Chapter 6- The Catalyst

Voldemort sat on his throne with Nagini on his lap, writhing in delight, as he stroked her spine. The dark lord was awaiting the arrival of two deatheaters, whom he was about to assign some very important tasks. The massive wooden door leading to the throne room opened and a couple of darkly cloaked figures walked in. Upon arriving at the foot of Voldemort's throne, the figures knelt down as a sign of allegiance to their master.

"Rise," he ordered.

The 2 deatheaters rose on their feet and revealed their faces. Standing in front of Voldermort were Bellatrix Lestrange and her sister, Narcissa Malfoy. Narcissa was gently rubbing her arm where the dark mark was burned earlier that day.

"Welcome to the deatheaters, Narcissa," greeted Voldemort as he eyed the tall attractive wife of Lucius Malfoy.

"I will serve you well, my lord," she replied as she gave him a small courteous bow.

"Hopefully better than your husband," said Voldemort with a slight hiss escaping from his lips.

Voldemort beckoned Narcissa to come closer. The deatheater complied and moved closer to her master. When Narcissa was standing in front of him, Voldemort handed her a small box with a snake-shaped metal clasp.

"What is it, my lord?" inquired Narcissa.

"Credere," answered Voldemort. "Used it at the most opportune moment, Narcissa for it well help us greatly in our cause. Scout the areas where we and allies have attacked. Looked for disgruntled muggles and release the Credere. Once you have done this, you will aid the muggles in locating those witches and wizards who are not loyal to us."

"As you wish," she replied.

"Now go," ordered Voldemort.

Voldemort approached Bellatrix who once again knelt down in front of him and kissed his hand.

"Ahhh… my most faithful and loyal servant. Are the plans set?"

"Yes, my lord."

"You will be my eyes and ears throughout this war and you will be greatly rewarded in the end" said Voldemort as he allowed his hand to be caressed by Bellatrix's face. "Go and come back when you have important information."

Bellatrix rose and gave Voldemort a low bow as she exited the throne room. An evil smile etched on her face.

"Have you seen this girl?" asked Arthur Weasley as he held up a muggle photo of Cho.

"No," replied an elderly lady.

"Have you seen this girl?" he asked a guy with a mohawk.

"No mate, but she not a bad looking bird," he replied.

"Dad, it's hopeless. We need to use some sort of magic to find Cho. London is just too big," said Fred.

"Dad, Fred," called George as he crossed one of the busy London streets.

"Any luck?"

"None whatsoever. We need to use magic, dad," replied George, panting a bit.

"That's what I told him," said Fred who looked frustrated.

"I think its best we head back to Grimmauld's Place and ask the others if they know any charm or potion that may help us find her," Arthur suggested.

"Or we could just go to Knockturn Alley. I'm positive that we will find something there," replied Fred.

"No Fred. You or George will do no such thing. We better hurry back. Every minute we stand here we're wasting time."

George and Fred followed their father into a dark alley where they apparated back to No. 12 Grimmauld Place. Upon arrival, they saw the weeping form of Mrs. Chang who was comforted by Molly Weasley. Shen stood in a corner with his arms folded and his head lowered.

"Did you find her?" asked Molly.

"No," replied Arthur with his voice slightly cracking. With Arthur's reply Jiao Chang's sobs became louder.

"Thanks for your effort Arthur. I talked to Dumbledore and he said that he is sending someone who will be able to help us find Cho." Arthur saw that Shen's eyes were filled with worry.

"Maybe we can use a finding potion," suggested Fred.

"We don't have enough time to brew it," answered Mr. Weasley. "Who is Dumbledore sending Shen?

"The dhamphir, Edward," replied Shen. "Their kind is renowned for their tracking abilities."

Like on cue the strong form of the Edward, the dhampir entered the entrance hall his black coat billowing in the non-existent breeze. He followed by the headmaster of Hogwarts, who handed him a neatly folded London map. "Thank you Edward," said Professor Dumbledore. He gave the wizened old wizard a courteous nod and headed off to find Cho Chang.

"Please find my baby," begged a tearful Jiao Chang.

The London rain has not seized. It was covering the city with its liquid embrace. Everything that was exposed was soaked, including the young witch, Cho Chang. It was unknown to her how long she sat on that bench, just listening to the rain fall and earlier felt her heart breaking. In a way, she felt relieved that the pain in her chest has stopped, but this was replaced by some kind emptiness. She had loved Harry. She was just too scared to tell him or anyone else.

