He had his bag on his back. He had packed his other belongs with a wave of his wand; surely someone would send them back to London once the letter he had left had reached the Headmaster. Everything that rushed past him was a blur, he leapt from landing to landing, and the only thing he knew was real was the letter in his hand the letter that had reached him by owl less than half an hour ago….

Patroclus,

Mother and Father’s boat has been found, burnt to ashes in a harbour in Istanbul. Durukan, father’s Turkish counterpart just informed me that they never arrived at his home, that no one had seen them since they returned to Greece after putting you on the train.
Something is wrong.

Be ready. I am coming for you.

Prometheus

He was ready; Patroclus had all he cared about with him, his wand, his photos of Pandora and Pollux; however there was something that he cared about that he couldn’t bag into his bag, and he needed to find her.

He ran down the third floor corridor, screeching to a halt, before turning onto the moving staircase, which to his intense dislike began to move.

Destiny hated the moving staircases, she really did.

It seemed like the more she tried to avoid them, the more she found herself actually on them. And today was one of those days.

However, there were two reasons why she all of a sudden didn't mind being on them. Having the staircases switch up on her delayed the HORROR of sitting in the library where she was headed AND the switched up staircases put her face to face with the person she most wanted to see; Patroclus. It seemed like forever since she had seen him and she hadn't realized how much she missed him.

A smile made it's way onto her face as she clung onto the banister and slooooowly made her way closer to him. But it soon faltered as she took a good look at him. "Patroclus?"

Sweet Merlin!

It was hard to talk and hold onto the banister for dear life.

Hogwarts was huge. Beyond Huge. So the fact that Patroclus came face to dcae with the person his thoughts had been dwelling on mere seconds ago, just affirmed to him everything he had ever felt. This was how it was meant to be.

It was if the school knew this was possibly his last chance, and had moved stone to get him here. Hearing her say his name sent waves of heat over his body, and then letting his bag slip from his hand, he rushed down the remaining steps that stood between them.

Hetook her face into his hand and kissed her, hard and passionately on the lips.

It all happened so fast.

One moment she was holding onto the banister for dear life and the next moment she was watching as Patroclus came rushing over to her. He didn't even seem to be bothered that he had dropped his bag.

Destiny had just opened her mouth to tell him he should pick it up. Being a Prefect and all, he should know the dangers of leaving a bag on the STAIRS, especially the moving stairs, but she couldn't seem to form any words as she looked up at him and she felt her face in his hand. And even if she could, they would have been drowned out as their lips met and..it was everything she had imagined it to be.

Closing her eyes, she stood on her tip-toes and kissed him back.

His hand moved from her cheeks to her hips, they seemed to act on their own, for Patroclus' head was blank, his thought dwelling on one thing the face of the beautiful girl before him.

His arms wrapped around her waist and with a strenght that was increase by the love in his heart, Patroclus lifted Destiny from her tip-toes and held her against him. He turned and set her feet down on the step above him, now it was he who was on his toes, but not by much, for after all he was quite a bit taller than she.

He didn't want to, but Patroclus knew he had to end the kiss, he needed to explain, he needed her to understand, but he also needed to remember this moment; he may never get the chance to share it again.

With a final breath of her aroma, he unlocked his lips and looked up into her face. "Destiny," her name meant to him so many things, "I am leaving.....tonight, my Brother is coming for me....My parents are missing.....I don't know much," he felt as if his eyes were stinging, but he held back tears, he wanted to be the strong, "I am not sure of much right now," he heart was pumping like a crazy, blood was causing through his body, he could feel them pulsating in his neck, in his ears, "But I am sure of one thing, I am sure.....that I love you Destiny."

Finally he had said it, finally she knew how he felt.

With her heart beating so fast in her chest and with all the butterflies fluttering in her stomach, not to mention being in the middle of an AMAZING kiss, Destiny felt like she was floating on air.

Although, she kind of really was for a moment when Patroclus wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her up. It was just like all the movies she had watched on the muggle box. Only much, MUCH better..because it was happening to her. And just like in those movies, she found her own arms sliding up and wrapping them around his neck, she pressed her lips even harder against his.

She had wanted him to kiss her for a while and now that it was happening, she didn't want it to end. But she wasn't completely stupid and she knew it couldn't go on forever.

Her eyes stayed shut even after he pulled away, the feel of his lips still lingering on hers bringing a smile to her face. It didn't last long, though, once she heard the way he said her name and her eyes opened immediately. She felt a pain in her chest as he went on to speak and she couldn't stop her eyes from welling with tears. Not just because he was leaving her, but because of the reason he was leaving her. "I'm so sorry." she whispered, trying not to let the tears fall. But it became impossible as she heard his last words.

He..loves her.

