Not sure how well the quality of this chapter is, but this is the longest yet and I really hope you guys like it, though I won't give any hints. As for the Carina stripping Bellatrix and Narcissa and such of their magic...I don't know. She's very prone to killing and is not above torture, especially involving Hermione, but I'll think on that.
Thanks for the reviews I have so far and be sure to give some more, enjoy!
Carina hid in the shadows beside Harry, listening—the footsteps were now at the cell door, and she would recognize the accompanying smell anywhere.
Traitor, the wolf hissed in her mind. Kill him.
She did not protest.
The door swung open, and she was on the man in an instant, paws pressing to his throat and bared teeth inches from his nose as she snarled; Wormtail, Peter Pettigrew, stared back with wide eyes, and she felt a surge of satisfaction at his fear.
That is, until a metal hand came up to clamp around her own throat, and she choked, snarling wildly as she struggled against his hold, pressing her paws harder down, and Wormtail's eyes bugged from the pressure.
"You owe me, Wormtail," reminded Harry quickly, gritting his teeth as he attempted to pry the metal fingers from her neck. "I saved your life once. Let her go."
Carina's thoughts were starting to go fuzzy, and the only things coming from her mouth now were gasps for air and weak, rasping growls. Her claws dug into Wormtail's throat, and her back paws were sliding as she attempted to tear herself away; but, abruptly, the hand released her and turned upon the man instead.
Panting, she shifted back and leaned on her knees, struggling to take in as much oxygen as she could as Wormtail's eyes widened even further as his own, metal hand wrapped its fingers around his throat and squeezed hard.
When she finally managed to glance back up, the traitor's eyes were full of tears and his face had turned such a pale color that it was nearly blue. Harry and Ron were futile in their tries to pry his hand away, and she could vaguely hear Ron hissing for her to help.
They did not want Peter Pettigrew to die.
But she did.
As Hermione let out a terrible scream from above, Carina leaned over the balding man with the watery blue eyes and metal hand, and his mouth opened in a useless plea for help, for mercy; she only smiled. It was a wide, wicked smile in which her rather pointed canines showed, and he flinched when she leaned in even closer.
"This is for my father, you dirty rat," she murmured, and though she could feel her heart pounding with adrenaline from before and what was sure to come, she cast a silent spell on him, gluing his mouth shut.
Peter Pettigrew, Wormtail: the traitor, the rat, the Death Eater, and the coward, was finally dead. Something inside Carina Black roared in triumph, and she stood, ignoring the boys that were staring at her with differing expressions of regret, relief, frustration, and understanding. They did not like it, what this mere trip had turned her into, what they had all been turned into, but they did not dwell on it.
"Let's go."
They had only just made it to the top of the stairs when they heard Bellatrix telling Greyback he could have Hermione, and it was Ron, not Carina, who burst into the drawing room with a bellow of, "NOOOOO!"
Bellatrix wheeled about, shocked, but then turned her wand to face Ron instead, and Harry quickly disarmed her and her wand flew into Carina's hand, for she had dove in the way to snatch it.
The next few moments were a blur, stunners flying from Draco's, Narcissa's, and Greyback's wands, and as Harry dove behind a couch to avoid being hit, Ron closely following, Carina dropped to the floor and rolled, barely avoiding a shot to the head.
"STOP OR SHE DIES!"
Carina's eyes travelled up as she slowly stood. Bellatrix was supporting Hermione, who appeared to be unconscious, and was holding a silver dagger to her throat.
"Drop your wands," the woman whispered. "Or we'll see exactly how filthy her blood is."
Harry and Ron carefully stood on either side of her, and Harry dropped the wand he was holding; both boys raised their arms in surrender.
Carina bit down on her lip painfully, growling to herself as her fingers tightened on the wand, but then her cousin screeched, "I said drop it, traitor! You are a stain on the House of Black, you do not deserve to be the Lady Black!"
The girl could feel the anger well within her, but the knife was pressed even harder into Hermione's neck, and beads of blood appeared there.
"Drop it, Carina!" hissed Ron, his voice an octave higher than normal as he stared at her hand.
If I drop it, I give up. If I drop this wand, Hermione might not live….but if I don't drop this wand, she definitely won't have a chance.
Her fingers loosened their hold, and the wand slipped from her hand and clattered to the floor, briefly shooting sparks upon the impact.
Bellatrix Lestrange leered, and Carina Black slowly raised her arms to match the boys', admitting her defeat.
Draco rushed to pick up the wands, and while Bellatrix was talking and Harry closed his eyes, obviously in pain from his scar, the girl picked up on a strange squeaking noise; her eyes flickered up.
