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CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR. DEPARTMENT OF MYSTERIES MAYHEM

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The group of nine had flown to London on Thestrals. Only four out of the nine could see them, Evangeline not being one of them. She had trouble getting on and holding onto something that she couldn't even see. It was safe to say that she was absolutely terrified.

The trip to London was far too long and she honestly felt uncomfortable on the flight there. Not being able to see the Thestrals was really bothering her. Although, she preferred not being able to see them, knowing what it would mean if she did.

When they finally arrived at their destination, Evangeline felt as though she could breathe again. The nine quickly made their way into the building and ran down the corridor and to an elevator that was barely big enough to fit them all. The elevator took them down the Ministry of Magic and to the Department of Mysteries. When it stopped on the floor, a robotic voice informed them of where they were.

The elevator doors opened and they all stepped out, wands at the ready. Evangeline found herself gripping onto the locket that she had received for her birthday all those years ago. A nervous habit of hers that she thought she had broken. The nine slowly walked down the long, brick hallway, Harry leading them. He stopped walking, the rest following in suit. "This is it," he told them matter of factly.

Evangeline stared ahead of her, her grip on the necklace tightening. Harry continued walking again, the group following behind him. He opened the door and they all entered the dark room. "Lumos," Evangeline whispered. The tip of her wand lit up in a blue glow. The teenagers around her followed what she had done, filling up the dark space with light.

The room before them had rows and rows of shelves, all of them filled with strange looking glass spheres. The door that they had entered through boomed before sliding away from them. Evangeline watched it leave, seeing more rows of shelves holding glass spheres. Everyone turned to look at Harry. The boy took a breath before turning back around and walking forward.

As Evangeline got a closer look at the spheres, she realized that they were crystal balls. A blueish white sort of mist swirled around inside of the balls. Evangeline's grip tightened around her wand and she let go of her necklace. An eerie feeling began to settle within her bones. She didn't like this place. Something felt completely off.

Harry walked ahead of them, looking at the rows of shelves, trying to find whatever he had seen in his vision. A hand brushed against Evangeline's and she knew it was Ron's without even looking up. She took ahold of his hand, intertwining their fingers together and gripping it tightly in her own as the group continued to follow behind Harry. He stopped a ways away from them and looked around.

He turned back to friends. "He should be here," he informed. "Harry." All eyes turned to Neville who had spoken. "It's got your name on it," he said. Harry quickly walked over to where Neville was stood. He stared at the crystal ball that began glowing, a swirl of greenish blue. Harry picked up the crystal ball and held it at eye level.

"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches. And the Dark Lord shall mark him as his equal, but he shall have power
the Dark Lord knows not," a raspy voice said from within the crystal ball. Evangeline looked to Vivian, whose eyes were wide. "For neither can live while the other survives," the voice continued on quietly.

Evangeline turned away from Harry after hearing a noise. "Harry," Hermione said, alerting the boy of the person who had appeared. Harry stepped in front of his friends, his wand raised as the figure in a dark mask approached them. Evangeline raised her wand higher and Ron tightened his grip on her hand. "Where's Sirius?" Harry asked the approaching person.

"You know, you really should learn to
tell the difference between dreams," the man paused, pulling out his wand and waving it in front of his face. His mask disappeared, revealing Lucius Malfoy. "...and reality." He stopped walking, eyeing the children in front of him. "You saw only what the Dark Lord wanted you to see. Now, hand me the prophecy," he said.

"If you do anything to us, I'll break it," Harry threatened. A sinister laugh sounded from behind Lucius and a woman walked forward. "He knows how to play," she said. "Itty, bitty baby. Potter," the woman taunted. "Bellatrix Lestrange," Neville said from behind Evangeline. "Neville Longbottom, is it? How's mum and dad?" She asked, her tone still taunting. Neville walked forward, "Better, now they're about to be avenged." Neville quickly raised his wand and pointed it at Bellatrix, the woman doing the same.

Harry held out an arm to stop Neville and Vivian was quick to grip the boy by his shoulders, yanking him backwards. Evangeline's hand fell from Ron's, her grip on her wand tightening even further. Lucius lifted up his hands, "Now, let's everybody just calm down, shall we?" Neville lowered his wand and so did Bellatrix. "All we want is the prophecy," he continued. "Why did Voldemort need me to get it?" Harry asked.

