~Astra~

That was it. I'd lost it completely—this was a hallucination, a psychotic break, anything but real life.

Anything but Colette. Who I'd just watched die. She was dead.

But... but there she was, leaning heavily on Albus. Who'd disappeared weeks ago. How had he gotten here? How had she survived? I had to be dreaming, right?

I think I let out an audible gasp. Everything else fell away in that moment, and before I knew what I was doing I'd left Wren behind and started running towards them.

I'd meant to throw my arms around them both, but somehow Albus maneuvered between me and Colette, holding me off. I understood why as soon as she let out a gasp of pain at the impact, and I immediately let go, stepping around him so I could get a better look at her—covered in bruises and blood, looking more dead than alive, to be honest. She was still wincing with pain as I reached out for her shoulder, more gently this time. "Merlin, Astra," she whispered, holding one arm tightly against her side.

Before I'd even really convinced myself that this was happening, I heard Stillens voice behind me. "Expulso."

There was about one second where my brain registered what that spell did and that it was about to hit us. I didn't have time to cast a shield charm, so instead some more primal instinct kicked in, and I threw myself in front of Colette.

All three of us were thrown to the side by the force of the spell, Albus in one direction and Colette and I in the other. All I could hear was a loud whining in my ears as I hit the floor hard. Thankfully, I broke Colette's fall, though from the way her face contorted in pain, that didn't do much good.

Slowly, the whining sound faded, replaced by faint yelling. I pushed myself to my knees unsteadily, glancing around to get my bearings once more. To my surprise, Wren was the source of the noise, right at Stillens. She'd grabbed his arm again, keeping him from casting any more spells for the time being. I flinched as he shook her, but she didn't let go. There was a brief flash of pride in my chest, but it disappeared as soon as I glanced back to see Colette curled in on herself behind me, her eyes squeezed closed in pain I couldn't imagine.

I scrambled over to her. "Are you okay? Oh Merlin, I'm so sorry, I should've been more prepared—"

"I'm fine," she snapped. She was trying to push herself up, but her arm gave out and she fell back to the floor. Without thinking, I pulled her up myself. She didn't even protest me helping her, which... yikes, that wasn't good, was it? She was shaking, too, and was that blood in her hair new?

"You're alive," I said softly, shaking my head as I tried to wrap my mind around that again. "You... you're here, alive... and..."

"Astra!" Colette's eyes had grown wide, but she was staring at something beyond me.

This time, I cast a shield charm before I even bothered to turn around, which was a good thing—an instant later, a curse bounced harmlessly off it. Stillens was glaring at us, holding Wren away with one hand and keeping his wand trained on us with the other. Nico was already rushing towards them, though, and I turned back to Colette, a flutter of panic starting to rise in my chest. "Are you okay? Did... I mean, is it worse? You can't—"

"I'm fine," she insisted once more, though it was clear she wasn't. There wasn't much I could do about that right then, though, and I pursed my lips as she held out her hand. "Help me up."

"I really don't think you should be—"

She narrowed her eyes at me, which cut off any argument I was about to give. Besides, I was finally moving on from the how could she possibly be here alive right now? thing (a question that could be answered later) to a more practical question: why did she come back?

Another spell hit my shield charm, and I decided that at the very least, it'd be easier to protect her if we weren't on the floor. I grabbed her hand, pulling her up with me as I stood. Though she was favoring her left leg and one arm was still pressed tightly against her side, she could at least keep her balance by leaning on me. I guess that was a good thing, right?

In the few seconds that had taken, the scene behind me had changed. Stillens hadn't let go of Wren, but his attention now seemed to be more focused on Nico, who'd started firing spells at him from across the room. I glanced around wildly for Albus, but he was already on his feet, maybe twenty meters away. Instead of joining the fight, he was hesitating, watching us apprehensively. He didn't meet my eyes, but he seemed to find Colette's. I couldn't tell what kind of silent exchange they were having, but after a moment, he nodded resolutely and turned back to Stillens.

I didn't have time to wonder what had happened, because Colette had turned to me immediately. "Astra, I think there's a way to stop him, but I can't do it by myself. I need your help."

I blinked at her, caught off guard. She thought she could stop him? Did she know how mad she sounded?

"Just listen," she said, her frown tinged with annoyance. I guess my thoughts had shown up on my face—whoops. "It's the spell, the one he wanted me to use on Wren."

I tried not to grimace—I wasn't sure I wanted to use that on anyone, but that had to be what she was asking. She didn't seem like she was in a state to be casting anything. And I had to admit, it was a better idea than any I'd had so far. "What's the incantation?"

