The Greatest Kind of Magic

24. Liam's Gifts

Dementors! Ginny had a moment's glimpse of Liam's face before she was carried away. Frantically, she searched for him in the crowd. Dementors, Dementors! Where did the Dementors go? Everything was a blur.

She felt herself tossed into the air. When she came down, caught by a sea of hands, she no longer knew which direction she'd come from. Liam! Another thrust, and she was somewhere else - more strangers grabbing hold, more hands passing her on over the heads of the crowd. Ginny tumbled and turned in the air, heart pounding with yet a new terror. They'll drop me, any second now, they'll drop me. Head-first to the concrete floor, I'll be trampled before anyone knows what happened. But a greater terror was also shouting in her head. Liam! Dementors!

She was falling again, and suddenly there were no people to catch her. Somebody grabbed her arm, but it was too late. She landed on her back with a crack only she could've heard. An explosion of pain - Ginny caught her breath - then something slammed into her ribs, and something else into the side of her head...

The end, this is the end, Ginny thought, colours dancing in her eyes. Attacked by Dementors... killed by Pearl Jam fans...

A dozen hands grabbed hold of her arms. Hauled to her feet, Ginny blinked to clear her vision. The Dementors. Where are they? She could no longer feel them. Liam, where's Liam? Her arms released - her knees buckled. Someone shouted something in her ear, but Ginny couldn't make out the words. The crowd, the band, the buzzing in her own head - everything had blurred into one incomprehensible cacophony. Ginny was only vaguely aware of someone leading her away from the stage, while somebody else pushed and shoved through the crowd, clearing the way ahead.

Now the crowd was thinning, and Ginny felt herself breathing more easily. She took several gulps of cigarette-tainted air, and started coughing. This sent bullets of pain through her chest and skull. I have to find Liam...

"You gonna be okay?" shouted one of her rescuers into Ginny's ear.

Ginny could only nod. Even that little movement was painful. The two people who'd helped her out of the moshpit released her arms and disappeared - no doubt, back into that sweaty hell of pressing bodies. Ginny looked behind her, to see the concert continue as if nothing had happened. The band ripped into another song, and the crowd bounced along in a frenzy. There was no sign of Dementors. Ginny could feel only the ordinary chill of cool air on her sweaty body. And a chill that came not from being near Dementors, but from knowing that something terrible had happened to Liam.

The Dementors were gone. That could only mean that they got what they'd come for, and that could only be Liam. Ginny hadn't seen them, only felt their presence - but she knew they'd been close, and coming ever closer when Liam had given her to the crowd. He meant to follow, surely he meant to follow? Maybe he made it, maybe he's just lost in the crowd... But then where is he?

Ginny scanned the hall, but she knew it was hopeless. Finding one person here was impossible. Anyway, if he's still here, the Dementors would still be looking for him.

She fought down a wave of nausea. What could she do now? She had to find him, that was all there was to it. Liam was alive - of course he's alive, don't you dare think anything different - and he was in danger. I have to find him!

Ginny was outside before reason caught up with her. Find him? Where? How? She was shaking now, from terror much more than from the cold, even though the March wind pierced her right through her damp clothing. She stood frozen to the spot, unable to think, unable to come up with anything even remotely sensible. Her mind had gone blank, and the only thought that had any meaning was Liam's been taken by Dementors. My Liam's been taken by Dementors...

She looked up and down the street, hoping against hope to see some trace, some clue as to where the Dementors had gone. But there was nothing - only an alien city street, lit up and crowded, but offering no help, no comfort and no safety. Ginny couldn't even remember which way they'd come - she had no idea how to get back to the Leaky Cauldron and the Wizarding world. She was well and truly lost. But not as lost as Liam.

Ginny turned on her heels and marched back up to the entrance to Henry Hall. Two men stepped into her path as she was about to go in. "Got your ticket, love?" one of them asked, holding out his hand.

"Oh," said Ginny, "hang on..." She fumbled in her pockets, knowing already that she wouldn't find it. Liam had the tickets. Liam was missing.

"My friend has them, he's inside. Please, can't I just go in?"

The doormen looked at each other and grinned. "Yeah, that's what they all say."

"Look, I just came out of there! Didn't you see me come out?"

"Maybe we did, maybe we didn't. You know how many ratty kids are coming in and out of there tonight? No ticket, no entry. Now scram!"

