π±πππππ’ππ
The war was over.
Odelia had won the second war against the Dark Lord - as well as the first one - Lord Voldemort - or to be precise about it, Tom Marvolo Riddle. But why did she feel so empty? Odelia looked at her hand smeared with blood, her face was filthy beyond belief. She stood stiffly while people bombarded her with hugs and screams of victory but she didn't hear anything, she was stuck in her own world.
She had won, so why didn't she feel anything?
Soon night rose, while Odelia stood at the same spot she had won the battle - πππ πππππ ππππππ - her feet was planted firmly on the ground. She should have felt something...right?
She gritted her teeth as she forced herself to move. Where? She didn't know. Perhaps the Quidditch pitch? The Astronomy tower? Gryffindor Tower? Or somewhere else...
She blinked, her head tilted to the side in confusion as she found herself in front of the stone gargoyle which used to guard the Headmaster's office.
Odelia opened her mouth but no words came out. As she cleared her throat, the gargoyle looked at her and with a groan of discomfort, moved out of the way.
Her feet moved upwards the spiral staircase, nimbly jumping over the rubble that crumbled under her feet. Her eyes were fixed upstairs. Her body moved on its own accord. She had no control over it. But somehow, deep in her mind, she knew what she wanted.
The door creeked open as Odelia stepped in. Rubble and pieces of wood was broken everywhere. Somehow, miraculously, the portraits of the past Headmasters and Headmistress survived - preservation charms, her inquisitive mind provided. Probably runes too, were cast upon the portraits before they were put up, surely if they wanted them to last.
"Ah. My dear girl"
Odelia spun around to find a portrait of her former Headmaster. Odelia felt anger at him. All the times she did what he asked without question and it turns out, he was raising her like a pig to slaughter!
"Professor Dumbledore." she greeted. "Now, I am sure you have some questions, my girl." Dumbledore smiled at her with a twinkle in his blue eyes. Never in Odelia's life did she want to ruin a piece of art so much. The man she considered her grandfather figure had played her like a chess piece.
"Yes, I do." Odelia stated. "I want to ask you about the Elder Wand."
"Ah.. The wand. Of cource my dear girl. But some things are simply meant to never be discussed." he said with a sigh. "Something like that, is an abomination of magic. Something never to be shared with the world."
"But why do you have it then?" Odelia butted in, a frown on her face "You used it. And I'm willing to bet my Firebolt that you won it from your duel with Grindelwald." Dumbledore looked aghast, a frown in his face now. "My gi-" he attempted to interrupt. "You used it and won duels but yet you didn't use it against Voldemort. Something like that could have changed the whole game!
"If you had just fought him at the beginning of the war, none of this could have happened! An unbeatable wand against a boy, especially with your powers. What chance would he have? None of these lives would have been lost." Odelia raved on, anger taking on every fiber of her being.
"Now my dear girl, if I stopped it then exactly as you said, none of this would have happened. Every cource of action I took was to protect our world -" Dumbledore interrupted.
"But at what cost?" Odelia finished. "I'm throwing away the wand. Somewhere where no one will find it."
"My dear girl, now I must protest" Dumbledore rasped, his eyes narrowed. But Odelia had already turned on her heel, her long red and black hair swishing behind her as she opened the door. She turned around, shooting a scatching look at Dumbledore before she slipped out, the door slamming behind her.
Dumbledore gritted his teeth as his hands clenched and unclenched. It wasn't supposed to go this way! She was supposed to be soft and malleable to his desires and wishes, obeying him like a dog. Just like everyone around her, so why didn't she. Perhaps he'd been too soft on her.
Either way, be was sure he would make waves in the Wizarding World, his own fame would be outshone by the glory of the Girl Who Lived. No, that wouldn't happen. Not now not ever. He walked out of his portrait, intent on telling his spies to have their way with her, quick before she came to more realisations.
A small part of his mind nagged at him, this wouldn't be the end he saw of him. She was like an insisting pest, an anoying fly that kept on coming back. He shoved it away. This would be the last he would see of her. If she wouldn't be his toy, allowing him to command her every will, she wouldn't live. She knew too much of his secrets. She knew about Grindelwald. What else did she know? And ask them to save the Elder Wand too. Such a powerful wand shouldn't be spending its days forgotten.
Odelia frowned looking all over for her friends. She intended to tell them about her decision about the wand. She sighed, after a near hour of searching, she was getting tired. Perhaps she would look for them later?
She put a hand on her mouth as she yawned. Definitely. After all she'd been through, she should be allowed to be a little selfish, she decided, changing track to the Gryffindor Tower, that somehow, miraculously remained unscathed save a few scorch marks and rubble.
Odelia frowned as she laid on her bed, an arm on her face over her eyes. She wanted to talk asleep but her stupid body wouldn't comply!
