Harry sank back in his seat. Dozens of thoughts swirled in his mind, he wasn't able to fully process everything. There was just no way that Professor Lupin was capable of casting an unforgivable, especially unprovoked… he was so mild-mannered and likable, it just wasn't in his character. "I… I have to talk to Professor Frye… now."

"You can't, Harry," protested Nova. "The notice on the bulletin quite plainly stated that we're restricted to our common room for the time being."

"I don't care," Harry shot back in a firm but respectful tone. "I have to get this off my chest… I just want to make sure that everyone's wands have been inspected – including staff members!"

"At least get Missy's blessing before you go," begged Ana. "Or another trustee. I don't want to see you get in trouble over something that isn't even your business anyway…"

"Oh, all right," sighed Harry. He scanned the room to try to find Missy or some other trustee; he exhaled with a sigh of relief when he saw a halo-braided Missy standing near the fireplace, wearing her entire formal regalia, sans beret. She was speaking with her boyfriend, fellow fifth-year Horned Serpent Ulysses Chow, a slender boy of partial Polynesian descent.

Harry cleared his throat in an attempt to get Missy's attention. "Erm, hi there, Missy. I've got a question for you… it's kinda important."

Missy turned around to address Harry. "Oh, hiya, Harry," she said warmly. "What's up?"

Harry's face turned pink for a split second. "Well, I need to talk to Professor Frye. It's about this morning… it's about another professor, actually… I just want to make sure that he's not responsible is all…"

Missy's eyes shifted; she then lowered her voice to a faint whisper as she leaned toward Harry. "Which professor, Harry?"

Harry sighed. "Professor Lupin," he whispered back. "I don't think he did it, but he also isn't an Ilvermorny graduate, meaning that he could potentially have learned spells at Hogwarts that they don't necessarily teach here…"

Missy turned back to Ulysses. "Could you excuse us for just a sec, 'Lys?"

"Take your time," replied Ulysses. "We've literally got all day today…"

Missy smiled sweetly at her boyfriend. "Thank you. This won't take long." She then turned to Harry and gestured toward a pair of armchairs just a few paces away from the fireplace; Harry dutifully took a seat.

Missy daintily took her seat, and drew her ten and a half inch elderberry wand. "Muffliato," she whispered. She then tucked her wand away just as quickly, and placed her hands in her lap. She looked impassively at Harry before speaking again. "Before I authorize you to leave the Horned Serpent tower, Potter, I'm going to need a very good reason for doing so. As it stands, discussing whether or not Professor Lupin is innocent or guilty of murdering Miss Doolittle isn't going to suffice."

Harry hung his head. "I don't think he did it… I really, really hope it wasn't him, at least… do you know if faculty members' wands were checked?"

Missy nodded. "To my knowledge, yes, all student and faculty wands are liable to be tested." Her face hardened just a touch. "Granted, that's strictly an internal investigation; MACUSA will almost certainly launch an investigation of their own, and I guarantee faculty wands will be tested a second time; possibly students' as well. While I trust Professor Fontaine's methods, I'm inclined to think that MACUSA is a little more thorough, so there's a chance they might find something that the school missed." She let out a sad-sounding sigh. "And that wouldn't be a good look, because if MACUSA finds something that the school doesn't, it may look like Ilvermorny is hiding something. If that happens, teachers could lose their jobs… and we'd have to resume our magical education elsewhere."

"Sooooo," Harry replied after some thought, "have you heard of something called, erm, the unforgivable curses?"

Missy's face turned sheet white. She just blinked at Harry a couple of times, before nodding slowly. "I have, Harry… why do you ask?"

Harry bit his lip. "Nova Woodward said she saw Doolittle's body in the girl's lavatory just before reveille this morning. She thinks that someone might have cast something called a killing curse on her… she didn't see any signs of a fight or anything… whoever did it must have killed her quickly."

There was a distinct look of fear on Missy's countenance, one that Harry never saw on the usually-stoic trustee before. "I heard a scream at about five o'clock this morning. I got out of bed as quickly as I could to investigate, and I just saw her body, sprawled out in front of the row of sinks. Whoever did it clearly took her by surprise…" Missy began to sniffle as tears welled in her eyes. "Miss Doolittle was a member of an Old Money family, and belonged to her own little clique. A clique that nearly everyone else at Ilvermorny resented. But just because she wasn't well-liked outside of her own social circle, doesn't mean that she had any known enemies."

