House/team: Ravenclaw

Class subject: History of Magic (Leader)

Story category: Bonus 3/3

Prompt: [Setting] Crypt (Theme: Evil Conquers All)

Word count: 1597

Notes: Voldemort wins AU/ Death involved

Your Worth Is Dead

He wanted to prove himself to anyone who would pay him attention. It was one of his many faults. His overwhelming desire to be something he wasn't. Maybe that's how he became friends with them in the first place. Most likely it's the reason why he was currently groveling to them to let him be their Secret Keeper.

"No one would bother me about it," He started carefully, "They all know Sirius would be your first choice."

He told the Dark Lord he would try to convert them but the longer he sat on the idea the worse it became. This was the easiest plan. Then he could just give up their location willingly and get on his lord's good side. He could show that he wasn't the coward everyone made him out to be.

But why didn't they question it? His heart hurt a little at the fact that his friends trusted him. But that didn't matter. The Dark Lord said they had to go so they had to go. At least for right now it would just be Lily and James. Maybe Sirius and Remus would make it out of this alive. He had to prove himself.

The crypt was dark, cold, and damp. Which was fine when he was in his animagus form but as a human, it seeped into his bones and made him shake worse than normal. The reality of what he was about to do sunk in.

He tried to rationalize it in his head by telling himself that they made fun of him their entire school life. That they shouldn't have stuck with the good guys when the Dark Lord was clearly more powerful. Yeah, Peter wasn't the one in the wrong they were.

"I told you not to come back unless you had them, Wormtail." Voldemort seethed.

"I found them, My lord." He tried to steal his nerves. "I know where they are."

Without any more prompting, Peter told the Dark Lord where to find the Potters. He didn't spare it another thought. Not once did he even think about little Harry and what would happen to the child. He only thought about how to prove himself as much as Lucius, Bellatrix, and the others had.

They had completed their tasks and now it was his turn no matter the cost.

He hated waiting in the crypt, but he had strict orders to stay until his lord returned. The other death eaters were free to leave if they wanted. But he had to stay. Peter was a liability since he was so pathetic and weak. The others were supposed to bring him food but instead, they tormented him. He had to shift into his rat form and scrounge for food to get by.

"He better find them," Lucius hissed at him. "Or you'll be paying with your pathetic life."

"He'll find them," Peter mumbled back.

"The plan would fail if our Lord doesn't find them," Bellatrix walked up to him. Peter scrunched into himself even further. "If the plan fails then you'll be the first to go."

But it had been a few days with no sign of their lord. Peter sat in the dark crypt waiting to know whether he could leave or if he'd join the people who were buried there. He was terrified but that was nothing new. Despite telling his Lord about the Potter's whereabouts he was still a coward. Lucius took the dementors to Diagon Alley and Bellatrix hunted the Longbottoms herself. Peter was just a pawn. He couldn't have done anything himself. He was only useful to the Dark Lord because he had the connection to the Potters. Waiting made him wish he didn't know them at all.

He couldn't have killed them or convinced the Potters to switch over. Not that it mattered since the Dark Lord had planned to do it all himself since the very beginning but it still made Peter feel pathetic. Everyone else that surrounded him was ruthless. They killed without a second thought and Peter was sat in this crypt being eaten alive by guilt.

If he had only made different friends at Hogwarts then he wouldn't be locked in this dumb crypt surrounded by dead people who gave him nightmares. Every little sound had him jumping to the point where he tried to escape using his animagus form. But there was a spell that kept him inside no matter what he did.

He was trapped in the crypt like the Potters were trapped in their house. Both at the will of the Dark Lord. But Peter had faith that he'd be able to leave and in a way, the Potters wouldn't have been able to. Except they would only be able to leave in death while Peter hoped he would be alive for his escape. Not that it was really an escape per se but he'd at least be somewhat free. As free as a servant of the Dark Lord could be.

"Why do they need to die?" Peter hadn't asked before but as the days dragged on his curiosity began to crumble.

"Because they're a threat." Bellatrix circled around him, a knife in her hand. "And if you lied to the Dark Lord then they win and not us."

"I didn't lie!" The knife grazed the skin on the back of his neck.

"Then why isn't he back?" Lucius stood up to join Bellatrix. "We should have heard something."

"Maybe he's waiting for the perfect moment?"

"Tell me where they are," Bellatrix demanded.

"I'm only allowed to tell the Dark Lord no one else." He whimpered. "That was my one order."

"Our Lord could be in trouble so tell me so I can help him." Bellatrix pushed the knife further against his skin. He wondered why she was using such a muggle tactic instead of her wand but the searing pain of the blade messed with his head.

"If he was in trouble I'm sure we would know," Peter mumbled as blood dripped down his back.

They sat there for hours going back and forth. Bellatrix and Lucius inflicted pain upon his body and mind using different methods. Peter tried to focus on the water dripping somewhere in the crypt. He would prove them wrong. He had too. This was a test to see if he would well be a rat. No matter what they did he wouldn't fail.

"You can stop now," Peter's head whipped up to see his Lord come from the shadows.

"My Lord," The other two said at the same time.

"He was true to his word," Voldemort put his finger under Peter's chin. "Thank you for being a loyal follower, Wormtail."

"Thank you, my Lord," He rambled out. "I would never lie to you, my Lord."

"Make sure his wounds heal while I deal with the Potters." Their Lord apparated away. Lucius scoffed and left to get supplies to cover Peter's wounds.

"You're lucky," Bellatrix spat out. "You were about to break and he saved you."

"I wouldn't have broke." Peter could feel the tears falling down his face. He knew he was lying. His tongue was heavy in his mouth with regret. The guilt he faced the past few days was for nothing since they were just toying with him. Now his friends would die. He wouldn't have broken just to save himself but he should have.

Not that it mattered how long they tortured him. The information had to be given up willingly. They knew that and wanted to hurt him. See if he was weak enough to use the location of the Potters to get out of his pain. He proved himself against their stupid test. For now, he wouldn't end up being an addition to the crypt they locked him in. Maybe he wasn't as much of a coward as he thought he was.

If he had lied it would have made things worse. At least they could die now and not in the war that was to come later. Little Harry wouldn't have to grow up in this cruel world, Lily could finally rest instead of worrying over the next day, James didn't have to stay up all night on watch. Peter was doing them a favor. He was sure of it.

"You're sure they're all dead, My Lord?" Bellatrix asked cautiously. "Even the child?"

"Yes," He sneered. "We're free to enact the plan."

Peter watched in horror as the world turned. Death was at every corner as Voldemort took over the ministry. Everyone was at Voldemort's mercy. Several Order members went into hiding but were being found every day. Their bodies added up and some were kept as trophies in the crypt the Death eaters used to hide in.

He had helped them win but it didn't feel like it. His friends were dead and the rest hated him. To the Death eaters, he was just a sniveling rat they could use to get what they wanted. But in that dark crypt where bodies piled up, he showed that he was more. He wasn't a coward and they had needed him to make this happen.

Voldemort won because of him. The world was theirs because of him. Lucius tried to take some claim, Bellatrix tried to make him cower, but Peter gave them the hint that sent everything over the edge.

He was alive while everyone else was dying. Peter had won. He was important. They shouldn't have laughed at him so really, they did it to themselves. He proved himself.