Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world, and all that is in it, belongs to J.K. Rowling. She just lets the rest of us borrow it to use as our inspiration. For that I am enormously grateful.

A/N: Thanks again to Vodo and Ex for the great beta work on this chapter.

Chapter 2

He was in a very luxurious room. The heavy burgundy velvet curtains blocked any sun that may be trying to enter from the diminishing day. Another chair and settee matched the one he was positioned in. Mahogany tables were strategically placed around the room. He noticed some warmth coming from a small fire burning in the grate, which was giving off most of the light. Suddenly there was a knock and a door to the side of him opened. A figure covered in dark hooded robes swept into the room and knelt at his feet.

"Was your mission successful?" questioned a cold serpent-like voice that seemed to be coming from his own mouth.

"Yes My Lord, we have the guardian in our possession," said the female voice at his feet. "She is awaiting your interrogation."

"Then let us proceed. We shall see how useful a Muggle can be." He spat as he stood and walked from the room, the cloaked woman following closely behind.

Not a word was spoken as they silently strode through cavernous hallways and down sweeping staircases to the ground floor. They passed through the formal entrance hall to a very aristocratic room with a large desk and bookcases surrounding most of the walls. Harry noticed a large coat of arms on the wall behind the desk, blazing red and gold. The pair paused in front of a bookcase filled with ancient looking books as the woman muttered some unheard words. There was a loud creaking as the case slowly moved to reveal a dark stone stairway. Then they continued down into a cold damp corridor and paused again when they reached a heavy wooden door.

"Have the others arrived from their missions?" the snake like voice asked.

"Both the other groups left after we did, but neither have returned yet, My Lord." the woman replied as she opened the door.

He walked into a small room lit only by a torch in the corner. The smell of mildew and decay, which had been vaguely present in the hall seemed stronger in this cell like space. Cowering against the far wall was a very terrified woman.

"Petunia Dursley, you are the guardian of Harry Potter are you not?" He hissed, and then continued without waiting for an answer. "I want you to tell me what you know of the prophecy made about your nephew and I. And to give you a taste of what will happen if you should foolishly choose not to . . ." He raised his wand and saw the panic in her eyes. Smirking he hissed, "Crucio!!"

There was a blinding green light as Harry heard the sound of his aunt's screams mixing with his own in his mind. He woke up still screaming and panting for breath.

"Harry, can you hear me?"

"Do you think he's okay?"

Harry sat up on the couch clutching his scar, eyes pinched shut, vaguely aware of the voices around him. He fought to clear his head. He had to tell Dumbledore what he had seen. "Professor," he barely managed to whisper, "They have my aunt . . . they are using the cruciatus curse."

"I'm here Harry. I need you to tell me what you saw," Dumbledore's voice said.

"Can't that wait? He is clearly upset," Spoke a familiar motherly voice.

"For the well being of Mrs. Dursley, no it cannot," Dumbledore replied calmly.

Harry slowly opened his eyes and was instantly jolted back into awareness of his surroundings. He was sitting on the couch in the familiar living room of the Dursleys, but the sheer volume of people around shocked him. Leaning over him were the concerned faces of Molly Weasley and Albus Dumbledore. Talking amongst themselves by the back door was a group of four aurors, Kingsley Shacklebolt was the only one he knew by name. On the other couch, across from him, sat the remaining two ash faced Dursleys with a no-nonsense looking Madam Pomfrey hovering over them. Near the fireplace Mr. Weasley, Ron, Ginny, Hermione and two adults that Harry recognized as Hermione's parents, were whispering quietly and sneaking glances at Harry. He heard more voices from other rooms, out of sight, and wondered briefly who else may be in the house.

"Harry, can you tell me what happened?" questioned the wise professor.

"We were getting the groceries," Harry started as everyone in the room silenced hearing his voice, "They just came out of nowhere. I tried to help her but then I was thrown back into the house. What threw me back?" He quietly questioned. "Was it Bill? And then they took her. They were gone, but I saw them," he rambled. "They were in this place. A really rich looking place. I was him. Then Bellatrix Lestrange came, I knew her voice, and we went down to this dungeon. She was there, my aunt. He asked her about the prophecy, and then," his voice broke, "He used the cruciatus curse on her, to show her . . . to show what would happen . . . what would happen if she didn't cooperate." He cried, "But she doesn't know, how could she know, I never told her, this is all my fault!!"

"But it was broken. I thought," Ron mumbled, "you didn't tell us," He was quickly silenced by Hermione's elbow.

"Oh no, there were others." Harry stammered. "He said there were other missions!"

"Yes," Dumbledore said. "But both the Weasley family and the Grangers are here and safe." He continued. "We thought it best to secure their safety immediately when we heard of the attack."

