Chapter 14: Freedom
Rookwood felt the sweat the fall down from the back of his head down to his neck. From what he could tell the resistance was actually winning. How was that possible? Lord Malfoy had insured them that this resistance group was a small flame that could easily be put out and yet, as he sent curses and dodged others it was easy to tell that his side was not winning. He briefly thought about retreating to save face until his leader appeared out of nowhere.
"Rookwood!
The man stopped in his tracks and turned to face his leader.
"Rookwood! Come on! This way!"
He followed blindly. Perhaps, he thought, Lord Malfoy has seen we are losing and is taking everyone back to headquarters where it was safe.
He could not have been more wrong.
The woods had become increasingly darker with the clouds covering the moon. The faithful servant could barely make out what lay ahead in front of him as he ran behind his lord. His eyes were squinted as he looked down towards the ground ahead of him, insuring he would not trip over any branches. The screams of wizards and witches dueling for their lives slowly faded away. Rookwood began to feel relieved as they fled further away from the fight. He didn't like to think himself a coward, but he could also tell when he was fighting a losing battle, and this was one of them.
The air around them suddenly grew pungent. Rookwood looked up to find the source of the acrid smell of burning flesh when he saw a fire only a few meters ahead. He picked up his pace a bit to see if it was the resistance or his own side that was cause to the sickening smell. As he approached closer, the smell becoming ever more thick and choking, what he found was not at all what he had expected.
From the looks of it, the resistance had been more than cruel in their torture. Rowle's face was obscured in a look of agony that would never cease. It looked as if his had had been scrapped with a knife. His skin was burnt black, but it was not just Rowle that put the deatheater into shock. There were more: Carrow, Dolohov, and Rowle. Bodies stacked high into the roaring fire that was devouring his kin's flesh and blood.
Who could have done this? Why did Lord Malfoy bring him here?
Rookwood turned around to find his lord staring at him with a crazed look in his eye, a smirk cemented in his mouth, and wand at the ready.
"Ashes." He said simply.
"My Lord, what happened to them?"
"That's all there will be left of them. Of you. That's all I was left with of my parents."
"My Lord, you must understand that we—I never wanted to harm your parents. I had no choice."
"Petrificus totalis." The spell had caught him off guard as the jet of light hit him square in the chest. His body stiffened as he felt to the ground with a heavy thud. "You know, I've always wondered if you could feel pain under that spell. I think we should find out. Don't you?"
Rookwood screamed through his closed mouth as the blond stepped closer to him, knife in hand. "Let's start with a finger."
The man stepped over the stiff deatheater and grabbed the helpless man's wrist. He lifted up a finger and examined it. It had a beautiful platinum band across it that no doubt was a priceless family heirloom. "This one should do just fine, to start with at least."
The man beneath him screamed with all his power as the knife dug into his skin. He could feel every stroke the knife made as it penetrated his flesh. The knife was dull. It would not go through the bone easily, not without sawing. He had never in his life experienced such a feeling. It was a numbing pain. One where he could not completely comprehend, but knew that it should have a greater feeling. His screaming ceased for a moment. Unsure of himself. Surly he should be in more pain, but there was barely a dull ache located somewhere where his finger should be. He could certainly feel a stroking movement, but there was no pain, not really.
"Interesting." The cold man said noting the silence as he popped off the man's finger and stuck it in his face. "No pain?"
Rookwood paled and began screaming again as he saw his finger dangled in front of him. The blond took off the ring and examined it further before tossing the finger into the fire.
"That took way to much effort for such a small appendage. Let's speed up the process shall we?"
The pale man stuffed the ring in his pocket and leaned over the tortured deatheater. He smiled grimly. It reminded Rookwood of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Chills spread out through his body as he felt the familiar sensation at his wrist. This time it was much quicker. He screamed, as much as the spell would allow, panicked as he watched another appendage thrown in the fire.
…
"And it won't be the last either." Harry said sending daggers to the deformed man.
"I see you brought reinforcements. They won't do you much good."
"Expelliarmus!" The spell was not fast enough. Lord Voldemort easily flicked it away.
"Come now Harry. Be a man. A disarming spell will do you no good around me. You should know that." He laughed cynically. "Now stand there and watch your friends die Harry Potter."
"Conjunctivitis!" Ron bellowed before Voldemort finished his sentence. Again, he reflected it with a swish of his wand.
"Come now, surely the old fool taught you how to duel better than that." He laughed cynically. "Imperio!"
"Protego!" Harry screamed. "Furnunculus!"
"Flipendo" Ron shouted in unison.
