Chapter 79: Shadows (1)

Christmas at Hogwarts had always been a special and magical time. Despite the common choice among students to return home for the holidays, the castle transformed into a festive wonderland. The Great Hall boasted twelve majestic Christmas trees, each adorned uniquely with golden pinecones, vibrant red berries, never-melting icicles, living owls and enchanted snow, glistening on the green branches.

Filch took to polishing every suit of armour within Hogwarts and decorated them with festive red hats. Professor Flitwick went a step further, teaching dozens of portraits to serenade passersby with Christmas carols. This initiative, while heartwarming, occasionally struck a discordant note due to the varying musical talents of its portrait participants. Meanwhile, Peeves had developed a repertoire of his own, significantly altering the lyrics of the songs, and taking it upon himself to showcase the results to everyone that he encountered, regardless of their willingness to listen.

For Catherine and her friends, the highlight of the Christmas festivities was undoubtedly the introduction of seasonal culinary delights to their dining experience, featuring the likes of succulent roasted apples, delectable sweet mince pies, and indulgent sticky toffee pudding. The third-years' spirits were already soaring from their triumphant acquisition of the Animagi potion recipe, and they viewed the surprising treats provided by the house-elves not as nuisances, but as well-earned rewards for their daring and ingenuity.

Even amidst the towering stack of holiday homework, the Gryffindors remained undeterred in their good mood, despite Peter's mental tally of the hours he'd need to invest in completing McGonagall's daunting assignment on Cross-Species Switches Spells, stretching across two rolls of parchment. 

"Think Thorne will saddle us with as much work?" - Peter inquired with a hint of anxiety as they traipsed back to the castle following Care of Magical Creatures. 

James shrugged nonchalantly. "Doubt it. He's not one for lengthy assignments. Probably doesn't fancy slogging through them himself." 

"Can you blame him?" – Sirius chuckled – "Imagine having to decipher something scrawled by Mulciber. Honestly, I'm not sure he even knows the alphabet!"

"Can't be worse than Aelia Greengrass." – Catherine interjected – "Frank Longbottom told me that she accidentally cast a Conceal Charm on Valeria Malfoy's wand during Charms. Valeria was so startled she dropped it, and they couldn't find the wand for an hour."

"No wonder their Pure-blood supremacy nonsense falls flat!" – Sirius chortled as they entered the castle, making their way toward the DADA classroom. 

"I wish that were true." – Remus murmured sombrely – "Did you hear that Valeria Malfoy had a huge fight with Autumn Monroe from Hufflepuff?"

"Big deal! Valeria is probably the snappiest person I've ever had the misfortune to encounter. Thinks her name puts her above everyone else and doesn't mind making a spectacle of herself!" – Sirius remarked, shrugging. 

"It was different this time." – Remus countered in a hushed tone – "Autumn stood her ground, and Valeria was so pissed that she told her it was time to clean the school from all the…ahem…"

"Mudbloods." – Catherine helpfully finished his sentence.

"…Muggle-borns, but that's beside the point." – Remus continued – "Apparently someone stunned Autumn yesterday as she was returning to her Common Room after dinner."

"Unpleasant, certainly, but I expected worse." – noted James, surprised. 

"And it gets worse!" - Remus added, casting a cautious glance around – "Philippa Finch from Hufflepuff… you know her, the girl with the short, curly hair… we have Arithmancy together… so she told me Autumn's wand was found next to her, snapped in two!" 

"This is despicable!" – roared Sirius, startling a bunch of second-years who were passing by – "When are they going to expel Valeria anyway?"

"They won't! It turned out she had a solid alibi." – Remus explained unhappily. 

"Just because she didn't physically do it doesn't mean she wasn't the instigator!" – objected James angrily. 

"There's no solid proof." – the amber-eyed boy sighed.

"Aren't we wizards? Can't we use Veritaserum to make her confess?" – snapped Sirius.

"It's forbidden to use Veritaserum on students, Sirius." – Catherine explained calmly – "What's more bothersome in this case is the impressive organisation. It happened way too quickly, and if it wasn't Valeria herself, it means those who want to harm Muggle-borns are very well-coordinated with each other."

"I've said it before, and I'll say it again – you are not going anywhere alone from now on, Flame!" – Sirius declared decisively. 

"I've said it before, and I'll say it again – it's not you who decide where I go and with whom." – the black-haired witch replied impassively. 

Sirius glared angrily at his friend, ready to start arguing, but at that moment they encountered a large crowd that had encircled a few students. 

"What's going on here? Why are you blocking the hallway?" – asked James, pushing his way through the students, followed by his classmates.

