The same question rolled over Issa's head until she saw the tip of the well known castle she hadn't realized how much she missed.
Only the tip, but it was enough to bring a rush of memories.

What was going on with Long Beard?

Issa glanced at him from the corner of her eye, he trembled. Long Beard had been trembling ever since they had started their journey back to Hogwarts. He was acting completely unusual. Usually, he spotted things and told her interesting facts about them. This time, Issa saw a weird creature that looke like a black puff of smoke. It was transparent and floated up an down close to the ground. It's eyes sparkled like little beetles.

"What's that?" Issa asked him. Showing off his intelligence on rare creatures was one of his favourite things.

"A bunny, I guess." Long Beard said dully, and that was the last thing he said until they reached the edge of the forest.

Thank goodness it was day. On their way, they hadn't bumped into any centaurs, Acromantulas, and not one single Quintaped. Issa was more than relieved. The fact that it was day did not make the forest any brighter, but at least it meant it wasn't the creatures usual time to hunt for food.

"So did you figure how to undue the curses from the gold in the Chambers, or are we going for more books? How are we going to get Darxs back? I hadn't realized I could've sent a letter, you know? Lying about transferring into another school. That should've cleared up some things up."

"Take this." Long Beard handed her a potion, dodging her questions. Issa stopped twirling her wand in between her fingers and took it.

"So what's the plan, you still haven't explained."

"You're quite talkative today, are you not?" Long Beard tried a smile. It wavered.

Issa opened her mouth to say something back, but did not know how to say it. "Are you okay?" Was what she said.

He seemed taken aback by her question. "I'll miss it. Really miss it, Narcissa."

Issa was confused by his answer. Miss what? What did that have to do with anything? She decided not to ask, but it still bugged her.

"It's plain daylight right now, are we going to wait until the sun comes down?"

"That won't be necessary. It will be a quick trip. Drink it, and we'll be going in. It's about lunchtime, so everybody should be busy." He said, drinking his own potion.

Issa took hers and her body vanished from color and became part of her surroundings. Both camouflaged, they head to the castle.

<•>•<•>•<•>

Albus nibbled on a chip as he looked at his map that was hidden on his thighs under the table. The sky was clear, clouds swirled from above the Great Hall. Albus was done eating, but still had some time before his next class.

He had a constant routine now to take out his map and look in every corner of it. He searched everywhere, all the time, every day. It disappointed him every time, but he kept at it. Hopeful her name would pop up, wondering through the halls or staying put at classes.

He searched near the Great Lake, and in Hagrid's hut. Then, his eyes skimmed over to two names. Albus blinked, but it still did not change. He rubbed at them, same.

His heart stammered out of his chest. His fingers trembled, could it be true what he was seeing?

Before he stood up, Albus triple checked he had read the name correctly. Many times, he had confused it for her brother's. Albus was so focused on her, the other name besides it was almost ignored completely.

It was a name he'd seen before.

He was running. Albus zipped past a professor who yelled at him, even Peeves didn't have enough time to throw some chalk at him.

Albus stopped in front of a window to peek from it. Issa was most definitely under his spell, still. Long Beard would not hesitate to kill him if he appeared in their way. What could he do? Could he follow them? That seemed like the best option. But how could he get Issa back? What were they doing back here anyway?

Through the window, Albus only saw a Nacissaless ground. She wasn't there anymore. Albus looked at his map again. There she was. Walking every second nearer. He looked at the window again, but she was still not there. It had be a camouflage potion. No one else in the world had an Invisibility Cloak like him.

His Invisibility Cloak! He had left it up in the Gryffindor Tower! They would see him if he followed them, and it was too late to go get it. He would lose them.

Albus was breathing hard. What was he going to do? An idea illuminated in his head. He could follow them from behind with his map!

He was close to the boys bathroom, so he opened the door and slipped inside, there he wrote a letter as quick as possible.

Through the map, Albus followed Issa with his eyes. Surprisingly, and to their luck, there wasn't many people strolling the halls and stairs. When they were far away enough, Albus gave the letter to someone passing by and told her to deliver it. Then, he followed Issa. Always a good distance behind.

He wondered how they knew their way, no one could possibly remember it. Then he remembered the voice that had been inside his head when Issa first told him about the chambers and wanted him to guide her to the Gryffindor one. It had been a male voice. He could almost believe it was Godric Gryffindor's, because of the old odd use of vocabulary. He could have imagined it, Albus didn't see how a dead person could speak to him.

Then again, most of the things that happened to him never made sense. Like the Lestrange guy. What was his problem? Why was he so obssesed with the Chambers? Yeah, they had lives worth of money, but one look at them, and Albus knew they were cursed with many spells. Long Beard had to know better than to take them.

