AN - It rained! Can you believe it? Not enough to extinguish the fires, but enough for a short reprieve.
Please enjoy this chapter that i dedicate to the people who have lost loved ones, almost like losing a piece of their soul.
xx
It was almost her birthday before Josie was fully recovered. She had managed to attend some classes after a couple of weeks, however, she was unable to perform magic or exert herself in any way for, what felt to Josie, like forever.
Draco tried as hard as he could to prevent the news from reaching Voldemort. He didn't want them to appear as weak. Narcissa sent a care package every week to Josie, in hopes it would aid in a speedy recovery.
Draco had been incredibly attentive, sitting by Josie's bedside, reading books to her and helping her care for herself. It was incredibly intimate, and Josie felt a deeper connection to Draco than ever before.
Her 16th birthday happened to coincide with Easter, and the time away from the castle was a welcome distraction. She was now fully recovered and Narcissa insisted on an appropriate party to celebrate her 16th birthday.
Draco took Josie shopping in Muggle London and bought her the most spectacular dress. He bought a tux from a muggle shop for the first time in his entire life and, despite the fear of Voldemort's wrath at them dressing like muggles, they were a little thrilled at the idea of defying him in front of his face, should he choose to attend.
They had lunch at a muggle restaurant and stopped off at Gringotts before coming home. Josie went to great effort to replicate the sword of Gryffindor that was in their vault and they took the original with them, hidden in Josie's handbag which had been secretly extended with magic.
They knew that the moment the snake was killed, that Voldemort would know their plan. He'd know that they were after the horcruxes and would check on them one by one. They had only the snake and the diadem to go and it was up to the two of them to take care of them.
The party started late in the afternoon, as pure bloods tended to do. Josie had read all about the traditional parties and was prepared for what was to come. She hated the idea of being showered with presents, but turning them down would be worse, as she discovered at her wedding.
She was gifted with gold and galleons, jewellery, clothing and a car. She hadn't known anyone in the wizarding world, apart from her dad Sirius, to drive, but she loved the idea of it.
At 8pm, Voldemort arrived, and she was instructed to cut the cake. This happened quite quickly, and Josie excused herself afterwards to freshen up, asking Voldemort to promise her a dance, which he agreed to politely.
In the bathroom, she reached into the top of her dress and pulled out her bracelet, closing her eyes as she was ported to Grimmauld Place.
"You ready?" she asked Harry as he stood against the wall of the living area.
"Yeah I guess" he answered.
"No, not, I guess. Are you ready to kill the snake or aren't you?" she asked.
"Yes, yes I'm ready" he answered.
"Good because I'm currently supposed to be in the bathroom" she said.
She took Harry by the arm and muttered the spell to take them back to where she came from – one of the only methods of entry into and out of Malfoy Manor. The bracelet was something she would have to look into at a later stage, because its ability to bypass wards was unheard of.
She led Harry out of the bathroom and down to the formal dining area.
"The snake should be in here. Use the cloak and get it done. Go back to the bathroom afterwards and wait for me there. I'll help you get out as soon as I can. Till then, I need to dance with the devil" she said, handing the sword to her brother and hurrying back to the party.
"Mrs Malfoy, you indeed look quite refreshed" Voldemort said as she requested a dance.
"The cake was beautiful, but quite sweet. My sweet tooth is not as advanced, I'm afraid" she said.
"Let this cheer you up, my dear" he said as he withdrew a small box from the pocket of his robes.
Josie took it hesitantly, and the motion was not missed by Voldemort. She opened the box and found a necklace with a black opal set upon a white gold plate. She held the box in her hand, reluctant to touch the jewellery in case it was cursed.
Voldemort reached into the box and turned the pendant over, 'not cursed', showing the back to hold the Dark Mark.
"You are far too fair to be marked, my dear, however, consider this jewel, the same thing. My gift to you" he said, as she took it from the box and turned so he could attach it behind her neck.
