Chapter 41
NARCISSA BLACK
Narcissa found herself nervous as she stood there on the platform in front of the Hogwarts Express, as she geared herself up for another year at school. She had thought her education to be over when she had left her home, and the attack at the McKinnons had only furthered her despair.
Yet just like their first meeting, Alder had come to the rescue as he arranged separate boarding for her at the School, though that was but the tip of what he had done for both her and Andy.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Andy questioned once more, and Ted had taken time off just to make sure that they could both come and see her off. The former Headboy had taken her in as a younger sister he had never had, and though it had been a bit awkward at first, she had come to see him as an elder brother.
"Yes, I am," she assured her as Andy gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze.
"Be very careful at school this year," Andy added, and the caution was necessary for the Dark Lord had declared both her and Andy as blood traitors, and her own father and sister now sought to make an example out of them for the rest of the families.
Regulus had taken a great risk, informing them of their plans, but his kindness had allowed them to prepare as much as they could against these threats. The House had been put under the Fidelius charm, and with Andromeda as the Secret Keeper, they were as safe as one could be during a war.
With Dumbledore as the Headmaster, one would have to be stupid to even consider attacking the school, yet that did not make it entirely safe. It was well known that many within House Slytherin harbored loyalty or sympathy for the dark Lord's plans.
These students could try to hurt her. That was why Alder had arranged a separate living quarter for her, though he had done so using some dubious lies.
"I have asked Alder to keep an eye on you, but still always keep your wand with you, and if you feel something is off, then you hex first and ask questions later," Andy suggested, as Ted shook her head.
"That is not very legal," Ted suggested, as Andy raised a brow.
"Then what good are you, my dear magister?" Andy teased as Ted bowed her head in acquiescence.
"Of course," he said, matching her gaze.
"Shoot first, ask questions later," he agreed as Narcissa chuckled.
"I will be fine. This is not my first time going to school," and Andy's face morphed.
"In many ways it is," Andy whispered, and the implications of those words were not lost on her. Until now, she had gone to the school as Narcissa Black, and though they had not taken that name from her, she had lost all of the privilege and power that the 'Black' name had come with.
"I have found us an apartment," Alder's voice came from behind, as he jumped off the train, having returned after putting in their luggage. And though she had lost her name, she had gained much as well.
"I will be leaving then," she said to Andy, who turned towards the green-eyed boy.
"She is in your care, Alder. Keep her safe," she whispered as Alder nodded.
"I will," he promised, as he gave Ted a final hug and began to lead her through the train. They had come a bit early to avoid the bustle, though, as she looked at the half-empty train, she realised that they did not need to.
"The train is emptier than usual," she questioned, and Alder agreed with her observation.
"Nearly a quarter of the students were pulled out of the school by their parents," and she did not know that.
"It's not surprising," she added, and it really was not, with the war going on, people simply wanted to be close to their families.
"Yeah," and they reached their compartment, and he slid open the doors and sat down opposite her.
"I chose the end, so that no one will bother you," and it was all fine.
"Lily and McKinnon have their luggage here as well, but I doubt they will disturb you much," and Lily was a prefect much like him, and would have to spend the ride doing patrols, while Marlene was simply far closer to the Marauders than herself.
They had met quite a few times over the Summer, and though they were both polite enough, she could not see them becoming fast friends. Lily Evans, though, was a walking and talking ray of sunshine and had the ability to charm anyone.
Alder's twin had welcomed her into the family rather warmly, just like his parents, and they had become good friends over their many interactions over the Summer. Alder's family had been nothing but kind and welcoming, and to this day, she received regular letters from Mrs Evans, who did not shy away from using Alder's owl to send her cookies and cakes or whatever recipe she had tried on.
She had a bag of cookies in her bag right now that she had given her yesterday, when she had come to see her off. The two of them had wanted to come to the platform, but they were meant to leave for the USA tonight, and so they still had much packing to do.
"Don't you have your prefect duties to get to?" and he made a face.
"I could do without them for today," Alder complained, but she had the letter that had come with the badge this year, for she had been offered the position herself, but had politely recused herself from the responsibilities.
The school was expecting much trouble during the term, and so all the Prefects had been told to be extremely cautious and vigilant.
"You should go," she suggested, as the train began to whistle, and the last batch of students pushed themselves into whatever compartment they could find.
"We have a new Headboy and Headgirl this year, and you wouldn't want to make a bad impression on your first day," and he chuckled.
