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Old 12-08-2013, 04:16 AM   #3 (permalink)
Lizasaurus
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Our tent was situated in a large open field that wasn’t too far from a lake. It was high enough in the mountains that the higher elevations just beyond us were filled with snow year round. I took my sister around the mountain tops often just climbing and out in the still air. We didn’t use magic outside of the boundaries of our Fidelius charm. But we carried our wands in the chance we might need them for protection. We didn’t risk the chance of being found out, so mostly we only went out at night. During the days we spent on our classes and learning magic, potions, herbology and nearly every class that Hogwarts provided for students. Plus a lot more, I learned more there I’m sure than I would have in the classrooms in the halls of Hogwarts. I was determined even though I hadn’t been able to attend Hogwarts from beyond partway through my fifth year til I graduated that I would still be able to one day take my OWLs and NEWTs. That summer I explored the mountainside, learning about all the creatures of those mountains and about every herb and every flower and plant that grew there. What ones were dangerous and poisonous as well as those that were gentle and good for eating. The one place that my mother feared I would break my neck was a high section of rock. I started scaling that wall within a few days of having arrived there, no ropes nothing for protection except for my wand. I learned every foothold and handhold that lay on the rock surface and when I finally managed to get to the top of it, I discovered a place that was quiet, way above everything around me. I used that place quite often to think of my life, my past and my future. How much things had changed since I was a boy. And way too much time to think about my brother, and where he might be right then. I had no idea where it was that he had disappeared to, I could only hope that he was still alive and safe, far away from any death eaters or anyone that might want to kill him or worse, recruit him.

The place was my place of serenity, I spent many hours there, both day and night. My mother refused to go up there and my sister was not allowed to. But me? She wasn’t able to keep me down from there. She’d punish me, and as soon as I was free from the punishment, back I was on top of that high rock. I needed that place. She finally realized that and allowed me, deciding that I was smart enough not to do something stupid and would stay as safe as I could in that one spot.

We swam in the lake, which was barely over freezing, but it was a relief to be able to just go somewhere and enjoy ourselves rather than worry about if we would survive tomorrow or not. The lake became a place of relaxation for not just myself and Ava but even my mother, she found that she could use some magic and even warm the water a bit, so that her sore joints could relax in it. It would have been a lovely place if it hadn’t become our prison for over 4 years. We strung up tents between the trees and slept high off the ground, I personally found myself feeling safer up there than I ever did in the tent. I might have been the secret keeper for the fidelius charm, but I still feared our safety. My mother and my sister depended on me and I was the only one who could give them that protection. It was a lot to put on a fifteen year old boy, but I had grown up quickly after my father was killed. Corin had turned in on himself after he had died and seemed to have pulled away from everyone and everything that mattered to him in the past. His will to grow up and be brave and learn what he could to survive in the world had disappeared from what we had seen. He didn’t trust the fidelius charm would ever protect us from being found, and we all assumed he had gone into hiding. He was only a year older than I, but sometimes it just felt like he was the same age as me if not younger. I never looked up to him, only saw him as someone who was always trying to outdo me in everything he did, and rub it in my face when he succeeded.

My fifth year was coming up fast, and though I understood mum’s reasons for not sending Ava, again I felt all alone and completely useless. Unable to be there to protect my family again, was very difficult. It was the hardest thing I’d ever had to do up until that point and I worried that I might never see my mum and sister alive ever again. My mother was determined I would at least finish out my OWL year at Hogwarts, and because I knew it meant a lot to her that I did, I left for Hogwarts. The quidditch World Cup was happening that summer towards the end of the holidays, but that was out of the question, as if security wasn’t already tight, it was even more so with the World Cup, and yet look at what happened. Death Eaters appearing that night, attacking muggles, destroying the camps, sending fear throughout our people all over again. The sign in the sky saying that Voldemort had returned, shot fear through my mother, sister and I like none other. I begged my mother to let me stay but she didn’t listen to my words, she insisted that she and Ava were protected and I was sent on to Hogwarts to begin my fifth term.

