Familiars

The snake squirmed a little as Alexandra made her way up the stairs from the deepest basement. She was still holding its neck so that it couldn't reach her with its fangs. She didn't even know whether it had fangs, but thought it would be unwise to take chances.

“Now what am I going to do with you?” she muttered.

Letting it loose on another basement level seemed unwise; she supposed it might eventually make its way to safety, but more likely it would end up dead. Or perhaps bite someone, if it were poisonous. She wished she knew more about snakes. If what John had said about the alarms was true, she couldn't sneak outside to set it free tonight.

“You're just a stupid snake. What am I doing? It's not like you're going to be grateful or anything.” She was talking to herself more than to the snake. Then she came to an unexpected dead end. She looked around. Hadn't the stairs to the next level been just around the corner from the ones she took getting up here? She was in a dark tunnel, lit by lanterns at both ends but with the floor barely visible in between, and she'd definitely walked too far. She backtracked, could not find either set of stairs, and sighed. She'd been lost in Charmbridge's basements before; they could be like a maze.

“Now I'll have to wander around in circles, or worse, wait until I run into some of the other kids leaving after the meeting,” she told the snake. It flicked its tongue out and in.

She found a room full of old furniture, and another that contained large bins of rough gray pebbles and broken sheet-like pieces of slate – for what purpose, she had no idea. There was an old, unused bathroom, and in a far corner of the basement, which she reached after following yet another wrong turn, a locked office with 'Professor Stiller' painted in faded letters on the door. She had to cast a Light Spell in order to read it. The snake, which had coiled around her wrist as she held it by the neck with her other hand, recoiled from the wand.

Alexandra moved it away from the serpent. “Sorry,” she muttered, feeling stupid. A snake couldn't actually recognize a wand as the thing that had hurt it, could it?

She passed a set of double doors with the intriguing sign 'Muggle Room' hanging above it. Like all the other rooms in this basement, it didn't appear to have been used in a long time. When Alexandra pushed the doors open and shined the light from her wand inside, she saw only dust and cobwebs in an empty room.

She finally found stairs going up, breathed a sigh of relief, and climbed to a basement level that looked like the main one, where the custodian's office was located. From here, she was pretty sure, she could eventually find her way back to the first floor.

“Is Miss lost again?”

Alexandra jumped and spun around. The snake twitched in her hand. She pointed her wand, and saw a wizened old house-elf, blinking her large eyes as the light radiating from Alexandra's wand shined into her face.

The elf looked familiar. “Em?” Alexandra stammered.

“Miss remembers Em?” The elf sounded surprised.

“Sure I do. You remember me, don't you?” Em had caught Alexandra wandering around in the basements last year, on an entirely different mission. Then, as now, she had been somewhere she wasn't supposed to be.

“Miss is very memorable,” Em chuckled. Then her old eyes widened. “What is that? Where did Miss get it?” she asked in a high-pitched tone, pointing at the snake.

“It's a snake,” Alexandra replied. “I found it.”

“Where?” Em shrieked, with a panicked expression.

Alexandra took a step back at the elf's reaction. “Here in the basements.”

“In this basement?” demanded Em. “Or was Miss in a lower basement?” She stared at the snake, and Alexandra bit her lip, wondering how much the elf might know about what went on in the lower basement levels. “Drop it, Miss, drop it now! Em will get rid of it!”

Alexandra turned, holding the arm with the snake extended away from the elf. “No! You don't need to hurt it! Just let me take it upstairs, and I'll find somewhere safe to put it.”

“Em needs to look at this snake, Miss.” The elf sounded very serious. “Em needs to make sure it is just a snake.”

“What?” Alexandra blinked, confused.

“Mind what Em says!” the elf demanded, in a tone Alexandra had never heard an elf use when speaking to a human before.

“It's just a snake, I'm sure of it,” Alexandra insisted stubbornly.

“Miss doesn't know enough to be sure of such things!” the elf snapped. “If Miss found it here in the basements, it could have come from below!”

“What if it did?”

In response, Em pointed at her, and to Alexandra's dismay, she felt herself frozen in place, and then her body slowly twisted around, as her arm swiveled about until she was holding the snake out to the elf. “Stop it!” she cried.

“Em is sorry, Miss,” Em said apologetically, “but this is more important than you knows.” She sounded pained.

“Please don't hurt it,” Alexandra pleaded, and the elf stared at the snake for a moment, before looking up at the girl. She snapped her fingers, and Alexandra was free to move normally again.

“It is just a snake,” Em said, and shook her head. “Miss cares about snakes? Miss is such a strange, naughty child.”

Alexandra glared at her. “What's the big deal? I'm sure this isn't the first time a snake has gotten into the school.”

“No,” Em murmured slowly. “It also would not be the first time something from the Lands Below sneaks into the school, looking like a snake.”

Alexandra looked at the snake, which was still curled snugly around her wrist and forearm, and back at Em. “The Lands Below?”

Em shook her head. “Em has said too much.” She frowned. “Miss has still not explained what she is doing down here.”

