Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Survival of the fittest	By : Sasunarufan13 Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 18501 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 9
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter nor profit from it. Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling

Chapter List
- 26
- 27
- 28
Author's note: Almost a month late, but at least I'm here with another chapter! As you may have noticed already, yes, it's another part. The next chapter will conclude the search.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION: Next week, my exams will start, so this means that this story will most likely not be updated before the end of January at best. I will continue to work on it as much as I can, but if you don't see another chapter appearing in two weeks or so, you know why.
But this doesn't mean there won't be other stories posted. I have planned three oneshots with Drarry to be posted in this month - one every week. They are not related to either this story or any of my others, but maybe you could give them a try while waiting for this story XD I finished those about a week ago, so they will be posted on time.
Let's move on.
Thanks to the following reviewer: staar
Warnings: angst, drama, Harry having a slight form of a panic attack; smidgen of fluff; shifting povs; an author who sucks at writing action scenes
I hope you'll like this chapter! Also a Happy New Year!

Chapter 27: Completed Circle Part 1
Sirius reacted without thinking; as soon as he heard the tell-tale sound of stone breaking, he spun around and practically barked the protection charm that enveloped the two wizards completely. Even with the charm springing up on time, Sirius wrapped his arms around his godson and pulled him down. With a startled yelp, Harry ended up on his back with Sirius hovering above him; his swollen abdomen completely protected by Sirius' body. Garin hissed agitatedly, draping his long, thick body across the older man's back.
Both men automatically tucked their heads against their chests and held their breaths when the ceiling broke down completely; pieces of jagged stone raining down, banging against the shield.
For a long moment, only the dreadful sound of heavy ceiling parts burying them was heard.
Then everything became silent again.
The shield shone brightly around them; Sirius raised his head carefully and squinted, peering through the blurry shield. His fear of being buried completely had been ungrounded. A part of the ceiling had created a big wall, separating them from the rest of the group. The pieces of stone were rather large and he could only hope that the entire ceiling hadn't collapsed.
After casting another wary glance at the surroundings, he slowly lowered the shield and sat up as soon as Garin moved away.
"Are you okay, Harry?" he asked worriedly. He didn't think the younger man was hurt, but the wide, green eyes staring straight through him didn't put him on ease.
"I – I'm fine," Harry stammered and sat up painstakingly slow while Garin slithered back to him.
"Let's move more to the back," Sirius suggested. "Maybe we'll be able to find a way out. I don't think we'll be able to break through that rubble."
Harry didn't budge. "What happened to the others?" he asked and his shoulders tensed up. "What happened to Draco?" His fingers dug into the ground like they were claws.
"I … They are probably all right," Sirius replied helplessly. To be honest, he had no idea at all how far the ceiling had broken down and he couldn't hear anything through the stones. He could only hope the others had used Protective shields as well if the ceiling had completely collapsed.
He didn't even want to contemplate the thought that the others had gotten hurt.
"But what if the ceiling collapsed on them?" Harry asked and panic started to show in his large eyes. "What if they got hurt? What if they couldn't get a shield up on time and they … they are …"
"Harry! Calm down!" Sirius barked when his godson started to breathe quicker and heavier, sounding like he was hyperventilating.
Harry shook his head and wanted to say something, but instead he gasped and lurched forwards, almost falling face first on the ground if it weren't for Sirius grabbing his shoulders and keeping him up.
"Harry, Harry, look at me," he ordered and carefully shook Harry's shoulders. "Come on, kiddo, you need to calm down."
"Th-the baby," Harry stammered and his arms wrapped around his stomach.
Immediately Sirius looked down at his hidden stomach; his heart thudding loudly in his ears. If something happened to Harry and the baby now, they were in deep shit. Remus was the one with the Healer's degree and Sirius' knowledge of Healing didn't extend further than knowing some spells to bandage wounds. It was nowhere near enough to deal with something going wrong in a pregnancy.
"What's happening with the baby?" he asked sharply and tried to keep a clear head. "Are you in pain?"
"He-he's moving too fast," Harry whimpered and seemed to want to curl around his stomach.
