Worlds Collide

Chapter 12: Pain

"Hylla?" Reyna asked in a shaky voice. Her sister yanked the spear off her arm, taking out a piece of ambrosia to heal the wound. When it left a bruise, she took out her wand and muttered a spell. The bruise faded.

"So, what have you been up to? Fighting dragons? Drinking butterbeer? Are you on top of all your classes?" Hylla casually asked. 

"You cannot walk into my school, cast some freaky dark magic, and just ask me what I've been up to! What have you been up to?! Where have you been the past year?" Reyna exploded. Hylla looked taken back and sighed.

"I'm waiting for an explanation!" Reyna yelled. Hylla twirled her wand in her hand as she began to speak.

"I found out about wizards and witches when the Amazons captured one. Once I heard, I wanted to know more. So I set off to the UK, and ran into a couple of uncaptured Death Eaters." Reyna's jaw dropped in horror. Seeing her sister's look, Hylla continued.

"I know what you're thinking. They tortured me, used me for information, all that stuff. But they acted like decent people when I met them. They wanted to recruit me. I accepted. I learned how to use a wand to fight, and they were pretty suspicious that I didn't have a wand. I didn't tell them I was a demigod or the queen of the Amazons. I just told them a story about how I was kept away from the wizarding world. And then they had this plan to attack Hogwarts to avenge Voldemort. I was against the idea at first. Attacking innocent children is a huge red flag. I should've ran at that moment. But I didn't. They used Legilimency, and they found out about you. They said they would kill you if I didn't go along with the plan." 

Reyna was silent for a moment and then hugged her sister tightly. Hylla hugged her back. Her sister would never admit it, but Reyna knew Hylla was trying hard not to cry.

"One thing I don't get. How did you break past the enchantments?" Reyna asked, pulling away. Hylla pulled out a wand. Reyna looked at it curiously. She had never seen a wand like that before. 

"I requested a special one from Ollivander and told him I wanted to mix Imperial gold with the wand wood." Hylla said, answering the unspoken question. At that moment, Asher and a man ran in at the same time. They made a choice between who to aim their wand at, and Asher decided Hylla, while the man pointed at Asher. Reyna facepalmed and mouthed, "Turn around, you idiot! I'm fine!"

Asher whirled around and the two began to duel.

"Reyna, you have to run, that's Macnair, he's one of the Death Eaters!" Hylla said. Reyna shook her head.

"I'm not leaving my boyfriend!" 

"You have a boyfriend?! All the boys in the world, and you pick him? There is so much we need to talk abo-watch out!" Hylla shouted, pulling Reyna to the ground. A killing curse had shot their way. Asher was on the ground, unmoving. There was a bloody gash across his forehead. Macnair gave Hylla a nasty grin.

"Talking to your sister, aren't you, Hylla? Well that's not part of our plan. I guess I'm just going to have to kill both of you now." He said stepping forward. Reyna walked backwards, but came in contact with a wall. Hylla attacked him, but he only shook her off and flipped her entire body so that she crashed into the ground. Reyna covered her mouth to hide her scream. She was sure she had heard her sister's bones cracking, and she knew Hylla was in no shape to reach for her wand or ambrosia. When Hylla tried to stand up, Macnair cast the cruciatus curse on her. She fell to the ground again, her body trembling with pain. 

Reyna raised her wand and tried to stupefy Macnair, but he grabbed her wand before she had a chance to utter the spell. He broke her wand into two pieces, letting it clatter on the blood-stained ground.

"Immobulus!" The Death Eater shouted. Reyna felt her body immobilise.

"I think I'll let you watch as I kill your sister." He sneered. He picked up Hylla's weak body and held her over the banister. Reyna's eyes widened in fear as she realised what he was going to do. He was going to drop Hylla from the staircase. They were on the seventh floor. With a sinking feeling, she also realised that Hylla wasn't going to survive. She struggled desperately against the spell. As she did, memories of her and her sister came flooding into her mind.

When they were still in San Juan, eating piragua. When they lived on Circe's Island, trying on different kinds of makeup. When Hylla won Blackbeard's respect and they sailed away. When she showed up to fight Polybotes with Reyna. When they fought Orion together. Hylla, her determined, strong, brave, loyal, responsible, caring, confident sister was about to die. 

And Reyna couldn't do anything about it. 

She watched through tears as Macnair dropped Hylla. Everything seemed to go in slow-motion. Her sister's dark hair blew around her face as she looked up at Reyna for the last time.

"I love you." She whispered, but Reyna heard her clearly. That was the last thing her sister said before she hit the ground, lifeless.