"Cho," came a soft voice.

Cho heard the person, but didn't bother to turn her head to acknowledge him. Edward sat on the bench next to her, "You need to come home. Your family is worried about you, everybody is worried." He pulled off his cloak and draped it over her shoulders. "That's not my home," she replied her gaze not moving from the playful fountain at the middle of the square. "Home is where your family is and right now they are all at Grimmauld Place," replied Edward who offered his hand to help Cho off the bench. Cho knew it was useless to fight, as a dhampir Edward is strong and could easily hoist her over her shoulders and take her back to No. 12 Grimmauld Place and she would dare not unleash a spell in the middle of Muggle London. She rose from her spot and walked with him back to Harry Potter's house.

The pair walked in complete silence till…"If you need someone to talk to or a friend, I'm right here," stated Edward.

"I'll be fine," replied Cho in an emotionless voice.

They walked for about 30 minutes until they arrived at Lincoln Inn Fields, the muggle square where No. 12 Grimmauld Place was located. It was about 10 in the evening and the square was empty.

"I believe it's safe to go in," said Edward as he gave Cho a small smile. Cho didn't return his smile and stood beside him quietly, holding onto the clasp of his cloak that was draped around her. Edward sighed and said "Lemon gumdrops," the Georgian terrace houses moved apart and exposed the heavy ornately decorated door of No. 12 Grimmauld Place.

"The government has not done anything for us. I can't even walk around in our village without the thought of a something jumping out and sucking my blood dry," voiced a middle-aged man with a full reddish beard.

"Hear, hear," replied the throng of people gathered at village square.

Beside one of the village homes stood a lone figure, who was holding a wooden box with the snake-shaped metal clasp. "Released it at the most opportune moment," came the voice of her master. "As you wish, my lord," came her reply in a barely audible whisper. She unclasped the box and took a deep breath in as opened the lid. A dark shadowy figure emerged from the box accompanied a strong, howling wind. The figure rolled violently in the air and turned into mist that floated and enveloped the gathered crowd. Fear and discontent turned into full-on rage.

The woman reached into her pocket and drank a gray-colored potion from a small crystal vial. Her body was racked in pain, she felt as though several knives with slashing and stabbing all at once. She stepped out of the shadows and ran toward the rabid crowd. "Help me," she cried as she fell to her knees. The crowd turned silent as they watch in a horror as the woman who was covered with blood and cuts tried to crawl her way to the village square. Two men approached her and carried her to the middle of the gathered crowd.

"Call a doctor," ordered one of the men.

Narcissa's eyes flickered as the two men applied pressure on the bigger cuts that they could see. Her last thoughts were of her son before she blacked out.

Narcissa woke up in a muggle hospital. Her arms, legs and torso were heavily bandaged. Still disoriented from her ordeal, she started pulling IV and monitoring lines from her body. She started to climb over the bed rail, when a nurse ran in, "Miss, calm down."

"Help me, help me," cried Narcissa.

"Doctor," called the nurse.

A dark haired lady with a white lab coat walked in, followed by another nurse. "Kindly calm down," said the doctor.

Narcissa became more restless as she struggled with the 2 nurses.

"I will give something to help you sleep," said the lady doctor.

Narcissa felt her eyelids getting heavy. The medical staff gently lowered her body to the bed as sleep conquered her.

A few hours later she woke up and saw the first signs of daylight seeping into her hospital room.

"I hope you feel better," came a familiar male voice.

As she turned toward the door, she saw a man sitting by the door with a newspaper in his hand and a cup of coffee in the other.

"Hi," he said. "I'm Alexander Prince and what's your name, miss?"

"Narcissa…Smith"

He extended his hand for a handshake. Narcissa shook his hand as her internal organs writhed in disgust. "A filthy mugle," she thought quietly.

"I hope you don't mind me asking, but what happened to you?"

As if on cue Narcissa narrated the events that led her into the life of Alexander Prince. A story concocted by the dark lord himself to spread chaos and fear into the heart of muggle Britain. A story that he hoped would lead to the great war he was dreaming of, a war that will lead to the demise of the muggles and the wizards who love them.

"My husband and I were on an isolated patch of dirt road…" she began. "We got lost and we were trying to find our way back to the main motorway, when a group of men and women emerged from the nearby forest. They pulled us out of our car and they began torturing my husband. I cried and pleaded with them not to hurt us, but they just laughed…" Narcissa relayed the story between sobs. "They told me in order for my husband to live I should promise them never to tell what my grandmother has taught me…They were there to silence me"

"Tell what?" prodded Alexander.

