Immersed in the darkness of the tunnel, Freddie shifted back into her human form with her wand in her hand.

"Lumos," she whispered and a soft glow came from the tip of her wand, illuminating the space around them. She looked around a moment while they waited for Ada. She remembered the first time Snape had shown her the way to the Shrieking Shack. It hadn't gone exactly as planned, the memories of the place had proved to be too much for him, and they'd argued. But in the tunnel afterwards, after he'd apologized...that had been the first time she told him she loved him, right before he'd laid her down and made love to her in the dirt.

There was a soft thump behind her and Freddie turned to see footprints in the dirt from the invisible Ada.

"I'm here, Freddie," Ada said, and she slowly became visible as she removed her Disillusionment Charm. She lit her wand tip silently and held it out in front of her.

"Good job. Let's get going, this tunnel feels longer every time I go down it."

"How long does the tree stay frozen?" Ada asked curiously as she followed her down the passage.

"About two minutes," she answered, brushing away the dirt that was falling on her head.

"That's good. I was wondering what would happen if someone noticed it was frozen."

"Well the good thing about that is that as long as no one is close to it, the tree doesn't actually move all that much. Nobody would get close enough to notice it wasn't moving before it'd be thrashing around again. Besides, everyone knows to stay away from the Whomping Willow."

"Even my Beauxbatons classmates," Ada agreed. "Fleur Delacour almost got whacked the first day we were here. A boy named Roger Davies warned her away in time though."

"That's good. How's she doing, Fleur? After everything that happened with the Tournament?"

"She's really upset about Diggory. She says she really liked him, but between you and me she used to trash talk him every chance she got. Krum and Potter, too, at least until Potter saved her sister from the lake in the second task."

"I heard about that," Freddie said with a nod. "Severus said the judges deemed Potter had 'moral fiber' because he refused to leave the rest of the hostages down there."

"Yeah. He would've been the first one back otherwise."

"It was downright foolish if you ask me. He should have known they weren't in any real danger – Dumbledore wouldn't have done something like that," she said, shaking her head.

"That's true. He can be quite rash at times, I think. It seems like he does not always think things through. But he is young still," Ada pointed out. "He may be the Boy-Who-Lived, but he's only 14."

"Yeah, that's a good point."

"Man, I wish you could have seen him in the first task!" she declared, cheeks flushed with excitement. "I've never seen anyone fly like that, not even Viktor Krum! Krum didn't even think about using his broom!"

"Severus shared his memory of the task with me. That dragon was something fierce – they all were! I do wish I had been here to see it in person, though."

"When you share memories with him, do you share emotions too?" she asked, sounding intrigued.

"Sometimes. Not always. Not if we don't want to – although sometimes I think it happens even when he doesn't mean to. He's the most skilled Occlumens I know, he has to be, but with how close we are, how comfortable he is in my head..." She shrugged.

"What do you mean 'he has to be'?" Ada asked curiously.

"Never mind that," Freddie said hastily. "You were supposed to tell me what Dumbledore wanted!"

"Oh! I almost forgot!" she cried. "Okay, so – well, first he seemed to know everything about me. He knew I was Muggleborn, he even knew my parents names!"

"Yeah, he's good like that," Freddie chuckled. "Bit annoying sometimes, really."

"He's so brilliant! You know he has an Order of Merlin, First Class, for Grand Sorcery?" she said enthusiastically, her green eyes sparkling in the light of their wands. "And he discovered the 12 uses of dragon's blood. You know-"

"Ada," she said with a hint of exasperation and amusement.

"Sorry," Ada said sheepishly, then grinned and whispered. "Professor Dumbledore wants me to join his secret resistance against You-Know-Who."

"The Order of the Phoenix," Freddie said with a smile.

"You're a member too, right?" she asked excitedly. "And Snape? That's why you were being so secretive the other night."

"Yeah. But Severus' role in the Order is a lot more complicated than mine – and dangerous," she said softly. "I worry, but... What does Dumbledore want you to do? Has he given you any assignments yet? You did say yes, right?"

"Of course I said yes! I didn't even hesitate. Madame Maxime is a member too, I guess. Professor Dumbledore said something about a mission she and Monsieur Hagrid are going on this summer."

"Really?" she asked, intrigued. "What are they doing?"

"I don't really know, it was just an offhand comment he made as we were leaving. He told Madame Maxime he was pleased she was going to accompany Hagrid over the summer. She actually blushed!" Ada giggled.

"What about you?" Freddie prodded. "Has Dumbledore told you what he expects of you?"

"Well I don't know how but he already knew about my interview with your Ministry of Magic this summer. He even knew I was going to work in the Department of International Magical Cooperation as a translator. I really don't know how he found out, I didn't even tell Madame Maxime! The only people who know are you and my parents."

"Dumbledore is a man of many talents," she replied, amused at how impressed with the Hogwarts Headmaster her french friend was. Of course Freddie had told him that Ada had a job interview, but she hadn't known what department she was going to work in.

"He sure is! He told me he needs as many friends in the Ministry as he can get, especially now. To be honest, I'm not really sure how I can help," she admitted, looking a little disappointed. "But he said he would let me know when the time came. He wants me to come by Hogwarts after my interview this summer."

"I guess he'll tell you more then."

"He probably wants to make sure I get the job first."

"Of course you'll get the job! You're brilliant!" she declared, causing Ada to blush. "You have a photographic memory. You could do any job in the world that you wanted to."

"Well I hope you're right. Have you asked Professor Snape about me staying with you sometime this summer? I should be able to come back towards the end of July. I want to check in on my parents first."

"No, I haven't yet," she admitted. "I'd almost forgotten. I'll ask him tonight, I promise."

"Do you think he will let me? After what happened last night?" Ada asked, looking embarrassed.

"I don't see why he wouldn't. He's hardly ever there anyway and I suspect that will be more true this summer than any before it. But if for some reason he does say no, well, I'll get a hotel room with you in London. I'm not going to miss out on spending time with you. I'll even try to take the week off from work so I can show you around Diagon Alley."

"That would be amazing!" she said, almost squealing in excitement. "I can hardly wait!"

Freddie figured they had to be getting close to the Shrieking Shack now, but she still couldn't see the door at the end of the tunnel. Ziggy seemed to be getting tired of walking and he yowled until Freddie stopped to let him jump onto her shoulder.

"It must get frustrating," Ada said after a minute as they continued to walk.

"What's that?" Freddie asked, puzzled.

"Snape being gone so much. Not getting to spend time with him like you want to."

"I'm used to it," she said with a shrug. "I keep pretty busy myself. And it makes the time we do get to spend together all the more special, you know? Besides, the work he's doing now is really important."

"What does he do for the Order?" she asked curiously. Freddie hesitated. She wanted to tell Ada, but she wasn't sure if she was supposed to. Did all of the Order know that Snape was a spy?

"I'll have to ask him how much I'm allowed to tell you," she said apologetically. "I've never been allowed to talk about it before."

"That's okay, I understand," Ada assured her. "Professor Dumbledore told me to be very careful who I tell about the Order, to be absolutely sure I can trust them."

"I do trust you, Ada! Beyond a shadow of a doubt. You're my best friend."

"Oh I know that Freddie. That's not what I meant. I mean, I'm not even going to tell my parents about it. They wouldn't understand and they'd just worry. I'm not telling any of the girls from school either. Just you."

"That's good. Although I know Dumbledore needs more Order members..."

"I suspect if any of my classmates are interested in joining the resistance, Dumbledore will track them down himself, just like he did me. He probably knows everything about all of them, too."

"Probably so," Freddie agreed with a nod. "Oh- finally! Here's the door."