~written for the unquenchable spirit
Dorcas Meadowes, better known as Cassie, was a beautiful and fiery witch. She was never a good student, but won a place on the Auror's team in the Ministry because of her daring and smart tricks. She was amazingly quick at cooking up escape plans and was in the Order Of The Phoenix as well, specializing in Polyjuice Potions.
The Forbidden Forest, 1994
"Well, it could be worse," said 24-year-old Cassie to herself, "I could be stuck gathering pixies instead of fluxweed."
The forest was still. Very still. It was filled with loads of fog and sparse trees that stood thin and menacing over her head. Cassie felt only slight fear at first when she entered the forest (concern never seemed to show itself in her), but that fear was growing. Something was in the forest, her senses told her, and it wasn't good.
"Right, like there is anything in the forest that IS good," snorted Cassie, still talking to herself. Her dark brown hair was brushed straight down to the middle of her back before entering the forest, but now it was entangled with briars and thorns.
"Ow-wow!" groaned Cassie as another thorned branch ripped across her pale cheeks. Blood dripped on her hand and she squinted her face in disgust. "Sick," she muttered, wiping her hand on her pale purple robes.
Cassie looked up to see with joy an entire meadow of fluxweed before her.
"Oh, joy!" she said happily, walking directly into the open field. The fluxweed was a lot like wheat, colored slightly blue with the full moon shining above. There was no fog in the field, and it looked so magical, Cassie accidentally dropped her wand in the view of it all.
"Did you drop your wand?" said a deep voice behind Cassie.
Cassie gasped and her heart jumped. She spun around and found her self being gripped tightly by the wrists.
"Ow!" she shrieked, as she writhed her hands to get the extremely taught ropes off. She glared at Alastor Moody in front of her. He grinned lopsidedly into her face, his eye spinning.
"Good thing I wasn't a Death Eater," said Moody, making the ropes vanish.
"Good thing indeed," agreed Cassie. "Say, what are you doing out here, anyways?"
"Fluxweed," said Moody, drinking from his flask deeply.
"Oh, so you're making Polyjuice Potion as well?" asked Cassie, starting to gather some of the beige plant, with her wand in her teeth.
"Yeah," answered Moody, gathering some as well. His eye roved around the field and stood still for a moment, his face concentrating.
"Ugh, I felt worried being here by myself an-hey?! What are you-mfff!" Cassie was cut off as Moody shoved her to the ground, his face grim.
"What is it?" hissed Cassie fearfully, her head on the earth. She gripped her wand in her hand tightly, blue eyes frightened.
"Death Eaters, I think. Round that outcrop of rocks. A whole bunch. Looks like we walked in on a top secret meeting. We're out numbered, Cassie," Moody murmured
For the first time since Cassie Meadowes ever became a member of the Order, she heard real fear show itself reluctantly in Moody's voice.
"Whatever can we do?" she hissed back, accidentally swallowing dirt. "You can't Apparate on Hogwarts grounds, and the Forest is part of the grounds...." Cassie trailed off, not wanting to finish. Tears sprang to her eyes. She didn't want to die!
Moody glanced at her. "This is a mess," he muttered, avoiding Cassie's anguished look.
Slowly, rustling sounds could be heard. A sound only made when an abundance of people move through a field of tall, dry plants.
Bellatrix felt someone on the field. Her master did, too.
"What is it?" asked Nott, jerking his head to the direction of the stagnant fluxweed field which seemed to hold a presence or so.
Bellatrix ignored him, her eyes narrowed as they tried vainly to penetrate the field.
"Spies," said Bellatrix, grinning evilly.
In the meantime, Moody and Cassie were stealthily making their way to the opposite end of the field from the Death Eaters. Moody had a broomstick and Invisibility Cloak, which they would use to escape.
Panting and the cold air slicing her throat, Cassie nervously ran quick and quiet, behind Moody. (a/n: Moody has normal legs) The grass rustled ominously and darned loud as they breathed in the air, freezing their lungs. Cassie ran like mad, never stopping. Bellatrix waited impatiently in the middle of the field, expecting her aster to arrive sometime. She had all the other Death Eaters surround the field so they would not escape. The Dark Lord could deal with them...
Bellatrix laughed.
A loud popping noise behind her made her stop abruptly. The Dark Lord arrived.
"Bella," said the cold voice.
