“We already know that! No need to state the obvious!” James growled angry.

“That’s just the title,” Remus pointed out.

“Well, I’d rather have a title like “Successful rescue and Voldy is dead” than this one,” James huffed.

The sensation of something pricking his right arm quickly pulled Harry out of his slumber.

“Oi! Stop prickling Harry’s arm!” Sirius cried.

He instantly opened his eyes to see a somewhat blurry woman with long blond hair leaning over him. Confusion quickly set in his clouded mind. He tried to move but found that his wrists and ankles were held in some sort of restraints. Panic quickly overruled any other thought as Harry frantically tried to pull himself free. What was going on? Why was he bound like this?

A hand grabbed his right arm to hold it in place, only increasing Harry’s panic. He continued to fight against the restraints and quickly found himself trapped in a full body bind. Harry could do nothing but stare as the woman’s attention returned to his right arm. Out of the corner of his eye, Harry noticed that there was something attached to his arm that was slowly changing color…to red. His weeks at the hospital instantly came back to him. He recognized what was being done to him. This woman was drawing blood for some reason.

“And the reason can’t be any good,” Remus said grimly.

Closing his eyes, Harry tried to calm himself down but it was rather difficult. He couldn’t move whatsoever. He was completely helpless, something that Harry hated. His frustration got the better of him as Harry opened his eyes to see the woman pulling the needle out of his arm and walking over to the far side of the cell and setting the syringe down on something that Harry assumed was a small table since he really couldn’t make it out. The woman walked back to Harry, pulled out her wand and with a swish, healed the slightly bleeding mark on his arm.

“There now,” the woman said shortly. “Was that really so bad?”

“Is she serious?” Sirius asked slowly. “He is restrained, in a cell in Voldemort’s dungeon and she asks if that is bad?”

 Harry doubted she expected a reply since she hadn’t removed the body bind. She wrapped her fingers around his wrist and checked his pulse for a moment before letting out an irritated sigh. “I can see that you’re not going to make this easy on yourself, Potter. No matter. I can finish my work with you in a body bind. The Dark Lord isn’t a patient person and he wants these results as soon as possible.”

Results? What results?

“We want to know as well!” Lily said exasperated. “And where is the Order that hasn’t come to rescue you yet?”

“She does have a point,” Remus said. “Snape must have had plenty of time to tell the Order Harry’s location.”

“Yes, but if the Order swoops in right after Snape showed up Voldemort will know he is a traitor and- er-“ Mr. Potter faltered at his wife stern gaze, “Yes, where is the Order? They’ve had plenty of time!” he amended.

Harry could only watch as the woman waved her wand over him causing a subtle greenish-silver mist to form. The woman walked over to the table and grabbed a few items before returning to Harry’s side. Harry could barely make out that the woman had a quill in one hand and a clipboard with a piece of parchment attached to it in the other. She stared at the mist for a long moment before she started taking notes. The only sound that could be heard was her quill striking against parchment.

“How odd,” the woman said softly. “Magical levels in the normal range.” She placed her quill in her mouth then grabbed her wand, waved it again and watched as the mist slowly expanded until it completely surrounded Harry. After a few moments, she pocketed her wand and grabbed her quill out of her mouth to continue taking notes. “Now that is interesting. It appears that the Dark Lord was right about you, Potter. There is actually something odd here.”

“What does she mean by that?” James said in a mixture  of anger and worry. “My son isn’t odd!”

Odd? Odd wasn’t a good thing. Harry had wanted to hide his empathy for as long as humanly possible, especially from Voldemort.

James glared at his father. Mr. Potter fidgeted a bit and then leaned to his wife and whispered, “Why is he glaring?”

“You work for the Ministry,” she explained but that did Mr. Potter no good.

James narrowed his eyes and shook a finger at his father, “And the Ministry better not learn that Harry is an empath.”

“As if I would tell,” Mr. Potter huffed offended.

“Better safe than sorry,” Remus shrugged.

 The last thing he wanted was for his new abilities to be used against him or worse, against the Order of the Phoenix. Against Sirius. No. Harry would rather die than betray his family. No matter what Voldemort had in mind, Harry wouldn’t give in regardless of what it cost him.

