Author's Note: This chapter begins from Dolohov and Calix's point of view, and then goes into what is happening at the Burrow. Just so you know.
In Sociology we were talking about scientists trying to find the 'evil gene.' Quite like the fat gene. This made me consider how and why people turn to the 'bad' side. So, I want to draw up parallels with Calix and Dolohov. They're on the same side, but for different reasons. See you in the next chapter! Thanks for any reviews and reads!
The night was still. The moon was bright, but no stars shined in the black velvet sky. Grey and light wispy clouds occasionally wandered across the surface of the moon, gently corrupting the silver and white shine.
In the narrow alleyway, the pavement stones reflected the moonlight, while they also strengthened the charcoal shadows that crept along the brick walls. Opposites in the same place and time, although they were there for very different reasons. Quite like the two men now tip-toeing into the rickety house in this deserted alleyway in Knockturn Alley.
The wooden door creaked behind them.
"Are we completely ready?"
"Completely."
"There is nothing else we need to retrieve?"
"You're having doubts, my friend."
The two men turned to each other, eyes glinting in the darkness.
"We don't know the consequences, Dolohov. Look at what happened to you!" snapped Calix, breaking under the pressure of his stare.
"Oh, so I was the guinea pig? I was the experiment?"
"Of course not! I offered to touch the crystal first! That's all it took, one touch, and then the spell was broken and we could easily place it into the book."
Dolohov sneered, his finger pointing in Calix's face, "Then you're worried about Potter. Potter and his friends! We will easily kill them, you pathetic little man. The Granger girl is hurt, thanks to me. They'll be weak at the moment, too concerned for her well-being."
"Do not call me pathetic! I am far from the sort. I've done things that you've had trouble accepting," Calix raised his voice, leaning towards Dolohov's intimidating and violent stance.
"What?" Dolohov laughed. "You've hidden behind the Dark Lord for the past four years, while I have been on his front line! You're lover left you for a reason, Calix. She found a better and stronger man, someone who didn't need to hide behind the Dark Lord. No wonder you're brother disowned you, he took the right path. You're not made for this kind of lifestyle."
Calix blinked at him in shock.
Dolohov continued in his ranting, "You're trying to gain enough power to face both of them! How wrong is that? This book won't give you courage, Calix, it'll give you evil magic. It won't make it anymore easier for you to face your fears after all of these years."
"Then it'll give me enough strength to kill them!" roared Calix, gripping onto Dolohov's cloak.
"You've already got enough strength to kill them, you stupid little man! One spell, and that's all it takes. We've been using it constantly over the past four years on behalf of the Dark Lord."
"What do you know?" Calix turned away from Dolohov. "What gives you the right to taunt me like this? You're still a little boy, running from daddy and trying to achieve some approval-"
Dolohov grunted, removing Calix's grip from his cloak. He said through gritted teeth, "Leave it alone. You don't know anything. Now, are we going to do this or not?"
Calix turned back to Dolohov, a shadow cast on one side of his face while Dolohov still remained in total darkness. The two men stared at each other, eyes glinting in the moonlight.
Mrs. Weasley was worried. Harry, Ron and Hermione had disappeared hours ago, and now it was nearing dusk and there was no single sign of their return. Since the second Wizarding War she had worried non-stop about these three. They always seemed to attract trouble. So, as she stared out of the kitchen window, a part of her expected to see what she witnessed.
Ron kicked open the gate, followed close behind by Harry. Both of them looked like they'd been in a tussle or duel, with minor cuts on their cheeks and their hair ruffled. However, Ron was holding a pale and shaky Hermione, whose white blouse was starting to glow crimson.
"Mum! Dad!" Ron yelled, his voice rough and hoarse.
"Arthur!" Mrs. Weasley shouted in the kitchen at her husband who was sitting at the table. "Arthur! Come quick!"
Mrs. Weasley didn't wait for her husband to respond, but flung open the back door and ran as quickly as she could over to her youngest son.
He was fighting back tears as he looked desperately to his mother for help. There was a loud clatter as Mr. Weasley followed his wife into the garden, his expression worried at what the commotion was all about.
Harry was momentarily ignored.
"Ron, what on earth happened?"
"Oh, dear. Oh my poor dear! We need to get her inside! Quickly, Arthur, take her!"
