Author's note: Wow, I'm kinda breezing through this! lol!!! Ah, yes,I have
this club, called the TFBs. It's a yahoo group. :-) just go to
www.groups.yahoo.com, sign in, search for teenflybutterflys, then join.
hang on, I found the link. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/teenflybutterflys/
I'd love it if some of you join, kays?
Disclaimer: Do I have to do these?
When Voldemort said an incantation, there was suddenly a hollow, echoing feeling in Kendra Eades's head. She felt as if her mind had been basically wiped of all thought. Without warning, a voice awakened in Kendra's brain. Join me... Join me... just join me and your problems will be over. join me...
Then a second voice woke up. "No! I will not! I'm not joining you! No way! I'd rather die! Never!"
Join me... join me... you will be happier, your dreams will come true... join me...
"Liar! I won't! I will not join you! Never, ever, ever!"
Just join me... become a servant of me.. Join me!
"I won't!" Kendra shouted these words aloud, and her dream state went as quickly as it had come.
"You won't? You don't wish to join me? Foolish girl, you'd be happier and healthier if you'd join me. Ah, well, I see you are not to be persuaded in a painless way. I guess you need a little dose of pain to listen to me." Voldemort raised his wand into the air. "Crucio!"
Pain much worse than anything Kendra had ever felt in her life afflicted every molecule of her body. She remembered, as from a former lifetime, the time she'd been bitten by a doxy. That had hurt a lot, but this was much worse. Kendra felt as if she were being stabbed, shot, burned, drowned, suffocated, pinched, and bitten all at once, only this hurt more. She felt as if she had fallen from a height of a mile onto jagged pieces of broken glass; an animal was ripping her to pieces; every bone of her body was shattering; she was on fire; she was being operated on without anestesia...
Kendra screamed moe loudly than she'd have thought she'd be capable of. She desperately hoped that Voldemort would stop, that a good person would hear her cries of pain, that she'd pass out. Kendra wished that she would just die.
And then the pain desisted. Kendra's throat felt raw from screaming, and she still had aches all over from the Cruciatus Curse. She remembered "Professor Moody's" lesson with the spiders and the Unforgivables. So this was how spider number 2 had felt, just how she, Kendra, was feeling now.
"Are you ready to join us now, Kendra Eades?" Voldemort asked.
"No, never," said Kendra, bravely and stubbornly. Her voice trembled with fear of what was to come.
Voldemort hit Kendra with the Cruciatus Curse again. The pain returned in full force. Once again, ear-shattering screams issued from Kendra's mouth.The Death Eaters seemed to enjoy Kendra's shouts. Oh, heartless fiends, Kendra thought. She couldn't believe that her own uncle would treat people like this. He probably doesn't give a damn about what's happening to me this very moment.
After a few minutes, Voldemort lifted the curse again. Kendra sighed with relief and sadness.
"Are you going to cooperate yet, Kendra Eades?" Voldemort asked. "Are you going to follow your deear uncle's way of life? You don't want to be a disgrace to your family, do you?"
"He's a disgrace to the family. I will NOT follow in his footsteps. No, not now, not ever. I'd rather kill myself than follow in his footsteps," Kendra said.
Voldemort's eyes flashed, and he smirked. "You as good as killed yourself, Kendra Eades. Crucio!" For a third time, Kendra was possessed by the incredibly bizarre pain. She continued shrieking and shrieking. Finally, everything seemed to swirl around Kendra. Then the swirling colors went pitch-black.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"Please. Tell me this isn't happening," Mandy Brocklehurst moaned, burying her head in her hands. "Tell me that Eloise did not just die and that Kendra has not just been kidnapped."
Rebecca hugged Mandy. "It's happening, and we're all freaking out here." Mandy sighed. "I hate Death Eaters. Every single one of them. I suppose Kendra's gonna turn into one of them now. She's the niece of a rumored Death Eater."
"She's also a Muggle-born," Kelly pointed out.
"So? That doesn't mean anything. She wouldn't hurt her own parents anyway, I don't think," Susan added.
Hannah glanced over at the Stunned Hermione. "How do you wake a Stunned person? I think we'd be safer with Hermione awake. She's the most powerful out of all of us. She is good at everything. Except Divination, but like, whatever."
"Oh yeah," said Mandy. She drew out her wand and aimed it at Hermione. "Ennervate!" Hermione's brown eyes opened. Millie went over and helped Hermione to sit up. Hermione looked shocked that she was being helped by a Slytherin, of all people.
"Are you all right?" Millie asked. The other group members gaped at Millie openmouthed as well.
"What do we do?" asked Kelly.
"Wait for a teacher or someone to come, I guess," Susan said. she brushed her tangled red hair with her fingers hopelessly. "My hair's too wavy. I need a brush."
"Susan, we've got better things to worry about than our hair," said Millie. She was completely apathetic to the fact that her black hair was stringy and also tangled. "Like if the 'or someone' comes rather than a teacher."
"Millie, why are you acting almost nice?" Hannah asked Millie suspiciously. Millie's mouth dropped open with anger. "What, you don't think I'm capable of being nice?" Millie said indignantly. "Just because I'm a Slytherin? You know, I'm really sick and tired of you people in other houses insulting Slytherin. It's really annoying. Sure, we've had some evil peoiple in Slytherin and Slytherin only, but that's because ambition can turn into greed. I can't believe you people have the nerve to judge the semi-decent and decent ones by the bad ones like Draco. Especially you Gryffindors." Millie glared at Lavender and Hermioe before continuing her rant. "You-know- who was a Slytherin. Grindenwald was a Slytherin. Many other Dark Wizards were Slytherins. Does that automatically make Slytherin a mini-Durmstrang? And sure, I may insult Muggle-borns every now and then, but I personally consider Mudblood more of a slang term than an insult! You..."
"Mudblood is an insult," Hermione said. "It means dirty blood. That's a very bad thing to tell someone, that they have bad blood just because of their parents."
