Ch. 2: So much for Dumbledore
You must come to the Lestrange Mansion immediately! You are to tell no one except for Draco Malfoy. If you do tell anyone else, I might just try out my new wand on you…maybe an Unforgivable Curse…or three! The Dark Lord threatened.
My eye lids flew open. I realized that I was screaming, but I couldn't stop: my left arm felt as if it were on fire. I looked at it with anger and noticed that the Dark Mark had turned a deep shade of purple. It was moving as if it were a living being, stretching up and down my forearm. Sweat dripped down my tear-stained face. Pansy and the other Slytherin girls were crowded around my bed except for Beth who sat on her own bed and rolled her eyes.
"So what? You got summoned or something. It happens to me all the time." She said.
"Yeah, right. And now isn't exactly the best time to be a prat about everything." Pansy defended me. She muttered a Summoning Charm, and a small wash towel floated out of her luggage bag and into her hand. Pansy dabbed my face with it.
I heard the door open from across the room: Draco walked in with a worried expression plastered on his beautiful face.
I nodded to Pansy, then put on my sweater and boots and made my way over to where Draco was standing.
"Whatever you're doing," Pansy glanced at my purple Dark Mark, "or going, be careful.
I nodded again in response, biting my lower lip to hold back my tears.
Draco took my hand and lead me down into the Slytherin Common Room and out to the Hogwart's Grounds.
Fresh tears were streaming from my eyes and down my face. Draco threw his arm over my shoulder and kissed my forehead. My left hand instinctively reached for him and caressed the side of his face. I leaned in and kissed him. His other arm wrapped around my waist and held my close. He kissed my fiercely, and I felt like I could melt in his arms. I never wanted to stop and leave my love and safety.
After what seemed like hours (but was really less than a minute), we pulled back our heads: Draco smiled and I smiled back. No matter how horrible a situation can be, we will always find the love and happiness with each other.
He nodded his head as a signal and we Apparated, flying threw the darkness.
We landed in the entrance corridor of Bellatrix Lestrange's mansion. The marble floor lead to an ivory-railed staircase. And standing at the bottom of that staircase, was the Dark Lord himself, his wand held tightly in his pale, bony hand.
"You have come." the high-pitched voice greeted without much enthusiasm, "I have an assignment for you."
I turned my head toward Draco: his face was perplexed and worried. He squeezed my trembling hand.
"Your job is to bring me a student at your school: Harry Potter," I tightened my grip on Draco's hand, "And whatever you do to get him here-he must be alive!
"I have chosen you two because there are very few Death Eaters at Hogwarts. And you, Draco Malfoy, have had some experience unlike any of the other Death Eaters your age. And Astoria Greengrass, you need some experience-plus we only have four girls at Hogwarts." The Dark Lord explained.
My hand shook within Draco's grasp as I tried to avoid looking directly into the scarlet eyes,
"Listen! Look at me!" He yelled, now pointing his wand at us. Draco took a small step forward, now standing in between me and the Dark Lord, his own wand held firmly at his side. I squeezed his hand, and Draco loosened the grip on his wand, but only slightly.
"Go now. And don't fail-for if you do such, I will personally torture your families into madness, then kill them." The Dark Lord said casually.
Draco bowed slightly, and I followed his actions. He lead me out the door and into the cold, cloudy night. We Apparated back to the Hogwarts Grounds.
I was crying into Draco's shoulder. How could we accomplish a task that other Death Eaters could not even fulfill.
"I should have never let you become a Death Eater," Draco said, his voice coated with regret.
"No, you did the right thing, Draco. All of these attacks and murders-most of the victims are people who never chose a side. Now we have our side and have to do this-for our families." I said remembering what our punishment would be if we failed our assignment for the Dark Lord.
Draco nodded.
"So much for joining Dumbledore's people, huh?" I said.
"I guess, you're right…," Draco replied thoughtfully and hesitantly.
Then we made our way back to the Slytherin Common Room where Pansy was waiting ready to comfort me.