Finally, they reached the source of the commotion. Lily Evans was engaged in a heated argument with Leopold Warrington from Ravenclaw. Beside her stood Severus Snape with an unreadable expression. A fourth person was almost hiding behind Warrington's back.

"I'm telling you it wasn't Severus! I'm not sure what happened to Archi, but you're being unreasonable!" – the red-headed witch insisted. 

"Have you lost your mind, Evans? Archi was perfectly fine before he drank from his water bottle, and the only time someone could have tampered with it was when we left our schoolbags in the boys' bathroom, and Snape was there! How much more evidence do you need?" – Warrington argued.

"What are you talking about? You're leaving your schoolbags unattended all the time! We all do! Severus wouldn't have done such a thing, and Archi should go see Madame Pomfrey right away!" – Lily refused to give up.

At this juncture, Catherine finally managed to get a better look at the fourth person who, according to the conversation, was supposed to be Archibald Smith from Ravenclaw. The young witch gasped as her eyes fell on the grotesque transformation of the otherwise handsome Archi. His head was oddly swollen, his ears - extremely large and bat-like, and his brown eyes were bulging to the size of tennis balls. In fact, the Ravenclaw bore such a striking resemblance to a house-elf that had the situation not been so serious, Catherine would have found it laughable. 

"Of course it was Snivellus! Only a coward like him would resort to some kind of potion instead of facing you directly!" – James jumped in the midst of the argument.

"What do you call me, Potter?" – hissed Snape, immediately drawing his wand.

"I called you a coward. Is your hair so greasy that it blocks sound now?" – James retorted, mocking him as he drew his own wand.

"I'm not the one who's constantly walking around, surrounded by his dogs and whatever that one is." – Snape answered motioning towards Catherine, who responded with a sarcastic snort.

"I don't know if Snape's a coward but he's most certainly an outcast if he needs a Gryffindor to defend him." – she retorted – "Where are you friends, Snivelly? Imagine what kind of misfit one must be if even Slytherins can't stand him!" 

These words seemed to really strike a nerve. The crowd laughed and Snape stared at Catherine with murder in his black eyes. She immediately knew that the first curse was going to be sent her way and quickly reached for her wand. However, nothing happened because Lily jumped between her friends, grabbed Snape's hand, and tried to drag him away from the escalating scene. 

"Hey! We're not done here!" – James yelled after them – "Come on, Evans! Choose the right side for once!" 

"Don't you dare talk to me about the right side, James Potter!" – hissed Lily, her face flushed with rage – "You're just a bully who enjoys nothing more than finding a reason to hex people left and right! Leave us alone!"

James seemed far from finished with the conversation, but the sudden arrival of Filch and Mrs Norris robbed him of the opportunity to continue. The students scattered, and the Gryffindors reached the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom just in time for the lesson.

Professor Thorne divided them into pairs for a practical session on the Lumos Maxima Spell, which they were supposed to use against real Hinkypunks after the holidays.

Lily was ten minutes late and ended up being paired with Catherine who was grateful at first but quickly realised her friend was extremely irritated with everyone, and any kind of collaboration was futile at the moment. As a result, the lesson passed without the black-haired witch being able to focus the powerful light stream into a single ray, as required for effective combat against Dark creatures like the Hinkypunks.

At the end of the class, the girl lowered her wand helplessly and looked at the mirrors on the wall with disappointment. Casting the spell correctly with her partner, aimed at the marked part of the mirror was supposed to redirect the light onto a special crystal plate, which changed colour depending on the force of the spell. Catherine's plate was still transparent because her spell had never reached it in the first place. 

"What seems to be the problem, Miss Plantier?" – the voice of Carter Thorne startled the young witch, who realised she was the only one left in the classroom.

"It's nothing, Sir. I was lost in thought. I'll be out of your way immediately." – the Gryffindor said quickly attempting to hastily collect her belongings and put some distance between herself and the DADA teacher.

"Wait for a moment, Miss Plantier." – Thorne requested unexpectedly – "I believe you didn't do well during the lesson. Do you have any issues with Miss Evans?"

"No, Sir!" – lied Catherine instantly – "I think we were just lacking focus. I promise, I'll do my best to improve for the next time."

"It won't be necessary." – Thorne shook his head and approached the black-haired Gryffindor, who was eying the door with hope – "I believe you're strong enough yourself to trigger reaction of the Luminus crystal. You just lack proper technique. Come and stand here next to me."

Catherine obeyed unwillingly, wondering what kind of game her Professor was playing. Judging from past experience, he was definitely up to something, most likely involving her humiliation in one way or another. However, to her utter surprise, the wizard simply helped her position correctly in front of the mirror.

"Your wrist is a bit stiff. It wouldn't allow you to aim accurately." – he explained and gently guided the girl's right arm.

