"Well. Mr Moreno. What a delight it is to meet you at last."

"My Lord… ah, that sounds a little weird coming out of the mouth of an American. Ha!" Anthony Moreno laughed a bit in the parlour of Malfoy Manor where he and Abraxas and Adalie Malfoy had greeted Voldemort and Bellatrix. The latter two had been brought in by Dobby.

"Sir will work fine, if it suits you, or Mr Riddle, if you absolutely must," Voldemort said delicately, and Moreno smiled warmly.

"Sir works really well for my clumsy American mouth. And you… My Lady. I can go ahead and say that. What an honour. Truly."

"Mr Moreno. A pleasure." Bellatrix extended her hand, which Anthony Moreno accepted, planting a very chaste little kiss on her knuckles. He was a rather short man, and quite fat, probably fifteen years older than Voldemort and Abraxas. His thinning hair was neatly combed with shining pomade, and his chevron mustache was tightly groomed. He wore pinstriped robes, and a bowler hat of his sat on the low table.

"Mr Malfoy and his lovely wife have made you comfortable, I trust?" Voldemort asked, and Moreno scoffed.

"You kidding? This place is beautiful, and they've been nothing but kind. Long journey over here on a steamship, and the Malfoys have been incredibly hospitable. Have to say, I'm looking forward to dinner."

"Well, I believe Dobby will 'ave eet ready any moment now," Adalie Malfoy said, "eef you weel all join me in the dining room."

Everyone made their way out of the parlour and into the dining room, where the chairs were labeled with floating place cards. Lord Voldemort was placed at the head of the table, of course, with Bellatrix to his right and Moreno to his left. The Malfoys were further down the table, opposite one another, with Adalie beside Bellatrix and Abraxas beside Moreno. Everyone sat, and once Champagne and water appeared, Voldemort said,

"I should like to propose a toast."

He noticed that Adalie raised only her water glass, and suspicion went through him. He cleared his throat a little and said,

"To shared values and new friendships, and to Mr Moreno. Welcome to Britain. Cheers."

"Cheers!" said everyone, Moreno more vociferously than the rest of them. The first course appeared - squash blossoms stuffed with ricotta - and Anthony Moreno exclaimed,

"Now, Mrs Malfoy, you're French! How dare you deprive me of exquisite French cuisine just so we can eat Italian-American food! Still, I am grateful."

"Well, we wanted to try your own food. I think eet ees lovely to eat," Adalie said. But after she put one bite into her mouth, her fork and knife clattered to her plate, and she murmured, "Oh, excuse me."

She flew to her feet and suddenly dashed from the dining room. Bellatrix gave Abraxas a knowing look, and Moreno, a lifelong bachelor, asked cautiously,

"Oh, goodness. Is she all right?"

"Well, I don't want to presume, but I think perhaps Madam Malfoy is in a… delicate situation?" Voldemort asked, looking to Malfoy. Abraxas nodded, seeming cautiously optimistic as he said with a little smile,

"Adalie's not too far along, so we hadn't announced. They say the sicker you are, the better it sticks, so…"

"Oh, well… my congratulations!" Moreno exclaimed. He wisely changed the subject then, turning his attention to Bellatrix. "My Lady, I'd heard that you grew up around my neck of the woods. New York?"

Bellatrix had done meticulous research, so she said smoothly, "Hell's Kitchen. 59th Street. Living in hiding, of course, away from both No-Majs and MACUSA. It was a hellish existence… an appropriately-named neighbourhood. We spent loads of time here in Britain, as well."

"Forgive me; I don't mean to insult you," Moreno said, setting down his fork and knife. The appetisers vanished, and they were replaced by meaty lasagne. He asked Bellatrix carefully, "What was it like growing up in a family that was in violation of Rappaport's Law?"

Bellatrix gave him her carefully scripted response. "It taught me the value of the law, Mr Moreno. My Muggle father convinced my mother to marry him through both physical and emotional force. She was a fool. She broke the law, and I paid the price. We were always on the run. We didn't fit into either world, and rightly so. I know perfectly well that my creation was an abomination, but I am determined to live my life dedicated to keeping filthy Muggles like my father away from vulnerable, weaker-minded Magical people who would sully themselves and the community. We can't let the wizarding world get watered down. I never knew No-Maj life in America, nor Muggle life in Britain. I never got real schooling. I never got to trot off to the shops, or peruse the windows in Diagon Alley. It wasn't until I met the Dark Lord that I realised I could have a real purpose."

"Wow." Moreno looked awed. He picked up his fork and knife, and his eyes watered a little. "Wow. That's… it's just inspiring. I don't know what to say."

