Girls’ Changing Room – 3 – Family, friends and foes by Maeryn Lamonte – Copyright © 2021
	Anneka and Lori have been called to the head mistress’s office

-oOo-
Some minutes later, with Anneka feeling considerably nervous about having her parents come into school, they arrived outside the head's office.

"Come in," McGonagall called as they approached.

Lori flinched and Anneka noticed for the first time how much more worried her friend was. Of course, this would be the first time her parents saw her like this. She forgot her own worries and put a comforting hand on Lori's shoulder. They shared nervous grins and stepped through the door.

"Ah, there you are," Lori's mother greeted her with a cheerful lilt. "You know, for a while I was worried we were going to lose you, but you found your way back to us after all."

Lori's dad seemed lost for words. He studied the face of the child in front of him — at once so familiar and so strange — but he didn't pause for more than a few seconds before opening his arms. Lori ran into them and clung to his neck. He held her to him, only too aware of the tears running down onto his shirt.

"I never saw it before, sweetheart," he murmured into her ear, "but now it's all I can see. I'm so sorry. It must have been so hard for you all these years."

"Daddy," Lori sobbed, but she had no more words. This was all that mattered, that her parents saw her and accepted her. She felt her mother's hand on her back. She thought about what she'd just said and turned to her. "You knew?" she asked.

"No, not really knew," Luna replied. "I knew something was wrong and that you were fading away. It all makes sense now though — why you couldn't tell us about it; why we could never have seen it. But everything's going to be okay. You found your way back. I can see you in there again, and you're not lost any more, so everything's going to be okay."

"Oh, Mummy!" She shifted to take them both into her embrace.

"I don't understand," a new voice said. The man was stout, with a butcher's body and loose jowls. His wife was very slim with wonderful hair. She had the look of magic about her whereas her husband didn't. "This is your daughter, Lori, and she's sharing with our Anneka. I don't see what the problem is. "

Lori disentangled herself from her parents and looked at Professor McGonagall, who nodded.

"Things aren't quite what they seem," she said. "How can I put this? Professor McGonagall, is there a reason why Lysander isn't here? He's as much a part of this as anyone."

"You're quite right." The professor opened a window and scribbled a short note in the time it took for an owl to land on the ledge. "Take this to Lysander Scamander," she said and the owl was gone.

"I'm sorry," Anneka's mother asked. "Who's Lysander."

"Er, he's my identical twin brother," Lori said.

Two very round ohs appeared in two faces. The nature of identical twins was as well known in magical circles as it was Muggle.

"When I arrived at Hogwarts, I was as much of a boy, on the outside at least, as my brother. He was sorted into Ravenclaw," Lori gave her mum a fond look, "and I ended up in Hufflepuff." She snuggled into her dad's lap, realising perhaps for the first time that her father had been in the same house as her great grandfather. "Then a whole bunch of things happened and I ended up in a dress which is where I should have been all along."

"So you're a boy?" Mr Peasbottom asked.

"Kind of yes and no. Physically yes, I couldn't have an identical twin brother otherwise. But in here," she pointed at her head, "and in here," she touched her chest, "I've always been a girl."

"And you're happy with these two sharing a room?" Mrs Peasbottom was suddenly protective of her daughter.

"She rode a unicorn last night mummy," Anneka said. "We both did."

"I beg your pardon," Mr Peasbottom interjected. "I don't remember seeing that on the curriculum."

"That's because it isn't on there Daddy. It was a sort of detention."

"For what?"

"It's not important right now. I deserved it, and Lori shared it with me as it was partly because of her that I got in trouble. We had to brush down these two unicorns as our detention, then when we were done they invited us to ride."

"And that all means what exactly?"

"Unicorns are rather selective about who they let ride them, Harry," Mrs Peasbottom said. "Same as in your stories, only it's real in our world."

"And that's enough of a reason to let our daughter share with a boy, even if he does think he's a girl, and wears dresses and rides unicorns and whatever?"

"Daddy, Lori really is a girl where it matters. She's been open and honest with me from the first. I'd trust her with anything."

"Mr Peasbottom, I do understand your concern," Professor McGonagall said. "I was worried too when first faced with the problem, but the current circumstance is a combination of many things. The Sorting Hat to start with would have known it would be necessary for these two to share and yet it still made the choice it did. The Room of Requirement appeared for Lori and made all of this not only possible but inevitable. The event with the unicorns came as a complete surprise, and I assure you, that does not happen to me often. It confirmed for me that matters are very much as they should be.

"If you need any further assurances I might remind you that all of the dormitories have protective wards cast on them to prevent any sort of mischief. Lori and Anneka couldn't act inappropriately even if they wanted to. Furthermore, they have already spent two nights together in the same room without anything happening that might concern either you or me."

"Mr and Mrs Peasbottom," Lori chipped in. "Anneka is a friend — my best friend here at Hogwarts and a better one than I could think to wish for. I wouldn't do anything to harm our friendship. I understand why our sharing a room worries you. Being a girl, as much as I can be one, is new to me, but I promise I won't be anything other than a girl and a friend to your daughter.