The woman banished the mist then returned to taking more notes before she turned away and walked back to the table. At the moment, Harry really wished he had his glasses so he could see what she was doing. He could hear soft clinking noises of glass hitting against glass. HrHClosing his eyes, Harry tried to make any part of his body move despite the fact that his body was still bound physically and magically. He needed to escape before anyone discovered anything else.

The sound of echoing footsteps quickly snapped Harry out of his thoughts. Opening his eyes, Harry could only listen as the footsteps intensified in volume. His scar wasn’t hurting any more than what it had been which meant it wasn’t Voldemort who was coming. Forcing his eyes closed, Harry fought to calm himself down as he tentatively reached out with his senses and felt faint hints of curiosity, impatience and annoyance. Anger and frustration slowly started to creep in. Whoever was coming certainly wasn’t going to be in the best of moods.

The footsteps slowed as the individual reached the room and entered. Harry forced himself to keep his eyes closed for the time being. He figured it was the safest option at the moment. “Master is demanding an update,” a deep voice ordered. “He wants to move ahead with his plans.”

“You may inform the Dark Lord that I am still running tests,” the woman shot back. “I told him it would take at least two hours to run the necessary tests. If he wants to know what is so special about the Potter brat then he needs to be patient. I have found an oddity and I’m currently looking into it. You may tell him that.”

“It’s your funeral, McDaniels,” the man huffed then left, his footsteps once again echoing loudly.

 Mr. Potter summoned a piece of parchment and a quill and wrote down while muttering, “Blond, woman, McDaniels, Truden.”

“What are you doing Mr. P?” Lily asked.

“Writing down the names of the Death Eaters so I can arrest them,” he answered.

“With what proof?” Remus asked. “A book from the future.”

Mr. Potter huffed annoyed then started writing again, “Find some proof.”

The sound of something slamming against the table startled Harry into opening his eyes quickly.  “Blast it all!” McDaniels cried in frustration. “How am I supposed to work if he doesn’t give me the time to run the tests?”

“Yes, we feel so sorry for you about these horrible work conditions. You should join the Death Eater union- oh no wait- I guess snake face will respond to your demands with the Killing Curse, so then better just suck it up!” Sirius cried at the end.

She turned around and pointed her wand at Harry. “Finite Incantatem.” Harry felt his body relax and turned his head to look at the somewhat blurry Death Eater. “Better,” she said with a nod. “Now that you’re not in the middle of a panic attack, perhaps you can answer a few questions.”

Yeah, right. Having a causal discussion about his magical anomalies with a Death Eater was certainly not on his list of things to do. There were times when Harry had to wonder if any of these people actually had a brain. These people were holding him prisoner for the very person who was behind the majority of the hardships Harry had faced in his life. How could they think he would willingly tell them anything?

McDaniels approached Harry, her wand firmly pointed at his head. “There are ways to make you comply, Potter,” she said casually. “The Dark Lord doesn’t want you touched to keep your overall mind intact but there are methods that can cause intense pain without pushing one into insanity. I assure you that they are extremely painful.” A cruel smile appeared on her face as she moved her wand down to his chest. “Tell me how you are able to control your magic so well, Potter.”

“Because he is a Potter,” Mr. Potter said flatly.

Lily gaped and then turned to James patting his hand gently, “Now I know where you get your big head from.”

 

Harry stared at the woman for a long moment before he turned his head away and stared at the blurry bars of the cell. There was absolutely no way he was saying anything. Truthfully, he really didn’t believe he could control his magic at all, if his outbursts were any indication. It was his magic that controlled him, not the other way around. Even now, Harry still didn’t have any actual control on when his healing ability decided to kick in. For the past few years, uncontrollable magic had been the norm for him.

Intense pain suddenly overruled his body, causing him to convulse regardless of the restraints that were holding him in place. Harry was too shocked to scream or do anything but succumb to the pain. It felt like his entire body was being completely torn apart. The pain was so intense Harry didn’t even realize that the pendent he was wearing was extremely warm against his chest. What felt like an eternity was actually only a few minutes before the intense pain suddenly vanished, leaving an exhausted and heavily breathing teenager. His entire body ached too much to even consider moving.

“SHE HURT HIM! THAT BITCH HURT MY BABY!” Lily screamed.

“Don’t worry Lily, we’ll get her, and she’ll get what’s coming to her,” James said with a dangerous glint in his eyes that was mirrored in the other occupants in the room. Mr. Potter adding crimes on McDaniels name in his list, until suddenly his quill stopped and he looked at Lily and then at his wife bewildered.

