Endurance

Disclaimer: I own nothing, except, of course, the plot and any OC characters in here.

Chapter 11

Lord Voldemort smiled in anticipation as he heard the calls of the one called Tanya. She was a powerful witch, he'd give her that much, but it wouldn't be enough to save her in the end. It wouldn't be enough to save Harry Potter either.

"Master." Voldemort stopped smiling as one of his followers entered the room bowing ridiculously low. "She is coming."

"I know," he hissed. "I can feel her coming." He smiled slightly once more. "Make sure she gets a special greeting." The follower bowed obediently and left silently leaving Voldemort to his thoughts.

How many ways could he make Harry Potter suffer before he finally killed him? Would he torture Dumbledore in front of him or would he destroy his friends in front of him? The possibilities were endless.

Tanya followed the trail left by Voldemort's Death Eater's and found that it led to the housing district of the village. She stopped in her tracks and looked around. The homes had been abandoned, it was apparent by the way many of the doors hung wide open. She stared at a few of them, as though deciding which one to enter, before a movement caught her eye.

"Come out!" she ordered. She heard the clicking of heels hit the ground before they were softened by the dirt. She looked up and recognized the person standing smugly in front of her immediately. "Victoria," she said not in the least surprised.

"Charmed Vun," Victoria said with a self-pleased smile. Tanya smiled back at her.

"You know, Vikki," she said using Ron's nickname for Krum. "I knew, from the moment I saw you, that you were going to cause problems. I was right. This whole thing is your fault." Victoria shrugged carelessly, the smile still playing on her lips.

"It's not my fault, if you get killed in ze vorst attack ever vrecorded in vizard history." Tanya nodded slowly in understanding.

"So that's how you plan to play this off. You want to show the world how big and bad Voldemort is by destroying the closest village to Hogwarts…to Dumbledore." Victoria didn't move to confirm this, but she did raise an eyebrow.

"You are too smart for your own good."

"Not much you can do about it," Tanya said with a shrug. "I'm here to protect and that's what I'll do, even if it means hurting a few people." She stepped towards Victoria, but stopped when the other girl began laughing.

"You honestly haff no idea?" she asked gleefully.

"What are you talking about?"

"Ze Dark Lord vanted you here," Victoria explained joyfully. "He vanted to lead ze famous Harry Potter into a trap so he warned him." Victoria tapped her forehead lightly and grinned when she saw Tanya's eyes widen.

"He knows?"

"Of course he knows," Victoria said easily. "He knows about everyzing. He knows avout Harry's scar and he knew zat if you vere avound, you vould come find us and lead Harry out of the safety of Hogwarts." She giggled. "It vorked perfectly." She reached beneath her dark robes and pulled out her wand.

"What are you gonna do?" Tanya asked.

"Keep you from stopping our plan." Victoria raised her wand and pointed it at Tanya. Tanya glared at her and, before Victoria could do anything about it, charged at the girl. Tanya reached Victoria fairly quickly and used her fist to punch the girl in the face. Victoria screamed and dropped her wand as her hands went up to her face.

Tanya didn't let up. She began kicking and punching at Victoria furiously, doing her best to knock the Bulgarian beauty out. Victoria tried to fight back with a few punches of her own, but only succeeded in getting her hand twisted behind her in an awkward angle.

"I don't take kindly to threats," Tanya hissed. She raised her fist and hit Victoria in the back of the head as hard as she could and was rewarded when Victoria fell to the ground, unconscious. "Wait here," Tanya said to the still form lying on the ground. She brushed her robes off. "I'll go get Voldy."

Tanya crept stealthily towards one of the abandoned homes. She had just felt a large flair of power from the home. She knew it was probably a trap, but she'd do anything to buy time for Harry and the others. She had no fear of being caught. She had no fear other than failure. That was the way she'd been taught.

Fear failure. Her mother had drilled this into her ever since she had started her training at seven. It was the only fear a Charmed One should have. Nothing else mattered. At least, nothing else was supposed to matter.

Tanya gave herself a mental shake as she moved to enter the house. She opened the door and quietly entered. She glanced around, but saw nothing out of the ordinary and moved towards the kitchen.

