White Pawn, Black King

Lucius Malfoy sat perfectly still in his chair, his face an expressionless mask, impossible to read. His grey eyes fixed on one spot on the cave floor, never moving. He sat motionless for almost an hour, waiting.

And then came the voice.

"Lucius - good, you're here."

Lucius looked up at the sound, dropped to his knees and kissed the hem of the speaker's robes.

"Master," he murmured. The speaker's thin lips curled into an amused smile.

"Faithful as ever, I see. Get up."

Lucius scrambled back into his chair. His lips twitched as he wondered if he dared ask a question.

"What did you want to see me about, my Lord?"

"A new development." Lord Voldemort - the speaker - conjured up a chair and sat down. He put a hand into his pocket and drew out a small crystal bottle.

"What is it, my Lord?"

"Bottled Memory Charm." Lucius stared at the bottle, awestruck. "It is so powerful that just five drops can wipe a person's entire memories. We tested it on some of Dumbledore's do-gooders, and very amusing it was too. The victim can still think for themselves - they still know how to breathe, eat, look after themselves, etcetera; they also know how to read and write in their native language, which is useful. The main advantage, of course, is that they can be used as a pawn for any operation - you tell them an adapted version of their life story, and they, due to a new charm that we developed, take on the story as if it really were their own. Which is where you come in."

Lucius looked up, a look of horror on his face.

"You want me to -"

"Of course not," Lord Voldemort snapped. "You are my most prized servant, Lucius! Why would I want to wipe your memory? You have a different purpose entirely."

"What do you want me to do, master?"

"Do you know of Hermione Granger?"

"Of course," Lucius replied, a contemptuous expression settling on his features. "She's a filthy little Mudblood, a Gryffindor - or she was, anyway...is she still alive?"

"Hermione Granger is one of Dumbledore's most valuable allies. She might be a Mudblood, but she is a very powerful witch; so powerful that Dumbledore wishes to keep her as safe as possible. She lives in Hogsmeade; something which would have remained entirely hidden from me, had I not captured her Secret-Keeper and prised the information out of her."

"Who was her Secret-Keeper, my Lord?"

"Virginia Weasley - I believe that her family and yours have a distinct rivalry, do they not?"

"Not so much a rivalry, master; more a profound hatred. Is the girl dead?"

"Of course. You know as well as anyone that a person is almost destroyed after my...questioning. I did the girl a favour by killing her - at least then her death was quick."

"My Lord - if you don't mind me asking - what is it that you want me to do?"

"You will go into Hogsmeade, to the girl's house - I will give you her address. You will enter the house, and use any means necessary to subdue the girl - but try not to harm her too much; she is valuable, after all. Take her back to your manor, where I will be waiting with something for the girl to read."

"A book?"

"A book of sorts. It will be her life story - adapted, of course, containing every spell that she ever learnt. It will be the truth up until her sixth year at school; and then, instead of a fairytale romance with Ronald Weasley, I will put in a passionate fling with your son, Draco - that is if you do not object, Lucius."

"Of course not, master. Please - proceed."

"I will write that she was in love with Draco, and wanted to marry him, but you warned her away from your son, you said that a Mudblood was not going to marry Draco. She told you that she would do anything to marry Draco, and so you, using your - ah - persuasive powers, convinced her that joining me would be the best thing she could possibly do. You killed Draco not a month later, but she was already too involved to back out."

"An excellent plan, master - but if you don't mind me saying, wouldn't such an array of experiences make her bitter and unwilling to cooperate?"

"It would," Lord Voldemort said, smiling slightly. "If not for you. You are the one she loves, the one she will do anything for, if it means being in your favour." A mixed expression crossed Lucius' face.

"What about Narcissa?"

"Lucius, Lucius - you know as well as I do that Narcissa is not in a state of mind to notice who you are...working with. Now - time is of the essence - I will leave you. I will call you to me within the next few days; be prepared, Lucius."

And with those words, he was gone.