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Arty drowned out the rest of the chatter in the carriage, focusing entirely on the voices booming in his head. He cradled his arm carefully so the jostling of the carriage wouldn’t irritate the injury any further as he slowly unwound the various things bouncing around behind his eyes. Voice by voice, he shoved them out. It was a slow, draining process. Arty had always struggled getting this back under control but once he had it, normally he was okay. He let out a sigh of relief as the last voice quieted down and it was just him in his own head. He slumped against his brother just as the carriage came to a stop and he filled out with the rest of the group.

He stayed quiet as they headed into the castle. He felt drained and honestly, just wanted to see Madam Pomfrey and head to bed. He was so excited to lead the first years but now he just hoped Penny would handle it on her own tonight. He was glad Georgina hadn’t ignored them for the carriage ride and he sent her a weary smile and a wave with his good hand. He patted his pockets and sighed again. He left all his candy in his luggage with his robes and he wouldn’t get his stuff until he got to the dorms.

Arty was expecting questions about the train ride, detention for what everyone did, or something but being invited into a secretary society by Dumbledore of all wizards hadn’t even been in the realm of possibility. It was interesting but he was nervous. He didn’t mind most of these people but one person stood out. Paige Atwell, Death Eater born and bred. He shifted away from her a little. He didn’t necessarily have any experiences with her but the others seemed to think poorly of her and he was inclined to trust his friend’s judgement. And as a muggleborn, anyone with close ties to Death Eaters made him nervous.

But Dumbledore thought she was a good pick. He chewed nervously on some candy, juggling the handful of licorice snap he’d excitedly snatched up at the offer. He wasn’t one to turn down good candy. It would just be rude. He hummed appreciatively at the taste but silently agreed with Mary.

“I’d totally join if I didn’t have a ton on my plate too, Professor. If it’s considered a class, maybe we could swap it out with another one?” Arty asked hopefully, giving his best puppy dog eyes. “Maybe one of our current electives or like, maybe even… Astronomy or History of Magic?” Arty would absolutely not mention they were his least favorite classes and thus also, his worst grades. If he could swap out for something interesting, maybe it’d make up for the terrible first day.

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Apollo was relatively quiet for most of the ride towards Hogwarts. His attention perking up slightly at the mention of beasts pulling the carriage. As far as Apollo was concerned the carriages were always pulled by magical means, no beasts were actually used. Mary however seemed to have a different idea, stating that it was some magical creature called Thestrals and that only those who had viewed death were capable of seeing them. He didn’t speak up against her comments, but that was definitely a subject in which he would like to look into. He had his ideas on Curse-Breakers and how they should function as well as how he viewed himself in the future; and thestrals could be a secret key towards that destiny. Suppose it was time to dive back into Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them for the 13th time and read up on creatures his mind had forgotten over time. The ride there was tense, Apollo knowing Hogwarts was safe yet still expecting to be struck down at any moment. His arm still around his brother in the even they were shot out of the carriage they could hold onto each other and he could hopefully cast fast enough to erect a protective barrier.

Once they had finally reached their destination, they began the climb up the long spiral staircases. The portraits showing how quickly word had spread of the attack on Hogwarts Express, and perhaps even the deaths that followed. There was a tightness in his chest as they ascended. A nagging in the back of his mind telling him that he had something for Dumbledoor to see or know but he couldn’t quite wrap his head about it. A brief flash blinded his mind as it tried to recall facts and all he knew was that Artemis had a memory of his, and it was important enough to save. His eyes were downcast as he felt the staircases nearing to an end, the group slowly approaching punishment for their actions on the train no doubt. His arrogance and overconfidence having taken over and being stupid enough to try and break into a Death Eaters mind. Apollo clenched his fist, hardly paying attention until he heard Paige speak the password, his attention snapping back in time to watch himself bump into Fae. ”Sorry, got my mind on a lot...”

Apollo quietly made his way into the room, taking in the magnificence that was Dumbledoors office, and getting to see the rare sight of a Pheonix. He took a seat as instructed, waiting for Arty to grab his pieces of Licorice before swiping the bowl and taking a piece as well, offering them up to any who asked. As he lifted the licorice to his lips, it bit back and cut a small sliver of red on his lips before it was thoroughly consumed. His eyes lit up at the mention of the Scamander Society. Secrecy, Death Eater fighting, more classes, and it was named after one of his favorite wizards? What more could he ask for? Ofcourse Arty tried to weasel his way out of classes, Apollo wasn’t going to stop it though there was a bit of embarrassment as he asked. He waited for the other questions to be answered first before speaking up, hand raised as if to be called on. ”Pardon me Headmaster, but what exactly are the extraordinary talents we each possessed that you wish to fine tune? If you don’t mind my asking.”

