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Chapter Text

    Susie found Fred and George in an otherwise empty compartment and darted forward to hug them.

    ‘I missed you so much!’

    ‘You’ve grown a bit over the summer,’ Fred said, glancing somewhere down and to the left.

    ‘I think I know what you mean,’ George said, giving her a hug.

    ‘You’ve grown taller too.’

    ‘Yes, ahem, something like that. From your letters we gathered you weren’t keen on the holidays. Was it really that bad?’

    ‘Yeah. I’m just glad the new year’s started.’

    ‘And we kidnapped Harry Potter!’

    ‘I want to hear the details too. Hello, everyone,’ Lee Jordan announced, flinging the compartment door open and glancing around. ‘Did I hear that right? Kidnapping? Because your faces say you were talking about something else a second ago.’

    ‘Hello.’ Sue forced a smile, levitating her trunk as she slid into the twins’ side by the window and pulled out a book.

    The boys were recounting their latest adventures — the bits that never made it into their letters — while Susan listened and kept her eyes on her Transfiguration textbook.  A plan was taking shape in her mind: to draft a general theory of Transfiguration, as she’d done last year with Charms for all years. Was it worth doing the same for every subject? If there was time, definitely — she now had enough notebooks for that sort of research. But first of all — Transfiguration.

    ‘Of course, I’d love you to kidnap me like that — but to be fair, mum didn’t lock me in a room or starve me or anything. She just wouldn’t let me visit you, not even for a day.’

    The boys in the compartment exchanged glances.

    ‘Susie, what you’re saying…’ Lee began cautiously. ‘It sounds a bit… er…’

    ‘Forget it,’ Fred cut in. ‘Did something specific happen?’

    ‘No, my mum’s just very strict and demanding. I know she cares about me, but sometimes it’s unbearable. After the Muggle exams, I was dreaming of being adopted by the Bloody Baron. I’ve heard more praise from him than from my own mother.’

    ‘You talked to the Bloody Baron?’ Jordan sounded incredulous.

    ‘Praised? You were praised by the Slytherin ghost?’ George asked, with something close to superstitious horror. ‘Are you sure you haven’t mixed something up?’

    ‘He often rattles his chains in our tower — and he compared me to Helena Ravenclaw.’

    ‘The one he killed?’ Lee clarified.

    ‘Stay away from him,’ Fred said seriously.

    Sue looked at them, puzzled. The idea of a disembodied ghost frightening anyone didn’t sit right in her mind. Luckily, Jordan changed the subject and started talking about his summer.

    After that, the boys went off through the carriages, and when they came back, they looked seriously puzzled.

    ‘Harry and Ron are missing.’

    ‘What do you mean?’ Susan asked, frowning.

    ‘They’re nowhere to be found.’

    Susie took a ring from her wallet and, without even drawing her wand, turned it into a crystal ball. The entire compartment leaned over it to watch as the second years crashed the enchanted car into the Whomping Willow.

    ‘Why didn’t they owl us?’

    ‘Why did they even do this?’

    The ball obligingly showed them failing to get through the barrier at the station.

    ‘Well, it doesn’t look as if the wizarding world’s golden boy is about to be expelled — but you two had better not get caught like that,’ Steel remarked anxiously, eyeing the flaming-haired twins. ‘Listen — can you teach me to pick locks the Muggle way? Seems like a very useful skill in a world that’s obsessed with restricting magic and tracking everything. And… I didn’t break anything just now, did I?’

***

    This year, they travelled to the castle in carriages drawn by winged horses.

    ‘Aren’t they beautiful!’ Sue ran up to them, let them sniff her hand, and gently stroked their dragonish muzzle. ‘What’s your name, darling? You must see perfectly in the dark with eyes like those! And what fangs! Do you like meat? Sorry — I’ve nothing on me.’

    ‘Who are you talking to?’ George asked, as the horse snorted disapprovingly at his approach. 

    ‘Oh, you’d better not come any closer. You’re making him nervous.’

    ‘You mean there’s actually something in there?’ Fred asked, climbing into the carriage and holding out his hand.

    ‘Of course — can’t you see the huge winged thestrals? How did you think the carriages moved? On their own?’ She couldn’t reach the step, so George helped her up. ‘The carriages only have cushioning charms. Things like these won’t move on their own.’

    ‘And why can only you see them?’

    ‘I don’t know. I haven’t had Care of Magical Creatures yet. I only know about thestrals from a report on the Forbidden Forest inhabitants. They live there. I suppose the Keeper of Keys tamed them for the carriages. I do know they’re carnivores — they can hunt birds — and it’s best not to spill blood in the forest, partly because of them.’

    ‘And you came to pet THIS?’ Lee asked.

    ‘Oh, they’re gorgeous, Jordan. Like a cross between a horse and a dragon.’

    They gave her another wary look. She sighed and turned to the view outside. Soon her favourite castle would rise beyond the forest. It seemed to call to her. She almost burst into tears when its towers appeared through the trees.

    This time, Stapleton didn’t shock anyone by swooping in during the Welcoming Feast. But the Head of Slytherin was missing — where was he?

    Dumbledore and Flitwick returned her wide, happy smile with the slightest of nods. Before the Sorting, the ghosts swept in. She hugged Helena and shook hands with the Baron, catching surprised looks from the Slytherins and a disapproving glare from the Grey Lady.

    Snape finally appeared at the end of the feast, after the Headmaster and McGonagall had both vanished and reappeared. “Catching Potter?” Susan guessed. “Looks like he won’t be expelled, judging by the professor’s face.” She smiled at him too, catching his eye, but was met only with an expression that clearly said: “another hotbed of chaos on the loose — besides Potter.”

    Could she persuade him to take her into the Forbidden Forest? That mission seemed impossible. She’d have to dream up something extraordinary to win that permission. Even if she failed, it was worth a try.

    After the feast, she pulled out last year’s notebook and leafed through it, then used the crystal ring to check her timetable for this year — no sense waiting for tomorrow’s breakfast.

    Team practice wouldn’t start until the second week, and the timetable once again brimmed with lessons — more of the dreaded ones, and fewer she actually liked. Losing a day of endless potion-making felt like losing an old friend.

     Timetable :

    To-Do List:

1. Do homework every day; Muggle subjects on Thursdays.
2. Practise Charms exercises for 4th/7th year — Mon & Wed.
3. Spells to learn: Accio, Patronus, Healing Charms, Protego, Occlumency. Done: ( )
4. Read books on Divination — Dream Interpretation.
5. Keep a diary of dreams and predictions.
   • Where and why Potter’s disappeared.
   • Second-year timetable.
6. Spell creation (?).
7. Develop wandless magic.
8. Invent new bombs/fireworks/prank gadgets with the twins.
9. Artefacts to make:
   • Wand-in-the-sleeve (could be purely mechanical?),
   • Enchant the bag,
   • A ring to replace a wand for casting magic,
   • Mirror-glasses with charms for seeing the invisible, enchantments, or anything else interesting (perfect for exploring Hogwarts and artefacts).
10. Make a full overview of seven years of Transfiguration.
11. Earn magical money; open a vault at the bank next year.
12. Write to Ollivander on his birthday.
13. Spy portraits.

    Tomorrow she’d wake as early as possible and try to convince the professor to take her into the Forest. She fed the raven and asked him to wake her early, leaving his cage open in advance.

***

    In the morning, she tried out some new eye-catching charms she’d read about over the summer. She stopped by her office for a few minutes to blow a kiss to the castle, give the place a quick magical tidy, spin the time tuner — and then headed for Severus’s office, bribing Mrs Norris on the way with a scrap of meat and a pat.

    Heart pounding like an anvil, she knocked on the office door.

    ‘Yes?’ The professor’s voice, surprisingly, had forgotten to sound strict — perhaps he thought one of the staff couldn’t sleep on the first day of term?

    Sue dropped the Disillusionment Charm and slipped inside.

    ‘Good morning, Professor.’

    ‘What are you doing here at this hour, Miss Steel?’ He sighed, sounding utterly hopeless. ‘Did you really think that just because your house hasn’t earned any points yet, I couldn’t take any away?’

    ‘You can put me on the counter like the twins — just don’t refuse straight away!’ Susie hovered on the edge of panic, trying to sound indifferent.

    ‘Why’s that?’ he asked, clearly baffled.

    ‘You and I both know it’s useless.’

    ‘What is?’

    ‘Earning points. Or not losing them. Even if I hadn’t lost fifty last year, Gryffindor would’ve overtaken us. While Potter and Dumbledore are here, it’s absolutely hopeless.’

    ‘Albus…’ Severus pressed his fingers to his eyes and stifled a groan. ‘And what is it you want?’

    ‘I want practical experience. For example — helping you gather ingredients in the Forest.’

    ‘No,’ the Head of Slytherin said without a flicker of hesitation.

    ‘Why not? You’d get through it faster with me, and have more free time. It’s not dangerous for me to be in the Forest — especially with you. I can fly off at any moment.’

    ‘No,’ Snape repeated after a pause.

    ‘Why not?’

    ‘Because I am not going to encourage systematic violation of the rules by students.’

    ‘Then why isn’t Potter expelled?’

    ‘Because it isn’t my decision.’

    ‘Professor…’ She sighed heavily, fighting tears. ‘Please — what can I do to make you agree?’

    Severus looked away, calculating how much time he’d already wasted on this maddening exchange. Susan shook silently, tears spilling without a sound. Then he turned back to her.

    ‘Why is this so important to you?’

    She wiped her eyes and exhaled. In a cracked voice, she said:

    ‘I only just left the Muggle world. I don’t want to end up stuck there again. For that, I need to learn something real. I don’t even know how I could repay you for your kindness if you agreed. All my brain can think of is ways to annoy people.’

    ‘For example?’ The corner of his mouth twitched.

    ‘For example… persuading Peeves and the Bloody Baron to let him loose on the dungeons all year — if you don’t agree.’

    He stared at her for a long moment — then burst out laughing. All that time, Sue had felt like a complete idiot.

    ‘I’ll tell the Headmaster exactly what you threatened me with if he asks. And if you’re caught in the wrong place, I know nothing. We’ll start today. And for Merlin’s sake, stop those creepy quiet tears — they suit you even less than your loud predictions.’

    ‘Thank you,’ Susie squeaked, hardly believing her luck. She cast Disillusionment on herself — partly so the Head of Slytherin wouldn’t be seen with her, and partly so she could wipe away the tears that had soaked everything.

***

    Just as she had last year, she explained quietly and concisely what she would do, and then they began gathering ingredients together. As they worked, she explained which potions they could be used in and how to prepare them for storage. Unlike last year, there was hardly any need for corrections or clarifications. When she correctly extrapolated the rules to new plants, she was rewarded with a meaningful ‘Hm’.

    ‘What do you know about the inhabitants of the Forbidden Forest, Miss Steel?’

    Susan gave a brief summary of her report from last year.

    ‘Where exactly did you get this knowledge?’

    ‘Last year, I prepared a report for Professor Quirrell.’ For a moment, she saw his death — the agony flashing before her eyes — and forced the memory away with an effort of will. ‘But my report didn’t cover whether these creatures provide ingredients useful to wizards. I only know of unicorn hair being used in wands, such as mine. From what I understand, a voluntary donation from a sentient magical creature is not only ethically preferable but also more effective — so it’s more a matter of caring for and befriending animals than wild harvesting.’

    ‘So he asked you to write a report?’

    ‘Yes — just after you argued with the Headmaster about the Alchemy textbook at the staff table.’

    The Head of Slytherin frowned. An unpleasant memory? Sue wondered. Am I pushing my luck?

    They turned back towards the castle, and the professor explained about the animal ingredients found in the Forbidden Forest. As they emerged, Severus remarked contentedly:

    ‘You were right. We finished faster together. There’ll be time to prepare this for storage.’

    ‘If you’ve got a broom with you — or can summon one — we could get back to the castle faster,’ Susie suggested cautiously, earning a thoughtful, disapproving look.

    ‘ Accio broom.’

    Am I dreaming this? she thought, staring at Professor Snape in disbelief. Casting Disillusionment on herself, she took off after him.

    In the castle, she preferred to fly too, drawing her legs in slightly so as not to let her footsteps echo — though most of the portraits were still asleep.

    In the office, a host of small vials flew towards them. Just in case, Steel kept explaining what she was about to do. When they finished, she nodded gratefully.

    ‘Thank you very much.’

    ‘Are you afraid of spiders?’

    ‘No, they’re cute.’ Susan smiled, remembering the tarantula Lee had once shown her, hoping to make her jump.

    ‘In that case — same time next week. We’ll collect poison and some web.’

    ‘Thank you.’ She looked into his eyes, the silent question written plain across her face.

    ‘Well? What else? Breakfast will be served soon — time for you to go.’

    ‘I’m incredibly happy, but I still don’t understand why you agreed.’

    ‘Good. Now get lost before I change my mind.’ Snape gave a thin, malicious smile.

    The girl melted naturally into thin air and soared towards her tower, slipping through the thick walls.

    The Potions Master shook his head in quiet displeasure. Almost everything about this was fundamentally wrong — from the wandless flight and disembodiment charms to the fact that he’d agreed to the terms of this little terrorist. Still, the Headmaster would likely be no help here, and there was no one else he trusted to share this peculiar problem involving a student’s help. At least this much was genuinely useful; the rest he could throw from his mind.

Chapter Text

    Everyone was still asleep in the dormitory, but someone was already in the common room. Sue removed the charm, gathered her textbooks for the day, and stepped out of her room. Helena was chatting with a first-year.

    ‘Meet Luna Lovegood,’ the ghost prompted her, aware of her tendency to forget names. ‘Luna, this is Susan Steel — a second-year and a good friend of mine.’

    ‘Lovely to meet you,’ said Susie, extending her hand. Luna, who wore a dreamy smile, shook it with her pale, almost translucent fingers. ‘What are your hobbies?’

    ‘A little bit of everything. My dad runs a magazine — I help him with the design. I search for rare magical creatures… and I love beautiful dresses.’

    ‘How wonderful! I’m also interested in a bit of everything. Shall I take you to breakfast?’

    ‘That would be lovely.’

    They went downstairs, chatting idly along the way. Sue pulled out her diary and scribbled the name down before it slipped her mind. She definitely liked this new girl.

    Their quiet conversation was interrupted by the owl post — and a letter that exploded like a bomb at the Gryffindor table, loudly reprimanding the twins’ younger brother.

    Immediately afterwards, they were handed their timetables. After confirming she already knew hers by heart, Sue sent a pre-written note to Fred and George via raven. Stapley also seemed to like his new friend — especially when she called him a very beautiful bird.

    Susan’s mood wasn’t just good; it was utterly magnificent. The day had barely begun, and she’d already had a small adventure in the Forbidden Forest, and met a pleasant new friend — someone refreshingly different from the rest of her tower.

    And Potions was next — likely beginning with a quiz she was impeccably prepared for. She intended to behave impeccably too, just in case the professor reconsidered bringing her along to the forest again.

    “14. Read about collecting poison and Acromantula web by Wednesday,” she reminded herself.

    Then Charms, with her favourite Head of House, and — if the Headmaster hadn’t cancelled anything — perhaps a lesson with Professor Flitwick. “Ask if I’m ready for the Patronus.”

    Later there would be time to finish her homework and stargaze with Stapledon.

    Wasn’t this the beginning of a perfect magical year?

***

    Sometimes she caught herself thinking it couldn’t possibly be this good — something had to go wrong. But then she exhaled. After two months of feeling dissatisfied with every single day — sometimes several times an hour — it was only natural she’d need a bit of time to stop flinching at how suspiciously well everything was going.

    In class, she glowed with quiet contentment and simply did everything expected of her, not rushing anywhere. It was only the second of September — there was no need to hurry.

    The Head of House continued to hold electives for her twice a week, and at last, they had begun work on the Patronus.

    ‘Do you have any idea what your Patronus might be?’

    ‘A raven. Ninety percent chance it’s a raven.’

    ‘And the other ten percent?’

    ‘No clue. Professor Catullus Spangle once wrote that animals a wizard wants to summon only appear for the obsessed or eccentric. I’m fairly sure I fall into that minority. He also wrote it’s usually something hidden deep inside. Which sounds very vague and mysterious.’

    ‘Well then, let’s try. Careful wand movement, warm memory.’

    Today was the perfect day to attempt the spell. Susan had even gone over her happiest memories in advance — but in the end, all she needed was a single word, said in a low, typically stern voice: “ ‘Astonished’ .” She gathered all the warmth inside her and released it.

    ‘Expecto Patronum,’ she said, smiling. It wasn’t just the spell’s incantation, but the emotion behind it: gratitude, balance, stability, recognition — the kind she had once received unexpectedly.

    From her wand burst… not a raven.

    A faintly shimmering cat appeared — or perhaps a half-kneazle cat — battered, clearly experienced, arching its back and narrowing its eyes in search of threat.

    ‘Kitty?’ she murmured, reaching out. The cat turned, and its eyes widened — glowing like twin beacons. Almost invisible from the outside, it radiated such brightness from within that Susie had to squint. The cat blinked slowly in return.

    ‘How interesting! On your very first try!’ Filius exclaimed, clearly delighted. ‘Now, try sending a message.’

    ‘Tell Helena Ravenclaw you’re my first Patronus — and even though I do love cats, I definitely didn’t picture you looking like this. If she has time, could she come see us?’

    A couple of minutes later, the Grey Lady appeared, accompanied by an incredibly proud, narrow-eyed guide who showed no sign of relaxing after completing his task. He prowled around the corners of the classroom with an air of great importance before finally approaching his summoner.

    ‘How handsome you are,’ she murmured, stroking him. Only after receiving his reward did the cat vanish.

    Helena watched him go, without a trace of fondness. She waited a moment longer to be sure he’d disappeared.

    ‘Your Patronus scared off an entire hall of ghosts. I don’t think that’s just a cute cat.’

    ‘Huh?’ Sue blinked, entirely unaware that something had gone wrong — or that her friend seemed wary of a cat-shaped Patronus.

    ‘It’s the first I’ve heard of a Patronus frightening ghosts,’ the Head of House added, sharing her puzzlement. ‘Let’s discuss this over tea.’

    ‘It’s not the spell itself, it’s the shape,’ Helena continued. ‘You’ve probably seen Minerva McGonagall’s cat. It’s nothing like this one.’

    ‘Hers is more solid — this was Miss Steel’s first attempt, after all.’

    ‘You haven’t noticed? It’s not ethereal or weak — it conceals itself. If it closed its eyes, you’d hardly see it. But those eyes… they burn right through. I’d say “like searchlights,” but in our case, that’s more than a figure of speech. And its whole weathered look — it’s like a specific cat, not a symbol of “a cat”.’

    Susie quickly brought her teacup to her mouth and focused on the drink, doing her best not to think about how much the dark, watchful, wounded cat reminded her of someone.

    ‘It’s your great-grandmother’s familiar, Susan.’

    Sue spat out half her cup of tea with an ungraceful splutter.

    ‘A guide between worlds with lantern eyes. I’m not sure how much cat there is left in it. I’m certain if you check old tales and legends, you’ll find something.’

    ‘What an interesting theory. But… it’s just a Patronus, isn’t it?’

    Still stunned, Sue began tidying up, using her wand.

    ‘I hope so,’ the ghost sighed. ‘But don’t use it to contact me again — unless it’s an emergency.’

    ‘I could summon it easily today, in such a peaceful mood. But how would you manage it in battle, when happiness-sucking horrors are attacking?’

    ‘Just practise holding on to the good things — with all your heart — until it becomes second nature. Then nothing will shake you.’

    “ 15. Research fairy tales. 16. Gratitude journal? ”

***

    Steel left the Head of House’s office far more thoughtful than she had entered it. She told herself that if she could find a new way to communicate, she’d be satisfied.

    Still, she made her way to the Astronomy Tower to finish today’s homework and wait for her next lesson. Once her work was done, she decided to try again.

    She wrote a note, attached it to Stapledon, and cast her Patronus.

    ‘If you find the twins somewhere without prying ears, tell them this is a connection test from the Astronomy Tower. The password is, uh… ellipse.’

    Just before the lesson, the raven returned with a note tucked in its beak:

    “ Stop learning cool spells before us. Ellipse. ”

    This time, the wilful cat didn’t return to receive thanks. She had no choice but to start studying the sky.

    That night she dreamed of a cat with glowing eyes leading her into the Forbidden Forest. He looked back, made sure she was following him, and then moved forward again.

