Disclaimer: Harry Potter and friends belong to J.K.Rowling. kthks.
chapter 4:
It was on a fine morning, when the sunlight poured into a room through the window, when the birds were chirping happily, there was a slight rustle on a thick blanket covered bed. A figure came up from under it, shown a messy black hair. A figure sat up and rubbed away the sleep from his eyes. He yawned and glanced to his alarm clock. It was 10 o'clock. He yawned again before leapt up from his bed, revealing his tiny and slim body of a boy under a snuggly white-blue stripped pajamas.
He ran to the bathroom and brushed his teeth. He washed his face and hummed. After that he went to a cabinet to get a bowl and cereal box. Just when he opened the small refrigerator to get milk, he heard a little mewl and his small pet kitten brushed up on his leg, demanding his own little breakfast. The boy got another bowl and poured some milk on it before he poured the rest of it on his cereal.
Once the breakfast done, the boy thought of an activity to do. He took the small kitten up and sat on his comfy chair.
"Ne, Neko-chan," he said to his kitten. "What should we do today? Neko-chan, do you have an idea?"
A soft mewl.
"Hmm?" the boy tilted his head. "Playing tag with the other? Buu…buu…. No way!! I'm so tired because of yesterday's mission. No running around, neko-chan…. My feet are sore!" he whined.
Another mewl. This time the boy lifted up the kitten so they can look at each other. Their eyes meet and for a split second the boy's emerald eyes sparkled. He grinned widely.
"Waah… neko-chan is so smart!! Why didn't I think about it? Yosh!! We got to see it again, ne Neko-chan?? Let's go… let's go!!"
Hurriedly the boy stood up and went to the video player. He inserted a disc and turned on the TV. After a few moment, from the video player started the opening song of his favorite anime, Naruto.
He sat back on his favorite chair and with eyes full of admiration he watched his favorite character in Naruto, Sasuke Uchiha.
For about three hours the boy lived in his daydream accompanied by his beloved anime. That was heaven until the knocking on the door started and would never stop. The boy grumbled and glared to the door. With heavy steps, he walked to the door and opened it. He glared to the person behind it.
"Hello, baby brother. How are you today?" the person said.
"I hate you Blaise," the boy pouted. "You disturb me and Neko-chan's day. We're supposed to be relaxing."
Blaise laughed and without permission he went in. He walked leisurely and the boy followed him with a fast pace. The older boy sat on the couch beside the boy's favorite chair. Upon seeing his little brother's room, the older boy grimaced. He thought he never saw any messier room than his li'l bro's. but he couldn't do anything about it, so he only sighed.
Blaise looked on the TV before turning to his little bro and raised an eyebrow. "Naruto again, Harry? Don't you get tired of it?"
"I love Naruto." Harry sulked and glared at Blaise.
"Naruto or Uchiha?" Blaise teased, he knew Naruto enough thanks to his baby brother addict to this anime.
And Harry blushed.
Blaise laughed again. He then pat Harry's shoulder and said, "Go dress up little bro, do you forget that we have a meeting this afternoon? Father is waiting in the conference room now."
Harry sulked for another moment but then surrendered after seen the stern yet tender look his older brother gave him. Grumbling he went to his wardrobe and took out his 'on duty' clothes. An old Japanese traditional outfit. Harry was in love with Japanese culture, he copied the style of one certain manga to make his clothes. His family never complained though for certain amount of time they looked at him weirdly of his choice of style.
Done with his outfit, he grabbed his twin kodachi and slipped on his geta. Lastly he put on his cat mask to cover his face.
"What's the meeting for again, Blaise?" Harry asked. "Why can't daddy just go on with the meeting and leave me alone today?"
Blaise laughed and messed Harry's hair. "New recruitment, Harry. And you need to be there, so they know that you are one of the superiors. Done with your outfit, li'l bro?"
Harry nodded and lifted up his kitten and put him on top his head. Amazingly the kitten stayed still.
Blaise looked on his younger brother and shook his head in amazement.
"New pet again, Harry?" Blaise asked with a smile.
"Neko-chan the 10th is big already. I can't go on anywhere with him on my head anymore…. No fun!"
"So where he is right now?"
"Ummm….. he got married with Alecto's cat, so then I gave him to her."
Blaise hugged Harry. "It's really been a while since last time I saw you. I think you're getting busy with your duty now, hmm?"
Harry hugged Blaise back and then dragged him out of his room. "Now come on already. Daddy's scary when he's angry."
And Blaise laughed all the way out.
XXX
Harry was used to be stared at by people. He used to be the center of people attention due to his strange outfit. He also used to be the topic of whispers around him. But that's not what made him shock and left him speechless. It was because he was under scrutiny of a certain pair of silver eyes. A pair of eyes he already knew by heart. It amazed him to the fact that he would meet this person here, of all place, in his home. And that's saying something because his home was certainly not the place where that person should be.
Thanks to his mask, his expression was not shown to the world. After Blaise introduced him to all the new faces he followed his brother to sit on his throne beside his Father. Before he seated, he came up to his father and kissed his left cheek.
He saw his father nodded, approved of his arrival. And the old man said, "Ok, now we can continue to the next step. Since you all already agreed to be our personal assistant. Now it's time to decide your own caretaker. Pettigrew, if you please…"
Tom Riddle looked to the little man in suit who looked like a rat. Harry didn't like this person much. For him that person was just a liar, the one who can betray easily. He didn't have a clue though as to why his father decided to give an Inner Circle position to this man. But, not that he care anyway.
