The Bargain
Out in the night, Harry and Dobby sprinted across the lawn. Harry briefly felt a moment of alarm when something near his feet rose up and squawked at him, but Dobby assured him it was just a bird and after dodging around it they kept running through the darkened grounds, lit only by the moonlight.
"Master has them all around the house, they are stupid and loud, Dobby does not like them Harry Potter sir." Dobby says with a surprisingly begrudging tone in his voice. They make it to the edge of the lawn, and Dobby indicates a small hole under the hedge lining the grounds "Through there, Harry Potter, if we're quick we won't be noticed." Harry was amazed at how easy this was, surely Voldemort wouldn't have made it this easy to escape, or perhaps the elf was using his magic to bypass some kind of alarm system.
"How is this so easy Dobby?" He asked as he crawled through the hedge and standing up felt a strange feeling wash over him.
"Ah, well master will have noticed we passed through the wards, so we need to go as far away as we can. He could trace us if we disapparated, so we'll have to wait until we're far away." Dobby said as he emerged from the hedge, bent double.
"Right," Harry said, suddenly aware of the flaws in this plan, and alarmed at how quickly this could all go wrong. "Right, let's go Dobby." and they turned and ran into the woods.
It felt like they'd been running for hours, they'd had to stop to catch their breath multiple times and each time Harry felt paranoid that someone was going to appear and capture them again. As well as that, the woods in the dark were proving particularly creepy and hazardous, unseen branches whipping him in the face and protruding roots tripping them up. After a while Dobby stopped and turned to Harry.
"I think this is far enough now" Dobby said. "Is there somewhere safe I can take you, Harry Potter?" He asked.
"Oh, er, could you take me to Hogwarts?" Harry asked hopefully.
"Dobby can not take someone with him into the grounds Harry Potter," he said sadly, "But Dobby can go there and find someone to come get you!"
"That would be great Dobby, can you go and find Professor Dumbledore? In case you can't get back quickly, tell him that Voldemort took me, he's got his body back and-" Harry cut himself off here. He wanted to tell Dumbledore about being a horcrux, he was sure it would be important news for him…but Voldemorts words had gotten to him. He decided he could tell him in person, there was no need to spread the information around more than necessary. "Yeah, tell him that and bring him here. I'll wait here for you." With that Dobby disappeared with a crack, and Harry suddenly felt even more alone and scared, but at least he'd gotten out, and he had hope that soon Dumbledore would appear with Dobby and take him back to Hogwarts, away from these woods, away from Voldemort.
Some time had passed when Harry felt a throbbing in his forehead, the pain growing and growing. He was suddenly filled with delight, a feeling of elation bubbling up in his chest and bursting out as a high, cold laugh. He was thrilled, everything was going according to plan. And then he was Harry, lying on the damp, leaf strewn floor of the forest being shaken by two large fearful eyes as the laughter died down in his throat. "Harry Potter, Harry Potter sir." Dobby was shaking him awake, and Harry sat up, completely bewildered at what had just happened, but feeling sick and shakey. Had he…just seen into Voldemorts mind? Was that what had happened? Why was he so happy?
"I'm, I'm fine Dobby, sorry. I don't know what happened." Harry looked around and began to stand up. "Where's Dumbledore?" He asked.
"Dobby could not find Professor Dumbledore, Harry Potter sir, Dobby is looking all over the castle, but Dumbledore is not there" Dobby said fearfully, his large round eyes watering slightly.
"Right, er, ok then Dobby, can you keep looking for Dumbledore then" Harry said distractedly, his head still pounding as he looked around the forest, beginning to feel paranoid they would be discovered any moment. "I'll keep moving in that direction, will you be able to find me?" He asked.
"Yes, Yes Dobby will find you and he will find Professor Dumbledore and bring him to you." the elf said happily before disappearing again. Harry decided to take his wand out and took off through the forest once more, he started off walking, but he began to run again, desperate to get away from the manor, away from the forest and away from whatever had just happened. Perhaps he should have sent Dobby to find any of the professors, or anyone that could help, rather than have him only looking for one specific person, but it was too late for that now, he'd have to hope Dobby could find the headmaster.
It was as he was stumbling through the trees that he began to notice they were thinning out, and, was that a road? Harry moved quicker towards the opening in the trees. Yes, it was a road! His head suddenly exploded again and he fell to the floor clutching it as he felt rage bursting through him. Flashes of the Malfoy Manor entered his vision, a man he'd come to know from his brief stay there as Lucius Malfoy was cowering in front of him, "Where IS he!?" he screamed. Harry crawled to the trunk of a tree and threw up, the pain was excruciating and sickening. He heaved and sat for a moment, taking deep breaths. Voldemort knew, he knew he was gone. Harry began to stagger up right and stumbled in the direction of the road, tripping at the last second and falling into the road, his wand arm flailing out to catch him as he fell. A bright light flashed into his vision and tires squealed as Harry quickly rolled out of the way. Turning to see tires stopped just where his head had been.
Standing up, his heart racing, he saw a violently purple bus seemed to have appeared before him, and a young man hopped out, welcoming him to the 'knight bus' in a bored voice, his eyes focused on something in his hands as he offered him a ticket. Was this...clearly this must be a wizard bus! They could help him! Harry could have cried in relief, but he didn't have any money, he was desperate though and tried to plead with the man to let him on and take him away from here. The man looked up at the sound of his voice, his brow furrowed. He stepped forwards to get a closer look at Harry. "'Ere, you're just a kid. 'E's just a kid Ern! Tchoo look like you've been through an 'edge backwards. Watchoo doin' out 'ere?" The young man asked.
"Please, I have to get to Hogwarts, to speak to Professor Dumbledore, it's urgent." He pleaded. The man sized him up for a second before leaning back to the driver.