"You're too generous, my Lord" she said placing her fingertips upon the opal, receiving a simple nod in return.
"You are aware of how the mark works?" he asked.
"I am" she said, allowing him to spin her slowly with the music.
"Are you enjoying yourself?" he asked her after a moments silence.
"I am. And I thank you for coming. I know you're very busy. And once again, for the gift, I thank you" she said, looking into his red eyes and snake like face.
"Anything for you my dear. Your husband and yourself are my most trusted and loyal followers" he said, holding her hand and kissing it once. The action was not missed by anybody in the room, as had their interactions up until this point. They resumed dancing and he continued his conversation. "I admit, I was quite concerned when I learnt of your allegiance to young Draco following his mission. Afterall, you are a Potter and I did try and kill you before you were even born" he said.
"That's all history, my Lord" she said.
'Nevertheless, I was not inclined to have you sit at my table. That is, until you proved yourself worthy. Until you married Draco. Your magic combined with his, is something to be reckoned with. The two of you together could overthrow even the most powerful dark wizard" he said.
"My Lord, I wouldn't think of…" she said.
"I know young Josie. I've seen your thoughts. You are pure and honest. Both of you. I've delved into the deepest depths of your mind and there are no concerns there. You have no desire to become who I am, so why then, I must ask, do you wish to become powerful?" he asked.
"It is not power I seek" she answered.
"Show me" he said, looking into her green eyes. Her mother's eyes. Her betraying mind wondered briefly if he had looked into them the night he aimed his wand at her mother and cast the killing curse.
Josie squared her thoughts away appropriately, allowing him access to the desires she had appropriated for herself, for this very moment. When he looked into her mind, he would see herself and Draco living happy and free, with a child, perhaps two. She would allow him to see glimpses of her mother, father and siblings joining them, but she had an explanation ready.
"My dear…" he began.
"Forgive me, my Lord. I do not wish to leave your side, however, I can't hide the desires deep within my heart" she said.
"They'll pass. You will see, child, that there will be far more to this life if you fight alongside me than if you continue to fantasize about a life that isn't possible" he said.
"Remnants of childhood fantasies, My Lord. That's all. I am devoted to a life at your side" she said.
"Please, young one, do not fool yourself. You will have a family with Draco, when the time is right. Do not dedicate your entire life to the servitude of a man like me" he said, glancing towards Bellatrix, who stood jealously against the wall.
Josie was about to come up something clever, when Draco interrupted.
"My Lord, I beg, may I cut in for a birthday dance with my wife?" he asked.
"Draco, you need not beg" Voldemort said before kissing Josie's hand and slinking away.
Josie took Draco's hand and pressed herself close to Draco.
"You doing ok?" he asked.
"Absolutely, I'm having a great time. Everything is as perfect as I could have hoped. The Dark Lord is quite generous" she said, hoping Draco would see the inuendo in her words. The thing she wanted to say was 'yes, I have let my brother into the Manor and successfully distracted Voldemort long enough so he wouldn't think we have anything to do with the death of his pet snake and hey look, he gave me the dark mark'.
Draco took the jewel in his hand and turned it once over. He smiled and made a polite bow towards Voldemort who was watching them from his seat. Draco kissed Josie on the temple before leading her in a dance.
Josie danced with her husband for the next three songs, ensuring their appearance on the dance floor was known to everyone there. They kissed, they held each other, and they gazed into each other's eyes. If not for show, then they would have wanted to interact in that way anyway. They did earn snide remarks from those who deemed their behaviour to be inappropriate and Josie could feel the tension in the air building when she heard a noise emanate from where Voldemort had been seated.
She saw him slink in his chair and took it upon herself to rush over.
"My Lord, are you ok?" she asked, kneeling by his side.
"Please, Josie I'm sure he needs some space" Draco said.
"I … I'm fine. I'm fine" he said, attempting to right himself. Draco offered his hand, but Voldemort insisted on helping himself. Once he was upright in his chair, he called for Bellatrix. Causing Josie to frown in feigned jealousy.
