Chapter 6

"Johnny! Here Johnny!" Danny muttered.

It had seemed like a great idea at the time, bringing Johnny here to the lab. And his experiment with the glass had worked! At least until he turned his back for two seconds to talk to Hawkes and the mangy mutt gave him the slip. Now he was stuck searching the halls of the crime lab, furtively calling for the beast while trying not to draw anyone's attention.

Heaven forbid he should run into Mac and have to explain himself.

"Johnny, you get back here right now!" he threatened through gritted teeth as he tried to surreptitiously look under a counter on the ruse of having dropped his glasses.

No dumb dog under there.

He sighed in frustration. The mutt was never leaving the apartment again!

Walking faster, Danny left the main portion of the lab and wandered back into the less populated rooms where supplies were stored. He checked every door as he passed it, but nothing scruffy and short was behind any of them.

"With my luck he's probably lounging on Mac's couch by now, chewing on the leather," he grumbled out loud. The thought was so horrible it made him pause for a second as he contemplated the conversation that would follow that particular scenario. He shuddered.

Still shaking his head as he moved on, he rounded the next corner and walked straight into another person. Things clattered to the ground left and right as excited barking rang out.

"Johnny!" Danny cried, relieved. His sneaky pooch was clutched in the arms of the young woman he'd just plowed into. She struggled to keep her grip on the squirming dog that was obviously happy to see him, while the boxes of unopened latex gloves she'd been carrying in her other arm now lay all over the floor.

"Sorry!" he said with an apologetic grin. He hurried to gather them into a stack once more. As he stood the girl gestured to the small tag that hung around his dog's neck then pointed at him.

"Yeah, Johnny's mine."

The young woman's eyebrows climbed at the name.

"Yes, he's named Johnny! You know, like Johnny Cash, the ultimate loner?" Danny explained in exasperation. Was it so hard to believe that he, a street-wise detective, might own a semi-cute little dog?

She shook her head, her young face scrunched in up in confusion behind her glasses.

"You mean you've never heard of Johnny Cash?"

Again she shook her head no.

"Never mind then," he muttered. He took the wriggling dog back which allowed her to retrieve her supplies. "Thanks for catching him."

She shrugged.

He studied her a little closer. "You're the new Level Two, aren't you? The one Ross has been showing around?" He decided not to mention the accompanying blackmail scandal that the rumor mill had gone wild with in connection to her promotion.

The girl nodded, standing again with her hands full of boxes.

"Sydney is it?" he questioned, hedging a guess at her name. He wasn't very good with names.

She shook her head, blushing. An awkward silence descended as Danny waited for the young tech to volunteer her correct name, but she just stood with her lips pursed together and blushed harder.

"Well, thanks again," he finally said. "Better get Johnny home."

Completely flummoxed, Danny turned and walked away, a million strange thoughts racing through his head.

00000

Stupid, stupid, stupid!

Harshly, Sadie shoved the boxes of protective gloves into the cupboard and shut the door.

Why do you always have to be so stupid?

Avoiding eye contact with any of the other techs, she slipped from the lab and made her way to the locker room, her shift finally over for that day.

It's not like you're helpless! You could have put down the bloody boxes and pulled out your notebook to answer his question instead of standing there like an idiot!

She snatched her bag and then slammed her locker shut angrily. Keeping her head down, she fled the building, opting for the stairs to make sure she didn't run into anyone else. She couldn't handle anymore humiliating attempts at conversation today.

00000

It was late when Danny exited the elevator into the lab. He'd dropped Johnny off at his apartment before following up on a lead with the Holly case. Usually, he would have just gone home again afterwards instead of coming back into work, but he was still bothered by the strange encounter in the hallway from earlier. He figured he might as well report what he'd found to Mac and then corner Ross with some questions. It was almost a sure bet that both men were still at the lab. It was like they'd each made a pact with the devil to not ever need sleep.