Missy's breaths became jagged and deliberate as she was helpless to control her tears. "She and I were often at odds… we have been ever since we were sorted together over four years ago. We've threatened each other, we've jinxed each other… but while I wouldn't hesitate to put her in her place for stepping out of line, I'd never truly harm her. Whoever's responsible is a truly sick and demented individual… there is no reason for anyone to want a child dead."

"They don't teach unforgivables here, do they?" asked Harry. "Nova said they don't."

Missy shook her head 'no'. "Most magical schools don't condone the use of dark magic… Hogwarts doesn't include it in their curriculum, and neither does Beauxbatons as far as I'm aware." She tilted her head. "There are exceptions to that though… Durmstrang is known for condoning dark magic… even actively teaching it… those who have been educated at Durmstrang are some pretty tough customers, let me tell you…"

"Since Professor Lupin went to Hogwarts, it's not likely he would have learned the unforgivable curses," Harry replied with relief evident in his voice.

Missy smiled sweetly. "Correct. If he has any knowledge of those spells, he would have learned them outside of the walls of the Hogwarts castle…" Her smile broadened. "Search your feelings, Harry. Do you think Professor Lupin really would have done something so awful? If anything, he's probably grieving right now…"

"He was very good friends with my father, godfather, and uncle," Harry said. "The only British wizards that would have cast spells like those would have in league with Lord Voldemort… the demon who killed both my parents." Harry's face darkened. "He did mention that there was a man… Peter something or other… that betrayed my parents… he did it to gain favor with Voldemort. He also framed my godfather for killing 12 innocent people back in Magical Britain, while he got off scot-free…"

"I'm so sorry to hear that," cooed Missy. "How old were you when you lost your parents?"

"I was just a toddler… not much more than a year old," answered Harry. "Voldemort also tried to destroy me, but my mother cast some sort of protection charm on me that caused his curse to backfire. The attempt left this scar on my forehead… It evaporated his body, but apparently it didn't fully destroy his spirit. I don't know a ton of what happened, but it sounds like there's a lot of powerful magic that surrounds him, and it would take more than just a killing curse to destroy him for good."

Missy just sat and listened to Harry for a minute; a small thin smile came to her lips. "Harry, a personal question?"

Harry nodded at the trustee. "Sure."

Missy gave Harry a bit of a nervous glance. "Erm, I've never heard of anyone surviving the killing curse before… your mother must have truly loved you for that charm to protect you the way it did… anyway, would you mind if I took a look at your scar for just a moment?"

Harry just smiled at Missy and shrugged. "I don't see why not." He brushed back a few strands of his dark, messy hair to reveal a scar that resembled a slightly-tilted Z.

Missy gasped in awe. "That scar… I've never seen anything like that before," she whispered. She smiled sweetly. "Another personal question? It might sound a little strange, but I would like to touch it… if you don't mind."

Harry couldn't fully stifle a chuckle. "Go for it."

"Thank you," replied Missy with a soft giggle. Slowly and deliberately, she reached out with her right hand, her index and middle fingers fully extended. Harry winced at first, but then sat still as he let her carefully-manicured baby pink fingernails gently trace the outline of his scar.

Harry's flinching didn't go unnoticed by Missy. "I hope I didn't cause you any pain… I'm so sorry if I did," she said.

"It felt a little weird at first," admitted Harry, "but your touch didn't cause any pain or discomfort. It felt a little cool, a little tingly even. It was a positive sensation."

"Oh good," replied Missy. "I was worried for a moment… has anyone ever touched your scar before? Not including immediate family?"

Harry just shrugged. "Not that I'm aware of… though I have felt a similar tingling sensation before. When you touched it, I just felt a lot of positive energy well up inside me. Some positive memories came back to me as well. It was wonderful."

"And what about the last time your scar tingled?" asked Missy with an arched eyebrow. "I'm guessing it wasn't as positive an experience."

