The Pieces Fall Into Place

The forests were very similar to the Dark Forest, although a closer inspection at slower speeds would have shown some animals that were strange to say the least. The Snitch, however, was still acting in very much the same fashion; zipping away a pace that could drive it through a tree had it collided with one. They had no idea where they were, and neither of them was about to stop and ponder over it. Catching the bloody Snitch was on the top of the to-do list. Harry would worry about how to get out of the forest after he caught the Snitch and had a decent laugh at Malfoy.

The sun had long ago began its nightly descent, and Harry was having an increasingly difficult time dodging the branches that now appeared to spring out of the shadows. The wind howled and the trees moaned in protest at Harry's reckless speed. Beside him, Draco, who like Harry was clad in his Hogwarts cape, was barely visible except for his pale skin and hair.

The Snitch began to veer towards trees that had grown too close together for even the slenderest Seeker to follow. Thus, Draco and Harry, who had been neck and neck for the entire chase, split up and circled around the thicket in opposite directions. Coming around the bend, Draco saw the Snitch making its way to the far side of a field.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Out of the growing shadows, a pale, cold hand shot up and caught the Snitch. This strange turn of events made Draco pull into an abrupt halt, fully prepared to yell at whoever had caught the Snitch. A little further behind, Draco heard Potter also stop. They watched with horrid fascination as the cloaked figure (who resembled a Death-Eater too much for Harry's taste) began to glide towards them. Slowly from the shadows of the trees, two more cloaked figures joined the first as they all eerily floated towards them. Harry was more than just a tad nervous now. It wasn't the fact that there were three Death-Eaters gliding towards them. Death-Eaters he could handle, it was the fact that he couldn't move. Beside him, he could tell that Malfoy was having the same trouble.

Draco had been in dangerous positions before and seen enough people in dark cloaks to last him a lifetime. After all, Lucius was one of the most active and prominent Death-Eaters in the underground community, and Draco was his heir. But odd procession that marched forward sent chills down his spine. Draco tried to draw himself up taller, make himself more imposing, and found that he couldn't move. It was like someone had placed a full body bind on him and there was nothing he could do. Draco willed the slight panic from his eyes as he watched, unable to look away or blink if he had wanted too. As they drew closer, a strange yet oddly familiar sent flooded Draco's nose. It was sickly sweet and musty; the scent of death.

Harry noted the ghostly white skin (what little that showed underneath the hoods and shadows) and immediately thought of Voldemort. He could remember so vividly; the night of Voldemort's return, the night Voldemort and Dumbledore had fought inside the Ministry. The pale skin immediately made Harry's active imagination run for the worst-case scenario. In his mind, Harry saw the hoods being drawn back and three identical pairs of slit noses and blood-red eyes staring down on him. Harry would have shuddered (if he could) at the thought of three Cruciatus curses being placed on him at once. The one he had endured after the Triwizard Tournament had been painful enough.

Strangely enough, the trio didn't have their wands in hand, nor killing curses on their lips. As silent as stone, two of them merely reached their hands out of their cloaks, waved at the brooms, and began to walk off. Harry watched as first Draco and then himself were towed after the Death-Eaters. They soon lead came upon an old overgrown path through the forest, and they continued along in dead silence. All that could be heard were the trees rustling and groaning and the sound of a raven calling from up in the leafy green depths. Harry and Draco couldn't say anything and the Death-Eaters wouldn't. Draco definitely had several things to say to the cloaked gits that had him frozen.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Out of the gloomy darkness, Draco saw a looming tower rise ominously into the night. This castle, or more appropriately this fortress, was large, cold and uninviting. There was the awful chill that inhabits buildings too old, abandoned too long, or buildings whose walls had seen too many deaths. Draco prayed that it wasn't the last of the three sending the chills throughout his body. Their sinister guides had disappeared when they had crossed the drawbridge, leaving Draco and Harry to float slowly by themselves into a hall. There they saw one person, cloak in place, looking into the monstrous fireplace.

"Dismount your broomsticks." The eerie voice bounced around between the stone walls and eventually dissolved. Harry felt almost compelled to comply with the order. It was like the Imperius curse, but without the nice side effects of not worrying. Harry stood by Draco, feeling slightly more amicable towards him considering the fact that his was the only face he knew. They stood side by side, watching and waiting to find out what the Death-Eater was going to do. Draco wiggled his toe to check if he had full control of his body again. He wasn't all that worried about the Death-Eater bit, but Harry knew that Death-Eaters definitely equaled pain and suffering in general, death and murder to be more specific.

Draco wasn't about to stand around waiting for his captor to taunt him with information. He stepped forward and put on his iciest "you are beneath me" voice, allowing the coldness in his voice to permeate all the way into his eyes.

"Why have you brought us here? What is this place?" The figure did not respond, did not even acknowledge the fact that Draco had spoken. Draco's temper flared a little as the cloaked captor stood silent.

"Are you a little hard of hearing? I asked why have you brought us here." Draco raised his voice louder and took a step closer. The figure in black did not respond for a long time.

"There is no need to shout, Mr. Malfoy. My hearing is perfectly fine. You would do better to follow your comrade Mr. Potter and remain silent. All will be explained in due time." Draco immediately felt his malice towards Harry grow. Even in this place, everyone was still fawning over Harry Potter, the great and glorious wanker of the generation.

"Now allow me to introduce myself..." The cloaked figure slowly reached up to remove the hood.

*~*~*~*~*~*

She had to be the strangest Death-Eater to exist. Her eyes were definitely evil enough, being entirely black and the large bat wings extending from her shoulder blades didn't help any. But she didn't seem evil. Well, at least she didn't seem evil to Harry. Draco was more pessimistic about human nature.

"Welcome Chosen Geminus. My name is. I will be your guide while you remain on Raeth."