Parts (20-23)
I
Chapter 5
Troubling Secrets
Part 1: The Fight
Scorpius slept badly that night, if he slept at all he didn't notice and he actually felt more tired than when he'd gone to bed. He wasn't alone in having slept badly though, Albus looked as exhausted as he felt. Angelo and Reuben didn't, they just went down chatting cheerfully while he and Albus waited silently for Michael. The mudblood's drapes were closed but he sounded like he was getting up.
When Michael did finally emerge, he was at least looking better than he had that night. The color to his face had returned and he was no longer shivering, obviously he now wore his clean and neat school uniform ready for class. Most drastically of all though, was that his black eye was no longer black. At first glance it looked gone but if you paid attention then you noticed around his eye still looking misshapen, the eyelid was partially closed and the eye itself was bloodshot. Scorpius cringed inwardly for Michael, he knew how much that hurt.
"So who's hungry for some breakfast?" Michael asked cheerfully as he started limping awkwardly for the stairs but Albus stepped in front of him.
"How can you act like nothing's wrong?!" Albus burst out frantically, "We were worried sick and then you show up looking terrible and upset and now you just want to go eat breakfast?! What happened?! And what happened to your black eye?!"
"I'm hungry," Michael pointed out quietly, "And I don't know what you're talking about so can we please just go eat?"
At this, Michael started to walk again and Albus opened his mouth to protest but Scorpius grabbed his arm. He pulled Albus out of the way to let Michael by, earning him a glare from Albus that was angry enough to rival his cousin's. He did wait for Michael to have left before speaking though, Scorpius let go of his arm.
"Clearly, he doesn't want to talk about it, Albus," Scorpius said firmly, "If you keep badgering him then he'll get annoyed and upset then clam up even more, he'll talk about it when he's ready. Give him some time, he'll come around."
"How much time?! What if that doesn't work?!"
"You really have no patience, do you?" Scorpius commented to which the other boy scowled, "If it doesn't work then we'll try it your way."
"Should we tell a teacher or something?"
"Tell them what exactly? We don't know what happened."
"Well... I..." Albus stammered and his scowl deepened, "I don't know! I couldn't sleep all night. I can't believe my brother is like this away from home, I mean he was always a prankster and he teases everyone but I didn't think he was a bully who hurt people."
"People surprise you sometimes..." Scorpius muttered, being reminded of what Molly had said about his dad, "Maybe he'll grow out of it and we don't even know if it was James who gave him that black eye and... whatever happened to him. I don't think many Gryffindors are happy with him right now and then there's Nott, he and his buddies are always mocking him. Maybe they went further this time, we just don't know."
"I never thought of that."
"I know. So let's go to breakfast and hopefully Michael will come around."
"Okay," Albus agreed, seeming calmer as they headed downstairs, "But if he hasn't told us by the end of the day then we'll go to that Calderon guy?"
Scorpius half nodded, worrying again about the assistant. Michael, Rose and Abby had waited for them - well the girls were only waiting for Albus - but Albus seemed determined to stick by Michael's side so they ended up going to the Great Hall together. Abby was talking about how nervous she was for Herbology as it was taught by her father, Scorpius listened but didn't take his eyes of Michael. The mudblood was still limping awkwardly, it was worrying. He picked at his food through breakfast but Michael seemed his usual cheerful chatty self, or at least he was pretending to be. Michael was a surprisingly good liar.
"What happened to your eye?" Rose questioned after a while.
"Walked into a door, stupid things are so heavy and slammy," Michael answered with a forced laugh, "Y'know?"
"How are you managing to hide the bruise? It would be easier to just go to the Hospital Wing."
"Magic muggle thing called makeup, works every time. It'll heal soon enough, it's just a bruise."
"So a door, eh?" Albus commented, Scorpius kicked him under the table and Albus took the hint to shut up about it as Michael nodded.
No one said anything about it again, although Scorpius didn't think any of them really believed Michael's door story. Michael was doing his best to hide the bruise though, he kept moving his hair over his injured eye and keeping his head down. None of the teachers noticed, for some reason that made Scorpius angry. They should notice that something was wrong with one of their students, shouldn't they? Wasn't it their job to look out for them and keep them safe? Even if Michael was being subtle, they should notice.
Then again, the teacher's did seem to share Professor Ashain's outrage at Varanian's new rule. They didn't say anything and were still professional, did their job but Scorpius picked up their bad mood. They seemed to just be trying to focus on their lessons and Scorpius did the same, everyone seemed to be. Albus and Michael were unusually quiet all day. Nott wasn't. Any lesson with him, he didn't hesitate to continue mocking Michael for struggling so much with magic. It didn't improve Scorpius' mood and he had to repeatedly bite his tongue, reminding himself to stay out of it. He was so relieved when the last lesson of the day was done, and not just because it was History of Magic.
"So I think when we get to the Library, we should start with the essay Binns wants because that'll take the longest," Rose started saying as they left the classroom.
"We were going to the Library to do our homework," Albus explained to Michael, "Unless you or Scorpius want to do something else. If you want to do something else then that is totally okay, Michael."
"Albus, they're not our friends!" Rose hissed to her cousin, "They can't study with us."
"Have to go to detention anyway," Michael told them and even Rose shared in their shock.
"Detention?!" Rose shrieked, "Whatever for?! We've not been here a week and you already have detention?! Whatever did you do?!"
"Went into the Forbidden Forest... The headmaster really hates that."
"You went into the Forbidden Forest?" Nott stated jumping in between them from behind and laughing, "Gee, I knew you were an idiot but doesn't 'forbidden' in the name give away that it's off limits? Oh wait, is that too big a word for you to understand? Wow, you're so stup-"
Nott was cut off mid-sentence as Albus' fist collided with his jaw. The girls and Michael gasped in shock but Scorpius was impressed, he'd seen enough of Marvin's beloved fights to know a good punch when he saw one. Quite frankly, he thought Nott deserved it. Albus' eyes widened as he seemed to notice what he'd done but his fist was up in readiness to strike again, Nott's eyes blazed with fury and he launched himself at Albus. The two boys fell to the ground and tumbled down the last few steps.
Scorpius and the other First Years raced after them, they were rolling around in a tangle of fists and kicks. Nott clearly seemed to have the most experience fighting but Albus was taller and stronger, Nott's attack had taken Albus by surprise though and he had the upper hand. Michael and Abby were awkwardly telling them both to stop but neither was listening.
"Malfoy, do something!" Rose demanded of him hysterically.
"Why?" Scorpius wondered as he noticed for the first time that there was quite a crowd gathering, Nott's friends didn't even try to help him.
"Because... I don't know! You're a boy! Do something, this is your fault!"
"How is it my fault?!"
"I don't know! Just help my cousin, you owe him!"
Scorpius rolled his eyes and drew his wand, wondering if everyone had forgotten that they were magical. With as much force as he could muster, Scorpius grabbed Nott's arm and yanked him away from Albus. Nott turned on him angrily, his nose now dripping blood but Scorpius pointed his wand at him and focused like he had before. Nott froze fearfully, Albus however got up and furiously threw another punch at Nott.
"No! Enough!"
Abby shocked everyone by calling out as she jumped protectively in front of Nott, it was too late to take back the punch though. Albus barely had time to look horrified before the momentum slammed his fist into the little girl's face, the blonde staggered back into Nott. The two fell awkwardly back into the wall, Nott violently shoved her off him with enough force to make her hit the corner. He went to move forward before stopping as he realized both Scorpius and now Rose both had their wants aiming for him.
"Abby... I'm so sorry."
"Bloody hell, enough!" Michael exclaimed.
"I concur," Varanian spoke in agreement, everyone turned around horrified to see the headmaster was now watching them.