"But..." Ginny reached into her pocket again, feeling for her wand. She could hex them in half a second. It'd be easy...

Her pockets were empty. No ticket, she knew that. But no wand, either. "Oh, Merlin's balls," she said aloud, her heart sinking into her heels. She turned back to the doormen. "You have to let me in. I've lost my wand. My boyfriend's missing, and I have to find his friends. Please!" She knew she was babbling, and that the bouncers wouldn't understand. But she had to try - there was nothing else she could do. "Please, I have to get in there!"

The doormen glanced at each other again, this time without grinning. "Look, you'd better get out of here, honey. You're not getting in there and that's that. Bugger off!"

Then Ginny knew it was the end, there was no hope here. She took a few steps back, blinking away tears. Oh God, what am I going to do?

Suddenly, the two men stepped aside. Three people dashed out through the doorway, turning immediately to look up and down the street. They didn't notice Ginny.

"Are you sure he's gone?" said one of the girls. "What if he's still in there?"

"I'm telling you, they took him. Didn't you feel it?" said the other girl, looking to the boy for support.

"I felt something," he replied with a visible shudder. "But I've no idea what. You're right though, Jess, I could feel it leaving - and it took Liam. One minute I had him by the arms, then he was gone." He shuddered. "And we don't know what happened to his girlfriend - she's definitely still in there, I saw her fall down." He reached into his pocket. "She dropped this, too."

Ginny's heart leapt. My wand!

"Dave, Jessie, Sarah!" she called, the names coming back to her all at once. She rushed towards them, a wave of relief sweeping over her at the sight of familiar faces. I don't know what help they can be, but at least they know what happened. At least I'm not alone.

Three pairs of eyes turned to stare at her, and she saw the same relief in their expressions. Liam's still missing... but if there's another person who knows what happened, we might, just might be able to find him.

"Ginny," said Jessie breathlessly, "what's going on? Where's Liam? What was... that cold - that horrible feeling?"

Ginny took a deep breath. "They were Dementors. Muggles can't see them, but you all felt them. Liam," - her voice wavered - "I think they took Liam. I was hoping..." Her voice wavered again, and she had to take a few more breaths before she could continue. "I was hoping you saw what happened."

Davey shook his head. "I just felt all cold - and miserable, like. Everything got sort of dark - almost like I blacked out, only I was still standing. I felt Liam pulled away, literally out of my hands, 'cause I was holding on to him. And the cold - it passed all around me, I could feel it moving. When I could see properly again, Liam was gone, and Jessie was slumped against me."

Ginny looked at Jessie, who shuddered. "I reckon I did black out - those... things were all around me. When I came to, they were gone. And so was Liam."

Sarah chipped in, "I felt it, too. But I didn't know if they'd taken Liam. Dave and Jessie are pretty sure, though." She bit her lip. "If you're right - if those Deme- whatsis really took him - d'you know where they went?"

Jessie added quietly, "What'll they do to him?"

Ginny looked at the three Muggles, who were all staring at her intently, waiting for an answer. She knew more than they did, but she still knew nothing for certain. All she knew was that her Liam was gone, and that he was in terrible danger - if he was still alive. Don't be stupid, of course he's still alive!

"I don't know," she said quietly, feeling helpless and lost and terrified. "I don't know what to do."

Suddenly, Jessie was clutching her arm. "What d'you mean you don't know? You're a witch! You have magic - you have a gift I can only dream of! And you're telling me you can't find him? You're telling me he's gone?" She released Ginny's arm almost as if she was throwing it down in disgust. A gust of wind blew her hair into her face, and she brushed it away furiously. "What's the point of all this magic? All this stupid magic, if you can't even find Liam?"

Ginny blinked back tears. She had no answers. Magic had always been a part of her life, and she knew its limits - it had never seemed inadequate before. But now, when she needed it most, magic had failed her. She looked at her wand, still in Davey's hands. It seemed such a useless thing - but she felt naked without it.

Suddenly, she saw Davey take a step back, his eyes widening. She heard the sound of running footsteps behind her, but before she could turn around, somebody cannonballed right into her, nearly knocking her off her feet.

"Ginny!" Strong hands grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her around. Ginny found herself face to face with Ron, his eyes blazing with fury.

