Gideon's jaw dropped as he realised; he had been tricked. He was furious with himself for not having considered this outcome. Gideon thought back and realised that Annie hadn't mentioned which boy had given her the note. He had just assumed it had been Anthony who had passed it to her.
One of the Gryffindors must have seen Anthony the night he knocked them out. They had put two and two together and realised he was Gideon's brother.
'Isn't this getting a little old?' Gideon said bravely to buy time as he got to his feet and observed his surroundings. He was glad that there were so many chairs and other obstacles between him and Greg's posse, but there was only one exit. Alex Grimsby was noticeably absent but five against one were not good odds.
'Not for me,' Greg replied, 'and definitely not for Callum, here. One of your multiple victims!'
Callum stood to Greg's left. He was the one Gideon had seen in the Hospital Wing. The dressing over his cheek did nothing to conceal his scowl.
'I didn't do that,' Gideon responded, his objection sounding unconvincing even to himself.
'Don't lie, freak!' Jason piped up, 'I don't know what your deal is, but we're going to get you to come clean!'
'Why can't you just leave me alone?' Gideon asked.
'Because we know it was you!' said Sean McCann. 'Nobody else should get hurt because some loser can't control his magic!'
'Too right!' added Scott Parker. 'Admit what you did, and we'll back off.'
Gideon was surprised by the others speaking out. Greg and Jason usually did all the talking for their little gang, but their misguided righteous hatred for Gideon had united them.
'I'm not going to admit to something I didn't do,' Gideon replied stubbornly, deciding to put his trust in the headmistress's assertion that he was innocent.
'Then, we do this the hard way,' Greg said before raising his wand. 'Flipendo!'
Gideon dived to avoid the spell, reached into his pocket for his wand, and with a firm resolve to escape, he gritted his teeth and fired back, 'Flipendo!'
Much to his surprise, and the Gryffindor's rage, Gideon managed to hit Sean, knocking him over forcefully. Emboldened by this, the others started rapidly firing off spells. There were too many flying at him for Gideon to aim properly, so he could only fire back wildly over the top of the chair he was hiding behind. Unfortunately, the chair was being bombarded with jinxes and the Gryffindors were gradually advancing on his position.
He tried to think of a plan. With all the obstacles in the room, another smokescreen didn't seem like the best idea. Then, Gideon realised, the obstacles could also be weapons. 'Locomotor chair!' he uttered, pointing at an armchair by the window, then thrust his arm up and across until it pointed at Jason.
The spell drained Gideon more than he expected but it worked. The large, heavy armchair left the floor and hurled itself along the path Gideon had gestured. It landed on Jason and pinned him to the floor.
Gideon smiled at what he had achieved, but that moment cost him as Greg's well-aimed spells headed his way. Gideon deflected two of them but the third followed Callum's, and Gideon was hit square in the chest, causing him to topple backwards. Gideon struggled to his feet, determined to continue fighting, but he wasn't quick enough.
'Pulso!' Callum shouted angrily.
The electric shock that followed disabled Gideon long enough for Scott to take advantage. 'Expelliarmus!' he said decisively.
Gideon tried to grip his wand, but it flew from his hand. Trembling, either from the Shocker Spell or from a combination of fear and adrenaline, Gideon took cover and thumped the floor in frustration. When he kneeled on something painful, he adjusted his robes. Suddenly, he realised the fight wasn't over yet.
'You've lost your wand, freak! Come out, take your beating like a man, and confess to being the crazed pyromaniac that you are!' Greg demanded.
'It's no use scurrying around, over there! You're not getting past us!' Callum warned, noticing Gideon's movements between the chairs and tables until he retreated into the far corner.
'Come out, freak, or I'll transfigure you into a goat!' Jason threatened.
Gideon guffawed, 'Yeah, right, Jason! You couldn't transfigure water if you had a tea bag and a bottle of milk!'
'Why you little—enough of this! Get him, he doesn't even have a wand!' Jason ordered.
