Star Sisters

Epilogue

Albus Dumbledore sighed as he looked out of his office window and over the Great Lake, glinting in the bright early summer sunlight, and stroked his beard thoughtfully. What a year! What a year, indeed.

His reinstatement as Headmaster of Hogwarts had come not a moment too soon. Umbridge's far from pedagogic teaching methods had certainly disrupted most of the students' DADA lessons, reflected in some very disappointing OWL and NEWT grades in the subject. All apart from those who had been involved in Harry Potter's extra-curricular group, that was, and a couple of diligent students that had practiced on their own.

Ah, Harry. Once again, the boy had shown himself to be as headstrong as his father and yet carried ever more weight on his young shoulders in another trying year. The Occlumency lessons had been doomed to failure from the very start, of course, but Dumbledore had to be seen to be doing something to protect the boy. And as for the DA… Dumbledore smiled as he watched a flock of Thestrals circling the treetops of the Forbidden Forest. A reckless idea, yes, but an idea worthy of a Gryffindor. To see such overwhelming support from pupils from differing Houses was just what had been needed to combat the iron fist of Umbridge’s leadership and to unite Hogwarts from within, just as the Sorting Hat had mentioned in its song. To be sure, Harry’s father would be proud of him for his involvement in the resistance. His godfather, too.

At the thought of Sirius, Dumbledore gave another sigh. That was the biggest hardship Harry had to bear, without a doubt. Harry, he was pretty sure, would face Voldemort a thousand times over if it meant he could bring Sirius back from beyond the veil. It was so cruel for the boy to lose the closest person to a family member he had ever known, in such a barbaric way. They had only had a few short years together, snatching time here and there at Grimmauld Place. Sirius had been one of the few links between Harry and his parents and had simultaneously been like a brother and a father to him. Sirius did not deserve such a death. He had battled valiantly, like a true Gryffindor.

Sirius was being mourned by another family member, of course. Charis Byrne. The knowledge that Bellatrix Lestrange had killed him had certainly shocked the girl deeply. Charis, like Harry, had deserved more time with her new-found relative. And, like Harry, she had also suffered great hardships in the last year, as had her friend, Morgana. But Dumbledore knew there would be much more sacrifice and suffering to bear by all before the war ended.

Charis and Morgana had shown themselves to be resilient and brave, experiencing things that no seventeen-year-old should face. And the Order needed all the help it could get in the battle against Voldemort. The two girls were certainly worthy candidates for future membership. Not only had they already shown their allegiance to the light, but their future careers at the Ministry would also make them useful allies. Morgana would start her Auror training in a few weeks’ time, and Charis, with the full backing and recommendation of her proud Head of House, would be starting out at the Department of Mysteries. Dumbledore had heard that she wanted to become an Unspeakable, but for now he was sure she would be thrown into the deep end on a massive clean-up operation.

The Department of Mysteries had indeed been in a sorry state when Dumbledore, Harry and the others had finally left. Hundreds, if not thousands, of prophecies had been smashed and were in need of retrieval. The Time Room had had many rare and precious instruments destroyed, and the sheer amount of damage done to the place was staggering. Yes, Dumbledore thought, there was plenty of work to be done there alright, and Charis would no doubt work hard to help build the department back up again, and be privy to sensitive and most likely useful information along the way.

Morgana would also put her all into her Auror training, of that Dumbledore had no doubt. She had a sense of justice and cool logic that should make her a fine Auror, and she would be working alongside other Order members. As for her ties to the Malfoys, they would come in handy as well.

Yes, joining the Order should be a natural step for both girls, and very useful for the Order.

Dumbledore reached forward for his speckled quill and began scratching away at a piece of parchment, addressing it to Morgana and sealing it with his own personal phoenix crest, before writing an identical letter to Charis and sealing it in the very same way. Then he opened the top drawer of his desk and carefully placed the two letters inside. For now, the girls needed to rest. They would be called back to war soon enough.

* * *
With a brisk wave of her wand, the last of Charis’ clothes folded themselves neatly and landed in a pile on top of the tidy pile of books in her trunk. She double-checked her bedside cabinet, just to be sure, but it was already cleared and empty. Then she closed and locked her trunk with another flick of her wand as Lily mewed from her wicker basket on the bed.

With a sigh, Charis looked around her now-empty dorm. So this was it, then. She was finally ready to leave Hogwarts.

Except she wasn’t ready. Not really.

