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braveclementine · 4 months

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Chapter 23

Warnings: None. However, future chapters will contain sexual content so readers that are under the age of 18 may have to skip those chapters (Please keep note of the warnings).

Copyright: I do not own any Wizarding World characters that J.K. Rowling wrote. I do however own Elizabeth Kane (main character) and Trang Nyguen (best friend). There should be no use of these two names without my permission. I also do not condone any copying of this.

𝕴 𝖍𝖆𝖉 𝖆𝖑𝖗𝖊𝖆𝖉𝖞 said my good-byes to the kids and to Severus. Severus was sitting in the headmasters' office, waiting for the Dark Lords' notice. Trang had come into the room, telling me that Neville had left to get Harry. And then she disappeared into the room to be with the kids. So I had kissed Severus one last time, and had left without looking back.

Now, I was entering the Room of Requirement. Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Neville were back and all of the students were standing around them, chattering excitedly.

I could not bring myself to muster up such excitement.

"Why can't you tell us? It's something to do with fighting You-Know-Who, right?" Neville was asking as I silently took a spot near Susan and Ernie.

"Well, yeah-" Harry was saying.

"Then we'll help you."

"You don't understand. We- we can't tell you. We've got to do it- alone."

"Why?"

"Because Dumbledore left the three of us a job and we weren't supposed to tell- I mean he wanted us to do it, just the three of us."

"We're his army. Dumbledore's army. We were all in it together, we've been keeping it going while you three have been off on your own-"

"It hasn't exactly been a picnic, mate." Ron interrupted.

"I never said it had, but I don't see why you can't trust us. Everyone in this room's been fighting and they've been driven in here because the Carrows were hunting them down. Everyone in here's proven they're loyal to Dumbledore- loyal to you."

I wanted to interject, to tell Harry to give up his stubborn pride. But I would not alter a minute here, a single frame of my vision. I couldn't afford it. If we were off by a single minute. . . then perhaps I wouldn't be able to save their lives.

"Look," Harry started, but the portrait behind him opened.

"We got your message, Neville! Hello you three, I thought you must be here!" It was Luna and Dean naturally, as expected. "Hi everyone! Oh, it's great to be back!"

"Luna, what are you doing here? How did you-"

"I sent for her. I promised her and Ginny that if you turned up I'd let them know. We all thought that if you came back, it would mean revolution. That we were going to overthrow Snape and the Carrows."

Harry met my eyes. I wondered what he saw there, what he was thinking about.

"Of course that's what it means, isn't it, Harry? We're going to fight them out of Hogwarts?"

"Listen. I'm sorry, but that's not what we came back for. There's something we've got to do, and then-"

"You're going to leave us in this mess?" Michael demanded.

"No!" Ron interjected once more. "What we're doing will benefit everyone in the end, it's all about trying to get rid of You-Know-Who-"

"Then let us help! We want to be a part of it!"

The portrait opened once more and my heart fell down through my stomach as Fred came through the portal with George, Ginny, and Lee. And down in my stomach, my heart started to pound erratically. My hand reached into my pocket, gently squeezing, fingers counting the vials of liquid luck I had. Four. Fred, Dad, Tonks, Severus.

Dad and Severus came first but I'd be damned if I didn't try and help Fred and Tonks too.

"Aberforth's getting a bit annoyed. He wants a kip and his bar's turned into a railway station." Fred said.

Cho Chang came through and I rolled my eyes, inching myself closer to Hermione.

"I got the message." Cho said, sitting next to Michael.

"So what's the plan, Harry?" George asked.

Fred caught me staring at him and winked.

"There isn't one."

"Just going to make it up as we go along, are we? My favorite kind." Fred said, rubbing his hands together.

Oh Fred.

"you've got to stop this! What did you call them all back for? This is insane-"

"We're fighting, aren't we? The message said Harry was back, and we were going to fight! I'll have to get a wand, though-"

"You haven't got a wand-?" Seamus asked Dean in shock.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione talked amongst themselves while the rest of us sat in wait. Fred and George started to crack jokes. Fred said, "A blind wizard walks into a bar, finds his way to a stool, and sits down. He says rather loudly to the barkeep, 'Hey, how would you like to hear a Hufflepuff joke?' The bar goes silent and the barkeep replies, 'Sir, I will not lie to you. You are speaking to a Hufflepuff. The man behind you is an Auror from Hufflepuff, the woman to your right is a Hufflepuff dueling champion, and we all have our wands drawn. Do you really want to continue?' The blind wizard goes silent for a moment before curtly replying, 'No I don't. Not if I'm going to have to explain it three times!'"