Dobby sat on the chandelier, and he raised a finger to his lips and shook his head, ears flapping; carefully, she nodded and turned her eyes back to her cousin and friend.
It took a few moments. A few terrible, drawn out moments when she thought that Hermione was sure to be werewolf food, but then the chandelier dropped, and Bellatrix dropped the teen and dove away with a scream.
The chandelier crashed to the floor in an explosion of glass, and it landed directly on top of Hermione. Carina felt her heart skip a beat, and she made to surge forward and dig Hermione out. However, the next event happened so fast that she had no time.
Harry lunged at Draco and managed to wrestle the wands from his hand; he pointed all three at Greyback and yelled, "Stupefy!" thus sending the werewolf sailing into the wall and crashing hard, before sliding to the floor, unconscious. Harry threw Carina's to her, and she cast aside her hesitation in favor of directing her wand at Bellatrix, who had leapt to her feet, dagger clutched tightly in her hand.
"Dobby!" cried Narcissa, pointing at the house elf in shock. "You! You dropped the chandelier!"
She was clever, Carina would give her that. But this cousin, this woman, deserved what would happen next as the girl gripped her wand tight.
Narcissa's wand was quickly summoned by Dobby, who had hurried over to help the teens, possibly even protect them.
"How dare you steal a witch's wand?" screeched Bellatrix again, furious. "How dare you defy your masters!"
Carina came to stand beside the elf and took his hand, and he stared up at her with those large eyes, and he offered her a small smile, before he turned back to the witches with a sober expression.
"Dobby is a free elf," he stated bravely, straightening as he pointed a shaking finger at her. "Dobby has no masters. And Dobby is here to protect his friends."
There was a small surge of pride somewhere within her at his words, but she did not say a word and instead curled her fingers around his small hand. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Harry dragging Ron, who was half carrying Hermione; she felt some relief at that.
Harry lunged forward and grabbed Dobby's other hand, while Ron gripped Carina's shoulder tight; she did not snap at him, and instead moved slightly in front of the House Elf at her dark haired cousin's predatory gaze. She did not like that look—it was a look that meant something terrible was sure to happen, and the poor elf was sure to be the recipient.
They twisted on the spot, and as they were apparating away, Carina caught sight of Bellatrix hurling her dagger at them, and it was absorbed into their range of magic as they disappeared with a crack. When they reappeared again, she found herself rolling hard across the ground, a searing pain in her abdomen.
~~~xxx~~
Hermione knelt in the sand, trembling from head to toe in the arms of Ron Weasley, who had just seemed to notice that there was something very wrong with Carina, who was curled up in a ball a bit farther away.
Harry rushed over, Dobby close behind, and Hermione lunged from Ron's arms and crawled over, feeling the panic set in as Harry rolled the other witch onto her back.
The dagger sticking out of her chest, just below her heart, made Hermione's own skip a beat and clench painfully; it only grew worse when the shivering Carina reached up to grasp the dagger handle, and pulled. It only slid up a fraction, and she tried again; her hands were covered in her blood, which was seeping out from around the dagger embedded in her.
"I'm going to take it out," Harry told her, his face pale but eyes set determinedly. "You need to try to heal it."
"I…" Hermione tried to stop him, to tell him that she couldn't, but then he was pulling the dagger from Carina's chest and there was blood everywhere. She hastily grabbed Carina's wand and hovered it over the other girl's wound, hand shaking. "V-Vulnera Sanentur. Vulnera Sanentur."
Please work, please, please...no, no no no, Carina—
"Harry, she's coughing up blood, we need to do something!" Her voice had reached a new, higher octave, and she could hear someone sprinting off, but she did not care. Right now, her entire being was filled with panic for her friend, who was lying there and possibly dying as her entire body was wracked with the force of the coughs. Blood flew past her lips and trickled down her chin, and it made Hermione two parts sick and afraid as her body seized with terror for Carina.
"Dobby might be able to help," offered Dobby hesitantly. "House Elves is good with magic."
She could only nod furiously as he stepped forward and hovered his small hands over the wound, which had only barely closed from the weakness of her botched spell. His hands glowed with a strange blue light, and he ran them over Carina's chest. The girl clenched her eyes shut, and her hands dropped limply to her sides; her fingers twitched, and her body shook. Dobby was concentrating hard, but he, too, was quivering with the magical energy he was harnessing.
Finally, the elf collapsed into Harry, eyes fluttering shut, and Carina…
Carina stopped breathing.
Or, rather, she did for a moment. But then, her chest began to gradually rise and fall, though the movement was so small to begin with that Hermione almost didn't notice it.
