Hey guys! Time for chapter four! I couldn't wait to post this, it's both the longest and my favorite chapter so far! I hope you guys enjoy it as much as I did, it's full of action, drama, and tragedy. I hope those three equal up tp something great for you guys. Oh, there is also TONS and TONS of cameos, and appearances in this one. Like, TONS! I hope you also enjoy them as well. Please remember to review! :D Anything at all would be great, so thanks! Here you go:
Disclaimer: I do not own anything Harry Potter, just my OCs :]
"We need to retrieve my wand, it's in the hall somewhere," I inform my team.
"We'll get it don't worry, but you'll need to sit down for a while. Maybe we can get you to the infirmary," Isaac replies. Embarrassment and anger flush through me at his suggestion.
"No, I'm not," I try my best to say calmly through gritted teeth, "I am not leaving both of you to fight while I stay in some depressing pit of agony with a thermometer sticking out of my mouth."
Isaac chuckles at the statement, almost missing a step down the stairwell. Courtney stays silent, still helping Isaac prop me up from under my armpits, at the request. I figure she still must be a fuming from our little disagreement moments ago.
"You having a wand or not, we can't fight dragging you like this," Isaac says coldly. His reasoning is unsettlingly true, and I don't want to admit it, but the impulsive side of me doesn't want me to let them fight without me.
"I don't care; I will hop on one leg if I have to. I won't sit on a stretcher and wonder what's happening to you two," I press on.
"We'll set you somewhere safe then so you can watch us. That okay, hard head?" Isaac proposes. I look at Courtney, who is still being mute.
"Well, what do you think?" I ask her. Her giant brown eyes gaze up at me, lip quivering for an answer.
"Do whatever you want. You seem to be doing it anyways, despite what we insist," Courtney retorts, anger clear in her tone. I think I'm actually a little upset at the fact that she is pissy over me wanting to protect her. Above all else, Isaac isn't helping the situation by babying me. My eyes lock with Courtney's in a cold stare, unable to think of a response.
"If you two are done I suggest we find that wand of yours, since you're apparently
going nowhere," Isaac interjects. I'm broken from my trance at both his voice, and the clamoring thunder of the battle below as we descend further down the stairs. I nod in agreement as we reach the bottom of the stairwell.
The battle before us is far more brutal than when we left it. The walls around the great hall are cracked, holes puncture the building, tables, armor, and remains of gargoyles are strewn across the floor. Worst of all, bodies occupy the grounds with their cold lifeless stares. Flashes of light burst from all directions, with almost each of them, someone falls.
"Up against the wall," Isaac orders me. With my eyes stuck on the scene before me, I reluctantly oblige. Courtney and Isaac help me to the cold wall, I lean against it with my leg positioned comfortably crossed in front of the other. They release me when I can support myself, and turn to face the mayhem.
"I think I see it, Cody's wand," Isaac says. He points somewhere far across the Hall, which I can't see with my comrades blocking my vision. "Cover me?" Isaac asks, not even looking at Courtney. Courtney nods in agreement. I crane my neck around them to see what Isaac is about to face, terror twists my expression at the sight. I can see my wand-12 ½ inches, holly with a Unicorn tail hair core-placed out in the open in between a piece of broken ceiling and a Death Eater's transfigured body. The real fright comes from the long distance Isaac will have to run to get to it, and what lies between. Groups of duels occupy the entire way to my wand, Isaac will have to run past them get to his prize. Isaac grips his wand tight; Courtney unsheathes hers from her jeans waistband.
"No! Wait! Don't!" I beg. Isaac either doesn't hear, or doesn't care, because he breaks into a full out sprint through the chaos. Courtney darts to the right, and circles the crowd of battles with her wand ready. My whole body is shaking, if something happens to Isaac, I don't know what I would do. He isn't even supposed to be here, let alone protecting me and Courtney. My breathing becomes quick and comes in short intervals as I watch my friends flee into the pit of it all.
Isaac begins ducking, curses and hexes flying all around him. Courtney begins throwing Stunning Spells at enemies who have their backs turned, or ones who obviously take notice of Isaac. My jaw clenches, and teeth grind as Isaac gets closer and closer to my wand. He throws constant Shielding Charms around himself to protect him from stray spells. He is mere steps from the wand when a bright light followed by a small explosion directly from his right side sends him tumbling to the floor. My gaze switched to Courtney, a Death Eater has closed in on her. She fights fearlessly with him, her wand slashing with anger and ferocity.
