Harry Potter and The Heirs of The Founders

Chapter Twenty-five

The Fall of Chrystal Black

~* February 20^th *~

The funeral for Seamus Finnegan was held that day.

Ron had somehow, with Alasdair's help managed to throw the funeral together in a little under forty-eight hours. It wasn't exactly easy. But somehow he'd done it. Harry was amazed at the courage Ron had shown. He himself was still in a state of disbelief following Seamus' death. It was always the innocent ones that suffered first. Horrendously and needlessly.

Harry's hate towards Voldemort soared. How could one man hate those people who were different so much? Harry felt that he could get worked up enough to successfully use the killing curse on Voldemort. The thought that he could get so angry worried him occasionally. He never let it on to anyone though. He knew his destiny was to destroy Voldemort and he would achieve this or die trying.

Harry glanced at Katie Finnegan, her brown hair pulled up on top of her head, her freckled face stained with tears. Very few Hogwarts students had been permitted to attend the funeral. Just Katie Finnegan and the few members of the Quidditch team that had played with Seamus the previous two years had been allowed to come. Perhaps there was fear that Voldemort may attack the funeral. Yet almost everybody who had been in seventh year the previous year had turned up. In death we stand united. Harry couldn't help but wonder how much time he had. Glancing at Hermione's bulging belly, he felt a strange feeling pass through him. He wondered if his child would be left alone like he was, like Rose had been and like Katie Finnegan now was. It was something he realised that he needed to discuss with Hermione. The reality was there, it needed to be faced. The likelihood that Harry would be around next year was not high. At least not if Voldemort kept reaping havoc so successfully.

Harry's thought's drifted to Seamus. His earliest recollection of Seamus was at the welcome feast in first year with Seamus explaining that his "Mam" was a witch and his father was a Muggle. His thoughts drifted to Seamus' blowing up a feather in charms. Then his thoughts drifted to Defence Against the Dark Arts classes with Lupin, where they faced their greatest fears with each other. Harry had quite often wondered why Seamus' greatest fear was a banshee, yet he had never had a chance to ask him. Harry remembered Seamus at the Quidditch world cup encouraging them to support Ireland. It was this Seamus that he wanted to remember. Not the Seamus who he had fallen out with over the Daily Prophet articles that had almost prevented Seamus from returning for their fifth year. He would remember the Seamus who supported him by joined the DA, the one who had stepped up and joined the Quidditch team as a Beater when they really needed one and the one who sat by Lavender's side as she recovered from the terrible vision she had seen in their Divination NEWTs. Harry would never forget the look of concern that he had had on his face that day. It had made Harry aware of the extent that Seamus cared for her. That love was what had led him to this.

He took one more glance at Katie Finnegan before he knew he had to leave. The loss was so great for a child so young. Her mother and then her brother.

He gave Neville a quick glance before he turned and walked away. He had invited the Gryffindor's from their year around so that they could have their own private wake. Harry felt it was something they needed to do. He thanked the priest, a Father Malcolm, before he pulled Hermione away.

'Let's get out of here,' he whispered.

She nodded at him before he walked over to Ron. He knew Ron still had some business to take care of, so Harry was going to ensure that Rose made it back to Dunvegan safely. The three of them flooed to Dunvegan and Harry collapsed on the sofa in the sitting room.

'Did you notice who was there?' asked Rose trying to start conversation.

'I took notice of who wasn't there,' replied Harry somewhat sarcastically. Hermione gave him a quizzical look. 'Well take for instance Chrystal, she wasn't there and she should have been. Apparently she ran off from Hogwarts last night.'

'Perhaps she had other things to do Harry,' said Rose defensively. 'It was short notice after all.'

'And Professor Snape,' said Harry. 'As a member of the Order he should have been there to keep an eye on things.'

'He was probably working on the toxin,' said Hermione in her calming voice.

'Without Malfoy and Neville?' said Harry. His voice was rising, as was the anger inside him.

'Anything's possible,' said Hermione.

