Sparrow stood at the great floor-length bay window that formed one side of the tea nook beneath the balcony.

It was a majestic morning, as she could see. Sunlight breaking in beams through the rolling clouds, above the windswept mountains. There were few lovely mornings up here in the Highlands, but plenty of majestic ones at this time of year, when the hard rains of winter were abating, and the wild winds of spring had not yet arrived as heralds of the hard sun of summer.

When the world was brightening, but did not yet bake –

When it was still too cold for Lethifolds.

Sparrow shivered, though it was well warm enough in Hufflepuff house. There were some things in this world that had no warmth at all. Sparrow had met one, long ago.

She did not have either of her girls beside her to warm her up, in this moment. She had been out the door and down the stairs before either of them had left the bed, so eager was she to start this day of rest – a day she would figure out how to fill with anything useful she could think of. She was free to avoid academic work for the day, so of course she could work on her myriad other priorities without worry. Practicing the MSL, practicing the Patronus – she’d thought about getting the ghosts to carry messages, hadn’t she? That was another task. She could make a list. She put "making a list" on her mental to-do list.

There was a cough behind her, and her thoughts of the day’s activities came to an abrupt halt. She turned. There over her loomed the lanky form of a girl she’d only occasionally interacted with – Cleo Sassoon. A witch of tawny skin and dark ringlets, one whose eyes seemed ever at ease with the world. And yet today, her face was apologetic – nervous, even.

Sparrow raised her eyebrows, as to invite Cleo to speak. Cleo cleared her throat. "I was just wondering if we might take tea together this morning? If you’re not busy."

"Well now," said Sparrow, standing tall and proud. "Too busy for tea? My dear Miss Sassoon, are we not British? Mayhap the Royal Government is a rump state, mayhap mere anarchy is loosed upon the world, and all the King’s majesty lays in ruin, yet still Britain endures, still we are patriotic, for at the last, there is one thing we never shall eschew, and that is tea!" She gave a snappy salute.

Cleo tittered behind her hand. "Teatime is more important than the King, is that right?"

"Well," said Sparrow, "tea is here and the King isn’t. So."

"I’ll just put the kettle on then," said Cleo. She stepped through a door into one of the two kitchenettes that framed the nook to either side.

Getting the kettle on could take about five seconds with magic, but then, this was Tea, and there was a ritual to these things. Which was why the kitchenettes with their stovetops even existed, really; if it was possible to boil water with magic then who even needed a stove? It was for the feeling, and taking Tea was so much about the feeling. It was for slowing down. Hufflepuff house understood that, well enough, better than the other houses. This was the only common room with kitchenettes.

So Sparrow sat herself down at the table and waited, until Cleo came out and sat at the little table, across from her. Sparrow coughed. "Pleasure to make your acquaintance with time on our hands, Madame Sassoon. Or, I should say mademoiselle."

Cleo sighed. "Oh, yes. It may be Madame someday, but first Herbert will actually have to gather up his courage and actually ask me for my hand. You know, Miss Jones, I very much wish I had what you and your girls had. You three have no trouble expressing your affections."

As if on cue, there was a small thump of air, and then Jocasta’s arms were over Sparrow’s shoulders, and Jocasta was kissing Sparrow all over her cheek. Sparrow giggled, finding herself able to breathe easier now that Jo was here with her.

When Jocasta finally let up, Sparrow turned to meet her mirthful gaze. "Were you waiting in the wings for that?"

Jocasta laughed. "You might say my wings are always waiting. Ah, but you, my little lovely, you did not wait for me this morning! You, you early bird, you did not even wish to come back to bed and snuggle your dear ones! Which meant I didn’t have a chance to do your diagnostic. Hold still."

Sparrow rolled her eyes as Jocasta turned her chair around – with her wand, which was already in her hand it seemed – and cast the cone of green light over Sparrow’s sternum. Once again, that faint tingling, just a little unpleasant. As Jocasta dismissed the spell, Sparrow asked, "Well? Anything looking unsettling?"

