Chimaera of Judgement



CHAPTER ELEVEN: Vistas And Vexations

An aspect of the depressing events in Hogsmeade (they were now calling it the Puddifoot Fiasco) did not occur to Albus until the following Tuesday. They were in Transfiguration when he presented a query to Rose, hoping for some insight - and although he was not disappointed, he very soon wished he had not asked.

"As soon as I told Jezabel the truth," he confided, absentmindedly poking at the slug he was supposed to be casting his Vanishing Spell on, "she acted like she didn't want me around anymore."

"Well, obviously."

"But- but why? I tried to tell her it was all Malfoy's doing, yet she was still upset with me."

"What?" To his annoyance, Rose laughed at him. "Oh, come on, Al, don't be thick."

"I'm not! I honestly don't get it, what did I do wrong?"

"Er, well..." She sighed impatiently, casting a wary glance at where Professor Abbott was helping Ryan Macmillan with his wand movement; as always, he looked displeased to be in Transfiguration, as Albus knew it was his least-favourite subject. "You did some insensitive things, but mostly you were smart - you backed off when she asked, you get loads of points, there."

"But- but what do you mean? When was I insensitive?"

"When you forgot to assure her that while you didn't write that note, it's not because you wouldn't."

"What? Of course I wouldn't, it was an awful thing to do!"

"No, you bloody-" She broke off as their teacher ran by to assist Wayne Elphinstone with his slug, which was ballooning rapidly. "Okay, let's put it this way: before she knew it was a hoax, getting that invitation must have made her feel good, right?"

"Er... I guess so?"

She squeezed her eyes shut, possibly trying not to beat him about the head for being so slow. "When you told her it was a fib, she realised you hadn't wanted to see her at all. No wonder she'd rather you went away, it must have been a great let-down for her, and dead embarrassing."

"Oh, so- ohh..." And the light flickered on at last.

"Al, what if a girl you fancied asked you out on a date, and you showed up, only to find out she didn't even remember your name?"

"I'd feel like leaping into a fire without Floo powder," he mumbled.

At last, she nodded in a satisfied manner. "Exactly."

"You don't..." Albus jerked wildly, nearly sending his slimy lesson object to the floor. "D'you reckon that girl, Jezabel... fancies me?" When Rose only shrugged, he slumped down in his chair. "But- this is- I- blimey..."

"Hey, even if she doesn't," she whispered, pausing to distractedly Vanish her slug (which became half of one at that point), "she must have been flattered. Well, before she found out you don't care she's alive, anyway."

"Don't say that," he said defensively. "It's like she said back on the Express, we're in different grades, different houses! How'm I supposed to care about her if I never see her around?"

"Oi, don't kill the messenger!" she said huffily. "Frankly, I think she's batty, but I can at least appreciate why she ran off on you like-"

"Are we having a nice chat?" Professor Abbott asked pleasantly, leaning down to stare at them intently.

Albus did knock his slug to the floor this time. "P-professor, we-"

"Didn't mean to interrupt such an involved conversation, of course, but I thought you may want to know about the extra essays you two will be doing. Also, how I'll be needing them by tomorrow morning."

They both groaned.

"Oh, don't whinge," she sighed, straightening up. "I could have handed you detentions, you know, but I think eight inches on why gossip belongs in the common room will suffice."

Sensing the indignant response Rose was about to fire off, Albus stomped on her foot under the table, and she kept it to herself.

o o o

Before he knew it, Hagrid's pumpkins - each one the width of an elephant - were being carved, and all of Hogwarts, the younger students especially, were buzzing about the Hallowe'en Feast. Even Olivia Wood, determined as ever for Gryffindor to win the first match of the year, called off practise for that night so they could thoroughly enjoy the festivities, but that didn't keep her from working them twice as hard the previous evening to make up for it. Albus and Rose were on their way back from a very late, very wet Quidditch practise, soaked to the bone, when they were deterred on the sixth floor.

"Oh, it's Peeves again," Rose hissed, stopping short halfway along the corridor and watching the poltergeist string a rope across the floor hoping to trip unwary students. "This is all we need, we're already carrying enough water to refill the lake."

Albus made to open a nearby door, but it was stuck. Raising his wand, he whispered "Alohomora!" There was a muffled click, and he eased it open. "Quick, we can wait him out in here." He followed her inside and shut the door, but when they turned around their mouths dropped open.

They were in outer space. That is, it appeared to be; they could feel the floor solidly beneath their feet, but everything their eyes met spoke of being flung into the night sky, from swirling nebulae to glowing planets, from spinning meteors to twinkling stars.

"Al?" Rose called loudly, as if from across the endless expanse instead of a foot to his left.

"I can hear you just fine," he hissed, rubbing the ear closest to her. "You don't have to shout."

