Cassie, along with the rest of the school, seemed to hold her breath for the next several days as Harry Potter lay unconscious in the hospital wing. It was all anyone could seem to talk about.
The Stone. Quirrell. The forbidden chambers beneath the castle. Voldemort.
Not that Cassie could blame them.
Madam Pomfrey was kept busy fussing over Harry, tending to him and repeatedly shooing away students who attempted to sneak a glimpse through the hospital wing doors. Cassie was grateful, at least, that she had only spent her first night there. After speaking with Dumbledore the next morning, she was released.
The Headmaster had made her relive every detail. Every sensation she could remember during Voldemort's attempt to use her as a vessel. It had been excruciating.
Afterward, Cassie had sought refuge in the only place that currently felt safe. She had gone straight to Severus's apartments, crawled into his bed, and burrowed beneath the heavy blankets.
She had wanted nothing more than for time to stop, just for a little while. She wanted to stay beneath those blankets and pretend that the world outside them didn't exist.
The fact that she hadn't realized her father was behind everything ate at her relentlessly. She kept turning the events over and over in her mind, searching for the clue she had somehow missed, the warning sign she should have recognized.
Severus had listened to the same arguments from her repeatedly. He never failed to reassure her.
You couldn't have known.
You protected Harry.
You stopped Voldemort.
And, perhaps most importantly, you are alive.
None of it seemed to penetrate the haze of self-recrimination that had settled over her. She had NEWTs in a matter of days and was supposed to be studying. Instead, her mind kept circling back to Harry lying unconscious in the hospital wing, to the possibility of Voldemort possessing her, and to how much worse everything could have become if she hadn't managed to force him from her mind.
If he had succeeded, Hogwarts would have been gone. And somehow, that realization made her feel even more exhausted.
Then, on the third afternoon after Quirrell attempted to steal the Stone, Cassie finally ventured out into the corridors against Severus's advice. She was looking for an answer to a question he had told her was pointless to ask.
If he wanted you to know, he would have told you already.
She knew Severus was probably right. He usually was.
She waited until he left his quarters to submit examination grades, then slipped out of his bedroom and made her way toward Dumbledore's office. When she arrived, she found the Headmaster seated behind his desk, his wrinkled hands folded neatly before him. He looked almost as though he had been expecting her.
The office, which Cassie had visited countless times over the past year, felt different now. Tainted. Everywhere she looked, she could still remember the specter of her father appearing. She found herself staring nervously at the fireplace, half expecting it to flare green and Voldemort to come rushing through.
The realization made her hesitate before sitting. She stood for a moment, subconsciously positioning herself so she could reach the door quickly if necessary.
"Miss Black," Dumbledore said warmly. "It is good to see you out and about. How are you feeling?"
"I've been better, Headmaster." She probably looked terrible. She hadn't brushed her hair. She hadn't bothered looking in a mirror. She hadn't even thought about what she was wearing until that very moment.
She glanced down in sudden alarm. A T-shirt and her own pajama pants. At least she hadn't accidentally wandered into the Headmaster's office wearing one of Severus's nightshirts. That would have been considerably harder to explain.
Dumbledore seemed to notice her self-inspection. "Yes," he said mildly, "I believe you could benefit from a little more rest." Cassie smirked faintly. It was a remarkably polite way of saying she looked like hell. "But I suspect you did not come here to discuss your appearance. What can I help you with?"
Cassie finally sat. "I wanted to ask you something."
"Of course."
She hesitated. Severus's voice echoed in her mind. Don't ask him.
But she was already here. "Did you know Quirrell was trying to get the Stone for my father?" There, she had said it.
Dumbledore didn't even blink. "I did not know," he replied. "But I had my suspicions."
Cassie's eyes narrowed. "But you didn't feel the need to tell Professor Snape and me?"
Dumbledore regarded her quietly before replying. "Not based solely upon suspicion."
"After everything we did to protect the Stone?"
"I did not feel the need to cause unnecessary apprehension over something I could not prove."
Cassie stared at him. She should have been furious. Instead, she felt tired. "Do you realize what could have happened if my father had taken me as a host?" Her voice stayed quiet, but an edge ran beneath it. "You would have had a war on your hands much sooner than anyone anticipated. If I had known he was here, trying to get the Stone, I could have been prepared. I could have watched Quirrell more closely. I could have interfered before he ever reached the Stone."
