Chapter Twenty-Five:

Nosedive

The four teens rushed to the Grand Staircase, Jack practically carrying Hiccup on his arms, as the boy seemed to slip in and out of senses, his head spinning and his stomach still churning. They ran upstairs until they reached the sixth floor, where they shuffled the corridors on to Professor Slughorn's office. Jack wasted no time before knocking harshly on the door, and when the plump, bald old teacher appeared, he gave a little squeak at the image of the scrawny teen that looked like he had just been on a train wreck. He stepped away just before the group flooded his office.

"What happened to Haddock?" Slughorn exclaimed. "Close the door, you." He pointed at Aster as he spoke with a careful voice, tying his thick purple robes tighter around his large waist. He examined Hiccup's pale face, the dark bags under his eyes and slow reactions to anything the outside world did to him. "What did he get himself into?"

"We don't know; he just came back from White's office." Jack stuttered the words as Hiccup collapsed onto the couch.

"Good Merlin! Can you hear me, mah boy?" He spoke, leaning his hand up to the boy's forehead. "I must say, you should have taken him over to Madam Pomfrey, Mister Overland." He said before rushing to one of his cabinets with surprising agility.

"White is tracking the hospital wing." Astrid explained. "Jack figured it was best to bring him to you."

"I see…" He said, suddenly moved/proud with their consideration, before he quickly recomposed his determined manners, turning on his heels holding nothing but a piece of chocolate. "I've pictured another occasion for this, but given the circumstances... I hope he wasn't kissed to the end."

There was a strange silence. "...wait, kiss?" Jack made a grimace.

"Take it easy, boy, I've seen very few worse meetings with Dementors than this. I'm surprised he actually managed to come back with his soul still in one piece." The professor said before eyeing the way Hiccup's hand was attached to Jack's. With an awkward grin, he offered the chocolate to the white haired boy instead. "Try giving this to him, I believe he'll respond better to you."

Jack took the candy gingerly, ignoring the others in the room as he placed the chocolate on the boy's lips with the most tender expression. Hiccup chewed on the piece slowly, and suddenly it was as this completely new fire formed at the sweet taste, colour spreading back into his cheeks.

"What happened to you?" Astrid rushed into his vision, holding his face with both her hands. "You look horrible."

"Nice seeing you too," Hiccup gnarled, batting Astrid's hands away from his face, sitting up on the couch. "I'm fine." And then he looked around. "How did I even get here?"

"A common effect of the Dementor's kiss," Slughorn spoke again as he turned back on his heels, adjusting the tiny ornaments on his office as he frowned. "He'll be disoriented for a while, you better keep him company. How exactly did you get face to face with a Dementor, my boy?"

Hiccup had a lost expression, still trying to figure why the room seemed so bright and what was that ringing sound that echoed in his mind. "White," he mumbled. "She's got Dementors in her office."

Jack nearly choked on his throat. "WHAT?!"

"That is illegal!" Astrid shrieked, and even Aster's face seemed to go one shade darker. "We have to report this!"

"She's tortured you!" Jack continued to exclaim, his hands now running in circles on Hiccup's back, which in any other time would get the boy in a blissful state, but now it just served to annoy him. "We must tell someone, uh-a teacher."

"Thank you for your consideration," Slughorn spoke up from his couch, offended.

"You can forget it," Hiccup said, shaking himself away from Jack's now abusive hands. "She's been hiding it well, that's what she's been doing to everyone lately. She makes us forget it afterwards with a potion. But that's not all," He closed his eyes tightly as he tried to penetrate the fog in his mind to remember the creature she had mentioned. "She thinks we're hiding a creature, she said the name, an… Obscure? Obscurus… Obscurial."

A collective shiver crossed through the room as the teens and the professor took in the news. "Does that name sound familiar to any of you?"

"That's dark magic, my boy…" Slughorn mentioned. "Obscurials have not been for the past century. There's no way one could exist now, trust my words."

