Chapter Seventy: Escape from the Ministry
Lottie sat holding her wand dumbly for a moment. She should have died. She should be dead. But here she was very much alive. She ran her thumb over her wand’s familiar, ridged handle, reconnecting with what she thought was lost.
“We’ve only got about five minutes before they realize something’s wrong,” Neville said, glancing anxiously at the door. “Can you stand? This is pretty urgent.”
“I think so.” Lottie planted both palms firmly against the stone and pushed. She managed to get to her feet, however wobbly, and moved towards Neville.
“Wait.”
Lottie turned around. Barkesdale, who had stood meekly in the corner drawing no attention, now stood with his arms extended.
“What?” Lottie snarled. Her fear had evaporated and was replaced with cold, unfeeling hatred. “Do you really want to fight two armed wizards?”
“Lottie,” Neville began, but she wasn’t listening.
“Are you a Death Eater?” she asked. Her eyes were alight with malice.
“What?” Barkesdale backed up to the wall, his arms extended. “I’m not””
“Liar.” Lottie smirked as she waved her wand. “Crucio.”
“Lottie!” Neville cries were drowned out by Barkesdale’s screams. Lottie could not hear him. The pain through her entire body was nothing”the euphoria of hearing this man’s agony was well worth it.
She lifted her wand. “Not quite ready to admit it?”
“Lottie, we can just Stun him””
“Please”” Barkesdale was on the ground, scrambling forward like a dog. “Please”you can’t kill me”you”you’ll regret it if you do. We have dementors around the entire place. Is your soul worth it?”
“Lottie””
Laughter erupted in Lottie. She thought for a moment that she could see why the Death Eaters enjoyed their lives. Having somebody she hated so much completely at her mercy gave her a huge surge of power.
Both Neville and Barkesdale were pleading with her now. Lottie thought that their agreement was strange when they were both on different sides”and neither was in the right. She spoke the incantation and savored the consonants on her tongue. “Avada Kedavra.”
The rushing noise of death was like music. The green light flashed”she watched it greedily. When it disappeared, Barkesdale lay dead on the floor, silent and still.
Lottie turned around to Neville who almost looked dead himself. His eyes, like Barkesdale’s were wide with shock, and he may or may not have been breathing. “Are we going?” Lottie asked.
Neville moved his mouth noiselessly a few times and blinked at her. Lottie rolled her eyes. She doubted whether he even had the strength to do what she had done. Finally, Neville emerged from his trance and said, “Yeah”er”let’s go.”
Lottie moved towards the doorway, but Neville stopped her. “Wait”I reckon he wasn’t lying about the dementors you know.”
“Okay.”
“And don’t you want to know where we’re going?” Lottie shrugged. Anywhere was better than here. Neville looked at her pointedly before continuing. “Well you can’t Apparate in or out, except for the main lobby, which is heavily guarded. It’s going to be a bit hard slipping by.”
Lottie shrugged again. She could just kill whoever got in their way. They deserved it for putting her here. She was filled with a sudden bloodlust.
“Just follow me,” Neville said, eying her carefully.
They burst out of the chamber into complete silence. Whatever guards were here were apparently busier somewhere else. As they walked swiftly through the halls, Lottie considered freeing the other prisoners; how many of them were innocent? Eventually she decided that the chance of letting out a real Death Eater was not worth it. The innocent could make that sacrifice.
Neville led her up a flight of winding stairs. It was not until they emerged into a large chamber that they met other people. Guards, masses of guards, lingered, at ease, but with wands at the ready.
There was a tense moment, while each party was too shocked to move. The guards stared at them with wide eyes, and Neville and Lottie stood, deciding how to make their move. It was Neville who acted first. He grabbed Lottie’s wrist and hissed, “We can Apparate here”come on.”
“No”” Lottie pried herself from his grasp the second before he Disapparated. His expression changed to one of horror when he realized that he was alone”and then he was gone.
By this point, the guards had still not pulled themselves together. They were brainless muscles, not useful for anything besides pushing people around, Lottie thought smugly. She was not afraid of them.
“Your Minister is dead,” she announced to the crowd. “Who will you take orders from now? Do you know what to do without him?”
One acted. He was young, probably her age, and foolish. He ran to the front with his wand raised. Lottie killed him before he even said opened his mouth.