The students around them laughed and a small smile appeared on my lips. Ernie on the other hand, rolled his eyes. Fred winked at me again.

I took it all back. Dad. Tonks. Fred. Severus. All of their lives were equally important and I just had to save who I could. I wouldn't put Dads' life over Freds'. He wouldn't want me to, and this young man who was sitting in front of me had his whole life ahead of himself. I would do everything in my power to keep him alive.

"Okay." Harry suddenly called out. "There's something we need to find. Something- something that'll help us overthrow You-Know-Who. It's here at Hogwarts, but we don't know where. It might have belonged to Ravenclaw. Has anyone heard of an object like that? Has anyone ever come across something with her eagle on it, for instance?"

I couldn't stop myself, despite how much I wanted to. But after years of answering questions as quickly as possible, on top of all of the stress I was under, the words just spilled out of me. "You're talking about her diadem, Harry."

"Yes!" Luna agreed. "The lost diadem of Ravenclaw. Daddy's trying to duplicate it."

"Yeah, but the lost diadem, is lost. That's sort of the point." Michael said, rolling his eyes.

"When was it lost?" Harry asked.

"Centuries ago, they say. Professor Flitwick says the diadem vanished with Ravenclaw herself. People have looked, but, nobody's ever found a trace of it, have they?"

This time I bit my tongue to stay quiet.

"Sorry, but what is a diadem?" Ron asked.

I nearly threw my chair at him.

"It's a kind of crown. Ravenclaw's was supposed to have magical properties, enhance the wisdom of the wearer." Terry supplied helpfully. I loved Ravenclaws.

"Yes, Daddy's Wrackspurt siphons-"

"And none of you have ever seen anything that looks like it?"

"I totally didn't draw you a picture of it or anything last year." I muttered under my breath.

"If you'd like to see what the diadem's supposed to look like, I could take you up to our common room and show you, Harry? Ravenclaw's wearing it in her statue." Cho suggested and I could've sworn to Merlin that she actually fluttered her damn eyelids. War was about to break out and she was flirting?

Harry muttered to Ron and Hermione again as Cho got to her feet. Bless Ginny, love her. "No, Luna will take Harry, won't you, Luna?" She said fiercely.

"Oooh, yes, I'd like to." Luna said happily.

"How do we get out?" Harry asked Neville.

"Over here." Neville led Harry and Luna over and I slowly rose from my chair, pacing the back of the room.

Hermione timidly approached me. "How are the children?"

"Fine. Trang is with them now." I said mechanically.

"Are you-"

"Hermione, I'd really rather not be bothered right now." I inhaled sharply, looking over at her. "It'll just make everyone nervous."

"Okay." Hermione said softly, heading back over to where Ron was.

I knew I needed to act better. I needed everyone to feel confident. My fear was not for the people in this room- almost all of who would be fine- but my attitude would convince them differently. I needed to put a confident face on.

I straightened up. I pushed all of my fears and worries down, locking them in the depths of my heart. I would do what I always did, every year during the conflict: I would become the main event.

I ran from the room, finding myself easily on the right floor as I watched Flitwick, Sprout, and McGonagall duel Severus. He barely caught my eye before he took off through a classroom door. I sprinted after the teachers, heart pounding, wand drawn. I could hear McGonagall cry out, "Coward! COWARD!"

"What's happened, what's happened?" Luna asked somewhere as I skidded to a stop inside of the room.

"He jumped." Professor McGonagall said as Harry and Luna joined me in the room.

"You mean he's dead?" Harry sprinted to the window as Flitwick and Sprout let out yells of shock at his sudden appearance. I hated the hope that was in Harry's voice, but I pushed it away once more.

"No, he's not dead. Unlike Dumbledore, he was still carrying a wand. . . and he seems to have learned a few tricks from his master." McGonagall caught my eye and the bitterness in her voice lightened a little.

"Harry!" Slughorns' voice came from behind. "Elizabeth! My dear children. . . what a surprise. . . Minerva, do please explain. . . Severus. . . what?"

"Our headmaster is taking a short break."

"Professor! Professor, we've got to barricade the school, he's coming now!" Harry shouted, pressing his hands to his forehead.

"Very well. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is coming. Potter has work to do in the castle on Dumbledore's orders. We need to put in place every protection of which we are capable while Potter does what he needs to do." McGonagall said swiftly.

"You realize, of course, that nothing we do will be able to keep out You-Know-Who indefinitely?" Flitwick asked.

"But we can hold him up." Sprout said firmly.

"Thank you, Pomona. I suggest we establish basic protection around the place, then gather our students and meet in the Great Hall. Most must be evacuated, though if any of those who are over age wish to stay and fight, I think they ought to be given the chance."

