Disclaimer: Don't own it, so don't sue me.
Note: And the pace quickens some more! Let me know what you think! Blessings!
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Within a secret passage that led to the village of Hogsmeade, Everett Emelius sat and bided his time. "Idiots," the irate professor thought. "I'm right under their noses and they can't find me. I am right to distance myself from them, although I wouldn't have chosen to do it so soon. Curse that little Mudblood fool! I would have remained undetected for some time more if she hadn't gone running to Dumbledore; then, my plan would have been complete. I knew that she wasn't good enough for Hogwarts, to be a witch. I suppose it would be a kindness to…put her out of her mute misery.
"However, this changes nothing. The plan will still work. Now, the only thing that would make my happiness complete would be to rid Hogwarts of some of the unworthy slime that lives within it before I am caught…"
Even the darkness could not mask the evil glint in his eyes, malice shining clear from his face.
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Olivia woke from a deep sleep to sounds coming from all around her. She jumped high in her bed, painfully jarring her still tender hip, when she saw a figure looming over her. Snatching her wand from the bedside table, she murmured lumos in her mind, and her wand instantly blazed with light. Relief filled her when she realized that the person was Madame Galen.
However, her fear returned when she realized that the elderly nurse was standing between her two charges' bed in a protective stance, wand drawn and her face grim. She turned to look at Olivia's light. "Put that out, quickly! Be still and be silent. You must obey everything I tell you, immediately and without question. Do you understand?"
Olivia nodded, extinguishing her wand's light instantly. The nurse stepped close to her patient's bed, and leaned down to whisper, "Someone is lurking in the castle, and we think he means to harm some of the students. Everyone else is in the Great Hall for safety, but I didn't want either you or Mr. Potter moved yet. However, I was overruled. Professor Dumbledore is on his way to help me move the two of you to be with the others. It will be safer that way, or so they tell me."
Not for nothing had Olivia been mute all of her life. While she listened to the words that Madame Galen was saying, the young girl was also listening to the undercurrents in the old nurse's voice. While her face looked brave and determined, Olivia could detect murmurs of fear in the tones. Is it Professor Emelius that is causing all the fuss? Oh dear, perhaps I shouldn't have told on him after all. Of course, it could be someone else entirely.
Comforted somewhat by this thought, she suddenly decided that she might as well be prepared. Olivia leaned over the bed, and picked up her shoes. Silently, she put them on, and grabbed her nearby leather satchel. Into it, she placed her books, her magical slate and on the very top, she forced in her tabby cat, Winnie. The sweet puss merely meowed once, then settled down and went back to sleep, her furry head sticking out of the top of the bag. Olivia's wand, however, stayed tightly gripped in her hand.
"Whazgonon?" A bleary voice sounded from the corner. It seemed that Robert Potter had finally woken up from his deep sleep, and wanted a report on the strange occurrences.
"Ah, Mr. Potter, there you are. I was wondering when you would wake up. However, I must ask you to remain quiet and listen to everything I tell you. The school is in an emergency, and Professor Dumbledore will be here in a moment to escort us to the Great Hall. Be still now, and you'll be able to go back to sleep in a while."
All three sat quiet and motionless. Even the smallest noise sounded danger to Olivia's ears, and her heart seemed to be beating loud enough for the old nurse to hear. Suddenly, the sound of quick footsteps came to her ears, and Madame Galen placed herself in front of her patients.
"Declare yourself!" she cried.
"Do not fear; it is I, Albus. Are you ready, Nightingale? Everything is in readiness."
"Yes, yes, of course, Dumbledore. What kept you? I suppose you expect me to guard these two all by myself, eh?" Muttering under her breath, the old nurse allowed a little light to come from her wand. Professor Dumbledore entered the room in his quick stride, and swished his wand, conjuring two stretchers out of thin air. Olivia sighed. Not this again!
"Hello, Mr. Potter and Miss Price. Don't be alarmed, I'm going to levitate you both onto a stretcher. Madame Galen is highly against either of you walking just yet. Here you go!" Robert and Olivia looked at each other in amusement as they both suddenly flew out of their beds and landed gently onto the stretchers. Olivia was glad that she had remembered to place her satchel in her lap. Winnie purred from inside the bag, and Olivia could see the professor trying to repress a small smile at the sight and failing. The next minute, though, he was all business.