He was right. The boss was exactly where he predicted – in his office, skewering a file with one of his pointed glares. A quick conversation later and Danny was off in search of a quirky labrat he had to admit he now considered a friend.

He found him rummaging through a closet in one of the back rooms.

"Yo, Adam," he called brightly as he walked in.

The younger man screeched in alarm and jumped a mile before whipping around to glare at him.

"Dude, could you not do that? It's bad enough I have to worry about the boss sneaking up on me!"

Danny just laughed.

"What do you need?" Adam asked, rolling his eyes as he closed the closet and moved over to the next one.

Danny watched him curiously, shoving his hands in his pockets as he brought up the topic he'd been stuck on. "What's up with the new girl?"

"Huh?"

"The new tech. Red hair, glasses… You've been working with her all week now… Shelby…Sophie…?"

Adam stilled and turned to face him completely. Danny wondered if he was even aware of the guarded, protective look that fell across his features.

"Sadie," his friend corrected softly.

"Knew I was close!" Danny grumbled. "So, what's up with her? She act weird around you at all? I pretty much point blank asked her to correct me on the name thing and she didn't say a word!"

Adam's expression was unreadable for a moment before he spoke. "Danny, Sadie can't talk."

The confusion drained from him as Adam's words filtered into his brain, replaced by a huge wave of regret.

"Aw crap," he spat, running his hands through his disheveled hair. "And now I feel like a complete jerk."

"Why didn't she write it down for you?" Adam sounded puzzled.

"Her hands were full of boxes," Danny answered, remorse filling him as he remember the awkward encounter. "That particular problem never even crossed my mind."

"Hey, she's a good at her job!" the younger tech suddenly blurted, defensively.

"Wow," Danny cried, holding his hands up. "Never said she wasn't, so, where did that come from?"

Adam blushed.

"She needs a friend."

He softened. "Volunteered, did ya?" he teased lightly. Or was assigned. Maybe both, he couldn't help thinking. This had all the indications of one of Mac's subtle nudges. Still, he made plans in his head to find the new tech the next morning and apologize.

Adam blushed again and turned back to his digging. Danny decided to take pity on him and drop the subject.

"What ya lookin' for?"

"Spare batteries for the 3D imager. Mac wants the apartment where the mummified remains were found scanned and recreated at the lab tomorrow."

"Workin' with the boss. Sounds fun."

Ross gave a noncommittal noise that just made Danny grin more. "Here, I'll help you look. Can't be too many places in here for spare batteries to disappear."

00000

Grumpily, Sadie dumped the small stack of mismatched dishes into the worn enamel sink, still upset over what had happened at work earlier. The scene from the hallway with the blond detective kept playing over and over in her mind as she mentally berated herself. She hadn't spoken since she was nine! Why did people's reactions still manage to unnerve and upset her?

"Mummy?"

Izzy's little voice was full of held-back tears as it broke through her dark thoughts. Sadie turned from the washing up to look at her daughter.

"Dragon broken," the child hitched, and the tears finally escaped down her tiny cheeks as she held up her toy in one hand, stuffing peeking from the hole where a leg used to be. In her other hand she held the missing limb, yarn unraveling at the top.

Sadie's bad mood melted away as the girl's lips wobbled. She dried her wet hands on the apron that covered her work blouse and skirt then knelt down. Smiling gently, she wiped the tears from Izzy's face with her thumbs before taking the two pieces of the homemade toy from the almost three-year-old.

*Don't worry,* she signed one-handed. *Mummy can fix Dragon.*

She grasped the little girl by the hand and led her to the makeshift shelves that stood against the west wall of their tiny, one-room flat, only letting go long enough to find a pair of knitting needles, some yarn, and a sewing needle. Then she walked to the old rocking chair that graced the center of the room and sat down, pulling Izzy into her lap. The toddler snuggled back into her, hiding her toes in the hem of her nightdress, and watched Sadie's hands with complete faith.