"Agreed. I shall meet you in the Great Hall in twenty minutes with my House." Professor Sprout said as she left the classroom.

"I can act from here." Flitwick said, starting to recite incantations. Harry quickly approached him to ask him about the diadem.

"We shall meet you and your Ravenclaws in the Great Hall, Filius!" McGonagall said and beckoned to the three of us. We exited the classroom only for Slughorn to finally say something, which were not to any of our liking.

"My word. What a to-do! I'm not at all sure whether this is wise, Minerva. He is bound to find a way in, you know, and anyone who has tried to delay him will be in most grievous peril-"

"I shall expect you and the Slytherins in the Great Hall in twenty minutes, also. If you wish to leave with your students, we shall not stop you. But if any of you attempt to sabotage our resistance or take up arms against us within this castle, then, Horace, we duel to kill."

"Minerva!"

"The time has come for Slytherin House to decide upon its loyalties. Go and wkae your students, Horace."

The three of us had to run after Professor McGonagall from how fast she was walking. She stood now in the middle of the corridor and raised her wand, "Piertotum- oh, for heaven's sake, Filch, not now-"

"Students out of bed! Students in the corridors!"

"They're supposed to be, you blithering idiot! Now go and do something constructive! Find Peeves!"

"P-Peeves?" Filch stammered.

"Yes, Peeves, you fool, Peeves! Haven't you been complaining about him for a quarter of a century? Go and fetch him, at once!" Filch hobbled away, muttering under his breath as he did so. "And now- Piertotum Locomotor!"

We watched as the statues and suits of armor jumped from their plinths, and heard the crashes of the ones above and below this floor. The stone statues marched in uniform line through the hallway and down the stairs, probably out to the front of the castle.

"Hogwarts is threatened! Man the boundaries, protect us, do your duty to our school!" Professor McGonagall clasped her hands together and actually smiled for a moment. "I always wanted to do that."

She turned to us. "Now, Potter. You, Miss Lovegood, and Miss Kane had better return to your friends and bring them to the Great Hall- I shall rouse the other Gryffindors."

Harry, Luna, and I sprinted through the school. We passed students with their teachers. Heads spun as we ran past and whispers followed us with our names in them. We ignored them, running up the flights of stairs and down hallways that would lead us to the Room of Requirement.

Luna, Harry, and I ran down the steep staircase that was in the Room of Requirement and came to a stop at the bottom of the stairs.

"Wh-" Harry sputtered, slipping down some of the stairs.

The first people I saw were Kingsley and Dad, who were standing next to each other. On instinct, my hand slipped into my pocket, fingering the different bottles of liquid luck once more. I breathed out. I could do this.

"Harry, what's happening?" Dad asked as he met us at the foot of the stairs. Without talking to me, he pulled me into a bone crushing hug.

"Voldemort's on his way, they're barricading the school- Snape's run for it- What are you doing here? How did you know?"

"We sent messages to the rest of Dumbledore's Army." Fred spoke up. "You couldn't expect everyone to miss the fun, Harry, and the D.A. let the Order of the Phoenix know, and it all kind of snowballed."

I could see the original Gryffindor Quidditch Chasers talking to Oliver Wood like it was some nice get together. I bit my bottom lip.

"What first, Harry. What's going on?"

"They're evacuating the younger kids and everyone's meeting in the Great Hall to get organized. We're fighting." Harry said.

Their was a huge roar and the crowd surged past us. I stepped to the side, clutching dad's arm, not wanting to let him go.

There weren't much people once we were left standing. It was simply Harry, Dad, Mr and Mrs. Weasley, Fred and George, Bill, Fleur, Ginny, and myself. Mrs. Weasley was arguing about Ginny about the fighting.

"You're underage! I won't permit it! The boys, yes, but you, you've got to go home!"

"I won't! I'm in Dumbledore's Army-"

"A teenagers' gang!"

"A teenagers' gang that's about to take him on, which no one else has dared to do!" Fred tried to defend his sister.

"She's sixteen! She's not old enough! What you two were thinking, bringing her with you-"

"Mum's right, Ginny. You can't do this. Everyone underage will have to leave, it's only right." Bill said softly.

"I can't go home! My whole family's here, I can't stand waiting there alone and not knowing and-" She shook her head and finished bitterly. "Fine. I'll say good-bye now, then, and-"

We looked over at the entrance hole as we heard scuffling and the thump of somebody falling out of it. The figure pulled himself up on the nearest chair, looking around and asking, "Am I too late? Has it started? I only just found out, so I- I-"

Percy broke off, spluttering into silence. The silence was so thick that it felt like the room was actually growing colder.