Relief swept over her, and as Bill and Fleur Weasley fell to their knees beside the teens, wands out, Hermione watched as they cast a series of diagnosis spells over the raven haired girl, and then Bill straightened, taking her into his arms and getting to his feet.
Ron pulled Hermione to her feet, Harry and Fleur following closely behind as Bill began to walk toward the cottage, and they all trailed along after him.
Once inside, he lay Carina on the couch, and her head lolled to the side, an arm left dangling with her fingertips brushing the floor.
"So?" said Ron, staring at his brother. "What's wrong with her?"
"Your friend there did a lot of help," Bill told him, nodding toward Dobby, who was cradled in Harry's arms, unconscious. "He exhausted himself, of course, and I'm no healer, but she'll get better. Or, I think she will. Her lung had been punctured instead of her heart, but it was a really close call; his magic just kinda patched it up. She'll need a while, that much I know for sure."
Hermione slid to the floor, feeling thoroughly exhausted, not to mention the fact that she did not want to leave Carina's side just yet. There was a small plop, and she glanced over to find Luna kneeling beside her with a damp cloth, taking one of Carina's hands in hers and beginning to wipe away the blood.
The brunette smiled weakly at her and reached over to brush aside a lock of Carina's hair fondly.
"She was in front of Dobby," Harry told her, knowing she heard even though she did not look away from the raven haired witch. "The dagger was going to hit him, but before Bellatrix threw it she knew something was wrong and got in front of him."
"She took a dagger for a 'ouse elf?" said Fleur, obviously puzzled. "Zat certainly is something."
Yes, I think it is. Hermione trailed her fingers over Carina's scar, and then noticed that Luna was staring at her and smiling, and she flushed. She knows something is going on.
"How are you feeling, Luna?" said Hermione, clearing her throat and dropping her hand back to her side.
"I'm feeling well, thank you," the blonde replied softly, her smile wavering. "Though I really can't wait until Carina wakes."
I understand the feeling. The older witch chanced a glance at the girl on the couch, and then returned her attention to Luna.
"So," cut in Ron. "Where are we staying?"
"You boys can share a room with Griphook, Ollivander, and Dean," Bill offered. "And the girls can take the other. That is, unless you all don't mind sharing a room with only two beds instead."
He was obviously saying this for Hermione's benefit, and the idea suited her just fine. Harry and Ron could share one bed, she and Luna the other, and they would not have to deal with the goblin and old wandmaker. Carina, of course, would still be resting on the couch.
"Oh." The redhead glanced at the others, and Luna and Harry both nodded at him, before his eyes fell to Hermione. "Mione?"
He had been calling her that for years, but it still did not sound right. Then again, Carina had been saying it for years and it didn't sound near as exasperating as when he did.
"Alright," she whispered, and felt her body suddenly jerk again, trembling.
"Oh!" cried Fleur, rushing to her side and pulling her to her feet. "'ermione, what 'appened?"
"Cruciatus." Hermione flinched at the hand on her forearm, which had been carved into, and the Veela immediately rolled up her sleeve and winced.
"Pardon," Fleur sympathetically wrapped an arm around her waist to hold her upright as her legs spasmed. "'Ere, let us go find a potion for you."
"Carina was under it before I was," Hermione could not help but feel worried and glanced back at her. "Will she be alright?"
"She is asleep, so we cannot give 'er any potions right now." The woman steered her toward the kitchen. "'ow long was she under?"
"A few minutes, I-I think."
"And yourself?" Fleur pushed the girl lightly into a chair and set about searching her cabinets, taking out various vials and inspecting the labels.
"Longer." Hermione felt the bile rise in her throat as she thought of that horrible woman, Bellatrix Lestrange, previously Black. It was hard to imagine her being related to Carina, who was brave and intelligent and caring….
And a bit mentally unhinged. Not enough to really be a psychopath like her cousin—cousins, really—but enough that she was a bit damaged.
Hermione was almost positive that the other girl had PTSD, which would explain her frequent nightmares, flashbacks she were sure happened occasionally, the emotional detachment to killing or even torturing someone, the easy anger when threatened in any way, shape, or form, and the lack of care for throwing herself into danger. It was as though she did not value her life at all, and it made the brunette anxious, for that was not good and she most definitely did not want her to die.
Which, that was why she had been so afraid when they found her lying in the sand, dagger sticking out of her chest and already beginning to cough up blood. She hadn't just been afraid, she had been terrified, nearly frozen, during the entire healing process itself. And now, now she had to wait who knows how long for Carina to wake? She could barely stand it now, and it had only been twenty minutes!
"'ermione!"
