How he did love it here. He was standing on some sort of balcony, drinking in the spectacular view. The place seemed to be high atop everything else, he felt like he could see past an endless horizon. He stood, staring out into eternity, the earth below him silent but breathing. The stars around him would glimmer as they always did, but then that glimmer became almost blinding, as if the stars had banded together to produce an exquisite, omnipotent light. He started to turn away from the celestial light when it broke, fracturing into four beams. He squinted his eyes, trying to discern what was happening. He didn't think he was in the spirit world, this place did not seem to look anything like it, for he had been there many times before. Plus, he wasn't a translucent passenger awaiting epiphany, as he usually was, no he was just…there. Finally, he turned his eyes up to the beams when he thought he saw something. Something…moving.

"Aang!"

Aang snapped up on the couch, looking around in bleary confusion. Where was he? He looked around as if he had just been knocked out of the Avatar state. Wasn't he just on a balcony? Slowly, he realized what was happening, he had been dreaming. He wasn't particularly sure why he was questioning it, or why he felt so confused. He had experienced this dream several times before since he had arrived in this new world. Yet, each time he awoke confused, unsettled. The dreams seemed to progress with each occurrence, slowly telling him a story, giving him a new clue as to the meaning of it all. He had been brushing it off for the most part, chalking it up to an over active imagination, an insignificant blurb. And yet he found himself eager to go to bed, hoping that he would dream, hoping for a clue. He wanted to know where it was going, what path it was leading him down. It was terribly frustrating but enthralling just the same. When he awoke, he didn't feel like he had dreamt at all, he felt like he was being… interrupted. Yes, there was something strange about these dreams… He turned finally and was shocked to see Katara staring, terrified, at him from the adjacent couch.

"What? Did you have a nightmare?" Aang asked, mostly for lack of anything else to say. Her face looked horrified.

"Aang…I've been calling your name for minutes." Katara said quietly, trying to avoid waking her slumbering hosts.

Aang smiled, "Sorry, deep sleeper." He replied, pointing at himself as if for comic emphasis.

"Aang…you were glowing. Your tattoos were glowing." Katara whispered worriedly.

"I…glowing?" Aang wiped at his eyes, as though that would somehow fix his hearing. Did she just say he was glowing?

"Glowing." Katara said shortly. "And talking."

"Glowing and talking." Aang muttered stupidly, and yet his mind was working furiously. He never glowed when he was dreaming. What was he saying? He wasn't talking in his dream…

As if to answer his train of thought Katara said," You said…you kept saying something about 'the best lessons.' Were you in the avatar state?" She had never known Aang to go into the avatar state while asleep. "Or maybe…in the spirit world?"

"I was…dreaming." Aang said, he turned his head down and examined the tattoos on his arms. No glowing.

"Dreaming? Just dreaming?" Katara probed.

"Just dreaming, I'm used to going into the spirit world now. This felt nothing like the spirit world…" Aang replied, still staring at his arms as though demanding an explanation from them.

"So…it…it was the avatar state? Aang, I thought you could control it now!" Katara whispered desperately, sneaking glances up the spiral staircases as if she might catch Harry and Hermione eavesdropping on them at any moment.

" I can! I don't think it was the Avatar state either! It was…just a dream. Just a dream." Aang said to her with agitation, for he didn't really believe it. This never felt like a dream, he never felt like he was in a dreamlike state, he felt like he was…there. When he awoke from this 'dream' he felt like he was coming out of a trance. However, since he could think of no other explanation, he had to accept that it MUST have been a dream.

"Are you sure Aang?" Katara implored.

"Yes!" Aang snapped, briefly scolding himself, he continued softly, "Katara…I'm fine. I don't think we have anything to worry about." He looked at her. He saw the worry in her eyes and suddenly felt a familiar raging guilt that had so often plagued him after the war. He hated seeing the worry in her eyes. He hated that he had the ability to scare her. He hated that he couldn't seem to do anything about it.

"But Aang-"

"Katara, please! I. Am. Fine. I don't know why my tattoos were glowing, but I think we both know that if I was in the Avatar state, this room wouldn't have a roof on it!" Aang whispered hurriedly, cutting off Katara's protests. "Just drop it." He wanted to protect her, to take the fear away. He thought the only way to do it, for the moment, was to lie.

