Tears bit at the corners of Jupiter's eyes. She wanted to cry, she hated herself for even mentioning, for thinking that she could get herself untied. But then, crying was never a way to deal with anything. She had to find another way.
***
"Draco, I must say I'm surprised to see you here." Lucius said conversationally, as he walked on, leading Severus and Draco down a grimy corridor.
Draco looked at Severus and made a gesture with his head that they should run. But Severus, paled and looking frightened, shook his head emphatically.
"No, you're right, Severus. Escape wouldn't be a good idea. Draco, I'm disappointed that you thought it was an option. I thought you were smarter than that." He clicked his tongue in a disapproving way. Draco was slightly surprised by this, as Lucius was not facing the two.
Draco's mind raced. Harry was under Snape's cloak. Lucius didn't seem to know at the moment, but surely he'd find out soon. How could they get Harry away? Harry was the only one who stood a chance to save Jupiter, and the only one who didn't stand a chance against Voldemort.
A flash of inspiration hit Draco in the shin.
"Ow!"
"Oh yes, watch out for the drainpipes on the side," Lucius drawled coldly, "You might do yourself an injury."
Draco looked at Snape's side of the wall, at the drainpipes. There was a large one coming ahead. Boy-sized, even. But how could Draco get the point across to Harry? He got an idea.
"Father, can we stop? My leg hurts. I bumped it on a DRAINPIPE." Draco whined, and kicked Harry to emphasize "drainpipe". Lucius laughed.
"What are all these DRAINPIPES for, anyway? You could probably fit a grown man into some of these DRAINPIPES." Draco said, kicking Harry again.
"Listen, Draco, if you're trying to subtly hint to Severus that you escape through the drainpipes, you're a moron. First of all, not even I know where they go, but I can't imagine anywhere pleasant. Second, they fill up with water every half hour, and this entire passageway we're in will probably fill up within fifteen minutes. And if you're going to try to escape, then for god's sake, act like a bloody Malfoy and not that stupid Potter boy. You don't have to be so bloody obvious about it."
Draco tried to look embarrassed, but he saw Snape's robes move, and heard a tiny scuffling noise. He realized that Lucius could probably hear Harry as well. How could Draco help?
Without warning, Draco began running the opposite way down the hallway, screaming.
Harry and Snape rolled their eyes. Draco really was no good at being sneaky.
Lucius turned, pointed his wand, and shouted "Crucio!"
Draco fell to his knees, screaming still, but this time in pain. It didn't take long for Draco to pass out. Lucius then used his wand to lift the unconscious boy up and bob him along the hallway.
Snape allowed himself to twitch the corners of his mouth as he and Lucius kept walking. Though Draco had made a complete ass out of himself, at least he had accomplished something.
***
"Master, I have brought you some visitors."
"Very good, Lucius." Voldemort said, facing a painting on the wall. "How is your son, by the way?"
Lucius looked at Draco, who was beginning to come to.
"He's well."
"I knew you would come back to me, Severus. You're so utterly predictable. And since I know you're curious, your precious girl is all ready dead."
Snape glared, but said nothing. He was just trying to get him to react. He was lying, he had to be.
"And would you like to know something else? Before her death, she tried to escape. Yes, she's a crafty one all right, not above selling her body to get herself free."
"You're lying."
"Oh, but I'm not. She did, and quite a few times as well. It didn't help, of course. And when she did die, finally, at my own hands, she was pleading and begging and offering me most shameful things. Were I even slightly interested in distracting myself thusly, I might have kept her alive."
Snape was shaking with fury, but part of him believed in what the Dark Lord was saying. Jupiter had once said that when things scared her, she would try to seduce them, in the hopes that they wouldn't harm her. She would always add, laughingly, "And if they do kill me, at least I'll have gotten some!"
Voldemort, for the first time, turned and looked at the group. His eyes widened, and a look of surprise showed on his face for just a second, before morphing into anger.
"Lucius, you idiot, where is the Potter boy?"
"What do you mean, Master? Harry Potter is not here."
"Don't you tell me where he is, you imbecile!" The Dark Lord cried, and Lucius cringed, "Go find him! He is in the building! Call all the Death Eaters to come search for him!"
"All of them?"
"ALL OF THEM!"
***
Harry crawled madly along the pipe. Only fifteen minutes, only fifteen minutes. He couldn't tell where he was going, and it was pitch black. The pipe was covered in grime, and he kept putting his hands into warm piles that crunched. He tried not to think of what they could be.
As he crawled, he felt something bite his ankle. He didn't know what it was, but he cursed loudly and shook his leg vigorously. When he was sure he'd shaken whatever had bitten him, he began crawling faster.
***
She could try to wriggle out of her binds, and then escape through the portrait again. She wasn't likely to make it, but anything was worth trying. She wiggled and squirmed, and did everything she could to escape the ropes, but managed only to tear most of her sheet off.
"Well, a fat lot of good that did me."
"You said it, sister." Kira agreed.
***
Hayredin called to the Death Eaters guarding Jupiter's cell.
"Come on, all of you, forget the girl, we have to find Harry Potter before he escapes!"
The black figures rushed towards the staircase, and Jupiter craned her neck to watch them leave.
"Harry Potter?" she thought, "Then I do have a chance of survival, great!"
"Ooh, Harry Potter, I've heard of him!" Kira smiled, "I used to belong to his father!"
"Shut up. Wait, what?"
"I used to belong to James Potter! The last time I saw little Harry, he was only this big!" She measured an inch with her fingers. "Well, perhaps a bit bigger than that. Anyway, I was in their house when it was destroyed. I was pulled from the wreckage afterwards, before any police arrived, by some man in a cloak. And I've been kept in this house ever since. It's much roomier than the other house."
"Well, it's a small world after all."
***
He was definitely on a downward slant now. It was kind of obvious, because he kept sliding, and bumping his knees on kinks in the pipe. Would it never end?
Why was he doing this anyway? Jupiter was a dumb Slytherin, and she wasn't even nice to him. Draco probably wouldn't even thank him afterwards, he was just expected to do all the heroing. It was unfair. He hoped Draco was in a lot of pain right now. He hoped-
But Harry was pulled from his reverie by a high, hissing noise. It sounded like a bunch of snakes...or maybe wings flapping...or maybe....
Water.
***
Draco and Severus ran as fast as they could down the passageway. Lucius Malfoy was running after them, cursing.
"Give me back my wand, you little bugger!" Lucius cried. "You're a disgrace to my name and unfit to be called my son!"
Draco, in a fit of rage, pulled his father's wand out of his own pocket, and snapped in it half. And then he broke it into fourths, and threw it back at his father.
Lucius got hit square in the eye with a piece of wood, and shrieked. He stopped running, and clutched at his face.
"Oh, I hope he goes blind!" Draco shouted.
"Shut up and run!" Snape hissed.
They couldn't help but notice that there was a four inch deep pond building at their feet as they splashed along.
***
Harry couldn't help but notice, either. He tried to crawl faster, but the water kept slowing him down.
"Oh gods," he cried, "I'm going to die!"
His ankle was beginning to throb. He hoped it wasn't infected. Though with all the filth in this pipe, he wouldn't be surprised.
But then something happened that did surprise him. He came to an abrupt angle change in the pipe. And, with a scream, he began sliding down.
And down, and down. He was sliding downwards, face-first, at a forty-five degree angle, and it was really going to hurt when he hit bottom.
***
Draco and Severus ran into a side corridor, narrow and pitch black, and paused, panting.
"We ought to...get some idea...of where we're going..." Snape gasped. Draco nodded.
Snape peered out into the hallway, no one was chasing them!
