Chapter Text
When I recalled my years at the orphanage, all my memories came in all different shades of grey. I believed it was how I perceived the world around me, right after losing the colour I had been surrounded by.
I don’t have too many grounding memories of my family; they are all blurred faces, echoes of laughter and inaudible voices, but even with that, they were not colourless. My view was innocent, happy, peaceful. And it all came rushing, as if I was listening to a record at the highest speed.
I used to believe that it was that way because they were brief, as my time with them was. And still, I tried to anchor myself to those short moments that sometimes would make my dreams not entirely black and white, but somehow polarised.
Colour returned to my life the moment I met this incredible world. I remembered thinking I wanted to stay here forever, worried that if I didn’t, everything would go back to the only colour palette that painted my memories for the longest in my life.
There were times when I felt that polarised overlay wanted to make an appearance, and then I would look around me. Whenever I did that, all the faces who brought me joy, who held my hand, who accompanied me, who laughed at my bad jokes—all of them brought colour back. And that sad overlay would dissipate slowly.
I did that all the time, even in my dark, lifeless office.
But as I looked around this place, I did not see grey or a polarised overlay—it was all crimson red.
And I couldn’t be sure if it was due to the altered magic taking over the room, or the reflection of my soul bleeding at the view.
I didn’t know how much time it had passed; it could've been seconds or entire minutes, but all I knew was that the Aurors were fighting again, which was pointless, since the room was coming apart rock by rock. My heart shrank at the thought of the castle above.
Flashes of magic burst from all wands, as well as protective charms against the others and the room itself. I could see in the Minister’s face: he was scared.
When I looked to my right, Argus Montgomery appeared to be picking himself up from the force that brought him to the ground.
The waves of magic flew around, hitting everything in their way. It wasn't only the ground and walls; we seemed to be standing right in the eye of a hurricane.
We wouldn’t survive this even if we tried.
“Minister Faris Spavin,” I called as loudly as the chaos allowed me. Fortunately, they heard me. “This is the last opportunity for you to leave, or else, you won’t come out alive.”
“Is that a threat, Miss Summershall?” He yelled back, though his voice trembled.
“It’s a warning,” I said, as composed as I could pretend to be. “Get your men and yourself out now.”
Somewhere behind him, a wave of magic hit the ground, bringing stones down, and that almost crushed the Minister.
He looked terrified at his men, who were just as scared as he was.
I walked to meet Sharp and Ominis. They hadn’t brought their wands down at all, ready for any surprise attack.
“Leave before all that’s left of you is dust.”
I saw the grip in his wand tighten as his lump in his throat went up and down. He nodded, looking around one last time before disappearing in a blurred, cowardly cloud. His companions did too, just in time before a giant mass of the ceiling of the cave hit the spot where they stood.
Maybe they would call for help or any type of assistance the moment they saw the castle, but by the time anyone dared to do anything, it would be too late.
“You go too,” I said, turning to the men behind me. “Professor Sharp, find the others and get yourself safe as well.”
Sharp fixed his gaze on me, his hand still raised, and his eyes looked for mine. For a moment, I saw the teacher who congratulated me on my first well-brewed potion; then, I saw the warrior who had seen enough chaos to recognise when a battle was no longer his to fight. He glanced at my wounded wrists with sadness.
“Miss Summershall,” Sharp began. His voice was raspy and breathless from the exhaustion of the previous duel. “What would happen to you?”
Of course, he had no idea what the next steps would cost at all. I swallowed as I looked around. Everything was blurry, as if clouds and smoke surrounded us. I couldn’t see far from where we were standing, but I could bet Argus Montgomery was still somewhere in here.
The answer to that question got stuck in my throat. I couldn’t bring myself to lie or to say the truth, because either option cut through my lungs with such force I couldn't fight back.
I took a heavy step toward him and gently grabbed his shoulder. I was thankful for every interaction we shared, every conversation, from those of years ago in the classrooms to the ones at the table in the Great Hall.
“Thank you for everything, Professor. I can take it from here,” I finally chose the lying option. The truth would only bring more scars. “When you get to the others, tell them I’m forever thankful.”
Sharp remained still in his place. The fierce wind of the storm moved his hair and cape. I felt suddenly small in his presence. And then he finally lowered his wand.