"Where in the effing world are we?"

He was at a loss, gazing around and hoping for an explanation to present itself. They remained rooted to the spot, afraid to move for fear of falling into this strange abyss for several minutes before Albus turned around in desperation and grasped for the door handle - only to find it wasn't there.

"We can't go back, the door's gone. Are we... are we stuck here?"

"Albus, I- I'm scared," she breathed, reaching over and finding his hand. "What are we g-going to-"

"It's okay," he said, squeezing her hand reassuringly, though he could feel terror creeping up inside as well. "It's strange. The way this looks, it's- I mean, how can we be standing?"

Experimentally, Rose jumped up and down; nothing changed. Taking this as a good sign, Albus let go of her and began to walk forward, but found the scenery changed little as he did this; all it accomplished was putting distance between the two of them, which was the last thing he wanted just now. As he returned to the spot they had been standing on, Rose started off in the other direction - the direction he thought the door had lain in, but could now no longer be sure of. It hadn't taken them long to become hopelessly lost, even though they appeared not to have moved at all.

"This is mental!" Rose called, jogging back toward him; he noticed her damp hair bobbed as if in normal atmosphere. "If there aren't any walls, why's there still a floor?"

"We're not getting anywhere." Frustrated, he pulled out his wand and muttered, "Lumos!"

No such luck. That is, his wandtip did flare, and it did give off some light, but it was swallowed by the vastness around them, merely brightening themselves. Frowning, he fired a Stunner into the sky, and watched as the jet of red light flew out and became a speck, fading from view. Almost afraid of what would happen, he sent green sparks between his feet.

"No!" Rose croaked, watching as the sparks sped into the blackness below as if unimpeded.

"B-but then, how are we standing?" he muttered, bending down to touch the ground; he met solid resistance. "If there's no floor..."

"Oh, who cares?!" she said shrilly, taking out her own wand now and waving it around madly. "We need to get out of here and back to the common room!"

At once, a door opened somewhere off to their right; the air around it was swirling slightly, if indeed there was air around it. Blinking in the sudden brightness coming from the door, they glanced at each other warily.

"Do we dare?" said Albus.

She hesitated, then shrugged. "Why not? Even if we end up in Antarctica, it's better than waiting around in this great nothing."

They broke into a run, nearly tripping in their haste to get out of the bizarre, empty place. As they stumbled through, they heard it close with a snap.

"Whew!" she panted, pushing herself to her feet again. "That... I thought we'd never get out of there!"

"Rose..."

"Although... I do wonder what it was. Bit nifty, when you're not trapped in-"

"Rose, where are we?"

They gawped around the common room to see that the chairs weren't the same squashy armchairs they were so fond of, but of a more firm design - although they seemed as comfortable. Lacy yellow curtains hung around old portraits, being that there were no windows, and the staircases leading up to the dormitories were missing, replaced with long tunnels. A bubbling fountain sat in one corner, providing what looked to be clean drinking water; a roaring fireplace was set in another.

"What-" Rose began, but before she could finish, she heard a yelp.

"Gryffindors!"

They spun toward their left to see someone rising quickly from their armchair, mouth stretched wide, pouty lip quivering. After a moment, Albus recognised her as Dorika Dunsmore, the girl they had rescued from being lynched for stealing some bauble from another Hufflepuff; one of her eyes had been blacked recently, and he wondered if that were Belvina's doing, as well. She appeared to have been studying late, as her copy of "Magical Hieroglyphs and Logograms" had slid from her lap to the rug below.

"Dorika?" said Rose, head tilting slightly. "What are you doing here?"

"What am I doing here?" she squealed, simultaneously frightened and outraged. "This is my common room! What are you doing here?"

"Well, er, I dunno," Albus began, starting to wonder that himself. "We just came through this d-"

But there was no door. He and Rose frantically ran their hands over the bare stretch of wall, but there was no crack, no secret keyhole. If not for the knowledge that they had been transported here by some insane, echoey chamber, it would appear they calmly strolled in through solid rock.

"Y-you two had better leave," Dorika was stammering. "I'll- I'll call Professor Abbott!"

"That's gratitude for you!" Rose blustered. "After we saved your skin from that cow Belvina, you're so ready to haul off and-"

"Rose!" Albus hissed. "Let's just get out of here!"

"But- but this is-"

"Let's go," he repeated more forcefully. They began to move, then Albus realised he had to look around for the proper exit, not having used it on the way in. Failing to spot it, he turned to Dorika and asked, "Er... how do we get out of here?"

"You- but-" She seemed too befuddled to process any more.

"Oh, that way, I'd expect," Rose whispered, pointing to a tapestry of an overweight friar offering a plate of bread and figs to a goblin, who seemed less than enthused.

