Ch. 2: An end to safe places
I apparated into the hallway of the small apartment complex that had been my home for the last 5 years, It was nothing much, just a small 2 bedroom 1 bath flat, kind of dingy, but it was mine. It was also warded up the wazoo, with enchantments of lightning and disguise meant to keep it uninteresting and fry anyone too interested. On top of all that I'd made it impossible to apparate into while the wards were up which, take my word on it, is a pain in the ass to put together. I swept my gaze right to left and back to make sure no one was looking then I took out my wand and tapped it on to the little crystal I'd had embedded where the peep hole should be, causing it to emit a low tone on the same frequency as the magic that ran my wards and brought them down temporarily.
I walked in and looked around glumly; I had a sad feeling that this would be the last time I'd ever see the place and that bummed me out. The adrenalin high from the escape was starting to where out and all I wanted to do was sink into my ugly but comfortable second hand couch and watch TV or listen to one of my records, instead I ran into my small room and grabbed the olive drab messenger bag from out of my closet Always have a go bag I could hear Mad Eye saying You never know when you're going to have to leave in a hurry. My Go bag was enchanted with a bottomless charm and had quite a bit of stuff in it, enough to keep me self-sufficient for a while if I had to go on the run, which made leaving a whole lot easier. Then I ran into the room that acted as my little office for when I have to bring work home and with a quick unsnapping of clasps and a swish of my wand all my equipment flew into the bag. Just tossing them in would likely mess them up and it would take me hours to re calibrate them, but I didn't exactly have time to pack them up properly and the last thing I needed was for the muggle police to find them and think I was some sort of bomb maker or something. With that all done I took a small metal sphere from my bag and placed it in the middle of my living room, twisting the top and bottom halves till I heard a click "Five minutes" I whispered into it and it began to tick like a clock counting down. All that took me at most ten minutes, if that, and I was confident I had made my escape, so naturally when I closed my eyes and performed the effort of magic that allowed me to apparate nothing happened.
"Going somewhere?" Came a high pitched cheery voice from behind me. I spun around to find Dolores Umbridge standing primly in the little alcove that served as my kitchen, her wand pointed at my nose. "It's over Faustus put your hands where I can see them" I did, raising them above my head palms pointed out. "Good, Accio Wand, now just stand there, my people are on their way here to collect you for registration". I had to keep myself from actually screaming in frustration at the little toad, she has about the worst timing. "Registration?" I asked, sounding much calmer then I felt and trying hard not to look behind me at the device I'd just placed and praying that she hadn't noticed it. The little sphere packed a hell of a wallop, magically speaking, I called it an Oblivion Bomb and it was another idea of Mad Eye's. Basically when it went off it would bathe the area in an obliviate spell that would erase me from the memories of everyone within a mile radius and a disenchantment that would safely dispurse all my wards and any other traces of magical energy, effectively covering my tracks and making me almost impossible to trace. It was set to go off in five… shit four… minutes and I shuddered to think of what it would do to me if I was around when it did, it may do nothing or it may leave me a gibbering wreck on the floor with no sense of self and honestly I'd rather not take the chance and end up sharing a room with Gilderoy Lockhart at St. Mungos. I had to get the fuck out of here and soon, luckily I had at least something resembling a plan, I just had to keep her talking.
"Yes, registration" she said, unable to keep a bit of a giggle out of her voice "You see the new Minister has a much more realistic view on allowing the mudbloods powers they have no birthright to and do not deserve, and as per my recommendation is detaining you all and removing your wands and attempting to return them to their proper owners." I quirked and eyebrow at her "Their proper owners?" I asked "As in… what you're returning them to Olivander? You do realize that wands don't work like that right? They choose and owner and stick with them, it's not the kind of thing you can regift." This time she really did laugh, a frankly disturbing sickly sweet sound that sounds eerily like the far off crying of children, "My dear fool, why would a wand work for someone tainted with the blood of the inferior? If you are using magic with such impure blood running through your veins you must have stolen the magic from somewhere!" I couldn't help it, I laughed and the sound came out mocking and honestly somewhat mad. "You do realize how insane that sounds don't you?" I asked, laughing so hard I actually had to lean against the counter for a second for support. "It goes against common logic, common knowledge for that matter, how can you expect something like that to work" instead of answering Umbridge shouted "Crucio!" and the entire world went white with pain.
