A/N: I Do Not Own Harry Potter And He Doesn't Own Me.
It was 4:30 in the afternoon. If Harry remembered correctly it was July 11th already. They had been at it for four weeks now, four torturous weeks now that had seen Harry doing everything while under a charm that made his body four times as heavy as his regular weight. His muscles ached and burned constantly. It was during breakfast the second day that Harry was here when Cyric cast the charm. Everything became incredibly difficult to accomplish. Harry struggled with everything from rising from his chair to dueling Cyric, which coincidently was where he could be seen now, on all fours and panting like a dog.
" I need more than what you're giving Harry. I know Albus would be disappointed if this was all the effort you were putting forth." Said Cyric advancing slowly to where Harry was.
It was these practical exercises that were the most difficult. Harry could tell that last comment was an attempt to goad him into doing something stupid.
" Come on now Harry if I was Voldemort and your friends were here I would have killed at least one of them by now if only out of sheer boredom." Said Cyric raising his wand.
Harry felt the spell catch him in the chest effectively lifting him off the floor and pinning him to the wall. He couldn't move at all yet he wasn't immobilized. His body had simply given up on him. His head hung limp, his eyes blurry even though his glasses still rested upon the bridge of his nose. Another spell hit him though he could not feel its effects.
His scar was searing, he could feel Voldemorts hatred flowing into him through their shared connection. It was then that Harry realized Cyric was no longer in front of him; instead Harry could see more that a dozen black robed figures standing behind Voldemort himself. All but one were wearing white masks. It was over. He had failed his task before he even began. Voldemort raised his wand.
"Crucio." Hissed Voldemort almost softly. Harry screamed as he felt hot knives pierce his flesh in a thousand places all at once. How? He was in a secure place. Nobody knew where he was. Not even Ron and Hermione knew, he had written them but had not told them where he was. Hell, the only person who could open the entrance was….
"Stop. You said you wouldn't make him suffer." Said the unmasked Death Eater stepping forward. Both the Cruciatus and Cyric's curse had lifted causing Harry to slump to the floor.
"We had a deal. I give you Harry and you give me my sister. I want her here now than you take care of Harry with the killing curse only and hope our paths never cross again." Said Cyric drawing his wand. " I'm sorry Harry."
Voldemort turned to the nearest Death Eater. " Bring them all here." The Death Eater bowed, turned on the spot and disapperated from the room. Voldemort turned back to Cyric. " If you would like your dear sister returned to you unharmed then you will release your wand." Threatened Voldemort putting a careful emphasis on the word unharmed.
" That wasn't the d…"
" You will do as I say!" Roared Voldemort cutting Cyric off mid sentence.
Harry's arm hair stood on end. His scar burned and his body became rigid. It was a very similar feeling as when Dumbledore appeared at the Department of Mysteries. Although for the first time Harry could feel Voldemort's commanding magical aura, it was his murderous intent that overwhelmed him with a sense of fear. He heard a clatter of wood on the stone floor; which Harry assumed was Cyric's wand. Harry forced himself to sit up and gaze upon the scene before him.
" Incarcerous." Spat Voldemort. Thick ropes shot from the tip of his wand coiling around his body like a snake and finally knotting themselves on their own accord. It seemed Voldemort had all but forgotten Harry still had his wand.
" Even if your sister remains unharmed, the same will not however be true for yourself after your little display of insolence." Said Voldemort and with a flick of his wand Cyric was on his knees. Almost simultaneously six figures entered through the now wide open doors the rear three were clearly Death Eaters in full regalia. The front three however were being marched in, arms bound behind them and hoods covering their faces. All three were forced to kneel in a line beside Cyric. Harry had a horrible feeling about this. The first hood was pulled off revealing a long mane of fiery red hair, which for one heart-stopping moment Harry thought belonged to Ginny, until he saw her face. Her skin complexion was fairer then Ginny's and her eyes were a pale blue.
" Now we begin." Hissed Voldemort casting the Cruciatus. Cyric's body began convulsing; behind the pain in his face his hatred of Voldemort was clearly visible in his eyes. A single tear ran down the face of Raielyn.
" Please my lord, let me make his sister scream." asked a woman to the right of Voldemort. Voldemort lifted the curse.
