Dark Wind

*Chapter Eight*

by Ashley (Hype)



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NOTE: Before I get pelted with tomatoes from this chapter`s late appearance, I would like to say: I`M SO SORRY!!!! It`s a thing called writer`s block and placement finals! EEEEKKK!!! ***dodges the flying object being thrown***



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Hermione sat shivering slightly- partly because it was cold and the other part being there was a thick black snake circling around her feet. She was holding up pretty well considering the conditions. Instead of clinging to old memories, she racked her brain for ways to escape. Somewhere in the back of her mind she knew that it was virtually impossible to escape from Voldemort`s dungeons; but still, it was virtually impossible- which meant there was a way.

Her mind, somewhere along the way, had woven a path to Draco. Where was Draco? Shouldn`t he be saving me? She thought, a pout forming on her mouth. It was then that Harry flashed into her mind, for he always saved her. Always him, shining in his brilliance. She wished she could see him again. A million questions of Harry flooded her mind. And just the same, a million thoughts and memories answered them. When she admitted that she still loved him after all this time, the same thoughts and memories calmed her from her nerves, which seemed to be ebbing away slowly. However, in the furthest corner of her mind, she knew she loved Draco too.



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Harry flew alongside, but slightly in front of, Draco Malfoy. It was too bad Draco didn`t know where Harry`s flat was, or they could have apperated there. It also seemed that Harry had misplaced his usual stock of Floo powder.

Potter sighed. What isDraco up to? Was he just trying to lead me to Voldemort`s hands? Harry shook his head mentally, leaving the thought behind. No, Draco wouldn`t let him go pack his bags if he was going to visit Voldemort. Or is Hermione really in trouble? He prayed that she was okay...

Hermione`s safety was the reason he had left her. Fearing for Hermione`s life, he left her. If someone from the Dark Side found that he had a fiancé or wife, they would steal her away from him, having the ransom be himself. The last thing he wanted was for Hermione to be harmed. As quick and smart as she was, she still did not know the traits of war. If she was to come across a Death Eater, she would be rendered hopeless. As powerful as she was, white magic was simply weaker than dark arts, no exceptions applied.

As strong as Harry was, he had often cried over leaving her- his fiancé. He wanted to spend the rest of his life and everything after by her side. Every moment he was away from her his soul seemed to crumble as the days passed by. It tore him in two, half of him miserable, the other half strong.

Harry stooped down beneath the clouds, Draco following in suit. Squinting their eyes, they could see an enormous figure through the mist of the mountains. As they approached it, Draco saw the distortion turn into a castle- an enormous one at that. It was at least three times the size of the Malfoy Manor- nearly as large as Hogwarts!

From perched atop a mountain side, the castle showed its magnificent face. It was perhaps a dozen stories tall with four sky-scrapping towers and a massive balcony that over looked the English-style gardens down the mountain side. It was the most glorious castle Draco had ever laid eyes on. Apparently, Harry had become very, very wealthy over the years.

Draco and Harry landed at the front doors of the castle. Harry muttered several things, taking the hexes, curses and spells off of the doors. He opened them, emitting them amongst the contents of the castle which were even more beautiful. Draco walked in awe, though he desperately tried to hide it.

"So Potter, where did you get the Galleons for this lot?" he asked.

"Some friends and I chipped in so we could all live here," he stated plainly as if it was nothing.

"Must have been a big lot to chip in for this, eh?"

"Only four people, Malfoy," said Harry, looking at Draco over the rim of his glasses. "Wait here." Draco nodded and Harry apperated out of site with a POP.

Draco spotted a large chair down a long corridor not too far from where he was standing. He walked over and set himself down onto the plush, red velvet of the seat and closed his eyes, trying to relax.

"Oy! Harry! Surprised to find you here!"

Draco`s eyes shot open at the voice. There before him was none other than Ron Weasely.

"What are you doing here?" Draco spat before he could stop himself.

Ron took no notice to the harshness in his voice and laughed. "Well, same as you, I suppose- living here and all. How`s life treating you lately?"

Draco was in shock. Why wasn`t Weasley hating him now? Then it hit him- he still appeared as Harry. He let out a sigh of relief. "No so good, actually."

