Prosapia Aenigmatis - The Family Riddle

Chapter 3

Aislinn gasped at the sight of Mr. Malfoy so close to her. He was a very large and sturdy built man. She thought that she could feel the power emanating from him. She closed the book and turned to put it back on the shelf, but Mr. Malfoy stopped her. He took the book from her hands and placed it gently on the side table next to them. Aislinn felt her pulse quicken as she looked up at him.

"Thank you for joining me, Miss Macnair," he said in a voice as smooth as the black silk sheets on her bed. She swooned inwardly at the sound of it. She was looking directly into his shining gray eyes and she felt as if she couldn't move. She tried to relocate her gaze, but as soon as she did, he spoke again and her eyes were immediately brought back to his.

"I thought that we could discuss the Quidditch team. You said you would be willing to try and get on the team, did you not?" Aislinn nodded, not trusting her voice to speak. "Tell me, Miss Macnair, have you had your fifteenth birthday yet?"

Aislinn was confused as to where this conversation was going. She didn't think that a person had to be fifteen to play Quidditch. She thought of the younger players she knew; maybe there was some sort of permission that was given to them. He was looking at her patiently and she remembered he had asked a question. She suddenly noticed how handsome he was and she felt compelled to answer.

"Yes sir, just last month." She felt a little dizzy and was becoming wary of the situation.

"Excellent," he replied as his cold gray eyes lit up at her response.

Aislinn looked briefly down at her finger where her enchantment ring sat. The stone was softly glowing red for the first time since she had received it. Aislinn immediately became nervous. "Sir, I don't think that I will be able to practice Quidditch plays right now. Not in this dress." She looked down at her dress and back at Mr. Malfoy who was smirking at her.

"My dear Miss Macnair. May I call you Aislinn?" She felt weak as he said her name and nodded. He continued, "Aislinn, we aren't going to be playing Quidditch, and I am afraid you won't be needing that lovely dress either."

Aislinn felt his eyes taking in her body and she gulped nervously as his gaze met hers. What was he doing? He moved his hands up and gently undid the clasp that held her robes closed at her neck. The green robes fell to the ground and Lucius smiled. Aislinn felt her body stiffen as his gloved hand touched her bare shoulders. Mr. Malfoy led his finger to the pendant that was around her neck. He seemed to study it for a moment and then touched it lightly. He then softly ran his fingers through the ends of her hair and Aislinn pulled back. Lucius brought his gloved hand to her cheek and brushed it gently. He studied her face and Aislinn felt herself going weak again.

"Such a great resemblance of him in his youth," Aislinn heard him mutter quietly. She knew she resembled her father, but she had never heard anyone say it before.

Aislinn wanted to say something to make him move away from her, but she found herself physically unable to move or speak. She began to feel weak again and a thought came rushing into her mind like water from a broken dam. He's part veela; he must be doing this to me! That is why I can't move. She tried with all her might to push him, hit him, to do anything, but her arms would not obey her mind. She could only stand still, helpless, swooning against her will at his delicious scent as he moved closer to her. Aislinn felt his lips on her neck and she began to scream, only no sound came out of her mouth. Instead, she felt her body give in to him as her hands moved up his strong, muscular back. Why me? Why is this happening to me? Someone help me please! She screamed inside her head and she began to cry frantically. Only no tears came to her eyes, no sobs escaped her lips.

She felt him press her firmly against the bookcase as he looked into her eyes and smiled evilly, as if he were laughing at her. He knew, she thought. The bastard knew what he was doing and how she couldn't defend herself. How could she have been so stupid as to let this happen? Lucius seemed to immensely enjoy the power he held over her.

Aislinn then remembered her mother's words. She had said Narcissa had no choice but to fall in love with him, and that her mother felt sorry for Narcissa. That poor woman, Aislinn thought as she felt Lucius' hands running down the side of her body and rest on her hips. He roughly pulled himself close to her and she felt his hardness pressing into her hip. Aislinn began feeling ill, and was certain if she could move she would be sick all over him. His smiled turned cruel as he whirled her around and slammed her face into the bookcase. Somebody help me please! She was screaming in her head again as she felt him begin to unzip her dress. Just then she heard a knock and the door opened

* * *

"What did I just do to poor Percy?" Quinn asked, starting to feel a twinge of guilt.