"Have you already grown tired of me?" he made a child-like face at that, making her laugh.
"Maybe," she lied, for such a thing was impossible.
"Now you have broken my heart," and he clutched his heart dramatically.
"Go, or I will have to call a Prefect," and he clicked his tongue as he left the seat.
"What a cruel girlfriend I have?" and she agreed with the assessment.
"Cruel indeed," and he slid open the doors as he glanced at her one last time.
"I will be back soon," and the train was well on its way by now, and with a final nod, he walked away, leaving her alone in the cabin.
Her only friend had been amongst the students who had left the school, and so Narcissa was well and truly alone. But that was not entirely strange, for Alder was happy enough to fill in any space left empty by friends or family.
They had spent nearly the entire month together, and in that time, he had been like a steady rock beside her. He had accepted her tantrums, her anxieties, her clumsiness. He had accepted all of her, and she was thankful for that.
Alone she may be, but Narcissa had never felt so cherished or free in her life. Back home, her own family had only ever chained her down, while the Evans' household was happy to let her fly and roam the world.
Despite the threat of the war, they had gone to theaters, restaurants, cinemas, malls, and museums.
She had even visited his family home and his school, and had seen the truth about the Muggle life. They had always been told that the Muggles were some primitive and ancient organisms incapable of rational thought and progress, but these were all lies.
They did not have magic, but they had their own power. Science, as they called it, and in many ways it was no different than magic. They had planes to fly them in the air, and cars to drive them through their city. There were phones and telegrams, and a slew of other things that may well be different than their way of life, but were in no way inferior.
So, with silence as her company, she reached for the book in her bag and began to read while nibbling on the cookies Mrs. Evans had sent her. The ruckus died down as all of the students found their seats, and the train weaved past fields and forests until it reached the river.
The clouds had begun to pour by now, and just as she yawned and decided to put down her book, a sharp chill ran down her body, forcing her to tuck in her coat.
And as she raised her head to stare out of the window, she stilled as she saw the dark shadows surrounding their train, as a shrill scream rocked her heart.
"AGHHHHHH!"
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ALDER EVANS
The attack had come as a surprise to everyone.
"Everyone in their compartments. Lock the doors, and do not let anyone inside. I repeat, we are under attack," Oglive, their new Headboy, shouted as Death Eaters stormed in through the Express's windows and began to attack the students.
"Prefects, protect the younger students," and Alder's wand was moving quickly as he saw one of the Death Eaters trying to pry open a door, yet before the door could budge, Alder's spell had sent him thrashing out through the window as the dementors' chill began to settle over the train.
"Expecto Patronum," and his raven roared forth at his command, as the screeches of the dementors filled the train, as Alder refused to back down.
"We need to alert the school," and by now the train was full of screams and shouts, as the students engaged the Death Eaters in their fight.
"I will," and as his raven flew back, Alder moved his wand and as he gave his raven a command.
"Attack on the Express! Attack on the Express! Please help," and with that, the raven flew out, and the truth was that of all the things he had expected, an attack on the Express had not been one of them.
"Narcissa," he whispered as he fought through a bunch of Death Eaters, and yet before he had crossed the doors, a massive shadow flew in from the side, crashing the entire wall as a shadowy figure blocked his path.
"Voldemort," Alder gritted out as those red orbs narrowed onto him.
"Leave him," the Dark Lord's whisper made his minions back away as he gave him a cruel smile.
"He is mine," and Alder knew that the Death Eaters could have but one purpose for attacking he train. The very purpose that Regulus had warned him about, and so he had to get to Narcissa as soon as possible.
"I have been looking forward to this," the Dark Lord whispered, and each scream and shout that he heard made him still.
"That makes one of us," Alder taunted, for against the likes of Voldemort the best strategy for him would be to buy as much time as possible, yet he could not do that.
Not now, when he knew of their intentions.
"The world seems to think that you and I are on the same level. It is time to show them the..." and Alder did not let him finish, as he sent quick Bombarda towards the monster, and as expected, Voldemort simply thrashed away the spell, but Alder had already begun his next move as he transfigured the train's metal to tear up and wrap itself around the bastard, yet Voldemort weaved his wand and the metal was all blown away as Alder found himself pushed back.
The narrow space worked in favor of the bastard who began his barrage, and while Alder had been taken aback by his sheer speed the first time, he knew what to expect now, and so it did not overwhelm him as it had months ago.
