Three weeks later Jacob ran to the Hospital Wing to meet Morgan. She was to leave the ward that night and move into Gryffindor Tower. She was to have her own room in the boys' side. Dumbledore reasoned that there was more protection on that side. Draco agreed. Jacob ran up the last set of stairs as fast as his aching legs could carry him. He reached the ward, entered and ran down to the end, to the last bed. He turned the corner and saw her. She was asleep, or so it seemed. Her eyes were shut, her breathing shallow, but she was floating.

"Don't go closer," a voice said. Jacob turned and saw Draco Malfoy, sitting contently in a chair, calmly watching the levitating girl.

"Is she asleep?" Jacob whispered.

"No, she's awake. But she's concentrating very hard," Draco said.

"What exactly is she doing?" Jacob asked.

"Flying," Draco said simply. Jacob watched as she rose a little bit higher. If Jacob were standing by the bed, her face would have been level with his shoulders. Draco could see Morgan's brow relax.

"Go ahead and go over to her," Draco told Jacob. He slowly walked toward her. He wanted to touch her, to make sure she was real, but that would ruin her concentration. All he could do was stare in awe. He took in her floating body, from her head to her toes. He saw her brow furrow as she slowly descended. She landed softly on the bed and opened her eyes. As her eyes fell upon Jacob, she started.

"Hello," she said.

"Hello," Jacob responded. Draco cleared his throat and both teenagers turned their heads toward him.

"Good work today, Morgan," he said. "I must be going. I hope you find Gryffindor Tower to be a good home for the year."

"Thank you, Professor," Morgan said. Draco stood, nodded to Jacob and left the ward. Jacob turned to Morgan.

"That was amazing," he told her. She grinned.

"You think so?" she asked. Jacob nodded.

"Are you ready to go?" he asked.

"Yeah." Morgan stood and walked with Jacob to Gryffindor Tower. They went up to her room, one floor below the seventh year boys. They opened the door and stepped in. Morgan's jaw dropped. The room was gorgeous. The walls were covered in dark red drapes. The large, iron bed was draped in a white canopy. On the floor was a large, deep red throw rug. The window's drapes matched the bed's canopy. Her desk and chair were intricately carved and matched her vast dresser. The bed was covered in deep red sheets and comforter.

"Do you like it?" Jacob asked. Morgan continued to look around. "I love it." Jacob smiled.

"We thought you would," he said. Morgan turned to him.

"We?"

"Me, the guys and Professor Malfoy," Jacob explained. "I think he was disappointed that we went with house colors but there's silver knobs on the wardrobe and the candle holders are silver." Morgan kept looking around the room. The lights suddenly dimmed and Morgan tried to see through the darkness and was surprised that she could. There was a glow to the room.

"Look up," Jacob told her. She did and gasped. On the ceiling were thousands of stars. The night sky was copied and pasted onto the ceiling above.

"It changes every night, according to the positions of the stars in the actual sky," Jacob explained. Morgan found Jacob in the glow and hugged him. "You're welcome." Morgan pulled back.

"Want to see something cool?" she asked. Jacob grinned. Morgan stepped back and closed her eyes. All of a sudden she wasn't there. Jacob looked around and saw a brown Labrador puppy at his feet. He picked up the puppy and held it gently. Jacob walked over to Morgan's bed and sat down with the puppy. He put the Labrador on the bed and watched as it changed back to Morgan. She was lying on her stomach, facing the end of the bed, fully clothed. Jacob shifted his position to lie beside her.

"That was amazing," Jacob said. "Everything you do is amazing." Morgan sighed and looked at her left arm. The glittering tattoo stood out vividly against her pale skin. Jacob traced the outline of the tattoo with his fingertip.

"All of us were afraid of this, some of us still are," he said.

"Are you afraid of it?" Morgan asked.

"I'm just afraid that there are still some of them around," he answered. "I can't believe they did this to you." He began tracing the tattoo again.

"I can. They wanted me," Morgan said. "They wanted my power."

"Who wouldn't want it?"

"I don't," Morgan said sadly.

