I have never been so worried about a chapter in my whole life.
Enjoy!
5 Chapter 36: A Black's Heart
Alexis froze in the shadows cast by rows ninety-six and ninety-seven. To her right were her friends all huddled behind Harry, who was holding a blue orb in his left hand, and to her left dark figures were appearing out of the thin air. The figures, with their bone white masks, dark robes, and wands drawn at the ready, were all undoubtably Death Eaters and stalking forward towards Alexis's friends.
"To me, Potter," repeated a familiar drawl as the Death Eater held out his hand, palm up.
Alexis did not have to see him remove his mask to recognize the Death Eater as Lucius Malfoy. She moved farther into the shadows to stay hidden. Her friends were outnumbered over two to one. A hidden helper might be their only chance at escaping.
Meanwhile, a look of panic crossed Harry's features despite his best efforts to school them. Alexis watched him search frantically around him only to realize why.
'I'm behind the row, Prongs,' sent Alexis quickly. 'Don't look!'
Only just catching himself before he could give Alexis away, Harry nodded his head stiffly. At last, he was able to steel himself and send the Death Eaters a dangerous glare.
"To me," said Lucius yet again.
"Where's Sirius?" asked Harry.
Laughter escaped the masked Death Eaters and filled the hall. Alexis clenched her teeth at the sound but her eyes were to widen as the next voice sounded through the air.
"As foolish as his father," sang a pleased, melodic voice that seemed to drip with a certain type of insanity. It came from a woman, the only woman amongst the Death Eaters and the only Death Eater who had opt to wear only a hood over her features instead of a bone mask. "How... disappointing."
"Indeed," agreed Lucius softly as the woman slithered gracefully to his side. "Now, give me the prophecy, Potter."
"I want to know where Sirius is!"
"I want to know where Sirius is!" mimicked the woman Alexis had already identified.
The woman threw back her head and allowed a grand cackle escape her. When she looked back at Harry, her hood having fallen back, she sent him a cruel smile. It did more than unnerve Harry and the others for the face that greeted them was none other than a dark eyed Alexis.
Bellatrix Lestrange, however, seemed unperturbed by the D.A. member's reactions, or at the very least assumed that their reaction was due to everyone knowing her reputation as Voldemort's most loyal. Alexis could only imagine how Bellatrix would feel if she knew the real reason.
"Did you honestly believe that your dream was anything more than that?" mocked Bellatrix with another insane cackle. "More than a dream? And they told me you were intelligent!"
"I know he's here!" hissed Harry, pointing his wand directly at Bellatrix. However, if he thought his action would have silenced the woman, he was poorly mistaken.
"Oh, look at you!" giggled Bellatrix. "You think you can take us on, little Prongslet? Take on me?"
"Oh, you don't know Potter as I do, Bellatrix," said Malfoy softly. "He has a great weakness for heroics; the Dark Lord understands this about him. Now give me the prophecy, Potter."
"I know you've got him!" snapped Harry, tightening his grip on the prophecy.
The cruel laughter filled the air once more, Bellatrix's the loudest of all.
'He's not here, Harry,' said Alexis, a feeling of sickness hitting her with her realization. 'Voldemort used your connection to his advantage. He tricked us.'
"It's time you learned the difference between life and dreams, Potter," said Lucius. "Now give me the prophecy, or we start using wands."
"Try it," said Harry, raising his own wand to chest height. As he did so, the six wands of Hermione, Neville, Seamus, Dean, Cho, and Luna rose on either side of him while Alexis positioned herself to get a perfect shot off at three burly looking Death Eaters standing close together.
But the Death Eaters did not strike and none of the Hogwarts students had to be a mind reader to know why.
"Hand over the prophecy and no one need get hurt," said Lucius coolly.
"Oh sure," snorted Dean on Harry's right. "I'm sure they'll just let us all run on home after too, Harry."
"My thoughts exactly," said Harry with just as much scathing sarcasm as Dean had used.
"Think they'll give us a ride while they're at it?" threw in Seamus.
"Maybe invite us for some biscuits as well?" said Neville.
"I could go for a late lunch," shrugged Cho.
"Will there be pudding?" asked Luna dreamily.
With a sneer taking over her face, Bellatrix shrieked, "Accio Proph -"
Hermione and Harry both cast powerful Protegos, having been ready for Bellatrix's attack.
"For some reason, I don't think they're going to invite us for lunch," said Hermione simply.
"You and your friends want to play, Potter?" hissed Bellatrix, a grin replacing her sneer. "Very well, then -"
"I TOLD YOU, NO!" Lucius Malfoy roared at the woman. "If you smash it -"
"Silence, Malfoy," growled a Death Eater, removing his mask to reveal a twisted face of a man. Alexis recognized him from his photo in the Prophet as Antonin Doholov. "Let Bella handle our guest."
"You need more persuasion?" cried Bellatrix, her chest rising and falling rapidly. "Very well - take the blonde one," she ordered Doholov beside her. "Let him watch while we torture the little girl. I'll do it."
Alexis watched as Harry and the other closed in around Luna. Harry himself stepped so that he was right in front of her, the prophecy held up to his chest. "Touch any of them and I'll smash this prophecy to pieces," he said with a dangerous undertone. "I doubt your boss would be very pleased if that were to happen, now would he?"
None of the Death Eaters moved. Bellatrix stared at Harry with narrowed eyes, the tip of her tongue moistening her lips.