"Right, you two will be wondering what's going on, and I don't trust Madame Galen to tell you. Listen closely, and I shall explain." Ignoring Madame Galen's snort of protest, he continued. "I don't believe in coddling students; especially the two of you. I respect the both of you too much for such nonsense. Professor Emelius is hidden somewhere inside the castle, and we are convinced that he means to do harm to anyone that crosses his path, which we will not allow to happen. The staff is set up along our route to the Great Hall, so our journey will hopefully go smoothly. However, if the situation arises, you are both allowed to perform whatever magic is necessary to ensure your own safety. Madame Galen and I will guide the stretchers. Once we arrive in the Great Hall, there is a special corner curtained off for your use, and you will be able to return to sleep. Ready, then?" The tall professor's sharp blue eyes looked deep into Olivia's emerald and Robert's brown eyes, making sure that they understood the situation and were prepared. He gave a quick nod when he saw both of their determined faces. Straightening up, he cried, "On we go!"
Professor Dumbledore strode out of the hospital wing, his wand held high. The two stretchers followed, which were being held up in the air by Madame Galen's wand. The corridors were dark, and a feeling of danger permeated the air. Olivia was frightened, but she clutched her wand and resolved to be brave. The big sixth year boy beside her looked grim, and extremely unhappy to have been found in such an embarrassing situation. Olivia grinned, knowing exactly what Robert was thinking-he, a sixth year and Quidditch captain, being carried to the Great Hall on a stretcher, and unable to stand and fight in this moment of danger! He would never live this down…
The odd group went down a flight of stairs, and entered the long hall on the fourth floor to enter the staircase that would take them all the way down to the main floor. We're going to make it, Olivia thought. It's going to be all right.
Her hopes went up in a thick cloud of smoke when an evil and malevolent laugh drifted down to meet their ears, like an apparition of malice floating before them. Madame Galen's face turned white, but her eyes still alertly watched Dumbledore carefully for instructions. He acted as if he had not heard the laugh at all, and continued to walk steadily down the corridor. Another laugh followed the first one, and then words came.
"Mudbloods and Muggles, in this honored and revered school. How I long to purge Hogwarts of all of them! Defilers, betrayers, all of you unworthy to even gaze at a wand! I want to kill you all, and I shall. Oh, I shall."
The longing in the man's voice made Olivia's blood run cold. Surely he was evil personified! Against her will, her hands began to tremble. To hide this, she gripped her wand even harder and began to run through spells in her mind. The incantation for light was lumos, the levitation charm was wingardium leviosa, the Summoning Charm was Accio…
Then a loud bang filled the air, and a swirl of black smoke and laughter formed in front of the small group, and a figure moved out of the smoke, seeming to simply spring from the walls like a ghost. Madame Galen moved to stand in front of the students, but before she could, Professor Emelius stood there, staring Professor Dumbledore dead in the face.
Pale and as cold as the Artic winter, the professor looked at his prey, which stood silently before him. His eyes were hard and cruel, and his hands twitched around his wand, as if he couldn't contain his longing and itching for mayhem much longer.
Out of the swirl of cold and dark came a voice, warm and stern at the same time. "Why do you trouble us, Everett? Let us pass by, and you can leave Hogwarts without harm. Simply walk out of here, and never come back, and we shall not have you thrown into Azkaban. Be smart about this."
The Transfiguration teacher laughed, cold and loud. "Albus, you always were such the hopeless romantic, weren't you? I have no intention of simply walking out of here. At least, I will once my work is done. I am more powerful than you know, Dumbledore. I have waited for nearly a decade for this chance, and believe me; I shall not let it pass me by."
Emelius raised his wand, and brought it downward like a lightning flash. Professor Dumbledore, however, was not still. He whirled his wand around his head, and a blue whip like fire emerged from it, and caught the jet of purple light that had emerged from Emelius' wand. Madame Galen had used the brief moment to erect shields of some sort around Olivia and Robert, who were both sitting up in their stretchers, wands upraised and ready. Robert yelled an incantation, but his jinx missed.
Suddenly, Emelius spun, and while he was spinning, jets of red light flew from his wand, hitting Madame Galen and Professor Dumbledore. With a cry, the nurse fell to the ground and was still, her shields dropping from the children. Olivia got up with a voiceless cry, and jumped to the elderly woman's side, all of her pain disappearing in the adrenaline rush of the moment. She crouched protectively over Madame Galen's still body. Meanwhile, Robert had stood and run to stand over Dumbledore's prone form, to join him in the fight. The boy raised his wand, and thundered "Expelliarmus!"
Emelius' wand flew away from him, but the dark wizard caught it back with just the tips of his fingers; however, the brief distraction succeeded in giving Dumbledore time to stand again, and push Robert behind him. Conjuring a sword out of thin air, the auburn haired professor threw it at his opponent, forcing Emelius to have to roll away to avoid the swords trajectory. Popping up from the floor again, another jet of red light flew out, missing Dumbledore but striking Robert. The boy fell down and hit his head again on the floor, and it banged twice, hard. He lay still, stunned and unconscious.