"I know," Jacob responded. He moved some of her hair out of her face and kissed her forehead. She began to cry softly. He sat up and pulled Morgan onto his lap. She clutched to him as he put his arms around her protectively. He watched as the candles flared with life and burned brightly of their own accord. He rested his head atop hers and closed his eyes as she cried. He was content with sitting there until she was done. After all, she was his best friend and vice versa.

The next day, the seventh year Gryffindors and Slytherins were in for a surprise during their Defense Against The Dark Arts class. When they entered they saw Morgan talking to Professor Malfoy. He had her stand off to the side as he addressed the class.

"As this is a NEWT level class, we will be practicing a bit today. I have brought in an opponent for you to face today," Professor Malfoy stated. Some mumbling set in through the students. Jacob and the other Gryffindor boys grinned at each other and Morgan.

"Who would like to challenge the opponent first?" Draco asked his class. Two large Slytherin boys raised their hands. Draco chose one of them and he came down in front of the class to face Morgan. Draco faced the class.

"Please put all things away, especially papers and books, but keep your wands out," he told them. "And secure your things under your desk." There was rustling as the students did as told. Draco moved to the volunteer.

"Good luck," he said. Then he moved to Morgan. "Don't hurt him too much." Morgan smiled a little and nodded. Draco backed off and signaled for them to start. Jacob kept his eye firmly placed on Morgan. In jeans, a t-shirt and Converse sneakers, she looked very comfortable and Jacob wondered if she felt the same. The Slytherin shot a curse at Morgan and she lazily sidestepped it, her hands in her pockets. He shot another, but this time his wand went with it. Morgan dodged the curse easily and caught the wand.

"Let him keep the wand," Draco said. Morgan looked at him, smiling. The Gryffindor boys were beaming.

"No fun," she said as she sent the Slytherin his wand.

"Are you doing to dodge everything? Let me see what you got, sweetheart," the Slytherin said. He shot a curse at her and she flew, literally, out of the way and to right in front of him, raising an eyebrow at him the entire time. She flew back to her original spot and flicked her wrist. The window burst open and a huge gust of wind rushed in toward the Slytherin. He was lifted off his feet and slammed against the wall. He was the only one affected by the wind. The wind stopped with another flick of Morgan's wrist but the window remained open. She raised her hands and the classroom became dark. The fire from the candles had come to her hands. She formed the fire into a ball as it floated between her hands. The fire shot out of her hands and toward the Slytherin opponent. The class stared in awe as the Slytherin barely missed the ball of fire and how it split back into its original flames and back to the candles. The Slytherin looked up and dropped his wand, signaling defeat. Morgan walked over to him, picked up his wand and handed it to him. They shook hands and nodded at each other.

"Don't call me sweetheart," she told him. He nodded and sat down as Professor Malfoy joined Morgan in front of the class.

"Anyone else?" Draco asked. No one raised his or her hand. "Our Head Boy?" Everyone looked at Jacob. He shook his head.

"I don't feel like getting my arse kicked today, sir," Jacob said. The class laughed as Jacob and Morgan smiled at each other. Draco noticed the smile and elbowed Morgan lightly. She turned to look at him, breaking the gaze she had with Jacob. Draco shook his head slightly as Hunter raised his hand.

"Yes, Mr. Fawcett?" Draco asked.

"Could she provide a demonstration of her powers?" Hunter asked. Murmurs of agreement spread throughout the classroom.

"That is entirely up to her," Draco responded. Draco turned to Morgan and she nodded. Then she turned to the class.

"What would you like to see?" she asked.

"Can you fly again?" someone asked. She nodded and slowly levitated herself. She stopped and returned to the floor.

"Can you make things move with your mind?" a boy in the front row asked. Morgan concentrated on the boy. His tie began to float in the air. She glanced at Jacob and her concentration broke.

"Can you turn into anything?" Jacob asked. Morgan vanished and where she stood was a pacing wolf. The wolf turned into a jaguar and the jaguar turned back into Morgan.

"That's amazing," a Gryffindor girl said.