Aang threw himself back down onto the pillow, turning away from Katara, turning away from the ice blue gaze that seemed to constantly do him in. He knew she was not convinced. He couldn't even convince himself. He didn't know why he was being so touchy about the subject. Maybe he just didn't want to add any more confusion to the situation. He couldn't burden people anymore than he already had. His frustrating confusion about these dreams irritated him endlessly. His inability to protect his friends from this insane situation they were trapped him emasculated him terribly. He was always dragging them into trouble and now he was doing it to a whole new set of people. Perhaps, he was lying to Katara…because it felt like the only thing he COULD control at the moment. The only way he COULD protect her. For once, he would protect her. He would lie to her, and he would lie to himself.

No. It was just a dream.

…

She stood outside McGonagall's office awaiting the arrival of the rest of the party. For now, it was just her and Ginny. They had come here a little after dinner, Sokka and Ron decided to run back down to the Great Hall to pick up a quick post dinner snack, in case this mystery meeting ran long. She snorted, she thought there was no one in the world who could rival Sokka's one track mind when it came to food. But they weren't in their world were they? It would seem that it took traversing time and space for Sokka to find his equal. Figures.

"What are you laughing at?" Ginny questioned.

"Sokka and Ron are idiots." She replied, grinning.

"Couldn't agree with you more, Toph." Ginny said.

They slid down the stone wall, finally plopping down into the seated position.

"What do you think the meeting is about?" Toph asked, yet there was no anxiety in her tone.

"No idea. That Clavicula guy is a little…creepy, if you ask me. Scorchingly gorgeous, but creepy." Ginny said as she rested her head against the wall.

"I wouldn't know." Toph replied smirking.

"Right." Ginny replied yet there was nothing apologetic about her tone. Ginny had gotten so comfortable with Toph over the months that she would sometimes forget she was blind. If anything, her apparent comfort with the gaffe only worked to solidify the friendship they had unknowingly built.

"Meh, can't miss what you never had." Toph replied.

And then there was silence.

"Ginny?" Toph asked, feeling the tension. She looked over and saw Ginny doing something with her head.

"I'd have to say I disagree…" Ginny said, and her reply came out throaty. "Because I am, most unfortunately, missing something I never had."

"Harry?" Toph replied.

"Potter." Ginny confirmed.

And then there was silence.

Toph was never good at comforting people, especially when it came to this topic. Toph had never had a boyfriend and, as far as she knew, any suitors. As brilliant a bender as she was, as brilliant a potion brewer she had proved to be, as brilliant as it turned out SHE was, THIS was one area she knew nothing about. She had brushed it off, had accepted it as an eventuality that she would probably end up alone in love and that would be just fine. She had better things to do, she had worlds to change. Boys were a distraction, as Ginny, Hermione, and even Katara had proven time and again. She didn't want it. She was a wild child innovator, one of a kind, too strong to be tamed by some boy. She didn't care about that mushy non-sense in the slightest.

Except she did care.

She cared when she saw Sokka and Suki kissing from time to time. She cared when she watched Katara and Aang go on little strolls around the imperial city of Ba Sing Se. She even cared now, after seeing the pain that love could cause. She cared and she wanted it. She wanted it so much that she even wished she could know what it was like to have love and then watch it leave. If that was, really and truly, what was happening to Ginny and Ron. Toph wasn't so sure, for the body, the behavior, leaves traces. Lack of sight does not necessarily mean lack of vision. In any case, Toph wanted very much to have that kind of connection with someone. But her foolish pride stopped her from voicing these sad hopes to Katara, or Suki, definitely not Mai. No one. Foolish pride stopped her from accepting this secret desire, acceptance would mean she was fallible, susceptible.

Impossible. Unacceptable. She was Toph Be Fong. The most powerful Earth Bender in the world. A woman whose exploits would become legend, a woman who would live long after her death.

But what was the point of living without love? What was the point of exploits if you had no one to share them with?

And so, she never knew what to say when her female friends would cry, laugh, or even discuss this topic. She didn't know how to comfort, how to talk with them about it. Not just because she knew nothing about what it was like to be in love, to feel loved, but also because their obliviousness to how truly lucky they were, just to be in pain because of love, made her bitter. Their lamentations about men made her angry. Why couldn't they see how lucky they were! Why couldn't they just understand that no matter what one possesses, no matter how powerful one would come to be, the old adage would always ring true. It was better to have loved and lost, than to never have loved at all.

And so they both sat in silence, and Ginny thought that her lack of reply was just Toph being Toph, and Ginny loved that about her, wished that she could be more like that, to shut down emotion, to be tough, to be Toph. What Ginny didn't seem to realize was that, at this moment, there was no one in the world who wished they could not be Toph, more than Toph.

