Title: Lady Darkness
Author: Emcee
and rain
Rating: R
Summary: The Dark Lord and his consort have their first audience
with the Death Eaters.
Author's Notes: Thanks to Pablo for the beta. Lyrics in the
chapter title from "Down in the Park" by Gary Numan.
Disclaimer: "Harry Potter" and the characters, places and things related to it do not belong to me. They are from the brilliant mind of JK Rowling. They belong to her and her publishers. I am not making any profit from this fan fiction.
xxii. 'We are not lovers. We are not romantics. We are here to serve you.
A different face, but the words never change.'
Bellatrix adjusted her corset, carefully plumping up her breasts. She frowned
in concentration, her lips a thin line.
"I've never known you to primp so," Lucius laughed. He leaned against
the doorframe casually. "Have you been spending too much time with your
sister or has age made you insecure?"
"This is a momentous occasion, Lucius," Bellatrix replied haughtily.
" We are meeting with the Dark Lord-- the true Dark Lord. I would
like to make the right first impression." She swept her ebony hair up off
her neck.
"Really." Lucius smirked. "Want to assure yourself your position?
I thought you would be more upset about this, Bellatrix. He did, after all,
murder the Dark Lord."
"They were both the Dark Lord," Bellatrix snapped. "One
had to overtake the other. The fact that he was capable of taking dominance
just proves he is the true king. You said they shared the same soul. I follow
the Dark Lord's tremendous spirit, no matter what the body."
Lucius chuckled softly, his grey eyes focused on Bellatrix. "And it doesn't
hurt that his body is... Very healthy."
Bellatrix's tongue darted out, wetting her lips. She smiled seductively. "I
will admit the idea of the Dark Lord restored to such a fine form does have
its appeal. The body created in the graveyard had its... Limitations. I suppose
you can expect that, given as he received new life by Wormtail, his Muggle father
and that child."
Lucius stepped into the room. "Yes. Depending on a child for life.
It truly is pathetic, isn't it? The new Dark Lord..." He laughed darkly.
"Doesn't have that plaguing him." He put a hand on Bellatrix's bare
shoulder. "But, you know, he is not exactly as he was. The soul
is the same, but the memories are different."
"Then I will just have to give him new memories of me," Bellatrix
purred. "If what Wormtail says is true, the Dark Lord is a young man. Young
men have appetites and a curiosity only a seasoned teacher can provide."
Lucius turned Bellatrix to face him. He handed her a blank, white mask. "You
are definitely... Seasoned." He smirked.
Bellatrix took the mask in her spindly fingers. "I hear the doubt in your
voice, Lucius. Do you think I cannot teach the Dark Lord?" She strode towards
the door.
Lucius laughed, following after her. Under his breath, he whispered, "I
think he's already found a tutor."
Ginevra doubled over, grabbing the edges of the vanity. She gripped it tightly.
Her legs were shaking, unsteady. She took deep, gasping breath. Her eyes were
wide, tears flooding them. Sweat beaded on her forehead. Her corset felt constrictive,
she couldn't seem to get enough air into her lungs. She grimaced as she tried
to get herself back under control.
"Princess?" Tom called out. He walked into the bedroom, his dark green
robes following around him. "Are you ready?"
With a mewl of pain, Ginevra pulled herself up, standing straight. She smoothed
down her skirt, forcing a large, false smile onto her face. "Yes."
She hissed in a breath. "Of course. Have the Death Eaters arrived?"
Brow knitting, Tom took hesitant steps towards Ginevra. His cold, calculating
blue eyes surveyed her. "Princess, you are not ready."
"Do I not look all right?" Ginevra asked. She pushed a lock of her
fiery hair out of her face and looked down. "I thought I had made myself
look quite intimidating and beautiful. But if you are not satisfied with it..."
"I have no doubt our faithful will tremble before you magnificence, my
Princess." Tom stopped in front of Ginevra. He cupped her chin, lifting
her head to look into his eyes. He narrowed his gaze. "But I am not so
easily fooled. You are still ill. I can sense it."
Ginevra pulled away, whimpering softly. "I will be fine, my Lord. I am
still regaining my strength. I promise I will not fail you."
Tom stroked Ginevra's cheek. "I should hope not. That is not my concern,
Princess..." He paused, licking his lips as he considered what to say.
