Chapter 5

Bacon sizzled in the pan as Sira's blue eyes watched it cook carefully. She hated over-cooked bacon; it just seemed to lose its flavor and became too dry. With a flick of her wand, she flipped each strip over, satisfied with her work, and grabbed a few pieces of toast and buttered them rapidly. Footsteps came into the kitchen and came up slowly behind her. "Good morning, my lovely," Scabior whispered into her ear as his hands placed themselves on her hips. She smiled and put down the toast.

"Good morning," she breathed back. "Breakfast is almost ready; just let me take off this last pan of bacon." Scabior looked at the plateful of already-made bacon and gave her a puzzled look.

"Are we going to be feeding an army this morning?" he asked as she moved the last of the bacon onto the pile. She let out a little laugh as she shook her head.

"You can't have too much bacon," she said happily as she set the plate on the kitchen table. "Can you get the toast?" He let out a chuckle as he picked up another plate and handed it to her. He was behind her again, wrapping his arms around her as if to never let her go or to protect her from anything that could ever harm her.

"So what are your plans for today?" he asked as he rested his head on hers.

"Other than eating all of this bacon and being with you?" she questioned with a cocky smile.

"Other than that," he said back proudly.

"Well," she sighed as she released herself from his arms, "I need to tell the Dark Lord about one of his newest Death Eater's performance last night." She sank down in the chair, which she was standing behind. "He was awful and he didn't even seem to want to be there. I was shocked because, usually, the newest are the most willing to do the task that he assigns them." She grabbed a piece of toast and threw it on her plate. "I mean how hard is it to hear three barks and a howl?"

"That was the signal?" Scabior asked in disbelief as he sat down in the chair to her right. "'ow could 'e not 'ear something like that?"

"That's what I thought," she growled. "You can't possibly miss that." Unknowingly, she shoved a large bite of toast in her mouth before she realized what she was doing. "Sorry," she mumbled as she dropped her eyes into her lap, embarrassed by her action, especially since Scabior was there. Her cheeks reddened as he gazed at her longingly.

"You don't 'ave to be sorry, beautiful," he whispered seductively as her eyes returned to his, hers showing her love and her care for him, his showing his understanding and his desire. "You never 'ave to be sorry."

The feeling of Scabior's arm around her shoulders felt so good and relaxing to her as they stood at the threshold of the Malfoy Manor. Sira had told Scabior that he didn't have to come with her but he insisted to. He would go wherever she went and she would do the same for him. She couldn't stand to be away from him, he made her feel oaky again, comfortable with herself. Her eyes gazed at him, thinking of how lucky she actually was to have a man like him.

The door of the house opened for them to see Lucius standing in the doorway, his cold, grey eyes fixed on Sira, studying her as he tried to hide his craving for her. she looked at him, Scabior's arm still around her shoulders, as she tilted her head to the side a little, trying to keep herself as calm as possible. Scabior knew of her and Lucius, he had seen her memories. His face hardened with his disgust towards Lucius and his hand clenched on Sira's arm, as if to tell Lucius that she was his, no one else's. Lucius' attention shifted to Scabior and they started to glare at each other, ready to throw a punch at the other if needed. Sira couldn't decide whether she should smile because of their silent battle or be fearful.

"Lucius," she said flatly, "this is-."

"Scabior," Lucius finished in a vicious snarl, "your fiancé." Scabior stood up a little straighter and put his chin up a bit into the air, giving him a more powerful and yet cocky appearance. She could see the hatred burning in Scabior's blue-grey eyes as he stared at Lucius. "It's nice to see you again, Sira," he said, a bit kinder, as he focused on her, "all happy and carefree with your fiancé who doesn't deserve a woman as wonderful as you are."

"That means a lot," Scabior growled, his voice thick with his sarcasm, "'specially coming from a man like yourself."

"Strong word for a petty thief," Lucius hissed icily as he focused on Scabior.

"At least this 'petty thief' is a better man than you are," Scabior retorted smoothly as his free hand clenched at his side and his grip on Sira tightened.

"I doubt that," Lucius spat with a cruel laugh. "You're not even a Death Eater."

"I may not be a Death Eater, Mr. Malfoy," he growled as Sira looked up into his face to see it coated with anger, "but the Dark Lord 'as more faith in me than 'e does in you." A muscle in Lucius' jaw twitched as he fought the urge to snarl. He was disgusted with the choice that Sira made; the choice of selecting Scabior over him. "And I'm more loyal to 'im and, most importantly, I'm more loyal to the ones I love."

