Vega stared into the gently-crackling flames, eyes barely holding themselves open. Halloween night had passed by without finding the location of the chimaera. Over two weeks had gone by since then, in fact, and nothing had been so much as spotted. Aurors, with Harry in tow, had come to search Hogwarts. But even with Harry descending back into the Chamber of Secrets, they hadn't found anything. Wolf thought that the girl might have simply attacked her friend herself and used the chimaera story as a coverup. But McGonagall didn't think that was the case. Most of the staff, having seen the claw marks that were now scarring the castle, agreed with her.
While it was shaky at best, the staff had eased up on how tightly-monitored the students were, which gave Vega the chance he had been waiting for. His mind had been a wreck since the end of October had rumbled by, unable to properly focus on anything. And, at least this once, it wasn't because of his own self-doubt. Even some of the Slytherins seemed to think that Vega and the Malfoys were the cause of the chimaera being loose in the school. Thankfully, the Quidditch team and a good many of the other older students had stood up for them, so the trio still felt moderately safe inside the confines of their dungeon home. But outside of the common room, they were fair game.
Though the staff were trying to keep their eyes on the three, for fear of something exactly like this taking place, they could only be stretched so thin. Times like this made Vega wish he could be like Hydrus was. Hydrus didn't seem to be letting any of the tormenting get under his skin, as it had all been verbal so far. Vega had asked him what would happen if it went beyond that. Hydrus had simply shook his head, saying that if the were ever pushed around, they would simply report the abuse to the staff and let them mete out the punishment as they saw fit.
Hugging his knees, Vega lowered his head slightly. Hydrus never let anything get to him unless Viola was involved. He supposed he could add himself in there, somewhere, but it didn't feel the same. Not to him, at least. Sighing, Vega let himself keel over onto his side, remaining curled up. Why the hell did it have to be him, anyway? Out of everyone, why the hell did Hydrus have to be the one that was so brave? Even back when they were little - which, Vega mused, smirking wanly, hadn't been all that long ago - Hydrus never seemed to be scared of anything.
"Idiot." Vega muttered, closing his eyes. "Why does he get to act like that?"
Stretching out, Vega let out a quiet yawn. It was well past midnight, though he didn't really feel like turning in just yet. He'd been having rather nasty nightmares about the monster loose in the school. Though whether it was still around or not was anyone's guess. People kept thinking they saw something out of the corners of their eyes, only to find that it had been something completely mundane. Viola thought she had seen something while they were out on the Quidditch Pitch, but that had turned out to be little more than a tree with oddly-shaped branches swaying in the wind.
Though he was trying not to let it get to him, Vega still felt constantly nervous. The rest of the people might have been willing to try to forget about the creature, he wasn't so lucky. He was the one constantly getting picked on by students who thought it was primarily his fault the thing had entered Hogwarts in the first place. Hydrus usually managed to defuse these situations by killing the arguments with logic, but it didn't slow them down any. The Gryffindors were especially bad to him, seeing as how it was a pair of their own that had been attacked.
He wasn't even sure why he was spending the night in the Pit. He knew it was stupid, given that someone might think he had been spirited away or eaten by the chimaera, but he couldn't help it. If anyone else had the ire of almost the entire school directed their way, they'd want to be alone for awhile, too. He'd had a chance to speak to his father for a brief bit after he'd gone down into the Chamber, but Harry seemed more irritated and curious than anyone on staff had.
"All I saw was the remains of the basilisk. No signs of life at all, other than that. With a gigantic snake, traveling wouldn't be as confounding. But how does a creature that big skulk around in secret? Ugh... and here I thought I was done pondering mysteries about this damn place..." Harry had said to him, scowling all the while. "I want you to be careful, alright? If it's here, it's here. Don't get lulled into a false sense of security if it doesn't strike for awhile. It's going to get hungry eventually. I didn't take too close a look at the pile of bones down there, but it didn't seem like any of them were getting gnawed on. I doubt someone's around to feed it. Ask Dobby to help keep an eye out if Minerva doesn't, and don't try to deal with it by yourselves if you figure something out, alright? I had to grow up way too quick... I'd like you to not have to go through that kind of thing if at all possible."
"Not like I go looking for trouble." Vega had muttered, glancing down. "It just seems to find me..."
"Comes with the name, unfortunately." Sighed Harry. "Gotta go tell Lock and the others what I found - precisely nothing - and we'll probably head off. Good to see you before Christmas, though. I know the first year's rough, but you're doing a fine job so far. Keep at it, okay?"
"Alright."
And with that, Harry had walked off, stuffing his hands into his pockets and quietly talking to himself about puzzle pieces or something.
Professor Tadyggbo had broken his lesson plan long enough to talk about chimaeras for awhile. He, too, seemed baffled by the size of the beast that had been spotted on Halloween. He had told them that they just don't grow that large. But since they were highly resistant to magic, it was also hard, if not outright impossible, to alter their size that way. Most of the class had been spent pondering ways to take down something that big. One thing they had learned was that it was impossible for first years to score a killing blow on one. They simply didn't have the magical power or knowledge to throw the right things at one. The best they could do is try to take out the thing's eyes and run while it flailed around in anger and pain.
It wasn't a very reassuring thought, which more than a few of their number outright stated. Tadyggbo had nodded, saying that even the older students would have to probably well out-number the chimaera to be able to safely take it down. The staff was a different story, since most of them were far, far older than even the seventh years, and most took part in at least one of the two wars against Voldemort in some form or another.
