Thank you again to everyone who reviewed. I loved all of the feedback, especially the constructive criticism. Believe it or not, you really helped to change the next few chapters. I am, however, sorry that this chapter took so long to post; my summer job has been very time consuming.

On a side note, I'm sorry that so many of you find Colin annoying. He plays a big part in this story, but I'd like to think that he's not that same annoying character thanks to a little intervention from the monks. But more on that later.

Chapter 6: Lessons Learned

"Acid Pops" Snape said coldly to the gargoyle, who sprang to the side and revealed the moving spiral stone staircase up to Dumbledore's office. He rapped gently on the door using the brass knocker as a formality, but did not wait for the headmaster's invitation into the room.

"Severus, thank you for coming so quickly." The aged headmaster sat at his desk, painfully rubbing his blackened hand. Had he not been so stubborn and admitted to the potions master that he was in pain earlier, this foolishness could have been avoided.

Wordlessly, Snape pulled out a vial and handed it over to Dumbledore, who downed it in one gulp. "Next time, I would suggest you inform me of any discomfort sooner."

"We both know there will not be many more next times." The words circulated around the room carefully. "Now, what were the results of your meeting with Voldemort?"

"I wouldn't call it a meeting so much as a mind-numbing tour de force through my memories."

Dumbledore's eyebrows lifted slightly in interest. "Did he find anything interesting?"

Snape shook his head. "I was able to hide all of my altered memories."

"So you too found that your memories had been altered?"

"Just bits and pieces, certain details. I found one memory that was significantly damaged."

"And what about Voldemort?"

"He merely said that he was checking my memories because the damage to Wormtail's memories was extensive. He wanted to see if he could probe a Legilimans to pinpoint the damage."

Dumbledore began stroking his beard in contemplation. "The extent of the damage must have to do with the amount of time he spent with Harry in his animagus form."

"That is what I assumed as well," Snape said as he stood up. "Now, if you will excuse me I have my first Defence class in the morning."

With Snape's back to him, Dumbledore asked one last question. "Which memory did you find affected?"

"It has nothing to do with the boy."

..::..

Because Professor McGonagall, acting as headmaster given this Heir of Slytherin mess, had just convened a meeting on the decision to close the school not but three hours ago, most of the staff did not expect that they would need to leave the safety of their offices to return to the staff room so soon. However, that was the situation that they now found themselves in.

"I'm sorry to call you back here, but Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley have gone missing. Lockhart went with them, leaving a note that he was returning them to the dormitories before going into the Chamber of Secrets. However, I believe it to be more likely that Potter and Weasley found the Chamber and decided to take Lockhart with them."

"So, do we go and rescue the three of them before they die?" Snape asked grimly. Some staff members shot him looks, but he was used to it. Being the head of Slytherin house at times like this was not exactly the most rewarding job, and there was no point in beating around the bush about the stupidity of all three parties involved.

"No Severus, we can't," McGonagall replied disappointedly, pacing furiously around the room.

"Not unless you know how to get in the chamber yourself?" Flitwick asked in that conceited manner. No one in this room, save the bloody ghost, had been in this castle longer than Flitwick, and yet he had the nerve to intimate that somehow Snape knew where the chamber was and how to get inside.

"As I have said before, I don't know anything pertinent to this particular problem," Snape responded harshly. "But why are you calling this meeting if you have no solutions in mind?"

"Percey Weasley informed me that he owled his parents and informed them of Ginny's disappearance. I have also taken some precautionary measures myself; Dumbledore will be here shortly." A happy gasp went through the room. "If anyone knows what to do, it's him."

As though on cue, a burst of flames sprang forth from nowhere. Dumbledore himself stepped out of the flames, and though the situation was dire, he seemed steadfast and determined. Fawkes was gently hovering behind him, ready to carry out any command. "Good to see you all again, though I wish it was under better circumstances," he said with an inappropriate chuckle.

