thirty-nine

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Green flames spread around Marina. She could see Harry reach out a hand as if he had the power to stop her.

The flames rose above her head. She reached for her wand in her pocket and, before she knew it, the flames had turned to ashes. She was now standing in Malfoy Manor's Drawing Room, two Death Eaters before her. She pointed her wand at them and reached to pull up the sleeve of her uniform to show them her Dark Mark.

"Close the Floo Network," she demanded. One of them ran to the fireplace at once. The other stood still. "I want to speak to Father."

Right now, Marina could have been sitting in a warm, cozy living room in London, talking to Louis' parents. She could have been visiting his grave, telling him how much she missed him. Afterward, she could've taken the Knight Bus to Grimmauld Place and seen the house she now owned; maybe have visited her actual father's bedroom. But no, she was standing in Malfoy Manor, watching Bellatrix and Narcissa stumble into the room. Harry and Dumbledore were probably going to hate her for traveling to the manor. But Marina needed answers - answers that Dumbledore could not give her.

"Hey, Mum. Hey, Auntie," Marina said sweetly, not sure if they were aware that she could remember everything that had happened before and during the summer. "I've been needing to talk to you. There are people coming after me, so we need to close the Floo Network while I'm here."

"Is it the boy?" smiled Bellatrix, "is the boy coming?"

"No, I closed the fire," said one of the Death Eaters. Bellatrix looked at him silently for a second, then quickly found her wand and called for extreme torture to attack every cell of his body. Marina bit down on her lip and tried to block out his screams.

"You come alone," began Narcissa, and crossed her arms. "Where's Draco? Is he alright?"

"He's fine, busy fixing the Vanishing Cabinet... That's actually why I came here. Is Father home?"

The doors of the manor slamming, Marina watched him enter the room, his snake-like face without emotion. Tom wore the stench of blood and death like perfume, a bitter taste of war on his tongue, and scars on his hands from those lives he had taken.

"Now, you call me father?" he hissed.

"What do you prefer? Lord? King? Do you want me to bow?" Marina hissed back.

Bellatrix lunged forward. Voldemort raised a hand and she was thrown into the wall. Marina lifted an eyebrow, doing an attempt at turning her emotions off as if she was a machine.

"I have come to tell you that Draco and I are not going to complete your mission. We are not helping any Death Eaters get into Hogwarts, and Draco is not killing Dumbledore at the end of the year."

"And why is that?" asked Tom, tilting his head to the side.

Marina opened her mouth to speak again, but this time, she spoke in Parseltongue so that Narcissa, Bellatrix and the two Death Eaters behind her would not understand her. "I think you already know the answer to that. You've been looking into my memories and messing with them for a while now, haven't you? Tell me, Tom, have you made me a part of your soul?"

"Watch your words, child," breathed Tom. Marina found her wand and dug the tip of it deep into the skin on her neck.

"I could hurt you," she said. "I could hurt you right now. If I make myself bleed, you will bleed. There's a reason why you've shown me your memories of talking to Slughorn about Horcruxes. You want me to know about Horcruxes. Why?"

Tom looked directly into Marina's eyes. "Warriors like you," he said in Parseltongue, "they aren't just born. They are created, formed, hardened with lies and false ideas, painted with blood of their victims. Do you remember your first murder, Marina? You were reborn that night. And it was I who pushed you to it. It was I who made you into a warrior. I spent sixteen years shaping you into who you are. You are ready now. Do you want to be immortal, Marina?"

Marina took a step forward. The next thing she wanted to say, she wanted to say without using the language of the snakes. Narcissa was looking at her as she spoke: "I relive that night every dusk. It haunts me no matter how many times I try to push it out of my mind. I remember everything; the thoughts, the feel, the smell, the taste - it haunts me. If you truly were the one who pushed me to do it, I will make you feel exactly what I feel. I don't want to live forever. I want to make you suffer, and then, I want to die with a smile on my face."

Though Tom did not want to kill her, it was clear that he wished to hurt her now. He drew his wand, pointed it at her, and cried: "Crucio!"

Marina, with a little dose of liquid luck still in her system, cast a projection shield around her. Tom's curse bounced right back to him. He dodged it. Bellatrix finally shot up from the ground, finding her crooked wand.

"Stupefy!" Marina yelled. The light that shot out of her wand stopped inches away from the woman's face. Marina looked around, and with all her strength, threw herself under the long table for cover.

"You coward!" cried Bellatrix.

"I have managed to curse you with torture before, Bella, and I will gladly do it again!" answered Marina, out of breath.

"Reducto!" cried Bellatrix. The long table turned to ashes.

"Sectumsempra!"

Blood spurted from Bellatrix's face and chest. She fell backward, her mouth wide open. It looked as if she had been slashed with an invisible sword. Her wand rolled three feet away from her, and Narcissa ran to her side.

Marina hadn't killed her, had she? She had read the spell in the Half-Blood Prince's book... Never had she expected that it would hurt someone like it had hurt Bellatrix...

