Chapter 28.

Darien felt the familiar pain in his head whenever the Umbra attacked him with the mind walking ability. He gasped loudly as his body gave a jerk and he threw his head back, crying out lout. He heard his parents cry out in fear, knowing something was wrong.

"No!" He heard Professor Caligo shout as he tried to push past the students to get to Darien. "It's the Umbra! He's attacking Darien!!"

Remus shook his head as he tried to grab Darien and pull him out of Slytherin's hug. "No! Don't you touch my son, Umbra! Let him go!" He yelled as he tried Darien free. But there was a snarl within the air as deep purple light surrounded Darien, flashing brightly making Remus and Hermione both fly ten feet back away from him. It even made Slytherin hiss in pain as he was forced to turn back into his human form and was thrown back. The dark light stayed around Darien, almost as if holding him up. He was suspended in mid air, crying out in pain. His hands immediately thrown against his head as he fell to his knees.

And deep within his mind, he was thrown into unconsciousness, being pulled by the Umbra into the mind worlds.

Hermione was the first to her feet, looking at the darkness around Darien with fear. "No!" She screamed as she ran towards it. She would have reached it if Harry hadn't caught her. "Hermione, don't touch it! It might hurt you!" He told her, holding her close to her. Hermione shook her head as she watched Darien fall to the ground, still holding his head. She struggled to get away from him. "Darien! He needs me! I need to get to him!" She cried out.

Remus hurried forward and wrapped his arms around her, holding her to him. "Harry's right, Swift. The light might be harmless to Darien but it could seriously hurt you." He told her, tears in his eyes as he watched helplessly as his son was in terrible pain.

Godric Gryffindor landed on the ground and shifted into his human form, looking at Darien with a pained look. "The Umbra has wrapped Darien into a dark cocoon. There will be no way you can get to him without getting hurt. The Umbra has pulled him into the mind worlds. It's up to Darien to battle him and defeat him." He said. Hermione shook her head as she pressed her face into her hands. "My son is only a first year student!" She dropped them again, looking something fierce. "He needs my help! Slytherin!" She yelled as she turned her eyes onto the grumpy ghost climbing to his feet. "Take me to the mind worlds!"

"Hermione! You can't!" Remus gasped as he faced her.

Hermione shook her head as she pulled away from him, her chin lifted. "Remus, Darien needs me. He will die if he fights the Umbra by himself." She said, tears rolling down her cheeks.

Slytherin was quiet for a second before he walked right over to her and nodded. "Very well, Hermione Lupin. Let's go." He told her before a green light surrounded him as soon as he reached out and touched her shoulder. Immediately Hermione closed her eyes and was unconscious. She would have hit the ground if Remus hadn't caught her. "Hermione!" He yelled as he pulled her against him. But Hermione was already tumbling in the dark tunnels of unconsciousness, with Slytherin right next to her.

In the mind world, Darien found himself falling the same tunnel but soon landed hard against dried up grass. He gasped as air was knocked out from his lungs. He laid there for a second before quickly sitting up to find himself in a wasteland. If his nightmares were terrible, this was much, much worst. The land he was in was no doubt one of the Umbra's creations. The land was an empty field of yellow grass and skeleton trees. There were tombstones everywhere around him. It was a huge graveyard of some sort.

Darien quickly climbed to his feet, looking around with fear. He didn't know this place but he knew it had to be a nightmare. He didn't want to be here and he knew he better escape soon. So he tried very hard to concentrate on waking up again. But as soon as he tried, he felt a terrible sting across his body making him cry out in pain.

"Heh," he heard a cold laugh, making him jerk around. "You can't escape until I let you go, Darien. And I will never let you go, until you are dead."

Darien turned to see a tall and dark man standing on top of a mound of dirt. His hair fell long and messy around his pale face, his eyes red like the Umbra's. He wore all black and there was a wand in his hand, which was covered in sharp thorns. But the thorns didn't seem to cut into his skin at all. There was hatred in the man's blood red eyes as he glared coldly at the young student.