She was scared. Scared of leaving the comfort and safety of the wonderful Scottish castle; scared of a future with Voldemort’s spectre looming over it; and, mostly, she was scared of growing apart from her best friend.

The evening she and Morgana had spent together in the Room of Requirement had been in her thoughts almost constantly over the last few weeks. No matter what they had gone through before, this had moved their friendship on to an even deeper level. But it felt so poignant, so meaningful, that it almost felt like a goodbye.

Charis did not want to say goodbye, either to her friend or to this chapter of her life. And she did not want to say goodbye to Snape, either.

Several times over the last week she had hovered near the entrance of the dungeons, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Potions master to apologise and take farewell. But her throat had gone dry and she had not been able to make herself take the steps that led down to his study. What if he shouted at her, or dismissed her with sarcasm and cruelty? Charis didn’t think her fragile heart could take yet another rejection from him, and so she had retreated back to the sanctuary of Ravenclaw Tower with her heavy heart full of unsaid sentiments and goodbyes.

I’m being silly, she thought to herself. She should be looking forward to the rest of her life: to an exciting job at the Ministry, her own place in London and the freedom to be truly independent.

But the confirmation of Voldemort’s return made her feel frightened, and the knowledge of Sirius’ death at Bellatrix’s hands made her feel vulnerable and fearful of a second attack.

We’re all in danger now, she reminded herself. Pure-blood or not, the only thing it came down to was whether you supported Voldemort or whether you didn’t. The time had come to choose sides. Charis’ allegiance was clear, and would have been regardless of her near-death experience at the hands of her psychotic cousin. But she could not let the death of Sirius pass without meaning. She had to pick herself up and try to embrace the future, to try and do whatever she could to make her own stand against the Dark, no matter how scared she was.

Stashing her wand in her robes and picking up the wicker basket that contained her sweet little white cat, Charis took a deep breath, looked around the room once more and then left Ravenclaw Tower for the last time.

Meanwhile, her best friend sat on her bed in the Slytherin dormitory. She was the last student left. Not that it was in any way difficult for Morgana to leave the place that had been home to her for the last seven years. She had broken her ties with Slytherin House a long time ago. Well, not with Slytherin per se. She was still proud of her Sorting, but most of the people in her House she wanted nothing to do with. Only her Head of House would she keep in good memory. In his own special way, he had been kind to her. And Morgana was grateful for it.

No, leaving the dungeons was easy. What made Morgana lag back was the fear of having to say goodbye, to Hogwarts, to a more or less secure life and to her best friend. Surely, Charis would want her to share a compartment with her on the train. Surely, Charis would want to hug her goodbye at King’s Cross. And as much as Morgana loved her friend, she feared that she would not be able to bid Charis farewell in the way she deserved.

What they had shared in the Room of Requirement had changed everything. Morgana had bared her soul that day, and what she had seen had scared her. All the emotions that had welled up inside her had been too much to handle. And she had recoiled and hidden away. She had not avoided Charis; her heart had not allowed her to. But whenever possible, she had snuck out of the castle and walked along the shore of the lake, alone with her thoughts.

The creaking of the hinges of her trunk made Morgana look up. ‘Silvy, leave it alone. I did pack everything.’

The little elf blushed. ‘Silvy just wants to make sure.’

‘I know you do.’

Morgana smiled at her elf as the little creature once more dived into the trunk to make sure she had really packed everything. She had told Silvy that she would not have to come along to London and that she could stay at Hogwarts if she wanted to, where she had other elves to socialise with. But Silvy wouldn’t have it. She would come along to London and move into the little flat that Morgana had rented right at the corner of Diagon and Knockturn Alley. Flat was stretching it, though. It was a room with a tiny window, let by a crazy old witch who talked to herself and smelled of lavender. A dodgy place, but it would have to do for now. Morgana couldn’t afford anything else, and once Auror training started, she would move into one of the Ministry-owned flats further up Diagon Alley.

Wistfully, she thought of the promises she had been given: a flat in Diagon Alley and all the riches money could buy. Would Lucius have kept his promises if she had carried their child to term? Or would he just have taken the babe and gotten rid of her?

Morgana sighed. She knew she should not be having those thoughts. But she couldn’t help it.

‘Miss Morgana will miss the train,’ Silvy suddenly piped up. ‘Miss Morgana must leave now.’

Morgana smiled at the little elf and got up from her bed. It was certainly high time to leave. And she was late enough to be sure that she would be the last student to leave and able to take farewell of the castle on her own.

