The Riddle House was dark, perhaps darker than it had ever been and would most definitely remain as dark, though sunrise was due within the hour. Wormtail had been waiting for his masters return nearly all night. He paced the floor of the master bedroom on the second floor, taking turns at biting his nails and pulling at his hair. Why wasn't he back? Surely nothing had gone wrong.
A loud popping noise sounded downstairs, startling Wormtail so that he jumped and ended up biting a finger, causing it to bleed. Wormtail wiped his finger with the sleeve of his cloak as he headed out of the room and towards the stairs. He heard his masters voice. And it did not sound pleased at all. Wormtail paused at the head of the stairs, wanting to ascertain the situation before entering it.
"You have failed me, Bella." The Dark Lord said in a calm, cold voice.
"Master, please," Bella's voice no longer sounded sure and malevolent, but much like a child pleading for her Father's forgiveness. "Master, it was not my fault. Malfoy! It was Malfoy who was dealing with the boy. I was—I was fighting my cousin, Sirius." A maniacal laugh issued from Bella as she made this last statement.
There was a pause as Wormtail strained to see the entrance of the house where the Dark Lord and Bellatrix stood, barely visible in the dark. Where were the others?
"Bella, Bella, Bella." Voldemort said in a deathly calm voice, causing the subject of his sentence to whimper. "Where would I, the Dark Lord be, if I did not punish those who fail me? Even Wormtail can attest to that, can you not Wormtail?"
Wormtail jumped at hearing his name the first time and nearly fainted at realizing the Dark Lord knew he had been watching them.
"Wormtail, come here!" Voldemort yelled.
Dust was cast into the air as Wormtail ran down the stairs on the old worn carpet, running his hand on the dust ridden railing. He stopped a few yards from where Voldemort was standing, Bellatrix was on her knees in front of him, her hands clasped together.
"Tell Bella how I deal with those who claim loyalty to me, and yet cannot do the simplest thing that I ask of them."
Wormtail hesitated. His head was down, staring into his hands. He knew what lay within the cloak in front of him. He closed his eyes and Voldemort's face appeared before him, snakelike and void of any human emotion except hatred.
"Answer me!" Voldemort yelled, nearly losing control.
"Y-y-yes, my Lord. You d-do punish those who c-c-can't do what you ask." Wormtail stammered, eyes still staring down.
Wormtail heard a rustling of robes and then, "Crucio!"
Bellatrix's scream pierced the dust filled house. Wormtail shuddered, knowing what that pain felt like, having gone through it himself numerous times. Looking out of the corner of his eye Wormtail could see Bellatrix writhing on the floor, her hands clutched at her chest over her heart. The screams suddenly stopped and Bella lay motionless on the floor. The Dark Lord gave a soft chuckle.
"I hope I need not remind you again, Bella, of what I expect of my followers." Voldemort turned to Wormtail. "Wormtail, look at me."
Wormtail clutched his hands together and scrunched his eyebrows together. He slowly lifted his head so that he looked at the robed figure of his Lord. Wormtail began to shake, dreading what his Master would ask of him next.
"Pack our things, we leave tonight. This place is not safe. We leave in fifteen minutes." And with that Lord Voldemort walked passed Wormtail and up the stairs. Wormtail heard a door slam.
The shallow breathing of Bellatrix distracted Wormtail from the horrible thoughts swirling in his head. Curious as to what had happened to anger his Lord so much, Wormtail shuffled over to where Bellatrix still lay. He stooped down to her, looked around the room, then asked, "What went wrong?"
Pushing the sweat soaked hair away from her face, Bella looked up at Wormtail. She had a wry smile on her face, but Wormtail could see the fear that still lingered in her eyes.
"We did not get the prophecy. The boy thwarted our plans once again."
Wormtail did not need to ask who "the boy" was. Harry Potter had been his Master's downfall. Having barely escaped with his life from Hogwarts two years previously, Wormtail knew exactly how lucky that boy was.
Bellatrix continued, "Somehow the Wizards protecting him knew he was there. They showed up and then later..."
"What?" Wormtail asked after several moments silence.
"He showed up."
The only other person that could invoke the same fear in Bellatrix's eyes as Voldemort was Dumbledore himself. Headmaster of Hogwarts and considered by some to be the greatest Wizard of the time, Dumbledore was the only person the Dark Lord had been afraid of. Had been.
"And?"
"What do you think?" Bella spat. "We got the prophecy and everything's fine." She said this in a nasty voice. "Think, Wormtail! I'm the only one who returned, all the rest were caught. The Prophecy was smashed."
Bellatrix got up from her seat on the floor and walked away, as if utterly disgusted with the pathetic Wizard in front of her.
Wormtail breathed in deeply, held his breath for a moment, then exhaled. He knew he had to begin packing. His Master would not be pleased if he did not do what was asked of him, especially after tonight. As Wormtail walked towards the stairs he passed a window that had moth eaten curtains hanging over it. He pulled them aside and wiped the glass window. Outside he could see the cemetery to the right, down the hill, and then further on, towards the left was the little village. The sun crept slowly over the rooftops, giving light to the countryside.
Light. Something Wormtail would never again enjoy. He must always remain in the dark, ever loyal to his Dark Lord.
As Wormtail walked up the stairs a thought entered his head. A thought so strange and terrifying that Wormtail quickly swept it out of his mind: James would have never tortured him if he did something wrong.