tw: may increase anxiety, mentions of death
NARRATOR'S POV
As Harry speaks about what he just saw, Carina blinks. The world around her starts moving in slow motion and her weight betrays her, causing her to fall back. She sits on the ground in front of Harry, her arms heavy by her sides when Draco makes his way to her. She can see his mouth moving, saying words, but she can't hear him at all. Draco shakes her shoulders lightly, " Nina! Nina, can you hear me?" He asks, turning towards Hermione and Harry. "What did you say to her? What's going on?"
"It's my dad," croaks Carina, her eyebrows furrowed in a deep frown. Draco's eyes widen at her statement. Sirius? Carina turns to Harry, a desperate look on her face. "We -"
"- We have to go," finishes Harry, taking Hermione's hand and getting up from the floor. Draco helps his sister up just as Ron walks over to them along with Lee, Cass and Adrian.
"Harry, are you sure?" Questions Hermione once they are all caught up with what's going on. The group walks into the castle hastily, making their way upstairs, following after Harry and Carina.
The tanned skinned boy turned to his friend, seemingly annoyed by the implication. "I saw it, Hermione! I know what I saw," he claims, turning back around and continuing to walk. "It's just like with Mr. Weasley," he says, "It's the same door I've been dreaming about for months, I just couldn't remember where id seen it before..." Explains Harry. Adrian and Cass share a suspicious look, but say nothing. "Sirius said Voldemort was after something, something he didn't have last time and it's in the Department of Mysteries," he finishes, sounding sure of himself.
Hermione bites her bottom lip, taking Harry's wrist between her fingers. "Harry, please just listen," begs the curly haired witch, stopping him from taking another step. "What if Voldemort meant for you to see this?" She asks, trying not to look in Carina's direction. The green eyed girl stares at Hermione intently, almost burning a hole through her forehead. "He's only hurting Sirius because he's trying to get to you," reasons the young girl.
"Well, what if he is?" Snaps Carina, finally breaking her silence. Hermione glances in her direction, her mouth opening and closing. "What are we supposed to do then? Just let him die?" Insists the Slytherin Head Girl. "I know you must be worried about what'll happen if we move forward, but I'm more worried about what's gonna happen if we don't."
Still, the Gryffindor Prefect looks unconvinced, glancing between both of them. "Hermione," speaks Harry, making her turn towards him. "He's the only family I've got left," he claims.
Ron, Cass, Draco and Adrian watch as Hermione's grip loosens on Harry and she nods, taking a step back. Ron takes a step forward. "What do you need us to do?" He asks, fully supportive of his friend.
"We have to use the Floo Network," suggests Harry, continuing to walk upstairs. Carina already knows what he's thinking. It's the only choice.
At his words, Hermione frowns, once again questioning his plan. "But Umbridge has all the chimneys under surveillance," she points out, reminding them of the truth. However, Harry doesn't seem unfazed.
"Not all of them," he mutters under his breath, turning right where Umbridge's office is. The Portable Swamp is still there, but it is relatively easy to evade since Fred and George left their friends with instructions on how to cross.
"You want to..." Adrian quickly connects the dots in his mind, "No! Harry, it's too dangerous -" Despite the warning, Harry doesn't stop. He continues to Umbridge's office with his friends follow suit after him.
Truly, it didn't matter what Harry did, he would never be alone. "Alohomora," mumbles Harry, pointing his wand at the door, hearing the lock inside turn without hesitation. Carina cranks it open after that and they all walk inside. Cass shuts the door behind him, locking it swiftly. Instantly, the cats in the paintings start meowing at them, knowing they're trespassing. Harry kneels in front of the chimney, "Alert the Order if you can." Carina ties her hair, ready to leave with the Gryffindor boy.
I have to find Tonks.
"Are you mental?" Asks Ron, shaking his head at his friend, disappointed in his statement. "We're going with you," he tells him, placing his hand on Harry's shoulder. Carina doesn't even want to wait for anyone else to say something, she can't even bring herself to speak with how desperate she is to leave.
