I don't own Hellsing or Harry Potter, and I'm not making any money from this.
Everything was so bright. Too bright, to be honest. The grass in the open field was a vivid, neon green color and grew tall enough to brush at the knees. If one were to sit down in it, they would completely disappear. In and amongst the blades of grass, a wide variety of flowers grew. Daisies, snap-dragons, irises, and lilies... and each type blazed brightly with unearthly looking colors that seemed to glow and shimmer if you looked at them long enough. It was so beautiful.
Constance honestly had no idea where she was, but she felt perfectly safe there. It probably helped that there was a girl her age with her. A pretty, thin, slightly wild looking girl about Connie's height, with bright blue eyes and hair that was too brown to be red, but too red to be brown. Chestnut. Wasn't that what you were supposed to call that shade? They both were sitting cross-legged in the grass, the long blades reaching high over their heads while they wove selected flowers they had picked into head wreaths. Constance was trying to tie a pink daisy to an iris without breaking the delicate stems when she suddenly realized that this wasn't normal. She was supposed to be on the train to school, wasn't she? Not sitting in a field of flowers making head ornaments with some mysterious wild girl she'd never seen before.
"Um..." she began, studying her surroundings, then her strange companion. "Where am I? And who are you?"
The girl sitting across from her lifted her eyes from her work. "I'm your gun, Persephone. And this is spirit land. See?"
One of her fingers pointed upwards and Connie followed it. Hanging high in the glimmering sapphire sky was a sun with an exuberant smile on it's face. It was so happy that it bounced around, as if dancing the only way it could without arms or legs. She'd heard various members of her family talk about this place before. The so called 'spirit land' was where the gun spirits seemed to reside. When they wished to speak to one of their owners, they could pull them into it while they slept.
"So... I'm dreaming?" Connie asked, not daring to assume anything.
Persephone nodded. "I've wanted to come out and warn you about things several times, but you're always surrounded by people who don't need to see me and you never keep a mirror with you when you're alone. You need to work on that, Miss Hellsing."
It was strange to be given instructions by a spirit, but Persephone's voice was so calm. Even with her untamed hair flying around her and dressed in ripped jean shorts and a white tank top that bore dirt smudges like she'd been playing around in the earth, she was still surrounded by an air of quiet peacefulness. Like there was absolutely nothing that could bother her.
"You're the spirit of my gun?" she repeated carefully.
The girl smiled. "Of course, Miss Hellsing." she told her, then held out a flower. "Peony? It would look great next to the irises."
This was too strange for words. Connie wordlessly took the offered flower, then went back to studying her.
"Um... I don't mean to be rude, but you don't really act like the other gun spirits I've seen..."
"Well, it would be boring if all of us were the same, wouldn't it?" Persephone pointed out. "I'm a firm believer in Zen. Do you meditate at all? You should try it. It's excellent for calming the nervous system."
Wow, the girl thought to herself. So the spirit of her gun was a combination of a wild nature child, and a Zen Buddhist. Could you have put any two more opposite things together? She cleared her throat again.
"Why did you bring me here?" she asked her. "I've heard spirits only bring their owners here when something important is going on."
Persephone blinked at her, then finished up her wreath of flowers. She positioned it on the crown of her head, then sat up straighter.
"Oh right, about that. I wanted to tell you something." she said, then leaned forward. "Those dementor things your dad was teaching you how to defend yourself against? A group of them are going to board the train you're on soon. I'm not sure why, but I think they're looking for something."
Constance gave a start, her eyes going wide. "Dementors are coming onto the train?"
"Not this very second, but they will soon." Persephone corrected. "All the same, you should probably go on and wake up so you'll be prepared for them." she dropped her voice a hair. "They're worse than what you imagine when reading about them. When I first saw them, it looked like a group of grim reapers floating around. You seriously need to learn meditation, Miss Hellsing. Do you want me to give you a quick run through? It really helps, I promise."
This girl was telling her that dementors were about to board the train, and she wanted to know if Constance wanted a quick meditation lesson? She shook her head.
"I think I'll pass." she said, not sure what she was supposed to be feeling at a time like this. "I... think need to go."
"Have it your way then." Persephone replied with a shrug. "But do try to keep a mirror around. I can't help you very much if I can only talk to you while you're sleeping."
The girl gave her a nod of understanding. That was reasonable. She pushed herself up from the ground and looked around. It looked like there was nothing but grass for miles around.
"How... how do I get out of here?"
"Oh!" the female spirit exclaimed, as if suddenly realizing she'd forgotten something. "I'm sorry! Just close your eyes and I'll make sure you get back."