'And Sirius wasn't there,' said Harry. 'Even if he doesn't want to see Chrystal he should have at least made the effort. Seamus was one his students. Parvati wasn't there either. I'm not exactly sure about her anymore.'

'What's wrong with you toady Harry?' asked Rose. 'Why are you acting like this?'

Harry looked at her with surprise.

'Acting like what?' he asked.

'Like you're going to rip someone's head off,' replied Hermione.

'I'm sorry,' I've got a lot on my mind,' he said.

Alasdair MacLeod entered the room.

'I'm sorry to interrupt but I have to tell you that Sirius is missing,' he said. Harry felt the blood drain from his face. 'Heather received a letter written in blood yesterday. Testing has shown that it is Sirius' blood.

'What can we do to help?' asked Hermione.

'I'm not sure,' he said. 'I'll keep you informed. Rose, Dumbledore has requested that you remain here for a few days. He thinks you could be the next target. For now I have to locate my impulsive daughter. She was supposedly headed for Hogwarts. If I'm not back in time for dinner please feel free to eat without me.'

He disappeared as Hermione stood up and came over and hugged Harry tightly.

'Sirius will be okay,' she said. 'He always has been.'

'They're using him,' said Harry. 'To get to Chrystal. Just like they used Seamus to get to Lavender. He's got Lavender and once he gets Chrystal he'll kill the both of them. Promise me Hermione; don't leave here until Voldemort's dead. Go to the Order meetings, they're safe but otherwise don't leave here.' There was an edge of desperation in his voice.

'Harry, I'm fine,' she said. 'I can take care of myself. You know that.'

'Hey guys,' interrupted Rose. 'I'm going to find Mum. When Ron gets here can you ask him to come and find me?'

'Sure Rose,' said Hermione with a smile. After she left Hermione spoke again. 'What are you really worried about Harry? Tell me the truth.'

'I don't want to lose you Hermione,' he said softly. 'And I don't want them to hurt you because of me.'

'I'm not going anywhere Harry,' she said. 'I love you.' She paused for a moment and Harry could feel her eyes burning a hole into his. 'Come and sit down.'

Harry did as Hermione asked.

'What is it?' he said.

'I had a talk to Ron the other day,' she said. 'I asked him if we were rushing things.'

'And what did he say?' asked Harry raising his eyebrows.

'He said I should talk to you about it,' she said with a smile. 'Perhaps we have Harry, but promise me that we'll always talk, no matter what else happens.'

'Of course Hermione,' he said softly. 'I'm sorry about before, the whole thing with Seamus has just got me thinking. We need to decide what to do if both of us die. Especially given that soon enough we'll have a child to consider.'

'You're probably right,' she said. 'How about we talk it over with your parents?'

'Sounds like a plan,' said Harry. 'But for now the others should be arriving soon. We had better get organised.'

Soon enough the guests arrived, and the five of them spent hours exchanging stories about Seamus. As the night became morning Harry felt better. He knew it would take a long time for the pain to disappear; however that's what happens when you lose a good friend like Seamus.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chrys sat on the bed. It couldn't be true. Sirius couldn't be missing. She knew he wasn't dead. She knew she would be able to feel it if he were. Ever since the awakening of the Covenant she had been more attune with the emotions of others. It sat in her mind haunting her. She only hoped it would be over soon.

She lay on the old wooden king-sized bed waiting. The canopy gave her a false sense of security. Somehow she knew he wouldn't be too much longer. She only hoped she had the guts to go through with it and did not try to fight the Imperius. She was still in some disbelief that she had allowed herself to be placed under the Imperius. She almost felt as if she were floating.

The room was not a warm one. It was a circular room, with one door and no windows. The walls were made of cold grey stone that had a chilling effect. Gas lights lit the room from the ceiling. There was no fireplace. The only piece of furniture was the bed. The grey canopy hung over the dark black wooden frame and the dirty grey sheets. She wondered how anyone could live in this kind of room.

He came through the door. The sight revolted her. It almost made her sick.

