The Burning Pen

A Dark Scenario
by Ruth Solomon

The story content is adult in nature and can contain graphic sex and violence.  Those under the age of 18 are asked to leave this site immediately.  You are not welcome here.  The author is not responsible for those under-aged who view these works.

Disclaimer:  All HP characters are the property of JKR.  I make no $$$ from the writing of this fanfic.
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CHAPTER 21

Chapter 21 ~ The Hinkypunk

Snape stood with his arms folded, the tip of his wand ignited against the darkness as Hermione squared off with him. Beside them on the ground were their brooms and two bags. One was writhing slightly and was warm to the touch. It was stuffed with dying Snapdragons that still had a bit of heat and bite left in them. The other bag was full of daisy roots.

"You can't be serious," she said as they stood on the spongy soil. "You want me to wander around as—as bait? With no light?"

"Hinkypunks only appear to lost travelers with no visible means of illumination," Snape said tiredly. "You have to lure them out."

"Why can't you lure them out and let me take them down?" Hermione countered.

"Because—I am in charge of this mission and you are 'the help,'" he stated flatly. "Besides, I have more experience capturing them than you do. If I am following, there's less chance of you disappearing into the bog, falling into a ditch or stumbling off some cliff edge."

Hinkypunks enjoyed leading people astray and making them disappear permanently. It was the very reason for their existence.

"What do you mean "less chance?" Hermione demanded.

Snape sighed.

"Look. I am tired and I want to retire for the night, Miss Granger. It's two hours flight back to our lodgings, so would you please summon up that annoying Gryffindor courage and attract the Hinkypunks before sunrise?" he said tightly.

"Would you stop calling me, 'Miss Granger?' You know my name and have used it before," Hermione said in annoyance.

"Hermione. Now—"

Snape put out his wand and they were in total darkness.

"Start walking. I won't be far behind," the wizard's voice said softly.

Hermione let out an exasperated "ooh," turned and began picking her way through the bushes around her, her feet squishing slightly.

"Say something about being lost," Snape's voice breathed behind her.

"Oh my, I'm so lost," Hermione said unconvincingly. "Whatever shall I do? I wish I had a bit of light with which to see my way."

"'With which to see your way?'" Snape's voice hissed behind her from a short distance away. "It's a good thing you pursued a career in Charms. You would have never made it as an actress. You're atrocious."

Hermione was about to hiss something back at him when she saw something dusky and wispy move in front of her.

"Is anyone there?" she called.

Suddenly, an inviting lantern-like round light appeared ahead of her. It wasn't very illuminating. The area was oddly dark around it but it still appeared very bright. Hermione walked toward it carefully, toeing the ground in front of her before taking any steps and it moved away.

She followed for about a minute.

"Stop," Snape hissed.

Hermione froze, as did the lantern. Then it began to move back toward her as if to entice her to follow. It bobbed up and down almost impatiently. Then moved closer.

Suddenly a bolt of what appeared to be lightning flew past her head, and struck to the right of the light. Two screams filled the night. Hermione's and the Hinkypunk's.

Hermione spun on Snape.

"You almost hexed me!" she yelled as he strode past her toward the dimly glowing ball on the ground and the smoky creature lying next to it. The Hinkypink looked human-like, but very small, like an elf and it only had one leg with one foot. A very calloused, and rough-looking foot with long, over-grown, yellow toenails.

Hermione stormed after Snape but stopped as he knelt, spread out a piece of dark cloth and grabbed the Hinkpunk's ankle, pulling its foot closer to the dim light.

"Ew," Hermione said, looking at the ugly foot. The bottom was all cracked, brownish and hard as bone. Snape drew out a pair of clippers with very strong looking blades and with some effort cut the thick big toenail first.

"Be careful. Something might be under that," Hermione breathed as he sawed through it, thinking about an American commercial she had seen featuring little house-elf like monsters that lived under thick yellow toenails.

Snape made a noise and cut the rest of the toenails. The Hinkypunk shifted and he folded up the fabric quickly.

"Come along. Hinkypunks get quite offended when their toenails are cut. Long toenails are a sign of virility and used to attract mates. This one is going to have an off-season and it won't be pleased," he informed Hermione as he lit his wand and strode back toward the brooms.

Hermione followed him quickly.

"Will we harvest another tonight?" she asked him.

"No," Snape said, adhering his wand to the broomstick, then picking up one of the bags and mounting his broom. "We will have to go to another location."

Hermione grabbed the bag of Snapdragons and mounted her own broom, sticking her lit wand to the handle. They both kicked off, Hermione shakily following Snape. She heard a shrill, high-pitched scream behind them as the Hinkypunk awoke and found its toenails neatly trimmed.

"It doesn't sound happy," she said, looking back to see the lantern bobbing toward them quickly, angry chatter ringing through the night air.

"Get higher," Snape called back.

"What?" Hermione said, looking back down at the ground. They had to be at least twenty feet up. "Why?"

Suddenly the lantern flew up from the ground, soaring at her. A pair of angry red eyes and a snarling mouth full of sharp jagged teeth were visible next to it.

"Shit!" Hermione cursed, urgently kicking at her broom as if goading a horse to move faster. It shot up higher and she heard a vicious snap as the teeth locked together on air below her, then the ball of light dropped back to the ground.

"Despite having only one leg, Hinkypunks can jump quite high," Severus said as he slowed and let Hermione draw up alongside him.

"You could have told me that beforehand," Hermione said angrily, readjusting her hold on the bag of Snapdragons. She had almost dropped them, not to mention piss herself.

"I could have," Snape agreed then fell silent.

Hermione felt like kicking him off his broom.

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A/N: Just a little more. I don't think I'll write any more today. My entire upper jaw is hurting me, and my tooth is in my lower jaw. It feels like every tooth on the right side of my mouth is aching. :(. Sigh. I'm about to go to my neighbor and ask if she has any Advil or Tylenol. Well, thanks for reading.

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