That’s when the pandemonium occurred. The wizards shouted and shot curses at her. Lottie dodged them all swiftly and killed whoever came close enough. She was not a Death Eater”and was ready to punish anybody who thought she was.
Oddly enough, none of the guards fired the Killing Curse. They probably didn’t know how. Lottie laughed as she fought. Even if their pitiful spells hit her, they would do nothing.
She had left a pile dead on the floor. It felt good”she enjoyed watching the life slip from their eyes”enjoyed making them pay for their mistakes.
Their numbers thinned. Not all of the missing had died, though”some were just gone. They had fled, and Lottie soon figured out why.
Hooded figures appeared in the farthest doorway. There were two of them, standing horrifically still. The guards scattered. Their souls were not worth one prisoner. Lottie stood motionless. She watched them approach. She heard their rattling breathing, but she didn’t feel them. The coldness that accompanied the dementors was noticeably absent.
Lottie sneered. This was the best the guards could do? “Expecto Patronum,” she said calmly.
Nothing happened.
Lottie looked down at her wand. She was filled with euphoria”with ecstasy”why wasn’t the spell working? “Expecto Patronum. Expecto Patronum! EXPECTO PATRONUM!”
The dementors approached even closer. Their scabby hands reached out, blindly, trying to ensnare her.
This was it”if she didn’t get away, she’d be dead. Well, not dead, but close enough. The dementors inched closer. Lottie looked wildly around. There was no beating them. Shutting her eyes tight, she turned into darkness and Disapparated.
She appeared in the middle of the Alsemore entrance hall and fell to her knees. Now, separate from the adrenaline of danger, she was very much aware of the pain in her body. Her side panged. She guessed that a rib was broken. All of her muscles trembled. And something, somewhere she couldn’t place, ached horribly.
Lottie was aware of her breathing. She sat on her knees with her hands planted firmly against the floor, grateful for the moment of calm and quiet.
She heard the sound of high heels clicking against stone and knew who it was without having to look up.
“Rowe.”
“Palmyitor.” Lottie let a tiny smile creep onto her face. The surprise in the old woman’s voice pleased her.
Lottie looked up. A sudden coldness filled her”swam in her lungs and drowned her heart. “I don’t think”” she took a breath. The enormity of everything fell on her now”the pain through her body, the pain outside of her body”the cold… “I’m going to faint.” Lottie slid slowly to the ground. Her head rested against the stone.
Her very bones were ice and it was infinitely worse than the fire of the Cruciatus Curse. Her mind was erupting and swimming all at once. She saw a pair of high-heeled shoes approach”heard another voice”maybe two”and then was swallowed into blackness.
She woke to the sound of voices. She was tucked into a bed with unbelievably warm blankets, but she still felt cold”like there was some sort of fundamental chill that she could never escape.
Lottie pushed herself carefully so that she sat up. She was, of course, in the hospital wing, but none of the beds around her were occupied. She glanced around to locate the source of the noise and saw a door standing ajar, letting in a thin stream of golden light.
She got out of bed and approached the door slowly. Her bare feet made no noise over the stone. One voice she recognized immediately”Palmyitor’s. “This was not part of the plan,” she whispered. Her voice was a furious flurry of consonants.
“What plan?”
Lottie peaked her head through the gap and saw that it was Neville who spoke. His brow was furrowed, but lightened slightly when he caught sight of her in the doorway.
Palmyitor noticed this change and spun around. Her face was a puzzle”it projected so many emotions at once that Lottie didn’t know where to begin.
“What plan?” echoed Lottie.
Palmyitor remained silent. Her dark eyes flitted between Lottie’s. “It’s not important.”
“It’s not?”
“No.”
Lottie glanced at Neville, who chewed on his lip. His eyes were cast darkly at Palmyitor, but every time she would turn to him, he would casually look away. Palmyitor didn’t seem able to make eye contact. Her gaze flitted across the corridor and finally settled on a shadow cast on the ground.
“What Neville did was not part of the plan,” Lottie said slowly. “Rescuing me was not part of the plan?”
Palmyitor didn’t say anything.
“What was the plan then?”
“We make many decisions in one day, Rowe,” Palmyitor said tensely. “Oftentimes we have to consider our priorities.”
“Priorities? So I’m not a priority? What did you prioritize then? What is so important that I was supposed to die for it?”