Millicent's eyes bugged put with anger. "That's exactly what you guys do to Slytherins! True, some of us may have parents on the side of Voldemort, but that doesn't automatically make us teenagers bad! I bet Draco would actually be decent if he had a different father. He's been brainwashed! His mind has been corrupted ever since he was a little kid! Vincent and Gregory were taught to always obey those above them. They're idiots, and the Malfoys are richer than the Crabbes and Goyles. Therefore Gregory and Vincent consider Draco above them. Me, I'll never follow anyone! I think those of the follower type are absolutely pathetic."
A teacher entered right in the middle of Millie's rant. "You girls need to get out of here," said Professor McGonagall grimly. "You're still in danger. Just follow me."
Hannah, Susan, Mandy, Hermione, Millie, Rebecca, Kelly, and Lavender got up to follow McGonagall. McGonagall's gaze fell on the limp Eloise, and she turned pale. Her eyes had a strange glint to them. "Millicent, can you help me carry Eloise?"
Millie nodded and helped the teacher lift Eloise. McGonagall conjured up a stretcher, and Millie lifted the lifeless girl onto it. McGonagall and Eloise's stretcher led the group, then Millie and Kelly walked together, then Hermione and Hannah, then Susan and Lavender, and then Mandy and Rebecca, who seemed nrvous about being at the rear. McGonagall led the procession to a room. "This room has an enchantment on it so noone can Apparate into it. You'll be safe here. I'm going to lock you in. Don't leave until I say to," McGonagall ordered. "Wait, I only count 8 of you? Who's missing? Where's Kendra?"
Hermione stepped forward. "She was taken by the Death Eaters." Her voice was shaking. "I don't know where they went with her."
"We'll have to search for Kendra," said McGonagall. "I'll tell everyone else what happened. You all stay in here. I have to tell the teachers to round up everyone." Then McGonagall exited the room.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * When Kendra came to, she seemed to be all alone. She was kind of confused at first because she was in pitch- blackness.
"Wow. Was I dreaming?" Kendra mumbled to herself. She sat up and realized that she wasn't tied up. However, she felt kind of stiff. "Wow, this is really peculiar. Wow. Where am I?" She heard noise, voices and thumps. "My, my, I am in trouble." She knew the Death Eaters were still in the building. She could faintly hear a low rumble of voices. She climbed to her feet in the pitch-blackness. I've got to get myself out of here. This is bad. Really bad. Kendra began pacing forward, until she walked right smack into something. It was a wall. Kendra rubbed her nose painfully, then placed her right hand on the wall. Then she began slowly pacing forward again.
"I've got to find a window. I don't think a door's safe, though it wouldn't hurt to know where one is," Kendra mumbled to herself. She ran her hand along the wall as she softly paced. The next thing she felt was something raised off the wall. Kendra ran her hand along it, puzzled. It was long and wooden, and ended at waist height. Kendra realized that it was a boarded window. Well, duh. Why would they have an unboarded window? You'd escape way too easily.
Kendra sighed and moved on. She found a corner, turned, then continued pacing straight. She foun a second corner, and turned again. Presently, she walked into a protruding piece of metal... a doorknob. Kendra jiggled it, but it was locked. "If only I had my wand," she sighed. Then she could use the Reductor curse to try and get through the window, or Alohomora to unlock the door. The voices sounded a bit clearer.
"What should we do with the girl though? Should we kill her, or try the Imperious again, or what, my Lord?" came a grunty voice.
"Davus isn't gonna be too pleased if we kill his niece," said another man, with a raspy voice. Voldemort cackled.
"I don't care what Nott thinks. Anyway, his niece is a disgrace to that family. Not only is she a Mudblood, but she won't even join me either. The Imperius is useless. Apparently she knows how to fight it."
"Maybe Crouch shouldn't have taught the students how to fight the Imperius. That wasn't too wise. First Potter was able to fight it off, now Eades can."
"Ah, but you see, Lucius, it would be out of Mad-Eye Moody's character not to teach his students how to do the Imperius. Apparently he thought Potter would die no matter what."
"Potter was just lucky. He'd be no loss. He fights with my son Draco all the time. I'm kind of worried about how Davus will react if his niece dies."
"Oh, he won't care," Voldemort said. "It's not like she's his own daughter like her cousin Antonia."
"Kendra Eades and Antonia Nott are both in Draco's year, too." Malfoy said.
"My boy Gregory's in Draco's year, also. So is Crabbe's son Vincent," said the Death Eater with the raspy voice. Kendra now knew 3 voices: Lucius Malfoy's, Goyle's, and of course, Voldemort's. She made a mental note to ask Harry about his experiences and battles: if she ever got out of the building alive. Be positive, Kendra.
"The question is, what do we do with Eades?" the man with the grunt asked.
"Crabbe, I say we just kill her. But of course, it is up to my Lord," Malfoy said.
"We'd better get out of here like the others did," said Goyle.
"We should Disapparate. Why, Wormtail, you've been awfully quiet," cackled Voldemort.
"S-sorry, my Lord. I might add, I don't know how to Apparate," Wormtail said.
Voldemort laughed cruelly again. "Then, Wormtail, take one of the Portkeys. It will land us in the back of Hogwarts. Then we'll all go into the Forbidden Forest." The five men laughed. Kendra now felt sick.
"My Lord, what do we do with the girl?" Wormtail implored.
"We'll just leave her here in her little room. She'll die. Don't forget, this is a magical fire we've got going." Kendra's scalp crinkled with fear. A magical fire? That meant one of two things: either they set a fire which would soon consume the wooden building, or an Ashwinder would lay eggs, which would ignite the building.
"What do the Portkeys look like again?" Wormtail asked.
"That box of dead skunks. I can even turn dead things into portkeys," Voldemort bragged. Kendra felt a sense of repulsion. Eew. I'd never touch a dead skunk. Never.
"Let's go! Leave the fire burning," Voldemort commanded. Kendra heard the slam of a door and pops of people Disapparating. Kendra was now the only one in the building.
"I've got to find a way out of here! And fast!" Kendra said out loud. She felt her way around the walls, but there was nothing that helped. She found the boarded window agsin. She kicked the board, punched it, and tugged on it, but to no avail. She was still trapped. She sniffed the air for smoke, but there was no sign of it. Maybe they're just trying to scare me with the fire story. Maybe I'm stuck here until I starve to death. Or maybe it will be a loose Ashwinder. Kendra pulled off her sneaker and whacked it against the wall, hard. No cracks or anything.
