Chapter 28 - Return of the king

Iris couldn't sleep that night. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Purple. She wasn't sure if Harry had noticed that she had been gone, but this had been the first night since they returned where instead he had been comforting her. It helped, if only a little.

Her mind couldn't help but return to Salem. Or rather, whatever it was now living inside of her. What she had felt when she had looked into those eyes, when it had found her, after she pressed the button, this was more than just primal fear. It had been a feeling so alien, it couldn't have been her own. Something that would only ever be caused by the thing. Whatever it was.

But it wasn't the only thought barring her from sleep. In one single day, she had lost both the remaining things tying her to the girl she used to be. Salem had been taken from her out of nowhere, and in trying to bring her back, she had sacrificed her only other friend. And now they both were gone.

She had been foolish. Why had she thought that she could achieve something on a hunch that obviously nobody ever had before? That in all likelihood wasn't even possible? She was sure she had done everything right, had done everything she could with what she had available. And the ritual hadn't failed, the sacrifice had been adequate. Otherwise, Salem's body wouldn't have come back at all. But something had gone awry all the same.

Was it just that trying to bring back a soul from the dead was actually impossible? That is, if the soul was actually something that was, well, real. Was there even such a thing as impossible, when it came to magic?

Then another terrifying thought entered her mind. Was it the ritual that had brought the thing, or the thing that had interrupted the ritual?

Unconsciously she reached for the nook in the blanket between her legs, only for a cold shiver to run over her in realization when she, in fact, didn't find the feline there.

She thought she saw the shadows move for a moment and jumped. Had-

Yes! The shadows were definitely moving! Had the thing come back for her? She scrambled up in her bed, desperately looking for her wand. Once her fingers finally closed around the stone-cold handle, she felt something. Something around her. It felt dark, dangerous, unnatural, and... familiar? Oh.

Closing her eyes for a moment, she forced her mind to calm down, and watched the shadows ebb away. She could see Harry shivering under his blanket. Iris looked around the room once more to be sure they were really gone, and breathed a sigh of relief.

Apparently, her thoughts had spiraled so far that her shadows had gone out of control again. That probably wasn't a good sign.

Another thought had been niggling at the back of her mind. Just the brief moment she had met the thing had thrown her off-kilter so thoroughly that she had all but fled home as soon as it had gone.

She had left behind a mess, plenty of evidence. And she had been casting spells all night. If they really could tell, would they be able to tie it to her? If they found the cemetery, the sight alone would be pretty damning.

And then there was the matter of her friends. According to Harry, it had been Dobby who was intercepting their mail. If that was true, then maybe her friends hadn't forgotten about her after all? But until she saw the letters, that felt more like wishful thinking. And since she still hadn't received any, if it really was Dobby, he was probably even still out there, still doing it.

Iris blinked. Well, if he was, could she do something about that? She would have to do it without casting any spells, but well, she had managed before, hadn't she? If there was a chance she could get her actual friends back, she had to try. No rituals this time, though. With what had just happened, she'd be crazy to attempt another one any time soon, if ever.

But what did that leave her with? She had done her iridescent light for years without issues, so that was probably safe. Maybe, because it wasn't an actual spell?

But then what about the spells she had cast over the past week? Admittedly, she wasn't sure if Harry had cast any at all... What had been different about the levitation spell?

But in the end, she couldn't be sure what it was. For now, all she knew was that her spells from yesterday night hadn't resulted in any more letters, so she'd work under the assumption that doing spells away from home was safe enough. Well, that, and her light probably.

Oh, and, she supposed, her shadows were probably in the same boat. She had been doing them minutes ago, without even noticing, and no letters had shown up either. Also, they weren't really a spell either, much like her light.

Thinking of the shadows gave her an idea. If Dobby was really somewhere around their house, intercepting their letters, maybe she could find him through the shadows? She had been able to see Topsy, even if slightly translucent, back in front of Filches office. She supposed the elf had been there on Filches orders, and had been watching in case one of them somehow got out. Could they somehow turn invisible? Was that why he had been translucent?

There was nothing for it. She'd just have to find out. A look out of the window revealed the first rays of sunshine already peeking over the horizon. Post usually arrived in the morning, if there was any time he'd be around, it'd be now.

With a final nod, she grabbed her wand, thought of him, and pulled. The shadows yawned, lapping at her night shirt, and eagerly pulling her in, leaving the girl's mattress empty.

She had never been in the shadow realm outside of Hogwarts. It looked pretty similar, but it somehow felt very different. A lot more open, a lot more vast, like one single slip of the foot could carry her to a land far away.