"If that’s not enough to make you feel comfortable, then I’ll accept that and agree to any alternative that brings you peace of mind."

The combined onslaught of goodwill wore them down. They looked across at Rolf and Luna. "Are you okay with this?" Mr Peasbottom asked.

Luna nodded emphatically and looked across at her husband, who shrugged. "You'll have to excuse me, but it's only in the last few minutes that I've discovered I have a daughter. Honestly though, whether you asked me today or last week before all this started, I'd tell you Lori could be trusted with anything.

"Actually, let me take that back and rethink slightly since I do now have a daughter. If Lori were sharing with a boy, I would be worried, not for any choice she'd make, but because I think it's inherent in us fathers of girls to worry about what the boy might get up to.

"This feels really strange to say, but if Anneka were sharing with Lysander," Lysander chose that exact moment to walk through the door, "then I'd say you had a right to be concerned, but not with Lori. Sorry Lye."

"No, you're right Dad. I don't think I'd trust myself to spend the night with a girl I fancied, but Lori would be fine. Call it a twin thing — we do sense stuff from each other sometimes — Lori's different, in a good way, in a way you can trust. Hey Lori."

"Hey Lye."

"Well, I'm not sure what to say," Mrs Peasbottom said.

"It's all right Myrtle. I recognise honest folk when I meet them. Professor McGonagall, would you please demonstrate the nature of the spells you have guarding my daughter's room to my wife. If she's satisfied, then that'll be good enough for me. I'll admit I don't understand your world too well, but I've learnt to trust my instincts and my wife's judgement."

"Thank you Daddy." Anneka stood bouncing gently next to her father, all pent up emotion contained.

"Oh come on you daft 'ap'orth, give your dad a hug at least."

And she did.

"Well, now that that's settled, perhaps we could enjoy a little lunch." Professor McGonagall stood. "Mr and Mrs Scamander, Mr and Mrs Peasbottom, I don't know what constraints you may have on your time…"

"None," Rolf said. "When we received your owl, we realised it had to be important, so we cleared the rest of the day."

"Same here," Harry added.

"Then I hope you'll accept my invitation to join us for luncheon as the school's guests. Anneka, Lori, Lysander, under the circumstances I'm prepared to excuse you this afternoon's lessons so you can spend some time with your parents. Perhaps I might suggest a picnic down by the lake? Not too close mind, you'll remember the grindylows."

"That's very kind of you," Rolf accepted for all of them while Harry quietly asked his wife what a grindylow was.

"I'll have some of the house elves bring a basket down to you." With that she ushered them down to the Clock-tower Courtyard and the bridge across to the open area that led down to the lake.

"You realise what she's doing, don't you?" Rolf asked anyone who might care to listen once they were out of her earshot. "If any of the other kids were to spot ours getting to see their parents during term time they'd likely be jealous, so she's shooing us out into the wilds where we're less likely to be seen."

"Do you think so?" Harry asked.

"I'm pretty sure. So you're a Muggle? How did you meet Myrtle here, and how do you feel about having a young witch in your family?"

It was a perfect afternoon. Clear skies, but cold. Lori was glad of her newly acquired cloak. Skirt and tights helped her to feel more like a girl, but they didn't do much to protect against the weather.

Lori and Lye spoke in a way they'd been missing for a long time. It was frustrating and fascinating to listen to at the same time. Neither spoke more than two or three words of any sentence before the other responded. It was impossible to follow what they were saying to each other, but once you accepted that, there was a kind of magic to watching it.

"I've not seen them like this in over five years," Rolf said to his wife. She nodded and leaned her head on his shoulder. They had their own way of communicating, and Luna's silent actions were as eloquent as any words. All was well with their children again.

The afternoon wore on. The Scamanders and Peasbottoms exchanged addresses, they chatted about whatever came to mind. Rolf learned more about the Muggle world from one afternoon's conversation than from years of observation. They were such strange creatures, these non-magical humans. Who could hope to discern their motives just from watching?

They walked to keep the cold at bay and enjoyed being with one another. As the afternoon wore on, the two families took different directions so they could have some privacy, which was as well because there was a question that still weighed on Lori's mind.

"Mum, Dad, what happens to me when, you know, puberty happens?"

"We face it together," Rolf said. "We'll find a way, won't we love?"

Luna nodded, but she had that away with the fairies look about her. It was more autonomic response than general communication.

"It looks like your mum's already working on it."

"Anneka found something in the potions book about how there used to be two sorts of beautification potion, one each for men and women. It talked about how this court jester, Randolph the Wreckless or something like that deliberately mixed the king and queen's potions and they ended up spending a year as each other. Do you think something like that might work?"

"Sounds promising. You'll at least find it easier to look like a woman, even if it's just looks. What did it say about this potion?"