"Welcome, Darien, to my world." The man said before smirked coldly at him.

Darien drew back in fear as he stared at the man. This was no doubt the Umbra's human form. It had to be. He stepped back, almost tripping over something. He quickly looked down to see a skeleton still half covered with flesh. "Ugh!" The young Gryffindor cried out in fear and disgust.

Caligo Umbra smirked as he hopped down from the mound, slowly stalking his young enemy. "Yes, it is a little unpleasant. But I like having a few dead bodies lying around." He told Darien.

Darien shivered as he faced the man, his fist clenched tightly. "Um-Umbra, why did you bring me here?" he asked, his voice shaking as hard as he was. He flinched when the demon rose his wand. He couldn't help it.

"Why?" the man asked, coldly. "I brought you here to kill you, Darien. There were too many people interfering and I grew tired of it. You have ruined my plan once again!" He snapped, making his wand spark a little. Darien flinched again, slowly trying to back away. "You have ruined my world and now I will destroy your mind with mine!"

Darien shook his head as he imagined his wand into his hand, and it slowly appeared. "I won't die without a fight." He told the demon, remembering Draco's words before the battle had broken out.

"Hmm." Umbra muttered as he smiled before raising one hand above his head and standing in a dueling stance. "I was hoping you were going to say that, Darien. Now, let us fight." He told him before he lashed out his wand sending hot red sparks flying at him.

Before Darien even had the chance to raise his wand to defend himself, the spell slammed into his chest making him fly back against a tombstone. The air was knocked out of his lungs again and he tasted blood in his mouth. He slid to the ground in a heap, hearing Umbra laughing as he moved closer. He looked up to see him move closer, his mind wand raised.

"You're going to die, Darien, all alone." Umbra hissed before he rose his wand; a light shooting out and hitting Darien right in the chest. A burning sensation filled Darien's body, making him scream out in pain. His head was thrown back as he wriggled on the ground because of the pain. "Oh, yes. There is indeed going to be a little pain before you die." The man added.

Darien clenched his teeth before his eyes snapped open. He had to remember, the pain was inside his head. He shook his head and imagined the light shooting right back at Umbra. And as he imagined it, the light shot right back at its owner. Umbra quickly ducked under the light, with wide eyes. "I told you…." Darien breathed heavily. "I won't die without a fight."

"….." Umbra hummed before smirking. "Oh, so Salazar did teach you some tricks. I should have known that he would. He was so anxious to keeping you alive." He then shook his head. "No matter. You are still no match for me." He rose his wand again and whipped it out viciously. Darien quickly moved to the side as the hot red light flying from Umbra's wand nearly hit him. Behind him, a tombstone exploded. Darien's breath was caught in his throat as he moved again when the demonic man tried to use the same spell. Again and again tombstones exploded.

And then, he rose his want and gave it a violent jerk. "Expelliarmus!" Darien shouted.

His spell flew quickly across the sky and hit the Umbra, sending him staggering a little but he had enough control with his mind that he kept standing. The demon smirked at Darien as he looked at him coolly. "Is that the best you can do, Darien?"

Suddenly, Darien felt something grab his ankles and the hem of his robes. He looked down to see skeletons pushing themselves out of the ground, grabbing at him. With a terrified yelp, he tried to pull away, only to trip. More skeletal arms shot out of the ground and grabbed him, pinning him down. "No!" He gasped trying to pull away. "They're only illusions! They're only illusions! They're only illusions!!" He began telling himself but he was having too hard of believing it. They felt too real and he was starting to believe that they were.

"Hmm." The Umbra said as he moved closer, a cold smile on his handsome, yet dark face. "Give it up, Darien. You're only a kid. You're no match for me." He then held up a twig. Slowly, it grew longer and thicker until it took the form of a sword. The demon smirked even more as he rose it, placing the tip onto Darien's shoulder. Darien shook his head with fear in his eyes. He knew that it was only an illusion, but he couldn't seem to convince his body and mind that. "Goodbye, Darien Fenrir Lupin." Umbra said quietly and slowly, he began to push the blade into his shoulder. Darien felt the sting of the blade, entering his skin. He couldn't help but scream in pain.