"Miss Black—"
"I could have helped."
Dumbledore's expression hardened slightly. "There are factors I must consider beyond your individual circumstances. Matters far larger than you are currently in a position to understand."
Cassie gave a humorless little laugh. "There it is again. The bigger picture."
Dumbledore sighed. "I must ask, yet again, that you trust me."
Cassie swallowed. "So that's your answer? I should shut up and be a good little soldier. Do whatever you ask me to do and never question why."
Dumbledore was quiet for several seconds. When he finally answered, his voice was gentle. "I am assuming this is not what you wish to hear."
"No."
"For the time being, I must ask that you allow me to see the larger picture. When circumstances permit, I will allow you to see it as well."
She wanted to demand an explanation. But some part of her knew that she wasn't going to get one.
Before she could respond, a sharp knock sounded at the door. It opened before Dumbledore could answer, and Professor McGonagall hurried inside. "Oh, he's awake, Albus!" She stopped when she noticed Cassie, her eyes widening slightly. "Potter is awake!"
Dumbledore looked toward Cassie. Their conversation had reached an impasse anyway. She nodded.
Dumbledore left immediately, his expression suddenly much lighter. Cassie remained behind for a moment, watching him disappear.
Then McGonagall touched her shoulder. "Come along, Miss Black." Cassie followed her down the spiral staircase.
"Professor, where are we going?"
"To tell Potter's friends, of course," said McGonagall, her eyes glistening with tears. "Albus will have his time alone with him, but the children ought to know. They have been worried sick."
They reached Gryffindor Tower and summoned Ron, Hermione, and Neville into the corridor. When McGonagall told them the news, Hermione immediately covered her mouth with both hands. Neville looked as though a tremendous weight had been lifted from his shoulders.
Ron stared at Cassie. Then he stepped forward and threw his arms around her. "Sorry," he mumbled into her shoulder. "About...you know."
Cassie blinked rapidly. "About what?"
"Giving you a hard time."
Her throat tightened. "Oh."
"It's just that, you were spending so much time with - "
"The Overgrown Bat?"
Ron pulled back, looking embarrassed. "Yeah."
Despite everything, Cassie laughed. A wet, broken little laugh. "You're forgiven."
She hugged him again. He sniffed. "Still think you spend too much time around him."
Cassie laughed again through her tears. "I'll work on that."
Ron gave her a skeptical look. "You're not going to, are you?"
"No."
"Thought so."
And somehow, that silly exchange made everything feel a little more normal.
Cassie knew she needed to study. She simply didn't care. Most of the afternoon was spent outside with Ron, Hermione, and Neville beneath one of the enormous trees on the grounds, talking about the year.
The good, terrible, and ridiculous parts.
Eventually Fred and George found them. Percy joined them soon after, taking a seat in the grass after reminding everyone that he was, in fact, a very important school prefect with responsibilities.
Cassie smiled as she listened to the brothers bicker. For the first time in months, she allowed herself to just exist. And sometime during that afternoon, a realization quietly settled over her.
These were her final days at Hogwarts.
The thought had barely registered during the year. She had been too busy surviving it. Now, suddenly, the castle seemed different.
She wouldn't be returning in September to walk the corridors as a student anymore. She wouldn't be attending classes, sneaking into the kitchens for a sandwich, sitting in the library with Juniper and Alpit, or hearing the familiar voices of professors she had known for years.
Hogwarts had been more than a school. It had been her refuge.
The wizarding world beyond those gates had never quite felt like home. Too many people knew her surname. Too many judged her because of it.
But Hogwarts had known Cassie.
Not simply Cassiopeia Black, the daughter of You-Know-Who.
Cassie.
The realization didn't hurt as much as she expected. Something peaceful settled over her. She would miss it terribly, but she wasn't leaving everything behind. She had friends and people who cared about her. And she had Severus. That thought brought a small smile to her face.
When she eventually parted ways with the younger students, Cassie decided she wanted to walk through the castle alone. One last time.
She wandered through the familiar corridors, pausing outside classrooms, running her fingers lightly along stone walls she had touched countless times before.
