Freddie knew that she needed to get control of her emotions. She knew that she could easily use her Occlumency to block out the fear and worry that overwhelmed her...but she decided to let herself feel it instead, just for a little while. It wasn't healthy to keep things bottled up. So she sat back down at Snape's desk and she let herself cry. She imagined all the horrible, worst-case scenarios that could happen – if Snape returned to the Dark Lord's side and was immediately killed. If she was left all alone. She didn't know what she would do without him. She didn't know how she could possibly live without him and she didn't think she would want to.

Maybe the Dark Lord will come after me, she thought with her head down on Snape's desk. If he catches a glimpse of me in Severus' mind before he kills him, maybe he'll come to kill me, too. Or if Severus' Occlumency isn't flawless, if the Dark Lord sees something he doesn't want him to see – any of our conversations about Lily or Dumbledore or the Order of the Phoenix. He'd be killed for betraying Him and maybe I would be, too. I'm a pureblood and my parents were Death Eaters, but I don't want the Dark Lord to take over! I don't want to see Him kill all the Muggleborns. I love Severus...oh god please don't let him die. I'll be lost without him...

After about 30 minutes of worrying she decided enough was enough. She used her Occlumency to clamp down on her emotions, shutting them out and keeping her mind blank. She dried her eyes on her cloak and sat there waiting, forcing herself to be calm.

Another 30 minutes passed and she stood up to walk around the office and stretch her legs. When she realized she was pacing in front of the fireplace she stopped short.

Maybe I should go outside, she thought to herself. That way I'll see him as soon as he comes back. I know he'll be Apparating and he can't do that on the grounds. He'll have to come through the gate. Well I can watch the gate.

With a renewed sense of purpose Freddie gathered her things. When she opened the door to Snape's office she was surprised to find Ziggy sitting there waiting for her. He looked up at her with a questioning meow and his tail twitched like it did when he was troubled. He wound himself around her legs and she knew that her beloved kneazle was worried about her.

"I'm alright, Ziggy," she murmured, crouching down to pet him. He began a deep, rumbling purr but he put his nose to her cheek and meowed again. He knew that she'd been crying. He always knew when she was upset. "I'm okay now. I'm just going to go outside and wait for Severus."

She was never sure just how much the kneazle understood what she said, but he immediately started down the corridor. He paused, looking back at her expectantly, and Freddie couldn't help but smile. She closed the door to Snape's office and placed the wards that he'd taught her years ago. After ensuring the enchantments were in place she stowed her wand and followed Ziggy down the hall.

She'd only gone a few feet when she decided her Animagus form might be better for this. There was less of a chance of someone thinking she was a student out of bed or of having to explain to anyone just why she was waiting for Snape. She shifted easily into her kneazle form without breaking stride and trotted after Ziggy through the dungeons. When they reached the staircase the two kneazles used a small secret tunnel to bypass the door the Entrance Hall. Years ago Ziggy and his friend Mrs Norris had shown Freddie a number of passages in the castle that were just the right size for cats to travel through. She'd never found out who made them but they were convenient for moving throughout the school undetected.

She followed Ziggy through the Entrance Hall and out onto the grounds. She wasn't sure what time it was but she knew that it was late. The grounds were quiet and seemed deserted. The sky was clear and the half-moon cast a pale light over everything, though of course Freddie could see well enough without it in her Animagus form.

She remembered hours spent in her Animagus form with Ziggy exploring the castle, the grounds, even the Dark Forest. He'd been a kitten then, always bouncing around and full of energy. He was a fully grown kneazle now, just as she was, and though she knew he could still be playful at times, tonight he seemed calm and serious. No doubt he sensed her mood and knew that tonight was not a night for playing. She wished she could explain to him what had happened and why she was so worried, but even in her kneazle form her ability to communicate with Ziggy was limited.

Mum loves Ziggy, she thought, pushing the thought towards him so he would understand. He brushed against her lightly, purring, and touched her back with the tip of his tail.

"Love Mum," he responded and she began to purr. "Trees, mum?" He looked towards the forest and Freddie shook her head.

