Join me on Discord for discussions, character portraits, and one advanced chapter. Server code is vN7sTYhEp6.

  Or hop onto Patreon under the same penname to read an additional five chapters.

  This chapter was edited by Gdiusx. Check his works on HP and ASOIAF, I highly recommend them.

  Somewhere near Kent

  The life of an echo living in a painting was dreadfully dull. Even more so when you lived in an empty cottage outside some muggle town where she was the sole occupant aside from a few rats.

  When the firepce sprang to life with green fmes, Cassiopeia jerked awake in her slumber. She stretched with a yawn as a figure stepped out and waved her wand at the chandelier, banishing the darkness out of the foyer. Blinking blearily, she recognised the blonde hair of her grandniece as she walked deeper into the house. Cassiopeia followed her into an empty portrait, observing with interest as little Cissa went straight to the drawing room and summoned several small chests.

  “My, Narcissa. You haven’t visited in weeks, not since you told me about how your useless husband got himself killed by a muggle. Now that you’re here, you start raiding my jewellery box without even a by your leave? Where’s that cute son of yours? I warned you not to leave that girl with him alone, boys can be–” Cassie chuckled before freezing as the young witch turned to her with eyes burning with madness and grief. “What happened, dear?”

  Narcissa took a deep, shuddering breath and opened and closed her mouth several times before a single tear fell from her left eye. “They killed him.”

  If Cassiopeia was alive she would have felt her blood run cold, yet the magic of the portrait still simuted such emotions well enough as her eyes narrowed dangerously. “Who?”

  “The ministry got my son killed.”

  The words were said, yet Cassiopeia Bck could not process them. The bloody Ministry of Magic killed a Hogwarts student? A pureblood scion of a noble house? One who had Bck blood?!

  “Tell me everything.”

  Narcissa was reticent as the grief that had suddenly taken over her melted into a cold fury. She put on a pair of dragonhide gloves and opened the first chest. “I need all of your protective talismans, Great Aunt.”

  Cassie’s eyes widened. “All of them?”

  “Everything you have that could be used for battle.” Her grandniece set aside several cursed rings and bracelets before holding a talisman made from a block of basalt that was as bck as sin. “Anything that could cause mayhem, some protection and enhancements for myself as well. Anything that could help.”

  “And what would you do with such dangerous materials?” Cassie asked, worry churning in the canvas as the st of the Bck Witches was clearly about to commit to a mad endeavour. As her one-time student identified several more magical talismans and tokens that the old witch had hidden after the war, Cassie called again. “Tell me what happened, Cissa. Tell me so I can help.”

  Narcissa turned to her and finally told her tale, a tale of woe and incompetence that caused Cassiopeia Bck, former lieutenant of Gellert Grindelwald, to feel a bck rage overcome her. She had fought on Grindelwald’s side to avoid a simir situation, to abolish the ministries that would welcome those unworthy to rule over them and install a worthy wizard as king. Cassie knew better than anyone else that the death of Draco Malfoy would definitely lead to nowhere. Despite what some fools believed, she knew the Ministry was not a pce run by justice but by influence and gold. The paper pushers would not lift a finger if they didn’t have to, doubtlessly ciming Draco’s death was an act of magic.

  Dementors at school?! Whoever had decided that was a good idea needed to be gutted. Apparently, Narcissa agreed as she briefly told her what she pnned. Cassie’s rage turned into excitement the more they talked and the more talismans and magical items that Narcissa picked.

  She never thought such a day would come, a day that would rock Magical Britain to its core. Not even that Dark Lord Voldemort ever succeeded in what her grandniece pnned to do, and while a part of her mented that poor Narcissa was most likely walking to her death, who was she to stop her from pursuing her vengeance?

  Cassiopeia was but a portrait, and the best she could do was to arm her fellow Bck Witch as much as possible. As Narcissa Bck walked away towards the firepce, dressed in all bck, holding a war staff, and with enough protective enchantments and other support items to wage war, Cassiopeia regretted that she would not be there to watch the chaos that would ensue.

  No one messes with House Bck and gets away unscathed!

  A*L*S*M

  Ministry of Magic

  “By order of the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister, all ministry workers on premises must report immediately to the Minister’s Office.”

  Eleanor Fawley’s yawn was cut short at the sudden announcement. It had been an hour since Director Bones had summoned practically every ministry employee to head to Hogwarts. Considering the te hour, the Ministry was empty save for the maintenance crew and others pulling all-nighters and overtime like herself. Eleanor, as an employee of records, was not required to join in whatever chaos happened in her old school, though she had a hunch it had to do with Harry Potter, especially as the whispers said the dementors had gone rogue. She would admit to being worried about her brothers, especially little Sullivan, who would start his first year tonight, but Eleanor had learned to be patient in matters like this.

  She would have loved nothing more than to be sleeping in her bed, especially as she was just about to go home when Umbridge summoned all the staff in the Ministry. Yet, despite her newly formed closeness with Director Bones, Eleanor could not ignore a direct order from the Minister’s right-hand woman. Especially when Dolores Umbridge used the emergency announcement charm to summon everyone.

