Disclaimer: Obviously I do not own Harry Potter, related characters and all that jazz. JK Rowling does and the whole world knows it. Story is mine though. Please enjoy.

Prologue -

Mary sat up in bed, tense and focused. Opening all her senses she could feel a disturbance in the house. Rooms lay still, yet the energies of the protection magic swirled and rippled through the interior, reverberating off the walls to her chambers off the kitchen. They moved without a sound, silent steps on the carpet and in such a large mansion Mary couldn't have heard them anyway. She sensed the window where they had broken the magical barrier and she knew her master would have felt it too, a shift in his defenses. However, Mary could also sense their ill intent in the waves of energy. Robbery. The master had many treasures on display on the second floor. Quietly she gathered her nightgown and picked up her candle. She wondered if she might be able to discourage them. Out of her room Mary climbed the servant's stairs; short cutting past the large main halls the narrow staircase brought her up a level within the manor. The second level was still and dark because of the limited lighted candles and windowless hallways. She could sense them entering the south treasure room. Mary adjusted her path to enter through the north stairs. Avoiding the creaky steps she blew out her candle and entered the North treasure room quietly from behind a curtain concealing the servant's entrance. This room was bathed in moonlight, streaming in through large almost floor length windows. Shadows of artifacts lengthened and distorted gave the beautiful statues eerie personas. Mary was intent on not being detected by her own shadow and she stood to the side of the large archway to the South treasure room. There were only two she heightened her senses using it to block possible detection and raised her wand preparing to send them a scare when faint distorted echoes off the walls, like the magical ripples, she could hear the thoughts of the thieves. Broken and overlapping...small... new... square... black... over and over and so fast they began to merge together. They were moving about searching the shelves, almost anxiously looking for something in particular. Manually searching meant they had little or no searching powers, which also meant.

Maybe she wouldn't have to make her presence known.

Mary knew now they weren't after the rare jewels of the Malfoy family, but rather the master's new acquisition sent from a friend. This acquisition was in the second room Mary was currently occupying. Mary moved back to the room she had come from and headed towards the cabinet where the small square shaped stone lay. The master would be home soon, after feeling his spells disturbed. Clutched in her hand she ducked down as the thieves entered her room. When they were away from the doorway she headed in to the South treasure room by casting a concealing spell and moving in the shadows. Undetected Mary slipped along the main hallway to head down to the main entrance to meet Master Malfoy.

Out of the wall it seemed, a shadow appeared in candle light from the brackets on the walls, Mary couldn't help but gasp loudly. She could still sense the two thieves in the North room but this man gave no presence magical or otherwise. His face hidden in shadow he stretched out his hand and said simply.

"Hand it to me."

Shaking her head, Mary stepped away fumbling for her wand, which was caught in her dressing gown.

The man simply stepped forward too. The light made him appear to be even more of a shadow. Mary met his gaze now reflecting in the candlelight and saw the dead look in his eyes. He has no soul she thought, panic overrode all her senses.

Terrified she moved quickly back again. Her foot didn't reach the ground stumbling on the top step, Mary lost her footing. A sharp pain in her ankle was followed by another one in her arm as she reached out to break her fall. A bright emerald green light lit up the stair case as Mary continued to roll down the stairs. Mary no longer felt pain.

Draco Malfoy opened his front door as the green light faded from his main staircase. His house keeper came to a stop at the end of the main stair case, her neck and wand broken and a small smooth square stone loosely rested in her palm.

A dark shadow disappeared on the top step along with a faint pulse of unique magic.