"I know, I'll try and break down the door." Kendra groped for the doorknob, walking around again. When she found it, she tried to force it open. Then she tried to break down the door.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Meanwhile, everyone else was going back to Hogwarts. Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat together, still stunned.
"Tell me this isn't happening," Harry muttered. "Tell me I'm dreaming."
"It's happening. Kendra's missing, Eloise's dead. To think I used to be so mean to her too," Ron mumbled. "Hermione, you're right, she was really nice."
"Ron..." Hermione said, at a loss for words. "Yes, you were mean, but you don't have to be so down on yourself for it."
"And Kendra... I didn't even know her that well."
"You can get to know her when we find her," said Harry, trying and failing to sound optimistic. Just then the whole year, minus Kendra and the living Eloise, arrived in Hogsmeade Station.
"There's nothing that we can really do, except hope for the best," said Ron. "Let's just go up to bed."
The students seperated into their Houses. Harry, Ron, and Hermione walked solenly to Gryffindor Tower. At the staircases, Hermione left them, and Dean, Seamus, Neville, Harry, and Ron walked to their dorm together.
"Which one was Kendra Eades again? Wasn't she that kind of queer Huflepuff?" Dean said.
"Yeah," said Seamus. "She's all quiet in class, but hyper with her friends. Harry, aren't you friends with her?"
"Yeah," said Harry, "and so is Ron. She is strange, but in a good way."
"I heard she's related to a Death Eater," Dean said.
"I think she is, but Kendra seems to be all right," Ron added.
"Still, I wouldn't confide in her too much," Seamus advised.
"Or else you could end up like my parents, or worse," Neville piped up. The 5th years gasped. So did Harry, so Neville wouldn't know that he knew what he was talking about.
"So your parents are dead?" said Seamus quietly.
"No. They're insane. They're in St. Mungo's." Neville's voice cracked. "They... they don't even recognize me."
Seamus awkwardly patted Neville's back. "Bummer," he said sympathetically. The other boys didn't know what to say. Harry wondered if Kendra might end up like Mr. and Mrs. Longbottom. He didn't say so out loud, but Harry thought that he'd rather be dead than an insane invalid.
"Well, I'm going to bed," squeaked Neville. "Good night." He drew the curtains around himself.
"I'm going to bed, too," said Harry. "Good night." But he didn't fall asleep right away. He just laid there for about half an hour, then he fell into a troubled sleep.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Of course the attempt to break down the door didn't work,. So Kendra leaned against the door, panted heavily, and waited. But for what?
Presently, Kendra's nose was able to detect the scent of smoke. Great. They weren't kidding about the fire. 'Ashwinder, I'm betting.'
Suddenly, there was an orange glow. Ignoring this, Kendra continued to lean against the door. She felt it start to get warm.
"Oh, just great!" Kendra said aloud. The fire was right outside the door. She desperately felt her way around the walls again. "Help! Oh, please! Help!" Kendra called, though she knew that nobody would hear her. She suddenly remembered the Portkeys. The skunks. If she could get to one, she'd get back to Hogwarts! But how would she get out?
The situation grew more and more hopeless. There was a sudden crash as the fire went through the door and lit up the walls. Kendra only saw one strand of hope for escape left. The window was lit up. And something was lying by the fire, about to be lit. It was a long, thin piece of wood... a wand!!!!
"Wow," Kendra mumbled. She began coughing hard from the smoke and ash. She knew it might help her in a big way. Maybe. She was starting to feel faint...
Kendra shook her head to try to clear it. She felt a little fuzzy. Suddenly, the wand ignited. "Omigosh!" Kendra exclaimed out loud. She snatched it up and beat at the flames with her hands. The wand seemed almost unscathed when the flames on it went out. There was a bigger problem... the big fire. Kendra went over to the boarded window, praying that her idea would work.
"Reducto!" To Kendra's amazement, the wand worked fine. The Reductor curse burned a hole in the board big enough to fit through, but there was still the glass in the way. "Reducto!" Kendra called out again. To her immense horror, it didn;'t work this time The glass remained solid again. Apparently the now hacking, sharp cough hindered her words.
Without warning, Kendra felt an immense pain on her left arm. The flames were right behind her, and were licking at her arm and side. Kendra did the last desperate thing she could think of... she made a fist with her left arm, drew it back, and punched the glass as hard as she could. It didn't work. Kendra sighed hopelessly. She lifted up her right foot, and kicked the glass. That did it! The pane shattered, but there were still jagged pieces of glass poking up. These Kendra hit with her left fist. The shards of glass kept piercing her arm. Then Kendra dived out the window, and she landed on her knees... on the broken glass. Kendra cried out with pain. And her left arm was still aflame. Stop, drop, and roll.
Kendra ran away from the building. The wind made the flames spread up to her shoulder. She threw herself onto the muddy ground, covered her face with her good hand, and rapidly rolled around. The flames were smothered by the mud and ground. Kendra just lay there, gasping for breath, watching the shack burn though a thick fog. Her vision was getting foggier by the second. Kendra tried to move her left arm, but found that she couldn't without extreme pain. Blood was running down that arm, and her shins. She saw a forest, the burning shack, a tin which was filled with dead skunks...
Dead skunks! Kendra suddenly remembered the conversation where she had overheard that she'd be brought back to Hogwarts via a dead skunk. However, she didn't want to take a skunk back. She just wanted to lie there, ntil everything went black...
Suddenly, faces flashed into her mind. 19-year-old John, 17-year-old Amy, her parents, 11-year-old Jared! Then her friends... Harry, Ron, Hermione, some others. Eloise! Eloise had died. Kendra was sure Hogwarts would flip out if she, too, perished. Plus, she was sure that if she died here, a Death Eater might return and do something horrible to her body. Kendra wnted to be free of this pain, but she also wanted a proper burial, or even better, at least to see her family and friends again. Kendra didn't want her body to mutilated. Of course, it kind of is already, Kendra thought sadly. Her arm, her shins...
