tw: may increase anxiety, torture not graphic
Hermione let out a scream as the snatchers threw spells in their direction. Hazel turned around, throwing spells right back, not hitting anyone, but making them duck and run slower. "Fuck," Hermione tripped over her feet, scratching at her knees.
"C'mon, Mione," the black haired girl picked her up however she could, taking Hermione's purse and slinging it over her own shoulder, continuing to run as fast as her legs would take her. Hermione let go off Hazel's hand when she realised she was holding her friend back, slowing her down. Harry was the fastest one, so Hazel did her best trying to keep up with him. George was right behind them.
The five of them were almost at the same level of velocity, all of them panting and dodging spells as best as they could. Ron was the slowest one in the group, still not as strong as he used to be before the Splinch. "Incarcerous!" One of the Snatchers yelled, wand pointed at Ron. With that, the boy fell down on the ground, feet getting tied up together.
The rest of them kept running, not even noticing what had happened. Hermione was the second one to get caught, letting out a screech as a Snatcher picked her off the ground. Hazel noticed three other Snatchers were coming up behind them, she pointed her wand at the ground in front of them, blowing it up, sending them to the floor. She ran down a hillside along with Harry before stopping when she saw four others coming out from the woods. "Fuck, fuck," she cursed under her breath, turning around to look at Harry. The girl raised her wand, pointing it directly at Harry's face, muttering a Stinging Jinx, causing him drop down with a groan.
George stopped, staring as Harry's face swelled up so much it became unrecognisable. "What did you do?" He whispered, kneeling down in front of Harry.
Hazel hushed him, quickly taking off Harry's glasses and putting them in George's hidden pocket. "The Hallows exist," Harry said, trembling slightly. He'd had another vision. "He's only after one of them - the last one, he knows where it is. He's gonna have it by the end of the night, You Know Who's found the Elder wand," as he finished speaking, Hazel felt someone grabbing her, making her scream.
"Don't touch her!" George yelled as someone pulled him up roughly, punching him in the abdomen. He doubled over in pain, now on the ground, coughing slightly.
"Leave him!" Hazel struggled against the Snatcher's grip, trying to get to George.
"Your boyfriend will get much worse than that -"
"Get off me!" She tried to break free from the man's grip but he was far too strong.
"- if he doesn't learn to behave himself," the Snatcher kicked George in the stomach to get his point across. Hazel winced, looking into George's eyes, quietly begging him to stay put. She knew that was the last thing he wanted but it had to be done. Hermione and Ron were being held by another two, both of them silent as they watched the scene unfold. Harry got pulled up by one of them, expressionless as the man lifted him up by the shirt. "What happened to you Ugly?" They both turned to look at the leader of the pack. "No, not you," he dismissed his lackey. "What's your name?"
Harry blinked, thinking fast. "Dudley, Vernon Dudley," he lied quickly as the Snatchers took away his wand.
"And you?" The leader walked over to Hazel, who continued to fight against her captor. "The most lovely," the girl flinched away from the man's touch, but he cupped her cheeks tightly to find her gaze, tears filling her ocean eyes. "What do they call you, beautiful?" He asked, smirking at her fearful expression. George gritted his teeth at the sight, jaw tight.
"Penelope Clearwater," Hazel lied once the man loosened his grip around her face. "Half Blood," she mumbled, avoiding eye contact. She felt him caress her face, tucking her hair behind her ear. George's blood boiled, he tried getting up from the ground only to have another Snatcher step on his back, keeping him down. The man chuckled darkly as he saw George from the corner of his eye. He leaned down against Hazel's neck, sniffing, making her lips part in terror.
George's eyes widened with fury as the man nosed around her neck. Slowly, the man stuck his tongue out, wanting to get a taste. "There's no Vernon Dudley in here," a Snatcher spoke, interrupting his actions. Hazel choked on a sob as the attacker pulled away from her, leaving her panting for air.
"Hear that Ugly? This says you're lying," he told Harry, lifting up a small book. "How come you don't want us to know who you are?" Hazel directed her gaze back to George, who was already looking at her, sorrowful.
"That's wrong, I told you who I am," Harry insisted, trying to make his voice sound different from normal. Hazel felt her heart clench when the leader of the Snatchers brushed away Harry's hair, frowning as he noticed the scar on his forehead.
