Chapter Text
The sounds of students cheering on a Monday was never a good thing for Leif. It normally meant trouble. He and his fellow head student hurried to the courtyard where there was a crowd around the fountain. The two pushed their way to the front and Leif whipped out his wand. The source of the commotion was two students dueling. One shot off another spell that was deflected. Several students in the crowd jumped back to avoid it, but continued to chant and cheer the two on.
" Expelliarmus !" Their wands flew out of their hands and into the water. They turned and Leif shook his head in disappointment. Neither student was a surprise. "Really you two? Again?" He glared at the culprits, but both just looked bored. They eyed their wands, the crowd, anywhere really but the head boy and girl standing in front of them. Leif sighed. "Detention." Wren had the audacity to roll his eyes and Leif resisted the urge to smack the kid upside his head. Ashe just glared. "Also, 50 points from Gryffindor and Ravenclaw."
"You can't do that!" Wren finally looked at him. It was a common accusation from students. Leif raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, I can. I told you before if you didn't quit this behavior, there would be further consequences than detention. If I catch either of you at it again- with each other or with anybody else outside of the dueling club- I'll add 50 points to the deduction every time. Now pick up your wands and report to Filch for your punishments." The two fifth years stood still and Leif crossed his arms over his chest. He was sick and tired of dealing with their antics. Grumbling, they finally obeyed and he turned his attention to the crowd. "What are you all still here for? Scram." They disbursed and Leif heaved a deep sigh.
"She'll come around, I'm sure." Nora placed a hand on his arm and he shook his head.
"I hope this is just a phase." He watched the way his sister went.
"Have you tried talking to her?" He and Nora headed back inside to write their reports on the incident.
"Of course I have. She doesn't want to hear it from me, as either her older brother or as head boy. Even though I punish everyone equally, she still thinks I'm picking on her for not doing what I tell her to." Leif knew it wasn't likely to work. When has logic ever been effective on a teenager? But it didn't make the job any easier. No doubt sensing his sour mood, Nora switched topics.
"What about Helena? She started this year, right? Sorted into Hufflepuff." Leif nodded.
"She's doing well, I think. Spends a lot of time with her new friends so I haven't spoken to her much. I know Ashe has been trying to convince her to go rule breaking with her," he rolled his eyes at the memory, "but I haven't caught her out after hours yet. So either she hasn't done so or she's better at hiding than Ashe is." The report was a quick one and soon the two said their goodbyes and left in opposite directions for the start of class.
Leif knew better by now than to trust his sister to go to detention quietly. If she was ever caught, she'd simply do something later that was worse in a manner of protest. He never understood her thinking behind it all, but if three years of trying to teach her didn't make it any better then all he could do was punish her appropriately and hope she got the lesson elsewhere before she got in over her head. And that she wouldn't spread the sort of thinking to Helena.
Speaking of his youngest sister, that night the girl was at the bottom of Gryffindor tower staring up at the portrait that guarded the common room. Her stuffed teddy bear was squished to her side as she paced every so often. When she spotted him, she hurried over and Leif knelt down to accept her tackle hug. He stood and held her. "You know, you shouldn't be out of bed." Helena shrugged and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Yea, but I saw you and Ashe today in the courtyard. I knew she wouldn't be happy about it all so I came to see if she'd talk with me. But the lady in the painting said I wasn't allowed in. And that, even if I were, Ashe was gone already. With someone else too." Someone else? Leif raised his eyes to the Fat Lady.
"Can you tell me where my sister went, Ma'am?" The Fat Lady tapped her chin thoughtfully. “And who her companion was?”
"Let's see, I do believe she and Miss Lost were talking about taking a visit to the Forbidden Forest." Leif's eye twitched. Bellamy Lost was a thorn in his side. A fellow 7th year, she was one of the most annoying and insufferable people he'd ever known. And solely because he didn't like her, Ashe adored the older girl.
"Thank you for the information." He set Helena back down. "Head back to the Hufflepuff common room, alright? I'll let it slide just this once, but don't let me catch you out here again. Even if it's for Ashe. Let me handle her." Helena nodded and hurried away. Leif took out a piece of paper. After scribbling a quick note to Nora to tell her he'd be out of the castle for a while and to continue patrols as usual, he spelled it and sent it on its way before heading for the Forbidden Forest.
"Good luck, young man! That girl is a handful!"
"Tell me about it." Leif muttered under his breath as he waved behind him at the Fat Lady's words.
