Chapter 14: Eric's Last Stand
Dumbledore now knew the truth about Sirius. Clarice was shocked to find out that her grandfather actually believed her and Sirius. She was glad, but still shocked. She did not want to have to pick between Dumbledore, who was her only link to her father, and Sirius, who was her link to her mother and her protector from Malfoy.
Things were getting stressful at school. The O.W.L.s were getting closer and so were normal end of year exams for the other students. However, late one night, there was screaming coming from the boys' dormitories in Gryffindor Tower. Clarice woke with a start and looked around her dormitory. Sirius was gone. Could it possibly be that Wormtail was going to go after Harry tonight? She ran out of her dormitory and straight to the boys' dormitory.
As it turned out, Sirius had gone after Wormtail with a knife and in the process had woken up Ron. Ron thought Sirius was going to kill him. Clarice was angry. She did all this pleading to her grandfather that he was innocent and here it looks like he was going to kill her cousin's best friend?
When everything died down and the castle had been pointlessly searched, everyone returned to their dormitories. As soon as Clarice heard the deep breathing that meant Katie, Angelina, Alicia, and Rhina were asleep Clarice got out of bed, grabbed Sirius by the back of the neck and Apparated. When they appeared in the Forbidden Forest both Sirius and Clarice were in shock. Clarice didn't know she could Apparate inside the castle grounds. It was said that you couldn't. Sirius didn't seem surprised by Apparating but instead by the fact of the way she grabbed him.
"What in bloody hell were you thinking Sirius!?!" Clarice shouted at him.
"I needed to stop Peter before he could hurt Harry. I couldn't sit around and do nothing, Clarice," responded Sirius.
"Sirius, I love you, but I'm going to kill you myself if you don't behave. I know it took a lot for Grandfather to put aside what he thought he knew about you for all these years. I fought to keep you here. You have to behave. I can't believe you would be so irresponsible to-" Clarice cut herself off when she heard a noise.
"What is it Clarice?" asked Sirius.
"Be quiet," she hissed back.
Then Sirius heard it as well. The swoosh of a cloak. The forest was becoming abnormally cold. A look of terror crept onto Sirius' face. Clarice understood what was going on. The Dementors were coming into the forest.
"Change back into a dog Sirius. NOW!"
"Clarice you need to get out of here. They're dangerous."
"Sirius, you're in more danger. If they find you they're gonna give you the Dementor's Kiss. Transform back into a dog and run before they find you. I'll distract them and I'll meet you back in the common room. You obviously know the password. Just go. As soon as I think you're far enough away, I'll Apparate. I promise."
Sirius walked over to his niece and gave her a kiss on the forehead. It hit him that he was wrong for going behind her after Peter and how brave she was to stand up to him. Then fear grabbed hold of him when he realized she was risking herself for him.
"Clarice-" he started.
"Go now Sirius. Time is running out."
With that Sirius changed back into a dog and left. A few moments later, Clarice began to hear her parents' last moments of life.
"Tom, just let them go. Please. If you're gonna kill someone for betraying you, kill me. Just leave Delilah and Clarice alone. They have nothing to do with you."
"Eric you shouldn't have betrayed me. You showed such promise to me. You were such a very powerful wizard. Your downfall is coming in the appearance of a child. I can take that problem away so you can return to my service. I will take you back into my service."
Delilah turned to Lord Voldemort.
"No, Tom. Eric made up his mind. He will not work for you any longer."
"Shut up you foolish girl. If Eric does not return to my service, Black, you and your child will die for his foolishness."
Delilah turned to her husband.
"Eric, no. You can't go back to him. Remember? You said it yourself. You don't want Clarice to grow up in his service. You want to give her the opportunity to be whatever she wants. To make her own decisions about the Dark Side. Please, don't do it, Eric. All we have been through for the last year will have been for nothing if you do this. You love your daughter. Your love for her is stronger than the hate you feel towards Muggles for what they did to you mother."
"SILENCE!!!"
"I cannot return to you Tom. I have to do what is best for my daughter. If I returned to you, I would be the type of father that you hated."
Lord Voldemort turned to Eric.
"You are a fool Eric. I can give your daughter everything. She would be part of my inner circle. I would teach her the secrets of eternal life. But if that is your final decision Eric-"
"It is."
"Then I have no choice." Voldemort turned to Delilah. "AVADA KEDVRA!"
Delilah screamed and then her lifeless body hit the floor.
