*sigh* It seems that fanfiction doesn't like my Quotes thingy. Sorry to
everyone that did, but it is now gone. Bet Voyager Reader is laughing very
hard right now. . . *punching motion with hand* ok, onto the story. . .
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The twins met Artemis is the Entrance Hall. No-one could see a thing because of the utter black around them, but Artemis, Fred and George could sense each other due to their connection with the darkness, and they stood close together.
Fred's voice rang out over the din of crashing, falling objects. "You can FEEL the evil!"
"Dark's trying to resist carrying it, but the force is too strong!" Artemis shouted back.
"Where are the teachers?" Screamed George.
"Send out searchers for them! If everywhere is as dark as here, we'll have no problem!" came Artemis's shrieked reply. The three teens concentrated, and ripples emanated out from them, carried by the darkness. Seconds later, George gave a triumphant "Got 'em! They're in the only place I'm unable to get to!"
Fred and Artemis turned their attention to George's searchers. The whole staff who'd been able to manage it were in Dumbledore's office, so it would seem; they'd managed to make light, and therefore the searchers couldn't penetrate. Artemis confirmed the location with light searchers.
"We have to get them to the Watching Room!" Bellowed Artemis. "You two Apparate there, get them ready! I'll get there as fast as I can by the Unknowables!"
Fred reached for where he knew Artemis was standing. Hugging her close, he barely heard her cry of "What the hell-" before he and George Disapparated to Dumbledore's Office and the teachers.
The office was brighter than anything, so it seemed, after the blackness of the Entrance Hall. Artemis squinted at Fred. "We have to talk about that after this. . ." George tapped her shoulder. Turning around, Artemis realized they were surrounded by teachers pointing wands on three sides. The fourth side was a wall.
The whole castle was still shaking, but you got used to it, in an. . . odd kind of way. "Whoa, whoa! Wands down, please!" Artemis hollered over the still-evident pandemonium. Dumbledore motioned with his hand and the teachers lowered their wooden weapons.
-Why are you here?- Came Dumbledore's clear voice in the three students heads.
-Oh joy, Headmaster! Telepathy! We're here to save you all, of course.- Artemis responded.
McGonagall joined the conversation. Obviously, Dumbledore was acting as a conductor of some kind. -You were told to stay in your classes! However, you Artemis, may be able to help. But Mr. and Mr. Weasley. . .-
'Speaking' directly to Dumbledore, Artemis answered with -They're darkness controllers-
-Ah. Minerva, these three will be very useful-
Snape cut in. -Headmaster, we must stop the Dark Lord! The castle is falling apart!-
-It's not the Dark Lord, Snape. It's Lord Voldemort- to the rest of those assembled, Artemis said -Dark is only evil because we say it is, and you can feel the darkness here trying to resist the evil Voldemort is forcing upon it. If the twins can try to enhance the darkness's power, we can throw the evil back on Voldemort. I can keep the castle from coming apart. You will all need to exit the castle, though; and help the twins. If Death Eaters appear, it will be you that repel them- Artemis waved her hand, and none of the teachers could see. -Dumbledore, don't explain where they are. It is of the highest importance that they do not know about the Passages- and with that, Artemis opened the wall behind which was the elevator. It expanded to fit the teachers, Dumbledore, the twins, and Artemis. Still, it was a tight fit. Pressing buttons, Artemis had the elevator bring them to the Watching Room in seconds, and removed the spell from the teachers.
And there they saw an astonishing sight.
There was a vast, black bubble surrounding the castle. Inside the bubble, the castle shook violently. The south tower was on the verge of collapsing, and the inner courtyard was littered with debris. The rest of the castle seemed to be holding, but barely. There was cloud cover for a mile in each direction from the castle, and beyond that, crisp November sky. The lake was black, as if an oil spill had occurred, and the Whomping Willow was beating its branches at nothing. The Forbidden Forest seemed to be on fire.
Artemis swore in a language from the Gamma Quadrant that sounded particularly vile. Then she clapped Fred and George on their shoulders. "You know what to do." She whispered, before turning and leaping through the glass to land on the bubble below.
