~Wren~

For a moment, all I could do was blink at our professor. She could remember it all? And the look she was giving me, very intense, but... a bit of desperation, too. Like she very badly hoped I would believe her.

Nico spoke first. "You what?"

"I remember it." Now she took her gaze off me, and I almost sagged with relief. Her eyes darted between Nico and Ciara. "They tried to obliviate me, but it didn't work."

"That's not how that spell works," Nico said slowly. He almost sounded wary.

Rinduli sighed. "Where do I even start?" She shook her head, but she seemed to figure that out after a moment. "I suppose you know what a natural legilimens is?"

"Like Stillens," Ciara said flatly.

"Exactly." Rinduli glanced behind us, at the door, then shot a nonverbal spell at it, I assumed to lock it. After that, she turned her frown back at me at me before continuing. "I guess you wouldn't believe me if I told you it worked the same way for occlumency?"

After a moment of hesitation, worried she might somehow be alluding to Cassie, I nodded. "I could believe that."

A hint of surprise crossed her face, but at least she didn't seem like she was about to hex us. "Great," was all she said, before turning to Nico. "You're supposed to be an expert on obliviating, I've heard." He didn't respond, but she didn't seem to be expecting him to. "Do you know how someone could resist the spell?"

"You can't." He rolled his eyes. "It's impossible."

"It isn't, actually. Just very difficult. It's—"

"If it's so difficult, how could you do it as a small child?" Ciara cut in.

"I'm getting to that." Now there was some frustration in her tone, and I found myself nervously fidgeting with the sleeve of my sweater. She rolled her eyes. "The only way to resist the memory charm is occlumency."

"That's ridiculous," Nico snapped. "Impossible. Wren's an occlumens, and I've obliviated her before."

"Did she know you were doing it? Did she consent to it?"

Nico huffed and rolled his eyes, but it didn't seem like she was trying to be argumentative. "Yes," I said quietly, purposefully not glancing in Nico's direction.

"Exactly. Why would she be hiding something if she wanted it to be erased? And if a person isn't prepared, doesn't know you're doing it, they won't have time to hide anything." Rinduli raised an eyebrow. "If you don't believe me, you're welcome to test it yourselves."

I glanced up at Nico, but he was just shaking his head and muttering something about this being mad. "I... I mean, what's the worst that could happen? You have to restore my memory?"

He turned to me, surprise and annoyance mixed on his face. "Seriously? You're buying this?"

"It's a really easy way to prove if she's lying about it." I glanced back at Ciara for support, but the look on her face told me she was barely containing an argument herself. Maybe it was just about Nico's ability, or maybe she thought it was a bad idea, too. Either way, she didn't say anything.

When I turned back to Nico, he seemed to be suppressing a groan. "Fine. What do you want me to erase?"

"Um... astronomy, last night?"

He rolled his eyes, but when Rinduli held his wand out to him, he took it and didn't point it at her. I focused as hard as I could on shoving my memory of our class the night before behind the curtain, hide it from anyone except me. Nico had closed his eyes when I turned my focus back on him, but they opened again after a few seconds. He held his wand up towards me. "Obliviate."

For a few seconds, we were locked in some kind of intense staring contest. I couldn't tell if it was working or not, because trying to see if I could still remember would pull the memory back out from the curtain. Nico's brow had scrunched up, though, as if he were confused. He pulled his wand away, and I blinked at him. "What happened?"

"Nothing. I couldn't find the memory."

"It worked?" Before he could answer, I was already remembering our class. One of the Ravenclaws had tripped over a leg of his telescope and nearly fallen off the roof, saved only by Professor Sinastra's spell. I could remember it all clearly.

Nico looked like he was having some sort of crisis when I turned to him. He shook his head as he met my eyes. "Bloody hell, Wren, how'd you do that?"

"I... I don't know..."

I glanced back at Rinduli, who was watching us with a raised eyebrow. "I told you."

"That doesn't prove anything," Ciara said immediately. "You could just be making all the rest of this up."

"I suppose you'd like me to tell you all the things I'm not supposed to remember."

"What if Stillens told you all of it?" Nico countered. "How do we know you haven't just been prepared for this?"

"How on earth would he have even known to prepare for you trying to restore my memory?" She rolled her eyes. "He thinks you're his loyal follower, doesn't he? Anyway, you're the only person I've ever heard of trying to undo someone else's memory charm."