Hermione was snapped from her daze and stared up at Fleur, blinking; the blonde was holding a vial a few inches from her nose, and the younger witch muttered sheepishly, "I'm sorry. I was lost in thought."
"That is alright." For a moment, she marveled at how much better the Veela's english had gotten, before she accepted the vial and gazed down into it. "What is this?"
"It will 'elp with the tremors." Fleur smiled softly at her. "So drink up." The brunette downed the vial in one go and passed it back off to Fleur, who sat it down lightly and turned to face her, leaning back against the counter. "Would you like to talk about it?"
"No, thank you." Hermione let out a shaky breath and stood, already feeling the potion working through her system. "Fleur, I'm sorry. My first impression of you wasn't the best, but...you're great, really. Thank you for allowing us into your home, despite all the danger that follows."
Fleur laughed lightly and hugged her. "It is alright, I understand. Danger is nothing we cannot 'andle 'ere, trust me. You deserve to stop and 'eal."
Hermione smiled at her, and the woman led her back to the living room where the others were gathered.
~~~xxx~~~
The course of the next few days was...different, to say at least. It was much more peaceful here, and after the first couple days of being given the potion to stop her tremors, Hermione felt better than she had in a while. That is, at least, until she glimpsed the scar on her arm and felt immediately sick. Harry spent most of his time alone outside of the crowded cottage, and Ron alternated between talking with Dean, Hermione, Luna, and his brother and sister-in-law most days. Luna and Hermione, though, spent a great deal of time near the couch where Carina lay, waiting for her to wake up, and when Harry was present, he, Hermione, and Ron all discussed their plan to break into Gringotts.
Hermione only hoped that Carina woke up before then, or they would be forced to leave her behind, and she did not want that.
She was sitting on the couch now, Carina's head in her lap as she combed her fingers through the tangled, dark hair, watching as occasionally the younger girl twitched or moaned in her sleep. There were a few times she had begun to have a nightmare, but Hermione had quickly soothed those.
Luna sat on the floor beneath them, back resting against the couch and a book in her hands.
Everything was going peacefully, until they had an intruder in the form of Remus Lupin, who had rushed in and earnestly began proclaiming that his child was a boy, and his name was Edward "Teddy" Remus Lupin, after his grandfather and father.
The werewolf had been overjoyed, until he stopped suddenly when he saw Carina.
"Is she alright?" he asked concernedly, brows furrowing.
"Alright as she can be," replied Bill, leaning against the wall and running a hand through his hair. "When she and the others showed up here, she had taken a dagger to the chest, and it punctured her lung. She'd have died if they hadn't have had Dobby with them. As a matter of fact, that's apparently who she took the dagger for."
"What?" Remus's eyes widened, and his tone filled with worry. "How long has she been asleep?"
"Five, six days, give or take."
"That can't be good, can it?"
Hermione, who had been paying close attention to them and found the man's concern touching, felt the raven haired girl lying in her lap stir, eyelids fluttering. Startled, she glanced down and found gray eyes blearily, slowly open, and Carina jumped, obviously more anxious than the others had thought, and nearly banged foreheads with Hermione, who found herself filled with joy.
She's finally awake!
"What the bloody hell is going on?" cried the girl, before she coughed hard and pounded her chest, speaking more quietly this time, "Merlin, I'm sore…how long was I out?"
They informed her, and she cursed.
Fleur passed her a glass of water, which she accepted gratefully, and when she finished it and sat it on the coffee table, her eyes found Hermione, who was so happy that she could not help herself and flung herself at Carina.
Except, there was no hug.
There was a kiss.
Dead
On
The
Lips.
Hermione pulled away a few seconds later, abashed, and was sure that by now her cheeks must be pink; Carina was staring at her with wide eyes, blinking furiously, and then shook her head as she reached up a hand to touch her lips.
"Am I still sleeping?"
"No," said Luna amusedly, shifting on her knees so that she could see her friend. "Why?"
"If I'm not dreaming," the raven haired girl said slowly. "Then, that really just happened."
"Yes." Luna's amusement was obviously only growing as Hermione's cheeks grew redder.
I can't believe I just did that! And now, now she's so shocked, but I was just so happy to see her finally awake and well that I just couldn't help myself…
Carina's eyes flickered to the brunette and widened further, and her hand dropped. She was just about to open her mouth to say something when she caught sight of Remus. "Moony?"
"Carina," the man responded tentatively, hesitating as he approached her and perched cautiously on the end of the couch. "It's nice to see you."
"I'm sorry," Hermione noticed how Remus frowned at her words, which were as sincere as any. "I shouldn't have provoked you like I did the last time we met. But you needed to get back to your kid."