She carefully edged her way down and out of the house, effortlessly slipping through the walls. It was already bright outside, but there were countless shadows welcoming her presence, allowing her glimpses into the expanse of Privet Drive, completely bereft of people at this time of day.

She went looking, trying to find different angles to peer at number four from the outside, in hopes of spotting Dobby. So far, without any success. She had no idea what she'd do if she found him, however. It wasn't like she could use any spells here.

There was a pop, somewhere behind her, echoing strangely inside the realm of shadows like a ripple of sorts. She turned, and froze. There was a man.

No, two men. One of them was dressed in a long brown trench coat and had short wiry grey hair; he had a sort of rugged, tough-looking appearance. The other was wearing dark blue robes and had a haircut that would make Snape jealous. They were standing in the middle of the road, and she was pretty damn sure, that a second ago, before she had turned, they hadn't been there. They hadn't even been anywhere near. As if they had appeared out of thin air.

And judging by the man in robes, they probably had. Wizards. Fuck.

She frantically took a step back and ducked into the shadows of the bushes of number three across the street. She had no idea what they'd do if they spotted her, but it wasn't out of the question that they could do something to her, even in her current state. Even the Cerberus had been able to sense her.

Luckily, they seemed to not have noticed her yet. Trench coat guy turned to Not-Snape and said "This is where the Potters live?"

Said wizard turned to regard number four with a frown. "According to the file, it is."

What? They were here for them? But why? What did they want with them?

"Strange place to put the Boy-Who-Lived," said trench coat guy. He produced a cigarette, which he lit up with a flick of his finger, took a drag, then slowly exhaled. "You think they had something to do with the code seven on main street?"

Main street? Wait, were they talking about the church? Oh crap! They were already onto her! Whoever they were.

"You're talking nonsense, John," replied Not-Snape. "Lots of spell residue over there. If they were anywhere near, Mafalda would have come bashing in my office door hours ago."

Iris was completely lost now. Spell residue? Did her spells leave behind some form of... footprint? Who were these people? Were they like... the same people that sent the letters? The magical police? What had they been called again?

Trench coat- well, apparently, John, took another drag, then chuckled. "Kidding, boss. They're just kids. No way they'd be able to do something like... well," he trailed off, drained another lungful, and shook himself. Iris would have sighed in relief, if she could.

"Enough dallying, John. Let's get this clown show over with."

John sighed, put out his cigarette, and replied, "The things we do for our dear Head of Department..."

The two men strode over to the entrance, pulled something from their pockets, and then forcefully knocked on the door. Why wouldn't they just use the doorbell?

"Mister... Dursley? Auror Scrimgeour, DMLE. Open up!"

There were some thumps and angry shouts from inside the house, until the purple face of her uncle, clad in a flowery night gown appeared in the door.

"What in the bloody hells do you want? Do you have any idea what time it is?"

Vernon froze, however, as he took in the two men standing in front of the door.

"Mr. Dursley? This is Auror Dawlish, I'm Auror Scrimgeour. Department of Magical Law Enforcement."

Iris' heart jumped into her throat. Crap! It was them! They were here because of the spells she had cast! They'd come to expel her! And maybe Harry along with her!

Uncle Vernon's face was rapidly changing shades now. "What have the freaks done this time? I told you lot that we want nothing to do with you!"

"We have received reports of your wards' mail being intercepted around your residence. Since tampering with another wizard's mail is a violation under Paragraph A of the Mail and Floo Regulation Act 1928, Section C, we're here to investigate," rattled Scrimgeour, as if it was simultaneously the most boring and most obvious thing that had ever been said.

Uncle Vernon just blinked dumbly at him. Iris couldn't help but agree. What?

Dawlish cut in in a smooth voice. "We'll be performing a few routine checks, and we'll be out of your hair within a minute," he said dismissively.

Since Uncle Vernon still hadn't managed to produce any words from his silently moving mouth, they seemed to take that as an agreement, and stepped through the door, past the halfhearted protests of its owner.

"What are you doing? Get out of my house!"

Dawlish sighed, and replied. "It'll only take a minute, Mr. Dursley. Please, do not interfere."

Iris carefully snuck closer, wanting to get a better look at what they were doing. She edged behind the shadows of the fridge, trying to get a better view of the two wizards standing in the center of their living room.

Dawlish turned to Scrimgeour and asked, "Standard rundown?"

"Go ahead," came the curt reply.

Both wizards withdrew their wands causing Uncle Vernon to rapidly pale.