Bellatrix bravely suppressed a shiver and turned to face the cloaked and masked dark lord.
"Master," said Bellatrix in a small voice, starting to do the ridicules crawl and kiss the Dark Lord's robes. She never could stop admiring, though, how he always managed to break Apparition Wards.
"Where are my Death Eaters?" asked the Dark Lord, ignoring Bellatrix and searching around him.
"Standing guard, my Lord, I told them to because two people were in the field. Spies probably, my Lord," said Bellatrix, hoping her Lord would not get angry.
"In that case, I must have them back. I need your arm, Bella."
Bellatrix rolled up her sleeve and stuck out her pale arm. The Dark Lord pressed it with a long, thin finger and Bellatrix let out something between a scream and a squeak.
Instantly, the familiar crunch of feet was heard on all sides as the twenty Death Eaters walked toward the middle of the fluxweed field. All had their masks on-wait, there were only seventeen...where did the other three go? Bellatrix nervously looked around. The Dark Lord seemed to notice that Avery, Welchforde, and Hill were all missing.
"Where are the rest of you?" demanded Bellatrix, taking charge.
Nott stepped forward. "Beggin' yer perden, lerd, the tree of 'em went en got two wizerdz."
The Dark Lord let out a mocking laugh.
"Two wizards, you say? Who were they?" asked Bellatrix, grinning at the thought of more torture.
Nott shrugged. "No idee."
At that moment, a great many shouts were heard, along with ricocheting bangs and shrieks. A large dark shape was hurtled into the air, amid yells and sparks of red and blue. Instantly, all the Death Eaters raced toward the noise, their cloaks billowing like winged creatures of death as they flew among the fluxweed stalks.
Gasping and clutching her side as she curled into a ball on the ground, Cassie squeezed her eyes shut. She heard talk swim around her head, and she desperately tried to decipher it. Somewhere, a person groaned softly. Moody, thought Cassie, as her hand traveled out to touch the back of his head. They were caught.
Cassie couldn't breath right, either. Her breath was ragged, and she was sure her ribs were cracked. Damn that Death Eater. He had jinxed her badly from behind.
A voice muttered something near Cassie, and she felt her ragged breathing quiet. Someone placed a Silencing Charm on her. A light was all around her, seen as red through Cassie's closed lids.
"Get up," said a cold, chilling voice.
Oh god, oh god, oh god, thought Cassie, her guts wrenched with fear, was that Voldemort?
"Now!" commanded the voice again. Soft laughter breezed around the circle.
Painfully, Cassie opened her eyes.
Dozens of feet surrounded her in a wide circle, all wearing black shoes and robes. The wands emitted soft glows, and with knowing dread, Cassie saw a white masked faces around her. A towering, tall figure was in front of her, a little ways away-Voldemort.
Cassie's vision became clearer and clearer, and she found herself standing up, probably the result of an Imperius Curse. Cassie looked down and saw her robes were blood-spattered on the shoulder and ripped in several places. She shuddered and noticed Moody lying prostrate and stagnant on the ground, a few cuts on his face.
"Dorcas Meadowes," said Voldemort, sneering under his mask. He twirled his wand ominously in his pallid fingers.
Cassie felt so afraid, but she didn't act it. "It's Cassie to you," said Cassie, correcting Voldemort in a quavering voice. She glared at him and remembered to grip her wand tightly.
Voldemort still sneered, his eyes flashing garnet. "Don't correct the Dark Lord, Meadowes!"
"What Dark Lord?" said Cassie innocently, "I only see a bloody bloke-"
"Silence!" shrieked Bellatrix maniacally, "You will not speak to the Dark Lord in that manner!"
Voldemort gave Bellatrix a quelling look, and she subsided her talking.
The air blew cold all of a sudden, and the Death Eaters stirred in the circle of trampled fluxweed.
"Yes, my faithful Death Eaters," said Voldemort, addressing them loudly, "It is my power. Let it wind around you like a snake and bind you all!"
Cassie felt the wind wrap around her as well, chilling her through. They all stood for a couple seconds, until Cassie said in what she hoped was a jaunty voice, "Are we all cold enough yet?"
Voldemort surprisingly ignored her and looked down at Moody. "Oh, what a shame- Alastor Moody is dead."
Cassie, however, knew a lie when she saw one. "You liar!" she shrieked, losing her head.
