Lessons

Once Cassie had released her hold on Vitaly, he fell to his hands and knees on the timbered floor, gasping for breath. His twin companions had still been in so much shock that they made no move to come to his aid, and the rest of their peers remained just as still. Most looked stunned, while Alexander could hardly hide his delight, a wide grin playing across his chiseled features. Cassie casually made her way back to where she had originally been standing between him and Romily, and his green eyes were sparkling with silent laughter as he watched her.

"That was awesome!" he whispered, and then he raised a hand, intending for her to give him a high-five. Cassie huffed a laugh at him before obliging. Romily, who had been staring at Vitaly with her mouth hanging open, was startled by the sound of their hands slapping together and cast them a sheepish grin.

"I don't bite," Cassie tried to reassure her.

"No?" Romily asked. "I am just glad we are friendly! You do zat to all people you do not like?"

"Only the ones that deserve it," Cassie replied. Vitaly had gotten to his feet, and he seemed to be adamantly avoiding looking in her direction as he rubbed the back of his neck. Khristina and Bogdan were at his side now, speaking quietly but briskly to him, and then all three of them left the hut.

Cassie hadn't felt the need to involve Master Machado in the whole ordeal. As far as she was concerned, they were adults, and whatever differences they had, it should be worked out between them. That, and she felt like she had communicated her message to the sniveling wizard quite clearly. But in true dastardly form, Vitaly had gone straight to their leader to tell his side of how things had played out, and soon she found herself sitting in Machado's bungalow. Vitaly was sitting in the chair next to her, looking quite triumphant.

"Cassie," Machado started, seeming dispirited as he addressed her, and Cassie felt a twinge of remorse for acting so aggressively on her first day. "Vitaly has recounted his version of what has happened. I will give you the chance to do the same."

She could feel Vitaly's eyes on her, and she willed herself not to look at him, for fear that she might lose her temper. It's not what she wanted, to act like she had no control over her emotions, but this wizard was exceptionally irksome. "He and his cronies went too far. He needed to be taught a lesson," she said bluntly. Obvious surprised flashed across Machado's face, and he didn't say anything right away, likely expecting her to elaborate. When she didn't continue, he cleared his throat, looking troubled.

"That is all you have to say for yourself?" he asked her.

"I'm not about to apologize if that's what you're waiting for," she replied. She didn't say it unkindly, but she wanted to be frank.

"Cassie, I told you when you arrived, that we are a family here," Machado said. "I only ask that you try to get along, for the sake of everyone here."

"He's a bully," she said, finally turning to look at the unpleasant young man that was seated next to her, and the scowl on his face only seemed to confirm her words. "I won't tolerate them."

"It is the way of the world," Vitaly sneered at her. "Maybe where you come from, you were protected from such offenses? Were you a sheltered little princess, Hogwarts?"

Cassie scoffed at him, ready to launch a rather undignified retort when Machado spoke first. "Pavlischev, you're dismissed!" he commanded sharply. Vitaly made to protest, but Machado's usual kind features darkened swiftly, and the younger wizard stood to leave after shooting daggers at Cassie. Once they were alone, his expression softened almost instantaneously, as if he was incapable of maintaining such a forceful disposition for very long.

"I apologize to you, Master Machado, for what happened," Cassie said straight away. "But I will not tell that obnoxious piece of work that I'm sorry, because I'm not!"

"Call me Martese," Machado told her again, "And while it would not be good practice to admit it in front of him, I do sympathize with you."

"You do?" Cassie asked, astonished. "Then why have us both in here?"

"I would like you to get along with each other," he said. "It is imperative for your training to be maximized, and for the safety of everyone here."

Cassie gave him a wary glance, not entirely sure what he was alluding to, but if she had to guess, it probably had to do with Sauda Sombria. She wanted more information on this supposed dark witch, something that Dumbledore had yet again intentionally failed to give her, but then she realized even as she observed Machado, that she was in a completely different situation now. Already in the short time she had known him, this wizard had proved to be courteous and open with her. Perhaps he was capable of being more sincere than Dumbledore was, and she could eventually learn to trust the authority in her life. So she decided to test the waters.

"You're referring to Sombria?" she asked him quietly.

"Yes," he confirmed.

"Martese," she started, "I'd like to know more about her if you'd be willing to tell me. Dumbledore kept me in the dark."

