Mac Lir paused for a moment, studying the haunted look on the young man’s face. “I am sorry, but I never met your father. However Lily was well know to us here, she and Cat spent a good amount of time here while they were in school, they were closer than sisters in both their looks and ways. You share more in common with them than your eye colour, you do realize that, I trust.”

“I’m not sure I understand what you mean.” Harry mumbled, becoming more and more uncomfortable the longer Mac Lir stared at him.

“You stood up to me when I tried to bring her home, you knew you couldn’t beat me, yet you ran straight into danger to defend her. You have dreams like they did too, don’t you, I can see the haunted look in you just like I can in hers. Lily was the same way, …….it broke my heart to see her that last time, you were still inside of her, kicking away as she and Cat performed their spells and incantations.”

“I was……she was here while she was carrying me? But I thought Mum couldn’t break through the …..she told me she had be exiled from the wizarding world.” Harry stated, not believing she would lie to him about anything that important.

“Does this look like the wizarding world to you, boy?” Mac Lir asked, his voice deep and firm. “They may have been able to keep them out of each other’s worlds, but NOT out of mine, not when they truly needed one another, and Lily needed her. My clan accepted Lily as one of our own, as far as I’m concerned it was disgraceful that they didn’t insist on bringing her back to Fernglennis, with or without her permission.” he stated, realizing too late what he had said.

“She had the chance to go with Mum, to live in Fernglennis and be safe? She could have lived and been there for me, I wouldn’t have been an orphan?” Harry said, his voice quickly becoming little more than a whisper. “Voldemort wouldn’t have been able to kill her?”

“Shhhh, that’s enough of that” Mac Lir soothed as he placed a fatherly hand on Harry’s shoulder. “I do not pretend to understand her decision, my child, but I do know how much she and Cat loved you, sight unseen. They risked everything to keep you safe, both before and after your birth, remember that Harry, remember how much love they hold for you. That is were the true strength of our clan comes from.” he explained. “No matter how far we roam, whether at home or abroad, have a strong sense of belonging. A sense of place; of home, of family. This is what makes us powerful, this is why we are never truly apart from one another, no matter what distances lie between us we know we are loved. This knowledge gives us the confidence and strength to persevere where others would fail.”……

“Are you sure its safe to defy Lord Voldemort” Esmeralda asked breathlessly as she and Lucius went over the plan once more. “He must want her alive for some reason, and I would just as soon see her suffer before she dies.”

“Voldemort doesn’t know how much he’s risking by allowing that Sidhe to live. I’ve seen what she can do, and she’s five times as powerful now as she was in school.” Lucius snapped. “She and Potter have to die, along with Snape, the Dark Lord will reward me once he sees how Severus has misled him into believing that creature can be controlled. After all, she recently slaughtered over half of the Ministry‘s top officials, including Minister Fudge himself.” Lucius stated, unable to hide a joyful sneer.

“Why not send her to Azkaban? Voldemort will have her alive, you’ll have her out of the way, and I’ll have her in pain for the rest of her days.” Esmeralda suggested.

“Are you questioning me?” Lucius growled darkly as his Scandinavian blue eyes flashed dangerously.

“No!” Esmeralda gasped, instinctively flinching as he stepped closer to her, “Look, I have the potion all ready, see…. I would never, never question you, you know that.” she added, hoping to appease him.

“And what will you do with it?” Lucius snapped, staring at her as he waited impatiently for her to repeat the plan to him.

“I slip some of the love potion to Snape to make him love me, I make sure to do it when she’s around. I also make sure she walks in on us like she did with Sirius Black, only this time she doesn’t walk out. I use the powder you gave me to send her into a murderous temper, and since Snape will still be under the effects of the potion, he will of course do anything to protect me and she will end up killing him.” Esmeralda blurted out, her words tumbling over themselves in her attempt to placate Malfoy. “I’ll scream blue murder and get one of the teachers, by that time the spell will have worn off of her, and she’ll be in tears over murdering her fiancé.”

“Her what?” Lucius asked, his brow knit in confusion.

“Her fiancé, he was trying to propose to her that night I saw them together at Arbour of the Moon’s Enchantment.”

A sly grin spread across Lucius’s face, “Was he now, how interesting…..continue.”

