Chapter Four
The first thing Aspen registered was the screech that pierced the sky, almost rattling her brains and bones alike. She could feel the ache beginning to set in her teeth from how close and strong it was before she could hear the sound of wood snapping swiftly from a brute force.
The second thing Aspen registered was the cold wind swirling around them, threatening the passengers of the carriage to be swept from their seats from being up several thousand feet in the air, flying over who knows where above the clouds. Her curls whipped around, making clear vision a near impossible feat as she felt her cheeks begin to almost sting from strands of her baby hair striking them. She felt like she was in a waking nightmare as she watched what once was the other half of one whole carriage get ripped away in a startled breath.
The fifteen-year-old felt frozen in fear as she witnessed George Osric, the man whom her mentor and herself were just chatting with peacefully, get taken away in the massive maw of the dragon that flew violently and aggressively behind them. Aspen could barely hear the screams of the man just under the deafening roar of the beast they were now facing before watching the jagged teeth snap shut.
In the fear of it all, she could barely register the gasp her own chest let out, unable to process the fact she had just watched a man die in front of her in a way she didn’t realize was possible till just a few weeks ago.
An arm eventually helped hold her down to her seat as she turned around with eyes shut in fear, missing the thestrals she would have watched appear, as she felt her hand get cut with broken glass from the side window as she tried to hold on for dear life.
Faintly, they could hear their driver tell whatever was flying the carriage to move faster before the world tilted on its axis and her stomach was in her throat as Fig yelled at all of them to jump as the dragon blew a torrent of fire towards them.
The wind overtook her hearing, sharp, as the duo was now free falling trying to survive. Fig watches the goblin silver container that was falling just below them fall faster and further out of reach. He felt his resolve harden. The old Gryffindor knew he had to get that container and key back. For if not, all of his beloved Mirim's hard work till her untimely death would be for naught.
Aspen on the other hand felt a deep-rooted chill run up her spine and something instinctual told her it wasn’t the biting cold of the air. Leveling herself out to stop herself from rotating, she managed a glance behind her and could see the dragon now diving down after them with its unruly maw beginning to open up to strike once more.
A startled and worried yell escaped from her as she whipped her head back around and looked at her mentor. “FIG!!” she screamed, terror gripping her by the heart before feeling her hand get grabbed firmly by the man as he told her to hold on. Tightening her grip, the fear of getting separated somehow overwhelming, she shut her eyes as she could hear her mentor yell out for the key that was now shot out of its case.
“ACCIO!”
The minute she felt Fig grab the key his late wife hid, Aspen felt almost a hook-like sensation tug at her stomach, close to her navel. It tugged harshly as she felt herself get yanked back and land a few good feet above ground. The young witch landed harshly on her side, a good feet away from Fig, a sharp sensation running up her leg.
Groaning, Aspen laid there on the dirt floor, clutching her stomach, dizzy, and could feel the need to chuck up her entire breakfast if she were to even attempt to stand up.
“Aspen dear, are you alright? Are you injured anywhere?” Fig called out worried. The older man had landed on his feet, albeit a bit disoriented and with a heavier landing than usual. But then again, he wasn’t expecting the key his late wife left behind to be a Portkey that transported them to only Merlin knows where.
His mind was racing a million miles a minute as he was trying to figure out what in the world just happened. The professor’s mind was almost on overload before he was brought back into focus as he could hear the pained groans of his young charge. Whipping around, his blue cloak fluttering behind him a bit dirty and tattered, found Aspen sprawled on her back curled up slightly.
As Fig rushed over digging about in his cloak for a few spare Wiggenweld potions to give to the young girl, noting her hand clutching her leg as her body tried to keep weight off of it.
“No – Er, well perhaps a bit. I just landed on my leg all wrong. What was that though? I thought I was about to become a dragon’s snack!” Aspen exclaimed as she opened her eyes, her breathing finally back in check and the nausea and dizziness fading away, leaving her with only the pain in her leg.
Gently, the older man grabbed her hands and helped her sit up before handing her the bright green potion. “Here dear, take this. It’s a Wiggenweld potion. That stuff’ll right you in a second. It's good for small injuries or for cleaning out wounds but it isn’t a save all catch. Enough about potions for now though. Fair warning though most healing potions of any caliber do taste unfathomably bad.”
With her face set in a slight grimace, Aspen popped the cork of the potion, swirling the bottle as she glanced warily at the man as he mentioned the bad taste before scrunching up her face. With one swig, she gulped down the potion and gagged a little at the bitter aftertaste.
“Ugh, that after taste is horrendous. You’d figure they’d figure out how to make potions taste better with all this magic.” Aspen grumbled before feeling a warm sensation travel down her chest spreading out her body before feeling a chill cover her injured leg. The sensation had left her feeling odd but once it was over, she gave a tentative push off the ground to try standing on both feet and found that any pain she had prior to the potion was gone and only left with a very faint sensation of being sore.
Stretching her legs, she took a look around the cave they found themselves in as she listened to Fig think out loud.
