A/N So, long time no update...but! The story is finished! This is not however the last chapter, but over the last week I have managed to write and finish the ending. So the last two chapters should be posted pretty soon. After that I have some decisions to make as to what direction I take my writing in. Feedback and advice would be greatly appreciated, and I hope you enjoy the ante-ante penultimate chapter!
"Ok, I've got it," Albus said triumphantly as he raced down the stairs. As he did, he met Rose entering the common room. She and Becky smiled in relief as they saw that Albus had found the Map, before becoming business-like. Albus activated the Map, and the three of them hunched over it, searching for any mention of Mouse. For a brief moment there was a flash of hope as they saw his name, but it was just a sixth-year, Serena Mac Coy.
"He's not on the Map." Albus admitted with growing unease, after they'd searched the Map for a third time. The three of them shared a wide-eyed, worried glance, before Rose broke the gloom-filled silence.
"What if he's dead?" She asked timidly, and Becky turned on her, brown eyes flashing in anger.
"No! Don't you dare say that Rose, We're not givin' up on him!" Her voice began to break. "He's not dead, he can't be-" She broke off and Albus gave her arm an awkward rub. He felt sick, and though he wanted to agree with Becky, what if Rose was right? In September, he would never have even dreamed of making friends with Scorpius Malfoy of all people, and their first meeting hadn't exactly been auspicious. But then they'd met Becky, and Mouse's stuck-up façade had dropped. Mouse had become a brilliant friend, funny, more understanding than Al could have dreamed, and more importantly, he'd helped him get back at James. That truly was sacred. But the idea he might be dead? Albus blinked fiercely, trying to rid himself of the sudden hot stinging sensation in his eyes. As he opened them, he noticed Rose, hunched over the Marauder's Map, muttering feverishly as she did. Becky too had noticed her friend's odd behaviour, fear for their friend, whilst not forgotten, pushed aside for the moment.
"What're you doing Rosie?" asked Al, and she looked up, eyes and hair wild.
"I'm trying something, video trans, mum showed me at Christmas, volere historia, it might not work, but,"
"But?" Becky asked, and suddenly Albus began to feel a little hope.
"But it might let us see, past events, like Priori Incantatem, or rewinding a film."
"Brilliant!" said Al, marvelling at his cousin's ingenuity. As Rose said the final incantation, 'Trovare maxima Scorpius Malfoy!' the three friends held a collective breath - would the spell work? As the Map flickered into movement, they breathed out again, in a long shaky laugh. For a moment no one spoke, each of them searching for a name.
"There!" cried Al suddenly, and Rose froze the Map. Sure enough, there was the little dot labelled Scorpius Malfoy. They frowned as they realised that the dot accompanying seemed to be flickering between Jasmine Grey and Pandora Gudrunsdottir.
"The Siren really is possessing Miss Min, then." said Becky, unhappily. Al's frown deepened.
"It didn't do that with you or Chloe," he pointed out and Rose's eyes widened, freckles standing out against her unusually pale face.
"The Siren must be getting more powerful..." she whispered hoarsely. Wordlessly, the three came to an agreement, sprinting to the portrait hole and throwing themselves through it, pausing only to grab the Map. They hurtled through the thankfully still empty corridors before coming to a stop at Mouse's last known location.
They paused for a moment, catching their breath. Rose looked at the door, heart quickening as she realised its frame was wreathed with the same spidery runes as those they'd seen on Halloween night. She realised Al was about to burst through the door, so Rose grabbed him back.
"Are you crazy?" she demanded, hair bristling up again.
"Our friend is in there! I'm not just going to stand around out here!" he responded fiercely, fists clenching. Rose looked at him in disbelief before turning to Becky.
"You know it's mad to just go charging in there, right?" she appealed, but the blonde girl shook her head apologetically.
"Sorry, Rose. I know it's completely mental, but - Mouse is our mate. And yeah, I'm scared, but you know what? Being loyal to a mate's, 'specially one in danger's, way more important than that." Becky grinned tremulously.
"But-" Rose started, but it was no good. Al and Becky had already drawn their wands and were charging the door. They broke through with a splintering crash, and Rose followed them wincing at the damage.
"EXPELLIARMUS!" Al bellowed, and the Siren flew back, going limp as she hit the wall. Rose raised her eyebrows in impressed surprise; she knew her uncle had insisted that his children learn the spell that had saved his life so many times, but she'd had no idea how much power Albus could already put behind it. Shaking herself out of her amazement at her cousin's skills, she darted over to help Becky untie the Siren's prisoners. But the moment she untied Professor Carter, he grabbed Rose's wrist in a vice-like hold.
