"But it's so fascinating! How could you not be curious?" Maia demanded as she flipped idly through a book on blood rituals. Draco scowled at his ever precocious wife, she never could take a simple answer like 'magic' and let a mystery remain unsolved.
"It is considered one of Our Lord's greatest secrets, the only one present the night of his rebirth has barely left his side. Even when he does he's always in his rat form so he can flee back to the Dark Lord's side." Draco shrugged, trying to look bored as if unaffected by the topic of conversation.
"Draco, some of these books claim that he melted or simply vanished! Like he became pure magic without a physical body!" Maia waved her notes in front of Draco's face as if it would prove that the secret rebirth ritual and everything around The Dark Lord's rise was absolutely fascinating.
"Love, there are somethings that are best left alone. I know that it hurts your head to leave a mystery unsolved but trust me. If the Dark Lord were to find you've been studying his rebirth, he will not be pleased." Draco said firmly, taking the stacks of parchments covered with her hand written notes. Multiple theories on how he somehow persevered his magical core and bound himself to the earth as well as dark rituals that could create a physical body stared back at him. He was beyond amazed that she somehow had time to race through her studies as well as dedicate time to such in depth research on something the wizarding world accepted as an act of Merlin himself.
"Wouldn't it be beneficial to make improvements to the ritual?" Maia scowled as her husband shoved the parchments into a rucksack, a rucksack she knew he would be hiding or destroying.
"Improvements?!" Draco hissed, his eyes widened as he stared at her as if she lost her mind. "He was able to bring himself back from the dead as well as build his own snake like body. If that doesn't scream the true heir of Slytherin..."
"Well, I figured that he would have preferred to look more wizard than snake...and as a magical construct-" Maia lectured as she slipped a book from her pile, Draco advanced on her. His whole body was stiff as he roughly covered her mouth with his hand.
"Never say such things again. That is an order, I will entertain many of your intellectual pursuits but not this one. If The Dark Lord knew that your were researching his resurrection, let alone that we had these books...it would be treason." Draco hissed quietly, his gray eyes boring into her own, begging her to understand. Maia's bright eyes widened in understanding, if they were found guilty of treason they were better off dead than what he would do to them to make an example.
"I understand." Maia said weakly once Draco removed his hand from her mouth. He swiftly kissed her cheek and shouldered the bag that contained all her research before leaving the library. The curly haired witch sat back in her chair chewing her lip, it would probably be best that the information she learned about the magical construct the Dark Lord created was kept secret.
-0-
"You're sure?' The Dark Lord demanded as he sat leisurely on this throne. He was scheduled to have a meeting with Blaise Zabini to talk more about his extensive collection of Italian curses when Fenrir's beta came to inform him of a fire.
"Yes, MiLord." The scruffy werewolf nodded eagerly. "One of our newer pack members must have lost control of the automobile. We all felt the moment our Alpha died, we checked the magical signatures. One Weasley was thrown from the wreckage, two werewolves trapped in the cab. All burnt beyond recognition."
"Who was this new pack member?" Voldemort asked suspiciously, his finger steepled beneath his bony chin. The werewolf shuddered as the Dark Lord's reptilian features distorted into a scowl.
"We don't know, MiLord." The werewolf cowered under his glare. "Apparently, Fen has been chasing him for years...he turned him when he was a babe and he was waiting for him to return like the prodigal son."
"How poetic, the prodigal son leading to the father's demise. Who's your leader now!?" Voldemort demanded, tiring of the cowardly wolf in front of him.
"As beta.." The werewolf started but closed his mouth quickly when he saw the scathing glare on the Dark Lord's face.
"Choose a new leader, I don't want to have to leave piddle pads out when I call on you." The Dark Lord scowled, waving a hand to silently dismiss him. Just as the werewolf made it to the large double doors, he was knocked out of the way as Scabior and at least fifteen of his snatchers sauntered in, looking far too smug.
