"Not to mention, as soon as Veritaserum touches Lucius' lips, I doubt Madam Bones will stop her questioning of him until she knows every dirty little secret he has ever been privy to."
"I see," Severus expressed, his face turning even paler.
...
"I thought you might," he offered as he sipped some more of his reheated tea before putting the teacup back on its saucer. "The more the Aurors dig, the more dirt they'll find on everyone, allowing for more arrests, more questions, and more interrogations. The Aurors will have more than enough cause to even look at the Malfoy vaults, all its transactions reaching back to the beginning of the war, and that will lead to fines. This will of course mean the vaults will be frozen during the court case, meaning no gold to hire lawyers or make bribes.
Also there will be no money to support his family either, unless Narcissa has her own private vault, but I doubt that will be of much help. I expect the Malfoy family will be financially crippled from the fallout of Lucius' actions. You know the Ministry will take any chance they get to plunder some vaults and claim liquid assets for themselves. But we also have to deal with your own investigation."
"You don't want me anywhere near Veritaserum either, I know too much," Snape stated. "So what is your plan? How do we stop this from happening?" and thus Severus fell to his carefully crafted trap.
"We can't stop it from happening. Like I said, the ball is already rolling, the spell has left the wand, all that's left now is damage control," he offered soberly.
"If Lucius isn't arrested, how long do you think it will be until Sirius takes his own justice? His time in jail has hardened him; the only purpose he has left is to protect his godson and heir. Do you think he would hesitate to kill Lucius? A mass murderer who tried to kill his godson? The only connection he has left to his friends? To James and Lily?" intentionally using Lily's name again for maximum effect.
"I have already spoken to Madam Bones on your behalf. She has said that she would be willing to ignore your past in exchange for sharing everything you know about your former friends in the Death Eaters," Albus expressed.
"That will put a price on my head, Albus," Severus voiced, his voice cold but with an undercurrent of panic. "Not exactly one of your best ideas."
He raised a hand to stop Severus from panicking. "I know, my dear boy, but there will never be an official interview on the record. You'll just sit down with Madam Bones and answer some questions, no Veritaserum involved.
Name some names; tell her who did what crimes and where the evidence can be found, i.e., who killed her brothers. Do that and she would be willing to buy into the idea that you were just a spy, working on my behalf," he offered to the Head of Slytherin. "Give her enough and you will escape this purge."
"That's awfully vague," the Head of Slytherin house voiced.
"We can always go over together what secrets you will share beforehand and work out how to spin them to the greatest effect," he offered with a grandfatherly smile. "It also gives me an excuse to start getting involved on your behalf and indirectly Draco's and his mother's. Need I remind you that some people may take the chance to kill young Draco and end the Malfoy line while it's particularly vulnerable, in order to take its wealth for themselves."
"What type of influence would you bring to bear? What would you be willing to do?" Severus asked, starting to buy into his masterful plan.
"The same as I did for you, my friend," he offered easily from his chair. "I'll place them under my protection and use my influence to ensure than the Malfoy house endures in some capacity. It will take some hits, but it will last. I'd even feel obligated to allow Draco to continue to attend Hogwarts, despite his father's many crimes against the school; however, it may be better for the lad if he got a fresh start elsewhere. But that will depend on his guardian's judgement."
"You mean Narcissa's judgement?" the potions master corrected.
"Only if she is not in Azkaban, Severus," he countered, as he took another sip of his tea.
"Like I said earlier, the Ministry will want to make an example of her. Draco's guardianship will likely fall to you, my friend, along with the responsibility of overseeing Draco's affairs. Draco respects you and he is going to need a guardian who's capable of defending him and guiding him down a more moderate view of the world. Of course, with my help, the house of Malfoy will still have some influence left; that's influence that you could discreetly wield to increase your own standing in the world," he expressed, holding out the proverbial carrot.
"You would be the de facto head of the Malfoy family for the next half decade, probably longer, as Draco seems like an individual that is all too easy to control," he observed.
"And you would get control of the Malfoy household through me," Severus opined.