“You’re one of a kind, Miss Summershall,” he smiled. And even if it was a brief, small one, I could tell he meant every word. “I’m glad we got to see you again after a long time.”
I tried to hold back the tears as he nodded. When I saluted him back, he patted Ominis’s back twice and disappeared.
“Go with him.”
“I believed I was being clear when I said I won’t leave without you,” I took his hand, the tears leaking without my permission, “And there’s nothing you can do or say to change that.”
“Oh, look at that.”
The mocky voice of Argus Montgomery came in like a breakable spell.
He walked slowly from afar, his silhouette became clearer as he stepped out of the mild wind and dust. Stones kept falling from above, but he appeared so unaffected, as if he wasn’t even scared to get smashed.
Ominis placed himself in front of me, as he promised, since I did not have my wand. My chest hit his back, and I had to step aside to see. He had his wand up, pointing directly at my old mentor.
“I see you are not scared of death, are you, Mister Gaunt?”
“You bastard. I’m going to kill you.”
Argus Montgomery laughed with such poison that could make anyone hold back. But Ominis wasn’t just anyone.
“I find it amusing how you brought him straight to me, Mayla,” he started, taking too long to bring out his wand. “I admit I thought it would take them longer to find you–”
Ominis didn’t give him any more seconds to finish his mockery. He kept walking, ignoring any attempt of mine to make him stop. His wand was slicing through the air with a precision that even I found terrifying.
“Ominis–”
“I’ll cut that filthy mouth of yours until all you can do is babble,” he said, rushing his step straight to the crimson hell in front of us. His tone was pure anger. I could swear it made the magic thunder.
The storm was unstoppable, reacting with more force as Argus Montgomery used the Keepers’ Wand. The magic knew he wasn’t a proper wielder, and every move came with a tremor that shook the entire place, like a contained lightning striking on the floor.
I feared for Ominis more the moment his coat and my scarf disappeared from view. All I could hear was the straining sounds he made every time a blue light appeared somewhere among the clouds, and the cynical, playful laugh of Mister Montgomery echoing after.
I entered the havoc, trying to keep my eyes on any of them; following the lights and their voices. But all my efforts were muted and hazed by the Ancient Magic roaring everywhere.
My heart was racing, my veins made my body shake— I was exposed.
Being this close to it felt different from the last time, and that was probably why they kept telling me I wasn't ready yet. My ears felt like bleeding out, my mind was racing with strange echoes of voices I’ve never heard before, and an urgent, violet impulse tried to take over me.
I could not concentrate or hear clearly. The voices were so strong and loud that I could no longer differentiate my mind from reality.
But my constant thought moved around Ominis’s presence, trying to anchor myself to him. I wandered through the storm, hugging myself tightly, fearing that if I let go, even for just a moment, my heart would explode.
I needed that wand. I needed to find them before something else happened. I needed to hold Ominis’s hand, or I would drown myself in this never-ending flood of emotions.
The ceiling kept cracking and falling near me, but not a single rock hit me. However, there was no difference; as I kept walking, the ache in my chest grew more unbearable.
I screamed, or at least I thought I did. It was impossible to ignore. I pressed my palms against my ears, trying to make it stop somehow, but my knees felt that weakness too, as they found the floor first.
The moment I made contact with the stone's surface, an invisible force dispersed the storm and lifted it upward. The screaming stopped, and I looked up, only to see that the storm did too. It suddenly slowed, as if it were holding its breath. But instead of being a peaceful motion, it felt like the calm that brought devastation in its wake. The voices and the ache appeared to be in harmony, keeping pace with it. Or maybe it was the other way around, I really couldn’t tell.
The air moved in slow motion around me, making it easier to see my surroundings. When I glanced to my right, I finally saw them.
Ominis and Argus Montgomery kept duelling, although one seemed to have the upper hand. The strikes kept flashing as they moved further. I was relieved for a second to see he was okay, until I made sense of the place that awaited them.
An abyss.
Argus Montgomery was on the floor, reclining on his forearm. The Keepers’ Wand was now in another of his hands while he was using his own to attack.
Ominis kept walking nonstop, his mouth moving as he spoke things I couldn't hear. Argus Montgomery was still crawling away from him, and the mix of disbelief and fear was noticeable. He was no longer attacking, but defending himself.
