Wishmaster

Chapter Ten - Awakening

The door of what most of those within Malfoy Manor now thought of as the "Ritual Room" slammed shut. A moment later it squeaked open again as Wormtail snuck out rubbing his nose. Quietly he shut the door again and turned to where the Dark Lord was now inspecting a squad of Death Eaters that had lined up in the hallway. Wormtail watched the men in the line sweat and try to stay still as Voldemort stalked along the line, eyeing each man as looking for a reason to kill him. Finally, the Dark Lord finished his inspection and swept back to where Wormtail now also stood to attention.

"My loyal Death Eaters."

Voldemort’s voice rang like a vibrating icicle in the silent corridor.

Wormtail shuddered.

"Through the use of rituals, I have determined that Harry Potter has returned to London."
From his vantage point a foot behind Voldemort, Wormtail could see a scroll clasped in one, long white hand.

"You are to retrieve the boy, and find out why he returned there and what he was doing"

Voldemort began to pace back and forth, Wormtail could not tell whether in agitation or something else.

"If you fail, each of you shall be punished."

This last, negligently delivered warning sent a shudder around everyone present. There where a lot worse, and more horrible tortures than an Unforgivable.

"Go."

Turning as one, the Death Eaters left hurriedly as their master dismissed them. Wormtail wondered when he too would be dismissed.

"Come, Pettigrew."

Shoulders slumping in resignation, Wormtail hurried after the black robed figure as it swept away along the passage. Death Eaters in the hallways bowed and moved aside as Voldemort passed them, their eyes fearful. At the door of Voldemort’s quarters, a Death Eater was waiting. Voldemort paused as the man bowed then handed him a small piece of parchment.

Scarlet eyes narrowed as a reptilian smile srtetched the cruel mouth upwards, and both the Death Eater and Wormtail moved back an inch.

"Where did you find them?" Asked Voldemort.

"On a small beach near the area indicated by yourself, M’lord," replied the messenger.

"And?"

"There were the tracks of other people there but those two are the only ones we found. However, my team may have pinpointed the source of the tracks while I carried this message, M’lord."

"Excellent, return to your task"

The man hurried off along the corridor and Wormtail once again stood to attention as Voldemort turned to him.

"Visit our new guests Pettigrew. Inform them I will soon be down to question them, then I wish you to visit Severus and deliver my summons."

"Yes, my Lord"

Wormtail strode away towards the cellars of Malfoy Manor, trying to snatch a moment of peace in the rain as it pattered against the diamond paned windows. Deep inside of him something was growing, like a fire that had finally found wood to burn. A lifetime of being bullied, manipulated and treated as second rate and the second Marauder had thought that there was no strength inside of him to be angry. Now, however, a strange, dark flame had begun to grow inside of him. Like a snowball rolling down hill, it seemed to gain more force and momentum the more ground he covered.

But what ground was he covering? Was he becoming more like his master? Wormtail had no self delusions: he wasn’t a good person, or a brave one. He was a person whom other people used because he was like clay. Soft and malleable. The stone steps of the cellar clapped dully as he shuffled slowly down them, deep in thought. Wormtail considered the wisdom of simply snuffing out the small, black, stuttering flame and forgetting it.

But then he would nether see what it would become, and there was still the question of how it had started...

The door of the cellars groaned open and Wormtail shook himself back to alertness as he strode into the narrow corridor, glancing into each of the small rooms for the new prisoners.

At the last cell, he found them. His eyes widened in shock as he recognized the two people shackled inside.

Inside him, the flame grew darker.

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"I think were safe for now..."

Raindrops spattered the large window, making it hard to see the street outside, something that made Harry both nervous and grateful.

Both he and Luna were sitting in a small cafe, now dressed in muggle jeans, shirts and jackets. Across the table from Harry, Luna sipped a large coffee before returning to her inspection of the other people in the shop. There was a cut on her forehead and Harry knew that, like him, she sported more cuts and bruises on the rest of her body. The auror they had encountered in the alleyway had put up a desperate fight. Harry glared at the man, who was sitting across the table from him, glassy eyed and vacant under his imperius curse. Curiously disconnected from him, he felt a surge of mental energy and a small burst of anger as the man struggled with his control. Grimly he pushed back, somehow, and the wave subsided again.

Harry blinked, the only other time he had initiated a mental contact was with Voldemort. Silently he began to wonder just how much Riddle’s merging with him had changed him. Was he now thinking more like Riddle? Harry was pondering this question when another, stronger mental wave washed against his consciousness.

Irritably he tried to flatten himself up against the man’s mind and physically gasped as a stream of memories and feelings raced across his own. Frantically he pulled away again, alarmed as long tendrils of thought reached out for him. Harry felt the tendrils begins to furrow into him and a wave of panic coursed through him as he realised he was under attack. The world blurred and slowed. With an odd contraction of his own thoughts that made Harry’s head hurt, and he felt the force of his own mental wave rush outwards.

Harry’s vision blurred as the energy left him.

Both Luna and the man slumped forward.

Harry sat, stunned, his head oddly light, as wave of exhaustion washed over him.

Then, with the sudden conviction that he had just made a horrible mistake, he swore violently. Quickly he looked round to see if anyone had noticed, to his alarm he saw that several other people near him had also been knocked out, others were holding their heads in obvious pain while a few were looking round in a kind of wild daze. Quickly drawing the Elder Wand out of his jeans, Harry aimed it at Luna under the table.

"Enervate"

Luna gave a small gasp as she sat bolt upright. Harry leaned across the table, trying to discern whether she was alright or not.

"Luna? Are you ok?"

Luna sat rubbing her head, Harry watched silently as she shook of whatever his attack, he realised, had done to her. Finally she looked up again, her eyes clear.

"Was that you?" She asked, frowning. Harrys stomach knotted with guilt.

"Um...ye-" Harry reeled again as Luna's hand came up and caught him squarly across the cheek.

"Don’t. Ever. Do. That. Again" Luna hissed, still clutching her head with one hand.

"Okay! " Grunted Harry leaning back out of her reach, "I didn’t mean to!"

"You didn’t?"

"No, that’s the first time I’ve ever done it." He protested.

Luna looked around the cafe, Harry half expected her to slap him again. If any wizards, any aurors had been in the area...

"Come on." Said Luna who was obviously on the same line of thought.

Harry glanced at the man still slumped at their table.

"Just leave him" Said Luna, also shooting the figure a glance "there’s probably more coming now."

Quickly both teens rose from the table and hurried out into the street. The rain had stopped yet the two fugatives walked as fast as they could, pulling up the hoods of their jackets.

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Deep in the Department of Mysteries, an Unspeakable rushed through the dark corridors. Sitting at his desk on the lowest level, a man with long blond hair leaped up, startled as the door of his office was thrown open. Panting for breath, the witch dropped two items onto the desk, both of which were glowing.

The man’s eyes widened in recognition.

"It’s happened already?" He asked.

The witch nodded, breathless.

"Without a doubt. We didn’t have a chance to get his signature when he was last active, but the force was unmistakable."

Lucius Malfoy starred down at the two objects on the desk. One was a glass globe, in which swirled a dull clump of memories, the other was an unnamed device that was clicking frantically. On the side of the device there was a small meter, like a speedometer behind the wheel of a muggle vehicle. Malfoy’s eyes widened in shock as he read the meter once, twice.

"So," he murmured, "at last you have awakened.”

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Authors Note : Iv definatley turned Luna into Hermione... is that a good thing?

A thank you to my reveiwers so far. For me the formula is usualy : Reveiws = energy to write. Literaly.

And if someone points out a big silly mistake I made thats always a bonus...