My eyes can't decide where to look, they constantly jump back and fourth between Isaac on the floor, underneath small debris, and Courtney's fierce duel. I start to panic; I'm a helpless burden to those I should be protecting. I can't even move without the support of the wall behind me. Thoughts of what could happen to Courtney and Isaac flood my mind, and my breathing becomes hysterical. I shut my eyes tight, and kneel to the ground, holding onto a broken pillar next to me. I can't watch my friends die. I need to be brave but I can't, it's too much. A shriek from Courtney causes me to shoot my eyes open. She's standing with her back turned to her opponent. She's hunched over, cupping her cheek in her right hand. Her attacker, panting heavily, points his wand at her back, ready to finish her off.
My eyes widen in horror, but before doubt takes me over, Courtney quickly spins around on her heals, directs her wand at the Death Eater's chest and cries, "Expulso!" An echoing bang erupts between the two, and the Death Eater is blasted feet away from Courtney. She is smirking at her victory. My eyes flicker to where I had seen Isaac moments before, to see that he's vanished. Two flashes of light catch the corner of my eye; two hooded figures fall shortly after. From where they fall comes Isaac bolting towards me, my wand sprouting from his pocket, and a thin fiery whip erupting from his own. With a flick of his wand, the fire is extinguished, and he reaches me.
"There you are. Happy?" he pants, but beams with my wand stretched out to me. I feel an enormous grin sweep across my face and let out one huge exasperated sigh. My breathing slows once Courtney joins our huddle and I can't help but laugh. The two look at me with faces of utter confusion.
"What's gotten into him?" Courtney questions. I calm myself down and clutch my wand tight, being so thankful that it's back where it belongs.
"You two, you're both brilliant!" I declare. They both raise their eyebrows, still not feeling the gravity of my statement. "That whole time, I was sitting here worrying like a troublesome mother over you two going to get hurt, when you both are perfectly capable fighters. I'm so stupid for not having any faith in you two. I'm sorry, I need to stop being so selfish," I finish.
A deafening blast from no where catches us all off guard. A figure to my right is sent flying into the wall. The person crumbles in defeat when a falling object crushes against his skull, and knocks him unconscious.
"All is forgiven, now can we please discuss this later when we're not all in a fight for the world's fate?" Isaac asks. I smirk and reach out my hand to him, which he tightly grabs and hoists me up on my limping leg. When I'm upright the wooden doors in the hall burst open, and giant spiders flood the Hall. Acromantula. Screams of terror from both foes and allies sweep the Hall as the spiders indiscriminately attack anyone in sight.
"Quick behind the table!" Courtney commands. She grabs my hand, and I hobble behind her until we're crouched behind the remains of the Ravenclaw table used for meals. I'm able to kneel and arch myself to see over the table, and join my friends in a flurry of spells directed at the Acromantula.
"Reducto!" Isaac shouts.
"Confringo!" I scream.
"Aguamenti!" Courtney boasts confidently.
Isaac's blast knocks over a statue, which crashes into the swarm of arachnids. My curse lands in the middle of a grouping of spiders, erupts, and sends bits of the beasts shooting all over the hall. Courtney's powerful jet of water blasts a spider closing in on us backwards and into another, causing them to stumble over one another.
"Incendio!" I cry. A jet of flame shoots from my wand, and engulfs the bumbling pair of spiders. More and more curses illuminate the hall from every direction, we continue our rapid fire of charms and spells into the fray.
"Don't hurt 'em! Don't hurt 'em!" a gruff, loud voice yells across the Hall. Hagrid the groundskeeper, pink umbrella in hand, charges toward the lot of bugs.
"What does he think he's doing!" Courtney squeals in shock, her hand covering her mouth. Isaac lowers his pointed wand at the sight. A figure that seemed to appear out of thin air charges towards Hagrid, screaming at the top of his lungs. The boy never makes it anywhere close to Hagrid before it happenes. Every last available Acromantula surrounds Hagrid. They soon engulf him, until he is no where to be seen. The cluster of black movement that conceals the groundskeeper filters out of the Hall and onto the grounds outside. The boy continues to follow and shout as two others, who I remember from the crumbling hall on the seventh floor, chase after him.