"Don't worry Quinn. It's no more than he deserves," George said. "Every time he feels like bragging tonight, the potion will force him to talk about Gilderoy Lockhart." Quinn's jaw dropped. Even she had underestimated the brilliance that was Fred and George. Quinn looked back over at Percy who was shaking hands with a dapper looking older man.

"Gilderoy Lockhart is the five-time winner of Witch Weekly's Most Charming Smile Award," Percy proclaimed in a sing song voice. Immediately after this statement he looked horrified. Percy seemed to be wondering where this thought had come from. The man looked at Percy strangely and Percy bowed his head and hurried off. Quinn giggled profusely but decided she didn't want to face Percy's wrath if he found out somehow. Quinn forced her giggles away and moved back to stand with Ginny. Colin Creevey was there as well and Quinn fought the urge to flee.

"Colin!" She forced excitement into her voice. "I didn't know you'd be here." Before Colin could answer, Percy's voice called out over the den.

"I'd like to propose a toast," Percy held up a glass of wine and puffed out his chest again. "To the best author in the wizarding world, recipient of the Order of Merlin, third class, Honorary member of the Dark Force Defense League, and all around gorgeous guy, Gilderoy Lockhart!" There was a low murmur of confusion going around the room. Percy once again looked mortified at his own words. Perhaps he thought he needed to keep his mouth occupied because he took a long swig of wine. Quinn saw Fred and George laughing in the corner. Bill was hiding his red face behind Charlie.

The rest of the party was great fun. The only awkward moment was when Quinn ran into Seamus in the kitchen. It had never occurred to her that he would be attending the party. She literally bumped into him near the pumpkin juice and the two exchanged awkward smiles. As soon as she could, Quinn walked away, greeting Lisa Turpin, a fellow Ravenclaw. Quinn watched Bill's face go from red to purple as Percy proclaimed Gilderoy Lockhart's favorite color, his personal hairstyle tips, and even his favorite breath-refreshing spell. Everyone in the room began eyeing Percy as if he had gone mad. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley seemed very confused by this behavior while all their children snorted with laughter. Percy seemed to be combating his symptoms by drowning himself in wine. This only served to slur his speech as he retold Gilderoy Lockhart's astonishing defeat of the Wagga Wagga Werewolf.

Christmas was a few days after the party. Quinn got gifts from her parents and Aislinn, along with Alyssa Davies. She watched the Weasleys celebrate a family Christmas. Quinn was very happy to be at the Burrow but she still thought about Aislinn the entire day. Quinn hoped her friend was having a good holiday. At the same time she hoped Aislinn was miserable and had realized how wretched the Malfoys really were.

Quinn's second week with the Weasleys was even more fun than the first. She spent lots of time talking to Bill about his work for Gringotts as she hoped to do something similar after Hogwarts. Sometimes Quinn was suckered into Harry Potter conversations with Ginny but she was getting better at steering the conversation in other directions.

Quinn didn't think she had ever laughed so much in her life as she did that week. Percy never found out Quinn's involvement in the prank but he did confront Fred and George about it. The Lockhart ramblings lasted almost two full days. As he had no proof however, Percy could do nothing but sputter angrily at the twins. Fred and George followed up the prank by -anonymously- sending a life-size poster of Gilderoy Lockhart to Percy's office at the Ministry. Percy had come home very upset that day and Fred had never looked happier.

As the week progressed, Quinn began to dread going back to school. Not only was she having a wonderful time but Quinn also felt like Fred might have actually noticed her. Quinn felt if she didn't make a move by the end of the week, she might never have another chance. Quinn resolved to tell Fred how she felt before they returned to Hogwarts.