What they did have, he had told them, was size. Something that big probably wouldn't be able to get into any of the classrooms. Not without a lot of smashing into the door and the stone wall surrounding it, in any case. Tadyggbo said that if any of them did run into the beast, their best bet was to stay quiet and find a classroom or a deep alcove to get into until help could get to them. If it came down to it, they should run and not look back. It couldn't have been too fast, he had said, if a young student could outrun it, and it obviously didn't follow her clear to the Great Hall. It had given up the chase at some point, which was a point of interest. Whether it was because the chimaera wasn't capable of long bursts of speed or whether it knew how populated the Great Hall had been was something the staff was still debating.
If it was the former, it was simply good luck for everyone else. It meant that escape was possible so long as you kept your head about you. If it was the latter, it was far more distressing. It meant that the chimaera was smart enough to sense and avoid large buildups of magical energy. He had explained that in places like Hogsmeade, Hogwarts, or other places where large numbers of magical folk gather, the air becomes charged, as it were, with magical energy. Vega had heard his father talk about stuff like that in the past, regaling him of tales of how he used to shift and ride the magical currents around the school and how, if he overused his magic, it began damaging the magic in the air around him.
Vega stared into the fire, sighing quietly. It was a lot to think about, and most of it made his head hurt. So far, nothing had stopped Quidditch-related activities, for which he was happy. It gave him something, other than schoolwork, to focus his attention on. Better that than thinking a dirty great beast was going to leap out of the shadows and devour him in one bite.
It was at least an hour later before Vega had pushed himself up from the couch to trudge into the bedroom. At least, he thought, as he covered himself up, that feeling of being watched had gone away.
oOoOoOoOoOoOo
"Look, I'm telling you, I saw it!"
"You lie! Where?"
"Up on the fifth floor, near the bathrooms! But it wasn't a chimaera. That girl had to've been imagining things. That was a manticore for sure!"
"Same difference, isn't it? A big, four-legged monster that wants to eat your face off..."
"I heard someone saw an ogre near Gryffindor Tower!"
"What?! Why would an ogre be anywhere near the castle, let alone all the way up there?!"
"Look, don't ask me, I'm just telling you what I heard!"
"I think you need to get your ears cleaned, then, because you hear some weird damn things."
Viola slumped at the Slytherin table, glancing over her shoulder and giving a withering look at the group of fourth year Hufflepuff girls who were noisily chatting away somewhere behind her. "I hope someone hexes their mouths off, all of them. It's too early in the day to be that loud."
"You're usually that chipper, might I point out." Hydrus stated.
"And you can hush up, too." Groused the girl. "Didn't sleep well last night. All these stupid rumors are making me have nightmares..."
"That's all they are, though. If there really is a monster, they'll hunt it down eventually. Until then, there's nothing we can do." Said Hydrus, buttering another slice of toast.
"So we just wait until it attacks again? That's nice. What kind of stupid plan is that?" Asked Viola to no one in particular as she glared down at her orange juice. "What if it kills someone next time, huh? They'll have to close to school, won't they?"
"They didn't back when the Chamber of Secrets was opened the first time and that Myrtle girl died." Vega chimed in, glancing up from his plate. "And even with all the stuff that went on when our parents were here, the school stayed open."
"That's pretty shoddy on everyone's part, though, isn't it?" Viola asked, puffing her cheeks out. "I mean come on, how many people does that thing have to hurt before McGonagall - or worse, the Minister himself - says enough's enough?"
"Only one person's been hurt, and she was back in class two days after the incident." Hydrus pointed out. "Stop blowing things out of proportion. You'll just add to the rumor mill. Lord knows it doesn't need help."
"I'm perfectly happy with there only being one attack." Vega said. "Maybe it left."
"With the track record of both this castle and our families, do you really believe that, Potter?" Asked Hydrus, looking across the table.
Blushing faintly, Vega glanced off and scowled. "Don't bog me down in reality, Hyde. Let me have my fantasies. I don't want to think about any more people getting hurt. Or worse..."
"Merely talking in fact." Hydrus said, shrugging.
"Just once, I'd like you to not sound completely sure of yourself." Grumped Viola, stabbing a bit of egg rather violently. "...Ugh, not even hungry anymore..."
"Push the plates aside and rest your head on the table. No one's going to care." Suggested Vega. "Rest your eyes for awhile. If you fall asleep, we'll be sure to wake you when breakfast is over..."
"Nah, I'll be alright. Just gonna be moody today, I guess." Sighed Viola. "Hate getting like this. I don't feel like myself at all right now. Also, before it slips my mind, just where the heck have you been escaping to lately? And how the heck have you been escaping? We're being escorted back to our common rooms after dinner."
"Not telling." Vega said, eyes closed. "Being small has its uses sometimes, though."
"Saying things like that is going to do nothing but make us watch you even closer, you realize." Said Hydrus. "Why can't you just tell us where you're going?"
"Think you had the right idea, Hydrus. Let's just write our parents and ask. They'd know, right?" Viola said, looking over at her brother.
"You do and you're not getting your Christmas present this year." Vega said, smiling innocently.
Viola's attention snapped back to the blond. "Yooou wouldn't dare."
"Try me."
Viola and Vega had something of a stare-off after that. One that was only broken when students began to leave the Great Hall at the end of breakfast. Hydrus had to end their test of wills by threatening to dump the remainder of his pumpkin juice on them if they didn't knock it off by themselves. Vega was the first to break eye contact, causing Viola to let out a triumphant cry. As they walked out of the room, heading towards the front doors of school, a sharp crack of thunder caused them to jump.
