Chapter 6 ? Devoted to a Madman

I'd like to thank all of those readers who have taken the time to read this and review. Thank you all for your wonderful comments and support.

I had planned some Severus and Lucius interaction here but as you will see, my muse got the better of me. He really can't make up his mind sometimes. I hope you enjoy this regardless.

All canon characters belong to JKR.

Thanks as always to June for all of her help and suggestons

Chapter 6 – Devoted to a Madman

Lucius stood in the middle of the Riddle mansion's large ballroom, a light shining on him. He heard the murmur of the crowd he knew surrounded him in the darkness. His mind was going at a million miles an hour. So much had happened in the last twenty-four hours, so much had changed.

"It seems that I was hasty earlier." Voldemort emerged from the darkness to stand in front of him. "When I condemned you to death I failed to ask you about Severus."

As Voldemort spoke, Bellatrix and Rodolphus crept into the room. Bellatrix's eyes went wide, when she saw her brother-in-law standing in the middle of the room, very much alive.

"Narcissa was supposed to kill him!" she hissed at her husband.

Rodolphus leaned down and whispered in her ear, "Your sister's infraction."

The woman felt her stomach turn; now realizing why Narcissa had asked her to leave her alone with Lucius. Would the Dark Lord punish Bellatrix for not ensuring her sister's obedience?

Voldemort stared at Lucius, trying to perform the same advanced Legilimency spell that he'd used on Severus. He saw nothing. The state of Lucius' emotions was saving him from being found out; Lucius' mind was a whirlwind of activity, so nothing was clear.

The Dark Lord mistook this for an error in spell casting; he looked to Wormtail and tried the same spell. Unfortunately, the pudgy wizard had grown quite mad over the years, and he was now nothing more than a human robot, coming to life only when spoken to and directed.

Not able to see anything in Wormtail's mind either, Voldemort surmised that the spell was not consistently effective and needed more work. He made a mental note to give his Spells Master an incentive to work harder; a few lashes might give him the push he needed.

He turned his attention back to Lucius. "For once I am quite pleased that someone did not follow my orders. Had Narcissa killed you as I ordered her to, then you would not have the opportunity to continue serving me."

Lucius let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

"Pity she is no longer with us," said Voldemort as he turned and walked to his throne.

Lucius felt his heart skip several beats. Narcissa was dead, and she was dead because she had allowed him to escape. All of those nights he'd lain awake, hating her for leaving him, but now he realized he had always loved her even when she chose to become Voldemort's concubine – even before Lucius knew why she'd done so. As Lucius tried to maintain his emotionless expression Voldemort continued to speak.

"I have decided that we have been wasting our time attacking small towns and communities." The Dark Lord now sat on his throne. "Perhaps getting the attention of the wizarding world requires going after what they find most important. We will attack all financial institutions and schools. I will be discussing our plan with a few of you in the days to come."

Lucius' mind began to focus now.

"Lucius, how long has it been since you have been properly fucked?" asked Voldemort with a smirk on his face.

"A little over a year, my Lord," said Lucius shakily, not knowing what the insane wizard had in mind for him now. He'd only had short affairs here and there, but nothing that meant anything to him. After Narcissa left him, he felt that no woman could be trusted, so he rarely became involved emotionally.

Voldemort looked around the room. When he spotted Bellatrix near the back of the room, he motioned to her to come to him.

She approached him slowly and bowed her head when she reached him.

"Yes, my Lord?" she asked quietly.

Voldemort ignored her.

"Lucius, I have not rewarded you for ridding us of the traitor, Severus. Take Bella here and reacquaint yourself with the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black." He waved both Death Eaters off towards a small bedroom. "One Black pussy is no different than another, as I know well. Have your fill, and then go to your home. I will call upon you when I have decided which of your fellow Death Eaters will help me to begin planning our assault."

Lucius looked at Bellatrix, who still hadn't lifted her head. He then looked at the smiling face of Voldemort and nodded, then grabbed hold of Bellatrix's arm and dragged her into the small bedroom earlier indicated.

