FIC: Aftermaths, Part 80

[geri_chan]

Title: Aftermaths, Part 80
Rating: NC-17 overall, but most chapters are closer to PG-13
Pairing: Snape/Lupin, Theodore/Blaise, and a few other minor pairings
Word count: ~9,550
Warning: AU; written pre-HBP
Author's notes: {} Indicates character's unspoken thoughts
Disclaimer: No money is being made off this story; consider it a little wish fulfillment on my part.
Sequel to: Always, Summer Vacation, For Old Time's Sake, Three's a Crowd, Return of the Raven, Phoenix Reborn, Phoenix Rising
Summary: Susan Bones makes a discovery about the R.A.; the Quidditch Cup finals take place, and Lukas confronts Amos.

Part 79 (Previous chapters can be found under the aftermaths tag.)

***

Susan ran to Sprout's office, but the Professor wasn't there. As she ran through the halls in search of her Head of House, she nearly ran over Professor Flitwick.

"Oh, I'm sorry, sir!" she exclaimed. "By any chance have you seen Professor Sprout?"

"I believe she has already headed out to the Pitch," Flitwick replied, then gave Susan a concerned look. "Is something wrong, Miss Bones?"

"I really have to to talk to her!" Susan said, frantic with guilt and worry. "I...I'm afraid I've made a terrible mistake."

"Is there something I can do to help?" Flitwick asked gently.

Susan hesitated for just a second. She had wanted to speak to her Head of House, but this was important enough that she should report it to the first teacher she saw. What if Stewart and Isabelle hurt someone at this match the way they had done at the others? And it sounded like their Auror friend was up to no good, too. She had to report this right away; she couldn't take the chance that someone might get hurt in the time it took to find Sprout and convince her that one of her own Hufflepuffs had been behind the pranks and threats that had been plaguing the school all year.

Susan thought, with a bit of ironic humor, that she should probably just be glad that she had run into kindly Flitwick instead of Snape! She doubted that he would react well to the knowledge that she had been involved with a secret society that had hexed his sons, albeit unwittingly. She realized now that she should have gone straight to Dumbledore, but she hadn't been thinking clearly. But Flitwick was here now, so she would tell him about the R.A., and then he could help her find the Headmaster.

"I--" was all Susan could get out before her throat constricted painfully. She clutched at her throat, making choking noises. Suddenly her eyes widened, looking blank and puzzled, then rolled up back in her head, and she fell to the floor in a faint.

"Miss Bones!" Flitwick cried. "Oh dear, oh dear!" The Charms teacher ran back and forth in a panic for a few moments, then firmly said, "Get a grip on yourself, Filius! You have a student who needs your help!" Then he felt a bit silly for talking to himself, but at least it had served to calm himself down. He conjured up a stretcher, put Susan on it, and pulled it along behind him with a levitation spell as he headed for the hospital wing, pausing only long enough to send a charmed message to Madam Pomfrey.

***

Madam Pomfrey was on her way to the Pitch when a little paper bird fluttered towards her. Frowning, she plucked it out of the air, unfolded and read it, then looked alarmed.

"What's wrong, Poppy?" Lupin asked.

"I need to go back to the castle," Pomfrey replied. "It seems that a student--Miss Bones--has collapsed."

"Oh no!" Lupin said. "What happened?"

"I don't know," Pomfrey said. "Apparently she was talking to Filius, and just fainted. I'll have to go take a look at her before I can determine what was wrong. Hopefully it's just stress; the N.E.W.T.s and O.W.L.s have had many of the students exhausted and on edge."

"Should I come with you?" Lupin asked.

"No," Pomfrey said, shaking her head. "You should be there to cheer on the Slytherins since Severus isn't able to attend the match. But here, take my first aid kit. You and the other teachers should be able to handle minor injuries, and if any of the players are more seriously injured, send them to the castle. Oh, and please tell Professor Sprout what happened. I'm sure she'll want to know, since Miss Bones is her student."

"All right," Lupin said, taking the first aid kit. "And if you need any help, please ask Severus. I'm sure he's grumpy and restless, being cooped up in the castle while the match is going on. He might as well make himself useful instead of pacing back and forth in the dungeon."

Pomfrey nodded politely, although she didn't have any intention of calling on Snape. A grumpy Potions Master was not likely to make a sick or injured student feel any better.

However, after she had done a thorough physical and magical examination of Susan, she changed her mind. She could tell that there was some kind of complicated curse cast on the girl, one that she was not sure she could remove herself without hurting Susan further. And Snape, however unpleasant or irritable he might be, was an expert on Dark Magic.

So she sent a message to Snape, who was not pacing back and forth in the dungeon, but rather, pacing back and forth on the Astronomy Tower. This could well be Slytherin's year to win back the Quidditch Cup, and he was damned if he would miss it because of those conniving Aurors! He intended to watch the match, even if he had to watch it from a distance. So when the message came, he was a bit annoyed, but his expression changed to one of concern once he had finished reading it, and he immediately headed for the hospital wing.

***

Meanwhile, Lupin passed on Pomfrey's message to Sprout, who hurried back to the castle to check on her student. Then he quietly informed Dumbledore and Hooch of the reason for Pomfrey's absence. Dumbledore decided to let the match carry on, since the students had been looking forward to it all year. Any serious injuries probably would have had to be treated in the hospital wing, anyway, even if Pomfrey had been here.

Most of the students and spectators were too excited to notice Pomfrey's and Sprout's absences, although some of the Hufflepuffs wondered where Susan had gone. "Maybe she decided to sit with Dean in the Gryffindor section," Ernie Macmillan suggested.

