A Haunting Lullaby – fire-and-ice89
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"Obliviate!" He cried out, and a blast of light hit Lucius Malfoy in the chest. Draco gave a yell and tried to run, but Voldemort called out the curse again, and he stopped in his tracks.
Father and son both shook their heads, obviously disorientated. They looked around confused, but when they saw Voldemort they both stood to attention.
"Sorry, my Lord, I didn't realize you were there," said Lucius.
"You're forgiven, Lucius. I was just speaking with Hermione Granger," said Voldemort, with a sly smile.
"Who?" Asked Lucius, puzzled.
"Exactly."
Chapter Three – Harry's Visit
Hermione smiled with grim satisfaction when the door closed after Lucius and Malfoy. They hadn't gotten much out of her.
The dementor was no longer in the room. Hermione vaguely wondered why, but didn't dwell on it too much. She hadn't slept in so long, and she was achingly tired.
She lay down on the hard floor, trying to get some rest. Maybe she'd even manage to get some sleep…
She jolted awake when the door clicked open.
Rubbing her eyes, she sat up, expecting Lucius and Malfoy again.
But it was Voldemort.
Surprised, she shuffled backwards in her cage, and watched him warily.
He stood between the door and the cage, and Hermione noticed with a pang of fear that he held his wand ready in his hand.
"Say goodbye to your past, Hermione," she heard his cold voice say. Before she could decipher the meaning of his cryptic words, he had raised his wand.
"Obliviate!"
Then she knew no more.
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It was a warm day outside.
The girl sat by a pond. Water trickled lazily from a fountain, into the cloudy depths. She peered in, hoping to see some fish, but nothing was there.
"You like the pond?"
The girl looked around, and saw a man standing there. He was tall and handsome, probably a bit older than herself. But how old was she? The girl held a hand to her forehead.
"I…" She started. "I feel so strange. I can't seem to remember anything."
The man didn't seem surprised. He sat down on the edge of the pond beside her, and took one of her hands in his own.
"Your name is Leila." He said. "You've had an accident, but everything will be all right now."
The girl – Leila – tried to remember the accident, but failed.
"Who are you?" She asked.
The man hesitated. "A friend."
"A friend," murmured Leila. "I have a friend."
Behind his disguise, Voldemort was gloating. Everything was working out perfectly. Right now, the girl was so trusting, and he planned to mold her trust.
When she was ready, he would introduce her to Draco, and the two would work together.
They actually had a lot of potential together, but as enemies, they tended not to notice. Draco liked to take action, and Hermione liked to think things through. The two would make a perfect team.
Suddenly, Voldemort realized his mistake. Not Hermione. He told himself. Leila. She's Leila now.
Leila smiled innocently at him, and he smiled shamelessly back.
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Harry lay sprawled across his bed, finally letting the tears flow.
Ron is dead.
The thought floated gently around his mind, like a sea breeze.
Dead, dead, dead.
It was beyond comprehension. He would never see Ron again. He would never talk to him, laugh with him, play Quidditch with him, eat with him…
He was gone. Just like that.
Harry felt a hatred rising within him. He hated Voldemort. A cold, dark hate. He hated Voldemort even more than when he himself was being threatened, funnily enough. He hated Voldemort because he had killed one best friend, and stolen away another.
But he was going to get her back, with or without help.
When night time fell, he was going to get her back.
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Voldemort was having another 'session' with Leila, and making progress in leaps and bounds.
He had already shown her a wand, and played along with her fantasy that they were 'playing witches'. She'd been slightly surprised, but delighted to find that the wand really worked. So far she'd been playing some games, levitating rocks and what-not.
But soon, soon he was going to teach her how to inflict pain. Real pain.
Voldemort gazed at the spider up in its web. "Imperio," he uttered, raising his wand. The spider stiffened its limbs, and began to climb down from its web.
Down the branch, down the tree, down to the ground.
Voldemort looked to the pond where Leila was sitting, trailing her fingers in the chilly water. She'd really taken to it.
The spider crawled across the ground, coming ever nearer. It was big and black, with bristly hairs glistening on its legs and body.
Leila skimmed her hand across the pond surface, blissfully unaware. She looked up when she saw her friend sit beside her. Tom, he'd said his name was. He was gazing at her intently.
"Are you afraid of spiders, Leila?" He asked her.
Leila frowned. Something stirred in the back of her mind. "Yes, I suppose I am," she said.
Tom smiled at her. "Well, if a spider crawled up to you, what would you do?"
"I don't know. Run away, I suppose," she said, looking at her reflection on the glossy surface of the water.
"No," said Tom. "I'll teach you something else. Have you still got your wand?"
Leila held it up, smiling in anticipation.
"Good. Okay, watch me, and then do what I do." Tom said. He pointed his own wand directly down at the ground. "Crucio." He said clearly, and the wand blasted a jet of light, leaving a hole in the moist earth.
