Chapter 8 – Spirit and Flowers
HPOV
Something was going on here. Hermione and Connie had just left a couple minutes ago when Derrick and Colleen came running up to our table.
"Where is Connie?"
"She left to go to your decorating meeting. What's going on?"
"One, we are having a ball and two, the decorating meeting is Tuesday night in here. Who went with her?"
"Hermione did. Let's go."
"Draco set her up. The room he sent them to is filled with Knock-out Gas. One whiff and even a dragon will go down in a matter of minutes. I don't know what he's planning but we got to hurry." We ran down the hall and passed the Potions room, when we smelled something funky.
"Shit, they already opened it. Bubblio!" I muttered the charm and a bubble covered my face. Colleen, Derrick and Ron did as well and we continued running. We reached the door Draco told Connie and when I tried to open it, it was locked.
"Alohamora!" The lock remained just that, locked. I had a bad feeling about this and the fear for Hermione and Connie was mounting. Ever since I had met Connie, she had stolen something in my heart. I could feel my magic searching for her elemental aura. It was in the room but a charm held the door closed.
"Damn it. Colleen can you do something? I know you are a twister." Colleen nodded. She had never hid her power like Connie had. A twister, or breaker, could manipulate magic around them and make it to what they want it to be. Dumbledore and Voldemort could do something similar.
"Stand back." I watched as she touched the door and it glowed blue. I wanted Connie back in my sight and my arms. She seemed to be safe when she was with us. As Colleen worked the magic, a scream pierced our ears. I had heard Hermione scream before and it wasn't hers.
"Connie! Hold on we're coming. Colleen, hurry please."
"I'm trying. I'm not a deflector. Got it!" She swung the door open and we entered. The sight before me was horrible.
CPOV
I screamed. All I could hear were dead people screaming and begging for mercy. The sounds were overwhelming and I could barely concentrate on anything around me.
"Connie! Incendio!" I heard Harry's voice break the spell over me. I looked down to see I was tied up with another cursed object right in front of me burning and Hermione was fine. I couldn't see because of the fire and then a bit of flame burned in my direction. I pulled it closer and it burnt the ropes holding me. I rubbed my wrists and then untied my legs. I crawled to Hermione and undid her binds.
"Thanks Connie. Harry, we are over here." I saw a figure move towards us but it was Draco who emerged. I stood up with Hermione and she pointed her wand at him. I took mine out but left it at my side.
"Stupefy!"
"Protego!" Hermione deflected the curse. I watched as Draco withdrew something from his cloak and then threw it at us. I accidently caught it and realized briefly it was a chain when I was in that torturing scene again. The chain wrapped around my arm and bombarded me with spirits yelling at me in pain and anger. My body burned with their pain and it was horrible. I couldn't get the chain off, and even if I could focus enough to get it off, I couldn't fight through this pain. I fell to my knees as they gave out.
"Harry! Hurry! Stupefy!" I barely heard Hermione yell out.
"Connie! Colleen we need you. It's another cursed object and this time it has her!" I felt arms hold me to a warm body but the pain was so bad I couldn't register who was holding me or if they were contributing to the pain.
"Please help. I can't stand them yelling anymore. It hurts." My arm was pulled away from me but it felt more like it was being ripped from my body.
"NO! Please stop hurting me!" I was crying now. I just wanted it to stop.
"Harry, I got it off but she is cursed. Get her out of here. Now! The others and I will take care of this mess. Go!" I guessed Harry picked me up and carried me but all I could feel and register was pain. It was now consuming me. My insides were being ripped and eaten from my body. My brain felt like a million little bugs were crawling through it and tunneling.
HPOV
Connie was crying, squirming, and writhing in pain and she kept mumbling for someone to stop all the pain and let her go. I was going to kill Draco for this. That damn chain was probably soaked in blood and cursed spirits.
"Please, just kill me now." I felt my own tears burn behind my eyes. Whatever she was going through was bad enough to want her to die. I finally reached Dumbledore's office and ran past the gargoyle because he opened immediately. I kicked the door open and Dumbledore looked at me concerned for the intrusion until he laid eyes on Connie. I, myself had a few burns and scrapes but she needed attention.
"Help her please. Draco put a cursed chain on her arm and now I don't know what's happening. She keeps screaming for the pain to stop and just before we came up she asked to die." Dumbledore ran over and took her from me. I watched as he cleared his desk with a quick sweep and then he was performing spells on her. Connie slowly started to regain her color and her thrashing slowed down until she was completely still. I panicked but then she was breathing. Dumbledore kept going at it and then I watched as black wisps of smoke emerged from her body. I was completely disgusted with how many were coming out of her body. She opened her eyes and they were bright green, just like mine.
"Dumbledore, while I'm here you can take out more than one at a time. Her spirit is resting from the overload. Harry, come here." I walked over to Connie's body. The eyes I saw were my own and so I knew who had come to her rescue. Connie's eyes were normally a bright blue that looked like the ocean with stars in it. My mother grabbed my hand.