"Nothing more than what I’ve already seen," said Jocasta, frowning. "Who knows what the future will hold though."

"Professor Clearwater," said Sparrow. "Where she’s gone though, I don’t know. We should have heard from her."

"And where shall I go?" said Jocasta. "Well, as I said, my wings are always waiting. Farewell, my lovely!" There was a small thump of air, and then a faint buzzing as Jocasta vanished, leaving Sparrow with her arm outstretched, just missing the chance to kiss her girl back.

Disappointed, she sighed and scooted her chair back around to the table. "Alright. Where were we?"

"The tea," said Cleo. There was a faint whistling from the kitchenette. "Ah, excuse me." She sprang to her feet and vanished through the door.

She was in there for a fair bit longer than one might expect. Sparrow was wondering what might be taking her, when Cleo came out with a tray of a full tea service – even jam and biscuits and clotted cream – and set it upon the table. "I wasn’t sure what you liked," said Cleo, "so I got everything."

"Full tea service for the morning!" said Sparrow. "Good heavens, that’s an afternoon thing. But thank you." She poured herself a steaming cup, and sipped it gently. "Ah, good stuff. You know your tea, I see."

"You...take your tea with nothing?" said Cleo, looking confused, and, if anything, annoyed.

"I like my tea black," said Sparrow. "The way my girls like me." She grinned.

"They do indeed," said Cleo, a little wistful. "They do indeed."

Sparrow sipped her tea again. Cleo hadn’t poured herself a cup yet. "I must say, mademoiselle, this is most unexpected. We haven’t ever spoken much, and yet, here you are, up as early as me, taking tea with me! What brings you to seek my company?"

"It’s easier these days," said Cleo, "isn’t it? You seem to have come down off your high horse lately."

"My loved ones helped me climb down," said Sparrow.

"Yes," said Cleo. "About that…I...Sparrow, I need your reassurance, and perhaps your advice."

"Yes? Step into my office."

Cleo’s eyes were downcast. "It’s just…" She looked up at Sparrow, her expression pleading. "I’m scared."

Sparrow set her teacup and saucer down on the table with an audible clink. "What scares you? Who is threatening you? Where are they?"

Cleo suddenly looked nervous. "I…" her breath seemed to catch for a second, then she composed herself. "I honestly don’t know. That’s the entire problem. All those howlers, I’ve never seen so many at once, no one ever has, and it’s – it’s all because of what you and your loved ones are getting into."

Sparrow winced. "I did ask if everyone else wanted to be involved."

"And you of course gained everyone else’s assent," said Cleo, "because you’re adorable –"

"Oh, stop."

" – and you had just saved everyone’s skin," continued Cleo, "with a spell effect that was beyond anything anyone had yet seen of you, and this was after you’d gone and danced with everyone and told them they were loved – which I still don’t fully understand – and that particular event was after you just threw your personal time to the wind and started helping anyone who asked, and that was after a dance where you went around and asked literally everyone’s name and apologized to them for some reason, I certainly don’t understand that, and – Sparrow, of course they were going to say yes, everyone at this school adores you."

"Um." Sparrow felt her face growing hot. "Even you?"

Cleo took a deep breath. "Your charm, dear little girl, is difficult to resist."

"Sorry."

Cleo raised an eyebrow. "Sorry for charming people?"

"I’m not – I’m not trying to. I didn’t even know that was what I was doing."

"Do you indeed know what you’re doing, at all?" Cleo looked stern. "Do you know what you’re getting people into?"

"Uh…" Sparrow wilted under Cleo’s stern gaze. "I mean, I’ve got some idea from Percival about the political crap, and I know it’s going to be a delicate operation to bring the Statute of Secrecy doen gently...and I knew there was going to be some kind of violent response, I tried to get the adults to understand, they did listen to me, and yet, I just. Got caught flat-footed like everyone else. Even when I was on my toes."

