“Fine, fine… couldn’t be better, Professor Dumbledore” Jessica grinned, “but tell me, what was this I overheard about Arthur Weasley running against Lucius Malfoy for the Minister’s position?”

“Oh yes, Arthur Weasley, a fine man, good family. He has many solid ideas for the Ministry. He is the sort of leader that I feel we need at a time like this, he knows how to face problems head on, he understands that refusing to believe a problem exists does ‘not’ make the problem itself disappear.” Albus stated, giving Jessica a knowing look.

“But what, in your opinion, makes Weasley the man for ‘this’ job. He doesn’t really have any experience in this sort of thing, does he?” Jessica pressed, her quill poised and ready to write down every word.

“He has worked within the Ministry for many years,” Albus began, his voice slow and measured, “and he is the head of a rather sizeable family. All of whom are well respected and productive members of society, and then there are his ideas, his vision of what our world can be.”

“Ideas and visions are all well and good, Professor Dumbledore, but in light of the recent disappearance of more than half of the cabinet, I would say we need more than a visionary.” Jessica replied flatly.

“And I would agree with you, Mrs. Whimple,” Albus agreed. “I know that Mr. Weasley’s biggest obstacle will be his fondness of muggles and the status in which Minister Fudge viewed him. But I can tell you that his character above reproach, although some people may feel his financial standing is more important than his beliefs.” he added, giving Jessica a stern look. “And his foreign policy is quite exceptional, do you know he has been involved in talks with the Sidhe?” he paused as he heard a gasp from the Whimple’s.

“In fact, they have opened many doors to him, and they have also agreed to enter into formal talks with the Ministry itself, provided that he is present. One of them is teaching at my school now, and she has brought with her a wealth of knowledge that makes me gasp with wonder every time I speak to her. Did you know her people found a cure for werewolfism and have defences against the unforgivable curses?” He calmly paged through a book as he heard them whispering back and forth. “Yes, it is truly amazing what one can do with a little kindness and an open mind. Although I don’t care for the chances of a union between our people if Malfoy becomes Head Minister, he had made it clear on many, many occasions that only those of pure blood ….well, you certainly do not need me to quote him, do you?” he asked kindly.

“Professor Dumbledore, since you brought the topic up, may I ask you about this Sidhe at your school. Minister Fudge and the board of Governors was opposed to her being there, weren’t they? I believe they thought she posed a threat to the children, and then it was rumoured that she brought several…uhmm… shall we save ’unsavoury’ characters with her.”

Albus shook his head slowly “Is that what they told you, Jessica? Let me state for the record, that Miss MacLeod has been the greatest possible asset to this school. She has gone above and beyond any and all sense of duty to see to the safety and education of the students. Placing herself in jeopardy to protect several students and aiding the other professors in anyway she can to keep this school safe.” Peering over his half moon glasses, he added, “And as for these, what did you call them, ‘unsavoury’ characters? They have risked, and sadly I must say, given their lives to protect the students and teachers from those that would harm them. The lies that have been told about them are both scandalous and heartbreaking, they deserve our praise, not our scorn.”

“Forces that would harm the students? Albus, are you talking about he-who-must-not- be- named?” Jessica whispered. “Fudge insisted that you and Potter were….well…”

“He told you and everyone else that Mr. Potter and I were deluded; that we were trying to create unrest and hysteria to serve our own ends. Yes, Jessica, I am completely aware of the stories Cornelius has been spreading, I simply trust that those with good sense will recognize the truth when they hear it.” Albus responded, his voice soft and even with no hint of malice at all. “But when I have dementors at my doors and I can rouse no one from the Ministry to protect my students. I am infinitely more comfortable knowing that Arthur Weasley and Miss MacLeod have already seen to it that forces outside the control of the Ministry were here and ready to defend this school and students. My only regret is that not all of them survived, and that all I can do is offer my condolences to their families.”

“But what are these outside forces? We have been told everything from vampires to werewolves to….why are you grinning like that, Professor Dumbledore?” Jessica asked, almost irately.

“Listen to yourself, Jessica. Vampires and werewolves…I assure you, the only werewolf in this school has been here for quiet some time now, and despite Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Fudge’s objections, he shall remain here in his post as long as I remain headmaster of this school.”

