The Err of Slytherin
By LeapingWithFate
Summary: Those in Slytherin house are mainly purebloods. As such, they have always tried to live up to certain standards. One specific year those standards brought about a tragedy in Slytherin House and since then the Forest around the Castle has been Forbidden.
Warnings:
Word Count: 1211
QLFC Beater 2 Round 4 Prompt (Done to cover for a teammate)
Team: Kenmare Kestrels
It's a Horror Story Out There! - Cult
Additional Prompts:
Creature: Cat
Setting: Forbidden Forest
Altair Black smirked as he looked at the people around him. All of them were Housemates, and all of them were in the same year as himself. He had thought of inviting a few of the pure-bloods from the other Houses, but in the end had decided against it.
Knowing that everyone was there, Altair pulled up the hood he was wearing. "Alright let's get started. Did you bring it, Lestrange?"
One of the other cloaked teens moved forward and set a covered cage down in the center of the forest. "Right here, Black," she said as she removed the sheet that was over the cage, revealing a black cat inside.
Black smirked as he looked at the cat. "Okay, so the book I got from Egypt details summoning an avatar of Bastet to help with a fertility problem and the Mudbloods being bred is definitely such. It will take a month to finish all the preparations, but then we will proceed with the summoning. My uncle will look the other way as far as us coming out into the Forest, as long as we aren't too tired in class the next day. For now, I will draw some runes and everyone else can head in. Just remember where this clearing is."
Altair watched his Housemates leave and wanted to laugh with joy. His plan was perfect. Or well it would have been if the boy hadn't miscalculated. He was planning on turning the black cat into an avatar of Bastet, who was a goddess of fertility. The book detailed summoning the avatar for fertility reasons, but Bastet was also a protector. Summoning her avatar when she was a protector to wipe out a race of people, would only corrupt the vessel and lead to ruin, but Altair didn't know that, and neither did any of the other Slytherin students who were shown the book.
Altair waited until they had all left and started using a blood mixture he had made to craft runes around the clearing. These runes would have to absorb the residual magic of the area for a month before the actual summoning and were the main reason that the ritual would have to wait that long.
The only other thing that would need to be done would be for someone to come out once a day and feed the cat and take care of her. The group of fifth-years would take turns so one person didn't have to do it every time.
That being said, the entire group would come out in their robes once a week to cast spells in the area in order to help charge the runes, and during those times they would talk about how happy they would all be to get rid of the Muggle-borns. .
Over the course of the month, Altair noticed everyone in the castle whispering about the fifth-year Slytherins, but he didn't care. Slytherin House had always been compared to a cult, and if their year was seeming even more like one, it just meant they were more Slytherin than the rest of the House. Besides if they were a cult, they weren't a religious one. Sure they had a plan involving a goddess, but his Housemates were dedicated to him.
He was the leader- he was the one with a plan- and everyone was focused on his words. If they were a cult, then they were a cult dedicated to a Black, and Altair was fine with that. He would lead his Housemates to glory tonight, and it all started with a walk to the clearing.
The entire year was ready by the time the moon had risen, and they all headed to the clearing where the black cat resided within the cage. Altair noticed the runes had started glowing, signifying that the ritual was ready. He stepped into the center of the clearing. "I hope you all are ready. Tonight we end the Mudblood scourge on our world. Tonight the wizarding world will take a step back towards being pure. Toujours Pur!"
His classmates' shouts resounded out a moment later. "Toujours Pur!"
Altair felt a rush of adrenaline and took in a deep breath as a wicked grin lit up his face. "Alright, everyone start chanting, and I will invoke Bastet."
The purebloods around Altair did just that, chanting in an Ancient Egyptian dialect and only getting it right because of a solid month of practice. As the glow on the runes increased, Altair Black knew it was time to start.
"Lady Bastet hear me!" he called out in the same Egyptian dialect. "I ask you to use this offering to momentarily enter into a mortal shell so that we may ask of you a favor. Please reward your faithful servants with an avatar of your power, Lady Bastet."
Altair had to repeat his part three times before the cat within the cage started glowing. When the glow died down, the cat's eyes were a glowing silver instead of the original amber.
"A proper summoning, it has been a while." A powerful female voice spoke directly into the minds of the Slytherins.
Altair wanted to gloat towards his friends that his plan had worked. "Well, we were motivated, Lady Bastet. We have a fertility problem that we were hoping you could help with."
The possessed cat cocked its head to the side. "Tell me what your problem is then."
Altair nodded with a smirk. "Our world is being invaded by magic users born of Muggles. We want you to stop the Mudbloods from being born. Make those Muggles who could birth magicals infertile."
A loud roar pierced all of the fifth-years' minds as soon as Altair finished speaking. "What you ask of me is akin to genocide! You wish for me to wipe out an entire group of people by no longer allowing them to be born!" A large amount of power washed over the group, and sadly Altair was too arrogant to realize he should back off at that moment.
"Yes! We summoned you, followed all the steps of your ritual and me and my followers demand that you—"
"DEMAND!" Another roar ripped through their minds, making all of the gathered students drop to their knees. "YOU DO NOT GET TO MAKE DEMANDS OF ME, MORTAL! In case it slipped your mind, I am not only a goddess of fertility, but also a warrior."
As she finished speaking the cat suddenly started growing. It didn't stop until it was five times the size it normally was and the cage it had once resided in was nothing but broken and bent metal. "Let this be a lesson to those who make demands of gods. Your lives are all forfeit and from here on, this forest will be a cursed place. Any humans that set foot in here will be in danger!"
The Slytherin students never made it out of the forest. When the next year started, the Headmaster Phineas Black would have already resigned, the man having been shamed for what he allowed to happen. This would also be the first year that the forest around the grounds was off limits, and within another two the name of the forest would be changed to the Forbidden Forest.