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London: September 1st 1942
Cosima Scamander felt her heart sink as she took her mother's hand and walked through the wall onto Platform Nine and Three Quarters, her dad following on  close behind. She was due to begin her first term at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry today, but the truth was that she did not at all want to go. She wanted to stay at home with Mum, Dad, her younger brother Cassian and all the dozens of creatures who lived with them in Dorset; the owls, bowtruckles, mooncalfs, Granny's hippogriffs and all the rest. All these horrid bombings had been going on for years now since the Muggles started fighting their war and though Dad said the house was well protected, she was terrified that something might happen to her family, human and animal, while she was away at the other end of the country.She was only allowed to take one creature with her to Hogwarts (and really, what a dreadful rule that was!) and so perched on top of her trunk was a cage carrying her beautiful barn owl Asteria. She was very much not planning on mentioning the bowtruckle in her pocket to anyone!Passing out through the wall to the other side, she was met by the sight of an enormous red steam engine – emblazoned with the words 'Hogwarts Express' – standing huffing at the edge of an absolutely packed platform. Drawing closer to her mother, Cosima scanned the crowd anxiously. She could not see anyone she recognised right away; though she knew that somewhere in the crowd was her older cousin Helios, the son of her uncle Theseus Scamander (celebrated war hero and Order of Merlin, First Class).Helios, a cheerful brawny fellow of eighteen, was to be head boy this year. Cosima loved her good-humoured cousin very much but didn't imagine that the Head Boy and star beater of the Gryffindor quidditch team would have much time for first years, even if they were related. As for her brother Cassian, her partner in adventure back home, he was only just coming up for nine and so would not be starting at Hogwarts for another two years.The thought of being so alone made Cosima's throat want to close up. She wished for the millionth time that summer that Esther, Joshua and Sarah (Uncle Jacob and Aunt Queenie's children) lived in England. Esther was the same age as she was and Sarah and Joshua, twins, just two years older. All three were tremendous fun and Cosima felt that she'd be a little less frightened if they were all getting on the train beside her. Sadly though, they all lived in New York and would be attending Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry instead of Hogwarts.Closer to the train now, various witches and wizards came up to chat to Newt and Tina, and Cosima recognised them as members of the ministry. Their children nodded to Cosima, acknowledging her politely as a vague acquaintance. However, none of them had ever wanted to get to know that odd little Scamander girl, who spoke to owls and babbled about hippogriffs, well enough to call them friends. Most other children generally thought she was weird. What if no one wanted to be her friend at Hogwarts too?The whistle blew and people scrambled to board."Come on," Newt prompted encouragingly. "Let's get your trunk on board. You take Asteria." They found an empty carriage near the back of the train and Newt lifted his daughter's trunk on board while Cosima settled a placid, sleeping Asteria on one of the seats."And not a word to Mum about Pip," Newt said smilingly, with a conspiratorial wink. Cosima gave him a watery smile in return. Mum was a little bit more particular about following the rules than Dad was and, as her Hogwarts letter made no reference at all to Bowtruckles, she might just insist that Pip stayed at home with all the rest of his family.Jumping down from the carriage again for a short minute, and vaguely aware of a few other people getting into it behind her, Cosima realised she had to say goodbye to her parents. Her throat tightened again against the onslaught of tears and she fiercely told herself that she was not going to cry, even though she was going to miss them so much!"Bye honey," Tina hugged her tightly and smoothed down her hair. "You're going to have a wonderful time. Send us a letter with Asteria and tell us how you're settling in. You be brave for me, ok?" Cosima nodded dumbly, accepting the hug and kiss; too afraid to talk in case she started crying and made a fool of herself."It's all right," Newt said gently, hugging her once Tina was done. "The first train journey seems like an awfully big step, but there's nothing to be frightened of. Don't be afraid to ask Helios for help – he'll look after you. Remember to let us know where you've been sorted into. Go on now, darling, give me a smile. There we go, that's better. Goodbye."He kissed her forehead and then helped her back into the carriage, shutting the door in the nick of time. With a colossal hoot and in a rush of steam, the train began to pull away; leaving Mum, Dad and home behind.Cosima stared fixedly out of the window for a few moments until she was certain that she had mastered her emotions. After that, she had a glance round the carriage at the five people – three girls and two boys - who had joined her there. One girl looked excited, another oddly bored and all the others looked as vaguely terrified as Cosima was herself."Are you all new first years too?" asked the excited looking girl. The rest of the carriage nodded. "I'm Marjorie. Marjorie McKinnon. What are your names?""I'm Harriet Brooks," replied one of the other girls; a pretty redhead with lots of freckles. "This is one of the strangest days of my life. No one in my family has ever had magic before and I'm still half convinced I'm dreaming! I don't know anything about Hogwarts at all besides what's in the textbooks!""Nothing to worry about there," said a blond-haired boy with a strong, lilting Welsh accent. "My Mam was a muggle-born too and she said they soon settle in the same as everyone else. By time a few weeks pass, you can scarce tell the difference. I'm Gwion Pritchard. What about you?""Walburga Black," said the dark-haired girl who had looked bored before. Her voice had an unpleasant, sneering tone and she seemed to have slid away from Harriet and Gwion the minute she found they were related to Muggles. "And I am a descendent of purebloods! I would have sat with my family immediately if we hadn't been so late. Now I am going to find my cousins." And with that, she rose imperiously and left the carriage, leaving the other children gawping after her."What got up her nose?" asked Harriet bewilderedly. "And what's a pureblood?""Ah, rif raf like us won't be good enough for the Black family!" said Gwion wryly. "They're one of a few really snotty wizard families who pride themselves on never having anything to do with muggles and only marry other witches and wizards. Load of tosh really; doesn't make any difference to your magic ability! But they like to think it makes them special.""They've got a talent for dark magic, too, the Blacks!" said a thin dark haired boy, who was sat beside Cosima. "I'm Merlin Pendragon. Most of my family are Aurors – dark wizard catchers – so they've had a few run ins with some of the Black family.""Wow, you're a Pendragon?" Gwion's eyebrows shot up. "They're possibly the oldest wizarding family in Britain, Harriet. They say they're descended from the Merlin!""Which is why I have this daft name!" Merlin laughed. "But my family have never believed any of that pureblood garbage. My granny is a muggle with no magic at all and she's the best person in the world!"What about you?" chatty Gwion asked Cosima. "You're the only one we haven't heard from yet.""I'm Cosima Scamander," she replied shyly."Oh! Is your dad Theseus Scamander?" Merlin asked interestedly. "My uncle Percival is head of the auror office and he works with him!""No, that's my uncle," Cosima replied. "Newt Scamander is my dad. He's a magizoologist. My mum is an auror though so your uncle will probably know her – Tina Scamander.""I'll ask him when I write to him – he asked me to send him a letter once I was sorted," Merlin replied."Anyone know what houses they'll be in?" asked Gwion, before proceeding to explain the four houses and their traits to Harriet. "My Mam and Dad were both Hufflepuffs so were joking about wanting me to carry on the family tradition.""Gryffindor for me, I hope!" said Marjorie. "Like my brothers!""Most of my family have been Gryffindors," Merlin said with a languid smile. "But to be honest, I don't think I mind where!""My Uncle Theseus was in Gryffindor as well and so is my cousin Helios – he's head boy," Cosima said. "But my Dad was a Hufflepuff and I think I'd like to be too. My mum's American though, so she went to Ilvermorny school instead."This naturally started a discussion on the American school and before they knew it, it was lunchtime. A plump, kindly lady with a trolley full of goodies came by and they all had great fun introducing Harriet to every kind of wizarding treat under the sun.Pleasantly excitable on all the sugar they had consumed, they spent the afternoon playing exploding snap and talking a little bit more about their families. Cosima learned that Marjorie had two older brothers, Jack and Roger, who were both mad on quidditch. Gwion, meanwhile was an only child who wanted to be a healer when he left Hogwarts. Harriet's dad and uncle were off fighting in the Muggle's war in France and she had three sisters back home with her mum. Merlin lived with his uncle Percival Pendragon as both his parents had been killed fighting Gellert Grindelwald a few years before. The carriage had grown very quiet for a moment after that, no one quite knowing what to say.Seeing a strained look on Harriet's face at the mention of parents being killed in battle, Cosima hurriedly changed the subject and told them the story of how her parents met in New York when some of her Dad's creatures escaped from his magical suitcase. Even better, no one looked at her like she was strange when she told them about all the creatures they had back home and how she loved helping look after them. Gwion asked lots of questions and Harriet declared they all sounded like something wonderful out of a fairytale.It almost felt like she had made some friends!By the time the train came to a halt later on that evening, the five first years had fallen into a stupor, talked out and exhausted. They wearily made their way off the train with all the other throngs of students and looked around, wondering what to do next. Most of the older students were heading over to a fleet of carriages which stood nearby. Cosima stared hard at them – her dad had told her about Thestrals, and she thought they sounded frightfully interesting. She couldn't see them at all though and, bearing Merlin's earlier tale of the loss of his parents in mind, decided she was actually quite happy with that!"First years over here, if you please! First years over here!"The small group followed the sound of a booming Scottish voice and found that it belonged to a cheery-faced middle aged wizard with a thick brown beard. He was soon surrounded by a crowd of curious faced eleven year olds as all the other new first years joined them."Welcome all," he said, smiling round at them. "I'm Angus Ogg, the school gamekeeper. You'll be joining your schoolmates shortly, but on your first term we go by a slightly more unconventional route. We'll be going by boat over the Black Lake and you'll get your first glimpse of Hogwarts in a minute or two. It's certainly something to see in the dark! Yes, lad? No, no, don't worry about your trunks and your owls, they'll all be brought along. Down this way please, and no more than four to a boat."Slipping and sliding in their haste, the first years followed Ogg down what seemed to be a steep, narrow path, surrounded by thick trees. Though no one quite knew why, they spoke to each other in hushed whispers."Here we are," Ogg called back to them as they went round a bend. "Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardly. Best in the world!"There was a general gasp of awe. The narrow path had opened suddenly onto the edge of a great black lake and right across it, perched atop a sort of cliff on the other side, was an enormous, many turreted castle, its dozens of windows gleaming yellow in the dark."It's like Camelot!" breathed Harriet, wonderstruck."It's an eye opener all right!" Merlin said fervently and Cosima nodded at his side. She thought she'd never seen a more beautiful building in all her life and almost forgot to be nervous!She got into a boat with Merlin, Gwion and Harriet. Marjorie climbed into the one next to them, looking more excited than ever. Privately Cosima thought that she definitely deserved to be in Gryffindor. Her own legs felt like jelly! Pip the bowtruckle seemed to sense her unease and squeaked comfortingly in her breast pocket. Thankfully no one heard.The boats moved off soundlessly and glided smoothly over the lake. No one could look away from the castle, which grew larger and larger as they approached the other shore."Mind your heads everyone!" Ogg called back from the lead boat. "Don't want any injuries on your first night!"Everyone obediently bent their heads and the little boats carried them through a curtain of ivy that hid a wide opening in the cliff face. They were carried along a dark tunnel, which seemed to be taking them right underneath the castle, until they reached a small inlet where the boats touched the shore and they climbed out onto a carpet of pebbles. The excitement was palpable now."Right then," said Ogg heartily, smiling round at them. "I'm sure you're all dying for your supper! Let's get you up to the castle so you can be sorted!"They scurried excitedly after Ogg through a passageway in the rock until they came to a simply enormous door. Cosima thought even a dragon could fit through it. Ogg knocked and it at once swung open to reveal a tall wizard of around fifty with long auburn hair and an equally long beard. Cosima knew at once who he was – her father had told her all about him.This was Albus Dumbledore. According to her dad (and in Cosima's opinion her dad was never wrong) he was one of the wisest men alive and she knew he was one of the only teachers to speak up for the young Newt Scamander when he was expelled. He was, therefore, the reason her father still had a wand. All of this meant Cosima was already disposed to think well of him, but looking at Professor Dumbledore now, her good opinion was further enhanced by the fact that he had a very kind face.He smiled warmly round at the excited and nervous children before him, his eyes twinkling over half-moon glasses. "Welcome to Hogwarts!" he said and beckoned them inside.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

They followed Professor Dumbledore inside a hall so cavernous that an entire herd of erumpents could comfortably fit inside. Flaming torches lined the walls, leading the way to an absolutely magnificent marble staircase.On their right hand side, a cacophony of voices could be heard and Cosima guessed that behind the big wooden doors lay the famous Great Hall."I am Professor Dumbledore," their guide introduced himself. "And while you are here I shall be teaching you Transfiguration. We will soon be partaking of our start of term feast but before you sit down to eat you will be sorted into your Houses. While you are here, your house will become almost like your family. You will have classes with the other students in your house and share dormitories and common rooms with them. Good behaviour will earn you House Points, while misbehaviour and rule breaking will lead to losing points. At the end of the school year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup."The four houses themselves are Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Slytherin. I am sure many of you will be familiar with the names, but for the benefit of those who are not, they are named after the founders of this school – the four greatest witches and wizards of the early middle ages. Each house has produced many outstanding witches and wizards who have gone on to achieve great things. The ceremony will take place in front of the rest of the school. I shall return when we are ready for you."As Professor Dumbledore stepped into the Great Hall, a hushed chatter broke out amongst the first years."He's the head of Gryffindor house," Marjorie told the others. "Jack and Roger say he's brilliant – best teacher in the school!""I know he's been working with the ministry to help stop Grindelwald," Merlin said. "He's been to our house a few times to see Uncle Percival but I've never been allowed in the room when they're talking.""What does he mean – we'll be 'sorted'," Harried asked worriedly. She'd gone very pale under her freckles."It's nothing scary," Gwion assured her. "Just a little test they do to find out where you should be.""A test?" Harriet, if possible, went even paler. "What sort of…." But she was unable to finish her sentence. The door opened once again and Professor Dumbledore returned."Don't look so apprehensive, there's absolutely nothing to fear! If you will form a line and follow me, please," he said cheerfully. "We will now join the rest of the school."The students obediently fell into a line, Cosima standing behind Merlin and in front of Harriet, and filed into the Great Hall. Cosima had heard many stories from her father, uncle, aunt and from Helios about the Hall but it exceeded even her wildest dreams.The light from thousands upon thousands of candles sent shadows dancing in every direction. They floated above four enormously long tables, laid with shining gold plates and goblets and which were packed with students. At the top of the hall, another long table was raised on a dais and that was where all the staff members were sitting. Dumbledore led the students up towards that table, so that the new first years were facing the rest of the students with their backs to the teachers.Cosima scanned the crowd for Helios and saw him sitting at the table on the far left. He sent her an encouraging smile and thumbs-up, but she couldn't manage more than a frightened grimace in return. Her heart was knocking against her ribcage so hard that she was sure the rest of the hall must be able to hear it. What if it was decided she did not belong in any of the houses?Professor Dumbledore placed a small four-legged stool in front them, and on top of the stool he laid a frayed, battered old wizard's hat that looked older than he was. Some of those from wizarding families knew what to expect but all of the muggle-borns let out a gasp when a rip near the brim opened just like a mouth, and the hat began to sing:'I may not look like much at first glance,
Indeed that is no lie,

But nowhere on Earth will you find

A smarter hat than I!

For inside you I look and see

What no one else can guess,

So put me on and I can tell

Which house will suit you best!

Perhaps it's Gryffindor for you;

House of the brave at heart

Where courage, dare and chivalry

Are a student's chiefest art.

Or maybe you're a Ravenclaw;

If your strength is in your mind.

Learning, wit and logic's

What you'll find amongst your kind.

Perhaps you belong in Hufflepuff;

Where loyalty is held dear.

The patient and hardworking

Always find belonging here.

Mayhap instead it's Slytherin

Where ambition reigns supreme.

No holding back these cunning folk

Who make real what they dream.

But whichever house will welcome you,

I give one final plea; remember

Strength comes not from division

But instead from unity.

You all belong to Hogwarts
So consider all your friends
Four houses must work all together

For strife to come to end.'
The Great Hall grew silent for a moment as the students and staff took the words in. Both wizard and muggle worlds were mired in strife right now, with Grindelwald and Hitler causing devastation in every direction, so there were few for whom the hat's message had no meaning. A grave round of applause answered the song and the hat bowed to all four tables before becoming still again.Professor Dumbledore stepped back into view, holding a long roll of parchment. "When your name is called," he instructed. "You will place the hat on your head and sit on the stool to be sorted. When the hat has made its decision, your house will be announced. Anderson, Jeremy!"A tall, gangly boy with brown hair stepped out of the crowd to sit down on the stool. He put on the hat, which came far enough down to cover his eyes. There was several seconds of silence and then…"HUFFLEPUFF!" called the hat. The table on the far right erupted with cheers and Jeremy hurried to take a seat there.Next came "Black, Walburga" and the hat had barely touched her head before it yelled "SLYTHERIN!"."Well there's a surprise!" said Merlin sarcastically as the table second from the right cheered this time. A satisfied smirk on her face, the haughty Walburga sauntered over to join them.Cosima, knowing she would be towards the end of the list by virtue of having a surname which began with S, clapped happily when "Brooks, Harriet" became the first Gryffindor of the night. Blushing vividly, Harriet leapt off the stool and hurried to sit at the Gryffindor table, where Helios Scamander was applauding with the rest. Next came "Crouch, Amadeus" who joined Walburga in Slytherin.One by one, the students were sent to their tables. Cosima was delighted to see that "McKinnon, Marjorie" got her wish and was sorted into Gryffindor. Likewise, "Pritchard, Gwion" gave a whoop of delight when he was sorted into Hufflepuff."Pendragon, Merlin", on the other hand, had happily taken his seat at the Ravenclaw table. Cosima thought desperately that whatever house she was in, she would at least have one friend. Unless the Hat wanted to put her in Slytherin with the unpleasant Walburga… her stomach flipped at the thought.Another student, then another, then another and then, finally: "Scamander, Cosima."Cosima walked forward with shaking legs and all but collapsed onto the stool. She was glad to pull the hat on and shut out all the staring faces. Surrounded by inky blackness, she became very aware suddenly of how quickly she was breathing."Now then, let's see…" said the Hat, a small little voice in her ear. "A loyal heart, that's certain, and a fair amount of determination and ambition. Indeed, very fiercely loyal. You'd make a very fine Hufflepuff. But what a thirst for knowledge! Yes, I think for you it's RAVENCLAW!"Wobbly with relief, Cosima dashed over to the second table on the left to sit next to a grinning Merlin. In her heart, she'd always known she wouldn't be joining Helios in Gryffindor and was perfectly happy with where she'd been placed. She would send a letter to Mum and Dad first thing in the morning and tell them all about it.Once the final student "Wentworth, Freddie" joined them at the Ravenclaw table, Professor Dumbledore took the Sorting Hat away again. Despite the ridiculous amount of sweets they had eaten on the train, Cosima was suddenly aware – now that she was no longer terrified – that she was absolutely starving!At the centre of the top table, where he had been sitting in a large gold chair, a feeble looking, almost-bald elderly man got to his feet. Cosima knew this was Professor Dippet, the headmaster of the school. She also knew that he had expelled her father and so was in no particular hurry to feel charitable towards him! The hall fell respectfully silent."Welcome students, old and new, to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," Professor Dippet said, his voice polished and dignified, for all its frailty. "I trust that we shall have a productive and successful year together. For now though, let us eat."As he clapped his hands, the plates in front of the students magically filled with food and a hum of approval filled the air. Cosima didn't know where to start; there were so many plates of nice things. There were sausages, bacon, steaks, chickens, pork chops and lamb, accompanied by every sort of vegetable imaginable and enormous tureens of gravy.She and Merlin filled their plates and dug in hungrily, looking around at their fellow new first years: Freddie Wentworth, Ruby Danvers, Octavia Fawley, Martha Prewett, Anthony Rogers, Athena Greengrass and Florizel Fletcher. They all seemed to be enjoying the food too and for a while, everyone was too busy chewing to talk.Further up the table, some of the oldest looking students were in a heated debate."I always feel so guilty when I see the tables piled so high when the country is on rationing!" a green eyed girl with very long brown hair was saying heatedly. A silver badge with a 'P' on it gleamed on her robes. "Surely the wizarding world is duty bound to help out the muggle one when it is at war!""Oh, Helena, not this old chestnut again!" sighed a fair haired boy of the same age, rolling his eyes. "How many times have we argued about his? The minute we used magic to solve the rationing crisis, we would be breaking the Statute of Secrecy en masse and revealing wizard kind to all and sundry. And if we used magic to stop the war, how long would it be before there was another war – this time, those who distrust magic against those who have it!" Helena opened her mouth to reply again, but she was cut off."Stop it you two!" said a burly black boy, also with a gleaming silver badge on his chest. "You've been having this argument since 1939! Don't bore the firsties on their first night here!" He turned to the new Ravenclaws with an open, friendly smile. "Don't mind them – they love a good debate; comes with being a Ravenclaw! I'm James Shacklebolt and this is Helena Gordon and Chris Carmichael. We're all in seventh year and Helena and I are the house prefects, so don't be afraid to come to us for help if you need it! Where are you all from?"One by one, the new Ravenclaws introduced themselves and it was revealed that Cosima, Merlin, Octavia, Athena, Florizel and Freddie were from wizarding families while Anthony, Martha and Ruby were muggle-borns. The three seventh years, meanwhile, plied them with useful pieces of information as they ate."You've met Professor Dumbledore, he teaches Transfiguration," Chris told them. "His classes are brill – they say he's going to be Minister for Magic one day! And you see the fellow sitting next to him – that's Professor Slughorn. He teaches Potions. He's not a bad sort really; a bit pompous but he means well.""You see the one armed man sitting next to Professor Dippet?" James asked. They all nodded, looking rather fearfully at a grizelled middle-aged man with a huge scar running down the right side of his face. "That's Professor Kettleburn. You won't have him this year as you don't start Care of Magical Creatures until third year." Cosima sighed disappointedly. She wished they started teaching that earlier!"Kettleburn's mad as a bag of badgers!" Chris said with a grin. "He lost his left arm to a dragon and his right leg to a griffin! He's been on probation Merlin knows how many times! And then last year, when the Christmas pantomime was going on, we needed a worm as part of the story and so he brought in an engorged Ashwinder! It started a fire, the two main leads argued and ended up fighting a duel and one of them wound up hitting Professor Beery in the head. It took weeks to get his head back to normal again and now Professor Dippet has now banned pantomimes for life!""That's Professor Beery there," Helena pointed out to the first years, who were staring at Professor Kettleburn and thinking he must indeed be 'mad as a bag of badgers'. "The dark haired fellow with the glasses sitting on Professor Dippet's other side. He teaches Herbology. He's pretty strict but his classes are generally all right. We all think he fancies Professor Fisher. That's the woman he's talking to. She teaches Charms."Cosima looked with interest at a very elegant-looking slender witch with raven-black hair. She was dressed in deep wine robes in a fashionable cut. And it did indeed look like Professor Beery fancied her from the way he was talking to her."Fisher's great," James told them. "Her classes are always interesting. She's the head of Ravenclaw House as well – she's got high standards but she's fair as can be!""And then on Fisher's other side is Professor Merrythought," Chris explained, finishing of the row of staff members. "She teaches Defence and Against the Dark Arts. She's ancient now, but she was an auror in her day. She's seen absolutely everything and she's got some brilliant stories!"By this point, the main courses had disappeared and the students were now happily munching on a variety of puddings; jam sponge, treacle tart, ice creams of every flavour, trifle and apple pie. Helena and Chris were too caught up in talking to the younger students to start their argument about the food again."You'll have met Ogg already as well," James told them between spoonfulls of ice cream. "He's always in a good mood and generally looks after everyone. You want to watch out for Pringle though! He's the caretaker and he hates every single student in this school! He's got a cane made out of a tail spike from a Hungarian Horntail and Dippet lets him use it. If you get on his wrong side you're either unable to sit for a day or struggling to hold a quill!""James, don't scare them!" Helena admonished him."I'm just giving them fair warning," James said mildly. "He's a mean old sod, so don't give him any reason to punish you!"Cosima and Merlin exchanged startled expressions and silently vowed never to get on Pringle's wrong side.At long last, the puddings disappeared and Professor Dippet made a few general announcements about rules: they were not to go swimming in the great lake, they were not to venture into the Forbidden Forest on the edge of the grounds and they most assuredly not to leave their dormitories after lights out. It all sounded perfectly reasonable to Cosima. When he was done, the students were dismissed and James, Chris and Helena led the new Ravenclaws out of the hall.They followed the seventh years through several corridors and up several flights of stairs (Cosima was convinced she would never remember this tomorrow) until they came to an simple oaken door with a bronze knocker in the shape on an eagle."This is the entrance to Ravenclaw Tower," James told them, reaching out to use the knocker. "To get inside, you need to solve the riddle."Almost as soon as he'd finished speaking, the knocker croaked a question in a high metallic voice: "Feed me and I shall live. Give me water and I shall die. What am I?""Who wants to have a try?" James grinned at the new students."It's fire!" said Merlin confidently and, sure enough, the door swung open.Traipsing inside, Cosima found herself in one of the most beautiful rooms she'd ever seen. It was wide and circular, with arched windows hung with blue and bronze silks. Covering the floor was a midnight blue carpet which was dotted with stars and those were reflected on the doomed ceiling. Chairs and sofas were to be seen all around the room, some of these already filled with older students."You see that alcove there?" Helena pointed to a chamber set to the side of the common room, where a white marble statue of a beautiful lady stood. "That's our library. It doesn't look too big standing at his angle, but we have almost as many books here as the main library downstairs. And that statue is Rowena Ravenclaw, who our house is named after."Freddie Wentworth let out a loud yawn, and then covered his mouth, flushing with embarrassment."It's ok," James laughed. "You lot must all be knackered – I remember how overwhelming the first day seemed. Chaps, I'll take you up to your dormitory so you can head to bed. Girls, you follow Helena.""See you in the morning," Merlin said to Cosima and they followed the prefects as they were bid. Cosima walked behind Helena up a spiral staircase until they came to a circular room with five four-poster beds, each hung with blue and bronze curtains. Their trunks had already been brought up and each was sitting at the end of a bed."Where will our owls be?" Cosima asked anxiously, thinking of Asteria who must be missing the other owls from home."Don't worry about them," Helena said kindly. "They'll have been taken up to the owlery with all the Hogwarts owls. You can visit them whenever you want outside class time. I'll show you the way tomorrow. Now, I don't know about you lot but I'm off to bed. I'll wait for you in the morning and take you down again to the Great Hall – save you trying to remember the way. Goodnight.""Goodnight!" chorused the five first year girls and, once the door closed behind Helena, they set about changing into their pyjamas. Everyone seemed too tired for further conversation beyond a simple "Dinner was wizard!" and "Night everyone!".When she had changed and brushed out her long tawny hair, Cosima drew the curtains on her bed and let Pip out on to her pillow. The young bowtruckle nuzzled her hand affectionately. She'd been feeding him crumbs of pudding when no one was looking. Bowtruckles normally ate insects but she'd discovered that Pip rather liked sweet things too.It wasn't until she climbed under the covers and put her head down on the pillow next to Pip when it hit her: her family wasn't there. Since they'd arrived, she'd been too preoccupied to think much about home but now, in the silence of the dormitory, it was all coming back full force. There was no Cassian tucked up in the room next door. There would be no Mum and Dad coming in to say goodnight. She buried her face in the pillow unhappily. Everything felt so strange and new, she would never get to sleep!She tried to distract herself by thinking about all the things she would have to put in her letter to her parents tomorrow. She would tell them about the train ride, and how nice everyone had been - besides Walburga Black. She'd describe the lovely common room, and the dormitory, and the enormous feast...And suddenly, sleep wasn't so difficult after all. Cosima Scamander, now a fully fledged Ravenclaw first year, was out like a light.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

When she woke the next morning, Cosima hurriedly dressed in her new school robes and then scrambled in her trunk for parchment and a quill so she could write a letter to her parents before breakfast time.
Dear Mum and Dad,

We arrived safely at Hogwarts last night. The train journey was really quite enormous but I had some other first years in my carriage to talk to so it did not drag too much. The castle isn't as frightening as I imagined it would be either; in fact it's really quite beautiful.

I've been sorted into Ravenclaw, rather than Hufflepuff like Dad. I'm glad as I thought it sounded much the nicest of the other three if I couldn't be in Hufflepuff! I'm not brave enough to be a Gryffindor and some of the Slytherins I have seen so far don't seem very nice. One of them wouldn't sit with us on the train because she was a 'pureblood' and one of the other girls was muggle-born! I think that's rather backward, don't you? Like the silly laws in America when Aunt Queenie first met Uncle Jacob!

One of the boys from my train carriage, Merlin Pendragon, is also in Ravenclaw. He said he lives with his Uncle Percival, who is head of the auror office – do you know him, Mum? He had heard of Uncle Theseus when I said I was a Scamander.

Ravenclaw tower is wonderful – the common room is huge and we have our own library with almost as many books as the school one does! There are four other girls in my dormitory and our room has the most amazing view of the quidditch pitch.

Sorry I can't write more this morning – it's time to go down to breakfast and then we will get our timetables and go to our first lesson. I just wanted to let you know I'm all right. I feel less scared now and I think I have even made some friends.

Give all the mooncalfs a hug from me and say hello to Cassian. I love you.

Cosima
She rolled up the letter and put it into one of the pockets in her robes, with the intention of asking for directions to the Owlery so she could send it off later. Pip, indignantly peeping at the thought of being left behind in the dormitory, was installed in another pocket. Afterwards, she excitedly unpacked her wand – nine and a half inches of pliable cedar wood with a unicorn hair at the core. Her father had taken her to buy it in Diagon Alley and Mr Ollivander had solemnly declared it was a wand for a loyal heart and would prove excellent for Charms. She couldn't wait to start using it.As she had promised, Helena Gordon arrived to guide them down to breakfast and the five first year girls trailed after her like a brood of ducklings. James Shacklebolt, Chris Carmichael and the first year boys were all already at the table when they got there. Cosima slid into the seat next to Merlin and looked interestedly round the hall, which appeared quite different in the morning. The roof, which was enchanted to look like the sky outside, was a rich blue and streaked with sunlight, so the hall seemed much brighter. It was echoing with the lively sounds of students excited for the first day of term, and some of the staff were dotting here and there between the tables talking to them.This morning the tables were laden once again – this time with bacon, eggs, sausages, kippers, enormous stacks of toast, tureens of porridge, pots of tea, jugs of milk and flagons of orange juice. Clearly no one ever went hungry at Hogwarts! Those from muggle-born families, subject to rationing, looked like they could hardly believe their eyes.Cosima was just finishing a slice of toast and a big mug of tea when the regal, elegant Professor Fisher, dressed in tailored robes of royal blue, came to the table, holding several small rolls of parchment. She smiled round at her new charges."Welcome, new Ravenclaws," she said, her voice mellifluous and refined. Now that she was closer than the night before, the new students could see that she had very pale skin, high cheekbones, a small straight nose and very shrewd blue eyes. She looked like someone it would be impossible to deceive. "I am Professor Fisher, your head of house. I'm sure we will all come to know each other very well over the next few weeks. Ravenclaw house has a very honourable legacy of academic achievement and commitment to learning, and I hope you will all strive to be a credit to it."I have here your timetables for this term. Some of your classes will be shared with one of the other houses, and I would encourage you to engage with the other students. Remember the Sorting Hat's message of last night: we must not be tribal with our loyalties. Though I would hope all members of Ravenclaw house will be working hard to help us win the House Cup this year, remember that Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Slytherin are your peers, not merely your rivals."Your first lesson will be Transfiguration, taught by Professor Dumbledore, followed by Herbology with Professor Beery. This afternoon, you will have Potions with Professor Slughorn. I will see you all tomorrow morning for your first Charms class. I trust that the Prefects will guide you to the first classroom."After handing them their timetables, she swept out of the hall. The first years read through their timetables while finishing their breakfast and, when the bell rang, they followed James to the Transfiguration corridor, which was situated on the first floor, directly off the entrance hall.Auburn-haired Professor Dumbledore was waiting for them at the door. "Welcome, welcome," he said genially, his eyes twinkling at them over his glasses as he waited for them all to sit down at a desk before calling the register. Cosima thought she detected a hint of steel there too. If, as Merlin said, this was a man who was working to bring down Grindelwald, then he was certainly no pushover! "Transfiguration – the art of changing an object's shape and form - is among some of the most complex magic you will be taught at Hogwarts, and certainly has one of the highest margins for error. It is therefore a subject to be approached with the utmost attention to detail."He waved his wand sweepingly, and the blackboard was suddenly transformed into a huge, ornate mirror. The class "ooohed" appreciatively. Another sweeping wave turned it back again."As you can imagine," said Professor Dumbledore. "The potential applications of Transfiguritve spells are endless. Today though, we will commence our understanding of the basic theory. Please take out your copies of A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration and open at the first chapter."They spent the lesson making a lot of notes as Professor Dumbledore engagingly explained the Transfigurative alphabet and Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration. Though Dumbledore had rather a quiet voice, no one had to strain to hear him. His manner automatically generated respect from the pupils and no one so much as whispered once while he was speaking. He seemed pleased when they raised their hands to ask questions and answered them in lots of detail.Towards the end of the class, they were each given matchsticks and Professor Dumbledore demonstrated the correct wand movement and incantation to turn them into needles. Most of the class managed to at least turn their matchsticks a shiny silver by the end of quarter of an hour, but only Merlin managed the full transformation."Well done, Mr Pendragon!" Dumbledore praised him. "Ten points to Ravenclaw. It is no mean feat to be able to fully transfigure an object in your very first lesson!" Merlin flushed scarlet with delight and the rest of the class exchanged happy looks in the knowledge that their group had won their first points for Ravenclaw.Before the rest of the class could make another attempt, the bell rang and they had to gather up their books and parchment and try to find their way down to the greenhouses for Herbology. They had to dodge several buckets of water on their way down the entrance hall stairs. These were launched at them by a shrieking, pearlescent little man, who floated up by the candelabra and blew raspberries when they stared at him in horrified amazement. A passing Hufflepuff prefect warned them that this was Peeves the Poltergeist, a menace who should be avoided at all costs.Thankfully managing to escape the drenching, the cluster of Ravenclaws found their way, more or less on time, to Professor Beery's lesson in Greenhouse Number One, which was humid and smelled pleasantly earthy. They were to share this class with the Hufflepuffs, who were already there with their textbooks out. Cosima and Merlin waved hello to Gwion who was sitting next to the brown-haired boy who'd been first to be sorted last night; Jeremy Anderson. Before they could exchange any news of their first night, Professor Beery strode briskly in and called for silence.A tall, thin wizard with dark hair, glasses and enormously thick eyebrows, Professor Beery looked rather fierce. He nodded briskly at each student as he took the register but did not smile at them as Dumbledore had. Once his back was turned so he could write on the small blackboard wreathed with vines, Gwion and Jeremy whispered to Cosima and Merlin they thought his bark was worse than his bite, as he had spoken to the new Hufflepuffs that morning and had generally been rather nice.The lesson was spent listening to Beery's introductory lecture and making an extensive list of the various uses for both magical and mundane flora and fungi. He spoke quickly and evidently expected the students to keep up. Cosima's hand was cramping by the time the bell went for lunch – she felt heartily sorry for the muggle-borns who were only just starting writing with quills! It had been an interesting class, but she still felt a little afraid of Professor Beery, who looked like he would easily anger.With two new subjects under their belts, the class began to traipse back up the path to the castle for lunch in the Great Hall. The rest of the new Hufflepuffs seemed as friendly and chatty as Gwion, conversing with the Ravenclaws with an open easiness as they walked, swapping opinions of their first morning."What ho, titch!" they were interrupted by the hearty voice of Helios Scamander, as he fell into step beside Cosima and draped an arm around her shoulders affectionately. He was wearing his red and gold quidditch robes and carrying his broom; evidently fresh from the quidditch pitch. "I see they put you in with the clever clogs. How was your first morning?"Cosima smiled; there was no unkindness in Helios's teasing – he was always like that. Some of the other first years however, looked at him in alarm, not sure how to react at the Head Boy himself walking amongst them. The fair-haired Helios, six foot two and powerfully built, seemed almost a giant to the eleven year olds! They all hurried on ahead, apart from Merlin."It's been good," Cosima replied. "We've had Transfiguration with Professor Dumbledore, and then Herbology with Professor Beery. I thought Transfiguration was awfully interesting – we were trying to turn matchsticks into needles. I didn't quite get there, but Merlin managed it and won ten points for Ravenclaw!""Good, I'm glad you're settling in," Helios smiled indulgently at her enthusiasm. "Where are you off to after lunch?""We've got double Potions with the Slytherins," Cosima told him, after consulting her timetable."Ah, that will be an experience!" Helios chuckled. "Slughorn will waste no time in marking you down!""What do you mean?" Cosima asked anxiously. "We haven't done anything wrong yet, I don't think.""No, no, not like that. It's because you're a Scamander. My Dad's a celebrated auror and Uncle Newt is acknowledged as the world's foremost authority on magical creatures, as well as being the only living author on the reading list," Theseus explained, before he looked past her to Merlin. "Your name's Pendragon, yes? Any connection to Percival Pendragon?""Yes, that's my uncle," Merlin replied, looking as bewildered as Cosima."Well then, Slughorn will want to 'collect' both of you," Helios told them. "He likes well connected students; he's a bit of a snob. Every year he picks out a handful and holds social events so he can get to know us. That way, when we leave Hogwarts and go on to some distinguished career, he can fancy he has been instrumental in that. It also means he's got connections in the Ministry, Gringotts, The Daily Prophet and the quidditch league. Dad says he still writes to some of the junior aurors in the office, advising them on how to tackle Grindelwald.""He sounds horrible!" Cosima said emphatically."He's all right, actually, just a bit pompous," Helios replied. "I'm not saying this to put you off; I know you were looking forward to learning Potions. Just a fair warning. Best go and grab your lunch now, you two.""Helios, where's the owlery?" Cosima suddenly asked. "I wanted to send an owl to Mum and Dad and let them know where I was sorted, but I don't know the way. I want to see if Asteria is all right.""All right, go and grab something to eat while I change out of my quidditch things," Helios instructed. "And I'll take you up before the next class."Cosima bolted down a sandwich as quickly as she could and was standing waiting by the door to the Great Hall by the time Helios reappeared."Merlin's beard, titch! Did you even chew?" The elder Scamander shook his head with fond exasperation. "You and your owl! Come on then, let's see how she's doing. The owlery is in the West Tower."They went across the courtyard, Helios pointing out as they walked where the broom sheds were, where the Astronomy towers was, and where she could find the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom. He offered to take her flying on Saturday morning with one of the school brooms and Cosima accepted eagerly. She was no use at all at quidditch – despite hours of Helios's patient coaching, she still couldn't catch a quaffle if her life depended on it – but she did love to race!She, Helios and Cassian had even tried broom-surfing last summer; flying while standing upright on the broom. They had raced around their grandmother's hippogriff paddock, whooping with exhilaration…until they got caught. Tina Scamander had nearly had a fit and Uncle Theseus had yelled at them for their recklessness for fifteen minutes straight. She didn't imagine the Hogwarts staff would look upon broom surfing any more tolerantly than they did and made a note to stick to the more traditional approach on Saturday!"Cradle robbing, are we Scamander?" A sneering voice stopped them in their tracks. Cosima looked round to see a dark haired boy in his mid to late teens smirking at them through heavily hooded eyes. He was wearing Slytherin colours. "Can't get a girl your own age?""Piss off, Lestrange!" Helios said contemptuously. "And I'm warning you now, if I catch you harassing any of the junior students this term, you'll regret it! Come on, titch, ignore the pillock!"The boy only laughed as they walked away and Cosima's brows crinkled in worry. "Are all the Slytherins that horrible?" she asked anxiously, thinking of Walburga Black from the train."No," Helios reassured her. "Most of them are decent - Marius Vance their quidditch captain is one of my best friends. But there's a small group of really nasty pieces of work in the middle years and they were terrorising some of the younger kids last year, though none of the prefects could ever get any evidence to report them. They're all taken up with this 'pureblood' mania like it's some sort of badge of nobility!""But...why do they hate muggles?"Cosima asked with the naïve innocence of an eleven year old. "Uncle Jacob is a muggle and he's brilliant. Merlin said the same about his granny.""Sheer ignorance and prejudice, Cosima," Helios said heavily. "Not everyone is as open hearted as you. I think some of them think Grindelwald has the right idea. Bloody idiots! Just make sure you steer clear of them, all right? They come near you or any of the other first years, you come straight to me or Shacklebolt!"This conversation had taken them up to door to the owlery. Cosima stepped eagerly inside, eyes widening in delight at the sheer number of owls of every species who could be seen perched in the rafters, along the walls, and sleeping in small nesting stalls. She had never seen so many all at once before - it put Eyelops Owl Emporium to shame!Asteria came swooping down instantly and landed on her outstretched arm, hooting gently. Cosima stroked her feathers adoringly and dug an owl treat out of her pocket for her. She'd had Asteria since she'd found her as a chick stranded in their garden two years ago, when she'd begged her parents to be allowed to look after her. Asteria had since grown into a truly magnificent Barn Owl and was as loyal and dependable as could be."Do you like it here?" Cosima pressed anxiously. Asteria hooted softly. "Good, you've got lots of friends to keep you company! I know we only just arrived, but do you feel like a trip back home to take a letter to Mum and Dad? I've got lots of news to tell them." Asteria held out her leg at once and Cosima hurriedly secured her letter."Say hello to Tostig and Amber," Cosima smiled, stroking Asteria's chest again. Those were their family owls. "Bye!"Asteria swooped out of the closest widow and flew off over the lake, back in the direction of home. Cosima watched her grow smaller and smaller before finally disappearing from sight."Right, come on then," Helios prompted, once they could no longer see her. "I've got Defence Against the Dark Arts next, but I'll walk you down to Potions first so you can catch up with your pals."So off Cosima went at his side, full of curiousity and not a little apprehension, to meet the strange Professor Slughorn.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The Dungeons were located under the castle, and Cosima could feel the temperature dropping as she followed Helios down a set of dark stone stairs. The air smelt slightly damp, and there were patches of green slimy substances growing on some of the walls. It seemed to be the least welcoming part of the castle so far, though Helios assured her that you soon got used to it, and ceased to notice the cold and damp after a while.They easily found the Ravenclaws, along with the new first year Slytherins, lined up outside what was evidently the potions classroom. Cosima bid farewell to Helios, who headed back up towards his Defence Against the Dark Arts class, and joined the line with the other Ravenclaws. Some still looked a little awed that she'd disappeared and reappeared with the Head Boy himself."Is that your brother?" Freddie Wentworth asked curiously, staring after the departing Gryffindor."No, Helios is my cousin," Cosima explained. It was a question she'd been asked before. Newt and Theseus Scamander were very alike and so were their children. Cosima and Helios were both tall, tawny-haired, freckly and grey-eyed, though he was muscular and she was skinny."I saw he was wearing quidditch robes," remarked Florizel Fletcher. "What position does he play?"Just as Cosima opened her mouth to reply, the classroom door was swung open and, filling the frame, was Professor Slughorn. He was a youngish, portly blond man with a very large moustache and a genial smile."Good afternoon, chaps!" he beamed at them. "Do come in!"The class was dark and humid; filled with desks topped by large black cauldrons. Various colourful bottles and jars gleamed mysteriously in the dim light from where they stood on the numerous shelves lining the walls, Cosima and Merlin were at the end of the line entering the class, so were left with the least-desirable desk right in front of the teacher's one; though it did seem slightly less horrifying than sitting right in front of Professor Beery!"Welcome everyone!" Slughorn said, smiling round at them. "I am Professor Slughorn, Head of Slytherin house. You are here to begin the noble art of potion making. There is, in general, very little spell work or wand waving required...and it's a dashed tricky business. However, if mastered, it can prove one of the most useful disciplines of a wizard's skill set. After all, where would our bravest aurors or most skilled healers be without the potions they need? Obadiah Podmore, the chief healer at St. Mungo's, was saying to me only this summer that Potions has proved the most useful of all the subjects he studied at Hogwarts! And our Minister for Magic himself, Leonard Spencer-Moon, is accounted a master of the discipline! Work hard in these dungeons, and you will find that you shall go far! Now then, let us see who we have here."Professor Slughorn began to take the register, and paused almost at once when he called out Walburga Black's name. "I've taught all your cousins," he informed her. "Of course, a very ancient family and some worthy potion brewers amongst its ranks."Walburga's face lit up with haughty pride and she sneered round at most of the rest of the class. Cosima remembered Helios's comments about the Slytherins who looked down on muggle-borns and decided that she disliked her even more than she had before. What pride was there from coming from an ancient wizarding family if you used your magic to do cruel things?Slughorn paused again when he came to Florizel. "Are you by any chance related to the Berkshire Fletchers, m'boy?" he queried. "Descendants of Edmund Fletcher the celebrated potions pioneer?""I don't think so, sir, my family live in York," Florizel answered, confused."Ah, I see," Slughorn said non-committally and made no further comment. He went back to working through the register until he came to Merlin's name and looked eagerly around the class. "Merlin Pendragon? Ah, there you are! Any relation to Percival Pendragon, Head of the Deparment of Magical Law Enforcement?""Yes, sir, he's my uncle," replied a bemused Merlin for the second time that day. The class were all now exchanging quizzical looks, and whispered comments, no one quite understanding why Slughorn was so interested in their families. He was certainly different from Dumbledore and Beery!"Ah, you must be Gwaine's son then?" Professor Slughorn pressed. Cosima sensed Merlin's shoulders stiffen as he nodded silently. "A very fine auror, your father. I knew him, you know. Such a sad loss to the wizarding world. I've never taught a Pendragon yet. You're the first!"Cosima scowled at Slughorn, thinking that this was incredibly unkind. Yes, Merlin had told her and a couple of others on the train that he lived with his uncle because his parents were dead, but it was just possible that he might not have wanted the entire year group to know! How horrible just to blurt it out in front of everyone! She was waiting for the inevitable now, as he moved through the 'R' names."Cosima Scamander?" Slughorn called and she raised her hand. "Another very old family. And of course, quite famous now. Theseus Scamander covered himself in glory in the last war, exceedingly brave chap! Absolutely remarkable, leading that charge on the Somme into almost certain death – any connection?""Theseus is my uncle," Cosima replied. "Newt Scamander is my dad.""Of course, of course," said Slughurn heartily, as though it should have been obvious. "The only living author on the Hogwarts reading list! And the first wizard to ever trap Gellert Grindelwald – a very remarkable feat indeed. I've read with interest his research on the venom of the Swooping Evil."Cosima couldn't help but feel very proud of her parents and her uncle when he said that, though she hoped she did not look as smug and condescending as Walburga Black. Her mum and dad had both been instrumental in trapping Grindelwald in New York and both they and Uncle Theseus had continued to be involved in the fight against him ever since. Still, it was very bizarre to be quizzed about your family in class!"Your cousin was right," Merlin murmured as they were asked to take out their textbooks. "He really is a massive snob!"However, once he got finished grilling them about any famous relatives and actually started talking about Potions, Cosima was surprised to find Slughorn was a very good teacher. He explained the science of potion making clearly in a way that held the attention of the class and was also easy to understand. He asked questions and was liberal with praise when students got the right answer and although he'd gotten excited over those with famous wizarding names in the class, he did not treat those from non-famous or muggle families any differently. Freddie Wentworth won ten points for Ravenclaw for knowing about the usage of sticklewort in muggle medicine and Amadeus Crouch from Slytherin was praised for being able to explain the difference between preventative and curative potions.In the second half of the lesson, they were asked to follow the instructions on the board in order to brew a simple cure for boils. The students worked in pairs, while Slughorn strode around them all, giving hints and guidance as he did so. The majority of the Ravenclaws did equally well, but when Slughorn came to Cosima and Merlin he exclaimed heartily: "Very good! Perhaps one too many porcupine quills, but very good indeed for a first try! Of course, I might have known! Runs in both families!"She and Merlin exchanged grimaces and, as they tidied up and filed out of the classroom, Cosima thought that Potions had been far and away the strangest class so far!The next day brought their first Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts classes. Cosima had been right when she had judged Professor Fisher, their head of house, to be shrewd and wise. Younger than most of the staff, she was also good tempered and encouraging – setting them off on track to learn the levitating charm. Cosima was ecstatic when she managed to levitate her roll of parchment before anyone else and was awarded ten points. It looked like Olivander was correct when he announced her wand would be a nice one for Charms.Professor Merrythought was the exact opposite of mellow-voiced, elegant Professor Fisher. She was an ancient, grizzled and scruffy little witch who had once upon a time been one of the Ministry's best aurors. She had seen everything and fought most things, so anyone who judged her to be a soft touch because of her age or short stature was soon proved wrong! She barked, rather than spoke and glared at the class as though she was just waiting for one of them to put a toe out of line. The Ravenclaws and Gryffindors, with whom they shared the lesson, were eyeing her with a sort of terrified respect by the end of the lesson and scurried out when the bell rang as though fleeing an angry dragon.In what seemed like no time at all, the first week of term was over. The next passed just as quickly, then the next. Although she still missed her home and her parents very much, Cosima began to settle into her new routine with the other Ravenclaws. Though the whole class got on very well, people began to pair off in smaller friendship groups. Cosima and Merlin naturally drew together and sat next to each other in most subjects. Florizel, Anthony and Freddie did likewise. Ruby Danvers and Athena Greengrass fast became inseparable and so were Octavia Fawley and Martha Prewett. Apart from a couple of the Slytherins, Walburga Black and Marcellus Nott, the houses intermingled on friendly terms and there was no friction or extreme rivalry at all.It also soon became clear what everyone's strengths, weaknesses and favourite subjects were. Cosima was excited to be able to write to her parents that she was top in Potions and Charms, while Merlin was streets ahead of the entire first year in Transfiguration. Newt and Tina wrote back telling her how proud they were and how delighted that she was settling in well. Getting letters from them, sometimes with notes from her little brother Cassian, every week helped her to feel less isolated from her family. And on the few occasions where homesickness did get the better of her and she began to feel tearful or miserable, Helios always seemed to know just when to seek her out and cheer her up.The only subject universally disliked was History of Magic, which to everyone's shock and not a little unease, was taught by a ghost. Most of the students had switched off by the end of the very first lesson, bored by Professor Binn's flat monotone drawl. The studious Ravenclaws persisted in taking notes for a couple of weeks before even they gave up and started to spend the class passing notes and daydreaming. It was far easier, and more interesting, to read up on the subject in their own time!On Tuesday nights at midnight, the Ravenclaws studied the stars from the Astronomy classroom in the top tower with the severe Professor Herschel, and so got to sleep late on Wednesday mornings. On Thursday afternoons, they had flying lessons with Master Doge and the Hufflepuffs. Most of those from wizarding families could handle a broom reasonably well and were happy to share tips with the muggle-borns on how get perfect balance and get the broom to respond to you. Florizel Fletcher was an exceptionally talented flier who loved quidditch and announced that he was already impatient to be a second year so he could try out for a chaser's position on the house team, which was captained by Chris Carmichael.All four sets of first years were lucky enough to get Friday afternoons off. When the weather was nice, Cosima and Merlin would head to the courtyard to sit with Marjorie, Harriet and Gwion. Cosima was still basking in the novelty of having people like her, let alone wanting to voluntarily spend time with her after they realised that she spoke about magical creatures in the same way most other people her age spoke about their quidditch teams.Confident that they would keep her secret, she introduced them to Pip the bowtruckle and glowed when they all fussed over him interestedly. She shared around the box of Paczi that Uncle Jacob sent her and laughed with the others when Gwion enthusiastically exclaimed it was the best thing he'd ever eaten and asked whether her Uncle Jacob was in the market to adopt.Even better, when Merlin joined her in the owlery one day and exclaimed "You talk to your owl?" when he heard Cosima clicking, whistling and crooning to Asteria, he didn't laugh at her when she nodded. He didn't act like she was weird. Instead, he smiled and said "That's so marvellous, can you teach me?"Cosima discovered she really rather liked having friends.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