Ginny stiffened up, resolve written on her face, "Well, his loss right? Stupid boy. All I need is to toughen up and let him live out his days with that…girl. His loss." She looked over to Toph with mock triumph.

Toph stared down at the floor. She blew her hair out of her face and with incredible effort, plastered an oh-so-Toph like smirk on her face. "Yup!"

But she wasn't answering Ginny's proclamation. She could feel that Ginny was lying. No, what she was agreeing with was Ginny's earlier declaration: You could, most unfortunately, miss something you never had.

Footsteps were thundering up the staircase and Ginny quickly turned to see Ron and Sokka appear, Ron with a grumpy expression.

"Incoming." Ron muttered darkly, and sure enough, Aang strode out of the staircase with a resolute look on his face. He was followed by a meek looking Harry, a concerned looking Hermione, and a strained but pleasant looking Katara bringing up the rear.

At the sight of Aang, Ginny and Ron snapped their faces to the floor, they had been doing this a lot lately. There was an uncomfortable silence for a bit, when the staircase slid back down and then about a second later it slid back up again, to reveal a cautious Zuko, followed by a smirking Draco.

"Zuko!" Katara yelled, causing everyone to look at her in mild confusion. Katara blushed. "Er…well you have to admit we haven't really talked to him in a while! Draco either!" She finished as if bringing up Draco's absence would make her sudden excited proclamation less awkward.

They all looked up to see Draco standing casually against the wall, next to Hermione, who looked equally as comfortable.

"Alright, Malfoy?" Harry questioned with a raised eyebrow. Ron blinked twice as if the scene before him was some kind of amusing trick of the light.

"Miss me Potter?" Draco said and he turned and smirked at Hermione, who rolled her eyes in a far too casual fashion. "Sorry I haven't been to classes. Zuko and I have been having private lessons, and seeing as how you haven't been unceremoniously turning up in my fireplace lately, I figured you had no need to speak with me. But don't worry, Granger filled me and Zuko in on the happenings." He looked to see Team Potter all staring at him in a curious fashion, he turned his head to Hermione, then back to the group. Weasley's head looked like it was about to explode. Potter just looked dumbstruck. Katara smiled warmly, and Toph stared, obliviously, at the ceiling.

Realizing his mistake, Draco moved to correct it, "Ah and Granger. Nice to see your pompous face but I can't say I miss your nagging voice."

Hermione looked temporarily hurt, she turned towards the others who seemed to be awaiting some sort of expected reply. She quickly cottoned on to what Malfoy was doing and immediately put on an indifferent face. "Why is that Malfoy? Afraid I'll tell you another way in which you are deficient. I'll talk slowly and use small words if you like."

Draco smirked and walked over to where Zuko stood. Team Potter seemed to let out a collective grumble of approval towards Hermione. Zuko, however, stared at Draco, stared right into his eyes. Then arched an eyebrow. Draco stared back at him curiously, when Harry cut in.

"Private lessons? What are you going on about?" Harry questioned.

Zuko stared at a Draco a little longer before looking back at the group, "Er. McGonagall has got us working with some guy. She said we were to be his "try-out", whatever that is, she's been teaching Draco on the side. She says we will be returning to actual lessons after the break."

"Some guy? Who?" Ron questioned, his accent causing him to elongate the word 'guy' awkwardly.

"Clavicula. Clarence Clavicula." Draco said, looking at the others as if they should know who he was. "Get off it. Clarence Clavicula! Half my father's friends go to him. Father says he must be racking up the galleons, the rates he charges… Father used to say he was just a rich man's plaything." Draco looked around incredulously. "Come on…not even you Granger?"

Hermione stared at Malfoy curiously. "No…I've never-" Suddenly, Hermione's eyes unfocused and she had a look of utter realization on her face. How could she not have realized? She seemed to be realizing a lot of things rather slowly as of late. "The healer! Clavicula! Oh! He's in our charms and herbology books! Footnotes really, not much of a proper introduction,…he works at St. Mungo's, what does he do…oh it's on the tip of my tongue!"

"Mind Healing."

"No, it's something to do with pen…pensieve-" She continued.

"Pensieve Therapy."

"Yes, exactly, thank you, pen-" And then Hermione saw that everyone was staring to the left of her and then she realized that the voice speaking was definitely not one from Team Avapotter. She turned slowly to see a tall statuesque man smiling knowingly at her. Her head turned rapidly, from Clavicula to Harry to Katara to the floor to Draco's shoe and finally back to him. His smile was enigmatic.

And then there was silence.

