Heaven and Hell

12th Chapter - Game Over

(August 1979)

Severus tapped the fingers of his right hand on the table in an unending staccato. Little finger, ring finger, middle finger, index finger. Not the thumb, though. Again and again. He hadn't even noticed when he had started with it. But he knew why he had. He was worried.

Serena had left a while ago in need of fresh air. Severus had watched her staggering out of the hall, hardly being able stop himself from grinning. She had a small, slim figure, which looked great in the violet dress she was wearing, but didn't help her ability to hold her drink at all. She was fully aware of her weakness, so Severus didn't often see her drink and if she did, she usually contented herself with a sole glass of wine. Today, however, she hadn't been able to exercise prudent restraint without affronting other Death Eaters. Severus had found it extremely ironic, not to mention funny, to watch her wavering steps. Usually she appeared to control even her tiniest movements; now she walked without much command of her limbs, desperately fighting to not lose her balance.

This had been over an hour ago and Severus wasn't amused anymore. He hoped that Serena hadn't hit on the idea to Apparate home. This could be mortally dangerous. If she didn't fully concentrate, she could easily spread her molecules over several counties. But then again, perhaps she had simply collapsed somewhere and fallen asleep.

Since he couldn't stop worrying, Severus finally rose from his seat, heaving a barely audible sigh, and went looking for her. The Death Eater sitting opposite him, who had frequently raised his glass to Severus during the last hour, didn't even notice the leave of his drinking partner and simply raised his glass to an empty chair, muttering incomprehensible words to himself.

Outside, Severus found quite a few drunks lying dead to the world, but Serena wasn't among them. Severus combed the adjoining hallways, his worries steadily increasing. After what seemed an eternity he finally spotted her in a dark corridor. Whatever he had expected to see when he found her, it wasn't this. Serena wasn't alone. She stood very close together with Lucius Malfoy. Malfoy was kissing her as if he wanted to suck her tonsils out. He held her in a tight embrace with his right arm, while his other hand fumbled with the skirt of her dress.

Thunderstruck, Severus stared at the scene. When Serena moaned, he spun around and hastened away. He couldn't believe what he had seen. It was an open secret that Malfoy wasn't a faithful husband, often amusing himself with ever changing floozies. But Severus had never thought that Serena of all people would fall for him. She was Narcissa's friend, after all. She was no brainless chick who would throw herself at a man just because he was able to pay for an exclusive dinner or buy her glittering trinkets. Severus had always been firmly convinced that Serena couldn't stand Lucius Malfoy. Most of the time she avoided him, and if she couldn't help being in his company, they always unleashed their venom on each other. But apparently this had only been a smart ploy to deceive others.

A jolt of jealousy flashed through Severus - not a completely new sensation. The first time he had felt it had been when he had watched Serena dancing with Black at the Valentine's Day ball. The way they had looked at each other had hurt him more than he had thought possible. Suddenly he had become aware that a mere friendship with Serena, albeit a close one, wasn't exactly what he wished for. The abrupt end of Serena's affair after only one date had made him happier than it probably should have in view of Serena's apparent grief about it. The joy hadn't lasted long, anyway. Soon Severus had realised that the disaster with Black had thoroughly cured Serena of any romantic feelings. She hadn't shown interest in any males again, least of all in him.

This was small wonder, no woman in her right mind would. He simply wasn't what women would think of as attractive: long and gaunt, greasy hair, and a big, crooked nose. Not to forget his tendency to make cynical remarks that many people found insulting. He knew that he didn't attract women. Severus had accepted the fact that he had to pay to get any female attention long ago. If he attempted anything, Serena would certainly run away, screaming - or worse, laughing. Proficient at controlling his emotions, at hiding everything that was going on inside him, he successfully concealed his true feelings from Serena.

The conviction that he wouldn't stand a chance with her didn't change the feelings inside him one iota, though. And so he waited, secretly hoping that Serena might one day see behind his repulsive appearance. He patiently waited for her to realise that she didn't need to look for someone to make her happy because she had already found one who was willing to do so, and this one was right under her nose. Severus waited for a miracle.

But miracles didn't happen, and Serena didn't seem to seek male company. Now he knew why. She wasn't looking for a man, because she had already found one. Malfoy, of all men on earth!

Frustrated, Severus buried his face in his hands. And again someone else had done what he didn't dare, and had got the woman who should be his. First Black, now Malfoy. Why were others the only ones who found the way to her heart?

'Because you're a coward, and have never let her know about your feelings for her,' a reproachful, nagging voice answered in his mind, a voice that he had heard way too often.

Severus started to empty another mug of beer in order to drown the voice, determined to follow the example of the Death Eater opposite him and drink himself into oblivion.

* * *

Serena's mind reeled, vainly trying to take in what happened. This couldn't be! Malfoy was married to Narcissa. How dare he touch another woman, how dare he kiss her! Force himself on her!

She wished she had her wand, but it was still in the Assembly Hall. She could vaguely remember having put it in a pitcher, but not for what reason. An inexcusable blunder, which she bitterly regretted now.

'I'm never drinking so much again!' she vowed to herself, but this didn't help her current situation either.

With disturbing clarity she could discern the taste of beer and whisky that Malfoy had brought into her mouth. Again, she attempted to protest, regardless of the fact that his tongue still prevented her from pronouncing distinct words. The attempt resulted in an inarticulate noise, which Malfoy promptly misinterpreted, pressing his body even closer to her. He had pulled her skirt up and reached under the hem, touching the bare skin of her leg.

A wave of disgust and nausea jolted through Serena when she felt his hand on her thigh. For a second, she imagined his reaction if she gave in to the nausea and vomited all over him, but then she suppressed the urge to throw up and just bit her teeth together with all strength she could muster. Lucius jerked his head back in sudden pain.

The foul taste of mixed spirits in Serena's mouth mingled with the metallic flavour of blood, but she didn't mind. Fresh air filled her suffocating lungs after what seemed to have been an eternity. With a tinge of satisfaction, Serena watched a few drops of blood trickling down over his lower lip, crossing his chin and staining the lapel of his expensive black robe.

A heavy blow made her ears ring. "You li'l bitch!" Malfoy shouted at her, slurring his words because of his hurting tongue.

"Speak for yourself!" Serena snapped back. "How dare you touch me! Let me go!" The right side of her face was burning from the slap, but at least Malfoy had taken his hand from her thigh. "Don't you think of Narcissa for one second?"

"All 'e time. It's her wish that we'd get along better, and who am I to deny my wife anything?" He grinned insinuating, but with the blood in his face the grin distorted into a hideous grimace.

"I'm sure that she didn't mean it that way. And you bloody well know this!" Serena tried to wriggle out of the narrow space between Malfoy and the wall, but his grip became more tight and painful, making her wrists feel as if they were being clamped in a vice.

"I'll tell you what," Malfoy said, a new cloud of his alcohol-stained breath washing over Serena's face, "Every time I see you, you're ill-tempered."

"So you've noticed the connection," Serena answered sourly, having no difficulties giving her voice a particularly ill-tempered note.

Malfoy ignored her reply. "And I know the reason for your bad mood, sweetheart. I bet Snape has no clue how to give it to a woman properly. This must be truly frustrating in the long run."

"That's none of your business, even if there was anything going on between Sev and me."

