"Avada kedavra!"
Green light flashed and Rabastan fell to his knees with a crack, sending a long shadow down the moonlit wall. There was a ripple of cold laughter that did not reach any of the Death Eater's eyes.
"And now, Bellatrix, what am I going to do with you?" Lord Voldemort's chilling voice danced. "What shall your punishment be for failing to secure undesirable #7?"
Every head at the long, gleaming table turned to stare at the woman who knelt on the floor, her nose grazing the stone tiles.
"Anything you see fit, my Dark Lord." Bellatrix breathed shakily.
"Ah, Bella. A most ideal servant. I thought that I could trust you with this trivial task, but I was mistaken." Voldemort rose and slowly glided to her quivering form, drawing his wand. "Can you promise me that you shall not fail me again?"
"Yes! Yes my Lord-"
"Crucio!"
Her screams rung out like the strike of a snake, fast and violent. Each flash of light the spell produced reflected in her agonized eyes. After a long minute, Voldemort stopped.
"Please, My Lord! Forgive me!" She gasped, clutching at her face.
"Crucio!"
Many of the figures around the table grimaced as the woman crumpled to the ground and shook violently.
"Let her be an example, my followers. An example that there are punishments worse than death." Voldemort hissed as he glared into the face of one Death Eater specifically; Narcissa Malfoy. Her face flushed and she lifted a hand to her mouth.
"Alocasia, please escort Miss Lestrange to the dungeons. You will continue to torture her there. But, do not kill her." He commanded as he took his seat once more.
A large man nodded and yanked Bellatrix to her feet. With a short bow, he left.
"Now, onto more pressing matters." He looked hungrily down the table, stopping his gaze on each of his closest followers. "Undesirable #7 will soon be taken care of," he smiled slyly at Narcissa, "but, #1 continues to evade us. And, while that is...disappointing, I would like to deal with something else entirely today: A rat that has been taking up room in my dungeons for far too long. Bring him in!"
Suddenly, the great wooden doors flew open and two cloaked creatures appeared, pulling a hunched figure between them. Narcissa let out a shriek before plastering her hand over her mouth. The figure was Lucius Malfoy. But to anyone besides his wife, the man was completely unrecognizable. His hair was darkened with dust and his face was streaked with blood and dirt. One eye was black and swollen and a line of red trickled down the corner of his mouth.
"Lucius...Malfoy..." Voldemort whispered slowly. "Are you going to continue to make the same claims as last month?"
Malfoy didn't even lift his head.
"I shall ask you for the last time: where is your son?"
A stifled cry echoed.
"Will it really help your cause to remain silent and allow your wife to be tortured in your place?"
"No, Lucius!" Narcissa whimpered.
"Silence! So, you choose to die for nothing. How noble. How heroic. Isn't he?"
Cackles filled the room.
"Good bye, Malfoy. I shall make sure your child joins you soon. Avada kedavra!"
Andromeda Tonks cradled the blue haired infant in her shaking arms and made her way to her door where a soft tapping had recently sounded. Opening it a crack, she peered out into the pouring rain. A tall, cloaked figure nodded to her.
"Who was my grandson's godfather?" She whispered cautiously.
"Harry Potter." The stranger replied. It sounded as though the words pained him.
With a sigh, Andromeda ushered him inside and quickly bolted the door.
"Good evening Mr..." She trailed off, lifting her eyebrows.
"I'm afraid it wouldn't be wise for you to know my name, ma'am." His eyes fell upon the baby boy. They were all that was visible beneath the hood he wore.
"Are you sure you can take care of him? You sound awfully young." Tonk's mother asked, eyes glimmering with worry.
"That's exactly what my grandmother would say. But I can promise you; he'll be safer with me than he will be staying here. I don't mean to scare you ma'am, but being a Metamorphmagus and a werewolf makes him valuable to the Dark Lord."
A tear flowed down the old woman's cheek. Slowly, she pressed her lips to the child's head. Then, she reluctantly passed him to the stranger.
"Do take care of him." She whispered.
"I promise."
With that, the stranger turned and made his way back into the rain, shielding the baby with his own cloak. But, when he reached the end of her walk, he turned. His light brown hair blew in the thrashing wind and he pressed a hand to his heart before disapparating.
A/N *wiggles eyebrows* Mysterious. I know. All will be revealed later. For now, how about clicking that, "Follow" or "Favorite" button? Or better yet, "Review"! Thank you so much to those of you who have reviewed so far. You guys are awesome! Also, just wanted to say that if you are enjoying this story, you should feel free to check out my other HP fics! I have two others titled, : Of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, and, He Could Start Over. Thanks again!
~Always~