"Are you completely mental? What the hell are you doing out here? You nearly got yourself killed!" He shook her so hard that she bit her tongue. Ginny gave a yelp of pain.

"Ron... let me go," she stammered, wincing. "You're... hurting... me!" Behind Ron, she could see Harry and Hermione trying to pull him away from her. A dozen more DA members stood behind them, holding their wands uncertainly.

Ron released her. The look on his face, however, was even worse than the shaking. Ginny would almost have preferred it if he hit her.

How could I be so dumb? Ron's right to be mad at me - I put Liam and me in danger, all for a stupid concert. I should've known - I should've known this would happen! She knew, really, that she couldn't have predicted this, that no one in their right mind would expect to find Dementors at a Pearl Jam concert. But all she knew was that Liam was gone - Liam could be dead - and it was all her fault.

Ginny hunched her shoulders, trying to ward off the thought of Liam dead. Oh Liam, I'm so sorry.

"Liam's gone," she said, her voice shaking. "There were... Dementors."

"We know," said Harry. "And we know where they took him."

***

"Leighton, you prick! I'll fucking kill you!"

Liam knew it wasn't real, that he was reliving the attack yet again. Deep inside, he could still hear his mantra of They're just memories, it's not real. But it wasn't enough, not anymore. Not on his own.

Why are they doing this? thought the deep-inside part that was still conscious, still Liam. What do they want from me?

He was no longer in the cell, he knew that. At some point, when it seemed like he'd been there for hours, the cell door opened and invisible hands - cold, clammy, putrid- smelling hands - picked him up and dragged him away. The end of the hallway was blocked by another rusty gate, and beyond that, a shimmering, silvery membrane that Liam recognised immediately as Hermione's magical barrier - the spell she used to create a magical vacuum for Muggle gadgets to work in. The moment he stepped beyond it, Liam could see the Dementors who were holding him. He also felt their power ten-fold.

They're just memories, it's not real.

But the pain felt real. The terror, that felt real, too. And it was real: memory-terror combined with now-terror.

What are they going to do to me?

Through the darkness of his worst memories, Liam heard a voice, loud and clear. "Enough. Leave us."

And suddenly, he was in the present again, lying on the floor and shaking from the cold and the lingering pain and horror of the Dementors. He seemed to be in another cell - a larger one than before. And he wasn't alone. A wizard in Death Eater's robes was standing over him, wand held loosely in his hand.

Liam staggered to his feet. He'd been lying in a corner, and he had to use the wall to help himself up. His knees barely supported him. "Who are you?" he asked in a quaking voice. "What do you want from me?"

The Death Eater's face was overshadowed by his hood, but Liam was sure he was smiling. He knew it wasn't a pleasant smile.

"The Dark Lord," said the Death Eater in a mock-pleasant voice, "has a certain interest in your... talent."

Liam was completely nonplussed. "What on earth does You-Know-Who want with my music?"

The Death Eater laughed: a cold, sadistic laugh. "Funny one, aren't you? The Dark Lord has no interest in musicians, I assure you. Or comedians."

"Then what..."

Before Liam could finish, the Death Eater shouted, "Legilimens!"

Liam's mind exploded.

Eight years old, playing football with Davey...

Four years old, "Liam, meet your baby sister,"...

Train to Hogwarts, Malfoy in the doorway, magic surge and the lamp explodes in a shower of broken glass...

Something in his mind, a sickening intrusion, latched onto the memory and grasped.

"No!"

Liam shrank back. His mind wrenched, and twisted and tried desperately to escape that grip. He could feel the intrusion spreading, clammy fingers crawling along the threads of his magic. They moved through thoughts and memories and emotions, passing some quickly and wallowing in others.

Malfoy's cauldron, tipping over... Malfoy's potion, crawling out onto the desk...

With those memories came fear and helpless fury - all the feelings that threw Liam's magic out into the world, with no spells to direct or control it. Those feelings built up in Liam's mind, as if the intruder was piling them up together, one seething cauldron of rage.

Liam felt the Death Eater's mind grasp another thread.

Leering faces, robes burning, pain and terror and silent screams. Make it stop. Make it stop!

Everything inside him twisted. No, no, not this! They can't have this. If they take this, I'm gone. No!