"It won't—"

She was cut off by Albus letting out a loud yell. I started, turning my head to stare at him. What was he doing? He hadn't moved, was still just glaring at Stillens, but I suddenly felt like I understood what James might have been talking about with Albus hating him. I'd never seen him like that, such an intense glare on his face. It wasn't just anger, it was fury. Rage. I could only watch with an open mouth as he gestured at Stillens with his wand. "You're going to die today!"

Wren had shrunk back, eyes wide, but Stillens just gave him a sickly indulgent smile. "And I suppose you would kill me yourself?"

"I'm going to rip you limb from limb!" Albus shouted. "You're a demon, not a man. You don't deserve the air you're breathing!"

Oh Merlin, Albus was going to get himself killed. I shook my head. "What's gotten into him?"

"Nothing. He's not actually going to—"

Her words were drowned out by Albus again. I hadn't heard what Stillens said, but Albus's response was frankly terrifying. I was immensely grateful to not be on the receiving end of his anger just then, though a new anxiety was building up in the back of my head—I was pretty sure he was still angry with me, after all.

But Albus was still yelling. "You hurt and kill and terrorize people, but you don't know what true terror is. You're about to learn!"

"Shit," I whispered. "Has he lost his mind?"

"He's distracting him," Colette said, shaking her head. "He's giving you a chance to listen to me."

Her insistent tone was enough to make me tear my eyes off the scene. The force of her glare was surprising, considering she wasn't capable of staying upright on her own. I just raised an eyebrow at her, an invitation to continue.

"The incantation is utno magici," she said, before demonstrating the motion with her hand. I copied her, and she nodded quickly. "But it's not going to work for you," she added.

"What do you mean, it's not going to work? Why are you telling me about it, then?"

"Merlin, would you just let me finish?" Despite the fact that she was clearly frustrated with me, I had to bite back a smile. If I could annoy her, that was a good sign that she wasn't on the brink of death, at least. Right?

"There's a way that might let me cast it through you, if that makes sense. It's called conduiting, and I've never tried it before but if there's even a chance it could work..."

Cast it through me? That didn't make any sense at all. Colette had never led me astray before, though, not when it came to magic. If she said this was worth a shot, we were doing it. "How would we do that?"

"So... I think..." She closed her eyes, and it took me a second to realize she was trying to remember. Was that just because it had been so long since she'd learned about it, or had she hit her head too hard, or had they simply tortured her so much that it had addled her mind just a bit? I found I didn't want to know, and luckily she continued before I could think about it too long. "It would be almost as if we cast the spell together. We'd both need to be touching the same wand, and we'd have to say the incantation together, but... basically, the spell is cast by me, and it travels through you, uses your power to actually work. All you'd have to do is copy me and... well, push the magic through, somehow? There's not a lot about that part, but I'm sure it's pretty intuitive."

I still didn't fully get that, but at least it didn't seem like it would be that difficult to try. If the channeling part wasn't intuitive, though, I didn't know what I was supposed to do. "If it's not?"

Colette pursed her lips. "There's always a balcony to throw oneself off of."

"Stop it," I snapped, narrowing my eyes. "We're not joking about that. Ever." To be honest, she almost seemed relieved that I was upset about that. I couldn't take the time, to wonder why, though. "Anyway... we just do it now?"

She shook her head quickly. "We might hit Wren."

Oh, right. I glanced back over at everyone else, no one paying us much attention because Albus was still screaming righteous fury. Stillens hadn't let go of Wren, though, and it wouldn't have been hard for him to pull her in front of him if he realized what we were doing.

So it sounded like we needed to distract him enough that he let her go. Albus's yelling wasn't doing the trick, though I realized he was close enough to try to yank Wren away from Stillens himself. The look Stillens was giving him was one of boredom, almost. Personally, I would've been terrified—Albus looked like he was barely holding himself back from tackling the man to the ground. For a moment I wondered if Stillens even remembered that Albus was a werewolf.

"Albus, please stop," Wren said, trying in vain to reach out to him. "You're going to—"

"—vile, disgusting scum!"

Albus took a menacing step closer, and I guess that was finally too far, because Stillens' wand was suddenly pressed into Wren's throat. "Step back," Stillens commanded, eyes flashing at Albus.

Immediately, Albus fell silent and backed up. He was still glaring, still had his wand pointed at Stillens, but now he was just breathing heavily, eyes darting between him and Wren.

"Drop your wands," Stillens said calmly, his gaze sweeping around the room to include Nico and me. "All of you. Now."

Mine was the first to hit the floor, clattering against the wood with a deafening sound, and I ignored the frustrated look Colette shot me. Within a few seconds Nico had followed suit. Stillens raised an eyebrow at Albus, who seemed frozen for a moment, like he was genuinely thinking about not doing it.