Leila frowned. "Why did you do that?" She asked. She didn't like the hole in the ground. It had ruined the grass.
"It's only for practice," Tom said, watching her carefully. "Try it."
Leila pointed her wand down at the ground, and half heartedly spoke the words. Her wand fizzled, but nothing else happened.
"Not like that." Tom said. "Say it like you mean it. Say it like there's a big, fat, black spider crawling towards you."
Leila shuddered. "Crucio," she cried out, and her wand blasted a hole in the ground identical to Tom's.
"Good," said Tom, smiling at her. He was pleased. "But what if there actually was a spider?"
Leila frowned, not understanding. She'd already pretended there was a spider.
But then she saw it. Crawling towards her was the big, black spider Tom had spoken of.
"Tom," she cried out in fear. It was coming closer.
"Use the curse!" Tom called. Leila whimpered, and pointed her wand at the approaching monstrosity.
"Crucio!" She cried out desperately.
The spider stopped in its tracks, and began twitching. Its legs folded and crumpled, until it was reduced to a small black ball rolled up in pain.
Leila sat and stared in fascination.
"I did that." She whispered. She felt Tom's arm around her.
"You did that." He said.
She was almost ready.
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Harry had nothing to help him. His invisibility cloak, his wand, his broom, everything had been left behind at Hogwarts. He suspected it wouldn't have been much trouble for someone to fetch them for him, but Dumbledore had probably wisely decided that he would be less likely to attempt a rescue without them.
Well, this time, Dumbledore was wrong. Nothing was going to keep him from reaching Hermione.
The only problem: he didn't know where she was.
He had a fair idea, though. Although he hadn't told Dumbledore, when he saw Hermione in his vision, that wasn't the only thing he saw.
He had seen the outside of a house – a very large house – before the vision changed to show the dungeon. The house was hidden among a forest, deep in a valley. It was extravagant, made entirely out of stone.
The Malfoy Manor.
Normally, it was untraceable. But during sixth year, Harry had been transported via portkey to the location, where Voldemort was waiting for him.
He had escaped that time. But now he knew where it was located.
Voldemort knew that Harry knew, which was why Harry supposed they were holding Hermione there. They wanted a place where Harry could find them by himself, if no one would help him.
Because they knew he would come.
Harry knelt down in front of the fireplace. It hadn't taken much effort to steal some floo powder out of the pot downstairs. Really, if Dumbledore wanted to make sure he wouldn't go to Hermione, he should have taken more precautions.
Carefully, he threw the powder into the roaring fire, and watched it turn green. "Serpentile Pub", he said clearly, and stepped into the fireplace.
He felt the familiar feeling of being tossed about, and closed his eyes against the flying soot. Finally, he was spat out of a fireplace onto a hard wooden floor.
Several faces were leering down on him in amusement. Harry stood up and brushed the soot off his clothes, but left his face dirty. He didn't want everyone recognizing who he was.
He was in a pub. He knew from last time that this pub was one of the closest fireplaces to Malfoy Manor.
He looked around, realizing that the several drunk men were waiting for him to speak. "Um, got lost I guess," he said lamely, and they all roared with drunken laughter.
Harry turned and hurried out the door.
There were several shops lining the street. The reason Harry had chosen the pub was because it was the only name he could remember, from when he was fleeing through here.
Harry waited a moment to get his bearings, then turned left. He walked until he reached the end of the street, then broke into a jog when he was sure no one would see him. He didn't want to raise suspicion.
The road narrowed, and began to twist sideways into the forest. Harry shivered against the cold night air and rubbed his arms. He was beginning to feel very vulnerable without a wand.
Inside the forest, he broke into a run. Leaves rustled around him, and a lone owl hooted mournfully. The hair on Harry's scalp prickled, and it took all his will power to keep going, when every instinct was screaming at him to turn around and head back home.
Hermione, Hermione, think about reaching Hermione.
Harry gritted his teeth together, and burst through the edge of the forest.
Malfoy Mansion loomed before him. Harry gulped and started up the sloping driveway.
It was very exposed on the slope, and Harry expected to be hit with a curse at any minute, but none came. He made a dash over to the high stone fence, and was protected from view momentarily.
Carefully, he edged his way along the fence until he came to the gates.
They were open. It was almost as though they'd been waiting for him.
Harry had a grave feeling of misgiving as he walked between the gates. He had no wand, no support, no backup plan.
"I must be crazy," he muttered out loud to himself.
The gardens were dark, and provided shelter. Harry crouched down behind a well trimmed bush for a moment, surveying his task.
It was then that he heard singing.
Stunned, he listened to the voice for a moment. It sounded like Hermione's…but that was impossible. What was Voldemort doing, trying to torture her by making her sing?
She sounded close. She had to be in the garden.
Heart thundering in his chest, Harry scooted around the manicured gardens. He didn't want to risk calling out her name, because he was positive someone would be guarding her.
