LifeLines~Part3-Revelations
(Author's Note: Hey everyone. Jessica here. Next installment of LifeLines. School started already, so the updates may be far apart. (My teachers are piling on the honors homework.) Probably from Part 3on will be a PG-13 series. The next parts will be really kind of dark, and a lot of backstabbing will be going on. Part 4 especially. I'm rushing on this part. Part 4 is a turning point: A major one. Read, relish and enjoy. Read and rate. If I don't get a lot of reviews, none of you will ever find out how it ends! I'll hex all of you! I need constructive criticism people!)
(A/N Once Again: My editor, Jen isn't going to be previewing this part this time. I have to admit this one will probably be the crappiest of all the parts to LifeLines. But it's still an important chapter.
Disclaimer: I don't own the Harry Potter characters, I just use them to satisfy my writing needs. They belong to .J.K Rowling. I own the other characters, yada yada yada. Plot's mine, the way the Dark Arts run in my stories are strictly mine. The Dark Arts may run different in the series.

Meanwhile, back at Hogwarts.
The three had been asleep for two days. Besides the teachers and Dumbledore, the only people who knew what was going on were Ginny, Fred and George. They were all mad that they hadn't told them sooner, but McGonagall apologized. Dumbledore and McGonagall stopped by everyday to check in on the three. They were usually quiet. The bronze potion was faithfully simmering gently, waiting for Dumbledore to give it to the three and bring them back to the land of the living.

Jonathan had always been bitter against the Dark Arts. In particular, the other wizards that thought they were so much better then he was. But, he could never leave. He would be killed. Besides, he had nowhere to go. Jonathan had lots of people higher in ranks than he was. He was only a brainwasher. He had thought once he had a lot of power. He was told he had amazing amounts of Dark power. But they disappeared whenever he really needed to use it. One of the other wizards that really ticked him off was one guy named Doug. He was working with Lord Voldemort himself. The only time Jonathan ever spoke to Lord Voldemort was when he was in training, he had watched him, and he had made the appropriate comments to him. "So, Johnny. How many brains have you washed today, hmm? " The same sneer and the same ice cold voice reached Jonathan's ears. "Get lost. I'm in no mood for your bull right now." Jonathan said as he turned to walk away. "What, afraid the Voldemort is gonna lose you when the attacks start?" He said. "You know, he's gonna take all the losers off his army, and he's going to kill them, just so that his strongest survive." Jonathan stopped walking. He narrowed his eyes. "And what makes you think I'm gonna get cut? I'm as strong as any other one of his wizards." He sneered. "Sure you are. I can imagine it now. He'll call you to his chamber; them finish you off with a curse. You'll get dumped into a fire, so no one will ever suspect that he's killing off his own. You're a loser, and you'll always be a loser. Everyone knows that." Doug sneered. Jonathan was slowly boiling inside. He closed his eyes. He opened them again. And he turned around. "Say it again. Come on. I dare you to say it again." He said. "You're nothing, You're a waste of flesh! You'll die a death and no one will even give a damn!" Doug said. He never noticed that Jonathan's eyes were slowly turning a deep red. Doug looked him in the eyes and paled. Jonathan looked him in the eyes. Doug opened his mouth to scream but Jonathan had cut off his voice. He tried to reach for his wand, to defend himself, but his wand flew across the hall and hit a wall. "Die." Jonathan said. Doug dropped to the ground. His heart was slowing down and his brain felt like it was on fire. He cried silent screams. His brain combusted inside his head and he died. Blood seeped out of his ears. Jonathan returned to normal, his eyes the regular brown. He gaped at the sight on the ground. He was amazed. He hadn't picked up his wand once. He looked around nervously, seeing if anyone had been watching. He ran back to his place.

Another day, another summons. Cassandra was still weary of what happened last night, but she was still determined to please her lord. She walked over to her same Portkey, and touched it. She was teleported to a dark room. She held up her wand, and she remembered the Lumos charm this time. "Cassandra Livingston." It was a statement, not a question. Candles all lit, in a circle around her. Cassandra gasped. There were black candles all around the room, different shapes, sizes, and they were all on black stands. "Do you know who I am?" The voice said. Cassandra realized who it was. "What is your need, Lord Voldemort?" She asked. "Sit." A chair appeared to the right of her. She nervously sat down. "Do you know these people?" He asked. A picture materialized in her hands. She looked it over. It was a picture. Different wizards all talking, laughing and dancing. They were all Ministry wizards, the ones working on bringing down the Dark Arts for once and for all. The thing that got to her: In the very corner, she could be seen. She was younger, wearing a dress and drinking punch. "I need you for a mission. I am planning to attack in a few days. Some of the wizards in this picture may have knowledge at what's going on. I need you to kill these wizards." A red circle, like it was being drawn on, was appearing on the picture. "There is going to be a large party tonight, half the Ministry will be there. I need you to attack. Of course, if you succeed, you will be rewarded for your effort. If you fail, you will suffer the consequences." He said. "Will I be working alone?" Cassandra asked. "I think you should be able to handle it, don't you? It's only a few wizards, you can handle it." He said. Cassandra's wand flew out of her pocket and disappeared into the shadows. "I am going to make an adjustment to your wand. I put a silencer charm on it, and a charm so when you cast a curse, no light will come out of it." The wand landed in Cassandra's hands. "I trust you know how to handle this?" "Yes, Lord Voldemort. I will not fail." She said. "Good, here is the map. You may leave now." A map appeared in her hands and the flames grew higher in the candleholders. They were engulfed in flames. Then they went out and lights came on. Cassandra walked out of the chamber and went to the nearest portkey. She touched it and found herself back at her apartment. She ran into her apartment and gathered her things to ambush the Party.
: You can't do those things! You can't! Why would you kill them anyway? Hermione was screaming. : It's your past self-Hermione. You can't do anything about it.: She told herself.

