Disclaimer: If the world of Harry Potter were mine I would've posted this on fictionpress, not fanfiction... Or, even better idea, I'd have made millions by publishing it :)
A/N: This is definitely not my first attempt at story writing, but it is the first time I feel confident enough to share it with the world. It may start out a bit dark, but that will change soon. Please read and review.
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1 May 1998
The scream seemed to pierce right through his soul, but he could do nothing to stop it. Masked and robed, he stood with a dozen other men in a half circle around the young woman, opposite the Dark Lord. They were Death Eaters-to-be. Unmarked as of yet. Forced to watch as the Dark Lord tortured Muggle after Muggle, to see if they had what it would take to be a Death Eater. This woman was the sixth and last of the evening.
Stoically he watched her screaming and writhing on the floor in the beam of red light from the Dark Lord's wand. He wanted to jump forward and rescue her, but he knew it would mean his own end. He closed his eyes. He had chosen this. There was no way of turning back.
Suddenly the screaming stopped. The young man's eyes flew open again. The Dark Lord had broken the curse and was looking straight at him.
"Higgs, I am glad to see you are paying attention again. It will not do for my trusted followers to doze off in my presence," the Dark Lord stated calmly.
"My Lord, I am so sorry for my insolence, it will not-" Higgs began.
"Silence! Perhaps you would better be able to pay attention when you have her to yourself? Inflict some pain, maybe take her upstairs for some privacy? She is quite a pretty young thing, isn't she?" Higgs looked at the woman. The way she was curled up he couldn't really make out much of her features. "I'm sure Lucius wouldn't mind you using one of the guest rooms," the Dark Lord said it without blinking even once. Higgs felt as if he was staring straight into his soul with those bright red eyes.
The woman was curled up on the floor, softly whimpering. Higgs hesitated.
"Crucio!" Red hot pain seared through him for a second or two, then it was gone. He gasped for air. The other men were silent, but he could feel their eyes on him. "Why are you hesitating? You know there's more where that came from."
"Yes, my Lord." He strove to keep his voice calm. Slowly Higgs raised his wand at the whimpering heap on the floor. Hate flared up in him, but not for the woman. He hated the Dark Lord for making him do this. His voice almost cracked as he spoke the curse. A red beam of light shot out from his wand. The woman's muscles tensed as she let out another blood-curdling scream.
After what felt like hours, but could have been no more than half a minute, the Dark Lord spoke again in his high cold voice. "Enough. She's yours to do with as you please. Dispose of her when you have finished."
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"Have fun," Pucey said, closing the door as he left. He had helped carry the girl up to of Malfoy Manor's guest rooms.
Higgs looked at the form of the woman, or rather girl, sprawled out on the bed. She could be no more than nineteen years old. Her face was bruised, one eye swollen. Her blond hair was matted with her own blood. She was unconscious.
When he first wanted to become a Death Eater, he'd never considered actually having to torture people. He wholeheartedly believed in blood purity and keeping Wizard society seperate from the Muggles. He had no qualms about killing Muggles and Mudbloods, but this... Why did there have to be torture involved? He couldn't bear to see even a wild animal suffering, let alone a human. He would definitely not do to her what the Dark Lord had suggested. It was just plain wrong.
So what should he then do? Kill her? Yes, that was the best option. She would have to suffer no more. He stepped closer to the bed and aimed his wand at her. Slowly he started speaking the curse. "Avada..." She let out a small moan. His breath caught in his throat. She cracked open one eye, then the other. Dazedly she looked around the room, then her eyes focused on him. They widened in fear.
"Please," she whispered. "Please don't hurt me. Help me. Please." Then her eyes sagged shut again.
Higgs was at a loss. He couldn't kill her, he knew he couldn't, but if he didn't, the Dark Lord would know. He would be punished.
He had some time to muster up the courage though, they wouldn't expect him back for at least half an hour.
He sat down in the corner of the room and tried to calm himself. After a while he got up, ready to do it, but as soon as he laid eyes on her his confidence crashed again. The way she'd pleaded with him... He knew it would haunt him forever if he let her die, but saving her was impossible.
Suddenly someone crashed through the door. The man was wearing his mask and Higgs didn't recognise the voice when it said: "Potter's at Hogwarts, come now and prove your worth to the Dark Lord." A loud crack was heard and the Death Eater disappeared.
No longer concentrating on what to do with the woman, Higgs could hear the commotion throughout the manor. The cracking noise from the disapparating Death Eaters could be heard everywhere. The apparition wards must have been lifted. This was his chance!
Higgs strode over to the woman and pulled her up in his arms. A loud crack could be heard and then the room was empty.