The girls weren't far in the forest by the time Leif caught up to them. He slowed his pace and listened as they talked about the day. Ashe was complaining that Leif never let up on her and he resisted the urge to butt in and inform her that it was because she never let up in her rule breaking. It was unfortunate that he was so frequently the nearest authority figure in the area, but that wasn't anybody's fault but hers. Bellamy wondered if he ever had fun, to which the younger girl said that they used to. It 'ended' when he became prefect. Now that caused him to snort. The two girls whipped around and both cast the stunning spell. With a sigh, Leif pulled out his own wand.
" Protego ." Their spells bounced off harmlessly against it. While normally he might acknowledge the swiftness in their response, now was not an appropriate time to do so. As soon as they saw who it was, Ashe let out a groan.
"Ugh. Can't you leave me alone for one night?"
"Can't you go a day without breaking a rule?" She stuck out her tongue. Such a child . He felt his eye twitch again. "If all you were going to do was talk shit, why didn't you stay in your common room? You would've been able to do so without breaking the rules. Or is it only ever fun when you do? In which case I urge you to get a new hobby."
"And I urge you to get a life!" Ashe snapped, stamping her foot.
"Seriously. We haven't even done anything yet."
"Yet?" Leif turned his cold gaze to Bellamy. "And what exactly did you have in mind? Vexing the centaurs by trespassing on their lands? Getting eaten by an acromantula?"
"Nothing so dramatic." The girl rolled her eyes. "We were going to visit the unicorn herds. Safe, for us anyways." She smirked. It was a well known fact that unicorns preferred female humans over males. Leif shook his head.
"The forbidden forest is forbidden for a reason." He growled, glaring at the two. "Even if you think it's safe, it only takes one thing to go wrong for it to become very, very dangerous. Back to the castle, both of you. 100 points from Gryffindor."
"You-!" A look from him silenced the protest on Ashe's lips. He could. And he did.
"50 points for each of you, although I should take more from you , Ashe, since this is your second time within 24 hours." It looked as if Bellamy was going to say more and he prepared to tell her off when a scream sounded from deeper within the Forbidden Forest.
"That sounded like..." Ashe gasped.
"Helena!" Leif broke into a sprint into the woods. But how? She went back to the Hufflepuff common room, didn't she? He didn't have time to contemplate how she got there. He was vaguely aware of Ashe and Bellamy running behind him. "Go back!" He called over his shoulder, not looking around. His eyes scanned the low light for any signs of danger.
"No. She's my sister too." A low growl emanated from his throat. Normally he would stun them both and drop them off at Hagrid's cabin or somewhere safer, but they were too far in now and there was greater danger lurking. Slowing, he listened carefully for any more signs of Helena. "Helena!" Leif quieted Ashe.
"We don't know what's out here." As usual, she ignored him.
"Helena! He- What's that?" A glowing light was floating where she pointed. Starting towards it, Leif grabbed her arm.
"Seriously? Why would you go towards the foreign light?" That earned him a glare. Then again, everything he did seemed to earn him a glare.
"To find our sister!" Shrugging him off, she marched towards it. He grumbled, but followed. "Helena?" Calling softer, she slowed and half bent to examine it. "Helena, can you hear me?" Silence. Preparing to continue the search, Leif turned and started away until a voice returned the call.
"Ashe?! Help-"
"Helena!" Leif and Ashe ran straight into the light.
Leif was blinded.
When his vision finally returned, he knew they were elsewhere. Still a forest, but it was no longer night. And the trees weren't so close. It was quiet and the inkling of danger Leif always felt while in the Forbidden Forest was gone. Still, he didn’t relax and kept his wand out.
"Helena?" Beside him, Ashe and Bellamy slowly rolled to their feet. There was no response.
"We heard her, didn't we?" Ashe looked around, wandering a few paces away.
"We need to find out where we are..." Leif's eyes fell on Bellamy. "What are you doing here? I told you to go back to the castle."
"I want to help too." She bristled.
"You would've helped better by going back. Now I have to keep track of two idiots."
"Excuse you?! I am a seventh year as well, in case you forgot! I can take care of myself."
"Really?" He raised an eyebrow. "It's so hard for me to remember your age when you act like a 12 year old."
"Don't talk to her like that." Ashe rounded on him. "Bellamy is a great witch! Just because you refuse to see it doesn't mean it isn't true. Besides-"
"Shhh." Leif held a hand up to her mouth and glanced around.