"They must all be looking for Harry," Snape murmured to himself.
"But why would Voldemort want Harry, anyway?" Draco asked, quietly, "What harm can he do now?"
"He defeats or escapes Voldemort every time they meet. The Dark Lord has a bit of a grudge against him. At least, from what I gather."
***
With a splash, Harry hit bottom. Luckily, there was enough water cushioning to keep him from being hurt. He really had to see where he was going now.
"Lumos," he said, and the pipe lit up. The water was clear, but tinted greenish, and the pipe was old and rusty. Harry peered down through the water. What were his choices now? He could go up, but then the water would get to him before he got out. And, wait, he couldn't go up anyway. There was no way he could climb all the way up, it was too steep.
There was only one way. Harry held his breath, and ducked under the water. He began swimming downwards as fast as possible, forcing his eyes open, though he didn't trust what was in the water.
After a time, he reached the bottom of the slope, and began swimming horizontally again. His body was giving him warning signals, he needed to breathe...but there was no air. But he kept on diligently, as fast as he could. His eyes were beginning to cloud, and he was seeing lights now. His lungs were going to burst.
"Oh gods," Harry thought silently, choking up a little, "I'm really going to die now. I'm going to suffocate in a dirty pipe in an ugly old castle and I'll never get to tell Draco I for-" Harry let go of all the air he was holding, and took a deep pull of water, trying to breathe. He passed out.
***
"Why aren't we going up?" Draco cried, as he and Severus ran. There was a decent foot of water on the floor now, and the going was getting tedious.
"Because we have to get Jupiter."
"Are you deaf or just daft?! Didn't you hear what Volde-"
"He lied."
Draco looked frantic. "You don't know that! What if she's dead?"
"What if she's not?" Snape's eyes held a fierce sort of emotion; fear, hope, and determination.
Draco shut up and kept running.
***
Harry coughed, and green water spilled out of his mouth onto the stone. He spluttered and gasped, breathing in the dank air. He opened his eyes, and looked around. There was no one there, not even anything on the black walls of the corridor.
How was he alive? What had saved him? He patted himself all over, and though he was wet, he didn't seem to be harmed.
He looked behind him. There was a small square opening, filled with water. It was glowing. Harry leaned over, out of curiosity. His wand was lying at the bottom of a small pool. He reached down and grabbed it. He turned out its light and stood up shakily. His ankle was incredibly painful.
He pulled up his pant leg and gasped. His ankle had swollen to about the size of a grapefruit, and was bright purple. He wished Hermione was there, she knew more healing charms than anyone he knew.
Well, he would have to get going. He took a few steps, and found that he could limp rather effectively. He went forward, as it seemed as good a solution as any.
***
Jupiter heard a loud creak as a door opened cautiously.
"Who's there?" she called.
"Jupiter?" a male voice answered.
"No, you can't be Jupiter, I'm Jupiter."
"Hello, Jupiter."
"Hello, Harry. It's about time you arrived. Our boyfriends are in mortal danger and all the Death Eaters are after you."
"Ah, thanks for telling me."
"Oh, no problem. Now, would you care to unt-"
The doors burst open and Severus and Draco ran into the room.
"Jupiter! Are you all-Potter?"
"No, I'm not all Potter, actually. I'm hardly any Potter at all."
"Harry, how did you get here?"
"I swam."
"Swam? Through where?"
"Jupiter, are you all right?"
"Yes, I'm fine, but I'd be much more fine if someone would unt-"
A bunch of Death Eaters appeared at the door.
"Oh good," Jupiter cried, "Let's have a party!"
"There's the Potter boy!"
"Expelliarmus!" Snape cried, thinking quickly. The first two figures' wands flew out of their hands and into Severus's.
And so the battle began.
"Quick, get Jupiter!" Snape cried to Harry, who nodded. Snape narrowly dodged a curse.
Harry rushed to loosen Jupiter's binds, while the battle behind him raged. A curse nearly hit Harry's side, and he threw himself forward into Jupiter's bosom fearfully.
"Why, Harry!" Jupiter said, looking down at him, "I didn't know you cared. I do have a boyfriend, though. All though I might not for much longer if you don't get your face out of my breasts and untie me!"
Harry lifted his face up and looked at her. "Listen, Jupiter. I don't WANT to save you. I'm only doing it because I'm the ruddy hero and my boyfriend is out there, in mortal danger. And if you keep being snotty, I might forget that I'm a brave and noble Gryffindor and just leave you to die! Now, why don't you SHUT UP while I untie you?!"
Jupiter fell into a sheepish silence, and Harry nodded. He began to work on the knots again. Within not too long, Jupiter was untied.
"Listen, Kira," Jupiter said, and the painting leaned forward eagerly, "Mr. Potter here and I are both going to die horribly soon if you don't help us. So I'll make you a deal, you can sound the alarm that we're getting away, and we'll get away."
***
When the Death Eaters awoke, it was to Kira's rather desperate screaming.
"THEY'RE GETTING AWAY! THEY'RE GETTING AWAY!!"
In alarm, most of the conscious Death Eaters scrambled to their feet and crawled through the portrait hole, while the others went back out through the door to head them off.
After a few seconds, Kira fell silent. Jupiter poked her head out from behind the door. Kira gave her a wink and a smile.
"Happy escaping. Thanks for keeping me entertained." The painting gave another, more wistful smile as the group ran off down another corridor.
***
Jupiter laughed a little as they ran. "It's a good thing she knew you, Potter, otherwise I doubt we'd have gotten away!"
"Yeah. Good for me." Harry said nonchalantly, as he kept running.
"What's wrong, Harry?" Draco asked.
"It was too easy. It's never that easy."
"Nah, it's just cuz you're working with Slytherins instead of those pansy Gryffindorks!"
Harry was just about to retort that he wasn't a pansy Gryffindork, but he reflected that he probably was.
"Like you can talk, Draco. Your idea of a good distraction was to run down the hallway shrieking like a banshee!"
"I panicked!"
"Panicking? Not the unrufflable Draco Malfoy, surely?"
"Listen, Potter-"
"Shut up, both of you. I'm sick of your petty quarrelling. He's right, Draco." Severus said, "Escaping from the Dark Lord can't be that easy. I mean, really, he's not an idiot."
The group began to slow to a trot, and then to a walk.
"So what now?" Draco asked, turning to Harry.
"What the hell are you asking me for? Who do I look like, Ann Landers?" Harry snapped. Draco goggled at him. Harry mentally sighed and tried again, "Why the hell do I have to know?"
"Well," Draco said, nettled, "YOU'RE the hero here!"
"Do YOU want to be the designated hero here? Because I sure don't! I didn't ask to come along on your crazy escapade!"
"Well at least I tried to save you!"
"Well at least I did save you!"
"Well I didn't get all smug about it!"
"You did too! You ARE, too!"
"But you are more than me!"
"I am not!"
"Well at least I'm not wearing my pyjamas!"
"Well at least I didn't cheat on you with RON!"
There was a dead silence.
"I thought you said we weren't going to mention that any more." Draco looked down at his shoes sadly.
"I'm sorry, Draco...I didn't mean..."
"No, no, don't worry."
"No, I'm sorry. I was just angry. I'm not mad at you." Harry took his shamefaced boyfriend in his arms, and they just held each other.
Jupiter and Snape exchanged a glance and a shrug.
"So...what? What should we do?" Jupiter asked.
"I'm not sure. I don't even know a way out of here." Snape said.
"There isn't a way," said a menacing voice, barely above a whisper. A dark figure stepped out from the shadows.
***
Standing before them was a gaunt, pale man, and Jupiter recognized him immediately.