When Sirius moved his hands a bit, he hissed when his skin started to tingle painfully, as if his hands were slowly immersed in hot water. Harry's magic was rising to the surface and the young man didn't seem capable of reigning it in – whether that was because he just couldn't and was losing control over it or because he was panicking too much, Sirius didn't know. What he did know was that if he didn't manage to calm his godson down, then a collapsed ceiling would be the least of their worries.
Garin slithered around them and he raised his body until his head was on eye level with the older wizard. His thin tongue tasted the air and he turned his gaze towards Sirius.
"Nothing wrong with the hatchling as of now," Garin's voice spoke in his mind. "The hatchling is reacting towards the Master's panic. If he calms down, the hatchling will calm down as well."
"And if he doesn't calm down?" Sirius asked through gritted teeth.
Instead of answering, the snake lowered his head again and glided behind Harry.
Right. His silence was enough answer.
"Okay, Harry, look at me, please," Sirius said and despite the heat scalding his skin, he placed two fingers underneath Harry's chin and slowly brought his head up until he was looking straight at the older man. "I need you to concentrate and follow my breathing pattern, okay? Just copy me, all right?"
He had no experience with panic attacks at all and hoped that what he was doing now wouldn't worsen Harry's condition.
Harry's pupils were large, but his eyes were focused on his godfather and Sirius inhaled loudly, holding his breath for five seconds before releasing it slowly.
At first Harry seemed too wrapped up in his panic to follow Sirius' breathing pattern, so on a whim, Sirius grabbed Harry's hand – forcing it away from his stomach – and placed it on his chest, so that Harry could feel his chest expand with every inhale and lower with every exhale.
Slowly, very slowly, Harry started to copy his breathing pattern until his magic calmed down and retreated and his pupils grew smaller again.
When Sirius thought Harry was calm enough, he cautiously released his shoulder and pulled back a bit.
"Are you okay?" he asked softly, his eyes flitting over Harry's body.
His godson gave him an embarrassed, weak smile. "Yeah, sorry. I don't know what happened," he replied sheepishly and he seemed ashamed.
"No need to apologize," Sirius retorted gruffly and leant back on his hands. "How's the baby? Still moving around too much?"
Harry grimaced and the hand on his stomach slowly rubbed up and down. "He's calmed down somewhat, but he's still kicking quite frequently."
An almost morbid curiosity came over Sirius and before he realised it, he stretched out his hand. "Can I …" he trailed off, but Harry seemed to understand what he wanted to ask.
He nodded slowly and sat up straight, allowing Sirius to place his hand on his rounded stomach.
It was weird; when Sirius looked at Harry's waist, he saw nothing but a flat stomach, but now with his hand on his belly, he could feel how rounded it was and how big already. Of course Harry being six months far meant his stomach wouldn't remain small, but it was just so strange to imagine that in his rounded stomach, a baby was growing.
Sirius thought he had grown used to feeling unborn babies kick – when Lily had been pregnant, she hadn't minded at all that her friends touched her stomach once the baby had started kicking hard enough to be felt and Sirius and Remus had probably felt Harry kick almost as much as James had. Then there had been Alice, who while more reserved, hadn't minded either that the members of the Order occasionally felt her baby kick.
Despite that, the first kick of Harry's baby took him off guard and made him retract his hand in reflex.
Harry chuckled weakly. "He's becoming quite a kicker," he muttered dryly. "Usually he isn't this active though." A wrinkle appeared on his forehead and his eyes looked uneasily at his stomach.
Not wanting Harry to sink into another panic attack, Sirius quickly placed his hand on his stomach again and said, "Well, he probably takes after his father then. You were quite a kicker as well."
This made Harry look up surprised. "I was?"
Sirius nodded and kept his surprised sound hidden when something touched his thumb through the layer of cloth. "Yeah, it made your mum argue with your dad that instead of becoming a Quidditch player, you would do well in soccer." He smiled when he remembered the various arguments Lily and James had had whenever his best friend had mentioned that he couldn't wait for their son to grow big enough to fly.
