Prologue: Albatross
All he could feel was white blinding pain. Thoughts stopped. Time stopped. It was just him and and the echoes of screams he guessed he were his, but couldn't be sure. They were too far away, he was too far away. He could no longer locate his throat.
The pain stopped as suddenly as it had begun, and his mind slowly found its way back to the cold stone floor his body lay on. There were voices above him, angry and spiteful. On some level he deserved it.
I do not regret anything. He repeated slowly to himself. A mantra to keep sane. He lifted his head as much as he could manage to see the bottoms of the dark cloaks surrounding him. I am not a coward. It was all he could do now that he was sure he would die. The last stand of his betrayal. They would not break him after all this time.
"Come now dear nephew, do try a bit harder. I would like to see your pretty eyes when I curse you again. Now, tell us what you know!" Bellatrix Lestrange's heels clicked as she stepped toward him. It took all his effort to raise his head to meet her gaze, while keeping his eyes as cold and defiant as he could manage. It was as close to a 'no' as he could get, as he was unsure of if his voice would obey his thoughts.
It seemed like the message got through. Bellatrix raised her wand as his vision began to swim, and he was forced to return his head to the ground.
"You stupid boy" she said, with perhaps a hint of disappointment. He didn't hear the next curse that was thrown at him, but knew immediately it was not another Crucio. The pain was almost as great, but concentrated now in his abdomen - a hot slashing feeling, like his insides were being ripped apart. He knew well enough that Bellatrix's curses did real damage, he would not be dying with an easy Avada Kedavra. He coughed and the light stone was stained red with his blood. No… this would be a much bloodier death. I do not regret anything.
"Ease up Bellatrix, a dead man won't tell us anything." He recognized the voice as his father's. A dead man, it was almost amusing. Like he was some sort of common criminal instead of his own flesh and blood. I won't tell you anything anyway, so you might as well kill me now.
"Feeling pity for your sorry excuse for a son?" She retorted.
"Hardly," he answered. "But you are getting blood all over our floors, and I hate for that to be all for naught." Bellatrix turned back and motioned to a couple cloaked figures beside her.
"Get him up, get him up," she commanded, and the two figures moved. "He'll talk. They all do."
I do not regret anything.
He felt two strong pairs of hands lift him from the stone. The movement sent another wave of agony through his body, and he couldn't stop the groan of pain that escaped his lips. They jerked him into a standing position where he teetered unsteadily on his feet. As the two positioned him against the wall, he found the eyes of his father on the outer circle around him. The blond hair stood out starkly against the black of his clothes. Hair that many said looked so much like his own. Lucius shifted uneasily and looked away. I am not a coward. He repeated in his head.
One pair of hands let go and moved away, and he struggled to find his balance again. The second pair lingered for a moment longer to steady him, but before they left, he felt the weight of a couple small objects land in his robe pocket. Confused, he tried to look to his side, but stopped when the vertigo hit hard and he had to grasp for the wall to anchor him.
"It will activate in 15 seconds," came the whisper to his left. So soft and so fast he wasn't sure if he heard it at all. He could hear an implied so don't die yet in the intensity of the words, and he immediately knew whose words they were. The hands moved away and joined the crowd, so he was again standing alone.
It, he thought, trying to keep upright while processing the words. Activate…? Thoughts were slow and like fog. He reached out and tried to understand, but they slipped away like they were never there. He only had a few seconds until something happened, but it took all his power to just stay on his feet.
Bellatrix raised her wand again, and her heels clicked as she approached him. Another gruff voice spoke, "Tell us-"
But then it clicked. His mind had caught up with the instruction, and he understood how he could live. That he could live at all. He smirked and stuffed his hand into his pocket and found a small circular object, rough around the edges. He couldn't tell what it was, but it didn't really matter. He clutched it in his fist and the world started to spin and dissolve. He could just make out the angry screams of his aunt, and frantic footsteps of the other Death Eaters before silence and his feet hit a wooden floor. He could no longer stand, but he no longer had to. He blacked out.