“Poor George – I can’t believe he’s…” Fig started off feeling morose for his friend. The two, while maybe not thick as thieves as he and his late wife were, were still great friends and had looked out for one another even after leaving Hogwarts.
Finding the whole ordeal infuriating, his feelings soon shifted from sorrowful to frustration and disbelief. “What the hell got into that damned thing?! Attacking a carriage mid-flight. A typical dragon would never –”
“Professor?” Aspens near quiet voice broke him from his rant as he started almost yelling due to the frustration of the entire morning and the absurdity of it all. With labored breathing, Fig forced himself and his hot-headed temper to calm down before focusing on his young charge. She stood there with a slightly tattered and dirty tan coat, her blue bow she had placed around her collar slightly askew and loosened. Her skirt splotchy with dirty and muddy from their landing and her once cleanly pressed white dress shirt now wrinkled.
“Apologies Aspen, I lost my temper there for a moment. It’s just… A lot has happened. For the both of us. I can’t imagine the fright you must have felt. So much for a peaceful morning into your first day.” Fig sighed before Aspen spoke up as she looked around them and towards the cave entrance where she can hear the wind howling a bit outside.
“Professor, where are we?”
“I’m – I’m not sure but what I am certain of is that the key you discovered inside that container was a Portkey.”
“What in the world is a Portkey?” Aspen asked the name foreign sounding and feeling on her tongue before repeating it to herself softly as Fig began his explanation of what it was.
“To put it simply, a Portkey is just another method of transportation. It's an item that's enchanted to bring whoever touches it to a specific place.”
Letting a small hum of acknowledgement be her response to his explanation, she hopped on her feet to get her leg back up to speed before turning back and gave a firm nod, determined to not let the day’s event get to her yet. Not till she was by herself.
“I’m feeling better now Professor. We may as well take a look around and figure out where we are? Unless you have another way of getting help or getting to the school?”
“I'm afraid we’re a bit too far and in an unknown spot to try to Apparate. If you’re sure, all I ask is that you stay near and vigilant. I know with what just happened you’re starting to get a sense of how things can and sometimes will go awry but I implore you to always remember that not every witch and wizard is good and that there are some pretty nasty spells and hexes. Some life changing.”
The warning imparted on her by Fig resonated with her and she just put on her brave face and nodded, determined to see this day through. Taking the borrowed wand out, she twirled it in her hand a few times to help shake the nerves out of her system before gripping it and holding it ready before nodding at her mentor. “Alright Professor, I’m ready.”
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Whizz
Crack
Whizz
Crack
Whizz
“Aspen your casting gets better the more you put practice into it but can we refrain from breaking every pot we see.” Fig asked without looking back as the two made their way around the island they found themselves on.
Aspen, caught mid-way through tossing yet another cast towards an unsuspecting pot, just grinned sheepishly.
Crack
“Ah, perhaps that would be wise…” Aspen said realizing she did destroy almost every pot they passed by due to frayed nerves. Deciding to tuck her loaned wand in the pocket of her tan coat in an attempt to stop casting at random, she followed Fig around the island they found themselves on.
Huffing and grunting, Aspen pulled herself up yet another ledge and took a deep breath before catching up to her mentor. “I think I need to start exercising more. I didn’t realize being a witch also required the need for better stamina as well.” lamented the young girl, not used to physical exertion the highlands require.
Fig merely chuckled and nodded his head as the two walked up to the broken bridge, calling out a warning to mind the wind before reaching where the path ends. Pulling his wand out, he quickly cast Repairo once more and the two crossed the now reformed bridge to discover the house of a seer who once lived there.
“Hmm, perhaps it would be wise if we split up and look for more clues as to why the Portkey sent us here. Be careful Aspen and call out should you find anything.”
“That I can do, Professor.” She affirmed before wandering around. She began looking in all corners of the ruins that were clearly once a home. Eventually, after looking at a statue of a man that looked like the one from the mural, her snooping led her outside and around on a rubble covered path. Enjoying the breeze of the sea, Aspen soon found herself at another one of those ice walls that she could begin to hear faint whispering from.
Elated at finding a clue, she yelled out before finally coming to a stop in front of the glass like wall only to note another room behind it. “What the –?”
Aspen began to reach out and felt the underlying buzz she didn’t even notice at first grow stronger under her skin, the glass like wall almost rippling from the movement before hearing Fig come up behind her.
“How odd. Why would someone have conjured another one of these walls here...?” Fig muttered in thought before Aspen spoke up with her two cents. “As well as to why there is a room on the other side.”
“A room? I don’t see a room?” Fig stated confused at her interjection. Glancing back at his charge, Fig was quick to figure that this must be another case of the young witch being able to access a level of magic most couldn’t. A sort of ancient magic lost to time that his late wife was studying.
“The strange glow is there again - like on the Portkey container…”
Feeling more resolve, he clasped a hand down on the younger’s shoulder as he encouraged her to do what she felt was correct seeing as how that’s how they were able to open the casing that held the Portkey.
Aspen stared at the wall in front of them wearily before letting out a deep exhale as she fully touched the wall which sent them to the next leg of their journey.