Chapter Two: Friends and Foes

Nick was still disappointed about Hermione's reaction to his demonstration, a month ago. He thought that she would be excited about his discovery, he hoped that she would've fully supported him, but it had been quite the opposite. After the first moments of astonishment, she went all "Miss Granger" on him, as would say Ron, and started to scold him. She even tried to bully him into surrendering the wand to the Ministry for examination because "who knows what curse could've been put on it". She told him that he probably just figured out a way to see traces of magic, and that it was already a great achievement that he should be proud of.

He had to spend Christmas at school this year, because he had spent the three last Christmas with Ginny, Ron, Hermione and Harry and he had to take a turn watching after the remaining students, but also because he had promised Sunya to help her with her research. So here he was, once again at the library, under the scrutiny of good ol' Madam Pince…

"A penny for your thoughts!" Whispered Sunya, observing him with her green almond-shaped eyes.

He blushed slightly, feeling somehow ashamed of his mind drifting. He wasn't much help to her at this point.

"I'm sorry, I let my mind wander, what were we saying?" He replied, repressing a yawn.

"How about a drink? Hogsmeade? My treat!" She asked with that smile nobody could resist.

"Actually, that's a good idea. Let's get out of this realm of dust and old parchment for a while!"

She laughed, instantly getting the attention of Madam Pince and her soul-piercing gaze.

"Ooooh, she scares me so much!" She said, grabbing Nick's arm and pulling him out in the corridor.

They got out of the castle, fleeing from Peeves who was distributing some "stinking treats" to unwilling students. It was a nice day, snow had stopped the night before, so everything was covered with a nice white mantle under a bright sun. They took the road to the village, talking about anything but studies. Near the castle gate, they met Neville who was coming back to Hogwarts with a bag on his side.

"Hi Neville!" They said at the same time.

"Oh! Hello Sunya! Nick!" He said, surprised. "You're going to Hogsmead? Well, of course you do! Take care, the path is icy down there!"

"Thanks!" Said Sunya. "What's in the bag? Oh, sorry, I'm nosey, as usual."

"No, it's ok! I ordered some seeds and seedlings for spring plantings, and they arrived this morning. Look, I even received some seeds of Kaloptas Refractarius from my colleague in Myanmar! You remember Nick? I told you about him and my journey there!"

Nick remembered only too much of it! Neville had told him about this trip from India to Myanmar for hours at the start-of-term banquet. He and some fellow herbologist apparently discovered some kind of exciting new plant that slightly repels magic creatures. The plan was to grow some and try to make an effective repellant for magical pests. So boring! But Neville was so nice and enthusiastic about it that he had to show some interest.

"Of course I remember! So it's good news, you'll be able to grow some and make a potion!" He said, trying to sound interested.

"I'm not sure if it'll sprout well here, I'll have to test a few different soils and fertilizers, maybe… willow bark and dragon dung for a start… Sorry, I'm keeping you here, babbling like an old lady. I leave you to it. See you later."

And just like that, he was gone! Nick and Sunya looked at each other amused and resumed their walk to the Three Broomsticks. After a few slips and a lot of laughs, they finally took place at Sunya's favorite spot, in a corner booth near the fire. Madam Rosmerta was waiting for their order even before they were seated.

"Hello youngsters! What will it be today? Something to warm you up?" Said the owner, wiping a glass.

"I don't think I can be called a youngster anymore Rosmerta." Said Nick.

"Well, you're a youngster to me, so deal with it." she told him with a smile.

"I'll take a pint of mulled mead, please." Said Sunya, laughing at Nick's setback.

"And I'll take some of that special firewisky you keep locked under the counter, if you please, Madam?" He insisted on the last word.

"Well not today, not with that tone. It'll be the regular one for you!" She replied dryly but smiling, winking at Sunya.

As she left to get their drinks, they took their cloaks off, making themselves comfortable in the padded seats. They talked for a while, joking and laughing, getting some more drinks as the day passed into night. At some point, they came to talk about their lives outside the castle.