Please, God, no. It was distorted, but you could still make it out if you tried. "Change of plans," the man said, narrowing his eyes. "We're not taking this lot to the Ministry..."
Hazel bit her lip, closing her eyes when the apparition occurred. When they opened again, the first thing she saw was Malfoy Manor. It had to be. They began walking and turned right, into a wide driveway that led off the lane. The high hedge curved with them, running off into the distance beyond the pair of impressive wrought-iron gates barring their way. A handsome manor house grew out of the darkness at the end of the straight drive.
Out of the house, came Bellatrix, smirking at the whole group. "What do we have here, then?" She asked, a playful tone in her voice. The leader pushed Harry against the gate, lifting up his hair, revealing his scar. The woman's eyes grew, and the playfulness erased from her face. "Get me, Draco." Hazel couldn't help but feel slightly relieved that she was going to see him, for a second forgetting about the circumstances.
The gates opened and they were pushed inside, the Snatchers still holding them all tightly. George snuck glances in Hazel's direction, desperately wanting to hold her until this was all over. The hallway was large, dimly lit, and sumptuously decorated, with a magnificent carpet covering most of the stone floor. They entered what Hazel assumed was the main hall, she'd never seen ceilings so tall, only at Hogwarts. Harry got pushed down to his knees, Bellatrix held him tightly, wand against his neck as the rest of the group was held on the other side of the room.
When Draco walked in along with his parents, Greyback and Wormtail, the first person he searched for was his friend. As soon as their eyes met, his fist tightened. He fought his instincts to run over to her and help, pursing his lips and shaking his head instead. Hazel swallowed with difficulty, taking in his appearance. Draco was skinnier, dark circles under his eyes, he looked tired. "Wait -" she went to speak but the Snatcher stopped her by covering her mouth with his filthy hand.
"Well?" Bellatrix asked Draco, pulling on Harry's hair so that he could see his face more clearly. Draco took a few steps forward.
"I can't be sure," Draco replied, not wanting to betray his friend.
"Draco," Lucius joined him, holding his neck. "Look closely, son," Draco flinched visibly at the man's touch. "If we are the ones to hand Potter over to the Dark Lord, everything would be forgiven. All would be as it was, understand?" The man nodded, wanting Draco to say it.
"Now we won't be forgetting who actually caught him, I hope, Mr. Malfoy," the leader of the Snatchers spoke, making Lucius snap his head in his direction.
"How dare you talk to me like that in my own house?" Lucius snarled, narrowing his eyes. Hermione flinched at how loud he was being.
"Lucius," Narcissa walked to him, putting her hand on his shoulder to try and calm him down. Hazel wondered if they were soulmates. Narcissa didn't seem half as bad as Lucius was. Draco had mentioned his relationship with her was slightly better than with his father.
Bellatrix got up, still holding Harry's hair tightly, pulling Draco closer to the kneeling boy. "Come on, sweetie, don't be shy. We know those are Potter's friends but -" she said in her breathy voice. "- If this isn't who we think he is, Draco, and we call Him, he'll kill us all," Bellatrix explained. "We need to be sure."
"What's wrong with his face?" Draco wondered out loud. Hazel looked down at the floor, knowing she was to blame.
"Yes, what is wrong with his face?" Bellatrix asked the Snatchers.
"He came to us like that, something he picked up in the forest, I reckon," a dumb Snatcher said. Hazel knew Bellatrix wasn't going to buy it.
The woman looked around the group, finally drinking them all in. "Right... He ran into a Stinging Jinx," shit. "Was it one of you four?" She asked, waving her wand around. Bellatrix let go off Harry's hair, walking towards the four of them. "I remember you... You ran into my Cruciatus Curse," she laughed sardonically. Hazel felt the woman lift her chin up with her wand, making them lock eyes. "Pretty painful that, wasn't it Blue Eyes?" George snarled in response. "Oh, what have we here then? Soulmates," she mocked, a small smile forming on her lips. "Get me their wands, we'll see their last spells were..."
