Author's note: Sorry it took me so long to update. I had a bought with writer's block of some form. This chapter is shorter than I hoped, but I'm still rather pleased with it. I hope you guys like it. Please R/R. I LOVE hearing what you think.

Oh.... the spells in this chapter are my creations. Everything else but the plot belongs to J.K. Rowling.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Absolute darkness. All Harry Potter could see was absolute darkness. There were no windows in the room, and the only door Harry had seen was tightly fitted into its frame, permitting not even a sliver of light to creep in. The darkness made the pain worse. From the throbbing that engulfed his head, to his shoulders screaming at him from his arms being tied behind his back, to his bones and muscles aching from fatigue and the Cruciatus Curse, he hurt. Harry begged and pleaded with his brain to allow the darkness to swallow his mind, but it could not. So he sat there. And for what seemed like an eternity, he did nothing but feel the aches of his body and allow his mind to go numb to everything, even the imaginary sounds that licked at the edge of his mind.

Wait, were those voices real? No, it's just my imagination. But there they were again. Did he really hear someone outside the door? They were getting louder. They had to be real! Harry's heart jumped at the thought of something to break the darkness and silence. But it immediately fell again as he remembered what was going on. The pain and exhaustion had twisted his mind around until he had forgotten about being kidnapped and his future appointment with Voldemort. His blood ran cold with this thought, causing him to shiver uncontrollably. Panic gripped him and his breathing became labored. Harry hoped he would faint as the room started to spin, but peace never came. After a moment, he regained control of his breathing, but was unable to stop shivering. The movement rekindled the fire that was ebbing throughout his body.

The realization that the voices were drawing nearer made Harry fight to regain his composure. He refused to let his captors see him buckle under the fear.

"A true Gryffindor indeed. Brave to the end." said a voice. The thing that worried Harry the most about the voice was that he was almost positive it was inside his head. And it was quite different from the jumbled, delirium-induced voices. It was loud and clear. But whose voice was it? He sat in the dark, half expecting the voice to reply. Maybe he truly is going insane.

A sudden rush of light sliced into Harry's thoughts. Even with his eyes squeezed shut, the bright light felt like it was burning them. He put his head down as far as he could, but between his arms being bound behind him and his back screaming out of stiffness, it wasn't enough to spare his eyes from the rude light. Harry knew someone was standing inside the door, but his eyes demanded all of his attention at the moment. After a couple of minutes, the searing pain subsided to a dull ache, so he cracked his left eye open to just a sliver. His right eye was still too swollen to open, though he could feel the cold room gradually reducing the puffiness. Of course, he wasn't sure the dried blood covering it would permit movement. He lifted his head as he managed to open his eye wider. He guessed the silhouette in the door was Malfoy, but before he could focus on more closely, it raised its wand and said, "Creaco Abolla!" As a blindfold wrapped itself around his head, Harry wondered why Lucius hadn't said anything to him. No threats or insults. This thought hollowed out Harry's already very empty stomach. He was afraid Malfoy's lack of verbalization meant something worse was coming.

Harry heard more footsteps approach and enter the room. Then rough hands grabbed his shoulders and yanked him off the chair. It took all of Harry's willpower to keep from yelling out as his stiff body protested. He didn't want to give his captors that satisfaction.

"Just to make sure he doesn't try to run. Brachio!" As Lucius finished the curse, Harry felt the bones in his right shin snap. This time he did yell out as he fell forward. His face would've smacked the floor if the pair of hands hadn't continued to hold onto his shoulders. Harry barely felt the warm breath on his ear through the pain.

"We're moving closer to our final destination. We'll be early, but I don't think that will ruin the surprise that's awaiting your arrival." Harry heard two chuckles sound behind him as Lucius drew away from his ear. With that, Harry was half carried, half dragged, which ever his captors thought would be most painful at the time, to a destination unknown.