How to be a Death Eater in 5 easy stages

I don't own any of the characters (except Grubious Dross), 'cos they all belong to Joanna. I was thinking of offering to buy them off her, though - do you think she'll accept a postal order?

Thanks to:

Digital Darknezz: Thanks, that was my favourite bit too! Hope you won't be put off by the lack of laughs in the last part…

Forgotten-dreams: Yeah, I guess so, sorry 'bout that, but I conceived it as a series of 'scenes' which would be tied together at the end - hopefully all will become clear…

Kenna Hijja: Sorry about the bun - hope you didn't splutter on the screen! I 'spose I was aiming for very, very dark humour, so hope I succeeded. BTW, you're on the right tracks, but you may not know everything yet…

Angelika: Hmm, you're right, I did intend it to be a funny piece, but it kinda got darker on me as I went along (difficult to avoid with Draco!) As for his revenge, as you suggest, I think he probably sees his mother's death as justification for what he's doing - and whether that's good or evil you should find out if you read on…

Slytherin-angel: Happy to oblige! - here it is…

Lee: Thanks - I had fun writing the Wizard quotes - hope you like the last one. I'm not going to give anymore details, you can fill in the blanks in whatever way takes your fancy! I might write a vignette about Narcissa yet, but maybe not - suffice to say that she didn't know she was a Mudblood until quite recently, otherwise she'd have never been able to convince Lucius. I hope I manage to explain it a bit more in this instalment…

Foz: Here it is then…

A/N: Last part! I can't believe how fast I wrote this, but when you've got a story on the brain, you've gotta get it out, or you won't get anything done.

There's a lot of talking in this part, but it's necessary to tie in all the threads. I did intend to write a fairly short comical piece when I began but I always get this mad urge to complicate the plot and it turned into a bit of a counter-espionage saga.

I'm afraid I've kind of lost the funny a bit in this part too - couldn't quite bring myself to mock when things have gotten so dark. You'll have to be content with a bit of sardonic irony instead.

Oh, and contrary to what I've said before, I've suddenly become addicted to reviews.

SO REVIEW!!! (Please?)

Step 5: Trust no one

When Salazaar Slytherin abandoned the school he had helped to found, he thought to pursue his ideals elsewhere and in an atmosphere more sympathetic to his beliefs. There are those who would argue that there was, at heart, an integrity and nobility in this action and they may not be entirely wrong; he abandoned Hogwarts, but the school did not forget him, and he left behind a powerful legacy. The house that bears his name still thrives, and thrives despite mistrust and the actions of a few of its graduates. Why? Consider this: without fear, you cannot know bravery. Without suspicion, you cannot know trust. Without misdirection, you cannot know truth. It is only when you know both sides that you can truly make a choice.

From: Hogwarts: A History

Once to every man and nation comes the moment to decide

In the strife of Truth with Falsehood, for the good or evil side

James Russell Lowell

Muggle Poet.

Five Death Eaters returned. There was a wildness about their eyes, a kind of muted shock intermixed with suspicion and they were quiet - too quiet for men who had apparently struck a blow against Dumbledore's fortress.

As they approached their waiting comrades, the reason became clear. They were bruised, they were battered, they were definitely bowed, and in their midst floated the bloodied corpse of Grubious Dross.

They stood a little apart, a tableau of silhouettes against the torchlight, seemingly unmoved by the gasps of shock and the hissing, slow-boiling rage of Voldemort.

Draco, watching quietly from beside the unconscious body of Snape, merely revelled in a sensation of relief so great that his knees trembled. When he had command of himself, he knelt quickly and as stealthily as possible, passed his wand over Snape's head whispering,

"Enervate!"

As Snape stirred, the frozen tableau around them shattered and excited voices and demands for explanations broke out, fighting to be heard in the sudden, shocking noise. Careful to place his body between Snape and everyone else, he bowed lower and placed his mouth against the Professor's ear.

"You've been asleep for an hour and I've been sitting next to you the whole time. We never even left the clearing."

Snape, who had stiffened at the sound of his voice, turned his head and gazed up at Draco. The dark eyes were shadowed, enigmatic, catching transient flashes of red from the flickering torches. Draco couldn't read their expression, were they puzzled? Accusing? Did he even want to know? He had to be content that Snape merely blinked and said nothing. It was enough for now.

Standing quickly, Draco strode over to join the excited group. He manoeuvred himself to the front, vaguely surprised that the others moved aside to accommodate him as thought silently acknowledging his right to be there. He wasn't sure what he felt about that.

"…the boy was right about the wards." That was Goyle Senior, his voice sounding hoarse as though he had been shouting.

