A/N – This chapter took so long to write because it quite frankly is fairly horrible. I apologise for its content however this is just where the story went. Warnings for violence and torture.

16 – Brave New World

Looking back on it years later, Harry could never quite believe how foolish he had been. After all the warnings and repeated personal attacks he should have seen it coming. He had spent his whole life being the victim of Voldemort's attacks, being constantly put in danger. Why he expected it to be any different as an adult was beyond him. Perhaps he was reckless since defeating Voldemort, perhaps he was overly arrogant. Whatever it was he really didn't consider himself to be in any actual danger. He was more worried for the rest of the team, for Ron and Hermione and of course Severus but for some unfathomable reason he had little concern for himself.

This turned out to be his greatest mistake.

One week had passed since Harry and Severus had fled Harry's home in the wake of the killer's latest communication. They had eventually headed back to the Ministry, although Severus was all for staying away permanently, Harry convinced him that to finish this once and for all they did actually need to catch the killer. Which meant heading back and handing the evidence in to the team.

They discussed what to say about the note and the photographs and decided to simply pretend that the photographs had never existed and all they were sent was the note. The team seemed to accept this for the most part, however Bennett had looked closely at them both as if she could tell they were lying but didn't call them out on it.

One thing they unanimously agreed upon (Severus included) was that Harry should not leave the ministry again until the killer had been apprehended as he was quite clearly the next target.

He was placed in protective custody which meant he had two junior Aurors following him everywhere and remaining stationed outside his quarters overnight. Harry called them Bert and Ernie (he couldn't remember their actual names) and they made it impossible to have any sort of privacy whatsoever. As a result Harry had barely seen or spoken to Severus properly in days and he missed him desperately.

Both he and Severus were given quarters in the Diplomatic Relations department of the ministry. Harry had no idea that this department had even existed much less had accommodation. Severus had scoffed saying where else did he expect internationally prominent witches and wizards to stay when they visited?

Harry hadn't replied, as he was too irritated. In fact while the quarters he was in were lovely and expensive and luxurious he got sick of the other residents on his floor pointing at his scar and talking to each other in a variety of foreign languages. It was dead annoying. It was also annoying that while Severus had quarters here too his were on a different floor and he didn't have to have a personal guard.

After a whole week of feeling like a prisoner he was starting to go slightly crazy.

Perhaps that's why he had done it.

He just wanted some fresh air. Not fake fresh air like what was pumped through his fake garden morning and night to create the effect of a slight breeze, no he wanted real air. He wanted five minutes where he was completely alone.

Bert and Ernie weren't the smartest of Aurors. In fact Harry wondered how on earth they had made the required NEWT levels let alone survived the rigorous Auror training program. However they had managed it somehow. They were way too easy to slip past thanks to his invisibility cloak which he now carried with him everywhere (and a tiny confundus charm), and eventually he had managed to get outside for a few minutes of fresh air.

It was 1am and the street outside was practically deserted. Harry thought perhaps he would just slip off to a muggle pub and have himself a quick drink. Where was the harm in that?

He quickly removed his invisibility cloak, shrunk it to the size of a handkerchief and stuffed it into his back pocket. After casting a charm to mask his identity he quickly headed to the nearest pub revelling in the fresh rain that was falling on his face.

Inside the pub it was dark and dingy and Harry quickly headed to the bar and ordered a drink, sitting casually on a bar stool and leaning back to observe the atmosphere.

The bartender placed the drink in front of him and turned away. Harry took a single sip and screwed up his face slightly. He preferred fire whisky to Vodka that's for sure.

That was the last coherent thought he had before he blacked out.

…

When he woke up he was in darkness, the type of complete blackness that is so disorienting you can barely tell which way is up. After a few moments of complete panic he managed to settle his breathing somewhat and register a few small details.

He was strapped to a chair. Possibly taped down to it. He had restraints around both his legs, his arms and his torso.

