“I’m sorry, the clasp is still broken,” she stammered.

“STILL, broken…” Mac Lir stated, his voice even, calm and rather insinuating. “Have you ever been able to remove it?” judging from the now crimson colour of her face, the answer was a rather resounding ‘no’. “Come here child.” he beckoned.

Mac Lir studied the bracelet closely for a few moments. “I feel safe in assuming this was not a gift from the man your son calls his father, yes?” Seeing Cat nod her head, Mac Lir sighed, “I am disappointed in you child, how can you wear one man’s gift while your heart longs for another. It is a disgrace to your clan, and I insist it ends now.”……

“Go Mac Lir” Harry thought as he, Krystal and Puneet hovered near the doorway of the study. His mind was still reeling from everything he had learned over the past few hours, but hearing Mac Lir’s comment more than made up for any unease or misgivings he had about coming here. He watched with a keen interest as Mac Lir and Leumadair studied the clasp after Cat’s failed attempts to undo it. Harry was willing to bet all the galleons he owned that Snape had charmed it to prevent her from taking it off.

“I agree with you” a voice whispered in Harry’s ear. Looking up he saw Leumadair smiling down at him.

“But I thought, I mean,… you were just over there with Mum..” Harry stammered only to grow quiet as Leumadair placed his finger to his lips and made a hushing motion.

“I can appear anywhere water is, and that includes the lake at your school or the pond in the cottage’s back yard.” Leumadair whispered, smiling brightly at the young wizard. “Come, I want you to step in, I’m afraid father is less than happy about this trinket Kitty is wearing. If he sees you standing there waiting for her, it will quell his temper and his tongue.” Nodding his understanding, Harry obediently followed Leumadair to where his mother and Mac Lir were.

Watching with great interest as Mac Lir’s hand glowed brightly, Harry felt the muscles along his jaw tighten as Mac Lir placed his hand over Cat’s wrist, closing it tightly over the bracelet. He let out an audible sigh as the bracelet dropped to the polished floor, clamouring loudly in the quiet study.

Mac Lir scooped the bracelet up before Cat had the chance to take it. He studied it with the eyes of a master craftsman and a master of magical disciplines. “Who did you say gave this to you? A professor at the school was it?” seeing her nod her head yes, Mac Lir continued, “It wouldn’t happen to be that fellow who attacked me, would it?”

“Uncle” Cat sighed deeply “I’ve told you before, he was trying to protect me, he thought you were there to do me harm. And Albus has told you the same thing, and Remus, and I’m sure Tanta Minnie would tell you the same if you asked her.”

“What makes you think I haven’t?” Mac Lir replied, still studying the bracelet. “Regardless of which, the trinket is no longer broken. Put it in your pocket and think twice before wearing it again, my child. Especially when it means far more to him than friendship, and I believe in your heart of hearts you know this.” he advised gently before turning to where Leumadair, Krystal and Harry were standing. “So, Harry, did you enjoy your short tour of my realm?”

Cat stood away from the group as she herself studied the bracelet closely, something she had never really had the opportunity to do as it had been placed on her wrist almost immediately. The amazing detailing of the bottles and parchments that she had recalled from the day Severus gave it to her were still there, as were the precious stones and philtres that adorn the flasks and phials. She knew instinctively there was something Mac Lir had seen that she could not, he never would have spoken such words to her if he were not worried about the bracelet, but what in the world could it be?………

Saralonde followed silently behind Mohrg as he escorted her to Cobryn, she was both frightened and in awe of the Nosferatu, and felt it best to show him the greatest respect. As nervous as she was, she knew in her heart that Desiree would never have agreed to this arrangement if she had any doubt at all regarding either Saralonde’s abilities or safety. Not to mention the fact that one did not simply dismiss a request from Clan Nosferatu, it was a rare display of trust and acceptance from the most accursed and possibly the most powerful clan of the Camarilla.

Rushing a bit to keep up with the sure steps of the Nosferatu, she bit her tongue to stop herself from asking Mohrg exactly what had passed between himself and the Garou leader, Fang. She felt a blush and a chill pass over her as she recalled the trail of crimson blood against the Alpha’s white-blonde fur as he reclined peacefully against the vampyre, it seemed so tender and yet so perverse a position.

Mohrg increased his stride as he tried to hide his smile, the girl might as well shout her thoughts through the halls of the school, as she was doing such a poor job at hiding them. Not that he could blame her, it was a difficult trick to learn, it may well take her a century or more to be able to block others from her mind, but at least she had the good sense not to ask him the questions that preyed on her mind.