Draco was aware of eyes flicking to his face, but he ignored them, concentrating on the words. It was Avery who spoke next.

"…we got through all right, but then…" he paused, anger darkening his face, "We were ambushed!"

"What!?"

That was Lucius, outraged, shocked, but his eyes glanced to his son's face and back again.

Avery was almost shouting, his rage evident, "That accursed BOY. He was there - I don't know how but…there were others with him - Dumbledore too. Before we knew it, there were hexes flying all over the place. It was a bloody MASSACRE. Grubious got caught in the cross-fire."

There was muttering, suspicion…

Draco spoke quickly, "Potter!", he hissed, ignoring the reflexive gasps of shock, "Potter. Damn him. DAMN HIM. How did he know?". He hoped he sounded convincing..

"That…" came another voice, one that cut through the murmurings like a dagger through flesh, "…that is what I would like to know. He must have been warned." Voldemort at his coldest and most frightening.

Silence.

This was the danger point. It always had been. Draco had known it would be, he could only hope he had played his part well enough. If not… He tried not to shudder, his nerves stretched tightly like fine wire.

Shock and realisation on the faces around him, dark suspicion dawning in their eyes. Those eyes, all of them, calculating, dangerous, moving from face to face. Together, seemingly in concert, they moved to Draco's face…rested there for an indifferent moment…then focused accusingly on something behind him.

Slowly, painfully, hardly daring to breathe, Draco turned…and stared at the silent, solitary figure of Severus Snape.

"Snape?" The Dark Lord's voice was soft, but there was a threat behind the steady tone that struck terror in every heart. The Death Eaters unconsciously drew back.

The Hogwart's Professor, however, was unperturbed. He glanced at Draco briefly, then strode forward, unhurried, confident, the suspicious men around him scattering like startled birds. He looked Voldemort straight in the eye.

"I did not do this thing. I have always served you faithfully. Besides…" a perfect touch of embarrassment in his voice, "I was…asleep."

The mutterings paused, a considering silence followed.

Then Lucius, of all people, spoke up, "That is actually true," he said, sounding almost disappointed, "I saw him myself. Draco was with him."

Draco nodded vigorously, trying not to seem too eager.

"He wouldn't have had time," finished Lucius with difficulty, as though he had razor wire in his throat.

Time to deliver the coup-de-grâce

Before anyone had time to recover from this new development, Draco gasped, loudly and theatrically, drawing everyone's attention.

"It was a set up!" he cried in tones of amazed outrage. "It must have been! How else could they have known?"

The murmerings started again, this time somewhat confused and uncertain. Draco worried briefly that he was moving too quickly for them, and fumbled for his next words. Luckily, Snape had been paying attention.

"Explain yourself, boy!", he barked in his best classroom-voice.

Draco, very nearly starting to enjoy himself now that the most pressing danger had passed, began to wring his hands and pace in a tight circle.

"I should have known", he said, as though to himself. "I'm such a fool. I should have been suspicious…I mean, how could I have found out about the wards so easily, when even SNAPE didn't know?" He flung an arm dramatically towards the unruffled Potions Master. "Idiot, IDOIT", he added for good measure and had to resist the temptation to strike his brow.

He risked a glance towards Voldemort, who was looking slightly less dangerous, but slightly suspicious nonetheless.

"Calm yourself, boy," he said, "do you believe you were duped?"

"I must have been," Draco replied miserably, "but I don't understand…I mean, how could anyone have known? I haven't told anyone I'd joined you. I've kept the Dark Mark hidden. I…I haven't even told my friends…" he trailed off, as though horror struck.

"My friends…" he stage-whispered, just in case anybody hadn't caught up yet.

Then, knowing he had his audience riveted to his every action, he turned his head sharply, unerringly found his target, and glared accusingly into the eyes of Goyle Senior.

Voldemort hissed. His eyes gleamed with a kind of savage pleasure.

"Goyle?"

"I…I…I…"

The Death Eaters scattered as Voldemort advanced on the cowering man.

…and Malfoy catches the snitch. The crowd goes wild…

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They walked back towards Hogwarts in silence, their pace leisurely, and they almost, perhaps, presented the picture of two men enjoying a companionable dawn stroll. Draco, however, could feel the intense frustration and curiosity radiating from Snape in waves. He knew the questions would come, and come soon, it was just a matter of time.

In the event, Snape managed to rein himself in until they had reached the faint, chill shadow of the stone staircase that led to the massive wooden doors of Hogwarts Castle. He stopped, staring resolutely forward, his face faintly illuminated by the rising sun. Draco waited patiently.