October arrived, bringing with it howling gales and a sudden dramatic drop in the temperature outside. Dozens of students came down with colds and had to be sent to the hospital wing for doses of Pepperup potion, which made you gasp for breath and steam at the ears for an hour after drinking.Viciously heavy rainstorms battered the castle windows for days on end and students squabbled over seats by the fire in the common rooms and huddled under extra blankets in the dormitories. The quidditch teams, getting ready for start of the season, returned from their bi-weekly training sessions drenched to the skin with chattering teeth. Everyone else stayed inside unless absolutely necessary.Cosima grew frustrated with the endless rain as it had put a stop to her explorations of the wildlife around Hogwarts castle. She longed desperately to go into the Forbidden Forest, where there were rumoured to be centaurs and unicorns, but she was too terrified of Apolyon Pringle and his cane and so made do with the castle itself and the grounds. There was still plenty to see.She'd spent a few evenings in the owlery, making a note of all the different breeds so she could tell her father about them. She'd found Bundimun near the dungeons and also spotted some Doxys down by the quidditch pitch, with Merlin good-naturedly tagging along to keep her company. Although Bundimun and Doxys didn't particularly excite him, he was very keen on hippogriffs and graphorns and asked endless questions about the updates Cosima received from her parents about their multitude of creatures at home while the two of them were exploring.They were both surprised to hear one Tueday night, as Ravenclaws of all years huddled around the fire in their common room, that in addition to the ones they had already found, Hogwarts had another, more unusual creature dwelling in its acreage."Urgh! I'm sick of the sound of this flipping rain!" the Ravenclaw quidditch captain Chris Carmichael grumbled to the common room at large. "Quidditch training is three times as tough, the pitch is flooded and it'll be a miracle if the Gryffindor/Slytherin match goes ahead on Saturday!""It's a nuisance right enough," replied Helena Gordon, working on an essay as close to the fire as she could get without it going up in flames. "The castle is freezing! I think the only happy thing on the grounds just now must be the giant squid.""There's a giant squid?!" Cosima cried excitedly, knocking her ink bottle over and nearly drenching her Defence Against the Dark Arts essay on defensive counter curses. "Really?""Absolutely, Scamander," Helena replied, helpfully cleaning up Cosima's spilt ink with a scourgify spell. "You know the lake you came over in the boats with Ogg? Well, it lives in there. Twenty feet long at least!""You know there's a rumour that the squid is actually Godric Gryffindor?" remarked a fifth year girl who Cosima did not know. "It's his animagus form – I suppose that explains why it's red – and every night at eleven he transforms back into his human self, wanders the castle to check everyone is safe and then goes back to the lake by sunrise.""What a load of rubbish, Doyle!" James Shacklebolt scoffed from where he sat with Carmichael by one of the windows. "I've heard more convincing stories from muggle fairy tale books. I mean, he would be at least a thousand years old! What you suppose he is living on, unicorn blood?"Several other older Ravenclaws joined in on scornfully debunking the unlikely rumour, but Cosima had stopped listening. She and Merlin, having exchanged excited looks, were staring at the window as though begging the rain to stop that very instant.Neither of them had ever seen a giant squid before – this was much more promising than doxys, and seeing it would not involve breaking any school rules. They would absolutely have to go down to the lake and investigate the second the rain stopped!It was Friday before the weather actually improved, dawning cold, frosty and clear. As they munched their toast at breakfast, Cosima and Merlin resolved to go down to the lake at lunchtime in the hope of being able to see and investigate the squid. However, after Merlin sneezed eleven times in thirty minutes in Professor Merrythought's Defense Against the Dark Arts class, she lost her temper spectacularly and ordered that he go to the hospital wing at once. Poor Merlin attempted to argue that he was well enough to stay in class but she fixed him with such a furious stare that he shot out of the room in a heartbeat.He hadn't returned by lunchtime so Cosima wandered down to the lake on her own, trusting he would know to meet her there as soon as he was free. She performed a simple heating charm from The Standard Book of Spells on herself as she walked to keep the chill at bay. The grounds were deserted – clearly everyone else was staying indoors where it was warm!However, when she got to the edge of the lake, she was surprised to see that she was not the only one there. A boy in Gryffindor colours was calf deep in the water, gently petting what were clearly very large tentacles. It must be the squid! Cosima rushed forward eagerly for a clearer view.The boy in the water was enormous – a full head taller than Helios and at least twice as broad. He turned round at the sound of her footsteps and showed that had a wealth of shaggy black hair and very dark, but very kind eyes."All righ'?" The huge boy asked in a strong West Country accent."Hello," Cosima said politely. "I've never seen the squid before. Is it friendly?""Firs' year are yeh?" the boy asked. Cosima nodded. "Yeah, he won' do no harm ter anyone. He'll even take a bit of any leftovers yeh've got to throw him. I chucked him some bread just now and he scoffed the lot! He likes bein' petted, see? Come in an' I'll show yeh."It looked unbearably cold, and there was frost on the grass…but how often did one get the chance to pet a giant squid?Thankful that her mother wasn't there to see her, Cosima shed her shoes and socks and waded into the lake. She gave a startled cry as she realised just how painfully cold the water was. It stung. For a second she just stood there, gasping for breath and waggling her toes against the pain, before determinedly coming to the boy's side. While it lapped around his calves, it came well up over her knees.She reached out a gentle hand and very softly ran her fingers along the reddish tentacle closest to her. It gave a happy twitch, sending gentle ripples along the lake's surface. She did the same with the next one."Jus' like that!" the boy said approvingly. "Nice and gentle. He's pretty lazy – don't do much, but he pops up now and then to see what's goin' on. A load of the others are scared of him, but he's not dangerous. Gentle thing, really!"Cosima, shaking with cold already and still gasping for breath, nodded appreciatively. "Wizards seem to be scared of most magical creatures!" she replied. "They just need to understand them more. It's the same with dragons. They're quite all right if you know how to look after them.""Yeh got that righ'!" he said fervently. "Merlin, I'd love a dragon! Thought we migh' get one for Care of Magical Creatures this year, but no such luck! Professor Kettleburn not wantin' to lose another leg, most likely. Name's Rubeus Hagrid. Most folks just call me Hagrid.""Cosima Scamander," she smiled at him through chattering teeth.Hagrid's face lit up excitedly. "You related to Newt Scamander?" he asked at once. He was the first person to hear her name and not automatically think of Uncle Theseus."Y-y-yes," Cosima stuttered proudly. "He's m-my dad.""His book is really somethin'!" Hagrid gushed enthusiastically. "I've read it a dozen times! Best thing on the readin' list! No one else gets magical creatures like he does, they don't get that they need ter be understood an' protected, just like people. And it's only thanks ter him there are any graphorns left in the world!" He launched off on a stream of all his favourite parts of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them."He is the b-b-best!" Cosima said emphatically, delighted to hear her father so praised. She tried to mention some of the more recent creature conservation projects that her father had been involved in but she was overcome by a massive shiver."Hey, maybe yeh best get out," Hagrid said worriedly. "Yer lips are goin' blue! Ravenclaw colours an' all but I don't think it's a good sign!"She wanted to pet the squid some more, but she was starting to lose feeling in her feet all together, so Cosima took Hagrid's advice and turned to wade back to the shore, just in time to see her friend hurrying down to meet her."You went into the water?!" Merlin said incredulously, eyes disappearing into his hairline as she hurriedly sat down on the shore, grasping for her wand. "Cosima, you're mad! Do you want to get pneumonia?"She was shaking so hard she couldn't hold her wand steady, so he took out his own with an exasperated eye roll and cast a couple of heating charms on her legs and feet."This is H-Hagrid," Cosima introduced the towering Gryffindor, who had bid the squid goodbye and come wading out of the water after her. "Hagrid, th-this i-i-is…""Merlin Pendragon," Merlin held out his hand and shook Hagrid's shovel-like one friendlily. "I can't believe you aren't shivering too! You must have skin like dragon hide.""Got giant blood in me. Might as well tell yer now and save meself the time," Hagrid said quietly, looking away as though he were confessing that he had just murdered someone. He seemed to think they would be horrified and look surprised when they both continued to look at him as though he'd done nothing more than comment on the weather. "Most folks don't think that's normal and generally steer clear after that.""She's batty on magical creatures, I'm an orphan with a daft name," Merlin shrugged with a grin. "No one would probably call us normal either!"Hagrid laughed weakly, looking a little overcome, and flopped down on the shore beside them to chat some more about Newt Scamader's famous book.Happy in the knowledge that they had made a new friend as well as having seen the giant squid, the two young Ravenclaws left Hagrid by the lake over an hour later and headed back up to the castle so that they could use the rest of their free afternoon to draw up the charts they needed for their Astronomy homework. They had both missed lunch all together, so Cosima said they could devour the last of the package from Uncle Jacob which was stashed in her dormitory. She'd also left Pip snoozing on her pillow and wanted to get back to him.They were passing the Herbology greenhouses when they saw the faint flashes of spells and heard raised voices coming from behind Greenhouse Number One, one of which sounded very much like Helios Scamander. Cosima and Merlin exchanged alarmed looks and immediately ran in the direction of the shouting, skidding to a halt when they found the source.Helios was standing with his wand drawn, facing down a burly, auburn-haired Slytherin seventh year who was also brandishing a drawn wand. In horror, Cosima saw the Slytherin point his wand at Helios and shout "Impedimenta!"Helios ducked sharply as the spell shot over his head, but rage roared suddenly in Cosima's chest. It was quidditch tomorrow – Gryffindor versus Slytherin and now one of the rotten Slytherins was trying to hex her cousin, Gryffindor's best beater. Blood thundered in her ears as she realised he was trying to hurt Helios."Hey!" she yelled, drawing her wand and sprinting in their direction, dimly aware that Merlin had done exactly the same thing. She realised as she ran that she did not actually know any duelling spells yet so yelled the first thing that came to her head. "Wingardium Leviosa!"The burly Slytherin boy jumped out of the way quickly, a look of surprise on his face, before pointing his wand at Cosima. He yelled an unfamiliar spell and suddenly her wand was flying out of her hand. Two seconds later, Merlin was disarmed too."What the hell are you kids playing at?" the Slytherin demanded angrily. "You trying to get yourselves killed?""You leave him alone, you rotten git!" Cosima spat fiercely, planting herself in front of a gobsmacked Helios."Can't you win at quidditch without nobbling the other team?" Merlin demanded scornfully, who'd gotten to know Helios from all the time he spent with Cosima and had come to like him immensely.The Slytherin boy just gaped at them in amazement, while behind them, Helios started to roar with laughter; clutching at his knees for support as he doubled over. Cosima turned to stare at him in bewilderment, and he only laughed all the more."That's my chum Marius Vance," he explained between chuckles. "We've got a Defense Against the Dark Arts practical next week and we wanted to get some practice in. He wasn't attacking me, you two, we were taking it in turns!""Oh," Cosima felt her face go violently red. Merlin suddenly seemed to the ground very interesting."Oh, titch, were you coming to rescue me?" Helios gasped, grabbing her in a one armed hug while he howled with laughter again. "Who's my little knight in shining armour?""Gerroff!" Cosima muttered embarrassedly, trying to duck out of his grip, but he drew her in for a proper hug instead, tousling her hair teasingly."You're a gutsy little pair of toerags!" Marius Vance said, chuckling too now he understood what had happened. "But maybe wait until you've learned a few more spells before you go charging into a duel again. If I was Lestrage or Avery or any of their cronies, I'd have made mincemeat of you.""Sorry," Cosima said to him, still scarlet. "I just thought…""That's all right," Vance gave her an understanding nod. "You wanted to stick up for your cousin. I understand that – even if it maybe wasn't the wisest decision to try to take on a seventh year after only having a wand for a month! I thought you Ravenclaws were supposed to be the clever ones!""Maybe you really are a Gryffindor, titch!" Helios snarked gleefully, tousling her hair again. "Oh, I can't wait to tell everyone about this at Christmas!""Well, you two can come along and ensure fair play at the quidditch match tomorrow," Vance teased. "I assure you I will be on my very best behaviour and won't be doing anything to 'nobble' Scamander here. Not that I need to anyway, he knows our team has got his licked this year!""Oh, you may say so," Helios grinned. "But I'll bet you five galleons we win!""You're on!" said Vance, shaking Helios's outstretched hand. "You're the witnesses, firsties. The bet stands."As it turned out, Helios won his five galleons. Gyffindor narrowly beat Slytherin by twenty points the next day; Cosima and Merlin cheering in the crowd and eyeing Vance with considerably less hostility than they had the day before. The story of their little intervention had evidently got around though, and the Ravenclaw prefects teased them mercilessly on the way back from the game, dubbing the pair of them 'the Helios Scamander Defence Squad', a name that soon stuck.Helios took his winnings to Hogsmeade the next week and returned with an enormous bags of Honeydukes sweets for each of the two first years. He had after all, he joked, to look after his honourary Gryffindors.He draped his red and gold scarf over his younger cousin's shoulders and Cosima realised she would not be living this down for some time!

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"Ah, Pendragon and Scamander, a word if you please," Slughorn called the week before Hallowe'en as the class were packing up their equipment after a Potions lesson.

Cosima and Merlin dutifully waited while the rest of the class filed out – someone of them shooting confused glances at them as though unable to work out what they had done wrong. Indeed, Slughorn had given Cosima ten points in that very class, so surely their behaviour could not be in question!"I wanted to invite the two of you to a spot of supper in my rooms, tonight," Slughorn said genially, as though the staff invited students to dinner every day of the week. "I always have a little pre-Hallowe'en get together a few days before the main event in the Great Hall. Nothing on a large scale; just a few rising stars. Your older cousin will be there, of course, Scamander - very talented young man; certain of a meteoric rise once he hits the auror office! And I've got Abott coming, and Sludgewick and Podmore, as well as a few others. I do hope you'll join us.""Um…" said Merlin intelligently."Splendid, splendid!" Slughorn barely stopped for breath. "I shall see you at seven o'clock. Run along now, I don't want you to be late for Charms. Professor Fisher will be after my blood, eh?"Looking slightly shell-shocked, Cosima and Merlin obediently headed out of the classroom and closed the door behind them, turning to face each other with alarm in their faces."How do we get out of this?" Cosima hissed urgently. "Five minutes with him is unbearable; imagine a whole night!""Maybe we can… look, out! It's the Trolls!" Merlin said hurriedly, grabbing Cosima's arm and ducking into the nearest alcove.The 'Trolls', as he had called them, were fourth-year Slytherins Claudius Avery, Augustus Lestrange, Orion Black and whichever younger students chose to tag along after them. Walburga Black was frequently one of them. The three fourth years were currently swaggering down the corridor towards them, evidently on their way to a Potions lesson.Helios had been quite right when, on their first day, he'd told Cosima to steer clear of this group. They were cruel, malicious bullies, and they preyed on muggleborn students; especially the younger ones. Their families had all been named in an article about the 'Sacred Twenty Eight' pureblood wizarding clans the year before – an article Cosima's father and uncle had angrily labelled disgraceful – and they seemed to think it made them wizarding nobility. Though Cosima and Merlin were both effectively purebloods, they were friends with several muggleborn students and so were looked down on scornfully by the group as 'blood traitors'.The Trolls weren't completely stupid though – they usually made sure that they acted when there were no staff or prefects around to spot them, though Gwion had said he'd spotted James Shacklebolt going berserk at them after they'd tried to hex Harriet Brooks and knock her down the main staircase the week before. In no mood to be levitated, dodge curses or be called names, Cosima and Merlin stayed securely crouched in the alcove until the three older boys had gone into the Potions classroom and shut the door behind them.They ran full speed along the corridors and pelted up the stairways, but despite their best efforts, they arrived late for Charms. After being scolded for their tardiness by Professor Fisher, neither of them dared whisper to the other in her class, focussed as they were on learning Severing Charms. However, as soon as lunchtime arrived, their chief concern was how to get out of the party Slughorn had blindsided them in to."What if we went to the hospital wing and said we were ill?" Merlin suggested as he sat down in the Great Hall and helped himself to pumpkin juice. "There have been plenty of colds going round the place. All we have to do is cough a bit. We sit together in everything so it's believable we'd catch the same germs!""That would only work until Madame Mafalda examines us," Cosima pointed out. "She'll see there's nothing wrong and then she'll send us straight back out again and then we'll have no excuse. Maybe I could go for a wade in the lake again? I'd gladly take a chill over this ruddy party!""No fear!" Merlin laughed incredulously. "What do we say when she wants to know why we've suddenly got pneumonia? We'd have to come clean and we'd lose fifty house points for pure stupidity!""I suppose," Cosima sighed, chopping up a slice of apple so she could feel Pip on the sly. The Bowtruckle did not enjoy being left behind in the cold dormitory and so was living in her pocket almost constantly now. He mostly ate insects but quite liked a little bit of something sweet now and again. "And if it got out and Helios told my mum I'd gone wading in the lake in October, she'd go off her head!" Tina Scamander, though very encouraging of her daughter's love for magical creatures, took a dim view of doing dangerous things in order to get closer to them!"We're really going to have to go, aren't we?" Merlin grumbled miserably. "There's no believable way to get out of it!""Merlin's beard! You two are acting like you're being carted off to Azkaban!" Freddie Wentworth remarked, sitting opposite them at the Ravenclaw table with Florizel Fletcher. "He's only invited you to a party!""All right then, Freddie, you two can go instead if you fancy it!" returned Merlin hopefully."No can do," Florizel said gleefully, before adopting an exaggeratedly posh accent. "Not famous enough, I'm afraid. No connection to the Berkshire Fletchers, remember?""What ho!" Helios called cheerfully, ruffling Cosima's hair as he went past their table with a few other seventh year Gryffindors, all laden down with books. "I take it by your cheerful faces you two have been invited to the Slug Club do?""Slug Club?!" Freddie and Florizel choked on swigs of pumpkin juice and exploded with laughter."Is there any chance of getting out of it, Helios?" pleaded Cosima desperately, certain that if there was a way, the Head Boy would know it."Resistance is futile, I'm afraid!" Helios chuckled ruefully. "I hid in the library once in fifth year and he bloody well came and ferreted me out! Just grin and bear it and think of England! See you at seven.""Maybe we'll get lucky," Cosima said gloomily, frowning at her sandwich after Helios and his friends had left the hall. "What are the odds of a herd of dragons attacking the school before seven o'clock?"There was, of course, no such dragon attack and so the two unenthusiastic Ravenclaws had to meander back down to the lower levels of the castle where Slughorn's quarters were. They walked as slowly as they could; not enough to be rudely late, but they were certainly in no hurry to be early.Neither of them had misbehaved at all since arriving at Hogwarts but Cosima privately wondered with a sinking heart, as they approached Slughorn's door, if this was what detention felt like. She raised her hand and knocked.The door swung open and there stood Slughorn, wearing an embroidered smoking jacket in the sort of style she knew muggles were keen on before the war. He was wearing a velvet hat with a little tassel, looking for all the world like some lord of a muggle manor."Ah, here are our last two members!" he boomed. "Now the party can begin!" Cosima fought down a fleeting, ridiculous urge to run away and allowed herself to be shepherded inside by Slughorn.She'd never been inside a teacher's study before, but this was certainly not what she had expected. The vast room – had he magically enlarged it, she wondered – was hung extravagantly with green and silver silks, so that it rather felt like they were in a very large tent. A merry fire was burning in the great so it was also exceedingly warm.In the centre, an arrangement of tables had been pulled together and they were covered with several large platters of food – all of which looked delicious. Around these were seated a dozen or so students; the majority of whom seemed to be fourth year or above."Have a seat," Slughorn beamed at Cosima and Merlin genially, looking like a particularly happy walrus. "Now then, introductions. The rest of you will all know each other from last year, of course, but our newest members here are Merlin Pendragon; who is the nephew of the Ministry's chief auror and, so Professor Dumbledore tells me, a dab hand at Transfiguration. I knew his late father well. And this young lady is Cosima Scamander, daughter of the famous Magizooloigist whose book you are all in possession of. Currently top of first year Potions."Feeling rather like a specimen from the Potions class from the way everyone was staring, Cosima and Merlin waved nervously at the assembled group before Slughorn passed them each a goblet of pumpkin juice and began to introduce the other students one by one."Scamander senior, our Head Boy, you will of course already know," he began. Helios winked at them mischievously. "This is Achlys Abott, whose charming aunt Demeter is of course the celebrated songstress. She was recently generous enough to send me tickets to her jubilee gala." A red-haired Hufflepuff boy waved cheerfully at them."Hestia Podmore, daughter of the Podmores," continued Slughorn contentedly, indicating a dainty looking Slytherin brunette. "Her father is Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, you know. Lysander Sludgewick, whose older brother Lydav has just become captain of the England quidditch team – I taught him too, of course." The introductions went on and on until… "And of course, last but by no means least, Tom Riddle. One of our most talented students and a future Minister for Magic if ever there was one!"Cosima looked curiously at the last boy. Everyone else, though undeniably possessing their own academic skills, was clearly invited because they had connections to someone important or famous. Tom Riddle, apparently, had no such connections; Slughorn would have been sure to announce them. Clearly, he was talented indeed to secure an invite on merit alone!He was a good-looking, thin, dark-haired Slytherin who wore a prefect badge on his chest. He nodded politely to Cosima and Merlin and then turned back to talk to the boy beside him. Cosima was struck by his eyes. Like Hagrid's, they were very dark, but they had none of Hagrid's warm kindness. Maybe he was shy? She wasn't too sure what to make of him and hurriedly slid into the chair beside Helios, glad of one familiar face to talk to. Merlin quickly took the one next to her."Don't worry, no one bites," Helios joked to her quietly as Slughorn began to pass round dishes; apparently enjoying himself immensely. "And Slughorn's not a bad sort really. He'll just ask you lots of questions about Uncle Newt."That did seem to be the theme of the night. Slughorn kept the conversation going with perfect equanimity; chatting to the students as though they were old friends and discussing their celebrated relatives at length. He quizzed Cosima on her father's current work and commented that his discovery of the obliviative properties of Swooping Evil venom had advanced the work of mind healers at St. Mungos by an immeasurable amount. He also talked of the work Theseus Scamander and Percival Pendragon were involved in, trying to stop the spread of Grindelwald's dark message; praising their bravery and talking of the letters he had sent them.Cosima had to hand it to him, he was remarkably well informed! He was also undoubtedly very generous; the food he was serving must have cost a fortune!As well as chattering endlessly about all their famous relatives, Slughorn got them all to discuss their career prospects and their ambitions after Hogwarts. Helios was determined to be an auror; Sludgewick wanted to play quidditch professionally like his brother; Abbot wanted to be a treasure seeker; Podmore wanted to work in the Muggle Relations Office; Riddle said he would wait and see where life took him. The students all seemed good-naturedly indulgent of Slughorn and smiled long-sufferingly at each other when his back was turned. And while he was occupied with one particular member of the group, they spoke amongst themselves."Well, it's nice to meet the famous Helios Scamander Defence Squad!" joked Hestia Podmore as Cosima moved around the table to pour herself more pumpkin juice two hours later. Cosima went scarlet. Did the entire bloody school know this story?"You're the girl that tried to take on Marius Vance?" asked Tom Riddle, whom Hestia had been speaking to. He had a mild, low voice and spoke very precisely. His face seemed strangely composed when one looked at all the other lively students in the room."Um…yes," Cosima confessed in embarrassment.Tom Riddle raised his eyebrows. "Brave of you," he commented and turned back to Hestia. Cosima wasn't sure if he'd meant that genuinely or sarcastically."He doesn't look very friendly!" Merlin commented when she returned to her seat."Who? Oh, Riddle," Helios followed Merlin's line of sight. "He's a cold fish. Brilliant student of course, top of the whole fifth year. But he keeps himself to himself; doesn't chat much. Knows how to charm the teachers though – especially Slughorn. Plays up to him no end, which is why he's here."Riddle did seem to be something of a favourite of Slughorn's, who – in an absence of famous family members – talked about Riddle's academic prowess instead."You should have seen the draught of living death he brewed this morning!" he told the others delightedly. "As near to perfect as I've ever seen apart from in the hands of a master brewer. He's set the bar very high for you youngsters, you know!" The self-composed Riddle only smiled modestly.At long last, the evening drew to a close and Slughorn happily bid them goodnight. Cosima was forced to admit that it hadn't quite as awful as she'd expected. Most of the older students had been friendly and though Slughorn was pompous, he was undoubtedly kind.She'd obviously eaten too much too late in the evening, because when she went to bed, she dreamt of being pursued by an enormous black shadow, which coiled around her throat and slowly choked the life out of her. She woke in the early hours in a cold sweat and lay whispering to Pip until morning.On Hallowe'en morning, they awoke to the delicious smell of baking pumpkin wafting through the castle. Everyone seemed in an anticipatory state of excitement, even the muggleborns to whom the holiday had previously meant nothing.The day began well for the Ravenclaw first years – in Transfiguration, Professor Dumbledore praised how well they had progressed in the two months they'd been at Hogwarts and announced they were ready to begin Transfiguring live creatures. They were each issued with a large black beetle and Professor Dumbledore showed them the spell to transfigure it into a button and back. Seeing Cosima's distressed face, he assured her that the beetles would not be hurt and brought his over to demonstrate that it was happily scurrying across his hand again having been turned back into its insect form. The class as a whole did so well at performing the spell that he awarded them a collective thirty points.In Herbology they all got sweaty dashing about the greenhouse trying to contain their bouncing bulbs. Cosima got distracted looking out of the glass down to the lake where Hagrid could be seen feeding the squid again and as a result got smacked in the face by hers, leaving her with rapidly-swelling black eye. Professor Beery grumpily told her off for not concentrating and declared she would not be permitted to go to the hospital wing until the end of the class.She fled to the hospital wing as soon as the bell rang, enduring curious stares from the students she passed. She bumped into Helena Gordon who took one look at her and nearly exploded with anger, thinking one of the Trolls had hit her, until Cosima explained her predicament and was allowed on her way again. Thankfully, Madame Mafalda was able to reduce the swelling in in no time at all, and soon vanished the purpling bruise too. Cosima was released just in time for the last class of the day, History of Magic and spent the lesson playing hangman with Merlin.Having missed lunch, she had not seen the Great Hall since it had been decorated. She had heard numerous stories from various family members about the great Hogwarts Hallowe'en feast but, when she stepped into the hall with the other first years that evening, it surpassed even her wildest expectations.Carved pumpkins the size of armchairs lined the walls, their eyes flickering with candlelight and sending shadows dancing along the tables. A thousand live bats flew around the high ceiling, weaving in and out of hundreds of orange and black streamers. The various Hogwarts ghosts all seemed to have made an effort to join the gathering too; there were more white pearlescent figures in the hall than Cosima had seen any night so far.Once the students were seated, Professor Dippet gave a short speech about this history of Hallowe'en and its significance for wizard kind and then the feast began. Enormous amounts of food appeared on the gold plates, in exactly the same manner as it had done on their first night, and everyone dug in hungrily. For a while, the hall was filled with only quiet chatter and the sounds of people eating as the students and staff tucked into roast beef, lamb, chicken, potatoes and vegetables and every good thing that could be imagined.Once the meal was done, the food disappeared and there were gasps of amazement. Instead of puddings, as there had been on the opening night, the tables were now full of sweets. In fact, Cosima didn't think she'd ever seen so many sweets in her entire life! There stacks of absolutely everything; fizzing whizbees, jelly slugs, chocolate frogs, Bertie Botts every flavour beans, droobles, cauldron cakes, pumpkin pasties, toffee apples, lollipops…everything one could possibly imagine. No one wasted any time in getting stuck in, despite the fact they had all just finished an enormous meal!"My brother would love to see this!" said Ruby Danvers, staring wistfully round at the piles of confectionery. The other Ravenclaws knew that her brother, a muggle, had been evacuated out of London as a result of all the bombings and Ruby missed him desperately."Perhaps you could send him some to try?" Cosima suggested."I bet Professor Fisher would know how to work the Muggle Post from here," Anthony Rogers agreed. "Maybe an owl would be too hard to explain!""You've got to send him some Bertie Botts beans at least!" Freddie Wentworth urged. "Everyone should try those!"The first years occupied themselves for the rest of the evening collecting a definitive selection of wizarding sweets and wrapping them in napkins to send off to Ruby's brother. Ruby was enormously touched and vowed to ask Professor Fisher about how she could send a package to the Royal Mail first thing in the morning. Cosima thought fondly of Cassian and was grateful of all the wards that were currently protecting her family's home in Dorset. If only the muggles could have those too!By the time the feast ended, all of the first years were full enough to be pleasantly sleepy. After singing the school song – and what a din that was! – they trailed dozily after the older students out into the entrance hall, and found they were walking into a solid wall of students standing gasping and pointing."What is it?" Cosima asked curiously, standing on tiptoe in an attempt to see over James Shacklebolt's shoulder.Eventually the crowd moved a little and the small group of Ravenclaw first years were able to see the source of the commotion. Cosima felt her eyes grow huge in shock."Is that blood?" Freddie whispered warily."Is this meant to be some rotten sort of joke?" Octavia asked uneasily.Someone had daubed a message on the wall of the entrance hall in a thick, gleaming red fluid which did look remarkably like blood!THE CHAMBER HAS BEEN OPENED. THE MONSTER IS LOOSE. MUDBLOODS BEWARE."Mudbloods beware?" Cosima read contemptuously. "That's disgusting!""The monster is loose?" Merlin repeated bewilderedly. "What does that even mean?""Students will return to their houses at once!" came the loud voice of Professor Dumbledore, who had entered the hall behind them and was standing, grim-faced, with Professor Fisher who looked enraged. "Gryffindors, follow me please!""Ravenclaws, please come with me!" ordered Professor Fisher briskly, and so the students were given no more time to gawp at the macabre message. They all hurried off in different directions, after their heads of house, talking in hushed, bewildered whispers.Professor Fisher led them a brisk pace up to Ravenclaw Tower. The eagle knocker admitted her without question and she stood aside to let them all precede her. When the last student had crossed the threshold into the common room, where the entire house was now assembled, she followed them in and shut the door"I should like to think that no member of this house is responsible for the display of vandalism we have just witnessed," said Professor Fisher, her mellow voice now clipped and sharp with rage. "But I would like to something very clear should anyone feel inclined to agree with the sentiments it expressed. Should I hear any student address another by that appalling word, they will be out of Hogwarts the following day if I have anything to do with it. And before that I will dock every single point Ravenclaw has. Is that clear?""Yes Professor," chorused the Ravenclaws meekly, feeling cowed even though they were all quite certain the culprit would be found elsewhere."Good," Professor Fisher replied. "That sort of prejudice has no place whatsoever at Hogwarts! Now, it is very late, and it is high time you were all in bed. Goodnight students."The second the door shut behind her, an angry buzz immediately broke out. The good mood of the feast had evaporated completely."I knew no good could come of all that pureblood rubbish!" spat a tall sixth year boy."You're right - no prizes for guessing which house you'll find the culprit in!" said Helena Gordon disgustedly."I'll bet you ten galleons it's that git Lestrange!" said James Shacklebolt furiously. "He nearly had that poor Gryffindor first year head first down the stairs last week; don't tell me he'd baulk at vandalism!"The house talked over the possible culprits until almost midnight, the Trolls being constantly mentioned, until Helena Gordon firmly ordered the first and second years off to bed. Though they protested vehemently, they all eventually did as they were told. Even after the end of feast drama, everyone was tired and the dormitory soon grew silent as the first year girls closed their bed curtains and drifted off into slumber.Cosima, on the other hand, lay awake for hours. Pip, sensing her unease, chirped comfortingly in her ear from where he was curled on her pillow."The monster is loose," She whispered thoughtfully. "What does it mean, Pip? What does it mean?"Were there monsters of some sort at Hogwarts, apart from the human variety?She resolved to write to her father in the morning.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Cosima woke the next morning after only two hours of sleep and scrambled in the darkness of the dormitory for a parchment and quill. If anyone would know about a possible 'monster' at Hogwarts, it would be her father and she hurriedly poured her thoughts out onto the parchment.
Dear Dad,

A really strange thing happened at the Halloween Feast last night. When we were on the way out of the Great Hall, we noticed that somebody had written some dreadful stuff all over one of the walls – and it looked like it was in blood!