"I don't know, professor, if that's White' new threat… Whatever that is, she's positive it exists, and she's keen on keeping that information a secret. But we've got no support from anyone whatsoever." He said darkly. "We're on our own."

"No, we're not," Aster spoke up, stepping away from his corner. "Have you forgotten what we've been doin' this past few weeks?! Does the Black Army mean anythin' to you?"

A shameful silence fell over Hiccup, being pampered over by Jack, soothed by Astrid and scolded by Aster. It angered him.

"And what do you suggest we do?" Hiccup asked.

"We've got to break into her office," Aster said. "If she's holdin' a Dementor in there, then there's no way to get rid of it but freein' it out."

"Let a Dementor loose on the school?!" Astrid seemed to have a fit. "Are you out of your mind?"

"White has shields on her door, we can't get in there by magic." Jack pointed.

"Or unless we get invited." Hiccup replied. "The only way in is if she wants us to. Like pissing her off to get ourselves in detention."

"Which you're not doing any time soon." Jack said firmly, holding Hiccup's wrists.

"Maybe I could try." Aster said, and Astrid seemed even more out of herself. "She's huntin' muggle-borns anyway… It's not like it'll be hard for her to get me in detention."

"No," Astrid spoke up, "no, It's too dangerous. Besides, Hiccup couldn't protect himself, who guarantees that you will?"

"She wasn't expecting me to," The freckled boy tried to free his wrists from Jack's hold again. "If you're fast, you might actually surprise her."

Both boys nodded. The silence that fell on the room was only disturbed by the sudden sound of the teacup on Slughorn's hands, looking tiredly at the teens. "Well, I assume you are feeling better, Mister Haddock?"

The boy nodded, still holding a piece of the chocolate.

"We'll be going now, Professor," Jack thanked his teacher, who seemed slightly baffled from the commotion in his office. The four teens walked to the doors, waving at their professor before leaving.

"Are you feelin' any better, mate?" Aster asked once they were in the point where Ravenclaw and Gryffindor would split. Hiccup nodded, still with a downcast expression. "See ya." The Australian said before bringing the boy into a tight embrace, which Hiccup responded equally. Maybe each other's hug was the only one that mattered, the only ones who now shared that fear. The blonde girl went next, letting go in a soothing manner before following Aster up to their common room.

Jack obviously stayed behind.

"You don't have to keep looking after me," Hiccup said drily. "You can leave if you want." The white haired boy only remained quiet. The shorter one only rolled his green eyes before turning on his heels to the corridor behind them. Jack followed, staying a couple feet behind Hiccup all the way to the Ravenclaw Tower in silence. At one point, Hiccup took out Toothless from his pocket, checking on the dragon that he forgot had spent all the encounter with the Dementor hidden inside his robes. "Are you okay, bud?" He asked worriedly, when the dragon only remained curled inside his palms.

The boys only stopped when they reached the bottom of the spiral stairs to the Ravenclaw Tower. Hiccup shifted on his feet uncomfortably. "I'll see you later."

"Wait up," Jack said, finally trying to look at the boy in the eyes. He had his mouth open, but there were no words coming out. What was he supposed to say anyways?

But Hiccup was the one that moved first when he felt the tears burning up behind his eyes, throwing himself into Jack's arms and hugging the boy tightly, craving for the immediate comfort only Jack could bring, and Jack received him readily, lacing him strongly enough to hold, and gently enough not to break.

"I heard-I heard her." He stuttered between his tears. "My mom. I heard her in there." He held on even tightly to Jack, and both nearly stumbled as the taller boy squeezed harder on Hiccup's back.

Jack wanted to kill White. Every part of him yelled for him to destroy her into tiny pieces. He planted a soft kiss onto the boy's forehead, bringing in the familiar scent of skin and grapes only Hiccup possessed. They remained that way for minutes until the sobs died down, and all that left were the tearful red eyes. Jack placed a hand to the boy's cheek, brushing it once and holding himself not to pull him into a kiss. That seemed to cross both boy's minds, and even though they leaned in, their lips never met, instead brushing in a comforting manner and joining their foreheads before Jack pressed a single slow peck on the corner of his mouth.