'Keep them talking,' Alexis sent to Harry, carefully moving around behind the self. 'I'll look for a way out of this.'
Harry nodded his head ever so slightly in a response that it could have easily been mistaken as a twitch.
"So," said Harry, "who all did old Tom send to do his dirty work? Surely not just you and Trixie, Malfoy."
"Oh, several were willing to deal with you under the Dark Lord's orders, I assure you," said Lucius lazily. "But I hardly think introductions are necessary here."
"But Merlin forbid I be rude," said Harry scathingly. "After all, just because I'm half filth doesn't mean I should act it. Should we introduce ourselves first?"
"Your wit will not help you slither your way out of this situation, Potter," said Lucius coolly.
"No, not my wit at all," agreed Harry with a smirk. "But I might as well ask what kind of prophecy this is anyway?"
'Have them smash the rows,' thought Alexis to both Harry and Hermione.
Another head nod from Harry and a startled look around from Hermione were the only response Alexis received before Lucius spoke.
"What kind of prophecy?" repeated Lucius, a dry chuckle escaping him. "Do refrain from jesting, Potter. It will make this all go smoother."
"Who said I was jesting?" asked Harry in an Alexis-like manner. "I'm simply asking you."
"Do not play games with us, Potter," said Lucius.
"I'm not playing games," said Harry while Hermione whispered the plan to the others.
"Dumbledore never told you that the reason you bear that scar was hidden in the bowels of the Department of Mysteries?" Lucius sneered.
"I - what?" said Harry, and for a moment Alexis was quite sure he had forgotten the plan.
'Focus, Harry,' sent Alexis but Harry ignored her.
"What about my scar?"
"Can this be?" said Lucius, sounding absolutely delighted; some of the Death Eaters were laughing again, and while they were distracted, Alexis inched to a better position to help her friends. "Well, this explains why you didn't come earlier, Potter, the Dark Lord wondered why you didn't come running when he showed you the place where it was hidden in your dreams. He thought natural curiosity would make you want to hear the exact wording..."
Lucius trailed off. He looked to his right where Bellatrix was standing to find the witch's shoulders shaking rather violently, so much so that no one could not notice her strange behavior.
"Bella?"
Much to everyone's surprise, Bellatrix let out another grand cackle.
"How very cute of you, Potter," she said without ceasing her mad laughter. "You must think yourself so clever, trying to pull one over us."
Harry could only stare in response. He was just as lost as everyone else. However, Bellatrix seemed unperturbed by this and continued to cackle, though softer, before saying a sing-song voice, "I'm afraid your little sneak attack is about to cost your little friend their life."
Harry's, along with Alexis's, green eyes widen.
"NO!" howled Harry, diving forward only to be restrained by Neville and Dean.
At the same time, Bellatrix whipped out her wand and pointed it in Alexis's direction while screaming with her mad cackle, "Avada Kedavra!"
"NO!" cried Lucius, lifting Bellatrix's arm with urgent speed. It threw her curse off course just enough that it missed a paralyzed Alexis.
Glass orbs shattered all around her from the impact of the curse, throwing Alexis from her frozen state into diving out of the way. As she just cleared being cut to pieces by several prophecies, a rough arm seized Alexis's shoulder and pulled her to her feet. She sent the first spell she thought of, a stinging hex of all things, at the Death Eater holding her but no sooner had he released her, a second grabbed her and dug his wand into Alexis's throat.
"Let me go!" Alexis choked, the Death Eater's wand making it difficult for her to breath as she thrusted about violently for freedom.
"Bring her to me," said Lucius coolly.
"No!" barked Harry, still struggling to charge in Neville and Dean's grasps as Alexis was dragged over to Lucius. "Don't you touch her! Let her go or I swear -"
"You'll what?" asked Bellatrix locking her crazed dark eyes with Harry's furious green ones. She looked over the moon at the reaction she had received from Harry. "What will wittle Prongslet do?" she mocked in her baby voice, blinking ridiculously to jeer him.
Harry said nothing but a dangerous look Alexis remembered only seeing once crossed his face. It had been the same look he had sent Sirius all those years ago when he had thought the man was going to hurt her.
Bellatrix, however, did not appreciate Harry's silent answer and in response pointed her wand at Alexis the moment the Death Eater forced the fifth year on her knees near Bellatrix. But Bellatrix's eyes, unlike that of several Death Eaters, remained on Harry.
"Tell me, Potter," sang Bellatrix, her dark eyes filled with a gleeful insanity. "What's the little sneak to you? Is she worth your stubbornness? Will you willingly let her be tortured for you? Let her die for you?"
But Harry still did not answer. His hands were clenched around his wand and the prophecy while his eyes, like that of many Death Eaters and all of the D.A., were trained solely on Alexis and the wand Bellatrix was now pointing lazily at his best friend without so much as a glance in Alexis's direction.
"Should I kill her, Lucius?" asked Bellatrix in a mock whisper. "Set an example?"
"Bellatrix," warned Lucius with a hiss.
"Well, do hurry up," said Bellatrix, quickly growing impatient. "If Potter isn't going to tell me whether she gets to die, you might as well."
Lucius, however, like Harry, seemed to be lacking in words.
Alexis on the other hand...
"You could at least look me in the eye before you kill me," Alexis said slowly, forcing a chuckle that sounded eerily similar to her mother's now that she could compare the two. "It's only polite."
The silence that followed was deafening.
