A/N:
I'm so glad you guys enjoyed the last chapter. Now onto the reviews...
Sueosliterarios: Who knows everyone needs to get ready for war! Celeste wants to get stronger and hopefully she gets control of her magic again.
oOAshookaOo : Not only can she no longer summon Loke but now her overall control is diminishing! I love Sirius myself, maybe he will survive or maybe he won't. People need to suffer.
TheBlueNova: Yes, this is Celeste's last year…Draco will be a prefect with her so they will get some more sibling interactions.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Enjoy
….
Into the Abyss
Chapter Fifty-Nine
A Demented Summer's Day
In a county on the south west coast of England lay Devon. It was a beautiful region famous for cliffs, blue waters and many Britons often used it as a vacation hotspot. On a warm summer's day in the small town of Ottery St. Catchpole, a young wizard sat in his bedroom holding the last letter given to him by his girlfriend. His name was Frederick Gideon Weasley, but he much preferred to be called Fred. The words written in Celeste's impeccable scrawl gave him some comfort over the past few weeks. He had several letters from her but for some reason his parents had forbidden him and his siblings from talking to both Harry and Celeste over summer.
Her lates letter was one which hurt him the most. It hurt the young wizard because his girlfriend through that she had done something to make him ignore her. He really wanted to tell her the truth, but even he as not sure what the whole truth was. So he read the letter again;
'Dear Fred,
I haven't heard from you in a while. Did I say something to upset you in my last letter?
Please write back.
With love,
Celeste. '
Even though the letter was shorter than her others, the meaning was clear. She was hurting because of him and he could do nothing to tell her that she had done nothing wrong, that in his eyes, she was perfect. Smart, talented, and always going out of her way to help others, even if it meant getting herself hurt in the process. He clenched his firsts, crumbling the letter in the process, the action not going unnoticed by his twin brother, George.
"Cheer up, Freddie, summer'll be over soon, and you can see, Cellie again" George said. He had the latest draft of their stock plan on his bed but since Fred was not in the right mood to talk business, he was more than happy to help him brighten up his mood.
"That's the thing- we'll go back to school and she'll probably hate my guts for ignoring her" Fred grumbled. "Have you seen what she said?" He gestured to the crumbled-up piece of parchment lying on the floor "She thinks she upset me- she thinks that she's done something. I'm stuck here forbidden from talking to my own bloody girlfriend and no one will tell me why!"
Now exhausted, Fred slumped onto his bed, George was silent, watching him with a pitying look. Fred didn't mean to shout at George, it was not his fault after all. He was just tired, and he missed his girlfriend.
"I think it's time for 'operation liberation" George said as he sat up in his bed.
"Alright, Georgie," Fred agreed as he headed over to Ginny's room where he knew pig was being kept. The poor thing was only allowed on supervised flies around the Burrow gardens and even then, Mum had limited him to staying in her line of sight.
His youngest sibling and thankfully, only sister, was lying on her bed throwing a practice snitch at the wall before catching it just as it bounced back towards her. In the far corner of the room was Pig, who was locked in his cage. Upon spotting him and George, Pig chirped loudly.
"No use, Mum's put an anti -locking charm on Pig's cage" Ginny said glumly as she sat up in her bed.
"Well, dear sister, that's what wands are for" Fred responded as he pulled out his wand.
"Don't say I didn't warn you" Ginny muttered before throwing her snitch at the wall again. Red ignored her, he pulled out his wand and pointed it straight at the padlock on Pig's cage.
"Alohomora" He cried. The result was a gold spark surrounded the padlock; it shook however it remained locked. however, nothing happened. Then he pointed it again-
"Mums put anti exploding charms on the cage too" Ginny said with a bored sigh "Tried already and almost burned off pig's beak"
"I just don't understand why we can't talk to them" George grumbled. Of course, it didn't hurt him as much as it hurt Fred, but he was close to Celeste. "has she said anything to you"
Ginny shook her head "Nothing. I've asked Ron too and he knows nothing too"
"What's he up to anyway, still moping about Harry?" Fred asked
"You're one to talk, you've been a right git since we got home" George teased
"In his room. Hermione's coming here soon" Ginny told them
"So, she gets to be here, but Celeste doesn't!?'" Fred snapped.
"Calm down, Freddie" said George "It's not her fault or Mums. Dumbledore was the one to give the order"
"What?" Ginny asked in shock.
"You used the extendable ears didn't you!" Fred cried. He was impressed but a little miffed that George had not told him about his plan to find more information.
George grinned as he held up the string "Sure did and Mum never noticed a thing. I didn't tell you because I wanted to wait until I was certain but if Hermione's allowed to talk to Ron, then that changes things" He tucked the string back into his pocket before his features became uncharastically serious. "There's something else too...something Hush Hush. I think Dumbledore's getting some sort of group together and I think he doesn't want Harry or Celeste to know"
"You think he's trying to get an army together to fight You-Know-Who?" Fred asked. George nodded and Ginny looked nervous.
"He's given orders to Mum and Dad to keep it secret- that's why mums keeping Pig on lockdown"
"But if Dumbledore's making an army, why isn't he telling Harry? He was the one who saw You-Know-Who come back,' Ginny stressed. Fred nodded in agreement, wondering if maybe Dumbledore knew something about Harry that the rest of them did not. Did he think that Harry was not to be trusted?
