Dark Livestream

Chapter 3: Two

The next livestream announcement came to Harry not through the Daily Prophet -- though Hermione did mention seeing it there -- but via email, as a subscriber notification. Votes have been tallied, proclaimed proud words at the top of the message. Our next execution will be that of one Fenrir Greyback, Britain's prolific werewolf responsible for hundreds of deaths and many more mutilations.

Voldemort went on to declare that unlike Wormtail, who Nagini had long meant to eat, Greyback was unsuitable for a similarly easy death: instead, the precise method would be voted on during the stream. As a nod to the vast werewolf community (many of whom were Greyback's fault), the minimum voting donation had been lowered to one Sickle; commemorative pins to five Sickles. Lastly, the buy-in to the grand prize raffle -- again, a body part of the winner's choice, this time with no restrictions -- was a single Galleon.

My top three donors will earn the additional pleasure of seeing a curse of their choice cast on Greyback prior to his death.

Harry's eyes lingered on the Dark Lord's signature at the bottom of the page. It had been animated with a flickering glow of green at the edges, brightening and fading like a slow and steady heartbeat.

Over the week that followed, Harry frequently caught Sirius and Remus muttering between themselves, heads bent together over one or the other's phone. He was not surprised when they secluded themselves upstairs in their bedroom to watch the stream projected against the wall, over Hermione's subdued complaints; likewise, Harry himself had gone into his room and locked the door to watch with headphones on, as before.

Harry was also not surprised to see 'Snuffles' win a curse-of-choice on the bound werewolf, midway through the stream, and 'Moony' win Greyback's head as a trophy. He'd tried for the grand prize, too, to give to them as a gift -- them winning it directly was just as good.

Not to mention that he was the second top donor, and watching Greyback scream under the Cruciatus was an intensely satisfying revenge executed on Moony's behalf.

The remaining Marauders were a bit bolder about their trophy than Harry had been, too, all things considered. While Harry had set Wormtail's severed arm to lie, pristine, in a glass case on the second-floor trophy room -- where all the portraits could gaze smugly at it in vicarious vengeance -- Sirius had commissioned a Knockturn Alley taxidermist in person, now that his name was cleared, to have it mounted on a plaque.

A plaque now hanging over the fireplace people used to Floo into the house.

Better, Remus charmed it to sing in a low baritone that was apparently the werewolf's real voice (or a close approximation). He'd cheerfully demonstrated this after dinner one day; Harry was in tears by the third rendition of 'Come Ye Merry Hippogriffs' (it was June , Moony, really ) and requested he charm in 'A Cauldron Full of Hot, Strong Love' next, the better to torment Ron with.

Speaking of Ron -- and Hermione. Harry's friends seemed unsettled by the whole situation. Not just the severed head, but they'd only really started showing their discomfort once it took its place over the mantel. "Personal revenge or not," Hermione insisted whenever the topic came up, "you're still donating to Voldemort's war fund."

"Barely anything compared to everyone else," Sirius scoffed.

(Harry didn't quite believe that, but he wasn't about to undermine Sirius' argument.)

Harry's own personal revenge didn't really come until the third stream, though, later on in the month. Wormtail had been revenge on his parents' behalf; Greyback on Moony's behalf; but when Harry sat on the edge of his seat, watching at rapt attention as Voldemort brought out one Dolores Umbridge for the viewers... that was revenge on his own behalf.