The first thing Cassia was aware of when they landed was the sea.

They were on a beach somewhere. It was cold, and windy, and wet, but... it felt safe enough. Cassia felt safe enough.

"C-Cassia?" Then Harry came into focus above her, saying her name. "Cass, it's alright, it's alright, we're safe now. Cassia, are you alright? You look-"

"Terrible?" Cassia muttered as she raised her eyebrows, trying to mask how many emotions she was feeling by using humour. "If I'm honest, you've looked better as well, Potter. Hotter, too."

Harry looked down at her, unsure of whether to laugh or cry. She looked terrible, and both of them knew they'd have to speak about this some time in the future, but for now, they just stared at each other.

Until-

"Harry... Potter."

Shit.

Harry looked up, his eyes going wide when he saw something.

"C-Cass, it's Dobby," he said to her, his eyes flitting all over his face. "I- I need-"

"Go to him," Cassia murmured. "He needs you as much as I do, Harry."

But as he left, pressing with his lips the promise to come back on her forehead, Cassia realised that that wasn't true.

Because she needed Harry way more than she'd ever let on.

❦︎❦︎❦︎

Not before long, the whole thing unraveled.

Dobby was dead. He'd been killed by Bellatrix, who had thrown her dagger into the mix when they'd disapparated. Harry had dug him a grave, and now spent most of his time out there, sitting in front of it.

It'd only been a couple of hours since they'd landed on the beach, but in that time, Cassia had learned that they were at Bill and Fleur's house, Shell Cottage. It was safe, protected by the same spells Grimmauld Place was. Cassia felt safe within it.

She hadn't seen Harry much since he'd left her to try and save Dobby. She hadn't seen anyone, actually. She'd taken Bill up on his offer of a shower, and had spent a good forty five minutes in there. Aside from that, she'd been with Fleur, who'd given her treatment for all her injuries.

However, eventually she realised that she needed to do it.

So, in the middle of a conversation between Ron and Bill, a conversation she wasn't part of, but was sitting in on, Cassia murmured. "I'm, er... I'm going to see Harry."

Her legs felt like jelly as she got up out her chair, heading out the house and onto the beach, up to the dune where Harry was sat, sitting in front of Dobby's grave.

Cassia took a chance to look at it before she even spoke to him.

HERE LIES DOBBY
A FREE ELF

Her lips twitched as she saw that, turning her attention to Harry, who still hadn't noticed she was there.

"Got room for one more?" She joked feebly, making him turn.

He took her in yet agaj , looking at her and checking again if she was alright.

"Of course," he said, outstretching an arm to her. Cassia hesitantly walked forward, sitting down on the sand next to him, leaning her head on his shoulder.

Then, next second, she was crying. She hadn't suspected it, or really thought about it, but suddenly tears were streaming down her face and she was sobbing hard, completely torn up.

"I'm sorry," she sobbed into Harry's shoulder, her chest heaving. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so so sorry-"

"Cassia..." Harry said, lifting her head so he could look her in the eyes. However, her eyes flitted down to his lips the next second, and so did his with hers.

And then they were kissing, and it was the first time in about a year, and Cassia's brain was going haywire as her tongue slipped into his mouth, her lips tasting salty from the tears-

"I'm sorry," she repeated in a whisper as they pulled apart.

"Don't say sorry," Harry whispered back, his forehead pressed to hers. "Don't say sorry, Cass. Not for this, and not for anything that happened last year, either."

"But I knew," a single tear leaked down Cassia's cheek. "I knew, Harry, and I betrayed you. And I gave Katie the necklace and I knew about the poisoned mead and Christmas was excruciating and I shouldn't have dated you, because I felt so guilty, and I'm such a coward, I know, and I should've confessed in person, not in a letter, but I just couldn't because I felt so so-"

Before she could ramble her way into a full blown panic attack, Harry kissed her again. It was softer this time, and gentle.