"I think he knows something that the rest of us don't." Fred told them.
"Or maybe something he doesn't want Harry to know" George added. Fred frowned, he would have thought that Dumbledore, the strongest wizard of their time would want Harry to be prepared for You-Know-Who's return. Like Ginny said, Harry saw him come back so shouldn't he be the first to know about any plans to fight him. Even Celeste, who took on a Death Eater to help Harry was being left in the dark and Fred wondered if maybe Dumbledore was hiding something from her too. But what?
At that moment, Ginny's bedroom door slammed open revealing a red-faced Ron.
"Run out of roast beef again, little brother?" George asked cheekily.
"No, worse" Sais Ron darkly "Mum's gone to London to see Percy and Dad's gone to get her!"
At the mention of their brother, Ginny growled, George went quiet, and Fred grit his teeth. Percy had been a sore subject in their home ever since the first week of summer. There had been a horrid row between Percy and Dad and Fred, who knew his dad as the calmer of his parents, was shocked to see Dad argue with Percy like that. Then, Percy had said horrid things about the family, Harry and even Celeste. George had to hold him back from decking him.
"Why's she gone and done that? We're better off without that git" Fred spat. Ginny nodded in agreement.
Ron shrugged "She misses him I s'pose"
"Well, that makes one of us" Ginny muttered. Fred smiled at her.
"You guys don't think he'll come around, do you?" Ron asked glumly. Sure, Percy wasn't exactly his favorite brother, his penchant for sticking to rules as if they were made of glue and the years of constant comparison would do that to anyone. But Fred never would have thought he would turn his back on the family like this. A part of him bitterly wondered if mum still wanted gum to be like Percy now
"Percy's always been a bit…different from us" George sighed.
"He's with his people now" Ginny spat hatefully.
"But you've always got me," A new voice said.
Ginny gasped as she spotted the newcomer, he was the tallest out of the brothers and had long shaggy red hair tied into a ponytail. He wore a long purple leather jacket which looked to be made from reptile skin and he had a single feather earring.
"Bill!" Ginny cried as she darted up and hugged him tightly "When did you get here?!"
"Just now He answered "So, what's all this about Percy then?"
"You better sit down" Ron said
INTO THE ABYSS
Ever since celeste had woken up on Earth, she had felt a sense that she did not belong. Truth be told, she was a recycled soul stuffed into the body of a weak baby. Still, the blonde felt as if she had stolen the life of someone else; what happened to the real Celeste Malfoy when Lucy Heartfila was stuffed into her body. She never wanted to think about it before, but ever since Loke she wondered if it were possible for herself to be reborn, could the same happen to Loke? The thought of him being able to live again gave her some sense of comfort, but then Celeste felt the bittersweet realisation that she would never see him again. Some selfish part of her hoped that this was not the case. It hoped that Loke was out there looking for her. Celeste knew that Loke would never leave her.
So she thrust herself into finding out anything she could that could help out the predicament. Unfortunately, this world had next to no knowledge of Earthland magic, she had hoped to find something in the Library at Grimmauld Place, but the closest Celeste had gotten to celestial magic was Astronomy and even that spoke nothing of the spirits. Finally, Celeste summoned Crux, the knowledgeable spirit was a walking library for all things related to the celestial world, however even he was stumped.
"Now my dear, Celestial spirits are not simply born, we are made" Crux told her with a yawn.
"Made how?" Celeste enquired. She had always thought that the spirits were born from the stars themselves
"When someone dies, be that human or creature from a selfless act, the Celestial King in the heavens grant them a second chance to protect their loved ones using the magic of the zodiac and makes them a celestial spirit" Crux said, his eyes opened as if seeing a tale Celeste could not "Many of the golden key sprits lived lives as humans long ago…due to a noble deed in their human life, they were granted the great honour of the zodiac's power"
"What about the silver key spirits?" Celeste asked.
"We are not as powerful as our golden key brethren," Crux continued "The celestial king chooses possible hosts from those who have died before their time, and enhances us with the magic of constellations whose power is far less than the zodiac…but one thing is for certain that once a spirit dies, their mantle must be filled"
"So, does that mean that Loke will come back?" Celeste asked hopefully. Her eyes turned to his key, it had turned completely white since his death and Celeste could feel no magic coming from it at all.
Crux's eyes saddened at this, "When one of us dies, our bodies revert back to magical energy and return to the stars from where we came…The birth of a celestial spirit cannot be measured, it may take seconds, minutes or even thousands of years…even then…once they return, they may not be the same spirit their previous master knew"
"So, I may not even see my Leo again?" Celeste asked sadly.
"I am truly sorry, Princess." Crux said, his eyes uncharastically wide and shining with tears, "But please know that Leo loved you very mu-"
Suddenly, before Crux could he finish, he vanished in a blinding light. Celeste knew this signified that his gate had been closed however, she had not willingly done so. She had summoned Crux herself and as a silver key sprit, he could not open or close his own gate alone.
'Something's wrong'. Celeste thought now mystified about the whole situation. Her magic had been off since that night, however it seemed that the loss of loke had other consequences on her magic than Celeste had come to realise.