“In all the confusion, you will grab Potter and take him to Lord Voldemort to complete the spell he started last year. MacLeod will probably realize what you’re doing and go mad, forcing the teachers to kill her in order to protect themselves and the students.” Esmeralda stated, then taking a deep breath, she added, “But what about her vampires and werewolves, they’re all over the school?”

“Leave them to me. We have a spy who can render them helpless.” Lucius smirked as he smoothed his long blonde hair. Gathering his gloves and walking stick, he left her without so much as a good bye…….

Mac Lir listened to Harry describe life as both a human and a wizard, he was amazed and amused by many of the things Harry told him, but he couldn’t help but hear the tinges of sadness in the boy’s voice, it was obvious he had been lonely and quite miserable for most of his life. He looked down at the boy who was sitting on a stool near his feet and saw his own hand reaching over, stroking his unruly black hair just as he would with one of his own children. At first Harry seemed shocked by such a show of affection, but he quickly regained his smile when Mac Lir grinned down at him. “It is little wonder she is so proud of you, you have a brave and noble soul. But tell me more about this man my clan calls your father. You say even Orpha approves of him?”

“Yes sir, she does, in fact she keeps encouraging he and Mum to spend more time together, and Cash likes him too.” he added quickly, relieved to see the look of pleasant surprise in Mac Lir’s eyes. After their first meeting, Harry never would have thought he would ever be able to trust Mac Lir, but now he not only trusted him, but was becoming down right fond of him. He felt like the grandfather Harry had never had the chance to know, wise, strong, affectionate, even a little bit stern from time to time. “I wish he could have come with us today, he was in a real state when Mum said it was just her and I today, he didn’t want her to go. Although after those bog-things attacked us, I’m siding with him.”

The smile dropped from Mac Lir’s face immediately “WHAT attacked you?” he asked, his voice low and tense as his eyes focused in on Catrianna and Leumadair who were still talking softly on the other side of the room.

“I’m sorry, I don’t remember the name she used, just bog-something. They were kind of small, with bright orange hair and eyes…..”

“Boglachs” Mac Lir spat, his eyes narrowing as his temper rose, “Were you travelling through their lands when they attacked you? Did you not stay to the path?”

“There was no path, sir” Harry explained, his voice beginning to waiver as he saw the anger in Mac Lir’s eyes, which had now become the shade of a raging sea. “Mum rode ahead and started fighting before I saw them, I think Shoshi kept me back on purpose, and then when they burrowed up the mountain to try and get me….”

“They left the bog? They tunnelled across the plain and up the mountain?” he asked incredulously. Seeing the look of fright on Harry’s face, Mac Lir decided to change the subject, he could ask Cat about that when the boy was out of earshot. “Do you want to meet the rest of my children, Harry? One of my daughters has been anxious to meet you, Cat is her favourite Aunt, you see.”

“Do you have lots of children like Magnus… I mean, Grandda, does? Mum has a really large family.” Harry felt could already guess the answer if the twinkle in Mac Lir’s eye was any indication.

“I have Magnus beat by several dozen, I believe” he replied proudly “and I most certainly have him beat in the grandchildren area, I’m afraid his children have been a bit slow with that.” he added, staring pointedly at Cat.

Harry laughed deeply “Now you sound like clan, she gets that all the time at home.”

“Does she? Has she done anything about it? Has this ‘father‘ of yours?” Mac Lir asked rising from his chair as the door to his study opened and a young girl with shoulder length blonde hair entered the room. Harry guessed it was one of Mac Lir’s daughters when he saw her eyes and the proud way she held herself. “Ahh, Krystal, come here my child, come meet your cousin.”

“Is Aunt Kitty with him too? She promised to teach me how to cast runes.” Krystal asked excitedly as she flung herself into Mac Lir’s strong arms and hugged her father tightly, giggling as he lifted her off the ground. “Father” she groaned, “you still treat me like I’m a little girl, I’m a teenager now, nearly grown up.” She teased, tugging playfully on his beard as she spoke.

“No daughter is ever truly ‘grown up’ in her father’s eyes, you are, and always will be, my little girl, you might as well resign yourself to that fact.” Mac Lir stated, grinning widely as Krystal blushed and Harry laughed. Deciding now would be a good time to distract Harry and speak to Cat about the boglachs attack and find out why she had kept the spells she and Lily cast a secret from their own son, Mac Lir made a suggestion that he knew would both surprised and intrigued Harry. “Krystal, why don’t you take your cousin for a walk, you can take him around the grounds, and if you have time, perhaps show him the wreck his mortal family travelled in.”