"Well, the king and queen ordered the potion changed to what it is today, and the old recipes destroyed, but it said the jester may have made notes in his journal."

"So all you need to do is find this journal then."

"No-one's seen it for hundreds of years though."

"You'll be amazed at how many lost things turn up at just the right moment after being lost for centuries."

"You're making fun of me."

"I wouldn't dare. A son, sure, but mock a daughter at your peril."

"You're okay with this, right? I mean I know it's a bit of a surprise."

"It is that, but you have to realise, your mum and I have been worried about you for a long time. What's important is you're back. I won't say back to your old self, because this is definitely new, but you're back to being alive and interested in the world around you, back to chatting with your brother, back from being distant and withdrawn. I speak for both mum and myself in saying we'd have been prepared to sacrifice a lot more to have you back."

"So, you’re saying this is a sacrifice for you then?"

"You're twisting my words, love. Don’t look for the meaning you’re afraid to find in them. That aside, sure it's a sacrifice. Coming to terms with any change has a cost. Yesterday I knew without question that I had two sons, and today I find that one of them's my daughter. Not only that, but she's stuck in the body of a boy she never wanted to be. That's going to take some processing, and your mum and I have a whole new range of things to worry about, some of which you've already raised. So yes, a sacrifice, but one we're both glad to make because we can see you're better off this way. I don't think there's anything so painful as seeing your child die a little each day and feeling helpless to stop it. I'll take this over what we were dealing with and be glad of it.

"Besides, right now you are one beautiful little girl."

"And when that changes?"

"Problem for tomorrow, sweetheart. Today we all have this gift, which I'd like you to enjoy as much as the rest of us. Keep working the problem, the same as we'll keep working on it, but don't forget to live the days you're given.

"You know, I remember a bit from one of the stories your mum told us about Harry Potter. In his first year he came across something called the Mirror of Erised."

"I've seen it. It showed me what I'd be like if I was really a girl."

"Well take this to heart then. Harry saw his dead parents in the mirror and he couldn't get enough of them. Before Dumbledore removed the mirror, he told Harry,, what was it? 'It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.'

"Right now, your dream is every ordinary girl's reality, simply to be one. Right now you're closer to realising your dream than you ever have been before, but still there's a part of you wants that tiny bit extra that'd give you it all. As long as you spend your days wanting what you don't have, or looking for ways to get it in places that won't help, you'll be missing out on what you do have.

"You have an amazing friend, treasure that now. You look gorgeous. Maybe not as gorgeous as you'd like, but gorgeous enough. Maybe you'll lose it tomorrow, but that's a tragedy all women face if they live long enough. Today is not tomorrow, so cherish today, and if it presents an opportunity to put off tomorrow for a while longer then grasp that opportunity with both hands and a fierce gratitude in your heart. If it doesn't then you still have today.

"Last and by no means least, you have your family. Your brother, your mum and me. Remember today. Remember that we love you now and for always, no matter what. You weren't sure for a while there, but now you have evidence you can take to Gringots. Whatever happens in the future, you need not worry what we feel for you, because it's the same as what you can see and feel right now. We love you no matter what. We're with you no matter what."

"Thanks Daddy, you're the best."

"Don't you ever forget it."

"Oh yeah, Mummy I nearly forgot."

"Mmm?" It was as much as she'd said in over an hour.

"We had Professor Longbottom for herbology yesterday. He was really great. He talked to me about you afterwards, and said if I spoke to you any time, I should tell you he says hello."

"We could stay on a little if you want, love. Pop in on him at the end of the day and reminisce a little."

"We could if you’d like."

"I was thinking about what you might want."

"Oh, that's kind of you dear, but I'm okay. Perhaps you'd tell him hello from me too, Lori."

Rolf shrugged and looked at his two children. "Well, I guess that's that answered. Looks like the Peasbottoms are on their way back. I guess we'll wait to say goodbye to them, then we should be going. Anything you need from the old man while I'm here Lye?"

"Nah, I'm good. It's been a pretty amazing day."

The two families rejoined one another on the slope up to the covered bridge. Rolf asked how the Peasbottoms were getting home, and when Harry mentioned they had a car, his eyes lit up. “I imagine you have it parked outside Merlin’s Gate. Perhaps we could have a quick look before we head home.”

They made their way back up to the castle and through it to the main entrance where the Peasbottom’s car was indeed waiting. After Rolf had given the vehicle a quick look over the two families shook hands and doled out hugs to their offspring — the longest for Lori. With a final wave Rolf and Luna disapparated.

"I'm not sure I'd be happy travelling like that," Mr Peasbottom said. "Cars may be slower, but you know where you are with a car. Well Lori. If ever you’re in Leeds, let us know. We’d be glad to have you visit."

“Thank you, Mr Peasbottom. That’s very kind.”

The three of them watched as Anneka’s parents drove off towards the main road.

"Fancy hanging out later," Lori asked her brother.

"Nah, I have to catch up on what I missed this afternoon. Maybe at the weekend."

"Sure. See you around Lye."

