𝐀𝐈𝐒𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫.

𝟕.𝟓 𝐢𝐧 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐞

Harry looked around at the other two, now mere outlines in the darkness.

"Get up, vermin." Unknown hands dragged Harry roughly off the ground.

"Get — off — her!" Ron shouted. There was the unmistakable sound of knuckles hitting flesh.

Ron grunted in pain and Hermione screamed, "No! Leave him alone, leave him alone!"

"Your boyfriend's going to have worse than that done to him if he's on my list," said the horribly familiar, rasping voice. Harry's stomach turned over. He knew who this was, Fenrir Greyback.

"Now, let's see who we've got," said Greyback's gloating voice from overhead, and Harry was rolled over onto his back. "What happened to you, ugly?"

Harry did not answer immediately. "I said," repeated Greyback, and Harry received a blow to the diaphragm that made him double over in pain, "what happened to you?"

"Stung," Harry muttered. "Been stung."

"Yeah, looks like it," said a second voice.

"What's your name?" snarled Greyback.

"Dudley," said Harry.

"And your first name?"

"I — Vernon. Vernon Dudley."

"Check the list, Scabior," said Greyback, and Harry heard him move sideways to look down at Ron, instead. "And what about you, ginger?"

"Stan Shunpike," said Ron.

"Like 'ell you are," said the man called Scabior. "We know Stan Shunpike, 'e's put a bit of work our way."

There was another thud. "I'b Bardy," said Ron, and Harry could tell that his mouth was full of blood. "Bardy Weadley."

"A Weasley?" rasped Greyback. "So you're related to blood traitors even if you're not a Mudblood. And lastly, your pretty little friend . . ."

"Who are you, girly?"

"Penelope Clearwater," said Hermione. She sounded terrified, but convincing.

"What's your blood status?"

"Half-blood," said Hermione.

"Easy enough to check," said Scabior. "But the 'ole lot of 'em look like they could still be 'ogwarts age —"

"We'b lebt," said Ron. "Left, 'ave you, ginger?" said Scabior. "And you decided to go camping? And you thought, just for a laugh, you'd use the Dark Lord's name?"

"Nod a laugh," said Ron. "Aggiden."

"Accident?" There was more jeering laughter. "You know who used to like using the Dark Lord's name, Weasley?" growled Greyback. "The Order of the Phoenix. Mean anything to you?"

"Doh."

"Well, they don't show the Dark Lord proper respect, so the name's been Tabooed."

Someone yanked Harry up by the hair, dragged him a short way, pushed him down into a sitting position, then started binding him back-to-back with other people.

Harry was still half blind, barely able to see anything through his puffed-up eyes. When at last the man tying them had walked away, Harry whispered to the other prisoners. "Anyone still got a wand?"

"No," said Ron and Hermione from either side of him.

"This is all my fault. I said the name, I'm sorry —"