But Dean was also wondering where she was. He had not been able to find her outside the castle, and finally went to sit in the Gryffindor section with his housemates. He hoped that she wasn't avoiding him. She had seemed distant and distracted lately, and he wondered if she was planning to break up with him. But they hadn't fought with each other the way he and Ginny had when they had been going out together, and she had never complained about him being unromantic or too possessive or anything like that. Maybe it had nothing to do with him at all; maybe she was just worried about her N.E.W.T.s. They had finished taking the exams, but were still waiting for the results, and he knew that she was worried about getting a good score. That must be it, he decided, feeling relieved. She must be worried about how she had done on the N.E.W.T.s, so he wouldn't give her a hard time about forgetting to meet him before the match. And maybe after the match he could invite her to a celebratory party at Gryffindor to cheer her up, because surely Gryffindor was going to win the finals! They had Harry Potter on their team, after all, and surely beating the Slytherins was nothing compared to defeating You-Know-Who. Dean suddenly regretted that he had been so stubborn and insisted on remaining off the team rather than apologize to the Slytherins. He should have swallowed his pride if that was what it took to get back on the team, so that he could be on the Pitch today to help kick the Slytherins' arses and win the Cup. But although he was disappointed, and although he didn't agree with Harry about a lot of things, he was still a Gryffindor, so he cheered loudly when his team took the Pitch.

The Slytherin spectators cheered equally loudly, and from the teachers' section of the stands, Lupin cheered and waved a Slytherin pennant. He was still worried, about Susan, and also about Severus, but he tried not to let it show, for the Slytherin team's sake. He was also recording the match with one of Cassidy's magical spheres, so that Severus could watch it later--if Slytherin won. He doubted that Severus would want to see it if Gryffindor won.

"Let's win this match for the Professor's sake," Draco told his teammates in a determined voice. "Let's make him proud of us and help him win his bet with McGonagall!"

"For the Professor's sake!" The Slytherin team shouted.

"And keep a close eye on the Gryffindors, and don't let them play any sneaky tricks on you," Draco added, remembering how Dean Thomas had won their first match against Gryffindor with that stealthy throw when no one had been watching the goals.

"I want a nice fair game from all of you," Madam Hooch said, and as if echoing Draco's thoughts, glared sternly at both the Slytherin and Gryffindor teams.

Both teams were equally determined to win, and for the seventh years, it was their final chance to win the Cup, so they all played with even more vigor and intensity than usual. Damien just barely managed to avoid being hit in the head with a Bludger, and Crabbe had a foul called on him for accidentally-on-purpose jostling Seamus Finnigan, one of the Gryffindor Chasers. Both Ron and Millicent were relentless in defending their respective goals, and by the time the Snitch flew into view, each Keeper had only allowed one shot to get past them. However, thanks to the penalty shot allotted to them for Crabbe's foul, Gryffindor was leading by ten points, twenty to ten.

Draco and Harry chased after the Snitch as it darted across the Pitch, then swooped dangerously low over the Gryffindor stands, causing the spectators to gasp as the two Seekers whizzed by overhead, so close that Harry accidentally knocked a hat off the head of an elderly witch. In Harry's defense, it was a very tall hat, topped off with a stuffed vulture.

"Sorry!" Harry shouted as Neville Longbottom's grandmother shook her fist at him, and Neville covered his mouth with one hand to hide his smile.

***

Potter had a slight edge with his Firebolt, but Draco pushed his Nimbus to the limit, pulling up nearly even with his rival. {Please, please, please!} Draco silently prayed, to Merlin, to Morgana, to whatever gods might be listening. {Please, just this once, let me win the game! Let ME be the hero just this once, not Potter and not Dylan! Potter's the bloody Savior of the Wizarding World, the Boy Who Lived--surely that's more than enough glory for him! Even if he loses this match, every Quidditch team in the country will still be recruiting him, or he could get a job at the Ministry of Magic if he doesn't want to become a professional Quidditch player. Hell, they'd probably make him Minister of Magic if he asked--looks like they'll be getting rid of Weasley soon, anyway! I'm just the son of a dead, disgraced Death Eater, and I don't exactly have a lot of job prospects, so let me have just this one moment of glory, please!} Draco didn't exactly hate Potter anymore, but just this once, he wanted to triumph over his old rival. Just this once, he didn't want to be second to Potter or anyone else, even if his father was no longer around to see it.

The Snitch was just ahead, and Potter was reaching out to grab it. He was only a few inches ahead of Draco, but those few inches were going to make all the difference. Draco couldn't make his broomstick go any faster, so he desperately lunged at the Snitch, flinging his body forward, and he grabbed the Snitch just before a startled Potter could grasp it.

Draco tried to keep his legs hooked over his broomstick, but his momentum carried him too far, and he lost his balance and fell off the broom, plummeting towards the ground. But even as he fell, he continued to clutch the Snitch tightly in his fist. It was strange; he knew he was in danger, but he couldn't help but feel a sense of triumph at finally having beaten Potter.

He heard Potter scream, "DRACO!" and Dylan curse and say, "Does someone have to fall off their broomstick at every bloody match?!" All of the players, along with Madam Hooch, raced after him, but it was Potter and Dylan who reached him first. Potter grabbed hold of an arm, and Dylan managed to grab his ankle, and then Hooch and a couple of the other players were able to get a more secure grip on him and lower him safely to the ground.

"Are you insane, Malfoy?!" Potter shouted. "What did you think was going to happen after you jumped off your broomstick?!"

"You know you've gone too far when even a Gryffindor thinks you've done something reckless," Damien joked, but his face looked a little pale.

"It's not funny!" Dylan snapped, then grabbed Draco by the front of his robes and shook him. "A stupid game isn't worth being killed over, you moron!"

"Even if it's the Cup finals?" Goyle asked, and Dylan glared at him.

Draco knew that Dylan was right, and he had just done something incredibly stupid, but he couldn't stop grinning. Maybe later the full impact of what he had done would hit him, but right now he was too caught up in a wave of euphoria to feel any fear.

"But I caught the Snitch!" Draco laughed, holding it up triumphantly, knowing that the others probably thought he was crazy, but not caring. "I won the game! We won the Cup!"

The Slytherin spectators, who up until now had been watching in stunned silence along with the rest of the crowd, suddenly began cheering and applauding. The team members, now that they knew Draco was safe, began to smile and laugh excitedly as well.

