Imperium - t.r.

Chapter Thirty-Five: Return Home

When Dumbledore apparated them to Hogsmeade, it was in the afternoon. Gazing up at the majestic old castle filled to the brim with magic and warmth, a weight lifted off of Anastasia's shoulders. Looking over at Jasper, she noticed that he had a similar reaction, but emptier in a way.

"Come on you two," Dumbledore sighed. "Let's go."

"Is Jeremy not coming back?" Anastasia inquired.

"No," Dumbledore replied gravely. "He was killed during the raid."

"What?"

"I'm sorry you had to find out this way," Dumbledore answered. "I didn't know you were close."

"We weren't. I'm just surprised is all," Anastasia said numbly. So she and Jasper were the only survivors. Somehow, Jeremy's death didn't have that same sting that Sadie's and Angelo's did. Almost like a distant relative passing, familiar and cordial, but not much of an attachment.

They trudged up to the castle's doors. As they walked through the halls, students would stare at them and whisper.

"Weren't there five of them?"

"They're back already?"

"Is it all over?"

"Why are they here?"

With each overheard question, rage bubbled in Anastasia's chest. She had to restrain herself from casting a mass hex on the entire hallway. After a while, she parted with Jasper since her dormitory was in the dungeons and his was in Gryffindor Tower. She had no idea what she looked like, but she didn't care. She trudged into the Slytherin Common Room, ignoring the stares and making a beeline towards the Prefect's Annex.

"Anastasia?" Tom's voice inquired behind her. Her eye twitched, but she faced him anyway.

"Tom?" she replied.

"How are you?"

"I just got back from a literal warzone," she snapped. "What do you think?"

"Don't snap at me."

"Let me have some breathing room, then."

Gazing over at Rosier, she noticed him glaring at her with a glimmer of contempt in his eye. Wow, that's a total turnaround from when I left. What happened there? Too tired to care, she opened the door to her cold dormitory. Sighing, she flicked her finger towards the furnace and plopped herself on the couch as it ignited into a billowing flame. With a "come-hither" motion, a glass and bottle of Knotgrass Mead was magically pulled into her hand. Sighing and pouring herself a glass, she gazed at the fire, slowly sipping it. Memories of the man in the cave, the destruction of the camp, Sadie, and Angelo rushed to the forefront of her thoughts. Looking away abruptly, she picked up her beat-up copy of The Hobbit, her comfort novel. She could use a calming story right about now.

A knock on the door sounded and she was rudely reminded of the fact that she left the door open.

"What did I say about breathing room?" she snapped.

"O-Oh... I'm sorry, I'll come back later," the awkward voice of Uriah mumbled.

"Wait! Wait," she sighed. "It's just you. Come on in, I thought you were Tom for a second."

"Well, just us," Juniper smiled awkwardly, making herself known from behind Uriah.

"Yeah, no problem," Anastasia said, beckoning them in. They sat next to Anastasia with eager eyes.

"How was it?" inquired Juniper.

"Why does everyone keep asking me that?" Anastasia sighed. "I just got back from a warzone that I'd been stuck in for four months–maybe five–half of my friends are dead, it wasn't some great adventure."