  Eleanor grumbled as she made her way out of the office of records and to the balcony overlooking the Atrium, grimacing as she thought she heard a whistling noise. She was on the second floor that encompassed the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, right below the minister’s office on the first floor. The young witch felt them from afar, the cold shroud of despair as if something had sucked all that was good, bright, and warm from the world. It wasn’t as bad as it could have been; the dementors had not exerted even a third of their aura.

  A moment ter, Eleanor saw her least-favourite person in the Ministry, fnked by two dementors, in addition to whatever goons she managed to hire as her lickspittles. The pink hag was gripping the railings tightly as if afraid she would fall.

  The rge looming figures had caused quite the scene when Umbridge first brought them in, yet eventually, she was allowed to retain their services but only during evening shifts, when most of the ministry workers were gone. The woman’s nervous gaze fell on Eleanor and turned into a scowl before she gestured for her to hurry. Eleanor groaned inwardly; she was tempted to simply apparate up there, but it was frowned upon to use Apparition inside the Ministry building. Considering Umbridge did not like her much, and the feeling was definitely mutual, the witch decided to take the long way around.

  Eleanor made her way to the closest lift, walking through the empty halls of the DMLE, the strange whistling noise dimming to nothing. She should have been home a few hours ago, sleeping in her comfy bed, before waking up early to catch an owl from her brothers to tell her how the Sorting went. Still, with Thorfinn Rowle losing his job, or more accurately speaking, reassigned to another department, Eleanor found herself with even more work than usual.

  The Minister's promise of finding her a helper after Rowle was reassigned had yet to be fulfilled, and Eleanor was beginning to wonder if it was really worth keeping this job with all the stress and annoyances she had to deal with. Not even the promotion and pay raise Madam Bones approved for her was worth it if it meant she worked at least twelve hours every day.

  As the lift closed its doors and moved, Eleanor pocketed her reading gsses and blew a strand of her brown hair away from her face just as she arrived at her destination, wincing at the sharp whistling sound that came back with a vengeance.

  “Level 1 - Minister for Magic and Support Staff.” The lift’s automated announcer called.

  Apparently, despite being a single floor away, Eleanor was the st to arrive as nine other ministry workers stared at her as she made her way to where they lined up. Dolores Umbridge paced back and forth, nervously gncing sporadically at something pced on a desk that Eleanor could not see due to a stack of papers, yet she identified the source of the whistling sound from it.

  Her gaze, however, settled on the dozen unknown wizards lounging nearby. Unkempt, with zy postures and roaming eyes, they most certainly weren’t Ministry staff and wore no appropriate badges or robes to indicate their status. Yet they clearly were invited here by Umbridge, judging by how they gnced at her every now and then as if waiting for orders.

  Why was the Minister’s Undersecretary bringing in a band of thugs that looked like they came straight out of Knockturn Alley?

  The chill from the dementors did not invite any chatter as the ministry workers stood at attention, waiting for the woman to say something, yet Umbridge continued to pace and mutter to herself. At one point, she waved her wand at the desk, causing whatever was whistling to be silenced, only for it to start whistling again a few seconds ter.

  Finally losing patience, Eleanor coughed, causing the woman to freeze. “Madam Umbridge, was there a reason you called for us here at such a te hour?”

  The woman looked at her as if she had grown a second head. Eleanor steeled herself for Umbridge’s biting rebuke, yet the pink hag simply shook her head and moved to the desk she had been gncing at and stared downwards intently as she waved her wand and silenced the whistling once more.

  “I have summoned you all here for your own safety. I-I…” Umbridge began looking around the corners of the rge balcony as if expecting something to jump at them from the shadows. She licked her lips nervously and gnced down once more before suddenly looking up, “I-I have received intelligence that Sirius Bck shall be sneaking into the ministry!”

  Several worried mutters could be heard, but Eleanor narrowed her eyes; she had learned not to trust any word from that woman’s wormy lips.

  “May I ask what Sirius Bck could be pnning?”

  “T-That mad man shall abuse the fact the premises are empty to… to…” Umbridge gnced down again as if checking something, “To assassinate me? Yes! He is here to kill me! And we must all band together to beat him back.”

  “Bollocks! If what you say is true, then we should all go home.” One of the maintenance crew protested and turned around, only to freeze when one of the goons blocked his way - the man had a smarmy smirk on him as he tapped his wand threateningly. “What is the meaning of this, Madam Umbridge?”

  The rest of the workers fingered their wands as the woman cleared her throat, “I do not recommend anyone to leave the premises until we are certain that Sirius Bck is apprehended. The attack on the Hogwarts Express must be his doing and–”

  “What do you mean the Hogwarts Express? I thought the DMLE and the minister were called due to a drunken brawl in Hogsmeade!” One of the witches was wringing her hands with worry, causing the other workers to draw their wands and gnce around them as they realised they were surrounded by the hired wands and the two dementors.

  “Just what makes you so sure that Sirius Bck will attack the ministry?” Eleanor also had her wand drawn, giving a wary gnce at the dementors before gring at the Undersecretary, who stared wide-eyed at the desk as it whistled once more. “Madam Umbridge!”

  Umbridge jumped and bumped into the desk, causing the stack of papers to colpse. Eleanor’s eyes widened as she recognised the two devices on the desk, right as one of them started whistling again.