"We did it!" Millicent laughed. "We won the Cup!"

"Good going, Draco!" Crabbe said, slapping him on the back. "You did it! You won the Cup for us!"

Theodore grinned and said, "Well, I still think you're nuts, Malfoy, but you did win the game--and Father's bet." He held out his hand and Draco shook it. "But Remus will probably scold you for making him worry."

Dylan sighed, shook his head, then smiled and shook Draco's hand. "Congratulations, Draco. I guess this makes us even now."

"Too bad," Draco laughed. "I liked the idea of you and Professor Snape owing me a favor!"

Weasley shook his head, regarding Draco with a look of disbelief mingled with a hint of admiration. "You are positively insane, Malfoy," he said. "Not even Fred and George would have done something that crazy." He held out his hand, saying, "Good game."

Draco shook his hand, and Potter's as well. "I think you're crazy, too," Potter said with a rueful smile. "But I guess if you want it that badly, you deserve to win. I don't think I could have done that."

"Says the guy who broke his arm catching the Snitch in second year," Weasley pointed out.

"I crashed," Potter protested. "I didn't jump off my broom!"

"Slytherin wins the match!" Hooch announced, then added, "Although you're very lucky that you didn't break your neck, not to mention every other bone in your body, Mr. Malfoy."

The Slytherins cheered, and Crabbe and Goyle lifted Draco up on their shoulders. He grinned and waved at the cheering spectators, basking in his moment of glory.

***

Meanwhile, back at the castle, Pomfrey, Sprout, and Snape had no time to think about the match. Snape used an Aperio spell, along with a few other identifying spells, to study the curse laid on Susan while Sprout fidgeted impatiently, obviously fighting the urge to tell the Potions Master to hurry up and get on with it.

"It is not one curse, but a blending of two curses," Snape finally announced. "And actually, it involves a third spell which is not precisely a curse--a conditional spell, which triggers the curses when a particular requirement is met." He frowned, his eyes narrowing. "Very subtle and skillful work--much better than I'd expect from your average student."

"Maybe it wasn't a student who cast it," Pomfrey suggested.

"We can worry about who cast it later!" Sprout snapped. "Right now, the most important thing is Susan's safety. Is she going to be all right? Can you remove the curses?"

"Yes, but it will take time," Snape replied. "We'll have to be very careful, or the spells might snap back and rebound on Miss Bones if we do not remove them properly. I'll need your help, Madam Pomfrey."

"Of course, Severus," Pomfrey said. "What type of curses are we dealing with?"

"A Silencing Hex," Snape said. "Not the usual sort of silencing spell that simply keeps noise from escaping a room, but a hex that prevents the victim from speaking."

"Which fits in with what Filius said, that Miss Bones suddenly choked and fainted," Pomfrey mused. "And the other curse?"

"Well, technically it's not classified as a curse, although it certainly acts like one," Snape said. "An Obliviate spell."

Pomfrey's eyes widened. "Someone wanted very badly to keep Susan from talking about something."

Snape nodded grimly. "All the more reason to lift the curse and find out what that something is."

It took them a long time to successfully untangle the three spells, one by one, and then remove them. Fortunately, Snape had gotten some experience with this sort of thing before during the previous school year, when trying to restore the hexed bunny-Bane to his proper raven form. Even so, the Quidditch match was almost over by the time they were done, although they were not yet aware of that.

Susan's eyelids fluttered, then slowly opened. She saw Snape staring down at her, and said in a hoarse whisper, "Pr...Professor?"

"Are you all right, Susan?" Sprout asked anxiously.

"I...think so," Susan replied hesitantly, sitting up in bed. "But I feel strange. Like there are holes in my memory." She looked around the room. "I'm in the hospital wing, but I don't remember how I got here. What happened?"

"What's the last thing you remember?" Snape asked.

Susan frowned, her forehead wrinkling in thought. "I...I was talking to someone, but I can't remember who. The last thing I can remember clearly is having breakfast in the Great Hall."

"You ran into Professor Flitwick after breakfast," Pomfrey told her. "He said that you seemed very upset. You said that you needed to talk to Professor Sprout, that it was very important, something about how you had made a terrible mistake. Then you started to choke, and fell unconscious."

Susan frowned again, looking worried. "I don't remember any of that."

"Someone hexed you, Miss Bones," Snape said bluntly. "Someone who didn't want you to talk about this 'terrible mistake.' You truly have no recollection of what that was?"

"I...I'm sorry, Professor," Susan said tearfully. "I don't know what I was trying to tell Professor Flitwick, but I have this feeling somehow that I've done something wrong. Something that I have to fix." She clenched her fists in frustration. "But I don't know what it is!"

"Will she recover from the Obliviate spell?" Sprout asked.

"It could be permanent, or it could wear off in a few days, a few weeks, or a few years," Pomfrey replied. "It all depends on the strength of the spell, the skill of the caster, and what the caster was trying to Obliviate. It's fairly easy to erase the memory of a brief, specific incident from a person's mind. It's much harder to erase a series of events, or a person that the victim knows well. For example, it would probably be easy to erase the memory of Susan's last Potions class from her mind. But it would be much harder to erase her memories of Potions classes for the entire year, because there are so many of them. And it would be virtually impossible to erase the memory of someone Susan has known all her life, like her father or mother."

"An Obliviate spell doesn't actually erase the memories," Snape said. "It simply barricades them, blocking them from the victim's conscious mind. Miss Bones might recover her memories with time, or she might not. Either way, I suspect we do not have time to waste. There is a way that I could recover them more quickly."

Sprout looked confused, but Pomfrey exclaimed, "Severus, surely you're not thinking of--!"

"Do you know what Legilimency is, Miss Bones?" Snape asked, ignoring Pomfrey.

"Er...mind reading?" Susan replied.

