Disclaimer: Still own nothing! Yes-still- don't.
A/N: Okies, next chapter...Draco centric. It's good, I swear...fine...maybe I did rush it a bit...but I promise, it shouldn't be too horrific. Oh, by the way, this chapter is bit...violent...be warned,as the chapter title suggests.It should still be able to fit under the PG-13 category...I think. But don't be too freaked or send me flames!
Torture
Draco was roused from his dreamless sleep before dawn break. It was the eve of a new year- hopefully the last year of the war. The fight had dragged on for too long. And it was the time to end it. Or else none would survive.
The Dark Lord was not winning, he'd realized lately. He said that he had many troops. Yet he never saw them. The Dementors had no sides. The giants were few, only the outcasts of the tribe had joined him. The trolls were clumsy, normally killed before they could even do the damage worth their weight. The Deatheaters? All fickle.
Yes. They were fickle. He was fickle. Blaise was fickle. Pansy was fickle. They all had personal benefit in this war. Once the benefits were taken…and the fear was removed, few would remain by the Dark Lord. Most would flee.
Like he would.
He had naught but fear now. When he feared him no more, he would surely turn against him.
The Dark Lord may not be aware of it. His crave made him blind. Power had fully corrupted him. He was controlled by Power, not the opposite. He could not stop now.
Draco didn't want that. When he'd first joined his league, he'd wanted power. He'd wanted to be in control. He'd aspired to greatness. To surpass his father.
To be an equal –not a servant.
Something suppressed inside his psyche had been brought out through the different barriers that he'd placed around it. He couldn't push it back down now. That warmth. The bubbling warmth that could kill him as it lured him to make mistakes.
He left his bed and went to the fireplace. Padding the floor with a quiet grace. He rung the bell by the hearth to notify the house elf that he would be expecting his breakfast soon. Then he went to the bathroom.
He stripped off the clothes that he had had on and turned on the water in the shower. The scalding water poured onto him. It was comfortable. It reminded him that he was alive. It also reminded him that he needed warmth…warmth not found here. He smiled bitterly. Stepping out of the shower, he dressed himself in the dark attires that he usually wore.
He left the bathroom after he brushed and shaved. The breakfast was waiting for him on the desk. He sat down and ate. It was like every typical morning in the Dark Lord's manor.
No sun.
No warmth.
No noise.
xxXxx
Noon arrived sooner than he expected. He was reading a book when the mark on his arm burnt. He put his book down. Not even bothered with marking the page. He would never finish the book. Not that he wanted to. It was a book about a girl and her dreams. It was about how she'd labored tirelessly towards it…It was about her happiness, her sorrows, her setbacks…
It was about Hermione. Up until the night before the graduation. Before her dreams were crushed. By him…and his dream.
He'd crushed hers with his.
He grimaced as the dull ache in his arm turned into sharp, piercing pain. He quickened his descent to await the Dark Lord's presence.
At the bottom on the stairs, Pansy and Blaise stood. Both faces blank. The Lestranges were already there. They were tensed with emotions akin to excitement. His father was there too –standing as if he was better than the rest of them. He smirked grimly at the thought and reached his place in the group, awaiting the arrival of the Lord Voldemort. Avery was not present, gone from the elites he suspected, and neither was Millicent here. But it was expected. She was the Dark Lord's new toy. She would be arriving later.
He watched as Millicent descended the stairs regally. She was the Dark Lord's woman now. She delighted in their Lord's attention.
Draco heard his aunt shuffle restlessly. As a former mistress, she thought quite highly of herself. She'd been quite disgruntled when her priority had been taken by an…untried girl who was as equally hungry for power and privilege. He saw Millicent smile smugly at the woman, causing his half-crazed aunt to hiss in restlessness.
Lord Voldemort arrived soon after the Millicent arrived. More pallid than ever in the dark lumbering hulk of clothes. He nodded to them as they greeted him. His crimson eyes squinted, then said in a hiss, "Let us began our cleansing."
With that, the group in the Dark Lord's den apparated to the no longer defended Azkaban.
xxXxx
"Crucio."
The air was wet with the smell of salt and blood.
He watched emotionlessly as the body of the muggle writhed spastically on the cold floor. He saw the man succumb to pain. Howling the agony he fruitlessly tried to control.
He took a quick look at his comrades and the Dark Lord next to him. His Lord was sneering at the powerless man before them. Millicent was laughing gaily at the tortured face. His Aunt was shrieking taunts to the unhearing ear of the muggle while his uncle was nodding approvingly at the new recruit before him who'd cast the spell. His father was fingering his wand as if he was itching to add another spell. Pansy stared at the man in front of her, her mouth stretched into a thin wisp of a smile but composed as always. She was never the one to lose herself in emotions or rush of ecstasy. Blaise stood there, calculating like always. Though his eyes focused on the scene, his thoughts were probably miles away.