"Right." Nodding at the addled third-year, they bolted for the tapestry, only to find solid wall behind it. "Oof!"

"Are you daft?" Dorika hissed, rushing over to them. "What'd you just run at it like that for? You'll hurt yourself that way!"

"Well," Albus said, rubbing the end of his nose, "it, er... that is, we thought-"

"Speaking of which," interrupted Rose, "what happend to your eye?"

"What? Oh... nothing, one of the Slytherins thought he needed to get into the Great Hall before I did; slammed me right into the door jamb." The corner of her mouth twitched. "Didn't really get away with it, though; the Head Girl was right behind us, and she docked him ten points."

"Er, that's good, then, I suppose."

"Dorika," said Albus, already growing tired of being trapped in this unfamiliar place, "if we can't just run through the tapestry, then... what do we do?!"

"Well, you've got to ask, don't you?"

They stared at her in disbelief. "Excuse me?" Rose demanded.

Her eyebrows shot up into her golden curls. "You... you really didn't get in this way?" They shook their heads. "Wow," she breathed, suddenly impressed. "Did- Merlin, have you learned how to Apparate?!"

"Of course not," Rose said impatiently, lifting the tapestry to view the bare stretch of quite solid stone behind. "Quite frankly, I have no idea why we're here!"

"You did say, 'the common room'," Albus reminded her. "You didn't specify which." Rose appeared close to fainting, so he hastily turned to Dorika and said, "Okay, then... what do we ask the tapestry?"

Her mouth turned further upward in spite of the situation. "You're joking, aren't you? I mean... just say 'please' and 'thank you'."

"Really? Just like that?"

"Well, yes."

Feeling more foolish than he'd care to admit, he turned to the tapestry and said, "Er... may we please leave?"

"Of course!" the friar said at once, as if Albus had been silly to wait this long to ask. The surface of the cloth fluttered, and when he pushed it aside again, he saw the wall behind it had melted into an archway, leading down a short hallway to the back of what looked like canvas.

"Cheers," Rose said brightly, both to Dorika and the friar made of cloth.

"Anytime," they said in unison.

"Close call, that," she whispered when the large still-life portrait had fallen into place behind them. "Now... where's this?"

"In the basement," said Albus as they passed a painting of a bowl of fruit. "I've seen Hufflepuffs heading this way after supper."

When they had reached the safety of their own common room, they immediately sat in their favourite armchairs by the fire to finish drying out, which they nearly already had by that point. Rubbing his hands together, Albus said, "So... that room."

"I know. How long has that been there?"

"It was locked," he remembered. "Now I think I understand why."

"There aren't even any classes on the sixth floor, are there? I'd wager most of the rooms have strange things inside."

"Hmm... isn't Arithmancy or Ancient Runes, one?"

"How should I know? I haven't taken either!"

"We could always go back and ask Dorika," he said bemusedly. "She had an Ancient Runes textbook, she'd know."

Rose smirked at him. "Bugger that plan. I'd rather ask Hugo."

o o o

When everyone entered the Great Hall on Hallowe'en, they beamed at the cloud of live bats swooping over the House tables, making the candles hovering there flicker. The Jack O'Lanterns were large enough to be gazebos, and the wealth of pasties, pies and other goodies made from their innards were everywhere, giving off such a heavenly aroma Albus thought Rose might float away.

"As we tuck in," Professor Flitwick said at last when all the students were seated, smiling merrily and sporting a bright orange-and-black cap, "I've arranged for a demonstration from the ghosts of Hogwarts, who have been rehearsing night and day in old Dungeon Six to give you the best show yet. And now, I present to you... the Waltz Of The Spirits!"

Everyone laughed and clapped when the ghosts dove in on them from all directions, locking arms with each other in midair and spinning around to the haunting music played by another troupe of ghosts set up in a corner behind the High Table. They continued to perform as the students alternately watched and enjoyed the feast, and after a bit idle chatter began to break out in earnest.

"Oi, Potter!"

Albus paused, a pumpkin tart halfway to his mouth, utterly dumbfounded to see Ryan Macmillan plunking down next to him. Obviously thinking along similar lines, Rose's eyes narrowed as she set down her goblet.

"Er... are you feeling all right, Macmillan?"

"Shut it," he hissed at her, not to be deterred as he focused again on Albus. "I wanted to talk to you about that banshee."

"The what? Oh, yeah..." With all that had happened since, he had nearly forgotten about their harrowing misadventures in the Forbidden Forest.

"See, I've been thinking, and... we all made it out of there, healthy as you please. If it had been a true banshee, wouldn't at least one of us have snuffed it?"

"How do you mean?"

