Hello again! And thank you so much to potterislife21122, TheWeaslygirl, Moon Lantern, DragonSlayer2187 and Ironmanlover1 for the wonderful reviews! Here's Leah's escape! Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 14: The Escape

She didn't know how long it had been. Only days? Had it been weeks? It must have been. She remembered at least eighteen separate days. Or was it nineteen? Twenty? She supposed she couldn't really know. Her days were based on tortures and meals, meals and tortures. But as inconsistent as they seemed to be without sunrises and sunsets she might have well guessed for all the difference it made.

I wish I had a window. Leah thought longingly, certainly not for the first time.

Sitting, gazing at the spot where she thought a window ought to be. A spot of blank wall between the empty dresser and the bookshelf that was stocked with many thick and leather-bound books, each a varying shade of a dark red, green or blue. Every one was full of spells and enchantments that would have intrigued and delighted her, once upon a time, but no more. Not when she knew that spells such as those were used against her daily.

The slamming of her door hardly broke through her daze, but she flinched as Bellatrix's hand gripped her shoulder, black-painted nails digging deep into her skin.

Leah let the insane woman's ranting wash over her without much interest, still staring at the blank wall, green eyes glazed over.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you, Potter!" the witch shrieked, striking her across the face.

Flickering burning on her cheek, sharp pricks of pain running up and down her arm, hot and angry breath on her neck. Turning slightly Leah gazed into the furious black eyes of her captor. What was the point?

For ages and ages I've been here: Pain, healing, refusal, insults and pain again. What more can they do to me?

A sick and twisted monotomy, with no breaks, pauses or reprieves. They hadn't broken her yet, so what did they expect?

Bellatrix was deviating from her usual torments however.

"…about it then? A little field trip for bitty baby Potter? Would you like that? A visit to some old friends? I know it sounds wonderful to me; and I'm sure you'll just love it!"

Her usually loud, piercing scream of a voice was sardonically sweet, a simpering expression twisted her wild face and Leah shuddered instinctively. Bellatrix cackled, sounding much more like her usual self. Her insane grin returned full-force as she looked down at her prisoner.

"So you would like to see some friends, would you? We'll have such a wonderful time, it'll be a scream I assure you."

She cackled once again as Leah shuddered, coming a bit more back to herself. Bellatrix released her vice-like grip on the younger girl's shoulder, opting instead for a cinched and painful grip around her right wrist, and dragged her out the door.

Despite previous assurances to herself that nothing really mattered anymore, Leah was frightened. She had no idea what was going on, only that it wasn't good. Something had changed in the routine she had, reluctantly, become accustomed to, and it was uncharted waters ahead.

Suddenly they were in the Entrance Hall of the grand manor, then outside of the great double doors. Leah looked around in wonder as she felt a breeze blow her lank locks around her face.

Breathing fresh air for the first time in who-knew-how-long, Leah let the ghost of a smile flit across her features. She allowed the heaviness in her chest to ease for just a moment, hope glimmering as a distant star in her heart as she was led through the tall, cast-iron gates.

A hope stifled almost immediately by the crushing pressure of apparition.

The trees that appeared before her were vaguely familiar Leah noticed as she clambered to her feet. Bright sunlight shone through leafy green branches and the calls of various birds echoed back and forth through the air.

The clearing of a throat behind her made Leah jump and turn around to face a group of five people, four with silvery masks on and the fifth being Bellatrix. Laughter could be heard as she stumbled back a few steps suddenly and nearly fell to the ground again.

She glared at them, the outdoor air, alive and fresh as it was, making her feel renewed and bringing back her emotions from where she had hidden them so deeply.

"What are you doing?" she asked, backing up another step as Bellatrix gave some sort of signal and the other four spread out around the small clearing.

"You mean what are we doing." Bellatrix stated mockingly, walking in a swaggering manner up to where Leah stood, determined not to back down again.

"Whatever it is you're doing, I'm not helping out this time. I won't hurt anyone." The clean air was doing wonders for her spirit, and Leah was proud of the confidence and steadiness evident in her voice, despite the pounding rhythm of her heart.

"We'll see about that," Bellatrix sneered, her face changing to a sneer as she pulled out her wand. "Imperio!"

It was the most wonderful feeling – that of every worry and fear and trouble being wiped away, leaving a blissful happiness that seemed to simply emanate from everywhere all at once.

'Come to me… come to me'

It was Bellatrix's voice, but all bad intentions seemed to have left, leaving only good things associated with the usually snarling voice.

She walked forward in a daze, perfectly content to simply surrender control of herself to the orders being made present in her mind.

'Turn right'

She did.

'Take two steps backward'

She complied.

'Now…'

The voice whispered a plan and, though she felt strangely uncomfortable following through with it, the untraceable happiness washed all doubt away. She continued with the instructions fed to her.

Soon arriving at the fir tree barrier, she slipped through and hitched a smile onto her face, stepping toward two identical young girls sitting on a pair on lonely swings on the side of the yard.

Leah came to slowly, and looked around through blurry eyes to try and figure out what had happened. She remembered yelling at Bellatrix… but everything after was fuzzy and disjointed, like a chalk drawing that had been rained on.

Where had that come from?

"She's awake. Finally." A gruff voice said from above her, sounding contemptuous.

"What?" she asked, confused. She squinted up into the sunlight and realized she was laying on soft green grass. Uncomfortably, she noticed her head was pounding and tried to lift a hand to it, only to put it down after raising it an inch. It was far too difficult to do at the present time.

"Honestly, Bella. What did you do to her?"

"It's not my fault she's too weak to stand it."

"Stand what?" Leah mumbled, trying to sit up, but falling to the ground. She groaned as her head gave a particularly painful throb.

"Let's just get on with it! Aguamenti! Incarcerous!"

