My thumb brushed over the frayed edge, the blue cover still faintly warm as though it had been waiting for me all along.
For a moment, I almost gave in to the urge to open it right there.
Almost.
I tightened my grip around it.
"Not yet," I said quietly.
Slythra blinked at me. "You're… not going to open it?"
" No. I need Toby and Sylv with me."
She thought about it for a moment, then nodded.
We turned back toward the mouth of the cave. The air grew lighter as we walked, the heavy stone scent giving way to something fresher.
And then, light.
Blinding at first, streaming in, bright enough that I had to cover my eyes with my arm.
I blinked.
It was morning.
When we arrived, it had been deep night, stars crowding the sky.
Somehow, without realizing it, the dark had unraveled into dawn.
They must be worried. I'd been gone for hours… and they had no idea what had happened inside.
"They'll be outside," I said.
And sure enough, they were.
Toby was the first I saw, pacing in the grass, shoulders tight, jaw clenched.
The moment his eyes landed on us, all that tension broke.
He came striding forward, his pace fast.
"Do you know how long it's been? Hours. I was about to come in after you."
Before I could answer, Sylvie came flying at me. Her arms locked around my neck as I caught her, nearly stumbling back from the force of it.
"I was so worried!" she said, her voice muffled against me.
I steadied her, brushing a hand over her hair. "It's alright. I am here. I am alive."
Toby reached us by then, his eyes flicking between me, Slythra, and the diary in my hand. "What happened in there?"
I drew in a slow breath. "Everything. I'll tell you everything. But first we should go to the cottage, and sit around. This might take some time. "
----
After arriving, I told them everything.
What I had seen. What I had felt. What Slytherin had left behind.
By the time I finished, Toby's face had gone pale, his lips pressed tight.
Sylvie was sitting to my left, and Toby and Slythra standing behind me.
Sylvie was staring at Slythra, her eyes shining.
"So… are we sisters now?" she asked.
I glanced at Slythra and caught the pressure in her posture, as if the question weighed more than it should.
My five year old never failed to corner people with the simplest of her words.
"Yes. Kind of. If you don't want me, or if y- "
"Woah!" Sylvie burst in before she could finish. "That's so cool. I have a big sister, and she's strong, and huge, and a wolf."
A flicker of astonishment crossed Slythra's face.
Then relief.
I could see it plain as day... a weight lifting from her shoulders.
" Sirius " Toby's voice cut through my thoughts, heavier than I expected.
I turned to him. His eyes weren't on me, but on the diary in my hand, and then they flicked toward Slythra.
There were complex emotions buried underneath them, emotions I couldn't quite understand.
I didn't need to ask why. He was close to my mother, very much so. It was only natural that he wanted to know about the content.
"Maybe… maybe we should open it. See what she left inside."
There was a tightness in his tone, eagerness wrapped in caution, a thread of tension running through every word.
His gaze lingered on the blue cover as if it held answers he'd been waiting on for years and maybe... it did.
My hand tightened on the diary.
For a moment, I felt the weight of it pressing down on me, as though the leather itself carried my mother's last breath.
I met Toby's gaze and gave a slow nod.
"Yes. It's time."
Just as I was about to open the diary, Slythra's voice cut through the silence.
"Wait."
I turned, "What is it?"
Her ears twitched, claws scraping lightly against the stone. She looked as if she was embarassed, "I… I think it's time I take my human form."
Sylvie blinked in confusion. "Human form? What does that even mean?"
I answered before Slythra could. "Guardians, beasts like her… they can shift. They have their true form that is stronger, but it drains them. Human form is weaker, but easier to keep. Less mana to burn through. Though it needs practice to maintain at start. "
Toby's voice came in then, low but steady. "And it was more than convenience, once. Long ago, guardians took human form to walk among people. To blend in, even to infiltrate enemy lines when war demanded it. Diplomacy, survival sometimes both."
"Why now?" I asked her quietly. "Why do you feel you should?"
For a moment she didn't answer. Her gaze dropped to the ground, then lifted, meeting mine.
"I don't want to feel different anymore," she whispered. "Not from you, not from Sylvie, not from the others. If I'm going to stay with you… then I want to belong. At least a little."
" Slythra. " I spoke, my voice warm, " Whichever form you take, remember you are my daughter now. It doesn't matter much. But if you feel like doing it, i won't stop either. Go ahead. "
She nodded and a faint light stirred in the air around her, then thickened, curling like smoke.
Within moments a silver cloud wrapped around her whole body.
It wasn't blinding, like fire but more like mist.
Seconds stretched, then a full minute passed. Her outline wavered within it.
It was my first time seeing something like that.
"I… I feel sleepy…" her voice drifted out, drowsy.
My brows shot up. "Sleepy? In the middle of- "
Toby cut me off with a calm shake of his head. "Don't fret, it's normal. She is just young. Transforming takes strength, and it pulls at them the first few times. Her body isn't used to it yet."
I frowned, still uneasy, but forced myself to trust his words.
The silver haze pulsed once more, then began to thin.
When it cleared, she was standing there.
Not a wolf, not a guardian beast... but a human girl.
Her silver hair fell loose to her shoulders, catching the faint sunlight.
Eyes as blue as glacial water blinked at me, still hazy with weariness.
She wore a simple one piece dress, pale and plain, reaching just below her knees.
Fifteen, maybe. Still young, just a child.
I let out a breath I hadn't known I was holding.
" How... How do I look? " She asked, her eyes darting around.