It said: "The Chamber has been opened. The monster is loose. Mudbloods beware."

Most people seem to think it was some horrible prank played by some of the meaner Slytherins. There are a group of fourth years whose families were all named in that 'Sacred Twenty Eight' article last year and they are simply rotten to the muggleborns. Augustus Lestrange tried to hex my friend Harriet and knock her down the stairs a few weeks ago. Helios and the prefects try to keep them in line but they usually pick on first and second years when there's no one around to catch them.

But I wondered – do you know if there are any creatures that could be called monsters around Hogwarts that they could possibly use to hurt someone? And is there any creature that could actually tell whether you were pureblood or half-blood or muggleborn? I still don't really understand why some people are so beastly to muggleborns and I don't want any of my friends to get hurt.

Sorry, this doesn't really make a lot of sense. I couldn't get to sleep for ages after we went to bed.

Give Mum and Cassian a hug from me.

Love,

Cosima
She dragged herself down to breakfast, feeling like her head was full of cotton wool. She looked around the hall and saw that many other students looked as knackered as she felt; maybe she hadn't been the only one lying awake wondering what that dreadful message meant.The atmosphere in the Great Hall was subdued for the most part. Cosima wondered if it was her imagination or if the Trolls looked triumphant. Whatever was going on, she was certain that they must have something to do with it. She wracked her brains trying to remember if she had seen them during the feast last night, but she had been so caught up in chatting to the other Ravenclaws that she hadn't really looked around the other tables much and therefore couldn't say for certain.Professor Dippet asked them all to remain behind after breakfast and gave a very stern lecture much along the lines of what Professor Fisher had said to the Ravenclaws the night before."Hallowe'en always brings an excess of high spirits," he told the assembled students, his thin old voice full of surprising firmness. "And the staff have always understood this and have generally tried to make allowances for the occasional prank or joke when the day comes around."However, the display on the entrance hall wall last night can in no way be considered an acceptable prank! Mr Pringle discovered this morning that half a dozen of the school's hens have been killed in an exceedingly cruel manner, which is presumably how the culprit or culprits were able to get their hands on so much blood. Such brutality is not in any way excusable!"Further to this needless cruelty, I was appalled to see the slur which was painted up on the wall. I will not have muggleborn students in this school treated as though they are lesser than those of wizarding families. Hogwarts is a place for all magic users, not just a select few. Any student who is seen displaying such prejudice will, I assure you, be severely punished. I would remind you of the Sorting Hat's message at the start of term."Should anyone have observed any suspicious behaviour last night that may lead to identification of the culprits, I would urge you to pass this on to the Head Boy or Girl, or to your Head of House. Now, off to your classes please."A couple of days later, when the mail owls came during breakfast, Asteria swooped down to greet Cosima with an affectionate hoot and dropped a letter into her lap. Her father had replied.
Hello Darling,

Mum and I were just about to start a letter to you when your note arrived. I've certainly never come across a creature that can tell a wizard's blood status on its own. It's not inconceivable that dark magic could be used to train one – but I should think that would be beyond the capabilities of most fourth year students. The population of the Forbidden Forest is always changing, but the staff certainly used to have fairly tight wards in place and it should be very hard for anything sinister to leave the forest and reach the castle. I have to write to Professor Dumbledore about another matter so I will mention the wards when I do.
STAY AWAY from that Lestrange boy, Cosima! That family is nothing but trouble. I would hope that the incident in the entrance hall is just a horrible attempt to frighten younger students, but either way I want you to make sure you take care. I know you've been enjoying visiting the giant squid, but don't go wandering around the grounds too often away from the older students. Your safety is more important than exploring right now.
Mum and I are very proud to hear of how well you are doing, and glad you've made such nice friends. Mum knows Merlin's uncle very well and says we can organise a day for him to come visit over the Christmas holidays. Now that that's the half term mark past, it won't be long until you're home again.

Lots of love,

Dad
There was an untidy postscript in different handwriting: PS. Cos – Lydystra has had her cub. We called him Aeolus and Granny says we can help look after him when we visit for Christmas! From Cassian.Lydystra was one of her grandmother's hippogriffs. Cosima was thrilled to hear about the new cub and was already looking forward to meeting him over the Christmas holidays. The rest of the letter made her pensive however."What did your dad say?" Merlin whispered curiously. "Does he think there actually is a monster you can train to go after muggleborns?""He says it would be pretty unlikely, but you could maybe train one with dark magic," Cosima replied thoughtfully. "He did say fourth years wouldn't be capable of that. But if their families are dark magic users, maybe they did the training? But I don't understand what sort of creature you would use! Oh, and he wants me to stay away from Lestange.""Don't blame him! So, we've nothing to go on then," Merlin sighed. The two of them had been conducting endless research in the Ravenclaw Tower library over the last couple of days. Cosima had already made her way through many of the books on magical creatures before the incident but had poured over them once more with her friend. There was certainly nothing in the books about a creature who could tell a person's blood status. "And no one has seen anything weird so far. Who knows…maybe it just is a horrible attempt to scare everyone and we're overreacting?"The mysterious 'monster' was discussed constantly over the next couple of weeks. A few days after Hallowe'en, someone claimed it was referring to an old legend about the 'Chamber of Secrets' – a supposedly hidden chamber left in the school by Salazar Slytherin himself after his famous falling out with the other founders. The rumour went round the school like wildfire.Students of all years bombarded the staff with questions, but the teachers firmly told them that the story was no more than just that: a story. The school, they said, had been searched many times in the past thousand years, by many gifted witches and wizards, and no such chamber had ever been discovered."Well obviously not, if it's secret!" Gwion Pritchard muttered sarcastically in a Herbology class after Professor Beery lost his temper and angrily told them all off for being more concerned with a non-existent myth than with the facts they would need to learn for their end of term tests. "Maybe you can only find it if you're as rotten as Slytherin was!"However, by the time November was drawing to a close, the fuss started to die down. It had been almost a month and nothing had happened, nor had any monster been spotted. After Professor Dippet's lecture, even the Trolls weren't as bold as they usually were, what with prefects of all houses watching their every move. Cosima saw Tom Riddle sitting with them most meal times and wondered if the Slytherin prefect had managed to coerce them into behaving better.What with every year group's increased workloads, more quidditch games, news of several Allied victories in the Muggle war, a fall of crisp white snow and a spectacular inter-house snowball fight, Hallowe'en night and the existence of a possible Chamber of Secrets soon became old news. By the time December was underway, the consensus around the school was that it had been a prank of spectacular bad taste just trying to frighten the younger students.Even Cosima and Merlin had begun to put it out of their minds and stopped raiding the libraries for books about Salazar Slytherin and tomes about creatures susceptible to dark magic. They were both working very hard; keen to take home news of excellent results to their families at Christmas. The whole Ravenclaw first year was performing exceedingly well and Professor Fisher told them she was extremely proud to see that one or other of them was top in most subjects: Merlin in Transfiguration, Cosima in Potions and Charms, Freddie Wentworth in Defence Against the Dark Arts and Octavia Fawley in Herbology.They began to see much less of Helios, who would be sitting his NEWTS in the new year and who was studying ferociously to ensure he got the grades he needed to be accepted into the auror office. Shacklebolt, Gordon and Carmichael were doing likewise and seemed to be permanently attached to piles of books. The whole Ravenclaw common room became a haven for studying, and was often more quiet even than the main library. It was only interrupted by the frequent spats of Olive Hornby and Myrtle Warren – two fourth years who were apparently friends but spent an inordinate amount of time arguing and being unkind to each other.Every time they had a spat, one or other of the prefects would roar at them to shut up and Olive would sulk while Myrtle would burst into tears and run out of the room. Cosima thought them the most trying of all the other Ravenclaws and would have happily traded them to Gryffindor for Marjorie and Harriet.With her Saturday morning broom racing sessions with Helios now on hold due to his study schedule, Cosima and Merlin took to wandering down into the grounds to spend time with Hagrid who, they noted sadly, didn't seem to have any other friends. Cosima's heart was further pained for him when she discovered he would be staying at school over the Christmas holidays because his father had died the year before and he had no family to go home to. She resolved to send him a present once she got out of Hogwarts and was able to spend her pocket money."Yeh can keep a secret, can't yeh?" Hagrid asked out of the blue, one Saturday morning two weeks before the end of term. After breakfast, Cosima and Merlin had collected Asteria from the owlery and had been throwing toy mice for her to dive for when their much taller friend had joined them."Of course we can!" said Merlin at once, Cosima nodding as Asteria came to settle on her outstretched arm and eagerly accepted an owl treat."Got someone I want yeh both ter meet!" Hagrid said. "We'll need ter go back ter the castle though. Probably bes' not ter bring Asteria now I think abou' it. He won't like owls!"Their curiosity very much aroused, Cosima and Merlin returned a slightly miffed Asteria to the owlery and followed Hagrid back to the castle. To their surprise, he took them down the dark dank steps to the dungeons."Where are we going, Hagrid?" asked Merlin nervously, as they passed Slughorn's classroom and then his private quarters. They were now further into the dungeons than either of the first years had ever been before."Not far now!" Hagrid assured them. He led them right to the far end of the dungeon corridor, where an ancient looking oak door stood hanging loosely on old rusty hinges. "Used ter be a store room, so I've been using the cupboard!"Cosima was starting to feel a little anxious now, and one look at Merlin's tense jaw told her he was feeling the same. What on earth was Hagrid about to show them? The Gryffindor had reached into the cupboard and now withdrew and enormous box that had been padded out with various scraps of material to make a bed."This," said Hagrid, with all the pride of a new mother. "Is Aragog." A many legged, many eyed black hairy form stared up at them, vicious-looking pincers clicking violently."Is that…an acromantula?" asked Merlin, wide-eyed, in a higher voice than normal. Hagrid nodded proudly."Hagrid," said Cosima in a strangled whisper, looking up at him with sheer horror. "They eat people!""Aragog won't!" said Hagrid confidently, smiling widely and evidently under the impression he was giving his two younger friends a bit of a treat. "He's as good as gold, he is, and he's not much more than a hatchlin' right now. Give him a stroke, go on!"Cosima swallowed, feeling a shiver go down her spine. She didn't like spiders at all; not even small ones. If any got into her bedroom back home she had to get her Dad or Cassian to come and take them away. This one was bigger than her face!Purely because she couldn't bear to hurt Hagrid, she reached out a shaky hand and gingerly ran a finger down the big hairy back, fighting the urge to shiver in revulsion. Merlin did likewise, looking as though he was about to be sick. The creature's pincers clacked more noisily."See, he likes yer!" Hagrid grinned delightedly. The two first years exchanged pallid, incredulous stares. "A few more months and he'll be able ter talk!"The thought of the acromantula getting any bigger made Cosima's stomach feel wobbly, and she didn't think she'd like it any better once it was able to chat to them! She backed away as soon as she could without offending Hagrid and hovered nervously at the edge of the room while Hagrid cooed over the beast and fed him his dinner."He's batty!" Merlin said flatly, as they left the dungeons a short while later. "He's absolutely batty! If that…that thing gets out, Parcelsus only knows what will happen! It could kill someone!""What if one of the teachers find it?" Cosima wondered, hands wringing with worry. "He'll be in so much trouble!""Should we tell someone?" Merlin asked hesitantly. "I don't want to get him in trouble but is it safe for it to be so close to the potions classroom? Not to mention the Slytherin dormitories. I wouldn't mind if it got Lestrange, but if it bit one of the others…""But what if they throw him out?" Cosima queried tensely, face taut with anxiety. "He doesn't have any family left!"Both caught up in worry and indecision, they sat in the library for the rest of the afternoon, staring unseeingly at their textbooks and barely speaking. Did they go to a teacher and risk Hagrid being expelled? Or did they keep silent and risk a student being hurt…perhaps killed?Neither could face dinner and they both headed off to bed much earlier than usual. Cosima once again found herself lying awake well into the early hours of the morning, tossing and turning in worry.She and Merlin really ought to tell someone there was an acromantula in the school, she told herself firmly. She knew enough about them to know that their venom was extremely poisonous and they would happily eat humans. If a student came upon Aragog by accident, there could be a very serious incident! Did she want blood on her hands?But then, she hesitated, Hagrid would be in an unimaginable amount trouble if she did go to a teacher. Her own father had been expelled for an incident related to an unauthorised creature on the school grounds. Did she want to be responsible for that happening to Hagrid? And anyway, wouldn't that make her the biggest hypocrite in the world? She had brought her own unauthorised creature to Hogwarts; a bowtruckle who hid in her pocket during classes and who slept on her pillow at night.But Pip wouldn't hurt anyone, though – and that was the difference! He ate insects and the occasional bit of fruit or a Bertie Botts bean. He couldn't poison anyone or hurt any of her schoolmates whereas an acromantula definitely could.But they'd be betraying Hagrid if they told on him, and they were the only friends he had. And what would happen to him if he was expelled? His dad was dead and his mum had left him. Would he be cast out into the world to starve? Maybe they didn't have to tell a teacher. Perhaps she could tell Helios and he could speak to Hagrid quietly and arrange for Aragog to be sent out of the school?But Helios was busy with his NEWTs preparation and didn't need any extra worries. It would be unfair to land it all on him. And as he was Head Boy, he might be obliged to tell the teachers, in which case Hagrid would still be in lots of trouble.Maybe Hagrid was right though and Aragog wouldn't hurt anyone? How many creatures had her dad taken in who had been viewed as 'dangerous' and yet were as gentle as could be when looked after by the right person. Some people might faint if she told them she'd played with a nundu as a little girl! Even dragons could work alongside wizardkind. She buried her face in the pillow with a huff of stressed frustration, startling the slumbering Pip.
What were they going to

do

?
Her thoughts flew back and forth all night; resolving one minute that she would go and see Professor Fisher or Professor Dumbledore – much the kindest members of staff – in the morning and then in the next deciding that she couldn't possibly betray her friend. In the morning, she woke with a pounding headache and no better idea of what to do."Could you perhaps just…casually ask your dad about Acromantulas when you're home for Christmas?" Merlin asked quietly at breakfast. "There's only a couple of weeks left to go. Maybe if you brought it up in conversation and said you're studying them for some sort of project and wondered if they could be kept as pets? I mean, your dad would know better than anyone! And if he says they're definitely too dangerous then you could tell him about Hagrid and see what he suggests. That way we don't have to drop him in it if we don't have to!"Thinking this a much preferable option to tattling on Hagrid outright, Cosima agreed to this as a solution. However, for the remainder of the term she and Merlin lived in dread of hearing that someone had discovered the acromantula or got hurt before she could put their plan into action. Everyone else misinterpreted their stressed faces and inability to sleep well due to worry over end of term exams and gently teased them for being such swots. Slughorn gave them rather condescending pats on the shoulder and told them there was no reason to fear; as two of his most talented students, they were sure to do well.Cosima had already been crossing the days off until the Christmas holidays on her calendar; looking forward to seeing her parents and brother again. However, now she began to do it with even more longing that before: certain that if she could just talk to her Dad then she would feel a little better about everything.However, one week before the last day of term, something happened that put Aragog the acromantula completely and utterly out of her mind…

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

On the Monday night of the last week of term, with mere days to go until the Christmas holidays, Cosima, Merlin, Harriet, Marjorie and Gwion opted to stay in the Great Hall after dinner and amuse themselves by having a gobstones tournament at the Gryffindor table.The common rooms of each house were full of studying, easily irritated senior students who objected to their noisy younger schoolmates interrupting them. As a result the small group of first years were not the only students still in the hall. Freddie and Florizel were demonstrating wizard's chess to Anthony over at the Ravenclaw table, a dozen Hufflepuffs were making moving Christmas cards over at theirs and small clusters of students were chatting together at the Slytherin table.Shortly after nine o'clock, just as Merlin and Gwion were playing each other for the overall victory, a screech owl came swooping through the rafters and glided down towards the top end of the Gryffindor table. It came to a halt next to where three fifth year boys were sitting; evidently less worried about studying than their classmates were. One of them, who Cosima recognised as a chaser from the Gryffindor quidditch team, took the letter and read it immediately. He shook his head gravely and summarised the content to his two friends. "Bloody Gerries have bombed Edinburgh again! A couple of five hundred pounders apparently; destroyed a whole street! And there's word of a raid on Bath, too!"Harriet gasped out loud at the news and dashed up the table to beg the boy to tell her what street had been hit in Edinburgh. Her eyes filled with tears when he apologetically admitted he didn't actually know which particular street it was. Distraught, she told her friends that Edinburgh was where her mother and younger sisters lived. She had no way of knowing if they were all right except for sending a letter but even then she would have to wait a couple of days for before she'd know for certain."I'll lend you Asteria if you like," Cosima offered comfortingly, moved by Harriet's worried face. "She's much faster than any of the school owls.""Would you?" Harriet seized the opportunity gratefully. "Oh, thank you, Cosima! Could we send a letter just now? I just want to know that they are all right!""Of course, come on," Cosima got to her feet and the two girls left their friends behind to head to the owlery. They tried to hurry, but the courtyard was perilously icy in the December chill and so they had to make their way very carefully, holding onto each other in an attempt not to slip and fall. The steps up to the owlery itself were even worse and took three times longer to climb than normal.As they entered the owlery, Cosima was relieved to see that someone – Mr Ogg most likely – had cast a warming spell over the tall stone room to ensure the owls did not freeze. The nesting stalls were full of lots of extra bedding too so the birds would all be comfortable. Asteria, as she always did at the sight of her human, came gliding down at once to perch on Cosima's arm and butt her head against the girl's cheek lovingly."Asteria, I know it's really cold outside, but can you take a letter to Harriet's mum?" Cosima asked her, fussing over the owl's feathers devotedly. She explained the address. "Their town has been bombed and she needs to know that her mum and sisters are safe. You're faster than any owl here." It was perhaps something of a biased statement on Cosima's part, but Asteria preened proudly nonetheless and held out her leg at once."Thank you, Asteria! You're the best owl I've ever met!" Harriet declared gratefully, who had used some of the spare parchment and ink always kept in the room to scrawl out a quick note. She reached out and, following Cosima's example, stroked the barn owl's plumage while Cosima secured the letter. Asteria hooted, as though to say 'you're welcome', nipped affectionately at Cosima and then swooped off out of the window."Be careful! Don't fly near any air raids!" As always, Cosima dashed to the window to watch her fly away. Harriet followed, her face a chalky mask of anxiety."I'm sure your mum is all right," Cosima tried her best to comfort her, though she knew there was nothing she could say to really lessen her friend's worry. "Asteria will be back before you know it.""If only Professor Dippet had a telephone!" Harriet said despairingly."It would be a sensible thing to do, when there are so many muggleborns here!" Cosima agreed. "I don't understand why the school doesn't adopt more muggle inventions where they'd be useful!""Imagine how much they would save on candles!" Harriet joked weakly.Carefully stepping their way slowly down the icy stairs, the two girls began their short journey back to the school, joking about how muggle inventions would improve Hogwarts. None of it was really all that funny, but Cosima made a determined effort to keep the conversation going in an attempt to keep Harriet from fretting.It was after ten o'clock by the time they reached the entrance hall again; by which time all students without exception were supposed to be in their common rooms or risk punishment. The others would have left the great hall by now."We'd best hurry!" Cosima said urgently, dashing towards the main stairs. "If Pringle catches…" The words died in her throat; replaced with a shrieking gasp of pure horror.On the floor in front of them, at the foot of a suit of armour, lay Gwion Pritchard. He was deathly white and totally rigid; his face frozen in an expression of alarm, his eyes blank and staring. He lay there like a statue - there was no tell-tale rise and fall of his chest. In fact, there was no movement of any kind.
He was …dead?!
The world seemed to swim before Cosima's eyes. Someone was screaming but she honestly wasn't sure if it was her or if it was Harriet. Nothing was making sense. She felt hot stinging bile rise in her throat and hurriedly pressed her lips together before she could be sick all over the floor."What on earth is all that n…Merlin's beard!" The blurry shapes of Professors Dumbledore and Fisher appeared before them from the direction of the great hall."Gwion's dead! He's dead!" shrieked Harriet hysterically. "Someone's killed Gwion!" Cosima tried to talk but the words wouldn't come. All she could manage was a strangled sob, feeling as though her throat was closing off."Mercifully, Mr Pritchard is not dead," Professor Dumbledore said quietly. He had knelt to examine Gwion and felt for a pulse while Professor Fisher practically held the two first year girls upright. "He has, however, been completely petrified, Felicia.""Petrified?" repeated Professor Fisher disbelievingly, going almost as white as Gwion."I'm afraid so," Dumbledore said gravely, before taking advantage of the fact that the Fat Friar was floating down the main staircase and calling out to him. "Friar, could I ask you please to fetch the headmaster, Professor Merrythought and Mr Pringle? Tell them that a student has been attacked and it is a matter of some urgency. Professor Fisher will take these young ladies to the hospital wing, where I would recommend a mug of hot chocolate and something to calm them a little.""Yes, quite. Come along girls," Professor Fisher prompted them gently."But Gwion…" Cosima sobbed incoherently, swallowing again against the urge to be sick."Mr Pritchard is in good hands, I promise you," Fisher said kindly, patting her back. "In the meantime, you both have had a very nasty shock and would benefit from a quiet night in the hospital wing."On legs that felt like jelly slugs, Cosima followed Professor Fisher away from Gwion, Harriet hiccupping at her side. It seemed to take hours to get to the hospital wing; though in reality it was probably only five or ten minutes. The corridors were largely empty, the students all in their various common rooms or dormitories, as Gwion should have been.What if he'd been waiting for them to get back from the owlery to see if they'd managed to send a letter, Cosima wondered feverishly. Was it their fault that this had happened to him?When they stepped inside the hospital wing, Madame Mafalda took one look at he pallid, shaking first years and ordered them into bed at once. Issued with a pair of pyjamas, Cosima and Harriet had no choice but to do as they were told and climb into two of the eight neatly made beds which lined the long chamber.Madame Mafalda seemed to conjure two steaming mugs of rich, sweet hot chocolate out of nowhere and handed them one each. Cosima's hands where shaking so violently that she initially couldn't hold the cup but as the kindly matron spoke soothing nonsense to them and assured them that everything would be all right, both she and Harriet were eventually able to drink them.Just as the two girls were starting to calm, the door to the hospital wing burst open and in strode Professors Merryweather and Dumbledore, who were carrying the frozen form of Gwion between them. He hadn't moved so much as a millimetre since they'd left the entrance hall, his eyes still frozen open in a terrible imitation of death. His hands were frozen in front of him, as though he'd been rubbing them to keep them warm.At the sight of their friend, still pale and rigid like a statue, Harriet let out another despairing scream, tears spilling down her cheeks. With the shock coming on top of the worry for her family, the poor young Gryffindor was struggling to hold it together."Stop that noise at once girl!" Professor Merrythought growled, scowling over at her. "What a disgraceful way to be carrying on!""For goodness sake, Galatae, they're eleven!" Professor Fisher snapped, before turning to Madame Mafalda. "Mathilda, could you…?""Of course," Madame Mafalda said briskly, promptly and drew screens around both Harriet and Cosima's beds. "I think you've both had quite enough distress for one night, my dears! It's time to settle down. I'll get you something to help you sleep." While the teachers were settling Gwion, she bustled off for a moment and then returned with two warm mugs of a sweet-smelling potion and gave orders that it was to be drunk at once. Cosima put hers onto the bedside cabinet as soon as the matron went back around the screen; not yet ready to sleep.With the curtains now drawn around her, the young Ravenclaw could see nothing of what was happening with Gwion; surrounded as she was by a solid wall of sky blue material. She lay there staring at the ceiling, still shivering a little, and strained keenly to hear what was being said on the other side. Did the teachers know who…or what…had done it?"You think he's been here, Albus?" Fisher muttered tensely. Cosima leaned forward a little."I think if Grindelwald had been among us, Mr Pritchard would certainly be dead," said Dumbledore sadly. "He's slaughtered scores of innocent people; we can hardly expect he would hesitate to strike down an untrained eleven year old schoolboy. No, I feel we must look closer to home for an answer.""You think one of the students…"Professor Merrythought's voice tailed off as she was interrupted by the sound of hurried footsteps, and then Helios's voice. He sounded alarmed and out of breath."I'm so sorry to interrupt Professor, but the word is going around Gryffindor tower that a student has been attacked and the Fat Friar told me that my cousin Cosima had been taken to the hospital wing. Is she…?""Miss Scamander has not been hurt," Dumbledore's voice answered kindly. "She has, however, had an extremely unpleasant shock. It was she and Miss Brooks who stumbled upon Mr Pritchard here. They will both be kept here overnight, and Madame Mafalda has given them something to assist dreamless sleep, given their youth and the fright they have had. However, I'm sure she would not mind if you looked in on Miss Scamander before the goes to sleep. She is in the bed on the left there."Sure enough, the sound of footsteps approached and a couple of seconds later one of the curtains was drawn aside and Helios stepped through, looking pale and tense. The second he saw Cosima, he sat down on the edge of the bed and grabbed her up in a hug so tight it was verging on painful."Thank Merlin you're all right!" he said fervently. "When the Friar told me you'd be taken up here, I thought it was you that was hurt!""I'm all right," Cosima said shakily into his shoulder, glad of the hug. "But Gwion…""I know," Helios said comfortingly, rubbing her back. "I've seen him. Horrible scare for you, eh? Have you taken that potion from Madame Mafalda yet?""Not yet," Cosima shook her head. She refrained from saying she had done so to try and eavesdrop on the staff to get more details so she and Merlin could start investigating tomorrow. She rather doubted her cousin, who was in reality much more like an older brother to her, would approve."Come on then," Helios prompted, spotting the cup on the bedside cabinet and reaching over to pick it up. "Drink up."Cosima hesitated. A little calmer now than she had been earlier, her brain was rapidly ticking over about all the 'monsters' she and Merlin had read up on after Halloween. She was hoping that if she could hear more details, she might be able to try to establish if one of those, controlled by dark magic, had been the culprit. It was certainly looking like the Halloween incident was more than a prank now.Helios misinterpreted her hesitation, taking it for fear. "It's all right, Cosima," he assured her, voice sympathetic and gentle. Even her lifelong nickname had been dropped in his concern. "It will keep the nightmares away. You won't dream at all, I promise."Under his worried and affectionate gaze, Cosima had no option but to swallow the purple potion obediently. It tasted faintly of plums and she felt its warmth seep through her slowly, rather like the feeling of getting into a warm bath. Her mind started to grow fuzzy; there went her chance of finding out more details!"There you are," Helios said quietly, guiding her back onto the pillows as her eyes were now half shut. She felt, rather than saw, the blankets tucked around her. Her hair was gently ruffled. "Sleep tight, titch. See you tomorrow."Cosima, lost to slumber, never heard him leave.After a full night of totally dreamless sleep – the potion certainly did what it promised – Cosima and Harriet were released from the hospital wing the next day in time for their first class. The majority of the first years seemed to have reached an unspoken pact not to harass them for details on what they'd seen, and even Professor Beery didn't snap when it took him three attempts to get Cosima's attention in Herbology because she was staring blankly out of the window with a worried expression.Cosima told Merlin everything, of course, and found him as determined as she was to start investigating the horror that had befallen their chatty Hufflepuff friend. At lunchtime, they went to the library and checked out as many books as they could carry on dangerous magical creatures, resolving to spend the next few nights going through in them in search of possible culprits.The only people who didn't seem to be horrified by the attack on Gwion were, of course, the Trolls and their devoted followers. Walburga Black and Marcellus Nott infuriated the rest of the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw first years by pulling exaggeratedly frozen faces every time they passed either Cosima or Harriet in the corridors or caught their eye in class.Professor Slughorn eventually took ten points from Gryffindor when Marjorie MacKinnon lost it so completely that she slapped Walburga's face right in the middle of a corridor, just as he was passing. Marjorie was awarded detention immediately, but Walburga, her cheek an angry scarlet, was too shocked to gloat. The Gryffindors all declared the loss of points was extremely worth it and Cosima only wished she'd been brave enough to slap Walburga herself!The last few days ticked by slowly in a weary haze. The whole school was subdued and Cosima found herself exhausted. She and Merlin spent their every spare waking moment going through book after book but were no closer to finding an answer on what happened to Gwion... and without Madame Mafalda's dreamless sleep potion, she had had nightmares every single night since leaving the hospital wing.Gwion always lay in front of her, frozen and pallid, while a shadowy, indistinct shape with angry red eyes and dripping fangs crouched over him. She would gasp, alerting the creature to her presence and then it would bound towards her, snarling, sink its fangs into her throat and she would start awake in a cold sweat.She was desperate to get home now – all thoughts of asking her dad about acromantulas forgotten. She was shaken and drained and just wanted her parents!At long last, Saturday dawned and all those students going home for the holidays were shepherded down to Hogsmeade station after an early breakfast. Cosima walked down with Helios and Merlin, a full bag of books over her shoulder and Pip snug in her pocket. Asteria, who had mercifully returned with the brilliant news that Harriet's mum and sisters were well, had flown off the night before and would make her own way down to Dorset."You go and sit with your friends," Helios encouraged, when they reached the station. "I've got to patrol the train with the prefects, but I'll come to find you when we're reaching London."Unconsciously, Cosima and Merlin found themselves wandering back to the same carriage they had sat in on the journey up to Hogwarts. They were soon joined by Harriet and Marjorie, as well as Freddie and Florizel. There was a glaring absence. Gwion Pritchard should have been there with them, as he had been on the first of September. Instead, he was lying in the hospital wing and would be for several months. Professor Beery had told them all he had a batch of mandrakes growing which would be the key to reviving Gwion, but these would not be ready until well after Easter and their friend was lost to them until then.Everyone seemed conscious of it and so the mood in the carriage was much more sombre than might have been expected from six eleven-year-olds heading home for Christmas after months away from their parents. They chatted lightly about what their plans were for the festive period, which relatives they would be visiting, and who was likely to win the quidditch league cup fixture on Boxing Day but no one was particularly exuberant.The trolley lady came by just as she had on their first journey and between them they bought a fairly hefty amount of sweets to share amongst the group. They swapped chocolate frog cards, made a game out of blind tasting some Bertie Botts' beans and eventually settled into a companionable silence. With such a shadow hanging over their end of term, no one could find it in them to keep the conversation going any longer.Cosima, who had barely managed two hours of sleep the night before, so bad had her dreams been, nodded off a short while after lunch. Merlin gently shook her awake much later to tell her they were coming up to London. Sure enough, against an evening sky that was a palette of the pale blues and lemon yellows which immediately follow sunset, the familiar sillhoette of London was standing dark and tall. King's Cross station would only be moments away.Cosima gave a sigh of tired relief. She was almost home!

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Helios, as he had promised Cosima, came to find her just as the train was slowly rumbling into King's Cross station. Together, they stepped out onto Platform Nine and Three Quarters with the dozens of other students, most dressed in muggle clothing, who'd made the journey. The air was full of an excited buzz as students looked around impatiently for their families. A crowd of parents and guardians were waiting for them by the platform wall and the air was soon filled with cries of delight and reunion.Harriet quickly spotted her mother and sisters and, after hurriedly saying 'Have a lovely Christmas everyone!', sped off delightedly to meet them. Marjorie did likewise, heading off with her two older brothers. Cosima stood on tip-toe, scanning the crowd anxiously, before she spotted a familiar tawny-haired figure dressed in a navy muggle coat and her heart leapt."Dad!"She didn't care that Merlin, Freddie and Florizel were still standing nearby and might think her childish, or that she ought to wait for Helios. She was just so happy to see her father again after one of the most horrible weeks of her life that she broke away from the others and ran to throw herself into Newt Scamander's arms.Newt caught her easily. "Hello, darling. Ah, I've missed you!" he chuckled, lifting her off her feet as he hugged her. He held her close for a moment, dropping a kiss onto her hair and then held her back at arm's length so he could take a proper look at her, his expression morphing into one of concern when he noticed the shadows she knew were under her eyes."I've missed you and mum too. And Cassian," Cosima said fervently, hugging him again before he could comment on them. She didn't want to talk of more unpleasant things right now. She smiled over at the glamorous, dark-haired petite witch Newt had been standing with. "Nice hat, Aunt Phryne!""Thank you, dear." Phryne Scamander, née Fawley, was her Uncle Theseus's wife and Helios's mother. Beautiful, brave and always exquisitely dressed, she was just as famous as her illustrious husband and brother-in-law and still turned as many heads in her forties as she had in her twenties.The daughter of Hector Fawley, who'd gone on to become Minister for Magic in the 1920s, she'd shunned all societal expectations that she would get a nice, genteel job after leaving Hogwarts and promptly marry and settle down. Instead, she'd become Gringotts Bank's first ever female curse breaker and treasure seeker and had gone off adventuring in Egypt. Then, when the muggle world war broke out, she came home, cut off her hair and went to serve at the front with her twin brother Castor and their closest friends from Hogwarts, Theseus Scamander among them. Only three of the group of ten made it back."Hello Mum," Helios had caught up with Cosima now and hugged his mother in greeting. Phryne, dressed chicly in a red muggle skirt suit with a fur collar (her hat was the same shade), kissed him and smoothed his hair down fondly, though he was taller than she was. Phryne and Tina often joked that they were never quite sure where their genes had gone as Helios, Cosima and Cassian were just duplicates of their fathers to the last eyelash."Where are Mum and Uncle Theseus?" asked Cosima curiously, scanning the crowd."They've been held up at the auror office, my darlings," answered Phryne breezily. "And Cassian is with your granny. They shouldn't be too much longer, though. We thought we could pop to Diagon Alley for a bite to eat while we're waiting, and they can join us there when they're done.""Sounds grand to me," said Helios fervently. "I'm famished! I spent most of the journey chasing that little git Yaxley up and down the train. He kept setting off dungbombs!""Well we'll need to apparate there," Newt informed them. "There was another air raid last night and the station outside is rather a mess!"Cosima waved goodbye to Merlin, who was enthusiastically hugging a sweet-faced, silver haired lady who she took to be his grandmother. He hollered over to her to send him an owl after Christmas. They'd agreed that morning that they would try to find out as much about the causes of petrification as they could over the holidays and would compare notes as soon as they got the chance. Gwion would not be forgotten over Christmas.The quartet of Scamanders threaded their way through the crowd to get to a quieter part of the platform where it would be safe to apparate from. Cosima saw Freddie Wentworth head off happily with his mum and dad, while Florizel gave a whoop of delight as he spotted his own family."How are you feeling, Cosima?" Newt asked in concern as they walked, one arm still around her shoulders. "Helios sent us an owl to let us know what happened to your friend. You don't look like you've been sleeping very well.""I haven't been," Cosima confessed quietly, looking at her feet. "It was horrible, Dad, and I'm just…really glad to be home! Can we talk about it later though?" She was afraid if she talked about finding Gwion now, exhausted as she was, she might just start crying again and she didn't want to make a complete fool of herself when so many Hogwarts students were still around on the platform."Of course we can," Newt gave an understanding nod and ran an affectionate hand over her hair. They caught up with Phryne and Helios in a nice empty spot. "Right, here we are; time to head off. Are you ready?""It won't hurt Pip, will it?" Cosima queried anxiously. "He's sleeping in my pocket.""No, he'll be fine," Newt responded with a smile. "As long as he stays in your pocket, he'll be perfectly safe. I apparated with Pickett dozens of times and he never came to any harm."Cosima took her father's outstretched hand, and then took a deep preparatory breath. She'd only side-alonged a couple of times before and it had made her queasy on each occasion. Newt gave her hand an encouraging squeeze and then everything went black.Cosima felt she was being pressed very hard from every single direction. Solid force was constricting her chest and she couldn't breathe; her eyeballs were being forced back into her skull and her eardrums were collapsing inwards. It was as though she was trying to squeeze her whole body through a mouse hole. In the next instant, the bright, busy shop windows of Diagon Alley, twinkling in the darkness, appeared before her and the ground solidified under her feet. Phryne and Helios materialised beside them."Easy now!" Newt said quickly, catching hold of her as she staggered dizzily. He kept his hands on her shoulders until the street stopped spinning and she stopped feeling like she was going to vomit. "There we are. Well done. Let's get dinner, shall we?"Cosima followed her father, aunt and cousin into the Grogan Stump; a cosy pub and restaurant named after the former Minister for Magic. It was mildly busy but they managed to get a large table by the window, with enough room for Tina and Theseus to join them when they were free."Now then, Cosima, I see you have been put in Ravenclaw like all the very best people!" Phryne grinned at her niece as they sat down, ignoring the indignant huffs from Newt and Helios. "How do you like the tower? Is the library still there?""It's lovely! And I think the library is even better than the main one!" Cosima said honestly, letting Pip out of her pocket and onto the table so that the bowtruckle could be fussed over by her father. "Pip likes it too, don't you Pip?""I knew you had to have a bloody bowtruckle with you!" Helios shook his head in amusement, watching as the small green form stepped onto Newt's hand. "A couple of the first years were rabbiting on in the common room one night about one of the Ravenclaws carting around a giant stick insect around in their pocket, and I was sure it could only have been you!""You never told me that!" Cosima countered in surprise. Helios hadn't mentioned Pip once all term."Well, I couldn't tick you off for unauthorised pets if I didn't know for absolutely certain that you had one!" Helios tipped her a wink. "The Head Boy is not supposed to encourage rule breaking after all."Newt, Phryne and Helios drank butterbeer while Cosima, still considered a little on the young side to be allowed to partake, had a chocolate milkshake instead. She told them all about Ravenclaw tower and then she and Helios began to discuss the lessons they'd had and the quidditch games that had taken place that term. Everyone ordered chicken and ham pie and they were just about to start eating when the door to the restaurant opened and two very familiar figures stepped inside."Mum!" Cosima delightedly got to her feet to throw her arms around Tina Scamander as soon as her mother reached the table."Hi honey," Tina hugged her tightly and kissed her forehead before starting to fuss over her hair and clothes. "It's great to have you home. Look at you; you've grown since the summer! We've missed you."Following Tina over to the table and now being hugged by Helios was Cosima's uncle, Theseus Scamander; celebrated war hero. He was easy to recognise, being simply a taller, broader version of her father with slightly blonder hair. The two aurors were able to quickly order food and sat down to join the rest of the family for their meal."How was it?" Phryne asked gravely, as Theseus Scamander slid into the booth beside her."Let's not talk about work just now," said Theseus affably, though Cosima was convinced she saw him incline his head minutely towards her and Helios as though to say 'not in front of the youngsters'. "I want to hear how these two have been getting on.""Absolutely!" Tina agreed at once and again Cosima thought she saw her parents exchange a meaningful look, implying there was some news to be imparted later on. "We want to hear all about what you've learned this term!"So prompted, Helios and Cosima began to talk again about the highlights of the term as the family ate; their favourite lessons, the amusing pomposity of Slughorn's Halloween party, the fact that Gryffindor were in the lead for the Quidditch Cup and the students' determination that Professor Beery was absolutely head over heels in love with Professor Fisher.Then, inevitably, they got to the one event which had not yet been discussed. Helios explained the mysterious message painted on the entrance hall wall on Halloween, and the unaccountable petrification of Gwion Pritchard a few days earlier. Cosima's gaze dropped to her empty plate, her dinner now sitting heavy in her stomach. She rather wished she hadn't eaten now. She felt her mother's comforting hand coming to rest on her back as the adults wondered aloud about the possible causes."Let's change the subject for now, eh? We're upsetting Cosima and she looks done for as it is!" Helios said quickly, sending his younger cousin an encouraging smile when she looked up. "What's the plan for Christmas? I take it everyone is flooing up to Granny's as usual?""Yes, she can't wait to see you both," Theseus replied. "Tina and I have arranged with the office to be off after the twenty second so we'll all head up the day before Christmas Eve.""We'll go and see your Grandfather Fawley tomorrow," Phryne told Helios. "He's going to my uncle's for Christmas." Cosima knew that her aunt's relationship with her father, Hector Fawley, was not a particularly warm one. The former Minister for Magic had not handled the loss his son during the war very well and at one point, overcome by bitterness, had told Phryne that the wrong twin had come home. They had been estranged for many years and it was only with the arrival of Helios that they began to talk to one another again. Their relationship was far from mended, but it was at least cordial."Mercy Lewis, it's going on for nine o'clock," Tina looked at her watch. "You two must be exhausted after spending a whole day on the train. We'd best be heading home."Together, the two families made their way bacl up the street to the floo point for Diagon Alley, located close to Gringotts. The shops were now shut for the night but the window displays, decorated for Christmas, twinkled merrily in the darkness.Phryne went first, taking a pinch of powder from the silver bucket by the floo stop. She was surrounded by green flames, called out 'Silver Birches' and was gone in a flash."All right, Helios, you next," Theseus prompted."See you on Christmas Eve, titch," Helios grinned, ruffling her hair, before snatching a pinch of powder and disappearing into the fireplace in the same manner. Theseus followed with a last wave and was gone too. Cosima was very glad that they were using the floo system to get home to Dorset. If she had to side-along twice in one day, she was afraid that the chicken and ham pie might just refuse to stay down.Her father went first, vanishing into green flames. Once he was out of sight, Cosima got into the fireplace beside her mum, Tina keeping a tight hold on her hand. Her mother called out their address, the green fire roared up around them and then before she knew it, Cosima was stepping out into the familiar living room of Seaview House by the Dorset coast. Home. Something inside her immediately felt better."Come on honey, I think you could be done with an early night," Tina prompted, seeing her yawn wearily. "You can go say hello to everyone in the morning."Cosima considered arguing for a second; desperate to get out to their magically-enlarged barn to hug all the mooncalfs and let Pip chat to the other bowtruckles. However, she was so tired that she gave in without a word and allowed Tina to shepherd her up the stairs into the lavender coloured bedroom she'd not seen since September.Everything was just as she'd left it, and the familiarity was comforting. Smokey, her battered old stuffed dragon still sat on her bed; her books were all in their designated spots in her small bookcase; and the waving photos of her family still sat on her desk. She brushed her teeth and put on her pyjamas on auto-pilot, hugging her mother again before getting into bed."What do you say you and I do a bit of Christmas shopping tomorrow before we go to collect Cassian from Granny's?" Newt asked, as he came in to kiss her goodnight and switch the light off. "Mum has to go back into the office so you can help me pick a present for her."Cosima nodded eagerly; she still had all her pocket money to spend as the first years weren't allowed into Hogsmeade with the older students. She settled down to sleep thinking of the Christmas presents she wanted to buy for people and tried to make a list in her head. She lasted only five minutes though, days of exhaustion catching up with her, before she was dead to the world.
Everything was going very well initially. The Ravenclaws were in their common room relaxing. Professor Fisher was there and she was telling them that Ravenclaw had won the house cup and she was so pleased that she was going to marry Professor Beery. James and Helena said it was their duty to throw them a party and Slughorn appeared to say that he threw better parties than anyone else.