"No," Ron said, in an audible whisper. "No, I've got her."
He walked with his mother back into the Burrow, leaving Harry alone and staring with Mr. Weasley. He asked Harry in a sympathetic tone, "What happened, Harry?"
"She's been stabbed," Harry answered feebly.
Mr. Weasley patted Harry on the shoulder, drawing him closer, "You'll need to tell us the whole thing, I'm afraid. Ron's a bit distraught and we'll need to know to save her."
He understood, he just couldn't form the words. Anger was simmering in Harry's stomach, boiling his concerns for Hermione and for the key, and for what he'd gotten them into. As usual, he added. But even more than that, he felt guilty that his mind still focused on the loss of the key and not the strain of an injured Hermione. A Hermione that was injured by dark magic that they had no idea how to fight.
Harry was led to the sofa by Mr. Weasley's guiding hands. Hermione lay there, half-conscious as Mrs. Weasley argued with Ron.
"I don't know what this glowing light is! Ronald Weasley, you tell me this instant what happened!"
"Just fix her, please."
Hermione's hand was gripping onto Ron, her eyes slowly opening as she spoke to Molly, "I'm fine⦠I'm fine. Just, please, remove the-the dagger."
Suddenly the concerned mother took over Molly and she whispered to the girl, "I can't dear, not yet. We need to find out if there's a curse on the blade."
Arthur spoke for the first time on entering the room, "Molly, I think she needs St. Mongo's. This could be serious."
"We can't take her to St. Mongo's! They'll ask too many questions!" Harry fretted, the prospect beyond him. "Can we call someone out?"
Arthur peered at Harry before running to the stairs and disappearing from sight. Molly started whispering incantations between breaths as Ron looked on silently. Harry felt awkward and out of place. He didn't know what to do, but he knew he needed to do something.
He followed Mr. Weasley upstairs, trying to find where he'd gone.
Arthur was talking to Percy in the landing when Harry joined the conversation.
"Get Kingsley, he'll know what to do. Can you do that for me, Percy?"
"Sure, sure," Percy replied seriously. Then he turned to Harry, "You'll need to tell Kingsley what happened, Harry, when he gets here. He's experienced with dark magic."
He started to walk down the stairs. Harry looked at Mr. Weasley, "How do you know its dark magic?"
"I've had my fair share of dark magic wounds in my time," he answered grimly. "I know one when I see one, trust me Harry."
A door behind them opened and Ginny appeared in the doorway. Her eyes were wide, her mouth gaping open, "Who's been hurt?"
Mr. Weasley said nothing, so Harry took it upon himself to answer her.
"Hermione," he croaked, a wider splash of guilt pouring into his stomach.
Her face blanched at the mention of her best friend. "What happened?"
"Stabbed. She's been stabbed," as he said it for a second time, the seriousness of what just happened began to fully sink in. Hermione's life was hanging in the balance, and there was a possibility that the dark magic Dolohov had used could not be reversed.
Ginny began galloping down the stairs, soon followed by Harry. The scene was unchanged. Ron held onto Hermione for dear life, while Mrs. Weasley helplessly tried to mutter incantations to stop the blood flow. Hermione was squeezing Ron's hand with all of her might, Harry could tell because her knuckles were white and Ron's hand looked close to bruising.
"Hermione! What the hell happened to you?" Ginny's eyes were full of tears, although her voice was strong. That was one of the many things Harry liked about Ginny; she was always strong in these kind of situations, even if she felt weak on the inside.
Hermione's eyes flicked open to stare at the ginger girl, "Ginny, I'm fine-"
"Will you stop saying that?" snapped Ron. "You're bloody not fine! You've got a bloody knife sticking out of you, how is that fine?"
Her head flopped to the side to take in Ron. Her expression changed to stony at once and Harry seen the familiar gleam of irritation in her brown eyes that only Ron could put there, "Don't tell me how to feel, Ron."
Harry couldn't help but feel amused at the two of them arguing, even in a moment like this. Mrs. Weasley didn't find any of it amusing as she looked appalled at her youngest son, "Ron, don't upset her!"
"Molly, I've sent Percy to get Kingsley. He should be here soon," Arthur interrupted, his face lined with worry. Hermione closed her eyes and took a deep breath, much to Ron's anxiousness.