Machado looked surprised when she said this, replying, "I find this astonishing, as Albus has been giving advice to your Minister Fudge on how to handle relations with our Minister da Gama. It seems as though he hasn't been heeding it very well, however."

"In regards to Sombria?" Cassie asked. He nodded, and she huffed angrily. "For how long?"

"Months, Cassie."

She stood, exasperation coursing through her veins. Starting to pace about the hut, she tried her best to keep her nerves calm, for fear of losing control. Moody had told her that Fudge and Da Gama had met in person recently, so she had assumed that was as long as Dumbledore could have known.

The very thought that she had come here, being ripped away from everything she loved on the advice of a wizard that had continued to deceive her, was threatening to drive her mad. "Albus has a knack for being intentionally secretive as a way of getting what he wants. I don't know if it's specific to me or if he does it with everyone," she growled.

"Eu sinto muito," Machado whispered, "That is very unfair." Cassie was dumbfounded at his earnestness just then, his candor the complete opposite of what Dumbledore usually offered her.

"Thank you," she replied. "What can you tell me about her, Martese?"

"Sauda Sombria was born in one of the uncontacted tribes in the rainforest," Machado started quietly. "I know little of her childhood, only that she was trained in the magical arts by other witches in her clan. She has expressed very openly that she despises os indignos - "

"What?"

"Os indignos, 'the unworthy'," Machado repeated. "It is her term for what you call Muggles. She hates them for destroying the forest. She wishes to expose the magical community and to rule over the non-magics."

"Sounds familiar," Cassie muttered darkly. "How many people has she killed?"

"Hundreds that I know of," Machado said, his voice trembling slightly. "She gains supporters with every rural village she goes to. Even some of the non-magic citizens sympathize with her. There has been unrest towards those that uproot the trees and creatures that live here for some time. The Ministries across many countries have been working constantly to make sure our world is not exposed, and to try to keep her from murdering even more."

"Where is she now?"

"The last I have heard, she and her disciples were spotted in Piaui. Intelligence at times has been unreliable," he told her. Cassie took a moment, letting everything sink in, and feeling quite indebted toward this man's willingness to answer her questions without pause. It was invigorating, having this open line of communication.

"How powerful is she?" she asked. It was the question she had wanted to ask first, but part of her didn't want to know the answer. Perhaps Dumbledore had kept this witch's existence a secret from her because he knew that Cassie might be in over her head.

"Bruxa má, from what I hear, is not powerful in her own right," he said, but his words were said with a sense of foreboding.

"Then why is she such a threat, Martese? Why hasn't Minister da Gama been able to take her out?"

"Sombria excels in the dark art of Roubando," he replied.

"I'm not familiar with that branch of magic," Cassie told him, as he was looking at her with an air of certitude, assuming that she was versed in this topic. As a child, she had been exposed to some areas of dark magic that most would never even hear of as adults, but this didn't seem familiar to her.

"She absorbs the essence from other wizards and witches," Machado said. "Every time she does it, she grows much stronger."

"That's possible?" Cassie asked, astounded.

"It is a very wicked thing to do," he murmured. "It is not a simple matter of taking a person's power. She must subdue them and take their life."

"So she kills them."

"It is worse than death. Roubando is the practice of entrapping souls." There was a heavy silence between them, the only sounds being the constant chatter from the animals in the surrounding trees. Cassie suddenly felt incredibly despondent. "There is a very real threat while we are in this jungle. I am very sorry that you did not have all the information before coming here, Cassie," Machado said after a time.

Cassie shook her head slightly, trying to rid the disgust that she knew was showing on her face as she looked at him. The antipathy she was feeling at the moment was for someone that was on an entirely different continent, and he had been nothing but decent to her just now. "I'm grateful that I have it now, Martese. Thank you for being honest with me."

She knew she should have sought out Alexander and Romily, so at the very least they would know she wasn't going to be sent home, but her mind was so preoccupied with her conversation with Machado that she didn't have the energy to socialize anymore that night. Her empty hut was her haven, and she laid down on her mattress immediately. As she predicted, sleep did not come easily that night.

The morning came quickly. Viggo, the second term student from Durmstrang, was burdened with fetching his peers yet again, and he alerted Cassie to his presence with three sharp knocks. This time when she opened the door, the look on his severe face betrayed the uneasiness he was feeling.