"My Lord…" Bellatrix whispered as she sashayed to his side, almost shoving Josie away.
"Find Nagini" he said, almost a moan, more than a whisper but not quite his usual voice.
'He's wounded' Josie thought to herself.
"Of course" she answered and took off out of the room.
"Is everything ok?" Josie asked.
"Young Josie, things are far from ok but I wouldn't expect to bother you with things you'd never understand" he said, making Josie feel small and insignificant. She had to remind herself that she actually didn't care what he thought of her. He was a monster and he was now on his last life.
"Of course" she said, head down and walking away.
Josie joined Draco and they made their way to the edge of the room to where his mother was standing.
"Josie, he is quite taken with you" Narcissa said.
"I aim to please" she said.
"I have not seen him dance like that with anybody" she said.
"Not even Bella?" Josie asked.
"No, never. Whatever has existed between them has been private. Bella was married, after all" Narcissa said, a guilty look in her eyes.
"Why do it at all then?" Josie asked. "If you're married, you stay faithful till death do you part" Josie said quoting the vows she took at her own wedding.
"Bella's husband was eager to appease the Dark Lord. He would give him anything he asked for" Narcissa said.
"Even his wife?" Josie asked, suddenly feeling sick at the thought of Voldemort potentially asking Draco for a night with her.
"Nothing is black and white I'm afraid" Narcissa said.
"Clearly" Josie said, sipping her wine, desperate for a break in conversation so she could find Harry and get him out of there. "Please excuse me. All that dancing has made me a little hot and bothered. I need to freshen up a bit" she said, loud enough for a nearby couple of death eaters to hear, before kissing Draco on the cheek.
Josie made her way to the bathroom, hoping eagerly that Harry had made his way back by now.
She closed and locked the door behind her, warding it, and looked around, waiting. It didn't take long for Harry to reveal himself from beneath his cloak.
"It's done" he said. "One step closer to…" he began.
"That's great Harry, but you have to leave, now" she said, taking him by the hand and leading him to the small room containing the toilet. This bathroom was far too fancy.
She touched the bracelet on her wrist and ported them both out of the Manor and to Grimmauld Place.
"It's done. I need to go" she said quickly to the room that was occupied by her parents and siblings.
Lily rushed to Josie and enveloped her in a bone crushing hug that Josie wished could last longer.
"You incredibly brave girl" was all she said, before Josie pulled away and said the spell that would take her back to the Manor.
She arrived back to where she left from and could hear noise outside the bathroom.
"She's in there. I know she's up to something" a male voice was yelling.
"She's not up to anything. How dare you make such accusations?" came the voice of Draco.
"Funny isn't it that as soon as things turn pear shaped, she disappears. She isn't even answering the door" he yelled.
Josie took this moment to open the door and reveal herself to be, in fact, in the bathroom, hair electrified with magical energy. The death eater she recognised was Antony Dolohov, someone who tried desperately to join the closest circle but never quite made it.
"If you'd like to know why I refused to open the door to you, someone I do not even know, it's because on the night of my wedding I was attacked. I'm not placing myself in the position for that to occur again. Now please, the Dark Lord trusts me. Having doubts about me is the same as doubting the dark lord himself. Now back off before I have to explain it to Him" Josie said, crackling at the ends of her hair. As Dolohov took off at a run, Draco pointed his wand at the back of his head, obliviating certain memories of the night as Josie cast a spell that would make him appear and smell rather intoxicated. He left the hallway leaving Draco and Josie alone in the entrance to the bathroom.
Josie pulled Draco by the lapels of his jacket into the bathroom and swiftly locked the door using wandless, wordless magic.
"You're one scary witch" he said with a smile.
"And you're so incredibly sexy" she said, kissing him hard as she unbuttoned his shirt and pushed his jacket off his shoulders.
