Bruises ( Ariel Celeste Black)

Chapter 10.3

"Oh no .....This is bad. " Vedika whispered, clinging onto Ariel's arm. .

"I swear I heard something ! " Ariel said as she continued walking on hurriedly, looking out for the voices that she had heard.

"If anyone catches us, we will so be expelled " Leonard said .

"I think we'll probably be dead before that " Vedika said as her eyes landed on a figure in the distance.

"What is that?" Vedika questioned.

Ariel kept moving along. Footsteps could be heard in the distance , slowly approaching them . But,Ariel didn't seem to care as she ran along , the sharp voice still evilly laughing around her.The voice was loud,it seemed to lead her somewhere,it was taking over her . Nothing around her felt meaningful in that moment except for that voice. It was clouding her senses in the worst ways known.

And then she stopped dead on her tracks . For , in front of them,hanging from a lamp post was Mrs.Norris . Filch's cat , who looked very much dead .

The footsteps grew louder and then suddenly stopped.Murmurs broke out around her,and suddenly, Ariel was pulled back to her senses . She could feel water soak the edges of her cloak . She looked around to find Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape , and a few prefects leading away their respective houses from the great hall .That was when she noticed the message written on the wall beside her,in what seemed to be blood .

"Darkness surrounds you yet again . Enemies of the superior force , beware "

A chill,an unfamiliar one,ran down Ariel's spine . Leonard and Vedika were trying to explain The Professors what happened as the prefects were ordered to take the students away.

"You.....you murdered my cat "Filch cried and groaned , throwing Ariel a murderous look.

McGonagall looked down at the three students who looked as confused as ever. Her gaze lingered on Ariel for a second longer before she said ,in a shaky voice "Follow me ,now "

___________

Standing in Dumbledore's office with every head of house staring down at her and an annoyed filch sobbing in the corner while glaring at her was the last thing Ariel wanted to be stuck in .

"Kindly explain yourselves . What exactly were you doing in the second floor corridor while you were supposed to be at the Halloween Feast? " McGonagall asked .

"We were just heading down for dinner when I heard a few ....voices . And , I decided to follow them " Ariel said . Now that she looked at it , whatever she said didn't make any sense . Well , the whole event didn't make any sense.

"They have murdered my cat . They have murdered Mrs Norris!" Filch sobbed as he blew his nose on an old napkin .

Dumbledore , who was bent over his table , examining Mrs Norris's body , said "She is not dead , yet , Argus . She has simply been petrified. But this isn't what a normal petrifying spell would act like."

"It is impossible for such young , stupid kids to perform such a magic as to petrify someone so easily " Snape said . Ariel glanced at him , unable to understand if her bipolar teacher was being nice for once or insulting them once again the very chance he got .

"What voices did you hear , my dear?" Professor Sprout asked Ariel , genuinely curious .

"I do not know " Ariel said . She didn't know who the voice belonged to or what it was . But what the voice did make her feel was something she had felt many times , dread. The voice filled her with her most dreaded memories . It made her fall into a pit of confusion and darkness , a feeling she never wanted to experience again.

"Did it say something ? What was it like ?" Professor Flitwick squeaked .

Ariel really didn't like this conversation . As much as she tried to hide it , the situation was giving her anxiety , it clouded her senses with nervousness that had her internally panicking . But , she still answered calmly .

"It was a smooth voice . Smooth , but dark and deep . I don't know what it said , but it had clouded my mind . Almost as if it had taken control of me, it was guiding me . " Ariel said . She did not know if everyone in the room could be trusted . And so, keeping some of the happenings of the event to herself , she answered honestly . It wasn't a lie , just not the full truth.

She glanced back at her friends who did not know what was happening , just like her . And if only she had payed attention the the Professors , she would have noticed Dumbledore and Snape share a look .

_________

"This is insane ." The very first words came out from Vedika's mouth as soon as the trio stepped out of the Headmaster's office.

"I mean , if you don't call -finding a frozen cat hanging like a bat from a lamp post with a creepy message written beside it -normal , then I guess this is pretty insane " Leonard said.

Vedika could only roll her eyes as she turned to face Ariel ."What is it , Ariel ?" Vedika asked the girl , placing a comforting hand on her shoulder after seeing her troubled face , her eyebrows furrowed .

"The voice " Ariel said blankly .

"Yeah , what about it ?" Leonard asked .

"It wasn't just guiding me somewhere , it wasn't just whispering in my ear." Ariel said "It made me see things ."