He no longer looked like the portrait of Tom Riddle. In fact he looked like no one Chrystal had ever seen before. He was tall and skinny. His face was pale and his cheeks were hollowed. His eyes were red; a piercing red that felt like it was penetrating her soul. Whatever he had become, it was clear that Voldemort was no longer anything that resembled a human. She suddenly felt naked without her wand, but maybe she could use that to her advantage.

'Well,' he said in his high-pitch voice. 'What have we here? Nathaira's daughter.'

Chrys said nothing. She just remained quietly mesmerised by the man who had caused so much suffering to so many people.

'Have you come, as your mother did before you, to bargain for the life of your daughter?' he asked.

Chrystal looked up at him in surprise. She wasn't expecting Voldemort to believe the rumour. And she wasn't quite sure what he was implying about her mother either.

'I have no daughter,' she said firmly. She was telling the truth. She only hoped that for Rose's sake that he believed her.

Voldemort laughed.

'That's not what I hear,' he said. 'I hear that your daughter is Rose Heaney. I've heard about her ability to do wandless magic. That's a very rare Celtic gift.' He smiled at her. Chrystal had never seen a smile as something terrifying before.

'Who told you that?' she asked in surprise. She really couldn't think of anyone who would have known about Rose healing her that would have told him that. The only person who she could even think of was Snape. Could she trust him? She certainly hoped so; however she was quickly beginning to doubt.

'I cannot and will not reveal my sources to you,' he said in a chilling manner. 'I will tell you that they are reliable.'

'She can perform wandless magic,' said Chrystal conceding. No harm could be done if Voldemort was already sure of that. 'That is true and ironically that is my fault, however that does not make her my daughter. I cannot believe that somebody as clever as you are would fall for a stupid lie like that.' She was going to finish there however she felt that she should add something. 'My Lord.' There was an air of subservience in what she had said. She only hoped he would believe her.

'Your fault?' he asked slightly bewildered.

'Yes,' she said. 'There is an ancient spell that allows Celts to bestow the ability of wandless magic onto other witches. I used the charm on her.' Chrystal hoped he would believe her. What she had said wasn't quite the truth, but it was close enough in essence. 'It was a decoy.'

'Prove to me that you are Rowen's heir then my dear,' he said. His voice had an edge to it that gave Chrystal goosebumps. 'If you convince me I shall end my pursuit of the girl.' Thinking quickly Chrystal thought of only one way to convince him. She slowly pulled down her skirt to reveal the eagle tattoo that had been there for a little over a year now. He eyed the tattoo very carefully. He tried to remove it several times with various charms. Each time the eagle remained.

'Rowen's sign,' he said. 'Perhaps you are the Heir. There is one way to find out.' He turned away from her and performed the summoning charm. Chrystal couldn't think of anything that he would possibly summon that could prove she was the Heir of Ravenclaw. He showed her the trinket.

As Chrystal gazed at it she felt as if it were calling to her. The bright blue stone in the centre could only be a sapphire. It was as blue as her eyes. The gold and silver of the Celtic cross were intertwined together and in a way almost reminded her of a trinket she had seen in an old book. Her eyes lingered across the cross once more. The trinket that came to her mind was one that Gryffindor (gold) and Slytherin (silver) had had made for Rowena Ravenclaw. Somehow Chrystal thought that Voldemort's possession of this was more than just a coincidence.

'You know what this is don't you?' he asked playfully.

'It's Rowen's,' she said as the necklace called to her. 'It's mine.'

'Well if it is yours I should be able to place it around your neck,' he said with a smile. He leant over and placed the charm on her neck. She felt a little strange as she felt the cold metal against her skin.

'I guess you are Rowen's Heir then,' he said. 'So why have you come?'

'To fulfil my destiny,' she said. She was slightly shivering, the room offering not too much in the way of warmth. The little that was actually there seemed to have been drained by Voldemort.

'And what destiny is that?' he replied laughing.

'The one which Nathaira failed to fulfil because I killed her,' she snapped.

'You killed Nathaira,' he said almost shocked. Chrystal could feel the shock and pain that he was emitting. 'You killed my love.'