"So, Sunya, why did you spend your Christmas holidays here instead of going back to your family?" Asked Nick somewhere around the third round of drinks.

"Oh, well." She said, slowly wiping her lips with her thumb, stealing a little time. "You know, I had a lot of work, and my family don't really celebrate Christmas." She hesitated for a few more seconds before adding "Actually we don't talk much. I haven't seen them for three or four years now."

"Oh, really?" Said Nick, now embarrassed. "Sorry, I shouldn't have asked, it was rude."

He took a long sip of firewisky and choked badly on it, spitting the alcohol everywhere on the table and getting some admonition from Madam Rosmerta.

"Sorry for that too." He said after a waitress came to clean the table.

"It's nothing." Said Sunya, still laughing. "As for my family, I don't see them because we have some… divergence of views. You see, I come from an old family of purebloods, as they like to call themselves, and I don't see the world the same way they do. I'm from the Feldira family."

"Oh, I see." He didn't know she was from a pureblood line, it was still a sensitive subject since the war.

"What about you?" She asked "Why didn't you spend Christmas with your family?"

"Because I don't have any family left." He started, taking another sip of his drink. "My parents died a long time ago, well, twenty-two years now, and my little sister with them."

A long silence followed, he was used to it now, people saying they were sorry and changing subject like it could make everything right.

"All your family died at the same time? That's awful! What happened?" Sunya exclaimed, leaving Nick speechless. "Oh! I'm sorry, that was rough, wasn't it?"

"No, actually, it's refreshing. Generally people try their best to avoid the subject, I hate it." He took a deep breath. "Greyback tried to turn my sister into a werewolf but it went wrong and she died. My father entered her bedroom as he was escaping. He went after him, my mother followed them. Greyback's pack was waiting for their leader in the woods, when my parents got under the trees, they were attacked and… Well you can imagine what an entire pack of werewolves can do to two wizards taken by surprise." " I was at a friend's place that night, lucky me." He added with a bitter tone.

He called for another round of drinks. Sunya was staring at him in disbelief, but she wasn't dripping with pity like every other person he ever told about his family. Well not everyone, Hermione, Harry, Ron and Ginny were the only other people he had told his story without regretting it.

"You know what? You remind me of Ginger!" He said suddenly.

"Ginger?"

"Ginny! Ginny Potter! What a fool." He said "She's my best friend, I call her Ginger because, well, she is. And it annoys her a lot!" He laughed loudly.

"So, I guess it's a compliment?" She asked, unsure.

"Of course it is! She's the best. She knows all about me."

"Well, it means you like me then?" She asked him with her special smile.

"Yes, actually, I do like you. Even more after tonight" He told her, still laughing.

They continued to drink and talk until Madam Rosmerta forced them out in order to close the pub. The temperature outside had dropped dramatically, and they were freezing. Nick tried to cast a warming charm, but his coat almost caught on fire and they laughed so much that someone threw a shoe by a near window, right in Nick's face, which made them laugh even more.

The journey back to Hogwarts took a lot longer than earlier, and when they finally arrived at the senior students quarters, the sun had started to rise.

"It was a really good night." Sunya told Nick.

"Yes, it was!" He said. "Thank you for it, I needed it. And thank you for the drinks."

"You paid for most of it." she said laughing "And you're welcome. I needed it to."

They stayed there, looking at each other for some time.

"So, goodnight?" He finally said.

"Yes, goodnight."

The hangover wasn't fun. Nick managed to sleep until noon, but he was awakened by Neville, banging on his door for what felt like an entire day. He was forced to put on some clothes and to follow the culprit to the great hall, for the last lunch of the holidays. He had forgotten that it was mandatory. They had to confirm their plannings for spring term.

"It seems that Professor McCallum had a rough night." Said McGonagall with her legendary wry smile. "Is that a shoe mark on your forehead?" She added with a feigned questioning look.

