Moths to a Flame

9. Secrets Uncovered +

Aria pov

I'm not sure how long I was tied to this chair, I stopped trying to pull on my wrists. The binds are too tight. It's definitely going to leave a bruise. Could be hours or days I think I saw a sliver of sunlight peek through hours ago. I was getting hungry and really needed a bathroom. I wouldn't let myself cry; I can't show weakness now. I just hope Poppy is safe and that Seb and Omi aren't worried. I would drift on and off to sleep. But I heard a heavy door slam and jolted me up. I saw the hooded man standing in the room with me. I felt a pain from my side. I look up to the man his wand drawn. I was exhausted no sleep, no food.

"What do you want with me" I say defiantly.

"Exactly what my idiot brother wanted from you!" He said in a low cold voice. Thats when he took off the hood and I was able to see his face more clearly. He had a thin face and hazel eyes with a dark scruffy beard.

"Excuse me but I have no idea what you're talking about or who for that matter" I say nonchalantly. He hit me with a crucio, suddenly the shooting pain was all over my body. After a minute or two he stopped. I was slumped even further into the chair.

"No talking back you little brat!" He spat at me. I was breathing heavy now.

"The name Rookwood ring a bell" he says to me.

"Victor Rookwood. What's he got to do with all this" I say.

"That's right, my brother" he says

"Brother?!" And I got another bout of crucio for that.

"Estranged brother, rather, my brother was the favorite got everything he wanted and I got nothing so first chance I got I left. Changed my surname and never looked back. Met my wife Holly and we had a daughter, but she couldn't handle our life, couldn't understand the torment of beasts so what does she do she left too. Perhaps you know her Poppy Sweeting" he finished.

"You're Poppy's father!" I say. I was hit with a punching jinx and I felt the blood rush from my nose and soon I tasted it on my lips.

"So you do know her, what a shame, she was always a disappointment, getting sorted into Hufflepuff of all houses. But by the looks of it you're one too aren't you" he says smirking at me. Another bout of crucio came my way.

"Victor may be dead and rightfully so but now it's my turn, my turn to finally have to have notoriety and power. And from such research and newspapers he was after a child with immense powers and knowledge of such power. And that research brings me to you" he tells me.

"Why are you telling me all this?" I say.

"Well you won't be living much longer so it really doesn't matter to me" he says. "But it's such a shame for a pretty thing like you"

"And what makes you think that" I ask. More crucio and another punching jinx for that remark.

"Oh I have my reasons. Don't you worry" he says and leaves me there, still tied to the chair.

The magical binds won't break easily, but being so weak now I had no strength to even try. So tired and exhausted the pain from the cruciatus curse still lingering. Dumb-dumb doesn't realize that if I die so does my magic and the access to such magic in the repository. So laying out his plan to me really is stupid of him. But there's nothing I can do about it. I'm just tied up here like an animal. All those beasts that Poppy and I tried to save were also subjected to this behavior. It's terrible. Trying to fight away sleep, I was dozing off again but I heard a commotion going on somewhere but I lost consciousness.

Sebastian pov

We got to the castle and Poppy divided up us. Ominis is to stay around the perimeter and take care of any poachers outside of the castle. While she and I would go inside and fight anyone and find Aria. We all agreed to this. We went inside and were surprised to not find anyone it was eery and suspenseful. We should have come across someone. We looked through every door we could open.

"Well hello Poppy" I heard a cold voice from behind us. We turn around and there was a man standing directly behind us.

"What are you doing here" Poppy said. How does she know who this is? What the fuck is going on.

"Wheres Aria!" Poppy shouts at the man.

"Oh your little friend, with the magic? Oh she's quite the pest" he says. How dare he. I pull out my wand. I fight him deflecting spells from us.

"Poppy go find her!" I shouted over the cracks of magic from our wands.

I heard her running down the hallway. It's me and his guy they don't call me the second best duelist in Hogwarts for nothing. Our wands connect me casting a bombarda and him some other red spell that made the wands connect. The crackling sounds of the magic between us, I had both hands holding my wand steady. I was winning his spell was failing and about to back fire.

"Dupulso!" I heard from behind me and a purple spell came rushing past me and hit this guy knocking him back into the wall.

"Incarcerus!" I shouted. "Expelliarmus!" I had to back sure he was disarmed. I look behind me to see Ominis rushing in.

"Stupify" Ominis said one last time to make sure this guy wasn't going anywhere. We grabbed his wand and snapped it for good measure. I tried to head the same way I saw Poppy run hoping that she's found Aria by now.

"Poppy!" We would shout.

"Here!" She shouts back.

"I can't get the binds off her wrists and she's in bad shape." Poppy said. I saw her, my sweet precious Aria. Dried blood running down her face arms bound to a metal chair. Her head was drooped eyes closed.

"Ominis hold her while I try and get these off. Poppy hold her hands back I may have to cut these off their enchanted." I carefully point my wand at the ropes and cast a diffindo.

Nothing I reach into my pocket and pull out a little knife and I was cutting the rope. It was actually working. But it was taking a toll on my arms. Finally after sawing away at the rope it fell to the floor and I picked her up and ran out of the castle I have to get her to the hospital wing. I apperated us to Hogsmeade and took the floo directly to the hospital wing.

"Help! Please!" I say entering.

"What's happened here" she says walking over.

"Aria she's been kidnapped and I'm not sure what's happened we just got her out" I say
frantically. It wasn't long until Ominis and Poppy came bursting through followed by Professor Weasley and Professor Sharp, just as we laid Aria on a bed and Madame Blainey was just starting to tend to her.

"What's going on" Professor Weasley asks and between the three of us mostly Poppy we told them what's happened.

"Who's this man?" Sharp asks.

"I don't know, though Poppy seemed to have known him" I say.

"Poppy" He said.

"He was my father, Randell Sweeting" she said. My eyes bugged out. Her father?!

"Oh dear, this is a serious matter" professor Wesley said.

"Alright I'll head down to Irondale and collect him and bring him to the ministry" Professor Sharp said and he left. So did Weasley. It was just the three of us and nurse blainley and an unconscious Aria.

"That ass was your dad?" I ask her.

"Yes, but I ran away from them years ago to live with my grandmother" she said. "Please I don't want to think about this anymore" she looked back at Aria in the bed. "Please tell me when she wakes up" she said. I nodded and she walked out. Leaving me with Ominis.

"Alright she should be fine, she has a broken nose and suffered the cruciatus curse so I'll have to keep her here for a few days while the effects wear off and I'll have to get some cream to stop the swelling on her wrist" the nurse said.

We took a seat next to her bed on either side. I grabbed her hand and ran my thumb over the black and blue bruises adorning her wrists now. It made me incredibly sad to see her in such a state. I looked up to see Ominis doing a similar thing he was holding her hand as well.

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A/N: I'm sorry it's so late that I'm posting these two chapters. I was at work all day and it slipped my mind, when I came home and since it was so tired. But here they are. Enjoy!