“I got lost.” At least that wasn't a lie. “And I found this snake, and – what are the Lands Below, and what comes out of them looking like a snake?”

“Miss is not answering Em's questions.”

“Em is not answering Miss's questions.”

Em's eyes narrowed.

“Can you tell me if it's poisonous?” Alexandra asked.

“Miss picks up snakes not knowing if they is poisonous or not?” The elf blinked in astonishment.

“Well, it hasn't bitten me yet.”

Em goggled at her, then shook her head. “Em is not a snake handler.”

Alexandra sighed, and relaxed her grip a little on the snake's neck. It was being quite docile, and didn't seem inclined to bite.

“Can you show me the way out of here, Em?”

“Em should be reporting Miss to Miz Gale.”

“Please don't,” Alexandra said quickly. “She'd probably make me get rid of the snake – maybe kill it.” She licked her lips. “I'm really not bad. You can ask Bran and Poe.” She had no idea how that would go over – or whether Bran and Poe would appreciate her dropping their names as character references. But she continued pleading with the house-elf, trying to sound desperate (which was easy), and on the verge of tears (which was a little more difficult). “If you tell on me, I'll probably be kicked out of Charmbridge! And... and really bad things will happen.”

That, also, might not be a lie, she thought.

Em stared at her, and then her tiny shoulders slumped. “Will Miss promise Em is not going to find her in the basement again?”

Alexandra felt sorry for the elf. She was just doing her job, and she remembered David's arguments, that the elves had to serve humans, selflessly. She wondered if Em missed Mr. Journey, who had been very kind to Charmbridge's elves... even if he had turned out to be a fugitive warlock and would-be murderer.

“I don't plan to be here again,” she replied, truthfully.

“Em is very afraid Miss cannot stay out of trouble.”

“I really do try.”

Em continued staring at her, and then issued a dry chuckle. “Follow Em.” She turned and beckoned.

Alexandra followed the house-elf to a set of stairs that had been just down the corridor, and suddenly she felt stupid for getting lost. It seemed so simple to get around, with Em guiding her.

“Why doesn't Miss let Em take the snake outside? Em promises to let it go free.”

Alexandra looked down at the elf, and then at the snake, wrapped around her forearm. She could feel its scales scraping against her skin, and she couldn't explain why she felt an attachment to the poor creature. A snake wasn't like a raven, or even a rat. They weren't smart, or affectionate, or cuddly.

“I feel responsible for it,” Alexandra mumbled.

Em tilted her head, giving Alexandra another odd look. “Then,” the elf sighed, “wait here.” She disappeared with a pop.

Alexandra waited, a bit nervously, until Em reappeared, holding a large wire-mesh cage.

“Miss can keep her snake in here,” Em said.

Alexandra took the cage, unlatched the gate at one end, and thrust her arm inside, and then gently unwound the snake from around her wrist, until it had detached itself and fell in a tumble of coils to the floor of the cage. “Where did you find this?” she asked.

“Students leave lots of things behind,” Em replied, looking amused.

“Thanks, Em!” Alexandra wrapped her arms around the elf and squeezed her gently. Em made a wheezing sound.

“Stay out of the basements, Miss,” the old elf warned.

“I will.” Alexandra smiled at Em, picked up the cage, and walked upstairs.

Alexandra woke up the next morning to Anna shrieking.

“What is that?” Anna cried out, pointing at the cage Alexandra had set on her desk before crawling into bed.

Alexandra sat up and rubbed her eyes. “It's a snake,” she yawned.

Anna stared at her, as if considering which retort would be most appropriate, and finally settled on asking, in a very tight voice, “Where did it come from?”

Alexandra reluctantly slid her legs out from under the covers and stood up, to walk over and check on the snake. It was still sitting peaceably in the cage, flicking its tongue in and out. Then she turned to look at her roommate.

“Don't worry, I'm pretty sure it's not poisonous.”

“Pretty sure?” Anna sputtered.

“Anna.” Alexandra put her hands on her friend's shoulders, and spoke in a very serious tone. “You were right to be worried about me. But I'm fine now. I'm not going to be sneaking out at night anymore. I was being stupid. I'm really sorry.” And as Anna's mouth fell open, Alexandra went on. “I have to take care of the snake. I... It's just my responsibility, now.”

Anna looked at the snake, and back at Alexandra. “But you already have a familiar.” Charlie cawed loudly in agreement.

Alexandra released Anna and walked over to reach into Charlie's cage. The raven pecked rather viciously at the back of her hand.

“Ow!” Alexandra yelped, withdrawing her hand. She rubbed it and glared at Charlie. “Of course you're my familiar! Nothing is going to replace you. Are you such a birdbrain that you're jealous of a stupid snake?”

Charlie squawked angrily.

“I'm not asking you to be friends or anything.” Alexandra turned away from Charlie's cage, and faced Anna again.

