AUTHORS NOTE: I know, I know its been a long wait… but…. As always I haven't stopped writing this fan fic and I present you with the next chapter =o) I do hope you'll enjoy it, as I've been really taking my time with it (as you all have probably noticed!! lol) Take Care
CHAPTER 29
An icy chill of death permeated the room as the white curtain continued to dance against the soft breeze. A shiver trailed down Hermione's side as she sensed the presence of Death Eaters from afar.
Her breathing quickened and she desperately pivoted in every direction when she thought she felt something brush up against the side of her arm, yet nothing was there; nothing she could see anyway.
Madam Pomfrey burst into silent tears of fear, Hermione wished to comfort the school nurse but knew she couldn't afford to let her guard down; not even for a mere moment.
A potion filled flask from a nearby table stand flew towards her as though it was hurled by some invisible force; Hermione didn't have time to move, but it just missed her and cracked against the ground releasing a puff of gray smoke.
A chorus of laughter followed from every direction; she was surrounded and she didn't even know who, or what she was facing.
"Helpless filthy girl, we shall have our fun with her, yes, and then she will face her death with the others we've killed… You'll never know the faces of your assailants little Mudblood."
The voice was scratchy as though someone was dragging their fingernails across an empty chalkboard; she felt her insides toss with every word spoken.
"We can tell the filthy girl one thing Naamah, we are proud to work in the name of the Dark Lord."
"Your pride will fall when you lose this war!" Hermione shouted without knowing what she was going to say.
"Naamah, she thinks we'll lose. Foolish Mudblood, the Dark Lord shall prevail and no longer shall we be contained in darkness. We'll be free to roam the earth as we please."
Laughter, and before Hermione knew what was happening, she found herself flat on her back on the floor… more laughter.
She gritted her teeth and pulled herself to her feet rather coolly; she brushed her robes and tried to look unabashed.
"Fearless…"
"She isn't fearless Zephaar, it's all but a mask, look in her eyes."
Hermione deliberately closed her eyes so the watching figures couldn't obey the commanding voice. She could feel their rising anger, and though she knew it wasn't a good idea to stir their annoyance, she couldn't help it.
"Forget this nonsense all of you, let us be done with this area of the castle, burn her…KILL HER!"
Thirty red and blue balls of flame erupted out of nowhere and hovered in midair throughout the entire hospital wing before surrounding Hermione and Madam Pomfrey.
The flames were so close together that they looked like a single ring of blazing fire; so near that Hermione felt the tiny hairs on her paled face begin to sear from the heat.
There was nothing to do but hope for a quick death; but she wouldn't give up that easily, her heart craved life more then reason could withhold her useless attempts. She needed to stay alive if only to make sure Harry was safe.
Then, she remembered… How could she have been so stupid? How had she not thought of it sooner, in all the history books she had read over the years about Muggle's attempting to burn witches at the stake…The flame freezing charm.
"Ventinesco!"
The ring of flames encircling her flickered to an icy blue if only for a moment, before returning to its red hot state; further nearing its victims.
"Futile attempt mortal Mudblood." Were the last string of scratchy words she heard before feeling the flames lick her exposed skin, and the smell of burning flesh began to intoxicate her senses.
So this was it; this is how she was going to die….burning…. burning until all that would remained of her would be gray ashes.
Hermione closed her muddy eyes at the painful sensation of her pupils beginning to shrivel from the agonizing heat and heard herself beginning to scream from the excruciating pain of slowly roasting to death.
She felt a cold grip around her arms, but she didn't dare open her eyes; she was afraid that she was imagining things, or perhaps, maybe this is what they meant by feeling `the touch of death upon you'; she felt her body lift from the ground, and then no longer did she feel the burning pain.
Hermione opened her eyes and tried to see what exactly was going on, but she found that whatever was holding her was also invisible; all she could hear were the curses of her previous captives and what sounded like wings beating frantically in an effort to hold her weight. Her savior spun her around to face the ring of fire that now separated back into balls of flame.
She felt her skin crawl for a brief moment with what felt like betrayal; what if her savior was a part of this attack and was just further playing games with her weakened mind?
No, she wouldn't let this happen, this was her chance to flee.
Squirming frantically from the invisible grasp, she tried to free an arm in an effort to use her wand.
"Stay still mortal one, for I cannot hold our weight well." The voice whispered in her ear.
"Let go!"
"You wish death upon yourself?" It asked seriously.
She didn't have time to answer as the balls of flame shot towards her again. Hermione didn't feel the burning sting against her skin; her captor had dropped her to the cold ground. She rolled herself under a bed mindlessly, hissing in protest as her fleshy sores scraped against the rough flooring.
Carefully, Hermione peered upwards from beneath her hiding place; she couldn't see what was happening, but she clearly heard her saviors roar of agony.
"Saving mortal blood with free will Orias?"
"What's it to you Naamah?"
"TRAITOR! …. A traitor to your own kind!"
"And what if I am?"
"Then you're banished from our world Orias!"
"I don't need your world!"
"Not now you don't, but when your master dies you'll come crawling back!"
"I'll find my place among the Wizarding world."