Suddenly, Kendra heard a deafening crash. The shack caved in, completely engulfed by fire. Kendra shuddered, imagining what it would be like in there. She felt a very scratchy feeling in her lungs. She coughed, and winced as little specks of blood came up. Kendra finally came to a decision: if she didn't make it, she wanted at least to die at Hogwarts. She dragged herself over to the skunk bin. They looked klike they were roadkill. Kendra shuddered, then touched one with her right hand.
Suddenly, she felt a jerk just behind her navel. This was how Harry described that Portkeys worked. She found herself spinning in a howl of swirling color.
She landed facedown into the ground. Kendra groaned and struggled to her feet. She was right at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Hogwarts was in sight. She let go of the raccoon and took about a dozen tottering steps before she found herself short of breath. Kendra sighed. Suddenly, her vision went extremely foggy. She fell to her knees, and finally blacked out altogether.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Meanwhile, four dwarves were walking through the Forbidden Forest towards Hogwarts. They were clad in lime-green, orange, purple, and blue. They were all over 100 and they wanted to talk to Dumbledore for urgent reasons.
"Do you think he's even there? I heard about some sort of field trip with 5th year students there," said the oldest dwarf, Zaide, who was in the lime- green outfit.
"Probably," said Gareth (blue), stroking his beard thoughtfully. "At least, I hope so. We need his help. We aren't magic. We can only fight the Dark Lord with swords. A fat lot of help."
"Ximen (orange) said, "That's why we need the help of wizards, especially powerful ones like Albus Dumbledore. I don't get why he doesn't just fight Voldemort."
"Don't say the name!" the fourth one, Quillan (purple) said, shuddering. "He might hear."
Zaide said, "It is only a name. I don't get why people get bothered by it so much. Especially the wizards. The hobbits seem to fear it too."
"There are still hobbits around?" Ximen said incredulously. "I had the impression they died out!"
"No, they just keep to themselves nowadays. I don't see how they'd help, anyways," Zaide said.
"Just because they are smaller doesn't make them weaker," Gareth said.
"Hey, we're approaching the end of the Dark Forest!" Quillan said suddenly. "Yes, I kow most call it the Forbidden Forest nowadays, wizards anyway, but I'd prefer its old name. Whoa!" Quillan had tripped over something and landed flat on his face. "Hello, what's this?" He glanced at what he had tripped over. It was the prone form of a human girl.
"Wow, near Hogwarts too," Ximen murmered. "This is bad. This is really bad. He drew out hs sword in case an enemy came about. The other four followed suit.
"Is it dead, though?" Gareth inquired. Zaide grabed the girl's wrist.
"No, she isn't. And she's breathing, too. But she does seem badly injured." Zaide had noticed that the girl was covered with blood. She seemed to have glass embedded in her calves and left arm. Her left arm was swollen and charred.
"She has been in a fire. What can we do for her? Do you suppose she is a pupil of this school?" Gareth asked.
"Let's bring her to Dumbledore. He and the nurse here are excellent healers," said Zaide. "He may know what happened to her, too."
"He's not all-knowing, you know," Ximen spoke up. "He may be in the family of Gandalf, but Gandalf wasn't either. Quillan, help me carry the girl." Gareth, Zaide, Ximen, and Quillan all plodded on towards the castle of Hogwarts, Ximen and Quillan carrying the girl's limp form.
"Oomph, this girl is kind of heavy. Someone help me and Ximen carry her," Quillan groaned. Gareth came forward to help the other two. Suddenly, the girl stirred, startling the dwarves. She groaned with pain. "Who are you guys?" the girl mumbled softly.
"Blimey, you're alive? We are going to help you. Don't try to talk," Zaide said gently.
"My arm and legs hurt," she complained.
"What's your name? Are you a student here?" Quillan inquired.
"Kendra, and yes," Kendra answered weakly. "Let me try to walk." The dwarves helped Kendra to her feet. Kendra leaned heavily on Quillan and Gareth.
"What happened to you?" Zaide asked Kendra. Without warning, Kendra's knees gave out and she fell to the ground. She was once again unconsious.
Gareth, Quillan, and Ximen lifted her off the ground again. "This is urgent. We have to get this human to the castle, quick," Zaide said. "So she's one of Dumbledore's? He can help her." The dwarves swiftly strode towards the castle.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Dumbledore, meanwhile, was adding thoughts to his Pensieve in his office. He was in his nightclothes, but he didn't seem ready to go to bed just yet. His head was too full of thoughts about the day's events. He had a feeling that Kendra was still alive.
Suddenly, Dumbledore heard voices outside. They were people who were wondering what the password was. "Dwarves," Dumbledore mumbled. He opened the study's door and immediately recognized the dwarves. "Why, hello, Quillan, Gareth, Zaide, Ximen," Dumbledore said. His blue eyes swept over the limp form of Kendra Eades. "She's not dead, right?" Dumbledore inquired. The dwarves shook their heads. "Where did you find her?"
"We found her at the edge of the Dark Forest, knocked out. She came to briefly, but then she lost consiousness once again," Zaide said. "We think it was Voldemort's work. What do you think?"
"Put Kendra on the bench there," Dumbledore said. The dwarves did this gently. Dumbledore bent over the 5th year.
"No, she isn't dead. Her injuries can be fixed, but with difficulty. This glass has been cursed so that whoever is pierced with it gets poisoned. And she has been burned by a magical fire. That is the worst kind of burn there is. It won't be easy to cure her, she is very ill. I will need to give an antedote to her, and I'll have to use this special paste specifically for magical fire burns. That arm, she won't be able to use it for a while. It will need to be kept in bandages and a sling. She will be able top walk, at least."
Sudenly, everyone was distracted by a series of gasps. Kendra was in severe distress. Then her breathing ceased altogether.
"Omoigosh... she's dead!" Ximen cried.
"We were too late!" Gareth said grimly.
Author's note: Um, more later. Is author fics okay for this story, or should I switch it back to Harry Potter? Please don't report me if this is a bad section, just tell me to switch to Harry Potter. I'd like to make some shout-outs
Mel: Here's some flaming cheese for you! *sends some through Mel's speakers*
DC's computer's virus: Go away!!!!! Me, our usual MSN group, and the DSE want DC back! *snarls*
AMM: I still can't believe you have school Saturdays. AMM's compie, be nice, dammit! Grr.
Hermi: Cool banner!
Lucy: Merry Christmas! Wait, it's January. Oh well.
