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In the Dark, A Zabini/ Grindelwald fanfic	By : blaisegellert Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male Views: 1326 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: mature, m/m, Harry Potter fandom, no money is made off this project.

Chapter List
- 31
- 32
- 33
When they were all in the Room of Requirement, everyone who had one, handed their magic unraveling amulets over to Sabra Zabini.
"Kereston got one too, and we didn't," Millicent nearly shouted, her indignant glare moving from Gellert to Blaise.
"You Gits!"
"It was her idea that we make them for everyone, so it only seemed fitting that she get one of the first available pieces," Gellert replied calmly.
His blue gaze held an amused flicker of satisfaction at Millicent's reaction, though, Blaise noticed. He wondered about it, but now wasn't the time to begin a conversation so he'd ask later when the two were alone.
The room must not have thought they required much for their practice because it was nearly empty save for a few plain wooden chairs lined up against the wall nearest the door. It had made itself nearly as large as the Great Hall, and looked plain with a marble floor and white walls. Everyone who was in the Great Hall at breakfast had chosen to come along to the Room of Requirement except Albus Dumbledore. He had left the table ahead of everyone else and Blaise hadn't expected him to want any part in the darker defenses anyway.
"Right then," Kereston said excitedly.
The small blonde was practically bouncing on her toes with eagerness.
"What do we do first?"
"The shield I spoke of earlier protects and defends at once. That is the upside. The slight down side is it requires a great amount of focus and energy to maintain especially at first," Gellert said.
"Those who can handle Fiendfyre would have an easier time sustaining it in my opinion. Is there anyone here who has not worked with Fiendfyre?"
When no one said that they had not, he continued.
"Due to the particular property of the alerts on his spider pendant, I would wager a guess that Blaise best understands the particular mechanisms behind this shield."
Blaise felt Snape's as well as Mag's curious gazes on him at Gellert's comment. They'd not know of his protective medallion, because he'd seen no particular reason to comment to either of them on its construction or much else. Professor Flitwick noticed it the first day he'd worn it to charms class upon its completion which Blaise had found impressive at the time.
"The shield is programmed to recognize an enemy of the caster and kill them as well as to protect not only the caster but anyone else who passes through the shield. That means if you cast the shield, you are capable of protecting not only yourself, but your allies while they are free to use their magic for other attacks of their own," Gellert explained.
"The spell for casting this shield is Protego Diabolica. As you all know, it translates as protection from the devil. This protects one from their enemies, burning them to ash with a method that is very difficult to counter and can not be countered by anyone it touches at all."
"Sweet," Millicent said.
As Gellert was explaining the spell, her entire body seemed to relax.
"Now mastering something like that would go a long way toward making my ass feel safe," she proclaimed.
"Millicent," Mrs. Zabini snapped.
"That mouth. Watch it."
Millicent scowled, but didn't dare object to the woman's reprimand.
"Several elements go into forming this shield," Gellert continued.
"The first is an energy signature of the caster so that the spell recognizes who it is protecting. Normally casting a spell makes that obvious enough, but the fact it connects to the caster's friends and foes makes a bit of extra clarity necessary. To achieve this energy signature when casting the spell, merely think very hard about yourself and who you are as you speak the words of protection. The fire transfigures to something harmless when it touches your friends, while quickly killing your enemies so this extra touch of personalisation when casting is very important," he stressed.
"What if you and Blaise made a shield together as you did the amulets," Kereston wondered.
"Would it make your shield even stronger?"
"Perhaps," Gellert said thoughtfully.
"I think you should try it," Kereston said.
"We could watch, then try our own one by one while you check for if we're doing anything wrong."
She flashed a quick smile.
"Just you said teaching wasn't your strength, so it's just an idea."
"And a fine one," Gellert assured.
Stepping closer to Blaise he drew the quartz wand that Mag had given him from his pocket.
"Eventually you won't need a wand for this, but for now it may be helpful until the spell becomes entirely familiar," he said, so Blaise drew his smoky quartz wand from the front pocket of his black slacks.
"Watch as I cast it first, then we'll do it together," Gellert said and Blaise nodded.
Straightening his shoulders, Gellert Grindelwald prepared himself mentally to cast a spell he hadn't spoken in over fifty years. Though extremely difficult to master for most, Gellert could've performed it in his sleep before his captivity which hadn't allowed him to cast magic at all for far too long. Still it didn't occur to him that he could be too out of practice to make it work. It was always a part of him. It was merely that casting it again for so long made him feel the passage of time that his now young face did not show him in the mirror.