He listened carefully but could hear nothing. There wasn't a scrap of light and he wasn't blindfolded so where ever he was being held it was most likely in a basement, or a room with no windows. He wasn't sure what time it was or how long he had been out for. He had a slight headache but couldn't feel any other kind of pain or discomfort, other than from being taped to a chair.

He took a deep breath and concentrated hard on removing his restraints by magic. Nothing happened. He should have been able to, he had done wandless magic many times before with no issue and occasionally while quite far from his wand.

Harry frowned. There must be something preventing him from casting any magic in this space. His wand wasn't in his pocket where it had been earlier so he had clearly been searched before he was restrained.

Time soon lost all meaning as he remained alert in the darkness, waiting for his captor to make himself known to him. He fought to keep his panic and fright to a minimum and tried to stay as calm and relaxed as possible. Every so often he would once again try to free himself with magic but each time he failed.

Eventually after what felt like hours something happened.

He heard the sound of a door opening behind him and an electric light switch was flicked on illuminating the room in which he was held prisoner. It was a bare room with brick walls and a dirty floor. As he had suspected he was bound to the wooden chair with large amounts of gaffer tape.

'Hello?' he said cautiously. 'Who's there?'

'I guess you aren't as clever as you thought if you haven't already guessed.' A cold harsh voice came from behind him.

Harry tried to still his racing heart and remain in control. He's been in worse situations than this after all. 'I guess I'm not as clever as you then.' He said.

'Don't flatter me.' The voice said. 'It won't help you, you're going to die anyway.'

'Then why haven't you killed me already?' Harry asked.

'Why would I want to kill you straight away? Where's the fun in that? I intend to make you scream first.' The voice said and then the owner moved to stand in front of him. 'Surprise! Did you miss me?'

The man in front of him was in his mid-twenties, tall and slim with sandy brown hair and dark eyes, his nose was slightly turned up as if there was a bad smell under it and he was dressed in plain muggle clothes. Harry's stomach plumetted. How he had hoped that the killer wasn't one of his students but yet the man in front of him he knew very well. It was Joshua Andrews, the very student who had given him the creeps when they first met. Severus was right, often a feeling told you everything.

Harry shook his head. 'I should have known.'

Joshua smiled. 'Yes. You should have. But you didn't.' He stepped close to him and crouched down in front of the chair his eyes level with Harry's. 'I suppose you aren't as wise and powerful as everyone says.'

Harry didn't answer.

'Perhaps this won't be as much fun as I'd hoped.' Joshua drawled.

Harry figured his best chance of survival was to feed his ego and keep him talking. 'What's this about Joshua? You never struck me as a magic hating type. You certainly had to work harder at it than some but you are very talented. And to pull this off you must be even more adept at magic now. After all it's been several years since I worked with you.'

'Trained Potter. You trained me. Don't kid yourself that it was anything else. You taught me more about defence than I'd ever been taught before. Not to mention the dark arts themselves. No one taught me as much as you did. Some might say you made me the man I am today.'

'Nobody would say that Joshua.' Harry said firmly. 'I didn't turn you into a killer.'

'Perhaps.' He agreed cocking his head to one side.

Again Harry remained silent.

'Aren't you going to ask me why?' Joshua asked coyly, pulling a hunting knife from his back pocket and twirling it in his long thin fingers.

'I assume you have a strong desire to tell me.' He said, wetting his lips as his eyes followed the knife in front of him.

'Perhaps we could make it a guessing game?'

Perhaps not. Harry thought, not liking where this was going.

'Why do you think I kill them?' Joshua asked lightly sliding the edge of the knife along the side of Harry's face.

'You hate magic.' Harry said flatly. Not wanting to play by his rules but also not really seeing any other way.

'Obviously.' He drawled. 'But why?'

"I don't know.' Harry said. Because you're insane, he thought.

'A pity.' He said, sounding like it was anything but. He used the knife first to cut Harry's shirt down the middle, exposing his torso. He then sliced straight across Harry's chest opening it leaving an angry red cut in its wake.