"But why?" Harry asked shakily.

"Voldemort is desperate to find the contents of the prophecy, so he has decided to question those he thinks you may have told." Was Dumbledore's simple answer. "Now if you will excuse me for a moment, I have a few things to attend to. Try to remember anything else that may help us to discover the place where they are holding your aunt."

"Yes, sir" Harry muttered anxiously as Dumbledore walked away.

"Take this, Harry," He was told as Mrs. Weasley thrust a mug into his unsteady hands. Without questioning he drank the hot cocoa she had given him and instantly felt a calming sensation sweep over him.

"What's in this?" He asked.

"That's a mother's secret." She replied, patting him on the head. She quickly refilled his cup from a large thermos that had been sitting on the coffee table nearby, "Now drink up, and try to relax for a few minutes." She then quietly joined her husband and the Grangers across the room.

As Harry settled back into the couch, he noticed the noise level in the room had returned as everyone had started talking again. Professor Dumbledore had gone into the backyard with the aurors, talking about strengthening wards, from what Harry could hear before they had left.

'Does he actually expect me to stay here with my uncle after everything that has happened' Harry wondered silently. He was dragged from his thought as he saw his three closest friends hurrying toward him.

"Oh Harry, Thank goodness you are alright," An anxious Hermione squeaked as she sat down next to him with Ron and Ginny in tow. All three looked pale and upset. There were noticeable tearstains down the girls' faces. "I was so worried when Kingsley showed up and told us what happened, it was lucky that we were on our holiday and not at home, but your Aunt, oh that is so terrible, and thank goodness the Weasleys were at the twin's shop when everything happened and at least . . ."

"We will NOT take poison from any of you people!!" Vernon Dursley bellowed at a stunned Madam Pomfrey. "You kidnap my wife and then think you can just invade MY house and hold Dudley and I hostage! I want all of you OUT! I am calling the police!" He was about to stand up when Mr. Weasley stepped in front of him. Every other person in the room had turned toward the purple face man, shocked by his explosion.

"Mr. Dursley, please." The senior Weasley said sympathetically. "I understand you are upset about your wife, but there is no need to get your please men involved. I assure you, we are doing all we can to get her back and this is the most logical place for us to organize it all, along with being the safest place for Harry right now."

"Like the lot of you could get her back! And as for that BOY," he spat the last word, "I want him out of this house immediately! If we had never allowed that worthless freeloading brat into our home, my family would be safe!" He turned to Harry as he yelled the next words, "I should have put you where you belonged years ago! In an orphanage with all the other unwanted FREAKS!"

Harry alone seemed unfazed by the man's words. An astonished gasp swept throughout the room just a moment before a flash of red and a loud SMACK restored the dumbfounded silence.

"How DARE you speak to him like that!" Ginny shrieked at the man. He was sitting on the couch staring at the fiery haired girl, grasping his cheek in bewilderment. "He IS your family, and by the looks of it, the only decent one out of you all!"

"Ginny stop," Harry said. "It's okay, I'm used to it, really. The stuff he says, it doesn't even bother me anymore."

By the look of fury on her face as she turned towards him, Harry fleetingly wondered if she would slap him too. "That doesn't make it okay for him to say those horrible things about you Harry, it only makes it worse that you are used to it!"

"Ginevera Weasley!" Molly Weasley hissed as she recovered from her shock.

"He deserved it!" She spat, "and if he ever dares say anything like that again-"

"He will have to deal with us." Came a deep voice from the doorway, as an angry Remus Lupin stepped farther into the room followed by Mad-Eye Moody.

"You have been warned about this previously Dursley." Moody growled. "Now I suggest you control your tongue, because next time Miss Weasley may not be in the way, and I will control it for you."

"This is MY house! You can't. . . you wouldn't dare!" The plump man spluttered.

"I can and I wouldn't even hesitate." He said as he glared menacingly at the man. Vernon Dursley recoiled under the stare of his magical eye.

The silence was only broken when Madam Pomfrey regained her wit and remembered what had triggered the outburst. "Mr. Dursley, all I am trying to do is help your son. He is in shock and desperately needs this calming draft before he gets any worse. Surely you can see the state he is in. Let me help him." She pleaded.

He turned to his son and out of pure desperation nodded to the healer. It didn't look like Dudley Dursley had even noticed the outburst from his father or the events that followed. His eyes were glazed over staring at some unseen place. If he hadn't been sitting upright and shaking slightly, one might think he was Petrified. He didn't even flinch as the woman poured the vile of potion down his throat. "He needs to rest," She said in her usual no-nonsense tone. "Show the way to his room."

Vernon Dursley looked at the woman disbelievingly as she conjured a stretcher and levitated the large boy onto it, but reluctantly stood up and led her from the room.