Chapter Sixty-One: London Headquarters
Lottie appeared in the center of a deserted, suburban neighborhood. The wind lifted the hem of her robes and whipped them about her ankles. She glanced at her surroundings, tucking her new, coarse, dark hair behind her ear. She had to find a Death Eater”maybe there would be nearer to the camps?
She began to walk in one direction, and looked carefully around her. She had never been outside the camps for very long, and only now was the absurdity of the situation beginning to dawn on her. Why did wizards need this much space?
She did not have to wait long to find a Death Eater. A shout of, “Hey! Who are you?” froze her in her tracks.
Lottie turned around and raised her hands to indicate that she meant no harm. She stood still until the Death Eater reached her. She could tell just by looking at his eyes (the only visible part of him beneath his mask) that he was not a high-ranking official; he was just one of the dimwitted muscles.
“My name is Shaula Carrow,” Lottie said, and only for a moment, was taken aback by the brusqueness of her own voice.
“Carrow?” The Death Eater leaned closer and examined her eyes carefully in some sort of mockery of Legilimency. Lottie’s Occlumency held true, even though she doubted that she actually needed to block any of his attacks. He had probably seen others do this without any real idea what it meant. “You’re not related to Alecto and Amycus, are you?”
“I am.” Lottie pursed her lips, as though she were offended by the Death Eater’s question. “My father, Acrturus”I assume you have heard of him”was their first cousin.”
“I’ve heard of Acrturus,” the Death Eater grunted. “He wasn’t one of our type, was he?”
“Insignificant,” Lottie said. “His support of the Dark Lord’s movement was not as enthusiastic as his cousins’, if that is what you mean, but mine is.”
“You’re not a Death Eater, though.”
“I have not been given that honor, no, I must admit.” The words flowed naturally from Lottie’s tongue. She was almost surprised by how easy this was. “I have been away. After leaving Hogwarts, I went to America and went to spread the Dark Lord’s message.”
The Death Eater narrowed his eyes and straightened up, as if to examine her fully. “How do I know you’re not lying?”
Lottie etched a casual smirk into Shaula’s face. “Why would I lie?”
The Death Eater apparently was unable to answer this question and shrugged. “So what are you doing out then, Carrow?”
“I was actually hoping to run into somebody like you,” Lottie said. “The trip to America was not going successfully and I thought I would be more useful here.”
“You want to join the Dark Lord’s inner circle?” the Death Eater asked. “You realize that it is an extremely difficult rank to achieve.”
Lottie raised her eyebrows. “I might be successful,” she said simply. “If not, I still want to join. Is there a headquarters where I could speak with someone”ah”more official?”
The Death Eater clearly did not appreciate this, but couldn’t find anything to disagree with, so he just grunted dully. He turned around and shrugged in a direction to get her to follow. Lottie adjusted her robes slightly and walked behind him.
The streets they went through were equally as deserted. Only once did they see anybody else”another masked Death Eater who raised an arm in greeting. They got as far as the camps, and walked around the gate’s periphery. Lottie looked resolutely ahead, trying to ignore the dusty, grimy children, huddled by the edge.
This became increasingly difficult when the Death Eater turned and marched them through the gate. Now Lottie was here, her former home. She walked with blinders until they finally reached a gathering of other hooded and cloaked Death Eaters.
Lottie waited quietly in the background as the Death Eaters conversed in low tones. She mentally prepared herself to defense against Legilimency attacks. The Death Eaters were talking, casting dark glances at her.
“Carrow,” the first Death Eater finally said. It only took Lottie a split second longer to respond to this new name. She approached the circle. “This,” the Death Eater gestured to the figure on his right, “is Severus Snape. No doubt you’ve heard of him.”
The shock Lottie felt rocket through her body was enough to catch her momentarily off guard, but she quickly regained composure. “Who hasn’t?” she said, giving the masked Snape a wry smile.
Snape reached up and took his mask off. His usual curtain of black hair fell into his black eyes as he surveyed her carefully. He smirked. For a terrible second, Lottie thought he had recognized her, but she regained her composure quickly. He was not doing Legilimency”he didn’t know who she was. “So,” he said softly, “you are interested in joining us officially?”
Lottie nodded.
“Excellent. Thank you, Archer. Leave us.” The first Death Eater nodded and obediently turned to leave. Snape turned to the other Death Eaters behind him and snarled, “You too.” The others left more grudgingly, and it wasn’t until they were well out of earshot that Snape inched closer and hissed, “Why have you come back?”
