CHAPTER 35: THE DARK MARK PART-2
Outside, the festive atmosphere of the past hours had abruptly turned into a scene of urban warfare. In small groups, individuals, all wearing a white mask and a long black cloak almost reaching their feet, topped with a tall hood rising several tens of centimeters, were wreaking havoc. They set things on fire, destroyed, enchanted, crushed everything in their reach, especially the tents, which instantly caught fire. Spells were also launched into the air, resembling fireworks, although they were not there for decoration but to intimidate. Everywhere, there were now only cries and screams, occasionally punctuated by loud laughs of drunkards and the cries of children terrified by what was happening around them.
"The fools..." Lucius muttered, looking without reacting at the various groups heading through the campsite in search of targets to enchant. "Didn't I explicitly ask less than 10 minutes ago not to draw attention? To stay in the background until any sign from the Dark Lord!?"
However, if Lucius expected to receive confirmations or even signs of approval from his present comrades, he was mistaken. Far from sharing his opinion, Nott, Avery, and even Greyback looked at the actions of their Death Eater friends with envy, almost as if they hoped to do the same.
"I must admit that a little trip down memory lane would tempt me," Théodore declared thoughtfully.
"A trip down memory lane, huh... Haven't you recently set fire to a small Muggle village?" Avery mocked, without appearing indifferent to Nott Sr.'s thinly veiled proposition.
His remark immediately brought a smile to Théodore's face, but Lucius remained perfectly impassive in the face of his comrades' sudden enthusiasm for an activity that did not appeal to him.
"I'm in, for my part," affirmed Fletcher, accompanying his words with the appearance of the white mask representing the Death Eaters on his face.
Avery quickly followed suit, followed a few moments later by Nott and Stubbins. Greyback, though having served Lord Voldemort in the past, was never officially considered a Death Eater. His lycanthropy was reason enough for the Dark Lord to distinguish him from the human race, and therefore, he could not afford the luxury of wearing the perfect Death Eater ensemble. But anyway, he had never bothered to hide his face, and again tonight, Greyback was going to strike with his head exposed, without any protection or cover, right under the noses of the few Ministry agents who were looking for him.
"And you, Lucius?" Avery asked, noting that Lord Malfoy was the only one who had not made a move.
"Carry on with your childish games if you wish. As for me, I have more important things to do than set fire to scraps of fabric," he replied coldly.
However, Lucius could not deny that the desire was still present in him, and the silence that accompanied his words indicated that the others did not believe him either.
"Lucius?" Fletcher called with a hint of amusement in his voice.
"Do I really have a choice?" Lucius sighed, pointing his wand towards himself to conjure up his own white mask on his face and don his Death Eater cloak. "Someone mature and responsible has to moderate the enthusiasm that drives you and will be your downfall."
"We should hurry," suggested Théodore once Lucius had finished dressing. "It's been five minutes since all this started, and the Ministry shouldn't be long in sending their men to deal with this issue."
"In that case, Nott and Fletcher, you come with me," decided Avery, turning towards them. "Stubbins and Greyback, you'll go with Lucius."
"And why should I be with the werewolf and... him?" Lucius protested without even bothering to look at the two concerned.
Greyback immediately bared his fangs, ready to strike in response to the disrespectful way Lord Malfoy had spoken of him. However, Avery stopped him with a gesture, using his arm to silently command him to calm down.
"Because I've decided so, and because Nott and Fletcher have always been my partners when we did raids for the Dark Lord," Avery replied in a sweet tone.
"My own partners are currently in Azkaban," Lucius pointed out coldly. "I find this way of assigning roles particularly disadvantageous for me."
"Perhaps, but it's none of my concern," Avery replied before gesturing for the others to follow him. "We'll meet up later..."
Without waiting, he aimed a spell directly at Lucius's tent, causing it to catch fire immediately. The damage was not yet significant, but Lucius immediately saw red and drew his own wand to point it at his colleague.
"Come on, Lord Malfoy, wouldn't you find it strange if the only tent in perfect condition in this area was yours?" Avery mocked without even attempting to defend himself. "Better to cover your tracks by suffering some small losses yourself..."