Voldemort instantly straightened up, his Death Eaters quiet and watchful. "You, Meadowes, already have an appointment with death tonight. Do not make it worse for yourself," he said softly.
"No!" Cassie said firmly, without any fear.
The Death Eaters gasped and Voldemort took a few steps toward Cassie, towering above her like a pine tree. "The Dark Lord does not take 'no' for an answer," he said dangerously.
"Well I do!" said Cassie recklessly. She heard a soft groan and looked down in surprise-Moody was coming round.
Voldemort noticed, too, because he suddenly smiled terribly under his mask.
"Take the other away," he spoke, pointing at three Death Eaters to do so.
Suddenly, Cassie realized what was happening-she would be left alone with Voldemort, while Moody would be abandoned.
"No!" she screamed frantically. Moody was being levitated away by the three Death Eaters.
Voldemort and Bellatrix laughed together. Cassie suddenly shouted out, "Stupefy!" and Bellatrix's laugh was cut short.
With a roar of rage, Rudolphus sprung forth from the circle. "Impedimentoid!" He yelled, brandishing his wand. The wrong spell, obviously, because Cassie found her robes suddenly sending forth a bright light. Rudolphus had his her with a clothes-shining charm.
"Noo," roared another Death Eater, "someone'll see the light!"
Cassie ducked in a matrix-like way as more spells were shot in her direction.
"Crucio!" someone shouted. The beam of light zipped past Cassie and struck another Death Eater instead of her. The screams and shouts lasted only a minute before the curse was lifted from the unfortunate wizard.
Suddenly more shouts and yells could be heard as a whole troop of brooms flying overhead were spotted. There was about eighteen people on broomsticks, all wearing the blue and silver Order Of The Pheonix colors. The wizards and witches swooped to the ground and instantly banged away.
Cassie cheered and turned around, happiness and relief flooding her. Accidently, she tripped over Bellatrix's prostrate body and lay sprawled on the ground. Voldemort grinned in a horrible way from under his invisibility cloak. The ricocheting noise and screams around him didn't disturb his wicked plans. As Cassie picked herself up from the ground, someone called her name.
"Cassie! Run, he's behind you!" screamed Moody, who could see Invisibility Cloaks.
Cassie turned her head in shock, just as the flash of green light engulfed her body.
Dorcas Meadowes, better known as Cassie, was a beautiful and fiery witch. She was never a good student, but won a place on the Auror's team in the Ministry because of her daring and smart tricks. She was amazingly quick at cooking up escape plans and was in the Order Of The Phoenix as well, specializing in Polyjuice Potions.
The Forbidden Forest, 1994
"Well, it could be worse," said 24-year-old Cassie to herself, "I could be stuck gathering pixies instead of fluxweed."
The forest was still. Very still. It was filled with loads of fog and sparse trees that stood thin and menacing over her head. Cassie felt only slight fear at first when she entered the forest (concern never seemed to show itself in her), but that fear was growing. Something was in the forest, her senses told her, and it wasn't good.
"Right, like there is anything in the forest that IS good," snorted Cassie, still talking to herself. Her dark brown hair was brushed straight down to the middle of her back before entering the forest, but now it was entangled with briars and thorns.
"Ow-wow!" groaned Cassie as another thorned branch ripped across her pale cheeks. Blood dripped on her hand and she squinted her face in disgust. "Sick," she muttered, wiping her hand on her pale purple robes.
Cassie looked up to see with joy an entire meadow of fluxweed before her.
"Oh, joy!" she said happily, walking directly into the open field. The fluxweed was a lot like wheat, colored slightly blue with the full moon shining above. There was no fog in the field, and it looked so magical, Cassie accidentally dropped her wand in the view of it all.
"Did you drop your wand?" said a deep voice behind Cassie.
Cassie gasped and her heart jumped. She spun around and found her self being gripped tightly by the wrists.
"Ow!" she shrieked, as she writhed her hands to get the extremely taught ropes off. She glared at Alastor Moody in front of her. He grinned lopsidedly into her face, his eye spinning.
"Good thing I wasn't a Death Eater," said Moody, making the ropes vanish.
"Good thing indeed," agreed Cassie. "Say, what are you doing out here, anyways?"
"Fluxweed," said Moody, drinking from his flask deeply.
"Oh, so you're making Polyjuice Potion as well?" asked Cassie, starting to gather some of the beige plant, with her wand in her teeth.