Lottie took a step away from him, trying to suppress her alarm “What do you mean?”
“You have been gone for years. Nothing came of your mission to America. We assumed you had fled.”
“I haven’t.” Lottie’s gaze did not falter. “The American Mudbloods put up more of a fight than I had anticipated. I was”ah”indisposed for quite some time before escaping.”
“They captured you?” Snape’s eyes flitted between hers, trying to find some sense of a lie. “You let yourself be captured by scum?”
“They put up an impressive fight. They took away my wand. Even you could not have escaped easily, as defenseless as I was.”
Snape’s nostrils flared dangerously. Lottie was sorely tempted to perform Legilimency; she had to find out who had let him out”who the traitor was”but she knew that it would blow her cover completely if she did. “How did you escape then?” Snape finally asked.
“I tackled one of them when they had their backed turned and wrestled the wand out of his hands.”
Snape stood in silence for a long time. Lottie knew he was looking for something”anything to suggest that she was lying, but he couldn’t find it. “Very well,” he said brusquely. “Follow me.”
With a knot loosening in her chest, Lottie trotted after Snape as he walked back toward the exit of the camp. He took her through the deserted, urban streets until they reached an underground entrance. They descended the steps into near darkness. Lottie followed the minute light emanating from Snape’s wand as they walked farther and farther into darkness.
“Who goes there?” called a harsh, distant voice.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Snape hissed. He jerked his head toward a narrow tunnel way to their right from which a glimmering light issued. He veered, and Lottie followed. They sauntered along the slippery path, Lottie hoping the entire time that she would not trip. Finally, they emerged in a wide chamber, lit by flickering torches. “I come bearing fresh meat,” Snape said.
A single Death Eater stood against the far wall. As he approached, Lottie thought she saw something familiar in those silver eyes”but it couldn’t be Malfoy”he had died. The Death Eater reached up and removed his mask. It took all of Lottie’s self control not to gasp. It was Malfoy, just not Draco.
“I thought we have the entire list of recruits to the inner circle already,” Lucius said, his eyes narrowing on her. “They came directly from Hogwarts. Who are you?”
Lottie opened her mouth to answer, but Snape cut in. “She does not come directly from Hogwarts. She had a mission in the Americas and was assumed for dead.” He slid his gaze to Lottie who stared resolutely back at him. “With her own cunning, she escaped. And she comes from noble blood. The Dark Lord will be pleased to have a Carrow back in the inner circle.”
Lucius’s eyes widened, causing his crows’ feet to deepen. “Carrow, you say? I did not know there were any alive.”
“Neither did I.” Snape smiled though it seemed more like a leer. “If her blood and clever escape don’t make her an ideal recruit, we have many others who are in more trouble than her.”
Lucius’s frown lines deepened. “I see,” he said. “Yes. I think the Dark Lord will be pleased to see you. Carrow?”
“Shaula Carrow,” Lottie said swiftly, grating him a satisfied smile. “Thank you. I want nothing more than to be useful to the Dark Lord in whatever way possible.”
“You may be more helpful than you know.” Lucius glanced behind him. “And you arrive at a perfect moment, I must say. Tomorrow we begin the process with the new candidates.”
“Yes,” Snape said, his eyebrows tightening curiously. “It’s almost as if you planned this.”
“Fortune has been on my side,” Lottie said quickly, meeting his eyes. They stood staring for a good minute. Again, Lottie could feel him trying to break into her mind, but she would not let him.”
“Well,” Lucius finally said, “the recruits stay here, so we can keep an”ah”closer eye on them. No doubt you have no place to stay anyway”but”let me show you to the rooms.”
“Thank you.” Lottie smiled at Snape before turning to follow Lucius down another narrow hallway. As Lucius walked, his hood fell from his head, leaving his iron grey hair exposed. That image catapulted memories into Lottie’s mind”Draco, first coming to Alsemore, alone and friendless, Lucius spotting Draco at Beauxbatons, Lucius killing his own son. A lump rose in Lottie’s throat, but she forcefully repressed it. Here, standing before her was the man who had killed her grandfather. It would be so easy to take revenge”but then what? No, the only way she could really take revenge was to play her part well.
Lottie turned her attention to the tunnels around her. The flaming torches cast everything in a sickly, yellow light and made shadows move on the wall. The ground seemed to be solid, but Lottie thought she could hear soft crunches every time her boots made contact with it. Finally, Lucius came to a stop.
“Here we are,” he said, indicating a row of battered doors to their right. Lottie scanned them quickly and counted twenty doors.
