Chapter 11: A Question of Loyalty

The man with the golden eyes sighed as he listened to Skeeter's tirade. He wasn't truly listening, he had stopped listening a few minutes previously, now he was thinking about how much of his time she was wasting. He had not warned what the skeleton would do when she published the article he had paid her to write, of course he hadn't, she would not have written it if she had known his plan. It was key that she be removed from sight. Pleasant was a worthy adversary, Pleasant would discover his spy and he could not let that happen. Skeeter had to be removed. Or at least, she had to be removed from sight. With her career gone she was no longer needed in Hogwarts and therefore Pleasant would not suspect her to be the leaking the information. It was a game that the man knew how to play, Skeeter, however, did not. But there were ways of dealing with that.

"I know you must be frustrated," the man said, cutting across Skeeter as she drew breath to continue her shouting. "But you must know that it was not my intention for you to be dragged into this."

A lie, of course, but lying was all part of the game. But the truth wouldn't get her on his side. Morals were all well and good in the lives of ordinary people. In the mundaine, dull lives of the mortals. But they could not be so easily applied to the man with the golden eyes. For him morals twisted and bent to suit his purpose and his needs, as did everything else. Everything and everyone.

"Well I am involved in this!" Skeeter shrieked. The man was silently glad that he had sealed the office, as tedious as that was it was better than having people look in on them, it was better than people knowing what he planned and who the players were. That was the key to all this. Misdirection. Pleasant had already locked up Malfoy. That had been unfortunate. He wasn't supposed to know about Malfoy. Not yet, anyway. If Sanguine had kept quiet he wouldn't have known. It made things difficult. But that was to be expected. "You said you could protect me! I shouldn't have trusted you, any of you!"

"But you did," the man said in that same calm voice, looking at Skeeter with those golden eyes of his, they glittered in the rays of setting sun that cut through the office like a blade. "And I am sorry but I did not know that Pleasant had information that sensitive. If I had known maybe I could have protected you. As it is I can only offer a solution."

"Solution!" Skeeter screamed. "There is no solution! I have no job! They're fining me, did you know that? I've got law suits and fines to pay and with what? The Prophet refused to pay me!"

"Do not worry about the fines," the man said, holding up a hand. The fines. He knew they would be coming, of course he did, in fact he'd been relying on it. Paying someone like Skeeter only worked for so long, eventually she would turn on him, people like her always did. But there was a way to control them, manipulate them into being indebted, make them need you, rely on you. That was why she needed to be fired. Not just to draw away suspicion but to gain her loyalty, he needed someone under his absolute control. If she was caught, like Malfoy had been, he needed to know she would not betray him. "I can pay those for you."

"Thank you! Thank -"

"I did not say I would." The man said, getting to his feet turning away from her and facing the window. "There is one condition."

"Anything."

He smiled, people were so simple, all you had to do was find the right button to press. The right leverage. He could have asked her for anything under the sun, and in that moment he knew that she would give it him, because without him she was facing financial meltdown and possible jail time, he'd seen to that. Ever since he had conceived the plan to use the Tournament he had been handpicking people in the Ministry to work for him, nothing too taxing or noticeable, but they were there when he needed them. If Skeeter said no she would soon come crawling back when the threat of jail represented itself, all the man had to do was send a letter. It was not fair on Skeeter, not at all, but that was precisely why it would work.

"All I ask is for your loyalty, Rita. Unquestioning and undying loyalty. Do you understand what that means?"

"Yes." came Skeeter's reply.

"I hope you do, Rita. Because if I think that you are going to go back on your word then it won't just be fines that you have to worry about. Do I make myself clear?"

The man watched her reflection give a nod and there was a hint hint of a fake smile on her quavering lips painted a horrible pink.

"Good." he lost his smile as he turned back to her. "You are to return to Hogwarts at your earliest convenience, which I suggest is soon, you wouldn't want me to think that you're having doubts now would you?"

"Hogwarts?"

"Yes, Hogwarts." She was cunning, ambitious and absolutely self-serving but intelligence was not in her repertoire. "How else do you expect to get your revenge on the man who wronged you? You do want revenge, do you not?"

"Yes," Skeeter said a predatory smile on her lips. "Pleasant must pay."

"You will send me weekly updates, I will let you know where and when the day before. Do not fail me, Miss Skeeter."

Skeeter opened her mouth to say something, probably thank him some more, maybe some grovelling and assurances she would not fail, but the man was already at the door and holding it open for her.

Once she had left he returned to his position by the window, a faint smile on his face, though he rarely allowed himself such luxuries he felt it was apt. Skeeter had walked in an enemy and left a sworn ally. Pleasant and the girl no doubt thought they were safe once again, with Malfoy caught along with Low and Sanguine and Skeeter gone, all threats had been eliminated.

They were far from safe.

He knew that there really was little use for Skeeter, Voldemort already had a spy in Hogwarts. But the man refused to put more trust in the Dark Lord than was necessary. But she was there as a plan to fall back on, there was always a contingency plan, he had been waiting too long to rely on one man after all. There was always the chance that Voldemort could fail. Cain and Pleasant were not easy to kill.

The only reason the man was trusting Voldemort at all was that he provided the man with the perfect cover story for the death of Cain and Pleasant. It was a wizard tournament she had been dragged into and a wizard was going to kill her. The proof that linked Cain and Pleasant to Voldemort was already fabricated and sitting in the man's desk drawer. The Sanctuary wouldn't look too deeply for too long because of the long awaited war that threatened to consume them. It was perfect. No one would suspect him or anyone of foul play once the evidence was circulated through all the correct channels, unearthed by all the right people.

Soon it would all be over.