"Hayredin."
"Hello, Jupiter. Are these your friends?"
Jupiter glared at him, "It's a bit late for you to try to find out about the crowd I hang out with, isn't it?"
Hayredin ignored her. "And is this your boyfriend?" He pointed to Harry with his wand.
"Guess again."
"Shame, he suits you. Then this one, must be the one I was told you were...consorting with," he said, moving his wand and aiming it at Draco.
"Wrong again."
Hayredin looked surprised for a fleeting second, then put two and two together and glared at Snape. He'd always heard Jupiter whinging on to her mother about Severus this, and Snape that. He'd thought it just a normal obsession, but it appeared he was wrong.
"You." was all Hayredin said, looking at Snape. "You monster." The tension in the room elevated wildly, as Snape returned the death glare.
"Dad, like I said, too late to be fatherly." Jupiter reached to pull out her wand and curse him out of the way, when she remembered she didn't have it.
"I should have guessed that you were her father," Snape said quietly. Harry, Draco, and Jupiter had subconsiously backed away from the two adults, who were just glaring at each other menacingly. The air crackled with tension.
"I should have guessed that a traitor like you would find my failed daughter attractive." Hayredin cocked his head to the side and looked mock-sympathetic. "The only pair of legs you could find comfort between?"
Snape growled and jumped forward, startling Jupiter's father. He grabbed Hayredin's wand with one hand, his throat in the other. Jupiter watched in shock as Snape held her father silent and hissed at him.
"How dare you say that about her. About your own daughter."
Hayredin smiled cruelly, and spoke as best he could, "I don't blame you. I shall always cherish the time I spent there."
Jupiter's pretty mouth dropped open. Harry and Draco, who hadn't heard, looked confused. And Snape, whose expression didn't change, stuck the point of his wand into the bottom of Hayredin's chin and whispered.
"Avada Ked-"
"Severus, please don't!" Jupiter cried, shaken from her frozen state. She looked at Snape with horror in her eyes, and he faltered.
Hayredin looked angered, and, oddly, he didn't struggle away. "That's so like you, Jupiter," he sneered, trying to find enough air to hiss at her, "You couldn't stand to see your own father die."
Jupiter spat in her father's face. "No. I just don't want to see Severus become a killer."
"Your dearest Severus IS a killer, Jupiter," her father retorted, angered even more so.
"Not for personal reasons. Not for YOU."
Snape looked at Jupiter. Jupiter looked at Snape. Then, quietly, she took her father's wand and pointed it at his face.
"Father," she said quietly, "You don't deserve my pity. Contemno!"
A purple flash filled the room, and when everyone's eyes had adjusted to the semi-darkness, they saw Hayredin, lying on the floor, quite motionless.
"Did you kill him?" asked Harry quietly, after a while.
"She did not," said Snape in an equally awed voice, "The Contemnus Curse is Dark Magic, causing the victim to be knocked unconsious for normally three hours, wherein they relive everything they've ever regretted. It can take longer or less, depending on how many regrets they have. When they awake, they will be filled with such hate for themselves and everything they have done that they cannot bear to live with themselves. It nearly always ends in suicide."
"So," said Draco, "She basically did kill him."
"Basically," said Harry.
The group sat silent for quite some time, staring at Hayredin on the floor.
"Hey," Draco said suddenly, looking around, "Where's Jupiter?"
***
"They're not here yet," said a large, round Death Eater.
"That's true, Goyle, now what colour is your hood?" snapped Zabini.
"Umm....grey?"
Zabini rolled his eyes. He'd been dealing with Frederick Goyle's stupidity for nearly an hour. "What are you, blind? It's black!"
"Well, sometimes it looks grey in the light."
"Listen up, you giant lump of lard," cried Zabini, his temper finally cracking, "If you-"
"Stop it, Zabini! Where is the boy?" cried Lucius, hood down, silvery blonde hair flowing behind his head as he marched swiftly towards them. The white of his left eye was blood red.
"I don't know, Lucius."
"Dammit, Alpha, what on Earth caused Master to choose you as one of his faithful is beyond me!" Lucius snapped, just short of hitting the man's face. "We need the Potter boy. Now! Search the rest of the castle! Goyle, round up...Nevermind. You stay here, Goyle. Alpha, find the others. Tell them to search the castle. Tell them to seach everywhere."
***
"Jupiter, are you all right?" Draco asked, giving the crying girl another hug. She just cried harder.
"No," Snape began. "Doing a curse that powerful and that awful is something that's hard to do. It drains one, emotionally. Especially one so young as her." Snape was standing off to the side. It pained him to see Jupiter like this, but he couldn't bring himself to cuddle her like Draco was doing, at least not with the other two boys present.
"He...He called me Ju-Ju Bear once," Jupiter moaned into her friend's shoulder. "It was on one of my christmas present tags when I was five. 'From Daddy, to his little Ju-Ju Bear.'" Jupiter's sentence was punctuated by a loud sob. "I was always his Little Princess, he would always take me out to the zoo, and to the aquarium, so I could see all the Xenosharks and guppie-fish. Oh god!" she clutched Draco's shoulder. "I want to take it back! I want to undo it!"
"Jupiter," Snape began softly, but the girl had all ready squirmed away from Draco and scrabbled over to her father's body, lying twisted in pain on the floor.
"I know what you're seeing," she whispered to him, a tear dripping from her face to his, and he flinched as if it burned him. "You're seeing everything you've regretted doing."
Severus wanted to say something, but he couldn't think of what. Draco and Harry were merely staring at her in shock and confusion.
"And you know what?" Jupiter said quietly, "If anything, absolutely anything you regret has to do with leaving or neglecting me, I forgive you." She lay her head on her father's chest and screwed up her face. "I forgive you."
Jupiter felt a weight on her head. She knew it was her father's hand, not only by the gasps her friends had made, but from long-buried memories of childhood. But his touch was gentle, and the others seemed to notice this, as they did not approach. His skeletal fingers stroked her hair, in a way Jupiter remembered vaguely, but piquantly . Her eyes filled again with tears, but she dared not cry them. She dared not move or make a sound, for fear that the moment would vanish.
After what seemed like an hour, but was likely only thirty seconds, her father's hand fell to his chest with a thump. Jupiter lifted her head slowly, reluctantly, as if it were filled with sand and heavy to lift. She looked at her father's face. It was sallow and gaunt, with heavy bags under his eyes. There were few wrinkles, except those around the edges of his mouth, indicating that he frowned much more often than he smiled. He was also quite unconsious. Jupiter faced her friends.
"Did he, I mean, was he awake?" she asked softly.
Snape retained his look of dumbfoundedness. Only Draco spoke. "I don't think so. He didn't open his eyes at all. He stopped twitching after you cried on him, and then he touched your hair. Nothing else moved."
Jupiter nodded, still tearful, and looked over at Snape. He shook his head disbelievingly.
"It's impossible for that to have happened, Jupiter. Your tears and your touch would normally have only driven him further into pain. I can't imagine how that could..."
Jupiter didn't look surprised. But she did, suddenly, look very old. Or rather, like the very young who had seen too much, matured too quickly. She fell down on the floor and shut her eyes.
"I'm tired," she said simply. Draco stepped forward to help her up, but Severus interrupted his path by swooping upon her and lifting her up easily in his arms. It was obvious by her weight that she hadn't eaten in days. She curled into his chest and her thin fingers clutched at his robes. He felt somehow very secure, as if he could do anything, conquer any monster. But now was not the time for monsters and silliness. Now he had to find a way out of there.
***
"Lucius, have they found the boy?" Voldemort inquired as soon as Lucius opened the door.