"Good morning," Cassie greeted him. "Am I to go to The Middle?"

"Yes," Viggo replied quickly. He turned to head towards the next hut, but must have thought better of ending their interaction so hastily. He looked at her intently, and then added, "I liked what you did to the vulgar one last night."

Cassie, feeling quite taken aback, said with a smile, "Oh, thanks!" She watched Viggo go to the next hut, curious to see who her next-door neighbor was. After seeing that it was Romily who answered to Viggo's knocks, she felt even more pleased with how the morning was going so far.

Nonetheless, she was a bit nervous as she made her way towards the largest building. She didn't know how the rest of the pupils were going to react to her after what had happened. Being used to people at Hogwarts feeling anxious around her at baseline, she was expecting the worst. To her pleasant surprise, Viggo's attitude towards the event seemed to be the consensus with most of them, and she was welcomed with small smiles and mutterings of 'good morning' and 'hello', even by the second terms. The only ones that didn't seem sure of her yet, were the three graduates from Koldovstoretz, and they sat huddled together in the corner, isolated from everyone else.

"Glad to see you weren't booted out of here," Alexander told her, a wide grin on his face as he plopped into the chair next to her. "Romily and I weren't sure what was going to happen!"

"Maybe zat would be a record, if you 'ad been kicked out," Romily mused.

"I wasn't in trouble," Cassie reassured them. "Martese just asked that we get along."

"Well," Alexander said, looking over to where the confined trio sat, and Bogdan was openly glaring back, "I don't know that they're going to be agreeable to that anytime soon."

Bwanbale, a fellow first-term student who had made his way over to them, must have been eavesdropping. "Let them act like jerks. It's nine of us against three of them."

"That's great," Cassie said, "But it's more important for all of us to get along. If Sombria comes around, we're going to stand much more of a chance if there's twelve of us unified, rather two small groups that don't trust each other."

Apparently, more than just Bwanbale had been listening to their conversation, because now a group of second term students who had been starting to cook everyone's eggs was openly watching them.

"But she is nowhere near 'ere," Romily protested softly. "Before I came 'ere, my father said she was in Argentina!"

"And Machado told me last night that the last he heard, she was in Piaui. So does anyone really know?" Cassie told her.

"Let's not get worked up," Alexander said, putting his hands up. "We're out in the middle of dense rainforest. How would she even be able to find us? I don't think Martese would even have us out here if he thought we were in any sort of danger."

Cassie was about to correct his naive way of thinking when someone beat her to the punch. "No, Alexander, she is right. Sombria is a real threat," Diego said. "We were lucky that she didn't come across this place or have any interest in Castelobruxo last term, but her followers were spotted in Parintins in January." He looked desolate, and Cassie understood why. From what she had learned of the second term student yesterday, he was from Bolivia. No doubt, he was constantly worrying about the safety of his loved ones back home.

Their somber conversation was interrupted when Machado came in. He greeted them enthusiastically and asked how their nights went, then joined them for breakfast. Cassie didn't doubt for a second that the older wizard had picked up on the sedated mood of the hut but must have chosen to ignore it, instead speaking to his pupils jovially, not hesitating to smile at each and every one of them. Cassie started to wonder if he just liked to avoid unpleasantness, or if he wanted them to stay focused on the day's activities. Either way, she was frustrated that the conversation about Sombria had been completely derailed for the time being.

Their training started with another run to the hidden arena. Cassie had the tiniest hope that lasted for about two seconds, that she would be tripping less on inanimate objects this time around. She was very wrong. The jungle floor was unforgiving and did not exist for ease of humans taking their morning jog through it. The only thing that slightly eased her pain was that the others around her, especially the new students, seemed to stumble and hurt themselves just as much. Alexander, being much taller than her, took a particularly brutal fall and whacked his head so hard on the ground that he seemed dazed afterward. Cassie and Miremba had to heave him to his feet and help him along before they were confident he wasn't going to topple over again.

Knowing it was coming, Cassie tried to ignore the feeling of dread that swept over her as they neared the enchanted area. It was just as unpleasant as the day before, and she hoped it would ease in time. Nonetheless, she made to push through the invisible barrier, but not before she caught the sight of a large boa constrictor hanging on a nearby rubber tree.