“Er, honey,” he said tentatively to his still fuming wife, “Not to take away the seriousness of the moment, but er, Lily just swore.”

Mrs. Potter looked at him and then at Lily, “Oh yes,” she said shaking her head, “Lily, language!”

Mr. Potter nodded satisfied as if all was well in the world again.

McDaniels pocketed her wand. “Think about it, Potter,” she said coldly. “I would sincerely hate to make your stay with us even more unpleasant than it’s bound to be.” Without another word, she turned and walked back to the table and continued running her tests on Harry’s blood.

Closing his eyes, Harry could do nothing but listen to the clinking noises made from across the cell. That was the last thing he knew before darkness quickly consumed him.

---

Intense pain from his scar quickly brought Harry out of his dreamless sleep. It took him a moment to realize that he was still bound to the cot in a cell in a hideout for Voldemort. His entire body was aching and his mind felt extremely sluggish. It took Harry a moment to realize that the rapid pounding he was hearing was in fact the footsteps of two people were approaching. By the increasing pain of his scar, Harry could only assume who one of the individuals was.

“No, no, no,” Lily shook her head desperately. “No!”

James hugged her and ran a hand through her hair trying to calm her down.

Closing his eyes, Harry tried to think about anything but the pain. He tried to clear his mind and concentrate on his Occlumency lessons but even that didn’t work. Intense anger and impatience flooded in so quickly that Harry felt like he was being suffocated. He hadn’t felt anything like this from Voldemort since before he started Occlumency. Why was this happening now? How was this possible? Don’t panic! Focus on breathing and only breathing!

As difficult as it was, Harry forced himself to concentrate completely on breathing but the constant echoing footsteps and the increasing pain made it incredibly difficult. He needed to mentally be some place else. It was the only option he had. He remembered the times in the Marauder Quarters he would spend with Sirius and Remus just staring at the fire in the fireplace. He felt completely safe there, knowing that Sirius and Remus were there sitting beside him. That was where Harry longed to be.

A distant high-pitched and annoyed voice pulled Harry’s attention away from the flames. “I have given you more than enough time, Audrey. Tell me what you’ve found.”

“No, please don’t tell him anything Audrey,” Remus begged and Mr. Potter added the name to his list.

A frightened female voice answered as calmly as humanly possible. “My Lord, I apologize for the delay but it was necessary. I came across some abnormalities that I wanted to re-examine. Most of them I still don’t understand. I trust you are aware of the magical reserves that are present in every magical being—human and otherwise?”

“Oh yes, do start explaining things to Voldemort as if he knew nothing and take all the time in the world,” Mr. Potter snorted. “That will go well.”

The high-pitched voice was even more irritated now. “Get on with it!”

There was a moment of silence before the woman’s voice spoke again. “My Lord, I’m trying to explain. On the surface, Potter is completely normal. It wasn’t until I preformed more in depth scans on his magic that I found an oddity. It seems that Potter is able to tap into his reserves at will to make his spells stronger. It would explain how Potter has managed to suffer from magical exhaustion so often, if what Snape has told you is correct.

“SNIVELLUS WHAT?” Sirius shrieked. “Why the bloody hell is Snivellus telling Voldemort about Harry’s magical exhaustion when we’ve been trying to hide it all along? I knew it! He can’t be trusted!”

“As much as I agree with you Sirius,” Mrs. Potter said pursing her lips. “The next time you swear I will Scorgify your mouth young man”

Sirius huffed and crossed his arms, “Snivellus still told.”

“Maybe Dumbledore told him to. You may notice Voldemort still doesn’t know about those outbursts,” Remus pondered. “I mean, Snape has to give Voldemort some information or he would get suspicious.”

Mr. Potter nodded with Remus but the other four members of the group kept their scowls on.

“Snape better start proving where his loyalties lie,” Lily mumbled. Apparently all her good will towards Snape was evaporating fast.

 Also, several scans revealed that Potter seems to have more ‘active magic’ than the normal witch or wizard. I can’t explain it. This ‘active magic’ is being constantly used but I can’t determine what for. I’ve never seen anything like it before.”

