Once again I'm sorry for the long update. Hate me if you must but please review.
Kaze: Yes, that'll be nice.But our dear readers we have good news.
Kuro: Very good news. We have a proposition for you, a contest of some sorts.
Kaze: Yes, a fanart contest to be exact.
Kuro: We want you, the readers, to draw fanart of the three OCs: Reina, Kaze, and Kiku.
Kaze: Yeah, you can other characters if you want, but the girls must be present. The person who can draw the girls as close to how we see them will win.
Kuro: Just send an e-mail to me (find my e-mail address on my profile page) with either the fanart or a link to it.
Kaze: And we'll all look at them, and decide who the winner is. Kuro tell them what they'll win.
Kuro: A brand new car! Lol, just kidding. Actually, the winner gets a chapter dedicated to them and gets to come up with something for the girls to do. However, what you choose can't affect the main plot or be too outrageous.
Kaze: That's right. We hope you all enjoy the contest and this chapter. Please R&R.
Kuro: I will post these guidelines for the contest on my profile page if you want to read them there, too. Also check my profile page to see the progress of upcoming chapters. Thank you and enjoy.
Review Responses:
C K Brook- I'm sorry that I haven't been updating very quickly. I'll try to improve on that. And thanks for reviewing.
Nobunaga- Thank you for reviewing. Ah, yes. Sudden. Sorry. Maybe this one will be better.
Truth Lies in the Shadows
Chapter 19
"Oh, Harry! How can we ever repay you for saving Ron's life?"
Mrs.Weasley embraced Harry tightly around the neck. Her and the rest of the Weasley family were gathered around Ron's bed in the Hospital Wing. They had arrived at Hogwarts about half an hour prior, not long after they received the news that Ron had been poisoned.
"It's nothing, Mrs. Weasley," Harry managed to get out with the limited amount of oxygen the woman's hug allowed him. Luckily he was granted relief when Hagrid came barging into the room drawing everyone's attention to him.
"I jus' got the news. Is he gonna be alrigh'?" the half-giant asked as he approached the group of people.
"Yes, he'll recover," said Madam Pomfrey, slight irritation in her voice resulting from Hagrid's boisterous entrance. "Now there are too many visitors around one bed." Harry took this as a hint to leave. He and Hermione, who had been very quiet until then, said goodbye to the Weasleys and walked towards the door. 'Before you go," the nurse called to them. "I need your assistance over here."
Harry and Hermione glanced to each other and then to Madam Pomfrey. With Hagrid behind them they followed the nurse to a bed four down from Ron's and blocked off by a light blue curtain. When Madam Pomfrey went around and pulled back the curtain on the side opposite the other visitors, Harry had a feeling he knew why they were staying.
"So Ron's going to be okay?" said the blue-haired girl sitting in the hospital bed.
"Yes, Miss Krone. But it looks like you'll be having a recovery buddy for a while," Madam Pomfrey told her.
"What exactly does that mean? How long am I going to be stuck here?" Reina asked weakly. She had only been there for one night and already she was itching to get away.
The witch sighed as she addressed the contents on a nearby cart. "Until Professor Dumbledore says you can be released. As of now I am under strict orders to keep you here." With that said she fully concentrated on the potion brewing in front of her.
"How are ya feelin', Reina?"
Despite being irritated about her confinement, the half-demon put on a smile for her friends. "Not bad," she said. When Madam Pomfrey turned back to her, Reina whimpered helplessly. She recognized the smell that stained the air as it flowed out of the cup in the woman's hand. "Please tell me that's not what I think it is," she asked even though she already knew the answer. The witch said nothing when she thrust the cup into the half-demon's hand.
"Stand back," Madam Pomfrey instructed.
