Marjana awoke bleary eyed with a brain that was a bit muddled - processing everything on a several second delay. She was in Diagon Alley getting her supplies for the first year at Hogwarts' School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Something had happened to Adrian Parsons when he fell down and three men rushed to his aid.
I passed out after that?
Cries for help snapped Marjana back to reality; Mr. Parsons and Ceca were here with her and in the same predicament. She made a move towards the shapes she could make out in the dim light, but was stopped prematurely - tightly wound ropes were hindering her ability to do more than stand up.
Marjana made an attempt to speak. Her voice croaked. "Ceca? Mr. Parsons? Are either of you hurt?"
"A touch sore, my dear. Those ruffians seemed to have dragged me through all manner of obstacles."
Adrian's language was a bit too eloquent for Marjana to fully comprehend, but she figured if he was talking that way he couldn't be injured too severely.
"Ceca?"
A much weaker reply came. "Here." She coughed and the sound of liquid hitting the floor reverberated in the chamber.
Marjana frowned. Ceca sounded far worse off than Mr. Parsons did.
"Are you hurt? Are you bleeding, Ceca?" There was some desperation in Marjana's voice. She was hoping the latter question wouldn't be answered with a yes.
"Yes, and I think so. My chest really hurts." Marjana closed her eyes thinking those men had done something to her. "Are you both tied up? Can anyone move around at all?"
Adrian spoke up. "It doesn't sound as if Ceca can do much in her present condition. As for me, I'm quite immobile as well. Fastened quite firmly to this wall, unfortunately."
Marjana took a minute to think of her options. I can't even reach my pockets so that's no good... I'm not strong enough to break the rope... Screaming is definitely useless. She resolved herself to the passing of time. Marjana wasn't ready to be thrown into this kind of situation with the ability to think of a quick, effective solution.
"Can either of you girls search your pockets for items of use?" Adrian offered.
"Sorry, Mr. Parsons. I can't reach mine."
"I... can't." Ceca was losing consciousness.
"Ceca? Ceca?" Marjana felt the tears roll down her cheeks. She didn't know if her best friend was dying or just exhausted from this ordeal. The feeling of helplessness was overwhelming her.
Adrian could see Ceca's dark outline slump towards the ground, partially suspended by the ropes pulling at her wrists.
"We really are in a spot of trouble. Marjana dear, how tight are your ropes tied? Do you think you can work your hand out of one of them?"
Marjana nodded. "I'll try."
She turned and wriggled her wrists as best she could, but to no avail. The more she tried to free herself of the bonds, the tighter they became. Marjana's attempt at escape was interrupted at the moment she was about to tell Adrian she thought the ropes had been enchanted.
A figure made his presence known in the middle of the three captives and spoke one word in an extremely insidious tone.
A spark was emitted from a wandtip and a candle blazed with a tall, thin fire that illuminated a five-foot circle ending just before Adrian, Ceca, and Marjana.
Looking around, Marjana could see that the chamber they were in was quite compact, but the ceiling reached far beyond her line of sight. The three of them were roped to large granite sculpted pillars, most likely holding up the large structure they were trapped in.
Two other figures stepped into the light. There were no distinguishing differences between the three of them as they were all wearing wide-brimmed hats and the same black cloaks.
"Gents, I do believe the little one ought to be woken up for this," demanded a voice of such a pronounced baritone it nearly shook the pillars around them from its deep resonance.
The first cloaked man nodded and took one step towards Ceca with his wand pointed in her direction.
"Ennervate!" Ceca shot up with a sharp intake of breath.
"Now that's more like it... Everyone's awake and ready."
The third man, who hadn't spoken yet, took his turn. He assumed a scholarly tone, explaining the situation with utmost precision. "We have yet to play the proper hosts and explain just what it is you three are doing here." He cleared his throat and dropped his arms to his sides. "Our Dark Lord has instructed us to locate all of you for the purpose of acquiring some information. It seems as though we have one particular person who has been a nasty thorn in our sides, slowing our progress in gaining more followers for the cause in the Balkan region. The Ministry of Magic has a department which has proven to be quite difficult in eradicating. The Aurors are our biggest problem at the moment and one of you little girls happens to have a mother by the name of Lejla Kadare. Now perhaps you know many details about her work and perhaps you don't. We will all find out soon enough." He paused to let the last statement hang in the air that suddenly became choked with fear.
