Disclaimer: All the characters belong to the amazing J.K Rowling.
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Chapter Ten: The Escape
Harry opened his eyes as he woke up from his nap. He had no idea what time it was, or how long he'd been locked up in the cold, dark dungeon. How long had they been in here? Two, three days? A week? The days seemed to drag on forever, each passing hour draining them more and more of their hope.
The only thing that kept Harry and the others spirits up was the fact that Hermione had somehow managed to escape this wretched place. Pettigrew, completely charmed by Luna, told them all about it. How Bellatrix asked Draco to torture the mudblood, how the Death Eaters laughed and jeered at him when he had been unable to do so, and how Draco ended up Disapparating with Hermione.
Ron had gone completely ballistic when he first heard about the news of Hermione's escape.
"Why in Merlin's good name would Malfoy save Hermione? He completely loathes her!"
"I don't know, Ron. Maybe...maybe he's had a change of heart? After all, he never did reveal who I was when his father sent him to identify me." he replied.
"Yeah, well, that's different! Maybe he was just too bloody frightened to make a mistake!"
"He knew it was me, Ron. I could tell by the look in his eyes. He didn't want to give me away...something in him stopped him from giving me away." realization dawned on Harry as he said it.
"There's always something innately good in everyone, Ronald. Not everyone is irredeemable." stated a serene Luna.
"But this is Malfoy we're talking about! Malfoy! The bloody git who strutted about Hogwarts, convinced of his own superiority to other students. The Prince of Slytherin who despised Mudbloods! And everyone knows that Hermione and Malfoy hated each other, who's to say he didn't just disappear with Hermione so that he could do away with her himself?"
"I don't think he'd do that, mate. Malfoy's a right foul git, I know, but he's not stupid. Why would he risk getting disowned by his family and be branded as a bloodtraitor and an enemy of the Death Eaters just because of little school rivalry? It's not bloody worth it, if you ask me. Besides, Bellatrix would've killed Hermione in the end anyways, there was no point in him taking her away so that he could do away with her himself." Dean reasoned out.
In the end, that had shut Ron up, and he went back to being his normal, surly self, turning the Deluminator on and off repeatedly until Luna took it away from him.
"Stop it, Ronald, can't you see it's bothering Ollivander?" Luna scolded.
Ron glanced over to the corner of the dungeon, where Ollivander was crouching, his hands over his eyes as he moaned silently in pain.
"Oh...right. Merlin, I'm sorry, Ollivander. Didn't know it bothered you so much." Ron murmured sheepishly as Luna comforted the sick old wandmaker.
The gates of the dungeons opened and Pettigrew stepped in, holding his wand threateningly to the prisoners to keep them from escaping. He was holding a rather large sack, which contained their food provisions for the day, Harry guessed. They had learned to ration the food that was given to them, as they had no idea when the next bag of food would be given. Pettigrew had neglected to give them any food for a day when Ron had threatened the servant, overpowering him and pinning him up against the wall with his hands clasped around his throat. Luckily for Pettigrew, Yaxley happened to pass by the dungeons that exact same moment, and Ron released him immediately.
Pettigrew dropped the bag as far away from the prisoners as possible, and retreated immediately.
"Hmm…that's interesting." commented Luna.
"What's interesting, Luna?" Harry asked, expecting to hear Luna babble about Nargle infestations or something of the sort.
"Pettigrew didn't seal the gates with an enchantment this time."
"What?" Harry sat up immediately. "Are you sure, Luna?"
"Positive. I also noticed he was acting quite strange today. I wonder why." she replied dreamily.
"Who cares why? Pettigrew forgot to lock the gates, we're free!" exclaimed Ron as he bolted for the door immediately.
"Wait!" Harry shouted at Ron. "It's too easy…it might be a trap. We have to think this through."
"No, I'm done waiting Harry! I've been stuck in this dingy old dungeon for days, not knowing what's happened to Hermione, not knowing what's happened to my family…and now we have a chance at escaping, I'm not gonna let it pass!" shouted Ron, with a manic gleam in his eyes. Imprisonment had not been good to him.
Before Harry or the others could reply, Ron opened the dungeon gates and started up the stairs.
"Dean, Luna! Help Mr. Ollivander up the stairs, I'll meet you there. This is it…we're leaving!" Harry ordered his old schoolmates. He wasn't about to let Ron escape alone, lest he encounter Death Eaters along the way.
Harry immediately caught up with Ron, who was at the top of the stairs. He was standing there, looking petrified, and Harry only had to glance to his left to see wh. Pettigrew stood there, his wand pointed at Ron. Harry had no choice, he ran and tackled Pettigrew, who fell on the ground. Ron, breaking out of his trance, immediately helped Harry and seized Wormtail's wand arm and forced it upward; Harry slapped a hand to his mouth, muffling his voice. Silently they struggled: Wormtail's wand emitted sparks, his silver hand closed around Harry's throat.
"You're going to kill me?" Harry choked, attempting to pry off the metal fingers. "After I saved your life? You owe me, Wormtail!"
The silver fingers slackened. Harry had not expected it: He wrenched himself free, astonished, keeping his hand over Wormtail's mouth. He saw the ratlike man's small watery eyes widen with fear and surprise: He seemed just as shocked as Harry at what his hand had done, at the tiny, merciful impulse it had betrayed, and he continued to struggle more powerfully, as though to undo that moment of weakness.
"And we'll have that," whispered Ron, tugging Wormtail's wand from his other hand.
