To Save A Squib
a Harry Potter fan-fic
by Ozma
Chapter 3: Double Edged Swords
Everything in this story really belongs to J.K. Rowling



Snape's numbing potion was wearing off.

The stone floor of Lucius Malfoy's tower-dungeon was unforgivingly
hard under my aching body. My jaw throbbed with pain from my missing
tooth, and the taste of blood in my mouth made me ill. The Potions
Master had cut a long strip of skin from my right shoulder and removed
the nail from my right index finger. Both my hand and my shoulder were
on fire with agony.

When Severus turned me over on my back, concealing the wand he'd
just slid between my bound hands, I moaned.

Snape's silky voice was very quiet, so soft that none of the other
Death Eaters heard him.

"It won't be much longer now, Filch. Ten minutes at most. Take the
dog with you, when you go."

He rose from my side and went to join the others; a gathering of
six wizards, besides himself. I knew Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle, senior.
The other three were unknown to me, anonymous behind their frightening
masks.

They were waiting for him, standing around the small, floating
cauldron. That side of the room was better lit, both by torches and by
the Death Eaters' wands. The area where I lay was mostly full of
shadows.

"Dog?" I thought.

I had known that I was not the Death Eaters' only prisoner, but a
dog...?

Turning my head slowly, I could see the beast lying in the shadows
against the wall. A massive creature, blacker than the shadows
themselves. The animal lay unmoving, except for the barely perceptible
rise and fall of his ribs as he breathed. His shaggy fur was matted with
blood. Mostly because of his size, I recognized him as the black dog
that Potter and his friends had been feeding at the garden party a week
ago.

At least he was breathing.

A bit slow on the uptake, I realized that this dog must be the
Gryffindor who had saved Callandra Moffit from suffering the pain I had
just endured.

Snape had not mentioned until now that the Gryffindor wizard was
an Animagus. Animagi have to be particularly skilled at Transfiguration.
It made sense that the Gryffindor would have Transfigured Callandra into
something else to protect her from the Death Eaters.

But only he knew what form he'd given her or where she was hidden.
He had to leave this tower alive for Callandra's sake, as well as his
own.

I had to save us both, so he could complete his rescue of
Calllandra.

Callandra is a Squib, like me. But the resemblence between us ends
there. She's only fifteen, brave and hopeful, and still mostly
unbattered by the world. The thought of anyone mutilating that child to
work Dark magic was sickening.

"Better me than her..." I thought, and drew strength from that.
The pain was bearable. I must do what I had to do.

Wait for the right moment, and then steal Lucius Malfoy's magic.

Such a simple thing, I thought wryly.

Severus had orchestrated this reckless plan. He'd insisted that
all the risks had been carefully calculated in advance, and he'd judged
them to be acceptable ones.

Well, Snape was the experienced spy here. I was just the Castle
caretaker, wasn't I? I had to trust his judgement.

(I tried not to think about the fact that Snape had once
considered feeding himself to a Cerebus to be an "acceptable risk.")

"Ten minutes" he'd said. I suppose that his calculations were
correct, but it still felt like an eternity before the changes that I'd
been expecting began to happen.

Every nerve in my body began to tingle. I could feel magic, my
magic, whispering in my ears, gliding up and down my spine, rushing
through my veins along with my blood. A part of me that usually remains
crippled and silent, awakened and began to sing.

Someone else was tapping into my magic. It seemed to me that I
could almost look out through his eyes.

Lucius Malfoy was across the room from me, the torchlight gleaming
on his pale hair. The Squib scroll floated in mid-air before him. He
held the quill and wrote words of power in blood red letters, using ink
that had been made, in part,from my flesh, hair, nails, blood and bone.

Malfoy wrote in a language that was strange to me. But I knew when
he'd finished. The magic inside me, no longer trapped, sang joyously as
he reached for it. The link between Lucius Malfoy and myself, formed by
the scroll, became secure on both sides.

Severus had been right. I knew my moment.

Malfoy was quick, but I was even quicker.

His magic began to flow into me! My small song had seemed to
belong to a single instrument. Now it swelled to become an entire
orchestra!

Lucius Malfoy felt the spell begin to slip from his control. He
pulled, hard.

I pulled back, harder.

His power was roaring through me now, an embarrassment of riches.
He had so much magic in him... surely it wasn't fair for one wizard to
have so much magic to call his own!

The magic, both mine and his, rippled through my hair, sparked
from my eyes, danced along my skin. It filled my belly and went straight
to my head faster than any drink Hagrid had ever given me.

"Fast, hard, without mercy!" Those had been Severus's
instructions, hadn't they?