Chizzy: You're you too! I don't believe it!!
Oreo: Hiyas! *waves*
Amy's hand: Stop being mean to her!
Disclaimer: Do I have to do these?
When Voldemort said an incantation, there was suddenly a hollow, echoing feeling in Kendra Eades's head. She felt as if her mind had been basically wiped of all thought. Without warning, a voice awakened in Kendra's brain. Join me... Join me... just join me and your problems will be over. join me...
Then a second voice woke up. "No! I will not! I'm not joining you! No way! I'd rather die! Never!"
Join me... join me... you will be happier, your dreams will come true... join me...
"Liar! I won't! I will not join you! Never, ever, ever!"
Just join me... become a servant of me.. Join me!
"I won't!" Kendra shouted these words aloud, and her dream state went as quickly as it had come.
"You won't? You don't wish to join me? Foolish girl, you'd be happier and healthier if you'd join me. Ah, well, I see you are not to be persuaded in a painless way. I guess you need a little dose of pain to listen to me." Voldemort raised his wand into the air. "Crucio!"
Pain much worse than anything Kendra had ever felt in her life afflicted every molecule of her body. She remembered, as from a former lifetime, the time she'd been bitten by a doxy. That had hurt a lot, but this was much worse. Kendra felt as if she were being stabbed, shot, burned, drowned, suffocated, pinched, and bitten all at once, only this hurt more. She felt as if she had fallen from a height of a mile onto jagged pieces of broken glass; an animal was ripping her to pieces; every bone of her body was shattering; she was on fire; she was being operated on without anestesia...
Kendra screamed moe loudly than she'd have thought she'd be capable of. She desperately hoped that Voldemort would stop, that a good person would hear her cries of pain, that she'd pass out. Kendra wished that she would just die.
And then the pain desisted. Kendra's throat felt raw from screaming, and she still had aches all over from the Cruciatus Curse. She remembered "Professor Moody's" lesson with the spiders and the Unforgivables. So this was how spider number 2 had felt, just how she, Kendra, was feeling now.
"Are you ready to join us now, Kendra Eades?" Voldemort asked.
"No, never," said Kendra, bravely and stubbornly. Her voice trembled with fear of what was to come.
Voldemort hit Kendra with the Cruciatus Curse again. The pain returned in full force. Once again, ear-shattering screams issued from Kendra's mouth.The Death Eaters seemed to enjoy Kendra's shouts. Oh, heartless fiends, Kendra thought. She couldn't believe that her own uncle would treat people like this. He probably doesn't give a damn about what's happening to me this very moment.
After a few minutes, Voldemort lifted the curse again. Kendra sighed with relief and sadness.
"Are you going to cooperate yet, Kendra Eades?" Voldemort asked. "Are you going to follow your deear uncle's way of life? You don't want to be a disgrace to your family, do you?"
"He's a disgrace to the family. I will NOT follow in his footsteps. No, not now, not ever. I'd rather kill myself than follow in his footsteps," Kendra said.
Voldemort's eyes flashed, and he smirked. "You as good as killed yourself, Kendra Eades. Crucio!" For a third time, Kendra was possessed by the incredibly bizarre pain. She continued shrieking and shrieking. Finally, everything seemed to swirl around Kendra. Then the swirling colors went pitch-black.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"Please. Tell me this isn't happening," Mandy Brocklehurst moaned, burying her head in her hands. "Tell me that Eloise did not just die and that Kendra has not just been kidnapped."
Rebecca hugged Mandy. "It's happening, and we're all freaking out here." Mandy sighed. "I hate Death Eaters. Every single one of them. I suppose Kendra's gonna turn into one of them now. She's the niece of a rumored Death Eater."
"She's also a Muggle-born," Kelly pointed out.
"So? That doesn't mean anything. She wouldn't hurt her own parents anyway, I don't think," Susan added.
Hannah glanced over at the Stunned Hermione. "How do you wake a Stunned person? I think we'd be safer with Hermione awake. She's the most powerful out of all of us. She is good at everything. Except Divination, but like, whatever."
"Oh yeah," said Mandy. She drew out her wand and aimed it at Hermione. "Ennervate!" Hermione's brown eyes opened. Millie went over and helped Hermione to sit up. Hermione looked shocked that she was being helped by a Slytherin, of all people.
"Are you all right?" Millie asked. The other group members gaped at Millie openmouthed as well.
"What do we do?" asked Kelly.
"Wait for a teacher or someone to come, I guess," Susan said. she brushed her tangled red hair with her fingers hopelessly. "My hair's too wavy. I need a brush."
"Susan, we've got better things to worry about than our hair," said Millie. She was completely apathetic to the fact that her black hair was stringy and also tangled. "Like if the 'or someone' comes rather than a teacher."
"Millie, why are you acting almost nice?" Hannah asked Millie suspiciously. Millie's mouth dropped open with anger. "What, you don't think I'm capable of being nice?" Millie said indignantly. "Just because I'm a Slytherin? You know, I'm really sick and tired of you people in other houses insulting Slytherin. It's really annoying. Sure, we've had some evil peoiple in Slytherin and Slytherin only, but that's because ambition can turn into greed. I can't believe you people have the nerve to judge the semi-decent and decent ones by the bad ones like Draco. Especially you Gryffindors." Millie glared at Lavender and Hermioe before continuing her rant. "You-know- who was a Slytherin. Grindenwald was a Slytherin. Many other Dark Wizards were Slytherins. Does that automatically make Slytherin a mini-Durmstrang? And sure, I may insult Muggle-borns every now and then, but I personally consider Mudblood more of a slang term than an insult! You..."
"Mudblood is an insult," Hermione said. "It means dirty blood. That's a very bad thing to tell someone, that they have bad blood just because of their parents."
Millicent's eyes bugged put with anger. "That's exactly what you guys do to Slytherins! True, some of us may have parents on the side of Voldemort, but that doesn't automatically make us teenagers bad! I bet Draco would actually be decent if he had a different father. He's been brainwashed! His mind has been corrupted ever since he was a little kid! Vincent and Gregory were taught to always obey those above them. They're idiots, and the Malfoys are richer than the Crabbes and Goyles. Therefore Gregory and Vincent consider Draco above them. Me, I'll never follow anyone! I think those of the follower type are absolutely pathetic."