"You're a fool to believe it Orias, the Dark Lord shall grant us freedom and you'll be condemned to the underworld…alone forever in darkness!"
Blinding light filled the room; all Hermione could do was throw her arms over her head and lay plastered, stomach down to the stone floor.
She let out a muffled scream as the bed she used as her shelter was thrown across the room somewhere; but she continued to lay still as her cloak whipped frantically from the intensity of wicked gusts of wind that erupted from the battle of invisible beings.
Then, as though nothing had happened, it stopped.
All was quiet, all was still; except for the dancing white curtain where the window had shattered.
The floor beneath her shook as though a rapid earthquake had swept through the castle.
Harry.
She lifted herself to her knees with shaking arms, frantically scanning the perimeter for her missing wand.
"You won't find it." A calm eerie voice echoed against the reverberating stone walls.
She'd heard that voice before as a whisper in her ear minutes ago.
"What do you want?" She questioned coldly.
"Only to help, young Mistress…You need not fear me Mistress, I am an ally in this war."
"I'm not of authority to decide your part against Voldemort. Furthermore, I don't trust you."
"Mistress, you're school is under attack from the dark forces at this very moment."
Hermione felt a shiver trail around the side of her neck and down her spine; she'd suspected as much, but she didn't want to believe it.
"How can I trust you?" She questioned further.
"Firstly, I am a creature denied the freedom to express anything but the truth, I am bound to it by magic. Secondly, dear Mistress, you may wish to take but a quick glance at the grounds below to see for yourself the validity of my words."
She hesitated.
The ground beneath her feet rattled again and she had to steady herself to keep from falling over.
The creature ignored the clatter.
"I see you continue to distrust me. Very well, I shall reveal my original self to you young mistress… but know that I am a creature of the dark underworld, and to do so is not in my nature."
She nodded trying to distinguish the exact location of the voice.
She felt herself gasp when the creature appeared; feeling slightly foolish that she had been speaking too far to the left of him.
The creature had the face of a boy, yet the torso of a man and wore nothing but a black loincloth held by a fancy gold belt. His feet and hands were webbed with small sharp claws on each toe and long claw-like fingers for hands. The creature hovered above the ground, supported by two velvety black wings that resembled that of a bat. His silver hair was brushed behind his pointy ears; it looked unnaturally smooth as it flowed like liquid and nearly covered his sapphire eyes which contained no trace of a pupil.
"What," She held her tongue, realizing her question of what exactly he was would be most inappropriate and instead asked, "What's your name?"
The creature landed on the ground on all fours, flicked its slender tail and bowed his head.
"Orias at your service young Mistress."
Hermione felt herself flinch at being addressed like some sort of royalty.
"And I know your curiosity seeks to know what I am… I am what is known to man as a Demon."
Only when he spoke his name did Hermione notice his vampire fangs and sharp rows of pointed teeth. It was like looking at the mouth of a hungry shark.
She stared at Orias in awe; her knowledge of Demon's wasn't extensive.
"I mean you no harm; I was summoned to be your guardian. I defended you against opponent demons that could have killed you if I hadn't intervened, do you trust me now?"
She didn't answer the Demon. Instead, she carefully walked the distance to the flowing white curtains and peered at the ground below.
Her heart raced and a sick bile taste crowded her mouth at the sight awaiting her; hundreds, maybe even thousands of bodies lay scattered across the field between the school and the Forbidden Forest, was Harry among them? How did she not hear their cries of pain sooner?
"You said someone summoned you to guard me, who exactly did it?" She questioned not taking her eyes off the battle below.
"I can't say Mistress, I am sworn to secrecy of my Master's identity and anything else he wishes not to disclose."
"Can you write it?" She didn't think so, but it was worth a try.
The Demon confirmed her speculation with a shake of his head.
"Even if I could find a way… I wouldn't." The Demon's sapphire sphere's bore into her own dark eyes. "I owe my Master my life; to show my gratitude I gave my Master my word that I would serve him to the end of his life without the single need for a summoning ritual."
From what Hermione knew, such a dedication to witches or wizards was unheard of from the Demon creatures… could she trust him? No, the real question really was did she have a choice?
"Listen, this school is under attack, I could take care of myself, go and help the others down there." She pointed at the battlefield below, disgusted with how much time she had wasted with the Demon creature.
Orias grinned showing his row of pearl razors.
"That's very selfless of you young Mistress, but I don't take orders from you, now come along; let's get you out of here."
"What about,"
"She's diseased Mistress."
Her forehead creased in sorrow when her eyes fell on the crumpled form of Madam Pomfrey.
"Are…are you sure?" She murmured, taking a step towards the nurse.
The Demon stopped her with a stretch of his arm.
"There is nothing you can do for her, now come, before we encounter further danger."
"Can't we just fly out of here?" She questioned gazing at the Demons folded wings.
Orias stretched his right wing to reveal gaping holes punctured through the thin black membrane. He re-folded them, and without breaking his stride, made his way to the door of the Hospital Wing.
"I'm sorry." She whispered, wondering if there was any spell that would easily mend the Demons wounds.
He looked back impatiently over his shoulder at her before she followed his lead.
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