Armilla

Chapter 68

I didn't know whether Father's arrival back at the house was a good thing or not. If we had to duel, I wasn't sure if I preferred to do it in the house or outside. I had no idea what creatures lurked in the darkness outside.

Thinking quickly, I quietly used Rougier's wand to cast an invisible bubble shield around myself, just like the one I had used months ago when I had anticipated that Pansy Parkinson would attack me. I didn't like the feel of Rougier's wand. It followed my directions easily enough, but it didn't feel as strong as my own. Considering that strength came from within the person, my thoughts about the strength of the wand must have come from my discomfort at the foreign touch.

I made the decision to pocket the wand. If I appeared around the corner holding a wand then Father would know that I had attacked Rougier. I had to keep him from knowing that fact for as long as possible. At the moment, he would be completely oblivious.

Pushing the wand into one of the pockets of my robes, I went out into the main room where I found Father drinking a glass of water.

"Ah, Armilla," he said, when he caught sight of me. "Off to bed, are you?"

"Yes, Father," I replied. "You're back to stay now?"

He gave me a small smile, as he put the glass on the table. "I promise you that I am back for the entire night. I may have to go out again for a few hours in the morning, but you know that you will have Madame Rougier here with you."

I nodded. I was not about to get into another discussion about the fact that Rougier's presence afforded me little comfort, other than the occasional sarcastic remark that I had to keep to myself.

"Where is Madame Rougier?" Father asked, walking down the corridor.

"In the bathroom," I replied, walking after him. "She's going to bed too."

Father nodded as his opened his bedroom door. "As am I," he said. "Very well then. Goodnight my dear."

"Goodnight Father," I said softly, as he went into his bedroom and shut the door behind him. I didn't risk performing a locking charm on Father's door. Chances were Father would know an extensive range of unlocking charms, more complicated than Alohomora.

I stood in the corridor for a moment, contemplating what to do. Should I make a break for it now? What if Father suddenly came out again? Should I wait until I could be fairly certain that he'd be asleep? But maybe he would come out to use the bathroom.

I opened my bedroom door, waited a moment, and then closed it again without entering the room. At least if Father had heard it he would think that I had gone to bed.

I silently walked back into the main room and made my way over to the door, wondering if Father had locked it.

I tried the doorknob. It was locked. I took a deep breath in an effort to soothe my pounding heart, and then I took Rougier's wand out and cast an Alohomora.

Nothing happened.

Trying not to lose faith, I tried another unlocking spell, a slightly more complicated one that Snape had taught me. Snape was fairly innovative when it came to locking and unlocking charms.

Again, nothing happened.

I tried three more spells I knew before I started to feel desperate. I had to get out. Father could come out and discover me any second. What if I couldn't find a spell to get out and I ended up there all night? Father would come out in the morning and discover Rougier. Perhaps I would have to rescue Rougier in the middle of the night and obliviate her or something and then pretend nothing had happened. As it was, I was going to be in huge trouble if I didn't find a way out soon.

I started to occlude harder than ever to stop myself becoming emotional. There was no time for screaming insults at a locked door. But, if I didn't find a way out, then the use of Fred and George's Knockout Powder would have been for nothing. I had nothing else to help me escape.

I went to move my left hand to rub my head, which had begun to ache, but something got caught on my robes. Looking down, I saw that the locket on my bracelet had gotten caught on a loose piece of thread. With my right hand, I released it, and moved my wrist so I could have a closer look at the bracelet.

What good was it now? The bracelet would help protect me if I was in peril. It wouldn't save me from death, but I couldn't rely on it to give me some help until death was on the cards, and I prayed that death wasn't coming anytime soon.

I rubbed my thumb over the emerald on the locket. I knew the bracelet had many powers, but it had nothing that could help me now. How could I expect it to help me now? It hadn't done a thing when Shar had attacked me. My bracelet hadn't flashed then. Or had it? I would have to ask Snape...if I ever saw him again...

