CHAPTER SIXTEEN: DETENTION

Dolores Umbridge crossed herself as she dropped the vile wand she was holding. She was sure whatever had powered it must be affiliated with Dust. She tried to avoid seeing and using them as much as she could, for she knew only victory would allow her to not be punished in the afterlife. The door creaked as a student entered. It was the new girl, Lizzie Brooks.

"I was told I had detention here..."

"Yes, sit down."

The whole thing went as usual, until she began to write. The page said the standard "I must not tell lies" The girl grimaced but took the pain without complaint. She'd heard about this before no doubt, and already knew what she was in for.

I must not tell lies

I must not tell lies

I must not tell lies

She wrote on and on at a steady pace, wincing in pain but never yielding. She knew not to show weakness in front of enemies. She was almost happy that she'd received a detention. It gave her time to observe things more closely.

Miss Umbridge watched her intently, waiting for her to show any sign of complaint, to slow slightly or to pause, but she didn't. Lyra stared back, inspecting the woman. She was one of the ugliest people Lyra had ever seen, with wide, watery eyes and a large, toad-like mouth.

At first it seemed there was nothing of importance in her office. It was adorned with doilies and gaudy pictures of kittens, tumbling about within the frames. But once she looked deeper she began to see the darkness behind the overuse of pastels.

There was an eerie coldness emanating throughout the room. Everything seemed to be incredibly sterile and lifeless. She kept writing

I must not tell lies

I must not tell lies

I must not tell lies

The woman also was the first wizard who kept as far away from her wand as possible. Whenever she glanced at it was with a sick look of contempt. There was something very suspicious about Miss Umbridge, and Lyra decided to use this detention to her advantage.

The frail, inhuman creature known as Lord Voldemort stared vacantly at the wall. People always assumed his thoughts only rested on what worlds to conquer and wizards to kill, but there was more than that. He could dream, and he could remember, and more importantly, he could regret.

What do you even want with this kingdom anyway? After you take over, then what? Spite your father? He died years ago. Avenge your mother? She was a squib and you know it. No, you'll just sit here day in and day out, doing exactly what you're doing now. You know it's not what you really want. Maybe it was a long time ago, but it's too late to stop now. Yield and the world will kill you...

But suppose you don't mind...

No one dared disturb his reveries. He was the Dark Lord, and he could violently turn on them at any second. No one knew about his life before. He made sure of that. But, despite being the embodiment of pure evil, there was one thing he regretted most, in the midst of it.

"Marisa..." he whispered to himself.

He'd tried to keep the memory of the last time he saw her face out of mind, but now it came forth with a vengeance.

I'd aimed the Cruciatus curse at the old man, I swear. I never meant it for her. She ran into the room to warn me... someone was coming. I hardly remember who the old man was, or whoever was coming for that matter, I only remember her face. Her fear. She writhed in pain, falling to the floor. Her face turned ashy white and her eyes wide. She made no sound, only twisted in agony on the floor. Then she slumped over, unconscious, shaking uncontrollably like a leaf from the shock. I couldn't believe what I had done. I ran to her and put my wand to her temple. I remember the spell; I'd invented it myself.

"Eran Recuerdus" I whispered.

She relaxed; going limp, and her face became peaceful again. I kissed her one last time and opened a window to another world, gently sliding her through. I remembered her face. Even then it was beautiful... so beautiful...

Every day he wondered what had become of Marisa Coulter. He still didn't know how much of her memory exactly he had erased. What had been left behind? He hoped she was happy, wherever she was...

"Pan! I'm positive she's a gobbler?"

"But what proof do you have?" he insisted.

"I just know! She's creepy!"

"I agree with you, but you can't just assume that!"

"If only we still had the alethiometer. Then we'd know for sure."

"Yeah, but we don't, so we're just going to have to figure this out on our own," said Pan.

"Hey, remember that bowl thingy in Dumbledore's office?"

"Yeah..."

"You reckon it could help us find out whether she's a gobbler or not?"

"I doubt it. It only takes you to other worlds..."

"But then we could get out of here. I need to see this thing!"

"Are you suggesting we sneak into Dumbledore's office?"

"What do you think?" she said sarcastically.

Pan sighed, "Or, you know, we could just ask him..."

"Oh you're no fun! Fred and George sneak around this school all the time. We could get in there right now if we wanted to."

Pan sighed, "I suppose we could. But then we'd get expelled. You're already on thin ice as it is."

"Hey, I bet Potter does it all the time. They're starting' to treat me like they treat him. I don't think they'll really mind."

"Depends on who catches you."

"Well I'm going anyway," she said, crossing her arms indignantly.

"I suppose you are..." Pan said, exasperated.

"That's the spirit! Now come on, let's go!"

They snuck through the secret passageway Fred had told them about and arrived before the stone gargoyle guarding Dumbledore's office.

"Cockroach clusters," she said, and the gargoyle obediently jumped to the side.

She was relieved to find the office empty. So she didn't have to make any excuses for being there. She walked up to the swirling basin.

"That don't look anything like the windows Will made."

"No, it doesn't. But don't let it fool you Lyra, it's the same thing."

"All right, I guess I'll take your word for it. So... do I just, hop in?"

"I don't know how people do it exactly, but I guess you sort of just lean in there and fall in. Like this."

Pan fell into the swirling mist and vanished. Lyra followed behind him.

She fell in just in time for Dumbledore to enter the office. He saw her just as she was about to vanish.

He sighed, "These Griffindore's, always up to something."

He thought he'd wait a few minutes before getting her out again. It was always interesting to see when they'd wind up. He knew there was something different about this so- called Brooks girl. She had potential he'd seen in very few wizards before her, and even fewer witches. And he had a feeling she would live up to that potential when it mattered most. Children like her almost always did.