The Bonds That Tie
It was officially decided back on the 3rd of April when Harry learned his unofficial uncle, Remus Lupin, had been missing for a week and taken by death eaters, that the Malfoy's, Severus, and the actual death eaters who followed Voldemort, never wanted see Harry angry again. It wasn't glaring and yelling like that'd seen in the past; it was entirely too calm with an emotionless voice and very real death threats. Draco was the one to explain it to everyone that Harry was, in fact, very angry and was in what most would call a silent rage. Where the person was raging angry, but behaving very calmly about it. Harry learned from Ron and Hermione, who listened in at an Order meeting, that Remus had been missing for a week and Albus was about to call off the search to ensure no other Order members got compromised. No one had dared try to stop Harry, and as Severus reported by the end of that night before leaving; he couldn't seem to use the bond to locate Harry, meaning Harry closed it off to avoid being located. Now, it was probably dangerous, but Harry was on a war path to find someone who meant a lot to him. This time, it wasn't Voldemort or Albus, though everyone was sure Albus was going to get Harry's anger for his move to not tell Harry about Remus and then call off searches as if it were a hopeless cause. Harry must have blocked communication with Sirius via the Black family ring too, because Sirius informed he couldn't seem to get through to his godson. All anyone did know is that Harry was mad enough, according to Draco, to kill if anything happened to Remus.
Thus far, since that day, it had been two days. It was the 5th of April and a Saturday. Students were supposed to be returning to Hogwarts tomorrow and classes resuming on the 7th. Thankfully, there were only two more months of the year. Harry, of course, didn't care about summer holiday because his would be very busy with attempting to save the Longbottom's from insanity, bringing people over to his side, and then changing Severus into a vampire. At the moment, Harry was searching for Remus and had started his trail by going to Knockturn Alley to hang around in the darker parts. If anyone had information on death eaters, who Harry assumed had to be wannabees, it was people in Knockturn Alley. Harry had been given information on where he could find some people who talked up the dark lord, wanting to join him. Harry had gotten people to talk easy, as a vampire, he didn't look like Harry Potter. Harry's red eyes, pale skin, and longer hair with no glasses made him pretty unrecognizable. Especially with his scar hidden from sight. So Harry was currently on his way to The White Wyvern, ironically, a pub. It was the best place to hide out for information with his hearing. Harry slipped inside under his invisibility cloak and found dark corner to hide in to watch and listen.
Most of the conversations were nothing of use to Harry, but then a few others came into the pub and sat close to Harry, not that they knew they were.
"That prisoner is tough; he's not going to crack." One male said.
"He's close, though." The other replied. "We'll get what we want out of him and impress the dark lord to join his ranks. No one else has successfully done what we have. We just need the Potter boy."
"Rumor has it he's a vampire, we'll need to have something to subdue him."
Harry knew then he had the right people. "Magic should do it. I read that most vampires are weak to magic."
'Fools.' Harry thought as he reached out with his hands, grabbing their shoulders and apparating out before they could say anything. Harry took them back to Malfoy Manor, appearing in the main room where everyone was rather shocked by the sudden apparition. Mainly because they didn't see Harry, just two males that got thrown down.
"What the hell?!" One male forced himself to roll on his side.
"Who is there?!" The other demanded.
"Really shouldn't be talking about your plans out in the open, you never know who could be listening..." Harry stated as he pulled the cloak off, and stood there with his arms folded and eyes still glowing red. "You have something that belongs to me and I'd like it back. This is the only time I'm going to ask nicely. The next, however, won't be."
The males stood quickly, wands drawn and firing stunner spells at Harry, who let them hit and didn't move an inch from where he was. "Wh-What?" One asked.
"I thought you said they were weak to magic!?" The other glared at his partner.
"Th-They are!" The person argued. "Crucio!"
"Yeah, that's not going to work on me." Harry commented as he snapped his fingers and their wands flew from their hands into his. "Your research might have been a little…Inadequate." He added. "What was it you told me, Tom, last year in the ministry when I cast it on Bellatrix?"
"You have to mean it for it to work…" Voldemort replied. "You have to want to hurt the victim. Like so…Crucio," Voldemort uttered and directed his spell at one of the wizards who then crumbled to the ground screaming.
"Lovely. Though, unfortunate for you two as I'm now very much in the mood to hurt someone…" Harry left their wands suspended in the air, holding out his hand at them. "Last chance. Tell me where your prisoner is…"
"We're not afraid of you! You're just a kid who got turned. The dark lord will kill you!" One argued.
"What you seem to be unaware of is that Voldemort isn't the one you have to be worried about…I am." Harry stated slightly bent his fingers inward and the two males hit the ground, twitching in pain. Harry let up after a minute, by closing his hand to a fist. "Where's Remus Lupin?" The two refused to speak. "The dark lord won't save you. Save yourself some pain and tell me where you're stashing your prisoner."
