A/N; Hopefully improved chapter two. I thank everyone for following and favoriting and really appreciate all the reviews.
Disclaimer; I don't own any of this I'm just borrowing it
Chapter Two
Huginn dropped from the sky to land on Walden's shoulder, "They're coming!"
Seconds later several horses broke through the trees and slid to a halt, surrounding the boys. Helen gasped and tucked her head into Rodolphus. Her hands clutched tightly around his neck.
Abraxas stepped off his mount, his eyes on his son, "Lucius are you, all right?" a mild concern in his voice. "And what do we have here?" with a slight inclination of his head. Abraxas knelt at the girls' side and began to examine her wounded face.
Helen grabbed hold of Abraxas' lapel, whispering, pleading, "Please... please get me out of here... they'll come back! they're going to burn me!" Her voice cracked through her bleeding lips.
Abraxas took the girl from Rodolphus. She sagged against him like a broken doll, lifting her body up to Lord Lestrange, "Reinhard, please take her back to your estate and see that she's looked after...Quickly now before the rest of our party catches up." He stepped back, "I'll drop the wards long enough for you to apparate. Now go!"
Abraxas raised his wand with an elaborate swish they could all feel the walls drop. Reinhart spun the black stallion on the spot and with the girl clutched tightly in his arms. They were gone.
As Abraxas replaced the wards and dark clouds began to form over the forest. Thunder rolled in the distance and Lucius recognized his Fathers temper brewing. Malfoys controlled the weather. And Abraxas Malfoy was now in a foul mood.
"Father I'm sorry!" He started.
"No Lucius, there's no time, you did the right thing, now mount up boys." He said quietly. "They're watching." he looked to his Huntsman.
"All on, get ready boys." And Lord Macnair gathered his hounds at his horse's feet, "Walden cast those birds let's find these bastards!"
Walden whispered to Huginn, and the big black bird took flight, Muninn and their six children followed, slipping through the trees. Walden's eyes became solid black to match Huginn as he borrowed his bird's sight.
Setting down in a tree, several hundred meters from the meadow he watched as two men made their way through the brush. They were holding long rifles. Walden was familiar with all methods of hunting and knew what muggle firearms were and what they could do.
Walden blinked his eyes returning to normal "Father, two men to the east, they're coming, and they have the long rifles."
"How far off son?"
"Less than a kilometer, we don't have long."
"Stay with them."
Blinking again Walden took up the raven's sight and was now following the quarry, hopping from tree to tree muggles were slow.
The rest of the hunting party had now caught up to them; Lord Voldemort was looking pleased, dragging the body of the man behind his horse. "Not to worry Lord Malfoy he is still alive, but I thought we could use him as bait." Lord Voldemort had hexed the man to silence him. Lucius had noticed there was not a shred of terror in his eyes, but fury, as he struggled against the ropes that bound him.
"That sounds like a wonderful idea Tom." Abraxas informally addressed Lord Voldemort, his voice dangerously calm. "Shall we take center stage then."
The boys watched in stunned horror as their fathers drag the man into the center of the meadow.
Lord Voldemort laughed as his horse jumped to a canter and yanking the muggle off his feet once more. The man's head made a thump as it hit the ground, causing his eyes to glaze over.
Lightning crackled overhead, and Abraxas smiled at Tom "What do you think Tom? Should his friends hear this?"
"Oh, I think that's a fabulous idea Brax. We don't need live bait, do we?"
"I don't think it's necessary, do you Tom?"
"Bait is bait."
The older men dismounted and formed a circle around their prisoner. Lord Voldemort stood above his quarry with his tall black boot pressed firmly against the neck of the muggle.
"The kill is yours Lord Voldemort, that is if no one minds?" Abraxas said with a bow. The Lords took one step back and bowed, conceding the kill.
Lord Voldemort inclined his head at the men and asked.
"Where are the boys, bring them here, I want them to assist me."
Seven young men were still standing at the edge of the woods, unable to move their feet. Uncertainty showed on their faces.
'Lucius, is it? Lord Voldemort cocked his head and looked right at him.
Lucius nodded.
"Come here boys, come closer. It cannot hurt you... I'm going to show you the best way of disposing of it."
Lucius bravely moved forward; his friends were right behind him. They always had his back.