"They attacked me!" Nott shrieked immediately, "The whole lot of them! They attacked me, Headmaster! They attacked me!"
"Liar!" Albus spat, quite literally spitting blood out of his mouth.
"No they are like totally started it, thems are madmen," one of Nott's friends said.
"Learn English, you moron!" Rose snapped, "And Nott is lying, he started it!"
At that, an angry argument started up amongst the crowd over who had done what to whom, Scorpius was actually surprised about how far from the truth some of them were. Some people claimed Albus started it, some people claimed Nott did. Some people claimed he and Rose had been dueling with magic while the other two fought physically, as well as having Michael and Abby cheering them on. It had literally happened just seconds ago! People were just weird, Scorpius decided, very weird.
"Silence everyone," Varanian spoke without looking away from him and the students all went quiet, "With the exception of you six -" he continued and paused to motion to Scorpius, Albus, Nott, Abby, Rose and Michael, "- Please return to your free time, I believe homework should be your first priority. You are dismissed. Leave quickly lest you be punished too."
Everyone else started shuffling away hurriedly although Scorpius was more focused on Varanian, in fact his gray eyes hadn't left the headmaster's face since he had arrived. Varanian met his eyes, now beardless with short muddy brown hair but his eyes remained cold gray slabs of hatred, hatred that Scorpius returned unflinchingly. He wondered if the detention for Michael involved giving the boy another black eye or making his limp worse or... whatever he had done to him. He realized his wand was now trained on the headmaster and he had to force his arm to lower it, he remained focused though with his magic at the ready. Just in case he needed to raise his wand.
"Haven't even been here a week and already fighting?" Varanian commented acidly, finally looking away from him to the others, "You are a disgrace. I should expel you on the spot, disorder is not tolerated in my school."
"Ex-Ex-Expelled?!" Rose stuttered, looking terrified as her eyes started to well with tears, "I-I didn't... I didn't even do anything. Please, I'll be good. I'll be so super really good, please don't expel me! I can do better, I promise. I prom-"
"Silence girl, I said I should not that I would. Listen more. And quite frankly, I don't care who did what. You were all involved and being involved is just as bad as doing it yourself. You will all be punished. Looks like you get some help, Mitchell."
"Michael."
"Whatever your name is. Get changed into your non-school clothes and meet me at the entrance in ten minutes."
"Ten minutes?!" Nott protested, "How do you expect us to do that in ten minutes?!"
"I suggest you run," Varanian answered coolly, "If you're late then you will be expelled and for the record, your ten minutes started when I finished the last sentence."
They all scrambled to get away, almost before the headmaster had finished speaking. Scorpius was so glad that he'd practiced learning the layout the previous day. They ran. They just ran. He thought he could hear the others' footsteps thundering behind them, he hoped so anyway but he dared not stop or slow down to check. He barely had time to register the looks of confusion on the faces of the people he passed, or in some cases had to weave around. He didn't slow down, he didn't dare.
He yelled the password before he reached the portrait - not caring who heard - so he didn't have to stop to wait for it to open as he bolted up the steps. Marvin would be proud of how fast he got changed, it gave him a chance to catch his breath at least because his lungs were burning. He ran back downstairs and saw only Rose was coming down the girl's side, he almost ran outside and carried on. He knew the way, he had practiced it enough but... it didn't seem right to just leave the others.
"What... are... you... waiting for?" Rose asked breathlessly.
"It's... the right... thing to do," he answered between breaths, "I'd rather... be expelled for doing... the right thing then... stay for having abandoned everyone to save my own skin. What are... you waiting for?"
"I don't... I don't know the way," Rose pointed out as Abby and Albus came down almost at the same time, followed by the still-limping Michael, "That's an... odd philosophy for a Malfoy."
"I know the way. Follow me! All for one and one for all!"
Scorpius wasn't sure if anyone understood the last reference but when he ran, they all followed him. They hurtled down the stairs and he almost ran into Professor Flitwick but thankful to not to, he just kept on running. You can run if you want, as fast as you can, as far as you want but you'll never get away from me. Not really. Scorpius just kept on running. He only stopped when he heard someone cry out in pain and fall. He looked back to see Michael was sitting on one of the steps in the corridor, clutching at his right leg with a pained expression. Scorpius ran back over to him.
"I... I c-can't," Michael gasped, "My leg... too... much. Go... without..."
"Didn't you... hear me?" Scorpius wondered as he looped his arm under Michael's shoulder and brought him to his feet, "All for... one and... one for all... means no one is getting... getting left behind on my watch. Understand?"
Albus appeared on Michael's other side and helped the mudblood's other arm over his shoulder to help him walk, or rather hop on his good leg. Similar to the other day except Scorpius had been the one getting help. The girls stood around nearby looking really anxious and uncertain.
"Do... you know... the way, Abby?" Scorpius asked of her and the girl reluctantly nodded, "Then go."
The girls looked at him for a long moment, it was the first time since he'd met her that Rose had looked him without glaring. In fact, she was looking at him like she'd never seen him before. There was no point in them deliberately staying behind though, they couldn't help with Michael.
"We'll put... in a good... word for you," Rose said, seeming to understand as the two girls took off again.
"You... should just... run too," Michael pointed out, "I don't... want to get you expelled... for helping me."
"Oh... hush," Albus panted breathlessly, "Not... leaving... you."
"You don't have to... Didn't have to hit Nott either... Doesn't matter... that your brother..."
"I thought Varanian hurt you?" Scorpius said with a scowl.
"No... Those bullies lied and took me into the... forest and... the fat one gave me a black eye then they were... doing stuff with... magic to me then James tried to... lift me up with a spell and only got my shirt... threw it into a tree... I was trying to get it and fell, hurt my leg and rolled down... this hill. Then Varanian... Varanian was there and the boys must of took off because it... was just me and he gave me detention in the... forest for the rest of the day," Michael explained in between breaths as they awkwardly carried on, "Varanian... wouldn't let me go to the... Hospital Wing or even get my shirt down until... until he said so... I was freezing... it's so cold... and... He wouldn't let me stop... until curfew... missed lunch and dinner and said I had... to keep doing it until it was done... He told me not to tell anyone... or else."
"What's the detention?" Albus wondered, looking confused.
"You'll see... I'm sorry... it'll hurt. A lot. Or... we'll be expelled and you won't have to... worry about it."
Part 2: Varanian's Detention
At Michael's rather ominous and depressing statement, they went silent and just focused on getting to the main entrance. They did move considerably faster than when they'd been getting Scorpius to Calderon, Michael could still take pressure on his left leg so he supposed it was easier. They weren't too far away from the main entrance anyway, Scorpius was both pleased and disappointed when they rounded the bend and saw Varanian. Arms folded and a scowl on his face, Nott and the girls were already there.
Varanian drew his wand immediately and aimed it at Michael's leg, he muttered something and a red spell shot out into Michael's leg. The mudblood cried out in pain but when he put his leg down, he didn't cringe in pain like he had before. Scorpius and Albus let him go, Michael stood unaided.
"You're welcome," Varanian spat irritably but Michael didn't look grateful, "Follow."
"Are we... are we expelled?" Albus asked worriedly as they followed the headmaster outside.
"Considering the circumstances with Marshall's-"
"Michael," Michael corrected.
"With whatever-his-name-is' leg, you're not expelled. This time. I wouldn't have told you to follow me if you were expelled, would I? Try using your mind not your fist every so often if you expect to learn anything, Albert."
"Albus," Albus corrected, "Albus Potter."
"Whatever your name is," Varanian said dismissively and carried on leading them across the grounds, they seemed to be heading towards the forest.