“Yes, well, I guess it does sound a bit silly, doesn’t it? After all, why would vampires protect wizards, right?” she asked, laughing lightly as she continued to jot down notes……

“Cash? A moment of your time, please.” Orpha asked softly as she pulled him away from Roel’s bedside, pausing to give Rick a comforting squeeze. “I need to ask you something regarding this professor. And before you raise your voice and tell me now is not the time, I’m afraid it is the time.” Tenderly wiping away the tears from Cash’s face, she continued. “I don’t know if you realize who he looks like, who he might be?”

“Who he ‘might’ be? Orpha, I am in no mood for riddles” Cash replied, his voice tired and full of pain “If you know something you’d like to share, please, for the love of heaven, just spit it out.”

Orpha nodded, “Do you remember that foundling we took in, what is it now, nearly fifty years ago. The one with the amazing talent for seeing into the past and the future, we sent her to live with the Clan in Tir Na nOg..”

“The one with the bluish hair? Yeh, I remember her, Serenity wasn’t it? She ended up marrying one of Hamish’s great grandsons, they had a son and two daughters, right?” Seeing Orpha nod, he knit his brow and tried to remember more. “I seem to recall asking around at the fae villages, in between the bluish hair and her indigo eyes we all thought she might have been one of theirs.”

“Yes, exactly, and do you remember how she always went on about a sister, a twin sister, we looked around for the girl for weeks, but we never even saw a sign of her?” Orpha prompted.

“Yes, I remember that too. We thought she might have been imagining it, she was in rough shape when we found her, those wizards had worked her over pretty badly” he commented, his eyes taking on a fierceness as he remembered the bruises and cuts on the frail girl, “she was frightened out of her mind. She refused to let go of Bébhinn, she just latched onto her and that was the end of that. I think she ended up fostering her, didn’t she?”

“Yes, she did, she lived in her home until she fell in love and married Feardorcha But here is the important part, the son they had, do you remember him?” Orpha asked, her voice sounding almost eager.

Cash knit his brow once more as he tried to think back, “Sort of, I remember them fighting over his name more than anything else. Sebastian wasn’t it? Feardorcha wanted to name him Ríordán, after his grandfather. But Serenity fought tooth and nail with him, and she finally won. But why is this suddenly so important? Feardorcha fell in battle, Serenity hasn’t spoken a word since her daughter, Serena, disappeared and she sent Sebastian after her….” his eyes grew wide, “oh no, Orpha, neither of them ever came back. She went into mourning and never came out, last I saw her ….”

“Yes, all she does is sit in her rocking chair, staring out the window, waiting for them to return, I believe she originally sent her daughter to look for her twin sister, I remember her saying that she named Serena after her. In either case, her other daughter gave up after seven long years of ……well, I believe her words were ‘if her mother didn’t feel she was worth living for, then what was the point of living for her mother’.” Orpha sighed.

“And the point of all of this is? I vaguely remember Sebastian, and Snape is NOT him. Sebastian was the sort to smile and sing all the time, and the look on his face when Tanja was born.” Cash grinned widely as he remembered the man holding his infant daughter, a look of perfect love and pride on his face. “So, oh wisest of crones, what does that have to do with our grumpy, love sick, professor?”

“You really don’t remember Sebastian very well, do you?” Orpha sighed, “Granted he did have a happier disposition, but I put that to good upbringing. Take a close look at the professor. Put a little colour in his cheeks, maybe a smile and get that mess of hair off of his face….” Orpha paused expectantly.

“I don’t know, Orphie, I’d say that’s a ‘real’ stretch of the imagination. Sebastian was a good guy, always there to lend a hand, he loved children, not to mention that pretty little wife of his. Pretty much as opposite of Snape as you can get.” Cash stated, crossing his arms over his chest, as if daring Orpha to argue the point with him.

“You and I can agree to disagree on that point. But I understand what Kitty sees in this professor, she sees what he can be, what he ‘wants’ to be. She can see his pain and his longing….and I can see a happy future for him if we play things just right.” Orpha explained. “Tell me, Cash, is Tanja one of the children Kitty intends to bring here when she returns?”

“I’m honestly not sure, we haven’t gone over a final list. Originally Callista was going to go to Tir Na nOg with Luke, but I have the feeling she’ll be coming here instead. Sara of course, ….”

