Chapter 17 – A Pair of Eyes
At last, at the end of the next day, Liz (and the rest of the fourth-year Gryffindors) had their Defense Against the Dark Arts exam. Before the exam, Liz signaled to Professor Magus that she needed to talk to her afterwards, and her teacher nodded. Rachel walked by just then, intentionally ignoring Liz, so Liz did the same to her. They took their seats as Professor Magus began to pass out the tests.
Liz took her time. Her instinct was to rush so she could talk to Professor Magus, but she knew that would only get her a low grade, and that was the last thing she needed at the moment. So she answered each question slowly and deliberately, and went over it again afterwards.
But when she had done all that, she looked up and saw that not one person had turned theirs in yet. She certainly didn't want it to look like she was rushing. So she checked it over one more time. Still, no one stood up. Liz took to glancing around the room, looking anywhere but at Rachel and her classmates' papers.
The she looked out the window. There, staring at her through the lush bushes that lined the Hogwarts walls, was a pair of eyes. Brown ones. She tried to turn her head and tell Professor Magus about them, but she couldn't tear her gaze from the brown pools among the leaves. She was transfixed, the power behind the eyes pulling her in, inviting her to join in whatever was going to happen. She couldn't look away. The eyes were deep and hypnotic…Liz could feel her resistance giving way to ultimate power the eyes held…
Then Liz looked forward. The eyes had relinquished their grip on her, but not completely. They had inserted into her a will, the will of their owner. In the entire time it took for the process to be complete, the rest of the class had turned in their papers and left. Liz noticed her paper still on her desk and gave it to Professor Magus, and then turned to leave the room. "Liz—where are you going?" But Liz didn't answer. She couldn't remember anything to do with that woman, only the eyes, and the plan…the plan…it echoed in her mind.
Liz followed the hallway that led to Gryffindor Tower, vaguely aware that she could hear footsteps behind her. There, ahead of her, were two people who looked kind of familiar. One was a lanky boy with red hair, and the other was a girl, shorter than the boy, with dark brown hair that fell to her waist. "Liz, Rachel has something to tell you," said the boy. But Liz blew right past them. They had nothing to do with the plan.
"She must still be mad," the girl said morosely.
"We'll try again later," the boy answered.
Liz kept going. She reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, gave the password, and entered. Up the stairs she went to her dorm, her desk, her upper left-hand drawer. She unlocked it and withdrew the manuscript. Then she stuffed it into her bag, shouldered the bag, and headed back down.
The footsteps had stopped once she had entered the common room, but they started up again when she left. Nevertheless, she continued through the castle, weaving her way toward the exit. She stepped outside and headed in the direction of the Forbidden Forest. On the way she passed a cabin, with a boy working outside. "Hi, Liz," he said. He also looked familiar, but did that matter? Liz kept going. "Liz? Liz! What's the matter?" She didn't answer. "Liz! Answer me!"
Liz uttered a sound close to a moan. "What's wrong, Liz? Answer me!" the boy demanded. Liz sped up, leaving the boy behind. The footsteps stopped and Liz heard the boy talking to someone. She hurried toward the forest, where the eyes had promised her they'd be.
She plunged deep into the forest, engulfed in the darkness that the canopy of trees provided. She seemed to know the way to wherever the eyes had told her to be. Finally she came to a clearing, still covered in the canopy, and she waited. Then a figure emerged from the trees.
"My young nemesis," he hissed. "You've brought it?"
Liz moaned again, and this time it sounded like a yes.
"Good." The man leaned over her bag, which was sitting a few feet away from her. Liz could almost sense his excitement. This was the culmination of the plan—
"Liz!" yelled a voice. Through her stupor, Liz saw a woman, standing out against the trees. She began to recognize her. It was Professor Magus.
"What are you doing here?" snarled the man.
"I followed her here, Dragon," Professor Magus spat. "She was going to tell me about the manuscript, but when she left, I got suspicious. So I followed."
"That was incredibly stupid. Stupefy!"