Stupid body, she grumbled to herself as she rolled out of bed, intent on going up to the Astronomy Tower and looking at them. Nothing comforted her more than the stars that her godfather taught her about.
She absently vanished the rubble with a wave of her fixed wand. She had fixed it before laying on her bed, trying to will her exhausted body to sleep. But she hadn't left the Elder Wand, her hand crept to the moleskin pouch that hung around her hip. She had lengthened the strap, hanging it around her body like a bag.
She laid on the floor as she exhaled before she opened her eyes, exposing them to the dark, starry skies above her. She smiled as she lifted her hand, pointing at stars as she started to recite the names engraved into her memory.
"Sirius. Regulus. Orion. Cassiopa. Androm-" so on and on she went, repeating the cycle when she ran out of stars to recite.
Eventually, she fell asleep, her hand thudding onto her chest as she slept with, a first time in awhile, soft, gentle smile on her face. Her black and red locks spread on the ground like a halo, some of her long hair falling on her snowy face. Long eyelashes fluttered on her face, her eyelids hiding brilliant eyes that shone between hazel and emerald. It was at that moment, right there and then, that she truly looked like an angel in a human's body
Odelia blinked, groaning at the blaring light that shine directly into her eyes. A huff left her lips as she sat up. Rubbing her eyes as she absently moved the the Quidditch Pitch, intent on getting a nice shower.
An hour or so later, Odelia walked out of the bathroom, her wand in the moleskin pouch as she walked to the Grand Hall. She had planned on getting breakfast before searching for her friends. Plus, knowing Ron's behaviour to food, it was probably a safe bet that at least Ron was there.
A reliefed sigh made it through her lips as she smiled at Ron and Hermione.
"There you are!" Hermione said.
"Yeah, we were looking all over for you mate!" Ron grinned.
"Ehh? Really? Sorry. I was up at the Astronomy Tower." Odelia grinned before it slipped off her face.
"I have something to talk about with you guys." Odelia said. "It's about Dumbledore."
"Headmaster Dumbledore, Odelia." Hermione chasited with a frown.
"Anyways. I had a thought. If Dumbledore had the Elder Wand, why didn't he-" the trio walked off, heading outside.
"It is powerful, Odelia. I think you should keep it." Ron said.
"It is! You could put it up at the Ministry!" Hermione added, her eyes bright.
"No! You're not getting the point." Odelia ground out. "As long as this is here, the cycle will repeat. And I have no intention of letting the bloody journey of the Elder Wand repeat." her hands reached to her hip, opening the moleskin pouch and withdrawing the Elder Wand.
"What do you mean? Something like that can save you? Can't it?"Ron bit out, his eyes narrowed at Odelia.
"Even if it does, it'll only lead back down to its path of destruction. It won't protect you, don't you get it? Something like this should never exist." Odelia said, gripping at the ends of the wand with her hands as Ron and Hermione looked on in shock and dread.
" Wait! Think abo-"Hermione shrieked. But Odelia had already snapped it. She threw it off the bridge.
"What have you done!" Ron roared, his face red with anger.
"No!" Hermione gasped, peering at the end of the bottom of the bridge with horror.
"You guys are getting obsessed over it. It isn't healthy. Even if you have it, it wouldn't sell anyways. Who would believe you have the actual Elder Wand." Odelia frowned.
Ron seized her by the throat, glaring angrily as she gasped in shock, hands going up to pry at the hand chocking her.
"You don't get it, πΆπ ππππ." Ron spat out her name like it was curse.
"For some of us, people not like you, it is worth everything to get our hands on it." Hermione hissed.
Odelia wheezed, her hands desperately trying to remove Ron's hands on her neck.
"We're sick of being your little henchmen. Obeying your very whims like a slave!" Ron yelled.
"Not... slaves." Odelia chocked out. "Never.."
"I think its time for her to get a taste of her own medicine, Ron" Hermione said, sharing a vicious grin with Ron. The male hoisted her over the ledge of the bridge before dropping her.
Odelia felt nothing but shock and horror at the betrayal of her friends. Cold morning wind whipped her face numb as she fell down.
Suddenly the illustration of her parents appeared. Ghostly light illuminated the dark fall underneath, seemingly never-ending. The ghosts of her godparents appeared too, Sirius and Remus.
"You've done so well, my precious." Lily whispered, cupping her face with her hands.
"You'll be happy soon. Just follow the voice." James added.
"Be happy, Estie. And never forget who you are." Remus said with a smile, using the fond nickname that he usually used to address goddaughter.
"We will always love you, star. No matter what you do or what happens." Sirius added.
With the words echoing in Odelia's head, her eyes closed, finding comfort in the fact that the people she admired and loved did love her back. Her body hit the floor of the canyon with a thump as she laid there, a smile on her face.