Bellatrix froze. The gleeful grin on her face melted away until her lips were but a thin line. Her arm, like the rest of her body, stiffened as Alexis's laughter filled the air. Almost as if in slow motion, Alexis watched as Bellatrix - the ex-best friend to the Marauders, the one called Trix, the ghost of Remus's first love, the once favorite cousin of Sirius, her own mother, and now loyal Death Eater - turned to look at Alexis for the first time in over fifteen years.
It was as if looking up at a carbon copy - an older, dark eyed clone. Alexis had never imagined the similarities between her and her mother to have been so strong. Even after seeing memories of the woman, after hearing just how much they looked alike, Alexis had never thought Bellatrix and her would be so identical. If not for her eyes being a familiar dark charcoal like that of Sirius, Alexis would have thought she was looking at her future self.
And then defiant green eyes met those of crazed coal and everything around them seemed to melt away.
"My star," breathed Bellatrix, her black as ash eyes filing with something Alexis failed to recognize. "My beautiful star."
"Mom," said Alexis but her voice had lost whatever bravado she had used before. This time, her words came out in a whisper, an equal amount of disbelief in her tone as in the woman pointing her wand at her.
She did not know what to do, let alone think, especially when Bellatrix lowered her wand and fell to her knees beside her. Hadn't this been all Alexis had wanted since she was a young girl: to meet her mother face to face?
Bellatrix reached out for Alexis, her slim hand frighteningly similar to Alexis's own with the only significant difference being the rings they wore - Alexis, the Black family heir's ring, and Bellatrix, a thick golden band. Hesitantly, her hand caressed Alexis's damp cheek, wiping away tears Alexis had not known she had shed.
"My precious star," whispered Bellatrix, bringing up her wand hand to cup Alexis's other cheek.
"Mom," repeated Alexis, her lip quivering as she did. She placed her own hands over mother's, lost in the face of the woman before her.
Alexis could not stop from seeing the reflection of future herself in Bellatrix. How she would age and develop, it was all perfectly visible in the woman before her. The laugh lines that would appear around her eyes, the point of her chin once the last of her baby fat left her, the beautiful woman she would one day become was staring back at her with the same small smile that played on her own lips.
"Hex..."
Alexis broke eye contact with her mother. She looked up at Harry, who had called her. He was staring at her, a look of pure worry in his green eyes. He was afraid and Alexis didn't have to ask why.
"I won't go," she said aloud. Her voice was barely a whisper yet Alexis was certain Harry heard her.
"I promised you forever," Alexis said louder this time, seeing the spark light her best friend's eyes. "And I won't break that promise."
Alexis saw the confusion flood her mother's eyes. She smiled sadly at this, knowing it was only going to get worse but not ready to let go quite yet.
"I love you, mom," Alexis said, fighting down a sob. "No matter what you've done, I still love you. I'll always love you."
Bellatrix breathed a joyous laugh at this. She pulled Alexis into her embrace, squeezing the young girl against her. Alexis hugged her back just as tightly.
"My little star," whispered Bellatrix. She broke their embrace all too soon, re-grasping Alexis's cheeks so that she could look at her once more. "Finally home."
Alexis smiled softly, leaning into Bellatrix's caressing hand.
"My name, mom," she whispered. "What is my name?"
Bellatrix stared at Alexis for a moment, her words seemingly lost like that of everyone else, and then, very clearly she spoke as if announcing to the world what she had to say.
"Alya," said Bellatrix, a smile of her own gracing her lips that was neither crazy nor mad. "You are Alya Josobelle Lestrange, and you are my daughter."
Once more, Bellatrix pulled Alexis into her embrace and Alexis did not fight her. Alexis soaked in the feeling of her mother's affection. It was all she had yearned for growing up with McPherson, what she had envied for every time she watched Mrs. Weasley or Mrs. Granger hug their children. This was her own mother hugging her, and Alexis couldn't help but to find the feeling worth the fifteen year wait.
"I'm a Gryffindork," Alexis choked with a laugh into Bellatrix's shoulder.
"I know," cooed Bellatrix sympathetically. "But it doesn't matter. You're sorry, I know, my dear Alya, and are forgiven."
But Alexis laughed again, only more bitterly.
"This is our last embrace," Alexis whispered into Bellatrix's ear, failing to make herself hate her own words.
Bellatrix broke their hug then but did not release Alexis from her arms.
"Alya?" she said quietly, confused.
"My name," said Alexis, standing up as if to help Bellatrix to her feet. Instead, she took a step back towards her friends... and another.
The two Death Eaters who had first caught Alexis moved to stop her but were halted by the D.A.'s wands all training on them. Bellatrix stayed kneeling, incapable of understanding what was going on.
"My name," Alexis repeated as she took another step back, "is not Alya Josobelle Lestrange."
"Yes it is!" pleaded Bellatrix before sounding slightly impatient. "You are my daughter!"
"I am your daughter," repeated Alexis. "But I am not Alya. I was born without a name. I was raised with a borrowed one, by a man borrowing time to keep me safe. I am Alexis and Hex to my friends. I'm a Gryffindork and so very proud of that. And I..."
Alexis paused. She looked back at Harry and found him smiling softly at her. Alexis then looked directly at her mother once more.
"And I love you," said Alexis, taking her final step back before grasping Harry's waiting hand. "But I'm not sorry. Nor do I want your forgiveness. NOW!"