"I thought my grandmother was joking when she told me about them… I told them I didn't believe what they were… They called me a liar… They told me I knew. I remember crying and telling them I knew nothing. My cries were unheard," Narcissa curled up in a fetal position and added, "They killed him. They use one of the unforgivable curses on him. My husband is dead because of me."

"Unforgivable curses?" Who were these people?"

"Wizards," her cries louder than before.

"Why would they want to hurt you?" Alexander asked as a gently placed a hand on Narcissa's shoulder.

"Because I know some of their secrets."

Jiao Chang burst into tears of joy as she embraced her daughter in her arms. "Don't do that again," she begged. Cho nodded ever so slightly. She could her father relieved that his first born has come back, but she had a nagging feeling that she would to explain herself in the morning.

Waiting in the foyer were the Weasleys with Hermione Granger and Harry Potter. Molly Weasley draped a warm, dry blanket around her and said "Welcome home, dear." "Thanks Mrs. Weasley," She replied ever so meekly. "Cho, you're back," said Le-ann as she ran into her sister's arms. Cho was comforted by her sister's embrace, but the emptiness still lingered. An emptiness that could not be even filled by her hatred towards Harry Potter.

"You need to get out of this wet clothes," said Jiao.

"I know, mum."

"I'll run a hot bath for you," said Molly.

"Thanks Molly. I hope were not too much of a bother," replied Jiao.

"Not at all. In times like this, we only have each other to rely on. And after a nice hot bath; we'll get you something to eat."

Jiao Chang led her daughter up the stairs and followed Mrs. Weasley to one of the bathrooms near the Chang girls' room. When the bath was ready, Jiao Chang and Mrs. Weasley excused themselves and told Cho to come to the kitchen when she was finished. Cho began to disrobe when she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. The young sweet girl was gone. She was replaced by someone ravaged by hurt. Her eyes didn't smile back at her anymore. They only saw a world full of despair. Cho splashed water on her face in the hope of washing away the girl that was staring back at her, but it was futile. She laid her wand on the sink, staring at it. She was wondering whether the Obliviate charm will be any help. "I just want to forget," she thought. The only thing stopping her from using the memory charm on herself was the fear that she might forget her parents and sister. "They're too precious to me," she added as she lowered herself into the warm welcoming bath. She scrubbed herself with the loofah extra hard till her skin was red and irritated. She was hoping to scrub away all the impurities that she felt were crawling on her skin, but to no avail.

When she was done, Cho made her way to the kitchen when she bumped into the trio with Ginny. Hermione nudged Harry forward. She then grabbed Ron by the sleeve of jumper and led him to further down the hallway, Ginny quickly followed, leaving Cho and Harry by themselves. Cho did not feel butterflies in her stomach instead this was replaced by an intense hatred. It took a great deal of conscious effort on her part not to hex him.

"Cho… Harry began. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry. I didn't mean any of those things I said."

The last statement seemed labored according to Cho's perception.

"You meant every single word, Harry…I'm pretty sure you know that the term will start soon, my sister and I will be out of your house. We will just stay out of your way as best we can till then," replied Cho in an emotionless, monotone voice.

"You and you're family are welcome here," said Harry in a sincere tone.

"Sorry that we have inconvenience you, Mr. Potter."

Narcissa looked out on the English countryside dimly lit by a silvery moon from a glass window. After her discharge from hospital, she's was taken in by an unsuspecting Alexander Prince. "Peaceful…but not for long," she thought to herself. A large brown owl with blood-red eyes perched on the window sill. "Hello Artemius," greeted Narcissa as she gently opened the window. "You have something for me, I believe," she said. The owl hooted in agreement, tied around his feet was a brown leather satchel. Narcissa untied the package and replaced it with a letter addressed to the dark lord. "Go now and give this to my master," she ordered. Artemius the owl flew away into the night sky. She poured the contents of the satchel on her bed; in it was her wand, vials of different colored potions and a rolled parchment with a seal of two interlocking snakes. Narcissa broke the parchment's seal and began reading a letter from her master. The letter contained detailed instructions on how and when Narcissa should use the potions that were given to her. After she refolded the letter, she picked up a vial containing a red fluid with golden specks floating in the solution. "A love potion, stronger than amortentia" she whispered.