Harry didn’t know whether to be nervous or relieved by this news. They had discovered that something wasn’t normal but they hadn’t discovered what that actually was. Just because they haven’t figured it out yet doesn’t mean they won’t. Dread flooded in and before Harry knew it, the Marauder Quarters were dissolving into nothingness. The pain from his scar returned but it wasn’t as intense as it had been moments ago.

The voices were clearer now. “I see,” Voldemort said thoughtfully. “And this justified disobeying my orders?”

“Master—”

“SILENCE!” Voldemort roared. Harry’s body instantly tensed although the motion went unnoticed by those in the room. “Because of your impatience, you may have jeopardized everything! My plans do not revolve around your discoveries!” Voldemort lowered his tone so it was nothing more than an icy whisper. “You have overestimated your importance to me. You will be punished for your insolence. Leave us. I will deal with you shortly.”

“She should really know her boss and not think she can get away with doing what she wants when the punishment to disobedience can be torture and death,” James pointed out.

“Especially since obeying her boss and not poking on Harry’s private business is very beneficial to us,” Sirius nodded.

Harry opened his eyes a bit as the cell door creaked open for McDaniels to hurry out of the cell and out of the room. He could see two somewhat blurry figures enter and knew this was bad…extremely bad. Closing his eyes again, Harry concentrated completely on his restraints. He wasn’t going to let them do anything to him without a fight. He wasn’t going to let Voldemort succeed no matter what it cost him. Alohomora, Alohomora, ALOHOMORA!

A rush of warmth brushed against him as Harry felt the pressure against his wrists and ankles disappear. Without his glasses, Harry knew he would have to rely mainly on his other senses. He quickly pushed all thought out of his mind as he simply acted. He heard someone approaching and the moment they were close enough, Harry punched the Death Eater in the face with as much strength as he could gather with his right and while his left instantly reached for their right hand and pulled the wand out of the Death Eater’s hand. The Death Eater stumbled back a few steps which gave Harry the perfect opportunity to stun them.

“YES!” Sirius and James cried together.

“Now run Harry, run like the wind!” Remus urged but Mr. Potter had a doubtful expression on his face.

The Death Eater fell to the ground with a thud as Harry pointed his wand to the blur that was Voldemort. Harry slowly slid off the cot and stood, his bare feet coming in contact with the cold floor. His entire body was on alert, ready to strike at a moment’s notice. Eagerness and anticipation filled the air. That certainly wasn’t what Harry was expecting. It was almost as if Voldemort had been waiting for this to happen.

“It appears I have quite the advantage, Harry,” Voldemort said casually. “You can’t even see me. How are you supposed to fight me?”

“My point exactly,” Mr. Potter nodded grimly, hating that he was agreeing with Voldemort. “He should have faked being unconscious and waited until Voldemort was gone.”

“Except Voldemort would have probably enervated him and tortured him and then killed him,” Lily growled.

“We don’t know,” Mr. Potter nodded. “I don’t think old snake-face wants to dispose of Harry so quickly and this way he is just going to make Voldemort double the guards.”

“I’ll manage,” Harry said as he took a small step towards the cell door.

“Is that so?” Voldemort asked simply as he pulled out his own wand but didn’t point it at Harry. “Is that what your father is telling you now? You seem willing to do anything…even abandon your current family for him, for their protection of course, but you still abandoned them. If he told you to join me, would you obey?”

“SEE?” James cried desperately. “I told you that was a trick!”

Harry stared at Voldemort in horror. There was only one way Voldemort could know about that. “That was you?” he asked softly. Harry couldn’t believe it. Occlumency hadn’t worked after all. Voldemort had never been blocked from his mind. All of the support had been part of a plot to gain the trust of a distressed teenager in order to remove him from any sort of protection whatsoever. And I blindly accepted it all. I must be the thickest person on the planet.

“I’d really like to say you weren’t Harry,” Remus said wincing, “But, well- er- that was fishy. But you were distressed. We understand.”

Voldemort slowly twirled his wand between his fingers. “Wormtail has been extremely helpful in providing information about your late father and precious guardians,” he said; his pride seeping into his voice. “I must say that I probably know them better than you do, especially your father.”

“That backstabbing traitor knows nothing about me!” James cried angrily.

“Unfortunately, he does,” Lily said grimacing.