Hermione inched her way around toward Nagini casting spells wordlessly to break the barrier that kept the snake safe. Their plan had to work. This would be their only shot. She could feel the power of the wall around the snake. It was thick, but Hermione had prepared for it and knew she could take it down with just the right concentration.
Voldemort suddenly let out a scream and blasted Hermione away from his sacred pet. Ron and Harry quickly jumped to her aide and continued casting spells at him. "You fools!" He screamed. "You cannot win!"
Finally with a last quick spell Nagini suddenly dropped from her bubble and plummeted to the ground. The massive snake hissed and struck at the trio. Hermione quickly pulled out the sword and prepared herself to take its head at any cost.
She swung swiftly the second time the snake struck, but it narrowly missed the impact. Harry and Ron were still in combat with the Dark Lord. It was all up to her. The last horcrux.
Exhaustion suddenly settled in on her and she heard an evil whisper in her ear.
"Hermione." It sang. "Why don't you just sit down and relax for a bit. You look so tired."
"No!" She shouted trying to concentrate harder on the task at hand.
"You will fail mudblood! You are worthless! Just like your dear parents." Hermione gasped upon hearing about her parents. They were safe. They had to be. She made sure of it before she left.
"I am not worthless!" She screamed just as the sword came plundering down upon the snakes head. There was a thick sickening slush of sound as the sword went through its body. Blood gushed everywhere as the snake writhed helplessly on the floor.
Voldemort's scream pierced through her brain.
It was done. The Voldemort's last horcrux was no more.
"Avada kedevra!" Hermione watched in horror as a jet a green life came her way. Then she felt the impact of a hard body that threw her to the ground.
"Ron!" Hermione grabbed him off the floor. His body was lifeless. The light in his eyes were gone. "No! Ron please! Wake up! Ron!"
"Hermione we have to go now!" Harry pulled the girl off her knees and away from the lifeless body. They ran to the nearest window fighting off the Dark Lord's curses. When they opened the window Hermione looked down at the dizzying fall. Would they even survive the impact?
"You have to jump Hermione!"
"I can't!"
"I'm sorry." Harry shoved her through the window. She watched him, as if in slow motion. He climbed up through the window. He looked back and casted another spell at the Dark Lord. Just as he was about to jump himself, his body froze.
"Harry!"
It was the last she saw of him.
.
The night the war ended the moon was high in the sky and the air was crisp and thick with fog.
"We did it Harry. We finally did it." Hermione whispered.
Luna put her arm around the brunette. "He would be very proud of you Hermione."
All of the remaining deatheaters had been trapped and stupefied. Voldemort was nowhere in sight. The resistance celebrated their victory in sweet silence. Was it really over?
The next day, the deatheaters were questioned. They learned that Voldemort had been betrayed by none other than Draco Malfoy. The Dark Lord's inner circle was also missing. When questioned of their whereabouts the deatheaters told them that they had entered battle behind Malfoy, but had not seen them since. It wasn't long before the smell of burning flesh reached their nostrils.
When they were found, the only things left of the bodies were ash. It was hard to say who they actually were, but Hermione knew the instant she found them. Malfoy had spoken to her about the people who had betrayed her parents. It had to be his doing.
But what of Malfoy?
No one had seen him during the battle at all. Those who had could no longer tell their story.
After much questioning the resistance finally stood tall and began their journey to the outside world to take back the ministry. Things were going to start changing, for the better this time. Hermione couldn't help but think back to the happy times when it was just her, Harry, and Ron laughing in the common room at Hogwarts. She knew it wouldn't be completely normal again, but she would try.
.
Draco stood in the dungeons hidden in the shadows waiting for the prisoner to awake. It wouldn't be much longer now. Slowly the black haired woman aroused. Her frizzy hair was everywhere, her dark eyeliner smudged with tears. When she finally came to her eyes immediately glazed over with craze and she laughed. A high pitch cackle rang through his ear.
"Now what do we have here? Are you going to torture me dear cousin?" She mocked.
Draco was silent.
"Well?" She barked. "Let's get on with it shall we? Before the Dark Lord comes to spoil your fun."
"Tom Riddle will no longer be spoiling anyone's fun, Bellatrix."
"How dare you speak his muggle name!" She spat.
Draco stepped from the shadows, a calm mask placed over his features.
"I'm sure he's just rolling in his grave knowing that I spoke his real name, only—oh, that's right. I didn't give him one."
"You liar! You couldn't kill the Dark Lord even if you tried! What a pathetic attempt, Draco."
