The End

Chapter 22: Captured

Nyoka slithered up to Giovanna at the train station in Hogsmeade. Giovanna looked down at the snake and smiled.

"I trust that you obeyed MY orders instead of Tom's?" she asked. Nyoka nodded slowly. Giovanna put her bag down and Nyoka slunk into it just as the train pulled up. Putting the bag around her shoulder, Giovanna looked at her sister. Nicola smiled.

"You disobeyed Tom, didn't you?" she said slyly. Giovanna smirked.

"You read me like a book, Nic. Of course I did. I see no point in unnecessary bloodshed. Having Chaylse kill that professor during Christmas was unnecessary. I know I wouldn't want someone killing my daughter, so I spared the Weasley girl. Tom's just going have to put up a stronger barrier," Giovanna said. Nicola just crossed her arms. "Don't look at me like that, Nic. Unlike Tom, I am not heartless and cruel. I might be evil in my own ways, but I am no where near his or your level," She concluded as the train slowed. Nicola nodded, uncrossing her arms.

"I am not as evil as Tom, Vanna. I resent you putting me on that level," she said quietly. Giovanna turned her head at her sister.

"You are quite right, Nicola. I think you will do something rather heroic in the coming months. In fact, I think you will do something quite out of character for you. Come on. I am eager to go back, believe it or not," Giovanna said. She looked around and observed that Chaylse was not with them. "Where is that Tremaine girl?"

"Oh, Consuelo contacted us while you were at the school. He wanted Chaylse to stay behind and be our little spy. Something is supposed to happen within the next couple of days. I don't know what, though," Nicola said as if she had not a care in the world. Giovanna just stared at her. Nicola felt her eyes and turned her head. "Besides the fact that you are in SO much trouble with Tom, is everything all right, Vanna?"

"I have a bad feeling about this, Nic. Come on." Giovanna stepped on the train.

"Madam Pomfrey, what's wrong with her?" Ron asked. Harry was pacing up and down room. Ginny was lying on the bed. Her eyes were closed and she looked deathly ill.

"What happened before she came here?" Madam Pomfrey asked, touching Ginny's forehead. "She's running a fever."

"We just came in here. I wasn't with Ginny before we came to see Ava," Ron said. Harry seemed to be in his own little world. He was mumbling a few choice words underneath his breath. "Harry?" Ron called. Harry ignored him. "Harry!" he yelled. Harry's head snapped in his direction.

"Yes?"

"What happened? Did Ginny say anything before she fell ill?" Ron asked. Harry nodded and walked up beside her bed.

"She said she felt sick and her head hurt. That's all," Harry said. Madam Pomfrey shook her head.

"Did anything unusual happen before you came to the hospital wing? Maybe she ate something?"

"Oh. She said she felt something bite her while we were coming inside. We didn't see what, though. She said it was her ankle," Harry said. Madam Pomfrey nodded. She looked at Ginny's feet. Only one foot had a tear in the sock. Madam Pomfrey removed the shoe and sock. On the back of her ankle, red mark was there. Two teeth marks were there. Madam Pomfrey examined it closely. With tweezers, she pulled a small fang out of one of the marks. She inspected the fang intently.

"Something definitely bit her. By the looks of it, I would say it was a snake. A rather large snake. Are you sure you didn't see anything?" She asked, looking back at Harry.

"Harry, you can talk to snakes. You didn't hear anything?" Ron asked. Harry shook his head. Ron sighed sadly. "Will she be all right?" he asked, looking back down at his sister.

"The snake really only pierced her skin just enough to put poison in her bloodstream. If it had bitten deeper, she would've been subject to a deadly amount of poison. Why it didn't go for the kill, I will never know," Madam Pomfrey said, pouring some disinfectant potion on the wound.

"It was a warning,"a voice said quietly from behind them. They turned and looked to see Ava. She was looking at them withnarrow eyes.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked.

"Someone wanted to warn you. A long time ago, before two wizards would duel, one would send some kind of message as a warning. It was to let their enemy know that they wanted a duel. That practice died out after awhile and they just started walking up to their adversary and challenging them. Why someone would use this method to warn us, I cannot answer that question. Was there something left from the snake?" Ava asked. Madam Pomfrey nodded and handed her the tweezers with the fang between them. Ava examined it. She was thoroughly surprised when she noticed whose fang it was, but her face did not portray that emotion.

"Well, will she wake up?" Harry asked.

"She will once the poison is run out of her system. Her immune system should fight it. She'll be good as new in about two to three days. Miss Zaviera is right. This was only a warning," Madam Pomfrey said, placing a cold towel over Ginny's forehead.