"So- 'ow eez leetle Teddy?"

My dad just blinked at her, startled before he understood and said rather loudly, "I- oh yes- he's fine! Yes, Tonks is with him- at her mother's- Here I've got a picture!" He was actually shouting now, his hands grabbing at his pockets before pulling out a photograph, showing it to me, Harry, and Fleur.

My brother was an adorable little thing, very tiny with a head full of bright turquoise hair. He waved his little fists at the camera.

"I was a fool!" Percy roared, so loudly I flinched and dad nearly dropped the photograph, clutching it tightly with his fingers once more. "I was an idiot, I was a pompous prat, I was a- a-"

"Ministry-loving, family-disowning, power-hungry moron?" Fred finished.

"Yes, I was!"

"Well, you can't say fairer than that." Fred said, holding his hand out to his elder brother.

Percy didn't even get to shake his brothers' hand. . . the last time to shake his brothers' hand, before Mrs. Weasley ran forwards in tears, pushing Fred to the side. . . the last time she would push him to the side, to strangle Percy in a hug.

"I'm sorry, Dad." Percy said. Mr. Weasley hurried forward to hug his son like he had returned from the dead.

But they would never hug Fred again.

"What made you see sense, Perce?" George asked.

"It's been coming on for a while. But I had to find a way out, and it's not so easy at the Ministry, they're imprisoning traitors all the time. I managed to make contact with Aberforth and he tipped me off ten minutes ago that Hogwarts was going to make a fight of it, so here I am."

"Well, we do look to our prefects to take a lead at times such as these." George imitated Percys' pompous manner from when he had been at Hogwarts. "Now let's get upstairs and fight, or all the good Death Eaters'll be taken."

"So, you're my sister-in-law now?" Percy asked, shaking hands with Fleur while walking up the stairs with his twin brothers and Bill.

"Ginny!" Mrs. Weasley snapped as the young girl had been trying to sneak out of the Room of Requirement herself.

"What about this?" I quickly interfered. Ginny looked at me with hope and Dad closed his mouth since I was about to steal his line. "We need someone to stay in the room to keep it open, specifically to keep the secret passageway between Aberforths' bar and this room open to evacuate the kids. Ginny can stay here for the time being, that way she won't be in the middle of fighting, but then she can be an informant and the gatekeeper."

"I-" Ginny glared angrily at me.

"That's a good idea. Ginny, you stay in this room, you hear me?" Mr. Weasley said. '

Mr and Mrs. Weasley walked out and Dad went with them. I hesitated and then squeezed Harry's shoulder, hurrying back to my fathers' side. Harry would be able to manage without me, but I needed to keep an eye on my father.

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝖊𝖓𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖓𝖙𝖊𝖉 𝖈𝖊𝖎𝖑𝖎𝖓𝖌 of the Great Hall was dark and scattered with stars, and below it the four long House tables were lined with tired students, half in traveling cloaks and half in dressing gowns. Every school ghost imaginable was in the room, floating up near the ceiling.

For a moment, I forgot my worries, as I saw Firenze standing with the remaining teachers and the members of the Order of the Phoenix. They were all standing behind Professor McGonagall who was making her speech about who could stay and who could not.

"And what if we want to stay and fight?" Ernie asked.

I smiled a little.

"If you are of age, you may stay."

"What about our things? Our trunks, our owls?"

Priorities please?

"We have no time to collect possessions. The important thing is to get you out of here safely."

"Where's Professor Snape?" A girl from Slytherin asked.

My heart clenched.

"He has, to use a common phrase, done a bunk." Professor McGonagall said and the other three house tables cheered. I simply looked down at the ground.

No emotion.

"We have already placed protection around the castle, but it is unlikely to hold for very long unless we reinforce it. I must ask you, therefore, to move quickly and calmly, and do as your prefects-"

"I know that you are preparing to fight." Some of the students screamed as Voldemorts' voice filled the room. It surrounded everyone, like he was both whispering in your ear, yet speaking right in front of you, while also speaking at the front of room, echoing throughout. "Your efforts are futile. You cannot fight me. I do not want to kill you. I have great respect for the teachers of Hogwarts. I do not want to spill magical blood."

The room was silent now, though some of the students still clutched each other.

"Give me Harry Potter or Elizabeth Kane and none shall be harmed. Give me Harry Potter, and I shall leave the school untouched. Give me Elizabeth Kane, and you will be rewarded. You have until Midnight."

There was a silence again as every eye in the room found Harry and I. Pansy Parkinson rose from the table and screamed, "But there they are! They're there! Someone grab them!"