A crack was heard. At first, Marina thought one of her bones had been broken. But, then, a soft voice said, "Marina Black, Miss, I am here to take you back to Hogwarts."

Dobby walked to take her hand so that he could Apparate her back to school. She looked at him, very confused, then at Voldemort, who was looking at Bellatrix in silence.

"Wait, Dobby, I can't. I need answers."

"We must hurry, Marina Black, Miss," rushed Dobby.

Voldemort raised his wand above his head and immediately brought it down again. Marina felt something sting her arm. She looked down: her arm was covered in thick blood. Voldemort had torn her uniform and skin open. The liquid luck had clearly worn off. In shock, feeling incredibly light-headed, Marina stumbled backward until she hit something hard. She fell to the floor, feeling the intense desire to close her eyes...

A flash of white, orange and red lights suddenly blinded everyone in the room. Stepping out of the fireplace, Albus Dumbledore drew his wand.

"Good evening, Tom," he said calmly, as if he had no care in the world. The Death Eater who had earlier attempted to close Malfoy Manor's Floo Network had not been able to finish his job before Bellatrix had cursed him, Marina figured.

"Close the fire!" Marina cried, her voice shaky and weak. "Harry's going to follow you!"

The flames in the fireplace rose one more time. Marina's heart sunk, as she for a split second believed that it was Harry who had come. But instead of Harry, stepped Professor Snape out of the flames, his eyes wide.

"Albus," hissed Tom, standing his ground. "We meet again. But why have you come here on this night, when you know it will only end with your death?"

"Marina, I suggest you get back to school grounds," murmured Dumbledore. His lip twitched. Voldemort pointed his wand at him, and fired red lights right at his chest. Dumbledore huffed, a great deal of air escaping his chest.

Marina watched in horror as several Death Eaters pushed Snape out of the way to run into the flames in the fireplace and enter Hogwarts. Dobby helped her to get to her feet so that she could get to the fireplace herself. But her pace came to a sudden end when Snape stepped in front of her.

"Not so fast," he said, gritting his teeth together and pointing a long finger at Bellatrix, who still lay on the floor. Marina looked down at her. She was now paler than she had ever been. There was blood everywhere and she was lost in it. "Where did you learn the curse?"

Without thinking much, Marina put her hand on Snape's arm to push him away. Her blood now stained his uniform. He looked down at the blood and pursed his lips together. Then, he pointed his wand up in the air, waved it in a circle, and the fire in the fireplace died out. He had closed the Floo Network.

"Expelliarmus!" wailed Narcissa from behind them. Dumbledore's wand flew out of his hand. A crying Narcissa caught it.

"I don't believe you wish to kill me, Tom," said Dumbledore. "Then, you would've finished the job long ago."

"You're right. I am not the one who is going to end your life, Albus. Marina is, in exchange for everlasting life."

Dumbledore turned to the her, his brows knit together, his eyes glossy, a single stray of his gray-white hair falling to his nose. Marina shivered, a trickle of blood running down her arm. Did she fear death? The option of immortality was right in front of her. All she needed to do, was to flick her wand and say two short words. A simple kill could keep her alive... If she only...

"No! Get out of my head, Tom!" Marina screamed. She tucked her wand away so that no one could take it, and took a step back.

"Imper-"

Snape stepped forward. Voldemort lowered his wand and closed his mouth.

"Avada Kedavra," uttered Snape, pointing his wand at Dumbledore.

"NO!" screamed Marina, lunging forward. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING? HE TRUSTED YOU!"

Dumbledore fell to the floor, his lips parting. He was going to die on a dirty floor in the pool of someone else's blood. Marina drew her wand and stuck it deep into Snape's back. "Crucio! Crucio, Crucio, Crucio!"

Not being able to control herself, she watched the man twitch and fall to his knees. And instead of stopping her, Tom simply smiled.

"Death doesn't discriminate, Marina," said Voldemort. "What do you believe is going on at Hogwarts right now?"

One could not imagine the pure fear that spread through the youngest Black's body at that moment. It was now very clear that there was not a single drop of Felix Felicis left in her body. She could not feel any adrenaline anymore. By now, the group of Death Eaters that had managed to escape through the Floo Network could have hurt tens of young witches and wizards. But she knew very well who they were really looking for...

Marina grabbed Dobby's right hand. With his left, he took a grip of Dumbledore's beard. In a split second, they Apparated to the Headmaster's office. Marina fell on her side and rolled on the floor as the people in the portraits that hung on the wall let out loud gasps and shrieks. She looked out of the window across the room. Just above the Gryffindor tower, the Death Eaters had marked a green skull with a serpent tongue. Had they taken a life? Had they killed a Gryffindor student? No, it couldn't be...

"Dobby, listen to me," Marina whispered, trying to look at the house-elf without glancing at the dead body next to him. "You need to get Kreacher. Go to Grimmauld Place. Get the Order of the Phoenix - warn them and tell them what is happening. They need to get out before the Death Eaters go there, too."

