Riddle And Grindelwald (Book 3)

16. Retrieval Mission

When the 20th of June finally arrived, Genevieve was filled with nerves.
She knew that once Tom had heard the prophecy, he would begin his assault on the world and the second wizarding war would begin. And this worried her, for many lives were lost during the first war.
Neither her or Tom were directly involved in the mission to get the prophecy off of Harry, so all they could do was wait at home for news.
After Tom had placed the false vision inside Harry's head, he sent his death eaters to the Ministry, while him and Genevieve stayed behind.

The pair heard nothing for several hours, until Tom stood up and placed his hand on his head as he winced.
"Are you alright?" Asked Genevieve, as she leapt out of her seat to join him.
The pair had spent all afternoon in the drawing room, waiting for news, as they couldn't seem to focus on anything else. So they just sat in silence, unable to keep a conversation going.
"I'm fine. My mind just connected with Potter's, that's all, and I saw a bit of what is going on at the Ministry" answered Tom.

"What exactly did you see?" Questioned Genevieve.
"It would appear that the Order of the Phoenix arrived at the Ministry. And that during a fight, the prophecy was destroyed" revealed Tom.
"What! How did this happen? How did the Order know what was going on at the Ministry?" Frowned Genevieve.
"I don't know, but I am going to head to the Ministry now, to deal with Potter, once and for all".

"Is it wise? To attack Harry again, without having heard the rest of the prophecy?" Quizzed Genevieve.
"Since it has been destroyed, I have no chance of ever hearing the whole the prophecy. So, I must continue with my plan to kill Potter and take over the wizarding world, regardless of what the prophecy contained" informed Tom.
"But entering the Ministry will be dangerous" reminded Genevieve.
"It's late, so the chances are that we won't see anyone but my death eaters tonight. However, I would prefer it if you stayed here, where I know it is safe, for I don't want to put you in danger"
"Not a chance. Where you go, I go"
"I thought you would say that... Come on then, let's go".

Tom threw some floo powder into the fireplace and headed to the Ministry, with Genevieve following close behind him.
When they stepped out of the grate inside the atrium at the Ministry, Genevieve couldn't help but feel anxious, as she was now stood on enemy territory.
The last time she had been there, she had been arrested and thrown in a temporary cell, while her trial went on.
She forced her fear to the back of her mind and tried to focus on the situation in front of her, to distract herself from her painful memories.

Bellatrix was stood a few feet from her and Tom, and her wand was pointing at a young boy who was trying to hide behind the Fountain of Magical Brethren, to avoid being killed.
Genevieve gasped as she looked at Harry Potter for the very first time.
She had seen his face so many times in her visions, that she found it strange to see him in the flesh for once.
She knew he was the enemy, for he was the only one who could potentially kill Tom.
But as she looked at him, all she could see, was a small injured boy, and a part of her wanted nothing more than to protect him.

"The prophecy is gone, so there is nothing for you to summon. Your boss isn't going to be very happy with you when he finds out" Harry shouted at Bellatrix.
Neither of them had noticed Tom or Genevieve arriving, for they had been too busy yelling at each other.
"No! You are lying. It isn't true-" Bellatrix faltered when she looked over and saw Tom.
"Master, I tried, I'm sorry. Do not punish me" continued Bellatrix.
"Don't waste your breath. He cannot hear you from here" snapped Harry.
"Can't I, Potter?" Questioned Tom, as he stepped inbetween Bellatrix and Harry.

"Potter isn't lying Bella. I see the truth looking at me, in his worthless mind. The prophecy has been destroyed. Months of planning have all gone to waste. My death eaters have been thwarted yet again, by Mr Harry Potter" said Tom angrily.
"Master, I am sorry. I did not know. I was fighting the Animagus Black at the time" revealed Bellatrix.
"You mean that you failed to retrieve the prophecy, because you were too busy having an argument with your cousin. You placed your family issues above the mission" spat Genevieve, who felt glad to have a reason to belittle Bellatrix.
"No! I didn't mean to. Please forgive me Master" begged Bellatrix as she threw herself at Tom's feet.

"Be quiet Bella! Do you think I have entered the Ministry of Magic to listen to your snivelling apologies" shouted Tom.
"But Master, Potter is here. I lured him here for you-" began Bellatrix.
"Enough! I will deal with you later" Interupted Tom.
He then turned from Bellatrix to face Harry, "I have nothing more to say to you, Potter. You have irked me too often and for too long, so it is time for you to die. Avada Kedavra!".

Before Genevieve could even react, Tom sent the Killing Curse at Harry.
The boy didn't have time to raise his wand to defend himself.
But before the spell could hit him, the golden wizard from the Fountain of Magical Brethren sprung alive, and threw itself in front of him.
"Merlin's Beard!" Gasped Genevieve.
"Dumbledore" spat Tom.
Genevieve spun around and saw that Dumbledore had entered the room.
He didn't have his wand raised, but Genevieve knew it had been him who made the statue come alive to save Harry.

Tom yelled angrily and sent the Killing Curse at Dumbledore, who simply vanished, and appeared behind him.
Dumbledore flicked his wand, causing the rest of the statues in the fountain, to spring to life.
The golden house-elf and goblin ran towards the fireplaces, and disappeared to find Ministry officials.
The golden witch charged at Bellatrix, before leaping on her and pinning her to the floor, so that she couldn't help Tom.
The wizard statue remind in front of Harry, but began to push him away from Tom and Dumbledore, so that he wouldn't get hurt.

Dumbledore then looked at Genevieve with a questioning look on his face. He clearly wanted to know if she needed to be pinned to the floor like Bellatrix.
Genevieve shook her head slightly, careful not to let Tom see her.
Whatever was about to happen, was between Tom and Dumbledore, and she knew better than to get involved.
The battle between Lord Voldemort and Albus Dumbledore, was long overdue. And Genevieve wasn't sure who was going to come out on top.
Dumbledore had the Elder wand, and some called him the greatest sorcerer alive. But he was well over a hundred years old, so was no longer in fighting condition.
So, Genevieve did not know who the victor was going to be.