Can It Be Removed?

Shell Cottage...

Through the duration of the day, things have been quiet, almost boring, when Cas and Bill fluttered into the living room. At the sound, everyone cast their eyes towards them. Sam looked confused wondering where Dean was, "Where's Dean?" Cas looks to Sam, "Something came up and he needs you and Hermione to come to the bunker." "What for?" Asked Ron, not sure if he should trust them alone with Hermione. In reality, he doesn't want Hermione to go because he is trying to develop a serious relationship with her. However, Hermione is not really interested in Ron for nothing more than a friend. She feels he only wants her because he thinks she will be a doting wife, having a hoard of children and no life outside of their home. Hermione wants so much more, a career, to travel the world, she's just not ready to settle. "They are needed for something important. There's a book that needs translating." Cas says with a 'you know what book I'm talking about' look directed at Sam.

"Hermione, why don't you go pack some things and we'll head out." Sam tells her as he gathers what little belongings he had with him. Bill walks over the Fleur, gives her a kiss and wraps his arms around her, "Hi." "How was it?" Fleur asks her husband, her heavy french accent has lessened over the years. "I will show you later, and it will explain what's going on." Bill whispers to her.

Hermione was almost done packing when Ron came into her room, "Are you seriously going?" She stops what she is doing and turns to look at him, "Yes Ron, it must be important if they are asking for my help. With everything I've studied, I probably have come across almost every dead language known to man." Hermione stated, she really wasn't trying to brag but Ron knew she was right. She turns to finish packing when Ron grabs her wrist and spins her around to face him, "You're not going. You're supposed to be with me, not running off to some bunker with those two!" "Ron, are you jealous? You really have no reason to be. We are not together, I might have had feelings for you, but now I see you want me to just be a trophy housewife. That's not me and you know it, so let me go or we can no longer be friends!" Hermione raised her voice to Ron.

He lets go of her wrist, looks her in the eyes and no longer sees the love she had for him, Hermione then closes her beaded bag and joins the others in the living room. "Stay safe 'Mione." Harry hugs her tightly, then Harry turns to Ron, who has now come into the room and glares at him. "I will, I promise." Hermione stands next to Cas and Sam bracing herself for the inevitable nausea that surprisingly never comes.

"Ok, so what happened?" Harry looks at Bill questionably. "It's best if I show you." Bill pulls his wand and aims it at his temple to display his memory for everyone to see.

Earlier at the Bunker...

Upon arriving to the bunker Narcissa finds a wand pointed at her throat by Molly Weasley, while Bill points his wand at Draco even though he is still unconscious on the floor of the War room. Narcissa turns her head slightly towards Molly with pleading, tearing eyes, "Please. I only want to save my son. I will give any information you need for his safety." Molly lowers her wand but does not move, "How do we know you won't double-cross us? What assurance can you give?" "An unbreakable vow. My life for that of my son." Narcissa lets a single tear roll down her cheek.

"Whoa..Whoa..Whoa.. No need for that. We are all here for the same reason, to stop what's-his-face from world domination. Frankly, we all know once the wizarding world is conquered, he's not going to stop until sitting pretty at the top. So, let's try and get along for now." Dean says while stepping between the two witches.

Bill sighs, knowing that Draco is partially responsible for Bill's affliction. However, Bill wants this war to end with Voldemort's downfall. "Dean's right. Nothing is going to get solved unless we work together." Bill still is aiming his wand at Draco's unconscious body, so he can levitate him off the floor and into one of the unoccupied bedrooms. Narcissa side steps around Dean and follows behind Bill to help get her son situated, then she will start to help devise a plan to take down The Dark Lord.

"Dean, are you sure you want to trust them?" Molly questions Dean. "Like I said, if we want to end this war before it gets worse or we lose, then everyone is going to have to cooperate." Dean looks towards the hall, seeing Bill and Narcissa re-enter the War room.

"Ok, now that we are all here. What do we know?" Dean asked the group in his presence. "We know he is going after anyone and everyone who is not 'pureblood', correct?" "Yes, and they are not even hiding it anymore. Attacking anyone but purebloods including Muggles out in the open, not caring if they are seen or not." Molly says. "It's gotten much worse since Harry Potter and his friends escaped from the Manor. It's why Draco is unconscious. He was tasked with searching for them, however, he either refused or lied about actually searching. Each time he returned to the Manor empty-handed he was tortured by my sister or The Dark Lord, and I was forced to watch. During the last session, I realized that neither one of us are going to survive if we stayed any longer. And if I can aid in any way to end this war on the right side then I'm going to do just that, whether I survive or not. As long as Draco is safe." Narcissa is now looking to Dean, since he is the first to show compassion towards her and her son.

