Harry Potter: The Missing Keys
Chapter 17 of my Harry Potter story enjoy.
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Wolfgirl2013: Thanks :)
Boris Yeltsin: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, yeah although, it may end up doing him a favour in the long run ;)
Now onto the story.
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or its characters.
Chapter 17
The realisation that Jeff's wand was now destroyed changed things, sudden panic began to settle in on the group but somehow, despite this, Jamie kept a cool enough head.
"Jeff you, you can't help anymore, fall back." He said, unknowingly channelling his grandfather's natural leadership skill.
Jeff nodded and dodged another blasting curse as he ducked out of the battle.
"Well, isn't that a shame." Thaddeus mocked. "Looks like your pathetically slim chances just faded even further."
But to his surprise, the other three readied their wands, refusing to give in. So with a sigh he decided to chip away at those 'chances' some more.
So focusing on the remaining trio he cast another Bombarda at them, forcing them to dodge as it gouged the ground. He then decided to make things a little more precise and cast two Diffindo spells at the girls but only caught the back of their robes while Jamie's robes were set alight by his Incendio spell, causing all three to ditch their robes in response and firing various stinging hexes, tickling hexes and even a disarmer or two at him. He blocked on dodged every one while sending his own, deadlier spells at them in return, forcing them to dodge frequently.
"Amara!" Jamie warned. "You're too far out."
She was indeed and that was the opening that Thaddeus was waiting for.
"Incarcerous!"
Amara cried out and stumbled as the ropes bound her torso, pinning her arms and leaving her unable to lift her wand, effectively taking her out of the fight.
"And there there were two." Thaddeus mocked.
He turned to smirk as the increasingly nervous Jamie and Carla.
They knew they had no choice now and decided to abandon tickling and stinging hexes and focused on Flipendos and disarmers. Despite their efforts Thaddeus proved to still be able to easily match them. Amara growled as she watched, tugging at her bonds, helpless. Then she yelped as a Bombarda struck the ground nearby, kicking up debris and she felt stinging along her right cheek. Seeing this Carla grimaced.
"Amara, get outta there." She called.
Amara hissed but nodded and tried to do so. Seeing this Thaddeus turned towards her but Jamie cast Expelliarmus at him and so he turned and launched two stunners, Jamie dodged one, the second grazed his side making him cry out in pain. Trying to take a chance, Carla ran to help Amara, only to find herself caught and bound the same way just as she reached her, both girls tugged uselessly at their bonds as Jamie found himself facing a smirking Thaddeus alone.
Thaddeus kept his wand trained on Jamie, the only threat left.
"Well, I guess I should commend you for lasting so long against me, but..." Thaddeus shook his head. "It would be faint praise. Now, to end it."
"Finite Incantatum!"
He started and all eyes turned to see that, just as Jamie hoped, Jeff had slipped around the battle, grabbed the necklaces and freed Jennifer from her bonds, now she had used her wand and freed Carla and Amara from theirs.
"You were saying?" Jamie quipped.
Thaddeus growled and with a roar unleashed a wave of magical energy that knocked them all off their feet, dazed. He turned and began to advance towards Jeff, to grab the necklaces.
"Confringo!"
He spin around and deflected the curse, shock etched on his features and Jamie's heart lifted, they had succeeded in their plan, they had bought enough time and now, as he went to try and regroup his injured friends, Professor Bennett stepped into the clearing, wand ready.
She narrowed her eyes as she noted what Thaddeus was wearing, the constant duelling having exposed it, a familiar medallion.
"So, just like Solomon, Ezekiel, Angelo, even that woman who attacked me in Diagon Alley, Annabelle."
"That's right." Thaddeus remarked. "You should have joined us when you had the chance, Jane, too late now."
Professor Bennett merely shook her head, then cast her first spell at Thaddeus. Meanwhile the group took stock of their injuries. The boy's shirts and trousers, the girl's blouses and skirts as well as their thigh-high socks had rips and tears which exposed bleeding cuts. Jamie and Jeff had cuts on their hands and faces, Jennifer's fingers were bloody from trying to pick herself free of her bonds, finally Amara had a scrape on her right cheek. They were all exhausted but alive and relieved but then they turned their attention back to the duel where, clearly outmatched by Professor Bennett, Thaddeus gave a grim smile and uttered just one phrase.
"Glory to Herpo."
Before turning his wand on himself. The result was not pretty.
By the time the five of them digested what they had seen they were already numb with shock.
"C'mon, let's get you back to the castle." Professor Bennett was saying, looking rather shaken herself.
They nodded and followed her, noting she had the medallion in one hand and the necklaces in the other.
"I'll take these to Professor Dumbledore and tell him what happened." Professor Bennett explained as she led them away from that devastation in the clearing. "You all get to the hospital wing and then, once you're cleared, come to Professor Dumbledore's office, he'll want to see you all too."
They nodded mutely again before feeling some sense of relief as they exited the forest, now closer at last to the safety and comfort of the castle.
End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.