Juni woke up slowly, protesting softly at the coldness as well as the the dull aching in her stomach. She could practically feel her stomach turning over on itself, trying to digest something that wasn't there. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she realized just how heavy her arms felt. How weary she was. It would've been so easy to curl back up under the covers and--

Then it hit her.

She wasn't in her bed, she wasn't in her dorm.

Juni lept to her feet, stumbling and balancing with the help of the cold, black wall. Her head spun. The back of her legs were damp, from whatever was on the reflective floor. She didn't want to find out.[1] A few of her fellow students were stirring, none of whom were in her year. She searched her pockets-- her wand was missing. She bit her bottom lip as if it would keep the boiling panic within her at bay.

The last thing she could remember was getting a free sample from Honeydukes, and then everything was black. Cold.

How many others had been taken? Were they the only ones, or were they the only survivors?

"Get up, get up,get up! " Juni commanded shrilly, "We need to get out."

1.	Blood. Your character can realize what it is!

Zia woke to the sound of a familiar voice. There was something different about it, though, something distinct. It was dark, wherever she was, she couldn’t tell if she had opened her eyes yet. Panic hit the back of her throat. Suddenly things became a little more visible, but absolutely no clearer. She had never been in this place. She had no idea where she was.

She sat up fast and racked her brain for any possible explanation. The last thing she remembered… couldn’t possibly have left her in a place like this.

We need to get out!

The voice again. This time she recognized it, her wits more about her. “Juni!” she called out. Zia blinked a few more times, forcing herself to come to life. Her head was pounding, and her brain wasn’t letting her register her surroundings yet.

She made herself stand up, even though she felt like stone. Whirling around she found the curly-headed girl she was looking for, and all the effort that Zia’s mind had been making to protect her from the scenery disappeared as she realized her friend was covered in blood. She grew afraid to look anywhere else. “Juni…” she whipsered skeptically as her hands flew to cover her mouth, tears springing to her eyes.

It had seemed like mere moments ago Indica had been standing in Hogsmeade ogling a pretty girl peddling sweets.  Then, she was zoomed back into consciousness, aching everywhere… her head pounding.  There was something wet on her cheek.  She registered that first… and then the sound. 

Oh the sound of screaming – it made her stomach lurch.  Indi groaned loudly and weakly pushed her palm against the ground – it slipped out from under her in the warm slick and Indi grunted.  “What the bloody…” she muttered under her breath and tried to take a deep breath – metallic prickles in her nose. 

Her eyes flew open and she scrambled, trying to get up all the way.  She knew this smell.  It made her stomach roll instantly.  She was a vegetarian for a reason.  Oh Merlin. 

Looking up and around, she finally realized she wasn’t alone and clutched the front of her drenched shirt.   What was going on?  Where were they?  Why were they even there?  She wasn’t one to panic, usually, but there were definitely people who weren’t moving… and the blood had to come from somewhere. 

Stripped bare and ends jagged, they catch on his shirt, his pants, cut his arms and feet. He runs and runs and runs but the path ahead looks the same; above, the moon never moves. Every branch and shadow is something watching, waiting.

The wind howls like it’s in agony.

He runs. From the bowels of the woods a scream goes up, sends a flock of crows up in the air. Looking is a mistake; he trips, he plummets–


–and wakes.


Without opening his eyes, Micah tried to reach out and shut off his alarm. And then opened his eyes wide in alarm, when his hand hit not plastic, but something—cold, wet, drenching his hand–

Making it even more wet than it was already.  What–?

And then it hit him.

Micah scrambled into a sitting position, scurrying back until he hit a wall. His new surroundings were a far cry from the festive cheer of Hogsmeade, and coupled with the copious amounts of blood – blood! – they had his chest constricting, his ashen face paling even further. What was going on? He remembered being with Ji-Hyun, trailing behind the others as they waited for Theo and Alex to show–

His breath caught. Where was Ji-Hyun?

The skin on his face rippled ever so slightly.

No. He—not now, not here, where other people could see—where other people were panicking, because he wasn’t the only one. He wasn’t the only one. Bracing against the wall, Micah pushed himself up on shaky legs, eyes darting around the corridor. The curse helped a little when he couldn’t see, but it was no night vision, and with the way it worked – his proximity to girls, their states of panic and fear so similar to his own – it was like trying to find a drop of water in an ocean.

He could still hear them, though, Juni, Zia—Indi–

And in the small pocket of silence farthest away from them, Ji-Hyun.

Heavy splashes marked his path. Beside her, he dropped heavily to his knees. “Ji-Hyun?” He touched her face lightly, uncertain, afraid. His hand shook as badly as his voice. Was she even breathing?

She was.


     “M… icah?”


Confusion. And then—more confusion, as he tried to explain that this wasn’t a dream. Of course it was a dream. Why else would they be covered in blood?

He swallowed. Because we are, he said, voice cracking at the end.