"You can't do this," says Adrian, putting his arm in front of both of his friends, stopping them.
Hermione agrees, "When are you gonna get it to your head? We're in this together!" She exclaims.
"That you are," the sound of Umbridge's voice causes them all to freeze on the spot. She's standing next to two members of the Inquisitorial Squad, the air around them immediately growing thick with tension. "Bring me the rest of them and Professor Snape," she tells the pair. With that, the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor locks the door behind her, forcing them all to stay inside. She doesn't look half surprised to see Draco standing there. Umbridge is smart enough to take their wands away, putting them away in a drawer.
Hermione curses under her breath and contacts the rest of Dumbledore's Army through the coin they've been using, urging them to stay away. Carina can only be thankful about the fact that Fred and George aren't here at the moment. "Potter," says Umbridge, pulling a chair and nodding at it. "Sit," she orders.
Somehow, the fact that Umbridge's lackeys are supposed to bring Snape over, calms Carina down slightly. If Dumbledore and her parents trust him enough to be a part of the Order, he would help - surely. Harry runs his tongue along his teeth, clearly angry. However, he knows what could happen to his friends if he doesn't listen, so he obliges. Once Harry's seated, Umbridge gives him a cold, sinister smile. "You were going to Dumbledore, weren't you?" Asks the Professor, tilting her head slightly, as if she already knows the answer.
"No," replies Harry. Before anyone can even register what's happening, a harsh slap lands on Harry's cheek, forcing his head to turn towards his friends. Carina gasps audibly while Hermione jumps at the impact, clutching at her heart.
Thankfully, Umbridge can't go any further, because the door opens, revealing Ginny, Neville and Luna, all brought by the Inquisitorial Squad. Draco can't say he's disappointed - he knew the kind of people Crabbe and Goyle were. Pansy and Blaise are nowhere to be seen. "Ah, Snape, yes," says Umbridge once the Professor reveals himself by opening the door further. "The time has come for answers, wether they want to give them to me or not." The Head of Slytherin raises an eyebrow at the implication. "Have you brought the Veritaserum?"
At the mention of Veritaserum, Carina feels the need to throw up, her stomach churning. Draco places his hand on his sister's shoulder, trying to show his support. Part of her can't believe Draco's actually here, getting in trouble with them... While she's happy to see he's picked a side, at least for now, she's also worried about what Lucius may do when he finds out.
"I'm afraid you've used up all the stores interrogating students, the last of it on Miss Chang," Snape says, reminding Umbridge of her past history with the drug. Harry glances at Ginny, his heart beating faster as he sees the grimace on her face at Goyle's tight hold. "Unless you wish to poison him, and I assure you I would have the greatest sympathy if you did, I cannot help you," he proclaims, turning around to leave.
Before Snape can fully walk out, Carina gathers whatever courage she has left and speaks loudly, "He's got Padfoot!" Everyone turns to look at her, including Umbridge, who appears to be even angrier at the fact that Carina is speaking in code. The old witch glares menacingly, effectively shutting her up.
"He's got Padfoot in the place wheres it's hidden," says Harry, not even flinching at the soulless look Snape gives him.
If my dads trust him, I trust him, thinks Carina, inhaling deeply, trying to calm down. "What is Padfoot? What are they talking about, Snape?" Questions Umbridge hastily, demanding answers.
To their surprise, Snape shrugs, "No idea." That reply could be interpreted in a hundred different ways. Silently, Carina prays for the best outcome as she watches Snape close the door on them, leaving them to Umbridge. The thought of her father being kidnapped, tortured and possibly killed, clouds her mind and judgment.
"Very well," the sound of Umbridge's high pitched voice interrupts Carina's thoughts, causing her to look at the scene in front of her. "No choice, Potter, as this is an issue of the Ministry security you leave me with no alternative," says the Professor, pulling her wand out of her front pocket. "The Cruciatus Curse ought to loosen your tongue," she says, a sick grin stretched wide on her lips.
