Harry raised his face to the sky, letting the drops of rain land on his face, giving him the feeling of being somewhat refreshed. He stopped walking for a moment as the rain fell steadily. He allowed himself a few moments of relaxation before he continued walking.

He folded his arm across his stomach as he walked, pressing gently in an attempt to alleviate the strong hunger and thirst that he felt. A wave of dizziness swept over him for a moment, and he leant against a close by tree for support. When the dizziness had passed, he straightened himself up, and forced himself to move on.

It had been raining for a while, and it hadn't taken long for Harry to become soaked and chilled to the bone. He rubbed his upper arms, trying to warm them through his soaked clothing, but his extremities were already feeling numb with cold. He raised his hands in front of his face, seeing them in the light from the crescent moon. His hands and arms looked like a pale shade of grey, the droplets of water standing out clearly.

Brushing back the wet hair from his face, he stopped for a moment, turning on the spot, carefully looking around him. Even through the noise of the rain, he was sure that he had heard somebody behind him. Or was he just imagining things?

When nothing obvious caught his attention, he continued on his path, mentally shaking his head. He wondered briefly if he was going crazy, if his hunger was making him hallucinate, and hear things that weren't there.

He suddenly remembered with a pang, that it would be Ginny's birthday on the eleventh, and wondered in awe how long it had been since he had been taken. The way things were looking he wouldn't be back for her birthday. He hoped momentarily, that Sirius would somehow find the gift that he had already brought for her. Hidden beneath his bed were a new pair of women's Quidditch gloves, and a beaded bracelet that Ginny had hinted she liked.

There it was again! Harry stopped in his tracks, now completely sure that he wasn't imagining things. Straining his eyes, he turned around slowly, but wasn't able to see very much in the dark without his glasses.

Something hard and heavy slammed into his body, pushing him to the ground. He felt all the breath leave his body, as the powerful smell of sweat, dirt, and blood overrode his senses. Harry struggled desperately against Greyback, but the werewolf easily over powered him, pinning him to the ground.

Harry yelled as Greyback clawed at his chest, his wounds feeling as though they were on fire. Harry struggled against the massive weight that was restricting his breaths, and Greyback clawed at his face and stomach mercilessly. He pulled his arm out from under his body where it had been pinned, and thrust his thumb hard into Greyback's eye.

The werewolf yelled in pain, releasing Harry momentarily, and he seized his chance. Harry pulled himself from under the werewolf made to run, but had only gone a few steps when Greyback grabbed his arm, spinning him around to face him before pinning his victim to the ground again. Suddenly a bright flash of light hit Greyback square on, forcing him away from Harry, moments after regaining the upper hand. Not caring where the flash of light came from, Harry dragged himself to his feet again, and bolted, ignoring the white hot pain that flooded the wounds Greyback had left.

Harry darted through the trees, their twigs and branches scratching at him, but he barely felt them as he ran. The ground sloped suddenly and he stumbled, trying to compensate for the change. Thunder crashed overhead, and the bolt of lightning that followed seemed to light the whole area, showing him where to go.

When he looked over his shoulder and saw nobody following him, relief washed over him. He slowed to a stop and leaned against a tree. He lowered himself to the ground, gasping breaths of air. Pressing his palm gently to his chest, he winced at the pain. He nearly yelled in frustration when he saw the blood seeping through his clothing. He realized he was trembling in shock, and noticed the other wounds on his arms and neck, each of them steadily bleeding.

A jet of red light flash just above his head, missing him by mere inches. Harry immediately pulled himself to his feet and began running again, not bothering to find out who had sent the curse his way. The rain pounded down as he dashed through the dense trees, obscuring his vision so badly that he almost didn't see the Death Eater that appeared in the trees just ahead of him.

He ducked as another jet of red light soared in his direction, and made to continue running, his heart pounding wildly as panic flooded his mind. He stopped dead in his tracks as another Death Eater appeared ahead of him. He spun around on the spot, looking desperately for a way out as more Death Eaters appeared, surrounding him on all sides as thunder crashed.