I looked down at the emerald locket that I now held between my index finger and thumb. What good are you now? I thought. Father won't let me go, but I need to get out. Why can't you do anything?

I suppressed a gasp as the emerald glowed and a small beam of light shot out of it.

What was this for? How would a beam of light help me?

My Ravenclaw instincts suddenly caught up with me. It wasn't casting a light so I could see. The light was used as a means of bringing out the bracelet's magic! To serve my purpose, I thought.

I aimed the beam of light at the keyhole. I heard a faint click as the door unlocked. I heaved a sigh of relief. I was free.

My heart pounding more than ever, I quietly opened the door and went out. The cold of the night hit me as soon as I went out. I had no idea if we were still in the same country. I closed the door behind me as softly as I could and then used the beam of light to lock the door again. As soon as I heard the lock move, the light vanished and the emerald stopped glowing.

I couldn't understand what had happened. I had been in tight spots before where I had needed to find an escape. Why hadn't the bracelet helped me then? I didn't think it was just a matter of touching the locket and urging it to meet my current needs. That seemed a little too easy. I couldn't fathom how it could have just unlocked the door to let me out. Why hadn't it helped me escape from Shar?

I shook my head. I had more important things to think about at the moment. I hadn't truly escaped yet. I was still on Father's grounds. I had to move away quickly. I feared Father might have put an alarm on his locking charm.

I cast the bubble charm on myself again and then moved quietly away into the darkness. I was quite far from the house before I broke into a run. I didn't know where I was going; I just had to get as far away from the house as I could. As I ran, the forest atmosphere seemed to become more intimidating. It could have been my imagination, but being alone in the forest made you much more anxious when it came to hearing strange noises. I met no creatures as I ran, but I didn't know if I was imagining the strange noises I kept hearing off in the distance behind me. Running at such a pace meant much more pain when I had to dodge between tree branches or bushes. The scrapes and cuts I received, as well as the few rips on my robes would have to wait.

Finally, when I could run no further, I slowed down to a walk, willing my pounding heart to return to normal. Several moments later, I stopped and leaned against a tree. I reached for my necklace and pressed my index fingers against the pearl. Though I had already sent a warning to Snape, having him receive another one would ensure him that I was still alive.

After seeing the pearl turn red, I tucked it away again. I didn't dare take my chocolate frog card out. I didn't think it would work on the grounds either, but I didn't know if any creatures sitting in the trees were acting as some sort of spies for my father. If that was the case, I had already exposed the pearl.

I sighed, rubbing my throbbing head. What to do now? I took out Rougier's wand and cast a locator spell. It wouldn't work. Nothing I could say would point me in the right direction.

Use the bracelet, a voice in my head said.

I was feeling a little doubtful, as having the bracelet help me again just seemed too lucky. However, I ignored my cynical side and reached down to rub the emerald again. Point me to an exit so I can escape Father, I thought.

The cynical side of my personality received a good bashing as the emerald glowed and omitted a faint green light that pointed towards my left. It lasted for a few seconds before vanishing.

There was nothing else to do except follow the guidance of the bracelet, so I broke off into a run in the direction in which the bracelet had indicated.

I ran for what felt like over half an hour, renewing my bubble charm every now and then. Occasionally I would slow down as my body screamed for me to stop. I hadn't had anything to eat or drink in such a long time. Finally I stopped long enough to conjure a small glass.

"Aguamenti," I said hoarsely, pointing Rougier's wand at the glass. It immediately became full of water and I drank it quickly before vanishing the glass.

I used the bracelet again to point me in the right direction. The beam of light showed that I was still going in the right direction.

I broke into a run again, ignoring the occasional sound of movement behind me. It seemed odd that I hadn't come face-to-face with a predator yet. My knowledge of dealing with magical creatures wasn't as good as it could be. I had no taken no interest in signing up for Hagrid's Care of Magical Creatures class. It might have helped me now if I suddenly came into contact with an animal. Perhaps Father had spent time casting charms to have them keep their distance.