He wondered how she could know of this.

"I must've stepped on my head." He replied "Given how it hurts this morning!"

Everyone laughed at his response, making his head hurt even more.

They agreed on the plannings for the term, and settled all that needed to be. Slughorn asked Neville about some plants he would need for the last term and Madam Hooch asked for three new brooms and some furniture for quidditch. Nick seized the occasion to bring up the subject of the increasing demand for his classes.

"With the arrival of new senior students, and the increased popularity of the subject, I will soon be forced to refuse students." He said. "I thought of a solution that could satisfy everyone."

He searched for a while in his parchments , and seeing it would take ages, he just said:

"Accio Timothy's test."

He caught the roll of parchment that had flown out of the bag he carried, unrolled it and gave it to McGonagall.

"I'm sure all of you know about Timothy from the senior student program?" He asked, looking at everyone. They all nodded. "It's his last test. As you can see, it's nothing but perfect!"

They all looked at the parchment in turn, nodding and approving.

"Well, he is my solution. Let me explain. He is, by far, the best student I ever had. And I think that he could, without any doubt, teach the third-years. It would leave me enough time to assume all the other classes without refusing any students, and it wouldn't prevent him from pursuing his studies."

They discussed this for some time, checking all the schedules, and they came to the conclusion that it was, indeed, a good solution. McGonagall gave her approval and scheduled an appointment with Timothy , to offer him the position.

"If that's all?" Asked Minerva "I think our young professor McCallum could do with a bath and a nap."

The first week of spring term went well. Timothy had accepted the position to teach the third-years, so Nick could take this term's senior students who had applied for his class. He had just finished his last class of the week and was going to the great hall for dinner when he saw Hermione in the main entrance. She gestured for him to join her and they met at the staff table.

"Hello Hermione, how was Christmas?" Nick greeted her with a smile.

Hermione, who looked really tense before, seemed to be relieved.

"We missed you, a lot!" she exclaimed, pulling him into an embrace and kissing him on both cheeks. "Your presents were incredible, they thank you a lot. I love mine so much, it's so beautiful! Ginny almost cried when Ron told her how much the gloves cost, and Harry choked on his drink when he figured how old was the snitch you got him. He said there's no way you could afford it, in fact he said that we probably couldn't afford it all together! So everyone wonders now how you could get us these presents?"

It had taken him three years to collect the presents for this year's Christmas. They had all done so much for him, he wanted to do something nice for them. He found Hermione's one first, a desk wand-holder from the Renaissance, finely crafted in mahogany and silver. Then it was the ancient dragon hide wand holster with silver decorations he bought for Ron. One that doesn't let the wand go unless the owner grabs it. He then found Ginny's, incredibly rare and ancient quidditch gloves made of acromantula silk and adorned with very fine gold arabesques. They were bewitched to keep the hands warm or cool depending on the weather. He had to trade them for quite a few artifacts of his collection.

Lastly, whereas he was searching for a spying quill for a future class, he met this sketchy wizard who was selling what looked like stolen goods. Nick immediately recognised an original golden snitch from one of the oldest manufacturers. The irony is that the guy wasn't really trying to sell it, he told Nick that he had just found it in his late grandfather's house and that he could have it for a galleon because it was broken anyway. After some research, it appeared that it was probably one of the five oldest golden snitches known, an invaluable piece of history!

"Don't worry, I had really good deals!" He said with a wink, but it just made Hermione suspicious. "It's not stolen goods, I assure you! The gloves weren't cheap at all but that's ok. For your's and Ron's, I had them at a good price from people I know well, and Harry's cost me only a galleon! It's a story for another time!"

"So, look Nick, I wanted to say that I'm sorry if I have somehow overreacted about, well, you know. I just want you to be cautious." She said, miserably.

"It's ok Hermione, I don't blame you, and I'm cautious I swear!" He responded.

