"Are you sure letting Ashworth walk away is a good idea?"
Orion glanced over the newspaper he was reading. Casting the copy of the Daily Prophet aside, the Black patriarch took a few moments to compose a reply. "I believe him when he says that he wants to fight this dark lord. And we have no reason to doubt Bellatrix's word that the dark lord exists."
"Still… he's a pretty big unknown quantity," Malfoy noted as he sat staring into the fireplace. The evening was devoid of drink, for a change, and the living room at the Black mansion had been easily restored after Orion's duel with the young wizard.
"And?" Orion prompted.
"And it's not uncommon for dark wizards to disguise themselves, to act like ordinary citizens until the time comes to strike. The smart ones, the powerful ones, anyway. They didn't get to be that powerful by being careless and stupid. That's for the masses of followers they tend to attract. No, they're usually cunning and discreet." Malfoy turned his gaze away from the flames.
"You think Ashworth may be the dark lord?" Orion chuckled. "Whatever he is, I am sure he's not… Tom. Not when Bellatrix so clearly met this dark lord character with Ashworth standing next to her."
"Not the dark lord himself, no, but one of his lieutenants. I can believe that," Malfoy admitted. "He's smart, he's mysterious. He appears on the scene right as this threat begins to rise. What if he's playing us all?"
"He's got the talent, I'll admit that, and it would make sense, of a sort," Orion acknowledged his peer's concerns. "And you're right; the scheduling is just a little too convenient for it to be entirely coincidence. But his anger seems real. You can't fake such a strong reaction. I believe him when he says that he will fight against this dark lord. However, I will keep an eye on him. There's much anger in him, justified anger, but you and I both know that that's a very fine line that's easily crossed."
"I suppose. But I'd feel better if we had a contingency plan, just in case."
Orion nodded. "Indeed, and I have a few things in mind. Rest assured that if Ashworth becomes a liability, he will be dealt with."
"All right, I'll leave it in your hands, then."
"There's something else on your mind?" Orion sounded almost amused.
Malfoy smirked knowingly. "You're not letting those fools from the Wizengamot select a candidate for Minister, are you?"
"Merlin's beard, no." Orion shook his head curtly. "They would just bicker amongst themselves about who'd be most beneficial to them . No, that entire meeting was just to ingratiate ourselves with them. However, we need to find someone to which they will not be able to object. Someone who, nevertheless, will be willing to follow our agenda."
"That's not an easy thing to ask, Orion. Any outsider we brought in on this would have to be informed about the developing situation with the dark lord. After they've passed rigorous screening, of course."
"I was actually thinking of keeping things… closer to home," the elder wizard explained quietly. "We need someone we can trust unconditionally, which excludes anyone who's not a part of our families. If things escalate with this dark wizard, then we'll be fighting another war, and I for one do not want to be relying on someone whose motives I am uncertain of to direct this war for me."
"Then I assume you had someone in mind already?"
Orion nodded. "My brother, Cygnus. He has no ties to politics or any of the politicians, no political agenda, no history they could take advantage of, either to argue for or against him. He is, however, a successful businessman, well-liked, and we can use that to our advantage."
"And he'll be absolutely loyal to our cause," Malfoy finished.
"Correct." Orion's gaze hardened. "The wizarding world cannot take another war like the last one against Grindelwald. It must not be allowed to come that far."
"I agree," Malfoy nodded. "Have you talked to him about it at all?"
"Not yet. I was planning on doing that tonight, at least until I got distracted by the matter with Ashworth."
"I see. So, what's your impression of him? Aside from the obvious question of his trustworthiness, that is," Malfoy inquired.
"Like I said, he's skilled, certainly. His fighting methods are… strange, but his reflexes and spatial awareness tell me that he's been in combat before, probably mass combat, like the kind of open warfare we fought against Grindelwald's forces. His duelling skills are atrocious, not because he lacks the talent, but because he clearly hasn't been trained, but he makes up for that with very skillful use of terrain." Orion frowned as he recalled the battle.
"Something else bothering you about him?"
"His spells. You and I both know that there's a very specific set of combat spells that are taught to each Auror and Unspeakable. Then there's the dark spells. He knew none of these."
Malfoy arched an eyebrow in interest. "So we've got an unknown quantity who's clearly been in combat, yet has not been combat trained at all?"
"So it would appear. And somehow, he is still alive, which speaks for his sense of tactics, though I get the impression that most of it comes to him intuitively."
"I don't know if that'll make him easy or difficult to combat, if it comes down to it," Malfoy admitted.
"I would rather err on the side of caution. I get the impression that young Ashworth would prove to be a formidable enemy on the battlefield, if only because of his stubbornness."
Malfoy grinned. "Which makes him a perfect match for your niece, doesn't it? I hear he's been driving her up the wall."
"So it would appear." Though he showed no outward signs of it, Malfoy could detect the slight change in timbre of his old friend's voice that indicated his amusement.
"In any case," Orion continued, "should Ashworth turn out to be on the wrong side when this conflict begins, then we have enough official reasons to detain him."
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