Once inside the room Lucius let her go. He walked to the other end of the room and fell into a large chair.

Bellatrix remained next to the door, not moving.

"You are supposed to be dead," said Bellatrix.

Lucius looked up. "At this moment, with every fiber of my being I wish to the heavens that I was."

"He killed her because she allowed you to escape." Bellatrix moved to sit on a small chair next to the door. She studied the large bed in the center of the room, a feeling of sickness now running through her.

Lucius nodded. "She knew she would die, she told me..." His voice faltered for a moment. "She said that she still loved me."

Bellatrix closed her eyes and nodded; she already knew this. She was after all her sister's confidant. While she never knew why Narcissa had left Lucius, nor her plan to keep Draco under Voldemort's radar, Bellatrix did know that her sister loved her husband.

"I have no desire to be with you, Bella, as I am sure you have little desire for me at this moment."

The dark-haired witch nodded her head in agreement.

"We will stay in here until an appropriate amount of time has passed and then go about our lives," instructed Lucius.

They both sat in silence for the next two hours.

~*~*~*~

Back at number twelve, Grimmauld Place, Severus was in the study observing the other Order members "discussing" the revelation of Lucius' identity as their spy.

Albus, Arthur, Remus and Shacklebolt were in a heated conversation with Moody. The old retired Auror didn't trust Lucius. Even though their spy had risked his life for the last three years by sending them secret messages, Mad-Eye felt that the Death Eater was merely seeing the writing on the wall. Thinking that the war would be won by the side of good, Malfoy was trying to endear himself to them by pretending to help, Moody claimed.

Harry sat with Draco, holding his hand and allowing his boyfriend to take comfort in him. Harry first brought Draco to Order Headquarters two years ago. They had run into each other in Spain, where Lucius had sent his son into hiding after he'd almost been killed during a Death Eater attack in a Muggle store. Harry was wary of his former nemesis at first, but after they spent time talking he realized that Draco wasn't the same person he knew in school. Since his return to England, Draco had also spoken to Harry on many occasions about his father's seemingly changed attitude towards his world and beliefs. It had taken long conversations and arguments, but soon the Boy-Who-Lived believed his lover. If Draco said Lucius was to be trusted, then that's the way it was.

For his part, Ron kept out of what was happening. He decided he would have to form his own opinion based on what the elder Malfoy brought to the Order. He would keep a very close eye on the blond.

Molly kept herself busy in the kitchen, making supper. Minerva and Tonks sat at the table discussing what might have driven Lucius to finally decide to switch sides.

Hermione, who'd noticed Ginny leave the room quietly, followed her to the library. She saw her friend sitting at the window seat looking outside.

"Ginny," she said as she walked further into the room. "Is there something wrong? You don't seem yourself."

The red-headed girl smiled sadly and looked to her friend. "Seamus broke our engagement."

Hermione's eyes went wide. "Ginny, I didn't know you two were engaged."

"It happened last weekend. We were planning on telling our families this weekend."

Hermione sat down next to Ginny. "What happened?"

Ginny shook her head. "Two days after we got engaged, he broke things off and said that he'd changed his mind, that I wasn't passionate enough for him." She wiped a tear that had escaped from the corner of her eye. "Me not passionate enough. Hermione, there were times when I wondered if I would have had a better time with myself and a vibrator."

Hermione laughed as Ginny crossed her arms.

"So Seamus just broke it off? He didn't even want to try and work things out?"

"Oh yes, he came back last night, asking me to forgive him. But how am I supposed to forgive something like that, when he likens having sex with me to being with a corpse, and he's the one with a limp noodle for a penis."

Hermione fought back her laughter, not wanting to further agitate her friend. "Well, don't think on it. You'll meet someone else who will know how to appreciate you."