"I've told them to search everywhere."
"So they haven't."
"No, Master."
"Lucius, I want this boy." The Dark Lord said menacingly, facing away from Malfoy, "If he gets away, it will mean your life."
Lucius's heart skipped unpleasantly. "Yes, Master."
***
Severus was distraught. He loved Jupiter, and he knew it. She was young, yes, and had the problems that come from being so, but she was really more mature than most girls her age. She'd been through a lot and Severus wondered what on Earth could she have done to earn herself such a horrid life.
Which brought his thoughts back to what Hayredin had said. "I shall always cherish the time I spent there?" It didn't make sense. No, he corrected himself, it did make sense. That was the frightening bit. Surely he couldn't have done that to her. Jupiter would have told, certainly. No, perhaps not. It was a horrible thing to think about, that her own father would...He couldn't bear to finish the thought. How long had it been going on? Into Jupiter's teenhood? She wouldn't have allowed that, would she? Not unless he'd been doing it for a long time...Since Jupiter was very young...Snape shuddered.
He looked down at Jupiter, who was asleep. She was peaceful when she slept, and even if she was sharp-tongued, sarcastic, prone to trouble, and hard to manage when awake, it was so easy to forgive her when she was sleeping. Particularly when she was sleeping with her face nuzzled into your chest, Severus added mentally, with a bit of a smile.
Draco and Harry followed Snape quietly, since he seemed to have a better escape plan than they did, which consisted of having one at all. They remained totally silent, though whether this was out of fear of waking Jupiter or the lack of anything to say no one really knew.
After walking for what seemed like hours through dim-lit passages, they all heard footsteps. They seemed to be coming from the opposite side of the wall. Then there were voices.
"Any luck yet, Zabini?" said one.
"That you, McNair?"
"Yeah. Any luck?"
"No. I don't understand where they could be. But don't worry. Tell Lucius we'll find them. The Potter boy AND his friends."
"You'd better, or he'll have you head. And I'm not exaggerating."
"The scary part is, McNair, I believe you. See you."
"Yeah."
That seemed to be the end of the conversation. Draco and Severus exchanged glances, and they kept walking.
***
Mikhail Crabbe was alert as a fox. Well, perhaps a really dim fox. Really, he was like more of a...goat. No, no, that's not right either. More like a, well a...Like a not-so-terribly-alert-but-trying-very-hard object. Anyway, he was patrolling the hallway, quite ready to beat up anything that passed him. As a matter of fact, he was just about to do so to a small, scurrying object when it squealed.
"Crabbe! Stop it! Don't hurt me!" the little old man squeaked, struggling to get away from Crabbe, who had lifted him off the ground by his robes.
"Oh. Wormtail. Sorry." He set the little man down. Wormtail began walking along with Crabbe, eyes darting every which way, looking for any sign of Harry Potter.
"We must find them for Master," he said to himself, and Crabbe nodded. They turned a corner and saw, against all reason, the back of Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy, and Severus Snape, who appeared to be carrying the other member of their motley crew. Crabbe gave a small yelp of surprise, and they all whirled around.
"Harry Potter!" cried Crabbe, predictably.
"Wormtail," Harry hissed.
They turned and took off at a run, going as fast as they could.
Jupiter was shaken awake. "Wha-what's going on, Severus?"
"We're being chased." Snape said shortly. Jupiter peered over Severus's shoulder behind him and saw Wormtail and Crabbe following faster than she would have expected. She reached her hand inside Snape's robes.
Snape wanted to tell Jupiter that now was not the time to get fresh, but he couldn't afford to waste his breath. Jupiter had been relatively light until he'd started running. Then he felt Jupiter's finger grasp around his wand and pull it out. She pointed it shakily at their pursuers, and shouted, in a croaky voice, "Stupefy!"
It hit Wormtail, and knocked the feeble man over, unconsious. Crabbe, however, looked as if nothing short of the stopping power of a dozen brick walls was going to stop him. Just as Snape turned the corner, though, Jupiter saw, against all reason, the burly man's head come off completely in a spray of blood.
"Severus, Severus, oh my god! Stop!" she hit Snape's shoulder urgently and he stopped, grateful for the break. Jupiter leapt out of his arms and ran back to the other hallway.
She stared in shock at the ugly head lying not more than ten feet from her, its face frozen in a rictus of anger.
"That's disgusting." said Harry, from behind her. She nodded dumbly and searched the hallway for any sign of his killer.
"There's nothing here that could have done this," Harry remarked.
"That's true. And I vote that we don't put too much effort into finding out, lest we get ourselves killed. Let's go." Jupiter said briskly, grabbing Harry's arm and dragging him off, back around the corner. But when she got there, she saw something nearly as frightening as Crabbe's disembodied head. "Where'd Draco go?" she cried.
***
His life depended on the finding of Harry Potter. His life. Lucius paced up and down the corridor worriedly. He didn't like to admit it, even to himself, but he was worried. He'd done various charms and drank various immortality potions, and so on to protect himself, but he didn't know how effective it would be. Voldemort, the most powerful Dark wizard alive, had used many more precautions than he, Lucius, had, and he was reduced to the state of a mere whisper. Lucius wasn't sure he wouldn't rather die than become that.
He had to find Harry Potter. He stalked off down the corridor angrily.
***
"I don't know," said Severus, "I assumed he was running behind me."
"Me too," agreed Harry.
"Well, I guess we'd better go look for him," said Jupiter, and began walking. But Snape caught her arm and dragged her back.
"It's not safe. Look, I want you and Harry to stay here. I'll put an Obscurus charm on you, the most powerful I can manage. I will go look for Draco. Of all of us, he and I are the two least likely to be harmed."
"Severus," said Jupiter quietly, "I don't want you to go alone. You could be-"
"I'll be fine. I can take care of myself, all right?"
"I want to be able to keep in touch with you."
Snape nodded. He took her wrist, and placed it next to his own. He took back his wand and pressed it against both of their wrists. "Enaudio, noster nostri."
The wand heated up quickly and painful, and the hissing noise made from the wand burning their wrists was enough to sicken the strongest of hearts. Jupiter bit her lip as she felt something a needle stick into her wrist, travel into her heart, then shoot back out and remain in her wrist as a sort of warm, but not uncomfortable, plate beneath the skin.
"What was that?" she asked, as Snape pulled his wrist and wand away. He lifted his wrist to his mouth and spoke.
"Enaudius charm. Uncommon, probably illegal." Jupiter heard in her head, as well as hearing him speak.
"How odd. What was the 'noster nostri' bit?"
"It's the second part of the spell, it's optional. It means 'our hearts beat as one.' Whatever you feel, I feel, and vice versa. Not physically, emotionally." he replied.
Jupiter gave Snape a smile. "You're so smart."
Snape ignored her compliment and pointed his wand at her and Harry. "Obscuro!"
A blinding white light shot from his wand and hung in the air for a moment over Harry's head. Then it exploded, and tiny bits of white light lodged themselves in Harry and Jupiter's skin, and when the light faded, so did they.
Snape was looking at Jupiter, but with an unfocused stare that indicated that he couldn't see her anymore. "I cannot see you now, nor will I be able to hear you if you speak to me, unless you use the Enaudius charm. No one else can hear you or see you, either, but they can feel you. Be wary."
Jupiter lifted her wrist to her mouth and whispered, too quiet for Harry to hear, "I love you, Severus."
Snape looked surprised, and said, into his wrist, "Jupiter, now is not the time."
Jupiter laughed. "I know. You just can't bear to tell me you love me, can you?"
"I can."
"Then do."
"Not in front of Potter."
"Fine, then. Have fun finding Draco."
