//------------------------------// // In Which Vigilantism Has Never Been More Psychotic // Story: Hogwarts: Sunset's Legacy // by witegrlninja //------------------------------// Thank Celestia Professor Weasley had told me about this Room. It was truly the perfect place for me to study and create. While it couldn't produce food, ensuring that I would eventually need to leave at some point to go eat, everything else it provided was incredibly convenient. All the references and resources I needed for essays were right within reach, reagents I might need for a potion could nearly always be found inside one of the many little drawers of my workstations, and the practice dummy could be charmed into actually fighting back, or casting a specific spell to practice against. One thing it sure didn't have, though, was information about ancient magic... and apparently, neither did the entirety of the Hogwarts Library. Sebastian had gone through all his past research and shook his head when he couldn't find anything about the topic that wasn't already common knowledge. I took his word for it... he did have four more years of library access than I did; he'd bet me a Galleon that I could name any book in there and he'd know what it was about. "Maybe there's something in the Restricted Section?" "Perhaps... though I'm quite certain I would've found something about it by now," he frowned, thinking. "Guess I'll just have to sneak in and look around myself," I shrugged. "I can believe you've checked the entire library, but there were a lot of books down there." "Ah, there's a special joy in going where you shouldn't," he smirked. "I'll join you, I'm about due to... exchange a couple of them." We did just that in the wee hours of Monday morning. Under Disillusionment (we'd learned our lesson from dealing with Peeves) I spent an hour or two simply looking over the titles and prefaces of the sanctioned tomes, while Sebastian waited by sitting in a corner and reading something about hands of glory. There were plenty of books about curses, hexes, jinxes, Dark creatures, artifacts, potions and practices, all of which were supremely interesting and worthy of reading in earnest later on... but still nothing about ancient magic. I groaned as I finished checking the final shelf. "Not a single damned thing about ancient magic down here, either." At least two of the professors here long ago had been capable of using it, you'd think they would have leftover texts from researching it themselves, or at least written something down about it! Even the little bit of information I'd found about those past members of the faculty contained nothing useful. "That's a shame... sorry to hear that," I heard Sebastian clap his book shut and stand up. I sucked the inside of my cheek in annoyance. "Well, if there's one bright side to this... I can take all the credit for discovering it when I write about it myself. I'll just have to figure out how it works from the ground up." "That's the spirit... think of the wealth you'll gain from your research into such an obscure form of magic," he suggested. Now he was speaking my language. "Wealth, prestige, power... yea, that'll definitely make up for the inconvenience of it all," I smirked. After taking our pick of interesting tomes to read we snuck our way back out and went our separate ways. ~ Around noon on Tuesday, just before I'd finished eating my lunch, Natty hurried over to the mostly-empty Slytherin table. She plopped herself down beside me with a worried look. "Oh, I am so glad I managed to find you!" she sighed. "What's wrong with you?" I groused, leaning away from her. "As promised, I did some investigating to find out what Harlow is up to. I followed him to the Hog's Head, and I noticed him reading a letter... all I could see was that it was signed by and bore the seal of Victor Rookwood." "Oh. Well, good job, I guess," I shrugged. "And you're telling me this... why?" "After you told me that Rookwood and Harlow were after you, Sunset, I decided that you were the perfect person to join me in taking them down... for good," she said. "That letter is the tangible proof that Officer Singer needs. It is why I followed Harlow to his hideout... I need your help to retrieve it." "Is that so?" I frowned, staring down at my plate. While I didn't exactly want to go out of my way to help her... it would definitely be wise to try and get Harlow arrested. With him out of the picture, Rookwood would be weaker, as would Ranrok by extension. And as long as those two were trying to hunt me down, that would definitely be a good move. "...Alright, I'll help