The three cloaked figures drew their wands, each pointed at one of the three roped to the pillars. They pronounced the same spell as one. "Crucio!"
Adrian, Ceca, and Marjana writhed in agony. Every single nerve in their bodies were burned and electrocuted all at once. Marjana did her best to endure the seemingly limitless amount of pain while Ceca let out a piercing scream.
"And yes, we have our first victim!" The man using Crucio on Ceca took one step towards her and leaned in. He questioned her with his smooth drawl. "Anything you wish to say, dear?"
"Leave... us... alone. We don't know anything." Ceca's mouth was parched and could barely utter her plea comprehensibly.
"Now you know you can do better than that, Ceca. We need solid facts, something we can use to take care of the dangerous Miss Lejla Kadare once and for all."
The man torturing Adrian Parsons made an attempt. "Surely with you working in the Ministry of Magic, you're aware of her comings and goings." The deepness of the man's voice made Adrian's chest tighten.
Adrian cringed from the after-effects of the pain coursing through his body. "Not particularly, no. I'm afraid my department and hers have little in common and I rarely have communication with Lejla."
"But you were with the two children here. Obviously your contact with Miss Kadare was more than just rare."
"I implore you to stop this madness once and for all. I know nothing of Lejla's activities within the Ministry of Magic and she is certainly not one to divulge information of that magnitude to her young daughter or friend."
The reality of Mr. Parsons' statement made a profound impact on Marjana. Her own mother had been withholding all sorts of information regarding the evils of the wizarding world. The Death Eaters were far more sinister and ruthless then she had ever thought possible. Marjana had been so used to Muggle violence that she had dismissed the concept as being present in the magical realm. Was the lack of important detail on this subject for her protection or her mother's?
The cunning voice cut in again. "Ah, but you see, that's where you may be muddling things up a bit. The Dark Lord believes that Miss Kadare could very well have passed on some secrets to either you, her daughter, or her friend for the purpose of protection or as blackmail in a desperate situation such as this."
Adrian could see under the wide-brimmed hat a malicious gleam in the man's eyes as the last statement escaped his mouth.
The man facing Marjana took his turn to make a point in his educated tone. "We have yet to hear from the one person who is the closest to Miss Kadare - Marjana." He went down on one knee and the light of the candle outlined a prominent nose and sharp jawline under his hat. "You can end all of this suffering right now. Your friend can go back to Tirana; Mr. Parsons can continue his work. Give us one bit of knowledge and all of this can be a bad dream."
"To hell with you," said Marjana. The phrase sounded completely unnatural to her, but she knew exactly how to use it. " I don't know anything and even if I did, I wouldn't tell you something that would get my mother killed."
Exhaling slowly, the man in front of Marjana took his time with his next choice of words. "You leave me few options, dear Marjana." He whirled around and aimed his wand at Ceca. "Crucio!"
This time, Marjana watched as her best friend screamed and pulled at the ropes as the pain violently ran through Ceca's body. She was brought back to the happy memories she had growing up with Ceca.
The air was cool and calm, unusual for the autumn months in Albania. Marjana and Ceca were running through the park in light parkas and singing Jarnana together, a childhood folk song.
As më jep nj'er ujë moj balluk' e prërë
Me se të të japë trendafil me ere?
Jarnana, jarnane, jarnana moj të keqëne
O me dorënde tënde moj balluk' e prërë
Dora m'u ndodh zënë trendafil me ere?
Me se t'u ndodh zënë moj balluk' e prërë?
Me unazëne tënde, trendafil me ere
O me dorënde tënde moj balluk' e prërë
Dora m'u ndodh zënë trendafil me ere?
Me se t'u ndodh zënë moj balluk' e prërë?
