ROTBTD: Hogwarts

Chapter Thirteen: The Graveyard

Jumping right in today -- Enjoy!

The impact completely winded Harry and Cedric. Merida, although in doing so became dizzy, jumped up and took in her surroundings. They were in an eerie graveyard, and none of them had ever been there before. Merida felt her robes for her wand, but it was gone. She groaned, then grabbed her bow, which she always kept on her back. She ducked behind a headstone at the sound of footsteps. Someone was coming toward them, holding something that looked suspiciously like a baby, or possibly simply a bundle of robes. Merida knocked an arrow but didn't raise her bow. The boys pulled out their wands.

Suddenly, Harry screamed and dropped to the ground, his hands clutching his scar. Merida nearly cried out, but realized that in doing so, she would give away her position. She wanted to stay hidden, so that maybe she could get a shot at the person.

"Kill the spare," said a cold voice.

The person raised his wand -- and it wasn't pointing at Merida. "Avada Kedavra!"

A flash of green light -- and Cedric dropped to the ground. Merida almost screamed. She stared into Cedric's blank, lifeless eyes, hardly daring to believe that he was dead. She barely notied that Harry was yanked up and tied to the gravestone that she was hiding behind. She heard a slapping sound, then Harry yelled, "You!"

Merida peered around and saw with a jolt who it was: Wormtail, also known as Peter Pettigrew, who had betrayed Lily and James Potter to Voldemort and whom she had met last year. Wormtail was an Animagus (a person who could transform at will into an animal) who could turn into a rat, hence his nickname. He pushed a huge cauldron in front of Harry, and a giant snake circled the ground under Harry. Merida found herself thinking that will one shot, one arrow, she could put an end to Voldemort's pet snake. But no... then Wormtail would know where she was. The bundle of robes was also stirring. Maybe she would kill that instead. Suddenly, she realized that the bundle contained Voldemort's temporary form... she couldn't kill it... an arrow couldn't kill him... and he would kill her. She was suddnely terrified beyond what she had ever felt before.

Wormtail lit a fire below the cauldron and filled it with liquid. It began to boil, then send up sparks. Voldemort began to fidget. "Hurry!"

"It is ready, Master." Merida was sickened with the way Pettigrew spoke to Voldemort.

"Now..."

Merida almost gagged. When Wormtail unfolded the bundle of robes, it revealed something horrible. It was in the shape of a child, but it was hairless and scaly-looking, a raw reddish-black. Its arms and legs were thin and weak. Its face was what sent the thrill of fear down her spine. It was flat and snakelike, with gleaming red eyes -- eyes that were staring right at her.

He knew she was there.

He seemed almost amused to see her there, terrified and speechless. He turned away so as to appear as though he had seen nothing, and allowed Wormtail to lift him. Pettigrew carried him over to the cauldron and dropped him inside. Merida hardly dared to hope that Voldemort would drown; or course, water couldn't kill him either.

Wormtail began to speak. He raised his wand and said, "Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will renew your son!"

Cracks appeared in the ground below Harry. White dust rose from them and dropped silently into the cauldron. The liquid turned poisonous blue and sent sparks in all directions.

Wormtail was whimpering in terror. He pulled a long dagger from inside his robes and said, sobbing, "Flesh -- of the servant -- w-willingly given -- you will -- revive -- your master."

He gripped the dagger in his left hand, held his right in the air, and swung the knife upwards. His piercing scream mixed with Merida's. She closed her eyes in horror and heard something drop into the cauldron. She could tell that the liquid was now a burning red. She heard Pettigrew stumble toward Harry.

"B-blood of the enemy..." he managed, "forcibly taken... you will resurrect your foe."

Merida couldn't look. She could almost feel the blade on her arm -- the blood seeping down -- but it wasn't happening to her. It was Harry's pain. Wormtail caught the blood in a vial and poured it into the cauldron. The liquid instantly colored into a blinding white. It was simmering, sending sparks everywhere. Nothing happened. Merida hoped it had gone wrong, that the spell had somehow killed Voldemort instead of raising him.

But suddenly, the sparks disappeared and white smoke came from it instead, so thick that Merida could only see the silhouette of her hand in front of her face. She couldn't have hit anything even if she tried. She squinted and very, very vaguely could make out Wormtail, Harry, and Cedric, whom she refused to look at. She focused on the cauldron. And she saw what she didn't want to see.

A man, thin and tall, rose slowly from the liquid. "Robe me," said Voldemort. Wormtail staggered forward and put the robes onto his master. Voldemort stepped from the cauldron and Merida saw in intense clarity the white face, the flat nose, the slits for nostrils, and, most chilling, the scarlet eyes.

Lord Voldemort was resurrected.

Ta-da!

Poor Cedric ; _ ; I feel sad every time I read that part .. but at least I didn't kill Merida. I don't think ANYONE would allow me to get away with it. Hope you liked .. and didn't cry.

Bye!