Turning to her keys, Celeste could feel them humming with magic as usual and nothing seemed wrong…well at least she told herself that was the case.
"I haven't exactly been sleeping that well" Celeste said glumly. Then the blonde suddenly realising that no one was around to hear and released a long-suffering sigh. It felt a lot like that the past few weeks and she was rather lonely. Even her celestial spirits were not opening their gates as much as they used to, and Celeste wondered if maybe they had blamed her for Loke's death. She was the one who convinced him to help Harry, he did it for her and the thought would forever torment the poor celestial mage.
Not wanting to stay in the drab library any longer, the blonde headed back into the main house. She could hear Sirius's rushed footsteps as he paced around the upper levels, Celeste wondered what he had been up to these past few weeks for he was busying himself in clearing out the spare bedrooms.
"I wonder what he's up to?" Celeste thought to herself. Her first thought was that Sirius was preparing to have Miss Chandra move in with them, as she was visiting quite frequently, and the social worker and Sirius seemed rather close. But Celeste quickly dismissed this thought as the bedrooms Sirius had been clearing out had been unused for the many months she had been living there. Alongside this, Kreacher was acting much stranger than usual. His usual rantings now included various names Celeste did not recognized, but when she asked Sirius about it, he just brushed it off as 'Kreacher being Kreacher'. Her cousin had been distant these past few weeks, in fact they all were. Grimmauld Place had been quiet, and she did not know for how much longer she could take it. It reminded her too much of manor and the thought of that place made her feel ill. Celeste had not heard anything from Fred and George either. She had sent numerous letters to her boyfriend however, received no response. Celeste wondered if maybe she had done something wrong to upset him.
At that moment, Celeste could hear much lighter footsteps that she distinctly knew as Harry's. The younger wizard's usual messy hair - 'Potter hair' as Sirius called it - was stuck in all directions. He had grown a bit too and was now a head taller than Celeste who had always been about average height for someone her age. However, Harry's now gangly limbs spotted the look of someone who had grown too fast in a short amount of time. His eyes behind his glasses were framed with dark circles and worst of all, he looked thin.
"How about we get something to eat?" Celeste offered eagerly.
"Not hungry," Harry responded with a grunt. Celeste wondered if he had been up all night. She had not been sleeping much herself, but Harry looked much worse than she did.
"How about a hot drink then-"
"I think I'm going to get some air" Harry announced, he shrugged into his zip up hoodie and stepped into his shoes. Not wanting to leave him alone, Celeste quickly followed suit.
"Do you mind?" Celeste asked as she laced up her boots. Harry shrugged as he opened the door, not bothering to look back and see if she was following.
"Kreacher, tell Sirius that we're going for a walk!" Celeste cried out before slamming the door shut. As they left, the spell shielding Grimmauld Place from view shimmered as the townhouse once again became invisible.
It was ridiculously hot outside, probably the hottest summer ever in London. Cars which usually were driving along the busy roads, remained parked on the sidewalks as the muggles walked lazily through the thick humid heat. Even dressed in a white sundress, Celeste felt hot and could already feel the sweat beginning to form on her upper arms. With a huff she tugged on her ribbon which was tied to her hand and hastily tied her hair into a messy ponytail. She was not sure where they were going but was content to follow Harry and keep him company. Celeste did not want to leave him alone, nor did she want to be alone herself.
Eventually, Harry crossed over the busy street leading to a small park. Celeste mesmerized by the hustle and bustle narrowly avoided getting hit by a passing cyclist before she scurried along after Harry. He eventually came to a stop beside a large flower bush, from their time living together, Celeste had learned Harry knew quite a bit about gardening and often pointed out the various flowers they passed, but now they were quiet.
"Are these Azalea's?" Celeste asked as they sat down. Harry who was now lying flat on his back, glanced over towards the bush before replying.
"Hydrangeas'"
"Oh'," Celeste whispered. Looking around, Celeste realised that they were the only two in the park. London had much better places to be on sunny evenings, most people often flocking to the beautiful Hyde Park or the Memorial Gardens, Islington was hardly a place to be. But Celeste found it peaceful, it was nice to be away from the closed walls of Grimmauld Place. She loved Sirius dearly, but Celeste felt as if he struggled with her and Harry's emotional wellbeing. Of course, he was not solely to blame. He spent many years of his life locked away in a hellish prison, so it was no wonder that he was no expert on parenting – let alone parenting a teenage boy with a madman after him and a teenage girl who had died once before.
But still, she just wished she did not feel so alone. She wondered if she had upset Fred, George, and Sirius. Cho already hated her, and Marietta by extension, so the blonde already felt as if she had ruined her relationships with her precious people one way or another.
"I can see him every time I close my eyes and I…I wish I could have done something" Harry's voice was quiet, the atmosphere suddenly becoming much more tense. Celeste turned to face him, eyes glassy as she envisioned what those last few moments must have been like for her strongest celestial spirit.
She envied Harry for being there in Loke's final moments. He was her most loyal friend, a protector and she thought they would have been fighting side by side far longer. Celeste felt that Loke was robbed of a life he could have had on Earth. She knew he was close with Aries, so much so that the two even went to the Yule Ball together.
