Albus Potter and the Curse of the Deceiver

Backup Plans

‘None of them,’ Jessica said, her face plastered with confusion. ‘We were in the Gryffindor Common room. I stunned you.’

Albus exhaled, relieved. ‘Good, so it is you.’

‘What in the name of hell is that supposed to mean?’ Jessica asked, narrowing her eyes in confusion. Albus chewed anxiously on his bottom lip. ‘Lockwood has...kind of been, well...possessing you...’

‘What?’ Jessica shrieked, all colour draining out of her face until she looked scarily like Voldemort. ‘How...how do you know?’

‘Well, we figured it out,’ Albus said, running his fingers through his hair. ‘But I sort of know from stories. My mum. She got possessed by Voldemort when she was eleven. There were these huge, long gaps were she couldn’t remember anything. Like where she was, what she was doing, why she was doing it...’

‘Yeah, that’s exactly it!’ Jessica said, tears running down her face. ‘Oh God. He’s going to make me kill you.’

‘No, no he’s not,’ Albus said quickly, taking Jessica by her shoulders and shaking her gently. ‘He thinks we have no chance anymore because he’s got someone to steal the paper that holds the fundamentals of the curse but I have a feeling someone else has a copy. I’m not going to tell you who because he can feed on your knowledge.’

The last sentence just made Jessica paler. Albus cursed himself angrily. ‘Look, I’m going to make sure nothing happens to you. That’s why I’ve asked Alanna to teach us how to become animaguses. We need a way to get around school without being caught in our own forms and with Teddy edging closer and closer towards the Order, we can’t exactly rely on him anymore. Tonight we’re meeting Alanna in the Room of Requirement at nine and Rose, Scorpio and Dimitri are coming.’

‘Why not Avery...oh, right.’

Albus nodded. ‘Are you okay?’

Jessica sighed and then smiled slightly. ‘I guess. As long as you can promise that nothing will happen to me.’

‘I swear,’ Albus said sincerely.

*

Ciel was next on the list. Albus was certain that she had made a copy. Smart-arses like her and Rose never let anything go without a fight. Albus found Ciel in the Great Hall, talking with her friends.

‘Oi,’ he called. ‘Evermore.’

Ciel looked up and her eyes widened when she saw Albus. ‘Uh..I have to go,’ she muttered to her friends.

‘Why? ‘S Potter your boyfriend?’ one of the girls asked with a giggle. Ciel rolled her eyes with an annoyed scowl and hurried over to Albus. ‘What do you want Potter?’

‘You have a copy of the page,’ Albus accused. ‘I need it.’

Ciel swallowed. ‘I...how did you know?’

Albus grinned. ‘I didn’t. You just confirmed it.’

Ciel cussed at her own stupidity and sighed. ‘Okay. But just to confirm, it really is an ancient language. I asked some of the ghosts of the castle...they couldn’t even translate a word.’

Albus raised his eyebrows, impressed that she had thought of the ghosts as an option but was smug when he heard the idea had failed. ‘Just get the piece of paper to me and directly to me.’ He was about to leave when Ciel grabbed his arm. ‘Albus,’ she said quietly, her eyes clouded with fear. ‘I was reading over it in bed. And I recognised a few words that have managed to weave their way into modern languages. Words like curse and death.’ The grey eyes met the green and Ciel swallowed. ‘What exactly is on that piece of paper?’