“Then we need to make sure that Tanja is on that list as well. I want her to see this wizard, and more to the point, I want her mother, Lady Tara, to come and visit her within a fortnight. You and I can argue this until doomsday, but Sebastian’s widow is the best person to …”

“His widow? I thought he was missing, when did anyone find a body?” Cash gasped.

“Its been over ten years, Cash, he would have found a way home to his wife and daughter, we both know that. And how long do you expect Tara to wait? She a lovely young woman, she shouldn’t be alone, and if thing work out the way I hope, she won’t be for very long.”

“No, no no…. you stop right there you…you… crone.” Cash insisted, “I have enough trouble trying to manage Kitty and her love life. Don’t you ‘dare’ add Snape into the mix.”

“Cash, don’t be that way,” Orpha scolded, “look at it from the bright side; if he and Tara ‘do’ find each other….shall we say ‘interesting’ enough, that leaves Kitty free to marry Sirius, and gives her a clear conscious as well. You do know that she….well, it wasn’t a spontaneous act on her part.”

“Yeh” Cash snapped, “Merlin and I figured that out. And she did all of this why? Why because the crones threatened her with an arranged marriage if heirs were not forthcoming….. Notice a trend?”

“I ‘am’ on your side, Cash” Orpha reminded him, “but I need to keep as many options open for her and for our clan as I possibly can. You should know that better than most.”

“Orpha, I’m sorry to interrupt, but its time” Hamish said gently, motioning to Roel’s pain wracked form. “Shall I tell them to start?”

“Yes, Hamish, please do. Cash and I will be right there.” Orpha replied softly, “I take it you have all discussed his wishes and will accommodate them.”

“Yes ma’am. Angus and Rick are already working on it, the Garou are out gathering the wood as we speak.” Hamish explained, “We’ll be waiting for you next to the bed.”…..

The normal predawn calm of the Weasley household was shattered by the sound of Molly Weasley screaming blue murder. “Arthur!! Arthur!!! Come here, have you seen the paper??? Have you seen what the Daily Prophet has printed about you?!”

Arthur Weasley fell down the last few steps in his haste to get to his wife, he honestly had no idea what she was yelling about, but that particular tone was only ever heard in times of true crisis. “Molly, what is it love? Has something happened? Are any of the children hurt?” her only response was holding a copy of the Daily Prophet in front of his face.

“Molly, calm down dear, your hand is shaking too much, I can’t read it.” he soothed as he took the paper from her hand.

Arthur could feel the colour draining from his face as he saw the headline.

DUMBLEDORE BACKS WEASLEY IN BID FOR HEAD MINISTER POSITION

“What has he done?” Arthur asked numbly as he slowly slid into a chair. “He cannot possibly think I stand a chance against Malfoy. It must be a mistake, or a bad joke….” he suddenly grinned, laughing loudly. “Yes, of course, … Molly, it must be the boys, its one of their jokes, it has to be. They’re probably hiding upstairs, laughing at all the ruckus.”

“Do you think so?” Charlie countered as he yawned sleepily, tugging his t-shirt down over his pyjama bottoms, “I just passed the twins, and they are out. Fred’s half off his bed, snoring up a storm and George has his head under his pillow again“ he gave Molly a light kiss on her cheek as he reached over and poured himself some strong tea. “So what are they getting blamed for this time?” he asked, yawning again. “If they weren’t directly responsible, I’m sure they were involved; they might’ve put Ginny up to it..” he suggested.

“Not this,” Molly said grimly, shaking her head as she took the paper and showed it to Charlie. “Even Fred and George wouldn’t be able to manage a prank like this. It has to be a mistake, someone must have…”

“Uhm, Mum, Da….its no mistake. According to this, Jessica Whimple spoke directly with Dumbledore during a private interview.” Charlie explained as he quickly read over the article. “It mentions MacLeod, Sidhe, Dementors and even You-know-who. Oh…man….wow..”

“WHAT?!” Molly snapped, “Haven’t I had enough excitement? Do not make noises like that, Charles.” as visions of Lucius Malfoy kidnapping and torturing her children to get to Arthur flooded her mind.