As a roar escaped a now furious Bellatrix, six different voices behind Alexis and Harry bellowed "REDUCTO!" Six curses flew in six different directions and the shelves all round them exploded as they hit. The rows came crashing down in between the Death Eaters and the D.A. led by hundreds of blue glass orbs bursting apart as they hit the ground.
Alexis had little time to take in what the ghostly figures escaping the shattered orbs were saying as Harry had dragged her away without so much as another glance towards where the Death Eaters had been standing.
"Don't stop until you get to the center room!" Harry yelled over the noise of more shelves falling and the Death Eaters cursing behind them. He had a tight grip on Alexis's hand as the two of them brought up the rear of the group.
The shouting and cursing of the Death Eaters were drawing closer and more and more often were Alexis and Harry throwing nasty hexes over their shoulder just in time to stop a Death Eater from drawing too close. Suddenly, a series of red lights smashed into the rows just ahead of the group causing the massive shelves to begin to crumple.
"Hurry!" shouted Seamus from the front. He led the example of covering his head with his free arm as prophecies began shattering all around them. "Almost there!"
Alexis could not help but realize this was a lie. They had not even reached row fifty and every second the Death Eaters drew closer. Twice Harry had Stupefied one that nearly succeeded in grabbing someone.
Another red light sailed past them, this time missing Harry's shoulder by mere inches. It collided with the foot of row fifty-three, blowing away the leg of the shelf completely.
"Look out!" cried Hermione, all but tackling Alexis and Harry out of the aisle as the row began crumpling down on itself.
"The others!" shouted Alexis but she had little time to focus on them.
Harry guided her and Hermione to the door they had once ignored in a hasty attempt to find cover. He threw it open, and, never minding what could be in there waiting for them, ushered Alexis and Hermione inside, and slammed the door behind him.
"Colloportus!" gasped Hermione and the door sealed itself with an odd squelching noise.
"The... the others," panted Alexis trying to catch her breath.
"They must have run for the first door," whispered Harry. "The shelf - I'm sure that when it collapsed it blocked the Death Eaters enough for them to get away... I'm sure..."
But Harry did not sound convinced and Alexis, not wanting to think about the idea of her friends being captured, looked around the room the trio had hidden themselves in. Unlike the Brain room they had run through earlier, this room was scattered with clocks of all kinds. Grandfather clocks, pocket-watches, sundials, cookoo clocks, hourglasses and every clock Alexis could ever imagine - and quite a few that she couldn't - were mingled about the room in a cluster. The only thing seemingly organized in whole room was a far corner full of glass cabinets holding what looked like time-turners inside. However, the most noticeable decor of the room was a crystal bell jar almost as large as Harry that stood on a desk in the center of the room and appeared to be full of a billowing, glittering wind.
"Come on," said Harry, pushing off the door. "We need to get out of here. This way."
The trio moved away from the door and began looking for another exit. Hermione had just pointed out a black, handless door identical to those in the center room when a loud crashing sound came from the door they had just sealed. Someone was ramming the door.
"Out of the way," growled a deep voice from the other side. "Alohomora!"
As the door flew open, Alexis, Harry, and Hermione each dove under desks. A loud slamming of the door followed, signaling whoever had enter had closed the door behind them and a quick peak out from under the desk informed them that two Death Eaters had enter the room.
"Are you sure they went this way?" asked one Death Eater. He was answered with an animalistic snarl that made him jump.
"Don't question me, meat," growled the deep voiced Death Eater. "I know they went this way..."
Slowly, as if in no hurry whatsoever, the Death Eater made his way forward through the room. Alexis, whose heart was hammering away in her chest a mile a minute, could have sworn she heard the familiar noise of a dog sniffing the air. He drew dangerously close to Hermione's desk before speaking again.
"Parchment," he said, tapping the top of the bookworm's desk before thankfully moving on.
Unfortunately, the next desk he reached was Harry's.
"Broom polish," said the Death Eater but once more he moved past Harry's desk.
He settled in front of Alexis's desk. Alexis could see his dark leather boots stained with a crusty, brown substance she couldn't help but assume was dry blood escape from the bottom of his Death Eater robes. Then, graciously, the man began to move once more.
"Vanilla."
Alexis cried out in alarm as a massive hand snatched up her ankle and dragged her out from under the desk as easily as if she were a ragdoll. She was pulled against the massive body of the Death Eater before she could properly defend herself, her hands pressed against her chest uncomfortably.
"'ello pet," grinned the Death Eater. Alexis recognized him instantly. It was hard to forget such an animalistic man as the one she met at St. Mungo's all those months ago. His long, gray hair was matted and his sharp blue eyes looked as hungry as ever. "Did you miss me?"
Before Alexis could make a remark - it would have been scathing, she was sure - Harry and Hermione both jumped out of their hiding spots and began sending a series of hexes and jinxes towards both Death Eaters. The Death Eater holding Alexis, momentarily distracted as his partner screamed pitifully, gave Alexis a perfect opening for an attack.
Focusing as much force as she could, Alexis shouted, "STUPEFY!"
The Death Eater went flying across the room. He crashed into the glass cabinets in the far corner, shattering them all when his burly body collided with them. His fellow Death Eater did not fair much better. Hermione and Harry both were able to double team and sent him flying into the crystal bell jar. Alexis had expected for the jar to shatter on impact, but instead, the Death Eater's head sank through the surface of the bell jar as though it was nothing but a soap bubble and he came to rest, sprawled on his back on the table, with his head lying inside the jar full of glittering wind.