They were so immersed in their battle that they didn't notice the chaos had stopped. And I took advantage of the situation. Gathering all my strength, I got up and rushed to them. To Ominis.
But the moment Argus Montgomery laid eyes on me, everything turned against me: his face changed from fear to a grin that made my lungs shrink. My steps never stopped, but my heart did, for a swift moment before running urgently.
Ominis raised his wand for a final blow, but Argus Montgomery mouthed something that froze him. He raised the Keepers’ Wand and made a feral move from top to bottom that appeared to do nothing. My gaze never left Ominis, scared something would get to him.
I watched him slowly turn around, facing me, starting to make his way to me, mouthing something similar to my name. He looked terrified, and I did too. I wanted to yell to step away, but I never got to do it as I felt something hot and thick in my abdomen. And the voices stopped.
I screamed at the contact, surprised and hurt. I closed my eyes due to the force I was hit with, and when I opened them, the scene hurt more.
A red glow that cut like a blade. A force from a wand that made my scarf fly above me. A thudding sound that could be heard from miles in my head. A body that laid motionless on the floor.
The thud of Ominis hitting the stone floor echoed louder than the crumbling ceiling. I watched the red glow fade from the tip of his wand as it rolled slowly away. Time stopped as I hoped for a movement, a breath, a twitch—but there was only the still shape of him.
I ran to his side, ignoring my own pain. I kneeled beside him and got a better look at him. A dark stain of blood began to appear in his blonde hair. My hands were already smudged with my own blood, but I still touched his chest, shaking him. I took the edge of my scarf that was still wrapped around his neck and wiped the red thread off his forehead.
No.
Argus Montgomery stood a few feet away, his chest heaving, his clothes ripped in some spots, as well as some scratches around his body, which showed Ominis was not for a play. But even with all that, he looked straight at me, holding his arm with the other with a twisted grin. Then lowered his gaze at the wound he had just opened in me.
“Ah. Love is the ultimate distraction,” he hissed. A thin line of blood peeked out of his disgusting mouth. “Thankfully, it worked, or else I would’ve fallen there.”
He huffed, faking relief.
But I wasn’t here anymore.
Something—somewhere deep in my bones—broke. The crimson-red overlay in my vision grew harder to ignore. No, I no longer wanted to ignore it.
“I told you you’d pay your debt, Mayla. Now you’ll live with your own miser-”
Argus Montgomery didn’t have a chance to finish his litter, as his body hit the opposite wall. My bare, hurt hands sent him away.
I wasn’t even surprised by the wandless magic I thought I wasn’t capable of wielding. All I could feel was the hurt, the anger, and the voices whispering in my ear, telling me to punish. To make him suffer.
I stood up.
I didn’t feel the pain in my abdomen, nor the weakness in my knees and wrists. I reached for the storm that, in its peaceful pause, became a catastrophic hurricane.
Somewhere behind me, the voice of Argus Montgomery called me, but I continued my hypnotising pace carelessly. The scarlet havoc no longer looked terrifying, but beautiful. It called me, begging me to get closer.
Angry winds hit me, made my hair a tangled mess, but my eyes kept open, incapable of blinking and missing this spectacle.
The voices were hurried the deeper I got, until I found myself in the eye of the hurricane.
It was a mesmerising view. The red shadows whirled around me, and when I looked up, the bright light of the silver sphere bathed my face. The Repository spun slowly, welcoming me.
In here, I could breathe, forget about the world outside these red clouds.
The Repository answered to me, or maybe I responded to it. Either way, we sensed each other—a true, mutual resonance.
Following my instincts, I raised one of my hands and summoned a trace from the red cloud. Something I could’ve done with a wand, but who needed one when all the power could be held in a palm?
It looked like a ribbon of red smoke that followed every thought of mine. No need for spells, only my intention. And after a moment of captivating contemplation, I finally claimed what belonged to me.
The intake was a physical blow. It felt like being struck by lightning a thousand times over, until all my body burned. Maybe I screamed, but I could not hear my own voice.
I felt the memory of the Keepers, the pain of countless people, and the raw energy of the earth itself rushing into my veins. In one instance, it wasn’t unknown; if anything, it felt about right. I embraced every emotion as my own. I was complete, filled with energy and driven by it.