The trio disappeared around a corner, and Lucius, now aware of Avery's clever strategy, waited a few more long seconds before extinguishing the fire that was gradually destroying his property.
"Let's go," he ordered without waiting to see if Greyback and Stubbins were following.
The three of them walked right down the middle of an alley, occasionally casting spells on tent canvases to set them ablaze while reveling in the fear they instilled among the terrified supporters. The tension that Lucius had carried since the beginning of the evening dissipated as he relaxed, now enjoying this vast open-air playground. Ultimately, returning to the activities he had been fond of in the past didn't seem so bad to him, and soon he found himself caught up in the game, forgetting even to appear unpleasant to Greyback and Stubbins.
In the distance, the tumult of cries echoed throughout the valley as other Death Eaters and their associates also set the campsite ablaze. Lucius even thought he saw a rather compact group a few hundred meters away, bustling around four figures they made levitate in the air like objects. One of them even went so far as to levitate what seemed to be a woman upside down, her nightgown immediately falling over her face to reveal a slender body and thin legs clad in cotton underwear.
"Fools..." Lucius muttered, turning away from the sight, while Greyback laughed uproariously at the vision.
Their path came to a stop a few meters ahead when they encountered a young girl of about ten, quite disheveled but draped in a pretty muslin dress embroidered with golden threads under a black cape tied around her neck with a cord. Her face, brilliantly white and framed by auburn hair that highlighted her beautiful blue eyes, was completely unknown to them. Judging by the apparent luxury of her clothes, Lucius deduced that she was probably from a well-to-do family, although no name came to his mind. Could he have already met such a lovely young lady at a ball organized by the Ministry of Magic? Perhaps, in which case, his memory failed him. Immersed in his contemplation, he still noticed the look Greyback was giving this small creature, and it sent a shiver down his spine. Alert senses, flared nostrils, and eyes fixed on her, the werewolf seemed at this moment closer to the animal he was than the pale imitation of a human being with whom Lucius had walked these last few minutes. As for this girl... there was no doubt that she would soon feature in his trophy collection.
"Mother!?" she called out with a worried voice, looking around everywhere. "Mom! Sister Catherine! Please, where are you!?"
"Lost, are we?" Greyback suddenly threw at her.
She, jumping as soon as she heard the werewolf's voice, turned sharply to face them, a glimmer of hope in her eyes, thinking she had found someone who could help. But as soon as she saw the masked faces of Lucius and Stubbins, that hope vanished instantly, replaced by a sudden fear that made her gasp.
"Oh yes..." Greyback mumbled, advancing towards her, his pointed teeth bared as he displayed a particularly frightening grin. "I like them when they're like this: scared, terrified, defenseless... They taste better that way."
"W-what?" his target stammered, taking a few steps back.
"But my prey, of course," replied the werewolf, maintaining his smile.
The young girl immediately recoiled, alarmed by the sweet tone of the werewolf who was shamelessly displaying his sharp teeth. His tongue licked his fangs with delight as he never took his eyes off his next victim.
"Don't come any closer, or you'll regret it!" she warned, despite retreating, a hint of fear in her voice.
"I won't hurt you, at least the pain will be fleeting," he swore, placing his hand on her chest, just above the heart. "You would only make your suffering more difficult by insisting on not surrendering to the destiny that beckons you..."
Disgusted by what would happen to this little girl, Lucius preferred to look away to avoid seeing her being bitten by this repugnant creature. Greyback was not transformed at the moment, otherwise Lucius would never have agreed to walk this stretch with him, but the bite of a werewolf who accepted his lycanthropy still had strange effects on the person affected, notably a pronounced taste for fresh and raw meat.
But Greyback was not the type to nibble on someone's leg before leaving them alone, believing that the curse he transmitted was punishment enough. Oh no, this creature particularly enjoyed biting its victims in very visible places, especially the face, to leave them with scars ravaging their features. This young girl, as pretty as she was, would bear heavy scars from their encounter, and Lucius took a moment to feel pity for this witch, especially from a good lineage as he thought.