Personally, I was inclined to agree with that logic, not only because of her argument but also because it seemed completely unlike my uncle to give any of his followers any bit of power to wield that he couldn't control. He'd told meabout the kidnapped children because there was no way anyone would believe me. However, telling one of these kidnapped children the truth seemed entirely counterproductive. How could he know how they'd react? He couldn't very well control their emotional response. And if they'd decided that that was a horribly evil thing to do, or were even just hurt, the only way to stop them from going and telling the other kidnapped children they likely knew was to kill them. Telling Rinduli the truth, on such a slim chance that something like this might happen, seemed completely out of the question. That wasn't the way he worked. Sure, he played mind games, but he was always the one in control.

I realized that both Ciara and Nico were looking to me once the silence had already grown awkward. It seemed like I was going to have to respond to that. "I mean, she's got a point..."

"What sort of point?" Ciara demanded.

"Telling her that would take too many things out of Stillens' control. I don't think it would be worth it to him."

Nico seemed unconvinced, but just shook his head before gesturing to our professor with his wand. "Fine. I suppose we'll hear you out."

Rinduli disarmed him immediately. "Thanks for the courtesy," she said drily.

"So... are you saying you're a natural occlumens?" I asked. My voice sounded more timid than I was expecting it to be, which was frustrating. I took a deep breath. You've got to act. Pretend it's Stillens.

Rinduli was nodding, but Ciara cut in before she could say anything. "How on earth did Stillens not catch that, then?"

"Exactly," Nico agreed, gesturing towards my friend. "I personally know of at least one kidnapped child here in Britain who was being treated very differently from the others because he knew she was a natural occlumens."

Rinduli pressed her lips together, seeming genuinely troubled by that. I peered more closely at her face, trying to tell if it was an act or not, but I couldn't. "That's terrible," she said softly. "I'm sorry to hear it."

"You'd say that whether or not you actually were."

"I suppose I would." At least I was beginning to see that Nico was actually annoying her. She narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm getting to that part, if you'll let me explain. I thought you were going to hear me out."

When I looked up at Nico, his jaw was clenched tightly. He only glared at her as a response, though. After a moment, Rinduli shook her head, rolling her eyes again. "Honestly, I forgot how emotional teenagers are."

"I am not—"

"Relax, Nico. It's a joke." The sharp edge to her tone made me flinch involuntarily, which I immediately regretted when she looked back at me. At least the frustration seemed to have gone out of her eyes. I suppose that made sense; I was the only one here trying to let her explain, after all.

"I think I'll have to start at the beginning. I promise, I'll get to how Stillens didn't know, but it won't make a lot of sense without context." She glanced between the three of us. "Is that all right, or are you going to keep interrupting me every ten seconds to ask questions I already planned on answering?"

Nico was still glaring at her, and I hadn't interrupted her at all, so Ciara was the only one who responded. After a moment of hesitation, she gave a reluctant shrug. "Go ahead."

"Thanks for the permission." Rinduli huffed. "You two are insufferable, you know that?"

Nico just rolled his eyes and muttered something that sounded profane, but Ciara's mouth dropped open. Before she could think of something scathing to say, I slipped my hand into hers and squeezed tightly. Though I could see her questioning glance out of the corner of my eye, I didn't meet her gaze. Instead, I took a deep breath and managed a faint smile at our professor. "We'll stop interrupting. I promise. Just... please keep going."

Rinduli didn't seem convinced about the interrupting part, but nodded at me anyway. "Sure. Right." For a moment, she closed her eyes, a pained look on her face. I found myself holding my breath for the few seconds of silence. Honestly, I couldn't begin to imagine what she was going to say. There was no way she'd been in control of her occlumency at such a young age. Or even aware of it, honestly, especially since her parents had been no-majs. And if what she was saying was true, why had she stayed with Stillens all this time, knowing what he'd done?

When she finally opened her eyes again, there was an almost haunted look in them that sent a chill down my spine. Haunted was hard to fake—I knew from experience. Did that mean...?

"I was number One Eighteen," she said after a moment, the frustration completely gone from her voice. "I think I was about four years old when I was kidnapped, but it could have been three. It's still hard to think about before without the added fog of time."

I shot Nico a quick glance, but he seemed completely unmoved, like he hadn't even heard anything. Before was significant, though. Both Cassie and Isla had claimed they weren't supposed to think about Before, and many of the children Albus and Astra had talked to at the manor had said the same thing. Did she know that? Was she just trying to get in our heads, or was that something that had actually been indoctrinated into her?