“Now, Molly” Arthur hushed as he stood up, gently forcing Molly into his chair. By this point, the rest of the house was awake and filtering into the kitchen to see what all the noise was about. “Ginny, be a dear and get your mother a cup of tea, please.” Arthur suggested, relieved that his youngest child had the sense to do as he asked and not pester her mother with a hundred questions as her brothers were. “Boys, that is enough!” he barked sharply, “Let your mother be.”

Any further questions or arguments were quickly quieted by Charlie, who discreetly stomped on Percy’s foot, glaring harshly at him when he tried to continue questioning his parents, despite Arthur‘s words. An uneasy silence fell over the room as the children stared at each other, wondering what had happened. That was until Fred snatched the Prophet from Charlie’s hands, allowing George to run interference as he quickly read the headline. “No way!!!! Da, this is too cool!” Fred grinned, “Are you really running against Malfoy?”

The din in the room was amazing. And, apparently, it was enough to pull Molly out of her own thoughts and place her squarely back into the here and now. “What do you mean ‘cool’? Do you have any idea what this means? Do you know what Lucius Malfoy would do to win? He is ‘not’ above harming a child, let me tell you. And if anything happens to any of my babies…”

“Hey, Mum, come on now, none of that.” Charlie hushed, signalling his father and Ginny to help him. “You saw the paper, Albus Dumbledore is the one that started all of this, and we all know he would never put any of the kids in danger, right?”

“Charlie’s got a very good point, Molly.” Arthur agreed

“And what if he can’t protect them? What if they end up like the Potters, or the Longbottoms, or the Lovegoods? Well, can you tell me that?” Molly wailed, all but crushing Ginny and Ron against her as she hugged them tightly.

“We can always hide out with Harry and Miss MacLeod” George suggested, “I mean, she has offered to watch out for us on more than one occasion. Harry and Ron have both said so, and Ginny..”

“Cat MacLeod?” Molly sniffed, “Wasn’t her name mentioned in that article as well?”

“Yes,” Charlie replied, “Dumbledore told them that Da was in talks with her and her people, hoping to open ‘mutually productive’ lines of communications.” He paused as Fred handed the paper back to him, “It even states that she and the other Sidhe are willing to share medical knowledge with our healers as an act of good faith, ….Da?! They have a cure for werewolves…” Charlie gasped as he stared at his father.

“What else does it say, Charlie. I need to know what I’m dealing with before I get to work.” Arthur sighed, “And Ron, I need you to get a message to Harry and Cat, I need to find out if she’s aware of this?”

A vague look of panic crossed Ron‘s face as he looked from his still weeping mother to his father. “Da, I don’t really know how to get a message to Harry. Remember, we tried with Meg but everything comes back; its like the owls just can’t find them.” Ron whispered, not wanting to get his mother anymore upset than she already was.

“Hey, listen to this.” George blurted out, as Charlie, Percy and the twins each took a section of the Prophet. “According to this Jessica person, MacLeod has made it very clear that she will speak with Weasley and Weasley alone. She has stated a great mistrust in the current administration and believes that only he (Weasley) can be trusted. This is due in part to his care and concern where muggles are concerned...yada..yada…yada… mentions the bit with you in the MoM, your commitment to your job and values, …hey, she even mentions us” he grinned. “Albus Dumbledore also implied that the Sidhe in general seem to have a great deal of respect for large families, and Weasley, with his brood of seven, certainly has that aspect covered.”

Percy then picked up, “Although not held in high regard by the higher members of the Ministry, most of whom still remain missing, Weasley seems to invoke nothing but praise from both Albus Dumbledore and Tiberius Ogden, both elder members of the Wizengamot. Ogden stated that Griselda Marchbanks, another elder, also lends her support to Weasley, however Marchbanks herself could not be reached for comment. All in all, the general tone for Weasley’s candidacy seems to be one of pleasant surprise to those who know him. Although this reporter feels he will have an uphill battle going against a name as well-known as that of Malfoy.”

“Yeh, well known for being a bloody death eater and a general arse.” George spat.

“George Weasley, mind your mouth!” Molly yelled, “I will not have language like that at this table.”

George smirked at Charlie, “Well, Mum’s back amongst the living at least.”

