A Legacy of Pain: Filling the Void

Chapter 50: When the Ending is Only the Beginning

Last Time: Poppy and Sebastian made their way to the repository. After a small run in with goblins and Professor Weasley the two students made it to where the guardians were. Yet as they tried to enter only Poppy was allowed to do so. In rush she left Sebastian to go and find Lizzy, terrified by the destruction she saw in the cavern. Down below Elizabeth struggled with her desire to keep her promise to Fig as well as her desire to consume the rest of the repository's energy. Soon Fig showed up and convinced her to seal it. Just when it was too much Poppy showed up and helped Lizzy to seal the repository. After a heartfelt reunion where Elizabeth returned, mostly, to her old self the ravenclaw realized Professor fig was nowhere to be seen. It was the Poppy revealed she had seen him dead on the way in. The two recovered his body and headed out of the repository. Back above Lizzy announced Ranrok's death and demanded the surrender of the Loyalist army. While many surrendered, some ran, yet she was too tired to give chase. Back in the map chamber once more she dismissed the others and spoke with Poppy before casting the fidelius charm to safeguard the repository.

***Trigger Warnings*** We Mourn the Dead, Mental break, length (?)

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Elizabeth and Poppy stood near the entrance to the Great Hall alone as they watched the rest of the students gathered at their houses's tables while Professor Black attempted to give a speech at the podium in the very early hours of Monday the twenty-sixth. In front of him sat nine caskets; each with a portrait of their occupant set up in front of them. Eight students and one professor; in the end that had been how many they had lost in the battle over the repository. Nine lives lost because of Elizabeth's incompetence and inability to stop the invasion of the school before it could happen. Her dark hazel eyes slowly moved from portrait to portrait, memorizing each of the fallen's faces and names in turn. They had lost their lives because of her; it was only right that she at the very least never forget them or their sacrifice.

Elizabeth didn't know personally the four seventh years or three sixth years who had died. Yet as her eyes fell upon the portrait of the last student who had perished in the battle; the auburn haired witch couldn't stop the small sob that escaped her throat at the sight of the slicked back red hair. She hadn't known Leander Prewett well enough to truly call him a friend; yet she had interacted with her classmate enough that his death still weighed heavily upon her.

She could still remember seeing him that first day of class in Defense Against the Dark Arts when he lost a duel to Sebastian. How Leander had helped her in her first herbology class, and even the times they had competed in summoner's court. The young wizard had died exemplifying the ideals of his house when he protected the medical tent at the cost of his own life after a troll had broken through the lines to barrel towards where the injured were being treated.

It was people like him and the others who had died to save the lives of their fellow students who were the true heroes of the battle; not her. They had made the ultimate sacrifice for Hogwarts while Elizabeth had only sacrificed them and others to save her own life and those she loved when she should have kept them safe instead. After staring for several moments and barely registering how Headmaster Black butchered his eulogy before Vice Headmistress Weasley took over for him; the ravenclaw finally let her eyes wander to the final portrait and casket which sat in the middle of the macabre display.

Unfocused dark hazel eyes fell upon the portrait of her mentor, the old wizard who had brought her back into the wizarding world after so many years of thinking she would never see it again. She hugged Poppy tighter to her chest as her face contorted in sorrow. While she and Eleazar hadn't always seen eye to eye; he had become such a good friend and familial figure to her akin to an uncle. He had seen how far she had fallen and yet he never rejected her. He had only ever tried to bring her back from the darkness which threatened to consume her and to help her learn more about the mysteries that surrounded her abilities.