Malfoy snorted contemptuously. "Don't tell me that he'd let you live in his house without taking advantage of the situation. What kind of fool do you take me for?"

"Just because you're an unscrupulous, selfish bastard who has his brain in his crotch doesn't mean everyone is. And if you don't take your paws off me at once, I'll hurt you with the greatest of pleasure." Serena currently had no idea how to do so, but she made an effort to have her last words sound especially threatening. Malfoy was rather unimpressed, though.

"Whatever you say," he dismissed her denial, apparent in his tone that he didn't believe her. "I'll show you how it's like to have it on with an expert. You'll certainly enjoy it more than anything Snape could do for you."

Serena doubted it and helplessly watched as his lips came closer again. She fought the upsurge of panic; losing her nerve wouldn't help her at all.

Before Malfoy could capture her mouth again, she bowed her head and banged it against his face in a desperate attempt to free herself. Tomorrow she would certainly have a headache, but with the amount of wine she had drunk, she would have got it anyway.

Malfoy's nose made a crushing sound, and he released the iron grip on her wrists to feel for the damage done to his face. Serena didn't wait until he recovered and turned sideward to get away from him. When he grabbed her by her arm to hold her back, she rammed her elbow into his stomach. Malfoy gave a new wail of pain and sank down on his knees, panting for breath.

Serena tottered away a few steps and then yelled at him, "You bastard! If you ever try that again, I'll kill you! And I'll tell Narcissa what a great arsehole she's married!"

She turned and fled back to the quadrangle as fast as she could. There, she wouldn't be alone. If Malfoy should follow her, he would not be able to corner her again without witnesses. Arriving outside, she leaned against a wall, waiting for her heartbeat to slow down.

How could he! Malfoy was drunk, but that wasn't a valid excuse to betray his wife and force himself on another woman. On her. She had never made a secret of her dislike for him, so why had he chosen her? Just because she happened to be there, alone, and struggling with the effect of to much alcohol in her veins, which made her an easy prey? Or was it her dress, hugging her figure and showing too much skin? Did it convey the message that she was a loose woman?

When she looked up, she caught the gaze of a Death Eater, standing swaying in a corner, holding a bottle of whiskey and casting lecherous glances at her. Serena remembered her arrival. When she had entered the castle, she had received a lot of admiring looks. She had enjoyed the attention then. But now she wasn't so sure about those looks being admiring. Rather greedy and lusting. A cold shudder went down her spine. Here were dozens of men who would kill without batting an eyelid. They wouldn't stop at raping a drunken woman either.

Nausea rose up again, fed by the alcohol in her body, the still vivid memory of Malfoy's almost-rape, and the awareness of being surrounded by dangerous wizards and being practically helpless. She didn't have the strength to suppress the retching feeling any longer and didn't fight when the content of her stomach forced its way out. For once she was grateful that Narcissa had insisted on pinning Serena's hair up.

When the heaves finally subsided Serena raised her upper body and looked around. Almost no one had taken notice of her outburst. The Death Eater who had stared at her with unconcealed interest had gone away. The idea of approaching someone who could start to spit like a fire hose again wasn't exactly enticing.

Nonetheless Serena didn't feel like staying any longer. After a moment's hesitation she roughly wiped her face with the sleeve of a snoring man lying against the wall a few steps away. The sickness was subsiding, but a growing fatigue replaced it. Not bothering to clean up her mess, she hurried back to the Assembly Hall, intending to get her wand and then to leave.

* * *

Severus was still brooding over the injustice of life when Serena came back into the almost empty hall. Her hair was in slight disorder and her dress looked dishevelled too. The memory of Malfoy kissing her came back to Severus' mind. His brain added an image of Malfoy running his hands through Serena's hair and all over her body to cause this dishevelled look. Sullenly, he took a long swig of beer.

Pretending to ignore her, he secretly watched her groping along the table and looking into the mugs and pitchers with increasing bewilderment. What was she doing? Trying to find out which was hers? If she still felt like drinking, she could always have a new mug.

To his surprise she suddenly reached into one of the pitchers and took her wand out of it. Then she turned towards him.

"Sev, I wanna go home," she said, apparently making an effort to not mumble too much.

"Ok, then go," he answered brusquely and thought, 'Malfoy'd love to bring you back, wouldn't he?' He took another gulp of his beer.

Serena cast him an astonished look, but then shrugged her shoulders.

"Ok, see you later then."

She straightened up, lifted her wand and opened her mouth. Like a statue, she held this pose for a couple of seconds. Then she let her wand sink and took a deep breath. When she started a new attempt, Severus jumped up. She would splinch herself for sure, drunken as she was.

"What are you doing!" he burst out, making a grab for her wand. "Stop it! You can't Apparate in your state!"

"I noticed that ... can't concentrate on a target," she answered remorsefully. "What now? How am I going to get home?"

Right after asking this question, Serena's knees gave way. If Severus hadn't stood next to her and caught her, she would have tumbled over.

"You're pissed as a newt. Better I get you home."

Severus had also clinked glasses with a good number of Death Eaters, but he could stand a lot more than Serena. Despite his plan to get blind drunk and drown all nagging voices in his mind, he had simply sat there, brooding. He had only emptied half of his last beer-mug and was still more or less sober, quite capable of Apparating.

"Oh, that's so sweet of you. Thanks, Sev," Serena breathed, stretching to wrap her arms round his neck and get a more stable footing.

Severus instantly wrinkled his nose.

"You've vomited," he said, rather stating a fact than asking a question.

Serena nodded miserably. "Too much drink, I s'ppose."

The image of Serena puking all over Malfoy, ruining his outrageously expensive looking robe, enlightened Severus' mood a bit. Maybe this was the reason that Malfoy hadn't returned to the hall as well?

"Open your mouth," he commanded her, almost cheerful.

Startled, Serena opened her eyes; she had been close to falling asleep. After Severus repeated his order, she obeyed, her eyes already shut again. One Cleaning Spell later the foul smell and taste of vomit in her mouth had yielded to a fresh peppermint flavour.

Serena nestled up against him, resting her head on his chest. She clung to his neck like someone who was drowning clung to a lifebelt. Severus could clearly feel the heat that her body radiated through the thin fabric of her dress. Putting one arm around her waist to support her weight, he could also sense the softness of her skin under the dress and the selvedge that marked the edge of her slip. He made an effort to ignore these sensations and to concentrate on Apparating instead.

A second later they appeared in the front yard of his house. For the first time Severus regretted having put an Apparition barrier on his home to keep unwanted visitors away. Since Serena had fallen asleep, he lifted her up and carried her inside. If he had been able to Apparate directly into her room, he would have spared himself from picking his way precariously up the narrow, steep stairs with her in his arms.

He lay Serena down on her bed, took her shoes off and spread the blanket over her. For about a minute, he studied her sleeping form. Her delicate figure was visible in outline through the blanket, as were her breasts that rose and fell in a steady rhythm. The alcohol had given her cheeks a rosy flush. Her cherry lips were slightly parted, gleaming invitingly.

Severus pulled himself together and took a step towards the door.

"Sev?" he heard her voice and turned back.

"Please don't go. I... I need to tell you something."

She looked at him, a desperate gleam shining in her blue eyes. Severus sat down on the edge of her bed and questioningly arched an eyebrow.

