Author's Notes: Yes, I'm still alive! And as a little holiday treat, I've written a new chapter for you all! I apologize for taking so long to write this. I realize my past few chapters have come at a rather slow and inexcusable pace. I had finals last week at school (dreadful, dreadful … fortunately, I passed them all with B's or higher), I've been doing hysterical last-minute Christmas shopping along with the rest of the world, my social life has taken a turn for the better, and sometimes I suffer from short-term writer's block and just can't work up the incentive to finish paragraphs. That does not mean I am thinking about leaving this story. I'm rather fond of my little plot so far, and how well this has been going. I just cannot devote as much time as I wish I could, therefore resulting in the slow postings. :

As I hope you all know already : book six is coming out July 16th, 2005! Hurrah, hurrah! Only half a year away … but that will definitely give us all something to look forward to, eh? So hopefully, I'll be able to finish this never-ending story before then, giving me ample time to read, re-read, re-re-read, and mourn over whoever dies.

I know this chapter is a tiny bit shorter than the others, but I'm desperate to post this before Christmas in the US and it just seemed an appropriate time to stop.

Let this be a warning : this chapter was very difficult for me to write, because of a certain event that takes place that I hope should never take place in real life. I am not a demonic, homicidal person … certain things fit with the plot that I have to include. A writer must do the best he or she can at creating a good story, and sometimes, some things are a bit … erm, delicate.

So read on, and tell me what you think – am I confusing you? Am I answering questions? Did this chapter suck? Was it not as suspenseful as I thought it was? Was it too sickening? Should I stop with the questions?

Happy holidays and Merry Christmas. :)

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CHAPTER EIGHTEEN: TRAGEDY IN THE FOREST

The alarming scream that had alerted the shaken trio resounded throughout the eerily silent Forest. Birds rose from the tops of the trees and hares took off down the snow-littered paths towards their burrows. The shriek, prolonged and terrifying, seemed to be more feminine than masculine. It could have easily come from a colleague, or perhaps the missing student. Hermione ran different scenarios through her mind as she, Ron, and Harry battled with the fierceness of the Forbidden Forest to reach their destination. The jungle of trees appeared to be unusually unruly in this particular area, making it difficult for the three adults to travel.

As quickly as the scream had come, it had stopped. Five seconds, perhaps, had it lasted. It sounded as if it came from the left, so the group headed relatively northwest in hopes of coming in contact with the victim in question.

A stinging sensation arose in Hermione's injured arm as they traveled on, interfering with her breathing and making it difficult to keep up with Harry and Ron. The wound was still fresh and quite open to infection, she knew, but nothing would deter her from her mission. She gritted her teeth together, stumbling over tree roots and ducking under low branches, as she kept a steady pace aside Harry and Ron. The sooner they reached the origin of the scream, the sooner they would probably find the missing student … and the sooner she would receive medical attention at the school. She imagined her arm would take a few hours, perhaps even a day, to heal, as bad as the wound seemed to be – maybe she would even take a day off from teaching, as she had been quite tired as of late …

Hermione's thoughts were abruptly interrupted when another shriek rang through the cold, crisp air. Voices drifted in their direction, harsh voices that had an inhuman air about them. She could hear a strange, garbled language being spoken in tones she did not recognize. Sparks of light vividly flashed through the trees, lighting a path to the source of the commotion. Hermione's arm gave another painful throb, causing her eyes to water, but she pushed herself on after Harry and Ron, who had identical panic-stricken expressions visible on their faces.

"STOP! IMPEDIMENTA! IMPEDIMENTA!"

"Bloody hell," Ron muttered, darting ahead of Harry and quickening his pace.

Screeches and heavy footsteps reverberated throughout the Forest. The trio seemed to be enclosing on the pandemonium; the Forest floor shook as more roars disturbed the tranquility. Harry and Ron both stopped dead in their tracks, raising their wands in anticipation and looking straight on through a patch of thick trees. Harry turned his neck around and shot Hermione a glance, as if warning her to stay back.

"What?" Hermione asked indignantly.

"I think it'd be best if you stayed here," Harry muttered, edging forward ever so slightly.

"Excuse me, but I am the trained WIA spy here. You should be thankful to have such an asset to your team," said Hermione, furrowing her brow in both annoyance and pain due to the excruciating sting in her arm.

"She's hurt her arm," Ron explained to Harry as if Hermione wasn't standing a foot behind him. "She should run back up to the school and alert McGonagall, then go on to the Hospital Wing. We can take it form here, don't you think?"

"Agreed."

"I will not do anything of the sort," Hermione hissed. Harry and Ron both turned to face her, their wands still raised. "My arm is just as good as anyone's. In fact, I don't feel anything at all anymore. I think it's completely healed, actually," she added, clenching her teeth.