Everybody seemed to freeze for a moment, none of them believing he had been caught so easily. Quickly, someone grabbed him from behind and he lashed out at them, trying hopelessly to get away. He yelled furiously as another Death Eater grabbed hold of him, subduing him as the shouts of Rudolphus Lestrange echoed through the forest near him.

"What did we tell you!? The Dark Lord said not to kill him!"

"I barely hurt him!" Greyback roared back.

A hand grasped Harry's arms tightly, and he felt himself being apparated before he could do anything to stop it. He was quickly released from the sensation, and he felt his knees buckle from the shock. He tried to break away from the strong grasp, when he found himself on the front steps of the Riddle Manor. Loud cracks echoed through the air as the other Death Eaters arrived, their wands pointed solely at him.

He fought furiously as they grabbed hold of him again, throwing the front doors open and half dragging him through. They brought him into the largest room, releasing him, and throwing him to the ground with a sharp slap to his face. He landed on the ground hard, frozen, and shivering in shock as he drew in great ragged breaths.

"Hello, Harry," a harsh voice said. "Welcome back."

For a moment, Harry looked up into the eyes of Voldemort, before he looked back down at the ground, forcing himself into a half sitting position. He kept his eyes downcast, refusing to look at Voldemort, anger and despair flooding through his body. He couldn't believe he had let himself get caught again.

"You aren't going to try that again, are you?" Voldemort said coldly.

Harry stared at the ground, refusing to answer. Voldemort flicked his wand lazily, and Harry gasped loudly, clenching his hands into fists as a great pain shot across his back.

"Are you?" Voldemort said again, not as a question, but as a statement. Harry gasped again as Voldemort flicked his wand. He clenched his jaws together as he tried to bite back another gasp of pain, and he tensed his body, trying to alleviate the pain.

"Answer me! Imperio!"

The Imperious curse hit him suddenly, giving him no chance to prepare himself. He instantly felt his body relaxing as all thought was wiped from his mind. The overwhelming urge to answer 'no' seized him, and he struggled to resist, but he couldn't. He couldn't sum up the energy, and he instantly submitted to Voldemort's will.

"No," he said softly.

Satisfied, Voldemort lifted the curse, the pain and realization of his situation rushed back to Harry all at once. He swayed on the spot as he struggled to keep calm, realizing fully that Voldemort had overpowered him yet again.

"Tell me the contents of the prophecy," Voldemort ordered, knowing that he would have his answer by the end of the evening.

"No," Harry replied bluntly. He tried to prepare himself, knowing Voldemort would use the imperious curse on him again. He kicked himself inwardly for submitting to the curse, vowing not to let it happen again.

"Tell me, Imperio."

The sensation engulfed him again, and the memory of Trelawney reciting the prophecy
floated into his mind. He tried to get it over with quickly, before he had a proper chance
of submitting.

'No,' he thought to himself fiercely. 'Just answer no.'

"No," he said firmly, more to himself than anyone else. Voldemort stepped forward angrily, raising his wand.

"What was that?" he asked, almost sounding polite and curious.

"I said no!" Harry answered, his anger getting the better of him. Not that he cared.

"Imperio!"

"No!" Harry said loudly, before he even had a chance to feel the curse's sensations.

Voldemort flicked his wand at Harry, his anger growing. He had thought for a moment that the boy was going to submit to his will, only to have him fighting back even stronger than before.

Harry clenched his fists and jaws together, managing to withhold his gasp of pain. He began to feel light headed, and looked down towards the newest wounds on his chest, arms and stomach. He breathed a momentary sigh of relief that although they hurt like hell, they had stopped bleeding, being rather shallow.

Harry looked up at Voldemort for a moment, who was studying him blankly.

"How much more persuasion do you need, Potter?" he asked tonelessly.

