Die Another Day

Disclaimer: GRRRRR!!!! Dumbledore and Sirius still alive.

Chapter 1

Temptation's POV

I sat on a barstool, talking to this really cute bartender, when I felt the eyes of my step-sister boring into my back. I turned in my chair when the bartender went to go get another man his drink and smiled at the girl across the room. She was standing in the doorway, her cloak dripping wet from the rain. The girl took off her cloak and hung it on the hanger next to the door. She headed towards me with a weak smile. She had a fresh bruise on her cheek bone and winced at the pain when she smiled, but she tried to look strong.

I just rolled my eyes and turned back to the bar as the guy on stage tried imitate a song usually sung by my favorite American country singers, Trace Adkins. It was one of my favorite songs too, Ladies Love Country Boys. Now, while the man on stage did a good job of singing the song, Trace was better.

"Hey, hoe," the girl who had been at the front door said to me as she sat down on the barstool next to me. She tried to pull down her three-quarter sleeves nervously as she smiled weakly at me once more.

"Sup, bitch?" I replied and my gaze met her. My ocean-blue eyes searched her periwinkle-blue ones for why she looked so nervous tonight. It wasn't like her to be so weak and defeated looking.

"Nothing much. Just got back from a meeting with…friends." I knew what she meant by that. My step-sister had gotten back from a meeting with the Dark Lord and I knew that left her drained as well as in pain. She ran a shaking tanned hand through her straight, shoulder-length, layered, charcoal-black hair.

"You should top hanging with those friends, Escense," I said seriously to her. Escense just rolled her eyes and sighed. She turned towards the bartender as he walked towards her and smiled.

"Can I get a scotch on the rocks please? Double."

"Sure thing, mam," the bartender said politely, smiling sympathetically as he looked at her very noticeable bruise. He quickly handed her her drink and looked once more at the bruise. "That's a nasty bruise you got there…How'd it happen?"

"Abusive boyfriend," Escense lied. I rolled my eyes and snorted. The bartender gave me a confused look and then turned back to Escense as she handed him a huge tip.

"Thanks!" He turned to leave, but suddenly turned back. "You know, you should get rid of that boyfriend of yours. If you ever come this way again and you're single…look me up. I'm Mark Lolly."

"I'll be sure to," Escense said smiling slightly, though it obviously hurt her to. Mark winked at her and moved to go help out another customer.

"Damn it! Why the hell did he have to go and do that? Now I doubt he'll bang me tonight…I was really looking for a good fling too. I haven't had anything in a month!" I said somewhat angrily, though I grinned at Escense. She laughed at my statement.

"He'll probably do you anyways just because most men are like that. All they want most of the time is the sex. I bet you that's all Mark wants." She whispered the last sentence so he wouldn't overhear.

"I'll just have to hang around a little longer till he gets off."

"You do that. I just dropped by to let you know I'm doing ok. I'm tired. I'm going over to Sev's to talk about something and then I'm heading home to get some sleep."

"You're not going to stay the night at his place again, are you? You always seem to fall asleep on his couch before you come home…And I only believe that because I walked in once and there you were."

"You shouldn't ever do that again. Sev is very…fidgety at times. Just be careful next time. He doesn't take kindly to visitors. He stunned me once when I flooed in without telling him. I scared him so bad…it was quite funny actually…until he stunned me."

I laughed as Escense stood up. I stood up too and hugged her as we said our goodbyes. Escense headed over, grabbed her cloak, put it on, and left. Once she was gone I sat back down and turned to the bartender, chatting him up and flirting with him once more. I was hoping he'd just forget Escense for the time being and focus on me. Later that night, I got what I wanted…

Escense's POV

I apparated in front of and black oak door and knocked. My very good friend Severus Snape opened the door and stepped aside to let me in, but stopped when he caught sight of the bruise on my cheek. He winced slightly at the memory as he had been there when it had happened. I guess Severus had been just as hurt as I had and had seemed to feel the pain…then again, I was one of his very few and very close friends. Friends didn't like it when friends got hurt, or at least that's what I believe. I hate it when my sister or my friends get hurt. It hurts me a little on the inside every time I see one of them in pain.

"Hello," I said weakly with a forced smile, though it hurt. Severus stepped aside, clenching his jaw as he did so. I always noticed little things like that about people. He led me to his living room where Lucius and his son, whom I had just recently met, Draco I believe his name is, sat. Lucius was on a chair and Draco was on the couch. Severus sat down in the other open chair so I sat down gently next to Draco. He looked at me and gave me a look of sympathy as he noticed the bruise. It was large and quite painful looking, especially as it was along the jaw line and anyone who was smart would know that it would be hard for me to talk and smile for the next few days without it hurting.

"As I was saying before you got up to answer the door for Escense, Severus, we have to do something," Lucius said seriously. I sat there quietly listening to Severus and Lucius go back and forth about the Dark Lord's plans and what they can do to help him. I knew Severus was also on Albus Dumbledore's side, though I wasn't sure which side he was truly on and which side he favored. Besides the Dark Lord and the Order, I was the only one who knew of Severus's double-agent thing. The Order was led to believe he was on their side, the Dark Lord was led to believe he was on his side, and I wasn't so sure about what side he was on.

