A/N y'all try to read this chapter with some music or SLOWLY try not to skim. It's supposed to be pretty intense and if you skip it'll break that effect! But furthermore continue! *giggles*
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I was thankful no one was looking at me right now because if they did, they'd see my eyes as wide as a saucer. The four of us were all somehow in the same room with the locket, and we had no plan over how we were going to make this happen.
Without a doubt we knew this had to be the moment we got the Horcrux from her, in fact we'd probably never find a better time than now to all be this close.
I wanted to pull all of them aside, silently begging Yaxley to speak to Umbridge again but he didn't. Instead he leaned back on a seat and the trial for Mrs. Cattermole began.
"Mary Elizabeth Cattermole?" Umbridge read from the paper.
"Yes," the woman answered, her legs shaking and her hands visibly clenching onto Ron's.
"Of 27 Chislehurst Gardens, Great Tolling, Evesham—"
I turned my gaze to Harry while she kept questioning the poor lady in front of us. He was looking at the room inquisitively with an expression like a guard dog sniffing to trail someone. His face turned on me, and I could see he recognized me as my impersonator, so I flickered my eyes as quickly as I could to Umbridge's chest and then back at the scene in front of me.
That was all it took for Harry to start walking forward to the stand Umbridge was sitting in. My stomach started rumbling with nervousness and I felt my breath hitch in my throat since I had no idea what he was going to do.
"—I didn't take it," the woman cried which got my attention again, "I got it in Diagon Alley, at Ollivander's, when I was 11. It chose me!"
Harry was still moving closer to her, having barely just passed where I was sitting which was about ten seats away from Umbridge. I pinched my lips together and held in the gasp that was threatening to escape when I could see the tanner complexion of my fingetrips turn into the lighter one of my own.
The polyjuice potion was fading.
Hermione seemed to notice this too since her wide eyes were watching the one sliver of red appear on the top of Ron's hair.
"You're lying," Umbridge smirked and leaned forward over the podium, "wands only choose witches, and you are not a witch."
"But I am! Tell them, Reg!" She pleaded Ron, who didn't speak up probably since he didn't know what to say and the fear of giving himself away.
Harry was right there at the podium. I clutched my wand firmly in my fist and had my heels off in preparation to run at a moments notice.
"What on earth are you doing, Albert?" Umbridge glanced down at him, Yaxley also staring with furrowed eyebrows.
"You're lying, Dolores," Harry stated, his face morphing back into his own, "and one mustn't tell lies. Stupefy!"
"Shit!" I yelled and hopped over the seats in front of me to get to the other three. Hermione had stunned Yaxley as well but the damage was done. The dementors started soaring through the air as if they were racing to get to us.
"Expecto Patronum!" I screamed, swishing my wand behind me. The spell did little to hold off the Dementors, only sending about ten of them back and a new wave followed. The four of us along with the lady at the trial sprinted for our lives to get to the elevator. If these creatures got ahold of us, I could only imagine there wouldn't be much of a fight for ministry workers to get them off us.
As I was sprinting I saw the hollow cave where I had stunned the Ministry worker, who was staring back at the dementors in fear.
"Enervate!" I shot at him as I ran and he immediately ran through the hall, closing himself behind some door.
Once we had gotten to the end of the hallway, we hurriedly climbed inside the elevator and Harry slammed the buttons trying to get us to anywhere but here. The dementors were faster though. Quickly they attached themselves to us, and I could feel my knees start to get weaker, and barely hold my body up.
Just like that though Harry raised his wand and the carriage was shot back, our bodies slamming into the wall behind us as we began to move. Harry and Hermione were completely themselves at this point, while Ron still remained Reg and I only had the lingering dark hair of the woman.
We climbed out and just stared at everyone around us. There had to have been hundreds of people on this main floor and I had no idea how we were gonna leave it without being recognized.
Keeping our head down, we exited the lift and started making our way towards the fireplace as we first came in. I was scanning every group of people, trying to see if anyone had a look of recognition when they glanced at us or if anyone had noticed who we were.
When I turned to ask why we stopped moving I creepily watched the woman from the trial kiss Ron, at the same time his polyjuice potion was wearing off, morphing him back into himself.
"Who's that?" A man asked from behind us and I stared in shock as the real Reg was staring at his wife, clothes completely gone since we'd stripped him. One of us was about to explain or say something when another voice spoke.
"It's Harry," the old man from beside me pointed at Harry who had put his glasses back on, making him so much more recognizable, "it's Harry Potter."
Ron tore his arm away from the woman who was weirdly enough still gripping onto it, and caught up with us. At first we started to jog, hearing the whispers and people pointing at the four of us moving so quickly.