Dumbledore continued his fight with the wizard, both rolling and swirling and sending spells back and forth at one another. It was as if a storm thundered and flashed above their heads, and Olivia crouched breathless beside the stunned nurse, frozen. She had no business getting in Dumbledore's way.
Suddenly, a crisis was reached-Dumbledore had just managed to incapacitate Emelius' wand arm when the dark wizard's wand flew from one hand to another, and sent a freezing spell at Dumbledore, who was unable to move fast enough to prevent it. A flash of blue light, and the professor was caught.
Emelius turned and faced the young girl who still knelt over Robert and Madame Galen. "So, you thought by running to your favorite teacher you could escape me, did you? You forced me to move into action earlier than I wanted to, and for that you will pay. I would have thought you'd have learned your lesson ten years ago, but no matter. It seems I must give you a remedial lesson. You will hurt before you die, and poor Professor Dumbledore's eyes are frozen open-he will be forced to watch you suffer." He shrugged. "Oh well. Shall we begin?" A grim look of satisfaction came over his face, as he shouted "Crucio!"
Olivia's whole body exploded in pain; never had she felt anything like it. Her poor hip felt as if it were being pulled away from her body, and her throat felt like it would burst from the screams that couldn't escape their prison. Will I die in this pain? Oh, Mummy, Daddy, I tried to do right! Those were the only thoughts that passed her tortured mind before it yielded to the pain.
Then, mercifully, the pain stopped. Emelius' laughter filled Olivia's sore ears as she uncurled from the ball that she had rolled into. Tremors shook her, and tears flowed from her eyes.
"Well, all good things must come to an end, my dear. Now we shall end this, and I will escape and begin my plans anew. Silly child, to think that you could outsmart me alone! All shall now see who is greater, the Mudblood or one of the highest of the wizarding families!"
He raised his wand again, this time to kill the little mute girl. However, she wasn't going to go without a fight. She stood before the man who was robed in black, her white nightdress making her look unearthly, and her red hair flashed against the flickering light of the torches. Ignoring her pain, ignoring the fact that she felt like she had just been run over by Merlin's Omnibus, ignoring everything except the spell that built up in her head, Olivia released the energy from her body and from her wand shot a stream of violet light, which swiftly changed to blue.
Emelius cried out, but it was soon silenced as his body submitted to the Full-Body Bind, which was so elementary that he did not expect it. Before he could mentally release himself from her curse, the girl flew like a bird to his side and snatched his wand away from his stiff and pale hand. For just a moment, she stood over her conquered enemy, who had hurt her and wished her dead. A look of sadness, of confusion filled her face and eyes, but it was soon replaced by a stare of grim determination. Covering him with his own wand, Olivia walked backwards over to the frozen Professor Dumbledore.
Before she could perform the countercurse, an explosion of red and purple light filled the air as Professor Dumbledore freed himself and sent a spell at Emelius, binding him in an even stronger magical bond, just as Emelius seemed like he was about to free himself from Olivia's spell. Stepping past the fallen enemy, he pointed his wand at the stunned elderly witch and young wizard and said, "Ennervate." Instantly, the elderly nurse sprang to her feet, alert and furious, while Robert merely looked less stiff. He was still unconscious from hitting his head.
"Well," she snapped. "What happened while I was stuck there on the floor, like a fool?" Dumbledore began to explain in a quiet voice, and while he talked, Madame Galen bent over Robert. When the professor had finished the tale, she sighed, and looked both enraged and sorrowful at the same time.
"Stupid boy, hit his head again. What that family is coming to, I don't know. And what I'm coming to when I can't even dodge a Stunning Spell. Silly of me, I shouldn't criticize poor Robert. He did his best, good fellow, and he did give you time to react…." Pointing her wand at the boy's head, the bleeding coming from a cut on his head instantly healed. Raising her wand again, she levitated him back to the stretcher, and turned her attention to Olivia, who was standing quietly, breathing hard and still trembling from the pain and shock.
"I could positively murder that pond scum for using an Unforgivable Curse on you, Olivia! Absolutely despicable against anyone, let alone a child, and a girl at that!" She shook her head, and then seemed to realize her patient's position. "Olivia Marie Price, get right back up on that stretcher, rolling around on the floor and being tortured and running on a just-healed hip, and who knows what all else? Might I ask what in the world you were thinking?"