“So, Da…..are you going to do it? Are you going to run for Fudge’s chair?” Charlie asked.

Arthur ran a hand over his balding head as he sighed, “I don’t know that I have much of a choice, Charlie. Albus ‘must’ have done this for a reason, I just wish I knew what it was. And I would feel much more comfortable if Cat MacLeod were here. I’d like to know how much of this she is aware of, and I would also like to know that she would be able to take your brothers and sister with her to Fernglennis if things do get….well…out of hand.”

“Of course she will” Ginny piped up, “she said she would and she will. I know she has more than enough room, and don’t forget Cash and the others are at the school, they won’t let anything happen to us.”

Arthur and Molly exchanged a long, silent gaze, they didn’t need any words, they both knew exactly what the other was thinking. The children, how would they ever protect their children, worrying about death eaters in general was bad enough, but now, to go head to head against the worst of them…..neither of them relished the thought. “We, first things first.” Arthur said, a broad smile on his face, even though his voice sounded strained. “How about some breakfast, and then pack up your things for school. I’ll need to speak with Dumbledore, I see no reason not to take you all back with me. Percy, I‘d like you to stay with your brothers and sister for a few days as well, just until Albus and I get this all settled out.”

“But we still have two days left” Ron groaned, only to be elbowed by Fred.

Pausing only long enough to glare at Ron herself, Ginny added, “And while you’re talking to Professor Dumbledore, we can take a message to Cash, he’s sure to be able to get it to Cat. Do you want me to get you a quill and parchment?”

“Yes, Ginny,” Arthur smiled, kissing her on the forehead, “that sounds like a perfect idea. Such a bright girl you are.” he added, winking as his baby girl smiled brightly at him.

Arthur left the table halfway through breakfast, hoping for some peace and quiet so he could write Cat a letter, but what to say? How do you ask someone if they were part of endangering your family when the chances were very good she was as unaware of this as he was. In the end, he simply asked her to read today’s Daily Prophet and please contact him as soon as possible regarding his children. He didn’t know her as well as he would like to, but he had the distinct feeling that she would reply immediately to anything involving the children.

“Hey, Da?” Charlie whispered as he stood over Arthur’s shoulder. “I know you have a lot on your mind, and I don’t want to be a pest…..”

“But..” Arthur encouraged.

Charlie smirked as he handed his father a note. “Could you possibly ask Cash to deliver this for me, if its not too much trouble?”

Arthur rolled his eyes, only to laugh as he saw name on the letter. “Meg, huh? Charlie my boy, you have it bad, don’t you?” Seeing his normally unflusterable son blush, Arthur could only smile “Of course I will, and I’m sure Cash will be more than happy to give it to her. He seems to like big families as much as we do.” Arthur added, unable to hold his tongue any longer. “But let me warn you now; I had to stop your mother from making Christmas plans for next year….she was, of course, planning it around the grandchildren she seems to think will be here by then.” He laughed deeply as he saw Charlie raise his hands to his face and mumble something less than flattering about his mother.

“Da, please, please, PLEASE tell me she did NOT say anything like that to Meg.” he begged…..

Cat stared at the ceiling as she heard Sirius’s breathing become deep and steady, he had finally drifted off into a peaceful sleep. Playing with his hair, she looked down at him, finding it hard to believe that she had almost lost him forever. “My poor, poor, Siri, what ever am I going to do with you?” she whispered softly as she kissed the crown of his head, smiling as he sighed in his sleep and nuzzled against her bosom. “I do love you, more than you can ever possibly know or understand, but I’m afraid my love will be the death of you.” Closing her eyes, she wiped away her silent tears; in her heart of hearts she ‘knew’ what had happened to him today was no accident. She had seen the looks on her clans faces, the tell tale lowering of eyes, the hushed murmurs that stopped the moment she walked into a room. They were hiding something from her, even Orpha had been avoiding her, making herself unavailable for questioning.