The Gryffindors converged on his location. It was just as Gideon had planned. Earlier when he had been kneeling on something hard, he had discovered an object in the inner pocket of his robes. It had been his Channelling Rod.
After finding it, Gideon moved around the room, tapping everything in sight three times. Unlike his own spells, the imbued Channelling Rod was not dependent on a wizard's magic. That meant it could do things, or rather, just one thing, much better than a wizard of Gideon's age and skill could.
Gideon watched as the Gryffindors came closer, darting between the many chairs and tables of the room to get to him. He waited until they were more than halfway across the room, with no easy escape route. Then, hoping against all hope that his plan would succeed and that the Channelling Rod could handle it, Gideon jumped up, concentrated, and thrust his arm outward with conviction.
The Gryffindor boys were mystified as the remaining chairs, tables, desks and even a couch rose up and hurtled towards them like a tidal wave of furniture. While his enemies fled, ducked for cover, or were swept away, Gideon attempted to navigate an escape route through the chaos.
Somehow, he managed it. He made it past the Gryffindors and the scattered debris to the other side of the room. However, just as the door was within reach, his hopes were dashed. Gideon tumbled forwards and the knowledge that he had failed consumed him.
'Locomotor Mortis,' Greg had yelled from beneath an upturned table. The Leg-Locker Curse had taken hold just in time.
Gideon looked around frantically for something, anything that he could levitate with the rod, but nothing was within reach. He did, however, spot his wand and began to wriggle in its direction on his elbows.
'What did he do? How the heck did he do that?' Jason demanded furiously.
Gideon watched as one by one, all the boys got to their feet, a few of them groaning but otherwise not seriously harmed.
'Think you're clever, do you?' said Greg, limping towards Gideon, who stopped moving so as not to give away his wand's location. 'Let's see what you have, there! Expelliarmus!'
The Channeling Rod shot out of Gideon's hand and into the air, where Greg caught it.
'That's mine! Give it back!' Gideon demanded.
'I've seen things like that for sale in Diagon Alley,' Sean commented, holding his shoulder, 'though, they're just toys, really, nothing powerful enough to do this.'
'How do they work?' Greg asked.
'They usually need a simple command or contact with something. Try tapping something with it,' Sean advised his friend to Gideon's dismay.
Greg then tried it on a nearby chair, tapping it in different ways until he figured it out. 'Three times, eh?' he asked Gideon rhetorically while levitating the chair. 'Let's check, shall we?'
Greg leaned over and tapped Gideon's bound legs three times.
'No, don't!' Gideon objected but the nasty boy flashed his teeth and whipped his arm across, launching Gideon across the room and back to where he started. Thankfully, he landed on the edge of the toppled couch, which absorbed most of the impact, but he bounced off of it hard and rolled towards the fireplace.
'Whoa, Greg be careful!' one of the boys warned. 'He needs to be conscious if we want him to admit what he did.'
Gideon couldn't believe Greg had done something so dangerous, and with his legs still locked together. It was a miracle that he hadn't broken something, but the landing had been painful. He was winded and defenceless. It seemed these boys really wanted to hurt him.
'Not bad,' Greg commented, admiring the crystal rod as he and the others closed in on Gideon again. 'Did they give you this at that Squib school you went to before coming here? Are we giving Squibs magic, now? I think maybe I'll hang on to it.'
'Give it back!' Gideon spat angrily as he tried to pull himself upright.
'Or you'll do what?' Jason taunted, 'No one's coming to save you this time. Or are you going to have one of your girly screaming fits like at Johnston? I got grounded for your little freak-out, you know! Pulso!'
Jason used the Shocker Spell continuously and Gideon's body began to convulse.
'Go on, scream for me, freak!' he taunted.
Gideon refused to give Jason the satisfaction, but the scene was horribly familiar to his last day at Johnston primary, as Jason had pointed out. The memory of that day surfaced in his mind.
'Just admit that you started the fires!' Scott insisted, looking a little unsure of himself.