A teacher entered right in the middle of Millie's rant. "You girls need to get out of here," said Professor McGonagall grimly. "You're still in danger. Just follow me."
Hannah, Susan, Mandy, Hermione, Millie, Rebecca, Kelly, and Lavender got up to follow McGonagall. McGonagall's gaze fell on the limp Eloise, and she turned pale. Her eyes had a strange glint to them. "Millicent, can you help me carry Eloise?"
Millie nodded and helped the teacher lift Eloise. McGonagall conjured up a stretcher, and Millie lifted the lifeless girl onto it. McGonagall and Eloise's stretcher led the group, then Millie and Kelly walked together, then Hermione and Hannah, then Susan and Lavender, and then Mandy and Rebecca, who seemed nrvous about being at the rear. McGonagall led the procession to a room. "This room has an enchantment on it so noone can Apparate into it. You'll be safe here. I'm going to lock you in. Don't leave until I say to," McGonagall ordered. "Wait, I only count 8 of you? Who's missing? Where's Kendra?"
Hermione stepped forward. "She was taken by the Death Eaters." Her voice was shaking. "I don't know where they went with her."
"We'll have to search for Kendra," said McGonagall. "I'll tell everyone else what happened. You all stay in here. I have to tell the teachers to round up everyone." Then McGonagall exited the room.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * When Kendra came to, she seemed to be all alone. She was kind of confused at first because she was in pitch- blackness.
"Wow. Was I dreaming?" Kendra mumbled to herself. She sat up and realized that she wasn't tied up. However, she felt kind of stiff. "Wow, this is really peculiar. Wow. Where am I?" She heard noise, voices and thumps. "My, my, I am in trouble." She knew the Death Eaters were still in the building. She could faintly hear a low rumble of voices. She climbed to her feet in the pitch-blackness. I've got to get myself out of here. This is bad. Really bad. Kendra began pacing forward, until she walked right smack into something. It was a wall. Kendra rubbed her nose painfully, then placed her right hand on the wall. Then she began slowly pacing forward again.
"I've got to find a window. I don't think a door's safe, though it wouldn't hurt to know where one is," Kendra mumbled to herself. She ran her hand along the wall as she softly paced. The next thing she felt was something raised off the wall. Kendra ran her hand along it, puzzled. It was long and wooden, and ended at waist height. Kendra realized that it was a boarded window. Well, duh. Why would they have an unboarded window? You'd escape way too easily.
Kendra sighed and moved on. She found a corner, turned, then continued pacing straight. She foun a second corner, and turned again. Presently, she walked into a protruding piece of metal... a doorknob. Kendra jiggled it, but it was locked. "If only I had my wand," she sighed. Then she could use the Reductor curse to try and get through the window, or Alohomora to unlock the door. The voices sounded a bit clearer.
"What should we do with the girl though? Should we kill her, or try the Imperious again, or what, my Lord?" came a grunty voice.
"Davus isn't gonna be too pleased if we kill his niece," said another man, with a raspy voice. Voldemort cackled.
"I don't care what Nott thinks. Anyway, his niece is a disgrace to that family. Not only is she a Mudblood, but she won't even join me either. The Imperius is useless. Apparently she knows how to fight it."
"Maybe Crouch shouldn't have taught the students how to fight the Imperius. That wasn't too wise. First Potter was able to fight it off, now Eades can."
"Ah, but you see, Lucius, it would be out of Mad-Eye Moody's character not to teach his students how to do the Imperius. Apparently he thought Potter would die no matter what."
"Potter was just lucky. He'd be no loss. He fights with my son Draco all the time. I'm kind of worried about how Davus will react if his niece dies."
"Oh, he won't care," Voldemort said. "It's not like she's his own daughter like her cousin Antonia."
"Kendra Eades and Antonia Nott are both in Draco's year, too." Malfoy said.
"My boy Gregory's in Draco's year, also. So is Crabbe's son Vincent," said the Death Eater with the raspy voice. Kendra now knew 3 voices: Lucius Malfoy's, Goyle's, and of course, Voldemort's. She made a mental note to ask Harry about his experiences and battles: if she ever got out of the building alive. Be positive, Kendra.
"The question is, what do we do with Eades?" the man with the grunt asked.
"Crabbe, I say we just kill her. But of course, it is up to my Lord," Malfoy said.
"We'd better get out of here like the others did," said Goyle.
"We should Disapparate. Why, Wormtail, you've been awfully quiet," cackled Voldemort.
"S-sorry, my Lord. I might add, I don't know how to Apparate," Wormtail said.
Voldemort laughed cruelly again. "Then, Wormtail, take one of the Portkeys. It will land us in the back of Hogwarts. Then we'll all go into the Forbidden Forest." The five men laughed. Kendra now felt sick.
"My Lord, what do we do with the girl?" Wormtail implored.
"We'll just leave her here in her little room. She'll die. Don't forget, this is a magical fire we've got going." Kendra's scalp crinkled with fear. A magical fire? That meant one of two things: either they set a fire which would soon consume the wooden building, or an Ashwinder would lay eggs, which would ignite the building.
"What do the Portkeys look like again?" Wormtail asked.
"That box of dead skunks. I can even turn dead things into portkeys," Voldemort bragged. Kendra felt a sense of repulsion. Eew. I'd never touch a dead skunk. Never.
"Let's go! Leave the fire burning," Voldemort commanded. Kendra heard the slam of a door and pops of people Disapparating. Kendra was now the only one in the building.
"I've got to find a way out of here! And fast!" Kendra said out loud. She felt her way around the walls, but there was nothing that helped. She found the boarded window agsin. She kicked the board, punched it, and tugged on it, but to no avail. She was still trapped. She sniffed the air for smoke, but there was no sign of it. Maybe they're just trying to scare me with the fire story. Maybe I'm stuck here until I starve to death. Or maybe it will be a loose Ashwinder. Kendra pulled off her sneaker and whacked it against the wall, hard. No cracks or anything.
"I know, I'll try and break down the door." Kendra groped for the doorknob, walking around again. When she found it, she tried to force it open. Then she tried to break down the door.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Meanwhile, everyone else was going back to Hogwarts. Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat together, still stunned.
