Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, but the story is mine. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.
Percy found himself near the edge of a healthy forest. He strained his eyes to quickly adjust to the absence of light and saw several masked figures emerge from the shadows. Percy walked cautiously towards them and armed himself, but was careful to hide his wand in the folds of his robe.
"Tonight is the night you will prove yourself Weasley," A hissing voice spoke from behind him. Percy spun around and was met face to face with the Dark Lord.
"Name my task," Percy murmured as he bent down on his knees and kissed the hem of Voldemorts' robes. As Percy stood up, he heard Voldemort laugh loudly, his voice echoing off the trees making even the air around him seem evil.
"Yes, tonight is your night Weasley. You will prove to us all that your true loyalty is to me!" His voice was full of energy and sinister amusement. Percy tried to keep his emotions in check. Whatever he needed to do, whatever he needed to suffer through, he would do it. He was not weak. He would prove himself.
"Anything Master, I want to prove myself loyal of your presence," Percy's voice trembled ever so slightly but he covered it well. Voldemort looked at him briefly before walking slowly around the circle of his faithful servants.
"Tonight we shall attack a muggle village. This is nothing more than a practice run for the massacre that has yet to come." He spoke with an authority and airiness that sent chills up Percy's back. "I want to give you all a taste for blood. The blood of the innocent, of the guilty, and of the weak. You are here because I deem you worthy of my presence. Consider this, my gift to you."
Voldemort looked around at the masked faces and then stopped at what Percy suspected to be Bethany. He walked towards her, and she towards him.
"My dear, soon you will play the most important role of any of my servants. You and you alone will be responsible for the downfall of Harry Potter." Voldemort looked at her proudly as Bethany just bowed modestly and kept her head down. Suddenly, almost violently, Voldemort turned towards Percy and spoke fiercely.
"Go, now, and kill those filthy muggles that sleep to soundly and naively in their houses. Their stupidity and inabilities will cost them their lives tonight and tomorrow you shall all awake and find yourself alive with a new passion and power." Voldemort glared meaningfully at Percy and continued, "Tomorrow, after you have tasted the power that comes with taking a life, you will realize that you've made the right choice. And you will be faithful to me until your pathetic lives no longer serve my purpose."
Percy could not breath. He could not think. He could not move.
He hardly felt someone push him but it was enough to knock some consciousness back into him as he turned and walked directly towards the edge of the woods. He could already see the lights from the village at the bottom of the hill. He refused to give in to the fear that was suddenly flooding through him.
He felt a new sense of determination flood up from within and he pushed himself to keep walking. He picked up his pace as he descended down the hill and kept that pace as he hit the paved road that curved through the little houses. He could hear the loud footsteps of the others behind him and he kept his feet moving. Percy briefly looked over his shoulder long enough to see the Death Eaters breaking off slowly one by one and entering the houses. Some by brute forced, others by magic; nonetheless they were all entering for the same reason.
Percy reached the house that was sure to haunt him should he live through the night. It was a cozy blue two-story that was completely dark inside. It was surround by a short white fence, which Percy just stepped over as he approached the front door. As he reached for the door knob he heard a loud shrill scream from up the street.
He turned to look and saw an older muggle woman running from her house wearing a purple night gown and a terrified expression. A Death Eater followed closely behind and cast a spell that caused a green jet of light to shoot out of his wand. The spell hit the woman on the back and she fell to the ground, lifeless. The Death Eater began laughing hysterically before returning to the house to check for any others. Percy felt his stomach turn as he looked at the woman's body lying in the street.
Percy turned back towards the door and cast a quiet spell to unlock it. The heavy oak door swung open and he entered noiselessly. He then turned and closed the door behind him just as silently and began to explore the seemingly empty house. He wandered through the kitchen, the living room, the dinning room and the loo but found no one. He headed back towards the front of the house. He stopped at the foot of the stairs and looked ominously up them.
The adrenaline that had been pumping through him before was gone now and was beginning to give way to his fear and compassion. He shook his head and hoped that his uncertainty would fall out but it didn't. He began ascending the stairs, slowly, one at a time but even at that pace he was all to quickly at the top.
He looked in between the two dark corridors and tried to pick one to walk down. He chose the right side and tip toed towards the nearest door on the right. He stood in front of it for a brief moment and gathered his thoughts. He knew what he had to do. He was ready. He was ready to take a life.
'No, I'm not. I'm not ready,' Percy thought to himself before another thought hit him. 'Is anyone ever ready to take a life?'
His thoughts were interrupted by a small cough from behind one of the doors. He looked around stupidly but didn't see anyone. He looked back and tried to focus on the door in front of him. It was just a simple white door with nothing particular about it. But behind it, whoever lie behind it, was going to suffer so Percy could seal his alliance to the dark side. He took one more deep breath and put his hand on the door. He bit his already bleeding bottom lip even harder as he silently turned the handle and threw open the door.