Disclaimer:
As I round on the fourth chapter, I still do not own anything but the
idea.
A/N: Thanks for all the reviews. Good reviews good
motivation. LoL Thanks again. This chapter is kinda dark. But I
didn't want things to be easy. Needed a little angst in
there.
Chapter 4: Something Unexpected
"How much
longer will we be staying at Black Manor?" Harry asked
curiously.
"We leave tomorrow after breakfast,"
James said.
"I hope that's enough time," Harry said.
"If I stay up all night it should suffice."
"For
the research you mentioned?" James asked.
"Yes"
Harry replied.
Harry ate dinner quickly that evening and went
straight into the library and began pouring over book after book,
looking for just the right one (if it existed). The answer he was
searching for did not lie in "Dark Magic and Countercurses"
Volumes 1-20, nor did it lie in "Advanced Defense Against the
Dark Arts: The Book" or "101 Ways to Rid the World of
Evil." Harry was beginning to lose hope of ever finding a way to
make it all work out. He knew he had to find the answer in the
library of Black Manor because Hogwarts wasn't likely to have these
sorts of books. Sometime after 1 in the morning, Harry finally came
across a book called "Curses of Ancient Descent: A Guide to Some
of the Oldest and most Complex Curses". He flipped through the
book anxiously until he came to a particular section that caught his
eye.
Just as he finished reading, there was a loud noise
coming from outside. Harry ripped the page from the book and after
folding it, stuck it into his pocket. He ran to the window and looked
for signs of what caused the noise. He looked towards the gates at
the entrance of Black Manor, and just then he saw about 10 men on
horses with torches gathered around the gate. A moment later, the
horses began galloping quickly towards the mansion.
Harry came
back to his senses and ran through the house yelling for everyone to
wake.
"Mom! Dad! Sirius! There are Death Eaters coming up
the road towards the house! Wake up!"
Moments later
James, Lily, and Sirius ran down the stairs.
"What are we
going to do?!" Harry cried.
"I have a hidden room in
the library. Come with me! Quick!" Sirius cried.
The four
of them ran into the library. Sirius jumped towards a particular
shelf of books and pushed on it. It slid back slightly, and sprang
open just as the doors to Black Manor burst open.
"I
heard something coming from that way!" One of the men called,
pointing towards the library. Three of you go and survey the
upstairs, three of you check the rooms down here, and the rest of you
come this way!"
The men that remained downstairs didn't
even bother to dismount their horses; they proceeded through the
house horseback. They galloped through the house, destroying anything
in their way.
"Inside quickly! Stay quiet. I'll get rid
of them." Sirius said frantically.
James, Lily, and Harry
went inside the room and Sirius closed the door. Within a matter of
seconds, the men entered the library.
"Sirius Black!"
one of them called.
"Sorry fellows, no horses in the
house. I'll have to ask you to take them outside." Sirius
said.
"Where are the Potters?" the man
called.
"Lucius Malfoy, I have no idea what you're
talking about."
"We know you've been hiding them
here. If you want to live, you'd best tell me now." Lucius said
angrily.
"I haven't seen James & Lily in months. A
year maybe." Sirius said coolly.
"Crucio!"
Lucius cried. Sirius fell to the floor and writhed with pain. After a
few seconds, Lucius relented.
"Are you ready to tell us
yet?" Lucius asked snidely.
"I-told-you" Sirius
said between breaths, "I don't know where they are."
The
men that had been in other parts of the house entered.
"Mr.
Malfoy, there's nothing upstairs. They're not here." One of the
men said.
"There's nothing in any of the rooms on this
floor either." Another said. "They're not here,
sir."
"Very well." Lucius said. "Apparently
we were wrong. But, in good spirit, we'll be taking you with
us."
"No!" cried Sirius. He tried to run but
the men seized him and knocked him out.
"Let's go!"
yelled Lucius. "Tie up Black and destroy the house."
From
inside the hidden room, the Potters couldn't hear anything that had
happened outside. They glanced around the room. It was completely
empty except for a light coming from a corner. In that corner, there
was a spiral staircase in the corner leading to another room. They
clambered down the stairs. When they reached the bottom, a concrete
door slid across and covered the hole from which they had come down.
They looked around in amazement. There were beds in this room, as
well as food and practically anything else they could need. Sirius
had apparently anticipated an emergency situation when he built this
room. They didn't plan to stay long enough to take full advantage of
the room though.
"Well. I suppose we could lie down for
awhile and wait for Sirius to come get us." James said.
"That's
not a bad idea." Lily agreed.
James & Lily took one
bed, Harry the other. They all fell asleep within a few minutes and
slept the rest of night.
The next morning, they awoke to find
themselves still beneath the house.
"I wonder how long
we've been here?" Harry asked.
"I don't know.
Something doesn't seem right." James asked. "Let's just go
back up ourselves." James said.
James tapped the concrete
slab repeatedly and muttered a few well-chosen words. Finally, it
slid open and they proceeded forward. When they reached the top, the
house was in ruins. Most of it had been blown up, what remained was
smoldering. Sirius was nowhere to be found. They assumed he was
dead.
"No...not Sirius!" Lily cried.
"It's
our fault. We shouldn't have come here. We put his life in jeopardy
just by stepping through the door." James said,
distraught.
"Perhaps the Death Eaters only took him away
and didn't kill him. In any event we really need to get to Hogwarts.
How far is it from here, Dad?" Harry asked.
"From
here? I'd say it's at least two days walk." James replied.
"Why
can't we just apparate?" Harry asked.
"Because
Harry. If we apparated we would be detected much more easily and we
do NOT need that" Lily said.
"Oh. Well let's move on
then." Harry said in a dry tone. And so they went, unsure of
where their next point of rest would be.
