Author's Note - How has it been 10 years since I started this story? I'm honestly in shock at how many people have stayed with the story and how many new readers I've gotten. For that I do thank you all! Now to speed up the pace and get to the important parts.

~Of Silver and Gold~

Chapter 63: Gossip, Mistrust, Visions

"Luna...do you really need to wear it?" Angel asked, trying not to be scared of the bird above Luna's head.

It would be Luna who had the bright idea of having a live eagle on her head to show her support for her own team. And it seemed no one in her dormitory thought it was weird? Angel had refused to have that bird next to her, yet there she was, holding Luna's signs as they walked through the grounds and towards the Quidditch Pitch.

"And are all these signs necessary?"

"Yes and yes" Luna replied firmly. "Neville refused to help me saying that he had to 'stick with his team' so now I am mad at him."

"Right" Angel smiled ignoring the snickers coming from other people as they walked by. "I'm assuming you're forgiving him as soon as this game ends?"

"Probably"

Both girls giggled and waved once they saw Harry and his friends chatting amongst one another. Walking towards them, she rolled her eyes as Luna huffed loudly signaling to Neville she was still upset. And as he tried to apologize, Angel ignored the looks as Harry kissed her cheek as a greeting.

"Are you really not going to cheer for my team?" Harry asked.

Angel shook her head. "Nope, I have no obligation as you are not on the team and.." she whispered softly. "I promised Luna I would sit with the stands for her so she won't be alone."

Smiling softly at him, and Harry knew he had little to say after that. So they promised to see each other after the game and with that she was grabbed by Luna and was pulled towards the stands while being scared of the eagle attacking her.

….

"And theyʹre off!" said Lee. "And Davies takes the Quaffle immediately, Ravenclaw Captain Davies with the Quaffle, he dodges Johnson, he dodges Bell, he dodges Spinnet as well... heʹs going straight for goal! Heʹs going to shoot ‐ and ‐ and ‐"Lee swore very loudly. "And heʹs scored."

"Yes!" Luna cheered as the eagle squawked over her head.

Angel flinched and laughed at how into the game the blonde was. If she was honest with herself, the love of Quidditch came solely because of Draco and later on, it was all because of Harry. She flushed at the thought of how men tended to bring up her interest in things.

"You're seriously into this aren't you?" Angel giggled.

"Of course I am." Luna clapped her hands and sat down. "But I always cheered the loudest for you"

Angel smiled softly and leaned against her friend. She even took her friend's scarf and wrapped it around her neck showing support for Ravenclaw which made Luna even more gleeful.

It was silly but the game for the most part was a good one and the Ravenclaws were doing amazing...and then it flipped. Gryffindor immediately began taking over the game and slowly her smile began to fizzle. Of course they were doing great, and...and surprisingly they were doing well because of the redhead. Ronald Weasley was amazing and she found herself almost pouting. He was a keeper and the opposite of her former position but she had to begrudgingly admit he was doing great.

"Ugh!" Luna said as the eagle dug her claws on her scalp before flying away. It was clear the eagle saw that the game was being lost by them. "This is so unfair!"

And suddenly, a song began to rise from the Gryffindor stands.

ʹWeasley can save anything, He never leaves a single ring, Thatʹs all sing: Weasley is our King.ʹ

Angel stood up leaning over the stands already ready to yell at the Slytherins who were doing the song. She was indignant at first for some reason feeling some loyalty towards the redhead. But it was then she noticed their confusion and they too looked around wondering where it was coming from.

"It's coming from the Gryffindor stands!" Luna exclaimed.

ʹWeasley is our King, Weasley is our King, He didnʹt let the Quaffle in, Weasley is our King...ʺ

Angel covered her mouth in shock; they had taken the song and flipped it around to benefit them. Luna gasped and slapped her hand in surprise, almost gleeful at the song ringing through the stands. Slowly Luna decided to follow along and sing along as well as Angel simply smiled.

ʹWeasley is our King, Weasley is our King, He didnʹt let the Quaffle in, Weasley is our King...ʺ

Rushing down the stands, they knew that the game was a loss for Ravenclaw and might as well have a good sense to support their friend. Both girls weren't surprised as she saw Neville waited for them excitedly tugging them along towards the rest of the Gryffindors. They were all cheering and so glad to see them win. And Ron - Ron was glowing brightly being carried over by everyone.

Seeing Luna, Neville and Angel smiling, he asked to be dropped. Immediately Luna rushed over to hug him and cheer him on great moves, he flushed in pride at the attention. Rushing over to Neville he slapped on his back and in his excitement he nearly hugged Angel, that is until he remembered who she was. Laughing, she stuck her hand out and they shook before she simply pulled him into a hug.

"We will not make this a norm" She muttered against his chest as he hugged her tightly flushing brightly himself.

"Right!" he cleared his throat. "Where are Hermione and Harry?"