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Paige tilted her head slightly, her eyes narrowing a little bit as Mary brought up planning the Thing. She had nearly been placed into Ravenclaw due to her stubborn curiosity and her thirst to reveal anything kept secret. Mary didn't have any interest in Quidditch - there was no way Zelda would've allowed her on the team - so that ruled out that. Mary also wasn't in the Dueling Club, which Paige regretted - it would've been nice to get to hex, jinx, and curse Miss Perfect every week without punishment.

With a jolt, a theory came to her. Mary must've been planning the Celestial Ball. It hadn't happened yet while they were at Hogwarts and from what Paige could tell, it was a random event that just occurred whenever the professors felt like it was time. She had been talking to her father about his Celestial Ball and his attempted date - the Giant Squid - at Platform 9 3/4 earlier that day. Her eyes flickered over to Zelda and she smirked. She was definitely going to pester her silly about going with Andre. Paige would've insisted to Mary to try her hardest not to make the Celestial Ball a complete drag, but with Dumbledore there, she wanted to be on her best behavior.

"You will be able to take all of those classes, yes. As there are only nine of you, I have selected a time slot for our meetings that do not conflict with any of your courses - or clubs such as Quidditch or dueling," Dumbledore answered Mary, a twinkle in his eye. "I am quite fond of Celestina Warbeck's latest album - You Stole My Cauldron but You Can't Have My Heart."

Paige perked up slightly, hearing Artemis essentially try to politely turn Dumbledore down. Her rivalry was with his twin brother, Apollo, but he hanged out with a group of the worst people in the school, so Artemis was largely guilty by association in her book.

"Unfortunately, you are required to sit the O.W.L.'s for both of those courses," Dumbledore told Artemis. "You may drop either Muggle Studies or Care of Magical Creatures. If you don't wish to join, it's no trouble. I'll simply need to obliviate you to remove this discussion from your memories."

She wanted to gag herself with a spoon as Apollo basically begged for Dumbledore to compliment him. Paige knew what she was worth and what she was skilled at - she didn't need Dumbledore to tell her that. If Apollo was half as bright as he claimed to be - and Paige doubted that - then he ought to have known what his own strengths were. She didn't understand how a person couldn't know their strengths and weaknesses - how could they plan and strategize without them? It was obvious that Dumbledore hadn't picked Apollo for his ability on a broomstick - he was a mind reader. As much as Paige hated him, it was a useful skill.

Even Fae she felt had an obvious talent - flying and pummeling things with her fists. Blunt instruments were needed just as much as crafty ones. Madalyne and Zelda were both great strategists, and Zelda was an animagus. Elizabeth was irritating, but she was clever and sharp eyed, a really good seeker for Slytherin. Paige's own talent was her skill as a dueler - she was the captain of the dueling club, almost undefeated throughout her time at Hogwarts.

"Mr. Harrington, a wise man must not know only his strengths, but those of his friends as well," Dumbledore cautioned him. "At the end of this year, I am going to pose your question to you and I expect you to answer it. For now, though, perhaps a bit of introduction to your fellow witches and wizards is indeed in order."

"Miss Mintfree has the heart of a true hero and the strength of a brawler. Miss Crane is perhaps one of the brightest witches of her age, gifted with both strategy and dexterity. Both of them are a credit to Gryffindor," Dumbledore said, before continuining.

"Miss Locke has a promising future as an auror ahead of her - and Professor Binns rates her historical essays as an absolute delight. Mr. Harrington is one of the kindest young wizards Professor Sprout has ever had the good fortune to teach and has a native talent for legilimency. Again, both of them some of the finest students Hufflepuff has taught."

"You, Mr. Harrington, I am told can tie a cherry stem with only your tongue." Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling yet his voice was kind. "Like your twin, you are gifted at legilimency and yet you also have an insatiable thirst for knowledge. Miss Winthrop has mastered several magical arts at a young age - an animagus and able to cast a corporeal patronus. Miss Flynn is the fastest chaser Ravenclaw has had in over a decade, with her magical prowess shown in her ability to turn into a cat. All students that Rowena Ravenclaw would be proud to call her own."

"Miss Flame is a rarity among Slytherins, a muggleborn. She is a gifted seeker and duelist, overcoming prejudice with heart and grace," Dumbledore praised. "And of course, lastly Miss Atwell... The best young duelist at Hogwarts and with a knack for finding trouble that rivals her father's," he finished with a bit of a chuckle. "Both exceptional young witches from Slytherin."

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Mary grinned at Dumbledore's blatant request. She did like the idea of maybe getting Celestina Warbeck to come play live and filed that away mentally for later. She did have some fun ideas of what to do for the Ball and hoped she could get the teachers to help her with the magic required to make it work.

Mary looked at Apollo when he asked for information on what skills Dumbledore thought that they had that could be useful. She knew her own abilities and those of her friends but knowing what Dumbledore thought the others possessed would be good to know. She blushed slightly when he complimented her. She was ahead of the curve on her magic. Maybe St. Mungos wouldn't be enough for her in the future. She wondered and then let the thought go.

