The Humanity In You, The Darkness In Me

******** Chapter Two ********

*****The Meeting Of The Ants*****





Lucius Malfoy sat rather calmly for a man who was knee deep in lust, his hands collected in his lap like a docile school boy.

His fellow Death Eaters would have never guessed what was on his mind, disturbing as it was.

He glanced about the room casually, flitting his eyes to and fro.

Two of the Death Eaters rather close together in the circle whispered softly to one another, a pudgy hand clumsily dropping a quill.

The one on the left coughed nervously.

Lucius inwardly smirked. Idiots. Crabbe and Goyle, no doubt about that.

Other Death Eaters were much slower to arrive. Some perhaps, were feeling a tad reluctant, others, simply brimming with an odd collection of insanity, zeal, and a childlike anxiousness, emotions stirring together in a toxic stew. Ah, there drifted in Narcissa, Lucius noted with a bitter taste in his mouth, he could pick that poison out of a crowd by her haughty walk......

This was only a passing amusement mind you, dissecting his fellow Death Eaters, something to kill the time as he waited for the only one who really mattered in his world of arrogance and self obsession.

Something that mattered more than himself.

What a surpise that had been.

He had nursed this dark obsession in his breast for as long as he could remember, since the very beginning. Lucuis laughed inwardly. Even before He had become something of a leader, even before that.

His outward appearance of an aloof, needless man, an independant man, was a pathetic falsehood that barely contained the shuddering desire that swirled in the depths of his misty eyes. Malfoy had hidden this far too long to fail, to slip up. He quailed mentally, an icy feeling creeping up his skin as he thought of the consequences, the pain, were he to mis-step once in his most carefully orchestrated performance. All this precision, stacked neatly like a deck of cards, years upon years. It was enough to drive him mad, if his little stack of cards were to come tumbling down.

He inhaled one deep, wavering breath. Lucuis closed his eyes behind his skeletal mask. 'Focus', he thought. 'Relax.'

This wasn't the time for mistakes.

His heart twisted in his ribcage as he thought of, Voldemort; even in name only- but oh, what a powerful name it was.

He shuddered, glancing about the circular stone chamber in a decidedly bored manner, meeting here with these miniscle wretches a bland poison he endured for only another chance to observe Voldemort's beauty, his distinct air of being untouchable. Voldemort had proven that.
They could crush him, poison him, they could destroy his body and yet, still..... he lived. The man had more lives than a cat.

The other Death Eaters began to whisper viciously between narrowed eyes and raised hands, perhaps trying to discover why they had been summoned here with no warning in the first place.

It had not been planned, and planning was to Voldemort as a Sphinx to riddles.

Lucius chuckled mentally, watching the Death Eaters; they were so pathetic in their obvious idiocy and he felt special in knowing he alone was privy to his Dark Lord's clever designs. He felt special in the knowledge that he was one of his most closest supporters.

He felt - scowling Lucius gritted his teeth as the final and last Death Eater glided silently into the room, apparently late and covered with a soft powder coating of snow. Lucius tried to stiffle a giggle as he noted it appeared 'dear' Snape had taken a tumble.

Snape looked around, quickly deducing with the utmost revulsion that the only available seat left was next to the very creature he despised moreso than other creatures, Malfoy.

Severus and Lucius locked eyes across the room, and in that instant; perhaps for moments only, evryone else ceased to exist. Their mutual enimty would be evident were a person keen enough to notice the twitch in Severus's mouth as he struggled not to openly snarl, or the clenching of Lucius's hand on the chair as his knuckles burned white.

Lucius prayed for the day that Snape, big greasy nose and all; would meet an untimely demise at the hands of depraved, lust filled trolls - but until then he could only fume inwardly, waiting for some sort of miraculous 'tragedy' to befall Snape. Oh how he waited.

Severus sat stiffly down beside Lucius, feverently hoping that if he maybe ignored Lucius the wizard would take a hint and leave him alone, but his unspoken plea fell on the ears of a deaf god, if one did at all exist.

"Ah, Snape," Lucius paused," How, delighted to see you".

Malfoy drawled mockingly, twirling one finger about a lock of his own vibrant hair idly, as if he perhaps in talking to Snape was doing him some sort of favor.

Lucius flicked his eyes upward, a mere glance,their eyes locked again and then they fused together as one writhing mass of mutual hatred.