"Hermione, we don't know what we're dealing with here," Harry said. "Stay here as a look out and yell to us if anyone's coming. Or, like Ron said, get McGonagall. She needs to be notified –" Harry was cut off as a mass of green sparks burst through the tops of the trees, illuminating the sky like fireworks. Complicated curses were exchanged for a few seconds, followed by muffled screams and gruff shouts. Hermione noted how quickly the remaining color drained from Harry's already stark face.

"Come on, Ron," Harry muttered gravely. Him and Ron whirled around and headed towards the dense patch of evergreens. Multicolored flashes of light elucidated their figures and their straight, determined faces. Watching them retreat away from her, Hermione clung onto her arm, which was still freshly drenched in her own blood. She squeezed her eyes shut for several seconds, willing the pain to go away, before snapping them open again. Her good arm shot down to her pocket; she withdrew her wand and within a moment, an impulse decision was made.

"What the hell -?"

Shoving Ron aside forcefully, Hermione pushed past the two Aurors, her wand raised high above her head. Harry and Ron stopped and watched, flabbergasted, as their female companion darted towards the scene of commotion. Earsplitting shrieks and more explosions of light came from behind the trees, but Hermione did not hesitate. Her hand reached out towards the curtain of branches that blocked her view …

"Hermione, NO!"

A second later, Hermione stepped onto the scene. She felt her body become immobile with shock and was rooted to the spot, only able to stare. Twisted trees bordered the spacious clearing she was standing in, giving the area an ethereal look. But she paid hardly any attention to her nature surroundings; instead, her gaze was focused on the baffling sight that met her eyes.

A horde of massive beasts were rampaging around the clearing. At closer inspection, Hermione realized them to be actual Acromantulas, the very creatures that Harry and Ron had the pleasure of meeting in their second year. Their very own colleagues, all of whom who had been involved in the search for the missing girl, were battling with the Acromantulas. Bursts of rainbow-colored lights came from various wands across the clearing; the over-sized spiders dodged the spells and curses with ease, clicking their pincers and speaking a bizarre language of their own.

Hermione caught a glimpse of red hair as a figure moved past her. The girl, who turned out to be Ginny, glanced at Hermione for a mere second, and then did a double take. A smaller Acromantula was just inches behind her, squeaking eerily and lashing its tongue.

"Hermione?What are you –?"

Ginny spun around with a shriek as the beast attached itself to the hem of her robes. She pointed her wand just between its eyes and yelled a curse; a moment later, the spider was blown with force out of the clearing and across the tops of many trees.

"Stay back!" Ginny warned Hermione before dashing across the clearing to assist Desdemona, who was being cornered by a rather nasty-looking duo of Acromantulas.

This is complete chaos, Hermione thought. If someone didn't do something soon, half the teachers at Hogwarts would be finished off by a pack of ravenous Acromantulas. Hermione honestly did not understand why these creatures were being so hostile; usually, Acromantulas only attack when provoked, or when a human wanders into their lair. This most certainly did not seem to be a lair. But then again, Acromantulas were deranged beasts that one did not fancy coming in contact with. Remembering an ancient spell that she had picked up while traveling through Greece, Hermione raised her wand once more, summoning all the power that she could while still attempting to ignore the throbbing pang in her arm.

"ARACHNESTATUM!"

Much to Hermione's relief, the scene immediately fell silent. Acromantulas across the clearing found themselves immobilized, some in mid-air, some just inches away from their victims. The other professors looked as if they were immobilized themselves, but when they realized they were still able to budge, they pulled themselves off the ground, brushing their robes off and gazing around at their peers. Professor Flitwick took this opportunity to wave his wand magnificently in a circle; seconds later, the Acromantulas had disappeared into thin air, and only small twinklings of light signified where they once were. Still, Hermione couldn't help but grin at her own cleverness.

Harry and Ron crashed into the clearing behind Hermione. Still stumbling, they stared in astonishment from Hermione and the glowing tip of her wand to their colleagues and the fading shimmers. Neither one had any intention of speaking.

"Still think I'm useless?" Hermione muttered under her breath, smirking at the two. She did not wait for an answer and instead rushed towards Ginny, who was closest, and began helping her off the grimy Forest floor.

"Thanks," Ginny breathed, massaging the side of her head where a very nasty bump was visible. Her robes were torn, as were everyone else's, but other than that, she appeared to be quite in tact. "Where did you learn a thing like that?"

"Just picked it up somewhere," Hermione muttered absentmindedly. Her vision blurred for a moment; the pain in her arm had returned, more noticeable and prominent than ever. Blood was still seeping through her robes and by now, her entire arm was drenched in the crimson, sticky liquid.