As Angel moved away from his side, they walked through the group of people it was a question she was starting to ask herself. She knew that despite the bitter feelings that Harry had about no longer playing, he would be there for Ron, especially when he had played so well.

"I-I'm not sure where they are" she mumbled.

"They're probably getting something special for Ronald!" Luna chirped, gripping her hand.

Angel smiled and squeezed back knowing that Luna did not even want her to feel any jealousy towards Hermione. And she didn't - at least not anymore. If Cho was a sore subject, Hermione was once a thorn on her side. Hermione would always be his confidant, his best girl, and would always be on a pedestal to him. But that was okay, because she knew where she stood.

"You think Hermione would do that?" Ron asked.

Her eyes glittered at his comment. Another thing that she noticed was that the longer that she spent time with the Golden Trio, the more she realized that there was another friend that held Hermione in an even higher position: Ron. And he was completely oblivious, much to her amusement.

Wrapping her arm around his they began to walk towards the common room. She took four steps for every one that he took due to their height difference but she knew that the sooner she got him into the common room and gave him the attention he desired from others he would forget about the disappearance of Hermione and Harry.

"Of course they are Weasley, they are your biggest fans, especially Hermione"

The teasing tone in her voice made him flick down to face her squinting in suspicion that she was teasing him. And perhaps, yes she was in that instance, but it wasn't at his expense, not really. So as soon as they went to the Gryffindor common room, people surrounded Ron and she found herself disappearing to the background. Luna and Neville nodded in understanding as there was only so much time that they could stall before Ron would start asking again.

…

The party was in full swing and thankfully Ron had been distracted for about an hour. However at this point, he was asking where his best mates were and she didn't blame him. Opening the door, she was relieved to see Harry and Hermione rushing up the stairs. Placing her hands on her hips, Angel's stance stopped them right on their tracks. She would have truly been mad had it not been for their disheveled somewhat shocked expressions.

And before Harry could even open his mouth-

"I've been stalling for you two! Weasley has been asking for you nonstop. " she asked worriedly.

"Hagrid pulled us away" Harry began, "and we saw-"

"Forget what we saw, it doesn't matter." Hermione interrupted, clearly wanting to keep something from Angel, which did not please the Slytherin one bit.

"What is that supposed to mean?" she asked, getting defensive.

"Well" Harry began.

"It means that you don't need to know everything that happens" Hermione's eyes furrowed. "This is a promise that we have kept and you are not a part of it."

"I'm not asking because I'm being nosy." she squinted before frowning. "Don't you trust me?"

"No that's not what she said" Harry lifted his hands in defense. "I trust you."

"Of course you do Harry, that's not the issue. The issue is that despite all I've done for all of you, what side I've fought it, at the end of the day Granger clearly doesn't believe I am worth learning 'secrets'"

"Oh so we're back to Granger now?" Hermione's own voice rose.

"Now girls" Harry tried to intervene.

"Yes we're back to Granger since I'm clearly not a friend of yours. I'm just the damn girl that Harry keeps snogging in the common room. Isn't that right?"

"It's not that I don't trust you or that you're not my…..my friend" Hermione huffed her cheeks red with embarrassment. "We are going through a lot and if we told you everything that we saw it affects people who asked us to keep it a secret. And we promised we would"

Angel's eyes flared.

"Fine, that's fine. Keep your secrets...I don't care. Now I'm glad that I told Weasley that you have a surprise for him" she said as she began to walk away.

"What?" Harry grawped. "What do you mean surprise?"

"You heard me!" She yelled as she kept walking.

Harry in turn still not letting it go, leaned over and yelled back.

"Where do you think you're going?! You'll be alone."

"I want to be alone. Go have fun with your friends Harry, we'll talk later!"

He rubbed his forehead in frustration. They had not had a fight for a while and it seemed that once more Hermione was a cause of it.

"I'm sorry Harry, but Hagrid made us promise" Hermione frowned. "I'm sure you can make it right...don't you?"

"Yeah we'll be alright, we always are. I do wish that you would realize that she's on our side no matter how….hot headed she may be. Now let's figure out how to tell Ron that our 'surprise' will be late."

….

Rushing down the stairs Angel felt her heats rise with heat in her annoyance. How dare Hermione think if only for a moment that she was disloyal?! Angel knew she wasn't perfect, or the most kind, but if the multiple near expulsion experiences she's had did not show her loyalty she didn't know what did. It was in the midst of her thoughts that she bumped into someone.

"Sorry" she mumbled.

In her rush to make it to all the stairs down, she failed to realize someone was in front of her. The grip on her arms signaled that it was not some stranger. In fact it felt familiar, too familiar. Slowly lifting her head up, she made contact with hazel eyes.

Blaise.