Anna looked at her and sighed. “You're going to need to put something in the cage, like sand or leaves, and water. And you'll have to make sure it doesn't get too cold. And what are you going to feed it? And you'd better make sure it's in its cage when Jingwei is here, because owls eat snakes.”

Alexandra nodded.

“We slept late. We'd better get dressed and get downstairs if we want any breakfast,” Anna said.

Alexandra nodded again.

“You make me crazy sometimes.”

Alexandra nodded, and smiled.

“Jerk.”

Alexandra gave Anna a hug. “C'mon. Let's go eat.”

When they reached the cafeteria, they found the Pritchards eating with David again, while Darla and Angelique sat halfway down the table, with Lydia Ragland and Janet Jackson. Darla was yawning and looked ready to put her head down on the table and go to sleep. She jerked upright when she saw Alexandra, and the two girls stared at each other for a long moment, long enough to draw the attention of those around them. Then Alexandra broke gazes and walked over to sit down next to Constance.

Anna followed, and nervously sat down on the other side of her. David glowered at Alexandra, and the Pritchards looked down at their trays, and then picked them up.

“Wait,” Alexandra pleaded. “Please.”

The twins paused, as they were rising from the table, and slowly sat back down, still keeping their eyes averted.

Alexandra took a deep breath, and said, “You were right. About everything.”

Constance and Forbearance finally looked up at her, their blue eyes showing surprise and concern.

“I was getting involved in things I shouldn't have been,” Alexandra mumbled. It was hard getting the words out – it felt as if her throat wanted to close around them – but the more words that came out, the easier it became. “I didn't mean any harm, I was just curious. I thought I could learn things without doing anything bad. I don't want to be Dark. I don't want anyone to think I'm Dark. But I was being stupid, and I didn't want to listen to you because I thought I knew better. I... I was wrong. And I'm done with all that stuff now. I swear.”

She waited – for a curse to strike her, though she didn't think she'd revealed any secrets by what she'd said – but more importantly, for her friends to react.

David frowned, while Constance and Forbearance looked at each other. They seemed to be weighing her words. Anna was wide-eyed, then she smiled slowly at Alexandra.

“Alexandra Quick, you're a trial and a pain,” declared Constance.

“A troublesome, high-headed mule,” agreed Forbearance.

Alexandra looked down, and grimaced. “Please don't sing that song about Troublesome again.”

The Ozarkers studied her a moment, and then, to her surprise and embarrassment, Constance reached out and took her hand.

“We had faith you'd come 'round,” Constance told her.

“You are powerful stubborn, Alexandra Quick,” said Forbearance.

“Vexing as nettles in your drawers,” said Constance.

Forbearance smiled. “But you usually do right in the end.”

“Don't you never make us worry like that 'gain,” Constance scolded.

David barked laughter, causing everyone to stare at him.

“Are you kidding?” he guffawed. “You really think Alexandra's gonna stop getting in trouble?” He shook his head. “Your friends are always gonna worry about you, Alex.”

Alexandra stared at him, then smiled. He looked back at her. “What?”

She grinned. Anna took Alexandra's arm and smiled at David too.

“You're crazy, you know that?” he grumbled. “All of you. I don't know why I hang out with girls, sometimes.”

“Can't imagine,” Forbearance drawled.

“But we'll put up with you anyhow, I reckon,” said Constance.

Alexandra noticed other members of the Mors Mortis Society giving her looks throughout the day. Some looked puzzled, others suspicious, others smug. Darla seemed to be avoiding her altogether.

She went to the library that evening, and after consulting a few books on reptiles, concluded that the snake she'd rescued was, in fact, a storeria dekayi, or common brown snake. She was pleased to learn that it would be perfectly happy on a diet of earthworms and snails, though she realized those might be a little harder to come by in the winter months, when brown snakes normally went into hibernation. She knew that a few other students had snakes as familiars, and after asking around, managed to scrounge up a water dish, gathered some branches and soil from outside, and learned a simple Warming Charm from a book on Familiar Care that should keep the snake's cage warm enough, even when their rooms weren't kept as heated as was necessary for cold-blooded pets. She had no idea how to determine the sex of a snake, so she arbitrarily decided it was a boy. She named it Nigel.

She was caught by surprise when Stuart and Torvald cornered her in the hallway as she was leaving the library. Half-expecting them to hex her, she reached for her wand, but Torvald whispered, “We just wanted you to know that we quit too,” while Stuart looked around furtively.

Alexandra's fingers unclenched from her wand. “You did?” she stammered.

The two boys nodded. “We thought the Mors Mortis Society would be cool,” Stuart whispered. “We wanted to learn some new jinxes we could throw at people, maybe stuff we could scare teachers with.”

“Dark wizards have to be wicked at hexem,” Torvald said.

“You joined a Dark Arts club so you'd be better at hexem?” Alexandra sputtered, then lowered her voice when the boys winced.

“Well, not just for that, but yeah.” Torvald coughed.

“Anyway, you were right,” Stuart continued. “We didn't join to learn Unforgivable Curses. We don't want to torture anyone.”