Then, suddenly, she was in the dungeon corridor that Hagrid had brought them along to visit Aragog. She knew nothing good could be waiting at the end, but her feet seemed to move of their own accord, taking her nearer and nearer to the door. Her heart was thundering.

The door creaked open slowly and there in the doorframe lay Gwion again, eyes blank and horrified as he stared up at nothing. He'd been waiting for her but she hadn't got there in time. Crouching over the Hufflepuff was a red-eyed shadow which looked up and snarled viciously at Cosima, it's blood-coloured glare full of malevolence. She tried to scream, but no one would hear her. She was too far under the castle.

The creature was stalking towards her on all fours, like a nundu, snarl intensifying. She couldn't run. She couldn't move at all. It was going to kill her and there was no one around to stop it. It opened its mouth, displaying dripping fangs and…
"Cosima! Come on, Cosima, wake up!"Cosima scrambled upright in bed with a yelp, heaving enormous, gasping breaths that were half-sob. Her hair was damp with sweat, which made her shiver as it cooled. Heart pounding, she looked around in a panic, unsure of where the monster had gone… until she realised she was in her bedroom back home and her worried looking father was brushing her sweaty hair out of her face, the soft light of his wand illuminating the room."It's all right," Newt soothed her, wrapping his arms around her and drawing her into a hug. "You were dreaming, darling. Just a horrid dream. I was just on my way up to bed when I heard you shouting.""I just…I keep seeing Gwion every time I go to sleep. He didn't get to go home for Christmas," Cosima hiccupped miserably into his jumper. "Something got him and now he's lying in the hospital wing like a statue and his mum and dad must be so unhappy. Dad, I thought he was dead!"Newt moved up the bed so he could sit with his back to the headboard and held her as she sobbed, rubbing her back and wiping away her tears until she had cried herself out to exhausted, hitched hiccups. He promised her that Gwion's condition could be reversed and that if Professor Beery was indeed brewing mandrakes, then she would get her friend back before too long. He tried to get her settled back down to sleep, but it was to no avail."I can't sleep, it keeps coming for me when I sleep," Cosima said fearfully, only semi-coherent in her tearful exhaustion. "And I'm so tired!""Well, how about if I stay with you for a while, hmm?" Newt said comfortingly. "There's nothing that can hurt you while I'm here."Picking up an old, battered copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard from her bedside table, Newt settled her more snugly in her arms and read quietly to her by the light of his wand until the familiar words had lulled her back to sleep once more. She didn't stir again until her mother called up to her the next morning.Tina worriedly felt her forehead when she came down to breakfast. "Honey, you look like a ghost!" she said anxiously, running a thumb over the dark circle under one of Cosima's eyes. "I'll get you something to help you sleep on my way home, all right? You can't go on like this. Come on, sit down and have some toast. Why don't you tell Dad and I what happened and see if that helps?"Over breakfast, Cosima told her parents the whole story; how she'd gone with Harriet to send an owl to her mum, how they'd returned just after the curfew and had intended to run to their common rooms to avoid being caught and how they'd found Gwion lying in the empty hall, frozen like a statue, with not another soul in sight."Professor Fisher thought it might have been…you know, him," she concluded quietly. "But I heard Professor Dumbledore say if it had been, he'd…well, Gwion wouldn't have just been frozen. He said the answer was in the school. Merlin and I have been through dozens of books but we can't figure out what it is! I can't find a trace of anything that freezes you when it attacks.""You don't need to," Tina said firmly, reaching over to squeeze her daughter's hand when she started to protest. "Cosima, you're eleven, honey. Leave it to the teachers to hunt down the culprit, all right? I think you've had enough worry to be getting on with, don't you?""But I think it's because I don't know, I keep having nightmares," Cosima said earnestly. "In my dreams, it's always a shadow with red eyes…it sees me watching and it…""I think you've started to worry about these dreams so much, that's half of the reason they keep recurring," Newt said worriedly, smoothing down her hair as he stood to refill his cup. "You'll end up making yourself really ill if you keep obsessing over it. I promise you, darling, your friend will be all right once Professor Beery's mandrakes are ready. Mum's right – you just focus on looking after yourself and let the teacher's find the culprit, all right?"Cosima nodded silently, though she internally vowed that she would not give up so easily. Even the nightmares were not going to stop her. She and Merlin would find out what monster had attacked Gwion. They just had to!Although reliving her awful discovery of the week before had not been pleasant, Cosima found that – strangely – it really had helped a little to discuss everything out loud with her parents and she felt a little more settled and a bit braver by the time her mum left for work and she and her dad took the floo network back to Diagon Alley again. It was swarming with witches and wizards of all ages doing their Christmas shopping.They went to the owl emporium first, to replenish their supplies for the family owls and then to Flourish and Blotts to choose some presents. There, Cosima immediately became engrossed in the magical creatures section. She found a really beautiful book about European dragons, with incredibly detailed moving illustrations and lots of information about their behaviour and habitats. It was perfect for Hagrid!"I think that may be rather advanced for Cassian," Newt commented, observing her as she tucked the book under her arm."It's not for Cassian," Cosima explained. "It's for my friend Hagrid. He has to stay at the school over Christmas because his dad died last year and his mum left him, so he won't have anyone to send him any presents. He loves magical creatures as much as me, and he said he's always wanted a dragon, so I'm sure he'll love it!"Newt smiled at her warmly, pride in his eyes. "You're a very kind girl, darling. That's a lovely thing to do.""He thinks you're the bees knees too," Cosima informed him as she chose a book on hippogriffs for Merlin. "Fantastic Beasts is his favourite book – do you think you could write a message in this one for him before I send it to Hogwarts? He'll be so excited!"Newt laughed; he was constantly bemused by his own fame. "I'm sure I can."With two presents already checked off her list, Cosima had a wonderful morning strolling up and down Diagon Alley with her father. She chose a set of colour changing gobstones and a big box of Bertie Botts beans for Cassian, a Puddlemere United scarf for Helios and helped her father choose a lovely pair of golden earrings with twinkling gemstones for her mum. Then she persuaded Newt to wait outside a couple of shops while she selected a bunch of everblooming flowers for her mum and a new leather-bound journal for him. She'd noticed his old one was nearly full and was getting a bit tatty.They made a brief stop at Rosa Lee's for a cup of tea and a slice of utterly delicious chocolate cake, and by the time they made their way to the floo stop to go and collect Cassian from her grandmother's house, Cosima felt better than she had in days.

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The next few days at Seaview House were wonderful. The run up to Christmas always had a beautiful, exciting magic all of its own; the sort that couldn't be taught at Hogwarts. It was intangible, ethereal and indescribable.Cosima was ecstatic to be reunited with the multitude of magical creatures who lived in either specially-designed habitats in their magically enlarged barn or out in the grounds of their home. Among them were a herd of mooncalfs (her favourites), a pair of nundu, the bowtruckles who made up Pip's family, Dougal the demiguise (who'd been with her father since long before she and Cassian were born), a nest of new occamies and many more.Tina Scamander had returned from the Ministry on Sunday evening with a sachet of lavender-scented herbs from the apothecary for Cosima to place under her pillow. The mixture, used to promote deep sleep, was less potent than the dreamless sleep potion she'd been given at Hogwarts (which had the potential to become addictive if overused), but it did do the trick in keeping her nightmares away. She had slept right around the clock two nights in a row without unpleasant dreams and, surrounded by her family, her creatures and with only days to go until Christmas, felt much improved.Her little brother Cassian, an excitable, sunny-natured boy of nine, was keen to hear every detail about Hogwarts and so peppered her with endless questions as they helped their father feed and tend to all the creatures and assisted their mother with wrapping Christmas presents. He was excited to meet Merlin, who would be coming to visit just before New Year, interested in hearing all about Hagrid and the giant squid, and determined that when he went to Hogwarts, he would be a Hufflepuff. Cosima thought he would make a very good one.In turn, he told Cosima all about what he had been doing at the local muggle primary school that she herself had attended up until the previous June. Newt and Tina were both very keen that their children learn and understand muggle culture and insisted that they be given the change to mix with muggle children before starting at Hogwarts. Cassian had played the angel Gabriel in the school nativity play and Cosima was sorry she had not been home from Hogwarts in time to see it.The fierce wind coming in off the English Channel had made it bitingly cold and prevented too much outdoor exploration but the siblings, who were of similarly even and placid temperaments, always got on well together and so found it no hardship to entertain themselves indoors. They played endless games of exploding snap and gobstones, and hid shiny trinkets in their bedrooms for Newt's niffler to hunt for. Niff was very old now, but just as determined to fill his lair with anything sparkly, and he made short work of finding everything they'd hidden. He even indulged being snuggled by Cosima, though was apt to make off with her earrings when she did so!As he had promised, Newt wrote a little message to Hagrid in the book Cosima had purchased for him and she wrapped it up and sent it off to Hogwarts with Tostig along with a letter wishing him a Merry Christmas. Asteria had hooted disgruntledly; offended not to be entrusted with the task but Cosima reminded the barn owl that she had made two very long journeys in the last ten days and instead asked her to make the much shorter journey to deliver Merlin's Christmas present to where he lived with his uncle in London.On the evening before Christmas Eve, the family got ready to travel by the floo network up to Newt's mother's estate in Hertfordshire, where the Scamanders traditionally spent every Christmas. Newt would apparate back down to Seaview House early each morning and then again in the evening to make sure the creatures were all right, and everyone else would return on Boxing Day night.Newt and Cassian stepped into the fire first, called out 'Scamander Lodge' and vanished in a swirl of green light. Tina and Cosima followed directly afterwards, materialising in the large kitchen fireplace of Scamander lodge to find Phryne and Helios had also just arrived moments before."Mum's just finishing up outside," explained Theseus, who'd evidently come up a bit earlier than the others and who was busy boiling the kettle and taking teacups out of the cupboard. "She'll be in in a moment and we can head through to the sitting room."As if on cue, the door to the kitchen opened. "Ah, here are my favourite three grandchildren!" cried Diana Scamander delightedly, bustling in the door and coming to hug and kiss all three of them."Granny, we're your only three grandchildren!" Cassian completed the old joke with a giggle as she ruffled his tawny curls."Still my favourites!" Diana twinkled at him. She was a fine looking, dignified witch of seventy, with shrewd, intelligent green eyes, iron-grey hair twisted up into an elegant knot and a kindly face. She had been a hippogriff breeder in her day, and the estate was still home to half a dozen of the magnificent beasts, who lived in the stables she had just come from. Though she was elderly, she was as fit as a fiddle and still enjoyed looking after them. Her chiefest delight, however, were her grandchildren and she fussed over them fondly now."You're looking more like yourself again than you were at the weekend, Cosima dear. A few proper sleeps have done you good. As for you," She swatted Helios's arm affectionately. "I don't know what your mother is feeding you, but I swear you're taller every time I see you! Come through and sit down and you can tell me all about school."Newt and Theseus picked up two laden tea trays and the family moved through to the large, elegant sitting room, furnished in rich oak wood and dark green fabrics. A warm fire was already burning so the room, dominated by an enormous, twinkling Christmas tree, was cosy as the small crowd sat down to drink tea or hot chocolate and munch through slices of a spectacular Christmas cake. Diana Scamander was, in her grandchildren's not unbiased opinion, the world's very best baker. Phryne always agreed; and remarked that it was a real miracle that Newt and Theseus had turned out so thin!To Cosima's embarrassment, Helios decided this was the perfect time to regale the rest of the family with the tale of the Helios Scamander Defence Squad. Everyone else seemed to find it as entertaining as he had, Cassian looking fairly impressed that she'd been brave enough to try and take on a seventh year, even if she had been disarmed in three seconds."Jumping into other people's practice duels?" remarked Theseus with a grin exactly like his son's. "Where do you suppose she gets that from, Tina?"Tina Scamander laughed ruefully. "You're not ever going to let me live that one down are you?" she asked."Certainly not!" Theseus returned cheerfully, passing her the teapot. "But you remain the only person ever to stupefy me unawares, so I congratulate you for that!""Mum?" Cassian turned to Tina in amazement, his piece of cake frozen halfway to his mouth. "You attacked Uncle Theseus? Why?""A bit of a misunderstanding after I'd first met your father," Tina confessed, sharing an embarrassed glance with Newt, who was watching the exchange with twinkling eyes. The adults were all laughing; evidently they had heard the story before."Righto," Helios said, making himself comfortable on the sofa beside Cosima and taking a sip of his tea. "Consider us all ears, Aunt Tina! Do tell!""Maybe I'd better explain how it all came about in the first place," Newt began. "In 1926, after we'd helped uncover Gellert Grindelwald who was posing as an auror in New York, I came back to London to drop off my manuscript for Fantastic Beasts and then decided to return to New York to help with the clean-up. There was a lot going on. The auror he'd been impersonating, Percival Graves – you remember Mr Graves, who visited last year? – had only just been found, your Uncle Jacob had been obliviated and MACUSA was still in turmoil after having to deal with magical creatures for the first time in years. I was at least able to help on that front. I'd been there for a few weeks or so when I got a letter saying that Theseus was coming to see me. He'd been in Europe when I'd got back to London so we'd not seen each other in almost a year. Now, in the course of meeting your mother, Queenie and Jacob, I'd inadvertently been responsible for the release of a demiguise, an occamy, and an erumpant on New York. My niffler had tried to rob a bank, then a jewellery shop and I'd also managed to get myself sentenced to immediate death...all of this before I fought Grindelwald. I knew Theseus wasn't going to be best pleased with me!""So Newt tells us all about this war hero big brother who he was expecting to arrive and chew him out, despite the fact he'd just trapped the darkest wizard on the planet and saved MACUSA from major exposure," Tina continued, eyeing Theseus apologetically. "And he'd muttered all these things about his brother never having approved of his travelling and how he was going to be in so much trouble. We all started to feel a little protective of him!""What I'd unfortunately forgotten to explain, having taken it for granted they would understand," Newt interjected. "Was that as well as being my brother, Theseus was my best friend and had been immensely supportive of my magizoology career. It's only thanks to your Uncle Theseus that I got a job at the Ministry at all, you know. What he very much less fond of was the fact I occasionally ended up in…sticky situations while travelling.""Sticky situations?" Diana Scamander shook her head wrly. "That's a rather inventive way of putting it, Newt, I must say!""Bloody well nearly got yourself killed all the time is a more accurate description, little brother!" Theseus said flatly. "I lived in dread of the day I was going to get an owl asking me to identify your body. You had no sense of self-preservation at all! You still don't, actually!""Well, anyway," Tina picked the thread up again, smiling at the three younger members of the family who were looking vastly entertained. "We completely misinterpreted what Newt was telling us and got it into our heads – Queenie, Mr Graves and I – that Theseus was a bully where Newt was concerned. Mr Graves had known Theseus from the war and had been his penpal ever since. He said Theseus was the bravest wizard he'd ever met, but it was possible that his hero status might have gone to his head. So we were all on our guard when he came to MACUSA, determined that we wouldn't let him hurt Newt, who'd after all just saved our entire city. Queenie tried to read him but Theseus is a pretty talented Occlumens. We never stopped to think that that was because of everything he'd gone through in the war; we just thought he was deliberately hiding something, and every time he teased Newt, we thought he was being cruel.""They made it pretty dashed clear I wasn't welcome," Theseus laughed. "Perce had been a mate of mine for years and I couldn't for the life of me understand why he was suddenly giving me the cold shoulder. Couldn't get me out of his office quick enough, kept making the most obviously false excuses so he didn't even have to talk to me, and the rest of the auror department followed suit. I thought he was angry that I hadn't realised he'd been taken by Grindelwald sooner – we'd been writing to each other fairly frequently since the war – but then I was introduced to Newt's new lady friend and she was exactly the same; cold as ice. Never obviously so in front of Newt, but definitely unfriendly. Any attempt I made to get to know them fell flat. Remember when we were all supposed to meet for dinner and you deliberately gave me the wrong directions?""Mum!" exclaimed Cosima reproachfully."Mercy Lewis, don't remind me!" Tina shook her head, really embarrassed now. "We were pretty awful to you!""And of course, I got back to the flat I was renting, found Theseus there on his own after having failed to show up for dinner, and thought it was all just an unfortunate accident," Newt confessed. "I was so excited to see him again, and so pleased to suddenly have so many friends that I was quite blind to what was going on in front of me!""I lasted about a week, then decided I was going back home," Theseus said. "I couldn't work out what I'd done or why I was so unwelcome and it was starting to rather sting a bit. I told Newt I was leaving and I'd see him again in the Spring, and he immediately said I couldn't go without at least having a duel first. We always had a practice every time we caught up and we kept a running tally of who won what. I thought there could be no harm in a match before I left, so we set to it.""Queenie, Graves and I arrived at Newt's appartment and let ourselves in just in time to see Theseus shoot a jelly-legs jinx at him," Tina said, sharing a rueful smile with Cosima. "And we jumped to exactly the same conclusion you did, honey. We thought they were really fighting, not having a practice duel. I drew my wand and yelled 'Stupefy'. The problem was, so had Mr Graves and Queenie – at exactly the same time. Poor Theseus took three spells straight to the chest and went flying across the room right into a brick wall. The next thing we knew, he was on the floor unconscious, bleeding from the head, and Newt looked like the world had ended.""I thought he wasn't breathing at first, and I…uh…I panicked a little!" Newt continued, cheeks colouring. "I was shouting at him and shaking him and he wouldn't wake up. I couldn't even begin to understand why they'd done it and I'm fairly certain I started howling.""You did," Tina winced at the memory of Newt's devastated tears. "We said we'd only wanted to stop Theseus from hurting him and suddenly all the misunderstandings came to light. He said Theseus had never hurt him in his entire life; that he was the best brother that he could ask for and they had only been having a practice duel. Well, didn't we feel like heels! We helped him get Theseus to the healers and they said he might take a couple of days to recover, so we had to send a message to the Ministry of Magic explaining why one of their aurors had been incapacitated. The next day your Aunt Phryne stormed into MACUSA with another British auror, demanding to know what Yank wizard she had to hex.""Steve Travers and I took an unauthorised Transatlantic portkey the minute we heard Thee was injured," Phryne took up the story now, smiling at the look of delighted incredulity on Helios's face when he heard her blatant flouting of the law. "Your father and I were only pals at the time. He, Steve and I were all that was left of the group we'd run off to war with – and we were ready to make the lives of anyone who'd hurt him a misery.""She was like a Fury. I'd rather have faced off with an angry Ukranian Ironbelly!" Newt chuckled. "And of course, word soon got around that she was the Minister for Magic's daughter and so people had to be polite to her to avoid causing an international incident. You certainly took advantage of that, didn't you, Phryne? She was outrageously disrespectful to the MACUSA aurors – I think she and Steve had challenged half of them to duels within fifteen minutes of arriving, yelling at them about what they thought of people who attacked someone who'd done them no harm. I must say, Phryne, I've always been very glad never to have been on your bad side!""I was pretty afraid of you, I don't mind admitting!" Tina confessed to her now sister-in-law. "We'd been worried for our jobs when we realised how badly we'd got things wrong, but the minute you arrived we started to fear for our necks as well!""It all worked out all right in the end though," Newt told Cosima, Cassian and Helios. "I managed to keep Phryne and Steve from killing anyone. Theseus came round and of course everything was made clear and he received a fairly lengthy string of apologies. Thankfully, neither the Ministry nor MACUSA chose to make a big fuss about the incident and nothing was taken any further.""I did not too badly out of it, in the end," Theseus said, looking at his wife with a loving smile, sliding an arm around her waist."I realised then I wasn't too keen on the idea of ever losing him," Phryne explained to her son, niece and nephew. "And it turned out he felt the same. We stayed in New York long enough for his head to mend and then we eloped.""Yes, and left me to explain to Minister Fawley that you'd run off with my brother!" said Newt indignantly. "Thanks awfully for that, by the way!""Well it was about time," said Diana fondly. "You'd been dancing around each other since ever you got back from the war, I'm glad something made you finally come to your senses!""Ah well, titch, you didn't knock Vance out!" Helios grinned. "Things weren't too bad after all, were they? But it looks as though you can always ask Aunt Tina for tips!"On Christmas day, after opening presents, they all sat down to a sumptuous feast of turkey and all the trimmings. They pulled Christmas crackers, making the dining room echo with the loud bangs, laughed at each other's ridiculous hats and laughed even more at the absurd jokes that came with them.Over Christmas pudding, Newt, Theseus and Phryne regaled them with tales of some of the hijinks they themselves had got up to at Hogwarts; reminiscing about the full scale inter-house prank war that had occurred when Theseus and Phryne were in their seventh year and Newt in his fourth. It had apparently ended with the Herbology master's robes catching fire and every single member of the seventh year, across all four houses, being put in detention for a week."We had to clean every inch of the castle!" said Theseus ruefully, making the fez from his cracker wobble as he shook his head. "With no magic!""I remember Steve and Castor trying to 'accidentally' use a spell to help things along," Phryne, who had found an Egyptian headdress in hers, laughed. "Dippet caught them and they had to choose between being banned from their quidditch teams or cleaning the Great Hall once a week for the rest of the year.""What did they pick?" asked Cassian eagerly, who was wearing a bicorn hat and looking like a little pirate."They opted for the cleaning," Theseus told them. "Though I think by the end of the year, they were regretting it. Personally, after scrubbing the dungeons, I've never been able to look at Ferriburg's Firecrackers the same way again!"When the pudding was finished, Theseus Scamander rose and poured a glass of Oggden's Firewhisky for each of the adults and a slightly smaller one for Helios who was now considered fully of age. Cosima and Cassian were both young enough that they didn't really understand what all the fuss was about drinking anyway, and were quite content to have lemonade."To absent friends," said Theseus gravely, raising his glass."Absent friends," everyone else echoed, doing likewise.It was a toast that Theseus, Newt and Phryne had made every year for as long as Cosima could remember; an acknowledgement of all the people they'd gone off to war with who had never got to see another Christmas. Cosima noticed the look of raw pain that flared across Phryne's face as she sipped her glass of firewhisky. Her twin brother Castor, the boy who they'd just moments ago had been describing playing quidditch and trying to get out of detention, had been amongst the fallen.She looked down at the silver coin she'd found in her pudding and wished with all her might that this current war, which had followed the War To End All Wars, would soon draw to a close; before any more of the people left behind were forced to wear looks like her aunt's. She wished fervently that Grindelwald would be locked away forever before Helios joined the auror programme.Later on in the afternoon, when everyone began to feel a little less stuffed, Helios and Cassian challenged Newt and Theseus to a game of two-against-two quidditch. The elder Scamanders, who had both played as Chasers for their house teams, acquiesced and the snowy garden was soon full of the sounds of teasing banter.Cosima, who was dreadful at quidditch, went into the stables to visit the new hippogiff cub that Cassian had written to her about. Lydystra, it's mother, returned Cosima's bow regally and allowed the eleven year old to pat her neck and stroke her beak. Satisfied the girl was no threat, she stood aside to reveal her new cub; a beautiful bronze-coloured little creature who nodded its head to Cosima and then contendedly accepted her fusses and cuddles. She would have to ask to borrow her grandmother's camera and take a photo back to show Merlin and Hagrid!Phryne stood with Tina and Diana for a while, laughing as they watched the quidditch game, before coming to join her in the stable, and Cosima seized her chance."Aunt Phryne," she began in what she hoped was an artless tone. "You and Uncle Theseus were duelling champions at Hogwarts, weren't you?""We were," Phryne confirmed with a smile, then quirked one dark eyebrow. "Have you got a taste for it after taking on that Slytherin boy?""No," Cosima laughed self-consciously. "I'll leave the duelling to Helios. But I've been thinking…about my friend Gwion, the one who was petrified. Is there a curse that can freeze someone like that – you know, totally petrify them?""Ah, investigating like a true Ravenclaw?" Phryne asked. "Well, not really, dear, not to the extent you're talking about. There's the body bind curse – you know, petrificus totalus – but that is effectively a temporary one. It freezes you physically, but not functionally: you still blink, breathe and so on. And of course it can be stopped the moment the moment someone says finite incantatem. I've never come across a spell that can completely petrify one's opponent, and we were on the receiving end of our fair share of curses in the war!""So it has to be a monster then, like the message at Halloween said," Cosima said, more to herself than her aunt. "Logically, there is no other option! But…what creature has the power to freeze someone? And how can it be at the school without anyone having seen it?""Well, your father is the expert there," Phryne replied. "But I can't say I've ever heard of a creature with that power either. I'm sure the teachers are looking into it though, Cosima. Let them take care of catching the culprit. You just focus on your schoolwork."This was very much in the same vein as what her parents had said, but Cosima resolved to do a bit more research before Merlin visited at New Year, glad she'd taken half the library shelf on magical creatures home with her!Between the two of them, surely they could figure out the answer!

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As planned, Merlin came to visit on the day before New Year's Eve; flooing over to Seaview House in the company of his uncle.Percival Pendragon, who was the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and therefore Tina's boss, was a tall, well-built man with dark hair, piercingly blue eyes, a long, straight nose and a stubbled jaw who looked to be somewhere in the region of his late forties. Cosima surveyed his grim-looking visage and thought he looked rather scary, though a small part of her acknowledged he could hardly be too terrifying if he had managed to have a nephew as lively and good-humoured as Merlin.Merlin dashed eagerly out of the fire as soon as the flames died down and he and Cosima quickly began to exchange the small fragments of news they'd gathered over Christmas. Merlin had got a new broom; Cosima had seen her grandmother's new hippogriff cub; Puddlemere United had unexpectedly won the Boxing Day quidditch match…and had they made a start on Slughorn's holiday homework yet?"Tina, could I have a word before I head off?" Percival Pendragon asked, just quietly enough to signal this was Not A Subject For Young Ears. The two young Ravenclaws fell silent and exchanged curious glances, hoping that the conversation would take place here in the living room where they could conveniently overhear it."Of course, come through and have a cup of tea," Tina replied, gesturing through to the kitchen and diminishing their hopes. There would be no chance of hearing them unless they hovered by the kitchen door and it was impossible to eavesdrop so obviously on two accomplished aurors without being spotted. This, on top of her mother and Theseus's evasive replies in Diagon Alley before Christmas, made Cosima wonder if something was happening with Grindelwald. They were all involved in the hunt for him."Merlin, behave!" Percival warned pointedly, before following Tina out of the room.Merlin just rolled his eyes and grinned; evidently quite used to his uncle's grim expression. "Thanks for the book about Hippogriffs!" he said to Cosima. "It's really interesting! I've decided I'm definitely taking Care of Magical Creatures with you when we get to third year!""You're welcome," Cosima replied happily. "I took pictures of the new cub to show you with my Granny's camera – he's really sweet and cuddly. And thanks for the journal. It's just like my dad's one, so I'm going to make notes about all the creatures we've seen at Hogwarts in it."She took Merlin up to see her room, both of them chatting away about their respective family Christmases. Merlin had spent his with his uncle, grandmother and his aunt Isolde (his father and Percival's sister) and her husband. He had had a wonderful time and was delighted with his new broom, but he was glad to be spending time with someone his own age again. Percival was unmarried, and Isolde had no children so he rather envied Cosima the games she'd had with Cassian and Helios.While they were looking at the pictures of Diana's new hippogriff cub, Cassian shyly put his head around the door. Cosima beckoned him in and introduced him to Merlin who, not having any siblings of his own, greeted him enthusiastically. He'd never been to a muggle school and so was interested in hearing about the sort of things Cassian learned at his and Cassian, having asked Cosima endless questions about Hogwarts, managed to find a few more for Merlin too.With everyone now fast friends, the Scamander siblings decided it was time to take Merlin to meet all the creatures he had heard so much about and the three of them filed down the stairs and out through the snow-covered back garden to what appeared to be a standard nondescript barn.It was anything but!Like the suitcase he had carried around when he'd first met his wife; Newt Scamander had enlarged the barn until it resembled an aircraft hangar. Lit by floating lanterns, it stretched cavernously as far as the eye could see in any direction. It was arranged by sections, with every creature residing there provided with their own individual habitat which mimicked the conditions they would have lived in in the world outside.Merlin simply stood their staring, his eyes as wide and round as any owl's and his mouth hanging open. He seemed to struggle to decide which direction to look in; his head whizzing first one way and then that as he observed row after row of the magically-constructed habitats."This. Is. Incredible!" he gasped. "I've never seen anywhere so amazing!"Cosima and Cassian shared proud smiles. They were both extremely proud of their father's work. Many of the creatures here had been hunted, injured or imprisoned and in some cases, without Newt's intervention, may have become permanently extinct. Although understanding of magical creatures had improved since the twenties, there was still a long way to go before all creatures could live safely and unthreatened.The Scamanders and their visitor spend the next two and half hours wandering through the enormous barn; visiting each and every creature that Cosima and Cassian were permited to interact with without their father present. They visited Cosima's favourites; the mooncalfs first. The gentle creatures were sociable animals and so crowded curiously around Merlin to be petted and fed the pellets they enjoyed. Merlin followed Cosima and Cassian's lead, petting them gently above their large round eyes. He was genuinely speechless. He'd only ever read about these creatures before; he'd certainly never seen, let alone touched one!With the mooncalfs fed and content, next they went to the small tree where Pip and all the other bowtruckles were to be found. Cosima was impressed when Merlin recognised Pip immediately; lots of people couldn't tell one bowtruckle from the other! Sensing that his favourite human was going to be in the barn for a while, Pip climbed up to settle on Cosima's shoulder while the other bowtruckles chattered away to the visitors with high, excited little squeaks.They were also soon joined by Dougal the demiguise, who had been with Newt Scamander for years. The big-eyed, peaceful creature climbed up onto Cassian's back, eyeing Merlin curiously; taking his hand when Merlin said hello and inspecting him intently. He evidently decided Merlin was a suitable friend for his human's cubs though, and patted his hand gently before letting it go. Merlin looked absurdly pleased.Fussing affectionately over each new group of creatures, they stopped by the fwoopers, the graphorns, the mokes, the nogtails and then, finally, the occamies. Merlin watched in amazement as Cassian reached into the basket-like nest and let one of the bluish-purple creatures slither up his arm. These ones he hadn't even read about!"They're Cassian's favourites," Cosima told him. "It's difficult for them to breed in the wild, as their eggs are made from silver and so their nests always get raided. Dad's been leading a programme at the Ministry to assist with occamy conservation. What do you think of the barn?""I think it's unbelievable!" Merlin said emphatically. "If I lived here, I wouldn't even want to go to school!"They spent the rest of the morning hiding treasures for Niff until lunch time arrived. After the family demolished a huge pile of sandwiches for lunch, Newt took Cassian out to meet one of his friends from the nearby village, and Merlin and Cosima seized the chance to talk a little more secretly about the happenings of the previous term at Hogwarts."Have you made any progress on figuring out what got Gwion?" Merlin asked, as soon as the door to Cosima's bedroom shut behind them. "I keep running into dead ends!""I asked my Aunt Phryne if it could have been a spell," Cosima said quietly. "But she said there was no spell that could freeze anyone like that; and she's a duelling champion who fought in the war.""Uncle Percy said the same," Merlin sighed. "Said there was no known way of petrifying a person long-term. He's spent his whole life fighting dark wizards so if he's never come across a curse like that, it obviously doesn't exist! It's got to be some sort of creature then, hasn't it?""It must be," Cosima nodded. "But then… how did no one see it? Do you think it's simply really small?""Maybe," Merlin mused, chewing his lip thoughtfully. "Or maybe it can turn invisible, and that's why you and Harriet never spotted it? Perhaps like your demiguise?""Demiguises are peaceful; you saw Dougal earlier, he wouldn't hurt a fly! But if something else could turn invisible, then that maybe could be the answer! I took some books home from the common room library," Cosima said. "I haven't had the chance to go through many of them yet; Mum and Dad said we should leave the teachers to look into it. I was having some pretty awful nightmares and I think they thought I'd make them worse if I was asking questions. Let's have a look and see if we can find anything there that could be the culprit!"Settling down on their stomachs on Cosima's bedroom floor, they each opened one of the thick leather books and began to pore through them. Every time they came across a creature with real potential to hurt someone, they made a note of its name and its method of attacking. Their lists began to lengthen as the afternoon wore on, but while they noted poisonous bites, flaming breath and teeth that could snap bones, they found no mention of invisible creatures, nor beasts that could petrify their victims.As tea time approached, Newt looked in on them. "Homework during the holidays?" he joked, looking at the two sets of notes they'd made. "I think it's safe to say that you two definitely got put in the right house!""Mr Scamander, have you ever come across a creature that could petrify someone?" asked Merlin curiously, laying down his quill."Cosima, I thought we'd agreed that there would be no more investigating," Newt said, voice firm and as close to stern as it ever became."We're not investigating – at least, not exactly!" Merlin said hurriedly. "It's more curiosity, really, as we can't think of any explanation for what happened and we're both interested in magical creatures. Plus, if we could understand what hurt Gwion, we could at least know what to be wary of when we go back to school." It was only a very small lie, Cosima consoled herself, feeling her cheeks colour.Newt, seeing that neither of them would be swayed, relented with a sigh, sitting down on the floor beside them. "Well, I only know of two; but neither of those could be the creature that hurt your friend," he told them. "A basilisk and a gorgon both would have had the power to petrify humans – but the last gorgon was killed by Godric Gryffindor a thousand years ago and there hasn't been a basilisk reported since the sixteen hundreds.""Oh," said Merlin, looking crestfallen. "So we're still back at square one. It can't have been a curse, it can't have been a creature…what could it have been? There has to be something!""As to that, I'm not sure," Newt told him kindly. "But I've told Cosima already, you're only eleven. You don't need to investigate – the teachers will take care of that, and the auror department too if need be. Your safety is much more of a priority than finding answers, so I want you both to promise me that you will be sensible when you go back to school!""We will," said Cosima and Merlin together."Good," Newt smiled approvingly, ruffling Cosima's hair before standing up again. "Tea will be ready soon; Mum's making scones. I'll call up when they're ready.""So there are no spells that could have done it, and no creatures either!" said Merlin in frustration, once Newt had left the room, staring down at his notes. "So what happened? Gwion didn't just keel over of his own accord!""My dad doesn't use dark magic though," Cosima said thoughtfully, inspiration suddenly striking. "Maybe there are creatures that he hasn't encountered yet! Really dark ones, or rare ones; perhaps something that could be controlled by a dark wizard.""Maybe," Merlin conceded. "Where are we going to get information on those though?""We're going to need to go through all the other magical creature books at Hogwarts once we get back," Cosima told him solemnly. "In both libraries. What if it strikes again? I know we said we'd be sensible, but surely trying to figure this out is sensible. Someone else could get hurt, and perhaps we can stop it if we can figure out what hurt Gwion in the first place!""Agreed!" Merlin nodded. "We need to make a start as soon as we get back."Soon afterwards, they were called down to tea and Percival Pendragon arrived to collect Merlin. There was no chance to further discuss their plans, so they simply enjoyed the hot scones Tina had made and chatted with their parents & guardian about what they hoped to learn in the upcoming term. Cosima certainly hoped it would be more peaceful than the last one!All too soon, the Christmas holidays were over and it was time to make their way to Platform Nine and Three Quarters once again, to get the train back to Hogwarts. Tina had had to go to work unexpectedly– and so Cosima flooed to London with just her father for company. The platform, as always, was noisy and crowded – though the atmosphere was a tad less excitable than it had been on the first day of the holidays. Arriving home for Christmas was considerably more exciting than going back to school again.Cosima waved as she spotted first Harriet, then Freddie and then Merlin, who was with his grandmother; Percival Pendragon nowhere to be seen. There was definitely something going on in the auror department – Theseus had also had to work that day and so Helios had arrived with Phryne."Now, remember what I said," Newt told her, hugging her close as the whistle sounded; signalling it was time for everyone to board. "I want you to be careful and not to put yourself in danger, alright?""I'll be careful," Cosima promised, and she really meant it. She had no intention of rushing headlong into danger; she only wanted to figure out what was going on."Good girl," Newt nodded approvingly and kissed her forehead. "Have a lovely term, darling. Remember to let us know how you're getting on.""I will," Cosima enjoyed the hug for a moment longer before letting go. Hogwarts was great fun – apart from what had happened to Gwion – but being at home with her family was far nicer and it was a bit of a wrench to be going away again. "Bye Dad."Hurrying to fall into step beside Merlin, who had just finished bidding his grandmother farewell, Cosima headed for what had now become their usual carriage, joined by Marjorie, Harriet, Freddie, Florizel, Octavia and Ruby.With Christmas news to exchange, descriptions of presents, pantomimes, Christmas lunches and family games, they were well furnished for conversation; making it a much lighter journey this time around. Helios, Marius Vance, James Shacklebolt and Helena Gordon all looked in on them at various points throughout the journey, and thankfully they saw nothing of the Trolls.The closer they got to Hogwarts, the worse the weather became. They could see huge mounds of snow piled on either side of the train tracks and thick white flakes floated past the windows. Evidently the castle was going to be as icy as they left it!"We won't have to go in the boats this time around will we?" Octavia asked Helena worriedly when she looked in on them when it began to get dark."No, don't fret, you'll go in the carriages this time," the seventh year assured them kindly. "At any rate, I suspect the lake may have frozen over if this weather is anything to go by."It transpired she was correct. When the carriages rolled up the hill from Hogsmeade station later on that evening, they could see surface of the lake in the moonlight. It was frozen solid. Cosima hoped the squid would be all right!No one dallied when the time came to alight from the carriages and get inside. They rushed through the doors to the entrance hall and sighed in relief at the warmth they found there, created by the roaring fire in the enormous fireplace.Professors Beery and Merrythought were there, and shepherded everyone through into the Great Hall brusquely, where the newcomers joined the students who had stayed at Hogwarts over Christmas. The roof of the hall glittered mesmerizingly; reflecting the heavy snowfall which was occurring outside."Cosima!" She started a little at the booming voice and found herself caught up in a hug that lifted her off her feet and threatened to crack her ribs."Hagrid!" she gasped, wincing. "It's great to see you, but I need to breathe!""Sorry!" said the enormous Gryffindor ruefully, dropping her back down onto the ground again. His eyes were bright and happy. "Thanks so much fer that book! I can't believe yer got yer Dad to sign it – I nearly keeled over when I realised I got a message from the Newt Scamander! It's amazin'!""You're welcome!" Cosima smiled at his enthusiasm. "I'm glad you liked it. I thought of you the minute I saw it!"Hagrid started to tell her what the book had said on the pack behaviour of Ukranian Ironbellys but before he could get too far, they were forced to take their seats at their respective house tables so that the meal could begin.Professor Dippet called for silence and welcomed all the students back to the first term of 1943. He announced, to much general groaning, that quidditch matches and training would be postponed until the weather cleared up and no student was permitted out on the grounds without express permission. Neither of these announcements bothered Cosima very much. She only attended quidditch matches to cheer on either Ravenclaw or Helios and she and Merlin had so much research to do on dark magical creatures that they would have no time to spare for exploring the grounds anyway!Huge bowls of hearty stew and tureens of soup appeared on the table when Professor Dippet finished talking; exactly the sort of food that blizzards called for! Everyone tucked in hungrily and their cold fingers and noses soon warmed up again. Up and down the table people were talking about the holidays, the weather... but then the news went around the hall that someone had claimed Gellert Grindelwald had apparently been sighted in England."You think that's what Uncle Percy and your Mum were talking about?" asked Merlin in a hushed whisper, his face going white."I don't know," Cosima said anxiously, thinking again of her Aunt Phryne's agonised face when Uncle Theseus has toasted their fallen comrades. Surely there would be more to add to that list of Grindelwald was on the move, and both her Mum and Merlin's uncle would be in the thick of it. "Surely they would have told us if he was on the loose? I just hope they're careful that's all!""You think he would come to Hogwarts?" asked Chris Carmichael, further up the table. "You know they say he's got unfinished business with Professor Dumbledore!""He'd be mad to try it!" replied James Shacklebolt. "This castle has more wards on it than any other building in Britain and possibly in Europe! There's no way he could get in here! And any rate, with both Dumbledore and Merrythought around, I think we're all safe enough.""Hey, don't get too worried," Helena assured the younger Ravenclaws hurriedly, seeing that some of first and second years were looking nothing short of terrified. "It's only a rumour. The Prophet hasn't confirmed anything, nor has the Ministry. He may not even be in England at all."Still, no one found they had much of an appetite for the hot chocolate and shortbread that followed the meal!The next day found them straight back into their timetables, so there wasn't time for too much worrying about the whereabouts of Grindelwald. Professor Beery gave them a test in Herbology to see how much they remembered from before the holidays, Professor Dumbledore set them a long essay on the regulations of transfiguring living creatures and Professor Merrythought gave them such a terrifying lecture on what happened when defensive jinxes went wrong that they traipsed down to dinner a little shell-shocked, having been set another very long essay by her. It was evident that the teachers meant to work them hard this term!Cosima and Merlin, having read half the shelf of books on magical creatures in the Ravenclaw library over the holidays, gathered up the other half that evening and found a quiet corner of the common room to work through them. No one bothered them – their classmates just took it for granted now that Cosima was mad on magical creatures and Merlin wasn't far behind.But, as it had been before Christmas, their search proved unfruitful. Over the next ten days, they went through every single one of the books cover to cover, making notes on the creatures they read about and their potential to harm wizardkind. There were creatures that could bite, burn and maul…but nothing that could petrify and nothing that could creep around Hogwarts unnoticed.Then, towards the end of January, just as they were making progress on the books in the main library, another student was found frozen.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

"It's happened again!"