As his mind focused, his wand hand came up and he spoke the charm.
"Protego Diabolica"
The familiar black fire warmed his heart as it sprang up around he and Blaise in a tight ring.
"One can also expand the fire ring to attack as well as protect, though I don't recommend doing so without fully mastering the shield itself first. If the extension is done before the caster is proficient in the shield itself, it could escape your control and act much like Fiendfyre. This can cause the shield itself to slip," Gellert warned the group.
As the blonde spoke, Blaise listened while he studied the shield of black fire.
"Are you ready to try it," Gellert asked, turning to him with a warm sparkle in his blue eyes that made Blaise's stomach flip in the most pleasant of ways. Right now he had to focus on the bloody shield though. Tearing his gaze from Gellert's he smiled and nodded.
Gellert dropped the shield and the fire winked out in less than a second as though it was never there at all.
"On the count of three, then, and we'll cast it together," Gellert told Blaise.
Both lifted their wands ands to the ready and Gellert began to count.
"One, two, three!"
As one they spoke the spell. Recalling Gellert's earlier instructions, Blaise made sure to think of himself as the words left his mouth.
"Protego Diabolica"
"Shit," Millie gasped as the ring of black fire sprang up around them, extending outward so that those who stood closest, Kereston, Flitwick and Bramble, took a step or two back.
Gellert noticed the spell took less energy and focus to hold with Blaise's participation and the fire was thicker and denser than usual. He was pleased. When they were ready to extend it out for an attack, it would be quite formidable while taking even less energy to direct. The little blonde Kereston girl had a good mind.
"You didn't have to back up," he told those three who had done so with an amused smile.
"Not, that is, unless you are planning to kill one or both of us."
Kereston approached slowly.
"Should I test it by trying to enter, then," she asked.
"Sure," Gellert said with a careless toss of his blonde hair.
"If you fail, there are plenty of people left, though I will miss your creative ideas."
Kereston hesitated, gray blue eyes widening slightly.
"So is it safe to enter the circle or not?"
Gellert chuckled, and extended his free hand to her.
"Yes, of course."
Kereston continued her approach and once at the ring of black fire she drew in a deep breath before rushing through to Blaise's side.
"Good girl," Gellert said with a merry laugh.
"It didn't even feel hot," Kereston marveled and Gellert nodded.
"Precisely. As I said, it reacts entirely differently toward friends."
"What if she'd been planning on killing you," Millicent demanded with a frown.
"Don't you think you'd be in for it for killing our friend?"
Gellert shrugged.
"I hardly see why. I clearly stated what the shield will do to an enemy so if she chose to brave it in spite of my warning, she'd be killing herself."
"True enough," Kereston agreed with a laugh.
"So can you keep this shield up while on the move," she asked curiously.
"Like if you have to get somewhere and there are antiapparation wards up like the ones on this school so you need to run but you're still under attack so the shield is necessary? Can you keep it up while running? I ask because if we were attacked at this school, it would be a good thing if we were able to keep it up while running."
"I've never had to, but that's an interesting thought," Gellert said slowly.
"I have an idea," Kereston exclaimed, eyes lighting with excitement.
"I need to go home and get something for it though. I'll be back in ten minutes. Everyone feel free to practice without me. I won't be gone long."
"Great, cause we were gonna," Millicent snarked as Kereston rushed out the door.
Blaise exchanged a bemused glance with Gellert and shrugged. He had no idea what Kereston was up to but it would be interesting to find out. While she was gone, Millicent took her turn at the spell, and performed it successfully after the third attempt. The first two only resulted in black fire issuing forth from her wand that fizzled out in a manner of seconds. She was determined, though, and her third attempt produced a small ring of fire that remained around her until Gellert showed her how to release the spell with its reversal.
Wolfgang was moving up to take his turn when Kereston rushed back in.
"I'm back," she called unnecessarily, waving a thick round piece of wood that looked to Blaise somewhere between being a wand and a staff.
"AH," Filius said with a smile.
"Your music stick?"
Kereston nodded, giving the little charms professor a pleased smile before turning to the others.
