Author's Notes: I noticed that seems to delete the page breaks I had previously been using, so I switched them to the lines. The quote refers to Severus more than anything else.

The Middle of the Beginning

Stitch in your knitted brow
And you don't know how
You're gonna get it out
Crushed under heavy chest
Trying to catch your breath
But it always beats you by a step, all right now

Making the best of it
Playing the hand you get
You're not alone in this
-Hope for the Hopeless, by A Fine Frenzy

"My Lord, we have the boy."

"Very good, Bella." Lord Voldemort's hand reaches down to pet Bellatrix Lestrange's hair. "You have put him in the dungeons, I assume, Lucius?"

"Yes, My Lord."

"Perhaps your son would like to fetch him?" It is not a question, and Lucius knows it.

"He would be honored, My Lord." Of course he would.

Voldemort looks around the room. "Come here, boy."

Lucius' son moves forward. Voldemort does not know how Lucius managed to convince him to join the Death-Eaters before he graduates, nor does he particularly care. It would almost have been a shame to kill the boy. He appears to be the perfect balance of his parents, possessing all of Lucius' beauty and his mother's frailty. Narcissa has always seemed almost sickeningly malleable, especially when compared with her oldest sister, and the boy promises to be no different.

Perfect, Voldemort thinks. Lucius is getting old. He would need replacing soon. "Give me your arm."

The boy is not stupid, something he inherited from both parents. He gives his Lord his left arm, the one with the newly branded Mark, which is red and swollen. Voldemort can taste the pain the boy feels when he handles the newly marked arm.

The boy proves to be made of stronger stuff than his frame would suggest, managing to stifle his yell as Voldemort touches the Mark with one long finger. Voldemort can taste and feel the pain as the muscles in the arm tense under his grip. He relishes in the boy's suffering.

"Go fetch Potter." Voldemort lets go of the arm. "The rest of your comrades will be here shortly. We must not delay their...entertainment."

Voldemort smiles, and the boy retreats, keeping his body bowed forward as he walks backward towards the door

Voldemort continues to smile. Lucius has taught the boy well.

Severus immediately knows it is an emergency. The Dark Lord knows it would look suspicious if Severus were seen running out of the school. The last time Severus had been called through the Mark during the day was the day James and Lily Potter died.

He wastes no time in informing the Headmaster. "Albus."

The Headmaster's face appears in the fire seconds after Severus calls him.

"Severus, is Harry there?" Albus' face is creased with worry.

"Potter? He is no doubt causing chaos in Hogsmeade with his Gryffindor cohorts as we speak. Why would he be with me? I'm being called, I must leave."

Severus turns to gather his mask and cloak, but Albus' voice stops him. "Severus, Harry hasn't returned from Hogsmeade. His friends came to me. They haven't seen him in several hours."
"What do you wish me to do, Albus?" Severus turns to face the Headmaster again. He knows it is not a coincidence that the Potter boy has disappeared around the same time his Mark burned during the day for the first time in sixteen years.

"Don't let him die at the hands of the Death-Eaters. You know how to notify me of your whereabouts. I will be there as soon as possible. And Severus? I have reason to believe that Draco Malfoy has taken the Mark. Good luck." The Headmaster's head disappears.

If Severus was a more physical, extroverted person he would have screamed, maybe kicked something. He had had suspicions, granted, that Draco would succumb and take the Mark. But he had seemed to be denying his father, telling Lucius that he was sure he'd be of much better use to the Dark Lord once he graduated from Hogwarts. And besides, Draco had told Lucius, wasn't their graduating year the perfect opportunity to get closer to Potter and his gang of stupid friends?

The Headmaster had not seen fit to make an excuse for Draco to have to stay at the school. Severus had had no choice but to allow Lucius to take Draco to the Manor for a week, as Lucius had requested. To the Headmaster, Draco, son of a known Death-Eater escapee (and the one who currently had Fudge under Imperius) was useless. In the end, was there anything to be gained by trying to dissuade Draco from the path his father had laid out for him? The Headmaster threw away Draco's life.

After all, Severus thinks somewhat bitterly, what worth had the life of another somewhat Dark Slytherin child in the scheme of things?

Nothing

Voldemort is in his element.

He sits on his throne-like-chair as the magically enlarged room is filled with his loyal servants. The new arrivals are quickly told about Potter's whereabouts by the Death-Eaters who had been present when he was brought in.

Voldemort can feel the nervous excitement, the tension in the room, and basks in it. He knows how quickly those emotions will change when he allows his followers a chance to play with his prey.

And then Voldemort will kill him, just as he intended too all those years ago.

He relishes the thought that, after the boy's death, he will have won. Dumbledore and his rag-tag band of wizards will lose hope quickly once their 'Chosen One' is dead. The Ministry is already under his command. The whole world will be his.

And all there was in between him and his goal was the Potter boy.

He would be taken care of. Very soon indeed.

Severus, following the pull from his Mark, Apparates just outside Malfoy Manor. He should have expected to be called here. But still, he must wait until he is within the wards and sure the Potter boy is in the Manor before alerting Dumbledore. He knows the rules. The specialized Tracking Spell Albus had cast on him (which will, once Severus activates it, make Albus feel a pull he can follow while Apparating, much like the Dark Mark) is only to be used if the Potter boy is captured. He cannot be sacrificed.

At least, thinks Severus, not yet.

The wards surrounding Malfoy Manor are keyed to only let people carrying the Mark into the Manor whenever the Dark Lord is in attendance, so Severus gets through the gates without difficulty. It will be difficult for the Aurors and even Albus to break through. The Dark Lord isn't stupid, despite his increasing madness. He always protects himself well.

It is a short walk from the gates to the Manor, which is brightly lit, the fading sun directly behind it. It seems perfect, innocent, like something out of a fairy-tale. Severus has long ago learnt not to believe in impressions, surface pictures. It is why he's still alive.

He opens the front door. It is easy to locate where his fellow Death-Eaters are gathered. The noise draws him to the magically modified meeting room. The Dark Lord sits in the middle, surrounded by his minions. Severs carefully Occludes his mind, leaving enough carefully selected emotions and memories on the surface to hide the shield. He walks forward, careful to bow when he is ten feet away from the Dark Lord. He continues to walk until he is directly in front of his master. He kneels, kissing the hem of the Dark Lord's robe.

"Ahhh...Severusss. You have finally decided to join us?"

Severus keeps his head bowed in deference. It is a great honor to be spoken to by the Dark Lord. "The fool of a Headmaster kept me, my Lord."

The Dark Lord laughs coldly. "Of courssssse, my pet. He still believes you are loyal to him?"

It is the same question every meeting. It is always the same answer.

"Yes, my Lord. He becomes more gullible with every passing year. He seemed to think the Potter brat was with me. As if I would seek out his company."

There, if the Dark Lord has Potter, he would take that opening to announce it.

"How...ironic, Severusss. In fact, the Potter boy is in Lucius' dungeons. We will deal with him as soon as Draco brings him in."

The news of Draco's loyalty was not unexpected, but Severus still feels a spike of anger. Likewise, the news of Potter's capture was expected, but Severus feels panic and hopelessness well up in his mind. He forces excitement through his shield. A true Death-Eater would not feel hopeless after hearing the news of the imminent death of the Boy Who Lived.