The Battle Of The Basilisk

-16-

Raghavi's heartbeat echoed in her head, slamming against the inner walls of her cranium.

He'd done it. Charles had finally done it.

He lay on the muddy earth now, his eyes shut and his face as calm as that of a sleeping angel's. Jane and Will stared, both their mouths open, at Pranaty's arm. She seemed to be at loss for words too.

The basilisk fang had totally dissolved. Small powdery flakes had settled near the wound, which was no longer visible. The area shone slightly, indicating that Charles had somehow managed to make Pranaty's skin cover up the wound.

Rapid cell division? Platelets? How in the name of Merlin did he do it? Raghavi's brain searched for an answer, but could only produce a blank.

Ayano let out a soft moan, and everybody moved towards her, forming a circle. Her fingers uncurled, and the wand she had held on to as though it were her lifeline fell into the dirt. Raghavi picked it up and wiped it on her robes. Will gently prised open Ayano's mouth and began fumbling in his pockets.

"Will? What are you doing?" Pranaty asked. She didn't even look scared anymore, just merely curious.

"She needs water to drink, and so do you." He explained. Then his eyes flitted towards Jane and Raghavi. "I don't suppose you two might...."

"I'm fine." Jane assured, but a single glance at her cracked lips told Raghavi she was lying.

"No you're not." Raghavi said. She drew out her own wand and thought hard; A second later two tall coffee mugs appeared in front of her. Will found his wand and filled both mugs with water, which Pranaty and Jane immediately snatched and began drinking out of. A hint of a smile flashed on Will's face.

"Spare some for the rest of us too." He reminded them. Then he turned to Raghavi. "A Conjuring Charm?"

She nodded. "My favorite branch of magic."

"To the question at hand," Jane interrupted. "Who turned that rock into a Portkey? It was very clever, but we don't know where we are, so-"

"I didn't think it'd work." Pranaty answered quietly.

Everyone's eyes were on her. Will looked as though he'd been slapped. "Pa- Pranaty- It was you?"

Pranaty was pale. "Yes." She hesitated, then continued. "I- I didn't know what I was doing. I just remembered Mr. Blackscar all of a sudden, and..."

"Mr. Blackscar?" Jane asked.

"My grandfather." Will replied. His face bore a mixture of expressions- Awe, jealousy and for some reason, concern. "She saw him turn something into a Portkey once."

"A muffin-basket." Pranaty put in.

"A muffin-basket?" Jane looked surprised.

"Yes." Will replied. "We were in Milan for a day, and we missed our Muggle flight to London-"

He stopped mid-sentence, his cheeks bright red. Pranaty's face spoke of confusion.

Luckily for him, Ayano moaned again, this time moving ever so slightly. Raghavi immediately went for her hand. It was oddly hot and wet. "Ayano? Ayano, can you hear me?"

She mumbled something unintelligible. Unexpectedly, her eyelids flew upwards, bringing to light her black irises, as dark and cold as tunnels. They were filled with- To Raghavi's shock- Horror.

For a few seconds, nobody said anything. Everyone merely watched as Ayano stared at the canopy of leaves above her.

Finally, she muttered:

"Why is everything green?"

Will and Jane burst out laughing, and that had to be the most beautiful moment yet. Ayano turned to frown at Jane, who was desperately trying to suppress her amusement. Pranaty's face brought on a gorgeous smile as she attempted to give Ayano a hug. Under normal circumstances, Ayano would've Cruciated her, but clearly, she was in a state of uncertainty.

"Um, alright." Ayano mumbled and rubbed her head. "Ow.... Did Will throw me out of Ravenclaw Tower?"

Jane helped her up, still giggling. "No, he threw himself out as well."

"And is that why my head hurts?"

"Oh no, it's probably because Charles dropped you when we landed here."

"Landed where?" Ayano glowered at the the forest surrounding her. Little sunlight fell around them, which explained why most of the plants were dead. Trees with trunks as large as a pregnant Hippogriff dominated the enclosure, their tips seeming to touch the sky.

Pranaty looked uncomfortable. "Well.... I don't know."

Ayano's eyes rested on Pranaty. "Pardon me, but what do you mean by you  not knowing?"

Pranaty clasped her hands, her eyes lowered. "You see, Ayano-"

"Pranaty, if I may." Will interrupted.

"Yes, go ahead." Pranaty's face flooded with relief. She obviously didn't want to be the one telling Ayano the whole story.

"Thank you." Will replied. Raghavi wasn't sure what to make of his calm demeanor- They were in boiling water, and the young man didn't seem to panic in the least. "So, Ayano, here's the news: We jumped out of Ravenclaw Tower, Charles saved us along with Jane, I made a speech, that beast decided to jump out on everyone in the middle of it, and Pranaty Portkeyed us away from Hogwarts."

Ayano looked stumped. Raghavi had to suppress a grin. Jane and Will didn't bother to do so.

"I-I- This isn't funny!" Ayano snapped. "Pranaty, you made a Portkey? How?"

"I-" Pranaty opened her mouth to speak, but Ayano interrupted her.

"Charles!" Her eyes widened. "What on earth-"

"He's just exhausted." Raghavi assured her. "He saved your life, and obviously used up plenty of energy in the effort."

"True." Jane agreed. "He even dissolved the basilisk fang embedded in Pranaty's arm."

"He-" Ayano looked like she wanted to strangle everyone with her bare hands. "For the love of Ptolemy, someone just tell me what's happening!"

So Raghavi began to break down the events for the sake of simplicity. Ayano did not utter a word. Once Raghavi was done, Ayano merely stared at the dirt, her face blank.

Perhaps she is trying to process it all, Raghavi thought, does she look different, somehow?

Raghavi assessed Ayano mentally- Hair was still the same blue, she still had her attitude, but what was new? Her eyes fell on Ayano's palms, and she was forced to hold back a scream.

Oh no.

She quickly ran her eyes up the rest of Ayano's lithe body. The same thing. Raghavi felt it, the horrible, sinking feeling in her stomach. Ayano... She didn't want to complete the thought. It made her shudder.

"Is something wrong?"

Raghavi looked up to find everyone staring at her.

"Yes." Raghavi swallowed. Her heart rammed against her larynx. "Ayano, you're bloodless."