AN: Hello, fanfiction and Harry Potter fans. I do not own Harry Potter but feel free to enjoy this or hate it. If you enjoy it, please leave a lovely comment, if you hate it, then leave some constructive criticism, thanks!
Warning! This chapter has violence and gruesome details that may be upsetting to some people!
Can You Take the Jump?
Chapter 78
He stood by the wardrobe with her golden enchanted coin in his hand, pale as a ghost.
"What? What does it say?" She rushed over, but Sirius didn't respond. No, it was more like he couldn't, judging by the shock written on his face.
She grabbed the coin from his hand.
Fleamont Potter is dead.
…
Moving like a robot she started packing the small number of belongings they had in the hut: clothes, food, Floo powder, some money, and potions. Within minutes, nearly the whole hut had been packed. It was too small. There were too few belongings. It was all too fast.
"I don't want to go."
She didn't acknowledge his words as she shoved the remainder of his clothes into a bag.
"I said I don't want to go."
She clenched her jaw to push the anger that bubbled in her chest. The frustration she felt wasn't really at Sirius, but she just wanted to turn around and scream at him, "Do you think I do?!" Neither wanted to leave the hut. Neither were ready for the inevitable goodbyes, but they were using borrowed time and there was nothing they could do about it.
"Stop. Just stop!" He grabbed the bag and flung it across the room before clinging to her. He used his weight to pull her to the floor and enveloped her with his warmth. "Just stop. Hermione… Please, my love. I don't want to go."
She never understood why romance novels made it seem like love and relationships are be-all to end-all, when there were so many more important things going on around the couple, but now she understood. It felt like this was the be-all to end-all. He wasn't alone in his desperation to cling to the last second since she held onto him equally tightly.
But the reality of life is that it is much larger than two people's feelings, especially during a war.
She inhaled deeply, breathing in his unique scent, but when she opened her eyes, the golden enchanted coin stared at her with the words of tragedy engraved on it.
She bit into her lip, the sharp pain bringing her back to reality. She pushed him away, but he only held tighter.
"Sirius."
"No. I can't."
"Sirius." She said firmer this time.
"I'll just not…" He sighed. "James will have others around him. He will be…" he trailed off, scrunching his face in agony.
"I've made you like this," she realized as she stroked his hair.
"What, a groveling man?" His voice sounded close to tears. She always made him cry when he only ever brought her happiness.
"No," she shook her head at his poor attempt at a joke. "A selfish man who wants to leave his best friend at his greatest time of need." Hermione placed her hand on his cheek.
"He-He has peo—" He began to object, but Hermione stopped him.
"You'll never be able to live with yourself if you don't go to him right now. I know it. You know it. I don't say this because I judge you. I…" She sighed. "I get it. You make me selfish too. These two weeks I've spent with you have been more about me than I've ever allowed myself to have. And Merlin, Sirius, I cannot put into words how good it feels to be here with you. How right this feels. How right we feel together. You repaired me when I thought I was broken beyond hope. Being me is so fucking effortless with you that I don't even recognize who I am when I'm this happy and carefree. To put it briefly: you complete me."
"Then come with me."
Her eyes burned at the one request he had never dared to ask of her. These circumstances meant that it was the first time he would leave her, not the other way around. She could tell how much he meant it just from his eyes. If she took his hand right now, there would be no turning back. She would fall, harder than she had already fallen, an unfathomable thought in itself. He would take on the world for her. He would fight in this war for her so that she could be a free witch. And if he didn't die in battle, he would follow her to death after her sickness overtook her.
She stood slowly from the spot on the floor and walked to the bag he had flung to the opposite corner of the hut. She reached into the bag, taking out a small vial before placing the bag back in front of him.
"I cannot go with you."
"WHY." His voice cracked, filled with raw anguish.
She kissed him, a teary kiss. It was salty, just like Harry described.
"You will know eventually," she promised. "I will miss you, Sirius Black."
"Hermione?" He blinked as a sudden coldness washed over him.
"Shh," she wiped her lips with the back of her hand. "It's just a short nap, my love."
"Wha—" In his hazed vision he could see a small, opened vial of Dreamless Sleep Potion on the floor next to them.
"Thank you for loving …" She let out a teary laugh. "I love you."
…
Severus jumped when his mother's fireplace illuminated with green.
"Holy fuck!" He held his wand out but was frozen in shock.
"You know," Hermione entered the quaint home of Eileen Prince. "That thing's useless if you just hold it there. You've got to shoot out a spell, mate."
"Hermione!" He gasped, letting out a deep sigh of relief. "You… You-!" He bit his tongue. "You're late."
"I told you I needed some time."
"It's been almost a week more than you said."
"That timeline was an estimate. Anyway, he's awake and healthy. You can let Regulus know."
"And, what? You just let him go? You? Let him go?"
"I'm not sure what you mean, but we have work to do, Sev." Without another word, she opened the door to his bedroom and walked in as if she were the real owner.
Severus opened his mouth a second time to complain but stopped when he noticed the redness rimming her eyes and the excess amount of moisture. The infallible Hermione had been crying. Besides her eyes, she looked healthier than he'd seen her in over a year. She had finally gained some weight and her skin looked flushed with life. Two weeks with Sirius Black was all it took for Hermione to seem human and regain some of her health.