Dumbledore wasn't wrong about Atwell. As much as Mary hated to give her a compliment, even mentally, Atwell was an incredible duelist.

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‘Aw, bugger.’ Arty thought glumly, still snickering as one managed to get his brother. He really would have liked dropping those classes. He wasn’t going to pass those O.W.L.S. anyways. Even with his friend’s help, he could barely make adequate marks in History of Magic and Astronomy because they were just so boring. How anyone managed to keep their heads on straight in those classes blew his mind but to each their own he supposed. He’d drop care of magical creatures though. Muggle Studies was way too easy for him to want to give up and even if he wasn’t sure about something, he’d just send a letter back home. Why stick to dusty old books while you had living, breathing muggle parents who could just look stuff up for you? Easy peasy!

“Oh no, sir. That definitely won’t be necessary!” Arty stammered out at the suggestion of being obliviated. Not only did he definitely not want that, the twins bounced between each other’s heads often enough that he’d just ;earn about it again, find out he was obliviated, and have to get obliviated again and again and again. That would be a horrible experience. Plus, Apollo would probably feel bad and offer to leave and that would make Arty feel terrible and it would just be more problematic than not. “Of course I’ll join, Professor! Gotta keep Apollo out of trouble when I can, right?” He teased, nudging his twin.

The vial in his pocket weighed heavily as he preened under the praise Dumbledore gave him, him and Professor Sprout apparently. It made him feel good being recognized by the Professors. However, he needed to get Dumbledore alone for a moment to give him the memory. He shuddered at the memory of watching himself dying and chewed his lip. Arty reached out, brushing against Dumbledore’s mind. He couldn’t get anything from it but he didn’t need to.

‘Sorry for the intrusion! I don’t want to upset Apollo again but I need to give you something privately please.’ Arty sent quickly. ‘Something about Chimera from the Death Eater on the train.’ Arty felt awful going behind everyone’s back but the sooner it was in his hands the better. And if he could do it without Apollo figuring out he had a complete meltdown on the train, Arty would suffer the guilt that was chewing away at his heart a hundred times over. He just hoped he could keep it secret; Arty wasn’t naive enough to think he could keep anything he was feeling under wraps.

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The room felt quiet, as if for an eternity, when Apollo asked his question. He had meant no disrespect and in all honesty he was mainly curious as to how Paige Atwell fit into all of this. Her brother was a known Death Eater, and although he knew she tried to stray away from that image, something that always gave him pause every since they first met, he still had to wonder. If faced with this group, these Basiliks, would she have the courage to attack her brother if need be? His attention was snapped back as Dumbledoor posed the question back to him, giving him a new task for the school year to learn and do. He practically beemed at the idea of this challenge.

He sat there and listened as Dumbledoor explained the many talents and expertise of others, blushing profusely as he mentioned his was tying a cherry stem with his tongue. It was always a huge hit back at the Maggie world, though he didn't understand the implications of it. Apollo cleared his throat softly as he finished. It made sense now, her prowess in fuelling was what won her a coveted seat in Dumbledoors office, and Apollo had to admit she was quite good at it. "Thank you for humouring me Headmaster." He wanted to tell him that they needed to speak with him after this meeting, have a private conversation over what ever memory was taken from him. But Apollo doubted he'd be capable of using Legilimency on Dumbledoor. Instead he would wait for an opportune moment to ask him.

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Georgina let Mary's apology hang there. Did she blame Mary for her views? Not really. Georgina had thought them herself. She wasn't mad, so much as she was upset overall. She shook herself back to the present and smiled at her friend. "Bygones." Mary had also extolled her sympathy at having seen the thestrals. Georgina thought back if she ever learned about them and she was sure she hadn't. She could hardly blame her professors. It was a depressing bit of information. After all, she had just seen someone die.

The carriage ride had gone smoothly as her friendship had been restored. Once they arrived, Georgina followed the others towards Dumbledore's office, her mind racing at the possibilities of what was going to happen. Surely they weren't in trouble, were they? Was she about to be rebuked for her efforts on the train? Was she about to be interrogated for her connection to Callum? Were the others to be punished for trying to protect themselves? Surely not. Dumbledore was many things, but unfair was not one of them. She followed, even if Paige was leading. Uncertainty arose inside herself.

Once atop, after the password was given (and she grew a desire to have some apple whip now), they stepped inside. Georgina glanced at the phoenix, a glorious creature before Dumbledore appeared. Once he was out, he had explained himself and his desire for the group he called together. Georgina listened intently as Dumbledore spoke about what he wanted each of them to do. Her mind grew with questions, but the others had tackled them. Classes would still be attended, nothing changed about that. And, she had to admit to herself, she blushed a bit at Dumbledore's compliment towards her. It was nice her efforts had been not only noticed but praised.

There was little thought, oddly enough, as to what her response would be. "I think this is an amazing opportunity I would be silly to turn down. I'd like to join, Headmaster."