" Bella, it is not proper to spoil the main course with such an unsatisfying appetizer. Instead I believe you would much rather enjoy showing our guest of honor what we have in store for him." Said Voldemort gesturing towards Harry. " It is after all his going away party."
Voldemort nodded towards the two Death Eaters still behind the kneeling figures; they immediately stepped forward removing the hoods off of both revealing a wizard and witch. The wizard had red hair and freckles. He was wearing an expression much like that of a scared child. The witch had a tangle of brown bushy hair that was even messier than it normally was. Her cheeks were red and swollen, tears streaked down towards her chin when she caught sight of Harry. Up until this point Harry was prepared to accept his imminent fate knowing he was failing Dumbledore as well as the entire wizarding world. But seeing Ron and Hermione exposed and defenseless made him realize he had to at least attempt to put a stop to this.
" Leave them alone!" shouted Harry. " It's me that you want anyway."
" Yes that may be true, however I've heard from Bella and Severus that you get quite a temper when someone close to you dies. They say you even use the unforgivables. I'd like to see it for myself " said Voldemort.
" Crucio." Whispered Bellatrix catching Cyric yet again with the Cruciatus as he was dragging himself towards his sister. His screams filled the room.
Voldemort raised his wand and in a single sweeping removed the silencing charm that must have been placed upon the captives because Hermione's sobs were now clearly audible as the only sound after the echoes of Cyric's screams died away.
" Bella, start with the boy." Hissed Voldemort.
Bellatrix strode forward coming to a stop directly in front of Ron. She removed her mask and wore a maniacal smile upon her visage. Raising her wand and licking her lips she cast the Cruciatus. Ron had never screamed so much in his life. His saliva caught in his throat choking him as he thrashed about in pain. Harry realized he had already held Ron under the curse for more than a minute. Mustering all of his strength Harry forced himself to stand.
"Stop!" bellowed Harry promptly redirecting the attention back towards him, and causing Bellatrix to relinquish the Curse.
" You're absolutely right Harry I mustn't only play with him. Crucio." Said Bellatrix this time casting the curse on Hermione who opened her mouth to scream but could barely be heard. Apparently she must have been hoarse from crying. Her body shook violently. She snapped backwards and her head caught the stone floor knocking her unconscious. This sufficiently ended her reaction to the curse, which Bellatrix then lifted. The animosity Harry felt for that woman was unparalleled. His fist was clenched tightly around his wand, creating a flurry of fiery red sparks that were shooting from the tip of his wand.
" Well back to the other one for now I guess." Said Bellarix once again raising her wand.
Before she was able to cast the curse again Harry had raised his own wand and pointing it straight at her chest shot of a stunner. Countering with a shield charm Bellatrix was able to deflect the powerful jet of red light, which bounced harmlessly off the floor in front of her. That brief instant was all that Harry had needed; he was behind her already. Harry raised his wand and mustering all the hatred he could, wanting down to his core to watch this woman suffer, cast the Cruciatus. It caught her in the small of her back, sending her sprawling face first to the floor. Looking down on her Harry was truly enjoying it as she twitched uncontrollably due to the fact her nerve endings were being hit by wave after wave of pain. Harry held her until thoughts of what Dumbledore might think of Harry if he was alive to see this. Harry had a brief mental image of Dumbledore, which was interrupted by a jet of green light, Snape sneering down at him. His trace was broken due to the fact that his wand was vibrating fiercely, much as it had during his duel with Voldemort in the Graveyard in Little Hangleton. Bellatrix was now trembling, sprawled out on the floor. Her mouth was open, drool pooling around her. Her eyes had a glazed-over look to them. Her breath came in short ragged gasps. Harry released the curse, breathing heavily himself. He felt both satisfied and disgusted at once. This was the woman who had committed so many atrocities over her lifetime. She tortured countless people including the Longbottoms who have no memory of their son due to her. She murdered countless others including Sirius. Now she had even attacked his best friends. Harry knew exactly what he must do; pointing his wand at her lower back he suddenly brought it upwards in a vicious slashing motion. " Sectumsempra!"
Her back arched and she screamed as the spell ripped through her robes and flesh, causing blood to splatter. Droplets fell on and around her body. Her wand, which up until now had been clenched firmly in her hand fell to the floor as her grip on it loosened. Harry quickly kicked it aside roughly in the direction of where Hermione lie.