"Yeah, later Lori."

"And then there were two," Anneka said. "What do you fancy doing, roomy?"

"I guess we could go back to the dorm and make it more our own, now that we know I'll be staying, I could transfer my things into one of the wardrobes."

"More like two given the amount of stuff you have."

"Hey, anytime you want to borrow something, just ask. Oh yeah, there's something Professor McGonagall said I should try with this cloak when I have a moment."

"What about your cloak? I mean I was going to ask about it, but what gives?"

"McGonagall made Maledicta swap it with me because he messed mine up, then she said she thought the lining was made from, what did she say it was? Began with a D."

"Demiguise?"

"Yeah, I think that was it. "

"Oh, wow!" Anneka grabbed her friend's hand and ran. They managed to avoid being spotted by teachers and prefects alike and made it back to the Hufflepuff common room out of breath but intact.

"What’s this all about?" Lori asked.

"Come and find out," Anneka pulled her through to their dorm before finally letting go. "Right, turn it inside out and wrap it around you."

"What, like this? Hey, what's wrong."

"Look down."

"What? Hey what the… where's my body gone?"

"It's still there. Let's have a look in the hood. Yes, I knew it. Look, see how the lining is doubled? It means you can pull the whole thing over your head like this."

"What's happening?" Lori was beginning to panic.

"What's happening is you're now inside your own personal invisibility cloak. Demiguise hair, very rare, very expensive, very much not allowed in Hogwarts, except McGonagall gave it to you. Wow, this is so amazing!"

Lori wasn't so sure. She hung the cloak at the back of her wardrobe, then filled the rest of the space with clothes from her rack until even she could barely find it. In the process of unpacking, she discovered the other two girl uniforms. She decided to switch to one of them the following day.

Despite Anneka's earlier jibe, she managed to squeeze everything from the rack into a single wardrobe. Having made her point, she then accepted her friend's advice and shared her things between two to reduce the likelihood of especially her nicer things being crushed or creased.

The rack disappeared shortly after being emptied leaving them with so much space they didn't know what to do with it. Teatime had crept up on them though. Lori grabbed one of her spare cloaks and headed off to dinner with her friend in tow.

-oOo-

McGonagall was waiting for them when they returned. She'd been perched on the end of Lori's bed, but rose as they entered.

"Where is it?" she asked.

Lori didn't need to be a Ravenclaw to figure out what the head mistress was asking about. She went to the closer of her two wardrobes, retrieved the cloak and handed it to the professor.

"Maledicta thought he'd be clever," she said, stroking the cloak to smooth out some infinitesimal wrinkle only she could see. "While you were enjoying your tea and I was giving the young man his detention, he sent a couple of his friends to retrieve this. Unfortunately for them, they were unaware of the ward which alerts all teachers whenever there's a boy in a girls' dormitory or vice versa."

"Erm…"

"The wards are old enough to have grown some level of independent intelligence, Lori. They seem to agree with pretty much every other magical creature or device you've encountered here at Hogwarts, that you are indeed a girl, at least in every way that counts."

"The lady in the mirror didn't think so."

"You said she had the air of a Muggle about her," McGonagall said. "I met her the other night and I tend to agree. Whatever else may be said of her, she hasn't the least amount of magic in her, just a mild prejudice born of some painful memories.

"In any case, I was tempted to let the two miscreants get away with their theft, just so they could learn the futility of their actions when the house elves returned it to you. Unfortunately I'm all too familiar with individuals like Maledicta, and I rather feel that he'd destroy the cloak rather than allow you to have it, and that would be a waste. Both of the exquisite workmanship that went into its making and, more importantly, of the death of the rare and magnificent creature whose pelt was used in its manufacture.

"Maledicta and his friends are currently sharing the same detention — removing spiny limpets from the bottoms of all the boats down at the boathouse. It's a task that should occupy all their free time between now and the end of the week, but I suspect they'll come looking for you at their earliest opportunity.

"Now there are a number of reasons I insisted that Maledicta exchange cloaks with you, Lori, but one in particular. You have realised what this is, have you not?"

"Yes professor. It's why I put it in the wardrobe, to keep it safe."

"Well, laudable as your intentions may be, may I suggest that the safest place for it — for you and the cloak, mind — is on your back."

She handed the cloak back to Lori.

"I suspect Maledicta will do everything he can to get it back. I would be grateful if you'd do everything in your power to prevent that from happening.

"I also suspect that Maledicta and his cronies aren't the only ones in the school who disapprove of what you're doing right now. I assure you, you have the support of the school itself and the teaching staff, but there are some places where you will find yourself beyond our protection. This is why I took advantage of the opportunity to give it to you in the first place, so you would have an edge where needed. Do you understand?"

"Yes professor. Thank you."

"You can thank me by catching up on the lessons you missed this afternoon. I see you've adequately settled into your room now, so you've nothing to distract you from working. I believe Melody Sharpe's notes are both legible and largely complete. I'm sure she'll let you borrow them for a few hours if you ask nicely."