"I'm sorry… about all of this. Maybe he'll wait for you again?"
"Would you? If it were Lily?"
"I'd wait lifetimes."
She finally turned to look at him in the eyes for the first time in weeks. Severus had to admit that her multicoloured hazel eyes were beautiful in a way that was entirely different from Lily's emeralds.
"That's what I'm afraid of."
If the eyes were the windows to the soul, Severus would argue they weren't large enough to hold the complexity of it all, especially Hermione's. This was why he believed everyone saw something a little different when they looked at her, seeing only the things they could relate to and understand. Prolonged eye contact with Hermione was unbearable for some, suffocating to most, enlightening to few, and awe-inspiring to a select handful.
Severus saw pain and sorrow, more of it than he could ever know. Those melancholy eyes were familiar to him as he often saw it in his mother's eyes, although not to her scale. It made him feel the need to take care of her, like his mother, despite knowing she could take care of herself.
"So what now?" Severus walked up to face the wall she had created. Hidden behind an illusion of random Slytherin paraphernalia, his Hogwarts letter, and pictures of Lily and him during her family's trips to the beach when he joined them, a big idea map that detailed Hermione's plans and thoughts to the rest of her Slytherin boys stretched from corner to corner. The plain white string he'd used from his mother's sewing kit made connections and loops everywhere. The convoluted genius mess that was her mind was displayed in front of them.
"Now?" She turned to look at the wall as well. She pointed at a section of the wall. "That."
Bellatrix's mug shot screamed at them as she held her Azkaban prisoner number in front of her.
"Well… fuck."
…
5 Months Later…
"The Dark Lord requests for you."
"Playing Messenger Boy now, are we, Rodolphus?" Hermione smiled as she put down the heavy book of Dark Magic from the Nott library, her unofficial room and study, her sanctuary in the snakes' den. The newly relocated Death Eater Headquarters was as grand as any other Pureblood home and even had the same gothic dark aesthetic. It was as though the ancestors of all the Pureblood families had one architect and designer.
The uniformity of their taste, however, was unsurprising, to say the least. Hence their mental breakdown at the mere thought of people with 'impure' blood mixing in their communities. You'd think that the government was forcing them to procreate with muggleborns from how they were reacting… a fucking genocide in costumes and masks? Gods these people were dramatic.
Rodolphus's face flickered with the hatred that bubbled just below the surface. He attempted to cover it with a cynical smile that crept on his face, but Hermione knew better.
"How's your twin sister?" He asked, probably in hopes of riling her up. Well, two could play that game. "The reverse spell work nicely?"
Lily, who had been fighting for her life in a coma for months from one of Rodolphus's experimental spells, had been given the reversal spell just a little over 2 months ago. But, of course, this fucking asshole hadn't given her the full spell.
Her arrogant smile didn't falter, not even for a split second. "Yes, your partial reversal spell was helpful. She woke up and is studying at Hogwarts, hobbling around in crutches or a wheelchair."
"Oh, how wonderful, they must call you the Mudblood and the crippled twin sister."
She stared deeply, rivalling the Dark Lord's. "Perhaps this lack of wit is what has prevented you from gaining a true title with our Lord. You're just a Death Eater, like everyone else. A lackey."
The older Lestrange stepped impossibly close to her, his lips nearly grazing the helix of her ears.
"You should watch yourself, Miss Evans." He whispered the menacing threat.
"Me? Watch myself? No," she laughed, cold and arrogant. "You should watch me. Watch me achieve the things you never could and gain further favour from our Lord. Watch me rise, Lestrange, and weep."
SLAP!
The offending hand whipped across her face before she could even blink. Lestrange's large hand had covered her entire cheek, jaw, and ear. The searing pain came second to the loud pop she heard in her ear. He had ruptured her eardrum. She felt disoriented and sounds came muddled. She needed a moment to compose herself to ensure that when she turned back around to look at him, there was no shock or pain on her face. Her face was already swelling, but it all felt worth it at the barely constrained anger on Rodolphus's face. She wore the wound with pride, a medal of honour of being able to break Lestranges's gentlemanly façade. She hated all of their false gentlemanliness, stemming from some bullshit aristocratic code. What, they were allowed to murder innocent people, but raising their voices was below them?
"Lestrange," a familiar drawl came from behind them. The two of them turned around to see Lucius standing there, eyes bouncing between them reading the situation quickly and accurately.
"Ah, came running to protect your pet as always, Lucius?"
Hermione rolled her eyes, the best eye-roll she could manage anyway with her swelling face. She was becoming tired of the bloody accusations that linked her and Lucius. Anyone with half a brain and a working eye could see that Lucius was far too obsessed with his new budding family to give her even half a glance.
"No," it was clear from that one word that Lucius was quite tired of the accusations as well. "The Dark Lord sent me because you were taking too bloody long."
Barely able to hold in his anger, Rodolphus stormed out, leaving Hermione and Lucius behind. The blond man raised his wand to heal her face, but she lifted her hand to stop him.
"How is little Alsephina?" Hermione asked as they walked toward the dining room.
"She is well, looking more and more like her mother every day." Lucius smiled at the thought of his infant daughter. He checked how far Rodolphus was before whispering, "Cissa would like to speak with you sometime."
