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"Angelica..." came the coldest hiss she'd ever heard.
She jerked upright in shock and squinted immediately as a blinding white light filled her sight. She blinked quickly, trying her best to adjust to the blinding white around her and to make sense of where she was.
A second hiss followed as she made out the long, cloaked figure standing before her.
"My Lord?"
Within seconds, her surroundings began to take form. A glance around told her that she stood in an empty room. The source of that brilliant white light, clearly gone. And before her eyes stood The Dark Lord looking so pale that he may have camouflaged into that whiteness from before.
Her hands instinctively moved for her wand, only for her to realise that it wasn't on her person. Angelica looked down and saw that she was wearing her nightdress from when she had gotten into bed.
"Where am I?" she questioned.
A small prickly laugh filled the room before his articulate voice spoke. "Have you not figured it out yet? Perhaps you are not as smart as I hoped you were."
She frowned, wondering if this was all part of her imagination. Maybe, she was just having a nightmare. She moved her hand to her thigh and pinched herself, her fear growing when she felt the pain.
"Is—is this a dream?" she asked, in confusion.
"Not quite."
"You're in my mind, aren't you?" she asked, with a tone of panic.
"Took you long enough," he lilted.
She looked up at him with a deep frown, wondering how it was possible for someone to look so unreal and yet manage to cause such widespread agony and fear.
The Dark Lord waited for her to shudder; to look away. He waited for that apology for casting her gaze at him.
None of it came.
"Kneel before me!"
Angelica felt her knees buckle underneath her involuntarily. She had no control over the bowing of her head into that position of inferiority.
A sharp, pointy object slid down her face and pushed her chin up, making her realise his nail was poking into her neck. She kept her gaze steady, willing herself not to let her discomfort show.
"Have you not wondered why you have been struggling to find sleep?"
She gulped hard. "I have."
That was why she wanted to see the thestrals. She wondered if perhaps seeing them would give her a reason as to why she could see them. As to why she hadn't felt at ease in weeks. At least, not since she'd been marked with the mark of the man in front of her.
"It has taken me over a month to be able to get into this mind." That fingernail clawed up her face and grazed over her scalp. "What is in this mind that is powerful enough to keep me out?"
A moment of silence followed and then the poking nail was replaced by a jab of a wand. "Nonetheless, I am here now. Time to find your weakness."
A too familiar pain surged through her mind as a demanding hiss left The Dark Lord's mouth. "Let me see."
Angelica surrendered her consciousness in the way she did when reading a memory until her mind was wispy and her world dizzy. She expected the pain to disappear at her obedience, but it only worsened as the trickle of magic dug deeper and deeper into her mind.
And then all at once, The Dark Lord removed his wand from the girl, leaving her to dwindle in the essence of the remaining pain.
He looked down at her, his expression unreadable as he began to speak in a language she couldn't understand. She didn't know if it was because of her wounded mind or if it was because it was a language she did not know.
She clenched her fists as panic struck her thoughts.
What did he see?
What if it was Sirius?
Her thoughts were cut off when his hands wrapped around her head. And then a cry escaped from her throat as the feeling of needles poking around her brain exploded inside her. Her thoughts mushed into a jumble, leaving her only with remnants of the pain.
"Open up!" he commanded her.
Her body trembled and succumbed to the pain as incoherent phrases and mutterings filled the void around her. She was expelled into an abyss of darkness before flashes of blinding light and wispy figures danced before her, each one looking at her with soulless eyes of gloom and dread until she met the cold red slits which belong to The Dark Lord.
Her breathing came out in jerky, uneasy heaves as hundreds of convulsions travelled from her brain to the rest of her body, distributing the concentration of pain.
"Do you know what I see when I look into your mind?"
"No..." she drawled out, swaying slightly.
A long silence followed before the Dark Lord spoke again.
And all he said was one word.
"Nothing."
"But..." She gripped onto the floor to hold her steady. "But... that's impossible, right?" Her voice was small as she said, "That only happens for—"
"The dead," the Dark Lord finished for her.
Before she could react, he stood up.
"Do you know what that means?" He sounded rather excited about this discovery. "You could be the very person who could trav—" He stopped mid-word. Angelica looked up at him, as she waited for him to continue.
He cackled darkly. "Never mind that." He clapped his hands together. "You have more to offer than I thought. I have great things planned for you." Something flashed in his eyes. "Great things."
When he noticed her sway limply, he said, "Very well. We are done here."
A beam of light sprouted from his wand. "I have a message for you to deliver to Albus Dumbledore. Go tell him that his spy..."
Her brain was squeezed once again as gruesome images of a body being tortured filled her mind. Blood and gore and guts. Bile rose to her throat as she watched the woman being diminished into nothing.
"... is dead," finished The Dark Lord. Another blinding flash of light followed as laughter faded off into the distance and she pulled away.
Angelica bolted upright immediately. Her body was drenched in sweat, her heartbeat was erratic, and her head was throbbing. She untangled herself from her sheets, and threw on a cardigan, before running out of her dorm and directly to Professor Slughorn's chambers.