* * *

"Father, Mother sent me to-" Draco walked into the room and abruptly stopped talking and Mr. Malfoy stepped back. Draco however, didn't seem to be shocked by what he saw. Mr. Malfoy, on the other hand, seemed furious. When Lucius moved away from her, Aislinn regained her sense of self and bolted out of the room, almost knocking Draco over. She ran down the hall a bit and stopped. Aislinn began sobbing uncontrollably as she slowly slid down the wall. What had just happened? Why? She couldn't make sense of anything. Had Draco known what his father planned to do? Surely he wouldn't have let that happen. No decent human being would lead another into a situation like that. After a few more minutes of sobbing, Aislinn saw Draco emerge from his father's study. He face was a mask.

He stood watching her for a moment and Aislinn saw his shoulders fall in what was unmistakably a pained sigh. He walked over to her and stood looking down at her disheveled form. Aislinn looked like a mess and she knew it. But her appearance was the last thing on her mind. Draco leaned down and held out his hand to help her up.

"Come on," he told her softly. Aislinn studied him quickly and took his hand. He seemed to be struggling to hide a mixed look of pity and anger. He put his arm around her back and led her to her room. She had hoped he would stay and talk to her when they arrived, but he merely opened the door and said "Good Night." Draco waited until Aislinn was in the room, then turned and walked away.

Aislinn closed the door and looked around the room. She had never wanted to be in her own room more than she did now. How would she spend the next two weeks in the same house with that man? She shuddered and tried not to think about what had happened. She desperately hoped she never saw Mr. Malfoy's study again. Aislinn walked to the bathroom and looked at the claw foot tub. A bath; that would help her wash the memory away. She walked to the small toiletry cabinet and chose her strongest scented soap. S he could still smell his scent on her and she began feeling ill again. Aislinn took a few deep breaths and turned on the tap.

As the water filled the tub, she lowered herself in. The scent of lavender and jasmine filled her mind and she began to think more calmly. She could never tell anyone about this and she sincerely hoped that Draco wouldn't either. She was deeply ashamed of how helpless she had been, and she was even more ashamed that somewhere deep down, she had sort of enjoyed it. She shuddered violently at this thought and water splashed out of the tub. She steadied herself and tried to relax. All of a sudden another thought entered her head and Aislinn's eyes widened. Her father. What would he say if he knew? He and Mr. Malfoy were great friends, but she was sure that her father would rush home and get the silver axe he was always polishing and finish Mr. Malfoy off with one clean swoop. No, she could never let anyone know how stupid she had been. Aislinn then thought of Quinn and a strange desire came over her. Aislinn wished she had gone to the Burrow with Quinn. She knew that wasn't a possibility and it was certainly too late now. She got out of the bath, dried off and dressed for bed.

She lay down in the large bed and cringed. Everything in this room smelled like him. The scene of earlier this evening kept replaying in her mind. Each replay was a little bit worse as new details revealed themselves. She thought of Lucius Malfoy's cold smile for at least an hour and began to cry. She fell asleep with the horrid image imprinted in her mind.

The next week and a half passed in a blur. Aislinn had been terrified to be in the same room with Mr. Malfoy for the first few days after the experience in the study. She hadn't known how he would react to her. Much to her surprise, he had treated her no differently. Draco on the other hand, was a different story. Mr. Malfoy had been down right mean to his son for the remainder of the holiday. Christmas came and she had never seen so many gifts. Draco had to be the most spoiled child in all of Britain, she thought, when she walked into the Malfoy's living room that morning. There must have been at least 150 gifts for him alone. She watched as he opened each one and tossed it aside, ready for the next. She had gotten plenty herself, but nothing near the amount that the Malfoys lavished on their son. Draco didn't seem too thrilled about any of the gifts either. There were several excellent things that Aislinn would have liked to have herself, but she was happy with what she had received from her parents. Having a normal father seemed the best gift of all after being with the Malfoys for a week.

The Malfoys hosted a spectacular party on New Year's Eve. Aislinn still hadn't been in a partying mood and stayed seated on the far side of the room. She had still told no one of the incident. She shuddered the few times she met Mr. Malfoy's gaze. Aislinn had tried not to look at him; he was disgusting to her. Yet, she still found him desperately attractive, almost against her will. These conflicting thoughts shamed her deeply and Aislinn rarely spoke unless spoken to after that day. She had thought that her parents would notice how quiet she was, and she was right. Aislinn had told them that she had been thinking about Quinn, and they understood. That wasn't completely untrue either, she had been thinking of Quinn. She wanted so badly to see her and talk to her.

