Trusting the Enemy

Chapter Three

Allison backed up against the nearest wall in horror, shrieking hysterically. Just then Remus rounded the last corner, skidding slightly.

“Bloody hell...” he whispered in a terror stricken awe.

Which was, Allison later reflected, quite the perfect description of the ghastly scene that met their eyes.

The broken body of a girl lay in a pool of blood, her blonde hair matted and her robes torn. There were deep slashes on her arms and chest, and her throat had been cleanly slitted.

It was a gruesome sight.

Yet Allison was unable to look away. It was as if some force compelled her to stare at the macabre spectacle, and she was helpless to fight it.

There was something vaguely familiar about the girl, something that Allison couldn’t quite put her finger on.

The she realized the truth.

“Maggie,” Allison whispered, horror struck.

Remus stared at the mangled mess in pure terror.

“Is she... is she....” he broke off, as if unable to say the words. Finally, he managed a barely audible, “Is she dead?”

Allison shuddered with fear.

There was a terrible cry behind them. Both Allison and Remus whirled around in time to see Carmen collapse in a dead faint, hitting the floor with a thud when Jen, eyes widened in shock and repulsion, failed to catch her.

Sirius, not far behind Jen, stopped dead. He swore loudly.

All four conscious students looked at each other, a mixture of horror and apprehension in their faces.

A sharp voice filled the corridor.

“What is the meaning of this?” Professor McGonagall demanded, appearing suddenly, wand in hand, dressed in a flannel night dress. Then she noticed the body.

“Oh, my God,” she gasped.

Lily rushed past McGonagall, and, upon reaching Allison, hugged her tightly.

“Thank God you’re okay,” she panted, adding, “I heard you screaming, and...and...” But something in Allison’s eyes made her stop. Allison pointed wordlessly to Maggie.

Lily glanced, and screeched in panic.

“What in the devil’s name happened?” James demanded, standing beside Remus. He must have come in straight after Lily, Allison noted.

“I would like to know the same,” McGonagall said shakily, face pale. Then, regaining her composition slightly, she inquired curtly, “Who was here first?”

Remus pointed to Allison. He seemed temporarily mute.

“Is that true?” McGonagall questioned her sharply. Allison nodded dumbly, not yet understanding the significance of this.

She glanced at McGonagall, waiting for her next question. But McGonagall wasn’t speaking, or even moving. She was staring at Allison in complete shock and dread. Indeed, it seemed as if all assembled were eying Allison in apprehension, misbelief etched across their faces.

“Allison...” Lily whispered in a small, frightened voice. “Allison, your hands....”

Allison looked down at her own hands.

Her own, bloodstained hands.

Allison stared at her friends in panic.

“I didn’t do it,” she whispered in terror. Lily took a few steps back, looking at Allison as though she was a madwoman. Jen was shaking her head, her eyes filled with uncharacteristic tears.

Allison couldn’t stand it. She hadn’t done a thing. Maybe she wasn’t best friends with Maggie, but she was always nice to her. Why would she kill her? Why would she kill anybody? Her friends knew she hated violence. Her friends knew she was innocent, knew she couldn’t possibly had done a thing like this.... So why were they suddenly acting as if she was a murderer?

“I didn’t do it!’ she yelled hysterically. “ I wasn’t even here when she screamed! I was with Lupin in the trophy room! He can tell you so! Tell them I was with you,” she begged Remus tearfully. But Remus backed away from Allison, his hands in front of him, as though she might suddenly run at him and attack.

“Professor...” Lily choked out, then, finding her voice, said, “Professor, it wasn’t Allison. Allison couldn’t possibly have done a thing this....this.....” Lily struggled to find the right word. “Evil,” Jen finished for her, adding, “You know Allison, Professor. Do you think she would ever do a thing like this?” she demanded angrily, as though offended that McGonagall would ever even suspect Allison.

So they were finally beginning to come to their senses, Allison thought to herself. It had taken them long enough.

That’s what worried Allison.

“Even so, I’m afraid that she does seem to be the most logical suspect,” McGonagall replied in a voice devoid of emotion. Allison felt her heart skip a beat. She? She was a suspect? For murder, no less. How could they do this to her? How dare they think she had anything at all to do with this?

Allison mouthed soundlessly, unable to put her emotions into words. Finally, seeing that McGonagall wasn’t about to waver her judgment, Allison hung her head and dropped her two bloody hands by her sides, preparing to go quietly so as not to cause more of scene than was necessary.

Sirius shook his head ruefully as McGonagall began to lead Allison away both Lily and Jen protesting in anguish.

“It wasn’t her, Professor. McShanen wasn’t even the first person here,” he said quietly.

All turned to stare at him.

“What do you mean, Black?” McGonagall asked in alarm.

Sirius raised his head to look her straight in the eye.

“McShanen wasn’t here first. I was.”

*********************

All present turned to stare at him. Jen tried not to show her shock and surprise, but the was the last straw for Allison, who slumped down onto the floor, knees hugged to her chest as she leaned against the wall, away from the body.

But Professor McGonagall wasn’t through with her yet. “Is this true, McShanen?” she demanded sharply, glancing at the trembling girl.

“I don’t know, I just don’t know,” she moaned.

“Professor, I think Allison should be taken to the Hospital Wing, it’s obvious she’s in shock,” Lily said as calmly as she could under the present circumstances.

“And Carmen too,” Jen pointed to Carmen’s limp form on the floor, and had a crazy desire to laugh when she pictured how indignant Carmen would be when she learned she had fainted.