you," I nodded. "I'm glad to hear it," she grinned. "Do you know where the ruins of Falbarton Castle are?" I nodded again, having flown past it a couple times. "Meet me there after dark... do not tell anyone." "Got it," I replied. Natty got up from the table and wandered out of the Great Hall. I sighed heavily at what I'd just gotten myself into, nearly choking on my own spit in surprise when someone else suddenly plopped down beside me. "Well... that certainly sounds interesting," Sebastian smirked. "Are you and Natty planning on breaking into a poacher's stronghold tonight?" "Where the hell did you come from?!" I coughed, reaching for my mug of tea. "Just walking past. If she really wanted to keep it a secret, she should learn how to act more inconspicuously." I gulped down some tea and gasped for breath, exhaling when I no longer felt a lump in my throat. "Ugh... and what are you going to do with this illicit knowledge?" "I thought I might come along," he replied smugly. "You might need my help." At first I opened my mouth to disagree, but quickly thought better of it. My personal lackey had appeared in the nick of time to volunteer his services... why not take advantage? "Oh, alright... though Natty's probably not expecting another helper." "She'll be fine," Sebastian waved his hand. "She knows me well enough." ~ After dinner, when the sun was beginning to set, Sebastian and I made our way outside from Hogwarts. Once we were beyond its walls, he suggested we fly to Falbarton Castle. "What for? I know where it is," I shrugged. "I can just Apparate there." "You can Apparate?" he drew back in surprise. "They only teach that to sixth or seventh-years when you turn seventeen! Who taught you?" "Uh... myself?" Technically the truth; Celestia had only shown me the spell for teleportation when I'd asked, not expecting me to master it within a day, especially at the young age of 7. "Exceptional... you'll have to teach me that," he looked at me pointedly. Inwardly I wondered how that would turn out, as I'd only ever learned how to teleport the Equestrian way. Apparating apparently involved spinning in a circle until you magically appeared wherever you'd been thinking about, had a somewhat-limited range, and if done wrong could result in a loss of limbs. My teleportation spell didn't involve any spinning, had a much longer range and... well, the spell was largely foolproof, but if interrupted at juuust the right moment, the consequences were much, much worse. "I'll consider it," I smirked, though more to hide the fact I wasn't sure how actual Apparating worked yet, rather than a refusal to teach. Sebastian had taught me two spells, after all, I could at least return the favor with one of my own. "Shall we get going, then?" he asked, holding out his hand. At first I stared at him, then his hand, then back at him having no idea why he was doing that, but then I remembered what Side-Along Apparating was. I took his hand after a moment and teleported us to a space a couple hundred feet away from the castle. We reappeared behind a broken down wagon, out of sight from anyone that could've been watching. "Huh... that didn't feel anything like Apparating," he frowned, glancing down at himself. "No spinning, nor were there any squeezing sensations. And I didn't even hear so much as a pop!" "I'm just that good at it," I replied as I scanned our surroundings. "Now, where's Natty...?" It turned out that we would have to wait for about a half hour. Once the sun's light had nearly faded from the sky, I caught sight of movement from the forest. Focusing on the movement and the sound of rustling plants, I managed to spot an African gazelle walking out from behind a tree. It then started dissolving and morphing as if it had suddenly turned to goo, reshaping and reforming itself into Natty. She glanced around for a moment before catching me waving at her. "Psst... Over here!" Natty hissed. "We need to stay low and remain quiet." "Good to see you, finally," I lowered my voice as I skulked over to her. Her expression turned puzzled when she saw Sebastian following me. "Sorry... I'm afraid I've brought an eavesdropper with me." "I see... Well, you could do worse than to bring Sebastian along," she shrugged in resignation. "Good to see you too, Natty," he grinned. "Okay, first we must access the castle keep. I'll check the main gate, you two see if you can find another way in. I do not see any guards, but we should still try to be as quiet as possible. Harlow is here, after all." Sebastian and I nodded, and the three of us cast Disillusionment on ourselves - I noticed that