"It's about Malfoy," she began, "He... he has -"

"Shh," Severus silenced her, pressing a finger onto her lips. He had already seen enough, he didn't want to hear about it.

"Everything's ok," he added when she made another attempt to speak. She was so beautiful, he thought, even now, in her inebriated state. She was way too good for that bastard who betrayed his pregnant wife.

Acting on an impulse, he bent down and kissed her lips - and noticed with surprise that, after a moment of shock, she was kissing him back. And with such intensity and hunger that it astonished him.

* * *

A ray of sunlight fell through the window and tickled Serena's nose. She awoke with a feeling of contentment, satisfaction, and happiness. Slowly, she creaked an eye open - and shut it again immediately.

What she had seen threatened to ruin her good mood. Her arm, with the Dark Mark imprinted on it, lay directly in front of her eyes. Gradually, the events of the other day came back to her mind, and she started to wonder how she could be in such a good mood after such a horrible evening. She decided to remove her arm with the disgusting mark from her view before she opened her eyes again. This feeling was simply too wonderful to spoil it so soon.

Clasping her hands behind her head, she opened her eyes again. Her gaze still fell on the burn mark. After a moment of confusion Serena realised that this couldn't be her arm - too muscular, too hairy. A male arm, it dawned upon her. A glance to the left revealed that it belonged to Severus, who lay beside her, softly snoring.

Wait a minute - Severus? What was he doing in her bed? Shocked, she tried to sit up but gave only a groan of pain before she sank back into her pillow. Moving had definitely been a mistake. Her head felt as if her brain had swollen to three times its volume, but still had to squeeze itself into her normal sized skull. Fortunately she was living under the same roof as a very talented Potions Master. Severus would certainly brew a potion for her to get rid of this father of all hangovers. Which returned her thoughts to Severus.

She cast another furtive glance at her bedfellow and another discovery almost gave her a heart attack. Her dress was lying crumpled on the floor, and everything else she had worn was littered about the room as well. She was completely naked! A glimpse to the left confirmed that Severus wasn't wearing anything either, save the blanket that was tangled about his legs.

An irrational fit of anger flared up in Serena about the fact that he had got hold of the whole blanket, leaving her without any cover, but it dissolved as fast as it had come. The control over a blanket was currently the smallest of her problems.

She tried to remember what had happened last night. Instantly, a new wave of pain hurtled through her head. With as much sensitivity as she could muster, she massaged her temples. When the throbbing pain eased, the memory came back. At least a few fragments. Severus had brought her home and put her in her bed. Then he had left. No, she had asked him to stay. Had felt the urge to tell someone about Malfoy's assault, someone who wasn't in immediate danger of losing an unborn child because of aggravation. And then? She continued to massage her temples and finally remembered that they hadn't talked about Malfoy, but kissed instead. This was all, more memories didn't come back and the attempt of forcing them to return only caused more pain in her head.

But what could possibly have happened between a man and a woman who started with kissing and ended with sleeping in the nude in the same bed? The explanation that Severus just hadn't dared leaving her alone in her state and that it was August and simply too hot to wear anything in bed sounded too contrived to be convincing. Whichever way she looked at it, the conclusion was always the same.

"Good morning," Severus' rich voice sounded, making Serena jump. Its tone of relaxed contentment reminded her strangely of her own emotional state when she had awoken. Very suspicious, since Severus was never happy, or at least didn't let it show.

"Ouch," she wailed, "Quieter, please ... oh, my head."

After a few more seconds of massaging her temples she asked the question that unsettled her mind, "Sev, why are you here? And starkers?"

Serena needed to look twice before she recognised the strange change in his expression. He was actually smiling!

"Don't you remember?" Severus asked in return.

Frowning, she said, "Hmm, lets see ... I was drunk ... you put me to bed ... perhaps you took advantage of the situation?"

"How will you know that I was the one taking advantage?" he again asked mockingly instead of giving an answer.

Serena groaned. His abnormally good mood was fairly disconcerting.

"Cause I was apparently way too drunk to be capable of seducing you."

Severus slid closer to Serena, gazing intently into her eyes. When he spoke, his deep, purring voice sent shivers down her spine. "You have no idea how seductive you can be, even if you're royally pissed. But don't worry; nothing's happened that you didn't want."

Disappointment and relief washed over Serena at the same time. She had liked the thought that Severus had been the reason for the wonderful feeling she had woken up with. But however much she would have liked it, they couldn't become lovers, and it was better to not start anything in a frenzy of drunken passion that she had to break up again.

Before she could wonder what Severus was doing in her bed if nothing had happened, he added, still smiling, "Of course you were more than willing. And if you can't remember, I'd love to jog your memory and show you what we did."

He pulled her over to him and repeated the kiss that had started everything the previous evening. Like then, it took Serena by surprise, and her body reacted faster than her brain, instinctively melting into his embrace.

But this time she was sober, and her brain didn't stop working, even if it was severely tempted to do so. Instead it reminded her that she was a spy for the Ministry, whereas Severus was an actual Death Eater. He was loyal to the Dark Lord, whom Serena was fighting. It was likely that some day Severus would end up in Azkaban. And he would probably kill her before that, if he ever found out the truth about her. Her job was dangerous. She needed to keep a clear head, and keep emotions out of her reasoning.

Serena pulled back and faced a questioning gaze from beetle black eyes. She could see passion in them, something that she had never seen there before. Severus had always locked his emotions away deep down in his heart. And now he had decided to draw back the veil and show his innermost depths, show it to her of all people. She hated herself. If she had been more in control of herself, if she hadn't given in to her secret desires in a moment of weakness, she wouldn't face this situation now. She wouldn't have to destroy the hopes she had raised in Severus, wouldn't have to hurt his feelings.

"I'm sorry," she begun, not having the faintest idea how to continue. Playing for time, she crawled out of the bed and seized a bundle of clothes.

When she was finished saying what she had to say he would never again look at her with this intense, fervour filled gaze. But she couldn't help it. She straightened herself. When she finally spoke, she managed to let her voice sound icy and callous.

"Forget what happened. I was drunk. It was a mistake and it'll never happen again."

Serena didn't wait for his answer. She couldn't even look at him, fearing that the mere sight of him would crumble her half-hearted determination; that she would surrender to the urge to embrace him, and take back every word against her better judgement. Grabbing her wand and a pair of shoes, she fled the room. On her way down the stairs she hastily slipped into her clothes, then left the house and Disapparated, silent tears streaking down her cheeks.

Serena spent the day with plenty of Apparating. At first she walked along a lonely beach, watching the tempestuous sea, and tried to get the boiling emotions under control that were not unlike the surging waves. More than once she collapsed into tears, crying over their friendship, which was undoubtedly damaged, if not destroyed, and a lost love that had never had a chance. Hours later, when she had finally calmed down, she met Moody in London and told him about Voldemort's Pensieve. Afterwards, she let a gigantic ice-cream sundae at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor pour balm on her wounded soul. When she was finally able to think straight and logically again, she bought a couple of newspapers and magazines. Half-heartedly, she scanned the advertisement sections for information about available lodgings in case she would have to leave Severus' house. She didn't wish to move out, but she would understand if Severus wanted her to.

It was already after dusk when she finally returned home. Severus didn't throw her out, didn't speak to her at all. He had fallen back into his old pattern of behaviour, remained taciturn and reserved, even more so than before, as if she was a stranger to him.