"I must ask that everyone expect for Severus and Minerva go to the dormitories. Please reassure the students that everything is safe."

"Are they?" Sprout asked nervously.

"I trust that everything will be fine. Please go now." At his word, every member of staff, save the three, had gone. McGonagall seemed slightly displeased by Dumbledore's decision to allow Snape to stay, though she said nothing. Dumbledore then turned around to face his phoenix. "Fawkes, I am not allowed to return to my office. You know what to do my friend." The phoenix sang softly and disappeared in the same brilliant flames.

"Why did you request that we stay behind?" Snape asked, airing the question that McGonagall kept on the tip of her tongue. "Shouldn't we be with the students, as their heads of house?"

Dumbledore nodded and walked out the door, motioning for his colleagues to follow. "I'm afraid that I have more difficult tasks for you to attend to. Minerva, am I correct in assuming that you have contacted the Weasleys?"

"Of course I have headmaster."

"Good. Then we shall use the fireplace in your office to bring them to the castle. Then they will assist us in defeating this heir of Slytherin."

"How will we find him?" Snape asked.

"Fawkes is finding Harry now. If Harry is holding his own, then we have nothing to worry about. If Harry is failing to do so, then Fawkes will return to me and teleport all of us to the Chamber to assist him."

Snape nodded gravely as they turned into McGonagall's office. Dumbledore swiftly picked up a pinch of floo powder and threw it into the fire, announcing, "The Burrow." He put his head into the emerald flames and asked, "Hello, is anyone there? Arthur? Molly?"

"Yes Dumbledore, we're here. Do you have any news on Ginny?" Arthur asked frantically, in stark contrast to the calmness Dumbledore was exuding.

"I'm afraid not. In fact, what I have to say should be done in person." There was silence on the other end as Dumbledore withdrew his head from the fireplace. Shortly thereafter there was a flash of green in the fireplace, signalling the arrival of Arthur. Another flash preceded Molly's entrance. However, Snape was not expecting the third flash and the child that stepped out. She had very un-Weasley, long black hair and blue eyes. Her face and body shape reminded Snape of something distant, though he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"Ah, good to finally meet you, Miss Potter," Dumbledore said as he shook the girl's hand. Snape looked at the child's face again and this time saw Lily's face, minus the eyes and hair of course. This girl looked nearly the same as one he had met all those years ago.

"Are we here to save Ginny?" she asked carefully.

Dumbledore looked over her head to the Weasleys, whose expressions mirrored the child's question. "There is a rescue party already down there."

"Who?" she asked; a fairly simple question begging a complex answer. Her blue eyes met Dumbledore's own, a never-ending competition of brightness. His expression, however, betrayed his inner thoughts. One didn't need to be a Legilimens to see that he wasn't sure whether to tell the girl the truth and risk her worrying about her brother, or lie and allow her to fret about her friend. "It's Harry, isn't it?" she asked somewhat knowingly.

Surprised by her intuition, he calmly said, "Your brother and her brother managed to find the Chamber and are down there right now with my phoenix. They should be back soon." The Weasleys tensed at this knowledge, but appeared comforted that someone was down there already.

The girl's face though broke into a panic. Tears welled up in front of the bright blues, and she asked, "Are Ron and Ginny and Harry going to be alright?"

The elder wizard placed both of his hands on the girl's shoulders. "Dawn, I promise that they will all come back alive." She nodded and wiped the tears out of her eyes. "Now, why don't you go with Professor Snape down to the dungeon? I need to talk to the Weasleys about something private."

"I beg your pardon," Snape began, affronted by his role of babysitter in the day's events, "but shouldn't Professor McGonagall be the one to look after the child? She is better suited for the job, after all."

"Severus, I'm afraid that Professor McGonagall is still acting headmistress and must remain here. You know what you need to do." He then nodded towards the door.