"Sweetheart, you better not let yourself lose her. She is the best thing for you and you are the same for her. Your father wanted to come but being in a girl's body would be a little disconcerting because of the vocal changes. Just know that we are here when you need us and that even though Connie hasn't summoned us yet doesn't mean she doesn't love you. She's just waiting until the right time for you to see us both and for it to be special. I love you sweetheart."
"I love you too Mum. Thank you for helping Connie."
"No problem. She suffered enough as it is."
"What did she suffer Lily?" Dumbledore was done pulling spirits from her body and was sitting in his chair. My mother sat up and I realized that the green eyes looked pretty cute with the light brown hair that Connie had. Her features were all soft and kind while her hair was slightly curly. The lithe body and soft, delicate and peach skin made my angel look perfect.
"All those spirits were tortured in some form or another. She suffered all their pain until death. You saw how many spirits you dragged out, that was only a very small percentage that was in that chain. She's lucky Colleen got it off so fast or who knows if she would still be alive right now. Harry, have Dumbledore heal you quickly, you look like you're from the sixties." I smiled at my mother and then Dumbledore chuckled a little.
"Lily, forever the maternal sort. Hold still Harry." Dumbledore did a quick healing charm and I was all dandy. I watched as my mother moved around in Connie's body. Even with my mother's spirit, Connie still had that graceful little bounce in her step and walked as if she was dancing.
"Well, I'm going to go back to Connie's dorm and let her fall asleep. Harry, lead me down there please. What's the password?"
"Troubled Time. I picked the password this time. When you get down there, Lily, set the password for Butterfly. She can then change it if she wants to." Dumbledore led us out of the office and then closed the door as he followed us down to the Slytherin common room. My mum and I talked about everything we could and then she was telling me how my father had actually proposed while they were in the air while he was teaching her Quidditch.
"It was amazing and then when I hugged him, he forgot we were on brooms and we nearly fell to our deaths. It was a good thing we were only two feet above the ground. It was the thought that counted and then a month later we were married and then nine months later you came along. Oh where are we?"
"Lily, this is the entrance to the Slytherin common room. Troubled Time." I watched the wall fall apart and then my mum's gasp of shock.
"Wow, it looks like a rich prison." I laughed.
"That's what we all say. Here follow me to her room." I led my mum to the door that was Connie's. My mother took out Connie's wand and tapped the door, saying Butterfly.
"Wow the room is amazing. Dumbledore, I couldn't have done better myself."
"I only did some of it. Severus did the rest. Now, Harry, we will leave your mother to change into night clothes and have her summon us back in." My mum shuffled us out faster than we were moving and closed the door. I stood there with Dumbledore, wondering how I had gotten into the Slytherin common room so many times without being caught.
"Hey, Dumbledore, how much luck can follow a person?"
"As much as it deems it wants to give. You don't get in here because you are extremely lucky. You are the heir of Gryffindor and so the common rooms will bend to your will as much as they possibly can. The castle is alive and honors its heirs very much. Ah, your mother is finished." He opened the door and my mum was reading a book.
"Always the scholar Lily. Pray tell me what you are reading though?"
"It's a Muggle book. It's about a young man and how he is gay and what his life is like, living in a world of anger and hatred because he doesn't like women. It's quite interesting actually. Well, I'll leave Connie for the time being and sweetheart, I'm always with you in your heart. Tell Sirius and Remus we said hi." With that, my mum tucked herself into bed and then I saw her green eyes turn back to blue before they shut and Connie was asleep. I pulled up a chair and sat by her bed. Dumbledore would have to get one of the trio to look after her because I couldn't wonder in here without being hexed to oblivion. I was an outstanding dueler, according to Sirius and Remus, but I couldn't fight off a whole House of people.
"Professor, you will have to get Blaise, Colleen, or Derrick to watch her. I'll stay until you come back."
"Harry, I'm going to let you stay with her. I moved a few clothes for you into the bottom drawer over there. I figured you are trustworthy enough to sleep in here with her. See you tomorrow at breakfast." Dumbledore left and then I kissed Connie's head gently before I went to change. There was a new bathroom connected to this room near the fireplace. I went in and changed there, leaving the door cracked so I could see her. She looked so peaceful compared to a couple hours ago. I came back in and then the door opened to reveal Coeur striding in with Hedwig and Danny on his back.
"Hey girl, how are you? I haven't seen you in a while. Coeur, Danny, she's alright now. She's asleep." Hedwig went to Connie and sniffed her out. She must have liked what she found because Hedwig sat on the headboard and went to sleep. Danny flew to Hedwig and slept right next to her. Looks like I wasn't the only one falling in love around here. Coeur plopped down on the floor and set his head facing the door that had closed. I got into the bed with Connie and when I settled in, she turned and her hand gripped the shirt I had put on this time. I put my arm over her and fell asleep like this, with the woman I was falling madly in love with.
AN: The story behind this is Connie is vulnerable to the darker spirits. Draco's mission is to demoralize Harry and find his weaknesses. Draco is going to be doing just that. I found reading this story over I don't ever mention the mission except when Snape confronts him. I hope that this makes more sense now. Hermione was just an extra.