She stepped silently into the kitchen and saw nothing there. She turned to go back into the living room, but was stopped when she saw a grinning Death Eater standing in front of her. Lucius Malfoy.

"Ah, Lucius," Tanya said sweetly with a sickening smile. Her smile broadened when she saw him frown.

"How do you know my name?" he sneered at her. Tanya rolled her eyes.

"Oh, please. It's my job to know these things. Besides, everyone knows about the infamous Malfoys."

"They do?" He seemed unsure.

"Yes. Especially the part where they serve a man with delusions of power who will do nothing, but get them all killed in the process." Lucius snarled.

"You know nothing! The Dark Lord is king." Tanya laughed mockingly.

"Do you honestly believe he gives a shit about you? Do you honestly think that, if he takes over, he will reward you? Do you even think he'll show any kind of concern for you?" Lucius was silent. "Tell me, Lucius. What makes you work for him?"

"He's powerful," he told her coldly. "He will rid the world of those not worthy. Filthy mudbloods and muggles." Tanya nodded and placed a finger on her lips as though she were thinking.

"Hmm, I thought so. Okay, what hurts more? The fact that Harry, a half blood, almost destroyed Voldemort, or the fact that I, a descendent of a muggleborn, is about to make sure that Voldemort is destroyed?"

"Pretty words," Lucius said easily. He raised his wand. "Come with me if you want to live." Tanya blinked.

"Are you sure you've never been to a muggle theatre? I could swear that line was from Terminator II." Lucius snarled.

"Come with me!" Tanya nodded.

"Fine, I'm coming."

Harry trailed behind Dumbledore with anger burning inside of him. It was bad enough that someone was brought in from a different country to help him, but then to put them in even more danger as he had. He hated to think about it. Both Ron and Hermione trailed behind him, both of them showing no trace of fear.

Hermione and Ron walked faster to catch up with Harry. When they reached him, they each patted his back soothingly.

"She'll be okay, mate," Ron told Harry quietly. "We'll get there and help her." Harry hung his head.

"It's my fault," he silently. "I shouldn't have let her go alone. What if something happens?"

"Harry, are you joking," Hermione said with a false laugh. "Tanya will probably have Voldemort on all fours by the time we get there. She's strong enough to handle herself. This is what she was born for. This is her job." Harry nodded.

"Harry, Hermione, Ron!" Dumbledore called quickly. The three teens ran to stand beside Dumbledore. "Professors McGonagall and Krum will meet us in Hogsmeade. I want the three of you to be very careful. I know I can no longer shield you, as we are coming closer and closer to the final battle, and you will need this experience. Just be careful." The three teens nodded solemnly and Dumbledore gave them his twinkling smile.

"Stay close to me," he cautioned them. "So that I'm near if you need help."

Voldemort sat in a chair and watched as Lucius Malfoy escorted Tanya into the room. He had one Death Eater on each side of his chair, awaiting orders. She strolled into the room easily and Voldemort almost gasped when he saw her.

She was a beauty. She would make any one of his Death Eaters very happy, but first, he would have to break her. He smiled as he recalled the mark he had sent to her. He could see it now through her robes on her arms. It called out to him deliciously. He found himself cursing this sickly version of his body.

He knew there were other ways to recreate his body now that he was once again reunited with it. He was now free to create a younger, stronger, more powerful version of himself. He would have done so ages ago, but he simply did not have the power.

An idea suddenly struck him. It was so brilliant that he had a hard time believing he came up with it. Tanya would help him. Her power, combined with his, could put his powerful soul into a younger incarnation of himself. He could return to being young. He smiled at her eerily.

"Welcome, my dear," he said lowly. "I'm so glad you could make it."

"Not like I had much of a choice," Tanya returned conversationally. "You threatened to kill my friends that night that I was hospitalized didn't you? That's what the red light meant." He smirked.

"Come now, I hardly ordered your presence."

"No," Tanya said quietly. "You ordered Harry's."

"You know me so well, but I know only a bit about you. Come, sit, and talk with me." Tanya laughed mockingly.

