Ever since she had heard the news that the three muggleborn students had gone missing, she had been incredibly worried. The loon - for she believed it to be they who was guilty - had reached Hogwarts. Not only had they reached it, but they had violated it by the worst means possible. Kidnapping students threatened the entire school. Parents would no doubt want to take their kids away from the dangers immediately. She hadn't heard anything yet, but she suspected that parents of muggleborns would want to do so immediately. Then again, muggles may not have been aware of what was happening exactly? She believed the Headmaster would have to tell them if their children were in danger.



Phineas had called a meeting for all of the staff members to attend - including Violet. He had scheduled a time when a group of staff were to patrol the outside of the castle. They were to make sure no one entered but most importantly, that there weren't any students who tried to sneak out. Violet was one of the first people on the schedule. She was quite frightened about it, since she wasn't sure what she might do if she ran into the loon. Would the right spells come to her mind? She didn't voice her concerns however, as she did not want to appear weak in the eyes of her colleagues.



At least the day was nice. The sunshine spoke of spring. It was a nice relief from what had seemed like the endless amount of rain they had just received. It did little to calm her nerves however, and her wand was clutched to her chest so tightly that her freckled knuckles had turned white. Just as she passed by a group of tall bushes near the end of the castle, she heard them rustle around - as if someone were behind them. Her stomach flew into her throat. Trembling, she inched over, clutching her wand even more tightly. "Who.. who-who's th..there?" She asked in what was supposed to have been a demand, but was much more of a squeak.

Violet nearly squeaked again when the person responded - she recognized him immediately and felt relief begin to surg through her. If there was anyone at all that she wanted to see it was Professor Valentine, the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. He wasn't meant to patrol until evening, but she wasn't about to complain. The hold on her wand loosened and her knuckles regained their color as she lowered it from under her chin to chest level. She was still rather on edge from the entire ordeal. Just as she was about to speak to him, and apologize for rudely directing her wand toward him, she was bumped firmly into. It made her squeal like a young girl and spin around, grasping her wand tightly once more towards her own chin.



Herbs were scattered on the ground as well as Miss Beechworth. Again, she felt relief. Neither of the two were dangerous, which was nice. Violet's heart thrashed in her chest. It was quite noisy and she wondered whether the other staff members could hear it.



"Oh Chess, I'm terribly sorry," She said as she bent to help her friend collect the herbs, "I didn't realize you were there. I've been placed on the first watch and I really ought to pay more attention to things..." It was then that she remembered she had not yet greeted the Professor, and she straightened, with herbs in her hands, in order to properly greet him. "Good morning, Mr. Valentine," She said, her cheeks a bright red, "I apologize for pointing my want at you... I had thought that it might have been..." She paused, suddenly feeling anxious again as she thought of it, unaware that she had begun to twist the herbs that were in her hands.