Adalie Malfoy came back into the room, and she murmured softly, "I 'ave taken a nausea potion; I should be all right now. I apologise."

"No, Adalie; don't apologise!" Bellatrix exclaimed. Voldemort took the opportunity to slip sleekly into Moreno's mind with Legilimency. What did he really think of Bellatrix's story? Moreno sensed that something in the story was missing, but he knew that whatever it was, it didn't matter. Perhaps she'd been the product of something terribly insidious, like a No-Maj raping a witch. Maybe she had no Magical parents at all. It didn't matter. This Bella Townsend had been undocumented in the American and British Ministries for good reason. Whatever her backstory, she had come from a mess and had crawled out of it. And she was now the wife of a man who was going to make something very special happen. Voldemort sensed no hostility, no wickedness. He sensed no Occlumency shields. He pulled out of the American's mind and watched Moreno shiver a little.

"Tell us, Mr Moreno," Abraxas Malfoy said, "whether there is a significant movement in America to repeal Rappaport's Law and allow closer relations with Muggles."

"There is, yeah." Moreno dabbed at his lips and nodded solemnly. "Some say the law's only got ten years' worth of life. I hope that a partnership between Britain and America can protect purity of the Magical communities in both countries."

"I would very much like to solidify that partnership," Voldemort agreed. He savoured a few bites of the tomato and beef and noodle, and he smiled a bit. "I quite like your Italian-American cuisine, Mr Moreno."

"And it's so nice of you to serve it." Moreno smiled, and Voldemort sensed genuine warmth there. He laughed a little and said,

"You know, I think if you'd attended Hogwarts, you just might have been a Hufflepuff. I do not mean that as an insult."

"You're not the first to suggest that!" Moreno grinned. He shrugged. "What can I say? I was a Pukwudgie at Ilvermorny; my good buddy calls me Puffy. Says I look like a Puffskein. Oh, well. All that matters is that I'm good at my job, right? And I like to think that I am."

"Well, you certainly accomplished the task I requested of you in a timely fashion," Voldemort affirmed. "I wonder, if I asked you to ensure a network of spies in the American Ministry, could you do it? We need to monitor activity on Rappaport's law and intercede where need be on legislation. We need to try and ensure that Muggle - No-Maj - segregation remains intact. Do you suppose you can secure allies in your government to help with that?"

"Yes, sir. I can do that," Moreno said very firmly. The main courses disappeared, and they were replaced by honey tart with pine nuts. Voldemort smirked a little at Bellatrix, and she smiled back as she dug her spoon in. Moreno made a noise of happiness and said,

"My Italian grandmother used to bake this stuff. Very difficult to make, even with magic."

"We leave it for the House-Elves to do," Bellatrix confirmed, "but it's my very favourite."

"You know, sir," Moreno said suddenly to Voldemort, "there were… murmurs… in certain circles in America. Murmurs among certain families, certain circles. People related to the Yaxleys, to the Shacklebolts. Talk of a young wizard in Britain who was charismatic, who wanted to focus on blood purity and keep No-Majs in their place, away from the wizarding community like we do in America. People started talking about uniting under this guy, about making sure Rappaport's Law stays in place, about fighting for him in Britain so that we can keep our status quo in America. I just want you to know, sir, that there's a lot of support for you. Underground, sure. Murmurs, whispers. Talk behind hands. Anonymous still, sure. But the support is there. And I think that if our situation really gets threatened, and if you really make a name for yourself, then that support's gonna get loud. You know what I mean, sir?"

"I believe I do." Voldemort sipped his water and ate some of his tart.

"The Dark Lord has dozens of marked and sworn soldiers here in Britain," Abraxas Malfoy said, proudly pulling back his sleeve. Bellatrix did the same. Voldemort brought out his wand and touched it to his Dark Mark, and the other two hissed as their Marks went black. Moreno's eyes went wide, and Voldemort smirked as he saw a look of awe and glee cross Moreno's face.

"Mr Moreno," Voldemort said, "How would you like to go back to America with a new… tattoo?"

Moreno grinned and nodded. "I'd like that very much… Master."

Author's Note: So, Voldemort trusts Moreno and has made his first American Death Eater. And it sounds like, given that the status quo in America is under threat (as we know that their situation canonically changed in the 1960s), he may be able to have his empire, after all. Oh, and Adalie's pregnant! Will it last? Is it Abraxas', or did Abraxas get some other random Death Eater to knock up Adalie? Will Voldemort and Bellatrix talk through their fight where she hit him? Some make up and celebratory sex, perhaps? Drama, drama, drama. Thank you so much for the incredible feedback on the last chapter. It was so fulfilling to see people's reactions to that chapter, truly. Thank you for reading.