"Get the fuck away from my son!"

And a blast of red sparks flew at the Umbra and Darien, only hitting the demon. It sent the demon flying several feet away, wrenching what little of the sword out of Darien, who collapsed onto the ground. The skeleton hands immediately vanished as if they had sensed danger or had been summoned away.

"Darien!"

He quickly looked up to see his mother rush to his side, placing her hand onto his shoulder. He felt so relieved that she was there, with him. He threw his arms around her, and she held him just as tightly as he was. But after a second, her eyes snapped open and she fiercely looked at the demon, which was climbing to his feet.

The Umbra growled almost too inhumanly as soon as he laid his eyes onto Hermione. He looked stunned to see her. "How in the blazes did you get past my mind?" He growled as he summoned his wand again.

Hermione narrowed her eyes dangerously at him as she stood up straight, her hand still in Darien's. But instead of answering, Slytherin materialized right next to her. His dark eyes glaring into the Umbra's. "I let her in. If there was one thing that I was better at than you, Umbra, it was forcing my way into your mind." He said darkly.

"Slytherin!" The Umbra hissed angrily as he glared at him with hate. "I should have known. So you taught the Mudblood too?"

Darien glanced up at his mother to see if that was true and by the look on her face, it was. He knew that Slytherin must have shown her a way to use the Mind walking ability. And it was probably Slytherin who was keeping her in the mind worlds. She had no abilities in Divination and she knew that. But there was one advantage to it.

"Get ready to be beaten by your own game, Caligo." Slytherin spoke, his hand reaching down and pulled Darien to his feet. "Hermione Granger Lupin has the most brilliant mind in her generation." He shook his head now pulling Darien back, who looked hesitant but then figured that the grumpy spirit knew what he was doing. "You are about to get beaten by a woman."

Hermione summoned up her wand and moved forward to face the Umbra, who was growling as he backed away. They both were glaring into each other's eyes, though the pair of blood red ones kept flickering over to Slytherin, almost asking him if this was a joke. And eventually, the Umbra had to ask. "You must be joking, Salazar. Sending a wretched, modern day, Mudblood witch in to fight me, a demon who has been alive for over a thousand years. I know more spells than she would ever learn. You are sending her to her death."

"If I die, Umbra," Hermione said coldly, her head dipped a little into her chin. "I'm taking you with me. I will not let you try to harm my son ever again." She told him as she rose her wand, her eyes still very cold as she watched the demon.

Darien felt like his world was shattering. He did not want his mother to fight this monster. He knew that she was highly intelligent when it came to magic, but the Umbra had been right. He had over a thousand years of knowledge of magic when she did not. He did not want her to fight the creature, only to die horribly. He could not watch his mother do that. So he immediately stepped forward to intervene. "No." He moaned in fear.

But Slytherin grabbed his arm and held him back. "Let her go, boy. She knows what she is doing." He told him, his eyes still watching the two now facing one another.

"But, Slytherin, my mother….." Darien said weakly. "I can't…..she'll die….I can't just stand here and watch her die by that monster!"

Slytherin didn't reply for a long time as he watched the determined look on Hermione's face and the hated one on the demon's before their dangerous duel began. He was quiet for a longer moment before he looked at Darien, who was watching with tears in his eyes. "Darien," He spoke softly and the boy looked up at him. "Your mother knows what she is doing. If there is thing that she knows the most, it's how much she loves you. And that is what Caligo Umbra does not know." The grumpy ghost's face softened when confusion flickered onto the young Gryffindor's face and he nodded slowly. "The demon does not remember what a mother's love is. He has been alive as a wicked and demented demon for accordingly one thousand, five hundred and ten years. He does not even remember his own mother. A mother's love for her child is more powerful than magic than any powerful wizard could ever hope to achieve. That is why Harry Potter survived when his mother sacrificed herself for him. My once heir, Tom Riddle did not understand that either because he did not remember his own mother." He shook his head. "And that was his downfall."