  A sneakoscope whistled like mad as it danced on the desk beside a rge foe-gss. A dark, vague figure loomed inside the gss device that Eleanor could have sworn felt familiar. It was either a woman or a man with long hair, yet the more she stared at it, the more its features seemed to clear. It was definitely a woman wearing dark robes and familiar cold blue eyes.

  “Bloody hell! A sneakoscope? Foe-gss? That’s your intelligence?!” The maintenance wizard barked out angrily, “Are you truly going to keep us held here because of your superstitious paranoia?”

  “What did you even pn to do with us here?”

  “Even if Sirius Bck really is coming, none of us are w enforcement. You can’t keep us here.”

  “Could it be…you pnned to use us as human shields?!”

  “What has happened on the Express? Where is my Marietta?! Are our children safe?”

  Everyone around Eleanor muttered angrily and shouted abuse at the Undersecretary, whose face turned purple from anger. Her hired thugs gripped their wands tightly yet gnced at their employer, who banged the desk with her fist.

  “I WILL HAVE ORDER!” The dementors approached then, and the colour began to drain from the world as the air grew frosty and everyone bunched together in worry. “As the highest authority in the Ministry presently, you will follow my commands. Whether you are shields or wands, you will do your duty to protect me and do my bidding or else I will have you all arrested for treason and–”

  A sudden noise came from below, and the woman froze mid-sentence. Umbridge hurried to the railings and stared down in fear. Eleanor mustered her Gryffindor courage and rushed to the railings as well, ignoring the shouts of warning from the thugs, and stood well away from Umbridge. The sound of gears clicking echoed ominously in the empty Atrium, and Eleanor realised its source. It was incredibly rare, but someone was using the visitor’s entrance to the ministry, which was supposed to be shut down after hours.

  The sneakoscope chose this moment to practically scream, and Eleanor turned around and froze at the figure in the foe-gss; elegant blonde hair, rge blue eyes wide with rage, a face so frosty that it could have been sculpted from ice. There was no doubt who was coming, but Eleanor only felt confused.

  A Reductor destroyed both devices, and one of the thugs cursed. “Bleeding thing’s gonna blow me eardrums.”

  The sound of the lift stopped, to be repced by ominous, echoing footsteps. Eleanor stared down as the witch she saw in the foe-gss appeared, wearing a bck dress under a dark cloak, a wide-brimmed bck hat with a mourning veil, lips as red as blood, an assortment of jewellery like rings, earrings, hairpins, and holding a staff with an ominous dragon head in one hand and her wand with the other.

  A visitor’s badge was pinned on her breast, and Eleanor squinted as she tried to tell what it said, but to no avail. Gncing at the nearby desks, Eleanor found a pair of omniocurs that she summoned and brought to her eyes, finding the visitor's badge saying Justice.

  Narcissa Malfoy inspected the empty Atrium before Dolores Umbridge’s echoing voice filled the ministry building through a Sonorus Charm.

  “The Ministry of Magic is closed. Identify yourself immediately and remain where you are until my guards appreh–”

  Eleanor’s eyes widened when Narcissa Malfoy smmed the staff on the marble floor. A near-invisible shockwave erupted in a conic shape that shattered everything in its path. Marble tiles were ripped out of the ground, gss shattered everywhere from the Atrium all the way to the first floor, and the water in the Fountain of Magical Brethren was bsted away while the golden statues were cut to pieces as if struck by invisible bdes. Witches and wizards screamed while the dementors sent a rattling groan of agitation, and Umbridge fell on the floor in fear, hiding from the shattered gss.

  A few pops of apparition sounded behind her, and Eleanor realised some of the workers had apparated away. For her part, she had simply formed a Protego, and all the shards bounced off the invisible shield, but her gaze was fixed on the witch as she threw some sort of dark sb on the ground that shattered into a million pieces. Instantly, a foreboding pressure surrounded them all, and Eleanor could instinctively tell she had lost her chance to leave. An anti-apparition ward, though judging by how heavy it felt, had to prevent other methods of magical travel as well. A gnce at the firepces showed that the lights above them went dim until they blinked out.

  Eleanor gulped as she realised they were all trapped. Narcissa Malfoy pointed her wand at her throat before speaking. “Dolores Umbridge. You have murdered my son. Come down here and face me.”

  Everyone gnced at the Undersecretary in shock as she stood up and vanished the gss shards around her. Her face was contorted in rage as she gred down at the railings. “How dare you accuse me of such a thing? Who are you?!”

  “Narcissa Bck is here for you. No one will be leaving tonight until I'm done. Hide in your offices or your rooms, I care not. I am only here for her.”

  For a moment, no one moved, but then the rest of the Ministry Workers hurried to the minister’s office, bsting the door open even as Umbridge screamed at them to come back and fight, only to seal the door behind them. None of the workers remained except for Eleanor who gazed down at the woman she helped a few months ago. Both of their blue eyes met, and even at this distance, Eleanor shivered as she realised the madness and the message sent.

  ‘Don’t get in my way. I shall not hold back even for you.’

  Eleanor nodded and quickly tapped her head, casting the Disillusionment Charm on herself, just as Umbridge screamed at her goons to get down and fight.

  “What are you all standing around for? Get rid of this menace by any means necessary!”

  “Even lethal magic?” A thickset wizard with beady eyes asked with excitement.

