The Cave of Returning Light
The morning air at the Burrow was crisp, and Hazel lingered on the steps longer than she meant to. The Weasley house smelled faintly of toast and pumpkin juice, and though Harry stood just beside her, there was already distance in the way he leaned against the rail, staring across the garden as if it could give him answers.
"You're really leaving," he muttered.
Hazel nudged his arm gently and rolled her eyes playfully. She understood. This had been the first time he had not returned to their aunt and uncle's house. The first time he was free. Her leaving marked an end to that. "It's not like It's forever. Star Academy's just… where I need to be right now. It is my school and my home base like Hogwarts is for you. I'll be back before you've even figured out how to keep up with Hermione's homework load."
Harry snorted, though his eyes didn't lift from the ground.
"Besides, I will be back with you for Christmas and Evervine has already said that she wants to see Hogsmeade."
"It's not schoolwork, or your Returning to me that I'm worried about. It's Sirius."
Hazel hesitated, then shifted so she was facing him fully. "You still think you should be with him?"
Harry's jaw tightened. "He's my godfather. He needs me. Dumbledore's got him hidden away like some criminal, but he's family. I can't just let him sit there."
Hazel drew in a slow breath. "I know. And maybe—maybe there'll be a way. But you rushing off won't save him. It'll only put both of you in danger. Besides, I completely agree with you. You should be with Sirius."
"I'm not rushing off," Harry said quickly, but his eyes flashed, the same way they did when anyone dared question his choices. "I just… I need to be ready. He's the only family I've got." He froze and looked up at her slowly.
Hazel pressed her lips together. She could have said, What about me? But Harry would never hear it that way. Instead, she reached out and clasped his hand. "Then let's both get stronger. You for him, me for—" she hesitated, then finished softly, "—everyone else who needs it. That way when the time comes, we'll be able to help him. Together."
Harry glanced at her finally, the corner of his mouth tugging upward. "You sound like Dumbledore when you say things like that."
Hazel rolled her eyes. "Then Merlin help me."
The tension broke into laughter, brief and thin, but real. And when George's voice drifted faintly through the link of the Dreamscape — "Don't forget to write, Hazel, or I'll just show up and pester you myself" — Hazel couldn't help but smile. She squeezed Harry's hand once more before stepping back.
"It will be Okay. Besides the dreamscape is just a shallow breath and fleeting thought away."
Evervine and Marcel were waiting at the steps. Marcel was giving Mrs. Weasley another recipe and Evervine was transfiguring into the different gnomes encircling them. Rachel almost stopped in her tracks. Was she truly that bored?
Montague McGonagall was already waiting for them at the edge of the yard, his cloak sweeping around him like a dark current. Minerva stood beside him, lips pressed tight though her eyes softened when Hazel approached.
"Mother," Hazel said, leaning into her for a quick embrace. Minerva's arms clutched her fiercely for a moment, then loosened as if she could not quite bear to let go.
"Be careful," Minerva whispered. "And remember—Star Academy may claim you, but you are still ours."
Hazel nodded. "Always."
Montague cleared his throat. "Come, Hazel. It's time."
The four of them stepped together into the shimmer of a Traveler's spell. Hazel had done this before—followed her father's lead through rifts and crossings—but today he folded his arms, letting her stand before the open air. Evervine and Marcel watching expectantly.
They were also used to traveling with Hazel and both were so inquisitive that the three had stopped like this often, just for the experience of it.
"You've learned the sigils. You've learned the words." He scoffed. I know, in many ways you have already surpassed me." Montague said, voice even.
Hazel blinked. "You mean… me?"
He smiled faintly. "Who else? And don't pretend like it is brand new to you."
She smiled and, turning from him with confidence, traced the spiral in the air with her wand. Then the air deepened, swirling like liquid glass, until light cracked across it, forming into an archway of crystal. The shimmering gate yawned open, and beyond it, she saw the glimmer of a cavern glowing with soft blue fire.