I arrived at Hogwarts by the typical route of a Hogwarts student. My mother portkey’d with me to King’s Cross 9 ¾ platform and waited until I had gotten on the Hogwarts express before portkeying back to the Alps. I felt like I was leaving the only ones I still cared about behind to fend for themselves and go off and have fun and play with my little friends, under the safety of the school’s protection and Albus Dumbledore. I was disgusted with myself even though I hadn’t any choice in the matter. I would have loved to have stayed with them and know that if something happened to them I would be there as well, and wouldn’t lose the only ones I cared about in the world, because if they were found, we all were found.

At the feast we were all told what the exciting plan for Hogwarts was the Tri-wizard cup was going to be happening at Hogwarts. Fantastic, why not. So we got to have feasts and balls and I just got to sit back and enjoy it all and worry about how my family were both doing. It was really hard to concentrate. Not to mention our DADA professor was some nutcase that practiced curses on students. GOD I hated that man, he enjoyed torturing those of us who refused to allow the imperius curse on them. Which was myself and most of the Slytherins. For once I finally agreed with my housemates on this one. Who knew what kind of curse he might use if we’d agreed! He’d said it was imperius curse, but for all we know he’d AK us and we’d all be dead, and there’d be no more Slytherin students left! No, we weren’t stupid, the other houses who thought he was awesome and a fantastic professor were the idiots. I could see through him, he was out to get us students and live through us. He was no better than Dunderhead and Lockhart.

When the Durmstrang and Beauxbaton’s students arrived on October 30, I was thrilled enough to see that Durmstrang sat at our table. For once things were looking up, I’d been watching and following Krum for the last few years and watching him grow into this world famous seeker, and I was close enough to almost touch him if I leaned slightly! For once I was happy even if it were just short lived.

The very next day I wandered down once again to the paddock, and sat talking with Hagrid until he had to disappear to follow the huge headmistress of Beauxbatons once again. We never have a proper conversation that year, he was always tagging after the woman, as if she was something special. I was leaning against the fence when I heard a squeal of fright and nearly fell over I spun around so fast. There was a girl about my own age that was on the other side of the paddock, and she had gotten caught up on a branch and there was something by her feet trying to climb up her robes. Moving quickly over to her I practically ran and sent a spell at the creature making its way up her leg, and tossed it into the woods behind her without even touching it. I never did find out what it was but I did ‘save’ her life as Maree always claimed. I helped her get free of the branch and was about to leave when she stopped me, and gave me a small kiss on the cheek, before running off. I didn’t follow her but knew she had went straight for the Beauxbaton’s carriage. Rolling my eyes I figured she was just as much as a prissy girl as the one blonde haired girl, that was always near to her headmistress.

That night the names for the tri-wizard champions were chosen. It wasn’t a surprise for Krum, nor really was it a huge surprise when the blonde girl was chosen, Fleur Delacour, Cedric I never really knew so it didn’t bother me one way or the other. He was two years older than I was and the Hufflepuff Seeker, was all I really knew about him. But Harry Potter…now that wasn’t a huge surprise to me either. I didn’t believe that anyone was out to kill him, not really but he had been said to have been being sought out by Voldemort, and that alone told me someone might have put his name in. I didn’t care though, he had the ability to take part now, and many others would have loved that chance. Fellow Slytherins though? Believed he’d cheated and got himself in there on his own. Paid off a student maybe, to me though I seriously did not care!