"You know, this would be a lot easier if you just did what you wanted to do." Hiccup whispered. Jack only closed his eyes tighter, embracing the boy even closer.

"You know why I can't. I won't be able to stop."

The green-eyed boy then looked up, a mixture of sadness, fear and disappointment on his face, and the expression mirrored on Jack. "You know, if you wanted me to wait for you, I'd wait."

Tears formed on Jack's deep turquoise eyes. He nodded once, and pulled Hiccup's hands to his lips once, pressing a slow kiss to his fingers. "Be safe." He whispered, letting him go.

Hiccup looked down, drying his eyes with the back of his hand, then nodded in a strange and rushed manner, brushing off their robes before Hiccup walked away, running the steps to his Common Room as Jack only closed his eyes, his mind clouded with all the things he could never say.

When Astrid and Aster walked up to the Transfiguration classroom the next morning, the sense of dread building up on their throats for White's class, they nearly sat down on their usual places when the high pitched voice of the hateful witch spoke up: "Stop!" She commanded before the class even started.

She swung her wand, the tables and chairs suddenly vibrating and straddling out until there were was a separate roll of desks on the far corner of the room. One by one, a thin red rag with white lines marked 'mudblood' on the seats.

White hissed with a devious smile. "All muggle-borns must sit on their designated place."

The sparks flew through the air in Bloomsbury Street. The smoke spiralled up from burning vehicles, muffling the screams of the Muggles who ran away in absolute horror of the complete destruction. The Six Obscurials materialised themselves, the black capes emerging from their raging beastly forms.

The Great Obscurial spoke first, slowly. "Gentlemen, our time runs short." He started leisurely walking through the sparks. "Our mole in the Castle has not given us any leverage about the child, yet the Order has still succeeded in training them for combat… Tell me, should we terminate our bargain with Agatha White?"

Gerbier shook his cloak

"Spare us from your rants, Erebos…" Gothel hissed, daring to use his name, standing solid on her heels. "I told you we had no use for her, and still you insist on throwing all the efforts into that… incompetent, useless witch." She spat the words, disgusted.

"We will not need her for long now, my dearest," The Grand Obscurial said, still facing the burning street. "The muggles will soon turn against the wizards and the ancient times will start again – without her in it."

"She still thinks we wait for the Death Eaters' to assemble," Gerbier said, followed by the dark sinister stare from MacNair.

"They already wait for the order, Master Hammond." MacNair smiled. The screams from the muggles now muffled metres away from their position. "They are ready to attack the castle."

"Are they aware of the Resistance?" Erebos spoke, and the smile escaped MacNair's lips. The Grand Obscurial turned to them now, his eyes as piercing as a blade. "Have they been informed of this latest defiance from the Order of the Phoenix? With their new teenage army within the very walls of the castle?"

"A bunch of kids against Death Eaters," Gerbier snared in his thick accent, and the other Obscurials laughed. "That's a good one. What do they plan to do, cast Expeliarmus?"

The Grand Obscurial looked down, before staring back at him. Then he lifted his wand.

"Expelliarmus." Gerbier's wand suddenly shot off from his hand. "What is a wizard without his wand?" He muttered. "Crucio."

Gerbier snapped in pain, and the laughter and chuckles immediately died down. "A teenager has defeated Lord Voldemort with Expeliarmus. Don't you dare to underestimate the power of the young ones, you fool; they have fire in their veins, much, much brighter and fresher than ours."

Gerbier's form exploded into the dark shadows of the Obscurus, twisting and turning agonizingly in a horrible screech.

