Chapter Twenty One

A/N: No reviewers.

When Lilly heard the gruff shouting voices of around twenty men echoing through the corridors, she knew that it was done. In the silence of her lonely room, even her quiet laugh seemed to reverberate around her, as loud as a clap of thunder, but for once, she did not care if she was heard.

She had made sure to calm herself by the time one of the Death Eaters came to fetch her. There was a fine line between joy and folly, one she certainly could not afford to cross. Her position was precarious enough as it was.

When she was brought before the Dark Lord, her legs trembled beneath her, but this was not entirely out of fear. She was channelling all of her power into retaining the block on her mind, to make sure that she was not discovered. If she was, it would be the end of everything.

"Ah, Lillianna." greeted the Dark Lord, his voice a serpentine hiss. Over time, Lilly had thought she would get used to his voice, the way he managed to conceal threats behind pleasantries so well, but still it sent a shiver up her spine. "It is regrettable to be forced to call you here at such a late hour, but I wonder if you could offer me assistance in something."

Lilly bowed her head slightly, the very image of the obedient servant. "Anything, my Lord."

"The red-headed boy who was imprisoned here earlier today," he began, culling all hope that his talking to her could be in reference to something different. "It would seem that he has escaped. I know that he is a dear friend of your brother's and therefore, naturally, I thought of you."

She had practised her lies on so many occasions that they had become second nature to her. "I agree, my half-brother does have a regrettable choice of companions, my Lord, but I do not share anything with them. They are nothing but a group of Mudbloods, traitors and Muggle-lovers. They are a disgrace to the name of wizard."

For a moment, just a moment, Lord Voldemort seemed impressed. For a fleeting second, his thin, pale lips curled into a smile. Just as quickly, it was gone.

"Were you not raised as a Muggle yourself, Lillianna?" She was still unused to hearing the word Muggle spoken in that way, spat like a curse, like poison.

"I was, my Lord," He knew the truth, so there was no point in disguising it. "And it shames me every day to think my life was so polluted by my upbringing. I am a witch, after all. I should not have been forced to endure such a mundane existence when I had such a powerful world to call my own."

The words tasted bitter on her tongue long after she had spoken them. Not only was she betraying her values, but she was betraying the people who had raised her, a man and woman who lay in the ground because they had loved a child they had not known was different.

Realising her mistake, Lilly pushed her thoughts to the back of her mind. She could not afford to lose focus, not when she was lying to the face of the most skilled Legilimens in living memory.

Thankfully, the Dark Lord seemed too distracted to notice, as he paced back and forth, sighing with barely-concealed annoyance. For a moment, his frustration made him appear different, almost... human. But it was gone as quickly as it appeared, and the man turned his red eyes once more towards his servant.

"Nonetheless," he began again, and between the slits for his nose and the hiss of his voice, he bore a striking resemblance to Nagini. 'We defeated Nagini.' Lilly reminded herself, in the hope that the thought would give her strength. "You grew up around this boy, constantly in his company. You know him well."

"I suppose I do, my Lord." she answered, proud of herself for keeping the tremble from her voice. She could feel her resolve weakening. 'Let me go.'

"So you must know where he would have planned to flee, should he be able to escape from here." She could feel the Dark Lord probing at her mind, sapping her strength with each passing second. 'Let me go.' she pleaded desperately. 'Let me go, let me go, let me go.'

But luck, as always, was set against her. The snake-like man took a step towards her, then another, then another, until he was stood so close to her that she was certain he could hear her racing heartbeat. The Dark Lord's eyes squinted a little more, as though he was examining her, and instantly Lilly realised why. She was using so much energy on her Occlumency that she was beginning to sway on the spot, unable to summon the strength to keep herself still.

"You seem unwell, Lillianna?" the man hissed, and Lilly felt her strength fading rapidly as he redoubled his efforts to discover the truth. "Is something the matter?"

'I can't do this anymore,' she realised in horror. 'I don't have the strength to keep it a secret any longer. I'm going to let him down. He's going to find out. He's going to find out.'

Lilly closed her eyes, taking a deep breath in. She could feel the Dark Lord's eyes boring into her, felling the final barriers in her mind, unlocking the secret of where Ron had escaped to. There was no other choice. It was the only way to keep Ron safe.

And so she took the risk, with a recklessness that could only be attributed to a Gryffindor. She opened her eyes, reached for the wand concealed in her belt and turned, disappearing in a rush of air which concealed a shout of rage. She felt a hand grasp at her as she moved, she felt a stab of agonising pain.

Then everything went dark, and Lilly felt nothing at all.

A/N: I know it's been a while, but please review!