Serena felt cut to the quick, but didn't press him to talk about the night and the morning after. She was convinced that he would notice that she was lying about her reasons and telling the truth was out of the question.

* * *

Only two days later, Serena, Severus, and Lucius Malfoy learned what it meant to bear Voldemort's sign. Before, they had dealt with various tasks, smaller and greater ones, like pestering Muggles, sounding Ministry members out about secrets, and supplying the Dark Lord with everything he requested. He hadn't ordered them to kill yet; that was reserved for Death Eaters. But now they were Death Eaters and had to prove themselves worthy of the Dark Mark.

It was early evening and Serena picked listlessly at a meagre lunch that was still too large for her lack of appetite, when she felt a tugging sensation in her left forearm. She found her Dark Mark burning black, and the sensation seemed to steadily increase in its intensity.

Severus noticed it too. "We're called to a meeting," he said coldly, his voice lacking any emotion. Dropping his fork, he got up and left the kitchen. Heaving a sigh, Serena followed him.

When she stepped out of the front door, Severus was already gone. Serena Disapparated too, letting the Dark Mark guide her to the destination. She landed in Voldemort's castle, and the burning faded away. A couple of Death Eaters were already there, and others were arriving with every new second. All of them wore the mandatory black cloaks and white masks, as Serena and Severus did. Differences in height, build, and voice made them distinguishable nevertheless. With a bit of practice Serena would certainly soon be able to tell the identity of most of the Death Eaters despite their disguises.

They sat down at the large table in the Assembly Hall, which was surrounded by chairs again. With a bit of surprise, Serena noticed that both, Severus and Malfoy, behaved around the other Death Eaters as if nothing had happened, giving her looks that she better should do the same. Serena gladly did; she didn't want Malfoy to find out about her night with Severus which would seemingly confirm his lewd assumptions, and she didn't Severus want to learn about Malfoy's assault on her either, dreading Severus' reaction that certainly wouldn't be nice.

During the meeting, Voldemort listened to reports about finished tasks and gave out new orders. Finally he waved Severus, Serena, Lucius Malfoy, and a fourth Death Eater to his seat. He introduced the Death Eater as Rosier, informing them that he would be their team leader, whom they had to give their unqualified obedience on their joint missions.

Rosier had borne the Dark Mark for the last three years. Serena remembered him from Hogwarts. He had been four years above her and a Slytherin of the worst kind. She wasn't surprised to see that he had become a Death Eater.

After Voldemort had dismissed them, Rosier ordered them to Apparate to Shelton Village, a small town at the English south coast. He pointed to a lonely house about a hundred yards away and said, "Our Lord wishes that you'll conjure the Dark Mark above this house tonight. I'll watch how you go about it."

"Who's living there?" Serena curiously asked.

"This shouldn't be of interest for you. Tomorrow they're all dead anyway. Suffice it to know that they're filthy Mudblood scum." As if to emphasize his disgust, Rosier spit out in the direction of the house.

"Ok, then let's go," Malfoy said excitedly. He could hardly wait to show that he had no qualms about killing someone if his master demanded it of him.

Serena wasn't half as enthusiastic about their task as Malfoy. Now the moment had come that she had dreaded. What should she do now? She had already pondered this problem in quite a few sleepless nights, but had never been able to find a solution to her dilemma. She couldn't allow, let alone participate, in killing an innocent family. But if she tried to prevent the murder, her cover would be blown. And would she be able to save these people anyway? She, alone, against three powerful Death Eaters? Or would any of her attempts result in just one more dead body in the morning, namely hers? Without a doubt, she didn't stand a chance in a direct fight, so she would have to catch them unawares. But as soon as she turned against one of them, the surprise was gone for the other two.

"Hey, Potter, what are you waiting for, a written invitation? Or are you a yellow-belly?" Malfoy called mockingly, but was instantly rebuked by Rosier for not being silent. Severus cast Malfoy a murderous glare, but kept quiet.

They were already halfway over to the house and Serena hastened to follow them. Suddenly she saw the perfect answer. Two months ago she had found a book describing a way to cast a spell not only on one target, but a group of marks. It was difficult, and more effective with easy spells, since the strength of the spell divided up between all targets. To make up for this, one needed to cast it with more power in accordance to the number of aims. After a lot of practise, Serena had finally managed to freeze ten rats at once. Of course people were bigger than rats, but there were only three of them to be put out of action.

Serena took her wand out and trained it at the three men in front of her. Fortunately they had their backs turned on her, looking over at the house for any sign that Malfoy's shouting had awoken any of its inhabitants. She aimed carefully and concentrated hard; if she didn't succeed at the first attempt, she certainly wouldn't get another chance.

With pounding heart but firm voice she shouted, "Petrificus totalus multiplicus!"

All three men, already walking across the front lawn, grew stiff and fell over like dummies. Serena took their wands, just in case, and stunned them so they couldn't try to get free while she was away.

Despite the commotion outside, everything in the house was silent. No light was on inside. Serena opened the front door with "Alohomora!" and slipped stealthily in. Her next spell revealed five persons inhabiting this house, spread over three rooms on the upper floor and sleeping.

To cause as little noise as possible, Serena Apparated upstairs and found herself in a children's room. Two girls slept here. Serena lit her wand with the light that was invisible to others and looked around. To improve her sight, she took off her Death Eater mask and hung it on her belt. The younger girl was obviously a witch. A wand and The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) lay on her bedside table. A few other brand-new looking Hogwarts utensils were piled up on the table at the window. It looked like the girl would be going into first year when Hogwarts started back in two weeks. The lack of any used magical equipment around indicated that the older sister was Muggle.

Serena stepped between the girls' beds and memorized their looks as precisely as she could. Then she clapped her hand over the Muggle girl's mouth while she transfigured her younger sister into a small pink stone.

Actually, it was forbidden to transfigure living human beings into inanimate objects because one could mess up a lot when transfiguring them back. But Serena had neither the time nor the inclination to explain her plan to the family and to coax them into cooperation. The older girl awoke from the pressure on her face and struggled vainly to get free. No sound passed her lips because Serena held her mouth firmly closed. A few seconds later the girl mimicked her sister in the shape of a yellow stone.

The stones disappeared in a pocket of Serena's cloak. She inspected the deserted beds and found a doll in one and a teddy bear in the other. She took both and Apparated back to the ground floor. The door to the left side of the entrance opened to a kitchen where Serena laid the toys on the floor. She transfigured them into two bodies, covered with cuts and bruises, streaming with blood, and resembling the girls. They looked as if they had been beaten and tortured to death. When Serena scrutinized them to verify if they looked genuine, her stomach confirmed the authenticity with a queasy rumble.

She passed on to the next inhabited room, which turned out to be the parent's bedroom. Both were Muggles, and Serena had no difficulties to turn them into a green and an orange stone. A bra and a pair of boxers from the laundry basket went down to the kitchen and became two fake bodies, as badly injured as their false daughters. Serena deliberately chose personal items that had been close to their owners' bodies because this helped the transfiguration to last longer.

A NEWT certificate, pinned at the fridge door, told her that the third child of the family was a wizard, and a fully educated one at that. Serena took a closer look at the marks when a horrified gasp made her spin around.