Snape sighed irritably. "Not exactly, but close enough. I am a Legilimens, Miss Bones. I can attempt to enter your mind and recover your lost memories, but I'll require your consent in order to do it." Well, actually he didn't, but he doubted that Pomfrey and especially Sprout would let him get away with entering a student's mind by force, no matter how important it was to recover those memories. Sometimes he was able to scan the students without their knowledge, but he was only able to pick up strong emotions and surface thoughts with such a cursory scan. He would have delve much deeper into the girl's mind in order to access the hidden memories.

Susan went pale. "Will it hurt?"

"It will be extremely uncomfortable and disconcerting," Snape replied honestly, not trying to sugarcoat it. "Less so if you cooperate and try not to fight me. But although it will be unpleasant, I will not hurt you."

Susan stared at him with trepidation; no doubt letting him into her mind was the very last thing she wanted to do. "You don't have to do this, Susan," Sprout said.

Susan swallowed hard, apparently trying to gather up her courage. "I think I do, Professor Sprout. I keep feeling that there's something important, something urgent in those memories. Like someone might be in danger if we can't figure out what it is. Do whatever you have to do, Professor Snape. I...I give my consent."

"Very well," Snape said, taking out his wand. "We shall proceed on the count of three, then. One...two...three...Legilimens!"

He felt the girl recoil in surprise and fear, reflexively trying to resist his entry into her mind. Snape tried hard to control his impatience, and silently said, {Calm down, Miss Bones. I won't hurt you.} He doubted that she could understand his exact words, but she seemed to understand his intent, and relaxed just a little. She was still afraid, but she was trying not to fight him.

Snape quickly bypassed childhood memories--birthday parties, images of her parents--and more recent memories, of kissing and holding hands with Dean Thomas. He noted, with some amusement, her fear and dislike of himself. He felt her nervousness when he touched that thought, felt her brace herself for his anger, then become confused at his amusement. Silly girl, Snape thought; it hardly came as a shock to him to know that most of the students in Hogwarts despised him. It was actually more shocking when they didn't.

He came up against a wall, and quickly pushed through it, feeling Susan mentally flinch. But it caused her only brief discomfort rather than actual pain because the wall had been artificially created by the Obliviate spell, rather than by Susan herself. Breaking down mental walls that a person had built in order to repress disturbing memories could be very difficult for the Legilimens, and quite painful for the Legilimen's subject. But Susan wanted to remember what was behind the wall, which made the process easier.

The memory he found was one of Susan listening in on Stewart Ackerley and Isabelle Laroque as they blithely talked about how they had been responsible for the hexed ribbons that had nearly gotten Dylan killed, along with the fake Morsmordre spell--which meant that they were probably responsible for all the other pranks, hexes, and threats as well. And they mentioned something about a plan Williamson had to capture the Death Eaters, something that was supposed to happen today.

Alarmed, Snape went searching for other walls and broke them down; he wasn't sure that he had found them all, but he had seen enough. He withdrew from Susan's mind, and she stared at him in horror, her eyes filled with guilt.

"The R.A.!" she cried. "Isabelle formed it and convinced us to join." She briefly described the R.A. and their activities, and Sprout and Pomfrey stared at her in shock. "We had all lost family to the Death Eaters," Susan continued in a guilty and slightly defensive voice, "and...well..."

"You believed that I was still a Death Eater," Snape said coldly. "And that my Slytherins were Death Eaters, or at least sympathizers, as well."

"I wasn't sure," Susan said, looking shamefaced. "But I thought you might be. We weren't supposed to hurt anyone! Isabelle said that we would only observe the Slytherins, and try to gather proof that they were involved with the Death Eaters! She never said anything about hexing people!"

"That would be small comfort to Dylan and Theodore if they had been killed," Snape said in a tight, clipped voice; keeping his rage in check took every ounce of self-control that he had.

Susan hung her head in shame. "I know, Professor," she whispered.

"And bad enough that you were spying on my Slytherins and dosing them with potions, but you even threatened Potter, whom I thought was your friend!"

"I didn't know!" Susan sobbed. "I didn't know what they had done!"

"But you suspected," Snape said coldly. He had seen the doubt and guilt in her mind. "That was why you were spying on Laroque and Ackerley this morning."

"I am very disappointed in you, Miss Bones," Sprout said, shaking her head and still looking stunned by what they had just learned.

"I'm sorry," Susan whispered.

Snape lost a bit of his control and turned on Sprout, snapping, "What on earth is going on in your House, Sprout? At least three members of this little secret society are Hufflepuffs!" He added in a sneering, scathing voice, "I never expected Hufflepuff to be a hotbed of insurgency!"

As Sprout flushed with both embarrassment and anger, Pomfrey quickly stepped between the two of them. "We don't have time for this now!" she said impatiently. "You can figure out who to blame later--right now we have to stop the R.A. and this Auror from hurting anyone else!"

"You're right," Snape agreed reluctantly. "Miss Bones, do you know what they intended to do at the match?"

"No, sir, I'm sorry," Susan replied. "Stewart was showing Isabelle a letter he got from Mr. Williamson, but they didn't read it out loud. All they said was that they couldn't cast any hexes at this match because it might ruin Mr. Williamson's plans."

"I knew that slimy bastard was up to something, attending all the Quidditch matches," Snape said disgustedly. "We've got to get out to the Pitch before anything happens!"

"You can't leave the castle, Severus!" Pomfrey protested. "That would give Williamson the perfect excuse to arrest you!"

Snape described in graphic detail what Williamson could do to himself, causing Susan to blush and her eyes to widen in shock.

"I believe that's physically impossible, Severus," Pomfrey said, a small smile crossing her lips, although her eyes still looked worried.

"Send messages to Dumbledore and to Lupin," Snape ordered. "And to Branwen, too--I'm sure she would be a great help with rounding up our little group of subversives. Tell them to bring all the members of the R.A. to the castle for questioning--especially Ackerley and Laroque; they seem to be the ringleaders. As for Williamson, we don't have any authority to hold him, but someone needs to at least keep an eye on him. Maybe we can actually get proof that the bastard has been breaking the laws rather than enforcing them. I'll call Tonks and Shacklebolt, just in case. Maybe, just maybe, they'll be able to arrest him, and if not, they can at least get him off the school grounds. Oh, and someone should be watching Dawlish, too--he and Williamson usually work as a pair. As for you, Miss Bones--" He glared at Susan, who went pale and shrank back in fear. "I'll deal with you later. You are not to set foot out of this room, is that clear?"