"He's behind us!" Hermione shrieked and I turned my head around to see Yaxley exiting the elevator and making a beeline towards us.
I'm not sure if it was the shock of seeing the four of us in such a public place, but no one made a move to get in our way. Instead they stared in astonishment as our jog turned into a run, with Yaxley and multiple guards chasing us.
I swished my wand in a rapid motion, hitting the statue of muggles and pieces flew up in the air. They hit everyone near us, making most people duck to the ground. I couldn't take the chance of turning around again since I knew it would only slow me down, so I was grateful when Hermione cast another spell that caused all the flyers with our faces on it to attack anyone behind us.
We were still in the main room of the ministry, getting so close to the hallway where everyone entered and exited. I could see each fireplace in front of us empty, almost inviting us to jump in and escape, but a loud boom tore my thoughts away.
On my right, the first fireplace I passed closed harshly, metal bars blocking the poor witch who had just appeared in the green flames.
Hermione met my eyes briefly and we both knew exactly what was happening. They were sealing the exits to prevent us from leaving.
Yaxley's sharp blonde hair flickered in the corner of my eyes as I saw him approach us faster, and the loud booming noise of the metal bars only encouraged the four of us to break out in the fastest sprint we had probably ever engaged in.
Harry led the four of us, going as fast as he possibly could. I didn't need to see any of their faces to know that they were internally panicking as much as I was.
I could feel it as I sprinted for the same fireplace I came in from that Yaxley was trailing on us. Even with my heels off and nothing preventing my speed he was somehow faster. Ron and I were at the same pace with each other, the other two ahead and prepared to jump into the floo.
Pumping my arms even faster, I refused to turn around and see if Yaxley was the only one chasing us. I knew I was being paranoid but I could've sworn he was so close to me that I could feel his rugged breath hitting the back of my neck.
Harry was the first one to dive for a fireplace, his raven hair flying wildly behind him as he leapt into the flames.
One down.
There was screaming coming from all angles around me, whether that was ministry workers, or guards, or just muggle borns I didn't know. The only thing I did know is that our presence was found out by everyone.
Hermione rushed after Harry, only a couple miliseconds behind him. Her brown hair flew up in circles, and I saw her spin in place away from the ministry.
Two down.
Ron and I were just as close behind them but a couple seconds away. It didn't take an expert to see that by the time we both jumped in the fireplace, Yaxley will have gained on us. There was no time to think out a plan, only act on impulse.
I made the mistake of turning my head slightly to see the look of absolute fear written all over Ron's face. One of us would be grabbed by Yaxley, and I knew that when it came to the floo network if we all weren't in the same agreement of the destination someone would get hurt.
Right then I knew that it was either me or him, and I wasn't about to leave that decision up to chance.
Turning my body more firmly, I ran at a direction that went diagonally. Instead of going straight ahead for the fires, I felt my shoulder ram into Yaxley's side, and both of us went flying to the side.
I blinked my eyes rapidly once I landed on the ground, feeling my shoulder pop out of it's socket. But the pain momentarily paused when I gave a grim smile, seeing Ron successfully twist away in the fireplace, the bars behind it closing, and the noise echoing through the ministry since it kept anyone from following them.
Three down.
"You stupid fucking girl," Yaxley stood up and looked down at me, a slight limp in his foot when he walked over, "you'll regret that," he hissed at me and bound my arms with ropes so tight I thought they were going to be pulled off.
I knew the polyjuice potion had disappeared from me, revealing my true from in front of everyone. Two guards aggressively grabbed me and pushed me forward, making me stumble and cry out in pain from my dislocated shoulder.
Everyone whispered and pointed at me as we walked down the path that Yaxley had. I probably would be doing the same thing if I were them; my hair disheveled, feet bare with dirt from the ground, pencil skirt torn slightly in the front from how fast I was running.
They no doubtedly recognized who I was, it being hard to since my face was plastered on multiple of the wanted posters now covering the floor.
Either way I couldn't help but feel a burst of happiness within me. The group now had one Horcrux and they managed to escape with it. So be it if I needed to sacrifice myself for it to happen, I'd do it all over again if had to relive the situation.
Instead of taking me to any kind of elevator or to a room, I was roughly shoved down an assortment of stairs that led us further down than the first floor. It took all the strength I could to keep whimpering from the sting in my shoulder that happened every time they guided my body to move forward.
I couldn't cry though, I wouldn't look weak to them.
I wasn't weak.
