In the Dark Lord's Service

"Chapter Four: Wizards' Duel"

"Put my godson down, murderer...now!"

Antonio pursed his lips together and kept hold of Harry. "You know, the interesting thing about all this is that I didn't actually kill them."

Sirius said nothing.

"Really, it's not what it looks like. I can explain."

"Oh, please, Antonio, don't lower yourself with lies. Not this time!" shouted Sirius.

Pyrites innocently replied, "But I'm not lying."

"PYRITES-PUT-HARRY-DOWN!"

Realizing that Sirius didn't really want to chat things out like grown-ups tonight, Pyrites surrendered Harry back to his crib and pulled out his wand. There would be a real wizards' duel tonight in the Potters' home, only it wouldn't be between Voldemort and James Potter, but Sirius Black and Antonio Pyrites.

The fight didn't start with polite bows or sophisticated introductions. As soon as Harry was safe, Sirius unleashed a barrage of hexes and curses Pyrites' way. Pyrites countered his younger cousin spell for spell, and soon the room was alight with blinking shots of red and green. The nursery was a cramped and ill-equipped battlefield. Misfired hexes struck furniture and collapsed shelves. Worse, there was a corpse on the floor and a crying baby to distract the dueling wizards. Wisely, Sirius finally backed out of Harry's room, beckoning Pyrites to follow with an insult and a Stinging Hex to the ear.

"Frigging bugger!" Pyrites cried in pain as he clasped his ear. With his silk gloves on, he could not instantly ascertain the damage done. He hoped that the hex hadn't caused any bruising or discoloration. Inflamed with a fresh desire for vengeance, Pyrites stormed out and followed Black to the staircase.

Sirius called up the stairwell to his prey, "Pretty Pyrites going to fight now? What you showed me in Harry's room wasn't worthy for a squib."

"I would bite my tongue if I were you, little cousin, or else your mummy will come and hex it out for you! By the way, how is dear Aunt Morgause?"

Sirius spat out a curse. "Tell me, Antonio, did you like sleeping with the house elves? I hope so, since you'll be spending so much more time with them soon. After I kill you for what you've done, I have it in my mind to place your head on the shelf next to Kreacher's parents'!"

Pyrites vacantly cackled. "I like you so much better this way, Sirius. The madness...the darkness...the anger...it all comes out in full force. You finally seem like a grown-up all of a sudden."

"Shut up! Shut up! Expecto Bombardia!" Suddenly a mess of rocks, bullet shells and shrapnel flung out of Sirius' wand and flew towards Pyrites. He dove to the side, trying to miss the onslaught of dangerous debris, but a heavy stone hit his thigh and a few small bits of metal sliced into his skin. Ignoring the pain, he somersaulted up and faced Sirius once more.

Both men whipped their wands about, sending out hexes and calling up defense charms. Sirius' eyes were alight with fury and despair. The passion that the loss of his two best friends had ignited seemed to propel his magical prowess to a new level of supremacy. Pyrites remained cool and calm, emotionally gone from his self and singularly focused on survival. His mind raced to find a weakness in Sirius he had yet to exploit.

They were in the Potters' kitchen now, and the effects of the private battle between long lost cousins was beginning to wear heavily on the cottage. Blast holes peppered the walls, the furniture was all destroyed and the foundations of the house seemed to be next to give out. If Black didn't kill him with a curse, Pyrites was sure the inevitable collapse of the cottage would do them both in. As the cries of the abandoned infant upstairs entered his ears, Pyrites came up with a plan.

"Poor, poor Harry..."

"Don't you dare his name!"

"Seems a pity though, the lad should have to die now. After all that...his parents' sacrifice, the Dark Lord's hard work, Pettigrew's betrayal. The boy survived the Killing Curse, and soon he'll die because the anger of his godfather caused his home to collapse upon the poor boy. You better think carefully, Black. More is at stake in our little duel than either my life or yours. The fate of the wizarding world rests in our hands."

Sirius said resolutely, "That child's life is worth more to me than the wizarding world."

"So...we'll stop, shall we?" Pyrites smiled.

