Both Alexa and Tom turned in the direction of seven wizards that appeared out of nowhere. How did they know where were they? Tom questioned himself as he clutched Alexa's hand tightly.
In the middle of them stood Armando Dippet, the devoted headmaster of Hogwarts. Despite his age giving him a frail appearance, his golden and purplish-blue robes made him look every bit of regal and determined. His brown eyes narrated his fierceness. That man was known for his loyalty towards his school. On his right, stood in his electric blue robes, Albus Dumbledore. Unlike the other times, the presence of his transfiguration master calmed and delighted Tom. However, it was the man who stood beside Dumbledore, that hitched his breath.
Antonio Avery was one of the very few people Tom always looked up to. The man was the father of his favourite friend. In whichever the room he was, he demanded respect and screamed authority. Since his early days, for Tom, Antonio had created a certain image of an ideal parent figure. Young Riddle compared every parent with him. And every time, he was impressed with the oldest Avery. Sometimes, the Slytherin prefect felt even envious of Anthony to have a dad like Antonio, yet there were times where the boy unknowingly admitted to himself that little Avery did deserve nothing but the best. Having him there, made him feel safe.
Tom didn't know who the other four wizards were, but they all looked confident and elite. He was sure they were Aurors as well. All the sevens held their wands high, ready to attack or defend. He was happy he wasn't that vulnerable anymore.
A breath of relief escaped Dumbledore, once his eyes landed on Alexa. She was safe. Tom was safe. The elder wizard was glad to know that both of them had stuck together. He looked at his companions and almost instantly all of them dispersed to manoeuvre the followers of the dark wizard at the same time placing themselves between the two students and the acolytes to act as a barrier.
Tom watched over the Auror's backs, how despite being outnumbered, they held their grounds. They held their heads high and looked like a proud pride that protected its cubs. For the first time, he felt grateful and mesmerized by Aurors and their service to their society. Unknowingly and ironically, he recalled his counselling with Slughorn. Seeing each Auror effectively holding off at least two of the enemies reminded him of his resentment towards their profession and dedication. These people were not related to him and Alexa, yet they had come to their rescue. He was hypnotized by their skills and power. These people knew what they were doing, and for that Tom was thankful. It was one of the first times, the boy reevaluated his opinions. The whole scene successfully captivated the young wizard.
As the Prefect took in every detail of his surroundings, Hh saw that without even using a killing curse, the sevens were taking down the offenders. Their powerful blows and modification of simple curses were huge blows. He couldn't help but feel like the knowledge he had of magic was just the tip of an iceberg that was submerged well below in the ocean. He couldn't contain his excitement when he saw Dumbledore holding his hand above his head.
"Deeesidio"
The older wizard murmured as he continued to move his hand above his head in from the right to left and again left to right with some periodic strokes. The light blue shield arose between the rescue team, to nullify almost every curse. Almost every attack was proved useless against the powerful spell cast by Dumbledore. To young Tom, the spell was unheard, at the same time he couldn't shake off the feeling of it being ancient and foreign.
The Sevens were about to leave the scene when Grindelwald joined the battle, all of a sudden. With a simple flick of his wand and some unreadable words leaving his lips, Tom saw the shield wavering and becoming unstable. He looked curiously at the wand in his hand. Unlike the wands he had seen all his life, Grindelwald's looked different. It was neither wavy nor was it straight. It had irregular spherical structures along its length. The remaining wand looked well-polished. It was the most unusual wand he had come across. Tom looked as Grindelwald and Dumbledore looked at each other in determination. The fierceness in Dumbledore's blue twinkling eyes motivated the boy. As he saw the old transfiguration master being distracted with this new and powerful enemy, the strong shield that he had evoked, disappeared and once again the remaining six wizards were forced to take on the troop of Grindelwald's army.
Vulnerability returned to his conscious, as Tom saw the attacks being retaliated. He missed his wand when he saw the rescue team doing their best to protect two kids. He saw how a black-skinned Auror fell on the ground, and her wand rolled out of her hand. Panic shone in her eyes when three of the enemies grouped on her. Clearly, she was going to fall, and Tom couldn't take it anymore. Without another thought, he screamed,
"Protego." He waved his right hand anti-clockwise as if he was actually holding his wand and made a sign of throwing it. The powerful spell protected the unknown female Auror. He was about to cast another spell when he heard,
"Stupefy."
Alexa had yelled in determination, causing all three of the offenders to fall on the ground motionless. Tom turned in Alexa's direction with disbelief. She had tackled all three in one simple spell. His brown eyes glimmered in pride on his female. Was she training herself in wandless magic too? He recalled how she was curious about him using wandless magic during one of their private encounters. They both looked at each other and nodded their heads as if they were having a silent oath to fight others and protect themselves. For one moment, Tom took hold of her hand and gave it a squeeze which she reciprocated with an earnest strength. They both then reverted their attention to join this fight which was started for them in the first place.
"Protego" Alexa moved slightly ahead of Tom so that when she projected a shield it would protect both of them. Tom fell back just a little to cast attacking spells. Together the duo acted as a team to protect themselves and attack others. Thanks to them losing their wands, they both were weak on their own, yet they were strong together.
Everyone was now busy.
Busy in the fighting.
Busy in protecting.
"Ah!" A shriek reached Alexa's ears. She turned sharply to see Tom being captured by Sition. In all the rush of an apparent conflict, she had completely forgotten about the being who had brought them there. Sweat gathered on her forehead, and palms of her hands wetted when she saw the vampire locking Tom's hands in their place as he dragged the boy with him in the forest behind him. As a sense of déjà vu, Alexa saw Tom struggling to free himself. As if the reaction expected of her was natural, she let out a battle cry. Her body started shaking with anticipation. Her muscles moved rapidly around as her clothes started shredding. Her claw extended. Her height increased. Dark brown fur erupted from her skin as she chased the vampire from behind.
~*~
Okay, so Alexa revealed that she is a werewolf in front of many people. What do you think would happen next? Does it also mean that she finally recalled the fight that had taken place in the forbidden forest in chapter 30-31? Let me know your theories. I love reading them. Maybe they will give me some insights too.
Please look forward to the new update and take care of yourself from this deadly virus. I don't know what the future holds for me or anyone else, but let's have faith.
#fact: Deeesidio is not a spell in fandom. I made that up.
Please vote, share and comment. It will motivate me a lot to keep going.
Thank you all!!!