But at least Harry and Callista would sleep well tonight, the poor dears had been beside themselves with worry and guilt. Callista had somehow gotten it into her head that this was her fault, if she hadn’t had made such a fuss over Starry then Sirius never would have gone off looking for her. But Harry, bless his heart, was just like Lily, he spent almost as much time soothing Callista’s shattered soul as he did Sirius’s. Something that his godfather did not miss, in fact the minute the children had left, Sirius had given her that goofy grin of his, commenting on what a great ‘big brother’ Harry was turning out to be. “And what a wonderful father you are turning out to be, gra.” Cat sighed as she stroked Sirius’s hair. “And I have to admit it, I kind of like taking care of you.” she added, smiling tenderly. “Now all I have to do is get you strong and healthy again, put some meat on those bones and make sure my father and Mac Lir think you’re the best thing on two legs. Then the only other concern I have is Sev……I can’t just dump him. I already feel horrible for using him the way I have. He is a good man, and he strikes me as being a very protective and loving father.”

Cat smirked as she heard Siri snoring softly. “Oiy, even in your sleep you don’t want to hear about him, do you?” she teased, snuggling tight against him, inhaling the fragrance of his freshly shampooed hair. She couldn’t stop herself from laughing as she recalled the way Merlin had taunted them all night, refusing to let them alone for even the briefest of moments, insisted that Sirius simply would not be safe alone with her. Personally, she could have strangled her godfather by that point, but Sirius was grinning from ear to ear; weak and tired as he was, he took every opportunity to egg them both on. By the end, the only thing that saved either of them was the appearance of Harry and Duncan, who had the good fortune to wander along to see if she needed any help getting Sirius cleaned up.

Poor Duncan, all this time and he still couldn’t see Merlin, he must have thought the three of them had gone quite mad. And Merlin was just adding fuel to the fire the whole time, pinching Duncan, making things appear to float through the air….he was every bit the prankster he used to be, that much was certain. Although she had noticed he was touching things much more than usual, as if he no longer needed telepathy to influence the material world; as if more and more of him was slipping back into their world, the world he had been stolen out of so many centuries ago……

“Peace be to earth and to airy spaces.
Peace be to heaven, peace be to the waters,
peace to the plants and peace to the trees.
May all the Gods grant to thee peace.
By this invocation may peace be received.”

Orpha’s crystalline voice rang out, echoing off the walls of the haven as Roel’s spirit fled his body. Winging its way towards his ancestors, to be with the family he had left behind when he had accepted the embrace. Looking around her, Orpha felt the tears slipping down her face as she saw the blood-stained faces of her clan. Rick was on his knees, sobbing softly; Hamish’s body was shaking silently as Angus did his best to comfort him, Raul was holding onto Des, his face buried in her hair, and Cash…her poor, dear Caisearbhan. He stood silent as a stone at Roel’s head, one strong hand reaching down to close Roel’s eyes forever, the other hand clutching the flowers that the children had given him in Fernglennis, they had thought the brightly coloured blooms might cheer Roel up. Cash didn’t have the heart to tell the little ones that they would never see their Uncle Roel again, he didn’t even have the heart to mention it to some of the older ones, not with Sirius’s life dangling over them to.

“Cash, we need to prepare his body” Orpha said softly, “do you want me to do this for you? After all, Minnie and I are the only two clanswomen here.” She added gently, reminding him that death, much like birth, was a woman’s work. Not hearing any response, Orpha laid a soft hand on his shoulder, only to feel him shaking underneath her. “Oh, Cash..” she sighed, wrapping her arms around him as he slowly sank to his knees.

She felt as if time had gone backwards, as if he was no longer the confident and strong leader of warriors, but the uncertain teenager who was trying to understand why his father couldn’t be saved. Only this was much worse for him, Roel had been his childer, the last one he had embraced, he had lost his youngest son, and the child should never die before the parent, it just never seemed right no matter how often she had to witness it. Pressing his head against her stomach, she stroked his wild hair as she did her best to give him solace, offering him words of comfort as best she could.

She had been so concern about Cash, she hadn’t grasped what was happening around her, in fact, it wasn’t until she heard Hamish screaming after Rick that she even realized that he had run out of the room, his sobs echoing behind him in the empty corridor…….

“Go on Tris,” Remus whispered as he reached for Tris’s hand, squeezing it tightly as he sighed, “look at them and then tell me they don’t belong together.” he grinned as he saw her roll her eyes at him. “Come on, admit it, they look good together, they look ‘right’ together.” just as the words left his mouth, they both heard Sirius whimper in his sleep, only to be immediately soothed by Cat, who also appeared to be sound asleep. “And you wonder why I insist they have to make it. Just look at them, Tris, they are perfect together, and be honest with me. Would they or would they not have the most beautiful children together?”