When I looked back, Rinduli was watching me with a raised eyebrow. "Do you have something to say?"

I shook my head quickly. "No. Sorry."

"It's okay." She smiled at me like she was trying to put me at ease (was my anxiety that obvious?), but it didn't have the desired effect. After a pause, she kept going. "I remember the kidnapping, though if you start quizzing me on the little details like what the people who kidnapped me looked like or what spells they used, I might not be able to answer. It was the worst day of my life, though." She blinked, and I realized her eyes looked a little glassy. If she was lying, she was doing a very good job of it. "I watched them kill my mom, and my dad, and my baby sister. Right in front of me."

Nico's glare had disappeared, replaced by a thoughtful frown. I knew he was still skeptical, but at least he was listening. Now, he held up his hand a bit, like he wanted to interrupt without actually interrupting. Rinduli looked over at him, and that seemed to be invitation enough. "I'm just... do you remember your birth name?"

She raised her eyebrows, as if she hadn't been expecting that one. "So it's not Absinthe? I've always wondered..." She shook her head. "My parents just called me Abby. The people who adopted me did too, sometimes, so I was never sure what the original was. And I don't remember my last name at all. I don't think it's because of obliviation, just how young I was, but you're probably going to think whatever you want about that no matter what I say."

Instead of rising to that, Nico just shrugged in concession. "I suppose that might make sense. Depending on the rest of your story."

"It was Abilene, by the way," Ciara said quietly. When I turned to her, she shot an unsure glance towards us, as if she wasn't sure if she should have said anything. I didn't see what the issue was (though I had no idea what her name was; how long had both of them pored over that pile?). Apparently Nico didn't care either. Ciara turned back to our professor and added, "Abilene West."

Rinduli was staring at her intensely, but it wasn't the same kind of intense look she gave me when she was trying to guess what I was thinking. It seemed a little more inward-focused, somehow. "Thank you," she said softly, then closed her eyes and shook her head. "Anyway..."

It seemed to take a moment for her to collect her thoughts. I frowned at her while she did; the past few minutes had been so unlike anything I'd seen from her, and I couldn't tell if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Before I could figure it out, she continued.

"Like I said, my parents were killed, and Savannah, and they held me there and made me watch. It wasn't gory or anything, just the killing curse and my family being too still on the floor. There had been a lot of shouting before that, though, of my dad trying to protect the rest of us. I think they were fighting, but my parents didn't have a chance against wands." She blinked for a moment, then shook her head. "You know, I've thought about all this so much—I didn't think it would be so hard to say it out loud."

Did that mean she'd never spoken about any of this? Hadn't she ever told anyone before? I bit down the question (that would probably count as an interruption) as she kept going. "I was crying so much by the time it was done that what happened after is a bit of a blur. I think we apparated, and then I was in the facility, being locked in a dark room alone until I stopped crying."

"They didn't obliviate you when you got there?"

I blinked, surprised I'd spoken. Luckily, Rinduli didn't seem annoyed. "Not at first, no. They drilled the idea of not thinking about what happened before we got there into us so much the first few months, and that only works if there's a before to think about. That's my best guess, at least."

Nico nodded slowly, shooting a glance at me. "That... that lines up with what the files said."

I hadn't read any of the American files except Artemis, Zaria, and Magnus. I mean, I might have skimmed Rinduli's, but I'd never been paying attention to timing on any of them. Nico must have read all of them by now, though. I could take his word for it.

Rinduli seemed to be waiting for me to reach that conclusion. She didn't continue until I'd nodded slightly, shifting uncomfortably in the silence.

"Anyway, I'm not sure that I remember the whole brainwashing process clearly. I was inconsolable at first, then at least distraught most of the time. They told us that our families had left us, though. That we were going to put with new families who would actually love us, but we had to learn how to be good first. And being good meant following all the rules. Don't think about before. Be obedient immediately and without question. Never talk about this man named Stillens, but always respect him." Rinduli paused to shrug, as if she was trying to seem unaffected. "I got brainwashed along with everyone else, of course. They just didn't realize that when they taught me not to think about before, I would truly not think about it."

"I don't understand that," Ciara cut in. "Maybe you're a natural occlumens, but how could you have hidden just beforewithout any training?"

