Chapter Eight: Spies

November arrived with a chill in the air. Three Ravenclaws and a Hufflepuff had vanished one night. Roxy increased the amount of Quidditch practices and Rose was getting annoyed at the lack of results she was finding. Hope and SS were growing concerned as they watched her friend pull away, just like she did last year.

"Hey, boys. Do you guys know where Rose is?" Hope asked her two friends as they approached the Great Hall. She was waiting for them, like always, with her arms crossed.

"No, why?" Al responded, straightening his tie.

"I haven't seen her since Astronomy. She said she was busy but she hasn't come to dinner yet. She's late. Rose is never late," Hope explained, worry clouding her voice.

"I'll find her. She's probably at the library," SS assured his black haired friend and turned around. He walked down the hall and pushed open the heavy oak doors. Madame Heydt gave him a sharp look but he just smiled and walked down the numerous shelves of books.

SS approached their table at the back of the library, finding Rose. She had a bunch of notes spread across the table along with high stacks of books. She seemed frantic. SS wondered how long she'd been here and if she even knew the time.

"Hey," SS called out softly. Rose jumped and looked up, eyes sparkling with fear. When she saw it was SS she visibly relaxed.

"Oh, SS, hi," she sighed and sank back into her chair, snapping her book shut and shoving it in her bag. "What do you want?"

"I was wondering if you were okay. It's dinner time and you're late," SS told her and sank down into one of the four chairs. Rose glanced away and flipped through her notes.

"Oh, I'm fine, just fine," she muttered and pushed a piece of red hair behind her ear.

"Really?" SS asked, laughing slightly. Rose glared at him with her sharp golden eyes. "I'm just saying, you seem stressed."

"I'm not stressed," Rose snapped. SS raised a white eyebrow and smirked slightly. "I'm just…worried."

"About what?" SS asked.

"All the students who are missing. The fact that my cousin James is being a tool. We haven't heard from Albany since the European Cup. Plus, our crazy magic that I still don't know anything about," Rose ranted.

"Right," SS groaned. "Well, look on the bright side. We're all still here. And we're almost halfway done the semester!" Rose just looked at him. "Come on! Get excited!"

"Why? We have so much to do and so much to figure out. Like our magic or all the disappearing students and I can't even begin to understand what my ancestry means!" Rose exclaimed.

"What was that last part?" SS inquired, his laughter gone. Rose's eyes widened, realizing what she just said. Quickly, she stood up and shoved her books and notes in her bag.

"Nothing. Nothing what so ever," Rose spit out and started walking away. SS reached out and grabbed her wrist.

"Rose," he said, completely serious, gray eyes piercing. "What's wrong?" She swallowed and opened her mouth. But then, at the last minute, she clammed up, yanked her wrist away, and walked out of the library, leaving SS alone at the table. He sighed. "Nice talking with you."

Rose stalked down the hallway and flung herself into a broom closet. Now that she was alone, she let everything out. Her tears dampened her robes as she sobbed on her knees. Agony, pain, fear, and worry all poured out of her. What was she going to do? She had no idea what her ancestry meant. She was terrified that it meant that she had an enemy who would never stop hunting her. She was fearful that Albany would win and she would end up in a grave next to Aunt Muriel.

As Rose cried out in worry and fear her hands began to glow. She didn't notice it, too busy in her own mind. But soon the blue light became too much for her to ignore. She glanced down and nearly jumped out of her own skin.

It was happening again, the crazy magic that had manifested on Halloween night. But what did it mean? Magic without a wand was something that even the most skilled wizards struggled with. She was just a twelve-year-old kid. And yet, even as she stared in disbelief at her glowing hands, the light got brighter until Rose was forced to look away. A sizzling sound reached her ears and she opened her eyes. The cleaning supplies that Miss. Overby, the Hogwarts caretaker, had in the closet was burnt to a crisp.

Rose sucked in a deep breath that smelled of ash and slowly left the broom closet. No one was in the halls so she snuck down the hallway into the Great Hall where dinner was commencing. Still shaken from her incident in the closet, she didn't notice that everyone at her table had gone quiet.

Emmet glanced at Rose with worry. His friend looked shell-shocked. She numbly spooned some mashed potatoes onto her plate. Gradually, the table started talking again.

"Rose?" Emmet whispered and nudged the red head. She elbowed him in the gut.

"Don't touch me," she snapped and grabbed the butter dish.

"Okay. Sorry. Are you okay? You look a little…stunned. Did you already hear about Mackenzie?" Emmet asked cautiously and gently. Rose's head snapped up and she looked at the sand blond haired boy with worry.

"No. What about her?" Rose demanded.

"She's gone. Left right after class. Disappeared just like all the others," Emmet answered.

"No," Rose sighed. "Oh no. Do you know where she went?" Emmet shook his head.

"No, I don't. But I think some of the other students do. They just won't tell me," Emmet replied and glared at some of the older students. Rose frowned slightly, then stood up. She had an idea. "What are you doing?"

"I need to go. I have to talk to my friends," Rose said and began to walk towards the door. As she left, she caught all of her friend's eye and nodded towards the door. They got the message and got up to follow her.

"But you haven't even eaten anything!" Emmet called after Rose. She didn't respond and headed out into the hall. Emmet sighed and went back to his broccoli.