Their wands had already gotten taken away in the forest, so the Snatchers simply handed them to Bellatrix. "This must be yours," she chuckled, looking at George's wand and then at him. "Just like that charmed necklace you got your Veela mate," Hazel's eyes widened. "You've got Fenwick all over your eyes, dear. We remember your father," The mention of her dad felt like a dagger to the heart. Bellatrix laughed as she checked out the last spells, seeing it was indeed Hazel's wand the one that cast the Stinging Jinx. "Got you," she singsonged, laughing manically before her eyes landed on the Sword of Gryffindor that a Snatcher was holding. "What's that?" She gasped. "Where'd you get that from?"
"It was in her bag when we searched her," the man nodded at Hazel. George turned to look at her, scared for what was next. No, fuck! "I reckon it's mine now," the smile on the man's face left as soon as Bellatrix sent him flying back with a stunning spell. She then turned to the other Snatchers, who were already launching at her, using the Incarcerous spell to stop them.
"ARE YOU MAD?" The leader screamed before she did the same to him, pulling him down to the floor as he got strangled almost to death. The teens watched it happen, frozen in place.
"GO! GO!" Bellatrix demanded. However they could, the Snatchers got up from the ground, disapparating out of the house. "Pettigrew, Greyback! Put the boys and the mudblood in the cellar," the werewolf took George and Ron while Pettigrew grabbed Hermione and Harry. "I want to have a little conversation with this one," she grabbed Hazel by the hair, making her scream at the tug. "Girl to girl!" Harry struggled against Peter's grip but Hermione stopped him, pinching his side. They couldn't blow this cover.
"NO!" George screamed, thrashing around as forcefully as he could. "You can have me! Keep me!" He pleaded, almost throwing himself at Bellatrix. The woman turned to him, slapping him across the face so hard the sound echoed through the room. "Please," George cried, not even feeling the sting, as Greyback pulled at him, not letting him out of his grasp. "Please don't hurt her..." The boy begged, bowing his head in submission.
"Wait," Bellatrix spoke, stopping in the middle of the room. Greyback stopped, holding the prisoners still. Hazel was on the floor, hands on top of Bellatrix's who held her hair tightly. Cynically, the witch took Hazel's necklace off, letting go off her hair, sending her down to the floor completely. She walked over to George, putting it around his neck with an ironic smile. "If she dies in questioning, I'll take you next," she smirked, trailing her index finger down George's jaw, making him shudder. Draco stood by the wall, fists curled up, gulping. Then the werewolf continued walking, taking them downstairs, opening the cellar door and pushing them all in before Wormtail did the same.
With an evil grin, Greyback crooned, "Reckon she'll let me have a bite of the Veela when she's finished with her? I'd say I get a bite or two..." George turned around at this words, jumping with an angry scream right after the werewolf shut the bars, locking them inside. He slammed his hands against the caged door, furious.
"HAZEL!" He bellowed when he heard a shrilling scream coming from above them. "HAZEL!" He kicked against the bars, trying to break them down to no avail. Harry pulled him off, pushing George against the wall to calm him down.
"Be quiet," Hermione hushed him quietly. "We need to work out a way -"
"We need a plan," Harry interrupted Hermione as another terrible scream was heard. George couldn't help the tears that rolled down his cheeks while listening to the love of his life getting hurt. "We need a plan, now..." Harry was trying his best to remain calm but it was getting harder, that was his sister up there.
"Harry?" Came a soft voice from the other side of the cellar. Ron took out Dumbledore's artefact, releasing the light so that they could see who it was.
"Luna," Harry breathed out, squinting as he tried to make out her face. He almost couldn't see without his glasses. A man stood next to her, and even if Harry couldn't see him, he was almost sure it was Ollivander. Harry couldn't make the face out of the goblin who stood beside Ollivander.
Their reunion got interrupted by Bellatrix's loud voice. "I'M GOING TO ASK YOU AGAIN, WHERE DID YOU GET THIS SWORD? WHERE?" She screamed angrily.
George shut his eyes tightly as Hazel's voice came through next. "We found it! We found it, please!" She yelled back. Her soulmate couldn't help but feel guilty. He was the one that got it out of the lake and now she was getting tortured for it. A heart wrenching scream left Hazel's lips next, making George push Harry off of him and try to open the door again.
"HAZEL!" He tried to tear the door open once again, heart beating fast.