"I forgive you," he told her firmly, looking her in the eyes as they pulled away again. "I can't even imagine how hard that must have been for you, Cass, and I completely understand. I know you said in your letter that you wished you'd told me, but I don't, because it would mean you weren't here right now, and I couldn't live without you."

Cassia stared at him with wide eyes. "Y- you remember that from the letter?" She asked hesitantly, eyes welling up.

"Of course," Harry nodded, his own eyes going glassy. "In fact, I've read it so many times I could probably recite it off by heart by now."

He chuckled slightly, and Cassia's lips twitched as a tear fell down slowly.

"I'm still sorry," she said weakly. "Y-you don't understand how guilty I was feeling, Potter, I just- I just couldn't tell you. And I- I know I'm a coward and I'm a terrible person, but I just- I need to tell you I'm in love with you."

Harry was looking straight at her, into those beautiful eyes. Cassia almost sobbed at the expression on his face, but stayed strong as he looked at her, murmuring. "Say it again."

Cassia took a deep breath. "I love you."

And this time, when they kissed, the feeling of guilt disappated. As Cassia moved her hands up to his neck, into his hair, she started to feel like there was maybe a light at the end of this tunnel.

Maybe she wasn't a terrible person, after all.

It was in that moment she realised what had been holding her back. All this time, she'd been taking in forgiveness from those that hadn't really understood. That hadn't felt her pain.

But when she looked at Harry, who knew her, who understood her, who saw her... she knew he understood.

And his forgiveness meant more to her than she could ever say.

It meant she could finally start to forgive herself.

"So, I've, er..." Harry trailed off, took a deep breath and then continued. "I've heard that... Hogwarts isn't really like Hogwarts anymore."

Cassia didn't want to talk about this. She didn't wanna relive the events of the past nine months, she didn't want to have to tell anyone about it, and she didn't want to act like she was the hero, because in this story, she believed, she was simply the villain that saw the light.

But this was Harry.

This was different.

"You can say that again," she sighed, squeezing her eyes shut.

"Cass, I... I know I shouldn't be asking, but-"

"It's terrible," Cassia interrupted him, knowing what he was going to ask. And then she was speaking at a hundred miles per hour, words tumbling out her mouth. "Snape's headmaster, and even though we hardly ever see him, he still sits up there in his office. In Dumbledore's office. And he's got two new teachers in, Amycus and Alecto Carrow, and they're fucking death eaters, and they're horrible, and-"

"Cass," Harry turned to his girlfriend, taking her hands in his. "Breathe, please. Slowly."

Cassia looked at him, her eyes widening as she tried to breathe with him. When her breathing was finally at a normal rate, Harry murmured. "Continue."

"Alecto teaches muggle studies," Cassia informed him, her voice wobbly. "We have to listen to her tell us that muggles are dirty and stupid and like animals, and that they drove wizards into hiding," she looked at him. "She mentioned you one time, said you were a half blood and insulted you, that's how I got this."

She pointed to her earliest slash, which had now faded into a small scar.

"Oh my god..." Harry looked at her. "Sh- she hurt you?"

Cassia nodded, biting her lip. "She- she does that to anyone that disobeys her, but that's not the worst part."

Harry stared at her, frowning heavily.

"Amycus, her brother, teaches defence against the dark arts," Cassia said, her heart thundering in her chest as she tried to keep the tears down. "A-and he teaches us the cruciatus curse. O-on one of the first lessons he got me up in front of the class and did it on me-"

She stopped for a second, covering her mouth as a sob wracked her body. She could still remember being up in front of the class, getting the cruciatus curse performed on her twice.

"Oh, Cassia..." Harry said, pulling her into him.

But Cassia wasn't finished.

"A-and he made us perform it on toads, and Poppy and I refused and he- he-" she heaved a breath in as she spoke into Harry's chest. "He made me do it on her."

She could still remember the look in Poppy's eyes... the fear in her face...

"Cass, that's not right," Harry shook his head. "Is that all they-?"

"No," Cassia shook her head. "No, there was, er... there was another thing. Just one. And I... I need you to not speak until I've finished."