"You saved us all," Ginny continued. "I don't think many of us have much experience with Acromantulas. Bloody beasts," she added, bending down to adjust her shoes, one of which had a large gaping whole where her toes stuck out. "One of them decided to take a bite out of my foot, see? Just barely missed my skin."

Ginny's head reappeared and a concerned look crossed her face. "Hey, are you okay? What's the matter with your arm?"

"Nothing," Hermione grunted. "Just cut it on a branch, that's all."

"What the hell's going on?" Harry demanded, stepping into the light of the clearing and gazing around at his colleagues with a bemused look on his face. There was not one face that did not possess a startled or frightened countenance. Each and every person was as white as the snow; their features appeared to be set in stone and, Hermione quickly realized, they all appeared to be staring in one unanimous direction.

"Gin, what are you staring at?" Ron asked Ginny curiously. She was gazing at something just over Hermione's shoulder, her eyes round with terror and a peculiar look apparent on her face.

"I don't believe it," Professor Sprout whispered.

"Believe what?" said Ron, turning to follow the gazes of Ginny and the others. Hermione watched as his jaw fell slack and a look similar to everyone else's formed on his face. "Bloody hell," he repeated.

A sickening feeling began to grow in Hermione's abdomen as she too turned her body, interested in what was keeping her colleagues so occupied yet knowing that whatever it was, it was nothing to be excited about. And the sight that met her eyes was a terrible one that she would never forget.

Something was hanging from a thick tree branch in the shadows. Hermione's vision was once again distorting; she squeezed her eyes tightly, trying to ignore her agonizing injury and attempting to make out what she was seeing. To her left, Harry was drawing out his wand and pointing it towards the shadows.

"Lumos."

A concurrent intake of breath swept the clearing, mingling with the high-pitched shriek that came from Hermione. She wanted more than anything to take her eyes off the scene before her, but she knew that she couldn't – it was terribly appalling yet captivating at the same time. In all her years of service to the WIA, she had never seen a sight so nauseating and dreadful. Nothing made any sense. She tried convincing herself that her eyes were tricking her, but it was not successful.

There wasn't something hanging from the tree branch – there was someone. Like the punishment for criminals that had not been witnessed in centuries, a person was hanging from the tree, in a noose. The mangled body was motionless, its dark robes hanging off of it limply. Hermione felt like becoming violently sick on the spot; this was purely inhumane. Whether Muggle or wizard, people were not hanged anymore like this. It simply was not done.

"That's her," Harry said in a strangled sort of voice. "That's – that's the missing student."

"Oh, God," Hermione murmured.

Nobody was able to speak for what seemed like ages. All eyes were focused on the act of cruelty before them; all hearts were broken, slashed, sickened. Ginny let out a small sob next to Hermione and buried her frost-bitten face in her hands. Hermione herself had to fight back tears. Just days before, Irene Farnsworth, a mere fourth year, had been sitting in the back of her class, quietly taking notes and doing the work as asked. Hermione barely even noticed her. She was a shy, reserved girl, but a good student nevertheless. And now she was dead. Murdered.

Footsteps interrupted the silence and Hermione, finally tearing her eyes away from the dead girl, twisted her neck to see McGonagall stumbling onto the scene. Bella was just feet behind her, looking as shaken and traumatized as anyone. McGonagall's hair was bouncing and falling out of her tight bun, framing her bleak, flabbergasted face. The crowd stepped apart to let her though; she came to a halt at Hermione's side and stared, just as everyone else had, upon seeing such an awful tragedy.

"Bella said – but I did not believe it –" McGonagall managed, her lips barely moving as the words came out. "I don't – there's no way. Is she surely -?"

Harry stepped forward and stretched out his arm towards the limp corpse. He seized a wrist and stood still for a minute. Then –

"There's no trace of a pulse at all," he muttered, letting the wrist flop down at the girl's side again. "She's dead."

McGonagall let out a small ''oh'' and put a hand to her chest, her gaze still transfixed on the figure hanging from the tree. Hermione studied the expression in her face; it was a difficult one to read, but Hermione was able to conclude that McGonagall was as stunned as she was. If McGonagall didn't have an answer for this heinous act, then who would?

"Did – did anyone witness this?" Her question was met with shakes of the head. "Does anyone have any idea what … what happened?" Still more shakes.