"Starting to get why you hate him," Albus whispered in his ear and Scorpius just nodded, afraid to reply in case the headmaster was listening.
"Um... Sir, why... why are..." Nott babbled as they reached the edge of the forest, "We're not doing detention in the Forbidden Forest are we? I mean, didn't you give Michael a detention for going in there in the first place?"
"You're allowed for the purpose of the detention, clearly," Varanian answered, shooting a dark look to the terrified Nott.
"Please Sir, anything but the forest. I have a fear of forests, ever since I was four and-"
"Have to face your fears sometime," Varanian snapped as Nott stopped before the tree line, the Slytherin was shaking, "Unless you'd rather be expelled and never be allowed to practice magic again, I'm sure there's plenty of muggle schools and jobs away from forests."
Varanian carried on walking into the forest and the other five followed, a second later a reluctant Nott ran after them. He still looked terrified and followed so close to the headmaster that he almost stepped on Varanian's heels, more than once. Scorpius hadn't really been to a forest before so it was an experience for him, the gnarled trees looked unusually dark but he thought the way the flecks of sunlight filtered through the trees was quite pretty. He almost tripped over the thick spidery roots and made a mental note to pay more attention to the ground, it was a good thing he did because he noticed what they were heading towards before the others. Since the others were looking around anxiously except Varanian and Michael, they clearly knew where they were going.
On the ground were discs, or at least they were disc shaped but looked like they were made of a coppery colored stone. They were just slightly larger than a dinner plate and were lined up neatly, for whatever reason. They were heading towards where the trail abruptly ended, stretching out all the way to the left were the discs though. As far as Scorpius could see in that direction, he saw the discs.
"Everyone kneel beside one of those," Varanian commanded gesturing to the discs, Michael's expression was grim as he knelt facing the headmaster on the end disc.
"You want us to kneel in the dirt?" Nott said, sounding disgusted but a look from Varanian silenced him. He raced over to the disc beside Michael, he still didn't look pleased as he knelt down.
Abby reluctantly took the one on his left, Rose on her left and Albus on her left, leaving Scorpius beside Albus. Upon closed inspection, he saw that there were symbols on the discs, they all looked the same and reminded him of Runes that he'd seen in his Divination book. If he thought of it like a clock face then there were small symbols at twelve, three, six and nine that looked like they're been drawn on in chalk. The one in the middle was the largest though, taking up most of the disc. It looked kind of like an arrow pointing upwards, that one was deeply and thickly carved into the stone not drawn on.
"Today, you're helping me with this magic," Varanian explained, "As you will keep on doing every single day until it's done, then I will assign you a different detention. These wards are placed so that they completely surround the school and grounds, you will be activating each and every one. I will know if you haven't so don't even try lying to me to get out of this detention, which will be every day when your classes are done until dinner time. On the weekends, I expect you to be here at six am sharp and will leave whenever I say so."
"Six am is like the middle of the night!" Nott protested but went silent after another glance from Varanian.
"What you will be doing is placing your hand - left or right, it's not important as long as it's only one hand - over the ward, in the center as much as you can. You then say 'I Ecifircas' and push down, the symbol will turn red and sink into the ground. You then get up and move on to the next available one, repeating the process until I tell you to stop. Maxwell will demonstrate."
"Michael," Michael corrected him again.
"Whatever your name is."
Michael sighed heavily and placed his right hand over the disc, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath as if trying to brace himself for something. He clearly and correctly spoke the incantation and pushed. Immediately, a burst of crimson light seemed to move from his chest down his arm and into the disc that sunk from his view. Dirt replaced it, as if it had never been there at all. Michael was left breathing heavily as he wrapped his arms around himself protectively, like he had the previous night.
"Simple, see? Now you try, Slytherin boy."
"My name is Maximus Nott, not Slytherin boy."
"Whatever your name is, not-not boy. Just do it," Varanian growled and Nott glowered in frustration but placed his hand on the disc regardless.
"I Ecifircas," Nott spoke and the exact same thing happened with the disc as with Michael, the difference was in Nott's reaction. The Slytherin screamed as the crimson flash appeared, he almost seemed to yank his arm away from the disc but it didn't budge. When the disc was gone, he clutched his chest and sobbed, "Wh-what are you trying to do? T-Torture us? Th-That really hurts."
"If it hurts then it means it works," Varanian told him icily, "Suck it up."
"Y-You can't do this to us, my mother and my father both work for the Ministry and there's... there's rules and stuff against this!"
"My school, my rules. Longbottom, it's your turn."
"Soon as I get b-back to the castle, I'm going to owl my parents and th-they'll have you fired and arrested and throw you in Azkaban for this," Nott continued through his tears, it was the first time Scorpius actually agreed with the Slytherin. Although he knew full well that Nott's letter to his parents would never reach them, Varanian's sadistic smirk only confirmed it. Abby just eyed the disc uncertainly.
"Good luck with that. Longbottom, I said you're next."
Abby looked fearful but bravely placed her hand on the disc and said the incantation, she cried out in pain and pulled her arm even more forcefully back than Nott. It still didn't work though, it was almost like their hands were incapable of leaving the disc while the spell was being performed. It sunk into the ground and Abby whimpered, also wrapping her arms around her chest protectively. What is the spell doing to them? Scorpius wondered.
"My father can't approve of this," Abby whispered and Varanian's expression darkened.
"Breathe a word of this to him and I will fire him," Varanian told her threateningly and Abby looked loathingly at him, "But don't worry, there are plenty of good schools for him to teach at. Assuming he can speak French and enjoys living somewhere where the temperature doesn't get above zero, you'll have plenty of time to visit him seeing as you'll have been expelled and all. If any of you breathe a word of this to anyone then it is an immediate expulsion and none of you would want that, would you? You're next Daisy."
"Rose," Rose corrected him.
"Whatever your name is. You want to be a good student don't you? Didn't you say you could do better? Do it."
The last was almost a snarl and Rose immediately obeyed, placing her hand over the disc and practically yelling the incantation. She managed to not cry out and like Michael didn't try to move her hand away, he did notice her face screwing up in pain though and she seemed to be biting her tongue. After, she was breathing heavily but looked determinedly and triumphantly back at Varanian, a hint of a glare in her eyes.
"Very good, Lily."
"Rose!"
"Whatever your name is. Alvin, your next."
"Albus."
"Whatever your name is! I can't be expected to remember you all, now just do it."
Albus sighed heavily and placed his hand on the disc, Scorpius watched with grim interest as now he was actually close enough to someone to see what was happening. Although bitterly, he realized that in a minute he too would see what was so painful about it. After Albus said the incantation and the crimson sparked in his chest, Scorpius noticed the symbol in the center filling with the color of blood. Albus gasped in pain and tried to pull his hand away, his hand wouldn't move until the symbol was completely filled. Then it sank into the ground and the dirt took it.
"And finally we have your turn, Scorpius."
"You remember his name!"
"Silence you. Scorpius, go."
All eyes were on him expectantly, he thought he saw a flicker of enjoyment on Varanian's face as Scorpius placed his right hand on the disc. He swallowed nervously but determinedly pushed down on it, almost gripping it with his hand. He was used to pain, whatever it was then he could cope with it.
"I Ecifircas."
As he spoke the words, he felt almost like something tugged at his heart from inside his chest. It was uncomfortable but not painful and only lasted a moment. He did notice the crimson flash from his chest but unlike the others it didn't travel down his arm, wrist, and hand to make the symbol go red. It didn't sink into the ground either. He wondered what he'd done wrong and was about to try again before Varanian spoke.
"Should have figured that it wouldn't work for you."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Scorpius snapped, glaring at the headmaster who had a hint of a cruel smile playing on his face.
