In a dark forest, miles from the large grey monoliths, three men walked through the trees. The first man, the leaders, dodged one of the outreaching branches. It seemed to be reaching out to grab him. The last man, who could not yet be called a man but rather a boy, shuddered as he walked through the woods. He tried to avoid making any unnecessary sounds. He thought he heard a twig snap behind him, but he could not be sure. As they walked, he thought he heard a rushing sound beside him, almost as if water was rushing towards them. He switched to the other side of the first man. He was now directly behind the second man. He sneered at the boy. A dark, greasy lock fell into his face. It did not comfort the boy in the slightest. He found himself shuddering again. As they got closer to their destination, he thought he heard crunching in the snow behind him. He turned to face it. There was no one there. Or, at least he thought there wasn't anyone there. The moon was hardly a sliver, and well behind them. There was almost no light in the entirety of the woods. He shook his head. The two young men glared at him. He blushed slightly. They reached the clearing. It was a place the boy had been before. The old house stood proud on the hill, with the graveyard at the side. The three approached the back door, careful to stay on the side of the house that did not face the village. The first man knocked on the door. The same young woman answered it.

"Hurry inside" she whispered, practically pulling them in.

"Sorry for keeping you so late Bellatrix," Lucius said. Severus closed the door behind them

"Just get upstairs, you don't want to keep him waiting" Bellatrix chided

"Is he upset with us?" Regulus asked as Bellatrix led them up the stairs

"Is he upset with you? What kind of stupid question is that?" Bellatrix said "Of course he is upset with you three. It was your fault Dumbledore found us. You let those stupid Gryffindors follow you to our meeting. Dumbledore sent the Aurors after us. We lost that spot in the woods. The Dark Lord said there was something special about it, it's magically powerful and you cost us it."

"We're sorry Bella," Regulus mumbled. What he did not say out loud was that there wasn't anything special about it. He had been to that spot with Pandora plenty of times and he hadn't sensed anything about it.

"You really think sorry is going to cut it?" Bellatrix sneered "just get inside" She opened the door and gestured for them to go inside. The Dark Lord was sitting at his desk. His wand was left out on the table, in their view. Regulus could not tell if it was a threat or a sign of peace. He feared it would be the former.

"You may take a seat," he said. His voice was so cold that it sent shivers down Regulus's spine. "Leave your wands on the table as I have," he said. Lucius immediately took out his wand and left it on the table. Regulus hesitated for a moment before leaving his wand on the table as well. Severus kept his wand firmly in his hand. Regulus and Lucius glared at him, but he ignored them. He had his eyes locked with the Dark Lord. A small smile tugged at the dark lords mouth.

"Good, Severus. A smart wizard is never without his wand, especially facing unknown circumstances. You may both take back your wands" he said. Lucius quickly snatched back his wand. Regulus waited another moment before taking his own. "Now, I can assume that the three of you know why you are here?" There was a mumble of yes and nodding "Good. I must say that I am disappointed in you three. I expected more from you. Severus, you were captured by a group of Gryffindor students, stalking their common room. Correct?"

"Yes," Severus muttered

"Now, there could have been two possible reasons for this, impulsivity or intention. You already knew that you were taking a risk by stalking their common room. You knew that you would most likely be caught. You were there for a reason. Perhaps you wanted to show your bullies that you now have the option of power they are too weak to reach for?"

"Yes Sir," Severus muttered

"No, it is not. It was not just about your bullies, was it? Lucius, as the leader, I expect more from you. You were followed from the Three Broomsticks to the clearing in the woods. You led the gryffindors and in that, brought Dumbledore. There are now Aurors patrolling the area. You lost us the Clearing in the Forbidden Forest, a magically powerful place." Regulus bit his lip. He could not think of anything special about the clearing in the woods.

"You doubt the place's power, don't you Regulus?" The Dark Lord asked

"I do, sir." Lucius and Severus glared at him,

"Regulus" Bella chided. The Dark Lord gestured for Bellatrix to be silent.

"I mean, I've been to that clearing loads of times before and I've never noticed anything special about it." He said. The Dark Lord laughed

"You are not able to see what you can not understand Mr. Black. Perhaps, with time and training you will be able to. I believe with knowledge, you will understand. However, the issue at hand. Lucius and Severus, you have failed me. I do not make mistakes with those I choose to join us. I do fear my choice in you. Severus, you reassured me with your response to my test with the wands. Lucius , you failed spectacularly. I have some hope for you yet. I will give you another chance to prove yourselves. I will give you your final tasks to prove yourselves worthy to join our ranks. Lucius Malfoy, for you you must-"

"May I make a request?" Lucius butted in. Regulus felt his face go pale. Severus glanced over to the Dark Lord. Bellatrix gripped her wand in her pocket.

"I do not believe you are in quite a position to make such requests." The Dark Lord said.

"I want to end the blood traitor, James Potter," he said. Severus looked up. His face had gone from whiter than usual to deep red. The Dark Lord sat in silence for a moment. Severus locked eyes with the Dark Lord, but then looked deeply disappointed

"I will allow it. I see that James Potter is no more an acceptable recruit than those I had in mind." Severus remained a deep red color.

"Severus Snape, for you to join our ranks, you will end the mudblood girl, Lily Evans" Snape went white. The Dark Lord waited a moment. He turned to Regulus. Regulus felt his blood run cold, scared of what name the Dark Lord would mutter next. Deep in his stomach, he knew exactly what name it would be.

"Regulus Black, for you to join our ranks, you will end the blood traitor, Sirius Black." Regulus knew it was coming, but it still knocked the wind out of him. He tried to steady himself, but found it nearly impossible. He hoped to Merlin that the Dark Lord did not notice. He looked the Dark Lord in the eye. He knew and that was his intention. He purposely picked who would be the most difficult for him and Severus

"My Lord-" Bellatrix began

"If Regulus fails, you may, Bellatrix. I do not expect failure. I expect success. If you do, you will be able to join our ranks. If you do not, you will face the consequences"