"Tell me this isn't happening," Harry muttered. "Tell me I'm dreaming."
"It's happening. Kendra's missing, Eloise's dead. To think I used to be so mean to her too," Ron mumbled. "Hermione, you're right, she was really nice."
"Ron..." Hermione said, at a loss for words. "Yes, you were mean, but you don't have to be so down on yourself for it."
"And Kendra... I didn't even know her that well."
"You can get to know her when we find her," said Harry, trying and failing to sound optimistic. Just then the whole year, minus Kendra and the living Eloise, arrived in Hogsmeade Station.
"There's nothing that we can really do, except hope for the best," said Ron. "Let's just go up to bed."
The students seperated into their Houses. Harry, Ron, and Hermione walked solenly to Gryffindor Tower. At the staircases, Hermione left them, and Dean, Seamus, Neville, Harry, and Ron walked to their dorm together.
"Which one was Kendra Eades again? Wasn't she that kind of queer Huflepuff?" Dean said.
"Yeah," said Seamus. "She's all quiet in class, but hyper with her friends. Harry, aren't you friends with her?"
"Yeah," said Harry, "and so is Ron. She is strange, but in a good way."
"I heard she's related to a Death Eater," Dean said.
"I think she is, but Kendra seems to be all right," Ron added.
"Still, I wouldn't confide in her too much," Seamus advised.
"Or else you could end up like my parents, or worse," Neville piped up. The 5th years gasped. So did Harry, so Neville wouldn't know that he knew what he was talking about.
"So your parents are dead?" said Seamus quietly.
"No. They're insane. They're in St. Mungo's." Neville's voice cracked. "They... they don't even recognize me."
Seamus awkwardly patted Neville's back. "Bummer," he said sympathetically. The other boys didn't know what to say. Harry wondered if Kendra might end up like Mr. and Mrs. Longbottom. He didn't say so out loud, but Harry thought that he'd rather be dead than an insane invalid.
"Well, I'm going to bed," squeaked Neville. "Good night." He drew the curtains around himself.
"I'm going to bed, too," said Harry. "Good night." But he didn't fall asleep right away. He just laid there for about half an hour, then he fell into a troubled sleep.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Of course the attempt to break down the door didn't work,. So Kendra leaned against the door, panted heavily, and waited. But for what?
Presently, Kendra's nose was able to detect the scent of smoke. Great. They weren't kidding about the fire. 'Ashwinder, I'm betting.'
Suddenly, there was an orange glow. Ignoring this, Kendra continued to lean against the door. She felt it start to get warm.
"Oh, just great!" Kendra said aloud. The fire was right outside the door. She desperately felt her way around the walls again. "Help! Oh, please! Help!" Kendra called, though she knew that nobody would hear her. She suddenly remembered the Portkeys. The skunks. If she could get to one, she'd get back to Hogwarts! But how would she get out?
The situation grew more and more hopeless. There was a sudden crash as the fire went through the door and lit up the walls. Kendra only saw one strand of hope for escape left. The window was lit up. And something was lying by the fire, about to be lit. It was a long, thin piece of wood... a wand!!!!
"Wow," Kendra mumbled. She began coughing hard from the smoke and ash. She knew it might help her in a big way. Maybe. She was starting to feel faint...
Kendra shook her head to try to clear it. She felt a little fuzzy. Suddenly, the wand ignited. "Omigosh!" Kendra exclaimed out loud. She snatched it up and beat at the flames with her hands. The wand seemed almost unscathed when the flames on it went out. There was a bigger problem... the big fire. Kendra went over to the boarded window, praying that her idea would work.
"Reducto!" To Kendra's amazement, the wand worked fine. The Reductor curse burned a hole in the board big enough to fit through, but there was still the glass in the way. "Reducto!" Kendra called out again. To her immense horror, it didn;'t work this time The glass remained solid again. Apparently the now hacking, sharp cough hindered her words.
Without warning, Kendra felt an immense pain on her left arm. The flames were right behind her, and were licking at her arm and side. Kendra did the last desperate thing she could think of... she made a fist with her left arm, drew it back, and punched the glass as hard as she could. It didn't work. Kendra sighed hopelessly. She lifted up her right foot, and kicked the glass. That did it! The pane shattered, but there were still jagged pieces of glass poking up. These Kendra hit with her left fist. The shards of glass kept piercing her arm. Then Kendra dived out the window, and she landed on her knees... on the broken glass. Kendra cried out with pain. And her left arm was still aflame. Stop, drop, and roll.
Kendra ran away from the building. The wind made the flames spread up to her shoulder. She threw herself onto the muddy ground, covered her face with her good hand, and rapidly rolled around. The flames were smothered by the mud and ground. Kendra just lay there, gasping for breath, watching the shack burn though a thick fog. Her vision was getting foggier by the second. Kendra tried to move her left arm, but found that she couldn't without extreme pain. Blood was running down that arm, and her shins. She saw a forest, the burning shack, a tin which was filled with dead skunks...
Dead skunks! Kendra suddenly remembered the conversation where she had overheard that she'd be brought back to Hogwarts via a dead skunk. However, she didn't want to take a skunk back. She just wanted to lie there, ntil everything went black...
Suddenly, faces flashed into her mind. 19-year-old John, 17-year-old Amy, her parents, 11-year-old Jared! Then her friends... Harry, Ron, Hermione, some others. Eloise! Eloise had died. Kendra was sure Hogwarts would flip out if she, too, perished. Plus, she was sure that if she died here, a Death Eater might return and do something horrible to her body. Kendra wnted to be free of this pain, but she also wanted a proper burial, or even better, at least to see her family and friends again. Kendra didn't want her body to mutilated. Of course, it kind of is already, Kendra thought sadly. Her arm, her shins...
Suddenly, Kendra heard a deafening crash. The shack caved in, completely engulfed by fire. Kendra shuddered, imagining what it would be like in there. She felt a very scratchy feeling in her lungs. She coughed, and winced as little specks of blood came up. Kendra finally came to a decision: if she didn't make it, she wanted at least to die at Hogwarts. She dragged herself over to the skunk bin. They looked klike they were roadkill. Kendra shuddered, then touched one with her right hand.