"It's dark magic," a Slytherin girl said. Everyone looked at her. "Doing all that without a wand. Controlling the elements, flying, turning into things. Why wouldn't it be seen as dark? All of that could be used to trick people and/or convince them to join the dark side of magic. Especially if they wanted the power. Isn't she a Death Eater?" the girl asked, looking at Morgan's left arm. Morgan immediately covered the tattoo on her arm with her right hand. She looked to Professor Malfoy for help. He shook his head.

"No, I'm not," Morgan responded. "However, the people who forced the tattoo upon me are." Before she could say more, the bell was ringing and Draco was telling the class to write two rolls of parchment about what they had seen. The Gryffindor boys joined their professor and friend on the floor of the classroom. Jacob went over to Morgan.

"Great job," he told her. "Don't let what she said bother you. It's not true." Morgan nodded absentmindedly. "I'm serious. Just forget about what she said." Morgan just looked at him.

"Jacob," Draco started. "Take her up to her room; I'll excuse you from your next class." Jacob nodded and he and Morgan left the room.

They entered her room arguing.

"Please, listen to me. It's not!" Jacob said, as he closed the door.

"But it is! Everything she said is true," Morgan reasoned.

"No it's not! It's only dark if you use it for dark purposes," Jacob said.

"Then what about this?" Morgan asked, as she thrust her arm in front of Jacob's face, showing him the glittering tattoo. "I went into that room today as an opponent for you to face. An opponent in a Defense Against the Dark Arts class. An opponent who used the magic to nearly hurt someone. Everyone was afraid of me. You were too."

"No, I wasn't."

"Don't lie to me, Jacob! I saw you; your face was just like everyone else's. You were scared."

"Okay, I was. But that still doesn't mean it's dark magic," Jacob said quietly.

"If you were scared, then who am I supposed to turn to?" Morgan asked quietly. Jacob immediately pulled her into a hug.

"You can always turn to me. I'll always be here for you," Jacob told her.

"Even after Hogwarts?" Morgan asked. Jacob nodded.

"Even after Hogwarts."

"Why were you scared?" Morgan asked suddenly. Jacob stepped back and surveyed her.

"It's scary that you have so much power. I wouldn't know what to do with all that power. That's what's scary. Not the power, but how much of it you have. The fact that no one could stop you; it's intimidating and scary."

"But Voldemort had a lot of power," Morgan said. Jacob glanced at her again.

"How do you know about Voldemort?" he asked.

"Professor Malfoy told me about him. I was asking about my tattoo," Morgan answered.

"Are you okay with that?"

"I am. Are you?"

"Of course." Morgan nodded and went to look out her window. She saw the students at their Care of Magical Creatures and Herbology classes. Over near the Quidditch pitch some first years were learning to fly on broomsticks.

"Do you fly?" Morgan asked Jacob, never turning to him.

"On a broomstick. I never was good at trying to fly by myself, always needed a broom," Jacob said. Morgan smiled.

"I guess that's one thing I won't have to worry about," Morgan said. Jacob smiled.

"There's a Hogsmeade trip this weekend. Are you going?" Jacob asked.

"Yeah." Morgan turned to him. "I've never been."

"It's amazing," Jacob said excitedly. "There are so many different stores and shops. You have to go to the Three Broomsticks and Zonkos and the Shrieking Shack and am I rambling?" Morgan nodded while smiling slightly.

That weekend Jacob waited with Andrew, Ryan, Hunter and Dennis for Morgan to come down into the common room. She came down a few minutes after the boys settled into the couch and armchairs. Morgan flopped down onto the couch next to Ryan. He turned to her.

"Ready?" he asked. She nodded and he helped her off the couch as the rest got up to leave. Ryan stuck with Morgan in the back of the group.

"Rumor has it that the guys are going to Zonkos to pick up some supplies, so you get to hang with me at the Three Broomsticks while they stock up," Ryan told her. She smiled at him.

"Sounds like a plan to me," she said. They smiled and followed the rest of the guys down a set of stairs. They reached the front doors of the castle and passed Professors Malfoy and McGonagall without event. They reached the carriages and jumped inside an empty one. They talked and joked all the while to the village. Once they got out of the carriages, Ryan and Morgan headed to the Three Broomsticks while the rest headed to Zonkos. Ryan grabbed Morgan's hand as he led her through the crowd of students and citizens toward the pub.