"My Lord, I have a gift!" Scabior bowed and waved his arm dramatically, his snatchers stepped back exposing Harry Potter and his friends all magically bound and unconscious.
"How did you manage this?" Voldemort stood quickly and made his way towards them, keeping a neutral mask on his face.
"Apparently, Potter's little mudblood girlfriend isn't so dead...bit dim though, she broke the taboo." Scabior smiled smugly as he rocked back on his heels, threading his thumbs into his belt loops.
"Really, you think Bella would lie to me?" The Dark Lord leaned in close to Harry's face, reaching out to lightly touch the Lightning bolt scar on his forehead. Instantly, the raven haired man's face scrunched up in pain and started to struggle against his magical restraints but remained unconscious. He didn't even bother to look at the other captives before he glared at the snatcher.
"I'm not sure about that but she managed to flee, by the time we made it onto the street she was gone." Scabior said nervously, thinking maybe he shouldn't have mentioned the girl at all. The Dark Lord was known for having high expectations that his followers rarely met.
"I suppose, I will just have to call Bella and see what she has to say about this, hmm?" Voldemort said nonchalantly as he snapped his fingers. Peter Pettigrew seemed to appear from thin air, changing swiftly from his rat form. He shadowed his master at all times, alerting him to the on goings of his followers.
"Y-yes, MiLord." Peter said timidly, bowing his head.
"Your arm." The Dark Lord said shortly, Peter didn't hesitate to offer up his right arm to his master, Voldemort pulled the sleeve back with a sneer before touching the black skull and snake tattoo with his wand. The pudgy diminutive man's knees shook as he bit his lip hard enough to taste blood from the pain of his master's targeted calling. It was only moments later the pain stopped and Bellatrix arrived in a flume of black smoke.
"You called, My Lord?" Bellatrix purred as she skipped towards the group, upon seeing Harry Potter bound and seemingly asleep made her freeze in her tracks. "Did you find her, Master?"
"No, Bella. It was only these that were brought in. Scabior here seems to think you would lie to your Lord." Voldemort said silkily as he reached out to towards Bellatrix's face, stopping just before he made contact. The curly haired witch closed her eyes as if mesmerized by the presence of his hand so close to her skin.
"Why does Scabior doubt my loyalty?" Bellatrix asked breathlessly as she opened her eyes to stare at the dirty man shuffling his feet nervously.
"He says that he found Potter's mudblood girlfriend...that she broke the taboo but that's not possible because you killed her." The Dark Lord said in a harsh clipped tone as he stared into her eyes critically.
"Is he sure that it was the mudblood? I did cut her into pieces before turning her to ash so I could sprinkle her on the shores of Bumblebee's tomb. I thought it poetic." Bellatrix cackled before turning her stormy grey eyes to Scabior, her smile grew feral as she took a step towards him.
"No, Bella." The Dark Lord said firmly as if reining in an animal, her shoulders became tense as she stopped in her tracks. "He brought me Potter."
"If he brought Potter, where is my sweet?" Bellatrix demanded, glaring venomously at Scabior who stared at the floor with interest. He regretted ever mentioning the daft girl that got away.
"Shall we wake them and find out?" Voldemort chuckled as he raised his wand, the snatchers practically diving away from the bound order members. "Shall we call Draco?"
"Of course, My Lord. Although, Draco and Narcissa have been slaving away in the library following a lead. Something about an island..." Bellatrix said absently, her eyes now focused on Potter. He was the key to finding Maia and she only hoped her master would let her play.
"An island? Thinking of a vacation?" The Dark Lord said with a smirk as he roughly grabbed Pettigrew's arm and touched the man's tattoo with his wand briefly.
"No, My Lord...in fact." Bellatrix smiled brightly as she lunged forward, pulling the collar of Harry's shirt. She pouted in disappointment before she stepped back to stand beside her Lord. "He had a port key around his neck the last time I saw him."