"Indeed," Snape said, and walked off.
Jupiter turned to Harry and sat down on the floor.
***
***
"Draco, I must say I'm surprised to see you here." Lucius said conversationally, as he walked on, leading Severus and Draco down a grimy corridor.
Draco looked at Severus and made a gesture with his head that they should run. But Severus, paled and looking frightened, shook his head emphatically.
"No, you're right, Severus. Escape wouldn't be a good idea. Draco, I'm disappointed that you thought it was an option. I thought you were smarter than that." He clicked his tongue in a disapproving way. Draco was slightly surprised by this, as Lucius was not facing the two.
Draco's mind raced. Harry was under Snape's cloak. Lucius didn't seem to know at the moment, but surely he'd find out soon. How could they get Harry away? Harry was the only one who stood a chance to save Jupiter, and the only one who didn't stand a chance against Voldemort.
A flash of inspiration hit Draco in the shin.
"Ow!"
"Oh yes, watch out for the drainpipes on the side," Lucius drawled coldly, "You might do yourself an injury."
Draco looked at Snape's side of the wall, at the drainpipes. There was a large one coming ahead. Boy-sized, even. But how could Draco get the point across to Harry? He got an idea.
"Father, can we stop? My leg hurts. I bumped it on a DRAINPIPE." Draco whined, and kicked Harry to emphasize "drainpipe". Lucius laughed.
"What are all these DRAINPIPES for, anyway? You could probably fit a grown man into some of these DRAINPIPES." Draco said, kicking Harry again.
"Listen, Draco, if you're trying to subtly hint to Severus that you escape through the drainpipes, you're a moron. First of all, not even I know where they go, but I can't imagine anywhere pleasant. Second, they fill up with water every half hour, and this entire passageway we're in will probably fill up within fifteen minutes. And if you're going to try to escape, then for god's sake, act like a bloody Malfoy and not that stupid Potter boy. You don't have to be so bloody obvious about it."
Draco tried to look embarrassed, but he saw Snape's robes move, and heard a tiny scuffling noise. He realized that Lucius could probably hear Harry as well. How could Draco help?
Without warning, Draco began running the opposite way down the hallway, screaming.
Harry and Snape rolled their eyes. Draco really was no good at being sneaky.
Lucius turned, pointed his wand, and shouted "Crucio!"
Draco fell to his knees, screaming still, but this time in pain. It didn't take long for Draco to pass out. Lucius then used his wand to lift the unconscious boy up and bob him along the hallway.
Snape allowed himself to twitch the corners of his mouth as he and Lucius kept walking. Though Draco had made a complete ass out of himself, at least he had accomplished something.
***
"Master, I have brought you some visitors."
"Very good, Lucius." Voldemort said, facing a painting on the wall. "How is your son, by the way?"
Lucius looked at Draco, who was beginning to come to.
"He's well."
"I knew you would come back to me, Severus. You're so utterly predictable. And since I know you're curious, your precious girl is all ready dead."
Snape glared, but said nothing. He was just trying to get him to react. He was lying, he had to be.
"And would you like to know something else? Before her death, she tried to escape. Yes, she's a crafty one all right, not above selling her body to get herself free."
"You're lying."
"Oh, but I'm not. She did, and quite a few times as well. It didn't help, of course. And when she did die, finally, at my own hands, she was pleading and begging and offering me most shameful things. Were I even slightly interested in distracting myself thusly, I might have kept her alive."
Snape was shaking with fury, but part of him believed in what the Dark Lord was saying. Jupiter had once said that when things scared her, she would try to seduce them, in the hopes that they wouldn't harm her. She would always add, laughingly, "And if they do kill me, at least I'll have gotten some!"
Voldemort, for the first time, turned and looked at the group. His eyes widened, and a look of surprise showed on his face for just a second, before morphing into anger.
"Lucius, you idiot, where is the Potter boy?"
"What do you mean, Master? Harry Potter is not here."
"Don't you tell me where he is, you imbecile!" The Dark Lord cried, and Lucius cringed, "Go find him! He is in the building! Call all the Death Eaters to come search for him!"
"All of them?"
"ALL OF THEM!"
***
Harry crawled madly along the pipe. Only fifteen minutes, only fifteen minutes. He couldn't tell where he was going, and it was pitch black. The pipe was covered in grime, and he kept putting his hands into warm piles that crunched. He tried not to think of what they could be.
As he crawled, he felt something bite his ankle. He didn't know what it was, but he cursed loudly and shook his leg vigorously. When he was sure he'd shaken whatever had bitten him, he began crawling faster.
***
She could try to wriggle out of her binds, and then escape through the portrait again. She wasn't likely to make it, but anything was worth trying. She wiggled and squirmed, and did everything she could to escape the ropes, but managed only to tear most of her sheet off.
"Well, a fat lot of good that did me."
"You said it, sister." Kira agreed.
***
Hayredin called to the Death Eaters guarding Jupiter's cell.
"Come on, all of you, forget the girl, we have to find Harry Potter before he escapes!"
The black figures rushed towards the staircase, and Jupiter craned her neck to watch them leave.
"Harry Potter?" she thought, "Then I do have a chance of survival, great!"
"Ooh, Harry Potter, I've heard of him!" Kira smiled, "I used to belong to his father!"
"Shut up. Wait, what?"
"I used to belong to James Potter! The last time I saw little Harry, he was only this big!" She measured an inch with her fingers. "Well, perhaps a bit bigger than that. Anyway, I was in their house when it was destroyed. I was pulled from the wreckage afterwards, before any police arrived, by some man in a cloak. And I've been kept in this house ever since. It's much roomier than the other house."
"Well, it's a small world after all."
***
He was definitely on a downward slant now. It was kind of obvious, because he kept sliding, and bumping his knees on kinks in the pipe. Would it never end?
Why was he doing this anyway? Jupiter was a dumb Slytherin, and she wasn't even nice to him. Draco probably wouldn't even thank him afterwards, he was just expected to do all the heroing. It was unfair. He hoped Draco was in a lot of pain right now. He hoped-
But Harry was pulled from his reverie by a high, hissing noise. It sounded like a bunch of snakes...or maybe wings flapping...or maybe....
Water.
***
Draco and Severus ran as fast as they could down the passageway. Lucius Malfoy was running after them, cursing.
"Give me back my wand, you little bugger!" Lucius cried. "You're a disgrace to my name and unfit to be called my son!"
Draco, in a fit of rage, pulled his father's wand out of his own pocket, and snapped in it half. And then he broke it into fourths, and threw it back at his father.
Lucius got hit square in the eye with a piece of wood, and shrieked. He stopped running, and clutched at his face.
"Oh, I hope he goes blind!" Draco shouted.
"Shut up and run!" Snape hissed.
They couldn't help but notice that there was a four inch deep pond building at their feet as they splashed along.
***
Harry couldn't help but notice, either. He tried to crawl faster, but the water kept slowing him down.
"Oh gods," he cried, "I'm going to die!"
His ankle was beginning to throb. He hoped it wasn't infected. Though with all the filth in this pipe, he wouldn't be surprised.
But then something happened that did surprise him. He came to an abrupt angle change in the pipe. And, with a scream, he began sliding down.
And down, and down. He was sliding downwards, face-first, at a forty-five degree angle, and it was really going to hurt when he hit bottom.
***
Draco and Severus ran into a side corridor, narrow and pitch black, and paused, panting.
"We ought to...get some idea...of where we're going..." Snape gasped. Draco nodded.
Snape peered out into the hallway, no one was chasing them!
"They must all be looking for Harry," Snape murmured to himself.