Rocking gently, Sadie caught the lose yarn up into a row of new stitches, then used the sewing needle to reattach the leg to Dragon's body. As she worked, a comfortable silence filled the room as if it was at home there.

By the time she finished her mending, Izzy was asleep in her lap. She tucked the little, green dragon next to her and then just sat there for a while, cherishing the feeling of her baby in her arms and the soothing motion of the chair. Tripod left his spot on Izzy's bed and jumped onto her legs as well, purring as he squeezed himself between her side and the arm of the chair. Absently, she alternated brushing her fingers through the fine, ginger strands of her daughter's hair and the black fur of her cat as she gazed around their home, her thoughts drifting.

Home. Such a hopeful description of what was actually a pitiful, wretched space. Peeling paint and cracked walls, ancient, hardly-working appliances, cobbled together furniture scrounged from thrift stores or the street… It broke her heart.

The money she'd inherited after the Battle and Archie's death had been enough to get her through NYU – barely. She'd rented a tiny, dump of an attic room from boarding house and plowed ahead, burning through the gold to finish school and still eat without having to work on the side. She loaded on the classes, attending year round, and then tried not to go spare with her workload and a new baby. By the time she graduated, every cent of money was gone. The job at the Crime Lab had seemed like miracle. Finally, she would be able to give her daughter a proper home, with nice, comfortable things.

Only, it hadn't worked like that. The pay at the lab was surprisingly meager, but the woman who processed her papers assured her that was what all entry level lab technicians made. Meaning there was little she could do but keep going. She took on a second job cleaning the building after hours and then found the best flat her wages would cover – a one room catastrophe on the fourth floor of a completely horrible building.

She tried to make it a home. They couldn't afford real beds, but she lovingly covered the mattresses with the quilts her mum had made and Archie had managed to save. She hung pictures and bright paper flowers on the peeling walls, curtains at the cracked windows. Second-hand stores became her best friends as she hunted for anything to try and turn the horrible, little room into a place fit for a child to live.

But nothing she did could hide the ugliness, the chill that crept in through the old windows and under the door, or the awful sounds of the rest of the building. The flat didn't even have a proper loo, just a toilet and a tub tucked into the corner of the kitchen around which she'd hung a curtain in a vain attempt at a little privacy. It ate at her to know Izzy was living here, to realize she couldn't give her baby the life she deserved.

She'd been hopeful this new promotion would change things, but once again, the raise in pay had been minimal.

Of course, she could have fixed it all with a few waves of her wand, but she wouldn't. Magic of that proportion in a Muggle neighborhood would have brought Aurors poking around her door, asking questions that she didn't want to answer. She'd vowed to keep Izzy safe, and if that meant raising her in a sad, little flat so be it.

Sighing, Sadie nudged Tripod. He cracked an eye open in annoyance but didn't move. The cat seemed to think that only having three legs afforded him some kind of special privileges. Shaking her head with a smile, she continued to prod the cat until he finally climbed haughtily off her lap, wandering over to settle on her bed instead. She stood carefully, holding Izzy, and walked over to the little girl's mattress. Lovingly, she pulled the quilts and blankets back and tucked her in snugly. Izzy stirred and opened her eyes, smiling when she saw Dragon.

"Thanks, Mummy," she whispered, signing the words as she spoke.

*You're welcome. Now go to sleep, little one. Mischief managed.*

"Mischief managed," Izzy returned with her voice and her hands. Then she wiggled down into her bed and closed her eyes.

00000

"Here, hold this wall right here while I connect the other half," Adam said, moving Sadie into place and then turning around to fiddle with another section of the room they were supposed to be putting back together. A few moments later he looked up to see the wall teetering dangerously.

"Wow!" he cried, rushing to help his friend who was straining to keep their project upright. When the thing was stable again, he turned a sheepish grin at Sadie. "Sorry about that."