The owner of the certificate stood in the doorway, rooted to the spot and staring wide-eyed at the dead bodies. Serena recognised him at once; he was Ronald Henderson, a former Ravenclaw. He had been one year below her and must have finished Hogwarts this summer. Serena had noticed him for the first time when Lucius Malfoy had loudly called him a Mudblood in the Entrance Hall in front of the students. When he had attempted to jinx Ronald, her brother James had stepped in and reflected the hex. For the rest of the day, mud had incessantly dripped from Malfoy's ears, nose, and mouth. He had been the target of scorn and derision for the rest of the month. Serena didn't really want to know what Malfoy would have done to Ronald if he had been given the chance tonight.

Ronald had recognised her as well, because he unbelievingly said, "You? What have you done to my family?"

"They aren't your family, they -" Serena begun but was cut short by Ronald.

"Not my family? Just because they're Muggles?" he angrily shouted. "I'd never thought that you would share those prejudiced opinions... Your brother was always so nice to me..." His anger turned into despair, his eyes brimming with tears. Then he suddenly remembered that Serena wasn't in his kitchen because she had stopped by for a cosy chat. He cast an Expelliarmus at her, but she blocked it and followed him when he dashed out of the house.

'Don't let him Disapparate, please don't let him Disapparate,' Serena silently pleaded, following him out of the door.

But she didn't need to worry. Ronald was apparently way too upset to conjure any reasonable thought and just followed his instincts to flee. She saw him running down the street and Apparated after him, petrifying him as soon as she was in reach for a spell.

"I'm sorry," she said, turning him into a stone, blue this time. "I have to do this, it can't be helped."

She returned to the house and picked up a sock from the floor in Ronald's room. It looked gruesome as a Death Eater victim, but at least it smelled better.

Then Serena got the kitchen and parts of the house into a mess and cast lots of Dark curses all about the kitchen, generating enough magical remnants to create a convincing scene of a crime. The Aurors would later assume that the Death Eaters had invaded the house and dragged all family members out of their beds and down to the kitchen where they had tortured and finally killed all five of them.

Serena felt profoundly worn-out from casting so many spells, hexes and curses but the most complicated part still lay before her. She needed to manipulate three memories. Merely Obliviating the reminiscences of her ambush wouldn't suffice, they had to be firmly convinced that they had killed the Hendersons.

When she returned to the lawn outside, her companions were still out cold. Serena sat down on the grass, gathering her strength, and spending the next few minutes making up a particularly detailed, cruel, and sickening image of the evening. With the help of a Memory Charm she implanted the false memory in Severus' mind. She repeated this procedure with Rosier and Malfoy, always slightly adjusting the image to accommodate their different points of view. When she was finished, she felt so weary that she wondered if she would still find enough strength to Apparate home.

"Ok, and who of us will get the honour of casting the Dark Mark to the sky now?" Serena asked after she had revived the three men. She hoped that she wouldn't be the (un)lucky one.

"In view of the fact that Malfoy had the extraordinarily entertaining idea to use the Imperious Curse and make the son help us torture the rest of his family, I'll grant him this privilege," Rosier answered, grinning broadly.

Serena exhaled a breath of relief, not only because she apparently had successfully altered Rosier's memory, but also because he had chosen Malfoy. So she could save the few pathetic remains of her strength for Apparating home. With well-hidden abomination she watched a green skull rise into the air.

Back at Severus' house, she went straight to her room, locked the door, and fell in a dreamless, exhausted sleep before she could even take her clothes off.

Rosier later proudly reported to Lord Voldemort that the three new Death Eaters had fulfilled their task in a truly exemplary way. They could doubtlessly expect great things of them yet.

The Daily Prophet wrote the next day that again the Dark Mark had been sighted, this time above a house in Shelton Village, South England. The dead bodies of the family Henderson had been found, all showing clear signs of being cruelly tortured. The article also mentioned in a tear-jerking manner the youngest daughter who would have started Hogwarts in autumn.

* * *

When Serena awoke, the sun entered already the last third of her daily round across the sky. To tell from the bubbling and hissing noises that emerged from the basement, Severus was busy with potion making. Serena took the opportunity to leave the house unnoticed and Apparated to Moody.

He was in an especially bad mood. When she arrived, he didn't waste any time on welcoming her or engaging in small talk but asked immediately, "You wouldn't happen to know the names of those Death Eaters who wreaked havoc in Shelton Village yesterday? Five dead people - if I get hold of these monsters, I'll make them regret that they've ever been born!"

"Of course I know who did this. It was me," Serena said, smiling, while she rummaged about her cloak, hunting for the Henderson stones.

"You what?" Moody stared at Serena, trying to decide if she had made an extraordinarily bad joke or simply lost her mind.

"I was there, with Sev and Malfoy, and a stager named Rosier to supervise us." Joy and relief that she had come through that evening unharmed loosened Serena's tongue. Placing the stones that were the Hendersons one by one on the floor, she related cheerfully, "It was our first task as new Death Eaters, our first task that involved murder. I was worried to no end, didn't know what to do - but then I had a brainwave. Ouch!"

She pulled a face when she pinched her finger between two stones. Rubbing it, she continued, "Where was I? Oh, yeah, it actually went better than I'd thought. It was straining, of course - have you ever cast a Bone Wrenching Curse? Sounds easy, but Crucio is a peanut compared to it. Anyway, I did what needed doing, and made Rosier pretty proud of us."

Smiling pleased with herself, she lowered the fifth stone on the floor and took her wand out to transfigure them back.

In that moment, Moody said in an intimidating tone that demanded obedience, "Serena, put your wand down. Slowly."

Serena shook her head without taking her focused gaze away from the stones.

"It's ok, I know what I'm doing."

She recalled every detail of Mr Henderson's appearance, preparing to bring him back first.

"Put. Your. Wand. Down. Now."

Puzzled about Moody's insistence, Serena looked up. Startled by his angry face she let her wand instantly fall, any words of protest stuck in her throat. Moody had his wand trained at her and wore an expression of anger, distrust, and vigilance that she hadn't seen since he had killed a Death Eater to save her life.

"And now explain yourself," he commanded. "Perhaps I may understand your decision to participate in murdering this family in order to retain your cover. But I doubt that you can give me a valid excuse as to why you seem so pleased about it."

Sudden comprehension dawned on Serena's face.

"Oh, you think -" She shook her head again, more profound this time. "I didn't kill anyone. On the contrary, I hit the jackpot - I saved their lives and my cover. The Hendersons aren't dead."

She pointed to the stones at the floor.

Ignoring her gesture, Moody growled, "The Aurors found five dead bodies -"

"- which were fake -" Serena cut in.

"- and the remnants of a lot of illegal curses lingering in the air -"

"- which I cast to make it seem real, but they hit no one -"

"- and you said you made your bigwig proud of you -"

"- proud of something that never happened."

When Moody still refused to take his wand down, she gave him a full detailed account of her actions, including an explanation as to why she had brought small, coloured stones to his house and why she needed her wand back.

"So you transfigured them into stones? That's illegal, you know."

"But I had no time for long discussions. Stones don't make trouble, and I could smuggle them out easily. Don't worry, I'll restore them as if they'd never been tampered with. Transfigurations was my best subject in school, remember? But perhaps we should come to an agreement first as to what we'll do with them, once I've brought them back. No one must know that they're still alive, or I'm sunk. I think we should give them a new identity, have them start a new life somewhere else."

