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"AND YOU'RE NOT
SCARED OF ME?"
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Alice couldn't relax.
Dumbledore was to die.
Tonight.
She flicked through the album, Henry's scarf wrapped around her neck and shoving tears back into her head, waiting for everything to be over.
She checked the door again.
It was still locked.
Everything was quiet.
Too quiet.
It made her feel uneasy, wondering why she had to stay here, why Harry went with Dumbledore and why it was so quiet.
She wandered over to the window and looked up to the sky.
It was clear and dark.
Like any other night at Hogwarts.
Suddenly a cackle pierced the peace and silence and a green cloud covered the sky.
The Dark Mark.
It was over the top of the astronomy tower.
The highest point.
Someone must've fallen.
Or murdered.
Her history between the trio didn't matter, someone had to do something, someone had to check if everyone was okay.
She didn't care what Draco said anymore.
Alice unlocked the door, fiddling with the handle as she rushed down the stairs, barely making it down without tripping.
But when she entered the common room.
Nobody was there.
She knew Hermione wasn't in the dorms.
She checked there first.
What if it was Miss Granger who died?!
Alice scrambled out of the portrait hole and ran along the corridors, her wand gripped in a closed fist.
Her heart was pounding.
Maybe she should go back, hope it was all a dream.
Or maybe she could find someone, someone who could help.
She kept running even though her legs burned.
She kept pushing on even though her breathing was uneven.
She kept going in hope to save a friend.
But she wished she never arrived.
She wished she hadn't looked out the window.
She wished she could help.
Her feet met something slippery on the floor and she stumbled: there were two bodies lying in a pool of their own crimson blood.
She cried out and moved back until she felt her back against the cool, stone wall.
She caught her breath, glancing around the room when suddenly a spark of green was aimed towards her and she ducked in time.
She saw them.
All of them.
Gryffindor's and Hufflepuffs alike.
Working to over throw the Death Eaters.
Ginny was locked in combat.
A Death Eater was throwing hex after hex while she dodged them.
Alice whipped out her wand out.
"EXPELLIARMUS!" she yelled, disarming a tall, blonde woman, who rushed off in search of her missing wand.
It was then it clicked.
Finally she knew why Draco was protecting her.
Not only were they here for Dumbledore, they were here for her.
She had to get out of there.
Fast.
Alice launched herself in the direction of the door, but her foot caught on something and next moment she was lying on across someone's legs.
Looking around, She saw Nevilles pale face, flat against the floor.
She shook him gently. "Mr. Longbottom? Are you-?"
"M'all right" Neville mumbled, who was clutching his stomach.
Suddenly, a hand had gripped her collar and was pulling her to her feet and dragging her away from the Gryffindor.
"LET ME GO!" she yelled, squirming in his arms.
"Oh your not going anywhere" the voice sneered.
And she recognised it.
It was Yaxleys voice.
"Your going to shut that mouth, and come with me, understand?" Alice nodded, terrified to do anything else. "I'm glad"
He loosened his grip slightly, and her feet touched the ground again.
Without hesitating, he aimed the wand at her temple, pushing her forward.
"Just walk, that's all you have to do" he smirked. "Your safe with us"
Rage pumped through her veins.
She sucked a in a breath, and lifted her leg and kicked his groin.
He let go, falling to the ground.
She watched as the door opened as students filed in to join the fighting.
The door was only a few metres away.
Exactly where Alice wanted to go.
She stalled a moment before rounding the corner sharply.
She saw the door ahead of her.
She would be out of this mess.
She rushed towards it.
But the spark hit her first.
Square in the chest.
She dropped to ground and screamed.
Pain exploded around her body.
And it didn't stop.
Yaxely was gone when she finally opened her eyes.
But it wouldn't be long before he came back.
She stared at the ceiling, wondering why they didn't just kill her then, put her out of her misery.
But it was then she saw it.
She rolled onto her stomach and watched as Bill's wand was knocked out of his hand, cornered by Fenrir Greyback.
She could see him quivering.
Alice...they want nothing to do with you.
The werewolf bared his teeth.
Bill was shaking uncontrollably, having no control over what Greyback was about to do.
Alice couldn't watched.
She couldn't let it happen.
She had to do something.
She grabbed onto a pillar and pulled herself to her feet.
The werewolf had made his first slash into Bills pale skin.
Droplets of blood covered the floor.
Alice didn't wait another moment.
She transformed.
The Black Snake that brought her so much pain was going to save someone.
Hopefully.
She slithered over.
Careful not to be to be struck again.
Fenrir had taken a bite.
His teeth still in Bills leg, his screams piercing.
"BILL!"
It was Ron's voice.
It was filled with pain.
Filled with worry.