Me unazëne tënde, trendafil me ere
They chased each other around the trees, under the slide, and through the swings. Collapsing out of exhaustion, the two giggled and rolled around on the prickly grass until the sun began to set and they had to return home. It was a simple day where the two barely exchanged words; merely enjoying each other's company was enough to be happy. It was Marjana's most definitive memory of being Ceca's friend.
Now her friend was being tortured by Death Eaters and Marjana was absolutely powerless to stop the three evil men. She could only think of one solution to end Ceca's undeserved excruciating torment.
"All right! I'll tell you want you want to know."
The figure using the Cruciatus Curse ceased casting it. He turned back to Marjana.
"What did I tell you, gents? All it took was a little time and she came around."
"Don't tell them anything, Marjana!" pleaded Adrian. "Think of your mother! If its pain you want to inflict, use me! Leave the children alone, you mindless bastards!"
The man with the cultured tone turned to Adrian. "Now see here, old chap, you've made it perfectly clear that you can help us in no way for information on Lejla Kadare. Not to mention that Ceca is, shall we say, incapacitated and having a difficult time forming syllables at the moment, that leaves Marjana as the only one who can save all of your lives with some very carefully thought-out words."
Another man came dangerously close to Mr. Parsons, using the severe depth in his tone to frighten the Ministry of Magic worker. "As for the mindless bit, that's well out of order. We know exactly what we want and just how to get it. It isn't your namby-pamby 'protect the Muggles from what could scare them' nonsense. Rather, the opposite seems much more appealing to us. Terrify them and put them in their place. Make sure they know just who wields the power in this world. Works much the same for any witches or wizards who don't believe in the Dark Lord's might. Join or die; it's that simple."
"So Parsons, feel like dying today?"
"Not especially, you wretched thing."
Venom dripping from his words, he refocused the three on the original task. "Back to Marjana - leave the bloke to think his options over."
The two men near Adrian moved back to positions in front of Marjana and began questioning her. "Care to tell us a thing or two about your Mum now, love?"
Marjana nodded. "What do you want to know?"
"For starters, where does she work?"
She took a moment to think out the address. "61 Albemarle Street, Mayfair, London."
The figure with the sly voice bent his head in the direction of another. "And the names of any Death Eaters she is currently looking for?"
Marjana hesitated. "Mortimer Krause... Karl Svensson... Rory Breakwater."
Lies. The girl tells only lies.
"Are you certain, my Lord?"
Do you question me?
"No, no... Not at all."
Looking around, Marjana tried to locate the source of the hollow, serpentine voice. It was coming from all around them and from nowhere. Who was that? How did he know?!
"I guess that settles it, then. We gave you the chance, Marjana. It's a shame you had to do this to Ceca," the baritone voice said.
The three figures simultaneously leveled their wands at Ceca and yelled Crucio.
"For the love of... "Adrian tried to lunge forward, hoping his momentum would free him from the ropes. It only succeeded in snapping him backwards into the column.
Marjana could no longer choke back the tears, they flowed from her eyes freely as she watched her best friend flail back and forth, tightening all of her muscles in the worst agony imaginable. When Marjana thought she could no longer endure the screams, it was over. Ceca's lifeless body hung from the ropes holding her to the granite pillars while blood poured from her wrists and stained the floor as the bonds cut deeply into her flesh from fighting so fiercely.
Two figures moved back to the middle, where the candle continued to reach high into the cavity of the room. The third man returned to Marjana. He waved several large pins in front of her, about a foot and a half in length.
The scholarly voice spoke. "These little things make short work of anyone who says torture doesn't produce results. They aren't just any old pins; they're enchanted so the wound seals - all the pain and no blood loss. You can thank our Dark Lord for that idea. He's a man of many mysteries and many wonders." The cloaked figured finished with relish. He grabbed one of her hands and clasped it, palm to palm. "Ya gonna love this." He flashed a sharp, toothy grin and ran one pin straight through his hand, exiting Marjana's.
The pain was excruciating; it felt as if a fire of absolute precision was burning in the middle of her palm, from the surface to the muscles inside. Marjana couldn't scream and couldn't cry. The agony was so unbearable that it sapped her willpower to make any resistance, vocal or otherwise.
