Following the events of the same universe where Juliet Potter and Remus Lupin fell in love, the insouciance has faded into misery as all parties prepare for the war, willing to pull any card to win a war from which none will truly come out victoriou...
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TW: blood & mentions of torture and mutilation
February 1978
The walnut wooden floor had turned a red mahogany. The crimson stains of blood had soaked the wood so deeply, that even with magic, it would not go back to its original state.
"Speak!" Bellatrix Lestrange yelled, her voice resonating between the four walls.
It was silent for a bit. Had the younger girl's clutched hand not been shaking, the deranged woman would have wondered if she was dead.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Juliet managed to weakly let out after the long pause.
Bellatrix screamed in frustration before raising her wand, ready to cast another Forbidden Curse, before a hand stopped her hurriedly.
"That's enough, Bella."
"Cissy, I told you to stay out of this."
Narcissa Malfoy looked at the girl dying on the floor, her expression blank but her eyes holding immense guilt. She then turned to her sister again.
"She won't be no use to you if she's dead. And you are ruining my Persian carpet."
The curly haired mad woman huffed, stomping away from the room. There was a few more moments of silence followed by Narcissa carefully walking towards Juliet.
The brunette girl would have flinched had she been able to feel a single muscle. Instead, she passed out.
When she woke up on cold cement, she noticed she had been brought back to the cellar. It meant she had a bit of time to mentally prepare for the incoming sessions of torture.
"You're awake." A voice on her right softly stated.
Juliet didn't answer, she just blankly stared ahead.
"I brought you water." When she approached, Juliet could see it was Narcissa Malfoy.
The two simply stared at each other. Narcissa was extremely surprised to see there was not an ounce of fear in the brunette's eyes. Simply pain and anger, as though it's been all she could feel.
She set the glass on the floor, crouching down and helping her stand up slowly, to not trigger her, but she didn't even fight back.
She was keeping her strength for later.
"Won't you drink it?" The older girl ask as she was handing the glass to Juliet, but she wasn't taking it.
"What'd you put in there?" Her voice sounded groggy, low, full of cracks.
"Nothing." Cissy almost looked surprised at the thought that something could be in there, but she couldn't blame the girl.
"Come on, it's not the first time a Slytherin pureblood supremacist messes with my shit. Just tell me."
Juliet hated the look of pity she was getting at that exact moment. Especially from Narcissa Malfoy. Maybe she wasn't that bad herself, maybe she didn't support those ideas, but she still stood by their side, she still married a man that did and would probably excuse his actions.
They were enemies. No place for pity.
"There's nothing in there." Narcissa stated, more assertive. She then took a sip herself to prove her point. "See?"
Juliet, visibly still suspicious, took the glass and drank the content in a go. Of course she was thirsty. She didn't even care if something was in there at that point, it couldn't be worse than what she's been put through.
"If you just told us what you knew, you could make it out alive."
"Don't tell me there's fucking Veritaserum in there?" Juliet's eyes widened, suddenly actually caring.
"It was just an advice." Narcissa reassured.
"Why would you want to give me advice?"
The blonde seemed taken aback, she took a moment, thinking to herself. She didn't have the time to answer before her deranged sister started to call for her upstairs.
"CISSY! WHERE ARE YOU?"
"I have to go." Cissy disapparated hurriedly.
Juliet looked down at herself. Her clothes were full of her own dried blood. A bandage that had been carefully placed around her waist was also stained with blood. She didn't even have the heart to look at her foot.
But it was once she saw all those that she realized, Narcissa didn't want Bellatrix to find out she had been there. She could be her way to escape.
She couldn't think about it further before Bellatrix Lestrange barged in, dragging the screaming girl upstairs by her hair.
~
A scream resonated in the McKinnon's House. Half the members of The Order of the Phoenix were having a meeting there. They had received a package that Marlene decided to go ahead and open while others were discussing.
Albus Dumbledore didn't waste another second before rushing over to take a look at the content of the box, followed by McGonagall and Slughorn.
"Bloody hell."
Marlene had backed away, eyes teary and shaky hand over her mouth. Dorcas went to check on her while James walked forward to look inside the box. He was however hurriedly stopped by Minerva, which alarmed him even more.
"What? What is it?"
Albus had walked away deep in thoughts while Slughorn reached for a note he noticed in the box, closing the lids after that.
"James, I don't think you should see that." Minerva said.
James? She never called him James. Something was wrong. What was in the box?
The Potter laid his eyes on Slughorn in front of him, holding a bloody piece of paper.
"What the fuck is that? Whose blood is this!?" He started panicking more, trying to get through but being held back the Professor.
"Horace, what does it say?" Dumbledore asked him.
"You lost."
This sentence seemed to have triggered Remus Lupin, who had been casually standing in a corner the entire meeting. He ran to the table, opening the box and just freezing there.
Slughorn who had been too caught off guard to react immediately started to push him away with a saddened expression.
James looked at his best friend, and he was shocked. Remus looked dead, all light in his eyes had disappeared, he was pale as though he had seen a ghost. That was the worst he had looked in the past few months.
He did not waste another second before abruptly pushing Minerva away, getting to the box before he could be stopped.
The sight of a bloody, roughly cut toe that he knew had surely been his sister's made him feel faint.
His heart dropped to his stomach, and he soon enough lost consciousness.
* * *
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