Entry tags:

! log, 1998-april, character: cambina bulstrode, x-character: gwenog jones, x-character: peter pettigrew

WHO: Peter Pettigrew, Cambina Bulstrode & Gwenog Jones
WHAT: Peter rescues Gwen from Avery and delivers her to Bina.
WHEN: Late Tuesday
WHERE: An undisclosed location / Bina’s house
RATING: HIGH for mentions of violence ; probably swearing
STATUS: Completed in Gdocs

Gwen had no idea where she was. Hell, at this point, she could hardly remember who she was. The room itself gave no clues to a location or anything - just that it was quite old, it seemed. It was dusty, and it looked ancient. Shambled. There were no windows that she could see, but then it had been mostly dark in there and Gwen had been tied very tightly to a chair for several days. Even by the dull light glowing from a lamp in the room, she got no impression of her location aside from old and unused.

It wasn’t like she would be able to glean any information if there had been more light, however. Gwen had been put through the ringer the last few days - what felt like years to her. The Death Eater who took her was certainly not new to torturing, and Gwen was sure she would die soon. She had a few of her fingers broken, she’d been lacerated with a wand and a knife so she was covered in cuts and blood. She’d even been punched, bruises on her face to match the rest of the ones on her body. Her ankle was swollen, and her ankles and wrists had rope burns on them for her frantic attempts to wriggle herself free.

And of course, internally and mentally she was done. She was exhausted. He’d used the Cruciatus Curse on her, multiple times, in the last few days. She wasn’t sure she could take any more. As it were, she could hardly lift her head. Gwen was slumped in the chair, as defeated as a person could ever be. Her breathing was shallow, and tears slid in a steady stream down her cheeks and onto her lap - she’d even given up on screaming in pain or anything - the Death Eater was just finishing up with her again, leaving the room without a word. No one was coming to save her. No one was coming through that door but him. She had no fight left in her. Gwenog Jones was ready to die.


--

This was the last location Peter had gone to look for Gwen. Back when the Dark Lord still led the Death Eaters, Peter was aware of three different spots where Avery liked to take his victims to torture and then murder. When the previous two places came up empty, Peter had become distressed - what if Avery had found a new place? What if he couldn’t save Gwen? So, despite seeing the horrible scene of Gwen lying on the floor, her muscles twitching from the after effects of the Cruciatus Curse, Peter experienced an overwhelming feeling of relief.

The moment Avery left the room, Peter, in his Animagi form, scuttled closer to make sure the coast was clear. A large, tawny colored rat then went up to Gwen and became human, crouching beside her.

“Gwen. Gwen? Can you hear me? It’s going to be alright now,” he said, keeping his voice low so as not to attract Avery’s attention back into the room. “I’m here.” He took her hand in his and felt for a pulse.

---

If there was anything left in her, she might have been startled by the sight of a rat turning into Peter Pettigrew. She hadn’t known he was an Animagi, but really she hadn’t even seen the transformation fully to begin with. One minute there was a rat, the next Peter was next to her, whispering in her ear. Telling her it was going to be alright.

“Peter?” She said quietly, confused. The only thing registering with her was pain, but seeing his face - was it even real? Was this another trick? She struggled against her bindings again but was unable to move much, she just let out another small cry and laid her head on the ground, the chair having toppled over when Avery last came in.

“Peter help me.” She said quietly, still wondering if she was hallucinating. She didn’t care, real or not, seeing Peter’s face was comforting.

---

Peter’s heart shattered into a million pieces to see Gwen in this state. Her voice, her cry, while soft, was alarming, because any little noise could bring Avery back into the room at any moment. “Shhh. Don’t worry. I’ll get us out of here.” Drawing his wand, the first thing he did was to deftly slice the magical ropes that tied her to the chair, constantly looking over his shoulder at the door. Then, cradling her head with his hand, he bent low to murmur into her ear, “I’m going to disapparate us. It’ll probably make you ill, but it’s the quickest way. It’ll be over, quick. Alright? Hold on.”

The torture chamber blurred around them and they appeared at the first location that Peter could think of that would be safe: outside the apartment of Auror Bulstrode. “You okay?” he checked on Gwen. “I’ve got to lift you, and I’ve got to do it magically.” Peter was not the picture of a gallant hero, and as much as he wished he could whisk Gwen off her feet, he wasn’t strong enough and was likely to drop her.

---

It wasn’t real until they were out of there. She felt the restraints fall away, and then she felt the crushing pressure of being apparated. Gwen struggled - to breathe, to move. It felt like torture, that few seconds of apparation. When the crushing pressure fell away, she finally opened her eyes again and saw familiar surroundings. London. Peter was talking to her again, but she couldn’t think. She just wanted to breathe, to relax, to sleep. “Okay.” She just said, over and over.