It sounded incredibly strange, but Connie figured that the girl had to know what she was talking about if she was able to bring her here in the first place. Following her instructions, the girl closed her eyes and waited.
There were no blinding flashes of light or overt feelings to indicate she was no longer dreaming. Only a subtle shift from the gentle breeze and scent of flowers and grass, to the soft rumbling of the Hogwarts Express traveling over the tracks. Connie's eyes slid open and she saw Lee and Fred propped up against each other with their eyes closed, a thin line of drool hanging from Jordan's open mouth. They must have fallen asleep and slid sideways in their seats to wind up that way. There was no way in hell the two boys would have knowingly put themselves in that position. Angelina was no where to be seen, and George... Constance pushed herself upright and found she had to slide herself under an arm that was holding her. George was asleep as well and it seemed she'd been curled up in his lap, laying on him like he were a pillow. She shot a quick glance at the other two boys, then poked at his chest.
"George." she whispered. When she got no response, she took hold of his shoulders and shook him. "George, wake up."
He shifted slightly then opened his eyes to blink at her. "Huh?" he peered around, looking confused for a moment, then took in the position they were in. A slow smile crept across his features. "Hey Connie, you know if you wanted to molest me you don't have to wait until I'm asleep to do it."
Constance's mouth fell open in shock and she gave him a sharp punch to the shoulder. "Shut your mouth, George Weasley!" she exclaimed, then clamped a hand over her mouth when she realized how loud she'd been.
She didn't have much to worry about because the two sleeping boys made no overt reaction to her outburst. Jordan just gave a small snort and Fred muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like 'Can I get the pink bowtruckle, mom?'
Connie blew out a rush of air in relief. "Where's Angelina?" she asked quietly, glancing back at him.
"She got pulled off to sit with her friends after the last game." George told her. He studied her carefully, noticing her worried expression. "What's wrong?"
Connie didn't know how to even begin explaining. She pushed herself out of his lap and cleared her throat. "There's someth..."
Her words were cut off when the train rocked violently. The force of the motion knocked both of the boys sitting across from them wide awake. They bolted upright and looked around with wide eyes.
"What the..." Fred began, only to be pitched out of his seat when the compartment gave another hard shudder. "Hey!"
The brakes squealed as the train came to a complete halt. Connie scuttled over to the window to look outside. They were on the long bridge that marked the halfway point of their journey to Hogwarts. The sky outside was filled with nasty looking storm clouds and a light drizzle that threatened to turn into a full downpour had begun to fall. It looked like nature itself was attempting to give a warning of what was coming. Loud, worried sounding conversations could be heard coming from the nearby compartments. None of the other students knew what was going on and everyone sounded concerned. When the girl pulled her eyes away from the window, she saw Lee had pulled open the door of their compartment and his head was stuck out in the hallway, hoping to catch a glimpse of something.
"What the hell are you doing?" she exclaimed. Constance jumped forward and grabbed a handful of his dreadlocks to pull him back.
"OW! Merlin's beard, what's wrong with you?" Jordan shouted once she let go.
Constance was about to go off on him for being stupid enough to stick his head outside without knowing what the hell was out there, when a strong, oppressive feeling overwhelmed her. From the boys' expressions, they felt it as well. It was like all the happiness and light in the world was suddenly sucked away. Only a dark sadness remained, giving one the feeling of having to think through a fog. No... a fog wasn't quite right. It was worse than that. It was more like... mud. A thick, sticky kind of mud that you had to claw your way through to get a sense of anything more than the heavy darkness that took over your mind. The raindrops spattering against the outside of the window made thin trails of water that froze solid within moments. It didn't take long for the entire pane of glass to frost over completely. Their breath came out as mist as the temperature continued to drop, giving the air a sharp, frigid bite.
"Bugger me..." George whispered, staring at the door leading out to the hallway.
Without looking away, he grabbed at Connie's arm and tugged her back behind him. She wasn't quite sure what he planned to do if a dementor came in, but she definitely noticed the protectiveness of the action. All of them were standing now. There was no way to sit quietly in their seats and just wait for what was coming. Something had to be done. That depressive feeling grew stronger and stronger with every second that passed. Constance had been able to produce a protective circle large enough for her, but she couldn't leave the boys with nothing... Then an idea struck her. In situations where you couldn't pull enough energy up for something on your own, it was possible to pull it out of someone else. She'd only learned the theory behind it, but surely if she focused she'd be able to do it. Connie leaned forward to whisper in George's ear.