"A warning for what and from whom?" Hermione asked. Harry looked out of the window.

"I think I know," he mumbled.

Giovanna walked in the Riddle house at a brisk speed. Jada was waiting for her and looked extremely pissed. Giovanna glared at her then continued her walk to Voldemort.

"It is done," she said, placing the bag on the ground. Nyoka slithered out and curled up around Giovanna's feet. Voldemort raised his head at her. Giovanna stared down at him.

"You changed my orders, didn't you?" he asked. Giovanna smirked.

"I had to. Enough blood will be spilt soon enough, Tom. Now is not the time, though."

"You deliberately disobeyed me." Voldemort stood up. This move, to the outsider, might have seemed very impressive, considering his height to hers. Giovanna did not flinch as he advanced on her. Nicola entered the room. She saw Voldemort coming up to Giovanna.

"What is going on?" she asked. No one answered. Consuelo, Bellatrix, Rodolphus, and Jada just watched. Voldemort stared down at Giovanna. Nicola walked over and stepped between the two. "You will not harm her, Tom," Nicola said. Voldemort turned his gaze to the redhead. Nicola pulled her wand and pointed it at him. "You will not harm her, Tom," she repeated with force. Voldemort merely pushed her to the side. Nicola turned quickly. Before she could mutter the words, Giovanna spoke.

"Stay out of this, Nicola. What I did was wrong and right at the same time. If he chooses to punish me, I will take the punishment," she said, her voice docile and even. Her eyes never moved from Voldemort. Nicola lowered her wand, staring with wide eyes at her sister.

"What?"

"I dislike repeating myself, Nicola," Giovanna said. The truth was, she could not bring herself to repeat the words she had just spoken. Nicola nodded and stepped back. Voldemort reached out for Giovanna and grabbed her by the hair. Giovanna winced in pain.

"All of you, leave this house," Voldemort said calmly.

"But..." Jada began.

"Did I stutter?" Voldemort said. It took less than five seconds to clear the room. Giovanna got one last look at her sister. Somehow, she knew this would be the last time she ever saw her. Once Voldemort heard the door close, he looked down at the woman he held in his iron grasp. He walked to the center of the room, dragging a struggling Giovanna. He released her. Giovanna fell to the floor and looked up at Voldemort.

"What are you going to do? Cut my hand off?" she asked, smirking. Voldemort ignored her and continued staring down at her. Giovanna ran a hand through her hair. "Well, I see no sense in prolonging the inevitable," she said. Voldemort ignored her again and walked over to her bag. He rummaged through it until he found what he was looking for. He smirked to himself and walked over to Giovanna. He held a picture of their children in his hand.

"Take a good look, Giovanna. This will be the last time you will ever see them," he said evilly. Giovanna snatched the picture out of his hands. Tommy was smiling and waving. Ava was smirking and rolling her eyes. Giovanna let a tear run down her face. Voldemort took the picture back from her and tossed it to the side. Giovanna looked up at him.

"I hate you," she whispered. Voldemort made no outward expression to her words, but somewhere inside him, he felt that maybe she truly did mean it. Giovanna looked back down at the ground. Voldemort frowned and held his hand up.

'RAISHI,' he thought. The bright light was emitted. Giovanna looked up and realized what he was going to do. She looked into the light.

Outside the house, Nicola heard her sister scream. She squeezed her fists together in anger. She heard Jada laugh. Rounding on the witch, Nicola held her wand to her throat and pushed.

"Do you think this is fucking funny?" she asked. Jada swallowed hard and shook her head. Nicola smirked. "Didn't think so." Nicola released her. She looked back toward the house. The screaming had stopped. Nicola decided that she couldn't wait any longer. She ran inside.

Voldemort was standing over Giovanna. Giovanna was panting and looking at the floor. Voldemort looked in Nicola's direction. Nicola growled something illegible and ran to her sister.

"Vanna?" she asked. Giovanna raised her head. She turned to the sound of Nicola's voice. She opened her eyes. Nicola gasped. "Vanna, your eyes..." she whispered. Giovanna turned her head down. Her eyes were now devoid of any color. Nicola frowned and turned to Voldemort. "You rotten bastard! You've blinded her!" Nicola yelled. Voldemort stared at her. He then turned away from them.

"Take her to the bedroom, Nicola," Voldemort said. Nicola nodded and helped her sister up. Voldemort sat down heavily in his armchair. He stared into the fire. For the first time, he truly felt miserable and it had nothing to do with power.

Harry grabbed his forehead. He was sitting at the table in the Great Hall during dinner. Hermione noticed his distress.