"Why not?"

"Oh, everything..."

"It`s Hermione, isn`t it?"

How true that was...He nodded.

"Sorry, Harry. Well, I haven`t much time. I`ve got a show in London in about thirty minutes. I need to leave. Perhaps a chat later?"

"I`ll be gone..."

"Oh. The job, yes? Well, some other time then." With that said, Ron apperated out of sight.

Just as Weasley left, Harry returned with no luggage.

"Not bringing anything?"

Harry shook his head. "Oh no, I have my luggage." He held out a small brown cube that slightly resembled a trunk. "I shrunk it. I try to travel light."

Draco nodded, remembering the charm Harry had used. "Well, speaking of traveling, it`s time we go. I know a forest relatively near Voldemort`s quarters, the Oakland Mountain forests. We can use a portkey to get there. I set one up before I left the mansion," Draco stated. Harry nodded as Draco pulled out a coffee mug. As soon as Harry touched it, the familiar hook came behind their navels and they began to spin.



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Lucius Malfoy paced his dimly lit room, occasionally coughing, questioning his son`s state. He had just told Voldemort of Draco`s mudblood lover. Voldemort had had the same reaction as Lucius had. Draco Malfoy had been like his son. Voldemort nearly raised him himself into his ways. Lucius had merely been like a master, an assistant even, teaching him the darker magic of the world...

Lucius knew very well that he was crumbling emotionally, mentally, and physically. He was going to die young- it was a long-kept Malfoy tradition. The entire Malfoy family had been bred very close. Most of the marriages were arranged through three strictly pure-blood families. Heath problems began to arise and were passed down through the families,. The problems worsened over the years, making the life expectancy less and less each generation. Lucius`s turn was next.

Draco was, in fact, the only hope to live longer than the rest. Lucius had been the first person to marry out of the three families. Narcissa was half veela, making Draco part veela. Everyone knew that veelas live to be about five hundred, so with the Malfoy`s life expectancy to be fifty and the veela`s life expectancy to be about five hundred, Draco could very well live to be over two hundred and fifty years old. And, much to Draco`s great pleasure, he would not age as a normal wizard would, for veelas were beautiful until the day they die. Once grown out of puberty, they would remain as they look until they day they died.

He had never told Draco this information, for it would interfere with Draco`s work in the Dark Arts. If Draco ever knew that he was going to live to be over two hundred, he would have procrastinated his work, never gaining any ground with the Dark Empire all the while.

But it seemed now that Draco did not concentrate on the Dark Empire has he had hope he would. Draco seemed to be focusing far more on women than anything else. This wasn`t the only time Draco had been found cheating on Pansy with a mudblood. It was, however, the first time he had been caught with a life-long enemy associated with the Light Side and Harry Potter. This Hermione Granger could find information about the Dark Empire`s plans or whereabouts and tell them to Potter.

Potter was referred to "Death" amongst Voldemort`s alliances. Potter and his unruly crew of Unspeakables had killed 43% of the Empire`s forces. If he were to get a hold of the information Granger could tell him, they would be defeated by Potter`s armies. That`s why he turned Granger over to Voldemort`s hands to dispose of her.

He had a feeling about this mudblood. His son was in love with her. She was very strong-willed, which explained his son`s attraction to her. He had always had obedient women that didn`t stray far from your side. Much like Draco`s working conditions, he liked a good chase. A strong-willed, muggle-born life-long enemy from the Light Side was quite a chase, he knew. But somewhere along that chase, Draco had fallen for her as if she was a forbidden precious jewel he could never touch, and he a poor beggar. Two people from two different worlds intertwined together in an everlasting path- a path leading to destruction.

Draco`s womanizing wasn`t the only thing on Lucius Malfoy`s mind. Narcissa had crept into his thoughts many times since there previous fight. God, how he loved her she would never know. It pained him to hurt her in any way. He only did it to make Draco stronger; as he was instructed to do by Lord Voldemort. Voldemort would have punished him or Draco or think of them as weak. Therefor, he beat Narcissa in front of Draco to make him stronger. He would force Draco to beat her when he was younger, too. He knew it hurt Draco very much to hurt her, for he cried when he did. Afterwards, when the darker hours came and he thought his father wasn`t watching, Draco would creep up into her room and nurse her back to health.