* * *
Despite it being early summer, Snape wrapped his black cloak tighter around himself. The wind seemed icy cold on top of the Astronomy Tower. But he could stand the cold. What he wanted to see from up there was worth getting pneumonia for.

He peered down onto the ground. There they were, the students of Hogwarts, making their way towards Hogsmeade from where the train would take them all home. They walked in small groups: Slytherins far away from Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws in between; the Gobstones club and the Charms club; the former members of the Inquisitorial Squad, the DA. But none of those groups was of any interest to Snape. What he was looking for was a mop of blonde hair.

After a while, he spotted her. She was walking beside a tall boy, most probably Jack Morrissey, carrying a wicker basket. Trust Charis to not send her beloved cat ahead with all the other animals on Hagrid’s cart. Of course she would carry the little creature to the station. Snape couldn’t help but smile. Charis was certainly one of the sweetest students Hogwarts had ever seen.

She had done well in her exams, of course. As expected of a diligent Ravenclaw, she had achieved high marks in all her subjects. But what had impressed Snape the most had been her DADA skills. He had been supervising another pair of students during the practical exam but had kept an eye on Charis from the other side of the Great Hall. He had seen her defensive spells, and he had seen her Patronus. She had not been able to keep the graceful black panther in shape for more than a couple of moments, but it had been enough to make the examiner clap his hands and Snape to hide a smile.

He was almost a little disappointed that Charis had not come down to the dungeons to say goodbye. But then again, what had he expected? After all that girl had been through over the last couple of months, why would she even spare a thought for her dour Potions master, who certainly had not treated her in the best of ways? And how would he have reacted if she had come down to see him? As he always did, most probably; instead of telling her what she truly meant to him, he would have sneered at her and called her sentimental. So maybe, it was just as well that they had not said goodbye to each other.

He would most likely see her soon again, anyway. If Dumbledore stuck to his plan to invite Morgana to join the Order of the Phoenix, it would certainly not take long until Charis would join as well. It would take a braver and smarter man than Albus Dumbledore to keep the two Star Sisters apart.

Snape once more scanned the groups of leaving students. But this time, he was looking for short, red hair. When he found her, she was walking at the back of a group of Slytherins; head bent and cloak billowing in the wind.

How many times had he also left the castle like that, Snape wondered, with his eyes firmly on his shoes and no one to walk with? If she wanted to, Morgana could walk with Charis and Jack, Snape was certain of that. But most probably, she had chosen to walk alone. Just as she had chosen to be on her own over the last couple of days. Ever since the morning in Dumbledore’s office, Morgana could be seen walking through the grounds by herself, and her thoughts had always seemed to be far, far away. She wasn’t looking forward to leaving Hogwarts, Snape knew that. She had not even smiled when he had called her to his office to tell her that she had been accepted to Auror training. How many dark memories were keeping her from smiling, Snape wondered. And would she soon find a happy memory strong enough to complete the only task she had failed during her practical DADA exam, producing a corporeal Patronus?

Snape sighed in relief as he saw Charis and Jack fall back and eventually come to a halt. He even allowed himself a tiny smile as Charis thrust the cat basket at Jack and opened her arms to embrace her Slytherin friend. And his smile broadened as he saw Morgana return the hug instead of struggling. Those two girls were good for each other, Snape knew that. And it was important that they did not grow apart, even now when they were leaving school and were each about to start a life of their own.

‘Professor Snape, sir?’

Snape looked down at the little elf that was tugging at his cloak. ‘Have you been successful, Silvy?’ he asked.

Silvy nodded eagerly. ‘Silvy has wrapped both mirrors carefully and has put them between socks in Miss Charis' and Miss Morgana’s trunks. Silvy has not been seen by anyone.’

‘Good. Very good.’

The elf bowed low to Snape, smiling happily at the praise of a job well done, before Disapparating with a pop.

Once more, Snape let his gaze wander towards the two girls. He had not been able to tell them he was sorry for his lack of control or his inability to protect them. He had not been able to let them know how important they were to him. And he had not even had a chance to say goodbye. He would soon see them again, for sure. He would not be their teacher any longer and they not his students. But still, he would feel responsible for them.

Snape smiled again as he saw the girls walk side by side through the gates. They might not be able to spend every day together from now on, but at least the mirrors would help them keep in touch. And a third mirror, which lay safely in the bottom drawer of his desk, would enable him to keep an eye on his two girls.

END OF PART ONE