Chapter 9:
The Low Places
The sun shone brightly in the sky above the only place in the world that cared very little about its warmth or beauty. Below was misery and despair, but this was the one place that the wretched called home and the Dementors were allowed to revel and feast on tortured human souls. Even someone as cold and heartless as Bellatrix Lestrange felt the chill as she stepped onto the grounds of Azkaban prison. She began to imagine a world without her Dark Lord and she shuddered, steeling herself for the task ahead. She'd learnt to survive in this place by embracing the horror, but ever since the Dark Lords' return she had begun to feel the promise of glory again. In this place, her hopes were as deadly as a dagger to the heart. This would be harder than she thought.
She could tell when the Dementors were examining her, they'd tasted her soul before, but they seemed to realise that she was part of a greater plan that involved their freedom and for that reason she was allowed to continue.
Bellatrix walked purposefully through the grounds until a single Dementor drifted in front of her, blocking her way ahead.
"I'm here to see Lucius Malfoy."
The Dementor took a long rattling intake of breath and Bellatrix felt the cold wash over her as her mind flashed over images of the day she'd feared the Dark Lord had been defeated.
"The Dark Lord wishes it." She said, fighting to keep her voice steady as her body began to tremble. She chose her next words carefully "My Brother-in-law has vital information that our lord needs. He will be grateful to hear that you have assisted me."
Suddenly, the chill lifted, but the Dementor continued to float silently in front of her. Somewhere under the shadow of its hood something shifted and slowly it turned and headed into the prison. Bellatrix followed with a wry smile.
After following the Dementor through the endless corridors of screams and pitiful sobs, they stopped in front of a lonely cell. The air around it felt warmer than the rest of the prison, and when she looked inside her brother-in-law was sitting on a tattered mattress that clung to an ancient, rusty frame. The Dementor drifted a short distance away, returning to the cold, darkness of the corridor beyond, however Bellatrix could feel its gaze on them. She didn't care that it watched though, she wasn't about to free her brother-in-law. He deserved to be in here, she wasn't even sure that he was a true believer anymore.
"Aren't you looking well!" Bellatrix sneered.
Lucius jumped and stared at her with wide, hollow eyes. His despair was etched in every filth ridden line of his tired face and in every tear of his Azkaban robes.
"B... Bellatrix?" He croaked. Clearly his voice had been used for little other than screaming recently.
Bellatrix leaned casually against the bars of cell and grinned cruelly at him
"What's the matter Lucius? Caviar not to your liking?"
"If you've come to gloat…"
"Actually I've come to offer you a chance at redemption, though I don't think you deserve it."
"… Redemption?"
She couldn't help but smile as his horror filled eyes slowly regained some of their old bearing. She knew that giving him hope was just offering more food for the prison guards and she toyed with the idea of leaving him here for a while to let him feel the effects. But the task at hand was more important than her playfulness. If her Lord Voldemort was to find the boy first then they would be one step closer to their new, perfect world. She would have plenty of time to play then.
"We may have found a use for you again Lucius." Bellatrix studied her brother-in-law closely as he listened. She was pleased to see that he appeared eager for a second chance.
"Do you remember anything about a guild of collectors? Or was I wrong to believe you had dealings with them in the past?" She asked.
Lucius frowned and blinked as he forced his brain to remember
"A… I remember being a member once, just as my father was."
"Once? You mean, you aren't still?"
Lucius squared his shoulders a little, sensing an opportunity
"What is it the Dark Lord wishes to know?"
"I wish to know everything about them, they may have something that the Dark Lord wants."
"And what do I get in return?"
Bellatrix looked appalled
"What do you mean by that exactly? I'm giving you the opportunity to prove you still serve the Dark Lord, and that is not enough for you?"
"No, that's not what I meant…"
"Save your breath and tell me what I need to know, and when I tell the Dark Lord how eager you were to help you can pray that I find him to be in a merciful mood."
"Alright!" Lucius had moved closer to her on the bed, what little strength remaining in his body groaning at even this small effort, but the fear that she had instilled in him was clear in his once proud form and he straightened as best he could, pulling a lock of his scruffy hair behind his ear.
"I was an elite member of an exclusive collector's guild until it was disbanded, the guild master himself came and told me, he said we'd apparently all lost sight of the real reason the guild had existed in the first place. Almost immediately after that the old networks broke down, but I was concerning myself with matters of greater importance at that time, so they no longer mattered."
Bellatrix laughed out loud, and the noise echoed otherworldly around the cell
"What 'matters'?"
Lucius pulled his shoulders straighter
"It was about the time the Dark Lord was coming to power, the very beginning when we both were there, offering our support."
Bellatrix continued to chuckle, but she picked up on his feeble attempt to remind her of his role. Although she still doubted his true intentions, he had been a fine pure-blood match for her sister. Despite her doubts Bellatrix couldn't deny that the name of Malfoy still had its uses.
"So did you know who the Guild Master was?"
"I knew his face only. Only the Guild Master knew of our names and we never knew his, however my father knew the guild master before him…"
"Can you remember his name then?"
"Ah… Pilkington I think, yes… Archibald Pilkington… He had a daughter Emily who, I think, married her father's successor."
Bellatrix felt herself becoming frustrated
"This is not a great deal to go on Lucius…"
"Wait! I… I think I remember the guild master saying that his wife had died… he talked about his little girl… 'Little Isabella' … but there was more to the guild than just the Guild Master."
"… explain."
"We had… certain… people, at our disposal. Specialists who could help in finding the objects we sought."
Bellatrix huffed loudly, causing Lucius to flinch
"I can tell you how to contact them!" He offered desperately "There's a red and gold gilded ledger in my vault, Narcissa will access it for you… if you write your request in there then they'll come to you."
Though she had been showing nothing but distain at Lucius' words, inside she had been drinking them in hungrily. She knew her sister would be more than willing to help.
"So that's it? That's all you know?"
Lucius nodded, beginning to look frantic, his eyes pleading
"It was a very secret oraganision, the fact that I know even that is more than anyone else could ever tell you."
Bellatrix stepped back from the bars of the cell and was almost immediately joined by the observing Dementor who glided silently behind her and started to navigate its way out of the maze of corridors, having sensed Bellatrix' desire to leave.
Lucius looked more desperate than ever, and Bellatrix smiled again
"I'll pass on your regards to my sister." She gloated as she turned and followed the Dementor.
As she walked away she heard Lucius adding his own sobs to the Azkaban symphony, and she felt greatly satisfied at the sound. Without another thought for her brother-in-law, she set her sights on Malfoy Manor.