She banged on his door repeatedly, until he drowsily pulled it open and looked at her with worry.
"Dumbledore. I need to see Professor Dumbledore."
As he rushed her down to Dumbledore's office, she ignored the heaviness pounding inside her brain.
As soon as they walked into Dumbledore's office, he looked at her with worry. "Miss Lestrange, what is—"
"Your spy..." she managed to whisper out, "...is dead."
And then she collapsed onto the ground as her mind spiralled into a ravine of darkness.
***
"What did you say happened, Albus?" asked Madam Pomfrey as the student was being moved onto the bed.
"She collapsed."
Madam Pomfrey placed her hand on the girl's head. "She's burning up. We have to cool her down." She began to roll up the sleeves of the girl, but her eyes caught something, earning a loud gasp from her.
"H-H-Headmaster. Y-You have to s-see this," she stammered out.
Professor Dumbledore scurried forward to see what had caused such a reaction.
He had made his speculations, but his questions were answered at the sight of the Dark Mark blemishing the skin on the arm of the student.
"Don't worry about this, Poppy," Dumbledore said calmly, turning to look at her.
Madam Pomfrey looked appalled, "We must report her right away, Albus. Have her sent to Azkaban—"
"Azkaban? She is but a child. She does not even know the true meaning of such a mark," said Dumbledore as he inconspicuously reached for his wand.
"But it is his mark. Child or not."
Dumbledore knew very well that Madam Pomfrey would never waver in what he told her, had it to do with any other matter. He looked at the girl that lay unconscious on the bed in front of them and sighed, "Forgive me, Poppy." The matron looked confused for a second, but then Dumbledore cited, "Imperio."
A dazed look came over Madam Pomfrey, as Dumbledore said, "Hide the mark well, Poppy. Don't let any other eyes see it and don't tell anyone about it either. Send for me as soon as she regains consciousness."
"Indeed, Headmaster," said the matron, going on to tend to the girl as if oblivious to the mark that terrified her out of her wits.
***
Angelica's eyes slowly opened. She instantly recognised the ceiling above her to be that of the infirmaries.
"Go get Professor Dumbledore, she's awake."
Sounds of hurried footsteps, followed by the loud banging of a door resonated through the room. Angelica pressed her hand to her forehead to soothe the spinning headache.
An arm wrapped around her shoulder, trying to help her to sit up. "Easy there, Miss Lestrange," said Madam Pomfrey and she reached for the container that was left at the bedside.
Angelica swallowed the tablespoon of medication that had been shoved into her mouth before groggily asking, "What happened?"
"You've been asleep for 2 days," Professor Dumbledore said, walking in.
Angelica turned her head in his direction, but she immediately whipped her head in the other direction when she saw that Sirius was with him.
"Make him go away."
"Angel—" began Sirius, but she shook her head.
"I don't want him here!"
Angelica kept her eyes focussed on the grey curtains on her left side of the room, as Dumbledore said, "Perhaps you should give her some time to recover, Mr Black."
Sirius grunted and she waited to hear the bang of the door but instead, she felt warm fingers wrap around her cheeks and turn her face. Towards him.
"What's wrong?" he asked gently, his eyes searching hers.
She inhaled deeply, "I don't want to be around you. I HATE BEING AROUND YOU!"
He flinched at her second statement and she moved her face out of his hold. "Leave."
Utter hurt and confusion filled his eyes. He knew she didn't mean it. Even if she was avoiding him, she would never mean that.
Sirius sighed, "Did I do something wrong? I am sorry, I—"
"CAN YOU JUST GET OUT? JUST LEAVE ME ALONE," Angelica shouted, making everyone who was in the infirmary turn to look at them. "Please," she added softly, before turning her gaze to the outside again.
Sirius backed away from her slowly at first but then he turned around and stormed out of there, making a point by slamming the doors behind him.
Hot tears threatened Angelica's eyes, but she leaned back on her pillow and did her best to swallow them back.
"I'm not sure if I told you, Professor," she said, speaking to Dumbledore, "But your spy—"
"Yes, you mentioned it."
The sick feeling built up in her stomach again as the images flashed through her mind once more. "She was tortured. Beaten to death. Cut up. Like she was nothing."
There was a pause before Dumbledore said, "Kiara Fenwick. She was engaged to be married. She gave her life to make the world a better place. She gave her life up for a cause that I'd like you to be a part of."
Angelica snapped her head in his direction. Someone just died and he thought it was time to try and recruit her. She saw him smiling at her sadly, his eyes filled with sympathy. She hated it. She hated being looked at like that.
"I'd like to rest," she said, turning her head away from him and closing her eyes in the hopes that he would leave.
Dumbledore had seen that the girl had felt something. The death of Kiara Fenwick, while horrible and inhumane, had shown him that this girl had more light inside her than she had darkness.
He just needed to find a way for her to find that light.
"Rest well, Miss Lestrange," he said, and as soon as he turned away, his mind started to conjure up a plan.