"Have you heard? There's been another attack - same as that Hufflepuff before Christmas!"
The news flew up and down the corridors of Hogwarts as the students left their classrooms at lunchtime on a cold, snowy day in late January. Another student had been found petrified in the Charms Corridor; this time it was a seventh-year Gryffindor boy.Stepping out of Transfiguration, her book bag over her shoulder, Cosima felt an icy vice close tightly around her heart as she heard the other's talking. Helios… All thoughts of lunch and then a trip to the library completely abandoned, she took to her heels and ran down the Transfiguration corridor as though a giant acromantula was on her heels, only dimly aware that Merlin was following on behind her. Her blood thundered in her ears. What if the thing, the shadowy creature of her nightmares - whatever it was - had got her cousin? Why hadn't she and Merlin figured out what it was yet? She'd never forgive herself if Helios was hurt!She pelted down the main staircase so quickly, she almost fell head first down the last few steps. Stumbling, she regained her balance, and then sprinted for the Charms corridor, uncaring of the odd looks she was attracting. She was charging along so fast that when someone stepped in front of her at the head of the Charms corridor, she crashed headlong right into them. Whoever they were, they were significantly bigger than she was and the collision sent her staggering back; falling heavily back on her behind, her book bag clattering to the floor."Hey, what do you think you're playing at? Watch where…titch? What are you doing down here?""Helios!" Cosima felt her whole body go wobbly with relief. Helios Scamander was not the second victim; he was standing right in front of her, hands on his hips, looking uncommonly serious but very much alive and well. Only now did she realise she was out of breath, panting desperately for air after sprinting across half the school. "They said… a seventh year… Griffyndor boy… had been attacked…and I thought…""Ah," said Helios understandingly, face softening as he helped her up. He gave her a quick, reassuring hug. "They didn't tell you it was George Seymour. Poor bugger had forgotten his textbook. He went back to the tower to get it and never came back to class. We found him when the bell rang – no idea how long he'd been lying there. The rest of the teachers are on their way down now, so you'd best head off again."Just as Merlin came skidding to a halt at her side, panting, Cosima peered around Helios's sturdy frame. Lying lifelessly upon the corridor floor, his feet in a large puddle of water for some reason, was a tall red-haired boy in Gryffindor robes. His body was frozen in an unusual position; it was clear that he had been kneeling down when it happened, and one hand was thrown up across his face as though to defend himself. Like Gwion, he was chalk white and still as a statue, an expression of horror contorting his face. Cosima's stomach lurched unpleasantly at the memories it brought back.The spell book Seymour had so obviously gone to retrieve was lying open, cover-upwards, on the floor where it had evidently fallen from his grasp. Had he dropped it and been kneeling to pick it up? Professor Fisher and a number of Seventh Year Gryffindor and Hufflepuff students were gathered around him, talking in hushed, anxious whispers. One of the Hufflepuff girls was crying.Rather bizarrely, also on the floor nearby was an old wooden bucket; after a couple of second's confusion, Cosima recognised it as the one Peeves liked to use to dump water on unsuspecting students between classes. That would explain where the water on the floor had come from at least. She looked back at Seymour's frozen form and shivered."Go on," Helios prompted firmly, nodding in the direction they had just come from. "You get back to the Great Hall now; you two don't need to see any more of this. I don't want you having more nightmares, titch.""But…did anyone see what did it?" Merlin asked urgently. "Maybe Peeves did…?" He trailed off as Dippet, Dumbledore and Merrythought came hurrying down the corridor towards them, all looking exceptionally serious."Never you mind," Helios said sternly, shooing them both away again. "Back to the Great Hall with you."With the arrival of so many members of staff, Cosima and Merlin really had no option but to do as they were told. Slowly, they made their way back up to the Great Hall, which was abuzz with students anxiously trying to figure out what had happened and who it was specifically who had been petrified. The bloody Halloween message was much discussed again. Professors Beery and Slughorn were the only staff members present and they resolutely refused to answer any questions.Neither Cosima nor Merlin had much of an appetite for lunch anymore and sat picking thoughtfully at their food while the other Ravenclaws at the table discussed what had happened. They'd been through over three dozen books since coming back after the Christmas holidays and had found absolutely nothing that could be a possible lead. How was it possible that whatever this was had evaded the notice of all wizardkind?!They still had to cover the main library, but whatever they might find, it would be too late for George Seymour! And given that whatever had frozen he and Gwion was obviously still in the school, how long was everyone else safe?None of the seventh year Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs nor any of the other teachers appeared during the rest of lunch, and so Beery and Slughorn sent them off to their afternoon classes as normal.Luckily for the first year Ravenclaws, their class was History of Magic; the only subject in which the studious youngsters did not pay avid attention. Professor Binns droned on and on, his flat, monotonous voice making their eyes glaze and their attention wander and so the class was able to keep discussing the newest attack unhindered amongst themselves without him even pausing for breath.Sat at the back of the class, Cosima and Merlin whispered together anxiously, digging out the piles of notes they had been making on their research thus far. They'd managed to eliminate dozens of creatures as potential culprits but none of that was getting them any further in managing to pin down what it was."It's impossible to get to the Charms corridor without going through the Entrance Hall or the courtyard," Merlin hissed bewilderedly. "There's only a bathroom at the far end. How could no one have seen anything? Unless someone apparated…""You can't apparate inside Hogwarts, remember?" Cosima whispered back. "The wards prevent it. It can't have been someone from outside. Something is happening inside the school! But if it's something that's evading Dumbledore, Kettleburn and Merrythought, then what in Parcelsus are we dealing with? And what chance do you and I have of finding out what it is?""We're going to need to start on the main library," Merlin sighed tiredly. "It's all we have left."They'd spent every moment of their free time reading since returning, and on top of their heavier homework load, the both Ravenclaws were nigh on exhausted. They were also beginning to grow disheartened at their lack of success. It felt too much like they were failing Gwion."We'd best go dig some books out after dinner then, and make a start tonight," Cosima agreed with a grimace, raising a hand to rub weary eyes. "And if we spend most of the weekend working through them, maybe we could make some good progress?"By the time the students retreated to their various common rooms that evening, the full details of the mornings attack had done the rounds about the school. Seymour had been taken to the hospital wing and was now residing in the bed next to Gwion. Just like the first attack, no one had seen anything suspicious once again. Even Peeves had nothing to add. After much interrogation by the staff, and the eventual threat to summon the Bloody Baron, the poltergeist eventually confessed that he'd dropped the water on Seymour and then flown off to find another student to torment. None of the Gryffindors or Hufflepuffs who were in Charms class had heard anything at all to indicate that something had been going on outside in the corridor. They'd just gone to leave the class when the bell rung and found him lying in the corridor.In the Ravenclaw common room, someone mentioned that Seymour was a muggle-born – and hadn't the first year Hufflepuff boy said his mother was muggle-born? Maybe it really was a monster that preyed on muggle-borns?! Then who could be controlling – and what did they have to gain by terrorising the pupils from non-wizarding families?"Maybe there really is a Chamber of Secrets?" Myrtle Warren wondered out loud to the room at large. She and Olive Hornby for once seemed focussed on something besides sniping at each other."Whatever's going on, you can bet that none of the Slytherins will be harmed!" said one of the fourth years darkly. "It's going to be something to do with all of that pureblood tosh!""I'm still betting Lestrange has something to do with it!" James Shacklebolt stated. And it was true, the Trolls did seem to be the only pupils in the school who found the situation funny.With the entire house gathered to mull over the details of the attack and swap opinions on the most likely culprit, for once the Ravenclaw common room was not an ideal environment for studying. Cosima and Merlin – who'd retrieved an enormous stack of books from the main library after dinner that evening – finally realised around ten o'clock that they were going to have to head to their dormitories if they actually wanted to take in what they were reading.They gathered up their study materials and began to climb the circular staircase that lead to the various dormitories in the tower. About a third of the way up, Merlin came to a complete halt, staring out of one of the windows in confused surprise."What's wrong?" Cosima asked curiously, having nearly walked into him."It's…it's Uncle Percy!" Merlin said, flabbergasted, pointing out of the window in utter disbelief. "Just coming up to the main doors of the castle there, look!""And that's my uncle too!" Cosima exclaimed, peering out of the window and recognising the tall, fair-haired form of Theseus Scamander, who was walking at Percival Pendragon's side. In the glow of the flaming torches of the castle entrance, their dark cloaks stood out against the snowy grounds. "What are they doing here?""Dippet must have called them in," Merlin mused. "Maybe he wants them to investigate the attack?""They must suspect something really serious is going on if they're calling in the aurors," Cosima said quietly. "And the top two aurors in Britain at that! Or else the Ministry has heard and sent them here. I wonder what they think is to blame…""We could try to find out, I suppose," Merlin suggested. "Everyone's so caught up with talking about Seymour, I'm pretty sure we could sneak out of the common room without the prefects spotting us.""If we get caught…" Cosima shivered, thinking of Apolyon Pringle's cane, made from the tail spike of a Hungarian Horntail, and the horror stories she'd heard from people who'd been on the receiving end of it. But then she thought of Gwion's frozen face again and her stomach twisted. They owed it to their friend to take a bit of a risk. And what was the threat of a caning compared to potentially helping prevent any more students from being petrified? "All right, let's go."They hurriedly dumped their books in their respective dormitories, wrenching their bed curtains shut in the event anyone went up to look for them. Then they crept down the stairs and inched their way out of the common room, trying to remain as unobtrusive as possible, and making it look as though they were actually going into the small house library. Luckily, everyone else was too caught up in debating the mysterious attacks on students to spot them or to ask where they were going.They slid out of the door to Ravenclaw Tower, finding the corridor before them dark, eerie and totally silent. They exchanged a tense, worried look – every sound they made would be magnified a hundredfold!"How's your silencing spell?" Merlin whispered, and in the silence of the deserted hall it was almost as though he'd shouted. It was not a spell they would learn for some time in Charms class yet – but the majority of the Ravenclaws studied enough to be somewhat ahead of the other three houses in their year."Passable, I hope!" Cosima returned fervently. "Otherwise we are going to be in so much trouble!""Silencio!" They whispered together, pointing their wands at themselves, and then set off, creeping down along the corridors towards the entrance hall, making sure to keep to the shadows."You ought to be in bed!" hissed a portrait of an elderly witch disapprovingly as they passed her, ignoring Cosima's pleading signals for her to be quiet. Thankfully, she seemed to be content with scolding them herself though, and made no move to raise an alarm.They slipped along the corridors as quickly as they dared; their spell hiding their footsteps and over-quick breathing. Cosima felt goosebumps break out all down her arms – the castle was horribly spooky when it was dark and everyone else was in bed. They were navigating some corridors without any light at all; being unable to risk a Lumos spell and having to rely on touch alone; holding their hands out as they walked. She desperately hoped that they wouldn't run into whatever it was that had petrified Gwion and Seymour.Thankfully, they made it to the Entrance Hall with no major problems and crouched behind one of the marble bannisters lining the stair case to survey the room. It was better lit than the corridors they'd been through so far, so their chances of being caught had multiplied significantly. Merlin raised his hand and pointed silently – in the corridor to the left, they could hear familiar voices, moving further away. Evidently Percival and Theseus were now in the school and were on their way somewhere; most likely to Dippet's office.The hurriedly dashed down the stairs and into the corridor after them, taking care to remain at a respectable distance behind their uncles to avoid being heard."…always thought it was impossible, but do you think he maybe has figured out a way through the wards?" Theseus was saying, his voice much more serious than the jovial tone Cosima was used to hearing."I think we can't afford to dismiss the possibility," Percival replied, his voice grim and his shoulders tense. "We need to strengthen and add to every ward in the castle. He's like no other dark wizard out there – we can't take chances with the students' safety; and that's two unexplained petrifications now. The bastard has already taken too many members of my family. I couldn't save Gwaine..but I'll die before I let him lay a hand on Merlin.""We'll get him Percy," Theseus vowed. "I promise you: we'll get him. With Dumbledore helping us now, his days are numbered."Cosima looked over at Merlin anxiously. Even in the dim light, she could see that he'd gone very white at the mention of his father. He managed a tight smile in response to her concerned look and nodded to signal that they should keep following their uncles, who were disappearing around a corner, discussing the auror department's current attempt to infiltrate Grindelwald's inner circle.Cosima and Merlin quickened their pace so as not to lose them. They hurried around the corner and only just swallowed yelps of surprise when they found themselves suddenly at the wandpoints of two extremely grim-looking aurors. Evidently, they hadn't been quite as good at silencing spells as they thought they were!"I would advise you," Percival Pendragon said sternly, lowering his wand. "To make the explanation you are about to give phenomenally good!""Um…" Cosima began."I was under the impression there was still a curfew in place for students at Hogwarts," said Theseus Scamander, also sounding distinctly unimpressed. Cosima was reminded of the time he'd caught she, Helios and Cassian broom-surfing and the epic scolding that had followed. She winced inwardly. "Was I misinformed?""No there is…" Merlin stammered hurriedly."Then what on earth possessed the two of you to go traipsing around the school in the dark unsupervised on the very day there's been another attack?" demanded Percival angrily."We saw you in the grounds, from Ravenclaw Tower," Cosima began, anxiety making her words tumble out too fast."And we thought that you must be here to investigate what happened to the Gryffindor boy," Merlin continued, swallowing hard under his uncle's furious glare. "No one has any idea what's behind it all.""So we thought maybe if we came down to see what you were doing," Cosima offered weakly."Then maybe we could find out what has been going on. We've been through so many books and we've found nothing capable of producing that kind of effect," Merlin finished.Percival and Theseus exchanged a very angry look, and Cosima and Merlin unconsciously took a step closer together, well aware they were in a lot of trouble."Now you listen to me," said Theseus, his voice steely with anger. "I know Newt told you at Christmas time, but it's evidently gone in one ear and out the other. You are eleven year old children. Whatever has happened to those two students, it is not your responsibility to investigate, do you understand?""If the teachers can't find an answer, then we will," said Percival, his eyes flashing furiously. "That's our job. We've been trained to fight dark magic. All you two need to focus on it turning up to class and doing your homework; not putting yourself in danger by running about the school at night. There had better be no more nocturnal escapades, is that clear? If I find out there have been, you'll be for it, Merlin!""And so will you!" Theseus promised Cosima. The two first years wilted under the onslaught of their uncles' anger."Now, the two of you are going to return to Ravenclaw Tower at once," Percival told them, his voice a degree warmer. "And you are going to go to bed. What's more, you are going to stay there!""All right," said Merlin meekly. He and Cosima turned away to head back to the tower and were surprised when the pair of aurors fell into step beside them."Like we said, it's not safe for first years to be roaming the school alone," said Theseus firmly in answer to Cosima's questioning look. "We may both have been Gryffindors, but we're quite aware of where Ravenclaw Tower is. We'll come with you, just in case anything else should pique your curiosity on your way back."Thoroughly chastened, Cosima and Merlin were quietly led back to Ravenclaw Tower. Thankfully though, they did not run into Pringle on the way: it was the only way that night could possibly get any worse!"Do you really think it could be Grindlewald, Uncle Percy?" asked Merlin quietly, just as they made it to the door to the tower."We don't know yet," Percival replied, his voice gentle now. "If it is, then I won't rest until he's in Azkaban where he can't hurt another soul. But I need you to stay safe, Merlin, you understand? You're all I have. Promise me you won't do anything else to put yourself in danger.""I promise," Merlin said obediently, shoulders relaxing as he was pulled into a quick hug."Good boy," Percival squeezed him affectionately then let him go. "Right, both of you, straight up to bed now. No more exploring, no more investigating and no more looking for trouble!"The two first years bid both their uncles goodnight, and slipped back into Ravenclaw Tower, their evening's adventure very much at an end."There's nothing much we can do now," said Cosima dolefully, as they climbed the stairs to the dormitory. "Not after we promised them to stop.""We promised not to go exploring at night and not to go looking for danger," Merlin said, with an odd gleam in his eye. "That doesn't mean we have to stop researching. Something is attacking students, and we need to figure it out. And if it is Grindelwald behind it, then I want him to know it was Gwaine Pendragon's son that helped stop him! I'm not giving up now, Cosima. I can't."Merlin's ringing determination seemed to boost Cosima's flagging spirits and revive a little of her courage. Her friend was right. They couldn't stop now. They could keep their promise to their uncles easily enough, but going through books in the library was hardly courting danger. Maybe they could find something that might actually help the aurors.There had to be an answer somewhere!

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Following their failed nocturnal excursion, Cosima and Merlin kept their word to Percival and Theseus and didn't dare venture out at night again. Instead, they spent every evening and weekend of the weeks that followed in the huge main library of Hogwarts castle. They worked their way methodically through the magical creatures section – discarding the books that they had already read in the smaller Ravenclaw Tower offering – and adding to their now extensive pile of notes.As January bled into February and the thick snow around Hogwarts began to melt, Cosima was certain that with all this endless reading, she could have managed at least an E on a Care of Magical Creatures exam! In any other set of circumstances, she would have found the enterprise a delight; drinking in the information eagerly and thinking of endless questions she would have for her dad in the summer. However, they were no closer to finding an answer and it was starting to become depressing.Professor Slughorn seemed to have noticed their constant presence in the library and bustled over to question them about it one evening, raising his eyebrows at the hefty stack of magical-creature-themed tomes in front of them."You two seem to be spending rather a lot of time in the library, recently," he had remarked. "I do hope you've not quarrelled with your classmates?""No, Professor," Merlin had answered honestly. He and Cosima remained on perfectly good terms with their fellow Ravenclaw first years, who seemed to view their sudden obsession with magical creature books as a benign idiosyncrasy. They saw plenty of them in class and at lunchtime. "We're only doing a little extra studying.""These are all rather advanced!" Slughorn had picked up the top book in the pile. "A special project perhaps?""Well, you see, sir," Cosima had hurriedly stammered. "I want to be a magizoologist like my Dad and we don't start learning about magical creatures until third year, besides their uses in Potions or Transfiguration. I thought…you know, if I want to be really good, I'd best start studying now. Merlin's interested in creatures too, so we've been working our way through the section." She felt rather ashamed of the amount of lies she'd told since Christmas – she usually prided herself on being an honest girl! But she knew that if they told Slughorn the truth, he would react like every other adult had so far and tell them they were far too young to be worrying about investigating what had been going on in the school."Capital! Capital!" Slughorn had beamed at them, patting their shoulders genially. "I knew you two were going to go far from the first class. It's never too early to begin working for your ambitions!" After that, he'd left them to it, but smiled proudly at them every time he saw them studying.Thankfully, no one else was as perceptive as Slughorn on that front. Quidditch matches had started up again, which served to keep a healthy portion of the school distracted. Cosima and Merlin only attended when it was their house team playing – when their absence might have been suspect – or if was Gryffindor, so they could cheer on Helios. When the Hufflepuff versus Slytherin match rolled around, they simply stayed in the library instead. Bit by bit, they worked their way through stack of books after stack of books, until they finally reached the very last tome in the Magical Creatures section one Wednesday evening."This is impossible!" Merlin sighed wearily, letting his head drop down to rest on his folded arms. His eyes were bleary with exhaustion. "We've tried every book and got nowhere!"Tears of frustration stung at Cosima's eyes. All their weeks of searching had led them to this unquestionable dead end. They'd looked at every book on magical creatures Hogwarts had to offer, and they'd found absolutely nothing that could be behind the petrifications of Gwion and Seymour. The only remotely relevant information they'd found had backed up what her father had said during the Christmas holidays; that a gorgon or a basilisk would have had the power to petrify wizards, but given both were reported as extinct, that wasn't much use either!She rubbed her tired eyes and stretched, wincing as her stiff back popped and looking around the library. She suddenly went still. "Hold on a minute," she said slowly, staring across the large, cavernous room. "We haven't tried all the books.""Of course!" Merlin whispered, following her line of sight to the Restricted Section. "Well, it's worth a try! We're obviously not dealing with an ordinary creature – if it's something really dark then it makes sense that's where the information would be. Out of bounds unless we get a note from a teacher though – I mean, we could ask Professor Slughorn but knowing him he'd end up coming with us, so we're going to have to sneak in.""Not yet though," Cosima cautioned, nodding pointedly to where Helios Scamander, Marius Vance and James Shacklebolt were sat studying around a larger table; complicated Transfiguration notes spread across the surface. "We'll have to wait until they're not here. Helios will tell my Dad or Uncle Theseus for sure if he catches us in the Restricted Section – and then Theseus would tell your uncle!""Not to mention that if they see us head over there, they'd be in after us before we even got a chance to look!" Merlin said. "We need to find a time when the library is nice and quiet and there are no prefects in sight! But when?"Thankfully, the perfect opportunity presented itself a few days later. That weekend brought around St. Valentine's Day where, to the amazement of the students in first, second and third year, half of the older pupils in Hogwarts appeared to go batty overnight. It seemed that suddenly everywhere you looked, there were older students kissing in alcoves, shooting each other lovey-dovey eyes or giggling over cards."Oh for goodness sake!" Cosima exclaimed, wrinkling up her nose at the sight which greeted she, Merlin, Harriet and Marjorie when they returned to the castle after visiting Asteria in the owlery on the morning of the fourteenth. Helios was wrapped around Helena Gordon and the two seventh years were glued at the mouth, kissing like it was about to go out of fashion. In the middle of the entrance hall. With students walking around them. "Was there Amortentia in the tea this morning?!"The sound of a familiar voice seemed to startle Helios just enough to cause him to disengage from Helena's face. Looking slightly punch-drunk, a flush high on his prominent cheekbones, he turned his head to meet Cosima's disgusted gaze, his arms never moving from where they were wrapped around Helena's waist."Buzz off, titch!" he ordered imperiously, and then went back to exploring Helena's tonsils.Cosima considered retorting that they wouldn't get interrupted if they weren't standing there kissing right inside the entrance hall but just hurried on past him before either he or Helena suffocated due to lack of air!Thankfully, that weekend was also a Hogsmeade weekend, which meant that all the lovesick senior pupils left the castle just before lunch to go and inflict their endless snogging on the nearby small village. Thus, Cosima and Merlin were provided with a perfect opportunity to go exploring in the Restricted Section without the risk of Helios or any of the other prefects spotting them.The two Ravenclaw first years ate lunch with Marjorie and Harriet at the Gryffindor table and then excused themselves under the pretext of having Potions homework still to finish. They went back to Ravenclaw Tower, grabbed their book bags so they could at least look believable, and headed once more to the library. It felt as though they'd spent more time in there since Christmas than they had in their own dormitories!There were very few people in the library that afternoon. Cosima spotted a couple of Hufflepuff third years in the Herbology section, a trio of fourth year Gryffindor boys with their heads bent over parchment at one of the tables and a lone Slytherin girl browsing the Muggle Studies books, but otherwise there was no one else around.Madame Dubbonet, the sour faced librarian who seemed to be perpetually cross, was thankfully employed in levitating some books back onto a shelf over in the Magical History section. There were so many of them strewn haphazardly across the floor that only Peeves could have been responsible. For once, the poltergeist had unwittingly been of some assistance!"Quick, while she's busy!" Merlin urged. "Hurry!"Trying to be both fast and inconspicuous (a difficult combination), the two Ravenclaws hurried over in the direction of the Restricted Section. Then, checking to see that Madame Dubbonet was still busy cleaning up Peeves's mess, they ducked under the rope cordoning off the section from the rest of the libray and disappeared behind one of the enormous bookcases.The shelves were lined with thick, dark tomes bound in leather. Cosima ran her eyes along some of the nearby titles, the words gleaming silver or gold against the leather covers. Magic Most Evile, The Perils of Blood Magery, Most Potente Potions, Secrets of the Darkest Arts. It seemed they were definitely in the right place for darker reading material!"No, no, no, no," Merlin walked along the shelves quickly, brushing past titles that were not relevant. "Fifteenth Century Fiends, no. Magical Murderers, no. Legilimency and its Application in Warfare, definitely no!""Catastrophic Creatures and Wizardkind," Cosima read aloud and pointed to a medium-sized book bound in claret-coloured leather. "This sounds more like what we're looking for!""It's got a lock on it!" Merlin groaned in frustration. And sure enough, there was a thin silver chain wrapped around the book, securing it to the shelf with a solid-looking padlock. Several of the other books in the case were similarly bound. "And there is no way we're ever going to convince Madam Dubbonet we've got permission to read it without a note!""We don't have to!" Cosima said, feeling her heart speed up a little as she spoke. "Pip could help us! Bowtruckles can pick locks. But we can't really hang around here too long though – we'd have to sneak it out of the library!""You really think Pip could do it?" Merlin asked excitedly, eyes shining.The bowtruckle in question, who had adamantly refused to be left behind at Seaview House at the end of the Christmas holidays, stuck his head out of Cosima's chest pocket and gave a chipper peep, as though to say 'of course I can!'."Thanks Pip!" whispered Cosima proudly, holding her hand up to her pocket so that the bowtruckle could scramble onto it. Then she lifted him up onto the shelf, next to the book they wanted.Pip got briskly to work, his thin green arms sliding easily into the keyhole of the padlock. As Cosima and Merlin practically bounced with tension, they heard a few quiet clicks and then the padlock sprang open. Pip drew back and gestured to his handiwork proudly."Pip you're the best!" Cosima exclaimed delightedly, unwrapping the chain from around the book quickly and passing the volume down to Merlin. She let Pip scramble up her arm and take up residence on her shoulder, basking in his moment as the hero. "Is it any good, Merlin?""This is definitely the sort of thing we're after!" Merlin confirmed eagerly, flicking quickly through the book."Brilliant!" Cosima smiled. "All we need to do is...""Someone's coming!" Merlin hissed, shoving the book back onto the shelf to cover the chain and padlock that were resting in the empty space. Then to Cosima's total amazement, he leaned in and kissed her; his lips clumsily brushing the corner of her mouth.What in Parcelsus's name is he doing? Cosima wondered bewilderedly, her face bursting into flames. Pip gave an indignant squeak and took cover in the hair at the nape of Cosima's neck."Well, really!"Suddenly, everything became clear. Madame Dubbonet gave an outraged huff from behind Merlin; believing – as the boy had intended her to – that they had snuck into the Restricted Section to kiss, not to steal a book."Need I remind you two that this is a library, not the broom shed!" she snapped irritably. "Not to mention that this section is out of bounds to younger students. A disgraceful exhibition - leave the library at once! Twenty points from Ravenclaw and be grateful that it isn't more!" She bustled off in an indignant swish of violet robes."Sorry!" Merlin hissed, blushing, once she'd gone. "It was the only thing I could think of as a cover!""Quick thinking!" Cosima said fervently, snatching the book off the shelf urgently and handing it to him; his bag was a little bigger than hers. "You take this and leave first. I'll follow in a few minutes. We should try not to draw too much attention to ourselves until we get it safely back to Ravenclaw Tower.""Right," Merlin nodded. He slid the book into his bag, slung it over his shoulder and quickly left the Restricted Section, walking nonchalantly towards the exit. Cosima dawdled a few minutes, spreading out the other books on the shelf to hide the empty space and the now-empty chain, until she was sure that Merlin had got a decent head start, and then she slipped round the corner of the bookcases to head back to the main body of the library."Scamander!"Cosima froze in place, her heart now pounding, to see Tom Riddle striding briskly towards her; evidently one of the few senior students not down in Hogsmeade. The Slytherin prefect, who was clearly on his way in to the Restricted Section, was staring at her in cold disapproval. Cosima counted her lucky stars that Merlin had been able to get out unnoticed with the book, but now she had no remotely believable excuses for what she was doing in a place so clearly out of bounds."What are you doing in here?" Riddle demanded sternly. "This place is off limits to first years!""I…I was just looking…" Cosima said weakly, dropping her eyes from his. She had the sudden, unnerving sensation that he could see right through her. "I wondered if there were any books on dragons here.""Turn out your pockets and empty your bag!" Riddle commanded."I haven't got anything I'm not supposed to have!" Cosima objected at once, heart hammering so hard now that she was sure he must be able to hear it. Thank goodness Pip had hidden in her hair when Madame Dubbonet came upon them!"Then you will have nothing to hide!" Riddle countered flatly. "Do as I asked!"Cosima hurriedly turned her pockets inside out and emptied her bag. The journal she'd got from Merlin for Christmas, a few quills, a half-finished box of Every Flavour Beans and her Charms textbook clattered out on to the floor, but there was nothing there that could effectively get her into trouble. Pip stayed still and silent in his hiding place."Hmm…" Riddle stared at her through narrowed eyes, as though he sensed that all was not as it seemed. She squirmed under his unyielding gaze, cheeks burning as she stuffed everything back into her bag. "I shall have a word with your cousin about you! Now, clear off back to your common room and don't let me catch you in here again or I'll report you to Professor Fisher."Cosima fled gladly and didn't stop running until she got to Ravenclaw Tower."What took you so long? I was starting to get worried!" Merlin demanded, as she sank breathlessly onto a sofa at his side and restored Pip to his usual place in her pocket."Riddle caught me just as I was leaving!" Cosima replied tensely, digging out a couple of fruit flavoured Bertie Botts Beans for Pip as a reward for his help. "He made me turn out my bag and empty my pockets…it's like he knew I'd been in there to take something I shouldn't have! He said he was going to tell Helios he'd caught me.""That's just what we need!" groaned Merlin. "What did you say?""I said I was looking for books about dragons," Cosima told him. "I'm just hoping he'll have forgotten by the time all the older lot get back. I don't want to have to lie to Helios.""Speaking of, we're going to need to find somewhere to read this where no one can see us!" Merlin said quietly. "We won't have that much time before some of them start coming back. If Shacklebolt or Gordon catch us with this then we'll be in hot water!""We could try the owlery?" Cosima suggested. "We'd have a clear view of anyone else coming up before they disturbed us""It's not likely to be that quiet though," Merlin mused. "And we've already been up there once today. If we head back again it might look a little suspicious! What about the room Hagrid's been using?""That acromantula is still down there," Cosima said with a shiver, not enjoying the thought of sharing a room with it, even for a couple of hours."I know," Merlin said, looking no more pleased about it than she was. "But I think it's our only option. We could leave the book down there too, so there's no chance of it being discovered on us. We can't risk being caught until we've been through the whole book – it might be a real chance of finding a lead.""All right," Cosima sighed reluctantly, and the two of them headed off towards the dungeons.Hagrid was in the store room when they got there. He beamed delightedly at the sight of them. "Merlin! Cosima! It's great ter see yer," he cried, clapping them on the back so hard he knocked them into each other. "Look, Aragog, they've come ter visit yer!"Neither of them had the heart to say that visiting the acromantula could not have been further from their purpose down here; not when Hagrid looked so touched to see them. Looking over at the open box, where Hagrid had been feeding it, Cosima shuddered when she realised the creature had almost doubled in size from when they'd met it last year; its legs were longer and thicker, its pincers much bigger, its body engorged. If reading their stolen book hadn't been so important, she thought she might have turned and ran!"Haaaa-griiid!" The spider drawled in a scratchy, hissing voice, its pincers clicking sharply."Ain't he clever!" Hagrid swelled with pride like a new mother. "He's managin' lots of words now! Nothin' ter be frightened of, Aragog, these are yer friends; Cosima and Merlin.""Hagrid, you need to get him out of this castle before he hurts someone!" Cosima urged desperately. "After these attacks, I'm sure the teachers will be searching the school. They've already had aurors in to strengthen the wards. If anyone finds him, you could be expelled! Look at what happened to my dad – if it hadn't been for my uncle, they'd have snapped his wand! And that was for a jarvey, never mind an acromantula!""Aragog wouldn' hurt anyone!" Hagrid said confidently, waving aside her concern. "Anyway, who's goin' ter think ter look in an old cupboard in an empty store room? Whatever's goin' after the student's ain't goin' to be some little thing! It must be some serious dark magic!"By unspoken agreement, Cosima and Merlin refrained from mentioning the book; Hagrid had the kindest heart in the world, but he wasn't always terribly subtle. They didn't want to run the risk of his accidently letting slip that two first year Ravenclaws had manged to pinch a book from the Restricted Section!They sat chatting to the enormous Gryffindor boy while he petted the gigantic arachnid and talked to it as though it was a particularly cute kitten. Thankfully, he didn't ask them to stroke it again this time; instead telling them about all the words it had learned and how quickly it had devoured the rats he'd brought it. Cosima and Merlin plastered impressed smiles on their faces, nodding at all the right moments, but when Hagrid finally left to go back upstairs for tea, they made sure the cupboard containing Aragog was securely shut before they sat down on the floor to start reading!"I heard what you were getting up to in the library!" Helios told Cosima flatly the next day, sitting down beside her on a bench in the courtyard. She was sitting alone, sketching an image of Pip in her creature journal. Merlin had gone outside with Freddie, Florizel and Anthony after lunch as Anthony's mother had sent him a rugby ball. The other three boys, who all came from wizarding families, had never heard of the game and so Anthony had offered to show them what to do out in the grounds where there was no chance of a stray throw hitting a suit of armour or, worse, a teacher.Cosima's head shot up anxiously, bracing herself for a telling off. She'd hoped Riddle had only been bluffing about talking to Helios! The Slytherin boy didn't seem to interact much with others outside of his own house, she'd noticed."Starting a bit young, aren't you, titch?" said Helios seriously, disapproval colouring his tone. "You're only eleven!""What?" Cosima asked, nonplussed. Was he talking about sneaking around or reading dangerous books?"Bagman told me Madame Dubbonet caught you and Merlin snogging in the library," Helios replied, as though it was the equivalent of robbing Gringotts. "And, well, I think you're a little young for that sort of thing, Cosima! I know Merlin's a nice kid, but…""We weren't snogging!" Cosima cut him off hotly, her face in flames as she snapped her journal shut and stuffed it in her bag. "And anyway, even if we were, you're one to talk! You and Helena looked like you were eating each other in the middle of the entrance hall yesterday!""The difference is, I'm eighteen," Helios reminded her earnestly, catching her arm as she went to storm off. His face was full of well-meaning concern. "You're still just a kid. You don't need a boyfriend just yet, eh?""Urgh!" Cosima cried, utterly mortified at the direction the conversation was taking. She thought she might have preferred it if he had been coming to scold her about snooping in the Restricted Section. "Go away, you big nosey git! You don't know what you're talking about, he's not my boyfriend and we weren't snogging!"She turned on her heel, leaving him gaping after her, and stormed away.Stupid Helios!