“Yes, Mother Lupin” Tris sighed, “they love each other very much, they are a comfort to one another, and yes, by the goddess, their children would be gorgeous…. Are you happy now?”

“Almost” Remus whispered, grinning as Tris leaned against him, forcing him against the doorframe of Kitty’s room, kissing him tenderly.

“Better?” Tris whispered as her fingers combed through his hair, smiling as his masculine scent filled her senses.

“Much” Remus whispered back as his arms encircled her waist, returning her kiss as her hands reached the back of his neck. “Maybe we should find somewhere a bit more private” he suggested, “I doubt Kitty would find it amusing if she woke up and saw us.”

“Then apparently you have no idea how twisted her sense of humour is.” Tris grinned, “But you’re right, I have the feeling everyone is going to be checking in on them tonight. I hope he’s well enough to travel tomorrow, Orpha doesn’t want him to stay here any longer than he needs to.”

“What?! Tris, what are you talking about?” Remus gasped, only to have Tris clamp her hand over his mouth.

“Shh, keep your voice down, you’ll wake them. And ‘I’ do not want to be the one to tell Kitty any of this. Its Orpha’s idea, she’ll explain it to them tomorrow.” Seeing the look on Remus’s face, she understood it would be a long and lonely night unless she told him everything. “Alright, come on, walk with me and I’ll tell you about her little ‘vacation plans’ for Kitty and family. Have you ever heard of an island called Dia?” …..

Severus growled as he slammed down the book of potions Catri had given him for Christmas. He had read the same page over several times now and still could not remember a word of it. He needed to clear his mind, perhaps a walk would help, after all, he would finally be alone, no vampyres or Garou shadowing his footsteps …..alone ….it had been years since he hated that word. Until very recently he had chosen, preferred to be alone, to protect others from life he had chosen to lead. But now he understood life did not need to be that way. Instead of protecting others from his life, he could share in the lives of others, take comfort in them….in her.

He could already feel his jaw clenching as he thought of her, of his Catri. She should be here with him now, he could offer her comfort, companionship, love, everything she said she needed… He tried to take condolence in Orpha’s earlier statements. Catri needed a husband and Orpha wanted to talk to him, to ‘evaluate’ him, he smirked mirthlessly. It sounded more like an interview for a job, but this was one position he would gladly trudge through Hell for.

He wandered the halls of the school, just as he had done countless nights before, almost always alone, but recently that had changed, Catri had taken to walking with him, lighting the cold, harsh nights with her warm smile and tender eyes. Before he realized it, he found himself outside of her rooms as if she would be there, waiting for him to offer her his arm and walk the damp corridors with him yet again.

Raising his hand to his face, Severus let out a soft moan of pain as he slumped against her door. How much more disappointment could he be expected to live through? How much more would be taken from him; then again, did he even have anything left? Over the past two months, she had become his life; then again, perhaps that was a bit overly dramatic. She was not his life, simply his reason to go on, to continue living his dangerous double life; risking everything he had, everything he was. And he would gladly continue to risk it all if only he could have her again.

“You should be here with me, Catri. Why can you not see the truth? He betrayed you in the foulest of ways, choosing some filthy little tramp over you and your love. And then he had the audacity to parade that choice in front of all of us. I remember all to well the look of pain and horror on your face the night of the dance. I could feel your heart tearing in two when he took her in his arms.” He closed his eyes as he felt the burning of unshed tears threatening to overwhelm him. No, he had learned as a child that tears are for the foolish, for the weak. His father had made sure that he had understood that from a very early age.

A chill ran through Severus’s body as the image of his father flashed through his mind. No, he would not, ‘could’ not go there, he would not allow himself to be swallowed by the pain and anger of his childhood. He had seen what it was doing to Draco Malfoy, a boy that once held so much promise, he was being murdered a little more each day, being remade in his father’s image of perfection. And there stood Narcissa, bruised, battered and afraid to stop him, finally gathering up enough courage to come to him, begging him to protect her son from his own father. He had asked her once, ‘Why me? What makes you think I could or even would stop him?’