"It means you get off the hook for this, will have to find some other way to punish you. Come with me. Everyone else carry on in my absence, I shall be back shortly with the blood-replenishing potion that you'll need. Michael is in charge."
Varanian practically hauled him to his feet by his outstretched arm and led him away, leaving the others behind to suffer. With a sickening feeling, Scorpius started to wonder if the blood-colored red that filled the symbol was in fact blood. His hatred for Varanian only increased, Michael didn't deserve that! Really, none of them did. And why didn't it work for him? Scorpius wasn't sure whether he should be asking or waiting for the headmaster as he was led back into the school.
"They're right you know, what you're doing is illegal," Scorpius said finally, "You're not supposed to physically hurt students, you can't keep everyone silent forever. Even if you turn this place into a full blown prison then people would notice."
"Oh please, it's just for the purpose of the spell. I'm not a monster," Varanian answered irritably, "It's not like they'll remember this when it's over anyway, it's not dangerous or anything."
"If it's not dangerous then why don't you do it yourself?" Scorpius snapped and tried not to worry about what he meant about them not remembering, he was also tempted to laugh bitterly at Varanian claiming he wasn't a monster. The muggles had taught him that when someone fervently denied something, it was usually because it was true and they were just trying to convince themselves to feel better.
"Tried. It stopped working for me and wouldn't work for Marius at all, that's why I'm resorting to using naughty students."
"Calderon knows about this?!" Scorpius said in horror.
"Of course he knows, who do you think helped set it up? He doesn't know about the students though. Yet."
"If I tell him, are you going to fire him too?"
"No, he's too useful to me. I will fire that teacher you're friends with though."
"Professor Ashain?!" Scorpius wondered in panic and from the way Varanian smirked, he had a feeling he'd just been tricked into putting the professor into the firing line. He mentally kicked himself.
"Yes. Him. But don't worry. I'm sure he can cope with losing his job and his home, going back to living on the streets again. It's not like he's the slightest bit suicidal and mentally unstable, or is he? Hmm... That could be an awfully long stay in St. Mungo's, locked away with all the other insane people will be healthy for him," Varanian told him and Scorpius felt his anger surge inside him, he actually thought he preferred Marvin's blunt outright way of threatening people than Varanian's, "Ah, so you're not completely heartless."
"No, because I'm not you."
"Silence, Scorpius, you don't know anything about me!"
"I know that you're evil!" Scorpius couldn't stop himself from saying and the headmaster's eyes blazed with anger.
"Says the Death Eater's son!"
"You don't know anything about my family!"
"Actually I do, I know your grandfather! He's a cruel and evil murderer."
"Why, were you Death Eater's together?!"
Scorpius hadn't really meant the question seriously. He wasn't even sure why he'd said it, he was just so angry. Clearly it infuriated Varanian though, he stopped walking and moved his hand as if to strike him. A second too late, Scorpius realized the headmaster has his wand in hand. Scorpius felt something lash against his cheek and he was knocked back from the force of the blow, it stung painfully. He moved to his hand to it he felt the mark it had left on his skin, Marvin had done worse to him but it still hurt. He hated Varanian so much.
"Let that be a lesson to you, not to say such malicious things," Varanian growled, his voice betraying his anger even as he seemed to be struggling to stay calm, "Although I know that's hard considering that you're evil."
"I'm not evil," Scorpius told him firmly, angrily meeting the headmaster's eyes.
"Oh really? Do you know why the ward wouldn't accept your blood?" Varanian asked and Scorpius suddenly didn't want to know, "Because you have a tainted soul. It only works with good people. Should have known, should have never let you into this school. You know your grandfather sent a letter to the school explaining you were missing, asked if you were found in time and not dead if you could still come. I hoped you were dead."
"Shut up," Scorpius whispered, caught somewhere between fear at being evil and anger at Varanian. The headmaster merely smirked and started walking again.
"I wanted you to be dead because the world is a better place with one less Malfoy, that and Lucius deserves to suffer. See what it's like to lose someone he loves for a change, assuming Malfoys are even capable of that."
"Shut up," Scorpius repeated, trying to suppress his anger. His fists were shaking. How could Varanian have the nerve to threaten him, hit him, taunt him yet think him evil? What had he ever done to Varanian?
"But you did survive, I bet Lucius was surprised that it was muggles who took you. I would never have guessed that anyway," Varanian continued, almost seeming to be enjoying himself. Darkness danced in his eyes, "What did they do to you? Your father's letter wasn't specific beyond 'abuse' and saying to go easy on you because you were too weak, too traumatized to cope with much. What did they do to you? Did they hit you? Did they touch you? Did-"
"Shut up! Just shut up!"
Scorpius seemed to literally feel his anger exploding from him as he spoke, gray light lashed out from him at the surprised Varanian. The headmaster was thrown through the air before either of them could react, he hit the wall and cried out in pain. His black shadow followed him as he fell to the ground on his knees. Scorpius tried to ask if he was alright but his mouth wasn't listening to him, he was too busy being panicking. Were wizards supposed to still accidentally use magic after they'd started Hogwarts?
Varanian angrily got to his feet, Scorpius blinked in surprise seeing the headmaster's eyes had changed color again. Both the iris and the whites of his eyes were now pitch black, they almost seemed to glow with darkness. He stalked over to him and raised his wand arm to strike him again, this time he used the spell with enough force to knock Scorpius to the ground. His cheek seared with pain, it had apparently broken the skin because he felt wetness in the wound. He reached his fingers to touch it and they came back crimson.
"Never use magic against me again," Varanian told him harshly.
"It was an accident. You shouldn't have provoked me," Scorpius said somewhat defensively and in response Varanian raised his wand to strike him again, Scorpius was trying to decide whether to reach for his wand or brace himself when the headmaster's arm stopped. He blinked and his eyes returned to normal as he lowered his wand.
"Get up," Varanian said instead and without giving him a chance to reply, hauled him to his feet. He didn't let go of his wrist as they carried on walking at a faster pace.
Varanian didn't seem to want to talk anymore and Scorpius didn't dare to speak but his free hand clutched at his wand in his pocket, the headmaster's face was still a mask of rage. He had no idea what was in store. He looked for the first time at his surroundings and realized that he knew where he was, one of the corridors near Calderon's room. They turned onto the corridor with Calderon's room and Scorpius was fairly certain of where he was going, sure enough, Varanian took him straight to Calderon's door. He didn't bother knocking and just barged in, Calderon was lying on his bed reading a book. He abruptly put down and started to get up as they entered, he ended up sitting on the edge of the bed facing them when Varanian spoke.
"Marius, he needs a detention. Find some way to punish him until dinner," Varanian stated dismissively and left without another word, slamming the door behind him.
Part 3: Under Your Skin
"Sometimes I wish the door had a lock, if only I didn't hate locks," Calderon sighed scowling after the headmaster, "So what did you do to upset Pippy?"
"Aside from existing?" Scorpius wondered and Calderon turned to him for the first time, his dark eyes widened in horror.
"Did he do that to you?!"
"Yeah."
Calderon shook his head, still looking shocked. He did stand and ushered Scorpius to sit on the bed, waving frantically in the air at the swarm of floating shelves that obediently went over to him. He grabbed a cloth from one, waved his other hand at it and a quick burst of light shot out. The thing was now soaking wet. He pressed it against Scorpius' injured cheek, Scorpius winced at the freezing coldness of it. It reminded him of the lake water but Calderon only pushed it more against his skin.
"Just keep it there, pressure stops the bleeding and the cold numbs the pain. In a minute you won't even notice the cold. Sorry, Scor, some wounds can't be healed by magic."
"It's okay."
"No it's not."