She automatically tensed up and she pulled back and she felt him hold her tighter. Emotions rose through her from anger to frustration and embarrassment. She remembered the way that he had no issue helping Draco hang her upside down and humiliate her.

"Hey, hey!" He hissed. "Calm down I'm not going to hurt you"

What once would bring her comfort made fear rise; he had hurt her before, he had betrayed her more than once, how could he now think that he had a basis to keep his promises? So she struggled, even if she knew how pointless it was. Blaise was always a strong person, even when they were younger and him turning sixteen didn't help the situation.

Panic began to rise and she slapped his shoulders repeatedly. Still, as he placed her down on the desk and took one step back she refused to look at him.

"What is wrong with you?! You act as if I'm actively hurting you."

His words confused her and she looked up to Blaise who looked apologetic. It made no sense; he had changed so much so quickly and now he wanted to go back to that?

" What are you doing?" she asked suspiciously looking around if people would appear.

He looked confused and sighed, stopping himself from doing more. It seemed he too was unsure about what he wanted to do. But she didn't move and instead looked at him as he tried to put himself together.

"You can't just be nice to me all at once and make me forget about what you did. You hurt me Blaise..you..you took my spot from Quidditch, not to mention you had no shame in just helping Draco show my knickers to your gang."

"Well...you betrayed us," he said, cheeks red from embarrassment. "You turned your back on us, what we believed in. I mean who questions the professors like that? Who runs a secret group of freaks?"

"It was the right thing to do, and I stand by that" she said softly.

"What about dating Harry Potter?" he screeched. "You are walking around with that dirty blood traitor with no shame. Don't you think I see that? Don't you think Draco sees that? Think about how shameful that looks!"

Her confusion faded as anger rose within her. How dare he make them be the victims when she was the one ostracized by everyone?

"No, you all betrayed me" she hissed. "You...you outed me to everyone as not being a Malfoy," she waved her hands around in annoyance. "You and Draco made sure that no one would talk to me. Don't you think I'm tired of being wary about mail? I've thrown away all the biscuits knowing that they are tainted! I'm not the villain in this, you are! You said you cared about me! And now look at you."

"I do care about you. Bloody hell, I basically love you!" he yelled at her face. She flinched at the force in his tone. "Don't you see that?" His voice lowered and he lifted his hand to attempt to grasp her hands only for her to pull them back.

"How can you say you love me and have no problem hurting me?"

He sighed. The anger seemed to have evaporated as he mentioned that he loved her. He had never really mentioned "love" before, he simply chased her skirt trying to get her to go on a date with him. And he moved on! He said so, but now, mentioning Harry, being confused himself...she felt guilty. It would have been so easy to love Blaise if she could; he was handsome, strong, loved by her family, and was everything she wanted before she realized what love was.

But….Harry? She couldn't replace him if she tried. Even as mad as she was with him at the moment or how stupid his face was sometimes. She tended to always fall to his words no matter the lack of eloquence in them. She liked the way he looked brighter when he saw her. Most importantly he had seen her lowest point and still loved her.

"You're right" he whispered before pulling her into a hug. "I'm sorry to hurt you that way and...I do love you even though I know you don't...don't feel that way about me. I hate the fact you brought this upon yourself" she grumbled against his chest at that comment.

"But I don't want to see you suffer. I don't want to hurt you anymore"

He had never been so outspoken about emotion before, but as he said it, the words of sincerity rose within him and she found herself tentatively hugging him back. She missed him so much, she missed all of them and it hurt to know her friends had left her.

"Blaise...I'm sorry I hurt you. But...he's who I want." her words full of sincerity. "I did love you...just not like that"

Pulling away she looked up at him and smiled, her eyes glassy.

"but he...he has shown more loyalty to me in these few years than anyone else has."

And that's when Blaise knew. She was meant for love, not the traditional kind of love that aristocrats were known to have within their inner circles, but the love that was delicate and nurtured everyone in their own way. It was a love he could not give her when he cared so much about social status, and power. She sacrificed everything to be with a little twig because she cared for him and had no regrets. But they both knew that he could not drop everything for her. And that was okay.

Before he could say anything else, she pulled him close and kissed his cheek before hugging him again. It was not one for comfort, it was a goodbye. They both knew that. So he clung to her tightly, knowing that she was closing a chapter with them that his friends and him had brought upon themselves. She was too delicate for their friendship; too hungry for love to stay with them and so she decided to leave them.

Blaise knew Draco had caused this. He used his pain to make it impossible for Angel to thrive and in turn she turned her back on them. Draco was changing, Blaise was noticing as well and while Angel got closer and closer to heal, her brother...or...or cousin...now was creating new wounds.

"I forgive you Blaise, but I can't and won't forget."

With that, he saw her pull back, her eyes lighter, but her smile tight. Angel Malfoy was no more and now as an outsider, she was growing into her own. He didn't want to let go, but as she pushed him away he felt her wiggle out without much of a struggle. It was once she left that he realized that they were not the only victims in all of this.

