Disclaimer: Based on the work of JK Rowling, the goddess of YA. Please don't sue.
Chapter 14 – Battle at Manchester
Albus recalled that Lorelei had stayed abnormally silent as they stood atop the roof of the Manchester house that Christmas day. He had taken advantage of the silence, working to break the numerous spells that had been placed there. Below them, they could hear shouts, cries and roars, and Albus glanced once to see who was doing the fighting. He could see five wizards, all who were probably loyal to Grindelwald. He turned his glance to Lorelei and realized she was staring at him, looking slightly frightened, though he wasn't immediately sure if she was afraid of the situation or of what he had done.
As if responding to his thoughts she managed, "Ma -- manticores are very dangerous, Albus."
"Yes, I am aware of that fact, Lorelei. But however much they seem like manticores, they are gnomes, capable only of the same sentience as a gnome, as well as the same mischievous behavior. I might have preferred allies of a different sort, but there simply wasn't time. As you know, gnomes are nearly impossible to injure with a wand; they're resistant to magic for the most part, and probably will not suffer any for their adventure, though I promise I do not plan to leave them in that form." He did not point out that his own ability to transfigure the creatures showed their vulnerability under the right circumstances and magical prowess. He was worried for the creatures because he was generally very fond of gnomes, but the desperate nature of the situation had left him little choice. Albus turned his attention back to his charm-breaking, flicking his wand at the last of the enchantments to disable it.
"That's – it's just -- how powerful are you, Albus?" Lorelei floundered after a long pause. It was a question she had never asked before that moment, and in all their time together, it had never before been an issue.
He searched her face once, trying to decide if she was more afraid of Grindelwald or him. "The most powerful wizard is only as strong as the knowledge with which he has armed himself. I am a professor of transfiguration, Lorelei, and I am still a student at heart. Come, we need to make haste!" The two swung themselves carefully into the window and proceeded through the room they had entered. Albus forced himself not to dwell on her words or to wonder if his answer had appeased her, as they walked cautiously down the adjoining hall. Years before, when he had been a headstrong boy and full of himself, he had destroyed many friendships with conceit. It had taken years to understand the price of his lack of humility, and many more still until he had become humbled enough to understand that powerful though he was, he could be destroyed by a mere child if the circumstances were right. While the ambitious youth in him had wanted to someday be the greatest wizard in the world, the mature man understood that greatness was an illusion weighed on a faulty scale.
"Lolly?" Lorelei spoke into the air suddenly. There was a very loud crack and Lolly appeared. She was huddled in a tight ball as if she had been hiding when Lorelei had called her.
"Lolly!" Lorelei gasped her relief. "Do you know where Arabella is?"
Confused by the disillusionment spell, Lolly looked around and finally answered her unseen mistress while staring in the wrong direction. "She be out of it Miss! Sleepin' in her old room."
"If she was in danger, you were supposed to bring her to me!" Lorelei scolded, wringing her hands.
"She's not in danger, miss; only sleeping," the house-elf replied.
Lorelei whirled and began to walk the other direction, turning once to Lolly to say, "Stay close, Lolly!" She did not say anything to Albus, or even make eye contact with him. He supposed they would have to discuss his cryptic answer when the opportunity presented itself. In the meantime, however, he matched her pace and continued to stay on his guard.
"Lolly, it would be very helpful if you would render yourself invisible," Albus suggested. Lolly complied immediately, disappearing soundlessly. Albus knew she was close by, though the traces of her magic were so minute, he could barely sense her at all.
They traveled silently through the corridors to Arabella's locked door; a quick flick of Albus' wand opened it soundlessly. But what greeted them was a blast of blue light that Albus barely deflected in time.
"Wait, wait, wait," Elijah interrupted, pulling Albus back from reminiscing. "He lured you there at Christmas and attacked you. Why?"
"We believe that he had become convinced that George had shared the secret of whatever he had wanted to show us in that warehouse," Nicholas explained. "He knew that Albus would protect Lorelei and he suspected that Lorelei would come for her sister. Her mere presence at that house confirmed that suspicion, but we don't think Grindelwald had expected to come so close to losing everything."
"Everything?" Elijah repeated skeptically.
"Would you like me to continue?" Albus asked patiently.
"Be my guest," Elijah answered tartly. Nicholas furrowed his brow, but did not explain the look of concern.
"As I was saying," Albus began again, "We were met by a blast of magic. Judging by the color, it was a broad spectrum paralyzing spell – he obviously did not want to kill us at that point."
"He wanted something," Nicholas translated. Elijah only sighed impatiently.
Albus recounted how he and Lorelei had immediately gone on the offensive. Lorelei had shouted "Stupefy!" aiming her wand around the corner of the doorway as Albus sent "victusflamma" silently into the room, the fiery rope reaching to trap any human it could contact. It did not have the effect he had hoped for though. It seemed Grindelwald had been well prepared for Albus' favorite spells.
A loud pop echoed through the air, and brilliant light shown in a stream around the corner of the room. Albus had barely grabbed Lorelei in time, spinning quickly to disapparate and reappearing on the other side of the hallway. Protection spells on the room had kept them from actually apparating inside, though Albus was working to disarm them. He had felt a little foolish, not knowing if Arabella was actually still present at all, or if she was even alive, given the fact that Lolly had said she was sleeping. It had occurred to him that Lolly might have misjudged the level of danger, and that Arabella's sleep may have been induced.
The moment Albus had felt the magical protection evaporate inside the bedroom, Albus turned to disapparate, this time leaving Lorelei behind in case it was the wrong decision. But she was perfectly capable of independent apparition, and he found himself standing beside her in an empty bedroom. The narrow, canopied bed was empty, though wrinkled bed clothes and a large pillow with a concave impression showed that someone had been in it recently. It might have been a muggle child's bedroom for its contents: a collection of porcelain dolls in fancy dresses, a miniature china tea set, a fine silver hand mirror, comb, and brush on a vanity devoid of makeup or perfume. The only sign of any older inhabitant was a long, yellow dressing gown hanging from a coat hook on the wall. Grindelwald had vacated the room, and if Arabella was present, he'd taken her with him.