Natty only had to snap her fingers before she disappeared from view. As we made our way forward I heard her footsteps separate from us as she took the high road towards the main gate, while we crept down a hill towards the castle's wall. There was a large pile of broken crates and cages beside a crack in the ledge on an upper level, and we helped each other up it to infiltrate the castle grounds (though we did have to temporarily cancel the charms, as I nearly kicked poor Sebastian in the eye while he was trying to give me a boost... I'll have to work on modifying this charm a bit later). Eventually we managed to find the gatehouse that controlled the main gate's portcullis, and after hoisting up the gate Natty slipped through. "This way," she hushed. We moved silently but swiftly towards the castle proper, the large wooden doors likely bolted shut. "That is the main keep. My guess is that we'll find Harlow and the letter inside." "You seem determined to stop Rookwood and Harlow... why is that?" asked Sebastian. Natty paused for a moment, her fists clenching and unclenching. "I knew men like them in Uganda... I know how bad things can get if they are not stopped," she bristled before continuing on. "We'll need to be careful once we get-" Suddenly I heard yelling and squawking coming from the keep. We quickly rushed behind a chunk of ruined wall and watched as the doors blew open. I couldn't help but gasp at what I saw. A white hippogriff was trying desperately to escape, forcing its way past a group of three men. The men quickly ran in front of it and began to strike the beast with spells, the hippogriff shrieking in pain and terror. Though it tried its best to fight against them, it eventually succumbed to the onslaught and collapsed. One of the men struck it again for good measure... I recognized him by his bowler hat. Somehow... Harlow had managed to capture Poppy's hippogriff. "Oh, no... Highwing," I breathed. A bubbling rage began to simmer in my gut. These bastards were going to pay. "Do you know that hippogriff?" asked Natty. "Get this thing back to the roof, now!" Harlow ordered. His men waved their wands, thick chains forming out of thin air and wrapping around Highwing's body. Highwing had no choice as she was led back inside the castle keep. "Poppy's hippogriff," I whispered back to Natty. Her gaze hardened. "Poppy has a hippogriff?" Sebastian muttered in surprise. "...Very well, new plan. I get the evidence, and you two free that hippogriff. Agreed?" Before I could even think to answer her, Natty sprung up from our hiding spot and dashed towards the closing doors. "This is our chance! Go!" "Hey, wait!" I hissed as Sebastian and I shot up and ran after her. Natty just barely managed to squeeze inside before the doors slammed shut in our faces. I tried pushing them back open, but they were far too heavy to move - likely enchanted. "...Damn it." "She'll be alright, she can handle herself," Sebastian sighed, glancing to our right where another pile of discarded crates and cages lay. "We'll just have to go around." "I hope you're right, she's on her own." We clambered up the pile of refuse to the next floor of the castle, onto an outer walkway that snaked around the keep. Now that we were inside we took care not to make a sound, hiding ourselves under Disillusionment and moving slowly. Once we'd crept our way up to the next floor I picked up on another presence. I held my arm out so Sebastian would remain behind me, and I peeked around a corner to see one of Harlow's men standing guard. "Think we can sneak past?" he asked. "I have a better idea," I whispered as I pointed my wand at the hapless fool. "Depulso!" "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!*" The guard was sent flying over the edge of the wall, the way his scream sounded sending me into a fit of giggles. My Disillusionment Charm broke as I doubled over laughing. Sebastian canceled his charm so I could see the look of mildly-baffled horror on his face. "Merlin's beard! I didn't expect that out of you!" he exclaimed. I took a couple of shaky breaths to calm myself. "Oh, come on... don't tell me that wasn't funny!" I wiped away a tear. "He wasn't expecting a thing, and then he was just all- PRHHHR-AAAAAAGH!" I threw my arms out and shook them exaggeratedly, making me laugh again. Sebastian blinked at me a couple of times in silence before turning to watch the guard land, a speck of darkness in the distance, his legs splayed out over his head like a scorpion. A smirk broke out across his mouth, and he snorted. "...I guess it was rather amusing." "I knew you'd see it my