He was half tempted to lead her into believing the more romantic of her notions, just for the sake of fun and as a way to relive his boredom and loneliness, but the moment they approached Cobryn’s resting place, all thoughts of frolic and amusement fled from Mohrg’s mind. “Cobryn? Hunter?” Mohrg felt his insides turn as he heard the sound of retching coming from a dark corner of the sparse room. Before he could say another word, Saralonde had rushed passed him as she flew to the young hunter’s side.

“Cobryn? Cobryn, what is it? Are you alright? Should I find Desiree?” Saralonde gasped as she knelt on the floor next to the hunter, who was hunched over on all fours, a pool of bile on the floor in front of him. She felt a wave of pity as the proud hunter attempted to shrug away from her, only to wince with pain. “Cobryn, please, let me help you.” she pleaded as she looked up at Mohrg with imploring eyes.

“Shame on you, hunter. A lovely young lady offers to help you and you don’t even have the manners to reply. For your sake, I hope it is only because you are truly unwell.” Mohrg said softly as he crossed the length of the room and helped Cobryn to his feet. His keen eyes quickly evaluated the Caitiff hunter , “it’s the poison of the Tremere corrupting your blood….hmmmm, you must be exceptionally strong if your body has managed to fight against it this long.”

Cobryn fought off another wave of nausea as he recalled, with far too vivid clarity, the Tremere’s attack, down to his foul, burning breath. He tasted the tainted blood in his mouth as he forced it down once more “Will I eventually succumb to his polluted blood?” Cobryn asked as his mind formulated a plan should the Nosferatu’s reply be yes.

“No, you are not the type to succumb to anything, you will either defeat it, or die trying. You are to proud to live a half life, this is a good thing.” he stated simply as he turned to walk away. He paused at the doorway, reaching out with his mind and soul as he attempted to determine if Cobryn would accept the kinder as a companion for this evening. At first he felt nothing but Cobryn’s pride and pain, but as he dug deeper, Mohrg felt the hunter’s loneliness and sorrow. With his back still towards them, he instructed them simply. “Keep him company, help him if you can, I will return for you later, Saralonde.”

As Mohrg’s foot touched the stairs, Saralonde called out to him “And if you don’t return?” she asked, a tinge of worry in her voice. Mohrg paused, allowing himself a small smile over the girls strange concern for him. He felt a silent wave of relief pass over him, both for the fact that the Caitiff kinder was so tender hearted, and also for the fact that his back was still towards them. A smiling Nosferatu was both an amazing and extremely frightening sight, especially to one so young. “If I do not return, stay with him, he will protect you and you will aid him. Desiree will find you tomorrow evening if I fail to survive.”

“Fail to survive?” Cobryn whispered lowly as he felt the pain and nausea resurfacing yet again. “Wait, Mohrg…” he doubled over with pain as the Nosferatu kept walking away. “Saralonde, what does he mean, if he fails to survive?”……..

Harry couldn’t stop grinning as Leumadair explained in vivid details the finer points of Mystrix, including how to find a champion puffer and the strategies involved in the game. And even better, Leumadair was listening with rapt attention as Harry explained Quidditch and its many nuances and broom manoeuvres. He looked over to see his Mum smiling happily as the two of them, it looked as though she and Mac Lir had settled whatever was being discussed between them. In fact, if Harry could judge anything by the wide and rather proud smile on Mac Lir’s face, things must be going very, very well.

Turning back to his conversation with Leumadair, Harry began to notice many things about his cousin. The most noticeable was his long silvery-white hair and bright sea-blue eyes, but there were other things, odd things. The slightly elongated shape of his ears,

and oddest of all -the way his age seemed to change with his emotions. Harry had thought him near his mother’s age when they arrived, but now, as they spoke excitedly about sports and competitions, he seemed so much younger. “Hey, Leumadair, I was just wondering something.” Harry stated, “I hope you won’t get upset with me, but there is kind of a lot Mum seems to have forgotten to tell me.”

Much to Harry’s relief, Leumadair laughed loudly and nodded his head, “That sounds about right for her, she can be so detail oriented one moment, and then forget to tell you the most obvious thing the next. I’m afraid it’s a habit of the clan, Harry. We rely so much on our shared and common knowledge and the ability to glean things from each other’s minds, that we often skim over facts that others find extremely important. So, what is it she neglected to tell you? I’ll certainly help you if I can.”

Harry’s smile grew twice as wide as it had been before, not only was Leumadair not angry with him, but he also explained why Cat had neglected to tell him so many things. “Well, first off, I was wondering how old you are. I mean you looked a lot older an hour ago than you do now.”