And it was as if her brain was, for the first time ever, switched on and she realized what all those stupid hearts she transfigured objects into and what all those stupid hearts she found in her tea leaves meant.

The tears flowing freely down her face, Destiny tightened her arms around his neck and gazing down at his face, she managed a small smile. "Patroclus..I love you, too." With that, she leaned in and pressed her lips lightly against his.

Pfft, he loved her. He wouldn't mind her tears all over him..right?

As the words left her lips, Patroclus went numb, she loved him too, she loved him. For a split second all his worries, all his fear melted away, he was completely and utterly in the moment, his life for a few seconds full of bliss, and he was going to cling to it.

Moving his hands from her waist, Patroclus placed them onace again on her cheeks, this time gently wiping away the tears with his thumbs, his eyes stinging more than ever.

After hold them in the kiss for a few moments longer, he pulled away, "I don't know what is going to happen, how long I will be gone, or if I will even come back, I cannot say, but I wanted you to know, I needed to say it," They had come so far, and it seemed like some cruel trick, that it was only now that he had the courage to say it.

"I don't want you to wait for me," he began, a single tear rolling down his cheek, "You are too much of a wonderful, funny and truth be told brilliant person to hide yourself away," this was hurting more than he could say, "You will forget me, one day, and that is OK because I will always know that you loved one, and I will always love you...."

The feeling of Patroclus' hands on her cheeks, wiping away at her tears, had her wanting to cry even more. It wasn't supposed to happen this way. She hurt. More than a person should be allowed to hurt.

As he pulled away from their kiss, Destiny shut her eyes tightly. Knowing that it wouldn't be long before he pulled away for good brought fresh tears rolling down her face. She shook her head as he spoke, not believing for one second that this, this meeting on the moving staircases, would be the last time they would be together.

It couldn't be the last time; they loved eachother.

And she was not going to stand there and listen to him give her compliments that she did not want to hear and that she will forget him. "No." she said firmly, her eyes snapping open and the tears done flowing for the moment. "I WILL NOT forget about you. I CAN NOT forget about you." Taking a few shaky breaths to calm herself, she moved her arms from around his neck and placed her hands on his cheeks. "I love you. And I will wait for you. For as long as it will take you to come back to me."

Destiny was saying exactly had Patroclus had wanted her to say, that she would wait from him, that she was would still hold him in her heart forever, but it was selfish for him to allow her to do so, "Destiny, I love you but, I can't let you waste your love on me, just remember this, this moment, love this but, but don't wait for me......." his chest was heaving, as it this was to be his last breath, as if his world was about to end, "I can't deal with the idea that I have left you behind, waiting for me, not living your life, not loving, the guilt will kill me, long before the dangers I am about to face will."

At that moment, a blue light seemed to soar through the window pane that stood but a few steps from them, the light materilised itself into a great eagle, the voice of the Eldest Hudson son coming from it beak, "I am at the gates..."

This was it, he had to leave, placing his hand onto of Destiny's he smiled at her, "We would have been amazing.....we are amazing....." Pulling her towards him, Patroclus passionately kissed her, one last time, before summoning his bag and tearing himself away from her.

As he began to walk down the now still staircase he turned to look at up at her. He went to speak, but nothing came out, everything had been said, he would love her forever, and he would find her one day......after all she was his Destiny....

Zara was rushing back to the Gryffindor common room when she—WAAA? Seeing the scene right before her, here he was Patroclus...with Destiny. Kissing. This was too much for her to handle. Stopping dead in her tracks, she watched, just watched. Not wanting to ruin the moment, she tried to conceal herself in the shadows as much as possible, though it was hard, for the staircases were moving and to be honest, you could easily be seen in such a place.

She never felt so...out of place. Zara felt like her soul was separating from her body. It was him. It was the guy whom she liked the first time she laid her eyes upon him. She didn't know what happened, something just clicked and she knew, no matter how hard she tried to deny it, that she loved him. For a first year, it seemed hard to believe that an eleven year old had the capacity to love. To actually love. But Zara did.

And now, she felt like all of that love has been wasted. Put to nothing. But seeing that face so happy, so full of life, maybe it was worth it all. Even if she just followed him around, hiding beneath the shadows and just looking at him, watching his every move, she felt it. Felt the magic of love. Blehh, who was she, an ickle firstie. A firstie who didn't know about love.

Before she could break down in tears—unknown if it were joy or sorrow—Zara came running away. Going anywhere, anywhere but here. She'd just ruin the moment. Cause that's what she always does, even if it was always unintentional—the one who ruins every moment. And so she turned back, unable to handle a second longer of what she had just seen, and ran, leaving her necklace behind. For some reason, her silver necklace with a ring pendant which had the name, "Zara" engraved on it had just fallen off her neck. Like instead of her soul being separated from her body, it was the necklace that has taken itself off.