“My family? Do you mean my real, …. Other… Lily and James?” Harry blurted out, both excited by the news and embarrassed by his inability to keep his ‘parents’ straight any longer.

“I mean Lily Evans, her ancestors came here in that wreck. Smart girl though, and brave, actually managed to save pieces of the sacred oak and brought them with her. Its no wonder she was taken in so quickly.” Mac Lir stated absently as he strolled over to Leumadair and Cat, leaving the teenagers to do as they saw fit. ……

Sirius sighed as he plopped onto the couch and stared at his pocket watch once more, this waiting was maddening for him, he wanted Harry and Cat back, now. He didn’t know why or even how to explain it, but he had the terrible feeling they were in trouble and needed him. “Why did you have to go today Cat? I was with you all last night, you barely slept a wink, we were up talking to Cash and Hamish most of the night. You were so tired and weak you couldn’t even make your way through to the school, you should have waited another day, or at least let me go with you.” he whispered as he stared at the pictures of Cat and Harry that Remus had placed into the watch.

He ran his finger over the pictures, imagining they were here with him, safe and sound, wrapped in his protective arms. “Are you still crying Cat? Have you told Harry what you told me?”

“And what did she tell you?” Duncan asked as he stepped out of the shadows. “Did she agree to marry you without asking father first?”

Sirius smirked sadly, “No, she would never do that, she loves her father too much not to consult him. I’ll need to know when he’s due back, I want to do this right Duncan, I don’t want to screw this up, not again.”

Duncan cleared his throat nervously as he sat down next to Sirius. “I wanted to talk to you about this morning in the barn, you know, about how I behaved.” he paused as he waited for Sirius to look at him and say something, but it was evident that Sirius’s mind was far away at the moment. Reaching across the wizard, Duncan took the watch out of Sirius’s hands, grinning as soon as he saw the pictures inside of it. “You really have it bad, don’t you, wizard?”

“Yeh, I guess I do.” Sirius replied softly as he took back the watch, gazing at the pictures for a moment longer before closing the watch and returning it to his pocket. “What were you just saying?” he asked as he looked up into Duncan’s hazel eyes.

“The least you can do is listen when someone is trying to apologize to you, manners and all.” Duncan ribbed, giving Sirius a friendly punch in the arm as he smiled good naturedly. “So, do you forgive me?”

“Of course I do.” Sirius replied, his voice sincere and his eyes full of unexpressed feelings. “I honestly can’t imagine what I would do in your place. I can’t really even call her ‘mine’, yet the thought of another man touching her, or even looking at her drives me half mad. And you’re supposed to protect her from men like me, right?”

Duncan shook his head, “No, I’m supposed to protect her from those that would do her harm, and from what I have seen that is Not you.” he looked away for a moment, as if deciding how he should ask his next question. “Is it true you’ve been sneaking into her room at night?”

“I haven’t been sneaking Duncan, I’ve knocked on her door, or else we’ve walked in together. And before you ask, no, I haven’t done anything to her that would give you the right to hurt me. Although I wish I could say otherwise.” he added sadly.

“So last night, when you never returned to your room?”

“Last night, I was with her, all night, holding her as she cried over Roel and fought with Cash. She wants to go back to the school and heal Roel, but Cash says no, he keeps telling her its not that bad, but we both know he’s not telling the truth, at least not the whole truth.” he paused and took a deep breath before continuing. “There is something else Duncan, Cash was trying to tell me something, I’m not positive, but I don’t think he ‘wants’ her to go back to Hogwarts, he got this strange look in his eyes when he told me to take care of her and Harry. Its like he wasn’t planning on coming back or something.” hearing Duncan sigh deeply, Sirius turned to look at him, “What is he planning to do, Duncan? It will kill Cat if anything happens to him, she loves him as much as she does you.”

“I know, I know.” Duncan whispered, “This is one of the reasons we didn’t pressure her to take you with her today. We,.. I… wanted to speak to you about that. I need the truth from you Sirius Black, not just bravado or wishful thinking. I know you love her, and she seems very, very fond of you, but why haven’t the two of you…. I mean…oh Maeb, why do I have to be the one to do this?” he sighed as he placed his head in his hands.