Draco followed suit, running his hands up her legs and grabbing her ass, squeezing it once before removing her underwear from underneath her dress.
Josie fumbled with his belt and pants as he lifted her and sat her on the edge of the basin. She wrapped her legs around him and he gathered her dress in her lap, positioning himself at her entrance.
Josie used the heels of her feet against his behind to pull him closer and he rammed himself into her, filling her, hitting the spot that felt the constant need to be soothed. She was so ready, and he was hard as steel. She threw her head back as he withdrew and thrust himself back in. He set a steady pace, gripping her tightly and thrusting in and out of her warmth. One of his hands supported her on the edge of the basin and the other ventured to the place where their bodies joined, locating her clit and roughly pressing it, rubbing it, bringing her to orgasm within moments. As her body clenched around his, he moaned his own release and kissed her roughly. They remained lost in the afterglow of their passion for a few moments before Draco pulled out of her.
He kissed her forehead and said, "I will never ever let anybody else touch you".
"Not even a dying old man?" she asked.
"Especially a dying old man" he said, gathering her underwear off the floor.
Josie hopped down off the basin and quickly cleaned herself up in the toilet room, where she had disapparated from only minutes earlier.
Josie smoothed Draco's hair and she fixed her make up in the mirror before they left the room and re-joined the party.
"Where did he go?" Draco asked his mother when he noticed Voldemort was missing.
"He retired to his room. He didn't seem well, Draco" Narcissa said.
"It might be the food. I'm feeling a little flushed myself" Josie said.
"I had to sit with her a little while in the bathroom till she felt better" Draco said, hiding the teenage smirk that threatened to burst from the look of concern he had painted on.
"Draco, something… You need to know… The snake, Nagini, is dead" Narcissa said.
"Oh no, that's terrible. She was… I loved that snake" Josie said, her acting on par.
"I know, my dear. You had quite a bond with her. Someone at the party killed her in an act of terrible maliciousness" Narcissa said.
"She was killed? Who would do such a thing?" she asked, looking around at the guests that were remaining.
"When Josie was dancing with the Dark Lord, I saw Dolohov leave the room for a while. Maybe…" Draco said.
"Son, please, do not make suggestions that are unfounded" Narcissa said. "Besides, he was with us when Josie left from the bathroom" Narcissa said.
"Where was he before that though? He joined you from the hall as I approached. I would have him questioned once the Dark Lord recovers" Josie said.
"I'll discuss it with Lucius. Till then, I think the party needs to come to an end" she said, flicking her wand to make the music stop.
Josie stepped forward and thanked everyone for coming. She noticed Dolohov was not in the room, which was an asset to their plan to have him framed.
The party goers dispersed and soon, the ball room was empty, save for the buffet and the bar.
"Here's to you both" Narcissa said, handing the couple a glass each and toasting them.
"And to you mother" Draco said, "for a spectacular party" he added.
"Thank you, Narcissa" Josie added as the three of them clinked glasses.
xx
After Easter, Hogwarts became hell on earth, unless you were the child of a death eater, or a death eater yourself.
The Carrows were using more complex torture spells to make, primarily Gryffindors, suffer greatly and were taking turns to monitor the halls on the 7th floor.
Draco and Josie laid in their bed late in April and discussed the difficulty they were having, getting into the Room of Requirement to access the Diadem.
"This is insane. They're patrolling the corridor around the clock and when they're not, the room wont open. I don't get it" Josie said.
"Its simple. Someone is in there. They're using the room as a hide out. Think about it. Have you seen the Longbottoms or the Weasley's around? They're using the room to hide out from the Carrows" Draco said.
"We have to do something Draco. This is madness" Josie said.
"What are we going to do though? They're untouchable" he said.
"To ordinary people. But we are the Dark Lords favourites" she said, smiling sweetly.
xx
Josie walked down the hall, towards Defence class. She never looked forward to the classes she had with the Carrows and today was no exception. As much as they admired the Dark Lord and his followers, Josie was still a Gryffindor and with that, came their hatred.
