ꜱᴇʀᴘᴇɴᴛɪɴᴇ ꜱᴇʀɪᴇꜱ | ᴛᴏᴍɪᴏɴᴇ

Whispers from the Past, ch. 25

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

The elevator shuddered as it ascended, and Harmony's legs quivered with apprehension. She grasped her wand to her chest like a shield. Draco trembled beside her. She looked over at him out of the corner of her eyes, but he stared forward blankly at the golden bars of their cage.

"You'd best pull out your wand," she said. Her voice hadn't been louder than a whisper, but Draco jumped anyway and grabbed his wand from his pocket.

"Why should I worry," he said, his voice sounding tired and strained. "You're the one they're after."

Harmony reached a hand out and grasped his wrist where she knew the Dark Mark resided under his sleeve, "Because of this."

"I'm no Death Eater."

"Irrelevant," she said firmly. "As long as you have this, the Ministry will always be on your back. You're wanted. Perhaps not as much as Voldemort or I, but you will live with their eyes watching you until the day you die."

Draco closed his eyes tight. His jaw clenched as he gnashed his teeth together, like he was trying to suppress a whimper of fear. Yeah, Harmony thought, I know that feeling.

The elevator jolted as it reached the top of its journey to the surface.

"Stay close to me," she said urgently before elevator opened.

He didn't reply, but she knew he was listening.

"When the doors open, we run. The anti-Apparition shield is a hundred yards from here. That's our goal. The moment we pass the barrier, we Apparate. Okay?"

He nodded. She could see the beads of sweat breaking out on his hairline, mingling with white blonde strands. His cold eyes were wide, the whites shining in the dim light of the elevator. She could see he was legitimately afraid, and it made her stronger.

There was a small ding from the elevator. Harmony held her breath as the doors opened and the golden bars of their cage lifted. She waited for the flashing wand lights, the yelling and screaming of witches and wizards to fire at will. An eerie feeling crept over her—physically tingling down her fingers and toes—when they were met by complete silence. The warehouse was empty of people. Harmony poked her head out, glancing left and right for some moving shadows trying to surprise them.

"Homenum Revelio," she whispered, waving her wand about the length of the warehouse. No one revealed themselves: they were alone.

Draco followed her when she stepped out. A couple windows took up both sides of the heavy wooden door and she went over to peer outside. The sky was pink with the dawn, but the sun was still a long way from coming over the horizon. Harmony guessed the time was about four-thirty to five o'clock in the morning. The small farm houses in the distance were dark, and the valleys and fields surrounding them were silent. If she hadn't known any better, she would have thought this was just another normal country-side morning. But the forests beyond the fields had to be crawling with witches and wizards, waiting like lions for their prey.

Harmony bit her lip and tapped her fingers on the sill contemplatively.

She heard the heavy wooden door open and looked over just in time to see Draco step outside the warehouse.

"Draco, no!" She sprinted after him. He was running off to the left, away from the farm houses, towards the dark forest. She quickly gained on him and reached a hand out to grab his collar, but something caught both of their eyes. Throughout the length of the forest, near the trunks of the trees, wand lights appeared. Harmony's jaw dropped in awe when she beheld the sight of the small army. Some shout out battle cries and fled from the concealment of the forest as one, running right toward them.