"Never." The two refused.
Harry opened his hand again to send the curse on them. The two writhed in pain, Harry slowly increased the amount of pain each time he put it back in effect. "All you have to do is talk to make it stop." This had been going on for twenty minutes already.
"Alright! Alright!" One pleaded through hard breaths.
Harry let up. "Go on…?"
"Little Hangleton graveyard. There's an underground crypt where he's being kept…" The male told him.
"If you're lying, I'll come back and make you wish you were dead…" Harry left them there. "If you want a crack at them for doing all this to join your ranks, calling themselves death eaters, Tom…Have at it. But leave them alive…" Harry disappeared afterward.
Harry apparated himself to Little Hangleton and searched around the graveyard with his eyes, but also used his sense of scent and hearing to find Remus's smell or heartbeat. Harry picked up the males' who he'd taken and followed it to one grave that appeared to be solid. Harry used a hand to lift the doors and head down the stairs. Harry picked up Remus's heartbeat and scent finally, and moved faster to locate the man in some newly made cell. "Remus!" Harry found the werewolf unconscious and shackled. The vampire made quick work of opened the door and getting inside to remove the shackles from the man's legs and wrists. "Uncle Remy?" Harry tried to wake him, but he wouldn't. Thankfully, he was still alive. Harry picked his uncle up and walked out of the crypt, returning the doors to their original place and then apparating back to Malfoy Manor.
"Harry…You found him…" Narcissa said with relief.
"Moony?" Sirius looked bothered by the sight of his friend.
"I can't get him to wake up," Harry informed. "Severus…Will you follow me upstairs and work your magic to heal him, please?"
"Of course, Harry," Severus agreed. Harry turned and went up the stairs to his room, laying Remus down on his bed as Severus arrived moments later with his potions bag. Harry got out of the way for Severus to work, he remained silent the entire time. Severus spent about thirty minutes on Remus, using his wand to heal some injuries and potions for others. "I've done all I can, Harry…Either they gave him something that's not coming up in the diagnostic exam, or it's going to take time to recover fully. It was a pretty close call, he wouldn't have been able to handle much more. I'd safely call this being brought back from the brink."
For a few moments, those words sunk into Harry's head. Remus had been taken hostage for a week to lure Harry to the males so they could turn him over to Voldemort. Remus was on the brink of death. Rage consumed him the longer he let it sit there. "Thank you, Severus." Harry replied. "Will you sit with him, Sirius? I'll go have a word with the two who have been torturing him for a week and see what I can find out…"
"I'll stay with him." Sirius nodded.
Harry left the room, Severus following as the vampire went right to the main floor. Voldemort was having his own fun. Voldemort was with Bellatrix, but the males were being held by Rabastan and Rodolphus. The brothers set the males forth before Harry, on their knees.
"Harry, did you find him?" Voldemort asked.
"I did…And now I need to speak to these two about what they did to Remus because he's not waking up…" Harry remarked.
"I'll get out of your way," Voldemort stepped aside with Bellatrix, who standing with him.
"Want us to hold them?" Rabastan asked.
"Not necessary." Harry motioned with his hand for them to step aside and they did. "Those not wanting to see what happens when I actually get mad, this is your warning to leave. Everyone wants to see what I'm capable of, this is that chance. It's not often I lose my temper, but there are just…Certain little ticks that take me from calm to rage in seconds. Messing with my family is one of them." The warning given, though somewhat afraid of what they'd see considering Harry basically Crucio'd them before, they were curious. Bellatrix, Voldemort, and the other Death Eaters were watching with anticipation. Harry had a dark side, no one could argue that anymore. But very seldom did he get like this. Peter Pettigrew hadn't been a look inside of anger. That was annoyance of a problem that out-lived it's expiration date. Harry left him alive to clear Sirius's name and Sirius got killed two years later because Pettigrew escaped. Harry wasn't letting him go again; the rat was spared once. This was actually someone attacking Harry personally through hurting the people he cared about. Remus was like an uncle to Harry, these two weren't getting off without any punishment.
"First off, I like to know who I'm dealing with. So who are you?" Harry asked. Neither spoke. "Come now…You had so much to say at the pub in Knockturn Alley. Tell me your names." Again, neither spoke. "No? That's fine. I have ways of making you talk…" Harry grabbed the one who told him where Remus was by the neck and slammed him against the wall hard. "How about now?"
The man Harry held gasped for air, trying to pry the vampire's hand off his neck. "Ha-Hawke Ba-Barr…acus…" He forced out. Harry released some of the pressure on the man's neck, allowing him to breathe, though it came scare as Harry's claws where positioned rather close to that artery he talked about enjoying to feed from.