"Yeah," answered Moody, gathering some as well. His eye roved around the field and stood still for a moment, his face concentrating.
"Ugh, I felt worried being here by myself an-hey?! What are you-mfff!" Cassie was cut off as Moody shoved her to the ground, his face grim.
"What is it?" hissed Cassie fearfully, her head on the earth. She gripped her wand in her hand tightly, blue eyes frightened.
"Death Eaters, I think. Round that outcrop of rocks. A whole bunch. Looks like we walked in on a top secret meeting. We're out numbered, Cassie," Moody murmured
For the first time since Cassie Meadowes ever became a member of the Order, she heard real fear show itself reluctantly in Moody's voice.
"Whatever can we do?" she hissed back, accidentally swallowing dirt. "You can't Apparate on Hogwarts grounds, and the Forest is part of the grounds...." Cassie trailed off, not wanting to finish. Tears sprang to her eyes. She didn't want to die!
Moody glanced at her. "This is a mess," he muttered, avoiding Cassie's anguished look.
Slowly, rustling sounds could be heard. A sound only made when an abundance of people move through a field of tall, dry plants.
Bellatrix felt someone on the field. Her master did, too.
"What is it?" asked Nott, jerking his head to the direction of the stagnant fluxweed field which seemed to hold a presence or so.
Bellatrix ignored him, her eyes narrowed as they tried vainly to penetrate the field.
"Spies," said Bellatrix, grinning evilly.
In the meantime, Moody and Cassie were stealthily making their way to the opposite end of the field from the Death Eaters. Moody had a broomstick and Invisibility Cloak, which they would use to escape.
Panting and the cold air slicing her throat, Cassie nervously ran quick and quiet, behind Moody. (a/n: Moody has normal legs) The grass rustled ominously and darned loud as they breathed in the air, freezing their lungs. Cassie ran like mad, never stopping. Bellatrix waited impatiently in the middle of the field, expecting her aster to arrive sometime. She had all the other Death Eaters surround the field so they would not escape. The Dark Lord could deal with them...
Bellatrix laughed.
A loud popping noise behind her made her stop abruptly. The Dark Lord arrived.
"Bella," said the cold voice.
Bellatrix bravely suppressed a shiver and turned to face the cloaked and masked dark lord.
"Master," said Bellatrix in a small voice, starting to do the ridicules crawl and kiss the Dark Lord's robes. She never could stop admiring, though, how he always managed to break Apparition Wards.
"Where are my Death Eaters?" asked the Dark Lord, ignoring Bellatrix and searching around him.
"Standing guard, my Lord, I told them to because two people were in the field. Spies probably, my Lord," said Bellatrix, hoping her Lord would not get angry.
"In that case, I must have them back. I need your arm, Bella."
Bellatrix rolled up her sleeve and stuck out her pale arm. The Dark Lord pressed it with a long, thin finger and Bellatrix let out something between a scream and a squeak.
Instantly, the familiar crunch of feet was heard on all sides as the twenty Death Eaters walked toward the middle of the fluxweed field. All had their masks on-wait, there were only seventeen...where did the other three go? Bellatrix nervously looked around. The Dark Lord seemed to notice that Avery, Welchforde, and Hill were all missing.
"Where are the rest of you?" demanded Bellatrix, taking charge.
Nott stepped forward. "Beggin' yer perden, lerd, the tree of 'em went en got two wizerdz."
The Dark Lord let out a mocking laugh.
"Two wizards, you say? Who were they?" asked Bellatrix, grinning at the thought of more torture.
Nott shrugged. "No idee."
At that moment, a great many shouts were heard, along with ricocheting bangs and shrieks. A large dark shape was hurtled into the air, amid yells and sparks of red and blue. Instantly, all the Death Eaters raced toward the noise, their cloaks billowing like winged creatures of death as they flew among the fluxweed stalks.
Gasping and clutching her side as she curled into a ball on the ground, Cassie squeezed her eyes shut. She heard talk swim around her head, and she desperately tried to decipher it. Somewhere, a person groaned softly. Moody, thought Cassie, as her hand traveled out to touch the back of his head. They were caught.
Cassie couldn't breath right, either. Her breath was ragged, and she was sure her ribs were cracked. Damn that Death Eater. He had jinxed her badly from behind.
A voice muttered something near Cassie, and she felt her ragged breathing quiet. Someone placed a Silencing Charm on her. A light was all around her, seen as red through Cassie's closed lids.