"Lumos Solaris," he whispered, just as he cut one of his spells in half and the blinding light interrupted their battle once more, as Alder quickly blew apart the side of the train and let his avian form out.
"Not so quickly," the bastard began to chase after him, but Alder cut through the dementors and Death Eaters as he tried to reach the end of the train.
Voldemort's spells whizzed past him, some even grazed his body, yet he did not relent, and just as he reached the end of the train, familiar screams and shouts filled his ear stilling his heart.
"NO!" and he transformed back, as he flew into the cabin, yet in that moment Voldemort's spell struck him first.
"Bombarda..." and he felt it hit his chest, and the bones in his chest were blown apart as his ribs all cracked up, while he hit the back of the train and rolled onto the ground.
His head spun as he heard a whisper within the screams.
"No..." yet the familiar voice of Bellatrix rang through his ears.
"Crucio!" and Narcissa's screams filled the cabin once more.
Alder tried to get up, but the Dark Lord had reached him first as he felt his body get pushed back into the wall, as Voldemort walked upto him as Alder's entire body refused to budge even as Narcissa's screams tortured his ears.
"And to think they named you my equal," but Alder was looking at him. No, his eyes were on the woman whose face much resembled Narcissa's, who writhed in pain under her wand.
"Stop," he eeked out, and the act of uttering those simple words tore at his chest.
"STOP!" he screamed, as Bellatrix finally looked up.
"She is your sister, damn it," and she snarled in rage.
"She is no sister of mine," and finally the spell ended, yet as Alder tried to use his hand to push back against Voldemort's magic.
"AGHHH!" Yet the bastard was not one to let go.
"You think you can outpower me," and there was a wicked smile on his face as the metal from the sides began to wrap itself around him, until it covered his entire body except for his face.
"Ald..." Narcissa tried to whisper, but her sister's rage was unmatched.
"Crucio!" and Alder grit his teeth as he screamed.
"STOP IT! I SAID STOP IT!" and Bellatrix had the gall to laugh in his face.
"Torture me instead, but let her go," he offered, as the Dark Lord's laughs cut through the cold, and he raised his hand and stopped Bellatrix.
"Oh, I will. I will, but treason must be paid back," and now he was beside Narcissa, whose body flew into the air as well, and she was bleeding out of her head and mouth, as those red orbs narrowed onto her form.
"I gave you a chance to become a part of something greater, and yet you chose to go against me for a mudblood," he spoke in a rather pained voice.
"You turned your back on your own family. You turned into a traitor to your own family," he whispered as he saw conscience return to those eyes.
"And that has a steep price," and those words made a chill run down his spine.
"No..."
"She is my blood, my lord. Let me do this," she stepped forward as he screamed.
"NO! Don't do this. She is your sister! You can't kill her! Not for a damned Half Blood..." and the pain came in an instant, as metal pushed itself into his face, making it impossible for him to speak as Voldemort's snarled right in his face.
"You will suffer for that," he whispered, and the metal pushed itself further and further into his skin, as Alder's body thrashed uncontrollably because of the pain.
"Do it," and tears slid down his face because of both pain and helplessness as Narcissa's gaze met his own, and he saw her lips part slightly as half a whisper reached his ears.
"I love y..."
"Avada Kedavra!" and the green light hit her in a blink, and he saw the light vanish from those eyes, as Narcissa's body fell to the floor, and Alder lay there helpless in his bindings.
"That is the price of going against me!" he said as he circled her dead body like a prize.
"And now you shall pay the same...." and that yew wand was aimed at him now, as a green hue lit its end.
"Avada...." yet before he could finish, a spell tore through the air, forcing him to back down.
"Tempest!" and lightning raced in from behind and hit him in the back, as Voldemort fell turned around, and saw Bellatrix hit the wall and become unconscious as Dumbledore stepped in from the back. In all his life, he had never felt the air burn like this, and even with his vision spinning, he could feel the very air burning as he saw rage in those usually kind blue eyes.
"Professor Dumbledore," the Dark lord began.
"Here to spoil my fun once more," Voldemort teased, as smoke rose from his back as Albus Dumbledore's cold voice cut through the air.
"I am afraid, I have no kindness for you anymore, Tom..." and the monster simply snarled in return.
"I never had any need of it..."
"AVADA KEDAVRA!"
"TEMPEST!"
BOOOOOM! BOOOOOM!
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