Chapter 5
Devil's Night Scare
After much persuasion and a few more shockwaves Aeryn finally took the potion. She spent the better part of the week only being able to take notes in class as she was told that she would not be able to get a new wand until the weekend after Halloween. Whispers could be heard about the six people in the Hospital Ward. But it wasn't until the day before Halloween that people realized that something more sinister was happening than the draining of people's magic.
"You know what; I don't give a rat's ass about this whole `we have to sit at separate tables' thing." Aeryn exclaimed as she claimed the seat next to Draco and across from Harry, "We use to be able to sit where ever we wanted at Holic."
"What's wrong with the Holic table today love?" Draco asked.
"I swear if he looks at me like that one more time, I steel your wand and give him a piece of my mind." Aeryn said as she started dishing food on her plate.
"Someone giving you trouble?" Hermione asked.
"None other then Alexander Romano. Part of me is glad to have gotten rid of that empathy power. He still has it in his mind frame that I have been promised to him. Stupid pureblood arranged marriages." She muttered.
"Why is it that most purebloods have such uppity names?" Hermione asked.
"Well that question goes right up there with `why are most purebloods only children'" Draco said.
"Why is it though," Ron asked looking up from playing with the food on his plate.
"Ok, let say for the sake of argument that your family was rich with 100 galleons and when you come into your inheritance, you only get about 14 galleons because you have to share it with six other people." Aeryn explained. "You want to make sure all your fortune stays together, so you have one child, maybe two."
"So what about the uppity names?" Harry inquired.
"Well you are certainly no going to get anywhere in the Wizarding world with a name like Waldo." Draco said.
"Yes, well just the same you probably would be made fun of in the muggle world with a name like Draco," Hermione said.
"Touché,"
"Well I'd rather have the family then the money." Ron said.
"That's what puts people like your family on the other end of the `pureblood' spectrum." Draco said, "If only all the `purebloods' where like that. I'd do anything to have a large family."
Aeryn raised an eyebrow at that, "And who exactly are you planning to have this `large' family with?"
"Oh, I don't know I've had my eye on a certain red headed witch…"
"I knew it. Who is it? Is it Ginny?" the both of them started cracking up.
"I just had a thought." Aeryn said.
"Don't hurt yourself," Draco said.
"Oh hush," Aeryn said slapping Draco on the arm, "I need to do something things first but make sure you come up to the common room in about half an hour." With that she finished her dinner and headed out the Hall.
"Should we be scared?" Harry asked out loud.
"That, I don't know, she's always finding new potions to try." Draco explained.
"She we be scared?" Hermione asked echoing Harry's question.
"She did grow up with a Potions Master as a father figure. If she had taken her final exams at the end of last year she most likely would have out scored you in potions." Draco said with a smirk on his face, "She's also been drowning herself in her work as of late."
"She's not as bad as Hermione though." Ron said.
"Hey, I'm right here you know."
"Actually I'm a bit worried about her, she's been getting a lot of headaches, and now that she's been bound from her gifts, not to mention being killed and being brought back again with the memories of a deranged psychopathic megalomaniac." Draco said.
"Well then by all means, let's let her poison us." Ron said as he gave up on his dinner.
~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~
"Glad to see we are all brave." Aeryn said and Draco, Hermione, Ron and Harry came into the Head Common Room. Aeryn had created a circle made up of big fluffy pillows.
"So what are our chances of dieing with this potion?" Ron asked as Aeryn pulled out a crystal ball from a bag and placed in the middle of the circle.
Aeryn laughed, "Come on, do you really think I would test a potion on you that might hurt you?"
"Ok so where do you want us?" Harry asked.
"Everyone sit down in the circle."
Around the pillow arrangement were a set of crystal like rocks. They sat down in a circle around a crystal ball.
"The crystals that surround us are their so that what we see will be related to each other."
"Explain to us exactly what we're doing." Ron asked, "The suspense is killing us."
"We are going to see premonitions of the future, hopefully we can find out what's been going on with the Grey People."
"You've found a potion that can do that?" Hermione asked.
"Yes, but I'm not telling you where. The potion more or less opens your mind to project an image of an event that has not happened in your life. We will see it in the crystal ball." Aeryn explained.
With all the explanations done and over with Aeryn gave them each a vial filled with a vibrant green mixture.
"Just add one drop of your own blood." Aeryn said as she showed them. Everything was ready. "So who wants to go first?"
"I'll go," Ron volunteered and without hesitation he downed the potion. He immediately fell backwards against the pillows.
"Ron?" Harry called out to his best friend and was replied with a snore.