"I'm fine, Al, don't—" Wren cut off as Stillens pressed harder against her neck. At that, Albus squeezed his eyes closed for a second, almost like he was saying a prayer. His fist opened, and the wand he was holding fell, down, down, down until it hit the floor with a clack.

Colette swore under her breath, and a moment later I felt like doing the same thing as Stillens waved his wand and all three of ours came flying across the room to him.

"Do you have your wand?" I whispered.

She shook her head without taking her eyes off Stillens. "I lost it when I fell."

Well, that wasn't good. How were we supposed to cast this spell without a wand between us? Somehow I couldn't drum up any regret about dropping mine, though, as I watched Stillens pull Wren back several paces until he could see the rest of us all at once. Instead of torturing Al or shooting a spell at Colette, he turned back to Wren, pulling her to him by the collar of her jumper. "And you dare to tell me that you have no hold on these people?"

In all the years I'd known her, I couldn't remember ever seeing that much terror in Wren's eyes. She was shaking enough that I could see it from here, meters away. But somehow, she still managed to shake her head no. I had to strain to hear what she said. "They'd do that for each other, too."

To me, that seemed like an accurate statement. While I could get behind the idea that Wren was the type of person no one could help but love, even if they desperately didn't want to, I would've done the same thing just now if Stillens had threatened anyone I cared about. Nico, though, was staring at a spot on the floor as if he was trying to avoid Wren's eyes. And Colette and Albus... well, I suppose they had no idea what Stillens was talking about, but they'd exchanged an alarmed glance. That only intensified when Stillens gestured at both of them.

"Once again, their very actions prove the opposite," Stillens said. "Your friends spent months watching each other be hurt beyond description, and they didn't even waver."

Wren opened her mouth for a moment, but she seemed at a loss. She glanced at Albus and then Colette as if one of them might be able to explain that away. Albus pursed his lips and looked down, but Colette shook her head. "This is nothing like the detention center."

Stillens shot a warning glare at her. "Silence."

"No!" Her hands balled into fists, and I think she might've tried to move closer if she hadn't been relying so heavily on me to stay upright. She glanced back at Wren. "He's twisting the truth. He always does. Don't listen—"

"Join me, Wren," Stillens said, his voice rising over Colette's. "This is your only chance." I suppose he'd elected to just ignore her—I wondered if he knew from experience that she'd only get worse if he kept telling her to stop. I had no idea what she'd been through at all, really, but the idea that she'd been mouthing off to Stillens even as he'd been forcing her to make terrible spells, that made me smile just a bit.

But I needed to stay focused on the present, the fact that we didn't have a wand and we needed one badly. While I'd been distracted by Colette and Stillens, Nico had inched over to Albus, who was using Stillens' focus on Wren as a chance to whisper something to him. I guess he and Colette had planned this out—I couldn't imagine why else he would've brought her here.

Colette tugged on my arm, and I turned to her with a frown. How much more could she possibly tell me about this spell? But now her eyes were wide, and she gestured in the direction of Wren and Stillens. "Is that Wren's?"

I blinked at her before glancing over at them. Wren was fighting back tears (and doing a fantastic job, considering everything that had happened today), but I didn't see what Colette was talking about. "Is what Wren's?"

"The bloody wand on the floor," she said sharply. Only then did my eyes track to where she was actually pointing—a spot on the floor, less than two meters from Wren was standing. The spot where she'd dropped her wand what felt like an eternity ago, but was probably less than thirty minutes.

My eyes widened, and I pretended not to notice Colette rolling her eyes in my peripheral. "Yeah, that's hers. Think we could use?"

"Everything's an experiment today, I suppose."

"If you say one more thing about that bal—"

"Merlin, Astra, that's not what I'm talking about!" Colette closed her eyes as if I was giving her a headache. Maybe I was, with the amount of head injuries it seemed like she'd sustained today. "Yes, I think it'd work. If we could just get to it, that is."

Oh, right. That was the impossible part. How were we supposed to get that close to Stillens without him noticing us? I wasn't sure we could move at all without catching his attention. And if he noticed Wren's wand on the floor, he'd snatch it up before we got within ten meters of it. Now I was wishing I could do wandless magic, though I suppose that might've solved all of our problems, not just this one.

I was startled out of my thoughts by Stillens shoving Wren away from him with so much force that she was thrown backwards to the floor. Her head connected with a loud thunk, and I winced sympathetically. I hadn't paid attention to what had just happened, whether she'd pissed him off on purpose or he'd simply grown tired of not getting anywhere with her. Whatever had happened, he was now staring straight at me. "Perhaps you'll be more pliant together. That's how you always wanted it to be, is it not, Astra Lestrange? A paradise with your dear friend included?"