Within a couple minutes we approached a door at the bottom of the stairs that looked like one that would serve as the exit to a building. The lights were dim, and I could barely see my feet in front of me.
Yaxley gave me an evil smile and opened the door, letting us pass him and the door banging shut behind them. What was inside made my mouth drop and form an O shape.
Inside this room was cages among cages of people. No they weren't cells, they didn't have walls to divide up the people, but they were literal fucking cages, engorged in size to fit a human being.
I couldn't help but twitch my body trying to resist them from pulling me forward. Sacrificing myself for the other three was something I knew I would have to deal with on my own, but I thought an escape was something I could plan. But in this dark room with a fucking cage it seemed impossible.
"Take her wand," Yaxley ordered the guard, and I could feel the black stick being pulled from my front pocket it had been tucked in, "you're useless now."
"At least you're the one who lost," I chuckled in Yaxley's face, feeling no remorse for taunting our win in front of him. A flash of anger soared through his eyes and his hand raised, smacking me across the face so hard I saw an assortment of stars appear in front of me.
"Filthy bitch. You think you can speak to me like that after all you've done to my family. You'll get what's coming to you," he spat down at me, and opened the cage for the guards to push me inside of. I struggled to wipe the blood off my mouth from the cut he had made with his ring on my lip.
His ring had been hard and cold, slicing its way onto my face and I could see the lingering blood placed on the emerald jewel.
"Just so you can watch it," Yaxley smirked as he placed my wand in a small holder that was held right above my cage. I knew there was no way I would be able to get that back unless I got out of the cage, but I guess this was his manipulative way to make prisoners go crazy with the anticipation of having our escape just inches above our head.
"You think you're so smart," I shouted against the cage just as he was about to leave the room, "what about you! How's Anastasia hm?" His walk hesitated for a second and I knew what I said got to him.
"Ask her yourself," he said lowly and walked out of the door, leaving the room to be pitch black again with no source of light.
Myself?
As soon as the door shut I saw the random flicker of three lights appear in different directions around me, and I had to squint to get my eyes to focus on it.
"Violet?" a familiar voice called out and even though I couldn't see them I knew exactly who it was.
"Anastasia?" I said shocked, "what—what the hell are you doing down here?"
"This is the underground," I heard her sigh loudly, "it's the place they take traitors if you want to investigate them without the need of Azkaban."
"That's illegal!" I shouted.
"Yeah," she chuckled in the distance, "well they don't really care as you can see. The Dark Lord has infiltrated the Ministry plenty."
"Don't call him that! His name is—"
"DONT!" I heard multiple voices roar out, and all the flickering lights that had been in front of me went out.
"Don't say his name!" Anastasia said loudly, "it's taboo. Anytime someone says it, they can find your location. Whenever someone says it underground he comes here and kills someone at random."
Of course. That's how they found us in the cafe the night of the wedding then.
"What the fuck," I gasped out and leaned against the bars, the pain from my shoulder settling back in. What they were doing, keeping prisoners in here without legal usage, was illegal. But it also meant that no one would know I was here.
"Yeah it's shit. Definitely not the best. But sometimes when the doors open I can see everyone's faces, and it gives me hope you know," Anastasia spoke, her voice sounding closer to me.
"Why are you closer?" I pushed my body back further if I could, not trusting the room I was in since I couldn't see anything in the pitch blackness.
"Sorry im in the cage to the left of you. I thought I would share my lighter with you."
"How do you have that?" I asked and got to my knees so I could follow to where she was with her voice.
"There's a drunk guard who watches us every other night. He constantly drops his lighters when he's drunk and we've kept every single one we've found," she explained to me, as I could feel the breath from her mouth when I was pressed up right next to her through the bars.
I plainly reached out and grabbed a lighter, clicking it to observe the body in front of me. She was skinny. Skinnier than I've ever seen her, and her hair seemed to be missing in different places.
Her eyes were the same blue I had always remembered, but somehow they weren't as dull since I last saw her. This time I saw something else flicker in them. She was fighting.
I jumped slightly when I saw someone else in the bars with her. An older looking woman who was laying down, her eyes shut but you could see she'd been through hell.
"That's my grandma," she smiled down at the older woman, "we were placed here together when the underground first started."
"I can't believe they would put someone her age down here—"
"It's because she fought for me," her gaze turned over to the elderly woman, "the only person who was ever on my side."
"Why are you down here?" I asked another question, worried that a guard would come in here and take me away.
"Well I couldn't really just go back to Hogwarts after I failed my mission to kill you could I?" She chuckled as if this was a classic inside joke between us, "the day I came home I had never seen my father so disappointed when I explained what happened. I begged him to run away from me, that we could all escape this war but my dad was running off the high of power the Dark Lord had given him, and he said he'd be damned if his daughter took that away."