"Do you trust me?" she asked, low enough that only he could hear it.
He blinked and turned his head to glance at her over his shoulder. "Yes... Wha..."
"Don't ask any questions and don't fight me." she told him quickly in the same quiet tone. "I'll explain later."
Before he had a chance to protest or ask anything else about what she was doing, Constance placed her right hand flat on the center of his back and closed her eyes. All living things had an energy field surrounding them. The aura of a person was almost like a battery of stored energy. Not all of it was magical, but any form of energy could be converted into something useful with a little effort. Trying to focus through the haze draped over her mind was more difficult than the girl had imagined it would be, but she managed to claw her way through the murkiness and searched out sources of energy around her. The train was stopped over a river. It was far below the bridge, but she could sense the wild movement of it. Then there was George's aura – a pulse of bright energy that was comfortingly familiar. Cinnamon and gunpowder. She reached out with her mind and pulled from both sources, mixing them with her own personal energy to form a store she could use for construction. Once she was sure she had enough, Constance focused on directing it around all four of them to build a wall of protection.
Form a sphere. She instructed it in her mind. All around us. Above and below, through the ceiling, floor, and walls... It was doing as it was told, but a lot slower than she would have liked. Connie could feel that foreboding feeling getting too close for comfort. Her eyes screwed shut even tighter with the effort she was putting into the casting. Come on, come on...
Finally, the last bit of energy snapped into place over their heads and the circle was fully formed. The oppressive feel of the dementors was still present, but not nearly as overwhelming as before. She half wondered if the guys would say something about the sudden change, but she didn't hear them making any comments. When her eyes slid open, she found out why. They were a little distracted by what was going on in front of them.
Just beyond the glass door of their compartment, a dementor had it's back to them. Persephone's description was dead on. It did look like the grim reaper. Nearly ten feet tall, long and thin, with a flowing black shroud wrapped around it's skeletal body. It looked like it was pulling open the door of the compartment across from theirs to search inside. They could clearly hear the frightened whimpers of the students within. The creature remained there for a few moments before it was joined by a second which seemed to direct it's attention further down the train. The two dementors exited the compartment across from them and floated past. Neither of them even glanced in their direction.
Fred took a tentative step forward to peer out into the hall without actually opening the door. "Who's bright idea was it to let bloody dementors on the train?" he demanded, apparently feeling braver now that they were gone.
Out in the hall, a small group of students quickly ran past. It looked like they were trying to get toward the part of the car that had already been searched so they'd be around more people. Safety in numbers did seem like the best way to go in this situation, since no one knew if the creatures would come back through a second time. The four of them looked amongst each other and a silent decision was made to follow suit. Constance quickly dropped her protective circle so Fred and Lee wouldn't feel it when they walked out. But as she moved to follow, George pulled her back.
"What did you just do?" he asked, his hazel eyes searching her own for some sort of explanation for what had just happened.
Constance shushed him, then peered at the door to make sure no one was near enough to hear them. "My dad taught me how to build energy circles as a defense against the dementors." she told him once she was sure it was safe to speak. "I've never built one bigger than just for me, so I had to pull energy out of you to do it."
Considering that pulling energy out of a person without telling them what you were doing was the equivalent of psychic vampirism, Connie sincerely hoped George wouldn't be upset about it. But then, it was a complicated situation and she had asked him if he trusted her before doing anything... Thankfully, he didn't look angry.
"That's what that weird feeling was?" he asked, then drew in a breath when she gave him a small nod. "Holy..." he paused and shook his head. "You've got to teach me how to do that."
Connie's eyes widened a hair. "Teach you how to build a protective circle?" she said, making sure she'd heard him correctly. "I... I can try, but... George, you really want to learn sorcery? What would happen if your mother found out about you doing that?"
Mrs. Weasley had made it known that she thought sorcery was one of the most dangerous things a person could do. George gave her a look and snorted.
"If mom knew half the things me and Fred have done, she'd beat us until we couldn't walk." he told her. "What she doesn't know won't hurt her."
Connie had to admit he had a point. Fred and George weren't famous at school for doing safe things... But she still didn't know how he would fare in a sorcery lesson. High magic was completely different than witchcraft. It required a different mindset and was incredibly difficult to learn. She'd been taking lessons since she was very young, so one could say it came easier to her because she was indoctrinated into how it worked. Someone who'd grown up with a basis in witchcraft would have a harder time because of all the rules they'd grown up learning that didn't apply to sorcery.
"Okay." she said at last, inclining her head. "But it's not going to be easy."