"Nothing is paradise if you're there," I said automatically, eyes narrowing. My resolve from before to be less predictable, catch him off guard, was strengthening again, even though it turned out Colette hadn't really died. It didn't matter. We needed to get closer to that wand, and having a reason to come closer was half the battle. I stood up straighter. "I'm still waiting to hear your terms, actually."

He paused for just a second, and I pumped my fist internally. Surprise, idiot. Though he recovered himself quickly, that hesitation alone was enough to give me some hope that I could actually do that, even as he drew himself up straighter. He raised his wand, but paused before casting a spell. "I don't do business from across a room. Would you like to come stand face-to-face, or do you need a push?"

I had to hold myself back from saying something entirely inappropriate that had a bit to do with pushing things into places they didn't belong. He was expecting something like that, so I needed to stay calm.

Colette was already shaking her head exasperatedly when I glanced at her to see if she'd be angry if I did what Stillens asked. "Sure, Astra," was all she said to my unspoken question.

As we slowly started towards him, me bearing as much of Colette's weight as she would let me, Stillens let out a laugh that sent a chill down my bones. It wasn't the laugh of someone who'd found something funny, but more the laugh of someone who was greatly enjoying scaring you and wanted to make sure you knew how little this meant to them.

"You children truly thought you could defeat me," he said, shaking his head and walking forward to meet us halfway. Damn it, now we couldn't get any nearer to the wand. "But now, we've come to the end of it all. The DA are being overwhelmed, and soon there will be no one left to fight and nothing left to fight for. In the end, you've always known you would lose. That this moment was just a matter of time."

I looked him up and down as we came to a stop, purposefully avoiding his eyes. "Who's to say that's what's happening here? If I freely choose to take your offer, I'm not losing at all."

I could feel every eye in the room staring at me, the weight almost enough to knock me down. Wren was on her feet, trying to catch my eye from behind Stillens. It didn't take a rocket scientist to know what she was trying to tell me: stop it right now! I wished I could make her feel less alarmed, but that would entirely take away from my goal: surprise Stillens.

It worked, based on his face. He blinked, studying me in shock. Luckily, it didn't take a lot to sell "overconfident," and "potential change of heart" had already been on the table earlier. Somehow, my acting was better right now than it had ever been when I'd been trying to get out of detention at school. It was like some Other Astra had come out and taken my place, some version that was more logical than impulsive and self-controlled than on the verge of an angry outburst. Why did it take a life-threatening experience to get this Other Astra out of me?

Colette was the only one not looking at me. Her cool gaze rested on Stillens. Instead of glaring, she was just watching him, a hint of disdain in her expression. Of course, I could feel her hand shaking, holding tightly to my arm, but you certainly couldn't see it. How did she do that?

Stillens had recovered from his temporary bout of surprise to frown down at me skeptically. "You'd choose to join me?"

"I mean, you already promised my family wouldn't be hurt, or my closest friends, so I don't have to worry about that. And now that you're going to be keeping Wren around..." I shrugged. "Seems like a better deal, I guess."

He seemed unconvinced, to my dismay. "Not two minutes ago, you claimed that nothing could be paradise if I was there. Which is it, Astra Lestrange? Do you believe in a better future or not?"

"Oh, definitely." I made a face, still being careful to avoid eye contact. "I don't like you. But... I mean, I suppose you don't have to like someone, or even agree with them on everything, to work with them. I came here with the intention to make a deal, remember?"

Once again, Stillens paused, and I finally ventured a glance at Wren. I could tell how tense she was from the rigidity of her posture, and though I wanted to alleviate some of that, I couldn't let my expression change. Even though she widened her eyes at me, shook her head, I ignored that. Instead, I very purposefully glanced down at where her wand was, only a yard to her right, before meeting her gaze again. She frowned, clearly confused, but I didn't have time to try something else before Stillens started up again.

"This is certainly an interesting development," he said, turning to pace between us and Wren.

As soon as his back was turned, I gestured wildly at the wand on the ground with my free hand. The way Wren crossed her arms and frowned at me told me she'd already realized it was there, but that wasn't all I needed to get across. Before I could do anything, Stillens had turned back to me.

"What deal did you think we would make, Astra Lestrange?" he asked, his tone condescending enough that it took all my willpower to not glare at him. "I believe I gave you your last chance two days ago."

"How was I supposed to make a deal with you when I was stuck at DA headquarters?" I countered, raising an eyebrow. "I can't apparate, and even if I could, how could I find you? It's not like you gave me an address."

