Chapter Two

Draco woke up lately on Saturday morning. He went into the bathroom to get ready for the ball. After a while in the bathroom he heard a voice calling his name. He took on his morning gown and went back into his room to see, who was there. But it was empty.

'Draco! Here in the fire!', said the voice again. He turned and saw Maureen's head in the green fire.

'Oh, hi... What is it?', he asked.

'I got an owl from school, today!', she explained with a satisfied smile on her face.

'You did. Let me guess, the NEWT results?'

'You've guessed right! Outstanding in every single subject, baby!! Well, almost. In every subject except in fuckin' Arithmancy! And you?'

'Haven't got them yet!'

'Oh, you can tell me this evening anyway! Well, ... see you!', she finally said and her head vanished and the green flames turned red again and as he turned to go back into the bathroom, an owl perched on the windowsill.

He enrolled the parchment and a huge smile escaped him as he read it. He rolled it up again and threw it onto his desk.

Draco dressed in his best robes and rushed downstairs had some breakfast.

Darkness fell and the first guests arrived. Narcissa greeted them and led them out into the garden.

One hour passed before the Locksleys came through the huge oaken front doors and Draco beckoned her towards him. She wore a ivory coloured, long off-the-shoulder satin dress robe, her hair was tied back to a elegant knot.

Proudly, Draco handed her his NEWT results and said, 'What do you think?'

'hmm. Charms - Exceeds Expectations. That's extraordinarily good! And you thought, you failed it.', she responded.

'I know!', he said as he took it back. 'and before you ask ...no... he's not arrived yet!', Draco added when he saw the excited expression on Maureen's face as she handed the parchment back to him.

'I didn't say anything!', she replied.

'No, but you thought it!'

'so? Did I?'

'ohh yes, you definitely did!', he said when they walked along the corridor which led out in the gardens. Not a minute passed and they got accompanied by a load of Hogwarts schoolmates. Crabbe, Goyle, Theodore Nott, and oh no, Pansy Parkinson were among them. Wondering when Lucius would come to release them of suffering from boredom and finally lead them to the Dark Lord. They sat on a bench near the bright blue illuminated pool, surrounded by people, who kept on sucking up to them or kept talking about school. Maureen had her head in her hands and every now and then they nodded or said something like "Oh, you're absolutely right".

'Ok guys, I'll get me a drink. Draco? D'you come with me?', Maureen said with a touch of despair in her voice. Draco was glad she tried to get them away from the crowd of schoolmates. He nodded eagerly, jumped up and the two of them made their way through the crowd. He quickly glanced over his shoulder, hoping that nobody was following them.

At the bar they got them two very colourful looking drinks and squeezed themselves through the mass of people on the dance-floor, where many couples waltzed to Mozart. They finally reached the pavilion and leaned against the circular wooden wall, watching the dancing couples from there and slurping their Pina Coladas through their drinking straws.

'Are they all .........Death Eaters?', Maureen asked and jerked her head slightly towards the dancing people.

'No, only a few'

'D'you think we can choose where this black summon - thingy - Mark's going to be placed?'

Draco laughed, 'I dunno! Ask him!'

'Uhu huh huh. Of course I won't!'

'Draco, Maureen? Are you two ready? The Dark Lord's waiting for you!', said a voice from behind. Lucius Malfoy's voice.

'Follow me!', he said and Draco and Maureen did what they were told to do.

Both were wondering what he might look like. They followed Lucius without saying a word. The three of them stopped in front of the big door to a sort of reading-room. Lucius pushed the door open. The room was only lit by the orange, reddish crackling fire. They entered and Maureen glanced at the tall, thin, black figure, which was standing in front of the fire-place. It turned to face them and a quiet yelp almost escaped from Maureen's lips. Almost. She tried to look calm and so did Draco. At the sight of the snakelike face, he held his breath for a moment. Neither Maureen nor Draco had imagined Voldemort to look like that. A rather fragile looking man with those piercing red eyes, snakelike slits instead of human looking nostrils, those long spidery fingers and this greyish pale, cold looking skin. But he was not the only one in the room. A heavy lidded woman, Bellatrix stood to his right and Maureen's father stood to his left.

Draco's heart was hammering against his Adam's apple and Maureen's was in her throat.

'Ahh there you are young Malfoy and young Locksley!', a cold, high voice emerged from those thin wrinkled lips.

'So you're starting your seventh and last year at Hogwarts. And no doubt you make the Slytherin house proud with your good marks.'

'Yes Master!', they said in a unison, though they had not expected to hear something like that from him.

'Of course you are aware of the fact that being a Death Eater is not the same like joining a normal club. Once you've become Death Eater, there is no way back. Unless you want to suffer a horrible death.', he laughed, but it wasn't funny at all, 'Every single mistake will be punished. Betrayal affords maximum penalty. Death. Being a Death Eater affords absolute loyalty to your Master, which means loyalty to me, unscrupulousness and you have to be merciless with the enemy. Under no circumstances, you will have mercy with a traitor. Even he or she belongs to your family...'