    The first thing she did upon waking was to check she was in her own bed.

    She needed to enchant her bag this weekend — and add a proper wand pocket, which she’d forgotten to design. 

    Susan padded out into the still-empty common room and slipped into the tower library. She hadn’t been there in quite some time. In a secluded corner, she used the time tuner.

    She wandered the shelves, rereading the names of the sections. Near one of them, her ring blinked — catching some glint. She glanced down and noticed the book under her hand: The Wizarding World in Muggle Art .

    ‘Interesting.’

    She pulled it free, skimmed the contents, and began to leaf through. There was Baba Yaga in a mortar, and Vasilisa with a skull whose eyes glowed — like her Patronus’s. But the cat itself was nowhere to be seen.

    “Could it be the ghosts were just overly impressed? And my cat only looks like something supernatural? Maybe it just looks like… yeah. I don’t know what’s worse.”

    She frowned, distracted, and turned her attention back to what she’d come for: something on collecting poison from Acromantulas.

    By the way, it looked like you could make a decent magical clasp from the web — both for the bag and for the wand pocket. But there was no mention of using the web in potions, though. Odd.

    She popped into the office for half an hour to visit with the Grey Lady.

    At breakfast, she carefully — as if by chance — glanced at the staff table, trying not to draw any attention to herself. But the mission was impossible. The Head of Slytherin somehow always noticed when he was being watched.

    “Are those some kind of protective charms?” she mused. “If my Patronus were two ginger cats, would no one suspect anything sinister? Although, Jordan always reacts to me like that when I’m near the brothers… which is even weirder.”

    Susie sighed heavily. Herbology was next. Would she end up covered in dirt from head to toe again?

    Of course she would.

    No matter how useful mandrakes were, they were even more infuriating.

***

    Susan changed her clothes, washed up, and went down to the main hall. She did her Astrology and Herbology work and then began her Muggle lessons.

    Snape, passing by on his way to lunch, poked his nose into her books again.

    ‘What’s this?’

    ‘Chemistry. The science of the nature and transformation of substances — without magic. Geminio .’ She handed him a copy of the textbook. ‘You might find it interesting.’

    ‘Hm.’ He turned the book over in his hands and flipped through the first few pages.

    It was the beginning of the course, so it ought to have been clear enough even to a wizard — or so she assumed.

    During lunch, she noticed Minerva, Albus, and Severus in quiet discussion, passing her copied textbook from hand to hand.

    ‘What do they teach in Muggle Studies?’ she asked the general information field of her desk.

    ‘Nothing particularly exciting. More or less how Muggles live, what their laws are, what electricity is. It’s a subject for idlers. If you’re from a Muggle family, you don’t need it at all.’

    ‘Only if you fancy laughing at wizards and their ideas.’

    ‘I see. Thank you. What subjects do you recommend for next year?’

    ‘Numerology and Runes.’

    ‘Divination — but only if you’ve a knack for it. Otherwise, you’ll die of boredom listening to people howl about fate.’

    ‘And Care of Magical Creatures, but only if you like animals.’

    ‘Exactly. Nothing more to add.’

    ‘Thanks, everyone.’

    After lunch, she continued with her homework. The number of Muggle subjects had increased this year, along with the various tests and quizzes she’d be expected to take in the summer.

    It was quite possible that Thursday alone wouldn’t be enough — she might have to sacrifice Saturday as well.

    Especially as she still had to meet the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, who had already assigned some rather entertaining books. She’d also had a bit of a moan about Quirrell.

    Perhaps it wasn’t so easy to find a professor for that cursed position — especially after the last one had died right there at the school.

    And yet… Lockhart, beaming from the covers of all his books, seemed absolutely incompetent — even if he was a Ravenclaw.

    Surprisingly, some of the 54 questions were actually on the topic of the lesson, so she wrote them down. For the rest, she drew dashes and made a note that they weren’t related to the subject matter.

    ‘I see Miss Steel has read all the books very carefully — but her memory is quite selective,’ the busty professor observed, still smiling.

    Someone glanced over at her, apparently not expecting that she’d actually read something so frivolous. Sue shrugged — the holidays had dragged on endlessly, especially towards the end.

    When Gilderoy Lockhart released the pixies, Susan was fairly certain he was a complete idiot. On the other hand… it was interesting. Would there be more of these “interactive” activities?

    Thoroughly enjoying the chaos — which reminded her of her friends and their airborne adventures — she took out her wand.

    ‘ Petrificus Totalus . Wingardium Leviosa ,’ she said calmly, and then proceeded to herd all the blue creatures back into the cage using a combination of spells. ‘ Colloportus . Reparo .’

    ‘Excellent! Ten points to Ravenclaw,’ the professor said brightly, making some notes. ‘As expected from a student of my own House!’

    ‘Couldn’t you have done that earlier?’ someone hissed from under the next desk.

    ‘I could have,’ Steel replied with a shrug. ‘And you?’

    The bell rang, and she slipped out of the classroom before the annoying professor could get it into his head to stop her.

***

    She started Friday morning in the library again, rather than the office, finding all the necessary Transfiguration books for every year and compiling a complete programme for the subject. Then she dashed off to chess.

    ‘You’ve been disappearing into our library for the second day running,’ Helena remarked.

    ‘Yesterday I was looking for something about Gran’s familiars,’ she said, waving towards the frame with the card. ‘Didn’t find anything. Today I compiled a full Transfiguration programme for all seven years.’

    ‘You don’t believe my theory?’

    ‘Sorry — all cats seem infinitely cute to me, so it’s hard to imagine that this is some sort of otherworldly entity rather than an ordinary Patronus.’

    ‘Well, all right — we’ll see who was right. So what’s wrong with the Transfiguration programme?’

    ‘I want to get to Alchemy faster, but I can’t skip Transfiguration. I need to learn how to stabilise duplicated objects so I don’t have to refresh the charms too often.’

    ‘Only the third day of school and already you’re all business,’ the Grey Lady smiled.

    ‘I’ve been doing Muggle nonsense for two months. Let me enjoy this.’ She hesitated, then added, ‘By the way, is residence at Hogwarts only for ghosts and a few professors? I really don’t want to go back…’

    ‘Well, yes. Who else would checkmate you?’

    ‘Oh, all right — I’ve got to go.’

    After feeding Mrs Norris some treats on her way out from breakfast, Sue burst into Transfiguration and began turning beetles into buttons of various shapes, sizes, and colours — sketching designs and transfiguring them back and forth. The Head of Gryffindor looked on with something close to superstitious horror.

    After the first couple of lessons, Sue approached the staff table.

    ‘Excuse me, Professor McGonagall — may I ask a question that isn’t about Transfiguration?’

    ‘What is it, Miss Steel?’

    ‘I’ve been told my Patronus is rather strange, and I’d like to compare it to yours.’

    ‘Why mine?’

    ‘Because mine is a cat.’

    ‘Well then — let’s compare. Expecto Patronum .’

    ‘ Expecto Patronum .’

    The two of them stared at two very different cats: a bright tabby with equally bright eyes, and a barely distinguishable, tattered-looking feline with glowing ones.

    ‘Well, the density distribution is a bit odd, but the spell still seems perfectly functional. Very impressive for a second-year. Even a mouse can drive off a horde of Dark creatures. And look here—’ the professor pointed her wand at the darkest part of the black stripe along her Patronus. ‘I’d say your cat’s trying very hard to be black — as much as that’s possible for a glowing being.’

    ‘Say a big thank you to Minerva McGonagall,’ Susie told the cat.

    ‘Thank you very much,’ said the Patronus in a little girl’s voice before vanishing, leaving her giggling.

    ‘Who taught you such a complicated spell?’

    ‘Professor Flitwick, of course. Thank you, Professor. Are we doing buttons again next lesson?’

    ‘Would you like an extra assignment?’ McGonagall asked, adjusting her glasses.

    ‘Yes, please!’

***

    Having dashed into the library before History, Sue spent the entire lesson searching for mentions of her distant relative in a towering stack of books. And everything she found contradicted itself. It seemed that digging into something so ancient was absolutely hopeless — nothing but fairy tales, legends, and speculation.

    Was that family tree she’d seen even real, or had one of her very distant ancestors simply wanted to show off a connection to a famous witch? The question had never even crossed her mind before.

    “There must be some way to check the truth — other than Veritaserum or a kinship potion? Nooo, I don’t want to go there. If Helena’s interested, let her explore that ghostly forgotten world herself.”

    After handing the stack of books back, she paused and wondered — what else did her Patronus remind her of?

    “Of course! Thestrals! Their eyes glow too. If I hadn’t made those ridiculous comparisons, I’d have realised ages ago!”

    She made her way to the magical creatures section and quickly found what she was looking for. The Ravenclaw ghost’s perspective now made far more sense. Only those who had witnessed death could see Thestrals.

    Everything hung in the air — strangely, ambiguously. Either she was connected to her dark relatives, or she wasn’t. Either she had some affinity with death, with predicting it, or she didn’t — after all, no one had died yet.

    Surely she wasn’t handing out artefacts to heroes just yet? Or was that only a matter of time? There’s always a hero. And a villain. Ready to squander the world’s treasures — and for what?

    “No-no-no, enough paranoia. I am me. And I am going to dinner, as Professor Dumbledore bequeathed.”

    Friday was drawing to a close. Shaking off all the bothersome thoughts, she began to plan her weekend. She’d tend to her bag in the office, and in public she’d carry on slogging through an endless pile of Muggle homework.

Chapter Text

    Early Saturday, in her office. She had moved most of her things here, taken out a sewn bag in the shape of a book, and was adding a pocket for her wand. The Grey Lady found her in the middle of sewing.

    ‘Doing needlework?’

    ‘Hello, Helena. I’m going to enchant this bag so that all my things fit in it — broom, clothes, all my textbooks, purse. And here will be the wand. It feels somehow more reliable than a pocket.’

    ‘Will it work?’

    ‘It should. Considering all the protective charms I want to cast, I’ll have to renew the enchantment once a month, but I’ll embroider the formula to make it easy.’

    ‘What did you use as a model?’

    ‘Godric’s hat. If I find some magical materials, it’ll make the job easier, but for now, at least this. At night I’ll cast Reducto on it and wear it as a bracelet. I don’t want to walk around the castle in my pyjamas any more.’

    ‘Considering your adventures, it’s a useful thing,’ the ghost agreed.

    ‘You know, I tried to investigate your tip again, and it’s a dead end. Professor McGonagall and I compared our Patronuses, and she said he probably wants to be black and is just oddly distributed. After looking up different legends, I realised they all contradict each other, and it’s impossible to trust any source. I even began to doubt my own prophecies. Who knows with what intent, and by whom, the documents I saw were compiled? So forgive me, but I give up. My working theory is that it’s an ordinary Patronus.’

    ‘I’ll see what I can find out about such ancient events for certain — but perhaps you’re right.’

    ‘Nevertheless, I admit that he looks like a Thestral, and that does make him seem a little… sinister? Although Thestrals seem very beautiful to me.’

    Susan turned away from the conversation and began casting a charm on the bag. First, she checked whether the broom would fit. Then she moved the textbooks and workbooks from the purse, adding the remaining textbooks she had carried in by hand, followed by the sketchbook and pencils, and a couple of canvases. She watched tensely, running charm checks. Next came a dress, a cloak, and spare shoes. Lastly, she dropped in the purse — which mostly contained money and personal diaries — placed the wand in the pocket, and fastened the bag to her belt. She tried taking out and putting back various items of her choice.

    ‘Looks like it’s working. I don’t know about you, but I’m starving to death,’ the girl grinned at her ghostly friend.

***

    The entire Gryffindor team was absent from breakfast, which Sue pointed out to Roger as she sat closer to him.

    ‘We’ll start on Monday, don’t worry. Practice in the evenings, three times a week. I’ve already made the arrangements. Our House has the most compact schedule, so no one will interfere with us,’ he added, nodding towards the entire Slytherin team leaving the table before the end of breakfast.

    ‘I wonder if they deliberately don’t take girls, or if the girls simply don’t want to play?’

    Davies shrugged. Considering how they had tried to talk her out of it in her first year, perhaps it was some sort of unspoken magical agreement.

    After breakfast, Susie took her Muggle textbooks out of her new bag again and sat down to study. By lunchtime, the Red team had come into the main hall, looking thoroughly put out. Apparently, the Greens had managed to kick them off the field. A Ravenclaw girl slipped onto their bench and wedged herself between the twins.

    ‘You two look so glum.’

    ‘We haven’t had any sleep or training either,’ Fred yawned, stuffing his mouth with food.

    ‘What a dreadful start to the weekend,’ George added.

    Susan patted them on the back in a comforting fashion and waited until they could eat. Lee Jordan sat down opposite.

    ‘Oi, little one, if you keep tagging along with them like that, they’ll never find any girls.’

    ‘What?’ Sue was taken aback. ‘Who cares?’

    ‘You’re sitting right between inseparable brothers.’

    ‘Oh, so you’re the jealous one?’ she waved it off, prompting laughter not only from the twins but also from nearby students. ‘Or are you afraid the girls will find out there are two of them, and your chances will shrink even further?’

    Lee raised his hands in surrender, conceding to the laughter around them.

    ‘All right, all right, enough fooling about. Do you have any intelligence on what happened or not?’

    The commentator recounted the skirmish with Slytherin on the pitch. Sue’s expression turned serious.

    ‘I just want to clarify — it turns out “mudblood” is a very serious insult?’

    ‘It turns out?’ Fred choked.

    ‘Did he call you that as well?’ George asked.

    ‘Doesn’t matter,’ Susie replied, though the brothers made to get up. She pushed them firmly back down. ‘I’m a witch, not a princess in distress, boys. I’ll simply raise the price of my lessons — seeing as his family can afford to buy brooms for the entire team. Now, let’s think: could I re-enchant your brooms so you don’t have to mope about like this?’

    ‘Can you?’ Jordan sounded sceptical.

    ‘I don’t know,’ Sue admitted, unfastening her bag from her belt and handing it to him. ‘This is my best work so far.’

    The students crowded round to have a look.

    ‘It’s beautiful. But there’s nothing in it,’ Lee said, peering into the apparently empty bag.

    ‘Are you sure, kitty?’ Steel asked, pulling the handle of her Nimbus broom out of nowhere. ‘Only I can take things out of there.’

    ‘What did you do with the second-year?’ George asked.

    ‘Ate her, of course,’ the girl smiled. ‘Will you help me in the library? And also make a list of the magical ingredients you could get. But first I need to pop into the office for a second, along with one of your brooms.’

    She left the office carrying several parchments covered in diagrams, and returned Fred’s Cleansweep.

    ‘So quickly?’

    ‘I needed to check a few things, that’s all.’

    ‘Well, yeah…’ Fred drawled incredulously, eyeing the scrolls in her hands.

    In the library, they emptied an entire cabinet of books on broom enchantments, sorted them, and spread them across the table.

    ‘Pick me up for dinner, otherwise I’ll go without food.’

    ‘Are you planning to get through this mountain of books yourself?’

    ‘Yes. You probably have better things to do — like finding girls — so go. Today’s a day off, I remind you.’

    ‘You don’t have to listen to everything Mr Commentator says.’

    Susan waved her hand, rolled up her sleeves, and began leafing through the first book. After standing behind her for a few moments longer, the boys left the library.

    Later, they returned to drag her by the scruff of the neck into the main hall.

    After dinner, she sat in the library until closing time, having noted down the three most useful books to take with her and putting the rest back in perfect order with the help of magic. She even managed to do this without spells, just as she had in Ollivander’s shop. “Ollivander! He works with wood too!” the thought struck her like lightning on her way up the stairs.

    For some time, she stood in the deathly quiet castle, recalling everything she had managed to read about the properties of wood. And perhaps she would have remained frozen in place all night, had it not been for the eerie, cold voice:

    ‘ Come… come to me… Let me rip you… Let me tear you… Let me kill you… ’

    ‘Who’s there?’

    In surprise, she dropped the books she had forgotten to put in her bag. No one answered.

    ‘Oh, that’s not good,’ she murmured, taking out her diary and writing down what she had just heard. ‘I don’t even know if this is real, or if I’m having some sort of episode… or if one of the ghosts is amusing themselves.’

    She pinched herself. The pain was very real. She put her books into her bag and quietly walked back to her tower, alert to every sound around her.

    That night, she dreamed she was ravenously hungry, moving through the darkness towards the scent of something she could swallow whole.

***

    On Sunday morning, she wrote a short note to the Headmaster: “ I don’t want to start a panic out of thin air, but I am informing you that last night I heard a creepy voice threatening murder, and afterwards I had a very strange dream. However, it could be someone’s prank, and the dream is not necessarily prophetic. Yours, Snap. ”

    Susan stretched luxuriously, wondering what to do. Yesterday she had spent a lot of energy on both studying and research. A rest would do her good. She dressed and went into the office, where there was a full-length mirror and an easel. Sue smiled and took up the crystal ball.

    ‘Does the castle need anything?’ only fog in response. ‘All right, then just thank you.’

    She turned back the time-turner four hours and sat down to paint a self-portrait. She depicted herself in a blue dress and black robe, letting her hair down for the occasion — usually it was tied in a ponytail — and draping it over one shoulder. On her arms, crossed over her chest, were thin gloves patterned with stars; in one hand she held a light, minimalist wand, and on her shoulder perched Stapledon. In the background, the office was faintly discernible.

    After breakfast, she simply wandered around the courtyards of the castle, taking a responsible approach to rest and resisting the temptation to read books.

    Returning to the office, she sat down at the portrait again. There was a prearranged knock, and the twins came in.

    ‘Hello, Bludger. What are you up to?’ they asked in chorus. ‘Are we disturbing you?’

   ‘Hello, GredForge. I’m drawing — feel free to blow it all up.’

    ‘It looks like you, but why are you drawing yourself? Do you want to replace one of the headmasters’ portraits with yours?’ Fred asked.

    ‘What?’ She laughed. ‘That’s a very funny idea. I’ll think about whether it could be slipped in there unnoticed. But in general, I want to paint several identical portraits and see if it’s possible to communicate through them.’

    ‘This one’s quite large,’ George noted.

    ‘Yes, the main one — life-size. I want to make the others smaller, but not smaller than my face. At least, I haven’t seen any smaller portraits of people in the castle.’

    ‘Book-sized? Sounds reasonable. You’ll give us one, won’t you?’

    ‘Even if they don’t work?’ She turned round, surprised.

    The brothers looked at each other, then at her, then back at each other again, and said nothing.

    ‘Fine, if you want. I don’t mind, just don’t draw a moustache and/or a monocle.’

    In the mirror, she noticed Fred slapping George on the back of the head, while George shot an angry look at his brother.

    ‘You’re not yourselves today. Is something wrong?’ She turned towards them, but the twins kept up their staring contest.

    ‘No, nothing like that,’ Fred finally answered, looking past her at the portrait. ‘With your permission, we’ll start experimenting.’

    The older brother pulled the younger one along with him. Susie gave them a sceptical look and returned to her painting, shrugging her shoulders. The raven decided to retreat from the room so as not to hear the impending racket.

    Walking in together for lunch, they ran into a pleased Jordan at the door.

    ‘Nice hairdo,’ Lee whistled.

    ‘Huh?’ Susan grimaced and pulled her hair back into a ponytail. ‘Did someone ask you?’

    She strode into lunch and sat down facing the Slytherin table, piling as much food onto her plate as she could. The breaks between meals were only just within the bounds of reason.

    After lazily reading one of the three books about brooms in the library and napping in the office, she decided not to do anything useful at all today, starting instead with a simple wander through the corridors, chatting to paintings about painting and exploring places she had never visited before. She pulled open a door at random, without much hope, and found herself in a dark classroom.

    ‘ Lumos .’ There were musical instruments scattered about. ‘Wow — there’s that here too.’

    Sue began bringing some of the instruments to life at random to hear how they sounded.

    ‘No, no, no — no new learning,’ she told herself firmly, and quickly left the classroom. ‘ Nox .’

***

    History of Magic on Mondays, right after breakfast, was nothing than short of mockery, so Susie carried on reading books on broom enchantments — a subject she had settled into seriously since waking up.

    In the Charms elective, she and the Head of House began to study the Summoning and Banishing Charms. It was clearly impossible to breeze through them the way she had with the Patronus. For some reason, she was worse at these than at anything else she knew or could do. Flitwick consoled her by saying it was an excellent opportunity for growth and for deepening her understanding of how magic worked. He even set her the task of preparing a written report for next time.