Alexis would not have been concerned by this, had the man's face, now stripped of its bone mask that laid across the room, had not begun to age backwards. For a long moment Alexis, Harry, and Hermione all watched with a mixture of amazement and horror as the unconscious Death Eater slowly became the unconscious Death Eater with an ugly baby head.
"Let's get out of here," hissed Harry urgently.
Alexis, with one final look of confusion at the now baby head turning Death Eater, hurried with her friends out the black door. To her immense relief, they arrived in the center room once more with all of her friends already there to boot. Unfortunately, three Death Eaters were there as well.
Seamus, Neville, Luna, and Cho were all facing the Death Eaters together while a seemingly unconscious Dean lied spread eagle between them.
"EXPELLIARMUS!" shouted Harry as a Death Eater raised his wand with a vicious grin towards a distracted Seamus. Neville was quick to stupefy him before he could recover.
"Potter!" hissed one Death Eater easily identified as Doholov. "Give me the prophe -"
"Silencio!" cried Hermione as Doholov raised his wand towards Harry. Once more, a stupefy ended the threat, while a quick Petrificus Totalus put the last Death Eater out of action when he became distracted by his fallen comrades.
With all of the threats handled, Alexis hurried over to Dean. The fifth year had begun stirring when she took a knee next to him
"Are you alright?" Alexis asked, relieved to find Dean breathing. Dean looked up at her at the sound of her voice.
"Got hit with an Impedimenta in the weird space room we ran through," answered Seamus for his best friend. "No gravity in there so when he hit the door he kinda kept going. Got to admit, Dean. If I hadn't been terrified you died, I would have thought it was cool."
Dean groaned but still smiled, saying, "I'm sure once I can feel anything other than pain from my back, I'll agree with you."
"And everyone else is okay?" asked Harry, sending a concerned look to each of his friends.
Five head nods were his answer.
"Only a few cuts and bruises," said Cho. "Neville had to blow up Saturn, and, well, let's just say we're better off than the Death Eaters we left behind."
Neville paid no mind to the compliment but instead help Seamus get Dean to his feet.
"We need to get out of here, fast," said Harry. "Stay together, alright?"
"Sounds good to me," huffed Dean, clearly in discomfort. "Just, someone remind me that after this I'm becoming a Healer. If I stay your friend much longer, healing magic might be the only thing that keeps me alive... No offense."
But even if Harry had wanted to retort, the opportunity was stolen from him as the far door flung open.
"There!" shouted Lucius, leading a large portion of Death Eaters into the center room.
"Run!" cried Harry. The members of the D.A. hurried after him towards the closest door.
"Hurry, Seamus!" exclaimed Alexis, casting a shield spell as a series of stunners came flying their way.
"I'm trying!" huffed Seamus as he and Neville struggled to maneuver Dean through the threshold.
Finally, they succeeded. Alexis, perhaps a bit to forcefully pushed Luna inside after them. She moved to follow after -
"Impedimenta!"
Alexis went flying as the spell hit her hard in the side. She could hear Harry and the others calling after her but had little time to process it as her back slammed into another black, handless door only to throw it off its hinges. Alexis skid across the floor of the room she had unceremoniously been blasted into, her head hitting against a stone wall of some kind as she came to a halt.
Head still spinning upon impact, Alexis watched in a daze as a burly figure stalked towards her like a predator. Loud calls were coming from the center room and in the back of her mind Alexis could tell they were filled with a mixture of worry, anger, and panic but they were silenced the moment the burly figure casted a repario on the door. Something about that and the idea of being alone in a room with a man Alexis could only assume was a Death Eater did not sit well with Alexis and she immediately tried to sit up.
"Oh, don't stand on my accord, pet," growled the Death Eater, drawing closer.
For some reason, realizing just which Death Eater it was Alexis was alone with did not help at all.
"I stunned you," coughed Alexis, pushing herself against the stone she had crashed into early. She hastily climbed to her feet by leaning on it only to realize it wasn't a stone wall at all but a grand stone fountain larger than even the one in the Minister's atrium. However, instead of water, a strange pearl colored liquid poured out of the faucets.
"It takes a bit more than a simple stunner to take care of a werewolf," grinned the steadily approaching Death Eater.
Hiding her surprise as best she could, Alexis took a good look at the man in front of her. His rugged looks and wolfish grin weren't the only thing that should have given the man's true nature away to Alexis earlier. She realized all too soon that the man had sniffed her and her friends out when they were hiding.
"Guess I'll just have to hit you harder next time," said Alexis knowing full well her words were mainly just her natural bravado kicking in.
The Death Eater of a werewolf seemed to know it too as he let out a feral growl of a laugh.
"Your cousin said something of the same nature last time we met," growled the werewolf. He brushed a strand of gray hair behind his ear to reveal the tip missing. "Cut off my ear afterwards... I wonder how he'll feel when he knows I evened the score with what I'm about to do to you."
The missing chunk of ear reminded Alexis of a not so nice fact she had learned early last summer. Swine had told her about a werewolf being after her under Voldemort's orders - the same werewolf that had bitten Remus and the same werewolf Sirius had cut off the tip of his ear in a duel.
"Fenrir Greyback," said Alexis softly.
Greyback let out another growl of laughter.
"So my reputation perceives me," he chuckled, his stalk towards Alexis becoming more of a leisure walk. It was obvious he was toying with her. "Doesn't that ruin all the fun?"