"Revelio!"

The air seemed to shiver for a moment, and Iris felt a strange tingling sensation as something passed over her.

Scrimgeour frowned. Both wizards went throughout the house, casting the spell over and over, as well as casting several others that she didn't recognize. Dawlish was currently moving out the back door, while Scrimgeour was still scouring the living room with a strange expression. Then, he turned towards the kitchen. Iris shrunk back, trying to sink further into the corner, hoping he wouldn't notice her. She had no idea what the Aurors would do if they discovered her shadow, and she really didn't want to find out.

"Revelio!"

This time, it felt a lot more prominent. Scrimgeour's frown deepened. He looked up, then turned to look right at her. Iris froze.

"Ha, found it!" came the voice of Dawlish from the outside. Scrimgeour kept staring, until he finally turned to look at Dawlish, who was dragging- Dobby!

"Huh. Now what do we have here?" Scrimgeour raised an eyebrow.

"Rogue house elf, it seems like," said Dawlish with a satisfied expression.

Scrimgeour regarded the unconscious elf for a few seconds. "We'll take it to the DRC, find out who it belongs to." Then, he turned to look back at Uncle Vernon. "Seems like we're done here even faster than expected. Thank you for your time, Mr. Dursley, good day," he said in a clipped tone, and with two sudden pops, the wizards disappeared right out of their living room, and Dobby along with them.

Iris was still frozen in shock. That had been way too close. Shaking herself out of her stupor, she dashed back up the stairs and into Harry's room. She finally spotted her brother through one of the gaps, and the sight would have made her gasp. He was tossing and turning in his bed. At least, he hadn't woken up yet. But it seemed like he was having nightmares. Again.

She quickly opened a rift and returned to the mortal realm. Whoa, no. That had sounded off in her head. She wasn't naming it that.

Iris made her way to the bed, and quickly did what little she could to comfort Harry while he was lost in his mind. As he shivered in her embrace, she tried to work through what had just happened. Somehow, Aurors had shown up, and they had found and taken Dobby. He really had still been here. Did that mean... They could now write to their friends? And they could now write back? She'd have to write Tracey another letter as soon as Harry woke up.

Also, something else had stuck in her mind. They had been talking about the church, about what she had done. And then Scrimgeour had mentioned a name... and now that she thought about it, that name had sounded familiar...

Of course! She reached over to their night stand, pulled out the drawer and took out the dreaded letter she had received. And there it was.

Enjoy your holidays! Yours sincerely,

Mafalda Hopkirk.

He said Mafalda would have- But that would mean... That whatever they used to track them should also work there? Not just here?

But then why didn't it? Did...

A wild thought entered her mind. Was it possible it had something to do with her strange magic?

But then why did it suddenly work yesterday? Was it just that she had thrown a lot of power into it? But it hadn't even been very much... She hadn't even really said the incantation... But that also couldn't be it, could it?

And the fact that they both got a letter...

Suddenly, everything clicked into place. They couldn't tell who had done the spell, apparently. And assuming that they for some reason couldn't detect her, well, maybe they hadn't. Dobby had done the same spell, after all!

"Iris? What's going on?" Harry mumbled in her arms. Still smiling with glee as her mind took that train of thought to its logical conclusion, she met Harry's eyes, which caused him to frown. "I don't think I like that look..." he said slowly.

Iris just grinned in return. "Good morning, Harry."

~V~

The moment the first letter from Tracey arrived at their windowsill, Iris' spirits had done a complete 180. Harry still didn't quite know what to make of the fact that apparently, some sort of wizard cops had shown up in their house while he had been asleep, but if the result helped her take her mind off her runaway cat, he was all for it.

And as much as he was thankful for all the care Iris had given him over the past month, as well as the Wiggenweld Potions from Madam Pomfrey, the moment he had received the first letter from Ron had felt like a balm on his soul. It had only been two weeks since then, and he was already feeling a lot better. They had started spending more time outside, and lately, he had been feeling well enough that he wasn't sure if he even should still be taking the potions. He hadn't thrown up in over a week now.

They still had spent the occasional evening playing with Moo, but over the past week, most of their time had actually been spent either reading and writing letters, or outdoors. That, or practicing magic. Or at least, Iris was. He still hadn't cast any spells at home, and had no plans to, either. Harry was still a bit worried over the fact that Iris just kept doing it anyway, especially with what had happened. He had to admit he hadn't quite followed her explanation as to why they wouldn't be able to tell, especially when they apparently had been able to before, but so far, her words seemed to have proven accurate.