My fingers wrapped around the wand hidden behind my back and I
felt the mighty surge of power singing through the wand's core.

"Recingo!" I shouted, drunk with power. The spell freed my hands.

Oh! Magic was *so* much easier with a wand!

It's amazing how many spells one can pick up while mopping floors
and cleaning toilets at the finest school of Witchcraft and Wizardry in
Europe. Without magic the spells had just been empty words in my mouth.
But now I had the power to back them up.

Pain and fear forgotten, I was on my feet, the borrowed wand held
out before me.

Across the room I could hear the Death Eaters shouting as the
other Dark wizards realized that something had gone terribly wrong.

Over the shouting I could hear somebody laughing like a madman.

(It took a moment for me to recognize the wild laughter as my
own.)

"Pendeo!" I cried, aiming the wand at the two biggest, strongest
Death Eaters. They were masked, but I knew that they had to be Crabbe
and Goyle, senior.

That spell is one of Mad Eye Moody's favorites. Less sensitive
than "Windgardium Leviosa" which Professor Flitwick favors. Meant for
rough work.

This was rough work.

The two huge men were yanked up to float helplessly in midair.

"Ferio! Pulso!" I bellowed, attacking Malfoy's henchmen.

Both burly, trollish wizards were suddenly reeling under a hail of
powerful blows, jerking about like tormented stringless puppets.

Malfoy recovered from his shock. He tried to attack me.

"Cesso!" He roared.

I recognized this spell as a slightly different version of "Finite
Incantem."

Unfortunately for Malfoy, I was drawing so much of his power that
he couldn't make the spell work.

"GET HIM!" Malfoy snarled at Severus and the three remaining Death
Eaters.

"Expelliarmus!!" I cried, offering a silent apology to Severus, as
I aimed for him first.

That particular disarming spell seems to be a great favorite with
the students at Hogwarts.

Rumor has it that Severus himself is the one who taught it to most
of the school, at the first and only meeting of a dueling club started
by Professor Lockhart a few years back.

(Hmm. I wonder how many times poor Severus has regretted teaching
that lesson?)

Severus hit the stone wall with a sickening thud. He fell to the
floor and lay still, joining Crabbe and Goyle, who were also now
unconscious on the floor, and out of the fight.

I felt a blast of power aimed at me, a concerted effort from the
other three wizards.

"Clipeus!" I cried. It's a shielding charm, one that Professor
Flitwick teaches his sixth years.

The charm turned out to be even more useful than I expected! It
"shielded" me by deflecting the attack over to the source of my power...
Malfoy himself!

Lucius roared with pain, as the three-fold assault knocked him to
the floor.

"FOOLS!" he bellowed.

"Stupefy!" I cried, three times rapidly, while the other three
wizards were busy stopping their misdirected attack.

Score Six for me!

Now, it was down to just Malfoy.

We faced each other, both breathing hard.

Inexperienced as I am, I had not been pacing myself. I was
beginning to tire.

Lucius Malfoy smiled.

And he began to fight me in earnest.

He had been taking my measure and planning while I'd faced the
others. And, unlike them, he could attack me from within.

He spoke no spells. His attack came through the link between us. I
felt my heart begin to race. It was suddenly hard to breathe. Blood
began to flow from my shoulder, my hand and my mouth.

I tried to scream, and found myself choking on my own blood.

"Fool..." Malfoy said, coldly. "How long did you really expect to
keep what you've stolen? How long did you think you could continue to
fight me?"

Pain! Unbearable pain. Running up my left arm. My head struck
something hard. I realized that it was the stone floor. I'd fallen.

No...!

Callandra. The Gryffindor wizard. I had to save them.

Had to...

But all I could do was lie there, helpless. Coughing blood.

My vision was greying out when the terrible pressure inside me
finally eased.

"That's enough, for now. You've learned your lesson. And I do need
you alive," Malfoy said, almost lazily.

He knelt beside me, reaching for the wand that I still clutched in
my right hand.

"How did you get this...?" Malfoy murmured, curiously.

My fingers tightened convulsively around the Gryffindor's wand as
Malfoy reached for it.

He clearly thought I was beaten. The link between us was still
open, though.

Desperately, I pulled at his magic again and shouted the most
powerful spell I had ever heard any wizard use.

Albus Dumbledore had cried out this thunderclap word, in a
language I did not know. He'd disarmed both Severus Snape and Lucius
Malfoy with it, stopping their attacks against each other as if they had
been nothing more than a pair of squabbling first year students.

Malfoy was a powerful mage. Was his magic sufficient enough to
work that spell?

Apparently, the answer was `yes.' Just barely, though.

