Come the Maëlstrom
Chapter Thirty FourThe air was dry and dusty when Harry woke up. He took a deep breath and found himself having a coughing fit a moment later. He rolled over feeling as if his lungs was about to go flying from his throat. When the fit finally subsided, he sagged against the floor and began organise his thoughts.
Everything was still dark; either the Obscura spell was still working or they just had all the lights out. That put him at a disadvantage but it wasn't that much of a problem. There was still the element of surprise on his side. None of the Death Eaters would be able to guess what he would do since he didn't know himself.
Next was the unusual weight around his wrists so he moved them experimentally. A heavy clinking sound came. He frowned and jerked his hand, a metal cuff biting into the soft skin, links jangling loudly. Ignoring the pain, he felt his way up the chains to feel the last one attached to an anchor that was bolted into the wall.
So, he was chained to a wall and blind as a bat. His wand was most likely gone and he had no idea as to where he was. For all he knew, there could be nobody else for miles around.
"Lu-" he stopped himself, thinking the better of it. "Mr. Malfoy?"
Nothing came except for the sound of a slight rustle somewhere. Harry thought it could have been him, but he wasn't all too sure.
"Mr. Malfoy?" he called again.
No sound came in reply. It must have been his imagination. With a sigh, he sat up and moved back against the wall, trying to alleviate the weight on his now sore wrists.
So now he was blind, chained and alone. The whole rotten situation just got better and better. He could try to mount an escape but he didn't want to leave Lucius behind. And even if he did escape with the intention of coming back, the Death Eaters would be long gone before he could even find help. And that was provided that he could elude them when they hunted him down first. Apparation was out of the question; because he was blinded, he wouldn't be able to properly orient himself.
He shifted, resting his head against the wall and tried to not think too much. It wasn't helping any. Once his eyesight came back, he could see exactly what he was up against and take the appropriate. He couldn't rush any plans though. He had no doubts that any one of the Death Eaters would kill him with just the slightest hint from Narcissa.
Once the soreness in his wrists faded a bit and he shifted his hands into his lap. The room was very quiet now and he could hear a faint sound from somewhere. It sounded like something was roaring, trying to get at something and wasn't succeeding. It sounded a bit like water breaking against rocks. Maybe he was on a coast somewhere. He could vaguely make out the sound of the wind, screaming through something; a crack in the wall maybe? Wherever he was, there must have been a storm of some sort raging about outside.
His feet felt a bit sore from the hell he had put them through. He hadn't even realised that he had done all of that in bare feet. Of course, footwear was the last thing someone thought of when running for their life. It stung a bit when he pressed them flat against the floor, but after the initial shock the chill surface became soothing. When they felt a bit better he stretched his legs out, feeling along the floor with his toes. The floor was made of rounded chunks of stone, fitted together as tightly as possible. It was smooth with a completely even surface.
If the floor was that well constructed, he didn't have a chance of opening the door with anything save a very strong blasting spell. And, with no wand, that option certainly wasn't open to him. He sighed again as he worked his fingers over the cuffs, trying to find a weakness.
What made it worse was that he had no idea if he had been out for a few hours, or a few days. It wouldn't be hard to keep him unconscious after the first blow. But since he didn't feel nauseous or light headed they must have used a spell to keep him out. Merlin knew that being knocked unconscious wasn't something new to him.
He was sitting there, not doing anything in particular when a muffled sound reached his ears. He didn't move for a moment and when it came again, much louder this time, he turned his head towards it. Once it came closer, Harry made it out to be a heavy thunking sound; it sounded like someone was wearing thick-soled shoes.
A clanking sound reached his ears a few moments later, as well as the sound of a key turning in a lock. He simply sat there, looking in the direction that the noise was coming from.
"Oh look, the brat is up."
Harry forced himself to remain calm as he recognised Bellatrix's voice and the malicious glee in it.
