Title: CALLOUSNESS
Disclaimer: No copyright infringements intended!
Summary: Charity B./Severus S. her last minutes. Snape centred. An idea I got from watching DH – little DH-Movie Spoiler inside.
Timeline: Early Deathly Hallows
World: Movies
Characters: Severus Snape / Charity Burbage
Genre: Tragedy / Angst
Rating: T (for language and implied violence; Character Death)
Words: 946
A/N:First of all: Come on, ffnet! You used to be cool! It took me nearly two hours to upload this!
I saw the movie on 17th; in German and English – was a long day; I nearly fell asleep – on the way home I actually did, I hurt my mouth on popcorn, I frightened two little boys who kept spoiling what's to come next (Yeah, I know everyone read the books anyway, but still, it's rude to do this!); but that all was absolutely worth it… although I would have liked it even better if it had more Snape-scenes… ;P
Background: In the book this option never occurred to me, but in the movie there was this ‚moment', this look on Snape's unreadable face that concerned me… Although it certainly wasn't meant to look like this; still I think it did.
As Severus Snape took the seat the Dark Lord has saved for him he knew already who was floating above them. He'd recognized her the minute he'd walked in and just the tiniest flicker had crossed his face...
The wounded and nearly unconscious woman floating in the room was Charity, Charity Burbage. Yes, he knew, but he wouldn't let it show; he wouldn't let them know, that he had anything else than plain callousness for the prisoner. As much as it stung in his chest he wouldn't even look at her. He couldn't have done anything, anyways.
While the Death Eaters talked Charity kept floating and from time to time a quiet wince emerged her bruised lips.
Severus didn't look at her, nor did he look at anybody else, except for the person speaking. Just one quick glance he shot through the rows when nobody would pay attention to him. If there hadn't been more important things to be concerned about he might even have felt sorry for his godson; the boy looked so scared, as if he just realized what he'd gotten himself into. But that was bullshit; he knew the day the Dark Lord told him what was expected from him; when he told him what he would do to his family and to him if he would do anything less than perfect…
Pettigrew, that little piece of shit had been standing there in the shadows all the time, awaiting his master's command. Now he stepped out of the darkness, nodded and bowed eagerly to follow said command to silence the prisoner – the guest.
Eventually the Dark Lord raised his gaze and the beginning of a smile played around his lips; or what have been lips once. It wasn't the reminder of a smirk, but an actual smile…
The floating figure drifted slowly closer until she was directly above their heads, above the middle of the table. The Death Eaters finally dared to glance up to her, too. And so did Snape.
Her face was bruised, disrupted clothes, once colourful and bright, now darkened with dried blood were covering her limp body, her eyes were half closed, still. And her lips were trembling softly, too weak to move properly.
As Voldemort introduced his victim his voice was calm, yet Snape thought he could hear the hidden euphoria and excitement buried deep under the mask the Dark Lord wore in every possible way.
A joke; a lame joke; the Death Eaters laughed loudly at the thought of Wizards mating with Muggles and Bellatrix stuck out her tongue and shook; like the boys in pre-school did when somebody suggested they should play with the girls. The Death Eaters around Bellatrix laughed even harder and the smile finally appeared fully on Voldemort's alien face.
"Sever- …Severus" Charity's weak voice sneaked through the laughter to his ears.
His eyes had been fixed on her ever since the Dark Lord's have found her. Though she was in pain, exhausted and desperate he refused to feel sorry for her, but kept concentrating on what was important now; and this certainly wasn't Charity after all…
"Severus… help me," she pleaded, tears forming in her glossy eyes.
His face gave nothing away. Although behind his eyes there was the past playing.
Them striding over the grounds of Hogwarts, arguing on how to treat students. Charity waving her hands dramatically and shaking her head.
"No, no, Severus, you see this wrong"
He sighed frustrated.
Dinner in the Great Hall. The teachers seated neatly next to each other.
Before they began to eat Charity raised her glass to him, just enough for him to notice. They'd spent the whole afternoon arguing over some random nonsense and parted both literally smoking with anger. But that wasn't important. It had always been like that. A fight and the next second it wasn't of any importance anymore.
She was a friend.
A staff party in Dumbledore's office. Charity's light-hearted laugh and their glasses clicking together.
"Don't be such a killjoy, Severus, it's a tradition," she said and giggled, apparently a little drunk already.
"A Muggle tradition. Just because it's your subject doesn't make it useful"
"Don't be silly; it's not only a Muggle tradition! You're just looking for an easy way out." she raised her brows and titled her head.
Above her head a mistletoe was floating in the air.
"You're quite obsessed with that, can that be?" Severus asked dryly. He nipped at his glass and let his dark gaze travel through the room. That little moment of inobservance was his mistake…
Charity grabbed his shirt and stepped back, in turn pulling him right under the mistletoe, she stood on tiptoes, pulled him down to her and in an instant her lips captured his.
That had been all that ever happened between them, but still…
Charity's eyes flickered, searching for help in his. He didn't move the slightest.
The Dark Lord threw him an observing gaze and Snape felt it, but didn't react. His lips curled. A cruel smirk it was to the Death Eaters. A mere sign of recognition it was meant to be for her. Maybe even a little encouragement, hidden underneath. He was too careful as to let it be too obvious, but maybe she would understand…
"…we're frien-"
Her voice was cut off as her muscles went limp and her stare faded into the great nothing.
Charity was dead. Nothing more than a single tear emerging her eye reminded of the live that had once filled this still body.
And there was however not slightest sign of sorrow - or of anything else. Just plain callousness.
…In the end she didn't understand…