It was the Saturday before Halloween; which fell on the following Friday, and there was a rather large cluster of Gryffindors crowded by the message board in the Commons Room. Pixie managed to squeeze her way to the front, Lily beside her, and stared in wonder at the poster displayed in front of them.
The poster, a loud, bright purple color, was labeled "Hogwarts Halloween Spectacular!", and underneath it, in smaller writing, read "Brought to you by The Marauders". There was also a brief description underneath it all as well; "Wear a costume, bring an empty pillowcase, and tell your friends! Other houses welcome, begins after the Halloween Feast.", written in a shimmering silver color that was obviously Sirius' handwriting. Quickly sketched out pumpkins danced around the poster, and stereotypically drawn ghosts floated across the words, while black cats pounced around the poster as though they were chasing the pumpkins.
"Merlin," Lily marveled, eyes wide as she stared at the page. "I can't believe it."
"This is really incredible." Pixie said, letting other Gryffindors push their way past her to see the sign for themselves.
"Quite glad you think so."
Both Pixie and Lily turned to see Remus standing behind them, a half smile placed on his face. He wore yet another one of his famous sweaters, this one a dark orange, with a few rips near the collar that only added to the Remus-ness of it.
"The three of them moved out of the general crowd, and then Lily enveloped Remus in a hug.
"You lot are incredible, you know that?" Lily's muffled voice came from Remus' shoulder.
"Wow Lily, no hug for me?" James appeared with Sirius and Peter in tow.
Pixie was a bit surprised when Lily launched herself at James, clinging to him in an immense bear hug. Normally Lily was against PDA, but apparently the Halloween announcement was enough for her to embrace it.
James was a bit taken aback as well, but hugged her back just as tightly. Sirius rolled his eyes, and then stood on a table near them, and cupped his hands around his mouth.
"Alright you heathens, this party calls for you to come with a date! I don't care if you end up taking Dumbledore, s'long as you've got someone!" Sirius shouted, successfully getting everyone's attention. "Bring your toad if you're that desperate!"
As Sirius got down from the table, Pixie could have sworn she saw him wink at Remus. Sirius then walked over to them, and slung an arm around Pixie and Lily.
"Shall we make our way to Hogsmeade, gents?" Sirius asked.
Lily cocked an eyebrow at that. "Do Pix and I look like gents to you, Sirius?"
"No, not really." Sirius shrugged, and then made his way to the door. "Well, I don't know about the rest you, but I'm going to hurry over to Hogsmeade to make sure the good costumes aren't all picked yet."
"He's got a point." Pixie agreed, following after Sirius.
The Marauders and Lily followed suit, and altogether they headed for Hogsmeade. On their way there, Pixie spotted a group of Slytherins headed that way as well. Normally, she wouldn't think anything different of them, but this particular group was familiar.
Lucius, Bellatrix, Severus, and someone Pixie was unsure of walked close together, with their heads huddled together. Pixie wasn't sure if it was simply because it was those four, but she had a strong feeling that they weren't in Hogsmeade all for some simple fun. So, she vowed to keep an eye on them.
Pixie faded in and out from the conversation, supplying responses when necessary. Once they finally reached Hogsmeade, they headed towards the costume shop Pixie remembered seeing before; the one that proclaimed they had authentic muggle costumes. Pixie noticed the group of Slytherin Death Eaters heading away from the general area of Hogsmeade. She realized she was going to have to make an excuse to leave, so she could follow them and make sure they didn't kill anyone.
"So, Pixie, who are you going to go to the party with?" Remus asked suddenly, drawing Pixie out of her thoughts.
"Erm, I haven't really gave it any thought yet," She said, her eyes still trailed on the quickly fading backs of Slytherin's. "I'll probably end up taking my cat, in all honesty."
"Well, um, if you wanted-" Remus started, but before he could finish his sentence he was loudly interrupted.
"D'you want to go with me?" Peter squeaked out, and they all stopped walking out of shock.
Pixie blinked, and looked at Peter in silence, then drew her eyes back to where she had last seen the Slytherin's.
"Sure," She blurted out, and then started moving towards the general direction of the death eaters. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go to the Hogs Head."
Peter's face broke out in a happy grin, and he started to say something to her, but Pixie was already gone. Before the Marauders could follow, she cast a Disillusionment charm on herself, so she would be invisible.
She hurried as fast as the crowd would allow her, and it got easier once she reached the outskirts of Hogsmeade, where she was able to catch up to the group she had been stalking.
Pixie was grateful her friends hadn't followed, because from the giddy expression on Bellatrix's face, she could tell this was going to be a particularly awful trip.
After following them to the beginning of a forest, which she wondered if it was possible for her to track where they apparated to, but while she figured there was, Dumbledore would be the one who would know how. For a moment, she pondered alerting him of this, but decided against it. No need to get him involved quite just yet.