"Obviously, a lot more," Harry replied, looking back down at the ground. "I'm not telling you anything."

Voldemort considered the reply for a moment, before coming to his decision. He looked towards Rodolphus Lestrange, and gave a small nod, clearly conveying his message.

Harry looked up slightly as Rodolphus left the circle, and met eyes with the shortest member of the group. Peter Pettigrew stared at him wide-eyed as though he had never seen him before, shaking from head to foot. Pettigrew looked from Harry to Voldemort, then back to Harry, obviously strung between two allegiances. Voldemort caught the looked that Pettigrew gave Harry, but his eyes moved on and he seemed not to have noticed.

"Is there anything you'd like to change your mind about, Harry?" Voldemort said casually, the Death Eaters quickly forming a large gap in the circle as Rodolphus re-entered the room.

Harry looked sideways and saw with horror, Ginny being dragged into the circle. His heart plummeted as he saw her, and he immediately made to jump towards her.

"Ginny!"

Two Death Eaters leapt forward at him, pulling him away from her and covering his mouth as he began panicking. Harry struggled furiously against them, and Ginny began to cry, her tears spilling onto Rodolphus' hand as he held it over her mouth, his other hand holding his wand against her throat.

"Tell me the prophecy," Voldemort said simply. "Or she dies, right now."

Somebody had clasped their hand over his mouth, and he screamed through it, struggling as he tried to communicate his message of submission to Voldemort.

"What was that?" Voldemort asked mockingly. "Kill her?"

Panic overrode Harry at these words, and he struggled harder shaking his head 'no'.

"Oh," Voldemort said. "Well let's have some fun, while you make your decision."

Voldemort turned from Harry and faced Ginny, her eyes wide with fear. Tears still streaming down her face as she shook considerably.

"Crucio!"

Ginny collapsed to the ground, her screams piercing through Harry like nothing before. Harry lashed out in anger and fear, and one of the Death Eaters let go of him in shock.

"Stop it!" he screamed. "Stop it! I'll tell you!"

Voldemort lowered his wand and the curse was lifted, only moments after it had been cast. Ginny lay on the ground sobbing and trembling. Rodolphus bent down and dragged her back to her knees, pointing his wand at her throat again. Voldemort turned towards Harry, thoroughly satisfied.

"You will tell me what the prophecy entails?" Voldemort asked quietly.

"Yes," Harry answered. "But you have to let her go."

"Why would I do that?" Voldemort asked in a mocking tone. "She's such good company."

"If you don't let her go, I'm not telling you anything," Harry said. He no longer cared about what information he gave up, only that Ginny was safe. He looked over to her, and she shook her head at him, clearly saying 'don't tell him.'

Voldemort considered the boy's proposition, knowing it would only be too easy to bring her, or somebody else back whenever he so desired.

"You tell me the contents of the prophecy, and my faithful Death Eaters will return her to her family home."

"Unharmed?" Harry questioned, his heart pounding in his chest, knowing Ginny's life depended on what he said and did.

"Completely," Voldemort replied.

Harry looked down at the ground. He knew that he couldn't trust Voldemort, but he had no choice. He couldn't let Ginny die for something that Voldemort would only find out eventually.

"I can't remember it exactly," Harry began softly. He didn't look up, but he knew that every eye in the room was fixed solely on himself. "But it meant, that the only person with a chance at killing you, would be born at the end of July. To parents who had already defied you three times."

"And to who, did it refer?" Voldemort asked, even though he already knew the answer.

"To me," Harry replied. He looked towards Ginny for a moment, her eyes wide in shock. He remembered briefly that she did not know the contents of the prophecy yet herself.

Voldemort stared down at Potter. If what the boy was saying was true, then he was the only one who could kill him. The sudden urge to kill the boy loomed over his head, but he forced it away using his better judgment. He decided to make the most of his obvious advantage.

"What do the order members discuss during meetings?"

