Chapter 12: The Cursed Professor

The End

Chapter 12: The Cursed Professor

Voldemort sat in his usual spot, in deep thought. Giovanna sat across from him, staring into his face. She smirked, making a sound. Voldemort was jerked out of his stupor at Giovanna's noise. She cleared her throat, avoiding his eyes. Voldemort continued to stare at her.

"What?" he asked. Giovanna looked over at him, still smirking. "Well, what is it? Out with it," Voldemort said. Giovanna nodded.

"Well, you just looked so very serious. You look funny when you look serious," Giovanna said, now smiling. Voldemort raised an eyebrow, looking at her as if she was speaking a language he did not understand. Giovanna sighed. "Oh, lighten up, Tom. You are really starting to get on my nerves with this serious bit. It's a wonder your face hasn't shriveled up into a tiny ball. All you do is frown," she said. Voldemort cracked what looked like what was threatening to be a smile.

"You know, I really wish you would call me Voldemort," he said. Giovanna scoffed.

"You will never hear me call you anything other than Tom Marvolo Riddle. I'm not afraid of you. I'm probably the only person on your side who is not. You do not scare me, Tom. You never have."

"You are wrong on that one, Giovanna. Nicola is not afraid of me," he said. Giovanna scoffed again.

"Nic is afraid of one thing and one thing only," she said somberly. Voldemort intertwined his fingers.

"And what, pray tell, is that? I have never known Nicola to afraid of anything."

"Lady Nicola Janis Chenille Zaviera Feleti is afraid of meeting her daughter face to face. She is afraid of what Ivi, or whatever her name is, might say and how awkward a moment it would be," Giovanna said. Voldemort looked very shocked.

"Maybe we should try finding her daughter."

"I saw a picture of her. Of course, she was just a baby. She had these eyes that I've seen before: big, pretty eyes. They were full of wonder and amazement. I have seen eyes such as them before. The thing about it is, I honestly cannot remember where I saw them. It was recently, too," Giovanna said distantly. Voldemort nodded. "What were you thinking about anyway?"

"Oh, I was just thinking that I should let them know that I am still around. I've been dormant for too long now. I think it's time to stir things up a bit, don't you?" Voldemort asked. Giovanna nodded slowly.

"What did you have in mind?"

"Tommy told me that the Assante child has been asked to stay for Christmas. They are to help guard the school. A meeting is being held there with some of the Ministers and Mistresses for Magic. All of the teachers are going home, save Dumbledore, Catriona Onsu, Rubeus Hagrid, and Minerva McGonagall. I think it's time for a little revenge, don't you think? I figured out from an anonymous source that three of the Weasley boys will be going to Hogwarts over the Christmas break to also help out. Their significant others will be their as well."

"So, what does that have to do with anything?" Giovanna asked. That's when Nicola entered the room with a black woman. She wore robes of forest green and looked very happy to see them.

"Ah, our guest has finally arrived. What took you so long?" Voldemort asked, rising from his chair. The rather tall woman walked forward.

"Well, it takes a while to prepare for an Apparition this far from home, my lord. Who is this?" she asked nodding to Giovanna. Giovanna frowned and stood up also.

"I should be asking who you are," Giovanna retorted. The woman snorted and looked over at Nicola.

"Jada, meet my older sister, Vanna Zaviera. Vanna, meet Jada Williams. Jada is an American Dark witch. She is hated and feared over there and wishes to help us. She's rather talented at her craft," Nicola said. Jada held out her hand, and Giovanna shook it.

"Vanna, is it? That's a rather pretty name. Simple, yet pretty," Jada said snidely. Giovanna frowned. She squeezed Jada's hand rather tightly. Jada winced in pain, though it was noticeable only by Giovanna.

"Actually, it is Giovanna. If you ever, in your life, call me Vanna, I will be forced to end your life. Only two people are allowed to call me that: Nic and Tom," Giovanna said. She released Jada's hand.

"Abnormally strong little thing, aren't you? All right, Giovanna. I'll respect your wishes," Jada said, frowning. Voldemort, sensing the obvious tension, led the ladies to the seats in the center of the room. Consuelo entered with Chaylse not far behind him.

"You rang, Lady Feleti?" he asked. Nicola nodded and gestured toward a seat. Consuelo took it and Chaylse stood behind his chair, her arms behind her back. Jada raised an eyebrow.

"What? Is she your bodyguard or something? A big, strong man such as yourself shouldn't need a mere woman to protect you," she said. Consuelo glared at the pretty woman. Jada smiled wryly. Voldemort cleared his throat loudly just as Consuelo was about to retaliate. They all turned their attention toward him.

"Consuelo and Chaylse, this is Jada Williams, an American Dark witch. Jada, this is Enrique Consuelo, a Spanish Dark wizard. The pretty young girl..." Giovanna coughed loudly. Voldemort looked at her and then continued on. "...is Chaylse Tremaine. Would you like a lozenge, Giovanna?" Voldemort asked. Giovanna glared at him. Jada nodded and examined Chaylse a little more.