Would they have become a item if Loke hadn't had died? Would Loke have stayed at Hogwarts?
She knew enough about the killing curse to know that its effects were instant but not painless. She wondered how Loke felt during those lost few moments…did he feel any pain? Did he suffer?
"Was it…" Her voice trailed off, it was cruel to ask Harry such a thing, not when Loke's death was hurting him as much as her.
"He didn't suffer" Harry answered. "It was quick and he…he asked me to look after you- not that I'd do much of a good job of it"
"Thank you for telling me. I know it must be hard for you" Celeste said quietly.
She stared back up at the sky, the pink hues of sunset swallowing up the blue sky of the day as if the very sky was alight with fire. The sun was disappearing behind the trees and Celeste thought it looked rather peaceful.
"Me?" Harry asked with an incredulous scoff "Celeste he was your friend, and his last moments should've been with you and I stole that"
"You didn't take him away from me, Harry. Voldemort did" Celeste said. Harry shot up at this, surprised that Celeste had uttered his name aloud.
"You're not afraid of him, are you?" Harry asked. Celeste shook her head.
"No, Harry. I'm terrified" She said "Imagine how many people blindly followed him- my father being one of them"
"So was Nott's, Crabbe and Goyle's dads" Harry said darkly.
"I had a feeling he was going to see Voldemort that night" Celeste said quietly "On that night I saw him leave the pitch. His arm was in his hand and he looked frightened…my father likes to put on a face for everyone around him. But I know that he's a coward. He's scared of Voldemort punishing him and so he runs back to him like lapdog. He's pathetic Harry and I was a fool for ever obeying him"
"They won't get away with this" Celeste said darkly "What they did to Cedric and Loke - I'll never forgive him" her fists shook with anger as she spoke
"I know" Harry said "I just...I don't want anyone else to get hurt"
"Then let's get stronger together, Harry," Celeste said with a small smile. She took his hand, giving his fingers a gentle squeeze.
"I'm sorry I haven't been talking to you lately" Harry said.
"Me too," Celeste said quietly "I was so stuck in the motions that I haven't been myself...I just wanted to be strong for everyone…but lately, I've been feeling a little."
"Alone?" Harry finished. Celeste nodded "Yeah…me too. Hermione and Ron haven't been answering my letters and Sirius has been acting strange"
"Fred and George haven't been talking to me either" said Celeste sadly "I'm not sure what's happening with everyone else, but you always have me"
"Thanks Celeste" Harry replied.
"We should head back before Sirius starts to worry" said Celeste.
Harry nodded "He's probably still cleaning anyway" They were heading back the way they came, passed the busy Highstreet and through a much quieter back road. There was an alley way which led straight to No. 12, so the two teenagers used this rather than the back streets. It was well into the night now; sunset had gone, and it was dark. Despite it being night, the summer air made it relatively warm which was a rarity in England.
"What do think that's that about?" Harry asked, "You don't think he's with Miss Chandra properly now"?
"What?" Celeste laughed "I'm pretty sure they've been seeing each other properly for a while now, they just haven't told us yet"
"True… he does call her Kamala now" Harry chuckled.
"Maybe they're finally a real couple-" Celeste said. "It's about time to…" Suddenly, Celeste felt fold. Her arms wrapped around herself, fingertips running across the goose bumps on her flesh. Something did not feel right. Beside her, Harry watched carefully. He could feel the change in the air too and the sudden sense of foreboding hung around the two teenagers.
"Celeste…" Harry said slowly, he watched shocked he could see his very breath pass is lips. The ground began to freeze over and slowly…slowly dread began to fill her. There was something at the end of the alleyway, it was coming towards them with heavy, rattling breaths. The lights flickered and the figure drew closer and closer. There were no footsteps, and fear filled Celeste as she realised that the figure was not walking towards them but gliding. It was a Dementor.
"Harry, run. Now!" Celeste hissed. Harry did not respond as he turned but as they started to run back the way they came, another cloaked figure appeared. There were two now and both glided towards them.
"Wand…wand" Harry muttered. Celeste scrambled for her own in the darkness it was difficult to see where she had put it.
Frantically, Celeste cried out "Lumos" A bright light appeared in her palm, it took a lot of her concentration to perform the spell wandless but with the light the teenagers quickly found their wands. The dementors were getting closer now and both Celeste and Harry came to the grim realisation that there was no running away. The dementors had blocked their path and there was no escape. They had to fight them.
"You take that one, and I'll take this one!" Harry ordered quickly. Celeste nodded. She clenched her eyes shut and mustered the happiest memory she could. She could practically feel Fred's lips on hers as he kissed her on the lakeside. They were warm against her own and nothing else mattered…
"Expecto patronum!" They both cried. A blinding white light formed from Harry's wand, it morphed into the shape of a stag and charged at the dementor. Celeste turned to her own wand, surprised that her Patronus charm did not form a shape and instead was a single silvery beam of light. The spell was too weak. Frantically, she tried again, this time thinking further back to Harugeon. She could picture the sea, Natsu taking her hand…
"Expecto patronum!" Cried Celeste, her wand shook as thin streams of silver shot out of her wand. The result was the same, her Patronus charm was nowhere near as powerful as Harry's and the dementor swatted it away like one would a fly. Celeste felt her body run cold as the dementor glided closer and closer. Weakly, she uttered the spell again, but nothing happened. Her vision was filled with the dark abyss of the dementor's cruel mouth, it's breath rattling. Suddenly her mind was filled with horrible images - her mama's last moments, pale sickly and thin - Achnologia's devastating attack on Tenrou - the woman at the quidditch world cup taking her last dying breath - finding out about Loke…again and again the images swirled around and Celeste could do nothing.