George slid an arm around her shoulders. "Since when have I ever cared about something not being eas..."
His words were cut off by a shrill, feminine scream that pierced through the air. It was coming from the back of the Gryffindor car. One could never be absolutely sure with a scream, but it sounded familiar.
"NO! Get out! I don't want it! Get out of me!"
All the color drained out of George's face. "Ginny..." he whispered, then dropped his arm and rushed out of the compartment.
Constance's suspicion was confirmed when she heard him say his sister's name. Another terrified shriek rang out and she bolted out into the hallway as well. What on earth was going on to make her scream like that? Students were still trying to make their way toward the front of the car, so it was hard to get past them in the narrow hallway. As she was trying to push her way through, Fred came running up behind. He must have recognized the sound of Ginny's voice as well.
"Get out of the bleeding way!" he shouted, sounding both irritated and nervous. "That's my sister!"
They finally managed to push through the mass of students who were made more frantic in their escape by the sound of screaming and caught up to George. As they ran up, they saw a a group of three dementors rushing down the hall away from them. It looked like they were being chased off by a large, glowing white... wolf? Seeing that the frightening creatures were being driven in the opposite direction, Connie and the twins quickly ran toward the compartment they had been at.
This must have been the room where Harry, Ron, and Hermione had chosen to sit. There was an older man with messy brown hair and a set of scars running across his face who was with them as well. His clothes had a threadbare appearance and they were a bit too big for him. Like he had lost a great deal of weight at some point and never bothered to replace them. Constance had never seen him before and immediately wondered who he was. However, before she could even think about asking about his identity, her attention was diverted by the state everyone was in. Harry was unconscious, laid across the seats on one side of the compartment like he had fainted. Ginny was curled up in a fetal position on the floor, rocking back and forth and muttering to herself while tears streamed down her face. Hermione was holding her in her arms, trying to get her to calm down. Both she and Ron – who was still pressed up against the wall looking panicked, were white in the face. Both of the twins dropped to their knees in front of their sister.
"What happened?" George questioned, taking in the way everyone looked.
Hermione looked up from comforting Ginny. "The dementors came in here and frightened everyone." she said in a shaky voice. "They did something to Harry to make him pass out. Then Ginny ran in..."
The younger girl's eyes were glazed over, haunted and fearful. "I could feel him inside of me." she whispered. "You Know Who... I could feel him in my head again..." her words broke off and her hands drew up to the sides of her face, clenching into fists as she whimpered. "Oh God, I didn't mean to let him in! I didn't mean... to... "
Oh no... The dementor's presence made Ginny relive being possessed by the diary again. None of them knew what to do to help her. How were you supposed to get someone to calm down after going through something like that? The strange man in the compartment with them put the wand he was holding back into his pocket and crouched down next to the girls on the floor.
"It's alright. They're gone now." he said in a smooth, soothing voice. "Try to calm down. Take slow, deep breaths."
He pressed the back of his hand to Ginny's forehead, then reached into his pocket and pulled out what looked like a bar of chocolate. He broke off a piece and offered it to her.
"Eat this." he told her. "It helps."
Ginny sniffled and studied him for a long moment before gingerly reaching out to take the offered bit of candy. The man gave her a gentle smile when she began nibbling at it. He rose up to take a more comfortable position on one of the seats, then started breaking off pieces of chocolate for everyone else. It was the oddest thing Connie had ever seen. He was giving them candy to calm down?
"Um..." she said, watching as he passed a piece of the chocolate bar to Hermione. "I'm sorry, but... what's that for?"
The man paused and looked down at her sitting on the floor. "Chocolate raises endorphin levels in the brain." he told her. "It helps dissipate the depressive effect given off by the dementors."
Oh. Wow. Constance never would have thought about something like that. Ron looked like he was trying to shake Harry awake, but the man waved him off the task.
"Let him rest." he instructed calmly. "Sleep will help him recover. He'll do better if he wakes up on his own."
Ron looked like he didn't much like the idea of being told not to wake his friend from a dead faint, but this man obviously knew what he was doing. From the way his wand had been out when they first entered, Constance had a feeling that glowing wolf she'd seen chasing the dementors was a patronus he had cast. The chocolate he gave out seemed to be working as well. Ginny calmed down enough to stop crying and climbed up off the floor with Hermione's assistance to sit down in one of the seats. It was several minutes before Harry showed signs of waking up. The moment he started blinking, the man helped him sit up.
"Alright, take it easy." he said, then gave him a larger piece of chocolate than he'd offered to anyone else.
