Chapter 8
She's a Rebel
"Oh look at that, ding dong the witch is finally dead."
"This might be the biggest understatement of the year," she heard Draco say, "But you are truly evil."
"I try!!" Jade laughed. "Do you think she would want to be buried or cremated?"
"You've won." Harry said coldly, "Have at us and be done with it."
"Tsk, tsk, have you learnt nothing about me and my nature of doing thing?" Jade waved a hand over Aeryn's body and it went up in flames, she then moved closer to Harry, "I find it absolutely fascinating the way people's minds work. I like to see what makes them tick; I mess with them until they break."
She turned away for a second to look at Hermione, and then tuned back, "I wonder how much more you can take before you break, and your sister was too easy."
The flames disappeared and all that was left were ashes. "You stay away from her." Harry warned.
"Oh don't be like that brother dear."
"I am not your brother!"
"You're right," Jade sighed, "You are no fun sometimes." She moved to Hermione's cell and opened the door.
"Leave her alone!" numerous cries echoed through the room.
"It's alright." Hermione said, "I'll be fine."
Jade pulled out a dagger, "Just so you know, I won't hesitate to gut you." Jade started to lead Hermione out of the room.
"Take me instead," Harry begged.
"Surely you jest," Jade said, "I have you right where I want you." And with that they left.
"Damn it!" Harry cursed with frustration.
"It's weird," Sirius said, "That the only villain competent enough to kick our butts is not even from this world."
"And we don't know that much about her," Harry's gaze fell upon the ashes, "She never talked about Jade."
"Does she have any weaknesses at all?" Draco asked.
"There's always Hagrid." Professor Dumbledore noted.
"Yeah, I bet that's one of the first things she'd take care of." Draco said.
"You don't think he's…" Lily started.
"We can't think that way Lils," James said, "We must always have hope."
As soon as James said that, a faint breeze flowed through the room, stirring the ashes on the raised table. They swirled around for a bit then burst into flames once again.
"What the hell is she doing now?" Harry asked in disbelief, he wished Jade would just leave them alone.
The flames seemed to be in reverse, like everything was moving backwards. A body was formed, and as the flames died, life was brought back into it.
"What are you wearing?" Draco blurted out.
Aeryn looked to see what she was wearing.
"She was wearing that when she died the first time." Harry said.
"I died again didn't I?" Aeryn asked. "Damn!"
"Yeah, you need to stop doing that." Harry said.
"I don't think I can." Aeryn said.
"You can't die?"
"No, I can't die and come back again. Next time I die, it's a done deal." Aeryn explained. `Harry can you hear me.'
`Our link is back.' Harry thought back.
`I'm only letting you and Draco out.' Aeryn told him.
`Why not everyone?'
`I have a plan and I won't be able to do it, they will interfere.'
`They could probably help' Harry told her.
"Fine!" Aeryn said out loud as she waved a hand and the cell doors disappeared.
They all got out of their cells. Harry and Draco quickly went to Aeryn's side.
"What do we do now?" Draco asked.
"You have to remove the power that Jade possesses" Aeryn explained, "Draco, Harry and I will stop Jade while the rest of you head to the hospital wing. The spell to return everyone's power is Reverto vis vires"
"And how do you expect to stop Jade?" Dumbledore asked.
"Well, we can't do anything while she's jacked up on magic, so we will distract her while you do your part, then we send her back to her world." Aeryn said, "By some laws of nature only one of us can exist, now that I have my body back, she can go to hell."
"Wait!" Snape said, "How do we know this isn't a trick, that you aren't your counterpart."
"Look we could stand here all day arguing whether I am who I say I am." Aeryn said. "Jade does do a very good impression of me." She looked at Draco when she said that.
"How was I supposed to know it wasn't you?" Draco asked.
"Your first clue should have been when she was breaking up with you." Aeryn said, "Come on I would never do that. No one can fake an Animagus form." And with that she transformed into Kit Kat. She sneaked around the door then transformed back, "Coast is clear." She called for the others to follow.
Harry and Aeryn summoned the other's wands then they then went their separate ways.
~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~
"So what exactly are we going to do?" Draco asked.
"We need to get Hermione away from her," Harry insisted.
"I have a plan," Aeryn merely said as they walked down the hall way.
"What plan?" Draco asked.
They stopped suddenly and the expression on Aeryn's face was one that showed she was thinking, "I don't know." Then she continued walking, Draco and Harry glanced at each other, and then went after her.
"What do you mean you don't know?" Harry asked.
"I don't know," Aeryn continued, she suddenly put her hand on a wall and it slid back to reveal a shaft with a ladder, she began to climb the ladder, "It's like I'm on autopilot, I just know what I have to do, when I have to do it."
"Why are we climbing a ladder?" Draco asked following her, "Though I have to say I'm rather enjoying the view."
"Hey," Harry complained as he followed Draco, "Need I remind you that I'm still here."
"Relax Harry; it's nothing he hasn't seen before." Aeryn told him as they kept climbing.
"Oh great, like I really needed that." Harry complained some more.
"If we use the elevator, little miss gemstone will know." Aeryn said.
"So is it the Guardians who are persuading you to do things." Draco asked.
"Possibly, most likely," Aeryn said, and then she said in frustration, "We need to go faster."
"Well, you are the one leading darling," Draco reminded her.
"I know that," Aeryn said adding to their playful banter, "There is a spell we can say, that can prevent Hermione from being harmed."
"Did it just come to you?" Draco asked.
"As a matter of fact it did, and believe it or not it is very simple." She said as they finally reached the floor where the library was located. "`A foul soul intends to harm, inflict it upon her instead.'"
