Gil mumbled some arcane words in a language that neither Harry nor Mel could understand – for it was the very tongue of spirits and specters which he spoke. His wand made curious motions in the air, and as the dim green light pulsed, a thick smoke began to arise from the cauldron, all but obscuring the three in it's misty gloom. The very air buzzed with enchantment; the scent of magic lay thick and dense in the closet.
Suddenly, Mel shrieked, though her form was now obscured by the green mists, her voice cut through them as a sword through a pat of warm butter. "A portent!" she cried.
"What?" Harry said, focusing on the magicworking being done before him, but still concerned for the girl. "What portent?"
"I have already informed you that I have been well-gifted in Visions since I was young – surely you have taken Divination, the air of the unknown hangs about you, which only the opening of the mind obtained by training in such matters can produce! The burning of certain herbs and plants produces a smoke with which one can use to peer into the matters of the future! This is such a smoke! I have such training! I have Seen!"
Gil, ignoring all but the call of his half-ghost side, continued with his mumbling and wand waving.
"What is it that you have foretold?" Harry asked her.
"Not weal, but woe! Woe! Woe shall betide us all!" she cried, her silvery voice trembling. "This jade miasma has informed me of its intent unless immediate action is taken! Gil, whatever you do, you must not…"
Before she could finish, there was a final, giant flash of light, an explosion of magic so powerful that it knocked Mel to the floor, unconscious. The smoke cleared, and Gil stood over his cauldron, a light sweat upon his brow – he wiped his forehead and smoothed his silvery locks back. "It is done!" he cried triumphantly.
"If it's finished, where's Sirrius!" Harry said angrily, "Where is he? What's happened to Mel?"
"This was a spell of summoning," Gil said simply. "It has called to him from across the Barrier between the Living and the Dead! Even now, he approaches, and works his way here to you, Harry! He shall come back, surely you know that these things take time – Voldemort took years."
"You can say his name with ease," said Harry, slightly shocked, as this was not something that one encountered in the Wizarding World outside of the naïve Muggle-born.
"I am a half-ghost, Harry. What have I to fear from death?"
"But what about Mel, then! Why is she unconscious, prone upon the floor of this broom closet!"
"The vast amounts of mystic powers invoked by this conjuration must have overwhelmed her senses – she is but a girl, and sensitive to the Unknown," Gil answered. "We must all, at some time or another, be taken over by the darkness from within."
"Mel, are you alright!" Harry cried, kneeling down to her. The greenish light still emanated from the cauldron, giving her eyes an emerald tint (or it would have, had they been open), and lending an unearthly air to her features. Her eyes fluttered, now showing the emerald tint, and she gazed upwards into Harry's now doubly-emerald eyes. "You're alright!" he said gratefully.
"Oh Harry," she murmured, her voice barely audible, "did he? Did he stir the cauldron with his wand… widdershins?"
"I, I don't know. I'm not even sure what that means," he said sheepishly.
"Gil!" she said slightly louder, "Gil, did you stir the potion with your wand!"
"Yes," he answered simply. "I did."
"Did you stir it in a clockwise fashion, or counter-clockwise?" Mel asked, managing to sit up with the help of Harry.
"Counter-clockwise," Gil answered. "I am well accustomed to this sort of summoning, and counter-clockwise is always how it is to be done! Are you accusing me of not being a half-ghost?"
"Oh, ruin!" she cried, leaning back into Harry's strong chest. "Sirius Black did not die a natural death, but instead traveled directly into the Land of the Dead via a curtain!"
"Curtains!" cried Gil.
"Yes, curtains!" she wailed. "The proper method to stir the potion was deasil, not widdershins! Clockwise, not counter-clockwise! O, the burden of my gift!" Here she swooned into Harry's arms.
"Gil, what will happen?" Harry said, worriedly.
"Even I cannot say," said Gil. "We can only wait, and practice in our bands until the time comes when all is revealed!"
"I only hope I have not involved the two of you in something unbearable," Harry said, as he carried Mel out of the closet, and into the awaiting night.
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Author's Notes:
Chris: Did you know that deasil was the opposite of widdershins? I did.
Lyssoh: I DID NOT KNOW. GOOD THING YOU WERE THERE LOL