I stopped suddenly when I heard a movement in the bushes ahead of me. I dove behind a large bush to my right. I waited for a moment, trying to determine if the sound was coming closer. A scraping noise told me it was and I held my breath, hoping that whatever it was wouldn't sense my presence.

The noise was becoming louder and I held my breath as I heard it slowly pass the bush I was hiding behind. The noise became a little fainter, and I quietly peered around the bush to see what it was before it disappeared. I wanted to be prepared for it if I came into contact with it again.

It was an Aethonan. I watched as the chestnut-coloured winged horse moved out of sight. If it had noticed my presence, it clearly wasn't interested.

I kept going for another ten minutes, wondering just how big this forest really was. It felt like I had been here for ages and ages. My Ravenclaw side tried to reason with me that I was feeling desperate and my mind was probably exaggerating the amount of time I had spent in the forest. All I wanted was to be home safely in my own bed in the dungeons at Hogwarts, knowing that Snape was out in the sitting room, absorbed in yet another potions journal. He seemed to have an endless amount of them.

I heard another movement, this time off to my right, and I quickly moved behind another bush to my left. Crouching down, my heart thumping, I waited silently.

There was no sound.

I waited for a few more moments, just to be safe.

Nothing.

I was about to straighten up when I heard another sound, no more than ten metres away from me.

"You may as well come out, Armilla," said my father's voice.

Oh no...

"The borders of these grounds are heavily warded. You have no chance of getting through them."

I stayed silent, pushing my mental shield up. I had no chance against my father without it. How had he been alerted that I was gone?

I remained in my crouched position. Father's voice was now coming in a direction in front of the bush I was hiding behind. Perhaps he was just bluffing. Maybe he couldn't really see me.

Oh excuse me, said my cynical voice, I may have been defeated once already tonight, but don't give way and think optimistically for the rest of the night. You need me.

"My primary concern is for your safety, Armilla," Father went on. "I understand that you may be feeling frightened at the moment. I do hope you have only left the house because you were feeling desperate with the situation...I hope my company wasn't anything to do with it."

I had left for many reasons, and Father's company had certainly been on the list.

"Perhaps you can enlighten me as to why you decided to leave," he continued. "You know I would do everything within my power to protect you. Perhaps Madame Rougier had something to do with it. If it means that much to you then I could ah...dispose...of the woman and bring in Jiffy to watch over you. Now Jiffy does not have the governess experience of dear Zita, but he watched over Severus many a time for me when he was a child."

I suppressed a shudder at the thought. I wondered if Father had found Rougier or if he had run from the house without looking for her.

"I have told you that there is no possibility of you leaving these grounds." Father's voice was becoming harder with every word. "But even if you could leave, remember this, child. You leave these grounds and you marry Draco Malfoy. Do not consider this emotional blackmail because it is a fact. You leave here and you will become a Malfoy. The Dark Lord promised this to Lucius if he was successful. Severus won't be able to help you, no matter how much you think he loves you."

I didn't care. I would rather Snape try to handle the situation over my father.

"Do I not have your love, my dear child?" His voice rang out a little louder than before. "The love you believe Severus feels towards you is a product of your imagination. Severus does not love you. He only shares guardianship as a means of keeping you from me. You are nothing more than a weapon to use as blackmail in his eyes. Do not fool yourself that you really mean something to Severus."

I blocked out the harsh words. I didn't come close to believing them. I wondered if he knew exactly where I was, or if he was bluffing.

"Your conscience should urge you to be a faithful daughter and abide by your father's wishes. If it is punishment you fear, then you may be at ease. I have already said that I understand that you are frightened. Come out, Armilla, and I will take you back to safety."

I remained where I was. I knew I couldn't wait forever. Father would not return to the house without me by his side.

"I have been patient, Armilla," he said. "I do know where you are."

Damn. Was he bluffing? My cynical and optimistic sides were having a fierce battle.

Father let out a sigh. "Armilla, I may not be able to see you," he said very clearly, "but I know that you're behind the bush about seven or eight metres in front of me. Would you prefer me to come and get you or are you independent enough to come out yourself?"