Then, Lucius looked as if he was slapped in the face and then there was a long silence. They stood, not speaking, just glaring into each other's eyes. Scabior kept his composure, not ever fading or slipping up against Lucius. He was stronger and more determined than Lucius would ever be, and he was also more protective.

"Lucius," she whispered as her eyes softened and she gazed at him, "I need to speak with the Dark Lord." His attention shifted from Scabior to her as the look in his eyes changed. He moved to the side of the doorway and allowed her into the house. As she walked down the hall, she heard the shuffle of feet and the slamming of the door.

It didn't take long before she felt a chill run through her body, the chill that always told her of the presence of the Dark Lord. "Volkov," his cold voice said, filling her ears with her name. She turned to face him but he was already standing in front of her.

"My Lord," she said kindly as she bowed low to him. His red eyes fixed on her blue ones as she stood up, straight and proud, and looked back at him, her eyes calm. "I need to speak with you about the mission the other night."

"Volkov," he hissed, silencing her, "I do not wish to speak of the failure that occurred the other night. We will never speak of it again. It was a series of mistakes that should not have even happened." His evil, snake-like face was blank but his eyes showed his disgust. She shook her head at him slowly.

"I do not wish to speak about the mission, my Lord," she stated proudly, "but about my partner during the mission, about his performance." A dark smile grew across his face as he focused even more carefully on her.

"Really?" he growled icily, sending a shiver down her spine. "Your partner told me that you did not do your part, the part that I personally assigned to you." Rage flared in her chest, causing her eyes to flicker with her old fire.

"My Lord-," she breathed as the fire in her eyes grew brighter but the Dark Lord raised his hand, signaling her to quiet.

"He told me only lies, Volkov," he said flatly. "He never spoke one word of truth to me about your or his performance during the task. He spoke that you did absolutely nothing but it was he that did nothing, wasn't it?" She nodded as her answer. "You had to carry his weight and complete the task alone. He will be punished severely for going against orders and lying to me while you will be rewarded for your honesty and your dedication."

"Thank you, my Lord," she said softly as the fire left her eyes.

"And I trust that you will be ready for another task," he hissed as she gave him a baffled look. "I will give you details later, my little wolf, but I will tell you that, soon, the Ministry of Magic will belong to the Death Eaters and you will be one of the very few that brought it to its demise. I know you will serve me well."

"Yes, my Lord," she whispered as she bowed again and he turned and headed away from her. With a turn on her heel, she headed out of the house the way she had come, her footsteps echoing off of the walls.

As she reached the door, it opened for her to see Lucius limping into the house. His white-blond hair was in a disarray, worse than it was when he was in Azkaban and some of it was red… blood-red. Her eyes grew wide as he dropped his hand from his face. The hand was covered in blood as he looked at it, his eyes and his face shadowed by his hair. "Lucius," she exhaled, shocked to see him in that state.

His head snapped up to look in her direction and she was horrified at what she saw. Around his right eyes, a dark circle was forming, causing his eye to become swollen gradually. Bruises bloomed all over his face, coming in black and blue. Blood streamed down his chin from his swollen lip, which was split open, but for Sira, the worst thing was the look in his eyes. It was a look of helplessness mixed hate. He didn't say anything to her and then soon walked away, trying to mop up the blood on his face with his hand. She gave him one last fleeting look and stepped out of the house.

Her blue eyes found Scabior in an instant after she closed the door behind her. He had a triumphant smile on his face and a twinkle in his eyes, showing his victory. She rushed up to him, her face showing her astonishment and also her fear. "Scabior," she panted lightly as she looked at him, "what did you do?" He scoffed and put his arm around her shoulders and led her away from the house.

"I taught 'im a little lesson," he said cockily, "and, luckily, 'e learned very quickly." She shook her head, not knowing if she should scold him or just let it go. She thought that it would be better to just let it go. Her body moved closer to his as they walked down the walkway, heading towards the gates of the manor. Her mind wandered to the words that the Dark Lord had told her, wondering about what she would be doing. Her stomach churned with a feeling of excitement. The feeling brought a smile to her face; she was ready for whatever it was. She wanted it. She longed for it.