The teachers wondered where they were, but no-one bothered to question at that time. The twins grasped hands and put their forehead's together.
"Everyone, concentrate on the bubble. Throw away the connection between darkness and evil. Concentrate on a specific spot, and focus all your energy into injecting pure power into the darkness. Give it more force to reject the evil . . ." Fred spoke in a calming voice, and all the teachers obeyed. Suddenly, a beam of dark ran down from the Watching Room to hit the bubble. The bubble began to expand, then it stopped. The Weasley twins were sweating now; they were trying to make the darkness absorb the power and use it to disconnect from the evil, instead of giving the power to the evil.
And it was starting to work.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Artemis scrambled across the surface of the bubble. Looking over, she saw the south tower tip dangerously. *They are NOT taking the entrance to my Reading Room!* She thought angrily. Jumping down from the bubble on the side with the Forest, she kneeled down. The lake would have to wait. But the Forest- no, the castle- it made Artemis wish she knew who controlled Fire and Earth. Although she did have a good idea about one of them. . . shaking these thoughts away, she focused on the task at hand. One hand on the ground, right beside the bubble, she concentrated on stopping the shaking. The other hand was raised, palm upwards. A blue sphere was being gathered into existence. When it was the size of a basketball, she hurled it towards the Forbidden Forest. The sphere exploded over the trees, unleashing a torrent of pure water onto the flames.
Turning her concentration back to the Earth, she put both hands down. But it wasn't enough. She'd have to go back inside the bubble. Reaching through, her hands disappeared into the gloom. Taking a deep breath, she dived in.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Meanwhile, Ron was imagining what Artemis was doing. Was she turning silver again? What was it about being silver? Something nagged at the back of his head, what was silver related to. . .? A sudden jolt brought him back to reality. Someone had fallen against him and pinned him to the wall. She was screaming.
Hermione.
Wrapping his arms around her protectively, Ron pushed her head down and ducked his own as a desk slid towards them. It looked ready to bang into them, side on, before somehow it turned and it hit the wall with Ron and Hermione trapped perfectly underneath in the space left for students legs. It was only then when everything was dark did Ron wonder how he'd been able to see the desk coming.
It was getting lighter. Only marginally, but lighter nonetheless.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Outside, Artemis was succeeding in calming the Earth. Around her, she felt the darkness suddenly lifted of the burden of evil. She felt like cheering. Fred and George had done it. She'd wondered if they were ready, but they'd risen to the challenge amazingly. The Earth's quaking stopped, slowly, and Artemis stood up. Job done, she suddenly wished she had a cape. A black cape with green on the inside appeared on her back, and she swept it around her with a flourish as she knelt down again, before standing, head back, and flying up. Doing the superman thing, Matrix-style.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Above the castle, Fred and George leaned away from each other, smiling wearily. Flitwick looked out of the glass down at the castle. "Look!" he squeaked. Everyone looked down, out the windows or through the floor. The bubble was almost gone; only faint traces remained. The Forest wasn't in the best shape, but the flames were gone like the bubble. Centaurs were coming out and walking up to the castle, along with a unicorn and two Thestrals.
The Whomping Willow stood still, once more, though every once in a while it would randomly thrash out.
But the thing that drew Dumbledore's attention was the lake. Since Artemis hadn't merited the lake as a dire need for attention, she hadn't inspected it. But the black film that had looked like an oil spill had hardened into a clear sheet, and underneath you could see two merpeople banging on it.
Artemis suddenly appeared, floating, outside the glass. She gave Fred and George the thumbs up, and they responded with grins. Dumbledore waved to her, and then pointed at the lake. Turning and seeing the trapped merpeople, Artemis grinned sheepishly. Flying down, she did something. Silver coated the clear substance, and it disintegrated. Waving at the piqued merpeople, she flew over to the Centaurs. The people in the Watching Room couldn't hear what she said, but the Centaurs understood, and turned around. The Thestrals came up to Artemis and nuzzled against her. She then sent them and the unicorn over to Hagrid's hut, where the students who had been in Care of Magical Creatures had been sheltering, staring in terror at the bubble surrounding their school and the darkened sky.