But the voice in his head, the tiny part of Liam that was beyond the intruder's grasp, had no power to break the connection. It just screamed, helplessly. The memories came hard and fast.

"That's what you get for betraying your blood, Muggle. That's what all the Muggles will get."

The pain... Oh God help me...

Fear and pain - now in the Death Eater's hands. Rage - more rage than Liam had ever felt in his life, before or since - enslaved to the Death Eater's will.

He heard sneers, taunts and harsh laughter. And then, "Obliviate."

A timeless moment of darkness. The rogue magic stirred...

In the Death Eater's clutches, Liam let out a blood-curdling scream.

"NO!!!"

Through the threads left by rogue magic in his memory, Liam saw faces - the faces of all the Slytherins who had attacked him. Each face brought a blast of not just rage and fear, but hate. Strongest of all was the hate for Jeremy Leighton, and with him - Ellie.

She betrayed me! She sided with that creep, after what he did...

Again, memories of pain, now overlaid with hate.

Hate Leighton, hate Malfoy, hate Ellie...

He felt his bag burst into flames in his hands.

Just a memory, it's not real...

Hate her, hate him, hate them all, they almost killed me, they ripped apart my memory, she betrayed me...

Just a memory!

Again, Liam's mind twisted - a desperate attempt to break free. For a moment, his vision cleared, and he could see the Death Eater again. But the intruder in his mind, that distinct sense of other, didn't budge. Liam was still trapped. He tried to move physically, but that was a struggle, too. When he tried to shout, his voice came out as a strangled gasp.

Hate was fuelled by rising panic.

"All too easy," he heard the Death Eater say, and for the first time, he felt something of the intruder's feelings: a gloating triumph.

He knows he's winning, he knows I can't fight him...

Dark ceiling, echoing laughter, pain, pain, God help me, somebody help me...

hate them hate them hate them HATE THEM

He was disappearing: everything that was Liam was disappearing. Buried under the onslaught of hate, all that remained was a tiny voice, screaming helplessly into a red- hot void. Hate for Ellie and the Slytherins spread to hate for everyone and everything else that flashed through his mind. The Death Eater fed him images - though by now, Liam didn't know the Death Eater was feeding him images - images from his own mind, his own memories. Davey, Jessie, his parents, Professor McGonagall, Tara, random faces from school, random faces from his old school...

Sound of laughter, memories of classes, pointless knowledge, Harry, Ron and Hermione, Sarah, that little girl who was also new, the picture of the dead girl above the common room fireplace, the books in his trunk, football, eating toast, Davey in his Maccas uniform...

Every memory, every thought, every dream tumbled into a red haze, and Liam hated it all. Hated it with a passion, hated it beyond reason or thought or hope of redemption.

Liam hated.

Rogue magic stirred.

***

Jessie stood on tip-toes to see over the shoulder of one of the wizards. She did her best to concentrate on the map, pushing aside her frustration and anger and fear.

"The trail disappeared here," said the brown-haired witch, pointing to a spot on the map. "But we could still hear them on the Extendable Ear. The Dementor said Liam was a 'prisoner for the Dark Lord'."

Jessie heard a sharp intake of breath - it was Liam's girlfriend, Ginny. The brown- haired girl - Jessie couldn't remember her name - quickly reassured her. "That means he's still alive. There's time to find him, to rescue him."

"What would the Dark Lord want with Grady?" asked a sandy-haired boy who looked a little younger than the others. "I mean... he's not exactly great at magic."

"Maybe he just wants him to get to Harry," said the red-haired boy who could only be Ginny's brother. "Maybe he knows they're friends - I bet Malfoy tells him everything that goes on at Hogwarts."

"But why Liam? No offense, Ron, but if anyone wanted to get at Harry, you'd be the person to take."

"Because, Creevey, I'm not daft enough to leave school grounds!"

"Like now, you mean?"

The two boys glared at each other. Jessie wondered if they were about to come to blows, when Davey elbowed his way through the crowd. "Look, I know I'm just a dumb Muggle and all, but this isn't helping my mate, Liam. If you lot know where he is, we ought to be looking for him instead of fighting about why he's in the shit in the first place."

They all turned to stare at Davey. Sarah quickly pushed forward to stand beside him, and after a moment's hesitation, Jessie followed. She was grateful to Davey for having the guts to speak up. I should've done it. But since I'm too pathetic, at least I have Davey here to help.

