ꜱᴇʀᴘᴇɴᴛɪɴᴇ ꜱᴇʀɪᴇꜱ | ᴛᴏᴍɪᴏɴᴇ

Whispers from the Past, ch. 41

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

Harmony's hands shook as though she had just walked away from a violent battle. The adrenaline coursing through her body made her edgy, irritable, angry, afraid. As she flew by the trees, as fast as her feet would allow, she threw glares over her shoulder into the densest of the forest where she knew he was. She kept expecting to see him there, following her, running to catch up and finish what they had started.

A part of her wondered if she should have obeyed his demands and punished that young rebellious woman. It would have been more merciful than the punishment Voldemort served. It would have saved them of this conflict. Right now, she could have been lying with him in their tent, having that romantic night they wanted—but no! Harmony quickly stopped that line of thinking.

She was right! Not him! Harmony was good to follow her gut and refuse his orders. She would never hurt an innocent person—not when she was Hermione Granger, and not now. Not ever! Those curses were Unforgivable for a reason! She couldn't let Voldemort influence her in that dark way, despite her feelings for him. This was why she hesitated to reveal to him the truth about her pregnancy. He still wanted her to take over for him—as the Serpentine charm suggested—and he wanted her to do it his way. Her refusal to give in to his dark demands made her imperfect as a leader, in his eyes.

Would he see the child as a chance to make the perfect dictator? One that wouldn't hesitate to kill whenever he demanded it—where she had failed?

A tree root stabbing out of the ground was suddenly in her path and she almost tripped. Harmony straightened herself with a huff of frustration.

How could he?

Her hands bunched into gnarly, angry fists.

How dare he ask that of me?

Her feet stomped the ground with each step forward.

Oh! He is so arrogant and vain and cruel and...

A guttural groan ripped through her throat. But tears sprang up to cloud her vision, and suddenly she found herself crying.

Harmony placed two fingers at the corner of her eyes to staunch the flow of tears. She didn't want to show up at the party at the recreational tent looking all puffy-eyed and upset. After a deep breath in and out, the shaking in her hands subsided and she was ready to continue on her way.

When she made it out of the tree line, toward the hill that separated the forest from the campsite, her thoughts strayed to the next moment when she would see Voldemort next. What would they say to each other? What could they say? She recalled some of the words they'd exchanged before she'd fled out of there. But only one thing stood out from that argument. The words repeated themselves over and over in her mind, unwilling to let themselves be forgotten.

"I would kill the entire world for you."

There had been no love in his eyes when he had said that to her—no affection, no warmth. He had said it as though he was telling her the Earth was round. It was a simple fact. He'd do it. For her.

A shiver ravaged her body—not just along her skin, but deep down into the marrow of her bones. She was suddenly feeling confused, and maybe even a little bit afraid.

He would kill the entire world...

It hit her then just how significant his words were. The confession had come from the Dark Lord's own lips. How often does he really admit his true feelings? When has he ever told a Death Eater—or anyone!—something so vehemently loyal such as killing the whole world for them? Was there really no one else on this planet as important to him as her?