Darien stared up at him before he looked back to watch his mother fight the demon. He was still confused of what Slytherin had meant but it was starting to kick in. Just maybe, he hoped anyway, his mother could take the darkness demon.

"You will fail, you know!" The Umbra shouted as he lashed out his wand at Hermione, who quickly deflected the hex. "I will have your son's blood on my hands, and I will destroy him!" He snarled, his dark hair flying in all directions as he moved.

Hermione gritted her teeth as she continue throw powerful spells at the evil creature. She was not going to be goaded into a verbal fight with this evil spawn. She was going to stop him from hurting her son, maybe even kill him. But she was not going to let the Umbra demon hurt Darien. It would be over her dead body before he even came close to touching her son again. "Expelliarmus!" She shouted and the spell whirled at the Umbra, slamming into him.

The spell, however, only rocked him a little. He only laughed at her effort of trying to hurt him. "Do you obviously think that any spell you throw at me will hurt me, Mudblood! All of this is just an illusion! I know that so therefore it will never hurt me!" He laughed, as he continued to lash at her.

One of the spells he threw at her whizzed by her cheek, slicing it open. Hermione winced, but then forced it to the side. She knew this was getting her no where. She had to come up with an idea of how to outsmart the demon. She had to make him think that he was going to win but not to. She knew that she was going to need to let him hit her. And that's when it hit her. "This is real! It's not an illusion!" She shouted, sounding stunned.

And the Avada Kedava spell that the Umbra had lashed out at her hit her, knocking her off of her feet. Her body went flying across the way until it slammed into a tombstone, cracking it in half. And then she was still.

The Umbra looked almost stunned as Darien and Slytherin did that it had happened. His eyes had gone very wide as he stared at Hermione's still body, waiting for her to get up. But she was still as death. Her skin was pale and it looked lifeless while her eyes were wide with shock. Then the Umbra smirked triumphly. He had won.

"NO!" Darien screamed as tears sprung from his eyes. He couldn't believe it. His mother….the most intelligent witch of her age had been killed. And the Umbra had killed her. "Mum!" Darien cried be fore he started forward. Slytherin had caught him by his shirt, trying to hold him back but he ripped out of the spirit's grip and raced at the Umbra. Tears were streaming down his cheeks as he shook his head.

"Darien, I swear. You'll be the death of me." He remembered his mother would tell her every time he did something too extreme. And she had been right. He had been the death of her, in his opinion. She died protecting him.

The Umbra looked at Darien rushing at him before smirking as he jerked around and lashed out a hand, catching the eleven year old by the throat. Darien gasped by he did all he could to wrench free and attack the man. The very action seemed to surprise the Umbra. Darien had actually yanked free from him. He was even more stunned when the boy's fist slammed into his face. And for even more shocking moment, he realized something. The words the woman had said to him sunk into his mind and realized it.

It was not an illusion.

There was a light glowing around Darien as he kept swinging his fists at the demon's head, slamming him backward. "YOU KILLED MY MUM! MY MUM IS DEAD BECAUSE OF YOU!" Darien roared in rage, his eyes suddenly starting to glow an amber color. "I WILL KILL YOU, UMBRA! YOU WANT ME TO BE A WEREWOLF? FINE! I AM A WEREWOLF AND THE MOST POWERFUL ONE IN THE MAGIC WORLD!"

And Darien went through a transformation right before the Umbra's eyes. He howled like a wolf, his robes ripping as he changed. Long brown fur began to grow right out of his skin as fangs slowly slipped out from beneath his lips. Darien growled in rage and pain as he changed. A second later, he was a werewolf.

"Darien, don't be a fool!" The Umbra snapped but his eyes were actually wide with fear.