Draco and Maureen felt the sudden urge to look at each other. But neither of the two dared to tear their eyes away from the tall, dark, evil creature, which was standing in front of the fire.

'I will not accept you as Death Eaters yet. Nevertheless, I am firmly convinced that both of you are very talented and each of you has got high potential. But I can't use you now, that you are still at Hogwarts, under the nose of Dumbledore and the Ministry of Magic. You are on probation. This time will be over on the day of your 19th birthday. On that day, I will decide whether you are worthy to become a Death Eater. You understand?'

'Yes, Master!', they said again.

'Good. You can leave.'

They did not speak till they reached the pavilion again. When Lucius was out of ear-, and eyeshot, Maureen remarked looking utterly shocked, 'Goodness, ... have you ever expected him to look like that? Honestly, I just couldn't believe my eyes!'

'Yeah I know.........freaky!', said Draco, looking unnaturally pale.

Maureen looked at him apprehensively, 'Are you all right?'

'Yes, I'm fine...', he responded, 'Want a drink?'

'Let's go!'

On their way to the bar they heard Pansy call, 'Draco we've been looking for you! ... Where have you two been?'

She came nearer, the others in tow. Not knowing whether Draco or Maureen were allowed to tell anyone that they were having a nice chat with the Dark Lord, the pair of them decided by one single look at each other, to lie to them.

'Oh nowhere...we just lost you in the crowd, that's all!', he explained looking rather convincing.

'...yes, but if you excuse us now...Draco?', Maureen faked a smile and they disappeared.

'That was a good one!', Maureen praised.

'Thanks, works every time!...You wanna dance?'

'Sure!'

They waltzed to the other side of the dance floor to get as far away from Parkinson as possible.

'She will never get it, will she?', Maureen said when they left the dance-floor.

'No, I don't think so!', he sighed.

'You shouldn't have asked her to the Yule Ball in our fourth year.'

'And whom should I have asked then?! I had no other choice!', Draco explained.

'Oh please. What about Electra McNair? I thought she was your girlfriend that time.'

'er...yes she was but she caught me in bed with Aurora Avery!', he explained.

'I see,...why not Aurora then?'

'Unfortunately, I haven't told her that I was hooked up with Electra, who was her best friend that time!...'

'...yes, yes...Draco Malfoy the male whore!', she teased.

'Well, personally, I prefer Slytherin Sex God, thanks!', he said coolly.

'ohhh right! Sorry I forgot, your Majesty!', she retorted sarcastically and the pair of them burst out in howling laughter.

'ohh look, our dreamteam!', a girl said. Draco and Maureen turned round to see who was talking to them.

A little chuckle escaped from Maureen's lips.

'hm. Speak of the devil...', she muttered, 'Aurora...', she added sweetly.

'Will anyone ever get the chance to meet one of you alone.', Aurora asked with a evil smile on her face.

'Shall i have a look in my personal organiser for you?', Maureen said sarcastically.

'Honestly, people could say you were having an affair.', Aurora said her eyes narrowed malevolently.

'You're just jealous! And to your information, we're not!', Maureen assured her.

'Jealous? Oh come on! I've got over him for ages!'

'Maureen', her father appeared next to her, 'I'd like you to meet some close family friends'

'Yes, of course father,...if you excuse me!', Maureen just said and left Draco alone with her.

'Rudolphus, Bellatrix...may I introduce you to my daughter Maureen.', he said to a the couple Maureen had met in the reading room an hour ago.

Maureen got terribly bored after listening to a dull conversation and her face started to cramp from that fake-smile.

'Well, it was an honour, Bellatrix ... Rudolphus!', she said and tried to get away as quickly as it was possible. But before she could disappear gradually, Lucius asked, 'Oh yes, do you know where Draco is? I have a precious gift for him. We meet in the living room then!'

'I'll do what I can!', she answered and was relieved that Lucius sent her away to find Draco. But he just seemed to have disappeared from the ball. She asked his mother Narcissa if she might know where he was. She told her that she had seen him near the pavilion recently. Maureen headed off to the pavilion and indeed, he was still there. But not alone. She found him there with Aurora, leaning in to deepen their kiss. Maureen leaned against the wooden pillar of the pavilion. Highly amused, she let out a giggle and said, 'Got over him for ages, eh?'

Draco pulled apart and glanced at Maureen, who was still standing in the open doorway. Aurora turned deep red and didn't dare to say a word.

'I'm really sorry if I interrupted you in something, but your father wants to see you Draco. Now!', she said. 'Well, I'm waiting outside'

He leaned into a last kiss and hurried after Maureen.

She had a really nasty smirk on her face.

'What?'

'I didn't say anything!', she said innocently.

'yeah, however, where are we going anyway?', he wanted to know.

'He expects you in the living room!'

'Father?', he asked as they entered the living room.