"And you?" Harry barely glanced to the other male who seemed to scared to move.
"So-Sonny Rabbot…" The second male replied.
"See…That wasn't so hard, was it?" Harry provoked. "Now, we're going to play a little game. It's called answers or suffer. I ask a question, you answer it or I make you suffer. Simple, right?" Both males nodded. Harry set Hawke down next to his partner, arms folded. "What did you do to Remus Lupin?" He asked.
"N-Nothing more than usual torture!" Sonny replied quickly.
"Don't make the mistake of lying to me…" Harry warned as he raised his hand in preparation to hurt them. "What did you do to him?"
"I swear I only tortured him for information. I didn't use anything other than my wand…" Sonny stated. "I swear it."
Harry turned his focus on Hawke. "Then what did you do to him?"
"Nothing…" Hawke informed.
"I will only ask once more so I beg of you to give me the truth for your own sake…What did you do to him?" Harry growled while bearing his fangs.
"We just gave him a potion to make him sleep…" Hawke spoke.
"What potion?" Severus asked.
"A sleeping draught we picked up from a stranger." Sonny stated.
"Which one?" Severus walked up next to Harry.
The two scoffed. "Answer him." Harry demanded.
"Draught of…Li-Living…D-Death…" Sonny out. "We think."
"Can you reverse it, Severus?" Narcissa looked to the potions master.
"Yes. I have the antidote." Severus looked at Harry, asking if he wanted him to leave to go give it to Remus. Harry gave a single nod and Severus left to get back upstairs.
Harry didn't even look towards Bellatrix or Voldemort. "Leave us, Tom."
"You can't talk to him like that! He's the dark-," Sonny began to yell.
"Shut up." Harry seethed. "The only person in this room you have to fear is me. Your fate is in my hands, not his. Tom doesn't let weaklings into his service and you didn't even know Living Death draught could put someone in a death-like sleep. You didn't even mind what you were talking about in a public place. You knew the rumors about me being a vampire and knew I was to be lured out to take me to Voldemort. In what realm did you believe I wouldn't already be hiding in the shadows to find out what fools dared touch my family." Harry informed.
"We were told the wolf wasn't anything to be missed!" Hawke tried to seem firm, but his voice betrayed him.
"That wolf…" Harry paused before his eyes darkened and he closed his fist to invoke something painful on the males. They curled up, twitching, writhing. Harry finally opened his hand after thirty seconds to release whatever they'd been feeling. A whip of red magic shot out and split into two to grab Hawke and Sonny by their bodies, binding both and lifting them off the ground. The tips of the magic wrapped around their necks. "That wolf is my uncle. He's family…And those who hurt my family don't live to see tomorrow." Harry remarked finally.
"Have mercy, please…" Sonny pleaded.
Voldemort backed off to sit back down and Bellatrix did the same. When they were down, Harry chuckled. "Mercy? I don't give out what wasn't given to others. You weren't merciful to my uncle…Why should I be towards you? You gave him a potion you weren't even sure of by a stranger. You could have killed him!" Harry glared. The two cowered. "However, I still have use of you, for now. Tell me everything about the stranger who gave you the draught."
"He was the one to tell us that if we wanted into the dark lord's ranks to take a member from the Order…And lure you out to capture you and then bring you before Lord Voldemort." The other man informed.
"What did he look like?" Harry asked.
"Old, wearing robes and a cloak." Hawke informed.
"Wore glasses, we saw the glint from moonlight on them. He…I think he had blue eyes. Long beard…" Sonny continued.
"Harry…That sounds like Dumbledore…" Draco realized.
"He told us exactly where to find the wo-," Sonny gulped when Harry's eyes narrowed. "Mr. Lupin. He told us where he'd be, and gave us a picture. Said we could do whatever until you came for him." He finished.
"It adds up how they found Remus at all. My death eaters were laying low, Harry. He clearly hung around in Knockturn Alley, listening in to conversations about those who followed my ideals and anyone wanting to get a chance to join the army I was rumored to be building out from last year." Voldemort stated. "Albus still believes we're enemies and I want you dead…" He mentioned it now. "The fool set this up."
"Why are you two on a first name basis!" Hawke yelled.
"We're not enemies. Harry, is in fact, my partner." Voldemort stated. "Right now, he's running the entire movement."
"O-Oh." Sonny and Hawke looked at one another.
"That was the oh of realization you fucked up. So…Now all that's left to do is figure out how to deal with you…" Harry let the magic drop them to the ground and then it receded back into Harry before he raised his hand to slam them both against the wall, hands bound at their sides.
"We were…Just following orders." Sonny said.
"Please…Please have mercy? W-We didn't know you and the dark lord were allies…" Hawke pleaded.
"I think I'll use you to send the message…" Harry started as he began to close his hand slowly, which was choking the males.