"Me?" But before Hermione could ask for more information, large oak doors opened to reveal a meeting with the inner circle with Voldemort seated at the head of the table. The smile that bloomed on his face gave Hermione acid reflux, but as quickly as the smile bloomed, it wilted at the sight of her swollen face.
"Nott," Voldemort addressed Nott Senior who sat to his left without sparing him a glance.
"Yes, my lord."
"Move."
There was a pause in the hall, "…Yes, my lord."
"Here," He gestured to the now empty seat. "Sit, my precious Seeing Flower."
When she first appeared to join the Death Eater ranks, her months away and involvement in Bellatrix's capture affected Voldemort's views of Hermione much more than she had anticipated. It had no longer been enough that she was an Obscurus, she needed to show him exactly how valuable she could be to him.
A Seer. One to predict the future and bring him to new heights. His precious Seeing Flower.
"Yes, my lord."
Although every fibre of her body hated sitting next to that vile monster, Hermione couldn't help but feel a swell of power as she walked past all the Purebloods in the room toward their master. She could feel their stabbing glares at the back of her head.
"Oh, and Rodolphus," She turned to the man who walked towards the right side of the head of the table. "Next time, don't get so close. You see when we share air, I feel polluted."
There was a loud snort of laughter from the younger Slytherins. To be clear, none of the Death Eaters, minus her Slytherin boys, liked her, but the younger Slytherins knew her wit well enough to enjoy the verbal lashing she gave to older Death Eaters. While they weren't friends, there was animosity and tension between the younger members of the inner circle and the older members. The older members didn't believe the younger ones belonged there; they hadn't proven themselves worthy yet. The younger members believed the older members were just that… old.
"Silence," Voldemort demanded as Hermione took her seat. She controlled the instinct to flinch away at his abnormally cold touch as he caressed his swollen face. With a whisper, there was a cooling sensation on her face and she could feel the swelling on her face go down and the puffiness in her eye that obscured her vision disappeared. Her ear even righted itself. The damn bastard was gifted for sure.
Voldemort turned to Rodolphus, who sat on his right-hand side with an anxious expression.
"Rodolphus."
The Pureblood visibly gulped.
There was an unspoken rule that was made as soon as Hermione made her grand and dramatic entrance into the Death Eater ranks. No one was to bother Hermione. She was the exception. Her blood heritage was… "unfortunate", as Voldemort eloquently put it, but she was special. She was his mudblood. His special Seeing Flower.
"Where is your brother?" He glanced at the empty chair next to him. "I believe I told you he must be here for this meeting, and he has not answered my summons."
There were knowing glances exchanged amongst the table, but not one said a word.
Noticing the tension, Voldemort turned to her. Rodolphus gave her a burning glare… and Hermione smiled.
There were not many things she admired about Voldemort, but she had to acknowledge the pure Slytherin-ness of the man. So sly and cunning, so manipulative. There was no way that the rumours of Rabastan Lestrange hadn't gotten to his ears, but the fact that he was allowing her to speak it to everyone made the rumour all the more real, cementing the Lestrange fates to something less than their full potential.
"I haven't Seen anything, my lord. Rabastan does not… fall into the radar on my Sight. Only great, important people who can influence the course of the future, such as yourself, filter into my visions and Rabastan is not one of them."
Voldemort smirked, side-eyeing the man on the right.
"But," Hermione started again, she watched tension in Rodolphus's body grow. "There has been a rumour that did filter into my ears. The poor fool has fallen in love."
"Love?"
"With a Knockturn Alley prostitute, no less. Her name was Angel, wasn't it? But rumour has it that she was a succubus. Yet Rabastan hasn't been himself since."
"YOU SHUT YOUR DIRTY MOUTH YOU FUCKING MUDBLOOD!" Rodolphus slammed his hands on the table and stood up.
Yet another uncontrollable outburst. She was certainly on a roll today.
"Descendo," with a small flick of Voldemort's hand, Rodolphus's whole body slammed onto the table with immense force.
"Gah!" He cried out at the pressure that pushed him from above. "M-my lord! I will bring my brother here! I will—I will make him realize the faults of his ways! M-my l-lor—" Rodolphus's cries of mercy were cut off as the pressure increased especially around his head. "AHHHHHH!"
"My Lord," Hermione touched Voldemort's cold hand. He was colder than her, which was saying something. "Your time is precious and much has yet to be said for this meeting."
Voldemort looked down at her enclosed hand with a smile. It was rare for Hermione to initiate physical contact.
"Indeed, my sweet Seeing Flower." He released Rodolphus from his spell, causing him to slump to the floor. An old hobbling elf popped into existence helped him up and treated him quietly on the sidelines.
"Please, my Flower. Present the plans to your fellow peers."
She turned to everyone at the table. "After the unsuccessful thwarting of rebel forces at the DMLE and the great Aftermath, we have lost a lot of our fighting force, and there are only a limited number of Purebloods we can recruit since your numbers are so little from the beginning."
Hermione stood from her seat and walked over to the middle of the long table. Her wand, the original 5000-year-old bristlecone pine wand she had gotten when she was 11, was finally back in her possession. She could feel it thrumming with excitement at her touch, like an endearing pet that begged for attention. Hermione flicked her wand at the center of the table to reveal a miniature structure of Azkaban.