Harry tightened his grip on the wand in his hand as he fought to keep his emotions under control. He couldn’t allow himself to make any mistakes at the moment. “I highly doubt that,” Harry said through his teeth. He wasn’t about to get into a discussion about his father with Voldemort. Thinking of a possible escape was a higher priority followed by a way to confront Sirius with everything that had happened.

Without any sort of warning, Harry found himself lifted off the ground and slammed into the bars to the left, his shoulder making the initial contact. Pain shot down his arm and back, stunning Harry as he was then flew backwards into the bars, his head and back receiving the majority of the contact. His mind was a clouded mess as he fell onto the cot, bounced slightly and rolled onto the floor, dropping the wand in the process. The pendants against his chest heated slightly. Harry could feel a tear fall. Sirius would know that something had happened and would be helpless to do anything about it.

Voldemort flicked his wand at the Death Eater who started to stir. “Did you really think you had a chance against me, Harry?” he asked casually. “I have underestimated you in the past but not anymore.” The Death Eater glanced around in confusion before he quickly stood up. “Your defiance is admirable. One has to wonder what the Muggle-loving fool ever did to win such loyalty.” Voldemort looked directly at the Death Eater. “Administer the potion.”

“What potion?” Mrs. Potter asked worried.

The Death Eater reached into his robes and pulled out a small object before he knelt down in front of Harry who was still too dazed to do anything but watch. A hand roughly turned Harry’s face away a moment before Harry felt something pierce his neck. He tried to fight back but he was quickly overwhelmed by nausea and dizziness. His body started to convulse as he struggled to breathe. He felt like he was suffocating. It was as if something he had relied on for his very survival was being harshly ripped away.

Pain flooded his body as the convulsions lessened. Exhaustion quickly set in making it extremely difficult for Harry to hang onto consciousness. There was a void around him where the soft waves of emotions should have been. He felt absolutely nothing for the first time in a month. Harry gasped for breath as he realized that his empathy and most likely his magic were gone. He would completely defenseless now.

“The suppression potion,” Lily answered grimly. “Coward,” she hissed to Voldemort.

“Well?” Voldemort asked impatiently.

“Potter’s magic is suppressed, Master,” answered the quiet voice of Professor Snape. “He will need to be monitored for the next forty-eight hours for any signs of allergic reaction. His initial reaction was more severe than I had anticipated…unless you want him die from suffocation, my Lord.”

“Snivellus,” Sirius hissed angrily glaring daggers at the book.

“If he is on our side, that potion was faulty,” Lily said stonily. “I guess we’ll find out soon enough.”

Harry felt himself being carelessly lifted off the floor and levitated to the back wall. Chains appeared out of thin air, connected to the wall and attached themselves to Harry’s wrists. Everything else was banished from the cell as Harry fell to the floor with a thud. He let out a painful moan as pain shot through his body. With extreme effort, Harry managed to even out his breathing but the simple action had pushed him past his limit. Voices became too distorted to understand.

He blacked out.

---

A small crowd of cloaked figures stood before him, fear radiating off of each of them. It was pitiful that these were all that remained of his elite at the moment. These were whom he was forced to trust with his most important of plans all because a certain teenager continued to be a thorn in his side. Not anymore, he reminded himself. That thorn was now locked away and deemed harmless; something that the entire wizarding world would soon witness for themselves.

The room was barely lit just like the rest of the abandoned Manor. Regardless of the precautions taken, he wouldn’t risk his plans ruined because someone happened to notice a light on. The old fool’s Order and the Ministry were bound to be searching high and low for their savior. Harry Potter’s abduction had caused a mass of hysteria throughout the wizarding world. Many had already declared him dead since there had been plenty of witnesses to pass on the state they saw Potter in before he vanished.

“The time has come for all of you to prove yourselves as a member of the Inner Circle,” he said coolly. “Harry Potter is no longer a threat. All that remains is destroying his connection to the Muggle-loving fool and his sanity. My spies tell me that the blood traitor—Sirius Black—has been leading the search for his precious godson. He has left the security of his home. I want Black brought to me alive and coherent. I want Potter to watch his beloved godfather die.”

“What? No? You leave Sirius alone!” Lily cried and James launched himself onto Sirius repeating “thank you” over and over while Sirius patted his back reassuringly.