"We shall attack in the next full moon." The Grand Obscurial faced the flames again, releasing his curse from Gerbier. "Agatha White is still on the search for the Cursed Book. She'll find it at the right time. When she does, we'll let the terror take care of the Muggle's judgement – lead them to the castle. Arrange a meeting with the Muggles. And take a good look; there won't be as many souls wandering through these streets."

In the beginning, some people took White's presence as a joke. It won't be so bad, some even dared to say, looking optimistically to the new High Inquisitor. It might have been easy to ignore free hate speech as a collateral effect for true change. Now no one was sure how they could ever ignore the elephant in the room when White declared that all classes should separate desks for muggle-borns. Or forbade any trip to Hogsmeade – at least that much was understandable, the Prophet was suggesting a huge infestation of Boggarts in the area. They did not even realise when she replaced detentions with the Dementor's torture. When Astrid walked out of her detention, nearly falling down the staircase from White's office, dark circles over her eyes and her memory promptly erased with the forgetfulness potion, both Hiccup and Aster knew it was time to act.

The attacks on the muggle world were no longer spared. Minor attacks than the Thames River – still in investigation by most Aurors -, random peaks of energy that would leave entire muggle cities in the dark for days, mysterious dead bodies found sporadically in public places, strange marks that no muggle could identify. Unknown to the students still at Hogwarts, the appearances of the Dark Mark disguised in the clouded skies was becoming increasingly more common. Astrid's parents were no longer the only ones to disappear.

Not one week after Hiccup's encounter with White, a commotion sparked up among Slytherin students. Aster had barely stepped down the Grand Staircase for the Great Hall when the first hex had hit the back of his head, knocking him a few steps forwards.

Around him, there were around twenty students in green robes, their pointy hats covering most of their faces. "What's the matter with ya?!" The deep and Australian voice echoed, and some students nearby looked at the curious scene. Right above the entrance hall, the big white stripe covered the double doors. The sign was written in red:

'Mudbloods are the ones to blame.'

The following morning was worse. Hiccup had barely finished climbing down the steps of the Ravenclaw Tower when he heard the surprised shouts. As he ran up to the entrance Hall, he felt the debris on the floor crackling under his shoes, glimmering against the light coming from the windows – now most of them broken, huge sections of the glass missing.

That night, students with pointy hats and covered dark faces had left their dormitories from the Slytherin Common Room. They marched towards the Grand Staircase, and from there they rose their wands. "For Valor," they chanted. One by one, portraits on the walls were woken up, shouting for silence. And then came the curses.

"Diffindo! Reducto!" They commanded, and one by one the frames began to explode in a horrific mess of shattered glass and screams from their paintings, falling over the stairs and into the limbo at the depths of the staircase tower.

Throughout the mess of the Night of the Shattered Glass – as the students decided to name it after they woke up to an entire hall covered in glass and broken paintings –, Hiccup's mind was still stormed with the creature that he remembered so vividly of White mentioning the last time they met. "You have no idea what it is?" Aster asked while both boys sank behind an entire section of Dark Magical Creatures in the Library. Hiccup sent a dark look, and Aster immediately retreated. "Bloody hell, the woman is hiding a bloody Dementor in her office, if there is anythin' to be uncovered is that. You're right."

Hiccup nodded, turning back to his Norwegian copy of Norse Monsters and Plagues. When he looked back up, he saw the tall blonde beehive of Azel emerging from the shelves, the girl walking to them with a determined look, holding a copy of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, along with a coloured copy of a thin book he could not name, and the old copy of Muy Obscure Rituals from Sotanath Grim.

"I thought you would've gotten rid of that book by now." Aster commented as the girl approached.

"I'm still looking for a place to dispose of it." She replied sadly as she gave the book a disgusted look.

"No luck, I take it?" The boy tried, and found the girl shaking her head.

"No, but in the meantime, I've been reading some of it. They have this chapter on the World Levelling Curse… Although horrible, I couldn't help but find it fascinating." She said as she sat down with the two boys.