Olivia didn't feel like arguing as she obeyed the irate nurse's commands-she was far too tired and her entire body was throbbing from the Cruciatus Curse. Running footsteps were heard along the corridor as Professors Merrythought and Slughorn came quickly. She barely heard their excuses of being stunned from behind before she drifted away into darkness…away….
Some time later, Olivia awoke, back in the hospital wing. When she stirred, a hand appeared at the curtain and pushed it back, causing the brown tabby at the foot of the bed to purr. To Olivia's surprise, it wasn't Madame Galen or Professor Dumbledore, but Bertie!
"Oh, Olivia, darling! How good it is to see you awake! You've been asleep for so long!" The excited friend handed Olivia her slate, which she grabbed eagerly, desperate for information.
"What happened, Bertie? How long was I asleep? Where is Professor Emelius? How is…"
Bertie laughed out loud. "Olivia, slow down or I shan't be able to answer all of your questions. As you can see, you're back in the hospital wing, and you've been asleep for a whole day and night. It's now Sunday morning-your little escapade happened in the small hours of Friday morning.
"After you fainted in the corridor, Madame Galen gave you a sleeping potion so that you could heal and not be bothered. She says you can return to classes on Tuesday. Don't worry about homework-lessons were canceled on Friday because of Professor Emelius' disaster." The girl frowned, obviously angry. "He's already been transported to Azkaban to await trial. He's been charged with Using an Unforgivable Curse and Harming a Child, among several other counts. The Cruciactus Curse is enough to put him away in Azkaban for the rest of his life, so we're not worried about his getting out. It's probably a good thing that he's stuck in there with the dementors, because the whole story was in the Daily Prophet, and everyone wants to kill him now for breaking your hip and torturing you and causing such a ruckus." Bertie took a breath. "How are you feeling, anyway?"
Olivia pondered the question before answering. Finally, she said, "Still a little sore in body, but I'm hurting more in my mind. Why did he hate me so, Bertie? I never did anything to him, and I certainly didn't want him in prison. It was all so senseless, that reckless hate…"
Bertie sighed, and looked very troubled. "I don't know, Olivia. I certainly can't explain it, not to myself and definitely not to you. I suppose the important thing is that he will never be able to hurt anyone again, right?" Both girls looked up when they heard quick footsteps approaching Olivia's bed, and they smiled when they saw Madame Galen coming toward them. She sat down on her patient's bed, and picked up Olivia's slate. When she had read the question, she looked very gently at the two girls.
"Maybe I can answer a small part of your question, dear. You asked why Professor Emelius hated you, beyond all sense and rationality. Senseless is just the right word, Olivia. You just happened to be the one he focused his anger and hatred on; you didn't ask for it, and you certainly did no wrong. You didn't deserve any of the suffering that you've gone through. What's important now is that you're going to be all right, and the entire school has been told that we're going to have a feast on Monday night to celebrate our well-being."
Bertie giggled sheepishly. "That is, most of our well-being. Yesterday, Robert Potter finally got out of the hospital wing, and what do you think I heard on the stairs? He fell and broke his ankle out beside the lake a few minutes ago, trying to jump over the giant squid's tentacle to impress his friends…."
Madame Galen shook her head and sighed. "I suppose I'd better get a bed ready for him, then. He'll be up in a moment, I'm sure." Muttering to herself about clumsy students that couldn't even stand up straight, she stalked off.
Bursting into laughter, the two girls changed their conversation to more cheerful subjects, but Olivia didn't quite feel satisfied with all of Bertie and Madame Galen's answers. Had she truly done the right thing by telling Professor Dumbledore? After all, no one would have been hurt at all if she had not told anyone of the professor's attack. Most of all, she couldn't repress the feeling that all this wasn't over, not for her and Professor Dumbledore, or for the Professor Emelius…
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In a dark and cold cell, a man sat hunched over against the stone wall. Not a single dementor lurked outside his cage, for this man had no happy thoughts. There were more fertile places to feed off of from inside the dreaded prison, easier people to suck hope and peace from…
A smile flew to the pale man's lips. If anyone could have known his thoughts, they would have become very nervous indeed, for these words were passing through the man's mind, "Yes, yes, all according to plan. I didn't manage to kill them…yet. I will bide my time, and I will have mudblood bodies as my reward. I will have my revenge. The fools, to think that they had won! I am not conquered yet, not by any stretch of the imagination."
Although there was no happiness, cold laughter suddenly filled one of the cells of Azkaban, and echoed off the countless stone rooms and arches of that horrible prison, joining the screams of all the insane and wrathful beings caged there.