“Oh, you mean like this?” Leumadair asked, as his face took on subtle changes, making him appear to be almost 20 years older in the space of a few seconds. Bursting with laughter as he clapped Harry on the back, Leumadair shook his head, “I’m so sorry Harry, I shouldn’t have done that to you.”

Recovering quickly, Harry commented “Yeah, you sound really sincere, thanks” he smirked as Leumadair continued laughing. “And how did you do that, ……and better yet, can you teach me how to do it?”

The twinkle in Leumadair’s eyes was bright enough to light a candle from “Teach you?? Hmmm, sounds like I’ve found a partner in crime.” he grinned. Casting a quick look over his shoulder to make sure Cat and his father were still occupied, Leumadair nodded as he leaned closer to Harry. “If she can convince father to allow her and you to go back to the school with the others, ‘I’ can convince him that it will be best if I open a portal, probably through the lake, I know there’s one there, Cat and Lily used it all the time. I’ll come visit all of you and if your blood is strong enough, I can teach you many, many things.”

“Will we get the chance to play Quidditch and Mystrix too?” Harry asked as his heart thrilled at the idea “I can teach you how to ride a broom and everything.”

It was almost amazing how well this trip had turned out, Harry thought. He had been so frightened to see Mac Lir again, after what had happened in Hogsmeade. And then they had been attacked, his Mum wounded and frighteningly pale. And then, when they had come here, the wondrous creatures, his cousins, and of course Puneet and Eno. And now, Leumadair, who at first Harry had felt a great dislike for when Krystal had let it slip that Maharet wanted him to marry Cat. He was beginning to feel as if Leumadair was a big brother to him, full of information and mischief, but still protective and wise enough to keep him out of too much trouble.

“Why are you smiling like that, Harry?” Leumadair asked he saw the strange, almost dreamy look on his young cousin’s face.

“Because I’m beginning to feel like a Weasley,” he replied, “I have a family now, a really, really big family.” Harry went on to tell him about Ron and his family, and Hermione, Sirius, Remus and Hogwarts, only stopping when Leumadair placed a brotherly hand on his shoulder, signifying Mac Lir was approaching.

Mac Lir smiled approvingly as both Leumadair and Harry rose to their feet immediately, good manners would see them far amongst the noble clans, as would the knowledge he intended to impart to his new nephew. “Leumadair, as much as I hate to disturb you. I think we have another matter that has been waiting for the attention of both you and your cousin.” he hinted, giving his son a pointed look.

“Of course, Father, how forgetful of me.” Leumadair replied, nodding slightly to his father, but winking at Cat. “Krystal, why don’t you take Harry into the courtyard and introduce him to the rest of our brothers and sisters. He seems to like the idea of being part of a large family.” Leuma paused as he heard his father snort with amusement, muttering something about ‘understatements’. “Go on, Harry,” he encouraged, “they can set up the field and show you the basics of Mystrix, if there’s enough time, we might be able to get a game in today.” Leumadair smiled brightly as he saw the look of excitement in Harry’s eyes, he was such a dear boy, it was no wonder Cat was so terribly proud and protective of him.

Mac Lir waited until the children had closed the door behind him before turning back to his son. “I trust you haven’t tried to sway your cousin in this matter.” he stated more than asked.

“What matter?” Cat asked innocently, “Has something happened I should be aware of?” She stared at Leuma with questioning eyes as he stood in front of her and took her hands in his own. “Leuma, what is it? What aren’t you telling me?”

Leumadair sighed deeply, “I…We, need you to pass judgment on a woman and her sons. She was murdered by her husband, and her children brought to me by La Llorona I…”

“That is enough Leumadair, she is not here to judge you, but the woman. She is of the Roma’s ilk, the ones that sought to harm those under your protection.” Mac Lir stated, “My son, bring them before her now, and remember, you swore to abide by her decision.”

“As did you, Father.”………

Sirius sighed deeply as he flipped through the pages of yet another book, waiting impatiently for Aunt Orpha or Tris to return and tell him what they had discovered regarding Harry and Cat’s safety.

“You’ll never learn anything that way, me boy. You need to read them in order to gain any knowledge.” a friendly voice spoke from behind Sirius. Craning his neck, Sirius turned to see Merlin standing behind him, a wide smile on his face as he walked around and sat on the couch next to him.

Merlin nudged up against Sirius, thankful that his descendant had so much strength in his blood. The closer he was to him, the more solid he became, and the more solid he became, the more he could do to help his unfortunate child. “So, no word from your sweetheart yet? I wouldn’t worry, if anything to horrible had happened to either of them, the entire clan would know immediately, we did with her mother.”