Neither Harry nor I even had to move as the three tables moved in unison, facing the Slytherin table. Wands were drawn at every angle, not just from the students, but from the Professors and Order as well.

"Thank you, Miss Parkinson. You will leave the Hall first with Mr. Filch. If the rest of your House could follow." Professor McGonagall said in a clipped voice.

"Wait." A Slytherin male rose. I frowned just slightly because I recognized him. It was the same Slytherin seventh year from last year that had complimented me on the Professor artwork. The Slytherin who had decided that they would all sign it for the Professors. The Slytherin who had made the uniting of four houses- even for just that day- possible. "What if we want to fight regardless of our house?"

There was a stunned silence before some of them broke out in whispers, including the Slytherins around him.

He flushed only slightly, but said determinedly. "Elizabeth showed us last year what we can do when the four houses unite so. . ." He walked forwards, approaching me. I pushed past the students who were attempting to 'protect' me and met him halfway.

I smiled a little, holding out my hand. He shook it, the two of us keeping eye contact. "Welcome to the team."

He nodded. Ten other Slytherins broke away, joining him. I glanced up at the front of the Great Hall, meeting Firenze's' eyes. He looked so proud, smiling gently, and nodded at me. I smiled back just slightly.

The rest of the Slytherins left after Filch. One by one, McGonagall dismissed the other three people, Gryffindor showing their bravery by leaving half the table there. McGonagall descended on them to start kicking the ones underage out.

Kingsley stepped up to the platform while this was happening. "We've only got half an hour until midnight, so we need to act fast! A battle plan has been agreed between the teachers of Hogwarts and the Order of the Phoenix. Professor Flitwick, Sprout, and McGonagall are going to take groups of fighters up to the three highest towers- Ravenclaw, Astronomy, and Gryffindor- where they'll have a good overview, excellent positions from which to work spells. Meanwhile Remus, Arthur, and I will take groups into the grounds. We'll need somebody to organize defense of the entrances of the passageways into the school-"

"Sounds like a job for us!" Fred called out, motioning between himself and George.

"All right, leaders up here and we'll divide up the troops!"

"So," I said, turning to the Slytherin. "I think it's only fair I learn your name."

He grinned, "Malcolm Samael."

I tilted my head slightly. "Jewish mythology last name?"

He flushed a little. "You recognize it."

I raised a teasing eyebrow. "Well perhaps you aren't aware but uh, I happen to be the smartest witch of my year."

"Duly noted." He smirked. "So, you our team leader?" He motioned to the other ten Slytherins with him, nine boys and a girl. All of them looking to be the same age as him.

"You are." I said, smacking his arm. "I got a solo job to do. Good luck."

"You too Kane." He said and the eleven of them headed off. Others watched them go, clearly not trusting them, but I did, despite not knowing their future.

I stayed in the shadows, following dad and his group as a cat. I stayed in the shadows, even as the Death Eaters collided with them, my green eyes scanning the battlefield until I laid eyes on my prey: Dolohov. The man who would kill my father.

I streaked across the battlefield as he started to duel Dad. The two of them fought viciously, streaks of green flying. I couldn't waste anymore time. I raced towards Dolohov, before leaping at him. He looked at me, stunned, perhaps wondering why a cat was lunging at him. He raised his wand and I switched, becoming human.

He crashed to the ground, staring up at me in shock, the light dying from his eyes as I had stabbed him through the neck, killing him immediately.

"ELIZABETH!" My dad shouted, racing across the battlefield, skidding to a stop, staring down at me. I staggered to my feet, pulling out the liquid luck.

"He would've killed you." I whispered, pushing the golden liquid into his hand. "Drink. Now. Do you understand me?"

"Yes." He whispered.

"I have to go save Fred next." I whispered. "Don't die on me dad, please. That was the only one I foresaw."

"Okay." He nodded. "Elizabeth, I love you."

Tears pricked at my eyes but I wouldn't let them flow over. "I love you too."

I raced back into the castle only to collide with Tonks halfway there. I grabbed her, dragging her away from the fighting.

"Elizabeth let me go! I have to get to Remus!" Tonks shouted, trying to jerk her arm out of my grip.

"Not before you drink this." I snapped.

I couldn't kill Bellatrix. For one thing, she would see my cat surprise attack far quicker than Dolohov, nor would she hesitate like he had. For another, Mrs. Weasley had to be the one to kill her, it was imperative for Voldemorts' death, I knew that much. But I couldn't let Tonks die either. Dad was saved and he wouldn't fall in love again, I knew that much too.

"Liquid luck?" Tonks asked.