Coming back up to hover in front of the glass, Artemis brought her hands together and clapped. All those inside did so as well, although they couldn't hear her. Suddenly the grin that had been resident on Artemis's face disappeared. A green shot hit her squarely in the chest and she tumbled backwards. Everyone in the Watching Room turned to see two Death Eaters floating above them. The Death Eaters ignored the group of teachers and turned towards the castle.
"Where's Artemis?!" Fred screamed, throwing himself to the ground, his brother beside him. Eyes eagerly searching, they found nothing. Then McGonagall imitated Flitwick with a squeaked "Look!"
Artemis had rocketed back up to the two Death Eaters. Red light streamed from her hands and hit them in the midsection. The Death Eaters turned to see her suspended above them, waiting. They zoomed up, wands at the ready, and bombarded her with shots of green light, which Artemis artfully dodged. She returned the shots with bursts of blue, red and black.
George and Fred jumped onto the swing, and were about to open the trap door in the ceiling when Dumbledore gave a sharp "NO!"
"Why not?!" George exclaimed indignantly. He was concerned for Artemis. "They're shooting the Killing Curse at her!"
"Haven't you noticed that they can't see us? As long as we are in the room, they won't notice we're here at all. You heard what Artemis said, you know why."
"And it can't be the Killing Curse, she's taken a shot in the chest already. She'd be dead if it was the Killing Curse." Torquil added helpfully.
"Oh, it is the Killing Curse, Torquil. I can feel it." Dumbledore corrected benignly.
"But-"
Torquil was cut short by Fred imitating McGonagall and squeaking "Look!" Artemis had the two Death Eaters tied together with a black, dense rope. "She's got them!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Review Please. Oh, and there's another story relating to Delta, Sphynx (who you haven't met) Crystal (who you haven't met either, but will) and Skelly (who you have met. . . kind of. Well, not REALLY) at fictionpress.com under my same name. Guess what it's called?
Insanity.
So, if you feel like reading that. . . it's a bit more - uh - abstract than this one, but hey. . .
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The twins met Artemis is the Entrance Hall. No-one could see a thing because of the utter black around them, but Artemis, Fred and George could sense each other due to their connection with the darkness, and they stood close together.
Fred's voice rang out over the din of crashing, falling objects. "You can FEEL the evil!"
"Dark's trying to resist carrying it, but the force is too strong!" Artemis shouted back.
"Where are the teachers?" Screamed George.
"Send out searchers for them! If everywhere is as dark as here, we'll have no problem!" came Artemis's shrieked reply. The three teens concentrated, and ripples emanated out from them, carried by the darkness. Seconds later, George gave a triumphant "Got 'em! They're in the only place I'm unable to get to!"
Fred and Artemis turned their attention to George's searchers. The whole staff who'd been able to manage it were in Dumbledore's office, so it would seem; they'd managed to make light, and therefore the searchers couldn't penetrate. Artemis confirmed the location with light searchers.
"We have to get them to the Watching Room!" Bellowed Artemis. "You two Apparate there, get them ready! I'll get there as fast as I can by the Unknowables!"
Fred reached for where he knew Artemis was standing. Hugging her close, he barely heard her cry of "What the hell-" before he and George Disapparated to Dumbledore's Office and the teachers.
The office was brighter than anything, so it seemed, after the blackness of the Entrance Hall. Artemis squinted at Fred. "We have to talk about that after this. . ." George tapped her shoulder. Turning around, Artemis realized they were surrounded by teachers pointing wands on three sides. The fourth side was a wall.
The whole castle was still shaking, but you got used to it, in an. . . odd kind of way. "Whoa, whoa! Wands down, please!" Artemis hollered over the still-evident pandemonium. Dumbledore motioned with his hand and the teachers lowered their wooden weapons.
-Why are you here?- Came Dumbledore's clear voice in the three students heads.
-Oh joy, Headmaster! Telepathy! We're here to save you all, of course.- Artemis responded.