"Go wake Narcissa. She's been wanting to talk to him:
The sound of someone with heavy steps hurrying away could be heard. When the door closed, it was so softly that the only telltale sound that Harry heard was the scrape of metal against stone. He remained perfectly still, only breathing. Then the sound of shoes walking closer came, heels clicking dully against the stone. It sounded like Bellatrix was pacing in front of him.
"Look at the Boy-Who-Lived now." Bellatrix murmured in a mocking tone. "Bruised, bloodied, chained to a wall," she paused for a moment. "Beaten. Subdued."
Harry felt indignation flare up but he quelled it quickly. This was not the time to rise to Bellatrix's baiting.
"It was pitifully easy to track you once we found you. Those mudblood and blood traitor friends of yours were easy to follow. We knew it would only be a matter of time before they led us to you."
Harry didn't say anything for a long moment. "What is it with Death Eaters and gloating? Don't you think your sister might be mad that you're not letting her do that?"
Nothing came in reply but Harry could feel the outrage emanating of Bellatrix. After a moment, there were rapid steps and then a hand connecting painfully with his face. His head cracked back against the wall, and he could feel her fingernails digging into his cheek as Bellatrix's hand jerked away. It hurt worse as the air got to the fresh gouges, burning like someone had stuck barely live embers on his face.
"Silence!" Bellatrix spat. "Don't you dare presume to know my Mistress' mind, you worthless halfblood!"
Harry didn't speak for a moment, before he managed a sneer. "So, I'm right?"
He never finished the sentence as a shoe sank into his stomach. He doubled over as he gasped for breath. Bellatrix made a small satisfied sound then kicked him a few more times. When she finally stopped, Harry was curled into a ball, arms wrapped around his stomach, as if it would ease the pain.
"On your feet," Bellatrix snapped. "Our Mistress wishes to see you."
Harry felt the restraints fall away from his wrists and ankles, but he simply stayed there, curled into a ball. Bellatrix gave an exasperated snarl and dug her heel into his back.
"Move! Now!" she ordered.
Harry felt it was a much better idea to simply lie on the ground and get his breath back. After all, he couldn't talk properly if he didn't have a fully functioning diaphragm to make his lungs work. Bellatrix tried digging her heel into a few different spots, all earning no reaction. She swore darkly to herself before she hauled Harry to his feet roughly.
"Walk!" she snarled, shoving him forward.
Harry stumbled, arms stretching out to make sure he didn't' bump into anything. He took small steps forward and Bellatrix seemed more than happy to shove him along. He fell a lot, tripping over some rug on the floor or losing balance after colliding with some object in his way. The stairs were the worst. Bellatrix made him walk up three flights, pushing and making him fall almost every three steps. By the time he reached the sixth landing, Harry was amazed that he still had all his teeth intact. He'd knocked his mouth more times than he would have liked to remember and figured all his teeth were on the verge of falling out.
"In here," Bellatrix said as she grabbed his arm and dragged him forward. "Our Mistress will see you now."
And with that, Harry felt himself shoved roughly into a room and the door slammed shut. His feet connected with the lip of a carpet and he fell, sprawling to the floor. A soft mocking laugh reached his ears as he picked himself up, resting on his knees.
"My, my, this is my competition."
Harry rose to his feet, facing the direction Narcissa's voice was coming from. Parts of his body were already throbbing with a dull ache that he knew he would feel later. But he'd be damned if he appeared anything less than proud in front of this woman. After all, hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, and Harry had pretty much stolen her husband away from her.
"Still trying to keep your pride?" the derision in her voice was evident. "If you knew how you looked you'd realise just how useless that is."
"Maybe some of us don't base pride on looks," Harry said evenly. "Or blood."
Silence came for a moment and he knew she was evaluating at him. All the hairs on the back of his neck had risen, screaming of danger in a primitive way.
"Can you see him Lucius?" Narcissa asked softly. "Or perhaps you need a better vantage point."
Harry felt his heart still as a grunt came from somewhere in the room. He had to bite on his tongue hard to stop himself from saying anything. What was Lucius doing here? What had Narcissa done to him? Grunting was not Lucius' way of answering a question. He managed to say nothing as rustling and shifting sounds came now.
