'just like the moon,
you are far
and still giving me hope'
[unknown]
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It was Friday night.
Anxiety buzzed in Adeline's stomach as she waited for Peter Pettigrew—or Wormtail, as everyone seemed to call him—to come into her cell. She had listened intently all day for any noise from outside that would indicate more death eaters were at the manor than Draco had anticipated—but it was completely silent the whole time.
Moreover, even though Draco had only stopped giving her the magic-weakening potions a few days ago, Addie felt more energised now than she had in months. With this renewed hope of being able to escape and find the ones she loves, and the locket against her chest being a physical representation of this, she felt not weakness but strength in her bones.
Taking a breath, Addie yanked on the numerous chains that bound her wrists—and the metal cuffs snapped almost immediately. She looked down at her ankles, concentrating on the cuffs around them, and they too broke; emitting small sparks as the chains dropped to the floor.
She waited for side effects—for a migraine, dizziness, anything as a result of using her powers. but none of it came. She felt completely normal. Good, even. For the first time in over a year, ever since she got sick, and ever since she was taken here, Addie's magic was almost completely back to its original power.
Hearing footsteps approach, she stood and prepared herself as the cell door slowly opened.
The hunched, short figure of Pettigrew stepped inside, holding a goblet containing the potion she was meant to have, with his back to her as he shut the door behind him.
As soon as he turned around, his eyes widened in seeing her chains broken on the ground and Addie standing on the other side of the cell. He hesitated, and made to reach for his wand—but she had already sent him forcefully back into the door with her magic, leaving him to hit his head before collapsing heavily onto the ground.
Addie simply moved to the side as the goblet's contents spilled all over the floor and quickly stepped over his unconscious body. She leaned her weight against the heavy door, created a small gap, and slipped through it before it slammed shut behind her.
Looking around, she tentatively surveyed the large, quiet room.
The stars were faint and timid like pinpricks across a dark sheet of sky behind the towering windows, but clouds began to cover them. Thick shadows of the night eclipsed much of the wooden floor and corners. She stepped forward carefully.
"Draco?" Addie whispered, and relief bloomed in her chest he stepped out from behind one of the large pillars and moved toward her.
"He's unconscious?" he asked quietly, looking around the room, and she nodded. "Okay. Stay close—and we need to keep away from the windows," Draco put a hand on her forearm and led her closer to the wall furthest from the glass. They stood in the shadows, and he made to let go, but Addie grabbed his hand as the dark unnerved her.
"You'll be fine," he said, though kept hold of her hand. As he led her through the dark hallways, neither of them spoke—despite being the only two conscious people in the manor.
She trailed after him with quick steps, and though Draco seemed completely nonchalant outwardly, the tight grip of his hand told otherwise.
Glancing outside, she saw the silhouette of one of the guards pacing back and forth along a tall hedge fence at the front of the manor. Then a noise interrupted the silence, causing Addie to flinch violently. Draco looked back at her as they turned a corner.
"It's just the rain," he said. "It's okay."
In this new narrow hallway, they were concealed from the view of any window, but as Draco made to continue, she stopped. Addie hated the way her lip trembled—because she knew once it began, she wouldn't be able to stop herself from crying.
"I can't—" her voice shook, putting her free hand over her mouth. "I can't do this."
"Yes, you can," Draco insisted, squeezing her hand, but she let go. The rain grew louder.
"I'm scared, and I don't know what I'm doing, and I don't wanna be alone and I don't know—" tears trickled down her cheeks, dripping down the shaking hand she had cupped over her mouth.
She took a breath, but it turned into a sob.
"Addie, look at me," Draco said, even though she could barely see him in the dark. It was the first time he had used her nickname. "What we're doing now is the hardest part, but it's nearly over, okay? We're nearly at the window. Then you'll be free. You'll be able to find Harry. You'll be safe with him. Just hold on a little longer."
When she didn't say anything, he put a hand on her shoulder. "Okay?"
She sniffed a little and used her sleeve to wipe her eyes. "Okay."
"C'mon, then," Draco said, his voice soft, and stiffly held her hand again. Even if he wasn't one for physical touch like this, he knew she found comfort in it, so he kept their entwined hands together as he led them through the next few narrow hallways. Eventually, he opened a door, and once they were both inside, closed it quietly again behind them.
Looking around, Addie realised it was his bedroom. It was cold, and the furniture she could see had sharp edges and sleek black wood. There were no knickknacks, no pictures on the walls; nothing that would indicate a normal teenage bedroom. He let go of her hand and stepped over to one of the many large windows that lined one of the walls. He motioned outside, and she stepped beside him to see better.
"We're at the back of the manor here. This path is a total blindspot from anywhere around the place—it does look small but you'll easily be able to fit. If you just keep going straight, you'll eventually get to the start of the woods, which are usually guarded, but not tonight."
The path itself was barely a path, but rather a small gap between two of the towering hedge fences that seemed to go on for ages until, just in the distance, she could see that they diverged paths in opposite directions to border the grounds.