“Because its time you started to understand she’s not just our littler sister anymore” Luke chimed in as he entered the room to rescue his brother, “She’s a full grown woman, Duncan, she should be married and raising children of her own. Which is another question we need to ask you Sirius.” Luke explained as he sat down on the other side of Sirius, sandwiching the wizard between he and his brother. “She’s had plenty of opportunities to marry others, but she’s always refused or found a way out of it. Now you come along and she’s got stars in her eyes and she isn’t saying no….she hasn’t said yes either, but she hasn’t refused and that’s got tongue wagging.” Luke couldn’t help but laugh when he saw the large, heart-felt smile on Sirius’s face. “Well, I see you still have no objections, that’s good. But as for Cash?” Luke shook his head slowly, “Orpha and I have been trying to figure it out ourselves, and you’re right, he’s up to something. Orpha’s talking to Aunt Minnie right now, maybe she knows something we don’t, or she can always go to Hamish and pump him for info” he winked.

Sirius chuckled softly, he remembered all too well Professor McGonagall’s ability to uncover information, and guilt, with little more than a penetrating look and a tight lipped frown. “He’s doomed, you know that, right?”

“Against Minnie, oh yeah, not a chance of fooling her.” Luke agreed……..

“Where’s Harry?” Cat asked as she peered around Mac Lir’s form. “You didn’t do anything ’silly’ did you? Like sending him to the trench to look for snipes or anything, you know, like you did to Angus.”

“That was different, he doesn’t ’need’ to breath, now does he, and he was being annoying. Your son on the other hand is a joy, and very well-mannered, I am assuming your brothers haven’t had the chance to corrupt him yet.” Mac Lir added with a smirk.

“Not for lack of trying” Cat laughed, “but really, where is he? He is safe, isn’t he?” she asked once more as she got ready to leave and look for him. Only stopping when she felt Leumadair’s hand on her arm and Mac Lir’s eyes upon her. “What is it?”

Leumadair was first to speak, “You’re walking funny, and you haven’t told me the entire truth, that’s not like you. What is really happening? And don’t keep looking behind father, your son is safe with Krystal and no one else can hear us in here.” he stated firmly. He leapt forward quickly holding onto Cat as she finally let her façade fall. “Cousin?”

“Just let me relax a minute, Leuma. I didn’t want Harry to know how much pain I was in, he worries too much as it is. He‘s almost as bad as his father.” she replied softly. “Did you send him to see the ship, Uncle? I’m sure he’d find it very interesting, although I’m not sure how or even how much to explain to him at this point.”

Mac Lir cleared his throat softly “Yes, well, I may have ‘assisted’ you in that.” he explained as he lifted her off the floor and placed her on a divan so Leumadair could better examine her. “And before you start to tell me I was wrong or over stepping my bounds, I suggest you allow my son to determine why you are, how did he phrase that, ‘walking funny’?”

“I know why I’m not walking right, it’s the wound a boglach gave me on our way here.” she replied tersely. “I would like to know who gave them orders to attack us, they wouldn’t have done it on their own, and they wanted my son.” she added, her voice practically a growl now.

“Boglachs?! Cousin, you should have said something immediately, you know they rub their weapons with poison.” Leumadair chastised as he dropped to his knees and lifted her gown, wincing as he saw the long cut on her outer thigh. “Kitten” he sighed as he looked up at his father’s angry face.

“THEY did this to YOU!!!! I’ll see them dead, every last mother’s son.” Mac Lir roared, making the very sea around them tremble with his anger at seeing a member of his clan harmed in such a manner. The golden bangles on his arm chimed and clanged against one another as he raised his hand high into the air, sending a ray of nearly black light out of his palm and up towards the surface.

“Relax, uncle, there isn’t much left to take care of.” Cat assured him “I’m afraid that dark energy blast you just sent is going to hit a rather parched plot of earth when it lands. I had to torch the bog to stop them, but anything in the water should be safe, I didn’t bother going into the ground with the flames, most of them were above the ground trying to kill us.”

Leumadair looked at Cat next, “What will happen if it hits something that’s already been burnt to the ground?” he knew full well what his father could do in a fit of anger, and he was getting extremely angry. “Stay still, cousin, I need to heal this properly. Why didn’t you tell me as soon as you arrived, you know you can’t heal this in your condition.” he added as he placed his palms flat against the wound.