Ginny shook her head. "I'm done with relationships, Hermione. I'm just so tired of having my feelings trampled on. At this point, I don't even know if I could love anyone. Love is something I just don't think exists anymore. At least not for me."

They turned their attention to a faint knock on the door.

Severus had grown tired of the jabbering in the living room and went in search of Hermione. When he found she wasn't in the kitchen with the other women, he surmised she'd be in the library. He entered and noticed she was there, but not alone.

"Excuse me for interrupting, ladies," he said.

Ginny knew the two friends might want to spend some time alone, so she stood and began to walk out.

"We're done, Severus. I'm sure Hermione is tired of listening to my romantic woes."

"Ginny, don't say that," chided Hermione.

Ginny smiled. "I'm only joking. I'd better get back to the kitchen and help Mum with supper." She walked out and closed the door behind her, leaving the two alone.

"Might I ask what that was all about?" asked Severus, as Hermione hugged him.

"Seamus Finnigan proposed to her last weekend, and then broke their engagement a few days later. He said she wasn't passionate enough."

Severus chuckled as he approached her. "I get the feeling it is Mr. Finnigan who is lacking in the passion department."

Hermione nodded. "How are you feeling?" she asked. She'd noticed Severus flinching slightly when she hugged him.

"Tired." He rubbed his eyes and sat down. "And worried."

"About Lucius?" Hermione could see the concern on his face.

He nodded. "Yes. I only hope the Dark Lord takes the article about my fake death into consideration when he decides Lucius' fate. Perhaps reading of my death will allow Lucius to once again be in his good graces."

Hermione noticed the concerned tone Severus had. She'd never seen him like that, as though he feared that Lucius may not come back alive.

"Were you and Lucius good friends in school?" asked Hermione, curious as to how close a friendship the two men had.

"I began my first year as he was in his seventh." Severus then looked into the fire, remembering his first meeting with Lucius Malfoy.

~*~*~*~*~

Hogwarts 1971

As he sat under the Sorting Hat, young Severus Snape couldn't help but wonder what his life for the next seven years would be like. He'd already gotten a taste of what might be to come on the Hogwarts Express. He'd been targeted by two boys who thought it amusing to make fun of his pale complexion and long stringy hair. One of the boys was tall with dark hair and gray eyes, the other wore glasses and had hair that looked like it had been through a windstorm.

"You are a Slytherin, and we defend our own, always."

~*~*~*~

"He was like a brother to me that year," said Severus as he looked back to Hermione. "The adjustment is very difficult on some children during their first year. Lucius made it bearable for me. When he left school, we stayed in touch. I wrote to him often when my problems began with those blasted Marauders. He was always there to counsel me. When I graduated it was Lucius who took me to my first Death Eater meeting."

He shook his head. "There were many times when things did not go the way we planned, during raids. We watched out for one another. After I became a spy, I had to tread lightly around him. But I never felt in any danger around him. I believe him to be one of the few true friends I have."

Hermione moved closer to him. "I'm your friend."

He smiled down to her. "You are more than a friend and one day soon, I will show you." He kissed her and held her close to him.

~*~*~*~*~

At the Riddle home Lucius opened the door of the small bedroom and peered outside. There were only a few Death Eaters walking about. He made his way to the foyer, passing Rodolphus on the way. He stopped as the other man looked at him, looking as though he wanted to say something.

Rodolphus approached Lucius and quietly spoke. "I'm sorry for your loss, Lucius. It was her fate to die this day."

Lucius nodded. "The fates have nothing to do with death – that is the trade of man. And we are all devoted to a madman."

~*~*~*~*~*~

The Harry Potter Lexicon has Lucius listed as beginning Hogwarts in 1965 that would have him still there from 1971-1972 as a seventh year. It also lists Severus Snape as begining Hogwarts in 1971. Going by that timeline Lucius and Severus will have attended one year together.

Also, I know that some of you might be thinking Bellatrix and Rodolphus are acting a bit odd, there is going to be a lot of odd behavior in future chapters not just from them.

Thank you for reading.