Calderon shook his head again and moved Scorpius' hand to take over holding the cloth to free his own hands. Scorpius watched him try to yank the chair out from under the desk, with the bed so close there was barely enough room to get it out. Finally, the assistant seemed to give up and waved his hands at it. Magically, the chair fitted through and placed itself down opposite Scorpius, Calderon motioned with his hands again and the stuff on the chair flew over to land on the pile of stuff on the desk instead. Triumphantly but exhaustedly, he sat down, Scorpius noticed for the first time that Calderon wasn't wearing shoes. On one foot he had a stripy sock, the other was barefoot with a bandage wrapped around to his toes.
"How's the cold now?" Calderon questioned and Scorpius returned his eyes to the assistant's worried face. Scorpius realized that he had actually been right, the pain was numbed and so was his cheek, he didn't even feel the cold.
"Better."
"Good... So are you going to tell me what happened?"
"You already know what happened," Scorpius answered glumly, he didn't want to get anyone fired or expelled or whatever else Varanian was going to.
"More details would be useful," Calderon prompted gently and Scorpius averted his gaze, "Look I can't help unless you tell me everything. I'm going to talk to him about it anyway but knowing what happened from you would help. Come on, Scor, I helped with those bullies, didn't I? Wait, they're not bothering you still, are they? They should have apologized."
"No, they did apologize and said they'd leave me and alone. And thanks for that by the way."
"So what is it?"
"Am I evil?" Scorpius asked fearfully looking back up at him, Calderon just closed his eyes and sighed.
"He tried to make you activate the wards, didn't he?"
"It wouldn't work for me. He said that meant I have a tainted soul, he said that it only works for good people. Is that true?"
"In a way," Calderon answered carefully, "But you're not evil."
"How do you know?"
"Did the ward repel you when you tried to touch it? Like, did it hurt you and throw you backwards or just not work?"
"No. It just didn't work."
"Well there you go," Calderon said cheerfully, "Not evil."
"I'm confused."
"Erm... Try thinking about it like this, it puts everyone into three categories. When you're born you're innocent and you have a nice, pure... metaphorically white soul and as long as you never do anything drastic then you'll have that forever. Those are the people the magic needs, it needs them to willingly give their blood. Now, if you however choose to be evil and use dark magic, do evil things, namely kill innocents and forsake whatever part of you was good then your soul turns metaphorically black. Those people are the kind that the magic protects against, it doesn't really work until it's complete but what it will do is repel any evil who try to touch it. Do you understand?"
"I think so," Scorpius nodded slowly, waiting for Calderon to continue.
"The third kind is in the middle, the metaphorically gray souls and yes you could think of them as tainted. They're in the middle, they haven't forsaken the goodness in their souls and aren't evil but they have done something dark to taint their soul, for lack of a better term. Namely killing but only a bad person in self-defense or accidentally when you had no choice, that's what the letter said anyway but I don't think Pippy read past 'tainted soul.' You and me, we're the gray souls, neutral not evil. Does that make you feel any better?"
"Sort of... yeah, I guess being tainted is better than evil," Scorpius admitted and Calderon offered him a sad smile, he wondered if Calderon felt the same. At least he wasn't the only one, "So what do these disc things do anyway?"
"Ah don't worry about it, Scor," Calderon brushed it off and Scorpius tried not to scowl, he was going to worry about it anyway, "I told you, Pippy's just on a paranoia kick because what happened on the train."
"A blood sucking rune on weird disc things seems like something to worry about."
"If it didn't work for you, how do you know that it takes blood?" Calderon wondered with a frown before it seemed to dawn him, "He didn't try to use other students to activate it, did he? He wouldn't..."
Scorpius said nothing. He didn't want to outright lie to Calderon and deny it, if they did all owl their parents then the assistant would probably know about it soon enough anyway. Then again, he couldn't say it was true and tell him about the others in case Varanian took it out on Professor Ashain. Or just expelled the lot of them. Or both. He couldn't meet Calderon's eyes but his silence just seemed to answer anyway.
"I have to go talk to Pippy now," Calderon announced and was putting on his sneakers when Scorpius looked up.
"No, you can't!" Scorpius protested weakly, he was so torn. He wanted Calderon to do something to help Michael and the others but he didn't want to see what Varanian would do. He didn't want anyone's life to be ruined because of him.
"Scor, I have to. Stay here."
"No, wait!" Scorpius couldn't help cry out as Calderon stalked out with his walking stick, he hastily discarded the cloth and raced after the assistant, "Calderon please, I don't want to get anyone in trouble. Aren't you supposed to be giving me a detention? Please wait."
"You're right," Calderon agreed and abruptly grabbed a passing Professor Longbottom by the arm, "Hey, Nevvy, can you do me a favor?"
"For you or for Varanian? Because I'm not in the mood to do any favors for him right now."
"Just give Scor a detention while I go talk to Varanian, I'll be right back. Thanks, Nevvy, I owe you one."
Professor Longbottom just sighed and nodded as Calderon carried on, Scorpius tried to go after him but the professor placed a hand on his shoulder to stop him. Scorpius angrily shrugged his hand away and couldn't help but glare at the professor, he didn't like random people touching him. By the time he looked back after Calderon, the assistant was gone.
"Well I think there's some pots that you could clean out, are you up for that?" Professor Longbottom asked and Scorpius reluctantly nodded before the professor's eyes bulged in shock, "What happened to your face?!"
"Bullies," Scorpius lied, "Calderon's dealing with it."
"Oh, good," the professor said quietly and started leading him away, "Surprised anyone's giving you trouble, being Draco Malfoy's son and all."
"Well I'm not much like my father I guess."
"I guess not."
Scorpius would have preferred to walk in silence but the professor seemed unfortunately determined to be talkative, chatting about how he'd been bullied and it gets better. He supposed the professor was trying to be comforting, really he should be grateful but he just felt awkward. While Professor Longbottom was walking with him, his daughter was probably crying out in pain from the stupid disc things. He started imaging what would happen if the professor ever found out, he had been an Auror in the past after all and a Dumbledore's Army member. He imagined him walking over and saving Abby then coming back for revenge, killing Scorpius for not telling him and then going to Varanian. Somehow, he just couldn't imagine the Herbology professor beating Varanian. No matter what he'd been in the past, Varanian was clearly strong now.
They got back to the greenhouses and the professor set him to cleaning pots, apparently lots of the plants got harvested at the end of school year so there were plenty of new things to plant for now. This meant a large amount of pots needed to be cleaned in readiness, especially the ones that would be housing different things than they had before. Scorpius just nodded and got to cleaning, he hadn't had much experience with cleaning but more than once he had helped Yip with his workload so the house-elf would be done faster to play with him. His family believed such menial tasks were beneath them, Scorpius didn't mind though. Yip was his friend and friends were your equals, not beneath you.
He had expected Calderon to be back soon, dreading it even. His mind seemed to jump to the worst possible outcomes but he struggled to think of any good ones, he didn't think the assistant could protect the students without getting Professor Ashain fired. Assuming he could get Varanian to stop without expelling them all anyway, maybe Professor Longbottom would lose his job too if he objected to his daughter's expulsion. Calderon didn't come though. Time marched by, the sun set and Scorpius' hands were stained by the dirt from the pots but still the assistant didn't come. Finally Professor Longbottom told him that he thought Calderon had forgotten about him, insisted he was done for the day and suggested he go to dinner.
Scorpius nodded and left without incident but inside his heart was beating fearfully, what if Varanian had hurt Calderon for trying to stand up to him? He had said before that he would destroy Calderon if he turned on him. Had he meant that literally? Was Calderon hurt? Or dead? Or just fired? Or locked up in St Mungo's with the crazy people? Or Azkaban for whatever Calderon had done to taint his soul? He washed his hands and tried to wash the thoughts from his mind but failed miserably, he headed to dinner. Again several teachers were missing from the table, including Professor Ashain. And Varanian. And Calderon.