"But why would Voldemort want Harry, anyway?" Draco asked, quietly, "What harm can he do now?"
"He defeats or escapes Voldemort every time they meet. The Dark Lord has a bit of a grudge against him. At least, from what I gather."
***
With a splash, Harry hit bottom. Luckily, there was enough water cushioning to keep him from being hurt. He really had to see where he was going now.
"Lumos," he said, and the pipe lit up. The water was clear, but tinted greenish, and the pipe was old and rusty. Harry peered down through the water. What were his choices now? He could go up, but then the water would get to him before he got out. And, wait, he couldn't go up anyway. There was no way he could climb all the way up, it was too steep.
There was only one way. Harry held his breath, and ducked under the water. He began swimming downwards as fast as possible, forcing his eyes open, though he didn't trust what was in the water.
After a time, he reached the bottom of the slope, and began swimming horizontally again. His body was giving him warning signals, he needed to breathe...but there was no air. But he kept on diligently, as fast as he could. His eyes were beginning to cloud, and he was seeing lights now. His lungs were going to burst.
"Oh gods," Harry thought silently, choking up a little, "I'm really going to die now. I'm going to suffocate in a dirty pipe in an ugly old castle and I'll never get to tell Draco I for-" Harry let go of all the air he was holding, and took a deep pull of water, trying to breathe. He passed out.
***
"Why aren't we going up?" Draco cried, as he and Severus ran. There was a decent foot of water on the floor now, and the going was getting tedious.
"Because we have to get Jupiter."
"Are you deaf or just daft?! Didn't you hear what Volde-"
"He lied."
Draco looked frantic. "You don't know that! What if she's dead?"
"What if she's not?" Snape's eyes held a fierce sort of emotion; fear, hope, and determination.
Draco shut up and kept running.
***
Harry coughed, and green water spilled out of his mouth onto the stone. He spluttered and gasped, breathing in the dank air. He opened his eyes, and looked around. There was no one there, not even anything on the black walls of the corridor.
How was he alive? What had saved him? He patted himself all over, and though he was wet, he didn't seem to be harmed.
He looked behind him. There was a small square opening, filled with water. It was glowing. Harry leaned over, out of curiosity. His wand was lying at the bottom of a small pool. He reached down and grabbed it. He turned out its light and stood up shakily. His ankle was incredibly painful.
He pulled up his pant leg and gasped. His ankle had swollen to about the size of a grapefruit, and was bright purple. He wished Hermione was there, she knew more healing charms than anyone he knew.
Well, he would have to get going. He took a few steps, and found that he could limp rather effectively. He went forward, as it seemed as good a solution as any.
***
Jupiter heard a loud creak as a door opened cautiously.
"Who's there?" she called.
"Jupiter?" a male voice answered.
"No, you can't be Jupiter, I'm Jupiter."
"Hello, Jupiter."
"Hello, Harry. It's about time you arrived. Our boyfriends are in mortal danger and all the Death Eaters are after you."
"Ah, thanks for telling me."
"Oh, no problem. Now, would you care to unt-"
The doors burst open and Severus and Draco ran into the room.
"Jupiter! Are you all-Potter?"
"No, I'm not all Potter, actually. I'm hardly any Potter at all."
"Harry, how did you get here?"
"I swam."
"Swam? Through where?"
"Jupiter, are you all right?"
"Yes, I'm fine, but I'd be much more fine if someone would unt-"
A bunch of Death Eaters appeared at the door.
"Oh good," Jupiter cried, "Let's have a party!"
"There's the Potter boy!"
"Expelliarmus!" Snape cried, thinking quickly. The first two figures' wands flew out of their hands and into Severus's.
And so the battle began.
"Quick, get Jupiter!" Snape cried to Harry, who nodded. Snape narrowly dodged a curse.
Harry rushed to loosen Jupiter's binds, while the battle behind him raged. A curse nearly hit Harry's side, and he threw himself forward into Jupiter's bosom fearfully.
"Why, Harry!" Jupiter said, looking down at him, "I didn't know you cared. I do have a boyfriend, though. All though I might not for much longer if you don't get your face out of my breasts and untie me!"
Harry lifted his face up and looked at her. "Listen, Jupiter. I don't WANT to save you. I'm only doing it because I'm the ruddy hero and my boyfriend is out there, in mortal danger. And if you keep being snotty, I might forget that I'm a brave and noble Gryffindor and just leave you to die! Now, why don't you SHUT UP while I untie you?!"
Jupiter fell into a sheepish silence, and Harry nodded. He began to work on the knots again. Within not too long, Jupiter was untied.
"Listen, Kira," Jupiter said, and the painting leaned forward eagerly, "Mr. Potter here and I are both going to die horribly soon if you don't help us. So I'll make you a deal, you can sound the alarm that we're getting away, and we'll get away."
***
When the Death Eaters awoke, it was to Kira's rather desperate screaming.
"THEY'RE GETTING AWAY! THEY'RE GETTING AWAY!!"
In alarm, most of the conscious Death Eaters scrambled to their feet and crawled through the portrait hole, while the others went back out through the door to head them off.
After a few seconds, Kira fell silent. Jupiter poked her head out from behind the door. Kira gave her a wink and a smile.
"Happy escaping. Thanks for keeping me entertained." The painting gave another, more wistful smile as the group ran off down another corridor.
***
Jupiter laughed a little as they ran. "It's a good thing she knew you, Potter, otherwise I doubt we'd have gotten away!"
"Yeah. Good for me." Harry said nonchalantly, as he kept running.
"What's wrong, Harry?" Draco asked.
"It was too easy. It's never that easy."
"Nah, it's just cuz you're working with Slytherins instead of those pansy Gryffindorks!"
Harry was just about to retort that he wasn't a pansy Gryffindork, but he reflected that he probably was.
"Like you can talk, Draco. Your idea of a good distraction was to run down the hallway shrieking like a banshee!"
"I panicked!"
"Panicking? Not the unrufflable Draco Malfoy, surely?"
"Listen, Potter-"
"Shut up, both of you. I'm sick of your petty quarrelling. He's right, Draco." Severus said, "Escaping from the Dark Lord can't be that easy. I mean, really, he's not an idiot."
The group began to slow to a trot, and then to a walk.
"So what now?" Draco asked, turning to Harry.
"What the hell are you asking me for? Who do I look like, Ann Landers?" Harry snapped. Draco goggled at him. Harry mentally sighed and tried again, "Why the hell do I have to know?"
"Well," Draco said, nettled, "YOU'RE the hero here!"
"Do YOU want to be the designated hero here? Because I sure don't! I didn't ask to come along on your crazy escapade!"
"Well at least I tried to save you!"
"Well at least I did save you!"
"Well I didn't get all smug about it!"
"You did too! You ARE, too!"
"But you are more than me!"
"I am not!"
"Well at least I'm not wearing my pyjamas!"
"Well at least I didn't cheat on you with RON!"
There was a dead silence.
"I thought you said we weren't going to mention that any more." Draco looked down at his shoes sadly.
"I'm sorry, Draco...I didn't mean..."
"No, no, don't worry."
"No, I'm sorry. I was just angry. I'm not mad at you." Harry took his shamefaced boyfriend in his arms, and they just held each other.
Jupiter and Snape exchanged a glance and a shrug.
"So...what? What should we do?" Jupiter asked.
"I'm not sure. I don't even know a way out of here." Snape said.
"There isn't a way," said a menacing voice, barely above a whisper. A dark figure stepped out from the shadows.
***
Standing before them was a gaunt, pale man, and Jupiter recognized him immediately.
"Hayredin."
"Hello, Jupiter. Are these your friends?"