"Minor inconveniences." Stillens sighed patiently, as if I was acting like a toddler or something.

I sighed as well, copying his manner exactly. It seemed to annoy him, and I pretended not to notice. "You said that if I joined you, my friends and family would be safe. I came here to negotiate what that would look like. I need something more concrete than that. Some kind of magical contract might work, or maybe an unbreakable vow—we just need to both clearly know what we're agreeing to."

He was frowning at me, and this time I was sure he was actually really angry. Clearly, he'd never expected me to take him up on anything. It had always been something he would force me into. Now he didn't know what to do. Perfect.

"A contract is unnecessary," he said, waving his hand and dispelling my thoughts. "Who is it you wish to protect? I fear the battle may have claimed some already, but the rest can be spirited away to safety."

"Safety where?"

He frowned at me. The expression in his eyes was the same as you'd get if you had an infestation of ants in your house, and you kept trying to get rid of them, but they kept coming back. You think you've finally done it for good, then you see one crawling across your kitchen counter the next morning. That expression—frustrated because you can't figure out how something so tiny and stupid keeps evading you.

Abruptly, he turned and started pacing again. "The location is less important than other issues at hand. I can ensure safety for now. When the day is won, we can discuss other arrangements."

"I guess that's fine." I said, my eyes immediately finding Wren's again. She hadn't picked her wand back up, likely because Stillens kept turning around and if he took it away, we'd be even worse off than we were now. I gestured at the wand, then pointed at myself, widening my eyes as if I could somehow send her my thoughts through our eye contact.

Unfortunately, she just looked confused again, and I had to snap back into this Other Astra as Stillens turned back to me in his pacing. Maybe Colette had found a way to communicate telepathically—if not, this whole act I was putting on might have been for nothing. "I'd like to know how much freedom I'll have to do what I want." I said a little too quickly.

Stillens' expression was caught between condescending amusement and frustration, which would've been hilarious if Other Astra hadn't been in the driver's seat just then. He shook his head. "That's an irrelevant question. Now—"

"I don't think it's irrelevant," I said, cutting him off. I shrugged and continued before he could start talking again. "It's my life we're talking about here, after all. I'm going to want to finish Hogwarts, for one thing. And I'd really like it if my family and I could move back into our old house, so the fire damage will have to be repaired... Oh, that reminds me! If any of my friends or family are considered 'criminals' by the Ministry, they'll need a full pardon. Obviously, there won't be as much need for so many detention centers after today, but—"

"Enough!" Stillens was glaring at me. I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing at how much I was frustrating him. I mean, I guess it was better to focus on how funny it was, because it covered up the fact that it was also absolutely terrifying , but Other Astra wouldn't let either of those things show.

So I hardly flinched when Stillens quickly crossed over to us, leaning down to be close to my face. "Enough with you silly terms. You don't understand the nature of this deal, Astra Lestrange. You are in no position to be bargaining."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm sorry that you've clearly never made a contract before, but discussing terms is literally the most important part."

"This is not a contract!" Stillens stepped back, his glare probably murderous if I'd bothered to look at it. I tried not to react as his next words made my blood run cold. "I think you forget that three of your closest friends are right here. I could kill any of them with a wave of my hand. You have no bargaining power."

Before I could think of a response, Colette scoffed. "You're bluffing. She'd never give in if you killed one of us, and you know it."

Stillens' gaze turned on her, eyes narrowed. "So bold, now you have someone to hide behind."

Colette rolled her eyes. "No, I'm bold because I just tried to kill myself, and next time I'll be successful."

Instead of answering, Stillens raised his hand in the air as if he were going to slap her. I'm sure it was in spite of herself, but she cowered against me. I bit my lip this time to keep any tears from forming in my eyes. What has he done to her?

"That's better," Stillens said dismissively. He resumed his pacing, though, and my mind scrambled to remember what we were talking about, what I was trying to accomplish. "As I was saying, Astra Lestrange, you have no ground to stand on. Any 'terms' that seem to be in your favor are simply kindnesses, rewards for good behavior."

I was half-listening, half trying to figure out how to communicate with Wren. She had at least inched closer to her wand, but was still frowning at me. Colette took a deep breath and gestured between the two of us, then at the wand.

"Do you understand the position you're in?" Stillens asked, and I realized he was expecting an answer despite the fact that his back was still turned to me. What could we possibly be getting up to out of his sight, after all? Clearly not communicating, based on Wren's confusion.

"I... I mean..." I closed my eyes, hoping Colette could be more creative than me just then. "I don't think you'd kill any of them."

When I opened my eyes, Stillens was facing me again, a frustrated frown on his face. "What gives you the impression that I wouldn't?"