“Or kill things,” Torvald added. “Either this stuff is driving Darla Dearborn insane, or she was already nuts.”

“I think she's just being stupid.” Alexandra frowned. Like me, she thought.

“Maybe.” Torvald looked dubious. “But some of those kids have squirming eels in their heads.”

“Yeah.” Stuart nodded. “You should probably watch your back. I don't think John liked the way you quit.”

“I'll keep that in mind,” Alexandra replied. “Thanks.”

She was grateful. The warning she brushed off – she wasn't afraid of John. But she felt a little better about Stuart and Torvald. She'd always sort of liked them, even though they were both jerks more often than not. It made her happy to know they drew the line somewhere.

She worried about Darla, though, and Tomo. Were they really so far gone that they didn't think there was anything wrong with Unforgivable Curses? And what about Maximilian? She remembered seeing the snake writhing in agony on the floor of that room, and the unpleasant image of Anna lying on the ground, twitching and screaming, filled her with dread.

Do it, and I'll make you pay, she thought darkly, when she saw Tomo the next morning at breakfast. She gave her such an ominous scowl that the younger girl almost spilled her breakfast tray on the floor.

Maximilian didn't seem unhappy at all. In fact, he actually smiled at her at Monday morning formation, and his badgering of the new wands was noticeably reduced. Alexandra fumed, but decided not to antagonize him. Anna was relieved, and indeed, for the rest of the week, JROC exercises and drills seemed to go much easier for both girls.

Fine, Alexandra thought, glowering at Maximilian every morning and afternoon. You won. She'd endure his smug smile, if it meant he'd stop picking on Anna.

As the month of November wore on, the weather turned colder, and it became harder for Alexandra to find worms and snails for Nigel. Her searching took her further from the academy building.

Leaves blanketed Charmbridge's lawns, and multitudes of crows once again began nesting in the trees surrounding the academy, as they did every winter. In the wizarding world, some regarded ravens and crows as harbingers of doom, or spies for the Dark Convention, and a lot of kids didn't like walking near the woods.

The crows didn't deter Alexandra, of course, not even after she'd seen them turned into a murderous feathered horde last year by Mr. Journey.

She was foraging around the edges of the forest, late one afternoon, accompanied by Anna. Both girls were still in uniform, though there had been no JROC drill that day. Constance and Forbearance had declined to join them; they denied it, but Alexandra knew they feared the crows, too. Anna kept looking at the trees, and the black swarms of corvids moving in the branches.

“You're not letting Old Colonial superstitions get to you, are you?” Alexandra asked.

Anna looked at her and frowned. “You saw what they can do,” she said quietly.

Alexandra shook her head. “If wizards leave them alone, they're just birds.” She knelt and pointed her wand at the ground, snapping an incantation like a command: “Defodio!” The ground exploded in front of her, spraying both girls with a shower of dirt, and leaving a hole almost big enough to sit in.

Anna spat, and brushed dirt off her uniform. “I don't think that spell is intended for digging for worms.”

Alexandra grimaced, shook dirt out of her hair, and looked ruefully down at her own soiled uniform. Then, with a sigh, she leaned over and began rooting around in the excavated earth, gathering up worms and putting them in a small container. “It's getting colder, so I have to dig deeper to find any earthworms. I'm not sure how I'll keep Nigel fed through the winter.”

“It's a shame he's not big enough to eat jarveys,” Anna commented.

Alexandra snickered, and stood up. “I could always get a bigger snake.”

“That's okay.” Anna shuddered. She had given up on talking Alexandra into just turning Nigel loose in the woods, but she still wasn't thrilled about sharing their room with a snake. “You could just talk to Mrs. Verde. I'm sure she has worms in the greenhouse.”

Alexandra stopped short, and then grinned at her friend and clapped her on the shoulder. “You're right! That's brilliant, Anna!”

Anna smiled and shook her head. “How come you never say that when I tell you not to do something?”

They had almost reached Delta Delta Kappa Tau hall when they heard a familiar voice barking, “Quick! Chu!”

The two girls groaned, and turned around. Mage-Corporal King and Mage-Corporal Nguyen were coming down the hallway towards them, looking appalled.

“What in Merlin's name have you done to your uniforms?” demanded Maximilian.

“You look like you've been rolling in the dirt!” exclaimed Martin.

“I haven't seen you two looking this hexed since your first week in the JROC.” Maximilian shook his head.

Alexandra and Anna both stood at attention, cheeks burning. Other kids were watching, and Alexandra could hear some of them snickering.

“We were just going back to our rooms to change,” Anna mumbled.

“Well, you do that, and report for a uniform inspection tomorrow morning, before exercises,” said Maximilian.

Anna gasped. “Before exercises? We'll have to get up at –”

“It was my fault, Corporal King,” Alexandra grated, through clenched teeth. “I cast a Defodio spell that sprayed dirt on both of us.”

Martin snorted. “Merlin's balls you did! Where did you learn a Gouging Spell?”