And why did he take Issa instead? Why her? What did he need from her? He felt his insides turning to lava, he hated the guy. He had taken Issa from him, swiped his memories and almost killed him.

If his father, Harry Potter, could defeat the darkest wizard of all time, then Albus Potter could beat this fool.

Issa, poor Issa. Was what Albus thought as he saw her next to Lestrange. What nasty things Long Beard had probably made her do? Turn her into a thief, brainwash her? If Issa came back to him totally changed...
He could not bare the thought.

* * *

As they moved further into the castle, Albus started to notice the map stopped at one point, and then he would lose them. It was the end of the map, what would he do next?

<•>•<•>•<•>

The plan: get to the Ravenclaw chamber, stock what's needed. Head for the Slytherin dungeons and retrieve Darxs.

Very, very surprisingly, Long Beard remembered the way to the Chamber. Issa imagined the brains he had. It made her think again what were the reason he hadn't been accepted as a Professor.

"I'm always aware of where I'm going." He shrugged when Issa asked how he could remember such a complicated path.

Long Beard stopped. He made something that sounded like a gasp and frowned. "It can't- I was sure..."

"What is it?"

"The Ravenclaw Chamber! It's supposed to be here!" He growled. "I remember it, I remember it all! Didn't I turn in the right corner? No... It was definitely left..." He spoke to himself as he pinched his lower lip with his index finger and thumb.

"Well, I don't blame you to forget. You know-"

"Ah! Of course! Of course...dammit. Obvious." He started to pull strands of his hair, making them stick up. This was usual for him.

"And...what's so obvious?"

"The Chambers! They move!" He was laughing. "It's just... It is just so obvious, for once, I feel so- not that it matters. Now what will we do...?"

The chambers...move? This would have never crossed Issa's mind. "It doesn't seem so obvious to me."

"Obviously."

Issa frowned, not knowing exactly what he meant. Then, out of nowhere, came a jet of bright purple light. Long Beard was quick enough to block the spell. His face contorted into a scowl. Sometimes Issa was fascinated with his reflexes. He paid attention to, well, everything.

The light the spell left behind faded. Long Beard grabbed her shoulder and pushed her behind him. "Back." He muttered. Issa had her wand ready, anyways.

Who would be attacking them? "Show yourself." Long Beard said with much bravery, Issa was always amazed by it.

The attacker then moved out of she shadows, his wand illuminated. He was short, but he did seem to have grown a little. His ruffled black hair fell over his head in a messy curtain and his green eyes and jaw stood out because of the light coming from beneath.

Albus Potter looked different. Older, and as brave as Long Beard. Albus was always brave to Issa, but this was different, his feet stood apart as if he were ready for anything to come at him. His cloak swept the floor and he held his wand at a perfect attacking angle. Much like Long Beard. He looked like the Albus Issa knew to be jelous of, but, instead, it made her eyes burn with tears threatning to fall. She was completely oblivious of why they were there.

Issa remembered the time when Albus first dueled Long Beard. Albus had defeated him easily, but after knowing Long Beard and what he could do, Issa doubted Long Beard had really tried. He had probably lost on purpose to appear as an easy target. How could Albus appear like that so suddenly?

"I didn't expect such a dumb move from you, Potter." Long Beard relaxed a bit, as if he knew this would be over soon. Issa feared so. Even Long Beard agreed with her.

Her eyes were fixed on Albus. Why did he come all the way here? To defeat Long Beard? To save her? Her heart thumped, about to pop out of her chest.

Albus did not look at her. No, he hadn't even glanced at her since he showed up. Not that she wanted him to, he needed to be concentrated. But Issa wanted him to look at her. She wanted him to lock his emerald eyes with hers, it made Issa feel as if they were somewhere else, where the only mass and colour was coming from them. Like space.

"Still, I'm impressed. I was sure I had wiped your memories." said Long Beard, and he tilted his head slightly.

"Yeah, well, I'm the son of Harry Potter, you shan't expect so lowly of me."

"Oh no, I know that all right. But I never heard of someone who could get their memories back. I'm truly intrigued to learn how you did it."

"That's barely of the matter right now." Albus said. Issa could tell Long Beard was bothered. "I didn't come here for magic tricks trading, I came here to get her." Instead of pointing at Issa, he took his eyes off Long Beard to turn his head her way. Her throat was dry, so Issa swallowed. What Albus meant to say to her was clear on his face.

You're not going back with him. 

Or at least what she hoped he meant.