"...Great. Dealing with awful plants in awful weather. This is the worst day." Vega muttered darkly, shoving his hands into his pockets and slouching down.
"We might be able to make it before the rain starts if we hurry." Hydrus said. But just as they pushed the doors open, the rain responded and began falling. "...Or not."
"You jinxed it, you jerk." Viola said, swatting her twin on the arm.
"Ow! I jinxed nothing! The longer we stand here, the worse we'll be when we arrive. Come on." Hydrus said, stepping out into the rain and breaking into a run.
"The worse he'll be when we arrive, he means. That much hair, he's gonna look like a drowned rat by the time he gets to the greenhouses." Viola said, grinning. "Come on. I'll try to cheer up if you stop pouting."
"I'm not pouting!" Said Vega, who very much looked like he was pouting. "...But alright."
Throwing her arm around Vega's shoulders, Viola's grin grew. "We'd better hurry. I want a chance to wring the water out of his hair before he dries it magically. He always has a fit when I do it!"
Vega snorted at the mental image as the two took off into the rain, which was rapidly deciding it wanted to be a downpour. The intensity of the storm changed for the worse at least twice as the two Slytherins ran for cover, and with each change, Vega shouted a progressively colorful series of insults at the sky. By the time they arrived at the third greenhouse, the two were positively drenched and Viola was giggling her head off.
As they entered, it was to find Hydrus having just dried himself. However, with Vega's surly shouts at the heavens making her laugh, Viola didn't mind so much. In fact, his mood nearly caused her to lose their House some points during the lesson. At one point, Professor Longbottom was telling them how much to water their howling toadstools, Vega muttered very quietly next to her, "Yeah, I've got some water for ya, fungushead." Viola had to bite down on her lower lip to keep from laughing outright. A snort did escape her, causing the professor to glance her way. But she covered it up by saying she'd held in a sneeze. When Neville had turned his back, Viola gave Vega a mild smack on the arm.
The dreary, rainy day persisted for the entirety of the morning, with only the rain clearing up by the time lunch had rolled around. Everyone's mood had improved, however, since Potions had been the second class that day. Potions was always a good way to fix a bad mood for Vega, since he eagerly soaked up what Professor Fedorov had to say. Even though the day was mostly going over what they'd already learned in preparation for actually making the potion, Vega took the opportunity to burn the recipe into his mind. It wasn't even a particularly interesting potion. But then, he reasoned, nothing they learned that year would probably be anything but mundane.
As they walked back toward the Great Hall at noon, Vega had his arms crossed behind his head and was idly pondering why he was so good at Potions when he was only coming up average in almost everything else.
"Everyone seems to favor one thing more than others. Viola likes Charms, I'm finding Transfiguration most interesting just because it seems to be the most challenging thing we have this year." Hydrus said. "You probably like Potions because it's more reliant on practicality than magically doing things. I'm sure magic will get involved on down the line, but right now, it's essentially like cooking. You get the right ingredients, add them at the right time in the right amounts, and there you have it."
"Guess I can thank dad for teaching me to cook, then." Vega said. "Odd that he was such a good cook but sucked so much at Potions. Even with Professor Snape teaching it, you'd think he'd have been able to grasp ahold of it better, huh?"
"He hovered towards Defense. And Quidditch, I suppose." Hydrus said.
"At least we're all good at different things. If we were all good at one class, we wouldn't be able to help each other out with homework as well as we do now." Said Viola.
"Yeah, if Hyde wasn't making sense of Ulrika's blasted mumbo-jumbo, I'd be doing even worse in that class." Viola said, making a face. "Why she can't just explain it better is beyond me. How're we supposed to figure anything out when she barely tells us what to do?"
"Expects us to read ahead, I suppose." Hydrus said.
"Pretty crummy method of teaching." Vega continued. "Fedorov and Tadyggbo at least tell you what you're doing and why. But it's in a good way, not in a Binns way. He just drones..."
As they pushed open one of the doors into the Great Hall, Viola shrugged. "Why McGonagall doesn't do something about him, I'll never know. I've heard talk, though. He was apparently that boring when he was alive, too. Did Dumbledore owe him a favor or something, and now that his ghost is here, he just needs something to do?"
"I try not to think about that stuff too much." Vega said, shaking his head. "Gives me a headache."
"Food needs to be here faster." Viola said, sitting at her usual spot at the table's end. "I'm starving. Barely ate anything this morning. I wanna get some energy back in me!"
"I daresay you have plenty of that as is." Hydrus commented, sitting next to his sister. "In fact, I daresay you rarely need more energy. You already generate it naturally."
Sticking out her tongue, Viola replied, "Oh, be quiet, Hydrus. I can't help it if I'm naturally energetic!"
"I'm just amazed you can pack away so much food and not gain weight. Where does it all go?" Asked Vega.
"Hey! I have a very high metabolism, thank you very much. And hoofing it around this castle is pretty good exercise besides. It's pretty hard not to be slim around here." Viola said. "Wonder if that's why the castle's a castle - so the students would get exercise running all over the thing going from class to class."
"Wouldn't surprise me." Said Vega. "Seems like something the founder would've done. Personally, I just want justification for the moving stairs. Nothing worse than ticking off Peeves then having the stairs go against you so you can't escape him."
"I still want to know where he's getting his supply of balloons from. He can't just magic them into existence, can he?" Viola asked.