The young witch felt literally dizzy. For three years, Carter Thorne had shown her nothing but harsh expectations, meting out severe punishments for the slightest mistake, and displaying a complete lack of mercy, whether with his wand or his tongue, depending on the situation. The person in front of her, however, was calm, accommodating, and almost father-like. 

'Could it be that he's under the Imperius Curse?'- Catherine thought, mechanically following the Professor's instructions.

"Now, use the incantation, but try to focus your gaze a little bit above the marking. This way, the spell will hit exactly where it's supposed to. Don't forget to concentrate your power into a stream."

"Lumos Maxima!" – the girl yelled, and to her surprise, a perfectly shaped stream of light hit the mirror at the correct angle and reflected towards the Luminus crystal, which shined with golden light, just as it had after Sirius and James used their combined spells.

"Very well done!" – Thorne prised the Gryffindor, and for the first time ever, he smiled at her.

To say Catherine was shocked would be an understatement. The black-haired witch realised she was standing there like a complete idiot, staring at her Professor with a blank expression and her mouth agape.

"Do you feel alright?" – Thorne asked with a slight concern in his voice, his sky-blue eyes scanning the girl's face for some sign of sudden illness.

"Yes…I need to go…dinner…Excuse me!" – Catherine stammered, grabbed her schoolbag, and darted through the door without even noticing Professor McGonagall, who was standing there.

"You really left the poor thing speechless, Carter." – the Head of Gryffindor noted dryly, trying to suppress her smile.

The DADA teacher glanced at his colleague and shrugged disappointedly. "I suppose I had traumatised Miss Plantier to the point where she's more afraid of me when being nice than when being mean."

"She's not that easy to break. She's a Gryffindor, after all!" – Minerva remarked proudly, adding with a simper – "I'm glad to see that you've decided to adapt your teaching methods!"

Carter Thorne lifted an eyebrow and smiled bitterly. "I'm not going to alter my expectations. As you probably saw yourself, she has remarkable potential. I can't just allow it to go to waste by not providing enough challenges."

The witch sighed heavily and moved closer to the DADA teacher. "I understand your point… to some extent. I'm still uncertain about your motivation, but I'm just happy to see you're at least trying to be kinder to Miss Plantier. You'll see she's much more willing to perform well in class when the person teaching her shows genuine willingness to help her learn."

"Was that an offence towards me or a bit of humble bragging?" – asked Thorne, smirking which made Minerva McGonagall blush a bit, despite her firm disposition. 

"I actually came to return your present, but… I guess I may reconsider. And if you're willing to… I mean, if you have the time, we can share a glass of that wine."

"It would be a pleasure!" – the other teacher replied, his eyes completely serene, fixed on the witch's face, making her blush even harder. 

"Good! Then, I suppose, I'll see you first at dinner." – she said hastily, turning toward the door.

"Minerva!" – the DADA Professor called out before his colleague could leave – "I'm glad we have the chance to strengthen things up. I truly missed our conversations."

The Transfiguration Professor smiled and nodded. "I feel the same way. We all need support during these troublesome times. I presume you heard about Ann Owens and her husband?"

Thorne's handsome face turned pale, and he appeared sickened by the subject. "I did. It took me a while to grasp all the gruesome details. Her husband was a Muggle, wasn't he?"

"He was." – McGonagall almost whispered, tears brimming in her beady eyes – "And Ann was such a bright person. She was one of my favourite students, though it's not very professional of me to have favourites… I just can't believe she's gone, and in such a manner! To think that they had werewolves assault her and then… kill her slowly in front of her husband… this is just…"

Marquis Carsilion Egbert had a wealth of experience with Dark wizards, but even he was sickened to the core by the so-called 'accident' as labelled by the Daily Prophet. While he didn't know the victims, Minerva's reaction was heart-wrenching. For a strong, powerful, and composed witch like her to tremble like a child, it must have affected her greatly.

The wizard quickly approached the sobbing witch and embraced her slender frame, smiling at the sharp gasp the Head of Gryffindor emitted, completely taken by surprise. However, it seemed she didn't mind too much because she quickly relaxed in his arms, and her delicate hands rested on his chest. 

After a few moments, Thorne released the confused and embarrassed Transfiguration teacher, who cleared her throat and said nervously. "I'm sorry, I got a bit emotional. It's just hard for me to comprehend how anyone could follow that person and support his views. I thought we overcame this after Grindelwald, but I see we're back at the same place once more."

"It's overwhelming." – agreed the DADA Professor – "I know it's not very helpful to say, but we should concentrate on what depends on us – not allowing his influence to spread further into the school."

"I feel we're failing miserably there." – admitted McGonagall.

"So do I. But do we have any real choice but keep on fighting?" – Thorne asked with grim determination.