  “Yes, yes, of course. The woman is clearly attacking the Ministry of Magic. Hold nothing back!”

  “Heh, finally, some fun.” The thugs jumped down from the railings, waving their wands and causing their free-fall to slow down.

  The Senior Undersecretary looked around angrily, clearly searching for her, but if there was one thing Eleanor was proud of, it was her aptitude for Charms. Eventually, the woman cursed before speaking to the dementors in that disgusting tongue and made her way to the lifts. Eleanor sighed in relief since the dementors were staring right at her, but thankfully, Umbridge must have been too distracted to utilise them. She focused the omniocurs on the Atrium, not wishing to miss any action.

  Narcissa Bck did not waste time as her staff stood upright on its own while she withdrew several things from underneath her cloak. The moment the wizards jumped, she threw a bundle of papers in the air that shined for a moment before floating around her like flyers. Then, the witch traced her wand over her palm, causing blood to spurt as she smeared it over her staff, causing yellow light to shine from its eyes. Finally, Narcissa drank several potions in succession, causing magic to roil out of her in visible waves.

  Just in time for the thugs to nd lightly on the broken tiles. Eleanor gulped; it was twelve against one, and she had no idea who to root for. One of the wizards stepped forward, a smarmy grin on his face.

  “Listen, dy, I don’t give a fuck what your problem is, but if you surrender now, you can still avoid a world of pain. I’m sure Dolly won’t mind if we take you somewhere for some alone time to pay for wasting our time, though.” The wizards chuckled, and Eleanor gripped her wand tightly as the wizard’s wand tip glowed an ominous red, “It wouldn’t be the first time we had to educate some–”

  Narcissa flicked her wand, opening the battle with a dark purple spell that flew as fast as lightning and struck the wizard in the chest. The man barely had time to gasp before a dozen bloody spikes sprang out of his mouth, eyes, neck, back, and torso, turning him into gory mulch, with only his legs remaining standing.

  Eleanor’s eyes widened as she realised the spikes were the man’s own spine and ribs. She shivered as her veins turned to ice but continued watching with morbid curiosity as the pair of legs toppled sideways.

  For a second, the wizards stared incomprehensibly at their fallen comrade before another curse from Narcissa forced one of them to scramble to dodge, and the battle was on. The witch stood a few feet from the destroyed fountain, and the eleven remaining wizards threw hexes and curses at her as they surrounded her in a crescent formation.

  Narcissa smmed the staff once more just as the curses approached her, and a bst of wind caused most of them to veer away from her while the witch dodged a piercing hex to her knee, batted away an exploding curse that shattered the ground before summoning a golden shield that absorbed the st three curses.

  Undaunted, the wizards’ faces hardened with grim resolve before raining more curses at the witch.

  “Imperio!” One of them shouted, yet there was a reason it was not advised to use the Unforgivable Curses during a duel; they had to be intoned verbally, required a certain wand motion, and always left the caster unbanced for a few seconds, depending on which curse was used.

  The Imperius Curse was nearly invisible, yet Narcissa Bck was already alerted by the wizard’s shout, managed to duck out of the way, and return the favour with a dark blue curse that the wizard couldn’t dodge, yet one of his comrades blocked with a broken tile that immediately rotted into nothingness. More spells of the darkest kind flew from every wand aimed at Narcissa, yet her floating talismans spun faster and intercepted the most dangerous-looking ones while Narcissa either dodged or blocked the rest.

  A hex flew straight for her heart, a streak of sickly yellow light that the witch was unable to defend against due to several other curses aimed at her. The nearest talisman fshed, absorbing the impact with a sizzling hiss, just as several more blocked the rain of curses that nearly hit her. Narcissa didn’t pause after negating the curses, her wand slicing through the air to her right. A thin crescent of crimson light flew from its tip, a particurly grisly variation of the Cutting Charm that was as wide as a human was tall. Its target, a tall, wiry wizard, scrambled away with a shield erupting from his wand. It wasn’t enough—his shield shattered like gss, and the spell cut through his wand, right arm, and part of his shoulder.

  He crumpled to the floor, his mouth twisted into a terrible scream, as rivers of blood poured from the gaping hole where his arm used to be. Two down, ten more to go.

  “She got Janus! Damned whore! Crucio!” One of the wizards roared, a bolt of red lightning flew from his wand like a muggle taser, yet Narcissa calmly dodged it, even as another wizard roared, “Avada Kedavra!” yet one of her talismans instantly intercepted the jet of green light, before exploding into confetti.

  The witch was about to punish the user of the Cruciatus, who could not even move until the curse retracted back to his wand, but she was nearly blindsided as two more wizards seized the opening and unched curses from her left. Narcissa raised her staff, and another gust of magically charged wind blew out, barely managing to change the curses' aim away from her, though one of them clipped her wide-brimmed hat, turning it to ash as it shined for a brief moment.

  Narcissa’s long blonde hair flew everywhere while her rge, manic eyes gred bloody murder at the two wizards who, undaunted, sent more curses towards her, followed by more from the remaining eight wizards. Just before the talismans could block the curses, the witch bit her lip and spat blood on the draconic head of her staff. A brilliant light shined, and Narcissa smmed the staff on the ground, causing a primaeval roar that rattled Eleanor’s bones to erupt from the dragon's head, and the staff exploded.