Jupiter glared at him, "It's a bit late for you to try to find out about the crowd I hang out with, isn't it?"
Hayredin ignored her. "And is this your boyfriend?" He pointed to Harry with his wand.
"Guess again."
"Shame, he suits you. Then this one, must be the one I was told you were...consorting with," he said, moving his wand and aiming it at Draco.
"Wrong again."
Hayredin looked surprised for a fleeting second, then put two and two together and glared at Snape. He'd always heard Jupiter whinging on to her mother about Severus this, and Snape that. He'd thought it just a normal obsession, but it appeared he was wrong.
"You." was all Hayredin said, looking at Snape. "You monster." The tension in the room elevated wildly, as Snape returned the death glare.
"Dad, like I said, too late to be fatherly." Jupiter reached to pull out her wand and curse him out of the way, when she remembered she didn't have it.
"I should have guessed that you were her father," Snape said quietly. Harry, Draco, and Jupiter had subconsiously backed away from the two adults, who were just glaring at each other menacingly. The air crackled with tension.
"I should have guessed that a traitor like you would find my failed daughter attractive." Hayredin cocked his head to the side and looked mock-sympathetic. "The only pair of legs you could find comfort between?"
Snape growled and jumped forward, startling Jupiter's father. He grabbed Hayredin's wand with one hand, his throat in the other. Jupiter watched in shock as Snape held her father silent and hissed at him.
"How dare you say that about her. About your own daughter."
Hayredin smiled cruelly, and spoke as best he could, "I don't blame you. I shall always cherish the time I spent there."
Jupiter's pretty mouth dropped open. Harry and Draco, who hadn't heard, looked confused. And Snape, whose expression didn't change, stuck the point of his wand into the bottom of Hayredin's chin and whispered.
"Avada Ked-"
"Severus, please don't!" Jupiter cried, shaken from her frozen state. She looked at Snape with horror in her eyes, and he faltered.
Hayredin looked angered, and, oddly, he didn't struggle away. "That's so like you, Jupiter," he sneered, trying to find enough air to hiss at her, "You couldn't stand to see your own father die."
Jupiter spat in her father's face. "No. I just don't want to see Severus become a killer."
"Your dearest Severus IS a killer, Jupiter," her father retorted, angered even more so.
"Not for personal reasons. Not for YOU."
Snape looked at Jupiter. Jupiter looked at Snape. Then, quietly, she took her father's wand and pointed it at his face.
"Father," she said quietly, "You don't deserve my pity. Contemno!"
A purple flash filled the room, and when everyone's eyes had adjusted to the semi-darkness, they saw Hayredin, lying on the floor, quite motionless.
"Did you kill him?" asked Harry quietly, after a while.
"She did not," said Snape in an equally awed voice, "The Contemnus Curse is Dark Magic, causing the victim to be knocked unconsious for normally three hours, wherein they relive everything they've ever regretted. It can take longer or less, depending on how many regrets they have. When they awake, they will be filled with such hate for themselves and everything they have done that they cannot bear to live with themselves. It nearly always ends in suicide."
"So," said Draco, "She basically did kill him."
"Basically," said Harry.
The group sat silent for quite some time, staring at Hayredin on the floor.
"Hey," Draco said suddenly, looking around, "Where's Jupiter?"
***
"They're not here yet," said a large, round Death Eater.
"That's true, Goyle, now what colour is your hood?" snapped Zabini.
"Umm....grey?"
Zabini rolled his eyes. He'd been dealing with Frederick Goyle's stupidity for nearly an hour. "What are you, blind? It's black!"
"Well, sometimes it looks grey in the light."
"Listen up, you giant lump of lard," cried Zabini, his temper finally cracking, "If you-"
"Stop it, Zabini! Where is the boy?" cried Lucius, hood down, silvery blonde hair flowing behind his head as he marched swiftly towards them. The white of his left eye was blood red.
"I don't know, Lucius."
"Dammit, Alpha, what on Earth caused Master to choose you as one of his faithful is beyond me!" Lucius snapped, just short of hitting the man's face. "We need the Potter boy. Now! Search the rest of the castle! Goyle, round up...Nevermind. You stay here, Goyle. Alpha, find the others. Tell them to search the castle. Tell them to seach everywhere."
***
"Jupiter, are you all right?" Draco asked, giving the crying girl another hug. She just cried harder.
"No," Snape began. "Doing a curse that powerful and that awful is something that's hard to do. It drains one, emotionally. Especially one so young as her." Snape was standing off to the side. It pained him to see Jupiter like this, but he couldn't bring himself to cuddle her like Draco was doing, at least not with the other two boys present.
"He...He called me Ju-Ju Bear once," Jupiter moaned into her friend's shoulder. "It was on one of my christmas present tags when I was five. 'From Daddy, to his little Ju-Ju Bear.'" Jupiter's sentence was punctuated by a loud sob. "I was always his Little Princess, he would always take me out to the zoo, and to the aquarium, so I could see all the Xenosharks and guppie-fish. Oh god!" she clutched Draco's shoulder. "I want to take it back! I want to undo it!"
"Jupiter," Snape began softly, but the girl had all ready squirmed away from Draco and scrabbled over to her father's body, lying twisted in pain on the floor.
"I know what you're seeing," she whispered to him, a tear dripping from her face to his, and he flinched as if it burned him. "You're seeing everything you've regretted doing."
Severus wanted to say something, but he couldn't think of what. Draco and Harry were merely staring at her in shock and confusion.
"And you know what?" Jupiter said quietly, "If anything, absolutely anything you regret has to do with leaving or neglecting me, I forgive you." She lay her head on her father's chest and screwed up her face. "I forgive you."
Jupiter felt a weight on her head. She knew it was her father's hand, not only by the gasps her friends had made, but from long-buried memories of childhood. But his touch was gentle, and the others seemed to notice this, as they did not approach. His skeletal fingers stroked her hair, in a way Jupiter remembered vaguely, but piquantly . Her eyes filled again with tears, but she dared not cry them. She dared not move or make a sound, for fear that the moment would vanish.
After what seemed like an hour, but was likely only thirty seconds, her father's hand fell to his chest with a thump. Jupiter lifted her head slowly, reluctantly, as if it were filled with sand and heavy to lift. She looked at her father's face. It was sallow and gaunt, with heavy bags under his eyes. There were few wrinkles, except those around the edges of his mouth, indicating that he frowned much more often than he smiled. He was also quite unconsious. Jupiter faced her friends.
"Did he, I mean, was he awake?" she asked softly.
Snape retained his look of dumbfoundedness. Only Draco spoke. "I don't think so. He didn't open his eyes at all. He stopped twitching after you cried on him, and then he touched your hair. Nothing else moved."
Jupiter nodded, still tearful, and looked over at Snape. He shook his head disbelievingly.
"It's impossible for that to have happened, Jupiter. Your tears and your touch would normally have only driven him further into pain. I can't imagine how that could..."
Jupiter didn't look surprised. But she did, suddenly, look very old. Or rather, like the very young who had seen too much, matured too quickly. She fell down on the floor and shut her eyes.
"I'm tired," she said simply. Draco stepped forward to help her up, but Severus interrupted his path by swooping upon her and lifting her up easily in his arms. It was obvious by her weight that she hadn't eaten in days. She curled into his chest and her thin fingers clutched at his robes. He felt somehow very secure, as if he could do anything, conquer any monster. But now was not the time for monsters and silliness. Now he had to find a way out of there.
***
"Lucius, have they found the boy?" Voldemort inquired as soon as Lucius opened the door.
"I've told them to search everywhere."
"So they haven't."
"No, Master."
