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It's during a potions lesson near Christmas that the Carrow twins enter the classroom, demanding that Sage Laurent be excused from class.
"I'm sorry, it's quite an important one—" Slughorn begins, but Alecto holds up her wand.
"The girl is to come with us," she hisses. "And that is that."
Sage stands up mechanically and turns on the spot. The girl sitting beside her sighs, like she's been holding her breath for the last hour-and-a-half. She probably has.
"The Dark Lord requires your presence," Amycus says to her. Sage just stares at him, and he seems to get uncomfortable in his own skin. "Make her walk in front of us. I don't like the way she looks at me."
Alecto prods the girl with her wand and Sage stumbles forwards, out of the classroom, and walks aimlessly down the corridor.
"What's the matter with her?" Alecto hisses. "She's catatonic. How can the Dark Lord have any more use for a child than for us?"
"I can hear you," Sage says to them.
"Shut up," Amycus spits, reaching out to push her shoulder. Sage's arm flies up and grabs his wrist, which starts to wither and rot under her touch. Alecto throws a curse at her, and Sage's body crumples to the floor. "He's not going to be happy about that."
The Dark Lord was not happy about that. Upon seeing Sage's lifeless body, he let out a shout of bloody murder.
"How dare you," he spit at the twins, reaching out a hand to bring both of them to their knees. "She is powerful; she is a weapon for my victory and she will not be handled by you two."
"Yes, my Lord," Alecto chokes out. Amycus nods.
Voldemort releases his grip on them. "Return to Hogwarts. Your presence is not required here, although I doubt your insolence will be missed in my school halls."
The two disapparate, and the wizard utters a spell to awaken Sage.
She's like a violent animal being prodded with an electric rod. Her body convulses and she scarpers across the room, cowering in the corner. She wraps her arms around herself as Voldemort approaches.
"You need not fear me," the wizard says calmly, stepping towards her. His robes flap, and she shudders. "I will not hurt you like others have."
Sage says nothing.
"But I need you to do something for me now, Miss Laurent."
She doesn't agree, but she also says nothing as Voldemort leads her down into the cellar of the building, where the air is cold and damp and the ground is stained with something that might be blood. There's somebody against the back wall. They're either asleep or unconscious or too afraid to move, but when Voldemort raises his wand in a silent incantation they spring up. It's a man.
