I am at an actual loss for words right now... not ONLY did you guys get me past 800 reviews, BUT you ALSO got me to 2ND PLACE! Major, major shout out to Spobyistruelove for literally going back and reviewing every single chapter... I just can't believe that you guys are willing to do something like that! I have the best, most dedicated reviewers in the world. Thank you all SO much! Now let's see if you can get me past 1000/to 1st place ;)
I promised you guys that if you got me to 2nd place, I would give you all a sneak peak into an upcoming story that I am planning, and I should have that ready by the next time I update. I want to make sure that it is perfect for you wonderful people :)
Also, in reply to Sarah: unacceptable. There is NO WAY I can wait that long. You are getting an account right this instant. Who cares if you don't have 3 stories ready? Just use the account to PM me and talk to me all the time because of how awesome you are!
AND in response to someone asking how many chapters we have left... including this one we have 5 :( I don't think any of you understand how much I'm going to miss this story. I cried when I wrote the last word of the Epilogue. I've had way too much fun with it, and I don't think any other story that I write can compare to this one, and I don't think any other story that I write will have reviewers as amazing as this one did. You all are wonderful, and I'm SO happy that I was able to share this journey with you all.
Moving onto this chapter... prepare yourself. That's all I'm saying. This is one of the most action packed, emotionally draining chapters so far (besides the chapter after this one. That one takes the cake). So take a deep breath... done breathing? Good. Read on, my friends (and review, because duh) ;D
Spencer and Melissa rolled on the ground, kicking and punching each other all over the place, to the point that Spencer had a bloody lip and Melissa was almost positive her nose was broken.
Using all of her strength, Spencer rolled on top. "What was supposed to happen next, huh?" she said through her heavy breathing, pinning Melissa's arms down in the process. "What was supposed to happen after I joined you?"
Melissa squirmed countlessly under Spencer's weight, trying her hardest to get free, but it was no use. Finally, she lay on the ground, glaring up at Spencer. "You would've done the rest of the work with the Basilisk," she gasped. "You would've rid the school of muggleborns with it, and after that we would've set it free into the world as it took them all down. Leaving a world filled with pureblooded wizards to rule over, a world filled with pureblooded wizards to fear us!"
"How could you expect me to do something like that?" Spencer cried, releasing her grip slightly on Melissa's arms. Melissa took this as a chance to knee Spencer in the stomach, sending her doubling over as she clutched her gut. In the meantime, Melissa heaved herself upward and shot herself at Spencer.
Now Melissa was on top.
Spencer stared up at her with pleading eyes. "How could you have expected me to turn my back on my friends like that?" she continued, her voice barely above a whisper. "One of them is a muggleborn, Melissa! How could you expect me to let the Basilisk kill Aria? Or her brother? Or any muggleborns?"
"You would've eventually been happy to leave your own life behind," Melissa growled. "You know you would have!"
"And what makes you think that?" Spencer challenged.
At this, Melissa leaned down, getting dangerously close to Spencer's face as she whispered into it, "Because you're as power hungry as I am."
Spencer closed her eyes, trying not to let these chilling words get to her, but Melissa kept going. "I saw the look on your face when you didn't get to be Head Girl. I saw how you reacted when you saw that one E in Herbology last year. Whenever you thought you could've done better at something, whenever there was a chance that someone did the slightest bit better than you did, you got angry. Just. Like. Me."
"You and I are not the same, Melissa!" Spencer shouted, trying to break free from Melissa's strong hold. "We may look alike, we may share parents, but we will never be the same!"
"Don't you see, sis?" Melissa said quietly, contrasting greatly with the way Spencer was just screaming a second ago. "We already are."
Spencer couldn't take it. She squeezed her eyes tightly shut as Melissa kept talking. "We both speak Parseltongue, we both were sorted into Slytherin, and we both will do anything to get what we want! Face it, Spence: you and I are one in the same, and together we will be the most powerful sisters in the wizarding world. We can follow in Voldemort's footsteps together if you would just cooperate!"
Suddenly, a long whoosh was heard over toward the entrance, and Spencer and Melissa looked up. To both of their shock, Toby was leaning over, looking like he was about to be sick, but after taking in a few deep breaths he stood straight and tall, glaring straight at Melissa with so much hatred that Spencer almost had to look away. "Get the hell off of her."
There were several moments of silence. No one moved, no one spoke, until Melissa broke the tension by bursting out into a loud, eerie cackle.
"Fine," she said easily through her laughter, getting up off of Spencer, whose heart was ready to explode straight out of her chest. Melissa sturdied herself, wiping the dust off of her jeans as she stood straight and tall in front of Toby. "Fine, I'll get off of her."
Toby immediately pulled his wand out of his robe pocket, holding it out in front of him as he prepared himself for whatever Melissa was about to do. Melissa smiled evilly, before, in one swift movement, whipping her wand out and shrieking, "Avada – "
"NO!" Spencer shouted, kicking Melissa in the back of her knees before she could finish the spell. Melissa went flying forward, and Spencer took this chance to climb over her sister to grab her own wand.
But Toby was already one step ahead of her. "Accio Wand!" he shouted, and Spencer's wand went flying through the air before landing swiftly in his palm.