"Look," said Ron, Ginny's brother. "It's not that simple. We can't just go storming You-Know-Who's fortress..."

Sarah crossed her arms on her chest. "No, actually we don't know who," she snapped. "Excuse us for not having any magic, but we want our mate back in one piece, and if you lot won't do hocus-pocus to help him, we'll just have to do it our own way." She picked up the map. "That's at least a half-hour's trip, and that's if we can get a taxi right now. Ginny here said they could be doing anything to Liam, none of it pretty. The sooner we get there, the better."

She turned around, grabbing Davey by the hand. Jessie wanted to hug them both. And perhaps some magic was at work here, because even as they stepped up to the kerb, a taxi pulled up in front of them.

Jessie was already climbing in when Ginny rushed forward and grabbed the door. "Is there room for one more? You won't get far without magic."

In a flash, Ron was beside her, gripping her arm. "Ginny, this is You-know-Who we're talking about! You're safe now - and you're just going to storm his fortress with three Muggles?!"

"I can't let them do this without magic!" she shouted back, then added, quietly, "I can't leave Liam to Dementors."

"We can find Dumbledore! We can find - we can get help! And these Muggles - they'll never find the place anyway. It's unplottable! Just let them go!"

"By the time you get help, Liam might be dead." She twisted, wrenching her arm out of his grasp. She shoved him, hard - harder that Jessie would've thought possible. Ron, who was almost twice Ginny's size, stumbled backwards. In the split second it took him to catch his balance, Ginny leapt into the car and slammed the door.

Jessie suddenly found her voice. "Go! Go!" she shouted to the driver. "We're going north. Sarah - you got that map?"

She looked back one last time, watching the astonished faces of the wizards disappear behind them. She hadn't had a chance to think about what they were trying to do, and she had no idea what to expect. But she knew those hadn't been empty warnings. She glanced at Ginny, who was fiddling with her wand. Her face was pale and drawn, her shoulders hunched up with tension. For the first time, Jessie felt a real stab of fear at the prospect of searching for Liam. If those kids back there - all of them with magical powers - didn't want to risk it, what hope did three... whatever they were called... and one witch have?

"Ginny," she said quietly, biting her lip, "is this... do we have any chance of saving him?"

Ginny looked back at her, eyes wide. "I don't know. All I know is, I have to try."

Jessie hadn't asked the other part of her question - the part about whether they were riding to their deaths. And though Ginny didn't answer either question, spoken or unspoken, Jessie had a feeling she knew what the answer was.

Jessie realised she was terrified.

***

"What are they doing to him, Nick? Did you see what they were doing to Jeremy?" Ellie reached out a hand to grab Nearly Headless Nick's shoulder, wanting to shake the information out of him. She realised her mistake too late, as her hand passed through the unresisting ghost. She gasped at the icy feel of him - she'd already been shivering in the chilly dungeon hallway.

"The dark-haired lad? Just pulling him along, so far. Though I must warn you, if you mean to follow them - they do outnumber you."

A few students muttered under their breath, but no one made any move to go back. Ellie stared at them hard to make sure. In the flickering light, their faces looked grim and determined.

"Will you lead us to them, Nick?" Neville asked, stepping forward. "We have to catch them before they..." he broke off, glancing at Ellie. "Well, you know."

Ellie glared, but didn't say anything. Inside, however, she firmly told herself that Jeremy would be fine. We'll get to him before they do anything.

"As you wish," said Nick. "I would expect no less from a Gryffindor."

No one pointed out that at least half the students present were either Hufflepuffs or Ravenclaws. In the bluish light, all the House badges appeared the same colour. They followed Nick in silence, their anxious footsteps echoing off the stone walls.

As they went deeper and deeper into the dungeons, the passages became narrower and the torches even more sparse. If they hadn't had Nick to lead them, Ellie was sure by now they'd be hopelessly lost. The corridor twisted and branched, with dank-smelling side passages and the remnants of tiny cells lining it in a seemingly random manner. Often, Nick led them into narrow, crumbling stairwells and they descended a level or two, going always down, down, down.

Ellie realised that the Slytherins must have been exploring this labyrinth for years. She wondered what secrets they'd discovered. She also wondered, for the first time ever, whether Hogwarts had always been a school. Had the castle served some other purpose in ages past? What need did a school have for this vast underground maze?