McGonagall joined the conversation. Obviously, Dumbledore was acting as a conductor of some kind. -You were told to stay in your classes! However, you Artemis, may be able to help. But Mr. and Mr. Weasley. . .-
'Speaking' directly to Dumbledore, Artemis answered with -They're darkness controllers-
-Ah. Minerva, these three will be very useful-
Snape cut in. -Headmaster, we must stop the Dark Lord! The castle is falling apart!-
-It's not the Dark Lord, Snape. It's Lord Voldemort- to the rest of those assembled, Artemis said -Dark is only evil because we say it is, and you can feel the darkness here trying to resist the evil Voldemort is forcing upon it. If the twins can try to enhance the darkness's power, we can throw the evil back on Voldemort. I can keep the castle from coming apart. You will all need to exit the castle, though; and help the twins. If Death Eaters appear, it will be you that repel them- Artemis waved her hand, and none of the teachers could see. -Dumbledore, don't explain where they are. It is of the highest importance that they do not know about the Passages- and with that, Artemis opened the wall behind which was the elevator. It expanded to fit the teachers, Dumbledore, the twins, and Artemis. Still, it was a tight fit. Pressing buttons, Artemis had the elevator bring them to the Watching Room in seconds, and removed the spell from the teachers.
And there they saw an astonishing sight.
There was a vast, black bubble surrounding the castle. Inside the bubble, the castle shook violently. The south tower was on the verge of collapsing, and the inner courtyard was littered with debris. The rest of the castle seemed to be holding, but barely. There was cloud cover for a mile in each direction from the castle, and beyond that, crisp November sky. The lake was black, as if an oil spill had occurred, and the Whomping Willow was beating its branches at nothing. The Forbidden Forest seemed to be on fire.
Artemis swore in a language from the Gamma Quadrant that sounded particularly vile. Then she clapped Fred and George on their shoulders. "You know what to do." She whispered, before turning and leaping through the glass to land on the bubble below.
The teachers wondered where they were, but no-one bothered to question at that time. The twins grasped hands and put their forehead's together.
"Everyone, concentrate on the bubble. Throw away the connection between darkness and evil. Concentrate on a specific spot, and focus all your energy into injecting pure power into the darkness. Give it more force to reject the evil . . ." Fred spoke in a calming voice, and all the teachers obeyed. Suddenly, a beam of dark ran down from the Watching Room to hit the bubble. The bubble began to expand, then it stopped. The Weasley twins were sweating now; they were trying to make the darkness absorb the power and use it to disconnect from the evil, instead of giving the power to the evil.
And it was starting to work.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Artemis scrambled across the surface of the bubble. Looking over, she saw the south tower tip dangerously. *They are NOT taking the entrance to my Reading Room!* She thought angrily. Jumping down from the bubble on the side with the Forest, she kneeled down. The lake would have to wait. But the Forest- no, the castle- it made Artemis wish she knew who controlled Fire and Earth. Although she did have a good idea about one of them. . . shaking these thoughts away, she focused on the task at hand. One hand on the ground, right beside the bubble, she concentrated on stopping the shaking. The other hand was raised, palm upwards. A blue sphere was being gathered into existence. When it was the size of a basketball, she hurled it towards the Forbidden Forest. The sphere exploded over the trees, unleashing a torrent of pure water onto the flames.
Turning her concentration back to the Earth, she put both hands down. But it wasn't enough. She'd have to go back inside the bubble. Reaching through, her hands disappeared into the gloom. Taking a deep breath, she dived in.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Meanwhile, Ron was imagining what Artemis was doing. Was she turning silver again? What was it about being silver? Something nagged at the back of his head, what was silver related to. . .? A sudden jolt brought him back to reality. Someone had fallen against him and pinned him to the wall. She was screaming.
Hermione.
Wrapping his arms around her protectively, Ron pushed her head down and ducked his own as a desk slid towards them. It looked ready to bang into them, side on, before somehow it turned and it hit the wall with Ron and Hermione trapped perfectly underneath in the space left for students legs. It was only then when everything was dark did Ron wonder how he'd been able to see the desk coming.