I thought the spell's power would shatter me from within. The wand
glowed in my hand like a beacon.

The thunderclap word reverberated through the already half-ruined
tower. Magic flowed out in a mighty wave, shaking the stones until they
began to fall on us, like a deadly rain from above.

And then, the tower fell.

*******

"Mobilicorpus!" had been the spell I'd used to carry the Animagus
with me, as I fled the collapsing tower.

I still don't know how the two of us made it out, mostly intact.

There was a resounding crash of stones and dust that seemed to
last forever.

Malfoy remained inside, apparently trapped. But he still lived,
and he still fought me for his power.

The next thing I knew, after the tower fell, I was lying on the
ground outside the pile of debris and rubble.

The black dog was nudging me, and whimpering.

For a moment or two I could only lie there, trembling. Severus had
brought me to the tower in the early part of the evening. From the look
of the sky, it was now shortly before sunrise. It had been a very long
night.

And it was not over yet. We still had to rescue Callandra and get
ourselves out of here.

We made it as far as the stream.

*******

Abruptly, my pain gave way to a terrible, aching emptiness.

This too, was a familiar feeling.

"You have to show him that the Squib scrolls are double-edged
swords," Snape had said.

"You must hold on. Keep fighting him, until he's forced to destroy
the cursed thing in order to sever the link between you."

Malfoy must have done it.

He'd destroyed the scroll.

"Mission accomplished..." I whispered to my companion. I was
barely conscious.

Abruptly, the dog was no longer beside me.

"Mobilicorpus..." a hoarse voice said.

The injured Animagus used the spell to support my weight, but he
put one arm gently under my shoulders and the other under my knees,
carrying me as he staggered up the bank of the stream.

He was limping badly. And his breathing was ragged, as if
something in him had broken. I did not know how he had the strength to
stay on his feet, let alone look after me.

I tried to get a good look at him, but I was so weak that I could
barely focus. I got only a vague impression of a pale, thin, badly
bruised face and long, tangled black hair. His battered face was
unrecognizable.

"Callandra...?" I whispered, anxiously. Then, I added
"...Severus...?"

"Callandra will be fine. I'll fetch her. But there's nothing I can
do for Snape at the moment..." The Animagus said, gruffly.

Something about the angry way he spoke the Potions Master's name
teased at my memory.

His feelings about Snape aside, the Gryffindor Wizard was gentle
when he put me down. The roar of power inside me was gone. Empty of
magic, I could only feel the magic of others once more.

The Animagus was a powerful wizard. His magic crackled around me
as he said,

"Accio Callandra!"

A few moments later, he was holding a small, ordinary stone in his
hand.

"It was simple, really..." he murmured. "I hid her in plain sight.
One more stone among the many stones that had already fallen from the
crumbling walls. She was safe, impossible for them to hurt. Even when
the tower fell, she was unharmed. One stone among many."

The Animagus sighed. "I'll have to leave her like this, for just a
little longer while I Apparate. And I'll have to Transfigure you, as
well."

Something in his tone nagged at me. He was a clever boy, this one.
Tricky.

I felt that I should know him.

His name seemed to be hovering just out of reach.

There was a sudden movement behind us, and a blast of incredibly
strong power. A wave of Darkness, icy and foul.

Someone had just Apparated into the clearing.

I heard a high, cold voice. And my thoughts scattered in terror.

"Well. What have we here? It seems that my Death Eaters have been
somewhat...careless with their toys."

There could be no mistake about this wizard's identity.

It was He Who Must Not Be Named.

The Dark Lord.

END OF CHAPTER THREE

*******






Author's Notes:

Lataradk: Thank you!! Aw, I think Albus would look cute in one of those
turn-of-the century long, bathing costumes.

Excellent point that Albus may already have a Door of his own. He may be
speaking about the art of Bathtub Cannonball-diving from personal
experience!

I love the image of Lucius Malfoy wandering around his dungeons with a
wishing rod!

Elspeth: Thank you!! The double-edged sword aspect of the Squib-scrolls
would be apparent to any Dark wizard who used one. But the scrolls are
made so that the Squib would miss the one moment where he could turn the
tables. The wizard responsible for creating the scrolls never
anticipated an alliance between a reformed Dark Wizard and a Squib,
using a Squib-scroll to set up an ambush.

Yes! Destroying the scroll is exactly what Snape and Filch were trying
to make Lucius do. No scroll, no need for a Squib. Callandra did not see
the Death Eaters' faces, so she would be safe from further attacks.
Actually, Snape was hoping to put Lucius completely "off" pursuing the
secrets of the Squib-scrolls, but it remains to be seen if he succeeded
there.