They entered the pub and Ryan immediately started searching for an empty table. Madam Rosemerta spotted Ryan and walked over to him. She smiled as she approached the two teenagers.

"Hello, Mr. Connolly. Your mother and father are here. Would you like to join them? Or would you like a separate table far away from them?" she asked when she spotted Ryan still holding Morgan's hand.

"The latter's fine. I'll talk to them later and just say that that was the only table left," Ryan said, grinning at the bar owner. She led them to an empty table across the room from Ryan's parents and their guests. Ryan couldn't tell who they were talking to but was pretty sure he could pin it down to Jacob's parents or Andrew's or possibly both. They slid into a booth, with Morgan by the window. She immediately took to the sights outside and wasn't paying attention when Ryan ordered drinks for them. He watched her silently as she took in the sights of the busy village. She turned to him.

"Is everyone here magical?" she asked as Madam Rosemerta placed their butterbeers on the table in front of them with an 'enjoy'.

"Yeah. It's pretty cool," Ryan said. He was about to say more but before he could he heard his name being called. He turned and saw his mother and his father walking toward their booth, waving. Ryan turned away from them and toward Morgan. He rolled his eyes before turning back to his parents who conveniently slid onto the bench opposite the one occupied by the two teenagers.

"Mum! Dad! How lovely to see you this fine day in Hogsmeade. What brings you here?" Ryan asked his parents.

"Here to Hogsmeade? Or here at your table?" Ryan's mother asked. She had a cheery face and her eyes lit up as she talked to her son, like she knew what was going on in his head. Her green eyes had been passed on to her son, but her natural blonde hair had not. Ryan had his father to thank for his brown hair. His father had warm brown eyes that were dancing merrily as he sat across from Morgan.

"Both actually," Ryan answered. His parents exchanged glances and Morgan watched the entire spectacle with amusement glimmering in her blue eyes.

"We're here in Hogsmeade because you have a Quidditch match tomorrow. We're at this table because we want to know who it is you're sitting with," his mother told him.

"Well, the Quidditch game is between Ravenclaw and Slytherin. And this is Morgan," Ryan answered. Recognition dawned on their faces as their son said the name of the girl he was sitting next to.

"This is Morgan?" his father asked as he looked at her. She nodded and shook his outstretched hand. "Nice to meet you, Morgan."

"Nice to meet you too," she responded politely. Ryan's mother smiled warmly at Morgan and she returned the grin.

"Have you ever seen a Quidditch game?" Ryan's mother asked her. Morgan shook her head.

"You should come to a Kenmare game over the holidays. There are a couple, surely you can make one of them," Ryan's father insisted.

"I'd love to," Morgan said. Ryan grinned.

"Good, because you're going to become a Kestrel fan. You can't be a Cannons fan or a Puddlemere fan like the rest of the guys. Kenmare's the only way to go," Ryan said. "Who're you playing, Dad?"

"Ballycastle."

"Should be a great game. The top teams competing against each other. It'll be an amazing match," Ryan said. Morgan grinned, it felt nice to hear the word 'amazing' and not have it describe something about her. She was tired of being 'amazing'. She just wanted to be normal and it seemed as if she was just that with the Connolly family, with all of them, especially Ryan.

"We haven't beaten Ballycastle in years. If we win there will be a lot of celebrating, probably at Lynch's house," Ryan's father told them.

"Lynch is the team's Seeker. Dad's one of the Beaters," Ryan told Morgan and upon seeing no comprehension on her face, added, "Don't worry, I'll explain later."

"Ryan's a great Chaser. He could turn professional," his mother praised. Ryan blushed and Morgan smiled. "He could make it to a national team and compete for the World Cup, just like his father."

"Mum, stop," Ryan protested quietly. His mother sighed and turned to Morgan.

"It's true. He's too modest for his own good," she told Morgan. "He's an excellent player, simply amazing."

