CHAPTER FOUR: WE KIDNAPPED THE HERO.
It was a simple, two-storied home, not too different from its neighbours. There was a car parked half in and half out of a garage by the side, and a kid's bike perched on a corner of the hedge. It was a square, boxy house with boxy, boring walls and windows and a tiled, sloping roof that showed no sign of weather or time. The lights were on in the living room. But no matter how many different scans Lucius and Severus did, there didn't seem to be any wards around. There was a clear magical ping of a magical presence inside the house, though. It was undeniably strong too.
Signalling for Narcissa and Draco to wait outside, Lucius prepared for his first peaceful trip to a muggle home. Severus did a quick alohomora and eased past the door. The two disillusioned wizards slipped inside and checked the living room. An incredibly fat man sat snoring on a fussily floral chintz sofa, an empty glass in one hand and a bowl of chips in the other. A television blared in the background, grating on their ears. Seeing no signs of any other living being in the living room, or the kitchen, the two levitated themselves upstairs and peeked into each room. The guest bedroom was empty. The next bedroom was full of junk. And the bedroom after that showed a boy who looked far too much like the fat muggle sleeping downstairs to be Harry Potter.
And they hit a decent node at the last bedroom. Petunia lay fast asleep, thin and horsey in her girlie, flouncy nightgown. There was no visible sign of Harry Potter anywhere, yet their scan indicated there was a magical person residing in these premises. Severus petrified the sleeping harpy and silenced her and then delved into her sleeping mind. And was horrified at what he found within. He had to wrestle extra hard with his conscience to not rip her vile mind to shreds and destroy the evil woman. It defied logic how this woman could ever be related to kind, gentle Lily.
He cast a forgetfulness around the name of Harry Potter, and a vague memory of distant relatives coming to claim him and exited, feeling dirty and mired in hippogriff dung. He cast an old Prince family hex to ensure that no magical would ever be able to approach within a mile of this woman. Their world was safer that way. He then emerged from her mind, cast a deep sleeping charm, and released her from the petrification and then went and did the same to the fat child and his father, still sleeping downstairs.
A bemused Lucius followed, confused and willing to wait and watch for now. But all amusement left him when he followed Severus and was shocked to see the man unlock and open the cupboard under the stairs. The bundle that Severus pulled out stunned him even more. It was a smelly, thin, underdeveloped child in faded, torn rags, bruised and bleeding from places, and probably passed out from pain and exhaustion. The pungent, dungeon-smell of blood, sweat and urine hung heavy. Lucius quickly cast a scrougify and five refreshment charms, took out his silk handkerchief, transfigured it into a warm blanket, and vanished all of the child's clothes, and wrapped the new, clean cloth around the still child.
Severus handed the child to Lucius and then systematically erased all traces of the child's hair, skin, blood, saliva, clothes, toys, nail scrapings, and even the dust off the entire house, leaving nothing to chance. As dark wizards, experienced and well versed in the less legally polite forms of magic, they knew what havoc could be wreaked with even a single drop of his essence. Satisfied that not even a trace of their presence would remain, the two barely contained, raging wizards marched out with their stolen treasure, and gently shut the door on their way out. They would desist their first urge to burn the house down.
Narcissa and Draco were waiting exactly where the two wizards had left them. Putting a finger to his lips in the universally understood sign, Lucius indicated that Narcissa and Draco lead the way to the car, and followed them, gracefully handling the tiny bundle of feathers wrapped tightly in the warm, transfigured bundle. Severus followed as rear guard, alert for any sign of Dumbledore or his other lackeys leaping at them from the shadows.
Most of the homes along the street were shrouded in darkness, and Severus felt a shiver of odd icy cold run up and down his spine as he trailed after the group. The adrenaline that raced his veins beside his red blood had turned to the water of winters, or so it felt. His hands were shaking ever so slightly, and seeing his wand waver, he cursed internally and upped his occlumency shields. There was a strange, shallow ache in his taut muscles. His shallow breaths pounded and howled unseemly loud in his own ears.
Logically, he knew that this was an irrevocable step and shift in his future and Draco's as well. It was nearly as pivotal as getting that blasted mark, in how it felt. Logically, he knew that they were all scent and sound masked, and disillusioned on top of it, but the fear thrumming in his heart was illogical. He kept expecting Dumbledore to pop up any second. But moments passed and they were too far gone to back out.
It was well past midnight by the time the group reached their parked car. Not even dogs barked as this strange caravan of magicals and their bundled cargo passed by. Silently, the four got into the car, Lucius still holding on to the bundle and drove out into the nearest motorway. As soon as they felt they were safely away from any possible scrutiny, Severus drove the car off the road into woods nearby, parked, got everyone out silently, and shrunk the car. Then meticulously, he wiped the tread marks off the road and the three of them gathered around Lucius and his bundle.
Lucius was ready and waiting; he smiled at his little prince, for he was smart enough to pick up on the unspoken cues and never uttered a word. Patting the little blond head, he pulled out his cane, and grimly turned his wand to the blanket and murmured, "Portus" and the blanket glowed blue for a brief second. Narcissa picked up her son, and placed their joined hands, near Severus' own, on the blanket and in a dizzying twirl, they disappeared from the woods.
Not even a distant owl hooted. But destiny had definitely changed its circuitous path.