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Despite Cosima's abject assurances that she and Merlin were in no way romantically involved, Helios was a little distant with Merlin for the next couple of weeks, though at the same time he seemed to watch the first year boy's every move. If he and Cosima went anywhere outside Ravenclaw Tower together, the Head Boy inevitably seemed to turn up beside them! Merlin bore it in good humour, saying that it could have been worse; Helios might have decided to throttle him. Cosima had been angry about it for several days but she hadn't been able to keep it up for long. It was impossible for her to stay annoyed at Helios; he was too cheerful, too good-hearted and far too kind to her for that. Thankfully, by the time February ended, everything was back to normal – or as normal as life got at a school of witchcraft and wizardry.Spring began to make itself known; scores of wildflowers began to bud in the grass outside, the trees that liberally dotted the grounds started to look less bare and there were several new owlets in the school owlery to fuss over, which Cosima did every time she came to visit Asteria. She and Hagrid were finally able to visit the giant squid again and the quidditch teams had returned to practicing several times a week. They no longer saw their breath steaming before them on the way down to Potions, or spent the whole of their Astronomy lessons shaking violently with cold. The whole castle had a clean, fresh sense of newness about it. It would have been a wholly wonderful time were it not for the knowledge that two innocent boys lay frozen in the Hospital wing and so far no culprit had been apprehended for putting them there.On that front, Cosima and Merlin were making much slower progress with their stolen book than they had initially hoped. Now that the youngest pupils were almost three quarters of the way through their first year at Hogwarts, the teachers had drastically increased the workload again. They had much more reading to do for homework, longer essays to write and more complex spells to practice.If both the Ravenclaws wanted to maintain the very good marks they had been getting thus far, they had no choice but to spend more time on school work and less time on their quest to solve the mystery of what had petrified their friend. It was a difficult choice – neither felt particularly happy about it – but Cosima couldn't bear the thought of disappointing her parents when she'd started the year so well; more so when they had practically promised her dad that they would leave the investigation to the adults. Merlin felt likewise; very keen not to let his uncle Percival down. They slipped down to the Potions storeroom to read when they could, once Helios stopped turning up everywhere they went, but it was nothing like the way they had binged their way through a few dozen books at the start of the new year. However, the upside of this renewed focus on their schoolwork was the fact that they managed to stay top of Potions, Charms and Transfiguration.All of the first year Ravenclaws were studying hard at perfecting switching spells and turning mice into snuffboxes with Professor Dumbledore, practicing locking and unlocking charms with Professor Fisher – who continued to remark how pleased she was with the progress of the class as a whole – and learning about puffapods with Professor Beery.Professor Merrythought continued to terrify them all, even the bravest of the Gryffindors. Nobody dared put as much as a toe out of line in her classes; when she barked out an instruction, they all obeyed with alacrity. If she asked for a foot-long essay, everyone generally wrote a foot and a half just in case. Anthony Rogers remarked that she was probably such a successful auror because she could terrify dark wizards into surrendering just by scowling at them!Unlike Dumbledore or Fisher, she never awarded points for good work, and very rarely bestowed praise. She simply acted as though getting it right was expected as a minimum. She was quick to condemn poorer efforts though; forgetting that perhaps not everyone would be as naturally talented at Defence Against the Dark Arts as she was herself.Freddie Wentworth, who was really excellent at the subject and consistently top of the class, was perhaps the only pupil who never was on the receiving end of her wrath. Cosima was reasonably good, as were most of the other Ravenclaws, and so were subject to it sparingly. The poor Gryffindors, who shared the lesson with them, rarely went a lesson without one or other of them being yelled at.Merrythought had taken thirty points – thirty! – from Marjorie Mackinnon one lesson because the poor girl had shrieked in surprise when she looked down to find a whole line of spiders parading under her desk on their way to the classroom window. Merrythought, who had perhaps never feared anything in her entire life, was not very forgiving of the emotion in others and berated Marjorie mercilessly. When the rest of the class had looked curiously to see that there were indeed an entire line of spiders scuttling through the class and out the window, and wondered why they were behaving in such a bizarre manner, she'd given them all extra homework as punishment. No one had dared complain.Cosima and Merlin remained clear favourites of Slughorn in Potions due to their famous relatives. He treated the whole class kindly and fairly, but when one of them got a question right or performed particularly well at a practical exercise, he acted as though it was inevitable because of their well-known surnames and was effusive with praise. It was a little embarrassing sometimes – the other Ravenclaws teased them about it constantly – and they generally tried to keep their heads down in his classes.However, that didn't always solve the problem."Scamander, Pendragon, could you stay back a moment please?" called Slughorn on Thursday afternoon as the bell rang signalling the end of the lesson. It had been quite a good class; they had been working in pairs and pretty much everyone had managed a credible attempt at a forgetfulness potion. Cosima and Merlin had picked up ten points for Ravenclaw for the best effort, as had Amadeus Crouch and Quintus Flint for Slytherin who'd come a close second."Oh no!" groaned Merlin under his breath. "You know what he's going to say!""Well we'd best get going, you two!" Florizel joked to Anthony and Freddie with a grin. They sat behind Cosima and Merlin in Potions. "Slug Club members only!""Yes, we rif raf had best make tracks!" chuckled Anthony."Sod off!" Merlin grumbled, but without any real heat. He shot them a rueful smile. "Hopefully we won't be long, see you outside.""I'm organising another little get together tomorrow evening," Slughorn told them genially, once the rest of the class had filed out. "I usually have one before Christmas you know, but what with what happened to poor Mr Pritchard it felt rather insensitive. And of course, after Mr Seymour suffering a similar fate, Valentine's Day was out of the question too. Usual time, seven o'clock. You'll join us of course? Splendid, splendid! See you there."As usual, he'd barely even stopped for breath and so had taken their acceptance for granted, leaving them with no more ado but to nod and smile. He sent them on their way after that, so they trailed out into the corridor to hurry after their friends for the last lesson of the day: Charms with Professor Fisher.They made it as far as the entrance to the dungeons and found the whole class still there, all with their wands drawn and shouting angrily. It very quickly became apparent why. Augustus Lestrange and Orion Black had levitated Ruby and Anthony, both muggle-borns, and were laughing cruelly as the two first years hung upside down and flailed in the air.Another crony, one whose name Cosima didn't know, was lazily deflecting all the spells that the first years were shooting at them in an attempt to rescue their friends. It was no good – they hadn't learnt to duel yet and they'd mostly been studying defensive jinxes. They best they could do was try to levitate them back, and that clearly was getting them nowhere.Seized by a sudden burst of inspiration, Merlin dug into Anthony's bag, which was lying on the floor where he'd dropped it, for his rugby ball and threw it full force at Lestrange's face. The Ravenclaws cheered as it hit him square on the nose with a satisfactory slapping sound; at close range, it had carried a reasonable amount of force. Lestrange gave a roar of rage, staggered back from the shock of the impact and lost concentration on his levitation spell. Ruby came crashing to the ground and Cosima and Octavia hurriedly helped her up.Black and the other boy, who evidently deferred to Lestrange as their leader, turned to see if he was all right. A queasy-looking Anthony fell to the ground too and was helped up by Florizel.Lestange waved his followers' concern aside, anger flashing in his dark eyes, and pointed his wand at Merlin, who was standing in the middle of the line of furious Ravenclaws. "Cocky little blood traitor, are we?" he growled at Merlin. "Your mummy will need to collect you in a shoebox when I'm through with you. Oh, that's right. You don't have one of those, do you?"He opened his mouth to cast another spell, but before he could form the words, Freddie Wentworth had raised his wand and shouted the incantation for the Jelly-Legs Jinx. To the Ravenclaws' utter delight, Lestrange's legs immediately collapsed from under him and he went crashing down to the floor with a yell of frustration."WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, BOY?!"A bad-tempered yell came echoing down the corridor and the whole group froze, the Trolls included. They shot the Ravenclaws vicious scowls as Lestrange was helped to his feet, but even they didn't dare say a word.Apolyon Pringle came storming down the corridor towards them and seized a now white-faced Freddie by the upper arm. "Magic is forbidden in the corridors as you are well aware!" he growled at him. "And that was a blatant flouting of the rules. You come with me to my office! The rest of you, move along!""It wasn't his fault!" cried Merlin indignantly."Quiet!" Pringle snapped, his cruel little eyes narrowed. Cosima thought that Shacklebolt must have been right when he said that Pringle hated every student in the school. She had never once seen a remotely kind expression on his face."He didn't start it!" Florizel said angrily and the others all muttered in agreement. "They were levitating our friends and calling them mudbloods! They could have broken Ruby and Anthony's necks!""I don't care who started it! He's the one I saw casting a spell; now I'm finishing it." Pringle scowled at him. "The rest of you, get going to your next lesson!"It was probably quite lucky that all the Ravenclaws started shouting at once. It meant Pringle did not hear half of the things they were calling him. He did, however, appear to get the gist of it. His face went several different shades of red all at once and he looked utterly apoplectic."Silence! Get to your classes!" he roared, before looking over at the gloating Slytherins. "That means you lot too! I'll be reporting the lot of you to Professors Fisher and Slughorn. You boy, come with me."Poor Freddie was dragged off by Pringle. The Trolls shot the Ravenclaws a series of gloating smirks."Watch out for monsters, mudbloods!" grinned Lestrange. "The Chamber is still open!" With that, he and his cronies sauntered off to the dungeons, leaving the first years boiling over with rage in their wake."Are you all right, Ruby?" Cosima asked worriedly. "You're shaking!""Do you need to go to the hospital wing?" asked Octavia. Ruby shook her head, looking close to tears."What about you?" Florizel enquired of Anthony. "You hit the ground pretty hard!""I'll be all right," Anthony said glumly, rubbing his elbow. "Just felt really queasy that's all. What an arse Pringle is! Everyone knows what the Trolls are like! He knows Freddie didn't start it! That wasn't fair!""He wasn't interested in being fair!" said Florizel darkly. "He's just as much of a bully as the Trolls are! He likes having power over people!" Merlin let loose a fairly creative string of expletives which, had they been overheard, might have lost them fifty house points on the spot. The others, however, thought he had summarised Pringle perfectly.Angry and upset, the small group made their way up to Charms and took their seats in tense silence. Freddie appeared fifteen minutes late for the lesson, white faced and red-eyed. He handed a note to Professor Fisher, who shot him a disapproving frown, and then went to take his seat. He winced and his eyes filled with tears as he sat down. The atmosphere of anger in the class intensified.Professor Fisher seemed cross that her usually hard-working class was inattentive and unfocused that lesson and so was a little sharper than usual with them. None of them really took in what she was saying about the legal limitations on unlocking charms though. They were all too busy imagining a thousand dreadful calamities which might hopefully befall Pringle!"How many did you get?" Anthony asked Freddie sympathetically, once they were all safely ensconced in Ravenclaw Tower when the class had ended."Six," replied Freddie, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. "And I've five hundred lines to do before tomorrow.""Let me do them," Merlin offered at once. "It was me he was going to curse before you helped me out. It's only right I take my share of it. I'd have jinxed him myself if I'd remembered any decent ones!""I can do a hundred of them," said Florizel, squeezing Freddie's shoulder sympathetically."Me too," offered Cosima."And me!" said Anthony."And I'll do the last hundred," said Ruby. "I thought I was going to be sick before he dropped me. It was really brave of you to stand up to them, Freddie! You're worth a hundred of them!""Thanks everyone," Freddie offered them a rather wan but sincere smile, touched that the rest of the class were so determined to take some of the punishment away from him."Right, that takes care of that," Merlin said determinedly. "All we need to do is make sure we all do it in the same style of handwriting. Let's make a start and get them done with.""Hold on," Cosima said. "Uncle Jacob and Aunt Queenie have sent me more of his pastries; I've got a whole box. I'll get them and we can have them while we work."Cosima hurried up to her dormitory to retrieve the box of goodies she'd received from her aunt and uncle via her parents. She brought them back to the common room and shared them out, making sure to give Freddie two, and then she and the others settled down to do their share of Freddie's lines. They invented entirely new insults for Pringle while they worked, and when they were done, they spent the rest of the night trying to come up with ideas for getting back at the Trolls.The following night, Cosima and Merlin were obliged to head back to the dungeons again. Just as they had done on Halloween, the 'Slug Club' assembled in Slughorn's private quarters, where he had once again laid on a truly incredible feast. The same crowd of students were there: Helios, Abott, Sludgewick, Podmore, Riddle and the others. It was the first time Cosima had been in close quarters with Riddle since he'd accosted her in the Restricted Section. As she met his cold stare upon entering the room, Cosima dropped her eyes, once again having the unnerving feeling that he could see right through her.Thankfully, it transpired neither she nor Merlin appeared to be required to talk very much. The main theme of the evening was the careers advice which the older students had been receiving that week; Slughorn was of course adding his two knuts' worth to what each of the pupils had been told and namedropping connections that he had in every industry. The students were standing talking in small clusters and he dotted between them like a large, content bumblebee, encouraging them to eat and drink more.Helios and Achlys Abbott, who had already known what they wanted to do long before they ever sat down for some careers advice, drew Cosima and Merlin into their conversation about whether the Cleansweep Four or the new Comet 220 was the superior broom. Nearby them, Riddle and Podmore were talking about careers in experimental potion making. Cosima had heard the words 'dragons' blood' a few times now."Of course, you're very interested in dragons, Scamander, aren't you?" said Riddle suddenly, turning to look at her and interrupting the conversation she had been having with the others.From anyone else, it might have seemed a conversational remark, friendly even, but it put Cosima immediately on edge. She knew he was referring to her flimsy excuse for looking in the Restricted Section. His dark eyes were unreadable. What was he doing? Was he about to tattle on her to Helios and Professor Slughorn now, in front of everyone in the hopes they would tell her off?"Yes," she replied, her mouth suddenly dry.Before Riddle could comment again, Slughorn came bustling over and gave Cosima a rather condescending pat on the head. "Yes, I have no doubt we have here a future tour de force of the world of magizoology!" he said, looking as proud as if he taught Care of Magical Creatures himself. "I've rarely seen such devotion to a subject so early on in the school. You older pupils ought to be careful – at the rate Scamander and Pendragon are studying, they'll be giving all of you a run for your money. Yes, even you, Riddle!" That thankfully broke the moment."Always knew you were a clever little squirt, titch!" Helios, looking utterly delighted by Slughorn's words, draped an arm around Cosima's shoulder proudly. Riddle, meanwhile, was obliged to reply to the Professor and so was prevented from taunting her any further – because she was certain that's what he had been doing. Like Pringle, he clearly liked to have power over someone, even if he wasn't as obvious at showing it. She felt his eyes on her on several occasions throughout the evening, and looked up to find him pinning her with that same unreadable, cold stare. At the last party, she hadn't been certain what to make of him… now she knew that she didn't like him!She stayed close by Helios's side for the rest of that night and when he and Abbot offered to walk her and Merlin back to Ravenclaw Tower afterwards, she was glad of it! She wasn't sure exactly what she had done to deserve it, but she believed somewhat uneasily that she'd made something of an enemy!Aragog the acromantula was growing apace and Cosima had started to badger Hagrid incessantly about moving him every time she and Merlin managed to slip down to the storeroom in the dungeons. Hagrid was feeding him on dead rats, leftover meat from the kitchens and whatever else he could get his hands on – but the creature would eventually decide to do some hunting of its own, and someone would inevitably get hurt.Kind and good-tempered as he was, Hagrid was also incredibly stubborn when it came to magical creatures. He kept saying it was too soon for Aragog to go out into the Forbidden Forest, that it wasn't fair for him to be so abandoned. He dismissed Cosima and Merlin's fears that one of the teachers would discover him and insisted on keeping him in the storeroom until the end of the school year, which was only just over three months away now."But Hagrid, he could kill someone!" Merlin cried in frustration, eyeing the hairy creature warily as it hissed at him. It was a Saturday evening, and he and Cosima had snuck down to the dungeons after dinner to get some reading done."Yeh wouldn' harm anyone, would yeh, Aragog?" said Hagrid gently, petting it like it was some sort of giant kitten. Aragog hissed 'noooooo' in reply. "There, yeh see? Cosima, yeh oughta know better than anyone that most creatures are misunderstood! Didn' yeh say yer Dad had a nundu at home?""Yes," said Cosima desperately. "But not in a school full of people who didn't realise it was there! Dad taught Cassian and I how to behave around the creatures from when we were little. And there are still some that he won't let us visit alone. What if someone comes across Aragog by accident and scares him? What if Professor Slughorn decides he might use this cupboard after all? One bite and we won't have a Potions teacher!"But it was no use; despite their constant nagging, Hagrid wouldn't be budged. Hogwarts was Aragog's home and it would stay his home until the end of the school year. And there was nothing Cosima or Merlin could do about it that didn't involve telling a teacher and Hagrid winding up expelled."I thought you were bad," said Merlin gloomily, after Hagrid left them alone in the room soon afterwards. Aragog was thankfully shut back in his box in the cupboard. "But he's off his head! It'll be the size of a dog by the end of the school year.""Don't!" said Cosima, shivering at the very thought. Aragog seemed to sense they were talking about him, and shuffled noisily in the cupboard."Come on," Merlin prompted, watching the cupboard door anxiously. Let's not stay here longer than absolutely necessary! That bloody thing gives me the creeps. If we get another chapter done, we still have time to do some of Dumbledore's reading before bed."So far, they had read about vampires, the dementors which guarded Azkaban, wyverns and minotaurs; none of which had fitted the bill for whatever was haunting the Hogwarts corridors. This next chapter was about gorgons, which they knew did have the power to petrify. It was just possible that they might be making some progress.However, they were only four pages into the chapter when Professor Dumbledore's voice suddenly sounded loudly out of thin air, making them both almost jump out of their skins."ALL STUDENTS WILL PLEASE RETURN TO THEIR HOUSE COMMON ROOMS AT ONCE!""Crikey, that sounds serious!" Merlin said anxiously, snapping the book shut and stuffing it back in its hiding place. "Come on, we're not supposed to be here! We'd best get back upstairs quickly!"The two Ravenclaws ran back up out of the dungeons and made their way to Ravenclaw tower. Lots of other students were doing the same; hurrying their way along the corridors with worried expressions. Across one of the staircases, Cosima spotted Helios and the rest of the Gryffindor quidditch team – who had evidently been training – traipsing quickly up the stairs in their quidditch robes.The doorway to Ravenclaw Tower was already open to accommodate the steady stream of people passing through it, so they didn't need to bother answering the riddle. When they got to the common room, they spotted James Shacklebolt and Helena Gordon checking off a list of names, evidently making sure that everyone was there who was supposed to be."James, what's happening?" asked Cosima, a sinking feeling in her stomach."There's been another attack," replied James grimly. "They just found another frozen student!"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The frozen student, as the rest of the school was soon to find out, was a fourth year muggle-born girl called Susan Harper from Gryffindor. She was supposed to have been meeting her boyfriend, a fourth year Ravenclaw called Jonathan Kirk, for the evening but had never showed up. She'd eventually been found outside one of the bathrooms on the fifth floor, a lipstick and a broken compact mirror lying discarded beside her. Once again, no one had been around to see what had happened, and there was no sign of physical violence upon her frozen body.In the tense, quiet common room, the Ravenclaws all crowded around Jonathan to offer their support and sympathies, but it was rather difficult to know what to say. Three students – all muggle-borns; there could be no denying that link – now had suffered the same fate, and no one seemed any closer to finding answers than they were when Gwion had been discovered before Christmas.Their parents had all thought them safe from danger when they'd waved them off on the train from war-damaged London, but it seemed that Hogwarts was no longer as safe as once supposed!At breakfast the next morning, those who had received mail began to whisper that apparently the Ministry was growing concerned and that the Minister for Magic himself was reputedly putting pressure on Professor Dippet to track down the culprit behind the attacks with the utmost urgency. Cosima wondered if Theseus and Percival would be called in again; though she was unsure what more they could do if they had not found anything on their last search of the castle. She did know however, that on their last visit, the wards had apparently been quadrupled. Whoever was carrying out these attacks, it was not Gellert Grindelwald. The Prophet reported he had been sighted in Belgium yesterday.Professor Dippet, looking strained and angry, announced when breakfast was over that a strict new set of rules was to be put into place as of that morning. From that point on, each year group would be chaperoned by either prefects or teachers as they travelled between classes and down to meals. Two trips to the owlery – one in the morning and one in the evening – would be chaperoned by Mr Ogg per day; no one was permitted to go there alone outside of those times. All quidditch practices would be supervised by Master Doge. Outside of classes, all students were to remain in their common rooms unless using the library, in which case groups should escorted there and back by a prefect. Anyone violating these rules, the headmaster warned the students grimly, would face consequences of the severest nature."He's rattled," Merlin murmured to Cosima as hushed, tense whispers broke out in the hall following his announcement. "They really don't have a clue what's doing this! Look at the teachers – they're all worried; even Dumbledore and Fisher! There goes our reading in the dungeons. We need to get that book out of there and hide it back in the tower so we can finish it!"This proved to be much easier said than done. Dippet's orders were followed to the letter over the weeks that followed. Prefects escorted the rest of their houses down to breakfast in the morning and every movement from class to class after that was chaperoned by prefects or staff.Somehow – and Cosima heartily doubted that it was mere coincidence – Helios seemed to continuously be assigned to the first year Ravenclaws, no matter what day of the week it was or what class they were going to. It was like having a big blond, cheerful sheepdog constantly at her side; his sharp eyes missed nothing and she knew that if she so much as took a step away from the rest of the class then he would be demanding to know why. Even at mealtimes, his eyes constantly sought her out, checking that she was there and that she was well. Consequently, the book remained shut away in the Potions storeroom, unfinished, and Cosima and Merlin's frustration grew and grew. Cosima adored Helios, she truly did, but on this occasion she wished that he was a little less fond of her!Even the aurors seemed to have no answer. Cosima wrote to her mother and Merlin to his uncle, asking for information, but it seemed that they had no better idea of what was stalking the school than the teachers did. Tina Scamander's reply had, however, made one thing abundantly clear: she expected her daughter to follow the rules to the letter:I'm glad to hear that the headmaster is advising caution and ensuring that you're all supervised between classes, she wrote. I'm trusting in your good sense, honey. Make sure you don't go anywhere alone and DO NOT go wandering around at night! Helios has promised to look out for you, so stick with your cousin as much as you can.Cosima and Merlin had no idea how Hagrid was managing to feed Aragog now that the younger students' every move was watched, and fretted over what might happen if the acromantula got hungry enough to venture outside his small cupboard in search of sustenance. Hagrid seemed to look more and more worried every time they saw him.With the schools days now managed by strict routine, the workload high and the teachers' tempers frayed, the weeks seemed to slip by even quicker than before. Summer arrived in a blaze of warm, buttery gold sunlight, but no one seemed to be very excited about it as going out into the grounds was also forbidden unless the students were accompanied by teachers and prefects. Although there had been no attacks now for the two months since Susan Harper had been discovered, the considerable tension in the school had not gone away and Dippet did not seem likely to lessen his strict security arrangement any time soon.One of the few benefits of the need to have students constantly monitored was that there were no more Slug Club gatherings. Cosima was heartily grateful – she'd passed Tom Riddle in the corridors several times since the last supper party and had dropped her eyes under his cold, intimidating stare on each occasion. She didn't understand him; she was certain he knew she had stolen a book, but he did nothing about it besides send her knowing glances.Why though? What did he want? Cosima had no idea.Eventually, in late May, driven to desperation in the need to retrieve the book they'd left in the dungeon store cupboard, Merlin purposefully rubbed his eyes after handling crushed mistletoe berries during a Potions class and had to run to the bathroom in agony to wash his eye out. The urgency of his cries of pain prevented Slughorn from doing the usual when students asked to be excused to use the toilet; sending them in pairs. Instead, he just ordered Merlin to go and rinse his eye out immediately and Merlin stumbled quickly from the class.With a very red and puffy left eye, he returned to the classroom some minutes later with the book shoved under his robes, and he and Cosima exchanged a quick smile of relief. The book was safely stowed in Merlin's bag and they were able to finish their Potion with a little more peace of mind, though also with some considerable discomfort on Merlin's part."That flipping spider is going bats in the cupboard!" Merlin whispered to Cosima worriedly, as they were escorted back up to the Great Hall for lunch. "It's a wonder we didn't hear it from the classroom!""Sssh," Cosima whispered quietly, jerking her head towards the prefects who were accompanying them. Instead of their usual escort of Helios and James, they had been met from Potions by Tom Riddle and Hestia Podmore because the Defence Against the Dark Art NEWT mock-exam was taking place. The last thing they needed was for Tom Riddle to have further evidence of rule-breaking to taunt them with!"If Hagrid doesn't get rid of it, I think we're going to have to go to one of the teachers," Merlin said, his voice tight with anxiety, as they sat down and helped themselves to carrot soup and sandwiches. "It's going to end in tears, you know. It's not going to stay hidden much longer and it must be starving! Sooner or later it will get out and bite Slughorn!""Maybe we should go to Dumbledore?" Cosima suggested. "I think he's the most likely to be kind about it – he helped my dad out after he was expelled. And he would know Hagrid best since he's his head of house.""Yes, that's probably best," Merlin nodded. "I don't want to have to snitch on him but he's not going to see sense about it and I think we're out of options now!"They were heading along the Transfiguration corridor towards their common room with the rest of the first years after lunch, meaning to put their free afternoon to productive use and make up for lost time with their contraband book, when Ruby gave a shriek of horror. Jumping out of their skins, the first year Ravenclaws and their escorts looked to see what had caused her exclamation."Urgh…" Cosima recoiled in disgust. There was a whole troupe of spiders scurrying along the corridor towards the open window, just as there had been under Marjorie's desk in that Defense Against the Dark Arts class."It's only a bunch of spiders, Danvers!" said Chris Carmichael, their escort, with a roll of his eyes. "Come on, keep up, you lot!"He strode off down the corridor briskly, robes billowing out after him. Cosima supressed a shiver, looking once more at the line of spiders scuttling towards the window. It was almost as though they were afraid too, and running away from something…
Hold on.
The thought stirred something in her head; something she'd read… She wracked her brains. "Merlin!" she hissed suddenly, clutching hold of her friend's arm. "Merlin, I think I've figured it out!""What?" Merlin asked urgently, but Cosima raised her finger to her lips. The rest of their class was still nearby."Not here," she cautioned. "Once we get back to the common room."In a state of suppressed excitement, Cosima walked at Merlin's side, following Chris as the group wound their way back to Ravenclaw tower. As soon as they were inside the common room, Merlin made for a secluded nook in the small house library and Cosima ran as fast as she could up to her dormitory. Mind racing, she hunted wildly in her trunk for the book she needed, and then dashed down the stairs again, almost taking a header down the flight of stone steps in her hurry."So? What is it?" Merlin queried urgently as she threw herself down into the seat next to him."It's been in Dad's book the whole time!" Cosima cried, opening the book and hurriedly scanning through the pages. "Look!" She set the book down; it was opened at the entry on basilisks.
Of the many fearsome beasts and monsters that roam our land, there is none more curious or more deadly than the Basilisk, known also as the King of Serpents. This snake, which may reach gigantic size, and live many hundreds of years, is born from a chicken's egg, hatched beneath a toad. Its methods of killing are most wondrous, for aside from its deadly and venomous fangs, the Basilisk has a murderous stare, and all who are fixed with the beam of its eye shall suffer instant death. Spiders flee before the Basilisk, for it is their mortal enemy, and the Basilisk flees only from the crowing of the rooster, which is fatal to it.
"Spiders flee before it – that's twice now we've seen a whole army of spiders heading out the castle!" Cosima said, her words tumbling out in a hurry. "And you said Aragog was making a lot of noise in his cupboard; he must be aggravated too. The cry of the rooster is fatal – someone slaughtered all the school chickens the night that message went up on the wall. It all fits!""Yes… apart from one small flaw," Merlin pointed out dryly. "The book says – and your Dad specifically told us – that they're extinct! Pretty hard to be going around petrifying people if you don't exist! And I don't think there's such a thing as basilisk ghosts!""But what if it's a really old one?" Cosima suggested. "It says they can live hundreds of years. Dad said the last known basilisk was in the sixteen hundreds. What if it's the same one and it's just really old! Perhaps no one knew it was still alive?""Maybe…" Merlin said thoughtfully, warming to the idea. "And perhaps that's why no one's died! Does it mention if the power of its stare diminishes as the years go by?""No, nothing about that," Cosima said, scanning the rest of the pages. "There's a little bit about the history of the breed. It says Herpo the Foul was the first to breed one. And the size…Merlin's beard, it can grow up to fifty feet in length!""And that brings us back to the second part of the problem," Merlin mused. "Where in the seven hells is this thing hiding? Even if there really is a Chamber of Secrets – and if the teachers and our uncles have searched the school and not found one then I'm inclined to think that there isn't – and it's been having a snooze there for the last four hundred years before being let loose, surely someone is going to have noticed a bloody massive snake doing the rounds in the corridors! There are no traces of it, no one has seen it.""I don't know…" Cosima admitted, shrugging helplessly, a little crestfallen. "But so many of the clues seem to fit! We need to be alert, look for any signs there might be a serpent in the school. Then, if we have proof, we can go to the teachers."Despite their best intentions, however, it proved to be incredibly difficult to search for any sort of clues at all. Their movements continued to be monitored by teachers and prefects alike. And with June arriving, there were only a few weeks left before the school year was completely over. Despite all their best attempts at playing detective over the past six months, they had found absolutely nothing. The end of year tests were looming and the need to discard snake hunting in favour of spell practice and revision was once again necessary.Perhaps the Sorting Hat had put them in the wrong house after all, thought Cosima glumly as she sat with Merlin, Freddie, Florizel, Anthony, Ruby and Octavia in the library one evening working on Potions research. Surely real Ravenclaws would have been able to put the various clues together and find an answer! They only seemed to be going in circles. Morosely, chin balanced on her left hand, she stared down at the Potions essay. She still had about four inches to add and sadly focusing on their frozen friend was not helping her get there."Righto, squirts, time to head back to your common room," Helios called good-naturedly. He'd volunteered to be the escort for their little study group that evening as in addition to ensuring Cosima was safe it gave him, his cousin noticed, ample opportunity to sit and make lovey-dovey eyes at Helena, who was their second escort.Obediently, the first years returned the books they had been using to their shelves, gathered up their rolls of parchment and filed out of the library behind the two loved-up seventh years. Strictly speaking, it was a little later than they were supposed to stay out, but at least if challenged they could all vouch that they were late because they had been studying.About half-way down a first floor corridor, everyone jumped violently as a piercing scream rent the air. On instinct, the group of Ravenclaws huddled together in alarm. Suddenly, the door to that corridor's girl's bathroom opened and someone came careening out in a frenzy, running straight into a startled Helena. It was Olive Hornby – a fellow Ravenclaw – and she looked half out of her head with terror."Oh my god! Oh my god! Someone help!" Olive shrieked, utterly hysterical, tears streaming down her face. "Please help me!""Hornby!" Helena caught hold of her shoulders and shook her gently. "What's wrong? You're all right, I've got you.""Myrtle's dead! She's dead!" Olive screamed, then started to sob manically in Helena's arms. "Someone's killed her!""You lot, stay there!" Helios ordered the first years at once, his ever-present smile vanishing in the tension. He took out his wand. "And do not move from Helena's side!"The first years drew even tighter together, a mass of knotted hands, no one quite knowing who was holding on to who. No was able to answer Helios's command verbally; they simply watched in apprehension as he disappeared into the bathroom Olive had just run out of, wand held aloft. The door slid shut behind him, but it wasn't enough to drown out the startled swear words he let loose.Every second seemed to last ten minutes, but at last he appeared again, face pale."Helena, you need to take Hornby and get her to Dippet. Tell him that the teachers need to get here immediately," he said calmly, his face as stern as stone. He looked at the first years. "You lot are going to stay with me until someone else arrives and can take you safely back to your common room. Understood?""Helios, is she really…?" Helena asked quietly, now practically holding the sobbing Olive upright. Helios nodded sharply, clutching his wand in a white-knuckled grip. "Merlin's beard! All right Hornby, I need you to come with me, all right? We're going to go find Professor Dippet and then we'll get you to the hospital wing. Come on, you can do it, just little steps. There we go."Gently, Helena guided Olive out of the corridor, leaving Helios with the gaggle of terrified young Ravenclaws. "Stick close by," he urged them, his voice kind but firm. "Someone will be here soon and they will take you upstairs. In the meantime, I need you to keep your eyes open, someone in every direction. Whatever did this may still be nearby, so wands out. You see something move, you shout out immediately. I'm not going to let anything hurt you, so just try to stay calm and keep close together."In a bewildered, frightened haze, the first years arranged themselves in a sort of cluster; backs together and someone facing in every direction. Cosima looked down to find her wand hand shaking violently; she could only hope that whatever did this – a basilisk, if she and Merlin had got it right – didn't come back. She probably couldn't hit the entrance hall door from two feet away right now.Time stretched interminably on, broken only by shaky breaths, frightened sniffles and the sound of sweaty palms being wiped upon robes. Helios did what he could to calm them, but there was no way of softening the fact that one of their housemates was lying dead on the other side of the door.After what seemed like an eternity, Professors Dumbledore, Beery, Merrythought and Fisher burst through the door at the end of the corridor, causing most of the them to start like scalded cats and a couple to shriek in alarm. The teachers hurried towards them, looking more serious than any of the students had seen before."Scamander, Miss Gordon passed me on the way to my quarters and alerted us as to what has happened," Dumbledore said to Helios, voice tight with tension. "She is taking Miss Hornby to the hospital wing. The headmaster will join us directly. Did any of you see anything unusual before the discovery was made?""No sir," Helios returned gravely. "Helena and I were taking the Ravenclaws back up from the library when Hornby came running out screaming that she'd found Warren. I went inside to check the room – there's no one else there, no signs of violence, but it was too late to do anything for Warren. I've not touched anything, sir, I've left everything as it was.""A dreadful turn of events," sighed Dumbledore sadly. "Felicia, perhaps you would be kind enough to escort your first years down the Great Hall. The rest of the school will soon join you there, while we check the castle for any intruders.""Of course, Albus," Fisher agreed at once, shepherding the small group of first years off down the corridor. Cosima wanted to protest – Helios should be coming with them, he shouldn't be staying to look for whatever had done this, what if something happened to him too? – but her voice failed her. She had no option but to be swept along beside her friends and led down to Great Hall. No one said a word the whole way there.Fisher got them to sit down at the end of the Ravenclaw table and seemed to produce blankets from nowhere. For the shock, she told them, making sure each one of the group was swaddled in one. Just as Dumbledore had said, they were soon joined by all the other students in the school except Helena and Helios. The students streamed into the hall in buzzing confusion, wondering what had happened to prompt this sudden evening rendezvous after dinner. As word spread that Myrtle Warren had been found dead, the whispers died out abruptly.There was barely another sound to be heard in the Great Hall all night. The students sat numbly side by side at their tables; stunned and bewildered by the latest twist in the confusing narrative that had plagued their school since Halloween. Tureens of hot chocolate appeared from nowhere and some students managed to drink some, though others avoided it for fear their churning stomachs wouldn't be able to take it.The Ravenclaw table might have been petrified as a whole, so still and quiet were its occupants. No one had particularly liked Myrtle, in fact many of them had actively disliked her, and they all felt rather guilty about that now she was no longer there. The first years huddled together en masse, wrapped in their blankets, pressed together in an attempt to draw warmth and comfort from their classmates.It was close to midnight before Dippet, Dumbledore, Beery, Merrythought, Master Doge and Mr Ogg came into the Great Hall. Cosima didn't hear a word Dippet said at first, so relieved was she by the sight of Helios and Helena, both of whom were safe and well, though they looked pale and strained. She managed to get a hold of herself by the end of Dippet's speech to hear that no intruder had been found in the castle, the wards were intact and representatives of the Ministry would soon be arriving to investigate Myrtle's tragic death. They were all now to return to their houses and try to get some sleep."Hey titch, you all right?" Helios asked gently, sitting down beside her in an empty seat and putting his arm around her. Cosima nodded silently and when he spoke again, his voice was even quieter. "I think we're going to be heading home soon. The teachers are talking of closing the school.""Closing Hogwarts?" Cosima asked in astonishment. "But it's been here for centuries!""I know," Helios tugged her closer and rested his chin on her head. Cosima wrapped her arms around him and relaxed against his solid warmth, glad of the comfort: nothing seemed to frighten Helios. "But that's three students petrified this year – Beery's mandrakes will be done in a fortnight so at least those three will be all right again – and now a girl murdered. And there are still no answers – what's to say how safe any of the rest of us are? Until this is sorted, the best place for most of us is home.""Was it…quick?" Cosima asked hesitantly, not entirely sure she wanted to know the answer. "You know…Myrtle. Would she have suffered?"Helios sighed heavily. "I hope not, Cosima," he said sadly. "There was no sign she suffered anyway, not visibly at least. Dippet is off to notify her parents…they said she was an only child."Cosima's heart ached for Myrtle's family and she felt guiltier than ever that she'd thought of the girl as such a moaning nuisance. The thought of her lying there alone in a bathroom…her stomach lurched violently."C'mon," Helios prompted gently, beckoning to the rest of the group who had been with him when he'd made the horrifying discovery. "I'll walk you kids back up to Ravenclaw Tower. I know it's not likely, but try to get some sleep, eh?"Like lost sheep, they trailed in his wake and were led back to Ravenclaw Tower. Once inside, the girls took one direction on the stairs and the boys took the other, heading up to their dormitories.On autopilot, Cosima changed out of her school robes and into her pyjamas then climbed into bed. The usual comforting quiet of the dormitory was replaced by tense, frightened silence. As the night wore on, it was clear that not one of the five girls was able to sleep.Cosima burrowed into her pillow and let Pip nuzzle her face, suddenly missing her parents just as much as she had on that first night at Hogwarts. Maybe Helios was right, she mused sadly, as she longed for her Mum and Dad and the safe comforts of Seaview Cottage. Maybe home really was the safest place for them now.Hogwarts Castle was clearly no longer the bastion of safety it once had been!