"This is very regrettable..." he thought, trying to occupy his mind with the bright flashes he could see in the distance streaking the sky as his comrades still enjoyed setting fire to everything around them.
Nevertheless, he felt Greyback leap beside him at a rapid pace, certain that he would be able to taste the delicious flesh of this girl in a few seconds. But what happened next was so fast that the werewolf himself didn't understand what had happened. Just as he was about to pounce on his prey, the girl suddenly raised her arm in front of her, and from the tips of her fingers, an strange glow appeared, oscillating between bluish and white. Lowering her outstretched arm, the strange glow continued to hover in the air and took the form of a dazzling bow that she grabbed before pulling it toward her, a cord detaching from her weapon accompanying her movement as an arrow also appeared.
With the bow drawn, the girl finally shot her projectile directly at the werewolf, hitting him square in the stomach. However, instead of sinking into his body, the projectile simply exploded upon contact with his skin, propelling him backward so fast that he performed numerous somersaults and pirouettes before crashing into a tent a few meters away. All of this had only lasted a few seconds, too short for both Lucius and Stubbins to understand what had just happened, but enough for them to know that this little girl was not as innocent as she seemed. Lucius didn't even wait for Greyback to finish his race behind him to approach her, wand raised.
"I'm quite a good actress, aren't I?" she said proudly, a smile on her lips.
"Now, young lady, you're going to make what you have in your hands disappear, and we'll lower our wands to have a civilized discussion," he suggested, continuing to walk slowly towards her.
"And if I refuse?" she said coldly, aiming at him with her weapon, ready to shoot a new arrow.
"I'm not as easy to defeat as that idiot werewolf, you see? It would be regrettable if I scratched this pretty little face because its owner refuses to see reason..."
"Rosie?!" suddenly exclaimed a voice nearby.
The four of them immediately turned their heads toward the source of the voice to discover a woman with long red hair and a noticeably anxious expression, wandering through the tent canvases in search of someone she kept calling by their name. Stubbins and Greyback watched her incredulously, disturbed by this sudden appearance, but Lucius immediately recognized the face from having seen it on several occasions at the Ministry in the company of a man he hated as much as Albus Dumbledore: Lily Potter.
"Rosie!" Lily exclaimed again, heading toward her daughter, completely unaware of the presence of the three Death Eaters a few meters in front of her.
Her mother immediately threw herself at her, her arms squeezing her body so tightly that her daughter gasped in pain. This distraction also made her lose control of her magic, causing her bow to disappear rapidly, a detail that did not escape Lucius, who saw it as the perfect opportunity to regain the upper hand against this little girl.
"I told you not to wander away from us!" Lily shouted in her daughter's ears, still unaware of the danger. "Why do you always defy me!?"
"N-now is not the time!" Rosie stammered, trying to extricate herself from her mother's embrace. "M-Miss Evane, if my mother sees you acting so familiarly with me, you'll have to answer for your behavior to her!"
Intrigued, Lily finally released the pressure she had on her daughter to look at her with a perplexed expression, bewildered by her daughter's sudden attitude. Rosie wasted no time in gesturing with her head toward the three Death Eaters, who were still motionless but now with their wands pointed at them. Immediately, Lily positioned herself in front of her daughter, her wand drawn as she tried to block her body between Rosie and her three adversaries.
"For a surprise," Lucius remarked, looking at Lily as if he had stumbled upon a mound of gold ready to be collected. "I would never have believed that one could come back from the dead until I saw you, Lady Potter."
Confused, Lily slightly furrowed her brows at this observation. However, Rosie, who had also seen the look her mother had when she heard the Death Eater's words, replied as weakly as she could to the question Lily was now asking herself:
"Mom... You forgot to put the illusion spell back on your face..."