'You should be thankful I did,' she said softly. Her voice had a lilt to it. She knew she would have to manipulate him to get out of here alive. 'If I didn't she would have killed me and then you would be in a lot of trouble wouldn't you? The Prophecy of Soaghal would have ensured your death.'

'What you say is correct,' he said contemplating. 'However Nathaira would have spared you. She made a deal for your life and I am bound to keep it.'

Chrystal turned around instantly. What is he talking about?

'What deal?' she asked. 'My mother hated me. She hated me my entire life.'

'She made a blood oath with me,' he said with a smile on his face. 'That I would never kill you. In exchange she would ensure that you never knew what your destiny was.'

'But she told me,' said Chrystal. The words came out of her mouth before she even meant them to. How could she have told me? To break a blood oath is death.

'Then she brought about her own death,' he said. 'How did you kill her?'

Chrystal thought about it long and hard. She had felt her mother curse her. She used all her strength to overcome it. She certainly had heard the words Avada Kedavra in her head, but she couldn't be sure that she hadn't just thought them. At the time there had been no other explanation as to how her mother had died. No one had ever tested her wand. No one had ever told her that she hadn't killed her mother. Reality was quickly setting in. She had been living a lie for the past seventeen years because nobody had ever told her that she had not killed her mother. Her mother told her she was Ravenclaw's Heir knowing that she would die. Why would she have done this? Chrystal knew the answer. It hurt too much to admit it.

She was angry. The time had come to get what she wanted.

'I am here to give you what you want Tom,' she spat his name out. 'I am here to give you that child that you believe will rise to match your power. But I want something in return.'

'What?' he asked with curiosity.

'I want you to return my husband to me,' she said. 'Alive.'

'You want that worthless excuse for a wizard?' he asked. 'You honestly want Sirius Black returned to you. Trust me; you're better off without him.'

'Love can do strange things,' she said. She knew it would hit a nerve. She was right.

You say that, yet it is because of you that my love is no longer here,' he said. 'You profess to love Sirius Black then?'

'It is my tragic flaw,' she said. 'It is the reason that I have not stormed in here and killed you.'

'You kill me?' he asked laughing. 'I highly doubt that my dear. But I cannot kill you. I can however harm you.' Chrystal closed her eyes not wanting to think about what he was implying. 'I will agree to your bargain if you will agree to mine.' Chrystal felt the tension drop inside her. She could do anything for Sirius. Anything he requested. Just as long as she got him back safely. 'You will remain here tonight. I will prepare a potion for you that will ensure the conception of our child. The child that will ensure the survival of the line of Salazar. It is a very old potion that my ancestor himself invented for his poor eunuch slave. You will drink it. It tastes terrible, or so I have been told. Before you leave in the morning we shall conduct a charm to make sure conception has taken place. Before you drink this potion however I require two things.' Chrystal swallowed the saliva in her throat. 'First I must punish you for taking Nathaira. It will not hurt too much my dear, but it is a necessary price to pay. The second is I must charm to look like her. I have no reason for this except the torment it will bring you and your father. The charm will last until the child is born. If you find a way to break it then you are more powerful than I give you credit. After this is complete I will return your husband. In one piece. Do we have a deal?'

'Yes,' she said. 'I agree.'

'Then I must see to the potion,' he said leaving the room.

It was a better outcome than she could have hoped for. He had almost agreed too easily. She didn't know if she could have gone through with what Severus had suggested. The thought of his hands all over her body was enough to make her nauseas. She had heard of the potion he had suggested. It was an old one that required only a hair from each of the two people. She only hoped that the potion wouldn't have an adverse effect on the child she was already carrying.

She had only come to the realisation the night before. Sirius' fertility potion had worked, unfortunately a little late for him to know. It was why she would contemplate anything to get him back. He had to know about his child. It was why she would permit Voldemort's desire to torture her. It was for Sirius.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ron made his way up to Rose's bedroom once everybody had fallen asleep. He sat and watched as she looked so peaceful lying there asleep. Ron almost didn't want to disturb her. But deep down inside he knew he should wake her. He shook her gently until she woke.

