Fulfilling Obligations (Harmione)

Chapter 37: Revelations

The silence of the dim room was shattered as Dolohov slammed his fist onto the table, causing the goblet on its surface to be turned on end. The contents of the cup spread over the unfinished wooden table, seeping into its grain and dripping over the edge to create a pool of red liquid.

With a roar of rage, the Death Eater swiped his arms across the table to send the goblet and everything else rocketing into the wall next to him. The loud clattering was deafening, but the brown-haired occupant sitting at the other end of the table looked on impassively.

"All of that fucking planning for NOTHING!" Dolohov roared, sweeping around and slamming his hands against the wall. "The filthy half-blood still got away!"

"Which was always a possibility," the brown-haired man said neutrally.

Dolohov turned sharply to the man and curled his lip in a snarl.

"Not according to your brilliant plan!" he said viciously. He pointed a finger accusingly at the man. "You swore it would work!"

"I never swore anything. I said we had a good chance."

"And obviously you were wrong! You're the one who insisted on luring the Mudblood along for this, and if you didn't notice, she's the ENTIRE REASON HE ESCAPED!"

"By all means continue shouting," the man said in a bored voice. "It really drives your point home much more effectively than speaking normally."

"Just as your arrogant demeanor makes your point all the more successful," Dolohov sneered back, though he did lower his voice. "But it's true - you insisted on including the Mudblood, and now Potter is gone. If she hadn't been here, he would've been ours. I told you the dementors would be all that was necessary for Potter's weak mind!"

The man sighed in a patronizing manner. "Contrary to your belief, Potter's mind isn't as weak as you claim. The only reason your plot did as well as it did was because of Hermione Granger, not in spite of her."

Dolohov, for once, seemed confused by this statement.

"That's ridiculous," he said, though he now seemed unsure of himself. Despite the youthfulness of the man in front of him, he had proven to possess a wisdom far beyond his years. "Why would the Mudblood have anything to do with this?"

"Because without her presence, Potter wouldn't have been nearly as susceptible to the dementors," the man said calmly. "I'm aware you were under the impression that such a vast number of dementors could overcome Potter's Patronus, but I knew that without her it would have been a pointless endeavor." He gave a small smile at this point, though it was neither conceited nor particularly happy. "As you may remember, he never managed to even attempt a Patronus, let alone produce a corporeal one."

"And how did you happen to foresee this?" Dolohov said, unwillingly intrigued.

The brown-haired man twirled his wand between two of fingers. "It's of no importance," he said indifferently.

Dolohov opened his mouth to respond with an angry retort, but the man held up a hand to silence him. Dolohov clapped his mouth shut, watching as the man's wand became still in his hand.

"I take full blame for our failure tonight," the man said, his voice still toneless. Even his blue eyes were uncomfortably empty of emotion. "I made a small... miscalculation. I will be more thorough in the future."

Without another word, the brown-haired man stood up, effectively putting an end to the conversation. He walked towards the door, but just as it was about to shut, he spoke once again.

"Dispose of Mr. Sanders as well," he said. "We won't need him any longer."

And with a soft click the man shut the door.