Snape grabbed the girl by the hand and dragged her out the door with him. He did know what he needed to do: keep the girl occupied and safe. That didn't mean either of them had to enjoy it however. "Listen Potter, I need you to stay close to me and do exactly as I say. If I point somewhere and say run, you run. If I say hide, you hide. Are we clear?"

"Yes sir," she replied. Thankfully, he was able to get her to the dungeon rather quickly. Once they were in safely, he barricaded the door using a few spells and contentedly sat at his desk. His gaze repeatedly bounced from the door to the girl, who was satisfied to just stare at him.

"What do you want?"

"Nothing." Yet her stare still refused to leave him. Her eyes were not the same brilliant emerald green, but they shared Lily's distinct piercing quality.

"It's not nothing, is it?"

"No. Can I ask you a question?"

"You already have."

"Er, right." She sheepishly flipped her hair with her left hand. "Can you tell me about the Dementors?"

Had Snape been drinking any liquid, he easily would have spit it out in shock. Had she just asked that very question? "What do you want to know about them?" he calmly asked, exaggerating each syllable to hide his surprise.

"Well, would they give this Heir of Slytherin the Kiss?"

"Yes they probably will if they catch him." Snape saw the girl writhing her hands around uncomfortably. "What else do you want to know about them?"

"Um, what do they do to kids who accidently use magic outside of school?"

"Are you asking what they do to eleven year old girls that accidently use magic without a wand?"

Her expression quickly turned to worry. Her eyes widened, her jaw dropped slightly, and her bottom lip began to quiver. It was an uncanny resemblance. "What do they do?"

"Nothing. They won't punish you unless you use a wand. Then they send you a letter and ask you not to ever do it again."

She seemed relieved and began to wander around the room. She was amazed by the cauldrons at the desks. Just like Lily on their first day at Hogwarts. He could even hear the question that she asked that day, as though it were yesterday.

"Do you really put 'eye of newt and toe of frog' in these things?" Yes, just like it was yesterday. But, the child was laughing as though she just told a joke. Aloud.

"What did you just say?"

"Oh, sorry, I just made a joke."

"Potter, what's your name?"

"Dawn."

Snape got up from his desk, which apparently startled her. "You know, your mother made the same exact joke her first day in this dungeon."

Her eyes widened again, mirroring the topic of conversation. "Really?"

"Yes. She was also scared of Dementors coming to take her away for accidental magic."

"Wow."

"You look like her too," he said, pointing out her figure in a mirror on the wall.

"No, I don't. I've seen Harry's pictures. I don't have her hair or eyes or anything."

"You have her face. And more importantly you have her mannerisms. It's uncanny."

She turned away from the mirror. "Really? My Aunt Petunia never said that."

"Your Aunt Petunia wouldn't know. She never watched your mother's face. She just watched the others, and their perceptions of her."

Dawn giggled a little at his factual statement. "You're funnier than my brother said."

"Oh really. What else did he say?"

"He said that you were mean and didn't like him. But I don't always like him either, so I think I understand."

"You also have your mother's ability to see the good in the people."

"Thanks." She paused. "Is Harry going to be alright?"

"I have faith that he will survive this ordeal," he replied dismissively, instead of reassuringly. He began to walk back towards his desk, but he was struck by an idea. "Do you want to see what your mother looked like at your age?"

She nearly jumped out of the dungeon at that question. "You have a picture of her? Can I see it? Can I see it? Can I see it? Can I see it?" Her enthusiasm was…annoying.

"No, I don't have a picture. Just stare at the mirror." She did as she was told. Snape pulled out his wand and slowly changed the long black hair to Lily's more familiar wavy red hair. "Now for the eyes."

"No!" she yelled, running her fingers through her hair. "I know what her eyes look like. I don't need to see."

Snape nodded and put his wand away. He could see so clearly the girl that he went to Hogwarts with in miniature. Perhaps they didn't share her eyes, but everything else screamed Lily: her demeanour, her expression, her vocabulary, and now her appearance.