Wandless, helpless, Pettigrew's pupils dilated in terror. His eyes had slid from Harry's face to something else. His own silver fingers were moving inexorably towards his own throat.
"No!" shouted Harry. Without pausing to think, he tried to drag back the hand, but there was no stopping it. The silver tool that Voldemort had given his most cowardly servant had turned upon its disarmed and useless owner; Pettigrew was reaping his reward for his hesitation, his moment of pity; he was being strangled before their eyes.
"No!" Ron had released Wormtail too, and together he and Harry tried to pull the crushing metal fingers from around Wormtail's throat, but it was no use. Pettigrew was turning blue.
"Relashio!" said Ron, pointing the wand at the silver hand, but nothing happened; Pettigrew dropped to his knees, and his eyes rolled upward in his purple face; he gave a last twitch, and was still.
Luna and the others arrived by that point, the three of them looking astonished with what had happened to the ratlike servant.
"Not everyone is irredeemable." whispered Luna in a voice that made Harry's spine tingle.
"Come on guys, we have to move fast before someone sees us." Dean said, breaking the silence.
They left Pettigrew lying on the floor and proceeded to go to the Drawing Room, where they knew they could Apparate out of. Ron handed Harry the wand he stole from Pettigrew, saying that he was much better at casting defensive spells than he was.
The group silently sneaked across the manor, careful not to make too much noise that would alert the Death Eaters of their presence. They almost made it across the ballroom, when Ollivander had a terrible coughing fit.
"Who's there?" shouted a man whom Harry recognized as Dolohov, one of the Death Eaters who had attacked them at Tottenham Court Road.
"Rowle, they're escaping! The prisoners are escaping!" Dolohov shouted once more, alerting his fellow Death Eater as he spotted the prisoners.
"Expelliarmus!" shouted Harry.
Dolohov's wand flew out of his hand, and was promptly caught by Ron. Dolohov, undaunted, ran towards the prisoners with the intent of attacking them in physical combat.
"Everte Statum!" yelled Ron, sending Dolohov flying the opposite way, crashing to the wall and landing in an unconscious heap.
"Nice one." said Harry, grinning.
"Always the tone of surprise." replied Ron, grinning as well.
"Listen, you three make your way to the Drawing Room and try to Apparate your way out of there. Ron and I will try to keep away any Death Eaters that might follow you."
"Where exactly are we going to Apparate to, mate?" Dean asked.
"Bill and Fleur's" said Ron. "Shell Cottage on the outskirts of Tinworth."
Dean nodded and assisted Luna and Ollivander as they made their way to the Drawing Room.
Dolohov's crash alerted the other Death Eaters, and Thorfinn Rowle came running down the grand staircase immediately.
"THE PRISONERS ARE ESCAPING!" he shouted, seeing Harry and Ron in the center of the ballroom, and the other three prisoners slowly making their way to the Drawing Room.
He fired a Killing Curse towards them, which passed a few inches away from Ron.
"Stupefy!" shouted Harry, but Rowle deflected the spell with a mere flick of his wand.
By then, two other Death Eaters had arrived on the scene. There were now three of them, causing Harry and Ron to be outnumbered. The duo fought hard, though, and for a while the fight was even between the two sides.
"Enjoying the view, are we?" Bellatrix whispered into Lucius's ear as she found him watching the scene, hidden in the shadows.
"Merlin, Bella! Don't scare me like that, I would've cursed you to oblivion!" exclaimed a startled Lucius.
Bellatrix merely giggled. "Looks like everything's going according to plan." she said smugly.
"And what if Potter and Weasley lose the fight?"
"Do you honestly think that Rowle, Crabbe and Goyle would be able to beat them? They're idiots! Why do you think I made sure they were the only Death Eaters on duty tonight?"
"And how exactly did our prisoners get out of the dungeons?"
"I placed our little Wormtail under the Imperius Curse, and he made him conveniently forget to lock the doors to the dungeon." grinned Bellatrix.
"The Dark Lord will kill him if he finds out." stated Lucius.
"Better him than us." Bellatrix shrugged, completely unfazed.
"This plan better work, Bella. Or else we're done for." said Lucius, worrying about the consequences of the plan.
"Don't be stupid, of course it'll work! Do you dare doubt my word?" hissed Bellatrix.
"O-of course not. But what if it does fail?"
"Stop worrying, Lucius! Potter and Weasley will escape, and Draco will get into the Order's good graces once he cures the Mudblood. They'll think he's been reformed or redeemed, and he'll be privy to all of their information. And once he tells us all about their plans, we report them to the Dark Lord and we'll be redeemed in his eyes. It's simple!"
"You better be right, Bella, or else we've just let the most wanted boy in the Wizarding World slip right under our noses."
Bellatrix turned to look at the scene below them. Lucius was right, Potter and Weasley were winning against the three other Death Eaters. Rowle had managed to hit Potter with a curse, and the latter was bleeding onto the marble floor. Weasley, in turn had retaliated with an Impedimenta Jinx, causing Rowle to be immobilized. Crabbe and Goyle, on the other hand, seemed to have forgotten all about their wands and were running across the ballroom. Bellatrix winced when the two almost got close enough to tackle the young wizards, but Potter quickly shouted "Expulso!", and the columns of the ballroom collapsed, forming a barricade between the the two boys and the Death Eaters. With no one to hinder them from escaping, the two boys ran towards the drawing room, blasted the doors open, and the Disapparated.