'Ron,' she said groggily. 'What time is it?'

'It's about six in the morning,' he said.

'Why didn't you come up earlier?' she asked.

'We were talking about Seamus,' he replied. 'Reminiscing.'

'Oh,' she said. She looked a little defeated. Ron had a good hard look at her. She didn't look well. It was almost a year since they had started going out and yet they had barely seen each other.

Rose had had a difficult year, he was aware of that. However he felt he didn't have to be aware of that to realise it. Her eyes were lined by dark heavy shadows that appeared as if no amount of sleep could ever remove them. She was pale, making her freckles seem so much darker than they really were. Her arms were so thin that Ron thought they would break if she tried to pick up her broomstick.

'What's wrong Rose?' he asked.

'I just thought you would come up earlier,' she said. It wasn't the answer Ron was after.

'What's really wrong?' he asked. 'Why have you changed so much?'

'I have no idea what you're talking about,' she said. Again it wasn't the answer Ron was after.

'Rose, you've lost your spark,' he said. 'You look like you're about to die.'

'I'm fine, really Ron, I'm fine,' she replied. She looked at him with an expression that suggested she was hurt by his comments. He would understand that if he wasn't saying things that weren't true. Relationships were not exactly Ron's forte and this one wasn't making any great leaps of progress.

'No you're not Rose,' he said. 'You haven't been fine in a while. And if I can't make you see that, I hope someone else will.'

He turned around and walked out the door, resolved to find Harry and get him to try and talk to her. Ron didn't know what to do. He really cared about Rose, yet he obviously wasn't giving her the support she needed. She wouldn't even confide in him. He wondered if things would have been different if he had fallen for her after she had finished school. But then he thought about his sister and Malfoy whose relationship just kept on getting stronger and stronger. Ron knocked on the door and entered Harry and Hermione's room. Harry looked at him groggily.

'What's up?' he asked.

'I need to talk to you now,' replied Ron. 'It's about Rose.'

Harry gave him a curious look and then told Ron to meet him in the kitchen in ten minutes. Ron wandered down there and asked a House Elf to prepare him coffee. Ron never ever had any qualms about getting House Elves to do chores for him, like Hermione did. He had tried valiantly to explain to her that if they're not mistreated they're very happy.

Harry made his way down not long after, scooped up his coffee cup and led Ron outside into the gardens. The sun had risen only about half an hour before and the morning was still awakening.

'It's over,' said Ron not wanting to look at his friends face. 'I can't pretend anymore.'

'Pretend what?' asked Harry.

'That she's not destroying herself,' said Ron. 'Did you even notice how skinny she was yesterday? Did you notice the shadows under her eyes? She won't talk to me and tell me her problem, so I don't know what I can do to help her. She doesn't trust me enough Harry. At the moment I don't think she trusts anyone.'

Ron watched the look of disbelief on Harry's face.

'Listen mate, I'll be back at five tonight for fencing,' he said. 'Can you please talk to her? I'm really worried about her.'

Ron didn't wait for Harry's reply before apparating to London. He hoped that this would all be over soon.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lily left early that morning. She had something to do and if what Dudley had said earlier in the week gave any real indication she knew she had to act soon. Lily wasn't the sort of person who normally sought revenge, but this time she wanted to do something to ensure that Vernon Dursley would never forget that Lily Potter knew exactly how he had treated her son.

From what Dudley had told her, she knew that Vernon was getting home from hospital that day. She apparated into the Dursleys' house. It was spotless. That didn't really surprise Lily, it seemed appropriate that Petunia's house would be so. Lily wandered around the house, even examining the cupboard which had been Harry's bedroom for ten years. She was disgusted when she saw the cupboard's size. It confirmed to Lily what she had always thought, Vernon was evil. She and Petunia had had a good relationship before Lily found out that she was a witch. Then Petunia went kind of crazy for a few years and then she met Vernon. Petunia was so intent on impressing Vernon that anything that wasn't normal was wiped immediately out of her life. And that meant Lily.

