The Blast (P2)

Those two? Heh, I ain't never seen anythin' like 'em. They're damn near crazy.

Right, right. You wanna know how they got here? Gimme a moment to remember...

Alright, let's get back to it.

So, The Kid and The Girl, they find the letter in the Potions Master's room. They got a goal now, so they're feelin' a little lighter. They begin to head back out, up into the nightmare above. The two of 'em are the strongest of their year, so The Kid ain't too worried 'bout gettin' caught out.

The Girl asks him what he thinks is happenin', as they walk toward the dungeon entrance. He tells her that he ain't too sure, all he knows is what he saw from the Owlery. He saw The Blast radiate outwards, and that's all. The two are almost to the dungeon entrance when their run of bad luck kicks them anew. Students, five of them, walk down the stairs. The Kid's eyes widen, he sees someone he hoped he wouldn't. His best friend, Rowan, walkin' alongside 'em. The Girl thumps him in the chest, and he snaps his focus back. He knows the two of them can probably take 'em, but it's a tough one. They're strong, sure, but five students ain't somethin' to sniff at.

Still, they ain't got time to think before the five raise their wands. He dives to the side as three curses impact the space he stood a moment earlier, and he sees another two narrowly miss The Girl. He rolls to his feet and throws out some stunners. On his left side, The Girl does the same. The five scatter, but Rowan ain't so lucky. He trips, and before he can get back up, a stunner catches him. One down, four to go.

Before The Kid gets an opportunity to call to his unlikely companion, a hex shoots his way. He ain't too sure what it'll do to him, but he ain't itchin' to find out. He throws up a shield, smilin' when the curse rebounds directly into the unlucky fool who threw it. The poor kid's teeth start enlargin' somethin' fierce, and it don't look like it's going to stop anytime soon.

The Kid don't have time for regrets. He looks over to see The Girl, holdin' her own against three students. They're firin' curse after curse, but she dodges and ducks through them all. The Kid's eyes widen in amazement, and before he can react, one of the students switches targets, firin' a sickly yellow spell at him. He manages to twist enough to avoid the full impact, but it still hits him in the arm. He suppresses a scream as a web of blood sprays from his arm. Focusing, he points his wand in what he thinks is the direction of the student, and fires off the strongest Flipendo he can. He smiles with a grim satisfaction when he sees the student get launched into the wall and flop to the floor.

Feelin' lightheaded, The Kid falls to one knee. He's lucky, since The Girl has one of the students down, and the other one on the ropes. He pushes himself up against the stone wall, watches her spin to dodge another curse before dropping to one knee and firing a stunnin' spell straight to the poor kid's stomach.

The Girl runs over to him, whisperin' angrily 'bout his lack of self-awareness. He groans, mumblin' somethin' incoherent. The two look at his injured arm. It's stopped bleedin', but it's hurtin' somethin' fierce. He knows his shoddy repair work ain't enough to fix this, so he's got no choice but to rely on The Girl. She conjures somethin' resemblin' a bandage and wraps his arm as best she can. The Kid thanks her, and the two stand.

He stumbles over to the student who once had been his friend. He regards him with a sadness, and he ain't willin' to leave the first friend he made behind. The Kid ties him up, makin' sure he can't use his arms or reach his wand, before he tosses him over his shoulder. The Girl looks at him like he's a loon. Hell, maybe he is.

The students ain't makin' this easy. Another three of 'em mill around in the Entrance Hall. The Girl drops two of 'em before they even turn, and The Kid, who's vision's been goin' outta focus since he took the hit, tries to take the third one out 'fore anyone else can hear. His aim's off just enough, either from the weight of Rowan or the pain from his arm, for the spell to smack into the wall next to the student, and he whips around, a blasting spell already on his lips. The Kid sees his wand light up, and he starts to stumble to the side, only for The Girl to send him into his dreams 'fore he can get the full spell out, the magic fizzlin' out on the tip of his wand.

The two sigh, 'fore turnin' and headin' for the corridor leadin' to the Grand Staircase. With any luck, the students will still be millin' round the bottom of the Staircase, and they'll be able to slip by with no trouble. The Kid grunts, shakin' his head to pass a moment of dizziness. He ain't too sure he could've made it here without Rowan, but with? It's a miracle he ain't collapsed yet.