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Zelda had finally managed to get her face to stop being bright red, it probably helped that they now had other people surrounding them. Hearing the conversation regarding Fae, she made a bit of a face regarding Madalyne making a bit of a joke about how Fae isn't so bad. Nope, in her mind Fae was that bad, she was an idiot and was lucky that she was even still in the school. In her opinion she should have been kicked out years ago, but of course, her opinion on Fae didn't really matter, as there probably was some weird reason why she was still at the school.

When they reached the castle, she followed along after Paige out of the carriage and up the front steps of the castle, and heading up to Dumbledore's office. She hadn't been up to the headmaster's office in a while (thankfully) so she was starting to really wonder why they had been called up there. Once in the office, she wasn't all too keen on being front and center during this whole thing, and so she just listened to what Dumbledore was saying regarding them joining some secret society. "...I'm in," she said simply, even before people started asking a bunch of questions.

She rolled her eyes at the others who were more or less sounding like they were trying to make up excuses for not joining, and she had to fight back the urge to laugh at them. They were ridiculous in her mind, but she listened to Dumbledore answering their questions, but Zelda was already right behind this whole thing, she really wanted to do this whole thing, especially since it sounded like something new and something her sister definitely did not do while at Hogwarts. She listened to the compliments that Dumbledore gave all of them, and she just shrugged in response, saying nothing.

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Madalyne looked at the others in the room as Dumbledore listed off everyone's skills that they had to offer, Fae was pretty good with bashing heads, she blushed slightly she didn't see herself as one of the smartest ones in her year. But it was still really good to hear that her skills were really good and she did like puzzles and strategy especially when it came to wizards chess. Georgina was good and had her aspirations to become an Auror which was really helpful as well as Artemis' and Apollo's Legilimency, were really useful. And Mary's skills as well as Zelda being an Animagus as well as being a good strategist like her. Elizabeth though she still wasn't sure what to think of her really aside from being Fae's friend was still just as good and of course Paige being an amazing duelist. Everyone here was really good in their own right.

Madalyne started to wonder why some of them like Artemis didn't want to be apart of this at all, it was a once in a lifetime opportunity as well. Though she was curious what times that they would be meeting, though it was good that these meetings wouldn't interfere with any of her course or after school things and raised her hand. "What times and days of the week do we meet and what room if I may ask?" Madalyne asked.

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For the rest of the carriage ride, Fae was relatively quiet, at least by Fae standards. Occasionally she'd piped up with teasing comments about Paige and Madalyne's alleged affair and playful ribbing directed at Elizabeth. She largely ignored Zelda; her interaction with Penny had put her in a good mood, and she wasn't about to let that arrogant know-it-all ruin it. For the most part, she spent her time spreading the grime from the rat incident to less visible parts of herself as she gazed outside. It didn't take a genius or a deep thinker to enjoy the scenery. Even the biggest of oafs could do it.

When the carriage came to stop, Fae scrambled out as quickly as she could. Being cooped up wasn't her favorite thing, especially when it meant being crammed up next to someone she wasn't exactly the biggest fan of. The walk up to Dumbledore's office was good for her though, and by the time they'd all reached the top, the cramped feeling of being hauled up in a carriage was replaced by the more refreshing feeling of blood flowing through her body. She had almost completely forgotten that they were most likely on their way to a scolding directly from the headmaster himself. As she watched Paige speak the password - the one that she wouldn't have been able to remember for the life of her - she felt the feeling of a body bump into her own. When she looked down, she saw Apollo mumbling an apology.

"No need to apologize. Been a crazy day for all of us, hannit?" she replied, shrugging off the boy's 'sorry'. Dumbledore's office was exactly like the man himself: elegant, but also somewhat chaotic. With its shelves full of books, it'd be easy to mistake it as some sort of study. Of course, it wasn't Fae's first time in the study. Being a bit of a problem child, she'd found herself their a number of times, though never for something as small as shoving a Merula goon. The headmaster stood in front of them in the blinged out robe that had caused Fae to dub him 'Dumblepimp' in her first year, the very same one that could alone probably buy her and her family a proper house rather than the shack they called home. She gave a small wave to Fawkes as she and the group gathered in front of Dumbledore. It was a bit of a tradition of hers. She liked the bird; it was pretty, and she couldn't help wanting to pet it, even knowing it could burst into flames at any moment. Her attention on the phoenix quickly shifted to Dumbledore as he held out a bowl of chompy licorice for them. Fae grabbed onto one and tossed it into her mouth, only to have it stop short, biting into her lip. She slurped it into her mouth before it could do any real damage, leaving her with only a slightly bloody lip and the taste of victory on her tongue. She then prepared herself for a calm but stern reprimanding, only for Dumbledore to surprise her.