---

To help reassure her that she was safe, he gently rested the palm of his hand upon her cheek and lightly kissed her forehead. In doing so, he was also reassuring himself. Peter knew that Avery would wonder where his victim had gone, but hopefully he wouldn’t come after her again. But just in case he tried, that was why he decided to take Gwen to the home of an Auror. Since he was the nosey type, he had checked up on where Auror Bulstrode lived once he understood that Gwen and her were friends.

Rising to his feet, he cast a levitation charm upon Gwen, causing her to float upon a cushion of magic. It was late at night, and luckily nobody was around to witness Peter directing Gwen’s tortured body to Bulstrode’s door. That didn’t stop Peter from looking around, here and there, nervous that somebody would pop out of nowhere: given his past, this must’ve been a pretty damnable sight to see, and somebody might get the wrong impression.

At the door, Peter knocked. Was that a light shining through the curtains? He hoped that Auror Bulstrode was at home. Maybe she was even awake, still?

--

The wards on Bina's flat had been secure even before the business with Lady Noir had started. Perhaps they were too sensitive, but one could never be too safe. For her, it was another late night in the field. She'd been practically kicked out the office by 8pm and since then had been visiting whatever leads she had about where Gwen might be. She hadn't been home since she'd found out Gwen had gone missing. How could she? Monday night, William had persuaded her to get a few hours sleep at her place before she'd gone back to the office. The similarity to the old Death Eater cases rattled her. If they didn't find her soon- Bina didn't want to think about that.

When her wand buzzed that someone was knocking on the flat, she tensed. She didn't want to think about who it might be at this late hour.

She apparated to the alleyway beside her flat in a wizarding neighborhood of London and had her wand drawn as she approached her door to her flat. "Who's there?" she asked.

--

“Pettigrew,” came the rushed answer. “Open the door. I’ve got Gwen. She’s hurt.

--

Bina fought the urge to hex him on principle (like she did with most ex-cons - assessing Gwen's flat with Prewett had been an exercise in patience and manners). With a flick of her wrist, she brought the wards down and unlocked the door, leading the way up the stairs to her one bedroom flat. It was spacious, but sparsely decorated. She pushed open a door leading to a bedroom.

"Set her down in here."

-----

It was a risk for Peter to bring Gwen to an Auror’s home, but it was one which he was willing to take for her safety. “She was Crucio’d,” he explained as he levitated her as directed. “Pretty bad, but she’s still conscious. I’ve seen worse.” His last statement made himself wince - that was a piece of information that would’ve been better off unsaid.

---

As much as she wanted to, she couldn't deal with Pettigrew now. "We need to get her to Mungo's," Bina said, climbing on the bed next to Gwen. Brushing some hair carefully out of Gwen's face, she swallowed hard. "Gwen? Love? Can you hear me?"

---

Gwen was only vaguely aware of anything going on around her. Peter's voice meant everything was alright and she took comfort in that, just listening. When it was joined by Bina's voice, she felt even more comfortable and at home - even if something registered that those two voices should not be together. Bina asked if she could hear her - and though she tried to respond, she was finding it hard to stay conscious, knowing she was safe. She responded, nodding her head a little, which did not feel good at all. "It hurts." She winced, tears sliding down her face. “Is it over?”

---

Peter watched how Bina interacted with Gwen and called her love. This would probably be a good time to slip away. Clearing his throat, he didn’t want to interrupt this exchange, but at the same time, “I’ve got to go. I’ll see myself out” He sounded nervous and anxious as he edged his way toward the door. “Just do me a favor and please don’t let anybody know my involvement. It would be bad for me.”

---

As much as every fibre of her being urged her to stop Pettigrew, to keep him for interrogation, she let him go. She leaned down, kissing Gwen's forehead and wiping the tears away. "I know, love. I'm sorry it hurts. But we're going to get you to Mungo's and they'll take care of you. They'll fix it it, I promise. And then I'm going to get the son of a bitch who did this."

---

Peter was leaving, and she reached out for him. “No--” She started, but he was edging his way to the door and Bina was right there, kissing her face and telling her it was going to be better, that she would feel better soon. And promising revenge. Gwen had no words. Her body was so exhausted, she hurt everywhere. She nodded her head and cried, curling up into Bina’s arms. “Please.” Was all she got out before she started crying in earnest.

---

If she wasn't set on revenge before, this would have done it. She ran her fingers through Gwen’s hair as she contacted Mungos to let them know they were incoming. Sometimes it helped to be an Auror. She cradled Gwen in her arms as she apparates them both to the Mungos, reluctantly handing her friend over to the healers. She would stay. She had to stay. There was no other option. She had to make sure Gwen was okay. And then after that, she would find the bastard that did this to her.

---