“It is actually none of your business””
“Well I almost died, so I’d like to know.” A jolt of ice ran up Lottie’s spine, but she didn’t shiver. “You know what”I bet there isn’t anything. You just didn’t feel like coming to get me.”
“That is enough, Rowe. This conversation is entirely inconsequential.”
“Naesa.” Neville spoke. He stood between them, casting his gaze back and forth nervously. “I think you are going to have to let go of whatever idea this was that you had. Lottie is here now. She’s safe. That’s what’s important.”
Palmyitor’s gaze slid slowly to Lottie. Her face was stretched into a permanent scowl and her eyes clouded over darkly. “Yes, yes you’re very right, Longbottom. Rowe, get back to bed. We will deal with this later.”
She walked off without looking back. Neville only had time to shot Lottie an apologetic glance before shrugging and heading off himself.
Defeated, Lottie walked back to her bed. As she pulled the covers over her, she frowned. The whole situation just seemed off. Palmyitor had sent her on that ridiculous mission with the first years; it was like she had been trying to kill her.
Lottie rolled to her side. That actually seemed plausible. She wouldn’t have been surprised at all if Palmyitor was actually a Death Eater all along. She was probably the traitor who had freed Snape; she had always seemed overly fond if him after all.
Haunted by that chilling idea, Lottie shivered and fell into a dark sleep.
She woke again and it was bright. Light filtered in through the windows and illuminated the empty beds across from her. Lottie stretched. She realized that she had no idea what time it was or even what day, but that did not bother her greatly. She sat, staring blankly ahead until Professor Waterman noticed her.
“Why didn’t you tell me you were up?” the Healer asked, coming over with a tray of potions.
Lottie shrugged. Waterman, without waiting for an answer, handed her potion after potion until the tray was empty. Then she tittered away, talking about something inconsequential”and Lottie paid her no heed.
Lottie spent the rest of the day there. She had no particular urge to go into the castle and see anyone, so she just sat there, staring numbly at the wall across from her. The castle was well heated to protect against the winter chill, but Lottie still felt cold. It felt like her heart was made of ice and her very blood froze her veins.
The day turned to evening. The hospital wing’s east-facing windows were completely illuminated and cast a pink tint on the walls. Then everything was dark again before the door cautiously opened once more.
Andrea poked her head in, saw Lottie, and entered. A flood of light followed her; Lottie had to shield her eyes. Andrea was dressed in her uniform but looked unspeakably older. She did not smile but her gaze did soften as she sat down on the bed across from Lottie’s. “Hi.”
Lottie looked at her carefully. “Hi.”
A long silence stretched between them. It knitted its way through the air and crept up their spines. They sat there in a stalemate for a full minute. “How are you feeling?” Andrea finally asked.
Lottie shrugged.
Still more silence. Lottie could not think of a single thing to say, nor was she particularly interested in doing so. She and Andrea existed on different planes now. Andrea’s warmth would only destroy her.
“How did you get away?” Andrea asked.
“Neville.” Lottie looked down at the pale white comforter draped over her knees.
“What do you mean?”
Lottie snapped her head up. “I mean that while they were torturing me and about to kill me, he came and stopped them. He saved my life. And then we fought our way out. I killed a ton of the guards.”
Andrea’s alarmed expression was only magnified by her glasses. “Youkilled them?” she asked, horrified. “Lottie, they’re on our side””
“That’s easy for you to say. They weren’t torturing you.”
“They only did that because they thought you were a Death Eater.”
“But I’m not,” Lottie snarled. “And they wouldn’t believe me. And they refused to ask anyone from Alsemore, even though they would prove it. All I really needed was somebody who they trusted to tell them.” Lottie raised her eyebrows pointedly and set her jaw. Her gaze was unrelenting, but Andrea did not look away.
“What, you mean me?”
“Yes, I do.”
“I couldn’t have told them, Lottie.” Andrea made her tone so light that it was condescending.
“Yes you could have. It would have taken you one second.”
“It’s not about that, Lottie.” Andrea rolled her eyes. “They don’t associate with people from Alsemore. They would have kicked me out if I had said anything.”
“Oh, so your job is more important than your friend?”
Andrea stood up violently. “Don’t say things like that”I would never. And you”you did just that for years. You always put your Legilimency over me.”