The Girl looks over at him, a frown on her face. She ain't strong enough to carry Rowan, but she also ain't stupid enough to suggest they leave him behind. She knows she's gotta make every second count, so she moves to The Kid's other side, and slings his other arm over her shoulder. The two shuffle off, and with a couple seconds The Kid's lookin' a little more conscious. He whispers a thanks, both to The Girl, for her support, and a thanks to any Gods who'll listen, for leavin' The Girl with him.

They make it to the staircase before their next run of bad luck kicks in. At the third floor landin' stands another student that the two of 'em know. He ain't got a wand, but odds are he ain't got the know-how to use it regardless. With a body like that, all he needs are his fists.

He roars and charges down the stairs toward them. The Girl is a quick thinker, and she ain't about to risk the damage of the boy who had once been Barnaby Lee crashing directly into the three of them. While he's still a good height above them, she casts the levitation spell, and in an instant he's sailin' through the air above their heads. She lets the spell fade after he clears them and he crashes to the second floor landin'.

He don't get up after that, but The Kid's pretty sure he ain't dead. He's made of tougher stuff than that.

He whispers another thanks to The Girl. If it hadn't been for her, The Kid ain't too sure he'd have even made it out of the dungeons. She don't respond, and He knows exactly why. They're comin'. All of 'em must have heard the sound of Barnaby crashin' to the ground like that. The two of them look at each other, and The Kid quickly hefts Rowan more securely over his shoulder. She gets his over arm over her shoulder, and they awkwardly continue into the third floor corridor.

The Kid can't stop lookin' 'round. He knows they got seconds at best. Pullin' the letter from his robes, he scans it. They're gunnin' for a statue. There's a note written in the letter. A single word, Dissendium. He points it out to The Girl, but neither of them catch the meanin'.

Up ahead, they see it. An old, beaten-up thing, the statue shows a humpbacked, one-eyed witch. They begin to shuffle over to it, but 'fore they can get there, their worst nightmare comes to life. They hear the footsteps. The Kid curses under her breath, and he hears The Girl take a shuddering breath. She raises her wand, and he awkwardly does the same, tryin' not to knock Rowan off his shoulder.

The pair reach the statue right as the first students come 'round the corner. He ain't too sure, but he thinks he can see the girl that had once been Tulip Karasu. In sync, the two of 'em fire basic smoke summonin' jinxes. The Girl pulls him down, forcin' him to shift Rowan to his back. She frantically points at the letter, then at the statue. He can't hear her over the students yellin' curses and he can barely see through the flashes of light through the smoke, but when he looks back, she's disappeared. He's about to curse when he feels a hand grab Rowan and pull him and The Kid backward, and the two tumble into a dark, passageway. The statue slides back into place behind them.

The Girl tells him that the word was a password, and that when she said it to the statue it slid open to reveal this passage. He wonders at how many secrets the school holds, but they decide to get further away. He hefts Rowan back onto his shoulder, and she slides back under his other arm.

They walk down the passage for...well, they ain't too sure. His vision's goin' again, and this time he ain't sure anything's gonna keep him goin'. He can tell she's strugglin' too; she's been carryin' the weight of him and her own exhaustion since this whole damn mess started.

Finally, they reach a trapdoor, and The Girl slides back out to push it open. She stumbles through, and he follows, nearly trippin' on the way. They find themselves in a dark cellar. The Kid whispers to the girl that it smells sickly sweet, and she whispers back that it looks like Honeydukes. They drag their exhausted bodies up the stairs and out the door, only briefly stoppin' the wonder why it's open.

Outside, they find the streets empty. They ain't got no clue what to do, so they head to the only place they know. The Three Broomsticks. It's a warm, cosy place, and their spirits seem to lift simply from walking in the door. They see the barmaid, but she's busy with somethin' behind the counter. Lookin' round, they see nothin' but some Aurors and an old man sittin' by the window. The Kid begins to call out when his strength finally fades. Rowan falls from his shoulder and lands on a nearby table, while The Kid falls to the floor, finally passin' out. The Girl's not far behind him, but she makes eye contact with the man by the window 'fore she falls.

She makes eye contact with me.