"Yes, sir," she said in a small voice. "I know what I did was wrong. I'll do whatever I can to help make it right, and I'll accept any punishment you give me. Even...even expulsion."

Sprout patted her hand, a hint of sympathy creeping into her expression, and said, "We'll discuss that later, Miss Bones." Snape just nodded curtly, and the adults set out to deliver their messages.

***

As it turned out, Stewart did not need to distract Lupin, because the werewolf was so busy hugging and congratulating the Slytherins on their win--after thoroughly scolding Draco for being so reckless--that he didn't even notice Master Diggory quietly slip out of the stands. None of the other teachers seemed to notice, either. Stewart decided to follow at a discreet distance; he was consumed by curiosity, wanting to know what Williamson had planned, and he wanted to witness the Auror's--and by extension, the R.A.'s--moment of triumph. Surely it wouldn't do any harm if he watched, so long as no one knew he was there...

***

Meanwhile, in the Hufflepuff section, Tristan had been surprised but happy to see his Uncle Amos attend the match, since he and Tristan's mother had not been speaking to each other since Master Diggory had filed the lawsuit against him. Amos and Gwendolyn exchanged stiff but polite greetings, and Amos patted Tristan on the shoulder with sincere affection, although his smile looked a little strained. The Diggory family concentrated their attention on the game to avoid having to make awkward small talk with each other, but Tristan noticed that his uncle looked pale, worried, and distracted, and his mind seemed to be on something other than what was happening on the Pitch. His eyes kept darting nervously over towards the section where the teachers were sitting--where Master Diggory was sitting. Of course he was probably upset about the trial, but he seemed scared rather than angry, which in turn worried Tristan so much that he too had difficulty concentrating on the game, and didn't even care when Slytherin won. Although he didn't like the Gryffindors much, he was beginning to think that maybe he had been wrong about Harry, and anyway, it was better to root for Gryffindor than a House full of Death Eaters. But now he was too concerned about Amos to care who won the game. After the match was over, Amos abruptly said goodbye and hurried out of the stands, but he didn't seem to be heading towards the school gates. He glanced over at the teachers' section of the stands with his binoculars, and saw that Master Diggory was heading in the same direction as Amos.

"Listen, I'm going to go say hi to a few of my friends," Tristan told his parents, but instead he followed his uncle.

***

Back on the Pitch, Draco was being scolded by a tearful Narcissa. "You could have been killed!" she sobbed. "What would I do if I lost you, Draco? You're all I have left!"

"I'm sorry, Mum," Draco said remorsefully, beginning to feel guilty for making his mother cry. "But see, I'm fine. I promise I won't do anything like that again." An easy enough promise to make, since this was his last match at Hogwarts, and it was very unlikely that any professional team would hire the son of an infamous Death Eater.

"You had better not!" Narcissa said, then hugged him tightly. Draco noticed that she seemed just a little thicker around the waist than normal, and then he noticed that she was wearing loose, voluminous robes rather than her usual gowns which clung to her torso and showed off her figure. Maybe she had been sampling a bit too much of her own cooking, or maybe she was eating a lot because she was depressed--he vaguely recalled seeing some of the Slytherin girls gorge themselves on chocolates after breaking up with their boyfriends. No wonder she was wearing loose, baggy robes--Narcissa was very proud of her beauty, and she wouldn't want any of the other pureblood women making catty remarks about how she'd gained weight. And then Draco felt even more guilty, because it was his fault that his mother was depressed, since he had forced the werewolf to break up with her. He would try to make it up to her after graduation, and spend a lot of time at home with her so she wouldn't be lonely.

Aileen Pierce came over and gently pulled Narcissa away from Draco. "There, there," she said soothingly. "Draco's fine; there's no need to cry." She handed Narcissa a handkerchief and said, "Why don't you sit down for a minute and compose yourself?" Then she said in a much sterner voice to Draco, "And don't you make your mother cry like that again! Honestly, Draco, use a little common sense!"

"Yes, ma'am," Draco said meekly.

"But he won the Cup for us, Mum!" Damien exclaimed, still exuberant over their victory. His mother swatted him on the back of his head, and he protested, "Hey, what was that for?"

"Teenage boys!" Aileen said crossly. "They're all the same!" But she looked relieved as she watched Damien and Draco laugh and accept the congratulations of their housemates, and Draco didn't realize that it was not just relief that he was unharmed.

***

Meanwhile, Allegra happened to notice Tristan quietly sneaking away from the Pitch. She didn't like the Hufflepuff boy because he was always making snide remarks about the Slytherins, including her brother's friend Theo. And there was something a little sly and sneaky about him, that she didn't trust. Although recently, he had been too upset about his family feuding with each other to make trouble. In fact, he had been looking so miserable that she felt a little sorry for him in spite of herself. But now it seemed that he was definitely up to something, and she wanted to know what it was.

"Come on," she said eagerly to Portia; their other friends Emma and Chloe were busy talking to their families. "Let's go see what he's up to!"

"But we're not supposed to go wandering off alone," Portia protested. "We might get in trouble."

"We won't be alone," Allegra said reasonably. "I'll be with you, and you'll be with me."

"I don't think that's quite what the teachers meant," Portia said.

"I want to see what he's up to," Allegra insisted. "He's acting kind of suspicious, and we still don't know who was behind all those hexes and pranks. And he thinks all Slytherins are Death Eaters--maybe it was him. Come on, Portia, it'll be an adventure!"

That reminded Portia that the Sorting Hat had told her that she was braver than she thought. Maybe it was time to prove it, if only to herself--to prove that she was a real Gryffindor, unlike her traitorous uncle. "Okay," she told Allegra.