The crowd of Death Eaters stood proudly now, eager to fulfill their assignment. Sirius Black was an enemy to many of them, especially Bellatrix Lestrange since Sirius was actually her cousin. No one said a word, though. Ever since Audrey McDaniels, everyone treaded carefully when they stepped foot in the Manor. Nothing less than total obedience was accepted which meant that Harry Potter was certainly off limits.

“What happened to McDaniels?” Remus asked.

“I really don’t want to know,” Mrs. Potter muttered.

The figure before them pulled out his wand and all lapse in attention vanished. “I want the blood traitor here by tomorrow evening,” he continued. “Do not fail me. There have been too many failures as of late. Harry Potter was brought here by a stroke of luck on your part and stupidity on Potter’s. Black won’t be as easy. Go.”

The Death Eaters hurried out of the room like the scared animals that they were. Now alone in the large room, he walked to the fireplace and sat down in a nearby chair. He stared at the dying fire for a moment before a smirk formed on his face. “Hello Harry,” he said softly. “I know you saw everything. Don’t worry. Your godfather will be joining us soon. I’m sure he’s simply dying to see you.”

“STOP TAUNTING HIM!” Mr. Potter growled.

Harry woke up with a gasp followed by a wince when he realized that his scar was burning in pain. Closing his eyes tightly, he tried to focus on anything but the pain until it decreased to a more manageable annoyance. It was then that Harry realized that his back was aching badly and his left shoulder was throbbing. Sitting up and resting against the wall was a challenge. Any movement only made his pain increase.

The restraints connected to his wrists had enough leeway so that he could sit up or lie down but nothing more than that. Tilting his head backwards against the wall, Harry couldn’t believe how empty and alone he felt now. The gentle and reassuring waves of emotions that he had become so dependent on for reassurance in the past month were now gone. Suddenly everything felt a lot more frightening. He would no longer know if anyone entering was being truthful or not. He could no longer trust anything but his instincts which wasn’t exactly comforting. His instincts had gotten him in this mess to begin with.

Slowly, Harry opened his eyes but couldn’t make out anything in the darkness. He couldn’t push away the overwhelming dread at the thought of Sirius being in danger. Closing his eyes again, Harry didn’t bother fighting the stinging sensation that always came before tears. He didn’t hold back as the tears began to fall. This was his fault. He had no one to blame but himself. If he had only spoken to someone about the voices before running off…if only he had thought things through…if only he hadn’t run away…if only…if only…

Voldemort was right. Sirius would be heavily involved in the search because Harry would do the same if Sirius had been captured. Sirius would put himself at risk and would sacrifice his life if it were necessary. Without Remus, Sirius was bound to do something rash. Just like I did. Just like I always do. Harry bowed his head as the tears fell freely, not caring if anyone was nearby to see him. The thought of Sirius facing the same fate as Remus was just too much to bear. Dad, Mum, Remus…please keep Midnight safe. I can’t lose him too. He’s all I have left.

“Don’t worry Harry,” Sirius said hoarsely. “I won’t do anything rash. I am very level headed.”

The others, who also had bright eyes looked at him strangely.

“I think he bumped his head,” Remus whispered to the others.

A thought suddenly hit him. Could this be a trick? This was just the thing that Voldemort would pull. He had learned the hard way never to believe anything when Voldemort was concerned. This was something that Voldemort would do. He would leave Harry in suspense until it was too late for anything to be done about it. Unless I try to find some way to warn the Order. Harry just wished he knew how. Concentrating, he tried to silently call Fawkes but the phoenix never arrived. Harry figured it had to do with his magic being suppressed and tried to focus on other ways of escape. As much as he wanted to dwell on the current situation, he knew that wasn’t going to solve anything. Remus and Sirius had always told him that it was important to keep your wits about you in a crisis. Sooner or later, someone’s bound to make a mistake.

Personally, Harry was hoping for sooner rather than later but he couldn’t just wait around for the opportunity to present itself. Voldemort certainly wouldn’t. Patience wasn’t exactly a quality that Dark Lords had. Regardless of what happened, Voldemort wanted Harry dead. Breaking him was just a perk, something to brag about to a world that put their faith of survival in a teenager. Of course, no one actually said that the wizarding world contained those gifted with logical sense.

