Disclaimer in Part 1.
He'd sensed it not long after sunrise, a throb of warning pressing dully against his consciousness, telling him that something was amiss. Telling him to be wary and alert, keen to anything that could probe to be a nuisance. A danger. Telling him that if he wasn't careful he would be caught in a net, a net that would never let him go...
He Apparated to the rocky, crevasse strewn slopes of Mount Darmal, blinking slightly in surprise. He hadn't really meant to come out here; there was nothing special to distinguish this particular mountain from the ones surrounding it: it was small, nondescript as far as mountains go, with a rather unappealing squat, bulky shape to it. He'd only meant to go west, maybe to Mount Yrnach where he could have at least been able to see the landscape for miles around, or maybe even Lardon Plateau, where there was some kind of underground energy well that amplified one's magical powers a great deal. But certainly not here. There was nothing here.
Or was there?
He could feel it now, a prickling sensation crawling up his spine to the back of his neck, making his white-blonde hairs stand on end. He let himself go still, very still, sharpening his senses to the environment around him, quivering like some sort of feral predator stalking it's prey - only in this case he was the one being stalked. He could sense it, something that didn't belong here, something that opposed him, that wanted him taken down. That hated him.
He reached into his robes, long, delicate fingers closing around the smooth wood of his wand. Weapon ready to be used, he whirled around only to come face to face with Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger.
Shock coursed through him, as cold as if a bucket of ice water had been injected directly into his veins in the place of blood. For one split second he was paralyzed - one split second too long.
His two enemies didn't seem nearly as surprised to see him - then again, they'd always assumed he was at the bottom of every situation involving anything evil - and besides that, their wands were already out and ready. And so while he was standing there gawking they aimed those rods of doom straight at him and cried, two voices acting as one,
One Stunning Spell is efficient; it gets the job done. Two combined is even better - not only do they successfully stun the object of the caster's wrath, but also manage to knock it backwards about twenty feet, resulting in it's head encountering a hard object and thus insuring that it will be quite senseless for quite a while. Such was the fate of Draco Malfoy. Ron and Hermione walked slowly toward their fallen enemy, wands still aimed at the limp body, their faces wary and cautious. Ron reached out a foot and gave Draco's unconscious form a rather ungentle nudge - no response. He looked over at Hermione and shrugged.
Not much of a threat now, I'd say.
Hermione nodded and gave her wand a brisk flick, causing silvery bindings to shoot from it's tip, rapidly wrapping themselves around Draco in an inescapable sheath. The two regarded him dispassionately. He looked so very vulnerable like that, all tied up, his eyes shut tight with that whitish hair all mussed and framing that delicate face like a halo. He looked so fragile, so ethereal, like he would just break apart at any given moment and be lost to the world forever, leaving a gaping void where he should have been. And so beautiful. Heartbreakingly beautiful. Dangerously beautiful.
Ron shook his head furiously, clearing his head of the pale boy's spell and turned to Hermione, who seemed to be likewise enraptured. He reached out and grabbed her shoulder roughly. She turned to him, blinking dazedly, her eyes somewhat glazed.
Herm. We'd better bring him back to the others.
Her expression cleared; she was once again the focused, business-like girl he knew. With another wave of her wand Draco was floating about three meters above the stony ground, his head lolling backwards on his neck, adding to his image of overwhelming helplessness. The trio began to move forward, two walking, the other floating down to a sheltered cave on the far side of the mountain, a black dot in the distance. Over them all was that dreary sky, the sun no longer visible through the thick layer of clouds, adding a feel of sorrow and doom to the scene. And slowly but surely long tendrils of mist were reaching out, engulfing the landscape in a cloak of eerie whiteness, causing the hair on the backs of their necks to stand on end. Murmuring quick protection spells, they hurried on.
* * *
Some distance to the east Harry cried out, an anguished cry ripped from the very depths of his soul as he sensed something deep within him give way. He felt his grasp on the horde weaken and slip away, leaving them milling around lost, confused, and useless, but that hardly mattered now, in the face of what was happening within him. Something was happening to Draco.
All the processes of rational thought seemed to leave his mind then and he ran, ran blindly through the rapidly rising mist without noticing where he was going and not really caring, lost in a sea of swirling whiteness.