"I didn't think I was hiding anything. I was doing what I was told." She glanced over at me. "You'll understand this, I think. I assume Nico would as well." He narrowed his eyes at her, but she either didn't notice or didn't care. "You might have different mental pictures when you do it, but I've always imagined having a box in my mind, one where I would put all the things I didn't want to think about and lock them away where no one could ever get to them, even me."

"I imagine a curtain," I said slowly, nodding. "Pushing everything behind it." My fingers were twisting the sleeve of my sweater nervously, and I clasped them in front of me. "That sounds similar."

Rinduli smiled at me, a different one than her normal professor one. What did this one mean? I couldn't tell, and it was making me even more anxious. "Exactly. It was something I'd always been able to do, of course, and never thought about much before. I would shove thoughts to a particular corner of my mind, and they wouldn't come back until I told them to. I think I came up with the idea of a box when I was trying to fall back asleep after nightmares before my parents died." She shook her head. "That doesn't matter. The point is that it was second nature to me to lock things up that I didn't want to think about. I didn't want to think about before, because that was bad, so I locked it up."

Nico tilted his head, eyes narrowed skeptically. "So what you're saying is the obliviator couldn't find anything when he went to obliviate you, so he just gave it up?"

"No." Rinduli pressed her lips together, the annoyance back now. "I remember there was a lot of confusion. I think there must have been multiple obliviators, because someone said it must have already been done. Eventually, I think they just decided it was a clerical error, because I'd clearly already been obliviated."

"And that was it?" The tone of his voice carried the skepticism in his expression without me having to look at him. I tried not to wince. Annoying Rinduli wouldn't help anything.

She'd gotten a faraway look in her eye, though. I opened my mouth, then closed it again, unsure what I'd even wanted to say. Before I could think of anything, she'd slowly shaken her head. "I was an abnormality, Nico. Stillens likes to deal with those himself."

My breath caught. That wasn't what I'd been expecting. I glanced at Nico and Ciara to find them blinking in shock and frowning with concern, respectively. I could only bit my lip, horrified at the thought of being brought to my uncle as a four- or five-year-old. Was that what had happened to Cassie?

"What happened?" Nico asked after a moment, since Rinduli seemed to have gotten lost in what appeared to be unpleasant thoughts.

She blinked as if she'd forgotten we were here, somehow, but that faded almost immediately. "I have to assume the brainwashing worked against him. They'd brought me to a different part of the facility, where it was set up more like a school, and told me that everything before was before now, and I shouldn't think about any of it. So I didn't. And that's all Stillens saw, I guess: me having no memory of anything before. He just sent me off without a word."

"You weren't afraid of him?" Ciara asked.

"Not at first. I'd been taught not to be. But I could feel him in my mind when he started looking, and that scared me. I wasn't supposed to be scared, though, so I just pretended I wasn't after that." She raised an eyebrow at Nico. "This meet your standards so far?"

He frowned at her for a minute, and I was afraid he was going to say no and make her angry. I tried not to cringe as he opened his mouth. "I suppose it's all possible, so far."

"Fantastic." She rolled her eyes and turned back to Ciara and me. "The rest of my time there was pretty much the same. Heavy brainwashing, though this time they weren't being cruel about it. I think I took longer to adjust than most of the other kids, so by the time it was ready for me to move on they just ignored the fact that the same clerical error seemed to happen again when they obliviated me one last time. They left me with my new family and didn't think twice about it, I guess."

"You didn't think that was odd?" Ciara bit her lip. "Sorry, I guess you were little. But it wasn't weird that you were supposed to forget about your real family and just accept this new one?"

"It was what had happened to all the other children. I was seven by then, I think. This had all been normal for three years. I had no idea that none of the others could remember anything."

Neither of my friends raised an argument about that, to my relief. Honestly, all of this had made sense. It was all possible, like Nico had said. I just didn't know if it was real or an elaborately-crafted story.

Nico broke the silence. "How did you realize that the other kids had been obliviated?"

"It wasn't until I got to Ilvermorny. One of my roommates was a family friend, but the other was a girl neither of us had met before. She'd been truly, legally adopted by her aunt and uncle a few years before, and was very open about it as we were all trying to get to know each other. I knew I and all of my friends had been adopted too, because I'd been with most of them at the facility, but it sounded very different from what Emmi was talking about."

"How so?" Ciara asked. I bit back a sigh; we'd now reached a point where they could demand details without the excuse of age as a reason to not remember. I really hoped they wouldn't...