"Not control, Severus, just influence," he corrected. "It would benefit the Malfoy household greatly if you publicly sided with me after such a public fallout. Then I could introduce you to some business people that would tie Draco's remaining business interests into our own, keeping him within our control and firmly within the light," giving Severus an overview of his plan.
"Clever," Severus muttered thoughtfully.
"Thank you, I try my best," he offered with a grandfatherly smile, allowing the younger man a few moments to think over the proposal.
"Still sounds too good to be true," the potions master expressed after several long minutes, clearly not trusting his plan.
"Naturally, your own improved position would depend upon Lady Malfoy being arrested and imprisoned, friendless and unprotected, along with Lucius' will naming you as his guardian of choice in case Narcissa is dead or unavailable. But I believe that the odds would be in your favour. Madam Bones could always offer Narcissa a deal... Sell out her husband in exchange for a lesser punishment.
I believe Narcissa would take the chance if it was offered rather than risk imprisonment in Azkaban. However, that would risk alienating her son and we both know Draco worshiped his father, so such actions could be seen as a betrayal, destroying their relationship forever. I expect she will keep quiet rather than risk this happening," he explained.
"And if she does make a deal? Even if her son comes to hate her, she still keeps custody of Draco," Severus asked.
"Lady Malfoy is hardly Lucius. As Draco's godfather I'm sure your advice and guidance will be valued, and more importantly trusted. She can hardly fault you for making a deal if she herself makes one. Draco will also need a male role model in his life, that's something that you can provide," Albus declared confidently.
"Is there any other way to stop this?" Severus asked. "Some way that the House of Malfoy comes out intact?"
He considered the question for a good two minutes before answering, "Madam Bones' case is air-tight, but it is solely against Lucius; he is the necessary link in the chain. If he were to die before trial there would be no charges against his family, no fines, no investigation, just nothing. Sirius would have no case. The Chamber of Secrets mess couldn't be proven and the elf's actions would be forgotten."
"I can't believe what you're suggesting, Albus!" Severus exclaimed, shaking his head in disbelief.
"I suggested nothing; I don't approve of murder, Severus, you should know that by now," he scolded firmly whilst giving the potions master a sharp look.
"You asked me how to save the Malfoy family... Lucius is the only link to all the crimes. He is also a very real danger to Lily's son, one that has to be dealt with; that's either with life imprisonment and the dismantling of his house, or his death prior to trial. On another note, with the Dark Mark still visible and pulsing it proves that Lord Voldemort is still out there, despite the destruction of the Horcrux in the diary.
That means he either has a new body, or a new shell to anchor him, or that there is an additional Horcrux or Horcruxes still in existence that need to be destroyed. In either case, Lord Malfoy is one of Lord Voldemort's most capable and deadly servants; his removal now will severely weaken Lord Voldemort and his cause when he inevitably returns."
"You're asking me to betray one of my oldest friends," Severus voiced in protest.
"If that is truly distasteful to you, then do nothing and just keep your mouth shut. If you can't do that I'll just obliviate you here and now, for the greater good," he stated regrettably but firmly, his wand already hidden in his lap, as Severus gave him a heated look at the threat.
"However, if I do that, then you'll unfortunately have no knowledge of this plot against the Malfoys and thus little chance of dealing with it. That means you'll be in an even worse position to help yourself and your godson when the Aurors are on the march," their eyes met at this. He effortlessly batted away Severus' Legilimency probe before countering with his own.
His mighty mental presence assaulted Severus' own defences as he destroyed the first layer of mental defences like a tidal wave crashing against a shoreline before pulling away rather than diving deeper into the potions master's mind. He could have easily made the probe like a finely honed scalpel and cut through the defences with minimal intrusion, but a point needed to be made, hence the brute force method that would leave the man with a headache for hours.
"Want to try that again, Severus?" he asked with an amused smile, hoping that Severus would just accept the point and stop these childish games. That was one of the worst traits Severus had; he was often a bully when threatened or feeling petulant, so every once in a while he had to be truly reminded of his place in the grand scheme of things, and that there were bigger fishes in the sea who, despite his great skill and power, could swallow him whole.
"You wouldn't dare obliviate me," Severus challenged, but refusing to meet his eyes.
...
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