Chapter 10: The Sacrifice of Love
Tom Marvolo Riddle left the lift as it reached his floor and ran along the dark Ministry corridors. He was home free. There was no one left in the Ministry who could stop him, no one who would be waiting to take Flamel anywhere else when he arrived. Flamel was his, only Death Eaters could get past that barrier, and none of them would dare challenge Lord Voldemort.
He reached a long, dark hallway and raced for the end, drawing his wand as he went. The door opened with the lightest touch of his bone-thin fingers. During his first life his body had always been less than human. But back then he still had one seventh of his soul. Eighth, one eighth he reminded himself. He would make Harry Potter pay for that after he was immortal again. But for now he had only one forty-ninth of his soul; not enough for a horcrux, not enough for immortality.
He entered a large round room with twelve doors and didn't close the one he came in. Voldemort waved his wand and each of the doors promptly opened for him. All except one door which was radiating heat. Voldemort peered in each one in turn. The first opened to a room with bright blue light floating around the walls. There was a tall tower on the opposite wall where a shape was going up and down slowly transforming from an egg to a chicken and back to an egg. Voldemort knew what was through that room, past the door near the egg tower. Voldemort was suddenly intrigued. He wondered if they replaced prophecies after a period of time. Could he go and hear, finally, the prophecy which predicted his downfall? Did it predict this? Was there a new prophecy? He had the time. No, Voldemort had been fooled by underestimating Harry Potter before. If anyone could find a way past that barrier it was him. Voldemort moved on.
The next door showed a smaller room flooded in a green light which flowed from several aquariums in the center of the room. The aquariums were filled with small, floating objects which appeared to be brains. Voldemort moved on.
The third door opened into a dark room with shapes dangling from the ceiling that resembled planets in orbit. The ten shapes floated as if they were suspended and gravity didn't exist in the room. Voldemort moved on.
The fourth door revealed a stone pit large enough to fit a Quidditch pitch in. There were great stone steps all around the pit which looked like they were set up to be benches for viewing an event in the center of the room. In the center of the room was a large dais which held a great stone arch with a black veil hanging from it, swaying in the nonexistent wind. Next to the veil sat two coffins that Voldemort recognized all too well: the coffins of Nicolas and Perenelle Flamel.
Voldemort entered the room and descended the stone steps with ease. He pulled out his wand as he reached the base of the pit and waved it at the coffins. The tops of the coffins exploded, turned into fine dust.
He waved his wand again and produced a small bag and pulled out a pair of knitting needles and yarn. He tapped the needles and they began to knit a small figure of a man. As they worked, the coffins began to rumble as dirt flaked up, forming a human in the air above each coffin. Bones formed. More dirt came up and formed muscle around the bone before finally adding white, slightly wrinkled skin. Voldemort looked upon the bodies; the short but firm features of the man, the elegant and graceful features of the woman. Voldemort began to chant softly, circling the pair hovering in the air. They slowly lowered to the ground, standing upon the cold stone with ease. Voldemort pointed his wand at the man and said, "Corpus vita, animus habitare, spiritus..."
"Stupefy!" a man yelled from the top of the pit, near the door. Voldemort whipped around and felt a spell brush past the edges of his robe. Draco Malfoy stood at the top of the stairs, his wand pointed straight at Voldemort, his arm shaking uncontrollably. "Stop, I can't let you raise them," he said.
Voldemort smiled. "You. I thought there was a spy in my ranks. I never suspected you. You have done well." Draco descended the steps, never taking his wand away from Voldemort's chest. "Do it boy," Voldemort chided. Draco didn't move, his arm continuing to shake. Voldemort laughed. "You never had it in you, did you?" he asked, slowly moving in a circle to keep Draco in his sights. "You couldn't kill Dumbledore, you can't kill me. But you have made a grave mistake, boy. Dumbledore was lenient on you. I am not so merciful. Avada Kedavra!"
He raised his wand as he spoke and a bright green spell shot forth from his wand. But Draco was ready and he pounced out of the way with ease. Draco rolled up from the ground and shouted "Avada Kedavra!" The spell missed Voldemort, but it succeeded in wiping the smile from his face.
"How dare you!" Voldemort shouted. "Crucio!"
The spell hit Draco square in the chest. Draco dropped his wand and began to writhe in pain. Voldemort kept his wand pointed and the spell going for several minutes before finally pulling his wand up and kicking Draco's wand away. "Tell me boy," Voldemort said as if he were having tea in the park, "Why?"
"Why what?" Draco said.
"Why do you defy me? You're father was always so loyal. I expected it to follow in the family."
"You tried to kill me," Draco said. "Where's the loyalty in that?"
Voldemort smiled. "I did try to kill you. Now, I shall succeed. Avada Kedavra!" A bright green light flew from Voldemort's wand, a small roar and then Draco collapsed on the floor.
Voldemort approached the body and kicked it. Draco made no motion in response. Voldemort sighed. "So weak. But you shall make a great asset as an inferi. A counter spy. Harry will never suspect." He turned to the Flamels. Nicolas was still standing where Voldemort had left him but Perenelle was lying lifeless on the floor. Draco's spell had apparently hit her when it missed Voldemort. It mattered not; Voldemort could simply raise her again when he raised Draco.
But first things first. He produced a small stone from his pocket and gave it to Flamel. "I need you to create a Philosopher's Stone from that," he said, moving to pick up Draco's wand to give to Flamel.
"No," Flamel said softly.
Voldemort turned around. "What did you say to me?" he asked.
"No," Flamel said again. "I will not give you anything."
Voldemort looked stunned but then noticed Draco lying on the floor. "Right," he said. "The spell was interrupted. It didn't work did it?" Flamel smiled in acknowledgement. "Well, then I suppose we'll just have to try again, Avada Kedavra!" An emerald spell shot toward Flamel followed by a loud, triumphant roar. The spell hit Flamel square in the chest and rebounded back toward the sender. Voldemort didn't have time to react before the spell rammed into his own chest. He felt himself fall, and remembered the words of Albus Potter just an hour before "If you get me, you'll not harm any of them. No one in the Ministry will be harmed?" Then everything went black.