Draco Malfoy had a deep love for his mother- he had since he was a very small child. It was times when Draco nursed her that Lucius saw that his son was indeed human, for he often appeared, much like himself, a power-hungry evil wizard.



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Sirius Black was crouched down by his hand-made fire in the middle of a cave up on a ridge. Even though his name had been cleared, he had become much like a mountain man you read about in a book of Canadian legends. He liked it there, being on a mountain and out in the wilderness. He could do whatever he wished because his career allowed him to.

He liked his job very much. He was a spy for the Unspeakables and had adopted the name of Darkbane. He was his godson`s partner in crime- the infamous person who sailed through the Unspeakable training with flying colors. Only one person surpassed him- his own godson and great friend- Harry Potter.

He was in the Oakland Mountain forests for his new assignment. The new assignment had caused quite a stir-up amongst the Unspeakable who knew of it, and not many did. If they did know of it, it was by telepathic communications. It was there most serious and forthright assignment they had ever received- to kill Lord Voldemort. He was getting weaker, as Sirius had observed, with each day. The spies that were in Voldemort`s inner circle were to call a face conference with Voldemort. They would enter the building without killing the guards, as to not cause a disturbance. Then, once inside, they were to kill all who crossed there path. The guards would never alert Voldemort because they would never know of it.

Voldemort was often talking to Sirius of his successor. Amazingly, Sirius had entered the Dark Circle under the name of Jack Darkbane. He recalled how easy it was to slip into the Empire and become Voldemort`s trusted advisor. His tall, dark and mysterious appearance and background allowed him to do so. The Dark Empire would admit nearly anyone who went to Azkaban for killing people and escape and go on the run for years. It was lucky for Sirius that he had been able to hide his real identity without anybody within Voldemort`s realm turning any suspicions.

Sirius sighed, resting his back against the cave`s walls. Harry and Draco should be arriving soon.



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Harry and Draco landed, thankfully, on their feet in a cave. Both of them stood up and dusted their robes off, taking in their surroundings. Or at least, what they could. For the most part, the cave was completely black, save a small fire in the center of the cave floor, which was laden with thin, dusty, rust-colored dirt ans a few dry, crumpled up brown leaves.

"I`ve been expecting you," came a low, husky voice from one of the opposite corners of the cave completely sealed with black darkness, making Harry jump a considerable amount out of his shoes.

"I know," replied Draco, who seemed as calm and collected as he ever was. "Jack, how long have you been here?"

"An hour or so in time," came the voice again, whose tall dark figure was stepping towards the fire`s orange light.

"Jack, don`t kill Harry. He`s here for a good reason."

"To save Granger, I know. Tell me, do you expect to change into your old appearance anytime soon?" drawled Jack`s low voice. Draco shot a look that could easily be read as: "shut up."

Harry shook his head, flinging his unruly black hair back and forth. He had been confused at first, but now he realized what was going on. Malfoy didn`t know who Darkbane really was. Therefor, he must have set up a port key that would take him to his cave where they could plot to save Hermione. If anyone besides Voldemort knew where Hermione was, it would be Voldemort`s advisor- "Jack Darkbane." It was brilliant, and for a quick second, Harry slightly admired Draco`s handiwork.

"Alright. Down to business. How are we going to do this?" Sirius crossed his arms infront of his chest, obviously waiting for their answer.

"Well, we can`t very well go in there," Draco began. "If I go, he will kill Hermione. If Potter goes... Well, look at him! He can`t go in there! I was hoping you would have some ideas..."

"Change yourself in to me or sneak in. You are familiar with the grounds," Sirius growled.

It was time for Harry to step in. "We`ll creep in," he grinned, bringing out the only boyish feature left on his face- his smile. It was almost... innocent. Almost.

Malfoy began to panic. "Creep in there?! You`ve got to be having me on, Potter! The place is oozing Death Eaters! How on earth will you and I get past them?!"

Harry grinned. "Naturally, that`s my job."