"Are you sure you won't return to me Eric?"
Eric had tears flowing down his face. Delilah, sweet Delilah, was dead because of his decisions. Clarice was crying. Eric could hear her from her playpen.
"You murdered my wife Tom and now you want me to join you again? NO! I will never work for you again."
Tom raised his wand to Eric. "AVADA KEDVRA!"
Eric screamed and his unmarked, dead body hit the floor. Voldemort walked into Eric and Delilah's room where Clarice was screaming on her parents' bed. She had gotten out of her playpen again. Voldemort walked close to the young child.
"DADDY! MUM!" she cried.
Voldemort raised his wand at the child. "AVADA KEDVRA!"
To his astonishment nothing happened to this child. She looked at him and slapped him on his wand arm. She kept crying. Voldemort heard commotion in the living room where Eric and Delilah's dead bodies were. He Disapparated. He would get the Dumbledore child soon enough.
Clarice woke up in the hospital wing with her Grandfather and Godfather standing over her. Sirius was, in dog form, at the foot of her hospital bed. They all looked like she had died. She sat up in the bed and all three of them looked at her.
"Clarice are you alright?" asked Professor Dumbledore.
"What were you doing in the Forbidden Forest, Clarice?" asked Professor Snape.
"I don't know why I was there. I feel kinda weak and sick, Grandfather, but I'm sure I'll be fine. What happened to me? I felt the Dementors coming into the forest. I thought I could hold them off for a few moments, then I heard my Mum and Dad. With You-Know-Who. I heard what happened. He killed them because Dad wouldn't go back to him because of me."
Clarice began to weep. She was the downfall of her parents. But at least her father had denounced Lord Voldemort. He wasn't a Death Eater to the end. Dumbledore and Snape came closer to Clarice and each put a comforting hand on her shoulder. Clarice wanted to pull away from them, but at the same time, it made her feel a little better to know that the three adults she should be able to count on the most were here for her right now. As if on cue, Sirius put his head in her lap. Clarice momentarily saw anger flash in Professor Dumbledore's eyes.
"It's not Rex' fault Grandfather. I took care of our problem with him. He won't do it again or I'll make sure he's sterile."
At that Sirius whimpered and both Snape and Professor Dumbledore cracked smiles across their faces.
Dumbledore now knew the truth about Sirius. Clarice was shocked to find out that her grandfather actually believed her and Sirius. She was glad, but still shocked. She did not want to have to pick between Dumbledore, who was her only link to her father, and Sirius, who was her link to her mother and her protector from Malfoy.
Things were getting stressful at school. The O.W.L.s were getting closer and so were normal end of year exams for the other students. However, late one night, there was screaming coming from the boys' dormitories in Gryffindor Tower. Clarice woke with a start and looked around her dormitory. Sirius was gone. Could it possibly be that Wormtail was going to go after Harry tonight? She ran out of her dormitory and straight to the boys' dormitory.
As it turned out, Sirius had gone after Wormtail with a knife and in the process had woken up Ron. Ron thought Sirius was going to kill him. Clarice was angry. She did all this pleading to her grandfather that he was innocent and here it looks like he was going to kill her cousin's best friend?
When everything died down and the castle had been pointlessly searched, everyone returned to their dormitories. As soon as Clarice heard the deep breathing that meant Katie, Angelina, Alicia, and Rhina were asleep Clarice got out of bed, grabbed Sirius by the back of the neck and Apparated. When they appeared in the Forbidden Forest both Sirius and Clarice were in shock. Clarice didn't know she could Apparate inside the castle grounds. It was said that you couldn't. Sirius didn't seem surprised by Apparating but instead by the fact of the way she grabbed him.
"What in bloody hell were you thinking Sirius!?!" Clarice shouted at him.
"I needed to stop Peter before he could hurt Harry. I couldn't sit around and do nothing, Clarice," responded Sirius.
"Sirius, I love you, but I'm going to kill you myself if you don't behave. I know it took a lot for Grandfather to put aside what he thought he knew about you for all these years. I fought to keep you here. You have to behave. I can't believe you would be so irresponsible to-" Clarice cut herself off when she heard a noise.
"What is it Clarice?" asked Sirius.
"Be quiet," she hissed back.
Then Sirius heard it as well. The swoosh of a cloak. The forest was becoming abnormally cold. A look of terror crept onto Sirius' face. Clarice understood what was going on. The Dementors were coming into the forest.
"Change back into a dog Sirius. NOW!"