With that she left the room.

-oOo-

They didn't see Maledicta till the weekend. He approached them with two friends forming a truncated V behind him. All of them had bandaged hands, which forced Lori and Anneka to look everywhere but at each other in order to keep from laughing. Maledicta noticed and had a battle of his own to keep the anger from his face.

"Lorcan," he said with forced cheerfulness. "I had your cloak cleaned. No nasty image on the back, see?" He showed Lori's old cloak. "So hopefully no hard feelings and we can swap back?"

"Sorry Raph," Lori said with a cheerful smile. "McGonagall told us we should switch, so I guess that's your cloak now. Besides, what's to say you haven't jinxed it so something even nastier happens when I take it from you?

"Anyway, aren’t they both just ordinary cloaks? I mean school rules say you should only have the ordinary ones, which means it's just a like for like swap, so no big deal, right?"

Lori and Anneka walked on by giggling softly. Maledicta, meanwhile, stared murder at their backs.

Lori used some of her spare time back at the dorm practising turning the cloak inside out and pulling the second layer of lining in the hood over her face. She had it down to just under a second, which she figured would be quick enough. In any pursuit, she should be able to dash down a corridor and out of site for at least that long. The only potential nasties who'd know she had the invisibility cloak at all would be Maledicta and his friends, and even with them, not knowing where she'd vanished would make it all but impossible for them to begin their search.

-oOo-

She only needed to use the cloak twice during the first term. Other than that, she treated it as just a normal article of clothing. The temptation to use it to sneak out was immense, but she valued the trust McGonagall had put in her and she wasn't about to betray it.

As the end of term approached, she felt a weight settling on her. She didn't realise what it was until Anneka asked her an innocent question one evening.

"So what are you doing over the holidays?"

And there it was, like a lump of lead where her heart should have been.

"I hadn't really thought about it," she said, sitting rather heavily on her bed. "Probably going back to being my old self for a couple of weeks."

"What? Why?"

"All our friends and neighbours know me as Lorcan, so it's going to be a bit awkward if I turn up looking like this."

It was after dinner, so the two were relaxing in a comfortable alternative to their uniforms and working together on a homework project. It gave them an excuse to spend the time together in their dormitory rather than packed into the cosy common room with the others. They didn't see it as being antisocial — they spent enough time with the others — but Lori felt uncomfortable after a while in crowded places, so the dorm gave her especially something of a respite.

Anneka put a hand on her friend's thigh. "Have you spoken to your parents about this?"

"No, but there's no point? I mean I know they're okay with me being like this, like Lye is, but if I go home as Lori, we all get to endure two weeks of finger pointing and stupid questions, and maybe worse. If I go as Lorcan, everyone's happier, so there's no choice really.."

"What you mean is everyone's happier except you."

"I'm okay with that."

"Try telling your face."

Lori managed a sad smile and put her hand on Anneka's.

"It'll be okay. It's only two weeks so I should manage."

"And what about the Easter holidays, and the summer? What about when you leave school? This can't just be your life here at Hogwarts. If it was important enough for you to do at all, it has to be important enough to do all the time"

"Even if I ruin Christmas for everyone?"

"You think moping around pretending to be a boy won't do that? Don't you remember what your parents told you when they visited? They're just happy to have you back!"

"Anni, I appreciate what you're trying to do, I really do, but who are we kidding? I mean I can pull this off for now, but what do I do when I start to change? I don't want to go back to the way things were, but I don’t see that I have much of a choice. One day soon I'm going to end up looking more like my dad than my mum and then what am I going to do?"

"You know what? I think you're just afraid to hope. You've spent so much of your life believing there's no solution to your problem that even now, with your family supporting you, your friends supporting you, the school supporting you, you're still afraid that things aren't going to work out. "

"We're still a long way from finding a way for them to work out though."

"Do you know what a self-fulfilling prophecy is? My dad told me about it before I came here. I was so convinced no-one would like me and I'd end up without any friends, he said I was in danger of coming here with an attitude that would make it impossible for people to like me. 'You can believe things will work out for the best or for the worst,’ he said, ‘and the one you choose to believe in is the one that's most likely to come true, because you will help to make it come true.’”

"Does that really work?"

"Sure. It worked for me didn't it? I came here believing I was going to make friends. I made an effort on the first night we were here and I made loads. I even managed to pave the way for the best friendship I've ever had, and that started when I woke up in this room for the first time."

It took Lori a second or two to realise what Anneka meant. She looked up at her friend and found such love and acceptance there that she couldn't help but let go of the blackness.

"Look," Anneka said, "you're right that we haven't found a solution yet, but we have time and we already have one lead. We have most of the professors on our side, so why don't we ask them? You never know, they may have been thinking about it already."

"And if they don't have any ideas?"

"Then at least we've exhausted one avenue of research, and probably more importantly we'll have done something. 'A rudder only works if the boat is moving.'"

"What?"