"You dare speak his name? You filthy half-blood!" Bellatrix shouted at Harry. "It's all right. He's just a curious lad, aren't you?" Lucius said. Around them, more Death Eaters began to appear. Evangeline wondered if her aunt and uncle were among them. The teens began forming a circle, standing back to back. "Prophecies can only be retrieved by those about whom they are made. Which is lucky for you, really," the man continued.

He began walking closer to where the nine stood. "Haven't you always wondered, what was the reason for the connection between you and the Dark Lord? Why he was unable to kill you, when you were just an infant? Don't you want to know the secret of your scar? All the answers are there, Potter, in your hand. All you have to do, is give it to me. Then I can show you everything," the man said. Evangeline didn't believe a word that was coming out this man's mouth.

By now they were surrounded by multiple Death Eaters. Harry looked back at his friends, discreetly sending them a look that said, get ready. He played it off as though he was looking at the Death Eaters, who now had them surrounded. He turned back to Lucius. "I've waited fourteen years," he said. Lucius tilted his head, "I know."

"I guess I can wait a little longer. Now!" Harry said. "Stupefy," Evangeline said, her wand pointed at one of the Death Eaters. They were blasted backwards by the spell. Her friends around her shouted the spell as well. When their path was clear, the nine began running down the row of shelves. They turned a corner and slid to a stop when Lucius appeared in front of them, holding his hand out.

The group got split up, Evangeline finding herself running alongside Neville. A Death Eater appeared in front of them and Neville pushed Evangeline behind him. "Petrificus Totalus," he cried. The man froze, falling to the ground. "Nice," Evangeline breathed out. "Well done, Neville," Luna said, coming up behind them. She grabbed onto his hand and began pulling him away, Evangeline following behind them.

The three began running down the row of shelves. Evangeline could hear the blasts from spells around her but couldn't see anything. She turned to see a Death Eater running behind them. "Levicorpus," she said. The Death Eater flew backwards into the air and far away from them. The trio ran into the remaining six. "You okay," Vivian quickly asked her sister. Evangeline could only nod as she tried to catch her breath, looking her sister over to make sure she was okay, seeing no injuries. Ron was looking her over for any sign of injuries and she unknowingly began doing the same.

A Death Eater was flying down in front of them. Ginny rushed to the front of the group, holding up her wand. "Reducto," she cried. A burst of light flew out of her wand and blew her hair backwards. They looked onward, checking to see if they were safe. Crystal balls began falling off of the shelves, shattering to the ground. "We need to run. Now!" Evangeline said.

The group turned around and began running again. "Get back to the door," Harry said as they ran. The balls were falling down fast, the shelves falling even faster. They turned a corner and continued running, the door coming into view. One by one they ran through the door. When Evangeline ran through, she quickly realized that there was no floor underneath her feet.

She plummeted to the ground, somehow stopping when she was a foot above the ground. She then hit the ground and groaned slightly. They all got to their feet and looked around. "Department of Mysteries. They got that bit right, didn't they?" Ron commented. Evangeline looked up to see a tall archway in the center of the room that they were in. Harry walked closer to it.

"The voices. Can you tell what they're saying?" He asked. Evangeline looked at Vivian who shook her head, not knowing what the boy was talking about. She then looked at Cleo who was staring up at the archway in a mixture of awe and confusion. "There aren't any voices, Harry. Let's get out of here," Hermione said. "I hear them too," Luna said, walking closer to the archway. "Harry, it's just an empty archway. Please, Harry," Hermione tried. He turned around and looked up. "Get behind me."

They did as he said and went to stand behind him, wands raised high as black smoke began to appear. The smoke rushed towards them all. Evangeline tried to defend herself, using her wand to try to fight against it. She felt herself being grabbed and flown to another part of the room, her wand being taken from her. Her captor had a tight grip on her, his arm locked around her throat. He pointed his wand at her head and she didn't attempt to struggle.

"You stupid girl. Did you really think that it was smart to defy me? To defy the Dark Lord," the voice snarled in her ear. Evangeline recognized it and scowled. "What's the matter, uncle? You aren't proud of me?" She asked sarcastically. He growled, tightening his grip around her neck but still allowing her to breathe. Her eyes scanned the room, seeing her friends all taken captive. Harry was stood in the middle of the room, still gripping tightly to the prophecy.