Absentmindedly, he walked over to his desk and unlocked a drawer he had never opened in the presence of a student. The only thing in it was Lily's wand, given to him by Dumbledore. He kept it as a reminder of his friend, and of his terrible mistake. Whenever his role as a double, or triple, agent became too difficult, he would look at the wand and think about its owner, the woman that might have lived another day had he made a better decision.

For the first time in years, he pulled out the willow wand and walked back to Lily's daughter. "This was your mothers wand. I was with her the day she picked it out, and I'm sure she'd want you to have it." She picked it up eagerly and flashed that same smile that he had seen nearly twenty years before. "Give it a wave." She flicked the wand eagerly and, surprisingly, nothing broke or exploded. "Do it again." She flicked the wand again, and again nothing happened. "What do you feel when you hold that wand?"

"Warm, I think," she said hesitantly. "What does that mean?"

"I think that means that this wand wants you to take it to Hogwarts."

"Really? I have my own wand?"

"Not just your own wand. Your mother's wand."

"Oh thank you!" she squealed, reaching forward to hug him. Snape had never been hugged by a student before, but when he looked down, he could only see the deceased love of his life, giving him one last embrace from beyond the grave.

..::..

Although nothing could be considered as dank and depressing as the dungeon Snape used to teach in, he had certainly tried his best to recreate the effect in this new classroom. Black drapes hung over the window to prevent students from accessing the outside world, a large stone chest stood at the front of the room, and no chairs were to be found anywhere. Several Slytherins and Gryffindors huddled in small groups around tables in confusion.

"Think anyone's tried to summon a chair?" Dawn asked Cassie while raising her wand.

"It won't work. This is Snape we're talking about."

"Accio chair," Dawn muttered. About a minute passed before she admitted defeat and put her wand in her pocket. "Don't say it."

"I won't," Cassie said smugly while walking up to an empty table. "Looks like we're sitting in twos in here."

"If he gives us chairs." Dawn scoffed.

"I can assure you, there are chairs Ms. Potter," Snape announced as he walked in the room. Waving his wand casually, two chairs appeared at every table. Looking down at the chair in front of her, Dawn saw her name clearly printed on it. "In this class, we will have assigned seating. You have been paired with someone of equal duelling ability. Find your seats now."

While Dawn sat casually at the seat in front of her (which, she was embarrassed to say was right in the middle of the first row, the perfect place to receive the brunt of Snape's criticism), there was a mad dash for other students to find their seat. Cassie was next to find her seat, which was next to one of the Carrow twins, Flora maybe. A pattern began to emerge, with nearly every Gryffindor paired with a Slytherin, though she was sure it was not coincidental.

"Hullo Dawn," a faux sweet voice next to her said. Dawn smiled back at Astoria Greengrass in an equally fake manner, though she didn't think the blond witch was expecting anything less. "I suppose this is the one area in which we're equals. Don't get used to it."

"I hope you don't."

"Quiet everyone," Snape commanded in his usual subdued tone. "It is unfortunate that you have gotten this far into your studies at Hogwarts with such limited knowledge of the Dark Arts. You should by this point be ready to begin preparing for your O.W.L.s. Instead, you hardly have two years of practical experience under your belt.

"However, we do not learn defence for an exam. We learn defence because there is a war going on out there. Many of you will be drawn into this war, perhaps because of your birth." Snape's eyes darted to Cassie and Flora's table. "Perhaps because of your family." His eyes then settled on Dawn and Astoria. It seemed that Astoria was more uncomfortable at the suggestion than Dawn was though.

"When it comes to magic, it doesn't matter which side you fight for: you will need to defend yourself."

Snape flicked his wand at a pile of parchments on his desk. They began to fly towards their respective authors. "Now, during your third year you wrote many essays. But this is not adequate preparation for the real world."