Doesn't matter now, she reminded herself firmly. What matters now is finding Jeremy.

They turned into another stairwell, this one a little wider than the rest. Ellie peeked over the crumbling edge and immediately wished she hadn't: the stairs hugged the walls of a dark abyss. Ellie couldn't see the bottom - it could've been just a few levels below them, or it could've been miles.

"I had no idea the dungeons went this far," whispered Ernie MacMillan, echoing Ellie's thoughts. "They must be as big as the castle itself."

"Bigger, actually," said Nearly Headless Nick. "The Bloody Baron claims he's explored them all, but I doubt it. Hogwarts has many, many secrets - some much older than the school."

Why do the Slytherins need to take Jeremy so far in here? Ellie wondered silently, afraid that voicing her fears would give them power. Unless whatever they're going to do to him is so awful they'll have to cover their tracks. It'd be easy to just make him disappear... he might not be found for months, if ever. Then no one would know what happened.

She shook her head violently. Stop it, stop it, Eloise! We're nearly there, we've nearly caught up. He'll be fine, we'll save him, he'll be fine...

As if to reassure her - and to send her terror spiking and her heart racing - Nick stopped beside the entrance to a side passage off the stairwell, and turned to face the students. "I suggest that it may be prudent to keep quiet now, and to cast silencing charms on your feet. I warn you all yet again that the Slytherins outnumber you, and surprise is essential if you're to have any chance of victory."

Nearly there. Hold on, Jeremy, hold on!

They muttered the spells under their breath, already terrified of being heard. The silencing charms didn't mask their footsteps completely, but at least the echoes no longer travelled and bounced off the walls. When Nick was satisfied with their work, he turned into the passage and led them forward. The torches here disappeared entirely, and they had to feel their way along the walls. Lighting their wands was out of the question. The only source of light now was Nearly Headless Nick himself, and his glow barely extended a foot beyond him. With their voices silent and their footsteps muted, the students seemed to be cocooned in dark isolation. Ellie wished she could touch any of the others, just to be sure that they hadn't abandoned her or simply disappeared in the darkness. She kept her eyes on Nick - the only reminder that she wasn't alone.

When a glimmer of light appeared up ahead, Ellie was thrilled to see it, forgetting for a moment that it meant they were about to face a deadly battle. Then she rounded a corner, and saw a square of light that marked the end of the passage. She heard the echoes of voices. She slowed her steps, making sure she was making no noise at all. She felt more than saw the others around her doing the same.

Ellie crept forward silently beside Neville, trying to master her fear. And she might have succeeded, had the walls not trembled from the echoes of a sudden, blood- piercing scream.

Reason fled. Hold on, Jeremy, I'm coming! Ellie shouted silently. Then, forgetting the others, she pushed past Neville and rushed towards the light.

***

Jessie watched Ginny out of the corner of her eye. The red-haired girl seemed to be growing more anxious by the minute. She was so hunched up now, her neck had disappeared entirely, and little sparks were erupting from her wand every few seconds.

"How long till we get there?" Ginny asked in a strangled voice.

"You still haven't told me where you want to go," said the driver. "I'm sort of where you pointed on the map, but if you don't tell me where to drop you off, I can't do much except go round in circles."

"Just stop here," Ginny said. "We'll find our way on foot. It'll be quicker."

The driver shrugged and pulled over. Jessie fumbled in her pockets for some money. Davey and Sarah added their share. Ginny didn't seem to have any money - Jessie would've been annoyed if she hadn't been so afraid.

When the taxi had pulled away, Jessie looked up and down the street, wondering where they were. It was a bleak, uninviting district of concrete warehouses. Cars drove past, going about their business, but there were no other signs of people.

"So..." said Sarah slowly, "Did anyone actually have any idea of how we're going to find Liam? 'Cause let's face it, this is all a bit vague."

Jessie automatically turned to look at Ginny, who couldn't have appeared more unhappy.

"I don't know," Ginny said. "Hermione told us it's Unplottable - which just means you can't find it on a map. But they'll probably have other defences too - if we can find those..."

Jessie exchanged glances with Davey and Sarah. "This is insane," she said to no one in particular, as Ginny started leading them away from the main road. "This is just..." she broke off, knowing that no one was listening.