“You are lucky,” Lucius went on as he approached the last door. “We have only one room left.”
“Funny,” Lottie said. She watched him turn the rusty latch and swing the door open. He inclined his head toward her and, taking that cue, Lottie inched inside.
The room was gloomy. Darkness had trapped it, invaded every corner. A faint singed smell inhabited the room, and with no windows along any of the stretches of dark wall, it festered. As soon as she stepped through the threshold, Lottie felt a tingling in her fingertips. She wasn’t sure whether it was the remnants of Dark Magic that caused that, or if it was just her own anxiety.
“Thank you,” she finally said, turning back to Lucius.
He just pursed his lips in return before spinning on his heel to leave. “Oh by the way,” he said, stopping and glancing back at her, “the candidates have a meeting tonight”we will tell you more of the process then.”
“Got it,” Lottie said. “Thank you.”
Lucius nodded once and strode out of the room, letting the door slam behind him.
Fingers trembling, Lottie reached into her pocket and pulled out her flask. She took a swig of the Polyjuice Potion before putting it away again. She made sure to hide it more carefully this time, and fashioned herself a tie with which she could strap it to her calf. Snape, she remembered, was a Potions Master. If he ever saw the flask, he would know what it was instantly.
Lottie sat down on the corner of the bed and rested her face in her hands. Her eyes had grown accustomed to the darkness, and though there was no light, save for the minute amount of torchlight seeping in from the crack beneath the door, Lottie could see quite clearly. She didn’t even want to imagine what the next day would entail”some sort of test, it seemed like.
There was a knock at the door. Lottie picked her head up and blinked at it. “Erm, come in,” she said tentatively.
The door opened. Standing in its frame was a boy”Lottie would almost have said child. Surrounded by the orange light, his wiry silhouette stood in blackness. His hair was thin, neither blond nor brown. His wide eyes wandered manically, and were set far into his head. His thin lips twitched nervously as though he wanted to speak, but could not.
“Hi,” Lottie finally said.
The boy mumbled something indistinct.
“Sorry?”
“I”I said you could use some light in here,” he said, a little louder, though Lottie still had to strain to hear him. Lottie was not at all surprised by the high pitch of his voice or the thinness with which he spoke.
Lottie shrugged. Without her approval, the boy pulled out a wand and flicked it. Two candles appeared out of thin air. He flicked his wand again, and they ignited. His sheepish smile was visible in the wavering light as he carefully balanced the candle on the tabletop.
The boy sat down without invitation on her bed next to her, still smiling. His blue eyes were so light that they seemed almost translucent. “Hi,” Lottie said again.
“Hello.”
Again, there was silence. “I’m Shaula,” Lottie said. “Shaula Carrow.”
The boy’s pale eyes widened slightly at the name”clearly it was a familiar one. “I’m Bran,” he said, his voice wavering. “Bran Bennett. You just got here today.”
“Yes.”
“I’ve been here for almost a week.”
Lottie glanced at him. It hadn’t honestly occurred to her that he was here as a candidate as well. He was too young”he could not have been older than twelve or thirteen. “You’re here for training also?” Lottie asked, trying to sound as polite as possible.
“Of course,” Bran said, completely unaffected by her confusion. “I was all set to go back to Hogwarts this year, but then the senior Death Eaters came to our manor last week and said that I was a prime candidate to join the inner circle, so here I am.”
“What year were you going to go into?”
“Fifth.”
Lottie raised her eyebrows. “You’re fifteen,” she said. Bran nodded. “Is it common practice to take candidates out of school?”
“I’d never heard of it before. Normally it’s just the top of the seventh years who get recruited. Naturally, when my parents found out they were thrilled.”
Lottie nodded. “I would imagine,” she said, trying to sound impressed, though she was inwardly puzzled. Why did the Death Eaters want this boy?
“But I don’t recognize you,” Bran said. “You weren’t at Hogwarts last year.”
“No, I’m older than that.” Lottie tapped her fingers against her knee. “I was on a mission in the Americas for a few years, but it collapsed. The rebellion there kept me as prisoner and I only just escaped.”
Bran leaned closer, frowning slightly. “What happened in America?”
“I don’t want to talk about it,” Lottie said quickly, snapping her head toward Bran. Just as she had hoped, that was warning enough and he didn’t pursue the topic further. “I just got back to civilization today”and first went right to try and join ranks.”
“And they let you be a candidate for the inner circle?” Bran asked. “Just like that?”
“Yes,” Lottie said, not quite sure where his confusion was coming from.