It wasn't an overly deep cut but it still hurt like hell, blood streamed down his chest and ran down his stomach in rivulets to pool at the waistband of his jeans. He fought to remain calm, to still his breathing and save his energy but all he could feel was the fire in his chest and a ringing in his ears. He knew this was only the beginning. 'Why don't you tell me then?' He asked through clenched teeth. 'I know you want to.'

'True.' Joshua said, wiping the edge of the knife clean on a ratty rag he had pulled from his pocket. 'You know what makes me different from you Potter?'

Harry took a deep breath and forced himself to ignore the pain in his chest. 'I'm sure that there are a great number of differences between us.'

Joshua came right up close to Harry in a crouch once again, so close that his elbows rested on Harry's knees and he could feel his rancid breath in his face as he spoke. He tried not to gag.

Joshua tilted his head to one side as he regarded him. 'There aren't as many differences between us as you might think.' He stated calmly. He paused and took a step back, standing and regarding Harry once again while twirling the knife in his fingers. 'You and I have a similar background you know?'

Harry remained silent, unsure of where this was going.

'We both had a muggle upbringing. We both had abusive parents, we both didn't know that magic existed until we received our letter to attend school.' He continued. 'You however embraced your new identity while I did not.' He paused. 'Tell me why.'

Harry shook his head. 'I don't know what's inside your brain, I don't know your thoughts and feelings. You tell me why we reacted differently?'

Joshua shook his head in mock disappointment. 'Tut tut, you at least have to make an effort to answer.' He moved out of Harry's eyesight, but he could still hear him somewhere behind him.

When he returned he still had the knife but in his other hand he had a container of salt.

Harry flinched involuntarily.

'Yes you know what's to come now don't you?' Joshua drawled. He shook some salt out onto his hand and then roughly rubbed it into the cut across Harry's chest.

The pain he had felt initially from the cut was nothing compared to the pain he felt now, and he couldn't help but cry out. This was followed up by the pain of another deeper knife slash leaving an X cut into his chest. More salt was added to the wound and he cried out once more.

'Where is your magic now Harry?' Joshua whispered coldly into his ear, while smoothing his hair back. 'It can't save you can it? No matter how much you practice or how many counter spells you know. At the end of the day it doesn't matter how strong or good a wizard you are because magic can't save you. It isn't the answer you think it is, it's only an illusion.'

He now had a wet washcloth that he used to wipe away the blood and salt from Harry's wounds, and he carefully and almost tenderly cleaned him up.

The pain lessened slightly and Harry found that he could break through it, and the fear he was feeling to form coherent thoughts again. 'You've cast some kind of spell on this room haven't you?' He asked. 'So I can't do magic?'

'Correct.'

'If you hate magic so much I'm surprised you'd stoop so low as to use it now.'

'I used it as a means to an end.' Joshua said calmly, still wiping Harry's blood from his chest. 'I couldn't have you escape now could I? I know wandless magic is one of your specialties, despite you always telling me that it can't be done.'

'How very clever of you.' Harry replied, tired of trying to play games when he didn't know the rules.

'Yes well I've been watching you for quite some time. But then you knew that already didn't you?' he said with a sneer. 'How did you like my photographs?'

'I hope you enjoyed the show.' Harry said bitterly while trying to keep the bile from rising in his throat. 'Are you going to tell me the differences between us or are you going to torture me more?'

'There's always plenty of time for torture.' Joshua replied casually. 'As to our differences, I recognised early that there is no difference between Muggles and Wizards. Magic isn't a gift it's just another way to be arrogant, to bully, to torment. You instantly embraced the fact that you were special, that you were better than your muggle relatives. I however quickly discovered that magic didn't make things better it only made them worse. As a child I couldn't do anything about it. As an adult I chose to take matters into my own hands'.

'What makes you think you have the right to take matters into your own hands?' Harry asked. 'You say I thought I was special but isn't this just saying the same for you?'

'What a wonderful rationalisation Harry.' Joshua said once again moving out of sight.

'That's not an answer.' Harry said, desperately trying to stall him.

Joshua returned with a round stone butter dish and what looked like a paint brush. 'I have no need to answer you. You're MY prisoner not the other way around. You do as I say!' He exclaimed angrily the pitch of his voice rising slightly.

