THE DEATH EATER

Part 1

Ch. 1 - Half-Blood

Severus Snape had a hard time feeling comfortable sitting on a couch that probably cost more money than his entire house. He felt that his mere presence was an insult to the room, so elegant and refined and so unlike his own pathetic figure scrawled all over the delicate tapestry. Next to him, Narcissa went on and on about the only topic that could interest her: blood purity and how the reforms being planned by Lord Voldemort were the only way to ensure that magic was not lost from the world. Severus did his best to listen politely, but was too fidgety since he half-expected Narcissa to suddenly realise that he was actually a half-blood and turn him out of the room.


Yet, even though he felt dirty and unworthy, even though the absurd fear that they would realise what he was always lingered somewhere in his mind, Severus would rather be at Malfoy Manor than at his own house. At Malfoy Manor, there was no screaming, no harsh words, breaking things and no shrieking. In fact, it was as though everyone there were making an effort to be as silent as possible, creating an atmosphere akin to that of a sanctuary. Severus appreciated the difference; at Malfoy Manor he was free to read or think without disturbances of any type— provided Narcissa did not get into her that it was her duty to act as a hostess.


Besides, the mansion was so evidently magical that Severus couldn't help but feel at home. At Spinner's End, everything was so hopelessly Muggle Severus felt as though the very atmosphere was sucking his magic dry. Malfoy Manor couldn't have been more different. All of the painting in the walls moved and occasionally whispered to each other, the tapestries changed colour and subject according to what best fit the host's dress and the room was illuminated by floating candles. In occasion of Christmas, a host of fairies had been brought and encased in glass balls which where then made to hover all over the ceiling and drift from one room to another. This way, the light in the room was constantly changing colour, turning from red to blue to green to warm yellow and then in a glorious combination of all. A humongous Christmas tree had been bewitched so snow was constantly falling on top of it, covering the silver ornaments which had been bewitched with a Glowing Charm with an extra layer of shine. Even the elf, who sauntered in and out at odd intervals to make sure the tea and crumpets were not running out, had had its head covered with mistletoe as a joke.


When he had left Spinner's End for the first time seven years ago, Severus had not dared dream that he would one day move around in such circles, that he would one day be intimately acquainted with one of the oldest, richest and most powerful families in wizardkind. He had never dreamt such mansions would exist, or even less that he would be invited to spend whole evenings over there.


But even now, when he most desperately wanted to forget his own origins, they piled upon him in a most overwhelming manner. He knew he was out of place, he knew he was not worthy of such honours. His robes were second-hand and carefully, though inexpertly, patched up. His hair was greasy and limp no matter what he did to it. He was awkward and inelegant. Why neither Lucius nor Narcissa seemed to realise any of that was a mystery to him. But Narcissa kept on talking, her white hands moving elegantly to give emphasis to her words, and she seemed not to notice that the young man sitting right in front of there shared blood with one of the Muggles she so detested.


"I'm so proud of Lucius for going out and doing the right thing, while so many others just sit back comfortably and wait for change to happen all of its own!" Narcissa was saying, her cheeks flushing pale pink with excitement. "That, Severus, is precisely what happens when magical blood is washed down and muddled— these are the times we have come to! Sloth and inaction. There is no more glory to be had for wizardkind, unless it is in protecting our old ways, the values that were instilled in us by our ancestors."


At that moment, the doors to the sitting room were thrown open and Lucius entered, still wearing his plain black Death Eater's robes, his mask hanging from his left hand. Narcissa stood up from the chair and promptly received him with a kiss.


"Tea, darling?" she asked. "Dobby!"


The house-elf entered the room pathetically sporting its mistletoe wig, carrying a cup of tea as though terrified that it might come to life at any moment and bite him. He put the cup reverentially on the coffee table and left. For a moment, Severus himself felt like a house-elf, trying not to get in the way of the pleasantries being exchanged by the young couple while he tried to lose himself in a couch that was probably worth more than he was. Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity, Lucius finally took note of him.


"Severus! I'm glad you could come for dinner. I'm awfully sorry to keep you waiting, I had other important matters to attend to." He half-lifted his mask to show what he was taking about, then grabbed the cup of tea that had been brought to him and stared at it in disgust. "It's filthy. How many times to I have to tell it not to touch our things with its filthy fingers?"


"Allow me, dear," said Narcissa, taking the cup. "Scourgify!" She performed the spell so perfectly that the cup seemed almost to shine in the dim torchlight. She then poured tea for her husband with a wave of her wand, and Lucius sat down on the couch right in front of Severus, who acknowledged him with an awkward nod.


"Well, Severus," said Lucius. "There is something I've been meaning to talk to you about for a while now." Narcissa waved her wand and Snape's empty cup was magically refilled. "But first, I want to ask you a question. Are you still serious about joining the Dark Lord's service once you graduate Hogwarts?"


Severus felt his heart jolt. This question could only mean that an important request was forthcoming. That meant that Lucius had actually picked him, that he had found Severus to be trustworthy and with enough merits to ask him to do something. It also meant that no one cared that he was only a Half-Blood; in the minds of the people that mattered, Severus was more Prince than Snape. He did not even need to think of the answer.


"I am," he said.


"Good." Lucius smiled. "I've always known you have your heart in the right place, my dear friend. Of course, with your brains, you'll do splendidly among us. What we want to ask of you is fairly simple, yet important. We want you to identify the Hogwarts students that may become Order of the Phoenix members in the future."


"That's easy," said Severus without thinking. "Potter and his friends, for once—"


"There must surely be more of them," said Lucius, waving a hand dismissively. "But I want you to do a full reconnaissance mission. I want to know their fighting styles, their weaknesses, family members, even their wand cores if you can get that information."


