The Mark of a Death Eater : Sequel

Chapter Nine

It was almost time for the meeting. The house was full, yet eerily silent. The Dark Lord did not want to see us before the meeting, but he did require us to go alone after. First Draco, then I. I was all set to go down any second. This was the first time I'd see Snape again after my incident with the porcelain urn. All the other death eaters would be there. The same ones that witnessed my falter on the Astronomy tower. Bellatrix Lestrange would be leering at me throughout the entire meeting.

I took deep, even breaths, concentrating on the ticking of the little watch from Narcissa. Breathe, tick, tick, tick, breathe. When I had my breathing under control, I practiced Occlumency. 'Shut everything out, don't feel anything. You didn't read anything strange in a book about the evil You-Know-Who, it doesn't matter that he's waiting for you downstairs, your mind is clear...'

It didn't really help.

I realised that there was no point in trying to forestall the inevitable, so I left my room and made my way to the drawing room.

I hesitated for only a moment before the heavy wooden door, then turned the handle.

The first thing I saw was the fire at the end of the room, in the marble mantelpiece. It was burning high and crackling. That was the only sound in the room.

Before the fire sat a man, if you could call him that. At first, it was harder to see more than just his silhouette, outlined by the fire.
As my eyes grew accustomed to the lack of light, his features came into view. My heart beat up a million times faster than usual. I hadn't forgotten how he looked, but my mind hadn't done his horror justice. His skin was frightfully pale, his eyes with their red irises, and his slitted nose -just like a snake's. He tilted his head, just a tiny fraction of a tilt, when I walked in. That was enough to make me freeze.

"Miss Evergreen." A slow, cold smile spread across his face. "We were beginning to think Severus and Yaxley would arrive before you. Is this house so large? You've spent quite some time in it recently."
There was a small bout of laughter, I didn't look to see who it was from.

"My apologies my lord," I said softly, walking into the room.

My eyes were drawn immediately to a rotating figure in the middle of the room, but I managed to keep my gaze away from it. I didn't want to appear distracted.

Most of the long table was occupied. All eyes were on me as I scanned the faces of the people sitting straight in the chairs. Bellatrix, Rudolphus, Avery, the Carrows... Death Eaters and murderers every single one of them.

Well, except one.

Draco sat next to his father, an empty seat to his right. He caught my eye and I walked over to him immediately. I sat down ungracefully in the heavy wooden chair. Narcissa, seated next to her husband, caught my eye and gave me a tiny nod of her head. I interpreted that as Narcissa letting me know that I hadn't ruined anything. Yet.

In the polished surface of the table, I could see the reflection of the person hanging above me. I wiped my sweaty hands on my robes and looked up. The rotating figure I had avoided looking at earlier was a person. A woman, judging from her clothes. She was dangling in the middle of the room, suspended by magic, rotating slowly, as if she wanted us all to get a look at her from every angle. Her long hair hung down as she lay. To my left, Draco kept glancing up at her every few seconds.

When the woman's circuit slowly brought her face to me, I swallowed hard and dug my nails into Draco's hand very much unintentionally. It was Professor Burbage. I had just seen her that day, yet she looked so much worse for wear that she did in the morning. Tears streaked her face, leaving pale lines through the dirt covering it. Her eyes were lightly closed. I let out a breath.

The meeting seemed to drag. Snape and Yaxley came in just after I did, Snape not even glancing at me. He spoke about Harry Potter's plans for relocating on his sixteenth birthday, and I realized that far from satisfaction or even relief that this would be over, I felt sorry for Harry Potter. The feeling quickly disappeared when I locked eyes with You-Know-Who for a second, and an unpleasant swooping sensation that I acquainted with dread and fear filled my stomach.
Snape spoke slowly, as if to emphasize every word. He didn't laugh at any of the jokes that were made, he didn't smile. When he caught me looking at him, once, his face showed no emotion. I realized I wasn't angry at him anymore.

"My is it that the Malfoys seem so unhappy with their lot?" Lord Voldemort was saying. "Is my return, my rise to power, not the very thing they professed to desire for so many years?"
"Of course, my Lord, of course."
Narcissa inclined her head stiffly, and Draco's eyes kept darting from the ceiling to The Dark Lord to his lap. I kept my eyes on my lap. I was not a Malfoy, I did not need to feel guilty.
"My Lord," I heard Bellatrix say, "it is an honor to have you here, in our family's house. There can be no higher pleasure."
I glowered at my lap. It was not even her home. The Malfoy's sacrificed everything for nothing. I heard a jeer from The Snake regarding Remus Lupin marrying the Black's niece. An eruption of laugher echoed throughout the room, many taking great mirth in the Black's embarrassment. Draco say still beside me, and Narcissa even stiller.
"What say you, Draco? Will you babysit the cubs?"
The laugher heightened. Draco caught his mother's eye. She shook her head almost imperceptibly, and resumed her blank stare.
"Enough," Voldemort commanded. The laugher died at once.

Voldemort raised a wand and pointed it at Charity Burbage. She immediately began struggling against invisible bonds.
"Do you recognize our guest, Severus?" asked Voldemort.
Snape raised his eyes slowly to the woman. "Severus!" she begged. Help me!"
"Ah, yes," said Snape.
"And you, Draco?" asked Voldemort. Draco shook his head quickly, and stared at the table.
"But you would not have taken her classes," said Voldemort. "What of you, Emma?"
I swallowed hard and made myself look at the revolving figure of Professor Burbage. I nodded.
"Of course you do. You partake of all the classes at Hogwarts," he jeered. "Why don't you inform everyone who we have here?"
I swallowed hard and dug my nails into my arm. "Professor Charity Burbage. She teaches Muggle Studies at Hogwarts."
Voldemort stroked his snake. "Yes... Professor Burbage taught the children of witches and wizards all about Muggles... how they are not so different from us..."

Charity Burbage revolved to face Snape again.
"Severus, please..."

Those words... I had heard those exact words before. Those were the words of Albus Dumbledore, when he was atop the astronomy tower. His last words. Right before -

"Avada Kedavra."

The flash of green light illuminated every corner of the room. In my mind, a flash of light so similar, but created in a different night, burned.

"Severus, please..." Snape's face, dark and cold, his wand raised, a flash of green and my cries.

Professor Burbage fell with a crash onto the table below. Across me, several Death Eaters jumped. Draco fell out of his chair and onto the floor.
I sat straight in my chair, unmoving, a single tear running down my cheek, a very different scene playing in my mind.

"Dinner, Nagini," hissed Voldemort.

Dumbledore fell from the tower.
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