"You two tryin' to destroy Mac's crime scene?" They both whipped their heads around to find Danny coming into the room. The detective strolled over and took hold of the other piece of wall, lifting it to slide into place against the one they were holding.

"We had it!" Adam protested, rolling his eyes at the other man.

"Yeah, totally."

Adam resisted the urge to stick his tongue out at his friend. That seemed a little childish, even for him.

"You here to check on us?" he asked as he tightened the clamps and braces that would hold the reconstructed wall into place.

"No, just to apologize."

Danny walked over to where Sadie was setting up the dummy in the chair while obviously trying to avoid eye contact.

"So, Sadie is it?" Danny asked with a charming, easy smile. "Or I can keep calling you Sydney if you'd rather," he teased.

A tiny smile cracked her lips and she finally glanced up, shaking her head. She held her ID badge out for him to read.

"Well, Sadie Weasley, I'm Danny Messer, and don't believe a word Ross here might tell you about me. I'm really very sweet and lovable, despite yesterday's incident."

Adam snorted and shook his head, looking away from the scene he'd been openly watching and walking over to his computer. "Whatever," he called over his shoulder as his fingers flew across the keys. Mac would be down in less than half an hour and he really needed to get this finished.

"He's not working you too hard, is he?" the conversation continued behind him. "You're Ross's first trainee and it just might be going to his head…"

"Har-har," he muttered without turning his head. He was playing along with the teasing, but secretly he didn't mind. Sadie needed to be noticed and included by more people in the lab than just Mac and him. Danny was a good friend; Adam knew he'd treat Sadie like part of the family. "So, are you two done, because some of us have work to do, Messer," he added.

He glanced back to see Sadie smiling for real, a sight that made his heart leap.

"I'm tellin' ya, he gives you any trouble, you just come find me, okay?" Danny sent her a wink before strolling from the room.

Sadie looked at Adam and gave a sort of confused shrug.

Adam rolled his eyes again with a laugh. "Danny is…well…Danny. I guess he grows on you. Now, come here, I wanna show you something I just found…"

00000

"You know, I remember being alive."

Sadie shook her head but didn't comment. Harvey was in one of his philosophical moods again and commenting would only encourage him.

"I remember amazing things like motorcycles, flannel sheets, drive-up movies…"

The ghost lounged in a cross-legged position about a foot above Detective Bonasera's desk as Sadie mopped the shared office's floor.

"And you know what I remember most about being alive? That you have to eat to stay that way!" He sat up, looking at her sharply.

She rolled her eyes and leaned on her mop, finally risking some words. It was very early in the morning and there was no one around to catch sight of her magical letters other than Harvey.

*I do eat,* she signed quickly.

"When?" her translucent friend demanded. "Because I haven't seen you eat lunch all week. Or dinner for that matter. I've been watching."

Sadie's empty stomach rumbled at the mention of food. Harvey pounced on the sound.

"HA!" he said, folding his arms in triumph.

Her shoulder's sagged in defeat. Izzy had hit a growth spirt in the last few months and none of her clothes fit anymore. A shopping trip to a second-hand store to buy a few essentials for the little girl had severally eaten into the funds Sadie usually set aside for groceries. Harvey was right – she'd been skipping lunch and sometimes dinner for the last few weeks to try and make it through until the next payday.

*Sometimes, you do what you have to do,* she signed simply, giving Harvey a sad smile.

Her friend let his arms uncross, dropping the teasing.

"Sadie, something isn't right. I'm telling you, I've hung around here for a long time and I've watched things. You really need to ask someone to check it out."

Sadie shook her head firmly. *No,* she answered. *I will not risk this job by complaining.*

Harvey sighed. "You know, based on the stories you've told me and the information I've managed to glean from the ghost community, it's completely clear that you and that cousin of yours are related. You're both too stubborn for your own good!"

She had to smile at that because it was probably true. Stubbornness did seem to be a Potter family trait. Still, it didn't do anything to change her mind.