Dark clouds were swirling above them, and fat raindrops had started to fall. Lucius tried to feel sorry for the man on the ground, but all he could see was the image of the girl. Bloody and broken in the cage, like an animal.
He could feel that dragon starting to roar in his chest. With two Malfoys enraged Lucius wondered if he could pull a tornado from the sky
Lord Voldemort swished his wand and removed the silencing charm. And released the ropes binding the muggle, the man jumped to his feet and began cursing 'Infidels! God will strike you down! You will all burn in the most painful everlasting fiery hell! YOU! He pointed to Lord Voldemort. DO YOU SEE! 'YOU ARE the Devil incarnate!' SINNERS! You are ALL SINNERS! He now looked to the sky, foaming at the mouth, 'GOD is angry with you all, he will strike you down with his thunder and lightning!
The muggle looked right at Lucius. One eye filled with blood, it was bulging from the socket and unable to focus.' WITCHES! You are ALL WITCHES! WHORES of the Devil himself!
This tirade caused the boys to giggle. The muggle was struggling to stay on his feet. He shook his finger at the boys, 'BASTARDS! BASTARDS, OF DEMONS! HELLSPAWN!'
Abraxas stepped behind the muggle and kicked the unstable man, causing him to fall face first in front of the boys.
It was Xander who could not hold his tongue anymore "He's gone completely round the bend" he looked down at the man, disgust on his young face. "You poor ignorant bastard, that's the Malfoys buggering up the weather, not your god and we're not Witches! We're Wizards." He kicked the man, hard in the ribs. "You stupid fuck, thunder doesn't strike you down!" Xander's happy go lucky attitude disappeared when he saw Helen.
Lord Voldemort had had enough.
"Crucio!" He hissed at the man causing him to flop on the ground like a fish out of water. Blood was beginning to seep from his ears and mouth. Lucius could hear the bones snapping like dry twigs; he had never seen anyone Cruciod before. Lord Voldemort took Xander by the hand. "Alexander, would you like to assist me?"
"Yes Sir," Xander's voice was steady and his eyes hard.
"Now dear boy, you have to mean it for this curse to work really... So, I want you to focus on all of the horrible things this creature has said and turned his hatred back on him." Lord Voldemort still held his hand. Demonstrating the proper wand movement, "Point, small circle, and flick and...Crucio!" He looked back at the other boys, "Boys I'd like you all to try."
Xander stepped in front of the man and snarled at him "Crucio!" The muggles eyes widened, and his face twisted into a silent scream. Xander dropped the curse as Lucius stepped in next.
Lucius thought of Helen. He did not know her, had never even seen her before today. But because she was a Witch, he thought of her as family. Magical family. And this man is responsible for her pain. These muggles had hurt his family, and they were going to pay. They would pay, in blood. Thunder rumbled over their heads as Lucius leveled his cold steel gaze on the muggle. Pointed his wand and hissed "Crucio!"
Each boy had executed the curse with perfection.
Lord Voldemort's face was beaming with joy when Rodolphus preformed a Crucio so violent the muggle bit his tongue in half."Well done, well-done boys, we can practice another curse when we catch more."
The witch hunter lay supine in the blood-soaked grass. Gasping, shards of bone poking through his bloodied shirt, pink foam now formed around his lips. He screamed, the scream of a dying rabbit, blood spraying with it. Tom Riddle pointed his wand at the man one last time. The curse performed with such finesse that when done left the man's chest cracked open like an egg. He was not dead; he was still screaming as Lord Voldemort knelt next to him. He was staring into the muggles eyes and breathing in the man's screams as if he were bathing in agony. He took his wand and touched the muggle in the middle of the forehead. When he drew back the wand, white tendrils, like smoke followed. The man's eyes were now wide with terror.
The muggle let out a ragged breath as Lord Voldemort tore the still-beating heart from his chest and held it in his hands. He approached Lucius and smeared the blood from the heart on his forehead and both cheeks. He preceded to mark each boy in turn.
Alexander Yaxley, with fresh blood from his first kill, still wet on his cheeks, removed the knife from his boot, kneeled over the man and made a long cut across his forehead at the hairline. Taking the man's scalp, Xander grinned. Not the grin of a happy young boy, but one of a feral predator.
