The Epilogue : Part I - The Shadow Army

CHAPTER TWENTY

Revelation

    Several thousands of miles away from the Wiltshire manor and the Malfoy's sorrow, in a chilly mist laid over a deserted and gloomy forest in Albania, a hooded figure appeared. She looked around, closed her coat tight to protect herself from the early July, unusually cold weather, and proceeded forward. There, she saw that Yaxley and Eurybia were standing still, waiting for her.

    "Any news, Sayre?" Yaxley asked.

    Sayre didn't answer, or even greeted him in anyway possible. When she reached his height, she stared at him with a despising eye and went on.

    "What is the problem, Aposina?" Yaxley asked.

    To these words, Aposina Sayre froze and stared at him with a murderous glare. She drew out her white wand and pointed it at him.

    "You... dare to ask me if there's a problem? After the mess you caused at the Ministry? I would gladly kill you myself right now, but he wants to hear you first before taking any decision. You're lucky he's merciful."

    Aposina turned her back on him and walked along the dark forest through the chilly mist, followed by Yaxley and Nott for few long minutes during which the three of them remained silent. Finally, the fog vanished at once as a small and very ancient castle appeared before them.

    As soon as the gates cracked open, they hastily entered the black-stone castle.

    Nott and Yaxley followed Aposina through a maze of dimly lit and disquieting corridors, as cold at the air outside, until they finally stood in front of beautiful, blue and silver doors. They looked at each other, as none of them looked very keen to be the one to enter first. After few second of unspoken negotiations, Yaxley finally push the heavy doors.

    A fascinatingly dusky room stood before them, like an ancient, gloomy and rather beautiful reception room, lit by thousands of strange candles that threw a wobbly light that enlightened the entire room, but purposely kept the members' faces in the dark. On balconies on each side, many witches and wizards were elegantly dressed up, with tall hats for men and silk shawls softly wrapping the women's waists. All of them gazed at the two incomers with a worried glare.

    In the middle of the room, stood a large and massive stone table, at the end of which a very old man was sitting in a beautiful armchair, his face kept in the darkness despise the candle's light, only his bright, electric blue eyes were glowing in the dark.

    "You... murderer!"

    Around the table, Daphne Nott and her husband Orpheus Nott stood up on her feet and pointed their wand at Yaxley, followed by her husband Orpheus Nott. Yaxley instantly took out his own, and Eurybia instantly joined him.

    "Daphne... please do calm down," said the old man at the end of the table.

    "I will, as soon as she will be dead." Daphne replied.

    "Orpheus, are you going to let your little sister get killed?" Eurybia asked.

    "You're no family of mine, not after what happened," Orpheus answered, unyielding.

    "Enough," said the man at the end of the table.

    "I will avenge my sister! Now!" Daphne screamed, hysterical.

    "I said enough," the old man repeated simply, a bit annoyed this time.

    The old man hadn't speak loudly, but it was apparently enough for impose the silence on everyone.