"I take it my dad didn't agree with that?" Harry smiled.
"No, he didn't," Sirius chuckled and pulled his hand back, placing it on the ground. "By the time Lily was eight months pregnant, he had already bought you a toy broom."
Harry's mouth dropped open and he blinked. "Oh wow. Mum probably wasn't happy with that."
"James was smart enough to wait with showing the broom until you were ten months old," Sirius chuckled fondly.
Harry smiled faintly and stood up, brushing the dust off of his trousers as much as possible. He turned around and started hissing something to Garin, while Sirius stood up as well and rolled his shoulders.
Harry's relieved sigh made him turn his head. "What?"
"Garin said he had contact with Ruby and Mara. Only the part where we were standing collapsed, so the rest are unharmed," Harry explained and his eyes shone with relief.
Sirius closed his eyes and rubbed a hand over his face. "Thank Merlin," he groaned. He was more at ease now that he knew the rest of their group wasn't harmed.
He looked around, using his wand to lighten up the dark space. "I wonder whether there is a hidden exit," he muttered, squinting at the walls.
"Let's search for one," Harry mumbled and they spread out, studying the remaining three walls in the light the Lumos spell provided.
"What are we going to do if there is no other exit?" Harry's heavy question filled the small space.
Sirius stiffened before he forced himself to keep looking. "We will find something. I'm sure of it," he answered flatly.
He didn't want to consider the possibility that they were trapped here.
The Black family had been famous for being paranoid – even more than the Malfoys – and Grimmauld Place was full with hidden rooms and small passages which lead outside in case there was ever an attack. Hopefully his family's paranoia had extended to their dead members as well and they had created some sort of escape route in case something happened in the tomb.
The light of his wand danced over the wall while his fingers glided over the rough stone, searching for a hidden door or even the presence of a ward. Abruptly he halted and brought his wand at eye level, waving the light back and forth slowly.
"Harry, come here for a sec," he called out.
Harry wandered over. "What? Did you find something?" he asked curiously.
"Do you notice something?" Sirius asked and gestured at the wall. He went over a particular spot on the wall again with the light.
"Shadows," Harry murmured after a few minutes perplexed. "It's creating shadows when it shouldn't." He looked at Sirius. "Does this mean this is an hidden exit?"
Sirius lowered his wand and narrowed his eyes. "I believe so, yes, but I have no clue how to make the ward fall down." He smacked his fist in frustration against the wall. "My family was fond of using passwords – either verbal or signs – whenever they created a hidden entrance and I have no clue what the password for this one can be."
He wanted to scream in frustration; they had finally found a possible exit and yet they were still trapped, thanks to his family's fucking need for stupid passwords. Who the fuck had decided that a dead person needed a bloody hidden entrance anyway?
A hand touched his arm and he whipped his head around.
Harry started at the quick action and retracted his arm, but didn't retreat. Instead he nodded towards the hidden ward. "Garin said he can try to bring the ward down," he murmured and bit his lip. "He's not sure whether he'll be able to, but he figures his poison should be strong enough."
Sirius sighed and glowered at the wall. "Let him try, then. It can't get worse than this I suppose," he grumbled and stepped back.
Harry nodded and hissed softly to Garin before he stepped back as well.
The large snake rose up until his head was near Sirius' shoulder level and his eyes were firmly fixated on the wall. He rocked from left to right as if he was imitating a pendulum. Garin's head reared back suddenly and his jaw dropped; he could easily fit an adult pig in his mouth. A large, white purple blob shot out of his throat and splashed open against the wall. The blob spread out, covering everything it touched with a whitish slime.
Air bubbles popped up and the liquid hissed viciously. A high shrill sound erupted from somewhere, forcing the two wizards to cover their ears, lest they wanted to risk becoming deaf.
The sound of glass shattering pierced even through the protective cover of their hands and Sirius winced. Garin bobbed up and down and then faced them again.
He and Harry held a short conversation in hushed whispering.
"The ward is down," Harry announced and a touch of relief shone through his tone. "Garin says that if we touch the wall now, it should turn into an ordinary door."