Lucius was definitely on the side of the Dark Lord, considering how dark he could be. He had been nice enough to me though and I called him my friend, so I didn't mind so much. The only reason I had ever joined the Dark Lord was because I felt out of place. I didn't feel like I belonged, but once I had become a Death Eater everything changed. I could call myself part of something, but I soon wished I had just stayed adrift from everything instead of being a part of something.

Draco put in a word every now and then. He had just become a Death Eater that night and I didn't know him well enough to know if he just did it because of Lucius, his father, or of his own free will. I would hopefully soon find out and I wanted to know. He didn't seem as dark as his father and as I had watched him all night at the…meeting I realized he was probably the type of guy my step-sister, Temptation, would fall hard for. Of course, if he turned out to be anything like his father Temptation would be crushed and I couldn't let that happen. She's my sister; we may not be related, but I loved her like family as mine wasn't really there much. I suppose that's why I felt so…adrift from everything.

"Draco, you go to school with Harry?" I asked quizzically as I realized what Lucius had just said. He and Severus had changed topics and were now talking about Draco's schooling and grade, which is why he had been putting more into the conversation.

"Sadly yes. Potter and his fucking Golden Trio make my life a living Hell there. The prat is a total imbecile," Draco said, scowling as I used the first name of Boy-Who-Just-Wouldn't-Die, as Draco had put it earlier.

"Couldn't you just walk in and kill him yourself?" He glared at me and opened his mouth to speak. I stopped him with my hand, knowing what he was going to say. "Not obviously kill him and go to Azkaban, but just…discreetly kill him. Like poison his drink or something maybe…I don't know."

"I couldn't do something like that. The blasted old man running the wishy-washy schools keeps a blasted close eye on him! Don't you think Father has thought of that already?"

"Besides, the Dark Lord wants to kill him himself. What's the fun in letting young amateurs do all the work?" Lucius smirked cruelly, sending a shiver down my spine. He had always freaked me out, but I kind of thought it different and liked him anyways.

"I hate when you smirk like that," I voiced my thoughts and he chuckled coolly in reply. Severus raised an eyebrow and Draco gave me a horrified look. I guessed that if Draco had said anything of that sort to his father he's be punished. But, having been so close to Lucius as I supposed he called m a close friend as well, Lucius didn't get angry, but merely smirked. Slytherins, as I had learned from Severus once long ago, never smiled, but often smirked instead so now I could never tell whether they meant to smile or just smirk.

"Well, Escense, I apologize, but I do believe that it is quite impossible for me to stop a habit I have been doing for years…old habits die hard," Lucius finally replied. Draco was even more shocked by the answer. Obviously, Draco hadn't ever really heard the words "I" and "apologize" come out of his father's mouth in the same sentence, especially when the "apologize" was referring to the "I".

"You could just repeated smack yourself until the point gets across," I said with a slight smile, trying to lighten the dark mood that seemed to settle in the silence that followed Lucius's comment. Draco smiled, trying to hide it from Lucius so he wouldn't be punished later. Lucius chuckled and I even saw the corners of Severus's mouth twitch upwards into a smile. I saw there and watched as the three men talked about…pretty much everything. Every once in a while I would add my opinion, but I wasn't up to talking much after…meetings.

And so the night wore on till my eyes grew heavy with weariness. The others were tired as well, I could tell. They all looked like they could just fall asleep in the positions they were in and I'm sure I looked like it too. Everyone finally started to stand up talking about leaving and beginning their goodbyes. I said goodbye to Severus, telling him I'd see him tomorrow as I was coming over to dine with him, Lucius, and Lucius's wife Narcissa. She was a pleasant woman and I enjoyed her company, though she didn't often take well to those who weren't purebloods, such as myself. I turned to say goodbye to Draco.

"It was nice meeting you tonight," I said to him and shook his hand warmly. "You should come over for lunch tomorrow and meet my sister Temptation. You'll like her." I couldn't believe I had just said that, but the words had already come out of my mouth and I didn't want to be impolite by taking them back.

I loved my sister and her name suited her well. She was beautiful and pretty much was the essence of temptation. I at times envied her popularity, her way of easily speaking with people she barely knew, and her beauty. She was tall and slender with long, wavy, bleach-blonde hair, sun-tanned skin as she loved to just bathe in the sunlight at the beach, sparkling, almond-shaped, ocean-blue eyes, and shapely body that she often loved to show off by wearing clothes that I would never wear. She had guts and I was always told I was the quiet one, but Temptation kept insisting it was the opposite. I had now idea why, but I just kind of usually sat there and stared at her like she was a madman every time she protested her boldness and my shyness.

I suppose I could be bold; after all, you need to be to be a Death Eater. The fact that I was trustworthy was enough for some people so I did happen to have many friends. More than Severus anyways, and that's what really counts. I care dearly for the man and all, but he has very few friends…and if you have even fewer friends then him…well, that's just sad!

Ok. End of chapter one. We find out next chapter what happens when Draco comes over for lunch. How do you like the first chapter? I guess the first chapter can be a drag at times, but I promise the story will get better! No flames and I'll love you forever if you review!!! Please review…I love reviews! Thank you much! I hope to update soon, but I don't know! Now just…review!