Dawn snatched her essay out of the air and unrolled the parchment. It was one that she had written for Umbridge last year on Boggarts. Although there was a big red T in her handwriting, Snape apparently re-read the essay and gave it an A instead.

"In front of you are essays you wrote on Boggarts last year. Ordinarily, fighting an actual Boggart is a second year activity. Instead, you will be doing it today. You all assumed what form your Boggart will take and how you could defeat using the Riddikulus charm, and I graded your essays based on the strength of your assumption."

Glancing at the A in front of her, Dawn could only assume that Snape did not agree that a Boggart would take the form of Harry's dead body in front of her or that she could defeat it by imagining the body tap dancing against its will. She looked quickly around the room to see other's reactions to this comment. Some people gave knowing nods, others had questioning looks on their face. Cassie smirked while rerolling her parchment.

"Now, line up and you will face the Boggart one at a time. Should the person in front of you be unable to face their fear, I hope that you have the decency to step in front of them before they lose more than points or a grade."

Dawn purposely took a few moments to get in line so she could stand next to Cassie, though they found themselves towards the front. "What amused you so much during that speech?"

Cassie took out her essay and showed Dawn the T that Umbridge had written. It was then circled twice by Snape. "They didn't agree with my theory on Boggarts."

"Which is?"

"If you have no fear, than you will be able to defeat the Boggart faster than if you were just using the Riddikulus charm to induce laughter."

Dawn nodded slowly. "I can see how Snape would disagree with that."

Snape tapped the chest at the front of room. "We will begin now."

Astoria was the first in line. Hesitantly, she pulled out her wand as Snape opened up the chest. Although Dawn, and nearly everyone else, expected a creature to shoot out, a blond man calmly stepped out of the chest. He raised a wand at Astoria, revealing the Dark Mark on his wand arm.

"You're not my greatest fear!" Astoria screeched.

"I beg to differ," he said in a cold voice, inching his wand closer to Astoria's arm.

"Riddikulus!" she screamed, causing a loud crack to make the man stumble back onto his knees. When he rose to his feet again, his face was painted like a clown. This caused a surge in laughter from the class, which confused the Boggart.

"Five points to Slytherin. Next!"

Astoria walked back to her seat while Romilda took a step forward. Although they had lived in the same room for the past three years, she had no idea what Romilda's worst fear was. The clown stared at Romilda briefly, before changing into Harry with a large crack. Harry took a step forward to say something to her, but he was interrupted by a loud, "Riddikulus!" Dawn laughed the hardest when Harry's head popped like a zit.

"Ten points to Gryffindor," Snape said with a wry smile on his face. "Next!"

Flora swapped places with Romilda. Dawn had never taken the time to get to know the twins, though their continued association with Astoria made this prospect undesirable at best. However, her Boggart took an equally disturbing shape as Astoria's, as a figure was writhing in pain from a stout woman standing over her, firing curse after curse. Nearly hidden was another Dark Mark peaking out from her robes.

"Riddikulus!" Flora screeched, causing a loud crack to change the body into a Venus Fly Trap that swallowed the woman whole. An outburst of laughter stunned the Boggart briefly.

"Five points to Slytherin. Next!"

Dawn took a deep breath as she replaced Flora, who walked to the back of the line with tears in her eyes. She shut her eyes and anxiously opened them after hearing the loud crack. Fully expecting to see Harry in front of her, dying, she was taken aback when she saw herself standing in front of her, a mirror image.

The Boggart smiled at her before raising its arms, though no wand. Dawn was confused by this action, as she never saw herself particularly scary. But suddenly large gashes opened in her arms. Thick streams of blood ran down the Boggart's arms, with larger wounds opening up on its face and legs.

Feeling her knees go weak, Dawn collapsed to the ground, unable to even raise her wand. There were several whispers behind her, though they seemed further and further away with every passing second. The fake Dawn, whose arms were now drenched in blood, reached out to touch her.