….

Double, double, toil and trouble;

Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

Double, double, toil and trouble;

Something wicked this way comes!

"So you're telling me that Blaise Zabini basically told you that he loved you?!"

"Shh!" Angel hissed softly as Luna looked incredulously at her.

"Excuse me? Is there something wrong in the soprano section? " Professor Flitwick asked.

"Sorry Professor, we're just in the middle of a very important discussion" Luna replied much to the shock of both Angel and the professor.

"W-what?"

"Forgive us Professor, she certainly did not mean that" Angel laughed half heartedly. "We'll promise to take it from the top, just as you asked"

"Hmph...good" he was clearly upset as he shuffled back to his podium.

But before Luna could ask again, Angel began to sing the high note signaling that they would begin again.

Eye of newt and toe of frog,

Wool of bat and tongue of dog,

Adder's fork and blind-worm's sting,

Lizard's leg and howlet's wing.

"You cannot simply give me that kind of story without any details Angel" Luna nearly whined.

Double, double, toil and trouble;

Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

Double, double, toil and trouble;

Something wicked this way comes!

Luna pouted as the only response she got was the chorus to the song they were rehearsing in choir practice. It was clear that Angel would not have any conversation within their choir practice, which was frankly unfair to Luna. Still, as her friend winked her way she knew that she would let her know a bit more after their practice. Huffing, the blonde found herself singing along making Professor Flitwick happy.

…

After Choir Lessons …

Shuffling the music papers into her satchel Angel bit back a smile as Luna was shuffling side to side by the entrance waiting for her to finish packing up. Making sure to make it more painful, the slytherin spoke with Professor Flitwick about a particular note that he was asking her to hit before their end of the year concert which she was particularly curious about.

" Are you quite done torturing Ms. Lovegood?" Professor Flitwick smiled amused at the glint in the young girl's eye.

"Yes professor" she chuckled before walking over to her best friend who immediately wrapped their arms together.

"Now...Ms. Black" Luna murmured softly making sure no one paid attention to the surname. "How could you possibly be the annoying yet coy being that girl that I have ever met!"

"Me, coy?" Angel fluttered her lashes in surprise, merely grinning as Neville automatically found them and began to walk with them at their pace.

"Do I even want to know?" Neville asked, amused.

"No"

"Yes!" Luna chirped.

"Oh...now I'm really interested" He chuckled.

"Oh you both are awful friends" Angel huffed and walked at a quicker pace.

They paid no mind as they began to chatter amongst themselves, much to her annoyance. She tried to ignore their tittering and giggles, until at the corner of her eyes she saw Neville's head whip up in shock.

"He ...what?!" Neville squawked.

"I know!" Luna nearly flapped her arms in excitement.

"How?!" Neville continued looking gobsmacked.

"Oh hush! Both of you" Angel turned around, wincing as they crashed into her.

"Oof"

"Sorry!" Neville squeaked.

Taking a few steps back, she sighed in relief at getting some fresh air. Still, looking up she took in the tall couple who looked like they had a bunch of questions on their own. Rolling her eyes she signaled them to follow her. and they did so dutifully until they reached the Black Lake.

"Well?" both asked.

"Well nothing," Angel huffed, putting her things down and avoiding their gaze. "Blaise simply told me something ...well I kind of always knew you know?" She shrugged.

"You knew?" Neville repeated.

"Well of course he did, I mean look at her" Luna nodded sagely. "The real question is, why didn't you tell your best friend"

The brunette laughed at the pair.

"I knew he liked me...but he likes basically all the girls! And I never took him seriously" she felt her cheeks reddening. "But my second year...he began to be more outgoing and more...charming?"

"And you never said yes?" Luna's blue eyes were bright.

"Of course not! It never mattered!" she replied embarrassed.

"What do you mean it never mattered?"

Angel crossed her arms blushing at the conversation they were having. It wasn't that it was hard to talk to Luna, but Neville was there and well...talking about emotion made her all the more embarrassed. Blaise never mattered to her no matter how many flattering words and flowery compliments he gave her! Even if he was handsome and charming, she never cared for him like she did for-

"He never mattered because he wasn't Harry." Neville finished her thought.

Eyeing him from the corner of her eye, she noticed the expression of his own share of embarrassment yet respect. Neville and her knew one another from their early years, from their gangliest of times. And their friendship was certainly unique with a level of understanding that was different from Luna. Luna knew her from the most the most insecure of moments yet she was never particularly ugly towards her. Neville saw her ugliest of moments with Draco and yet he too forgave her.

"Is that true Angel?" Luna asked clearly enamored by the idea. "Did you always fancy Harry?"

Angel did not respond verbally yet her face said it all. Her cheeks were bright red and she looked more like the first year they both met than the teenager now. She took her robe off and began to walk towards the lake instead.