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The next day, which was a Sunday, passed by in a bewildered, grief-stricken haze. Exams were due to start the following day, but even the most studious pupils were unable to concentrate on revision. Most had barely slept the night before and those that did manage to fall asleep had been subject to nightmares.Someone had died.The threat of the unknown that stalked their school had gone from being alarming and worrying to utterly deadly. It seemed absurd that Hogwarts, a place which was considered a real bastion of security in the wizarding world; a peaceful haven on an island increasingly ravaged by a savage war that did not discriminate between soldier and civilian, was suddenly a place where innocent teenagers were no longer safe.Paradoxically, when the rules governing student safety should have been strongest, chaos seemed to descend on the school while the teachers were tied up with the aftermath of the discovery of Myrtle's body. Students drifted around the school like pale-faced shades; only the lack of opacity in their complexions distinguishing them from the school's many ghosts. The prefects did their best to get people to stick together at least in pairs, but they too were shaken and distracted.Rumours that Hogwarts was going to close began to gain more and more volume. Somebody said that the Minister for Magic had sent a senior member of his staff to galvanise Dippet into taking some much needed action. Three unsolved attacks and a murder were hardly an auspicious record for the school year!Merlin and Cosima sat side by side at the end of the Ravenclaw table in the great hall for most of the day, each completely lost in thought and barely aware of the other's presence beyond the comforting touch of their shoulders together. They had failed spectacularly. Despite all their efforts in solving the mystery of the supposed Chamber of Secrets, Myrtle Warren was dead. It was difficult not to feel as though they were partially to blame for it.Helena Gordon encouraged them, and the rest of the first years who had been there when Myrtle's body had been found, to at least have a cup of tea if they couldn't manage meals, but Cosima couldn't even bear the thought of a single sip. She thought of poor Myrtle's parents, who had lost their only child, and felt her stomach do somersaults.She had just made up her mind to go back to her dormitory to send a letter to her own parents – if the students really were to be sent home then she would see them sooner than she had expected; the one comforting thought she'd had all day – when she spotted Harriet Brooks coming hurrying over towards the Ravenclaw table."Merlin! Cosima!" the redhead cried out as soon as she caught sight of them, face ashen."Harriet, what's wrong?" Cosima's stomach plummeted. Could there have been another attack so soon? Had someone else died?"They think your friend Hagrid is the one who killed that fourth year girl!" Harried gasped out. "They say he had a dangerous creature hidden somewhere in the school and that it escaped. He's been expelled!""What?" Merlin shot to his feet in horror, exchanging a stricken glance with Cosima. The rest of the first years were staring at them, nonplussed. "Hagrid would never hurt anyone!""We need to go and see Professor Dippet right now!" Cosima exclaimed, jumping out of her seat and taking off down the Great Hall with Merlin close behind her."They must have found Aragog!" Merlin said, voice tight with anxiety. "Parcelsus knows I hated the thing, but there's no way it had anything to do with Myrtle's death. I mean, they would have noticed if she had a bloody great spider bite!""They can't chuck him out, Merlin!" Cosima ground out desperately as they ran. "He doesn't have a family. He's got nowhere to go! What would he do?""We won't let them!" Merlin promised determinedly. "We need to tell them what we've found out."They were halfway up the stairs in the entrance hall before they realise that they did not actually know where the headmaster's study actually was. Luckily, the Grey Lady was just in the act of drifting past the top of the stairwell and so they were able to call out to her and ask for directions.Though she was as a rule less friendly than the Far Friar and Nearly Headless Nick, the Ravenclaw ghost could usually be relied upon to help members of her own house. To Cosima and Merlin's relief, she was willing to give them the directions they needed and pointed in them the right direction.Several corridors later, they skidded to a halt in front of a particularly ugly stone gargoyle."We need to go up!" Cosima resolved. "Maybe we can stop them before they get hold of his wand! What do we do?"As though in answer to her query, the gargoyle opened its eyes. "Password?" The stone structure grunted."We don't know!" Cosima responded pleadingly. "But please, we need to talk to the headmaster about the girl who died. It's really urgent!"It seemed that Cosima's appeal had had the desired effect; the gargoyle sprung to life and jumped aside as the wall at his back split into two. Behind the wall was a spiral staircase that moved smoothly upwards, like a sleeping serpent suddenly uncoiling."Come on!" Merlin beckoned, and he ran up the stairs while they were still moving, Cosima hard on his heels. She heard the wall thud closed behind them.They ran up and around the spiralling stairs, growing rather dizzy in the process, until they found themselves faced with a shining oak door, ornamented with a brass knocker in the shape of a griffon. Merlin used it to knock urgently three times and then they burst through the door before Professor Dippet could even say 'come in'.The headmaster's study was large and ornate, but neither of the two Ravenclaws were particularly interested in admiring the trappings of the large, airy circular room. Instead, their attention was immediately arrested by the two figures at the desk in the centre; Professor Dippet and a short, bespectacled wizard wearing Ministry robes of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Despite Merlin and Cosima's family connections with the department, it was not someone they recognised."What is the meaning of this?" Dippet demanded angrily. "Explain yourselves at once!""Professor Dippet, Hagrid didn't hurt anyone!" Merlin gasped out desperately. "There's been some sort of mistake, sir!""I assure you, there has been no such thing," replied the ministry official, his voice cold, nasal and just bordering on patronising."The boy was caught red handed trying to smuggle a dangerous monster out of the castle," Dippet growled. "Evidently, he was trying to cover up the evidence of his crime before he was discovered.""Hagrid wouldn't hurt anyone!" Cosima's voice rose shrilly of its own accord. "He's good!""You've got completely the wrong culprit!" Merlin declared, made bold by anger. "He didn't have a monster, well… at least, not the kind you should be looking for. It was an acromantula he was hiding in the dungeons.""Hmph! A creature quite capable of killing both man and beast!" said the Ministry official in stark disapproval."Acromantulas don't petrify people!" Cosima cried in frustration. "They bite! They're venomous! Read any book about magical creatures; it will tell you that!"Dippet stared at her a moment, before a look of realisation came over his face. "Ah, yes, Scamander isn't it?" he said, voice carrying the hint of a sneer, as though to say 'I might have known'. Cosima was again reminded that this was the man who had expelled her father and felt hatred swell in her chest like a balloon. "Evidently the apple did not fall very far from the tree. I should have thought that you would have learned from your father's school career that monsters do not make suitable pets!""Myrtle didn't die of a spider bite, did she?" Merlin demanded. "And Gwion, Harper or Seymour weren't bitten either! Anyway, it was just a baby when the first attacks happened, there was no way it was the culprit! We've done a bit of research, and we think that it's a basilisk!"Dippet drew himself up to his full height, looking appalled by their blatant rudeness and disrespect. It was quite clear that neither he nor the representative of the Ministry were interested in listening to anything that the two first years had to say. "Do you mean to tell me," he demanded, his voice icy with anger, waving away Merlin's comments about a basilisk. "That you have both been aware that a potentially deadly creature has been hidden in this school all year, where anyone could have stumbled across it?""Yes," Merlin confessed hurriedly, Cosima nodding at his side. "But, sir, it couldn't have…""Silence!" Dippet thundered, and both Cosima and Merlin's mouths snapped shut. "Have you any idea of the magnitude of what you have done? You have kept a secret which has led to the death of one pupil, as well as injuring several others!""It didn't..." tried Merlin again."Enough!" Dippet roared, rage giving his voice a deeper and more threatening quality than its usually feeble timbre. "As far as I am concerned, Miss Warren's blood is on your hands as much as Hagrid's. You can count yourselves extremely lucky that I do not expel you on the spot along with him! Why, if Riddle hadn't caught him…""Riddle?!" spat Cosima in disgust."Yes, Riddle," replied Dippet. "Unlike the two of you, he had the sense to recognise the danger such a creature posed to the students here. Unfortunately, he was too late to contain it, but he caught Hagrid in the act of trying to smuggle it out of the school to cover his guilt.""But why would Hagrid put that horrible message up on the wall about 'mudbloods'?" Merlin demanded, clearly not intimidated by the headmaster's scowl. Cosima supposed that after being routinely scolded by someone as grim looking as Percival Pendragon, this was nothing by comparison. "He's half-blood himself! He thought we wouldn't even want to talk to him again after he told us he was part giant. He's not likely to go around hollering about the Chamber of Secrets and attacking muggle-borns, is he?""That exhibition at Halloween was evidently a tasteless prank," said Dippet dismissively. "And there is no Chamber of Secrets; it's merely a legend that has been utilised to terrify gullible young children. I am sure Mr Hagrid did not intend to harm anyone, but the fact remains that through his dangerous disregard for the rules, and your own idiotic naivety, a student has died. I am utterly disgusted by your foolhardiness. You each lose Ravenclaw fifty points and if I hear another word out of either of you, it will be the last word you speak in this school."Tears of angry frustration stung at Cosima's eyes but she didn't dare open her mouth. She could feel Merlin shaking with rage at her side. Neither of them would risk shaming their families by being thrown out of the school, but the injustice of Hagrid's treatment at Dippet's hands burned in them like acid. Not to mention the fact that Ravenclaw would now drop from equal-first with Slytherin in the House Cup race when all they had done was tell the truth."Derwent, could you kindly summon Mr Pringle, please?" Dippet asked, once he was satisfied that they would not answer him back again. An elderly witch in one of the portraits replied in the affirmative before disappearing. "As I was saying before we so rudely interrupted Archimedes, I trust you will let Mr Spencer-Moon know that the situation is now under control here. I will have the necessary paperwork sent over the ministry as soon as it is complete."They conversed as though the two stricken first years were not even in the room, as though to emphasise how completely insignificant they and their opinions were. Cosima had never in her entire life so desperately wanted to scream at someone out of sheer fury. Dippet didn't care about Hagrid; he didn't care that he was unjustly expelling a boy who would have no family to comfort him, who would have no elder brother in the Ministry to smooth the way for him like her dad had had in Theseus. All Dippet clearly cared about was convincing the Ministry that he had dealt with the crisis; he wasn't interested in giving the matter any thought, not interested in noting the discrepancies between his idea that a spider was the killer and lack of bite marks on the victims. He was just relieved that he didn't have to close the school.Some moments later, the door to the study opened once again to admit Apolyon Pringle."You sent for me, Headmaster?" he asked with brusque politeness."Ah, yes, Pringle," Dippet nodded in greeting to the lean, dark-haired caretaker. "These two students have not only made some incredibly foolish decisions, they have been guilty of several infractions of school rules and could also use a refresher in manners. Kindly impress upon them the seriousness of their situation. A dozen each, if you please.""Of course, Headmaster," Pringle gave a little half-bow, his mean pale eyes suddenly lighting up. He turned to Cosima and Merlin. "You two – come with me, at once!"Throwing one last, desperate look at Dippet and the man from the Ministry, and finding themselves once more ignored, the two crestfallen first years were left with no option but to follow Pringle out of the headmaster's office. To stay and argue would have meant certain expulsion.They were led back down the delicate spiral staircase and out into the corridor; the gargoyle resuming its place once the wall had slid shut behind them. Pringle strode on ahead, an unpleasant smirk twisting his swarthy face, while Cosima and Merlin trailed in his wake and exchanged silent, frightened glances."A dozen each, if you please." Dippet's imperious command ran through Cosima's head, making her feel cold all over with fear as she also recalled James Shacklebolt's warning to all the first years on the very first day of term. "You want to watch out for Pringle though! He's got a cane made out of a tail spike from a Hungarian Horntail and Dippet lets him use it. If you get on his wrong side you're either unable to sit for a day or struggling to hold a quill!"She and Merlin were about to feel that cane, she was certain, and the very thought made her throat tighten with tears. When Merlin took hold of her hand, squeezing it in solidarity, she was glad of the support and squeezed back. Hand in hand, they followed Pringle to his office on the second floor and stepped inside when they were so ordered.The bronze-coloured cane was lying across the front of his desk, as though it were some sort of revered artefact. Cosima gulped at the sight of it, her heart feeling as though it was being squeezed by an icy fist. Ordinarily, she would have been beside herself with excitement to see a specimen from a dragon so close up. This time though, all her enthusiasm was gone; replaced only by a fast-growing terror.Pringle was saying something, his tone both fierce and gloating, but his voice had faded to a mere background buzz. All Cosima could focus on was the long, slender cane, thinking fearfully of Freddie's red eyes when he'd turned up late to Charms class and how he had winced as he sat down. They were to get double what he got… She felt like she was going to be sick."Well, let this be a lesson as to where flouting the school rules gets you," Pringle snarled, bringing his lecture to an end before pinning Cosima with his malevolent glare. "Ladies first!"Cosima stepped forward, blinking back tears. She wouldn't cry, she told herself fiercely. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction. She might not be a Gryffindor like Helios, but she could be brave this once. She wouldn't cry!"Hold out your hand," Pringle instructed sharply. "The right one first."Cosima blinked at him in confusion for a second; Freddie had taken his six strokes on the backside and she had been expecting an instruction to lean over the desk. But then she understood; tomorrow, the exams were due to start. Taking it on the hand and then having to write continuously for several hours would serve as a double punishment. James's warning about the caretaker's cruelty was well founded!She held out her right hand, palm up, hoping Merlin did not notice how badly it was shaking and realise how much of a coward she was. Pringle put his own left hand underneath it, his skin as icy as his heart, and held it fast in place. He reached out for the cane with right hand, picked it up and then raised it high. Cosima's heart thundered so hard she thought it would burst out of her ribs.The next second, she jumped violently as the cane descended across her hand and a sharp crack echoed through the office. Despite all her determination to be brave, she let out an involuntary shriek of pain. The cane left a line of fierce, stinging fire across the palm of her hand; making her want to snatch it back from Pringle and cradle it to her chest. It took all of her self-control not to do so.The second stroke fell, then the third, then the fourth, then the fifth. By the sixth, Cosima's resolve had crumbled and she was sobbing miserably with pain; the room reduced to an indistinct blur thanks to the tears flooding her eyes before they rolled down her cheeks to drip off her chin."Other hand," Pringle instructed sharply, releasing his grip on her right one.For a moment, Cosima just stood there dumbly, choking on her own sobs and too overcome to obey. Eventually, she managed to get herself together enough to withdraw her right hand and hold out her left to take its place. She jumped as the cane came swishing sharply down once again. Seven, eight, nine, ten…she no longer had the ability to be embarrassed by her wails, which reverberated through the office. Her world had narrowed only to the fiery stripes covering her hands.The last two strokes fell in quick succession, but it took Cosima several seconds to realise that the punishment was at last done. Her hands throbbed in vicious burning pain and she felt light-headed and wobbly. When she was instructed to swap places with Merlin, she did so on shaking legs.She screwed her eyes shut as the cruel crack of the cane echoed through the office once again; not wanting to watch Merlin suffer and honouring their friendship by offering him what little privacy she could. She cradled her aching hands gently against her chest, her fingers curled on reflex. She had no idea how she was ever going to get through the Charms exam tomorrow!Merlin proved to be a little braver than she had been. He took most of his strokes in angry, defiant silence; in fact he made it all the way to ten before he gave way to tears. At last though, their punishments were finally over and the only sound in Pringles office was their gasping, hiccupping sobs."I imagine you'll think twice before you break the rules again!" Pringle growled at them, his voice hard and unsympathetic. "Now, out of my office!"They did not need to be told twice. Blinded by tears, the two first years were out of the door almost before he had finished his sentence. They did not stop running until they were two corridors away.They could not bear the thought of returning to the common room just yet, where people would ask questions and demand explanations, where they would be forced to recount exactly what had just transpired. Neither of them was yet capable of speech. Instead, they ducked into an empty classroom in the Astronomy tower.Everything had gone dismally and disastrously wrong. Their year had started so well. But now one of their friends and two other students were still lying like statues in the hospital wing, Myrtle Warren was dead, poor Hagrid was being thrown out into the world accused of a crime he did not commit and abandoned with no family to support him, and between them they had just destroyed Ravenclaw's position in the house cup race when all they'd tried to do was help their friend. And they were still no closer to finding the real creature responsible for all this heartache.Huddled together on the classroom floor, the two young Ravenclaws sobbed with abject misery.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Cosima and Merlin's hands were so bruised and swollen the next morning that, when they came down to breakfast in the Great Hall, no one needed to ask who had been responsible for losing Ravenclaw one hundred points overnight. The house was now in last place. Slytherin, meanwhile, had gained an extra hundred points from somewhere and seemed comfortably assured of winning the House Cup.At first, to the dismay of the two disgraced first years, everyone was inclined to be standoffish. They ate their breakfast in silence, the recipient of a plethora of stony glares which, on top of a second mostly-sleepless night and the continued ache in their hands, had Cosima and Merlin hunching miserably in on themselves in a bid not to be further noticed. The seats beside them and across from them at the table were tellingly empty. James, Helena and the other older pupils glared down at them disapprovingly from the top of the table. It couldn't be clearer that they had suddenly become house pariahs.Eventually, after they listened disbelievingly to Professor Dippet's announcement that Myrtle Warren's death had in fact been a tragic accident and therefore the students could resume their usual class arrangements, Freddie Wentworth stood up from where he'd been sitting with Florizel and Anthony and came to sit down in front of them. Maybe it was because he'd also been the recipient of a beating from Pringle not so long ago, or perhaps he was just more easily moved to sympathy than all the others, but either way he was the only one not glaring at them."What happened?" he asked quietly."They expelled Rubeus Hagrid from Gryffindor for causing Myrtle's death," Merlin said tonelessly, conscious that practically the whole table was listening in. "We went to tell Dippet that he'd made a mistake. Hagrid had a pet acromantula hidden in the dungeons that Cosima and I knew about but it couldn't have been the culprit. They don't petrify people and they don't kill people without leaving a mark on their body. Dippet wasn't interested in what we had to say. He'd already made his mind up and it's obvious he just wanted the Ministry off his back - he told us to clear out or he'd have us expelled. The beating and the points were for keeping quiet about the acromantula in the first place.""Whatever killed Myrtle and hurt the others is still out there," Cosima finished dully. "It wasn't a freak accident! We've been trying all year to figure out what it was. But it's no use now: Dippet won't change his mind and Hagrid's gone. He doesn't have any parents or a family to look out for him."The best thing of all about being a Ravenclaw was that one shared one's house with people who valued logic. Cosima and Merlin were relieved to find that, when they finished their story, they were believed. Some of the older students, who took Care of Magical Creatures, agreed with them in that an acromantula would have to bite someone to cause death, and the three petrified students could not have been rendered that way by a giant spider. Their defence of Hagrid was, at least, vindicated.Still though, a large portion of the Ravenclaws, especially the prefects and the older students, were not shy to express their displeasure at the two first years having kept Aragog a secret all year, when there genuinely had been a risk of the acromantula doing somebody serious harm. First James, then Helena, then Chris Carmichael took them to task over it, remonstrating with them that their foolhardy disregard for the rules had resulted in the whole house being punished. Eventually, they were glad to hurry off to the classroom where they and the rest of the first years would take their Charms exam, if only because it gave them a break from being yelled at.The Charms exam itself was murder. After two nights of little sleep, Cosima felt slow and muddle-headed. Worry for Hagrid continuously gnawed at the back of her mind like an overzealous beaver, making her heart flutter and her stomach do swandives several times an hour. Added to this, her hand hurt so badly when she held the special no-cheating quill they had all been given, that it was all she could do not to burst into tears again. She tried to hold it as loosely as possible, hoping that the resulting dreadful handwriting would at least be legible to Professor Fisher.She had to concentrate, she told herself angrily, pinching her own arm as her head drooped wearily. This was her best subject. She could not fail this exam!The two hours allotted to them passed torturously by and Cosima filled several scrolls with her answers. Thankfully she and Merlin had done plenty of revision prior to the weekend and Charms was her favourite subject, so the morning was not the total disaster it could have been. Hopefully she could make it through without disgracing herself even more. Mum and Dad would already be so disappointed when she told them that she'd helped lose Ravenclaw one hundred points in a single night. What would they say if she were to fail her exams all together? The knot of worry in her stomach got tighter and tighter until the thought she might combust.At long last, the exam was over and Professor Fisher summoned all their scrolls to sit on a neat pile on her desk. With a nod of her elegant head, she dismissed the students and everyone gladly rushed for the door."Scamander and Pendragon, could you stay behind please?" she called, just as they were about to follow the others out.With a sense of impending doom, Cosima and Merlin waited back, receiving sympathetic pats on the shoulder from Freddie and Florizel. Professor Fisher did not look pleased. It was unlikely that this was about to be a pleasant interview."I trust," Professor Fisher said icily. "That you now understand the incredible lack of judgement you have shown this year.""Yes Professor," Merlin nodded."I am appalled and disgusted that you could have so cavalierly disregarded the rules and put yourselves and your classmates in danger!" Fisher snapped. "We typically expect members of Ravenclaw house to show good judgement, but you failed dismally in that regard! You have shamed Ravenclaw and let the whole house down by your actions. Not to mention that you have lost points for which your housemates undoubtedly worked hard to win!"The dressing down that followed was even worse than the one they had received from the headmaster, perhaps because they both genuinely liked and respected Professor Fisher. To be on the receiving end of her scorn and displeasure was dreadful. Cosima couldn't bear to look their head of house in the face and so settled for staring at her shoes throughout."I understand that the headmaster and Mr Pringle have already impressed upon you the seriousness of your poor choices," Fisher concluded coldly. "And I hope you the lesson has been well learned. Be warned, however, should I see either of you put so much as one toe out of line before the end of term, you will feel my displeasure just as strongly. Am I understood?""Yes, Professor," the chastened first years chorused meekly."Good, then you may go!"Shoulders slumped despondently, both exhausted and wretched they made their way wearily out of the exam room. The rest of the class hadn't waited for them, perhaps anticipating it would take Fisher a good few minutes to tear them to shreds."I think I need to go back to the dormitory and try to get some sleep," Merlin sighed. With exams scheduled for every morning this week, they had the afternoons off for revision. "My head is pounding and I'm pretty sure I made a royal screw up of that paper. I don't want to do the same tomorrow.""I'm going to sit in the courtyard for a bit," Cosima replied with a nod. "I don't think I can face everyone just yet. I want a bit of peace to clear my head a little."They parted ways and headed in opposite directions. Cosima made her way outside to the quiet courtyard which was bathed in golden sunlight, the water in the fountain twinkling like diamonds at its touch. Glad of the warmth and the gentle breeze to refresh her, Cosima made herself comfortable on an empty bench in an isolated corner, which was partially obscured by a statue. She wished for the comforting weight of Pip in her pocket. She hadn't dared take him into the exam hall. After everything that had happened, if she was caught with an unauthorised creature, even one as harmless as a bowtruckle, she knew she would be expelled on the spot, so she'd left him behind to snuggle up on her pillow, hidden from sight by her bed curtains.Seeing a blur of red and gold in her peripheral vision, Cosima looked up and winced. Helios was heading determinedly towards her and in place of his customary cheery smile was a grim frown. She knew what was coming. It seemed that everyone in the entire castle was angry at her and Merlin, but she didn't think she could take Helios's anger on top of all the rest that morning."Merlin's beard, titch!" he said crossly by way of greeting, planting his hands on his hips and towering over her. "An Acromantula?! Just what exactly did you think you were playing at?"Cosima just sat there and let his disapproval crash over her like a particularly powerful wave as he launched into a lengthy reprimand. Already tired and stressed, being at odds with Helios was all it took for the fragile thread holding her composure together to snap. Despite her best attempts, she couldn't contain the miserable tears that started to roll down her cheeks and so she pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes in an attempt to hold them back."You're lucky you weren't… oh damn, don't cry!" Helios's anger vanished instantly; the sight of his cousin's tears taking the wind out of his sails. "Cosima, don't, come on.""I'm sorry!" Cosima groaned, her voice wavering. She didn't want him to think she'd started crying in an attempt to get out of trouble. But now she'd opened the dam, she couldn't stop. She wiped desperately at her eyes but the sobs bubbled up in her chest of their own accord.Helios dropped immediately onto the bench beside her and tugged her into a hug, sturdy arms holding her close. "Please don't cry, titch. It's going to be all right," he promised, his tone completely altered."But it isn't," Cosima said tearfully against his robes. "They've expelled Hagrid and I swear, Helios, I swear he wasn't responsible! I know he shouldn't have had the spider, and Merlin and I should have told someone when we found out about it, but he didn't kill anyone! Hagrid wouldn't hurt anybody!""I believe you," said Helios gently, rubbing a hand up and down her back. "He always seemed a pretty kind-hearted sort, not that I knew him all that well. And I know there was no spider bite on that poor girl. I won't forget the sight of her for as long as I live!""Isn't there anybody that can help Hagrid?" asked Cosima desolately. "Helios, his dad died. He's got no one to take care of him!""Maybe Professor Dumbledore could," Helios mused, swiping the tears off her cheeks with his thumbs. "He's our head of house, he'd know Hagrid best I expect. Just don't go hollering at Dippet any more, all right? You've been punished enough. Come on; let me see your hands." Cosima sat back and held out her bruised hands. "Oh bloody hell, how many did that arse give you?""Twelve," Cosima replied, blinking when Helios cursed angrily and fluently. If their granny had heard him swear like that, he'd have been on receiving end of a mouth-washing spell in seconds, regardless of how old he was!"You stay here," Helios instructed briskly, his sunny face clouded with rage. "I'll be back in a second."Hurrying off, the Head Boy went back in the direction of the Great Hall, returning some moments later with a small cylindrical tub. He sat back down beside her once again and gestured for her to hold her hand out, just as Pringle had done the night before. Trusting in Helios, who'd done nothing but protect her since she'd been old enough to toddle after him, she did as he asked."I use this for quidditch training," her cousin explained, uncapping the tub he'd brought out. "It numbs the pain when my skin splits with the cold or I get blisters. Hopefully it might take the worst of the sting out for you; it tends to work pretty fast."Carefully, he scooped out a little of the pale blue salve and spread it smoothly over Cosima's palm, his long, strong fingers careful and gentle. Soon afterwards, a cooling numbness seemed to sink into her skin. Cosima flexed her fingers and found that, though they still twinged a little, the pain was greatly reduced. Tomorrow's exam was Transfiguration; at least she would be able to hold her quill properly now."Thanks Helios," Cosima managed a small smile, leaning forward to hug him appreciatively. "You're really the best!""So they tell me. I came out here to yell at you, you know!" Helios joked, before he ruffled Cosima's hair. His expression became solemn again. "It's going to be all right titch. Don't worry, things will sort themselves out."He let her keep the salve and told her to share it with Merlin.The next morning, the atmosphere at the Ravenclaw table was a degree warmer; everyone having more or less come to terms with losing so many points and several of their classmates genuinely moved by Hagrid's plight. Freddie and Florizel sat next to them at breakfast, Octavia passed Cosima a plate of toast with a smile and Anthony invited Merlin to join him and the other boys for a game of rugby in the grounds later that afternoon. It appeared their fellow first years, at least, had forgiven them even if the older students hadn't.Consequently, Cosima and Merlin were able to head off to their Transfiguration exam feeling a little more confident that they had done the day before for Charms. They'd tried to find Professor Dumbledore the previous evening but had been unable to. They meant to hang around after the exam itself was done and talk to him about Hagrid then.Finally having managed to get some much-needed sleep the night before, Cosima found the paper manageable, Helios's salve helping her write much more comfortably. At the desk next to her, Merlin's quill was flying across the paper with ease; Transfiguration had remained by far his best subject.When the exam had finished and the first years were free to leave the hall, Cosima and Merlin hung back. The approached Professor Dumbledore's desk as he arranged the pile of scrolls he had collected with a flick of his wand."Professor?" Cosima felt suddenly anxious; Dumbledore's face was unreadable as he turned towards them. Would he start yelling at them too? "We wondered if we could talk to you…about Hagrid?"Instantly, Dumbledore's face softened a little. "Ah yes," he nodded at them understandingly. "I understand you two are friends of his.""Yes, sir," Merlin was careful to keep his tone polite after losing control so badly in front of Dippet. "With respect, we think that the headmaster has made a mistake. Hagrid had nothing to do with Myrtle's death! But Dippet…that is, Professor Dippet…he won't listen to us.""On the point of Mr Hagrid's innocence, we are agreed," Professor Dumbledore nodded, his voice quiet but kind. "He informed me that the creature he had been keeping hidden – with your help, I believe - was in fact an acromantula. I am confident that it was not an acromantula which caused Miss Warren's death. Unfortunately, the headmaster disagrees and would not be swayed on the subject of your friend's expulsion.""But isn't there anything that can be done to help him, sir?" pleaded Cosima in distress. "Where is he to go? They can't just throw him out into the world and then abandon him!""Calm yourself, Miss Scamander," Dumbledore raised his hand placatingly. "As it happens, I have been able to do something for Mr Hagrid on that front. Though I could not change the headmaster's mind on the subject of his expulsion, I have managed to get Professor Dippet to agree to his staying on to work with Mr Ogg as assistant groundskeeper. He has of course, lamentably, lost his wand and will not be permitted to do magic again, but he will have a safe home here for as long as I teach at the school."Cosima and Merlin sagged with relief at the Transfiguration teacher's words. The situation was still far from ideal, Hagrid was still being persecuted for a death he had no hand in, but at least he was not to be cast out into an unfriendly world or sent to Azkaban. He would be here at Hogwarts, where Mr Ogg and Dumbledore could always ensure that he was well treated."I am glad to see that Rubeus has such loyal friends," Dumbledore smiled at them. "I believe he will need them in the weeks to come. You will find him in Mr Ogg's hut in the school grounds, though I would caution you to keep your visits to before the curfew, if you please. I believe the two of you have gotten into quite enough trouble to be getting on with!" The warmth in his voice belied the words and they knew that his reprimand was not the same as that of all the other teachers who had spoken to them. Dumbledore seemed to understand that what they had done, they had done for friendship.Considerably lighter of heart, Cosima and Merlin immediately made their way out into the grounds, deciding they could easily skip lunch in favour of seeing Hagrid. They practically ran down the path towards the lake and along to a modest hut that neither of them had ever really paid attention to before.There, in the small garden, chopping up a supply of firewood was Hagrid."Hagrid!" Cosima's shriek made the former Gryffindor look up in shock and he just braced himself in time to catch Cosima as she hit him like a bludger and threw her arms around him. Merlin did likewise a few moments later and Hagrid wrapped his enormous arms around the pair of them and squeezed the breath right out of him."S'good ter see the pair of yeh," he told them gruffly."It's good to see you too!" Cosima told him fervently. "We didn't know what had happened to you! We've been so worried.""We told Dippet he'd got it all wrong!" Merlin said earnestly, when they'd all released each other. "We weren't able to convince him though. He was more concerned with getting the Ministry off his back.""Yeah, I heard the two of yeh had copped it from Pringle for tryin' ter clear me name," Hagrid said, the tall boy's deep voice wavering with emotion. It felt so odd not to see him in school robes. "Yer right good friends, the pair of yeh. Yeh didn't have ter do that for me – I'm sorry yeh got into so much trouble! Should never of asked yeh ter keep secrets for me!""We wouldn't have stood by and let you be framed!" Cosima told him firmly. "We know it wasn't Aragog!""I tried ter tell them he hadn't hurt nobody," said Hagrid dolefully. "But Professor Dippet wouldn't listen. And what with Riddle standin' there insistin' I'd let a monster loose, it was his word against mine!""Yes, we heard that git Riddle had had a hand in everything!" Merlin growled, his eyes narrowing with dislike at the mere mention of the Slytherin prefect's name. "What happened, Hagrid?""Well, I'd been meanin' ter get Aragog out of the school all week," Hagrid began, gesturing to them to sit down on the grass and then joining them. "He was startin' to get antsy, see, and I was strugglin' to get down ter feed him regular. When they announced that lass from Ravenclaw had died, I thought everyone would be so caught up figurin' out what happened ter her, I could sneak down into the dungeons and get him out ter the forest. I knew they'd be searching the school twice as hard this time!""And Riddle caught you?" Cosima asked."Yeah, that's the long and short o' it!" Hagrid nodded. "Stood there in the doorway, pompous as yeh like and let out a load o' guff about how he knew I'd never meant ter harm anyone, but it was the least Hogwarts could do ter destroy the creature that had killed that lass. Well, I told him Aragog hadn't hurt nobody, but he didn't listen ter a word. Took out his wand and went for the box I'd got Aragog in. Well, Aragog, he wasn't havin' any of that. He got out, knocked Riddle over and took off up through the dungeon corridor. Riddle tried ter go after him, but I grabbed his wand and delayed him enough that Aragog got free. Course, that was all I could do against Riddle, he had me disarmed quick as a flash and marched me up ter Dippet's office. Next thing I knew, I was told I were expelled and some bloke from the Ministry was snappin' me wand!""We'll find the person who did this Hagrid, we promise!" Merlin vowed. "Dippet will have no choice but to reverse his decision then!""Hey, listen, I don't want you two gettin' in ter any more trouble on my account!" Hagrid said emphatically. "Yer the only proper friends I've ever had, I don't want Pringle ter have an excuse ter thrash yeh again. Worse than that, they might end up expellin' yeh as well! Just leave it now, all right? Professor Dumbledore's done his best for me and Ogg's got a heart of gold, so it's not like I'm all that bad off, right? Never was much use with me wand anyhow! I'll be all right."His obvious attempt to put on a brave face for them, contradicted by the redness of his kind dark eyes, left Cosima's heart in tatters. Hagrid didn't deserve this; didn't deserve anything that had happened to him. Thank goodness for Professor Dumbledore. At least Hagrid had one person with influence firmly in his corner."Something's not adding up here!" Merlin said flatly, as they walked back up the school to begin revision for the Potions practical test the next day. "And Tom goody-two-shoes Riddle is in it up to his neck!""I don't trust him, Merlin!" Cosima stated heatedly. "It was too convenient, him finding Aragog just when they were talking about closing the school. He's supposed to be the smartest in his whole year – don't tell me he doesn't know how an acromantula kills its prey! That day he caught me in the Restricted Section, he was on his way in. I always thought he was looking for books for homework, but what if he wasn't?""You think he has a hand in it?" Merlin wondered."I don't know," Cosima shrugged. "But Helios says he knows how to play up to the teachers. The goody-two-shoes image must be a bit of a sham. We've seen him with the Trolls too often for him to be a genuinely nice person.""And he's deliberatey ruined Hagrid's life," Merlin spat. "He might even have got him sent to Azkaban if not for Dumbledore intervening! We need to watch his every movement; shadow him whenever we can. If he is involved in what happened to Myrtle, then it's only a matter of time before he makes a mistake and gives himself away!""I agree!" Cosima said firmly. "We start this afternoon!"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