"Perhaps Draco's wife is brighter than I thought." The Dark Lord nodded approvingly as he waved his wand, waking the group of order members. There was a collective gasp as they all opened their eyes, looking around wildly. Everyone but Harry froze when they saw Voldemort standing before them, looking snake like and smug. Harry continued his search, twisting his body around with difficulty to find Maia and Teddy, when he couldn't see them, he let out a sigh of relief.
"Potty missing his mudblood?" Scabior taunted with a gleeful smile but was silenced as Bellatrix sent a bolt of light towards him and he ducked his head just in time.
"Ahh, Potter. So long I have waited to welcome you into my home." The Dark Lord said with a twisted smile, Bellatrix sneered from his side, glaring at each order member in turn. Draco arrived in a plume of black smoke and smoothed down his robes, pausing when he saw Potter bound on the floor.
"Have you found her?" Draco asked stoically, looking around the room for his curly haired wife, trying to keep the eagerness and hope from showing on his features.
"No, apparently a ghost broke the taboo. Then managed to escape." The Dark Lord said coolly, glaring pointedly at Scabior who hung his head in shame.
"Teddy?" Tonks said in a panicked whisper as she looked around frantically.
"Who is this Teddy?" Voldemort demanded, making all the order members freeze. All of them stopped trying to loosen their magical bindings as they stared back at the Dark Lord in fear.
"Yes, Nymphadora...who is Teddy?" Bellatrix cackled as she raised her wand after an uncomfortable moment of silence.
"Bella! You take liberties that are not yours!" Voldemort barked as he flicked his wand, Bellatrix fell to the floor on her knees in pain. Draco's eyes widened in shock but forced himself to stay still as his aunt silently endured the torture curse. There was a reason women weren't accepted into the Dark Lord's ranks, purebloods viewed their women as fragile treasures. It went against all his teachings to watch his lord turn his wand on his aunt and it shook him that anyone would dare hurt a Black witch. After what felt like an eternity she let out a pained scream, bearing her bloodied teeth.
"Apologies, MiLord." Bellatrix grunted as she spit the blood from her mouth, keeping her eyes to the floor. The order members exchanged disturbed and disgusted glances as they watched the most fearsome female death eater acting so beaten and submissive.
"I will call my faithful followers to watch as the last obstacle is removed!" Voldemort said gleefully, eyeing Harry as if he was a juicy steak. Harry shuddered in disgust and tried to move back, hide himself away from the crazed man's gaze. "Take them to the dungeon!"
"Yes, My Lord." Draco nodded and rushed forward to grab Harry, dragging him to his feet. The Dark Lord saw the calculating look in his grey eyes and scowled, raising his wand to throw the blonde across the large room. Bellatrix gasped, her eyes widened as her nephew fell painfully on his side.
"You are not to touch them, Draco. If I need your assistance I will tell you." The Dark Lord sneered as Draco dragged himself to his feet, holding his arm tight to his side.
"Ofcourse, My Lord. Potter is yours, just as he's always been. I only hoped to ask where my wife was." Draco said through gritted teeth as he held his elbow in pain.
"Well, Potter? What did you do with Draco's darling wife?" Voldemort purred as one of the snatchers grabbed Harry by the back of his robes and pulled him roughly to his feet.
"She's gone, not going to find her." Harry said smugly, a dark glint to his eyes, a sense of satisfaction bubbled inside him as he watched his old school rival deflate.
"Oh, did Potter learn to play?" The Dark Lord loomed over the raven haired man with a twisted grin on his face, Harry just smiled up at him without a care in the world. His 'Mione was safe with his godson, she obviously wasn't captured and as long as his curse held strong she would keep running.
"Play?" Harry chuckled, straining to get away from the snatcher jerkily. "You have no idea how long I've been waiting to play, Riddle."
"Crucio! You will not call me that!" Voldemort snapped, his reptilian features scrunching up into a menacing scowl as he watched the young man fall to his knees. Harry bit his tongue, not wishing to give them the satisfaction of screaming. He distantly heard someone shout out but it was followed by a sickening crack and Harry felt the pain stop.