"For years now, everyone has wondered what happened to the little mudblood playing at being a grande dame who clung like a leech to her idiotic husband," continued Lord Malfoy, unaware of Rosie's whisper. "Dead... Abducted... locked away somewhere where we would never see her again... All the craziest theories about you have been put on the table, but now I believe that fleeing is the most plausible explanation for your absence. Tell me, Lady Potter: Is it the fear of living in opulence and wealth that scared off the poor girl you are, or is it the constant company of blood traitors, better known for their stupidity than for their deeds, that pushed you to flee your home?"
"I'd still prefer to associate with a bastard like James Potter than to get involved with individuals of your kind," she replied in a voice full of venom.
"A bastard, you say?" chuckled Stubbins, while Greyback also chuckled, although he kept his hand where Rosie had touched him, as the fabric of his clothes had simply burned at that spot.
"Rest assured, we would still prefer to befriend goblins than to risk catching the germs you carry on yourself, Mudblood," Lucius informed her with the same calm tone, accompanying his words by dusting off the folds of his cape. "A creature like you deserves nothing more than death, but before that, I would gladly let Greyback play with you. He has so few opportunities since the end of the war to taste the flesh of someone of your kind that I would have no trouble granting him that privilege, at least if it is one."
"Don't talk about my governess like that, you bastard!" protested Rosie, trying to push her mother out of her way to also face the Death Eaters.
"Such nasty words coming from such a pretty little mouth..." growled Greyback, taking on a falsely indignant tone. "Don't worry, young lady, once I've dealt with your governess, you'll be the next on the list..."
However, Rosie couldn't help but smile, seeing that her plan seemed to be working. In any case, none of them had yet made the connection between her and Lily, and if the rumor spread that her mother had been seen right here in the newspapers, her identity was still relatively safe.
"Don't you dare touch a hair on this young lady," Lily said, pointing her wand at the werewolf. "I may only be her governess, but I will defend her integrity at the peril of my life! As for her mother... I dare not imagine what would happen to you three if she learned of the threats you make against her daughter."
"Oh, and what would she do to us?" sneered Greyback, taking a first step in her direction. "Would she scold us? Would she punish us, perhaps? Should we fear receiving a spanking?"
"I never correct people by using violence, but for your case, I'll go much further than mere corporal punishment," a new voice indicated as, lurking in the shadows, a feminine figure emerged from the darkness to walk toward them, the folds of her white robe trailing on the dusty ground of the small clearing where they were.
The light emitted by the beginning of the fire allowed them to see Marie-Louise emerging, her delicate features now marked by age, so relaxed that she did not appear at all angry to see her younger daughter threatened by three brigands. Despite her impassive and perfectly neutral demeanor, it seemed particularly frightening to them, as if this woman were as tough as a rock that nothing could pierce, all without knowing that this calm attitude actually concealed a violent anger that its owner was eager to satisfy by punishing the three fools who dared to threaten Rosie in the fairest way possible. The princess calmly approached them with a fluid and elegant gait, her blue eyes never leaving them for a second as she immediately stood next to Rosie, her hand on her daughter's shoulder in a protective stance that reassured her immediately.
"We will decide later on the appropriate punishment for your little escapade, miss," she coldly indicated to Rosie without looking at her. "You will now agree that one should always listen to your mother's advice if you don't want to find yourself in such a situation..."
"Yes, mother..." Rosie muttered, lowering her head, knowing full well that she was in the wrong in this matter.
"Miss Evane, would you be so kind as to escort this little impudent one back to our companions?" she continued, turning to Lily. "Tell them that I won't be long, just the time to settle a matter that requires my intervention..."
"W-well, madam," she immediately obeyed, nodding slightly before taking hold of Rosie's arm to drag her away from the impending duel already forming in their minds.
Though reluctant, Rosie eventually accepted being separated from her second mother, and after a final embrace accompanied by a "come back alive," she let herself be guided by Lily under the eyes of the Death Eaters unsure whether to intervene or not. Greyback was the first to snap out of the stupor they were all in, but just as he was about to lunge towards them, Marie-Louise stopped him with a gesture, pointing her wand at him. Any trace of kindness that appeared during her exchange with her now-gone daughter disappeared, leaving only a mask of coldness and anger visible to all.