Scorpius didn't feel like eating. He felt sick at the thought of what Varanian could've done to them. He walked over to the Gryffindor table and was relieved to see Michael, Albus, Abby and Rose, even if they weren't looking a hundred percent. At least they were alive and he knew where they were. They didn't seem to notice him and he wandered over to the Slytherin table, locating Nott who looked like he had been crying but was also alive. At least they were alright, he just had to worry about the others. He fled. He tried to walk but it was a very fast walk by the time he reached Calderon's room, he knocked and got no answer. Reluctantly he went inside, it wasn't like the door had a lock. Calderon wasn't there. He was running by the time he got to Professor Ashain's empty classroom, his office was empty too and Scorpius wasn't sure where his personal quarters were.
Defeated, he returned to the also empty common room. The fire was dead. He just went to his bed and lay down fully clothed on his side miserably, he lay on his injured cheek to try and stop the burning pain. It didn't help. He didn't care, he probably deserved it. It wasn't long before the others returned from dinner, Scorpius didn't bother moving. Albus pulled shut the drapes and the others sounded like they were going to bed. The lights went out and it went silent for a while until the snoring started, only then did Albus speak.
"Are you two still awake?"
"If 'you two' includes me then yeah," Michael's voice spoke out.
"I'm awake too," Scorpius commented also, a second later he heard drapes being pulled back and then the other two clambered onto his bed from either side, "Erm... hey?"
"We can whisper quieter if we're close together and y'know, you're in the middle," Albus pointed out, "Don't want to be overheard so Lumos us, you're the best at spells."
"We could just use the Common Room."
"The older kids are probably using it."
"Fine," Scorpius grumbled as he sat cross-legged on his pillow, the other two shut his drapes while he drew his wand, "Lumos."
Immediately, his wand lit up the space, it was a bit cramped with the other two also sitting there. Unlike Scorpius both boys had changed into their pajamas, Michael's said 'Pokémon!' on the front and had a picture of some of the cartoon creatures while Albus' were just plain red as far as Scorpius could tell. They were looking at him with horrified expressions, he was about to ask why but the pain from the wound reminded him.
"What the hell happened to your face?!" Albus exclaimed before he seemed to remember that they were supposed to be whispering, looking around nervously but the snoring continued.
"Did Varanian do that to you?" Michael asked and Scorpius nodded, "Shit. That looks nasty."
"I don't know what it looks like but it does hurt. Doesn't matter though."
"Yes it does!" Albus protested in a loud whisper, "Hogwarts isn't supposed to use physical punishment on students, you're not supposed to use creepy rune stone things to drain students' blood and you're not supposed to whip student's faces if it doesn't work on them."
"It's a spell, not a whip."
"Calderon has one just like it on his cheek," Michael commented.
"Well whatever, I'll put it in my letter to my parents. We're all writing letters to our parents – except Michael - tonight, then we're gonna sneak out and take them to the Owlery. Varanian will go to Azkaban for this, we just need to survive and go along with it until they show up. You should write one to your dad too."
"No, I shouldn't. But you don't understand, Albus," Scorpius said and sighed, he had to tell them about the real new letter policy, "It won't work."
"Yes it will, we have a plan and my dad's cloak-"
"No, Albus. Look... Varanian... the real reason for the delays has nothing to do with owl welfare, he's reading the mail. I overheard him the other day, he was trying to get Calderon to help him and when Calderon refused… That's when Varanian hit him with the spell and gave him that mark. Varanian's not going to let you call for help."
"He can't do that!"
"Clearly he can and is," Michael sighed, "And I actually thought magic school would suck less than regular school. Least regular teachers scold you rather than scar you."
"What?" Scorpius wondered in confusion and the other two looked between each other.
"That's right, you don't know."
"This is what that spell does to us," Albus told him and reluctantly started unbuttoning his pajamas.
Scorpius opened his mouth to tell him to not to, he really didn't feel comfortable with random people stripping in front of him but closed it. On Albus' chest was the arrow rune symbol from the disc, it looked like someone had carved it into his skin with a knife. It looked like an open wound but didn't seem to be bleeding, it still looked painful though. No wonder Calderon had been so freaked out that Varanian was doing it to students. And now he'd probably died trying to save them. Scorpius felt sick.
"Wow," Scorpius managed as Albus started buttoning his top back up.
"Think that's bad, try it after a second day of it," Michael said wrapping his arms around his chest protectively, "You'd think the pain gets lesser but it seems to only get worse and cut deeper."
"What are we going to do?" Albus wondered, sounding suddenly hopeless.
"I don't know," Scorpius admitted, sharing in the hopelessness.
"Well we'll have a lot to tell the girls at midnight anyway," Michael added.
Part 4: After Midnight
The other two went to their beds after that, apparently it had been Rose's suggestion that they take it in shifts to sleep. They didn't the way to the Owlery so weren't sure how long they'd be. Since they were no longer doing that, it was slightly pointless. Scorpius didn't bother trying to sleep, he was too worried.
Instead, he picked up his Divination book and went back to the section about runes. It didn't say a lot about them, there was a whole other subject dedicated to studying them after all but sometimes they could be used to predict the future which made it relevant to Divination. Unhelpfully though, it didn't say a lot about their meanings. In fact, it said there were several different meanings for each depending on the context, it was open to interpretation. Then again, a lot of Divination was open to interpretation and Scorpius wasn't sure if it only applied to runes being used to predict the future or runes in general.
Midnight came all too quickly and they went down to the Common Room to meet Abby and Rose, everyone else seemed to have gone to bed or at least to their dormitories. Abby was curled up on the couch in pink pajamas while Rose was standing, arms crossed and a scowl on her face. Then again, when wasn't she scowling?
"Erm... Did you forget the plan?" Rose asked, glaring at him, "You were supposed to get dressed and bring the You-Know-What and to not tell Malfoy that or bring him down. And what happened to his face?!"
"Well there's a change of plans," Albus explained and motioned for her to sit as he filled her in on what Scorpius had said earlier.
"Bloody hell!" Rose exclaimed when he was done, she got up and started pacing furiously, "Varanian's a psychopath! Reading our mail, injuring students, attacking staff, making threats and using those bloody runes. What is he doing?!"
"I have no idea but we need a new plan."
"Couldn't you send the letter without using the Owlery?" Michael wondered.
"Well yes," Rose admitted, "But Varanian's smart, odds are he'll have something in place to stop that from happening. And if we got caught then he might figure out we know about him spying on us and expel us for it."
"Why don't we just do nothing?" Abby offered looking afraid, "If we just do what he wants and get through it then no one's Dad is at risk of being fired, or us for getting expelled. It's safer."
"We can't just do that!" Albus protested, "What if he makes us do something worse when we're done? What if he does it to some other kids? If he's doing all these things then what else is he doing or planning? He needs to be stopped."
"Yes he does," Rose agreed as she stopped pacing, "I'm not quite sure what the Blood Runes do but I don't think spells that need blood are particularly good... and did anyone else notice that Ecifircas backwards is Sacrifice?"
"Calderon says he's obsessed with protecting the school," Scorpius spoke up miserably as his worry ignited again, "Maybe it's to do with that."
"Huh, only thing the school needs protecting from is Varanian!" Albus snapped and Scorpius half nodded, thinking of Molly's vision. Maybe it had something to do with Varanian?
"It's a shame you're not allowed phones in Hogwarts," Michael said with a sigh, "We could just call for help. Don't get me wrong, the owls delivering are so cool but a phone is faster for just getting a message to someone quickly."