"Much better, don't you agree?" Narcissa said finally. "I certainly wouldn't want you to miss the show, dear husband."
Harry felt his gut twist, wishing he could see. Narcissa didn't say anything for a long moment before she said one word.
"Crucio."
Suddenly it felt as if someone had poured in white hot liquid metal into his bones. He fell to the floor, writing, biting his lip to keep from crying out. His mouth was flooded with the coppery salty tang of blood when the pain let up. His body relaxed in grateful relief and he sagged against the floor.
"You," Narcissa said in a nasty voice. "Are an immense pain, did you know that?"
"I… try." Harry gasped, feeling completely rebellious.
Narcissa snorted in scorn. "My dear cousin Sirius was also a pain. I wouldn't be in this hellhole on the coast if it weren't for his wretched will."
"Not my problem." Harry managed.
"Oh, but it is," Narcissa sounded immensely happy. "I used to hold Grimmauld Place in trust for you. And you unfortunately lived to see your seventeenth birthday. But there's a year grace period, as required by law. If you somehow don't live to see your eighteenth birthday, all Black property and possessions become mine by default. Seeing as I'm the only Black with legitimate claim. Should my husband not survive, well, I'm sure I can wrest something from Draco."
A strange sound reached his ears now. It sounded like Lucius was trying to laugh but just couldn't. Harry didn't say anything for a moment. She was going to play with them before she killed them. If he didn't make it amusing for her somehow, she just might kill him right away.
"Oh, don't think too hard," Narcissa said. "I have plenty of time before your friends come charging to the rescue. Even though you've been out for almost the entire week, I intend to make up for lost time. Lucius was amusing for only a short amount of time. He refuses to scream."
Harry's stomach lurched sharply, unable to stop his imagination from running away with him. What had she done to Lucius? He may be blind, but he was pretty sure that would be a small obstacle in attempting to get someone. He was positive that the authorities might look the other way if he wrung her neck until it broke. Or he could always claim self-defence.
He staggered back to his feet and Narcissa made a delighted sound.
"I'm so glad you have that much energy and resolve. It'll make breaking you that much more enjoyable."
Harry didn't even have time to fully hear her words before he was back on the floor, writhing from another Crucio.
If there was one thing that Lucius couldn't stand, it was being absolutely powerless. Narcissa had wasted no time when she had them brought to this place. Harry was thrown into some dungeon cell. She'd spent the past four days utterly destroying any sort of response he could muster up. He didn't have much left after the prolonged three day Crucio session she had put him through. She would heal him just enough to correct any damage wrought and find some new way of inflicting damage to him along with the Crucio. She'd mentioned something about castration, but he had no doubt she was saving that until the very end. I would probably be her piéce de resistance.
And now that she was done with his body, she decided to attack his mind while getting in as much torture as she could with Harry.
He didn't want to be lying on the bed, alert enough to not pass out but too drained to be able to move. It was all playing in front of him like a multiple splinching accident that he couldn't look away from. Harry's body would contort on the floor while ragged gasps and whimpers would come from his throat and Narcissa would pause every so often and do something else, such as using a slashing hex or a popping jinx.
He didn't like hearing the sound of joints being popped out and then back in. and seeing the number of cuts on Harry's body growing, steadily staining his clothes a dark red
If there was ever a time he hated Narcissa it was now and he relished the thought of killing her slowly rather than just excising her from his life with a quick avada kedavra. He glared when Narcissa paused and left Harry curled up on the floor to look at him.
"You don't look like you're enjoying yourself Lucius." Narcissa said reproachfully before she spat out, "Your true little harlot is certainly much more amusing that Snape would –"
That was all Narcissa managed to say as, somehow, Harry rose and barrelled into her, wand flying from her hand. They both fell to the floor and Harry made a pained sound. Narcissa was still with shock for a moment before she was beating at Harry with her hands, squirming onto her belly and trying to reach the wand. Harry gave an angry growl, clambering over Narcissa, seeing as best he could with his hands.