She entered the class and sat beside Draco who had arrived from his Arithmancy class that he had with the Ravenclaws.
Amycus Carrow was evil incarnate. He lacked a single ounce of empathy and Josie wondered what kind of household would spite out someone like him. His twin sister was horrid, however, Amycus was slightly worse.
They had been learning defensive dark magic, much to the disapproval of many of the students, and todays lesson was about wordless defence in the case of multiple attacks.
Carrow took the opportunity to begin throwing curses at several students, expecting them to shield and protect themselves without instruction or preparation. Josie had sat by and watched over the course of the year, as the so-called-professor instructed them in the use of dark curses and hexes and now, as the school year was coming to an end, was he attempting to teach them something worthwhile.
"No speaking!" he roared, when he fired a mutation hex at Neville, causing Neville to shout "Protego" in shock.
The shield he cast was actually quite strong and Josie was impressed, however when he let his shield down, Carrow silently cast a scalping hex, hitting Neville in the face, causing his hair to be instantly removed. While Neville was in shock, trying to figure out what had happened, Carrow hit Neville with curse after curse, until Josie, who had been sitting gripping her wand, stood and shouted "ENOUGH!", throwing a silent shield around Neville to protect him.
Draco's hand flew out to stop her, but Josie was on her feet before she realised what she was doing. Her heart was racing, and her lungs were desperately trying to suck in as much oxygen as they could. Her primal instincts had kicked in and she was geared to fight.
All eyes in the room were on Josie, the 16-year-old child prodigy, the favourite of the Dark Lord. Her hair was sparking and the shield she cast, hung effortlessly in the air between the professor and the boy she had known her whole life.
"You dare interrupt my lesson?" Amycus roared at her.
"I do. He's had enough, this is torture" she spat.
"If he can not produce a simple shield, how will he defend himself against multiple attacks?" Amycus asked.
He had a point; however, the methods of teaching were barbaric.
"You can not use dark hexes on students. Its disgusting" she said, lowering her shield when she was sure the focus was now away from Neville.
"Says who?" the professor asked.
"Says the law. The Ministry of Magic" she said, absolutely gob smacked that it was even a question.
"You're wrong" he said, eyeing her for a moment.
Josie caught it a split second before it happened. Amycus's wand twitched ever so slightly and purple sparks were sent flying her way. She didn't move a muscle or speak a single word, however her shield was up in a split second. She heard gasps from the students who were clearly impressed. She, however, was not.
"Do you know who I am?" she roared, magic now flowing freely from the ends of her hair in bright white bolts that electrified the air around her. She stepped away from the desk that she had, till now, been standing behind and moved forward, her shield never faltering and her electricity sparking madly. The students nearby went from awe to fear as her magic intensified.
"I know you're an insolent brat who needs to control herself before she is seriously hurt" he said, slight fear in his eyes.
He simply looked at her like she was nothing, and she threw a different shield up around them that would hide both her actions and her words from the class. She briefly saw Draco attempt to pull her back, but there was no hope now. This putrid excuse for a human being had tortured students all year, he had cast a curse at her after hexing someone she cared about over and over again, without giving him the opportunity to ready himself for defence. He needed to know who he was messing with.
"You don't know, do you? Do you know, professor, where I got his from? Do you know, under who's protection I lie?" she asked, indicating to the back opal that hung around her neck.
She turned the opal over in her hand and showed him the engraved mark on the back. It was now swirling around on its surface and his eyes turned to shock.
"You're not…" he began.
"I am. In fact, he placed this on me, personally, during my birthday celebrations while I danced with him, in his arms. He assured me that I am in his closest circle and I am under his protection. All I need to do…" she said, hovering a finger over the mark.
"No. Don't" he said, stepping back. Josie let down the shield that hid them from view, but did not let down her protection shield. Instead, she enlarged it, setting it between herself and the entire class.
