Harry ran through the streets, cloak flapping behind him killing Deatheaters as he went. Ron's presence at his side was comforting even though the other boy kept throwing him suspicious looks, which Harry ignored. He knew that Voldemort would only send his most trusted Deatheaters in an attack on Hoggsmeade. If he was right this would be the perfect time for revenge.
Harry stopped suddenly near the end of the street. Ron ran into his back jolting him forward. Harry grabbed Ron by his robes pulling him into an alley. "What the hell? Harry what are you doing?"
"Hush, Draco is over there fighting with his father." Harry said pointing to where Draco was indeed squaring off with a deatheater. Harry noticed Draco tremble a bit.
"How can you tell that's his dad and not some other deatheater?"
"Because Draco knows it is."
"Huh?"
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Draco licked his lips nervously. He had expected at least a year to go by before he had to confront his father. Fate had other plans it seemed. He bent to draw his knife from where he kept it in his boot.
"Such a disgrace," his father's voice intoned from behind the mask. "You actually plan to kill me with that?" Lucius Malfoy drew his sword-cane.
Draco grimaced. He was sure he wasn't ready for this. He stepped forward and dropped into a defensive stance waiting for his father to give him an opening. His palms were sweaty, but he was determined to keep a cool detached expression on his face. This would be the first time he had fought someone for real. Draco had no illusions. He could very well die here. His father lunged forward aiming to slash Draco across the chest. Draco dodged the blow and lashed out striking his father on the arm ripping the robe and drawing a thin line of blood.
Lucius Malfoy ripped off his deatheater mask. Rage filled his pale blue eyes. "You would dare to fight me, you ungrateful little brat!" He stormed forward and swung his sword fully expecting Draco to fall to the snow bleeding. Draco did fall to the snow, but he rolled under the blade and regained his feet to his father's right. A look of momentary surprise crossed Lucius' face before he turned to face his son, his stance a little wearier.
Draco was congratulating himself on still being alive. His father was an expert swordsman after all. He was lucky that his father had underestimated him. Perhaps he would again, but chances were slim. Draco feinted left before diving in under Lucious' guard to graze his thigh. Lucius turned and slashed downward as Draco passed. Draco felt the sword connect and rip through his heavy school robes. Draco was glad he was wearing his winter cloak. Both the fabric of the cloak and his shirt were ripped along his back. He could feel the chill wind on his skin. He had barely gotten away from that. Draco knew he could not last long. He needed a plan and he needed one fast.
Lucius Malfoy attacked again. This time he hit Draco in the shoulder. Draco screamed and grabbed the wound. His mind momentarily went blank with pain. It was enough for Lucius to get to his wand and point it at him. "Crucio," The pain was excruciating. He fell to the ground, and his back arched until he thought it would break. Only after a few seconds his throat hurt from screaming.
This had to be one of his stupider ideas. He should have slipped away and headed back to the castle when the attack began. Draco was no fool and knew that he was not a fighter. He was better at fighting from a distance with his wand. His father released the curse and Draco could think again. Wand, I still have that right. Draco reached into his robes and pulled out his wand. He was careful to hide it under his body where the elder Malfoy could not see it. Draco looked up intending to strike his father with a blasting curse, but was hit with Crucio once again.
This time the spell did not let up. Draco waited for his chance to strike in an eternity of agony. Later Harry would claim that his next move was a very brave thing to do. Draco would maintain that he had been driven temporarily insane under the influence of Crucio. His hand brushed over his knife that he had dropped on the ground when he was first hit by the curse. Without thinking or even aiming he threw the knife in a fit of desperation.
The curse suddenly released him and he fell to the ground gulping in as much air as he could. Again with out much thought Draco pointed his wand at his father. "Deflaratio!" Lightning shot out of the wand and hit his father. The spell was said with considerable force and electrical energy washed over Lucius Malfoy's body several times.
Draco grimaced at the smell of burnt flesh. He tried not to look at the charred, half-melted face. Lucius Malfoy was dead. Draco promptly vomited onto the ground. He heard footsteps come up behind him. He whipped around with his wand ready to curse whoever it was into oblivion.
Harry grabbed his arm and twisted before he could do anything more. "Good job there Blondie." He said with a smile. "That spell did come in handy didn't it? I'm almost glad you made me teach it to you."
Draco glared up at Harry from his position on his knees. He pushed to his feet using a tight grip on the front of Harry's robes for leverage. Once secure, he pushed back on the other boy. "Who the hell are you?"
Harry frowned puzzled for a moment. "Oh," he grinned. "It's me, Harry." Draco only glared at him. "Really, I swear on Gryffindor's honor."
"You're a woman." Draco bit out enunciating every word as if speaking to a child.
Harry only smiled and giggled. "Of course I am now."
Draco huffed in annoyance and wrapped what was left of his robes around his frame wincing as a cold breeze hit his bare back through the slash. He lifted his nose into the air and flounced off in the opposite direction from Harry. "You are obviously not worth my time." He went strait for the Order wizards that had started flooding the streets.