"Talk to you? Talk to you like I actually like you? Are you kidding me? I only came here to tell you to lay off." Voldemort stared.

"Lay off?" he seemed confused. Tanya nodded.

"If you stay away from Harry and his friends, I'll leave you and your goons alone. For the moment, anyway." Voldemort laughed chillingly.

"Why should I do as you ask?"

"Because the only reason your Death Eaters, including old Lucius here, are still breathing is because I came to offer you this deal. You give Harry and the others the chance to live normally for the next two years and I return the favor." Voldemort rose what should have been his eyebrow.

"Alright," he said with a slight nod. "I will do as you ask, if you will help me create a new body."

"Say wha?" Tanya asked disbelievingly.

"Help me create a new body."

"Didn't you already do that? Besides, there's nothing that could make me help you. The only reason I came here is for Harry." Voldemort glared.

"If you help me create this body, I'll leave Harry and his friends alone. I will make sure no harm comes to them through any source of my power. Ever."

"Why would you do something like that?"

"Stop asking questions. I am offering to leave the Potter boy and his friends alone. Also, I will throw in one more thing."

"What?" Tanya asked suspiciously.

"I will offer you the role of my queen."

"Where do you think Tanya is?" Hermione whispered as they finally entered Hogsmeade. Harry shook his head.

"I don't know."

"I think I do," Ron said gulping as Tanya walked out of a house a few feet from them.

"Tanya!" Hermione called happily. She moved to run towards the girl, but Tanya held up her hand.

"Stay there!" she shouted. "He's coming." Voldemort exited the same house holding his wand outwards to Tanya. He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her closer to him, his wand pointing at her neck.

"Don't move," he ordered. "Or I will destroy her." Dumbledore's eyes narrowed and Harry, Hermione, and Ron all knew that he could do nothing. He might hurt Tanya if he tried anything.

"Voldemort," Dumbledore thundered. "Let her go. She has nothing to do with this."

"I say she does," Voldemort returned. "I offered her a golden opportunity for her deal."

"What would that be?" Hermione asked angrily. She stepped forward, her fear gone. "You'll spare her life if she told you how to get to Harry?

"On the contrary, I agreed to allow you and those two Neanderthals a life of peace in exchange for a new body." Hermione gasped.

"What else?" Ron said suddenly. He almost stepped forward, but at the last second, Harry's hand stopped him. "You asked for something else, didn't you?" Voldemort chuckled sinisterly.

"He asked me to be his queen," Tanya deadpanned. "I'm sorry. I would do as he asked if he hadn't wanted a new body."

"So what are you going to do, Voldemort?" Harry spoke up loudly. It was easy to see that the young hero was anything, but happy. "Stand there forever? If you want me, come and get me! I am not afraid of you. If anything, I'm tired of you!" He caught Tanya's eye and her mouth twitched slightly. He saw her reach inside her robes. He caught a glimpse of a blue vial in her hand.

"Harry," Tanya called out suddenly. "I'm really sorry. Keep fighting. All of you." She caught Hermione's eye. "Stay together," she whispered. "And you'll win." She threw the vial to the ground and they could do nothing but watch a huge light blue dome went up around Voldemort and Tanya.

"What have you done?" Voldemort thundered.

"It won't last long!" Tanya yelled as she broke away from the surprised Voldemort. "Run now!"

"Tanya, what about you?" Harry shouted. Tanya ignored him and turned to Dumbledore, clearly exasperated.

"Dumbledore, you know if they stay here, he will kill them. He only brought me out here to distract you. Go now." Dumbledore, for once, seemed to be just as confused as Harry and his friends. He was torn between saving Tanya and saving Harry. He didn't want to choose.

"You treacherous, witch!" Voldemort called out lifting his wand. Tanya grimaced.

"Go!" she shouted as Voldemort called out a curse.

"No!" Harry shouted as he recognized the green light coming from the wand. Tanya smiled sadly at him before turning from him.

"Leave," she whispered flattening her hands on the dome. She glance back once more to make sure they were pointed in the right direction. Once she saw that they were she turned back to Voldemort and allowed her power to send the witch and three wizards back to the castle. She smiled as the light over took her. "Live."