Will You Ever Return to Me?

Chapter 7.

Harry shivered from the cold, attempting to hold his place in a strong gust of wind. He approached Malfoy Manor. The place used to have wards around it, but they were broken during the war, and Draco Malfoy wasn't a skilled enough wizard to put them back. Harry got through with no problem.

The Manor was mostly dark, but several windows had flickering lights in them. Harry approached the window, but saw nothing but the lights. Frustrated, he turned away, softly landing next to the Malfoy's shed. Entering it, he hid his Firebolt among the other broomsticks. Tightly wrapping the invisibility cloak around him, he headed towards the house.

Going through the door was out of the question, but he spotted an open window on the second floor. He raised his wand, and a rope with a hook flew out of it. He climbed up that rope and entered the house.

Malfoy is not paranoid enough, Harry thought. Then he crouched down. Voices were coming from downstairs.

Harry climbed out of the room--it appeared to be a study--and entered the hallway. The place was lighted with candles and a burning fireplace. Three people, all wearing black robes, were below.

Malfoy sat in an armchair, one leg over another. He held a glass of wine in his hands. "She's harmless as a Squib," he said. "Whatever it is, it works."

Rage stirred up Harry. How dare he talk about Ginny like that? Especially--

"Of course. Now, all we need to do is wait. Potter is such a hothead--"

Bellatrix Lestrange. Harry gasped.

"What was that?" the third person said, one whose voice Harry didn't recognize.

"Probably just the wind," Malfoy replied, sounding bored. "You still haven't told me what your plan entails."

"All in good time, Draco," Bellatrix said. "Just keep working on your wife."

"It's a pleasure. Especially hearing from the Ministry how Potter's going crazy. Did you hear they dropped him from the Auror program?"

Using every ounce of his willpower to keep quiet, Harry continued listening. What are they up to?

Another thought entered his mind, a very unpleasant one. Does Ginny know? Did she just lie to me? He hoped not. If she did...

Don't think about it.

"Oh, yes, I knew that," Bellatrix said.

"The idiots at the Ministry did something right for once."

"Right?" the unknown man asked thoughtfully. "Maybe, but I don't think so. It's not good for us. We knew roughly where he was before. Now..."

"Wherever he is, he's pining for my wife and won't do anything."

"Wrong, Malfoy," Harry said, standing up and raising his wand.

Bellatrix and the other man both drew their wands, but Harry was faster. He hit Bellatrix with a stunner, and dropped her. The other Death Eater missed with his curse, and Harry leaped over the railing, falling onto the floor of the living room. His spell blasted the man into the wall. He landed, and, fury in his eyes, moved on Malfoy. But instead of drawing his wand, Malfoy simply made a gesture with his hands.

Long green tendrils popped out of several pots standing around the room and lunged for Harry. He raised a Shield Charm, dodged several green snake-like appendages, and incinerated a few more. But then two tentacles curved around his ankles and pulled him down. He blasted one of them with his wand, but felt something cold at the other ankle. Then, the cold rapidly engulfed his body, his eyelids dropped, and he lost his senses.

XXX

He woke up hearing voices. He tried to move, but both his wrists and ankles were restrained. He then opened his eyes.

"Your time of playing hero is over, Potter," Malfoy said.

Harry turned to look at him. "So you and the rest of your Death Eater buddies decided to turn themselves in?"

"Very funny, Potter. Admit it--you lost the game."

"Game?!" Harry shouted. "Game?! This is a GAME to you?! YOU SCUM! GINNY IS THE MOST WONDERFUL WOMAN IN THE WORLD, AND YOU TREAT HER LIKE SHIT--"

"I told you he was a hothead," Bellatrix stepped out from behind.

Harry stopped speaking.

"What? Don't I rate as good as my nephew? Don't I get to hear praises of my late cousin?"
Harry twisted his face. "Fuck you," he said.

"I'd rather not. A dirty half-blood--"

"Just like your precious Dark Lord."

"That's enough!" the third Death Eater yelled.

"You're right, of course. It is time."

Harry watched the man. He wasn't very tall, but was powerfully built. He had short cropped brown hair and cold dark eyes. Harry felt his mind probed, and hat to concentrate to deflect the Legilimency. The man glared at him and took out a wand. Harry gulped. It was his.

"Potter's broomstick in the shed. Potter's cloak in the parlor. Potter was jealous of Draco's wife," he said.

Malfoy stood up. "What do you mean, Aunt Bella? What're you going to do with Potter?"

"The Dark Lord will return again," she said.

"Voldemort is dead!" Harry shouted. "I killed him!"

"You, destroy the most powerful wizard of all time? That's a laugh," Bella said. "The Dark Lord will rise again."

"Bull--"

"And this time, Harry Potter won't be around to work against him," the man said.

"Really? Where am I going to be?"

"In Azkaban, Potter. Serving a life sentence."

"For what?"

"Hund?" Malfoy asked.

"For this," Hund replied. He raised Harry's wand and pointed it at Malfoy.

Draco couldn't believe his eyes. "What--?!" he exclaimed, drawing his own wand. But he had no time to get a spell off.

"Avada Kedavra!" Hund said. A flash of green light popped out of Harry's wand. Malfoy was dead.

Harry couldn't believe his eyes. But then, why should he have been surprised? Blood relation hardly mattered to Bellatrix. It was she who was rumored to have killed Andromeda Tonks, her own sister.

"You know this won't work," Harry said. "I'll provide them with a Pensieve memory--"

Hund aimed Harry's own wand at him. Bellatrix nodded.

The Death Eater focused his eyes on Harry. Harry couldn't even come up with an insult. Hund didn't flinch.

"Obliviate!" he cried.