105After Voldemort barged right into Malfoy Manor, Lucius spoke up. "We tried to capture his daughters, but they gave us the slip," Lucius explained quickly before anyone could ask any questions.
"No matter." Voldemort turned to Cyrus. "You said there was another way for me to acquire this curse."
"Yes." Cyrus fidgeted with the sleeves of his own shirt. "Ah, D-Daphne got the c-curse from m-my s-sister."
"And where is your sister now?" Voldemort demanded to know.
Lucius glared daggers at Cyrus and discreetly mouthed a 'no'.
Cyrus knew that he had to lie. However, being caught in a lie would surely mean his death. He remained silent for a long while, thinking about what to say, until Voldemort spoke in a threatening tone, "My patience is wearing thin... Talk. Now."
"My l-lord, unfortunately s-she's at Hogwarts c-castle under D-Dumbledore's protection. And I h-have no doubt that, by now, my d-daughter is t-there too," Cyrus said, thinking of a place Voldemort wouldn't dare to attack, "I'm afraid we won't be a-able to reach them now, it's probably best to focus on anoth-"
"No. I will just have to step up my plans," Voldemort declared.
"Are you sure that is a good idea? The dementors are breeding as planned, but the new ones are not ready to fight yet. They are just like children," Lucius explained.
"Then they can fight against children," Voldemort retorted with a nod of his head.
After Daphne finished talking to Harry, she returned to the Slytherin common room where she found Professor Snape talking to Astoria, Tracey, Pansy, and several other girls. She mostly heard the girls saying no, but she wasn't quite sure what question they were answering.
"How about you, Miss Greengrass? There has been a brash of thefts in the girl's dormitories lately. Are you missing anything? Was anything stolen?" Professor Snape asked Daphne.
"Oh, no professor, nothing missing," Daphne said.
"Really? Are you sure?" Professor Snape looked Daphne in the eyes with his arms folded across his chest.
"Not that I have noticed anyway." Daphne returned his gaze and she could tell he didn't believe her. Then she gulped as she realized her father probably already contacted him about the 'stolen' package he sent her. Of course, it is unlikely he told him exactly what was stolen.
"My father claims he sent me something… Something I never saw in the first place. My sister thinks it might have been stolen, but… I don't know. Last time that happened, it turned out he just forgot to send it." Daphne grinned sheepishly hoping he would believe her.
"Actually, I kind of fibbed to dad!" Astoria chimed in with a chuckle. "I think you are right, but I wasn't about to tell dad that." She smiled at Daphne, who found it profoundly disturbing how good of a liar her sister was.
"Well, if it turns out something was stolen, you will let me know. Won't you?" Professor Snape insisted. Daphne watched as Pansy and Tracey both rose from their seats and left, both going downstairs toward the girl's dormitories.
"Sure." Daphne scoffed at that. "Actually, professor. I will..." She paused and looked around just to make sure there were no other students around, other than her sister of course. "I will level with you. Nothing was stolen. I lied…" She paused and looked around again then she whispered, "To my father actually. I did get that package, but I didn't want it. It was a love potion. My father wanted me to use it on Harry."
"Potter?" Professor Snape asked in an eerily calm tone.
"Yes." Daphne nodded, then explained, "But that isn't the worst part." She yet again looked around just to make sure no other students were coming.
"Well don't keep me in suspense. Out with it," Professor Snape insisted.
"He wanted me to use that against Harry. Make him fall in love and marry me, then they planned to," she looked around again as her nervousness only ramped up. "Then he planned to have him killed."
Astoria's jaw dropped as she rose from her seat. "She is telling the truth. I am not sure why she is, but she is."
"Don't worry. I will have a little chat with your father first chance I get," Professor Snape said calmly.
"Of course, he is going to deny…" She stopped as she noticed Draco approaching.
Draco barged in and interrupted. "He wouldn't tell me what it was about, but my father requested you call him," Draco informed Professor Snape.
Professor Snape nodded to Draco and only gave Daphne the briefest of glances before leaving.
"I am surprised you are back so soon." Draco gave Daphne a snide look after Professor Snape left.
Daphne folded her arms across her chest. "I guess your father, or was it your Aunt, told you all about my father's little dinner party?" Daphne asked.
"Yes, and how you so rudely left early," Draco sneered at her.
"Let me guess. They want you to turn me over to Voldemort." Daphne backed away from Draco.
"My Aunt probably does, but my father and I…" Draco snickered with a bit of an eyeroll before Astoria interrupted him.
"Your… f-father knew about the- the d-dinner party?" Astoria asked stuttering on her words.
"Nothing for you to worry your pretty little head over," Draco said to Astoria. Then he turned his attention back to Daphne. "Like I was saying, my father and I have other plans."
Daphne rolled her eyes at Draco and managed to stop herself from asking what she really wanted to know, which was why on earth would I actually trust you, but instead she simply asked "And what plans would that be?" She folded her arms across her chest. Her Patronus that still remained perched on her shoulder seemed to stand at attention.
"We are simply going to keep you away from Voldemort," Draco put his hand on her shoulder, the opposite side to where the Patronus stood, "If he or any dementors tries to come near you or your sister for that matter, I will protect you both, with my own life if it comes to-" He briefly stopped talking and his face seemed to turn white with fright. "Oh, no, they're here!"