She could not escape the feeling of despair…
Her wand clattered to the ground as she suddenly felt weightless. She could vaguely hear someone shouting her name but even that sounded distant. Her eyelids suddenly became heavy as if they were made of lead. She made not a sound as she crumpled to the floor like a puppet show had just had their strings cut.
Then it was all gone.
A bright light caused her eyes to snap open and through her blurred vision, Celeste could see Sirius standing in front of her. A silvery dog, which Celeste surmised was his Patronus, barked fiercely at the dementor. It remained for a few moments, trying its best to glide over the dog, but it stood firm over Celeste. Eventually the dementor, seeing that it had been beaten, it flew away to who knew where.
Celeste remained frozen on the floor, staring into the darkness, she feared that more of those horrid creatures would come and attack once more. She cursed herself for being helpless, for needing someone to save her. She felt useless.
Then, Harry was by her side, and offered her hand up, she took it, suddenly feeling lightheaded. Still, she stood, her arms wrapping around her body to gain some semblance of warmth. The dementor had her feeling drained, she had the passing thought that chocolate would have been very helpful.
"Bloody disgusting things" Sirius said darkly. He turned to Celeste, "How are you feeling?"
"I" She started, her voice quiet and dull. Slowly, she bit her lip as her eyes began to water, suddenly feeling overwhelming sadness as all the shock finally wore away "I don't know what happened…I tried- I really did but...I wasn't- couldn't-"
"It's alright." Sirius said, instantly stopping her tirade. He gently placed a hand on her shoulder, "You're safe now, both of you" Sirius told her softly, Celeste tearfully nodded.
"Do dementors usually attack like this?" Harry asked. Sirius's eyes grew dark as he shook his head his head.
"The ministry usually has a tighter leash on them. it seems that Fudge has gotten too relaxed"
"What if they got a muggle?!" Harry asked, shocked.
"That's the least of Fudge's worried" Sirius spat "That bastard is more concerned about his own wellbeing than anyone else. Let alone a muggle"
"I never sensed them following us" Celeste said shakily, her wand tight in her hand.
"You wouldn't have" Sirius said as he ushered the through the alleyway, his voice quiet and hushed. "Keep your wands out, we don't know if any more will come" Sirius ordered.
"You don't think that someone…someone like Vol-" Harry started.
"Don't say his name- wait until we're inside" Sirius urged. Both Celeste and Harry nodded, the blonde was no more curious than ever. From Sirius's reaction, she wondered if it were possible for Voldemort to have sent the Dementors after them to get to Harry.
"You said it yourself, Harry, he was desperate to kill you himself, he even stopped his Death Eaters from killing you" Sirius said.
"You aren't mad at us, are you?" Harry asked once they arrived inside.
Sirius's gaze softened "No, of course not," He said "In fact, I'm proud of you both for using your initiative to fight off those dementors...just next time can you tell me before you both leave"
Celeste felt guilty at this. She had tried to use the Patronus charm, but she had failed. What if Harry had gotten hurt because of her? Her fists shook with anger, but most of her anger was directed at herself.
'I need to get stronger' Celeste told herself. 'How could she protect her friends if she could not fight a dementor. Celeste needed to get stronger because she could lose anyone else.
"Kreacher, fetch us some chocolate! And quickly!" Sirius ordered. A loud crack filled the air as Kreacher hobbled, holding a single bar of chocolate.
"Kreacher brings the chocolate for his ungrateful master" He muttered, before forcefully placing it into Sirius's hands. He did not stay long and quickly left the drawing room, not wanting to be around any of them for longer than he needed. Sirius proceeded to break off large portions of the chocolate and handed it to Harry and Celeste. The blonde greedily ate her helping, a small smile forming on her lips as the sweetness hit her tongue.
"Listen, both of you" Sirius started. He sat on the large sofa and without another word both teenagers joined him at either side "You've both seen a lot this year- more than anyone your age …and I…I want to apologise. To the both of you. " Sirius said.
Celeste's head snapped up at this. Confused, she turned to Harry, who looked equally as shocked as herself.
"Sirius it isn't your fault-" Harry began but Sirius held up his hand to silence him.
"I am your guardian and haven't been doing the best job for you both lately...I want you to know that I am here for you both whenever you need me and that you can come to me for anything " by the time Sirius had finished talking, his eyes were wet, and his voice choked. Celeste knew that he as never one to only talk about how he felt. In fact, none of them were. They all had gone through so much and closed themselves off from one another, but in the process, they were hurting those they cared about. In that moment, Celeste felt much closer to her cousin than she had ever been before. So, she did something she did not always do and hugged him.