"Colette's right. I'd never do anything for you." I shrugged looking down at the ground and hoping he'd think I wasn't sure about that. "You're too smart to get rid of a bargaining chip, anyway."

It looked like the compliment gratified him just enough that he took my bait. I was only a naïve teenager, after all. That hesitation in my voice? The shaky determination I was showing all of a sudden? It was surely proof that I was wavering, projecting a false confidence. Which was true in a sense, I guess. Other Astra certainly had some self-assurance that I did not share. But not about this. If he would really go through with killing my friends in front of me, he would've killed Albus a year ago before he even tried the imperius curse.

However, I didn't know where this conversation could possibly lead to that would give us an opening to cast the spell, even if we somehow managed to get Wren's wand. But maybe I did have a tiny piece of ground left...

"Did you ever find out who Cassie Williams was talking to in her dreams?"

Stillens seemed surprised at the abrupt change of subject, but it vanished quickly. I'd helped to rescue Cassie, after all. It wasn't terribly far-fetched that she would've told us about that, even if she hadn't been speaking to me in the void.

Colette had stiffened next to me, but I ignored the way her fingers were suddenly digging into my arm, telling me to stop. We were too far in now. I wasn't going back.

"I suppose the child told you about her waking dreams?"

I shrugged one shoulder. "Something like that. Who was she talking to?"

"Most likely? Herself." Stillens frowned. "I don't see how this is rel—"

"Okay, you didn't find out," I said, cutting him off once again. The way his eyes went livid filled me with a rush of excitement. I'd never realized how much power I had over him, just by being a little more self-controlled in my contrariness, but it was almost intoxicating. Focus, Astra. "I bet you never even found out why she had those 'waking dreams' in the first place, did you?"

He sighed impatiently. "You know the answer to both of those questions, is that it? That information is useless. I don't care about the girl."

I smiled pleasantly, as if he wasn't enraged. "I know what the dreams were. That they weren't dreams at all. How did you describe them, Colette?"

For a moment, she stared at me as if I'd started professing my unending love for Stillens (ew). My expression didn't change, and after a moment, she pursed her lips. "It's... it's a void. Created by the inner eye of all the seers in the world. It can only be accessed by the most powerful of them."

When I turned back to Stillens, he'd gone very still. Despite what he'd just said, I had a feeling he'd suddenly gone back to caring about Cassie a great deal. Thank goodness she was safe in the flat with Charis and Toire's grandmum, where no one could harm her no matter what happened today. The thought of that made me smile even wider. "You never realized she's a seer, then?"

I could tell Stillens was rattled by the news that he'd let a very powerful seer slip through his fingers. Wait until he heard the rest of what I had to say.

"And I suppose you have evidence of this?" Stillens asked sharply.

"I mean, not with me. I didn't know I'd have to give a whole presentation for this."

"It's all from the journals of other powerful seers from the past," Colette said, shooting me a look. I guess she was right—I'd just destabilized the playing field, so antagonizing him might not have been the best move. "I had the evidence collected, but I'm sure it's been confiscated by the Ministry or something."

Apparently, Stillens trusted her research enough to take her at her word, because his eyes turned back to me. "So, you mean to tell me that a six-year-old child was powerful enough to visit this void that only the most powerful seers may enter?"

"I'm a little surprised too, I'll admit." I shrugged. "You always knew there was something special about her though. I'm sure it's gratifying to know you were right."

Okay, I'd laid it on a little too thick there. Stillens was just frowning at me. I cleared my throat and kept going. "Of course, that means she was also talking to a very powerful seer."

He pursed his lips. "I am not playing your game. Tell me what it is you're trying to say and be done with it."

Instead of scowling at his rudeness, I smiled once more. "I've known Cassie was special for a long time, too. Since she was still in your basement and thought her name was One, actually. Something about a bedraggled little orphan girl showing up in your dreams will do that to you, I guess."

For a moment, there was silence. Stillens was processing what I'd said, coming to the logical conclusion. I heard Nico whisper a very quiet, "Bloody hell," from behind us, and only then remembered that he was there, and that he wouldn't know that. Colette was glaring at me, so I pretended I couldn't see her. Wren looked horrified, so I avoided her gaze, too. I was sure Albus was ready to strangle me, considering how angry he already was with me, but that was fine.

"That's right," I said as Stillens' eyes widened slightly, the best I was going to get from him. "I'm not the granddaughter of Voldemort. I'm a seer. Which is more useful, honestly."

His face had a new kind of hunger in it, not just hunger for my power but for what my power could do. What evil dictator wouldn't be tempted by the idea of knowing the future? If I'd learned anything from all the Disney movies I'd watched at the Lupins' flat lately, it was that if I could just get the villain to want too much, he'd grow too arrogant, leaving a weak spot open that I could use to defeat him.

