When Bellatrix swaggered right out without a second thought, Lucius couldn't help but widen his eyes. In that moment, there was only one feeling left in him: sheer exhaustion.
Meanwhile, the other Death Eaters, upon seeing Bellatrix's bold move, were visibly thrilled. Grinning wickedly, they followed in her footsteps, making their way toward the dock.
Lucius smacked a palm against his face and shook his head. Left with no other choice, he grabbed his wand and dashed after them.
After all, they were so close to success, if anything went wrong now, Lucius dared not imagine what punishment Voldemort might have in store for him.
Yet, when the group arrived at the dock, they were startled to find it eerily quiet, completely deserted, not a single Auror in sight.
The moment struck them all into silence. They exchanged glances and, sobering quickly, reined in their arrogance before cautiously stepping onto the dock. It was the unknown, after all, that stirred the greatest fear.
But what they found next stunned them even more.
The Aurors who were supposed to be guarding the dock were all sprawled across the ground, motionless and deathly still.
As the group approached with great care, they soon realized that the Aurors' chests still rose and fell, they were breathing. And yet, they showed no signs of consciousness, completely unresponsive to the world around them.
At the sight, Bellatrix and the others gasped in near unison:
"Dementor's Kiss?!"
Indeed, the symptoms were unmistakable, the Aurors appeared to have suffered the effects of the Dementor's Kiss. Shocked, Bellatrix and the rest instinctively turned to look at Lucius Malfoy.
Lucius himself was no less shaken. Though he had long suspected that the Dementors might have already aligned themselves with Voldemort, witnessing it firsthand struck him with a sense of awe.
Sensing everyone's gaze on him, Lucius finally collected himself and gave a brief explanation. At last, the others seemed to understand.
Their reactions, however, were far from uniform.
Some were thrilled at this new strength added to their side. Others scoffed at the idea, believing the Dark Lord had no need for such revolting creatures.
One or two, perhaps having suffered greatly at the hands of Dementors, were even bitter that they'd now lose the chance to take revenge.
Regardless, this was not the time for debate. Under Lucius Malfoy's command, the group quickly boarded a boat and departed Azkaban at once.
Lucius stood at the bow, staring out across the empty sea. One thought kept echoing in his mind: where had the Dementors gone?
For reasons he couldn't explain, he had a bad feeling about it.
...
Meanwhile, Draco Malfoy had just received a letter from his father.
Upon reading it and seeing his father's request to invite his friends to Malfoy Manor during the holidays, Draco felt a twinge of confusion, but didn't dwell on it long. Instead, he rushed off excitedly to share the news with Harry and the others.
When Draco extended the invitation, Harry was genuinely pleased, but he instinctively glanced over at Ron and Hermione to gauge their reactions.
Catching their looks, Ron blinked in surprise, then hesitated before saying,
"I think I'll pass. I mean… my dad and Malfoy's father aren't exactly on friendly terms."
On the other side, Hermione bit her lip and added,
"I… I don't think I'll go either. My parents are Muggles, and Draco's father…"
Though Hermione left the sentence unfinished, everyone understood what she meant. Lucius Malfoy's pure-blood fanaticism was well-known across the wizarding world.
Seeing both Ron and Hermione ready to decline, Harry hesitated too.
Draco began to panic a little. His father had explicitly asked him to invite friends over, if no one came, how humiliating would that be? Especially considering that Harry was the one his father most wanted to see.
Desperate, Draco quickly added,
"I was actually planning to invite Cedric and Cassandra as well. If everyone comes together, there'll be too many of us for my father to single anyone out!"
Harry and the others blinked, clearly confused. Draco hurried to explain:
"You all know how devastated Cedric and Cassandra have been since Wentworth disappeared. I haven't seen either of them smile in weeks. But ever since our first year, they've looked after us a great deal. I just thought… maybe this holiday gathering could lift their spirits a little."
Harry nodded earnestly.
"You're right, Draco. We might not be able to do much to help find Wentworth… but Cedric and Cassandra have always supported us. It's time we did something for them. I'm in."
Hearing Harry's response, Ron and Hermione exchanged a glance, then nodded as well.
The group quickly split up: Harry and Ron went to find Cedric, while Draco and Hermione headed for the library to look for Cassandra.
It wasn't long before they spotted Cassandra in a secluded corner of the library. She appeared to be reading, and Luna sat quietly beside her.
Draco and Hermione exchanged glances and approached silently. But as they drew near, they noticed that Cassandra's books were all upside-down, and she hadn't even noticed. Clearly, her mind was elsewhere.
She gave no reaction to their approach. Instead, it was Luna who noticed them first and asked,
"You two look sneaky. Are you here to hunt wrackspurts in the library?"
Thanks to their time with Wentworth and the others, Draco and Hermione were already used to Luna's peculiar manner. They didn't bother asking what a wrackspurt was. Instead, Draco pointed to Cassandra and said,
"We're here to see Cassandra."
At last, Cassandra looked up, her dazed expression vanishing into something more blank and composed.
"What is it?" she asked flatly. "Why are you here?"
Draco quickly stepped forward.
"Cassandra, I'm planning a gathering at Malfoy Manor during the holidays. I'd like to invite you and—"
But before he could finish, Cassandra cut him off, shaking her head.
"Not interested. I'm not going."
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