Sirius nodded abruptly and kept his wand ready. Even if the ward was down now, that didn't mean it would be safe to let their guard down. Who knew what kind of traps were waiting for them on the other side?
"Okay, stay behind me and keep your wand in your hand," he murmured and raised his wand slightly.
Warily he touched the wall fleetingly with his fingers and with a loud rumble and the sound of stone turning on iron, the wall revealed a small opening. A large spider scurried out of the way when Sirius stepped forwards and he impatiently rubbed the dried out cobwebs out of his way.
Harry fell in place right behind him and together they shuffled through a very narrow corridor, filled with a lot of dust, dead spiders scattered across the ground and cobwebs decorating the walls. The corridor was barely wide enough for them to move around. Sirius doubted a broader shouldered person would be able to go through this one.
Considering there had been quite a few broad shouldered people in the Black family, he had to wonder what his ancestors had been thinking when they created this corridor.
Shaking his head, he concentrated on the path in front of him and chased away the darkness with a whispered "Lumos".
They ended up in another round chamber, albeit this one was smaller than the first one they encountered before.
"What is it with your family and round rooms?" Harry asked wearily and he looked around.
This room was rather plain. It had only one other exit – bar the one they had just come from – and several small alcoves casted shadows on the wall thanks to the light of the Lumos spell. The ground was covered with dirt and several small skeletons.
"I have no idea," Sirius sighed, his eyes sliding from one side to the other. Something about this space bothered him, but he couldn't figure out what exactly.
The cause of his unease was given by Harry, who had wandered over to one of the alcoves in the middle of the wall.
"Sirius," Harry called out apprehensively.
"What?"
"Can animals easily enter this tomb?"
"What? No, of course not. Most of them tend to stay away from this place, except for spiders and bugs and such," Sirius retorted. "Why?"
"Garin discovered some weird bones." Harry paused for a moment, presumably to listen to Garin's chatter, if Sirius had to go by the sudden hissing sound. "The bones have teeth marks on them."
Sirius stilled and turned around slowly. "Maybe some rat got inside?" he suggested softly.
His godson pointed towards a rather large bone resting against the wall – a bone too big to belong to a rat or a mouse.
"I doubt a rat can make such vicious marks on a human bone," Harry murmured. He had become completely still.
"Are you certain it's a human …"
"Garin can smell the difference between human and animal bones," Harry retorted flatly. Green eyes glanced at him, glittering almost feverishly while Harry's wand rose up in the air. "The question now is whether this particular animal still lives here."
"Harry, come here," Sirius barked, not liking the sudden shift in the atmosphere.
Garin was already sliding forwards when Harry took a few steps towards the older man – only to be cut off by three creatures suddenly dropping from the ceiling and landing with a high screech on the ground.
With a curse Sirius threw himself back against the wall, brandishing his wand.
In front of him a large creature rose up on his legs, resembling a Bowtruckle. Unlike a normal Bowtruckle, however, this one wasn't hand sized at all. If anything it was at least a head taller than Sirius and Sirius wasn't exactly little. Not only that, but its long, sharp fingers were covered in what seemed to be shards of glass, glinting with a red fluid – poison probably. Its skin was brown and black and covered with dark red spots; a sickening smell surrounded the creature. When it opened its giant jaw, Sirius was looking straight at three rows of razor sharp teeth, glinting dangerously in the weak light.
A long, narrow tongue shot out like lightning and grazed past Sirius, hitting the wall with a dull 'thump'. When Sirius glanced at the spot, his eyes grew wide when the stone crumbled as snow for the sun.
The next moment he had to dive sideways to avoid the long, spidery fingers aimed at his head. On his right side, he heard the vicious loud hissing of Garin and it felt as if his heart had stopped.
Harry.
Risking a glance, he saw that Harry and Garin had gotten separated when the creatures fell down. Garin was still relatively near Sirius, holding his own against the second creature, but Harry had been driven against the wall, a weak shield protecting him.
"Harry, try some Blasting curses and Heat spells!" Sirius snapped and threw a darker version of the Blasting curse at the creature blocking him.