"You will not hurt another student ever again. If you do… Well… You now know what I am capable of" she said, lowering her shield when he hung his head.
"Class dismissed" he said, earning confused looks from everyone in the class.
Josie turned and collected her bag, not bothering to make eye contact with anybody, not even Draco. She was so deep in lies now that it was hard to keep up. Voldemort told her that she desired the power. Was he right? She certainly felt powerful now. Did she like it? Using his name might have been a mistake, but she felt like she had no choice. She ran towards the 7th floor, hoping that it would be clear for her to enter. Students all seemed to be in classes today. The magic that was flowing through her in this moment was driving her desires to get into the room and end this – today. She walked past Barnabas the Barmy three times, repeating to herself: 'I need the room of hidden things'. On the third time, she stopped and waited for the door to appear. It didn't. It wouldn't. She knew that now they were on the last piece that getting to it would be impossible, even though it was under their noses the whole time. It was literally right next to them for the whole of the previous school year. They had made fun of it even, calling it ugly junk, not knowing that the whole time, there was a piece of Voldemort's soul hidden inside.
She screamed in frustration, causing a first-year girl to run away in fear.
As she made her way back to her Head Girl dorm alone, walking towards her was a group of people she would ordinarily be excited to see.
Neville, Ron, Lavander and Parvati were approaching from the opposite direction. Josie thought about turning and walking back the way she came, but that would be too suspicious. She stopped walking and waited for what she knew was coming.
"Josie…" Neville said.
"I'm not interested in a lecture by another Longbottom" she said.
Neville looked confused then shook his head.
"No, that's not it… I… Josie, thank you, for what you did. You risked a lot" Neville said.
"Oh… Well, you know, you'd have done it for me" she said, trying to walk away.
"What was that… that you did?" Ron asked.
"It was a shield. That's all" she said, looking up and down the hallway.
"We couldn't see… Or hear anything you did…" Ron said.
"And your hair… It was like there was…" Parvarti began.
"Electricity" Lavender said.
"Oh, well… That sometimes happens when I'm mad" she said.
"Never happens to me" Lavander said.
"Or me" Parvarti added.
"I don't know why. Probably the same reasons why I remember everything that's ever happened, or why I was able to skip ahead a year and then another" Josie said, trying to shrug them off. She did know why, she knew exactly why, but she didn't want to tell anyone, not yet anyway.
"What did you say to him? When you went over to him. Why did he back down?" Ron asked.
"I don't know... He must have been afraid of me or something" she said.
"No way" Parvarti said.
"He's a death eater. The only reason he'd be afraid of you would be…" Lavender said, pausing to quickly grab hold of Josie's left arm.
"Let me go" Josie demanded, being caught off guard.
"We need to know. What was it that you showed him? You're one of them, aren't you? You're a death eater!" Parvarti demanded.
"No, let me go, I mean it" Josie said, wondering how on earth a bunch of unskilled 17-year old's could get their hands on her, but a fully grown death eater was defeated only minutes earlier.
Ron got hold of Josie's sleeve and pulled it up, revealing the clean skin of her left arm.
Josie quickly pulled away.
"There… happy now?" she yelled.
"Show us the other one" Ron demanded.
She did as they asked and showed them both of her arms, free from any markings.
"We're sorry Josie. Its just that… No one, not even other professors have spoken to the Carrows like that. We thought…" Neville said.
"You all thought you knew what the fuck you were on about and assumed I'm a death eater" she spat.
"Well, you helped a death eater kill Dumbledore and then ran off and married it. How can we not think you're one too?" Ron argued.
"He's not… its… You have no idea. You think there's black and white. Good and bad. Death eater and not death eater. Grow up Ron. You truly have no idea what you're talking about. Draco is marked. He was marked shortly after he turned 16. He had no choice. No one does. You take it or you die. Now leave me alone" she said, pulling away from the group and running towards the stairway to her dorm.