Rinduli seemed unamused already by Ciara, but she answered anyway. "Emmi talked about how her dad had died from cancer when she was too little to remember him, and her mom had started drinking a lot after that. Her mom eventually realized she couldn't take care of her, I guess, and sent her to live with her dad's sister. They fought for custody and won, then legally adopted her after that. I guess it was a long process, with lots of court dates and paperwork. That was the part that was weird to me; I'd never seen any paperwork, or been to a court, not even to have my adoption approved by a judge or something."

"Oh. I... I suppose that's a big difference."

Rinduli nodded with a frown and rubbed her temple for a minute (was she now getting annoyed at Ciara, too?). After that, she glanced at me, apparently the only one. here who wasn't actively giving her a headache. "I tried to point that out to my other roommate, because I assumed she'd had the same line of thinking as me, but she just stared at me like I was crazy and claimed she wasn't adopted. I was so surprised that I didn't press her about it, and later I decided to talk to my parents over Thanksgiving break before I tried again."

"What did they say?" Nico asked, in a surprisingly not antagonistic tone.

"They said I wasn't adopted. That they had no idea what I was talking about and I wasn't supposed to think about before. I think they sent me to my room for making things up."

"And I assume that was when things started not adding up?"

She nodded at Nico. "I couldn't help it. They'd brought up before, and then they'd lied to me about it. None of the new friends I was making had any rules about talking about before. I couldn't figure out why had no one ever addressed the fact that my birth parents had been murdered right in front of me. And my friend had really seemed like she had no idea what I was talking about, as if she genuinely couldn't remember before. That was when I realized something was very, very off."

I stared at her as Ciara asked what her parents had done about it. Apparently, they'd sent her to Stillens again, and she'd consciously hid everything from him this time because she was scared what would happen if she didn't. She clearly wasn't supposed to remember any of this. The way she was talking... if this was true, Stillens couldn't possibly know. He would have had her killed just for being an occlumens, probably, let alone hiding things from him. So that meant he didn'tknow, and Rinduli was actively hiding this from him and everyone else.

Now things weren't adding up for me. Why would she still be here, over ten years later? Why hadn't she done anything, gotten help, tried to leave? Sure, maybe when she was eleven that was too difficult to do, but she was an adult now. Why was she here, acting as one of Stillens' loyal followers, when she apparently thought he was horrible? Why would she stay on board with something she knew was corrupt and evil, unless she was corrupt and evil herself?

But if she was corrupt and evil, why would she be telling us all of this?

I snapped back in to the conversation as Nico asked what she'd done after that, which I assumed was the meeting with Stillens. She just shrugged and said she'd gotten really good at going through the motions. She followed what the other children from the facility did, acted how they acted, and never brought up the fact that it seemed like none of even had memories of before to not think about. Apparently, she'd had nightmares about my uncle for years, though I hadn't heard what he'd done to her to cause them. Nico and Ciara didn't question it, at least.

She said that her parents had started really talking to her about Stillens when she had just turned sixteen, even though she was sure most of her friends had been told a few years before. Her parents thought the country was in shambles and Stillens was making it better, though they never really explained how. They just prompted her to agree, so she did.

"Honestly, I was beginning to think I was in a cult."

"You were," I said quietly. "Are, I mean."

"Oh, I know you would think that." She shook her head, seeming amused. "That's a little off track."

I just stared at her. Did she not think it was a cult anymore? Then why was she telling us any of this?

"I tried to find any information I could about Henry Caymus Stillens, and I couldn't. It was like he stopped existing when he graduated Ilvermorny. The only thing even remotely close was an article about his niece's husband murdering a bunch of people a decade ago."

"And that didn't worry you at all?" Ciara asked. I could tell she was keeping her voice as neutral as possible.

"Of course it did, but I couldn't really do anything about it." She shrugged. "I graduated and applied to be an auror, which seemed to excite my parents. I'd decided I would have to get my information from inside this cult, so I needed to get as high up as I could. Being an auror seemed like a possible gateway to that. As long as I was the best one, at least." She tapped her fingers across her desk like she was trying to remember what came next. "Oh, an article came out around then about what was happening at Hogwarts. I graduated the same year you three would have started Hogwarts."

I felt myself growing a little paler. "Oh. Right."

"My parents didn't seem to care. I knew you were related to Stillens, because it said your father was the same man I'd read about murdering those people, but I realized it might be weird if I brought that connection up. That might be the kind of suspicious thing that would get me sent back to him, you know? So I didn't. I just did what I was told, occasionally reporting to a family friend about what was happening in my division."