way," I grinned, having regained my composure enough to recast Disillusionment. As we continued our ascent we came across more guards keeping watch, me holding my breath as I cast silent Depulsos and sent them shooting off into the abyss, trying desperately not to crack up laughing and blowing our cover. Over time Sebastian seemed to find the humor in it, as he soon began casting silent Leviosos on the guards before I blasted them, sending them rocketing off even further. Finally, after traversing a few more floors, we reached the castle's roof. There was one more guard watching Highwing and another hippogriff; we cast our spells, myself aiming at a 45-degree angle, and the man was quickly made not a threat. I canceled my Disillusionment charm and approached Highwing. "Ooh! I do believe that one made it to the Black Lake!" Sebastian chuckled as he canceled his charm, watching the guard fly. "It's alright, I'm here," I spoke softly as Highwing stood up. She purred as I smoothed her ruffled feathers to calm her down. The other hippogriff tilted its head as it watched. Suddenly I heard shouting from down below, and footsteps rapidly approaching our position. "There you are!" Natty shouted as she came bursting out onto the roof. The other hippogriff reared up at her presence. The shouting grew louder, and I could both hear and feel more footsteps approaching. "Time to go!" frowned Sebastian. I quickly cast Alohomora to unlock the shackles on the two beasts. The other one immediately started for the roof's edge while I leapt onto Highwing's back. "I know we generally do the whole bowing for respect thing first, but this is an emergency!" I said as I patted the side of her neck. Curiously, Highwing seemed to nod over to Sebastian, who quickly ran over and got onto her back behind me. At the same time, Natty tried to run and reach out for the other hippogriff, but it leapt upwards and flew away. She nearly fell off the edge herself, but managed to regain her balance. The shouting grew even louder. I could hear the door we had entered the roof from slam open. Highwing flapped her wings and ran towards Natty, the sudden momentum pushing my back into Sebastian's chest. The majestic beast took off and grabbed Natty by her shoulders with her talons just as Harlow and the rest of his men burst out onto the roof. As Highwing gained altitude and caught up to the other hippogriff, a barrage of various spells shot past us, all missing their targets. "Avada Kedavra!" I heard Harlow roar. What?! Highwing banked right, the deadly green beam ripping through the air right where we had just been. Natty screamed as she was dropped onto the back of the other hippogriff and clung on for dear life. Soon, though, we were safely out of range of their spells, and Highwing guided the other hippogriff as she flew back towards Hogwarts. Flying on a broom had been incredible... but there was something very special about flying on the back of a hippogriff. Even Natty's terrified screams quickly transformed into shrieks of joy and excitement as the two beasts soared through the night sky, Sebastian and I joining her. Highwing took care to fly as smoothly as possible, her thick feathers tickling my hands as I held on tight. We flew high over the rails the Hogwarts Express train traveled across, past the station where the students would disembark from when they arrived for the school year, then high over the Black Lake. "I wonder if anyone can see us from the castle!" Natty called out. I didn't even care if they could... I was lost in the moment, fully absorbed in the wondrous flight. The sky above us was perfectly clear, the stars and moonlight glimmering off of Highwing's coat and the water below. "This is the best way to appreciate the lake, if you ask me," commented Sebastian; I could feel his arms tightening around my waist slightly. "Warm, and from a distance." "Don't like to go swimming, do you?" I turned my head with a smirk. "No, it's not that... I just fell in my first year during flight class. I still have nightmares." The mental image of him being immediately attacked by the giant squid upon falling in made me laugh so hard I held onto Highwing's feathers extra tightly, thinking I might fall off. After passing over the lake Highwing began her descent, eventually landing in a clearing near the Forbidden Forest. The other hippogriff landed as well, and we all took a moment to catch our breath. "How exciting!" Natty beamed over to us, still giggling. "Wasn't it? I wasn't sure we were going to make it out alive for a second," replied Sebastian. Natty dismissively waved a