𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐧𝐞

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chapter thirty one | the locket

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        The pounding of her head is what pushed Stella Mason to wake up. She could feel the dry leaves on her exposed skin and the bright beam of the Sun on her from above. Her limbs were stiff, her body laying on the ground. She could faintly hear painful groans nearby and someone trying to console someone. She opened her eyes with a groan as her eyes were bombarded with different shades of green. She knew she was in a forest of some kind.

        "Stella, Stella," Harry Potter knelt beside the girl and helped her sit up, "Stel, are you alright?"

        "I'm fine, Harry, just a splitting headache," the girl stood with his help only to see what was happening before her, "Harry—Ron!"

        The girl ran over to Ron's other side, the side that wasn't bloodied, and tried to help Hermione as much as she could. Hermione was on her knees, hands covered with Ron's blood as she tried to calm him down.

          "Harry! Harry, quickly in my bag," Hermione spoke urgently, "there's a bottle labeled Essence of Dittany."

        Harry sped over to the bag and started reaching inside. He felt books, clothes, food packets, but no bottles.

        "Harry, quickly," Stella shouted as she placed Ron's head in her lap to try and keep him awake. He was losing too much blood.

        Harry grabbed his wand and spoke, "accio dittany," the bottle shot up in his hands and ran back to the others, waiting for instruction.

        "Unstopper it," Hermione instructed.

        "Hermione, his arm..."

        "I know, just do it!"

        Stella took the opportunity to speak to Ron, "this is gonna sting but it'll be over quick, okay, Ron?"

        The injured boy gave her a slight nod before groaning in another wave of pain. Hermione quickly started dropping the dittany on Ron's arm.

        "What happened," Harry questioned, "I thought we were going back to Grimmauld Place?"

        "We were. We were," Hermione wheezed as her breath got choppy, continuing to mend Ron's wound, "we were there, we were there, but Yaxley had hold of me, and I... I knew once he'd seen where we were, he c-couldn't stay so, I brought us here but... Ron got splinched."

        Ron's wound finally mended as well as it could, but it still looked quite painful. The boy relaxed into Stella as Hermione took several deep breaths. The Granger glanced at her bloodied hands before standing on her weak knees and chanting spells around them.

        "Salvio hexia... Protego totalum..."

        "What are you doing?"

        "Protective enchantments," Hermione answered Harry, "I don't fancy another visit to Shaftesbury Avenue, do you?"

        "Harry, you can get going on the tent," Sella spoke calmly as she wrapped Ron's arm. His head was now rested on top of her jacket.

        "Tent? Where am I supposed to find a tent?"

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        It was the next morning and the four friends were as refreshed as they could be. Stella Mason was the first one up and prepared tea for when the others woke up like she always did. The weather was as nice as early October could be. The sun was out and the wind wasn't too harsh. At night, however, was a different story.

        Stella greeted her friends one by one as they woke up and got ready for the day ahead of them, giving Harry a kiss on his cheek as she passed him a cup of tea.

        Today was the day they were starting to destroy the Horcrux they had obtained only a day before. They went to the clearing outside the tent and staggered, getting ready to shoot spells at the locket.

        "You first," Hermione nodded to Harry, her wand in hand.

        "Dissendium," Harry exclaimed. The spell hit the locket straight on, but appeared to have no damage done to it.

        Stella furrowed her brows, and stepped forward, "incendio."

        The locket caught fire, but didn't break.

        After witnessing this, Harry shot spell after spell angrily, but nothing worked. He sighed before taking the locket before putting it around his neck.

        "What are you doing," Hermione asked cautiously.

        "We have to keep it safe until we find out how to destroy it."

        "Seems strange, mate," Ron spoke up, his arm in a sling, "Dumbledore sends you off to find all these Horcruxes but doesn't tell you how to destroy them? Doesn't that bother you?"

        Ron's question was left unanswered.

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        As the day went on, everyone seemed to be doing their own individual things, in their own thoughts. Ron was inside the tent, laying down and listening to his radio for any news. Hermione was inside as well, reading the book Dumbledore had given her for any clues. Stella was gathering leaves and sticks for a fire they were going to make later when it starts getting colder out. And lastly, Harry was sitting outside on his turn for watch. Stella had expressed her concern for Harry to Hermione when she saw the effects of the locket but there was really nothing they could do. If Harry wanted to wear the locket, they couldn't stop him.