It was getting lighter. Only marginally, but lighter nonetheless.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Outside, Artemis was succeeding in calming the Earth. Around her, she felt the darkness suddenly lifted of the burden of evil. She felt like cheering. Fred and George had done it. She'd wondered if they were ready, but they'd risen to the challenge amazingly. The Earth's quaking stopped, slowly, and Artemis stood up. Job done, she suddenly wished she had a cape. A black cape with green on the inside appeared on her back, and she swept it around her with a flourish as she knelt down again, before standing, head back, and flying up. Doing the superman thing, Matrix-style.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Above the castle, Fred and George leaned away from each other, smiling wearily. Flitwick looked out of the glass down at the castle. "Look!" he squeaked. Everyone looked down, out the windows or through the floor. The bubble was almost gone; only faint traces remained. The Forest wasn't in the best shape, but the flames were gone like the bubble. Centaurs were coming out and walking up to the castle, along with a unicorn and two Thestrals.
The Whomping Willow stood still, once more, though every once in a while it would randomly thrash out.
But the thing that drew Dumbledore's attention was the lake. Since Artemis hadn't merited the lake as a dire need for attention, she hadn't inspected it. But the black film that had looked like an oil spill had hardened into a clear sheet, and underneath you could see two merpeople banging on it.
Artemis suddenly appeared, floating, outside the glass. She gave Fred and George the thumbs up, and they responded with grins. Dumbledore waved to her, and then pointed at the lake. Turning and seeing the trapped merpeople, Artemis grinned sheepishly. Flying down, she did something. Silver coated the clear substance, and it disintegrated. Waving at the piqued merpeople, she flew over to the Centaurs. The people in the Watching Room couldn't hear what she said, but the Centaurs understood, and turned around. The Thestrals came up to Artemis and nuzzled against her. She then sent them and the unicorn over to Hagrid's hut, where the students who had been in Care of Magical Creatures had been sheltering, staring in terror at the bubble surrounding their school and the darkened sky.
Coming back up to hover in front of the glass, Artemis brought her hands together and clapped. All those inside did so as well, although they couldn't hear her. Suddenly the grin that had been resident on Artemis's face disappeared. A green shot hit her squarely in the chest and she tumbled backwards. Everyone in the Watching Room turned to see two Death Eaters floating above them. The Death Eaters ignored the group of teachers and turned towards the castle.
"Where's Artemis?!" Fred screamed, throwing himself to the ground, his brother beside him. Eyes eagerly searching, they found nothing. Then McGonagall imitated Flitwick with a squeaked "Look!"
Artemis had rocketed back up to the two Death Eaters. Red light streamed from her hands and hit them in the midsection. The Death Eaters turned to see her suspended above them, waiting. They zoomed up, wands at the ready, and bombarded her with shots of green light, which Artemis artfully dodged. She returned the shots with bursts of blue, red and black.
George and Fred jumped onto the swing, and were about to open the trap door in the ceiling when Dumbledore gave a sharp "NO!"
"Why not?!" George exclaimed indignantly. He was concerned for Artemis. "They're shooting the Killing Curse at her!"
"Haven't you noticed that they can't see us? As long as we are in the room, they won't notice we're here at all. You heard what Artemis said, you know why."
"And it can't be the Killing Curse, she's taken a shot in the chest already. She'd be dead if it was the Killing Curse." Torquil added helpfully.
"Oh, it is the Killing Curse, Torquil. I can feel it." Dumbledore corrected benignly.
"But-"
Torquil was cut short by Fred imitating McGonagall and squeaking "Look!" Artemis had the two Death Eaters tied together with a black, dense rope. "She's got them!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Review Please. Oh, and there's another story relating to Delta, Sphynx (who you haven't met) Crystal (who you haven't met either, but will) and Skelly (who you have met. . . kind of. Well, not REALLY) at fictionpress.com under my same name. Guess what it's called?
Insanity.
So, if you feel like reading that. . . it's a bit more - uh - abstract than this one, but hey. . .