Releasing a shaky breath, Harry tried to regain his focus. He was currently chained up in a cell with no possible access to his magic. That meant two things. One: it was going to be significantly more difficult for him to get free. Two: chances were that Voldemort’s followers wouldn’t consider him much of a threat anymore. He would be underestimated. He would need to be if he stood a chance against Death Eaters.

“Yes, exactly. Now use that to your advantage,” Mr. Potter coaxed.

“Focus on what you can control.” Sirius and Remus had worked so hard to make Harry concentrate on the current problem in order to think clearly. As much as Harry hated it, he couldn’t do anything about Voldemort’s plan to capture Sirius until he found a way to escape. He couldn’t risk passing on a warning to Professor Snape since he had no idea if anyone was listening in. No. He wouldn’t risk Professor Snape’s position like that. Unless I make myself out to be someone who is completely out of their mind and pass the message that way.

“I wouldn’t trust Snivellus all that much,” James said flatly. “He doesn’t seem to be helping much now does he?”

“Maybe he didn’t have the opportunity,” Mr. Potter offered.

“Or maybe he didn’t want to,” Sirius answered.

The sound of echoing footsteps quickly pulled Harry out of his thoughts. He instantly began to calm his breathing and relaxed his body as if he were sleeping. The footsteps grew louder and the echoes decreased. There was only one coming which meant this was probably a checkup to make sure that their prisoner hadn’t died yet. More than likely they don’t want to miss out on a chance to ‘avenge their Master’ and, more importantly, avenge themselves.

The footsteps abruptly stopped just before the individual reached the room Harry was in. Muffled voices could be heard for a split second before the door opened. Harry remained perfectly still, listening as the Death Eater opened the door, slowly entered the room, unlocked the cell door and opened it. Keeping his breathing even was a struggle for Harry. He really hated not knowing what was coming. He hated that his abilities had been stripped away when he needed them the most.

“Still out of it,” muttered the deep voice of the Death Eater as he approached. “It would be so easy to kill you Potter but the Dark Lord demands that you remain alive.” The Death Eater crouched down in front of Harry, grabbed Harry by the chin and raised it upwards to see Harry’s face. “It’s absolutely amazing how so many can fear one so young, even when you are completely defenseless.” The Death Eater released Harry’s chin and watched as the boy’s head fell forward before standing back up. “Don’t worry, Potter. You should have company by this evening. Then the real fun begins.” Harry felt something that felt strangely like a pair of glasses being slid on his face. “The Dark Lord wants you to see the blood traitor’s death with your own eyes. From what I hear it should be quite a sight.”

The six readers smirked evilly as the Death Eater handed Harry an advantage.

It took every ounce of self control Harry had to prevent himself from reacting to the news. They expected to have Sirius by tonight? That meant a few things. First, it wasn’t nighttime yet which gave him at least some sort of time frame. Second, he would have to find a way to escape as soon as possible. Time was no longer on his side. In fact, time was his enemy. The longer he took, the more at risk Sirius was. Unless this is another trick to make me do something incredibly stupid.

Unfortunately, Harry couldn’t afford take the risk. As much as he wanted to make his guardians proud, Harry knew that he would have to act first and think later. It was no longer a question of how he could escape without anyone noticing. It was a question of what would he be willing to do to save someone he loved? How far would anyone go? Harry already knew the answer. He would do whatever he could to protect Sirius. He couldn’t bear to lose another guardian.

“You won’t!” Remus said firmly and for good measure glared at Sirius who nodded fervently.

Harry let out a gasp as he fell to the floor and started to convulse. Pain flared from his wrists every time he moved them. The sound of his chains moving was the only sound for what felt like an eternity before Harry suddenly found himself in a full body bind, something he hadn’t prepared himself for. It took an enormous amount of self control for Harry to keep his eyes closed and listen. The Death Eater once again crouched down and placed a hand on Harry’s chest. A moment later Harry felt the restraints removed from his wrists and heard them fall to the floor with a clank. The body bind was removed, allowing the Death Eater to take a closer look at Harry’s wrists.

“That’s my grandson! Faking a seizure! Genius!” Mr. Potter said proudly.

He wasn’t going to get another chance at this.