I was on my way down to the dungeons that night after the names were drawn and was caught by my arm by a gentle hand and nearly flew through the ceiling above me. No one, does that to me. They all know that, I’ll send a curse or hex at them faster than they can say knut, and won’t hesitate to use it before I find out why they stopped me in the first place. Something stopped me that night though, and I turned around and found myself face to face with Maree. The young girl I’d rescued by the paddock earlier in the day. She asked if I wanted to meet for breakfast in the morning. I remember flushing really pink and stuttering some sort of answer. I didn’t have time for girls or even these little dates that happened around Hogwarts. I felt stupid for even agreeing to it, but I couldn’t very well, not show up, after saying I’d be there! So the next morning I appeared in the Great Hall, to a bunch of wolf whistles, and threatened to hex a bunch of my fellow mates before they finally shut their blasted mouths.

We sat together at one end of the Slytherin table, though she kept looking over towards the Ravenclaw one and seemed very ill at ease. Well she had been the one who had wanted to meet for breakfast not me! I had no interest in gaining a girlfriend or becoming any more than friends, so why was it she wanted to meet for breakfast? She kept shooting me small little smiles as she sat there eating her porridge and all I could do was give her an awkward smile back. I found out she was about 2 months younger than I was, and she was there more as Madame Maxime’s personal assistant. She detested the job, having to run all over Hogwarts to do her errands (not limited to delivering personal messages to Hagrid as well), and sending out Owls whenever she needed a letter sent out. She said she’d rather be back at Beauxbatons than here at Hogwarts as an assistant. It was her OWLs year but at Beauxbatons, they wait until the end of their sixth year, so she didn’t have the huge amount of studying as I did. Over the next month or so, the two of us got to know each other fairly well. I was still very much keeping my distance. I didn’t want to hurt her and I certainly didn’t want to lead her on. I had enough to do with trying to keep my family protected, I didn’t need another person to need to protect. Classes just got more difficult for me, because in spite of being there, I wasn’t there in mind, not really. My mind was with my family, the classes would move on and I’d still be stuck on what they’d all learned and not be able to keep up. It was getting to the point of ridiculous. I was to take my OWLs and couldn’t even keep my mind on track of what they were trying to teach me? How in merlin’s name was I going to be able to take those OWLs?

The day of the first task Maree and I walked down to the arena together, and in spite of my reservations, somehow she’d managed to get hold of my hand as we walked and wouldn’t let go til much later. She seemed to know though I was very hesitant to even get involved with her, and even so, with her soft, sweet self, she started prying away those reservations bit by bit getting me to open up. She never forced me to say anything, just sat there with her soft eyes as if studying me and trying to figure me out. We sat there in the stands watching as each of the champions fought their dragons and got hold of the eggs. Merlin! I had wanted to be a champion? HAH, I was so relieved as I watched them run around trying to get hold of their eggs. Getting burned, nearly stamped on, sliced open…no way, I’d never give anything to take one of their places. It was crazy, these champions were nuts to even have entered their names! It made me smile though as Maree sat there with me and anytime something became really intense or nerve-wracking, she’d grip my hand til it was over. It appeared her favourite was Harry Potter though, which amused me even more greatly. The kid summoned his firebolt, which was probably the smartest thing any of the champions had done. I would have thought Krum would have used flying to get his egg, but no, only Harry did. He was brilliant! I never thought I’d say that about the kid, but he really was. He was even more so than Krum to me from that point on.

That night, Maree and I went for a late night walk in the moonlight. I told her about the last few years and how it had been since my father died. I figured if anyone would understand she would. Unfortunately? She just took it as a sad story but not really taking it as anything other than that. I don’t know what I’d expected but certainly more than a ‘aww that’s sad’ type of response. I didn’t get angry or upset with her, I just dropped the subject, figuring maybe it was just me. I was too close to the situation to really be able to be upset that someone else didn’t take it the same way. Or maybe she just didn’t believe that Voldemort possibly returning to power was a huge deal. After all she wasn’t in England, she was from France. She didn’t seem bothered when I dropped the subject either, just acted as if nothing out of the ordinary had been said. More like a ‘aww that’s too bad, let’s get some gelato’ reaction. I don’t know what I expected, but it kind of cut the night short, and I begged off being tired, and saw her to the door of the carriage before heading to my dormitory.