"Lucius, I want this boy." The Dark Lord said menacingly, facing away from Malfoy, "If he gets away, it will mean your life."
Lucius's heart skipped unpleasantly. "Yes, Master."
***
Severus was distraught. He loved Jupiter, and he knew it. She was young, yes, and had the problems that come from being so, but she was really more mature than most girls her age. She'd been through a lot and Severus wondered what on Earth could she have done to earn herself such a horrid life.
Which brought his thoughts back to what Hayredin had said. "I shall always cherish the time I spent there?" It didn't make sense. No, he corrected himself, it did make sense. That was the frightening bit. Surely he couldn't have done that to her. Jupiter would have told, certainly. No, perhaps not. It was a horrible thing to think about, that her own father would...He couldn't bear to finish the thought. How long had it been going on? Into Jupiter's teenhood? She wouldn't have allowed that, would she? Not unless he'd been doing it for a long time...Since Jupiter was very young...Snape shuddered.
He looked down at Jupiter, who was asleep. She was peaceful when she slept, and even if she was sharp-tongued, sarcastic, prone to trouble, and hard to manage when awake, it was so easy to forgive her when she was sleeping. Particularly when she was sleeping with her face nuzzled into your chest, Severus added mentally, with a bit of a smile.
Draco and Harry followed Snape quietly, since he seemed to have a better escape plan than they did, which consisted of having one at all. They remained totally silent, though whether this was out of fear of waking Jupiter or the lack of anything to say no one really knew.
After walking for what seemed like hours through dim-lit passages, they all heard footsteps. They seemed to be coming from the opposite side of the wall. Then there were voices.
"Any luck yet, Zabini?" said one.
"That you, McNair?"
"Yeah. Any luck?"
"No. I don't understand where they could be. But don't worry. Tell Lucius we'll find them. The Potter boy AND his friends."
"You'd better, or he'll have you head. And I'm not exaggerating."
"The scary part is, McNair, I believe you. See you."
"Yeah."
That seemed to be the end of the conversation. Draco and Severus exchanged glances, and they kept walking.
***
Mikhail Crabbe was alert as a fox. Well, perhaps a really dim fox. Really, he was like more of a...goat. No, no, that's not right either. More like a, well a...Like a not-so-terribly-alert-but-trying-very-hard object. Anyway, he was patrolling the hallway, quite ready to beat up anything that passed him. As a matter of fact, he was just about to do so to a small, scurrying object when it squealed.
"Crabbe! Stop it! Don't hurt me!" the little old man squeaked, struggling to get away from Crabbe, who had lifted him off the ground by his robes.
"Oh. Wormtail. Sorry." He set the little man down. Wormtail began walking along with Crabbe, eyes darting every which way, looking for any sign of Harry Potter.
"We must find them for Master," he said to himself, and Crabbe nodded. They turned a corner and saw, against all reason, the back of Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy, and Severus Snape, who appeared to be carrying the other member of their motley crew. Crabbe gave a small yelp of surprise, and they all whirled around.
"Harry Potter!" cried Crabbe, predictably.
"Wormtail," Harry hissed.
They turned and took off at a run, going as fast as they could.
Jupiter was shaken awake. "Wha-what's going on, Severus?"
"We're being chased." Snape said shortly. Jupiter peered over Severus's shoulder behind him and saw Wormtail and Crabbe following faster than she would have expected. She reached her hand inside Snape's robes.
Snape wanted to tell Jupiter that now was not the time to get fresh, but he couldn't afford to waste his breath. Jupiter had been relatively light until he'd started running. Then he felt Jupiter's finger grasp around his wand and pull it out. She pointed it shakily at their pursuers, and shouted, in a croaky voice, "Stupefy!"
It hit Wormtail, and knocked the feeble man over, unconsious. Crabbe, however, looked as if nothing short of the stopping power of a dozen brick walls was going to stop him. Just as Snape turned the corner, though, Jupiter saw, against all reason, the burly man's head come off completely in a spray of blood.
"Severus, Severus, oh my god! Stop!" she hit Snape's shoulder urgently and he stopped, grateful for the break. Jupiter leapt out of his arms and ran back to the other hallway.
She stared in shock at the ugly head lying not more than ten feet from her, its face frozen in a rictus of anger.
"That's disgusting." said Harry, from behind her. She nodded dumbly and searched the hallway for any sign of his killer.
"There's nothing here that could have done this," Harry remarked.
"That's true. And I vote that we don't put too much effort into finding out, lest we get ourselves killed. Let's go." Jupiter said briskly, grabbing Harry's arm and dragging him off, back around the corner. But when she got there, she saw something nearly as frightening as Crabbe's disembodied head. "Where'd Draco go?" she cried.
***
His life depended on the finding of Harry Potter. His life. Lucius paced up and down the corridor worriedly. He didn't like to admit it, even to himself, but he was worried. He'd done various charms and drank various immortality potions, and so on to protect himself, but he didn't know how effective it would be. Voldemort, the most powerful Dark wizard alive, had used many more precautions than he, Lucius, had, and he was reduced to the state of a mere whisper. Lucius wasn't sure he wouldn't rather die than become that.
He had to find Harry Potter. He stalked off down the corridor angrily.
***
"I don't know," said Severus, "I assumed he was running behind me."
"Me too," agreed Harry.
"Well, I guess we'd better go look for him," said Jupiter, and began walking. But Snape caught her arm and dragged her back.
"It's not safe. Look, I want you and Harry to stay here. I'll put an Obscurus charm on you, the most powerful I can manage. I will go look for Draco. Of all of us, he and I are the two least likely to be harmed."
"Severus," said Jupiter quietly, "I don't want you to go alone. You could be-"
"I'll be fine. I can take care of myself, all right?"
"I want to be able to keep in touch with you."
Snape nodded. He took her wrist, and placed it next to his own. He took back his wand and pressed it against both of their wrists. "Enaudio, noster nostri."
The wand heated up quickly and painful, and the hissing noise made from the wand burning their wrists was enough to sicken the strongest of hearts. Jupiter bit her lip as she felt something a needle stick into her wrist, travel into her heart, then shoot back out and remain in her wrist as a sort of warm, but not uncomfortable, plate beneath the skin.
"What was that?" she asked, as Snape pulled his wrist and wand away. He lifted his wrist to his mouth and spoke.
"Enaudius charm. Uncommon, probably illegal." Jupiter heard in her head, as well as hearing him speak.
"How odd. What was the 'noster nostri' bit?"
"It's the second part of the spell, it's optional. It means 'our hearts beat as one.' Whatever you feel, I feel, and vice versa. Not physically, emotionally." he replied.
Jupiter gave Snape a smile. "You're so smart."
Snape ignored her compliment and pointed his wand at her and Harry. "Obscuro!"
A blinding white light shot from his wand and hung in the air for a moment over Harry's head. Then it exploded, and tiny bits of white light lodged themselves in Harry and Jupiter's skin, and when the light faded, so did they.
Snape was looking at Jupiter, but with an unfocused stare that indicated that he couldn't see her anymore. "I cannot see you now, nor will I be able to hear you if you speak to me, unless you use the Enaudius charm. No one else can hear you or see you, either, but they can feel you. Be wary."
Jupiter lifted her wrist to her mouth and whispered, too quiet for Harry to hear, "I love you, Severus."
Snape looked surprised, and said, into his wrist, "Jupiter, now is not the time."
Jupiter laughed. "I know. You just can't bear to tell me you love me, can you?"
"I can."
"Then do."
"Not in front of Potter."
"Fine, then. Have fun finding Draco."
"Indeed," Snape said, and walked off.
Jupiter turned to Harry and sat down on the floor.
***