'No! Leave me alone!' Gideon barked through gritted teeth as Jason continued his shock treatment.
'You know what?' Greg asked aloud as Gideon continued to shake under the power of Jason's spell. 'Unlike you, I'm a wizard who knows how to control his magic. I don't think I want this Squib stick, after all.'
The boy took the Channelling Rod with both hands and with some effort, broke the crystal stick in two. Gideon watched helplessly as tiny shards crumbled to the floor and yet more voltage surged through his body.
To Gideon, the Channelling Rod hadn't just been a prized gift from the beloved grandmother he hadn't seen in months. It had been a symbol of hope for him during his darkest moments. The Channelling Rod had been his connection to the wizarding world when he worried that he might not belong.
Gideon's hope. His connection. They had been shattered by the person he hated most in the world. The Channelling Rod snapped, and so did Gideon. From deep within, a horrible but familiar sensation came over Gideon. However, this time there was no resistance, and it wasn't followed by pain as it had been each time before.
The feeling Gideon had experienced those times when his magic was trying to break free, filled his veins and pooled beneath his skin. Lost in the moment, desperate and enraged, Gideon yelled once more, 'Leave me ALONE!'
A wave of force made the Gryffindors stumble backwards. As their confused expressions changed to fear, the build-up of energy inside Gideon's body rose to the surface and broke free. Gideon's head snapped back, and flames burst forth from him in every direction.
The terrified Gryffindors scrambled to get away, climbing over chairs, clambering over tables, and scaling anything else in their path. All five of the boys managed to outrun the surge of fire, which instead claimed the furniture in its path. Gideon, however, collapsed where he had been kneeling.
'What should we do?' Sean asked frantically, looking from Greg and Jason to the location where Gideon lay amidst the rising flames.
'Are you kidding, we've got to get out of here!' Jason replied.
'W-we can't just leave him, can we?' Scott asked incredulously.
'You saw what he did! He obviously started the fires! He's a dirty Slytherin, just like You-Know-Who!' Greg reasoned nastily in a high-pitched voice, 'Let the freak burn! Come on!'
Jason ran from the room, followed by Greg, who pulled Callum along with him. Sean and Scott edged towards the door but kept looking back at the fire, unsure of what they could do. Sean made a run for it and a panic-stricken Scott followed shortly after.
The fires fed on the wooden furniture and began to spread quickly. It wasn't until Gideon's trouser leg caught fire that he came around. The heat caused him to whip his leg away from the burning chair it was lying next to. He patted it down wildly with his robes, unsure why his legs were no longer bound.
Once his leg was safe, Gideon cast his eyes around and took in the seriousness of his situation. As the reality of what he had done settled in, thoughts of guilt for this and the other fires crept into his head. It was clear now that the headmistress had been mistaken. He had to have been behind the other fires, after all.
However, Gideon put those thoughts to the back of his mind. His priority had to be escaping. He carefully tip toed his way around while shielding his face with his arm, looking for a way through the pile of blazing furniture. He couldn't believe how hot the fire was. It stung his throat as he struggled to breathe.
Finally, a last pile of burning obstacles stood between him and freedom. He kicked a chair hard to make a gap in the wall of flames and was able to jump through it. Once clear, Gideon looked back at his handiwork in horror. He thought that if he could at least put the fire out he might be able to redeem himself.
Remembering where he spotted his wand earlier, he made a dash for the place where it lay, only moments away from becoming kindling. Gideon covered his robes around his hand and grabbed for it. He felt glad to be reunited with it, but the pressure was on now. Gideon hadn't learned how to conjure water yet. The closest thing in his arsenal was the Frost Spell.
'Glacius!' Gideon commanded, spraying a weak stream of icy air at the nearest flames.
It was no use. The spell might normally have created enough moisture and water vapour to be effective, but the heat in the room was hampering the spell's ability, and Gideon felt drained of magic. He shook his head and growled in frustration as he accepted, he wouldn't be able to stop the fire.