        Stella began to walk back with her pile in hand when she noticed the state of Harry. His eyes unfocused, breathing heavily as he leaned into the tent. Having seen this a few times, she knew what had happened. She put down the pile near the tent before walking over to the boy.

        "I thought it stopped," she sat in front of him, "you can't keep letting him in, Harry."

        He ignored her scold, "You-Know-Who has found Gregorovitch."

        "The wandmaker?"

        "He wants something that Dumbledore used to have, but I don't know what," the boy explained, starting to pant as he recalled what he saw, "but he wants it desperately. I mean, it's as if his life depends on it."

        Static cracked from inside the tent, making Harry flinch his head toward the inside.

        "Don't," Stella told him loudly, "it comforts him."

        "It sets my teeth on edge. What's he expecting to hear? Good news?"

        The Mason paused, then sighed, "I think he just hopes he doesn't hear bad news."

        Harry stood, wiping the dirt off his hands on his jeans, "how long before he can travel," he didn't get a definitive answer, or an answer at all, causing him to shoot her a frustrated look.

        "I'm helping Hermione as much as I can—"

        "You're not doing enough!"

         Stella sat there in shock as Harry walked out of her sight. He had never, ever, spoken to her like that. And she didn't like it. Not one bit.

        "Take it off," Harry stopped walking to face the girl, "I said take it off now," as soon as the necklace was passed to Stella from Harry, she immediately felt its effects but didn't let it show, not wanting him to fuss. She could tell he instantly felt lighter now that the locket wasn't weighing him down, "better?"

        "Loads," Harry spoke softly and truthfully.

        Stella smiled smally at him before caressing his cheek, "we'll take it in turns, okay?"

        She received a nod and she took the opportunity to go back inside the tent, her smile disappearing as soon as she turned around.

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        The sound of consistent beeping is what woke Stella up, or so she thought she was awake. The last thing she remembered was falling asleep on her bunk with a blanket draped over her. The beeping was somehow familiar to the girl as she lifted her head off of a soft surface, her eyes blurry with sleep. Her vision focused to see, not the tent in the woods, but her mother. Selene Mason laid before her, sleeping peacefully, her face pale.

        Stella looked at her late mother with wide eyes and looked around frantically to see where she was. She was in the same hospital where she watched her mother die. But, her mother wasn't dead, not there, not wherever she was now. She sat in her seat, breathing labored as she tried to assess her situation, when suddenly, the beeping got more rapid. The only thing was, her mother didn't move when the beeping increased. She didn't open her eyes, she didn't twitch a finger, she just laid there. And then, the dreaded sound of a single beep filled the room. Stella's eyes filled with tears that rapidly fell as she watched her mother die before her, again. Her mother was gone.

        Heavy footsteps came toward her, and before she knew it, her father took her by the shoulders, eyes filled with rage, spit coming from his mouth as he spoke.

        "What have you done? What have you done," he screamed, shaking her shoulders with a hard grip. Stella's sobs were unnoticed, "you useless idiot girl! You killed your mother!"

        His screams continued as Stella started to mumble, willing herself not to listen, "no, no, no, no, no..."

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        "No! No! Please!"

        "Stella! Stella, wake up! Wake up!"

        Stella Mason gasped awake as she pushed whoever was trying to wake her. Her back hit the end of the bed frame as she panted heavily. Tears poured down her sweat covered face as she willed her hands to stop shaking, yanking the locket off her body, the necklace landing on the floor.

        Her three friends watched on in sadness. Ron was listening to his radio when he heard the girl start to mumble in her sleep. It wasn't until her mumbles got louder did Harry and Hermione come back inside the tent to see what was going on. Stella was tossing and turning excessively. Harry went to her and tried to wake her up but she only woke up when he finally shouted. The other two looked on worried as he did so.

        They had never seen Stella so distressed. The calm, kind one of the group who always held them together finally let her fears get to her, and it was all because of the locket.

        Once she calmed down a little, she wiped her face with her sleeve and uttered, "sorry."

        Harry shook his head, "there's no need to apologize, Stel," he slowly reached her hand, and she let him hold it, giving it a tight squeeze, "it's the locket."

        Hermione stepped forward and made her way to the bed, "do you want to talk about it?"

        The Mason pulled her knees to her chest, "not yet."

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don't beg a silent reader!
edited: 6 april 2021

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