"Hurry up, Lucius, I don't want to keep him waiting," Bellatrix positively purred, and it was reminiscent of the way someone would speak of a lover. That right there should have given Pixie a huge hint as to who they were going to meet, but she was too focused on the task at hand-tracking the death eaters.
"Here." Lucius stopped suddenly, and pointed to a twisted piece of metal, engraved with markings Pixie didn't understand.
"What are we waiting for then?" Bellatrix crowed, and skipped over to the metal.
"On the count of three," Severus said, and Lucius laughed snidely.
"As if you call the shots, Snape." He sneered, and they all positioned themselves around the twisted object.
Any feelings of wanting to leave vanished when she saw Regulus standing there, the mysterious fourth person she hadn't been sure of. He looked sure of himself, but his hands shook when he reached out to touch the metal.
Quickly, and quietly, Pixie made her way over to stand near Severus and Regulus, staying as quiet as humanly possible, so that she could take hold of the Portkey and go with them undetected.
"Forget counting," Bellatrix exclaimed, and jutted her hand out to grasp the metal rod. The others hurried to do the same, and Pixie just barely made it before they were taken to their destination.
They were still outside, but now there was the scent of ocean, and they stood on top of rocks rather than dirt. People were whispering around them, and a hushed silence fell once their prescence was noticed. Of course, they had no idea that Pixie was there, and she hoped it would stay that way.
"Bella," A high, cold voice crooned, and Pixie turned to see a pale man with dark hair standing in front of a circle of people, all of them wearing black cloaks. "Ah, Lucius, Severus, and dear Regulus. Welcome, friends."
"Master." Bellatrix simpered, her voice once again taking on the tone of passion.
Pixie froze, hardly daring to breath as she realized she was standing in the midst of a death eater meeting, and oh yeah, whats worse, freakin Voldemort was there as well. What a fine Saturday. Her blood ran cold as Voldemort moved over towards them, embracing Bellatrix and giving her a chaste kiss on the cheek. She prayed that he wouldn't somehow notice her presence.
"We have don't have much to discuss this meeting, but now that you four are here, we can begin." Voldemort smiled, his white teeth glistening in the light.
It was easy to see why Bellatrix was so fixated on Voldemort, because he truly was handsome. Of course, the Horcruxes took away a good chunk of his beauty, but even with that missing he was still stunning. It was only when you looked closely at his features and realized they were much too sharp, abnormal even for naturally chiseled features. His skin, almost a gray translucent pale paired with purple circles under his eyes. Oh, but the eyes were most chilling, at least to someone like Pixie who had an obsession with eyes. They were haunting, for one, and had a red tinge to them, although that wasn't all too noticeable at first glance, and the pupils were narrowed enough to resemble slits and make you do a double take.
"Regulus, are you ready for your task?" Voldemort asked, his eyes not leaving the younger Black's face.
"I am, my lord." Regulus replied, and his face stayed an emotionless mask.
"You know exactly what you must do, and when to do it, correct?" Voldemort challenged, testing Regulus to see his answer.
"Of course, my lord. I wouldn't dare disappoint you." Regulus said, his voice holding only a hint of defiance.
Voldemort raised his eyebrow. "I would hope not, dear child. Your parents speak highly of you, they're quite proud."
Regulus nodded, but didn't say anything.
"Your brother, on the other hand.." Voldemort trailed off for a second. "Such a waste, really. Your family is wonderful, he's just.. a dud."
Regulus' jaw clenched, and a muscle twitched in his face. Voldemort took notice of this, and cocked his head.
"Do you disagree, boy?" Voldemort casually asked.
"No, my lord." Regulus said mechanically, his hand clenching at his side.
Voldemort broke out into a grin. "Wonderful. Now, once you children are on winter break, we will meet again. In the meantime, we," Voldemort motioned towards the older death eaters. "Will raid a few houses. The Potter's, definitely, the Bones, a few other ministry members, and the Weasley's."
"Have you gotten any more information on why Dumbledore was searching for your childhood home, my lord?" Lucius asked, and that seemed to be the wrong thing to say.
Voldemort walked over to him, and backhanded him so harshly that the crack of skin echoed throughout the cave like a gunshot. Lucius cradled his cheek, but one look from Voldemort had him dropping his hand and staring stoically ahead.
"That is my personal business, Lucius, as I have informed your father numerous times." Voldemort glared at what Pixie assumed was Lucius' father, and then switched the subject back to the previous topic, as though nothing had happened.
"Somehow, Dumbledore has managed to keep the people he's working with in a futile attempt to defeat me under lock and key. It's fairly easy to assume, of course, but it would be so much easier if I knew for sure," Voldemort paused, and looked at Lucius again, a malicious gleam in his eyes. "Lucius, you task is to get me names of Dumbledore's resistance. If you fail.." He didn't finish his sentence, but from the look on Lucius' face he knew, or could at least guess what the punishment would be.