They'd been wandering aimlessly for several minutes before Davey stopped in his tracks. "Look, this isn't getting us anywhere. There's nothing here! We should go back the other way."

Jessie silently agreed with him. The darkened warehouses made her feel uneasy. Now that they were away from the main road, there were no more cars to make her feel she was still in the real world. This felt like the sort of place rapists might take their victims. She found herself longing for the lights and the crowds around Henry Hall, or even for the comfortable familiarity of Little Whinging. "Let's go back," she said quietly. "I... really don't like this place."

She noticed Sarah huddling up to Davey - she must've felt it, too. Jessie envied her that comfort. If only Liam were here... But of course, if Liam had been there, it'd be Ginny he'd be comforting.

The red-haired girl was now looking at the three of them, a strange expression on her face. "Listen - can we go just a little bit further? I think this might be..."

"No way," said Davey. "This place gives me the creeps. It feels dead. There's no way there's a fortress here."

"You all feel like you have to go back?" Ginny asked urgently. "You all feel like... you're being pushed away?"

"Not pushed," said Sarah. "I just really, really want to be somewhere else right now."

"Then we're on the right track," said Ginny, breaking into a smile. "I don't feel any different than I did before - scared as hell, but not because of where we are. They must have Muggle-repelling charms. That's why all of you suddenly want to be somewhere else."

Jessie wanted to protest - the feeling of dread was intensifying by the second - but she knew that if they were to have any hope of finding Liam, they'd all have to trust Ginny. Dragging her feet, step by frightened step, she followed her friends. Davey and Sarah kept glancing over their shoulders, obviously desperate to return. Ginny, however, walked on steadily. Jessie thought that if she, Davey and Sarah all suddenly bolted and ran back to the main road and light and safety, Ginny would keep going without any hesitation about doing this alone.

And why should she hesitate? Not like we'll be much use to her!

"Listen - you all have to try and feel any places that you really want to keep away from," said Ginny, turning around. "The stronger those feelings, the closer we are."

With those words, Jessie felt a little braver. She jogged to walk alongside Ginny, drawing courage from the realisation that her own lack of magic - strange though this seemed - was what Ginny needed now.

They had nearly passed the alley when Jessie noticed it. She saw the opening out of the corner of her eye, and would have dismissed it had Ginny not stopped to look into it curiously. Jessie walked on for a few steps before she realised Ginny was still standing there. She stopped and was about to walk back, but found this extremely frustrating - they had to keep going, they had to find Liam! Davey and Sarah had already passed her, hurrying on their way.

Finally, Jessie understood. "This is it," she said. "This is where we have to go."

"Are you sure?" said Davey uncertainly. "It doesn't seem like... oh."

Ginny nodded. "Good work. I don't think I'd get very far without you." She smiled faintly. "Guess You-Know-Who never counted on Muggles actually looking for the place."

She led the way in. Jessie turned to follow - and stopped. She felt an overwhelming urge to go back, to run back, to leave this place and forget she'd ever been here. In that dark alley, she imagined rapists and murderers and ghosts and monsters. Everything she'd ever been frightened of - every horror story, every movie, every nightmare - they were all there, waiting for her.

"I can't go in there!" she said in a strangled voice. "I... just can't."

"Me neither," said Davey, clutching Sarah's shoulders. "It's... Oh, fuck, I just can't."

Ginny stopped and turned around. "It's not real - whatever it is you're feeling, it's not real. It's just the magic trying to keep you out." Her face was just a patch of paleness in the alley - no light from the street reached her. She looked small and frightened. "Please, I can't do this alone. I wouldn't have even got this far without you. Help me!"

Jessie closed her eyes. It's not real, it's not real, it's not real, it's not real... She took a step forward, then another, and another. And then Davey and Sarah were running along on either side of her. Without saying a word, they took her hands. Ginny turned her back and led the way once again.

The alley seemed to grow darker and narrower as they went. Just when the light seemed to disappear entirely, Jessie felt the space open up around her. Peering into the darkness, she could just make out the silhouette of a building - large and imposing, with no light or windows in sight. They all came to a halt here, their steps faltering.

Crack!

Jessie whirled. The alley behind them was completely dark. Coming fast towards her, Jessie heard shouts and running footsteps.