Moody pondered the suggestion briefly and relented then, "Yes, this sounds reasonable. We should adjust their memories too, so that they think they have always been these other people, just to be on the safe side."

"Could you do this when I'm gone? I don't want to know their new identities, in case I get caught. Erm, can I rely on you to leave the Ministry out of it? Voldemort knows things that he can only have learned from Ministry members. I don't want to risk that one of his moles there gets wind of this."

"I'll see to the Hendersons personally. I'm not that good with Memory Charms, but I don't doubt that Albus will lend me a helping hand there." Moody went over to the hearth to call Dumbledore via Floo. Before he reached for the pot of Floo Powder on the mantelpiece, he thoughtfully scratched his head, adding as an afterthought, "Well done, Serena."

A smile about the unexpected praise spread over her face, but was overshadowed by another thought. "I can't believe you doubted me. After all I've done, all I've found out for you. Why this sudden loss of trust?"

"You wouldn't be the first one to decide that it was better for your health to stop betraying the Dark Lord as long as he hasn't found out about your treason and start being loyal to him," Moody defended his former action.

"And you think I'm such a turncoat?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "You've got the Dark Mark now. No one knows what it's capable of, only that it's an extremely advanced piece of magic. I couldn't completely rule out the possibility that it had somehow influenced your mind. Particularly after you've told me about Bellatrix Lestrange, and that she's only making predictions about Voldemort and no one else since she's got the Dark Mark."

"I'd rather say it influenced her magic. Divination is more dependent on your magical abilities than on your mindset. Anyway, I'm still the same Serena as before - or at least I think I am. At any rate I'm not lusting after murder."

While Moody put his head into the flames and talked to Dumbledore, Serena transfigured the Hendersons back. It was quite a shock for them to sleep in their beds in one moment and find themselves in a strange house in the next. Ronald jumped at Serena's throat, trying to strangle her, as soon as he recognised her. The Muggle daughter resumed her screaming, this time without Serena preventing her from doing so, and agitated the rest of the family even more. Five strong Calming Spells later, cast from Albus Dumbledore, Serena finally gave a farewell to all of them and left.

During the following weeks, Serena visited Moody more than a dozen times, always bringing him small, coloured stones that started a new life with Moody's help far away from their former home.

* * *

Time stretched like a rubber band. Brewing potions for the Dark Lord, killing Muggles and Mudbloods, and battling with Aurors who seemed to be better informed about Voldemort's plans than many a Death Eater followed each other in endless succession. Sometimes Severus wasn't sure if weeks, months, or years had passed since that terrible night when so much had changed.

Only once he had tried to talk with Serena about their night together, but she had only repeated, "Forget it. It was a mistake. We're friends, nothing more."

She hadn't mentioned Malfoy again, and he hadn't touched on what she called a mistake for a second time. Nevertheless, the damage was done, and things went downhill from that day on.

After Severus had seen them kissing in Voldemort's castle, he had become more vigilant, more aware of Serena's comings and goings. So he had noticed that she quite often disappeared without telling him where she went. He had considered following her, but what was he supposed to gain from that? He knew already that she secretly dated Malfoy, and he could list at least a dozen things from the top of his head that were better than watching them having it off with each other.

Especially after they had killed, she regularly slinked off, thinking he wouldn't notice or care. These nighttime massacres seemed to turn her on; she downright brightened up when they reached their destination, taking immense pleasure in destroying so many lives. She hadn't been so happy since her last schoolday.

Severus would never have considered himself as sensitive, but he hated those trips at night. He hated to see the faces of their victims distorted in agony, hated to hear their screams and pleas for mercy, hated to be the cause of their pain. And he hated that Serena enjoyed it, as Malfoy and Rosier did. To his mind, it degraded her to the same level as them.

Severus realised that he couldn't stand the cold, sadistic, malicious person that Serena became at these occasions. He made no secret of his dislike for her behaviour and their relations with each other had become frosty. They seldom talked to each other, and if they did, they mostly argued about trifling things.

Like an old couple shortly before their divorce, Severus thought bitterly, tossing and turning in his own, cold, lonely bed. Only that they, unlike a normal couple, had missed out the phase of being happily in love entirely. Sleep evaded him regularly these days, or rather nights, and wistfully he thought back to the night in her bed. He had never had such a good sleep, and making love to Serena in a rather exhausting way had only partially been the reason. Her mere presence, the sweet scent of her sweaty body, had given him peace and calmness and had let him drift into Morpheus' arms with an ease unbeknown to him.

A low creaking noise startled him fully awake. He held his breath, listening intently. When he drew the conclusion that it had only been his imagination, he heard it again. Someone was sneaking down the stairs. The steps were old and jarred every time someone stepped on them. Since the noises were so quiet, it could only mean that it was someone who was well acquainted with the stairs and knew exactly where to tread to minimise the creaking. In all likelihood, Serena was going down to the kitchen and getting herself a little midnight-snack or drink.

Another creak, this time caused by a cautiously opened front door, refuted this theory. Severus grabbed his wand and slipped out of his bed, over to the window.

In the silvery light of the almost full moon, he saw Serena, stepping out of Apparition barrier of his house. She took her wand out of her robe, preparing to Disapparate.

It was unusual for Serena to steal away in the middle of the night. The unwelcome image of Malfoy groping her velvet skin and eliciting moans of pleasure from her sprang to his mind, making sure that Severus wouldn't be able to find sleep soon. He cast another glimpse at her, expecting her to vanish any moment, and gasped in surprise.

Serena held a shiny object in her left hand, and when it reflected the moonlight Severus recognised it. It had the shape of a palm-sized, five-pointed star. Severus' thoughts returned to the afternoon and Voldemort's office, where he had seen it for the first time.

The Dark Lord had called Serena, Malfoy, and him to his room. Only Death Eaters were allowed to enter it, and even this only if the Dark Lord commanded them to do so. Severus had never been there before, and he had been fairly sure that this applied to Serena and Malfoy as well.

With meticulously masked curiosity he had looked around. The room had been totally different from what he had expected. It had been nice, almost cosy. Although it was located deep down in the castle, it had been neither cold nor dank. The floor was covered with a thick, dark green carpet; the walls and the ceiling were lined with artistically decorated, wooden panelling. There was even a large window that let in the sunlight, reducing the torches on the wall next to it to mere embellishment. Severus had wondered how such a window was possible so deep down below the surface; certainly there was magic involved.

A number of shelves and bookcases, a huge desk, made of heavy, high polished oak wood, and a chair similar to the throne in the Assembly Hall were the only furniture. There existed no other seats; visitors had to stand or kneel respectfully. The desk was strewn with a litter of books, rolls of parchment and magical devices. A candleholder on the table held three candles that weren't burning any more than the torches. Two small statues on either side of the table caught Severus' eye. The one on the left side, where Serena had stood, depicted a silvery snake that had wound itself around a human and was about to strangle it. It was moving from time to time, adjusting its deadly grip on the man. On the other side, in front of Lucius, stood a small troll, who grimly bared his teeth and threateningly swung his tiny club.

"You three have done a good job during the last few weeks. Now I have a new task for you," Voldemort had said, rising from his seat. He had touched the statue of the snake and a drawer had opened at the left side of the desk. It contained a couple of parchments and more, apparently magical objects. One of them had been the silvery star that Serena held now.