"What are they doing? I don't get it," Isaac asks, his mouth gaping open in an "o" shape. The few Death Eaters that had remained in the Hall slowly start to flee from the site. Students and staff begin to gather up wounded and the dead, while others go in pursuit of the enemies. We need to help with the fight outside, that's where the battle needs us most. The adrenaline coursing through me eases the pain, I can now easily stand.
"Diffindo," I murmur. With a small flick of my wand, the bandages and splint are severed, and fall to the ground. Courtney takes notice of my actions and squints in astonishment.
"And what are you doing?" she asks. Her arms crossed and hip pivoted outwards.
"What does it look like? We're going to help," I reply. I shake off the remains of my bandages and begin to walk towards the broken wall to the outside grounds. My leg is a bit tough to walk on, I have a slight limp, but I can manage. I lock my sight on Isaac, looking for his agreement in the sudden plan. Isaac grins, and walks towards me and gives me a pat on the back. His agreement gives me reassurance that he believes in me, like I have now started to believe in him and Courtney. Isaac turns from Courtney.
"You coming or not?" Isaac questions as he walks past me not even looking back at Courtney and moving straight past me. I look back at Courtney and can't help but grin at the look of bewilderment upon her face. I shoot a raised eyebrow and a shrug at Courtney and proceed to follow Isaac out onto the grounds. Behind me I can hear Courtney mumble something about men being stubborn and then her stomping footsteps.
I reach Isaac at the crumbled remains of the wall, his back to me. I place a firm hand on his shoulder and look out onto the grounds, and see what Isaac's hardened face is glaring at. It's gotten worse. Courtney joins us and lets out a soft gasp. More forces are moving in onto the grounds. Three giants fight in the center of the battlefield, people below both trying to get out of the way of the thundering feet and others failing at bringing down the opposing giant with various spells. More wounded are being carried through the several new entry ways into the castle, and a tower where the herbologists had been throwing plants has been completely obliterated. More duels ensue outside, and they don't seem to be ceasing anytime soon. It's hard to tell which side is winning, though we are clearly out numbered.
"Well let's get this on shall we? Take your pick then," Isaac says through a small fake smirk. He nudges me, indicating I'm the one to pick. I see a group of students being levitated and thrown about by cackling Death Eaters, Another being tortured while the inflictor taunts. It instantly reminds me of moments ago, of the battle on the seventh floor. The three bodies of students twist and writhe in pain as one is thrown into the side of a crumbling staircase. I'm fuming with the pain, remembrance, and frustration of what the scene brings back.
"There," I simply remark. My eyes train on the three Death Eaters, I begin to run as fast as I can with my current limp. Isaac and Courtney trot behind, obviously not moving at their top speed, not wanting to pass me.
"Let them have it mate. I'll cover you, and Courtney will take out anyone trying to get in the way," Isaac instructs. We listen intently as his battle plans have proven effective thus far, something Isaac was always talented at during our stay here at Hogwarts the past 6 years.
The three opponents don't see us approaching, too engrossed in their session of torturing.
"Incarcerous!" I belt. A spark of faint purple light glimmers from my aimed wand, and ropes blasts from its tip, ensnaring one of the unsuspecting Death Eaters. The Death Eater falls to ground after losing his balance in the imprisoning ropes. "Stupefy!" I yell. My stunner hits another Death Eater square in the face as he looks on at his tangled ally. The third fires an orange curse that Isaac quickly deflects with a loud cry of, "Protego!"
"Confundo!" Courtney shrieks from behind me. The charm proves successful , as the cloaked enemy begins to go wide-eyed and looks as though he is going to lose his balance. He looks down, and as if eyes couldn't get any wider, he looks astonished and begins stomping on the tied up Death Eater's hand that was trying to reach for his wand. The stomping Death Eater cries out in fear as if he were crushing a cockroach, while the other shouts numerous insults at his confunded partner.
"You were always good at that," I remark at Courtney, who's wand is still pointed at the idiotic enemy. Two stunning spells later, and the air is no longer filled with cries from our, now defeated, foes.
