CHAPTER EIGHTTEEN
The Escape
Draco was shivering on his dirty and old bed. He was still in his cell, drowning in a deep sense of hopelessness. He had no idea how much time passed since he first came into this rocky prison, but he could tell a few months passed. Frost on the ground, and the mist from his breath told him it was winter. He was lucky that Snape was watching him; casting a Warming Charm on the room once a day.
At first, after seeing his father die, Draco was a disaster. He didn't eat for days, and continually cried; to the point his eyes couldn't produce any tears, and his head throbbed heavily, like it was cleaved in half. Snape said nothing to him when he entered the cell. He simply came in, dropped some food, and left.
Once he did finish crying, and he started questioning Snape, the pale man stopped entering the room. He simply slipped his food through the door, and continued not to speak. Draco knew there was no point in yelling, or pleading; seeing how it didn't work for him before. He simply took the time, and figured things out for himself.
He knew that Voldemort would eventually kill him. It was only a matter of time. He wondered at first why he wasn't murdered right away, but he soon realized that keeping him alive, was much more tormenting. Having to relive his father's death over and over again, just made Draco feel beyond devastated. He was sure that was what Voldemort wanted. It wasn't enough that he physically tortured him--he had to also mentally and emotionally torture him too.
After a while, he understood that even if he did somehow get out of his stone cell, he would have to run. Death Eaters would be on the look for him, and he wouldn't be safe.
One day, as he sat on the cold floor, he remembered the words Albus Dumbledore spoke the last night he was at Hogwarts. He was already unwilling to carry out Voldemort's task, and Dumbledore's mutterings carried more meaning than he thought the old man could produce.
He did respect Dumbledore, on some level. He found the old man's easiness to keep calm in harsh situations something to be revered. Of course, the old windbag was constantly pushing goodness and togetherness; something that made Draco want to spit to the side in disgust.
But now, in his horrible situation, he could see the meaning of Dumbledore's words. Voldemort was out for nothing but himself. Draco's father was loyal to the Dark Lord for so long, yet was killed in the end. All the Death Eaters from Azkaban were more than likely dead, and Draco was set to suffer in his emotional prison.
Draco thought it out, and figured that if he could get out, he would have to go into hiding, along with his mother, if she was alive. The Order of the Phoenix would be after him, along with Voldemort. He was an enemy of both sides; something he hated himself getting into.
As he rolled over on his uncomfortable bed, he found himself, for the first time in ages, hoping for his mother to be alive. He hadn't seen her since the winter before for Christmas. It was a horrible affair, with his father still locked in Azkaban. His family lost much respect among the wizarding elite, and his family's name was beginning to stand for less.
Christmas was a quiet affair-too quiet. Draco couldn't stand how dank and depressing the mansion felt when he was there. His mother constantly worried over Draco with his task, and he spent most of this time in his old room, devising how to fix the vanishing cabinet. It was one of the few times he would be glad to return to Hogwarts.
Since then however, he hadn't seen his mother. He never heard about her, and didn't know if she was alive. Internally he hoped she was alright. He always knew that his father was the hard lined one of the two. She didn't deserve to die. As much he hated himself sounding like that dolt Harry Potter, she was innocent.
He inclined his head, and turned it slightly. He could hear footsteps coming closer. He figured it was Snape as usual, and put his head back down. The steps stopped outside the door, and the lock turned. Draco turned around instantly, and stood up.
Snape hadn't come into his cell in months. The door opened, and Draco's face fell.
Wormtail's rat face looked at Draco from the doorway, and he gave a flick of his wand, binding Draco's hands together.
`What's going on?' Draco asked shakily. Wormtail walked over, and grabbed Draco's hands, and pushed him out of the cell with his silver hand. Draco asked again what Wormtail was doing, but he did not respond.
They started up the arched stone stairwell, and Draco definitely knew it was winter. There was snow on the upper steps, and the air was freezing. Draco was only half way up the flight, and already shivering. He was still in his raggedy and worn Hogwarts uniform from the summer, so it didn't provide good warmth.
Draco was pushed once again into the darkened chamber, and hit the floor hard. He was very weak, and once on the ground, he could only roll over, and look up at the chair where two red eyes looked at him, covered over with a dark cloak.
`How are you doing Draco?' Voldemort asked in mock politeness. Draco just spat on the ground, and Voldemort laughed.
`Ah, you think you have no fear now? That you're not afraid to die, and have nothing to loose? We'll see about that. Crucio!'
Draco's back arched on the floor as the feeling of being electrocuted spread through his body. He rolled on the floor in agony, while just barely hearing the cold laugh of Voldemort over his own screams. Voldemort lifted the spell, and Draco finished lying on his side, his cheeks stained with tears and his whole body shivering and covered in icy sweat.
`You see Draco' Voldemort continued calmly, getting up and walking around the chamber, on the brink of the shadows, `it's not enough to simply kill you. I realize now that Lucius got off easy. Disappointment after disappointment, that's all he was.' Draco could do nothing to reply. He tried to speak, but couldn't make the words sound out.