"How dare you hurt a defenseless girl like that?! It's inhuman! She's not yet twelve, man!" Adrian's cries for the torture to cease were met with a swift, yet brutal response: one of the other two men removed his hat, dusted the brim and punched Adrian with a fist so strong that it could have been made of stone. A loud crunch echoed through the chamber and the floor again became covered in blood as Mr. Parsons slumped to the hard surface.
"That leaves only you, Marjana. Since you refuse to be forthcoming with anything useful, we're going to have to do something a little more... permanent," the sharp toned man said. He looked to the ceiling as if he were expecting something to descend.
Give her the leash.
Marjana really wasn't following the conversation much anymore; again there was a bodiless voice and why they were discussing a 'leash' was far beyond her comprehension.
The three men fanned out around Marjana and held their wands at chest height. They began to murmur a strange incantation. She was unable to make out any of the words they spoke, but the air became charged with electricity and she felt the foreboding that whatever spell they were about to cast would most certainly be Dark Magic.
The man on her right stepped forward and grabbed her wrist hard. He jerked it high above her with the flesh of her forearm exposed to the energy rippling through the air. Marjana's skin began to tingle and a dark outline started tracing itself in the shape of a skull. The object raised itself from her arm and she could hear the murmuring of the incantation grow more forceful. The mark on her forearm started to throb; a dull ache at first that quickly progressed to a sharp stabbing pain. It now felt as if Marjana's arm we being severed at the elbow. She tried to fight the man's grip, but it was like a vice. She could barely stand the pain, let alone move her arm from its present position.
Electricity erupted from the ends' of two wands and jumped to her forearm. Marjana's arm was being rolled on a bed of nails and she watched as the blood coursing through her veins quickly made its way to the surface of her skin. Her forearm grew hot and all at once many different painful sensations were overwhelming Marjana. Tears were falling to the floor as she did her best to withstand whatever Dark Magic the Death Eaters were performing on her.
The energy crackled and Marjana was thrown back into the pillar as a thousand different images struck her at once and played themselves out in front of her eyes. Lord Voldemort in the forest. Robbing animals of their willpower and souls. Coexisting in the body of a weak-minded imbecile. Harry Potter. The Philosopher's Stone nearly within his reach. Then, disaster. An unforeseen consequence of inhabiting a body and not controlling one of his own. Not enough power to combat the strength of love in Harry. Expulsion.
Marjana was flooded with feelings: anger at those trying to stop him, betrayal of his Dark Powers at the most crucial moment, hatred of the family that destroyed his humanity, and hunger for something that would leave his mark on this world.
With the last scene moving in grainy slow motion, Marjana witnessed Lord Voldemort's strongest wish: the death of Harry Potter. Lying at his feet, The Boy Who Lived bled profusely and remained still. Harry's body gave up the fight to cling to life and all hopes of Voldemort's destruction vanished with the extinguishing of a legendary young wizard's flame.
Every last thought of Lord Voldemort's escaped from Marjana's mind nearly as quickly as they had previously entered. The sorcery was complete and she was left with only the vestiges of the previous rush of memories and desires. She cocked her head to examine the right forearm that now ached a great deal. A hideous black skull with a snake leaping forth from the mouth was now permanently etched into her soft, pale flesh.
The heavy activity of the last thirty minutes had left Marjana incredibly drained. She wanted nothing more than to sleep for a long, long period of time. Her eyes began to flutter and droop until they were thrown open again by the realization that one of the men approached her and hunched over to acquire her complete attention.
The man stood a mere foot away from her and met her eyes with his bottomless ones. The booming voice spoke with finality. "Now we can't go lettin' you off without anything to take home to Mum." With that statement, he doffed his hat and head-butted her in one succinct motion. He pulled away from her and jerked his head to the right, making the vertebrae in his neck resound with a sharp crack. Marjana was left dazed, blurry, black-eyed and bleeding heavily from the nose.
The man propped her head up by placing his fingers under her chin. Blood was cascading down Marjana's mouth and pooling in his palm. "I make you this promise, Marjana Kadare. You will never go anywhere without the Dark Lord at your side. He will follow you in dreams and in your every thought. No one around you whom you hold close will ever be safe in your company again."