The warning confused Hermione and Hagrid. They stepped back anyway and watched quietly. Harry did the same, but he knew why they were doing so. This same thing happened the previous night when Reina was first brought to the hospital. When the half-demon drank the potion that first time, her demonic powers reacted rather fiercely. This time was no different. After Reina downed the cup's contents, there was a short pause before she grimaced. The tips of her fingers glowed black and a dark mist began emanating from them. A symbol appeared on her forehead just as her whole body was outlined in black. Her aura continued to grow until it eventually calmed down.
Once all signs of danger disappeared, Madam Pomfrey took the cup from Reina. "Now get some rest," she said. After her powers had subsided, the half-demon took on a look of fatigue. She put up no argument as she sank deeper under the covers. She mumbled goodbyes to her friends before drifting off to sleep.
Harry's eyes lingered on his cousin's sleeping figure for a moment until Madam Pomfrey addressed him. "I need you to take something to Professor Dumbledore." The witch walked to her office and came back with a collection of papers. She handed them over to Harry.
"What is it?" the boy asked as he adjusted his grip to accommodate the thick stack.
"Those are my reports on Miss Krone's condition."
"Wha' do ye reckon is wrong with 'er?" Hagrid shifted anxiously where he stood.
Madam Pomfrey crossed her arms over her chest, and spared the half-giant a glance. "It's obvious that it has something to do with the mix of demonic energy and magic in her body. Due to the nature of the attacks she's been having, I would say that she is suffering from an inner battle. The demon half and magical half are fighting against one another."
"Fighting?" Hermione's brow furrowed as she thought this over. "But why is that only happening to Reina? Kaze and Kiku are demons and they're fine."
"It's the curse of being a half-blood." Madam Pomfrey looked upon the sleeping girl with sympathy. "Those girls are pure blooded demons, creatures that naturally possess a tolerance for magic. Unlike her friends, Reina is a half-demon. Had her mother been a muggle she would have had very little capabilities with magic, possibly none at all. But that is not the case. Marina Potter was a witch meaning her child inherited that power."
"I don't understand," Harry said firmly. "If demons harbor magical abilities then can't the blood of a witch mix well with the blood of a demon without consequence?"
"One would think so. The only explanation I can come up with is that she wasn't exposed to using magic early in her life. Since she just began using it less than a year ago, her powers reject it."
The four people around the curtained bed heard a moan coming from a few beds down. "It seems I'm needed. Take that directly to Professor Dumbledore," Madam Pomfrey said, pointing her index finger at Harry. She pulled the curtain back around the bed and then walked over to the Weasleys. Harry, Hermione, and Hagrid decided to leave since they all had work to do.
"Have you been up to visit Reina today?" Kiku asked from the bank of the lake. She and Kaze had been lounging around the lake for the past hour. They had about twenty minutes left of their free period until Transfiguration began.
"Not yet. I will before dinner though because I have to drop off her work," Kaze replied as she played with the mini tornado on the ground in front of her. "Are you?"
Kiku stopped splashing her bare feet in the water. "Maybe. I plan on doing a little sneaking in Draco's room later. It depends on when he's gone." This earned her a questioning stare. "Look, I know he's up to something, and I'm going to find out what it is."
"You sound like Harry," Kaze muttered. The water demon frowned. "Just be careful not to get caught." She glanced at her watch. "Let's go."
Two hours later the two demons split, Kaze going to the infirmary and Kiku headed back to Slytherin common room. When she got there, the water demon was grateful to see only a few people in the common room. She greeted them as she passed by and started up the stairs. At the area of division, making sure no one was watching, Kiku sprinted up the steps leading to the boys' dormitory. Luckily the hall was empty so she had no problem sneaking into Draco's room.
"Hm, pretty neat for a boy's room," she said to herself looking around.
The left side of the room was very clean and organized. The bed was neatly made with the curtains drawn around it. Everything seemed to be put away in its rightful spot; the complete opposite of the right side where Crabbe and Goyle slept. Their beds were left the way they had slept in them the night before. All of their belongings were strung about the floor; barely any of it resided in their trunks. Plus there was this awful stench coming from that side.