"Very good. The Crystal Cave," Montague's voice was full of pride.
Evervine was walking through the portal before any directed her too. Montague narrowed his eyes at Hazel. She simply shrugged and followed her friends.
The sound hit them first: the low hum, like a chorus of voices singing just out of reach. The walls glistened with facets of quartz and diamond, each reflecting Hazel's face back at her. But the reflections didn't stay still—they smiled, nodded, winked, as if the cave itself was greeting her return.
It was only Hazel. They other three were not reflected anywhere in the great hall. It was Evervin and Marcel's first time here and they looked about in wonder and then back to Hazel in question.
Hazel shrugged. "It remembers."
Montague's voice reverberated. "The Cave keeps the echoes of the travelers who pass. It knows when one of its own comes home. But this is a welcoming and a greeting. It knows you are back and it is glad that you have returned."
He smiled as his reflection began to appear on a few of the surfaces. Smiling, waving, nodding in respect.
"It honors you too father."
"Not as it does you. You are the greatest of us my love."
They followed a long hall within the cavern, the mirrored walls catching every flicker of their torchlight. Hazel's reflection seemed to walk beside her, stronger, more sure of herself than she ever actually felt.
And then, beyond the final turn, the light opened onto Star Academy. Towers carved from stone and crystal reached skyward, and banners of the five Houses fluttered proudly in the morning breeze.
Hazel's heart lifted at the sight—and clenched again when she spotted a tall, stern figure already making her way toward them. Evervine and Marcel quickly said their goodbyes and headed to their dorm rooms to decompress.
"Hazel McGonagall." Professor Sara Sing's voice cut through the courtyard, precise and commanding. Her eyes, sharp behind thin spectacles, swept Hazel up and down before the faintest curve touched her lips. "I am glad I am here to welcome back my most promising Divination student."
Hazel flushed under the praise. "Professor Sing."
Montague bowed slightly in greeting, but Sara Sing's focus stayed fixed on Hazel. "Your reputation precedes you—even beyond Tan. The families whisper, the Houses watch. You should know, Ambrose's fall has left… an opening."
Both Hazel and Montague stiffened. She knew well enough what that meant: the Divination families were circling, vying, watching. For him he felt a different emotion, like he would be abandoning her right when she needed him.
The three entered the school proper. Montague hugged his daughter before heading to his office. There were a few things he needed to take care of. Professor Sing and Hazel walked together. Sof and Samon were in the same general direction.
In the corridor leading to Sof House wing six figures moved sluggishly. Their movements were sluggish because the three in the center seemed half asleep. Their eyes were wide open and there were bright smiles on their faces but their movements were those of three people needing a bed.
Rosa Ambrose walked at their head, and just behind them, two figures flanked then in the left and the right - Temperance and Timothy Greenstream.
"Hurry," Timothy muttered, casting a quick look over his shoulder. "My glamor may fool a professor but I doubt it will fool Hazel. Her divination allows her to see too well."
Rosa rolled her eyes. "Then let's hurry. You said the entrance is here right. And you have weaved me into the wards so that I have access."
Temperance caught sight of Hazel and Professor Sing. "Yes, yes, of course. Enter, enter. Professor Sing is coming with the goody-goody.'
Rosa's eyes went wide. She touched a crease in the wood of a portion of the paneling. The painting above the crease looked at her with a smile. The woman spoke brightly but conspiratorial.
"Rosa Ambrose of Sof House. You may enter."
The crease became a crack that became an arched entrance way Rosa quickly entered with Temperance and Timothy pushing the three glamored boys through.
Just as the crack returned to its crease form Hazel froze.
Professor Sing did the same. They looked at each other with clear question in their eyes.
Professor Sing spoke first. "Did you just sense that?"
Hazel nodded slowly. "Something brushed against our fate lines at the exact same time."
"And locked into place."
Both of them frowned, the air between them heavy with the knowledge that something was deeply wrong.
The new year hadn't even begun, and already the shadows of ambition and secrecy pressed close around Hazel.