"Exactly," said Cleo, folding her arms. She hadn’t taken a sip of tea, nor even poured herself a cup.

"But I’ll do my level best to protect everyone –"

"I know," said Cleo. "I know, you always do, that’s your whole thing. But clearly it’s not enough if you can’t think of every angle. You couldn’t possibly think of every angle, you’re fourteen years old, you know how to do all kinds of crazy things but you don’t know how truly ruthless other people can be...you think you can guess at it? You’re a sheltered child. You’re running with a bunch of sheltered children with more skill than sense, and I just –"

"How do you know how ruthless people can be?"

Cleo was brought up short. "What?"

"Cleo." Sparrow leaned forward, fixing her gaze on Cleo. "How exactly do you know how ruthless others can be? How were you taught? What have you seen?"

Cleo looked cagey. "Nothing! Nothing outside of books, I’ve just read enough, alright? And then I got to witness all of those howlers."

Sparrow settled back in her chair. Clearly there was more that Cleo wasn’t telling her, but she decided not to press the issue. "You asked me for reassurance and advice. What kind of advice did you need?"

"I just wanted," said Cleo, "to ask you how you cast that special shield spell of yours."

"Oh!" Sparrow shook her wand out of her sleeve and pointed it at the window, casting forth a disc of glowing translucent gold that hung in the air. "Like this? Let me tell you, I’ve had a metric ton of practice."

"So we have all seen," said Cleo. "But, how? What’s the mental state? What’s your energy flow? Is there a specific wand movement?"

Sparrow thought back to her revelations in the Room of Requirement. "It’s...uh. This is going to sound super sappy."

"Spill."

"The secret ingredient is love."

Cleo raised an eyebrow. "Your shield is a home-cooked meal, is that what you’re saying?"

"No," said Sparrow, "no, I mean, the whole idea is that you’re protecting someone else indefinitely, instead of yourself momentarily. It’s like, you’re standing in defense of someone else, not using the shield spell as a momentary tactic in a personal duel."

"And the love part…"

"If you want the shield to be strong you have to really care about what you’re protecting. Or who."

"I see," said Cleo, settling back in her chair, eyes not on the shield but on Sparrow. "And you, whose shield is proof against anything, anywhere, for seemingly anyone’s sake...you did say you loved us all, The Duel Of Love|back at that huge duel]."

"Um."

"And then at the Valentine’s Day Ball you went around saying we were loved. But it was you, wasn’t it? It’s you who love us."

"I, uh – I didn’t want to put myself front and center there –"

"And then with the whole sign language thing you willingly handed a powerful and unknown form of magic to everyone, sight unseen, no strings attached. Bloody hell, Sparrow. Anyone else would think of keeping all that power for themselves."

"I’ve got too much already," mumbled Sparrow. She picked up her cup again and sipped her tea.

"I should ask how that came about –"

"You shouldn’t," whispered Sparrow. As all the world gained a golden tint. As Sparrow’s tea vibrated in its cup. And as Cleo, eyes wide, scooted her chair back an inch. Sparrow let out a long breath, and the golden tint faded, to be replaced by a lingering blue tint. ⋄⋄SORRY.⋄⋄

"Sparrow, what…" Cleo leaned forward, eyes locked on Sparrow’s, her face written all over with disturbed concern. "What happened to you? What is happening to you?"

⋄⋄ STORIES THAT ARE NOT SAFE TO TELL. I AM SORRY. ALL I CAN TELL YOU IS THAT...WHILE YOU CALL ME A CHILD, I THINK MY CHILDHOOD ENDED WHEN I WAS EIGHT YEARS OLD. I DON’T REALLY KNOW WHAT I AM NOW. ⋄⋄

Cleo continued to stare at Sparrow. "I saw Violet Brown with eyes like that the other day...is this happening to all of your crew? Are you all alright?"

Sparrow chuckled. "Are we? In a weird and ruined world like this, is anyone?"