I lay there that night for many hours. Wondering if maybe I was taking things just way too painfully. What if Corin was right, it wasn’t the death eaters, just someone that had a grudge against my father. Maybe he had just fallen dead and the healers were wrong. Maybe I needed a new way of looking at things. Yes Voldemort appeared to be coming back into power but maybe it wasn’t as bad as everyone was saying it would be. My mother and sister were hidden away in the mountains but we’d never seen any sign of anyone wanting to harm them. Maybe we were blowing it all out of proportion. Afraid that something would happen, when nothing was going to happen! Was I stupid or was I naïve to think that we were safe and with Voldemort coming again that we would be safe? My mind was turning over and over that night even when I finally fell asleep just as the sun was coming up, I still couldn’t rest. My mind was stuck on how Maree had reacted to what I had said. I started coming to the conclusion that I was just overreacting.

That night we got word about the Christmas ball on Christmas Eve. I had my father’s robes, which to me, I was really not wanting to wear. They were his and he was gone. My mother figured I didn’t need new ones, and that they were perfectly adequate for the ball, a nice green colour. I invited Maree to go with me, who more than happily accepted the invitation. That was when I got my first kiss from her. It wasn’t really a ‘real’ kiss, just a peck on the cheek before she giggled softly and ran off to the carriage. Fortunately for me, but unfortunately for her, I would never attend that ball. I would be back in the mountains of Austria with my family. Unable to send word that I had to leave and unable to contact her again for over 2 years.

I was laying in my bed, trying to sleep for the third night in a row, the thoughts on what Maree had said was still playing over and over in my head and I couldn’t get them to leave and just forget about it. The worry about my family and wondering if it was just all a big joke, and seriously nothing to worry about or not. I got a bad feeling in my gut that something wasn’t right, and it pulled at me and made me get out of my bed. I needed to talk to someone, and my first thought was Hagrid, up until that point, he was the only one that I trusted there on the grounds and could confide in. I could have gone to Albus Dumbledore or even Snape but I just didn’t feel right. Slipping from the common room I headed towards the nearest exit of the school and out onto the grounds. I knew that if I could confide in someone, and not be brushed off or criticized and teased about it, it would be Hagrid. I should have known better than to think Dumbledore would do any of those things but I didn’t really have much contact with him, so my first thought of course was Hagrid. Exiting the school, I headed across the grounds to his hut.

I never arrived at his hut. I came across Mad-eye Moody. Knowing full well that he was not the person I would want to come across I hid from view but he had seen me. He’d been out to do anything he could to get to us Slytherin students who wouldn’t let him play with them, and get them to let him curse them. He had a vendetta against every one of us and he saw his opportunity and grabbed hold of it. I was standing there hoping I was fully hidden, not daring to breathe when I heard screaming and found myself lying on the ground. I hadn’t a chance to even run, for he had found me and immediately used one of the unforgivable curses on me, and the next thing I knew I was curled up on the ground gazing up at the broken face and electric blue eye staring down at me. Beside me was his staff and his foot was pressed down on my wand arm. Crying out again I stared up into his face, full of fear and wondering what he’d do to me. I heard the words ‘I’d take care of you right now, Yenorin, but you’ve already been called for’ in a deep growl of a voice. I’d already been called for? By whom and why? What had I done? My father was the one who’d refused to join the Death Eaters, not me. I was too young, to be of a concern to them wasn’t I? I hadn’t even reached my 16th birthday! He used the cruciatus curse on me again before picking me up and throwing me against the wall of the castle and holding me up off the ground. It didn’t matter to me what the man did to me, I figured I was dead. Death would be so much less painful than what I was feeling right at that very moment, but I didn’t get that wish. He didn’t kill me, he said one thing and only one thing ‘Go, hide, get away from here. If you don’t? Everything you love and wish to protect will be gone and dead, and all you will be able to do is stand back and watch’. Throwing me away from him, he stalked off to the castle as I hit the ground with a sickening crunch. Staring after the man, I wondered why it was that he’d let me go. Giving me that single warning to go to my family and protect them. It was a trap. I knew damn well I couldn’t go back there, I couldn’t go there and risk the chance that I’d lead Death Eater’s or worse Voldemort himself to my loved ones. I had to leave, get out of the castle and off the grounds. I couldn’t return to them, and I didn’t risk the chance of sending word I wasn’t coming.