They had a nice dinner, catching up about their holidays, Hermione telling him how Ron had devastated her kitchen with a firework prototype from Weasley & Weasley, and him telling her about his drinking night with Sunya at the Three Broomsticks.

"Oh, I see." She said with a weird smile.

"What?" He asked oblivious.

"Well, you… No, nothing dear!" She said, before waving someone behind him. "Hi Sunya!"

Nick turned on his seat and saw Sunya walking rapidly towards them, a bit concerned.

"Hello Hermione, glad you're here!" She said before turning towards him. "Nick, Professor Flitwick sent me to find you. It seems that someone broke into your office! Professor McGonagall is already on her way."

He stood up so suddenly that his chair fell to the ground, drawing the attention of half the table. Looking at Hermione, he could see that they shared the same concern.

"Where is it?" Asked Hermione low enough to be heard only by him and Sunya.

"Here, in my pocket, I never leave it behind!" He reassured her in the same tone, inducing a questioning look from Sunya.

"Good!" She responded. "But we still have to find out if anything is missing from your office. You still have powerful artifacts in your possession that could do some damage!"

They started to walk rapidly towards Nick's Office, Sunya just behind them. On their way to the third floor they met Minerva.

"Oh, good, you're already here! Filius is waiting for us at your office!" She said, leading the way without another word.

The door to Nick's office was intact, but the effraction was obvious by the room's chaos, spilling over into the hallway. Professor Flitwick and Filch were standing outside, preventing anyone from approaching.

"Get out of here!" Growled Filch to curious students. "I'll get you locked in the dungeons if you don't!"

But the arrival of another Professor, the Headmistress and the well known Mrs. Granger convinced everyone it was time to move on.

"What happened?" Nick asked Flitwick, looking at the mess. "Did you see something? Or someone?"

"No, nothing." Said the little man. "I was returning to my office to get a parchment I had forgot for Horace when I found your office open and in such a disorder that it could have been visited by a troll! But I can tell you it happened fast, because I walked that corridor on my way to the great hall just five minutes before."

"Thank you Filius, we'll take it from here" Said Minerva, dismissing him and Filch. "Ms. Feldira, thank you for your time, you can go now."

"We'll talk later." Nick said to Sunya, giving her a reassuring smile. She smiled back, uncertain, and leaved with a last look at the disorder.

"How many protection spells did you have on this door?" Asked Hermione.

"Three." He said grimly. "One strong locking charm that resist "Alohomora", a charm to prevent physical effraction and another to prevent magical probing. Only a few people here could've been through all three of them, especially in such a short time."

"We have to find out what's missing" Said the Headmistress. "I imagine all of your artifacts and dangerous objects won't be affected by a cleaning charm?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No, they won't." He confirmed.

"Good!" She added, casting a spell that took care of the bigger part of the disorder, only leaving protected objects on the floor.

They spent the next two hours putting everything back in order, checking with Nick and his inventory, inspecting every object for curses or magical damages, probing the room and the walls, even his clothes, only to find that nothing was missing or been tampered with.

"Is there anything else the intruder might have looked for?" Asked McGonagall with her piercing look.

Nick and Hermione exchanged a glance, but before he could talk, she stepped between him and Minerva.

"It's possible." She started with a sudden authority in her voice. "But we can't tell you anything on this matter for now, Headmistress, I'm sorry."

McGonagall was taken aback by the change of attitude, as well as Nick. She opened her mouth to talk, but instead, she granted.

"I hope you know what you're doing, Mrs. Granger." She said severely. "And I would appreciate to know if my students and my personnel were in any danger."

"Of course, you'll be. As for now, I don't think anyone is in danger, but we must appreciate the entire situation before making any decisions, I'm sure you understand?"

"I do." Said the older woman, relaxing. "Now, I have work waiting for me, I bid you goodnight."

After McGonagall's departure, Nick tried to talk, but Hermione cut him.

"We should go for a walk." She said.