Cleo reached out and put her hand over Sparrow’s. "Please, Sparrow, if you ever feel the need to talk about anything –"

"Don’t worry about me," said Sparrow, knowing her expression of confidence was a mask. "I’ve got real good people to talk to."

"I should hope so," said Cleo. She rose from her chair, taking up the tea service without taking Sparrow’s cup back. "I should certainly hope so. Good morning to you, dear Sparrow, and good luck." She bustled back into the kitchenette, shutting the door with a clack.

There was a small thump of air, and Jocasta appeared next to Sparrow. She grabbed Sparrow’s cup and took a swig. "Mm, good stuff." She disappeared again.

⋄⋄ HEY, LET ME GIVE YOU A DIRECT KISS INSTEAD OF LEAVING WITH AN INDIRECT ONE. ⋄⋄

Jocasta appeared again, giving Sparrow a kiss on the temple. Before she could disappear, Sparrow grabbed her hand. She looked up into Jocasta’s eyes. "Stay?"

"Oh, I hardly need convincing." Jocasta swung the other chair around beside Sparrow’s, and sat down. "But you certainly look like you need all the company you can get this morning. Was teatime with Cleo not enough?"

As if in response, the kitchenette door swung open again, and Cleo bustled out of it, not even pausing as she gave Sparrow a wave before heading for the stairs.

"Oh," said Sparrow, "I mean, really, could I possibly get enough of you?"

"Sparrow."

"Alright, alright." Sparrow sighed. "Cleo’s real concerned, is all. She feels scared. Like she and the rest of the school got dragged into this entire risky business of ours, and now we’ve got terrorism thrown at us...I don’t know. I wonder if we’ve been arrogant."

Jocasta did not immediately reply, but sat back in her chair, fingers striking her chin, contemplating. Eventually she met Sparrow’s eyes again. "You know we’ve been trying to be cautious and discreet about this entire matter. McGonagall did give us grudging praise for trying to ‘put the brakes’ on our business. It’s true that our ultimate goals are out there – but you did set up the entire animagus business specifically to be able to let the whole thing go if you knew it wasn’t popular. I don’t think you’ve been too arrogant."

"Even at the end of the Valentine’s Day ball where I asked everyone if they wanted all this?"

"That was after the terrorist attack," said Jocasta. "And the consensus seemed to be yes."

Sparrow sighed. "I don’t know. If Hogsmeade hadn’t just been neutralized, if it wasn’t clear we were under siege, I’d agree with you. But...maybe more people will get scared, once the stakes get higher. Maybe they’ll start running away."

"It would be their right," said Jocasta. "We’re all minors. You certainly cannot browbeat them into standing fast, and I would certainly not accept authority from anyone who tried." She had a fierce gleam in her eyes. But her expression softened. "We don’t have to figure this out all at once today, though. We can just relax. Would you like to retire to the couch?"

And so the two of them found themselves on a couch by the empty fireplace, with Sparrow laying her head in Jocasta’s lap, and now and then Jocasta bending down to give Sparrow a little kiss on the lips, the two of them otherwise saying nothing – for in such a moment, there was little to be said.

Until Jill at last appeared at the top of the stairs, descending them slowly, as if relishing the chance to enjoy them at her own pace. She kept the same pace as she made her way to her girlfriends, and for each of them she bent over slowly, leaving a gentle, but slow, lingering kiss on each of their lips.

Sparrow had been a little sleepy – tea tended to do that to her, and Jocasta’s lap was certainly a perfect place to fall asleep. But with Jill’s kiss, now she was wide awake. She sat up, causing Jocasta to pout, and throw her arms around Sparrow. "Come now, love, don’t rush off."

"We certainly don’t have to rush anywhere today," said Jill. "But it looks like Sparrow has a few ideas of what to do."