She didn't know what made her pause to watch it initially, but she noticed right away that its glassy eyes were fixed on her. Her first thought was that the green and brown pattern that adorned its thick body was quite beautiful, to the point that she was almost mesmerized by it. She nearly told the serpent that, but before the words left her lips, she stopped herself. She didn't want her new peers to distrust her for being a Parselmouth. All her life, the people around her had associated the ability with the dark arts, and she had no reason to believe that these young witches and wizards would judge her any differently. So she tore her eyes away from the reptile and continued on.

While their first day in the arena had been more of a demonstration, today was much more informative of what the term's curriculum would consist of. Machado spoke of the different areas that they would be studying, and Cassie would be first to admit that it was more than she had anticipated. They would be spending much of their time training in the art of dueling, which she had expected, but Machado explained that they would also be practicing the wandless version. The idea thrilled her. She had always been able to cast wandless magic to a certain degree, but never had the chance to really go toe to toe with someone else in a match.

The pupils would also be learning an extensive amount of defensive magic, more specifically in the form of being able to shield a large area with a group of other witches and wizards. Machado didn't have to stress that this was paramount to their safety in case Sombria came calling. Presumably, the dark witch was already on all their minds.

When Machado mentioned instruction in hand-to-hand combat, Cassie heard some muttering among the other first-term students, even as she internally questioned the need for spending time on the skill. But Vitaly distinctly scoffed, which Cassie thought was rather rude.

"Vitaly," Machado said lightly, clearly having heard the irritating feedback as well, "Do you have something you would like to say?"

The dark-haired young man, who sat cross-legged on the ground in between Khristina and Bogdan, folded his arms across his chest when his leader addressed him. "I do not understand why we must learn to fistfight like barbarians."

Machado nodded patiently, as if he had anticipated this remark from him, and then focused his gaze to another. "Miremba," he said, addressing the Ugandan witch now, "Why do I teach you this art?"

"So we can defend ourselves, in the event we are without our magical abilities," Miremba answered him smoothly.

"You have already said you will be teaching us wandless duels," Vitaly countered. "This sounds like a waste of time, in my opinion!"

"I did not say you would be without your wand," Miremba snapped. "Learn to open your ears, arrogant boy!"

At her words, Vitaly sprang to his feet in obvious anger. Miremba, who seemed to be just much of a hot-head, mirrored his actions, and suddenly they were standing inches apart.

"I am with my wand right now," Vitaly seethed through clenched teeth. "Say another word, and I will justify my arrogance!"

Cassie was still seated on the ground next to Romily, calmly observing the scene unfold in front of her. Had Machado not been watching with such a bemused look on his face, she might have been quicker to interfere. But the twinkle in his dark eyes told her he had something in mind, and she was quite willing to be a spectator instead of an instigator right then. Miremba, who had her lips curled into a snarl as she stared at the cocky Russian, also seemed to be able to handle herself.

"There will be no duel now," Machado said calmly. "Miremba, why don't you demonstrate to Vitaly what it is like to be without his magical abilities?"

The witch glanced at Machado briefly, as if to confirm he was actually giving her permission, and then a look of triumph flashed across her features. Before Vitaly had a chance react, the witch had closed the gap between them in a few quick bounds. Pressing her fingers together to a point, she struck at him quickly, hitting him in his wrists, his neck, his spine, and the back of his knees. She moved so fluidly that her limbs were almost a blur as she delivered the blows to Vitaly's body, and then he was on the ground, struggling to catch his breath.

Miremba backed off, taking a little bow towards disoriented Vitaly, and the other second term students clapped. As she went to take a seat on the ground next to Yui, Romily leaned over to Cassie.

"What just 'appened?"

"I have no idea!" Cassie whispered in earnest. Machado reached down to Vitaly, and helped heave him to his feet. The young wizard seemed to wobble a bit as he glared at the group of onlookers around him.

"Now, Vitaly," Machado said. "I invite you to cast whatever spell you wish." Vitaly didn't hesitate, pulling his wand from his pocket. He pointed it at Miremba, who looked absolutely delighted, and tried to clumsily cast a knee-reversal hex. Nothing happened, not even the faintest of sparks forming from his wand.

"What has happened?" he hissed at Machado.

"You are in the presence of two very talented practitioners of Dim Mak," Machado explained, still looking rather pleased with himself. "Miremba and Arvid have perfected their craft while training here."