  Eleanor stared in shock as Narcissa’s left hand bled heavily, yet in pce of the staff was a whirlwind that absorbed any spell thrown at it - even a few that she recognised as the Killing Curse. She could see the curses flying around it, still active, until the wind suddenly solidified into a floating draconic head that spat the curses back at the wizards. Seven of them dodged, yet the rest summoned shields that blocked the worst of the spells, except for one of them who had the misfortune to be targeted by a killing curse thrown by one of his comrades. It bypassed the shield as if it were not there and struck him in the chest, dropping him on the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.

  Nine more to go.

  Narcissa waved her wounded hand, and the draconic head roared again before it flew after a handful of wizards, who realised that they could not escape from the spirit. They bunched together and formed their strongest shields, combining them together to endure the dragon’s relentless assault.

  A sharp crack to the angry widow’s right had her spin to see a heavyset wizard lunging forward, his wand conjuring several metal javelins before sending them flying at her at close range. The javelins were fast, but Narcissa jabbed her wand to the ground, causing a wall to rise and block them. Only for the wall to explode as the wizard bashed his way through, yet Narcissa had already formed a shield that blocked the debris.

  Nevertheless, the wizard grinned and pointed his wand at her throat, the tip shining an ominous red that Eleanor recognised was a cutting curse. The curse bsted at the witch, and Eleanor gasped only for the spell to spsh harmlessly on Narcissa’s neck. One of the witch’s earrings fshed before disintegrating, and Eleanor realised it was a protection charm.

  “Fgelre Tenebris!”

  Narcissa Bck must have been taken aback, for this was the first spell she verbalised, yet despite how long the spell was, it was effective as the wizard was too busy gawking at his father curse. A bck, smoky whip shed from her wand, snapping around the wizard’s neck and yanking him to the ground. His body hit the marble with a sickening thud, his throat crushed, yet his wand still bsted another cutting curse that still spshed harmlessly on Narcissa’s abdomen. The witch’s other earring turned to dust.

  All the while, her protective talismans floated around her and protected her from the hexes and curses of the other wizards. Nearly two-thirds of them were gone already, and the witch was breathing heavily. Yet Narcissa was still cognisant of the surrounding fight.

  “Avada Kedavra!”

  She jerked away, narrowly dodging the Killing Curse that crashed into the distant wall with a bang that left a head-sized hole. With a flick of her wrist, she sent a bck curse hissing back, and the wizard who had fired at her went down, clutching his stomach with one hand before hurrying to wave his wand at himself with the other. He clearly recognised the curse as he tried to cast the counter-curse, only for a simple disarming charm from Narcissa to send his wand flying, and his eyes widened in despair. His face suddenly contorted in agony as he tore away at his clothes, exposing his belly, where Eleanor could see something wriggling under his stomach. Suddenly, his guts burst out of his belly button, and the wizard screamed before the animated guts flew to his mouth and forced their way down his throat before an ominous crack resounded.

  His neck was snapped.

  Eleanor stared transfixed at the horrible death, realising that only seven wizards were left, four of them still struggling against the wind dragon. She jerked as the three other wizards rained death at Narcissa, who had not gnced once at the wizard after she disarmed him and duelled the three wizards at the same time.

  “Crucio!” One of them foolishly tried to use the Unforgivable once more, only for several of the talismans to bundle together and block it, yet they somehow kept the curse active, not allowing the wizard to cancel it. Naturally, Narcissa did not allow that opportunity to go and sent a cutting curse that sent the wizard’s head flying before pivoting and sending another curse at the two other wizards.

  “Enough of this madness!” One of the wizards shouted as they dodged the fiery nce before stabbing his wand into his palm, the wooden tip somehow piercing through to the other side, sending blood everywhere, before he muttered a chant of sorts under his breath that Eleanor could not hear.

  His surviving comrade saw what he was doing, and his eyes widened, barely blocking a hex from Narcissa. “Vince, no!”

  Too te, the wizard withdrew his wand from his palm, pointed it at Narcissa, and roared: “Fiendfyre!”

  A resounding explosion of magic, then a menagerie of fiery animals erupted from the wizard’s wand, which burned to ashes. Eleanor could feel the heat from where she was, yet Narcissa merely smirked as the fmes approached her. She simply withdrew a papyrus scroll and tapped it with her bloody fingers.

  Only for the draconic head that had been battering the four other wizards with bdes of wind to appear in her pce and swallow the horde of cursed fmes. For a moment, silence reigned supreme as the dragon seemed to chew its morsel, its opaque form turning bright yellow from the fmes. Eleanor gnced at where the four wizards were, finding them lowering their shields, battered and clearly on their st legs. Narcissa suddenly appeared in front of them, coming out of a Disillusionment, and threw a bottle at their feet, yet the wizards were wary enough that they instantly bsted at her with all kinds of curses that her talismans struggled to block.

  Until the bottle crashed in the middle of their formation.

  Vines and tree roots erupted from the ground and restrained them just as the dragon roared, the wind infusing the cursed fmes and turning it into a confgration that was clearly still under the control of Narcissa as it bsted off after the two wizards that had been duelling the witch. A groan of pain caused Eleanor to stare back at the blonde witch, finding that she had been struck by several curses from the restrained wizards. No more talismans floated around her, their remains burning away to ash, and nearly all her jewellery disintegrated.