Lucius could only watch as the mad scrabble on the floor played out before him. Narcissa was trying to crawl to her wand as fast as she could. Harry stayed on her back, trying desperately to roll her over. She had almost reached her wand, when Harry grasped her shoulders and wrenched at them with all his weight. There came a sickening tearing sound from one of Narcissa's shoulder and then she was scrabbling with one to reach the wand, but was on her back and it was just out of reach.
Harry's hands wasted no time, jumping up to Narcissa's neck and grasping tightly. A wild sort of panic came to her eyes and she beat frantically at Harry's hands, while the hand closest attempted to grasp the wand.
"Did you enjoy that?" Harry hissed as he tightened his grip. "Did you get your jollies watching me squirm and writhe in pain, you bitch?"
Narcissa made a gasping croak of a sound and her eyes starting to bulge a bit while her face went blue. Her hands started smacking at Harry's face now, leaving welts from where her fingernails scratched. Lucius watched as she gave a great choked gasping sound, shuddered and then went perfectly still under Harry's hands.
Harry's grip loosened and he snatched his hands back as if he was burned. He managed to get to his feet, body shaking a bit as he staggered about.
"Lucius?" he called hoarsely. "Where are you? Say something so I can find you!"
Harry still couldn't see? And yet he managed to strangle the life from Narcissa. Something didn't strike him as right about that and he opened his mouth, a hoarse croaking sound coming from it. Harry froze and turned slowly, making his way over to the bed. Harry felt along the sheet, cringing when his fingers felt what was a dry spot of blood. When Harry's foot touched his ankle, Harry scrambled forward onto the bed, hands fluttering up Lucius' body.
"Merlin, are you all right? Say something, please."
Lucius shook his head once. Harry gave a sob of anguished relief.
"But you're alive and that's all that matters. God, I killed her Lucius. Draco's going to hate me."
Somehow Lucius doubted that very much. He took a deep breath, pain stabbing him in the sides. That was when he noticed Narcissa quietly getting up from the floor. His eyes widened slightly before he looked at Harry. Harry was running his hands over Lucius' face, looking worried. He gave the quickest warning he could think of. He shook his head from side to side as fast as he could, muscles screaming in pain, hoping Harry got the idea.
Harry's brow furrowed in puzzlement and then Narcissa was at the side of the bed. She fisted both her hands together and brought them down hard on Harry's head. Harry collapsed against him with a pained groan.
"Did you think you'd be rid of me that easily, you little slut?" Narcissa looked livid as she flipped Harry over and wrapped her hands around his throat. "I'll make sure you're good and dead now, rather than having my fun with you."
Lucius struggled to sit up but Narcissa cast a sharp look at him and removed her good hand from Harry's neck long enough to cast a full body bind on him. That other shoulder must have been aching from the exertion that she was putting it under, but Narcissa probably saw it as necessary, if she noticed it at all.
"Look Lucius," Narcissa grunted as Harry clawed at any skin he could find. "You'll get to watch as I strangle the life from him."
Bile started to bubble up at the back of his throat and he could only glare at her. That blasted contract he had to sign that dampened his magic was what prevented him from actually being capable of averting something like this. Harry was gaping like a fish now, his face turning a bright shade of red. There was a sharp crackle of magic in the room and suddenly Narcissa was thrown from Harry, skidding across the floor. Harry rolled onto his side coughing.
Narcissa picked herself up, glaring at Harry as she hurried over to the bed and grabbed his legs. Harry slid off the bed with a loud thunk and he groaned, trying to pick himself up again. But he didn't quite make it and Narcissa had him half on the bed when she started strangling him again, nails digging into the soft skin.
"Enjoy his last moments," Narcissa breathed harshly as Harry started thrashing in desperation. "Because I will certainly kill you next, dear husband."
Right at that moment, the door was bashed in and Lucius tried to look from the corner of his eyes. But he couldn't see anything.
"Harry?" a strange voice called frantically.