    The girl was already wondering tensely when she was supposed to find time for everything again. Of course, she had volunteered to help the twins with their brooms, but it seemed too late to back out now — and there was no point in doing so. Creating and modifying artefacts was far too interesting a field to abandon.

    After dinner, she went straight to the changing room on the Quidditch pitch and was the first to arrive. Probably everyone else had gone back to the tower for their brooms and uniforms.

     ‘Meet everyone — Susan Steel, our new Beater,’ Roger began energetically.

    ‘A girl Beater?’ asked the Keeper.

    ‘Do you want to replace Duncan yourself? Someone else? Let’s start like this and see how it goes. Sue’s a good strategist; she flew well last year in the first-year classes. Meet Grant Page. Randolph Barrow and Jeremy Stretton are the Chasers. Jason Samuels is your fellow Beater. And finally, the Seeker — Cho Chang. Questions?’

    ‘I have a bad memory for names. I’ll write you all down later. Please don’t be offended.’

    Davis opened the chest, and everyone crowded round it. The Bludgers clattered rhythmically in their chains. Susie smiled.

    ‘What the hell?’ asked Jeremy.

    ‘I’ve never seen anything like it,’ Jason said, voicing the thoughts of most of the group.

    The team captain released the first chain, and the Bludger shot straight Thea Susan’s hands. The second did exactly the same.

    ‘My dears, I’ve been wanting to play with you for a long time too!’ the girl said, scratching the balls as if they were dogs, then tossing them into the air so they could take a lap of honour round the field.

    ‘A girl Beater!’ Grant said, this time with a completely different intonation.

    ‘Is the Snitch only used for matches?’ asked Sue. ‘Or can it be done like this? Geminio .’

     A copy of the Snitch shot into the air like an arrow.

    ‘Time, time — let’s play,’ the team captain said, snapping everyone out of their stupor.

    Everyone mounted their brooms and took off. The new Beater not only knocked Bludgers away from her teammates but did so with remarkable accuracy, directing them towards whoever she decided to give a real fright. No injuries to her own side — but no one doubted that the opposition and their brooms would not be spared. In the stands, the Cheer Club was practising in perfect sync.

    After training, everyone shook her hand. The Seeker, who had caught the copy of the Snitch, held on especially long.

    ‘I have a question — don’t you ever train with the other teams?’

    ‘No — otherwise everyone would play rough, trying to put as many opponents out of action as possible.’

    ‘Logical,’ Steel grimaced.

    ‘Where did you learn to handle Bludgers so well? And why do they obey you?’ asked the other Beater.

    ‘I trained with a bat all last year and all summer. I think they just sense my attitude towards them. I consider them one of the most powerful strategic resources on the field. Used correctly, they can disable — for example — the most dangerous player chasing the Snitch. It’s a grey ethical area, but the rules don’t forbid it. In the end, you can always scare or deflect Bludgers tangentially rather than strike them head-on. With luck, you might even interrupt a Quaffle pass — though you’d have to work very hard for it.’

    The whole team listened to her with great attention.

    ‘No one plays like that,’ the Keeper said admiringly.

    ‘Well, I do now. Thanks for the training. Excuro .’ Dousing herself in a wave of pink foam, she headed off to change, drying her uniform with warm air along the way.

    ‘Did you know she’d do that?’

    ‘I had no idea,’ Roger replied. ‘In my presence, she’s only ever discussed much more classical tactics — and she simply knows a great deal about how Gryffindor plays.’

Chapter Text

    Tuesday began in the office with finishing the homework left over from the previous day. Helena, who came for chess, seemed a little happier than usual.

    ‘I heard you caused quite a stir with your style of Quidditch,’ she remarked.

    ‘Do you want to talk about it?’ Susan smiled faintly.

    The previous night she had been forced to draw the hated canopy shut so that no one would disturb her rest. She hadn’t even had time to write down the names of the team, hiding instead from curious children.

    ‘I see you’re not in the mood,’ the ghost grinned. ‘That’s all right — I have eternity, I can wait.’

    Herbology, true to form, continued to be irritating, just as Potions remained enjoyable. Staying after the lesson, she noticed a silent question in the Potions Master’s eyes.

    ‘Pure coincidence. Or a manipulation by the head of the class.’

    ‘The best student is not the head of the year?’

    ‘What do I want with paperwork and the pretence of honour, when there are plenty of others who are desperate for power?’ Sue grinned. ‘Nevertheless, I’m glad it turned out this way, and I do have a question. Could you repeat the wand movement and incantation you used to heal my hands last year?’

    He measured her with an attentive look.

    ‘Why do you need it?’

    ‘I thought it might come in handy tomorrow. Acromantulas can be quite large and aggressive. And I couldn’t find anything similar in the textbooks. Is it your own spell?’

    ‘Hm. Vulnera Sanentur . Such a movement.’

    Susie wrote it down in her notebook next to Aranea Exumai (against arachnids) and Episkey (effective even with bones, but sixth-year), showed it for him to check, and the professor nodded.

    ‘And have you considered an antidote?’

    ‘I haven’t the ingredients,’ the girl shrugged. ‘And I’ve not saved up for a bezoar yet.’

    ‘Hm.’

    ‘Thanks, see you later.’

    While waiting for Defence class, Steel sat on the tower railing and alternated Diffindo with Vulnera Sanentur , using her bare left hand as the target.

    ‘It looks ominous,’ commented the Bloody Baron.

    ‘Who’s one to talk, mister “covered in blood for a thousand years”. By the way, I wanted to ask if you could become my adoptive father, so I’d be allowed to live in the castle over the summer?’

    ‘I’m afraid not.’

    ‘Then I suppose I’ll carry on,’ Susan said dramatically, beginning to make more sweeping movements, which caused the Slytherin ghost to wince.

***

    Early on Wednesday morning, she flew into Severus Snape’s office.

    ‘You’re here already? Take these flasks with you for collecting the poison.’

    ‘Good morning, Professor,’ she said obediently, slipping the flasks into her bag.

    He immediately took up his broom and strode towards the exit with a sweeping motion. Having quickly reached the edge of the forest, the Potions Master did not dismount, but merely slowed. He pointed out the direction in which to move. Susie lifted her concealment charms and flew a little way behind him, drawing her wand and keeping a careful eye on the surrounding trees.

     There was a rustling in the bushes on her side. They stopped abruptly. A thestral with a very familiar face stepped slowly out to meet them.

    ‘Oh, hello there. Weren’t you the one who pulled my carriage here? Sorry, I’ve nothing with me again. Do you need something, lad?’

    The horse snorted, shook its head, and took a few more steps towards them.

    ‘Are you wondering what I’m doing here? Don’t worry, I’m safe. Are you bored? They don’t let you fly after sunrise?’

    Sue wanted to stroke him, but the Head of House stopped her, catching her left wrist. The horse snorted in protest and edged closer, pushing his muzzle under the girl’s right hand. She stroked him, her left hand released, and she rose a little higher to scratch behind his ears and hug the creature. After that, the thestral was distracted by a bird flying past and galloped off at right angles to them.

    ‘Sorry, I got distracted,’ Susan said, looking down.

    ‘Wait.’ Snape produced a small vial and plucked several hairs from her robes. ‘So you see thestrals.’ Susan could not tell whether it was a question or a statement. ‘And you lack the instinct for self-preservation…’ He handed her the sealed vial.

    ‘I’ve never heard of thestral hair being used,’ Susie remarked, examining it as she hurried to catch up.

    Small spiders began to appear here and there.

    ‘Because it’s rare. According to legend, it was thestral hair that was used in the Elder Wand.’

    ‘The Elder Wand?’ Steel made a mental note. ‘I was very surprised when none of the others could see the horses harnessed to the carriages. But you see them too.’

    ‘Have you seen someone die?’

    ‘My grandmother. I was six. She lay unconscious for days while everyone prepared for the funeral. They chased me out of her room, told me to speak quietly so she wouldn’t hear. I didn’t understand why she couldn’t be helped, why she couldn’t simply be woken up, so that everything would go back to how it was before. Just talk to her so she’d come back, since everyone said she could still hear us—’

    Distracted by her memories, she missed the huge spider that swooped down from a tree onto her.

    ‘ Leviosa !’ The Acromantula hung dangerously close above her. ‘Is he alone? Will this one do for collecting the poison?’

    ‘Yes. Watch carefully, and hold the spell. The next one is yours.’

    The professor collected and sealed the poison from its viciously clicking mandibles. After three more specimens, which they dispatched in turn, they reached a web-covered thicket. The largest acromantula of the day was held by the professor, while the rest of the clearing was cleared by Sue with a bright flash of Arania Exumi . This poison proved the strongest.

    ‘Collect the web,’ the Head instructed, still holding the monstrous spider.

    ‘How much do you need?’ the girl asked, after gathering several bundles.

    ‘I think that’s enough. This is just for you. Add safe potion-pockets to your new bag. Let’s go back.’

    Susie flew for a while, lost in thought about everything that had happened: the thestral hair, the web that only she would need, the perilous foray that seemed hardly in keeping with her teacher’s usual spirit.

    ‘It all looked rather dangerous. How did you manage it on your own?’

    ‘It is a very costly and rare ingredient, but in truth one can do without it.’

    ‘So you wouldn’t have done it without me?’

    There was no answer, but it seemed self-evident. “Was he trying to frighten me off, so that I wouldn’t pester him with all this?” With a heavy sigh, she cast Disillusionment on herself at the forest’s edge.

***

    After Astronomy, she could scarcely move her legs. The previous Wednesday, without Quidditch practice and arachnids dropping from the sky, had been a thousand times easier. ”I need some sort of pyjama charm,” she thought.

    She collapsed onto her bed and dreamt that her Patronus was leading her further and further into the forest.

    When she woke, she was still in her own bed and felt absurdly relieved to find herself there.

    In the office, Sue was studying the previous day’s lessons without a break.

    ‘Are you familiar with the phrase Elder Wand?’

    ‘It comes from an ancient legend about the Deathly Hallows. Only fairy tales, with varying degrees of embellishment, have survived to this day. Where did you hear it?’

    ‘From the professor. And what are these Hallows?’

    ‘The most powerful wand of all — in some sources made of elder — which is hunted by the greatest duelists in the world; the Resurrection Stone, which calls the soul back to the body, though usually the soul is far from happy about it, especially after a long absence and the damage done to its body; and the Invisibility Cloak, which can hide you even from Death itself.’

    ‘The Invisibility Cloak?’ Susan tensed. ‘No, that’s nonsense. Even the Mirror of Erised saw through it, let alone the Death. So, I can see how I’ll lose in five moves, and I don’t see anything I could do. I give up.’

    ‘Run to breakfast. Your portrait is coming out really well.’

    ‘Also the portrait!’ Rawenclaw clutched her head in despair.

    After the breakfast she had Herbology. Sue still didn’t understand why this subject was compulsory — and on top of that, the endless number of Muggle subjects. She put away one textbook; several more were still waiting for her. A hydra, simply a hydra with many heads. In Defence, she read the textbook that had been recommended to her in the tower, not only to entertain herself but also to shield herself from the chaos that sometimes occurred in lessons.

***

    “Of course,” she thought, realising she was inside the dream again, walking into the forest to find her Patronus. “This dream again”. A bright waxing moon shone through the branches; it was quiet, pleasant and cool, like the touch of a ghost. She walked further and further. “Have I ever felt cold in this dream before?” Susan looked down at her knitted socks, striped in her house colours and enchanted to keep her warm. Warm and cosy.

    The cat turned impatiently, its bright eyes flashing and illuminating the path to the clearing where a unicorn stood, shimmering in the moonlight. The creature took a step forward and lifted its front leg. Silver blood dripped from the wound. It was hurt; it needed help. She knelt down and concentrated.

    ‘ Vulnera Sanentur .’ The blood that hadn’t yet fallen to the grass drew itself back into the wound, which closed neatly. ‘Where did you get hurt? Did someone attack you?’

    The unicorn snorted and nudged her shoulder gratefully with its muzzle.

    ‘Careful, mister with a spike on his head. You’re not a carnivore — why should you want my death?’ the girl laughed nervously, stroking her new acquaintance, while her Patronus brushed against her legs. ‘What a long dream. And the moon looks just like a couple of days ago, the same phase of the moon.’

    The unicorn bent even lower, pressing its horn into her shoulder.

    ‘Itchy? Growing?’

    Scratching the horn thoughtfully, she looked around the clearing, then reached for her own arm and pinched herself.

    ‘Ouch! This is not a dream!’

    The unicorn took a step back, and from behind it a large black figure detached itself from a tree. The horse stamped its hoof menacingly and the figure froze. Without taking her eyes off it, she turned her bracelet into a bag, covering it all in shimmering pollen, and drew her wand with a trembling hand.

    ‘Who’s there? What do you want?’

    ‘Bold, but very foolish,’ said a familiar voice. ‘If I had wished to harm you or the animal, I should have done so long ago. Your report, Miss Steel, makes no mention of the most dangerous enemies of the FORBIDDEN Forest — dark wizards and poachers, who might well attack such a young specimen. And you did not even have your wand ready.’

    ‘It was you,’ Susie exhaled noisily. ‘I’m safe, no need to guard me. Try not to hurt your legs again, all right?’ She tapped the unicorn’s rump, ushering it away. ‘Thank you for finding me, Professor.’

    ‘The castle’s defences worked this time. Wait.’ Severus Snape narrowed his eyes, plucked several strands of unicorn hair from her robe, and handed her the vial as though nothing unusual had occurred.

    ‘When?’

    ‘A little late, at the edge of the forest. Whose Patronus were you so trustingly following?’

    ‘Mine, though I’ve no idea how I managed to summon it whilst I was asleep.’

    ‘Show me.’

    ‘ Expecto Patronum .’

    ‘It does look remarkably similar. Can you send messages?’ she nodded. ‘Send one to yourself.’

    ‘Aaah… erm… tell Susan Steel to check the connection.’

    ‘Checking the connection,’ the cat repeated in her own voice, before vanishing.

    ‘From now on, never follow a Patronus again, no matter what form it takes, unless it transmits a clear message in a voice you recognise beyond doubt. Yes, your Patronus is unusual, but that does not mean your relatives — or indeed someone infatuated with you — mightn’t possess the very same one. Do you grasp the implications?’

    ‘Could I have been kidnapped?’ With shaking hands, she placed the vial into her bag and fastened it to her belt.

    ‘Precisely. A slightly injured unicorn, a night-time walk in the forest — all very suspicious. I found no one, but that does not mean no one was there. I may simply have frightened them off. Yet you did not notice me — which means you would not notice anyone better concealed.’

   Sue bit her lip until it bled. She had nothing to say. And she had failed to keep her promise to think before acting.

    ‘Let us return to the castle, before you catch cold.’

    ‘Oh, oh.’ She drew her robe from the bag and flung it over her shoulders.

    ‘A most convenient bag, and an interesting notion to transform it into a bracelet. Yet it would make abducting you exceedingly simple, without greatly disrupting your life. And it is awkward for retrieving your wand at the crucial moment.’

    ‘At least this time I managed to draw it. Before, in my dreams, I never had it at all,’ said the Ravenclaw sadly.

    ‘All the better that you can perform magic without it, yet in combat such talent will not save you. Tomorrow morning, write an explanatory note to the Headmaster and your Head of House. And compose a report on magical duels at ten feet. People are, more often than not, the most frightening magical creatures of all. Include detection charms in your notes.’

    ‘Still no chance of tying myself to the bed, then?’ Susie gave a weak smile. ‘By when is the report due, Professor?’

    ‘By Tuesday. Hand it in after class.’

    Groaning, Susan vanished and flew up to the tower to sleep the rest of the night.

    “6.1. Substitution Charm for changing pyjamas into uniform and back.”

    “No-no-no-no-no, sleep!”

Chapter Text

    Susie spent the entire morning writing an explanatory note and sent it to her Head of House at breakfast. She listed all her mistakes and reflected on how she might avoid them in future. She wrote that she was ready to work off her guilt as soon as she had finished the monstrous task set by Professor Snape, who had caught her. At least it was a task that might prove useful in the future, rather than some senseless polishing of silver for Filch, which, with the help of magic, could be done in a matter of seconds. It was unpleasant even to imagine what might have happened had she been caught in the Forbidden Forest by almost anyone else.

    In the time between classes and during meals, she tried to keep up with all her current assignments, and on Saturday she disappeared into the library with a report, or else worked on the Muggle hydra in her office.

    ‘Sorry, lads, but it looks as though the brooms will have to be put aside for now. I’ve been set a bloody great report for Tuesday.’

    ‘Harsh.’

    ‘Tolerable — and useful.’

    On Sunday, she carried on with her report in the library, and in the office she simply lay on the couch, doing absolutely nothing except berating herself for her idleness, though the work was not yet finished.

    On Monday, during her individual lessons, she asked for help from Professor Flitwick, who turned out to be the champion of the Duelling Club. They even practised a little with Protego and discussed various strategies for conduct in both mock and real fights.

    ‘Will you be ready in time for tomorrow?’ Filius Flitwick asked sympathetically.

    ‘Do I have any choice?’ Susan asked wearily. The dark circles under her eyes and the haggard look she had acquired in just a couple of weeks did not make her case any more convincing.

    ‘Promise me you’ll have a proper rest after this.’

    ‘But I—’

    ‘You need it.’

    ‘Thank you, Professor. I think I should go. I’ve training straight after dinner.’

    At dinner, she swallowed whatever came within reach of her left hand, while continuing to write with her right. Immediately after training, she returned to her room in the tower and worked until she had finished. “Then I’ll have to do two days’ worth of homework at once,” she thought, sighing heavily before going to bed. Having spent the morning hours without chess, with Helena helping her, and through breakfast and even a fragmented Herbology lesson, Sue finally completed her report.

    This time, the Hufflepuffs were on duty. She silently placed an impressive stack of parchments on the teachers’ desk. The Head of Slytherin assessed the volume of work and began skimming the contents.

    ‘You made it,’ he said, managing to sound both pleased and displeased at once.

    ‘With great difficulty,’ the girl admitted. ‘Professor Flitwick and Helena Ravenclaw helped me a little.’

    ‘Well, until tomorrow.’ For the duty students, this sounded like an ordinary farewell until the next day’s class. Steel broke out in a cold sweat. “He wouldn’t have let me into the Forest if I hadn’t made it in time!”.

    During the break and at dinner she worked through the previous day’s assignments, and at Defence she tackled those for the current day. She couldn’t even imagine how she would have managed without a self-writing pen. “How did the vast majority of students live and study without one?”

    She was doing her Defence Against the Dark Arts homework in the common room.

    ‘You used glitter on your bag! How cute!’

    ‘Luna? Hi. It was actually a bit of an accident — and rather uneven…’

    ‘I like it! It’s like a painting. Sorry, but the plain cover looked a bit boring. Now it’s just right. But I’d add a few more stars, like the ones on your gloves.’

    ‘Where are your shoes?’

    ‘I don’t know — I got distracted, and now they’ve gone,’ the first-year admitted, embarrassed.

    ‘ Accio , Luna’s shoes.’

    After knocking against a couple of first-year dormitory doors, several pairs of shoes came flying and landed right in front of them.

    ‘I did it!’ Susie was delighted. ‘Wait — why did the shoes fly out from different places? DO WE HAVE THIEVES? IF I CATCH YOU IN THE ACT, I’LL TURN YOU INTO A BLUDGER.’

    ‘Can you really do that?’

   ‘Not yet — but they don’t need to know that,’ Sue said with a wink. ‘Cute shoes.’

***

    ‘Do you sleep at all?’ the Potions Master asked in place of a greeting, glancing at the map of the Forbidden Forest spread out on the table.

    ‘Good morning, Professor. Sometimes I sleep.’

    Susan had no idea how he always seemed instantly aware of her presence. Some kind of charm — a directed-attention spell, perhaps? Office wards? It was useless to ask.

    Once they were airborne, beyond the castle gates, he spoke again.

    ‘Yesterday I read your report. Not bad.’

    ‘But not good either?’

    ‘Not bad for theoretical research. The more or less sensible part was the section Filius Flitwick helped you with.’

    ‘Should I redo it?’

    ‘I don’t think you’ll manage to jump above your own head this time, Miss Steel. Moreover… I’ve been considering your absolutely trusting behaviour…’

    ‘Are you hinting at Polyjuice Potion?’