"Does the little lady want to take us on?" sneered Greyback, crossing his arms in front of him, seemingly relaxed as one who already believes the outcome of a fight is assured for him. "You should be careful; you might stain your pretty dress!"
"You're right to remind me," Marie-Louise thanked him, pointing her wand at herself. "Give me a minute, and I'll be with you..."
The three Death Eaters interpreted her words differently, responding to her invitation with Stubbins and Greyback's coarse laughter. But Marie-Louise paid no attention, now muttering incomprehensible words due to the ambient noise. Slowly, she ran the tip of her wand along her body, starting from the bottom, and as she ascended, her embroidered dress gradually transformed, revealing first the heels of shoes that turned out to be black leather boots reaching up to her knees, while brown canvas trousers slowly encroached along her legs, perfectly molding her surprisingly admirable curves for someone of her age. Her bodice gradually gave way to a white blouse with flared sleeves but finished with a lace jabot—it was necessary, after all, to retain a touch of femininity—reaching her wrists, just like along the collar. Her hair was quickly freed from the hat she wore and tied behind her nape with a small, carefully knotted black cord. All her jewelry had disappeared, and all the excess was gone, leaving only a rather masculine outfit that was surprisingly striking on this usually coquettish woman.
"I am pleased to know that I will finish this evening with a duel where I will correct in my own way the three rascals who dared to threaten my daughter... Any offense to the House of Savoy is paid in blood, and yours will contribute to forgiving your misdeeds."
Lucius immediately paled under his mask, not expecting to encounter a member of this prestigious house this evening. Royal families were as renowned in their world as in that of Muggles, and a marriage with them ensured the prosperity of the lucky family for a long time, even when their blood was tainted by that of Muggles! For a moment, he almost gave up this fight and tried to bribe Marie-Louise to make her forget her past actions and attempt to establish a professional relationship with her, but that was without recalling the context explaining their presence here and especially the outcome that was looming in a few seconds when the first spells would be cast.
"You look very attractive like this," he conceded, looking at Marie-Louise from all angles. "But I don't think it's going to save you..."
"What about the girl?" Greyback interrupted, looking at Rosie and Lily disappearing behind a tent. "I wanted to have some fun with her! I hate seeing my toys slip through my fingers..."
A sudden gust made him bend, and it took little for him to almost fall backward, destabilized. From the corner of his eye, he noticed that his two comrades had experienced the same, and Stubbins had not been as lucky as he sprawled out on the dry land. Bewildered, his gaze then turned to the source of this wind, a source that, for its part, seemed unaffected by it.
"It's you, isn't it?" Lucius said, his tone much less mocking than before.
"Observant as always," Marie-Louise replied, keeping her wand pointed at them.
"You seem to forget the rules of a duel, dear madam," he replied, physically preparing for the fight, his legs already in a dueling stance.
"The usual rules of a duel matter little when it comes to punishing scoundrels like you," she said coldly. "You lost the right to earn my favor the moment you dared to threaten my daughter..."
"Then let's not waste time... Stupefy!"
The spell quickly flew toward Marie-Louise, but to the surprise of the three men, she didn't deflect it by creating a magical shield in front of her. Instead, she lifted a clump of earth with a wave of her wand, causing the spell to explode. With another movement, shards of earth and rock levitated in the air, and after a third wave of her wand, they all descended upon the three Death Eaters who avoided them by diving to the ground or attempting to make them explode through other spells. Marie-Louise took advantage of this to take four rounded stones from the small pouch at her belt, levitating them before throwing them in four different directions, surprising the three Death Eaters with her maneuver. The four stones quickly disappeared into the darkness of the night, but a few seconds later, a dome of light appeared above them, seemingly engulfing them before disappearing as quickly as it had come.
"What in the...," Greyback began, looking at the Frenchwoman with intrigue before she interrupted him.
"A little creation of mine," she simply replied, assuming a dueling position again. "You won't be able to exit this magical barrier without my authorization, and I strongly advise against attempting such idiocy if you don't want to end up as dust. Anyone outside it can easily see it but cannot cross it, unfortunately for you, it is hidden from your view as long as I decide. We won't be disturbed during our little duel."