"Listen to me. You must stay away from Bellatrix Tonks, at all costs. Dolohov was supposed to killed Dad and Bellatrix was supposed to kill you. I killed Dolohov so Dad should be fine, but I can't kill Bellatrix. You have to stay away from her, please Tonks. Dad won't make it if you don't."

"Okay." Tonks said, calmer now that I had explained it to her. She downed the potion right in front of me, before taking off again and this time, I let her.

I sprinted, sweat pouring down my back, my hair sticking to the back of my neck. I made it to the Room of Requirement, only to dive out of the way as the doors shot open, Fiendfyre shooting a flame above my body. I rolled out of the way just as the doors closed, three brooms colliding on the floor, dropping their passengers.

"C-Crabbe. C-Crabbe. . ." Malfoy choked out. Ash covered his face as he coughed and retched. Goyle laid nearby unconscious, but Harry, Hermione, and Ron were alright.

"He's dead." Ron said harshly.

"Are you three alright?" I asked.

"Where have you been?" Hermione asked.

"I just saved my dad's life." I explained, helping her to her feet. A look of understanding and then relief crossed her face. "And hopefully Tonks as well."

Suddenly, the Headless Haunt ghosts burst out of the wall, all of them carrying their heads under their arms, which were screaming for blood. They rode on into the battle that was ensuing down the hall and screams echoed back down to us that were not from the ghost heads.

"Where's Ginny?" Harry asked, getting to his own feet. "She was here. She was supposed to be going back into the Room of Requirement!"

"Blimey, d'you reckon it'll still work after that fire?" Ron asked as he also got to his feet. "Shall we split up and look-"

"No." Hermione said. "Let's stick together. I say we go- Harry, what's that on your arm?"

"What? Oh yeah-"

It broke my heart to see an heirloom so old, ancient, and valuable destroyed like that. It was literally a piece of history that had been ruined beyond repair. Something that should've been in a museum or put being a glass case, unrecognizable and in burned pieces with melted gems.

"It must have been the Fiendfyre!" Hermione gasped as we watched it literally burst into a thousand pieces, clinking lightly as they hit the marble floor. My heart shattered with it.

"Sorry?"

"Cursed fire." I explained quickly, heart thumping again as I knew Fred was going to die soon. "It's one of the substances that destroy Horcruxes."

"I would never, ever have dared use it, it's so dangerous- how did Crabbe know how to-" Hermione explained.

"Must've learned from the Carrows." Harry said.

"Shame he wasn't concentrating when they mentioned how to stop it, really." Ron said. "If he hadn't tried to kill us all, I'd be quite sorry he was dead."

"But don't you realize? This means, if we can just get the snake-" Hermione said.

I froze, my hand in my pocket as I realized I had two bottles left instead of one. I had been so focused on saving Dad and following him, that I had never given the Felix Felicis to Fred.

"No." I whispered.

I turned to shouts, my heart failing. Death Eaters had backed Fred and Percy into view. I sprinted forwards, the other three on my tail.

"Hello Minister!" Percy bellowed, sending a neat jinx straight at Thicknesse, who dropped his wand and clawed at the front of his robes, apparently in awful discomfort. "Did I mention I'm resigning."

Time please slow down.

"You're joking, Perce!" Fred shouted as I shot a stunning spell at his Death Eater. But I knew that wasn't what would kill him.

I gripped the liquid luck tightly in my other hand.

Please. He just needed to drink a drop.

"You actually are joking, Perce. . ."

Please.

"Fred! Catch!" I shouted, tossing the liquid luck under hand to him. He caught it, continuing to speak to Perce, still laughing, "I don't think I've heard you joke since you were-"

"FRED!" I screamed.

The air exploded. I flew off of my feet, squeezing my eyes closed as dust settled around us. I slammed into the wall, feeling something metal and long collide with my back. I cried out, before slamming against the marble floor. Rock hit me from above

I struggled, trying to claw my way out from underneath the rubble I was trapped under. I could hear Percy screaming and tears streaked down my face as I wiggled like a turtle on its back, but the chunks of rock were crushing me.

Hermione staggered to her feet with Harry's help, levitating the rock off of me.

"No- no- no! No! Fred! No!"

"NO." I sobbed, collapsing into Hermione.

Percy was kneeling by Fred's side shaking him, Ron next to him. Fred's eyes stared without seeing, the ghost of his last laugh still etched upon his face, a puddle of golden liquid and shattered glass in his hand.

⬅️➡️

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sparkletastic-cookiedough · 1 month

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Percy Jackson vs. Potions Class

Severus Snape met Percy Jackson for the first time, and immediately decided the boy was nothing but trouble.

