Where The Shadow Ends

Chapter Fifteen - Hurricane

Chapter Fifteen - Hurricane

*1949*

When Elayne opened her eyes again, she realized that Derek had brought her to her parent's house.

Shaking her head, she whispered, "Please don't make me go in there. They all hate me." A fresh wave of tears pooled in her eyes.

"Elayne..." Derek sighed. "They don't hate you. They're your family. They love you. They're worried about you."

Wiggling out of his grasp, Elayne shook her head again. "I don't want to go in there."

Before Derek could respond, the front door opened to reveal Newt. His eyes shifted between the pair, before finally landing on his daughter. "Laynie..."

"Daddy..." Elayne spoke softly, her voice trembling.

Newt moved to the side, gesturing the pair to come inside.

Derek gently nudged Elayne forward, causing her to slowly walk inside.

Once the two had entered, Newt shut the door and pointed towards the sitting room. "Everyone is waiting."

"I can't." Elayne breathed, the tears pouring down her face.

Newt pulled his daughter into a tight hug, one hand stroking her wild curls. "You can. Just breathe, my darling."

Elayne squeezed her eyes shut before nodding.

Newt pulled away from Elayne, intending on going into the sitting room, but before he could move too far away, Elayne grabbed her father's hand.

"You haven't held my hand since you were a little girl." Newt said, quietly.

Sniffling, Elayne nodded. "I know. I'm sorry I stopped."

A small smile appeared on Newt's lips. "My darling, the only reason you stopped, was because you grew up to be a brave and strong-willed woman."

Sobbing, Elayne squeezed her father's hand. "I'm so sorry, daddy! For everything. I'm so stupid!"

"Oh, honey... You're not stupid." Tina said, appearing in the doorway to the sitting room. "You have a big heart. You love with it, unconditionally. No one blames you."

Elayne looked over at her mother, tears slipping down her cheeks. She let go of her father's hand and rushed to her mother, falling into Tina's tight embrace.

"I'm sorry, mama!" Elayne cried.

"No, sugar. It's alright." Tina said, trying to soothe her daughter. Tina then led her daughter into the sitting room.

Derek, who had been standing back, decided that that was the moment for him to leave. He disappeared with a 'pop'.

Upon entering the sitting room, Elayne saw both of her brothers sitting on opposite ends of the sofa. When her eyes met the eyes of the third person sitting in the room, Elayne swallowed hard, dropping her gaze down to the floor.

"Hello again, Elayne." Dumbledore said, standing from his spot on the love seat. He smiled at her, his blue eyes twinkling.

"I'm so sorry for how I acted, professor." Elayne spoke, her voice barely above a whisper.

Shaking his head, Dumbledore said, "No need to apologize. It wasn't you."

"But it was! I knew what I was doing. Every bad thing that I did..." Elayne shook her head, her eyebrows pinching together. "I knew that what I was doing was wrong, but I just... I didn't care."

"It was the horcrux that made it that way, Elayne." Dumbledore began. "Yes, you may have felt like you were in total control of yourself, but it was the dark magic from the locket that caused you to act in such a way."