I won, said the cynical side.

I had to come out sooner or later. The moment had come to put the results of my brother's teaching to the test. I had been strengthening my duelling shield for months. I had been hoping that I would never have to use it in a real duel.

The bubble shield I had cast was still intact, but had become very weak. One hex would make it vanish. I would have my mental shield underneath for protection. I held Rougier's wand tightly in my own and jumped out from behind the bush.

"Stupefy!" I shouted, pointed my wand at the figure in the darkness, a short distance away.

A red light burst out from the wand and went straight at the figure. It seemed to bounce off and ended up vanishing. So my father had his own range of shields.

"There is no need for this," said Father calmly, not even bothering to raise his own wand, which I could see in his right hand. "I have no wish to duel with you, child. I would rather take you back to the house."

I concentrated harder on my own mental shield. "I won't go," I said through clenched teeth, pointing my wand at him. "Expelliarmus!"

Father raised his wand and deftly blocked the disarming charm. "You will go," he said severely.

"No," I said. "Stupefy!"

Like before, the spell backfired once it had reached Father. He must have had some sort of shield in place to block immobilising charms.

"My patience is growing very thin, Armilla," he said, his voice deadly quiet. "Put that wand down at once and come here."

"No. Fernunculus!"

The spell backfired, just like the previous one had. Maybe Father had just blocked the disarming charm to show me how easy and trivial he found it.

"Enough, Armilla!" said Father sharply. "I have refrained from using magic on you, but I will not hesitate to if you do not cease this ridiculous behaviour at once."

I ignored him. "Locomotor Mortis!"

Again, the spell backfired, but my intent was to hit his shield enough times so that it would gradually weaken and fail. I knew that Father was tired. It was my hope that his reaction time and delivery would be a lot slower.

"Did you not hear me, Armilla?" Father roared, beside himself with rage. "How dare you defy me? I said enough!"

"Fernunculus! Fernunculus!" I yelled, all the while keeping my mental shield intact. I couldn't be sure that it was as strong as it could be considering that Father wasn't putting it to the test.

"Expelliarmus!" Father shouted, finally pointing his wand at me.

My shield blocked it with no trouble. I wasn't about to feel smug about it; I hadn't had the challenge of casting spells and blocking hexes at the same time.

"Clever, aren't we?" Father sneered, moving closer. "Severus has been teaching you, I see."

"Stupefy!" I screamed.

Father blocked both of these as before, but I noticed a bit of strain on his face now that he was closer.

"Stupefy!" I yelled again, hoping against hope that this was weakening Father's magical strength.

"You like that one, don't you," he said coldly. "I see that is Rougier's wand you have there. Am I to assume that's she's immobilised in the bathroom? What a clever daughter I have."

"Impedimenta!" I bellowed. The spell didn't work, but this time Father staggered slightly and I pressed my advantage. "Stupefy!"

The spell still backfired, but Father was now panting.

I kept going. "Stupefy!"

"Petrificus Totalus!" he shouted at the same time.

The spell hit my shield, which wavered slightly, letting me know that I had better strengthen it if I didn't want to be hit.

"Fernunculus!" I hollered.

"Stupefy!" Father shouted. He seemed to have found some strength.

My shield deftly blocked the spell this time; the increased strength I had given it seemed to be working. I just hoped it wouldn't weaken my hex delivery. I had spent months practising to be rid of this problem.

"Petrificus Totalus!" I yelled, as Father cast the Confundus Charm at me. Again, my shield blocked it.

We went on like this for a long time. Every now and then it seemed like I wasn't far off defeating Father, because he would stumble slightly, but still manage to block my spells. But then, after thinking that he was becoming tired, Father would prove me wrong and find some magical strength from somewhere.

I knew we were both getting tired. We couldn't go on like this all night. One of us had to fail. I was determined that it was not going to be me. However, my throbbing head was screaming at me to stop. If the pain got much worse then the strength of my shield would give way.

"Are you ready to be civil?" said Father finally, after another few minutes.