Harry shook his head. "Idiot's going to get a knife in the back one of these days." He muttered to Ron who nodded in agreement. Harry raised his voice calling out sweetly, "I would get that slash mark on your back looked at soon. It may scar." An indignant squawk was her answer. Harry turned to Ron. "Come on. We have to hurry before the Order gets 'control' of the situation." He took off at a dead run. Ron followed behind shaking his head. Harry obviously had a score to settle with someone that he knew was here.
Harry quickly worked his way passed the parts of the town that the self proclaimed "good guys" now controlled. There, he thought in anticipation as he came upon a group of deatheaters. One Deatheater in particular caught his attention. This one wore the same dark robes and mask as its cohorts, but it was shorter and slenderer than the rest. "Bellatrix!"
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Bellatrix turned in surprise at hearing her name called out by a feminine voice. She started at the woman standing in the middle of the street a knife in one hand and a wand in the other. Eyes glowing with murderous intent. My, my, my, Bellatrix thought. What have we here? She calmly detached herself from the other deatheaters and came to stand not ten feet from the seething woman. "What atrocities are you going to charge me with little bird? What wrong have I done to you and yours?" She asked in a mocking voice.
The woman smiled an unholy smile of glee. "One crime of a thousand matters not. All you need to know is that today you die."
Bellatrix arched one delicate eyebrow. Why wasn't the little minx cowering in terror? Bellatrix Had certainly made greater wizards than this waif cower by her mere presence. She did not recognize the other woman. That was strange. Bellatrix could remember every face that she had made contort in fear or pain. She took pleasure in remembering them, but this girl was a new face. She certainly would have remembered a young beauty like this one.
Bellatrix raised her wand prepared to use avada kedavra to dispose of the minor annoyance. The girl scowled in disdain and threw her knife hitting Bellatrix's wand hand. Bellatrix screamed and dropped her wand. She clutched her now bleeding hand to her chest. "You little bitch!" She rasped.
The girl only smirked and raised her wand. Bellatrix rolled to the side just as a burst of light flew at her. She cursed silently once more grabbing her wand and pointing it at the girl. She cast a binding spell. The girl choked in surprise.
Since the target was now immobile Bellatrix took her time standing up and straitening her robes. She removed her mask and ran her left hand through her hair. There was a wicked smile on her face. "Now," she said in a prim tone to the girl. "Who are you?"
The girl grimaced. "You are a stupid bitch. You know who I am. I did gatecrash one of your precious Deatheater meetings. I know you were there."
Bellatrix scowled. So this was the one who dared to challenge Voldemort. "Yes, I remember. You called yourself Arisa."
"Yeah, I did." Arisa struggled with the binding managing to stretch it with her will.
Bellatrix frowned. She did not like the disrespect that Arisa showed her. She liked it even less that the girl seemed to have no fear of her. "Crucio," Bellatrix growled. Arisa fell to her knees. Bellatrix smiled. That was more like it. She always enjoyed it when her victims were on their knees.
Bellatrix threw her head back to laugh, but ended up gasping in pain as she fell onto her side in the muddy, trampled snow. Her hand went to her side where a warm wetness was soaking into her robes. She looked up to see a pale, red haired teen standing over her with a bloody knife in his hands.
Arisa pulled herself up off the ground and took her wand in her hand once more. Bellatrix saw the barely contained rage in the young woman's eyes as the wand was pointed strait at her. Arisa choked out a word that was surely not meant to be spoken with human vocal cords. Bellatrix's world dissolved into pain, then an eternity later blackness.
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Ron stumbled back as the deatheater at his feet began to melt. He watched in horror as the flesh bubbled up and receded into the bones. Long dark hair crackled as if it had been burned. When the bones started to turn to ash Ron was brought back to the world by his stomach rebelling at the smell of burnt flesh.
Harry, as Harry, knelt down next to his best friend. "You think that was a little over the top?" Harry asked.
Incredulous, Ron turned to star at him. "That was disgusting." He wiped his mouth. "How could you have done that?''
Harry shrugged nonchalantly. "I wanted revenge for Sirius." He grimaced. "I hope he doesn't mind too much about the how."
Ron opened his mouth to reply, but never got the chance. "Mr. Potter," Dumbledore walked up to the two kneeling boys. "What did you do?"
Harry blanched at the accusation in the headmaster's voice. He had known that the spell that monitored his use of magic was still in effect, and Dumbledore now knew for a fact that Harry could not only do dark magic, but dark magic that has been banned for millennia. "What I thought was necessary." Harry deadpanned.
Dumbledore looked at him sadly over his half-moon glasses. "Harry," he began in a grave voice.
"No, don't give me that self-righteous speech about good and evil. I've heard it all before. I warned you not to get in my way."
"Harry you are being irrational. Dark magic corrupts the user. Come with me and we can help you." Dumbledore held out his hand look of compassion and understanding on his face. The Aurors standing behind him held their wands at the ready.
Ron took in the scene and could not keep himself from gulping loudly. He looked toward his best friend. Betrayal pinched Harry's features. He stared into Ron's eyes hoping for understanding. Ron inclined his head in understanding. Harry shot a withering glare at the headmaster and apparated.
Dumbledore jumped in shock. The tracking and monitoring spells he had placed on Harry and carefully maintained snapped and hit him with the backlash. He walked up beside Ron and placed his hand on the boy's shoulder. Ron shook the hand off sure to the core of his being that he would never see his friend again.