"You don't like hearing your own name?" Harry croaked as he pulled himself up to his hands and knees, swallowing down the bile. When he looked up he found that his arch nemesis wasn't even looking at him but at one of the snatchers. His stomach dropped when he saw one of his oldest friends with a bloodied face, his nose was obviously broken and his lip was already swelling from the large gash.
"Stop bruising my stud!" Voldemort sneered down at the snatcher who just slammed Ron's face into the stone floor. The snatcher frowned and trembled but pulled Ron to his feet much more gently, the redhead spat blood and what looked to be a tooth on the floor before turning his glare to the Dark Lord.
"I'm not your stud! You'll have to kill me before I do anything you want!" Ron hissed venomously, his hands curled into tight fists to keep the pain off his face. Draco moved slowly to stand beside his aunt, they exchanged a quick glance before turning their matching grey eyes hungrily to Harry before them.
"You will do as I say, I appreciate your steel...that's why I'm going to harness it into my army." The Dark Lord smirked as the redhead lost all color in his face. "Now though, I have a metamorphmagus...oh you would make excellent soldiers."
"What?" Tonks whispered, looking between Voldemort and Ron fearfully, Remus snarled angrily from behind her.
"You will not touch my mate!" Remus growled viciously, straining himself to free his hands. The snatcher beside him just scoffed as he took his bound wrists and pulled upwards, towards his shoulders, making Remus cry out.
"I wonder...pureblood pup...or would it be purebred pups?" Voldemort said airily, making the snatchers chuckle around him. "I could find you a nice feral bitch, oh yes...I like that. With a little help, we could kennel train them. With magic we can have full time wolves! No more waiting till the full moon! Of all the times for Fen to go and get himself blown up!"
-0-
"Are you sure about this, my Dragon?" Narcissa asked nervously as she followed her son and sister through the corridors.
"Mother, it is the only way to find out what Potter did with my wife. The Dark Lord if gong to publicly execute him tomorrow and he would not allow me to question him." Draco whispered urgently, Bellatrix looked troubled at his side. They both came to an unspoken agreement not to tell Narcissa that her sister was punished. He never before raised his wand against her and it shook the curly haired witch that he would punish her for merely threatening to curse a captive. Narcissa may be the youngest of the Black witches but she learned from her sisters how to be ruthless and protect her own.
"Then, I'll come. Watch over the door, make sure that no one comes to call." Narcissa nodded in determination as Bellatrix reached out and grasped her hand.
"Mother, he will be displeased if he finds us there...he gave us explicit instructions not to approach his prisoners. He's been making plans for Potter's friends." Draco hissed, his grey eyes pleading that his mother stay behind.
"Maia is a Black, family is always first, my Dragon." Narcissa said firmly taking her son's hand in her own and they were gone from the drawing room.
"Come, we need to hurry. Yaxley should be relieved soon, it will be much easier if Mulciber is on guard." Narcissa said urgently as they apparated just outside the grounds of headquarters. The sun would be rising soon but for now the grounds were peaceful and silent.
"Francis does love to play." Bellatrix snickered, a small smile on her face but her eyes were hard. They silently made their way into the side entrance of the large manor, Draco lead them through the familiar corridors that lead to dungeons.
"There he is." Draco whispered, putting up his arm to stop his aunt and mother from moving forward. Francis Mulciber was asleep in his chair beside the dungeon door, his hood up with his heavy cloak tightly around him.
"Francis!" Bellatrix sang out softly as she left her family standing in the corridor, Mulciber grumbled in his sleep and let out a soft snore as Bellatrix approached him. The curly haired witch smirked as reached out and yanked his hood back, startling him from his sleep.
"Who's tha?!" Mulciber demanded, whipping out his wand and looking around in a panic.
"Francis." Bellatrix purred as she placed her hand on his shoulder, pushing him back in his chair before she swung her leg around to straddle him.
"Mmm, Bella. What are you doing here?" Mulciber groaned in satisfaction as his hands came up to rest heavily on her hips.