"What are you doing?"

The question, when it came, was more direct than Draco had expected, but also more circumspect. He could interpret it in any way he pleased, it seemed. But Draco didn't want to play that game right now – instead he threw the question back at Snape,

"I could ask the same of you…"

Snape turned then, his dark eyes considering. "You know," he stated. "You know about…me, I mean. Where my loyalties lie."

Again, the caution, the faint tinge of distrust

"I do," stated Draco baldly. He expected the Professor to fence back, lightly, probingly, so was taken completely unawares by the directness of his next question.

"And where do your loyalties lie, Malfoy?"

How to answer that question? He couldn't of course. He stayed silent, unmoving.

Snape seemed unsurprised, he probably even understood. When men carry great secrets with them, the habit of silence becomes deeply ingrained.

Yet…understanding there may have been, but it did not stop Snape from trying again,

"Are you working alone?"

More silence. Perhaps Snape intended this as a test, Draco didn't know and didn't ask.

And yet again…

"Does Dumbledore know?"

This one he could answer with no danger. He almost felt as though he owed Snape at least part of the truth, in any case. Not that the answer would be very informative…

"No."

"Why not?"

Draco almost, almost smiled. He had to give Snape credit for sheer dogged persistence, if nothing else. Instead, he hid his expression and remained mute.

Snape sighed, ran a hand over his head and looked down at his feet.

"You are determined to be mysterious, in fact," he stated, the acid, sardonic tone that his students expected from him back in his voice. Draco for one was glad to hear it. The Professor was not finished with him yet, though. He looked Draco in the eye and with a seriousness quite unlike his usual tones, and with something akin to hesitation, said,

"Perhaps you can answer this question then? – although you are under no obligation to do so…" he trailed off, completing the enquiry with raised eyebrows.

What now? Draco merely shrugged, "If I can".

Snape nodded, as though this was enough and began with difficulty and averted eyes, "Did Narcissa know?"

It did catch him by surprise after all. He couldn't prevent a wince and felt the burning stare of Snape sweep over him and away again. Despite this, it's possible that he surprised Snape in his turn by his candid reply.

"Of course she didn't! Do you think she'd have been stupid enough to marry Lucius if she had?"

Snape closed his eyes briefly at the bitterness of the question, not oblivious to Draco's use of his father's name. He sighed and suddenly looked unutterably weary.

"No, I suppose not. But I still don't understand…what happened?"

Draco turned abruptly away, unable to face those penetrating eyes. His back to Hogwarts' doors, his face towards the Forbidden Forest, he walked a few paces forward and emotions unbidden and unwanted writhed under his skin like snakes. He paused a minute longer, then started to speak, his own weariness evident,

"My…Grandfather…I mean, my mother's father… " he began, then paused as if suddenly realising what he had said. He glanced back at Snape and shrugged ruefully, "… actually I don't know what to call him now…he…"

Snape's brows had drawn together - concern and a dawning realisation in his face.

"It doesn't matter, just tell me."

Turning back, Draco continued, "He was obsessed with his blood-line, obsessed with the purity of it, I mean. More so than Lucius in some ways. He…well, I can only guess this, but he must have married my Grandmother for the same reason. The begetting of heirs. The continuation of the Pure Blood." He spat the last words out as though they choked him.

"What happened was ironic, of course, if he'd known the shock probably would have killed him. There he was, always off 'conducting business', making contacts, flaunting his success to the right people. There she was - young, bored, left to while away her time in that mouldering manor in Norfolk. She tried to make friends, of course, she met a nice young Muggle…well, you can guess the rest."

"Yes."

"We wouldn't have known, of course, except…"

Snape actually winced at that, "Oh, please don't tell me she…?"

Draco turned then, smiling humourlessly at the sheer stupidity of it all, "Of course she did. She left a bloody journal. It was in the attic for years until Mother found it last October. I think…I think she must have told Lucius herself…". He stopped. He couldn't think about that part, imagining her face…

"Are you in danger?"

Draco shrugged. Strangely enough it was something that had never bothered him.

"Lucius managed to keep the truth from Voldemort, he thinks he's kept it from me…I don't know, it may be that he's more pragmatic than I gave him credit for. And of course, he trusts me."

Snape snorted, the sound incongruous in the quiet courtyard.

"Foolish man," he muttered, half to himself. A pause, "Of course you hate him."

It was a half-question, the eyes curious again, searching for answers.

Draco smiled, "My dear Professor, there are very few people in this world that I don't hate. Lucius just happens to top the list."

He was tired. He still had a lot to do, and this conversation was wearing on him. He walked passed Snape, not even glancing in his direction, and started up the steps.