Artfully ignoring his comment, Cat replied “The ground where the energy blast hits will melt and then, eventually solidify again, it will probably turn into a glass or quartz. I’m sure the mortals will chalk it up to another lighting strike, they like to blame the weather for all sorts of things. Ow, Leumadair, careful.” she whined as her cousin pulled the poison out of her wound in large, brownish, globs.

“Well at least you had enough sense to neutralize it, that’s something I suppose.” he sighed. “She’ll be fine, father, she just needs to rest for a little, and eat something maybe? Or is it sleep you’re lacking?” he added, trying to tease her into a good humour while hiding what he had just learned about her from his father.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Mac Lir staring pointedly at him, he knew full well he would never be able to lie to his father, but considering she hadn’t even said anything, it was very likely she didn’t even know yet, and he wasn’t going to be the one to tell her, it just wasn’t his place. Although he could tell by the look in his father’s stormy eyes that he was going to force the issue very shortly. “Father, shall I find her son? She should be well enough by the time I bring him back….”

“Leave him to your sister, Leumadair, I want to talk to you and her in private.” Mac Lir replied evenly. He knew his son was hiding something from him, and it was a feeling he despised. “Now, child,” he said, turning towards Cat, “Besides the boglachs, which I WILL look into. I want to know why you haven’t told your son about the lengths you and she went through to protect him, and can you finally explain to me why she didn’t stay here. You both would have been safe and comfortable here, neither of you needed to suffer the way you did.”

“I know, uncle, but it couldn’t be helped.” Cat sighed as her eyes became moist with tears. “She wouldn’t leave James behind, and he couldn’t live here, he was pure wizard, he wasn’t like us.”

“But to save her own child….”

“We did save him, Uncle, remember. You were able to open that doorway for us,” she smiled gratefully at him as the tears ran down her face. “after months of communicating through nothing but dreams, being able to see each others pain but not being able to help one another, not be able to even speak to her, you came up with the solution.”

“Now, now, my little flower, none of your tears. The past is done and gone, no use weeping over it.” Mac Lir said softly as he sat on the divan next to her, gently wiping away her tears. “You’ve had a very hard time of it, haven’t you child? You know you don’t have to be brave around me or your cousin, we’ve know you since you were born, we know your heart and the burden you carry in it.”

He watched her struggle with her emotions for a few minutes before finally giving in and letting the wall down. Flinging her arms around his neck, she sobbed pitifully into his silvery hair as he stroked her auburn tresses and spoke softly to her. She had always seen him as a second father, and the fact that he and Magnus looked so much alike certainly didn’t hurt. And to be honest, he spoilt her the same way he did his own, but it was so hard not to, they had lost so many of their clan over the centuries that each and every child was more precious than ever, and she was the rion, the one who’s shoulders bore the weight of the clan.

Mac Lir felt the tears welling up in his own eyes as he thought of everything she had endured over her thirty odd years of life. The loss of her mother, of her half sister and best friend, the loss of the child she may or may not have even realized she was carrying, although Dierde certainly had known, it was she that had come to him, sobbing as her daughter sobbed now. She had actually gone as far as to bring the carousel to him several weeks earlier, hoping it would give her a chance to ‘break’ the news to her husband and find the father of the child before he did. Dierde had known she couldn’t tell Magnus now, not without having to endure more death and blood, the thought of someone getting his baby girl in that condition would have been bad enough, but then to have his grandchild die due to an attack on its mother….. The sun would have burned red for weeks with all the blood that would have been in the air, and they both knew it.

It was that memory more than any other that had convinced him to help Cat when she came to him about her dreams, the dreams that Lily was in trouble and needed her help. At first he thought it was just her missing Lily, after all the two had been all but inseparable the entire time she was at Albus’s school, but there was something in her eyes, in her voice, that made him realize it was more than haunted dreams. And then, when she had mentioned that Lily ’felt’ pregnant to her…..what else could he do, after all Lily had been created by his clan just as Cat had been, he had a responsibility to her and her children too.