"Is there anything I can do, my lord?" Bellatrix asked, the eagerness in her voice made Pixie sick.
"Bella, you are truly one of my most useful assets. Keep doing what you have been doing, my dear." Voldemort thought for a moment. "Actually, keep an eye on the Pixie girl you told me about. Find out anything you can about her."
"Of course, my lord." Bellatrix bowed.
"That goes for all of you," Voldemort turned to the Slytherin's. "The moment I am able to, I will kill her."
The way he said it, that he would kill Pixie, wasn't like a declaration of her death, no anger, no vengeance, just plain and simple, as though he were talking about what day it was. Matter of fact, and casual, as though stating you were going to kill someone wasn't a big deal at all. Of course, when you're the Dark Lord, it really isn't.
Pixie's breath hitched in her throat, and she found it hard to breath. She could feel a panic attack coming on, and she tried to stop it but it didn't seem to work. She was making too much noise, she knew it, but she couldn't stop it.
Voldemort and his death eaters became aware that someone else was there, and drew their wands. Voldemort walked towards Pixie's general direction, and it was as though he was looking right at her.
"Seems as though someone has been listening under the guise of a Disillusionment charm, my friends." Voldemort said, and raised his wand. With a simple flick, he sent a spell heading straight for Pixie, but she moved in the nick of time.
Of course, with her being well into the beginning of her panic attack, and the rock she was standing on being quite precarious, she slipped off and feel into the water, and the Disillusionment charm wore off. Whether it was from the shock of the ice cold water, or the stress of her situation, it wore off regardless, leaving her an obvious target for Voldemort.
She scrambled for her wand, her numb fingers digging through her robes, trying desperately to grasp her wand, all the while dealing with her panic attack and dodging spells that came her way. She tried her best to stay under the below freezing water, only because it was dark and murky, making it hard for anyone to see where she was.
It only took a matter of seconds, but with the threat of her death hanging over her head it felt like much longer, but she was finally able to grip her wand, picture Hogsmeade, and apparate.
Pixie dropped in a mess of sopping wet robes, a sharp pain spreading from her shoulder blade to her left arm, and down her back a bit, causing her to cry out in pain. It blossomed, and she bit down on her lip until she tasted blood in order to stop herself from crying anymore. She stood up, and looked around. A few Hogwarts students had noticed her sudden, odd appearance, but said nothing.
"Yo, you need any help?"
Pixie looked up to see a sixth year Slytherin with reddish blonde hair standing in front of her, her blue grey eyes widened in concern and confusion. Pixie remembered her as being very friendly, social, and not judgemental for a Slytherin. Kat was her name, if she remembered correctly.
"Thanks, but I'm good." Pixie replied, wincing as pain exploded in her shoulder each time she jostled it.
"You sure? Cause, you're kind of bleeding pretty bad." Kat commented, brushing her long hair away from her face.
"Yeah, I'll just get to Madame Pomfrey and she'll help me." Pixie assured the girl, touched that she was so concerned about her.
"Alright man, but, be careful, okay?" Kat said, and Pixie nodded. Kat walked away, leaving Pixie by herself.
Pixie walked through Hogsmeade and towards the castle, being careful to stick to the less crowded areas, and ignoring all the looks she was getting from her wet clothes, and slightly bloody robes. Her mind was racing, and she wanted to get to Dumbledore as soon as possible. She had to tell him what she had heard, and what she had seen, and if it weren't for the fact that she had managed to splinch herself while apparating, she would have apparated straight to his office. While she was sure that had only happened because she had been under quite a bit of pressure, having almost been murdered and all, she didn't want to risk it.
Yet, it was getting increasingly hard to keep walking, because of the pain emanating from her shoulder, but she kept on, ignoring the pain and the freezing cold that seemed to have sunk into her bones. She was glad she hadn't ran into any of the Marauders, because she really didn't feel like explaining what had happened at the moment, and she was focused on only getting to Dumbledore.
After too long, she made it to the castle, and drug herself to Dumbledore's office. She realized she probably should have used some sort of drying spell, because she was dripping water through the castle, and more than likely blood as well, but it was all she could do to just get to Dumbledore's office. She made it there, and realized she didn't have the password.
She settled for kicking on the door, and then sitting down in front of it and trying to not move her shoulder whatsoever. The gargoyles gave her odd looks and whispered to themselves, but otherwise said nothing.
"Pixie?" Dumbledore said, looking at the sight in front of him. "What in merlin's name?"
"I believe I've managed to splinch myself, so, if I could maybe get some medical attention that would be swell," Pixie said. "Also, I sort of crashed a death eater meeting and was almost killed by Voldemort who sort of has a hit out on me. Eventful day, really."