"What do you think you're doing?" Luna shrieked.

"Walking into the lake so we never have to have this discussion again" her voice high pitched.

Neville wrapped her arms around her and pulled her back before she could truly do her flair of dramatics. Huffing she let him drag her back and looked over at her Gryffindor and Ravenclaw friends before she slapped his hands away.

"What we discussed can never be shared again with anyone" she warned pointing at the pair.

"But-"

"No Luna'' she warned. "There is no chance in hell anyone will ever know. It's embarrassing for me and for Blaise and it's bad enough I told you and your boyfriend"

Luna looked put out but nodded knowing she had pushed too far. There were limits to what she could do and she had definitely crossed them with the jibes.

"You know...there's nothing to be ashamed of," Luna said softly. "I think it's quite nice that you just knew Harry was the one."

"Shush" Angel interrupted. "I can't talk to you when you're like this and I do not want to fight either"

"Now girls" Neville raised his hands trying to stop anything from starting..as if he could.

Luna huffed. "Fine, now Neville, will you please sit down and listen to us rehearse?"

It was a change of subject, not one that Angel was particularly fond of, but she went along with it for the sake of salvaging the only people she considered friends.

…

"What do you mean she doesn't trust you?" Neville furrowed his brows.

"I'm telling you, I stalled for them and when I asked where they were, Harry was about to tell me and all out of a sudden she shuts him up! I wasn't even that mad that they needed to tell me anything, it was more the way she said it." Angel frowned.

"How so?"

"Like it was something that was above me, or too secretive for me to know. I don't know it just...ugh does she not trust me?"

"Well...maybe she doesn't, and that's okay Angel" Luna patted her leg. "Trust is earned not outrightly given you know."

"Yeah true, but Angel has been in hot water multiple times for what they do and they still don't trust her after everything?"

"Thank you Neville" Angel huffed, clearly put out Luna wasn't on her side.

"Maybe Hermione doesn't and you can't fault her. You know she's fiercely protective of her boys, like I am of you two." she shrugged. "But it's not like we tell each other everything"

"We don't?" Neville asked aloud before looking between the two. "Are there things that you two talk about that you don't tell me?"

"I guess" Angel shrugged. "But I assume anything I tell Luna it automatically gets told to you"

"Hey!" Luna protested. "I am good at keeping secrets."

Both Angel and Neville mumbled in disagreement.

"Fine,.. I try. And I don't know..isn't it super stressful for your year right now Neville?"

"True" he sighed. "I did want to actually ask Angel if she could help me with potions"

"I can help too!" Luna frowned.

"Yes, but you and I put together do not have the potions talent that she has. Luna, help me with quizzing me on Charms on Thursday."

As the pair chattered, Angel let her thoughts trail off as it seemed the couple before her had a disagreement about what the conversation meant. Nonetheless, she decided that perhaps it was best to simply let some time pass so she may cool off.

…

Three Days Later…

Harry wasn't worried. That's what he told himself. Angel had been very clear that she wasn't necessarily angry at him, but that she wasn't pleased about him keeping secrets. He knew most of her frustrations came with the fact that secrets were not something she was fond of ever since her whole life unraveled. And he knew he wasn't the brightest teen in the world, but he was sure he knew his girlfriend better than Hermione.

"Are you alright? You look like you ate something and it soured in your stomach" Ron asked curiously.

Harry looked away from the door and towards Ron who was in the middle of eating another turkey leg and shrugged.

"Angel's angry at him because of me," Hermione explained with a roll of her eyes. "It's quite childish you see? And I don't understand why she's so mad we were late to the-"

She bit her tongue the moment she remembered that Ron wasn't too pleased that they missed his biggest triumph and appeared late, without a present as the Slytherin had told him they would.

"Yeah you were late for the party" Ron mumbled clearly still being a bit put out.

"We told you what happened Ron, we had no option but to follow Hagrid" Hermione replied with an air of defense.

"Right," Ron said. "And why was she mad then?"

"Who knows!"

"She's mad because she covered for us to spare your feelings and when she asked what happened...Hermione wouldn't let me tell her" Harry replied at the same time as Hermione denied knowledge.

"Why is it her business to know where we are?"

Ron squinted. "Well, why is it mine?"

She looked confused at his question. "What is that supposed to mean?"

Ron chewed thoughtfully for once, before replying. "Well, as much as I hate to say it Hermione...it's clear that you don't like her very much."

"And you do?"

"Well…" he trailed off before a look of horror rose within him. "Yeah I do actually. She cheered me on when I won, and she was actually proud of me" his cheeks were flushed. " And while you two were gone, she kinda covered for the two of you and even did brought a hidden bottle of firewhiskey for us to share as a celebration"

"She what?!"

"Firewhiskey?" Harry exclaimed, surprised at the statement.

