Squib On The Run (sequel to Squib In The basement)

21. Little Detectives

Cassiopeia was not in any way suprised that she was not invited back to the Malfoy Manor in the weeks that followed, since she hadn't behaved very well when she was last there. But since she hated seeing Lucius, she wasn't upset about not being invited to his domain.
When the school term came to an end, Cassiopeia was very excited as it meant she could see Harry again.
And despite the risks, she headed to King's Cross, so that she could see Harry the moment he got off the train.
Her disguise wasn't perfect, but since no one was actively looking for her, she wasn't that worried about being out in public.

When Cassiopeia saw Harry say goodbye to his friends, she crept up behind him, grabbed hold of his wrist, and pulled him behind a pillar.
"What the- Cee, it's you!" Exclaimed Harry.
"Did you miss me?" Asked Cassiopeia.
Harry responded by throwing his arms around her, and hugging her tight.
"Of course I did" answered Harry.
"I missed you too" smiled Cassiopeia as she released him.

"I didn't expect to see you here today. I thought it was too risky for you to be here, around so many witches and wizards" admitted Harry.
"It is risky, but you are worth the risk, little one. And after the year you've had, I thought you could do with seeing a familiar happy face, before you get stuck with the Dursleys all summer" replied Cassiopeia.
"You're right, the past year hasn't exactly been easy for me" sighed Harry.
"I know. But I want you to know that I am extremely proud of you"
"You are?"
"Of course. You solved the Chamber of Secrets mystery afterall".

"But how do you know what I've done? I haven't written to you in weeks. I haven't told you about the Chamber of Secrets stuff yet, so how do you know that I figured it out?" Quizzed Harry.
"Because, I still have contacts in the wizarding world. And I happen to know that put Lucius Malfoy in his place, which is something I am very happy about. You also freed Dobby, which was a very kind thing to do" replied Cassiopeia.
"But none of this is public knowledge, so how do your contacts know this?" Asked Harry.
"My contacts have access to Lucius Malfoy himself. So I found all of this information out from him"
"Do you know a lot about the Malfoys then?"
"You could say that"
"Then you knew that Dobby served the Malfoy family, all along"
"I did".

Harry frowned, "Then why didn't you tell me?".
"Lucius Malfoy is a dangerous man, and I didn't want you getting involved with him. Besides, knowing that he was someway involved, wouldn't have helped you solve the mystery. For Lucius was not the heir of Slytherin" replied Cassiopeia.
"No, he was not, it was Vol- You-Know-Who" said Harry.
"And how exactly did you figure it all out?" Questioned Cassiopeia.
"Well, it wasn't easy. I ended up talking to Moaning Myrtle, one of the Hogwarts ghosts, who was killed by the monster 50 years ago, and I figured out where the entrance to the Chamber was. But once I entered the Chamber, it was kind of guess work from there on. I didn't even know You-Know-Who was involved, until I meant the younger version of him, and I ended up killing him with a Basilisk fang".

"Quite the little detective, aren't you" praised Cassiopeia.
Harry blushed, "It wasn't just me. I couldn't have done it without Ron and Hermione's help".
"Alright, you're a group of little detectives then... And although I'm very proud of you, I'm worried about what the future holds for you, if you keep up this detective habit. First the Philosopher's Stone and now the Chamber of Secrets. Every year you up the anti, and make me worry about you. I need you to try and get through your third year without solving any dangerous mysteries" pleaded Cassiopeia.

"Trust me, there is nothing I want more, than a quiet life... But I can't make you any promises that I won't get involved in something dangerous, ever again. Because if my friends, and my school are in trouble, then I will do whatever I can to make things right" announced Harry.
Cassiopeia sighed, "That's just the kind of thing your dad would have said".
"Am I a lot like him then?" Asked Harry.
"Yes, you are"
"You say that like it's a bad thing"
"That's because your father's loyalty to his friends, is the reason he is no longer with us. And I don't want you to make the same mistakes that he did, because I don't want you to end up dead like him".

"Me and my friends are super close. I know that they would never betray me" insisted Harry.
"Your father and his friends were as close as brothers, yet one of them still betrayed him to the dark lord and got him killed" replied Cassiopeia.
"The dark lord?" Frowned Harry.
"Sorry, force of habit, I mean You-Know-Who. And I'm sorry if I sound harsh Harry, but I'm just trying to keep you safe, so that you don't end up like your parents"
"Yeah, I know".

Cassiopeia sighed, "We should probably return you to the Dursleys, so they don't get their hopes up and think that you've decided to stay at Hogwarts during the summer".
"I wish I could do that" mumbled Harry.
"You only have to do this for a few more years, and then you'll be old enough to make your own decisions" reminded Cassiopeia.
"I look forward to the day when I don't have to go back to Privet Drive any more... You're still going to visit me this summer aren't you?"
"I'll see you every day if you like"
"Maybe not every day... How about a couple of times a week?"
"Sounds good to me".