"No," I said. "Incarcerous!"

Father blocked it with ease. "You are being ridiculous, Armilla," he said, slightly breathless. "You have proven your talent at duelling; I will have to thank your dear brother for that. However, it is time to put this nonsense aside and go back to the house."

"No," I said firmly. "Fernunculus!"

Father blocked it, and then stood glowering at me. "Do you think this is a game, Armilla? Are you hoping to beat me at a trivial duel? I am not about to have a serious duel with my sixteen-year-old child."

Ha! I knew he had duelled with Snape at that age. "Petrificus Totalus!"

Father tried to give me a bored look as he blocked the spell, but his panting grew a little heavier. "I am growing tired of your childish behaviour."

Again, I ignored him. Talking to me was a way of distracting me. I didn't want to risk the strength of my shield. My throbbing head was already compromising it. "Stupefy!"

If Father had seemed angry before, he now looked completely enraged. "Very well. Have it your way. I have warned you. Crucio!"

The curse hit with a great deal of force. Of course, Snape had never used this spell on me whilst we'd been practising, and so the shield faltered for a moment before I found the strength to renew it. With all my might, I raised my wand again. "Stupefy!"

Father sneered as he blocked it, though he was panting more than ever. "Had enough? Crucio!"

Again, the curse hit with an incredible force and all my concentration was put into keeping the shield up. I knew I didn't have the strength to cast a hex at the same time. My head was already throbbing too much.

One look at my father told me that it was serving to my advantage that he was using the Cruciatus Curse. Casting Unforgivables required more magical energy and strength. The more Father used the curse, the faster his energy would drain and then I would be able to defeat him. All I needed to do was keep the shield up long enough to fend off the curse. I had to keep antagonising him.

"Incarcerous!"

Father blocked it, still panting. "The sooner you stop this, Armilla, the sooner we can go back to the house. Crucio!"

A pain was now shooting through my head, and it was all I could do to keep the shield in place. It trembled more than once, but I held it up. It was becoming too difficult. My own magical strength was waning. It was too hard to hold off such a powerful curse. My only light was that the curse must have been draining Father. Hopefully before long he wouldn't be able to cast it. Then I would take the advantage...as long as I still had the strength. The shield shook violently, and then failed, and I felt pain like I had never experienced before. I was suddenly on the ground and every inch of my body felt like it was on fire. I held off screaming because I didn't want my father to have that satisfaction. But before long, my own pride came crashing down and I screamed like never before. I wanted it to stop.

"Finite Incantatem," I heard Father say.

The pain disappeared as quickly as it had come. Despite my aching body, I got up onto my knees to find that Father was also on his knees, breathing heavily. He looked ready to fall into unconsciousness. Finally hitting me with the spell must have been the last straw for his strength.

"I am disgusted with myself that I had to use an Unforgivable on my own daughter," he said, panting. "But I did warn you, Armilla. I hope you are ready to conduct yourself properly now."

"Yes, I am," I whispered. I raised Rougier's wand, my arm shaking terribly from the effects of the curse. "Stupefy!"

Father let out a moan as the spell hit him. The spell didn't work, but I could tell that whatever shield Father had in place was failing. "Stop, child," he said breathlessly. "Stop."

I repeated the spell, trying to gather all the strength I could muster. "Stupefy!"

Again, Father let out a moan. "No more," he said, his eyes closed. He dropped his wand onto the ground and brought his hands up to cover his face. "Stop, Armilla."

"I am not finished," I said, sneering at the helpless form that was now my father. "Stupefy!"

Finally giving way to my spell, Father slumped onto the ground, clearly unconscious. "Incarcerous," I said, and I watched in satisfaction as black cords bound my father.

"I think I might add a new chapter to your favourite book, Father," I whispered, staring at his unconscious form. "I think a chapter on duelling is just what The Role of a Pureblood Witch needs."

I walked over and picked up Father's wand from the ground. I pocketed it; there was no way that I was going to leave it there. Now all I needed was my own wand back. Hopefully it was still in Father's robes. I noticed that he had pulled on his robes over his pyjamas.

