Hey guys! Thanks for the alerts and review I've received. They were encouraging, and definitely helped the next chapter's development.
Once again I don't own anything.
I found a mistake that I made in the last chapter. I had forgotten that Voldemort's name is taboo at this point. From now on he will be addressed as You-Know-Who.
Also, there isn't much Ron in this one, but I had to move the other half of the story along. I promise there will be much more in the next chapter!
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"What do you MEAN he's got Ron?!" Hermione said shrilly, her face going even whiter than it had been under Bellatrix's curse.
"I saw it, Hermione," Harry explained, still grasping at his scar. The painful memory of Voldemort using such cruel torture on his best friend could not be easily erased. Everytime he blinked he could see the redhead, desperately holding on to every ounce of bravery he possessed. Harry was proud to see Ron so determined and strong, but was worried that the brave façade wouldn't hold long under the Cruciatus curse.
Deciding to leave the details out, he quickly told Hermione, "He wants to use Ron to get information on our whereabouts."
Hermione sank onto the floor next to Harry, a distant horror in her eyes. "How could this have happened?"
"He let go." Harry saw that his friend needed a little more explanation with that, so he proceeded. "You were between Ron and I when we were escaping. You don't remember because you were unconscious," he added in remorse. "We all joined together so Dobby could Apparate us out of there."
"Dobby?"
"Yeah, I was able to summon him, I suppose." Harry also left out the detail about the blue eye he had seen in Sirius's mirror when he had used it in the cellar. He didn't have time to go into a deep speculation over who's eye it was, and he somehow doubted that Hermione would believe it was who he thought it had been. "But one of the things I saw through You-Know-Who was Bellatrix's punishment. He was punishing her for losing us." Hermione gave him a questioning look. "Turns out, the reason why Ron let go of you was because Bellatrix had grabbed onto his arm. He let go to save us."
"Ron!" Hermione squeaked in concern, her hands rushing to her mouth. She was putting together the puzzle pieces. If Bellatrix was being punished for losing them…then what was Ron up against because he was actually one of them?
"Stupid git," Harry mumbled in guilt. This was the exact reason he had broken up with Ginny. Voldemort would harm anyone close to him. He was so concerned for Ron right now that it made him feel sick.
"What can we do then?" Hermione suddenly burst forth. "We can't just let him…we've got to get…I can't just sit here while…"
"Listen, Hermione," Harry positioned himself in front of her, a determined look in his eye. "I'm not going to let Voldemort hurt Ron, ok? We're going to get him out of there."
"How?" Hermione breathed, tears welling up in her eyes. She was feeling pretty hopeless about their chances.
Harry felt just as confused, but pushed that emotion back. He couldn't have those 'what if's flooding his mind. "Let me think clearly. I'm sure there's a loophole." He suddenly remembered how they had escaped in the first place, and in that moment he turned his head excitedly toward the crowd still outside. His eyes were searching for Dobby.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Crucio!" Voldemort hissed again, shooting shards of pain into Ronald Weasley once again. Ron rocked along the floor, tossing and turning as if he were on fire. Voldemort only stared down half-interested, watching for the moment before his victim's breaking point. Ron stopped rolling and started to twitch, his back arching up and away from the floor, a choked grunt accompanying the motion (he had continued to stifle any screams).
Voldemort took this as a sign, lazily waving his wand to lift the curse. "Has your tongue loosened any more? Or shall I have to do that manually?" He taunted, wanting as Ron's chest heaved up and down. The redhead was only lying on his back, staring up at the ceiling as he regained his bearings. He could see his chest heaving in his peripheral vision as he caught his breath, but couldn't keep his mind's focus off of the wizard causing him this pain.
"Still stubborn," Voldemort drawled. "Tisk tisk tisk. Your mother wouldn't want you to be so rude." Ron stiffened automatically at the mention of his mother. He had been tempted to respond with a biting remark, but there was no way he could put his mother in such danger. He had to protect his family as strongly as he was protecting his friends.
"Hit a nerve, did I?" Voldemort was beginning to circle him, and this time Ron let his eyes follow. "Don't be concerned with Mrs. Weasley. She's probably being the mother hen at this very moment, fussing over the rest of your family. It's a pity that she doesn't know which of her many children needs the most protection." Voldemort adopted a thoughtful look, twirling his wand between his long, slender fingers. "I suppose she didn't realize when dear Ginny needed help, either, so we shouldn't be so surprised."
Ron's face contorted as several emotions surged through him. He knew the best way to defend his sister was to stay silent, giving Voldemort no breathing room on the subject, but he couldn't help but be the protective older brother that he had always been. "If you know what's best for you then shut it. I guess that little lesson down in the Chamber of Secrets wasn't enough to convince you that you belong dead."
Ron immediately blanched, seeing Voldemort's eyes turned even redder in rage. The Dark Lord's wand flicked so quickly that Ron barely saw it, slicing a large gash in his forearm. Ron gasped in pain, curling into himself to protect his body from further damage. His eyes flickered down to the area of pain, finding that the spell had drawn way too much blood for his liking. He turned from white to green when he saw a flash of white beneath the flowing blood, realizing that his skin had been cleaved to the bone.