"How is it that you can come into a crowded pub and not be trampled by fans?" Morgan asked Ryan's father.

"Fans are more subdued when seeing players out on the street or in pubs. They tend to let us keep to ourselves and enjoy our time off the pitch. That doesn't mean that we don't get the occasional wave," he explained.

"What about the newspaper?" Morgan asked.

"The Prophet had a field day when Ryan was born. There were pictures of us spread across the front page and they took the cutest pictures of him. I'll show you them when he's not around," Ryan's mother told him.

"Mum!" Ryan buried his face in his arms.

"It's alright, son. My mother did the same thing to me when I was your age," his father said to him.

"Not helping, Dad," Ryan could be heard saying into the table. Morgan rubbed Ryan's back with her right hand while smiling sympathetically at him.

"Poor baby," she said. A distinct 'That's right' came from the teenage boy. The other three people laughed. Ryan's father turned to Morgan.

"Perhaps we should leave him to wallow in his self-pity," he suggested. "It was nice meeting you, Morgan. And you must come see a match over the holidays. In fact, we'd be delighted if you stayed with us."

"Thank you so much for the offer, but I don't want to impose," she started.

"Nonsense," Ryan's mother interrupted her. "We'd love it if you'd come, wouldn't we, Ryan?"

"Yes, of course," said the boy, never moving.

"Thank you so much," Morgan said as Ryan's parents stood to leave. They beamed at her.

"Don't mention it," Mr. Connolly said. "It's our pleasure." Morgan smiled and waved as Ryan's parents went back to their table. Ryan lifted his head when he was sure that they were gone. Morgan was smiling at him and trying to hold back laughter.

"Did they scare you?" he asked her.

"No. They were lovely," she told him. Ryan smiled.

"You have to come for the holidays," he told her excitedly. "My little sister's going to love you. She's about three."

"Sounds like a great family," Morgan said.

"One of the best, even if my mother does embarrass me often," he told her. He looked down at the table and noticed their untouched butterbeers. "We should drink these so we can get out of here before they decide to come over again and embarrass me some more."

"Aren't they cold?" Morgan asked, looking at her drink. Ryan was sipping his.

"They never get cold. They stay warm enough to drink," he told her. "Try it." Morgan sipped her butterbeer and was instantly filled with a warm sensation.

"It's great!" she told him. Ryan smiled and stood.

"Come on, we can drink these outside. Madam Rosemerta won't miss two of her mugs," Ryan said. Morgan slid out of the booth and they slipped out the front door of the pub. Ryan grabbed her left hand and led her through the crowded streets once again. He turned her toward a shop called Honeydukes.

"The resident candy shop," he told her. As they entered she looked around the store at every kind of candy imaginable. As they passed bins of candy, Ryan, now finished with his butterbeer, grabbed some from each bin. They reached one of the owners and Ryan exchanged some money with the man before the man put the candy into a bag and gave it to Ryan.

"Do you want to go back to the common room?" he asked. She nodded and both smiled. They left the crowded shop and village behind.

They entered the empty common room silently and sat down on the couch. Ryan put the bag of candy down on the table in front of the couch. Morgan put her butterbeer mug down as well.

"Where's your mug?" Morgan asked. Ryan grinned mischievously at her.

"I left it on a bench for someone to find," he told her. She laughed. "I'm glad you're coming for the holidays."

"Me too," she told him. "You're going to have to explain Quidditch to me at the game tomorrow."

"Will do." He watched as Morgan yawned widely. "Tired?"

"A little. Why? Are you?" Ryan glanced at her.

"Yeah," he said. "But I don't want to leave you alone."

"Why don't we just go up to my room?" Morgan suggested.

"Good idea." Ryan grabbed his candy bag as he and Morgan stood. They walked up the staircase leading toward the boys' dormitories. They stopped one floor below Ryan's dormitory. Morgan opened the door and they stepped inside. She closed the door and flicked her wrist. The candles sprang to life but were kept dim and barely emitting light. Ryan put his candy on her desk and shrugged off his jacket. He hung it on her chair on top of hers. He climbed onto the bed and faced Morgan. She pulled the covers over them and they fell asleep.