Professor McGonagall nodded, and was about to ask one of the Slytherins to carry Carmen when Jen scooped her up off the floor. Lily had placed a hand under Allison’s left elbow, and had helped her up. Allison went quietly with her without any struggle, although normally she would be protesting, even whining, and Jen realized with a shock that there were tears streaming down her face. All the color had drained from her face, and she seemed almost apprehensive, as if there would be another body around the corner. Jen felt a jolt of sadness as she remembered the Allison of five hours earlier; joking about how much Jen and Carmen were going to torture Sirius, and chasing Carmen around the room as she delicately hinted to Tim that Allison might just like him. What had happened to that Allison? And was she ever coming back? Jen didn’t think she could stand it if she didn’t.

**********************

Madam Pomfrey rushed towards them as they opened the door, with her usual remarks about the scandalous condition students were coming to her in. Lily watched dumbly as she placed Carmen in a bed, checking for injuries first. She was about to turn to Allison when Professor McGonagall entered the Hospital Wing and hurried over to Madam Pomfrey, exchanging a few anxious words with her before turning towards Lily and Jen.

“What’s going on, Professor?” Jen asked politely. McGonagall sighed.

“I questioned Black, but there wasn’t enough evidence to detain him for any further questioning, and his wand wasn’t in his possession. He will be closely watched, however, but if nothing presents itself as suspicious, we will have to dismiss this incident.”

Lily glanced at Jen to see her reaction to this, but Jen seemed strangely devoid of emotion; it was as if she was outside her body somewhere, or else just deep in thought. “And the girl?”

“Maggie Farqueson, Hufflepuff, sixth year,” McGonagall replied heavily.

Lily felt sick inside. Maggie? The same Maggie they had seen crying at breakfast? The Maggie that Lily had prevented Potter from bullying? The Maggie that always seemed to be smiling, laughing with her friends?

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Madam Pomfrey’s footsteps approaching the three of them. Her face appeared pale and strained.

“Well?” McGonagall asked impatiently. Pomfrey sighed.

“I would like to keep her for the night, although no injuries present themselves at this time. She does, however, appear to have suffered some emotional trauma, and is now in shock. She should, however, be perfectly normal by tomorrow. Tonight, however, I will give her something to help her sleep.”

Lily felt her shoulders sag in relief. Even Jen looked slightly better. McGonagall, however, still had her eagle-like gaze fixated on Pomfrey. Pomfrey sighed heavily, and when she spoke, her voice was filled with regret.

“I found her wand on her.”

Lily sat bolt upright as she looked from McGonagall to Pomfrey and back to McGonagall, whose face was expressionless.

“Professor!” she cried, “You can’t possibly think Allison did it!”

“Everything does seem to point towards her,” McGonagall said quietly.

“But what about Black’s statement that he was the one to discover the body?” Jen asked, her voice half panicked, half confused.

“Again, we have only his word for that.”

“Surely you don’t think he was covering up for her?” Lily asked, stunned.

“It is possible.”

“But he’s in Slytherin!” Jen said angrily. “A Slytherin cover up for a Gryffindor? Not on you life!”

“She is uncommonly good-looking.....” McGonagall murmured.

Lily couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Allison, of all people Allison..... Lily glanced at Jen, who looked liable to explode at any second.

McGonagall seemed to have noticed too, and stood up quickly. She nodded to Pomfrey, who had been watching the unfolding drama with interest, and said “When you are finished with McShanen, go and attend to the girl. Do what you can for her corpse.”

Pomfrey nodded solemnly, and McGonagall exited. Then she turned to Jen and Lily. “I would suggest you go back to your common room,” she said gently.

“Please, Madam Pomfrey, can’t we see Allison?” Lily pleaded, but Pomfrey shook her head. “The stuff I’m giving her will knock her out in five minutes flat. It would be hardly worth it.”

Lily bit her lip in indecision, but after a moment she realized that if they were going to find anything at all about the murder, they would have to rise early in the morning and examine the corridor. It was a main corridor, so at any other time of day it would be jammed full of students, or, if the body had yet to be removed, Filch, the caretaker, would be guarding it.

She glanced at Jen, and it was clear she was thinking along the same lines as Lily.

“All right,” Lily sighed, acting as though she hated the thought of leaving. She motioned to Jen, who followed her out the door, leaving Allison alone in the Hospital Wing.

************************

Allison gulped down the potion Madam Pomfrey had given her without tasting it. She felt numb inside, as if nothing of what had happened was real, as if it was all a dream. Or, more accurately, a nightmare.

Allison watched Madam Pomfrey leave the Hospital Wing out of the corner of her eye, and glanced at the still unconscious form of Carmen on the other end of the wing.

She was sitting at the edge of her bed, the small mirror on the bedside table pulled towards her as she brushed her hair with a hairbrush that had been provided by Madam Pomfrey.

Allison felt extremely tired, and she guessed that the potion had been one to make it sleep. Well, it was working. She was already falling asleep, and the rhythmic strokes of brushing her hair wasn’t helping. But sleep was what she wanted, wasn’t it? To go to sleep and forget all that had happened? To forget the fear....

Allison felt her body slowly lean to one side, and she guessed that any second her head would hit the pillow; though she would probably be asleep before then.....

“So,” a cold, cruel voice rang out, “being suspected for murder now, are we?”

Allison sat bolt upright, staring about her in panic.

But there was no one in the wing, except for Carmen, who was blissfully unaware of her surroundings.

Slowly Allison brought her eyes back around to the mirror, which she was still facing. But she saw only her reflection....

But it couldn’t be her reflection, she thought with a jolt. Not with that menacing look in her eyes, not with that cruel smile that twisted her lips.......

Realization dawned on her.

“You,” she gasped.