"We need to help them," Courtney says, quite shaken. She must be as emotionally triggered as I am when seeing what happened to the four students that lay beaten and, some, unconscious below us. Isaac and I quickly tend to the injured, my hand clasps on the shoulder of the incapacitated kid who is the closest to me. I turn over his limp body, so that he is on his back. I don't recognize him, or the girl Courtney is helping next to us. Isaac jogs to the pair of student's who were thrown into the shambled staircase. I feel for a pulse under the student's jaw, I wait a few seconds, but a slow and steady pulse is emanating. He was the tortured one for sure, likely passed out from the pain. Who knows how long these three had been fighting the now defeated Death Eaters?
"This ones just passed out, should be fine. You?" I ask Courtney.
"She's got a few bruises and bumps, but she is breathing," Courtney says with a sigh of relief, lifting her turned ear from the unconscious girl. "Isaac how're those two?"
"Fine! They're just a bit shaken," Isaac shouts back. He helps one of the boys on his feet, while the other is able to stand on his own. In the darkness I can't make out the faces of the two, but judging by their size, they couldn't be any older than us.
"Take Peakes to the infirmary. He can't go on with his leg like this," I hear Isaac say to the walking figure close on his rear.
"I need to s-stay and…help and fight," The boy responds, he seems disorientated.
"Lumos," I hear Courtney mumble beside me. Her wand illuminates the faces of Isaac and his new company. Isaac holds up Jimmy Peakes under his left shoulder, Jimmy not at all using his right leg to assist Isaac. Jimmy's eyes are glazed over in exhaustion, blood streams down a small puncture above his left eyebrow, and through his torn pants, I spot his very own tibia protruding from his skin, blood stained around its exit. I wince at the intensity of the damage. The boy moving sluggishly behind Isaac is Collin Creevey. I had seen both of them being ushered out during the evacuation, why are they here and fighting?
"This one's pretty bad though," Isaac says in a depressing demeanor, gesturing to Peakes leaning on his shoulder and ignoring Collin's previous comment.
"Hey, I'm alive aren't I?" Peakes says weakly, his eyelids half closed.
"Don't let him fall unconscious, he could have a concussion judging from that nasty gash," Courtney informs Isaac. "And that is a compound fracture, a bad one by the looks of it." She adds, obviously a bit disgusted at the injury.
"Hurts worse than a bludger to the cranium that's for sure," Peakes adds, with an attempt at a smile afterwards. Isaac examines the wound with a closer look and gives a deep sigh.
"Collin, take him to the infirmary. Do not make any stops or attempts at a fight what so over. Got it? Keep him conscious, and stay hidden," Isaac instructs a now more focused Collin.
"B-but…okay fine. I'll be back before you know it," Collin complies. Isaac gently transfers Peakes from his shoulder to Collin's. The two start to hobble away into the dimly lit entrance of the Hall.
"These two are in Ravenclaw with me," Courtney realizes, looking down at the two sleeping bodies. "Let's get them out of harm's way."
I look to Isaac with my right eyebrow raised, he didn't seem surprised at all that Collin and Peakes were here, fighting, despite them both being underage. Exactly like Isaac.
"Care to explain everything now that we have a moment?" I ask. Isaac looks back with a blank stare, and then gives a quick shake of his head as if an idea blasted into his mind.
"Oh! Right then. Well, I had heard Collin talking to Peakes during the evactuation, trying to convince him to sneak back in to help fight. Peakes was skeptical at first, so I asked if I can join. I told them if they didn't let me go with them I'd rat them out to Filch, and you know Filch would have a field day with them since none of the other staff would be watching. Anyways, Peakes agreed since I joined, and we snuck out of the crowd and through one of the secret passageways, in which we met one of the Weasley twins. Can never tell them apart," Isaac rambled only stopping to help us lean the limp students against the castle wall, making sure they were well hidden in the shadows cast by the castle. "So they let us on in, I got separated from Peakes and Collin when one of the giants smashed through one of the Hall's walls. I had heard from one of the former Gryffindor chasers that you two had headed up stairs. After a short scuffle with an unsuspecting Death Eater, low and behold I found you two in need of my help on the seventh floor." Isaac finished his story with a triumphant smirk smeared across his face.