“That’s weird.” Lottie did not want to ask why, since her lack of knowledge might be suspicious. Thankfully, it was not a problem because Bran, unprompted, explained, “Usually they pick the recruits right out of the top of the class, don’t they? I don’t think I’ve ever heard of someone just asking to join.”
“My escape from America was no small feat, let me tell you,” Lottie said, contorting her face into a grumpy expression. “It’s probably more impressive than anything the other recruits have done.” Bran just nodded along with her as she continued, “Not to mention my family””
“Yeah, I thought all of the Carrows had died,” Bran said with uncomfortable enthusiasm.
“My family was extraordinarily loyal to the Dark Lord,” Lottie said. “No doubt he would be happy to have me.”
Bran’s reaction amused Lottie. He tilted his head back and his sunken eyes widened dramatically. Skimming the edges of his mind, she saw surprise, awe and a mild sense of anxiety. Lottie smirked. “I think I may take a rest,” she said. “I haven’t actually slept in a long time.” Bran nodded, though Lottie knew he couldn’t fully grasp what she was feeling. “Can you come knock on my door when it’s time to go to the meeting?”
“Of course.” Bran took the cue and got to his feet. “I’ll see you soon.”
Lottie watched him leave and only when he shut the door behind him did she lie down against the thin bed. The air around her was suffocating. She extinguished the candles and locked the door with two flicks of her wand and shut her eyes.
Lottie woke to the sound of knocking. “Shaula?” called Bran’s fluttery voice. “Shaula, we have to go.”
“Oh”yes.” Lottie got to her feet, and brushing her hair out of her eyes, moved to the door. A split second later, she froze, her hand still on the latch. She looked again at her hair. It was blond. Lottie’s eyes widened. She had transformed back.
“Shaula?” called Bran again.
“Hang on,” Lottie said, fumbling with the flask strapped to her leg. “I’m not dressed.” She gulped down the Polyjuice and waited until she saw her hair thicken and darken to jet-black before opening the door. “Sorry,” she said hurriedly to Bran. “I should have woken up earlier.”
He looked at her with his wide eyes. “It’s okay,” he said, though it was clear he didn’t think so. “We should just hurry”we’re going to be late.”
Lottie put on an extra burst of speed and followed Bran to the wide, empty chamber where she had first met Lucius. A circle of cloaked figures stood in the center, with a gap just wide enough for Lottie and Bran to slip in.
“You’re late,” said a masked Death Eater. Lottie recognized Lucius’s voice.
Bran opened his mouth to speak, but Lottie swiftly said, “Apologies. We took a wrong turn in the tunnels.”
Lucius glowered at her, but could apparently not find anything wrong with that. “As I was saying,” he seethed, “tomorrow we start recruitment. Only the most talented and promising of you will be brought into the inner circle.”
Lottie glanced at the faces around her. Most of the candidates seemed to be around her age”seventeen or eighteen. She had to remind herself to look smugly superior, since Shaula was actually quite a few years older. Almost everyone looked nervous to the point of being sick. Maybe getting recruited would be more difficult than she had imagined. She wondered what would happen if she didn’t succeed in getting recruited.
“Tomorrow you will go to the filth camps with a member of the inner circle, where your skills will be evaluated,” Lucius said, glancing at each of them in turn. “You have learned how to perform the Cruciatus Curse and Imperius curse at Hogwarts; we expect you to be skilled with these. Although we do not teach the Killing curse in school”for obvious reasons”you will be expected to master it quickly.”
Lottie swore inwardly. It would be clear that she had absolutely no experience with these curses the next day”they would certainly be able to tell. Why hadn’t Palmyitor prepared her for this? At the very least, a warning would have been a nice gesture.
“After that we will begin with the Tasks,” Lucius resumed. “You will be issued a series of complicated tasks, and only those who complete them in the least amount of time will be inducted into the inner circle.” Lucius glared at them and hissed, “Is that clear?”
Everybody in the circle nodded, though nobody spoke. “Very well,” Lucius said. “You may go. You are expected to be here at dawn. Any latecomers will be”” his eyes lingered over Lottie and Bran for a moment “”punished.”
The group broke off. Lottie followed everybody else to the recruits’ chambers, and without bidding anybody a goodnight, slipped inside her room and locked the door. She muttered an incantation that would fill her room with loud buzzing at six in the morning, and fell into an uneasy sleep.
Halfway to Infinity by Eponine
Chapter Notes: Thanks, coolh5000, for being an excellent beta!
This chapter's dedicated to the barista at my new favorite cafe!