`And your mother, Narcissa.' Draco looked around for Voldemort, and found the dark figure just next to him. `She was a coward, like you, and went into hiding. Lovely Bella is looking for her now, and I expect they will arrive soon. When they do, I'm sure you will have a front row seat to the show' Voldemort sneered, crackling evilly. Draco, rage stirring in his soul, mustered the strength to push himself up, and got at least to a kneeling position, looking up at the Dark Lord.
`Don't you hurt her' Draco threatened. Voldemort smiled, and approached Draco, who lowered himself slowly.
`I won't hurt her Draco . . . You will' he whispered. His ghostly face made a malevolent grin, and Draco felt himself standing up, his anger reaching a boiling point. He could feel his fists, which were still bound, shaking violently.
`Did I say you could stand' Voldemort pointed out, flicking his wand, causing Draco to hit the stone floor again, his knee caps hitting the surface so hard he heard the crack as they broke. Draco fell onto his side, and yelled out in pain, while Voldemort casually sat back down in his chair.
`Snape' he said easily. A figure from the shadows came forward, and the greasy haired man bowed his head to the Dark Lord.
`Shut him up, and take him back to his cell' Voldemort ordered, as Draco continued to yell out. Snape turned, cast a Silencing Spell on Draco, flicked his wand, and dragged him by his hands. Once outside the chamber, he ran his wand over his knees, and fixed them, relieving his pain.
He picked him up off the cold floor, and the two walked back down to Draco's cell. He threw Draco onto his bed, and looked back up the staircase, before entering the cell, and casting a Silencing Spell on the room. He turned, and took off the spell on Draco.
`Severus, you have to-`
`Be silent boy. We need to get out of here, soon.'
`Why didn't you try earlier! I've been going through hell the past six months because of you!' Draco shouted. Snape ran his hand through his greasy looking hair, and leaned against one of the walls.
`My reasons are my own, so keep your mouth shut. And you know nothing of hell, so don't presume you do.' He gave a sigh, and looked back up. 'I can tell the Dark Lord is expecting me to let you go' Snape informed.
`So why now?'
`Because if you torture your mother, and she dies, you will come right after. He knows I will try and free you before hand, and we will play into his trap, with a twist.'
`Howso?' Draco asked.
`If I free you, I will have to go with you. He is probably expecting us to go to the Order of the Phoenix, but we won't. I know somewhere else we can go. It's a place he wouldn't dare return to' Snape said.
`When will we go?'
`Soon. Not now, it would be too early.' He was looking around the room, and checking the door every few seconds.
`He said Bellatrix is getting my mother! We have to save her' Draco expounded frantically, getting up from his bed. Snape put up a hand to stop him.
`Worry about yourself. We can't do anything about your mother now. We don't know where she is.' He lowered his hand, walked to the door. He stopped short, and looked back at Draco, who was still standing where he left him.
`Tomorrow night . . . Wait to hear the door, pick up your wand, and run.' With that, he turned, and exited the room without a look back. Draco slowly walked over to his uncomfortable bed, and put his head in his hands.
One more night, and he would be free. At least that was what Snape said, if he could be trusted. It could just be another plot by Voldemort--or Snape playing a game on him-- but he needed to take the chance.
How could it get worst? He asked himself, giving a sigh, and lying down to rest.
*
`Is it set?' Voldemort hissed to the tall, russet haired man. He bowed signaling yes, and his head came back up, his silver eyes penetrating the darkness cast over his face.
`Good. Are you ready Wormtail?' the Dark Lord asked to the watery-eyed man. He came shuffling up, and nodded, his silver hand glinting in the dim light.
Snape re-entered the chamber, and found four Death Eaters close to Voldemort; who was still sitting on his throne-like chair. He closed the door quietly, then tried to make his way across the back of the room in the dark, but of course, he was the one man Voldemort was waiting for.
`Severus. Approach' he said. Snape turned, and presented himself in from of the Dark Lord, kneeling down, then standing next to the other four; Pettigrew and Lesath on his right, Avery and Goyle on his left.
`Bella has brought dear Draco's mother. She will be bringing her down soon. Go and fetch Draco.' Snape kept control of his emotions, and bowed again, leaving the room to get Draco. Voldemort leaned back in his chair, and smiled evilly.
`Goyle, Avery; go to the entranceway. When Draco and Snape try to escape, try to stun them, but miss. I need them alive and running. Let them escape, just.' The two men bowed, and left side by side out the chamber. Wormtail and Lesath moved to be in front of the stage.
`Wormtail, you will wait for Bellatrix, and follow them. If you are an idiot and are seen or caught--pray they kill you.' Wormtail, worry ever present in his eyes, bowed quickly, and scurried out of the room, leaving one Death Eater in the dark chamber.
`Lesath. You have proven yourself, and the next task I give you is very important' Voldemort started. Lesath lowered his head.
`I will do what you wish my Lord.'
`Good. Your task resides in the Department of Mysteries.'
*
Draco was lying awake on his bed in the darkness, a sliver of light coming in under the door. He was bundled as tightly as could be, since Snape neglected to put a Warming Charm on the room.