The room has become silent and the air was so heavy with tension it is getting harder to breathe, when Narcissa suddenly grabs her forearm whimpers in pain. "What's wrong?" Dean asks walking over to her and pulling up her sleeve seeing The Dark Mark starts to become angry and slithering. "They're trying to summon me. The longer I resist the more.. painful it ..becomes!" As the Dark Mark gets angrier, the pain becomes more intense and she falls to her knees trying not to scream out in pain.

"CAS! WE NEED YOU!" Dean yells at the top of his lungs, bending over to pick Narcissa up and set her down in one of the War room chairs, not hearing Cas flutter in. "Dean. What....." Cas hurriedly walks over to Dean seeing Narcissa holding her arm, tears in her eyes, holding back her screams. Cas approaches her, puts two fingers to her forehead and alleviates some of the pain, "I don't know how long that will last. What is that? It is radiating very dark magic."

"Is there anything you can do? Can you remove it?" Dean is kneeling in front of Narcissa while looking to his best friend hoping he has an answer. "I can not, but we may know someone who can." Cas says sternly. "NO! ABSOLUTELY NOT!" Dean stands up and suddenly yells loud enough it echoes throughout the bunker. "Dean, she may be the only one who can. There's probably a spell in the Book of The Damned that can remove that mark. We need her Dean and we need the book." Cas argues. Dean runs his hand through his hair, frustrated because he knows Cas is probably right, "Fine. We're going to need Sam and possibly Hermione. She may be able to help translate the 'Book of the Damned' better since part of the codex is smudged."

Dean helps Narcissa stand up and walk towards room 7B, "Until we know for sure that mark can be removed it will probably be better if you were in here. Bill would you mind getting the door?" Bill catches up to them and opens the false wall into the dungeon. Dean lets go of Narcissa in the center of the Devils Trap, "Now, try to step out." Narcissa slowly makes her way to opening, but she is forced to a stop like she hit an invisible wall. "What does this mean?" She asks.

"Son of a Bitch! It means Cas is right." Dean is beyond frustrated. "Cas, will you please take Bill back to the cottage and bring back Sam and Hermione?" "You sure mate?" Bill is not too keen on leaving his mother alone with two-thirds of the Malfoys'. Dean takes one look at Bill and understands, "She'll be fine. They all will. Remember, Cas is bringing my brother here with Hermione. Plus Narcissa can't leave the room if she wanted to, and Draco is still out." Bill nods his head, "I will hold you to that." "Thank you."

Dean turns to Narcissa, "Now, try to calm down Narcissa. What can you tell me about that?" Dean points to the dark mark on her arm. "It is very dark magic. The best way to explain is that it's a physical link to the Dark Lord. It can be used to summon other Death Eaters or The Dark Lord himself. As far as we know, there is no way to sever the connection without killing the host." Narcissa says, still holding her arm.

Cas comes into 7B to take Bill back. "You ready to go now? We should not waste anymore time." Cas anxiously waits for Bill to answer. Bill glares at Narcissa, "If you or Draco hurt any of them I'll kill you myself." "We will not harm anyone, that I can promise you." Narcissa states with her shoulders held high like the aristocrat she is. "I'm ready now. See you soon mate." Bill turns to shake Dean's hand. As soon as Bill let's go, he is taken back to the cottage.

Shell Cottage...

"Are you sure leaving your mum alone with those two was smart?" Harry looks to Bill questioning his sanity. "I trust Sam and Dean, and you know mum can take care of herself. You saw Narcissa, she can't leave that room, not until the mark is removed. And even then, whatever they do to remove it may kill her. Were you even listening, she switched sides. She is risking her life to help us, albeit it's for Draco but still, Narcissa is on our side!" Bill is enraged that everyone is not hearing what he is saying. "Bill is right Harry. We all saw what happened. And that bunker is well beyond warded. Molly will be fine." Fleur hugs her husband around his waist and pecks him on the lips.

Harry will continue to worry about his best friend, but there's more at stake. Breaking into Gringotts in disguise then getting into Bellatrix LeStrange's vault to retrieve a horcrux is downright suicidal, but they're desperate. Still Hermione is on both the minds of Harry and Ron, "We should not have let her go." "Speak for yourself Ron. You have been crude to her, bossy and sometimes abusive. You do not deserve her." Harry is getting very aggravated with Ron.

