Author's Note:

Round 9: Gear Up

Team: Pride of Portree

Position: Beater 2

Equipment: Bludger: Write about a witch or wizard being attacked. (This could be anything from being bullied to a Death Eater raid to a swarm of Cornish pixies surrounding a character—again, use your imagination.)

Prompts used:

5. (song) Hall of Fame - The Script

6. (restriction) no using ?

Word Count: _2404_ excluding Author's Note

Additional author's note: Some liberties have been taken with the timeline. The book "Quidditch Through the Ages" states that Meaghan McCormack is the current keeper for Pride of Portree but since the book is set one year before Harry Potter comes to Hogwarts, this would mean that she didn't start playing on the team until 1997 and thus for the purposes of this story was not mentioned in the first edition of the book, but added in a later one. (The real book published in 2001 would have to be an updated version anyway, because it mentions events that took place in 1993 and 1994 and thus could not have been the same edition given to Harry in 1991.)

In addition, the word Mandrake is capitalized in this story, because it was capitalized in "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets".

Finally, I dedicate this story to the Queen of the Underworld despite her being such a nitpicky nitpicker.

No Questions Asked

"I still don't understand why I have to do this." Meaghan McCormack tucked her hands in her cloak and tried to hide the tiny sliver of fear in her voice. "It's silly."

"It is a time-honored tradition. If you want to be a real Slytherin, then you are going to have to go through with this." Marcus Flint placed a hand on her shoulder in what seemed like an attempt to reassure, but his grin said otherwise. "Besides, you're the daughter of the fearless Catriona McCormack and we are merely asking you to conquer one greenhouse. What could possibly go—"

"I swear, if you finish that sentence, I am going to hex your lips on backwards." She said it with more confidence than she had. After all, it was unlikely she'd ever even manage to draw her wand before he had her disarmed. Still, Meaghan shook her head. In her experience, if anyone asked that question, everything was bound to go wrong, and in ways that one could not possibly have anticipated, too.

The boy merely shrugged and handed her a pair of pink fluffy earmuffs. "Off you go then; bring me back the proof you're a snake!"

Meaghan sighed and placed the ugly objects carefully over her ears. She gave Marcus one last glare, but the boy merely sent her a cheeky smile, picked a blade of grass from the ground and stuck it between his teeth as he leaned against the castle wall, waiting. It was clear that there was no getting out of it. With a huff she nodded and turned towards the greenhouse again.

Damn Flint and his games! She should have walked away right then and there. Except this was now about honor. Marcus had assured her that all the Slytherins were issued a similar task during their first year to prove that they belonged in their House. He'd proudly talked about sneaking a niffler into Professor McGonagall's office as his task. According to him, not even Professor Snape had managed to trace it back to him. It was just something that had to be done.

Meaghan really wished that her challenge was something other than breaking into the greenhouse and stealing a Mandrake of all things. She couldn't for the life of her even figure out why someone would need a Mandrake. It didn't exactly make for a nice houseplant.

Her fear of topiary in particular and plants in general was, of course, very unbecoming for a girl whose mother professionally played one of the most dangerous sports known to man. Or maybe it made sense. The McCormacks liked to soar above nature, not muddle through it. Besides, this was a second year greenhouse; she didn't even know the names of half the plants. She'd have gladly snuck a dozen nifflers into Hogwarts instead of roaming around in a greenhouse at night. Still, if Marcus told her to do it, it had to be doable. In any case, he'd assured her that these Mandrakes were young and their screams were not nearly as dangerous as those of the fully mature plants.

Even though she'd left him behind, Meaghan could almost feel Marcus's glare on the back of her neck and realized she had to stop stalling. She imagined his voice in her head: "Better go quick, before Filch comes on his rounds again. You wouldn't want to find yourself hanging from the ceiling by your ankles or wrists, firstie."

Meaghan was fairly sure that Filch wasn't allowed to do that to students. Nevertheless, it was better to be safe than sorry.