"It's no problem at all," said Severus.


"I know it's not," said Lucius. "But you're already well-placed at Hogwarts, and this is important information you need to gather. Plus, it would serve you as a recommendation to the Dark Lord once you graduate."


Severus smiled but didn't find anything to say. While his mind had quickly sauntered over to Potter as soon as the Order was mentioned, a small sliver of doubt started making its way through his mind.


What about Lily? She was noble (and therefore stupid) enough to want to join the Order. It would be such an incredibly Lily thing to do, believing it was her duty to save the world. He could probably warn her— but would she even talk to him? Maybe there was still time to patch things up with her. At the very least, he'd be in a position to protect her, even if she never thanked him for it. Knowing she was safe would be enough reward. Besides, being a Death Eater was a far cry from being the awkward kid at school. Perhaps that was all it took for Lily to notice him, since she already seemed to have a penchant for powerful show-offs. He'd show her how powerful he could be.


Lucius was still talking.


"— but it won't quite be undercover, since you've never made a secret where your allegiances lay, and Dumbledore is bound to be keeping an eye on you. Then again, you haven't been screaming about it like Mulciber and Avery. It's a miracle Dumbledore still accepts them at his school. Which reminds me, I've got a little present for you. You're going to like it. Elf!"


The house-elf returned into his room, his long, thin fingers now covered in bandages. He was carrying a book with a rag so he wouldn't sully the object with his filthy skin. Severus was immediately pleased to see that it was a rather large book. Lucius snatched the book from the house elf, who gave a tiny whimper and quickly left the room.


Lucius sat down on the sofa next to Severus, and opened the book. The pages were huge and the font was tiny— just as Severus loved them.


"It's about Occlumency," said Lucius. "I know you've been studying that for a while. But this is a rather special book. If you go over to this page…" he started carelessly flipping the pages, making Severus anxious. He just wanted Lucius to stop so he could read at least a couple of sentences somewhere on the book. The urge of knowledge was rising in him. "Ah, here it is."


Lucius had stopped at a page which did not contain letters, but a large, embroidered rectangle that covered most of the page as if it were a frame. There seemed to be nothing remarkable about that particular page, but Severus could feel intense and powerful magic flowing from it, and Lucius was making a point of angling the page away from himself.


"When you gaze into this page, it shows to you the thoughts in your head that are accessible to others," said Lucius. "Basically, it is a book that performs Legilimency on you, therefore giving you a relatively safe way to practise Occlumency." Severus's urges to peek into the book were immediately curtailed. Although he had a reasonably good control of himself, he still wasn't completely sure what the book would reveal, and didn't quite feel like finding out in front of Lucius and Narcissa.


Lucius passed the book to Severus, who quickly changed the page and began slowly leafing through it, taking in the old-book smell and the tiny font and the heavy, crisp pages. After quickly scanning the index he turned to a chapter on specialised compartmentalisation and began leafing through the pages. He didn't realise how shut off he became from the conversation until Lucius prodded him in the arm.


"Put that away for a moment, Severus, you'll be able to enjoy it later. I was telling you that Narcissa's cousin, Regulus, is coming over. He's at Hogwarts as well."


"Yes, I know him. And— his brother." Narcissa's nose immediately scrunched up as though she had just smelled something disgusting.


"Do not talk of him," she said. "The blood-traitor is no longer related to us."


Again all this talk of blood. Severus looked up, but Narcissa was too angry at her cousin to pay any more attention to him. Which was good, really, since that way neither of them was liable to pay attention to him.


"Don't worry yourself too much about it, darling," said Lucius. "It happens in the best of families. Why, one of my great-great-grand uncles was hanged because he ran off with a Muggle girl. Of course, such measures are no longer approved, but there are always ways of getting rid of unwelcome family members."


"Oh, believe me, if I ever find a way to do it, I will," said Narcissa, her nose scrunching up even further. As the conversation devolved into what measures should be taken by the Ministry to prevent more interbreeding, the talk quickly focused on Andromeda, Narcissa's sister. From there, they began talking about mudbloods, and for once Severus gladly joined in. Mudbloods made people like him seem much more legit by comparison.


Lucius had begun outlining the new government project that would allow wizards to go out of hiding and take up their rightful place over Muggles when a guttural bell rang somewhere in the mansion, and Narcissa quickly stood up. It was evident from the blank look on her face that she'd already heard about this project one too many times, and only kept listening out of politeness and consideration for her husband.


"That should be Regulus," she said. "You men go on to the dinning room, I'll go up to greet him. Lucius, straighten up your robes, dear, you look windswept."


Severus and Lucius stood up from their respective chairs and began walking down the familiar hallway into the Malfoy's cavernous dinning room. The hallway was long, with floor-to-ceiling windows on one side and a series of large mirrors on the other, so it looked as though it had almost no walls at all. The hallway usually relied on the moon and sun to give it light, but tonight the sky was dark and only a very soft silver glow illuminated their way.


As Severus walked down the passage, he caught a glimpse of himself in one of the mirrors and frowned. His hooked nose, inherited from his Muggle father, seemed to become longer and more prominent every day. It reminded him unpleasantly of the things his father had inherited him, including the greasy hair, flat feet and the tendency to explode when he was angry. Like the time I called Lily a mudblood, he thought miserably. He glanced again at his profile and felt the incredible urge to smash a mirror, but he knew he had to rein in and control his barbaric Muggle impulses. The feeling of awkwardness had come back to him in full force. He could feel his dirty blood crawling through his veins, slowly distorting his features until he resembled Tobias Snape most of all.


If only there was a way to cleanse myself and erase my Muggle ancestry… thought Severus, ashamed of himself, as he followed Lucius to the dinning room table, where he clearly did not belong. At least, not yet.