Mortem . Sirius Black

chapter thirty-six

April 5th - St. Mungos' 

Nephera woke up in a large and very dark room, no, not a room, she thought, space. An empty, completely black space. Looking around, she tried to find any source of light, any sign of life, but there was none. She tried to walk, but when she did, she found herself almost floating, as though she wasn't tied to a body. 

"I never did get used to the feeling," said a deep voice next to her, and she swiftly turned around

In front of her, was a pale man, with eyes and hair almost as black as their surroundings, wearing a dark suit and looking at her. Despite the mysterious man, she didn't feel scared, nor feel the need to defend herself in any way. 

"Who are you?" she asked, her voice echoing "What is this place?" 

"I'm Hades," said the man with a knowing smile 

Nephera raked her brain, remembering everything she had been taught about Greek Mythology, "God of the Underworld? Am I dead?" 

"Not yet, no," he replied, his voice deep and oddly peaceful 

"So why am I here?" 

The Slytherin was certain that she had gone mad. She didn't believe in life after death, nor in any religion. It may be true that all Gods exist, the Christian one, the Pagan ones, the Muslim ones, and yes, even the ancient Gods of Olympus, but she had never called on them, never prayed to them, so they had no reason to contact her. 

"Because you have made the fates very angry, you see," said Hades "You were meant to die in your fathers' study, during Christmas, but you talked your way out of it. And that has set forth a chain reaction of events that, well..." he trailed off 

"How do you know all that?" she asked

"Because I've been watching you for quite some time. You caught my attention when you were young, I could see the potential," 

"Is that why my patronus is a panther? El, she said in some cultures they symbolized death," 

"You really are smart," he mused "And you ask many questions, but not the ones you should be asking," 

"What questions should I ask then?" 

"Think, Nephera, why are you not dead?" 

The brunette frowned, her mind churning, trying to figure out what the God was trying to say. Why was she not dead, especially if she was meant to die four months ago? 

I want her alive. 

She gasped, the soft sound bouncing off the nonexistent walls and continuing into the darkness, "Why didn't he kill me? He was angry, he almost risked getting caught... Nothing can stop the killing curse, so why not kill me?" 

The God smiled, "Now, now you are asking the correct ones," 

"Are you going to answer?" 

He laughed softly and walked away, "Think, Nephera," he said, not bothering to turn back around, "Think," 

Outside of the room, the seven teens, Mia and Monty were all perched up on chairs, sleeping peacefully for the first time during the break. All, except for one, that is. The raven-haired boy was turning around in his chair, images of Nephera laughing while under the cruciatus curse, and then screaming as her father stabbed her replayed in his head. They were interrupted by close-ups of the girl, in some she was telling him how much she loved him, in others she was telling him she hates him. 

He woke up with a start, cold sweat running down his forehead, his chest heaving up and down and his eyes wide, panicked. 

Looking around at his surroundings, he remembered that he was in the hospital, and he swiftly turned his head towards the girl's room, when he noticed a small light on.