Harry stayed silent but refused to lower his eyes. He wasn't going to give him the satisfaction. Besides he was fairly resigned to the fact that he most likely going to die here and that he would be tortured substantially before that happened. It didn't matter what he did or said nothing would change that inevitability.

'Now let's get back to it.' Joshua drawled, as he pulled the lid of the butter dish and dipped the paint brush into it. 'Now tell me, why do you think I came to you for tutoring?'

Harry stiffened. He didn't know what was on that brush and he didn't want to…

Joshua held the brush up to just under his nose. 'Answer me.' He snapped.

'The reason most students come to me is to further their defensive spell work.' He said calmly stalling for time. 'Either they are still a student who need extra tuition to pass their NEWTs or they are about to enter the Auror program or for whatever reason just wish to strengthen their defensive spells. When you came to me you expressed a wish to further your defensive skills. You seemed genuine at the time and you passed the background checks I ran on you. As for your reasons for requesting the training I now can only assume that it was an excuse to get closer to me, to learn more about me and discover my weaknesses. Am I right? Was I a target of yours even back then?' He said unable to take his eyes off the paint brush and whatever substance coated it.

'That is rather arrogant of you isn't it?' He said, dipping the paintbrush back inside and withdrawing it again coated in even more of the sticky white substance. 'You're not entirely wrong though. I did target you back then. See I knew that you were the one person who knew not only about defence but also about dark magic itself. I wondered how you felt about it you see and from what you showed me you seem to have a respect for it. Perhaps even a love for it.'

Harry's mind went instantly to Severus, and how they had all assumed as teenagers that Severus loved the dark arts. In truth Harry now agreed that to defeat them you needed to love them a little bit. He had no intention of admitting that though.

'Answer me.' Joshua demanded, and swiped the paintbrush along Harry's arm from the top of his shoulder to just above his elbow.

Harry once again cried out as his skin began immediately to blister and burn. His eyes swam with unshed tears and his whole body tensed with the pain. 'I don't know what you want me to say?!' he cried. 'Are you asking if I saw this coming? Of course I didn't! If I had I would never have bloody taught you a thing! Don't you think I've spent the last months desperately wishing I'd never even started tutoring people?! I wish I'd disappeared completely!'

'That's exactly why I chose you.' Joshua hissed. 'You're arrogance is never ending. That you actually believe it would have made a difference if I'd never come to you. You think you're responsible for this don't you? You think you're so important that I would never have killed anyone if only you have never gone into business? Well here's a news flash for you Potter.' Joshua pulled back Harry's hair roughly and hissed into his face 'YOU ARE NOT THAT IMPORTANT TO ANYONE.'

Harry's vision swam as the pain he was feeling started to consume him and as he looked into Joshua's face his image started to merge with Severus's. No not Severus's, not HIS Severus, but with that of Snape. Snape as he remembered him from school when he was at the height of his bullying. He could see him towering over him, telling him he was just like his father.

Joshua once again dipped the paintbrush into the caustic solution and dragged it this time across Harry's stomach. 'You're paying for that arrogance now aren't you?' He yelled over Harry's renewed screams.

'I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!' Harry managed to scream, though by this stage he couldn't even tell who it was he was screaming at. Once again the paint brush was swiped across his skin and this time the pain was too much and he blacked out.

…

When he woke it was once again to darkness. He could still feel the pain of the wounds Joshua had inflicted on him, but he could feel that they had had been dressed and bandaged.

It was then he realised that this wasn't going to end quickly. If Joshua had dressed and bandaged his injuries he obviously wanted him healthy enough to either be used as bait or to just extend his suffering as long as possible. Either way wasn't going to happen as far as he was concerned. Breathing through the pain Harry turned his whole mind and soul towards escaping.

A/N – Once again I apologise. The next chapter will be not so bad and will be from Severus's point of view. How do you think he will handle the news of Harry's abduction? Once again please review… Even if it's only to abuse me for torturing our golden boy.