"So what else can we do except release the ones that have been locked away?"
…
Azkaban was quite literally the definition of misery. The tall castle-like structure stood on the rocky island, surrounded by even more spiky and dangerous rocks. The area was constantly cold with heavy rain clouds that covered the skies keeping it dark and wet nearly 350 days of the year. On top of all that cold, dark, and wet misery were the bloody fucking Dementors.
"Why the fuck isn't the mudblood here if she's the one who made these fucking plans?"
Regulus shivered as the unnatural coldness spread within him. He'd been pulled out of school for this bloody mission, away from his nice warm bed and the embrace of his hot and soft gir—
"Fucking bitch, making us go through this while she sits around. Who the fuck does she think she is? That fucking mudblood bitch!"
The men around him swore left right and center.
"She's the bitch that thought of this elaborate plan for months while you sat on your asses doing nothing, so shut up and put these around your neck."
Regulus handed out the memory core necklaces. They were moon crystals with pensieve magic imbued in them to hold memories and glow a calming light. According to Hermione, it would help people perform a Patronus even in the face of a dementor trying to suck the little happiness out of their miserable lives. These were the necklaces that the prison guards wore around their necks to prevent their minds from snapping within the first hour of work. Despite these necklaces and some of the highest salaries, Azkaban prison guards had the highest turnover rates for employees. No one, no matter how much money, wanted to be here.
"What memory did you give to her?" Rosier asked another.
"Don't start, I'm already unhappy with the fact that I had to give that bitch my happiest memory…"
Regulus snorted at the pettiness of these so-called 'men'.
"Oi," Rodolphus's group had just landed. "Where's mine?" He looked down at the pile of necklaces in Regulus's possession.
The glare that he received from Lestrange reminded him of Hermione's glare when he offered himself for this mission.
"Why did you volunteer?"
"Why wouldn't I?" He asked her, walking around the table she was working on. The table was messy by Hermione's standards. There was detailed information on Azkaban's security measures, its layout, guard shifts, their route during their patrols, and ward enchantments. A pile of vials with the Death Eaters' happiest days was placed next to her, he picked one up.
"Don't—", she bit her lip before letting out a big sigh. "Please don't touch anything, I have a system."
He placed it back exactly where he found it and raised his hands.
"So, what did these guys put in as their happiest memories? Are they fucked up? Like the first time they successfully tortured a House elf?"
"No," Hermione shook her head. "Surprisingly, most of them are quite wholesome. Their letter from Hogwarts, their parent's pride when they were Sorted into Slytherin, their first kiss with a hot bird in the Astronomy Tower, their favourite Christmases, etc. Things like that."
"Even… Even Lestrange? Or Mulciber and Travers? Even them?"
"Lestrange's happiest was when he joined the Death Eater ranks, sad but fitting I think. Mulciber's is when he got his pet dog when he was 8, but it's Travers who takes the cake, literally. His is baking a Victoria sponge cake with his nanny."
"Fuck…"
"Regulus, why did you really volunteer? This is going to be a very difficult mission."
"Well you put me through hell training me, but I've never been out in the field. I thought I'd test my wings."
"That's not why—"
"You also need someone on the operation you can trust, but since Lucius had his kid, he's not going on missions. You can't perform the Patronus charm at all. Severus is not in yet, and Avery…"
Hermione couldn't hide the frown.
"You need me on this mission. I know it's important."
"YOU are more important."
Regulus admitted it felt good to hear her say it. With a surprisingly light step and probably feeling a little too confident, he gave everyone their memory core necklaces and now, their covert operation was a go.
The night was black and thick with fog as they stood on the edge of the cliff, peering through the darkness at the looming fortress of Azkaban. The waves violently crashed against the rocks below, sending sprays of icy water into the air. Everyone was shivering, both from the cold and the trepidation that gnawed at their hearts.
"Are you sure about this, Lestrange? Can we trust the Mudblood bitch with this plan?"
"I hate to admit it, but it's a solid plan. She's thought of every angle and possibility."
Regulus nodded, "Let's get on with it. The longer we wait, the harder it'll be. She's timed it so that we perfectly match the shift rotations. The opportunity of success is narrow but true."
They all took a deep breath and drew their wand. "Muffliato," they cased to muffle their movements.
"Everyone remembers the map properly? Does anyone wish to have a second look?" Despite the offer by Rodolphus, it was clear none of them should have needed a second look. If they hadn't memorized the layout by now, they were a liability, and liabilities got left behind.
Rosier left early with 2 others for the distraction. The ominous-looking amulet that Hermione had given them required an incantation. Once it was triggered, Rosier and his team needed to set it up at the furthest corner from their escape route to attract the guards' attention, pulling them away from their posts. They would need to time it perfectly, otherwise, this whole thing would end in a massacre.
The rest split into multiple groups to scour all the levels to find their allies imprisoned in their cells. Using Disillusionment Charms, Regulus followed the rest of his team into the shadows, approaching the sewer. This 5-foot wide and 5-foot tall pipe that collected all the waste was the only unguarded way into Azkaban.
"Ugh," one of the Death Eaters looked sickly green at the smell that emanated from the pipe. Regulus empathized. This certainly wasn't the glorified image he had imagined about missions. Some of the smarter ones put a filtering charm over their noses and mouths to reduce the vile smell of the sewage water that spewed, but most of them were far too anxious from the distant wail of Dementors. As much as this lot loved causing misery, they feared being on the receiving end.
