𝙱𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝙻𝚒𝚏𝚎

𝟶𝟸𝟾-𝙳𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝙰𝚐𝚊𝚒𝚗

┌────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──────┐

Marilyn looked around the room they were in with a sinking feeling of dread. She knew exactly where they were. The Hall of Prophecies. What Voldemort wanted wasn't a weapon at all; it was information. A prophecy.

She twirled her wand in her hand as she looked around the hall. It was filled with shelves upon shelves of glass spheres that she knew held prophecies, but Marilyn could sense an underlying feeling of death in the room. It was different, though, from the death room. No, this was more like there were people in the room who had killed.

Frowning, she moved quickly through the rows of prophecies to find where the others had gone. To her horror, she reached the ninety-seventh row and found her friends — minus her brother — surrounded by Death Eaters who were pointing lit wands at them.

She glanced beside her and took note of Marvolo, who also had his wand drawn. He was wearing an uncommon cold expression that made him look a great deal like Tom at the moment. 

"Oh, you don't know Potter as I do, Bellatrix," Malfoy was saying softly."He has a great weakness for heroics; the Dark Lord understands this about him. Now give me the prophecy, Potter." 

Marilyn's heart jolted. This was Bellatrix Lestrange. That meant her husband and brother-in-law were there as well. Her eyes narrowed to slits and her wand arm lifted slightly, but Marvolo quickly pulled it back down. They could not make their presences known yet.

"I know Sirius is here," said Harry. "I know you've got him!" 

The Death Eaters laughed and Marilyn found herself praying that the Order had gotten her message. She wasn't sure she could take all of them.

"It's time you learned the difference between life and dreams, Potter," said Malfoy. "Now give me the prophecy, or we start using wands." 

"Go on, then," said Harry, raising his own wand to chest height. Ashe did so, the five wands of Ron, Hermione, Neville, Ginny, and Luna rose on either side of him. 

Marilyn's own wand drifted up as well, aiming at Malfoy though she did not yet cast a spell.

"Hand over the prophecy and no one need get hurt," said Malfoycoolly.

"Yeah, right!" Harry laughed. "I give you this — prophecy, is it? And you'll just let us skip off home, will you?"The words were hardly out of his mouth when the female Bellatrix shrieked,

"Accio Proph —" 

Harry was just ready for her. 

He shouted "Protego!" before she had finished her spell, and held onto the prophecy while Marilyn shifted slightly from behind the Death Eaters. It was a miracle none of them had noticed her and Marvolo yet.

"Oh, he knows how to play, little bitty baby Potter," she said, her mad eyes staring through the slits in her hood. 

"Very well, then —" 

"I TOLD YOU, NO!" Lucius Malfoy roared at the woman. "If you smash it — !" 

"You need more persuasion?" Bellatrix said, her chest rising and falling rapidly. "Very well — take the smallest one," she ordered the DeathEaters beside her. "Let him watch while we torture the little girl. I'll do it."

Marilyn's wand lifted even higher at the threat against Ginny and she watched with approval as the other students—her friends—closed in on the young redhead.

"You'll have to smash this if you want to attack any of us," Harry told Bellatrix. "I don't think your boss will be too pleased if you come back without it, will he?"