The creature squealed when its left arm exploded and it let out a terrifying scream; its dark eyes glowing menacingly.
So Blasting curses helped.
He ducked down to avoid the fast tongue and cast the Bound Inferno spell, hoping this one would be enough to finish off the creature. If it had any resemblance to the regular Bowtruckles, it would be extremely weak against fire.
The Bound Inferno spell hit the creature right in its stomach and it froze at first, dancing backwards, twisting and contorting its body as if trying to throw off the fire.
It didn't work. As soon as the fire got a hold on its dry, wood like skin, it spread out fast, consuming the creature's entire body.
It let out one last furious screech, but it stumbled against the wall and fell down, where the fire continued to crackle harshly, until nothing was left but a pile of dark brown ash and the lingering smell of vomit.
On the other side of the room, he heard Harry yell out the Blast Ball spell and the responding painful screech of the third creature, making him grin viciously.
"Harry, use the Bound Inferno spell that I taught you last year! It will kill it instantly!"
Garin had managed to somehow bite the second creature as the creature was down on the ground, twitching and bucking while it let out gurgling sounds.
Not taking any chances, Sirius quickly engulfed it in another Bound Inferno spell.
"Harry, are you …"
His breath hitched.
The shield previously protecting Harry at least a bit had completely disappeared and the creature was looming forwards, missing part of its shoulder and its entire arm; its green blood dripping sluggishly on the ground.
As if through water, Sirius heard Harry desperately casting the Bound Inferno spell, but nothing was happening – as if his wand was not a magical tool, but merely a wooden stick.
The creature let out a strange cackle and then struck forwards.
"HARRY!"

"HARRY!" Draco lurched forwards, but was pulled back by his shoulder. He whirled around and wrenched his shoulder free, glaring heatedly at his mother. "Mother, what do you …"
"Ending up buried underneath the stones won't help Harry at all!" Mother snapped, raising her voice for the first time since he was a small child.
The sudden rise of her voice made him halt in shock, while the sound of rocks crashing on the ground continued.
The dust flying up made them all cough and their eyes water.
"Sirius? Harry?" Lupin called out worriedly and warily approached the wall of sharp rocks, his wand ready.
Mara and Ruby were already prowling around the make shift wall, sniffing at the stones; their tails swishing back and forth agitatedly.
Severus halted near the rocks, cocking his head to the right. He muttered a spell and seemed to listen to something.
"They are still alive," he suddenly announced and stepped back.
Draco whipped his head around to face him wide eyed. "They are?" he managed to bring out despite his sudden dry throat; his hands like claws digging into his thighs.
Harry wasn't crushed underneath the rocks? He and their baby were still alive?
Severus nodded slowly. "Yes; the spell picked up their heartbeats, so they should still be alive."
"That's good news at least," Mother sighed relieved; her already pale skin had become even paler and Draco only realised then that she had been scared as well.
Mara snorted loudly. "Yes, both are still alive. Garin is with them."
"Is everything all right with them?" Lupin asked sharply.
Ruby scraped the ground with one of his large paws. "Master seems to be caught in a bout of panic, but he is receiving help. The other man seems to be in a good state."
"What are we going to do?" Draco asked, swallowing. "Can we remove the rocks?"
Lupin grimaced, lowering his wand. "Not without risking the collapse of the entire ceiling," he admitted grudgingly. He looked longingly at the rocks. "We could try blasting a hole in the middle of it while supporting the rest, but I'm not certain whether that would be able to hold everything up until we're out of here."
"They are going to try and find another way out," Mara remarked. She shook her large head. "They suspect that there must be a hidden exit somewhere."
"What are we going to do then?" Draco asked, biting his lip. It didn't feel right to just do nothing. What if they couldn't find a hidden exit? They couldn't leave them here!
Mother grimaced lightly. "There is not much we can do here for them," she said slowly. "We can try to find a room or corridor linked to this room and help them break out through that wall, but it's going to be a difficult search."