"You are still healing. Perhaps you can meet with our faithful on another
occasion. When you are feeling better."
Ginevra shook her head. "I wish to do it now. Today. Doing otherwise will
show weakness. I am the Dark Consort, I will not be seen as weak!"
"You are the Dark Consort and you are anything but weak, Princess."
Tom wrapped an arm around Ginevra's waist, supporting her. "But you have
made many sacrifices for my rise. You are allowed time to repair yourself. I
offer this to you, you have not asked. It is not weakness in your spirit, just
your body." There was a flicker of worry in his icy eyes.
Ginevra took a deep breath, pulling herself away from Tom. She smoothed down
her dress, raising her chin defiantly. "I... am fine. I will command our
faithful. No mere brush with death will stop me from serving with my Lord."
Tom smiled. "Just as I think you cannot impress me any more, you do so.
You are extraordinary, Princess." He took Ginevra's hand, leading her to
the door. "The faithful will have arrived. We will show them how powerful
the Dark Lord and Lady are."
The sitting room of the Reece home had been transformed-- instead of a comfortable
easy chair there was a silver and green throne, adorned with serpents. Beside
the throne was an object draped in a green velvet sheet. The rest of the room
was bare, making room for the dozen of masked, prostrate Death Eaters.
"Welcome, my faithful," Tom said softly, a slight edge to his voice.
"I'm sure the news has reached you all. The old regime is dead. I am your
Lord, Voldemort... Truly restored to my former glory."
Tom released Ginevra's hand. He stepped up to his throne and sat down. He looked
around as they Death Eaters looked up, all eyes on him in rapt attention. His
expression darkened. "We are not as strong as we used to be."
There were gasps of protests from the assembly, but Tom shook his head. "We
cannot deny this fact. To do so would be foolish and I do not tolerate stupidity.
We are not the power we used to be. However." He rose back to his feet.
"This is not my error. It will be corrected-- Oh yes, believe me, this
will be rectified-- but it is the folly of my predecessor."
He began to walk amongst the Death Eaters. "The former Dark Lord fell over
a dozen years ago. In that time, the Wizarding World was allowed to heal while
he remained a shadow of himself. As soon as he regained his life, he believed
he could resume the position of terror he once held."
Tom sneered. "This was his mistake. To dominate we have to accept
the position we are truly in. We cannot just randomly attack the world and hope
they will notice us."
He knelt before a Death Eater. Judging from his size, it was Goyle. "Our
terror should be wielded like a dagger-- quickly plunged in and just as quickly
spirited away. It is not a club to beat our enemies over the head. This was
the former Dark Lord's folly. For the past two years he has had you act as barbarians.
That. Ends. Now."
Tom pulled himself up to full height. "Do not mistake me, I do not judge
you for these feeble attacks. This was purely the error of the old Dark Lord.
But he is gone. I am Lord Voldemort. The mistakes of the past are gone. I am
ushering in a new era in which you are all invited." He glared around the
room. "Your indiscretions are forgotten. You are no longer bound to your
blunders, as the old Dark Lord would chain you. I am offering you a new chance
to prove yourself powerful to my cause."
Ginevra laboured out a breath. She wavered slightly, clutching the wall for
support.
Tom noticed her body falter. He moved quickly to her side, grabbing her waist
to support her. "This--" Tom hissed, staring into Ginevra's
pale face. "--Is loyalty."
He turned Ginevra to face the crowd, standing behind her, arm wrapped firmly
around her waist to hold her up. "This is unwavering devotion to me. This
black goddess has offered her life to me twice. She has given me--" He
ran a hand down her neck. "--Every inch of her being."
Ginevra fought to keep her eyes open, to glare dangerous onto the assembly of
Death Eaters.
"This woman-- young enough to be the daughter of every single Death Eater
in this room-- is stronger than you can ever dream. She is raw, glorious power."
He leaned in, laving his tongue over her neck. "She is your Lady Darkness--
the Dark Consort." He smirked. "Lady Voldemort." His eyes narrowed.
"You will treat her as such."
There was a small gasp of astonishment from the audience. Tom released Ginevra,
striding to the source of the noise. He knelt before the Death Eater, cocking
his head. "Do you have something to add..." He narrowed his gaze.
"Bellatrix, isn't it?"
Bellatrix bowed her head. "No, my Lord."