He'd started pacing again, this time muttering to himself and barely paying us any attention. I turned back to Wren, who was shaking her head at me, somehow disapproving and alarmed at the same time. We didn't have time for that, though. I pointed at the wand one more time, but before I could think of anything more, Colette gestured between us again, then held up her hand like she was a crossing guard before pointing at Stillens. I couldn't read her lips from this angle, but I was sure I knew what she was saying: we can stop him.

Wren's eyes widened in understanding, and I tried not to sag with relief. This would be over soon. Before she could reach down to pick up the wand, though, Colette was shaking her head quickly. She tapped her wrist where a watch would've been. What did that mean? Check the time? Wren seemed to get it, at least. She nodded and moved closer to the wand until she was standing right over it.

"Astra Lestrange, a powerful seer," came Stillens voice, and I remembered that I was currently in the midst of a conversation with a madman, and I'd just told that madman that I was more valuable to him than he'd thought. I raised my chin, staring back at him as he turned around. "So full of surprises."

"I guess you want to know just how powerful I am, don't you?"

His eyes flashed, almost greedily. "If you don't mind," he said, in a tone that said if I did mind, I'd better stop immediately.

I hesitated. How much should I really tell him? I was really gambling a lot on this half-baked plan. What if Stillens got Wren's wand before we did? What if the conduiting didn't work? If we failed, Stillens would capture us all, no matter what happened below. Did I really want him to know everything I could do?

Did I really know everything I could do, though? Talking to Cassie through the void was pretty useless unless you wanted to use one of us as a telephone service, which I would never do to Cassie again, and I couldn't imagine why anyone would want to speak to her that way. And it wasn't like I could control my dreams, neither when they happened nor what they were about. As far as I knew, I'd never given an actual prophecy, and while I suppose I could've honed some of the skills from Divination, I don't think reading tea leaves was exactly what Stillens had in mind when he thought about using a seer.

"I can reach the void," was the first thing that popped out of my mouth, even though he clearly already knew that, seeing as I'd told him not five minutes ago. "The only other person I've ever seen actually present there is Cassie, though. No one else is powerful enough to get there, I guess. It's not very useful."

"Continue," Stillens said, his tone almost threatening.

I pursed my lips. "I can't control when I give prophecies. Not that I've given one before. I don't think I have, at least. But... I mean, that's something I technically can do."

Stillens seemed unsatisfied, which I couldn't blame him for. I took a deep breath. Dreams it was, then. Please, God, make that spell work.

"I have prophetic dreams."

Now, he raised an eyebrow. I'd caught his interest. "Do you?"

"Yes. I've always had them, though I didn't know what they were. Sometimes they're about the future, but other times... they can be about the past, too." I pursed my lips. How much more did I need to say?

"What sort of dreams are these?" Stillens asked, slowly walking towards me. "I know that most seers spend hours deciphering their dreams. How prophetic are they?"

"Entirely." I glanced at Colette, who shook her head, but I couldn't stop now. "They aren't symbolic. It's all literal. I literally see what's going to happen, or what has happened."

"Remarkable," he said, a tinge of awe in his voice. I bit the inside of my cheek again to keep from gagging. "When do these dreams come to you?"

"Randomly. I can't control them, either."

"And what sort of things have you dreamed about?"

I pursed my lips, trying to decide what to say. I could let him know how many awful things I'd seen him do to Wren over the years, of course, but that was going to antagonize him in a bad way. I could just tell him about the dreams I'd had about my family's past, but that almost made it sound as if I did have some control over my dreams, based on what I was worrying most about at the time. The last thing I wanted was for him to test that theory. Was there anything I could use to put him off balance again?

My eyes widened, and I looked up. The peace I'd felt earlier this morning flooded back through me, along with my resolve to end this all one way or the other. That was it.

"I've dreamed about this moment, today. Dozens of times."

For an instant, there was a flash of true fear across his face. So he wasn't so sure of his chances as he wanted us to think, it seemed. That was gone quickly, replaced by a greedy curiosity. "Is that so? What happened in these dreams?"

Well, if I told him that they were actually the least clear dreams I'd ever seen, and that I'd seen several possibilities each time, and that none had ever gotten this far, it wouldn't help me out much. I wanted to keep stalling until we could get that wand, and that meant getting him distracted enough to turn away at least one more time.

Well, I guess I just needed to lie. I tilted my head a little, trying to go for "creepy little girl in a horror movie" vibes, hoping that might disguise how bad I was at lying. "I've seen your future, Henry. You're going to fall."

