October 1999 [prior to the new roleplay]

The party dwindled down, Uncle Remus returning to Hogwarts, Sirius to Grimmauld Place. Raven had opted to stay behind and spend the remainder of her sister’s birthday with her. Once the children were settled into bed, the two witches settled themselves before the television in the common room at Black Manor. A late night movie was just coming on as the girls sat on the sofa talking. The conversation came to an abrupt halt though when two distinct pops came from the other room. Raya and Raven exchanged glances, “Sirius and Uncle Remus come back?”

Raya shook her head slightly as she came to standing. “I don’t think so.” An eerie feeling came over Raven as she too stood up joining her sister, as they headed twords the other room to investigate.

“Bloody hell!” Raven cried out as thin fingers wrapped around her upper arms from behind. Looking over to where her sister was, she seen Raya was in a similiar situation. “Coleridge!” The younger witches eyes went wide as she seen the man who held her sister tightly. ~This is not good.~

At the sound of Cole’s name, Raya’s eyes widened as well. Looking behind her sister a frown crossed the older witches lips. “Bella,” she practically spat.

“Oh bloody hell.” Raven groaned as she ceased her struggle.

“Admitting defeat already?” The woman’s cold tones whispered in her ear.

Raven redoubled her efforts to try and wiggle free. “Not bloody likely.” But her struggle only served to cause the woman to shift her grip, wrapping an arm around her tightly. It was then Raven felt the sharp jab of the needle as it entered her shoulder. “Gods no…” Her voice barely a whisper as she felt the medication surge into her blood stream. Panic rose within the young witch as she felt the diazepam working to supress her lilin abilites.

“Let me go you evil bastard.” Raya hissed as Cole held her tightly, pulling her closer to him.

“Not so soon,” he whispered a reply. “There’s a bit more fun to be had first.” A cold laugh escaped from him. “Incarerous.” Ropes appeared from nowhere, and wrapped themselves around Raya. “You first.” His eyes settled on Raven, still held tight in Bellatrix’s grasp.

Taking a deep breath, Raven attempted to calm her nerves. “Come now Cole, whatever could you want with the two of us?”

Anger flashed in his silver eyes, as he narrowed them at the girl. “You killed me.”

“Minor detail,” the girl returned. “Seems you’re feeling much better now. So we should just call it good.”

Bellatrix’s grip loosened on the girl, and she stepped away. Yet with Coleridge and now Bella’s wands aimed at her, and Raya bound up tightly, Raven had no course of action, as her mental powers were worthless now as well. ~Plus the children are upstairs.~ Worry coursed through her. “This is going to be quite enjoyable.” A cruel grin spread across Cole’s lips. “Crucio!” Raven gasped as insurmountable pain coursed through her body. ~Not again, I bloody well hate this curse.~ Her thoughts as she fell to her knees. The pain eased as Cole released the curse. “Bowing before me now.” A smirk creeped into being. “You should of done that before.”

Raven struggled to stand back up. “Hardly,” she looked up at him, eyes set hard. “Give me my bloody dagger and I’ll finish the job I started.”

“You would be wise to watch you words, girl.” Cole hissed.

The girl made to take a step, but Bella’s voice sounded from behind her. “Crucio!” Raven pitched forward as the curse hit her once more. ~Bloody hell, should of seen that one coming.~ Bellatrix’s claim to fame, after all, had been the torture of Neville’s parent’s by the very same curse. “Scream girl, scream.” Bella coaxed. “I want to hear the pain in your voice.”

Raven bit down on her tongue, attempting to aliviate some of the pain into something she could control, not wanting to give Bella the satisfaction of crying out. She drew in a ragged breath, “n-nev-ver.” She managed to hiss through clentched teeth.

A growl came from the woman as she released Raven from the curse. “Picking up the rat’s stutter are you?”

“Like I haven’t heard that one before.” Raven hissed. Bellatrix raised her wand once more, readying to strike again.

Cole reached out and lowered the woman’s arm for her. “Not just yet Bella.” His cold tone grated on Raven’s nerves. “We don’t want to break her first thing. Besides, remeber, we have other plans for her.”

“Leave my sister alone!” Raya screamed at the duo.

Crossing back over to where the other witch stood bound, Cole leaned in, his breath brushing across her cheek. “Don’t worry my dear.” He placed a kiss on her jawline. “I haven’t forgotten you,” punctuated with another kiss. Raven was back up on her feet when Cole turned back around. “And you. What should we do with you?”

“We know what we’re going to do with her.” Bella hissed, and stomped her foot impatiently. “Let us be done with it already.”

Cole left Raya’s side to square off with Bellatrix. “Do you forget that she’s a crafty one? If you don’t make sure she’s properly subdued, you could very well find yourself in trouble.” While the two cohorts seemed to bicker, Raven began to creep twords the couch, and where she had left her wand. ~If nothing else, I have to get a message out~ Her fingers wrapped around the wooden handle. ~Must do this non-verbably, if I can manage, the light will be enough to drawn attention as it is…but there’s no other way.~ Doing her best to one, focus on a good thought, and two, the message she wanted to send, and to whom, Raven took in a deep breath. ~Expecto Patronus~ The silver butterfly erupted from the tip of her wand, and a booted foot conected with her rib cage. ~Bloody hell!~ The girl was tossed backwards, landing hard on the floor, and dislodging her wand from her hand. “Naughty, naughty.” Cole hovered above her. “Would of been smarter of you to take one of us out.”

