MINDSPRING- The last chapter of my first story is here! I have really enjoyed writing this story, and I hope you enjoyed reading it!
Something was not right.
Even though we were still a good one-and-three-quarter kilometers away from Hogwarts, the thoughts coming from the school were so powerful and so full of terror that I shivered, and Edward's demeanor suddenly got much more serious. Through the eyes of the students, I could see and hear everything that was going on- and it was not pretty. Screams rang in the younger children's ears, while adrenaline and fear pulsed through the veins of the older children, most of who were fighting. Fighting to take back their school from the wretched claws of the Death Eaters.
The grip had started with the help of a young boy, who had smuggled them into the castle. They were waiting for something. No, someone. And I knew who. I wasn't about to let that happen.
Quickly scanning around with my peripheral vision, I could see that the Cullen clan was hidden beside me, ready to go. As I was I; I had waited long for this day of revenge.
Not to my surprise, an entire year had been taken up by my journey, although it should have taken nowhere near as long. I had spent the months before actually going to the Cullens in the wilderness of Canada's forests, in the very heart of the darkness. I had needed to form a plan, one that would go so smoothly I would have to worry about nothing else besides protecting the Harry Potter boy I was assigned to protect so long ago. It needed to be polished, perfected, and isolation had always done the trick for our kind.
I was ready, but the circumstances surrounding the school had changed so drastically that there was no way my plan was going to work- it all had to be done on improvisation now.
I looked at Edward on my left and Emmet on my right. They were both tense, as we all were, but Edward was tense because he, too, could hear the terror of the students. Emmet was just excited to fight. We arrived, and we noticed three things at the same exact time- the Dark Mark was hovering over the tallest tower, eerily 'screaming'; the Death Eaters were obviously here; and the smell of blood hit us like a train.
It was so overwhelming that I had to close my eyes for a moment just to get a grip on myself, even though we had just fed on the way here. I opened my eyes and said quietly, "Our duty is to protect the children- avoid killing anyone. The Ministry would be happy to get another decree for the extermination of our kind. Good luck."
"To us all," Esme breathed.
I launched myself into the air, aiming for a masked man who was taunting a group of children, flinging curses that just barely missed them. I landed next to him with a thud, and I slowly stood, eyeing him warily. He smiled as he flicked his wand over to my chest. I merely smiled serenely before I reached out a hand and snapped it in half, like the twig it was. Immediately, the man's eyes widened and he crouched down at my feet, cowering in fear. I looked over to the students, who were now peeking their heads out around at me. I waved a hand at them and said, "He's all yours," before I ran off.
I was looking for someone. Something.
I didn't tell the Cullen clan about the werewolf Greyback. He was mine.
He needed to be killed, as he killed so many young ones from their families. It would be my revenge for them.
I raced around the corner and came out in the middle of a ferocious fight. I turned my head gracefully at the Death Eater, who immediately started hissing curses, but they hit me like feathers. I pulled out my own wand and constricted him.
For the next few minutes, I absolutely lost track of how many Death Eaters I took down. I did not kill any, although it would have given me great pleasure to. The students shrank back, but cheered as I left them to deal with the Death Eaters. I smiled, but then gritted my teeth together as the smell of Greyback hit me before his actual attack.
His claws would have shredded a normal human's skin off the bone, but for me, it just irritated me. I snarled and landed on all fours, facing him.
The moon struck him at an odd angle, making his scars and cuts stand out even more than usual. His hair was damp, he was breathing deeply (an advantage for me- he was tired), and his inhuman claws were furled. I could smell the blood that dripped off of him.
"How long have you been a servant, Greyback? I hope your Master treats you well!" We began to circle each other, doing a strange dance. The music we paced to was shots of magic, shrieks of the students, and every now and again a shrill, maniacal laugh. Not the best music.
He growled, showing me his teeth. I did the same in return, sneering, as he replied, "I work for no one, blood sucker. I am my own Master!"
I threw my head back and laughed, "Of course! You have a wand, then? And the Dark Lord obeys you?" I was taunting him, and not very well at that. But it got the reaction I wanted and needed.
Greyback growled and ran towards me, fast for a human, but slow for creatures of the night. I dodged it easily, and struck out on his back. He howled as the blood dripped from the gashes. He spun around and hit me with full force. I launched backward until I smashed through the castle wall.
Students who were unfortunate enough to be standing behind it shrieked and ran away as fast as they could. Several spells hit me, but I took little notice. The dust had blocked my vision of the outside for a short time, so I closed my eyes and took a breath.
That was a mistake. Immediately, I could feel the venom rushing through my head. I spat it out on a stone and waited for the tension to pass as my muscles relaxed themselves.
As he started to appear amidst the rubble and dust, I picked up a heavy stone, weighing about thirty or forty kilograms. It hit him in the chest, and I could feel the vibrations through the ground. He fell backward and I launched myself through the wall and landed a punch on his arm.
He howled, a horrific, morbid sound as the bone was crushed under my fist. I hissed again, relishing the release I felt from the violence. I know it was wrong, but this had been one long, anticipated fight. I had been looking forward to destroying this monster.
He took my hesitation and hurled my off of him. As I flew through the air, I saw him stand and straighten his arm before it could heal wrong.
I broke through the branches and sprinted into the clearing, but stopped short. He was playing a low, low trick. Unbelievable. He was playing the lowest trick someone like him could play.
He was holding an unconscious student by the throat. "Coward," I spat.
He shrugged and said, "I like to think of myself as cunning."
And with that he brought his teeth to the neck. The body writhed in Greyback's grip, and three lines of dark blood started to stream down his neck.
I screamed as the strong smell hit me. The blood I had smelled earlier hadn't been fresh, hadn't been new, but this… this was fresh. He was using the poor student as a shield, as well as an attack on my strength.
I dropped to the ground and dug my fists into the soft ground. Snarling, I reached to my boot and pulled out my wand.
Greyback was oblivious as I slowly staggered to my feet and screamed curse after curse at him. The boy dropped to the ground, breathing quickly and shallowly.
I now had a choice: save the child, or go after the man who had killed so many?
If I killed the werewolf, I would be saving countless lives. But if I left the child to die...
After a millisecond of hesitation, I dropped to the side of the injured boy, one with bright red hair. Bite marks were at three centimeters deep in the delicate flesh of the neck. It was pumping blood, and soon the boy would be dead.
I held my wand over his wound and whispered words of healing, but in my heart I knew he would always be like a werewolf forevermore.
I sighed as the body relaxed in my grip. I looked up, and to my horror, I saw a skull etched in the clouds, with a snake curling from the mouth. Slowly, I stood, and looked underneath it.
At the base of the Astronomy Tower, a body was lying, twisted, crippled, dead.
Dumbledore.
No.
No!
A shrill cry of pain and sadness pierced the otherwise silent air. The Death Eaters had fled, as they had completed their task.
A touch on my shoulder made me turn. The Cullens were standing behind Carlisle, silent. Carlisle bowed his head and said, "We must go now."
Without feeling or saying anything, I nodded and left the scene of death, horror, and blood to the humans, the weakest in the chain of creatures, but the ones who could halt this destruction once and for all. Since they held the majority, they would be the saving grace of this worthless battle.
Strange. Usually this was nothing new to me. I wonder what has changed? I looked up again, and saw thousands of lights hovering above the mourning crowd. The Dark Mark slowly vanished into the clouds.
I stepped over the body of the unconscious boy, and followed my new clan home.