But he had decided to keep his objections to himself for now. Especially today.

Harry sat up from his bed, and ran a hand through his hair. It came back with some of them sticking to it. At least that also seemed to be getting a lot better. With how many hairs he'd been losing over the past months, he'd have expected to have gone bald right now. But somehow, his hair had remained its usual untamable self. Not that he was complaining, mind you. He'd much prefer having his strange untamable hair over becoming bald on top of everything else. His sister had enough to deal with already, he couldn't even imagine the shame that would have brought.

That had also been the reason he hadn't told her about his dreams. Once he had realized that it was the Dark Lord he was seeing in his dreams—not himself, thank God—he had realized that he could never tell Iris about that. Something about the symptoms he was having was all too familiar. And his mind had quickly found the common denominator.

The spell that Iris had cast at both of them. That twisted version of Depulso. Of course, it had been outside of her control, but if he told her about his dreams, he knew she'd come to the same conclusion, and inevitably blame herself for his illness. And that was something he wouldn't allow to happen.

Especially not on their birthday. He knew she had something planned. He himself hadn't had the energy to plan much over the past weeks, but Ron and Hermione had come in clutch. Ron had sent an assortment of all the snacks they had been missing out on over the summer, and Hermione had somehow found the advanced edition of the physics book that Iris had been using, and had apparently even spelled it to somewhat float on its own. He had carefully wrapped and hidden them in his backpack, hoping to surprise her during whatever she had planned.

"Good morning, Harry! And Happy Birthday!"

There she was, wielding the usual tray of breakfast, despite his protests that he was already well enough to come downstairs for their meals.

"Happy Birthday to you as well!" Deciding that his pride could wait another day, he gratefully dug in, while she joined him with her own meal.

"How are you feeling?" came the daily query.

"Lots better, I almost can't feel anything anymore. At this rate, I think it'll only be another week at most," he admitted, drawing a grin from her.

"Perfect. Then I hope you're well enough for a little trip!"

A trip? This wasn't what he had been expecting. But it was certainly intriguing. After being stuck in his bed for so long, he relished every chance to wander the streets of Little Whinging that he got.

Wordlessly, she had led him out of their house and down a familiar path. The closer they got, the surer he grew of their destination. But why would they be going there of all places? He threw her curious looks, but she just smiled and continued down the road undeterred.

At last, they found themselves in front of the closed iron gate of St. Grogorys. He gave her the raised eyebrow.

"What are we doing here? It's summer anyway, the school is probably locked up..."

Iris just smirked, produced her wand, and unlocked the gate in a flash of yellow light. Harry held back his comment about her blatant use of magic, but he knew there was no point. The more she had been casting spells over the summer, without any more letters showing up, the bolder she had grown. Filled with trepidation, he stepped after her through the gate into the courtyard of their old primary school.

Harry didn't think that either of them had many fond memories of this place. He had expected to never be seeing this place again, and had been very content with that idea. Yet, he also couldn't help but feel a pang of nostalgia. Over there was the oak tree that his sister used to climb, and which they'd be sitting underneath to read the books that they had borrowed from the library.

But he had a feeling they weren't here for that. Iris made a beeline towards the main entrance, and unlocked that door as well. Reluctantly following after her, she led him down the corridors, past their old classroom, through the Arts and Crafts section, until they came to a stop in front of...

The AV room? Huh. He was officially intrigued. He stepped inside and made his way to the front row almost on autopilot. Iris, now sporting a gleam in her eyes, had quickly approached and turned on the projector, and proceeded to withdraw something from her backpack. Apparently, she had brought a DVD? He couldn't make out any details, though. He decided to let himself be surprised. It looked like they were going to watch a movie or something. He just hoped it wasn't another episode of Sabrina.

The projector flared to life, and displayed the New Line Cinema logo. Iris turned up the volume, and plopped herself down next to him. Well, he just hoped that whatever it was, he'd enjoy it as well. But in the meantime-

Harry reached for his own backpack, produced the care package from Ron, and handed it over to Iris.

"Happy Birthday again. I got Ron to buy some of your favorites, I guess this is as good an occasion as any?"

She grinned and quickly tore off the wrapping, and her eyes lit up as she spotted the contents. "Oh, perfect! Thanks a bunch, Harry!"

He was about to reply when his attention was drawn to the idyllic scene on the projector screen, and one of the characters began to speak.

"Smeagol, I've got one!"