"Mackenzie is gone. She left after class," Rose told her friends as they all sat at their table in the back of the library.

"So? Lots of students have been leaving," SS responded.

"Like Rachel. She left after class as well," Hope added bitterly. Al reached out and placed his hand on her. She shrugged it off. Rachel was no longer her friend. She had turned cold and distant and then she left. Hope didn't care if she never came back. "So, why is Mackenzie so much more important than the rest?"

"Because Emmet told me that some of the other students know where she went and where the others went as well. Plus, she and Rachel are the first second years to leave. Everyone else who left was either in third year or higher," Rose explained.

"That means it's safe, right?" Al interrupted, chewing on his thumbnail in nervousness.

"No necessarily," Rose replied.

"You have an idea," Hope suddenly said, looking at Rose. "Why am I worried?"

"We need people who the other kids trust. Someone they'd be willing to share information to. Someone who would then be willing to share that information with us," Rose explained.

"Spies. You want us to get spies," SS sighed.

"Who?" Al asked, shocked. Spying felt wrong to him. Who on earth would do such a thing?

"Twyla and Ferna. They're loyal to us but can get into other groups, right?" Rose suggested, looking at SS and Hope with her eyebrows raised.

"Sure, I can ask Ferna. She's really nice," SS put in. Rose's jaw tightened for a moment before she nodded. Then she looked at Hope who was staring at the ceiling.

"I'll ask her. But don't expect her to agree," Hope replied and stood up. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm still hungry."

"Here," Al called after her and pulled a paper bag out of his book bag. "Cookies?"

"Awesome!" Hope laughed and took the bag.

"Alright, let's go get some spies," Rose declared and the group left the library, ready to tackle their next challenge.

"No," Twyla said simply and shoved a cookie in her mouth. Hope glared and snatched her bag filled with backed goods from Al back.

"Why?" Hope demanded.

"Because I don't care if a bunch of students are leaving. It just means I have less annoying people to deal with," Twyla responded and reached for another cookie. Hope smacked her hand.

"No spying, not cookies," Hope growled. Twyla rolled her eyes.

"Why don't you ask Rachel?" she asked, annoyed.

"Don't you know?" Hope wondered.

"Know what?" Twyla snapped.

"No one's seen Rachel all day. All her things are gone as well as one of the school brooms. She left," Hope informed her Slytherin friend. Twyla froze for a moment before she shrugged.

"So? I don't care," she said and shrugged. But Hope could detect the lie. Twyla cared very much.

"Fine. I guess you can't do it anyway," Hope sighed and slipped off of Twyla's bed. She headed back towards her own bed and stuffed a cookie in her mouth.

"Say I do you the favor. If I'm caught I'm not going down alone," Twyla suddenly said as she too stood up. Hope paused and turned around.

"Meaning?"

"You'll come down with me," Twyla explained simply, hiding the threat with toneless words. Hope thought for a moment before she nodded.

"Seems fair," she replied and extended her hand. "Shake on it."

"You know that second years can't do unbreakable vows, right?" Twyla asked.

"I know. But shaking hands still symbolizes an agreement," Hope told her. Twyla shrugged and extended her own hand. As the pale and dark skin touched a small green spark singed their palms. Both girls winced and pulled back.

"What was that?" Twyla demanded.

"No idea," Hope confessed and twisted her hand over. Nothing had changed. But then Twyla made a startled noise. "What?"

"Look at this," she told the pale girl and extended her dark palm once again. A pale scar in the shape of snake was cut into her skin. "Did you do that?"

"No," Hope insisted. Then she began to wonder if she had. Her magic had been recently become unpredictable, often causing disastrous results recently. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine. Kind of cool, actually," Twyla admitted. The scar then faded, as if it had never been there at all. "See? No harm done. I'll figure out what I can. But don't expect fast results. Everyone knows that you and I are sorta friends."

"I know. I also know that you'll succeed," Hope told her sorta friend. Twyla rolled her eyes and walked out the door of their bedroom. Hope sighed in relief. She hadn't been sure she would be able to convince Twyla to help her. But she had been confident. She just hoped her friends were faring the same.

"Of course I'll help," Ferna told SS happily the next day.

"Really?" SS asked his friend in disbelief as she practiced the stunning spell on the dummy across the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom.

"Of course. We're friends. Besides, I think I already know some stuff. Tristan Luff constantly flirts with me during Charms and keeps telling all this boring stuff about a better place. He wants to leave Hogwarts and he wants me to come with him. EXPELLIARMUS!" Ferna yelled and the thin wand flew out of the dummy's hand.

"Thanks Ferna. You're the best," SS told his friend. She turned and stuck out her hand.

"Let's shake on it," she said. SS extended his hand and as his pale palm hit her tan one a red spark lit up and hurt their skin. "Ow!"

"Oh Merlin, Ferna, I'm sorry," SS apologized, fearing it was his fault. Ferna didn't say anything. Instead she stared at her palm where a white scar in the shape of a lion was disappearing into her skin.

"How did you do that?" she whispered in awe.

"I have no idea," SS admitted. Ferna stared at him for a moment before she turned back to disarming the dummy. They didn't say a word to each other for the rest of class.