"A Tremaine, you say? I thought they fought on the side of good? How did she wonder so far away from her flock?" she asked.

"I kidnapped her after she graduated from Meloni. What does it matter anyway?" Consuelo asked. Jada shrugged.

"General information, my dear Enrique." Jada winked. Consuelo growled something in Spanish. Voldemort cleared his throat yet again.

"Well, now that we've gotten introductions out of the way, I will now tell you my plan. I feel that we should let the Order know that we mean business. Most of the teachers at Hogwarts will be arriving at King's Cross two days from now. The teacher that I am targeting is Catriona Onsu. She will be carrying special information that is to be delivered to the headquarters of the Order. We need them. Who wants the job of disposing of her?" Voldemort asked.

Dead silence.

"Oh, come on. It is way too risky for Tom and me to be seen. We're wanted for too many crimes. I don't think it is such a good idea to send Vanna. I mean, her children are at Hogwarts," Nicola said. They all nodded.

"Well, I will go. You want to just steal the information?" Chaylse asked. Voldemort shook his head. Chaylse's eyes lit up. "You want to kill her," she whispered. Voldemort nodded.

"I want her dead. Do not use the Killing Curse her. That would be way too noticeable. She will be seeing her friend Aislin Douglas off. You must kill her before she makes the pass off to Aislin. Jada, who is also a Seer, informed me that this would occur two minutes before the train leaves for King's Cross. You must kill her the discreetly and efficiently. Failure is NOT an option," Voldemort said. Chaylse nodded. "Keep your hood on and make sure it never comes off."

"Okay," Chaylse mumbled. Voldemort nodded.

Ginny woke up with a jerk in a cold sweat. She was breathing very hard again. She looked over at the others in her dormitory. The Tremaine twins were still asleep. Neve was snoring rather loudly. She'd just seen a meeting between a few Death Eaters. Voldemort was definitely planning something sinister. He had the barrier up again. All she knew was that they were sending a girl on a mission in two days. Ginny counted in her mind. That was when everyone left for Christmas break. They were planning to steal something. But what was it? Sighing, Ginny went back to sleep.

At lunch the next day, Harry was rubbing his sore ears. Ron was watching him.

"Are you alright, mate?" he asked. Harry glared at him.

"I don't think I like the Kana-Kaori Curses very much."

"What exactly are those curses, anyway?" Neville asked, stuffing more food in his mouth. Harry looked in his direction.

"There are three of them. One is called the Nariko Curse. The incantation is Narishi. It gives the unlucky soul it is placed upon the impression that they are hearing a horrible noise that is unbelievably loud. It can deafen a person. The next one is the Nami Curse. The incantation is Namishi. This curse is a water curse. It gives the illusion that you are being drowned," Harry said.

"So, with that one, basically, you're drowning in your own saliva?" Rina asked. Harry nodded half-heartedly.

"Something like that, Rina. It's not quite that simple, though. It's more like it stops you from breathing. If you keep it up long enough, the person will either drown, or pass out. The third one is called the Raiden Curse. The incantation is Raishi. This one, to me, is the worst. You actually see this one, and it affects more than one person at a time. Unlike the other two, you don't need to maintain eye contact for a period of time. A light appears, and it blinds anything and anyone within its radius," Harry said.

"Well, why don't people just close their eyes to it? It doesn't seem that effective if you are able to do that," Ron said, eating another roll. Hermione sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Wrong, Ron. The thing with the Raiden Curse is that you can't help but look at it. No matter how hard you try, you will be drawn to hold your eyes open and stare directly into it. It projects a sort of mind control. It's almost like magnetism. Or even a better example: when you sneeze. No matter how hard you try, you WILL close your eyes. It's almost like a moth is attracted to a lamp," Hermione said. Ron made a face. "You've got sauce on your cheek, Ron," Hermione said in a disgusted voice.

"Shove it, Mione."

"I love you, too," she said, smiling. Harry and Ginny laughed.

"That's the first time you've smiled all day, Ginny. What's on your mind?" Harry asked. Ginny seemed to jump at his words.

"Well, I saw something last night. I guess Voldemort has a new recruit or something. Plus, they're sending some girl on a mission in two days. That's all I could hear. Voldemort had that barrier up again," Ginny said.

"Where is this happening?" Lina asked, all of a sudden very attentive.

"I didn't hear. Voldemort has the power to let me hear what he deems necessary for me to hear. He somehow knows when I'm there now. I don't know how, though," Ginny said. They all nodded.

Down the table, Neve was working reading over some notes for Transfiguration. She half listening to the conversation involving some girl and Voldemort. When Voldemort's name was said, she felt Tommy tense beside her.

"Are you okay, Tommy?" Neve asked. Tommy jumped at her question and looked down at her. He smiled down at her shining eyes.

"Nothing, love. I just don't like hearing his name, you know? I haven't gotten quite used to it being said," Tommy lied. Neve nodded.