Harry's brain immediately performed an emergency shutdown. No way. He had of course seen the first two movies many times, whenever they had been on TV. He had been anxiously awaiting the third one, which was set to begin airing sometime later this year, but... Could it be? He guessed the DVD would have already been available...

His mouth hanging open, he slowly turned to look at Iris.

"Happy Birthday, Harry!" she said with the worlds smuggest expression plastered onto her face.

~V~

They had spent the whole day watching The Return of the King, and devouring the snacks that Ron had sent them. At last, they had finally made it home, Harry's face completely unable to hide the fact that he had just had the time of his life.

Iris was just about to get started on her limited number of daily chores, when Harry stopped her and mysteriously declared, "Hang on for a moment, there's one more thing. Be right back." And with that, he disappeared up the stairs.

"And just what have the two of you been up to?" came a growl from the living room, making Iris freeze in place.

She slowly turned to face the angry visage of her uncle. Crap. He was back from work early.

"Not only I find you shirking your chores, but out and about!"

Iris flushed. "I-I was just about to get started with the laundry..."

"I'm sure you were," sneered Uncle Vernon. "I think it's high time you freaks started pulling your weight around here again."

"B-But I was! I've been doing all my chores, and Harry is sick!"

"Sick enough to be gallivanting about outdoors the whole day? Are you taking me for a fool, girl?"

Iris swallowed. True, he had been doing a lot better over the past week, but still.

"But he's-"

"Don't talk back to me, girl!" snapped her uncle, making Iris flinch back.

He took an angry step towards her, reaching a hand, and-

"Iris!" Harry barged into the scene, interspersing himself between her and Vernon, glaring up at him.

He was breathing deeply, sweat on his forehead. Apparently, the mad dash down the stairs had taken more out of him than usual, it looked like he still wasn't quite back to his original health.

Iris reached for Harry, but hesitated as she noticed he was holding something in his hand. A book. Squinting, she could even make out the title. A Comprehensive Exploration of the Deeper Workings of the Universe. Her eyes widened. Was that-

"About time you showed up, boy. Give me that!"

Before Harry could react, Uncle Vernon snatched the book out of his hands, glared at it for a moment, then set it down on the commode.

"If you think I'll watch even one more day while you-" her uncle broke off and his tiny pupils widened.

The book he had placed on the commode had started floating.

"What in the nine bloody hells is this?" he shouted, his face rapidly turning red. He reached out and grabbed Harry by the collar.

"I told you. No. Magic. In. This. House! And yet you bring... something freakish like this? I will not have it!"

He yelled, as he started shaking Harry, while shouting in his face.

Iris was frozen solid. Not again! She hated whenever this happened. Every time they got in trouble, Harry would try and take the punishment instead. And no matter how much she wanted to do the same for him, she had never managed. It wasn't that she was scared of him, although that was certainly true as well. No, the problem was something else. But she had no idea what. She wanted to protect Harry at all costs. But when she ended up in a situation like this, that would require her to place herself in harm's way instead, she found herself unable to make a decision. Some part of her refused the idea of placing herself in certain danger like that. She didn't want to see herself get hurt any less than Harry.

And that confused her to no end. She knew she'd give up even her own life to protect him, and yet, she also wouldn't. It was this very paradox that froze her in her place every time, when the only choice to save him was to redirect the danger onto herself.

But was it? No. She realized. After all these years, she finally had another option. One where the only one getting hurt... would be him.

Her uncle froze, his hands still clutched around Harry's neck, as he noticed Iris. His beady eyes entrapped by the tip of her wand, which was pointed right at him.

"Let him go!" Iris demanded.

Staring at it uncertainly, he loosened his grip on Harry, but didn't let go.

"Put that thing away! I'm not falling for that, girl," he snarled.

Iris narrowed her eyes. "I mean it!"

"Or what? Tuni told me how you're not allowed to do magic, how they'll know," he said with an ugly grin.

"You'll get expelled. I know you won't do it," Vernon gloated victoriously.

"Will I?" she whispered.

Vernon's eyes widened and his mouth fell open as the shadows around her seemed to lengthen. He let go of Harry and made to grab for her instead, but he was too slow.

"Depulso!"

Dark blue lightning cracked, and twin yells accompanied her uncle being forcefully tossed back and slammed against the door of the cupboard under the stairs.

"W-What are you doing?" he croaked, struggling to breathe under the pressure of the curse.

"Giving you some time to think on your actions," came the reply.

"Iris! Are you mad? What do you think you're doing?!" Harry's hushed whisper cut in.

She gave him a determined look. "I'm putting an end to this."