No trees, Ziggy. Not tonight. Waiting. Ziggy and Mum waiting. Waiting and watching.

Ziggy cocked his head curiously but followed her trustingly as Freddie started down the path towards the Hogwarts gates. Her kneazle senses picked up every sight, sound, and scent as they padded slowly along the path together. She was acutely aware of everything from the bugs crawling in the grass to the bats flying in the night sky. She could hear footsteps in the distance and when she looked out over the grounds she saw a short figure she recognized as Professor Flitwick walking down near the lake. He's patrolling, Freddie realized when she noticed Flitwick had his wand out. Dumbledore must have increased security around the castle tonight, just in case. Of course the Dark Lord wouldn't dare attack the castle directly, not with the headmaster here. Dumbledore's the only wizard He ever really feared.

Freddie knew Flitwick wouldn't spot them, not from that distance and not while she was in her Animagus form. Even if he could see that far in the dark he would just think she was a cat. Everyone always assumed she was a cat. Few people in the castle had ever seen her in her Animagus form – just Dumbledore, McGonagall, and of course Snape. Her heart ached slightly in her chest as she thought of Snape. She wondered what he was doing right now. Was he even still alive?

"Good man?" Ziggy asked, looking around quickly. 'Good man' is what the young kneazle had always called Snape and for a moment Freddie looked around too, thinking Ziggy had spotted him. Then she realized he was only picking up on some of her thoughts.

Waiting for Good Man, she told Ziggy, letting her flank touch his as they walked. Waiting and watching.

He seemed to understand and he continued to look around them as they walked, his green eyes bright and alert. She could sense an image of Snape's face in Ziggy's mind and she smiled slightly.

They were passing Hagrid's hut when Freddie spotted something out of the ordinary. A large shape she didn't recognize near the edge of the forest. It seemed ominous sitting there in the shadows and the fur on her back stood up as they left the path to investigate. It was a powder blue carriage the size of a large house and when she saw that Freddie relaxed. She knew this had to be where the Beauxbatons students were staying. There were a dozen palomino horses the size of elephants in a paddock near the carriage, but none of the beasts paid any attention to the two kneazles.

Freddie was looking at the horses in the paddock when she heard what sounded like a soft human footstep behind her. She whirled around immediately, her fur puffed out, but there was no one there. No one she could see anyway...

"Freddie!" whispered a voice on the wind and she let out an involuntary hiss. "Freddie, is that you? I know that is Ziggy."

"Ada?" she gasped, but it came out as a soft meow. She shook herself slightly then leapt up, transforming back into a human as she did so that she landed on her feet. "Ada where are you?"

"Right here," answered her friend's voice from a few feet away. Then slowly Ada materialized out of thin air, holding her wand to the top of her head.

"Nice Disillusionment Charm," Freddie said, impressed. Ziggy hurried over to the girl and immediately began rubbing along her legs, purring loudly.

"Merci beaucoup," Ada said with a grin, stowing her wand in the pocket of her uniform.

"Ada, what are you doing out here? It could be dangerous," she said, looking around the grounds uneasily.

"Oh please, everyone knows You-Know-Who would not dare come to Hogwarts," Ada said dismissively. "Not so long as Dumbledore is here. Besides, I was hoping I'd see you out here."

"You know? About the Dark Lord?"

"Madame Maxime told us He's back. That he killed Diggory and tried to kill Potter," she said soberly, glancing towards the Quidditch pitch. "...It's really true, isn't it?"

"I'm afraid so," Freddie sighed.

The girls stood in silence a moment and even Ziggy had stopped purring and was sitting on his paws looking up at them.

"It is going to be bad," Ada said finally. It wasn't a question but Freddie nodded anyway. Her friend's face looked a little paler in the moonlight, but she didn't look scared. She looked serious and determined, her mouth set in a grim line. She really had changed so much from the nervous 12-year-old she had been when they first met.

"I am going to do whatever I can to fight back against Him," she said severely. "I don't know how, of course, but... I'm a Muggleborn. My parents are both Muggles. I'm not going to let anyone hurt them or me, nor any other Muggleborns. Not if there is anything I can do about it."