Bratkatze: Thank you!! For all the nice comments on the other stories
too! You've really made my day!!

Jelsemium: Thank you!! Filch knows about Ginny's crush on Harry, though
neither of them have talked about it together. Both of them are too shy.
Filch remembers that Ginny was the one who was taken into the Chamber
and saved by Harry. (Ginny's regrets over what happened during the Year
of the Chamber are what led her to befriend Mrs. Norris.)

In "Goblet of Fire" Molly Weasley tells Harry and Bill Weasley that
Apollyon Pringle was the caretaker when she and Arthur were students.
Molly and Arthur went out for a walk at night together and Pringle
caught Arthur.

"Your father still has the marks..." Molly says to Bill.

This scene is what gave me the idea for the cat o' nine tails that Filch
has in his desk. The whip used to belonged to Pringle, who sounds like
he was meaner than Filch.

I also suspect that Dumbledore may not have been the Headmaster when
Molly and Arther were students. This is because Lupin told Harry, Ron
and Hermione that he hadn't expected to be able to come to school. "And
then, Dumbledore became Headmaster," he said.

Whoever was Headmaster before Dumbledore apparently allowed Pringle to
use "the old punishments" on the students. Pringle must have been
permitted to chain kids up in the dungeons back in Molly and Arthur's
time, and use punishments that would leave marks.

I agree that Hagrid and Filch are contemporaries, though I see Filch as
being a bit older than Hagrid. (In "Goblet of Fire," Molly also mentions
that the Groundskeeper during her time was named "Og.")

This lead me to believe that both Hagrid and Filch probably served long
apprenticeships before each of them took over their current jobs, some
time between the time that Molly and Arthur left Hogwarts, but before
the days when Harry's parents, Sirius, Remus and Snape started their
first year.

Filch has a massive crush on McGonagall. I've been hinting at this for a
while, but Filch is too frightened to admit his feelings, even to
himself. He's "unworthy" of Minerva. He's not the sort who gets "ideas
above his station."

Ginny has already noticed Filch's feelings about McGonagall; Ginny is
intelligent and perceptive. If this story cooperates, Harry, Ron and
Hermione may notice Filch's feelings for McGonagall very soon.

I love "With Quill in Trembling Hand!"

The Death Eaters knew that they'd captured an Animagus, but they didn't
know Sirius's identity. Wormtail, who would have known, was not among
them.

Pettigrew did not accompany Lord Voldemort, so Sirius isn't going to
have to deal with the Rat in this story.

I think that Filch would have been a Hufflepuff like his father. He
values hard work above everything. He's persistent and determined.

(Ozmaniacs? BLUSH!)

Lizard of Fire: Thank you!!

ThePet: Thank you!!

Gramarye: Thank you!! Yes, Snape has lots of names for Sirius. He won't
use most of them in public.

Alchemine: Thank you!! "Squibbles and Bits!" That made me laugh! (My
sons refer to "The Squib & The Death Eaters" as "The Squib-Bits story.")

Filch loves Minerva. He just doesn't know it. Even if he did realize how
he feels about her, he would be afraid to to anything about it. "She's
the Deputy Headmistress. And her magic is so strong! And she's so
beautiful. Like a sword is beautiful... all smooth, clean lines..."
(Blushes.) What could she ever see in me?"

Ariana Deralte: Thank you!! Yes, Snape was teasing Filch with the knive
portkey. He couldn't resist. The idea of the other Death Eaters all
owing Malfoy a Wizard's Debt if he protects them from the falling tower
just popped into the story when I was typing. It's an idea that I may
come back to, since it intrigued me.

RioRaptor: Thank you!!

Rabbit: Thank you!! Yes, Tom Riddle was the Heir of Slytherin, but I
think he lost his "heir"ship when he renounced his humanity and became
Voldemort. (I could be wrong, since Rowling hasn't said anything about
this. But I liked this idea because it puts some philosophical distance
between Slytherin House and the Death Eaters.)

Yes, Moody doesn't trust Snape. Albus is the one who told Severus about
Filch's abilities.

Lucius is clever enough to recognize an Animagus, especially one that
has stopped two Squib-napping attempts. The Death Eaters didn't know
that the dog was Sirius Black, though.

Snape's fate will be revealed soon.

Enfleurage: Thank you!!

UnrepententReader: Thank you!!

Ryven: Thank you!! The same sort of scroll would not work as a method
for stealing a normal wizard's powers. But it seems as if there *could*
be some Dark magic that would allow one wizard to steal another wizard's
magic. Or perhaps just steal something else that rightfully belongs to
another wizard. (Uh oh... another story idea...!)