"Martese, how long will he be without his magic?" Alexander asked. He might have been genuinely interested to know the answer, but Cassie was suspicious that he was looking to rub Vitaly's current shortcomings in his face. She grinned at him without reserve.

"The effects will last for only four to six hours," Machado said. "But you can see how devastating this would be if an enemy was able to gain the upper hand and successfully do this to you." Cassie's smile faded. As pleasing as it was to see Vitaly knocked down a few pegs, the understanding hit her that she would be just as helpless. Suddenly, she was very motivated to learn some magicless fighting techniques.

The orientation continued for some time. Machado spoke of healing charms, of studying local herbology and magizoology. Cassie's mind went to the boa that she had come across on the way into the training area, and whether or not she should hide her ability to speak Parseltongue. Then Machado mentioned making some elixirs, and more specifically some rare antidotes that could be made from the plants found in the Amazon, and she felt a harsh tug in her chest. All it took was picturing a cauldron sitting over a low flame, and she felt a wave of homesickness wash over her. An overbearing desire to see Severus took over every blossoming thought she had in her mind.

Damn it. It was only her second day. She had to keep her agony buried deep down, or she would never be able to stomach being here.

She knew staying busy was the key to making it through this, one day at a time. Fortunately, she had more than enough activity to occupy her time during the day. Mornings always started early, and they followed a routine of making breakfast together, then jogging through the trees to their training spot. That was where the pattern ended, as every day, their lessons were different. Machado seemed to function based on his whims, and within the first week, they had gone over enchanted barriers, wandless healing of injuries, and what local plants could be used for making basic poisons. The instructor remained as buoyant and patient as ever during most of these lessons, always willing to answer the questions that were asked of him, and with a kind smile on his face.

At first, the nights were agonizing for Cassie. She made the mistake of trying to spend them alone in her hut, with little else to do but read through the books she had brought with her, or stare at the closed photo album on the desk from across the room. Knowing it was too soon to open it, it haunted her.

On the sixth night, a blessing in the form of Romily came to her door unexpectedly, asking her if she wanted to join some of the others in The Middle. Machado was giving them the next morning off, so the students were gathering there for a bit of fraternizing. Cassie was surprised to see that some of them were already a little buzzed, having pulled out a large amount of wine from somewhere, and there was lively music thudding throughout the large cabin, the noise having been magically stifled from being heard from the outside so as not to disturb the animals that lived nearby.

"You made it!" Alexander exclaimed with a large grin, his long arm going around Cassie's shoulders as he came over to them. He had a large goblet in his hand, and based on how heavy his eyelids seemed, she suspected he had started in on the wine as well. Cassie noticed that everyone was there, except for the trio from Koldovstoretz.

"Alex, you are already tipsy?" Romily asked, looking amused as the tall wizard wavered a bit.

"It's good wine," he confirmed, taking another sip. Cassie could hardly blame him for starting in so heavily on the booze. They had worked hard all week, and Machado was not showing signs of letting up any time soon. Everyone in the room seemed more than ready for a chance to unwind. Cassie and Romily got their own goblets, and the night promised to be pleasant as they enjoyed each other's company.

Alexander was talking about his family and upbringing on a small dairy farm in Iowa, enthusiastically reminiscing about the day he found out he would be attending Ilvermorny, when Cassie noticed Romily gazing at him rather intently. She didn't know if it was the wine influencing her to think that Romily looked rather enthralled, or if maybe Romily herself was feeling muddled, but Cassie started to wonder if the witch had a crush.

"Alex," Cassie started, pretending to sound very interested all of a sudden, "Do you have a girlfriend waiting for you back in Iowa?"

"There was a girl I was seeing for a time," he said, taking a sip of wine, his green eyes glittering, "But I broke things off before coming here." He didn't sound upset about it in the least. Cassie didn't want to make it too obvious as she tried to observe Romily's reaction in her periphery. She didn't know if it was her imagination, but she could have sworn she saw a faint glimmer of hope radiate on her face. "What about you, Cassie? Do you have a sweetheart waiting for you back in England?"

"Yes," Cassie said. Suddenly, it felt like her little plan to feel out Romily's feeling towards Alex backfired immensely, because now all she could picture was a tall, dark and handsome wizard, and it made her ache with longing.