"Oh, a real shame," said Alexis scathingly.
Before she had any time to react, Alexis found herself once more thrown across the room. She tumbled in an attempt to catch herself, but still ended up crashing into a mass of shelves containing the most peculiar looking items. In fact, Alexis was quite sure the row above her head had several wigs made of Veela hair and the row above that was littered with still beating hearts, but Alexis had little time to double check. The moment she got her bearings, Alexis went to action defending herself.
"Stupefy!" she shouted as Greyback charged.
The werewolf didn't even bother shielding himself but instead allowed the hex to slide him back a few paces before continuing his charge forward.
"Stupefy! Impedimenta!" cursed Alexis one after the other as Greyback grew closer and closer. "Cruc-"
Alexis gasped for air, her feet now dangling a foot in the air as Greyback held her up with one hand tight around her throat. If he had looked feral before, the werewolf now looked like a rabid wolf as he snarled up at the suffocating Alexis.
"Such a dark spell playing on your pretty, little lips, pet," he growled with fierce blue eyes daring Alexis to try anything. "One would think you were just like your mother, casting such a curse without so much as a warning."
A sputter of breaths in a vain attempt to regain airflow escaped Alexis as Greyback tightened his grip on the fifth year's jugular. She attempted to kick the werewolf but every attempt she made failed to do anything other than amuse Greyback.
"Scared?" asked Greyback, his wolfish grin only growing larger. "I know you are. I can smell your fear."
As if to prove his point, Greyback leaned in so that his face became buried in Alexis's dark hair and took a deep whiff. He let out a pleased sigh against Alexis's neck, making her skin crawl with disgust and her mind flood with the fearful idea of being bitten despite yesterday having been a full moon and not today.
"How... delicious," Greyback growled into Alexis's ear.
Still struggling to breathe did not stop Alexis from replying in a series of wheezes, "F-fu-uck off."
Greyback snarled back furiously, his whole face contorting to that more fitting of a beast than that of a man. He seemed to try his best at crushing Alexis's throat before thrusting his head forward to bite.
Alexis once more found herself gasping for air as Greyback collapsed in front of her. Almost idly she noticed how he twitched and howled in pure anguish but found it extremely difficult to pity the werewolf when she could hardly breathe. Pushing herself as much as she could off the shelf behind her, Alexis tried crawling out of the corner without another glance at Greyback's convulsing body but found that she could not. Air simply was not returning to her lungs fast enough.
"It's alright," said a voice. Alexis could not make out the owner due to her eyes still being full of tears from lack of oxygen. "I'm here now."
A series of coughs escaped Alexis as she slowly regained the ability to breathe. An affectionate hand patted and rubbed her back to help sooth the process.
"I won't let him touch you like that again, little Bell."
Despite her lacking strength at the moment, Alexis found it in her to surge backwards and away from none other than Barty Crouch Jr. His scarred face lit up with its usual twisted smile that Alexis had the most disturbing feeling was only meant for her.
It was moments like this when she would rather be getting strangled by a werewolf.
"What's wrong, little Bell?" asked Barty, moving towards her. Alexis continued to hurriedly crawl backwards.
"Don't you dare come anywhere near me," hissed Alexis through her damaged windpipes. "Stay away!"
"Now, dearie," chided Barty with a growing smile. It was quite a frightening sight as his scar seemed to enhance the already mad look on his face. "You're being unforgivably rude right now. You've already upset your mother. The least you can do is say thank you to your father."
"You're not my dad, Crouch!" shouted Alexis hoarsely.
Knowing full well that calling Barty by his last name would send the man into somewhat of a frenzy, Alexis used this to her advantage to cast a Stupefy in the madman's direction. Barty successfully blocked it but it still gave Alexis enough time to get on her feet once more.
"Now, now, little bell," said Barty, quickly recomposing himself. "You don't want to have to fight me again, do you?"
"That's actually exactly what I want to do," said Alexis roughly. "Reducto!"
Barty dodged her spell once more a grand grin splitting his face.
"As you wish, dearie," stated Barty gleefully, a giggle escaping him as their duel began.
Alexis could not say she was much of a fight. Although she was quite creative in her attacks, her spells were weakened from her lack of voice. Barty seemed to simply be playing with her as they fought, cackling every once in awhile, especially when Alexis sent a rather dangerous spell his direction.
At last Barty seemed amused enough to end their duel and shouted, "Carpe Retractum!"
An orange whip-like light shot from Barty's wand at the same time as a loud bang! sounded behind Alexis, distracting the you witch long enough for the orange whip to grab Alexis and pull her towards Barty. With a quick flourish, Alexis was able to break the spell and send Barty tumbling backwards. However she too lost her footing and began to fall just as an arm wrapped around her waist and caught her.
"I'm sorry, Barty, but this is my dance," said Swine in a déjà vu moment that reminded Alexis of the Yule Ball, which was the last thing she needed to be thinking about right now. Swine grinned at her. "Miss me?"
"Shut up," Alexis huffed.
"I'll take that as a yes," said Swine, grinning wider.
"Keep it up and I'll say thank you," threatened Alexis.
"Oh, Jinx," laughed Swine, throwing up a shield just as Barty sent a curse his direction. "You say that sweetest things. It's no wonder Skeeter thought I was mad for you."
Solely due to the fact that Barty seemed convinced he was her father, did Alexis count Swine's snide remark as a high quality battle taunt. After all, it did successfully send Barty into a father-instinct induced frenzy while Swine pushed Alexis out of the way.