Severus wondered how it had come into Serena's possession. Voldemort hadn't given it to her; he had only taken a piece of parchment out of the drawer. He had carefully torn it in three parts of equal length. The first one he had handed over to Serena. But she hadn't grasped it properly and the sheet had landed on the carpet. While Voldemort had given the other two pieces to Severus and Malfoy, Serena had quickly bent down and picked it up.

"You may have noticed the increasing number of occasions when our plans were foiled because the Ministry got wind of it and sent Aurors awaiting my Death Eaters. I won't tolerate this situation any longer. And as long as the source of their information isn't found and eliminated, I'll work on this problem in a different way."

Touching the statue a second time, Voldemort had closed the drawer again.

"On your parchments you'll find a list with names of the most dangerous Aurors. You'll kill them, but don't make the mistake to handle them like you handled your other victims. They are fully trained, most powerful wizards. Just take their life, quick and dirty, preferably by a blow in their back."

Lucius Malfoy had studied the names on his list and cast a sidelong glance at Serena, grinning maliciously. Curious as to what caused this sudden improvement of Malfoy's mood, Severus had taken a quick peek at Malfoy's list. The first name on it had been James Potter. Did Serena know that her brother was on Voldemort's blacklist, Severus had wondered. Would she care? Her family had disowned her, after all. She had been depressed at first, missing the contact to her parents and her brother. But she had never mentioned them again, and currently she seemed quite happy without them.

There were four names on Severus' list. Two of them had been in Hogwarts with him, a Gryffindor and a Ravenclaw, both three years ahead of him. The third name didn't ring any bells, but the last name made him gulp uncomfortably. Severus had never met Alastor Moody personally, but his reputation among the Death Eaters was legendary. He alone had hunted down more Death Eaters than the other three Aurors on Severus' list together.

Serena had simply shrugged her shoulders and put the sheet in her robe.

"I expect your reports of success in a week," Voldemort had said and dismissed them.

While Severus was still lost in his memories, Serena vanished, as if she never had been in the front yard.

Severus wondered what she possibly could do with the star. It seemed to be important, or she wouldn't have sneaked out in the middle of the night. After a moment of hesitation, Severus decided to follow her. He didn't know where she had Apparated to, but this wasn't a problem, because she unwittingly wore the magical equivalent of a beacon.

Before Severus had given up on the idea of following Serena when she slinked away to see with his own eyes her meeting with Malfoy, he had bought a bracelet and cast a well-hidden Locating Spell on it. He had given it to her on her birthday, and she seemed to like it; she never took it off and even continued to wear it after their friendship had dissolved into nothing. Severus hadn't followed her, though, but since she never took it off, he also hadn't had a chance to remove the spell.

Severus hastily dressed and pocketed his wand. Then he went to Serena's room and took her Invisibility Cloak out of her trunk. Throwing it over his head, he hurried out of the front door, concentrated on Serena's bracelet, and Disapparated.

He was stunned when he didn't land at Malfoy Manor or at some other cosy place where couples used to meet in secret. Instead he found himself in Voldemort's castle. Everything was quiet and lay in darkness. He spotted Serena flitting down a stair and hurried to follow her, wondering how she managed to walk so nimbly without any light to show her way. If it hadn't been for the bracelet, he would have lost her in the darkness more than once.

She finally stopped in front of Voldemort's room. Muttering a password, she opened the door and slipped in.

Severus became more and more worried. Whatever she did, she risked her life with it. Why would she burgle the Dark Lord? He stepped closer and watched her silently through the crack of the door.

The moon shone through the window, bathing the room in cold, dim white light, hardly enough to get one's bearings. Serena walked around the desk and turned towards the back wall of the room. Tapping her wand against a wooden panel, she muttered, "Aperio!"

Nothing happened. Serena waited a second, and then proceeded to the next panel. At her fourth attempt she got a reaction. A five-pointed star-shaped hole appeared in the panel and Serena pressed her silver star into it. The panel swung aside and revealed a secret compartment. Pocketing her wand, Serena reached with both hands into it.

Suddenly the candles and torches flared up, illuminating the room. Malfoy and Voldemort appeared. Serena spun around, holding a stone basin in her hands. Severus knew at once what it was; he had seen pictures of Pensieves in books. Taking into account where Serena had taken it from, it must belong to Voldemort. He froze. Serena had attempted to steal a Pensieve from the Dark Lord! Could you try anything more stupid?

When Serena saw who had caught her, her face became ashen.

Voldemort slowly shook his head. "Serena, Serena," he began in a low tone that expressed his current anger in a more disturbing way than the loudest shouting could have done. His red eyes glowed menacingly. "I'm so disappointed in you. You are so talented; I had great expectations of you. But what are you using your skills for? To steal from me."

His gaze wandered over the runes that were imprinted on the rim of the Pensieve.

Still speaking softly, as if he told a bedtime story to a naughty child, he continued, "When Bellatrix foretold that someone I'd never suspect would steal something from me, I wondered who'd be stupid enough to try. She was right; I'd never thought that you stole the key to the secret compartment. But Bellatrix also told me that the thief would return to purloin something even more valuable. So I put additional wards on my office and waited. You can't imagine my disappointment at finding out that it's you. Of course I will have to kill you for this impertinence."

Serena stood rooted to the spot, thunderstruck. Her lips formed a thin red line in her pale face, and her eyes were opened wide. She seemed wanting to say something, but then she suddenly let the Pensieve drop and her hand darted into her robe, reaching for her wand. She had pocketed it in order to have both hands free to grasp the Pensieve, not expecting to need it so soon.

But she was far from being fast enough to actually draw her wand. Before she could even touch it, Malfoy shouted "Expelliarmus!" and her wand flew into his outstretched hand.

The Pensieve smashed to smithereens when it hit the stone floor, narrowly missing the carpet. Dark misty clouds from the interior of the basin began to drift across the floor, gradually dissolving into thin air.

Voldemort cast the Cruciatus Curse. A cold shiver ran down Severus' spine. He had been lucky so far and avoided being the subject of Voldemort's anger, so he had been spared the effects of the curse thus far. But he had watched other, less lucky Death Eaters and many of their victims writhe in agony. Even a long time later, abominable pain flickered in the eyes of those who had been under Cruciatus, as they remembered the experience.

Serena collapsed on the floor, doubling up with pain. She pressed her teeth shut, apparently determined to not give the Dark Lord the satisfaction of hearing her scream. But she lost the fight after mere seconds. Severus put his hands over his ears, but he could still hear her piercing shrieks.

After two long minutes Voldemort finally cancelled the curse. The yelling died away, and for another minute Serena just lay on the floor, panting hard. Her face was still twisted with pain, but she looked also a bit surprised to find her body still in one piece. When she spit something seemingly ill-tasting out, it formed a red stain on the green carpet. She must have bitten on her tongue without noticing it while she was in agony.

"There is one thing I want to know before you die," Voldemort spoke again, his voice cold as ice. "Why? Why did you betray me? Are you the one who is slipping my plans to the Ministry?"

Serena met his red, piercing eyes. Despite the clear signs of the painful aftermath of the curse, she managed to look wilful, as if she had already accepted that she would die, and didn't fear the Dark Lord anymore. No words passed her lips, demonstratively pressed together.

