Snape and the dark lord…

Severus: Dark Lord..

LV: Is what I hear true, Severus?

Severus: Yes, Your Lordship

LV let fly a Cruciatus curse.. venting some of his anger on the erstwhile Potions
Master. Some, not all.

LV: stand up Severus.

A shaken Severus staggers to his unsteady feet, head bent low.

LV: May I ask why you decided to kill Dumbledore, despite my repeated instructions
that the task was for Draco & none else? Or did you think yourself above all other
Death Eaters?

Severus: No, Your Lordship…

LV: Or perhaps you think yourself wiser and more capable than me?

Severus: No, Your Lordship…

LV: Crucio!

(He inwardly thanks Severus for what he did, thus allowing him the chance for
torturing Severus, something he wanted to do for quite some time)

LV: well.. (after lifting the curse)

Severus: Your Lordship, I only served to fulfill your heartfelt desire.. of removing the
fool Dumbledore from Potter’s side once and for all. I supported you choice of Draco
to the best of my abilities, having full faith in your judgment of his competence. But
your Lordship, I am sorry to say that Draco could not live up to your expectations. He
wasted a great deal of time chatting with the old fool when a simple Killing curse
could have sufficed. None of the other Death eaters would lift a wand to do the
needful. Had I hesitated as they had, I would not have been able to achieve what my
murder of your archenemy achieved
LV: what do you feel you achieved by murdering him, instead of Draco?

Severus: My murder of Dumbledore, my staunch supporter, has filled the minds of his
followers with doubt. No longer can they accept all he said as the Gospel truth.
Whatever knowledge he imparted to Potter as to how he must go about to defeat you,
Potter cannot blindly follow it. On his own he is nothing, his only chance of defeating
you, slim as it may be, was Dumbledore. With Dumbledore out of the way, his
chances are reduced. And with much less faith on what he was taught, his chances are
reduced even further.

LV: Very impressive Severus. But why ever did you not present this argument to me
before?

Severus: out of respect for your faith in Draco. It is true I had my doubts, but I knew
you to be the best judge.

LV: So you say, Severus. But your insolence deserves some … penance.

Severus: Your Lordship I..

LV: your punishment will be decided later, tell Draco to come and meet me. And
Severus, I trust you will not try to flee, in order to escape your punishment.

Severus: never, Your Lordship.

LV: Be gone, for now.

(LV silently smiled to himself; he had all along known that Draco did not have it in
him to do the task assigned to him. However his failure would have served as a
wonderful excuse to punish Lucius for his past mistakes. Never mind, he could still do
that now. Severus had done the right thing, he knew that too. Yet he could not allow
his Death Eaters to make unilateral decisions without his explicit permission. He had
to set an example. He would vent most of his temper on Draco, and then decide on a
suitable punishment for Severus. Till then, let him stew in the potion of expectation.
Not knowing what the Dark Lord had planned for him)