Iris would be damned if she let this continue for even a single day. She had already gone too far, the least she could do was ensure it wouldn't have been for nothing.

"You... won't... get... away... with... this!" his strained voice huffed between shallow breaths.

"Oh, but I think I will. And I will again, and again, if you don't leave us alone..."

Vernon's mouth was moving, but no words came out. His face had gone past purple and was now turning blue. Finally, his eyes seemed to roll up, and just as he was about to lose consciousness, Iris jabbed her wand again, this time glowing green.

"Accio."

The diametrically opposed spell broke the curse, and he came tumbling to the ground, taking deep gulps of air. When he finally got onto his knees and threw her a wary look, she placed the final nail in the coffin.

"Do we understand each other? Or do I need to take a page out of your book, and apply the lesson to someone else first?"

His eyes widened in fear, and he swallowed. He didn't reply, but his expression had said it all.

"Good. We'll be in our room."

~V~

Iris stumbled into their room, adrenaline still running high, and almost slammed the door shut, when she realized that Harry was still coming after her. That thought's happiness lasted for but a second, until she realized what she had just done. What he had seen. What he might think.

In a daze, Iris crawled onto the bed, wrapped herself in the blanket and hugged her knees to her chest. With her face buried in her knees, she sat there, as she heard the footsteps ascend the stairs, and finally enter their room. The door clicked shut behind him, yet he said nothing.

Slowly, the footsteps approached. She felt his judging gaze upon her, the weight of what she had just done pressing down upon her, yet...

He said nothing, just approached, then paused. She felt a weight settle next to her on the bed, and she tensed.

Iris almost jumped as she felt a hand settle on her head. He paused, then slowly began to rub her head.

"Are you alright?"

God damnit, Harry! Why couldn't he just be angry with her for once? God knows she deserved it.

"Fine..." she mumbled, still unable to look at him.

She knew he was worried, maybe even scared. He always had been wary whenever she had done something with the shadows, and now she had done the exact dark spell that the Dark Lord had forced her to use on him. Except this time, it had been entirely her doing. And then there was what she had said to Vernon, or rather, what she had implied...

Merlin only knows what he must think of her. And still he was just...

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"It's alright," Harry simply replied, like that was all there was to say about it.

As he kept rubbing her head, she had no idea what to do. Finally, she just whispered, "Why?"

His hand stopped, now just resting on her back. He didn't reply. Slowly, Iris lifted her head to look at him, and was met with a smile.

"Why... aren't you angry?" she muttered, unable to look him in the eyes.

He reached out and took one of her hands, and wrapped it in his. The reply was so simple she should have expected it, yet it still sent a shiver throughout her body.

"Because you're my sister, and I love you."

She was just staring at him, tears threatening to escape, as he smiled back at her, while holding her hand, and she had no idea what to say. Only after half a minute of both painful and comforting silence, her watery gaze met his and she managed a weak reply.

"Sorry I ruined our birthday."

~V~

Harry was lying in his bed, just staring at Iris, his mind still running back and forth, trying to catch up with what had just happened. She was just lying there, her newly acquired book floating above her, although somewhat wobbly compared to her old one. When she was like this, he couldn't help but see her the way he always had. But the memories of what had just happened were still too fresh in his mind for it to appear too real. He hadn't wanted to see it, but over the year a part of him had come to a gradual realization.

Iris could be scary as hell. And he had no idea what to think about that.

But there was another thought that was plaguing his mind as a result of what had happened. What she had done. Even if it seemed like everything had worked out for her, he couldn't help but worry that she might get hurt in the end. And one thing could definitely see to that. The spell she had cast.

Once Uncle Vernon would start showing symptoms, she'd quickly figure out what he had weeks ago. And then she'd inevitably blame herself for his illness. And this time, there was nothing he could do to stop it. He knew all too well the pain he'd feel when he was responsible for someone coming to harm, especially Iris.

If only she'd used any other spell...

No, what was he thinking? She shouldn't have done something like this at all! Shouldn't she?

But... Well... There was no way to argue against what the Dursleys had done to them either...

But still. Then again, would they actually leave them alone now?

He guessed, as long as Iris had her wand, and they still couldn't tell when she was doing magic...

He just hoped that she'd never do something like that again. Maybe just the threat of it was enough? No- that wasn't- he shouldn't be thinking about that.

He sighed, turned over, and decided to try to fall asleep. Thinking on this too much couldn't result in anything good. And he'd be damned if he did anything that could jeopardize his relationship with his sister.