"What's wrong, Harry? Are you okay?" she asked, drinking pumpkin juice. Harry rubbed his scar. It was a very different feeling from what he normally felt whenever it hurt. His face contorted as he tried to decipher it.

"It's Voldemort," he said. Everyone at the table looked up.

"Voldemort?" Ron asked through a mouth full of food. "Is he angry?" Harry shook his head.

"No."

"Is he happy?" Neville asked. Harry shook his head again.

"No."

"Then what the bloody hell is it already? I highly doubt he could be sad," Draco said. Aurora rolled her eyes. Then, she felt exactly what Harry felt. Her eyes widened. Draco noticed her stillness. "What's wrong with you now?"

"He is..." Aurora began.

"...sad." Harry finished. Everything everyone was holding dropped to the table. That included forks, rolls, napkin, glasses, etc. They all stared at either Harry or Aurora with disbelieving eyes.

"Sad? How can that vicious, arrogant, evil, unfeeling beast be SAD? He shouldn't have that luxury," Neve said spitefully.

"Apparently, he just did something that he came to regret immediately afterward," Aurora said, closing her eyes. "He cursed someone that he actually cared for," she said. Tommy frowned.

"Someone he cared for?" Tommy asked. "Why would he hurt someone he cared for?" he asked. They all shrugged.

"That person did something very naughty," Aurora said. "They disobeyed one of his orders." She whispered.

"I'm still not understanding why he would hurt someone he cared for. Better yet, who does he care for? I didn't know he had anyone to care for," Hermione said. Aurora opened her eyes and shrugged.

"Neither did I. Maybe he does not play favorites. Although he cares for this person, they still needed to be punished. Maybe the snake that bit Ginny was supposed to kill her. That person must be a Parselmouth also and changed the orders," Aurora said. Harry shook his head.

"Nagini only obeys Voldemort. Besides Ava and me, he's the only other Parselmouth known."

"Then it was another snake," Hermione said. Harry nodded.

"Nagini's an unnaturally strong snake, though. Is there another like it?" Harry asked. Tommy looked down at his plate. He couldn't believe this was happening.

Chaylse sat in the room she was staying in. The fire roared and Consuelo's face appeared. She got up and kneeled in front of the fire.

"Chaylse?" Consuelo asked. Chaylse nodded.

"Yes?"

"We need a little leverage. Tomorrow, I want you to go to the school and get one of the brats to come here, preferably that Assante child. The older one named Aurora. Come here immediately afterward. Is that understood?" Consuelo asked. Chaylse nodded. "Do not fail us, Chaylse. The consequences will be great. We will not tolerate failure at this point," With that, Consuelo's face disappeared.

"I love Saturdays," Draco said. Aurora looked over at him.

"Why is that, Draco?" she asked. He sat up from his spread eagle position.

"No school, no training, no nothing. That's the only reason I love Saturdays," he said happily. Aurora raised an eyebrow and went back to reading her book. Neve, Tommy, and Harry walked up to them.

"Wanna fight, Malfoy?" Harry asked. Draco immediately stood up.

"Do you really have to ask, Potter?" he said. Harry shook his head. Neve and Aurora rolled their eyes.

"Here we go again," Neve mumbled. Both Tommy and Neve sat down next to Aurora. She craned her neck to see what Aurora was reading. Aurora sighed.

"Why do not you just ask me what I am reading, Neve? Would not that make more sense?"

"Why don't you use contractions? You still haven't mastered that art of the English language, have you?" Neve teased. Aurora looked over at her sister.

"Oh, go fuck yourself, Neve," she said. Neve laughed to herself and turned to concentrate on Harry and Draco.

"I don't have to.That is Tommy's..." Neve stopped abruptly when she saw the look on her sister's face. Tommy looked away from them. She cleared her throat roughly and looked back at the two boys. "I see you've mastered all the negative sayings, though. Good job, Aurora. You're almost on my level."

A figure dressed in all white walked up to them. Tommy squinted when he noticed the sun being blacked out by a shadow. He turned and saw the white figure. The person grabbed him violently and pulled him to his feet.. Aurora and Neve stood quickly and pulled their wands. They turned and saw Chaylse Tremaine holding Tommy with a sharp object next to his throat. Harry and Draco stopped blasting each other and pointed their wands..

"I would suggest that you do not draw attention to yourselves. At this distance, it would be mighty hard for me to miss his neck. Drop your wands now. Potter, don't try any Soliopathy or I will slit his throat. It is a very messy procedure and I have no desire to soil my cloak," Chaylse said. They all obeyed her, except Harry. He held his wand at Chaylse steadily. "A bold one you are, Potter. Very bold indeed."