Alexandra sneered. “There's this place called a library. It has books.” She fell silent when Martin looked ready to take it out on both of them for her insolence. If not for Anna, she wouldn't have cared.

Maximilian was looking at her thoughtfully, and then he reached out and snatched the little metal box of earthworms out of her front pocket.

“Hey!” Alexandra protested, forgetting for a moment that she was standing at attention and he was a superior officer. Instead of yelling at her, though, Maximilian just smirked, and opened the box. Martin looked over his shoulder, and both boys' faces screwed up in puzzlement and disgust.

“You were digging for worms?” Maximilian asked, with an odd expression on his face. Alexandra's face burned more as she heard snickers from the audience that was beginning to gather in the hallway. “Can't your raven find its own meals?”

“They aren't for my raven. They're for my snake. You remember my snake, don't you?” She gave him a hard stare. Anna and Martin were puzzled, as Maximilian just looked back at her blankly.

“A raven and a snake,” he repeated. “You do like to play at being Dark, don't you, Quick?”

Alexandra was too furious even to respond, as more kids laughed behind her back.

“Uniform inspection,” he snapped. “Five a.m., tomorrow. Both of you.”

He stared at her, as if daring her to talk back. Glaring, she saluted, and so, reluctantly, did Anna. Maximilian and Martin returned their salutes and went back the way they'd come.

“Merlin, he's cute!” Alexandra heard a sophomore saying to her friends, followed by a chorus of giggles, as she and Anna hurried away. Alexandra shook her head, disgusted.

Back in their room, Anna peeled off her gray and blue jacket and flung it against the wall so hard that Charlie jumped and squawked.

“I hate him! I wish someone would put Max and Martin both in a really big hole and bury them! I can't wait until this semester is over! I'm going to burn this horrible, awful uniform!” As Anna raged, for once Alexandra was the calm one. She nodded, letting her roommate blow off steam, while she changed quietly out of her own uniform and hung it carefully so she could apply a Cleaning Charm, and then took out her box of worms and dumped a few into Nigel's cage.

“Why, why does he hate us so much?” Anna cried.

“Dunno,” Alexandra replied.

Their inspection the next morning, before dawn, was surprisingly quick. Maximilian and Martin barely looked at the two girls before sending them back to their rooms.

“Hurry up and change into your togs,” Maximilian ordered, referring to their exercise clothing. Alexandra glared at him, and decided she was going to ask him later why he was being such a bully again, after she'd quit the Mors Mortis Society.

Back in their room, she noticed that Charlie was agitated, sitting on Nigel's cage instead of snoozing in the larger bird cage that she usually left open for the raven. Nigel was sliding nervously beneath a pile of leaves.

“What's your problem, Charlie?” Alexandra scolded. “Leave Nigel alone!”

“Alexandra!” squawked the raven.

“You're really being a jerk, Charlie.” Grabbing the bird, she forced her familiar back into the bird cage, and this time latched the door.

“Alexandra!” squawked Charlie, angrily now.

“If you're going to harass Nigel, you can stay in your cage until you learn to behave,” she said, and she and Anna left for their morning exercises.

She felt guilty at Charlie's sullen beady-eyed stare when they returned, so after she and Anna showered and they changed back into uniform before breakfast, she unlatched the bird's cage again. “Just stop being jealous, okay?” she pleaded. “You know you're my favorite familiar. Nigel is just a snake. He's not smart or interesting like you.”

Charlie made a show of ignoring her while grooming feathers, so Alexandra sighed and went to breakfast.

In the cafeteria, Alexandra was in line for orange juice (something that only Muggle-born kids seemed to like), when she almost bumped into Tomo Matsuzaka. The little Japanese girl stared up at her, pale and trembling.

Alexandra frowned at her, and Tomo whispered, “You'd better watch your familiars!”

“What?” Alexandra exclaimed, but the other girl spun around and hurried away as fast as she could. Alexandra almost chased her down then and there, but the Vice Dean was standing only a few feet away. Instead, she grabbed Anna and dragged her back to their room, over Anna's protests. David and the Pritchards gaped at them in astonishment as they left the cafeteria without eating their breakfasts.

“What's going on?” Anna demanded, when they reached their room. Alexandra burst in and ran to Charlie's cage. “Are you all right, Charlie?” she asked breathlessly.

The raven looked at her quizzically, and offered a subdued caw, confused but not quite ready to forgive her. She reached in and ignored the bird's half-hearted peck as she took her familiar out and stroked the raven's feathers, then turned to look at Nigel's cage. The snake still appeared to be quite happy, after its meal of earthworms the previous night.

Alexandra let Charlie go, and gasped, “Jingwei! We have to check on Jingwei!”

Anna's eyes widened, and they rushed to the aviary, but they found Anna's familiar comfortably sleeping on a high perch where the other largest owls resided. Jingwei hooted irritably at being disturbed, along with her neighbors.

Climbing back down the stairs from the top of the aviary, Alexandra told Anna about Tomo's whispered threat.

“That –” Anna hissed something in Chinese that Alexandra was sure wasn't nice. “She wouldn't dare hurt our familiars!”