He wondered if his brother was alive.
The werewolf's teeth were sunk in deep.
There was one thing Alice could do.
The only option was to bite Bill too.
Fenrir took another slash at the Weasleys face.
And Alice took a bite into his arm.
Fenrir howled, gripping his hairy arm and backing away from the red-head.
Now was the hard part.
Bill tried to move as Alice came closer.
The gash was bad.
Pumping blood out.
"DONT TOUCH ME!" he screamed, too weak to do anything else.
Alice opened her mouth and bit into the wound.
Bills scream was louder than any she heard before.
Ron rushed over to his brother.
Tears in his eyes.
"Its going to be okay" Ron kept saying over and over again, not believing his own words.
Both of his hands were covered in blood.
Alice was weak.
She couldn't move.
She was stiff.
But she made herself move.
She made it over to the brothers.
But she didn't know was that Ron saw everything.
He saw the transformation.
He saw Alice turn human.
He saw how she bit his brother.
"Alice?" mumbled Bill, groaning.
"Get away from him!" snapped Ron. "GET AWAY!"
"I can help" she said quietly, shaking, her head pounding. "Please Mr. Weasley?"
"You can't be trusted Alice!" Ron yelled. "Get away from us!"
"Do you want him dead?"
"No but-"
"Then let me help" she said sternly. "I'll leave you and your family alone, I won't talk to you, you'll forget I ever existed. Just let me save him"
Ron stared at her. "Fine, do what you must"
Alice smiled weakly and raised her hands above the wound.
She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, feeling the white, silver strings around her battered hands.
"Bloody hell"
The wound was cleaned and healed.
But Bill still wasn't well.
"Get him to the hospital wing" she said to Ron, before hopping to her feet. "But he should be fine soon"
Ron didn't go after her.
He didn't thank her.
He stayed with his brother, making sure he stayed alive.
Tears brimmed Alice's eyes as she crossed the room, watching each Death Eater carefully, making sure they weren't watching her.
It wasn't long before she made it outside.
Into the fresh air.
Dumbledore was dead.
Killed by Snape.
Killed by the Half-Blood Prince.
Draco failed.
Alice sat under a maple tree.
Salty tears falling one by one onto her robes.
She wanted to disappear.
Hogwarts was a new start, to forget about her old life.
But it only followed her and it never left.
"Can I sit?"
It was Ron.
The boy she poisoned.
The boy who she was supposed to ignore.
"You okay?"
Alice shook her head. "I don't really remember what happened"
"Do you want me to tell you?" he asked.
Alice nodded. "Yeah"
"You saved my brother"
Alice nodded. "And you're not scared of me?"
She turned to face him.
Her eyes puffy and red from crying and her knuckles sore from punching the ground.
"Of course not" he exclaimed. "Why would I be?"
"I changed into a bloody snake!"
"Yeah.....what happened Alice?" he asked. "You'll have to tell me, I.....we can help"
She knew she had to tell him.
She had to tell him before they stopped talking for good.
"I'm dying"
"What?!"
"I'm cursed" she croaked.
Sobs racked her body.
"I'm still confused"
"I am the carrier of a blood curse" she said, wringing her hands. "While I sleep I change into that bloody snake, and soon that will be all I am, a monster because one day I won't turn back"
Ron processed this.
As little as he knew, it was enough to piece things together.
The lack of sleep.
The pain.
The crazy spells to get rid of her pain.
It made sense.
"It wasn't me, I didn't write those notes or put potion on the chocolates" she said desperatly. "I didn't want this, it was Miss Vane, and I was so stupid, so, so stu-"
Ron cut her off.
Tears were flowing down her face.
"Its okay" he said.
"No it isn't-"
"Yes it is"
"I COULD'VE KILLED YOU!" she yelled.
"But you didn't, I'm still alive"
Ron smiled.
It was like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.
It wasn't okay, but it was okay for Ron and that's all that mattered.
For now.
"I'm so sorry" she said. "For everything"
"Its over now"
Ron's voice was so sincere.
He wasn't lying.
He forgave her.
After everything she did.
"You have to tell the others" he said calmly.
"No I don't" she said.
"Alice they deserve to know"
"NO ONE IN THIS WORLD WANTS TO HEAR MY SOB STORY! NO ONE WANTS TO HEAR FROM THE GIRL WHO LIED! Don't you understand?!"
"Alice, calm down"
"It doesn't matter, I'm leaving anyway"
Before Ron could say anything, Alice was gone.
Her thin legs shaking beneath her.
She was unstable, but she needed to get away.
She shouldn't have told Ron.
She should've kept her mouth shut.
She should've stayed in the cell.
Her legs gave away and she collasped to the ground.