***

To Aric's horror, the Tierneys were back from France, and had come to the match to meet the prospective bridegroom. Mrs. Tierney chattered inanely about what a handsome boy Aric was and what a lovely couple he and Miranda would make. Mr. Tierney shook Aric's hand and said heartily that he would make a fine son-in-law and he couldn't wait to welcome him into the family--in fact, he and Miranda should wed as soon as school let out. But to Aric's ears, it sounded more like he couldn't wait to get rid of his daughter, rather than being eager to gain a new son-in-law. To Aric's relief, his mother firmly squelched that idea, saying that they must have time to properly prepare for the wedding--it must be a suitably grand occasion, not something rushed and hurried. They would hold the betrothal ceremony after Aric graduated, but the actual wedding would take at least a few months to prepare. So he had a few more months of freedom--not that it mattered; he had already lost Takeshi.

As for his betrothed, she was indeed a beautiful girl, but she said little, slouching in her seat and pouting sullenly. It seemed that she wanted this marriage as little as he did--well, at least they had something in common. She ignored him and he ignored her, while their parents happily made plans for the wedding and Aric's career at the Ministry. Mr. Tierney was especially eager to be making new allies right now, since Arthur Weasley's star seemed to be waning. Meanwhile, Aric's mother and Mrs. Tierney were discussing what kind of flowers to use at the wedding, and what sort of dress Miranda should wear.

Aric whispered to Miranda in a wry voice, "Maybe they should just marry each other and leave us out of it." His future bride actually smiled a little, which made her look a great deal more attractive. He knew that he shouldn't hate her; she obviously had no choice in the matter, either. Maybe they could become friends, but he knew that he could never love her, because his heart already belonged to Takeshi. That made him sad, not just for his sake, but for hers. It didn't seem fair for her to be tied for the rest of her life to a man who would never love her. He wondered if she had someone that she liked, too--well, maybe not, since it seemed like her parents had been mainly concerned about her running wild, but on the other hand, that could be a euphemism for dating the wrong guy. But even if all she wanted was her freedom, she deserved to have it. Why should she be forced to marry some man she didn't even know just so that her family could put up a front of being "respectable"?

Miranda studied his face, looking thoughtful and then sympathetic. "You don't want to do this either, do you?" she asked quietly.

"No," he replied, just as quietly. "But we don't have any choice, do we?"

"Not unless we want to be disowned by our families," she replied.

Aric's mother and Mrs. Tierney saw their children talking quietly with each other, and smiled happily. "Oh, isn't that sweet?" Mrs. Tierney gushed. "They're getting along so well; I knew they'd make a good couple!" Miranda and Aric both glared at their mothers murderously.

To Aric's relief, his parents and the Tierneys didn't linger after the match, but had to leave right away, because the Tierneys were having a party at their house.

"It's Mother's birthday," Miranda explained.

"Happy birthday, Mrs. Tierney," Aric said politely.

"It was so nice of the Tierneys to come today, when they're busy getting ready for the party," Alison Dietrich declared. "You should thank them for coming."

"Thank you for coming," Aric said obediently, if without much enthusiasm.

"No need to thank us, son!" Mr. Tierney said with a grin. "We really wanted to get a look at our new son-in-law!" Behind his back, Miranda rolled her eyes, and Aric smiled a little.

"There are no classes today, are there?" Mrs. Tierney asked. "Why don't you come join us at the party? It would give you more time to get to know Miranda."

"We're not allowed to leave the school without permission from our Head of House," Aric said hastily. "And Professor Snape has been in a really bad mood lately. I don't think it would be a good idea to bother him right now."

"We wouldn't want to get Aric in trouble," Miranda said quickly. "There will be plenty of time to get to know each other after he graduates."

"That's true," Mr. Tierney conceded. "Snape's always been a nasty git. He'd probably deny you permission just to be spiteful. Well, we'd best be on our way, then. But we must all get together for dinner after Aric graduates."

"That sounds lovely," Alison said.

Aric politely said goodbye to his future in-laws, and held out his hand to Miranda. She shook it firmly while their mothers frowned. They probably thought that he should give her a kiss on the cheek, or at least a courtly kiss on her hand, but Aric didn't think he could manage that right now, and Miranda didn't seem offended. "It was nice to meet you," he told her, and was surprised to find that he meant it. It was too bad that they hadn't met under different circumstances; he wouldn't have minded having her as a friend, even if he didn't want a bride.

"Likewise," Miranda said, with a small, ironic smile that seemed to indicate that she was thinking much the same thing.

Aric sighed with relief when he was finally left alone, and decided to go take a walk by the lake to calm down and sort out his thoughts.

***

Perhaps the teachers might have noticed so many students sneaking off, if they had not been preoccupied with the disturbing messages sent from the castle.

"Severus suspected Stewart from the beginning!" a distraught Lupin said. "I knew he was troubled by his father's death; I should have tried harder to reach out to him. Maybe if he'd had someone to confide in, things wouldn't have gotten to this point."

"He resented you because of your relationship with Severus," Dumbledore pointed out. "You did make overtures of friendship towards him, as you do with all your students, and he resisted them. It isn't your fault."

"The Slytherins resisted my efforts at first, too," Lupin said, not sounding comforted. "But I kept trying until I got through. But I was so busy dealing with all my personal problems that I didn't make time for Stewart. I overlooked problems with Draco, too..."

"You had your hands full with your new family, Remus," Dumbledore said firmly. "No one expects you to save the world single-handedly."

"If it's anyone's fault, it's mine," Flitwick said, looking as guilty and upset as Lupin did. "I'm his Head of House; I'm the one who should have tried harder to get him to confide in me. Of course I knew he was troubled about his father's death, but I refused to take Severus's concerns seriously. I refused to believe that one of my students could have done such a thing, but the signs were there..."

