Chapter Fifty-Four

A dozen women stood behind Blaise, their outlines were blurred and their forms were semi-translucent, they were beautiful and young, they had been murdered in their prime and each face held the appearance of deep sorrow and muted anger, their spirit bodies still bore the marks of abuse and Blaise looked them over one by one, a burgeoning sadness filling his soul. He wished he could return them to their natural lives but he knew that that was impossible. He wondered what their lives might have been like had they not been stolen from them at such an unfair and premature time, and slowly Blaise's sadness turned to irate fury at the injustice of their murders. They began to speak to him. It was a haunting, ringing sound as their voices spoke as one.

"You have removed our shackles but in order for our souls to become free you must find Bertram. Find and destroy him, or else imprison him as he has us." Blaise turned to look at the shamen, who seemed entirely unaware of the twelve ghostly woman watching.

"This man," he said softly, pointing to Tennengong, "Is going to trap Bertram in that Jar there." Blaise said, not knowing how he suddenly knew this information, "but he is going to need your help in order to do that."

"Oh dear," a few of the ghosts chorused, "we are too weak," another said, "we would be too afraid," the rest said at once and they started to cry and moan, in a high pitched tone that set Blaise's hair on end.

Blaise's voice became stern, "We can only help you if you are ready to fight for you freedom," he told them and again the ghosts resisted the idea.

"He may well have a new victim!" Blaise was shouting now, "It could be my friend or my girlfriend! Do you want to be responsible for this happening to another innocent girl?"

The crying and moaning stopped and the ghosts began to murmur amongst themselves. "A thirteenth soul!" Blaise heard them say,

"We would all be stuck here for eternity if he claims a thirteenth soul!"

"We must try!"

"We must fight!"

"But what do we do?"

"Whatever it takes!"

"We will do it!" They all said at once.

Blaise breathed a sigh of relief and turned to look again at Tennengong. Tennengong was looking at Blaise smiling, "You have done well." he said.

…...

Aurelia watched in horror as Draco slowly stood up, the knife still held high above his head. His head came up to look at his victim and then he lunged forwards, to plunge the knife into Hermione's bare abdomen.

"Stop!" Aurelia shouted, running forward and throwing all of her weight around Draco's shoulders. She summoned all of her strength to stay his hands. Draco shrugged her off with ease but she had succeeded in her goal of keeping Hermione from being stabbed. She rose quickly to her feet.

She whipped her wand up, "Stillabunt!" she cried and the knife went clattering from his hands and skittered away across the wooden floor into the shadows. Draco growled and set upon Aurelia. He knocked her into the wall without any effort and Aurelia crashed violently to the floor. Draco turned back towards Hermione, raised his wand and said, "Dimittam". Hermione crumpled to the floor with a thud, and Draco stood over her. He sat with his knees either side of her body and leant over her, his hands closed around her throat but as his fingers tightened, he drew away in pain.

Bertram/Draco looked down to where he had been burnt and his black eyes saw the glittering serpent of Hermione's pendant glinting back at him.