"Another of Dad's collection of wise words, along with, 'A boat has to start moving in the wrong direction before it can turn onto the right course.' He likes his nautical sayings does my dad."

"He doesn't look much like a sailor."

"He's not, but my aunt bought him a book for Christmas called 'Sayings of the Sea' and he's been quoting it ever since.

Without realising it they'd managed to talk through their study time. They left their homework for another evening and starting getting ready for bed. Lori gave her friend an appreciative hug, which Anneka returned wholeheartedly before they both climbed under the covers.

"Anneka?" Lori's voice was muffled by her bedding.

"Mmm?"

"Do you think it's worth asking Mugglewump too?"

"Let me talk to him." Anneka had her own reasons for wanting to talk to the potions professor. It wasn't something she'd been looking forward to, but now she had that little bit more added incentive.

-oOo-

"What do you want?" Professor Mugglewump had been less than cordial to either Anneka or Lori all term, ever since McGonagall had come into his class to find the Ravenclaw students scrubbing furiously at their cauldrons while the Slytherins sat in a different part of the classroom brewing up a cure for boils.

A quick inspection revealed every cauldron except those owned by Anneka, Lori and the Slytherins had been scrubbed down to the bare metal. McGonagall had left without saying a word, but had later summoned Mugglewump to her office and apparently instructed him to replace every damaged cauldron at his own expense.

The potions professor had suspected Lori and Anneka of being the source of his trouble. Without proof he'd not been inclined to take overt action, but the suspicion was enough to leave him bearing a grudge toward the two of them.

It came out in little ways. Snide comments in the classroom, lower Mark's in potions homework, unpleasant glares across the classroom, and now this irritable impatience towards Anneka when she approached him.

"Er, I have a couple of questions, professor."

"Well I only have time for one."

It was petty and left Anneka with a choice. She settled on the more pressing matter.

"I was wondering if I could talk to you about polyjuice potion," Anneka said warily.

"Why would you want to know about something like that?" Mugglewump snapped. "It's a highly complex brew and you don't know anywhere near enough to be able to attempt it yourself."

"I know that sir. I was wondering if there was any way I might get hold of some. It's for a friend, for a Christmas present."

"For that freak, I suppose? You want to give him a taste of being a real girl? I've no intention of wasting my time and effort over something as frivolous as that, now get out."

It wasn't a surprise that the professor had worked out the reason for her request, after all, she hadn't tried to hide anything, but it was upsetting nonetheless, and she still wore something of a long face when she turned up early for her herbology lesson.

Professor Longbottom saw her distress and asked her about it. She could hear the rest of the class approaching, so she answered as briefly as she could, explaining what she was after and how Professor Mugglewump had turned her down flat.

"See me after class," he said briefly before standing to welcome the rest of the students.

"What happened to you?" Lori asked as she sat down next to her room-mate. "You rushed off so quickly after charms I couldn't keep up."

"Sorry, I remembered I forgot something," Anneka said.

"Maybe I should get you a remembrall for Christmas." It was kind of a fishing statement of the sort Lori had been making for some weeks, but more as a kind of smokescreen. She'd decided ages back what she wanted to give Anneka for Christmas and had taken the risk of enlisting Hagrid's help in harvesting a few dozen unicorn tail hairs, which she'd then woven into a bracelet. For once Hagrid had been able to keep the secret, and hadn't given anything away.

Under professor Flitwick's guidance she'd then enchanted the bracelet to change colour depending on the strongest mood nearby - a useful gift for any Hufflepuff, but in Anneka's case just that little bit more so. There were still a lot of students at Hogwarts who disliked Lori for her differences, and Anneka by association. Anneka was a naturally trusting soul and Lori hoped her gift would make it easier for her friend to see when the person she was talking to held any malice or dislike towards her.

Professor Longbottom's prediction that herbology lessons wouldn't be as entertaining as his first had proven true, but he was still able to instil something of his enthusiasm and humour into the lessons, so Anneka and Lori remained fans of his classes. In this one they all repotted mandrakes, which screamed hideously when uprooted from the soil. They were only young specimens, so the cries weren’t fatal, but even with protective earmuffs they were unpleasant, and without might have ended up putting a student in the hospital wing for a day or two. Sharing the lesson with Ravenclaw meant that everyone took the lesson seriously and it passed without incident.

“Professor Longbottom asked to have a word with me,” Anneka said as she and Lori put away their earmuffs. “I’ll join you outside in a minute.”

Neville looked up as Anneka tentatively stepped into his field of view. “Ah, Miss Peasbottom.” He turned and rummaged under a shelf for a minute, sitting back with a small sealed flask in his hands. “I wonder if you’d be interested in trading with me for this. Back in the days of Dumbledore’s Army, Hermione Granger brewed up a whole batch of polyjuice potion and gave one to each of us. Something we could use in an emergency if we ever needed to sneak into a Death Eater camp, or maybe escape from one. Just add a hair from whoever you want to be, give it a swirl and swallow it down. This is the one she gave me.