Several of the new dementors ignored Voldemort's orders to avoid Slytherin and made their way in. Draco immediately ran away, up the stairs to the boy's dormitory leaving Daphne and Astoria behind.
"Where are you going?" Astoria watched as Draco disappeared up the stairs.
"So much for his protection," Daphne muttered to herself. She too wanted to run as the fear of being around a dementor set in, but with her sister there, she knew that wasn't an option. The dementors seemed to lock on to that and head straight for her. Then her Patronus took flight and slammed right into the dementor. At first the dementor tried to feed upon the Patronus, but then it let out an ear-piercing scream and seemed to explode in a brilliant flash of blue-white light, not unlike that of her Patronus.
"You did it!" Astoria applauded her sister.
"Yeah, but there are probably many more," Daphne said. "Did you ever actually learn the Patronus charm?"
"No," Astoria admitted. "I didn't take it very seriously. I was just trying to get excused from class."
"I figured as much." Daphne sighed. "I want you to go to your room. With any luck, the same magic that stops boys from going into the girl's dorms will also stop the dementors from going in. If not.." She removed the locket that was a portkey and gave it to her sister. "Use this."
"I can't." Astoria refused to take the key.
"You saw how effective my Patronus was. I won't need it. I just want you to be safe, ok?" Daphne hugged her sister and gave her the portkey.
Reluctantly Astoria agreed and left upstairs with the portkey. She figured that she would be a liability to Daphne if she were to follow her, and if she didn't take the portkey, Daphne would worry about her safety and wouldn't be able to focus. Astoria rationalized that the best she could do now was to make sure her sister's head would be one hundred percent focused on the battle ahead of her.
Daphne left the Slytherin dungeons feeling only a fraction of the confidence she just boasted to her sister. She had a feeling she would regret giving up that portkey, but not as much as she would regret it if her sister died. She knew she would rather die herself over allowing that to happen.
Much to her dismay, this was no isolated incident. Dementors swarmed much of Hogwarts in numbers far greater than ever seen before. Many of the students Harry taught the Patronus spell to last year effectively held some of the dementors at bay.
Much to Cho Chang's shock she encountered several dementors in the hallway. Even though her relationship with Harry didn't last, she certainly felt grateful for the fact that she had been taught the Patronus charm last year. She focused on the memory of the Yule ball and her dancing with Cedric and the memory of her kiss with Harry. An incredibly beautiful swan formed from the tip of her wand made purely of light and glowing energy. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough. Dementors completely surrounded her swan and began to feed upon it. Several dementors surrounded Cho too.
Daphne came upon the scene and her dove flew right in, going first for the one that was to kiss Cho. Just as Dumbledore had hoped, Daphne's Patronus yet again proved its worth and completely destroyed the dementor. Unfortunately, the screech of the dementor's death distracted Cho causing her to block her ears and drop her wand. Her swan disappeared. The group of dementors that attempted to feed off it turned toward Cho and Daphne. Daphne's dove whirled around and cut through the group of them.
"Thank you," Cho said to Daphne. She bent down and picked up her wand. She focused on a happy memory again and her swan came back.
"You're welcome," Daphne responded smiling at Cho, but then that smile disappeared very quickly as she caught a glimpse of her father.
"I am very disappointed in you, young lady," Cyrus told his daughter, who only chuckled at his gruff demeanor. He opened his mouth to ask her what she was laughing at.
"The feeling is most certainly mutual," Daphne interrupted before he could get those words out.
Cyrus narrowed his eyes as he glared at his daughter. "What gives you the audacity to speak to me like that? How dare you!" Cyrus raised his hand to Daphne about to slap her.
Daphne didn't react, frozen in shock at the realization that her father was willing to hit her. Thankfully, Cho intervened. "Everte Statum!" Cho waved her wand, which sent Cyrus flying backwards several feet and crashing into a wall.
"Thanks, we are even," Daphne told Cho. She couldn't help yet again feeling disappointed in her father, but she also felt rather foolish at the same time. She should have known he would resort to such behavior after he no longer had his punching bag.
"Not even close," Cho said fully realizing that the dementors Daphne just saved her from were far more dangerous than the jerk of a Father Daphne had. "How about we are friends?"
"Friends, yes," Daphne smiled.
Her father got back up again. "I would make your new little friend pay for that, but we have something far more important to do," Cyrus said.
"We? No, whatever you are planning, I will not be a part of it," Daphne said.
"I want to keep you away from Voldemort," Cyrus told her.
"Do you really expect me to believe you?" Daphne glared at her father. "I heard that same crap from Malfoy."
"You don't believe me," Cyrus asked incredulously.
"After all the lies you told, let me think." She paused and thought for the briefest of moments. "No!" She exclaimed with a raised voice.
Daphne was so distracted by her conversation with her father when Cho nudged her shoulder. "Ah Daphne," Cho said.
"What is…" Daphne said as she looked around. "Crap!" She realized she and Cho were surrounded.
"Well done Greengrass. You captured her."
A/N
I would like to thank everyone who read, favorited, followed and or reviewed this story. I would also like to thank CSGT for his help with this story.
If anyone is into Ben 10, CSGT writes amazing Ben 10 stories.