Lily didn't hold any hopes for her relationship with Petunia. She would be too set in her ways that nothing would change after Vernon's death. But she knew that she didn't want to keep hidden from everybody anymore. And that meant starting with Petunia.

Lily glanced around the house. It was far too clean for her liking. Petunia must have gone all out for Vernon's return home. She wandered through the house taking note of the cupboard that had been Harry's bedroom for ten years. Looking at the size of it made her so angry. She couldn't believe that her sister could treat an innocent boy so badly. An innocent boy through whose veins the Evans blood did flow. She almost wanted to rip off Petunia's head, and yet she knew that would achieve nothing.

Lily heard the door open. She was standing in the living room. She took a deep breath as she heard Vernon grunting as he struggled to make his way into the room. Lily quickly found somewhere to hide herself until Vernon got settled. She really, even for all her dislike of the man, did not want him to keel over at the sight of her.

Petunia ensured that Vernon was settled before she headed off to the kitchen, presumably to make a cup of tea. Lily emerged from her hiding space and walked towards Vernon, who with his eyes shut one could only assume he was trying to sleep.

'Hello Vernon,' she said with an air of sarcasm in her voice.

Vernon opened his eyes and looked in the direction of the voice. Lily watched as the colour drained from his face as he saw her standing there.

'Are you a ghost?' he said quivering. He did look as if he had seen a ghost and this amused Lily.

'No Vernon,' she said with a smile. 'I'm not a ghost. I'm very much alive.'

'Whoever you are get out of my house,' he said. He was trying to be intimidating but he really didn't have the strength to be. 'Now.'

'I will not,' she said as she took a seat on the sofa. 'You and I need to have a little chat Vernon. About the way you treated my son.'

Vernon looked up towards the sky.

'Oh sweet Lord please stop tormenting me,' he begged. 'I've learnt my lesson. Please let me live in peace.' Lily didn't believe him.

'What's going on in there Vernon?' Lily heard Petunia's voice. Then she heard a scream of blasphemy as she spied Petunia walking into the room. She dropped the teapot.

'Hello Petunia,' said Lily with a smile. 'It's so nice to see you again. It's been an awfully long time, hasn't it? Let me fix that up for you.'

Lily withdrew her wand pointed at the spilt tea and reassembled Petunia's broken Royal Dolton teapot. Petunia remained frozen to the spot.

'We can't spoil your pristine carpet now can we?' she said as she mopped up the spilt tea. 'Take a seat Petunia. I won't hurt you. I was just saying to Vernon that it was about time we had a discussion about the way he treated Harry.' Lily watched with anticipation as the white face of Petunia became even paler.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chrystal was led into an even colder and darker room by two extremely tall men in hooded cloaks. She couldn't see their faces, however one of them had a strange odour, almost as if he was wearing a bad cologne. The two men had roughly bound her hands with magical binds and upon entering the room they tied her to the wall. The position was not the slightest bit comfortable. She had never felt so helpless before, she couldn't move at all. And she knew what was to come.

She watched with some fear as he entered the room. She wondered what pleasure the sadist would get out of this. He raised his wand and the curse hit her immediately in the face. Pain seared through her eye into the back of her head. The pain was quite different from any pain she had experienced before. It was sharp, intense and localised, before it radiated into a severe ache. He hit her again with another curse. This time it hit her arm. It caused a different type of pain.

The onslaught continued. She had no idea for how long for. Curse after curse hit her small body causing the most intense kinds of pain that Chrystal had ever felt. And the worst thing was that there was nothing she could do about it. She was almost completely helpless. She had no strength to even try and manipulate his feelings. She didn't know if she would have bothered if she had thought it would even work.

She moved the only part of her body that she could, her eyes. She glanced at Voldemort, almost begging him to stop. He seemed to have a look of pleasure on his face. Her level of fear was the highest it had been for a long time. She felt as if he were going to kill her even though she knew he still needed her. His hatred of her must be great for him to inflict this kind of pain on her.

