Some ten minutes later, Arnold Granger stared bleakly into the men's room talking mirror.

"Bad luck?" It queried cheerfully.

"I just gambled away, my daughter..." He breathed out slowly. "Maybe, her being 21, it won't be legal.."

"Daughter, eh? That's new." The mirror yawned.

"He rolled three sixes! 6 6 6 – Who has that good of luck? Bloody uncanny. I rolled a one and a two and a three, the lowest score one can get."

The mirror scrutinized Arnold's nose hairs. "So what now? Therapy? Drinking? A dramatic leap from a tall bridge?"

"You're just asking to be broken, aren't you?" Arnold glared for a second, then sighed. "I will go home, and tell my wife that our debts have been paid, and that I will never gamble at cards or dice again."

"And your daughter?"

"Hermione." The man sighed. "I will tell her that the Malfoy's have decided to take her in and give her the schooling of her dreams. And that..." He paused, wiping the sweat from his forehead. "It's not a choice."

~~~~~~~~~~~.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Severus watched the muggle lose with a tight half smile. He wouldn't have bet on Granger to begin with, but the way Malfoy had won was indeed uncanny. When at last Arnold left the table, Snape did not give the beaten man so much as a nod of acknowledgment, let alone sympathy. It was a strange turn of events. Why would Lucius want to take in the Granger girl? Politics? After the Dark Lord's fall, Lucius had slowly been re-climbing the social ladder and courting favor. Sponsoring the girl would be a very publicized act of good will. But keeping her at the Manor? She could tutor Draco, true – the boy had potential but was too ambitious for his own good. He concentrated more on parties and networking than studying, and his grades were failing to live up to his earlier promise. Add to that, the boy had always despised Granger, and Draco would likely reform quickly just to escape her presence. Still, did not add up.

Unless...

Snape's eyes widened almost imperceptibly. Lucius had become the Dark Lord's closest confidant prior to the last battle. His apprentice, even, and more. Malfoy had once bragged, after a drunken night of torturing muggles, that even should the Dark Lord fall, he should rise again – in a form even more powerful, and that Lucius himself would be the key.

At the Last Death Eater meeting, the night before Dumbledore's army and the Aurors engaged Voldemort's followers, Voldemort had called Lucius up and performed a spell. The masked man had knelt before the hideous creature, kissing his hand as something dark and dank flowed into Lucious's heart. The deathly aura was so palpable, assaulting his mind, cloying on his skin and clothes, even Snape had had difficulty repressing a shudder. Malfoy's wife, Narcissa, had then come forward to be sacrificed. She took a dagger to the heart, willingly, or at least somewhat willingly, as the Death Eater's cheered.

Lucius had stood, and then Voldemort had rasped so quietly that only Snape and a few others could hear...

"Take only the strongest. She must pass all others."

Then the preparations for the fighting had begun...

~~~~~~~~~~.~~~~~~~~~~~~

Severus snapped back to the present moment. He found himself sliding into the seat across the smug Malfoy.

"Oh, do you want to play too, Sevvy?" Lucius smiled, caressing his dice.

Snape's cheek twitched at the horrid nickname, but otherwise he remained impassive. "Yes, I think I shall have a roll."

"Your stakes?" Lucius queried.

"I think..." Snape paused, inwardly tense, "I want the girl."

~~~~~~~~~~~~.~~~~~~~~~~~~

Nightingale sings inside its cage

Nightingale trills a merry tune

"Docent" says the boy with key

Nightingale sings no more

~An english translation of the Street-Game "Nightengale", as transcribed by the late Professor Axavius Slytherin in "Blood Legacy: The Once and Future Power in the Age of Decline". Only three copies of this book are known to remain, in the property of private collectors.