Not Your Usual Veela Mate

Mayhem at Hogwarts - It Begins

Wednesday, Sep. 18

"Lucius, what news do you bring?" Lord Voldemort asked, looking down at the proud aristocrat kneeling before his throne.

"Harry Potter was placed under the Cruciatus Curse earlier today, my Lord," Lucius answered, doing his best to keep his face impassive.

"Who dare do such a ting?" Voldemort hissed, becoming rigid with anger. He hated it when his people became created on their own time. They were meant to do his bidding, not to think for themselves!

"Pansy Parkinson, my Lord."

Voldemort paused; at least it hadn't been one of his followers. Still, the girl was the daughter of one of his men, and considering how eager she had been to receive his mark… "What is that old fool Dumbledore doing? Has he expelled the girl yet, or is there some way to salvage the situation?" If the girl had been carted off to Azkaban she was of no further use to him.

"Dumbledore has done nothing, Master, claiming that it was not her fault," Lucius reported dutifully, waiting tensely for Riddle's reaction.

For a second time that night, the Dark Lord paused. Dumbledore was standing up for one of the Slytherins? Against Harry Potter? What in the world was happening at Hogwarts, and why hadn't he been informed sooner? "Tell me what happened," Lord Voldemort ordered, getting up from his throne like chair and began to pace as he listened to Malfoy's report.

"Earlier today Pansy Parkinson was pranked along with Ronald Weasley. The pranker used the Face-Switch Potion, my Lord, causing the bodies of Parkinson and Weasley to change places. Understandably, neither of them was happy about it. For some reason Pansy Parkinson put the blame on Harry Potter, and she used the Unforgivable on him to teach him a lesson. Dumbledore managed to get his staff to agree to not punish the girl due to the 'nature' of the potion," Lucius said, suppressing a snarl of anger at Dumbledore. The blond had in no way or shape forgiven the Headmaster, and Lucius had a feeling it would be a cold day in hell before he did.

Voldemort frowned. "What nature of the potion?" he asked, feeling slightly perplexed. He knew of the potion, of course, had even used it a time or two when he was attending Hogwarts, but he had never heard of anyone suffering from side effects.

"According to Dumbledore, the Parkinson girl was unable to help herself since she was affected by not only her own temper, but that of Weasley as well."

"What utter nonsense! And the teachers actually believed him?" Voldemort asked, not believing his ears.

"Yes, my Lord. Up to date, only Severus and I have spoken up on Harry's behalf. The rest of the professors are only too happy to allow the matter to be forgotten," Lucius said with a sneer. He hadn't forgiven McGonagall for her callous way to handle the situation either.

Voldemort slowly paced around his chamber, pondering the things he had been told. "What are your thoughts, Lucius?" he eventually asked.

"I know that Narcissa promised Draco to the Parkinson girl while they both were mere toddlers. I was never happy with her choice of wife for my son. Apart from the fact that I found it highly unlikely that the Veela in Draco would ever pick her for a Mate, I have been increasingly unhappy with the girl's manners and attitude. She does not possess a refined bone in her body. She is spoilt and wilful and her only ambition in life is becoming Mrs. Malfoy," Lucius said, making a face of disgust as he remembered the few times he'd been forced to spend time with her. He had always felt a large amount of pity for Draco who had to spend most of the year in the same place as that leech.

"Would she be a loyal follower to me?" Riddle asked, getting to the point he was interested in.

"I doubt it, my Lord. She has been a leader of sort in Slytherin due to her closeness to Draco, but she has done absolutely nothing to promote interest in you and your cause. All she ever talks about are the parties she is going to host as Mrs. Malfoy, spending more time talking about her clothes and jewelleries than developing strategies to sway those not fully loyal to you."