    ‘So you know about it? Knowledge, in itself, does you no credit — quite the contrary.’ Severus frowned in displeasure.

    “What are you getting at, Professor?” Sue wanted to ask, but kept silent. They crossed into the forest, and she lifted the Disillusionment Charm from herself.

    ‘Do you fully understand the situation you are in?’ He raised his right hand to the sleeve of his left.

    ‘No—’ the girl barely had time to reply before she had to dodge a curse and hastily throw up a feeble Protego without her wand.

    She struck the tree behind her painfully, knocked back by the spell; the shield vanished at once, and tears sprang to her eyes. She reached for the wand in her bag, but her hand was shaking so badly that she had no time to act before a second spell paralysed her.

    ‘I shall tell you this only once, and never repeat it. Thanks to your irrepressible energy, you have devised spells that bypass most of the castle’s defences and do not require a wand — and you are very proud of yourself for it. But you cannot even control your own body, and may find yourself beyond that protection in the blink of an eye, without even realising it. And there will not always be someone at hand to save you. Outside the school walls there is nothing honest, safe, or good — and even within them, it is all a complete pretence.’ His words dripped with venom. ‘And you cannot even defend yourself, and you trust anything and everything. What will you do the next time the threat is real?’

    “Finite Incantatem,” she managed, breaking the paralysis. She fell to her knees, debating whether to run — but decided against it. Still, she drew her wand and rose, keeping her eyes fixed on the professor’s hands.

    ‘At the first sign of an opponent stronger than you — run.’

    ‘Not bad. You managed to end the curse; that’s something. One can work with this. But what if you believe the opponent weaker than you?’

    ‘Still not enter into open confrontation?’ she asked, still watching his wand nervously, afraid to look up in case her answer was wrong.

    ‘The best spell if the confrontation does take place?’

    ‘A decent Protego ?’

    ‘Depends on the adversary,’ the professor smiled predatorily. ‘There are three Unforgivable Curses that no shield can block. One of them will kill you instantly. The other two are worse.’

    ‘So the conclusion is to run in most cases?’

    ‘You also need to know how to run. Let’s begin with Protego . Stupefy !’

    Sue barely managed to raise her shield at such close range.

    ‘Make your wand movements tighter. We’ve wasted enough time. Let’s get to work.’

    Now the collection of ingredients had turned from the quiet consultation of encyclopaedias into a battlefield. At any moment, a spell might fly at her without warning. At the same time, she could not afford to lose what she had gathered. The Ravenclaw felt the tension prickling at the back of her neck. She had not come here for amusement, but to help collect ingredients — and the instant she failed in her function, she would no longer be needed, whatever the school rules might say. On the way back, the Head of Slytherin sometimes cast two or three spells instead of one. The first would knock down her shield, the second might be avoided, but the third — usually the nastiest — had to be turned aside by her own effort.

    At the edge of the Forest, Severus spoke again.

    ‘Not bad — almost not late. If we’re late for breakfast for a little bit, we’ll have time to sort through the finds. And for heaven’s sake, come up with something more effective than a wand-pocket on a bag.’

    ‘Yes, sir,’ the second-year reported, melting into the surroundings.

***

    After Quidditch, Astronomy was the final ordeal — bending over the telescope at the end of the day. “This can’t go on. I need ingredients for potions and ointments, but where am I to find them? I’ll have to put up notices asking for paid help again, but when am I supposed to manage that if I can’t do anything myself?”

    In the shower before bed, she tried Vulnera Sanentur on the enormous bruise across her back. It eased a little, but the pain did not go away entirely.

    She spent all the extra hours of Thursday simply sleeping, and after Herbology she tackled both that day’s homework and the work left over from the day before.

    At the end of dinner the twins came up to her.

    ‘Hey, Bludger, you don’t look so good. You had a report due Tuesday — didn’t you manage to finish it?’ Fred sat down with his back to the table on one side.

    ‘I did, but now I’m catching up on the homework that piled up in the meantime.’

    ‘Is there anything we can do to help you?’ George sat down on the other side.

    ‘Well, not really…’

    ‘Actually, we made the list of ingredients you asked for, but we’re not giving it to you. Not until you tell us how we can help.’

    ‘George!’ Susan exclaimed, offended, but then paused to think. ‘Wait — maybe you can help after all. I’m an idiot, I could have started this on my own! You can bring food and drinks into the office between meals at the weekend. I could carry an apple in my pocket myself, and ask my mum for a thermos at New Year — but I want her to send it now!’

    ‘Thermos?’

    ‘Muggle magic for keeping drinks warm — using the laws of physics. You can carry several servings of hot tea in it.’

    ‘Are these fairly simple enchantments?’

    ‘Yes — but you don’t need to enchant it at all. It’s like an artefact,’ Sue smiled.

    ‘You also need more sleep, Marauderish girl,’ Fred remarked. ‘You could put a pumpkin in those bags under your eyes when it grows up.’

    ‘Yes, I am sleeping! I’m sleeping! Today I slept, and now I haven’t done my Muggle homework for today! I have to go to Defence — please give me the list!’

    ‘Don’t… even… dream…’ the brothers chorused, getting up from the table. ‘You’ll get it when you look fresher.’

    Susie barely stopped herself from screaming in frustration and went off to Defence, thinking how much harder — but also more interesting — life would be if Severus Snape taught the subject as well. Remembering this, she felt for her wand in her bag-pocket just in case. And it almost immediately came in handy, to dry off Peeves’ victims on the way to class.

    She barely noticed Friday pass, having only managed to plough through the assigned tasks day after day. In the evening she sat in the common room with a pumpkin instead of her head and stared at her to-do list, which refused to shrink even slightly after half a month. “I can’t turn back more time without rest and food. Or can I at least turn time back just to rest? Sleep after lunch? A couple of hours in the office on weekdays”. She jotted these thoughts down for her future self and opened a sketchbook to switch her mind off and think about nothing else that day.

***

    The whole of Saturday was taken up with Muggle lessons; only before bed did Susan write to her mother to ask for a thermos, and to Mr Ollivander to inquire about thestral hair and pegasus feathers — whether some of the magic of those unicorn-like creatures went into giving them wings, and what he thought of the rumours concerning the Elder Wand.

    Sunday was divided between reading books on broom enchantments in the library and working on a portrait in the office, where the twins had begun to drop by more often with snacks. Glancing in the mirror once again, she noticed the brothers standing with the Marauders’ Map open.

   ‘It was bound to happen sooner or later, wasn’t it?’ She turned towards them.

    ‘Why does the map show you in the library?’

    ‘Because I am in the library,’ she said with a smile. ‘Do you really need to know what’s going on?’

    ‘We’re interested,’ Gred and Forge replied in unison.

    ‘The less you know, the less you’ll have to lie in your testimony if you’re questioned,’ she said wryly, studying their faces. ‘All right, all right. I asked you to keep quiet about the Room of Requirement not because of the room itself, but because of what I found there. It’s an artefact banned by the Ministry. Technically, I imagine they could issue a permit — but I don’t have one.’

    ‘And what does it do? Make copies of you?’

    ‘Yes and no. More likely, I just turn time back. I was already sitting in the library with books — then I rewound time, and for the second time today I’m living through several hours.’

    ‘So that’s how you managed both first-year and second-year work!’ George slammed his fist into his palm.

    ‘To be fair, quite a lot came easily to me from the very beginning. But with the Room I could practise more in the areas that interest me. With the current timetable, I’ll spend no more than two years’ worth of time at school across all seven. It’s not that critical.’

    ‘And how long have you known about this?’

    ‘Since Hallowe’en.’

    ‘You’ve managed to surprise us often enough before,’ Fred admitted with a grin. ‘Well, I hope you know what you’re doing.’

    ‘Even with the extra time, I can barely finish everything I plan,’ Sue sighed.

    ‘Is that because you’re trying to be the best at everything?’ asked Gred.

    ‘I’m afraid I haven’t many options. If I don’t do well at school, my mother won’t let me off.’

    ‘It’s hard being the first — or only — child in the family,’ said Forge.

    ‘I’ve no idea how you get away with so many pranks. Just kidnapping was a huge risk! But with your older brother a prefect, perhaps not everyone’s so lucky.’

    ‘He’s simply an unbearable bore, that’s all,’ the twins said together.

    ‘All right, all right — bring me your brooms next Saturday. We’ll see what I can do,’ she said, changing the subject. Then she clapped her hands sharply. ‘I almost forgot! I wanted to ask if you’d be interested in Muggle tricks, since you’re good at lock-picking?’

    ‘Why d’you need it?’

    ‘I want to design a way of fixing a wand to my sleeve so I can draw it instantly — like stage magic, only properly effective. Either with springs and cords, or with minimal enchantment.’

    ‘Good idea. But what d’you need it for? The Duelling Club hasn’t run in years — when else would you use something like that?’

    ‘Not yet,’ Susie shrugged, not realising how close she was to predicting the future. ‘But what’s stopping you from showing off right now?’

    ‘We’re in business… cowboy,’ the twins grinned.

Chapter Text

     At last, on Monday morning, Susan had a moment to admire her sparkling bag. The enchantment with fairy unicorn dust seemed to have settled as if it had always been there. This left her with two impressions: on the one hand, it was marvellous; on the other, it had happened by chance, and she had no regular access to unicorns — nor any wish to venture back into the Forbidden Forest unnecessarily. Best not to dwell on how such an ingredient had ever reached the market in the first place.

    The first thing she did was rip off the wand-pocket and restore the original piece of leather beneath with a quick Reparo . The glitter clung to the fabric of the pocket as well. She laid out the web, the pocket fabric and her wand in front of the bag, considering how she might avoid losing the wand or wasting time fumbling for it. Alike attracts alike. She might be able to attempt an enchantment of that sort.

    She took the cobwebs, scraped the glitter from the top layer of leather, and shaved a little pine from one of the two branches of the tree in her yard. Only a little bit. She mixed those three, enchanted them, and worked them into a strip on the side of the ‘book’. She tested it. The strip drew the wand firmly enough that it would not slip, but not so strongly that it could not be lifted away at need without delay.

    “I need to practise Accio wand and Protego without a wand. It could prove very useful. Every quarter of an hour.”

    ‘ Protego . Accio wand .’ It worked. “I need to be more precise and careful”.

    Next came the web clasp. No more fiddling with the strap that held the two halves of the ‘book’ together.

    After that, potion-pockets on the back of the bag. How many? For what potions? The portion sizes would vary depending on the brew. Sue pondered this while raising and lowering her magic shield — which was precisely what Helena found her doing when she arrived for a game of chess.

    ‘Good morning. One’d think you were preparing for war.’

    ‘Hello. Accio wand . Just practising.’ She returned the wand to her bag.

    ‘Oh, that’s clever. Picked up some new materials?’

    ‘Mm-hm. What potions, and in what quantities, would you prefer to carry with you?’

    ‘Besides Wiggenweld Potion and Essence of Dittany? Don’t forget a couple of empty vials for unexpected ingredients. Blood-Replenishing Potion, Gregory’s Unctuous Unction, Mandrake Elixir, Felix Felicis, an Antidote to Common Poisons… Invisibility Potion might also prove useful — but all of these are advanced recipes.’

    ‘You’re right; I’d be lucky to find the ingredients for Wiggenweld Potion. And a Bruise removal paste for Quidditch would be handy too, though that can simply go in the bag. I’ll think about it later. Let’s play.’

***

    On Tuesday morning, she added potion-pockets to her bag and fashioned a similar base for storing her wand along her forearm. Her cowboy friends were meant to help with the mechanism at the weekend. 

    She had the impression that the self-writing pen was growing cleverer: it was already managing whole blocks of homework by itself without requiring her attention. The main thing was to make sure it didn’t begin to develop a life of its own. She also had to maintain the habit of checking its work, otherwise the pen would start learning instead of its owner. 

    Pushing thoughts of re-enchanting her bones from her mind, she sat down to tackle her homework properly.

    ‘How are you?’ Helena appeared.

    ‘Doing my homework. I do enjoy Quidditch, but the time and energy it eats up! After training I can’t manage anything at all. I haven’t finished my portrait, and then I need at least one smaller one. I don’t know when I’ll have time to brew potions, and the brooms are planned for the weekend. The idea with the glasses won’t leave me alone, and I’m keen to try making lenses partly out of crystal — will they work either as a crystal ball or to predict near-future events, just a little? And I still need to prepare a postcard for Ollivander!’ The girl threw up her hands.

    ‘Do you want to give up chess?’

    ‘No, it’s not a crisis. There are simply more ideas than I’ve time to process. I’ll work on the postcard after lunch.’

    And so she did, sketching an old, dishevelled wizard surrounded by dancing wands and spheres of light. Then she turned to her homework while waiting for DADA.

    On Wednesday morning, when she stepped into Professor Snape’s office, the first thing she heard was:

    ‘Today is the last time.’ And immediately afterwards a curse came flying at her.

    ‘Good morning, Professor,’ Sue greeted him without hesitation, raising her shield — only then did she falter. ‘Why?’

    ‘The season is ending,’ he said, gesturing towards the map. ‘We’ll close the remaining locations today. We may go out again in mid-winter, and then once or twice before leaving in summer. But for the most part, the collection of ingredients is complete.’

    Susie studied the map carefully, trying to work out which day they had visited which part of the Forest. Then she flew to catch up with the Head of Slytherin. There was no time for gloom — she had to dodge and defend herself from curses with renewed vigour. Apparently this was some sort of final test. It seemed she had passed it reasonably well (at least there had been no complaints). At the end she asked the question that had been bothering her all along:

    ‘If I were to encounter someone who could, in theory, use the Unforgivable Curses — what would be the optimal response?’

    ‘And what do you think?’

   ‘You have to strike first. Perhaps a sequence of Expelliarmus–Stupefy–Accio (if another’s wand didn’t fly into your hand the first time). The main thing is not to give them time to counter it. But even that sounds dangerous. Perhaps it’s better to fire off Expelliarmus at random, and without waiting for the result, run — at least out of direct sight — by any means available.’

    ‘Hm. Not bad. Why not Silencio , for instance?’

    ‘If I can manage non-verbal spells with ease, I wouldn’t place my trust in something so unreliable. In the matter of wands — although I can do a little without one — my arsenal is limited, and wizards rely on them far more than I do. The chance of provoking the enemy into panic and mistakes is much higher.’

    ‘That’s the right way of thinking.’

    In her individual lessons she went on perfecting Accio and Protego , with and without a wand. And Astronomy was once more a struggle against sleep, despite an extra hour’s nap after lunch.

***

    Susan was at last beginning to feel as though she were finding a bit of rhythm in her studies. She hated to admit it, but her Wednesday morning escapades were hardly adding any stability to an already busy schedule of three Quidditch trainings a week.

    After finishing her Herbology assignment on Thursday, she was finally able to turn to her notes for the full Transfiguration course and brush them up from beginning to end. She found the transfiguration of clothing and appearance particularly fascinating — at least it had some practical application. The purely academic exercises of turning animals into goblets seemed, to her mind, rather absurd. It was as though a deaf person were attempting to explain the concept of magic to a blind person, and then a mute decided to invent a spell for it. Yet, despite such eccentricities, the foundation of every act of Transfiguration was the same. One might assume that many more ways of applying it could be devised.

    ‘Aaaah…’ Sue exclaimed aloud at the house table, as an epiphany struck her about how exactly Transfiguration was woven into Alchemy — and how it became permanent at different levels of complexity. It explained a great deal.

    ‘You’re forgetting to eat again,’ one of the usual lunchtime commentators teased, giggling at her open mouth.

    Susan looked down at the table and the food on the plates in bewilderment, utterly forgetting what she was meant to do with it. Her mind was bursting with cascades of realisations, diagrams of (al)chemical processes.

   ‘Oh no — Steel’s broken!’ The laughter spread further along the table, though the girl heard none of it.

    She pulled out a textbook on Alchemy, another on Chemistry, and her notes on Transfiguration. Since the table was covered in plates, she suspended the open books before her in mid-air and began leafing through all three at once without using her hands. This display of wandless magic had half the table buzzing as they tried to work out what on earth was going on.

    The Head of Slytherin sighed heavily when he noticed Alchemy among the books. The Head of Ravenclaw observed with his usual admiration:

    ‘That’s not a magical emission! That’s multiple Wingardium Leviosa without a wand — and she’s even turning the pages like that.’

    ‘It seems she won’t be able to eat any more until the end of lunch,’ the Headmaster remarked.

    Susie pulled out a notepad and quill and began furiously dictating to it, while sketching diagrams in her book. The students nearby seemed to decide she had gone completely mad and shifted further down the table to finish their meals in peace. By the end of her performance, she would not have been surprised if steam had poured from her ears as though she had just drunk Pepperup Potion.

    Ideally, she ought to have reread all of this and then copied it into a fresh notebook, but she was distracted by a familiar, calm voice.

    ‘Aren’t you hungry yet? It’s still some time until dinner. Would you care for tea and sandwiches in my office?’

    ‘Oh —damn— I mean, hello, Professor Dumbledore. I’d hoped to avoid your office at least until the end of September, but it seems that won’t be the case this year.’

    ‘Now, now, why are you saying this? I merely noticed your enthusiasm and thought you might like to discuss your discoveries with a fellow alchemist.’

    ‘Yes, of course — I’ve only just lost a bet to my friend,’ she replied, hurriedly gathering up her stack of textbooks and notes.

***

    The office was still ticking, and Fawkes gave a croak of greeting. Sue hesitated before the chair she usually occupied — explaining across the Headmaster’s desk would be awkward. After a moment’s thought, she conjured a high, half-bar stool beside Dumbledore’s own, suspending books and diagrams in the air before them.

    ‘…In this way, you can create almost any material from thin air and stabilise it with Alchemy, or else transform one material into another with Transfiguration and stabilise the result. What would need working out is which of the two is more energy-intensive. And during transformation, I believe, what becomes what depends greatly upon the periodic table of chemical elements.’

    ‘Almost?’

    Susie tapped the Alchemy textbook and it fell open at the right page.

    ‘Have you memorised the book?’

    ‘I had a very boring holiday. Anyway — here’s a well-known problem: stabilising gold. My theory is that it combines two properties inconvenient for stabilisation — high conductivity, yet no reactivity. For the material to behave like that, you have to make the entire piece behave like that from beginning to end, every molecule — it’s simply a vast drain of concentration and energy. That’s where Leprechaun’s gold comes from: you transfigure gold out of nothing, or out of rubbish, and stabilise it for a while. Then you hope the charm will vanish somewhere other than in your own pocket. Of course, any goblin — or skilled wizard — can detect the magical trace on the gradually deteriorating metal.’

    Susan drew in a noisy breath; the air in her lungs had run out more quickly than the torrent of information.

    ‘And here the Philosopher’s Stone comes into play — a conditionally infinite source of magical energy. It’s rather like a nuclear reactor to Muggles: a relatively small device powering an entire city for a very long time. That sweeping energy can be used to stabilise anything, even gold, while you do it correctly. And I suppose the Elixir of Life sustains the Transfiguration of an old body into a younger, healthier one. Did you really destroy it?’

    ‘I’m afraid so. And you discovered all this on your own?’

    ‘A pity — because I still haven’t the faintest idea how Flamel managed to create something so powerful. Yes, I reread your textbook several times over the holidays, I began a Chemistry course this year, and I made proper notes on the Transfiguration course. Today, as I was rereading the last of it, the idea struck me. As though I had been tossing pebbles into a pond at random all this time — and at the end discovered a complete mosaic.’

    ‘At this rate, you could almost create the Philosopher’s Stone yourself,’ Albus Dumbledore remarked with a benign smile, leafing through her notes on the entire Transfiguration course and munching sweets, while Sue eyed the cold tea and sandwiches he had offered her, which obligingly reappeared on the plate each time they vanished.

    Looking at the sandwiches, she remarked with her mouth full:

    ‘Gamp’s Law excludes food for safety reasons, but it might be possible to stabilise it with the Stone. The trouble is, all the things in food — like amino acids — are extremely complex in structure, so it isn’t merely like hammering nails with a microscope; it’s more like repairing a nuclear reactor with one. Pointless and useless — but, purely theoretically… it might be possible.’

    ‘Would you like to share your discoveries with the wizarding world?’ asked the Headmaster, leafing through the notes on this subject made with a self-writing quill.

    ‘And is there anything here that isn’t already in articles or more advanced textbooks?’

    The old wizard nodded in reply.

