Lorelei recovered first, but Sirius didn’t see her until he was alone by the lake one night. He was keeping himself scarce so that no one would recognize him. Now that there was a plan on how to deal with the Morthahg, the castle was in an uproar. Witches and wizards ran everywhere, helping manage the children or preparing for the spell, or taking shifts keeping the Morthahg busy. It was like an ant hill with pointy hats.

He had no idea who might notice him in the uproar, so he stayed out of sight as much as he was able. It drove him crazy to not know what was going on, though. He hadn’t been able to check on Esme or Harry in days. The infirmary bustled with people. The Morthahg had caused quite a few injuries, and there were several vulpipede bites after a well-meaning soul had decided to move their crates and dropped one. The teachers were watching the students like hawks.

There was nothing for him to do that would help. So, he clenched his teeth and stayed out of the way. The only time he could move around freely was after dark. He sat on a log by the lake with his hands shoved into his pockets and sulked. In the midst of his fuming, he felt an electric tingle burn his fingers. He yelped and yanked his hand free. Two wooden rings fell to the ground. They glowed for a moment in the night, then faded.

Why would Esme give her rings to me?? he wondered madly, staring at them. When did she even manage to get them into my pockets??? He remembered how she had struggled at him when they had lurched out of the lake. But it still didn’t explain why. He picked them up carefully, expecting to be burned again. They were pleasantly cool. He put them back in his pocket just as a hopeful voice called out Esme’s name.

Lorelei came through the trees on a broom. Her eyes were hidden behind her dark glasses, so it was hard to tell her expression. Disappointment was clear in her voice when she spoke again, though.

“Why would she give those rings to YOU?” she asked.

“How did you know?” Sirius was too wary of her turning on him as she had her sister to be insulted. There was no real sign of insanity in her now. She landed primly and tucked the broom under her arm.

“I was trying to find Esme by tracking her magic,” she sighed. “Most magic-users are never without their wands, so I thought it would lead me to her.”

“Why would they have moved her to the lake?” he asked sarcastically. She took off her sunglasses to pierce with a scarlet stare.

“You really don’t know?” she asked him softly. “They’ve moved her somewhere. She can’t be allowed near the other patients in the infirmary because she’s infected again. The Bind has her.” Sirius felt himself pale.

“How did that happen?” he asked, stepping closer to Lorelei. He was tall enough that she had to lift her chin to look him in the eye. The movement made the bite scar on her neck visible. She inhaled through her nose for a moment and then sighed it back out.

“She tried to drown me,” she said. “To put me close enough to death to drive the Bind out. She held me under until it left me and sucked it into herself. That’s all I remember until I woke up in the infirmary. They let me see her once. It’s worse this time. Before, the Bind was just a tool to keep her obedient. It was made of Brohm’s awareness and now that it’s all that’s left of him, it is all the more desperate to take control of its host. Luckily, she was so badly hurt that it has to concentrate on healing her body before it can do anything else.”

“Luckily,” repeated Sirius a little incredulously.

“She had been Crucio-ed, run up and down this place, fought Ficus, had her arm broken, fought ME, nearly drowned, fought the merfolk, and half-frozen,” Lorelei went on. “On top of that, Madame Pomfrey says she’s no food or sleep for days... And I’ve been poisoning her...”

“What??” Sirius howled. She glared at him, but took a step back too.

“Brohm will heal her body and have her on the loose again in no time,” she said, gripping the broom in both hands as if to keep him back with it. “Do you think a vampire will care if the Morthahg destroys us all? He’ll use Esme’s body to feed and grow strong enough to contact a Dark Wizard with the power to make him a new body that he likes.

“Severus had been helping me with the poison. The Bind won’t let her die, but fighting the poison will keep it too busy to attack the rest of us.” Lorelei started to crumble, pulling the broom close to her chest. “They’ve taken my wand! I don’t know what else to do! The Elmskill staff blames her for Ficus’ death, and the Morthahg. They’ve sent for the High Judges, and if THEY decide Esme had anything to do with Dark Magic, she will face execution!”

“They’d kill her??” sputtered Sirius. “They thought I killed thirteen people and all I got was prison!”

“Tampering with the Morthahg is high treason,” she said. “Releasing it is punishable by death.”

“Wouldn’t the Bind save her from execution?”

“It won’t wait that long. As soon as it burns up the last of the poison and heals Esme, it will be on the loose. Once Brohm gets a new body, it’s hard to say what he’ll do to Esme’s.... A vampire hunter would quite the prize for a lord vampire...”

“Can’t you remove the Bind?”

“I have to find her first! And if the Bind is removed while the poison is still in her, she’ll die! And if the poison wears off before the Bind is gone, it will have her on the move for Brohm’s home!”

“How would he get home?” Sirius asked with a sudden misgiving.

“The same way he got here, I assume,” Lorelei said, not following him. “The World’s Door.” She jerked as that thought sank in. “You still have it, don’t you??”

“I gave it to Harry!” he realized outloud. They both stared at each other for a second of horror, then sprinted for the castle. Next