“Because that was more important””
“Well look how much good it did you.” Andrea was fuming. With her face scrunched up and eyes alight, she seemed on the verge of breathing fire.
“I know why you didn’t help me,” Lottie said sharply. Her words were like daggers which she threw purposefully to harm. “You didn’t want me to be saved.”
“What are you taking about?”
“I bet”I bet you wanted me to be killed by Barkesdale.” Lottie swung her legs over the side of the bed and got to her feet too. “Someone who supporting the Dark Lord would definitely want me dead after everything I’ve done”and knowing who I was related to. And we still don’t know who it was who let Snape out”there’s a traitor free in the castle””
“Are you suggesting that I’m the traitor?” Andrea’s voice was barely above a whisper.
Lottie looked at her friend for a second, who, for this moment, held all the world’s sorrow. It was too late to back down now, even though she knew the damage she would inflict. “Yes.”
Andrea took a sharp breath in. “I can’t believe you.” Her voice was deadly. “I”really”I just”” She took a moment of silence to collect her thoughts. “I have been fighting this war for seven years. I have hated everything to do with the Dark Arts and the Dark Lord. I have worked hard for years to help destroy him. And you? You”you just got picked. Palmyitor chose you to take over her job. And you learned everything she taught you and more. You learned the Dark Arts”you’ve killed people, Lottie. You’ve lost your soul. If either of us were the traitor, it would be you.”
“Are you stupid?” Lottie said coldly. “Do you realize who I am? The Dark Lord would kill me””
“Is that the only thing keeping you from joining him then?” Andrea asked. “Fear for your life? Otherwise, you’d be on board, right? A comfortable lifestyle”all you have to do is kill a few Muggles and you’re in the clear. But unfortunately for you, you’re related to the famous Harry Potter. But if not for that, you’d definitely join the Dark Lord, right?”
“I can’t believe what you’re saying.”
“I can’t believe what you’ve become.” Andrea’s voice reached a shrill note. Her hands shook and her eyes swam with tears. “Look at yourself, Lottie,” she said. “You’re a monster.”
She took a step back towards the door and Lottie took a step forward. “No, don’t you dare follow me,” Andrea said. Her voice wavered, but through her tears, she made a valiant effort to keep her face firm and stoic. “I regret ever asking Neville to save you.” She let the words hang in midair for a moment before spinning around and leaving.
Lottie stood still, surrounded by the argument, which still hung in the air like magic. She could hear Andrea’s steps pattering down the stairs, but she didn’t run after her.
Slowly, she sat back down on the top of her bed, her face still and her heart cold.
Time turned into a dry, cold December. Thick layers of snow caked the world outside in a deceptive show of purity, while inside, everything was all business. The three heads were hard at work creating a battle plan; now that the Horcruxes were gone, all they had to do was find a place to catch the Dark Lord off guard with an army.
Lottie spent her time in the hospital wing. She did not want to go back to her dormitory and share a room with Andrea; in fact, she did her best to avoid Andrea all together.
She didn’t even bother going to classes. She just spent day after day in her bed. She had nothing to say and nobody to talk to. It wasn’t until the day after the full moon that she did anything.
She hadn’t seen Colm in months. Maybe he would understand”maybe he would be able to comfort her and thaw the ice that had accumulated in her heart. Lottie moved like a ghost that afternoon to Maelioric’s fourth floor office. The door was shut, so, like always, she sat down against the wall.
When the clock struck five, she frowned. It was already a midnight sky outside, but there was no sight of Colm. The panic only really hit her, when the office door opened and Maelioric stepped out, unaccompanied.
“Where’s Colm?” Lottie asked without greeting.
Maelioric frowned. “Oh, I don’t know,” he said. He waved a hand through the air absently. “I was going to see Naesa””
“But Colm.” Lottie got to her feet. “He could be hurt. He could be in trouble. He’s supposed to be home today and he’s not.”
“Scrivener can handle himself.” With that, Maelioric left.
Fear settled in Lottie’s heart, doing nothing to thaw the chill, but adding to it. She watched the old professor walk off and sat back down, realizing now how truly alone she was.
Halfway to Infinity by Eponine
Chapter Notes: Thanks to coolh5000 for helping me and beta'ing this chapter!
This one is dedicated to my parents.