The Nightmare Man

Chapter Fourteen Part One

The Light was worried. The Order and the Ministry had both been surprised when the Dementors vanished without a trace. Now they were growing concerned as to where they were. They no longer answered the calls from the Ministry. They had simply abandoned Azkaban and disappeared.

Fudge was angry.

"He's called for them. That monster called for those creatures, oh we should have put them down!"

"Cornelius," Albus tried with, "it doesn't matter if we had tried. Have you ever seen a Dementor die?"

"Surely they must die at some point, and of something. Why can't we figure that out and kill them in front of him?! That would be nice, finally rattling some bones and upsetting him."

The Nightmare Lord didn't strike Albus as a man who would let an enemy see him upset, but he didn't say that to Fudge. The Minister was angry enough.

"There is nothing we can do about the Dementors now," Albus said, trying to reason with Fudge who was now pacing the room. They were in his office, a few Order members outside talking to Aurors.

"They have a duty to fulfil. Since they aren't at Azkaban anymore I had to send more Aurors there. Aurors that should be busy trying to find the Nightmare Lord!"

"The Dementors must feel a deep loyalty to him. He made them, Cornelius. Perhaps they must answer to him."

"Why didn't they before? They could have broken him out centuries ago, yet they didn't. Why?"

Albus was beginning to realize asking questions when it came to this mysterious lord didn't lead them anywhere.

Lily still wasn't conscious enough to give them the answers they needed. Using Legilimency on her was out of the question, orders from the healers at St Mungo's and Poppy herself. The mind was delicate, and the Nightmare Lord had been anything but careful when he broke into Lily's. Albus wondered for a moment why she was left without much physical injuries. Did the Nightmare Lord enjoy crushing her mind more than her body? The body healed, yes, but often so did the mind. Lily's mind wasn't permanently damaged like the Longbottoms, so there was a good chance she'd return to normal.

But when? He felt like they were running out of time. Christmas was upon them and what did they have? Fear spreading throughout magical England and an almost fanatic Minister. Their enemy was no longer a Dark Lord but an ancient man with a violent past.

-o-

Harrison on the other hand wasn't nearly as worried as Cornelius Fudge and Albus Dumbledore. Why would he be? He was the crazy enemy after all. All he really had to worry about was any future raids and if he would move in on the Ministry. He felt like he should kill Cornelius personally, just because he could. Voldemort hadn't expressed any desires in doing that, but he wanted to kill Dumbledore.

Harrison had plenty of reasons to hate him but figured he should let Voldemort take care of the headmaster.

"Are the lakes frozen?" he asked aloud one day.

It was almost Yule and he honestly hadn't thought about it. The people closest to him, Severus and Elise, looked up. Elise from her garland made out of bones, don't ask, and Severus from potions books and Angel… who was smearing one book full with red paint. Harrison stepped closer and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw it was just an empty notebook. Angel was cute yes, but one does not forgive destruction of good books. He would hate to have to punish her.