“I don’t want Cat to suffer the same fate as Diedre.” Sirius snapped, “I want her and Harry back here, safe and sound….”

“And with you, of course.” Merlin added, smirking as Sirius glared at him. “Don’t give my that look, my boy. I know your heart better than you do, besides, I would feel the same way. You know her family loves them, would do anything to protect them and keep them happy, safe from harm. But you feel that deep down, in the pit of your soul, no one would go to the lengths to protect them that you would……Welcome to fatherhood, get used to the feeling.” he quipped, drawing an exasperated sigh from the wizard.

“How did Cash survive with you running a round inside of him for so long, you are enough to drive a person mad”

“Yes, well, this is Cash we’re talking about, after all. And he was half mad before I was even born, I doubt anyone noticed a difference.” Merlin grinned as he saw a twinkle in Sirius’s eyes. “Ahhh, I can see you are going to challenge me, aren’t you? Good, good… its been far to long since I’ve had a ‘real’ battle of wits with anyone. The women treat me as if I’m an addle headed old goat, and the few men that can see me don’t do anything but pay me respect. Even Luke has stopped debating with me…… I do so miss that, kept my mind sharp, made me feel part of life.”

“Well if your looking to feel as if your part of life, I’m definitely the wrong fellow. I haven’t had a real life for years, this is the closest I’ve been to a family, to a future….” Sirius paused as he tried to collect himself.

“Alright now, my boy, what is it, really? I’ve seen you face worse situations almost daily, you may have screamed now and then, but I rarely saw you cry.” Merlin prodded, hoping to get Sirius to say out loud what the wizard had been trying to deny for so long. “You must know you can’t keep running away from this, you must face it and be brave.”

“I’m trying to be brave, I am brave. I’ve survived what others couldn’t, I’ve done what people claim is impossible…..” Sirius let out a jagged sigh as he tried to rise from the sofa, only to find himself firmly in Merlin’s grasp. “Let me go, I’m in no mood.”

“Oh, you are most certainly in ‘a mood’, and as your last living relative, it is my duty to make you face this head on and get on with the life you’ve been given. Now sit and talk, or I’m getting the ladies in here, and trust me, they won’t be nearly as understanding as I am.” Merlin warned. “I feel confident in guessing this has a great deal to do with your current family situation.”

“You mean my ‘lack’ of a family situation, yes. Hooray for you. Can I go now…..Ouch” Sirius yelped as Merlin thumped his head. “What the hell was that for?”

“For being a pain and not respecting your elders, Angus should have done that to you a bit more often.” Merlin chastised. “Thank the stars your son has more manners than you do. Now, about the situation…. I thought you would be feeling better about that, didn’t Luke and Duncan speak to you this afternoon? Luke told me they were going to offer you their blessings.”

A sad smile crossed Sirius’s lips. “Yes, they did, and you have no idea how wonderful that makes me feel, especially where Duncan is concerned. I honestly thought he was going to kill me earlier today when Meg started up with her stories. Although it was kind of funny to see him turn colours, I’ve never actually seen anyone scream until they turned blue before.” he chuckled “But its more what Cat said the other day, about her clan never letting me go now.”

“I thought you liked it here, you mentioned wanting to stay here forever, didn’t you?”

“With Cat and Harry, yes.” Sirius agreed, “But she told me she was frightened that if they didn’t let us wed, they would insist I marry one of her cousins. I don’t want that, Merlin, if I can’t have her……” Sirius paused as he wiped at his eyes. “How can I marry anyone else, how can I love anyone else? It would kill me and her….and what about Harry, what would it do to him. He wants us to be a family almost as much as I do.”

Merlin nodded as he blinked back a few tears of his own. “I understand, my dear child, but you cannot drive yourself into despair with such thoughts. Not when we have more, immediate concerns regarding my goddaughter.”

“You mean the baby?” Sirius whispered, “As far as I’m concerned, its not even a question of ‘if’ she is anymore. I’ve been with her too much to think she’s not, she’s so tired and pale, and she’s not eating right. Its like half way through her plate she gets queasy and can’t finish….I keep trying to get her to eat more, eat better, but she just can’t.”

Merlin sighed as he gently pressed Sirius’s head against his shoulder. “Even knowing it can’t be yours, you try to take care of her. We’ve seen you, Sirius, we’ve watched nearly every move you make around her, although to be honest, neither Orpha or I were aware you were so convinced of her condition. Kitty doesn’t even know for certain, its too early to tell. Don’t forget, the Sidhe carry their babies for nearly a full year, she won’t start to show for several months and they won’t dare to test her belly for at least another week or two, and even then it will be too early to announce anything.”