“We’re covered in blood?” Ji-Hyun asked, uncomprehending as she stared at Micah and realised that it wasn’t just her hands which were warm and wet and covered in blood, she was covered in blood, and before she could bite it down she made a noise of terrified horror, her hands snatched up to her chest where she could see the red liquid, which was in her hair and on her clothes and her skin -

She sat up, slowly, eyes travelling from Micah’s face to see that there were other people here with them, other students in the room, and then down to see that the floor was reflective, because all of it was covered in blood.

“Micah,” she said, reaching out to grab hold of him, to reassure herself that Micah was real even if that meant that all of this was real, “where are we?” she let go again, her hands checking her pockets, finding her wand and pulling it out with a sense of relief.
Her hand was shaking too much for her wand to be any use, and she lifted her other hand to steady it, taking a slow breath before she incanted, “lumos!”

The light radiating from her wand tip was enough that she could see Micah clearly, could tell who was with them – Indi and Zia and Juni – and see how pale Micah was, how stretched thin. It made the blood more obvious, red and shining, except where there was another shape, one which wasn’t moving. They were probably just unconscious. Ji-Hyun hoped they were just unconscious, because if they weren’t, that would mean that they were - the light dimmed slightly, flickering before Ji-Hyun’s eyes as shadows lengthened, dimmed, and finally disappeared.

Her breathing quickened. She should be able to do better than that, and she repeated the spell. The light didn’t last, dying as quickly as its predecessor, but it remained for long enough that she had seen something else: “there aren’t any doors.”

Juni's brow wrinkled in confusion at Zia's reaction, and then took in the other girl's appearance.

Blood. Zia was covered in blood. And so was she. Her stomach lurched, and for a moment she felt dizzy-- grabbing Zia's arm for balance. Her mind began to register exactly what was happening.

They had to get out of here. Immediately.

Around her, others--except for one-- had woken up. And like her, they were realized exactly how horrific this situation was. Juni searched again for her wand-- eyes scanning the wet ground and-- there it was. It must have fallen out of her pocket at some point during... Whatever the hell this was. Hands shaking, Juni knelt down to pick it up, wiping the blood off on her shirt. Ji-Hyun had enough energy to illuminate the room.

Ji-Hyun was right: There were no doors.

They were in a cell.

Warily, Juni made her way to the figure, slumped against the wall, head lolling down on her chest. A fellow fifth year. A Hufflepuff named Siana. Juni had never been friends with her, but they'd been friendly enough. Acquaintances.

"Siana?" She asked, shaking the girl's shoulder. No response. Her skin was cool to the touch, pallid.

When she realized that Siana was not breathing, Juni wanted to scream. She sharply turned away from the body and faced her surviving peers. "We need to get out. Now![/b]!" Her voice was shrill, urgent. "We'll-- we'll break down the walls, blow this place up, SOMETHING!" Juni waved her wand frantically in the direction of Siana, "She--she's not breathing." Juni choked, stamping her feet as if it would help her contain the numbness within her that collided harshly with her frantic, burning desire to get the fuck out of here.

This couldn’t be happening.

It was all too horrific; it felt like a raw nightmare. Except, this was real, and people were hurt, hurt badly, and there was blood everywhere. Everywhere. They were covered in it. Juni poked at another student, one Zia vaguely recognized… it didn’t take long for Juni to figure out that the girl was…

Zia couldn’t even think the word. Panic started rising up inside her, rising as naturally as heat. “We have to get out. Now! -- Zia knew she was right, but something pulled at her heartstrings. “We can’t just leave them…” The metallic smell of blood overwhelmed her. Fear told her to listen to Juni. Don’t think. Just do.

They had to get out and Zia instinctively reached for her wand, which was not there. Considering the situation, it was likely that none of them had wands. It couldn’t be that easy. Questions of how they had ended up here started to gnaw at the back of her mind. Who had left these people here -- these students, teenagers, children -- and who was going to rescue them? More than ever she wished Ronaldo was here.

“Merda!*” Zia swore. The searing panic inside her seeped out in the form of hot tears that ran a path through the blood on her face. She looked toward the others that were awake, of which there were only a few. She hoped for a solution but her big eyes exposed her doubt. She began to wonder if they would die in here too.

Thinking of her family, and how broken they were right now. Sliced in half they’d been at the loss of Ronaldo, one of the many siblings in the middle of the Pisellis. Losing her too, that would be too much. Zia couldn’t let her family end up that way… she had to get out of here, if for anyone, for them.

“Does anyone have their wand?” Zia asked. It was unlikely, but not impossible. She scanned the rest of the room, searching the other bodies - other students... Don’t think, just do.




[*Merda = shit in Italian]

Indi didn’t know what was going on.  Her eyes had started to adjust to the dark, but Ji-Hyun had used lumos and it blinded Indi for a second.  She winced and raised her arms to cover her eyes, feeling a sharp, stabbing pain in her head.  Ugh.  Photosensitivity.  Groaning, she felt her stomach turn and she would have really killed for a light at the moment.

