Depths of Despair ✶ Theodore Nott

forty three. don't disobey orders from the cruel

The shadows were whispering, yet this time Valerie made no attempts to shut them out.

Gone lost in an abyss of nothingness, her eyes flickered back and forth between closed eyelids — searching through the uncertainty of her own abilities: given instructions of what to do and when to do it, yet never before having tried anything alike.

Move swiftly and don't alert.

She despised the man from which the words originated from, however it made sense and she'd rather not receive punishment for not listening.

Move swiftly and don't alert. Move swiftly and don't alert. Move swiftly and don't alert. Move swiftly and don't alert. For a moment, the whispering grew more intense. Although no longer aware of her surroundings, she stood in a room full
of people — not everyone able to reign control of their own thoughts, hence why she easily picked up on them. A second or two of focusing, however, and so she'd tuned them out: wincing in surprise when hitting an invisible wall.

Bingo.

How to peak inside the mind protected by strong Occlumency? It was an area which Dumbledore never dared teach her, likely wishing to remain protected by his mental shields which were near impossible to break through.

Valerie always despised intruding upon others' privacy, and as she guided herself around the invisible wall — searching for a way through — guilt tugged at her conscience. Why are you doing this Valeire? She really could not give a plausible answer, but her left forearm was burning, yet another reminded that her will was no longer her own.

Never should you pledge loyalty to something you do not believe in, however it was too late to back out, and there she was: standing before lord Voldemort with orders to successfully break into his mind.

Move swiftly and don't alert, she recited over and over again to herself. No haste proceedings, or she'd have lost. Her task was not being detected, and although not knowing why the cruel man was so determined at teaching her, Valerie continued until finally deciding upon the right way to push and shove without being noticed.

One second.

Two seconds.

And then she poked, starting her efforts out gently, only to slowly but carefully dissolve his ways of remaining in protected — meeting no resistance as she so far remained subtle.

One final shove, and so she felt her own mind drift past the protections meant to block her out, a wave of thoughts — insensitive and callous in nature — flooding her, taking her by surprise. But what else could be expected of a man void of morals?

Nothing, she concluded: searching through whatever shallow consciousness she had breached. Lord Voldemort's ruthless manners matched the coldness of his thoughts, and for that Valerie grimaced — therefore loosing focus. Flinching in surprise, she found herself free-falling.

Further and further she went down, before a force took her over: shoving with all it's might to repel her. He had noticed her. She failed.

The very second she even dared open her eyes to face whatever disappointment awaited, a splinting headache exploded against her temples — the dark lord's reinforcement of his mental shield both fierce and ambitious, resulting in causing Valerie physical pain when blocked out. It was similar to whenever she would overexert her own abilities, however it was indeed excruciating.

    "Stupid girl," spoke a hissing voice, laced with distaste as to her weakness. A moment passed, and then Valerie's entire body gave out as her every muscle, every cell cried out in pain — her eyes squeezed shut, jaw clenched while trying her very best to show little reaction upon the influence of the Cruciatus curse.