  Meanwhile, the fming dragon finally caught the two running wizards and swallowed them in one gulp. Eleanor saw their forms quickly turning to ash, just as the dragon turned to the restrained wizards.

  “W-Wait, we surrend–” One of them tried to say before the dragon crashed into them, turning them into ashes. With no more enemies around, the dragon turned its gaze to the fallen Narcissa, who coughed out blood as she waved her wand over her abdomen before quickly gulping down a potion. She raised her head just as the dragon roared, and Eleanor realised that the freakish creature of magic had turned on its master.

  The now-shaking Narcissa produced another papyrus scroll and opened it just as the dragon crashed into her, but it was quickly snuffed out to nothingness. Eleanor gawked, wondering what had happened, yet the scroll in the witch’s hands shined brightly for a moment before going dormant - an image of a strange burning dragon was now printed on the scroll as if it came from an Egyptian temple. Narcissa did not come out unscathed, however, as most of her clothes burned to cinders, exposing several angry red burns on her skin.

  For a moment, Eleanor thought she had won before wondering why she was rooting for the clearly unstable witch. Nevertheless, a ding sounded out, and a cool, emotionless voice decred: “Level 8 - The Atrium.”

  Dolores Umbridge stepped out of the lift, fnked by her two dementors. The Senior Undersecretary to the Minister inspected the destruction of the Atrium, as well as the bloody remains of several of her guards and the burned ashes of the rest. Eleanor realised the woman must have spied on the battle somehow, for she did not at all look surprised at the devastation.

  Still, Umbridge’s face turned purple as she noticed Narcissa Bck standing in the centre of the Atrium, half-naked, with her left arm hanging uselessly and breathing harshly.

  “Do you have any idea what you have done?!” Umbridge ground out as she held her wand, yet Narcissa spat blood sideways.

  “Do you have any idea what your arrogance and madness did to me?” It was clear that one of the curses that struck Narcissa had done some internal damage as she coughed more blood, yet she stood steadily as she gred murderously at the squat woman. “Your incessant need to be the centre of attention, to always make yourself relevant, has caused my son’s death. If you had not called for dementors to be stationed in Hogsmeade, Draco would still be alive.”

  “It was Cornelius who–”

  “And you were the one who pushed, who insisted it was the right political move. But no matter, I care not for politicking, only justice.” Narcissa chuckled, yet it was a cold sound that did not have any mirth in it. She held her hand over her face, smearing blood all over it as she pushed her dishevelled hair away, turning it bloody. “Frankly, I could not care less the why or how or whatever consequences the world shall throw at me. All I care about…is you.”

  An ominous sound erupted from outside, almost like an earthquake, as something attempted to barge in. Eleanor realised that someone was trying to break down whatever ward Narcissa activated that prevented magical travel.

  “Hah! You are on your st legs, you crazy bitch.” Umbridge seemed to gather courage from the sounds, firmly believing that help was just around the corner. “But I will not wait for others to arrest you. Bming me for your son’s death? You must be out of your mind! Even if the dementors decided to have a snack, you fallen nobles are no better than mudbloods and blood traitors anyway. No wonder you chose to take such a barbaric approach, for you knew your baseless accusations would never even pass through the Mot or the DMLE. But of course, you can’t, for it was the entire Wizengamot that ultimately agreed on taking over the security of Hogsmeade. They would sooner bury you quietly than admit to any wrongdoing.”

  Narcissa Bck scowled hatefully and sent a sickly yellow curse at Umbridge, who ughed as she batted it away, her grating, high-pitched giggle giving even Eleanor a migraine despite being nearly a hundred feet above them.

  “I will admit if we had fought at the start with all those highly illegal dark objects you threw around, I would have definitely been dead by now. Yet, you’re a half-dead deranged witch, and I am no slouch with a wand.”

  Narcissa breathed heavily and clenched her wand tightly as she struggled to remain standing, “I never said I was here to kill you.”

  “Begging for your life already? How quaint.” The squat woman waved her hand at the dementors, “Perhaps I should not have given the order to have the dementors inspect the Express for your equally deranged cousin. I admit that I did not expect them to attack a student. It appears I will need more practice bending them to my will. Nevertheless, no one will know it was my orders, and your crimes are still unforgivable. Murdering upstanding members of society in the heart of the Ministry, no less! Threatening myself with bodily harm. Raising your wand against me! I will make sure that you are locked up for an eternity, right alongside your deranged sister and keeping the dementors you hate so much company. Take her!”

  The dementors approached, and Narcissa grimaced heavily as she sent a gout of fmes at them that did nothing but cause them to flinch. Eleanor suddenly realised that the witch could not cast the Patronus Charm. It was a strange thing to see such a formidable witch, who had so thoroughly annihited a dozen dangerous wizards, seem so weak against the wardens of Azkaban. Professor Dumbledore was right back when he taught them Defence when one of their teachers resigned halfway through the year; fighting was not simply about who could cast the most magic in the shortest time but rather which spell to use in which situation.

  Narcissa Bck’s failure to cast the Patronus negated all the progress she made in her pursuit of justice.

