MATTER OF TIME ✧·*°࿐
❝rebuild it like a vase,
like a shattered crown ❞
When Juliette begins her life at Hogwarts, the world she is thrown into is a stark contrast to her life at home, as a child of French wizarding nobility.
The Dark Lord is not a...
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THE PRISONER WAS brought into the room, having been previously bound and beaten. His face was left bloodied and his eyes had little light in them - it was clear how much he had endured. His physical state made it clear that he had not given in, not willingly. Despite his weakened look, he had to have been strong. There was no way to withstand any form of interrogation from the Dark Lord or his followers besides pure strength, mentally and physically. But then again, strength could only get you so far. If the man was not an occlumens - or even if he was - he would be no match for Juliette's legilimency. The Dark Lord knew as much, and Juliette knew it too. He could not do anything more to protect himself.
"Stand, Juliette."
She pushed back her chair as she got to her feet. Her eyes flickered over to the man in front of her - she didn't know how he had survived. He looked tortured. He had probably been tortured. As she felt her hands began to tremble, she clasped them together behind her back to hide any sign of fear.
"Come here."
Juliette walked towards the Dark Lord, who moved to the side. She now faced the prisoner. He caught her eye, an almost unnoticeable frown flashing across his face. He didn't know what was happening. She felt awful, standing before him. The Dark Lord was right behind her, slightly bent down as he spoke to quietly her. She stayed still, barely able to breathe.
"I want you to find his memories." He said coldly. "Find out what he has to hide."
Juliette fought the urge to back away, and instead replied. "Yes, my Lord."
"Good." He straightened up, satisfied. "Proceed."
Juliette let her hands fall to her sides. She tried to stop chewing nervously on the inside of her cheek, as she had done the past few minutes. She was close to drawing blood by now. She needed to focus. The man was too weak to struggle, so this would not be a challenge for her, she knew that much already... but she needed eye contact to penetrate his mind and she couldn't - she didn't want to look him in the eye. The guilt was eating her up inside, but it wasn't as if she had a choice. It took her a moment but she forced herself to do it. She took a quick breath and looked him directly in the eyes, pushing away the gnawing guilt she felt as she focused on his mind. She could feel the emotions washing around her as she waded her way into his thoughts and memories. There was so much. She had to reorient herself - it was too confusing. She didn't know where she was, one memory was years ago, another mere minutes - they were jumbled up in a way that memories shouldn't be. It was confusing her.
He was confusing her. He was clever.
But he was not clever enough. Despite being immersed deep inside his mind, Juliette could feel the presence of the Dark Lord behind her, placing her under pressure. She grew more and more fearful the longer it took her to navigate his mind and the fear of failure was pushing her more than usual. She had no idea where she was or what she was seeing, but she was so afraid of losing herself that she moved through it faster and faster. She zoned in on the memories that she needed, sifting through them chronologically to retain the information she needed. She did not want to look any further than she needed to, even though she knew there was more. She couldn't do it. She pulled herself out of his mind, unclenching her fists. She hadn't realised how tight they were, her nails had left marks on her palms. She saw the man look at her in dispair, then look away. He knew what she had seen. Juliette swallowed, feeling incredibly guilty again.