As quickly as possible, Harry kicked at the Death Eater’s head while manually disarming him. The glasses he was wearing quickly adjusted to his prescription allowing Harry to actually see his target. Adrenaline poured through his veins as Harry pulled his hand free and punched the Death Eater in the solar plexus and kicked him once again in the head as hard as he possibly could. The Death Eater fell to the ground in a daze as he struggled to breathe. Harry silently thanked Sirius and Remus for teaching him about pressure points in the human body. It certainly would make this a lot easier.

While Mr. Potter read the boys punched the air as if they were fighting.

With a few well placed punches, the Death Eater was unconscious and Harry moved as quickly as he could. He changed clothes with the man, pocketed the wand and slipped on the Death Eater’s cloak. The man was slightly taller than him and had brown colored hair instead of black but turned the right way, the Death Eater could give him the chance he needed to escape. Harry quickly repositioned his decoy so any distinguishing characteristics were hidden. He ripped off a portion of the Death Eater’s shirt and gagged the man then attached the restraints onto the limp wrists. He would have to move quickly yet discretely. I will also have to find a way out of here without looking like I’m trying to leave.

Rising to his feet, Harry pulled the hood of the cloak he was now wearing to hide his face in darkness. He inhaled deeply, gathering his courage and walked out of the cell. Adrenaline was still coursing through his body, silencing and sign of pain. It was probably the only thing that kept him moving at the moment. As soon as this is over with I can worry about any injuries I may have.

Walking out of the room, Harry noticed the Death Eater guard who was reading the ‘Daily Prophet’, apparently bored out of his mind. “You didn’t do anything noticeable, right?” the guard asked although he sounded like he cared in the slightest.

“The brat started to panic like a frightened animal,” Harry growled, trying to make his voice sound like his decoy’s. “Don’t worry. He’s only stunned.”

The guard nodded and returned to reading.

“Stupid Death Eater,” Sirius mumbled. “Go Harry!”

Harry held in a relieved sigh as he turned to the left and walked down the hallway at a casual yet brisk pace. His entire body was on alert, ready to strike at a moment’s notice. His head remained still but his eyes were continuously moving to locate any sort of exit. He saw another hallway on the left and instantly turned to move out of the Death Eater’s line of sight. Harry let out a brief sigh of relief and started to check each door but only found small empty rooms.

Harry was about to turn around when he opened the last door on the right and stopped short at the sight of what could only be described as a large weapon’s closet. Stepping inside, Harry didn’t hesitate in grabbing what he could. He quickly removed his cloak and strapped on a belt that would hold a sword and a chest harness that could hold a few knives just in case. Once he had all of the weapons in their correct places, Harry quickly put the black cloak back on and hurried to find a way out.

“Smart,” Remus beamed proudly.

The hallway veered to the right. Harry could barely hold back his excitement when he saw a window at the end of the hallway. It wasn’t the most preferred way out but it was still a way out. He just hoped that this wasn’t a multiple floor abode. He really wasn’t looking forward to jumping out a window only to break a leg. That would certainly put a quick halt to his escape and any hope to warning Sirius or the Order.

Harry continued checking doors but only found empty rooms. He was nearly halfway to the window when the sound of footsteps made him stop in his tracks. As quickly and quietly as possible, Harry hid in a nearby room and remained completely still. He closed his eyes and covered his mouth as the footsteps grew louder, competing with his thundering heartbeat in his ears. Calm down! Panicking will solve nothing! Breathing deeply, Harry tried to calm himself as he listened to the footsteps walking past his hiding place. He could feel his hands shaking as he waited for the footsteps to fade into nothing. It’s now or never.

As quietly as possible, Harry opened the door and peaked out into the hallway only to see no one. He couldn’t risk being cautious anymore and hurried to the window. He had to escape now or he never would.  After a moment of searching, Harry found the latch to unlock it and opened the window to see that he was on the second level. Certainly not as bad as it could be. He carefully crawled onto the windowsill, ignoring the sparks of pain from his wrists. With a final breath, Harry jumped out the window and landed on the ground in a crouched position. His ankles throbbed on impact causing Harry to wince. He let out a shaky breath before he stood up and ran as fast as he could. Reaching in his robes, Harry pulled out the stolen wand and tossed it into some hedges nearby. He really had no use for it and couldn’t take the chance of anyone tracking it. He didn’t know where he was going but at the moment, anywhere was better than where he had just been.

A collective sigh of relief was heard as Mr. Potter turned the page.

“Now, go home Harry,” Mrs. Potter ordered.