"Whatchoo think 'Ern? You want to let 'im on?" He asked. 'Ern must have responded positively because the man waved Harry on board, and pointed him to a bed in the middle of the bus, past a number of sleeping witches and wizards. "Take 'er away 'Ern!" The man called before seating himself at the front, casting glances Harrys way. Harry sunk onto the bed, relieved to be out of the woods and somewhere warm and light, was he really going to make it? The bus jolted away, and it was all he could do to stay on the bed as he swung his legs up and backed up against the pillow by the wall to try and not fall over.
They made a number of stops, and each one made Harry more and more anxious. Was he safe? Had he done it? The random nature of the bus made him wander if it was even possible to follow it? Maybe Voldemort would never find him here, he could get off somewhere random and hide. His thoughts were shattered however, when the bus came to a violent stop, causing Harry and many others to fall off their beds and the lights to go out, the chandeliers swinging wildly above them, creaking ominously as they swayed. His scar began to burn fiercely, and in fear Harry pushed himself under the bed in a pathetic attempt to hide, his bravery having run dry for the night. He knew he wouldn't be making it to Hogwarts, Lord Voldemort had found him.
Voldemort walked around the side of the bus, his dark hair and eyes cast a menacing look as he stared ahead while his robes wrapped like shadows around him. Smoke was pouring from the tires and sweeping around the side of the bus from the bonnet. The night air was silent and still. He climbed the steps onto the machine and looked around the disarray, looking for the boy. A young man, straightening up to his left began to open his mouth obnoxiously and Voldemort flicked his wand to silence him. No one knew who he was, but hopefully the other passengers knew not to try anything.
"I'm looking for a boy," Voldemort said calmly, sensing he was near, to the witches and wizards strewn across the bus. "Harry Potter." The bus erupted into glances and whisperings at the name. "I know he's here, I need him returned to my…care" Voldemort soothed, his stillness belying the rage that bubbled under the surface. He waited for a moment, some of them looked bewildered, some looked at the ground, and they said nothing. "Harry. You will stop hiding, or I will kill everyone on this bus to find you." The passengers began to panic at that, a few began pirrhouetting on the spot, attempting to apparate, but that wasn't possible on this bus. They were trapped with him.
He began to grow impatient, perhaps the boy would not show himself. He removed the mute he had placed on the young man next to him, and cast the cruciatus curse. The screams and cries of the passengers, mingling with the howls of agony as he writhed on the ground.
"STOP! Stop it! I'm here," shouted a voice, and Harry was there, standing in between two of the beds. The boys face was covered in cuts and dripping blood, his hair a mess as usual, his clothes torn and a look of fear mixed with defiance on his face.
"Harry, at last," Voldemort said in mock relief that…well strangely had some genuine feeling behind it. "I do believe I told you not to leave, and not to get into trouble. No matter, no matter. If you'll just wait while I finish here, and we can be on our way." Voldemort said softly as he turned with a raised wand to the man next to him.
"Wait! No, don't hurt him." The boy cried again. Lord Voldemort felt his rage flaring and quickly tamped it down.
"This curse shouldn't hurt him, at least not for long," And he went to cast the curse again.
"Don't kill him! Please." Harry begged.
"And why shouldn't I? I can't have any witnesses running back to Dumbledore," Voldemort hissed dangerously, his patience waring thin.
"Because… Dumbledore already knows…" Harry admitted, wondering if this was a stupid thing to admit, but knowing it was the right thing to do. "And…I'll go with you." He said desperately. Voldemort turned to give Harry his full attention, Dumbledore…knew? Had the boy told him…? Surely not.
"I don't think you have much of a choice in that regard, Harry. I suppose…the elf?" He spat.
"Yes, yes, he'll have told Dumbledore by now. But I meant I'll…I'll go willingly, and….I'll never try to run away again. You have my word, just please don't kill anyone!" Voldemort stared bemusedly at the child, tilting his head to the side as he considered him. Stubborn, defiant, proud. He had told Dumbledore, he calmed the tempest within himself again at that, supposing that Dumbledore would know anyway soon, the breakout at Azkaban had gone according to plan, while it wasn't ideal, at least he was in a much better position to deal with it than a few hours ago, he would find out in private from Harry exactly how much he had shared with Dumbledore later. But the boy.
It was true, he still hadn't found a use for the boy. He could lock him away somewhere hidden, keep him alive in some dark, cold hell for eternity…but something stopped him. He was sure it was simply the attachment of his own soul shard, or the shared blood in their veins, but there was some growing part of him that wanted to see what the boy would become, or maybe just to dangle him in front of Dumbledore, and if their lives were so intertwined, then surely it made sense to keep the boy alive, allow him to grow and learn. In the past he might have sneered at such a sentiment, but this new body was different. He felt less of a madness about it.
"Your freedom for…" Voldemort looked around the bus "…twelve lives?" He asked Harry, knowing what the answer would be, intrigued by this commitment. He looked dejected and hopeless, the silence stretching out as he looked down at the ground, before standing up straighter and nodding.
"Yes."
"A wizards word is his bond Harry," Voldemort warned with the hint of a bemused smile on his face and the air of a man about to get everything he wanted. "Whether it's these twelve or another, I will kill them if you break it." Harry nodded, and noticing the stares of the passengers, Voldemort decided it was best to leave. "Let us go then" and he turned and walked out of the bus, Harry following in his wake. Once he'd stepped off the bus, Voldemort turned and closed his eyes, pointing his wand at the bus and muttering. The bus was silent and Harry stood worriedly for a moment, would Voldemort immediately break his word? The man opened his eyes and turned to Harry, "they won't remember anything," he said before he harshly grabbed Harrys upper arm and immediately spun on the spot with a crack.