you can stop looking like you've seen a ghost and close your mouth before a fly goes in."

"I-I'm sorry," Scorpius apologized awkwardly and closed his mouth while an idea started to dawn on him as he remembered Logan's suspicions about Rooke, Potter had written them off as insanity but what if they weren't? Would Hogan know? "I erm… I know your nephew."

"How unfortunate for you," Hogan commented disinterestedly while Scorpius took the seat opposite him as an excuse to put down his bags, "Boy's an idiot."

"I found him quite smart."

"He's an idiot, walks around with his head in the clouds. Failed his OWLs and flunked out of Hogwarts, can't cast a decent spell to save his life."

"Well there's more than just being good at spell work, he's good at other things," Scorpius insisted defensively and Hogan gave a snort of derision.

"Like what? His mumbo jumbo psycho muggle crap? He needs to quit and get himself a real job, maybe then he wouldn't be consistently broke," Hogan told him, his tone as disapproving as his words, "That or do what I told him to do when he was thirteen, do the world a favor and throw himself off the Astronomy Tower."

"You-You actually encouraged your nephew to kill himself?" Scorpius wondered in shock that someone could be so cruel.

"Yep," Hogan confirmed remorselessly as he sipped his drink, "Boy's an idiot. Worthless waste of space, can't do anything right. He doesn't deserve to be alive."

"He's your dead twin brother's son," Scorpius pointed out in disbelief and Hogan's eyes flashed angrily.

"Yeah, he is. And my twin brother wouldn't be dead if it wasn't for Flan."

"Didn't he kill himself?"

"Yes but Flan was there, he could've saved him but he didn't. It's his fault I lost my brother," Hogan snapped darkly and downed the rest of his glass, "Need a refill over here!"

"Wasn't he a child at the time?"

"And?" Hogan scoffed as Aberforth came over to refill his drink, he tossed some coins down, "Leave the bottle and keep the change."

"I'll have a Butterbeer please," Scorpius asked of the Barkeeper as he withdrew his own money, Aberforth took the coins and left the bottle. He went over to grab the Butterbeer for him before going back over to the bar, "Thank you."

"I don't care he was a child, it's not like he had to turn into an animagus. He's pathetic. Told you, boy's an idiot. A worthless, useless idiot, who let my twin brother die."

"That's completely unfair, you can't hold it against him."

"Can, done and have."

"I know him, if he could've saved his Dad then he would have," Scorpius protested defensively, already really hating this guy, "I'm sure he did everything he could, did his best."

"Well his best wasn't good enough, was it?!" Hogan yelled at him furiously, "He let my brother die, my twin brother I'd known since conception. Logan was a good man, a great man and Flan let him die. Worthless brat, will never amount to anything or do anything worthwhile in his whole entire life. Logan did more in his limited lifespan then Flan could do in three, Logan was an Auror. He saved lives, he put bad people away, he helped people."

"Flan helps people in his own way, who are you to criticize him when he's out there doing that while you're sitting in a bar drinking?! What do you do that's so great?!" Scorpius snapped irritably, almost forgetting why he'd started speaking to him in the first place.

"I'm a Healer," Hogan pointed out smugly, "I save actual lives not do mumbo jumbo psycho crap."

"Oh right," Scorpius muttered, he'd completely forgotten hearing that.

"And my wife left me this morning so forgive me for wanting a drink, this makes five ex-wives for me," Hogan continued and raised his glass, "Now who are you to criticize me? Some upstart adolescent who starts hassling a guy who was just casually minding his own business because you think you know everything?"

"Look, I just…" Scorpius started to say awkwardly, after all that he thought it would be bad to leave without his original questions answered, "I just wondered if you were close to your brother."

"He was my twin, of course I was close to him," Hogan scoffed irritably and Scorpius took a breath.

"Well to cut a long story short, an Auror called Cel Rooke used Legilimency on me and I saw some of his memories. One of which involved your brother and he didn't seem to like Rooke, Harry Potter said it was just part of his insanity but I still wondered if there was any truth to his suspicions and if Rooke could really be a bad guy. So… Do you know anything about it?"

"Yes, I do," Hogan confirmed, looking somewhat intrigued and Scorpius watched him interest as he sipped his Butterbeer but the elder man didn't elaborate.

"Care to share?"

"Why would I tell you?" Hogan demanded as he raised an eyebrow, "I don't think I like you, kid who likes my idiot nephew."

"Well clearly you like the sound of your own voice or you wouldn't still be talking," Scorpius stated testily and Hogan laughed.