"No? Then tell me, how is it I acquired this?" Draco held out the elder wand for her to see. The crazed woman gasped and her piercing squeal filled the dungeons, echoing over and over again. She finally stopped, her eyes soaked with tears. She glared at him, making herself look crazier than she was. "You see, dear cousin, I didn't much like the way things were running since Voldemort took over. So I decided to make a few changes myself, starting with the death of your beloved Dark Lord. Would you like to hear how I happened?"
Bellatrix was silent.
"You were there, in fact, the day I killed him. All of you were gathered for a meeting. I came in and pronounced that I had found the mudblood and dearest Voldemort was so excited he sent everyone out. Including you. He didn't even know what hit him as I sliced him piece by piece and cast him the fire. Then I took his wand and led his trusting followers to their death. How does that sound for pathetic?"
She remained silent.
"So, like I said, after I killed Voldemort, next on my list were those who betrayed my parents: Rowle, Rookwood, Avery, Dolohov, Carrow, and you."
This time Bellatrix narrowed her eyes and let out a high screeching laughed. "Aww is the itty bitty baby going to kill me now? You don't have the guts till kill your own family!"
"Crucio!"
His cousin's screamed echoed through the dungeons piercing his ears, but he did not let off the curse. She screamed and screamed and screamed until her voice grew hoarse. Even then, he still didn't let her pain stop. He thought about how beautiful his mother was, her beautiful long blond hair blowing in the wind as she smiled at him. That smile that told him she loved him. She didn't want him to become a deatheater, but he didn't have a choice. She smiled less often after that.
He missed her.
Finally Draco took the curse off her. Bellatrix laid there shaking and whimpering, then she started laughing again. She truly was crazy. "Is that the best you got, Draco?" She screamed. "I killed your precious mother and father and that's all you can do to me?"
Draco's blood boiled. He imagined ripping her hair out of her head until she bled to death. He imagined cutting out her tongue and nailing in to her forehead. He imagined expulsing her guts onto the floor and lighting them on fire. He wanted to rip her heart out and watch it burn, just like she did to him.
"Avada Kedavra."
She was gone, her crazy smile forever plastered on her face. Then he left the dungeons.
.
The next day the newspaper had headlines of Voldemort's demise, the resistance's victory, and the burning down of the infamous Malfoy Manor where nothing of the place was left, save the ashes, ashes that Hermione would never forget.
News spread like wildfire throughout the country that Voldemort had finally been defeated. Celebrations took place all over the world and the fog slowly lifted. Dementers were sent back to Azkaban, deatheaters were taken into custody, and slaves were set free. It was more than Hermione could ever imagine since the day she was taken into the home of the Galdo family. She smiled as she looked at her reflection in the mirror. This time she was not startled to see another face looking back at her because now, she was free to be herself.
Hermione was elected the temporary minister of magic. It took six months for things to settle down to somewhat normalcy and she stepped down from her position. She just wanted to be normal for a while. She didn't want have responsibilities over other people. Hermione and Luna become close friends after the war's end, even though she still thought Luna was crazy for believing in things like nargles. It was endearing. Luna helped her immensely. She was finally able to move on from watching her friends die by the hand of Voldemort.
It was a bright and beautiful sunny day at Godric's hollow. Hermione cautiously stepped towards the grave of the Potters. Tears leaked from her eyes as she placed an assortment of flowers on the one that said Harry Potter.
"I miss you Harry. Things aren't the same without you and Ron." She wiped her eyes and stared at the grave. She couldn't believe he had been gone for five years. Five years and she still couldn't look at his grave without breaking down. "I wish I could have changed it. I should have done something to stop it. I'm so sorry."
Something stirred behind her. She stood up from the grass and turned around, expecting to find another person mourning someone they lost, but it wasn't. She took in a sharp breath.
"Malfoy," she breathed. In an instant he was right in front of her. His eyes were cool and dangerous as he placed his hand over her mouth. They disapparated.
She didn't scream when they arrived at the destination. She merely stared into his eyes. Those eyes that haunted her every night in her dreams. Something had changed in him. They were darker and colder.
He removed his hand from her, but didn't step away. She could feel the heat coming off his body and his mist of breath as he towered over her, staring into her eyes as if he were searching for her soul.
She had been waiting for this moment for over a year. Their gaze broke as his eyes drifted from her eyes to her cheeks, down to her nose and rested but for a moment on her lips. He took a step closer to her as she backed into the wall. Her heart pounded with his close proximity. His hand came up to brush the hair out of her face. His hand slid down her cheek, then to her chin. His touch was light and gentle. It took everything she had not to lean her head against his hand.
"I found you," he whispered and brought his lips to hers gently.
Well everyone, the end is approaching! I hope you all have enjoyed my story! Please continuing reviewing and I will update the last chapter!