The onslaught finally ended. Voldemort pointed his wand at her and levitated her. He gently levitated her into the room she had been in earlier and placed her on the bed.

'You need to sleep now,' he said as he gently pulled the blanket over her.

She tossed and turned, finding it difficult to get comfortable. She could feel bruises coming up all over her body. Magical bruises which in all probability could not be healed with magic. They would just have to run their course while she struggled to work out this man they called the Dark Lord.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Not too far away Sirius was sitting in his cell contemplating.

They had left him alone today. For that he was grateful. His body cried with every movement his head throbbed with any kind of consciousness. He wondered how much longer they would torture him for before they killed him. He saw death as inevitable. There was no way he would give away information about the Order and without that information it was unlikely that they would release him.

He wasn't that scared of dying. He had cheated death twice already. He had escaped a Dementors kiss the night Harry and Hermione had saved him and he would never forget the day he was pushed into the veil. Both times he thought he was dead. Both times he wished that he had a chance to do things over. And both times he had made the same mistakes. History repeats itself.

He had accused Chrystal of being impulsive. Yet he had acted in such a manner by walking out on her. He had told her he needed space instead of telling her the truth. He was going to undertake a dangerous mission that had landed him here. She probably didn't even realise he was missing. Just that he hadn't come home to her.

He couldn't stand the thought of Chrystal hating him. Hey had been through too much together for him to allow her to think ill of him. She had not given up on him the entire time he had been in Azkaban. She couldn't give up on him now surely? He knew if he had a dying request it would be to have a chance to explain to her.

He saw the moon through the bars of his cell. A full moon and his thoughts drifted to Remus. One look at Remus and you could see that life wasn't fair.

He wasn't going to give up hope just yet. In the wizarding world you never knew what surprises might come your way.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

It took Vernon and Petunia quite a few minutes to recover from the shook of seeing Lily. In fact it took Petunia about five minutes to recover the colour in her face. Lily had poured everybody tea and was now sitting on the sofa facing her sister and her horrid brother-in-law. Finally Vernon spoke.

'If you've come here for revenge you're too late,' he said weakly. 'I've only got weeks to live.'

'I know,' she said. 'Dudley told me.'

If asked later there would be no way to describe the look on their faces.

'You've spoken with Dudley?' asked Petunia.

'Naturally,' replied Lily. 'When he came to see Harry for advice.' Petunia and Vernon had no reply. 'I have come to offer my condolences. I was angry with you both when I found out how Harry had been treated. I wanted to tear your heads off. But I realise now after seeing you that my forgiveness will be much harder for you to bear. So here you have it, I forgive you Vernon. I forgive you for judging me because I'm different. I forgive you for hating me because I am a witch. I forgive you for lying to my son for ten years. And I forgive you for the way you treated him.' The expression on Vernon's face was that of severe confusion. 'And now I would like to talk to you Petunia, privately.'

The scared Petunia obeyed. She stood up and walked Lily to the kitchen.

'What is it?' she asked through her teeth.

'Do you want me to heal him?' she asked.

Petunia's eyes were wide open.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chrystal awoke a few hours later to the sound of Voldemort opening the door to her room. She glanced up and saw the goblet of potion bubbling.

'Here is your potion my dear,' he said. 'It will be ready in a few minutes. So while we wait I will transform you.'

Chrystal braced herself as he started casting charms all over her body. Luckily it was a painless exercise. She was dying however to see what she looked like.

He handed her the goblet with the potion. She took a deep breath before trying to swallow the foul tasting liquid that made her want to vomit. After what seemed like a lifetime she had swallowed the entire goblet. Voldemort looked at her triumphantly.

'You may go now,' he said. 'Your husband will be returned to you within the week.'

Seeing a fireplace spring out of nowhere, Chrystal quickly took the opportunity to get out of there. She flooed back to her private rooms at Hogwarts and headed straight for the mirror.