"You sly bastard," I simply say to him, a grin plastered on my face. We both chuckle, Courtney even letting a small giggle slip despite her sour mood. I mean we're only in the middle of war, lighten up.
"As thankful as I am, really I am, we need to get moving. I don't like the look of things out there," Courtney says in a small voice. We stand up from the victimized students, and stop grinning. If I wasn't sure we were losing before, we surely are now.
Three jets of green light find their targets, and all three collapse to the ground like puppets getting their strings cut. More and more of our allies fight multiple Death Eaters at once, most by themselves. Numerous pairs of students rush their injured friends back into the castle for aid, some struck down in the process. The centaur Divination teacher, Firenze, gallops across the grounds on a wounded leg to save a young student slumped over his back, dodging flashes of curses that tailed him. He fired arrows from his bow back at the attackers, most in vain as they were deflected or dodged, but one struck down a Death Eater whose back was turned to the centaur.
The three of us stood there, far enough from the main battle to go unnoticed, but close enough to make out each and every battle ensuing. We were frozen, unable to decide who to help next, it all seemed hopeless. We can't help everyone, and separating could mean the death of any of us. Everything was going cold, the only thing keeping the darkness visible were the lights of spells, and the school, as well as the glow from others' wands.
More cloaked figures joined the Death Eaters as reinforcements. They almost seemed like they were hovering above the ground. I gaze up at the moon to see fleets of more hooded foes descending down onto the battlegrounds. These aren't' Death Eater reinforcements. They're dementors. Fear, not sure if it was coming from the dementors or just my own thoughts, sinks into me. Cold, depressing thoughts like before overwhelm me. My hand shakes uncontrollably, I look to Courtney and Isaac for some sort of reassurance, but I find them with fear stricken faces and their wants still at their sides. Just looking at them sends me hopeless thoughts of the two not making it through the war, and me having to live with the remembrance of them dead. Blasts of silver light in various shapes and sizes from the grounds disperse the group of soul sucking beasts in the night sky.
My thoughts break when a limping male student rushes across the field. His hurry slowly fades, and beings to progressively slow down, until he is on his knees, breathing heavily with his hands pressing into his ears as if to stop some deafening sound no one else can hear. A dementor, broken off from the flock above, fills the distance between them, and gracefully begins to present itself to the shaking student.
"G-Guys," I am barely able to stammer out, "Dementors…we need to help him."
I hear a gulp of fear commence from Isaac. He grips his wand tight, shakes his head of the bothering thoughts I know are attacking him, and beings to march unsteadily in the direction of the Dementor. Isaac directs his wand at the dementor, his wrist bobbing uncontrollably.
"Expecto P-Potronum!" Isaac stutters out loudly. Small silver wisps waft from the end of his wand, but quickly fade. Isaac keeps pushing forward towards the attacking dementor.
"EX-EXPECTO PATRONUM!" Isaac shouts, his voice shaken and dry sounding. A larger condensation of the sliver light unveils itself from his wand, but just as the last attempt, it quickly fades. As Isaac is within throwing distance of the dementor, he slowly collapses to the ground, the dementor now having two meals at his feet.
"Courtney…Courtney the Patronus Charm," I nudge Courtney. She seems to be lost for words, not even able to form a response. I raise my wand, ready to cast the charm. I was only able to cast the charm once in a reformed D.A. meeting this year. It had a full form, but quickly vanished. Isaac was one of the few that actually got his to form properly, but then broke once his concentration was lost. I try and think of happy thoughts, family, my life here at Hogwarts, Isaac, Courtney…none producing more than a few wisps of light as I chant, "Expecto Patronum," over and over.
The dementor begins to lower its head down to its first victim, who is now in the fettle position. Isaac, who isn't much farther away, is on his knees with his head lowered, almost unaware of the grueling action that is about to unfold upon the student so close to him. I close my eyes and go back in my mind to the day Courtney and I made our promise, our promise to keep each other safe in this devastating year at Hogwarts.