'Thank you, Draco, for being so clean,' Kiku thought to herself. She wasted no time as she immediately began rummaging through the boy's stuff.
After a half hour of searching, Kiku was quite angry. She hadn't found anything of interest, although there were a few things that disgusted her. How was she supposed to learn of his plan of she couldn't find anything to do so? Just as she was about to look through drawers again, Kiku could hear movement outside in the hallway. She quickly moved to the door and listened for any indication of who it was. Unfortunately it was as she feared. Draco's voice reached her sensitive ears along with Crabbe and Goyle's.
'Shit!' the water demon mentally cursed. After quickly putting everything back where she found it, Kiku removed her wand and conjured a stick of dynamite. She had always been amazed at the destructive power of muggle science. Sparing just enough time to give an evil laugh, she placed the dynamite in the middle of the floor. She cracked the door open to peer out, happy to see that Pansy had captured the boys' attention. However, just because she could make it out without being caught, there was no harm in making sure. She unscrewed the cap to the water bottle she brought and used her powers to guide the liquid down the hall to puddle around Pansy's feet. The next step the girl took resulted in her downfall, literally.
While the three boys were concerned with Pansy, Kiku managed to slip away unnoticed after lighting the wick. Instead of sneaking around to the other staircase, she waited patiently for Draco to enter his room. The timing was perfect! Just as Draco pulled open the door, the loud sound of the dynamite going off reached Kiku's ears despite her hands being pressed hard against them. Along with the bomb's noise was Draco's infuriated scream. Her head may have been throbbing now, but the water demon left completely satisfied.
"Oh, Ron! Please wake up!"
Reina had been subjected to Lavender's cries on her frequent visits over the past three days. Every time she came Ron would fake sleep to avoid her, but that didn't stop the girl from talking to him. Luckily Lavender's visits were short when Ron was 'sleeping'.
"I know you are worried about him, Lavender, but he really needs his rest," Reina said from her bed. She hoped it would convince her to leave, for Ron's sake and her own. Madam Pomfrey had removed the curtain from around her bed for better observations, but it meant Reina had to disguise her appearance every time someone came in to the Hospital Wing. Despite getting stronger everyday, the half-demon still didn't like using the spell.
Lavender spared the other girl a glance before standing. Saying nothing more she walked out of the wing, giving Reina the peace she wanted. The half-demon leaned over to peer outside.
"Ron, she's gone."
Shifting underneath the covers, one of Ron's eyes popped open. When he saw no sign of the persistent Lavender Brown, he opened both of his blue eyes and sat up in bed.
"Thanks."
"No problem," Reina replied. She leaned back against the multiple pillows propped behind her back. Catching sight of the Quidditch pitch way below, she shifted around so that she could see outside the window comfortably. After being informed of what she was looking at, Ron got out of his own bed and jumped onto the one next to Reina's.
"I wish we were down there watching the match instead of being stuck in this bloody place," the redhead grumbled. From across the bed Reina nodded her silent agreement.
They sat watching what they could see of the game for a while until Madam Pomfrey came out of her office to check on them. Both teens were forced to swallow a dose of medicine before the woman retreated back to her office. Just as they became comfortable again, the huge wooden door of the entrance opened slowly. Ron looked over his shoulder to see the visitor and then back at Reina.
"Do you know who that is?" he asked, pointing his thumb at the cloaked man.
The half-demon spared the visitor a glance though she already knew his identity. With a disgruntled sigh, she unfolded her legs and stood up. "It's my father," she said walking to the opposite side of the room. The man also strolled over to the empty row of beds, taking a seat on a bed across from his daughter.
The air between them was quiet and strained, making both demons uncomfortable, but neither showed it. Darikk removed his cloak and placed it next to him on the bed. "How are you feeling?" he asked.