"Clarence Clavicula. Healer, Senior Fellow at St. Mungo's. And you must be Ms. Granger. Forgive me, but your reputation precedes you and rightly so, I see." Clavicula said with odd sort of warmness.

"I-" Hermione was cut off.

"If we could take this into the Headmistress's office that would be lovely." Clavicula interjected, smiling at them as if they were all old friends. Harry and Ron looked at each other, force of habit in strange situations. They quickly threw the now appropriate glare.

Clavicula strode forward and opened the headmistress's office. Team Avapotter followed cautiously.

"Please try not to get too comfortable, my new office isn't completely ready yet. Oh, but of course I'm sure you all know the abandoned classroom on the first floor. I believe your former Divination teacher, Firenze, used to teach there before he returned to the forest. Brilliant Centaur." Clavicula said with a far off look on his face before turning abruptly and grinning wide at all of them.

Team Avapotter looked around at each other, confused faces in every direction except Draco and Zuko, who merely seemed to be going through the motions. Harry looked over to Draco, as if demanding an explanation, Draco smirked grandly.

"So! Who do we have here then? Of course, I know Draco and Zuko. Good to see you again Gentlemen." Clavicula smiled widely, an off putting smile that showed off his spectacularly straight teeth.

Suddenly Sokka perked up, "Zuko! I…er…who is this Zuko? Are you referring to LEE? I'm WANG by the way, WANG fire. This is KUZON, yup! KUZON is his name. He's friends with LEE. You know LEE. That's his name! I was just saying to my sister SAPPHIRE, about how LEE and KUZON were the best of friends! I said SAPPHIRE, have you ever noticed that KUZON and LEE are BEST FRIENDS! Because, of course, that's their names. Yup, KUZON, LEE, WANG and SAPPHIRE. All best friends, all with names!" Sokka finished in a manic, rambling manner, his arms flailing dramatically.

Then, Sokka looked around, expecting to see relieved faces but was, instead, greeted with dumbfounded expressions. Hermione literally smacked her palm against her forehead, the sound echoed through the silence.

Sokka's smile faded, "Yup. Everyone's gotta have a name…" He muttered and slowly turned around, "AHHH!" He yelled suddenly as he saw a man in a portrait laughing at him. "I HATE THOSE DAMN PICTURES!"

Zuko plopped down in a nearby chair, and crossed his arms. "He knows Sokka. He knows who we are." He said, staring at him with a pitying look. Sokka glared back at him in return.

For the first time, Clavicula looked utterly perplexed as he stared at Sokka. Then, he smiled as if he had come across a most rare and revered treasure. "Yes…well, I know who you are, Sokka, and of course, Katara and Toph. But I must say I am rather interested to meet the Avatar. It is an honor Avatar Aang."

Aang stared at him as if he had an armadillo bear flying out of his nose. "Um…thanks. Do…do you know me?"

Clavicula smiled that puzzling smile. "I've heard of your exploits. Your gifts." He looked over to Zuko and smiled. Zuko tightened his crossed arms.

"Well…fantastic." Aang said, and he bowed out of courtesy. Clavicula nodded back to him in return.

Clavicula then flicked his wand and chairs materialized out of thin air. Everyone sat but Sokka, who stared at the chair in a critical fashion.

"Something wrong Sokka?" Clavicula inquired.

"I don't trust your chairs." Sokka said, still staring at the chair that appeared out of nowhere.

"Sokka, you LIVE for chairs. You must have sat in a hundred chairs since we got here, you idiot." Toph half laughed from her seat.

"I CAN DISTRUST CHAIRS IF I WANT!" Sokka said in a shrill sort of shriek that caused the entire gang, sans Clavicula, to laugh.

"It's ok Sokka. I don't think it'll bite you." Hermione said kindly, trying her best to repress her snicker.

"That's JUST what the chair WANTS you to think." Sokka said in hushed dramatic tones. "Probably working with the pictures. Are ALL the objects in this world so treacherous?"

Aang, laughing, finally blew a weak gust of air at Sokka, who tumbled into his seat.

Aang suddenly turned to Clavicula, ignoring Sokka's indignant 'Hey!'

"I'm sorry I should have warned-" Aang stopped abruptly, looking up at Clavicula. Clavicula stood, totally relaxed against McGonagall's desk, smiling that accursed smile. As if he saw airbending all the time. Aang stared at him a little longer before slowly, almost mechanically, placing his hands in his lap.