Darien growled even more as he glared at the demon before he snarled and lunged at him. His claws slashing out at the darkness demon, striking him across the face. Large gashes were ripped into the Umbra's cheek and blood flowed freely down his cheek. For once in his life, which he had spent most terrifying everyone, he now felt the fear. He was feeling the pain. The illusions were no longer illusions. Darien was ripping him apart!

And Slytherin watched gravely but stood away. He was not going to interfere. But his eyes flickered over to Hermione's fallen form and they widened with surprise. She was watching her son attack the demon. "Hermione….." The grumpy spirit whispered.

The Umbra was knocked off his feet onto the now growing green grass. He was very unaware that his mind world was starting to melt away, changing from its horrific scenery to the beautiful green fields. But instead of the sky being clear and blue, it was dark gray and stormy. Darien still had not noticed his mother sitting up and watching him. He just snarled at the darkness demon.

"Darien!" The Umbra gasped as he covered his head, which was dripping with blood. "Stop this!"

The young werewolf ignored him as he went for the demon's throat now but suddenly stopped when Slytherin yelled out to him. "Darien! Stop!" He turned his head a little but didn't look away from the Umbra.

"Darien, do not do that. The Umbra wants you to become a monster and you are doing it now. He has made you unleash the beast inside of you. You must control yourself!" Slytherin yelled to him. "If you do not, you will become the beast and you will not be able to control yourself again!"

The werewolf growled and made to attack the demon again but then a soft hand touched his hairy shoulder. He jerked around growling but stopped when he saw Hermione, looking at him. His wolfish eyes widened in surprise. "Darien, calm down. Slytherin is right. You need to control yourself now." Hermione told him softly. She reached down and gently caressed her transformed son's muzzle. "It's okay, Darien. I was only trying to catch him off guard. But I guess I did it to you too. I'm still here."

With a low whine, Darien's body shuddered before it shrunk and he was standing before her again, tears still in his eyes. He looked up at her for a moment before throwing his arms around her waist. Hermione wrapped her arms around him, hugging him close. "Mum." The young boy whimpered.

"You……!" The Umbra snarled as he climbed back to his feet. He heard what Hermione said and realized that she had indeed tricked him. She had actually made him think that the mind worlds were real. That the illusions had been real. He had believed that he killed her. "I shall destroy you!" And the Demon charged. Both Hermione and Darien jerked around and glared at the Umbra, still holding onto one another. They were going to face him together.

But Slytherin quickly stepped into the path and rose his blackish-red wand, fire nearly dancing in his eyes. "Do not ever touch Darien or his mother EVER again!" He snapped before whirling his wand above his head and jabbed it towards the charging demon. "Lumos Maxima! Let light shine in every part of this world and drive Caligo Umbra, the demonic wizard back into the world of reality!" He roared.

And there was a brilliant flash of white light, blinding Hermione, Darien and the Umbra. The dark, stormy sky flashed brightly and the sun suddenly appeared, lighting up every inch of the land of Darien's mind. Even the land itself starting glowing brilliantly. The Umbra screamed in rage and pain as he tried to over his eyes. He felt his very essence burning because of the light.

So there was only one thing he could do. Let go of the mind worlds.

In the outside world, everyone was watching helplessly as Darien's body was still hovering in midair. Hermione's body was being cradled by Remus. His eyes were full of fear and worry as he held her close to him. He had felt her jerk a few times while in unconsciousness and had almost felt her heart skip several beats, as if she was losing the battle. But then it started up again. He wanted to know what was happening in the mind worlds. But there was no way of finding out.

Suddenly there was a painful screech in the air, as a darkness began to form above everyone's heads.

The dark aura around Darien suddenly vanished and he fell into the grass, making everyone gasp in shock. Sirius and Rowena were quickly at his side as his eyes shot open and he gasped as if he had been holding his breath. He looked around, noting them before quickly looking over at his mother as her eyes slowly opened.

"Hermione!" Remus gasped as he looked down at her.

Hermione faintly smiled up at him before she reached up and cradled his cheek in her palm. "I'm okay. Don't be afraid." She told him softly before she looked over at Darien, who smiled. "Darien, you did very well in there."