"Yeah, I mean she didn't have to be with me or hang out with people that aren't you Harry. But she did and she did try to spare my feelings as my best mates ran off somewhere."

"We didn't just run off Ronald, Hagrid asked for our help."

"Right, but my point is you told me..if Hagrid's secret was so big why did you have to tell me?"

"B-because" Hermione sputtered.

Harry meanwhile looked back at forth, never imagining that Ron of all people was sort of defending his girlfriend. He was biting back a smile but based on the quirky one he got in return from Ron, it was clear that his best mate was on his side.

"Plus Hermione, you've been very irritable now that the OWLs start on Monday"

"How dare you-?" Hermione's voice rose.

Hermione looked put out and Harry did not blame her. While he wasn't the most knowledgeable about romance, he couldn't help but think there was something weird happening between the two that neither have really put together.

"Honestly Hermione, don't worry. It'll all blow over eventually. She can't stay mad forever, she says she does, but I know that's not true"

…

If Angel was honest, she was no longer angry with Harry or Hermione. She got it, no matter how much time had passed she was still seen as someone to be wary of, at least on Hermione's end. And if she was honest, she didn't blame them. While she was not a Malfoy, she was raised as such and she had the worst qualities of them: she was selfish, haughty, a hot-head...but she was loyal. Loyal to a fault which honestly, was the downfall of a lot of her family. Her mo- Narcissa was loyal to Bellatrix and overlooked her shortcomings no matter how obvious they were., She supported Lucius despite the atrocities and connections to the Dark Side.

It was in the midst of these thoughts that she realized she was wandering through the castle without a clear direction as to where she was going. In fact it seems her feet led her right to the dorms of the people she was avoiding: Gryffindors.

"I thought Ron gave you the password earlier this week Angel" Neville's voice cut through the silence making her jump.

"I-I guess I forgot" she murmured.

At her lack of words, Neville looked nervous and easily placed a hand on her shoulder pulling her into a side hug. It was absolutely out of character, but not unwelcome.

"Hey, come inside, Luna is going to come in fifteen to help me go over the last bit of Charms. The exam's on Monday and I need as much help as possible. And you were going to help with potions, remember?"

At the soft tone she felt her shoulders slouch and she nodded smiling gently. She knew that he was coddling her a bit like her brother Draco used to, and she felt comforted knowing that he was just as nice to her if Luna was there or not. As he coerced a conversation from her, they walked in chatting as he handed her the book that he needed help working on.

As they got comfortable by the windowsill, they saved Luna's favorite pillow before they started going over the coursework that he could get quizzed on. Angel appreciated the fact that he was asking her questions, it gave her something to do and kept her mind at ease. He was the only person who thought about asking her about potions; what people did not understand, including Harry, was that she was taught advanced potion making by her godfather. Lucius made sure that Draco and her would have an upper leg on all curriculum, but potions success was a namesake to their family.

"Now Neville, name two of the four ingredients in the Herbicide Potion?"

"Um - w-well standard solution! A-and...oh it's something pointy... quills!"

She shook her head. "No Neville, it's lionfish spikes, flobberworm mucus, standard ingredient and horklump juice. The way I was taught to remember is this, flobberworm mucus, is super sticky, but not as prickly as lionfish spikes"

He repeated what she said a few times and nodded making sure to remember.

"What is a special ingredient for the Forgetfulness potion?"

"Um o-oh I know this. Lethe water!"

She smiled. "Correct!"

They went about this back and forth making sure to come up with little rhymes so he could succeed and once Luna arrived she turned out to be perfect to come up with them. It was in the midst of an explanation, that the Golden trio appeared.

"It's quite a simple concept" Angel waved her hands around as she explained. "While moonstone is of cheap value it is at the core of many potion ingredients due to the malleability of the gem itself. From the love potion to draught of peace, it is said that the milky substance creates an air of trust, unlike most gemstones used in potion making. It's structure is not strong, and if they ask you powdered moonstone over actual moonstone use the gem itself. While it might take some time for you to create the powder. It will integrate itself into the ingredients in a faster fashion. And if your cauldron is too milky, I would recommend adding a drop of hellebore, I was told it helps with separating the powder."

In the midst of her explanation, Neville was seen to be furiously writing the notes as if she was professor Snape himself.

"You really like Potions don't you Angel?" Luna smiled seeing her friend passionate.

"I do...I know it's not a fun subject to take on, but you have to understand the beauty of it all. From the way the cauldron simmers, the power of simple ingredients creating a brand new outcome, the way the fumes make your head swim. It's beautiful really, and chaotic but precise when it matters" she smiled caressing the potions book. "I wish I could teach you to like it"

"I mean you talking about it already got me more interested than the five years your godfather has tried to get me to get it" was the greeting she got from Harry as he leaned over to kiss her.