She felt a little bad that she was ignoring her friends at the party. Pansy had been following Draco around like a lost puppy; it was rather funny to watch. Draco was trying to duck behind various guests but Pansy kept finding him. Marianne was watching Pansy as well.

"What is wrong with that girl? It is so obvious that Draco doesn't really like her. She is making a complete fool of herself." Marianne had tried to talk to her repeatedly but Aislinn wasn't in the mood for conversation. Marianne sat with her for a little while longer and then got up to dance with Nathanial.

"What is the matter Aislinn? You look like someone just told you that once again, despite your best efforts, you've failed to pass your exams. Once again you'll be forced to spend the next year with people half your age learning the same thing over and over again and." Marcus seemed to realize he wasn't talking about Aislinn anymore and shuffled his feet nervously. Marcus then sat down next to her, looked into his glass and drank the remainder of the contents in one gulp. Aislinn felt sorry for Marcus, but she knew he could do better if he had tried. He was just too focused on Quidditch. "I'm sorry about that Aislinn, I just get so fed up with it all." He looked very sad, not to mention very drunk. "Will you dance with me?" Aislinn couldn't refuse now. He looked desperate. He held out his hand and led her to the dance floor. Halfway through the dance, Aislinn caught Mr. Malfoy's eye and he gave her an appreciative look. Aislinn shuddered and Marcus seemed to notice. "Are you all right Aislinn?"

"I'm sorry Marcus, I am not feeling well. Would you mind if I sat down?" Marcus looked at her with concern and led her back to her chair. They talked for a minute and Marcus left her to her thoughts. Aislinn was thinking of returning to Hogwarts and of being out of this house. She wanted to be as far away from Lucius Malfoy as she could manage.

"Would you like to dance?" Aislinn looked up and saw Draco standing in front of her with his hand held out. Aislinn was terrified. She hadn't been close to him since the night of the-incident. She couldn't dance with him; the thought of being next to him so closely scared her.

"No, Draco. I am sorry but I don't really feel that well." Aislinn was sure that Draco had never been turned down for a dance and his face seemed to tell her that she was right. He looked crushed and furious at the same time.

"So, you will dance with Flint, but you won't dance with me?" His eyebrows were raised so high that Aislinn thought they might fly off his head. The last thing she wanted to do was make him angry. Aislinn was still terribly fixed on him, even though she knew how despicable his father was.

"Draco, I asked Marcus if we could cut the dance short because I wasn't feeling well. It is nothing personal." Aislinn was almost pleading with him. She saw the change of his expression and she knew that he understood.

Draco leaned in toward her. Aislinn felt her pulse quicken. He smelled like he always did: delicious. She felt herself starting to go weak and the nausea began to rise.

Aislinn then felt soft warm breath in her ear as he whispered, "Everything is personal Aislinn, one day you might learn that." Draco then stood up and walked across the room. Aislinn noticed that Pansy was giving her a menacing look and Aislinn decided she needed to leave. The night could only get worse from that point. She got up from her seat and went over to her mother.

"Mum, I don't feel very well. May I go to bed?" Aislinn gave her mother a pleading look.

"Certainly darling, only thank Mr. Malfoy before you go." Her mother's words struck a nerve. She felt herself go cold at the thought of not only having to talk to that man, but to thank him as well. Aislinn mustered up every ounce of courage in her body and went across the room to Mr. Malfoy's side.

Thank you for having me tonight, Mr. Malfoy. It was a lovely party." Aislinn didn't look at him, but she could feel his eyes on her. She closed her own and tried to block out the urge to run.

"You are quite welcome, Miss Macnair." Mr. Malfoy studied her for a moment and then continued. "If you would accompany me to the study, I believe you will find that you have left your green robes there." He winked at her and her whole body cringed.

