Blaze (Book 3 of the Light Series)

Chapter Eight: Ritual

Almost ready, I thought to myself as I placed the items I needed on the long workbench I would be using. We had moved around some furniture in the potions classroom so that I would be able to perform the ritual there. Ron and Harry had set up protection spells so that students would not hear anything and so none of them could enter. Across from the area I would be working at was one of the beds we'd borrowed from the matron for Ginny to lay on while I completed the ritual. Everybody was going to be situated around the room, a protective force in case something went wrong. Harry and Ron would be standing the closest to Ginny and I.

"Is Ron on his way with Ginny?" I asked as I unrolled the crystal and dagger.

"Yes. He should be here any moment." Harry answered, watching me. "Hermione,"

"Don't, Harry. We're already here and it's already time. There's no more discussions to be had." I told him, setting everything in the order I needed to use them in.

"I know. I was just going to say that I'm right here and I'll be here to end this if it gets out of hand. I love you."

"I love you too. More than you will ever know." I replied. My throat getting thick for absolutely no reason other than my own worry over the ritual. I took a deep breath.

When I had woken up, I had spent an hour sitting in Lily and James' room after going to get Albus. I just stared at my babies and held them. Every second that I got closer to the ritual, my heart sped up and I had to stop and take a breath. I was having a bad feeling about the ritual, just like Harry had, but I couldn't let anyone see that. I needed to stay in control and get through the ritual. I had to get through the ritual.

"We're here." Ron walked in with Ginny, wrapped in her blanket. He led her to the bed and helped her sit down.

I walked around to her. "You ready?" She nodded. "Okay." I looked around. "I guess we can get started." Ron helped her lie down and I went to get the crystal. "Everyone get to your places."

"We're ready." Ron nodded when everyone was set.

I nodded and took the crystal over to Ginny. Before I could put it on her, I had to do a cleanse of her body with the incantation provided from the ritual box. Waving my hands over her in small circles, I moved from her head to her feet, whispering the incantation. My eyes stayed focused on her, watching for changes in her. At first there was nothing but then, her demeanor changed. She had been laying there calmly but now it looked like she was fighting with something. I kept whispering and moving my hands over her. When she calmed again, I placed the crystal on her chest and moved to the work area.

Taking a deep breath, I began putting the ingredients for the potion portion into the cauldron. The smoke was the important part. Ginny didn't have to drink anything but the smoke would be attracted to the bond and would encase her in a globe then that globe and the bond would be sucked into the crystal. Mixing the ingredients, the smoke began to do it's job. I whispered the second incantation as it moved and I finished making the potion. I could feel the power being sucked out of my body and I swayed. The magic I was using was sucking my energy out of me.

When the smoke had surrounded her, it was time for the last step.., the last ingredient. Blood. The blood of the person performing the ritual. Very few spells, potions, rituals, anything had to have blood and I had always been advised to shy away from those that did. With the heavy magic that had been used for the bond, it too something stronger to break it. For that, blood was required.

I looked at Harry as I picked up the dagger. My eyes told him I was sorry for not telling him about the blood just before I made incisions on my wrists. I tried to do it just enough to draw a semi-continuous stream of blood but not enough that I would bleed out. Holding my hands out in front of me, I whispered the last incantation necessary for the ritual. The last part that should put the bond in the crystal so it can be destroyed.