But Zara didn't notice it though it did make a loud sound as it hit the floor. She was far away, not even realizing it was the last time she'd ever see that dear face of his.

Destiny was more than aware of their audience at the end of the staircase, but she paid them no mind. They weren't important. The only person who was important, was the person whose face she held in her hands.

Patroclus was saying all the things she did not want to hear. She wanted him to tell her that it was okay to keep loving him. That it was okay to wait for him. She wanted him to tell her that this wouldn't be the end, even if it was a lie. He was being so selfish! Allowing himself to continue loving her while she was just supposed to forget about him and move on. Who else was going to want her? A small sob issued from her mouth and shaking her head at his nonsense words, she willed herself not to cry. She did not want his last memories of her to be her crying.

She had to bite her bottom lip to stop the tears, though, once the patronus arrived. Despite the hurt she felt knowing that this was it, for now, she couldn't help but smile at the one on his face and the feel of his hand on hers. And before she could respond to anything, his lips were on hers.

Kissing him back just as passionately, the tears that she had been trying to hold in came once again as he pulled completely away from her. It hurt even more and she felt so empty. "Patroclus!" she called after him, grabbing onto the banister to steady herself. "I'm like..I'm like a penguin!" Except she didn't sleep standing up and she didn't know how to swim.

"I'll love only you. Forever."

He stopped at the bottom of the staircase turning around one last time.

Patroclus took in the face of the one person that for him, would be the only face he would ever need to see again, the face that if he was about to die, he would remember, the face that to him was perfect, the face that was to be forever imprinted on his heart...

The face of Destiny Shepard, his penguin, the love of his life.

"Stay. Stay. Stay." Carter repeated in his mind as he neared one of the moving staircases. It would be just his luck if the staircase were to change the one time he was actually heading to the library on purpose. He wasn't very excited about going and wanted to spend as little time as possible on the trip.

Just get in and get out. That was his goal.

Climbing down from seventh floor to his beloved common room, totally clean of any 'courageous' idiots and 'intelligent above all' ridicule, Evan wasn't really paying attention to which stairs he took since they all descended to somewhere, until the moving ones. Please move, please move, he begged in his mind, hoping it would move to a deserted corridor. He didn't really want to see many people... until...

"Well well, look who we got here." He smirked. Mweh. Now he couldn't call her, tell, 'dork', could he? For only one time, he wished he didn't have that badge pinned neatly even over his Muggle clothes. "How are you... Gryffindor?" That was degrading enough anyway.

Carter was busy formulating a plan in his mind that he didn't notice anyone coming in the other direction.

"Oh... er... hey Evan." he said after his fellow staircase person spoke up. Of all the people to be trapped in a staircase with...

"Just come from visiting Mina?" he asked turning the subject to one of the two things the two boys had in common.

Why did he say Gryffindor like an insult? "I'm... good." he replied confused on why Evan would be asking. They typically ignored each other's existence unless Mina was around. "Err... how about you?"

Heh. It amused the Slytherin that Carter couldn't match his sliiight insult. Over a year that he let him free with his new prefectness and some small problems; instead of getting bolder, the boy obviously got more chicken. Old Carter would have fired back with an insult... but this one was clearly trying to draw his attention to Mina. Hehe. So he figured she was a cool subject enough to keep the anger down, did he? Or what, he would run to Mina to complain about him? Heh. Though, on a second thought... he better not play in those waters. He didn't want to face Mina for bullying her best friend.

Blue eyes narrowing slightly at the boy, he shoved his hands in his pockets. "Yes," he replied coldly. Why did he care his relationship with Mina anyway? He wasn't that stupid not to see the clear difference between himself and him--Evan certainly wasn't fool enough to hurt Mina; unlike his case with Marie. So he got nothing to worry about. In fact, Mina was even safer with him, than with their friendship. "Why do you ask?" he questioned, just to be sure. He didn't need someone investigating his relationship with Mina.

"I'm pretty good too," he said, leaning on the railings of the stairs as if to pressure it go move that way. "I mean, people are ought to feel amazing after seeing their love." Clever enough to get the hint that they were onto 'next level'?

"I just figured that was what was upstairs." Carter said with a shrug. Speaking of upstairs... that was where he wanted to be.

What was with that 'yes'? And they 'why do you ask?' It better not mean he was being a jerk to Mina. He'd been avoiding Evan all this time out of respect for her. But if that was out of the way... the nice gloves were off.

"I see that the badge or your age hasn't given you proper manners." he commented. The Slytherin was just as cocky and rude as ever.

The next comment caught him way off guard and before he knew it his fist was meeting the Slytherin boy's face.