"Not a bother at all, Avatar Aang." Clavicula said. "Now, I'm sure you're all curious as to why I have brought you here today. And just so we're clear, I am NOT just a rich man's plaything." Clavicula smiled at Draco, whose eyes widened in embarrassment. "Although, I'm sure that Mr. Malfoy can agree that it is usually the ones with the greatest wealth who are in the most need of treatment."

Draco glared at him and Harry thought Draco was about to protest but instead, Draco merely nodded and looked out the window.

"Excuse me, Healer Clavicula, but what is it, exactly, that we are here to be treated for?" Hermione interjected, her scrutinizing gaze falling on his wand.

"Well, I believe I said it." Clavicula answered. His piercing gaze seemed to rival that of Hermione's causing her to flinch. Hermione quickly scowled, as if admonishing herself for this small sign of weakness.

This did not go unnoticed by Clavicula. "It's perfectly normal to be confused sometimes, Ms. Granger. And you can call me Clarence."

Hermione glared at his seemingly patronizing remark. "I'm NOT confused. I'm curious. Mr. Clavicula" She said through gritted teeth.

"Healer Clavicula and one could deduce that they are one in the same." Clavicula said, smiling non-chalantly. Hermione looked as though she were going to throttle him.

He continued, "Mind Healing Ms. Granger. A healer of the mind?"

"What-" Ron began when Hermione cut him off as if what he said had no value.

"Like a Psychologist then? You're a shrink." Hermione finished smugly. Ron glared at her.

"Sounds like an illness." Sokka said. "Aang, I've got a touch of the psychologist! Take me to the hospital wing!" Sokka, Ron, and Aang snickered like pre-pubescent children. Even Hermione looked amused.

Suddenly, Clavicula laughed raucously, silencing everyone in the room with the audacity of it. Draco and Zuko exchanged amused smirks.

"Very amusing, Sokka, very amusing. But as it happens, Ms. Granger is right, in a rudimentary sort of way." Clavicula said warmly, Hermione glared at him. "In any case, what I do could be somewhat akin to a muggle psychologist."

"Aaaand, what is a Psychologist, oh great healer of minds?" Sokka announced.

"It's like a person who helps people whose minds have been effected in some way." Harry cut in. "People who've gone loopy."

Clavicula chuckled. "Loopy, Mr. Potter? I've never heard the expression but I think I can deduce the meaning."

"So…what? You think we're nutters?" Ginny said, almost defensively.

"Sanity, Ms. Weasley, is dimensional. One person may be…nutters." He smiled at Harry, Harry reeled back a bit from him. "But some people may just be effected. As Mr. Potter so aptly put it. Perhaps, by the environment they grew up in..." Again, he looked at Harry, whose eyes grew wide. "Or perhaps, by a monumental loss..." He looked at Aang, whose mouth fell open a bit. "Or maybe just by suffering traumatic events." And he gave a sweeping look around the room and saw that they all looked slightly nervous. Good.

"Emotions, children. People can be affected in ways they don't think about. They could, for instance, feel angry, sad, guilty. All these emotions are healthy, but when applied in excess or in inappropriate situation, perhaps on a quidditch field…" And Clavicula looked at Harry, Ron, and Ginny, who immediately looked away from him, "…or maybe towards a friend or loved one through accusations-" He looked towards Ron and Ginny. "- THAT can be unhealthy. Thus, it affects you. Some people may be…nutter, some may just feel like they've lost themselves." He looked pointedly at Hermione, who pursed her lips. "It is my job, to find out why a person's emotions and behavior may be used maladaptively and try to help them understand why."

And then there was silence.

"Are you insinuating, then, that our minds are affected? Are you insinuating that we are all behaving inappropriately due to our emotions." Hermione interjected a bit heatedly.

"You tell me Ms. Granger. Do you think your mind has been affected?" Clavicula answered, and his head cocked to the side ever so slightly.

"I THINK, that is none of your business!" Hermione said and she rose suddenly from her chair.

"Ah, but it would seem, Ms. Granger, that it IS my business. Headmistress McGonagall has appointed me to attend to you."

"I don't recall Headmistress McGonagall informing ANY of us that our minds have been affected!" Hermione replied. How dare he. How dare he insinuate that she, that any of them, couldn't take care of their own feelings, of their own minds! As if he knew more about her situation than ANYONE. "I, for one, will not continue to sit here and be INSULTED like this! YOU don't know ANYTHING! YOU are not an AUTHORITY on my life! On anyone's! What gives you the right to tell ME about my MIND!"

