String 07: Magics
Mei tore through the Forbidden Forest. It was hard to see since the treetops obscured the sky. Memory was her only guide as she ran hopelessly past the eerily silent woods. These trees all look the same! Mei thought, panicked. How can I get back? How's Scorpius going to get back? A glimpse of moonlight caught her eye. She stopped. She saw a clearing a few paces away. A soft hiss and a child's yelp followed shortly. Scorpius!
She didn't hesitate to run toward it. She was just in time to see the Hufflepuff boy's body collide with the dirt floor. Mei worriedly looked him over, as if she were a mother tending her son. His arm is bleeding really badly, He might've tried to use magic. Mei mused. Her suspicions confirmed when she saw a black wand a few inches forward.
When she saw a claw a few more inches forward, her heart stopped.
Morbidly curious she looked up to see the whole monstrosity: a huge, crab – thing with bumpy skin and some sort of acid spit. Doesn't this stuff only happen in comics and cartoons? Mei wondered as she attempted to drag Scorpius and herself away from the creature. The second she moved back another angry hiss broke out. Its clunky claw lashed at her. Mei hit the floor, narrowly missing the swipe.
"Mei! Are you here?" It was Rose and Al's veela cousin, apparently she ran after her.
Mei gulped. "Yes." She said weakly.
Victoire halted as she reached the clearing. The creature hissed again, somewhat annoyed. It crept towards the newcomer.
"W-What is that thing?" The elder girl thought aloud. Mei never thought an adult could get so scared. Her parents were always strong, even when Mei was afraid of something on the TV or the movies. Seeing them put on a brave face always made Mei feel calmer afterwards.
Mei pictured her Mum's reassuring smile, her Dad's determined grin. She took in a deep breath and pull out her wand. "Flipendo!"
An orange light shot from Mei's wand and hit the creature's back. It still charged for the frozen-with-fear Victoire.
Mei grumbled at tried again. "Immobulus!"
The creature didn't even register the spell. "Petrificus Totalus!" The magic bounced off the creature's skin. It swung at Victoire and the seventh girl snapped out of her shock a second too late. Victoire screeched in pain when the claw connected with her gut. It flung her into Mei from across the field. Both the girls landed with a sickening thud, scattered amongst fallen timbers.
The last thing Mei remembered was a red star in the sky. It looked especially bright tonight, as if it were looking down on Earth, waiting for someone.
"Hmm…" Nagi frowned at the scene below him. From what he could see, the interloper caused Mei to be knocked out before the Orphan could bring out her HiME powers.
"Ah man, how disappointing." He paced across the slim bark his stood on, slowly, as to keep his balance. "We already lost one HiME last month and another two days ago. If his wives keep dying prematurely First District's going to have an apoplexy – and then they're going to complain to me!"
Mei was twitching feebly, meanwhile the non-HiME attempted to pry her out from the wreckage. Nagi snorted. "Mai would've been furious. She would be grouching and saying it's only her brother that needs protecting."
He stopped, peering intently at the worn out first year. He thought Mai and Mei would be exactly alike. She looked like Mai, she was protective like Mai, and she was lost when it came to the Carnival – just like Mai had been.
But where's her fire? Nagi pondered. Mei surely had her mother's temper but only a diluted version. Probably that father of hers had something to do with it –
His foot slipped. Nagi yelped as he stumbled. Thankfully he managed to catch the tree branch before he fell off completely.
Suddenly, he laughed. "Still, she's Mai's daughter after all. She can't go down that easily." His voice was almost friendly. "A lot of this have changed for us, but I'm sure little Mei – HiME can handle it. Don't know about that other girl though..."
"Get bent freak! Confringo!" The blasting charm hadn't done its purpose. The Orphan was still whole and trying to hack through the unconscious Mei that Victoire held in her other arm. Her wand arm was busy firing off fruitless hexes while Orphan literally tried to claw through Victoire.
"Why isn't this working?" Victoire cried. Guilt and anger tinged her voice. All the DADA classes she slept through would've come in handy tonight. "Stupid white – haired git! Answer me!" The only response was a near hit with the claw. The Orphan opened its grotesque pinchers. Victoire shouted another hex but it was cut short when she had to slip out of the monsters' grasp.
"Argh!" The toxic drool caught Victoire. In pain she dropped her wand and clutched the burnt arm. Crap! I dropped Care of Magical Creature 'cause I thought Hagrid's pets were too dangerous. Hippogriffs are pygmy puffs compared to this guy!
The Orphan stepped between Victoire and the fallen wand, forcing her to make a choice. Either drop Mei – who seemed to be its real target – or be powerless. "Mei! Wake up!" Victoire pleaded in vain. "Mei, please!"
She was focused on the child. She couldn't have noticed how her wand seemed to glow. The glow leaked onto the grass and spread, its final form was a circle. The Orphan turned to the light and hissed. Another intruder was coming.
From the magic circle a jet of light smashed into the creature. Victoire only heard the quick whispers of spells while the light zipped up and down the writhing Orphan. With a mournful hiss it fell. The light landed in front of Victoire.
The glow soon subsided but a figure remained. She was an older woman, but not by much, swathed in an elegant white and scarlet cloak beneath her period – style dress. She could see wisps of blonde hair escape her gold trimmed hood. She lifted it and Victoire gasped. Bewitching smile, shinning blue eyes – even among veelas she'd be considered the most beautiful.
At least till she opened her mouth, such a melodious voice never irritated Victoire more.