The door fell open against Meaghan's light touch and she cautiously stepped into the greenhouse. Inside, it was illuminated only by moonlight. She didn't dare cast lumos, her previous attempts having been less than ideal. Her first attempt was so bad that it left her with a glowing hand for three hours. The lack of light certainly didn't help her nerves. She wasn't exactly sure what she was afraid of; she only knew she was. With slow, deep breaths she began moving towards the row of Mandrakes at the back of the greenhouse.

Yeah, you could be the greatest

You can be the best

You can be the King Kong banging on your chest

She didn't know what a King Kong was supposed to be, but this was the song that her brother Kirley had loudly sung as he danced around the room fighting invisible monsters for her. That had been during the time he was fascinated by Muggle music. Remembering it made her feel a little bit better. A gust of wind blew a cloud closer to the moon, dimming the light and leaving the greenhouse dark, save for one small strip of light. Meaghan's fingers tightened around the wand in her pocket.

You could beat the world

You could beat the war

You could talk to God—

Something came at Meaghan through the darkness and she screamed. She leapt in the air and fell back, crashing with a thud onto the muddy floor. For a moment her eyes searched the darkness for her attacker but she could see no one. Slowly, she got up on her feet and it came again, waving a stick at her. Meaghan squeaked and ducked, narrowly avoiding the blow. She swore she could hear a hiss coming from the back. It retreated, then immediately lashed out again. Meaghan raised her hand and it connected, leaving a painful bruise on her palm, but then disappeared into the darkness once more.

She hesitated for a few seconds, waiting for her breathing to calm. It was gone; she could no longer see anything. Half of her wanted to just dash out of the greenhouse never to return, yet another part of her was reminded that she didn't want to face Flint without a Mandrake. She didn't want to be declared a fake Slytherin. No, she needed that plant.

Just grab a Mandrake and you'll be fine. Don't look back; it won't attack you again. Oh god, I hope it doesn't attack me again! The lyrics of the song— focus on the lyrics!

You can throw your hands up

You can beat the clock

You can move a mountain

You can break rocks—

There was creaking sound from under her and she recoiled. As she did, her bare arms brushed up against something and she screamed. It burned. She yanked her hand back but it was already covered in red welts. Desperate, she let out a small whimper. "Marcus, please. Tell me it's just you. You're just messing with me. Oh god, tell me you're just messing with me!"

The darkness didn't answer back. Meaghan shook her head and straightened herself, taking care to now stand away from all the shadows. Kirley had told her that there were no monsters in the dark. She was just imagining it.

Just get back to the song. There's no one there. Or if there is, it is just Marcus. He's messing with you. Probably did this with every single one of the other firsties as well, the big git. Now think about how that song went.

You can be a master

Don't wait for—

Don't wait for—

Faith.

No, it wasn't faith. It was something else. Something that rhymes with rocks. Think about the song. Go back to the song. Don't think about Marcus in the shadows.

Too late; her mind was back in the dark greenhouse. Instantly, Meaghan froze, not daring to take a step further. She remained standing for a moment, shaking like a leaf.

A shiver ran down her spine. No, it ran up her spine. Something was touching her. With a gasp she turned, throwing a wild punch into the darkness behind her. Her hand brushed against a sharp blade and whoever was hiding in there pulled back.

Meaghan squealed and dashed towards the Mandrakes. Then the blade struck back out at her and left a thin red line on her cheek where it had connected. She ducked and grabbed for the pots. Her fingers sank into wet soil and something buried its sharp teeth into her finger. They were everywhere. The monsters were everywhere. Something or someone bumped into her legs and she kicked at it.

Meaghan grasped her hand away, trying to free herself from her attacker and as she flailed around. Finally the teeth let go and whoever it was, flew through the air with a screech. Luckily, it was muffled by her fluffy pink protective gear. Then the thing hit the floor with a wet thud and everything was quiet.

Meaghan released the breath she'd been holding and immediately attackers came again at her like bullets. She raised her cloak to protect her face as dozens of spikes flew past, some getting stuck in her hair, a couple scratching at her face and her bare arms. She grabbed a random Mandrake pot and dashed for the door.