"I made it for the practical bit of my N.E.W.T for charms last year. It plays music much like a Muggle radio or CD player. Don't worry, you don't need to know what those are," she said, waving away the confused looks on the faces of Gellert as well as all of Blaise's family.
"Your parents likely would not be pleased that you do," Sabra told Kereston with an open look of disapproval on her face.
"We learned about them in Muggle studies," Kereston explained.
"Don't worry. I'm not slumming with the Muggles."
"Not unless you count eating at McDonalds," Millicent said with a smirk.
"No," Kereston objected.
"When I eat there I don't talk to anyone but you."
Holding up the music stick she turned to Gellert.
"I thought if we practice to music, perhaps the rhythm will help to make it easier. People exercise to music, and this is a magical exercise," she explained.
"Especially if we try moving with the shield in place. If you feel the beat of the music and sort of time the spell to move to it while running, I just thought it may be easier to hold it."
Gellert frowned for a moment while he processed that, then shrugged.
"It's worth a try. What sort of music did you decide to use for this?"
"I found some eighties dance pop music," Kereston explained.
Seeing Gellert's blank look she rushed on.
"Music has changed a lot. It's gotten more powerful with this type of music called rock and roll. You'll see...You have a lot of new things to discover as a lot has changed in this past fifty years. I thought the beat of this particular song would be good for what we're doing. I also thought you and Blaise may like the words as it reminded me of the two of you."
She gave a mischievous grin.
"You'll see. I was thinking the two of you could try moving your shield, perhaps in a circle to start with as that's going with the natural shape of the shield anyway. You could link arms and turn as one to the beat of the song."
Gellert arched his brows skeptically, but shrugged.
"Allright."
Kereston waved the music stick once and said,"Play track three on repeat."
The sound of rattling drums exploded into the room from the stick in Kereston's hand, causing Bramble to start slightly and scowl.
Blaise slipped his arm through Gellert's and wands lifted they began to turn slowly to the beat, focusing on moving the circle with them as they did. The rhythm was fast and put one in mind of dancing. When the singer began, her clear young voice was strong as it belted out the lyrics. She sang of feeling and being able to change her lover's heartbeat and Blaise exchanged a knowing smile with Gellert. The song spoke of holding hands and running together just to be alone and away from prying eyes.
"I thought if the two of you could actually hold hands and run while keeping the shield up, that would be brilliant," Kereston said with a wide smile.
"Then the rest of us can just hope to do it so well," Millicent said with a sigh.
"Practice," Kereston encouraged, studying the shield as Gellert and Blaise sped up their spinning.
"I can't believe we aren't dizzy yet," Blaise said with a laugh.
"That's because I used an anti vertigo charm of sorts on us," Gellert replied.
"It's a simple charm for any healer," he added with a slight pleased shrug at Blaise's smile of admiration.
"I think we're alone now," Mag sang along with the song as she stepped away from the others and lifted her wand of crystal and yellow citrine to take her turn at the Protego Diabolica spell.
"You exposed Mag to Muggle music as well," Sabra asked Kereston with arched brows of disapproval.
"I actually heard the song from her, and she got it from Severus," Kereston told Sabra a little defensively.
Sabra frowned, but didn't seem to dare to complain to Snape about his taste in music.
Everyone took their turn at the Protego Diabolica spell and within a few hours everyone had mastered it to a level that Gellert deemed at least passable. He and Blaise were thus far the only ones who could successfully move the shield as they walked and no one other than Blaise even attempted to extend it for an attack, but Gellert assured them that for the first day even performing it at all with success was a worthy feat.
Before they left the room of requirement for lunch, Sabra scooped the amulets up from where she'd placed them in a small pile on one of the wooden chairs. She returned each to their owner as they passed her to leave the room.
"What if someone does the shield incorrectly and a friend is burned instead of a foe," Kereston asked as they walked back in a group toward the great hall.
Blaise found that he was quite hungry as well as drained of energy from expending all that magic for several hours straight.
"If someone tosses a magic dispersing amulet at them will it disperse the shield?"
"It should at that," Gellert said thoughtfully, then gave Kereston a bright smile.
"Just in case, though, I suggest all of you make sure you know what you're doing before inviting your friends in."
(The song quoted in this chapter is, I Think We're Alone Now by Tiffany.) In case any of you want to use it while practicing your Protego Diabolica shield.
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- 33
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In the Dark, A Zabini/ Grindelwald fanfic