"Professor, it's me Rose!" she cried hastily, and he let her go with a muttered apology.
"And me sir, Becky" the blonde girl chipped in. Becky carried on, but this time her voice was full of dread. "Mouse is here too sir, but...there's a lot of blood," she choked. "Professor he's not breathing!"
Mouse floated in the darkness. He didn't know where he was, but he liked it. It was warm, safe. Suddenly, a noise broke through the blissful silence and he frowned. Why couldn't people just leave him in peace?
"Because you'll die, Mouse!" a voice cried and he turned before freezing in shock. Minna stood in front of him, her green eyes sparkling her russet hair and robes in their usual disarray. As he looked at her, the darkness coalesced into familiar shapes.
Nat and Minna's house boat, really? He asked silently, with some amusement and Minna grinned back. Does that mean she can hear my thoughts?
"Yes." she replied aloud, and then suddenly the events that had lead him here came flooding back and he gawped in confusion.
"But...you...B-but, how?!" Mouse eventually managed to say. Minna grinned.
"We're in your head Mouse." she frowned. "Or mine. Or somewhere in between, I'm not 100% sure."
"But the Siren-"
"Took over my body. Not my soul, not my mind. I figure this is some kind of weird Legilimency, or Astral travel – or we're both hallucinating." Minna gave a soft laugh. "Anyway, we don't have much time. I can still hear and see the Siren, sort of." she grimaced. "very weird".
Despite everything Mouse grinned. Trust Min to be unflappable even in the face of death. His grin abruptly faded as Minna flickered. As she reappeared, Mouse could see she had paled, and that for once, there wasn't even a hint of amusement on her face.
"Like I said, we don't have much time. But I don't think the Siren has realised that this f-blinkin' possession is a two-way street." said Minna, quickly, her voice low and urgent. "I saw things-" She shuddered. "but the point is, in that mess Pandora, the Siren that is, calls a brain, there was a ritual-" Minna vanished completely for a moment , and Mouse blanched, before Minna returned. But this time she was slightly fuzzy around the edges, and when she spoke, her voice was echoing.
"I can't hold on much longer!" She cried, before grabbing Mouse's arm. Suddenly a wave of colour, fragmented images and sounds burst into Mouse's head and he reeled backwards, shutting his eyes to limit sensory overload. When he opened them again, Min was almost gone.
"Good luck Mouse!" he just made out, and though it was surely just an optical illusion, he thought he caught a glimpse of a tear on Minna's cheek, even as she gave a shaky grin. "And when you wake up you won't be alone as you-" she was gone.
Now what? Mouse questioned.
"WAKE UP!" He yelled, cringing at the stupidity as he did. It worked though, and after a few agonising moments, the darkness coalesced into blurry shapes. Blinking groggily, Mouse managed to focus on the very concerned faces of his friends.
"Becky? Rose? Al? What are you doing here?" He asked, before he the girls attacked him with a smothering hug . He smiled briefly and savoured the fact that he was actually alive, before he remembered the predicament they were in. Extracting himself, he glanced around the vaulted room, and blinked in surprise as he saw the Siren lying unconscious in the corner.
"What happened?" he asked confused, before a hand clasped him on the shoulder. Twisting, a smile broke over his face as he saw Nat, who despite his ashen complexion looked generally fine. At last, he wasn't bleeding profusely or missing body parts, so Mouse took that as a good thing.
"I'd ask your friends, if I were you – good to know you're not dead though, kid." Nat said with dry amusement, before freezing as the Siren stirred.
"Can we do something about her?" Mouse asked eyes wide in apprehension. Nat nodded, face grave.
"Has anyone seen my wand? I had it on me when she whacked me, but..." he grimaced. The four friends scrabbled around on the floor for a few minutes, before Albus found the elegant wand underneath the altar. Thanking Albus, Nat gave a flick of his wand, accompanied by a muttered Incarcerous which encased the insensible woman in ropes.
"Now what are we going to do?" Rose asked from where she was perched on the altar next to Mouse, subtly propping him up. Despite his protestations whilst they had been looking for Nat's wand, Mouse currently felt as if the Knight Bus had run over his head, and was having to fight to stay upright.