"Come now, surely you jest," said Barty exasperatedly. "Obviously, a banshee's screams are fatal, like that of the Mandragora."

"Don't you have somebody else to annoy?" Rose spat at him.

"But he's right," said Ryan excitedly. "And she did scream at us!"

"It might have been a boggart," said Hugo, turning around to face them more directly. "Its scream wouldn't have been at all deadly. Are any of you especially frightened of banshees?"

"I dunno," said Rose skeptically. "A boggart skulking around in the middle of a... a wood..."

But Hugo's rebuttal was never heard, for at that moment a ripple of confusion broke against them, ending their discussion. Looking around at all the whispering, wide-eyed students, it took Albus a moment to realise their consternation stemmed from what was going on above their heads.

At least ten ghosts, pearly-white and nearly transparent, were rocketing in a wide circle around the room, moving faster and faster as the witches and wizards below stared. The eerie concerto had ended, for those spirits in the string section had also joined their fellows in causing this strange, bluish-white whirlwind.

"Do they do this every Hallowe'en?" a first-year asked.

"Definitely not," Aiden McLaggen breathed.

While most of the students were transfixed at the sight, reactions ranging between terror and amusement, Albus tore his eyes away and turned them upon the High Table. Most of the teachers were aghast, taking out their wands (in Hagrid's case, the pink umbrella) though unsure of what to do with them, but both Professors Peele and Dryden seemed more grim than surprised. He also noticed Firenze was almost keenly interested, and Professor Vector was running her hands over her mouth, muttering to herself. Meanwhile, Longbottom had moved closer to the Gryffindor House table, wand out, jaw set.

His mind made up, Albus grabbed Rose's arm and bolted from the table, bent double, free arms shielding their heads in preparation for anything raining down on them. Once they had reached the relative quiet of the entrance hall, Rose made to stop, but Albus kept going, pulling her all the way to the small antechamber where they had waited with the other first-years to be Sorted so very long ago.

"What are we doing in here?" she yelped as he shut the door behind them and drew his wand. "What's going on, Al, why are they-"

"We're going to find out." Casting one last furtive glance at the door, he reached into his robes and produced a bit of folded parchment.

"What's-"

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." Instantly, blackness spread forth, creating the map he'd been carrying on him at all times since the chandelier had fallen on Logan.

"Blimey," she breathed, taking in the surface of the parchment. "It- it's a map! A map of Hogwarts, all of it - even the grounds! But where'd-"

"Shh! I'll explain later!" His eyes combed all areas of Hogwarts, trying to find something suspicious, anything. There were a handful of students that weren't at the feast - a few Slytherins were in their common room and dormitories, which he found to be in an unexplored branch of the dungeons, and Dorika Dunsmore seemed to be safely asleep in her bed, perhaps catching up on what rest they had lost her the night before. Finally, he pinpointed the dot he was really looking for - Peeves, scarcely moving somewhere near the Owlery. "Damn."

"Al... where did you get this?"

He would have blown her off again, but now her voice was quite frosty. "Oh, from my dad. It's one of the presents he gave me for being made prefect, that's all."

"So... you've had it since August."

"Yeah. Fat load of good its done me, though, can't even catch the culprit of these-"

"Okay, but... why didn't you tell me about it?"

She had him there; why hadn't he? He thought back. "I dunno... that is, I only sussed out what it is and how to use it a month ago, and after that I suppose I just wasn't sure if I was supposed to have it or not, so I forgot to mention it."

"But Albus, you- we promised."

That rent him in a worse way than Damazein's arrow could ever have done - they had indeed, and he had inadvertently broken the promise. "We... wait, I-"

"We made a blood oath, remember?"

"Rosie, that was- we were six years old!"

"So?!"

Frowning, he took a step toward her. "Hey, I'm sorry, honestly! I never meant to-"

"You swore we'd never, ever do that to each other!" Tears began streaming down her flushed cheeks, her hands curling into fists. "Ever! And then you- you get something this good, this important, and you d-don't- you can't-"

Panic rose within his breast again. "Please, don't cry, it's not like that!"

"How many other choice bits are you keeping for yourself, Albus? Tell me! Or don't I even d-deserve that much?!"

"Dammit, Rose, this isn't the time for-"

But it was too late, the damage had been done. He reached for her in vain as she bolted from the room, mingling with the students who were now pouring out of the Great Hall, most of them more confused than scared. Stowing the map in his robes again, he moved out and into the crowd, and as he drifted through them, he heard Professor Flitwick speak as if from far away.

"Everyone, back to their dormitories! Follow the prefects! Your Head of House will meet you all in your common rooms soon to address this situation! Go, quickly!"

Even though he was surrounded by students, Albus was making his way to Gryffindor Tower alone.

END Chapter Eleven