When the Boggart was just close enough to touch her, Cassie pulled her friend back and stood in front of the figure. The Boggart paused for a second, but attempted to reach out to Cassie as well. Suddenly, there was a large crack and a pile of corpses appeared in front of Cassie, wearing robes from each of the four houses, their faces rotted away. Crack. The Boggart was Cassie herself, being hit by a killing curse and collapsing. Crack. The Boggart was a blond woman reaching forward with her finger. Crack. The Boggart was Lord Voldemort himself. Crack. Crack. Crack! A bright display of fireworks lit up the classroom, leaving everyone stunned.

Snape cleared his throat. "Five points from Gryffindor for failing to defeat the Boggart and ten points from Gryffindor for destroying the only Boggart I had procured for class. Class is dismissed, save Potter and Newton."

While the rest of class filed out quickly, throwing a few sympathetic glances to Dawn along the way, Cassie reached out and helped Dawn to her feet with a small smile. "Am I allowed to say it now?"

"Say what now?" Dawn asked while rubbing her head.

"I told you so."

Snape sat at his desk and wordlessly summoned their essays from out of their hands. "Miss Newton, you surprised me. I did not think you had enough courage to defeat a Boggart without the Riddikulus Charm. I shall change your grade to an E."

Cassie reached out to take her essay back, her hand shaking slightly. "So, you agreed with my theory?"

"You are not the only one that has accepted their greatest fear. Now please wait for Miss Potter outside." Cassie nodded, still somewhat shocked, and left the room.

"Now, Miss Potter, I had in fact assumed that your Boggart would not take the form of your dying brother. However, I did not think you would be this far off the mark."

"Neither did I," Dawn mumbled, staring at her hands instead of looking Snape in the eyes. Although she didn't care whether or not he read her mind at that exact moment, she didn't want him to see the residual tears.

"Did you even know that your greatest fear was bleeding out? Have you ever even been in danger of bleeding to death?"

"No, not that I remember. I don't know why it affected me that much."

"Very well. I will not change your grade, but I suggest that you allow Miss Newton to escort you to the hospital wing for a Pepper Up Potion. You are dismissed."

Dawn hurried out the room, dabbing her eyes with the corner of her sleeve. Outside the door, Cassie was waiting for her. "I suppose we have an hour before our next class thanks to you. Lots of time to talk."

Cassie nodded slightly and began to walk down the hallway. "You want to see if we can get an early lunch."

With a groan, Dawn took a few steps forward and stood in front of her friend. "I'd rather have that conversation now."

"Now's not a good time. Your brother's looking for you."

Groaning again, Dawn grabbed her friend by the arm and dragged her into the empty trophy room at the end of hallway. "Seriously, what's going on?"

"Nothing," Cassie sighed while wiping the dust off an old Quidditch trophy. "I really like that shirt."

"Snape just said that you accept your greatest fear, but it really looked like your greatest fear is yourself dying, among other nasty things. Last time I checked, that's not nothing."

"I don't know what you want me to say."

"The truth. Why do you have no fear? How did you know that those girls would get into Gryffindor?"

"Now's not the time," Cassie said as she walked towards the door. "Please trust me. You'll know everything soon."

"Then what am I supposed to know now?"

Abruptly, Cassie turned around and walked up towards Dawn. "You're supposed to know exactly what you know. Just like me. I don't know how we know. We just do." Though the words seemed harsh, her voice did not convey that. Her tone was just as soft and nonchalant as ever.

Dawn looked into her eyes and blinked slowly. "That makes no sense."

"Neither does life." Cassie turned around to walk away. "Happy belated birthday."

"My birthday's not for another seven weeks!" Dawn hollered after her, though this fell on deaf ears. "Wait for me!" But when she ran out of the hallway, Cassie was nowhere to be found. More confused than ever, Dawn had no better way to fill her time than to follow Snape's advice and go to the hospital wing.

..::..