I was on my own, stranded with no money, and no chance of survival on my own. I needed to get things in order and collect my things and be gone. Swallowing the fear of dread that was inside me, I hurried back into the castle and to my dormitory. Packing everything up swiftly and silently I thought desperately for every place I’d ever gone as a child, every hiding place my family had been in, since the fear began of getting caught, and remembered a cabin deep in the forest along the northeast coast of England. I banished everything I owned to that cabin from where I stood in the dormitory, gazed around me at my sleeping bunk mates and pulled my jacket on heading out of the castle on foot with my broomstick in hand. It was going to be a really trip but he had other places to stop first. He wasn’t stupid enough to head for the Alps into Austria but he had to get supplies for himself in Diagon Alley and Muggle London first. The only really bad thing? Was as of that moment he couldn’t use magic. If he used magic, the ministry would know with the trace that is put on every person under the age of 17. Arriving in Diagon Alley in the really early morning hours, he felt cold to the bone as he touched down. He wouldn’t be able to go on to the cabin until tonight so for now he’d have to figure out how he was going to get his packages and things to the cabin. Heading directly for the Leaky Cauldron, he ordered a butterbeer and some food to warm himself up. He got funny looks from Tom but no questions which he was very thankful for. He knew he should have been at school but that wasn’t happening, he was on the run now. On his own and nobody could help him without risking them getting caught and tortured for any information he was sure for his own whereabouts.

I managed to get it arranged that the owls from the shops could send the packages to the side of the stream about 5 miles northwest of where the cabin was, and they would just deposit them there whether I met them or not. Paying for each package and all the supplies I could possibly need for at least the next few months, I waited til night fall before heading to my new home. I had everything I could need that would be delivered for me, from potion ingredients for me to keep up with my studies to food supplies as well as towels and blankets and anything else I might need. I didn’t want to have to take this trip again for some time, and knew that I could send an owl out for more items if I had to but I’d rather have the less amount of packages being delivered in that area the better. The more I had coming in and out the more likely I’d be found and either be dead or having to move once again.

Arriving back at the cabin two nights later, completely frozen to my broomstick and starving because I hadn’t eaten anything since the night before my flight in Diagon Alley, I touched down just inside the perimeter of the fidelius charm of the cabin. My father was the secret keeper here, but now that he was gone my family and I were all the secret keepers. I was too cold and tired to consider flying to the drop location for my packages, so hungry and cold I crashed on the sofa pulling my jacket around me for warmth. I was too tired to cry, think or even worry about being caught. I hadn’t put up the additional charms around it, but at the moment I didn’t much care. Falling asleep almost immediately I didn’t wake til almost 3 o’clock in the afternoon. Rubbing the sleep from my eyes I got out of bed and started out to collect my packages. It took three trips on the broomstick, flying low to the ground as I could almost 6 miles each way avoiding obstacles there and back. I didn’t want to risk some Muggle spotting me flying on a broomstick and having to explain that one. I couldn’t use magic, so all I had was the ability to either walk 12 miles 3 times or to just fly and carry as much as I could each time. It was long going and took almost til nightfall again before I had everything in the cabin. Tired already, I forced myself to stay awake and secure the charms on the place and make sure I had everything put away in its place. Finally after dropping onto the couch for the second night, just pulled my jacket around me and fell asleep.