Hypocrites.
They removed the rusted metal gate that blocked the pipes and slowly snuck into the depths of Azkaban.
The pipe was low, anyone who was an average height would have hit their head on the ceiling if they didn't crouch. The only sounds that could be heard were the muffled sounds of their shoes hitting the unknown liquid that went up to their ankles. The cold metal walls were slick with moisture, the air thick with the stench of rot and despair.
Thank god he waterproofed his boots before leaving for this mission.
Regulus's heart started pounding faster, the oppressive darkness pressing on all sides. He had studied this prison and all its guards until he wished to gauge his eyes out, yet the anxiety he felt could not be dissuaded. Each drop of water that echoed in the silence felt like a countdown to the inevitable battle. His wand, clutched tightly in his hand, provided a feeble glow, barely enough to cut through the gloom. Every shadow seemed to shift and twist, the faintest sound caused him to freeze, his breath catching in her throat. The tension was palpable, each teammate standing in front and behind him was on edge, knowing that one wrong move could spell their doom. If they were caught here, it would be red-handed, they would immediately be placed in one of these cells without even needing a proper trial.
Once they were near the end of the pipe, everyone reached into their pockets and pulled out a Polyjuice Potion from their pockets. Another benefit of a fast turnover rate of employees in this prison was that no one really blinks an eye when they see a new face. The hair that Hermione placed in their potions was of random individuals from the streets, some even muggles, not that Hermione told the lot that information.
They moved stealthily like a well-oiled machine. Regulus glanced at his fellow 'comrades' with watchful eyes. Everyone knew where they needed to be and what they needed to do. It was all smooth sailing so far. While it could be assumed that they would follow Hermione's plans since Voldemort himself approved of it, he could never be too sure with this lot. Their vindictive pettiness might make this harder than it needs to be and it was plenty hard already.
The first place they needed to infiltrate was the main security control room to determine which cells they needed to open.
"We're here to relieve you of your shift," Rodolphus told the guard with a thick Cockney accent. Hermione had done an excellent job of finding people who genuinely looked like average people for their Polyjuice Potion. There was nothing distinctive about the way Rodolphus looked. He was polyjuiced into a young man, likely in his mid-twenties, with brown hair, average height and a slightly crooked smile.
"Already? You're both here early."
"Ay, thought I'd be early for my first shift."
"I didn't hear of any new recruits joining us today," they muttered looking at Rodolphus and Regulus. Regulus resisted the urge to look down at his hand to ensure that his skin tone had changed to the dark brown he knew it was supposed to be.
He gulped giving the guard a strained smile.
"You…"
Fuck, were they caught already?!
"You don't have to be so nervous." The man slapped Regulus on the shoulder rather playfully, an unfitting reaction to this dreary place of employment.
"I've worked here longer than most. All you gotta do is mind your own business, but that doesn't mean you let your mind wander, alright? Wandering minds are the ones that tend to not do so well here. Gotta be focused on good things. Happy things. You'll be just fine."
Regulus felt bad for him. There was no way he was going to keep his job after today.
"Thank you, sir. We'll keep your words in mind."
"Well, I'm off." He handed the control key to them, the most important item for this operation. "Good luck, fellas."
Once the two of them were alone, Regulus's stiff back collapsed by the stress.
"Fuck, I thought he caught us."
"You have a long way to go before you're fully prepared for field missions, Black."
"I'm shocked at how well you do this, Lestrange. I didn't even know you could do a Cockney accent."
"Small skills like these make it easier to hide that you don't belong here. It pulls the attention away from more important facts, such as the lack of us wearing guard badges."
It was odd how differently he acted with him versus how he acted in front of Hermione. Regulus only ever knew of Rodolphus as a gentlemanly figure. Sure, he was as cruel and vicious, perhaps more than any other blood-purist bigot he knew, but a thick layer of aristocratic gentlemanliness heavily clouded it to those he considered equal-blooded. His mother would call it good breeding, Regulus thought it felt more like one of those personality disorders.
"Let's just get this over with," Regulus looked over the control board. While Hermione's maps were accurate, there was no telling which cells contained Death Eaters, but as always, she had a pretty good idea where they were located. As per her suggestions, he glanced at the inner sections of the prison where the most dementors patrolled, far away from the edges of the prison where glimpses of the outside world could be seen, and away from any of the other inmates where influence can be gained within these stone walls.
Regulus lifted his communication mirror, "Section 5, cells 20, 9, and 16 are the priority. The rest will be released only if we have the time."
He disabled the wards and the anti-apparition jinxes without triggering any alarms with the control key.
"It's done," Regulus whispered, his voice echoing through the enchanted mirror he used to communicate with the other teams. "Wards are down."
On the receiving end of his call, someone whispered an understanding. The Death Eaters split into different levels heading towards the high-security cells, while Regulus and Rodolphus kept an eye on the situation from the control room. With the anti-disillusion wards down, all the Death Eaters were invisible to them from the control room, but they could keep an eye on the other guards and the Dementors' movements.
"You are close with her?" Rodolphus interrupted his concentration with the sudden question.
"Who?"
"The Mudblood."
