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Chapter 19: Chemical

Caitlin POV:

I banged on the door, trying to get in, but to no avail. If what Will said was true, she had only seconds before they began to attack her.

"Step aside, sweetheart." Said James flirtatiously before ramming broom handle through the crack of the door. Only he could be snide at a time like this.

The doors creaked open as James and I worked together to pry them apart. Inside, we saw Madam Pomfrey backing up against the wall as a small, undead child advanced on her, teeth bared.

James froze, but this time I knew what I had to do. I grabbed the broom James had used and rammed the third year over the head with it.

It fell to the ground. Again and again I rammed it, attempting to squash its head, but the broom was too blunt. I spotted a small knife on the table next to one of the beds.

Picking it up in a rush, I jammed it into the Inferius' skull. It shuddered and did not move. Looking down at the corpse, I saw the face of a young boy, one that I had seen often in the common room. I did not know his name.

I began to cry. The monstrosity of what I had done hit me in one huge wave, crashing over me like a tsunami. Tears streamed down my face as James gripped me tight, trying to comfort me.

I registered Madam Pomfrey's face in the corner of the room, white as a sheet, shell-shocked.

"Caitlin!" Yelled Will as he barreled back into the room. "Did you get bit?"

"No." I replied sullenly, gesturing at the body. "I had to. I had to. You have to believe me. I had to."

"We know." Said James, gripping me tighter. "You did the right thing."

"What in the name of Merlin is going on here?" Said Professor McGonagall, striding into the room regally.

"I had to." I muttered continuously.

"Professor," said James, speaking up, "Madam Pomfrey can fill you in. Right now Caitlin needs rest, and something for shock."

I nodded, and so did Will.

"Very well, Ms. Turner, go to the Hos- well, I guess you are already here. Poppy, I will need to see you in my office immediately after you tend to her."

I climbed into a bed and waited for Pomfrey to give me a shock potion. I noticed that she wouldn't look me in the eye. When she was done, she left, leaving Will, James, and I, alone.

"Are you sure you're okay?" asked Will. He looked very mad, probably because Pomfrey hadn't listened to him.

"I'm fine."

"Alright, I'm going to go see if Ashley's okay. Then I'm going to go up to McGonagall and see what we're going to do about," he lowered his voice, "That one."

The other bitten student lay in the corner, asleep. She had only been bit on her ankle, and suffered nothing more than blood loss for now.

"I'll stay right here." Said James as Will left.

"I'm fine. You don't have to-"

"Yes, I do have to. Damn!" He actually looked angry now. "When will you start accepting the help others offer you? You need to learn to trust some people, you know?"

And he plopped himself down on a chair, still looking put out.

I was silent for a long time. Then, I said quietly, "We accept the love we think we deserve."

It was a quote I remembered from a Muggle book I had read when we lived in New York. It seemed so long ago.

We sat there in amiable silence for a while. James didn't seem so angry anymore. Then, when I was just about to say something, he leaned in and kissed me.

The kiss was soft, and though I don't like to admit it, it was nice. We broke apart after a few seconds.

"I'm sor-" He began, but then he noticed my necklace.

It had ditched its usual bright-red shade, and softened to a soft pink.

I didn't need to say anything. He just smiled.

/

Will POV:

I ran upstairs to the Gryffindor Common Room.

"Are you okay?" Yelled Al, Ashley, and Rose, at the same time, rushing up to me.

"I'm fine." I said grimly. "Caitlin-not so much."

"What happened?" They asked, almost yelling.

"She had to kill one of them. In the Hospital Wing. She's pretty shaken."

"Are they—dead?" asked Rose.

"Dead or dying." I said, still grim. "Speaking of which, I need to go see McGonagall about this. We don't have much time."

"Ok, but come back soon." Said Ashley.

"Yeah, sure." I was growing tired of people trying to protect me. Especially when it turned out that they were just being stupid. Like the whole Pomfrey thing. I mean, how was it possible that the most well trained nurse on the face of the planet didn't know about Inferi bites?

I reached the statue of the Griffin, and after saying the password, walked in.

"The Turner boy was right." Madam Pomfrey was saying. "I had no idea. They come back. It—jus terrible."

"Yeah," I added quite hopefully. "The Turner boy was right. Maybe next time we should take his advice."

"Stop it, Mr. Turner. It doesn't matter anymore." Said Professor McGonagall. Once McGonagall told you to do something, you did it, so I shut up.

"Now, I would like you to tell me what happened exactly that resulting in the death of a student!"

I went through the whole story, and finally came to the girl who had been bitten in the ankle.

"So she's gonna die any second, and we need to get down there and stop her from getting loose!"

"How long does it take?" asked Pomfrey.

"I don't know! I'm not the expert!"

"Yes, you are, Mr. Turner, and you better come to terms with that fast. Now lead the way to the Hospital Wing."

I gazed at McGonagall for a second, and then began to walk to the Hospital Wing.

/

Caitlin POV:

I was actually happy. For the first time in a long time. Some part of me felt guilty for not talking to Will, so he would understand, but another part just told me that I deserved this.

We were just talking, and laughing, but some part of it must have been obvious, because when Will walked in, he said,

"About damn time."

I looked towards the doorway to see him grinning at me. Was it that obvious?

He began to walk towards us, and that was when I saw the girl move. At once I knew that something was wrong.

Will hadn't noticed her. He continued to look at us. The girl was now standing. McGonagall and Pomfrey were still outside. The girl was right behind him now, reaching out, skin already coarse and grey…

I grabbed my wand and aimed right behind Will. For a second he looked confused, and then it dawned on him. He ducked, and I fired a curse right at the Inferius.

"REDUCTO!" The Inferius flew across the room and landed on the ground, still.

Pomfrey and McGonagall rushed in, covering their noses immediately at the smell. They quickly examined the girl.

McGonagall turned to me, an odd expression on my face. The necklace had switched from pink to green.

"Well, Ms. Turner, it would appear that we are once again in your debt. Please leave while we deal with this problem."

James, Will, and I left the Hospital Wing, hurrying back to the Common Room, wanting to get away from everything that had happened. Will shot me a knowing glance every now and then.

When we got to the portrait hole, all of us stopped. Then Will turned to me.

"Thanks for having my back out there." He said with a grin.

"Well, that's what I'm here for."

"Yeah, right. Well, go have fun guys."

We started to go through the portrait hole, when he said, "But not too much fun!"

I groaned as Will and James laughed.

This was going to be interesting.

Okay, so it's short, but a lot of things are happening. The ending should come around Chapter 25-30. That's as specific as I'll be, but I will say that I am planning the sequel. Sorry for the update time! Been really busy! Will try to write more. Please suggest things! Thanks! Review! Thanks!