Voldemort's eyes became a bit brighter when he realised that she wouldn't answer. "So," he said full of contempt, "we are being difficult, aren't we? You know, I could torture you with the Cruciatus Curse until you beg me to let you answer my questions."

He waited a few seconds to let his words sink in. When Serena didn't show any reaction, he continued, "But I suppose this would take quite a while. I don't wish to waste my time with you. Fortunately there are other, faster methods to loosen your tongue."

Without looking away from Serena, he ordered, "Lucius, bring me the Veritaserum."

"Yes, Master," Malfoy answered subserviently and turned to a shelf that was filled with various bottles, vials, and jars. He took a small vial that contained a clear liquid and handed it to his master.

"Open your mouth," Voldemort commanded Serena.

When she didn't obey his order immediately, Malfoy roughly grabbed her hair, yanking her head back, and sunk his fingers into her cheeks, which forced her jaw open. Voldemort let a few drops of the serum trickle into her mouth and then waited for the potion to take its effect.

"And now tell me why you betrayed me."

Serena gnashed her teeth in anger, trying to force her mouth shut, but in the end no one could resist Veritaserum. Not if it was of best quality, and this serum was. Severus knew it; he had brewed it, after all.

Unwillingly, she gave away, "You probably know better than anyone else how many of your plans have recently failed due to treason. You don't tolerate your followers' failures, so why should we tolerate your continued failure in finding the mole? I thought it's time for you to give way to someone else who's more capable of solving this problem."

Severus held his breath. Nobody dared speaking to the Dark Lord in this tone. But then, he would kill her in any case, so she had nothing to lose. And because of the Veritaserum she couldn't help what she said anyway.

"And you think you are more capable than I? You actually believed you could take my place?" Voldemort laughed when Serena nodded, but it didn't sound amused; it was cold and spiteful and sent chilly shivers down Severus' spine. "Why would you need my Pensieve for this ill-conceived fantasy?"

"I hoped to find in it a way to dispose of you." With an angry frown, Serena bit her lower lip.

"Not a stupid idea," Voldemort assented. "Looking into my Pensieve, I mean, not trying to replace me. Perhaps I should thank you for destroying this thing; it contained indeed very sensitive information that I couldn't afford to fall into the wrong hands."

Voldemort looked at the pieces of the stone basin, which still were littered about the floor. A muttered spell later they were gone.

"How did you get the key?" Voldemort continued his interrogation.

"I stole it this afternoon. When you gave us the lists, I dropped my piece and then I bent down to pick it up and nicked the key off the drawer while you were busy giving the other pieces to Snape and Malfoy."

"I really shouldn't rely so much on my servants being too intimidated to not try stupid things behind my back." When Voldemort carried on speaking to Serena, his red eyes glowed as if they were little light bulbs and someone was steadily increasing their power supply. "It seems as if I have been a bit lax in my treatment of my followers recently. I will make an example of you to remind the others that I'm not one to cross. You will be punished for your betrayal, but not you alone. If there should be a life after death, you will spend the eternity with the knowledge that you caused the extinction of your whole family. I won't rest until all Potters have paid for your disloyalty."

Voldemort drew his wand again and pointed it at Serena. In expectation of a blinding green light Severus felt the sudden urge to storm into the office and save her from death. But how should he rescue her without forfeiting his own life? And why? Malfoy, who should have much more reason to help her, was right next to her, and he did nothing.

Voldemort didn't use the Killing Curse, though. Another Cruciatus flooded Serena's body, making her write in pain and yell her head off. Voldemort and Malfoy stood by and watched, unmoved. Only after ten minutes, when Serena lost her consciousness and didn't stir anymore, the Dark Lord lifted the curse.

"Lucius, lock her up in one of the dungeons," he said to Malfoy. "Tomorrow I will call the Death Eaters together and give them a memorable demonstration of how I handle traitors."

With these words he Disapparated. Malfoy grasped the collar of Serena's cloak and dragged her towards the door. Severus quickly moved a couple of steps away. Of course Malfoy couldn't see him under the Invisibility Cloak, but Severus didn't want to risk a collision with Malfoy. The cloak only made him invisible, not incorporeal.

As Malfoy walked to the dungeons, all the time dragging Serena across the floor, Severus stealthily tagged along. He still couldn't take in what he had heard and seen. Serena wanted to overturn the Dark Lord? Had she become megalomaniac? If only she had told him about her plan. He would have talked her out of this idiocy. But wouldn't he have been obliged to report her to the Dark Lord then? Which would certainly have resulted in her execution as well.

While he followed Malfoy, two voices in his mind kept yelling at each other, 'She isn't that stupid, it had to be a lie!' and 'She couldn't lie, she was under Veritaserum!'

After following a number of corridors and stairs, Malfoy reached an empty prison cell and dragged Serena inside. He didn't bother to lay her down on the cot in the far corner, but dropped her unceremoniously on the cold stone floor.

With an insinuating glance at her he muttered, "Too bad that I have to leave now. But I'm looking forward to tomorrow. The Dark Lord certainly won't begrudge us a little fun with you before he'll finish you off." Grinning, he locked the door and left.

When Malfoy was gone, Severus went to the door and touched the lock. Malfoy's behaviour riled him, but it wasn't surprising. Serena's plight didn't seem to trouble him at all. His only interest in her was how she could contribute to his own pleasure. Again, Severus wondered how she could have got herself involved with such an insensitive bastard; she doubtless was aware of his rotten character.

Severus found his hand still lying on the lock. What was he doing here? Serena had deceived the Dark Lord, and tomorrow she would get her appropriate punishment. But was it appropriate? Did she deserve to die? And in this way? He wouldn't have spent a second thought on these questions if it had been someone else. But it was Serena, and the thought about her death unsettled him. And he was unsettled that it unsettled him.

He muttered a spell to open the prison cell and entered it. Thoughtfully, he looked at the limb body. Serena was still unconscious, and would certainly stay that way for a while. Maybe she was lucky and wouldn't awake again. Then she could miss out on the cruel maltreatment that she would have to endure from the other Death Eaters. Yet this thought bore little comfort for him.

Severus bent down and felt her pulse. It was weak but steady. He picked her up and carried her out. After carefully locking the door again and making sure that they were completely covered by the Invisibility Cloak, he Disapparated with Serena in his arms.

For lack of a better plan he brought her to London. They rematerialised in a dark street, only insufficiently lit by street lamps here and there. The large, red-brick building in front of Severus was plastered with signs that read 'Closed for Refurbishment'. But Severus knew that this was more than a dusty, deserted department store. This was St. Mungo's, the wizard hospital, and the repulsive façade was only a disguise to divert Muggles. Here, Serena would get the nursing she needed and would be safe from Voldemort, at least for the moment.

He sat her down on the pavement, resting her back against the wall right next to the concealed entrance to the hospital. Hoping that sooner or later someone would use the entrance instead of Apparating directly inside, Severus took a step back, so that Serena became visible. He crossed the street and watched her from afar.

Five minutes later a young woman left the building, suddenly appearing on the street in front of the window next to Serena. She looked weary; she was most likely a nurse on her way home after a long, exhausting working day. Noticing the motionless body, she bent down to check Serena's condition. One moment later the nurse hurried back into the building and returned with a hovering stretcher. She levitated Serena on it, and the both of them disappeared into the hidden entrance.