Severus backed away; his lips a thin line on his face. "Let's continue our search. If we don't find the portrait or another way to get them out, we'll return to this room and try to find a way to clear the rubble without collapsing the entire ceiling."
Draco wanted to protest; he didn't want to leave his lover behind. What if they couldn't find another exit and they were stuck behind the rocks? Harry could go into another panic attack or his magic could start acting up again. So far he had been able to remain calm, because he had the knowledge that Draco was near him – what would happen if he thought Draco had left?
A shudder raked through his body. He didn't even dare to imagine what would happen next.
Yet, he also had to agree with his mother – at this point, there was nothing they could do. Even trying to remove one rock could cause the entire ceiling to collapse.
Here he had thought that nothing could become worse than Dumbledore's house.
"Let's go," Lupin sighed and turned around.
They passed the coffin and several boxes and walked into a slightly narrow corridor. The ground, strangely, was covered with some kind of rug and it made Draco wonder why on earth a tomb would need a rug.
Then again, one could also wonder why a tomb needed so many traps.
This particular thought had barely passed through his mind, but he could smack himself for his stupidity. Of course a tomb wasn't in need of so many traps – but when a tomb contained a very valuable item, of course it would be filled with traps.
"Draco, stay alert, please," Mother whispered and touched his shoulder fleetingly.
Draco started, but nodded quickly. Yes, losing his concentration here could prove to be fatal.
He casted one last look at the room they had left and silently promised to himself that he would be back soon to help Harry.
If they hadn't found the portrait in one hour, the whole quest be damned, he would return to this room and he would find a way to get Harry out of there. Harry was more important to him than a portrait.

She would have to keep an eye on her son. Well, she had been planning to do that either way, she mused while the small group slowly made their way through the corridor. But after being forced to leave Harry behind, she wouldn't put it past her son to sneak back and try to find a way to put a hole in the rubble without being buried underneath the rest of the ceiling.
She understood how he felt – even she had to resist the urge to stay behind and try to figure out a way to help Harry and her cousin – but she was also realistic and not blinded by the love Draco held for Harry. At this moment, they could do nothing to help them and could only hope that they either found another exit or they found the room right next to the one they had just left, so that they could make a hole through that wall.
Meanwhile they still had to find the portrait of Helga Hufflepuff.
Narcissa pursed her lips and glanced sideways at the dusty walls. Eerie shadows danced across the stone thanks to the flames on Mara's and Ruby's tails. They took up the lead, providing enough light so that nobody could stumble.
The corridor wasn't that long; they had barely walked for five minutes when they were brought into a small space, barely big enough to fit all of them inside.
This space disembogued into three other corridors; the entrances were like gaping, dark mouths and cold air was streaming through them. Above each entrance the symbol of the Black family was etched into a silver plate – a novelty, as the other entrances didn't have such symbols above them.
Narcissa tried to remember through which one her mother had steered her. She could recall passing through this exact space, but for the life of her she couldn't remember which one they had chosen. How was that possible? Her memory had always been her greatest asset and yet now, when she needed it the most, it was failing her.
Her fingers tightened in a fold of her robes.
"Which one should we choose?" Draco asked quietly; his eyes were flitting across the entrances, the grip on his wand tense.
"Mother brought me through this space, but I can't recall which corridor we chose," Narcissa admitted, taking a step forwards.
"Mara? Ruby?" Remus asked softly and gazed with hooded eyes at the two large animals wandering back and forth.
Ruby snorted; his whiskers twitched violently. "We are receiving mixed signals," he admitted annoyed.
"Mixed signals?" Severus raised his eyebrows.
Mara spoke up, "We feel a strong presence in two of the three corridors. Both are receiving the same amount of aura, so it is difficult for us to determine which one would be the best choice." She sounded on the verge of snarling in rage.
They all looked at each other.
"I am not fond of this particular option, but maybe it would be best if we separated into two groups?" Severus broke the tense silence; a strand of his dark hair casting a shadow across his face.
"I do not think it is wise for us to split up now," Narcissa murmured, but her protest didn't contain the strength she usually put forth when opposing someone.