Dumbledore's eyes widened, and he looked overwhelmed, but summoned Madame Pomfrey. Once they were settled in the hospital wings, Madame Pomfrey applying dittany to her lovely shoulder wound, and forcing her to take blood replenishing potions, Pixie felt Dumbledore trying to get past her mental blocks using legilimency, and let him, showing him all that had happened starting from Hogsmeade all the way to apparating.
"Why were you apparating anyways?" Madame Pomfrey demanded, tsking and shaking her head.
"Dared to." Pixie lied, wincing when Madame Pomfrey dabbed a but too harshly on her wound.
She muttered something under her breath, but Pixie ignored it, instead looking at Dumbledore who was lost in thought.
"Potter's, Bone's, Weasley's, and other unnamed ministry associates," He said quietly, mainly to himself. "Pixie, thank you, I'll go alert the correct people. Madame Pomfrey, thank you as well."
Madame Pomfrey waved him off, and Pixie drank the potions she was given, feeling substantially better.
"No more dares, understand me?" Madame Pomfrey said once she was done healing Pixie, and Pixie nodded vigorously. She surely wouldn't do this again. "You're free to go, but if anything hurts again or doesn't seem to be healing properly, come see me, alright?"
"Yes ma'am." Pixie nodded, and headed to the Gryffindor common rooms. She was exhausted, and wanted nothing more than to take a hot shower and go to bed.
Once she was out of the shower, she was a bit surprised when Lily wasn't in the room. It was around four, and normally Lily was back by then. Pixie was too tired to worry about it though, and slipped into her warmest pajama's and curled up under the covers.
When something jumped onto her bed, she was terrified at first, but quickly realized it was only her cat Poz.
"Baby, how have you been?" Pixie crooned, scooping him up and cuddling him close to her. She received no response, but pet him anyways. She had seen Poz off and on, and at least every night, but he had mainly been exploring the castle. She would have been worried if it weren't for the fact that Rowena looked after him and made sure he stayed safe.
"Ah, hell." Pixie blurted out suddenly. With all the death eater trailing she had done, she had completely forgotten that she had agreed to go to the Halloween party with Peter. It wasn't that she didn't like Peter, it was just that she didn't like him as more than a friend in any way shape or form and she didn't want to give the wrong impression. Plus, there was someone else she'd rather go with..
Her thoughts were interrupted when a Patronus burst into the room, one she easily recognized as being Dumbleodre's. Its mouth opened, and she listened intently to the message.
"Pixie, thank you for alerting me of what happened. The right people have been informed of what is planned, and I know you have saved lives by obtaining this information. While this was helpful, you are not to do this again. This was reckless and incredibly dangerous. You could have died. I would have told you this in person, but I had to call an emergency order meeting. I will speak with you soon."
The Patronus disappeared, and Pixie was a bit surprised that Poz didn't try to chase after it. She also knew that even if Dumbledore hadn't said anything, she wouldn't have done something like this again. This was too close a call, and she knew she would have permanent scarring from the splinching.
She rolled over on th eother side of her bed, and shrugged. Well, at least it would match with her Sectumsempra scars.
woaaaAAah whats this? an update? crazy right?
okay so im sorry for the really really late update, pls dont hate me, ive just been insanely busy and ugh, college and work have been taking up most of my time. also this chapter totally didn't turn out how i planned but i kind of just went with the flow, ya feel? hope you guys like it, although idk if the quality is all too great because ive been up since 4:30 AM and it's currently 2:00 AM soOOOooooO im exhausted. i just hope its not too rushed and too shit. i didnt proofread or skim through it at all because im heckin tired but i hope there isnt any mistakes and if there are im sorry yo.
and im kind of putting off writing the halloween party because im not very into halloween BUT it's going to be in the next chapter (which shouldn't take very long to be posted, unlike the freaking month or so wait for this one) and then a few chapters after that (or probably just one chapter after because im hyped as fuck for christmas) it'll be christmas break which is gonna be one of my favorite chapters im so heckin excited lort.
if you actually read my AN then you a tru homie and I love you so much eee. also like always, open to suggestions and stuff like that bc i have a general plan for this story, but its not planned out to a T because i like figuring it out as I go. plus, it gives me inspo to write when i get suggestions tbh. well, reviews in general do, so yeah.
thank you to everyone whose reviewed/followed/favorited, if it werent so late and i wasnt close to passing out id respond to reviews but im deadass tired so until next time! i hope you guys had a great halloween and a rad thanksgiving as well.
reviews make me happyyy
-TheFlyingGraysons
(btw i just checked and the last time i updated was august? what the fuck? i am so so sorry yall oh my god it won't take me this long again ahh okay bye)