The Dark Lord sat on his "throne". It was a bronze chair with green cushioned seats and elaborate carvings of snakes (which had been custom-made). It was rusting at the edges, but he personally thought that it made it look more grand. It was around midnight, and his "friends" were sleeping in the guest rooms of his marvelous house. They had arrived a day early for the meeting, which would happen the next day. The Dark Lord smirked as he rehearsed in his mind what he was going to announce. The plan – it was fabulous. Absolutely fabulous.
8888888
"Lucius?" Narcissa's anxious and worried voice gave Lucius yet another stab of guilt.
"I'm here." He whispered.
"Oh, there you are. So, do you have a plan of some sort?"
"Well, kind of."
Her expression urged him to go on.
"There will be a meeting at the Dark Lord's new house. I have to plans. The first is to make her think that we are going there, and that you support her in what she is choosing to do. Then we will lead her somewhere else, tie her up or something of that sort, and then bring her back so Dumbledore can talk some sense into her."
Narcissa nodded at his words. "That sounds good enough. Thanks, Lucius."
"You are thanking me? I can't believe it. It's all my fault in the first place."
Narcissa opened her mouth to object, but decided to close it after seeing Lucius' depressed expression. She shot him a sympathetic look, and he looked away as another stab of guilt pierced him.
"So, when do we leave?" Narcissa questioned. It didn't seem like she really wanted to know.
"Tomorrow morning, at 7am. The meeting doesn't start until 10pm." He announced solemnly. "Go tell Bellatrix."
She nodded and disappeared into the trees.
8888888
Dawn cracked the edge of the young sky. The red of the sun stained across the clouds, creating a blend of watercolors. Against this marvelous background, three figures were hiking across the landscape. The first was a girl, with hair twisted into a neat bun at the back of her head. You could tell that they were all about the same age, but this girl seemed years older than the others – she was more mature in some ways. The second figure was a boy, who's hair was short and combed. He treaded across the terrain with his head down. He was fiddling with the hem of his coat nervously. The third figure was a girl. She was the most noticeable, because, unlike the other solemn figures, she was happy. She skipped and pranced and danced and laughed. She sang out loud to absolutely nobody. At first glance you would think she was insane – and maybe she was.
"We are nearing the Dark Lord's house – turn right, not left." Lucius whispered almost silently into Narcissa's left ear.
She nodded, mute from either fear or numbness. They held their breaths as they turned right at the crossroad. The crazy girl behind them didn't seem to notice – she just followed along, skipping all the way. They breathed sighs of relief. They were now further away from their doom. They had been walking for about 3 minutes down that wrong path, when Bellatrix stopped in her tracks.
"What's wrong, Bella?" Narcissa questioned, trying to look concerned.
"I think we've gone the wrong way."
Lucius felt his heartbeat quicken. "Really? How do you know?" he asked, genuinely curious.
"The snake statue. It's not here." She stated, almost in a trance.
Lucius felt his stomach do a flip-flop. The snake statue. How could I have forgotten? The statue was built by a farmer to warn Muggles about the dangers ahead – the haunted mansion – the Dark Lord's own home. Oh, how on Earth does Bellatrix know about this?
Narcissa and Lucius exchanged looks.
"Oh, Bella, I think you're right! Oh, we're gonna be late! We'd better hurry along." Narcissa didn't think her acting skills were good, but Bellatrix believed her, and immediately made a U-turn, and started running in the opposite direction.
"Now what do we do?" Narcissa muttered to Lucius under her breath.
Lucius didn't answer because he didn't have any ideas. "Let me think about it."
He spent lots of time thinking and thinking and thinking. His mind, however, refused to cooperate and remained empty. After masses and boxes of potential-less thoughts, he saw something in the distance. No, it can't be. So fast?
It was the house of the Dark Lord.
The roof of the house was an old dark grey, with cracks in certain spots. The windows were worn and a few panels were shattered. The wind was the whisper that would echo off the walls in that dark house, and the grumbling grey sky matched its eeriness. Anyone, whether Muggle or Wizard, could tell that this place wasn't safe.
"We're here! We're here!" Bellatrix squealed.
Narcissa's face went evidently pale, and she stumbled to the ground. Only Lucius noticed, for Bellatrix was already almost to the front door of the house. The last thing that Narcissa saw was her dear little sister's hand turning the doorknob slowly and carefully. Then, the world went black and she lost to her body's exhaustion and shock.
8888888
The panic came slower than expected. There were two things on his mind: how to save Bellatrix, and how to get Narcissa to safety. His body did what it was told. First, he carried Narcissa and made his way to the barn that he had noticed on the way – it was very nearby. He left her there and wrote her a note on what he was about to do:
Narcissa,
Your sister is in grave danger. Right now, it is not about whether or not she will become a Death Eater or not – it is about whether or not she will be allowed to keep her life. Only the Dark Lord has power over that. I will go to the meeting, which commences in about 15 minutes. When you wake up, be sure not to go anywhere. Take care, Narcissa.
Lucius.
He got up and left. Just like that.
When he was only a few meters away from the front door, he stopped at the sound of his name. He turned around to see Narcissa.
"I saw your note. So there really isn't any way to stop the "being a death eater" part?" she sniffed.
"Yes. Sorry."
"It's fine. Come on, let's go in."
"What? You can't come in, they don't even know you – you might die instead!"
"Oh, yes – I didn't think of that." She searched his face for ideas.
"There is one way." And then he explained his plan to her.
8888888
"Ah, Lucius. We weren't expecting you today. Who's that boy behind you?"
"Oh, he's my new servant from school – we had a bet and I won, so he has to follow me anywhere. Don't worry about him, he won't spill anything…"
he finished his words with a threatening smirk.
The Dark Lord laughed heartily. "I'm proud of your – evilness. Come, sit down – both of you."
Narcissa the boy shuffled toward the table behind Lucius, who strode confidently. Their act was pretty convincing – and successful.
"Now, let's begin with my master plan." The Dark Lord announced. "We have recently been out of evil witches and wizards to help us – this results in poor defense and offense advantages. So, I have developed a plan to abduct small children, or babies. They should preferably be orphaned, so there wouldn't be much notice about the disappearances. Also – "
Right at that moment, a young girl with frizzy black hair stepped into the room, and Narcissa the boy looked like she was going to faint – again.
"Who is this?"
"I'm Bellatrix, your greatness. That creature of yours refused to let me in, so I had to kill him. My apologies."
"Oh, that's quite okay – I've never really liked him, anyway."
Lucius stared in relief and shock at the same time – they were getting along quite well. At least she wasn't dead yet…
"And why are you here, Bellatrix?"
"I want to be a Death Eater."
The room was suddenly filled with gasps and murmurs of disbelief.
"Is that so?" the Dark Lord questioned, evidently amused.
"Yes, My Lord. I have studied everything possible to be studied about you and Death Eaters. I have also – "
"You are now a Trainee Death Eater, Bellatrix. We were just talking about how to recruit new wizards and witches for our team. Since you're so keen on proving yourself, why don't you perform the task yourself."
The Dark Lord ignored all the whispered objections and carried on. "I will announce now that all of the wizards sitting at this table will help this young witch - if she needs it." He finished his little speech and sat down.
"Oh yes, Lucius. The thing will take place in exactly a week, at midnight." He hinted almost casually. Narcissa the boy eyed Lucius suspiciously.
Lucius nodded. "Yes, my lord. I will be ready."
The Dark Lord nodded, too, in approval.
The meeting was over, and Bellatrix's life had been saved. But the nightmare had just begun.