Amelia Merlin and the Songs of the Elves

Part 14: Fiendfyre

Amelia tried not to laugh but it was getting difficult. She had her hands pressed to her lips and she couldn't stop shaking. Lavender was beet red in the face and Parvati had tears in her eyes but they were all trying to be as silent as possible.  No one knew exactly what it was Seamus was trying to achieve right now. He and Dean were building....something. Someone said they thought it was supposed to be a bunk bed for the two of them but right now it looked a lot like something for a bonfire. 

"Nothing is better than watching a bunch of idiots try to do something that actually requires skill," Lavender whispered to them.

"I swear if that catches fire I'm going to pretend I don't see anything," Parvati nodded. "Let natural selection do its work."

"Should we help?" Amelia giggled. 

"Natural selection," Parvati shook her head. "It's a powerful thing."

The Room of Requirement had been getting more and more students since Halloween. It was nearly Christmas and Amelia suspected that fewer people would be around after the break which was maybe a good thing. She had tried to get more people to join Dumbledore's Army but they had all the people that would already with them. Al sent her letters every few days with updates. Moira was still on her quest from the elves and Blaxton was keeping the north under control. There was no word on Rose or Akkedis or any of the lizards which was probably a good thing. Amelia hoped they had gotten the message after the Battle for Okamila but in her heart, she knew it wasn't over. 

The bunk beds were almost starting to look like they were supposed to when a noise burst through the entrance to the Room of Requirement. There were shouts and cries and she heard Neville's voice and the rest of the room went silent. Someone was screaming. They were all coughing. She heard the bunk beds crash down to the floor. 

They smelled too. Like burnt hair and sweat. And blood too. 

 She couldn't tell how many people there were. There was just this mass of blackened faces that doubled over. Blood caked on their faces and along their arms that were charred from the fire. 

Amelia flicked her arms and beds appeared in a line near the door. 

"Get all of them lying down," she said to Lavender then turned to Parvati. "Get water and anyone who can help. Tell everyone else to stay out of the way."

She took a deep breath and strode over to Neville. "Are you okay?" 

He nodded and she could tell he was telling the truth. "It was the Carrows."

"Tell me what happened while I'm working," Amelia beckoned for him to follow her and he did. She did a quick scan of the group, assessing the damages and priorities before heading over to a boy who looked about thirteen. 

"They were teaching the kids about fiendfyre," Neville was out of breath. 

"What the bloody hell is fiendfyre?" Lavender growled as she forced a kid to lie down so she could start cleaning her arm. 

"It's cursed fire," Amelia explained while she worked. "I'm pretty sure it's illegal because it's impossible to control if you're not very very good. Why the fuck are the Carrows teaching it?"

Neville shrugged, "I don't think they were. I think they mentioned it and some idiot thought it would be an okay thing to release it in the halls."

"Why are they here? Shouldn't they be in the hospital wing?" Lavender wiped her forehead with the back of her hand. The boy Amelia was working on was passed out but he was still breathing so it was for the best that he wasn't feeling too much right now. His arm was mangled, she wasn't sure how well she would do with fixing it. 

"Whoever released it did so in a corridor filled with people," Neville spat. "And Hufflepuff kids are not on the priority list for treatment."

"What?"

"All the Slytherins got in first and filled the place up. These kids were sent back to their dormitories so I brought them here."

"Fuck," Amelia cursed under her breath. "Neville, can you go ask someone to sort out getting food for these kids?"

"Sure thing, boss," he smiled painfully and put a hand on her shoulder before leaving. "I'll get them some clean clothes too."

"Thanks, Neville." 

She worked quietly for the rest of the day. The wounded kids groaned in pain and some were still crying out when she cleaned and bandaged them but mostly it was quiet. They fell asleep after Amelia gave them a small potion to induce rest. After hours of working, she sat on the floor at the end of the line of beds. Her hands rested on her knees and her eyes felt heavy. Her back ached from leaning over and her head pounded. She let her head rest against the wall and looked over patients. There were eleven in total. Four boys and seven girls. 

"How are you doing?" Oliver slid down beside her. 

"I'm a strange combination of really tired, really sad, and really fucking angry," she admitted. 

"Yeah, that's sort of the vibe around here lately."

"Hogwarts is our home," her voice ached. "And they're taking that away from us. And I don't know if there's anything we can do."

"You know that boy, the one whose arm you saved?" Oliver nudged her gently. "His name's Jake Hawthorn. And he's still going to be able to cast spells now because you saved his arm. You're not doing nothing." 

She looked over at smiled at those crystal blue eyes and dark hair. He grinned back and put his arm around her. Amelia's head rested on his shoulder and she felt her eyes close while sitting on the floor of the Room of Requirement. Her hands smelled like burning flesh, blood, and essence of dittany. 

"Make sure they're all okay," she mumbled sleepily. 

"Trust me, darling," Oliver kissed the side of her head and she fell into a slumber.