It always settled her stomach.

Unfortunately, she doubted there’d be anything in here to help.  Lowering her hands, sufficiently sure she’d be able to tolerate the glow of the tip of a wand.  Indi slowly opened her eyes and groaned, finally focusing enough to realize that there was something extra wrong. 

Siana.

Indi’s hands flew around her and wrapped around a wand – she lifted it in front of her eyes and felt an instant wave of relief: it was her wand.  “I – I got it!” Indi finally croaked out as she used her non-wand hand to push up off the slick floor.  When she finally stood, despite her knees shaking, she took a couple of steps to turn around, eyeing the walls with trepidation. 

Who knew what was behind the walls?  They’d probably be easier than the bars… bigger target… oh bugger, she’d wished she’d stay in wand magic classes longer… or paid more attention. 

“Um… um… I need a spell!”[/i] she finally settled on a wall, pretty much only due to the fact that her head started spinning and she couldn’t take another step without tipping.  With her free hand, she dismissed the people by the wall, “move, move,” she added before someone[1] managed to give her a blasting charm and she nodded just a little too fast – spinning again.

She raised her free hand to her temple and steadied herself, wetting her lips – there was a cut there, she realized as she felt it under her tongue and it stung simultaneously.  Cursing under her breath, Indi tried to steady her hand.  She was shaking all over and her breath was sort of hitched.  But, she managed to stutter out, “Confringo.” 

Her wand apparently knew the intention, however, and a small blast shot forth from the tip of her wand toward the wall.  She'd never been so good at offensive magic, it wasn't her personality, but maybe it'd be big enough.. hopefully.  "You have to help," Indi informed anyone in the cell - they wouldn't get out fi they didn't. 

1.	feel free to assume this is your character!

After the initial panic, it seemed that they had all reached a stoney  part of themselves that was determined to--no matter what-- get the fuck out of here.  Everybody found their wands. Indi's failed incantation had not dampened spirits, but hardened resolve. By working together and focusing on the charm, they succeeded. A bit too well. The entire wall had practically fallen apart, though the magically reinforced load-bearing beams stayed. They realized, a bit too late-- that a trick of the light had hidden an actual door.

Coughing and covering her mouth to protect herself from the dust, Juni pocketed Siana's wand. While she wished that she could have taken Siana with her, she knew that carrying a corpse around would hinder their escape if they had to fight. At least the wand would be evidence that Siana had been there. Juni rummaged through her pockets, and pulled out a photo at--what seemed to be-- some sort of family get-together. More evidence.

 Whoever had abducted them was either:

1. Stupid.

2. Intended to leave the wands there, and wanted them to escape in some sort of horrible labyrinth.

They were as ready as they would ever be. So they walked through the debris and moved as swiftly as they could down the poorly- lit corridor. They climbed up stairs, turning down random hallways when given the option. There were too many choices, and their gut instincts told them that there wasn't enough time to hesitate.

.... Then they reached a dead end. If Confringo worked once, it would work again.

Out of breath and feeling weak, Juni was glad that somebody else[1] did the honors.

---

After blowing up this wall, it will lead to Level 2-- the Auror offices. This thread will continue in Solomon Carstair's office while he's having tea. Aurors are enjoying their dinner. I'll post the thread after class today.

1.

Anybody!

It was like a bomb had set off; with Juni’s realization, a fresh wave of panic rolled in, one they desperately tried to suppress. Dead. The word hung in the air, unspoken, silent yet awful. Micah stared at the body (corpse, his brain supplied in horrified tones), unable to look away; the very truth of it seemed to leak from Siana’s pores. Dead. Dead.

Dead.

Despite the close proximity, Zia’s swear sounded far away. Everything, actually, seemed to be getting farther and farther away. Including his ability to breathe. Dead. He was only vaguely aware of someone shaking him–


     “Move, move!”


Micah snapped out of it. Blinking rapidly, he shook his head, and clumsily scuttled to the side—farther, even, once Indi’s and Juni’s intentions became clear. Climbing to his feet, he drew Ji-Hyun up with him, and watched with wide eyes as the girls tried to blast the wall. The Gryffindor’s failure didn’t even have time to set in before they all pitched in, buoyed by desperate, frantic hope.


     BOOM!


Amidst the smoke, Micah drew his collar up to his face, coughing hard as he waved away smoke. One of those who had been closest to the wall, he was out of the cell first, straightening in the hall with newfound relief. He turned back, just in time to watch Juni pocket something creased and glossy. A photo? With the smoke still clearing, he couldn’t see.

Before a question could so much as form, though, they were all out, spilling into the hall, and then another hall, turning corners with Juni leading the way. But there were so many, and what little hope had begun to form, started to die, too.

Then—a dead end. Without thinking, Micah made his way to the front and, with every ounce of fear and desperation he could muster, pointed, “Confringo!”