She was nearly out when something grabbed her. Meaghan screamed as it wrapped around her waist and pulled her back into the darkness of the greenhouse. She tried to jerk herself free but the monster was not going to let her go without a fight. Others came from the darkness and tugged at her robe, at her cloak, at the hand holding the pot. Meaghan tried to rip herself free but the grip was strong; it held on so tightly that it hurt all the way through the fabric.

She tried to go for her wand but it was stuck between the folds of her cloak. She yanked at it desperately, trying to get it loose, when something reached for her left leg and she jumped back. A pot shattered behind her as she stumbled into a desk, flailing around while trying not to let go of the Mandrake. Then Meaghan felt another strong limb grab her wand hand and try to tug it out of her pocket.

"Marcus, please, this is not funny!" she pleaded desperately, as she felt it coil like a rope around her.

She struggled against her captor, but it was futile. Her only hope was her wand. It was almost out of her pocket; she could feel it. She gave one last sharp yank just as another slimy thing grabbed at her mouth, trying to cover it, trying to stifle her screams. She heard the fabric tear and cast the first spell that came to mind, before the wand was even out of her pocket: "Incendio!"

A ball of fire made bigger by her fear exploded in the greenhouse. Immediately, her attacker withdrew. Without a single glance backwards, Meaghan rushed towards the door, barely aware that her robes were smoking and she could smell fire. Her burst of uncontrolled magic had, for a moment, set the whole sky alight and the path was clearly illuminated.

Meaghan ran without stopping until she was near the castle again. Only then did she dare send a glance backwards towards the greenhouse, now ominously yellow and red with flames licking out the open door. She gasped and quickened her step until she collided with something hard.

The pot with the Mandrake nearly fell from her hands. She squealed and looked up. The expression on Marcus Flint's face was not the usual dumb surprise he put on for the Gryffindors. For once the look was sincere, with his mouth hanging so wide that the blade of grass slipped out and drifted lazily through the air towards the ground. He looked at the greenhouse; now more or less consumed by flames. Then he looked down at the little girl clutching the pot with the Mandrake.

"How did y—" he tried, then shook his head and looked up at the greenhouse again.

"Why did—" he attempted a moment later but changed his mind at the last minute.

Meaghan looked back at the carnage. "There were monsters," she whispered quietly.

Marcus took in her disheveled appearance and finally closed his mouth. "Monsters. I think I'm better off not asking," he decided after a moment. "Now come on, let's get the hell out of here." He motioned at figures coming running from Hagrid's hut toward the greenhouse and quickly pulled the girl inside the castle doors. They rushed quietly through hallways, avoiding ones that would lead to any teacher's quarters. Only at the Slytherin common room door did they stop and Marcus looked down at the girl again.

"You know, when I said you had to prove you're a Slytherin, I meant that you had to sneak in and out without anyone noticing you took a Mandrake. But then again, I doubt anyone will be able to count the Mandrakes after the fire…"

Meaghan looked down at her shoes and tried to control her shaking shoulders. "Didn't mean to," she sniffed, "but there were monsters."

Flint's eyes roamed over the thorns from a Spiky Bush in the girl's hair and then fell on the nettle burns at the back of her left arm. For a moment they settled on the bruises covered with the slight slime of the Devil's Snare. Finally, he examined the Venomous Tentacula's signature scratches, making sure that it had not managed to break the skin and poison her. A rather distasteful realization was creeping into his brain and he mentally kicked himself. He should have checked. Even if Professor Sprout had never before switched up the contents of her greenhouses, he should have made sure that it was in fact the second year one he sent the girl into. Merlin, she could have gotten herself killed! He glanced down at the pot again and felt coldness creep into his stomach. If the greenhouse was for Devil's Snare, then the Mandrakes there had to be mature, not the harmless ones they studied in second year. Had the earmuffs shifted only a bit— he felt his knees going weak and leaned against the wall.

After having gathered himself a bit, he carefully picked up the pot with the Mandrake, making sure it was still covered in dirt, and placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. With a shaky voice he replied: "I don't think you need to worry about the monsters. I think they're quite dead now, firstie." Marcus wasn't entirely sure if a mandrake's scream could kill plants, but if that hadn't gotten the job done, the fire certainly had.