~No, I must make sure the children are taken care of first.~ “Oh well, my mistake.” She returned a bit too haughty for the man’s taste. Reaching down he wrapped his hands around the collar of her robe and pulled her to her feet, pressing her against the couch, “consider yourself lucky that it’s Raya I desire the most.” A cold chill ran down her spine as she suddenly realized what her sister was in for. “No, you bastard, you leave her alone!”

The tip of the man’s wand rested at her throat. “I could always use that lovely spell the wolf used on me a while back.”

“No!” Bellatrix stomped her foot once more. “You said I got to take care of her.”

“And so you will.” Using the hand that was wrapped around her collar, Coleridge threw Raven to the floor. “Crucio!” The pain surged through Raven once more, causing her to fall to her knees again. Coleridge kicked her once more, sending her sprawling backwards as the curse still caused her body to constrict painfully.

~So much pain.~ The minutes seemed to stretch into hours. Raven had been under the curse several times, though usually for short bursts. This time, it seemed they were content to let it linger throughout her. ~Must not give in…~ Her head began to swirl, and she could feel her thoughts slipping from her. ~Noooooo, must hold…on…~ “Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!”

“Oh, what a sweet, sweet sound.” Bellatrix’s cool tones echoed somewhere i

n Raven’s head. The curse was lifted, and the girl rolled over, and attempted to raise herself up, her vision swam before her, and she collapsed. ~Nooo.~

“Take her now.” Cole told Bella, “I don’t think she’ll offer you too much resistence.” Bella grabbed Raven, and in the blink of an eye disappated from Black Manor.

There was a popping sound that echoed thoughout the Atrium at the Ministry of Magic. “Come on girl. Wake up!” Bella hissed.

“Wh-where are we?” Raven’s eyes fluttered open, but she still couldn’t focus.

Bella’s hand grabbed her by the chin. “Look around little girl.” Raven blinked a few times, still not being able to comprehend fully, the last blast of the curse had shook her quite deeply, helped along by the Muggle medication. “Very well, I’m sure you’ll recogize where we’re going when we get there.” She sneered, and proceeded to drag the girl to the lift. Slowly the went down another level. The whole time Raven doing her best to concentrate on her breathing, and trying to reclaim her lost thoughts. “Level Nine. Department of Mysteries.”

Raven’s attempt at breathing faltered, and her eyes widened. “Noooooo.” It came out as a quiet groan more than an actual word.

“Have it figured out do you?” Bella dragged her from the lift, and through the room. Opening a door they passed into a black circular room with several doors. Casting a locating spell one of the doors began to glow. “So much like my cousin you are, you know that?” Bella began to taunt her. “No wonder you ended up with his child instead of Severus’s. Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of the babe.”

“You…leave…Orion…alone.” ~Please Peter, please have gotten my message.~

A cruel laugh escaped the woman. “Now where were we, oh yes…my dear cousin Sirius.” Raven began to struggle as Bella opened the door and pulled her through it. “From what I hear you’re quite the prankster. Filling in his role nicely in what you and that sister of yours dubbed the Slytherin Marauders.” The girl attempted to break free of Bella’s grasp, but the woman tightened her grip on her wrist, and twisted it painfully. “What else was there…Oh yes, that pesky stint in Azkaban. Not a nice place is it? Though you had it lucky, no dementors sucking away ever ounce of happiness.” A cruel grin snaked across the woman’s lips. “Thing is, you won’t make it out of this so easily.” Bella was dragging her down the stone stairs of the amphitheatre, twords the crumbling archway that sat on the stone dais in the middle of the room.

Raven shook her head. “Nooo. No, no, no.” Terror began to wrap itself around her heart.

“I see you do understand what you’re in for.” Raven stumbled as Bella dragged her closer to the archway, already she could hear the faint whispers that called from the other side of the tattered black veil. “Thing is, your dear sister, clever girl that she is,” another round of cold laughter echoed throughout the room. “Won’t be able to retrieve you from it as she did her father.”

Bella spun Raven around, her hands wrapped around the girl’s upper arms, facing her twords the veil. ~Bloody hell, death by drapery.~ She could feel the woman push her forward, closer to the fabric that blew in an impossible breeze. Raven attempted to dig her feet into the floor, but they only slid along the stone. ~Orion, mummy’s sorry. I only hope that Peter can get to you and Caden, and get you to your daddy.~ Tears began to fill the girl’s eyes. She had faced death many a time, but it had only been herself to worry about, but now, now she had Orion, barely over four months old. ~Sirius, I’m sorry I kept you at a distance for so long…Severus, I’m sorry for hurting you…I love the both of you so much…And now it’s too late.~ The tears began to slid down her cheeks. ~Raya, I’m sorry I can’t prevent what’s happening to you now.~

“Awww, the ickle little girl is finaly scared.” Bella taunted once again. “Coming face to face with your own mortality, not as pleasant thing, is it?”

“My tears are not for myself,” Raven hissed back. “They are for those I leave behind, not that you would understand that kind of love.” ~Good-bye Uncle Remus, Grandfather, Mother, Peter, Ashton. ~ She now stood a foot before the veil, the breeze blowing past her, brushing against her cheek. The voices on the other side calling to her. Suddenly she was aware that she was no longer held in place by Bella. ~What??~ Turning around she seen the woman had taken a couple steps back. “Bella?”

“Don’t worry, I’m not getting soft.” The woman raised her wand, “Farewell Raven, I’ll give your regaurds to the Dark Lord.” ~Think Raven, think~ Her mind was beging to find it’s focus, but before it could form the thought that would protect her, a jet of red light shot from the other woman’s wand, successfully knocking Raven backwards, and through the veil.