"Accio my wand!" I said. At once I heard a crumpling sound as my wand forced its way out of one of Father's pockets. As my wand flew into my hand, I noticed that two other things had come out of Father's pocket due to the movement, and were now lying on the ground beside him.

I didn't touch them. I could see very clearly what they were. There was a small violet, a little flat, but still quite fresh. The sight of it made me think of the conversation I had had very recently with my brother. I could hear Snape's voice in my head.

"Mother's middle name is Ianthe, which means violet flower, and Mother's favourite flowers were violets. Father would leave violets around the house for her."

Next to the violet was a photo of my parents on their wedding day. They were both smiling, but Mother's was more of a nervous smile. She looked beautiful. Father looked much the same as he did now, except that his face was less lined and his hair was black instead of grey.

So Father carried these items on him. A sentimental Slytherin it seemed. Or just one who missed his wife. No matter how unhappy he had made my mother, it seemed that Father had loved her.

With my wand, I directed the items back into Father's pocket. I wasn't sure why I did it, but it just felt right to do it.

I charmed Father's body so that it moved behind a bush and out of sight. Whatever happened to him after that was no longer my concern.

I let out a deep sigh. Now it was back to trying to find a way out. My body was aching all over, but it was my headache that seemed to be the worst. The blinding pain was starting to make things a bit fuzzy.

I used my bracelet again to find the right path and I was soon jogging, trying to ignore the protests of my body. It was not safe to linger. It would take more time than I was willing to risk to stop and heal everything. I seemed to have received more injuries from the sticks and rocks on the grounds whilst I was under the Cruciatus Curse. I could feel blood tricking down the side of my face, as well as on my legs and right hand.

It was nothing though. My shield had failed in the end, but I had still defeated Father. Actually, said the cynical side again, you wouldn't have beaten him if he hadn't been so exhausted and magically drained. You would have failed.

It was true, I would admit it. I wasn't about to think myself an exceptionally powerful witch. I wasn't. It was true that I had more skills and control over my magic than many other witches and wizards in my year, but that had only come about as a result of Snape's training. I was not invincible. Far from it. But, I had managed to hold Father off a lot longer than I would have been able to if I had had no shield in place, and that counted for something.

All the same, my shield clearly needed more work. Snape had delivered strong hexes before and I had just managed to hold them off, but Unforgivables were something different.

I continued jogging for ages, until I had to stop to conjure myself some water again. I had just vanished the glass when I heard movement behind me.

I whipped around and came face-to-face with a grey bony creature very much like the ones I had seen at Hogwarts. A Thestral!

For a moment we just stared into each other's eyes. I didn't know a great deal about Thestrals, so I wasn't sure how I was supposed to act. I hadn't actually seen one until after Merle died, and Snape had needed to explain to me why I had suddenly noticed them. I believed they were fairly harmless. After all, when he had explained why I could see them, Snape had made reference to the fact that he had once ridden one.

The Thestral suddenly moved closer to me and started licking the blood that was still running down my right hand.

"Ew, stop," I said, moving my hand away. "That's disgusting."

I could have sworn the creature shook its head at me in disagreement. Perhaps it did understand what I was saying.

I walked away, hoping it would leave me alone. Licking blood away for me was not a help.

I turned around after about ten steps and saw that the creature was watching me. I continued walking in the direction my bracelet had shown, hoping the creature would go back to whatever it had been doing before it had found me. I didn't know enough about Thestrals to know if they could get dangerous.

I started to jog again, hoping I was coming closer to the exit, and I suddenly heard a galloping sound coming from behind me. I stopped and whirled around to see the Thestral running towards me. It stopped at my side and bent down to lick at the blood on my leg.

"You know, this is not very hygienic," I commented, watching the creature. It really seemed to be enjoying itself.

"If you have to follow me for my blood, then you can wait until I find the border," I said, beginning to walk again.

The Thestral seem happy to walk beside me, and every now and then it would try and get close enough to lick my leg while it walked. I certainly wasn't enjoying the experience.