Stephen's head was still pounding from the spells crammed in his head. He was lying in his bed, at his apartment. He was still wearing his blood stained robes. His windows were all closed and the blinds were drawn. He just wanted sleep; Lord Voldemort would be after him in a few hours for training. He was still mulling over all the new things he had learned the day before. 'Love is for the weak. Compassion is what keeps you from gaining true power.' He remembered these things. They were true. His foggy mind knew it was true. But, in the back of his mind, there was a little voice telling him that they were wrong. It was Ron.
: Those things aren't true! They aren't true at all! Are you an idiot? Get out now! Run away! Go! Escape! : Ron was screaming at himself. He didn't want to be here anymore, the Dark Arts were hurting him. He couldn't believe that he could believe this stuff.

He ignored it, and tried to get some sleep. SMACK! Something crashed into his window. Stephen ignored it and went back to sleep. SMACK! SMACK! He cursed and went to his windows. He drew the blinds and the light blinded him. "Ouch." He rubbed his eyes. He opened the windows. Something feathery flew into his apartment, dive bomb style. It crashed into a wall. Stephen was disoriented for a moment. He realized what it was. "Lightning!" He said. It was his faithful owl. He had realized that his owl didn't know where he had gone after he was captured. He walked over to his owl. He picked it up and put it on his pillow. It looked absolutely exhausted. He took the letter from its talons. It was a little crumpled, but it was fine. He sat on his bed and opened it. It was a letter, and a photograph. The photograph fell to the floor.
Stephen-
Where are you? You were supposed to come back home this weekend! Alison was waiting for you. You probably just forgot. We found a nice photograph, just so you won't be lonely if you are traveling. Everything is fine here, and I hope you are well. Take care. We'll see you soon. ~~Mom
The photograph was a wizard photograph. His family was all smiling and waving at him. He remembered that day like it was just yesterday. They were having a picnic, a family reunion. It was a bright sunny day and everyone had shown up. Everyone needed to be still for just 2 minutes. He had enjoyed himself that day. But that was yesterday. Look at where he was today. In the Dark Arts, with nowhere to go. He was trapped in a web, like a fly. He tore the letter. The pieces fell to the floor. His new mind told him not to answer back to her; he was with a stronger family now. He went to tear the picture apart. But he could not get himself to actually do it. He took the picture and placed it on the table. His owl was moved to sit on a pillow on the couch. Stephen crawled back into bed and fell asleep.

Jonathan was amazed at his newfound strength. He wasn't one of the best wizards in the Dark Arts. The only thing that kept him from getting killed was his ability to brainwash people. One thing he knew is that this could be his ticket to getting higher in the Dark Arts, maybe even running the place. He went over to another part of the Dark Art wings. He needed to get rid of some of the compition. He had brewed up a clear potion and added it to the coffee there. Anyone who drank it would be considerably weak. He chuckled as he walked back to his wing. If the right wizards drank it, he would be on his way to getting up the Dark Arts ladder. As he was walking, he ran into another wizard, a friend of Doug, his first victim. He was one of the commanders of a wizard army. "I know what you did. I know who you killed." He said. He picked up his wand. Jonathan's eyes started glowing bright red again. He knew that he needed to get rid of him, he was an enemy. He turned around to face him. He drilled into his eyes with his gaze and was paralyzed with fear. The other wizard raised his wand, but Jonathan made it fly out of his hands and stick into the wall. He screamed, but was quickly silenced. Jonathan was being taken over with a Dark force; he always had it in him, but he could never get it to come about when he needed it. He couldn't control it anymore. The wizard screamed as his heart was slowly burning in ashes. It was actually on fire. H e fell to the ground. All around the Dark Arts wing the two were in, wizards and witches were withering to the ground, the same exact thing happening to them that was happening to the wizard that had made Jonathan mad. They were all screaming and no one knew how to reverse it. Jonathan snapped out of it and looked around. He wondered if anyone knew it was he.

"That fool! He's killed almost half of my wizard army!" An angry Lord Voldemort shouted. He was watching as one by one some of his most promising wizards and witches. "Damn it! What the hell does he think he's doing? Does he want to get us killed?" He shouted. He waved his wand. Jonathan suddenly appeared, he had been in the hall just a second ago. He looked around. "What the hell do you think you're doing? Do you realize that you have killed almost half my army?" Voldemort snarled. "I have a proposition for you: How about we fight, right here, right now? Winner takes all: they control the Dark Arts and they live to see another day. The loser dies." Jonathan said. He finally had a grip on the Dark power, which had stayed hidden for so long. He had a sense of power running through his veins, he felt as if nothing could stop him. "You want to waste my time? Be my guest. It's your life. Winner shall reign over the Darks Arts; the loser shall pay with their life." Voldemort said. He stepped off his chair and jumped to the ground. The black candles all around formed into pillars of black fire. The only way to be able to get out was turned into a wall of fire. There was no way to escape. Jonathan reached down inside and got a grip on his Dark power. His eyes turned a shade of Dark black/red. He gripped his wand.
"Let the battle begin."