Clavicula looked at her calmly, and then smiled. "I believe the Headmistress informed you, ALL of you, that you would be meeting with me and I think that I can deduce that something is wrong, more than you can. I am an objective observer, you see, and I can see from your behavior, that your mind is quite affected. To not evaluate such obvious evidence and infer this conclusion would be akin to naïveté. I'm sure you would agree with me, Ms. Granger, as a person of logic."

"WHAT behavior!" Hermione said, close to yelling now.

"Perhaps blowing up the head suite? Attacking your friend? The petty arguments? Perhaps, the fact that you never seemed so angry before the war, and NOW you behave in tantrums."

"HOW DO YOU KNOW ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED IN MY COMMON ROOM? SPYING ON ME, ARE YOU? HOW DARE YOU! HOW DO YOU KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT WHO I AM OR WHAT I WAS LIKE BEFORE! YOU DON'T KNOW ME!" Hermione yelled, her face red, her eyes wild. She had lost control and her anger at Clavicula was partly fueled by the fact that he was making her lose control. She had been working so diligently to suppress these emotions, the rage, the sadness. She thought she had it in control. But lately, she couldn't seem to control herself. And now, she had flew off the handle so suddenly that she scarcely knew what Clavicula had done or when she had gotten so upset. It was weak! These EMOTIONS were weak! Useless! Why couldn't she control them! She was supposed to be strong now! She had made a pact with herself to be strong! SHE was supposed to be in control. SHE was supposed to be ready!

Suddenly, Ron jumped from his seat. "I KNOW YOU!" He declared heatedly, causing her to turn towards him, she had pain in her eyes, rage, cruelty. Ron couldn't stand it. She wasn't behaving like her. Like the woman he was in love with. THIS woman before him seemed so angry, so…unyielding. He wanted answers, if she was going to take the love of his life away from him, he was damn sure going to know why. Enough feeling sorry for himself, enough wishing she would just see that it was he that knew her, HE that LOVED her. He couldn't love THIS and he couldn't love a memory either.

"WHO ARE YOU HERMIONE? WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO YOU? You used to be so kind, so wonderful..."

"OH SHUT YOUR MOUTH RONALD WEASLEY! WHAT DO YOU REALLY KNOW ABOUT ME?" Hermione yelled cuttingly, frustrated tears falling down her cheeks. YOU'RE TOO BUSY BEING A WEAK, JEALOUS, GIT!"

Clavicula stared curiously at her. "Do you agree, Mr. Weasley?"

Ron was blood red now. "I DON'T KNOW YOU? I'VE KNOWN YOU SINCE WE WERE 11! WHAT IS IT THAT I DON'T KNOW ABOUT YOU HERMIONE? YOU THINK I DON'T KNOW ABOUT HOW MUCH PAIN YOU'RE IN? YOU THINK I DON'T KNOW ABOUT YOUR TRIP TO ST. MUNGO'S? YOU THINK I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THAT POTION YOU'VE BEEN TAKING? WHY ARE YOU HIDING THINGS FROM ME!"

" That…that…THAT IS NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!" Hermione replied, shaking.

"NONE OF MY BUSINESS! I'M ONLY JUST YOUR BOYFRIEND HERMIONE! I THINK THAT ENTITLES ME TO KNOWING THAT YOU'RE HURTING!"

"YOU ARE NOT MY BOYFRIEND RONALD WEASLEY! YOU ARE NOTHING BUT A WEAK, JEALOUS-"

"I'LL TELL YOU ONE THING I DO KNOW, HERMIONE! I KNOW THAT YOU. ARE. A. BITCH!" Ron yelled.

"YOU WATCH YOUR MOUTH WEASLEY!" Harry said, flying out of his seat. Draco, unnoticed by Harry, had leaned forward in his seat as well, a shadow of anger crossing his face. It was an act so unplanned that Draco immediately slid back in his chair, a confused look on his face. It was an act unnoticed by Harry, but seen by Zuko, who looked at him almost accusingly.

Ron ignored him. "I'VE BEEN WITH YOU EVERY STEP OF THE WAY HERMIONE! I'VE ALWAYS BEEN THERE!"

"THERE? DON'T MAKE ME LAUGH. WERE YOU THERE WHEN I WAS BEING TORTURED?" Hermione interjected.

"YES! I WAS! I…I STILL AM! YOU THINK I WASN'T GETTING TORTURED AS WELL!" Ron replied.

"OH, DON'T YOU DARE TRY TO SAY THEY ARE THE SAME THING! YOU SAY YOU WERE THERE? EVERY STEP OF THE WAY? WHAT ABOUT WHEN YOU WALKED OUT ON ME!"