"And then you'd just finished your training when the news came out about Stillens infiltrating the MACUSA," Nico said. He sounded like he was mocking her, though I didn't understand exactly how.

Rinduli seemed to. She glared at him. "I hadn't known about any of that until then," she snapped. "I'm still your professor, Nico. I can give you detention. I'm sure Petrov would love your help in the library."

"Is that a threat?"

"Or I could go tell Stillens all about this conversation," she continued, lifting her chin slightly. "I'd cool it with the attitude, if I were you."

I wasn't sure that Nico knew how to respond to that beyond glaring at her. I winced and looked away. "Um... so what happened after that?"

"Oh, you two weren't here at the start of the year, were you?" Rinduli leaned forward, resting her arms on her desk. "It was almost like I told everyone at the start of the year. I got interviewed with veritaserum while they were sweeping the MACUSA, like I said, but someone gave me the antidote and a list of what I needed to say, word-for-word. I had to just keep doing what I was doing, constantly being watched by my parents and who knows how many spies in the auror department. All I knew was I couldn't trust anyone." She pressed her lips together. "And then Harry Potter died, and I told my family I wanted to apply for the position he'd left open at Hogwarts. It got approved, somehow, and now I'm here."

No one spoke at first. I was trying to process all of that, figure out what her motives for all these things had been, because she'd stopped mentioning that. Was she just trying to trick us? Why was she loyal to Stillens now?

Slowly, I shook my head, trying to put that into words without making her angry. "I... I'm just wondering, I guess, if you remember all these things, and you were so concerned when you were in school... why are you still working for him?"

She stared at me for a moment, like I'd asked a stupid question, and I tried not to shrink back. "People can't really defect from your uncle, Wren."

"Well, no, but... I mean, there are ways to get out, clearly."

"I don't have an out," she snapped. Now I did shrink back, because for the first time in this conversation she seemed truly angry, not just frustrated. "I was four when my parents were killed right in front of me. Should I have run off then? Or when I was eleven and started Ilvermorny, where the only people I knew were friends of my parents, keeping a close eye on me and every student like me? When I was eighteen, entirely without resources to provide for myself, let alone actually get away and be safe. Every person who's ever cared for me worked for Stillens, or had no power to actually help. I didn't get lucky enough to come to a school with people who were willing and able to trust me and protect me and spirit me away from all of this. What was I supposed to do?"

I was frozen, trying to keep my expression neutral, though I was pretty sure it wasn't working. Before I could recover from the outburst, she'd already taken a deep breath and shook her head. Then, she turned to Nico. "Was I right? You're a spy?"

Nico stared at her for a moment, seeming as caught off guard by the sudden change in pace as I was. After a second, he rolled his eyes. "Bloody hell, I guess it doesn't matter anymore. Yes."

"And you two? You're against him, as well?"

"Of course," Ciara said adamantly. I could only nod, because I was getting overwhelmed, but that seemed to be enough for our professor. She sighed, then nodded resolutely.

"There isn't any sort of organized resistance to Stillens in America. At least, there isn't any that's in any way effective." She hesitated, looking at each of us in turn before she continued. "I came to Hogwarts because you have that here. I was hoping to find it."

It made sense for her to say something like that, especially after yelling at me about how she didn't have an out. Still, I was shocked. It took a second for me to shake my head a bit. "That's treason."

"I'm aware." She'd propped her head up on her hands, staring down at her desk. Now, though, she looked up at Nico. "Are you going to turn me in?"

"I..." He blinked a few times, like he was struggling to get his words together. "I mean, I won't if you won't."

That got a grim smile from her. "Sounds like a deal."

"So..." Ciara was frowning warily at her. "You came here hoping to find organized resistance, which I assume means the DA, and you've done literally nothing about it this whole time?"

Rinduli took a deep breath, almost like I'd seen Mrs. Potter do when she was trying to channel some patience for James's latest antics. "The DA is not that easy to find, Ciara. I didn't realize how deep underground they would go. The only people connected to the DA here are my students, and none of them trust me, for good reason. And of course, Cantha and Petrov and Nico are supposed to be keeping as close an eye on me as I am on them."