And with these words, she quickly cast three Stupefy spells in the direction of her opponents, all of which they evaded with a roll or a counter-spell. Lucius didn't waste time retaliating, responding with a Sectumsempra that she easily avoided, just as she deflected a spell cast by Stubbins with a wave of her wand. Fenrir, on the other hand, seemed unwilling to rely solely on his wand, as unlike his partners, the werewolf literally pounced on Marie-Louise, moving on all fours, narrowly avoiding the few spells she sent his way to slow his progress. Like for the daughter, Fenrir tried to throw himself at the mother by making a leap of several meters toward her, but strangely, his run was abruptly stopped by an invisible wall against which he collided before being violently thrown back toward Stubbins, on whom he crashed.
"Protection Rune," she indicated to Lucius when she noticed that he had stopped in his duel to see Greyback returning to them.
"Interesting...," Lord Malfoy couldn't help but admit. "But it's not certain that it will protect you for long..."
A spell of radiant whiteness responded to him, and as he avoided its trajectory by bending slightly, the sudden explosion a few meters from his position indicated that he had done well not to let himself be touched unless he wanted to see multiple pieces of his head scattered on the ground.
"This woman is certainly not here to play with us..." he commented, looking at Marie-Louise in a new light. "I must take her much more seriously than before."
As if to confirm his words, Marie-Louise cast a new spell, strangely slow, which hadn't covered half the distance separating them when another spell hit him head-on. To the surprise of the three Death Eaters, the merging of the two spells created a multitude of small lights rapidly converging towards them without directly targeting them. On the contrary, the spells seemed to have the main objective of exploding all around them because in just a few seconds, multiple detonations were heard, covering the ground in a dense cloud of dust. Blinded, Lucius, Greyback, and Stubbins covered their eyes to protect themselves from the tiny particles whipping their faces, unaware that by doing so, they were completely exposed and vulnerable.
"The witch!" growled Fenrir, trying to catch a glimpse of her through the cloud they were enveloped in.
Hardly had he finished his sentence when he received a violent impact to his face, a second hitting him squarely in the stomach, causing him to double over in pain. A third struck him again in the face, making him fall backward as a continuous flow of blood started to pour from his nose, which he tried to contain by using his hand as a barrier. At the same time, a new gust of wind dispersed the surrounding dust cloud, leaving only a land once again visible but desolate from the duel that had taken place. The three men realized that their opponent had remained in the same position as before, arms crossed in a casual attitude that irritated the werewolf considerably.
"Do you want us to stop this fight?" she said, looking at him in particular. "It seems you've injured yourself... I wouldn't want to be responsible for what might happen to you due to your unfortunate injury! Go and heal your nose before coming back for our little duel; it will allow the grown-ups to fight without being bothered by any disturbance."
This woman's audacity pleased Lucius, who was still surprised not to see Fenrir leaping again towards her. Who could dare to mock the most feared werewolf in the United Kingdom to such an extent? Never before had he seen anything like it, and never would a sane person have dared such folly... Was this woman insane?
"I'm going to kill you!" Greyback shouted, while Lucius considered her behavior ultimately as particularly prudent.
The werewolf indeed rushed in her direction, now forgetting that he was half a wizard and that in one of his hands was a magic wand with which he could have tried to confront her. But he stopped his run when he saw Marie-Louise making new wand movements without casting any spell at them. Her arms and hands moved through the air with grace, fluidity, and performed gestures so fast and intricate that Lucius, despite knowing a great many spells and curses, still couldn't put a name or even an image to what she was about to do. The answer appeared before his eyes a few moments later when enormous tree trunks passed through the magical barrier to hover a few meters above Marie-Louise, each end finishing with a long point that seemed capable of piercing anything.
"Did I tell you that I have a gift for taming and manipulating nature at my will?" she asked in a courteous tone that furrowed the brows of the three Death Eaters, each now apprehending the course of events.
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