The Crabbe's house was very dark. Usually, it was bright and cheery with the sound of Wyatt tap dancing or his mother cooking in the kitchen. But today the house seemed almost dead. Not even Virgo was out and about.
I thought there would surely be some sign of life since Lovell was finally back. The Dark Lord helped all of his Death Eaters escape from Azkaban, along with a few possible Snatchers, but all was quiet. Wyatt was probably at work, but who knew where the rest of them were. Except Vincent. If I strained my ears I could hear him holding back moans from his bedroom.
I made a beeline for it, wondering how in the world he wasn't screaming. When I opened the door I saw exactly what I had expected to see: Vincent laying in bed, blanket less, in only his underwear, covered in sweat, and on total pain. His eyes were closed and I could tell that he was trying to hold back shrieks. Closing the door behind me, I went to his side and took his right hand. His eyes shot open.
"Ellie..." He tried to force a smile through the pain.
"You're being really brave, Vince." I assured him, pecking his cheek with a kiss. The Dark Lord had given him the Mark right before he had his meeting with me. "I couldn't have done this. No relief at all..."
"It hurts..." Tears were in his eyes. "When does it stop?"
"A couple days, but it's still hot after that."
"Will it be gone by-" He paused and squeezed my hand as another spasm of heat and pain must have intensified. I winced at his strength; he was so much bigger then me, and much stronger. He was so distracted by the pain he didn't seen to notice he had hurt me "-by next week?"
Of course that's what he was concerned about. He was suppose to start an internship with St. Mungo's in three days, and he didn't want to miss it. He was going to get to work there early, plus he was getting paid.
"It should." I assured. He squeezed again and I had to keep from letting out a squeal. "Are you sure that you do not want me to help? I can help relieve the pain a bit-"
"No!" He snapped, making me jump. I couldn't remember him ever using that tone with me. Seeing this, his face softened as much as it could. "I'm sorry..." He said through clenched teeth. Obviously, he was very uncomfortable.
"Are you sure you do not want anything?" I thought about when Uncle Severus put the cool, wet rag on my arm when I was getting mine, and how much it had helped.
"Elle, I can suffer through it!" I rolled my eyes at his request. It was like he was trying to prove his manliness or something.
"Okay, I'll stop asking..."
...........................
I spent maybe two or three hours with him until be fell asleep. That's when I decided to go back home. I had things I had to prepare for that night. The Dark Lord wanted me to start training the Snatchers as soon as possible, which to him meant the third day of summer holiday. I would train them up until the next to last week of August, maybe a few days after.
So, I used the Floo to get home. Once there I went straight into the kitchen to get something to eat. To my surprise, Uncle Severus was already in there. He handed me a plate full of food. That was the last thing I was expecting since we hasn't really spoken since I had gotten back from Dumbledore's funeral.
"You should eat and then rest. You will not be home until early in the morning." He instructed. I agreed that was a good idea and sat down, starting to eat. "And I believe the meeting spot is a three and a half mile walk, is that right? You will have to leave an hour or two earlier."
"Yes." I replied between bits. "But I'll probably just run there."
"I guarantee by the end of the night you will not be running."
"I'm just nervous about how this is going to go over."
"Be safe."
"I will try, but what if-"
"Eleanor, listen to what I'm going to tell you. The Dark lord doesn't have full power over the Ministry yet, but he had enough to take the Trace off of you at night. If any of the men try to lay a hand on you, sexual or otherwise, do what ever it takes to get then away. Cu toff their hand or their-"
"Penis?" I asked, unfortunately being serious. Uncle Severus hesitated, before continuing.
"If you feel it necessary. If I comes down to it, you can kill them. But I predict that they will try to take advantage of you. They are not going to like that their leader will be a girl who is not even of age yet. Do not let them have the upper hand. I know you can handle yourself, if you apply yourself. Do you understand what I'm telling you?"
"Yes, I do." I got up and put my dish in the sink. "I'll try."
"What did you do to your hand?" I didn't know what he was talking about, so I looked. A light purple bruise was circled around my hand, right where Vincent's had been.
"It must have happened when Vincent squeezed my hand. He's in a lot off pain, and he won't take any relief." I replied. He let this sink in/
"Very we'll. now go rest."
"Alright." I sighed and went to my bedroom, ready to sleep until ten, when I would have to start my three mile journey into the unknown: and I was terrified.