Over the next few hours, Angelica did not rest. She had visitors dropping in and out of her room. Regulus and Rabastan sat with her for hours straight, not leaving even when Madam Pomfrey told them to.
Alastair was lying next to Angelica on the bed, eating from a box of beans from one of her Get Well Soon baskets. "Fen is asking if she can come to see you."
"Tell her not to bother coming to my funeral when I die," Angelica grumbled, resting her head on his shoulder. The three boys gave each other looks, but none of them said anything. They knew better than to battle with her temper.
"Speak about happy thoughts," murmured Rabastan.
Just then, both Angelica and Rabastan stiffened up at the sound of their mother's sharp voice.
Before the curtains around Angelica's bed could be drawn, Rabastan slipped out the other side and was gone.
"Kill me, Alastair," murmured Angelica, burying her head into Alastair's shoulder as the curtains were pulled open.
"Mrs Lestrange," Alastair greeted with a smile, "How lovely to see you."
"Is she okay?" Abriella asked, frowning down at the sight.
"Yes, but she keeps falling asleep because of all the medication she's taking. I'll tell her to write to you as soon as she—"
"Angelica, I know you're awake."
Angelica scrunched her nose as she looked up. "Hello, mother. Fancy seeing you here."
Abriella Lestrange looked at her over her nose as she straightened her back. "You look like you're doing great. Don't tell me that this is just a ploy you're using to get out of attending lessons."
"Why, mother—" exclaimed Angelica, holding her hand over her chest. "You know me like a book."
The door of the infirmary had opened once again, and they all turned as James Potter walked in. As soon as he saw Angelica's mother, he turned and went to the first student he saw. A Ravenclaw 3rd year girl.
"Isn't that Sirius' friend?" her mother asked, raising an eyebrow at the confused Ravenclaw girl.
"How should I know?" Angelica asked.
"Yes. He is," Regulus answered.
"Hmm," hummed Abriella. She faced forward again. "Tell your brother next time if he doesn't want to see me, he can just pretend to be asleep as well."
Angelica pressed her lips together, as her mother turned and left once again, leaving them to wonder what the point of her visitation was at all.
With her gone, James Potter made his way towards her bed. She could have pretended to play dead, but she was sure that wouldn't have deterred him.
With a sigh, she patted Alastair's shoulder. "Go." Her eyes flicked to Regulus. "You can come back later."
Although neither one of them looked particularly pleased by her request, they obliged and woke up. As they walked past James, he offered them smiles which neither one returned.
"2 whole days?" asked James.
Angelica rubbed her hand over her head, hoping he'd realise that she had a headache and take his leave. But he stayed there, continuing to pester her with his talk. She sighed loudly, realising that he was as thick as he looked.
"So, what did my boy Sirius do wrong?"
Angelica ignored his question and focused on looking outside the window. A light drizzle was falling over Hogwarts grounds.
"Come on, at least give him a reason for why you don't want to see him," James went on, infuriating her further.
"I'm tired," she hummed.
"Okay, so can I leave and send Sirius down here?" he asked, hopefully.
"You can get lost and stay lost," she remarked.
"How are you feeling?"
"Like I'm floating on rainbows and clouds," she told him, with a fake smile. "Can you leave now?"
"It's an honest question that comes from a place of worry. How are you feeling?"
"Well, if I had a tail, I'd wag it," she replied.
A look of confusion washed over James' face. "Is... does that mean you're fine?"
"You tell me; does that mean I'm fine?"
James gave her a look of worry and without any further exchange of words, he turned on his heel and made his way out.
Before Angelica could relax her shoulders, she was joined by someone else.
Severus Snape. "I would have come to see you earlier, but there was always someone in here," he said, sounding somewhat apologetic.
"It's fine. I actually needed to ask you for a favour," Angelica said, lowering her voice.
"What do you need?" he asked.
She pursed her lips, and then slowly rolled up her sleeve. Severus immediately pulled it back down. "What are you doing?!"
"I need a potion that can make this go away."
"Indefinitely?" he asked, looking around to ensure no one had seen.
"Nope. Not indefinitely. For a short while; a few hours at least."
"I'll see what I can do," he told her.
When he left, Madam Pomfrey drew the curtains around her bed. She demanded that Angelica get some real rest with no more disturbances. Surprisingly, she caught a few minutes of calm and had nearly given in to sleep when she caught that scent. Smoke, sugar and the forest. His scent.
She turned on her back and looked around, seeing that her curtains were still drawn and that there was no one else inside. Invisibility cloak.
Angelica sighed loudly. He was the biggest nuisance she had ever come across in her life. And she had come across many.
She shifted on her bed, moving towards the left side of the bed. There was nothing for a few seconds. No movement. No breathing. Nothing.
Then, Angelica felt the bed dip slightly. She turned her back towards where he was and faced the other way. She felt a weight over her waist, but she had no intention of moving it.
She heard the intake of breath.
He was going to say something.
"Don't," she warned. "Not a word."
For once, he actually listened.