No, it was not wise at all. But did they have any choice?
"It isn't," Remus agreed and sighed. "But at this point, we don't have much choice." He addressed Ruby and Mara, "Point us the two corridors most likely to lead us to Hufflepuff, please. Would you each also accompany a group?" He threw a dark look at the entrances. "It probably won't help that much if there are traps, but …"
"The middle and the right corridor contain the most amount of aura," Ruby murmured and padded towards Remus. "I'll join you."
"I'll accompany you," Mara announced and approached Narcissa and her son.
Narcissa looked at both men contemplatively. She wasn't certain whether it would be a good idea to have those two form a group of their own – she doubted they would start a row, but they didn't share a lovely past.
Severus seemed to realise what she was thinking. He rolled his eyes and his upper lip curled up, as if he had tasted something sour. "Go on, Narcissa. Take Draco with you. We'll be fine."
"Don't try to maim or kill each other," Narcissa retorted dryly.
Remus offered her a small smile. "We won't," he promised.
Well, she thought while she laid her hand on Draco's shoulder, steering him towards the right corridor, Remus and Severus are more likely to get along than Sirius and Severus.
The two groups entered their corridor at the same moment.
Narcissa shivered lightly when the cold air caressed her face. It would have felt refreshing in the otherwise stuffy space, except that it smelt incredibly stale, bordering on disgusting.
"Do you think we'll find Hufflepuff soon?" Draco asked softly; his eyes focused on the path in front of them.
She squeezed his shoulder softly before letting her hand fall next to her hip. "We'll find her, Draco. And then we will all get out of here," she promised.
She had never been a mother who promised something just to have her child shut up; she despised parents who lied to their children to keep them content instead of telling the truth, no matter how much that might hurt.
Promising that they would all leave this tomb safely was a rather Gryffindor like thing to say and normally she refrained from saying things with an uncertain outcome like their situation. But in this case, she would not consider any other outcome than them leaving this forsaken tomb alive.
Draco nodded silently; he still seemed very tense and worried, but at least now he wasn't trying to cast glances backwards anymore, which he had been doing frequently ever since they left the room with Elladora's coffin.
Mara growled warningly.
"Mara?" Draco asked bewildered.
"Something isn't right," she warned them; her tail thumping harshly against the walls. "We will be entering a room soon; be careful."
Narcissa furrowed her eyebrows lightly, wondering what the snow leopard meant with this vague warning.
Nevertheless, she tightened the grip on her wand and used a nonverbal spell to heighten her senses slightly. Her ears picked up a low buzzing sound as that of insects during a warm summer's evening. Her nose picked up a peculiar scent; something sour and sweet at the same time.
They arrived at the room a couple of minutes later. It appeared to be a very plain one. It held one dark brown coffin resting against the wall, furthest located from the entrance. Next to the coffin, two iron boxes were stacked upon each other; the height nearing the lid of the coffin.
The room didn't hold any other furniture; apparently, even though this particular ancestor had been important enough to warrant a place in this tomb, the family hadn't considered him that important to give him more than two boxes.
"Mara, what are you sensing?" Draco asked with a heavy frown. "There is nothing in here."
The snow leopard was walking restlessly across one wall, sniffing the floor. She growled again. "It doesn't feel right in here. It feels as if someone passed through here recently, but I can't pick up a scent or a trace of its aura!"
Narcissa shared a heavy look with her son and both immediately raised their wands, looking around carefully. If someone had managed to enter this tomb without triggering any alarm, this wasn't a good sign at all.
Because whoever it was, it couldn't be someone with good intentions.
The soft, almost inaudible 'click' warned her that something was amiss – but it was too late.
The explosion that followed, vibrated the walls and threw Narcissa backwards, smacking her body harshly against the unforgiving wall. She fell down with a choked scream, landing heavily on her arm.
Heavy smoke entered her nostrils and made her cough violently; she surged upwards so that she was sitting on her knees, her hands on the ground the only thing holding her up. She dry heaved several times, all the while clutching her wand tightly in her one hand. The smoke burned in her lungs and vaguely she hoped it wasn't poisonous.
