tears in heaven | dramione

The Step

Harry and Ron appeared from a corner of the room. Before being it by a curse, Hermione threw Draco's wand to Harry. She fell to the ground, in pains. It was another Cruciatus curse. Bellatrix Lestrange was an expert of that bloody curse; it must have specially made for her to torture people with.

Harry caught the wand and pointed to the witch, who seemed amused by their escape attempt.

"I have no idea how you got out of the dungeons, but the Dark Lord is on his way. Harry Potter, you'll soon meet your death," she roared at him. "As for your friends, Miss Mudblood and the blood traitor, it will be a delicious delight for me to take care of them."

Ron felt his legs trembling. He had to get to Hermione and take her away before Bellatrix tried other curses on her. "Big words, but the bloody bastard isn't here yet. Also, we're three, you are one."

Harry moved the wand in the air, sending a wave of white light towards her, but the witch easily deflected it. She bursted into another round of laughter, louder and uglier than ever before.

Then Ron moved and tried to reach a barely moving Hermione. He remembered about Neville's parents, who had been tortured the same way, with the Cruciatus curse, and went mad. The Longbottom couple would have been more peaceful dead than in that world full of the darkness of the insanity inflicted upon them by the same bloody witch, Bellatrix Lestrange.

The witch focused on Harry who was holding Draco's wand pointed at him. It was obvious: if she tried to hit Weasley and the girl, Potter would attack her. For a second, it looked like they had an advantage. But it wasn't like that at all. She was crazy enough not to think of the aftermath of her actions and raised her wand in the air. Bellatrix was ready to kill them.

However, Harry had a plan too. He released several beams of light from his wand, different spell that would win him space and moved slowly, step by step, not to Ron and Hermione, but to Draco. As he reached for him, Harry pointed his wand towards Draco. "One more curse and I curse him too."

Bellatrix laughed. "You won't do it, Potter. You're just a naughty kid." As she spoke, she saw the end of the wand spitting out a few sparks. It was like a threat that Harry would be capable of hurting Draco in order to escape together with his friends.

"Try him, witch," Ron screamed at her.

Bellatrix looked down, then fron Ron to Harry and from Harry to Ron. In the end, she smirked again. "It's not my son. Hex him, Potter." Then she threw a curse at Ron, knocking him unconscious. Turning around, she sent one to Harry too, but it didn't hit him.

Suddenly, Bellatrix's wand jumped off her hand, flying across the room in the hand of somebody else. Narcissa used 'Expelliarmus' on her sister. "Bella, for God's sake, nobody touches my son, including you, Harry Potter." She then turns to him and casts another spell, but Harry deflects it and takes a few steps back, letting go of Draco.

"Cissy, give me my wand back. If the Dark Lord comes and sees this, he'll have both of us burn," Bellatrix screeched at her sister, who gave her a serious and displeased glare.

Narcissa looked at her sister disappointed. "I don't care about the Dark Lord. I don't care about Harry Potter." She stepped forward towards Draco, making sure he was alright. "Who used 'Stupefy' on him?"

Bellatrix jumped from her place, going closer to her sister, and pointed to Hermione, who was still lying on the floor. "The mudblood did that. I saw it with my own two eyes, Cissy. Kill her." Narcissa eyed Hermione, giving her a murderous glare.

Harry, seeing the look in that woman's eyes, stepped between Hermione and the two witches and pointed the wand to them. Mrs. Malfoy raised her head and looked at the wand in his hand. "Potter, that is my son's wand. Give it back. Expelliarmus!" That time Harry couldn't avoid the spell and the wand flew right in the witch's hand, who put it down right to Draco.

She turned to Hermione again. "As I already said, nobody touches Draco, no matter of circumstances." Narcissa rose her wand into the air, preparing to launch an attack, a curse, towards the young girl. "And, truth be told, I haven't been given the opportunity to use a curse in a while. My wand is a bit rusty, but, hopefully, it will hurt. Cru-"

The curse was interrupted by a newly-awaken Draco, who caught his mother's leg. "Mother, no..." he mumbled, barely able to raise his head. Then Narcissa kneed down next to her son, sighing. She did not care about the rest anymore.

Meanwhile, Hermione turned to Ron, who was finally conscious again, and told him: "The next stop should be the witch's vault, at Gringotts." She then bit her lips and forced her body to move and finally stood again on her feet unsupported. Even if she was to be hit again with the pain curse, she had already grown used to it. It wouldn't hurt as much as the first time.

Ron at first did not understand why she said that then. It wasn't the best moment, considering the enemy was in the room and, at any moment, a wand could be pointed at them. Seeing her stand up, he tried to follow her, but couldn't, as his body had yet to wake up completely too. He could only look for a while.

Bellatrix took her wand back from her sister and pointed it to Harry. "The Dark Lord will kill me if I kill you, but at least I'm going to die happy and satisfied, Potter. Avada-" Before she could finish, a chandelier nearly fell on her, well, technically, inches from her. Deadshocked, Bellatrix stepped back, nearly dropping her wand. "What in hell...?"

Everybody turned around to see a young elf, a familiar face to all. "Harry Potter. Dobby is here to protect Harry Potter."

Narcissa swallowed hard seeing that mess in her home. "Dobby? How could you throw a chandelier over Bella? You could have killed her. And what nonsense are you talking about? Protecting Potter?"

"You dirty little monkey, how dare you defy your masters?" Bellatrix shrieked at the little elf, giving him a murderous glare. She would have stuck her claws into his neck, hadn't she been a few meters away.

"Dobby has no master," the elf contiued. "Dobby is a free elf and Dobby has come to save Harry Potter and his friends!" With that, he froze Narissa and Bellatrix in place, with some magic that only he knew about. Turning around, he made a sign to Harry and the others to come closer, on the spot to Disapparate. Then were vanishing, disappearing into thin air, going from the Malfoy Manor to Bill and Fleur's Shell Cottage, when Harry turned around to see that Hermione wasn't coming with them. At first, he thought she missed the spot, but then, by the look on her face, he knew she willingly stayed. But why?