We walked for another ten minutes, not coming into contact with any creatures. I wasn't sure whether or not to be unsettled about this fact.

I was just thinking about a creature finding my father when all of a sudden I could walk no further, and it seemed the Thestral couldn't either. It was like an invisible force was pushing me back. I could see the trees becoming less dense up ahead, but it was too dark to see beyond that. In a way, it was a good thing that I was escaping in the middle of the night; daylight may not have been too much of a help. It would not be light for hours yet.

"I guess we've reached the wards," I muttered. I raised my wand and attempted a few spells, knowing perfectly well that it was no use. Father had spent hours putting them in place. He wouldn't have left any loopholes.

"Any ideas?" I said to the Thestral.

It looked up at me for a moment, and then chose to lick my right hand again.

"No, I meant any ideas for an escape," I said, annoyed. "Not any ideas for what you want to do now."

It continued to lick my hand, and I sighed. Looking ahead of me, I put my hand up and pushed. My arm met something solid, but invisible. I would have cursed, but I had already been in a similar situation tonight, and something had helped me get through.

The bracelet.

I looked down at it.

"I need you again," I said. "I have no idea why you've chosen to help me all of a sudden, but I need you again."

I shook my other hand free of the Thestral's tongue so I could rub the emerald again. I need a way through the wards, I thought.

Nothing happened.

"Oh come on," I said indignantly. I rubbed it again. Please show me a way through the wards.

Again, nothing happened.

I sighed in frustration. "You helped me before," I said desperately. "Why won't you help me now? You wouldn't help me when Shar attacked me either."

Why though? It had seemed the bracelet only helped when I asked it to. But it wasn't helping me now. What was I doing differently?

"What did I say before that I'm not saying now?" I muttered, staring down at the Thestral, who was now happily licking my leg again.

The first time it had helped me, I had told it that I needed a way out and Father wouldn't let me go. The times after that I had asked it to point me to the exit so I could escape my father...

Father.

I was wearing the bracelet because I was a pureblood witch. The bracelet could only be passed down to a pureblood family member. The locket could only be opened by another direct pureblood family member. My mother had used it to save my life as baby, to protect another pureblood family member. There seemed to be a theme. All forms of magic surrounding the bracelet seemed to be in relation to pureblood family members. Could it be that the bracelet could also be used to protect one from another pureblood family member?

I rubbed the emerald again. I need a path through the wards to escape from my father, I thought.

I wasn't surprised when a beam of green light shot out from the bracelet once more.

The Thestral looked up, clearly interested.

"To get through the wards," I said to it, moving the beam in front of me so it faced the wards.

Nothing seemed to happen. Obviously there was no keyhole to use this time. If there was no door, then how was I supposed to break the wards?

Make a door, I thought.

Feeling a little doubtful, I held my left wrist in my bleeding right hand to keep the beam steady, and I moved my arm so that I could draw the outline of a door with the beam. The outline I drew glowed green.

"Well, here goes," I murmured. I put out a hand and found that I could put it right through the doorway that I had created. Breathing a sigh of relief, I walked through the door. I turned around to find that the Thestral had decided to come too.

"You're sure you want to come?" I asked. "I have no idea where we are."

It responded by licking my hand again.

"Come on," I said, taking my chocolate frog out. We began to walk and I looked behind me to see that the doorway had sealed itself. The light on my bracelet had also vanished.

I tried to activate the chocolate frog card. We were no longer on my father's warded grounds, so I was hoping the card would work.

It didn't. After all that had just happened, it was strange that I was suddenly feeling emotional over not being able to activate the card. Maybe everything was just catching up with me.

I tried to be logical about it. Perhaps there were still traces of the wards around the surrounding area, so activating the card wouldn't work.

We continued walking like before, and I was growing more and more exhausted. My head was throbbing so badly that my vision out of the corners of my eyes was fuzzy.

I could tell we were coming to the edge of the forest. The trees were much further apart, but I couldn't see ahead of me.