"Malfoy."

He paused.

"I'll let you play your game. I won't tell Dumbledore."

It was what he had hoped for and the response was heartfelt and sincere.

"Thank you."

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An hour before breakfast, in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, a no less serious, but far more interesting conversation was taking place.

Two boys faced each other across the drab and dirty room. One pale, one dark. Mirror opposites, like pieces from a game of chess. Not pawns, but not Kings - at least, not yet. Something in between…

"You took quite a risk."

"So did you. You couldn't know how many men Voldemort would send, or even if he would send any."

"I…did know." There was something of constraint in the tone.

"How?"

"I'd tell you…but then I'd have to kill you."

The pale boy grinned. His eyes may have flicked to something half-concealed under the messy hair of his companion, but he didn't pursue the matter.

"Dumbledore didn't suspect anything?"

"Why would he? He trusts me implicitly," and there was definitely something of an ironic shade to the words.

"I still don't quite understand why you won't let him in on this."

There was silence for a moment. The dark haired boy, taller than his companion, but less graceful in his movements, ran his fingers through his hair and paced, frowning,

"He's…Dumbledore has been at this a long time. He has plans for me. He has plans for all of us. Perhaps…perhaps I want to make my own plans." He stopped, looked up, "it's my fight. It's always been my fight. I just…choose to take control of what happens. I choose my own allies. Besides…" a small self-deprecating smile, "…I'm more ruthless than Dumbledore is."

The listener snorted softly in amusement,

"I don't think I've ever met anyone who was less ruthless than you are, Potter…"

"Malfoy…"

"…except for me."

"I don't doubt it for a second."

There was silence again. It was strangely…comfortable.

"Have you learned anything useful?"

Draco considered for a moment. He thought about the past few days and about the men he had encountered.

"Have you ever heard the phrase, 'the banality of evil'?"

"I…yes. I think it was used by a Muggle. Something about war crimes and Nazis."

Draco didn't know what Nazis were, but he'd heard the phrase once and it had stuck in his head. He hadn't known what it meant until now.

"It perfectly describes them, Potter. The Death Eaters, I mean. They wear a scary mask, but underneath they're as foolish and as ordinary as anyone else."

Potter gazed at him, frowning, then his face slowly cleared.

"That…helps"

"I thought it would."

"I'll sure you have some stories to tell…?"

Draco opened his mouth, thought about the initiation, the Baby Powder, the sneering, and closed it again.

"I'd tell you…but then I'd have to kill you."

He encountered a glare from the green eyes, but he'd endured far worse and only widened his own grey eyes innocently.

Potter wisely let it drop.

"Any damage?"

"Dross is dead. As far as I can make out, he got caught between a vomiting hex and a choking curse and…well you can guess."

"Yuck."

"Quite. Goyle is…incapacitated, but I'll save that story for a rainy day. You might need cheering up at some point."

"What about Snape?"

"He's alive."

"Well, that's…something. I wonder for how much longer, though"

Draco nodded seriously in response. "Voldemort was right about one thing, his currency as a spy is seriously devalued. He's not really trusted by the Inner Circle so I doubt that Dumbledore will get much use out of him anymore."

"That's why I have you."

"Stop smirking, Potter, you're not the one with the Dark Mark on your arm."

"Sorry, O great and terrifying Death Eater."

"You are really full of yourself, aren't you? I still don't know why you had to make it so complicated. I mean, the fake wards, the little ambush…What did you gain, exactly, from last night's little escapade?"

"Three things. Firstly, and most importantly, you gained the trust of Voldemort - not easy to do, but I knew if anyone could do it, you could,"

"Thanks…I think."

"You're welcome. Secondly, Voldemort is now more wary of attacking Hogwarts than ever. Thirdly, if I'm not mistaken, it managed to throw a little dissension into the ranks of the Death Eaters."

"You're not mistaken."

"Good"

"I think…"

"Yes?"

"I think, Harry my boy, that we might just make a Slytherin of you yet."

Anyone chancing to look into Moaning Myrtle's bathroom at that moment, may have been surprised to see an ironically raised eyebrow on the face of the Boy-Who-Lived.

If they had stayed a little longer, they may have seen a pale-haired boy exit the bathroom with a jaunt in his step and a smirk on his face.

THE END

(or is it the beginning…?)

A/N Well, I made it. Hope you enjoyed. I'm not seriously thinking about writing a sequel, though, as I have another story brewing in my head at the moment. Oh, and PLEASE REVIEW!!! I've not been writing all that long, and I could do with the encouragement...