She was by the pond. Harry paused, hiding behind a tree, and watched her. She was sitting on the edge of the pond, trailing her hands in the water and singing an unfamiliar tune.
No one else was around.
Harry could have screamed in frustration. What was she doing? Why didn't she run? She looked so vacant…
Suddenly, she seemed to feel his intense gaze upon her. Her song faltered, and she turned, looking directly at Harry.
"Who's there?" She asked warily. Harry took a last look around, and then risked everything.
He stepped into the clearing. "Hermione," he hissed. "It's me. We have to go now. Quickly, come with me."
The girl remained on the edge of the pond, looking frightened.
"Hermione!" Harry repeated, pleadingly.
"My name's Leila." The girl said, looking directly into his eyes. There was no recognition in them.
Harry stiffened. "What have they done to you, Hermione?" He whispered sadly.
"Go away," said the girl, beginning to raise her voice. "Go away or I'll call Tom."
Harry's breath caught in his throat. Tom? He realized that the girl was panicking.
"No no no." He said quickly, trying to reassure her. "Don't call anyone. I'm not going to hurt you."
Something in the girl changed.
"Yes, you are." She said. "I'm scared of you. You're going to hurt me." She pulled a wand out of her front pocket, and pointed it at Harry.
There was no time for understanding her actions.
"Crucio," She uttered, and Harry dropped to his knees, doubled over in pain.
Don't scream. He though desperately, eyes watering. Don't bring anyone down here.
The girl repeated the curse and the pain intensified. Harry fell over, rolling on the ground in agony. But he bore the pain without a sound.
After what seemed like a lifetime, the girl lowered her wand.
"You didn't scream," she said, sounding disappointed.
Harry scrambled to his feet, staring in disbelief at this…this person who was definitely not his best friend.
She had her wand raised again. Harry backed away.
"Don't," he pleaded. "Herm – Leila, I'm your friend."
"No, you're not." Leila said tonelessly. "Tom's my friend. I don't know who you are, but I don't like you. If you don't go away right now, I'll hurt you again. And this time, I'll make sure you scream."
Harry groaned. "Okay, I'm going. Just don't do that again." He backed away, never taking his eyes off her face. When the lone girl on the edge of the pond had disappeared from view, he turned and ran.
He didn't know who that was. But it wasn't Hermione.
He had to tell Dumbledore.
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Leila lowered her wand once the boy disappeared, shaking with fright. She remained in that position, so still, for almost an hour.
The footsteps startled her. Thinking it was the crazy man returning, she whipped out her wand and turned to face the approaching person.
It was only Tom.
"Why are you out here?" He asked her angrily. She cowered away from him, not liking his tone.
Seeing her fear, he lowered his voice.
"I'm sorry, Leila," he said. "I was just worried."
"I wanted to see what the pond looked like under the moon," Leila said. "I wasn't doing any harm. But then a nasty person came, and he made me afraid."
Tom's eyes locked onto hers. "What did you say?" he asked in a low voice.
"A nasty person made me afraid, but I remembered what you said, Tom. I used my wand on him, I said that word, and he rolled up just like the spider. Then he went away."
Tom stood rigid for several moments, but then he relaxed.
"You used the Cruciatus curse on him?" He asked, and Leila nodded. He smiled broadly, and seemed pleased.
"Was he tall, with messy black hair?" He asked Leila. Leila thought hard, and then nodded. Tom suddenly saw how to turn this almost disastrous situation to his own great advantage.
He put a hand on Leila's shoulder, guiding her to the pond, and sat down beside her.
"He's the bad guy." Tom said solemnly, looking into Leila's eyes.
"He said he was my friend," Leila said fearfully. "But I didn't like him."
Tom shook his head. "No. He's the bad guy, and he was lying to you. You did the right thing, to put that curse on him."
"Really?" Leila smiled. She liked doing the right thing.
Tom nodded. "There are lots more bad guys out there. They will always lie to you, and they will always try to hurt you. But you know what to do, don't you?"
Leila nodded. "I say, 'Crucio!', and they fall down on the ground."
Tom smiled. "That's right. But there's something else you can do, too. Something to make sure they'll never hurt you again."
Leila smiled widely. "I'd like to know that. What do I do?"
Tom stood up slowly. "It's late. Perhaps I'll show you tomorrow." He turned and offered an arm to Leila, who took it graciously.
The two of them walked, arm in arm, back to the manor. An innocent bystander watching them would never have realized that one was the most evil person to ever draw breath, and that the girl so willingly following him was actually his most recent victim.
No one would have suspected anything.
And that was why it was perfect.
A/N: Leave a review! Reviews keep me going. Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter!
What do you think about the length of the chapters? Are they too long? At the moment I think this story will be about fifteen chapters long, but that's with long chapters. Should I make them shorter and have more chapters overall? The trouble is, I can never find good cut off points halfway through…anyway tell me what you think.
Next Chapter: Leila's training continues, and she is introduced to Draco.