* * *
Morgan, Peter, and Mireille set down their wands, completing the last of the warding spells over the former Dark Lord's army, effectively trapping it until it could be properly dealt with. When some semblance of order had been restored. Draco Malfoy had confessed everything while under the influence of Veritaserum: how he'd drained Voldemort of power so that he could be defeated and thus allowing him, Draco, to take his place, how he'd won the Death Eaters to his side and then set out to seduce all sorts of Dark creatures to his service, his interventions with the Ministry, and - most serious although perhaps least shocking - how Harry Potter had become his greatest ally.
His ring of supporters were in a silent huddle in the back of the cave, trapped in a magical cage. It hadn't taken much to find them - they had all stayed close together, thus exuding a magical aura not difficult for a trained Auror to sense. Mireille couldn't suppress a smile at that - they weren't very intelligent, just skilled in black magic. But Potter hadn't been among them, to the unspoken disappointment of Ron and Hermione.
Those two were kneeling next to Draco's still figure, Ron's face like stone while Hermione was weeping quietly into his shoulder, a picture of dull, exhausted sorrow. At last, after several long minutes she managed to raise her tear-stained face and speak, her voice broken and rusty.
Harry - is he also trapped, then? With the army?
It was Morgan who answered. No - he wasn't in the area we put the wards on. We don't know where he is, but - I don't think we'll be needing to worry about him any more.
A flicker of unease passed over Ron's features. And why is that?
There was a long silence. Then Mireille's voice answered.
It's the mists - they're a magical gateway. These mountains have always held certain magical vortexes in them - openings that can allow witches and wizards to pass into the nether world if they're here at the right time; the mists are one such passageway. If a witch or wizard were to wander in them while under protection they would be able to prevent falling through unwillingly, but those who don't use proper precautions just fall through into - somewhere else.
Ron and Hermione were silent. Then, So Harry's just going to wander out of this world forever?
In all likelihood, yes.
But wouldn't he be able to come back through?
Mireille sighed. If he had gone through deliberately, using the proper spells, then, yes, he would. But if you go through without casting those spells first, the way back is closed to you, you're trapped. So those who just wander through on accident, unprepared - they don't come back. The way is closed to them.
Ron stood up and stumbled the cave's mouth, staring out at the thick wall of impenetrable white that confronted him, feeling curiously empty inside. He shut his eyes and a single tear ran down his cheek. Goodbye.
But when he spoke his voice was steady and perfectly calm. Well. I guess that ultimately it's all for the best. Better to have Harry lost forever than to have to deal with the knowledge that the boy who had once been his best friend was locked up in Azkaban or St. Mungos for the rest of his life, having turned to the darkness. Better to just have him - gone.
Mireille walked over to Hermione and stood looking down at Draco. What about him?
Morgan answered once again. Best to take him and his followers back to London - once the Ministry officials are themselves again I have no doubt that they'll be wanting to pass judgment on them. She reached out a hand and Peter took it, guiding her to where the other's were huddled. Mireille waved her wand at the cage with the Death Eaters in it and it promptly shrank. She pocketed it with relish.
Pick him up, she said, jerking her head at Draco. We'll Apparate back now.
And then they were gone.
* * *
Harry continued to stumble through the mists, lost and alone, trapped in some sort of dreamlike state in which everything was distant and unreal. He couldn't see clearly, think clearly. All he knew was that he had to get to Draco.
He stopped, casting about mentally for any trace of something that could be him, only to come up with nothing. Nothing. The place where he had so often felt his love's presence was curiously empty, just a gaping hole within him. But surely if Draco had died he would have known -
He pushed that unwelcome thought away, banishing it. No. If Draco had died he would felt it - and probably died as well.
But then why couldn't he at least sense him?
Harry continued his blind journey through the mists, tears of hopelessness and confusion streaming helplessly down his cheeks. He didn't know where he was and where he was going and he didn't really care at this point.
All he knew was that Draco was gone.
Gone.
~Finis~
OK, I guess you all want to know why I chose to end it there...the answer is that if I opt to write a sequel, that sequel would take place in a very different world than the one used here and would thus merit it's own separate tale. I do have an idea for a sequel, I am guessing that there are some among you who would like one...?
Thanks to all my reviewers, you guys make my day!!!!