"And Isabelle," Lupin continued, as if he hadn't heard Flitwick. "I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but I sensed there was something a little off about her. She and Aric both went through major changes in their lives: transferring to a new school in a different country. Aric obviously has had a difficult time adjusting, but Isabelle has adjusted very well---maybe a little too well. And she's always so guarded; I can never really tell what she's thinking. I tried talking to her once, but she brushed me off..."

"I can't believe that my Gryffindors were involved with this group," McGonagall muttered to herself, shaking her head. "Didn't they learn anything from the war?"

"You can feel sorry for yourselves later!" Branwen snapped, and Lupin, Flitwick, and McGonagall gave her sheepish looks. "But right now we have to round up the miscreants: Ackerley, Laroque, Ames-Diggory, Talbott, Thomas, Sloper, and Kirke."

"And the Aurors," Satoshi added.

McGonagall frowned. "That's odd...come to think of it, I don't recall seeing either Dawlish or Williamson at the match today, and they've attended every match since the one where the false Dark Mark was cast."

"I noticed that, too," Sinistra said. "I thought they must be too busy trying to frame Lukas and Severus to have time to come to the match."

"Speaking of which," Satoshi said, looking around. "Where is Lukas?"

Lupin frantically looked around the Pitch. "Oh no," he said. "You don't suppose Williamson's plot has anything to do with Lukas, do you?"

"Quickly then," Dumbledore ordered. "Everyone spread out, round up the R.A. members, then search the grounds for the Aurors and Lukas."

Sirius, who had come along with Branwen when Dumbledore had called the teachers together, volunteered to help as well, and his wife told him, "Search the castle; you should know all the hiding places and secret passages better than anyone."

Sirius grinned, then he and Lupin stared at each other as the same thought simultaneously occurred to them. "The Marauder's Map!" they chorused. A crowd of students was watching from a distance, looking curious and a little concerned as to what the teachers were talking about. Harry was in that crowd, and Sirius beckoned for him to come over. "Harry, you still have the Marauder's Map, right?" he asked urgently.

"Er...well..." Harry replied nervously, his eyes flickering over towards Branwen and then the Headmaster.

"This is important, Harry," Branwen said impatiently. "We don't have any time to waste."

"You're not in any trouble," Lupin added kindly.

"Yes, I have it," Harry admitted.

"Where is it?" Branwen asked.

"In my room," Harry replied.

"Damn!" Sirius said. "We'll have to go all the way back to the castle to get it."

"It's still our best bet to locate Dawlish and Williamson--and Lukas," Branwen said. "Take Harry and go get it--you can ride that fabulously expensive and fast broomstick you bought for him. Take Bane with you; once you find out where they are, he can pass the message along to me." Sirius and Harry both stared at her uncertainly, not sure whether she meant for Bane to carry a written message, or whether she and the bird could communicate telepathically. "Well, what are you waiting for?" Branwen snapped. "Get moving!"

Sirius and Harry decided that they could figure it out later, and jumped on the Firebolt, with Bane riding on Harry's shoulder, and they took off for the castle.

Meanwhile, the teachers set about rounding up the R.A. members. McGonagall confronted Dean Thomas, Jack Sloper, and Andrew Kirke; the guilty looks on their faces told her everything she needed to know, and she sternly marched them back to the castle. Flitwick likewise apprehended Corbin Talbott, but could not find Stewart Ackerley.

"I don't know where he went!" Corbin sullenly insisted when Flitwick questioned him. "I saw him take off after the match, but I don't know where he went. I just figured he didn't want to watch the Slytherins celebrate their win."

When Isabelle saw Branwen heading towards her with a grim expression on her face and a steely glint in her eyes, she started to reach for her wand, but the Summonings Professor said, "Don't even think about it, girl," and Isabelle's hand dropped to her side. "Miss Bones told us everything, Miss Laroque," Branwen said. "Your curse wasn't quite as effective as you thought it was."

Isabelle looked angry and frightened, but also strangely relieved. "It's over," she whispered.

"Indeed it is," Branwen said coldly. "Where is Mr. Ames-Diggory?"

"I don't know," Isabelle replied.

Branwen pulled out her wand. "My patience is wearing very thin, Miss Laroque. I want to know where Mr. Ames-Diggory is, and I want to know now!"

"Branwen!" Lupin protested, looking alarmed.

"She could have killed your sons, Remus!" Branwen told him.

"I don't know!" Isabelle shouted, turning a little pale. "I honestly don't know! I saw him leave after the match was over; I think he wanted to go talk to his uncle."

"Amos?" Lupin asked, looking startled and worried. "Amos Diggory is here?"

Isabelle nodded. "He was sitting with Tristan's family."

"Lukas, Amos, and the Aurors missing--not a good combination," Lupin said to Branwen, who nodded.

Dylan, Theodore, Blaise, and Serafina came running up. "Remus, what's going on?" Dylan asked anxiously.

Lupin hesitated. "Nothing I can discuss right now, but there may be trouble brewing. All of you, get back to the castle and stay put in the dorm until you hear from me or Severus."

"I can't find Allegra," Blaise said, looking worried. "I checked with the Gryffindors, and they say she and Portia Pettigrew wandered off somewhere together. They don't seem to be on the Pitch, and Allegra never came over to congratulate Theo and Dylan, which is pretty odd."

"All right," Lupin sighed. "Get back to the castle, and we'll look for them, too."

"I'm not leaving without my sister," Blaise said stubbornly. "I'll help you look."

"Then we will, too," Theodore said, and Dylan nodded. Serafina said nothing but came over and stood next to them.

"Get back to the castle this instant!" Lupin snapped, in a voice that sounded more like Snape's.

"I refuse," Blaise said, quietly but implacably.

By this time, Prospero and Selima had joined them. "From what I can gather," Prospero said, "it seems that you are searching for several students and a couple of shady Aurors. It's a big campus; you can use all the help you can get."

"Are you willing to let your grandson put himself in danger?" Lupin asked incredulously.

"I know him well enough to know that we would have to Stupefy him before he would leave his sister in danger," Prospero replied. "Not that I haven't considered it, but he and his friends are adults, or nearly so."