We were sitting against a wall in Diagon Alley, watching shoppers and other pedestrians flow in and out of the shops and stores that were crammed in the small plaza. We each had a butterbeer in hand, laughing at all the ridiculous things we saw and past memories we share. We had tried to stay happy that day after finishing our school shopping, since it was the day The Daily Prophet announced Snape as new headmaster at Hogwarts, and from there rumors flew of his new staff members that would be joining him. We had the plan of faking her family tree complete, and were now talking about what the new school year would be like. She had given my hand a gentle squeeze, asked me if everything would be okay. Despite my face feeling like it was on fire, I grasped it tightly and had told her I promised to keep her safe, a promise I am still going to hold now. I had never been happier with Courtney than on that day.
My eyes shoot open and I get a firm grip on my wand. The dementor inches its hands up to remove his hood, ready to plant its final kiss.
"Expecto Patronum!" I confidently announce. A burst of silver light emits from my wand and charges the dementor. Half way to its target the light shifts, and reforms itself into a pouncing lion that leaps over Isaac and straight for the cloaked monster. The dementor notices the silver lion too late and is batted away by its swinging claw. The black creature is sent tumbling through the air and it immediately retreats to the forest beyond. The chill that surrounds us is instantly lifted with one lap my patronus makes a around us. Isaac slowly rises, as does Courtney.
"That, was incredible!" Courtney pants, all traces of her bitter mood towards me gone. I smile confidently, comfortable that I'm not blushing for once.
"Damn brilliant!" Isaac adds, making his way back towards me and takes my hand in a strong handshake. The hopelessness that covered the area is lifting with every passing second, my patronus evaporates shortly after.
"A lion, how manly!" Isaac jokes with a small punch in my arm. I rub the spot he hit with my free hand, still keeping a cocky smirk on my face. I had always had the suspicion that my patronus had been some sort of four legged beast, back in training it didn't quite get to distinct features. Now I know it's a lion, something I have always tried to achieve was to have a lion's heart. A lion patronus? Close enough, I'll take it.
"We should help him," Courtney's caring voice drifts into my ears. She steadily walks over to the victimized student, he's still curled into a ball, shaking furiously. Courtney reaches him and kneels down slowly, not wanting to scare him any farther than he has already been. She graciously wraps a caring arm around his shoulders and nuzzles her head into his. She begins to whisper in his ear, I can't hear what she says, but I know hey're caring words of encouragement and sympathy. I have to admit, when Isaac first showed up in the battle and he and Courtney were disagreeing with me, all the while being friendly, I felt jealousy. I don't know why, I know Isaac would never betray my trust in such a way, but the feeling was there, in the pit of my gut gnawing at me. But now it's different, Courtney is legitimately helping this boy through an extreme stress that very few people have felt. Not everyone is nearly kissed by a dementor everyday. Her sweet words are only full of care, and despite her close proximity with the student, that gnawing feeling has not resurfaced. Courtney has flourished into something amazing throughout her years here, and I can't stop feeling and seeing it every passing moment.
Courtney pulls an assuring nod from the broken boy and engages in helping him to his feet. Slowly but surely they pace their way towards us, Courtney still speaking into his ear, his head lowered and body bent over.
"These are the two I was talking about, the ones who saved you. They felt what we felt too okay? We're going to get you away from here," I hear Courtney say in a light whisper as she drifts closer to us. The blonde student begins to lean a lot more of his weight onto Courtney, so Isaac and I, with great care, take him off her hands. All four of us walk solemnly back to the castle exterior, nothing making a sound except for the ongoing war in the background and Courtney, still whispering to the boy, trails behind us; one hand rested upon the student's back, softly patting it with each encouraging word she gives.
We rest the internally injured student against the stone of the outer castle, just a few strides away from the pair that were tortured moments before we found the blonde.
"Everything's going to be okay, go to sleep. No one will bother you," Courtney hushes into the boy's ear. He gives something between a shake and a nod of his head and closes his exhaust filled eyes, and curls back into the ball he was once in, now against the wall.
"Why did you tell him to go to sleep?" Isaac whispers, now slowly backing away from the injured lot.
"No one will bother him if they think he's dead, and I think he's far enough out of sight," Courtney replies. She takes a deep breath, steadies her twitching hand that carries her wand and closes her eyes for a few seconds.
"How does it look?" she asks, her eyes now opened, but her back still turned to the violence only walking distance away.