    ‘And how do you think such an article, published by a second-year student and using Muggle information, would be treated in the wizarding world?’ She deliberately stuffed a sandwich into her mouth, chewed at length, then went on: ‘All the more reason not to show off too much. You know what? We could co-author an article. You’ll correct me where I’ve invented things, help me run experiments, and provide the reagents. Your name will ensure wizards take it seriously. We could even show it to your friend Flamel for criticism before he dies, and publish it closer to my graduation. If we don’t rush, we’ll certainly produce something worthwhile in three or four years, Professor.’

    ‘Who are you, and what have you done with a second-year student?’ the old man smiled slyly.

    ‘That’s George’s constant joke — don’t steal it.’

    ‘They didn’t help you with Alchemy?’

    ‘They’ve more pressing interests than comparing Muggle tables with the complexity of alchemical transformations,’ Susie said, nibbling a Liquorice Snap, grimacing, and hastily washing it down with the rest of her tea. ‘So what?’

    ‘Well then. I’ve a little time this year. Thursdays before lunch,’ Professor Dumbledore coaxed a couple of ancient-looking books from the shelves and handed them to the girl. ‘But let’s keep this our little secret, eh?’

    She nodded in understanding. The books barely fitted into her bag.

    ‘Did you enchant the bag yourself as well? Very clever — especially the powdered unicorn horn.’

    “Scratched”, Steel wanted to correct him, but thought better of it.

   ‘Oh — I’ve another idea: to make a whole out of fragments. If the chemical structure of the joined material is the same, it shouldn’t even be costly. In general, I suspect Reparo works like that. I think I’ve Defence now.’ She grimaced. ‘I know it’s difficult to find anyone for the cursed post, especially after the last professor died right here… but I hope we’ll have better luck next year.’

    ‘Is that a prediction?’

    ‘A guess. The position is cursed. Though Lockhart himself is a curse, I must admit. A catastrophe like that two years running isn’t very likely, even in the most probable series. I simply couldn’t endure two years in a row.’

    Albus Wulfric Brian Dumbledore laughed again, like a seasoned Father Christmas. Having packed the books into her bag and given the phoenix a final scratch, she hurried off to class.

***

    To the outside world, it looked as though Susie had spent the whole of Saturday ploughing through endless Muggle textbooks, one after another.

    In reality, in the office she was busy experimentally charming the Cleansweeps after the brothers returned from Quidditch, while their red-haired owners worked on different designs for the sudden appearance of a wand in one’s hand. By evening they had produced three versions, of which Susan preferred the last.

    ‘Can you make us the same wand-holders?’

    ‘Yes, if you bring me a small piece of wood of the same type as your wands are made from. Let me finish it tomorrow morning, and then we’ll test your brooms.’ Sue tried the “appearance” of a wand in her hand. ‘We need to practise this properly, so we don’t risk breaking or losing the wand.’

    After breakfast on Sunday they went out into the yard, and with a magician’s flourish the girl drew three brooms in a row from her bag.

    ‘I’ve increased the speed, but not by much — otherwise you’d be suspected of cheating. All the other characteristics should be at their best, especially manoeuvrability — you need that most of all, since you’re not Seekers. The enchantment can be removed and quickly reapplied by touching this symbol with your wand. It isn’t easy, so don’t tamper with it unnecessarily, especially before or after a match. In some ways I was lucky you’ve old brooms — otherwise I couldn’t have taken the enchantments so far from their original balance, and breaking the protections would have taken me longer. Try flying like this first. If everything’s all right, we’ll have a game.’

   After making a couple of laps, they returned to her.

    ‘They really have improved. Pity, of course, that you can’t just swap the whole team’s brooms.’

    ‘I’m working for free just for you two,’ Sue smiled, transfiguring three bats and a pair of Bludgers. ‘Are we playing half strength?’

    In the evening the portrait was finished. They looked at one another for a while. Then Susan in the portrait grimaced:

    ‘Don’t you think it’s a bit early for a portrait? I haven’t read nearly enough books yet!’

    ‘That’s why I drew you with a wand. If you can use it, you’ll be able to read.’

    ‘And if I can’t?’

    ‘You’ll never know until you try.’ Susie plucked a book at random from the shelf and opened it before the portrait.

    The girl in the portrait managed to turn the page. Well, Professor Flitwick said that these were only tales. Rumours don’t come from nowhere. The artist set the painting facing the table and transfigured a bookstand in front of it.

    On Monday morning she found Helena in the office, reading a book together with her painted self.

    ‘Good morning — I see you’re getting on well.’

    ‘I haven’t read a book in so long!’ said the Grey Lady, her tone both enthusiastic and wistful.

    ‘Tell them to me later, shall you?’

    Susan drew out the enormous alchemy tomes and began leafing through them while sitting on the couch.

Chapter Text

    The cold, damp weather set in, and Sue once again found herself helping the Head of House decorate the Great Hall — this time with bats and illusions of spiders, as the real ones refused to stay put as decorations. Three small completed portraits were drying in the office; on Thursdays she carried out alchemical tests of her hypotheses with the Headmaster, and with Professor Flitwick she continued to study and refine the Summoning and Banishing Charms. All this cosy splendour was marred only by dreams in which she was ravenously hungry and parched for blood — yet they were so vague and incomprehensible that she could make nothing of them.

    After the celebratory feast, being one of the first at the crime scene, she sent a Patronus to Albus Dumbledore:

    ‘Your presence is urgently required in the second-floor corridor.’

    The Head of Slytherin, who arrived with the Headmaster, regarded her with suspicion, but she merely nodded towards the blood-smeared wall and the hanging cat. When the teachers departed with the main witnesses, Susie turned to Malfoy.

    ‘Do you know anything about this?’

    Having copied both the warning and the stories Draco had mentioned into her notebook, she looked about. Slippery — the whole floor was wet. Water was seeping from Moaning Myrtle’s locked lavatory. “Peeves playing tricks on her? I wonder if Mrs Norris is dead?” She glanced into her ring and saw the cat lying in the hospital wing. ”So she’s not dead — only cursed so badly that the Headmaster can’t undo it straight away? Ominous. Will anyone die?” The ring showed several occupied beds in the hospital wing. “Does that mean no?”

    She let out a heavy sigh. Slytherin and his monster. “Is it his hunger I hear in my dreams from time to time? And those words? So the monster can speak? But who can speak, anyway? What sort of monster lives in the hidden chamber?” The crystal ball revealed nothing but darkness. “What kind of mockery is this?! Time for bed.”

    Before going to bed, she slipped into the now-empty Ravenclaw library, found a history of Hogwarts, and leafed through it until she came across what she was looking for. She made a copy of the book and went to bed. She would sort it out tomorrow. It was a day off; there would be plenty of time.

***

    After reading and copying the necessary passages, she scattered the duplicate of the book. She searched her shelf for encyclopaedias on magical creatures. Very few of them could speak. “For instance, an adult Acromantula. But they’re enormous — how could you possibly hide one in a room? Or a Jarvey, but that hardly seems frightening at all. Perhaps it might be something humanoid? Centaurs, trolls, giants, vampires, Veela… Well, which of those would survive for a thousand years without food? Nonsense. Perhaps it’s something entirely mythical; after all, it happened centuries ago. If the ring won’t show me the monster, then fortune-telling and searching for legends is as pointless as it was with my grandmother.”

    Susan glanced at the framed Chocolate Frog card. Her grandmother could have looked entirely different, if one thought about it. The notion had never occurred to her before. She tended to accept many things as truth without ever really checking — carelessly. Her stomach twisted and she gave a low howl. How hungry she was!

    After listening to the gossip at breakfast, she was left utterly confused. Some students were spouting the most ridiculous nonsense. One rumour had it that Potter was a descendant of Salazar. “What kind of brain did you need to dream that up? Yes, and next you’ll be telling me he’s the twins’ little sister. What sort of idiots are these?!”.

    After waiting for Filch to give up scrubbing at the stubborn inscription, she examined it. It was clearly blood — though not human — and bound up with some very obscure enchantments, both in relation to the ingredient and to the meaning of the words themselves. “Was this written by the Heir of Slytherin, or by the monster? If the latter, is it something humanoid? And does it need blood? Still a vampire? One could well imagine some vampire lying in a magical sleep for a thousand years. And now what — am I meant to reek of garlic like Quirrell? Ugh. Better to die”.

    In any case, there was precious little evidence. “We’ll return to this if new data appears. In the meantime, back to the office and a bit of Transfiguration practice. Useful for subsequent alchemical experiments — and more promising than chasing shadows of legend. Still, I might read a book about vampires at the end of the day. There must be something more to them than a turban stuffed with garlic”. 

***

    The Gryffindor–Slytherin match left her even more shocked than the one she had seen in her first year.

    ‘That lot haven’t a brain between them… oh… Bludgers don’t behave like that on their own, I swear! Adults ought to stop games like this — not the team taking a time-out.’

    ‘What do you make of Slytherin and their brooms?’

    ‘In this case, just catching the Snitch as quickly as possible isn’t such a bad tactic. Hey, Cho, want to swap brooms?’

    ‘I can’t take your broom.’

    ‘Why not?’

    ‘I just can’t — and besides, I’d have to get used to it.’

    ‘There’s time. But we need to dry Hufflepuff out properly to be able to “just catch the Snitch” and not be knocked out of the running for the Cup. I suggest we use the Scary Sue tactic — we’ll frighten the other teams at the same time.’

    ‘Beater girl!’ Grant grinned maliciously.

    There was a crack of bone; Susan winced. Malfoy failed to notice the Snitch buzzing right under his ear.

    ‘What a simpleton. Now I see what the brooms are for — without them they’d never have take him,’ Susie chuckled. ‘Think Potter can take the Snitch with a broken arm? What are your bets? I’m saying he can.’

    ‘Have you ever been hit by a Bludger?’ Jason asked doubtfully.

    ‘No,’ the girl admitted. ‘They love me. YEAH!’ She held out her hand and the Beater flipped her a sickle. ‘Hooray!’

    Steel released seven illusory lions to prowl and roar across the sky. Harry walked off the pitch on foot.

    ‘That bespectacled boy isn’t just incredibly talented, but stubborn, too. And he probably has a pile of gold as well,’ Sue said enviously, stroking the coin with her finger. ‘He’s about to drink the Skele-Gro — the potion his ancestor invented. Gentlemens, if anything ever happens to me, please, do all in your power to keep Mr Lockhart of Ravenclaw away from me. In turn, I promise the same for you.’

    The whole team laughed in agreement, and together they headed into the castle to dry off as quickly as possible.

***

    In her dream, she saw a brief, bright flash.

    Sunday began as usual: a leisurely morning with yesterday’s tea from a thermos and a discussion of what the portrait and Helena had been reading over the past week.

    Then, by way of association, she recalled the crystal shards and shook them out from the depths of her purse. She tried a new technique for fusing the material. Sweeping all the clutter from the table, she left only the thinnest, flawless sheet of crystal glass.

    ‘Wizards ought to learn from Muggles,’ her portrait remarked with a smile.

     ‘You sound like a Headmaster,’ Susie observed in surprise. ‘I still can’t get used to the fact that you’re separate from me — but it seems you is me anyway.’

    ‘Yes, it feels strange to me as well. Our friend doesn’t have such problems.’

    With a deft flick of Diffindo, the girl cut four pieces of glass in the shape of fairy wings. She melted the rest of the crystal into a cube and returned it to her bag. Then she took out two rings she had bought in the Muggle world, fused them together, and alloyed them with the crystal. She spread a fine layer of the mixture over two of the glass wings, then sandwiched them with the other two, heating until all fused seamlessly together. The mirrored lenses were ready.

    Sue cut a slim frame from pine, added a couple of unicorn hairs for enchantment, and plated it with the remaining metal. She assembled everything and admired herself in mirrored spectacles reflected in the conjured glass.

    ‘Worth waiting for Chemistry, Physics, Alchemy, and a good command of Leviosa and Diffindo to produce a charm like this. And they don’t even look silly… though of course I’ll still enchant them after breakfast.’

    ‘Still worrying what others will think of you?’ the girl in the portrait teased, while her raven croaked mockingly.

   ‘And you don’t care about such things any more?’ Susan and Stapledon both tilted their heads inquisitively.

    ‘Are you such a powerful witch that even your portrait, while still young, can speak? What doubts could I possibly have? I shall only grow stronger, just like you. It’s time to stop thinking “what will others say” and more often think about how to achieve what you want. For instance, I can read books — how many portraits can boast of that?’

   ‘I never imagined my own idea of myself would be so selfish and catty.’

   ‘On the contrary — nothing surprising,’ Helena interjected. ‘You’ve always been extremely self-critical. That’s why she turned out more negative than you truly are — but also braver in terms of self-acceptance. You can learn from her.’

    Susan glanced between her own portrait and the Grey Lady in astonishment. “When did they manage to become such friends?” Shaking her head, she left for breakfast in the Great Hall.

***

    The Hall was quietly abuzz with the latest frightening news — a new victim of the Chamber of Secrets’ curse. An irritating first-year Gryffindor, forever dashing about and clicking his camera. Susie was fairly sure she had bumped into the little paparazzo in the school corridors once or twice.

    ‘Flash!’ Susan suddenly exclaimed at the table. ‘Did the boy manage to photograph the monster?’

    ‘They say the film was destroyed.’

   ‘So the monster is intelligent enough to know how to destroy cameras? Or is its magic so strong that it even curses magical equipment?’

    Everyone at the table shuddered. There were no hard facts, nor any reliable information, anywhere about what was going on. “Perhaps it’s worth reading up on mythical creatures?” The ring showed only darkness when she asked about the monster. “Is this thing made of darkness — or merely hiding in it?” Catching the Headmaster’s questioning glance, she shrugged. “Perhaps I’m asking the wrong questions?”

    After breakfast, she went to the library — but instead of hunting for mythical creatures, she decided to track down every spell that might prove useful for enchanting her spectacles. Seeing the invisible, locating people, detecting enchantments on objects, tracing magic, Protego in case the mirror wasn’t enough against Legilimency, charms to preserve the integrity of the glasses themselves, even charms to predict the future a few seconds ahead in a duel. And, of course, a way to switch the whole lot on and off — otherwise it might prove altogether too much in front of her eyes.

    She had surrounded herself with a heap of books when Malfoy strolled up to her.

    ‘What about Potions, Steel?’

    ‘Falling behind these past couple of months? One Galleon per class, dear.’

    ‘What? What’s wrong with you — are you mad?’

    Susan tore her eyes from the page and fixed him with a cool stare.

   ‘I’m doing perfectly well in maths too, Draco. I know exactly what you get if you multiply one top-model Nimbus by seven. And I’ve a great many of my own lessons and projects outside school, so even without arithmetic my time has grown more expensive. I can see you’re not prepared to pay that much’ she smiled venomously ‘but it hardly matters. This year I can always make money from protective amulets for frightened children.’

    The Slytherin’s face fell.

    ‘The Hat didn’t suggest Slytherin for you, by any chance?’

    ‘First of all, sweetie, it did,’ she said airily, turning back to her books. ‘But life in a tower with its own library suits me rather better than a damp, dark dungeon. And you’ll still come crawling back after the mid-year tests. Only one thing will save you.’

    ‘What?’

   ‘If Granger eats a monster before the exam — what else?’ Sue laughed, earning her first reprimand for making a racket in the library.

    “Research protective amulets and how to make them without much expense. Carve from wood and enchant? That I can do. What enchantment can I do? Protego? A charm for luck to dodge attacks? A charm to predict danger? Predict increased magical background?”

    Returning to the office, she enchanted her spectacles. On the way to the library she wandered through most of the floors, studying everything that caught her eye — armour, busts, torches, and even the faintly discernible protective charms that wrapped the castle in a web of spells. Luna, whom she met on the way, was greatly taken with the spectacles, both for their appearance and for their ability to reveal the invisible.

    In the library, Susan once more surrounded herself with books — this time on protective, luck, and divinatory charms. Busy days lay ahead.

***

    On the morning of her first match, Steel remained calm and confident as a boa constrictor. Only one thing unsettled her — how nervous Cho looked. According to their intelligence, the Hufflepuff Seeker was older and more experienced. Which meant that keeping him away from the Golden Snitch was one of her chief tasks as a Beater with the Bludgers.

    On the pitch, the captain clapped her on the shoulder.

    ‘Try not to kill anyone.’

    ‘Yes, I know,’ Susie snapped.

    Everyone rose into the air. Lee Jordan was babbling something about her in his introduction of the players, but she fixed her focus on the field, spreading fear and menace amongst the yellow-clad team.

    ‘…my friend… if the Weasleys are Bludgers, then she’s their queen!’

    ‘Mr Jordan?!’ McGonagall’s indignant voice rang out.

   Susan pulled up short and glanced at the commentator’s box — just as a happy Bludger whizzed towards her. She smacked it straight at the commentator’s head. He ducked and carried on as though nothing had happened.

   ‘And there you have it — a demonstration of the Bludger Queen’s accuracy! My head was there only seconds ago. Oh no! The Hufflepuff Keeper has been far less fortunate — the same Bludger has struck him from behind and knocked him out! Was this the cunning design of Susan Steel? Thanks to her rough play — rougher even than Slytherin — Ravenclaw have surged ahead!’

    Catching Jason’s look of superstitious horror, she shook her head. It hadn’t been her plan. The whole time she’d aimed to terrify the opposition, not to disable them. To be honest, she was astonished Lee had managed to dodge. She braced herself for a penalty for her conduct. Hufflepuff called a time-out.

    ‘I didn’t mean to, but we need to make use of it,’ she told her team, raising her arms. ‘Score as many as you can. Jason, guard the front line. I’ll keep their Seeker busy as best I can. Cho, help distract him and stall for time.’

    The Snitch still hovered on the Ravenclaw side, hiding from the circling Seeker.

    ‘One hundred and sixty! 160–0!’ Jordan bellowed. ‘Now, even if Cedric Diggory catches the Snitch, it’s still a thumping victory. The Badgers are flattened — and the Eagles’ stands are glowing blue and bronze!’

   Sue turned her head, hunting for the second Bludger, which she had lost track of while celebrating the last goal. It seemed to be streaking towards Page — and at the same moment Cedric spotted the Snitch nearby. Torn between duties, she hurled herself across the pitch to protect the Keeper — Jason was at the opposite end.

    ‘Cho! After him, quick!’ Susie shouted with all her might, tearing after the Bludger and swatting it high into the air.

    The stands quaked. The Snitch was caught, and the game ended 160–150. Susan trudged wearily to the centre of the pitch.

    ‘Lovely — perhaps we ought to swap brooms?’

    ‘Now I certainly can’t,’ Chang objected. ‘We only won because of you.’

    ‘And we could have taken 310 points…’

    ‘You’re a bit sour for such a triumph,’ Grant remarked. ‘Still — thanks for saving me. I never even saw that Bludger.’

    ‘Looked like the same one that took out their Keeper. It enjoyed itself,’ Sue said grimly.

    ‘You can tell them apart?’ Samuels asked incredulously.

    They shook hands with the other team. Everyone eyed Steel warily, as if she might crush their hands in the handshake or hex them on the spot. She didn’t care. What truly bothered her was that she’d lost track of the second Bludger. Her scowl showed nothing like a polite smile — quite the opposite. “Come to think of it, not only did I miss the Bludger, I let myself be distracted by Jordan’s bloody idle chatter more than once”.

    ‘You and we made a tidy sum on that match — you’re a marvel,’ the twins caught her as she came out of the locker room.

    ‘Tell Lee not to let me set eyes on him again, or I’ll cut out his tongue,’ Susan snapped, still fuming.

    ‘Why bother with him? He never shuts up.’

    ‘But that Bludger you sent was brilliant. Weren’t you afraid of hitting the Head of our House?’

    ‘No — I trusted myself. Come on, let’s get out of here before the team drags me off to celebrate. I’m not in a festive mood at all.’

    ‘All right, let’s head to our table. And loosen up already — you played as though it were your hundredth match, not your first.’

   Sue sighed, realising that arguing now was pointless. Well, at least like this.

Chapter Text

    With the winnings from her bet, she fashioned a thin iron frame for each of the three smaller portraits. The large portrait refused to leave the room with the bookshelves, so she hung only the smaller version — set in a massive wooden frame in castle style — in the stairwell, not far from the library. One portrait she left by her bed, and the second she gave, as promised, to the twins. It wasn’t the most convenient means of communication and surveillance, but it worked well enough. The chief problem was that the girl in the picture hardly wished to tear herself away from reading and conversing with Helena, who now spent almost all her time in the office. The pair even became friends with the twins, and together they threw themselves into the invention of fireworks and Wheezes. At times, Susan felt like an outsider in her own little circle.