The air kept filling my lungs, every atom of it entered with an unspoken promise. And then, the pain that claimed my body at first was replaced by an extraordinary vigour—so delightful I could drink the entire place up.
I rose into the air. My feelings left the stone, as a cyclone of vibrant red light erupted around me. In seconds, the magic from the Repository wasn’t there anymore. It couldn’t be seen, it didn’t exist.
Because it was now underneath me.
Something took over, but I didn’t even fight against it. I was a spectator in my own body. Down below my feet, I saw Argus Montgomery, and a raging hunger of vengeance made its way to my hands.
I wanted to tear him apart, to crush his bones into dust.
I waved my hand, and the rocks Argus Montgomery had used against Ominis rose from the floor. I didn’t just throw them; no. I launched them with the force of an explosion.
Argus shrieked, firing shields with his own wand, as the Keepers’ was nothing more than useless. Nothing could control this magic anymore.
I lifted him into the air, slamming him against the ceiling, the walls, the floor—over and over, until his wand was just a piece of wood in his hand; a hopeless reminder of what he did to me wrong.
And I stopped when he failed to stand up in his last attempt. He sat with his back against a rock, gasping for air. Trails of blood went all over him, drawing a soon-to-meet fate.
I slowly met the floor again. I walked in front of him, giving him enough time to do or say something. To let him defy me again, if he dared to. But all he did was hold my gaze.
A final strike, and he would be sent to the abyss where he and his ignorant purpose belonged. One movement and everything could end here.
But just before I did it, in the right corner of my red-blinded eye, I saw him. His body was just as I last left it. His face aimed in my direction, and even with the eyelids closed, I still felt him.
All that time spent in the Undercroft, all the vulnerable talks, the promises that lingered beyond us—he’d pick up the pieces with me. But with Mayla, not this uncontrollable force disguised by her.
I was supposed to overcome it from the start. The feelings that were mine to accept were supposed to be the ones that fought it. And for the first time since I entered this hellhole today, I realised I was turning into the villain Argus Montgomery wanted me to be, and someone unrecognisable in Ominis’s heart.
I had not only accepted the magic, but I also let it invade me. A tidal wave of lives I hadn't lived, and sorrows I hadn't earned, twitched in my mind. I closed my eyes, only to lose myself in a sea made of threads of pain: a jagged hollow grief; a treason; a heartbreak; despair. All from different eyes and hearts.
But I no longer wanted them.
I dived deeper, escaping from them. So deep that my lungs begged for air. And then I met my own shadows: I felt my abandonment, my jealousy, my anger, my loneliness, at every stage of my life.
I saw Ominis, the man I mourned for years in secret, the sting of his absence. But I also felt the love shared, the laughs, the hugs, and I saw his sightless eyes.
This was me acknowledging my emotions, my own darkness. The sea that the Repository made began to dry out, leaving its misery away from me.
Finally, I was in control, even if only temporarily.
When I opened my eyes, I hadn’t moved. My hand was still in a fist, and Argus Montgomery narrowed his eyes at me as I lifted it. And all the chaos of rocks, dust and trembling stopped.
Argus Montgomery smiled when I lowered my hand, giving in.
“Even with all that power, love has made you weak!”
He laughed, venomously. And for most, as I wanted to yell something, I didn’t. I didn’t strike him; instead, I reached out, my fingers glowing, and pressed my palm firmly against his chest, right by his heart. I closed my eyes, entering the void I knew too well, and that was where I found his flame.
I took it in my hand, ironically cold to the touch. Without thinking too much, I blew it out. The spark of his wizardry snapped and vanished, leaving nothing but a vast, silent emptiness.
I came back to the physical world. Argus Montgomery had his eyes wide open. Speechless, he touched where my palm was moments ago.
“You’re wrong,” I heard my voice echo in the vault. “If anything, love has made me stronger.”
“What have you done to me?” He gasped.
Argus collapsed. He looked at his hands, then at his wand, and a hollow, pathetic sob broke from his throat.
“Death is too merciful,” I told him, quoting what he told me earlier today. “You have used your gift wrongly, and you will no longer misuse it. Now, you’ll live the rest of your days away from it. You’ll live and die a muggle.”