"Well." Tom got back to his feet. "Now that you know who is in
charge, it is time you know what we will do. We must return to the old ways.
We cannot simply burst back into our former position of power. We must rebuild.
Work under cloak of dark, swell our ranks."
He laughed darkly as he wound his way around the Death Eaters. "I know
what you ask yourself. How can we return to such covert operations when the
Ministry is searching for the Death Eaters? When they will not rest until they
have the body of the Dark Lord? Well..."
Tom pulled up the sheet, revealing Voldemort's corpse on a slab. "We can
give the Ministry what they want." Tom smirked. "Yes, we will. The
dead Dark Lord. He is of no use.... Except to show the Ministry the danger is
gone."
There was a spatter of applause from the crowd. Tom turned back to his Death
Eaters. "There has been an uprising. You've found God, seen the error of
your ways. To show your loyalty to the Ministry you've staged a coupe and executed
the Dark Lord."
"Dumbledore will never believe this," Lucius hissed.
"I don't expect him to," Tom replied. "But I think the illusion
of war's end will be enough to sate the Ministry. No one will believe the old
fool." His eyes narrowed. "I worry about the Ministry, not Dumbledore's
Order. My Dark Consort has given me all I need to bring down Dumbledore's army."
He stopped before Lucius. "And I do believe I asked for loyalty, Lucius.
That does not include questioning me."
Tom drew out his wand, pointing it at Lucius. "Crucio."
Lucius writhed painfully on the floor, howling his misery. Ginevra let out a
small squeal of delight, biting her lip in an attempt to contain her excitement.
"We will clear the names of the true faithful," Tom explained. "We
will be free to wreck havoc upon this world... Far more insidious than my counterpart
could have ever dreamed."
He pointed to the Death Eater lying on the floor. "Lucius, Bellatrix...
You will receive the honour of taking the former Dark Lord's body to the Ministry.
I have a list of redeemed men who were involved in the coupe, but unfortunately
were taken to Azkaban falsely before the plan to take down the Dark Lord
was complete. They will be released immediately."
"How?" Wormtail asked.
Ginevra finally moved. She was slow, but she made her way between the crowd
of Death Eaters. "After incarcerating Sirius Black falsely for twelve years
Fudge is skittish about innocent men rotting in Azkaban," Ginevra purred.
She moved with grace, her movements feline where Tom's had been serpentine.
"He is a fool. A dead Dark Lord is worth a few released prisoners. If he
can tell the public that he had the body of the Dark Lord--" She
stopped in front of Tom. "-- No one will question his wisdom in pardoning
those who brought his demise."
Tom laughed. "The most deadly attack we can unleash is peace."
He wrapped his arms around Ginevra's waist, drawing her flush against him. He
gazed down at her lustfully. "Why are you still here?" he hissed,
still focusing on Ginevra, but addressing the Death Eaters.
The Death Eater assembly began to disperse. Bellatrix cast a disdainful look
towards Ginevra as Tom began to feast upon her neck. She followed behind Lucius
to collect Voldemort's body, but kept her eyes trained on Ginevra.
Ginevra pulled away from Tom. "A moment, my Lord," she whispered,
putting a finger to his lips.
She strode to a Death Eater at the threshold of the door, about to leave. She
grabbed his arm, turning him to her. "I didn't think you possessed such
brazen qualities." She looked up into his blank mask. She could see the
black eyes through the slits. "Showing your face here is very Gryffindor
of you, Severus."
"I was invited," Snape whispered darkly.
"Yes, you were," Ginevra leaned in, licking her lips. "By me.
You know what I want you to know, Severus. No more. I expect you to run to Albus
with all you have heard today. In fact, I desire it."
She released his arm, gently caressing the spot where the Dark Mark lay. "You
are here because it amuses me, Severus. It is in your best interest that you
remain so entertaining."
"Of course," Snape growled. "My Lady."
He turned on his heels and strode out.
When Lucius and Bellatrix finally left and Wormtail had skittered away, Ginevra
let out a tremendous sigh and collapsed.
Tom ran to her side, catching her in his arms. "You overexerted yourself,
Princess." He scooped her up, holding her close to his chest. "I told
you that you should rest."
"I will be fine," Ginevra murmured, snuggling close to Tom. "I
just need to rest now."
"Of course we will be fine," Tom replied silky. "We are on our
way to true power, my Princess. The Ministry will never know what hit them."