A Radiant Cleansing
Hazel heard the call, but she continued concentrating, both Evervine and Marcel appearing in the front area of her dreamscape. They shared a glance as they felt the magic rapidly moving through the scape.
Hazel focused her reflection—an image of her in full witch regalia, bright silver stars rotating around the tip of her black pointy hat—sweat rolled down her forehead and into her eyes, but she kept control of the reflection. It moved forward through a maze-like obstacle course that had varying traps, and friends and foes randomly appearing.
Her reflection moved with ease at times, and stuttered at other times—yet her aim was always flawless. Gaelia snickered at her side—within a magical side holster Hazel created just for the mirror—"It seems that you do not understand what focus really means. You're more powerful than most full witches, but you have the technique of a child."
Hazel took a deep breath and calmed herself as she continued the exercise. She understood that Gaelia was the Mirror of Indifference, but she was also the sentience of a dark item created to contain a portion of who she was. Corruption was snarling and unforgiving. The reflection made it to the end of the maze and burst into black sparks and flowed back into Gaelia.
"You have gotten better, but you still cannot smoothly wield me. There are too many gaps in your technique."
Hazel sighed. "I know."
Gaelia scoffed. "Do you really?" The Mirror sighed. "No matter. You can still wield me, so now you need to actually practice with me and improve your technique."
Hazel nodded, remembering that the Order had just summoned her, Evervine, and Marcel. "Understood."
The dream portal opened in the kitchen of 12 Grimmauld Place. Mrs. Weasley smiled as Hazel, Evervine, and Marcel walked into the kitchen. "We have been waiting for you." She frowned as she looked at the cabinets behind the closing portal. "This house is so horrid. It refuses to stay clean." She waved her hand and said a familiar incantation, and the cabinets cleaned themselves.
Hazel smiled. "I think I have a solution for that. While you all meet, I will see if I can cleanse the house." The entire room went quiet and Sirius finally spoke with a deep frown on his face.
"Do you know how many have tried? Don't hurt yourself."
Mrs. Weasley looked worried. "Don't hurt herself? She is underage." She looked to Hazel. "It would be against the law here for you to do any magic."
Hazel looked to Dumbledore then Minerva for support. "I know, but I have to practice with the Mirror of Indifference if I want to survive against the Emotion Doll."
Dumbledore frowned. "Has something happened to cause you to rush?"
Before she could answer, Frank Longbottom sat forward, panic on his face. "Are you in danger, Hazel?!"
Minerva looked to her and Hazel smiled coolly. "As far as I can tell, for now, no."
Dumbledore spoke calmly. "The Ministry will notice. As you saw from Harry's experience, we are all under scrutiny. If you actually complete something of that scale, the magic output or the change itself will register on their sensors."
Hazel stared into his eyes for a long time. She frowned; was he ill? Finally, she nodded. "I understand all of that. I don't see how else to practice without traveling the dreamscape and fighting the doll blindly."
He nodded. "Then it is decided." He raised a hand to stop Minerva's protest. "You cannot be in two places at once, Professor McGonagall—not effectively, anyway. We have Voldemort, and they have this young girl." He sighed. "It has to be done."
Hazel didn't wait for permission and quickly left the kitchen. She turned with a frown when her brother and friends followed her. "Someone has to stay and listen."
Without any hesitation, Ron turned to Neville. "Neville, go stay and listen."
George tossed Neville a small silver ball. "Here. Fred, Hazel, and I created it. Hold it tightly in your hand while you are listening and it will record everything. When you let go, it will automatically stop listening."
Neville looked at the small cold ball with wonder in his eyes.
Hazel smiled. "It will warm a bit as well. If it goes cold again, it is not recording. Thanks, Neville. I have some of those posies you wanted. I will give them to you when I am done."
Kreacher appeared next to Hazel and she merely nodded. Hazel connected with the mirror, focused, and went directly to the portrait of Walburga Black. Before the portrait could unleash a scream or offensive word, a hologram of the Mirror of Indifference formed before it and moved into it with seven after-images of it—it was a seven-layer incantation of dream illusion.
Hazel's eyes turned as black as the Mirror of Indifference and she began the mental battle with House Black. To the others, they only saw the figure shocked with her mouth open and her eyes fixed to some distant point. Ron pursed his lips and looked to his friends and siblings.
"How do we know if she needs help?"
George was frowning now. When he spoke, they all heard his worry. "She will tell us."
Within the illusion, Walburga Black looked upon Hazel for a long moment. A slow smile spread across her pug face. "You are a powerful witch, my dear. What family are you from?"
Hazel smiled broadly; a powerful illusory confinement cage appeared around the older woman. "I am of the Potter and McGonagall families."
The cage sparked and Walburga wailed. Outside of the illusion, Harry smiled as he watched red streaks burn into Walburga's portrait. "I would say she is doing well."
A foul smell of burning flesh and rotted meat filled the room. Suddenly, objects throughout the house became encased in vibrant white light. The house trembled and Kreacher smiled and began bouncing excitedly from foot to foot.
Outside 12 Grimmauld Place, the street quietly trembled, unnoticed by Mundane humans due to Hazel and Gaelia's interference. Mundane humans did not notice, but the magical world did. 12 Grimmauld Place settled and black sludge bled into the ground around it.
The ground ignited in a brilliant white light and burned the sludge, purifying the ground; the Ministry of Magic operatives witnessed everything.
Within the illusion, Walburga Black panted, her voice and her power gone; she was forever disconnected from the house at 12 Grimmauld Place.
Hazel smiled at her. "Out of respect for both your sons, I will spare you." She turned and walked into a bright white light, locking the memory of Walburga in an illusion forever.
Hazel blinked her eyes and her friends were all standing around her. George took her into a tight hug and Kreacher gleefully left the room. The adults rushed in and Sirius smiled and leaned casually against the wall.
Mrs. Weasley cleared her throat, but George refused to let Hazel go. She twisted her head toward Harry. "The Ministry is outside. It was a bit more dramatic than I thought it would be. I managed to hide it from Mundane humans though."
Kreacher returned to her with an old, heavy golden locket in his hands, encased in bright white light. She looked to Kreacher, then to Dumbledore. "I can see a piece of soul in this locket."
It was in Dumbledore's hand in the blink of an eye and George finally let her go. Hazel looked to Sirius. "Your brother died because of that locket." She looked to Kreacher. "Did your master give that to you?"
Kreacher nodded. Hazel nodded in understanding. "Explain it all to Sirius. I have to go turn myself in."