The screaming turned hoarse and suddenly died as the man before him slumped and stopped moving. He turned his eyes to the new death eater who ended the curse. The girl, barely a woman, was smirking smugly at the broken man before her with the sparks of ambition in her eyes.
He saw as the Dark Lord branded his mark onto the girl's arm. He watched wordlessly as her face contorted into a soundless scream as she lowered her head to the burnt tissue. When she looked up, the girl's eyes had lost some of its light.
Once the mark had been pierced into the skin, Lord Voldemort turned his back to her and faced them. A thin lipless smile stretched across his face.
"I think I've seen enough of Amateurs today. Why don't we get the real entertainment started?"
At that cue, death eaters that resided in the domain dragged more muggles in. Some young, some old. The Dark Lord sat back into the chair given to him and allowed his best to select their toy. He stood stationary as Millicent bounced to the young man. He observed as the Lestranges quickly dragged an old man and child to start their fun. His father, Pansy and Blaise carefully picked, not rushing like the others. When they had chosen, he went to inspect the muggles.
All of them were dressed in rags that once must have been muggle clothing. Their eyes shone brightly for their dim future. He saw an elderly woman looking longingly at the old man and child being tortured in the far corner. Her hands clenched tightly as she muttered a soundless prayer. He could barely make out a few words: 'God, please take their souls into your arms.'
It was her.
He yanked her roughly from the quavering group. Each scream made the muggles shrank together.
He pushed the woman onto the floor before him and cast the Cruciatus. He poured in all his hatred into the curse and willed the woman to scream.
She did.
The old woman screamed with all her might as the curse hit her. He smiled grimly and looked over his shoulder. The old man was already dead. As was the child. The Lestranges were moving over to him. He quickly cast a glance at the woman on the floor as blood seeped from her earlier wounds. He stopped the curse…
"Avada Kedavra."
And killed her.
At times like this, the hatred he exerted surprised him. The will to hurt overflows from the tip of his wand.
"Draco…" His aunt whined as she approached. "Why did you kill that filth so soon. It has barely begun."
"She is not worth it." He replied evenly.
"Aww…" A glint appeared in Bellatrix eyes as she mocked. "Is wittle Drakie going soft? Is he going to run back to mommy now?"
"Aunt, I think I am qualified to decide when to kill my toy." Draco continued calmly but with a steely glint that challenged his relative to defy him.
His aunt caught the look and bit her lips. She wasn't about to challenge her nephew who was in favor of her Lord. Instead, she turned towards Lord Voldemort and began her whining.
"My Lord…Draco…Draco just killed the woman. There was no torture, no taunts…"
The Dark Lord turned his beady red eyes on him.
"Did you now?"
"Yes, sire." He answered honestly, lowering his head to the one he feared.
"Why?" he asked simply.
"My Lord," Draco said carefully. "She wasn't worth my time. Too frail. Already broken. Too lost in fear."
Lord Voldemort's eyes narrowed. "Is that not what we try to achieve here? To make these scum fearful of us."
The undertone was not lost to Draco. His Lord was a suspicious man. His aunt had planted seeds of doubt. Quite successful but lacked subtlety.
"Yes, my Lord. But she was broken already. I like my toys…willful and…fighting. It is the second their hope dies that I relish in." He smirked as he easily brought himself back from the disgrace that his aunt tried to put him in.
The red eyes stared at him then nodded. "Very well. Let us not dwell on the death of an insignificant speck of dirt. We have more…delightful company to make."
With that, Lord Voldemort walked off. Walking comfortably in the filthy domain and the never-ending wailings of the captives.
They followed him and came to a cell deep within the heart of the seized establishment. Pettigrew stood guard before the door. As he saw the Dark Lord approached he stood up straight then bowed stiffly at the company presented before him.
Pansy stepped forward and waved to Pettigrew, telling him to present them the occupant within the door. The death eater did so eagerly and quickly, trying to gain favor through them.
The door creaked open dramatically. Echoing through the empty hall. Away from the screams. A Place for the majesty of the damned.
Dull red flashed into his vision.
A/N: Don't kill me! I hope that the fact that it was a bit rushed did not show in my chapter! And I did say that it was a bit violent in the beginning...so don't kill me if it...errr...shocked (?) you! Thanks for reading! Please review! Review! Review!
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Chinese New Year for those who celebrate it!