How can I describe being hit by the cruciatus curse? It's not just physical pain, you can endure physical pain, this isn't anything you can endure or shrug off. The cruciatus curse doesn't hit you so much as it… asserts itself on you, as though not only were you in pain but you always were in pain, and you would always be in pain. Imagine the worst pain of your life, now imagine the first moment of that pain, the moment it is at it's worst and you are almost irrationally terrified it will never go away. Now imagine that moment, but extended indefinitely and that is the closest I could ever come to describing being under that curse. The pain felt like it went on for hours but it couldn't have been more than a couple of seconds before she let up, leaving me gasping in agony. "That is how, you fool" she said, her words almost choked with glee, "Don't you understand, we are the Ministry of Magic! We ARE the common knowledge, they will believe whatever we tell them to believe, and because we told them to believe it. We own the papers and schools don't you understand? Tomorrow we will tell the people that the last round of attacks had been perpetrated by Muggle born separatists, and we will blame any pro muggle legislation on the separatists infiltrating the Government! And the papers! We will tell them that it is in fact the mudbloods who have been controlling them, and subverting them! By next week we'll be having wizards turning in their neighbors left and right, and the best part? They'll feel freer for doing it!" By this point she was actually cackling, a crazed glint in her eye. "You see boy right now we are just collecting the muggle borns, but soon it will be anyone with any taint to their blood!" "but…" I gasped, still in quite a bit of pain, "my father was a… oof!" I was cut short by a swift kick to the ribs by Umbridge " Yes a stroke of bad luck for you, you could have had a little more time as a free man were you not so… highly placed" she spat out those last to words with distaste, as though the very idea was repulsive to her, "but honestly, you don't think the minister could let the son of a muggle be the head of one of his departments could you? Especially the son of an American whore!"
She aimed another kick at me but this time I caught her foot and rolled to the side "What are you doing!" she screeched "Cruci-" I didn't give her a chance to finish, I smashed one of the little smoke bombs I'd palmed off of my counter as I'd been laughing. She fell over, coughing harshly as the smoke filled her lungs. I quickly sprang up and kicked the wand from her hand "Nobody!" I hissed, grabbing my wand from her waist band and giving a kick of my own "Talks about my mother! Stupify!" and she was out. I groaned, the pain setting in again as the adrenalin started to where off, I grabbed my bag and tried to Aparate again, no luck the damn apartment complex was still locked down. Ok I thought to myself as the smoke began to fill my apartment cant apparate, can't stay here that bombs gonna go off any minute, I guess I'm gonna have to risk going out! I ran for the door and found it unlocked, I barreled it open and sprinted for the stairs. As I hit the door I heard a small concussion behind me, looks like the bomb's gone off got to make this quick! I barreled down the stairs and hit the lobby, sprinted out the door just in time to see two dark cloaked figures apparate across the street from me. One of them saw me and pointed his wand, Shit I thought Now or Never! And I tried again, this time it worked and for the second time today I apparated out of a war zone.
A/N Greetings fair readers! If there are any of you left! So yea the whole update once a week thing was, obviously, a gross over estimation on my part. Alas finals week and me losing my job gave me little time to write anything, and Christmas and post Christmas craziness didn't help. But enough with excuses, I'll be updating more frequently now that I'm back on my feet and I have a definite direction I want to take this story, and I have a number of great adventures for you to read if you will all stick with me! For now here's the next chapter and Here's to many more to come! As ever please read and review constructive criticism is welcome and encouraged!