Lucius watched his friends blooded. Things would be different when this day ended; there was no going back.
Lucius looked up at the sky that was now black with fury and wondered, was it the power from Malfoy magic? Or was it the anger of the muggles god?
Walden spoke, with eyes still dark with the raven's sight. He whispered, "Father they're getting closer, it's time."
Lord Macnair laughed "Mount up gentleman it's time to hunt."
The boys gathered their ponies. Tightening girths and adjusting stirrups they numbly climbed into the saddle.
Lucius glanced at his father still standing over the mangled corpse of the muggle. Lord Voldemort was at his side. Lucius could not hear the conversation, but from the looks on their faces, there was a lot more to this hunt than just revenge.
Abraxas levitated the mangled body of the muggle over to the oak. He reached over and plucked an eye that was bulging from the muggles head and tossed it to the hounds. He then hung the man with a quick Levi corpus spell, upside down from a large branch
"Let us herd them back to this meadow, all of them... There's no sport in picking them off one by one." He said as he mounted his horse. Taking up the reins he moved over to his Huntmaster. "If they draft again we split into teams... Conall, you and I will take the boys along with Anatoly and Simon... The rest will follow Tom."
The man looked up at the sound of his name and asked. "Where is Lord Lestrange?"
"I'm afraid Reinhard's horse pulled up lame, he's retired to his estate to see to his stallion."
Lord Macnair looked over at the boys now gathering and waved them to come closer, "Up here boys, let's stay together this time. You will need to ride hard, but I want you to stay with Walden and I." he tugged on Walden's sleeve "Son, leave Huginn with the muggles for now. Call back the rest. And I'll recast with the hounds."
Walden mumbled into the wind, and seven ravens landed. Muninn on his shoulder, the six children, perched awkwardly at various points on his horse. Sleipnir, took no offense in the least, even when one decided the horses head was the best seat in the house. He had trained with the children and was immune to their antics.
The last to mount was Lord Voldemort. In the tall grass, he was scraping the coagulated blood from his boots before stepping into the stirrup. Lucius watched as he filled a small vial with the white smoke he had taken from the man, and slipped it back into his saddlebag.
Lord Voldemort's eyes met his, the man smiled and winked at him. And Lucius felt as if a ghost had walked straight through him. He turned Wally and rode next to his father.
Under the darkening sky the field moved out at the trot, hounds fanning, reaching for scent. One hound gave tongue, and the rest soon honored him the pack was now in full cry through the forest. The hounds turned sharply onto small dirt road. Their noses no longer to the ground as they followed a burning scent. Their cries converted to a full roar. The horse's easy canter moved into a gallop, and the riders took up a two-point position.
This time Lucius stayed on his father's flank. Wally fought with the bit and tried with all his might to charge ahead. Lucius was never more thankful for that running martingale.
Rooster was beside him leaping. And he could feel Wally's lungs expanding as he stretched out in full stride. His pony was running all out with his father's horse was now pulling into lead position, two lengths ahead of everyone else. Antonin and his thoroughbred bounded forward past Wally and Rooster.
Her name was Stella, and she was the love of Antonin's life. She was tall and model thin. The boys joked that Stella was half Thestral, her speed on the flat suggested she had invisible wings. It was all Antonin could do to hold her behind the Field Master.
Lightning cracked across the sky the air was heavy with the smell of impending rain. The pack drafted as Abraxas predicted and the field split. Lord Voldemort taking his team to the right and now traveling south along the wall.
Up ahead in the distance Lucius could just start to make out a funny looking object. It looked like a cart with three men inside of it. Two men in the back were holding long sticks that Lucius recognized.
He watched in horror as his Father and Lord Macnair charged forward with the hounds. The men raised their rifles. The Huntsman threw a Protego charm to the head of the pack. Shots rang out, but the bullets fell harmless to the earth. The elder Dolohov and Yaxley sent a silent incarcerous spell wrapping the men up tightly and sending the cart into the ditch. Abraxas shielded the men before the hounds could tear them to pieces. As far as he was concerned, they did not deserve to die quickly.
Abraxas stepped from his horse as it slid to stop. Pointing his wand at the men he quickly silenced them, tossing an end of each rope to Dolohov and Yaxley. He took the third and hopped back onto his horse "Back to the meadow, now, and keep an eye out for more."