  “Expecto Patronum.”

  A tiny yet bright hamster erupted from Eleanor’s wand and sped down like a meteor just as the dementors were about to grab Narcissa and crashed into their fnks. The wraiths shrieked in terror as they flew away, deeper into the tunnel that led to the visitor’s entrance. Narcissa Bck gawked as she looked up to find Eleanor by the rails, her disillusionment breaking from the spell, she couldn’t help but smile ruefully and mouthed, “the rest is up to you now,” before she turned away from the railings.

  Umbridge’s scream of rage quickly turned into squeals of pain as the sound of duelling erupted once more. Eleanor whistled a random tune as she inspected the omniocurs. Just as she made sure the footage was clear, her Patronus returned, bumped her cheek, and dispersed. The sound of duelling and a certain toad’s threats and yelps were drowned by a familiar roar erupting, and Umbridge wailed as she had to fight the fming spirit as well as Narcissa.

  A couple of minutes ter, the sound of spells crashing everywhere abruptly stopped, followed by fmes being snuffed.

  Curious, Eleanor gnced down, finding Umbridge on the ground smoking like a pig that had been pced in the oven. Her right hand was severed, still gripping her wand tightly, while Narcissa stared at her in exhaustion.

  Her lips moved, mouthing “Thank you”, to which Eleanor replied with something that caused the Bck witch’s eyes to widen before lowering her head awkwardly. She stepped on the downed witch and touched her wand to a blue stone shaped like an eye hung around her neck. Both witches disappeared with a muffled pop just as the sound of the wards around the ministry came crashing down.

  ‘Time for me to find a nice pce to hide and py the damsel in distress.’ Eleanor pocketed the omniocurs, and reapplied her disillusionment charm before skipping towards the stairs back to the DMLE floor and back to the Office of Records, just as the sounds of dozens of witches and wizards came from the destroyed Atrium, ‘I’m sure Daddy will get me a good wyer, and this might prove useful.’

  Eleanor shuddered at the epic tongue-shing that awaited her. She had no idea why she helped the Bck Witch, but she did not regret it. Dolores Umbridge had annoyed her for the st time, and while Eleanor Fawley was usually patient and understanding, she could still be petty when she wanted to.

  A*L*S*M

  Malfoy Manor

  Narcissa reappeared on the grounds of Malfoy Manor, the special portkey around her neck turning to dust as she nearly colpsed. She breathed heavily, feeling excruciating pain in her body, particurly her lungs and internal organs. She had managed to cast the countercurse of the Organ Liquifying Curse, yet it was just one of several dangerous curses that struck her near the end.

  She let her guard down.

  The potions helped, old and low in potency as they were, yet the damage was still done; she could probably recover if she was given medical attention and spent a fortune that she did not have on the treatment, yet she did not pn for it.

  Narcissa had gone to the Ministry expecting to die, yet she had still succeeded. It was all thanks to her grandaunt keeping her dubious and dangerous artefacts for a rainy day. Not to mention the unexpected aid she received from Eleanor.

  “Could have asked me for help, you know.”

  Despite the pain and the loss of her son, Narcissa could not help but smile at the young witch’s cheek. She gred down at the bound Umbridge, who was thrashing wildly but to no avail - the apparition must have woken her from the stunner. The pink bitch was many things, certainly dangerous with a wand, but definitely not strong enough to tear down conjured rope. Just in case, Narcissa stunned her once more, feeling an ache in her temple as she cast the spell.

  Magical exhaustion.

  Dolores Umbridge had far more enemies than she expected, and perhaps Narcissa should not have done something so Gryffindorish, such as invading the ministry. Yet there was a reason why everyone said each Bck was madder than the rest. The death of her son demanded justice, and Narcissa could not afford to dey it, especially before his burial.

  “Cissa!”

  She gnced tiredly at Meru; the young witch looked stricken as she found her bloody and broken form. Ah! Narcissa wanted nothing more than to take the girl into her arms and assure her that everything would be alright. But then she noticed Draco’s body set on a pyre near the altar where they had their solstice ritual, and Narcissa soldiered on with what she needed to do.

  “Meru…my dear. Help me carry this gift over.”

  The young witch, bless her loyal heart, did not blink before waving her wand and dragging Dolores Umbridge towards the altar. Narcissa followed, yet she nearly colpsed as all her tendons and muscles felt like they were turning to mush, if not for Meru grabbing her and lending her a shoulder.

  The enhancement potions she took had long worn off, and the side effects were hitting her like an angry hippogryph. Narcissa had not trained her body in any way, even if she kept a decent figure due to her superior genes, her special Coming of Age ritual, and her healthy diet. Yet the potions she took had severe side effects, especially when taking so many at the same time.

  Insane reflexes, a little extra power squeezed from her body, fire resistance that was crucial for her to survive the rogue spirit, and a faster and sharper mind, allowing her to make correct split-second decisions. It did not, however, help her at all with her spells; all of them were the result of her extensive studies in the Bck Library.

  Finally, she stood over her deceased son. Her poor boy. Meru had done wonderfully in preparing him for burial; his body was clean and covered in glistening oil, and his wounds were sealed. Draco was dressed in a white linen tunic, so simir to the one he wore during the solstice ritual.