"I've never known a witch more gifted than Hermione, and it always seemed the more complicated the magic the better she was at it. Did you know she first brewed one of these in her first year? She was a lot more accomplished when she put this together, so if I were to guess, I'd say it was good for at least twelve hours."

“That’s amazing!” Anneka exclaimed. “But don’t you need it?”

“I didn’t need it back then, and I seriously doubt I’ll need it now. Between you and me, it tastes pretty awful, so I’d need to be desperate before I drank it. For Lori, I suspect the benefits will outweigh the unpleasantness.“

“How did you know…”

“Please Anneka, it’s not exactly hard to guess.”

“So what would you like to trade for it?”

In response the young professor pointed to a row of succulent but foul smelling plants. “I have some bubotubers in need of harvesting. I wondered if you’d be prepared to help me with them this evening.”

“For this,” Anneka pointed at the flask of polyjuice, “I’d happily do them all.”

“Well, I couldn’t ask you to do that. Besides, we’ll get them done in less than half the time if there are two of us working on them. Come by after you’ve eaten your supper and we’ll conclude our deal.”

“Thank you Professor Longbottom, you’re a life-saver. I'll see you later."

Anneka ran off to find Lori, excited to have just what she'd wanted to find. It wasn't a solution to her friend's problem but it might give her the necessary incentive to try harder to look for one.

They headed off for lunch with Lori asking what Neville had wanted. Anneka made up some excuse about the professor having some questions about Muggles. She didn't feel great about lying to her friend, but she knew that if she mentioned the bubotuber pus harvest, Lori would insist on helping. As it was, she didn't have to keep the pretence up for long.

On their way to the Great Hall they passed Professor McGonagall with a well dressed wizard who's otherwise handsome features were spoilt by the permanent scowl he wore. He stared at Lori as they passed. McGonagall caught Lori's eye and gestured subtly to her cloak.

"Who do you think that was?" Anneka asked as they rounded a corner.

"I don't know," Lori answered, "but I think I'm about to find out." Before Anneka could protest, she flipped her cloak around and pulled the lining over her face. "Save me a seat," she whispered before rushing off in pursuit of the head and her guest.

She caught up with them near McGonagall's office and managed to slip in ahead of them and settle into an empty space on the professor's side of the desk.

"Please, take a seat, Augustus. Would you like some tea?"

"I didn't come here to pass the time of day, Minerva. I've been a little concerned not to have received any owls from my son this term, so I fire-talked with him the other night…"

"You did what?!" Minerva almost stood up from her chair. "Augustus, you do know that the school forbids parents from contacting their children directly during term time?"

"Oh pish Minerva. I was concerned. You'd have done the same…"

"I most certainly would not! There is a procedure, Mr Maledicta. First you contact me to find out if something is the matter, and if you aren't satisfied with the answers I can give you, you request to come and visit with your son so that I can make arrangements that do not disturb the rest of the school. I do not appreciate your undermining my authority in this way…"

"No, Professor McGonagall, what you do not appreciate is anyone outside the school discovering some of the questionable decisions you've been making. As I say, I talked to my son and he told me a number of things that have me very concerned indeed."

"Such as?"

"Your employing a mudblood as a teacher here for one."

"Miss Mitchell is a highly competent teacher Augustus, and she's not the first Muggle-born to teach at the school. I only wish I could have persuaded Hermione Granger to stay on, but she chose to join the Ministry of course. I don't seem to recall you complaining about that."

"A totally different matter. It's not right exposing young witches and wizards to her sort at such an impressionable age."

"You mean you'd rather indoctrinate young folk with your disgusting prejudice before they have a chance to see that there's no difference between Muggle-born and older wizarding families, except perhaps that those from humble origins tend to behave more honourably."

"Then what's this I hear about your allowing a boy to parade about the school in a dress?"

"That business is a private matter between myself, the pupil in question and her parents. It is precisely this sort of reason why I do not permit unsanctioned communication between parents and students during term time other than via owl. It's very easy to get the wrong idea from a conversation as you evidently have."

"And just what wrong idea do I have about your permitting a deviant on campus? I can only imagine how disturbing this must be for other students here."

"Did you see signs that any of the students seemed disturbed?"

"Hardly likely when you evidently had this individual hidden away for my visit."

"Would it surprise you to know that you passed the student in question in the corridor a while ago?"

"Hah! So that was him. I thought I recognised my son's cloak. Raphael told me about that too. How you forced him to exchange cloaks with this freak then put him in a dangerous detention with his friends."

"Yes, I imagine he did. Blew smoke in your face then slipped in the half-truth while you were busy sputtering about matters which are none of your concern."

"My son's welfare is very much my concern."

"I don't suppose your son was honest enough to inform you of the grotesque image that he hexed onto this other student's cloak, the reason I insisted he make the exchange? Nor do I suppose he described the 'hazardous' nature of the detention I set for him and then his friends after he sent them to steal back the cloak? Would you agree with him that removing spiny limpets from the underside of the lake boats presents an unacceptable risk, or perhaps that the punishment is undeserved for an unprovoked attack on a first year student?"