"But, since I can't get you to see reason, I'm going to go see what Sid has going in the morgue today. That mummy from last week was completely fascinating!"

Sadie waved goodbye as the ghost drifted through the wall and around the corner, then turned back to her cleaning, pointedly ignoring the pinched emptiness in her stomach.

00000

New York City's 12th precinct building was as different from the crime lab as it could be. Where the lab was all sleek, modern lines and glass walls, the precinct harkened back to a much earlier era with its maze of tiled halls and worn woodwork. And yet, somehow that sense of the passage of time and lives through its corridors made Sadie feel much more at home than she ever felt in the lab.

It didn't, however, stop her from getting hopelessly lost though.

She was supposed to be delivering a flash drive of evidence to a Detective Angell. She'd volunteered because it was on her way to the Norumbega subway station anyway, but more than that she was curious about the place so many of the others in the lab talked about. Of course now, as she wandered the green-tinted hallways she didn't quite know how she was going to find the detective and complete the job.

She rounded a corner that looked just like the last twenty she'd turned, signing in frustration. At this rate, she'd have to start dropping breadcrumbs to find her way out again. She was just about to swallow her pride and ask someone for help when she heard familiar voices from up ahead. There, standing in another turn were Detectives Messer and Monroe.

Thank Merlin, she muttered in her head, and rushed forward, but as the actual words of the conversation drifted to her, she slowed and finally stopped, hanging back awkwardly as she guiltily eavesdropped.

"Look, I mean, you and I, we have this thing, this chemistry. Like we're in to each other. But every time we're in the same room together today it's like…" Detective Messer paused, seemingly trying to gather his thoughts into words. "Don't tell me you don't feel it also."

"I can't do this, Danny," Detective Monroe answered. Sadie thought she looked extremely sad.

"You can't do what?"

"I can't be in a relationship with you."

"I don't…I…I…I just… I'm talkin' about spending some time together! Dinner, a few drinks, some laughs." Detective Messer shrugged helplessly, and Sadie could tell he was frustrated and confused.

"Look, Danny, I like you. A lot." Detective Monroe's words were hesitant and soft. "But right now, I can't. It's not you, okay? It's… I just…I need to be by myself so I can work some stuff out, that I thought I put behind me. I didn't mean for this to happen."

"It's s'ok."

"Maybe we should just do our jobs and…" She never finished her sentence, just turned and walked quickly away.

Almost desperately, Detective Messer called after her, "If there's anything you need from me, just let me know, okay?" Then he just stood there and watched where she had gone long after he could actually see her. Finally, he sighed and turned the other way.

To Sadie, he appeared crushed, as if someone had just yanked the rug out from under his world. His head hung low and his shoulders drooped in defeat. He was several steps down the hall before he noticed Sadie standing there.

"Oh, hey," he said glumly.

Sadie waved with a shy, guilty half-smile.

"Did you hear all that?" He gestured back down the hall to where the conversation had happened.

Embarrassed, she nodded, wondering how upset he would be. To her surprise, however he didn't even seem offended. Instead, he started talking, as if unable to hold the words back.

"I don't know what to do, ya know?" he said, running a hand down his face. "I get this vibe from her, like she's into me an' we got this connection, but whenever I try to do somethin' she backs away! What do I do?"

Startled by his unexpected confiding her when she barely knew him, Sadie wasn't sure what to do. But then her thoughts were drawn back to the summer between her fourth and fifth years at Hogwarts. It had been a dark time in her life and yet, with a patience and tenderness she never expected, Fred had gently worked to pull her out of it and slowly win her affection. Fred Weasley never did anything slowly or subtly – so that alone told her how much he meant it. Maybe, this was a similar situation…

Decision made, Sadie withdrew her notebook from her pocket.

Just be patient with her. Give her time, she wrote. Most of all, don't give up.

"Yeah, I guess. Nothing else I can really do, is there?"