Luckily, none of us mentioned Haverna without thinking about it. Obviously, our next step was to go directly to her office and tell her everything, but she was the one who'd decide things from there. Thankfully. There was still a little part of me that couldn't wrap my mind around all of this, and was instead just telling me it was all a lie, even if we were far past the line of what Stillens would consider treason.

"If you really mean all this, you won't mind letting me check, will you?"

I turned to Nico in surprise before she could respond. "What do you mean, check?"

He shrugged, but he wasn't looking me. His eyes were still trained on Rinduli. "Obliviation is closely related to legilimency, from what I've read. I can't do legilimency, but... I mean, if you're telling the truth, I'll be able to see it. I swear, I won't actually do the spell."

For a long time, Rinduli just frowned at him. I couldn't tell what she was thinking from her narrowed eyes, but that wasn't making me optimistic. What if she refused because she really was lying? Or what if she thought this was just Nico's attempt to wipe this entire interaction from her head? And... surely he wasn't actually doing that, right?

Finally, our professor sighed. "Sure. I don't have much to lose, I guess." She held his wand out to him, but didn't let go immediately when he took it. "If you erase anything, you'll regret it."

I could tell Nico bristled at that, but he nodded anyway. "I'm not planning on it."

Rinduli raised an eyebrow, eyes darting around like she was studying his face, then she let go of the wand and sat back. "Well... get on with it."

As Nico cast the spell, his gaze turning inward even as it was locked on Rinduli's face, I found myself holding my breath. If she was telling the truth, we'd know. And if she wasn't... well, Nico was already casting the spell to obliviate her, so it couldn't be difficult to just go through with it. Though perhaps she was using occlumency on this conversation, just in case he tried.

After a bit, Nico lowered his wand. "Damn it."

"Is she lying?" I asked, glancing back and forth between them as my stomach seemed to tie itself in knots.

"No. It's true."

"I don't see how that's a damn it moment," Ciara said shortly.

"I don't like her."

"Oh my gosh," Rinduli groaned. "You're going to give me a headache, Nico."

"Oh, please, you already knew that." Nico rolled his eyes. I got the impression he was going to keep going, so I cut in before he could.

"Why did you wait so long to talk to me? I've talked to you alone before."

"You're the one who said you didn't care that Russey was working for Stillens, and you were just fine joining him." She rolled her eyes. "Was I supposed to read your mind?"

That was fair. I hadn't realized that when she couldn't connect the dots that she'd just assume I was still working for Stillens, but considering the fact that she'd apparently not been able to trust anyone for her entire life, I couldn't blame her for that.

"Um..." Ciara glanced unsurely at Nico and me. "I think... maybe, possibly, we might be able to help you? Or at least find someone who could help you. Maybe."

If Nico was right and she was telling the truth, I was pretty sure Haverna would definitely "help." She'd done the same for Nico, after all, and that had been a much greater stretch, I guess. I nodded a bit. "If you want that, at least."

Rinduli was staring at both of us, seeming confused. "How could you possibly..." She blinked. "Is there someone else from the DA here?"

"I mean, I'm in the DA," Nico offered with a shrug. "Officially, not just related to people in it." After a deep sigh, he closed his eyes like he was getting a headache, too. "We know who to talk to, at least, if that's what you're asking. And how to do it without getting caught."

Rinduli still seemed hesitant, so I tried to give her an encouraging smile. "I know you don't really trust us, but we'll do our best, if you want us too..."

For the first time, it struck me that Rinduli wasn't really that much older than us. As she thought about that, frowning at me, I realized I could see the uncertainty in her eyes. Whatever unreadable mask she'd been wearing before was gone now, and beneath it was someone I could actually understand. Someone who was now faced with an opportunity to get help, finally, and not sure if she could trust it. I'd been her, a few years ago. Now I was the one helping.

She let out a breath. "Thank you." Her eyes flicked over to the clock on her desk, and she sat up a little straighter. "Now... if you'll excuse me, you three are about to be late for dinner, and I think I need to go have an emotional breakdown in my office."

And... that was it. She handed Ciara and me our wands and unlocked the door for us as we walked back up the aisle. I glanced back just as I walked out, and she was still standing at her desk, staring at nothing in particular. Though I tried to figure out what she was thinking, the mixture of emotions on her face seemed so varied, so intense, that I wasn't sure she even knew what she was thinking. 

~~~~

Question of the Day: Again I just want to know what you think...

Answer: :) I enjoyed this, not going to lie. 

Vote and comment!

~Elli

Word count: 6796