She was surprised as he acted like nothing had happened between the pair, but she was grateful that he took it in stride not allowing that to create any tension between them. Ron immediately sat beside Neville, taking the notes and reading it as if he could immediately remember it if he read it once. Hermione, tentatively sat down, as if she waited for a barrage of insults that never came.

It was clear to the three who just came in that the studying had been a thorough one, based on the muggle highlighters that Luna had provided Neville to the different scrolls they had checked off during their review.

"Neville, why are you studying potions when Charms is on Monday"

"Well that's my fault really" Luna explained. "I was late and when I got here Angel was explaining potions to Neville, and I found myself curious to hear it too." she giggled. "I call dibs for you next year for the OWLs, because I certainly won't be getting an outstanding like you."

Angel waved her off before opening up the Charms books.

"I might not be in your year, but I know my way around a cauldron" Angel muttered.

"Very true. Now my turn, let's start quizzing one another" Luna chirped as she opened the Charms book. "The Vermillious charm produces what color sparks?"

"Red"

"Blue"

"Green?"

Luna blinked as the boys looked at one another confused at the different answers given. Immediately they turned to Hermione to the correct answer.

"Red"

"Right! Let's get back to that question later, now-"

Slowly the younger years began to quiz the older students making sure that they remembered what they needed to. Slowly they all began to sparse themselves throughout the room as other students began to join the giant study session. Everyone had a different technique: Ron was reading two yearsʹ worth of Charms notes with his fingers in his ears, his lips moving soundlessly; Seamus was lying flat on his back on the floor, reciting the definition of a Substantive Charm while Dean checked it against The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 5; and Parvati and Lavender, who were practicing basic Locomotion Charms, were making their pencil‐cases race each other around the edge of the table. Meanwhile, Luna kept using positive reinforcement with Neville; every time he got a question right he got a candy, and Harry and Angel moved away from everyone as she quizzed him. It was chaotic and overall a mess, but something Harry was grateful for.

….

First Week of OWLS

The girls knew they would not see their boyfriends for a while; the OWLs were incredibly stressful to all fifth years and they were not fond of spending time being yelled at by Hermione if they did not give her the exact verbiage she was looking for. And while Hermione and Angel had not spoken, it seems that the Slytherin had let the argument go, just reminding herself that trust was a two way street so if Granger did not trust her, she would do the same.

"She's been awful all week hasn't she?" Luna grumbled, rubbing her nose and remembered how she had gotten hit when the book had been taken from her.

"Hmm….I guess, but then again, it does mean a lot if they don't get the grade they're hoping for."

"Well let's look on the bright side I suppose...there are no guards as they are taking the OWLs at night!"

"Yes and who thinks about taking a stroll at eleven at night?"

"Me" Luna grinned, eyes bright. "Come now, just because they took over the astronomy tower does not mean we can miss Orion shining brightly. Oh I can't wait! It's good fortune you know"

"Right…" Angel rolled her eyes wondering how her best friend liked Astronomy so much.

It was in the midst of their chatter, when they heard yelling. Both froze and stared at one another in surprise. It was clearly coming from Hagrid's Hut and before they could even fathom the danger they began to run. She saw Luna's wand shine in the dark and she too took out hers, both knowing that it could be dangerous.

"Be reasonable, Hagrid!" they heard the shout.

"Reasonable be damned, yeh wonʹ take me like this, Dawlish!" Hagrid roared making both girls jump in surprise.

Their pace slowed down as they took the scene from the trees. Ten people were attempting to stun Hagrid, but he was not backing down and instead moved determined to fight them off. Angel could see Fang, attempting to defend Hagrid, leaping repeatedly at the wizards surrounding him until a Stunning Spell caught him and he fell to the ground. Luna's cry of surprise distracted her only to see a man be thrown feet away in anger. She felt her body hum in adrenaline, they needed to do something.

"Luna" she hissed.

Luna seemed distracted, the fear clear in her eyes but this was not the time.

"Luna!" Angel hissed louder finally getting her attention. "Throw stunning spells at those wizards."

"We can't" Luna mumbled. "We could get in trouble."

"They won't be able to distinguish where the stunning spells came from. I'll be damned if we just sit here and watch" and as soon as she said that she began to throw the stunning spells towards the ten men.

Soon she saw another red light from her left, signaling that Luna was doing as asked. She smirked realizing the men were confused, and they continued to fumble in hopes of getting Hagrid down. This made no sense, were they being attacked in their own grounds?

"How dare you?!" they heard a shout as a figure ran towards the hut. "How dare you do this?!"

Both girls stopped in surprise as McGonagall was finally seen under the moonlight and she looked furious. Her cloak was wrapped tightly around her as it was clear she was about to head to bed before the chaos in all of her glory, it seemed no one stopped. Instead they were more aggressive towards Hagrid trying to ensure he fell down.

