CHAPTER TWENTY: Merlin!

"Why did you play a trick on us?" Jenny demanded, being the first of us to recover her voice. "If you wanted to speak to us you could have just asked."

Merlin laughed his body jiggling with his great big laughs. "Speak to you?" He repeated, trying not to keep laughing. "My dear children I don't want to speak to you, I want to kill you. I've waited since 1895 for this very day."

We all stared at each other. He wanted to kill us? Why on earth would he want to kill us?

"Let me explain." Merlin said, with a sigh. "When I first went to America I was only a young man full of dreams. I intended to expose the dark arts over there, but instead I got involved with them. It happened before I even realised I was involved, and then it was too late to get out. American dark wizards are very like English dark wizards- very quiet about their involvement. I returned home with everyone thinking I had simply been frightened by something in America and I decided that the only way for nobody to find out what had happened to me was to go into seclusion. I even put a curse on anyone who would write about me. And this was all for one little reason which I shall soon fulfill."

"So what do we have to do with this?" Jenny asked, while Martin and I gaped at her bravery.

Merlin laughed. "You mean there's something you haven't worked out yet?" He asked. "I thought you were one of Hogwarts smartest students. Maybe even a candidate for the award named after me- the order of Merlin."

"Why would someone name an award after a dark wizard?" I asked, finally finding my voice.

Merlin's eyes turned on me. "Little Potter. They didn't know I was a dark wizard. Nobody does- except you three." His eyes narrowed. "I can see we're getting nowhere here." He said whipping out his wand.

I felt Jenny press closer to my side, and I bit down on my lip so hard it bled. Was he about to perform a curse to end our lives? He waved his wand and suddenly we were transported from the Great Hall to another place. It was in the middle of the woods. Like a movie playing out in front of us I saw Merlin- a younger Merlin- step out from behind the trees into the clearing. He was looking around him as if he were waiting for someone. And then that someone appeared. A man who looked strangely familiar. "Merlin?" He asked.

"Yes my lord." The young Merlin said.

"I didn't think you would come." The other man said.

"I am a man of my word my lord." Young Merlin assured the other man.

"Good." The man said, and he sighed and looked around. "This country is a lot warmer than England isn't it? I quite prefer home."

The young Merlin seemed taken aback by this turn in the conversation, but he nodded anyway. "Yes, it's much warmer here my lord."

"Of course you will find it gets much warmer again in the future. Some weather pattern the muggles call El something or other." The second man said. "But enough small talk. In the year 2005 I will be defeated forever by a young man by the name of Harry Potter. Not only will his defeat of me leave me forever in limbo, but it will also leave me never able to finish the dratted pain off once and for all. It will also leave another mark on him-one which will prevent anyone from harming him. So I have to do the next best thing. I have to have his child killed. In the year 2029 his son will begin his schooling at Hogwarts, and your job Merlin is to wait for that year, and then kill the son."

I felt my heart begin to race again, and I heard Jenny's little gasp of shock. During the other man's speech I had realised who it was- it was Voldemort!

"Kill him?" Merlin repeated. "My lord, how will I do this?"

"You're the wizard aren't you? You're one of the smartest wizards ever. You should be able to figure it out without too much hassle I should think." Voldemort said with a cruel laugh which chilled my very bones. "But whatever you do consider an unforgivable curse. I don't want something he can survive and return from. SAMUEL POTTER MUST BE KILLED!"

I thought my knees were going to collapse, but Jenny's hand on my arm held me up. "The unforgivable curses. There are three of them." She muttered.

"Yes my lord. Rest assured I shall not let you down." The young Merlin assured Voldemort bowing briefly before him.

"One last thing Merlin. Potter won't be alone, he'll have two friends with him who will know everything as well. Kill them as well." Voldemort added, and then as quickly as he arrived he was gone, and young Merlin was left in the woods alone. Suddenly we were back in the Great Hall. I was trembling, and so was Martin.

"Did that explain it all to you?" Merlin asked.

"It explained something." Jenny muttered. I hadn't realised that she had her wand in her hand, and nor had either Martin or Merlin. Merlin was looking pleased with himself.

"I told him I'd do it and so I will. I hardly think it's much of a job though- killing three first year wizards!" He sounded almost as though he thought Voldemort should have given him a harder task!

Jenny pushed away from me slightly, and I saw her wand come up and point at Merlin at the same time as which she cried "AVADA KEDAVRA!"

There was a blinding flash of green light, and Merlin cried out in pain, and then his ghostly body crumpled to the floor, and a silver light seeped out of it in a rush, and then disappeared.

"Jenny!" I cried. "What happened?"

"When Voldemort mentioned the unforgivable curse I realised I read it in an advanced Dark Arts book-"

"-How did you get an advanced dark arts book?" I asked.

"It was actually one of Mum's and she doesn't know I ever read it, but it stuck in my mind. Avada Kedavra is the killing curse Sam- perhaps the most reprehensible and unforgiving of all the curses." Jenny explained. "But the point is Sam, Merlin won't be killing anyone now."

I threw my arms around Jenny then, and she hesitated before hugging me back. "You saved my life!"

Jenny laughed, but looked slightly embarrassed. "Well I saved ALL our lives." She said.

I drew away from her. Martin, looking strangely embarrassed too, gave her a brief hug. "Thanks." He said gruffly, and then he grinned. "I guess we're lucky you're such a nerd after all."

Jenny looked insulted for a moment, and then she realised it was meant purely as a compliment and she started to laugh. "Yeah, thank your lucky stars." She said.