"Same as before, maybe a bit worse," I reply, my voice a bit hoarse. I know precisely what she had meant in her question. Courtney gives a shaky intake of break, and exhales it with the exact amount of anxiety as the inhale.
"For us?" she shakily ponders, her knuckles now white from the tight grip she has on her wand, the other fisting her jeans. I can read she has doubts about us winning, everything seems hopeless, especially after the dementor attack, but we need to stay strong, only I can't find the words to help.
"For us," Isaac sternly confirms, "but it's not over. Do not lose hope. Do not ever lose hope."
And there are the words. Hope. Hope is everything right now; hope is the one point that has been keeping us moving this whole time. Hope will have to drive us to victory. We need to have hope in ourselves, our allies, and in Harry Potter.
"Thank you," I speak. It's all I can really articulate say to Isaac's simple statement that holds so much in it. "We need to press on, for our families, friends, teachers, the dead, the injured, the world and for Harry."
Courtney ceases her blank stare and moves to look at me; Isaac turns his body in my direction as well. All three of us take small glances in each others eyes, like we are making a silent vow, to not give up.
"Press on," Isaac repeats. We all give a firm nod in acceptance. Stray jets of light soar high above our heads and strike the castle. A few small stones rain down around us, but the piece of wall collapses inward. We all look on onto the growing battle yet again.
"It's moving closer, we can't be targets around the injured," I declare. In the distance I can make out the burning remains of the quidditch pitch, and the merpeople submerging from oncoming killing curses into the lake. The giant squid's tentacles also dipping back into the lake in defeat, one of its arms being wounded by fire.
"Let's go, start from the beginning and do what we usually do: help the ones who need fighters," Courtney decides. Isaac already begins his trudge back to the entry we came from in acceptance. Courtney follows directly behind him, then I after her. The pain of my wounded leg begins to throb again, the adrenaline is wearing off. It becomes difficult to follow walking on the debris covered ground along the outside walls. I almost fall behind when Courtney's reaching hand comes into view. Her warm smile says too much to me. It seems apologetic, welcoming, and helpful all at once. I tenderly take her hand into my own, and start again to make the miniscule journey back to our destination, Courtney's hand moves behind her back to steady my stretching hand towards hers. To immense surprise, her fingers intertwine in the spaces between mine. I bite my bottom lip to keep in the grin that is dieing to be freed.
We persevere through the tread back to our goal, almost there now, the silence not letting up. We arrive at the entrance we came from to attack the three Death Eaters and stand in a line, my hand not leaving Courtney's. More curses glide through the empty sky around us.
"It's your turn to pick," I remark. Isaac nods, and begins to scan the Warfield. Booms shake the castle, dust drizzling from the walls and ceiling. The attacks must now be coming from the secret passageways that some of us were guarding. There must be several battles going on throughout the castle. An empty, crumbled suit of armor lies at our feet, one of the few substitutes the staff used for our lack of numbers against the oncoming threat. Several broken pieces of the gargoyles that were perched all over the castle lay motionless and silent all around the Hall. Isaac still carefully picking who we will help next, our choice may mean another number of lives saved.
"There," Isaac speaks. He begins to raise his hand to indicate our next move, but a cackling laugh all too familiar breaks sound around us, leaving Courtney and I wide eyed at what is coming.
"Ohh Tramp! Trampy tramp tramp mudblood! Come hereeee!" Mulciber's voice shakes the dust filled air. We all dart around to face our ghost of an enemy that is back for revenge. Mulciber stomps across the Hall; his robe singed and tattered, his face cut and ash ridden. His eyes are wide and his head cocked to the side his evil smile rises up. Behind him a women lies motionless, likely taken out for being in his path to us. His hand is too quick, he sends a curse blazing towards us, and I have little time to send up my shield charm to block it. Both the force of speeding curse, and the unsteadiness of my wounded leg knocks me off my feet and sends me to the cold marble floor, releasing Courtney's hand so I do not bring her down with me.
"Stupefy!"
"Petrificus Totalus!"Both incantations ring above me. With two flick of Mulciber's wand both spells are extinguished; both nowhere near meeting their mark.