"You unimaginable--"

Pyrites stopped him. "Yes, I've heard it all before, cousin. Now, lower your wand, and I'll lower mine. You can return upstairs to the boy, change his diaper and give him a bottle and then rear him up however you choose... and I'll walk out of his house without so much as a peep from you."

"I won't let you get away with helping to murder my friends." There was a catch in Sirius' throat and a desperateness that betrayed how close the man was to tears.

"But you will accept this bargain, won't you?" asked Pyrites. "You have no choice. Continue to fight me and the house will be destroyed. You'll have killed me, but also yourself, and also...Harry will be dead. Making his parents' sacrifice for naught. Let me go in peace and dear little Harry will be safe."

Sirius blinked. He was obviously trying to come to terms with Pyrites' offer. Pyrites was right; Sirius had to let him go. There was no chance in all the imaginations of man that Sirius would neglect the safety of Harry Potter.

"Fine," Sirius said coldly. He slowly lowered his wand. Pyrites smirked and lowered his.

"Farewell, cousin. Good luck with the half-blood squealing upstairs. No doubt the hit wizards will be here soon. Then, you'll have to explain all this." Pyrites motioned to the house with a flourish of his wand and white gloved fingers.

Sirius cocked his head and replied, "Don't you worry about me, Antonio. Azkaban's for dirt like you and not for real men like me. Besides, all I have to do is find Wormtail, rough him up a bit, and he'll be squealing the truth. Won't be too hard to find him."

"Hint-he's hiding in London. An apartment near Covent Gardens." Pyrites went on to explain why he was providing this vital information. "I abhor the scent and the sight of that imbecile. I actually hope you do tear him apart."

Sirius blinked. As much as his heart wanted nothing more than to be responsible for the suffering and death of Wormtail, he was taken aback by Pyrites' position. He had never wanted to share a goal with his amoral cousin. Did their mutual distaste for the traitor make Sirius as bad as Pyrites? Was Pyrites making him a pawn for some Death Eater scheme? Should Sirius really go and find Wormtail, or was it a trap? But then, how could he face Harry knowing he had let the rat who had betrayed and murdered his parents slip away unscathed?

As all these thoughts flitted though Sirius' head, Antonio playfully winked and left the Potters' cottage. The fight was apparently over. James and Lily were dead, and little Harry was alone upstairs. Suddenly realizing the urgency of needing to protect his godson, Sirius bolted up the stairs and entered the nursery once more. He instantly swept the boy up in his arms, trying shush him while he himself began to sob.

Outside, Pyrites remained in the garden for a moment, watching the shadow of Sirius hold Harry in the upstairs room. He sighed. It was a pity that his cousin was such a softy for the brat. Otherwise, it might have been possible that Sirius could have survived their little duel. Though they were no longer face to face, and there were no hexes flying about, the wizards' duel was not over. Pyrites, at least, was still fighting it. His plan was in place and he was ready to set the final blow into motion. All he needed now was a bit of insurance. It wouldn't be wise to suddenly Apparate at headquarters without the Dark Lord, nor would it be safe to seek shelter with "friends" or be seen in public. He needed an alternate escape plan. As he reached the gate of the Potters' garden, he found it.

The racing broom was propped up against the fence. Its varnished handle glistened in the moonlight and Pyrites could vaguely make out the model name, Nimbus 1060. James Potter must have left his high-speed racing broom outside by accident. Once again, the Potters' inattentiveness had granted Pyrites an edge. While grabbing the broom in his left hand, Pyrites swung around and drew his wand out with his right and pointed it towards the house. It wouldn't take much to take down the cottage at this point. With a haughty sneer of victory, Pyrites sent a strong Stunning Spell to the foundation of the house. The red light of the spell wrapped itself about the cottage and the bricks began to crumble and collapse. Pyrites heard the alarmed shouts of Sirius from within as the second floor caved in upon the ground floor.

He had done his duty to the Dark Lord.

As Pyrites mounted James Potter's broom and started towards the skies, he did not stop to consider that Sirius and Harry might have survived the cottage's collapse or that Sirius' motorbike, parked securely in the front yard, could fly.