"No!" Aislinn said immediately. "I think I need to go to bed, I am not feeling well." She had to get out of the room and away from Lucius Malfoy. She could not stand next to him for another instant. She nodded her head and turned, but he grabbed her arm.

"Miss Macnair, it is almost midnight. Surely you could stay for a moment and celebrate the New Year with us?" His tone was very insistent. Mr. Malfoy motioned to the other men he was standing with. She smiled weakly at them and nodded to Mr. Malfoy. He handed her a glass of champagne and his hand grazed hers. Aislinn felt a chill go down her spine. S he would just close her eyes and wait until everyone began celebrating . . . then she would run. Mr. Malfoy began conversing with his friends again as Aislinn stood with her eyes closed. She didn't want to look at anyone. She heard the chatter in the room get louder as the countdown began. 10. . . 9 . . . 8, hurry up time! 5 . . 4. .please, please hurry, 2. . .1.

"Happy New Year!" The entire room broke out in celebration and Mr. Malfoy leaned down and kissed Aislinn's cheek.

"Happy New Year, Miss Macnair," he whispered and Aislinn panicked. She turned swiftly and practically ran out of the room. Aislinn made her way down the corridors quickly and she fell into bed. Everything in the house reminded her of Mr. Malfoy and even her own sheets smelled like him. She knew that she never wanted to see black silk again.

* * *

On Friday evening Quinn and Ginny were sitting by the fire working on Herbology coursework. Quinn kept eyeing Fred and George, who she knew were plotting something. After the success of their pranks on Bill and Percy, the twins had set their sites on Quinn.

So far they had attempted to give her one of their Polyjuiced cookies (Quinn was too afraid to ask who she would have become), several canary creams had been hidden in her food, and Quinn had very nearly used green hair dye rather than her shampoo. Quinn had avoided these pranks mostly because she had learned to read Fred's facial expression.

Each time the twins had tried a prank, Quinn had seen Fred's quivering mouth and had backed away. He also tended to blink too much when he was anticipating something.

The twins were thoroughly confused about Quinn's ways of detecting their pranks. She hadn't actually accused them of anything but usually handed whatever she was about to eat to Percy. Percy wasn't too bright because he kept accepting her food. The twins seemed convinced Quinn could read their minds. The best part was that each time the twins tried to get her, Fred's mouth twitched harder. Quinn could almost hear him say 'This Time!' It was thoroughly enjoyable.

* * *

January third came as any ordinary day would. Aislinn got up, showered and dressed as usual. She no longer bothered with her hair and makeup. It didn't seem important and she didn't want to do anything to draw unwanted attention to herself. She went down to the dining room for breakfast and sat at the far end of the table. All the adults had already eaten and Aislinn said a silent Thank You for that. Draco was the only person still eating. The two sat in silence for a while before Draco spoke.

"I have something I want to show you, tonight." Draco looked very pleased. He got up from his seat and moved down to where Aislinn was. 'Something to show her', whatever it was, Aislinn wanted no part of it. She had discovered first hand how the Malfoy's "showed" people things. There was no force on this earth that could make her agree to go with him.

"No thanks, Draco. I think I might spend some time with my father tonight. I haven't spoken to him much since . . . since the day we arrived." Aislinn and Draco had never spoken about what took place that night, and she hoped they never would. Draco smiled wickedly at her.

"You won't be able to speak to him tonight, that is what I wish to show you. Have you ever noticed that sometimes your father is gone at night, and that he always wears long sleeves, even when it is warm?" Draco sneered at her and she was confused. Aislinn had often noticed that her father was gone at night. Her mother had usually told her that he was doing something for the Ministry, but now she doubted that explanation after hearing Draco speak of it. Aislinn then realized she had never seen her father in short sleeves, ever. What did Draco know about her father that she didn't? Aislinn had to know. If her father was doing something that no one was talking about, she just had to know. Her father was a wonderful person, what could he be doing that was so secretive? Aislinn looked down at her enchantment ring and was relieved to see that it was glowing a bright green. She knew that Draco wouldn't try to harm her, not right now anyhow.

