The Tale of Azure - Book I: Shades of Green and Blue

Chapter Thirty-Six: The Riddled Spider Web

Disclaimer: I do not own "Harry Potter". I only own my OC's.

As the newly-formed couple walked the second floor, Azure realized they had passed by a wall in which used to be a message in blood. Their friend had left them some while ago due to an "emergency". Both were aware that he was going to the dungeons where he kept Aragog. To make things more difficult, the Headmaster had reinforced the curfew that began at nine on the dot, which meant Ru had to be careful or he would get caught.

Despite the students grudgingly accepting it, the curfew was the school's last preventive measure against the strange incidents that had occurred since mid-October: first-years and second-years getting attacked at night and not recalling anything about it, stray Bludgers seriously injuring students outside of the Quidditch training grounds...

The majority of them were Muggle-borns, including three that had been found Petrified on 27th May, 5th June and 9th June, respectively: the third-year Hufflepuff Leonard Fairchild, the second year Ravenclaw-Wilma Embers and the fourth-year Gryffindor Hung Chang.

At the same time, threatening messages had appeared on some corridors, all of them addressed to the "Enemies of the Heir".

She knew it was their doing, as in the students who bullied others because of "lesser blood status". Suspiciously, almost all of them were in Slytherin and gravitated towards Riddle. His two most frequent companions were Avery and Lestrange, the former being someone who tormented girls just for kicks...

Biting her lip, she recalled the duel against Avery in 24th November 1939. She had gone first, throwing an "Expelliarmus". He had easily avoided it and aimed a "Carpe Retractum", which she could not deflect. Gasping for air as the chain tightened around her neck, she quickly glanced at a calm face in the audience: Tom Riddle. Wand pointed out at the end of the chain, she yelled "Reducto", destroying it in pieces.

Furiously kicking the wand out of Avery's hand, she had grabbed his tie and punched him. He fell to the ground, muttering the words "Blood-traitor". If those Prefects hadn't stopped her from hitting him again,  Avery would have more than a bruised ego to heal.

Months later, Azure had repeated the second year. In March of her third year, she had met Myrtle Elizabeth Warren, also her classmate in some subjects. Once she learned about Myrtle's bullying, she decided to take charge; whenever a student's life had been endangered intentionally by other students – she never forgot a face or a name – she would become violent towards the culprits, not discriminating by gender, as certain annoying blondes could attest.

She hated bullying, period.

"If we are the Musketeers," Myrtle began to say while they passed by many portraits, some of the people depicted there gathering around and placing bets, eyes glancing at the face-down cards on the table. "Who would be Cardinal Richelieu?"

Azure blinked at the sudden question. Cardinal Richelieu. The foursome's enemy. Unlike Roquefort who was explicitly an enemy and later an ally of D'Artagnan, Richelieu had remained highly antagonistic towards the Musketeers until the end of the novel.

Only the twit was perfect for the role. Richelieu had many contacts and was always plotting something to discredit the protagonists. Riddle was the same; he had a lot of influence and he was a true believer in blood purity. A member of the "Slug Club" she also reluctantly belonged to – although she never interacted with them in Professor Slughorn's parties, excusing herself with a "narcolepsy crisis" that she was sure Professor Slughorn didn't completely believe it –, he was the leader of his little not-so-much merry band of "friends".

She clicked her tongue at the last word. "Minions" would be the correct word.

"Well?"

"My first Potions partner," she almost spat. Yesterday, she had noticed the twit looking at her, the usual polite smile replaced by a predatory one. The message was clear: something will happen soon and you will not be able to stop it.