Darien smiled back as he let Sirius help him sit up. He felt Rowena take his hand and he gave it a light squeeze to assure her that he was okay. "Thanks, mom. For coming after me and believing in me." He told his mother in a low voice.

Then the roars in pain caught their attention. All eyes turned up to look at the dark cloud as it began to form right before them. The sun was already starting to peep out from behind the moon. The gargoyles were quickly making their way back to the castle and resting on the walls, as well as enemy gargoyles heading towards the Dark Forest.

The Umbra was quickly appearing but the dark cloud started to retreat quickly after them. It was trying to get away.

"Oh no you don't." Slytherin growled as he materialized in the air and aimed his wand after him. He glanced over at Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Rowena Ravenclaw, as if giving them a silent command. All three seemed to read his mind because they all nodded, looking serious and quickly joined his sides. Their wands aiming after the escaping demon. "By our power, you shall not escape, Caligo Umbra!" Slytherin roared after the Umbra. Then all four shouted a word that no one could understand. It sounded like four different language. Like a snake hissing angrily, badger growling, a raven cawing loudly and a lion roaring with pride.

There was a brilliant flash of light as the dark cloud stopped in the air as a barrier of light surrounded it. There was a roar of pain within the cloud. "NO!" They heard the Umbra shout. And then something large and metallic dropped down from the cloud, which slowly blew away in the wind.

A large bronze statue of the Umbra demon.

"What's happened to him?" Darien asked as he let Sirius pull him to his feet. Everyone was slowly approaching the statue. Slytherin shook his head as he kept his wand trained on the Umbra, his eyes very hard. "He's changed into a gargoyle. A gargoyle becomes a statue during the day to protect himself from the light burning his skin. In this form we can't harm him. He's protected. But…." A sly smile curled on Slytherin's face before he looked at Gryffindor. "Godric, bind him."

Gryffindor smiled and nodded. "Very well, my friend." He rose his wand and waved it over the statue. "By the law and power of Merlin, we bind thee, Caligo Umbra. Shall you remain in the stone that binds your heart forever."

A light surrounded the statue and it became very shiny, as if it had been polished.

"Tis' done." Gryffindor said as he bent down and picked up the statue. He turned and faced Shacklebolt, looking directly at him. "This should be forever locked up, Kingsley Shacklebolt. Though the Umbra can never break out of this bronze prison, he can be assisted to escaping. Only a truly powerful wizard or witch can break the spell on this wretched demon. He is too powerful to destroy while in the gargoyle's protected skin, but he is trapped forever unless someone frees him. Keep him locked away." He told the Minister.

Shacklebolt nodded as he reached out and took the Umbra statue. "It shall be done, Master Gryffindor." He promised him.

Then all four Founders looked around at the crowds surrounding them, smiles on their faces. "Hogwarts is safe. The Four Houses are reunited." Gryffindor turned his eyes onto Darien who was hugging his parents. "And the Hellgates shall be locked for another twenty decades, till the next dark eclipse. The world, magic and muggle is safe. All because of you, Darien."

Darien looked up at the four founders, smiling. "I had help." He glanced around at his friends, including Slytherin. "I couldn't do it without my friends, and my parents." He said smiling at his friends then at Remus and Hermione, who smiled back. "And without, Rowena."

Rowena just smiled as she looked down at him. Then she stepped towards him, her hands gently resting on his shoulders. "And without you, Darien, the Four houses of Hogwarts would have not been reunited." She then bent down and kissed his forehead, making him blush as his friends snorted with laughter. Rowena smiled as she backed away and held out her hand towards Slytherin, who took it. "I would not have my Salazar back." She looked at him, her eyes very soft. And for once in front of everyone else, Slytherin looked lovingly at her before he pulled her close to him. "I would not have my Raven." And then he kissed her. Cheers and laughter immediately broke out around the kissing ghostly couple.

Hogwarts was safe once again.