The only thing he could do was leave. But what, then? Should he get help? Or should he run, as the Gryffindors must have? As much as they had obviously wanted to hurt him, Gideon found it hard to believe they had really left him there. If they had gone for help, though, someone would surely have arrived by now.
Gideon racked his brain. If the Gryffindors were going to keep quiet about what happened, maybe he should do the same? He had more to lose, after all. He was sure to be expelled, or worse. They, on the other hand, might even be hailed as heroes for revealing the culprit behind the fires.
Against his better judgement, Gideon decided to flee. However, he couldn't in good conscience allow the blaze to go unchecked. As he reached the entrance to the dungeon stairs, he recalled a spell he had read about, pointed his wand at his throat and uttered, 'Sonorus.' With his voice now magically amplified, Gideon took a breath and yelled, 'FIRE! FIRE IN THE STUDENT LOUNGE!'
The deafening warning reverberated around the huge Entrance Hall and no doubt carried on down the corridors. Knowing that the staff room wasn't too far away, Gideon pulled the door to. He watched through the gap with one eye and waited until he saw figures appear atop the stairs. He sighed with relief when Professor Keane emerged with Professor Parekh, a woman with a bob haircut, who he believed taught Alchemy to older students.
Gideon then let the door close all the way and made his way to the Common Room. He immediately berated himself for what he had done. He was sure the guilt would eat him alive, especially when he connected what had transpired with what he must have done to the Dementors—and to his mother.
Thoughts like that were too much to handle right now, though, so Gideon pushed them far down in his mind. Nobody could know about what happened tonight. The Gryffindor boys couldn't reveal what they knew without admitting their part in it, which included leaving Gideon there. He had to keep quiet as well.
It was looking more and more likely that his hypothesis about his magic being sealed was correct. It was also looking more likely that there was good reason for it. He couldn't let people know what he had done. Not until he knew what was wrong with him. Not until he found the answers he needed.
Gideon tried to compose himself as he reached the Common Room and gave the password, 'Cottonmouth.'
As he attempted to nonchalantly stroll from the passageway to the dorms, he noted that the clock on the mantle showed it was past nine o'clock now. It was a small stroke of luck, however, that his current rocky relations with the other Slytherins meant nobody stopped him to ask why he had been out past curfew.
His dormmates were all in their room talking when he opened the door. They turned silent as he entered and remained that way while Gideon casually collected his dressing gown and headed back out to the bathroom.
Gideon stepped into the furthest shower stall, locked it behind him and got undressed. He set the water hotter than he usually would, a small punishment for his actions, and stepped under the steaming water in the faint hope that it would wash away his guilt.
In the privacy of the stall, a couple of errant tears escaped the corners of his eyes as he observed the bruises that were already forming down one side of his body. The impact following his flight across the lounge was harder than he had recognised in the heat of the moment. He also noted a relatively small burn around his ankle. The hot water was irritating it, but he didn't move it away.
'Gideon?'
Gideon froze on the spot. Did someone know? Had someone seen?
'Gideon, it's me,' said Dorian beyond the stall door. 'It's just us in here. I wanted to apologise. Things are kind of crazy right now, but I haven't been fair to you. I haven't even asked if you set off the pumpkins. I just assumed like everyone else, and that wasn't right, so I'm sorry.
'If you tell me it wasn't you, I'll believe you. And if it was you, well, there's a rumour going around that those Gryffindor guys were hexing you. If that's true and you just lost control or something? Well, I'll support you... Gideon?'
Gideon was beyond grateful, but he was lost for how to respond. Tomorrow morning, Dorian would learn about the fire in the Student Lounge along with the rest of the school. After another fire and Gideon's unexplained absence, all signs would point to his involvement, and his friend would surely take back his words.
'Okay. Well, good night,' Dorian said softly.
Gideon waited for the sound that signalled the bathroom door closing, pounded the wall tiles, and threw his head under the scalding water.