It would seem as though the Hogwarts headmaster was recruiting them for some crime-fighting force of Death Eater hunters. Even without any sort of reward, Fae probably would've signed up without a moment's hesitation. But adding in a letter of recommendation for whatever profession they desire? That was a no-brainer. It was true that he'd only mentioned aurors and curse-breakers by name, but she was sure that she could talk him into reaching out to the Harpies as well. And while she had always trusted her skills would be enough to score her a place on the team she so desperately wanted to play for, an endorsement from Dumbledore himself definitely wouldn't hurt. She was ready to voice her immediate decision when Mary, Apollo, and Artemis began asking questions. She hadn't even thought about asking questions, other than perhaps some version of the one Apollo asked: why them?

Fae practically beamed when Dumbledore made mention of her talents. She wasn't one to shy away from compliments, especially when they concerned her talents. Strength was a characteristic that was often overlooked in their world of magic, except on the Quidditch field. It was enough to stop her from holding back and speak, her voice confident, without a hint of hesitation or thought.

"Count me in, one hundred percent. I'm always up for some school-sanctioned pummeling," she said, before something said previously registered in her head. She leaned forward a little, turning her head to look at Apollo. "Scamander? That's your cat's name, innit?" she said, before turning back to their Headmaster. "What's Apollo's cat got to do with this?"

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Riding in the carriage, Flame found the best way to avoid conflict with Paige was to keep her mouth shut. She didn't feel like getting in trouble now, on her way to the office of the headmaster. That sounded like a bad way to remain a student at this esteemed institution, best to save fuckery for times that favored discretion. Looking out the carriage, Eliza smiled at the creatures leading it. She learned from a young age that not all could see the thestrals, and she always felt a connection with them because of that. She thought that that was the moment that marked her as an odd duck, not being sorted into Slytherin as a muggleborn, but that she could see this hidden gem of Hogwarts. In the moment of course, she was terrified, seeing these skeletal horses in a new and strange world, but as she grew older, she felt a kind of kinship with them.

As they entered the castle, Eliza stuck close to Fae, rolling her eyes a bit as she heard the password for entering the headmaster's quarters. The old man was a bit of an odd one, she'd never expect a wizard as wizardy as Albus Dumbledore to enjoy muggle sweets, but it seemed as if he did. She much preferred more traditional treats, opting for M&Ms as her go to candy. Heading up into the room, she prepared for the worst, not expecting this to end well, but as she heard the headmaster's pitch for them to become the first members of a secret society for the express purpose of dealing with threats that dark wizards may pose to the wizarding world, she couldn't help but break out into a grin. She wanted to join, badly, feeling she was born for this, in many respects. "I'm in, assumin' you can clear the detention Fae and I racked up on the way here." She said coyly. That wasn't a real condition on her membership, of course, but she had to at least try.

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Dumbledore pushed his half moon spectacles further up on his nose, his expression grave and serious as he peered at Artemis. He didn't say a word back to the young Hufflepuff student mentally, but there was no doubt that the Headmaster had heard him. Yet a moment later, the tension vanished and Dumbledore smiled at Apollo, nodding at him in acknowledgement. "Miss Crane, we will be meeting here in my office on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 9 o'clock," Dumbledore said.

He chuckled lightly at Fae's glee over being able to beat people up without receiving detention. "The society is named in honor of an old friend of mine, Newt Scamander. I imagine Mr. Harrington named his cat in honor of Mr. Scamander, as he is a famous magizoologist. Perhaps I can arrange for him to come serve as a guest lecturer one class..."

"Seriously? That'd be wicked!" Paige gushed. She adored magical creatures and if Newt Scamander was going to come talk to them, she was definitely going to get him to autograph her copy of Fantastic Beasts. She'd have to use one of the school owls to let her dad know about it as well, that way he could send along his copy or something to be signed as well. Newt Scamander was his hero more or less, the person who inspired him to go into his line of work.

Paige then gave Elizabeth the side eye, hearing that she and Fae had managed to get detention already somehow. She had to wonder why Snape had given the job of Quidditch Captain to Elizabeth, since she knew their head of house didn't really like her that much. Snape wasn't keen on muggleborns, one of his nastier traits. And of course, Paige didn't use blood status to question Elizabeth's qualifications, it would have been hypocritical of her. No, she was just more shocked that Elizabeth was already putting Slytherin danger of losing house points before they had even started term.

"Oh, I can do such a thing, yes," Dumbledore replied cryptically. "However, whether I will is another matter entirely..."

Paige flinched slightly as Fawkes burst into flames and died. She couldn't help but stare, watching as the majestic bird crumbled down into ashes. Logically, she knew that Fawkes would just be reborn as a baby bird in a few minutes, but it was still rather unsettling to see.

"Now, I am afraid I am rather busy with the events that occurred on the train and will have to dismiss you now. Please proceed to your common rooms and change into your robes. Prefects, once you have done that I believe Professor McGonagall is planning an impromptu question and answer session of sorts for the first years in the chamber off of the Great Hall that you should participate in. Oh, and, Mr. Harrington?" he added, looking at Artemis. "I would like to speak to you privately once the others leave."