"YOU ARE LYING. FILTHY HALF BREED. I KNOW IT. THAT SWORD IS MEANT TO BE IN MY VAULT AT GRINGOTTS! HOW DID YOU GET IT?" Bellatrix hissed, pressing Hazel down against the floor. The girl cried in fear, shaking her head as the Death Eater continued screaming. "HOW DID YOU AND YOU FRIENDS TAKE IT FROM MY VAULT?"
"WE DIDN'T TAKE ANYTHING!" Hazel yelled back, sobbing. "Please," George heard her whimper as he continued kicking at the door. "I DIDN'T TAKE ANYTHING!" She yelled desperately.
"I don't believe it," Bellatrix said in a softer tone, George could only hear muffled noises then. Greyback held Hazel's shoulders tightly, preventing her from writhing away as Bellatrix marked her body with her wand, laughing at Hazel's shrieks of agony. Her head was being held down by Bellatrix's hand, producing a headache like she'd never had before.
"PLEASE!" The girl kicked her feet, trying to get her to stop. "NO! PLEASE!" She felt her skin burning under the tip of her wand. Hazel was doing everything to concentrate, turn her pain into anger so she could transform but nothing was working. It was too painful to evade.
"WHAT ELSE DID YOU TAKE? WHAT ELSE HAVE YOU GOT? TELL ME THE TRUTH OR I SWEAR, I WILL RUN YOU THROUGH WITH MY KNIFE JUST LIKE WE DID YOUR FATHER!" George turned to the group and one could almost hear all of their hearts shatter at the sight of his expression. With that, he tried to disapparate without his wand, grunting at the effort.
Luna walked to him, placing her hand on his shoulder. "There's no way out, George," said Luna, watching his fruitless efforts. "The cellar is completely escape proof. I tried it first. Mr. Ollivander has been here for a long time, he's tried everything -" then Hazel was screaming again, the sound went through George like physical pain.
"WHAT ELSE DID YOU TAKE? WHAT ELSE? ANSWER ME!" Bellatrix ordered as Hazel whimpered. The woman got up. "Let go, Greyback!" The werewolf pulled his hands away, stepping aside.
"No, no, no, please," Hazel tried her best to crawl away, blood dripping from her arm. She already knew what came next. "Don't, please -"
"CRUCIO!" Bellatrix pointed her wand at Hazel, who let out an earth shattering cry. Draco watched with tears in his eyes as his friend contorted on the ground, almost as if she was being exorcised. The girl was transported back to the Department of Mysteries. Her skin felt as if it was on fire, it was hot and burning, almost melting off of her. Her head hit the ground multiple times as she squirmed, feeling as if her bones were breaking.
Draco left the hall, using her torture as a distraction, going to his chambers. He had to do something, but what? What could he do? He paced back and forth in his room for a few seconds, thinking about a solution until he finally got it.
"NO!" George was half sobbing as he pounded the wall with his fists and Harry, in utter desperation, pulled on the bars, trying to get them to open. "HAZEL!"
"HOW DID YOU GET INTO MY VAULT?" They heard Bellatrix scream. Hazel cried out as the woman twisted her wand, intensifying the pain. "DID THAT DIRTY LITTLE GOBLIN IN THE CELLAR HELP YOU?" The Cruciatus Curse stopped, and Hazel let out a tiny whimper, trembling against the floor. "ANSWER ME!"
The black haired girl raised her gaze with all of her remaining energy. "I don't know him," she mumbled out. "I've never been inside your vault," she said honestly. "The Sword we have - it's a copy - just a copy," she then lied, trying to give the others time to think of something and get out of the cellar.
"A COPY?" Screeched Bellatrix, "Ugh! A likely story!" Hazel blinked as she watched the droplets of blood fall from her arm on to the floor.
"But we can find out easily," came Lucius' voice. "Pettigrew, fetch the goblin. He can tell us wether the Sword is real or not," the group heard that loud and clear, turning to the Goblin, who glanced back at them with a serious look on his face.
George turned to Harry, pulling him away from the door as they heard footsteps beginning to come downstairs. George was ready to jump on the Death Eater, but Ron stopped by holding his arm before taking the light back into the deluminator. Pettigrew pointed his wand at the group, "Stand back, line up against the back wall. Don't try anything or I'll kill you!" He threatened. They did as they were bidden, all of them standing, glaring at the Death Eater. The man walked in wand held out in front of him. Determined, he ceased the goblin by the arm and dragged him away, locking the door behind him.