***

Flames erupted in the air above Liam's head. They didn't touch him, but they danced all around, twisting and flashing and occasionally disappearing, only to reappear again, more violent than ever. He imagined them engulfing Jeremy, engulfing Ellie, engulfing Malfoy and the rest of the Slytherins, and McGonagall and Snape and all the teachers and the students and the school itself. He was glad - thrilled, even. He hated them all, and he wanted to see them burn.

"Good lad, good lad!" shouted the Death Eater above the roar of the flames. "You're the quickest learner yet - the Dark Lord will be most pleased."

The words meant little to Liam. He barely heard them. But he turned towards the voice automatically, pulled by the threads that had taken hold of his mind.

"Now, boy, listen to me carefully. All those people you hate - each and every one of them - they're just there on your left, just there where that column is. Can you see them, boy? Can you see everyone you hate?"

Liam turned slowly, not knowing what he'd see. The flames parted to give him a clear view. For a moment, there was just a stone column - then the ropes tightened on his mind and Jeremy shimmered into view, followed quickly by Ellie, Malfoy, and all the other leering, sneering Slytherins.

Liam let out a scream of rage. Magic blasted out of that cry, and the great stone column exploded, completely obliterated by the power of his hate. His enemies disappeared from view - Liam was sure he had blasted them from existence. He laughed a cold mirthless laugh. Now who's a worthless Muggle?

The Death Eater probed his mind again, reaching deeper than he ever had before. Liam didn't care anymore - it didn't seem there was much left in there except hate.

Then the probing mind slammed into a barrier.

Liam hadn't been aware of his own resistance, but he felt it now - a pocket of his soul that neither he, nor the intruder could penetrate. Liam was puzzled - what could his own mind be hiding?

The flames subsided around him - he was much more interested now in figuring out what was behind that barrier. He heard, as if from a great distance, a few notes played on piano - the tiniest fragment of a melody. He knew it meant something - something important to who he was, or who he had been. He struggled to hear or remember more - music, my music, the castle is playing my music!

He felt the Death Eater's mind stir. Suddenly, he was being pulled back into his darkest memories, back into hate.

Remember how they burned you!

For a moment, he was back in the library, lying on the floor as his memory was wiped, leaving only pain. Then time moved forward, and he was lying in the hospital wing - and Ginny was sitting beside him, telling him about his lost day, telling him, without really saying it, that she understood what he felt and would do anything she could to make him feel better. In Liam's memory, the world changed - right there at that very moment, though he didn't know it at the time.

His mind was filled with her now, Ginny, his Ginny, his beautiful Ginny. Memories that were more than just images - he could see her face, her smile, her eyes, yes, but he could also hear her voice, smell her hair, feel her arms wrapping around him and holding him tight, holding him so he couldn't break apart. For a moment, Ginny washed aside everything else - in Liam, there was room only for her.

The Death Eater's laughter shattered that moment.

Liam blinked. He was back in the darkened hall where the Death Eater first entered his mind. There was dust on his clothes, and broken bits of stone scattered all over the floor. In some places, little tongues of flame still danced among the debris. I did that, Liam thought, not quite believing the power he'd unleashed.

The Death Eater stopped laughing. "Foolish boy!" he crowed from his hood. "You think love can save you? Trust me, you're not the first."

The words struck Liam hard, clutching painfully at his insides. He knew that this was the only hope he had - to hold on to Ginny, to his love for Ginny. If he lost that - if the Death Eater could destroy that - then Liam would be gone, leaving nothing but a soul-less creature of hate.

He can't take that, he can't possibly take that! Liam thought, desperate for it to be true. He realised at that moment that the very essence of his being, of everything he loved and valued and was, had become irrevocably tied to Ginny. That was his greatest strength. And now that he knows it, it's my greatest weakness.

"Legilimens!"

Liam didn't have time to prepare a defence. The Death Eater's mind ripped into his, this time with Liam's deepest passion and deepest fear fully exposed and ready for the taking. The Death Eater sifted through every memory and every feeling connected with Ginny, groping the most private parts of Liam's soul. This mental rape was the greatest agony Liam had ever felt - far beyond anything the Slytherins had done to him. He couldn't fight it.

Liam fell to the floor, sobbing helplessly as the Death Eater continued to break him apart from the inside.