It was the way he held himself- a relaxed confidence, a bit of a smirk on his lips, the way he swooned after a certain girl- it was all too reminiscent of a certain Griffindoor from back in Severus’s school days.

Severus sneered at the boy. Percy merely raised an eyebrow.

The blond next to him, Annabeth Chase, held Percy’s hand and squeezed it gently. Percy broke eye contact with Severus, and instead stared lovingly at his girlfriend.

That wouldn’t do.

“Chase, Jackson, separate,” Severus commanded.

Percy turned towards the professor, opening his mouth to retort. Severus beat him to it.

“I won’t have you coasting along on someone else’s skills, Jackson. If you’re going to pass, you’ll have to do it on your own merits, and not let your partner succeed for you.”

Percy’s face transformed into a bit of a glare, but he complied. Even Annabeth was now glaring at him a bit. Severus could handle that, the girl would be better off without that disrespectful brat in her life.

Percy moved his supplies to another empty desk in the room. The rest of the partners were already taken, so the boy would be working alone. It was a good thing, Severus thought; this way the Jackson brat wouldn’t be dragging anyone else down with his inevitable failure.

“Today, you will be brewing the Babbling Beverage. Follow the instructions carefully, as foolish errors will not be tolerated in this class. The supplies closet is open for you to use, but if anyone wastes my ingredients, you will have detention with me every night for at least a week.”

Some of his students shuddered at the threat, perhaps remembering their own unpleasant detentions. Some of them simply read the instructions, used to Severus’s dramatics. Annabeth nodded, as though she agreed it was a reasonable punishment. Percy rolled his eyes.

The students read through the instructions. Some copied the ingredients list onto paper, some simply lined up for the closet. Percy was one of the latter. Annabeth stared at the chalkboard for a little while, before lining up with the rest of the students.

Within a few minutes, the students had grabbed their ingredients and started on the brewing process.

Severus watched the students work, writing their critiques down on a sheet of paper. Several of the students needed comments written down, “chop finer, more evenly” or “better temperature control is needed.” His eyes roamed to Annabeth, who watched the rest of the students carefully, before copying their movements. However, she had very good control with a knife. Still, she would need to learn to complete the tasks independently. He marked her down a few points for mimicking the other students instead of doing things herself.

Then, Severus looked at Percy Jackson, who was dousing frog eyes in some silvery water. It was clear the boy wasn’t following any instructions at all. He glided over to the boy.

“Jackson, what do you think you’re doing?”

“Making that babbling beverage, like you said to.” Percy explained, now smashing the frog eyes into a thick goop.

“And where in the instructions does it call for tree frog tongues?” Severus asked.

“I can’t read your loopy handwriting, so I’m just improvising. Annabeth and I read the textbook before class, so I get the jist of what the potion is supposed to do.”

Severus stared. “Never in all my years of teaching have I seen a student with such blatant disregard for the instructions.” It wasn’t exactly true, the Weasley twins always liked to cause explosions in class, but that was different.

Percy shrugged. “I mean, it’s like cooking, yeah? You use the instructions to get the basics, but you can make changes if you need to or think it would be better. Some people like shrimp, some people like chicken, and whatnot.”

“It is not like that” Severus hissed furiously. “And none of your ingredients are on the list.”

“Oh.” Percy said, a bit surprised. Clearly, he hadn’t read the instructions at all. “So I’m creating the tofurky of potions, huh?”

“I have no idea what drabble you’re referring to, but you’re not supposed to rush around creating wild experiments in my class. Potions is a delicate art, and you treating it with such disregard could get yourself killed, do you understand?”

Percy met Severus’s stare without fear. “Yeah, man, whatever you say.”

“Detention.”

Percy had the gall to look shocked. “For what?”

“Your blatant disrespect. Be glad I’m going easy on you, since you have to unlearn your backwards American ways of doing things.”

Percy simply glared, but held his tongue. Disappointing, as Severus would have liked to give him additional punishments. Well, he could always push a bit further.

“And your… method. How exactly are you deciding what steps to use?”

Percy worked quickly. He chopped the frog tongue into thick slices, and placed them into his mixture. He was quite good with a knife. Not as skilled as Annabeth, but more so than the average student. It was a shame that such skills belonged to an idiot.

As Percy stirred the mixture, he finally spoke. “Vibes.”

“Vibes?” Severus repeated.

“Yeah, vibes. Just kinda following what feels right, letting your heart guide you and all that.”

Severus sighed. “And you assume your… vibes… would be able to guide you to a successful potion?”