"And your mom?"
"Will faithfully follow whatever side he's on until death do them part," she said quickly without a stutter. As if she'd been told that line her whole life.
"I can't believe they just put you in here," I shook my head sadly, wondering how many other people were placed in these cages, either trying to sleep away the nightmare or listening to my conversation for updates on the outside world.
"It's not too bad," she shrugged her shoulder, "the alternate option was Azkaban and I would rather be here fighting and with everyone else than losing my mind in that prison." I took a couple seconds to myself to really absorb what was going on. Now that the other three escaped, I only prayed that they were safe since I wasn't there to warn them of any life threatening situations.
"So how do we escape?" I asked Anastasia, needing to know absolutely everything.
"You don't," she smiled grimly, "once you're in here you don't leave," she shook her head and then grabbed the lighter back from me.
"Hey!"
"It's best you get some sleep now. They should be making bathroom rounds in a couple hours from now." I could hear her scuffle to the other side of her cage, the silence making my ears more receptive and I could hear everyone's loud breaths from the other cages beside me.
And I focused on that, counting softly in my head. Number after number.
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Anastasia was right. After what felt like two hours, guards came in and took us from our cages one by one to use the bathroom. Each person went with their cage mate as they left the room, but since I was on my own they took me solo.
The guards were as unfriendly as you'd expect, pushing my back with their walking sticks until I stumbled into the small stall of a toilet.
I grimaced as I looked down at the toilet, trying not to gag as I avoided the mess on the ground. I forced myself to pee quickly and then ran out of the stall.
When I had left there was no guard in the small bathroom just me on my own, and I felt my insides panic as I realized this was the first moment I was unsupervised and uncaged.
I pulled myself up to head length of the window and attempted to open it but the slide was stuck.
"Cmon!" I grunted and felt my nails all chip as I pulled up at the window with all my might. My shoulder hissed in pain from earlier but I ignored it as I tugged even harder. But my grasp on the window slipped through my hand, and my fist went through the glass accidentally.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" A guard stormed in and stared at my bloody hand through the window. Either way though nothing would've happened. I could see the other side and it was an illusion, the only thing through the window being a brick wall.
The guard grabbed my hands forcibly and pulled them behind my back, "no let me go!" I screamed and tried to trash, "fucking let go of me!" Another guard came in and pointed his wand straight at me, petrifying my body as I felt my limbs go completely still.
I could see and hear everything happening in front of me but my body stayed stiff, and all I could do was shoot my eyes back and forth.
They carried my body down back to the cages, not even caring when my head bumped the wall at the corner.
My body was placed back onto the cold ground as they locked me back inside the cage and all I could do is feel the sly tear slip from my eyes.
"Violet?" Anastasia said softly over to me. I couldn't even respond if I wanted to, which I didn't. Instead I stayed in my crooked angle on the ground as she scooted closer to me.
"I promise it gets better," she tried to reassure me, "every Friday we have a nice guard who takes pity on us. She tries to smuggle down some extra food or even cookies sometimes."
I scoffed in my head. Yeah cookies makes up for being locked up in a goddamn cage.
"I'm assuming they silenced you or you don't want to talk to me," she breathed out, "and I don't blame you if you don't. I've done some shitty things in the past. Things i'll live regretting forever."
The silence lingered in the air as she stayed close to me but didn't say anything again. Instead I could hear the flick of the lighter shut off and she scooted back to another side of her cage.
The next ten minutes or so were spent with me struggling to connect my brain back with my body, and I almost cheered when I could wiggle my fingertips once again, which means the petrification was wearing off.
"Pine?" Another voice whispered, this time from the other side. It was a male voice, and one I didn't recognize, "I know you hear me so i'll just say this. We all know Anastasia's past but hopefully you find it in your heart to forgive her."
I managed to make a sort of grumbling noise in my mouth to serve as an obvious scoff for this boys request.
"I knew you'd say something like that," he chuckled, "but if you pitied Draco so fucking much then why don't you have that towards sympathy towards her? Aren't they both two kids given an impossible choice in this hell hole of a life? Kind of like yourself."
I let his words swirl in my brain as I considered what he said. This boy must've gone to Hogwarts if he knew the circumstances with Draco but I still couldn't pin a name.
"Just some food for thought," he sighed and moved away from me again.
The silence was overwhelming and I could feel exhaustion trickling over me but I refused to sleep. To doze off. I couldn't lose concentration on the most important thing right now and that was how was I going to escape the Underground.
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