He just punched a Prefect. *smirk* And it felt good.

Evan just let the comment pass. There was a LOT upstairs, from several of classrooms to Room of Requirement. His life didn't consist only of Mina, but he didn't even care to explain that. What Carter thought of him hardly interested him, as long as he kept his mouth shut around Mina. And even then, he was quite confident Mina would choose him over this dork. She was pretty clever not to even think about that.

"And I see you're the old jerk to be rude towards," he replied, uninterested in him enough to examine his nails. People were ought to grow up and learn something from experiences. Carter just couldn't.

Since he was looking somewhere, he didn't see the punch soon enough, he felt it--hard on the nose. "Jesuschrist!" he swore, holding his nose with right hand. His left hand went high to punch him back, but no. That badge meant too much to him to risk for Carter. "You--and I--are--not--done," he spat back with blood, and hit him hard enough to knock him down while he ran down stairs. He would get this back on him. Once he graduated and gave up on that badge.

Yeah, he didn't forget such things.

Carter just glared at Evan. Really? What was his problem? He didn't do anything other than steal Marie to him.

Riiiight. Carter was NOT the jerk here.

He smirked seeing that damage that was done. He had no idea what Mina saw in that guy.

And now Carter was on the ground. "Bring it on Cartwright!" he yelled back at him from his spot on the ground. He then slowly stood up and rubbed where he fell. It was just his luck to land between two different stairs. "Bring it on." he said again.

And with that he headed back up the stairs to the library as if nothing happened. Although now he had a slight limp.

Heading down to the greenhouses for his next location, Simon stopped as he spotted a spider crawling along one of the stair ledges. Watching it for a bit he then realized the creature could probably have some use for potions having remembered it from somewhere. Getting out a container from his bag, the captain discretely moved closer, holding the jar on its side in the path of the spider to trick the creature inside.

"Sorry little buddy...you have a new purpose," he mused putting the top on and the container back in his bag before moving further down the stairs.

Gwen had no idea what she could do in that hour. I don't even know Selina... how am I supposed to act like her? Hmm..!!?!? Well, hopefully I won't come across any of her friends... Now... what to do? what to do?, the girl kept asking herelf. I still have about 50 minutes before I'll be back to normal... plenty of time to kill.

Should I go to the library? Nah... not really in the mood for that. The common room? Yeah, that seems right... but- there's just one tiny problem: I'm wearing Gryffindor robes. Everyone will think I'm crazy if I walk in the Ravenclaw common room looking like this!

Finn-as-Fallon wandered back down the stairs from the library heading back to the entrance hall. Part of him was going to be glad to be back normal. He kind of missed himself, it was weird being small. He needed to go and do some studying too, maybe Fallon would come with him. Although Finn had a feeling that he might be a bit distracted if Fallon came with him. A snogging session might not be too good in the library.

He hummed a little as he waited for the staircase to move before wandering down it. He hoped that Fallon hadn't had to do too much headboy stuff, because that would've been pretty awkward. He ran his fingers through his hair as he wandered down. Yes. This was wierd having long hair too

Psssh, stupid, stupid assignment. Not only was he a girl, but he was a MARIE; meaning many people knew him... or her, in this case. And most of those many people knew him/her as a bad person. EVERY single one of them had a problem with her, and Evan had enough dealing with them. That was the reason he was rushing to the prefects' bathroom; he was totally going to hide there for the length of the time it might take to be his own handsome self.

...though, not so fast. There was another person there, who Evan knew for sure that she had problems with Marie again. The stairs were too small not to recognise anyone passing by and... well, better act fast before Fallon could do anything else. He glared at the girl as they passed by, although it hurt him inside to behave harshly towards Fallon. Glaring was what Marie would do now, right?

Woah. Marie was there. That was weird, seeing her again. But like. Waiit. Marie was glaring at him. Well rather glaring at Fallon. Did Marie not like Fallon? It hadn't seemed like that before. Finlay frowned, stopping where he was. He didn't like that. At all. Marie had no reason to not like Fallon. Sure they had a bad past, but that was many years ago. Finlay stopped where he was, and watched her. He was not happy.

"You know it's rude to glare at people." And that wasn't very nice at all. Finn-as-Fallon was not very happy at all. He hadn't known that people clearly didn't like Fallon. Or maybe it was just Marie. she did seem to have a problem with people. Actually knowing Marie, it was probably because he was dating Fallon.

Oh, Fallon didn't look happy either. Well, that meant she was not happy seeing Marie, right? Because, knowing Marie, Evan wondered at her memory. She still probably didn't forget three years ago when she saw her hugging him... and that pretty much ended their relationship anyway.

"I can look at any where, any how I want," she retorted. Hehe. Evan was being a good Marie. He knew she talked to people like that.