His lip twitching in a sneer of distaste Snape replied icily,"Lucius," nodding his head to him in recognition as he ignored him further, staring at a hideous tapestry of a dragon gorging itself upon screaming little faces of children that he pretended to find wonderfully fascinating, anything to avoid having to look upon Lucius's pointed face.

"Arrogant flobberworm," Snape muttered under his breath. How dare Lucius speak to him like he was a lowly muggle. Lucius was like a child, throwing his little tantrums whenever Voldemort showed Severus the least amount of praise. Almost as if he was.... jealous? Snape snorted. Those sort of thoughts were quite... his face furrowed - disgusting.

Snape however, did not have time to further delve into his mental inquisitions; as all the Death Eaters rised to greet the one they each served.

His horrible bone white face was stretched taunt and his burning scarlet eyes with cat-like pupils flicked momentarily over each of his servants as they bowed reverantly to him, regarding him as some sort of unholy messiah.

Voldemort stood quietly in the center of the circle, waiting patiently for their bowing to cease, fro their ant-like worship to end.

He almost enjoyed it too greatly..... his lips twisting into a wretched smirk, he'd forgotten how amusing his servant's antics could be.

Turning about to look around at each and every one of them he gazed upon his Death Eaters, boring holes into them with those eyes, those villianous eyes of unmatched cruelty. He stared at them in such a way, as if they were all mildly interesting insects.

"I know, " he whispered softly,"You all are wondering precisely -why I summoned you here?" looking out behind his pitiless eyes he continued, not waiting for an answer.

"I will admit, it was a surprise to me when I was informed that a certain, 'auror'," Voldemort's voice took on a venomous tone as he paced inside the circle and each Death Eater cringed, knowing full well that Voldemort was not pleasant to be near when he was angry.

'Not pleasant', a severe understatement.

"A certain auror, still, alive, in fact, " he continued silkily, "she is not but a few miles from here....Quite puzzeling really.." he pretended to look confused, sarcasm pouring from every syllable he said as he paced back and forth.

The Death Eaters twitched, knocking down their chairs as they scattered, breaking and reforming the circle in his wake.

Voldemort paused dramatically, placing the tip of his wand against his lower lip.

"And do you know why its puzzeling?" he implored softly in a whisper, searing flaming holes in those around him with his cold eyes.

"It's puzzeling because I quite clearly, recall ordering Narcissa to deal with her and yet, " his fist clenched," I am told that this, irritance, is still alive..." Voldemort began to pace again.

"Furthermore, it perplexes me that Narcissa made no effort to tell of her failure to do

this one, little, thing," he stops midpace to turn on his heel and stare coldly into Narcissa's quailing eyes, and everyone knows exactly what will happen next.

"And why is this Narcissa?" The Dark Lord whispers softly, staring into her, already knowing the answer before Narcissa has a chance to speak.

Narcissa trembled, cowering as she screamed out, "FORGIVE ME MASTER! PLEASE! I - "

"Silence!' Voldemort spat acidily as his eyes narrowed," I did not come here to waste time listening to your excuses Narcissa, I asked you why? Why did you not inform me of your failure?"

"I was afraid..." she whimpered, her face pressed into the cold stone floor by his foot as she trembled violently.

"You've made quite a blunder Narcissa, in fact I think perhaps you need to be reminded of just how, important that mistake of your was, and what it will cost you," Voldemort murmured as he showed no visible expression yet it was evident what was coming.

Narcissa knew this as well and cried out,"NO MASTER! PLEASE!" But even her shrieking wails cannot drown out the sounds of "Crucio!"
"Crucio" echoing off the stone walls.

Trembling Narcissa is crying in pain, her body twitching on the floor in agony; tears of torment running down her face.

Voldemort looks over at her with a look of disgust, and says scathingly,

"Perhaps now you will realize just how much this is going to upset....Understand that I can't have that auror waltzing about and ruining me," Voldemort whispered softly, showing no hint of emotion in his face,

"For thanks to you Narcissa, she is that much closer to her deluded fantasies of capture, and every second that she breathes is a mockery of myself!"

Voldemort ignored Narcissa's soft whimpers of pain as he began to pace again, oblivious to anyone else's existence besides that of his own.

It was usually that way.

Snape grimaced inwardly to himself.

These meetings of the ants.