"I used to escape through here when I was younger," he said, and the sound of rain outside became clearer as he unlocked the window in the middle, which then opened outwardly like a door. His room was on the ground floor. "I never went for long. Just a couple of hours, sometimes. I don't think my parents even know it's here. If you keep going through the woods, you'll come across a small muggle town. I think some wizarding families used to live there amongst them, but I doubt there'd be any there anymore."
Addie looked over at him, but he kept his gaze forward.
"Come with me," she said and watched as he took a long, sad breath. Draco eventually shook his head a little.
"I can't," he spoke. "There are still more things I want to try and fix before I leave."
"Well, when you do, come and find me. I forgive you."
Draco looked over at her, eyeing her in disbelief, but when he saw she wasn't lying, smiled a little. "Really?"
"Really."
"Thank you," he said softly. Eventually, he cleared his throat, held his hand out toward the open window, and stepped back. "Get as far away from here as you can," Draco spoke. "You'll have a couple of days' head start before anyone knows you're gone."
Addie stepped closer toward the window, peering out. A gust of cool air drew shivers down her spine with the freedom it promised. Everything was shadowy and dark green and right there, waiting for her. She leaned out, and rain fell onto her head as she looked below at the dewy grass to see that it wasn't far down at all. Just one step away.
She moved to leave but hesitated. Addie turned back to Draco and enveloped him in a tight hug, whispering "Thank you," over and over into his shoulder. He said something back, but she couldn't hear it over the noise of a door slamming shut somewhere in the manor.
They pulled apart, trading urgent looks, and froze. For a moment, there was silence, until—
"WHERE ARE YOU, WORMTAIL?" Bellatrix's voice echoed loudly throughout the manor, and Draco frantically edged Addie onto the window's ledge.
"Go, go!"
"But what about you—?"
"I'll hide—just go!" he urged, and without sparing a second glance, Addie jumped outside onto the grass, stumbled a little in her footing, and fled.
It was slippery and muddy—she ran as fast as her feet could take her—the hedges brushed against her jumper—stray leaves scratched her face—her hair flew behind her—rain smacked against her skin and soaked through her messy uniform.
"SHE'S GONE! GUAAAAARDS!!!" Bellatrix's voice seeped into the night from within the manor.
Addie ran faster—scared out of her mind yet overjoyed—almost laughing—the cold wind like ecstasy, giving her a euphoric rush as freedom's fresh scent burnt her lungs and fuelled her escape.
The manor was a cage, and now she could fly far, far away because she was free, free, free.
The path ended as the hedges went left and right, but she kept going straight into the woods. The trees were enormous and close-knit, so Addie weaved around them quickly as she ran a little faster with a downhill advantage, avoiding the large roots and branches sticking up from the ground as though she knew this place like the back of her hand.
Damp dead leaves and sticks crunched beneath her shoes as she stepped on them, and for a moment it was just that and the sound of her breath filling the silence of the woods—until a woosh, followed by a second woosh, followed by a third, a fourth, a fifth, resounded behind her.
Addie glanced over her shoulder to see five masked death eaters in pursuit of her—presumably the five that had been guarding the front of the manor—and she ducked as sparks from their wands narrowly missed her head and exploded on the wood around her.
Addie didn't know why they weren't apparating, or why Bellatrix wasn't with them, or why Voldemort himself wasn't here to catch her—but she didn't care. It didn't matter.
The death eaters sent spell after spell which glowed brilliantly against the dark—and though they missed each time, they were getting closer. She fired disarming spells back at them, which ended up hitting two of the death eaters: sending their wands flying far away. Addie stretched her palm out to face a large tree in the distance and swiped her hand quickly to the left.
Instantly it started to fall, and as thick branches rained down from where its trunk dragged along other trees, the death eaters behind her hesitated to move forward—but she didn't, and ducked beneath the falling tree just in time before it slammed onto the ground.
Addie didn't know if this had crushed some of the death eaters or just slowed them down, but now there were only three of them chasing her—the three she hadn't disarmed. The fallen tree had bought her time, as they were much further away now—but this didn't stop them sending spells and curses her way, trying to get her back. Suddenly, however, just as she glanced over her shoulder, her foot met a root sticking out of the ground and she tripped.
Everything came to a standstill. She was breathing heavily. There was dirt smeared on the side of her face and on her hands. Moonlight seeped in through gaps in the trees and formed patches of white light on the ground. There were rapid footsteps approaching, and another spell landed right beside her head; creating a small explosion on the ground.
Addie scrambled to stand and started running again, despite pain shooting through her calf with every step on her right foot as the death eaters started to catch up. Aiming her hands at the silhouettes of trees she was about to pass, Addie twisted her palms in different motions: bending the thick trunks and branches to lean down and block the death eaters' path as soon as she had run past them.
This act had caged one of the death eaters in the middle of an abundance of manipulated, bent trees—leaving him unable to get out, as he had dropped his wand outside of the wooden mass.
The rain grew heavier, and the wind picked up. As Addie continued to run, she saw that beyond the silhouettes of more trees in the distance, there were lights. She figured it to be the town that Draco had spoken of, and slowed down a little to catch her breath as she came up with an idea.