The man called Pettigrew stood from his seat and in his hand was a pile of papers. He coughed a little, demanding attention to all the new members, the soon-to-be-personal-assistants.
"Right. Now, here I have divided you into eight groups," Peter Pettigrew explained. "Since there are 58 of you in total, that means two groups will consist of 8 persons. Each member of Inner Circle, except Neko-san, will take one group under their wing. They will be the one who decide to whom you will be given, be it you will serve themselves or their underlings."
Inside his mask, Harry frowned.
"Every member of Inner Circle is handling different matter, thus they are experts also in different field. Therefore, after you pass your training, you will be their henchmen, so be prepared and learn well. They will be the one to set up your training schedule and punishment methods. They will also be the one to set the standard of your passing grade. So never compare your groups to any other. Because they will be totally different than yours," continued Pettigrew.
Harry frowned deeper. He thought of the possibility about a certain person's chance of coming out alive being a slave of every Inner Circle member. And none was good. That certain person shouldn't be placed under Alecto or Bellatrix, especially Alecto. They would sexually harassed him. Alecto was very fond of good looking men, while Bellatrix loves to break innocent beings with her addict into S&M.
Pettigrew was save actually, but no. Harry could not imagine that person to do only administration work. Oh no, that man would die because of boredom. With Rodolphus his chance was not good either. He would be a toy in his punishment time. Along with his brother, Rabastan, The Lestrange siblings were well known of their sadistic favorite game of cat and mouse. And said person would be their lovable mouse.
And with Junior, Harry shivered. Junior was the Head of Interrogation Division. He was likely in possession of every torture devices. And no, Harry would never bear to see that person befall upon said devices. Amycus always said that dungeon was a suitable place for every criminal. Harry could imagine Amycus would left him all alone in Dungeon without water and food for days and weeks as the punishment.
How about Snape? Well, Harry thought, Snape could be the best choice. The man was silent and had no sadistic desires. But, wait. Snape was an expert in science. That man likes to experiment with medicines and dangerous ingredients. And Blaise was a big no no. No one could imagine what could happen to any unfaithful member of Deatheater should they be punished under Blaise methods. Besides, Blaise was not stupid. In a very short time that man's true identity would be discovered.
Too absorbed in his own musings, Harry didn't realize that the new members were in the process to be divided into eight groups. Once he acknowledged his surroundings, he saw that the man he worried about already sat among a group. Harry saw the tag on the table that identified his group, it read 3. He glanced around him, among the other Inner Circle and looked for someone who held a paper with the matching number. He found it, and the one who wield it was Alecto.
Harry's eyes widened. The nightmare of every nightmare, he thought once he saw the satisfied smirk on Alecto's face.
"No!!" he spontaneously said.
And everything in movement came to a halt. Every pair of eyes turned to him, even that of his father's. Thanks to his mask, his blushing face was covered.
"No?" his father asked curiously.
"I want to take part in this thing," Harry heard himself said. He stared right into his father's eyes. "Why couldn't I, My Lord?"
"Why couldn't you, indeed?" his father turned to Peter Pettigrew, who gulped under his cold stare.
XXX
"No!!" a childlike voice disrupting the dividing process.
Everyone turned to where the voice came from. A person, unknown to the world whether it's a boy or a girl, wearing a cat mask and weird old Japanese clothes. All attention focused on him, or her. Including Draco's.
"No?" a silky question was asked by a curious Tom Riddle.
"I want to take part in this thing," the childlike voice sounded once again, with a whining tone in it. "Why couldn't I, My Lord?"
A surprise look dawned on the other's Inner Circle member.
"Why couldn't you, indeed?" Tom Riddle looked at Peter Pettigrew coldly.
The short, rat like man gulped. "B-but, I, I thought… well, umm, Neko-san works a-alone. Well, so… well," he stuttered.
A deep laugh was heard now. It was from Blaise. The handsome man seemed so amused with what happened right there. His laugh, somehow, decreased the tension in that room. Tom Riddle sighed and looked at Neko once again.
"Neko," Tom Riddle said. "Those people are not toys."
A grumble was heard under those mask. "I still want to be involved. I'm in Inner Circle. Why was I treated differently?"
"Well, you're a kid." Blaise offered a reason.
"And yet here I am, as one of you. I'm still a superior," Neko protested.
Everyone was silenced.
"Neko, you work alone," Tom Riddle said the last reason.
"Then, shouldn't I have my successor then. Seeing that my job is dangerous," Neko countered with calm, cold, collected reason. The childlike voice chilled those who heard it.
Silence again. Then Blaise and Tom exchanged glances. Blaise shrugged.
"Okay, Neko." Tom decided. "I will let you be involved. But you are not keeping a group. You will only have a person instead."
"And I will get to choose," the childlike voice whined again.
"Okay," Tom agreed.
Neko stood and lifted its hand. The pale finger pointed a certain direction. Right at Draco Malfoy. "Then, I want him."
Many reactions came from that single sentence. Draco was stunned, unsure about feeling happy or dreadful, Alecto Carrow, Draco's group's supervisor, scowled and hinted a glare to Neko, Tom Riddle sighed again, and Blaise chuckled.
"My, you know how to pick, Neko," commented Blaise. "You just stole Alecto's cutie. Just don't steal his life too. We still hope he will survive the week under your command."
And that sentence sealed the fate of one Draco Malfoy.
XXX
A.N. : This story was not beta-ed yet, and English is not our main language. So…. Well, you know what we mean, don't you? Lol. .;
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