"You sound so brave," Freddie murmured, but really she was wondering what a 17-year-old girl could really do to stop the Dark Lord. She didn't want to see Ada or her family get hurt either, but if the young girl ever went up against the Dark Lord...she'd be as dead as Cedric Diggory in a heartbeat.

"I am brave...but I'm scared, too. And I'm pissed. You-Know-Who killed thousands of people last time he rose to power. I've read more books on the subject than I can count. If there is anything I can do to stop Him, to fight back, well I'm going to try. Aren't you?"

"Yes," Freddie whispered. "But I don't know what I can do, what either of us can do. And honestly...I'm scared as hell, too."

"It's okay to be scared," Ada said, taking her hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze. "And I don't know what we can do either, I just know I'm going to do something. I'm not going to sit idly by and let my people be slaughtered. Besides, people our age fought in the War last time. Lily and James Potter were only 21 when they were killed."

With a jolt Freddie realized they had been only a little younger than she was now. Whenever she'd thought of Lily in the past she had always imagined her in her 30s, the age Snape was now. But she'd practically been a child, barely graduated from Hogwarts...and she'd fought back against the Dark Lord.

"Where's Severus?" Ada asked suddenly. "I thought that, with everything that happened tonight, you would be with him."

Freddie hesitated a moment before answering. Ada didn't know that Snape had been a Death Eater. She knew she couldn't tell her and she definitely couldn't tell her that he was a spy. She was sworn to secrecy. She couldn't let anyone know or risk putting his position in jeopardy.

"He had some work to do for Dumbledore," Freddie said evasively, looking towards the Hogwarts gate.

"What sort of work?" she asked curiously.

"I'm not allowed to talk about it, so please don't ask," she said earnestly. "I'm sworn to secrecy. It's for Dumbledore and that's all I can say."

"I understand," Ada said solemnly. "I wouldn't want you to break Dumbledore's confidence. If anyone has any hope in hell of stopping You-Know-Who it's Dumbledore. Dumbledore and Potter."

"Yeah..."

"So what are you doing now?"

"I was sort of just...waiting for him to get back. I don't know what else to do. I don't want to go home, not without knowing...knowing he's alright. Not after what happened to Diggory."

"Yeah," Ada said softly. "...Do you want some company while you wait? Madame Maxime isn't even here and all the other girls are asleep."

"I'll be alright," Freddie said, shaking her head. She didn't know what sort of shape Snape would be in when he returned, if he returned. "I have no idea how long he's going to be gone, it might be hours. Ziggy and I are just going to keep watch."

"Are you sure?" Ada asked. "I don't mind waiting with you."

"I'm sure."

"Will you be here tomorrow or do you have to work?"

Freddie glanced at her watch and grimaced. It was after midnight already.

"I'm supposed to be at work at 7 in the morning, but I don't know if I'll go. I may have to call out if...I just may have to call out."

"There is a first time for everything," Ada said with a faint smile. She knew Freddie well enough to know that she'd never taken a sick day in her life. "Well if you are still here come and find me. If not, send me an owl or something. We'll be at Hogwarts until the end of term. We can meet up whenever you have the time."

"Are you still staying in London over the summer?"

"I might go home first. See maman and papa, tell them what happened...warn them," she said, her voice barely a whisper.

"Yeah," she said softly, thinking of Ada's parents Laura and Oliver Leroux. The two Muggles had been so nice to her whenever she visited. They'd treated her more like a daughter than a guest. She was very fond of them and she wondered what they would think of the Dark Lord's return...and of their daughter's plan to fight back against him.

"If you change your mind about wanting company, just knock on that back window there," Ada said, pointing to a window on the rear of the carriage. "That's where my bunk is. I do not care if you wake me up, I'll come out in an instant."

"Thanks Adalene," Freddie said with a smile. "I'll be alright."

"Bonsoir, Winifred," Ada said, giving her a quick hug before turning back to the carriage.

"Dors bien, Adalene."