"Can I see it?" Hiccup mentioned the book, and the girl gave it another dark look before handing it over to him. "I never even imagined such books were even allowed in the school…" He spoke as he flipped through the pages. "There are Norse rituals here?" Azel gave him a tired nod. "Why is everything so sacred? All the rituals he describes… Whoever this Sotanaht was, bloke must have been a really powerful wizard."

"A really dangerous one, more like it." Azel suggested. "There are instructions after instructions in there, but apparently it can't be done by a single wizard… These old rituals require sacred places… He refers to one of them as the Heart of Magic."

Hiccup shivered at the name. "One of them?"

Azel nodded again, and Hiccup realised how her hair seemed to be frizzing out from its usual spotless knot, the golden locks somewhat damaged. "Yeah, there's this whole chapter on Equivalences, I didn't read the whole thing but like every myth and culture gave different names to the same thing. Call it Heaven or Asgard or Avalon, Hell or Patala – it's all the same, all in a pattern."

There was a long silence. "Wherever that is, I hope no one ever dares to find it." Hiccup returned the book to the girl, who promptly slipped it into her shoulder bag. "Who else has heard of it?"

The girl pondered for a second, remembering. "Merida… And Jack. I haven't openly mentioned it to anyone else I don't trust."

"You do well," Aster said. "I can't imagine what White could probably do if someone reported it to her… or if she ever managed to put her hands on it."

Azel nodded, and Hiccup amused himself with the friendly interaction that had quickly formed between the pair. For a moment, he imagined if Astrid would ever get jealous of Azel, but he pushed the thought away. Astrid wasn't the jealous type.

"I didn't find many useful instructions on the Patronus charm, neither much background on the Obscurial records… But I managed to get this." And she flipped the latest Quibbler magazine on the table.

"How did you find that?!" Aster held himself from screaming in wonder, Madam Pince still hovering the students for silence.

"The Room of Requirement." Azel shrugged. "I needed a way to know what was happening outside the castle, and the room led me to a tunnel all the way to Hogsmeade. I can't even remember the last time we were allowed to step out of the castle."

Hiccup lifted the Quibbler, staring at it inquisitively. He then gazed at Aster next to him. His friend only smiled: "I told ya, nothin' better than this to actually say what's really goin' on." Aster nearly growled, and Hiccup laughed.

"I assume it must be filled with crazy theories, though…" Azel made a disgusted face to the magazine, and Aster rolled his eyes:

"Oh blondie, when you 'assume', you make an ass out of you and me."

Hiccup's eyes scanned the magazine, realising that whoever wrote those pages had a twisted sense of dread for everything that surrounded him, and he couldn't help but laugh at the news of the 'smoky spirit' that was bringing death from the earth's core.

The duality of the light and shadows, birth and death, fire and water that is turning our world back against us! Find shelter immediately!

"You're joking." Hiccup said with an unbelieving smile – which Azel could not help but find dashing. "This is… just too much."

"Maybe, but that's not what I want you to check out." The girl said, her fingers flipping the pages until Hiccup read the title: How Obscurials might still be on the loose.

"Obscurials?" Hiccup asked, and the girl nodded.

"Read it." She said, and Hiccup rolled his eyes before starting.

…The young wizards or witches who developed a dark parasitical magical force, known as an Obscurus, were a result of nothing else but their magic being suppressed through psychological or physical abuse. The latest threat our world has been facing could mean a new rise of such dark creatures, lethal and violent bursts of destructive magic that could risk exposure of our magical world.

At least that is what they want us to think. There are rolls of famous Obscurials in magical history – some related to the very Dumbledore family tree -, that have led to the persecution and death of many of wizarding and non-magical lives. Could the Second Wizarding War be the perfect situation for the rise of a new generation of those children immersed in dark magic? Could we face an entire new Order of extraordinary witches and wizards that secretly plan to take over the dark world with their trauma and repressed talent?