Professor Magus cried, "Protego!" and fended off the Stunner with her Shield Charm. Back and forth the spells went, while Liz sat helplessly, all the while thinking there was something she should do to help.
Then there were more footsteps, loud, thunderous ones. The Dragon looked in the direction they were coming from, which gave Professor Magus a chance to disarm him. "Expelliarmus!" The Dragon went flying, and his wand landed in Professor Magus's outstretched palm. Liz saw Chris and Hagrid burst through the trees. "Liz!" Chris cried. He was carrying two bottles in his hand. He poured the contents of one of them in Liz's mouth. She gulped it down and snapped out of it. "Snap potion," she sputtered.
"Are yeh all right?" Hagrid asked.
"Surrender, Draco," said Professor Magus with a smirk. "Wandless, powerless…you've lost."
Surprisingly, the Dragon didn't seem perturbed. Instead, he flicked his wrist. There was a flash of light, which left Professor Magus flat on her back and the wand was back in the Dragon's hand.
"Impedimenta!" the Dragon yelled, aiming at Hagrid. Hagrid's massive bulk went flying and hit a tree. He slid down the length of it, blood appearing in his path. There was another trickle of blood coming from his scalp. "Hagrid!" Chris cried.
Quick as lightning, the Dragon snatched the manuscript from Liz's bag, with the translation too. Her senses finally regained, Liz whipped out her wand. "Accio!" she yelled. Both the original and the translation flew to her.
"Impedimenta!" yelled the Dragon. Liz flew backwards, flipping head over heels and landing in the dirt. The translation landed unharmed next to her, but she fell on the original and it ripped. "Crucio!" the Dragon cried. Pain filled every inch of Liz's body. She screamed in agony. Chris seemed to be afraid to help, for fear that he too might get a share in the pain. The Dragon didn't stop until he had the two manuscripts again. Then he released his painful grip and reached for his broom.
Panting, Liz yelled, "Inflamaria!" A flame shot from her wand at the original. It caught on fire. The Dragon dropped it before it burned to ashes. Then he looked up in rage at Liz. "You! Avada Kedavra!"
Almost as if time had stopped, Liz saw the green light of the spell flying at her in slow motion. She felt paralyzed, frozen. Her muscles had failed her. She would join her father now…
Liz almost didn't hear Chris yell, "Protego!" A Shield Charm appeared before him, and he had thrown himself in front of Liz. That wouldn't matter, though; the Shield Charm never worked against the Killing Curse. They would both die, because the spell had failed.
Or at least, it was supposed to.
The ray of light rebounded off the Shield Charm at an angle. It hit a tree, which fell back dead into the forest. Chris was rammed against Liz, his weight and the force of the spell hurling them both to the ground. Chris was unconscious, barely breathing, but still alive.
"Imperio!" yelled the Dragon into the night. Liz's mind was wiped blank of all thoughts. Then a nagging voice in the back of her head told her to ride with the Dragon on his broom. She stepped forward, toward the Dragon, who was grinning maliciously.
Professor Magus, who had been vainly trying to stand since the Dragon had gotten his wand back, shouted, "Finite Incantatem!" The blissful, thoughtless feeling was gone, and Liz was suddenly aware that she was a foot from the Dragon, who was now looking murderous. "I know who you are," he said to Magus. "I know your secret. Show yourself, or Potter's child dies."
"You're going to kill her anyway," Magus spat.
"And if I am? If you reveal your secret, I might spare her for next time."
Magus glared up at him. "I have no energy left. I cannot change."
"What sort of fool do you take me for?" the Dragon roared. "If you had no energy, you wouldn't be able to keep up your façade. Do it now, before I kill you!"
Professor Magus squeezed her eyes shut, like she was thinking very hard. There occurred a series of pops that revealed Professor Magus. But she didn't look like herself anymore. She was thinner, for being almost fifty, and her black hair was now tipped with a deep blue. Her whole face was transformed.
"You're a Metamorphmagus!" Liz cried suddenly.
"Nymphadora Tonks, to be exact," said the Dragon, his wand aimed directly at Liz's heart. "Av—"