Chapter 14

Jude groaned irritably as he sat across from his friends in the library. It was one thing to ask questions about the incident at Hogsmeade, it was another to drag him out of bed, tie him to a chair, and threaten his trusty Lightningbolt if he didn't talk about it.

He gritted his teeth as he felt the ropes dig into his arms, "I told you, I don't know what happened. There was some kind of fairy thing, it attacked me and I retaliated. I don't know how I got on fire. It happened a bit too fast."

Both James and Emma exchanged glances before Emma sighed, "Jude, the flame was on your arm. You didn't get burned by it and you didn't seem bothered by it. We're just concerned."

"And very curious," James added as he put the broomstick on the table with a reassuring grin. "The 2 years we've known each other, fire has always been your friend. The only time it hasn't been was when you said your parents died which is how you got the scars on your back. Why is that?"

Jude rolled his eyes; he hated this stupid interrogation. "I don't know," He enunciated, straining against the ropes. "I told you I know nothing about my heritage. Unlike your dad, James, I'm not famous. I didn't take out a dark lord when I was a year old, and no one who knew my father or mother has spoken about them. Maybe it's my fault, maybe I should try harder to look for them, maybe I should find out why Lazarus is coming after me, but what I know now is what I've known since we've met; nothing!"

He could feel the familiar roar in his chest starting to growl and he had to close his eyes and take deep breaths to calm himself down. Every time he felt that roar, someone always got hurt. If there was one thing he never wanted, it was his friends hurt. That and he really didn't want the library to spontaneously combust.

"Jude?" He heard Emma say hesitantly.

He opened his eyes slowly, frown still deeply etched on his lips, "What, Emma?"

"Mate," James cleared his throat, scratching his head. "You burned the ropes."

Startled, Jude moved his gaze to his chest only to see the ropes now lying in his lap. The ends of the ropes were charred black and smoke was barely noticeable but there. "Merlin," He breathed in disbelief. "I didn't even know I was doing that. I-I-"

"Jude, Jude," Emma walked up to him, rubbing his arm in an attempt to soothe him. "It's okay. Look, let's just talk about what you saw in the alley."

Jude nodded jerkily as he and Emma took the ropes off, "Yeah okay." He swallowed and continued, "Since the Quidditch World Cup, I've been seeing beasts everywhere. I don't know why, and I don't know if Lazarus has something to do with it but I know I've seen them."

"Why didn't you tell us, mate?" James questioned, frowning irritably. "Don't you trust us?"

The blue eyed boy shook his head, scoffing, "James, this isn't a matter of trust. I didn't tell you because I didn't know if I was actually seeing them. I'm scared, don't you understand?"

"Jude-"

He gritted his teeth, running his hands through his already messed up hair, "I'm so scared. Scared of what Lazarus is going to do and scared of what you guys will go through because of me. I didn't tell you because I didn't want it to be real."

The two across from him were quiet for a beat before Emma brought out a familiar book. She opened it to a page that had been bookmarked and presented it to Jude, "What was the fairy like thing that attacked you?"

Jude sniffled and took the book from her hands. He scanned the different types of fairies before pointing out the one that he had seen in the alley, "That one. It was a Doxy."

"Nasty buggers," James muttered as he scanned the book with his friends. "They're poisonous too. Good thing you didn't touch it."

"No," Jude replied, staring at the picture of the beast. "It just knocked me down then the fire came."

Emma sighed, nodding, "Okay, Jude. We're gonna need you to show us all the beasts you've seen. It can't be a coincidence that you're the only one that's seen them. It might be Lazarus."

"Someone has to control them," James put in thoughtfully. "There's no way so many of them could be near Hogwarts without someone telling them what to do. It has to be Lazarus if that Doxy specifically went after you."

Jude bit his lip, contemplating, "But how? Lazarus can't get that near Hogwarts and I know some of the beasts have been in here. There was the incident at the quidditch match against Hufflepuff, and I'm sure I've seen some at night. They're everywhere and I don't know how they got here."

"We'll think of something," Emma stated as they poured over the book. They spend most of their day trying to come up with plans, ideas, and theories on what was going on with the beasts and what Lazarus was trying this year.