As she glanced at her reflection it was unbelievable. She was the splitting image of dead mother.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ron arrived in Spain slightly exhausted from the day before. Someone had given him a tip off that he intended to follow before it was too late. He didn't want to risk another yet casualty. But Rose had been on his mind. He didn't really mean that it was over, when he had said that to Harry, however he wasn't exactly sure he wanted it to continue in its present state either. Ron didn't think that either of them realised the difficulty of trying to keep a relationship together while one of them was still at school. The truth of the matter was that he had freedom (in a sense) and she did not.

He thought back to the beginning of their relationship. Rose had had a crush on him for quite a while and Ron had never noticed it. Ginny pointed it out to him one day, saying he was stupid to pine over someone else when there were plenty of girls lining up to be his girlfriend. Initially he thought Ginny was referring to Luna Lovegood, and while she was a very interesting and a good person, he little eccentricities were far too much for Ron.

Ron noticed at Quidditch training one afternoon how pretty Rose was. Whether or not others would agree with his description was debatable, however he loved the way her green eyes shone in the sun, the way her brown hair waved in the wind as she rode her broomstick and the way a little dimple appeared in her cheek when she smiled. They began meeting after training at a large tree behind the greenhouses. They would sit and talk for hours, about anything and everything. Their secret relationship was something special. Ron grew to cherish the hours they spent together. They were a break from the norm and from the evil that was penetrating their world. He grew to really care about her. Rose was an inherently good person. She genuinely cared about everything that she did. She didn't like hurting other people's feelings.

That Rose seemed to be all but gone. Ron didn't know whether or not it was the discovery of her family or her abduction that had changed her, yet something had done its seeming irreparable damage. The sweet girl was gone. A troubled woman had come to take her place.

Ron sighed as he looked around the town of Granada. It wasn't difficult to find the building he was looking for, the Alhambra of Granada. He took in the sight before he set off to try and find Lavender. He knew his source was reliable, he just hoped however that he wouldn't be caught trying to find her.

Setting his sights on the building he apparated into the broom closet, standard Hit Wizard procedure. It was always unlikely that there would actually be someone in there. Ron then threw Harry's invisibility cloak over him and exited the broom cupboard.

A few men entered the room. They were carrying an Orb and talking about Hufflepuff. Ron had hit the jackpot. He quietly followed them hoping they would lead him to Lavender.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lavender wondered where she was. She had not foreseen how long they would hold her prisoner for, however because she had seen them release her, she had no real concerns for her welfare. She was honestly far more concerned about Seamus. He had looked so awful the last time she saw him that she didn't really know if he was well enough to survive. Her only hope was that now that they had her they would let him go.

She felt drained.

The room they were holding her in was not doing very much for her ability to see the future. Lavender wondered if it were on purpose. She hoped they would bring her an Orb soon so that she could just get on with foreseeing the rubbish she was going to make up and then they would let her go.

Lavender had had a while to think. She had made some rash decisions and had not always been thinking properly when she made them. She had wasted almost a year of her life withering away at Hogwarts. She had spent a considerable amount of that time drunk so she wouldn't have to contemplate what the future held. She hadn't treated Seamus very well at all. She had come to see this recently. She had surprised herself just how badly she felt when she realised he was in trouble. It was only then that she really realised that she loved him. She loved Seamus with his sandy-brown hair and Irish accent. She loved the guy who cared about her so much. She was going to make it up to him. She was anxious to start. She was going to make Seamus the happiest man who ever lived. And she was going to tell him the truth.

She had foreseen her death.

She could not name the time place or date, she had however foreseen the manner and it scared her. It scared her so much that she didn't want to acknowledge it. The burden of knowing the future was hanging over her head constantly. That was why she couldn't tell anybody of the outcome of the final battle. They burden of the knowledge would be too much for them.

Suddenly she heard the door open. Two cloaked men made their way into the room. They were carrying an Orb. She breathed a sigh of relief as they placed it down before her. She focussed her eyes on the Orb, yet her vision was clouded. She concentrated and concentrated, yet she could see nothing. She knew what she would have to do.