So their familiarity had been noticed by him. He wasn't surprised, it was only a matter of time before these snakes figured something about between them.
"Close is a strong word. Offensive too." Regulus kept his voice nonchalant and steady while his eyes remained staring intently at the screens in front of them, scanning for abnormal movements from the guards and Dementors.
"But you know her better than most, yes?"
"What is it you really want to say, Lestrange? I'm kind of busy at the moment. In fact, I could use a little help here—" Regulus stopped abruptly when he turned to find the end of Rodolphus's wand pointing at him between the eyes.
They stood there frozen in silence for what felt like minutes.
"I admire her intelligence," Regulus answered honestly. "She's got a brain that's unlike most people. I would argue it's better than everyone her age. She never cared much for Hogwarts and homework, so most people don't know it, but she thinks, plans, and executes to a fearsome precision. It's impressive, but that's all."
Rodolophus studied him, searching for a lie, a weakness, but Hermione trained him better than that.
"You ask what I really want to say, boy?" He stepped closer to him, pressing the end of his wand deep into his throat. "What I really want to say is that if I see even an inkling of betrayal from her and I find out that you had some part in it, it won't matter if we are family, I will kill you and bring your corpse to that godforsaken brother of yours and rip you into shreds so there won't even be a body to bury."
The smile on Rodolphus's face said he knew mentioning Sirius in front of him was always a sore spot. He hid and denied it, but Regulus still cared for Sirius and the older Slytherin in front of him knew it.
"Why don't you stop worrying about a betrayal that will never happen and focus on breaking your wife out of prison, cousin?"
They watched the specific cells that held the prisoners they needed, waiting for the signal, a small spark to signify their presence.
"There," Rodolphus pointed out.
"I didn't see it." The spark was so quick Regulus missed it by blinking. "Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"Maybe we should wait for ano—" He never finished his sentence, getting pushed out of the way. Rodolphus slammed his fist into the button that opened the door.
"NO!" Regulus quickly retook his position in front of the control board.
"I'm telling you I saw the spark!"
"No, you fucking—"
Hundreds of clinks echoed throughout the entire prison.
"That wasn't the FUCKING BUTTON!"
Rodolphus paled at the realization, they both rushed to the window that looked out to the prison floors from the control room to see all the prisoners slowly walking out of their cells with confused caution. There goes months and months of Hermione's plans for a covert, no-casualty mission.
Regulus ran back to the control board to see the guards jumping up from their seats and rushing out the door.
"You fucking IDIOT!" He shouted at the back of Rodolphus's head, the older man stood there frozen in shock muttering something under his breath. He grabbed the communication mirror and alerted everyone of the situation.
The alarms started sounding and bright lights were flashing.
This place was going to be flooded with Aurors any minute now. They needed to abort the mission.
"Come on, let's go!" He shouted running out the door, but abruptly stopped when the temperature plummeted with the feeling of despair. A billowing black figure floated in front of him shocked him so much that Regulus forgot how to breathe.
Memories of his childhood flooded his mind, the screams of tortured House elves and his brother rang in his mind, making him unable to think of anything else.
"N-No. S-S-St-Stop."
When the dementor came even close he raised his wand out of instinct but was shocked when the creature ignored him and floated straight to Rodolphus who stood there by the window, unmoving and unaware of the creature that crept towards him.
"I just wanted to outrank her. I just wanted to prove useful to our lord. How could it have come to this? My lord will never forgive me. He will see to it that I'm punished… I've failed. I've failed. I just wanted to show that I was better than her. He's going to… I've failed."
Whisps of white air that had whispers of laughter and joy started getting sucked out of Rodolphus.
Regulus stared at the shell-shocked man, not even trying to fight the creature off. He'd never seen Rodolphus Lestrange in such a state. He was a liability, Regulus knew it might even be better to abandon him there, but…
"Expecto Patronum!" A white whisp, similar to the memories being sucked out of Rodolphus, but more opaque in colour and warm erupted from his wand, causing the dark creature to shriek.
"Come here, Reg!" A toddler Regulus ran after his older brother is short chubby legs. Small arms lifted him into the air with a bright welcoming laugh. "Reggie!"
"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" A bigger, non-corporeal patronus shot out of his wand, flinging the dementor out of the control room. Once he was sure that the creature had been blasted far away, giving up to find another victim, he grabbed the older man by his collar.
"GET A HOLD OF YOURSELF!"
It barely seemed to do the job as Rodolphus blinked several times, still riddled in his shocked state. Regulus didn't have to wait around for this man to truly snap out of his daze so he grabbed him and ran out of the control room to see guards and dementors flooding the corridors, wands drawn and ready to fire.
"GET BACK IN YOUR CELLS!" They shouted letting out a stupefy into the air as a warning, but this only seemed to do the exact opposite effect. The previously wary prisoners looked at each other and seemed to have a unified thought. They outnumbered the guards 10:1, even without wands they had a good chance.
"Stupefy! Stupefy! Arresto Momentum!" The guards shouted in every direction, but Regulus didn't have time to watch, he started running again with Rodolphus in tow. They got to the 3 floors down before they inevitably ran into prisoners.
"There's more guards here!" The prisoners pointed at them. Regulus looked down at his clothes, still charmed to look like the guards' uniform.