The duel that ensued was very much like the one Alexis remembered watching just last year between the two men. Every time Alexis tried to help she was thrown out of the way by both parties. Before long both wizards were panting, bruised, and cut. Barty had cornered Swine so that he had the grand fountain behind him. At last, Barty seemed to get the upper-hand as Swine continued to be pushed farther and farther back towards the fountain.
"Hey, Jinx?" called Swine over Barty's onslaught of curses. "Wanna see something cool?"
Alexis very much wanted to call Swine a moron for wasting his energy talking to her but before she could Swine stood at his full height and threw both his arms out in front of him. A second wand, seemingly identical to the one in his left hand shot out of his right sleeve and into his free hand. Before Barty could even reaction or finish sending what ever nasty curse he had playing on his lips Swine brought the wands together.
The result of these to wands colliding reminded Alexis very much of a sonic boom. A nearly transparent ring of yellow magic surged from the two wands sending Barty - and Swine - flying backwards as if being hit by a very powerful Impedimenta. Barty went crashing through the black door leading to the center room (which Alexis hastily casted arepario on after his departure) while Swine was thrown into the depths of the fountain.
'Carter!' cried McPherson as his best friend disappeared below the surface of the pearl colored liquid.
"Shit!" hissed Alexis at the same time. She hopped to her feet and hurried over to help the Auror to save him from drowning.
However, Alexis need not have worried as Swine broke to the surface before she had even reached him, looking very much like someone had tried drowning him in eggnog.
"Gaugh! Never ready the kick," said Swine, swimming towards the edge of the fountain where Alexis stood. "Get me out of this, will you?"
Swine extended his arm for help. Alexis took it and pulled the silver eyed man out of the fountain. And then the strangest of things occurred.
"Jinx?" asked Swine.
He sounded quite alarmed. Alexis couldn't for the life of her tell why. She was only hugging him. After all, he did save her and she would hug Harry if he had been the one to save her instead, so why not hug Swine? Come to think of it, Swine saved her a lot. And why was she always calling him Swine? Alexis thought it would be more appropriate if she started calling him Carter. Wow, did he smell nice! And he was so strong and handsome! Alexis never wanted to let him go. Why should she? Carter was hers now. Alexis didn't want to share him with anyone and perhaps he felt the same. If he did, Alexis could only imagine how -
"Oh for fucks sake!" cursed Carter, struggling to unentangle Alexis from him as she stared up adoringly at him. "If you try to kiss me, I swear to Merlin and Morgana!"
"But Carter!" whimpered Alexis, sounding completely heartbroken.
"Absolutely not!" shouted Carter, who, upon successfully detaching Alexis froze her in place. He then proceeded to scourgifying his entire body until every ounce of the pearl colored liquid was removed.
"Now," he said with a tired huff. "Do you still have an unbelievably horrific amount of desire to be affectionate to me?"
Alexis, who, in all honesty, had been on the very verge of professing her unknown feelings of affections to the man, suddenly became stricken with a feeling of complete horror.
"What the hell just happened?" she demanded, finding it very difficult to look at Swine - and Swine only, forever and ever, thank you very much! - without feeling the strongest of desires to bury herself in a hole and die.
"The fountain is Amortentia," said Swine. He too was looking anywhere but at Alexis and looking every bit as uncomfortable. "The world's most powerful love potion. I was drenched in it so even Greyback wouldn't have stood a chance once he got a sniff of me."
Although knowing this help Alexis a minuscule of an amount, she still cleared her throat awkwardly.
"We speak of this to no one," she said firmly.
"Absolutely," said Swine, just as seriously as Alexis. "Including Harry."
"Especially Harry," confirmed Alexis. Her eyes suddenly widened. "Harry!"
Rushing to the door, Alexis ran back into the center room with little attention being paid to Swine as he called after her. On the far side of the room, she vaguely saw Barty groaning on the ground, a thick red liquid trickling from the back of his head but found no reason in her to care. She had to find Harry.
"Jinx, wait!" called Swine, grabbing Alexis by the collar when she blindly charged towards another door. "The Order is here! They're helping Harry but I need to get you out of here -"
"I'm not going anywhere with out my best friend!" shrieked Alexis, taring herself free from Swine's grasp despite to causing her collar to strangle her. "Where is he?"
Swine was not the one to reply to Alexis. Instead, the center room walls did: spinning until the door in front of Alexis threw itself open. Alexis charged inside despite Swine's best efforts to stop her.
Immediately, Alexis had to duck a stray purple curse that left a nasty burnt mark on the wall behind her.
A war seemed to have broken out it in the dark, amphitheater looking, room. Seamus and Kingsley were fighting over a bleeding Dean against two vicious looking Death Eaters while Viktor was helping Cho against a wizard Alexis distinctly recognized as Theo's father. Just as she enter the room she had seen Tonks get blown backwards by a painful look curse only for a vengeful Remus to take her place. The whole of the Weasley boys, save for Percy, were fighting back to back against four masked Death Eaters and Alexis could see not too far from them that Amos Diggory was helping Neville carry an unconscious Hermione out of the crossfires to where Luna sat breathing slowly with a leg going the completely wrong direction.
However, much to Alexis's surprise was the fact that Alastor Mad-Eye Moody, was in the middle of rather soundly crushing two Death Eaters while only wearing his St. Mungo's patient robes and his heavy Auror trench coat.