"Oh," the wizard said then, the gaiety on his face diminishing rapidly as he observed her, "Should I not have brought it up?"

"What?" Cassie asked, shaking her head slightly, trying to rid herself of these sudden forlorn feelings. "No, of course not, it's fine."

"You look like I just kicked a puppy," he told her.

"I just miss him. A lot," she admitted, and Romily reached out to touch her arm, looking nearly as sad as she felt.

"What is 'e like?" Romily asked kindly. Cassie smiled, thankful for her unwavering graciousness. Her first instinct was to gush about the man she loved, but she assumed that Alex didn't want to hear about Severus' tall, broad-shouldered frame, his dark eyes, or his luxurious voice. Those attributes she would reserve for when she was alone with Romily.

"He's absolutely brilliant," she started softly. "Severus is the smartest person I've ever met. And he's blunt and hot-headed, and he drives me insane. But he's my best friend in the entire world."

"Wow, someone is smitten," Alex said, smirking. "What does he do?"

"He's the Potions Master at Hogwarts."

"Oh, 'e is starting there this term?" Romily asked. Cassie started to laugh, knowing that she was assuming that he was just starting in his career.

"No," she said, giggling, "He's been teaching there for over ten years." Romily's eyes went wide, and Alex's maniacal grin returned to his face.

"Cassie, you vixen!" he said, nodding in approval. "Getting down and dirty with the teacher!" With alcohol continuing to coarse through her body, Cassie was laughing even harder.

"Not only that," she said between breaths, "He was my Head of House, as well!" She clapped a hand over her mouth, knowing that her guffaws were probably obnoxious, but it only made Romily and Alex start to laugh along with her. It was sublime, to be able to unwind like this, and she was just starting to feel a sense of normalcy. The mood swiftly changed, however, when Vitaly and his sidekicks finally made an appearance.

The instant tension that formed was obvious, and Cassie saw a few people roll their eyes as they noticed who had come through the door. In the conversations that Cassie had shared with her peers, she knew that they had all hoped Vitaly would come to his senses after Miremba had humiliated him by taking away his magic for several hours. But the event had only seemed to make his nastiness fester, and he insulted any of them at any opportunity, as long as Machado wasn't present. The coward, however, had done nothing outside of taunting the other pupils. Since he hadn't resorted to trying to harm any of them, none of them had retaliated forcibly, all though they all wanted to. Nonetheless, it was a mutual understanding among the academy students, that he was a bug that needed squashing.

"You are having a party, and no one invited us?" Vitaly asked loudly. "Where is the cordiality?"

"It is not much of a party any longer," Viggo said, sighing wearily, downing what was remaining in his cup.

"What is the matter, Durmstrang? Has the booze made your tiny dick go limp?" Vitaly jeered, and Cassie visibly grimaced. It took everything in her not to curse him right, especially feeling as loosened up as she did. Even as she watched the two wizards interact, she felt eyes on her. She knew her peers looked to her to step in and put Vitaly in his place, as she hadn't hesitated to do it before. But she wrestled with the fact that she could cross the line only so many times, and it would be completely disrespectful to Machado's forgiving authority.

"Seriously, Vitaly," Diego interjected, and Vitaly whipped around to lock eyes with his new contender. "Who do you think you are? Do you really think you have the upper hand in a situation like this?"

"My father is associate to Russian Minister for Magic," Vitaly said, puffing out his chest. "I have the upper hand always."

"We are in Amazonas," Romily piped up suddenly, "Your father 'as no authority 'ere, so stop acting like a jackass!"

Cassie was surprised at her outburst, as she was usually so subdued. The alcohol must have made her feel more brazzen, however, and as Vitaly whirled around to face her, Romily was steadfast.

"You know, froggy, I really only came here looking for some action," Vitaly said then, blatantly looking her body up and down. "So tell me, should I bother with you, or has your pussy been tainted by this yankee?" he asked, nodding his head towards Alex. He started to lunge at Vitaly, but Cassie grabbed onto his arm to hold him back. He turned to look at her in exasperation, and she empathized with him at that moment. But she had also seen Romily pull out her wand, and wanted to give the witch a chance to deal with the vulgar wizard on her own.