hand. "There was no need to worry... I had it all under control." "Did you find your letter?" I asked. "Summoned it straight out of Harlow's hands," she laughed, though her grin quickly fell. "I will say, I did not expect him to cast the Killing Curse at us... he won't forget this. Be on your guard." "Eh, not the first time someone's tried to kill me," I shrugged. "What's the letter say?" I added before either of them could ask any questions about that statement. "That Rookwood's looking for a phoenix. Not sure where he will find one," she chuckled with ridicule. "But it also included Harlow's orders to inspect that castle for the poachers... enough to connect Harlow to the crimes. I shall deliver the letter to Officer Singer, she'll have to do something when she sees it." "Great. One thorn out of my side would be lovely," I smiled at her. "I still cannot believe Poppy Sweeting knows a hippogriff! Of course she does," grinned Natty. At the mentioning of her name, a thought popped into my head. "You know... maybe you should tell Poppy about what you're doing and join forces," I offered. "She also wants to get rid of the poachers around here." "Hmm... that is a great idea," Natty nodded. "And she will be relieved to know that Highwing's safe. I came to the right person for help." "Yea... that wasn't as bad as I thought it was gonna be," I agreed. Surprisingly, I felt my respect for Natty increase. Maybe she wasn't so basic after all. "My mother will be worried, however... I must go," she made a face. "I will take your advice and have a chat with Poppy. Seek me out soon, I shall have much to tell you!" She spurred at her hippogriff, which seemed to have since taken a shine to her, as it obeyed her intentions and flew off back towards the castle. "Well... that was certainly an outing I shan't soon forget," Sebastian mumbled as we watched her vanish into the distance. "You always seem to get into such exciting adventures." "And you always seem to pop up when I'm about to go off on one," I replied. "Are you sure you don't have a Seer's gift?" "Certainly not... I'm just concerned about how much trouble you seem to find yourself in." The grin on his face belied his statement. "Oh, so now you tell me this isn't the usual Hogwarts student experience," I snarked, sliding off of Highwing. Once Sebastian had also slid off Highwing reared up as if to stretch her back and wings out. I conjured her up some food, and she ate happily while a conjured brush smoothed down her feathers. "Not at all, but I delight in a bit of danger, myself," he shrugged, patting the hippogriff's back. Highwing finished her meal and preened one of her wings, then took off into the sky with an appreciative squawk. "So, now that that's over, what will you do?" "Hmm..." Nothing really came to mind. There was a star chart for Astronomy I still needed to fill out, though it wasn't due until next week. But the view of the night sky here was very nice, and Sebastian was a hell of a lot less infuriating than Amit for a stargazing partner. "Have you finished your star chart for next week yet?" "Just part of it. Is that what you're going to do now?" "Why not? We're already out here... unless you'd rather be some sort of roaming delinquent skulking about aimlessly." "But I like being a roaming delinquent," he smirked. Nevertheless, we spent a couple hours staring up at the night sky and filling out our charts, talking excitedly about the evening's events the entire time. ~ After finishing the charts we snuck back into the school, Sebastian returning to the common room while I went up to my Room. Once inside I let out a loud yawn - all that excitement had drained my energy. I was definitely ready for a shower and bed. Having my own room with an ensuite bathroom was far more convenient than having to leave the common room to bathe. A sigh rushed past my lips as I stood under the blissfully warm water. Ah.... warm... A stray thought popped into my mind. This is the best way to appreciate the lake, if you ask me... warm, and from a distance. ... ... ... My eyes opened wide. It was no coincidence that I'd felt Sebastian hold on tighter when he'd said that. What a shameless flirt he was. It took me a couple moments to realize that the memory was making me smile. ... ... ... Suddenly, the water felt a little too hot. My already pink cheeks flushed darker, and I shook my head at myself. What am I doing...? I quickly finished my shower and dried off, put on pajamas and slid into bed, trying my best not to let that memory slip back into my mind. But it was still the last thing I remembered before falling asleep.