She let herself remember the moments she had thought she would never survive. They would become memories she could carry with her when the outside world became difficult, when she needed reminders of what she had overcome.
When she realized she had missed dinner, she made her way down to the kitchens. The house-elves greeted her enthusiastically, and Cassie spent nearly half an hour chatting with them before accepting a turkey sandwich. It was strangely comforting.
She had done this so many times. Perhaps that was why it felt like the perfect way to end her final evening as a Hogwarts student.
Eventually, she returned to the dungeons. She entered Severus's apartments well into the evening.
He looked up from the book in his lap. His expression immediately became suspicious as he regarded her. "I warned you not to see Dumbledore."
Cassie sighed. "Yes, Severus. I remember."
"You have examinations in a matter of days, and you have spent the better part of the last week distracted and exhausted."
"Yes."
"Was he at least forthcoming?"
Cassie approached his chair. "Not really."
Severus frowned. "What exactly did you learn?"
She stopped in front of him and leaned down, placing her hands on either armrest. "That he has a bigger picture and that I'm supposed to trust him."
"Naturally."
"And that I'll understand everything when he thinks I'm ready." Severus looked almost painfully unsurprised. Cassie sighed. "I don't want to talk about it anymore."
Then she kissed him.
His initial surprise lasted only a moment before his arms came around her. The worries didn't disappear. She knew that. Dumbledore's evasiveness still troubled her. The feeling that she was being maneuvered toward some purpose she didn't understand still lingered.
But for tonight, she refused to let it consume her. She needed this. She needed Severus.
As the night progressed, they eventually found themselves before the fireplace, wrapped in the warmth of the flames and one another. Cassie rested against him, her head on his chest. After a few silent moments, she turned to smile at him.
"What are you thinking about now, you silly thing?" asked Severus as he stroked her back.
"When I move in. It's not that far away."
"No," he murmured. "It isn't."
Cassie smiled. "Are you going to let me redecorate?"
Severus raised an eyebrow. "What part of my home displeases you?"
"None of it," she said truthfully. She pictured his dark, quiet sitting room. The walls lined from floor to ceiling with books. A kitchen containing only the barest essentials. "It's just that I'll be bringing my own things."
"There's room in the attic."
Cassie gasped theatrically. "The attic? You're putting my belongings in the attic?"
"I believe that is where belongings are generally stored."
"I'm reconsidering this entire arrangement."
Severus tightened his arms around her. "No, you're not."
She laughed. "No. I'm not."
That night, Cassie slept peacefully.
The following day, she spent several hours with Juniper and Alpit before the end-of-year feast. Juniper insisted that they study, while Alpit insisted that studying on the final day was pointless.
Cassie mostly sat between them with her notes open, listening to the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff argue. When it was finally time for the feast, Cassie walked into the Great Hall with the prospective Aurors.
The room had been decorated in green and silver. Slytherin had won the House Cup for the seventh year in a row.
Cassie separated from her friends and made her way toward the Slytherin table. As she did, she glanced toward the staff table. Severus was wearing his usual expression of dignified indifference, but she knew him well enough now. He was pleased. Cassie couldn't help smiling.
The feast was magnificent, as always. The atmosphere was particularly lively when Harry Potter entered the Great Hall.
Cassie applauded enthusiastically. She didn't even mind the irritated muttering coming from some of her fellow Slytherins when Dumbledore awarded the Gryffindors enough last-minute points to steal the House Cup.
Severus looked irate. Or, more accurately, he looked like a man who was desperately trying not to look devastated.
Cassie made a private decision then. She was going to cheer him up later that night.
As she had hoped, it didn't take long to get his mind off the purloined House Cup. All she really had to do was slowly remove her Slytherin uniform in front of him, showcasing on her naked body the onyx necklace he had gifted her. That visual reminder that she chose him invariably stirred the Head of Slytherin's passion and consigned every other thought to oblivion.
The next morning, most of the younger students departed on the Hogwarts Express and the castle became strangely quiet. Only the seventh years remained, waiting for the beginning of their NEWTs.
Two days of examinations that would determine, at least officially, what came next. Cassie stood in the entrance hall with the rest of the seventh years that morning. She was nervous. Everyone was.