Xander stared at the rifles lying on the ground and wanted nothing more than to pick one up. Lord Macnair beat him to it. "Not for you son... We ask your father first, and if he says yes, I'll teach you to shoot." Macnair accioed the rifles, shrunk them down and stuffed them in his saddlebag. Simon Yaxley watched the look of disappointment on his son's face. "It's fine by me Xander, you've earned the right to make some decisions for yourself. Just don't tell your mother."
Xander's face split into grin, "Deal." This day was turning out to be a not so shitty day, after all, he thought.
Abraxas turned and pointed to the men in ropes "Let's give them a little cushioning charm. We want them alive for this."
Walden's ravens swooped in, Muninn went straight to her master's shoulder. Her naughty children, however, had other plans. They landed as a pair on each muggles shoulder. The first bird plucking out an eye and as the man screamed the second bird tore out his tongue. The men dropped to their knees faces twisted in agony.
Walden was shocked, jaw-dropping shocked; his birds had never been aggressive, all he could do was stammer out an apology to the Field Master. "Lo…. Lord…. Lord Malfoy I'm sorry they've never, never behaved this way!"
Abraxas graced Walden with the famous Malfoy smirk, "Don't worry son; I think your birds dislike the quarry as much as we do... They just want a little taste. No harm is done really; they're still alive."
They moved their horses into a trot, the muggles pulled face down in the dirt and dragging behind them. The cushioning charm only preventing them from significant damage.
Taking what they knew to be a shortcut. Abraxas turned Max into the woods. The Huntmaster moved ahead with his hounds and Walden sat on his right flank. His birds clacking and cooing at each other perched on the back of his horse.
Behind Abraxas, Lucius rode silently next to his friends. None but Xander had spoken since leaving the clearing. Rabastan had a haunted look that no little boy should have. Lucius knew his friend, and Rabastan was a gentle boy. This hunt would haunt Rabastan; it would tear his soul. It would rip all their souls.
Reinhard's stallion appeared on the lawn in front of the stables. The little girl in his arms was now unconscious. He called out for his house elf, "Tiggy!"
The elf instantly popped next to the big horse, "Master Calls."
"This is Helen; she's injured. I want you to take her to one of the rooms near the kitchens and tend her wounds. See that she is comfortable. I'll be along shortly."
The little elf levitated the girl, and with a crack, they were gone.
Reinhard let out a breath he didn't know he was holding and sagged against the black horse. "Caesar, what in all of bloody hell, do we do with a little girl? Don't you know either? Well let's get you into the barn and cleaned up and maybe I can figure out what I'm supposed to do before she wakes up."
The drafted pack had followed the trail leading to the two men watched by Huginn. The muggles had heard the hounds and crawled into a dead log covered in briers. Thinking they were well hidden, they missed the raven silently following them, watching, and now quietly waiting.
As the hounds drew near Huginn, let out a loud caw. And the hounds descended on the log, ripping at the briers, and tearing rotted chunks from the old tree. The men scrambled out of the other end only to find themselves at the feet of Lord Voldemort's horse. The first muggle looked up, he closed his eyes and looked again, getting to his knees he merely stated,
'I looked, and there before me was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine, and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth.
Lord Voldemort sat on his pale horse with a smirk on his face, "You have no idea how correct you are." He drawled. "And you may refer to me as the Dark Lord." He chuckled.
The two muggles did not rage as the first had done. They remained on their knees, silent tears falling to the forest floor.
Lord Daemon Nott had found this humorous as well, chuckling to himself he hit each man with an incarcerous and a silencing charm. And the small drafted field made their way back to the meadow. Muggles bouncing on the ground behind the horses.
Abraxas moved his team through the forest quickly and came to the edge of the meadow; they halted just inside the trees. Abraxas dropped a disillusionment charm over them while they waited for Lord Voldemort's party to arrive.
Huginn had flown ahead to join his Master, and landing on his shoulder the bird chattered in Walden's ear. Looking over at the Huntsman, Walden relayed the message "It's safe now Father, the other two are captured."
At the far end of the meadow, shrouded in fog, the rider on the pale horse emerged.