She cursed her own name, she cursed Henry for leaving her and she cursed Voldemort for making all this crap happen.
She cried.
Her cheeks wet.
Her vision blurry.
She didn't know what to do.
She hugged her knees tightly.
Her legs burning.
Her body searing in pain.
Her heart broken.
She heard running.
She heard voices.
But she ignored them.
They weren't for her.
But they were.
Harry, Ron and Hermione, they sat down next to her, hugging her tightly.
It only made Alice cry harder.
"I'm so sorry" she sobbed, covering Hermione's jacket in tears. "I'm so sorry"
"Alice you saved him, you saved Bill, you have nothing to be sorry for" replied Ron, making sure she wasn't going to run off again. "I told them everything you told me"
"You what!?" she snapped.
"Alice, it's okay, we believe you" said Hermione.
"But-"
"Everything is over, we've forgotten about it, all of it, we forgive you"
"So can we be friends again, right?"
She looked at them.
They weren't smiling.
"Of course!" exclaimed Hermione.
Alice smiled.
They forgave her.
"And I'm sorry Alice" said Harry. "The way I acted with Malfoy-"
"Its fine, Mr. Potter" she replied, with a genuine smile.
The hugged again and Hermione wiped her eyes dry.
She couldn't believe how awful she had been to Alice, a girl who was only protecting her brother.
"Can I see him?" she asked.
"Who? Bill?"
"Can I?"
"Sure"
Harry helped Alice to her feet and she clinged to his arm for support.
Her vision was blurry and she felt like vomiting.
"You alright?" he asked.
"Just got hit, that's all"
"Hit?"
"By the cruciatus curse"
The trio stopped in their tracks and turned to face her. "Its alright, I'm well used to it now"
They didn't say any more.
It wasn't a subject you brought up.
Defiantly not with Alice.
They made it to the Hospital Wing, it was crowded.
The beds were full, blood stained patches of the floor.
She felt like getting sick.
"You okay?" asked Ron.
"Yeah...Yeah I'm fine" she replied.
But she wasn't.
In brought back the memories from the Manor, when her own blood stained the floor boards.
Her breathing was heavy.
Ron led the way over to Bill's bed.
It wasn't hard to find.
The red heads gave away.
Mrs. Weasley saw Alice first and without hesitation she wrapped her in tight hug, the mother's eyes wet with tears.
"You saved him" Mrs. Weasley said. "Thank you, thank you for saving my son"
Alice hugged back.
Mrs. Weasley was like a mother to the young girl, and she would never forget the kindness that family had given her.
And now she finally repaid them.
She saved her son.
"Is that Alice?"
She looked over to the bed.
Bill was covered in bandages.
Blood seeping through some.
"Go on" said Harry, giving her an encouraging push towards the bed.
Alice walked towards Bill, her heart pounding.
What if he didn't understand that she saved him?
What if he was mad?
"Hey" she said quietly. "I am sorry about scaring you, and you know, biting you"
"You're not really serious are you?" he asked.
"Sorry?"
"Alice, you saved my life" he said, his eyes bright despite his injuries. "Not only did you save me, but you...you-"
"What, what did I do?"
Alice was terrified.
"You prevented me from becoming a werewolf"
Alice was shocked.
Her curse stopped someone else's curse.
She didn't only save his life.
She stopped the pain too.
"What?"
Bill nodded. "Thank you"
Alice looked behind her, Madam Pomfrey wiping the crimson blood away with a simple spell.
Tears filled her eyes.
"I don't want to go back"
"Alice? What's wrong?" asked Mrs. Weasley, stepping nearer.
"Please, I can't go back there"
She was hyperventilating now, clinging to the end of the hospital bed.
"Where?"
"The manor, please, I can't go back"
She was sobbing.
Images of the cuts, curses and burns filling her mind.
Mrs. Weasley brought her into a hug, stroking her hair. "You won't, I promise you Alice, you'll never set foot in that building ever again"
Alice calmed.
The memories subsided.
For now.
Mr. Weasley offered her his chair and she graciously accepted it.
She was weak.
Tired.
And for once everyone knew why.
For once she didn't have to hide her curse.
"Why don't you sleep Alice?" offered Mr. Weasley kindly. "Madam Pomfrey could give you a sleeping potion?"
Alice nodded.
Hermione did her research.
She found out forced sleep doesn't cause her to transform, unless done too often.
"That would be great"
She curled up in the chair, wrapping a spare blanket around her thin figure.
Once it was drunken.
She was asleep.
Everyone watched her.
Watching her chest rise and fall.
Wishing they could've done something sooner.
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You don't understand how long I've been waiting to WRITE THIS!
One or two more chapters and that's the Half Blood Prince done!!
😁