"Better," Reina answered simply. She wrung her hands nervously as she stared at the floor. This was the first time she'd spoken to her father since the night she blew up at him. Harry had told her that Darikk came to see her several times right after the incident, but she was always asleep. Now that she could talk, what was she suppose to say? In her mind Darikk should be mad at her, and yet somehow she knew he wasn't.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have acted like I did. Me and my anger caused all of this."
Darikk held up his hand to stop the half-demon from saying anything more. "We are both to blame. But let's put that incident far behind us. You can't afford to be burdened with that kind of emotional stress. Otherwise you'll have another episode." The shadow demon smiled at his daughter. "All I want you to do is focus on getting better, understand?"
The half-demon smiled and nodded. "Yes." It grew quiet once again. Reina glanced over to Ron who had been watching them on and off between dull moments in the Quidditch game. "Are you leaving?" she asked turning back to her father.
His expression lost some of its cheerfulness as Darikk's eyes softened. "Yes, I'm afraid so. Aleera and I will be leaving after I speak to Dumbledore," he answered. "I wasn't going to leave without saying goodbye."
"So, where are you going to this time?"
"To revisit some of the demon clans. There were some things that didn't add up the first time."
"Oh." Reina looked back down at her hands, her thumbnails outlining the raven tattoos around her wrists. "I guess I can let you go if you promise to write every chance you get and to be extremely careful." She heard Darikk chuckle and her lavender eyes rose to meet her father's. "Do you promise?"
Without warning Darikk pulled his daughter over to him, holding her in a tight embrace. Reina wrapped her arms around his neck. The male shadow demon tightened his grasp in response to the moist tears that flowed from the girl's eyes into his shirt. "Yes, I promise, Reina," he said softly. They remained that way for a few moments longer until Darikk pulled away and held his daughter at arms length. "And you must promise to continue working hard in your schoolwork," he said as he wiped the tears from her face. Reina nodded, her hair falling over her shoulders. Darikk hugged her again before letting go.
"Dad,"
The man stopped at the door and looked back at the half-demon.
"I love you."
"I love you, too, Reina." Leaving her with a smile, Darikk disappeared behind the doors.
Reina stood looking after her father for a minute and then walked back over to Ron. She sat down on the bed to continue watching the game. Ron watched her closely, thinking of something to say.
"Are you okay?" he asked when the half-demon rubbed her eyes.
"Yeah, I'll be fine," Reina said with a small smile. "So, who's winning?"
A few seconds after the words left her mouth, a roaring from the crowd silenced them both. Luna Lovegood's voice rang through the air, reaching even the Hospital Wing. "He's been hit! That's foul play! What a crumby teammate!" Ron and Reina practically jumped up at the announcement. "And now Potter is being taken off the field. I do believe that McLaggen should be-Oh hello, Professor McGonagall."
"Oh god. Please be okay," gasped the half-demon. "Madam Pomfrey! I think you have another patient on the way." She quickly used the concealment spell in case someone other than Dumbledore or McGonagall walked in.
Harry began to stir and suddenly became regretfully aware of the pain in his head. The pain mixed with the all-too-familiar smell of cleanliness informed him of where he was. He rolled over onto his side in the bed and, as much as he didn't want to, he opened his eyes. He let out a startled gasp when he was met with a pair of lavender orbs two inches from his face.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, Harry."
His cousin's soft voice reached his ears, and he became quite thankful she hadn't spoken any louder. He pushed himself up with help from the half-demon who positioned the pillows behind his back so that he could sit up. "Thanks," he said ending with a groan from the pain. When he opened his eyes again, Reina had disappeared.
"She went to get Madam Pomfrey," Ron said from Harry's left. He was sitting in a chair he pulled over from another bed. "You gave us a scare, mate."
"Who won?"
"Not us. But from what I heard McLaggen received a severe talking from McGonagall. Oh, how I wish I could have been there." The redhead went quiet when Madam Pomfrey approached with Reina behind her.