"It was when I got my wand about a month ago," said Harry. "Elder Gomer didn't touch my scar, but he just kinda grabbed my wrist and… sorta looked into my soul or something. I don't know what he even did, but it was like reliving the night where I lost my parents and the events that happened immediately after that."

He then slumped back in his seat and bowed his head. Missy tilted her head. "Harry, are you alright?

Harry barely looked up. "Yeah, I'm fine… I can't explain it, but… I think we need to go downstairs to the Wand Selection Chamber…"

Missy gasped. "Are you crazy? The last time anyone was down there, a student got sent to the infirmary… she's lucky she didn't get sent home for good!"

"Maybe I am," replied Harry, "but when you touched my scar, you've given me an idea… Elder Gomer knows more about wands than anyone here. Maybe he knows if it's possible to bypass a trace…"

"I don't think that's a good idea," countered Missy. "First of all, Elder Gomer's a very busy man as it is. Secondly, do you really think he's going to share trade secrets, especially with a first-year student that's just a little out of his depth?"

"Fine," groaned Harry. "Was his wand checked? Is he even considered faculty here? He just makes wands for most of the year and hands them to new students the first of September."

"How should I know?" countered Missy. She sighed. "Look, Harry… I know you're ready for things to get back to normal – we all are – but right now, you're about to lead us on a wild goose chase. Unless you have proof of someone committing the crime, then you just need to forget about this whole mess and just wait things out like the rest of us. You don't have to like it, but you have to respect the restrictions. Remember, they're just temporary…"

"And what if I find proof?" Harry shot back.

"Just stop, Harry," begged Missy. "As I've said before, please… just let the faculty handle things. I'm not authorizing you to leave the tower until it's time to eat – case closed. You really should use this time to study, or relax with your friends. Now if you don't mind, I'd like to spend some time with my boyfriend, thanks." She got up from her seat and returned to her old spot by the fireplace.

Harry shook his head in frustration as he got up to re-join Ana and Nova. "She's not letting me leave the tower right now," he told his friends.

"Well, she probably has good reason," surmised Ana. "She doesn't want you to get in trouble. It's for your own good, Harry."

Harry ran a hand through his dark shaggy hair. "She did say that faculty members are supposed to have their wands checked too." A small smile came to his lips. "Also, I think it's safe to assume that Professor Lupin has nothing to do with the incident."

"Well, that's good," murmured Ana. "And I'm sure she also told you not to dig any deeper into this. This isn't your mystery to solve…"

"No, it's not," admitted Harry in a hushed tone, "but when she touched my scar, I felt a tingling sensation similar to the one I felt when I got my wand last month… I don't have any evidence to back this up, other than a gut feeling, but I really think there's a clue downstairs in the Wand Selection Chamber…"

"Oh no you don't," Ana admonished. "Don't even think about sneaking around the castle, looking for the proverbial needle in the haystack!" She grabbed Harry's hand and gave it a small squeeze. "Harry, look at me. I know you've gotten into this habit of doing your own thing, even when others tell you not to… look, your maverick streak suits you at times, but this is not one of them. Promise me you'll do as you're told, and stay here until we're given the all-clear." Her already soft voice faded into a whisper so faint that even Harry could barely hear it. "I don't want to lose you."

Harry's chest heaved up and down… he wanted very badly to make that promise to Ana, but in his heart of hearts, he knew he couldn't keep it. "Ana," he replied, "I can't make that promise… I hope you understand."

Before Ana could object, Nova threw Harry a devilish grin. "There's no need for you to make that promise, mate. Name the time… I'm going with you."

Ana rolled her eyes so hard, they might as well have fallen out of their sockets. "I'm going to regret this," she sighed. "I might as well see this through too."

"Tonight," whispered Harry. "Tonight, after curfew. Say, ten fifteen? Meet me here in the common room… and bring only yourselves."

"Works for me," said Nova.

"Okay," added Ana with reluctance in her voice. She narrowed her eyes at Harry. "If we get in trouble, Harry Potter, you're going to have worse things to deal with besides detention. And that is a promise I will keep."

Harry swallowed the large lump that formed in his throat.