Thank you Ava and Stef for your comments, you both know how much I appreciate them- they mean the world to me. So... I've finally managed to find some time to write. So without further ado... the story continues.

Hope you enjoy.


The rest of the day progressed slowly for Ellouise, she indulged Harry in a game of Wizards chess, letting him beat her twice in a row, well in her mind she let him beat her, but in all honesty is wasn’t far from the truth. Aside from that, there wasn’t much else to do. Naomi flittered about the kitchen with little Florence, the beautiful little girl already seemed to be growing at such a rapid pace. But she was a welcome distraction to the house. Ellouise sat and watched her sleep briefly while practicing her occlumency skills. It had paid off, she was improving, so every second she spent working to strengthen her new found skill was worthwhile.

It was only at dinner when she was sitting beside Xavier that she began to grow anxious.
“What’s that look for?” he asked between mouthfuls of mashed potato.
“What look?” retorted Ellouise, not realising she had a look to begin with.
“That one... the one that says your worried about something,” he said, moving his thumb over her forehead trying to smooth out the creases affectionately. He scooped her chin up into his hand, forcing her look at him. Why did he do this? She thought.
“What’s the matter?” he asked a little more sternly. Ellouise didn’t reply, instead she shrugged her shoulders and pulled her face out of his hand, turning her attention to her plate. But it was no use, she wasn’t hungry. Moving her peas around the plate she released a sigh, “I... don’t know.” That was all she could muster, she didn’t know what else she could say.
Xavier returned her shrug, then kissed her forehead for good measure, before taking another heaped forkful of his mash.

Deciding she would have an early night, Ellouise said her goodnights and trudged up the stairs, through the drawing room, up the next two flights of stairs to her room. Her small, quaint, room...
Closing the door behind her, Ellouise took a single step toward the bed before launching herself on top of the covers. Laying there she looking up at the ceiling before burying her face in her pillow. Something wasn’t right... something was... off. She could feel it, but what was it? Rolling onto her side she pulled out her wand from her jean pocked and placed it on the bedside table. Perhaps some sleep would do her some good. Closing her eyes, she lay fully clothed ontop of the covers, pulling one of the corners across her body so it covered her middle.

Sleep Ellie... just sleep, she thought to herself.

It seemed as though time had paused, she could hear the mundane ticking of her alarm clock, that annoying tick..... tock..... tick..... tock sound.
“Aaarrgghh”, she grumbled pulling the spare pillow over her head. Tick... tock.... tick... tock.
The sound was deafening, irritating, frustrating! And yet it wouldn’t stop. Contemplating throwing it across the room Ellouise sat up in her bed, turning the lamp on. It was late, on any other night she would have been asleep. But not tonight.

Grabbing the alarm clock from the table Ellouise raised her arm back, poised to ditch it at the wall, when all of a sudden.. it just didn’t matter. A silvery doe patronus trotted through her wall and stood at the edge of her bed, facing her, its misty white eyes starring.
“What the...” started Ellouise, but she was cut off by the all too familiar sound of Severus Snape.

“This is it... the moves tonight. I have information you might be interested in. Meet me in London, down Oxford Street... the old Whitlam Theatre, in half an hour. Best come alone.”

Snape’s voice filled her room in a hushed whisper, only audible enough for her to make out. Was this really happening? Did he just say what she thought he said?