Immediately, Draco speaks out, "That's illegal." He wouldn't say it out loud, but the fact that he's seen its effects first hand, causes him to be extremely terrified of that Unspeakable. Draco wouldn't wish that kind of pain on anyone, not even his greatest enemy. Umbridge faces him, raising an eyebrow, tauntingly. She knows his father has done much worse - after all, they know each other outside of the workplace. "You can't do that," adds Draco.
"What Cornelius doesn't know, won't hurt him," says Umbridge, already pressing her wand to Harry's heaving chest. The young boy looks scared out of his mind, his mind racing with a hundred different thoughts a minute. He can't even focus on anyone's face, closing his eyes and waiting for the impact.
"Tell her, Harry!" Speaks Hermione all of a sudden, voice hoarse from the scream.
Umbridge lowers her wand, looking at the curly haired witch. "Tell me what?" She asks, glancing between Hermione and Harry. When she sees Harry is unresponsive, she goes to cast the spell once again, but Hermione stops her once more.
"Well, if you wont tell her where it is, I will!" Exclaims the young Gryffindor Prefect. Evidently, the rest of them aren't even sure about what's going to happen, who could possibly figure out what Hermione had in mind at this stage?
"Where what is?" Insists Umbridge. Carina doesn't know if Hermione is trying to make the situation more believable by elongating it, or if she truly has no idea about what she's going to say next.
"Dumbledore's secret weapon."
At that, the three of them, Harry, Hermione and Umbridge herself, leave the Professor's office to go after whatever Hermione claims Dumbledore is hiding. Umbridge leaves Crabbe and Goyle there to watch the group. Carina has no idea what Hermione could possibly be after, but she lets her be, not being able to even question it in the moment. Draco stares at his sister with troubling thoughts raising through his mind. He can't even wrap his head around what she could possibly be feeling. He tries to imagine his mother being in Sirius' shoes which sends a shiver down his back.
Adrian and Cassius talk amongst themselves quietly, not wanting to draw too much attention from Crabbe and Goyle. Adrian has his arm wrapped around Lee's waist, protectively holding the boy against his chest, not wanting any harm to come to him. "Oi, you two, separate," says Goyle, clicking his tongue in disgust.
"Shut the fuck up, Goyle," mutters Draco, narrowing his eyes at the two boys who he used to call friends. Both of them stare at the platinum haired boy wide eyed. "I can't believe you two are so blind," he adds, shaking his head for good measure. "Following Umbridge around like stupid, lovesick puppies - what's gotten into you?" He questions rudely. "I thought you'd have more than one braincell in that stupid brain of yours, but it appears as though it bounces from one head to the other -"
"- Malfoy, stop," says Ron, once he sees Crabbe picking up his wand. "We don't want any trouble, alright? Just leave us be," he tells the pair, raising both hands, trying to show them he's harmless. "Draco's just hungry, you know how he gets when he needs a snack," at that, Carina turns to look at Ron, knowing there must be something he's planning on doing. "Here, have these gummy bears." The ginger boy puts his hand in his pocket and pulls out something marked W&W.
"No fucking way," mutters Draco under his breath, looking directly at Ron.
"C'mon, Malfoy," urges Ron, nodding at the sweets. "I know you need this," insists the Gryffindor Prefect. Carina glances at the package, then at Draco. She sees the thought set in Draco's mind, his eyes darkening as he tears the plastic bag open, devouring the whole thing without sparing another second.
"Dragon, no!" Carina tries to take it from him, but it's already too late, he's swallowed them down.
Crabbe and Goyle frown at the Head Girls' reaction, eyes growing when they see Draco turn towards them, green in the face. "What was that - what's going on?" Asks Goyle, clearly desperate. Draco feels his insides turning, his throat starting to burn. Everyone looks at the young boy in shock, even more so when he began gagging. "Wait - wait, Malfoy, DON'T -" Unable to stop himself, Draco gets sick, throwing up on both Slytherin boys, emptying his stomach.