As we came closer to the edge, I could hear the sound of running water. We must have been near a lake or something. Moving closer, I could finally make out water up ahead. As far as I could tell, it went on for ages and I was at a dead end.

I looked down at the Thestral as we walked. "We'll need to find another way to- Ahhh!"

The flat ground we had been walking on suddenly finished without warning and I fell down a couple of metres and landed on wet sand.

It could have been worse. I was lucky not to hear the sound of a breaking leg. Not being able to walk would have really been a problem. Instead, I had put my right hand out to stop my fall and had landed on it. I thought I must have broken my wrist instead. The pain was bad, but nothing like the effects of the Cruciatus Curse.

I moaned quietly, holding my wrist in my other hand. I looked up to see the Thestral flap its wings. It glided down the couple of metres towards me.

"Show off," I muttered.

I rubbed the emerald on my bracelet again, wincing with pain, and asked it to point me in the right direction, being sure to insist that it was still on the grounds of escaping my father.

Nothing happened.

The bracelet couldn't be fooled. The fact that it hadn't worked had told me that I was now safe from my father. Instead, I tried another tactic.

Please point me in the right direction so that I can go home safely to Severus, I thought.

Once again, the green beam came out and it pointed up high in front of me, over the lake and up in the sky.

The Thestral settled on the wet sand next to me and looked expectantly at my right hand again.

"You can't lick it anymore," I said, still wincing from the pain. The light of the bracelet vanished. Why had it pointed towards the sky?

"I can't swim across there," I said faintly, looking at the water. I knew I wouldn't be able to swim with a broken wrist. Actually, even if I hadn't broken it, I wouldn't have trusted myself in the water when my vision was going a bit strange.

"We've got to go up in the sky," I said wearily, looking at the Thestral. "That just sounds ridiculous. I know you can fly, but you wouldn't have a broomstick on you, would you?" Had I just said that? Maybe I was delirious.

The Thestral used its head to nudge me, and then got up, still looking expectantly at me.

"At least you can fly," I murmured. "Can you fly away and get Severus for me?"

It reached down again and nudged me with its head. Then it stood up to its full height and flapped its wings.

"Oh no," I said at once. "Thankyou for the offer, but I am not flying on you. I may be able to hold my own on a broomstick, but Thestrals are a different matter altogether."

The Thestral nudged me again, and then flapped its wings as before.

"No way," I said. "I'll fall off. There's got to be another way."

I rubbed the emerald again. Show me what means I can use to get home safely to Severus.

To my dismay, the beam of light pointed straight at the Thestral.

When the light had vanished, I got up and looked pointedly at the creature. "You and the bracelet are in on this together, aren't you? Death by falling off a flying horse." Yes, definitely delirious.

"Well I suppose if Severus can ride one, I can. I won't have him thinking that I can't do it."

I conjured up a strip of material and bound it around my right wrist as best I could.

"I don't know how to ride you," I said, looking at the Thestral. "I don't even know how to mount you."

It suddenly sat down again so it would be easy for me climb onto its back. I knew by now that the creature did understand me.

I got on and gripped tightly onto the dark mane. I moved around a bit until I felt secure enough. I had to keep my knees firmly lodged behind the wing joints so I wouldn't fall.

"Just be careful," I said faintly, leaning over close to the mane. "I'm only holding on with one good arm, so don't fly too fast. Take me to Hogwarts, but keep out of harm's way."

The Thestral got up slowly and I gripped tighter than ever, my nerves at an all time peak. I had just duelled with my father, and now I was scared?

The creature extended its wings, crouched for a moment, and then took off into the night at an almighty pace.

"I said not too fast!" I protested, absolutely terrified. But there seemed to be something holding me in place. I knew that I wouldn't fall. I looked down at the emerald on my bracelet. It wasn't flashing, but I was sure it had something to do with why I was suddenly feeling so secure.

"Riding Thestrals," I said faintly, closing my eyes so I wouldn't have to look at the water down below. "Another thing to add to The Role of a Pureblood Witch."