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Lily spent most of the day doing chores with Marlene. After they finished scrubbing the blood out of the west corridor, they were instructed to prepare for dinner. Lily and Marlene weren't alone. There were other muggleborns and blood-traitor women working alongside them.

"Don't get attached to them." Marlene whispered while they peeled potatoes. "Half will be dead and buried in a week or two."

Lily shuddered at the thought. Half of these petrified faces, too traumatized to look or speak to one another, would be killed for reasons out of their control. Lily thought she recognized a few faces from Hogwarts, but they never faced her long enough for her to be certain. They all worked briskly and oddly efficiently for rarely speaking. One wooden bucket of potatoes was peeled, it would be promptly picked up by one and another would drop of another bucket of dirty potatoes. At this point, her arms ached terribly. Scrubbing the floor made her knees and fingertips tender. Gripping a knife and peeling a starchy, slippery potato added to the challenge of not accidentally slicing her hand.

"What happened to you? How did you get caught?" Marlene muttered, careful of not being overheard by the watchful house elves that patrolled the kitchen.

"Long story." Lily whispered low. "Potter asked me to marry him –"

"No, really?"

"Yeah. I only said yes for the safety. They live in a manor, just like this, but with a slightly more open attitude towards muggles."

"You always hated Potter." Marlene smirked. "How long did that last?"

"We never married. There was a security breach the morning of the wedding. His father alerted the Ministry at once, demanding Aurors. Of course, the Death Eaters were notified and they showed up and took over within a few hours."

"Shit." Marlene whispered. "How did they get you? You've been so lucky to have not been caught until now."

"There was a little girl, one of James' relatives I think, she was running around. I heard the screams from outside and saw the bright lights. I ran after her to protect her, but I must have gotten hexed. The last thing I remember was fire and a Death Eater pinning me down with his foot. Next thing I know, I'm in the kitchens of the Death Eater headquarters." Lily bitterly added, "I would still be safe if it weren't for those ignorant Potters. I told them the Ministry wasn't safe and they didn't listen to me."

"What happened to them … the Potters?" Marlene asked.

"Not sure." Lily mumbled. "If they were with the other guests, it probably didn't end well. They're still purebloods after all."

Marlene leaned in close. "I heard James Potter was killed."

Lily felt a jerk in her stomach. She didn't love the man, but it grieved her nonetheless. Lily disliked their family and their restricting adhesion to tradition, but she never wished for any of them to be killed. If anyone on the outside could get her out of this mysterious castle, it would have been James Potter. The Death Eaters were truly ruthless. "I didn't love him." Lily said emotionlessly. "But he was still on our side. He shouldn't have been killed."

Marlene nodded. "You remember that Slytherin boy you used to be close with? That one who called you a mudblood? He's the one that killed James. That's what I overheard."

Lily's knife slipped and she cut her finger. She didn't dare let anyone see or notice the blood. Any slip up, no matter how trivial could mean her head. "Snape?"

"That's him." Marlene muttered. "Makes perfect sense, really. They loathed each other, constantly cursing and beating each other to a pulp."

"That's true." Lily nodded slowly. "Snape, is he here?"

"Of course he is. Pretty much all the Slytherin boys turned into Death Eaters." Marlene brought her voice lower. "I would steer clear of him if I were you."

"Why?" Her finger stopped bleeding, but it still stung.

"He's still odd. I wouldn't want to be left alone with him."

"He hasn't done anything to you, has he?" Lily asked.

Marlene shook her head. "No, but that's what creeps me out. He's never taken any girls upstairs." Her voice was barely above a mumble. "He's the smart one. He doesn't care about the girls or any of the rewards, he's only here for the sport of killing. That one's not afraid to fight with the other Death Eaters. That blood we cleaned up in the west corridor earlier; I'm certain that's from his wand."

Lily swallowed. If she let herself panic, she would cut her hand again. One cut was enough for her first day. "Any others I should be aware of?"

"Mulciber, Wilkes, and Nott; they flock close to Snape, but they often get into fights. They're pretty disgusting themselves. Individually, they're pretty thick. Avoid the younger ones. They'll be more likely to take you upstairs and rough you up. The older ones, like Malfoy and Lestrange, they're married already; so they're less likely to take you upstairs. However, their wives can get awfully temperamental and slit your throat in an instant if they get jealous."

"Which is worse?"

"Neither, really. The younger ones have a lot to show-off and prove to the older ones. The older ones don't need to try, so they're automatically ruthless."

A new bucket of dirty potatoes was placed in front of them. It was awfuly overwhelming. There were too many rules and guidelines. The Death Eater wives will kill if you're too pretty. The Death Eaters will kill if you're too ugly, if you complain, or displease them in the slightest. Don't ever be the last maid in the castle or else you'll be taken upstairs. Don't be the first maid done with chores early or else the other maids will kick you out or the Death Eaters will look for you. Lily was numb with silent fear. Any day could be her last if she wasn't careful. "I've made it almost a year without being caught before by these bastards. What's another year?" She thought to herself. If she stayed close to Marlene and played the rules accordingly, there could be a chance she could make it out alive.

But when would that be? How long would she have to live in this hellish castle before they had a chance to escape? She knew very little about the security of this place, and she doubted she would be alive long enough to crack the system to escape. And then what, after escaping? The Death Eaters would find her again and probably kill her. Lily forced herself to come to terms that she was facing her final days among the living. This horrible castle would be her grave.