"Clarice you need to get out of here. They're dangerous."
"Sirius, you're in more danger. If they find you they're gonna give you the Dementor's Kiss. Transform back into a dog and run before they find you. I'll distract them and I'll meet you back in the common room. You obviously know the password. Just go. As soon as I think you're far enough away, I'll Apparate. I promise."
Sirius walked over to his niece and gave her a kiss on the forehead. It hit him that he was wrong for going behind her after Peter and how brave she was to stand up to him. Then fear grabbed hold of him when he realized she was risking herself for him.
"Clarice-" he started.
"Go now Sirius. Time is running out."
With that Sirius changed back into a dog and left. A few moments later, Clarice began to hear her parents' last moments of life.
"Tom, just let them go. Please. If you're gonna kill someone for betraying you, kill me. Just leave Delilah and Clarice alone. They have nothing to do with you."
"Eric you shouldn't have betrayed me. You showed such promise to me. You were such a very powerful wizard. Your downfall is coming in the appearance of a child. I can take that problem away so you can return to my service. I will take you back into my service."
Delilah turned to Lord Voldemort.
"No, Tom. Eric made up his mind. He will not work for you any longer."
"Shut up you foolish girl. If Eric does not return to my service, Black, you and your child will die for his foolishness."
Delilah turned to her husband.
"Eric, no. You can't go back to him. Remember? You said it yourself. You don't want Clarice to grow up in his service. You want to give her the opportunity to be whatever she wants. To make her own decisions about the Dark Side. Please, don't do it, Eric. All we have been through for the last year will have been for nothing if you do this. You love your daughter. Your love for her is stronger than the hate you feel towards Muggles for what they did to you mother."
"SILENCE!!!"
"I cannot return to you Tom. I have to do what is best for my daughter. If I returned to you, I would be the type of father that you hated."
Lord Voldemort turned to Eric.
"You are a fool Eric. I can give your daughter everything. She would be part of my inner circle. I would teach her the secrets of eternal life. But if that is your final decision Eric-"
"It is."
"Then I have no choice." Voldemort turned to Delilah. "AVADA KEDVRA!"
Delilah screamed and then her lifeless body hit the floor.
"Are you sure you won't return to me Eric?"
Eric had tears flowing down his face. Delilah, sweet Delilah, was dead because of his decisions. Clarice was crying. Eric could hear her from her playpen.
"You murdered my wife Tom and now you want me to join you again? NO! I will never work for you again."
Tom raised his wand to Eric. "AVADA KEDVRA!"
Eric screamed and his unmarked, dead body hit the floor. Voldemort walked into Eric and Delilah's room where Clarice was screaming on her parents' bed. She had gotten out of her playpen again. Voldemort walked close to the young child.
"DADDY! MUM!" she cried.
Voldemort raised his wand at the child. "AVADA KEDVRA!"
To his astonishment nothing happened to this child. She looked at him and slapped him on his wand arm. She kept crying. Voldemort heard commotion in the living room where Eric and Delilah's dead bodies were. He Disapparated. He would get the Dumbledore child soon enough.
Clarice woke up in the hospital wing with her Grandfather and Godfather standing over her. Sirius was, in dog form, at the foot of her hospital bed. They all looked like she had died. She sat up in the bed and all three of them looked at her.
"Clarice are you alright?" asked Professor Dumbledore.
"What were you doing in the Forbidden Forest, Clarice?" asked Professor Snape.
"I don't know why I was there. I feel kinda weak and sick, Grandfather, but I'm sure I'll be fine. What happened to me? I felt the Dementors coming into the forest. I thought I could hold them off for a few moments, then I heard my Mum and Dad. With You-Know-Who. I heard what happened. He killed them because Dad wouldn't go back to him because of me."
Clarice began to weep. She was the downfall of her parents. But at least her father had denounced Lord Voldemort. He wasn't a Death Eater to the end. Dumbledore and Snape came closer to Clarice and each put a comforting hand on her shoulder. Clarice wanted to pull away from them, but at the same time, it made her feel a little better to know that the three adults she should be able to count on the most were here for her right now. As if on cue, Sirius put his head in her lap. Clarice momentarily saw anger flash in Professor Dumbledore's eyes.
"It's not Rex' fault Grandfather. I took care of our problem with him. He won't do it again or I'll make sure he's sterile."
At that Sirius whimpered and both Snape and Professor Dumbledore cracked smiles across their faces.