“When they find she is, will they let me marry her or will they insist ‘he’ marries her.” Sirius asked, his face a twisted mask of pain and distaste. “I can tell you with all honesty and certainty, Harry will never accept Snape as a father, I have serious doubts that he would even accept him as Cat’s ..husband. Harry and I are one mind on this, Merlin, we both want to have a family, preferably a large one. Harry is very keen on being a big brother, and yes, I have actually asked him. I spoke to him about Callista and Edana the other day, I don’t think his smile could have been any wider.”

“Alright, let me ask you this.” Merlin said gently as he stroked Sirius’s long, dark hair. “If my goddaughter is with child, this other man’s child, would Harry accept the baby as his brother or sister? Or for that matter, does Harry even know about him?”

“Yes, Harry knows,” Sirius said mournfully, “its been a point of contention between them, he can’t stand the man, and rightfully so. Snape takes out his anger and hatred of James and myself on Harry, he makes his life miserable at every opportunity.”

Merlin knit his brow, it seemed a strange thing to say, after all, Kitty would never go with a man who couldn’t love her child. Children were the most important thing to the clan, if what Sirius was saying was in fact true, Kitty must know the clan would refuse this man, insisting she choose another to act as the child’s…… “Oh sweet mother of heaven, I think I realize what she’s done now.” Merlin sighed as he closed his eyes. “Sirius, answer me true, if she is carrying his child, and you had your way, what would you do?”

“I would marry her immediately, claim the child as my own in both name and heart. Harry would never have to know it wasn’t mine, neither would anyone else. And maybe in another year or two, add a few more to the mix. We used to talk about having a good size family, a regular Quidditch team.” he added, smiling as he thought on how happy and carefree they had been back then……..

Cat watched the dark haired woman cling to Leumadair as he brought her into the study. It was obvious that the woman saw him as her only defender and possibly, her only hope. How much she hated this, to sit in judgment over another, to wear the crown and sit on the throne, it felt so lonely and cold to her, but Mac Lir insist it be done this way. There was to be no long conversations with the woman, no pleas for mercy or explanations for her actions. Simply Mac Lir on one side and Leumadair on another, each ‘arguing’ why the woman should live or die. Cat knew deep in her heart that Mac Lir was trying to teach his son some sort of lesson, but hang her if she could figure out what it was.

“Cousin” Leumadair began, only to be interrupted by Mac Lir’s clearing his throat and glaring at his son. “My apologizes… Bean Uasal de MacLeod, rion de daoine, the woman brought before you is Leonora of the Roma. She is…was… of Magda’s clan, the hag who sought to betray you and harm those under your protection” he informed Cat, hoping to deal with some of his father’s more inflammatory statements before Mac Lir had the opportunity to say them. “However, she denounced both Magda, and her treacherous ways prior to her death. She was under my protection when her husband impaled her, and myself.” Leuma watched with satisfaction as Cat’s eyes grew large with both concern for him and anger at the brute who harmed him. “As I mentioned earlier, I called upon La Llorona to take her vengeance upon the beast while I took this woman with me into the sea, both changing and reviving her. After the black bride completed her task, she brought the children to me and to their mother, where they were also transformed according to clan law.”

“Clan law pertains to clan, our clan, not some vagabond who can’t be trusted not to betray us the moment we turn our backs.” Mac Lir said sternly, “She went to your side because she saw you were the strongest, you would win and she didn’t want to suffer your wrath.”

“She suffered and died because she choose to stand by me and not Magda.” Leumadair stated firmly yet softly.

“So she betrayed them first, her own tribe took its revenge upon her for her traitorous ways. What makes you so certain she wouldn’t betray us in the same fashion?”

“The arguments should be directed towards me, not against one another” Cat reminded Mac Lir, “Although he brings up a valid point, if she betrayed the tribe she was born and raise by, why would she not betray ours?”

“Because our clan would not murder her children, nor would we stand idly by and watch them harmed.” Leumadair replied, a tinge of anger in his voice as he recalled how not one of the Roma moved to help the boys as La Llorona took their hands and walked with them into the sea. “And, may I counter Mac Lir’s argument regarding our clan. If you wish to judge her by ‘our’ clan laws, then you must first accept her as a member of our clan, and by doing so, you must recognize that when she was slaughtered, she was under MY protection, and I was there at YOUR command.” he trailed off, allowing the implication to sink in.

“Point of question to both sides” Cat interrupted, “What has happened to the rest of her tribe and to Magda? I still sense the old hag, but the life force of her clan has been dwindling daily.”