He could hear distant footsteps, and it sounded like a few people were moving around. A group must have returned from a raid. There were groups of Death Eaters that would come and go from the cave all the time.
He was thinking of his mother, probably hiding in some small away place, trying to keep the world out. He missed her. It was probably one of the first times in his life he missed her. He did remember the last time he did; when he was nine years old, away with his father on a trip to see the dragons in Romania. They were gone for a week, but Draco missed his mother terribly. His father of course, was displeased with his son missing his mother so much, and after that, Draco tried to quiet that part of him.
Suddenly, Draco sat up, and his head snapped to the doorway. He could swear he heard the lock click. It was too early though. Snape said the next night, and he was only there a few minutes ago.
Getting up hastily, Draco moved through the darkness, making his way in the direction of the horizontal sliver of light, and got to the door. He tentatively pushed on it, and the door opened.
Glancing up the stairwell, he found it was empty, a yellow flicker of light at the top lighting the steady curve of the wall. He looked around the ground, and found his wand sitting on the stone floor. He picked it up quickly, and just as he stood back up, he heard a scream echo down from above.
It was a woman's scream, and as the sound moved through him, he swiftly realized why Snape let him out now.
They had his mother. Draco didn't think they would have found her that quickly, thinking they had been searching since the summer. But realizing they had her, fear and a sense of boldness filled Draco.
He vaulted up the stairs as quickly as he could go, turning around the long spiral, and coming to a small hallway. The woman was still screaming, but the echoes made it impossible to figure where they were coming from.
A door on the right opened, and Avery came out, wearing his long black cloak, looking about. His eyes fell on Draco, and his wand came up quickly. Draco, caught off guard, ran up a nearby stairwell.
`He's escaped!' Avery yelled, as he shot a Stunning Spell at Draco, just missing him and hitting the wall.
Draco ran up the stairwell, and found himself in yet another antechamber. He looked right, then left, and started going left, when an arm grabbed him on the right. He turned quickly, and found Snape with a firm grasp, pulling him in the other direction.
`This way, quickly!' Snape shouted, pushing Draco forward.
`The screaming . . . my mother!' Draco yelled back to Snape as they ran upwards, the sounds of Death Eaters yelling and coming behind them.
`I don't know where she is. Just run!' Snape replied angrily. Draco came to another landing, and was pushed towards the left staircase that ran off of it, but stopped as he looked to the right.
Narcissa and Bellatrix were just starting to move down another adjoining staircase. Draco's mother was fighting violently with Bellatrix, but she didn't have a wand, so it was in vain.
`Mum!' Draco yelled, as Snape ran into his shoulder. Narcissa and Bellatrix both turned around.
`Draco!' she screamed back. Bellatrix shot a spell at her, and she fell to the steps.
`No!' Draco shouted. He was pushed forcefully by Snape up the next staircase, and almost fell over trying to get to his mother.
`MOVE!' Snape roared. A Death Eater came out of one of the stairwells, and Snape shot a spell at the man. He became stiff, and fell over with a thud, and Snape again pushed Draco upwards, and they moved up the stairwell.
Draco continued to protest, and when Snape gave one last push, Draco fell over onto dirt. He looked up, and found he was in a small cave, the night sky visible through the entrance.
`That was my mother!' Draco screamed at Snape, as tears made their way down his cheeks. Severus placed a spell on the way they just came, and turned around. Draco looked, and found no entranceway to be seen; just rock. Snape moved across and grabbed Draco's cloak, and pulled him up.
`If we go back, we die.' he said flatly. He started moving towards the exit, but Draco stayed in place.
`Draco, if you do not come, you will die.' Draco looked at the rock once more, then turned and ran out of the fissure.
His feet sinking into the snow, he took a deep breath of he cool winter air. It had been months since he experienced open air, and the crispness of the air tickled his nose, and froze the tears on his face.
He looked around, and found they were in a mountainous area, with boulders and rocks strewn about. Snape was walking around a few of them, farther away from the cave. Draco started off behind, having to take careful steps. He was still wearing his regular black Hogwarts School shoes, and they did not fare well on the snowy tops of the rocks.
`Where are you going?' Draco asked, watching his footing, and taking notice of the brilliantly clear night sky.
`We need to be farther away from the cave. Hurry' he explained, motioning Draco to move faster. Draco turned around, and could hear noises coming from the cave. He made his way quickly over the rocks, and met up with Snape a few metres away.
`Drink this, quickly' Snape said, giving him a small silver flask, taking an identical one and drinking the contents.
`What's in it?'
`Just drink it!' Snape spat, putting the flask back in his robes. Draco emptied the contents, and only when he came back down, did he look forward, and notice something incredible in the distance.
`That can't be' he whispered.
`It is. Hold on' Snape said.
A Death Eater came out of the cave, and pointed his wand at the two of them, but they Apparated away before a spell could be made. The crack of their Apparating sounded in the night, and left the area once again silent. The Death Eater lowered his wand, and turned around to look at the others behind him.
`They're away' he said, looking at Bellatrix. She smirked, and turned to the others.
`Good job' she said to the woman next to her.
`It was my pleasure' Narcissa responded simply.
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