Juniper muttered memorized potion ingredients under her breath. Others were pacing. Some were trying to read from books they had clearly studied so many times they could probably recite them backward.
Cassie tried to reassure herself that the strange sensation crawling beneath her skin was merely nerves.
But it didn't feel like nerves. Something was wrong.
The doors to the Great Hall creaked open, and Professor McGonagall ushered them inside. Cassie drew a slow breath.
The Great Hall looked completely different. The four House tables were gone, and individual desks had been arranged in precise rows. Ancient witches and wizards sat along the walls, stern-faced and official, the examiners who came to Hogwarts every year to administer the OWLs and NEWTs.
Cassie took her seat and waited. Several minutes passed, and nothing happened.
The students began looking around uncertainly. Where were the papers? Why hadn't anyone given instructions?
Cassie's stomach tightened as the strange sensation from the entrance hall intensified. She took another breath, but it didn't help.
Then the double doors opened again. Every head turned.
Cassie's heart dropped as she recognized several of the faces immediately. Aurors. She had seen them in the Ministry courtroom. They were here for her.
Alastor Moody was among them. He broke from the group and strode directly toward her. Several students gasped, but Cassie stood automatically.
"Miss Black," Moody growled. His magical eye whirred around the room.
Cassie noticed it wasn't focused on her, which made her feel marginally better.
"Hello," she managed. Her voice came out embarrassingly small.
"Remain calm." Moody's voice dropped. Cassie glanced around. The Aurors were spreading throughout the room, positioning themselves around the students. "He's looking for any excuse. And I mean any. Don't give him one."
Cassie swallowed. She didn't need to ask who he was.
Then the Minister entered the Great Hall. Cassie forced herself not to glare.
She thought about Moody's warning. Don't give him one.
"Mad-Eye!" Fudge barked. "Back in formation!"
Moody gave Cassie one last look before returning to the other Aurors. Her knees were trembling. She sat back down.
"What is the meaning of this?" McGonagall's voice rang across the hall. Cassie almost begged her not to interfere. If Fudge was looking for an excuse, Cassie didn't want McGonagall caught in the middle.
"We are taking the necessary precautions," one of the examiners replied haughtily, "given that the Minister has risked his personal safety by coming here."
"His safety?" McGonagall demanded. "Meaning what, exactly?"
Fudge strode toward the front of the room. He stopped where Dumbledore's chair usually stood. Cassie wanted to knock him off his feet. Instead, she folded her hands in her lap.
"I have taken time from my very busy schedule," Fudge announced, "and placed myself at considerable personal risk to come here today for the purpose of removing Cassiopeia Black from this hall." The room fell silent. "The Wizengamot has determined that, in the best interests of the wizarding community, Miss Black shall not be permitted to sit for her NEWTs."
For several seconds, nobody moved. Then the room erupted. "On what grounds?" McGonagall demanded.
"This is a Ministry matter," Fudge said. "The decision is final."
"No, it is not!" McGonagall stepped forward. "Not until the Headmaster has been consulted!"
"This examination is administered by Ministry officials. I'm afraid, Deputy Headmistress, that this is out of your hands."
"Be as it may, this is our school," McGonagall snapped. "That girl has spent seven years preparing for these examinations. She has committed no offense warranting her removal!"
Cassie closed her eyes. She should have been surprised, but she wasn't. Fudge had already tried to destroy her future as an Auror. Apparently, he intended to destroy every other option, too. But she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of watching her break.
Cassie stood. "It's all right, Professor McGonagall." Her voice was calm. "If the Minister has decided that I cannot sit for my NEWTs, then I will leave."
"Miss Black!" McGonagall looked horrified. "I insist that you sit back down!"
"I think the girl is making the rational choice," Fudge said smugly. Two Aurors stepped forward.
Cassie began walking toward the doors. She kept her eyes fixed ahead. She didn't want to see her classmates. If she looked at anyone, she was afraid the tears would come.
Then—
"You can't do this!" Juniper exclaimed as she leaped to her feet. "She's earned the right to sit those examinations just like the rest of us!"
"Sit down, girl," one of the examiners ordered.
"No, I will not!"
Alpit stood, too. "She's done nothing wrong! She's been studying to become an Auror just like the rest of us!"