"Beats me. I don't know how poltergeists work. I've never seen him with a wand. Do you think he went to school here? And if so, was his name always 'Peeves'? That's a name you give to your kid if you want him to get beaten up." Vega said.
"Maybe it was his last name." Suggested Hydrus. "...Great, now you've got me thinking about it."
"You're welcome." Viola said, grinning. "Hey, if we have to be stuck wondering, so do you. For all we know, there could've been a guy name o' Billy Peeves here once. He died in a tragic water balloon accident and now he and his supply of self-repeating water balloons haunt the school!"
"...I repeat: You do not need more energy." Hydrus said.
"'Billy Peeves.'" Repeated Vega, giving a weird look at Viola.
"Well I don't know! What kind of first name would you give a kid if your last name was Peeves?" Asked Viola.
"Jeeves." Vega said.
"Jeeves Peeves?!" Viola cried. "What was he, a butler?"
"Hey, maybe he was the caretaker. They're all jerks and weirdos, aren't they?" Vega said, perking up.
"'And remember, our caretaker, Jeeves Peeves, does not like water balloons being thrown at him.'?" Said Viola, imitating an old man's voice. "...Okay, my head's starting to hurt. New line of conversation, please."
But before a new line of conversation could be started, the doors to the Great Hall opened up and in walked Gabrielle Delacour. She wore a serious look on her face and was walking as quickly as she could without breaking into a flat-out run. She went straight up the center of the room and around the staff table, where she leaned over to whisper something to McGonagall. There was a brief, inaudible back-and-forth for a moment before the assistant nurse nodded and started making her way out of the room again.
As the doors to the room closed, the headmistress got to her feet and cleared her throat. "I do not mean to alarm anyone, but Miss Delacour has brought something of great importance to my attention. There has been a second attack. However, something doesn't quite add up. There were no claw or fang marks on this young man. There was, however, a rather telling mark around the boy's throat, as though someone or something had lifted him up by it. However, there is one other oddity to this attack. Were the attacker using both hands, one might make the case that one of our stronger sixth or seventh year students might be behind it. However, that quite literally cannot be in this case, as there was only a single mark around the boy's neck. Whatever choked him did so with one hand, and left a mark that very nearly wrapped completely around his throat. The boy has already awakened, thankfully, but he does not remember anything about what happened to him. One thing, however, remains clear: no chimaera could have done that."
"So... there's more than one monster running around?!" Called out one of the older Ravenclaw students.
"We are unsure at this point. After lunch has ended, which will be in a few short minutes, I will be once more leading the staff through the castle to try and find what has done this." McGonagall answered. "And while we are obviously quite worried about this turn of events, the severity of the attack is not as bad as the first. A wise decision would be to travel in numbers if at all possible, and to keep your eyes and ears open to anything out of the ordinary you might see or hear. If need be, we will call the Aurors in to investigate. However, we obviously do not wish to trouble them with our problems when they're still so wrapped up in their own. Especially if we can find where these creatures are getting in. Once everyone is present and accounted for in their common rooms tonight, we will be putting protective wards around the entrances. Nothing will be able to get in, but you will be able to get out, should the need to escape arise. After the wards go up, I will be leading the staff into the lower dungeons to search for any possible breaches of the castle."
"What if you don't find anything, though?" Asked a Gryffindor boy. "You couldn't find the chimaera last time, what makes you thing anything will be different?"
"We don't, simply put." McGongall stated, leveling her stern gaze at the boy. "However, we cannot sit idly by when students are getting attacked. And while nothing terribly serious has occurred yet, we also cannot sit and wait for that to happen. If it comes to it, I may have to try getting ahold of an old school artefact that has not been within these walls for a good many years now. I will be owling my acquaintance to see if he might be willing to let us borrow this artefact, which would help us keep an eye on anything out of the ordinary. Now then, finish eating and proceed to your common rooms. Prefects, I want you to be alert and have your wands out. One prefect at the front of your House's students, one at the back. I have to organize how the staff will be splitting up."
Vega watched as she sat back down, the other teachers leaning in close as she began talking in a low, fast voice. "It can never be simple, can it?" He muttered.
"It seems that way at times, doesn't it?" Hydrus replied, sighing and getting up as the Slytherin prefects rose. "At the very least, you can't sneak off to wherever it is you sneak off to."
"Wouldn't be so sure of that. Not going to try, but..." Vega said. "And here all those idiots were finally starting to quit bothering me..."
"Don't let it get to you." Viola said, walking around the end of the table to ruffle Vega's hair. As he tried swatting her away, she continued, "Just ignoring them and keep moving forward."
"Easy for you to say. They aren't being physical with you, Vivi." Vega said, finally grabbing hold of the Malfoy girl's wrists. "There! Stop doing that. My hair's already a mess, it doesn't need your assistance, thank you very much."
"Tsk. And hey, we're not goin' anywhere. Anyone tries anything with you, they have to try something with us. Right, Hydrus?" Viola said, looking to her twin.
"Right." Said Hydrus, nodding once. "Though how threatening a three-man group of first years would be is anyone's guess."
"Stop killing the good mood before I can even get it going." Viola grumbled, her lower lip jutting out slightly.
"Merely being realistic, Viola. We can hold our own against other first years or maybe second years, but above that and in large numbers? What would we be able to do?" Hydrus asked.
"Well... I dunno." Admittedly Viola, her pout increasing. "But even so..."
"I know what you were trying to say, Vivi. I appreciate it, but I don't want you guys getting hurt just because of me..." Vega said.