Harry's pounding heart sank in his chest, having no idea what the members discussed during meetings.

"I don't know," he replied truthfully.

"Yes, you do."

"No," Harry replied firmly. "They never let me in. They never tell me anything."

Voldemort paused, considering the truthfulness of the boy's words. Seeing Voldemort pause, Harry continued.

"Am I really in a position to lie?"

"In that case," Voldemort replied. "Where did Dumbledore go, during his absences from Hogwarts."

Harry laughed shortly, masking the jolt of panic that shot through his body. He looked up at Voldemort incredulously

"Do you really think Dumbledore told me that kind of stuff?" he lied. "He never told me anything. He could have been on holidays in Hawaii for all I know."

Harry looked Voldemort in the eye as he said this, praying to Merlin that he didn't give himself away. Voldemort looked away from Harry and stared at Ginny, who was still shaking from his curse. He remembered briefly of how she had poured her innermost thoughts into the diary, in which he had preserved his sixteen year old self in. He smiled and raised his wand at her.

"Crucio!"

Ginny collapsed to the floor again, screaming in agony as Harry began struggling against his captives captors, begging Voldemort to stop.

"Stop it!" he screamed again. "I don't know, ask me something else, just stop it!"

Voldemort relaxed his wand, lifting the curse from Ginny, who again lay on the ground trembling and sobbing. Harry let out a shaky breath and looked at Ginny as she was being pulled to her knees again. Her face was stark white, tears rolling steadily down her cheeks. He looked away, feeling as though he himself would break down if he continued looking at her.

"What did Dumbledore tell you, during your meetings?" Voldemort asked tonelessly.

Harry paused, deciding on the truth. "He told me about you, and your past."

"Go on," Voldemort prompted.

He hesitated, trying to decide how best to word his answer. "He told me about when you were born, and where you grew up. And he told me about the first time he met you."

"What else?" Voldemort prompted again, his patience growing thin.

"A bit about you at Hogwarts, and that's it."

Voldemort stared at Harry, who refused to meet his eyes. He knew for sure that there was more that he wasn't being told. But he decided not to push the matter. There would be plenty of time for that. For now he had to let the girl go, or Potter would never give information in the future.

He turned to Rodolphus, who held a tight grip on the girl. "Well Rodolphus, take our guest back to her home."

Harry breathed an obvious sigh of relief and looked towards Ginny. Her eyes were filled with terror as Rodolphus pulled her to her feet. She looked at Harry, terrified of going home and leaving him here.

"No!" she cried as she struggled against Rodolphus.

"No, Harry! Please come with me!"

Harry turned away, breathing shallowly as his throat and chest began to constrict. He felt as though he were about to break down at any moment, her cries for him only making it worse. He saw from the corner of his eye Voldemort turning his wand on him, as though fearing he would try and run to Ginny. Ginny however, was dragged from the room forcibly, just as Peter stepped forward. Torn between his allegiance to Lord Voldemort and the debt he owed to Harry, he didn't even realize that he had moved to shield Harry. Voldemort turned sharply, staring at Peter curiously.

"Avada Kedavra!"

A flash of green light shone through the room, and Peter Pettigrew crumpled to the floor, dead. Harry's heart seemed to skip a beat, and he froze in shock. He could hear Ginny screaming for him from the next room, screaming as though her life depended on it. Her screams quickly disappeared into the distance, and Voldemort began speaking. The Death Eaters stood rooted to the spot, shocked at the sudden murder.

"Peter Pettigrew was never completely loyal to my cause. He was merely a coward, hiding behind those who could look after him."

Voldemort stopped, and turned to Harry. "You don't really think I would have let him live much longer do you? Not while he is solely in your debt."

Harry tore his eyes away from Pettigrew, and looked at Voldemort, saying nothing. Voldemort turned away from him, his eyes scanning the circle, looking for a particular Death Eater.

"Draco," he said coldly.