    In early December, Susie took to knitting several cushion covers in House colours, each with the Hogwarts crest, as a gift for the Headmaster. Since the brothers were now often in and out of the office, she had to do the work under the canopy of her bed. In the office she drew cards for all her teachers, the twins, Luna, and Mr Ollivander. This time, instead of port, Pepper Potion bubbled in the cauldron, liquorice poured from the cornucopia, and instead of lions the two brothers were setting off colourful fireworks on every card.

    She was delighted to come across an announcement for the duelling club. Naturally, she assumed Professor Flitwick, as a former champion, would be in charge. When Lockhart and Snape strode out in the class, she only muttered under her breath:

    ‘Oh, no.’

    When it came to pairing off, everyone who knew her shied away as if from fire — and after the Hufflepuff match, many knew her. To make matters worse, having disposed of Potter, Professor Snape made straight for her, arguing with Lockhart.

    ‘Miss Steel ought to be barred from the duelling club, at least with the younger students.’

    ‘Are you actually praising someone not from your House?’

    ‘I’m not praising, I’m stating a fact. Come along with your fourth-year friends — we’ll see whether they can counter you with anything,’ said the Head of Slytherin sternly, turning to her. ‘Especially as there are no pairs left for you.’

    He was right: everyone had already paired off, and she was left standing alone.

    ‘Can I at least watch — and ask a question? Is it safe to use Expelliarmus en masse for practice? Some wands do take offence at their owners.’

    ‘You know about that as well?’

    ‘Yes, from Mr Ollivander’s book.’

    ‘I don’t suppose it will matter for practice purposes. Though such cases do occur in tournaments — and some wizards exploit it to obtain a more expensive or better-quality wand.’

    ‘Are you serious about putting me in the middle group?’

    There was chaos all around, and no one answered her. Two teachers were nowhere near enough for a hall full of students throwing whatever they pleased at each other. “But they were told “Expelliarmus only”…?” Sue thought in disbelief.

    Then very odd things began to happen. Harry spoke to the snake:

    ‘Leave him alone!’

    And the snake obeyed. For some reason, everyone else seemed shocked and horrified by this. Susan was puzzled only that the snake had actually listened. Overhearing the muttering, she caught the word Parseltongue. That would have to be looked into.

    First the boy frightened by the snake bolted, then the trio of Gryffindors. Susan sighed — her hopes of finding a partner if someone left had not been fulfilled.

***

    The library was already closed, so she went to the tower library and began looking for information about another phenomenon unfamiliar to her. It turned out that there was a snake language, and those nearby merely heard an incomprehensible hiss. However, without natural talent, the language could in fact be learnt — though only after very long and painstaking study. The most famous Parselmouth in Britain was Salazar Slytherin, which was apparently why the snake was chosen as the emblem of his House. Yet a thousand years before the founder of Hogwarts, another very famous Parselmouth had lived in ancient Greece: Herpo the Foul. He was the creator of many curses, Horcruxes (and what on earth were those?) and basilisks (and what were those? Surely something mythical? On the other hand, last year she had seen a Cerberus, which was also, by the way, from Greece).

    If this ability were passed down by inheritance, as was generally supposed, then surely there ought to be quite a number of Parselmouths scattered across the world. The reaction of those around her still made no sense.

    ‘Forgetting to sleep again?’ The Grey Lady drifted out from the bookshelf.

    ‘Trying to understand people’s reactions. I hate not understanding things. Why did everyone react so oddly to Potter’s conversation with the snake? Why did the snake listen to him?’

    ‘Oh, that’s simple: most people who can talk to snakes are thought of as Dark wizards. And there aren’t many of them in these parts. Well, would you take notice yourself if something enormous told you what to do — in a language you actually understood?’

    ‘That makes sense. Is it really causation, though, or merely correlation?’

    ‘Correlation,’ Helena smiled. ‘Light wizards can talk to snakes as well, but because of superstition they tend to keep quiet about it.’

    ‘Uh-huh. So I should too?’

    ‘Still fretting about your relatives?’

    ‘Well, who else is to blame for that?’ Susie spread her hands. ‘In all the legends, Granny speaks to animals like some mistress of the forest. But would that alone be enough to pass such genes on to me? I never asked what my mother’s real surname was. We’re not from here — it’s impossible that her previous surname was Steel. We’ve lived in England for as long as I can remember, and I was never surprised by my own name. I think I’m simply upset and very tired. I wonder if they’ll really let me join the middle group of the club? Two more questions and I’ll turn the clocks back and go to bed. Do you know what Horcruxes and basilisks are?’

    ‘Why do you ask?’ The Grey Lady’s face seemed to pale, but Sue was too weary to attach much importance to it.

    ‘Here.’ She tapped her finger on the book. ‘One of the earliest recorded Parselmouths dealt with these. This is the first time I’ve seen the terms.’

    ‘In short: Horcruxes are very dark magic, and you ought not to concern yourself with them. As for basilisks — they’re mythical creatures, even more magical than most, and breeding them has long been forbidden.’

    ‘And what did they look like?’

    ‘Like giant snakes. Why?’

    ‘I was wondering whether Salazar himself might have kept such a beast, since Parselmouths are always lumped in with Dark wizards straightaway.’

    ‘I don’t know. There’s no official confirmation, but I could well imagine him having that sort of interest,’ said Helena, her face giving nothing away.

    ‘All right, I’m off.’ Susan waved her wand, sending the books back to the shelves. ‘Give my regards to the Reading Lady.’

***

    The next morning, having slept well and hungry as a beast, she returned to the tower library and skimmed through a book on mythical creatures, pausing in detail at only one. Something didn’t add up. Neither the cat nor the paparazzo had turned to stone. Perhaps there was no connection? Over chess, she asked:

    ‘Have there ever been cases of stone petrification in the history of Hogwarts?’

    ‘It seems that Moaning Myrtle joined the ghosts that way. Do you think it really was a basilisk?’

    ‘Just testing hypotheses. If Potter followed the snake’s voice, which no one else could hear, he might have been first on the scene with Mrs Norris. At the very least, I can say with certainty they’ll now be considering him Salazar’s heir with renewed vigour. Checkmate. I’m off to eat — I think I was hungry even in my sleep.’

    That very day, two more victims of the monster appeared, one of them the ghost of Gryffindor. By eavesdropping on eyewitnesses, she uncovered a pattern: through a ghost, through a camera, through a reflection in water — in a puddle from a lavatory. That was why no one had yet been turned fully to stone.

    Finding a spare moment, she slipped into the second-floor lavatory. The air reeked of potion-brewing. Susan sniffed, followed the scent to one of the stalls, pushed the door open, and immediately recognised it — such a concoction could not be mistaken for anything else.

    The door creaked behind her, and someone screamed, pointing a wand at her. Sue already had hers in hand and spun round at once.

    ‘Oh, it’s you? Don’t frighten me like that, please,’ she said, lowering her wand. ‘Now I understand how you manage to get ahead of everyone if you’re brewing such complex potions in a lavatory. Don’t look at me like that, I’ve no intention of telling anyone.’

    ‘Why not?’

    ‘Well, I’ve not made a habit of turning people in, Granger. I was startled when I found this potion, but if it’s you brewing it, that’s all right. You’re not selling it, are you? Splendid. Actually, I was looking for Miss Myrtle. Have you seen her?’

    ‘Why do you want her?’ Hermione asked, still keeping her wand raised.

    ‘I want to meet the Ravenclaw ghost, ask a few questions. She hardly ever comes to our tower — perhaps she was bullied when she was alive. I can’t see any other reason for her to sit in this lavatory for years on end.’

    ‘Do they bully you as well?’

    ‘No, they don’t dare. But Luna’s shoes were stolen. So you were probably right about finding friends among the Gryffindors. If you see the ghost, do let her know I was looking for her.’

    Climbing the stairs to see what was left of Nick, she found a crowd of onlookers, including ghosts, among them a tearful young Ravenclaw. She gave a small wave to the Bloody Baron, then turned her gaze to the dim figure of the Nearly Headless ghost. No one seemed ever to have witnessed such a thing, judging by the murmurings of the spirits.

    ‘Miss Myrtle? May I distract you from your grief for your poor friend for a while?’ She held out her hand. ‘I’m Susan Steel, I’ve heard about you from my friends.’

    ‘Heard?’ the wailing girl asked petulantly and incredulously. ‘And what did you hear?’

    ‘That you’re a Ravenclaw, and that we might become friends. Only, as you never appear in our tower, it isn’t easy to cross paths with you.’ Susie stepped a little away from the crowd and cast a charm to prevent the rest of the conversation being overheard. ‘Forgive me for the tactless question, but do you remember who killed you?’

    ‘Oh, how many times I was asked that, right after my death! But all I remember are the most terrible eyes!’

    ‘Like these?’ Sue conjured a small illusion of a basilisk illustration on her palm. Myrtle screamed in terror.

    ‘How did you know? Only they were a hundred times larger!’

    ‘Was it in the lavatory?’

    ‘Yes.’

   ‘Thank you for helping with the investigation. Do come to our tower some time.’

    “But, well, of course this thing is hungry if it turns its victims to stone with direct eye contact and merely petrifies them with indirect. That doesn’t sound appetising. Is that why it hunts mice in dark places? And what would happen to me if I saw such eyes through a crystal ball? Are you protecting me?” The ring flashed happily in response. The girl returned to the office and used the Time-Turner. She wrote a note about the investigation to the Headmaster.

***

    Appearing in the middle group of the club together with Fred and George, she once again attracted unwelcome attention. But worst of all was Lee:

    ‘You really can’t part with her?’

    ‘Did you warn him?’ the twins nodded. ‘Silently jealous, Jordan. Silencio.’

    ‘Harsh, Bludger, he won’t be able to take part.’

    ‘He will, if he asks Professor Snape for help. Or shall I really cut out his tongue?’

    ‘When did you become so cruel, Susie?’

    The girl stared at the floor, waiting for the teachers to arrive.

    Today, Professor Flitwick joined them, restoring the commentator’s voice, though he was in no hurry to use it. When it came to pairing them off, the Head of Slytherin approached:

    ‘Excellent, all the terrorists are here. You two will be Miss Steel’s opponents.’

    ‘What? Why? She’s alone, and a second-year to boot,’ the twins protested.

    ‘If you think you can handle her alone, you may attack one at a time — I don’t care. And you’ll do this because she probably won’t kill you. If another pair is freed and you’re still at it, you may split up.’

    Taking up their positions, the company of terrorist cowboys raised their empty hands at the ready. On the count of three, all three had wands in their grasp, distracting the nearby pairs:

    ‘Expelliarmus!’ the brothers cried in unison.

    ‘Protego Duo!’ Susan countered at once. ‘Expelliarmus!’

    ‘Protego!’ the twins shot back.

    Their trio worked like clockwork. Sue focused on the precise movements of her wand and noted with satisfaction that the middle group was far more disciplined, for the most part carrying out the teachers’ instructions.

    The Slytherin from the next pair watched their coordinated work for a while and giggled:

    ‘Weasley, can you really not handle a second-year between the two of you?’

    ‘And was the task to handle someone, or to practise defence and attack, smart-arse?’ Steel narrowed her eyes.

    ‘We can swap for one round, if you like,’ Fred winked at him.

    ‘Yeah,’ George chimed in. ‘Show us how you usually treat your friends.’

    The self-confident boy gave a disdainful snort and stepped into their place. The brothers immediately began to press his partner without even breaking their usual rhythm. The Slytherin was in no hurry to attack, so Susie waited until his wand appeared in his hand.

    ‘Expelliarmus!’ the boy tried to strike from the side.

    ‘Protego,’ she said, already watching his feet and wand. ‘Expelliarmus, Tarantallegra, Rictusempra.’

    ‘Do you think this is funny?’ asked Severus Snape, who had appeared behind him.

    ‘He obviously does,’ Susan couldn’t help but joke, smiling. ‘But I think I know how not to kill people unnecessarily. Finite Incantatem.’

    ‘I don’t recall permitting pair swaps,’ the Potions Master remarked with the utmost sulkiness.

    ‘Well, Severus, this talented Ravenclaw simply needs a good mentor — like me!’ Lockhart beamed, tapping the Head of Slytherin on the shoulder.

    ‘Er…’ Sue sought support in refusing the teacher from Professor Snape, but he merely rolled his eyes, stepping neatly out of reach.

    Feeling as idiotic as possible, she took up her position alongside the DADA professor. The entire hall fell silent, watching. For some unfathomable reason, the Head of Slytherin smiled and gave the command to begin.

    ‘Expelliarmus!’ Gilderoy intoned very slowly, pompously and moralisingly, quite obviously admiring himself all the while.

    ‘Protego? Leviosa? Expelliarmus?’ Susie, still baffled, fired off a machine-gun burst. ‘Oh — sorry, I was flustered.’

    ‘That’s quite all right — ladies often are in my presence. Perfectly normal,’ Professor Lockhart said, still beaming and borrowing a wand from one of his fans. ‘Perhaps you’d prefer a less illustrious partner — a Potions professor, for instance?’

    ‘What?’ Susan was so staggered by such brazen insults that all she could manage was to drop her jaw in disbelief.

    ‘Perhaps it really is fair, since you’ve already dealt with one of the professors,’ the Potions Master smiled predatorily, stepping in front of her. ‘It was my mistake to invite you into the middle group — it seems you think yourself ready for anything.’

    ‘What? I don’t—’

    ‘Three, two, one,’ Mr Golden Curls began to count, without listening to anyone.

    ‘Expelliarmus!’ — a precise strike, as swift as a cobra’s bite.

    “Protego!” The frightened girl barely managed to get the thought out, but still deflected the first attack.

    ‘Expelliarmus!’ The professor brushed her counter-spell aside as though swatting a fly.

    ‘Stupefy!’

    “Protego Maxima! Diffindo, Diffindo, Diffindo!” She flung the first two slashing spells in one direction and the third in another. The Head of Slytherin dodged the first pair but caught the third, which sheared off a lock of his hair.

    A vacuum of silence fell across the hall. Once again that day she dropped her jaw, clapped her left hand over her mouth, and with her right let her wand fall to the floor as she raised both hands.

    ‘I surrender!’ She was trembling with fear.

    ‘Excellent!’ Professor Flitwick, amplifying his voice with a spell, came forward and calmly took her hand. ‘Listen, everyone: if you realise you’ve entered a duel beyond your strength, surrendering — or running away with your life — is no act of cowardice. Retreat in a tournament is a wise decision. Without such difficult choices, you will not last long in any dangerous or risky branch of magic.’

    Picking up her wand and bowing, the girl retreated to the bench by the wall. Fred and George remained in line to duel each other. Once everyone had returned to their own bouts, the two Heads of House approached her.

    ‘I’m terribly sorry. There’s so much I ought to have done differently!’

    ‘Like what?’

    ‘For a start, never attempting to duel professors. At the very least I should have surrendered at once, or after my first spell failed — but certainly I should not have used Diffindo in combat! I was convinced you would deflect it with ease, almost without noticing…’

    ‘Well, here I must admit I was unprepared for such a skilful and unexpected application of household magic.’

    ‘You’re not angry with me?’

    ‘It was time they were trimmed,’ Professor Snape grinned wryly. ‘However, I trust you will refrain from using such spells on people in future.’

    ‘Leviosa was splendid,’ Professor Flitwick put in. ‘An excellent example of a safe disorienting spell at a tournament! Do try to rely on something like that next time.’

    ‘You’re not going to throw me out of the club?’ Sue asked in surprise, glancing from one teacher to the other.

    ‘Of course not! How else are you to manage your nerves without practice? Besides, you worked remarkably well with your friends. They restrain you, and you restrain them. Just look at the nastiness they hurl at one another!’ The little professor sounded both indignant and despairing. ‘Weasley! What is the exercise now?’

    ‘What frightened you so much?’

    ‘Aside from the fact that I might, in theory, have hurt you? It struck me that you could lose your temper. Now I see you never would — but it only took a moment for me to realise how foolish I was to dance to that peacock’s tune. Sometimes there’s something in your eyes that looks like hellfire. Very dangerous…’

    She looked away, mentally adding, “…and delightful”.

    ‘Hmm. When you’ve calmed down, go and calm down a few more of those blockheads. And don’t swap with anyone else. I am permitting you to practise only with one or both of the brothers. Filius and I are counting on your cooperation.’

Chapter Text

    ‘Merlin’s beard, I thought I’d be thrown out of the club!’ she complained to the twins on their way to her tower.

    ‘After you took down the professor, I thought you’d be promoted to the senior group,’ George said. ‘You even got on Severus Snape’s nerves! Why didn’t you keep attacking?’

    ‘Because you oughtn’t to use cutting spells on people in the first place, that’s why. It was so dangerous and unfair. If the professor had been serious, I wouldn’t have been able to repel the first wave. I’m sorry they made you babysit me — and both of you at once… I’m the odd one out in this group too.’

    Fred stopped and put a hand on her shoulder.

    ‘Don’t ever say that again, all right? No one’s the odd one out, understood?’

    Susie drew in a deep breath to protest, but seeing his serious look, she backed down, only sighing heavily.

    ‘Sorry. I often feel that way. I’ll try not to think like that again.’

    They reached the gargoyle with the riddles.

    ‘You do realise you don’t have to see me up, don’t you?’

    ‘It’s no burden to us, Princess.’

    ‘Not after the way Malfoy insulted you.’

    ‘I don’t think it was him,’ Susan shook her head. ‘Besides, there are other Ravenclaws in the club; I could have come back with them.’

    ‘If you turn down your entourage, we’ll have no choice but to side with the Dark Lord Potter,’ Fred winked.

    Sue laughed until she cried, clutching the boys’ hands to keep from falling.

    ‘I want to see that,’ she whined through her tears.

    She dreamt again. First Harry Potter was bitten by a basilisk with ragged eyes, and then Fawkes wept over the wounds: the poison vanished, the gashes closed. She wanted to wake and scream in terror, but the dream held her fast. It looped again and again, like a broken gramophone record. She could not look away, could not move, could not act.

    At dawn she opened her eyes, drenched in sweat and utterly spent. Myrtle had not exaggerated about the creature’s size.

    Trying to fall asleep once more brought little relief. Now the dream was filled with Fawkes’s unending tears, and she could not reach him to comfort him.

    When she finally woke for good, she longed desperately to rid herself of the memory. Her wand was already raised to her temple before she stopped at the last moment. If it haunted her so fiercely, it must mean something, even if she did not yet know what. She only wanted to be certain the phoenix was safe.

***

    ‘I’m here again without an invitation, but I want to show the Headmaster something,’ she said to the gargoyle.

    ‘Come in.’

    ‘It didn’t ask for the password because it was giving the answer directly?’ Susie asked curiously. Albus Dumbledore was seated in his chair, lending weight to her theory. He smiled faintly, already sensing that the news would not be good. Fawkes sat in his usual place, smaller than he had been in her dream.

    ‘Good morning, Professor. I dreamt all night — the same vision, over and over. I want to show you, though I warn you, it isn’t pleasant. Then I woke, fell asleep again, and dreamt something different, though still rather similar.’

    Having surrendered the tiny fragments of her memories, she felt no relief at all and went to cuddle the phoenix while she still could. The old wizard, returning from the Pensieve, looked thoughtful and sad.

    ‘I don’t understand. Is fighting this monster really the only way out for a second-year? Yes, I saw the battle in my first year and chose not to get involved — but is that truly all there is to it? Watch him grow up and solve millennia-old problems on his own? Fawkes is capable and willing to help, so why can’t I? And what am I to do if there are more casualties?’

    ‘Lay them on my conscience?’

    ‘As I laid Nicholas Flamel’s life on yours?’ Sue adjusted her slightly slipping mirrored glasses and sighed heavily. ‘I don’t know what to do with all these visions I see. It seems I can’t help either the boy or the bird. Well, forgive my questions; perhaps you wonder the same yourself. I shan’t keep us from breakfast. Good day, Headmaster.’

    As she walked towards the Great Hall, she moved as if in a trance. She stopped at the hourglass display of the house rankings. "Discovering the Chamber of Secrets and defeating Salazar’s terror — five hundred points and a magically immortalised memory for the surviving hero. Or something of the sort".

    ‘You actually made them?’