In the days she had started to train at Academia de Luta, Cassie had been privileged to see the talents that the others possessed. The second term students especially were highly skilled in dueling, able to manipulate their wands in ways that Cassie had only seen in wizards much older. As individuals, everyone seemed to have their own areas in which they seemed to naturally excel. Miremba had demonstrated her skills in Dim Mak, Bwanbale was particularly advanced at wandless magic, and Diego had such an expansive knowledge of the forest that he was like a walking encyclopedia. Their uniqueness was why Machado never followed a decisive lesson plan, and tweaked it on a day to day basis.

Unfornutaley for Vitaly, Romily was very skilled at casting jinxes. It was something he should have known, had he paid attention to something other than his own ego, as she had demonstrated it numerous times in the arena while they all were training. With a quick movement, she sent a jet of yellow light at him, and muffled grunts started to emit from the boy's head. She had sealed his mouth completely shut, to the point that his lips had disappeared from his face. Laughter filled the hut, and Khristina and Bogdan started to move towards Vitaly, but Romily kept her wand raised.

"Do not 'elp!" she snapped. "Vitaly does not deserve it!"

"You will pay, Beauxbatons," Khristina sneered, and at her aggressive words, Yui stepped forward with her wand out, and Miremba did the same. Soon, all nine students had theirs out, pointed at the contemptible trio. Vitaly looked like he was about to cry.

"We don't care who your father is. He holds no power here," Cassie said then, only loud enough to be heard over the music that continued to play. "And I don't care what school any of you graduated from. This is where we are, where we have chosen to be. This shit stops. Now." It was the first time that she ever recalled wishing that someone knew her background, because maybe if this dunce knew who her father was, he would have feared her from the get-go. The fleeting thought made her feel dirty.

As she looked around the room and at the angered faces of her new friends, she knew that she didn't need Vitaly to feel the terror that came with the knowledge of her family tree. Their show of force certainly seemed intimidating enough.

"Shall I release 'im?" Romily asked Cassie quietly as everyone started to put away their wands. It felt strange, having them look to her to call the shots. She shrugged at the brunette.

"It was your jinx, you decide," she said nonchalantly. The devious look on Romily's face told Cassie without words that Vitaly would have to wait before she would allow him to speak such atrocities again.

If Machado had found out what happened that night, he kept it to himself. No one was called into his hut to be scolded, and no punishments were handed out. A sort of harmony settled among the twelve pupils as time went on. Vitaly, while not overtly pleasant with any of them, had stopped going out of his way to offend, and even seemed to put effort into stopping glaring at people when he caught himself doing it. Khristina and Bogdan started to spend less time with him, gradually mingling in with the rest of the group during meal times. Cassie was surprised that Bogdan had a witty sense of humor, and Khristina was actually pleasant to be around when she wasn't influenced by Vitaly.

The grueling training schedule continued on, and Cassie discovered that while she was unrivaled in her natural power, there was much to learn in the art of dueling. Machado had started to match her up with the second term students, as she had blown past the first terms quite easily, and now she was the underdog.

"Brute force will only get you so far!" Machado was saying one afternoon when Miremba had defeated her. He had sprouted a makeshift obstacle course in the arena, one that resembled the jungle that surrounded them, and instructed them to face off, but not harm the fake environment around them. That had proven difficult for Cassie. She accidentally set the imposter trees ablaze, and Miremba had snuck up on her and taken her completely by surprise. "What will you do when you are not facing someone in an open area?"

"Start it on fire and die, apparently," she muttered feebly to herself. She was sitting on the ground and rubbing her wrist, which was now quite tender from the fall she had just taken. Miremba came up to her, healing it with an indifferent wave of her wand.

"And if it is not trees?" Machado continued, ignoring her morbid comment, "If it is buildings that are filled with innocent bystanders?"

"I get it," Cassie said, getting to her feet and cracking her neck. She was already exhausted, but she wanted to do it again. These were skills she hadn't even considered needing, and now she felt desperate to perfect them. "Let's go again."

They did. Again. And again. Cassie almost protested the fact that Miremba was the one that continued to go up against her, as she was clearly much more skilled in this scenario, but she kept her mouth shut. There was clearly a method to Machado's madness. Still, at the end of the day, she left the arena feeling rather dejected, and then she still had to make the trek back to camp.

"You did well, Cassie," Miremba said as they started their journey.

"Yeah? It didn't feel like it," Cassie replied quietly.