Suddenly, there was a loud crack in the cellar. Ron clicked the deluminator so that they could see what had happened. The lights revealed Dobby, standing there in the middle of the room. He had apparated into their midst. "DOB-" Harry hit Ron on the arm to stop him from shouting, and the youngest ginger looked terrified of his mistake.
Dobby trembled with fear, he couldn't believe he was back at the home of his old masters. It was clear that he was petrified. "Harry Potter," he squeaked. "Dobby has come to rescue you!" He claimed.
"But - how did you -" An awful scream cut Harry's words, reminding them that Hazel was getting tortured once again. George couldn't take it anymore.
"You can disapparate out of this cellar," George said, pointing at Dobby, who nodded. "And you can take humans with you?" Dobby nodded once again. "Okay - okay - we can get out of here then!"
"Right," Harry nodded, turning back to Dobby once again. "Take Luna and Mr. Ollivander to... Take them to..."
"Bill and Fleur's!" Said Hermione, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Shell Cottage!"
"On the Outskirts of Tinworth," Ron specified with a nod. Dobby blinked a few times, taking it all in and then nodding for the last time.
"And then come back, can you do that Dobby?" Harry asked, looking down at the elf.
"Of course, Harry Potter," Dobby fiddled with his fingers.
"Whenever you're ready, sir," Luna said sweetly, trying to smile down at the little elf.
Dobby couldn't help but perk up at the sound of that. "Sir... I like her very much," He hurried over to Mr. Ollivander and Luna. He held their hands tightly. "Meet me at the top of the stairs in ten seconds," Dobby told the rest of them before disapparating out of the room with another loud crack.
"WHAT WAS THAT?" Bellatrix yelled from on top of the cellar. George shut his eyes tightly, cursing under his breath.
Lucius turned around, narrowing his eyes as Draco entered the room once again, not making eye contact. He knew his son well enough, something had occurred. "Wormtail - go check." He ordered the Death Eater, then footsteps.
"I'm gonna try and tackle him," George murmured to the rest of them, clenching his jaw. There was no other choice. The moment Wormtail entered the room and noticed two of them were gone, they were lost. "Turn the lights off - for now," George added, taking Harry's glasses from his pocket and handing them to the boy, who put them on hastily. They were tight around his swollen face but at least he could see where he was going.
As they heard someone walking down the stairs, they backed against the walls on either side of the door. "Stand back!" Came Wormtail's voice. "Stand away from the door, I'm coming in," the door flew open and for a split second Wormtail gazed into the apparently empty cellar, then George launched himself upon him. He grabbed his wand arm and forced it upwards. Ron turned the light back on. Harry slapped a hand to his mouth and muffled his voice. His wand emitted sparks but George was stronger, angrier, and more capable. However, Wormtail's metal hand closed around Harry's throat.
"What is it, Wormtail?" Called Lucius from above.
"Nothing," Ron called back, in a passable imitation of Wormtail's wheezy voice. Harry could barely breathe. "It's all fine!"
"You're going to kill me!" Harry choked, trying to pry at his metal fingers. "After I saved your life? You owe me, Wormtail," with that, the silver fingers slackened. Hermione's eyes widened, helping Harry off the ground. They all saw the man's eyes water with fear and surprise, he seemed just as shocked as the rest.
"I'll have that," George grunted, removing the wand from his hand forcibly.
Pettigrew's eyes dilated in terror, his own silver fingers were moving inexorably towards his own throat. Harry tried to drag down the hand, not wanting anyone else to die, but to no avail. The silver tool that Voldemort had given his most coward servant, had turned against his useless owner. And so, he was being strangled in front of them. Together, Harry and Ron tried to remove the silver fingers from Wormtail's throat.
Hermione walked to George, taking the wand from his hand. "Relashio!" But nothing happened. Pettigrew dropped to his knees and that same moment Hazel let out a dreadful scream. Wormtail gave a last twitch and was still.
AN: wowowwowowow that was hard to write. i love my characters, writing about their suffering is tough... i was gonna make malfoy manor just one chapter but it was too long so it's gonna be this one and a little of the next. i think you're gonna like what i have in store for you :)
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