Marriage, Murder & Magic- [OMINIS GAUNT]

Chapter 24- The Sculptor

"We aren't going to literally kill Duncan, are we?" Ominis asked, striding beside me with his wand out as we made our way through the castle.

"No, of course not," I said. "We shall only question him sharply."

Ominis kept up with my hasty steps with ease; his legs were much longer than mine, after all. "This isn't just about Imelda, is it?"

"No," I replied honestly. "I believe that if Duncan is spying on Imelda, there's a good chance he's spying on other students as well. I just have to find out what he knows."

Ominis looked bored. "Killing him would be a better use of our time." Suddenly, Ominis stopped. His mouth formed a snarl. "You've got to be kidding me."

"What?" I asked, looking around.

Sebastian was coming down the corridor opposite us. He saw us immediately- perhaps even overheard our conversation.

"Hello Ominis," Sebastian greeted his estranged friend. "Lady Prisma. When I noticed you were missing from the Quidditch match, I began to wonder if you may need my assistance with another task."

Sebastian knew we were up to something, and he wanted a part of it.

"We're paying Duncan Hobhouse a visit," I replied.

Sebastian cringed. "What ever for?"

"That's not really any of your business." Ominis said smoothly.

Sebastian gave Ominis an accosting look. "I was asking Prisma."

"Whatever you say to her, you also say to me-"

I raised a hand for them to stop. "We don't have time for petty squabbling. Ominis, Sebastian has been helping me investigate. I think we should let him come along."

Ominis scoffed, but did not object.

Sebastian was excited to join us on our mission. "Let's go get some answers, then."

"We're not going to torture the man," Ominis said. "Although, I'm sure you'd love that."

Sebastian opened his mouth to argue, but all it took was one withering glare from me to shut him up.

Duncan Hobhouse was in the Muggle Art classroom, the same room as Muggle Studies, deep down in the bottom floor of Hogwarts. Piers Pemberton had stepped in as the Muggle Art professor this year. It was a small class as not many students enrolled in. Very few wizards saw the appeal in paintings that didn't move.

Duncan sat alone in the dark, dusty classroom, a sculpting tool in his hand. A single lamp illuminated the chunk of marble he was working on. Around him were dozens of statues. Their chiseled faces looked down at us from lofty podiums.

"Oy. Hobhouse." Sebastian said gruffly when we entered the room.

Duncan nearly jumped off of his stool. When he saw Ominis, Sebastian and I, he looked as though he were about to wet himself.

"W-w-w-what are you all doing here?" Duncan stammered. "What do you want with me?"

I wasn't sure who Duncan was scared of more: Ominis, who had tormented him for years, or Sebastian, who could finish him off with a flick of his wand.

"Relax, Duncan," I said calmly. "We're only here to ask you some questions."

Duncan's brown eyes flicked to Ominis and Sebastian. "Will I still have my hair by the end of it?"

"No," said Sebastian. Ominis elbowed him.

"Yes," I corrected. "You will keep your hair, I promise."

I approached Duncan. He and I were both Ravenclaws, and knew of each other, but were certainly not friends. He had a reputation for being a coward that made him shy away from groups and slink off to the shadows. I had nothing against him. He and I simply didn't have anything in common.

"I understand you tattled on Imelda for playing Quidditch," I said to him. "I want to know how you found out."

Duncan looked at me. The lamp made big orange reflections in his glasses. "I'm observant. I guess I started noticing things were out of the ordinary. Like when I saw a woman's sweater in Everett's trunk. And he was sneaking off at night a lot. When I asked him, he used a different excuse each time. I wanted to make sure nothing indecent was occurring, so I reported my suspicions."

I supposed he could be telling the truth. Duncan and Everett were roommates, so he would pick up on subtle differences before anyone else.

"So you decided to report your own friend?" Sebastian shook his head. "Your priorities are messed up."

"Everett is my roommate, but he is not my friend," Duncan clarified, pushing his large glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Everett bullies me just as much as everyone else at this school. I- I'm tired of being everyone's punching bag. I'm not afraid to get the professors involved, either. So maybe next time you'll think twice before freezing my knickers in a block of ice, Ominis."

Ominis and Sebastian snickered together. "I thought you needed to cool off a little."

It appeared that Duncan had a grudge against almost everyone in the castle. Especially Ominis.

I crossed my arms. "Duncan, did you tattle on Ominis and I to Professor Sharp?"

Ominis and Sebastian became very quiet, their faces hardening to stone. Duncan began to sweat. His mouth hung open, looking for words that wouldn't come. His silence was just as good as an admission of guilt.

"It was you?" Ominis asked sharply.

"It was him," Sebastian growled.

"I-I-I saw you leaving Ravenclaw Common Room," Duncan said to me shakily. "I was worried about you wandering around at night, so I asked Professor Sharp to check on you."

Anger gripped me. I thought I was mad; but I was not nearly as furious as Ominis and Sebastian were.

"You realize that by doing that you made it seem as though Prisma and I had something to hide?" Ominis said- as close to yelling as I had ever heard him get.

"Didnt you, though?" Duncan challenged. "I thought I was doing Prisma a favor. You could have taken advantage of her."

"I would never take advantage of Prisma," Oninis snarled. He seems to have conveniently forgotten that only an hour earlier he had me pinned to a tea table.

"I would kill him before he could even think about it," Sebastian added.

Duncan looked at me. "Y-y-you should be thanking me! Because of me, you've secured a marriage with a powerful pureblood."

"You think I should thank you?" I said through bared teeth.

"Hobhouse, you've really dug your own grave now." I saw Sebastian's hands flex, as Duncan's hands went to his face protectively.

"Remember you said that you wouldn't hurt me!"

Ominis cocked an eyebrow. "True. But we never said we wouldn't hurt your statues."

Sebastian was already beside the tallest marble statue, the one that looked like it took the longest. His wand was out and ready to cast depulso. The pretty marble woman would soon be on the floor in smithereens.

"Wait!" I commanded. "I have one more question." I turned to Duncan. "Answer it honestly, or the statue gets it."

Duncan nodded.

"What do you know about Morgana Rosier's death?" I asked.

Duncan snorted. "If you're asking me, you must really be desperate. I don't know anything."

That was all I needed to hear. I turned to Sebastian, and nodded.

A wicked smile spread across his face. "Depulso!"

There was a beat of silence before a deafening crash filled the room. Chunks of marble scattered across the floor and landed around my feet. Sebastian laughed. Duncan cried. I almost felt bad for the boy; but I knew he knew more than he was saying. And I didn't come to play around.

"Garreth Weasley-" Duncan choked back a sob. "I saw her with Garreth Weasley the day that she died. He'll be at the Gryffindor House Soiree tomorrow night."

And the plot thickens! So now Garreth Weasley is added to the list of suspects... -kittyhawk