"Harry!" Sirius protested. "Don't kill them!"
"I'm tired of that old fool interfering." Harry remarked.
"B-But your soul…" Sirius tried.
"My soul is already damned, Sirius…They kidnapped Remus and almost killed him! Why would you want them alive?" Harry asked. "You didn't want Pettigrew to live after he was caught as the one who sold mum and dad out! Don't lecture me when you nearly did the same!"
"Nearly! Not carried out, pup. You stopped us, remember? You didn't want us to become killers. Don't become one yourself!" Sirius tried.
"H-Harry… Please? They're not worth it." Remus's voice hit Harry's ears and Harry glanced towards the stairs to see Remus coming down them with Severus's help. "This is not who you are, cub. Don't do this, not over what happened to me."
"They were going to kill you, Remus…I can't think of a better reason." Harry commented.
"Harry, I didn't die. I'm right here, alive. If they'd killed me, I wouldn't blame you. An eye for an eye…But I'm alive thanks to you. Don't kill them. Please, cub. Please?" Remus begged.
"I'm sick and tired of problems. It's been one after a-fucking-nother. I'm putting an end to it." Harry glared.
"Let me, Remus…" Severus carefully set the male down on the couch as he was still weak. "Harry, stop." Severus said firmly. Harry couldn't hear anything; he was being driven by rage. "This isn't you. You're being blinded by rage; you're missing key points to letting them live and what this is all about. Come now, use your brain. You're a smart young man…You said you're sick of the problems, don't allow yourself to be fooled. This is what Dumbledore wants. He wants you to screw up and murder these two and you're playing right into it by giving into rage." The potions master spoke to Harry now. "You can send a message other ways." He informed while getting in his mate's line of sight, but Harry kept his eyes on the males. "Remember why you spared Pettigrew three years ago. I saw it in your memories during the first time I tried to teach you Occlumency," He paused. "You told Sirius coming out of the whomping willow that dead the truth lies with him, but alive; Sirius was free." Harry looked at Severus. "We couldn't prove Albus poisoned Draco to keep you from feeding."
Severus paused, knowing he now had Harry's attention. "This is proof he's trying to control you, or kill you. They're now key witnesses to Albus endangering Remus to get you killed. Or drive you to kill them to get you on the ministry's wanted list." After a moment, Severus stepped closer. "If you kill them, we don't have anything." Harry released the grip and stopped choking the males, but kept them in place with pressure on their throats. "You're a lot of things, Harry…But a killer isn't one of them. You have every right to be angry but this isn't the way to do this." Severus reached out and put his hand on Harry's arm to lower his arm then put his other hand on Harry's shoulder. "He's baiting you, Harry. This is what Albus wants. He wants you to kill them and you said you were done being controlled by him. So don't do it. Don't lose yourself in the rage. It'll change you, damned soul or not. Remember who you are; this isn't you."
Harry finally lowered his arm fully, then closed his eyes and sighed out. The males dropped hard, now groaning and trying to catch their breath as Harry opened his eyes to reveal the silvery green once more. "What do you suggest then?"
"Obliviate them up to when you found them in Knockturn Alley, and put me in that pub to find out where Remus is. Alter the information to me holding them for questioning at Spinner's End. You're the only one with the ability to manipulate the memories." Severus stated. "I'll turn them into ministry as the kidnappers and also having witness information about Albus trying to get to you." The man added.
"Fine…" Harry said in a cool tone before raising his hand to make the makes sit upright and he walked closer to crouch down and stare into their eyes. Both Hawke and Sonny froze, unblinking as Harry slowly rotate his wrist when the blue light appeared in the middle of his palm. After a few moments, Harry pulled back and waved is hand over the two so they'd fall unconscious.
"I'll take care this," Severus bound their hands behind their back and located their wands. "Go relax or visit with Remus. I'm sure he would like an explanation." The wolf nodded, eyeing the people around the room. "I'll report to the Order that Remus was found by me after I visited the Malfoy's and you said the junior members informed you of Lupin being taken. So I took it on myself to find him. Remus will be known to be resting here for now." Severus stated.
Harry nodded. "He was found in an underground cell of a crypt in Little Hangleton." Harry informed before he walked away to get upstairs.
"Let him calm down." Severus told them before he prepared to leave with Hawke and Sonny.
"Severus," Sirius said calmly.
"What?" Severus looked at the portrait.
"Thank you…For talking Harry down." Sirius bowed his head gratefully.
"You're welcome." Severus replied before he apparated away with the two death eater wannabees.
It was silent for a moment.
"Well," Bellatrix spoke first. "If no one else is gonna say it, I will. That was badass."
"And I think we're all in agreement that despite the impressive display, none of us ever want to see Harry angry again." Narcissa remarked.
Everyone nodded.