"Yes, I know." He sighed, but then smiled slightly. "I'm sorry as well. I'm happy you sent me on my way, else I never would have gotten to meet him."
The raven haired girl's lips twitched. "What's his name?"
"Teddy Remus Lupin." Remus hesitated, though his eagerness shone through. "I'd like you to be godmother, if you're willing."
"Me?" The shock on Carina's face was rather sad, for Hermione thought she would make a great godmother if given the chance, though she had yet to see her around children. "Why me and not...I don't know, anyone else?"
"We considered Harry," admitted Remus. "But you're also his closest living blood relative aside from his grandmother and…"
And from Bellatrix, Narcissa, and Draco. Merlin knows how that poor boy would turn out raised by any of them.
"I…" Carina swallowed visibly. "I'll do it."
"Good." Remus smiled widely, suddenly, and reached forward to envelope the girl in a hug. "I must be going, though. We'll see each other again."
The raven haired girl fell silent as she returned his embrace, nodded solemnly, and when he left, turned toward Hermione, gesturing toward the door and inclining her head.
The message was clear: We need to talk.
Hermione stood and followed her outside, ignoring Luna's knowing look and the stares of the others boring into her back. Carina led her down the bank and to the oceanside, where she stood there just out of reach of the waves, which were crashing on the beach, and her hair was ruffled by a breeze.
Hermione could feel anxiety gnawing at her, and she was the one who spoke first.
"Carina," she tried, feeling her hands tremble. "I'm sorry, I probably shouldn't have, it wasn't right and—"
"Did you mean it?" said the other girl quietly, not turning her attention from the horizon.
"What?" Hermione frowned.
"Did you mean it?" Carina turned to face her, and her gray eyes gleamed, the scar on her face standing out on her pale skin more than ever. "Or were you just caught up in the moment?"
The brunette swallowed. Had she meant it?
She had been thinking over these strange feelings for days, weeks, even, and still did not quite know what to make of them. She had thought she loved Ron Weasley, but she was only questioning it more and more now. Every time he held her, everytime he comforted her, it did not feel right; she felt trapped in his embrace, caged by him and his feelings for her. She had noticed them, yes, she had. But she had stopped thinking so much of it—something had changed when he left them, and now, it was no longer his comfort she seeked, but Carina's. She had been so afraid at the prospect of her death, had felt her heart wrench painfully when the other girl was tortured or had a nightmare and cried in her arms, felt her stomach fill with butterflies when those slender arms wrapped around her, when a hand unconsciously found her own.
When Hermione had nightmares of her own and woke her roommates, she had brushed off Ron and Harry's attempts, had barely let Luna touch her, even, because the person she wanted most to be there was not, and she had felt alone, despite being in a room with three others who cared for her.
Ron Weasley had his moments, admitting occasionally that she was brilliant and had tried fruitlessly to protect her, and attempted to impress her on numerous occasions. But he was very jealous, very insecure, and rather possessive; he did not like to share things and like any boy, he did not think before he acted or said something, not to mention that he had the emotional capacity of a teaspoon. He was not the best with studying, and he tended to procrastinate more often than not with schoolwork and had an unhealthy obsession with Quidditch. Everyone had flaws, she could not deny that. Those were his.
Carina Black had flaws as well. She was prone to anger, could kill without batting an eye and had no reservations about torturing someone who threatened herself or someone she cared for, tended to be rather reckless at the times of this anger, her body was marred with various grotesque scars, and she had problems of her own inside that ran deep. She, too, could be possessive, but at least she knew when to let go and back away. She might not have the same obsession with Quidditch as the boys, but her dangerous stunts on a broom could rival Harry's and nearly give Hermione a heart attack.
On many occasions she had compared the two, but she had never thought that she would ever have to choose between the two because new feelings had developed.
She also never thought that she would kiss said person she had developed feelings for. But, she did know what her choice would be now.
"Yes," she said finally. "I meant it."
Carina tilted her head to the side, a frown on her face. "What does that mean for us, then? Are you still experimenting, or have you finally come to a decision?"
Judging by the shoulders pulling back, the slight raise of her chin, the straightening back and locked jaw, she was steeling herself for the worst possible outcome—the one where she would have to leave for good following rejection, so that she would not get hurt by staying and seeing what she would never have.
Hermione let out a breath. "Yes, I've come to a decision." She paused, biting her lip and looking down, but a hand grabbed her chin and angled her head back up; gray eyes met hers, and the slight arch of a dark brow urged her to continue. "And...and I'd like to give us a try, if you'll have me."
Carina Black's jaw actually dropped.