    After a moment’s hesitation, she realised the Head of Slytherin was speaking about her mirrored glasses.

    ‘Geminio,’ she said quietly, holding out the short-lived replica for inspection.

    ‘What did you study?’ the professor asked after a pause, turning them over in his hands and even trying them on.

    ‘The moral and ethical dilemmas of fortune-telling,’ Susan muttered sullenly.

    ‘Still don’t trust the Headmaster?’

    ‘And nor should you. He either doesn’t know the answers to difficult questions, or he withholds them deliberately.’

    ‘It doesn’t look as poor as I expected,’ the professor said at last.

    ‘Was that meant as a compliment? Thank you, then,’ Susie replied with a wry smile, meeting the Legilimens’ eyes and relishing the fleeting sense of security. ‘Enjoy your meal.’

    She went to take her seat, trying to push aside thoughts of how ridiculous she must look in her mirrored glasses at the table. More than once she considered removing them, but then she would never grow accustomed to the invisible world hidden from most people’s sight. They were unlikely to shield her from the basilisk’s gaze, and besides, they might break. Yet something told her she was in no immediate danger — not until she attempted to deal with the Chamber on her own.

***

    The attacks had frightened most of the children and their parents, so by Christmas the castle was emptier than ever. However, the Weasleys were all still there, Malfoy had remained, and Steel recalled her dreams of drafting curriculum plans for every subject. During such a quiet and peaceful holiday, she might even find time to prepare for future subjects like Runes and Arithmancy. But she would begin with Potions.

    Even so, the Great Hall was decorated no less splendidly than usual. Minerva McGonagall was still envious of the help Ravenclaw had from her and from Filius. Yet she seemed unable to find an excuse to invite Granger, who had vanished somewhere (though Susan had her suspicions where). Sue enjoyed decorating the Great Hall. Each time, there was something magical, soothing, and homely about it. And although her relations with her peers were not going especially well, Professor Flitwick was a very kind man, as was Mr Ollivander, and that made her proud of her house.

    Having borrowed the twins’ Marauder’s Map for the day, she slipped into the Potions classroom and copied out the results of this year’s Grand Test. As she had told Draco — without Hermione, who had been eaten by the basilisk — he was doomed to fail time and again.

    Giggling maliciously, she resolved to give the list to her classmate for Christmas, folded into the shape of the flying origami he had once taught her.

    Before bed, she placed the pillows and cards beneath the Christmas tree — in the morning, they would appear beneath the recipients’ own trees.

    She woke to find more presents under the tree than she had expected. A box of “Invigorating Snaps” from the Headmaster — most welcome, she had missed them. A set of homemade fireworks from the twins — when best to use them? New Year’s Eve, perhaps? Delicious cupcakes from the Head of House. A card from her mother (sent by owl, no doubt) with her congratulations “Keep up the good work, Mum!”. A book about The Deathly Hallows and Other Tales of the Wizarding World from Ollivander. The latest issue of “The Quibbler” from Luna. And two more packages. Who are these from?

    The first was unmarked. Cautiously unwrapping the plain brown paper, she discovered a set of empty flasks and tools for collecting ingredients. “No way!”. The girl examined everything nervously, checked for charms or hidden notes, and then tucked the lot into her bag. She caught her breath and pinched her arm. No, she wasn’t dreaming — the paper was still there.

    The second package was cheerful, bright, and signed “From Molly Weasley”. “There’s no Avada Kedavra inside, is there?” Susan thought, still carefully opening it. A jumper. A copper-coloured knitted jumper with a white “S” on the front and a water lily embroidered on the back. “And what does that mean? Other than the fact I urgently need to make and send at least a thank-you card”.

    The Grey Lady found her in this muddle.

    ‘You’re going to miss the festive breakfast, sitting with your presents for half an hour,’ she smirked.

    ‘I don’t understand. What does that mean?’

    ‘A flower. That’s the origin of your name.’

    ‘And… and the fact that I’m getting a gift from a woman I only saw once in a prophecy? And in that, she didn’t give me presents.’

    ‘Perhaps their little sister wrote home about your friendship with the boys? I’ve never seen you so distrustful of anyone.’

    ‘Well, I recently came to the conclusion that I’m too trusting…’

    Sue checked her sweater through her glasses for enchantments and calmed down a bit. “Still, it’s strange”. She took off her robe and pulled the sweater over her blue dress. It looked unmistakably Ravenclaw, but if she’d been standing next to any Weasley, she could easily have been mistaken for a distant relation. She tied her hair back into a ponytail and hurried to her office, where she rewound time as much as she could. Sitting down at her desk, she wondered what she should draw, what she should give. For the card, she chose the Christmas tree in the Great Hall, and for the brooch a blue rose she’d knitted it herself. Before breakfast, she popped into the owlery and sent the return gift off with a school owl.

***

    ‘Hey, Steel, which Weasley are you engaged to?’ Malfoy sneered as they reached the entrance to the Great Hall.

    ‘What’s the matter, Draco, jealous of my Slytherin-themed jumper?’ Susie asked brightly, tugging at her own. ‘Look, there’s even a water lily — reminds me of your aquarium under the lake,’ she added, twirling round to show it off. ‘But wasn’t my Christmas present to you even more wonderful?’

    ‘Slugulus Eructo, half-blood!’ The boy finally lost his composure.

    “Protego”. She mimicked the casual flick of the hand the Head of Slytherin had used in the Duelling Club, smiling all the while.

    ‘That curse might have bounced straight back at you off the lake’s surface, sweetheart. Why spoil your holiday breakfast with such nonsense?’

    She overtook the boy and slipped into the almost empty hall, conjuring a small illusion of fireworks above the Gryffindor table without even drawing her wand.

    ‘Happy Christmas, everyone! Fred, George, do you have a moment?’

    Stepping back a little and throwing up a discreet barrier, she added:

    ‘Judging by your surprised faces, it wasn’t you who betrayed my existence to your mother?’ She cast a glance at Ginny, who also wore a jumper with a flower on it.

    ‘Do you look… frightened?’

    ‘Once I… never mind. I was just startled. I look startled,’ Susan said with a weak smile. ‘You’re invited to set off fireworks with me on New Year’s Eve, all right?’

    ‘All right. Would you like to sit with us? In that disguise, no one will notice you’ve switched House tables,’ George grinned.

    ‘You seem to have your own circle there…’ Sue began, but stopped at Fred’s warning glance. ‘All right, all right, I’ll sit with you and do my best to believe I fit right in with this new jumper.’

    Hermione was still watching her suspiciously. “And this after I stumbled upon her lavatory laboratory and didn’t tell a soul?”. Ginny seemed shy and reserved, but still asked what the Ravenclaw enjoyed.

    ‘Studies, Quidditch, creating artefacts. Those are probably the main ones. And you?’

    ‘Well… I… perhaps I’d like to play too?’ She glanced at Harry. ‘Not this year, though, unfortunately.’

    ‘They didn’t let me last year either,’ Susie sighed, then caught sight of Percy’s nametag and giggled again, making him eye the twins with renewed suspicion.

    The staff table was more cheerful than usual. The teachers who had received cards nodded and waved at her. Professor Flitwick seemed perfectly content with her sitting at another House’s table today. A saintly man, unlike the perpetually competitive Professor McGonagall.

    At some point, she realised that the mirrored glasses allowed her to evade the Slytherin Head of House’s attention-catching defences. “I wonder which aspect of the enchantment helped?” She went through every charm she’d layered and found nothing. “So it was the mirrored lenses themselves that obscured direct eye contact? I ought to read up on eye-contact magic — it seems an intriguing field, especially given Legilimency and basilisks. I think I read something about it somewhere, too”.

    As she was leaving the hall, she felt as though someone was watching her back, the flower on her jumper an excellent target. But when she paused to turn around, the feeling had vanished. “Am I being paranoid?”

    With a sigh, she returned to her office to read fairy tales from the wizarding world. It was difficult to imagine what went through the minds of those who had grown up with them. She tried to picture herself without any memory of the Muggle world, but she simply couldn’t.

***

    Before the New Year, she completed her review of all her current subjects, one a day.

    On New Year’s Eve, she conjured copies and transfigured two Nimbuses for the day, and together with Fred and George they exhausted her stock of fireworks over the castle rooftops before bed.

    At the start of the year, she went over the lessons for the forthcoming third year. When she had finished, she looked with satisfaction at the stack of binders. She could certainly prepare for her O.W.L.s with these, but would they suffice for T.O.A.D.s? She would have to see how things went. The Reading Lady in the portrait expressed a wish to read them too. “Perhaps she was right about my drawing her too early?” Susan mused, sighing heavily. “Well, what’s done can’t be undone.”

    The girl popped an Invigorating Snap into her mouth and looked round. For some reason, she recalled that phoenixes could carry many times their own weight. Could she do the same? The Room provided her with a book containing the necessary enchantments. She opened her notebook and began jotting down what she wanted in the formula: “A large carrying capacity, equal to three adults? Speed, for now, the same as my broom (do I need more?). Good manoeuvrability in all directions. Decent braking. Automatic gliding through small obstacles, so I don’t bang my back on trees again. Disillusionment that can be turned on and off, and a reliable shield against both spells and detection. The formula must be quick to use, but difficult to activate in sleep (foreign/ancient/runic language?).”

    “So many things I want,” she grinned. The study library was clearly not enough. Tomorrow she would continue in the tower library, and afterwards in the common room.

    Malfoy found her in the Hogwarts library, his expression sour as vinegar.

    'You weren’t joking about the fee?' She shook her head. 'And you won’t even give me a discount?'

    'Sorry, nothing personal. The library can’t read itself,' Sue said, waving a hand at the mountain of books around her. 'I can give you some free advice — two, even. As a friend… Get some textbooks and read every day. It doesn’t have to be much, just a chapter at a time, but the main thing is to read consistently and attentively. And when you take tests, answer more than they ask, adding clarifications that are relevant to the question.'

    'Do I look like a swot?'

    'Otherwise you’ll never beat her,' she shook her head.

    'And you? Anyway, are you sure you’re not cross with me for something?'

    'Not only do I not need this, it’s actually harmful. I already stand out too much. And I’m definitely not angry,' she looked at him carefully. 'Who are you trying to impress? Your father? Uh… that’s hard, I know.'

    'What are you even doing?'

    'I’m… er… exploring the limits of magic using broomstick enchantments as an example,' Susie waved her hand vaguely and adjusted her glasses. 'All right, maybe I am a little cross. Your joke about the jamper was tactless. That wasn’t remotely aristocratic behaviour, Malfoy,' she added, neatly changing the subject before he could grow too interested in her research.

    'Sorry.'

    'Just like that? Fine, let’s be clear. If you ever want to offend me, you can make jokes about my friends in front of me, but I can’t guarantee your survival, understand?'

    'I heard you managed to hit my uncle with a spell in the middle of the club. Is that true?' the boy looked away, displeased.

    'Only tangentially, and it wasn’t fair. I didn’t say any spells and chose a very poor one for a duel. Listen, if you want, I can give you a lesson once a month and set you a mountain of homework. And then I won’t teach the next one until you’ve finished it. Come on Sunday at the usual time, if you decide to. But perhaps by then you’ll change your mind and simply decide to change your daily routine. I really do understand you — as a golden boy, everything’s always come easily, whatever you wanted. Studying comes easily to me: I enjoy reading, writing, and thinking things through. But I also lose my temper when something starts to go wrong. Still, if we don’t push through that discomfort, if we don’t learn to work hard, we’ll achieve nothing beyond a handful of good marks at school and nothing more…'.

    Susie waved her hand, dispelling the Silencing Charm, and turned back to her books.

    On Sunday, Draco found her in the library. “I wonder how he explains such large expenses to his family?”.

Chapter Text

    Towards the end of the holidays, before dinner, she met Severus Snape at the entrance to the Great Hall.

    ‘Good evening, Professor.’

    ‘Yes, on the last day of the holidays, first thing in the morning, as usual.’

    Susan paused, letting him go ahead, and wondered whether she had the right clothes for the snowy forest, or if she would need to practise Transfiguration and enchant certain items. She could transfigure her shoes into high boots, and cast a temporary Warming Charm on her jumper and gloves.

    On the appointed day, the girl appeared in the office, and even with her glasses she was immediately noticed. “So, the detection principle is different. Homenum Revelio?” In silence, they reached the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Removing her Disillusionment and raising her strongest magical shield, she asked:

    ‘Why did you take up Potions?’

    ‘What? Why?’ The Head of House was surprised, and paused for a moment. ‘Why do you ask?’

    ‘You’re doing brilliantly — was that enough to make it your life’s work? Did you succeed right away?’

    ‘Hm. Still trying to decide what to do? I wouldn’t mind doing more than just brewing potions.’

    ‘Would you like to teach Defence Against the Dark Arts? Is that why you agreed to help that laughing-stock with the club?’ The professor nodded vaguely and pressed his lips together, trying to suppress a smile. ‘You’re too valuable to the Headmaster. He’ll only give you that cursed position as a last resort.’

    ‘When you say things like that, I sometimes forget you’re a child,’ Snape said, looking at her appraisingly. ‘But then you do something incredibly stupid,’ he added with a wry grin, ‘and I have to remember who I’m dealing with.’

    Steel raised one eyebrow, waiting for her character assessment to continue.

    ‘An irresponsible, naïve terrorist who thinks she’s cleverer than everyone else.’ With a silent flick of his wand, the professor shattered her shield into shards. Susan raised her hands, readying herself to cast another.

    ‘I give up. You’ve caught me, and I’m still a long way from catching up with you,’ she smiled sadly, completely unable to imagine how to bridge that gulf in experience and knowledge. ‘But I really just wanted to talk. Did you not answer my questions because you didn’t want to? Or because you thought I wasn’t serious about training?’

    ‘I was a bit like you at school. My first friends were my mother’s old textbooks. I was proud of her and wanted to be as good as she was. I wanted to achieve something. I also invented new potions and spells — it came quite easily. But in the pursuit of ambitious goals, I lost too much.’

    The revelations ended there, and Susie was left fending off wave after wave of silent spells. “After my monstrous attack at the club, it’s only fair,” she thought, weaving between the trees.

    Returning to her room, she removed the charm from her clothes and lay down across the bed. For the first time in all her morning rewinds, she didn’t want to go to breakfast. She felt strangely uneasy and heavy — perhaps she was ill without her hat?

    After breakfast, the Reading Lady appeared in her frame on the nightstand.

    ‘Are you all right? Fred and George came to me in some concern, saying you’d missed the whole of breakfast.’

    ‘I’m not all right, but it’s not a Slytherin nightmare. I think I’ll go to Madam Pomfrey and ask if she has any Pepper Potions left from the autumn. Please give them my apologies.’

    In the hospital wing, she came across Granger, who had been missing since Christmas. The girl hadn’t managed to close her curtain.

    ‘I thought you were brewing everything correctly,’ Susie whispered to the girl with the cat-like whiskers.

    ‘I mixed up the hair,’ Hermione said, covering her face with her clawed hands.

    ‘The cats are cute,’ Susan tried to console her, but realised she was only making things worse and quickly added, ‘And the treatment seems to be working.’

    Madam Pomfrey entered the ward and clasped her hands.

    ‘You’re glowing! Your cheeks are so red. And you’ve no appetite. Do you have a cold, perhaps? Does your throat hurt?’

    ‘I’m not sure, just feeling weak.’

    Steam billowing from her ears, Steel returned to her room, crawled under the covers, and pulled out the complete Potions curriculum for a spot of light reading. A while later, picking at her lunch with her fork, she wasn’t sure it was merely a cold. However poorly she felt, a new term began tomorrow. That same month, she had a match against Slytherin on new brooms. She couldn’t afford to let her guard down.

***

    Susan couldn’t understand why she felt so uncertain and uneasy before the match. She tried to find rational explanations, and plenty came to mind. But none of them made her feel any better.

    ‘Hey, Steel, you look even worse than Chang,’ Davis remarked. ‘Are you all right?’

    ‘I feel really strange and unsure, but I can manage. I’ve no other choice.’

    ‘Unsure? You? Were you replaced?’ Page asked. ‘Did you really think you didn’t do enough last time?’ He tapped her on the shoulder. ‘You can’t be in several places at once. Relax — it’s a game.’

    Sue nodded, and they walked out onto the pitch. She immediately spotted the twins taking bets. There were quite a few teachers in the stands — even the Headmaster. Sweat broke out on her brow, and the bat nearly slipped from her hand. Fortunately, her gloves held it firm. The Slytherin Beaters gave her the ‘prepare to die’ gesture — it steeled her, and she grinned predatorily. She winked at Malfoy, and he went even paler. He’d probably taken a beating last time, but she had no intention of feeling sorry for him, nor of giving him the chance to redeem himself.

    From the very first minutes, it was clear that the Slytherins had decided to punish the Bludger Queen with some truly brutal play. Some Bludgers had to be allowed through, as deflecting them head-on would have been suicidal. For the first time, she had to use every ounce of speed and manoeuvrability her broom afforded. Her head pounded as another Bludger came hurtling at her. She calculated the angle and force, and struck it straight into Draco’s path. Pain shot through her arm at the impact, and she screamed. Her vision blurred, her whole body was drenched in sweat, and she began to shake. She dropped the bat from her right hand and snatched it up with her left. Malfoy didn’t even have time to cry out — he was already being carried off the pitch. After that, tactics changed: they stopped targeting her quite so ruthlessly, and she switched to protecting Grant and Cho. That was all she could manage with her weakened dominant hand. For now, they were behind, and their only hope was the Snitch.

    When they won 150–100, Susan burst into tears and fell from her broom to her knees. She didn’t have the strength to walk to the hospital wing. Pain burned through her body, dulled only by the joy of victory and the relief of having endured it. Seeing the Head of Slytherin standing before her, she asked fearfully,

    ‘What’s wrong with him?’

    ‘He got off more lightly than you. Episkey.’

    Susie opened her mouth in a silent scream as her shoulder reset itself and she began gasping for breath. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the Seeker asking Lockhart for an autograph to keep him occupied, then the Keeper came to join her. If she hadn’t already been crying, she would have burst into tears again, filled with gratitude for her team. She had to leave quickly. She looked up at her saviour, but he was already scolding the Slytherin side for their disastrous tactics. Jason helped her up.

    ‘If I were you, I’d still go to the hospital. Shall I walk you there?’

    ‘First I want to take off my uniform, but I think I’ll take your advice.’

    Beneath her kit, she had a huge bruise across both back and chest, so she accepted Cho’s help. “What if I’d been the only girl? Brr.”

    ‘You saved us again.’

    ‘Today you also saved us from repeating the match with Hufflepuff in reverse. And me from the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor. Thank you so much, Cho. And for your help now, too.’

    Sue had time to reflect on how she hadn’t congratulated the team properly last time, nor at Christmas, and now she was preparing to go to the infirmary instead. It looked as though she’d have to sit with them at dinner. She sighed to herself about the unnecessary fuss from fans, but there was no escaping it. 

    As she’d hoped, the twins were waiting for her on the field with her winnings.

    ‘Long live the Bludger Queen!’

    ‘To stay healthy, I first need to reach the infirmary, my loyal subjects,’ she said, pointing with her left hand and conjuring the illusion of triumphal trumpets and flags in the brothers’ hands.

    ‘My Queen, why are the flags purple?’ George asked, exchanging glances with Fred.

    ‘In honour of my bruises. It’s also the royal colour. What did you think?’

    The boys burst out laughing and said nothing. Susan, deeply embarrassed, dismissed the decorations.

    ‘You always leave something out.’

    ‘Does it hurt much?’ Fred changed the subject.

    ‘Yes. It makes me nervous that someone’s coming from the right, to be honest.’

    ‘Orders received — we’ll be extremely protective!’

    Madam Pomfrey was indignant, as always — this time because of the cruel sport inflicted on children.

    ‘What, were they avenging me?’ Malfoy, who had already come to, asked angrily.

     ‘Sorry, but no. Instant karma. Between saving my hand and getting rid of the Seeker, I chose the latter. The score was 150 to 100.’

    They treated her sprain with ointment, and she emerged from behind the screen. The boy still looked displeased.

    ‘Come on, don’t sulk. You know me — if I hadn’t been pelted with Bludgers, I might not have had such a good chance. Now your team knows better. And you also know, personally, that you can always reason with me.’ She tossed and caught a Sickle in her left hand. ‘Let’s go to dinner, if you’ve already been revived.’