"Get up," said a cold, chilling voice.
Oh god, oh god, oh god, thought Cassie, her guts wrenched with fear, was that Voldemort?
"Now!" commanded the voice again. Soft laughter breezed around the circle.
Painfully, Cassie opened her eyes.
Dozens of feet surrounded her in a wide circle, all wearing black shoes and robes. The wands emitted soft glows, and with knowing dread, Cassie saw a white masked faces around her. A towering, tall figure was in front of her, a little ways away-Voldemort.
Cassie's vision became clearer and clearer, and she found herself standing up, probably the result of an Imperius Curse. Cassie looked down and saw her robes were blood-spattered on the shoulder and ripped in several places. She shuddered and noticed Moody lying prostrate and stagnant on the ground, a few cuts on his face.
"Dorcas Meadowes," said Voldemort, sneering under his mask. He twirled his wand ominously in his pallid fingers.
Cassie felt so afraid, but she didn't act it. "It's Cassie to you," said Cassie, correcting Voldemort in a quavering voice. She glared at him and remembered to grip her wand tightly.
Voldemort still sneered, his eyes flashing garnet. "Don't correct the Dark Lord, Meadowes!"
"What Dark Lord?" said Cassie innocently, "I only see a bloody bloke-"
"Silence!" shrieked Bellatrix maniacally, "You will not speak to the Dark Lord in that manner!"
Voldemort gave Bellatrix a quelling look, and she subsided her talking.
The air blew cold all of a sudden, and the Death Eaters stirred in the circle of trampled fluxweed.
"Yes, my faithful Death Eaters," said Voldemort, addressing them loudly, "It is my power. Let it wind around you like a snake and bind you all!"
Cassie felt the wind wrap around her as well, chilling her through. They all stood for a couple seconds, until Cassie said in what she hoped was a jaunty voice, "Are we all cold enough yet?"
Voldemort surprisingly ignored her and looked down at Moody. "Oh, what a shame- Alastor Moody is dead."
Cassie, however, knew a lie when she saw one. "You liar!" she shrieked, losing her head.
Voldemort instantly straightened up, his Death Eaters quiet and watchful. "You, Meadowes, already have an appointment with death tonight. Do not make it worse for yourself," he said softly.
"No!" Cassie said firmly, without any fear.
The Death Eaters gasped and Voldemort took a few steps toward Cassie, towering above her like a pine tree. "The Dark Lord does not take 'no' for an answer," he said dangerously.
"Well I do!" said Cassie recklessly. She heard a soft groan and looked down in surprise-Moody was coming round.
Voldemort noticed, too, because he suddenly smiled terribly under his mask.
"Take the other away," he spoke, pointing at three Death Eaters to do so.
Suddenly, Cassie realized what was happening-she would be left alone with Voldemort, while Moody would be abandoned.
"No!" she screamed frantically. Moody was being levitated away by the three Death Eaters.
Voldemort and Bellatrix laughed together. Cassie suddenly shouted out, "Stupefy!" and Bellatrix's laugh was cut short.
With a roar of rage, Rudolphus sprung forth from the circle. "Impedimentoid!" He yelled, brandishing his wand. The wrong spell, obviously, because Cassie found her robes suddenly sending forth a bright light. Rudolphus had his her with a clothes-shining charm.
"Noo," roared another Death Eater, "someone'll see the light!"
Cassie ducked in a matrix-like way as more spells were shot in her direction.
"Crucio!" someone shouted. The beam of light zipped past Cassie and struck another Death Eater instead of her. The screams and shouts lasted only a minute before the curse was lifted from the unfortunate wizard.
Suddenly more shouts and yells could be heard as a whole troop of brooms flying overhead were spotted. There was about eighteen people on broomsticks, all wearing the blue and silver Order Of The Pheonix colors. The wizards and witches swooped to the ground and instantly banged away.
Cassie cheered and turned around, happiness and relief flooding her. Accidently, she tripped over Bellatrix's prostrate body and lay sprawled on the ground. Voldemort grinned in a horrible way from under his invisibility cloak. The ricocheting noise and screams around him didn't disturb his wicked plans. As Cassie picked herself up from the ground, someone called her name.
"Cassie! Run, he's behind you!" screamed Moody, who could see Invisibility Cloaks.
Cassie turned her head in shock, just as the flash of green light engulfed her body.
