Blooming in the Dark (Flora Weasley and Elwin Malfoy romance)

19. Shining Forever Bright

The moment Elwin stepped into the shop, he could tell something was wrong. Books had been flung about the room, chairs were overturned, and in the middle of the room lay Flora, her bright hair falling in a halo around her. 

"Flora!" he cried, rushing toward her. Lifting her head, he felt for a pulse, calling her name all the while. "Flora!" he yelled, his voice breaking as he shook her, desperate to see her eyes open and meet his own. The slamming of the front door, which he had left open, instantly caught his attention. Before he could wonder what was happening, there was a sudden flash of red before it all faded to black. 

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Flora woke with a groan, her head pounding as she tried to study her surroundings. She felt weak and achy all over. Forcing her eyes open, she rolled onto her side, straining to see in the darkness. It was black as pitch. Despite the pain she was feeling, she forced herself to her knees and finally to her feet to feel around. After some exploration, she realized that she must be underground. The walls around her were cold and hard, likely rock, and the ground below her was the same. The ceiling was only a foot or so higher than her head, close enough that she could reach it. There was no light. No sound. No exit. She was stuck. 

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Elwin was awoken by a sharp kick to the stomach. He cried out, curling on the ground only to find that his hands had been tied behind his back. Coughing, he let out a low groan as he tried to open his eyes. The room in which he had found himself was dark, but not so dark he couldn't see. He was laying down at the foot of what looked like some kind of ornate mahogany chair. 

Before he had much more time to look, a high, cruel voice said, "Elwin Malfoy." 

Elwin felt his heart speed up in his chest. He remembered that voice. It was the same voice that haunted his nightmares almost into adulthood. The same voice that had filled him with fear every moment of his childhood. 

"Voldemort," he whispered, his voice hoarse and cracked. He cried out in pain as another kick was launched into his stomach. He groaned. 

"Your family has always been loyal," Voldemort drawled. "At least, until my downfall. I'm told I shouldn't expect the same from you." 

A hissing rose up at Elwin's feet. With great effort, he lifted his head, looking into the elaborate chair. There, sitting as calmly as though his appearance was normal, was Voldemort. He looked almost like a toddler, skin completely white, eyes flaming scarlet, nose reduced to slits, slimy beyond all else. Elwin felt bile rise in his throat. He looked away. 

"Do you know, Little Malfoy, what takes place tomorrow?" Voldemort asked. 

"No," Elwin replied, beginning to wonder why, though now awake for several minutes, his body still ached.  

"A very important person is going to appear in the graveyard just beyond this house and you will have a choice to make," he said, his voice cold and eerie. "Either you will pledge your loyalty to me or I will order Wormtail to kill the girl locked in the cellar. I believe you know her. Red hair? Blue eyes?" 

"Flora," Elwin whispered, horror flooding his mind. "Please, let her go." 

"I'll let her go when you pledge your loyalty to me tomorrow," Voldemort stated. "You will help restore me to my bodily form and then join us. You have the night to consider your options. Move him." 

Then, with another flash of light, all was dark again. 

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Hours had passed since Flora had awoken in her prison, but still, she had not given up looking for a way out. She knocked at, hit, poked, and tried to force every part of the wall and ceiling before she finally collapsed in despair. Her head and body ached. Her eyes burned with threatening tears. She sat still a few moments before suddenly, the silence of the room was broken. Seemingly from nowhere, a crash of water fell and hit the floor, almost instantly covering it in an inch of water. Flora jumped up with a cry, vainly searching for where it could have come from to no avail. Shaking, she leaned against the wall, a shuttering sob leaving her lips. 

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Elwin did not know how much time had passed since his meeting with Voldemort, but was clear he was meant to believe it could have been hours upon hours. The room he had been moved to was dark as a cellar. They were trying to confuse him, making it easier to be afraid. There was no right thing to do. He knew, even if Voldemort didn't, that he would rather die than be a Death Eater, but would he allow Flora to die? It was an impossible choice. 

He barely had enough time to think over the question before the door opened with a bang and he was forced to his feet by his tied hands. He didn't bother fighting. He knew there was only one way to get out of this. He had to somehow trick the evilest wizard in the history of the wizarding world. He drew in a deep breath, releasing it slowly through his mouth before drawing another deep breath through his nose. 

There was a metallic whizzing sound for a moment before a knife flashed through the air. Elwin winced, pain searing through his hand. The rope had fallen. Bringing his hands before him, he saw that the knife Wormtail had used to cut him free had nicked his palm. 

"Carry him," he ordered, gesturing to Voldemort. Fighting the urge to be sick, Elwin did as he was ordered. It was a dark walk out of the house, through a spare forest, and finally to the graveyard so that none of them could see far before them. There were two vaguely human-shaped shadows in the graveyard, both boyish in appearance. They reached a large marble tombstone and stopped. The two boys were staring at them. Elwin knew he should warn them, say something, but before he could say a word, the second boy fell to the ground, a pained cry leaving his lips. 

"Kill the spare," Voldemort ordered. 

"No!" Elwin cried as Wormtail raised his wand, shouting, "Avada Kedavra!" 

As the boy fell, Wormtail took Voldemort from Elwin, set him on the ground and approached the other one, still groaning from some unidentifiable pain. As he forced him up and against the tombstone, Elwin saw his face. It was Harry.