Though the first day of classes ended without further incident, word of the fourth year's first Defence lesson still spread around the castle like wildfire. Although Dawn was quite sure that she was not the first person who failed to defeat her Boggart, several Slytherin boys still found it amusing to mime slitting their wrists in her presence to try getting a rise out of her. By the time Ancient Runes was over, Dawn just wanted to crawl into bed.

Unfortunately, things did not appear to be going according to plan when she entered the common room and saw Harry waving her over. "Dawn, I've been looking everywhere for you!"

"Oh yeah, Cassie told me. Sorry," Dawn replied as she took a seat on the sofa next to him. Surprisingly, Hermione and Ron were nowhere to be found, though the latter's absence could be explained by the snogging couple across the room that consisted of his sister and Dean Thomas.

"Cassie told you? I haven't seen her all day," Harry said confusedly.

"Oh. Never mind. What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong. I heard about what happened today."

Nothing's wrong? That was a lie, and she knew it. She was the sister of the Harry Potter, who could conjure a corporeal Patronus during his third year, who taught the rest of the castle defence as a fifth year, whose only fear was fear itself, and yet she could not defeat her Boggart. Of course something was wrong. "It caught me off guard is all."

"Boggarts always do. I just wanted to know if you were okay."

Dawn smiled at him. "Thanks, but I'm fine. I just wasn't expecting my worst fear to be so…gruesome."

"Well, I'm here for you if you need anything, emotional or educational" he said reassuringly, throwing his arm around her shoulder. For a moment, it was as though they were back under the stairs on Privet Drive, doing their best to hold their heads above the water, two orphans against the world.

"Thanks Harry." They sat there together for a few moments in silence, though it was quickly interrupted by Ron and Hermione.

"You certainly got that Quidditch notice up fast," Ron mumbled.

"Well, I just wanted to make sure everyone knew that every position is up for grabs. I want the best people trying out for every position," Harry replied with a nudge to Dawn.

"But my position?" Ron asked incredulously.

"Well yes, Keeper would be one of the three positions with spots up for grabs."

"But my position?"

"When are tryouts?" Dawn asked.

"In two weeks," Harry replied. "I really think you should go, I truly believe your one of the best people for the position."

"Okay, put my name on the list," Dawn said as she stood up from the sofa.

"Dawn, I really think you should…" Harry began imploringly, before fully comprehending what she said. "You'll do it?"

"If you want me there, I'll be there," Dawn said with a smile as she walked up the stairs to the dormitory.

"That was easier than I thought it would be," Harry admitted.

"Amazing where honesty will get you in life," Hermione angrily chided, storming up the stairs to her dormitory.

..::..

"Acid Pops," Snape growled to the gargoyle, which could not move to the side fast enough. Before the stairs had even stopped moving, Snape had opened the door and was staring Professor Dumbledore in the eyes.

"Severus, what brings you here so late at night?" the elder wizard asked, his tone indicating only a modicum of surprise.

"I have something to show you," Snape said as he calmly pressed his wand to his forehead and produced a memory. He dropped it into the Pensieve and watched Dumbledore dip his head into the stone basin.

Snape saw no reason to follow him in this recollection; the memory was hardly eight hours old. He had hundreds, if not thousands of memories of students failing in his class, but this one was just so peculiar. Never before had he seen someone so blindsided by their own worst fears. Perhaps alone, this would be unremarkable.

"I take it that this memory is from earlier today," Dumbledore stated as he pulled his head out of the Pensieve.

"Yes."

"Am I also to presume that the altered memory you found involves not Harry Potter, but Dawn instead?"

"Yes."

"Then I'm afraid this situation is more serious than I previously thought."

I'm sorry that this chapter is a little shorter than the rest, and that it took so long to produce. Really, I found myself struggling to both advance the plot and keep everything thematically consistent, so a lot of what I had planned just wasn't working. Overall, I'm fairly satisfied with the way this chapter turned out, but, as always, any and all feedback on this chapter is greatly appreciated.