"I won't let you get me off my guard." Albus lifted his wand, inviting Long Beard into a duel.

"So a duel, eh? Don't expect me to hold back, like last time."

"Don't worry." Long Beard snickered; A looped smile tugged at the corner or Albus's lips.

Issa began to tremble. She wanted to believe Albus could win, but after seeing what Long Beard could do... If Long Beard really didn't hold back... Albus was really great but....

"Albus..." She warned, and then regretted it. Albus flashed nervousness. "Good luck." Issa finished. Long Beard coughed.

Issa then saw Long Beard prepared to kill Albus and a bubble of hatred surged inside Issa's stomach like acid. She was truly tired of him. All this time she had been trying to hide all of it, pretending it was okay. But it was not, because it was all sick. Long Beard was sick. What's his problem, taking people away? It was bloody kidnapping! She felt like the greatest idiot in the world.

"My manners, you shall begin, Potter." 

"Confrigo!" Albus bellowed. A wall of flames made its way rapidly at Long Beard. Everything exploded whereever the fire led. Long Beard burned the flames with the powerful spell of aguamenti maxima. They kept throwing spells at each other, while Issa stood like a statue, seeing Albus flying all the way across the chamber at any moment.

Every spell was like a bomb to Issa's stomach. She felt every one as if they were actually directed at her. Then, after what felt like years, Long Beard barely exploded everything with reducto. Albus made a shield and pieces of stone flew off him. The bast lasted. Blowing chunks of the walls everywhere. Both of them were shielded, but they seemed to have forgotten about Issa, who only noticed the rock jet at her when it was too close to move. It hit with a crunching sound, and it broke into pieces with the impact. Issa, who had her face covered with her arms, didn't feel a thing. It took her moments to see the barrier around her. 

Looking around, she saw it had been Albus, who was breathing hard. Relief filled his face when the cloud of dust cleared and he saw Issa was still intact. But shielding Issa had given Long Beard enough time to recover and blast Albus fifteen meters back. Albus didn't move after that.

"Albus!" A scream from Issa. She turned to Long Beard. "HOW COULD YOU DO THIS?"

Long Beard seemed to be petrified, he shook his head as if something were bothering him. "I couldn't control myself!" His voice cracked, which made Issa almost believe him. But her rage had increased to the maximum.

Issa held her wand tight. "YOU," She breathed, "ARE SUCH-" Issa sent the worst spells she could think of. He dodged them, pacing backward. Issa moved forwards. "A... A-" Issa was lost for words. It was complicated to think when you want to seriously hurt somebody. She blasted her last spell at him, this one, she didn't miss. It hit him strait in the chest. Long Beard began to bleed and he fell to his knees. "-A KIDNAPPING TRAITOR WITH CAT EYES!" She finished not so greatly. She wasn't sure where that had come from.

She saw his blood drip into a pool on the floor, he clutched his wounds with one hand and then fixed them with his wand on his other hand. "I suppose you're slower than I thought."

"WHAT'S THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?" Issa shouted, her energy still at "full".

"Don't you see? The Vow, It's supposed to be broken!" His wounds were healed, "You're not dead, Narcissa." He said with despise.

Issa processed this, and her heart broke. Shattered into a million pieces. Her body felt like someone elses, and she was cold. Like going through a ghost. When her heart shattered, the only thing left was a hole, it was sucking everything. A black hole what what was left of her. 

"You tricked me," Issa gasped. "Again." Her voice was an octave higher than usual.

"Yes," He said. Her head swam.

"Why...?"

"Because you're so easy to." 

"Bit...ch." A flash of light. Long Beard's wand skittered to the floor.

"Step aside, Narcissa." A voice said. Issa did, finally recognizing Professor McGonagall's voice. She stumbled out of the way. She didn't even wonder how McGonagall had found them or how she even knew, she only wondered about Long Beard, if he had let McGonagall take his wand or if he had really been distracted.

Now that Issa knew the Unbreakable Vow had never been real, she felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. It had never been real, and all this time she could've just escaped....

"You are going to tell me," Issa demanded to Long Beard. He had been chained by a spell from the Professor. "What your real name is."

He lifted his head. "It's Damius." Then he morphed his face, and turned into someone else entirely. He was someone Issa recognized. Someone she knew very well, so well, memories flushed into her head like a stream. A familiar face that brought many good memories. Dark brown hair and eyes, sharp fangs Issa always teased him about being a vampire. Her childhood's best friend.

There was a pain in her guts as she saw him for the last seconds. Her fingers twitched, and that was about the only part of her body she could move. Even if it was involuntary.

"It's been so long since I have been myself- I almost forgot how I look." said Damius.