"This might sound crazy..." he paused and took a deep breath. "this might sound really crazy, but when I passed out, I...I saw Min." There was a complete absence of sound, before Nat leaned forward, gripping Mouse's forearms, almost painfully. Despite his lack of sight, Nat's gaze still managed to scorch Mouse with its desperation and hunger.
"Mouse...tell me you're not joking" he demanded hoarsely. Mouse's eyes widened, and shifted uncomfortably away from the intensity of his cousin's gaze and grip.
"I think so Nat...but that wasn't all, she told me how to get her back, trap the Siren again."
"What?!" Albus, Becky and Rose chorused incredulously. Rose and Nat looked hopeful for the first time, while the looks on both Al and Becky's faces were sceptical.
"How though?" Becky asked, and as if her voice had woken her, the Siren came around fully. Despite the ropes, she began writhing, trying to bite her bonds, screaming and hissing at her captors. The Gryffindors and their professor gulped, and thus prompted, Mouse gave a hurried account in 'limbo', raising his voice a little to be heard over the sounds of the psychotic witch's howls. When he finished, the looks of scepticism had only increased.
"So, you're saying you a remember a ritual that Minna showed you, that came from a memory she'd stolen from the Siren's mind?" Rose asked dubiously.
"But you said we needed the same qualities of the Founders!" Becky chipped in plaintively, and Albus nodded fervently.
"And at least we have an 'experienced caster'" Nat inclined his head at the mention, "But in case you hadn't noticed Mouse, we're all Gryffindors..." Albus pointed out. Mouse huffed in frustration, didn't they understand how important this was? He noticed then that Nat had been silent throughout and turned to his cousin, who was guarding the Siren. Strangely, he seemed almost amused by their predicament.
"Nat, what do you think? Mouse asked quietly, and the dark haired man smiled wryly.
"I think you should stop wasting time and get to your ritual already,"
This drew a confused exclamation from the four friends, and Nat laughed. He turned to face his pupils, smiling proudly and tightening the bonds on the Siren as he did. "You might all be Gryffindors, but you all have traits you need right here, the things that made the Founders special... Al I think, is the quintessential Gryffindor." here the dark haired boy smiled sheepishly. "But yours is the sort of bravery that's tempered by sensitivity that's pretty unusual in kids your age. Becky, ever since you were freed of the Siren's control you've been nothing but loyal and hard-working." The blonde girl blushed. "Rose, you have some of the highest marks in your year...and your intelligence, your thirst for knowledge make you a genuine pleasure to teach." Mouse glanced sideways at Rose, and he was pretty sure that the red of her ears was darker than that of her hair. But he didn't have time to dwell, for Nat had turned him, and placed a firm hand on his shoulder.
"As for you Mouse...well, where do we even start? I could go on for hours, but I think that in this case lets keep it short and sweet hmm?" They all chuckled, before Nat's face grew grave. "I want my Min back. But Mouse...jeez, you've grown so much, from a spoilt brat, to this amazing kid who managed to lie to his bigoted grandparents with a straight face and now you've got friends willing to risk their lives for you and, well...I know for a fact you have ambitions and I am so very, very proud of you Mouse – oof!" Nat broke off suddenly as Mouse launched himself at his cousin, giving him a fierce hug. And if Nat thought he felt a slight dampness on his robes, well, it wasn't obvious enough for Becky, Rose or Al to comment. And if that were the case, it was hardly Nat's place to comment.
Rose shivered a little as her friend released his cousin from their clinch, as there was little evidence of the fun-loving boy she'd come to know and care for over the year. Instead, Mouse's face was set firm, a calculating but determined look in his eye.
As the four friends took their places at each corner of the room, where markings seemed to have been etched into the floor, there was a shift in the room. The only one to truly see it was Minna, looking helplessly out of eyes she couldn't control, but as she did, she felt hope rising in her soul. For as she looked on, the first years' postures faces straightened, and to match the cunning look on Mouse's face, Rose seemed all of a sudden to possess wisdom beyond her years, Albus's face an almost war-like and noble cast, whilst Becky seemed to radiate a fierce protectiveness. In the centre of the room, having shifted the Siren onto the altar in order to begin the ritual, Nat nodded, taking his mark from his cousin despite the gap in years.
Scorpius Malfoy took a deep breath.
"Is everybody ready?" he asked, and a resounding cry of assent echoed through the chamber. He smiled coldly. "Then let's send this evil bitch back where she belongs..."
A/N See you next time folks! Reviews are always welcome!