((I'm a horrible person, but...))

//Voldy//

Voldemort smirked. So long as Dumbledore didn't find out that the students thought he was a homicidal maniac, he counted his first day back at Hogwarts a bit of a success. Three potential allies- influential, capable, a tad full of themselves, perhaps... Particularly the Black girl. He'd seen the manic gleam in her eye as she conjured her Patronus. And he'd almost felt sorry for the animal she'd been reminiscing about.

To say nothing of the quiet pleasure he would get, subtly torturing anyone unlucky enough to earn a detention.

He allowed himself a rare smile. A very good first day, indeed.

A soft knock on his door interrupted his musings. "Yes?"

The door opened, and the Black girl peered in. "Professor?"

Well, this was a bit unexpected. "Ms. Black?" He raised an eyebrow and motioned for her to come in.

She hesitated. "Well... I was just wondering, sir... The rumors about you...?"

He sighed heavily. "Speak up, finish your sentences, say what you're going to say. Merlin, I'm not going to eat you."

Her lips twitched and she squared her shoulders slightly. "I was curious as to whether the rumors surrounding your recent activities... murder, torture, coercion, generally... held any truth." She paused. "I'll understand if you don't want to answer."

Voldemort smirked again. "For the most part, Ms. Black, yes, they are true. There is some exaggeration, of course, but all gossip has a seed of truth. Mind you, if you repeat that, I won't hesitate in the slightest to feed you to the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets."

Bellatrix grinned in reply. "Oh, wouldn't dream of it, sir."

"Is that the only reason you're here?" He felt a flash of amusement, hearing her answer before she spoke.

"No. I..." She paused, unsure of how to phrase her next request. Then, bluntly, she asked, "Could you teach me Occlumency? I'm horrible at it, you see, but I've always wanted to learn."

May as well have something to do between grading papers. "I'll see what I can do. And you may as well learn Legillimency, too, it's a useful skill to have." Voldemort strode to the other side of the room, running his fingers along the spines of the various books of Dark magic that were ensconced in his bookshelf. He selected a thin, worn volume and handed it to Bellatrix. "Read that. Come back tomorrow evening, around six."

She beamed. "Thank you, sir." Still grinning, she turned on her heel and glided away, the book vanishing into her bag as she left.

Well. If nothing else it'd be good for a laugh or blackmail, should blackmail become necessary.

He'd have to invest in a pensieve before tomorrow evening, though.

James Potter was seeker, wasn't he?

((It doesn't. JKR stated it in and interview with Scholastic. The confusion mostly arrises from him being named a Seeker as well, and from the way he was playing with the snitch in OotP. But yes, he was a Chaser. Here-

"Question: What position did James play on the Gryffindor Quidditch team? Was it seeker like Harry, or something different?

JKR: James was Chaser."

Mmmyep.))