"If you excelled in everything already, you wouldn't be here," the witch said. "Mastering these areas takes time and practice."

Cassie pondered these words as they walked, and she knew Miremba was right. She was sore and ready for a good night's rest. However, lately, she was having a much harder time getting to sleep, as she had something she was anticipating. She had been at the academy for almost a month now, and in two days, she would be taking a Portkey back to Hogsmeade. She had confirmed her plans with Severus a week ago, and now she found herself randomly smiling like an idiot at the most inappropriate times. She didn't care.

As much as she enjoyed her new friends, being away from him for this long had been like a form of torture. They could barely even communicate through letters, as mail still had to travel across the ocean between continents before owls could safely fly them to their recipients. Her heart was nearly bursting, she was so excited that she was going to be seeing him soon. She just hoped that the next two days would go by quickly.

"Cassie, you look like shit," Alex observed when she entered The Middle for dinner after taking a quick shower. Romily snorted in laughter.

"Thanks," she said dully. "It's been a long day."

"Yeah, Miremba told us that she kicked your ass," he told her, and Cassie shot a less-than-amused look over at where the older witch was sitting. They locked eyes, and Miremba gave her a cheesy smile and a thumbs up.

Dinner was pleasant, and Cassie left with every intention of going straight to bed when she heard Machado's voice call her name from somewhere on the bridges.

"Yes, Martese?" she said, turning to find him making his way towards her.

"A word, Cassie," he said, gesturing for her to follow him, and she obliged, dragging her tired feet towards his hut. She spared a few seconds wondering what it could be about, but she was so exhausted, she couldn't possibly fathom what it was. After entering, he indicated for her to take a seat, and she plopped herself into one of his comfy armchairs. Her body instantly felt relaxed, and she feared she would have a hard time listening to what he was about to say. "I've been contemplating another area of training for you," he started. Cassie huffed a laugh at him.

"As long as we don't start tonight," she joked lightly.

"Before you agreed to come here, Albus told me a great deal about you," he continued, and Cassie groaned. It had been so refreshing not to be under Dumbledore's influence for the past few weeks. Now Machado was reminding her that it was never really gone. "One of the things that interested me the most was the potential for destruction that rears its head when you lose your temper."

"I wouldn't call it interesting," Cassie replied. "I have to work really hard not to let it get out of control."

"When is the last time that has happened, if you don't mind me asking?"

"That I've lost control and let it demolish my surroundings?"

"Yes."

Cassie blinked, having to think for a few moments. "Never. I guess the worst thing that's happened is I accidentally imploded one of my aunt and uncle's guest houses. They just built a new one."

"But no one has been hurt by it?"

"No," she said, feeling quite grateful for that fact.

Machado's expression was thoughtful as he watched her. "So you've never seen it's true potential, have you?"

"It's not potential, Martese!" she said, getting exasperated.

"That's what you have been taught," he said. "But what I would like to do, if you are willing, is teach you to turn this power into something tangible, something you can control!" He sounded excited about it, like a naive child, and Cassie was feeling defensive.

"Earlier today, you were berating my use of 'brute force'," she said, "And now you want me to be able to call it forward? That doesn't make sense to me."

"I was not berating you, child. Your abilities are astounding. I only wish for you to master different areas, so that you are prepared for multiple scenarios. If you can control this - "

"Whatever this is," Cassie interrupted him, "Because no one else seems to know! What if I can release it, and then it's out of control? Like an Obscurus?"

"You would practice in a controlled environment," Machado said calmly. "Under my supervision, only. If you are agreeable, of course." Cassie was shaking her head, fear gripping her now.

"May I have time to consider it?" she asked quietly after a few moments.

"Yes, Cassie," Machado said. "In fact, use your time at home to think about what I have said."

Cassie left the hut feeling confused and slightly irritated. Now, her happy time with Severus was going to be ruined by worries about this decision, whether or not it was going to influence her ability to defeat her enemies in the future or be a huge mistake. But then she remembered that she still constantly had Sauda Sombria on her mind, and she realized that no matter what, this visit was never going to be free from the realities of the real world. As she entered her bungalow, she eyed the still never-opened picture album on her desk, and her stomach did somersaults when she thought about the fact that she would be seeing Severus in person soon. At the very least, she still had that to look forward to, and that was enough to lull her into a deep, dreamless sleep.