The group descended slowly to the Ministry. When they arrived, they all squeezed out and looked around. The hall was empty, there weren't even any fires burning under the mantles. The only sound in the Atrium was the steady rush of water from the golden fountain (newly restored) further down the hall.
"Come on" Harry said as he rushed forward.
"Shouldn't there be security?" Hermione hissed as they quickly passed an empty desk and through the open gates and onto a lift.
"I told you something wasn't right" Harry said. "Voldemort must be here already, that's why security is missing."
The lift soon stopped and announced that they had reached the Department of Mysteries. The group slowly made their way out and into the silent hallway. At the end of the hall was the door that Harry was now familiar with. He stopped before reaching it and turned to his friends, "Okay, listen. Maybe a couple of people should stay behind…be lookouts."
"And how exactly are we going to tell you someone is coming? We have no idea how large that room is." Ginny said.
"Our phones?" Harry suggested. "I have one and Hermione has one"
"I don't think even a Starkphone can get service all the way down here." Hermione said.
"But –"
"Come off it Harry, we're coming with you." Neville said.
Harry sighed heavily. He looked at Ron who nodded.
"Fine" He turned back to the door. He took a deep breath and opened it. The group walked into a large circular room lined with several more doors.
"Which door is next?" Ginny asked?
Harry recalled his dream-self walking straight ahead, but, as he made to walk forward, the room darkened and the wall began to shift.
"What's just happened?" Neville asked uncomfortably.
"I think it was to stop us knowing which door we came from." Hermione said.
"Well, that's brilliant" Ron said sarcastically. "We're going to be stuck here forever."
"We can worry about that later" Harry said forcefully. "We need to find Sirius." He made his way to the door across from him.
"How are we to know which one is the correct door?" Ron asked.
"In my dream, I went through a door and into a room that kind of…glitters…I guess"
"Right" Ron said.
"I'll know it when I see it" Harry assured.
The first door they tried held glimmering things, but they weren't the right kind. It turned out to be a room of brains.
"Why does the Ministry have jars of brains?" Hermione asked.
The group shrugged and returned to the room to try another door.
The next room they tried was empty save for a stone archway.
"There's nothing here" Neville said.
Harry wanted to examine the archway more, but Hermione dragged him out of the room.
"Hopefully this is the right one, I'm going mad with all these rooms." Ron complained.
Harry pushed the door open and peered inside. "This is it!"
The room was large, lined from floor to ceiling with bookshelves filled with odd glowing balls.
"Come on, this way" Harry sprinted down the aisle with his friends on his heels.
"You said row ninety-seven right?" Hermione asked, slightly breathless as she ran behind Harry.
"Yeah" Harry replied, looking up at the small silver plaques at the end of each bookcase.
"Here, ninety-seven" Ginny said and the group slowed.
"Wands out everyone. Sirius should be at the other end." Harry instructed.
They all nodded and pulled their wands from their pockets. They slowly crept down the narrow aisle, keeping their eyes on all sides of them.
"He should be about…here" Harry looked around, but it was empty. There was only them and the towering cases of glowing balls.
"Harry…" Hermione said quietly.
"What?" Harry snapped.
"I…I don't think Sirius is here" She said.
The group was silent for a moment. Everyone was looking at Harry anxiously, waiting for his reaction.
"He has to be here" Harry whispered to himself. He looked around the small area, but could see nothing; not even a sign of a struggle.
He made to run down the aisles when Ron called to him. "Harry, have you seen this?"
"What?" Harry snapped.
Ron said nothing and pointed at the shelf above him. Harry and the group made their way over and followed Ron's finger. "It's got your name on it" He said.
True to his words, the small sphere had a small piece of parchment tied to it. In faded letters was a date and Harry's name followed with a question mark.
"Why does it have your name on it?" Neville asked.
"The rest of us aren't here" Ron said as he looked at the other spheres.
Harry ignored him and stretched his hand out towards the sphere.
"Harry, you shouldn't touch it" Hermione said sharply.
"Why not? It's got my name on it."
"We don't know what that is or why it has your name on it. We should just leave it be."
Harry considered what Hermione was saying, but there was just something about the sphere that was calling to him. He wanted to pick it up…so he did.
The sphere was surprisingly warm in his hand. He half expected something dramatic to happen when he touched it…but nothing did.
He brought it down and the others quickly surrounded him, trying to get a closer look as he wiped a layer of dust from it.
"Very good Potter. Now turn around, nice and slowly, and give that to me." A familiar drawling voice said from behind them.
They turned to see Lucius Malfoy slowly stalking towards them. Several more dark figures materialized out of the darkness, surrounding them.
Malfoy stood in front of them, his hand held out with his palm up. "To me Potter"
"Where is Sirius?" He asked instead. His eyes darted around, but couldn't find an opening. Not only were they surrounded, they were outnumbered.
The Death Eaters laughed, one woman's cackle was louder than the others. "The Dark Lord always knows" She shrieked.
Malfoy's lips quirked, "Always"
"I want to know where Sirius is!" Harry shouted.
"I want to know where Sirius is!" The woman mimicked.
He felt Neville stiffen beside him. The group shuffled closer together as the Death Eaters stalked forward. "I know you have him here. I saw it"
Again, the Death Eaters laughed.