It had taken a great deal of effort and research, but eventually, he had found the weakness, the loop-hole, if you would, in the multiple spells that blocked the Wizarding and Sidhe worlds from one another. It was a one time only shot, but he knew he had to do it, and then, when Lily appeared in his room, frightened and unsure of where she was, calling out for her husband as her hands protectively covered her large, child-filled belly, he knew he had done the right thing. And if he had had any doubts then, the look on her face when she saw he and Cat would have banished them all. The two of them had run to each other, hugging one another tightly for several minutes as tears of happiness streamed down their pretty faces, and then, when Cat had finally realized that Lily was in fact with child…..the joy in the room multiplied beyond belief, although he could still see the look of pain and sadness hiding in his niece’s eyes……

“Father…..Father,” Leumadair whispered softly, “I think she’s cried herself to sleep, we should let her get some rest, we can all talk later.”

Slowly and carefully, Mac Lir lifted his head, only to see that his son was correct, she had finally succumbed to her pain and exhaustion and was now sleeping peacefully against him. He waited as Leumadair untangled her arms from his hair before gently placing her back on the divan. “ I intend to find Orpha and settle a few things about my niece, her son, and their future. Watch over her, my son, I have the feeling there is still very much she has to tell us.”

“Of course, father.” Leumadair smiled as he took his fathers place next to Cat. “I take it you approve of her son? He seems very much like his uncles.”

“Oh, yes, the MacLeod blood is strong in him, now all he needs to do is to learn how to us it.”………

“Minerva, are you mad!!” Raul bellowed as he pulled at his thick, black hair. “Do you realize what you are suggesting? Its madness, pure, unadulterated madness.”

“Do sit down and be quite, Raul. You obviously are NOT listening to me.” Minerva retorted, her mouth a tight ribbon as she glared at the Gangrel primogen. “Or haven’t you noticed the way the others are treating Cobryn, he’s practically a pariah amongst the vampyre, and the Garou won’t even acknowledge his presence. They are blaming him for what has happened to Roel, saying if he hadn’t been there Roel would not have had to sacrifice himself.”

“They may well be right, we don’t know, we weren’t there.” Raul stated, his voice flat and emotionless as he thought of what Roel had looked like when his clan returned from the forest. “I’ll talk to Desiree, she can placate her Caitiffs, Mohrg will stay out of it one way or the other, the Ventrue are snobs anyway, and maybe I can get Cash to talk to the Garou…. I don’t know.”

“No, you don’t” a deep voice replied from the shadowy corner of Minerva’s office. “So tell me, primogen, why will Mohrg stay out of it?”

Raul jumped to his feet when he saw the Nosferatu appear from no where and approach him, a look of annoyance on his face. “What I meant to say is the Nosferatu are notoriously neutral, they simply do not bother themselves with petty squabbling of other clans.”

“Petty squabbling, is that what you call this, primogen?” Mohrg asked, his voice becoming more and more forceful as the air around them suddenly grew still and stale. “One of your own clan lays dying, his mortal clan is not permitted to aid him, the Angel herself is kept away with spells and barriers, the beast runs free and the children will be returning soon. Do you honestly think I could turn my back on this?” he scowled. “Angel and her clan, ‘her’ Gangrels, have given my clan hope. She is a creature of light and loveliness, a being that brings warmth and contentment to others, and yes, primogen, I am referring to my own clan. She does not turn away from us, there is no fear in her eyes when she beholds our hideous and misshapen forms. We value her for her abilities, her intelligence, her talent and most of all, for her compassion. Nosferatu will NOT see her kept from this world, or from our own.”

As much as Mohrg hated to see the fear and abhorrence that his presence caused, he did not forget how useful it could be at times, like now, when a little convincing was necessary. “I agree with Minerva, her plan is sound, she has the power, and she has enlisted others to aid her should she falter.”

“She’s enlisted the Slytherin” Raul spat, “the same one that stood and protected that murderous little brat. He was as much responsible for the attack on Angel’s life as the boy was.”

“Professor Snape has a duty to protect the members of his house, Raul. I’ve explained this to you time and time again. Why do you insist on bringing this up over and over again.” Minerva huffed.

“Because she nearly died” Raul growled, “and it would have killed Cash, not to mention the rest of us, your precious students included. Or do you think he would have sat there weeping over her lifeless form all night? No, Minerva, he would have frenzied, killing anyone and everyone in sight, including you, me, them…the only person who MAY have been safe would have been her son, and I can’t even guarantee that much.”