Stillens stared at me for a moment, as if trying to figure out if I was telling the truth. Somehow, miraculously, I think he believed me. If he hadn't I think he would've laughed and told me I was playing with things too big for me to understand, but that's not what happened. He suddenly turned and started pacing again. "Impossible."

"My inner eye has never been wrong before," I said with a shrug. "But sure, maybe it is now."

Now he laughed, but it was too late—the doubt was in his mind, whether he believed me or not. "You're a child. How could you possibly understand a gift like this?"

"I mean, I think Professor Trelawney's back at Hogwarts, but she'd vouch for me." I glanced at Wren and realized her wand was back in her hand, her eyes glued to Colette. Was she waiting for a signal? Maybe that's what she'd meant.

"And you truly thought that could help you bargain?" He shook his head. "You are naïve. I do not bargain with children, especially the ones who have something I want."

"You bargained with me," Colette muttered.

I frowned at her, but Stillens either didn't hear her or pretended not to, because he kept going. "You are going to be great, Astra Lestrange. Great and terrible, telling the world its fate before it comes. You will be feared. That is true power. That is what I'm offering you."

"I wouldn't want to be feared," I said, caught off guard. "That's not... don't you realize how horrible that sounds?"

He'd launched into his soliloquy, though, and paid me no mind. I took a deep breath as he continued. This is what I wanted, I reminded myself. Distracted.

Suddenly, Colette was gripping my arm with more force than she reasonably should've been able to, considering how weak she was. I turned to frown at her in time to see her make eye contact with Wren and nod.

Several things happened at once. Wren tossed her wand towards us, and despite a poor throw, I managed to catch it. Simultaneously, Nico and Albus appeared from beyond my line of sight. Stillens was only just turning around to see what the commotion was about when Albus ran into him full force. He grabbed the man's arms and pinned them behind his back before I could even wonder what he was thinking, and in seconds Colette's hand was pressed over mine. "Now, Astra. We have to do it now."

Albus might have had inhuman strength from lycanthropy, but I had to assume Stillens' was magically enhanced, because he was already halfway out of Albus's grasp, despite his best intentions. I pursed my lips, praying Albus could hold him for a few moments longer, that this spell wouldn't hit him. What would happen if a werewolf got turned into a muggle?

Colette squeezed my hand, and I took a deep breath. Without really thinking about it, I closed my eyes and let Colette point the wand. Time slowed down.

She breathed in, about to say the incantation. I followed suit.

My heart was beating in my ears. I could hear it, actually, hear the whooshing of my blood through my veins.

The air around us grew cold, and suddenly it was acting like the sea. My hair was lifted, floating as if I was underwater. A moment later, my feet began to rise off the floor. That should have alarmed me, but it didn't. It felt right.

Colette whispered the spell, and my voice echoed hers, much louder, distorted by the water air.

Light danced across my closed eyelids, and I could feel it moving all around me, running up my arms and legs, down from my head, directly to my heart.

My arm was moving, following Colette's lead as she moved the wand. It flicked, and all the light in my heart moved with it, down my arm, out my wand, streaming across the sea of sky around us.

And suddenly my feet hit the floor again, jolting my eyes back open just in time to watch the spell hit Stillens in the chest.

He passed out almost instantly, falling backwards. Instead of trying to catch him, Albus just slipped out from underneath and let him hit the floor. He stood there staring at the man with wide eyes.

Wren was at my side, I realized. "Is it supposed to do that?" she asked, a worried frown on her face. Leave it to her to be worried for her abusive dictator uncle.

Colette nodded, seeming almost dazed. Her hand still gripped Wren's wand over mine. I gently pulled it out of her hand to give back to Wren as she managed, "I... yes. Theoretically it's a... a very painful process..."

"A bit of mercy, even with this horrible spell." Albus shook his head. "I can't believe Stillens let you do that."

"I'm sure he knows nothing about spell creation," Nico said. He was on the other side of Wren, also staring at Stillens.

"He would've believed anything Colette told him," Albus agreed. He finally looked up, back towards the rest of us. For a moment, the expression on his face was the same thing I was feeling: too much at once. Relief, joy, surprise, bewilderment... you name it, it was probably in the mix. His face shifted quickly to concern, though, and I only realized he was looking at Colette when she collapsed.

~~~~

I would say you could stop hating me now, but I think that last paragraph might've done me in yet again.

Question of the Day: Imagine you're Stillens, and you just got your magic taken away by the very same brat you tortured for months so she would make you that spell in the first place. What do you do? (after you wake up, of course)

Answer: Die of embarrassment on the spot, personally. Yikes. Not a good look.

Vote and comment!

~Elli

Word count: 8093