I took both his wand and mine and walked away, ignoring his animal-like sobs. The Keepers’ was a piece of wood not worth carrying anymore. When I was finally beside Ominis, I touched his face and hugged him. I wanted to tell him how thankful I was, so I whispered in his ear, hoping he would listen.
“I love you. Please, come back to me.”
His pulse was slow, and as expected, he said nothing.
I carried him, even with all this borrowed strength, he was still big in my tiny arms. I took his wand, placed it in his coat and apparated all of us out of the vault.
The magic was still moving inside me, wanting to be used. We were back in the grounds, and I looked at the crumbled castle I had tried so hard to protect.
One last thing.
I laid Ominis beside me, carefully. And I couldn’t care how Argus Montgomery was doing, as all he could do was watch.
I threw my arms wide, bringing up in my mind the picture of the Hogwarts I knew. I watched as the stones flew back into place, as the shattered glass reassembled itself, as the towers stood tall once more. I was a reconstruction that only the Ancient Magic could achieve. I rose, circling the castle so I won’t miss any spot. In the distance, I saw the crowd of students and professors outside of Hogsmeade.
I knew they were looking, so I rushed to Ominis and made us appear right in their eyes. I knew it could be risky for him, but there was nothing else I could do.
Once we found ourselves there, Matilda and Aesop stood there, wands out, ready to defend the people behind them, until they saw me.
“Mayla,” Matilda gasped, surprised, and Sharp took a step closer to me.
“The trembling stopped,” he said.
I nodded, finding it hard to say a word. I held back the tears.
“Ominis, please-”
They looked at me, confused, until I stepped aside. Their looks changed from awe to sadness. I felt it too; it must’ve been hard for them to see the boy they witnessed grow up be as lifeless as he was.
Professor Ronen and Garreth hurried to his side, taking action immediately. But Sharp couldn’t keep his eyes off me, and I wondered if he was scared of me.
“Mayla,” Matilda called me again, touching my shoulder motherly. “Your eyes are red- did you-”
She couldn’t even finish her sentence.
My lip trembled, and I bit it to hold any weeping sound.
“He’s still alive. Save him,” was all I could say.
The pain inside me became more unbearable with time. I was feeling a new grief, and I feared it could feed this magic inside. I knew this was a burden of mine, especially because I saw how they carried him away from me, and all I wanted to do was scream his name.
My Ominis.
If any strong emotion would have this effect on me, I knew it’d become harder to fight.
My ribs ached, as if the magic was ripping its way out of me, and I couldn’t bring myself to see anymore. I looked away.
My gaze met with Minister Spavin’s as he looked speechless at me, and then at Mister Montgomery, who crawled helplessly on the ground.
I had dropped him without any care, and he made his own way here. I walked to meet the Minister, and my arms trembled as I felt the fury inside me again.
He avoided my sight for a moment.
“I’d rather lose anything, but I won’t lose this place,” I told him, pointing at the castle behind me. Then, I took Argus Montgomery’s wand and handed it to him. “Do as you please with this. It has no more use to its owner.”
He whispered something I couldn’t hear as I walked away. I turned to face my professors again, my colleagues, the students who could not take their gaze from me.
I nodded once and left.
I flew across the Highlands, and I didn’t stop until I reached the highest, loneliest peak, miles away from any living soul. Until the castle was a distant silhouette against the moon.
The pressure on my chest was unbearable as my heart stuttered, and my lungs fought for air. The corrupted Ancient Magic was fighting to stay, to root itself in my heart, to take its new home.
“Leave!” I shouted to the stars above.
My skin burned again, like it was being ripped off my body. I reached to my chest, past the ribs, and grabbed the core of that scarlet heat. My eyes blurred as the tears fell unstoppably.
My feet left the ground, involuntarily. And with a scream that tore through the silence of the night, I pulled.
The stars above were no longer white; all I could see was a red cloud expanding with the force of a supernova.
All the pain, the sorrow, the thousands of lives that carried the magic, screamed into the night, with a shockwave that could’ve taken miles to disappear.
But it did. Or I hoped it did.
As the last thing I saw was the lights of the castle afar, before my weak body hit the ground below.