Chapter 18: Challenge your preconceptions or they'll challenge you
The lecture hall was filled with NEWT classes of History of Magic and Defense Against the Dark Arts. Harry looked through the gathering crowd, spotting almost all of the remaining DA members. He also noticed that several younger Slytherins had invited themselves to seats in the back rows, muttering to each other in dark tones.
"Welcome to the History of the Death Eaters," Rowena Snape called out, bringing the class's attention to her rather than Witch Weekly's latest hair potions. "Unfortunately, those of you who are not in either History or DADA have to leave now, or have your faces turn a nasty shade of lime green. You won't even be able to hear anything, with the Selective Listening Charm on the room."
She waited while the group of them slithered their way out, grumbled complaints of "we're old enough!" in their wake. Smiling, she closed the door on the last of them and turned back to the class.
"Well. The Death Eaters. Work for Lord Voldemort. Killed a lot of people. That's all the Ministry thinks you need to know." She walked around the room as she continued. "The Headmaster and I agree that you would probably get more information from the tabloids. That's why this lecture is going to cover a lot of ground that the Ministry does not believe you, as minors, are able to handle. If anyone believes that their mind is going to explode or ooze out of their ears in the next 2 hours, please feel free to see Madame Pomfrey immediately."
No one moved.
"Let's get down to business, then. Question one: what do you know or have heard about them? No names, please, just information or rumors."
Slowly answers came in, everything from the obvious ("They wear black robes."), to the outrageous ("They're all Vampires!").
"Alright," she said a quarter of an hour later. "That is a very interesting picture you all have of them, but not that far off the mark, as it goes, but at last check, Lord Voldemort is the only semi-dead member. Yes, they kill/torture Muggles. Yes, they shoot the Dark Mark into the sky after they have murdered. Yes, they do look like Grim Reapers with wands.
"However," she continued. "They are not soulless. The Dementors affect them just as much as the rest of us. They are mortal, as the Auror's have thankfully proved. Over a quarter at the end of the last war were thought to be women."
Several students looked shocked at the number. She asked, "Show of hands, how many of you think the men were more deadly?"
Three quarters of the room went up.
"Females?" A few.
"Equal?" A few more.
"Alright. Mr. Malfoy, why are the males more deadly?"
Draco smirked. "It's obvious. They're stronger, more powerful, and more resilient to curses."
Rowena refrained from rolling her eyes with difficulty. "Mr. Potter, why are the females more deadly?"
"They are quicker, more agile, use their brains, and don't let the curses hit them."
Rowena nodded, and turned to Hermione. "Statistically, which are more deadly?"
"Females," she replied promptly.
Rowena let that wander through the class for a moment. "Women were more deadly. There are the reasons that Mr. Potter gave us and a few more. When chosen to serve, they had to be better than the others, or the competition would kill them. If they were ruthless killers, Voldemort would give them to the older Death Eaters, in hopes of one of them siring the next generation of followers."
She paused, then, smiling, posed the next question. "Can anyone think of any good things that came from the Death Eaters?"
Silence. Students looked at one another, shocked. Even Granger was quiet, no doubt running through all the books she had digested.
"Nothing? Your devious minds can't come up with a single thing?"
"But … they killed people," stammered Dean Thomas.
"So did King Arthur, yet we revere him."
The students still looked shocked that she could suggest such a thing. Slowly, a hand in the back went up. "Mr. Longbottom?"
"Better dueling techniques?" he squeaked.
"Beautifully put. 10 for Gryffindor. Dueling improved. Why? Survival on both sides. Voldemort had assembled the best duelers he could find, then trained them to be better, even better than the Aurors. In the first five years of the terror, the kill ratio was 14 kills to every Death Eater -- before they received their first serious injury." She let that depressing thought sink in.
"The more kills, the higher the rank, the less Voldemort was displeased with you. If you were a Death Eater, you really didn't want him displeased with you. He did not forgive easily, or lightly."
Author's Note: Short Chapter time again. It might be a bit before the next one, as they need heavy editing. I'll be at the Leaky Cauldron if anyone needs me.