"You know Sirius, you've been doing a far better job than my father ever could" Celeste whispered. Sirius smiled as he wrapped his arms around her.
"Thanks, Celeste" He whispered back, his chin resting against the top of Celeste head. With a wide grin, he turned to Harry, who was watching the exchange with a smile "Come on, Harry, don't just stand there! Family hug!"
Harry laughed "If you insist" he said before wrapping his arms tightly around them both. He was a head taller than Celeste now, so she was effectively squished between the two wizards. For a moment Celeste was happy, this was her family now and nothing else mattered. There was no Voldemort, no dementors and all was well. There was hope, a shining beacon in the horrible darkness that life had become, and Celeste was eager to hold onto it as long as she could. She wondered what her life would have been like if she had been born as Sirius's daughter instead. Would their liver have changed for the better or worse?
Then, she wondered why whatever deity watching over her rebirth decided that her place would be with the Malfoy's. She never felt loved there and Celeste wondered why she was born to such people who merely saw her as their property to do as they wished.
But there was no use on dwelling on what could be. Celeste thought I have my family now.
"Okay, okay, enough family time, I need to breathe!" Celeste giggled. She pushed Sirius and Harry away from her and started to head towards the drawing room when she heard a loud squawk. Her head snapped towards the large window to see a brown tawny owl circling the area. This street was full of muggles, Sirius's home was the only wizarding household for miles so Most likely this owl was searching for the property.
"Let Hedwig out, Harry," Sirius ordered as he made his way towards the window. Harry nodded, he raced upstairs to his room and came down a few moments later with Hedwig on his shoulder. Then, he placed her by the windowsill where she flew out. Celeste watched as Hedwig chirped at the strange new owl and plucked the letter from its claws before flying back inside. She then flew to Harry and celeste realised that the letter was addressed to him.
Harry opened it and all three were silent before Suddenly, Harry's eyes widened.
"What is it Harry?" Sirius asked. Harry swallowed before he read the letter out loud.
"Dear Mr. Potter, we have received intelligence that you preformed the Patronus Charm at exactly twenty-three minutes past nine this evening in a Muggle inhabited area. The severity of this breech of the decree of Underage Sorcery has resulted in your expulsion from Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry.."
At this Sirius roared, startled by the outburst, Celeste jumped.
"Ministry representatives will be calling at your place of residence shortly to destroy your wand…"
"To hell they are!" Sirius roared as he paced back in forth. He was like a caged tiger and Celeste, even though she knew Sirius was not dangerous, she was frightened at what he might do.
"It says that I'm having some disciplinary hearing on August twelfth" Harry continued.
"Listen here, Harry, you've done nothing wrong- what did those old bats expect you to do? Have your soul sucked out?" Sirius raged. Harry did not answer and Sirius continued to pace. Back and forth he went, muttering to himself and Celeste could make out a few words of 'Ministry bustards' and 'bloody wankers'. If it were any other situation, she might have laughed, but seeing as Harry's life at Hogwarts and the magical world was crashing down, now was not the time.
"There must be something we can do" Celeste said, the Ministry was a corrupt place. Full of nepotism and misandry- her father was a prime example of that. As soon as he flashed a smile and opened his Gringotts vault, Fudge became his best friend. Earthland was no different, she divinely remembered how the Magic Council treated Fairy Tail in comparison to richer guilds.
"I was there…maybe I can testify" Celeste tried. Harry nodded
"Whoever this Mafalda Hopkirk is, she's dead wrong" Said Harry with determination.
"Too right" Sirius barked. He stuffed his arms into his travelling cloak and stepped into his boots "You kids stay here, I'm going to have a talk with Dumbledore"
"Can we come too?" Celeste asked.
"No, better not. You two stay here, in case any more of those letters come- you'll be safer here" Sirius ordered. Celeste nodded at this begrudgingly "If anyone comes, Harry, don't give them your wand. Celeste- keep an eye out for anyone looking suspicious. Dumbledore and I will sort this out"
With that he took a handful of floo powder and stepped into the fireplace.
"The Ministry!" Sirius cried before he was engulfed in flames. Now the teenagers were left alone.
"How much power does Dumbledore have to override the Ministry?" Harry asked
"I'm not sure" Celeste answered "Besides, he's sorted out much worse before" She wanted to stay hopeful for Harry but even she was worried. Sirius had been imprisoned for twelve years fora crime he did not commit with very little evidence, what would the Ministry do to Harry? She wondered if maybe Fred and George knew anything, their Dad worked for the Ministry so maybe he had some insight of what to do. At that moment, s second official looking owl began to circle the outside window, not wasting any time, Harry let Hedwig out and she tore this letter right from the owl's beak. Harry then tore the envelope just as Hedwig perched herself atop the drawing room table.
"Dear Mr. Potter," He read with a shaky voice "The ministry of Magic has revised its decision to destroy your wand forthwith. You may retain your wand until your disciplinary hearing on August twelfth, at which time an official sanction will be taken."
"That great! Celeste cried, but Harry continued to read the letter.
"Following discussion with your Godfather and the Headmaster of Hogwarts school for Witchcraft and Wizardry, the ministry has agreed that question of your expulsion will also be decided at this time. Until then…consider yourself suspended"
"You see that Harry, there's still time" Celeste said.