Sirius smiled gleefully, though it was barely visible in the dim light of the fire. "The Potter boy is right," he chimed. "If you change yourself in to me, Voldemort would be talking your ear off... Chatty little fellow, he is. There is no way possible you could break Granger free with Voldemort standing next to you. The only way is to sneak in and-"

"DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT WOULD HAPPEN TO ME IF WE`RE CAUGHT?!" Draco screamed, a bit too loudly considering the fact they were in a small cave. His hysterical outburst of fury and panic sent the cave into echos.

Harry grinned mischievously. "If we`re caught..."



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Lord Voldemort`s head appeared in Jack Darkbane`s fireplace with a loud POP. "JACK!" he called. No answer. "JACK?" No answer. "JACK?! ARE YOU HERE?" he screamed into the room, his thundering voice echoing through the empty walls of the house. "JACK?" he screamed, trying one last time. Odd, no answer came. Voldemort returned to where he previously was... Back into his room.

He sat down on his tall, throne-like leather chair. How odd, he thought, Jack is always home... Where could he be? Perhaps he is meeting with someone. But with who? Surely my advisor would have told me... Sranding again, he decided to check on the mudblood girl. Quickly, he left his study in route to the dungeons underneath his fortress.

It was drafty in the dungeons. Cold, dark, and smelled of rotting flesh and food. He smiled at the thought of it. Surely everyone despised it, which was all the better to bring true misery to the residents of the prison chambers. Voldemort continued down the twisting, narrow steps with his black robes billowing behind him from his fast pace. Dim green lights flashed over him occasionally as he passed the light bulbs that were dangling loosely in their sockets, giving the walls and eerie green glow.

Voldemort had taken special care of constructing his dungeons when building the fortress, for it would be the aspect most used in the entire structure. Each room had a spell that would surround its occupant with their worst fears. He smiled, knowing that Hermione was surrounded by numerous snakes and rodents.

He turned around the corner of one of the stone corridors, bringing him to face Granger`s cell. He walked towards the door and opened it, revealing a rather broken girl. She had tear stains down her face with her legs drawn up to he chest. He eyes seemed distant, but they soon focused on Voldemort. Tremors began to quake through her tiny body as his cold red eyes stared into hers. He smiled wickedly, showing his jagged, yellow-green teeth.

"Hello there," he said, his voice mellow and dangerously quiet.

Hermione nodded defiantly and he raised an eyebrow, surprised at her. "Why don`t you just kill me?" she asked, he voice not quavering a bit.

He smiled at her spunk. This one was rather feisty. His raspy monotone voice spoke: "Nothing would give me more pleasure than to dispose of you now, my dear. However, I have plans for you."

"What plans, exactly?"

"Plans that I would rather not discuss with you."

"Why not? It would probably make my stay here even worse knowing what you`re going to do with me," she stated, as if daring him to tell her.

"Girl, you are on dangerous grounds," he snarled, becoming agitated by her defiant antics. "I advise you push no further, for what I could do is far worse than even you could imagine. If you must know, I like to keep my audience in suspense. I will keep you alive and guessing... for a while."

Hermione certainly did not enjoy those last three words. She was grateful, though, for they were followed by a small plate of food by her side. She looked up from it, only to find the Dark Lord had disappeared. Looking back down at her food, she realized she was ravenous and began to eat the two pieces of bread and three strawberries off the plate.



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DISCLAIMER: I own the plot. Otherwise, all hail the Queen of all Really Great Books, J. K. Rowling.



NOTE: So you finally met Darkbane... Or whom many refer to as Dead Sexy Sirius. Hmm... And the plot thickens. Just a forewarning, I will be making the chapters longer in order to fit everything within 15 chapters...Hope that doesn`t bother you. BTW, I`m sorry I have taken soooooo long in posting this chapter. I had one nasty grapple with the infamous writer`s block. I think the last time I posted this was sometime back in January... So sorry! I`m kicking myself into over drive, I promise! Whenever I finish this fic, in the last chapter I will post a thanks to every single person who reviewed this story... Just because I love feedback. Speaking in the feedback spirit, do review!!!:) `Til next!