"Very true, good comeback," Hogan offered as he leaned back and took a breath of his own, "Okay, so Mr and Mrs Rooke was this wizard and his muggle wife who ran a sweet shop in this small hamlet, they were your regular decent, boring people. Celestine Rooke is their one and only child and shortly after he graduated Hogwarts, they were murdered in their home by the Killing Curse. They weren't robbed so it wasn't for money, they couldn't find anyone with motive to want them dead so they thought they'd been killed by fragments of Death Eaters still in hiding since she was a muggle and by their logic he was a blood traitor."

"Logan didn't think that though?"

"No, he didn't," Hogan confirmed with a shake of the head, "He thought the killer was someone they knew because there wasn't much sign of a struggle, they didn't put up a fight. The bodies had also been treated with respect, the killer had closed their eyes and repositioned their limbs not at whatever angle the body would've landed at. He also thought the son was suspicious, thought something was off about him. He suspected Celestine had secretly resented his parents and murdered them but still felt some degree of remorse, the others thought he was innocent though and just a poor orphan who wanted justice.

"Logan couldn't prove a damn thing but he was sure of it and was determined to nail him when he could get proof, of course no one believed him with proof because they were taken in with the pretty boy and Potter taking him under his wing as his protégé didn't help. It was only after that Logan started seeing things, he thought this evil darkness was stalking him and he thought that Celestine was in league with it. And not just because he was crazily paranoid!" Hogan paused to yell defensively, glaring at Scorpius as if he expected him to argue the point, "Celestine saw the darkness too but pretended not to, taunted him about it. It was his word against Celestine's though and they don't side with the person they think is insane."

"Didn't he go insane though?"

"Did he?" Hogan questioned and leaned forward to lower his voice, "Logan though there was a darkness stalking him, what does that sound like to you?"

"I don't-"

"He finally got suspended for gouging out a man's eyes because he was trying to save him from the darkness because the darkness would go into their eyes," Hogan interjected and Scorpius got chills as he was reminded of something, "What does that sound like to you? What in our present day lives do we know makes someone's eyes go dark? What's another word for darkness? Blackness? Murkiness? Or shadows. I think Logan stumbled into something he shouldn't have and they drove him to suicide to silence him, drove him mad first to make sure no one would believe a single word he said."

"That is… an interesting theory," Scorpius admitted, if he was right then Rooke was definitely the Shadow but on the other hand... there was no way to tell since Logan was the one to see it and Hogan was very clearly biased so could very well be desperately clinging to the belief that his brother's death had more reason, "But how can you be sure?"

"I can't," Hogan grunted irritably, "Got no proof, do I? And thanks to Flan, Logan's not even around to fight his own corner and clear his good name. Damn I hate that boy."

"You know he's an adult now, right? He has a wife and two kids."

"I know," Hogan insisted as he took another swig of his drink, "I just don't care. Thirteen or thirty, he's still a boy. A weak, stupid boy who let my brother die."

"You're an asshole, you know that?" Scorpius complained of him as he sipped his Butterbeer.

"Least I'm honest," Hogan shrugged as he downed the last of his glass before looking rather dejected, "I miss my brother."

---

Xerxes thought a lot about the conversation with his mother and what she'd asked of him, he did some sleuthing and found out she was telling the truth. About everything. She did have a terminal disease of the mind and would suffer a slow death, she also did have a second son with a muggle. He did have another half-brother. He wanted to meet his brother but first, he really had to deal with his mother. He went to see her again but the next meeting was not so productive, he walked through the door and she stared at him blankly.

"Do I know you?" Hecate had questioned of him, raising an eyebrow.

"It's me, Xerxes, your firstborn son," Xerxes insisted and she giggled like a school girl.

"Don't be silly, I'm not old enough to have an adult. But if you want, we can try make a son if you catch my drift," Hecate offered with a seductive wink, Xerxes walked out on her in disgust while she had a coughing fit behind him, "Wait!"

His next two visits didn't go any better, the second time she seemed to think she was a child and the third she seemed to know better but not remember their prior conversation so they had to go through it again then she forgot halfway through. Xerxes decided that he could understand why she wanted to die, he certainly wouldn't want to live like that. But still… She was his mother, a terrible, abysmal mother that he couldn't even be mad at because her mind was going as she slowly died. It was frustrating.

"Have you come to kill me, Xerxes?" Hecate queried of him curiously at his next visit.

"So you know who I am?" Xerxes wondered suspiciously.

"Yes… Why? Have you seen him in between these times when I was not having a good day?"

"Err… Yeah," Xerxes admitted and she sighed heavily before coughing as he came over to her, "But I'm not going to kill you."

"Oh come on, now you're just being cruel."