"Selima?" Lupin pleaded, his inner wolf so anxious about protecting his cubs that he forgot to call her "Lady."

But Selima just gave him a faint smile. "I would rather my grandson and his friends return to safety, too. But Theodore is stubborn, like his father."

"We fought against the Death Eaters," Dylan pointed out.

"Prospero and I will accompany them," Selima said, and Lupin gave them a doubtful look. "I can do more than organize dinner parties, Remus," she told him dryly, then took out her wand and smiled slyly. "I'm quite adept with curses, if I do say so myself."

"She is, too," Prospero confirmed with a grin. "I was on the receiving end of them a few times in school. We are Slytherins, Remus. We know how to defend ourselves."

Lupin sighed helplessly, too worried for his conscious mind to register that Selima had just called him by his first name for the very first time. "Very well," he said reluctantly. "I don't have time to argue further."

Branwen handed Isabelle over to the nearest teacher, who happened to be Sinistra. "Take her to the Headmaster's office, and if she gives you any trouble, Stupefy her."

"With pleasure," Sinistra said.

"Maybe I should have kept Bane with me," Branwen said regretfully. "It would be useful to have him scout the school grounds from the air."

"I can do it!" Satoshi volunteered brightly, and instantly transformed into a very plump raven. With some difficulty and much flapping of wings, he managed to get airborne. "Haven't done this for awhile!" the bird called out cheerfully. "I'm a bit out of practice!" Then he flew off, somewhat unsteadily.

"Is he really going to be any help?" Selima asked dubiously.

"If not, we're no worse off than we were before," Branwen said with a shrug. "Hopefully Sirius will be able to pinpoint their location with the map, but in the meantime, we should split up and start searching the grounds."

"I'll take my broom and search from the air, too," Hooch declared.

"You lot come with me," Lupin said firmly to Prospero's group. "I want to be able to keep an eye on you."

They decided that Hooch would search from the air; Branwen and Hagrid would head in the direction of the Forbidden Forest ("A good place ter hide," Hagrid declared); and Lupin's group would search by the lake.

"The rest of you get the students safely back to the castle," Branwen ordered the other teachers.

"I will scry for the location of our missing students in my crystal ball," Trelawney announced dramatically.

"Yes, yes, fine," Branwen said dismissively, and the search parties set out.

***

Meanwhile, Lukas and Amos confronted each other on the shores of the lake. "Where are the papers?" Amos demanded.

"Not so fast, Uncle," Lukas retorted. "You will receive them when Ash is freed, and not before."

"You really think I have that much influence over the Aurors?" Amos argued.

"You'd better hope you do," Lukas snarled. "Because otherwise you're useless to me, and I might as well just give the papers to Rita Skeeter."

"No!" Amos protested, a panicked look on his face. "You can't do that!"

"Tell me the truth for just once in your life, Uncle," Lukas said in what was half an angry demand and half a desperate plea. "There is no one but here but you and me, and we both know that the word of a werewolf counts for little. Tell me what really happened to my father. You can always deny it later. I just want to know the truth."

"I didn't kill him!" Amos shouted, backing away fearfully from his nephew.

"Tell me the truth!" Lukas shouted. "I swear on my father's name that I will not kill you no matter what you tell me--if only because I cannot protect my pack from a prison cell! But I want to know the truth about how my father died! Do you honestly expect me to believe that it's just a coincidence that he died after discovering information that could have ruined the Diggory family?!" He lunged forward, grabbed Amos by the front of his robes, and bared his teeth threateningly. "Tell me the truth!"

"It was my parents who did it, not me!" Amos screamed. "I swear I didn't know about it until it was too late! I would have stopped them if I had known, I swear!"

Lukas had long suspected that either Amos or the elder Diggorys--or possibly both--had been involved with Cynric's death, but suspecting and knowing were two different things. Lukas, stunned by the knowledge that Cynric's parents actually had killed their own son, loosened his grip on his uncle's robes. Amos quickly pulled away and stumbled backwards, his face still white with terror,

A faint rustle in the bushes alerted Lukas to the fact that they weren't alone, and Williamson jumped out of the bushes, shouting, "Impedimenta!" Lukas tried to dodge the spell, and normally would have succeeded, but his reflexes were slowed by his state of shock. The spell grazed him, paralyzing him but not having its full effect. He snarled and glared hatefully at the Auror as he fought to shake off the spell.

"It took you long enough!" Amos shouted.

"I was waiting for the right moment," Williamson replied. Actually, he had been about to attack the werewolf when he started questioning Amos about Cynric's death, and held off because he was curious to know what Amos would say. The knowledge that Amos's parents had murdered Cynric--and that Amos had concealed that knowledge--could prove useful someday, in case he ever had reason to blackmail Amos. Of course he and Amos were allies at the moment, but one never knew when things might change; it was always nice to have a little insurance. And on the off chance that Amos became Minister of Magic after Arthur Weasley was removed (as some people were speculating), it certainly couldn't hurt to have a hold over the new Minister.

The Auror lazily raised his wand, smirking as he watched the helpless frustration and anger on the werewolf's face, and Amos snapped nervously, "Stop toying with him and finish him off already!"

"Any last words before I send you to join your father, Cyril?" Williamson asked. "If you'll testify against Snape, perhaps I'll spare your life."

"Liar," Lukas snarled. "Do you think that I don't know how your slimy little mind works? Even if I would a betray a friend, which I wouldn't, you would still kill me as soon as I gave you what you wanted."

"Then I guess this is goodbye," Williamson said mockingly. "Maybe I'll send your friend Ash to join you, too--or maybe I'll just let him rot in Azkaban until he goes mad and kills himself and saves me the trouble. You werewolves don't deal well with confinement, do you? He's only been there for one day, and I hear he's practically clawing at the walls..."

Lukas finally managed to shake off the effects of the spell and lunge towards a startled Williamson. He reached into the pocket of his robes for his wand as the Auror cried out in fear and raised his wand in earnest this time.

Part 81