"You and I both know that you are conflicted Harry," said Voldemort, walking around the boy. "You also share the same goals as me. Granted, you are more lenient towards Muggle-borns, but if you could have it, you would exterminate the Muggles completely. I can sense the darkness in you, young one. Embrace your true self… will you join me?"
Harry remained silent. Having been raised in a traditionalist pureblood environment by his ancestor Alfred Potter, wizarding culture and tradition were ingrained in him even before he entered Hogwarts. Wizarding culture demanded that all teachers be respected; they were beacons of light who parted their knowledge of magic with their students and were held in very high esteem in the minds of witches and wizards. They deserved respect, and this was the reason why no matter how much Harry hated Dumbledore, he had never disrespected the old mage to his face - not once, always addressing him by his title; of course, he didn't respect Snape, but the man could not be called a teacher at all.
That was also the reason he didn't talk back to Voldemort. The Dark Lord, no matter how much he didn't want to admit it, was Tom Riddle, the same Tom Riddle who was his teacher, and thus, Harry couldn't bring himself to disrespect Voldemort. However, it did anger him; this monster was the one who stole his parents from him, and yet here he was, doing his utmost best to turn Harry to the dark side. What was startling was how convincing Voldemort truly was. Had Harry not accepted Sirius and Amelia as his adopted parents, had he not escaped the Dursleys at the age of seven with no one to truly care for him, he knew in his heart that he would have accepted Voldemort's offer.
But that was not the case, for he was the proud son of James and Lily Potter and the adopted son of Sirius and Amelia Black. No one else had room to take that spot in his heart, for it had already been filled.
"No," said Harry quietly.
"No?" Voldemort repeated the word dangerously. "Well, this should give you a reason as to why you should change your mind, Harry. I think you all have heard about Rabastan's illegitimate son?" asked Voldemort to the Death Eaters. Rabastan stiffened but didn't say anything.
"I have information that Harry here is very close to young Dylan Lestrange. Close enough that they consider each other brothers, siblings. I know that you deeply care about Dylan, Harry. But what would happen if Dylan were to join me? You know that it is not impossible. His father, uncle, aunt, and grandfather all served under me. What would you do if your beloved little brother were to join me?"
Harry again had no answer.
"You would never harm a hair on Dylan's head, would you, Harry?" asked Voldemort, grabbing the boy's face in his hand. "Would you actually join me if Dylan asked you to?"
"I will not join you," said Harry softly but firmly. "The reason I will not join you is not due to your goals - it is your methods. You are responsible for the deaths of thousands of witches and wizards. Your goal is to tear down the International Statute of Secrecy while mine is to enforce it more rigidly. You want to kill all Muggle-borns but I want to bring them completely into the magical world, cutting them off from Muggle influence. Your methods would bring about our destruction. My conscience will not allow that. I respect you and may even care about you in ways you will never understand, but you will always consider me a threat because of the prophecy that is handing over our heads. Even if I accept you as a father or a mentor, you would always be paranoid that I would kill you and seize power. That paranoia would lead me nowhere. I will not insult my parents by accepting your offer."
Voldemort stared at the boy speculatively. "Very well," he said coldly. "If this is the fate you want, Harry, then I will give it to you. By the end of this session, you will be given a choice - join me or face death . I hope you have the sense to choose the right path!"
Harry waited for the inevitable to come. Sure enough -
" Crucio! "
Harry gritted his teeth and tried to fight the pain. His body convulsed as he felt like someone was stabbing him with a million hot knives in every inch of his body. His nerves were on fire, but he didn't utter a word. The metal chains cut into his flesh, releasing blood. A lone tear slipped down his pale cheek.
"Not a screamer?" said Voldemort lightly. "Well, I always like a challenge!"
" Crucio! "
This time, Harry couldn't handle it. Throwing his head back, the proud young boy screamed in a manner he had never screamed before. He couldn't take it. It was going on for too long! Anymore pain like this for the rest of the night and he would end up next to the Longbottoms!
"Now, that wasn't so difficult, was it Harry?" cooed Voldemort as he saw the panting and twitching teen. "A full minute under the Cruciatus and yet you look at me with defiance. Well, I do like entertainment. Bellatrix, Rodolphus, show our young guest what happens to those who defy me…"
"Yes, my Lord!" they said in unison as they walked forward, grinning with glee.
The rest of the Death Eaters stepped back to form a large circle. Voldemort conjured a throne for himself. Nagini slithered to his lap as he stroked the large snake. Bellatrix and Rodolphus removed the chains and for a moment, Harry considered running for it, but he knew there was no way out. The Cruciatus Curse ensured that he couldn't walk much and he didn't even have his wand; wandless magic would only do so much. Apparition or Portkey wouldn't work either - he had already tried it. They had been prepared.
"Well," said Bellatrix cackling. "Let's get started, shall we? Crucio !"
Harry had never been in so much pain ever in his life. He was tossed around the graveyard, tortured by the several different curses cast by the Lord and Lady Lestrange. His shirt was ripped apart and his upper torso was covered in blood from where Bellatrix had used him as a knife sharpener. Several deep gashes dominated his upper torso when finally, Rodolphus decided to show his nasty side as well by cursing him in the groin. Severe pain immediately shot up his body from his testicles.
"Have you made your decision, Harry?" asked Voldemort, raising a non-existent eyebrow. "Join me, and I'll tell them to stop."
" Go to hell," hissed Harry from his place on the ground, his anger making him switch to Parseltongue.
....
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