"You're not allowed phones in Hogwarts," Scorpius repeated, recalling Professor Ashain's having a phone. Would he let them use it? Assuming he was even still in Hogwarts and not locked up in some deep dark hole.
"What?" Rose questioned glaring at him again and Scorpius considered telling them about it, he didn't want to give them false hope though.
"Nothing."
"We could try using Floo powder," Abby offered before shaking her head, "Oh wait, never mind. Varanian sealed the fireplaces off from the Floo Network to stop teachers from leaving without permission, he took all the Floo powder too so he can regulate its use. Dad isn't very happy about it."
"None of the teachers are."
"Why do I suddenly feel like a prisoner?" Michael wondered.
"Because we are?"
"Not helping, Malfoy!" Rose snapped, shooting him a glare.
"Nothing's helping because we're out of ideas," Albus pointed out and his cousin sighed, "Let's just go to sleep and wrack our brains for some plan tomorrow."
Everyone kind of nodded in agreement and all returned to their dorms, Scorpius crawled into bed without bothering to get changed and just closed the drapes. Scorpius didn't think he would sleep at all that night but surprisingly, it didn't take long before he was trapped in a nightmare. Varanian was yelling at him to dig a grave but hauled him out when he wasn't properly done and instead flung Calderon's body into the hole.
"Don't look at me like that," Dream-Varanian sneered, "You're the one who killed him. Just like you killed Marvin. You have a tainted soul."
"I didn't mean to!" Scorpius protested, looking down at his shaking, blood-stained hands, "I didn't mean to kill him, I didn't even know I had! I thought it was someone else... He just dropped dead, I didn't... I didn't know it was me."
"You hoped that it wasn't you," Dream-Varanian told him as he hurled Marvin's body into the hole, "Just like you hope Calderon is okay. Hope is for fools. Do either of them look okay to you?"
"I... I don't want to look."
Dream-Varanian snarled and slashed him with the spell, Scorpius was knocked to his knees beside the grave as his cheek seared with pain. He refused to look and turned his head back to the headmaster who was starting to walk away in the night. He vanished into the shadows before Scorpius could even try to call out.
"So you murdered me, eh boy?" Marvin's voice spoke out and Scorpius felt a bony hand grab his wrist, "Did you actually think that could protect you from me? You'll never be free, you're coming back with me."
"No!" Scorpius screamed as hands started to grab him and pull him down in the darkness. He struggled against them and started thrashing to try free himself but they were painfully clawing at him. They refused to let go as they dragged him into the all-consuming darkness, "NO!"
He violently forced himself awake and saw only darkness, he managed not to scream as he clambered out of the bed and saw he was still in his dorm. His heart was still beating so fast that he felt like he could barely breathe, he had to get out. He needed some air. He had to get out. You're a murderer, his mind taunted him. He had to get out. There was no air. He couldn't breathe. He had to get out. His legs were running before his mind realized what was happening. He didn't know where he was going but he was going.
Scorpius burst through a door and was hit by a shock of fresh air, he practically staggered forwards. He put his hands on the parapets to steady himself as he breathed deeply, trying to calm down. He felt sick. Somehow, the whole time Calderon had been explaining to him about the tainted souls, it hadn't truly hit them that he'd actually killed someone. He'd recognized it on some level but not on this level, he'd never really thought that he'd killed Marvin. He thought it was the man he'd ran into when he'd fled in terror, the man his parents had paid to find him.
He didn't think he'd done it. He wasn't even sure how he'd done it. But he had to have for his soul to be tainted, tainted by Marvin's blood. He was glad to have skipped dinner because if there was anything in his stomach, he would have just lost it. He'd hated Marvin. More than anyone - even Varanian - and he'd always been glad of his death, even if his body had freaked him out. If anyone deserved to die then it was him. It didn't stop Scorpius' stomach churning though.
"You nearly scared the life out of me!" a voice exclaimed and Scorpius glanced to his right to see Professor Ashain sitting on one of the parapets, "What are you doing up here?!"
"What are you doing up here?" Scorpius countered but was secretly relieved that the professor was alright.
"Phone signal," Professor Ashain answered holding up the cell phone, "So what are you doing up here in the middle of night? You're supposed to be asleep."
"I... had a nightmare," Scorpius admitted and the professor's expression softened a bit, "I just... had to get out, get some air."
"Plenty of air up here," the professor muttered and motioned to the parapet beside him, "Wan to sit?"
Scorpius nodded gratefully and went over to sit beside him, he did so carefully but the wind was blowing towards them so it seemed unlikely they'd be blown off. The view was amazing from where they were, there was a sky full of stars and a gleaming crescent moon that was all mirrored beautifully in the water's reflection. It was oddly calming and he felt himself relaxing in the peaceful, picturesque scene.
"It's nice up here."
"Last time I was here was for the Battle of Hogwarts, it's much nicer now when you're not about to be attacked by Death Eaters."
"You were here for the battle?" Scorpius wondered in surprise and the professor nodded, "My parents and grandparents were there for that, my Aunt Daphne too. You know people always focus on the bad about my family but my mother and aunt came back with Professor Slughorn's reinforcements to fight, they could have just stayed safe but they chose to help. My father and his parents switched sides in the end but no one seems to care, they just care I'm related to former Death Eaters."
"Some people only focus on things like that, Varanian's like that. I think he encourages it in the other students."
"What was it like at the battle?"
"Chaos really, kinda terrifying although everything is a bit of a blur after my brother's death. I just kept on fighting even though I assumed I'd die, Brutus was the better duelist after all but I was going to do my best. It really is just a haze of spells and light and explosions. When we had the one hour armistice I realized I was injured, I still have a jagged scar all the way along my right arm from it and I still can't remember how I got it," Professor Ashain told him and almost subconsciously ran his left hand over his right arm as he continued gazing out at the night, "Not so blurry after that, I was there for the victory. Cheered with the rest although I didn't feel much like celebrating with Brutus being dead. Was glad to be able to rest though, I didn't stop."
"Brutus was your brother?"
"Yes, my brother the Death Eater. My elder brother, well half-brother technically, we had different mothers. I kept thinking if I could just talk to him then I could reason with him, I thought I could make him see sense. That was not the case though. I tried to reason with him to change sides and he tried to do the same to me."
"Then what happened?" Scorpius prompted curiously but not sure whether the professor would carry on from the sorrowful expression on his face.
"Then his Death Eater friend said he was being stupid and threw a curse at me that cut my chest a bit and I used a stunning spell on him in retaliation. It was just a stunning spell but he hit his head when he fell, so hard there was a crack and then he was dead. Just like that. Brutus flew into a rage and attacked me, I just kept using Shield Charms because I didn't want to hurt him. But one of them deflected the spell directly back at him, he was thrown backwards... Right off that wall," Professor Ashain continued and gestured to one of the walls on the far side of castle, "It happened so fast. I killed my own brother when all I wanted to do was save him, I'd give anything to take it back. Never even got to bury him, they could never find his body but he couldn't have survived the fall. It's scary how easy it is to kill, I hate it. Hope I never have to kill again."
"Yeah," Scorpius muttered thinking of Marvin and shivered, "It is scary how easy it is. I don't want to kill either."
"Are you cold?"
"Yes."
"Do you want to go back inside?" the professor asked and Scorpius shook his head, "Well here, take my cloak then at least."
At this, Professor Ashain pulled off his cloak and wrapped it around Scorpius. He'd been going to protest but the cloak actually was really thick and warm, he was colder than he'd thought and the professor didn't seem to mind. He offered him a small, grateful smile and pulled the cloak around himself tightly, it was a lot bigger than him but he was still glad for it. He gazed back out at the landscape, you would never have thought a major battle had been fought there. Even if it was nearly twenty years ago.