"I suppose," He said, though Celeste could tell that being suspended from Hogwarts grated on him. Even then, the fate of his wand hung on a thin thread "I'm going to write to Ron and Hermione and tell them what's going on"
Celeste nodded, "Alright, try not to worry too much, Harry. Sirius will sort this"
Once Harry was gone, Celeste made her way towards the fireplace. Picking up the floo powder tray, she took a large lump before calling out the name of the twins' home. She wondered if Fred or George would even answer her call.
"The burrow!"
There was a moment of silence as the flames flickered, before slowly dying down.
"I guess he isn't coming-" Celeste murmured. Suddenly, the flames roared with life, Celeste jumped in shock, forgetting she was holding the bowl of floo powder, dropped it all over herself and the floor. She did not mind in the slightest, for in in the flames, she saw the image of Fred's face. Happiness filled her at seeing him again, even if it was through roaring flames.
"Cell, is that- is it you?" He asked shocked.
She nodded "Yep, it's me" Celeste responded with a smile.
"Always a pleasure to see your face, love, now what can I do for you?" Fred asked, his image grinning. She was not sure where to start, her failing magic, the dementors- so much had happened over the past few weeks, Celeste did not know where to start.
"Harry and I were attacked by dementors earlier and now he's suspended from Hogwarts"
"You what?" Fred hissed "Are you alright, is he alright?"
"I'm fine, we both are" Celeste replied.
"That's good" Fred sighed "You always have a way of getting yourself into trouble, you know that"
Celeste sighed "I can't help it" She worried her bottom lip, eyes downcast "Sirius thinks that the Ministry is losing control of them"
"Because of the attack, right?" Fred asked, Then in the flames his face sported a somber look "Dad's been saying the Ministry has been up in arms- they think Harry and Dumbledore are lying about You-Know-Who being back"
This surprised Celeste, she would have thought the Ministry would do all the could to fight back against Voldemort, but if Fudge and his lackeys were just going to bury their heads in the sand, he was signing the death warrant of innocents everywhere. Celeste could not bare to think of whatever horrors Voldemort would do this time around.
"Is that why haven't you answered my letters?" Celeste asked worriedly. She wondered if perhaps Fred believed the Ministry and that was why he was ignoring her.
"No. I wanted to write back Cell, but I couldn't" Fred replied tersely.
"Why not?" celeste questioned. This was not like Fred, for as long as she had known him and George nothing could stop Fred from doing a thing. Not the threat of detentions, his mother's wrath. Nothing. For Fred to be forbidden from doing something meant that such orders came from someone higher up. But who could be more important than his own mother?
"Mums stopped any of us from talking to you and Harry- George says it Dumbledore's orders"
"Dumbledore?!" Celeste repeated shocked "Why doesn't he want you talking to us? We haven't done anything wrong!"
"Look, I don't know, and I don't like it" Fred answered shortly "All I know is that mum and dad have been acting off. She even has Pig on lockdown, and she won't let any of us use the floo-"
"Is that my Cellie?" Celeste could hear George shout, she grinned at hearing his voice. She really missed him too.
"What do you mean 'my'" Fred cried in mock outrage "Go and get your own"
"Hi Cellie!" George bellowed, he elbowed Fred out of the way until his face filled the entire fireplace. "Fred has been a right git since we got home, always 'when can I see Cellie' this and 'I just wanna hold her again' that- oh and my personal favourite 'why are you being so unfair mum, I lo-"
"Oi, I did not!" Fred shouted back.
"Boys!" A third voice shouted, Celeste instantly recognised this as Mrs. Weasley "What are you doing, who are you talking to!"
"No one mum!" Fred replied hurriedly.
"Now look what you've done" George hissed
"Don't lie to me! Get out of the fireplace this instant!" Mrs Weasley shrieked
"Sorry, Cell, got to go," Fred said before the flames abruptly died down.
As she stared into the dark and now empty fireplace, Celeste wondered what Dumbledore was up to.
INTO THE ABYSS
The sacred island of Tenroujima was quiet. Large birds with long spoon shaped beaks squealed loudly, massive rock like beasts stomped over the landscape having free terrain over the land. A sudden wave of potent, dark magic swarmed the area, all wildlife within a one mile radius stopped dead. Their life was depleted.
A young man with pale skin and dark hair framing his heart shaped face stared at the decimated sight. His crimson eyes devoid of any spark of life due to the years of sadness he had faced.
"I just want this misery to end" he said, but no one was around to hear his miserable plea.
The man's name was Zeref Dragneel and he was one mage many feared. He was the black wizard who terrorised the nightmares of mages for over four hundred years for he was cursed with the most terrible Black Magic ever to be created: Ankhseram. Named after the God of Death himself, such a curse was so feared, for it had the very ability to strike all living things dead if the user so much showed any love for life itself. It was a bittersweet cursing the user to kill, the more they appreciated life. Such a curse followed the user for eternity, a byproduct of Ankhseram's most famous curse. Now that Zeref had lost all he loved, he was alone.
Always alone.