"All right Draco, I will go with you. But I am bringing my wand." She would not go anywhere without it anymore. It was one of the only things that made her feel safe, that and her ring.

Draco seemed amused by her last statement. "Okay Aislinn, if you insist. Let me just say this, I am not my father." He paused for a minute as he saw her close her eyes and put her head down. "I will come to get you at 8:30. Wear black."

Draco left the room and Aislinn was confused again. Why had he brought up his father? She was humiliated. And why did he tell her to wear black? Where they going to be spying on her father? Aislinn began feeling nervous about what she might see tonight. She sincerely hoped that she wouldn't catch her father with another woman. The thought made her ill. She loved her parents both terribly, and if her father ever did that to her mother, she could never forgive him. Aislinn got up from her breakfast and headed out the door to the garden.

The Malfoys had many magnificent wild flower gardens. Wild flowers were her favorite, and she had wandered in the gardens for hours at a time since that first day at the Manor. A few days into the holiday, Aislinn had found a cozy bench beneath a willow tree and that was where she had done most of her holiday homework. She spent a good part of the day under the willow, reading and studying and had noticed the sky beginning to turn dark. Aislinn gathered up her things and headed back into the mansion.

Aislinn was dressed in black robes and her hair was pulled up into a ponytail. She knew Draco didn't like it when girls wore their hair up but Aislinn didn't care anymore. All she cared about was finding out what her father had been up too. That had been her sole thought for the entire day. She was waiting on her bed, about to go insane when she finally heard the knock. She jumped up and ran to the door, pulling it open fiercely.

"Shh! Do you want to wake the entire house?" was the greeting she received when Draco stepped into her room. Aislinn tried to stifle a laugh but was unsuccessful. Draco scowled at her as he pulled on his black leather gloves. He was dressed from head to toe in black. He was even wearing a black hat, she assumed to cover his gleaming silver hair. She noticed his black shirt was long sleeved, made of cotton. Her eyes then moved to his pants. She could feel herself gasp when she noticed what he was wearing. His pants were black leather and looked very soft. Oh he was making this difficult for her indeed. Aislinn could almost feel her hand reaching out to touch the soft looking leather and she looked back up at his face. Now he seemed to be the one trying to stifle a laugh.

"You like my pants, do you? Well, you may touch them if you like, but they are staying on." Draco raised his eyebrows and Aislinn stared at him in disbelief. Did he really just say that? She felt herself blush at the thought of touching his pants. She knew that she could never allow herself to do so, but the thought of him telling her it was all right was making something stir inside her. She chastised herself for letting him distract her. Tonight her mind was only on her father and what this great secret was.

"Draco, I do not want to touch your pants. I only want to find out about my father." Aislinn squared her jaw firmly walked to the door.

"Sure Aislinn, keep telling yourself that." He moved to join her and she looked at him incredulously. This boy really did think he was Merlin's gift to women. Oh well, let him think so. He was nearly right. If he would only tone down the cockiness a bit. Draco stuck his head out in the hallway and looked in both directions. He then waved his hand for her to join him and they were off to find her father.

They walked for at least twenty minutes in the darkness before arriving at their destination. They were outside in one of the back gardens of the estate. The two hid behind a large bush and Draco waved his wand over them. "Obscuro." Aislinn felt an invisible shroud cover the two of them.

"What is that?" Aislinn asked him; she had never seen this spell put to use before.

"It is a protecting and concealing spell, we will be undetectable to them. I have used it many times. It is advanced magic; you won't learn it at Hogwarts. My father taught it to me when I was younger. He obviously never thought I would use it against him." Draco smirked a bit at Aislinn's expression.

"Who will we be undetectable to?" But before Draco could answer, Aislinn saw for herself. There were four men dressed in long black robes standing closely together talking. Aislinn noticed that her ring was now glowing purple instead of green. One of the men seemed to be holding something in his hand. Aislinn needed a better view to be able to see what was going on.