"Get the lass out of here!" he barked before sending one of his unlucky enemies flying across the room and into the far wall. The Death Eater hit the wall with a loud smack! before sliding to the ground onto an ungraceful heap. He did not get up again.
But Alexis paid her guardian no mind as she jumped down step after step in her rush to get to Harry, who stood at Sirius's side only feet away from the bizarre veil McPherson had warned her so adamantly about, fighting together against both an unmasked Lucius and Rodolphus.
"Jinx, no!" shouted Swine, trying to stop Alexis once more. But as he reached for a Death Eater appeared and sent a nasty curse his way. Swine took the spell head on and proceeded to find himself being thrown across the room to smack his right side roughly into a stone bench.
A howl of pain escaped Swine upon impact along with a sickening snapping noise, but Alexis had little chance to help him as the Death Eater seized her.
"This is no place for you, niece," hissed the rich voice of Rabastan Lestrange.
"My name," Alexis growled. "Is Hex!"
A burst of raw magic threw Rabastan back just long enough for Alexis to take off running once more towards her family in the center of the room.
"Expelliarmus!" cried Alexis, sending Lucius's wand flying from his hand before he could properly shield himself from Harry's stupefy.
"Nice one, Hex!" chuckled Sirius as Alexis hurried over to them. It was not hard for the three of them to take out Rodolphus together, sending the bearded Death Eater flying from the lifted ground just as Lucius had moments earlier.
"Well done, you two!" praised Sirius. "But you pups need to get out of here!"
"But we can help!" said Harry.
Sirius squeezed Harry's shoulder, a smile playing on his lips.
"You've already done, beautifully," Sirius said. "James would be jealous of your wand work, that's for sure. But your fight hasn't even begun yet. Now get out of here, and take care of my girl, alright? Merlin knows what kind of trouble she can get into."
"Hey, you prat!" shouted Alexis indignantly.
It made Sirius laugh heartedly.
"I love you both," said Sirius before ushering them to get going. "Now go. Go! I'll see you back at -"
A jet of light hit Sirius squarely on the chest, just barely missing Alexis's shoulder. The affectionate smile had not quite died from his face, but Sirius's black eyes widened in shock.
"Sirius!" cried Alexis, grabbing the man's arm as he began to fall backwards but her grip failed her and Sirius continued to fall.
Sirius's back arched and his head graced the thin veil behind him. Then, as if being grabbed by invisible hands, Sirius's feet lifted from the ground and he was pulled backwards into the veil, disappearing from sight.
"Sirius!" yelled Harry. "SIRIUS!"
Distraught, especially when her uncle did not reappear from the veil, Alexis acted solely instinctively when she grabbed Harry's shoulder to keep him from charging through the veil to retrieve his godfather.
Sirius had to be alright, Alexis just knew it. She would have heard him if he was... if he had...
"He's alright," whispered Alexis frantically. "He has to be alright."
"Sirius!" Harry cried again.
"He's okay," murmured Alexis. "I'd know... Harry, he has to be okay."
But Sirius did not reappear from behind the veil and Alexis knew, as Remus tore her and a raging Harry away from the veil and pulled them out of the crossfires of Death Eaters and Order members fighting all around them, that he would reappear again.
Sirius Black was gone.
.
... I love you? Thought I might throw that out there before anyone sent me a life threatening review. I honestly can't even make a joke right now after writing that last scene. But I couldn't not do it as Sirius's departure has the most lasting impact on Harry, arguably even more than Dumbledore's. It was necessary, painfully, agonizingly necessary. So I'm sorry but he is officially gone.
Review Responses:
HazelVex: I have a feeling that if you did use a party popper it was near the beginning of the chapter and only then. Last chapter I threw in some hints at you-know-what that hopefully might happen a lot more next book with your help. For obvious reason it will be slow paced though. Thanks for the votes and yeah, I noticed that too but I find the origins of their fears to be completely different. However, good stuff to relate on between them!
lizy2000: Sorry!
stephanie . rebecca91: well, the reunion has finally happened!
EmoOwlQueen: and here it is!
mwinter1: anytime!
Raven that flies at night: err... At least you don't have to worry anymore?
NeverBeyondRedemption: Yes, the prophecy is important and connected to what Trelawney had said earlier. Thanks for voting!
gossamermouse101: I'M GLAD YOU DID!
phoenixfelicis07: I'm trying to make up for the slow updates during school tbh. I'm glad the second prophecy has intrigued you though. More on that soon! I actually have a worse fate planned for Umbridge if it helps that the centaurs didn't snatch her. May or may not be similar to what you said but not exactly. Again, you'll find out how the Order realized the D.A. went to the Ministry soon but not quite yet. And yes, Carter is still quite important to the Ministry with that silver-tongue of his. As to why Tom knows so much about the D.O.M., you'll see soon enough. Thanks for the votes and opinions! Good guess on Harry's reaction to a missing Hex btw!
Guest: will do!
Chocolatefeminist: thank you for voting! Hope you enjoyed the chapter!
AmyRoxx123: Fourth of July cupcake! My favorite snack AND my third (Beat only by Fifth of November and November 10th, USMC's B-Day) favorite holiday in one! You spoil me. Thanks for voting!
Dare Queen: Thank you!
If you need to cry out your feels, I would recommend doing so to Bridge to the Other Side by Oliver Boyd and the Remembralls.
DCF