"Fuck!"
Lestrange flicked his wand, making a massive club appear out of thin air. It swung at the prisoners, crushing several of their skulls with a sickening crunch. Blood and brain matter splattered across the walls like a macabre painting of violence.
The prisoners instantly knew Lestrange was not like the others.
"Diffindo!" The slashing hex flew through the air, cutting the throats of two other prisoners creating a fountain of blood. They gurgled and collapsed, clutching their gaping wounds as their life drained from their eyes.
Although Regulus was no stranger to violence, he had never expected everything to happen so quickly.
A prisoner charged at him from the side, far more quickly than he had anticipated. He saw a glint of something from the corner of his eyes, but he didn't have time to react.
"Gah!" a fiery blast pushed the prisoner back so hard that Regulus could hear their bones get crushed when they hit the stone wall across from them.
"I think it's time you snapped out of it, Black," Rodolphus told him, much more alert than before.
Regulus gulped and nodded his thanks. His heart pounded as he pressed himself against the cold stone wall, the sounds of battle echoing through the corridors of Azkaban. His wand hand trembled, the weight of the mission and the brutality around him pressing down like a physical force. He had always known joining Death Eater ranks meant getting his hands dirty, but this—this was chaos, bloodshed, and raw fear.
"Why did you volunteer?" Hermione's voice echoed in his mind. At the time, he had brushed offer her concerns with a few glib words, but now those words felt hollow. He told himself that he was doing to prove his worth, to test his wings but as he watched Rodolphus dispatch another prisoner with a casual flick of his wand, he could not deny his failure in his failure of a mission. He had been arrogant in his desire to protect her. He had seen the calculating way some of the Death Eaters looked at Hermione, the resentment simmering just beneath the surface. She was brilliant and they hated her for it. He thought he was helping her by trying to ensure this plan was a success since any hint of failure would result in punishment for her as the mastermind.
What a joke.
"We should get going."
They ran towards their exit. Amidst the melee, the prison's dimly lit light orbs flickered casting an eerie, strobe-like effect over the carnage. Bodies littered the floor, both guards and prisoners, their blood pooling and mingling in a gruesome tableau.
Regulus couldn't tell if some of them were Death Eaters or not. He hadn't run into a single one of their comrades, so he chose to take it as a good sign that they had escaped without getting caught up in the chaos.
So much death…
They made it back to the floor with the exit pipe with a few more scuffles but quickly hid again behind a wall when they noticed the guards. They were investigating the hole they'd made in the pipe.
"It was intruders!"
"They might still be here." The partner agreed.
Regulus and Rodolphus heard footsteps approaching them. Wands at the ready they waited for the ambush, only to see their group of Death Eaters with a few of the prisoners they had set out to release.
"Not so much a failure then." Regulus let out a small laugh.
"Who's there!"
The guards raised their wands only the step back in trepidation when the group stepped out of their hiding spots. They were heavily outnumbered and unlike the prisoners, they had wands.
"I'd suggest you give up and just let us go," Mulciber smirked. "That way you'll at least live."
They could see their hearts wavering, but they foolishly stood their ground. Probably a pair of Gryffindors.
Idiots.
A familiar cackle bounced off the walls and a figure walked out from the shadows.
"It's been a while since I've had fun." Bellatrix Lestrange stepped out of the shadows. Her prison garb was barely noticeable, covered in blood from head to toe, snatching Travers's wand out of his hands without a second of hesitation. "These boys are mine."
No one was allowed to interfere, but it wasn't really necessary. Bellatrix had always been a talented duelist and had an affinity for dark magic that was rare to see. She was quick, smart, and lethal. There wasn't even time to feel bad for the two guards before they dropped to the floor heart stopped and no longer breathing.
"Enough dawdling," Rodolphus commanded. Despite having not seen his wife for nearly a year, the two barely gave each other a glance or even a nod of acknowledgement. "We need to get out now."
The guards above shouted, "DOWN THERE!" and the air was filled with the echoes of spells being fired. "Avada Kedavra!" Regulus froze in place when the deadly green blast of light missed him by a hair, scorching the floor near his foot.
There was a rush of panicked movement, Death Eaters and random prisoners they had picked up along the way started pushing each other, trying to cram into the narrow pipe all at once. It took Regulus two seconds before determining one more body pushing into that small exit was not going to help their case.
Regulus noticed people in Auror uniforms started surrounding them from the sides. The backup had arrived and they were cornered.
"BOMBARDA MAXIMA!" He shouted at the guards that rained down on them from above. He hit the staircase causing it to explode, preventing more guards from being able to reach them. He heard cries and bodies falling to the floor with sickening cracks. He stuck himself close to the walls, hiding his body away from the open.
In the midst of the chaos, Travers found himself cornered by the guards, stuck at the end of the crowd trying to enter the pipe. He was never too skilled to begin with, so when he was overwhelmed, shot by a spell in his leg, sending him sprawling to the ground, Regulus couldn't do much else but watch.
"Anton!" Travers screamed to his closest friend, desperation thick in his voice. Mulciber briefly looked back, but he knew there was no time for rescue. The guards descended on Travers, magical ropes erupting from the ends of their wands tying him down until he was immobile. Regulus watched with pity as Travers's screams turned into the muffled whimpers of a terrified boy.