"Bah. If we get hurt it's because people are jerks and we're too loyal as friends." Viola said, turning her nose up at her own sulky mood. "Come on. Let's get with the group before the prefects start yelling at us..."
"Gonna be a fun night, isn't it?" Vega asked, shaking his head as he and the twins headed for where the other Slytherins were assembling.
Hydrus smirked wearily. "Isn't it always?"
oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo
Two days after the attack, the boy - a fifth year Hufflepuff - still could not recall what it was that had tried to strangle him to death. Or why it had stopped before accomplishing such a goal. The mark on his throat was still visible, though it was healing up nicely. And, aside from having a bit of a sore throat, he seemed to be recovering just fine. Though whenever Vega saw him, he now had a small army of his fellow Hufflepuffs around him. They hadn't shown up for lunch yet that day, but he just assumed it was due to how slow they tended to move. The victim himself seemed almost irritated with his friends, as he kept sneaking away from them to get to places faster.
The staff's thorough search of the castle had once again yielded no results, something that was very clearly ticking off the headmistress to no end. She was obviously taking the failure poorly, and one could almost hear the gears in her mind turning as she tried working out what the devil was going on in her school. While she appeared in the Great Hall for meals, she was leaning back slightly in her chair and not really paying much attention to anything. Her eyes were focused on a point across the room, and it was apparent she was lost in thought.
"At least she's actively trying to figure it out." Muttered Vega, his head down on the edge of the table. "Dad says Dumbledore seemed to actively try and get out of any complications that occurred in this place. Wish she'd hurry up, though..."
"Yeah, the atmosphere's taken a real dive." Viola agreed. "People are back to looking over their shoulders, jumping at the slightest noise, and thinking they hear something in the walls. Bit stupid if you ask me, but..."
"But something's definitely getting in and causing these attacks. Moreover, it doesn't seem to be the same 'something' that attacked last time." Hydrus finished.
"You've seen the mark on that guy's neck. That's too weird-looking to be human. Almost like something with too-long fingers grabbed him. So... wouldn't ogres and trolls be right out?" Asked Vega, glancing up. "What other kind of human-shaped monsters could've done that?"
"Not sure." Hydrus said, brow creased. "Alone, that wouldn't bother me. The fact that McGonagall can't work it out either, however, is. If she's stumped, then what chance could we have of working it out?"
"How long 'til you think she gives in and asks the Aurors to come lend a hand again?" Viola asked. "Think our dads will stop by?"
"God, I hope not. That's the last thing I need." Vega said, scowling. "Bad enough they've returned to glaring at me, I don't need dad turning up again and making things worse..."
"Not his fault people are idiots." Viola countered.
"At least they've already eased up on the escorts between places during the day. Hopefully it'll die down quick enough and we can all focus on school work and not whether I have anything to do with this mess or not." Grumbled Vega, his head thumping back down. "...Heck with this, I'm going back to the common room. I wanna get outta here before everyone else does."
"You actually going to the common room?" Asked Viola.
"Yes, I'm actually going to the common room." Vega replied, giving his friend a withering look. "I'll probably be sunk down in that chair in the corner, reading. Break out the Potions book and skim through it some more or something, I dunno."
"Want us to come with you?" Asked Hydrus.
"Nah, you don't have to end lunch early for my sake." Vega said, shaking his head. "Just come grab me before Charms starts up. If I lose myself in that book, I'd probably miss class."
"Will do." Viola said, saluting Vega as he got up.
Rolling his eyes, Vega turned and headed out of the Great Hall. Though he didn't want to admit it, he had had a mild, annoying headache for the last couple of days, one that didn't seem eager to go away anytime soon. It wasn't enough to disrupt his studies or prevent him from getting to sleep, but the simple fact that it just wouldn't go away was starting to nag at him. Medical spells could work all sorts of wonders, but couldn't nix a cold or drive off a headache. As far as he was concerned, it was completely backwards. Shouldn't they have started from those things and worked up to replacing broken bones and missing limbs?
Rounding a corner, Vega quite literally bumped into someone. Wobbling back, he quickly said an apology at the same time as someone else. Looking up, he saw it was the boy that had been attacked. He was looking over his shoulder, back up the empty hall.
"Better get to the Great Hall soon if you want to eat. Lunch is almost over." Vega said, giving him a weak smile.
"Yeah... if they had their way, we'd be eating alone." Said the boy. "Sorry for running into you. Was trying to put some distance between me and my 'guard.'"
"Yeah, same. I was too busy thinking to pay attention to where I was going. Don't let me hold you. If I see them, I'll point them towards the library." Vega said.
"Hey, thanks! ...Hey, Potter?"
"Yeah?"
The boy nodded at him once. "You really don't know what's going on?"
"Wish I did." Vega admitted. "Might help deflect some of the accusations."
The Hufflepuff started to say something, but the sound of his guards caught his attention and, after saying goodbye quickly, broke into a run after skirting around the corner. Vega watched him go, letting out a grumpy sigh as he turned and started walking again. Well, at least the guy didn't seem to be harboring any kind of vendetta against him. Now he just had to hope he was a good enough liar to convince the boy's friends that he hadn't gone to eat.
Sure enough, a small pack of around five students came into view at the opposite end of the corridor, talking quietly among themselves and pointing in different directions. When one of them spotted Vega, he pointed and the group looked up. Blowing out a quiet breath, Vega idly wondered why the hell he was about to cover for someone he didn't even know. Maybe it was just that he knew what it was like having people staring at you all the time. It wasn't a good feeling, even if those people were your friends.