Alexandra knew that attacking someone's familiar was a very serious offense, almost as bad as stealing a wand. Students at Charmbridge might hex each other, or use potions and curses, but going after familiars just wasn't done. Not even Larry Albo would stoop that low, she thought.

But who knew what the Mors Mortis Society had Tomo doing? Alexandra couldn't say anything about that to Anna, though. So she told her, “We'll be extra careful, and keep an eye on Tomo.”

Throughout the day, they went back to their room to make sure no one had snuck in. They cast Locking Charms on their doors, even the bathroom door, though normally they didn't worry about keeping Darla or Angelique out. But Charlie and Nigel remained undisturbed, and likewise, Jingwei continued to open one sleepy eye and glare at them each time they visited her in the aviary.

It was after dinner when a knock came on the locked bathroom door, just after Alexandra and Anna had returned from the cafeteria. They opened it, to find Angelique standing there. She looked upset.

“I don't suppose y'all have seen Honey?” she asked. Darla was standing behind her, looking worried.

“Why would we have seen Honey?” Alexandra asked.

“She's missing.” Angelique wrung her hands. “I thought maybe she got out of her cage and found her way into your room somehow.”

“If Honey were in our room, I think we'd know it.” Alexandra frowned at Darla, feeling a growing sense of unease. Angelique's roommate returned her gaze with a frown of her own.

“I don't know how she could have gotten out of her cage,” Angelique said, “or how she could have gotten out of our room.”

“Good question.” Alexandra nodded, still looking at Darla. “Maybe we should go look for her. If she's loose anywhere nearby, I'm sure it won't take long to find a jarvey.”

So Alexandra and Anna joined Angelique and Darla in the hallway. They walked up and down Delta Delta Kappa Tau hall, and Angelique even began knocking on doors, asking the other girls if they had found Honey.

While Anna was looking in the stairwell at the end of the hallway, Alexandra grabbed Darla's arm.

“What is the Mors Mortis Society up to?” she asked.

Darla stared at her. “You know I'm not going to tell you anything!” she sneered, tossing her head. “You quit.”

“Did you leave your door unlocked?” Alexandra demanded.

The other girl frowned. “We usually do. There aren't many thieves at Charmbridge...”

“Tomo Matsuzaka threatened to do something to our familiars.”

Darla paused. “You think Tomo kidnapped Honey? Why would she do that?”

“I was hoping you might know.”

Darla gave her a haughty look. “If it did have anything to do with the Mors Mortis Society,” she whispered, “I wouldn't tell you about it, but she'd be crazy to take my roommate's familiar!”

“Maybe she is crazy,” Alexandra muttered, remembering what Torvald had said about Darla. “But it seems awfully coincidental, Honey disappearing after she threatens our familiars.”

“I really doubt Tomo had anything to do with it,” Darla snorted. “She was probably just trying to scare you.”

Alexandra narrowed her eyes. “Is there a meeting tonight?”

Darla's eyes widened, for just a moment, and then she shook Alexandra's hand off.

Anna rejoined them, shaking her head. Angelique shuffled back to join them, looking even more distraught.

“No one has seen her,” she sniffed.

“Maybe she found her way outside,” Darla suggested. “Jarveys are better off in the wild, you know. And we'd certainly be better off if Honey were in the wild.”

Angelique stared at her roommate. “She's never lived in the wild! She's always had someone to take care of her! She can't survive on her own!”

She probably won't survive at all if someone else finds her first, Alexandra thought to herself. Honey's mouth was not exactly a survival trait among humans.

For once, though, she managed to hold her tongue. She'd never thought of Honey as anything but an obnoxious pest, and before today would have rejoiced at the jarvey's disappearance. But now she thought about Nigel. No one understood why she had bothered to rescue a snake. She didn't really understand it herself. And she thought about what she would do if Charlie went missing. She watched uncomfortably as Angelique fought back tears, and realized that the other girl loved her obnoxious familiar.

“We'll find Honey,” Alexandra promised, putting a hand on Angelique's shoulder. “If she doesn't turn up, we'll ask Miss Marmsley to put an announcement on all the bulletin boards tomorrow.” Angelique sniffled and nodded, and then turned away, to go downstairs and continue her search.

By lights out, Honey had not appeared. Alexandra and Anna paid one more visit to Jingwei, who was now awake and preparing to take wing for the night. Anna hugged her owl, who hooted cheerfully before flapping off in search of dinner.

“Do you really think Tomo took Honey?” Anna asked, back in their room, as they got ready for bed. “We should tell a teacher.”

“We've got no proof. I doubt she's keeping Honey in her room. She'll lie and say she doesn't know anything about Angelique's familiar.”

“So we just... let her get away with it?”

“I don't know what else we can do.” Alexandra shrugged, trying to sound resigned.

Anna looked at her suspiciously, then turned off the lights. “Well, good night.”

“Good night, Anna.”

Alexandra napped for an hour or so, and then, very quietly, slid her covers back and got out of bed.