And without another word, she dragged him out of his office and made him put his protective spells back. She took him through the corridors, back to the main entrance, and out of the castle. She led him around, to the training grounds and back in the castle, constantly looking around. Then, she took him to the fifth floor, stopping in front of the secret passage entry between the armors.

"Open it!" She said urgently, still looking around.

He cast a disillusionment charm to not be seen, and touched the unlocking stone with the old wand he just grabbed in his robes. The entry appeared, and before he could make a move, Hermione disappeared through it, leaving him alone in the empty corridor. He put the wand back and entered the passage. As soon as he was in, Hermione grabbed him and pulled him uncomfortably close to her, so close he could feel her body against his.

"That's really too close, Hermione…" He started before she silenced him by covering his mouth with her hand. She leaned toward him, getting even closer, her mouth inches from his ear.

"Are you totally and thoroughly sure we can't be heard here?" She whispered, the tip of her wand pushing against his chest.

"Her..ion..!" He tried to say.

"Just answer me!" She snapped.

"Yes, I'm sure." He managed to respond.

"Who else knows about this?" She asked then, keeping the pressure with her wand.

"Nobody, I swear, I…" he tried.

"How do you call your best friend, and why?" She cut him.

And with that question, he knew that it was really serious, and that Hermione wasn't joking. He knew that a wrong answer would take him, at best, in interrogation at the Ministry, and a wrong move would be fatal.

"I call her Ginger, because it annoys her!" He said, his heart beating fast. "It's me Hermione, what's going on?"

She let him go and took a few steps back, lighting her wand. He saw her worried face and a glimpse of tears in the corner of her eyes.

"We have a problem!" She finally told him. "We had a break at the Ministry a few weeks ago! Really similar to the one that just happened. A cabinet has been ransacked, nothing stolen. A lot of protective spells were dismissed in a few minutes. Nobody seen. But we've found a small trace of Polyjuice potion."

"Oh, ok, I understand the precautions now." He replied.

"We had a few other affairs similar in the past few months. Whoever is behind this is looking for something." She told him.

"But, the Ministry and now me? It doesn't make much sense, I don't work with you!"

"There's more." She added. "I bet the wizards who've been visited are all related to you somehow because they're all dealing with ancient objects, and the cabinet at the ministry contained goods that were seized from one of them. I didn't realize the connection until now! I've been stupid!"

Nick took a few moments to appreciate the whole situation. Someone was looking for something, that was clear. But was he, or they, after the wand? Did anyone know something about it before he bought it? He was almost certain that the wizard who sold it to him hadn't talked to anybody about it, he was a really secretive man. He had told Nick because they had worked together for years and he wanted the wand to be in good hands. He was really old and without an heir, that was the only reason why Nick could buy it. He told Hermione of it.

"He may be after something else," She said. "But we need to be careful about this. This wand could be really powerful, or dangerous, it's clearly not an usual wand."

"It could be more than one person." Nick added.

"Lets assume for now that it's only one person, it's enough trouble to begin with!"

"So, you believe me now!" He exclaimed, suddenly.

Hermione took a few moments to respond, looking at him with some concern.

"I believe, as I did before, that this wand is unusual, and that you did find something that it could do, or help you do, that any other wand can't." She said prudently.

"Oh! Well, I'll take it for now, but you'll see, someday, that I was right!"

They talked for some more time, agreeing on some precautions and making plans in case of an emergency. They agreed to not talk of this to anyone for the moment being. Hermione told him that she would leave instructions in case something happened to her and that he should do the same. She tried to get him leaving the wand with her, but he refused immediately. He told her that he had more experience with it, and therefore it was safer in his hands. Amazingly, she agreed to this.

"It's late," Said Nick. "And I have a class to attend in five hours."

They started to walk, and after a few paces, a door appeared on the wall.

"It'll take you to your office." Said Nick.

"I must say that this corridor is really amazing" Said Hermione softly. "You should continue to investigate it!"

And she left, leaving Nick speechless. He continued to walk for a few moments, until another door took him to his quarters.