"You both will need to be a bit more creative than that!" Mulciber taunts. He hold his wand high, ready for another strike, "Filth! All of-"
"Piertotum Locomotor!" Courtney roars, her wand locked onto the broken armor before us. The shambled armor quickly springs to life, assembling whatever broken parts of itself it can, and charges Mulciber. The armor only makes two steps before Mulciber's deafening spell blasts the armor back to pieces, the explosion sending the torso of the armor crashing into an unprepared Courtney. Courtney falls on top of me, a deep red gash present on her forehead, and her expression helplessly dazed. Another bang, but Isaac steps in front of us,
"Protego!" he pants, his shield dissolving with the strike of the curse. He sends more Stunning Spells, only to be effortlessly blocked by Mulciber.
"Avada Kedavra!" Mulciber cries, his sadistic grin very much still present upon his face. The jet of green light barely missing Isaac's twisting body. Isaac goes to cast a spell, reverting his body back to a forward position, his wand directed at Mulciber. Before an incantation can leave Isaac's lips, Mulciber stokes his wand like a paintbrush, which easily disarms Isaac, his wand flipping through the air and landing behind me, Mulciber's laugh now filling the Great Hall.
"Unarmed boy? Well, I rather do like to play with my prey, Crucio!" Mulciber cackles. The all too familiar movements of what Isaac's body does next terrify me. Isaac instantly drops to the ground, body cringing in pain. Intense grunts escape his mouth as every vein in his neck becomes visible.
"Now, the rest of you lover boys stay out of the way, I want the filthy mudblood," Mulciber says coldly, his facial expression not changing from his twisted happiness. He begins to stalk forward, taking his sweet time, wand still having a torturing hold on Isaac who is unable to move in his state.
"No, don't!" I plea. I sit up and gently roll Courtney off me. I reach for my wand and being to raise it in retaliation, but without missing a beat, Mulciber quickly disarms me, my weapon and only defense sent flying. Mulciber's hold on Isaac is dropped from in the disarming, but Mulciber continues to lift his arm up for a new threat to come.
"I like my food in pieces, skewered if you would," Mulciber says with a dark chuckle. Isaac turns his body at the ready to kill Mulciber. One wrong move and it's the end of any one of us. I'm helpless, I can't get up, my wand gone, and Courtney on her side, half conscious next to me. Isaac is panting, but now on all fours.
It all happens at once. It's too quick to stop, but just slow enough to make out everything that's happening. Pure helplessness, that's what this was. Isaac sees what Mulciber is ready to do. Isaac goes wide eyed and quickly jumps into action.
"Sagitta!" Mulciber screams. With a fierce swipe of his wand, seven arrows are conjured and thrust towards Courtney. I roll my body in a panic and end up covering Courtney's entire body with my own, my face in her hair, body tensed and my eyes pressed shut in anticipation of the pain to come…but it doesn't. I feel something hovering above me; I hesitantly open my eyes in fear and turn my head to see Isaac, hunched over both of us. His eyes are glazed over; his eyebrows furrowed, and mouth open, which dripped a small crimson drop from its corner. There was no movement, he was frozen-I was frozen. I tilt my head to the side and see all seven arrows, and their tips, buried deep inside Isaac's back.
It all seemed so slow, Isaac's arms that kept him planted above us give out and he collapses on top of me. I know what's happening, this can't be happening. I didn't want any of this to happen, the fight in me is dead, and now so is my best friend. My mouth is trembling, tears well up in my eyes; I make no effort to hold them back. I have no desire to hold anything back. His head drops, and his body goes limp. I catch his head that falls into my collar, and clasp my other hand on the back of his neck. One last word escapes his soon to be cold, lifeless lips. The last word Isaac Rogan will ever say reach my eardrum and sets everything into perspective. When I think everything is falling down around me, think there is no point in going on after losing my best friend, and think there is none of this left, he breathes into my ear that one word,
"Hope."
Soooo, what did you guys think? ;) PLEASE DO NOT FORGET TO REVIEW! Anon reviews are enabled for shy and/or accountless reviewers! I hoped you guys like it, I worked very hard on this one.
Special thanks to my BETA team who put up with my punctuation mistakes ;)
Review! Thanks guys! Next chapter coming soon! There are only two more and an epilouge after this one! :)
_=Left4Hunger=_