Sadie shook her head no with what she hoped was an encouraging smile.

"You got experience with messed up relationships like this?" the detective asked, giving her a knowing look.

She just shrugged. Spilling those secrets would take more than a pad of paper, and probably get her arrested for breaking the Muggle Protection Act.

"So, what you doin' here?" he asked, turning the conversation back to her.

She produced the flash drive and then wrote Detective Angell? in her notebook.

"You're lookin' for Angell? Well, you're about five hallways in the wrong direction," he said with a warm smile. "Come on, let me show you out of this maze."

*Thank you!* Sadie signed, following gratefully after him through the busy building.

00000

"She gave you flower duty, eh?"

Sadie turned from the large pot of flowers she was watering to see the tall, lanky form of Fred Weasley leaning against the side of the shed.

She smiled.

*I volunteered,* she signed one-handed. *Too many people in the house.*

"I know! Why does it take so many people to put on a wedding? I'm ready to kip in a tent for the next week just to avoid them!"

He left the shed and walked toward her, bending down so his forehead touched hers. "What do you way, Mrs. Weasley? Want to join me in a tent for a week?"

Sadie blushed and laughed silently, then pecked him on the cheek before setting down the watering can so she could speak properly.

*Hush!* she warned. *What if someone overhears you?*

"Then I get to shout it from the top of the Burrow, complete with fireworks. I have to admit I'm not really seeing the downside of that at the moment."

*Fred!* she protested, slapping him on the shoulder. *We agreed to not steal Bill's big day.*

Fred sighed melodramatically. "You are a stubborn woman." Suddenly, however, he turned serious. Sadie cocked her head curiously.

*What?* she asked.

"This whole wedding thing… The flowers and dress and hoopla… Do you feel bad you didn't get that? That I dragged you off to a little closet of an office on the spur of the moment?"

Sadie smiled softly. *No,* she simply said.

"Still," Fred hedged, "I wanted you to…to have part of it."

She furrowed her brow, a little lost. *What are you talking about?*

He didn't answer, just reached into his pocket and pulled out a delicate, sliver chain. From the end of it dangled a ring with a small red stone in the center that caught the morning light as it twisted and turned.

Sadie gasped.

"I love you and I married you. You deserve a ring just like any other bride. Someday, I'll get to tell the world that, but until then, wear it around your neck. Our secret."

Sadie felt tears spring to her eyes as Fred moved behind her, fastening the slender chain around her neck.

"I love you," he whispered into her hair, pulling her close. Sadie closed her eyes, savoring the feeling of him, wanting to keep the moment forever…

With a start, Sadie woke to the jarring black, chill of her flat, the feeling of the dream quickly fading away. She reached for her glasses and then slipped from her corner mattress, pulling a well-worn blanket about her shoulders as she stood to help stave off the cold. Izzy still slept peacefully in her little cocoon of quilts, so Sadie padded quietly to the opposite side of the room, stopping in front of the small window above the sink. As the tepid, early morning light trickled weakly through the cracked panes, she hugged her arms tightly around herself and let the tears gently fall. Without conscious thought, her fingers toyed with the little ring that still hung about her neck.

The dream had been so vivid – his voice, his smile, his arms around her, his breath and fingers ghosting at her neck.

And then she woke and it was gone, leaving nothing but memories and the gaping hole in her heart.

Author's Note:

First – Before anyone takes issue with the lack of funds in Sadie's life and explains to me that surely Crime Lab employees make more than that, just know there is something more than meets the eye going on.

Second – The conversation between Lindsay and Danny in the second to last section was taken from the episode "Love Run Cold." I wrote the scene around it, and the descriptions, but the dialogue in the middle is not mine.

Third – A huge thank you to Smuffly for encouragement and beta help! Appreciate it so much!

If you are reading this and enjoying it, please let me know! It's always so much easier to write when you know someone wants it. Thanks!