Across the Great Hall, both Draco and Ava were staring intently at the two. They were both eating almost mechanically. Then Draco dropped his fork loudly. Ava jumped and looked over at him.

"And why did you just do that?" she asked. Draco sighed. He pulled at Ava's sleeve. She stood up, and they walked outside of the Great Hall. He pushed her against the wall. Draco just stared at Ava and Ava stared right back at him. They stood like that for a moment. Then Ava's mouth dropped. "No," she whispered. Draco nodded. "Why?" she asked.

"It sort of just happened. I didn't mean for it to happen," Draco said. "And you need to stop cheating. If you'd waited, I would've just told you." Ava didn't seem to hear him.

"How do you not mean to do that? What? Did she just fall onto you?" Ava asked loudly. Draco's eyes widened.

"What are you trying to do? Get me caught? Keep your fucking voice down. She came and got me after Aurora and I had that row a while ago. We had a fight, and she asked me why I do what I do in protecting her. I started to say why, and then it just sort of happened. If it's any consolation, nothing else happened after that," Draco said. Ava was still in shock.

"No, it is not of any consolation. That was basically as bad it gets, Draco. Ooh, when Aurora finds out, you are dead. When Tommy finds out, you are dead. Either way it goes, you are going to die and long, slow, and painful death, Draco," Ava said. Draco looked at her.

"Gee, thanks for that joyful input, Ava. As for your brother, I think I can handle him," Draco said. Ava laughed outright.

"That is what you think, Draco. Tommy is a lot more powerful than he lets on. You just do not know it yet. Well, I will not tell anyone. By the way, did you two ever make up?" she asked.

"Tommy and I?" Draco looked confused.

"You and Tommy? No. That would almost be asking too much. I mean you and Aurora. She's been looking terrible these past couple of days."

"No. She's been avoiding me like a plague. She won't let me apologize to her," Draco said. Ava smirked. "I've gotta go talk to Potter," Draco said. Ava nodded and watched him walk away. Then, she felt a familiar coldness. Ava blinked just as every glass in the Great Hall broke. She turned around and saw everyone looking confused and dusting glass off of them. Then she turned and looked around the corner. No one was there, but she knew exactly who the culprit was. She sighed and walked off. Filch was laying into Peeves.

"I'll have you out of Hogwarts for this, Peeves!" he yelled. Ava smirked as she passed him.

Two days later, Harry and Ron were helping Professor Onsu and Aislin carry Aislin's trunks to the train. The two women were talking very fast and in hushed voices. Harry seemed to be having a hard time. Aislin told them they couldn't use magic and she'd give them extra points on the final they screwed up on. They agreed and were now paying dearly for not studying.

"I would like nothing more than to take my wand out right now," Ron said.

"Aislin, what do you have in here? Boulders?" Harry asked, dropping the trunk on a trolley. Ron followed suit as Aislin and Onsu turned. Aislin was smiling at them.

"You'll be all right, boys," Aislin said. The train station was rather crowded. There were a lot of students going home this Christmas because of the meeting later on in the break. In fact, the vast majority of the school was going. The five-minute whistle sounded.

"Well, you better hurry. Ron, take the trolley over there. Hurry before they shut it down," Onsu said. Ron nodded and was off, leaving Harry with the two teachers. Suddenly, a short but firm woman pushed past Harry. Harry saw a glimmer of something silver in her left hand. She bumped into Onsu. Harry saw the one eye that Onsu showed widen in pain. Harry saw the woman's hand twist in Onsu's chest. Then, just like that, the woman was gone. Harry looked at Onsu. Aislin was turning around.

"Catriona, do you think that..." Aislin looked at her friend. Onsu was barely breathing. She fell into her. Aislin looked at her chest and saw the blood staining her light blue robes. Onsu coughed, and blood sputtered out of her mouth. Harry just stood there. Onsu's eyes were glazing over.

"Aislin! Say a medical charm or something!" Harry yelled at his stunned teacher and friend. Aislin shook off her shock examined the wound as Ron came running up. People were beginning to crowd around them.

"I can't heal this. The wound is fatal. No. This can't be happening," Aislin whispered. She looked frustrated and confused at the same time. Onsu looked as if she was trying to say something. "What is it, Cat?" Aislin said, tears running down her face.

"Parchment... gone... information... in open... Tell... Kingsley... yes..." Catriona's eyes closed. Aislin was openly crying now. Harry didn't know what to do. The conductor of the train ran up. He began barking orders.

Aurora looked up. She looked off towards Hogsmeade. The red horizon seemed to tell the story of spilt blood.

"Something has happened," she whispered. Ginny looked over at her and then towards Hogsmeade. She saw the same thing.

"You're right," Ginny said.

"But what..." Lina said.

"The dark-haired twin has died," Ava whispered. They all looked at her. Ava looked at the sky. "It is written all over the sky. The blackness high in the sky, the light blue in between, and the red at the horizon."

"Onsu was wearing light blue, like the sky," Rina whispered. Ava nodded.

"Oh, no," Aurora said.