"Oh I’ve got so many ideas," said Sparrow, rising to her feet. "Practice the Patronus spell, practice making potions, ask the castle portraits and ghosts about Wizarding history –"

Jill rose in turn, and put a hand on Sparrow’s shoulder. "Sparrow. For Heaven’s sake, this is a day of rest."

"Right," said Sparrow. "So I thought we could do fun stuff to develop our skills, instead of just cramming like we do most days."

"She means actual rest," said Jocasta.

"But –"

"Which I agree is boring," said Jocasta. "But, if it is to loaf with you two, well, we do need our rest for once, do we not?"

"Loafing the whole day," said Jill. "I’m game."

"Or," said Jocasta, "we could wander the way I do."

"How’s that then?" said Sparrow.

"You call this relaxing?" shouted Sparrow in the high wind.

Granted, standing with one’s feet stuck to the steep slope of the roof of the Great Tower wasn’t necessarily a relaxing situation, but it wasn’t the least bit boring. ≠≠≠≠ IT’S A FINE WAY TO SPEND A DAY, I DARESAY. ≠≠≠≠

AND IT’S A COMPROMISE. WE’RE LEARNING SOMETHING BUT IT’S FUN. • Jocasta scampered up past Iphis with her feet alone, where Iphis was still using his hands and feet together. She’d suggested this modified wall-crawling spell. Clearly she’d had a decent amount of practice with it.

††††† YOU’RE JUST LUCKY WE ALL MANAGED TO LEARN THIS ONE QUICKLY, OTHERWISE WE’D HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT CATCHING SOMEONE. ††††† Jill was standing with her feet perched near the gutter – not that such a thin lip of stone would be certain to hold her weight, but it would definitely stop her long enough for someone to think of something.

⋄⋄ COULD BE ME, EVEN IF I’VE GOT THIS SPELL RIGHT. ⋄⋄

∫∫∫∫∫∫ OH, I’M SURE YOU’LL TAKE WING AND FLY SOMEDAY. ∫∫∫∫∫∫

There below the rest of them was a figure coming rapidly into view as they climbed – a figure of long, braided orange hair, ears bedecked in earrings, fingers glittering with rings, and draped in a school uniform cloak that had been so thoroughly embroidered with swirling patterns and flowers that Sparrow could barely see its original outer color. Not entirely practical for climbing, but then, it contributed to an appearance that seemed to be approaching territory that would astonish even a Wizard. ⋄⋄ YOU REALLY HAVE BUILT YOURSELF, MY FRIEND. ⋄⋄

∫∫∫∫∫∫ WELL NOW, ABOUT THAT, LET’S GET TO THAT MATTER SHALL WE? ∫∫∫∫∫∫ Wren scampered up past Jill, up past Sparrow, past Iphis, past Jocasta even, heading right to the flagpole at the top, and everyone else was left to scramble after, even Jill.

Up this high, as Sparrow looked out over the roofs, Sparrow could see just how labyrinthine the entire complex was. Halls of roofs extending this way and that, courtyards by the score, more towers than you could shake a stick at – even if the interior hadn’t magically swapped rooms daily, it would have been an utterly daunting place for any intruder to navigate. How on earth had old Argus managed to clean it all without magic, back in the day? Did he even manage it? Now that Sparrow thought about it, she wondered if his job was ultimately a sinecure. Maybe old Dumbledore wanted to be really nice to Argus and keep him safe. Although, based on what Sparrow had read of the Wizarding War, it was more likely he wanted to keep Argus close for some kind of espionage reason. It certainly hadn’t been a nice thing to stick a squib in a castle full of a way of life that he couldn’t access.

Such as, for example, riding a broom. There was the Gryffindor quidditch team out above the pitch, far away, getting ready for the spring matches. She waved to them, really just as a joke, they were so tiny in the distance – but Sparrow saw one of those tiny people pause in midair, as if watching her.