    Draco looked at her suspiciously.

    ‘What is it? The match is over — I won’t touch you.’

    ‘Afraid to walk the corridors on your own?’ Malfoy quipped.

    ‘Not at all. My best friends are the servants of the Dark Lord Potter,’ she laughed. ‘What’s wrong with your face, Draco? Do you believe those crazy rumours? Jealous you’re not a Parselmouth yourself?’

    Still giggling, she took his right hand and led him to dinner.

    ‘Thank you so much for patching us up, Madam Pomfrey!’

***

    If it hadn’t been for the strangeness with her body — alternately hot and cold, aching, and then light and airy — the start of the semester would have been wonderful.

    Most importantly, she had been invited back to the Medicinal Potions Club with Draco. At one point, she wondered why there weren’t any students from other years — was it really so uninteresting? However, it wasn’t the most compelling of thoughts, and she pushed it to the back of her mind, as always, struggling not to burst into song during the monotony of her work.

    Other extracurricular activities continued, leaving her with almost no time for her own research, but she didn’t mind. For one thing, some of them overlapped with her interests; for another, she hadn’t the time to add new items to her endlessly expanding list anyway.

    As the atmosphere thawed after the attacks ceased, Susan tried not to fly, thinking that perhaps she might at least see how the potion was being brewed for the children who had fallen under the basilisk’s indirect gaze.

    At breakfast on 14 February, she barely managed not to burst out laughing in front of two familiar Heads of House. “I should like to send valentines as well — it’s a pity it’s impossible.”

    But she did not remain downcast for long. Instead, she decided to take advantage of a fool’s invitation and once again try her luck, playing with fire.

    ‘Professor Snape. I… I realise you don’t wish to be involved in this, but I have a question about love potions,’ the girl said, following the Head of House.

    ‘Oh no,’ Severus sighed. ‘Do not try my patience, or I shall stop inviting you to prepare ingredients. Do you want to forfeit my help over a single question?’

    Sue pulled her most innocent face, suppressing the numb fear.

    ‘Is your pyrotechnic knowledge not enough for you to create chaos at school already? Do you understand that such potions are, on the one hand, very dangerous and, on the other, quite useless for their supposed purpose?’

    ‘I was only wondering whether they might be put to some other use — something useful.’

    ‘You mean?’

    ‘For example, could Amortentia be used as a perfume? Wouldn’t that be dangerous? Theoretically — no, provided it isn’t drunk — everything ought to be safe, shouldn’t it? Especially if one leaves out the final ingredient. That way it becomes something very light, almost the weightless effect of Gregory’s Unctuous Unction. Even realising what is happening, the person probably wouldn’t be able to resist what appeals to them in any case. Scents do strongly affect people’s emotions. And one’s favourite scent would naturally attract.’

    ‘It would be far too expensive,’ the teacher mused. ‘But stop! Let me ask again. Why do you want to know this?’

    ‘Theoretical research? Besides, if it’s costly, that’s not a problem. There are people who buy seven of the newest brooms just for school use. So you think it might work?’

    ‘Not a word of this to anyone, especially not the twins, is that clear, Miss Steel? Keep your mad notions until after you graduate! Merlin’s beard, you’re only in your second year! What on earth will you come up with in your seventh?’

    ‘Alright,’ Susan drooped. ‘I don’t know why you react like this every time, but I won’t tell anyone.’

    ‘Because you’re reckless, dangerous, and too fond of experimenting. And I’ve no idea how I’m supposed to deal with it at once.’

    ‘Yes, the Headmaster and my Head of House are certainly less careful with me,’ Sue sighed. ‘Thank you for the advice, Professor.’

    ‘Are you going to torment Filius now?’ She nodded in response. ‘Well, at least there’s some justice in the world,’ he smiled wryly.

    But she didn’t manage to speak to Professor Flitwick alone. He was surrounded mostly by girls and had to give an impromptu lecture. Susan summarised her thoughts by dictating them to her self-writing quill, lost in reflection. “Am I the only one who insists on plaguing Professor Snape with idiotic questions? There’s a whole crowd of them here.”

    She opened her personal diary and jotted down her idea about Amortentia with the note: “not to be used at school”.

Chapter Text

    Unfortunately, this good fortune didn’t last long. In early March, another double attack occurred, and all the fun was over.

    Students were now escorted to lessons, and all extracurricular activities were cancelled. Albus Dumbledore had been suspended from his post. “What was he thinking? Alchemy lessons are on hold now as well.”

    Instead of Quidditch, Susan began leading morning exercise sessions for everyone in the common room.

    In the evenings after lessons, she mostly buried herself in Muggle textbooks, preparing for exams and hoping to find yet another interesting link between magic and science.

    On Tuesday, as she left Potions, she walked as close as possible to the professor and created a small sphere of silence. Pretending to scratch her nose, she murmured:

    ‘Between lessons, you escort students, and after lessons, you patrol the corridors.’

    ‘And?’

    ‘Let me keep helping you with ingredients.’

    They walked in silence for a while, and Susan strained considerably to maintain the spell. She lowered her head and covered her mouth again, feigning thoughtfulness.

    ‘The Headmaster probably wants someone very specific to deal with the monster, and it isn’t me. It won’t touch me. All I can do in this situation is help you.’

    ‘What do you know?’

    ‘And you?’

    She couldn’t hold the spell any longer, and sound came rushing back from all directions.

    ‘Is everyone here?’ He counted the students. ‘Good,’ the Head of Slytherin said with a nod.

    A short time later, she appeared in the office; the only ingredients lay on the teacher’s desk. Severus Snape waved her in, preparing to leave as soon as he had worked out what was going on.

    ‘I’m very curious,’ the girl said in a hushed voice, not breaking the Disillusionment Charm, ‘how much of this he didn’t tell you. Nothing? As far as I understand, the plan is for Potter to kill the basilisk himself, entering the Chamber of Secrets from the second-floor lavatory using Parseltongue. Fawkes will help him, so he’ll survive.’

    ‘How long have you known this?’

    ‘Long enough to do it myself. But then the pawn wouldn’t reach the end of the board and become a queen. As far as I understand, that’s the Headmaster’s main trump card in the coming war.’

    ‘And what do you think about that?’

    ‘Well…’ She partially lifted the Disillusionment from her smile, transforming herself into the Cheshire Cat. ‘I think I’d like you to consider whether we can harvest the ingredients from the ancient basilisk without Ministry interference. Ask the Headmaster about it when you have the chance.’

    ‘And how—’

    ‘I know Parseltongue.’

    ‘Why would you want that?’

    ‘I’m hoping to earn a few unwanted scraps for my work. It’s not every day one gets the chance to handle something that rare,’ she said, dropping her Alice-like demeanour and setting to work.

    After standing thoughtfully by the door, the Head of Slytherin went off about his business. Susan surrounded herself with a stationary circle of silence and began to sing. It was a shame technology didn’t work properly in places like this. She missed music terribly. “By the way, should I work out why magic interacts with electricity at all?”.

    When the Potions Master returned to his office, the work was finished, perfectly folded and sorted. A small note read: “I can do more”.

***

    In the middle of the month, Sue began to ponder what to give the twins. She also realised she didn’t know Luna’s or the teachers’ birthdays, nor even Helena’s, come to think of it. “Scarves, a book from the Restricted Section, pillows… what might they like? Something funny? Something for Quidditch, which won’t be until the end of the year? Definitely not. Sweets? Firework powder? Firework boxes to sell? An interesting idea, but it seems too early; they still have three years left. Burst into the house-elves’ kitchen and bake biscuits — if I’m the one to cook them? Oh…” She sighed heavily, really wanting to please and cheer them up. Even though they were joking around as always and looked cheerful, it was unlikely they were coping well with what was happening — certainly not after Hermione ended up in the hospital wing.

    “And how am I supposed to help Potter if I can’t even think of a gift for my friends? How would I kill a giant snake? All I know is how to boast, but in reality…” Sue tried not to cry. “If Granger doesn’t wake up before the exams, I need to get less than 100 out of 100.”

    The gloomy mood didn’t dissipate overnight. Even the increased workload on Tuesday brought her no joy. “He only listens to me when it suits him,” Steel thought angrily. “Although why did I ever imagine it could be otherwise?”

    She wanted to groan aloud in frustration and uncertainty, but she was too lazy to cast a silencing charm. So she concentrated on processing the ingredients.

    After finishing the work and carefully folding everything away, she asked her ring, “How will Potter kill the Basilisk?” It revealed a glowing sword, which the boy was drawing out of a Sorting hat. “So that’s why Godric needed a dimensional pocket! To smuggle weapons into parties! … Wait. What if I made magician’s hats for the pals with pockets inside? I could put beans, cards, white rabbits in them. Would that be fun? How do I even make the hats? What are they made of?”

    Disillusioned, she ducked under her canopy and ran to the library. “It’s a good thing Hermione’s in the hospital. I can’t imagine what she’d be doing under the present circumstances without a library in her tower.”

    She had to bend a couple more rules to send off an order for supplies and sweets, but there was no time to waste. Receiving the parcels at one of the breakfast tables, she hurried away in disguise to the Room of Requirement. Thanks to the restrictions, brothers never turned up. 

    By the end of the month, she had produced two top hats that doubled as bags. Each contained a box of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans, a Chocolate Frog, a rabbit transfigured from a small wooden figurine, an illusion of magpies flying out of the hat (if you touched the circle on the lining) carrying away gold coins, and a small card shaped like a magician’s wand, inside which was simply written: “Happy Birthday! 93 from Sue.”

    On the morning of the first, having shrunk the hats, she sent Stapledon with them. The rabbits and magpie illusions caused quite a stir at breakfast, but no one seemed to mind, not even the usually stern Professor McGonagall. After inspecting the magical top hats, Fred and George donned them and wore them all day, treating everyone to Bertie Bott’s beans of every flavour. Susan watched Lee Jordan receive three revolting ones in a row and tried not to burst out laughing.

***

    A couple of weeks later, when she came down to breakfast, she was so startled by the confetti poppers going off on both sides that she squealed and threw up a magic shield without a wand. Some of the Ravenclaws around her jumped as well and hurried towards the table. Lee Jordan blocked her path and dropped to one knee, holding out a Quidditch book with a tiara much like the one she had seen on busts of Rowena Ravenclaw.

    ‘Today we welcome the Bludger Queen!’ the boy proclaimed in his best commentator’s voice.

    ‘Long live the Bludger Queen,’ said Fred and George, saluting with their top hats and releasing illusionary Bludgers.

    Watching the phantoms whirl about, she smiled, then noticed Professor McGonagall rise as if to scold the boys, though she made no move to speak. Sue looked at the trio with a mixture of bewilderment and amusement. In such dark times, only they could stage such a performance.

    Fred took a step towards her.

    ‘Allow me, my queen,’ he said, placing the tiara on her head.

    ‘Happy birthday, Susan,’ George added, handing her a small parcel tied with a white bow.

    ‘Happy birthday,’ Lee echoed with a grin, stepping back.

    ‘Th… th… thank you,’ Susie stammered, bursting into tears from sheer surprise and overwhelming emotion.

    ‘She s… s… speaks Parseltongue,’ Jordan couldn’t resist adding.

    And she burst out laughing, hugging first the twins and then him.

    ‘Thank you, all of you — you certainly know how to put on a show.’

    George winked at her, and the boys escorted her to the table, where her classmates and acquaintances, having worked it out, also began offering their congratulations. Professor McGonagall said nothing. “Busy with other thoughts, or indulgent towards the little joys of her students?”.

    The owl post was not as surprising as the confetti, though there were far more owls than she had expected. After tucking the presents into her bag, she hurried off to Herbology with Professor Sprout. Only afterwards did she have the chance to unwrap her gifts.

    A picture of a Nargle from Lovegood. “I should ask when her birthday is”. A card with a broomstick signed by the entire Quidditch team. “I hope they invite me to sign the cards next time”. A small card from her mother, with a little bag attached. “Grandma’s crystal beads”, the note explained. Susie pulled out a sparkling necklace. “So beautiful… why don’t I remember Grandma wearing them? Perhaps they can be enchanted too?” She tried them on and conjured a hand mirror.

    ‘Another package, and still not a single book — disgusting,’ she muttered. Though perhaps she had spoken too soon.

    Mr Ollivander’s letter and card included a small catalogue of the most popular wand woods, complete with samples. Besides being striking, the gift itself smelled wonderful. “Finally — something resembling a book!” A volume on the use of dragon’s blood in alchemy, with congratulations and good wishes written on the flyleaf.

    The package from George contained Bruise Removal Paste, made by the twins. And the souvenir crown turned out to be enchanted with protective spells. Susan could hardly imagine walking about in a crown without dying of embarrassment, but the idea was on par with her humorous yet practical top hats. “They certainly got the better of me there”. Even so, she wore it for half the day, though it was too dangerous to go to Defence in it.

   Another very small book came from Professor Flitwick — a pocket guide to the types of magic. Sounds perfect for systematising knowledge! Sue resisted the urge to open it at once.

    The last package was the smallest: unmarked, wrapped in plain paper. Inside was a tiny vial. Steel recognised it at once as powdered unicorn horn. How much would a portion like that cost? Enough to strengthen the enchantment of a small, or even a medium, item… or to make several doses of antidote.

    She thought she heard a rattling sound, then realised it was only the thumping of her own heart. She folded her gifts away, discarding the wrappings and envelopes except for the white ribbon. Her cheeks were still burning, and she suddenly lost the desire to read. She lay down on her pillow, pulled the covers over her head, and buried her nose among the wood samples.

   ‘Staply, please wake me before dinner,’ she told her familiar, and closed her eyes.

***

    She had a dream after which she wanted to pop into the office after lunch wearing her crown, tell the two Ladies about her coronation, and perhaps discreetly learn the sad fate of the real diadem. And about birthdays: at lunch, she planned to ask all the students she was interested in. Then she’d ask Helena and the portrait whether she ought to add a crown on a portrait — a splendid joke. Susie giggled and went off to the meeting.

    The plan worked like clockwork — the birthday information were all set (only the teachers remained), her peculiar friends laughed at the coronation, and the Grey Lady herself recounted the tragic adventures of the real diadem, without even losing heart, which was new for her. It seemed that regularly reading books with an engaging companion had had a beneficial effect on her. However, despite her good mood, Helena said something Susan hadn’t expected to hear:

    ‘I want you to destroy it.’

    ‘I… I haven’t studied artefact destruction,’ the girl managed to reply. ‘Are you sure you don’t just want to have the curses removed from it?’

    The Ravenclaw ghost shook her head.

    ‘Very well, we’ll return to this matter when I’ve read up on the subject. For now, I’d rather leave mine with you. I’m afraid Professor Lockhart wouldn’t be able to handle having royalty in his classes.’

    Sue left the gift next to the framed cards on the desk, updating the Transfiguration on them. However, she couldn’t shake off Lockhart’s attention. He also put on a show, giving her an autograph on a separate gold card and signing all the ‘textbooks.’ Still, it seemed her classmates didn’t mind this much shortening of the lesson. “I’m practising my polite smile”, Steel chanted silently.

    ‘You smiled as if you were imagining skinning him alive,’ a classmate whispered to her.

    ‘So that’s what I should have imagined, to make me feel better! Thanks for the idea,’ Susie smiled.

    “Do I really look this pathetic when I do yet another stupid thing Professor Snape thinks? Then it’s a wonder he tolerates me at all”.

    She found Dumbledore and Flitwick’s birthdays in open sources, but Professor Snape was more difficult. After leaving a note after a lab assignment, “I don’t know your birthday”, she received the reply the next time: “Good”. “That’s totally unfair! Well, I’ll just give you two Christmas presents then, heh-heh”. This thought cheered her a little, but Susan couldn’t explain why she had started receiving unmarked gifts from someone who seemed to find her hard to digest. The only logical explanation was that she had started it, and it was politeness. A good explanation, but it didn’t help with the other incident involving the twins’ mother, who had sent a sweater without declaring war. In Susan Steel’s hierarchy of fears, Molly Weasley occupied a solid place, surpassing even the fear of impassable confined spaces and of Dementors crawling out of eyes.

    At the end of May, exams were announced for June. All the Ravenclaws were in a panic, the tower library became completely packed, and it was simply impossible to stay there. So Sue continued drawing or studying for her Muggle exams, hoping that skipping revisions would prevent her from getting a perfect score.

***

    Three days before the first exam, the mandrakes were announced ready. Susan nearly jumped out of her seat. She was desperate to see the tincture. She glanced at the Head of Slytherin and gave him her best puppy-dog eyes. The professor’s cheek twitched, he looked away, and joined in the applause with the other teachers. Common sense didn’t stop her from turning up in his office that evening, after Ginny was reported missing.

    ‘Shouldn’t you be packing?’ The low, cold voice was menacing.

    ‘All my things are in my trunk or bag. I even put on Muggle clothes to take the train in the morning — if I need to, of course.’ She rolled up her sleeves and held out a box of liquorice, taking one herself. ‘Albus Dumbledore’s Invigorating Snaps, help yourself.’ The professor accepted the sweet and sat down on the edge of the table.

    ‘How do you begin preparing the base for the Mandrake Restorative Draught?’

    It seemed the Potions Master had decided to hand over all the work to her personally, since she’d volunteered. Once the preparation was complete, they set off toward the infirmary, with Sue carrying the cauldron. After a few steps, she realised this wouldn’t work and levitated it after him, preventing the liquid from sloshing with her footsteps. To the professor’s disapproving look, she replied, 

    ‘Wizards can levitate. No one will think I’m actually flying.’

    Madam Pomfrey was already waiting in the hospital wing, and a minute later Professor Sprout appeared. She smiled.

    ‘Are you assisting today, Miss Steel? Here, please hold this.’

    For the first time, following Professor Sprout’s orders wasn’t a burden — perhaps because she no longer had to tend to the plants. Once the potion had been prepared, Madam Pomfrey began measuring it out and administering it to the patients. Fortunately, most of them were simply staring in surprise or horror. Susie pulled out a notebook and began taking notes. Then she decanted the remainder into vials in case it was needed again.

    She nearly dropped a full vial when Mr and Mrs Weasley entered with their tearful daughter. After all, there was a target on the back of her sweater — she couldn’t hide from it now. Madam Pomfrey began examining the girl. Adjusting her spectacles, Susan looked at her too.

    ‘See something?’ Severus Snape asked quietly.

    ‘Yes. Why didn’t I notice before?’ She handed the replica glasses to the professor.

    ‘Because they’re barely visible.’

    ‘I need to work on the contrast,’ Sue sighed, already thinking of leaving with the cauldron.

    ‘Susan? Hello, Severus,’ he nodded. Mr Weasley approached and shook his hand.

    ‘Hello, Mrs Weasley, Mr Weasley,’ she turned and forced a smile. ‘Thank you for your New Year’s gift.’

    ‘I’ve heard so much about you!’

    ‘From a girl who was reluctant to talk about her own adventures all year, I suppose? Not a very reliable narrator,’ the Ravenclaw smiled weakly.

    ‘You weren’t one of the victims, were you?’ Mr Weasley asked.

    ‘No, I assisted with the potion,’ the girl nodded at the cauldron in her hands, feeling extremely awkward.

    ‘Are you training a replacement for yourself?’

    ‘Miss Steel is interested in many areas of magic, Arthur. I’m merely taking advantage of a fortunate opportunity.’

    “I’ll bet you a hundred Galleons he doesn’t really think so!”. The door opened, and Ron brought in an even more foolish-looking Lockhart.

    ‘It’s none of my business, but I spend a lot of time with Mr Ollivander, and I wanted to advise you to buy a new wand for your youngest son,’ Susie said. ‘It was nice meeting you.’

    She left the room before she could even draw breath, when she heard McGonagall’s voice.

    ‘Miss Steel, what are you doing here? Oh, are you finished already, Severus? Everyone’s safe?’ He nodded.

    Susan opened her mouth to lie about being in detention, but it didn’t seem to matter.

    ‘Dumbledore has declared a feast this very moment! In honour of Salazar’s deliverance from the horror. Please convey this to everyone,’ she said, and darted towards the victims.

    The Ravenclaw looked at the cauldron in her hands.

    ‘A night-time feast? That’s something new.’

    ‘Take this yourself. I’ll go wake the prefects.’

    She disappeared from sight and reached his office in a flash, washed the cauldron, and put it back. She walked to the Great Hall and stopped at the clock with the house pointglasses. “There’s several times more here than I thought!”.