"I just wanted to visit." Bellatrix whispered huskily as she leaned over him, their faces only inches apart.
"Oh yeah? Come to keep me warm?" Mulciber said as he leaned into her, he never had a chance as Bellatrix pulled her wand and pointed it under his chin. His eyes widened in shock before he felt someone pull his head back and pour cool liquid into mouth. He tried to spit it out but found his throat too relaxed and the potion easily made its way down.
"Obliviate." Bellatrix whispered just a moment before Mulciber's eyes closed, in a deep dreamless sleep that would last at least four hours.
"Hurry!" Narcissa hissed as she placed a disillusionment charm on herself. Draco wasted no time in grabbing his aunt by the hand and pulling her down the dungeons steps. Voldemort converted the entire cellar into a large but somehow cramped dungeon, it stretched beyond the length of the old manor home and was filled with iron cells. The overwhelming smell of death and decay almost made Draco double over as a wave of nausea overcame him.
"Disgusting." Draco sneered as he covered his mouth and nose with a silk handkerchief from his pocket. Bellatrix blanched but moved past him to lead the way to the high security cells, their Lord had them built during the conversion. One in particular was built specifically for Potter when he was captured. At the time he rambled about being undecided on keeping Potter alive as a trophy or killing him and mounting his body in Diagon Alley for the public to see.
"There." Bellatrix whispered, pointing out an iron door with a metal bars that allowed a view inside. They did not spare a glance for the filthy prisoners who moaned pitifully, scrambling to put as much distance between themselves and the death eaters in their cramped cells.
"Well, let's hope this works." Draco grunted as he pulled a severed arm from the small bag he kept on his hip. One of the Weasleys cut down Thoros Nott two years previously, Bellatrix thought to keep a piece of him just in case. He couldn't be more grateful, even if he scoffed when she was placing in under multiple stasis charms to keep it fresh. There was a small plate beside the door surrounded by runes, Draco pressed the hand onto it, letting it slice the palm.
"Even in death, he was still in the inner circle." Bellatrix whispered gleefully as the runes slowly lit up, then there was a faint click and the door cracked open. Draco and Bellatrix stepped into a dark stone room, Harry Potter and his friends hung from chains mounted from the ceiling.
"Well, Potter. It's been a while...hours, in fact." Draco drawled, wrapping the severed arm before he placed it back in the bag. Harry jerked violently against the chains that held his arms above his head, his friends were all eerily silent but none of them looked like they were able to sleep in their positions.
"What do you want now, Malfoy? Didn't your master say you weren't allowed near me?" Harry grunted, pain flaring in his shoulders as he struggled.
"Oh, I'm not here to hurt you. I'm only here to find out where my wife is." Draco said nonchalantly as he reached into his bag once again to pull out a small potion phial. Tonks, Remus, and Ron immediately started to trying to lunge at the blonde, their restraints keeping them on their toes.
"Shhh, pets." Bellatrix cooed as she twirled her wand between her fingers, looking between them all impatiently.
"Malfoy! What are you do-?!" Harry shouted frantically as Draco lurched forward, cutting him off by roughly grabbing him by the face. The blonde stayed silent as he tilted Harry's head back and pulled the stopper from the phial with his teeth. Just as he was about to pour a measured dose down his school rival's throat the door being thrown open with a loud clang made him freeze.
"Draco...Bella... I'm so disappointed in you." The Dark Lord hissed dangerously. Draco slowly turned to find Voldemort glaring at him wearing his human glamour, his blue eyes burned brightly with anger. Beside him stood his father with a smug smile, an arm wrapped intimately around his mother who has tears in her eyes as she looked from her son to her sister.
-0-0-0-
So, the snatchers are still separate from death eaters. Mostly half-bloods with no connections to the community...so, Draco wouldn't be sent out to investigate taboo being broken.
Even if Draco and Hermione didn't have much interaction outside of flashbacks in this story, it is dramione fic. No matter how flawed...