They fell silent for a while, the professor seemed immersed in his thoughts and Scorpius wasn't surprised. If he felt bad for killing someone that he hated, it must be a lot worse if you killed someone that you loved. He couldn't even imagine how bad he would feel if he'd been responsible for his sister's death, no matter how unintentional. Professor Ashain's soul had to be tainted too. Other teachers who had fought at the Battle of Hogwarts probably had to, assuming they'd killed anyone. Maybe that was why Varanian wanted children to do it, children usually weren't murderers. Vaguely he wondered who Calderon had killed to taint his soul, he didn't know a lot about the assistant's past.
"Professor, if you don't mind me asking... How do you live with it? Killing, I mean."
"Well I'll never forgive myself for Brutus but I don't know about the others. Knowing I didn't want to helps, knowing that I had no choice because it was always in self-defense and if I hadn't then I'd be dead. I did the right thing and if I hadn't they'd still be doing evil Death Eater things, killing, destroying lives. Doing the right thing isn't easy sometimes but it is still right, necessary. If you don't have the courage to then how can you expect other people to? You have to stand up for what believe in sometimes, if you don't then who will?"
"Can I ask you another question?"
"Whatever helps you sleep at night, Scorpius."
"Do you know anything about runes? Like these runes that take your blood."
"Erm... Interesting question," Professor Ashain commented and scowled slightly as he shivered, "It's more advanced magic than you need to worry about, it's rare and powerful magic but with power comes danger. By imbuing it with your blood, you imbue it with your power, link it to your very soul which can have disastrous consequences. There's a thin line between it and dark magic, depending on the specifics because they work differently. Some don't just need blood but require the blood of someone dying, or will only work at full capacity if the blood-giver dies or when activated will kill the blood-giver. The only catch is the blood must be given willingly, there's usually something you have to say to make the rune take your blood so it can be argued it's not really dark if the person is willing. Depending on the magic, some must have a pure soul, although once linked if the blood-giver is corrupted then so is the magic. That's all I know really, like I say it's rare and quite old. Very old. Not used these days, not for centuries. Why do you ask?"
"I just... saw something about it somewhere and I was curious," Scorpius lied guiltily but he couldn't tell the professor the truth, Varanian's threats hung in his mind and Calderon could still be hurt or dead, "You know how you have that phone?"
"Yeah..." the professor said slowly drawing the phone to him protectively as he shivered again, "What about it?"
"I just wondered... if I could perhaps maybe use it."
"Why? You realize it only calls muggles who also have phones and you have the right number."
"I know how it works... It's for my friend, well not really my friend but we sort of get along. Michael, he misses his family and he can't contact them because they're muggles. Letters just aren't the same, I wondered if I could just borrow it so he can make a call," Scorpius invented and was again stabbed by guilt at lying but what choice did he have? When the truth was out he'd apologize and Professor Ashain should understand, he was just trying to protect everyone, "Would that be okay?"
"I'm sorry, Scorpius, but I really can't. I'm not even supposed to have it, if Varanian found out then he'd probably fire me on the spot. He really doesn't like me and he really likes his rules to be obeyed."
"Varanian wouldn't find out, Michael won't say anything to him and neither would I."
"I'm sorry. I can't risk it, I need it and I need the same number so I can't lose it," Professor Ashain stated more firmly, shaking his head and for a dark second Scorpius considered threatening to tell Varanian if he didn't let him use it. He stopped himself though, he didn't want to get the phone the same way Varanian got what he wanted, by threatening someone. Especially someone he actually liked. Then he'd be just as Varanian, he'd deserve to have a tainted soul, "Tell your friend to hang in there, he can always go home at Christmas and he'll see his family then… He's lucky to have that."
"It's okay. It was just a thought. I'm glad you're okay."
"Scorpius, I told you that I'm fine really, I won't-"
"No, not that. I just... I was worried when you weren't at dinner, I was scared Varanian had done something to you and Calderon."
"I wasn't at dinner because I just lost track of time here and Calderon isn't always at dinner. He doesn't actually eat anyway, just there in case Varanian needs him. And Varanian wouldn't do anything to us. He's not some psychotic murderer, he's just not a nice person. In my opinion," Professor Ashain explained and Scorpius felt oddly abashed but still worried about Calderon regardless, "Besides, I'm an ex-Auror and Calderon is easily one of the most powerful wizards I've ever met - if not the most - and Varanian... I actually don't know much about his past but I'm pretty sure we can take care of ourselves. You don't need to worry about us and if you can try not break the rules then you won't need to worry about Varanian either, unless you know something I don't."
"I'll try," Scorpius sighed, there was no point arguing.
"That's a nasty wound you got. If I'm not mistaken then the spell that does that doesn't like being magically healed, on the contrary if you even try then the wound worsens. Nasty."
"It was bullies. Calderon is dealing with it."
"He has a wound just like it."
"Maybe those kids got him too."
"Maybe," the professor muttered and shivered again, "Are you feeling any better? You don't look terrified anymore."
"Talking to you helped, took my mind of it. Thank you by the way. A lot of teachers probably would have just given me a detention, deducted a million points from the house and dragged me back to bed."
"Well... It seems kinda cruel to punish someone for having a nightmare but you really should try other methods of calming yourself rather than running around the castle in the middle of the night," Professor Ashain pointed out and Scorpius nodded, they could agree on that at least, "You ready to go back yet?"
"Okay," Scorpius agreed and started to head back to the steps but the professor didn't follow, instead looking back down at his phone, "Aren't you coming?"
"Just one more minute. In case she calls, y'know?"
"It's after midnight, who's going to call so late?"
"Fine," the professor sighed and reluctantly followed, a look of misery crossing his face as he pocketed the phone, "I'll take you back to your Common Room."
Scorpius handed him back the cloak and followed as Professor Ashain led him down the tower steps, he was glad because he actually wasn't too sure where he was. Things did start to look more familiar as they walked but only vaguely, he'd ran further than he'd thought. After a few minutes, he heard footsteps and had his wand in hand even as he moved closer to the professor. A second later, Varanian rounded the corridor and Professor Ashain almost protectively positioned himself between them as the headmaster's eyes narrowed angrily.
"What the hell?!" Varanian questioned with a glare, Scorpius noticed that he too had his wand in his hand. His blood-stained hands, "Why are you roaming the corridors in the middle of the night with a First Year student?!"
"I wanted to stretch my legs and I found him. Sleepwalking," Professor Ashain lied, "Had to wake him up with a spell, poor boy got really lost so I'm taking him back to his Common Room. You have a problem with that?"
"Yes. I don't like either of you and it's awfully suspicious."
"Why are you wandering around with hands covered in blood?" the professor countered and Varanian's eyes narrowed, his hand wand twitched as if he was literally itching to use it, "That's more suspicious."
"I don't have to answer to you, Ashain."
"Fine, I'll just ask the Board why the headmaster was wandering around in the middle of night with hands covered in blood. You answer to them, right?"
"It's not blood, its potion! Used it in the wrong concentration and the thing blew up, I'm going to get some more ingredients. I changed clothes but didn't wash my hands. Satisfied? So be silent. Speak to me like that again and you will regret it," Varanian snarled furiously, "Ten points from Gryffindor for you, Scorpius, and a week's pay from you, Ashain."
"What?! You can't dock my pay for being up, since when do teachers have curfew?!"
"Well now you're on probation for being under suspicion of lying to protect or aid a misbehaving student, being under probation gives you a curfew. I'll have Marius give you a list of the requirements first thing tomorrow or in a few hours since it's so late. Break any of them and it's your job. You can go now."