"If you're going to ask, yes, I did see him." Vega said as he and the group closed distance on one another. "Looked like he was heading for the library."
"The library?" Repeated one of the boys. "Damn, how'd he get to the stairs without us noticing?"
"Probably took off this way to trick us. I'll go up and check it out." Said the only girl in the group.
"What about us?" Asked another of the boys.
"I dunno, make friends with Potter!" Called the girl as she ran up the hall.
"'Make friends with Potter.'" Mimicked one of the other boys, making a face. "Why the hell would we want to do that?"
Glancing down at Vega, the first boy nodded. "It's your damn fault Allan got hurt. Why the hell did you even come here? Bad luck followed your old man around and he's happily passing it on. Meaning the rest of us have to suffer when Hogwarts gets attacked."
"Oh, like I have any control over what happens!" Snapped Vega, glaring up at the boy. "I didn't ask for this!"
"Yeah, I bet." Said one of the others. "And you know what else I bet? I bet you and your friends are probably trying to figure out a way to find whatever it is that attacked Allan and stop him yourselves, right?"
"Now why would I want to do that?" Asked Vega, his glare moving from one Hufflepuff to the next.
"To try being a 'hero' like your dad was!"
"Yeah, because I can 'be a hero' when my grades suck. Great plan, why didn't I think of that?" Vega said, smiling up at the boy. "What the hell am I going to do, whip up a batch of cooling salve to throw on the monster?!"
"Getting pretty bold, Potter." Said the boy, stepping forward. "If I were you, I'd watch my mouth."
"Good thing you aren't then, isn't it?" Vega said. He wasn't sure where this vitriol was coming from, and he definitely wasn't sure this was the time or place to get in a mood over what was happening. But his mouth seemed to be in control at that moment, and any signals his brain might have tried giving to make him stop weren't being heard.
"You know," Said the first Hufflepuff. "I think he's being smart with us, lads."
"I do believe you're right." Said another. "The question is, what do we do about it?"
"Why not just beat him the hell up? We do a good enough job of it and he'll have to leave, won't he? He wouldn't want to risk staying here, knowing we might corner him."
"You kidding? We could get expelled for that, you idiot!"
"Hey, if you want to leave, be my guest. The three of us will do it." Said the first boy. "Right?"
Two of the others nodded. The third cast a glare between the lot of them before looking at Vega for a moment. "Dammit..." He whispered, breaking off into a run past Vega, leaving him with only the three Hufflepuff fifth years. Slightly better odds, though that didn't mean much, considering.
"Now then... do we do this the fun way, or do we use magic?" Asked the first Hufflepuff.
"Fun way." Said the second, smirking. "Last time I hit anyone was two years back."
"God, I still remember the sound that poor guy's arm made. How the hell'd you even do that?" Asked the third, wincing.
"A lot of useless knowledge and anger." Said the second. "Wonder what that'd do to Potter here..."
"Keep him from writing his parents and weeping about being beaten up, probably." Said the first. "I'm surprised he hasn't started crying already."
"Won't take much, probably." The second laughed. "He seems to get all mopey if the weather's even a little off. Can't imagine what actually taking a hit'll do to him."
"Are you jackasses going to stand there or are you going to get this over with?" Vega asked, feeling a rise in his chest. This really wasn't going to end well and he knew it. But, he reasoned, the faster he got it over with, the faster he could recover. Maybe when he woke up, the rumors would have died back down and he would be able to resume a normal schedule without being the target of the school's hatred.
"Ohhh, getting cocky, Potter? What, you think you can actually take even one of us out? Tell ya what, I'll give you the chance. You two stand back, I'll let him get a free hit on me, just to show I'm a nice guy. Sound fair, Potter? I won't do anything until you hit me, but once it connects, it's on." Said the second boy, moving to the front and smirking down at Vega.
"You sure you want to risk it?" Vega asked, returning the smirk.
Laughing, the boy sneered at Vega. "You just asked what the worst you could do to the monster was. If you're able to even punch correctly, I'll be surprised."
"Who says I'm not going to cast something at you?"
"I've heard what kind of grades you get. I'm not scared, Potter."
Drawing his wand, Vega gripped it tightly and surveyed the Hufflepuff. He had a good foot or so of height on Vega, and what looked like a good hundred pounds. He was easily the biggest of the three, in more ways than one, and punching him anywhere in the chest or stomach probably wouldn't have much impact. Vega wracked his mind for spells he knew he could actually cast in this kind of situation, but was coming up blank.
"Whenever you're ready, go for it. No warning, just try and do something." Said the boy, holding his arms out.
Vega wasn't positive, but he was almost certain that he had never wanted to knock out the teeth of a guy more than he did at that moment. The guy was asking for it! And, were he able to think of a way to accomplish this goal before getting beaten to a pulp, he would definitely try it. Unfortunately, he was still unable to think of a way to attack. Okay, so attacking was out. Vega's mind switched from offense to defense, and he pondered outright escape. He might be able to tangle the guy's legs up. If he ran, he'd only have to get away from the other two. That almost sounded doable.
Vega aimed his wand high, planning to quickly bring it down when he actually cast the spell. He was hoping to catch the Hufflepuff boy off guard. One well-place Jelly-Legs Jinx and he could potentially be back in the Great Hall before they caught up. And, moving as quickly as he could, he fired the spell off and immediately dug his shoes into the ground to spin and bolt. The boy wasn't sure what he had been hit with, since it didn't seem to do anything. But when he tried moving, his legs wouldn't obey and he flailed for a moment before crashing to the ground.
