Surviving Fate // Mattheo Riddle ♣️

Chapter Nineteen - Escape

Word Count: 2,014 words. 

Warnings: None. 

I followed Cissy to the dungeon that she brought Harry and Ron to. I made sure to take my time behind her, not wanting to look too frantic to see them again. Cissy had already locked them in when I get there.

She took me by the arm gently. "Are you alright?" she asked. The relief was clear in her voice.

I nodded. "For now. I need to speak to Harry."

"Be careful sweetheart," she warned lovingly.

Moving past her, I approached the bars of the dungeon. "Potter?" I called out.

The room was dark. Pitch black but was suddenly lit by a small lantern in the corner of the room as I called out. I spotted Ron holding Dumbledore's deluminator.

"Harry?" I called out again, spotting his figure beside the Weasley. "Harry..."

"Is it true?" he asked, turning to look at me.

I bit my lip, already feeling the tears form. "Yes," I told him, voice breaking. "I was going to tell you –"

"When?" he posed, clearly angry. He stalked towards me. "When were you going to tell me? When it didn't matter anymore?"

"At first, I thought you knew," I tried to explained, shaking my head. "I mean, you were looking at me as I did it, but then Snape told me that he altered your memories. He made you think he did it."

"Why would he do that?"

"I don't know," I told him honestly. "To protect me? You? Us? I was scared that you'd hate me."

"You were right," he shot, face a flurry of rage. "I hate you."

"Harry please..." The tears fell. "I didn't want to. I had to. I didn't have a choice."

"You were the person that told me we always have a choice. You could have chosen not to kill him."

"I wouldn't have gotten into the Death Eaters if I didn't. They'd have killed me, Harry. Albus begged me to do it," I tried, speaking frantically.

Harry laughed. "He begged you to kill him? Really?"

"He was already dying."

Potter didn't respond, shaking his head. "You kept this from me. How could you?"

"Self-preservation?" I tried to explain. "I knew you'd hate me once I told you. You idolised him Harry. I didn't see him like that but... I knew what he meant to you. For fucks sake, he's my family. Do you think it was any easier for me?"

He scoffed. "Go back to your family Lyra. They're waiting up there for you."

"You're my family too Potter."

"Not anymore." His voice cracked.

I let out a short sob. "Please..." I begged.

"Leave," he urged.

Nodding slowly, I took a deep breath, wiping the tears from my eyes. "Okay," I muttered, turning away with a heavy heart and retreating back up the stairs.

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I sat at the kitchen table, head in my hands. I was trying to ignore the screams coming from the dining room. Hermione's screams. There was nothing I could do.

"Lyra," Draco's voice drifted into the room. I heard the chair beside me scrape before he said down.

"He hates me," I told my cousin, running my fingers through my hair before sitting up and slumping against the back of the chair. "He hates me Draco."