"In here again, Mr. Potter, for yet another Quidditch injury," said the magical nurse. She examined Harry's head after removing the bandage and then wrapped him back up. "Drink this and then rest. A good night's sleep will do you good. That goes for all of you," she added with a scrutinizing stare at each teenager. With that she walked away to her office, shutting the door behind her. A minute later the lights went off, leaving the moonlight seeping in the windows as the only source of light.
Harry continued to watch the office door even after the lights had gone out. When he was certain that Madam Pomfrey wasn't coming back out, he reached over to the bedside table. He found his glasses and put them on, but he couldn't locate the other thing he wanted.
"Looking for this?"
Both boys looked to Reina who was standing to Harry's right, one hand on her hip and the other was occupied with passing Harry's wand through her fingers. Harry reached out to grab it, but his cousin held it up higher. "Come on, Reina," Harry said tugging on her pajama top.
Ignoring his pleas, the half-demon picked up the cup on the table and shoved it under his nose. "Drink. You'll feel better." Her cousin gave both her and the toxic a look of disgust. With a sigh, Reina said, "Drink it and you'll get your wand." This worked for Harry took the cup grudgingly and downed the contents. He gave the now empty cup back to the half-demon. Reina smiled and handed over his wand. "You're welcome."
Harry stuck his tongue out at her and vice versa. Seeing this exchange of childish antics, Ron laughed. "You two act more like brother and sister than cousins," he commented. Harry and Reina looked at Ron and then at each other. They said nothing. Instead, Harry pointed his wand in the direction of Madam Pomfrey's office. He muttered an imperturbable charm before replacing his wand back on the table.
"Kreacher!" Harry called out. He waited a few seconds before calling the name again.
As he did this, Reina looked over to Ron with an expression of confusion. "It's a house elf," explained the redhead. "When Sirius left Harry Grimmauld Place he also left him the house elf that went with it." The half-demon nodded in understanding.
"Kreacher!"
There was a popping sound followed by the appearance of a short elf-like creature at the foot of the bed. Another pop rang out and a second house elf appeared next to the first one.
"Greetings! How is Harry Potter feeling?" the second elf asked happily. His eyes shot around with excitement, smiling at Ron when he saw him. Turning about he caught sight of the half-demon. "Reina Krone! What are you doing in the hospital? And how do you know Harry Potter?"
"Dobby, calm down," Reina instructed, holding up a hand for emphasis. "I just over worked myself. And who doesn't know Harry Potter?"
"Potter doesn't deserve the fame," grunted the other house elf.
"Kreacher, I have a job for you." Harry stared hard at the elf that glared back.
"Kreacher only serves the Malfoys," he growled out.
In response Harry pointed his wand at Kreacher. "You serve me. Now, I want you to spy on Draco Malfoy. And then you report everything back to me, but be sure I'm alone when you do. Understand?"
The elf scoffed and acted like he was ignoring him. His fellow elf chimed in with excitement. "Don't worry, Harry Potty. Dobby will help Kreacher. Dobby will help spy on Draco Malfoy." With that he disappeared along with Kreacher. But it didn't remain quiet for long.
"Potty and Weasel are little pansies if they're complaining over a little head and tummy ache," came a taunting voice from above. The three looked up to see Peeves flying around the air. "Oooooo, look! Potty's got a girlfriend!"
By this point Reina had grabbed a blanket from the next bed and tossed it over her head, hiding any visible demonic trait. "Peeves! Get out of here!" Harry yelled at him. But the prankster ghost kept on chanting. The boy turned his wand on Peeves. "Langlock!"
Peeves clutched his throat when he realized his voice was gone. After making some rude gestures at the kids he flew through the nearest wall. Harry waited to see if he was coming back before telling Reina it was safe. He heard her sigh from under the sheet. "Let's get to bed." Each one crawled into their own bed and went to sleep.