Leah's eyes flew open as she was hit with a jet of freezing water and ropes bound her arms tight to her body, pinning them to her sides. She struggled against her bonds as she rolled over the ground, coughing as she accidently swallowed a bit of water.

"Aresco!" A voice shouted through the jeering laughter from the dark-robed figures. She was pulled to her feet roughly, causing her to lose her vision for a moment.

Once the sense of vertigo had faded, the blackness falling away, she noticed two small figures on the ground from between the black robes. Tears poured from their eyes and they clung to each other, as if each were trying to protect their sister.

"Evi! Ell!" Leah cried, disbelieving.

Evelyn and Elena were a pair of twins from the orphanage. They had arrived at the City House for Girls a few years after Leah had arrived when their single father had died in a car accident, leaving no other family to care for the two three-year olds. With their strawberry-blonde hair and intelligent hazel eyes, the now-seven-year old girls were widely considered the sweetest little girls at the orphanage, always willing to lend a helping hand or provide a word of encouragement. They did absolutely everything together and never had a reason for anyone to be angry at them.

The girls relapsed into fresh sobs, shrinking back from where Leah was held by one of the Death Eaters.

"What did you do to them?" Leah asked angrily, glaring daggers at Bellatrix, wishing for nothing more that to burn the awful woman to a crisp.

Bellatrix only smirked. "It's not what did I do, Potter, " she simpered, "but rather what you did."

Leah's glare faltered for a split second before returning full-force. "What are you on about?" she asked in a dangerously quiet voice.

"Why Potter," said a drawling voice that came from one of the taller Death Eaters who was standing beside Bellatrix. "You're the one who kidnapped them after all."

Leah's mouth hung open for a moment before she screamed her denial.

"NO! You're lying!"

But even she could hear the fear and realization in her voice. That was why she had been unconscious. Leah now remembered Bellatrix cursing her with a spell she'd never heard before. Had that insane witch actually made her abduct two of the sweetest children in the world? Two children she knew and loved dearly?

Of course they would. She scoffed internally. They couldn't get to you through yourself, so they had to bring in someone else. Leah willed herself not to cry, but a single, silent tear coursed down her cheek.

As the Death Eaters saw the painful realization fly across her face and the tear fall from her eye, they burst out laughing, causing Evelyn and Elena to cling even tighter to one another, shrinking away from the figures in black.

One of the twins was trembling, her whole body shaking like a leaf. Her sister was trying to calm her down silently, but to no avail. She let out a frightened whimper, her silent crying escalating into full-blown sobs as the magic users turned back to the two of them.

"Quiet down ye' little whelp!" One of them grunted in a very deep voice. He muttered under his breath and Leah, held tightly and bound as she was, could only watch as the familiar jet of red light shot out of his wand and hit one of the twins, causing her to scream shrilly.

"NO!" Leah cried again, hating how powerless she was.

Her yell, however, was lost among the shouts and cries of both girls, one from pain and one from fright.

"Evi! Evi!" cried Elena brokenly, trying to cling to her sister, who was writhing on the forest floor. "Evi! Snap out of it! Please!"

Bellatrix and the other Death Eaters were still laughing at Evelyn's screams.

"Leave them ALONE!"

Leah's words were a scream of utter rage. She felt a pulse of energy rush through her, leaving the hairs on her skin feeling like they were filled with static electricity.

She opened her eyes to find that Evelyn was no longer screaming and the ropes binding her had fallen to the ground. Shocked to see no Death Eaters in the immediate area she glanced around, only to see that all of them had been seemingly thrown to the edge of the clearing, leaving only herself and the two girls on the soft grass carpet.

Leah was frozen in place for a moment, but as Bellatrix and one of the other Death Eaters climbed to their feet she sprung into action, her only thoughts focused on getting away.

Leaving herself no time to think up a plan, Leah dashed forward and grabbed each girl's arm and concentrated every thought on the nearest hospital. Turning as she remembered doing before, the three of them disappeared into thin air, a shriek of pure anger from Bellatrix's mouth swept up in the crushing pressure surrounding them.

"And I did manage to apparate to the hospital, and I left the two of them in the Emergency Room, but told Elena not to say my name, but just tell Evi that I loved both of them so much. But Evi was even worse than she had been and was almost unconscious, but shaking like mad and I couldn't leave, but I just had to because I was so sure they would try to find me again, so I walked aways away and apparated again, but hurt my arm in the process. And after that I just walked and walked, trying to stay inconspicuous, sticking to back roads and the like because I was paranoid that they'd find me, but I was exhausted and it was dark and I finally just collapsed on someone's doorstep, hoping they would be able to help me and… and…"

I broke down into sobs, tears flowing fast and free, pulling my knees up to my chest and hugging them tightly.

Instantly, Professor Dumbledore was at my side, calling my name worriedly. But I couldn't bring myself to stop. I had been brought back two days ago, but I could still hear Evi's screams and see her writhing on the ground; I could see Evelyn's tear-stained face in the stark whiteness of the hospital and remember the feeling of her simply breaking down in my arms. I remembered the feeling of leaving and how it hurt so much to leave them and never look back, but know I had to.

By that time the thoughts were swirling faster and faster around my head. I started hyperventilating, shaking off the hands that were trying to unwind me from my protective ball. I heard distant shouting and what sounded like wind until I felt strong arms circle around me, pulling me close to a warm chest and rubbing my back carefully.

I fought for a moment, panicking and thinking I was back with the Death Eaters, but relaxed as I heard Severus' deep baritone issuing from above my head.

"It's alright, be calm child. You're alright. You're safe. It's okay."

His whispered words of comfort, combined with a sudden wave of pure exhaustion, caused me to drift off to sleep almost immediately.

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