"Get him!" He bellowed, causing the other two to take off after Vega.
Vega was starting to regret eating as much as he had now. He had been trying to fill up to make the headache go away, but it definitely felt like it was coming back to haunt him now. He felt slower, and running on a full stomach certainly didn't make him feel any better. But the adrenaline coursing through him wasn't allowing him to slow. But it had worked! It might have taken a few seconds for the spell to kick in, but he had jinxed that guy! Grinning, Vega glanced over his shoulder. He had a good distance on the other two and, if he was able to keep this pace up, he would be to safety in no time!
But as he rounded another corner, he glanced down the hall and saw something that caused his stomach to lurch. Hydrus and Viola were coming up it, arguing about something. When they saw Vega, they stopped, Viola waving and calling out to him.
"What're you running for, then?!"
Vega came to a halt in front of them and, as fast as he could, said, "Being chased by a pair of very angry Hufflepuffs so we need to get going again come on run!"
"What?! What're they chasing you for?" Viola asked.
"Oh god, look, I'll explain while we're running, just--"
"There he is!" Shouted one of the Hufflepuff boys as the two of them finally came around the corner.
"Crap!" Vega swore. "Come on, we've gotta move!"
"Can't run forever." Hydrus said. "Let me try and difuse this, Potter."
"What?! Hyde, are you out of your damn mind?! Come on!"
"Uh... maybe Vega's right, Hydrus." Viola said. "Those guys are big and... really mad..."
Hydrus put out a hand to stop to the both of them and walked towards the Hufflepuff boys, who slowed down when they approached. He started to ask what the problem was, but only about half finished the sentence before being slugged in the gut as hard as one of the boys could throw the punch. He dropped down to his knees, arms wrapped around his midsection, trying to figure out where the air in his lungs had just gone. He could hear both Vega and his sister yell out his name, but it sounded garbled to him. And somewhere behind the pain, it felt like he was going to be sick.
"Leave my brother alone, damn it!" Viola growled, drawing her wand and advancing on the boys. "Who the hell do you think you are, huh?!"
"We think we're the guys who are going to beat the three of you to a bloody pulp! We get you three to leave the castle and the monsters will stop attacking!" Snapped one of the two Hufflepuffs.
"What are you, stupid?!" Snapped Viola right back. "Removing us from the school isn't going to stop anything, you idiots!"
"Better watch your mouth, little girl, or you'll end up like your brother." Growled the other Hufflepuff, balling one of his hands up again.
"Vivi, get back here!" Vega yelled, running up and grabbing ahold of Viola's shoulders. "We can--"
But Vega's grip on her wasn't keeping her from moving forward. Raising her wand, she snarled, "Oh will I now? Not above hitting girls younger than yourselves, huh? I bet you're great with the ladies, aren't you?"
"Don't make them angier!" Hissed Vega.
"Better listen to him, girl." Said the first, stalking towards Viola. "You aren't helping his cause any."
"If you think I'm going to turn and run after seeing you hurt my brother, you're dumber than you look." Said Viola, her tone icy. And, quickly lashing her wand through the air, she growled, "Tarantallegra!"
The boy who was coming toward her got hit by the spell, causing his legs to lose control. Unable to advance, he yelled for his friend to deal with Viola, whose aim changed from the first to the second. He managed to defend against a second spell cast by Viola, who tried to use the same thing on both of the Hufflepuffs. But as he was bringing his wand up to throw a spell at her, he got hit from behind. His legs shifted together and stayed that way, causing him to topple over.
Shakily getting to his feet, wand drawn, and looking absolutely livid, was Hydrus. Viola rushed over to him to see how he was, but just as she got to him, purple light slammed into her side and sent her flying violently into the wall. Vega went to run over to her, as did Hydrus, but the two of them also got hit with curses.
Coughing, Vega looked up to see the third Hufflepuff, the one whose legs he had jinxed, walking up to the two groups. Glaring down at his friends, he undid the problems with their legs before he spat, "You two are useless! What the hell have you been doing, playing games?!"
"Sorry." Muttered the first. "We thought..."
"Yeah, that's the problem. You tried thinking." Spat the third. "Stay the hell on the ground and let me do this. You two grab his friends and make sure they don't get up and try casting anything!"
The two did as they were told, forcing Hydrus and Viola to their feet. Hydrus was still incredibly wobbly, and Viola looked like she was just about to pass out. She had one hand on her side, where the spell had caught her, and she looked like she was fighting back tears. Vega scrambled to his feet, but a quick punch from the largest of the three Hufflepuffs sent him back down to one knee. He clutched at his chest, wheezing and coughing as he tried to catch his breath.
"Why the hell did you three have to come here? Why here?! Things were fine before the three of you turned up! Now all of us have to watch our backs for fear of something trying to kill us! We remove you three, we remove the entire problem. I was going to try holding back on you, Potter. But you had to be smart with me, didn't you? Now look what running has got you. Your friends tried keeping you safe and now they're worse than you are. That's going to change, though. I don't care if I get expelled for this. Everyone else will be safe! It'll be worth it!" Snarled the Hufflepuff, turning back toward the other two, who still had tight grips on Hydrus and Viola.
"Don't touch them, dammit!" Yelled Vega, slowly standing back up. "If you want to beat me up, fine! Beat me up! Just leave them alone!"
"If I did that, you wouldn't learn anything, Potter." Said the boy. "You have to learn your place in life. And your place --" He paused long enough to drive his fist into Hydrus' stomach. Hydrus cried out, doubling over as best he could while being held upright, and coughing hard. "-- isn't here!"