"Okay," Harry nodded, taking her hands again.

Cassia took a deep breath, and began.

"Um... this only happened a few weeks ago, actually, and... right, Amycus had given four first years detention and then dragged them to our classroom," Cassia took a shaky breath. "I actually knew one of the first years. She'd come to me the week before and I'd helped her."

She looked down, not meeting his eyes.

"And I, um... I was asked to torture her," she was squeezing his hands tightly, but he didn't seem to mind. "Obviously I wasn't going to, but... I have to admit, I didn't handle it the best."

Harry stayed silent, looking at her, his heart aching as tears fell down her face.

"I crucioed him," she said, still looking down, shaking her head. "Listen, I... I know it was idiotic, but... in that moment, it was worth it."

She screwed her face up, not sure how ready she was to recount this.

"They punished me by trapping me in a room," Cassia's whole body was shaking, now. "It was horrible. It had white walls, and no furniture, and... I was there for six days."

Harry wanted to yell. He wanted to yell, and to scream, and to apparate to Hogwarts and punch Amycus and Alecto Carrow a thousand times each. He wanted them hurt, he wanted them dead. He knew he was getting caught up in himself, but he couldn't help it.

They'd hurt Cassia.

They'd hurt his Cassia.

His girl.

His girl that he finally had back. And he wasn't letting go ever again.

Cassia took a big gulp before continuing. "I didn't really know what was happening by the end of it, I'll be honest, but... when I was released, it was... it was Amycus that came in."

She was shaking, holding onto Harry. She wasn't ready to tell him this.

She forced herself to look into his eyes as she cried harder and harder, sobs still wracking her body.

"I- I can't explain this properly, but-" she shook her head. "He touched me."

Harry's whole body froze.

He just went numb. His hands fell from hers to clench into fists, his arms shaking from how hard they were folded.

Touched her.

Amycus had touched her.

He'd layed his hands on her. He'd layed his hands on her in ways that only Harry was allowed to.

"H-he didn't rape me," Cassia bit her lip. "B-b-but he would've, had I not escaped."

She took a chance to look at Harry, at his clenched fists, his frozen form, his angry face.

"A-are you okay?" Cassia asked him.

Harry took her face in his hands, which were gentle as ever, despite the fact he wanted to rip Amycus to pieces with them.

"You didn't deserve that," he told her simply. "You're the best person I know, Cassia Malfoy, and I love you, don't ever forget that. I-I'm gonna fucking kill Amycus for even thinking of doing that to you."

"Yeah, well," Cassia pressed her lips together. "When I go back to Hogwarts, he'll be after someone else, so I'll have to protect th-"

"You're going back to Hogwarts?"

Harry's face was surprised, to say the least. He looked sad, and scared, and a tiny bit annoyed.

"Well... I have to," Cassia told him. "I can hardly do anything else."

Harry looked from her, to Dobby's grave, then back to her.

Then he just came out with it.

"You could come with us."

Cassia looked at him, frowning.

"But... I don't know what you're doing, I don't know where you've been..." Cassia shook her head. "I don't even know what your mission from Dumbledore was, and I know you're not allowed to tell me."

Harry was shaking his head.

" 'You should be able to tell Cassia, but not until I tell you'," he repeated. "That's what Dumbledore told me, when I asked about you. And now we both know why. Because he knew about your plan and didn't want Voldemort to foil ours."

Cassia looked at him in shock.

"He really said that?" She asked in surprise.

"Yeah," Harry nodded. "Listen, Cass, we'll tell you what's happened, where we've been, and what's going on, but first I need to talk to Ron and Hermione, and then Ollivander and Griphook."

"Griphook?" Cassia frowned.

"The goblin," Harry explained, beginning to get up. "All I know is, I'm not letting you go back to Hogwarts, never in a million years."

Cassia couldn't resist chuckling as he helped her up, putting his arm around her waist to lead her back to the cottage.

"All these years behind us, Potter, and you still think you can boss me about."