"That's it?" Harry asked.
"That's it." Aeryn said. "And it doesn't even rhyme."
"So how do we get the spell to work?" Draco asked.
"It's already been done." Aeryn replied as they ventured closer to the library.
~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~
"So what are you going to do with me?" Hermione asked.
"It's interesting," Jade said, "Both your parents are muggles?"
"What of it?" Hermione asked.
"My father always said that muggles were pathetic, and useless." Jade continued.
"Well his father was a muggle himself." Hermione said.
"Makes me grateful that I'm not really related to him." Jade said twirling her dagger around on the table, they were in the library.
"It's amazing," Hermione said boldly, "that someone with your power can be affected by something as simple as a giant."
"Yes well we all have our Achilles' heal." Jade said.
"You will be stopped." Hermione said, "One way or another."
"I seriously doubt that." Jade said. "My plan is too perfect."
"Nothing can be perfect." Hermione stated. "You're just too cocky."
"And you are too bold for someone in your position." Jade snapped back. With the snap of her fingers a teapot and a couple of cups appeared.
"Would you like some tea Granger?" Jade asked her as she passed one of the cups towards Hermione, "I afraid I have to insist."
"What's in it?" Hermione asked with a shaky voice.
"Family secret ingredient." Jade replied sipping her own tea, "its affects are quite, grave."
"What if I don't?" Hermione asked.
"I have a way of making people do what I want. Some are not pleasant."
Hermione had no choice, she had to drink, and she had no idea what it would do to her.
~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~
Harry, Draco and Aeryn were listening by the door. "See, Jade just feed herself a spoonful of her own medicine, she can't fight it off because she doesn't know. Stay here and don't do anything." Aeryn got out a notebook from her robes and started writing something down.
"What are you doing?" Harry asked.
"Sometimes spells work better said as a phrase or a rhyme instead of an incantation in Latin. We'll figure it all out later." Aeryn faced the door and let the magic flow to what she intended
"Mirrors, Mirrors everywhere,
They can't see where's here nor there,
Set a path for my eyes only,
The spell to be broken by a good person solely."
Then Aeryn changed her clothes magically to match those of Jade's.
~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~
Jade was beginning to feel frustrated. She didn't how Granger did it, but she somehow switched the tea, she could feel the affects of the poison already. Jade could feel the numbness form in her fingers and toes and was slowly crawling to the rest of her body. She suddenly grabbed the table they were sitting at and flipped it over. Hermione froze, she was trying to figure out what poison Jade gave her, so far she had yet to feel anything.
Suddenly the room started to change. It reminded Hermione of those mirror mazes at carnivals. She saw Jade was trying to find her way though, but ran right into a mirror herself, it seems they had been separated. Hermione needed to get out and away from Jade, this was her chance. Hermione placed her hands on the mirrors hoping to feel her way out. Her heat fell as someone grabbed her hand, she looked and saw it was Jade; she was guiding Hermione out of this mess. Hermione tried to fight back, tried to loosen Jade's grip, but it was no use she was out of the library and out of the confusion of the mirrors.
"Let go of me you vile monster," Hermione shouted in defiance. Aeryn let go.
"Be quite Hermione," Harry said from behind her, "She'll hear you."
"Harry?" she said in shock then she broke down in his arms, "I was so scared, and she's done something to me, poison, but I don't know what it is."
"Relax, there is nothing wrong with you, she took the poison instead." Harry told her.
"I hate to be the barer of bad news, but the spell is losing its touch," Aeryn said, "We need to get out of here now."
"Wait," Hermione said suddenly realizing that this wasn't Jade, "You're alive?"
"We don't have time fore this; we'll go back the way we came." Aeryn said.
As they ran towards where the ladder was they heard a terrible scream, one of agony. Then bright light burst from the library, so bright they had to cover their eyes.
"What is it?" Draco asked.
"Everyone's magic that she's stolen, it's returning to where it belongs." Aeryn explained.
"Why don't we just finish her off now, while she's weak?" Draco asked.
"Think for a second and think why you wouldn't want to be in the same room with me when I am angry, then triple it." Aeryn told him.
"Oh," was all Draco said in reply.
"We need to regroup with the other and form a plan." Aeryn said as she started down the ladder.
"What, don't you have one?" Harry asked jokingly.
"We're on our own now."
~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~
When they got to the Hospital Wing, they were happy to see that everyone that was grey was now awake, and they finally found Ron.
"What happened to you Ron?" Hermione asked.
"Oh well I got rewarded for figuring everything out," Ron replied, "Got the magic sucked out of me and everything."
Aeryn, out of gratitude gave Ron a really big hug. "I for one thank you for that."
"So you don't think you're her anymore?" Ron asked.
"Oh, I never did," Aeryn said, "Did no one tell you."
"Everyone has been trying to get people to calm down and get over the shock of what happened." Ron replied.
"Over the summer when were in the other place, Jade has always been aware of everything. When we went back in time to stop Lucius, out of self preservation Jade cast a spell to allow her to stay and not be destroyed, because technically I was dead. So everyone that was with us at the time that was dead in this time and no in the other was brought back from the dead." Aeryn explained to everyone.
"That means Jade is the one that brought Mum and Dad back." Harry said and Aeryn nodded.
"So it wasn't a state of an identity crisis," she told Ron, "It was Jade's little mind games, but you weren't that far off. At least I have my own body, back from the fiery grave."
"What?" Ron asked. But Aeryn went to go seek out Lily and James.
"She kind of died again." Harry told him.
"Oh."
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