star shopping ✰ d.m.

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

Luna helped those who could not see them get settled on the thestrals, then Harry told his where they needed to go, and they all took off. It was the most odd and nerve-wracking thing Arabella had ever experienced so far. Riding an invisible winged horse from Hogwarts to the Ministry of Magic as the sun set was not pleasurable by any means, and when they finally arrived to the visitors' entrance of the Ministry, she was relieved to be back on the ground.

To get into the Ministry, of course, they would all need to squeeze into a telephone box.

"This is the most cramped I've been since the womb," Arabella grumbled.

Ron gave her a look. "You don't even remember being in the womb," he said.

"I can imagine, Ronald."

After punching in the code and stating their names and business, the telephone box served as a sort of lift down into the Atrium, and from there, Harry led the way. Their hearts thumping harder and harder the further they went, they followed him with their wands drawn. Eventually, they came to a room with ceilings so high Arabella couldn't even see them, and shelves upon shelves with nothing but glass orbs on them. It was strange and eerie and Arabella wanted nothing more than to be back at Hogwarts enjoying dinner with Seamus and Dean, but she needed to do this for Faustus and Harry. However, they let Harry lead them to the exact spot he had seen Sirius being tortured and found nobody there.

"He should be here," Harry said.

"Harry," Neville said. They turned to look at him and saw him staring at one of the glass orbs. "It's got your name on it."

Harry went up to it and just stared at it for a moment before reaching out.

"Are you sure you should be touching that?" Olivia asked before he could grab it.

Harry looked at her. "It's got my name on it," he said.

"Well, yeah, but... oh, all right."

Harry reached out and grabbed the glass orb and held it in his hand, just staring at it.

While he was doing that, the others heard footsteps approaching them. Slowly, almost not wanting to see who it was, Arabella turned to look.

"Harry!" Hermione called to him, ripping him away from his trance and causing him to rejoin them, facing the newcomer.

Said newcomer was very obviously a Death Eater; he had the creepy mask and the black robes and all.

"Where's Sirius?" Harry asked him.

"You know," said the Death Eater, who had an unnervingly familiar-sounding voice, "you really should learn the difference between dreams," he paused to take off his mask, revealing that he was Lucius Malfoy, causing Arabella's hand to tighten around her wad, "and reality. You saw only what the Dark Lord wanted you to see. Now, hand me the prophecy."

"If you do anything to us, I'll break it."

Behind Lucius came a shrill laughter that sent a chill down Arabella's spine though she had never heard it before.

"He knows how to play," said a woman, approaching to stand by Lucius. "Itty, bitty baby... Potter."

"Bellatrix Lestrange," Neville said.