"Poor, naïve, Potter." Lucius grinned. "Do you think what you saw was real? Do you think the Dark Lord would not be able to exploit your weakness to his advantage?"
"Little bitty baby Potter, always comes to the rescue" The woman cackled.
"I told you Harry" Hermione hissed. "It's a trap"
Harry's body went cold. "We need to get out of here." He whispered to the others.
"How? We're surrounded." Ginny whispered anxiously.
"They haven't attacked us yet; they must want something." Ron whispered back.
"Correct for once Weasley" Malfoy drawled, his hand still held out. "Give us the prophecy and you are all free to go."
Harry looked down to the glowing sphere in his hand. "Yeah, right" He huffed, "I give you this – prophecy is it? And you'll let us skip off home, will you?"
The words were hardly out of his mouth when the female Death Eater shrieked, "Accio Proph –"
Harry was just ready for her. He shouted "Protego!" before she had finished her spell, and though the glass sphere slipped to the tips of his fingers he managed to cling on to it.
The woman cackled again, "Looks like baby Potter knows how to play." She stepped forward and removed her mask, revealing Bellatrix Lestrange. "Very well, then –"
"I TOLD YOU, NO!" Malfoy roared. "If you smash it –"
Harry's mind held onto that. If this was the same prophecy Aileen told him about, he doesn't need it. He could use that to get everyone out of here.
"On my mark, destroy everything and run for the door" Harry whispered to everyone.
"So" Harry said, "what kind of prophecy are we talking about here?"
Bellatrix's grin faded, "You jest Potter"
Harry shook his head, "Nope. How come Voldemort wants it?"
The Death Eaters stiffened, "You dare speak his name!" One of them hissed.
"What Voldemort?"
""Shut your mouth!" Bellatrix shrieked. "You dare speak his name with your unworthy lips, you dare besmirch it with your half-blood's tongue, you dare –"
"Did you know he's a half-blood too?" said Harry recklessly. Hermione gave a little moan in his ear. "Voldemort's mother was a witch, yes, but his dad was a Muggle — or has he been telling you lot he's pureblood?"
"STUPEFY!" She shrieked.
"NO!" Malfoy quickly deflected the jet of red light so that it missed the group and hit a few glass spheres to their right, shattering them. Two ghostly figures unfurled from the smoke emanating from the broken glass. They whispered words no one could really understand, only hearing broken words and sentences until they both vanished.
"DO NOT ATTACK!" Malfoy instructed, "We need that prophecy."
"You know," Harry said, gaining everyone's attention again, "You still haven't told me what's so special about this prophecy."
"You mean Dumbledore never told you?" Malfoy asked.
"Told me what?" Harry asked.
"The reason you bear that scar was hidden in the bowels of the Department of Mysteries."
Harry feigned confusion, "What about my scar?"
"Can this be?" said Malfoy, sounding maliciously delighted; some of the Death Eaters were laughing again, and under cover of their laughter, "Dumbledore never told you?" Malfoy repeated. "Well, this explains why you didn't come earlier, Potter, the Dark Lord wondered why you didn't come running when he showed you the place where it was hidden in your dreams. He thought natural curiosity would get the best of you."
"So he wanted me to come get this huh? Why?"
"Why? Because the only people permitted to retrieve a prophecy are those about whom it was made."
"Ah, that would explain his other lackeys were unsuccessful"
"Indeed" Malfoy replied dryly.
"So why not come get it himself?"
"Get it himself?" Bellatrix cackled, "And reveal himself when everyone is so sweetly ignoring his return?"
"So he's got you and me doing his dirty work has he?" Harry smirked, "Well, I hate to disappoint him, but we've got to be going."
At that moment, the group shot at every shelf in the area, causing the glass spheres to fall to the ground and shatter.
"Run!" Harry shouted when the aisle was filled with white ghostly figures. He grabbed the person closest to him and ran towards the door.
"How do you know this is the way?" Ron asked.
"Training" Harry said. He could hear Death Eaters behind them, closing in. "Blast more shelves" Harry said as he shot a spell behind them.
When they finally reached the door, Harry immediately ran into another one, the room filled with brains. "Is everyone here?"
"No, we're missing Ron and Luna, and Ginny" Neville said.
"We have to find them!" Hermione said.
"No time" Harry said, "We have to hide" He rushed behind a large container just as the door blasted open. The others flew behind containers as well, quietly listening as the Death Eaters argued.
"We will split into groups" They heard Malfoy instruct. "Kill the others, but Potter is kept alive. We need that prophecy."
Several footsteps left the doorway while two entered.
Harry crouched behind the container, his wand out. As soon as he saw movement, he shouted, "STUPEFY !"
A jet of red light hit the nearest Death Eater and he slumped to the floor. The second Death Eater, however, had leapt aside to avoid Harry's spell and now pointed his own wand at Hermione, who had crawled out to get a better aim.
"Avada –"
Harry launched himself across the floor and grabbed the Death Eater's arm, he threw his weight against the larger man causing him to topple and his aim to go awry. Neville quickly stood up, pointing his wand wildly at the struggling pair he cried, "STUPEFY!"
Luckily, Harry was able to dodge the attack and the Death Eater went down.
"Good job Neville" Harry said as he caught his breath.
"I did something right" Neville whispered.
Hermione grinned and pat him on the arm.
"We need to find the others." Harry said. The two nodded and followed them back to entrance.
Woo! Some action!