"Are you all right?" Pansy whispered, careful not to wake the others.
"I-I don't..I…not sure," I stammered.
"We aren't allowed to say anything just like my last mission." Draco explained.
"It'll be all right," Pansy said, swinging an arm around me and giving me a hug.
I shook my head, "No-no it won't!" I sobbed, reaching for Draco who took me in his arms.
I was worried about my family. I have to do something that even more honored Death Eaters couldn't accomplish. What about my little sister, Daphne, and Mum and Dad? What will he do with them until we bring him Potter? How much time do we have? And what about Draco? What will he do to him if we fail? So many unanswered questions and only one person to ask them to: Draco.
My head was resting on Draco's shoulder as he hugged me. I whispered, "I love you," in his ear and kissed his cheek.
"I love you," Draco said and kissed me on my lips.
Then he left to go to his own dormitory.
"I wish you could tell me," Pansy said quietly.
"Me too," I agreed, then I crawled into my invitingly warm bed, and fell into a troubled sleep.
I was at home with my parents and younger sister. We were opening our Christmas presents excitedly when we heard someone knock on the front door.
Mum went to greet the guest, but in one second, the stranger transformed into the Dark Lord.
"Avada Kedavra!" He shouted pointing his wand at her chest. "Your eldest daughter did not complete her task."
I was cyring, trying to save my mum.
"Avada Kedavra!" he shouted once more, this time pointing his wand at my father.
A few tears rolled down the side of his face, and then he fell to the ground-dead.
My little sister, Daphne, was screaming as the top of her lungs.
"Avada Kedavra!" The Dark Lord cried again.
And my seven-year-old sister fell on her back.
"No!" I cried out.
Then Draco came running into my house and saw my family dead.
He pointed his wand at the Dark Lord.
"No! Draco-run!" I called out to him.
The Dark Lord flicked his wand, and Draco's own wand flew out of his hand.
The Dark Lord then turned to me and yelled, "Crucio!"
"No!" Draco cried. He tried to save me, casting many combat spells at the murderer, but the Dark Lord blocked them.
I screamed as immense pain swept through my body.
Draco was crying now, begging for my torture to end. Finally, he stopped, but only to cast another Unforgivable Curse at me: "Imperio!" the Dark Lord cried out.
The controlling spell made me grab my wand and point it at Draco.
"No! Please!" I begged to the Dark Lord, but he ignored me.
"Crucio!" It made me yell. Tears were streaming down my face.
Draco screamed in agony and fell to the floor, writhing in pain.
Then with a swift movement of his want, the Dark Lord made me shout, "Avada Kedavra!" at Draco.
"NO!" I cried again, more tears running down my face, "NO!"
But the Dark Lord made me watch as the color drained from Draco's once bright, blue eyes, and he fell, face down, upon the ground.
The Dark Lord lifted the curse and I ran to Draco, bent down on my knees, and wept over his body.
But the Dark Lord wasn't finished yet: his scarlet eyes narrowed, and he pointed his wand at me. I screamed in fear and rage as he took one step closer to me and cried out,
"Avada Kedavra!"
My eye lids burst open, and I was still screaming. My face was stained with tears. Everybody had awakened to my screaming. They had worried and frightened expressions on their faces; I wondered if I had said any of the Curses aloud.
"Are you all right?" Pansy asked.
"I guess so. I must have just dreamt everything." I realized.
Pansy nodded her head sympathetically.
"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked about my nightmare.
"I can't." I sighed, but I could tell Draco later in the morning.
"Oh, okay." Pansy understood that it was about my Death Eater task. She glanced at the clock, then turned back toward me, "It's almost two o'clock in the morning; you should get some rest," Pansy advised.
I nodded and laid back down on my pillow. But I stayed awake for another hour, afraid to fall back asleep. Eventually, my eye lids grew too heavy to keep open, and I let them slip shut over my eyes, like drapes over a window, and I fell into slumber once more.