An uneasy silence settled over the threesome as Raul’s angry words sunk in, it was obvious there was much more on his mind than he was willing to admit, such as what may happen if Cash’s youngest childer did in fact die, and what the Methuselah’s reaction to this might be.

“Be that as it may, we must do something, and unless you have another suggestion, I insist I be allowed to do this.” Minerva stated, her voice calm and even as she looked directly at Raul.

“Even if it kills you?” Raul replied, his eyes now locked with hers, refusing to give up so easily.

“That is why I am here, primogen,” Mohrg interrupted, “and why the Slytherin will be there as well. Regardless of what I may personally feel about him, he is strong and capable, and he has also suffered by the Tremere’s hands, if it were not for the care your Gangrels gave him…..”

“That was at Cash’s insistence, NOT mine.” Raul countered, “I still haven’t forgiven him for what he’s done, or for that book we found, or have you forgotten about that already?”

Mohrg cast his eyes downward as he wondered if it was still possible for him to blush, “I have not forgotten, but I will not allow it to cloud my judgement either.” He could feel Minerva’s eyes upon him as he kept his eyes artfully trained on the hem of his trousers.

“So, is anyone going to let me in on this little secret of yours? Or must I guess, and I’m warning you, my guesses may well be worse than what you are trying to hide from me.”

“Nothing I want to discuss in the presence of a lady, even a stubbornly foolish one.” Raul said, his eyes locked with hers as he attempted to enter her mind and dissuade her from her plan.

“Give it up Raul,” Minerva hissed, frightening Raul and startling Mohrg, “I may not look like much, but I can tell you I’ve taken on both wizards and vampyres stronger, older and far more deceitful than you. And if you try a trick like that once more, you’ll quickly see why no one tangles with me more than once.”

Straightening her robes, she composed herself and turned to Mohrg, “Well, are you going to tell me what has you so upset with Professor Snape? Or must I be reduced to bringing him here and sorting it all out. I do not intend to go into this with you two at each other the entire time. I will need to concentrate and focus my energy, I can’t do that if I’m worried about what’s going on behind my back.” She allowed herself to relax as she saw the look on the Nosferatu’s face, at least he seemed willing to allow for the possibility that Snape wasn’t quite the villain he may think he was.

“It is nothing, Minerva, only a sketchbook, it doesn’t concern the matter at hand.” Mohrg stated, his eyes downcast for fear they may betray him.

“Oh for the love of….you don’t mean to tell me he’s still drawing those naughty pictures of her. I honestly thought he would have outgrown that by now, I must have confiscated at least three books worth from him during his last two years as a student.” Minerva sighed as she shook her head, only to laugh softly as she added. “Well, if nothing else, he is persistent, I wonder if Kitty has ever seen any of those pictures, he really is quite talented.” She held in the remainder of her laughter as the two men stared at her with wide, disbelieving eyes. “Gentlemen, are we to place this plan into action? Or am I to go alone?”

“You will NOT go alone.” Raul replied immediately. “I don’t agree with this at all, but I’ll be hanged before I allow anyone under my protection to walk into something like this without anyone to back them up.” He rubbed his temples as he tried to think things through, there were things that needed to be done, people to contact, perhaps he could point out some oversight, a fatal flaw that would delay this mad plan. “What about the others? I am assuming they know nothing of your little plan, is this correct?”

“Yes, I prefer to have as few people know of it as possible, the last thing I need is an audience. The Caitiff and Garou will need to be kept occupied…..”

“I can speak for the Garou” Mohrg said softly, avoiding looking into either of their faces, he had no inclination to explain the recent bond he and Fang had forged. “They will stay inside the school, protect the teachers, help the Gangrel. ….Raul, I assume your Gangrel will be occupied with Roel.”

“Yes, they’ve been at his side almost non-stop, only Rick has been absent, and that is only due to his duties as regards the Slytherin. I’m sure he would gladly join his brothers, I’ll tell him I will watch over the Slytherin so he may aid Roel, he won’t question me.” Raul stated, looking less than thrilled by the idea.

“Are you sure he’ll believe you, Raul? I don’t mean to question you, but your attitude towards Professor Snape would appear….”

“I know how to ’put on a face’ for my clan, Minerva. They must protect him, we must protect him, so I act as though this is not unusual, I hide my anger and misgivings for the sake of my clan and the position we hold here.”