Unsurprisingly, both of them cringe, wanting to throw up themselves. "Get out of the way," hisses Crabbe, pushing his friend and rushing out of the room. Goyle follows close behind, and gagging noises can be heard all the way from down the hall. Draco shudders as his stomach settles down. He wipes his mouth with the back of his hand, letting out a huge sigh of relief.
Everyone stays quiet, not knowing what to do next. They just witnessed Draco Malfoy, a Slytherin Prefect, Pureblood, one of the most serious, most elegant students, projectile vomit on top of two Slytherin students. "What are we waiting for then?" Questions Draco after taking his wand from the drawer and performing a Scourgify spell on himself. He makes it a point to leave his vomit on Umbridge's floor. Carina is amazed by Draco's love for her. It's not something surprising, obviously, she knows how much she means to him - but getting to experience it like this, is otherworldly. "Let's go! Aren't we supposed to get there quickly?"
At the tone in his voice, they nod, taking their wands from the drawer and leaving the room, carefully jumping over Draco's sick. The group rushes through the halls, Draco's hand on Carina's as they leave the Castle, not looking back. Behind them, come Ron, Adrian, Lee, Cassius and the rest of Dumbledore's Army. They run down the bridge and Carina feels her soul return to her body when she sees Harry and Hermione running towards them.
"How'd you get away?" Wonders Hermione, a relieved smile on her face when she sees them all together.
"Puking Pastilles, it wasn't pretty!" Comments Ginny, sending Draco a sly smile.
"Told them Malfoy was hungry," says Ron, nudging Draco's side slightly as Ginny hands Harry and Hermione their wands. Draco rolls his eyes, muttering something unintelligible under his breath. "Gave them to him - we were lucky he understood what he had to do!"
Hermione nods, staring at Ron with a pleased look on her face. "That was clever, Ron," she says pointedly, nodding again, as if trying to make herself believe what's just happened.
"It's been known to happen," replies Ron, a subtle blush on his cheeks.
"Yeah, okay, stop it with the flirting," snaps Draco, making them both turn away and glare at him. "How're we getting to London?"
They all look at Harry expectantly, sort of putting him as the leader in this situation. Harry clears his throat, glancing at his friends. "Look it's not that i don't appreciate everything you've done for me..." says Harry. "All of you," he adds, staring directly into Draco's silver eyes. The platinum haired boy gulps at Harry's intense gaze, not turning away. "But I've got you into enough trouble as it is."
Before anyone can say anything, Neville speaks up. "Dumbledore's Army is about doing something real," he points out truthfully, tilting his head at Harry. "Or was that all just words to you?" He questions, knowing the reaction it'll get from his friend.
"Maybe we don't have to do this all by ourselves, H," says Carina, finally breaking her silence. Adrian and Cass smile down at her, placing their hands on her shoulders supportively. She turns to look at Adrian, leaning onto him instinctively. Draco feels a weight being lifted off of his shoulders as he sees his sister coming back into herself, finally.
Harry nods after a few seconds, swallowing hard. "So, how are we gonna get to London?" He asks the group.
"We fly of course," comes Luna's dreamy voice from behind them.
And so, the group go to find Thestrals. Funnily enough, Carina can't see them. She's never seen someone pass away. Most of them can't see the magical creatures, only Harry and Luna are able to. Somehow, that saddens the Slytherin Princess. She can't help but think of a young Luna and her mother, Harry and Cedric... Who will it be for her? Carina knows for certain, this war between them and Voldemort will not go without anything less than death.
The air hits her face as they fly through the ocean, holding tightly on to nothing. She notices tears have began making their way out of her eyes when she realises how cold and humid her cheeks feel. Perhaps, she's even more worried than she let up. Truthfully, she couldn't even bear the thought of losing her dad. The more she thinks about it, the more her chest tightens, the more her mind races.
After what feels like ages, Dumbledore's Army finally arrive at the Ministry. Once there, they descend to Level Nine, where Arthur had been attacked back then. Carina, Cass and Adrian stand against the lift wall. As they're going down, Carina's hands feel icy, the tips of her fingers turning blue. Something's wrong. Something's definitely wrong. Adrian frowns as he sees the look on her face, and he leans down to whisper in her ear. "It's gonna be okay, Nina," he tells her, a small, reassuring smile on his lips.
