Thread: After the End (Harry Potter, KC and Googl)

It would take no effort at all in order to look into her mind, to see her thoughts, to know what she knew but for once Voldemort was allowing himself to do things in a more difficult way. He had time to be patient with her on this, breaking Ginny down into the perfect consort and perfect bride would take a bit of effort but Potter wasn't going anywhere and with his companions out of the picture there was no one else to remove the stray fragments of his soul that would sustain him until he was able to find a more permanent and simple source of eternal life. With the unlimited time that he would soon have Voldemort intended to get to work and figure out the Philosopher's Stone, recreate it to give himself a another source of life unending. Tom... He said slowly, as if hearing the word for the first time in a long time, partially forgotten to him. It had been years since anyone had ever referred to him by that name, since he had even thought of himself by that name... but it made sense, she was trying to be brave and perhaps even humanize him by using the name of the man that he had once been. Nothing wrong with her using that name, or at least later on she would be permitted to use it though he would rather hear a more formalized title for him. Still her use of his name did inspire an idea within him, a way to perhaps amuse himself a little bit at the expense of the young with before him. Yes... that was my name, perhaps you would be more comfortable with Tom Riddle rather then the Dark Lord. Slowly he took a step back from her, drawing his wand and waving it with a silent movement of his lips, the spell he was casting wouldn't last long, changing his form never did but it would serve the purpose. There was pain, his face fleshing out a little, a nose forming, hair growing, but Voldemort kept quiet through the pain and gave no sign that he even felt it until after a few moments he stood before her, looking like the man he had once been. He was older then she would remember him but still strikingly handsome, perhaps in his mid twenties, with a charming smile and only the slightest sparkle in his eyes that might show when inflicting a cruelty on someone else showing what he was truly like. He heard Bellatrix gasp behind him, she had not seen him like this in some time but it felt good to be... more human again and it was something to look forward too. Ginny. He said, almost shocked to hear his voice now... I might be considered a monster by many, but I am still a man at my core, a man with needs and desires. Of course a man of my status needs a suitable young woman, one of good breeding and great beauty. You of course will make a suitable consort, a Dark Lord must have a bride. He was watching her closely as he spoke, he could hear the seething rage of Bellatrix behind him but he wanted to see how his bride to be reacted to all of this. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Meanwhile halfway across the country, in a manor much larger and more ostentatious then the one which housed the Dark Lord another wizard who was becoming well versed with Dark Magic was strolling down one of the many halls. He had just left a meeting of Death Eaters, one where his father had passed along word from Lord Voldemort who was busy with a project of his own. For the foreseeable future he would not be handling any day to day business directly, instead Lucius and a few others would report to him and then pass along his orders and to Draco there had been a special order given, one which he was looking forward to carrying out. Technically it was an order that had gone to the Malfoy, a way for them to finally make up for the mistakes his father had made. As far as the Death Eaters were determined Draco had brought about the current situation, it was Lucius that had made mistakes but Draco had to ensure that his family name was entirely restored, ensure that their position as the right hand of the Dark Lord was unquestionable, untouchable, and would remain forever entrenched... and in order to ensure that happened he had a task to complete and while some might consider it a punishment Draco was very much looking forward to it. Ronald Weasley was dead, Harry Potter taken by the Dark Lord, and Hermione Granger, the mudblood, had been taken alive and while he was at the meeting she was delivered to Malfoy Manor. It would be Draco's pleasure to break her, to turn her into the model for what mudbloods would become in the future... slaves to those of better breeding used for amusement and to increase the number of wizards in the world. With any other mudblood Draco might be disgusted at the idea but for Granger he would enjoy it for a few reasons, not only would he enjoy showing her what her place was but, loath as he was to admit it, she was attractive. The House Elves had already been instructed how to deal with her, not to give her more food then she needed, to make sure that any potential weapon was removed from the room, and to never speak a single word to her on pain of death. Her wand had already been removed but otherwise she had just been changed into the Hogwarts School uniform, another instruction of his and while he wasn't going to be attending this year on account that he had already found his place, he was wearing a Hogwarts uniform of his own complete with a Head Boy badge, a little stupid perhaps but he intended to amuse himself by reminding her of what she would be separated from this year, what she would miss as she was practically restored to the level of a Muggle. Down the hall for a while he came to a stop before what appeared to be nothing more then a random door, one like any other in the long hallway but he knew that this was the right one, rather then using his wand Draco used a small key from a chain around his neck to unlock the door, he wouldn't even going to give the mudblood a chance to get her hands on a wand.