Hearing the voices of the remaining two death eaters catching up to her, Addie quickly moved behind one of the large trees out of sight, and watched as they cluelessly ran straight past her. She then outstretched her hands to aim at the back of their silhouettes and whispered 'Obliviate'.
Addie erased the last ten seconds from their memory so that they didn't know which way she went, and instantly the two stopped running and looked around confusedly. Keeping her palms aimed at the two, Addie planted a faint, short false memory in their heads to convince them that they had seen her turn left.
"C'mon," one of them said. "She went this way!"
The two then ran off to the left, and she waited for the sounds of their footsteps and voices to fade before she tentatively moved forward. It was silent. When nothing happened, Addie picked up her pace again, and continued to run—albeit a bit slower now.
As the faint lights of the town grew closer, Addie put her arms out for balance as the ground evolved into a slope. She could see buildings—some modern and lit with flickering fluorescent lights, but most dark with old brick and crooked fences. The ground was hard and flat now, and as she was no longer covered by the trees, the rain pelted down onto her unforgivingly.
Her shoes splashed against the water gathering on the road, and just as she stepped closer to the town, there was a noise that seemed to be approaching her, but she couldn't tell what it was. The sound grew, but she couldn't see anything.
Then suddenly there was a deafening screech.
Addie spun around—just for the breath to be knocked from her lungs as something hard crashed into her chest and sent her backward in the air. Her lower back collided heavily with the blunt edge of something solid—and she felt her head hit something else.
The car stopped, and her breath came out in wheezes as she struggled to sit up. They turned on their headlights—a yellow glow that ignited the falling rain into glowing drops—and Addie squinted her eyes in it's brightness. She heard the door open as she fumbled for something to help her stand.
"—Shit, oh my god, I'm so sorry—I didn't see you, are you okay?" a man's voice started saying as he approached her. Addie didn't look up. As her hand gripped something stable, she stood and began walking away without answering him. He stopped.
"Uh—" he called out from behind her. "You probably shouldn't be walking. I can drive you to a hospital—"
Addie put a hand up without turning around, waving him off, limping off the road onto a patch of flat grass. She put a hand against her rib cage, but retracted it instantly; wincing. The muggle man watched her walk away, baffled, but eventually she heard him get back in his car and drive away; keeping his headlights on this time.
It was much darker once he drove away. Rain continued to pelt onto her face; her hair soaked and dripping as she struggled to breathe. Addie continued to limp as she stumbled away, the ground before her beginning to light up with the distant dull glow of a street lamp—but not enough, as her foot caught on something she didn't see and sent her to the muddy ground once more.
This time, she let herself collapse; her shins and forearms becoming cold as they hit the mud; her hair falling either side of her face.
Addie tried to take a long breath in, but it hurt too much, so she resorted to short intakes of air. The rain trickled down the back of her neck and made her shiver. Her face scrunched in pain as she twisted herself around to sit down—when her back met the trunk of a tree she didn't realise was there. She slumped against it.
Opening her eyes, Addie looked around—but as the shadowy night did nothing to aid her sight, brought her palm up and aimed it at the street lamp. She moved her hand up in the air and increased its dull bulb so that she could see the grounds around her.
It was a graveyard.
Addie figured she had tripped over the headstone in front of her, and was about to avert her attention back to her injuries, when she caught sight of its inscription. Stunned, she reread it, thinking her eyes were playing tricks on her—but even after she blinked profusely, it still read:
ADELINE MAY GREENE
14th April 1980 — ?
Beloved daughter of Samuel and Maya.
Lost but not forgotten.
Addie looked at the headstones on either side of, well, hers. The left one read:
MAYA YOUNG
26th February 1959 — ?
Beloved wife of Samuel
and mother to Adeline
She realised that after her mother and herself had been taken by Voldemort, the town must have presumed them dead—hence the headstones. But then the right one read:
SAMUEL GREENE
5th November 1959 — 14th July 1980
Beloved husband of Maya and
father to Adeline
Her dad. Addie wished she could say she remembered him, but she didn't. She was only two months old when he was killed. This was the town she was going to grow up in—the very place she had been taken from all those years ago. She had come full circle.
Despite her aching body and throbbing head, Addie moved closer to her real father's grave and sat in front of it. This spot in particular beneath the tree completely sheltered her from the rain. She never got to meet him—and he never got to see her grow up. She would never know if she had his hair or his chin or his smile.
She would never know him.
Looking around, all Addie could see was a foreign place, even if it was once home. She was injured—everything hurt. And, to top it all off, she had no idea where Harry could be—or Ron, or Hermione. She hadn't thought this far ahead into the plan. They didn't even know she was here.
"I don't know what to do, dad," her voice broke as she spoke helplessly out loud as though, in some miracle, he would answer. Only silence followed. Addie brought her knees to her chest and hugged them, even if this position just made it harder to breathe.
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a/n:
holy hell that was a rollercoaster
let me know what u thought!!!
-g