They awoke to frantic yelling and doors slamming. Morgan got up and threw on her jacket. Ryan was right behind her. Slowly making their way down the stairs they could see the house gathered in the common room, but some were missing. Jacob, Andrew, Dennis and Hunter were nowhere to be seen. Professor McGonagall entered the common room and faced her house.

"Several students were taken hostage this afternoon in Hogsmeade. They were taken by Death Eaters. There are a few students from each house that are missing. I am sad to say that Mr. Weasley, our Head Boy, Mr. Fawcett, Mr. Weasley, our Quidditch Captain and Mr. Malter were among those taken. The Death Eaters want someone in exchange for the students," McGonagall said. Ryan grabbed Morgan's hand and held it tightly as McGonagall spoke. "We have refused to give up that person. Aurors from the Ministry have been dispatched to search for the students. We will get them back." Professor Malfoy entered the room as McGonagall finished. He whispered something in her ear. Morgan's eyes locked with McGonagall's and Ryan squeezed her hand, watching her the entire time. Malfoy looked up from McGonagall and locked eyes with Morgan.

"It's me, isn't it?" she asked quietly, but everyone heard. All turned to look at her. Draco nodded. "Let me go." Ryan looked at her. He grabbed her shoulders and turned her to face him.

"Don't do this," he told her softly so only they could hear. "Please. Don't let them take you. Let the Aurors do their job. Please don't go. We can't lose you. I can't lose you." She leaned close to his ear.

"I'm immortal," she whispered. She stepped back and saw Ryan's face. He was still concerned. "I have to. They don't deserve to be in the place they are now. I have to do this."

"No! You're not going anywhere!" Everyone turned to see Professor Malfoy staring straight at Morgan. She turned toward the window in the tower and walked toward it. The window opened and Morgan flew out into the open air. Ryan and Professor Malfoy rushed to the window ledge, the entire house behind them. They watched as Morgan descended and landed on the ground below. She looked to the sky where she stood with her arms stretched out.

"What are you waiting for?!?! I'm right here! Come and get me! It's a free shot! Why aren't you taking it?!? What are you waiting for?!? I'm right here!" she shouted to the sky above. "Why are you doing this to me?" She fell to her knees and buried her face in her hands. Her wracked sobs could be heard in the tower above and each rang loudly in Ryan's ears. Each ripped his heart apart, into tiny little pieces as he watched. A clap of thunder was heard above. The dark clouds opened up and rain poured from the sky. Morgan didn't move.

Ten minutes later, Morgan entered the Gryffindor common room wrapped in a blanket and accompanied by Professor Malfoy. She was met by Ryan and Professor McGonagall. Ryan jumped off the couch and engulfed Morgan into a hug. She sunk into his arms as the professors watched over them. Ryan guided them over to the couch and sat down. Morgan sat next to him but kept her head on his shoulder and her legs across his lap. He kept his arms around her.

"Why can't they just come for me? Why did they have to bring other people into this?" she asked.

"They're trying to find your weaknesses. They found one. They found your compassion for others, especially your friends," Professor Malfoy said. Morgan closed her eyes and nodded, resting her head back onto Ryan's shoulder. Her wet hair was soaking his shirt. She pointed it out but Ryan just put her head back on his shoulder. Neither noticed their professors leave.

"So, no Quidditch tomorrow?" Morgan asked.

"Probably not," Ryan answered. "I'll have to explain it to you later."

"Yeah," Morgan said. Ryan glanced at Morgan's face. She looked too old for her years. He gently kissed the side of her head at her temple. She sighed and closed her eyes.

"Should we go upstairs?" Ryan asked. Morgan nodded against him and sighed again. Ryan closed his eyes as he felt her warm breath against his neck. But the feeling didn't last long. Morgan got off the couch and looked back at Ryan. She smiled slightly as he stood.

"What?" he asked. She looked up at him.

"Your shirt's really wet," she told him. He put a hand to her cheek.

"I know," he said quietly. He wordlessly took her hand and led her to her room. He was about to leave her at her door with a 'good night' when she pulled on his sleeve and led him into her room.