"It's a shame that I have to spill pure blood." Voldemort stared down at his victim remorseless. "Well, I suppose it's just as dirty as your dear mudblood's now."
"You're no pureblood yourself, Tom Riddle," Ron's voice shook in a combination of rage and pain.
A slash across his back answered this stupid instinct to be cheeky. "That's no longer my name." The Dark Lord corrected him, watching as the redhead's back arched against the blow. "You're lucky I haven't cut out your disrespectful tongue," he threatened, leering over Ron like a bat over its prey. "But once you give me the information I so desire, I can't make any guarantees."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Dobby!" Harry ran up to the house elf, followed by Hermione. "I need to talk to you!" he explained urgently, unaware of those surrounding him. Everyone had noticed Ron's absence by now, and they were all bombarding him with questions.
"Yes, Harry Potter?" The house elf bowed, eyes anxious at the tone Harry was using.
Before Harry could open his mouth, Bill had grabbed his shoulder tightly. "Harry," he pleaded, a desperate look in his eyes. He still wanted to deny that anything had happened to his brother, but was reluctant to show it. "Where's Ron? Please – I need to know."
Harry sighed deeply, looking at Hermione. She was giving him the same look. They couldn't tell that they had escaped from Malfoy Manor. That would give way too much about their mission away. But how could he keep anything from Ron's own brother?
Hermione answered for him. "Harry, you talk to Dobby. I'll explain everything to Bill." Her eyes were set in her decision. "We have to tell him."
Harry nodded, ignoring the other anxious faces all around him in order to find Dobby's face. "Dobby, let's go upstairs to talk." The house elf nodded anxiously, allowing Harry to lead the way.
"Listen," Harry said as soon as they closed the door to an upstairs bedroom. "I need you to Apparate me back to the Malfoy Manor."
Dobby's eyes became very round in disbelief, wondering if he had heard correctly. "Forgive me, Harry Potter, but Dobby thought he heard you say you wanted to go back to the Malfoy Manor."
"You heard right, Dobby. We've got to go back for Ron," Harry explained hastily. "He was left behind, and I can't leave him there for You-Know-Who to torture. I can't Apparate because of the protective spells over the place. But you can."
Dobby nodded slowly, watching Harry as the young man paced. "How is Harry Potter going to evade the Dark Lord? Surely the Dark Lord will be waiting for Harry Potter to rescue his friend."
"You're probably right, Dobby." Harry stood still for a moment, lips pursed as he thought quickly. Before he could speak again the door burst open. Hermione and Bill entered, closing the door behind themselves.
"What's the plan?" Bill asked automatically.
"I dunno yet," Harry answered. "You-Know-Who's going to practically be breathing down Ron's neck." He gave Hermione a sympathetic look for his wording. "Sorry."
"Well I don't like to rash, but we've got to do something," Bill pointed out. "We can't leave him there."
"But Harry's right. You-Know-Who will be expecting us to come." Hermione looked over at Dobby. "Even if it's for a second."
"This sounds crazy," Bill began, looking cautiously between Harry and Dobby. "But could Dobby Apparate close enough to Ron to grab him and go? You-Know-Who himself couldn't prepare for that."
Harry shook his head, still aware of the throbbing in his scar. "It would be a great plan if Dobby was in my head. I can see where Ron is, but he can't." The four were silent for a moment, looking for a loophole in the Dark Lord's haven. "Wait…" Harry broke the silence. "What if you take me to the cellar? You can only Apparate where you're summoned if you don't know what it looks like."
Despite her knowing look, Hermione asked, "What are you getting at, Harry?"
"If you just get me there we can find Ron and then Disapparate."
"No." Hermione shook her head firmly. "It makes more sense for either Bill or I to go. You're just asking to be killed."
"I can't just wait here!" Harry argued, despite knowing his friend made very much sense. "We'll pop in and out. It'll be faster than our original escape."
"No, Harry, I have to agree with Hermione," Bill stated. "Honestly, I think I should go. I'm disposable."
"Don't talk about yourself that way!" Hermione argued, but Bill ignored her.
"I don't know what Dumbledore asked you to do, but apparently you, Hermione, and Ron are a major part of it. Plus, Hermione's not in any shape to go after what Bellatrix did to her. I'm the best choice you've got."
"But you have no idea how the Manor is laid out," Harry pointed out. "You could get lost looking for Ron."
"And how many rooms did you see? Two, maybe?" Bill retorted, smiling slightly. "Come on. You know this is the best way." Harry argued with the other two for a few minutes, wanting to go after Ron himself. He was the reason Ron was in this mess, so he felt that he had a duty to get him out.
"Harry," Hermione finally said, interrupting the latest proposal. "Every second that we argue this is a second against Ron. We can't chance this any more."
Harry sighed deeply, thinking about his friend. "Well let me look into You-Know-Who's head to see what's happening…" And with that, he closed his eyes and gave into his scar's pain.
Ok, there you go. I haven't written anything in a while, so I definitely need more polishing. Tips? Suggestions? Anything you want to see in the upcoming chapters? Any ideas for the daring escape - if there is one?