Goodness knew the distinct Visibility of her friends wouldn’t do them any favors if they wanted to be hiding up here. Sparrow was about to suggest they all shimmy around to the far side of the tower – but Wren had reached the peak already, so there was nothing for it. ⋄⋄RIGHT THEN, WHAT’S THE MATTER AT HAND?⋄⋄As if she didn’t know. But it was Wren’s to reveal, and clearly the moment was now.

Wren’s long orange braid floating in the wind, cloak billowing, rings gleaming, earrings shimmering – it was a pose and perch from which to proclaim anything to all the world. ∫∫∫∫∫∫ HERE I TAKE WING, MY FRIENDS. THUS FORTH SHALL MY NAME BE WREN. ∫∫∫∫∫∫

Wild cheering and whooping from all her friends, and a beatific smile on the face of Iphis.

Save Jocasta, who, while also grinning, had one objection. • YOU’RE STEALING MY GIRLFRIEND’S BIT, BIRDY BOY.

Wren grinned down at Jocasta, wild-eyed. ∫∫∫∫∫∫ BOY NOTHING! ∫∫∫∫∫∫

BIRDY GIRL?

∫∫∫∫∫∫ GIRL NOTHING! ∫∫∫∫∫∫

BIRD NERD.

∫∫∫∫∫∫ BY GOLLY, YOU’VE GOT IT! ∫∫∫∫∫∫

⋄⋄ SO BE IT, ABLE SEAFARER WREN MCKINNON. FELLOW BIRD NERD. ⋄⋄ Sparrow shook her wand out of her sleeve, and pointed it at the open air, casting a great translucent shield about the tower. This was clearly giving their position away, but given the magical state of her friends, it was hard not to be given away already, and she wanted to be able to speak using her voice. She let out a deep breath. "And we’ll just keep you in the crow’s nest then. You’re acting like you’d rather be there anyway."

"Caw caw," said Wren.

Jocasta ran up to Wren and shook their hand. "All my friends are impressing me even more these days. And you, you’re really beginning to spread your wings. How long did it take you to make all those rings?"

Wren laughed. "About an hour? But nothing I make is just for looks, you know. Here, cast a stunning spell at me. Go on."

Jocasta raised an eyebrow. But she shook her wand out of her sleeve and pointed it at Wren anyhow. A jet of red light shot out at them –

And ricocheted off, striking the interior of Sparrow’s shield spell, nearly hitting Sparrow’s head if she hadn’t ducked, and taking a chunk out of the roof, spraying her with bits of slate. She reared backward, prevented from falling off the roof only by the charm sticking her shoes to the slates – but those slates themselves were loose, and as they came loose she began to slide downward.

Jill scrambled up and caught her before she could accelerate. "Dammit, it’s not like I don’t have to protect both of my girls from themselves but it’s trouble when I’m reminded. Can we just get down?"

"A capital idea," quavered Sparrow. She pointed her wand at the great translucent shield. She directed it to take the form of a great disk, tilting it to lay flat. "I think this trick will work if we – hang on a moment." She re-cast her wall-crawling spell on her feet, and stepped onto the disk, twirling her wand to flip it upside-down, so that she was dangling from it, only saved by her feet sticking to the surface.

Or more accurately her shoes, from which her feet felt like they were slipping. She hastily flipped the disk right-side up, causing a great lurch in her stomach.

Suddenly Jocasta was there on the disk, wrapping her arms about Sparrow, immediately followed by Jill embracing them both. "Do not scare us like that again," whispered Jocasta.

"I’m probably going to scare you in a different way," said Sparrow.

"Nice work as ever," said Wren, sitting down beside the three and keeping their hands laid flat on the disk. "Where do you want to set us down, though?"

"I was thinking...we could visit Hagrid’s hut? If he’s in?"

"Goodness knows we haven’t been to see him in a while," said Iphis, sitting down and throwing his arm over Wren. "Let’s be off then."

Thus the students of Hogwarts, those inclined to look upward, would have been treated to the sight of a wide, translucent golden glowing disk, as it floated towards the Forbidden Forest, high above the grounds.