Harry's face was a bit blue now and he thrashed harder, almost dislodging Narcissa. Narcissa was looking at the intruder, aiming her wand at them. One of her hands was still wrapped around Harry's throat but he could actually breathe a bit now; the bluish colour was disappearing and his face was going back to a red colour. Lucius could hear the great rattling breaths in between his coughs.
"I suggest you put your wand down and – "
"He went upstairs! Find him!"
Bellatrix's shrieks carried from up the stairs and Lucius wished he could see what was happening.
"Absoluto colloportus!"
"Avada kedavra!"
The sound of the door squelching shut and then a loud thunk sound came. Did Narcissa hit the person? She was still now, her head turning slowly as she watched the intruder.
"Commendable. You sealed off the room completely and ducked my curse. And your wand is all the way over there. Can you get it before it comes to me?"
There was a tense silence that Lucius guessed that Narcissa and the intruder were staring at one another. Harry was still stationary, but all his muscles were tense. He had a curiously blank expression on his face, as if he were thinking about something.
"Well," Narcissa said mockingly. "Isn't this where you see –"
Narcissa's words became an outraged shriek as Harry twisted his body, upending Narcissa from the bed and to sprawl on the floor. Then the sound of rushed feet came and Narcissa cursing.
"Avada kedavra!"
"Pilumae!"
The sound of the curse striking against the wall with a dull thud was followed by the sound of Narcissa hissing in pain. Obviously she did something reflective that gave the intruder the opportunity they needed.
"Petrificus totalus!"
Narcissa must have been standing since the sound of someone crashing to the floor sounded. The next thing Lucius knew, he could hear hurried steps and then Seamus Finnegan's face appeared, bending over Harry with concern. Why couldn't it have been someone else?
"God, are you all right?" Seamus asked as he helped Harry up.
Harry brushed him away weakly as he clutched at his throat. "Wand…"
"I don't know where your wand is." Seamus said, still looking concerned. "I'll find someway to get us out of here. Just rest here for a bit."
Seamus hurried over to the wall and pressed his ear against it, listening for something. Harry was looking around, disoriented, hands feeling across the bed again. When he touched Lucius' arm, he gave a gentle squeeze. The gesture would have been mildly touching had that not hurt like hell. Harry moved in closer to him, keeping a loose grasp on his arm.
Finally Seamus stepped back from the wall and aimed his wand at it. "Reducto!"
A sizeable chunk of the wall was blasted away and let in the cold salt air, showing the stormy looking sky. Seamus leaned out a bit, the wind whipping up his robes. He aimed his wand upwards and bright pink stars went shooting up into the sky.
"There; someone from the search party should see that… hopefully." Seamus muttered before he turned around. "All right Harry…"
If Lucius were able to smirk, he would be at this point. Seamus seemed to have no words to the sight of Harry Potter curling up beside the battered and bruised Lucius Malfoy. It looked like he was having a hard time coming up with plausible reasons.
"Come on Harry," Seamus said anxiously as he hurried over to the bed and tried to take Harry's hands. "I'll look after you."
"No, you have to help him." Harry's voice was hoarse but steady.
"Harry," Seamus tried again. "You're not feeling well. Just come on. When the Aurors get here, they'll deal with him."
"I said no!" that would have been a yell if Harry's voice wasn't so rough. "If you won't help him, then I will."
Lucius didn't see anything for a moment but Seamus' shocked face. Harry pulled away from him sitting up, body shaking now as the full effects of Crucio and damage started to sink in more fully. He left from his line of sight and, for all guesses, attempted to stand; attempted because there was only a second before the sound of a body hitting the floor came.
"Harry!" Seamus sounded panicked.
"Help him, help Lucius please…" Harry gasped out.
Nothing sounded for a moment and Lucius realised that Harry must have passed out. Then the sound of Seamus picking Harry up came. The bed sank beside him and he assumed Harry was placed there.
"I can't believe I'm actually doing this," Seamus muttered. "Finite incantantum."