“Lights.” The lamps in their room flared, and Anna got up, looking at Alexandra accusingly. “I knew it! You said you were done with the Mors Mortis Society! You're up to something, aren't you? And it has something to do with Honey and Tomo!”

Alexandra sighed. “You're too smart, Anna.”

Anna folded her arms and glared at her, unmollified.

“I am done with the Mors Mortis Society, I swear.” Alexandra put her hands on Anna's shoulders. “But I'm going to rescue Honey. You know I wouldn't do nothing if it were Charlie or Jingwei. Or even Nigel,” she added, looking at her snake.

“We wouldn't do nothing if it were Charlie or Jingwei... or Nigel,” Anna declared. “I'm coming with you.”

Alexandra opened her mouth, and Anna said angrily, “You always do this, Alex! You just decide to do things and run off and don't tell anyone!”

“You can't come with me, Anna.”

“Why, because it could be dangerous?” Anna's voice was rising, and Alexandra looked in the direction of Darla and Angelique's room. “Shh!” she pleaded.

“Are you going to Stun me, or Petrify me?” Anna whispered.

“Of course not!” Alexandra whispered back, appalled.

“Then I'm coming with you. Where are we going?”

Alexandra closed her eyes, and sighed. “I'm not sure yet.” And at Anna's baffled look, Alexandra said, “Just wait.” She walked over to the door to the bathroom, and leaned against it, listening, while Anna stared at her, confused.

A few minutes later, she heard movement in Darla and Angelique's room, and the sound of a door being stealthily opened.

“Come on,” Alexandra whispered, and she cautiously cracked open the door to their own room, peeking outside just in time to see Darla sneaking down the hall.

“Darla is in the Mors Mortis Society?” Anna gasped in her ear. “And you didn't tell me?”

Alexandra gave her an apologetic look, then put a finger over her lips. They waited until Darla had reached the warlock hanging over the entrance to the hall. Anna looked puzzled, as Darla did something with her wand. She hurried on, and then Alexandra and Anna exited their room and crept after her.

“But –” Anna whispered, looking nervously at the arch they were about to pass under.

Alexandra held a finger to her lips again, and then, when they reached the same spot Darla had, she held up her wand and spoke the incantation as quietly as possible: “Pictogel.”

“Later,” she murmured, as Anna stared upward at the frozen hall monitor as they passed below his portrait.

Without a coin, Alexandra couldn't know where the meeting was being held, but she'd seen which stairwell Darla had entered, and they dashed after her. When they reached the basement, they looked right and left, and saw no sign of the other girl. Alexandra was sure they were heading towards the lower basement levels again.

Anna was amazed. She hadn't even realized there were more underground levels below the main basement. She grabbed Alexandra's arm, and whispered, “Where are we going?”

“Down,” Alexandra murmured. When they got down to the next floor, the stairs they were on ended, so they had to proceed down a darkened corridor, listening for sounds of anyone else moving nearby. After their third turn into another unused basement corridor, lined with what looked like old wooden lockers of some sort, Alexandra had a bad feeling that they were lost again.

“Alex,” Anna squeaked, looking nervous.

A door ahead of them opened. They both shrank back into the recess of a door frame behind them, as a tiny figure emerged from yet another stairwell and turned away from where Alexandra and Anna were hiding.

“Tomo!” Alexandra hissed, as she recognized the Majokai witch. The sixth grader spun around, and Alexandra lunged out of the shadows.

Tomo screamed and turned to run. She got a dozen paces before Alexandra tackled her and dragged her to the ground. Anna caught up as Alexandra was sitting on the smaller girl and grabbing her by the front of her robes.

“Where's Honey?” Alexandra demanded, while Anna looked around nervously.

“Who's Honey?” cried Tomo.

“Angelique's jarvey!” Alexandra snarled, and shook the other girl violently, yanking on her collar hard enough to make her face start turning red.

“I didn't do anything to her!” Tomo stammered.

“You threatened our familiars! When you couldn't get into our room, you took Angelique's instead!” Alexandra let go of Tomo with one hand, and drew her wand, pointing it at the hapless girl's face.

“No!” Tomo shrieked. “Please, don't!” Her face was full of terror. “I didn't! I didn't do anything! I got into your room but I couldn't! I don't want to hurt anyone! I couldn't even hurt that stupid snake! I don't want to be part of any of this! Please, let me go, just let me go! Don't hurt me!”

Alexandra lowered her wand, and stared at the frantic, terrified sixth grader, who was now sobbing uncontrollably.

“I didn't do anything!” Tomo wailed. “I hate all of this Dark Arts stuff! I didn't come to Charmbridge to learn how to torture and kill things! I just want to go home!”

Tomo's cries echoed up and down the dark corridor, but no one else seemed to hear. As Alexandra slowly released her grip, Tomo covered her face with her hands and curled into a little ball.

Alexandra and Anna looked at each other, and back down at the Japanese witch. Tomo's shoulders shook as she continued crying.

