Chapter 259: Danger!
Then take him away from here.
Fortunately, Lisa reacted quickly. Otherwise, Phineas would have been in real danger.
Just as Lisa was approaching Phineas, she noticed that a short wizard who looked like a mouse was also moving toward him.
When he was not far from Phineas, he raised his wand.
Lisa was horrified by the scene and rushed forward.
She blocked the white light before it could hit Phineas.
A trace of blood spurted out as Lisa fell to the ground, splashing onto Phineas's face and jolting him from his madness.
Without checking on Lisa, Phineas pointed his wand at the wizard, and a beam of white light shot out.
The wizard's body suddenly shrank, avoiding the attack, and transformed into a rat, scurrying into the sewer.
"Peter Pettigrew?"
Phineas's eyes widened in disbelief.
Just a few months ago, he had personally sent Peter Pettigrew to Azkaban. Before that, Pettigrew had received the Dementor's Kiss—a punishment that destroyed his soul.
So from every angle, Peter Pettigrew's only possible fate was to await death in Azkaban.
Even if he had somehow escaped, he would be a soulless shell, incapable of action.
So how could he have ambushed Phineas and hurt Lisa?
Thinking fast, Phineas lowered his head to look at Lisa.
Lisa was pale, still breathing, but clearly unable to move. Thankfully, the attacker had used a Cutting Curse instead of a Killing Curse. Otherwise, Lisa would have died.
She wasn't dead yet, but Phineas knew that if she didn't receive immediate treatment, her fate would be sealed.
He frowned. By now, the battlefield was complete chaos.
It wasn't just Phineas and his werewolf allies who had been affected by the unknown madness. The black-robed attackers were also acting erratically, attacking everyone—including their own allies.
The werewolf wizards were no better. They cast spells indiscriminately, ignoring both friend and foe. The longer this continued, the worse things would get. Moments ago, they had still shown signs of reason.
Dodging a Cutting Curse while carrying Lisa, Phineas finally reached the entrance to the potion shop. As long as he entered the broken door, they would be relatively safe.
Behind the stairs in the shop was a small door leading to the backyard, where werewolf wizards usually gathered and discussed matters.
It was also where Phineas had declared war on the vampire clan.
In that backyard stood a cabinet under a confidentiality charm. Inside were the portkeys to various Black family strongholds.
The potion shop had been breached. Phineas had no faith in the werewolves' ability to hold it—not with the chaos in the alley. Aurors from the Ministry would arrive soon.
Those portkeys had to be destroyed. The remaining unactivated bases couldn't be exposed.
Phineas stepped into the shop.
The fighting had shattered most of the shelves, and potion vials littered the floor. Various elixirs had spilled out, especially wolfsbane.
He cast armor spells on both himself and Lisa. The mad wizards had noticed him and followed him inside, launching spells.
Luckily, they hadn't used Killing Curses. Perhaps their magic was too unstable, so Phineas's armor spells held up.
With a flick of his wand, furniture twisted into wooden dragons that coiled around the intruders.
Thanks to shaping magic, the dragons had rudimentary awareness. They tightened in response to movement, making escape impossible.
Taking advantage of this, Phineas moved into the backyard—his and Lisa's only way out—and approached the cabinet containing the portkeys.
But when he stood before it, he froze. He didn't know the password.
Lisa had set it. Even the werewolves living here didn't know it.
She understood that the cabinet represented Phineas's private forces, not the Black family's. So she had safeguarded it thoroughly.
Normally a smart move, but now it was a problem.
Phineas muttered code after code, waving his wand in frustration, becoming increasingly irritable from the unknown magical influence.
Just as he was ready to give up, he heard a faint voice.
"June 30th..."
It was Lisa. Phineas spun around and saw her lying on the ground, eyes half-open. She had regained a little consciousness.
In a barely audible voice, she gave the password.
Phineas was stunned.
He had tried everything—from the shop's founding date to the day he saved Lisa—but never imagined the password would be his birthday.