Lucius took another deep breath as the full body bind was released. He struggled to sit up again, but between the pain in his muscles and the shaking he simply collapsed back against the bed, breathing hard. Apparently Seamus took pity on him since he muttered something and the pain subsided away to a bearable ache.
He sat up slowly, his side not hurting as much. He didn't look at Harry however. Seamus was glaring at him with wand pointed right at his heart.
"You're better not try anything funny Malfoy." Seamus said in a flat tone. "I'll be watching you carefully."
Lucius managed a sneer and rose unsteadily from the bed. He had to pause at a post for a moment until he felt steadier. He could feel Seamus' eyes on him as he slowly crossed the room and came to a rest in front of the small dresser. The top drawer had a lock, but Lucius thought he would try it anyway. When the drawer refused to come out, he turned to Seamus.
"You. Open this."
Seamus spluttered in outrage for a moment. "Like hell I am!" he replied furiously.
"And you don't want Harry to get his wand back?" that his own wand was in there as well, that was something Seamus didn't need to know.
"No," Seamus said after a moment. "That can wait for when the Aurors get here."
The bloody annoying boy was using his head; so much for foolish Gryffindors that didn't think clearly. Lucius made his way back to the bed slowly, sitting down and then stretching out with a wince. He would definitely be feeling this for a long while.
"And just how long will it take for the Aurors to arrive?" Lucius asked acidly.
Seamus shrugged, his wand still trained on Lucius. They didn't speak any more after that. The farthest Seamus went was back to the hole that he blasted in the wall and send up another stream of pink stars. A few minutes later, ominous shudders came from the sealed door. Lucius looked over at it, wishing he had his wand. Harry stirred uneasily a bit before he remained motionless. Seamus looked at him anxiously before he turned his attention back to the door with a grim expression.
A few more shudders came and then the door imploded on itself leaving only a doorframe in the way. Seamus looked relieved and aimed his wand back at Lucius. When Lucius caught sight of bright neon yellow and orange hair, he sighed in relief.
"God, could that door have been sealed any tighter?" Tonks voice was even more relieving when she noticed where he was and where Seamus had his wand aimed. "What are you doing here!" she sounded a bit shrill. "For Merlin's sake, aim your wand away from him!"
"What!" Seamus looked floored. "But it's –"
"I said aim away!" Tonks snarled. "God, are you trying to get me in trouble! You fire one spell at him and you could be charged with assault! I'll have enough to deal with what with the kidnapping and Healers Sargad and Hansberry, let alone that! Merlin, they'll flay me alive when they see Lucius like this! And you weren't even part of the search party! What were you thinking, coming to rescue Harry on your own, you idiot! You could have been killed! Do you know how bad that would have made the Ministry look? Use your head!"
It sounded like Tonks was just getting started on reaming out Seamus for his actions. More figures came into the room behind Tonks. Lucius only recognised Okolo, The other three, one man and two women were new to him. One woman and the man were looking over Narcissa's petrified body. And the other woman cast a floating charm on Harry's body and was levitating him from the room. Okolo was standing beside him with a frown on her face.
"You are a definite pain in the ass." She pronounced before motioning for him to get up.
Lucius did so feeling unsteady again, but she had draped his arm over her shoulder and was helping him along.
"Really," Seamus protested. "I knew what I was –"
"Don't even say that!" Tonks cut him off in an angry voice. "Even Ronald Weasley has better sense than to do something like this! And he's not even in Auror academy yet, unlike you! You're in some serious trouble Mr. Finnegan. Now stay put and don't touch anything else! Don't even say anything! Just silence!"
Lucius glanced back and was treated to the sight of Seamus sitting down meekly on the bed while Tonks glowered darkly at him for a moment before turning to speak to the man and the woman by Narcissa's body.
"Eyes forward," Okolo said in irritation. "I don't want you dragging me down those stairs with you if you're too stupid to pay attention."
"It would be a small price to pay." Lucius said as he took the stairs slowly; while the pain was lessened, it didn't stop it from hurting with each step.
Okolo snorted. "Only you would say that."