The Music Box: Chapter Seventy-Four

“Oh I can assure you that I have,” Crouch purred.

“You have not.”

“Emily, I just this very moment did exactly what I just told you. If I had not, surely Minerva could speak up for herself and suggest otherwise?”

“That is indeed the case, Aloysius, thank you for pointing it out.”

Emily felt a thrill of triumph as she heard these words, for they had not come from her. They had passed across the room from where Emily had only moments before seen a crumpled Minerva lay.

“Why this is preposterous,” Crouch thundered. “What’s happening here?”

“How easily you seem to forget what you once told me,” Emily said, the strength coming back into her as she felt she may, finally, have the upper hand.

“You may recall, as you were sending me into the box, cutting out my soul so you could steal my body, that this box would be a projection of my own self – my own wishes and dreams. Well I suspect you will find that is now coming back to haunt you. This is my box now and nothing will happen while I am here that will hurt my friends. I simply shall not allow it.”

“But you forget, Emily, that I know this place far, far better than you,” Crouch countered. “I devised it, I made it happen and I have been coming here for a long time now. I know it as well as I know the world out there and everyone and everything that lives in here knows me and knows that they must fear me.”

“Perhaps that is so, perhaps it is not. You thought you had silenced Minerva and you clearly have not. Explain that.”

“I made it up. It was a lie to shock you.”

“You did nothing of the sort. You believed it. You still believe you did it and you are afraid of what it must mean that Minerva is now speaking again.”

Emily was feeling nervous now, as though she was getting out of her depth. She knew she had to deal with Crouch immediately, but all she could think about was running away. The only thing that kept her there was knowing the safety of her friends inside the box depended up on her. As did that of her parents outside. If Crouch was ever able to escape, he would not rest until he had avenged himself – and this time he would make no mistakes.

“If I have no power here, how, then, am I able to do this?” Crouch demanded. Emily heard the sound of a heavy object rapidly dragging across the floor to the edge of the space and the muffled cries of Minerva.

“Stop!” Emily demanded, a fierce anger boiling within. “You will not hurt my friends.”

“Just go Emily,” Minerva pleaded. “Don’t think about us again. You must go while you can.”

Emily shook her head silently, more determined than ever to stay until she had finished what she must. But a sudden, sickening thought flashed into her mind before she could stop it. The lollies that she had placed in her pocket before lifting the lid on the box – now that she was back in her body, and Crouch in his, they were within his immediate reach. He need only put his hand in his pocket and…

“Haha!” Crouch cried triumphantly. “You should have watched what you thought more closely than that, Emily Button. You know lollies are bad for young teeth, but in this case they’re a lot worse for you than simply that! Well, look what we have here,” he teased, and Emily heard the rustling of the bag.

She had no chance of crossing the darkness in time to snatch them away, so willed Crouch to stop what he was doing.

“Oh you may be able to affect other things in here Emily, but you have no such control over me,” he sneered.

“I am not of the box, so I am beyond your reach. Wish all the harm you can muster, it shan’t affect me one little bit. Now if you will excuse me, I’m a little peckish and have unfinished business to which I must…”