"Thank you, sir," Paige said, as she rose from her stool. She shot a glance at Artemis, as if staring at him could reveal why Dumbledore wanted to talk to him alone. Maybe Dumbledore was really planning on removing his memories and kicking him out of the Scamander Society for being a coward. Or maybe there had been some sort of mistake and he hadn't actually meant for both Apollo and Artemis to be recruited and only one of them could stay, as they had an odd number. Either way, it wasn't any of her business and yet she was dying to know.

She left his office and walked down the spiral staircase, emerging onto the seventh floor. The portraits were looking at her and the others with interest, whispering and gossiping about what must have gone on in Dumbledore's office. The Gryffindors and Ravenclaws in the group were lucky. The entrance to Ravenclaw Tower was on the western side of the fifth floor, at the end of a spiral staircase. Gryffindor landing, the entrance to the Gryffindor Tower, was actually on the seventh floor - not too far of a jaunt from Dumbledore's office. The Hufflepuff Common Room was accessible via the kitchen corridor, about eight flights of stairs down from their current location.

"I'll see you later, then? For the duel?" Paige whispered to Zelda, before beginning the long trek. She had to climb the grand marble staircase down seven flights until she emerged in the entrance hall. The first years hadn't arrived yet, though loads of older students were pouring into the hall, separating off like streams as they went to their common rooms. Paige took the door on the right side of the hall, opening up a dark and dingy staircase that descended directly to the dungeons. She half ran, half hopped down the seemingly endless amount of stairs until they finally leveled off. She continued onwards until she found a seemingly blank stretch of hallway and waited. She didn't know the password.

"It's Merlin, you tosser," Merula Snyde said, appearing out of the crowd and purposefully shoving past Paige. "You better tell me what Dumbledore wanted with you lot," Snyde then added. She addressed the wall clearly: "Merlin!" and the wall seemed to shift, until the passageway to the Slytherin Common Room appeared.

"We were talking smack about you, gossiping - that's all," Paige told her cheekily as she walked down the passage until she entered the common room. The light in the common room was slightly green as they were underground and partially under the Blake Lake. It was long and low, with dark wood and tapestries featuring famous Slytherins such as Merlin. The room was cold and dark, depressing by some standards, but Paige adored the decoration scheme. It seemed like the sort of place where mysteries would happen.

"Bag your face, Atwell," Merula growled. Ismelda had appeared at her side, grinning evilly.

Paige just rolled her eyes. "You asked, Snyde," she reminded her, before taking the staircase to the fifth year girls' dormitory. Her belongings were somehow already placed at her bed, with Hestia taking a nap on her pillow. Paige knelt down onto the ground and undid the latches on her trunk, quickly pulling out her school robes and getting changed. She didn't particularly care if any of her roommates saw her changing. They'd all been living together since the first year. She had seen Ismelda's flat chest a million times.

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Zelda just nodded her head somewhat at what was being said, and she had to stop herself from snickering at Elizabeth clearly trying to weasel her way out of a detention. Though an eye roll was in order towards Fae, as the girl really needed to get a few brains put into her head, since why would you just admit that you wanted to beat people up for the hell of it? Sure, Zelda wasn't one to back down, but there were way better ways to get revenge on people. A well placed hex when no one was looking or paying attention for one was always something she was fine with doing should the need arise. In her mind a hex or spell casted at Fae right now would be well deserving, but of course they were in front of Dumbledore right now, so that wasn't a smart move.

"See you later Paige, I also do not envy you when it comes to the walk you have to take to get down to the Slytherin Common Room," Zelda said towards her friend with a slight wave and a smile as she headed off towards the Ravenclaw common room, which luckily for her was only on the fifth floor. Unlike a few of the other common rooms, the Ravenclaw one didn't have a password or anything like that blocking it's way. Nope, instead you had to answer a riddle in order to enter the common room. When she reached the entrance, she looked at the door before a voice spoke up.

"Which creature walks on four legs in the morning two legs in the afternoon and three legs in the evening?"

"A human, they walk on all four when they are born, two as they grow older, and three when they are old and have a cane," Zelda said simply towards the door, before it opened up, allowing her to enter Ravenclaw Tower. She instantly headed up towards the dorms, and ignored the others as she found her school robes in her trunk, as well as her cat Goose who was perched there and she had to move him before she could grab them. "Silly Goose," she mumbled under her breath, shifting the cat off of her trunk and onto the bed, scratching his head before she changed into her own school robes. The day had certainly been an interesting one, and not something she expected when she first got onto the train that morning.