"Don't shush me." Ashe tried to muscle it down, but he shook his head and held firm.
"Do you hear that?" Pausing in her struggle she blinked and listened. Every so often, branches would snap. The breeze brought the sound of voices to them. "Sounds like someone is coming."
"They're not very stealthy." Ashe frowned.
"Maybe they don't need to be. Time to go." He led the way in the opposite direction.
Despite the shade, the forest was warm. Leif guessed it to be about midday because of it. He didn't recognize any paths or clearings as they walked. At the same time, there wasn't anything out of the ordinary about it all either. What forest were they in? Apparition was impossible on school grounds. But even if it weren't, if someone was going to take them somewhere that person would have to be with them. Not leave a glowing spot in the air for them to find. Such a spot also couldn't be a portkey. There was nothing to grasp.
Voices again, much louder and clearer this time, stopped his train of thought. Leif frowned. But that can't be. Those sound like... He felt a tug on his arm and looked down.
"Didn't that sound like Al's shriek?" Ashe whispered. So he hadn't imagined it. They broke out into a run.
"H-hey. Wait up." Bellamy hurried after them.
Nearing the source, Leif stared slack jawed at the sight of his cousins huddled on a rock in the middle of a river. Fallon was throwing river rocks at a snarling bear, shouting at it to back off. Albert shrieked again and Thomas clapped his hands to his ears. Yes, their cousin had a very distinctive scream. Recovering from his surprise, Leif readied his wand.
"Stupefy!" The bear recoiled and slowly toppled over. Luckily, it didn't seem as if the animal had any sort of resistance to spellwork. But he knew that there weren't any bears in the Forbidden Forest. Pushing his question of where they were to the back of his mind again, he hurried forward. Stepping over rocks, he helped his cousins from their perch. "What are you all doing here?"
"Have any of you seen Helena?" Ashe glanced around anxiously. Albert was breathing heavily.
"What was that?" He shrieked again. Leif took a deep breath and sighed.
"A bear." Ignoring Albert’s eye roll at the obvious, Leif glanced at the beast and added "Luckily it wasn't any bigger or it would've been able to stand in the river to get to you all."
"Yes, but how did we get here? And where is ‘here’? And what the hell did you do to it." Albert pointed accusingly at his cousin. "Lights came out of... of... your stick... thingy and the bear just toppled over." Leif fingered his wand.
"I stunned it," he explained calmly. "With my wand."
"Helena's not here." Ashe bit her lip.
"I can see that." His eyes scanned the group. None of them seemed harmed. "Neither is Calla. Was she not with you?" He glanced at Thomas who was rubbing his ears.
"Yea, but we was playing hide and seek near the creek. And we hear this roar. We send Calla for Mum, but Al and I did'n see Fallon so we was looking for her to see if she hear it too and was safe. Next thing we know, Fallon was running from that. We turn tail and went for the river thinkin it would'n follow over the rocks and water. Did'n think it'd be able to balance." Leif let out a sigh. Maybe Calla is alright then? In any case, if their Aunt Susan could hear Thomas now he’d receive quite the scolding for his lapse in speech.
"What is that?" Albert's shriek came again and Leif turned from eyeing the bear to the woods. Too late he remembered that they'd been moving away from a party behind them. That party came forward now. Being a wizard, he was used to seeing centaurs and other magical beasts that may not look like much. Readying his wand, he stood in front of his cousins as the party advanced with swords and spears drawn. Teeth- if the creature had any worth fearing- were bared. The only human of the party stared at his wand.
"You!” Her eyes widened and she gestured toward the group. “Arrest these criminals for treason against the crown!" The creatures advanced. Leif felt Ashe shift beside him as she raised her wand. He laid a hand on it and shook his head without taking his eyes off their opponents.
" Expelliarmus !" Taking a step forward and putting all his concentration into the spell, the party lost their weapons. Those in the front went flying backwards into their companions. As they struggled to their feet, Leif walked closer. "Now then." He pointed his wand at the girl who gave the order. "Where are we? And who are you?" Her hand went to her sword hilt as she hesitated. "I assure you," he spoke with a lethal calm, "that I can cast much faster than you can draw your sword. Answer my questions." Swallowing, she squared her shoulders.
"I am Princess Nikita." Despite half lying on the ground, she met his gaze with an arrogant jerk of her chin. "And you are in Narnia."