Frustrated, Lorelei had let out an angry sound that almost resembled a growl. "He's playing with us!" she added afterward. "He's had time to spell this house anyway he wants to, and we're like the mice in a maze!" She twitched her wand in her blond pin-curls as she considered their options, or at least that was what he had assumed she'd been doing. It certainly was how he had spent those moments. "Lolly, find Arabella and don't let them see you!" She ordered finally. They didn't see the house elf, but a loud crack announced her exodus. "Albus, have you any ideas?"
"Follow the magic," he'd answered softly. "My guess is that he will be surrounded by the strongest concentration of magic we can sense. But we only need Arabella for now. Hardly anyone believes us about Grindelwald. If we can find proof to hand them, it will help. If not, I think we should simply retrieve Arabella and leave so that he cannot use her as bait again."
"Agreed," she'd responded, finally meeting his eyes. She smiled fleetingly and it was enough to reassure him.
Albus then turned in a full circle, reaching with his senses to find the largest concentration of magic. But it had been a foolhardy decision to stay in one place so long. Several consecutive pops announced the arrival of Grindelwald and three subordinates. Albus recognized only one – Hans Vandenhoff – the man they'd seen wearing a Nazi uniform during the original dinner party. If he had been alone, Albus might simply have disapparated. But Lorelei was too far away to grasp, and had not moved to leave on her own. And then a momentary flash of silver light told Albus he'd have to break another disapparation charm on the room if he wanted to leave it.
Several stunning spells flew at them, blocked by Albus' quick wand work. He'd once again unleashed his fiery rope, pinning Vandenhoff and another man. Grindelwald had released them with the counterspell and Albus knew he'd have to come up with something less predictable.
He turned his wand at the porcelain dolls, enlarging them and transfiguring them to move, all while Lorelei tried "Impedimenta" against their attackers. Grindelwald's men continued to attempt numerous charms and hexes, most of which were deflected by shield charms. The next stunner aimed at Albus and Lorelei was blocked by a large doll with long brown hair. Her face was blown away, and the smiling lips landed absurdly at their feet while the enlarged toy continued to move toward the unfamiliar man at Grindelwald's left. Albus added an unbreakable charm to the others, fortifying them against the attacks. He watched, amused, as the wizards tried unsuccessfully to immobilize the advancing porcelain girls.
"Accio wand!" Lorelei shouted. It was usually impossible to separate a wizard from his wand in this way, but she must have caught the man off guard, as Vandenhoff's wand flew to her hand. Holding a wand in each hand, she aimed stunners in two directions, though only one hit its mark. Albus had felt himself smile, seeing a prime example of why Lorelei had been taken into Ravenclaw house during her Hogwarts education. He aimed his own spells at Grindelwald: a powerful shield breaker charm and bone-splintering hex. The first caught the dark wizard by surprise but he recovered quickly, conjuring a shimmering shield that caused the bone-splinter spell to bounce back at them. One of the transfigured dolls caught the brunt of it and shattered into tiny shards. A flick of Albus' wand gathered the flying shrapnel and hurtled it back at Grindelwald. While his opponent again shielded himself, Albus took the opportunity to place a paralyzing hex on his shortest companion. Unlike the stunners, this spell would not easily be removed, and he hoped it would slow them down.
"Fervidus Aguamenti!" Lorelei shouted. Boiling water erupted from her wand, hitting Grindelwald's taller companion in the face as he materialized to a new point in the room; he'd apparently disapparated, but she'd either guessed or felt his destination. The man screamed in agony and Albus was impressed. It had been an ingenious choice. He sent another paralyzing hex at that man, and summoned his wand simultaneously. Grindelwald was then alone in his fight.
Lorelei tried to use her boiling water spell on Grindelwald, but the man froze it instantly. Then darts erupted from the end of his wand, hurtling toward Lorelei. Albus turned them around, sending them back at Grindelwald with enormous speed. Grindelwald turned quickly to disapparate, having forgotten his own anti-apparation jinx; then, realizing his folly, ducked, but still caught the majority of the shrapnel in the face.
Lorelei rushed toward him and shouted, "Expelliarmus!" His wand flew from his hand out of his reach. "Where's my sister?" she demanded, holding her wand menacingly at his heart.
"You don't have the stomach to kill me," he'd snapped.
"You've entrapped my sister, manipulated my parents, and killed my brother – don't test me!" she roared. In that instant they could have destroyed him, if only either had chosen to do so. But it was then that Lolly appeared, magically levitating Arabella, who was unconscious. A simple distraction was all it took and Grindelwald's wand soared back into his hand. Albus had enough time to send a heart-stopping hex, but hesitated, unwilling to simply murder the man, who was no longer threatening him. A whispered incantation released the anti-apparition jinx on the room and Grindelwald spun in a whirl of robes and disappeared.
"But after all he had already done?" Elijah cried in disbelief. "I would not have thought twice about sending him to his grave!"
"I berated myself to Lorelei as we gathered Arabella and Lolly and vacated the premises. We did stop long enough check on the gnomes, both of whom had been killed. It added to my guilt, and we discussed the situation between ourselves and with Nicholas and Perenelle. No one regrets my failings more than I, especially now," Albus admitted, for if he had killed Grindelwald then, Lorelei would be alive now, as would countless others. Albus doubted there would ever be a time that he didn't regret his inaction. And he was suffering for it with a pain so strong, he felt he would bleed to death of it.
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