Spencer huffed as she stood up from the ground. "Really?"
"Get over here!" he commanded, his blue eyes wide as he handed his wand out for her. But as she started to make her way over, Melissa helped herself off of the ground. "Stupefy!"
Spencer instinctively pulled Toby out of the way as she held up her own wand. "Glacius!"
A white-blue light shot straight out of Spencer's wand, and before Melissa could react, her limbs had frozen in place completely, and her entire body turned to frost as a block of ice consumed her.
Spencer stayed completely still, her wand still extended at chest level by her shaking arm. Melissa was staring straight at her, an animalistic look in her frozen features. It took a while, but Spencer finally came to her senses; Melissa could no longer hurt her or Toby, so she lowered her wand.
Toby came up from behind her. "Spence?" he said unsurely, and Spencer turned toward him. He came up to her, grasping her shoulders firmly. "Spencer, you're shaking."
Spencer looked down, and immediately realized that he was correct. Her arm, her legs, every part of her was trembling greatly. She grabbed her arm to try to quell it, but all that did was smear a pool of sweat across her skin.
Spencer let out a quaking breath. "L-let's just get out of here," she stammered, grabbing Toby's hand and leading him toward the exit.
But just as they started making their way out of the Chamber, there was a CRASH from behind, and both Toby and Spencer whipped around. Melissa was standing before them once again, twirling her wand in between her fingers as a wide smirk graced every inch of her face.
"Did you really think it was going to be that easy, Spence?" she said in a mocking tone. But no sooner did the smirk on her face appear than it disappeared completely as she took small steps forward. "I will give you one more chance," she growled. "Either you join me, or I kill both of you and leave on my merry way."
"I'm not joining you, Melissa," Spencer said firmly as she reached out for Toby's hand, which he protectively grabbed.
Melissa just shook her head. "I was afraid you would say that," she said with a less-than-remorseful sigh as she lifted her wand high up in the air.
"STOP!"
Before Melissa could recite any type of spell, the entrance to the Chamber burst open, and Lucas and Noel came running through. They scurried over to where Spencer and Toby were standing as they extended their wands forward.
"Give it up, Melissa," Noel threatened. "It's four against one."
"Make that five."
At the sound, Melissa and the others turned around, staring straight at a small brunette with tan skin and clever dark eyes.
"Mona?" Noel exclaimed, and even Melissa was shocked.
"What are you doing here?" she snapped. "I… I thought – "
"You thought the Basilisk got to me?" Mona finished as she shrugged her shoulders indifferently and flashed a conniving smile. "Yeah, I heard that."
"You… faked a petrification?" Lucas said incredulously.
"It wasn't that hard," Mona said breezily as she stepped onto the scene. "And neither is this…" Without any more thought, she pulled out her wand. "Impedimenta!"
Melissa was immediately knocked backward off of her feet. Disoriented, she somersaulted backward onto her feet and into a standing position, her wand extended once again. "Petrificus – "
"Protego!" Spencer shouted, and Melissa's spell bounced off of Mona and into a nearby pillar, smashing it to pieces. Melissa's head went toward the direction of the pillar, but then snapped back toward the five in front of her, all of their wands extended, within seconds.
"Well lookie here," she simpered. "Enemies and traitors all banded together…"
"Yeah, banded together to end you!" Lucas shouted, trying to appear threatening, even if it wasn't necessarily working.
Melissa crossed her arms, tapping her pointer finger against the inside of her arm as she did so. "Well you know how the saying goes," she said with a careless shrug. "Enemies of the Heir, beware. Surely you knew that when you decided to stab me in the back?"
"Did you really think that we would stick by you in the end?" Mona said thickly. "You actually thought that we'd see it through that you'd bring dark magic back to the wizarding world? After an era of peace has stretched on for so long?"
"Shut up, Mona!" Melissa snarled, but Mona was not going to back down. She had done a lot of wrong in her life, starting the minute she followed Noel to the Black Lake that fateful night, but it ended here. There was no way she was going down without a fight.
"Face it, Melissa," Spencer piped in, a newfound hatred she never thought would exist boiling over as she held her wand out toward her own sister, her own flesh and blood. "You're done here."
Melissa stood still, chewing on the inside of her cheek, the cogs in her head working overtime, before she raised her wand. "AVADA KEDAVRA!"
"NO!"
A beam of green light shot out from Melissa's wand, before anyone could even react. It hit her victim square in the chest, the ghost of their last fearful shout still etched upon their face, before they went timbering backward. The others stood around, shocked and horrified, as their friend fell back.
Lucas hit the ground with a thud, no longer moving, no longer breathing.
Dead.
Can we just talk about freakin' MONA VANDERWAAL and how she FAKED her petrification? Only Vanderjesus. Remember back when you all thought that I had killed her? THAT was funny. If you all could see me laughing my ass off at all of that. The only thing better than that was when you all freaked out over me ending the couples! Good times.
Anyway, yes. Lucas has bitten the dust. RIP baby Hufflepuff :( as much as the gang will want to mourn and grieve, though, they have to keep going. They HAVE to fight to the death and defeat Melissa. She gains more and more strength every second, and they CAN'T let her escape. So review this chapter, the way you've been so good at doing, and I'll see you all on the other side!