"I…I didn't walk out on you…" Ron said quietly.

"YOU DID RONALD WEASLEY! THAT NIGHT WHEN WE WERE ON THE RUN! YOU SAID I HAD CHOSEN HARRY, AND THEN YOU WALKED OUT! I BEGGED YOU TO COME BACK! I BEGGED! AND YOU DISSAPPERATED! YOU LEFT ME! I CRIED FOR DAYS! ALL BECAUSE OF YOUR STUPID JEALOUSY! YOU. ARE. SO. WEAK!" Hermione finished.

And then there was silence.

Clavicula smiled, "Well, I think she's made a solid argument, Mr. Weasley."

"I'm sorry…I'm sorry you feel that way, Hermione. I'm sorry I left…you'll never know how sorry…" Ron said quietly.

"Save your apologies, you imbecile." Hermione said cruelly.

Ron looked at her. "Don't call me an imbecile."

"Would you prefer coward?" Hermione shot back.

"The only coward here, Hermione, is you. I CAME BACK. I won't let you torture me over this. I won't. I've spent too long torturing myself. I've apologized and I'm here. But YOU Hermione, you're still running away. Running away from me, from yourself…"

"Oh, and now I suppose you're the mind healer?" Hermione said, crossing her arms defiantly.

"No. I'm Ron. But you…I reckon I don't know what you are. I suppose you're right, I DON'T know you. Not anymore. But I know one thing, I won't let you push me around. I'm sorry for leaving Hermione. I am. I've learned from my mistakes. It's time you learned as well."

And then there was silence.

Hermione was seething and looked as though she was taking this moment of deafening quiet to gather a retort but then Zuko suddenly cut in. "People can learn from their mistakes." He said, looking at Hermione.

"Maybe, but do they UNDERSTAND them?" Sokka said, and Hermione suddenly looked grateful.

Zuko, however, looked livid. "You got something to say Sokka?"

"I think I just said it, angry jerk." Sokka replied, smirking.

"So full of jokes. Why don't you just come out and say it? Say what you're really feeling. Why don't you tell Draco and Ron who you were REALLY talking to that day in Muggle studies? Stop hiding behind your jokes." Zuko finished.

"What do you want me to say Zuko?" Sokka replied, stretching himself in the chair which he had, only moments ago, accused of treachery.

"I want you to say what you feel." Zuko said, rising from his chair and striding over to the window.

Sokka snickered. "Another dramatic window pose?"

"Stalling, Sokka? I thought you were a…brave warrior. Yet here you are, not even able to say what's on your mind. Just the wacky sidekick." Zuko chuckled, almost calculatingly.

Clavicula's eyes went back and forth between the two. Smiling ever so slightly.

Zuko's challenging of his warrior heritage seemed to do it. Sokka sat bolt upright in his chair, a look of ferocity carved across his face. "I AM a warrior, and what's more, I've ALWAYS been one. I didn't have a CHANGE OF HEART. I didn't need the Firelord to banish, scar, AND try to ELETROCUTE me to realize, 'Hey! Maybe this guy is an asshole!"

And then there was silence.

Zuko turned suddenly to Sokka, an expression on his face. It was anger, of course, maybe even rage, but there was something else there…fear.

Draco looked at Zuko, wanting to say something, wanting to help him but too paralyzed with fear to do so. Even after all the work he had been doing with Clavicula, even though he was one of three people in that room that could truly attest to the horror of what Zuko's father had done to him, his own fear still paralyzed him mercilessly. Coward. Draco looked down at the floor, cursing himself. Always.

"E…electrocute?" Hermione squeaked out, her rage induced boldness seemed to retreat inside her as this inconceivable notion passed into her consciousness.

Sokka stood up and strode to the middle of the room, matching Zuko's gaze with one of striking resolve. He would make Zuko regret his words. "So YEA, I DO question whether you understand, exactly, the pain and destruction you have caused. You may have everyone else fooled, you may get to play the role of the redeemed prince, with all the recognition..." Sokka eyes became horrible slits as he said that last word. "But I'm not convinced Zuko. How am I supposed to BELIEVE that you truly know the difference between right and wrong, that you truly UNDERSTAND what you've done, WHEN YOU COULD ONLY BARELY SEE IT AFTER THE SAME MAN, YOUR FATHER, BURNED, BANISHED, AND TRIED TO SHOOT YOU FULL OF LIGHTENING!" Sokka's eyes were cruel. His words were not his, it was fueled by something else. Something bitter. He wanted to hurt Zuko, not physically, but where it REALLY counted.