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"That would be brilliant." Madalyne said smiling brightly when Dumbledore mentioned requesting Newt to come and do a lecture for one of the classes, she knew that her cousin was really interested in magical creatures, and she did pretty well in Care of Magical Creatures. She shook her head a little bit at Fae, sure her best friend wasn't the brightest in the bunch but obviously it didn't have anything to do with Apollo's cat. Madalyne froze for a moment when she watched Fawkes burst into flames, but she knew that the Phoenix would be reborn from his ashes very soon. When Dumbledore dismissed them Madalyne nodded as she stood up a little bit and stretched looking over at Fae for a moment. "C'mon lets head to our common room." Madalyne said as she turned and was about to leave the office when she heard Dumbledore asking Artemis to remain which got her to wonder what it was, but it wasn't really her place to ask either.

Luckily the Gryffindor Common Room was just on the other end of the hallway, Madalyne started to head down there digging her hand into her pocket to feel her tooth was still in there and rubbed her jaw slightly it still really hurt. When she got to the door seeing a few students in her year saying the password to the common room, it was her turn. "Sphinx." Madalyne said, and when the door opened she stepped in, she looked around, the common room was very nice and comfy. A nice warm fireplace in the far end of the room, and nice comfortable red cushioned chairs and sofas.

Madalyne saw her Quidditch Captain Sky Parkin there as well as Bill Weasley she enjoyed Quidditch with her captain was always fun to hang around with. She gave a wave to the two of them before heading up the flight of stairs to her dorm. Madalyne looked around before seeing her chest and Felix's crate there meowing to get out, which she released him rather quickly and the cat started to purr happily while she got changed. Once she was fully changed Madalyne made her way back down the stairs to meet up with Sky and Bill. "How was your guys summer been, and are you all alright after what happened on the train?" Madalyne asked.

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Mary was slightly worried when Dumbeldore said he wouldn't wave any detention. If she received one for the incident on the train it would be her first one. She cringed at the idea. And the letter from her dad. He wouldn't be mad, no, of course not, just disappointed. But that was for later she supposed.

"Thank you, Professor." Mary said as she stood up to leave. She glanced back at Artie, he would deal with the memory. She shivered at the memory of the flash she had seen. Mary hated her mind being intruded on by either of the twins, but she had understood why Artie had done that.

She waved goodbye to her friends, knowing they would see each other later. Mary flinched slightly when Fawkes burst into flame, mostly from surprise, and partially from an old memory of her mother that resurfaced with the fire. She shoved it away quickly. That was not something she wanted to think about.

She exited Dumbeldore's office and made her way to the Ravenclaw common room, she did walk slowly to hopefully give Apollo time to catch up, but it appeared he was dragging his feet. She got to the door and was given her riddle. "I speak without a mouth and hear without ears. I have no body, but come alive with the wind. What am I?" Mary paused thinking for a moment. At first, she wanted to say a windchime, but the no body part ruled that out, also what windchime could hear? Then it clicked. "An echo." She said and the door opened for her.

Mary made her way quickly to the dorm room to change. Hoo-dini wasn't there so he must be in the owlery. Once changed she returned to the common room to wait for Apollo. They had so much to talk about. It would be best if all of them could get together, but the twins and Mary needed to decide how they were going to talk about everything that had happened around Georgina. At least her friend had forgiven her for her comment.

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Apollo fought the urge to bury his face into his palm in embarrassment. He'd need to tell Fae that his cat, and this society, were both named after a great wizard and magizoolagist. Though it appeared that he didnt have to as Dumbledore explained it to her and added how he may invite his old friend to lecture one day. Apollo was practically beaming from ear to ear as his cheeks began to become a bit rosie. He would love to meet him one day, it was by far his favorite author who seemed to pour a lot of heart into his book. There was a slight smirk to him as the Headmaster seemed to pull them along by a string with his will he wont hes. Suddenly there was a brilliant burst emanating from Fawkes as the bird burst into flames and then turned into ashes for it to be reborn again.

This seemed to mark the end of the meeting as they were all dismissed, Atrie being asked to stay behind while the others made their way out. Apollo had remained in his seat, waiting for all the others to leave before speaking up. Apologies Headmaster. I know you wished to speak to my brother in private, but before I leave you two to do so I was hoping to catch you. It appears I was involved in an incident within the train, a memory that has since been removed by a charm and given safe keeping to my brother. I wanted someone I can trust to view it. Someone like you...if you have the time I would greatly appreciate it." Apollo wrung the tweed on his pants in nervousness at what the Headmaster might say to him. This was a matter Apollo viewed as urgent, otherwise he never would've asked to have his memory tampered with.

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With all said and done, Georgina stood up and left Dumbledore's office. She would have waited for Artemis before she walked back to the commons, but he would be a while and Georgina wanted to get a head start in planning her work. Not only was she taking a lot of classes, preparing herself to become an Auror (she would have to study up really hard in order to pass), she was now part of a secret society given by Dumbledore himself. She bid farewell to her friends, noting to Artemis she would meet with him later.