"Yes, my Lord?" Draco replied, stepping forward into the circle and drawing back his hood. His skin seemed paler than usual, save for the large bruise on his face, and he was shaking considerably.

"Draco, the Dark Lord is very forgiving, but let me remind you of your mistakes. You failed to kill Dumbledore on numerous occasions, you let Potter escape, twice. You let him escape, even though you carried a wand, and were much stronger, is that correct?"

"Yes my Lord," Malfoy replied, his voice shaky. "It is."

Voldemort sneered, his lip curling up a little. "Draco, one mistake is forgivable. Two, is just plain stupid. But three is suicide."

The whole room was silent, waiting for the words that would end Draco's life. But they never came.

"Don't make your third," Voldemort said coldly.

"I won't, my Lord," Malfoy replied mechanically, before raising his hood and stepping backwards as though he had been burned.

Voldemort seemed to smile with satisfaction, then spoke again.

"Yaxley," Voldemort said.

"Yes my Lord?"

"Dispose of the body," he replied, gesturing to Peter.

Voldemort turned on the spot as Yaxley whipped out his wand, and sat down comfortably in his large armchair. He waited until the body had been levitated from the room before he continued.

"You have done well, Death Eaters, to bring back our guest. But it is not to happen again. I want at least one of you outside that room at all times."

There was a murmured assent around the room as the Death Eaters nodded, hardly daring to speak.

"Severus," Voldemort continued. "I don't want to see, nor hear from our guest for quite some time. See to it, would you?"

"Yes my Lord," he replied. "I understand."

Voldemort nodded in satisfaction, and looked around the circle again.

"You two," he said, looking at the two tallest Death Eaters. "Take the boy upstairs, and do what ever it is that Severus requires."

"Yes my Lord," they replied, before quickly approaching Harry.

His heart pounded again as they grabbed him roughly by each elbow, one of them flicking their wand and fastening his hands behind his back. He let them guide him roughly upstairs, Snape following behind them. Already the ropes had begun to rub against the skin on his arm, the skin that had only just begun healing.

His heart sank as they climbed the staircases, only now fully realizing that he was back to where he was before. He thought briefly of Ginny, and if she was okay. He pushed her to the back of his mind, trying not to think of the people he had left behind.

They reached the top floor, leading him into the dark room that he had been locked in previously. Snape followed them inside, closing the door. He conjured a large candle, which hung in the air, illuminating the room quite clearly. He approached Harry, who was still being tightly restrained, and pulled a small flask from the inside of his robes.

"Drink a mouthful of this," Snape commanded. He grabbed a fistful of Harry's hair, and tipped a large mouthful of the potion into the boy's open mouth. Harry sneered before spitting the sweet tasting potion out, covering Snape's face. Snape stepped back with a cry of rage, lashing out and hitting Harry.

The two Death Eaters holding him threw him to the ground, and he fell hard, unable to break his fall with his hands tied behind his back. Stars danced before his eyes as one of them kicked him in the face, his cheek feeling as though it were burning with pain.

The men knelt over him, holding him down forcefully as he struggled against them, not wanting to make this any easier for them than it already was. He felt Snape force his mouth open, and he nearly choked as he tipped more of the liquid into his mouth. His mouth and nose were tightly covered before he could spit it out, while he still fought against them furiously.

He tried to breathe in, but couldn't with the hand covering his mouth and nose. He quickly realized that he would have to swallow, or risk being suffocated. Harry struggled against them again, outraged at the ultimatum. Someone grasped a fistful of hair again, raising his head off the ground. They slammed it against the ground, repeating the action again until he could barely think.

He felt himself painfully swallowing, and was dimly aware of the three men releasing him and leaving the room. The door closed behind them and the candle disappeared, shrouding him in darkness.

Harry groaned loudly as he rolled over onto his side, trying to relieve the pain in the back of his head. He could feel himself losing consciousness, and could not muster the energy to fight it. Harry closed his eyes, and a few moments later, his world went black.