"I believe I was the first to find her," Desdemona spoke up in a small voice, which was quite unlike her. All eyes moved from the girl to her. She glanced around, her expression still identical to the ones of her colleagues, before continuing. "I had been following a set of footprints and it led me to this clearing. When I got here, a horde of Acromantulas was gathered around the body, probably preparing to feast on it since they're attracted to human meat. I realized what it was and … and I tried frightening the Acromantulas off, but there were too many, so I imagine I screamed and started sending up sparks. Then the others got here, and we attempted to fight them off to preserve the body, but it didn't work. Vicious creatures, they are. Fortunately, Hermione here turned up and did some foreign spell that immobilized them, and Filius poofed them back to wherever they came from." When she had finished, Desdemona took several deep breaths of the cold, winter air.

"This – this is horrible," McGonagall murmured, possibly more to herself than the others. These words seemed to be the only ones she could speak. "One of our own students has just been brutally murdered," she whispered in disbelief. Then, straightening her back a little, she turned around to face the small crowd of professors all waiting for an answer from their leader.

"The Ministry will have to be notified straight away," McGonagall announced. "There is no way around this and it would only look bad on our part if we attempted to conceal this tragedy. Ginny, please send one of our fastest owls out to the Minister as soon as we arrive back at the school. Tell him to bring along his best specialists that deal with crimes in this field. I will send out an owl to the girl's family personally. No one is to say a word to the students, understand? I will call an emergency assembly tonight and address the whole school at once.

"Whether we want to acknowledge it or not, the fact is that we have a murderer in our midst. I highly doubt that any one of my trusted colleagues is responsible for this heinous act, but we can't be too careful. New rules will be issued to each common room immediately. Students and professors alike will be warned to watch for their own safety. Doors and passages will be tightly locked.

"Please, if any of you come across any evidence at all that may be beneficial to me or the Ministry, do not hesitate to come forward. Quite honestly, I believe that Hogwarts and all its inhabitants are in very grave danger. Our main priority now is to keep the students calm. I do not want a repeat of the dreadful misfortune we have all witnessed this morning. You are dismissed back to the castle."

McGonagall took one swift look around the clearing and at the corpse hanging from the tree before turning on her heel in a direction that vaguely led to the castle. Hermione was amazed at how serious and strong the woman could remain in such a state of emergency. While she felt as if she were crumbling away herself, McGonagall somehow managed to give off an air of bravery, like none of this affected her at all, while Hermione knew that it really affected her as much as anyone.

The clearing slowly emptied as the other professors silently made their way back up to the castle in the path of McGonagall. Some of them stole woeful glances at the unfortunate girl while some did not turn their heads at all, wanting to rid their mind of the awful image forever. Hermione knew that as hard as she would try, the image would forever permeate her brain.

Harry and Ron had been lingering some five feet away from the hanging corpse, watching the other professors disappear amongst the snow-covered trees. Harry was glancing periodically at the girl, a strange expression engulfing face. Hermione did not make any motion to follow the last professor, Sprout; instead, she remained behind with Harry and Ron, knowing that they were up to something.

When the final footsteps faded away into the silence, Ron turned to Harry. "They're gone. Go for it," he said.

Harry dodged forward and grabbed the girl's robes. Hermione watched close by, utterly confused at what he was doing, and why he would want to come in such close contact with a dead body. Seconds later, he was extracting something yellow from inside a pocket; straining her eyes and moving towards Harry, Hermione realized it was a crumbled piece of parchment.

"What is that?" Hermione asked. She and Ron quickly gathered behind Harry as he began to open the parchment.

"This," Harry said, a note of excitement in his voice, "is a piece of paper that I noticed five minutes ago sticking out of Farnsworth's pocket. And from the looks of it, it's probably a note the killer left behind for us to find."

"Harry," Hermione scolded, grabbing his hand before he could smooth out the paper to read. "This is evidence. We need to take this to McGonagall, remember? This is a potential clue that could possibly give us a lead on who killed her. And the other professors are just as involved as we are." However, a moment after Hermione finished her last sentence, she realized how incorrect it actually was.

"They aren't half as involved as we are," Harry said angrily, and Hermione knew it to be true. "McGonagall would only confiscate it and hand it over to the Ministry. They're in this now too, you know. And we want them to know as little as possible.. Now let go, this could be important. I think I have a pretty good idea what's going on here."

Hermione drew back her hand as Harry flattened the parchment. Together, the trio read the note silently as Harry read aloud.

"'Because of your foolishness, this girl is now dead. You have been warned to stay out of this case for the last time, and you know which case I speak of. Unless you wish for more students to meet the same end as this imprudent child, you will heed my advice. Hogwarts is my playground; no amount of spells and charms can impede me.

"'And Potter – I do hope you'll miss your book.

"'Signed,

B.L.'"

No one spoke after Harry finished reading the letter. No one could form any comprehensible thoughts as they were all equally suffering from shock and confusion. Nothing made any sense to Hermione. Nothing, except –

"B.L. … Bellatrix Lestrange."