  “Is everything prepared?”

  “Yes, Cissa. All that remains is to light up the pyre.”

  “Good. Get the gift here.”

  Meru pced Umbridge upside down on a tilted marble table with grooves where the head met the neck that traced along towards the pyre. Narcissa waved her wand and bound the woman to the table before casting Renervate. Umbridge woke up with a gasp before screaming in agony as the pain of her missing hand struck her.

  “Oh, shut up, you fat bitch. It’s only a hand.” Umbridge gred at Meru before noticing Narcissa, her pained grimace contorting in rage.

  “YOU! YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT WE WILL DO TO YOU!! YOU DARE? YOU DARE ATTACK THE MINISTRY? YOU JUST DECLARED WAR ON BRITAIN! CORNELIUS WILL KNOW, AND HE WILL–”

  “Knife.” Meru handed her a silver knife, not so different from the one used for cutting potion ingredients, and Umbridge was struck silent. Her eyes went wide with terror, and tears and snot poured like rivers. She instantly changed her tone and bbbered.

  “P-P-Ple-ease f-for-g-give m-me. H-Hav-ve m-m-ercy! I-I o-only did what I thought was–” Narcissa was sick of the high-pitched voice and quickly sliced at the woman’s neck. The sharp bde tore through muscles and vertebrae, cutting several arteries, and blood poured into the grooves like rivers heading towards the pyre.

  “Torch.”

  Meru handed her a lit torch, yet she would not let go. Narcissa gnced at her and understood. They held it together as they stared at Draco’s face for a moment before setting the wood and oil alight. The pyre caught fire quickly, and they backed away, staring at it as it rose high and engulfed Draco’s body. It burned hotter than any mundane fme should. The fmes turned from yellow to crimson as the stench of blood emanated from the smoke. The heat caused her wounds to tingle, yet Narcissa did not care as she stared at her son’s departure and closed her eyes in prayer.

  “May he find peace in the next world, and may the gods accept this gift of blood from the one who caused his demise.”

  A whisper in the wind and the heat from the fmes turned soothing, almost like a caress instead of violently hot.

  Narcissa opened her eyes as the sound of something crashing into the wards caused Meru to shudder. “They’re faster than I thought.”

  “Yes, the Minister must be frothing to get his pet back. A shame that it is far too te.” Narcissa raised her wand but grimaced as her head pounded. She sighed and fiddled with the neckce around her neck, tearing away the final blue stone and handing it to Meru. “The wards have not been fed recently and are weak. They will break through soon. Use this to escape. It allows you to Apparate through wards, but you only have one chance before it turns to dust. It is the st one I have, and I doubt you will be able to find more of them.”

  “B-But–”

  “Meru, my sweet Meru, please don’t argue with me.” Narcissa pced the stone in the young woman’s hand before resting her forehead on hers. “You are a wonderful witch and were a great sister figure for my Draco. The past few months made me feel like I’ve had the daughter I always craved. How I wish I could cim you were mine, but as. As, it is not to be.”

  The young witch’s fiery orange eyes were wet with tears as she shook her head defiantly. “No! Where could I possibly go? I have no family, no retives, no friends, no home. I have nothing! I thought I found something here, but–but…”

  Tears poured down Meru’s cheeks as she sobbed, but Narcissa wiped them away, focused her thoughts and magic, then smiled sadly before kissing her forehead.

  Meru gasped as knowledge flowed into her mind, and she looked at her in shock. “You have enough time to grab your belongings and anything else you desire from the mansion. Take what you need and go, for I’m sure the ministry will confiscate the rest. Make a new life for yourself. There is always a chance around the corner if you know where to look for it. If all else fails, then go to him, and I'm certain he will help you. It is time I face the consequences of my actions.”

  After another moment of hesitation, Meru finally nodded and rushed to the manor. Narcissa smiled sadly as she turned back to her son’s pyre. A few minutes ter, she felt Meru finally leave, causing her to sigh in relief, just in time for the wards to shatter and an explosion of fire to erupt nearby. Narcissa Bck gnced sideways at Albus Dumbledore, his face stoic and his phoenix on his shoulder, as he beheld the scene in front of him, first staring at the bleeding corpse of Dolores Umbridge before turning to her.

  “Narcissa.”

  “Dumbledore.”

  “…Was it worth it?”

  Narcissa gazed at the ashy remains of her son’s body and waved her wand to banish the fmes before pcing the ashes in an urn. She held the urn before turning to the old wizard.

  “Without a doubt.” She raised the urn with one hand and her wand, handle out, with the other. “I ask you to ensure he is buried with his ancestors in the crypts. Do so, and I shall absolve you of any bme in his death.”

  A single tear fell from Albus Dumbledore’s right eye as he accepted the urn and her wand before raising his own wand. A phoenix’s ment sounded out, causing Narcissa to feel the grief that stuck by her for the past few hours slowly melt away. She closed her eyes as a fsh of red light struck her, and everything went dark.

  My first true magical battle. A lot of gore and destruction, but you will notice little transfiguration as I want to establish that few would bother to use it in combat.

  I have rebanced the Unforgivables. Expect the same from magic in general.

  Eleanor comes in with the save once more.

  Narcissa gets her revenge, but at what cost?