When the smoke finally cleared up, she dared to open her eyes again and slowly sat up.
"Draco, are you …"
"I am afraid your son cannot really answer you at this moment, my dear lady."
Her breath stopped and her heart thundered madly in her chest; the sound filling her ears.
In front of her, clad in dark blue robes, stood Albus Dumbledore; his baby blue eyes gazing at her calmly. His bony hand was patting something softly and involuntarily her gaze was drawn towards it.
She could barely hold herself back from lunging forwards to scratch the bastard's eyes out.
Her son, her only son, was tied up like some lowly animal on a rickety chair while blood dripped sluggishly from a head wound. A grey rag was forced between his lips in order to silence him and his grey eyes looked at her with a terror, the likes of which she had wished to never see in his eyes.
His pet was lying unconsciously against the wall – Mara was breathing unsteadily as if her ribs had been broken and she was having difficulties breathing properly. Her eyes, half lidded, were staring blankly at Narcissa.
"How did you manage to enter here?" she brought out in a rough voice. She slowly stood up, hiding a wince when pain shot like a hot bolt through her arm. She hoped it wasn't broken.
Dumbledore did nothing to stop her from standing up – most likely realising she wouldn't dare to do anything before she knew what would happen to her son.
"It seems that a particular group has been going around, searching for the portraits of the Founders," he replied with a merry smile. "Imagine my surprise when I discovered both Godric and Rowena were gone! But I guess I should not be that surprised – my dear boy has always managed to do the unimaginable."
"How did you enter here?" she said through gritted teeth. Her wand dangled next to her hip. She would need to figure out how she could bind – or even better kill – the old man before he could manage to hurt Draco.
Whatever he ended up doing to her didn't matter as long as her son was safe.
"Ah, that's an interesting story actually," Dumbledore smiled friendly and waved towards a plain piece of wood lying on the ground. "This graveyard is remarkable. You can only enter it when a Black accompanies you. An ingenious invention I must admit. That is why, long ago when I was here, I enchanted a piece of wood to immediately call me here if someone had entered this tomb. You could consider it a special form of a Portkey if you will."
Narcissa blanched; this particular form of magic was treading the area of the Forbidden Arts. It wasn't exactly a Dark Spell, but the Ministry preferred that nobody except authorized people used this particular spell. Some old Pureblood families still used it to protect their homes, but most people relied on wards to defend their houses now.
Anyone could use it, though, no matter whether they were affiliated with the property in question or not.
"Imagine my surprise when I found you both here," Dumbledore continued merrily. He cocked his head slightly. "Can I safely assume that this means that young Harry must be somewhere near as well? Accompanied by at least one other person and his trusted pets?"
She clenched her jaw, but refused to answer.
The old man merely nodded benignantly as if her silence was confirmation enough. "I am surprised you let him accompany you on this trip, considering his state."
"What do you want?" she asked coldly.
He smiled merrily. "No need to be so hostile, my dear lady. I am not here to antagonize you or dear Draco here."
"Don't play games."
He sighed; the twinkling in his blue eyes died out. He spread out his arms. "I just want to ensure the peace in the Wizarding World, my lady, just like you want I assume."
She glared at him. This was one of the reasons why she hated the bloody bastard: it took him far too long to get to the bloody point.
"It is very simple," he continued, lowering his arms again. "I am not a violent person nor do I wish to hurt innocent people. That is why I will let you, Draco and his pet go without harming you."
"On which condition?"
His eyes deepened and the atmosphere grew colder.
"To ensure the peace in our world, I need Harry Potter. More specifically his life." He smiled; his eyes as cold as ice. "Hand over dear Harry and you and your son can go. Otherwise, I'm afraid some measures will be taken."

AN2: Got to love those cliffhangers, right? *coughs* I wonder how many of you think I'm evil now ^^;
Let me know what you think of this chapter in a review!
Next time: It's going from bad to worse. Are they going to leave this graveyard in one piece - or at the very least alive?
See you all next time!
Cuddles
Melissa
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Survival of the fittest