No. Now was not the time for pity. He needed to escape as well.
He kept himself hidden in the shadows, waiting for the pipe to clear. Several guards chased after the Death Eaters into the pipe, and people's cries echoed, amplified by the metal walls that surrounded them.
Wait, since when could he see his breath? Goosebumps erupted on his arm, the hairs on his skin standing at the unnatural chill that descended.
"No no no no!" Travers screamed as the dark creature hovered over him, leaning its face towards him. "NOOOO!"
Terror paralyzed him as he watched Travers's soul leave his body and get consumed by the creature, a fate worse than death. He glanced at the pipe where guards started exiting, dragging unconscious Death Eaters out and dumping them in front of the Dementors. This was the end for him… Maybe if he surrendered, they would lock him up instead of giving him the Kiss. His family would pay for the best lawyers, they could get him a plea bargain. It was possible.
He wrapped his hand tightly over the fake galleon that Hermione used to communicate with him, it had been burning hot for the last 10 minutes, demanding updates from the mission.
Sorry, and thanks.
His farewell to the world was left in three words as the coin couldn't hold many words before the words became too small to be legible. It felt somehow fitting that the last words he would leave were to Hermione.
He lifted his feet to step out of the shadows in surrender when a loud explosion shook the entirety of the prison.
"What the fuck was that?"
The guards looked around with bewildered expressions.
Rosier's explosion? No, that was supposed to be at the opposite end of the prison, there was no way Regulus would have felt it so clo—
BOOM!
The guards and Aurors fell to the floor when it shook below them.
"WHAT IS THAT?" Someone shouted.
"It's… it's coming from over here!"
The guards all stood around the wall with their wands drawn.
BOOM!
Regulus crouched behind a pillar, his wand grasped tightly in his hand.
BOOM!
"Everyone fires the moment the wall collapses!" The Auror with a shiny badge on his chest commanded.
BOOM!
The stones that made up the wall were blasted away by the explosion, some of them taking out unsuspecting Aurors in the midst.
"Fire!" A colourful array of spells flew through the air before the dust had time to settle. The fresh air of the sea hit them in the face.
No one made a sound as they watched with bated breath, but it was the Dementors who were the first to react. Some of them stopped mid-Kiss as they moved towards the crumbled wall like moths to a flame.
"Expecto Patronum!"
A white whisp could be seen through the cloud of dust before it fizzled out. The Aurors and guards fired their spells once again, some of them hitting the Dementors in the process.
There was a petrified scream as though they were being tortured by the Dementors, but what made Regulus pause was the voice. He recognized the voice.
Hermione.
"Ex-Expecto Patronum!" She was struggling to produce the counter-spell for the Dementors. She was sacrificing herself, drawing their attention to give him time to escape. But how could she think he could leave her here alone to fend for herself when she couldn't even perform a Patronus charm?!
Steeling his nerves, he stepped out of his hiding spot.
"EXPECTO PATRONUM!"
A large lion erupted out of his wand, racing towards Hermione's defence. It started clawing at the Dementors with its massive paws and jumping on their shoulders to bite their heads.
Everyone turned around at the unexpected attack from behind, but Regulus had already slipped into the pipe, now clear of pushing and scrambling Death Eaters.
"After him!"
He could hear footsteps echoing behind him, he threw up shield charms whenever he could but the footsteps were getting closer. It was useless to run in this narrow pipe. He turned around, perhaps if he stood his ground here, Hermione would be able to get out safely. He shouldn't have let her the message on the coin. He had brought the girl here when she couldn't even protect herself properly.
"You!" The Auror cast a stunner, but Regulus deflected it. He cut down the first Auror with a powerful slicing hex, but another followed behind him and another after that.
"Arresto momentum!" The spell hit him in the shoulder.
"Gah!" Regulus fell on his ass. Someone grabbed him from behind and hauled him up.
"Come on, you idiot," Severus Snape stood there with a fierce grin. "You didn't think we'd leave without you, did you? Protego! Reducto! Incendio!"
Bodies were piling up; the guards and Aurors were having difficulty stepping over fallen Death Eaters and fellow comrades in the narrow pipe.
"Glacius!" Severus pointed at the sludgy water by the Auror's feet. "GO!"
They managed to escape the pipes to see Hermione battling 6 opponents while Regulus's great white lion protected her from the flying dark demons.
"HERMIONE!" Severus called out.
She glanced at them, making sure Severus had managed to get Regulus out. She gave them a small nod before flinging a stone into a guard.
"Hold on," Severus warned as he wrapped his arm tightly around his waist and snapped the necklace around his neck. The familiar feeling of portkey travel turned Regulus's stomach, but in the blink of an eye, he found himself in Lucius's study.
"Regulus? Are you alright? Are you hurt?" The beautiful face of his cousin appeared in his line of sight, her brows furrowed with concern. "Regulus?"
He opened his mouth to form a question but before he could get it out, exhaustion overtook his body and darkness descended.
…
AN: Sorry for the long wait! I didn't expect it to take so long, but I sort of took a break after writing half of this chapter because I got writer's block and then life happened haha.
But don't worry, I've not forgotten all of you lovely readers. I have not deserted you. To be honest, I don't know when the next chapter is going to be up, but it will be! And I hope to see you all soon! Mwah 3
