I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up to No Good: Ghosts

[alt_terry]

There are ghosts here. Which isn't surprising, if you think about it, because this castle was a place where there were executions for many years. And there were prisoners who served out their prison terms and then died here and then their bodies were buried in what's now the grounds of Lucy Tower.

However, the git made a new ghost last week. He's killed enough people you'd think there'd be a bunch of ghosts following him around, but this is the first time I can ever remember it happening.

The other ghosts, the ones already haunting the grounds here, are mostly small and weak. Very few of them have much of a shape or form; they're mostly only flickering weak grey light. Maybe because that's because most of them were very weak when they died. Guess they didn't traditionally take very good care of the prisoners here at Lincoln Castle over the centuries--lots of them were practically starved--so they don't make strong ghosts when they're dead. They've never really bothered me at all.

But this new one was a strong man when he died. He had a family, he told me, and he was so worried about them. He fought real hard every time the git took him out, and finally the git just got disgusted and opened his veins with a curse and let him bleed to death. And all the while he was dying, the man kept telling the git that'd he would haunt him forever. First roaring it, and then whispering it as his blood ran out over the stones. Made my blood run stark cold.

Then he was gone. And the corpse-and-rubbish boy--that's Dudders--came and mopped up the blood and took his body away to bury it. But his ghost came back the next night. Gave the git a terrible turn when he came through a wall, right over his bed, believe me. The git threw a boot at him, but it went right through. And it dawned on him that the ghost is here to stay. It's all I can do to keep from smiling when the ghost starts jeering at him. The git's furious about it, but what can he do? He's already killed him. But the ghost won't go away.

One of the ghosts at Hogwarts once told me that people become ghosts if they can't let go of life. Can't move on to, well, whatever comes after death. I reckon it was his fury at the git that made him stick around.

He tells me his name was Donaghan Tremlett (he told me how it was spelled because he wanted to know if I could get word to his family somehow. Only he doesn't have any idea where they are now.)

Comments

[alt_neville]

Or maybe he can watch for Pig for you. And maybe help with distracting Carrow if you need him to make a delivery.

[alt_pansy]

Ghosts aren't always super reliable though. And they can be really forgetful.

I wouldn't trust him entirely.

Least not right away.

[alt_terry]

I know what you mean. I saw that with the Hogwarts ghosts.

This ghost, though...he's a really new ghost. And he's sort of obsessed. With the git.

I think it's gonna be kind of interesting for awhile.

[alt_gredforge]

That reminds us. We think we may have a solution for that problem you set for us, a way to turn off your warming charm if Carrow gets near you. We'll send the instructions with Pig, the next time he visits.

[alt_sally_anne]

That sounds like a useful spell totally aside from making Terry more comfortable. It's an invisible alert spell that will let him know when Carrow's getting closer.

Can it be keyed to anyone? I mean, can you tell the rest of us how to do it? Because there are times I'd like to know if it's Pansy, Millicent, or Daphne coming up the stairs to the dormitory.

[alt_gredforge]

We have the instructions, and we'll give them to you at supper, if you'd like to try it.

[alt_sally_anne]

Thanks, I tried it out today and it worked perfectly.