Augustus Maledicta turned a particularly dangerous shade of red. Certain veins on his forehead throbbed as though they were at risk of bursting.

"I want my son's property returned to him," he yelled.

"Mr Maledicta," McGonagall's voice was, by contrast, the epitome of calm. "I will not be spoken to in such a manner. Your son wilfully damaged the uniform of another student. This happens from time to time and I have found that the simplest resolution is a like for like exchange. This, as I'm sure you're aware, is the reason we insist that all uniforms be bought from the same shop, so that such exchanges are fair and equitable. Your son was given the cloak he defaced in fair exchange, so unless there's something that you and Raphael aren't telling me, I consider the matter closed."

"This isn't over, Professor McGonagall." Raphael's father stood.

"No, I imagine you don't believe it is," Minerva sighed. "As if I didn't have enough work to do without having to deal with frivolous complaints like this." She stood. "If we're done?"

"For now. Since you're so busy I'll see myself out."

"Do you not want to visit with your son? It would be a shame to miss him after you've come all this way."

"I don't have the time."

"Well, be sure and take yourself well away from the castle grounds before you leave Mr Maledicta. I wouldn't want you to get caught in one of the protective spells preventing apparation within school bounds."

That appeared to be one gentle taunt too many. Augustus Maledicta turned with an overly dramatic swirl of his cloak and strode out the room.

"You might follow him and find out what he's up to, Miss Scamander," McGonagall said quietly while perusing a letter she'd lifted from a depressingly tall pile.

"Yes professor," Lori said under her breath and ducked out before the door closed.

It seemed Augustus had no intention of leaving immediately. He made his way down corridors towards the dungeon area where the Slytherin common room was located. He proved to be reasonably good at avoiding people, and made his way there without being seen by anyone but Lori.

She kept a reasonable distance back to ensure no sound from her footsteps, quiet as they were, would reach her quarry. For a moment she thought he was going to go into the Slytherin common room, but at the last, he walked past it into a dank and shadowy stretch of corridor where there were no torches.

He cast lumos under his cloak leaving only a very dim light to follow. Lori had to slow down as the floor was scattered with puddles she couldn't see in the gloom. One careless step would make enough noise to give away her presence. She slowed further as she saw two dim stationary lights ahead, edging only very gradually into earshot.

"...foolish idiot. Of course she wouldn't give it back to me. I can't believe you were so careless. Do you have any idea how much these things cost?" In the darkness Lori could just make out one figure passing a package to the other.

"Sorry Dad, but that freak…"

"Should have been none of your concern. Yes he's an abomination, but you're here for a reason, don't forget that, and it's far more important than any boy in a dress."

No surprise Augustus was meeting with his son, or that they should be talking about her, Lori thought, but what was the reason Meledicta Senior had mentioned? She strained to hear what would come next.

"Of course I haven't forgotten, but I'm hardly likely to have made any progress without one of these, am I? I've been trying for weeks to get my cloak back, but neither the old bat nor her little pet have given me an opening."

"It doesn't matter, what's done is done, but your incompetence has put our plans back weeks and there are some in the Order who aren't at all happy. You'd better have something to report by the end of term or…"

"I will Dad, don't worry. I won't let that little witch-boy distract me again."

"I should go before someone wonders why they haven't seen me leave. Give me two minutes before you follow."

The older man came back towards Lori who pressed herself against the dank stonework to allow him room to move past. Lori breathed out gently and continued to observe Raphael as he unwrapped the parcel and pulled out a piece of cloth, much like the lining of the one she was wearing. He discarded the wrapping and threw the cloak over his shoulders, vanishing from view, the only evidence of his location being the faint glow of his wand.

Again Lori pressed herself back against the wall and held her breath as the dim glow bobbed past. She remained still until it had completely disappeared from sight, then waited a minute longer in the darkness before casting her own lumos spell and retrieving the packaging. It probably wouldn't tell them anything useful, but at least it was evidence of what she'd witnessed.

She made her way back out of the dark corridor, extinguishing her spell as soon as she could see a hint of light ahead. It was slow work, but she made it back out of the dungeon certain that no-one had seen her.

Back at McGonagall's office, she listened to make sure the head teacher was alone and slipped inside.

"You know I don't normally approve of this sort of behaviour," the professor said quietly.

Lori removed the cloak. "I'm sorry professor…"

"But there are times when it is necessary. What did you find out?"

Lori summarised her recent excursion, leaving nothing out.

"Hmm, so it is more than just the posturing of some privileged child, and he has another invisibility cloak. Whatever it is they're after, they must want it very much. Lori, I apologise but I'm going to have to ask something more of you which, among other things, will mean you'll miss lunch with your friend today. I'll send for some sandwiches, but I'd like to teach you a spell that I discovered before I became an animagus."