His tactic had worked, for Zuko was trembling.

But even more curiously: Katara, unnoticed by the rest, in a tiny corner of the office, was silently weeping.

And then a small voice, barely audible, seemed to echo through the tension, "That's not fair, Sokka."

Sokka and Zuko both whirled around, knowing the voice but not believing it was true.

"Families…they can shape everything about you." Toph said quietly, almost timidly, staring down at the floor, the next thing she said caused everyone in the room to stare at her with surprise: "Zuko and I are alike, two of a kind . Zuko did anything to chase the love of his father, because it was the one thing his father never gave him. I chased independence, because my parents had withheld it from me so furiously." Toph finished in a whisper, fighting the tears. She was successful but it didn't change the fact that she had to now admit to herself that she was less strong than she thought she was, than she told herself she was. Really, she had been fighting this notion for ages, her strength defined her entire existence, it pushed her to change the world. To have to admit that she could be controlled by her own insecurity… it meant that maybe, just maybe, she didn't really know who she was. Clavicula stared at her, a deep, searching gaze. And then she realized that when he spoke of a person feeling like they'd lost themselves, he was not speaking to Hermione, but to her. Finally...she was fallible.

Draco looked at the floor, her words echoing in his mind. Families can shape everything about you…

And then all that could be heard was the periodic whispers and subtle sniffs of the portraits that so littered the walls of the headmistress' office.

Clavicula looked around. No one seemed willing to add anything. It was time.

"So, it would seem that everyone in this room is affected." His eyes went to Hermione and found that, even she, didn't have the indignation to even glare at him. Tears were falling, almost tellingly, down her cheeks. The old Hermione. At last or maybe, just for this moment. "And I think that, for all your sakes, you should open yourselves up to exploring the ghastly things that happened to and around you. If not for yourselves, then for your friends. Afterall, when all is said and done, when you think back to your happiest memories, who is it that you see? I would be willing to bet all of my most frivolously earned galleons-" He looked over at Draco and smirked, "- that you can see at least one person in this room and THAT, children, is not something you want to lose. And so, again, I suggest you open yourself up to your most painful memories, in these sessions…so that they don't control you. So that you can spend more time enjoying the wonderful things about you, your friends, and your most, I might say, accomplished young lives."

Clavicula pulled out his pensieve, and he was met with confusion from the Avatar gang. He slowly slipped it back in his bag and smiled. "We will deal with THAT when you return from Christmas holiday.

With that, he briefly looked up at the portrait of Dumbledore. He appeared to be dozing, but Clavicula caught his lip twitch ever so slightly. Taking that as a tiny sign of approval, Clavicula swept out of the room.

And then there was silence.

And so there they were again, in another one of those oddly palpable moments that seemed to come out of nowhere. Silence. Silence was so unlike what the name inferred. Indeed, in their short time together, silence would mean a multitude of things to Team Avapotter: Rage, frustration, uncertainty, sadness,…hope.

They all looked around at each other bashfully. As if seeing eachother for the first time in ages. Clavicula's speech about friendship had gotten to each of them, some more than others. Their bitterness, resentfulness, spite, and fear were still raging inside of them but their feelings were somewhat blurred, a slight shift from the crispness of the anger that reverberated from them only a moment ago. None dared looked the other in the eye, no, that would mean concession, that they were at fault…but none of them threw the glares that had become customary upon these awkward, wounded times alone.

And then there was silence.

Author's Note. Hey Kids. Soooooooo. Hot damn. What can you say? What can you do? Well, I know what you can do, you can leave a review. I find I've been getting less and less reviews and I worry that people aren't feeling the story. But hey, like I always say, reviews are not obligatory, but I'd really like to hear your feedback. So, yea. Heavy chapter right? Now we shall start the healing. But NOT before we check out what Christmas Holiday will be like for our gang. I think we need some light amusing antics, so to reward you for waiting for my super slow posts (sorry, but my job has been WORKING me) I shall give you a tiny spoiler in that we shall be enjoying Christmas holidays at The Weasleys, the Malfoys and...the Grangers. That last one is gonna be so rockin cuz we get to watch the gang react to a wizarding AND muggle Christmas. Also, we shall see someone return, not a major charecter or anything but it will be intersting. OOOOOOk! I hope you likey, shoutouts Dark Lord Morthanian and grifthulhu for your reviews and thanks to all who have story alerted and faved. OK! I'm out. Later Kids.