99Disclaimer: I don't own Harry. I'm so happy! This is worth writing, since aspiringwriterjen and Rachel Sedai are reading this! What? Why should I be sad that I don't own Harry? The far better author got him.
Harry Potter and the soul of the wizard
Chapter three: The unexpected guest
Harry was watching the proceedings in the Hog's Head with his usual interest when suddenly, one by one, everyone turned their heads to look outside where a very thick fog was settling fast. To the amazement of the at-the-moment witch, almost all customers took this as their cue to leave. Only those she had come to recognise by their brutish and rude behaviour and others who were shaking quite badly remained seated. Then Ape noticed her still sitting on her usual step and ushered her upstairs, telling her urgently to remain in her room.
As soon as she was sure he had gone, she crept back the way she came, having an ominous feeling about the whole affair. Heart racing, she tried to remain in the shadows as she approached the staircase, passing the light of the torches as quickly as possible. She readjusted her hood when she finally came to a stop a few feet in front of the stairs to keep her blond-bleached hair from sight, as it was eye-catching. Gratefully she noted that nobody seemed to have noticed her yet. Kneeling down to get a better view and become even less visible, she watched the proceedings downstairs.
She could see part of the bar counter with Ape standing behind it, two darker-looking characters in front of him and two of the tables by which three and two figures sat. The click of a door was heard. Suddenly two men, both wearing very dark cloaks and hooded faces appeared in her line of vision. Their outer appearances were not unusual at all at this place, but there just seemed to be something off about them. All of her senses were screaming at her that these people were not regular customers.
"Is that even a part-human?" she thought, spotting a slightly hunched creature who's yellowish fingernails strongly resembled claws. He was the one to speak up first, his voice raspy: "So you decided to join our cause?"
The assembled mumbled various things to the affirmative, ranging widely in their conviction. "This is a..!" Harry was about to run down the stairs to... "To what...?" Retreating to her huddled position, she decided that it would be best to watch the proceedings.
"And you think you are worthy of it!" the dangerous-looking Death Eater yelled. The commotion died down. This was obviously unexpected. "You!" he snarled at a nearby, rather scared-looking man wearing a dirty old cloak. "How many have you turned to our kind?" he almost purred in a crazed pleasure at the mere thought of it, continuing in an even more pleased voice when he noticed the other's fear, "How many have you killed?"
The greying man stuttered: "No-none... The ministry would have-" A crashing sound and a sickening crunch echoed over the room. Fortunately the sharp intakes of breath and muttering that followed drowned out Harry's horrified gasp.
Harry needed a moment to process what had happened. Fast as lightning the vicious man had grabbed the other werewolf and thrown him across the room outside her vision. Trembling, something Dumbledore had once told her came back to her, "'Voldermort treats his followers no better than his enemies...' This seems to apply to the way the Death Eaters deal with each other, too..."
"Anybody else who has happily lived by sucking up to the ministry!" he growled, sneering at two who appeared to want to scurry off. "Nobody needs weak cowards!" he growled, before seizing one of them single handedly by his neck, almost absent-mindedly drawing deep bloody wounds with his sharp-clawed, free hand. The other broke into a run, fleeing in panic and Harry dearly hoped he would make it. He couldn't be too far from the door now!
"Avada Kedavra." The other had said his first words that evening in an almost lazy fashion, which was followed by a loud thump. Harry froze. The person had just killed someone as though it was nothing. He had sounded bored, while saying the killing curse!
She felt sick and almost needed to vomit. "This is disgusting..." She didn't care at the moment whether the man's struggling and gasping and the small crowds muttering drowned her choking and panting or not. Finally, when she felt sure she wouldn't be emptying her stomach, she swallowed several times to get the taste off her tongue. Reluctantly, she looked back down.
It seemed she was lucky this time. Although one of the guests had turned in her direction momentarily, he seemed to dismiss it, soon turning back to the inhuman creature that still held the other figure, who, was slowly ceasing his resistance. She watched as his strength left him, and he grew limp, the forceful grip cutting off his air supply. She looked away as the dead body finally fell to the ground.
"So I take it the rest of you have more satisfying reasons to be here than fear?" the vicious satisfied voice asked.
"I'm sick of animal blood!" what seemed to be a Vampire hissed.
A proud voice stated: "I want to rid this world of Mudbloods!"
"I'm tired of living like a fugitive, because of the blood that flows in my veins," an almost musical-sounding voice said.
The rest gave similar cries.
The Death Eater nodded. "You've passed your first test. Now come prove yourself to our master!" The cold-blooded Death Eater threw a sack of gold at Ape who caught it easily as the group left, touching what probably was a Portkey.
When Ape turned around and looked directly at her, she fled in the opposite direction, instinctively running for the illusive safety of her room. She stumbled a few times still feeling quite sick, but reached her room quickly, slamming the door shut behind her and casting a quick locking spell on the door when she found no key in the lock, not caring in the least about restrictions for underage wizards.
Sitting down on the bed Harry calmed slightly, finally realising that she had locked herself in a room with no way out. "Is this the reason that bastard gave me this room!"
She got her breathing back under control while waiting for such a long time that she hoped he might not come up to get her. Sadly, her hopes were dashed when a knock on the door alerted her to a presence in front of the room's door. "Thestral?" "Thestral..? What?"
She readied her wand, absent-mindedly remembering that this was her 'name'. She hadn't really used it. "What do you want!" she asked, trying not to sound scared of being cornered. "Of all the places I could have looked for shelter in it had to be a Death Eater recruitment point!"
"I want you to open this door before I have to do it myself, " Ape explained bluntly.
"Try it and I will hex you, Death Eater!" she yelled, her courage fuelled in the face of betrayal.
A sigh drifted through the old door. "It's not like you think it is, Thestral."
"Oh yeah! I forgot you only get money for letting Death Eaters do their little meetings here!" she hissed. "That is so much better!" she ended sarcastically.
Ape gave another deep sigh and it again reminded her of someone. A few minutes passed and Harry almost believed that he was gone when a small piece of parchment was pushed into the room under the door. Picking it up with her left hand, she raised an eyebrow at the messy child-like handwriting and the mistakes. It read: 'Im hear on Dumbledore's oadas!' "Here on Dumbledore's orders..?"
She bit her lip. She really wanted to believe him, but couldn't. "Liar!" she accused, crumbling the parchment.
"Then I'm sorry child," he told her regretfully. A click was heard and before Harry could react her wand had flown into Ape's waiting hand. He shut the door behind himself after placing a few silencing charms on it.