"On what grounds are you attacking him? He has done nothing! Nothing to warrant such aggressive -"

They had no valor; none whatsoever as four stunners were thrown McGonnagall's way without a signal of a duel. It was cowardly, and horribly aggressive towards a woman her age. And as soon as she saw Umbridge, anger rose within Angel and she began to throw stronger stunning spells and some hexes in her blind fury.

"Luna - disillusionment charm, NOW!"

"What are you thinking?" Luna was scared but did as asked.

And as soon as they were camouflaged, Angel began to rush forward.

"Cowards" She screamed. "How dare you?"

Luna immediately took her back using protecting spells as they began to move closer to the scene, still taking advantage of the shadows as much as possible so they could meld with the background. It was clear that they were not the only ones enraged as Hagrid's aggression rose. He yelled expletives as he picked up Fang, hoping to shield him from the spells.

"What is that?" Umbridge screamed as she saw red sparks still coming their way but no one was seen. It was only then that the hag took out her wand.

"Angel" Luna hissed signaling that they were definitely seen.

"I got it, Digitos Wimbly" she said pointing at Umbridge's hands, making them jelly and forcing her to drop her wand.

"Luna" she hissed.

"Locomotor Wibbly!" Luna added making her legs jelly and having her fall over.

In the chaos of it all, some of the wizards attacking Hagrid moved to attempt to help Umbridge, and Hagrid took this opportunity to run leaving the scene and forcing some to follow and others to take Umbridge back to the castle. Yet the cowards left McGonagall on her own.

The blonde rushed to their professor's side as Angel was still seething at the disrespect for their professors. Hagrid did not deserve it, nor did McGonagall yet they went towards two people that Dumbledore was close to. It was clear Umbridge would remove anyone that did not follow her lead.

"Angel" Luna called out. "We need to take her to Madame Pomphrey!"

"Right"

And as best they could, both girls pulled their professor up and took her to the Infirmary. They knew Madame Pomphrey would take care of her, yet they knew that Umbridge might have been taken there as well. Clearly her face must have shown what she was thinking as Luna commented:

"It's worth the risk. Everyone must have heard the commotion, so it could have been anyone that attacked...we need to risk it."

"...right, you're right. Let's just hurry"

…

When Madame Pomfrey took McGonagall from the girls, she did not bother to ask any questions, instead she slammed the door closed and began to work. It was only then the two could breathe. Neither said a word, not knowing even what to say. From the corner of her eye, she could see that Luna was near tears; other than Professor Flitwick, McGonagall was the girl's favorite. She was loved by many and Angel's hands shook as she remembered how horrible it was. This was not just a simple jinx, it was a full blown attack from Umbridge.

"I hate that woman" she hissed after their moment of silence. "They...they did it on purpose"

And usually Luna would try to comfort her, let her be less aggressive, forcing her to calm down. But instead she intertwined her fingers and squeezed. It was clear she too was angry.

"They did" she whispered finally. "But we simply need to keep our heads clear and wait for Madame Pomfrey to get us an update."

Slowly the adrenaline was sucked out of the pair and they dozed off on the bench right outside the hospital wing. It was only hours later that they were woken up by Madame Pomfrey who informed them that their beloved Professor was at St. Mungos due to the severity of the injury.

Madame Pomfrey looked near tears too, yet she gave them a Pepperup potion and sent them to bed. Both didn't dare go to the Slytherin dormitory and instead curled into Luna's bed at the Ravenclaw towers, both shaking at the scene before them. Just what had Hogwarts become?

….

Next Morning…

It was the last day for the OWLs, yet the girls did not even bother to ask their boyfriends how it was going. Both seemed to be engrossed in their own things, not bothering to talk to one another at all. Last night had forced them to see Hogwarts as a castle filled with enemies. enemies of Dumbledore who were determined to dismantle what the castle was about.

It made her anxious, all the more so as the rest of the people who could give them a sense of normalcy were all in exams. It was infuriating that they had not been able to talk. So Angel took some alone time on the bridge taking in the fresh air and being more mindful of her surroundings more than ever. She knew that Luna did not mind it, and instead pushed her for some alone time or else her thoughts would drive her crazy.

The slamming of shoes on concrete got her attention. Turning over she saw Harry, Hermione and Ron rushing through the castle, with Harry having a wild look to him; it was frightening. And it seemed the moment she noticed them, they noticed her. Hermione and Ron looked relieved to find her and before she could utter a word, Ron had grabbed her arm for her to scurry with them to a more private location. She did not dare ask anything. Harry's crazed look was enough to shut her up.

From the bridge, Harry led them along the first‐floor corridor, peering through doorways, only to finally find an empty classroom into which he dived, closing the door behind Ron, Angel, and Hermione. The door nearly scraped Hermione when he closed it, making them jump and stare at him frightened.

And whatever they were expecting this was not it.

"Voldemort's got Sirius"

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