"Well you were cruel to me!"

"I'm sorry," Hecate offered in the most insincere tone, "Well not for leaving but I'm sorry you're such a baby about it."

"I hate you," Xerxes spat.

"Then be a man and kill your mother."

"Maybe I will," Xerxes snapped but immediately regretted it, Hecate looked hopeful, "But you wouldn't want to live a little bit longer first? Try to catch up, maybe meet your grandsons."

"Why would I want to do that?" Hecate scoffed as if it was the stupidest suggestion she'd ever heard.

"You're supposed to care about your children!" Xerxes yelled at her furiously, feeling tears pricking his eyes again, "You're supposed to care!"

"I do care, I just care about myself more. I told you," Hecate told him unapologetically and Xerxes angrily grabbed the pillow from out beneath her head, "You're going to kill me with a pillow? Why not just a quick Killing Curse?"

"If you want me to kill you then I get to kill you whatever way I want so shut up!"

"Fine, smother me then," Hecate agreed with a roll of her eyes, she sighed and leaned back. Her faded violet eyes met his and she smiled as her eyes fluttered close, "You're a good son, Xerxes."

"Yes, yes I am a good son," Xerxes choked on the words and felt his voice cracking as he pushed the pillow over her face, "And you and Dad never appreciated it. I'm the best."

He'd never killed someone before, he knew the Soul Eaters did which was exactly why he didn't want to use the Killing Curse they frequented. It was his mother, it was more personal. He held in place and she didn't fight back, she didn't struggle at all. She just let death take her, he didn't know how long he held the pillow there or how long was necessary to kill. He was lost in thought, thinking of the pitifully few memories he had of his mother and even more memories without her, that she should have been there for but wasn't because she didn't care. When he moved the pillow away, she was dead.

He'd killed his own mother like she'd wanted because he was a good son and he hoped she was in hell for not appreciating that, he hoped his father would join her. How dare they not appreciate him or recognize his brilliance, he was such a great person. If they didn't care then it was their loss because he was a far better person then they were. He wiped his eyes and put the pillow back, letting Hecate's lifeless head lay back down on it and tucking her in with the threadbare blanket, the way better mothers then her did to their children. She almost looked like she was sleeping, except she drew no breath and the world seemed suddenly so silent. Slowly and sadly, Xerxes turned and walked away like she had done to him. He hoped have better luck with his half-brother, Pyrrhus Florian.

---

Scorpius had a lot to think about unexpectedly from his chance encounter with Hogan Leebin, he didn't even mind Cistro's extensive search of things because he was so lost in thought. Rooke was high-ranking in the Auror department, if he was a Shadow then he may very well be a high-ranking one, maybe even the third of the Shadow Master's Lieutenants. But on the other hand, the half-drunk vehement ramblings of a man dedicated to his insane, suicidal brother were not the most reliable sources of information.

"Hey," an unfamiliar voice barked at him as he neared the exit to Hogsmeade, Scorpius jumped in surprise and turned expecting to see a disguised Varanian but he didn't. Instead he saw Lenore's uncle, the former Death Eater John Avery. He had a strange scar down his face now though and looked more tired and gaunt then the last time Scorpius had seen him, did he have a twin too? "You're Michael Sanford's friend, right?"

"Err… Yeah," Scorpius admitted, feeling rather suspicious and letting one hand drift inconspicuously to his wand, "What's it to you?"

"Where is he? I need to find him."

"Tell me why."

"Tell me where he is first," John countered and Scorpius sighed in frustration.

"Good luck finding him without me," Scorpius offered and turned on his heel, hoping this would actually work.

"I just need to give me a message, okay?"

"A message?" Scorpius repeated dubiously as he turned back to him, "Why is a former Death Eater of the infamous Avery family trying to give my muggle-born friend a message?"

"Are you going to tell me where he is or not?" John asked irritably, "If you want to play the game then you have to take your turn as well."

"He's in Hogwarts, he doesn't like Hogsmeade and he didn't want to come," Scorpius told him truthfully and John muttered a curse before whipping out his own wand along with an envelope, he waved his wand over it, "So wh-"

"Fine then, give this to him," John interrupted and shoved the small envelope to him, "It's a note from his mother, just pass it along. And don't bother trying to be nosy because I just charmed it, to read the contents he must tap it with his wand and say his grandfather's name."

Scorpius opened his mouth to say something more but the former Death Eater disapparated without another word, he scowled at the blank paper and fiercely wished he knew Michael's grandfather's name. Now he had two strange occurrences to think about, why was John Avery delivering letters for a muggle and was Cel Rooke a Shadow.