A lone tear fell down his face as he came to the resting place of the Fairy Tail wizards. Their bodies lay peaceful and untouched, none of them having aged a day since the attack seventeen years ago. He could sense a small yet dwindling life force from all the bodies - except one.
Only one was truly dead.
"Your Majesty," Said a strong, feminine voice.
Zeref turned to see the form of his highest ranking commander, Irene Belserion. Her long scarlet hair billowed in the gentle breeze. Beside her, were two young girls who appeared to be preteens: one with hair as pale as moonlight and the other with hair like the night itself. Irene always had been fond of creating life using her enchantment magic, but all enchantments paled in comparison to Zeref's etherious demons.
"Are the preparations made?" Zeref asked.
"Yes, my Lord, '' Irene have already procured Lumen Histoire, those Fairy Tail mages put up a fight..."
"But?" Zeref asked.
Irenes lips pressed into the thin line.
"The spirit of Mavis Vermillion is what makes Lumen Histoire so powerful, for she is living magic. Without it, Lumen Histoire is unusable"
Zeref frowned. This put a damper on his plans, without the powerful magic of Lumen Hisstoire, how was he to complete his plan of rewriting time. Crimson eyes cast a glance towards the motionless form of Natsu, even without him awake, his original plan of having the dragon slayer to kill him was useless...he was nowhere near strong enough to defeat him alone...Zeref supposed that he had waited long enough...
"Can you detect her life force here?" Zeref inquired. If they found her, they could force her to reverse whatever spell she had used to protect the Fairy Tail mages. Zeref surmised that it had to be Fairy Sphere, Mavis' ultimate protection spell. She had described it to him, eons ago, but judging from the fact that the mages souls were no longer in their bodies, something had gone wrong.
Irene shook her head "Even with my Universe One spell, I am unable to locate Mavis Vermillion in this world…"
Instantly Zeref understood the meaning behind Irene's words. If Mavis was undetectable by Irene's Universe One, it meant that she was no longer in this universe. The black mage had heard of other worlds before, his time studying magic of Ankerserum and then his early years of creating Alvarez, led to him learning about the various worlds parallel to Earthland. Searching for worlds where his beloved brother lived. Edolas had been one of them, but Zeref quickly realised that it was devoid of magic and therefore, the version of his brother there was useless to his plans. Zeref quickly dismissed the idea of finding an alternate version of his brother and instead sought to revive him together. There were other, more fruitful worlds which posed useful, unlike Edolas. Worlds where mages used sticks to cast spells and spent years honing their craft. He would have been a liar if he said that didn't appeal to him for if there was one thing Zeref was eager for, it was knowledge to bring back the family he lost.
Zeref had been younger then and had not set his sights on them, instead focusing his sights on Earthland's magic…. but if Mavis was on another world, then that changed things. He needed the spirit to utilise Lumen Histoire and revitalise his E.N.D.
Only then, would he get peace and see his brothers smile.
"Then, where is she?" Zeref finally asked impatiently. He knew Irene was alluding to something else...something she new would interest him no doubt. But at this moment, the immortal mage had little patience for Irene's riddles.
Irene smiled; she was just curious as he was. Zeref knew more than any, how much knowledge appealed to the master Enchantress and the prospect of the new world with magic unknown to even her was too good to pass. She was known as the Scarlet Despair in this world thanks to her magnitude of power no doubt the prospect of a new world to terrorize appealed to her.
"On a land called Earth" Irene told him "It is full of magic as old as the universe itself" Irene continued "And my Lord, there is a mage- one of the Fairies who somehow was reborn there"
"And why does that concern me" Zeref asked. He didn't care much for insignificant fairies.
"She's a celestial mage, my lord" Irene said "I believe that when Achnologia attacked, Mavis Vermillion's spell disallowed their souls from passing on. I can sense them in the abyss of time and space but only a celestial mage can breach the plane. That mage is the key to bringing back E.N.D. and further fulfilling your goal"
"A celestial mage?" Zeref repeated with interest "Tell me, is this mage a Heartfelia?"
"I believe so," Irene said with a shallow dip of her chin "The descendant of Anna Heartfelia herself. When I sensed the Abyss, traces of her magic remained, I believe she has the ability to enter it"
That was a name Zeref has not heard in a while if this celestial mage could bring his brother back, then Zeref needed her. It was a pity Lumen Histoire had no use to him but Zeref wondered if this celestial mage would be of use to him. Maybe he could atone after all.
"Irene, gather the Spriggan Twelve and prepare for Earth, we have a new mission" Zeref declared.
"What of the book of E.N.D.?" Irene asked carefully.
"Send Brandish and Precht to retrieve it and dispose of Tartarus. I have no need for them" Zeref said with a sigh. He had let Mard Geer have his fun, let the Nine Demon Gates wreak havoc on Fiore, but they were useless in his efforts to bring back E.N.D. and no longer served a purpose.
"And what of the Fairy Tail mages?" Irene asked, eyes glinting with excitement like a child eyeing a new toy.
"My only concern is E.N.D. Do with them as you wish,"
Irene smiled; it had been a while since she had some fun.
A/N:
This chapter was supposed to be updated yesterday but I lost my Granny last night. It was sudden and painful and we never got to say goodbye. I was too devastated.
Stay tuned for the next one…