With single minded determination fuelled by their continued outrage on Hagrid's behalf, Cosima and Merlin set about shadowing Tom Riddle's movements. They sat three tables away from him in the library that afternoon; busying themselves with Potions revision safe in the knowledge that they would able to see at once should he decide to leave the room and lead them to a solution to the mystery that had been plaguing them all year.Annoyingly, he did no such thing. He sat there quietly until it was time for dinner, seemingly absorbed in his own revision, before making his way to the Great Hall to eat. The two Ravenclaws kept one eye on him throughout the whole meal, but once again he never moved. He was listening to something Lestrange was telling him with a bored, condescending look on his face which was occasionally broken by a smirk. After dinner, Cosima and Merlin dawdled behind as much as they dared to and were able to ascertain that he had disappeared into the Slytherin common room with the Trolls. If he was going to give away what he knew, it would not be tonight!That night, Cosima lay awake till after midnight trying to once again puzzle over exactly where a basilisk, if indeed it was a basilisk, could be hidden at Hogwarts. But try as she might, she couldn't come up with an answer. Snakes did not roam the corridors unnoticed! The message at Halloween had talked about a Chamber of Secrets, but was it possible that such a chamber could even exist if generations of Hogwarts teachers, not to mention some of the finest aurors in the country had not found it?Someone knew what had killed Myrtle. Someone knew and they had let Hagrid be cast out in their place. She could only hope that Riddle would lead them to the answer soon – then she and Merlin could go to Dippet and he would have no choice but to apologise to Hagrid and let him back into the school! She fell asleep half-way through a pleasant imagining of Hagrid being publically vindicated in the Great Hall and everyone welcoming him back.The next morning brought their Potions practical examination and so they were forced to leave Riddle behind in the Great Hall after breakfast while they traipsed down to the dungeons with their fellow Ravenclaws and the first year Slytherins. It was not an exam they had been dreading - Slughorn was one of the few members of staff who had not seen fit to scold them about helping Hagrid keep Aragog a secret. He beamed at them just as he always did, unashamedly indulgent of all his favourite students, and as usual was cheerfulness itself to everyone else.For the exam, they were required to brew a simple cure for hayfever – the instructions were on the board and they were to work in pairs, just like in a normal Potions class. Cosima and Merlin had plenty experience of working efficiently together as a team and they quickly set about preparing the ingredients they needed; chopping, peeling and crushing until they were ready to start brewing.Slughorn looked approvingly at their work while he strolled around the class halfway through their allotted time limit and made a series of proud little hums when he observed the finished article. That was exam number three out of the way and Cosima was relieved that she did not think she had done too abysmally at anything so far."Well done! Well done, everyone!" Slughorn smiled happily round at the class. "You have all made tremendous strides this year! I think we shall make master potion brewers of you yet. You may all now go and have a well-earned lunch!"Cosima and Merlin ate chicken salad with their classmates at the Ravenclaw table and then tailed Tom Riddle to the library once more. Riddle once again spent the whole afternoon there and, frustratingly, did nothing more than work his way through a couple of advanced Defence Against the Dark Arts books.On Thursday the first years all slept late into the morning as they had their Astronomy exam at midnight, which put a rather irritating halt to their shadowing. They managed to follow Riddle around the school grounds – though at a fairly lengthy distance – just before dinner though, on the pretext of wanting a little bit of fresh air. Once again, their efforts were fruitless; it seemed that Riddle had just wanted to stretch his legs. He stuck only to the path and did not meet or talk to anyone at all.They were not in particularly high spirits when the climbed the steps to the Astronomy tower at midnight. In addition to being frustrated that their shadowing was revealing nothing, Cosima didn't enjoy Astronomy very much and so was glad to get the exam over and done with and return to her cosy dormitory in Ravenclaw Tower. She and Merlin made certain to keep their eyes peeled as they were escorted back to their house from the Astronomy tower at three o'clock in the morning. There was no sign of any lurking snakes though, nor any convenient sightings of Tom Riddle sneaking around the castle!At last, on Friday (which the first years all had free after four of their exams that week) the pattern changed. When they went to follow Riddle from the Great Hall after lunchtime they got caught up in the bustle of the Hufflepuff Quiddich Team rushing off to watch their keeper try the new broom he'd received from his parents that morning. In the few seconds they lost sight of him, the Slytherin prefect had vanished. They quickly ascertained that he had not gone in the direction of the Slytherin common room and then rushed to check the library. He wasn't there either, and there were no fifth year exams scheduled for the day."Perhaps we're finally getting somewhere! We need to split up," Merlin said decisively. "We can cover more ground that way and we've a much better chance of observing something useful! I'll take the upper levels of the castle, then I'll do the grounds. You take the lower levels and the dungeons. If we find something, run for the nearest prefect, or go to Dumbledore or Fisher. If we find nothing, let's meet up again in the great hall for dinner."They took their leave of each other and headed up the marble staircase in the entrance hall. Cosima turned away into the Defence Against the Dark Arts corridor, while Merlin kept climbing, meaning to start with the Divination classrooms and work his way down.Strolling along first the Defence Against Dark Arts, then Transfiguration and then Charms corridors, Cosima did her best to appear as though she was just nonchalantly going for a stroll."What ho, squirt!" Marius Vance, Slytherin seventh year and one of Helios's best friends, hailed her with a grin as he strode down the Charms corridor towards her. "Where's the other half of the Helios Scamander Defence Squad?""Um…I'm not sure," said Cosima truthfully. She hoped that Merlin was having better luck than she was!"Not often you're seen apart! What are you doing wandering around here on your own anyway?" Marius asked. The older boy's face suddenly softened sympathetically. "The Ravenclaws aren't giving you a hard time about this points debacle are they?""No, they aren't," Cosima assured him at once. She spoke the truth – their fellow first years were on perfectly amicable terms with she and Merlin again and though it was clear that James, Helena and many of the other seniors still weren't best pleased with them, no one was being unkind about it. "I was just having a bit of a walk. I needed a bit of a break from revision - my brain isn't taking anything in anymore – and I wanted to look at some of the paintings.""All right, you look away to your hearts content," Marius laughed. "If you see that cousin of yours on your travels, remind him he's supposed to meet me at three, would you?"Cosima nodded and set off alone again. She was just about to head down to the ground floor when at last she caught sight of the person she had been looking for: Tom Riddle! The fifth year Slytherin was striding towards the other side of the entrance hall stairs with a tense look on his face and he didn't look like he was on the way to the library; he had no bag.Cosima, concealed by the doorway to the Charms corridor, allowed him a good lead so as not to appear obvious and then strolled down the stairs herself. Riddle was headed for the dungeons – perhaps he was going back to his common room? Then again, perhaps he wasn't! Cosima would follow him anyway and should anyone question her presence in the dungeons (where there were no paintings as a convenient excuse) she would claim she wanted to ask Professor Slughorn about her Potions exam. Slughorn himself certainly wouldn't question it.Cosima's heart quickened when, following Riddle through the dungeons, she realised he had passed the entrance to the Slytherin common room and then the classrooms. He was going back towards the room in which Hagrid had kept Aragog! Had the answer to what had petrified all the students and killed Myrtle been in the dungeons all along? Cosima hurried after him as quickly as she could, taking care to moderate her steps just as her father had once shown her around skittish creatures; turning her feet outwards so that her steps fell silently. She kept to the shadows; the general gloom of the dungeons helping to shroud her presence.Riddle paused at the door to the storeroom and Cosima hurriedly ducked out of sight behind the only statue in the corridor. Peeking out from behind the base, she saw Riddle look left and right, the very picture of shiftiness, before slipping inside.She wished Merlin were here now. Even more than that, she wished for Helios. Her cousin wouldn't hesitate; he'd march right in there and tell Riddle that his goody-two-shoes charade was up and that they knew Hagrid had been framed! Reminding herself that this boy was partially the reason that Hagrid no longer had a wand, would never be able to do magic again and was staying with Mr Ogg instead of in the Gryffindor dormitories, Cosima squared her shoulders, held her wand aloft and stepped in after Riddle."Petrificus totalus!"Before she had even one second to react, she felt her legs snap together and her arms slam hard against her sides. Her wand fell uselessly from her grasp and she toppled over backwards, crashing painfully onto the cold stone floor. Her back throbbing from the impact, she tried to open her mouth to cry out for help but it was useless; every muscle in her body was frozen, even her tongue. She could neither move nor talk. All she could do was lie there, staring up at the ceiling with her mouth partially open, making quiet guttural, gargling noises as she tried desperately to talk. She felt her heart freeze when Riddle's face came into view above her, staring down at her with a cold smirk."Oh dear, oh dear," he taunted. "So much for the fabled quick wits of the Ravenclaws! All I had to do was bait a trap and you walked right into it like a little rat! Did you think I hadn't noticed you trailing after me these past few days? What was that?" He bent down and cupped his ear as though he was trying to listen to her. All she could do was wheeze. "Not so full of prattle now are you?"Cosima sputtered desperately in reply and his expression turned to a frown. "You and that Pendragon boy have done nothing but turn up like a bad sickle every time I've turned around this term. I know you two stole a book from the library the day I caught you. I heard that you'd been shrieking at Dippet about a basilisk in the school. I'm sure you thought yourselves very clever! But you weren't clever enough to figure out where my basilisk dwelt, were you? Yes, that's right, Scamander. I am the Heir of Slytherin and the basilisk answers to me. You all sat there at Slughorn's little gatherings preening over your worthless relations, little knowing that you were in the company of the last descendent of Slytherin's own bloodline!"Merlin's beard, it had been him! He hadn't just framed Hagrid, he had been the person behind it all! He'd petrified Gwion, George Seymour and Susan Harper…and he'd killed Myrtle Warren. Cosima's throat threatened to close all together in horror. He had killed someone and he sounded like he was proud of it!"You can thank your lucky stars, you irritating little gnat, that that oaf Hagrid has been expelled already," Riddle told her coldly, dark eyes alight with malice. "Because it means I unfortunately can't kill you without risking the school being closed! However…that does not mean I can't dole out a little punishment for your interference. Crucio!"Pain like nothing Cosima had ever known exploded all over her body. It felt like she was being stabbed by a thousand knives, burned alive and buried under a suffocating weight all at once. Mouth half open in a frozen, silent scream, she thought her head might explode from the pressure of not being able to cry out her agony. Tears blurred her vision and slid out of her eyes sideways to drip down into her ears. Had she been able to, she would have begged him to stop."You thought you'd been so very clever, didn't you?" Riddle smirked down at her as her eyes bulged in their sockets. "You and your little bloodtraitor pal playing at detectives, following me around and thinking I hadn't noticed? Crucio!"Cosima choked desperately for breath as much as her frozen position would allow. She had never known that anything could be so painful! She was certain she was going to die, certain that her body could not withstand any more of this abject agony. She was no longer even aware of her surroundings, of the Slytherin boy, only of the pain that torturously lanced through her body like molten iron. She thought even death might be preferable to this!Riddle's blurry face appeared again above her and the curse subsided, leaving her making constricted little whimpers as she lay there agonised in its wake. He smiled down at her; looking almost cheerful. "Enjoyable though this encounter has undeniably been," he drawled. "I'm afraid I must be going. Pendragon still needs tending to. Just one more thing, Scamander…"He knelt down beside Cosima and put the tip of his wand to her temple. Terror coursed through her like lightening and her heart fluttered madly in her frozen chest. He'd changed his mind…he really was going to kill her! She'd never see her family again…"Obliviate!"Cosima came to her senses in total darkness, in searing agony and she began to panic when she realised she could not move. The floor was hard and cold beneath her; she wasn't in her dormitory. Where was she? She tried to think what she had been doing before she'd woken up, but her mind was strangely clouded.Again and again she tried to move but her limbs were frozen in place. She tried to call out for help but all she could manage was a strangled wheeze. She had never been so frightened in all her life. Where was she? Why did everything hurt so much? How long had she been lying there? What had happened?In her terror, the tears overflowed freely from her frozen eyes and her nose was soon clogged up. This made it even harder to breathe and the more she panicked, the more difficult it became – as though she was only breathing through a straw. She felt as though she was going to suffocate on her own fear.She might have been lying there one hour or five hours, so much did time lose meaning for her. All Cosima knew was that it felt like a painful, terrified eternity had passed before a crack of light entered her vision, along with the creaking hinges of a door."Cosima? Cosima, are you all right?" Oh thank Parcelsus! It was Helios's voice!The Gryffindor seventh year was at her side in an instant and tried to help her up. He quickly realised she was frozen. He drew his wand, waved it gently over her and muttered "Finite Incantatem".The second the binding curse was lifted, Cosima began to draw in huge, shrieking breaths peppered with sobs. She was shaking so hard, she couldn't even sit up. She felt as though she was made of jelly.Helios gathered her up into his arms in an instant. "Who did this to you?" he demanded furiously."I don't know…" Cosima sobbed. "Everything hurts so much! I don't know where I am and I don't know how I got here and I can't remember anything…" The panic threatened to overwhelm her again and she was beyond speech. She leaned away from Helios and was violently sick all over the floor.Helios's arms tightened round her, a hand coming up to cup the back of her head, holding her firm against his chest as soon as she was done vomiting. "It's ok, titch," he soothed her gently, rubbing her back. "You're all right. I've got you now. Take a deep breath for me now. That's it, good girl, just breathe with me. And another. In and out…in and out…one more for me. Good.""We're down in the dungeons," he told her eventually, when her heart rate had slowed a little and her breathing was semi-regular. "It's an old storeroom that Slughorn hardly uses. You and Merlin were reported missing at dinner and we've been hunting for you for hours. Don't you remember how you got down here?"Cosima shook her head, shoulders heaving with sobs as she sat slumped against his broad chest, shaking with pain and terror. "Helios, everything's empty!" she cried."What's the last thing you can remember?" Helios pressed, still rubbing her back."I…" Cosima screwed up her face as she wracked her brains. "You gave me that salve for my hands and then I went back to the common room to share it with Merlin.""Cosima, that was three days ago!" Helios was holding her so tightly now, it almost hurt. "Merlin's beard, when I get hold of whoever's done this…I'm going to bloody kill them! Come on, titch, let's get you to the Hospital Wing."Cosima tried to stand but her legs were like jelly and she immediately collapsed back onto the floor again. Helios slid one arm under her knees and the other around her back. Letting her loop her arms weakly around his neck, he stood up with her in his arms as though she weighed nothing.He carried her up and out of the dungeons – ordinarily Cosima would have protested being carried through the school as though she were a tiny kid again, but she could not have walked on her own for all the gold in Gringotts – and off towards the hospital wing. Cosima could see from the windows they passed that twilight was falling. They passed no students either; it was evidently after the allotted curfew. How long had she been lying there in the dungeons?Helios's long legs made quick work of the journey to the hospital wing. When they arrived there, Cosima was alarmed to see Merlin lying unconscious in one of the beds, Professor Dumbledore standing gravely nearby him. The Transfiguration master looked up as they entered the room and hurried towards them with Madame Mafalda hot on his heels, concern on both their faces when they saw the state Cosima was in."I found her in the dungeons. She'd been lying there for who knows how long in a body bind. Professor, I think she's been obliviated too," Helios said tightly. "She's lost everything since Monday.""I'm afraid that does seem likely," Dumbledore nodded grimly. "Pendragon was found out in the grounds in a similar state; he'd been stunned and had his memory wiped. Mr Ogg brought him in but the boy hadn't a clue how he got out there or what he had been doing.""Is he all right?" asked Cosima with tearful urgency."Mr Pendragon was badly shaken, but thankfully was otherwise unharmed," Dumbledore replied gently. "Madame Mafalda gave him something to calm him down so he was able to rest. Mathilda, could you check over Miss Scamander please and ensure she is unhurt?""Of course, Professor," nodded the Matron. "If you put her on that bed, Scamander."Helios stepped towards the bed Madame Mafalda gestured towards, relaxing his hold on Cosima, evidently meaning to set her down."No!" Cosima tightened her arms around her cousin's neck. "Don't leave me! Please, Helios!" She hurt all over, she couldn't remember what had happened, she didn't know who had hurt her…but she knew that she wanted her cousin nearby!"Hey, it's all right," Helios replied at once, squeezing her gently. "I won't go anywhere, I promise. I'll stay right outside this screen while Madame Mafalda takes a look at you and then I'll stay with you as long as you want, all right?""Come along dear," said Madame Mafalda kindly, drawing the screen around the bed. "The sooner we get you seen to, the sooner it will all be over and we can get you tucked up in bed."Cosima was scarcely aware of the school's chief healer stripping her of her sweat-soaked clothes and bundling her into pyjamas, nor of the examination she carried out, running her wand along her limbs and over her head. Instead, she was focused unwaveringly on Helios's voice outside the screen and the degree of reassurance it provided.The second that Cosima was settled into bed the screen was pulled away, Helios sat down beside her on the bed and wrapped his arms around her again. Cosima relaxed gratefully against him, aware that Dumbledore had come to stand at the bottom of her bed."Professor Dumbledore," Madame Mafalda said, her voice very serious. "Someone has used the Cruciatus curse on this girl.""What?!" Helios yelled so loudly that Cosima jumped violently in his arms. "Sorry, titch, it's all right. I didn't mean to scare you.""Are you certain?" asked Professor Dumbledore quietly."Yes, I used three separate diagnostic spells," the healer replied. "There can be no mistake. She's going to need some very strong pain relief." She bustled off towards the cabinet of potions and powders at the end of the room."But Professor she's…she's eleven," said Helios bewilderedly, voice strained as he hugged Cosima so tightly it added to the pain in her tender body. "Why would anyone use an Unforgiveable on a kid like her? She wouldn't say boo to a goose! And who would even know how to cast one? It's a one way ticket to Azkaban!""As to that, I cannot say," Dumbledore said quietly. "The Unforgiveable curses are not usually in the repertoire of schoolchildren. I am inclined to think that it is not a coincidence that Miss Scamander and Mr Pendragon, the two students who were so certain that Rubeus Hagrid was innocent, have now both been targeted on the same day. Thankfully some of the auror office should be here soon – I convinced the Headmaster to send for them just before Mr Pendragon was discovered. They may be able to assist in finding an answer." Cosima hoped desperately that one of the said aurors would be her mum!Madame Mafalda bustled back up with a large mug of a warm ruby-coloured potion. "This is a strong pain reliever, dear," she informed Cosima, passing her the mug and helping her to hold it steady. "And I've added a sedative. Your heart is still going nineteen to the dozen and we need to get you a little calmer. I want you to drink this up and then don't fight the urge to fall asleep. Your body is going to need a bit of a rest to heal, and you will be perfectly safe here."Cosima had just finished draining the cup – it had taken her a fair amount of time to consume the potion in slow, shaky sips when the sound of sharp footsteps announced two new visitors to the hospital wing.Sadly, it wasn't Tina Scamander. But it was the only other auror Cosima would have wanted to see – her uncle Theseus. At his side was a white-faced Percival Pendragon, who made a beeline for Merlin's bed immediately as soon as he spotted his sleeping nephew.Tiredness was starting to pull at the edge of Cosima's mind and so she was not able to hear any of the words Dumbledore exchanged with the aurors as he hurried to greet them. She did however notice that their faces got grimmer with every sentence. Theseus came to join his son and niece as soon as Dumbledore finished talking."Dad, are you able to figure out who did this?" Helios asked urgently, letting go of Cosima to stand up so that Theseus could perch on the edge of the bed and examine his niece with concern."I'm going to try. Now, there's nothing to be afraid of," Theseus promised Cosima gently. "I'm going to use Legilimency to have a look inside your mind, all right? Many obliviation spells aren't strong enough to wipe things out entirely. You take hold of my hand and squeeze it as tight as you like. I'm only going to have a look to see if there's any hint remaining of who hurt you."Images flashed through Cosima's head as she held onto Theseus's hand. Running to Dippet to tell him he'd been wrong, she and Merlin being punished by Pringle (Theseus's jaw tightened angrily), convincing most of their fellow Ravenclaws that there was no way an acromantula could have been the culprit, sitting by the common room fire using Helios's salve and saying that something didn't add up, and deciding they needed to follow….Nothing.Tears of desperation stung at her eyes again. How could three days have disappeared?"It's all right, Cosima, don't worry. There may be other leads. Percy and I will do our best to find out what happened. You close your eyes now," Theseus tucked the blankets snugly round her and gently patted her tawny curls. "I'm going to Floo your parents and by the time you wake up, they will be here, all right? Helios will stay right here with you. You're completely safe now."Once Theseus had left the room, a furious looking Percival Pendragon beside him, Helios sat back down beside her, holding her hand in both of his, and started to tell her about the preparations he was making for the entrance exam for the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Cosima closed his eyes and listened to his warm, familiar voice as Helios's thumb ran comfortingly back and forth against the top of her hand. Helios was here, and Uncle Theseus…and soon her mum and dad would be too. Surely whoever it was that had hurt her so terribly couldn't get her while they were all nearby.Her head lolled on the pillow, her fingers going slack in Helios's grasp. "That's it," said her cousin encouragingly. "Off to sleep now, Cosima. I won't let anyone hurt you."As she danced on the edge of unconsciousness, she thought that she heard footsteps again."Scamander, I heard they found your cousin," said an even, precise voice. Half asleep and befuddled, Cosima couldn't place it. "Is she all right?""Not really," Helios said tightly. "Some bastard put her in a body bind, obliviated her and left her in the dungeons. She's lost three days and was half out of her head with fear. We've only just got her calm enough to sleep.""Merlin's beard!" said the same voice. "Anything the rest of us can do?""No," Helios replied. "Decent of you to offer though, Riddle. Thanks."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Cosima stirred slowly into consciousness, though her eyes remained closed, feeling sluggish and uncomfortable. Her arms and legs hurt – in fact she hurt all over – and there was a dull throbbing in her head. Had she overdone it flying with Helios yesterday?No, it couldn't be that…she hadn't been flying with Helios in weeks, what with all the exams. What on earth had she been doing?Suddenly, a blurry stream disjointed images ran through her mind, rather like the muggle film reel she'd seen when Aunt Phryne had taken her, Cassian and Helios to see a 'picture' in London. Helios had found her in the old dungeon store room, where someone had left her after using the body bind curse on her. But what had she been doing in the dungeons anyway? She must have been there for a reason, but simply could not grasp what it was. Ah yes, they said she had been obliviated! And Madame Mafalda had said that someone had used an Unforgiveable curse on her…that was why she was so sore. Helios had been so terribly angry when he'd heard that…he'd stayed with her though. He was still holding her hand.With some effort, she forced her heavy eyelids open and blinked owlishly when she realised that it was not Helios who was sitting quietly beside her at that moment."Dad!" she gasped in happy, shaky gratitude; wincing as she went to sit up and her limbs protested. Madame Mafalda's potion had killed a lot of the pain but she was still in some considerable discomfort. The Cruciatus Curse was not named the torture curse for no reason.She was correct though; it was not her cousin but in fact Newt Scamander, looking white-faced and drawn, who was sat by his daughter's bedside with her hand in both of his. And it wasn't just her father who had arrived; as she took in the rest of the hospital wing ward, she realised happily that her mother was standing at the foot of her bed talking to Theseus and Helios. She looked angrier than Cosima had ever seen her in her entire life; even after the broom-surfing incident.Relief flooding his face when Cosima spoke, Newt moved from his seat to give her a hug; one that was a little tighter than usual. "Hello, darling," he said quietly, his voice strained but affectionate, holding on for a long moment before letting go. "It's good to see you awake. We were so worried!""Cosima! Oh honey, thank goodness!" Tina hurried away from her conversation to hug her too and press kisses to the crown of her head. With both her parents' arms around her, Cosima at last felt halfway safe again. Maybe they were going to take her home; she really wasn't certain that she liked being at Hogwarts all that much anymore, even with the fun she had with Merlin and…"Where's Merlin?" she asked quickly, starting back out of her parents' arms and letting Tina smooth her curls back into place. She knew he'd been asleep when she was brought in. "Is he all right? What happened to him?""Merlin's fine, honey, he woke up a little while ago," Tina assured her, nodding in the direction of Helios and Theseus. When her uncle and cousin stepped aside, Cosima could see across the room that Merlin was sitting up in bed and talking, with his uncle Percival's arm tightly around his shoulders. The two Ravenclaws exchanged weak, exhausted half-smiles, each glad to see the other awake and alive, if not unharmed. Cosima's attention was then diverted back to Tina again who asked. "Now, how are you?""I'm sore, mum," Cosima confessed honestly. She didn't have the energy to lie. "Sore all over.""Shall I ask Madame Mafalda for some more of that potion for you?" offered Helios kindly, sitting down on the end of her bed, his face full of concern."No thank you, it made me awfully drowsy and I don't want to fall asleep again just yet," Cosima said. She was too glad of the sight of her parents, and of Merlin awake, to wish for more slumber no matter how much discomfort she was in."Can you tell us what happened, honey, at least as much as you can remember?" Tina asked her anxiously, sitting down at the opposite side of the bed to her husband.Cosima had to repeat what Helios had undoubtedly already told them; that she had come to in the dungeon storeroom unable to move or to call for help and in excruciating pain. She told them that she did not know how long she had been lying there, struggling to breathe in her panic, until Helios came across her and was able to lift the body bind curse, and that she could not remember how she had got there, or who had attacked her. She could only reiterate her and Merlin's conviction that Hagrid and Aragog were not the guilty parties in Myrtle's death and that they had been following someone they had thought to be connected, but she could not remember who.Tina looked on the verge of scolding her for a moment, and Cosima guiltily reflected that neither she nor Merlin had kept their promises of leaving the investigations to the teachers. However, the expression passed and Tina merely settled for hugging her very tightly again. Across the room, Percival Pendragon, despite having vowed his nephew would be 'for it' if he did any more investigating, had Merlin crushed against his chest now with an anguished expression on his face."What about Merlin?" Cosima quietly asked the family members gathered around her bed. "Can he not remember anything either?""Same as you, titch," said Helios gravely, patting her foot. "He knows you were following someone, and that you split up to try and find them. The next thing he knew he was lying unconscious on the edge of the Forbidden Forest with no idea how he got there or what had happened to him. He'd been put in a bind too – luckily Ogg came across him and was able to get him up to the hospital wing.""Did they…did they hurt him too?" asked Cosima anxiously, not at all keen on the thought of her best friend being in as much pain as she had been.Helios shook his head. "No, you were the only one they used an Unforgiveable on, whoever they were," his voice thick with fury. Tina hugged Cosima even tighter; so much that it hurt. She thought she heard her mother take a hitched breath, on the verge of tears. "Which could mean that either there were two people involved who dealt with each of you separately, or one person who couldn't risk using the Cruciatus curse out in the open in case they were spotted. Using petrificus totalus could be explained away as duel practice, or a stupid joke, or some guff like that, but not an Unforgiveable.""Is it…is it him?" asked Merlin hesitantly from the other side of the room, and the Scamanders all turned to look at him. "Do you think Grindelwald really did manage to get to Hogwarts, Uncle Percy?" Cosima watched all the adults exchange tense, unhappy looks."We don't think so," said Percival gravely, and even from a distance Cosima could see how tightly he was holding his nephew. "We've checked the wards on the school a dozen times tonight, every inch of them – there seems to have been no disturbances. And he has been very active in Europe at the moment, with all the uncertainty in Germany; he was certainly there at least yesterday. However, that doesn't preclude the idea that he could have someone working for him here. Someone on the inside, possibly.""You don't mean…one of the teachers?" Merlin gasped, exchanging a horrified look with Cosima across the room. It seemed unthinkable to believe that any of the staff would be capable of that. They all seemed so kind and dependable, and even the teachers that they weren't particularly fond of – Merrythought and Beery for example – all seemed much too honourable to be involved with someone like that!"The problem is, we don't know anything for certain," said Theseus, his voice flat with frustration and suppressed anger. "There is a possibility, however remote, that he has in fact found a way around the wards. But clandestine attacks, and on eleven year old kids no less, are not Grindelwald's style. The blighter likes an audience, he likes to create horror and carnage for effect – and he rarely leaves targets alive. Which leaves us with one more possible outcome to consider; that it was one of your fellow students. But the Cruciatus Curse is – or should be – far beyond the abilities of any teenager. Only a really dark heart, one full of malice, is capable of producing an Unforgiveable Curse. Whoever obliviated you did a really thorough job of it, and so we've lost the only concrete leads we had.""But they must believe us that Hagrid is innocent now surely, Uncle Theseus?" Cosima spoke up hurriedly, her brain suddenly catching up to the full implications of their having been so attacked. "I mean, if Merlin and I were getting so very close to solving the mystery that someone needed to attack us and alter our memories, then they must surely realise that Hagrid had nothing to do with Myrtle's death or with petrifying Gwion and the others?"Theseus gave his niece a sad, sympathetic smile. "I'm afraid it's not that simple, darling," he said gently. "You see, the Ministry…"Whatever Theseus Scamander was about to say about the Ministry was lost, as the door to the hospital wing opened to admit Professors Dippet, Dumbledore, Fisher and Merrythought, as well as Madame Mafalda. Percival and Tina rose to their feet and came to join Theseus in the centre of the room. Newt remained where he was and didn't let go of Cosima's hand.The staff all looked tremendously harried; it had undoubtedly been an awful day for them too. Professor Fisher, despite having scolded them ferociously the last time she saw them, looked over both the children anxiously now and gave them kind smiles, while Professor Dumbledore, looking more serious than they had ever seen him, shook hands with Newt and Tina; having already greeted Percival and Theseus earlier.Professor Dippet, on the other hand, was all business and while Madame Mafalda was busy taking Merlin and Cosima's temperatures and making them follow her wand with their eyes, he asked the aurors: "Have you had any success in extracting any useful leads?""No." Percival Pendragon's answer was clipped and cold. "Whoever obliviated the kids did such a thorough job of it that there's not even a whisper of memory remaining. They've lost several days with no chance of recovering them.""I assume you will be wishing to question Rubeus Hagrid?" asked Dippet, seemingly oblivious to the disapproving looks he was getting from the other teachers and the two young Ravenclaw's expressions of outrage. "Given the recent nature of his offences, there is of course a possibility of his involvement. Pendragon being found in the grounds is certainly suggestive.""Hagrid's our friend!" Cosima was so angry she could barely get the words out. She would have risen from her bed, had her father not put a hand on her shoulder to stop her from doing so."And he wouldn't hurt a fly!" Merlin ground out, scarlet with rage."I'm sorry, Dippet, are you seriously suggesting that a wandless thirteen year old, who was by all accounts only an average student at best, was able to cast not only two extremely powerful obliviation spells, but also an Unforgiveable?" Percival Pendragon demanded, his icy voice dripping with scorn as he stared down at the headmaster along his long straight nose. "And all of this on apparently the only two kids in Hogwarts who spoke up for him?""As his head of house, or should I perhaps say former head of house, I can say with absolute certainty that there is no chance whatsoever that Mr Hagrid would have been able to cast such spells even with a wand," said Dumbledore with calm confidence. "But as it happens, I can lay your mind to rest on that account, Headmaster, I spoke with Mr Ogg when he brought young Pendragon up to the hospital wing. Rubeus was working at his side for the whole day, so unless you are suggesting that he can be in two places at once as well as perform wandless magic then we may safely dismiss him from our enquiries! The boy has perhaps shown some thoughtlessness and grossly misplaced optimism in his choice of pets, but Rubeus's faults are certainly not those of malice or cruelty.""Well, the wards - as you will be doubtless aware, having checked them several times - are intact," Dippet remarked irritably, looking displeased that a convenient outlet for blame, and thus tidying up the whole sorry affair, was no longer at hand. "There has been no entry to the castle from outsiders. I can only assume therefore that this was some sort of dreadful prank gone wrong."Cosima saw her mother take a very deep breath, swelling like an angry bullfrog, and braced herself for an onslaught, sliding slightly further back against her father."A dreadful prank?!" Tina Scamander hollered furiously bearing down on the headmaster with her eyes flashing dangerously. "I don't know what kind of school you're running here, Professor, but at Ilvermorny a prank involved giving someone invisible ink or swapping the labels on the Potions vials. We didn't consider the Unforgiveable Curses a prank! Two of your first years have been attacked. My daughter has been tortured and you call it a prank…"Theseus and Percival, both of whom evidently did not hold the headmaster in much esteem, merely exchanged smirks as Tina verbally tore Professor Dippet into shreds. Helios, from where he still sat on the bottom of Cosima's bed, looked decidedly impressed that his dainty aunt could shout that loudly.Dippet himself looked a little shell-shocked, not to mention highly affronted, by the time Tina had finished with him. There was, however, very little he could say. There had been numerous attacks on the pupils of his school that year and if Rubeus Hagrid could not be blamed for this latest one, then it meant another culprit was out there uncaught. It was no great testament to the headmaster's control of his school.Professor Fisher took advantage of the momentary silence to ask Cosima and Merlin for details and so once again they had to go over all of their activities since Hallowe'en. They explained that they had wanted to figure out what had happened to Gwion, that they had been through every book on magical creatures in the school library and indeed the Ravenclaw Tower one looking for a creature that could petrify people; convinced that it was not a witch or wizard who had done it. Merlin conveniently left out the stolen book from the Restricted Section and Cosima was glad. They had had more than enough trouble and she did not want her mum or Merlin's uncle to discover their rule breaking while they were still so very cross.Cosima took up the story and told the assembled adults how they had almost lost hope by the time summer started, but twice had seen troupes of spiders escaping the school and eventually come to the conclusion that the culprit might have been a very ancient basilisk. Again, she stressed that an acromantula could not have been responsible for the death of Myrtle Warren, shrinking under Dippet's glare but feeling her hand squeezed encouragingly by Newt. She finished by telling them that she and Merlin had suspected someone, had been convinced they were finally on the trail of the real culprit, but could remember no more after that.Professor Dippet was scornful and dismissive, clearly inclined to believe that Cosima and Merlin were merely nosy troublemakers, much to Tina and Percival's fury. Dumbledore, Fisher and Merrythought were more inclined to listen and believe. However, despite all their combined efforts and resources, the fact remained that even after the wards had been checked yet again, the castle had been searched top to bottom and multiple solutions had been suggested, no one had any evidence, any leads or anything that could practically help to further the investigation. None of the students had come forward with any useful information; Marius Vance had only been able to say that he had come across Cosima walking down the Charms corridor earlier in the day and she had said she was looking at paintings. Chris Carmichael and the rest of the Ravenclaw quidditch team had seen Merlin in the Entrance Hall close to lunchtime but had noticed no more.Frustratingly for both the staff (the decent ones at least) and the aurors, they at last had no option but to give up for now. It was one more incident of the school year which no one was to be punished for, and eventually the visitors had to conclude that they must depart for the time being. Percival Pendragon pointedly told Professor Dippet that he would be passing his very considerable concerns about the safety of Hogwarts along to Mr Spencer-Moon, the Minister for Magic, and would be recommending that this attack on the two first years be kept as an open investigation. The headmaster had nothing to say to that, but was clearly very angry at having his competence questioned.To Cosima and Merlin's utter despair, Hagrid's expulsion was not to be retracted. Even if it was clear that now all of the staff besides Dippet believed him innocent of any involvement in the attacks on students, the headmaster would not be moved. Even if he was guilty of nothing else, he was guilty of keeping a deadly acromantula on the premises and as such the expulsion stood. Monsters, said Dippet, looking pointedly at Newt, did not make suitable pets. Cosima loathed him even more, which she had not thought possible."I suggest that the two of you learn a valuable lesson from this, and stick to your studies from this point on!" the headmaster snapped at Cosima and Merlin and walked briskly from the room.Madam Mafalda announced that she wished to keep Cosima and Merlin in the hospital wing over the weekend but said they would be able to go back to join their classmates on Monday morning if they were well enough. The very thought of it make Cosima feel like jelly. Someone inside the castle, if the aurors' comments on the impregnability of the wards were to be believed, had used the torture curse on her; one of the three most evil spells in the repertoire of wizard kind. Whoever they were, student or staff, they had not been caught. What was to stop them trying again? What if next time, they decided to go one step further and use the last, worst of the Unforgiveables? Her insides felt like they were freezing over in abject terror.It was now in the early hours of Saturday morning and Newt, Tina, Theseus and Percival reluctantly had to take their leave. "You settle back down now, honey, and go to sleep," Tina said, drawing the covers back up around Cosima. "Your Dad and I have to go now, but there's only three weeks left until the summer holidays, so we'll see you again real soon.""Can't I come home with you now?" Cosima begged as her mother kissed her goodbye, just tired and stressed enough to lose her worries about sounding childish in front of Dumbledore and Fisher, who had remained behind when Dippet and then Merrythought left. "I don't want to stay here anymore! Please? Can't I just study at home instead?"She saw her parents exchange a stricken, worried, look and Newt came to take Tina's place at her side. "Cosima, darling," her father said gently, distress clear on his face at having to leave her in such a frame of mind. "I know you're frightened, and I don't blame you. You've had a really ghastly few weeks, and no child should feel unsafe at school. But we really can't take you away from Hogwarts just now. You're only just finishing first year. There is so much you still have to encounter and you'd never learn it all at home. I missed out on so much and I was here until my fourth year. It wouldn't be right to remove you from school now. It would ruin your future.""It's not just the classes you would miss out on, Scamander," said Professor Fisher kindly. "We hope that our pupils will learn more than just magical theory while they are here; we hope that you will form meaning relationships to carry into your adult lives. You seem to have made a lot of good friends amongst your classmates. I've been particularly pleased to see how well all of the first year Ravenclaws have been getting on together; the rest of the class were quite beside themselves when you two were reported missing.""Yes, mum and I were both delighted to hear you'd made so many nice friends," Newt assured her, Tina agreeing gently. "I don't think it would be very good for you to just stay at home alone. Things seem really awful right now, I know, but can you try and make it to summer for me, and then if you still feel the same we can have a chat about it then?"Cosima really had no option but to nod, her throat tight. "There's my brave girl," Newt smiled encouragingly, kissing her goodbye. "We'll see you very soon, darling. Go to sleep now."With that, their family members left with Dumbledore and Fisher, talking quietly and seriously to them, but Helios, to Cosima and Merlin's undying gratitude, stayed with them until they were both asleep.After so much stress and distress, they both slept monstrously late and did not stir until Saturday lunchtime, when Professor Dumbledore escorted Hagrid in to visit them. Their poor hefty friend dissolved into noisy sobs the second he saw them and hugged them both hard enough to crack their ribs."S'all my fault!" he wept despairingly, fat tears running down his broad, expressive face. "If I hadn't asked yer to keep Aragog a secret, none o' this would have happened! First yeh got beaten and now this! M'sorry yeh've been so badly hurt! Yeh should never have become friends with me!""Hagrid, none of this was your fault!" Cosima reassured him kindly, Merlin echoing the sentiment at once. "Whatever attacked Gwion and the others…whatever killed Myrtle Warren…it would have happened whether you'd kept Aragog here or not. Merlin and I would still have investigated and, well, we'd still be where we are now. We think you're a brilliant friend! Please don't cry."It took some time to actually convince him, but eventually Hagrid calmed and when he left them an hour later, he did so in the knowledge that their friendship was intact and as strong as it had even been.Both still considerably shaken after the events of the weekend, for all they had reassured Hagrid, Cosima and Merlin were released to return to their classes at breakfast time on Monday. What had happened to them was not supposed to be common knowledge; but Helios, utterly beside himself with anger and despair that someone had gotten away with using the Cruciatus Curse on his younger cousin, had told his girlfriend and his best friend. Helena and Marius had then told their fellow Ravenclaw and Slytherin prefects and before one day was over, the entire school knew: Merlin Pendragon and Cosima Scamander had been attacked. Someone had obliviated them, put them in a body bind and, people said in hushed whispers, someone had used an Unforgiveable on Scamander.It became clear to anyone who interacted with them afterwards that this had not been an exaggeration. Upon their return to classes, Cosima and Merlin were both quiet and unusually jumpy. In the middle of the Herbology exam, which occurred on the Tuesday after their re-joining their classmates, Walburga Black, who was sitting directly behind Cosima in the exam room, knocked over her ink bottle and it shattered on the floor with a loud smash. Cosima leapt about a foot from her seat and Merlin snatched his wand up in alarm. Professor Beery, with surprising kindness, assured them that there was nothing to worry about and scolded Walburga, who steadfastly claimed that it had been an accident, when the exam concluded.The first year Ravenclaws all rallied to be kind to them in their own individual ways. Octavia, who was really brilliant at Herbology, made them each sachets of herbs to put under their pillows to keep any nightmares at bay and to help them sleep. Freddie, Florizel and Anthony took it upon themselves to walk beside them as a sort of escort between classes, in case whoever attacked them should try again. Athena received a magnificent birthday cake from her family and gave Cosima and Merlin the first two slices.After their very last exam, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Marjorie and Harriet came to sit with them in the sunny courtyard and talked with such determination about cheerful things only, that the two Ravenclaws could not help but smile. Asteria swooped down to join them from the owlery; she had been beside herself when her human had not shown up for three days straight and so contented herself now in flying in circles around Cosima's head until everyone was helpless with laughter. Pip the bowtruckle had been similarly worried and had steadfastly refused to leave Cosima's pocket from the moment she had returned to the Ravenclaw dormitories to see him.The prefects, too, all seemed keen to keep an eye on them; and not just James and Helena. Marius Vance and Hestia Podmore from Slytherin also came to check up on them over the course of the week, as did Achlys Abbot from Hufflepuff. Of course, Helios's presence was a constant: he was the first person Cosima spoke to in the Great Hall each morning and the last each evening before she went back to Ravenclaw Tower. He was even more generous than usual with comforting hugs, jokes and easy affection.These small gestures, all so kindly meant, helped lessen Cosima's determination that she wanted to go home and never come back to Hogwarts. Perhaps her dad and Professor Fisher had been right. Maybe there really was too much to miss out on if you only sat at home and were frightened of everything. She'd been so very glad to have friends after spending so much of her time at the muggle primary school struggling to fit in – she wasn't sure if she would enjoy going back to being solitary again. By the time a week had passed, though her confidence was still very much shot to pieces, she was feeling a little less like she was going to shatter from worry.The first real boost to her and Merlin's spirits was the news that Professor Beery's mandrakes were at last ready for use. A huge cheer went around the Great Hall at Professor Dippet's announcement and the very next day saw Gwion Pritchard, Susan Harper and George Seymour released from their petrified state in the Hospital Wing and back out to join their schoolfellows."Ruddy strange, isn't it?" Gwion said, with perfect good cheer, as Cosima hugged him and welcomed him back. "Last thing I know, I was waiting for you and Harriet in the entrance hall and now they're saying I've been asleep for half a year, I missed Christmas and the school year is over! Suppose I missed all the exams though, so there is that! Silver lining, eh?" The two Ravenclaws could only listen with real admiration to his optimism and resolved that if Gwion could be so brave, then they could try to be too.Gryffindor won the last quidditch match of the season and with it, the Quidditch Cup. Cosima supposed that she should have been disappointed for Ravenclaw, but this was Helios's last year at Hogwarts and so she was delighted that her cousin got to lift the cup with his team. It also gave Gryffindor one hundred and fifty house points to add to their total, which meant that Slytherin's victory no longer seemed so assured.The exam results were issued at the start of the last week and Cosima was pleased to discover that she had come top of the year for Charms and Potions and within the top ten for everything else. However, the happiness felt a little hollow – it was difficult to be proud of doing well in some of the exams when you couldn't actually remember sitting in the first place! Merlin came top in Transfiguration and second in Potions, Freddie Wentworth top in Defence Against the Dark Arts and Octavia Fawley top in Herbology. In fact, all of the Ravenclaws had done well and the class glowed with pride when Professor Fisher told them all during their last Charms class she was exceptionally pleased and proud of all of them."Pendragon and Scamander, a word please," she said, just as the class was dismissed for lunch."We'll wait outside for you," said Freddie Wentworth at once, as he, Florizel and Anthony left the room.Cosima and Merlin exchanged worried looks as the rest of the students followed the boys out. Surely they couldn't be in any more trouble? They had successfully returned their stolen book to the Restricted Section as soon as they could, and both vowed that they would never, ever sneak one out again."I am aware," began Professor Fisher mildly, once the classroom was empty. "That these last two weeks have not been at all easy for the two of you. After such a horrendous experience, and with no real indication of who was responsible, it was only natural that you would feel some anxiety about coming back to classes again, not to mention sitting the rest of your exams with that hanging over you. It took no small amount of courage to do that, and I want you to know that I am very proud of both of you, and of the results you have achieved. I am awarding you both twenty five points each for the bravery you have shown."Merlin and Cosima exchanged a delighted smile. "Thank you, Professor," they said together, both very grateful.Professor Fisher nodded with a smile of her own. "Now, I believe that such an error of judgement as you displayed with the acromantula will not be repeated again," she told them firmly. "I want you both to return here next year ready to continue the progress you have made and to continue to be a credit to Ravenclaw house. I believe your friends are waiting at the door for you – off you go and have your lunch."Freddie, Florizel and Anthony slapped them delightedly on the back when they heard of the fifty points they'd gained. It was the recovery of only half of what they had lost Ravenclaw due to their keeping Aragog's existence a secret of course, but to Merlin and Cosima, it felt like they had been vindicated.At the end of lunchtime, an ecstatic Helios came to tell them that he had scored top marks in his NEWTS and so had been accepted onto the Auror programme, lifting Cosima right off her feet when he hugged her. His good cheer, as always, was infectious and he only laughed good-naturedly when all the first year Ravenclaws broke into wolf-whistles when Helena appeared to kiss him thoroughly in congratulations.The last few days flew by and then it was time to start packing: their first year at Hogwarts was over and it was time to head home. Students rummaged for lost textbooks, collated their collections of chocolate frog cards, exchanged addresses for keeping in touch and groaned over their lists of holiday homework. Gwion Pritchard, who of all the first years had the most to do; having missed six months of lessons, only smiled cheerfully over his and said that with all that studying he'd have to do over the summer, he was sure to beat all the Ravenclaws next year.At the farewell feast, the students arrived to find the Great Hall decked out in red and gold – thanks in part to their Quidditch Cup victory, Gryffindor had won the House Cup. Slytherin, thanks to Tom Riddle's extra hundred points for special services to the school, was a very close runner up – losing only by fifteen points. Ravenclaw had come third, and the Hufflepuffs last.The Ravenclaws were of course disappointed, but Cosima clapped happily for Marjorie and Harriet, who looked delighted, and for Helios, who looked on the verge of spontaneously combusting with joy. She felt sorry for the first year Slytherins that she liked, as well as Marius Vance and Hestia Podmore, having missed out so narrowly, but she was secretly rather pleased by the disgruntled expression on Walburga Black's haughty face.Everyone stuffed themselves silly on the magnificent feast that followed; as sumptuous and plentiful as the one on their first night at the school. The first year Ravenclaws chatted excitedly about the coming summer as they ate; Florizel couldn't wait to try out for the quidditch team next year and would be working hard in preparation; Octavia, whose mother worked for the department of International Co-operation, was going to Australia for a month with her parents; Ruby couldn't wait to tell her evacuee brother all about Hogwarts as soon as she could visit him. They all resolved that, of course, Ravenclaw would definitely be winning the House Cup next year.When at last the feast was ended, Cosima dashed over to the Gryffindor table to congratulate Marjorie and Harriet and then hug her giddy cousin. It sounded as though the Gryffindors were about to have an almighty party in their common room; she heard someone talking about letting off some Filibuster indoor fireworks and someone else talking about a hidden stash of butterbeer."You want me to walk you back to Ravenclaw Tower, titch?" Helios offered, his smile blinding."No, it's all right," Cosima gave him a last hug, amused by the ecstatic din the Gryffindor table was making. "You go and enjoy your last night here. The rest of my class are still here, I'll walk up with them. See you in the morning, Helios!"The hall was beginning to empty and as Cosima had to weave between departing Hufflepuffs and Slytherins as she made her way back to the Ravenclaw table. She almost tripped over as she bumped into someone and hurriedly looked up to apologise."Careful, Scamander," said the calm, even, voice of Tom Riddle, staring down at her with those expressionless dark eyes. "Wouldn't want you to get hurt.""Sorry, Riddle," Cosima said quickly, and scurried away. As she fell into step with the rest of the Ravenclaw first years and began the walk up to Ravenclaw tower, something danced tantalisingly at the back of her memory, just out of reach. In vain she racked her brains, wondering what on earth it could be, but it was to no avail. Had she seen something, or someone, significant as she'd walked through the hall? Had she perhaps seen the face of the person who'd attacked her tonight? It was no use, no matter how hard she reached for the flicker of awareness, it simply would not come to her and by the time she'd reached her dormitory, she was forced to give up.The next morning, the last of their wardrobes were emptied, their owls were retrieved from the Owlery and they were all issued with official school letters announcing that the use of magic would be prohibited in the holidays. Cosima and Merlin dashed quickly down to Mr Ogg's hut to bid goodbye to Hagrid. They promised to write to him over the summer, and Cosima vowed she would send him some more photographs of her granny's hippogriff cub. He in turn promised to keep in touch and thanked them again for standing by him during this awful year.With ribs aching from his hugs, they made it back to the school just in time to be rounded up by the prefects and joined the procession of students boarding the driverless carriages to take them all down to Hogsmede station where the Hogwarts Express, scarlet and gleaming, was waiting for them.All of the Ravenclaw first years squeezed into a compartment together, though it meant that Merlin and Freddie wound up sitting on the floor. Together they talked of everything that they had learned and all the best moments of their first year at Hogwarts, wondering mischievously if Professor Beery would have proposed to Professor Fisher by the time they returned for second year. They bought a hefty supply of sweets when the witch with the trolley went past and they sat eating pumpkin pasties, Bertie Botts beans, cauldron cakes and chocolate frogs as the countryside became less wild and the evidence of the muggle war could start to be seen as they passed towns and cities."You two are still coming back next year, aren't you?" Ruby asked Cosima and Merlin suddenly, as Freddie dug out a pack of exploding snap cards early in the afternoon. On their first night back in Ravenclaw Tower after leaving the hospital wing, Cosima had despairingly confessed that she'd wanted to go home and not come back.Cosima and Merlin looked at each other thoughtfully for a second and then Cosima stared around at all of their fellow classmates, thinking about how much she enjoyed their company: Freddie, Florizel and Antony's cheerful, jokey senses of humour, Octavia's calm practicality, Ruby's kindness, Athena's optimism and Martha's quiet wittiness. In the next door compartment was the ever-cheerful Gwion, as well as Marjorie and Harriet. And of course, in Merlin she had the first best friend she had ever had. Could she really stay at home and have them all come back to Hogwarts in September without her?"Yes," Cosima nodded decisively, Merlin echoing her with a smile. "Yes, we are.""Great stuff!" said Anthony cheerfully. "We've got a House Cup to win, after all!"Then, at long last, the Hogwarts Express was rolling into London once more, and everyone hurriedly changed into suitable muggle attire before cramming over to the window to see who could spot their families first as they approached the platform.Helios appeared to meet Cosima as the train halted and the Ravenclaws bid each other goodbye as they streamed out of the compartment and onto the packed platform."Hey, Florizel, Merlin, Freddie, don't forget you've promised to come and play rugby at my house soon!""Bye Octavia, let me know if you see any dragons in Australia!""Have a great summer Ruby, hope you get to see your brother soon!""Enjoy the holidays, Cosima, see you next term!""Changed your mind then?" asked Helios with a smile, draping an arm affectionately around Cosima's shoulders as they hunted for their parents. "Going back for second year after all?"Cosima returned his smile, before waving goodbye to James Shacklebolt and Chris Carmichael, who were exiting the train together. "Yes," she told Helios. "I've decided it's better to go back than hide at home.""Atta girl, titch," Helios ruffled her hair proudly. "Knew you were an honorary Gryffindor! Come on, I see Dad and Aunt Tina, let's head home."Exchanging a last wave with Merlin, Cosima let Helios steer her away, very much looking forward to seven weeks of time with her family at Seaview House. Second year was a long way away, and she would just have to face it head on when it came.After all, they had a House Cup to win!
The End