More students were standing. A Ravenclaw called out, "She's been one of us since first year!"
"She's nicer than half the people here!" Theodore shouted.
Cassie's eyes widened. Then Fiona Jenour's voice rang out. "She may be annoying, but she's hardly dangerous! Merlin, you're all so stupid!"
Cassie almost laughed. Then Harrison Babbs stood, of all people. The egotistical prefect who had spent years trying to get into her pants.
He planted his hands on his desk. "If she can't take her NEWTs, none of us will either!"
Cassie's mouth fell open. The students around her began echoing him.
"None of us!"
"We won't take them!"
"You can't stop her!"
"Let her sit!"
The Ministry officials attempted to shout over the students, but it didn't work.
Cassie looked toward McGonagall. The professor's eyes were wet.
Cassie's heart squeezed. She had spent years believing Hogwarts merely tolerated her. Now she understood that she had been wrong.
Finally, Fudge shouted something to one of the Aurors. A burst of red sparks exploded above the students, and the room slowly quieted.
"Enough!" Fudge roared.
Fiona Jenour folded her arms over her chest. "I'm Head Girl." Fudge stared at her. "And I don't think my parents will be particularly pleased if I don't take my examinations. So what will it be, Minister? Would you like to explain to them why we weren't permitted to sit them?" She glanced around. "I'm speaking for all of us!"
Fudge's face reddened. For a moment, he looked as though he genuinely didn't know what to say.
Then—
"Fine!" he yelled. The room erupted in cheers. "Black may sit for her examinations!" Cassie slowly returned to her desk. Then Fudge added, "But don't bother applying for Auror training. There will be no place for you under my Ministry."
She looked at him and smiled, but her expression was anything but pleasant. "Fudge, I wouldn't work for the Ministry if you begged me."
For once, Fudge had no retort. He ordered the Aurors from the hall.
Moody was the last to leave. His magical eye settled briefly on Cassie.
Something almost approving flickered in his expression.
Cassie smiled faintly. She would never learn from him or work beside him. But at least she wasn't being hauled away in handcuffs.
The examinations began shortly afterward. The examiners watched her every move. One examiner looked at her as though Cassie were something unpleasant stuck to the bottom of her shoe.
She flew through the written portions. The practical examinations the following day went equally well.
All except Potions. That one was...less impressive. But by then, Cassie had already accepted that the precise scores hardly mattered. Her path toward becoming an Auror was effectively closed. She would have to pursue her training elsewhere.
Castelobruxo, perhaps. The very route Dumbledore had suggested. She still hadn't agreed to his plans. But now, whether she liked it or not, she had to consider them.
After the small graduation celebration on the grounds, most of the seventh years made their way to Hogsmeade. Cassie hadn't expected to go. But after what had happened in the Great Hall, she couldn't bring herself to decline.
They crowded into the Three Broomsticks, raised glasses, and reminisced about the past seven years. Some offered Cassie encouragement. Some insisted she should become an Auror anyway.
Others told her Fudge couldn't keep her from pursuing her dreams.
Cassie smiled and thanked them even though they didn't understand that it wasn't that simple. But she appreciated that they wanted to believe it could be.
As the evening wore on, Cassie sat among her classmates and listened as they laughed. And suddenly, she understood something. For years, she had feared she didn't belong. Afraid that her family name had already decided what she was. Afraid that people would always look at her and see Bellatrix or Sirius—or whatever other Black they happened to remember first. But when the Ministry had tried to take her future away, an entire room full of students had stood up for her.
They hadn't done it because of her family. They had done it because she was theirs. A classmate. A friend. A fellow student who had spent seven years growing up alongside them.
Cassie looked around the crowded pub. These were her final hours as a Hogwarts student. Tomorrow, she would begin becoming something else. A witch with a life beyond these walls.
She would miss Hogwarts more than she could ever explain. But she wasn't leaving it empty-handed. She was carrying its memories with her. And the knowledge that, despite everything her family had done to define her, she had finally become someone entirely her own.
She lifted her glass. "To Hogwarts," she said quietly.
Around her, voices joined in. "To Hogwarts."
And for the first time in a very long time, Cassie didn't wonder whether she belonged.
She knew.