Early the next morning, Alexander found Narcissa brewing tea in the kitchen. He has become accustomed to his new house guest and he was quite please that she has made an amazing recovery, though he hasn't asked her further about her knowledge of wizards, because the mere mention of the word seemed to greatly upset her.

"Good morning," he greeted.

"Good morning," she greeted back, unbeknownst to him Narcissa put a drop of the love potion in his tea. "Here you go," she said with a smile as she handed him the cup.

"Thank you," he said.

Alexander took a sip and immediately fell into a trance-like state. Narcissa knew that he was hers. When the initially effect of the potion subsided, Alexander felt his stomach do a flip upon the sight of Narcissa. She smiled at him and he felt his heart flutter with emotion.

"Alex, do you feel alright?"

"Never better," he stated with a twinkle in his eye.

"Narcissa, I hope you don't get mad at me... having just loss your husband and all, but you're very beautiful woman. Sorry for being so forward."

She giggled, "I don't mind at all. You have been very kind to me. Do you love me?"

"Yes."

"Will you do anything for me?"

"Yes."

"The help me rid our world with these wizards."

"Anything for you, my love."

Narcissa planted a kiss on Alexander lips as per the instructions of Voldemort. "A kiss would seal the effect of the potion," she recalled what her master has written on the parchment.

Cho who mainly kept to herself prior to overhearing Harry's comments about her, even became more scarce. Her little sister, Le-ann also spent most of her time with her sister and away from Harry, Hermione and the Weasleys. The Chang girls have stopped joining them for meals much to the concern of Mrs. Weasley. Cho would often say, "We're not hungry" or "We have already eaten, to excuse her and her sister from the meal. The trio would only catch glimpses of Cho and Le-ann throughout the day, when they went to the bathroom or when Cho is preparing sandwiches for her and sister. Cho conversations with everybody in the house has dwindled to just saying "hello." She completely ignored Harry. Cho avoided him in the hallways, much to Harry's annoyance.

"I told her I was sorry," he said to Ron. "What more does she want."

"I don't know, mate. Why is this bothering you? I thought you'd be happy. A week more to go then she's out of your house and your life…Ugh, I can't believe we'll be back at Hogwarts next week. School again…," Ron trailed off as Harry pondered why Cho's attitude toward him bothered him so much.

Harry lay on his bed as Ron rambled on about the coming school year and quidditch. He thought the past few weeks were filled with annoyance and anxiety. There was the impending threat of Voldemort, the Cho situation and the arrival of their OWL results. He remembered that day very cleary when Mr. Weasley handed them their results. Hermione's hands began to shake as she opened the envelope. She received 10 outstanding results and 1 exceeds expectations in Defence against the dark arts, much to her horror. "Just exceed expectations, what did I do wrong. I knew should have added another roll of parchment to that essay about giants," she stated. Harry was just happy; he didn't get a "troll" grade. He and Ron received 7 OWLs each.

"Harry, are you listening?" asked Ron.

"Yes," replied Harry rather absentmindedly.

"I bet you didn't hear a word I said."

"I heard everything you said."

"What was I talking about?"

"The start of the school term," said Harry.

"Mate, that was five minutes ago. Maybe you still like her?"

"Who?"

"Cho."

"You're daft, Ron. Do you know that?"

"Not as daft as you are."

"Maybe not as daft as you for liking Hermione more than a friend," said Harry with mischievous grin on his face.

Ron turned bright red and quickly covered himself with his blanket, "Good night Harry," he blurted.

Narcissa carefully weaved her web around Alexander Prince till he was completely under her control and willing to do her bidding. She told him on how her grandmother handed down her knowledge of witches and wizards to her and that the main goal of these "freaks" were to enslave non-magical folks like themselves. She told him the lie that was her ordeal; this grisly tale was enough to enrage this man, who vowed to avenge his love and the other victims.

"After our work is done, I will marry you," she whispered to his ear one night.

"How do I start? Where do we find them?" he asked as he caressed her face.

"Go to the pub tomorrow and address the villagers. Tell them what I have told you."

"Will you be there?"

"I'll be by your side."

"I love you, Narcissa."

Narcissa smiled and said, "Sleep now. You will need your rest." With his head resting on her chest, Alexander fell into a deep sleep. As she felt the muggle's breath on her, she felt dirty, but knew deep down that in order for the dark lord to win, she must endure this torture.

A/N: Please read and review. I love getting reviews, both positive and negative.