Alexandra stood up slowly. “Calm down,” she murmured. She reached for the other girl's hand, to help her up, but Tomo whimpered and shrank away from her.

Tomo, Alexandra realized, was terrified. Utterly terrified. Of her.

“We're not going to hurt you,” she mumbled. The hand holding her wand hung limply at her side. She tucked it back into her pocket, and glanced at Anna, who was frowning uncomfortably.

Tomo just continued to lie on the ground sobbing. Alexandra knelt next to her.

“Why did you threaten our familiars?” she asked quietly.

“I wasn't th-threatening you, I was w-w-warning you!” Tomo stammered.

Alexandra and Anna looked at each other again.

“What happened to Honey?” Alexandra asked.

“I don't know!” Tomo insisted. “B-but...” She bit her lip.

Alexandra scowled at her, and leaned over her threateningly. Tomo cringed, and blurted out, “Darla, Darla was going to get your familiar after I couldn't, but she's no good at Unlocking Charms and John and Sue were really mad...” She gasped, and put her hands over her mouth. Alexandra could see the whites of her eyes, as her expression became even more terrified and her eyes darted side to side.

Alexandra felt sick, for more than one reason. She lowered her voice.

“If you hate being in the Mors Mortis Society, why don't you just quit?” she asked.

Tomo stared at her, trembling.

“You joined, you stayed even after seeing what kind of sick things they do,” Alexandra said. Anna was very quiet, behind her.

Tomo removed her shaking hands from her mouth.

“I needed protection,” she gulped. “They said they'd protect me.”

“Protection?” Alexandra tilted her head. “Protection from who?”

Tomo continued staring at her. The sick feeling in Alexandra's gut began to be replaced by guilt.

“Me?” She shook her head. “Why – what –?”

“She tried to kill me!” Tomo squealed, pointing at Anna accusingly. “And you threatened to turn me inside out!”

“You threatened to turn her inside out?” Anna looked at Alexandra incredulously.

“It's not like I was actually going to do it,” Alexandra muttered.

“I wasn't trying to kill you,” Anna said to Tomo. “But you kept threatening me, and then you used that nasty Nail-Pulling Jinx on me!”

“You hexed me first!” Tomo accused.

“You did?” Alexandra stared at her roommate.

“Just a little one. After she called me dirty names!”

“You put 'Jap monkey' on my textbook!” Tomo exclaimed indignantly. “I can read Chinese characters, you know!”

“Anna!” Alexandra was shocked.

“You started it!” Anna snapped.

“I did not! You acted like I was polluting your precious school the moment I arrived!”

“I didn't say anything. You started the name-calling.”

“I just said, 'What's your problem?'”

“You said, 'What's your problem, chink'!” Anna hissed.

The two girls continued flinging accusations back and forth until Alexandra shouted, “Stop it! Shut up, both of you!” Anna and Tomo both jumped, and closed their mouths. Alexandra looked from one to the other. “You two are so stupid!”

They winced. Alexandra held out a hand to Tomo again. “Come on.” She spoke as gently as she could manage. “We're not going to hurt you. I swear.”

Tomo looked at her mistrustfully, and then, very slowly, extended a shaking hand. Alexandra closed her fingers around the other girl's, and pulled her to her feet. Tomo sniffled, and wiped her nose against her sleeve, not looking at either of them.

“Give me your coin,” Alexandra demanded.

Tomo looked up at her, wide-eyed. “What?”

“Your coin. Your MMS coin.” Alexandra held her hand out. “Give it to me. Then don't go back. You can just walk away.” She spoke more softly. “You don't need protection from me or Anna. You don't have anything to fear from us anymore. You two are going to stop fighting. You don't have to be friends. Just leave each other alone and keep your mouths shut. You can do that, can't you?” She glared at both of them. Anna flinched, and Tomo swallowed hard. They both nodded.

“On my witch's honor,” Alexandra swore, meeting Tomo's gaze. “I'm not your enemy. I'm not going to come after you or do anything to you.”

Tomo stared at her, and then slowly held out her Mors Mortis Society coin. Alexandra took it from her, and Tomo sighed, as if a large weight had been taken off her shoulders.

“Now, can I trust you two to go back to your rooms together without hexing each other?”

Anna and Tomo looked at each other, and back at Alexandra. Anna started to protest: “I'm not –”

“Yes, you are,” Alexandra interrupted her firmly. “You need to keep an eye on Tomo.” She looked at the younger girl. “In case a curse takes effect on her, you'll need to take her to the infirmary.” Tomo gulped, and Anna looked startled.

“Look out for each other, and get out of here. Wait for me back in our room. Don't argue!” she snapped, as Anna opened her mouth again.

Cowed, the other two girls fell silent. Finally, Anna asked meekly, eyes downcast, “What are you going to do?”

Alexandra gritted her teeth. “I'm going to rescue Honey.” And she left Anna and Tomo in the corridor behind her. She followed the directions that Tomo's coin gave her, as its glowing arrows guided a tiny point of light deeper into the basements.