She answered him with two names, Serenity and Catri. Severus’s face twisted with pain as the irony of the situation slapped him in the face once more. Narcissa, who at the time barely knew him, she could see the love he held for Catri and the devotion and tenderness he showered upon his daughter. Yet Catri herself seemed almost oblivious to the true depths of his feelings, choosing instead to repeat the mistakes of her youth with a man who had proven time and time again to be untrustworthy and disloyal.

Severus let out a deep sigh as he tried to shake the shadows out of his mind. He needed to preoccupy himself with something else, normally that would be Rick, but needless to say his friend would not be here tonight. As much as he hated to admit it, he had grown immensely fond of the vampyre, taking a strange pleasure in teaching him the art of potion making, or even in something as simple as debating whatever topic came to mind. The man was almost saintly in his ability to not take offence, although it still felt strange to have the vampyre suddenly jump up and give him a hug or a bright smile. He always made a point of scolding Rick for such actions, insisting such behaviour was irritating, and it rumpled his clothes, but he knew Rick saw through his protests, just as Catri did.

Hoping to take refuge in the warmth and comfort of her room, Severus slowly opened the door, only to pause as he saw an unfamiliar shape crouched in the shadows of her normally bright room. Pulling out his wand, Severus approached the dark form, ready to kill if necessary. It wasn’t until he was almost on top of the figure that it even seemed to take notice of him, but instead of attacking or fleeing, it simply made itself smaller, hunching down as it made a soft sobbing noise.

Knitting his brow, Severus whispered “lumos” pointing his wand at the shape as the soft light cast an eerie light through the room. “Rick?!” Sev gasped, suddenly not sure if his eye were playing tricks on him. The man had Rick’s hair and general build, but never had he seen the vampyre like this, huddled on the floor, his face tucked down into his arms as he hugged his knees. In fact, if it weren’t for the occasional choked sobs, Severus would have wondered if the man was even alive. “Rick?” he asked again, his voice becoming softer as he knelt next to him.

“Go away, Severus” Rick finally said, his voice raspy and full of pain.

“Rick?” Severus questioned cautiously, “Rick, what is it?” he asked, trying to get the vampyre to look up at him, or at least give some sign that he had heard him. “Richard!” Sev growled, hoping to get his attention, but still he heard nothing but the occasional stifled sob.

Not knowing what to do, Severus simply sat next to him, wishing that Catri or Cash would suddenly show up. As much as Sev wanted to help ease Rick’s pain he knew that he was not the sort of person who could offer much comfort to anyone. Even when his own first years got all sobby and sniffly, he would send them to Pomfrey, let her sort it all out, send them back when they had stopped. Although he had recently found out that she had been sending them to Catri, allowing her to comfort and soothe them until they could face their classmates once more. And if the rumours were true, some of the older girls had been going to her for advice for everything from fashionable clothes and cosmetics to ‘boy trouble’, apparently they didn’t really see her as a teach per se, as much as an older sister, someone they could talk to. He made a mental note to discuss her teaching methods with her when she returned, she needed to draw a clear line between her and the students, she needed to stop following Lupin’s advice.

After several more minutes of uncomfortable silence, Severus tried once more to find out why Rick was here instead of with the others in the haven. “Rick…please, talk to me, tell me what has happened.” He watched as Rick shook his head, causing his long brown hair to shimmer in the glow from Sev’s wand. “Rick, at least have the decency to look at me when I’m talking to you.” Severus insisted, only to regret it as Rick’s ghostly face slowly rose from his knees. “Merlin’s beard” Sev gasped as he saw the bright red trail of vampyric tears streaming down Rick’s porcelain cheeks.

“Roel is gone?” Severus guessed as he watched Rick nod his head, his lower lip trembling. Before he knew what had happened, Rick had flung his arms around him, hugging him tightly as he sobbed like a child. At first Sev felt a wave a panic wash over him, thinking Rick was lunging towards him to feed, but it soon became apparent that what Rick needed was not blood, but sympathy….love. “Rick” Severus sighed as his body slowly relaxed Almost instinctively, Snape placed his arms around Rick, imagining him to be his little girl, his Serenity. After all, how often had he been the only comfort his daughter had known, his wife certainly paid no attention to her.