“I’d say I’m doing well so far.” Percy set the mixture into a distillation chamber, heating it. A silvery mist began to rise from the mixture. “Does the potion have to be a liquid, cause I think I could make some interesting gummies…”

“It’s a beverage, Jackson”

“Right, yeah, no fun allowed.” Percy said the last part under his breath. Severus pretended not to hear.

Severus had an idea, a wonderfully terrible idea, and tried to not smile in front of the students.

“If you’re so confident about your potion making skills, Jackson, then perhaps you’re willing to sample your potion at the end of class.” Severus spoke loud enough that the entire class could hear his offer. “If it has the intended effects, I’d be willing to give you full credit, and you won’t face any sort of punishment for your unusual method. If not, you’ll suffer the effects of your own concoction- so long as it isn’t certain death- until they naturally wear off or I decide to have mercy and cure you myself. You’ll have detention as well, testing a few experimental potions, since you love experimenting so much.”

The students gasped in shock and horror. One of the earliest lessons in potion crafting how drinking an incorrectly brewed potion could go very wrong. Images from their textbooks depicted people so covered in lumps they could barely move, or with their skin erupted into putrid sores, or with thick slime erupting from their mouths. It was a horrible punishment to even offer. A few students had nightmares from those images.

“Alternatively,” said Severus in a smooth voice, “you could attend remedial lessons on potion making and have detention every night for the rest of the year. I’m sure Filtch would love someone to scrub toilets.”

Percy thought it over. “I’d rather not be babbling forever, though.”

Severus stared at him. “The potion is supposed to wear off within twenty minutes to twelve hours, depending on the quality of the brewing.”

Percy looked shocked. “Shoot, I’ll need to adjust my potion then.” He started to head towards the supply closet.

“Do we have a deal, mister Jackson?”

Percy frowned. “I’m not going to just take your word for it. Swear it to me, an oath, that you’ll keep your end of the bargain.”

Severus raised an eyebrow. “I’ll draft up a magical contract. Neither of us will be able to escape the terms.”

Percy nodded, and grabbed more ingredients from the cabinet- a moonstone, ocean water, and wheat seeds. He had asked Severus for blue food coloring, of all things, only to be disappointed when the potions cabinet didn’t have it. By the time Percy had crushed some of the moonstone into a fine powder, Severus had written out a contract. It was merciful on Severus’s behalf. He could shorten the detention times, or stop them all together. Perhaps if Percy begged for mercy, he’d lessen the detentions. Maybe.

Percy looked down at the contract, squinting. “I still can’t read your loopy handwriting.” Severus sighed, muttered “illiterate fool”, swore he was reading the document in its entirety word for word, and read it to Percy as he worked.

Percy smiled, with a cocky grin, and proceeded to sign the document.

Severus would take great satisfaction in seeing that grin wiped off his face.

//-\\-//-\\

By the end of class, most of the students had the glowing orange potion prepared. Some were off in texture- one had chunks mixed in with the thin liquid, another was somehow sticky and slimy. Many students had too dim a glow, something caused by not cutting the ingredients into even chunks. Annabeth’s was abnormally bright, but a few shades too red.

Meanwhile Percy had brewed a potion that looked nothing like the Babbling Beverage. It was thick like pancake batter, and cobalt blue. He displayed it proudly, as Snape dragged him to the front of the class.

“Drink.” The potions professor commanded.

Percy proceeded to pour the liquid down his throat. Severus cast a poison detection charm on him, just in case the foolish child started dying. Percy seemed like the type to inconvenience people like that.

Percy’s eyes glazed over briefly. The students watched in anticipation of something horrible, too invested in the tragedy to look away. Percy stared at Snape, asking a question. The words came out in garbled nonsense, too random to be part of any language.

Which was the intended effect. Somehow Percy Jackson had brewed a completely different potion with the exact same effects, using no instructions whatsoever.

It should have been impossible.

Percy waited for a response. “It appears that your potion has worked, Jackson. Should there be no ill effects, you will be exempt from any punishment. If you do notice any symptoms, any at all, you are required by contract to report them to me. For everyone else, you will receive grades next class. Read chapter twelve before Monday. Class dismissed.”

Percy beamed, and walked to his girlfriend. She proceeded to lecture him on recklessness, which he tried to argue back in his nonsensical speech. Hand in hand, they walked out the door.

Alone in his classroom, Severus walked over to the supply closet. If the rest of the evening, he attempted to replicate Percy’s unique potion, no one had to know.

#Percy is good at potions #he’s also a little shit #this combination makes for an interesting class experience #Severus Snape is not having a good time #the silver liquid is water from the Lethe #good luck replicating the potion #Percy still has detention #where Severus will interrogate him about potions #percy jackson #pjo #harry potter

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