Find out more in the next Quibbler edition, along with a whole tutorial on 'How to take care of your floating pumpkins'.

"You can't actually believe this." Hiccup said, incredulous. "This goes too far."

"You think so?" Azel retorted with an amused smirk. "What was that thing White told you again? That she tortured you for?"

Hiccup leaned towards the table with his eyes closed, pressing his forehead against the surface. "She said we were hiding a, uh..." Secretly, his heart sank as he thought of Toothless, still laying on his desk, green eyes wide alert on the environment. "…she mentioned an Obscurial?"

The name fell unfamiliar to the other teenagers as well.

"The blondie could be righ', mate," Aster spoke. "The Quibbler is the most controversial news channel in the wizarding world, if he's already talkin' about those… Obscurials, then maybe the ministry's tryin' to hide somethin'. Maybe White could be lookin' for that."

"We all know there is only one way to hold back Dementors." She laid on the table, sitting down on the chair as she spoke. "The bigger problem is, who is going to teach us how to make a Patronus Charm."

Hiccup pondered for a moment, right before the name of Professor Longbottom escaped his lips. And indeed, that same afternoon, when they gathered the Black Army in the Room of Requirement, their teacher was already waiting for them as Azel urged him to teach them how to perform the shield.

"Do yeh think this is going ter work?" Merida asked Astrid in a secretive way. The blonde girl only shook her head in an unsure answer.

"You are too young for this!" The professor replied, and there was a collective commotion from the students. "Are you sure you know what you're all asking?"

There was no other answer than an obvious yes. And that is how all the students in that room held their wands, forming groups and focused intently on their happiest memory. The chants of Expecto Patronum seemed to rise from the very heart of the room while every teenager tried its best, all the while with Professor Longbottom encouraging them with his impressive clouds of silver and blue smoke that seemed to light the room with warmth. Unlike White's Patronus, which was sharp and burning, Hiccup thought that the Professor's reminded him more like the warmth of a campfire on cold nights.

Still, Hiccup was unable to create even sparks with his wand. All around him, the noise and distraction of being surrounded by so many people making him feel overwhelmed. "Come on, Heccup, it cahn't be that hard." Merida cheered him up.

"Easy for you to say, you've already done one." Hiccup said, and indeed, Merida had casted a huge silver bear, which caused a great commotion from the room and a small sting of jealousy from Hiccup. "What is your memory, by the way?"

"Oh Haddock, that's not the kind of question you ask a witch!" The cheerful Professor walked up to them, placing his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Try thinking of your best memory, and you don't have to say it, just hold on to it."

Hiccup stared at his wand, trying to focus. Around them, Azel had already released an impressive lizard-like Patronus that brought gasps of admiration from most students. Even Astrid had conjured a silver bird that seemed to float gracefully around the room. Hiccup turned in front of him again, and he held his breath steadily.

His mind wandered over to his memories. The Dark Mark seemed to break into his vision, the green flash and his mother's name echoing across the Great Hall. He flinched, before tracing the memory further, until Jack rushed behind him moments later, all the way to the very corridor outside, where he held him as they cried. He thought about his mother's laughter the first time he stepped into the Platform Nine and Three Quarters. That golden afternoon with Jack, Aster and Astrid. Flying with Toothless and kissing Jack at midnight.

"Expecto Patronum!" He swung his wand. The warmth emanated from his fingers instantly, and a silver dragon burst from his wand, proudly flying so high up that it ascended towards the ceiling, flying in beautiful spirals around the Room.

The cheers that emanated from the room were deeply overwhelming to his ears, as most teenagers in the room seemed to surround him, some admiringly and congratulating, some beaming with jealousy. Then the dragon dissipated into the air. His green eyes wandered towards Professor Longbottom, whose eyes shined of excitement. Astrid kept smiling cheerfully and even Merida seemed to send him a congratulatory look. Everyone but Jack, who was nowhere to be seen.