"I wondered when I'd be picked to join this bloodbath." The woman sneered. "And I get a Master daft enough to attack a Berserker before summoning me. Just great…"
Victoire growled. "Oye! I never asked for your help! You can get bent too!"
The new witch snorted. "Actually smart arse, you did ask for my help." She spoke slowly as she continued: "You…Summoned…Me…"
"I didn –"
"Amplitudo Contego!" The woman raised her wand. The charging monster behind them was blocked by an invisible force field. It pounded and slashed but the Orphan couldn't break through. "Ah, so it's not good with defensive spells. My curses weren't half as effective as they usually are. That's odd. Did you find out its name?"
"I don't know what that thing is! I don't even your name! Who are you?"
"Figures you don't anything," The woman said. Victoire was about a hair from tearing into her. "Just call me Caster for now."
A chime sounded, startling both witches. The Orphan was shoving all of its weight on the shield. Faint cracks were growing. "That's…" Caster started. "That's not possible."
"For your type of magic that'd be true." Nagi called to Caster from above. "I've read about you – powerful and crafty – but it won't be enough. Only HiMEs can vanquish Orphans."
"That thing's a kid?" Victoire asked.
"Well, there is a Child in here." He admitted. He nodded to a flower at the edge of the clearing. It was a black – petal rose, unnaturally vivid and healthy for its color. It seemed to bend towards Mei. "Its waiting, she wants to see her HiME soon."
"What." Victoire lost the last shred of patience she had. "What the hell is that nonsense? Couldn't you give us a straight answer for once?"
Nagi grinned. "I could, but where's the fun in that?"
An enraged screech from Victoire woke Mei. Her eyes fluttered open but the vision of the red star was gone and replaced with a breaking shield. Victoire was screaming at the white haired kid they saw before meanwhile a new lady struggled to hold her shield in place. The Orphan rammed against it again and again, causing more cracks in the spell.
"Scorpius…" She said weakly. Her friend was still out cold. She still wanted to save him but how could she? No one's magic seemed to be working against this monster and was only a small first year. How could she protect anyone?
She shakily released herself from Victoire's arms, catching a glimpse of the night sky. The red star was practically burning in her mind. She remembered her wish to get Al in Gryffindor and how it came true. She pointed her wand at the Orphan and closed her eyes in one last, desperate hope. Please give me the power to fight this thing! Give me the power to protect these people!
Mei heard a loud chime. Caster cried: "It broke my spell!"
No! Mei eyes were closed so tight. She didn't see her wand transform into beaded rings that wrapped around her wrist and ankles. She didn't see them started to glow. She didn't see how all of a sudden the branches of surrounding trees grabbed the Orphan's claws and shell and dragged the creature away from the humans.
"What is she?" Mei finally opened her eyes. It was the elder witch who asked. Victoire could only stare.
"She's a HiME!" Nagi answered, good thing because Mei didn't have a clue as she stared at the magatama rings. "Although a bit different than her mother, thankfully still a HiME. I was getting worried Mei."
Mei's head snapped up. "My Mum did is too?" They all turned to the sound of snapping branches. The Orphan was getting loose. "Stop it!" Mei cried. More wood replaces the broken pieces but the Orphan was slicing through it. "Is there more I can do?"
"Well, since you asked..." Nagi was positively jovial. "You need to break the seal on your Child, the rose over there, she'll get rid of the Orphan for you but you'd have to risk –"
"Fine!" Mei ran over despite Victoire's protests. Nagi almost looked offended. He didn't get to tell her the best part.
She plucked the rose with no hesitation. A black light spilled out ground and rose to a pillar in the sky. It grew and faded, leaving what looked to be part steel part flower part woman and part darkness. The dark aspect was the strongest piece: a smoky cloud trailed her steps as she walked calmly to the hissing Orphan that towered over her. The smoke became thicker and thicker. Mei and Victoire started to panic.
The piercing cry in pitch blackness didn't ease their nerves in the slightest.
The smoke cleared as soon as it came. Mei gasped when she looked at the Orphan. "Blimey…"
The Orphan moved no longer, it had eight large wooden spikes driven inside its body. The creature disintegrated before Mei's very eyes. The Child was gone as well and her rings changed back to a wand.
"Come back you little creep!" Victoire shouted. Mei just noticed Nagi's abrupt absence. "What have you done to Mei?"
"I doubt he did anything but bring out her natural gifts." Caster stared down Mei, making the girl squirm. "A HiME huh? I thought you lot were just Eastern myths."
"You!" Victoire grabbed Mei's hand. "Stay away from us alright! We're just students. We're not getting involved with your monster battles and crap."
"But –"
Victoire grabbed the two wands on the floor and then Scorpius's himself, grumbling about how heavy he was when she carried him over her shoulder. The woman had an odd expression on her face as she watched the part-veela leave. Mei felt sorry for her but more than that she felt confused. HiMEs and Orphans. She had never heard of those things before, even among the fantastic stories she's heard from Hogwarts goers. And that bloke said Mum was a HiME too, is that why she was acting so strange since Michi came over?
Mei sighed and reluctantly walked with Victoire towards the forest's end. She had a feeling there'd be a lot more than Quidditch to worry about in the morning.
A/N: Poor Victoire - the night's not over for her yet. Sorry it's been so long. I wanted to develop Blood of Mine a little before a got to the good stuff of this story. It's gonna get a lot more complicated after this.
Can't wait for the real Beresker to be introduced, that'll be fun...