"Draco, I can't see, can we move any closer?" He nodded and the two of them silently moved closer to the group. Aislinn then saw that the men where Mr. Malfoy, Mr. Avery, Mr. Nott and her own father. Mr. Malfoy seemed to be holding a rat rather firmly in his hand. The rat was flailing about and Lucius was laughing at it. What a sick man, Aislinn thought. The men suddenly formed a line and brought masks up to their faces. The masks were solid black with a small green serpent on the forehead. Aislinn was beyond confused. There was a momentary silence and then a fifth person arrived with a small pop. Aislinn felt the hair stand on her neck as Draco spoke to her.

"Watch." It was barely more than a whisper. His breath was warm and sweet-smelling. Aislinn thought she would never be able to concentrate with him so near her, but what she saw next told her that she had been very wrong indeed. The person who had just appeared stepped into the moonlight. The man removed his hood and Aislinn almost screamed. He was the most hideous thing she had ever seen. He was very thin and pale, and his eyes were the color of blood. His nose was nothing more than two slits in his terrifying face and his mouth was thin and stern. He looked as if he were a snake that had transformed into a person. Aislinn wasn't quite convinced that he was human. Aislinn felt a chill take over her whole body. She put her hand on Draco's leg to steady herself. Just as she had suspected, the pants were incredibly soft. Aislinn was brought out of her thoughts when the man began to speak.

"I have called this meeting, my friends, to discuss a very important matter." The snake man's voice was quiet and cold. It was the most terrible sound Aislinn had ever heard. "Where is he? His part will be instrumental to the plan."

"He is here, Master. I have been keeping him safe at the Manor for some time," Lucius spoke and bowed to him.

The snake man walked to Mr. Malfoy and took the rat from his hand. He laughed as he observed the rat and threw it to the ground. The man's laugh was mirthless and it chilled Aislinn to the bone. The rat hit the ground with a strangely loud thud and began to transform. Aislinn had witnessed Animagus transformations before but this one didn't seem to complete itself. A man was standing where the rat had been, but he still looked like a rat. He was rather short and had a pointy nose. Even his mannerisms were rat like. He seemed to be sniffing constantly and his nose even twitched. Then she noticed something strange about the man. Sticking out of his robes was something that appeared to be a silver hand.

"Who is that?" Aislinn asked, hoping Draco would know.

"That is Wormtail. I don't know his real name but . . ." Draco fell silent as the man began to speak again.

"Wormtail, are you ready for the task at hand?" The snake man was looking intently at Wormtail and the shorter man fell to his knees and kissed the hem of the snake man's robes.

"Yes Master, I am ready to do your bidding as the faithful servant you deserve." Wormtail almost sounded as if he were crying. The hooded figure kicked his leg and sent Wormtail flying back onto the ground.

"That is enough, Wormtail. We haven't the time for that." He then turned to her father, "Walden, I trust you have made the necessary arrangements for the plan?" The snake man was smiling at her father, almost proudly.

"Yes my Lord, all the arrangements have been made. Lucius and I have set up the anti-Apparation wards. We will go to the house and retrieve the potion from the wall. Wormtail will accompany us since he is the one who hid it and knows precisely where it is. We should not be long." Her father bowed once more and stepped back in line.

"Wonderful. Now as you all know, this potion is very important to me. You know what will happen if you do not return with it." The man looked them over and began to speak again. "Do what you must to get it, however I want no one killed. Do not cast my mark into the sky. We do not need to draw extra attention to ourselves, not yet. The Ritual must be perfect for the potion to work." The man's eyes widened and he held out his long pale arms. "Go, Death Eaters. Deliver the potion to me and you will be rewarded immensely." The five men bowed to the snake man and left with a pop. When her father had left, Aislinn noticed that her ring was still glowing purple. She wondered if it changed immediately when people Apparated. The snake man turned and looked directly at them. He gave them a cold smile and then disappeared.

"He saw us, I thought you said we were concealed?" Aislinn whispered to Draco, not moving her eyes from where they had been moments before looking at the snake man.

"I thought we were," he whispered back. He seemed frozen in his place. Aislinn looked at her ring again, it was glowing green. She was relieved.

"Draco, who was that man?" Aislinn wasn't quite sure she wanted to hear the answer.

"That, Aislinn, was Lord Voldemort."