She walked the corridors until she got to the basement. There, she located the barrels. Two from the bottom, she tapped it lightly in the rhythm of Helga Hufflepuff. As the entrance opened, she stepped inside, aware that she would have to remain quiet about all of this. She didn't want to disappoint Dumbledore or her friends. Even the others in the group, Paige of all people, she wanted to impress.

She sat in one of the chairs, both waiting for Artemis to come back and taking out one of her schoolbooks and began to read.

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“Of course, sir.” Arty said quickly, shifting on his feet as he watched everyone file out. He beamed at Mary when she said her goodbyes, sending her a not so discrete thumbs up as she filed out, and turned his improved mood on Georgina when she said she'd wait for him, happy she was feeling better than before. He watched the others―And by others he meant the downers not in their soon to be named study group.―leave as well until it was only him and his brother left behind. When Apollo mentioned the train incident, Arty gave a loud sigh of relief and threw his arm around Apollo.

“I already told him I had something!’ Arty whined dramatically despite his relief. Scurrying around his brother’s back wasn’t something he had any interest in doing. In fact, he didn’t want to be scurrying around anyone’s back. “I just didn’t want you to feel weird watching someone hand your memories over, you know?” Or a repeat of what happened on the train. Arty tried to keep his tone light and joking, keeping up the annoying brother act, but he was really worried that hearing about his memories would lead to a repeat and Arty wasn’t sure he would be able to make it through round 2. He was amazed he made it through a round 1 without incident. The flash of the blade ran through his mind and he shuddered.

“Anyways Professor, here you go! One bona fide Harrington memory!” Arty pulled the bottled memory with a flourish and placed it on his desk. “Do you know what the…” His eyes darted to Apollo for a brief second before returning to Dumbledore, “Word I mentioned means?”

Dumbledore picked up the memory and inspected it, as if he could determine its contents by the naked eye. "Yes, Mr. Harrington," he answered, looking a little troubled. "There have been rumors of a dark witch stylizing herself as the Chimera... But enough of that for now. You are both young wizards and ought to at least try to enjoy your first night back. I hear the house elves have prepared quite a feast for us tonight."

“Yeah,we’ll do just that!” Arty replied quickly, ready to drop that subject. He really didn’t want to consider why a knife belonging to a dark witch was seen stabbing him in the chest. “Thank you, Professor! We’ll see you at the feast!” Arty dragged his brother out of the office and shut the door behind them, intent on completely ignoring that for now. He didn’t need the night to get any worse. “Okay, you go on to Ravenclaw. I need to get this looked at and then I’ll be down to eat.” His stomach rumbled and Arty gave a pitiful groan. “Hopefully, it doesn’t take too long.

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Eliza was a quick one, and caught what Dumbledore had said, and she frowned. Looked like she'd still be serving out that detention. Not wanting to stick around though, as she had to leave her stuff alone on the train, and years of growing up in Slytherin taught that certain members of her house would fuck with her if given the chance, so she had to focus a lot on not giving them that chance. Following Paige back, she didn't care much to make conversation, keeping her mouth shut for the trip down, luckily getting the password from the least savory of her house, Snyde, flanked by Ismelda.

"Smelly! How's yer foot?" She asked, pleasantly, flatly ignoring Merula's question. Figuring she was already in enough trouble for tonight, she wasn't interested in fishing for a fight, especially when Snape could be anywhere. Brushing past them, she headed up to her dormitory, happy to fined her stuff untouched, with Shadow happily playing with a dead bird. That struck her as odd, given that they were in an underground dungeon, and she peered down at the creature, but Shadow seemed happy with it, and there wasn't anything immediately wrong with it, so she left the creature be.

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"Right, the magizooligist. I actually do think I've heard of him," Fae said, her voice still somewhat uncertain. In truth, the name still didn't ring a bell, but that didn't mean her statement was technically a lie. If he was famous enough for some of the others to be freaking out over the chance to meet him, then she probably had heard of him in one of her classes, and had simply forgotten him. Or her. Newt very well could've been a woman's name, Fae realized. She was pulled out of her head when Dumbledore's bird burst into flames. The first time she'd seen it happen, it surprised her, but she eventually came to love it. A wide grin found its way onto her mouth as she watched, the light reflected in her eyes. She barely registered when Madalyne suggested they get moving.

"Yep, right behind you," she mumbled, though she didn't move from her spot. It kept her attention until the conflagration died down, revealing the baby bird who was the new incarnation of Fawkes. Rather than leaving immediately, she took a few steps forward, reaching a finger to lightly pet the phoenix chicklet. She lowered her voice, drawing her head a little closer in to the creature. "When the old man kicks it, you should come live with me. I'll be rich and famous by then. I'll have a big house in Wales, and you could come and go whenever you pleased. And we could even go flying together. How does that sound? Sounds good, right? Good, I'll hold you to that," she said, despite the fact that the bird didn't respond. She pulled away, giving a small head nod to Fawkes, saying "See ya later, then," before walking out of Dumbledore's office, moving swiftly to catch up with Madalyne.