"What do you want?" Harry asked. Chaylse looked at Aurora.

"Her," she said. Aurora looked behind her, andthen back at Chaylse.

"Me? For what?"

"Potter? What's going on out... Who are you?"a stern voice said from behind them. Neve and Aurora turned to see Professor McGonagall standing there. She slowly reached for her wand. Tommy flinched as he felt the dagger puncture his throat lightly. This was DEFINITELY not happening.

"That is undeniably not the best idea, Professor McGonagall," Chaylse said calmly. Lina and Rina came up behind Professor McGonagall. They both paused as they realized who the girl was.

"Chaylse?" they asked in unison. Chaylse looked slightly past Professor McGonagall with one eye. It had become a strange skill she had gained from her training with Consuelo; the ability to see two things at once using her eyes.

'It's those girls again. Who are they? Why do they look so much like me?' Chaylse thought.

"Harry, lower your wand," Rina said. Harry didn't take his eyes off of Chaylse, but Neve could see the confusion in his expression. He couldn't tell who had asked the question.

"Have you gone mad, Rina or Lina? Do you see what she is about to do to Tommy?" he asked.

"She's our fucking..."

"Miss Tremaine!" Professor McGonagall yelled. Chaylse's face betrayed her for a moment. Her grip faltered on Tommy for a moment, but only for a moment.

'My surname...' Chaylse thought slowly.

"...sister." Lina finished her sister's sentence. Harry looked quizzically at Chaylse. Now that he thought about it, Chaylse did resemble the Tremaine sisters. She had the same eyes and the same dark brown hair.

"Chaylse? That's your name, huh?" Tommy asked. Chaylse snapped out of stupor and listened to Tommy.

"What is it?" she asked harshly. She was starting to grow weary of this situation.

"Why don't you take me instead?" Tommy asked. Everyone looked extremely dumbfounded for a moment, including Chaylse. She knew who the boy was, but she was not going to give him away. Instead, she tightened her arm around Tommy's neck, making him cough.

"This is not negotiable. The Assante girl will come with me or I will be compelled to kill you and take her by force. What's it going to be?" Chaylse asked, looking at Aurora. Aurora looked into Tommy's eyes and frowned.

'You owe me for this,' she sent to him. Tommy's eyes widened.

"Aurora, no!" he managed to squawk awkwardly. He struggled in Chaylse's iron hold. The girl was quite strong for someone of her size. Aurora shook her head.

"If I must go, then I will go."

"Oh no you will not," Draco said, stepping in front of her. Professor McGonagall was starting to get a bit edgy. She reached for her wand while no one was looking. She pointed it at Chaylse. Chaylse noticed it a second too late.

"Expelliarmus!" Professor McGonagall yelled. Tommy felt Chaylse release him. Professor McGonagall had missed him by a mere centimeter. They all blinked and noticed that the Chaylse they were all looking at was now a mirage. The real Chaylse was now behind Aurora. Before Aurora could turn, Chaylse grabbed her from behind. She smirked. Aurora now had Chaylse's wand lodged in her throat. Tommy instantly recognized what she did.

"Dormez," Chaylse mumbled. Aurora went limp in her arms, in a deep sleep.

"The Toshi Technique..." he whispered, now aiming his wand at her. Chaylse looked angrily at Professor McGonagall.

"You better be glad that I know that technique, professor. If not, I would be very pissed with you. Now that I have Miss Assante, I think I will be going." Chaylse reached for a pin in her head. While holding the pin in her mouth, she mumbled the spell and the two ladies disappeared. Harry finally lowered his wand and rubbed his arm.

"Damn it," he whispered to himself. Professor McGonagall turned on her heel, obviously miffed. She started to walk away. Draco noticed this.

"Hey! Where are you going? Aren't you going to go after her?" he asked, looking ready to pounce on the professor. Professor McGonagall stopped in dead in her tracks and rounded on Draco. He took a step back, afraid of what the angry professor might do.

"If I KNEW where that Tremaine child was taking her, don't you think I would have followed them, Mr. Malfoy? You have a brain, as you are Head Boy. I suggest you use it. I will be alerting the headmaster of this and we will see what we can do. Her grandfather is the Minister of Magic for Italy. I'm sure we will find where she is in no time at all. Get back to whatever you were doing and speak of this to no one outside of your group." Professor McGonagall said. She turned around and continued up the stairs.

Once she was gone, Draco turned on the twins. They both looked extremely sad. This made no difference to Draco and Harry, though. Neve and Tommy watched as both closed in on them.

"You two have some serious explaining to do..." Draco and Harry said together.