dursley [h. g.]

••dursley•• || the pit

Forty-seven days.

Kendra had been missing for forty-seven days to the tee. The rock she had been using to mark the days was wearing down considerably, but she had plenty more in the basement. And apparently, forty-seven days was just long enough to put her head back on her shoulders and face life head on. She had spent the first three days crying, and the next forty-four absolutely furious at Morgana for leading her into the trap.

Still, she considered herself lucky. She had still been stunned before they had taken her before Voldemort, who had thankfully decided to try and use her as bait instead of killing her right then and there. And being a prisoner for the Death Eaters was easier than she had thought when she had first been locked away. For the most part, she was ignored, which was both a good thing and a bad thing. She wasn't tortured daily, the only one interested was Bellatrix, but she also didn't get fed every day. She was also completely without any of her medication, which had a drastic effect on her health, though she found as long as she didn't strain her body too much, either with too much rest or too much movement, it was tolerable enough that she didn't want to gouge her eyes out with her fingers.

She stared at the wall, and the many drawings that decorated it. Kendra was by no means an artist, but drawing brought her peace of mind, and was something she often did without much thought. Her favorite was the Harry, Ron, and Hermione that she had drawn, as it pissed off many of the Death Eaters royally.

"You know, I can get you some chalk. You don't have to use the rocks."

Kendra jumped- she jumped at everything, and turned around to see Theo. 

Theo had been an unpleasant surprise when he had first been sent in to deal with Kendra. Kendra had been furious, though at who she wasn't quite sure with, when she had seen him and concluded that he was a Death Eater. He had sat and explained it to her- his father had been captured at the Ministry, and now Voldemort was turning to him for penance for failure. And secrets were not kept from Lord Voldemort. Kendra had always known that if Blaise was ever endangered, Theo would do whatever it took to keep him safe, even if it meant becoming the bad guy.

However, as the weeks had gone on, Kendra was quite glad to have Theo there with her. He told her what he knew about what the Order was doing, what Harry was doing, who would be coming in after him. He sometimes managed to sneak things in for her- actually managing some potions and a bit of his dinner once. He knew what she could and could not do before she would set the spells off and make life a lot harder for herself. 

"I like the rocks," she said. "Gives me something to hold onto."

Theo shrugged. "Whatever floats your boat."

Theo had grown at least a foot since the last time Kendra had a proper talk with him at school. His hair was long enough now that his curls were obvious and abundant, his jawline had sharpened, and he had taken to wearing eyeliner whenever he was pretty sure he wouldn't be cursed for it. But his eyes had also gotten darker, and sadder. There seemed to be a permanent sort of scowl on his face. Kendra couldn't help but hurt when she looked at him sometimes.

"Any news?" she asked. He shrugged. 

"Not good news," he sighed. "Malfoy's joining, they're giving him a mission for when we go back to school. I think I have to help him."

"Malfoy's joining?" Kendra asked seriously. She shifted slightly and groaned as her body screamed in protest. Theo looked at her, concerned.

"Did Bellatrix come earlier?" he asked quietly. She shook her head. 

"No, I'm just all stiff," she brushed him off. "Continue."

"Yeah, Malfoy's joining," Theo said, though he still looked at her as though she was going to break any second. It was a look that Kendra hated although she had come to accept that in her forty-seven days, she had moments that she might have. "Not 'cause he wants to. He's terrified. Been playing it all up to his friends in letters and stuff. I guess because he feels like it should be a good thing- I mean, that's what we get told by our parents growing up, that it's our dream and our legacy and of course we wanna make them proud and impress them. Then kids join and find out what it really is and they just submit cause it's too late at that point. The only out is six feet under, and not too many of us choose that."

"I wish I could help you. The both of you," Kendra sighed. Theo shook his head.

"You need to focus on helping yourself," he said. "Shit's gonna go down when they come and get you."

"What d'you think he's going to do if t he school year starts and Harry hasn't come to get me yet?" Kendra asked after a moment. 

"Well, first of all, they're going to make sure you're back before the school year starts. It'll be bad publicity for Dumbledore if you don't show up at school, and at that point the Ministry is going to try and get involved. But if they don't come... I don't know. Maybe they'll try and brainwash you?" Theo said, though he sounded unsure of himself. 

"That's a funny way of saying kill me," Kendra muttered, leaning against the wall with a sigh.

"You're not going to die," Theo said. "Don't be melodramatic."

"No, i've just been kidnapped by dark wizards, how silly of me to think my life was in the line!" Kendra said sarcastically. "It's realism, not melodrama, Theodore."

"Sorry," he said, meaning it. Kendra smiled at him. He grimaced back, before looking down to check his watch. "Shit."

"What is it?" Kendra asked.

"I gotta go- Goyle's on next watch, you might wanna take a nap or something," Theo said, moving away from the wrought iron door that separated them. 

"Good luck," Kendra said, though her voice had lost all of it's tenacity in her time as a prisoner. If he heard her, he didn't acknowledge it as he hurried back up the stairs and left. She heard the whoosh of the fireplace which signaled his disappearance, shortly followed by the crack that meant Goyle's arrival. She took Theo's advice and lay on the floor, shutting her eyes.

Although Theodore thought she should be more worried for herself, she couldn't help but worry about the others. Was Harry alright? What had happened with Sirius- Theodore hadn't been told anything and no one else would bother to tell her. How was Hermione doing? Did her parents know? Did they even care? Her friends would have noticed her missing from school for the last few days. What had they been told? How long had it taken to declare her missing? Did anyone even remember that she was gone?

Kendra didn't know the answers to any of those questions, and neither did Theodore. The only other person who would even both listen to the questions was Morgana, who had gone pin silent since Kendra was taken- not that Kendra was ready to hear the sound of the witches' voice yet. Though her intimal shock and depression had been dampened somewhat, her anger was still as fresh as the moment when she realized Morgana had lead her straight into a trap.

Slowly, her mind cleared as she drifted off into a restless, uneasy sleep. 

a/n: hey gang yes i am keeping you absolutely fed. but first chapter of hbp, subtitle ablus dumbledore slander 101! i hope you guys are as excited as i am!! i wanna know your thoughts, predictions, dad jokes- whatever it is, i wanna hear it! luv you all loads xx

da mem