For Lisa, maybe his birthday was the most meaningful day.
Bitterness welled up in Phineas's chest. Lisa had always stood by him. More than just an assistant, she had been like a sister to him.
Though she teased him at times, before he was nine, she was the only one—besides the house-elves—who cared for him in Grimmauld Place.
After he entered Hogwarts, she had even deleted the location of their home from her memory, protecting him.
Without hesitation, Phineas opened the cabinet, took a portkey to another stronghold, and placed it beside Lisa.
He then destroyed the remaining portkeys with counter-spells.
Each flash of light from his wand disabled another key.
He wasn't worried about finding the other strongholds later. Each had a similar cabinet.
Only Lisa knew the layout of the strongholds. Phineas had assigned the task to her and never asked for specifics.
She had hidden the information deliberately, preparing for a time when Phineas would need an army willing to die for him.
As the portkey activated, Phineas and Lisa vanished from the potion shop.
Only the trapped black-robed wizards remained inside. Outside, werewolves and dark wizards continued their chaotic battle.
Soon after, Aurors from the Ministry of Magic arrived—too late, as always. This failure gave Phineas further reason to challenge the Ministry.
Though Phineas didn't control the Ministry outright, he could exert influence through his family name. That power would likely pass to pure-blood allies like Malfoy and Weasley, effectively staying in Black's control.
When the Aurors arrived, they found only deranged wizards.
"Quick! Contain them!" shouted the captain, reacting after an Auror was struck.
Irrational wizards couldn't match rational ones. A wizard might not be a mage but more of a warlock , but the adage that knowledge is power held true. If you couldn't read your enemy or cast the right spell at the right time, you would lose. (Unless you were Dumbledore, who would beat Ron any day.)
"Have you spotted Phineas Black?"
Apparently, the Aurors had known about the ambush and had hoped Phineas would die.
Now that he had escaped, they had to cover their tracks.
"Captain, Phineas Black is gone."
"Damn it. We're in trouble."
The captain didn't hide his concern. These Aurors were clearly from a particular faction.
Had Phineas been present, he'd have recognized the captain as a descendant of a family loyal to the Riches.
Was this the Rich family's doing?
No one could say for sure.
The story returns to Phineas and Lisa as they arrived in a remote, two-story cabin surrounded by forest, far from civilization.
There were no supplies, let alone medical materials.
Phineas's panic deepened.
He could rest briefly and Apparate away—but Lisa couldn't.
Her wound was on her chest. Though bleeding had slowed, she needed stillness to prevent reopening it.
Using the portkey had weakened her. Another jump—or Apparition—might kill her.
Phineas was desperate.
Puff was off on another mission. Had she been here, she would've taken the hit for Phineas instead of lisa.
But regrets were useless now.
Phineas needed to heal Lisa—fast.
"Heal to original! Heal to original!"
He cast the healing spell repeatedly. The effects were minimal.
"Damn it! Repair to its original state!"
In desperation, Phineas cast a spell that wasn't meant for this situation.
Lisa screamed, but the wound began closing. At least the worst of the bleeding stopped.
Still, she was clearly in pain.
Healing and repairing are similar spells.
Though Reparo and Episkey differ, their magical foundations are alike—both tied to the bull () and sun () runes.
Healing affects living things; restoration affects objects.
At Hogwarts, students are taught not to confuse them. "Repair as Original" should never be used on people.
Phineas, whose ancient rune knowledge far surpassed his peers', knew why.
Healing encourages the body to regenerate. Repair, however, forces nearby tissue to close forcibly—risking secondary damage.
Still, in emergencies, it was effective—just as now.
Though it caused more pain, it stopped the worst bleeding and saved her life.
Pain was nothing compared to death.
With the bleeding halted, Phineas could relax slightly. Lisa was a werewolf.
Her self-healing ability would take over now.
All Phineas could do was wait and let time do the rest.