Dobby nodded, and Disapparated. Suddenly, Marina felt immensely uncomfortable. The body of Dumbledore lay next to her, and it all felt like a nightmare. Maybe, just maybe, this was Tom playing with her mind again? Maybe this was all a part of a horrible nightmare, and she was really in her bed in the dormitory? She squeezed her eyes shut for ten seconds and opened them again. Nothing had changed. This was not a nightmare. This was all real.

Marina got to her feet and walked to Dumbledore. The people in the portraits were trying to get in contact with her, but she was blocking them out. Carefully, she reached to check his pulse, a small hope still inside of her. But his heart had stopped beating long ago.

This was all her fault, wasn't it?

She put his hands together over his chest and straightened the half-moon spectacles upon his crooked nose, whispering apologies to him just in case he somehow could hear him. Large tears were forming in her eyes.

It was her who had not listened to the Headmaster when he had told her to go to Allen Manor. He would have been alive if she had not been so stupid. But, why had he not put up a fight? She knew very well that Dumbledore had been capable of taking out every wizard in Malfoy Manor, so why had he let Tom kill him?

Her breaths were getting shorter and heavier. It hurt to inhale air, and it seemed like she had forgotten how to exhale it. Doing the best she could to ignore it, she grabbed her wand and stormed out of the office.

The corridor was dark, but Marina knew the way to the Gryffindor Common Room very well. She could hear someone scream from far away. Distracted by it, she didn't pay attention to her steps until she crashed into a person. She stumbled backward, pointing her wand their way, unable to see where they were standing now.

"I think we need to get you to the hospital wing," said the person. "Lumos."

Marina looked at the man in front of her. He was tall and thin, with his long red hair in a ponytail.

"I don't- I'm not hurt," spat Marina. She assumed that the man was a student, but she could not be sure because of his bright purple robes. "Who are you?"

"So, you call on the Order, but do not recognize me?" the man answered, clicking his tongue. "You didn't even notice the hair? Surely, you must have seen me in photos, Marina. I bet Ron talks lots about me, too. I'm Bill Weasley."

Marina did not get the chance to answer Bill, for suddenly, Dobby appeared in front of them, hand-in-hand with Remus and Tonks. Had her school not been under attack, Marina would have thrown herself into Remus' arms. "Have you seen Harry?" she asked instead, rushing, not even noticing that Bill had just left her side.

"No, we have not," said Remus, stepping forward while Dobby went to fetch more members of the Order. "Why did we have to come here?"

"It's Death Eaters. They're here - they managed to enter the school, and now they've-"

Marina was cut off by a horrible, heartbreaking scream from Bill. He had opened the passage to the Gryffindor Common Room, and a Death Eater Marina could recognize from a mile away had come out of it. He jumped forward and tackled Bill, both of them falling to the floor.

"Stupefy!" Marina yelled. The Death Eater flew backward and hit the wall.

Greyback had cut so deep into the Weasley's face with his teeth that it looked grotesque. Bill was shaking uncontrollably and gasping for air in a way that reminded Marina of the pain the Cruciatus Curse had made her feel.

"Bill? Bill, listen, you're going to be alright, we can get you fixed in no time," whispered Marina carefully, dropping to her knees beside him. "Right, Lupin? You've got a charm?"

"There's no cure for werewolf bites," answered Remus.

"Something for the pain, then? Something to make the wounds heal faster?"

Remus kneeled beside Bill and found his wand. He began whispering in Latin. Bill's breathing pattern went back to normal after a few seconds, though the wounds did not heal. It took a long minute before Bill got the strength to sit up. He tried bringing his hand up to his face to dry blood off with his sleeve, but let out a wince and gave up quickly.

"Are you alright?" Tonks asked.

"If I can still breathe, I'm fine," he answered with a thin voice. "How bad does it look?"

"It's just a scratch," replied Tonks.

"It's not a full moon. He didn't transform you," explained Remus, "but your wounds are cursed. This is the best I can do, Bill."

"Maybe Dumbledore knows something that will work," whimpered Bill.

"We should find him," Tonks said.

"I know where he is," mumbled Marina. "But... Something happened to him..."

"What?"

"It was Snape- I couldn't stop him! I tried, but I couldn't! Dumbledore followed me to Malfoy Manor, and Snape came and killed him!"

"But Dumbledore swore Snape was on our side!" said Tonks.

"There was something wrong with Dumbledore," Marina told them. "He didn't even try to fight back when To- Voldemort fired spells at him. Dumbledore seemed weak."

They stood in silence for a while, each of them trying to process Marina's words. Then, they could hear a phoenix sing somewhere out in the darkness. It was a stricken lament of terrible beauty echoing across the school grounds. They could all tell where it came from: Dumbledore's office.

"I should go to his office. The teachers will go there with a million questions." Marina bit down on her lip. "Can you search the school for more Death Eaters?"

Tonks nodded. Marina turned.

"Marina?" Remus softly whispered as she walked away. "You know, if there are Death Eaters inside the school, they are looking for you and Harry. If you find him, you both have to leave."

"Where?"

"Don't tell anyone."

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