Carina shakes her head at his words, taking in a shallow breath. One of her hands flies up to her face, and she wipes away the tears before anyone else can notice. "It's not - I know it's not," she whispers back, not wanting the others to hear. Harry is talking over her anyway. "Something's gonna go wrong... My dad -"
"- Is gonna be fine," Adrian reassures her once again. "I promise you."
"I can't lose him, A," she whimpers into the back of her trembling hand. Without thinking about it twice, Adrian takes her hand and engulfs it with his own, giving it a tight squeeze. He has Lee on his other arm, holding him close to his chest. Lee listens in, not saying anything, not wanting to make Carina uncomfortable for having feelings. "I can't lose him again."
"You won't," says Adrian. At the tone in his voice, Carina looks up at him, eyes wide with surprise at how sure of himself he sounds. "You will not lose your father. I know that to be true," he says softly, letting go of her hand and caressing her cheek gently. "Trust me. When has your boy ever lied to you?"
Before Carina can even reply, there comes a voice from the speakers. "Level Nine, Department of Mysteries," with that, the doors open. Draco turns to Carina, who's still staring at Adrian, eyes doe like. Draco touches her shoulder, whispering her name, causing her to turn around and end the moment with A.
"This is it," says Harry. The Army exits the lift, one after the other, wands in hand, all of them ready to battle whatever they may encounter. This is it. This is everything she's trained for, everything she's worked towards comes down to this moment: saving her father the way he deserves to be saved. There are twelve identical, black handle-less doors in front of them. "I don't know which door to go through..." says Harry. "I just know what it looks like in my brain."
"Let's try one by one," suggests Draco, earning a few nods from the rest of the group. "If the Dark Lord is in one of these, with Sirius, maybe we should try and be quick," points out the Slytherin Prefect. "I know it's... scary, but we have to." At that, Harry pushes one of the doors open, and they all walk in. Once the door shuts behind them, the walls start to spin and they all lose their balance slightly.
Soon enough, they realise it's not the room they're looking for, and they go back to the Entrance Room to try for another door. Their minds feel scrambled as Harry opens the second door and everything spins. It feels as though they're in the eye of the hurricane. This room is larger than the last, dimly lit and rectangular. The centre of it is sunken, forming a great stone pit, about twenty feet below them. Carina looks down and realises there's steps going all around, like an amphitheatre. "It's like a courtroom," says Ginny breathily.
Harry nods, "But that's not a lot like the chair I was in..." he mumbles, staring at the raised stone dais in the centre of the lowered floor. Instead of said chair, in the dais, stands a stone archway that looks ancient, cracked and crumbling. "How's that even standing?" Mutters Harry under his breath. Unsupported by any surrounding wall, the archway is hang with a tattered black veil, which, without the need for wind, flutters almost imperceptibly, as though it had just been touched.
"This isn't it," says Carina, going back towards the door. "It's bloody freezing here," she mumbles, more to herself than to the rest of the group.
Finally, they go back to the Entrance Room. The third door Harry tries to open doesn't budge. Hermione tells him it must be enchanted, so they go for the fourth one. Once in the fourth room, Harry stills. "These lights..." The glittering lights are the ones from Harry's dreams. He has to be in here. "C'mon," not needing any further instruction, they follow after the Chosen One, taking a new door from the inside. They walk slowly, clutching their wands tightly between their fingers, eyes peeled open for any movement, ears perked up for any noise.
Instead of finding Sirius and Voldemort, they find rows, and rows, and rows of small, dusty, glass orbs. They glimmer dully in the candle light brackets set along the shelves. Luna hums as she notices something, "The flames are burning blue now," she speaks.
"He's not here," says Cassius, immediately wanting to go back. Where's George when you need him?
Instead of moving, however, Harry stays frozen in place. "My name's on that one," he murmurs. Carina shakes her head when Harry goes to touch it.