Harry took the candy, then blinked at everyone else in the compartment with him. "Wha... what happened?"
"The dementors were searching the train for Sirius Black." the man reported. He put a hand on Harry's shoulder, making sure he was okay before rising from his seat. "Eat." he said, pointing at the chocolate. "You'll feel better. I'm going to go have a word with the conductor. Stay put and don't go wandering around."
That last bit seemed to be directed at Connie and the twins. Considering that they didn't know exactly where the dementors were now, it was an understandable warning to give. They all nodded in agreement and the man stepped out, pulling the door closed behind him. Fred and George both watched the door closely, then turned back around the moment he was out of sight.
"Who is that?" they asked in unison.
"His suitcase says R.J. Lupin." Hermione reported, pointing up at a piece of luggage resting in the overhead storage rack. "He was sleeping until the dementors came in."
It was strange for an adult to be riding on the train. Only students took the train to school, so there wasn't much of a reason for him to be there...
"Do you think he's a new professor?" Connie piped up quickly.
"If he is, he had better be our DADA teacher." Ron commented. "That was brilliant the way he sent those things running." he paused to look at Harry in concern. "You alright, mate? We thought you were having a fit or something."
Harry slowly nodded, taking small bites of his chocolate. " I think so..." he said haltingly. "I... heard something. A woman screaming."
"She was screaming." the twins said together, both pointing at the young girl they were bracketing. "Scared the devil out of us."
Hermione shook her head. "Ginny didn't come in until after Harry fainted." she said, then glanced at him sideways. "No one was screaming before that."
The boy looked disturbed by the information. If no one had been screaming before he fainted, then he must have heard something from a memory... Constance went still as she thought of something.
"I've heard dementors are more attracted to people with painful memories." she said quietly. "Maybe that's why they focused on you. I mean, Ginny was possessed once, and you..." Were there when your parents were murdered. She finished in her mind. Constance didn't feel right saying it out loud after what had just happened. Everyone already knew what she meant.
Harry glanced at Ginny and swallowed nervously. "But... none of you... passed out?"
Ron shook his head. "No, but I felt weird though. Like I'd never be happy again."
Hermione nodded in agreement. Harry then turned his attention to Connie and the twins. "Not you either?" he asked, sounding like he felt like a freak for being the only one who lost consciousness.
Fred shook his head. "They didn't even come into our compartment." he said, then shot Connie a sideways glance. "Not that I'd blame them. They were probably scared that she'd jump on them or something."
Connie's mouth fell open. "What the bloody hell? I'm not bad enough to scare off a dementor!"
"Could have fooled me." he said, then turned his attention back to the trio and jerked a thumb in her direction. "She nearly ripped Lee's dreadlocks out when he was trying to figure out what was going on. He swears a couple are loose now."
"Oh please." she said with a sniff of irritation. "His hair isn't going to fall out just because I pulled on it. And he should have known better than to stick his head out while there were dementors on the train. What if one had been right outside the door?"
Fred quirked a brow questioningly. "We didn't know about the dementors until later. How did you know they were on the train?"
Oh shit. She'd just said something she had no business saying. George shot her a curious look of his own. He wondered how she had known about the dementors before anyone else too.
"Look, you guys were the ones who heard your dad say the dementors were going to be guarding the school until Black was caught." she said, thinking quickly. "If he wanted to get into the school, the easiest way for him to get there would be to hide on the train. It makes perfect sense for the dementors to be the ones to search it before we reach the castle."
Hermione blinked. "That's... a good point actually." she said. "I didn't think of that."
Thank God for that girl's brain. Constance thought. No one would question the logic of the idea if Hermione vouched for it.
A.N: On a completely random side note, my dad is a clinical therapist. On the desk in his office at work, he keeps a glass jar with a label that reads: Dementor-Be-Gone – endorsed by Professor Remus J. Lupin. "It helps, it really does." And an illustration of a dementor with a red hatched circle over it. (Dad came up with the idea and I made the label.) It's filled with Hershey's kisses. So whenever he sees a patient suffering from depression, they get a dose of chocolate to make them feel better. :) We have a huge jar of it at home as well. Anytime someone in my house is feeling down, my father declares that we have an infestation of dementors and we all have to take a dose of Dementor-Be-Gone to make them leave.
Along with raising endorphin levels in the brain that promote mild feelings of euphoria, chocolate also helps ease the pain of tension headaches. I have no idea how or why it works, but it does. So pretty much, if you guys ever suffer from headaches while depressed, load up on the chocolate!
Review, please and thank you!