"What's wrong? Hermione, what's wrong?"
CRACK!
The familiar noise of someone Apparating rang out through the air and Harry and Arthur immediately ran to the back door to see Percy and Kingsley.
"Where is she, Arthur?" Kingsley bellowed in his powerful voice.
"Inside, on the sofa. Harry will tell you everything, Kingsley."
The broad-shouldered man nodded, at once sweeping away into the house with Percy and Mr. Weasley. Harry reluctantly followed, quickly deciding whether to tell the complete truth, or just a shorter version of it. But this was his best friends' life hanging in the balance, and the decision to lie was beyond him.
When Harry entered, Kingsley was busy inspecting Hermione's wound. He was muttering words of encouragement to her, "Don't worry, I was training to be a Healer before I decided to follow the path of an Auror. I've got experience with wounds and with dark magic. You'll be safe with me, I promise you that much, Hermione."
"Thank you, Kingsley," she whispered in response.
He turned his bald head to stare at Harry and Ron, both of who paled a little. Harry didn't wait to be asked, but started into his story, explaining everything from the confrontation with Calix and Dolohov, to the moment Hermione had been stabbed. He didn't say anything about Diagon Alley, Burke or anything before the incident in the field.
"You say the daggers were glowing?"
"Yes. Does that mean anything?"
"It does, I'm afraid. A spell was probably placed on the dagger. That means that either the spell has to be broken before the dagger is removed, or the spell is doing something within her body."
Hermione's eyes were wide and she tried push herself further up on a pillow, but winced as she did so. "But you'll be able to fix it?"
Ron pushed her down again, rubbing her arm smoothly to comfort her. He didn't look at the people around the room, so he didn't see the concerned glances and Mrs. Weasley's silent tears, all he did was whisper to her, "Of course Kingsley and my mother will fix it. You're safe, Hermione. I'll make sure of it."
Harry glanced at Ginny, who was standing behind the sofa, gazing back at Harry. Her eyes were about to spill tears of concern. He crossed the room, took her hand and guided her to sit on an armchair with him. His hand was shaking, and he was sure that she could feel it, but at the moment that was the least of their worries.
Kingsley silently committed incantation after incantation on the dagger's handle. After a moment, he stared at is blankly, saying, "There's only one thing to do; there isn't any signs of a hidden spell. I'll just have to remove it."
"Hold her," he commanded to anyone standing nearby.
She kept her gaze on Ron, preparing herself for the dagger to be removed. In one swift movement, Kingsley's hand clasped the dagger's handle and pulled it out of the wound.
Hermione let out a loud wince, and Ron jerked in protest. He was shaking more than ever, from what Harry could see and crying silently. The dagger was dropped onto the coffee table, the silver clanging against the wood. Blood from the blade started to drip onto the surface. Hermione's blood, Harry told himself, feeling sick with worry.
It looked as if Hermione had finally fell unconscious as Kingsley inspected the wound. She gave an unexpected shiver-
"Her pulse is weakening!" Ron yelled in a rush, "Hermione! Hermione!"
He started to panic, and Kingsley immediately checked her pulse. He pointed his wand at her wound, stabilising the blood flow, making her gain some colour in her cheeks.
"It looks as if Dolohov had the purpose of causing permanent damage, but his magic wasn't strong enough. I can fix the wound now, yet it still might take a little longer to heal than usual," Kingsley revealed, to a crowd who let out a grateful sigh. He turned to Ron, patting him on the back. "You're girl is going to fine, son. Stop worrying."
Harry noticed Ron's ears turn scarlet. He muttered thanks and watched Kingsley get back to work.
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley walked over to he and Ginny sharing a chair. Harry looked up at them, guessing what they were going to say.
"Harry, dear, we need to talk."
He nodded, his guess was right. Their secret was a secret no longer.
A/N: I just wanted to spend one chapter on this, so it's a bit longer that usual- sorry about that! I'm going to touch on a Ron and Hermione moment after the incident, so the writing-style will change. Tell me what you think of Calix and Dolohov snapshot, should I do more of them, or never again? (Btw, Calix's brother ran away with his wife. Just in case that wasn't clear.)
I've had my Pottermore email since beginning of September: DreamThorn73, add me! X.