"Don't touch that, Potter!" Exclaims Draco, eyes almost popping out of his head when Harry's hands wrap around the crystal ball. Harry doesn't listen to him, only focused on the voice coming from the prophecy, which no one else can hear. "Harry!" Draco finally gets his attention when footsteps start approaching them from the other end of the room.
He emerges from the shadows, like the roach he is, face covered with a mask. Carina recognises Lucius by his walk, by his cane and the tips of his white hair coming from under the mask, which he removes with a flick of his wand. "By now you should be able to tell the difference between dreams, and reality," says the man, grinning triumphantly. "Carina and Draco... My children," he speaks with disdain, almost spitting out their names with hatred.
The young boy's knees buckle at the mention of his name, but he remains standing. "Now you see how powerful the Dark Lord is, children?" He asks the two of them, before looking back at Harry. "You saw only what the Dark Lord wanted you to see," he informs Harry, breaking Carina's heart. Now they're in real danger. "Hand me the Prophecy."
Harry shakes his head, hiding the crystal ball in his pocket. "You do anything to us and I'll break it," he promises, wand still raised, pointed at Lucius with all of his might.
A booming laugh comes from behind Lucius, making the atmosphere change drastically. Adrian and Cass feel as though the air has gotten kicked out of their lungs at the sight of her. The woman who their parents adore. Their parents aren't officially Death Eaters. Voldemort died before they were turned, but they are still avid, powerful and devoted followers. "He knows how to play! Itty, bitty, baby Potter."
"Bellatrix Lestrange," whispers Neville, heart pounding against his chest.
At the mention of her name, the woman turns around to look at him with a smirk. An evil glint grows in her eye, "Neville Longbottom is it? How's mum and dad?" She asks sarcastically.
"Better now, they're about to be avenged," replies Neville, pointing his wand at her.
Lucius tuts, raising both hands, trying to get everyone to put their guard down. "Let's, everybody just calm down, shall we? All we want is that Prophecy," he says, showing a vulnerable side that Carina and Draco know good and well, is all a blatant lie.
"Why did Voldemort need me to come and get this?" Questions Harry, gripping his wand, not lowering it one inch.
"You dare speak his name?" Scoffs Bellatrix, taking her place beside Lucius, snarling at the young Gryffindor. "YOU FILTHY HALF BLOOD?" Her screams of disgust echo through the room, they make Luna and Hermione flinch at the sound.
"It's alright, he's just a curious lad, aren't you?" Lucius asks rhetorically, chuckling without humour. "Prophecies can only be retrieved by those about whom they're made. Which is lucky for you really." As he speaks, more masked Death Eaters come out of the shadows, slowly inching closer and closer towards the group. "Haven't you always wondered, what was the reason between the connection between you and the Dark Lord? Why he wasn't unable to kill you when he was just an infant?" Carina has her wand pointed at one of them, chest rising and falling, body riddled with anxiety. "Don't you want to know the secret about your scar? All the answers are there, Potter, in your hand," says Lucius, who is also walking towards Harry. "All you have to do is give it to me... I can show you everything."
"Don't listen to him," says Carina, removing her gaze from the man in front of her when she realises Cass also has his wand pointed towards him. Her eyes land on Lucius, and they stare at each other, neither of them backing away. "He's nothing but a coward and a liar."
"NOW!" Orders Harry when he sees Lucius launches towards him. "Stupefy!" They all yell, wands directed at their attackers. Most of them Disapparate, flying through the room in the common black fumes Death Eaters have. They students run in different directions, all of them aiming to make it to the door after distracting Voldemort's followers.
"Don't harm Potter," screams Lucius when he sees one of his fellow Death Eaters pointing his wand at Harry. "You can kill the others but don't harm Potter."
AN: hi everyone! i'm so sorry for the cliffhanger! this chapter was gonna be waaay to long! i'm gonna try and upload within the week, or next week if possible <3
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i will not be spoiling anything and i will not tolerate death threats towards me or my family (which i KNOW some of ya'll are known to do). i say this with love, that's terrifying haha
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