During their hunt, Ron would sometimes be nice to her then he would flip and berate her, insult her, verbally and emotionally abuse her. Ron would blame her for the fact the Wizarding World is at war and he hated her and her 'kind'. Not once did he ever apologize before he disappeared for a while then coming back, claiming it was the horcrux making him act that way even when he wasn't carrying it. Hermione knew better, deep down, she saw the real Ron. Which is why she had no issues leaving with Sam to help translate whatever needed to be. Ron decided to turn in for the night, he had nothing else to say to anyone. Harry stayed awake most of the night thinking about his best friends, he did not want to choose between them but if it came down to it, Ron would most likely turn on them both. Harry hated to admit that he is not sure if he can trust Ron anymore.

Presently at the Bunker..

Narcissa is pacing back and forth in room 7B when Dean walks in with a tray of food and some tea from the kitchen. "Here, I made you something to eat and tea. My brother and Hermione should be here soon, along with another witch we know. She is the one that will be performing the spell to remove the mark." Dean sets down the tray on the small desk next to the sink against the far wall.

"Do I know of this witch?" Narcissa asks. "I doubt it. She is not a natural born like you. She sold her soul for her magic, she is several hundred years old but doesn't look it, and she is a royal pain in the..."

"My what a lovely introduction." States a heavy Scottish accent from behind Dean. "Rowena, nice to see you again." Dean sarcastically says. "Charmed, I'm sure." Rowena retortes. "And who is this lovely lady?" Rowena gracefully walks over to Narcissa taking her hand and slightly bowing her head in greeting. "My name is Narcissa Malfoy, but you may call me 'Cissy'." "What seems to be troubling you my dear?" Rowena asks Cissy. Narcissa looks to Dean, who gives an approving nod to show Rowena the Dark Mark.

"This mark is branded upon the followers of a very powerful, ruthless, dark wizard who will stop at nothing to rid the world of the 'unclean'. The Dark Lord wants to live in a world populated by only pure-blooded wizards in power, and half-bloods for labor work. The dark mark is branded upon each follower willingly or not, as a link to him and each other. We are in constant pain from a mere throbbing sensation to a burning, ripping pain that makes one want to tear at our own flesh to make it stop." Narcissa grits through her teeth while a single tear rolls down her cheek. "Well now, let's see if we can remove it without causing another apocalypse. Shall we?" Rowena looks to Dean. He clears his throat while rubbing the back of his neck, "I'm going to see if Sam and Hermione are here."

Dean quickly leaves the room. Rowena looks back to Cissy, "Story for another time dear. Tell me, are you the only one here?" "No, I escaped with my son Draco. He is my only child, unfortunately the mark was forced. Draco is the reason I am here. He was tasked with things no teenage boy should be tasked, and he was tortured to the brink of death and I could no longer take it. So I made a decision." Narcissa was no longer feeling sorry for herself but proud, and standing tall in her decision to save Draco and fight for what is right whether she survives or not.

Meanwhile in the library, Cas has arrived with Sam and a surprised Hermione. "Wow, that was so much smoother than what I'm used to." Hermione looks around the library, taking in the whole room, "Merlin, what a collection." "Uh yeah, this is not even all of it. There's quite a few store rooms that we haven't even fully cataloged yet. But that can wait for another time." Sam says, taking off his coat. "I'm going to go find my brother and see what's going on."

"No need, I'm right here." Dean walks into the library carrying the warded box with the Book of the Damned, and the codex and Charlie's notes. "Sammy, can you grab some gloves for you and Hermione?" Dean asks, setting down everything at one of the tables. "Before you dive right in, you need to know what this book is, and what it's capable of. We all know you have dealt with some pretty dark magic, but this book is extremely powerful and dangerous, especially in the wrong hands. I'm not saying that's you, but there is someone here who would love to get their greedy hands on it. I still don't fully trust her. Rowena is the one that will be performing the spell to remove some serious dark magic, but she cannot have this book."

Dean opens the warded box, but not before handing Hermione a pair of gloves that Sam came back with. "Why do I need the gloves?" Hermione asked while lifting the book out of the box. Dean takes a step back, "That's not paper, and it's not written in ink either." "Excuse me?" Hermione's face paled once she got a closer look.

"About 700 years ago, a nun by the name of Sister Agnes locked herself away after having 'visions of darkness'. After a few decades, she emerged with this book made up of slices of her own skin, written in her own blood. It is a spell book for creating or undoing any kind of damnation there is." Sam stated the book's history from memory. Dean takes a seat across from Hermione, "Rowena is going to use one of the spells to remove the dark mark from two people who turn their backs on the enemy to help the Order to win the war. I am asking you to trust my judgement in the matter by helping us translate the spell correctly. You do not have to see or speak to them."

Hermione stops looking through the book, makes eye contact with Dean, "I will do what I can."