"Ha, Weasley snores!" Draco said.
"You're just noticing that now?" Harry replied, "Your one of his dorm mates. Either you're a heavy sleeper or…" Harry then noticed Aeryn and Draco looking at each other from the corner of their eyes. "Oh, so you've been sneaking in here…well that…that's just too much information for my liking."
"Look at the crystal Harry something's happening." Hermione said grabbing his attention. Aeryn gave her a silent thank you.
The crystal ball grew dark as the four of them leaned in closer to see something. They could see Ron alone in a dark corridor of Atlantis. The only light came from above; it looked like some sort of shield.
Movement came from ahead of Ron; a distant clicking of heels on the floor came from the darkly cloaked person.
"I know who you are!" they heard Ron say. The person up ahead stopped dead in her tracks.
"Wow," she said, her voice was British yet it had an echo almost inhuman. "I hadn't pegged you to be the one that would figure me out." She turned around, but the hood of her cloak hid her face.
"I won't let you get away with this," Ron said, "I won't let you get away with what you did to Luna!" As Ron came closer, she sidestepped on to reveal someone on the floor.
"Well, I guess you can't be that smart. I mean you are here confronting me when you don't stand a chance."
The two circled each other until Ron was right next to whoever was laying on the floor. Ron bent over and rolled the person over to reveal that it was Aeryn.
"So what, you're just going to suck the magic out of all of us, then what?" Ron said angrily.
"Well I wasn't planning of taking your magic. I was going to find more ways to make you suffer. But my main goal is to make the Potter's suffer, all of them. Let's see how much dear Harry will suffer when he no longer had his best friend. But then, he knew this would happen."
"The others will figure everything out as well."
"That's why I'm smarter then your average Dark Lord. Unlike the former Dark Lord, I don't rely on minions and lackeys to do my dirty work."
"You're not working entirely alone." Ron said.
"I cover my tracks Weasley, and I'm not sorry to say you turned yourself into one."
She took something from her pocket, it looked like a potion of sorts and she drank it.
"Well you should have attacked my when you had the chance. I have control over Atlantis, and soon I'll have control over everyone who resides in it. He endeth my gloating session. Happy Christmas." She held out her hand getting ready to attack. Ron threw curses at her, but they did nothing. It was her turn now.
"AMOVEO POTENTIA!" she called out, Ron tried to shield it but the spell broke though hitting him square in the chest. Ron cried out in pain as his magic was drained from him and he collapsed to the floor.
The crystal ball suddenly went foggy again, Ron stirred from his sleep.
"Bloody Hell!" he said, "Don't know whether I should be happy knowing what's to happen, or mad that I should of stayed oblivious."
"Then we wouldn't have had a chance to stop you from doing this." Hermione pointed out in a quiet voice.
"I'm so sick of this!" Aeryn exclaimed as she got up and stormed off to her to her room and slammed the door. Draco quickly scrambled from his spot.
"Aeryn!" he said rapping on the door, "Let me in!" pause "Please?" the door opened and he slipped inside.
"Well that was interesting." Ron said.
"I think we should clean up." Hermione said.
"What you don't want to still do it?" Ron asked.
"What ever will come, will come," Harry said, "We'd rather just leave it at that."
"Haven't we had enough! After all we have been though, what else could life possibly throw at us?" The trio heard Aeryn shouting in her room.
A sudden buzz filled the air and the windows were illuminated against the dark sky. Aeryn and Draco came rushing out of their room.
"Just great, now I go and jinks ourselves." Aeryn said as she walked over to one of the tables.
"What are you doing?" Draco asked.
"Well, since I can't really protect myself anymore, I hid the ring."
"Smart,"
"This table has a hollow leg." Aeryn said as she flipped the table over, unscrewed a leg and rattled it but heard nothing. Aeryn sunk her head in defeat. She turned to the door, carrying the table leg, laughing uncontrollably. The other four were looking at each other in puzzlement.
"So this is where my suffering begins." She said as she forcefully flung the table leg across the room.
~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~
"As all of you have noticed this morning, that the owl post was not delivered as expected. Someone from within this room had stolen the very key that controls this school, and had taken upon herself to trap us with this shield." Dumbledore announced the next morning. "We have found that no one can get in and no one can get out."
Commotion started up in the Great Hall. "Silence Please! I must put out that this situation is of great importance. Please if any of you have any information at all do not hesitate to come forward.
"However, we will not let whoever is behind this and the attacks, to stop us from continuing as normal, but with extreme caution. We expect all of you to be in class this morning."
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