"Stop it!" Vega cried out, slowly moving toward the Hufflepuffs.
"Just remember, Potter. All of this pain could've been avoided. You're going to leave this school one way or another." Said the boy, moving over to Viola. And, before Vega could even raise his wand, the boy had once more thrown a heavy punch. Already being on the verge of collapse from the previous attack, Viola blacked out almost instantly at being hit in the stomach. The boy holding her let her go, and she stopped like a rock to the ground.
"Vivi!"
"And now, Potter... it's your turn!" Yelled the Hufflepuff, whirling around, drawing his wand, and sending shooting another burst of purple light at Vega. It was the exact same spell that had caught Viola off guard, and Vega was caught in the chest by it, throwing him back up the hallway. He landed on his stomach, and one of his arms had been twisted in an unnatural way. They weren't trying to get him sent home, they were trying to kill him!
Viola and Hydrus had been hurt because of him, and now he was going to end up with most of his bones broken unless he could think of a way out. But his brain didn't want to work. The pain shooting through his body was all-consuming. He tried getting back to his feet, but got kicked in the side and was sent back down.
"Stop trying to get up, you spoiled little brat." Said the Hufflepuff, reaching down and grabbing Vega by the hair. And, in one swift movement, lifted Vega's head up before slamming it down into the stone floor. He let out a laugh, and lifted his head back up for another go. But as he did, Vega's good arm lifted, wand shakily raising to aim at the boy.
"Oh? And what do you think you're going to do to me now, Potter?" Asked the boy. He pulled back on Vega's hair, forcing the Slytherin's face to look upward at him. One of his eyes was nearly swollen shut, and blood was trickling freely from his nose and the corner of his mouth. "What do you think you can possib--"
A searing red light shot wildly from Vega's wand. It missed the Hufflepuff boy, but when it hit the ceiling, it began to ricochet around the hallway. It eventually slammed into the floor next to the Hufflepuff who was still holding Hydrus. It caused the boy to jump back, letting go of Hydrus, who crumpled to the ground, still holding his stomach. The spell fizzled out, and when it did, all three Hufflepuffs turned to look back at Vega.
The one who had been holding onto his hair quickly let it go and backpedalled just as fast. His wand was up, as were the wands of his fellow Hufflepuffs, ready to counter whatever Vega tried doing. And, somehow, Vega managed to slowly rise to his feet again. Despite being unable to focus on anything, and despite being unable to feel anything other than the pain wracking his body, he wasn't going to go out without a fight. Strangely, it almost felt as though he was a puppet on strings. His wand arm raised, but he couldn't feel it move. Another burst of red light shot out, but he didn't remember casting it. He wasn't even sure what the spell was. He just knew he had to stop them before they did anything else to his friends.
The next shot also missed, fizzling out after two ricochets. Okay, so one wasn't going to cut it. Raising his wand, he began whipping it through the air, multiple sparks flying from it and bouncing all over the place. The three Hufflepuffs quickly brought shields up, and for the most part, they seemed to do the trick. But whether it was luck or whether the lead boy just wasn't good at Defense, one of the sparks managed to break through his shield. It slammed into and through his right arm, just above the elbow. The boy let out a howl of pain as the spark quickly formed into a small, thin spike, the glow dying out. A moment later, his eyes went wide and he let out an ear-splitting scream. The small spike had produced more spikes, in all directions, which had shot back out of the boy's arm.
He dropped to the ground, and his friends were at his side, trying to figure out how to remove the spiked ball from inside his arm. Blood was dripping out of the multiple punctures it had created, and he was still yelling, which made his friends also yell to be heard over the noise. Vega staggered forward, raising his wand again. One had fallen, but two were still left. But even as he raised his arm again, he knew he wasn't going to last. Despite feeling as though someone else was controlling his movements, his vision was getting blurred and dark around the edges. But the Hufflepuff trio were still too close to Hydrus and Viola. They could still strike if he faltered. He couldn't let it happen.
Drawing in a ragged breath, he screamed, "Get away from them!"
Vega's scream apparently was louder than the noise the Hufflepuffs' were, as they suddenly jerked their heads up to look at him. There was something in their eyes, something Vega couldn't recognize in his half-unconscious fit of desperation. He raised his wand up again, ready to send another volley of sparks out, but his arm fell limply to his side. The world spun and went black and, unable to keep going any longer, Vega's body finally succumbed to the injuries he had taken.
oOoOoOoOoOoOo
Author's Notes: Happy New Year, everyone! I hope everyone's holiday season went well, and I'm sorry I didn't get this up before year's end as I planned on. But the holidays kept me busier than I'd anticipated. Combined with a bad case of writer's block, it kept me from completing this lengthy chapter for awhile. I hope it was interesting enough to make up for the downtime.
So, not for the first time, and certainly not for the last, we see that something is definitely not quite right with Vega. What it is, however, won't be actually revealed for awhile. At least, the present plans are for it not to be revealed for awhile. You can speculate all you want, but it won't be quite right.
And the spell Vega was using? No, to answer a question I know some of you might be wondering, it wasn't the Bolt Thrower. It was something a bit more malevolent. What this is, and what it's ACTUALLY a small part OF won't be revealed until... I think late in book 5? Somewhere in there. The normal one will be worked on sometime between books 2 and 4, though, so you'll find that out sooner. Consider it one of Vega's signature spells, though. At least for now, that's the plan, anyway.
Until next time, folks!