Suddenly, she felt a jerk just behind her navel. This was how Harry described that Portkeys worked. She found herself spinning in a howl of swirling color.
She landed facedown into the ground. Kendra groaned and struggled to her feet. She was right at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Hogwarts was in sight. She let go of the raccoon and took about a dozen tottering steps before she found herself short of breath. Kendra sighed. Suddenly, her vision went extremely foggy. She fell to her knees, and finally blacked out altogether.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Meanwhile, four dwarves were walking through the Forbidden Forest towards Hogwarts. They were clad in lime-green, orange, purple, and blue. They were all over 100 and they wanted to talk to Dumbledore for urgent reasons.
"Do you think he's even there? I heard about some sort of field trip with 5th year students there," said the oldest dwarf, Zaide, who was in the lime- green outfit.
"Probably," said Gareth (blue), stroking his beard thoughtfully. "At least, I hope so. We need his help. We aren't magic. We can only fight the Dark Lord with swords. A fat lot of help."
"Ximen (orange) said, "That's why we need the help of wizards, especially powerful ones like Albus Dumbledore. I don't get why he doesn't just fight Voldemort."
"Don't say the name!" the fourth one, Quillan (purple) said, shuddering. "He might hear."
Zaide said, "It is only a name. I don't get why people get bothered by it so much. Especially the wizards. The hobbits seem to fear it too."
"There are still hobbits around?" Ximen said incredulously. "I had the impression they died out!"
"No, they just keep to themselves nowadays. I don't see how they'd help, anyways," Zaide said.
"Just because they are smaller doesn't make them weaker," Gareth said.
"Hey, we're approaching the end of the Dark Forest!" Quillan said suddenly. "Yes, I kow most call it the Forbidden Forest nowadays, wizards anyway, but I'd prefer its old name. Whoa!" Quillan had tripped over something and landed flat on his face. "Hello, what's this?" He glanced at what he had tripped over. It was the prone form of a human girl.
"Wow, near Hogwarts too," Ximen murmered. "This is bad. This is really bad. He drew out hs sword in case an enemy came about. The other four followed suit.
"Is it dead, though?" Gareth inquired. Zaide grabed the girl's wrist.
"No, she isn't. And she's breathing, too. But she does seem badly injured." Zaide had noticed that the girl was covered with blood. She seemed to have glass embedded in her calves and left arm. Her left arm was swollen and charred.
"She has been in a fire. What can we do for her? Do you suppose she is a pupil of this school?" Gareth asked.
"Let's bring her to Dumbledore. He and the nurse here are excellent healers," said Zaide. "He may know what happened to her, too."
"He's not all-knowing, you know," Ximen spoke up. "He may be in the family of Gandalf, but Gandalf wasn't either. Quillan, help me carry the girl." Gareth, Zaide, Ximen, and Quillan all plodded on towards the castle of Hogwarts, Ximen and Quillan carrying the girl's limp form.
"Oomph, this girl is kind of heavy. Someone help me and Ximen carry her," Quillan groaned. Gareth came forward to help the other two. Suddenly, the girl stirred, startling the dwarves. She groaned with pain. "Who are you guys?" the girl mumbled softly.
"Blimey, you're alive? We are going to help you. Don't try to talk," Zaide said gently.
"My arm and legs hurt," she complained.
"What's your name? Are you a student here?" Quillan inquired.
"Kendra, and yes," Kendra answered weakly. "Let me try to walk." The dwarves helped Kendra to her feet. Kendra leaned heavily on Quillan and Gareth.
"What happened to you?" Zaide asked Kendra. Without warning, Kendra's knees gave out and she fell to the ground. She was once again unconsious.
Gareth, Quillan, and Ximen lifted her off the ground again. "This is urgent. We have to get this human to the castle, quick," Zaide said. "So she's one of Dumbledore's? He can help her." The dwarves swiftly strode towards the castle.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Dumbledore, meanwhile, was adding thoughts to his Pensieve in his office. He was in his nightclothes, but he didn't seem ready to go to bed just yet. His head was too full of thoughts about the day's events. He had a feeling that Kendra was still alive.
Suddenly, Dumbledore heard voices outside. They were people who were wondering what the password was. "Dwarves," Dumbledore mumbled. He opened the study's door and immediately recognized the dwarves. "Why, hello, Quillan, Gareth, Zaide, Ximen," Dumbledore said. His blue eyes swept over the limp form of Kendra Eades. "She's not dead, right?" Dumbledore inquired. The dwarves shook their heads. "Where did you find her?"
"We found her at the edge of the Dark Forest, knocked out. She came to briefly, but then she lost consiousness once again," Zaide said. "We think it was Voldemort's work. What do you think?"
"Put Kendra on the bench there," Dumbledore said. The dwarves did this gently. Dumbledore bent over the 5th year.
"No, she isn't dead. Her injuries can be fixed, but with difficulty. This glass has been cursed so that whoever is pierced with it gets poisoned. And she has been burned by a magical fire. That is the worst kind of burn there is. It won't be easy to cure her, she is very ill. I will need to give an antedote to her, and I'll have to use this special paste specifically for magical fire burns. That arm, she won't be able to use it for a while. It will need to be kept in bandages and a sling. She will be able top walk, at least."
Sudenly, everyone was distracted by a series of gasps. Kendra was in severe distress. Then her breathing ceased altogether.
"Omoigosh... she's dead!" Ximen cried.
"We were too late!" Gareth said grimly.
Author's note: Um, more later. Is author fics okay for this story, or should I switch it back to Harry Potter? Please don't report me if this is a bad section, just tell me to switch to Harry Potter. I'd like to make some shout-outs
Mel: Here's some flaming cheese for you! *sends some through Mel's speakers*
DC's computer's virus: Go away!!!!! Me, our usual MSN group, and the DSE want DC back! *snarls*
AMM: I still can't believe you have school Saturdays. AMM's compie, be nice, dammit! Grr.
Hermi: Cool banner!
Lucy: Merry Christmas! Wait, it's January. Oh well.
Chizzy: You're you too! I don't believe it!!
Oreo: Hiyas! *waves*
Amy's hand: Stop being mean to her!