" My lord, p…please…help me." Croaked Bellatrix between breaths. Harry was expecting an attack and so he hesitated.
" My lord,…I am…your…most loyal…servant…please" begged Bellatrix. She had dragged herself several paces away from Harry now.
" You were nothing but a pawn Bella. You were used for your gold, for my pleasure and to achieve certain goals. You were nothing but a tool which, has apparently outlived Its' usefulness." spat Voldemort. " Do not for a moment think otherwise." He finished as he withdrew from her.
" Accio Bellatrix." Said Harry pointing his wand towards her, causing her to fly across the room back to him. She landed with a thud at Harry's feet. Harry looked upon her limp form; she had begun to pale due to the blood loss from her wound. Harry smiled, raised his wand and mustering all his powers of concentration, he thought Levicorpus while giving his wand an upward flick. There was a flash of light and Bellatrix was now suspended upside-down in mid air directly in front of Harry. Her robes had now fallen down covering her face.
" Diffindo." Said Harry several times slashing his wand back and forth tearing at her robes until they severed completely in pieces falling to the Floor amongst the puddle of blood that was dripping steadily off of her back.Now covered only by her undergarments, she was completely still her arms drooping towards the floor she was barely conscious. Harry slapped her across her face as hard as he could.
" I want the satisfaction of looking into your eyes as you die. I want you to have the same look of shock as Sirius did when you took him from me." Said Harry clasping his hands around her throat and tightening his grip as much as possible. She attempted to struggle,
yet could do little more the scratch her nails on the back of his hands. Her eyes began to get bloodshot her pale face and lips were now blue. Harry felt her pulse slowing; gritting his teeth he applied even more pressure
" n'cissa." Choked Bellatrix pleading to her sister to help her from somewhere within the dozen or so Death Eaters just watching her die. Help never came, her heart stopped beating and her arms were now swaying limply beside her head. Harry released his grip and he picked his wand up off the floor. He pointed his wand at the floating form causing it to rise straight up until her foot hit the ceiling fifteen feet above them. Harry thought Liberacorpus with all his mightBellatrix's body was sent crashing to the floor her head splitting open spraying a mixture of blood and brain tissue across the stone floor and Harry's trainers. He knew he had killed her by strangulation but felt he ought to be sure.
Laughter rang out echoing throughout the large room. It was a cold, high mirthless laugh. It was the laugh that Harry had first heard while tied to a headstone. It was the laughter of Lord Voldemort.
" Ah Harry, finally you've shown the potential I saw in you sixteen years ago. We're very similar you and I.
" I'm nothing like you!" interrupted Harry, his wand raised and pointed directly at Voldemort
" Is that so? You just killed for the sake of revenge. Tell me does that not sound like something I've done countless times in the past. You successfully cast the Cruciatus, which alone proves you actually wanted to watch her suffer at your hands. Yet rather than finish Bella with the killing curse you strangled her with your bare hands. Just look at the mess you made of her." Said Voldemort.
It was true, he had made one hell of a mess. Bellatrix's once pretty face was now covered in blood, her left eye socket smashed inwards. A permanent look of horror plastered on her visage was clearly visible despite all the damage. The pool of blood that had escaped out of her head had leaked into the spaces between the stones that the floor was made of.
Hermione was stirring in the corner next to the others who were all kneeling they too were splattered with the blood of the late Mrs. Lestrange. She sat upright even though her hands were still bound behind her. Her face was warm and sticky though she couldn't remember why. Turning to her left she caught sight of Ron, who was speckled with droplets of blood. He looked terrified, it was then she remembered what had happened and her heart sank as she realized that this must be Harry's blood. She was covered in Harry's blood. Hermione screamed like a Banshee.
Harry turned to see Hermione eyes shut screaming as if she was being tortured but she started to fade away as did Ron, turning back to Voldemort he noticed the Death Eaters were gone and a panic hit him as he realized they must've taken his friends away again. Harry tried to move but found out he couldn't. His eyes slowly slid out of focus as Voldemort vanished. He realized he was back to being pinned to the wall. His body felt terribly heavy again, he could barely make out a lone figure before him. It was Cyric. Cyric was down on one knee his wand pointed towards Harry. Cyric lowered his wand and Harry slumped down to the floor for the second time from his position on the wall.
What in the name of Merlin was going on?
ATTN: Please review.