Lucius laughed sinisterly. "Did you actually believe, or were you truly naïve enough to think, that children stood a chance against us?" He asked, walking around Harry. "I'll make this simple for you, Potter. Give me the prophecy now, or watch your friends die," he continued. Harry looked around at his friends in silence. Evangeline attempted to shake her head when he looked her way and her uncle shook her violently.

"Don't give it to him, Harry," Neville said. Bellatrix shushed him, placing her wand against his throat. Lucius continued to hold his hand out. Harry looked down at the orb in his hand before slowly handing it to Lucius. The man held it up, smugness taking over his features when a glowing white light appeared. Evangeline watched with wide eyes as Sirius Black was suddenly behind Lucius. The blond turned around. "Get away from my godson," Sirius said before punching Lucius in the face. The man flew to the side, dropping the prophecy and watching it smash on the ground.

More bursts of white light flew into the room, knocking the Death Eaters away from the children. Evangeline felt her uncle being thrown away from her and she stumbled forward. The white lights landed on the ground and formed people. None of them were familiar to her except for Professor Moody and Professor Lupin, who she hadn't seen since her third year.

She quickly jumped off of the large rock that she was standing on as spells were being thrown back and forth. She ducked down low and looked around for Vivian and her friends. Instead she was met by her uncle. "Always the the caring and loyal one just like your mother. She too, tried to be good. She was stupid enough to go against us. She and your father. They wanted to keep secrets. They wanted to be heroes! And you know where that got them, don't you? Of course you do," he taunted.

Evangeline walked backwards, trying to look for a way to get away from him. She didn't have her wand and couldn't protect herself. She was completely defenseless. "She wasn't stupid. She was smart. She stayed true to herself and what she believed and so did my father. They wanted to be good. They were good," she said and he laughed wickedly. "Good? This isn't about good and bad. This is about power. This is about superiority," he said.

"'Power is dangerous unless you have humility.' It corrupts people and it's corrupted you. You're not more superior than half-bloods or muggles. You're the same. And I think that deep down, you know it. And you hate it because to you, they're nothing more than scum beneath your shoes," she said and he laughed again.

From behind him, she could see Professor Lupin approaching the two. "You hate them so much because deep down, you know that they're better than you!" She shouted. "Avada Kedavra!" Archibald Luther screamed. A spray of green shot out of his wand and went straight toward's where Evangeline stood.

Time seemed to slow down. Evangeline could barely hear the screams of her name from around her. Her eyes were wide, a gasp leaving her lips. The opal on the necklace around her neck began to glow brightly, the multicolored lights almost blinding. The spell flew towards her but the necklace seemed to form a partial shield around her, blocking most of the spell from her body and absorbing the impact of the deadly spell. The force of it blew her backwards and the spell bounced off of her, flying back toward Archibald, but by now, it no longer had its intended affect. It knocked him off of his feet as well and he smacked into the large rock.

Evangeline slammed against the ground, gasping in pain. She couldn't breathe. She had no idea what had happened, why she wasn't dead. She felt a part of the spell, it had some sort of impact on her, but it hadn't killed her. Her eyes were wide as she remained gasping on the floor. Professor Lupin was above her, shouting something that she couldn't hear. Vivian was next to him in an instant, her hand running down Evangeline's face but she couldn't feel it. She couldn't even feel the tears that had fallen from Vivian's eyes and hit her face.

She stared up at them, still gasping. Ron was the next person that she saw. His entire face held worry as he stared down at her, tears welling up in his own eyes. Evangeline's eyes flitted up to look at the high ceiling above her. Her entire body was screaming in pain. That was all she could feel: pain. When the pain had finally subsided into numbness, she didn't even feel relieved. She was horrified. Because at least with the pain, she knew that she was alive, that she still had a chance.

With the numb feeling that was quickly spreading throughout her body, she felt as though her life would soon slip away. She opened her mouth, trying to speak but unable to get any words out. All that those around her could hear were choked sounds. Her quick breathing was beginning to slow and the fear began spreading through her. Her eyes were beginning to feel heavy and she willed them to stay open.

Professor Lupin was still shouting something from above her, but his face was now a blur. Her eyes closed but she forced them open, trying to look at her sister one last time. Look at Ron one last time.

Evangeline's eyes closed and she had succumbed to the darkness.

••••

Wow. That is all.