Author's Note

These Shorts and Drabbles are rated R for a reason, please proceed with caution. I will list warnings at the beginning of each chapter as they will all be different. I do not know my writing style, my favorite genre or anything, I am merely writing.

Warning! This story has Gore and Death! Warning!

This is my own little word prompt set up, where I use 5 Words of the day and put them into my shorts/drabbles to hopefully learn to use them more efficiently. If you find that I am misusing the word, or any, please drop a review with ideas on what could have been made better.

Melancholy, Gourmand, Amorphous, Efficacy, Empathy

As a note, I don't know where these shorts are going, as I wait to have all my words before creating the story. There can be story of death and torture, and then a romancey fluffy story, I wont know. I don't have a set genre I write in, I have not found what I really enjoy yet, so I find this may be a good way to start, just sticking my feelers everywhere.

Please let me know what you think!

Disclaimer! Harry Potters world belongs to JK Rowling, the Queen of writing. Disclaimer!

Horace slughorn sat in his pouf chair, brooding heavily over the future days. They were already starting to try and recruit him, but he could not! He was Dumbledore's man, through and through. Not matter the past events.. The things he had said.. He could never forgive himself..

He tapped his foot three times against the side table and a house elf came running into the room with a tea tray with many delicious treats set neatly on a platter. He patted the elf on the head with a chuckle before she put the tray down on the side table. Her hands hadn't even left the tray before he was picking up the snacks to shovel into his mouth. He was a fine gourmand, a great connoisseur of food! Any food really, but sweets certainly held a spot close to his heart,

He sighed through the food in his mouth, before continuing to slowly chew. Not even food could revive him from his melancholy mood.

He felt a great deal of empathy for Severus, though his information only killed his most precious, Horace's information had killed thousands. The slip of the tongue, the slip of what mere words could do in the world.. He could only wish Tom had less efficacy, that he had failed in his goals with the information that he had, but he had been a smart and deceptively charming young man, when he looked back on his slug club interactions.. He should have seen the signs.. He held no empathy for anyone even his little friends.. Though he couldn't call them friends-more like followers.. And that is what they were known as, even now.. His followers.

He looked up from his musings only to snatch his wand up from the side table, there was an amorphous shadow that he knew hadn't been there before, just outside his sitting room door. He couldn't make it out, was it man or a figment of his imagination? The shock and fear from earlier had gotten him riled up, he was seeing ghosts all over the place. He pushed himself up from his seat, lowering his gaze for only a moment before his gaze darted back to the spot. The shadow was now gone.

He slowly moved towards the place he had seen it, his nerves on edge, his wand shaking in his hand that was beginning to sweat.

"Aw, looksie the professor is terrified." A shrill voice called out tauntingly before laughing, a masculine voice joining in with her piercing shrieks of laughter. He knew those voices.. He had taught them, same as Tom.. Here to recruit him.

Even in school as mere children they were a nasty pair, torturing First Years with any spell they could get their hands on. They enjoyed experimenting on anything that had breath left to give, rumours had it that they even kept the corpses of some of the most hated, to desecrate their bodies. The owls were their favorite past time as children, and he was always terrified to turn the corner when he heard their laughter from inside the tower.

He felt like that now, fearing so deeply inside himself that he wished he could just refuse to turn the corner into his front room, that he would never have to see what was around the corner in his own home. His heart dropped in his chest, feeling like it filled his stomach, when he heard the yelp of pain coming from his house elf. He braced himself and turned the corner quickly, his wand out stretched pointing at where he knew their faces would be. Level with each other the twins were, the auburn haired brutes looked up from silently cruco-ing his elf. She laid there unmoving on his white pristine carpet and his heart moved back up before lodging itself in his throat. His elf! She had been with him since he had been a child, an old creature, but he took great care of her and she repaid him with wonderful sweets and equal care. Now she was at the hands of these vile creatures, he glared at them despite his fear.

"Get out of my house!" He growled loudly.

He knew they would have already killed him if they could, he knew Tom still held that memory close to his.. Well he certainly didn't have a heart. He shook his head to clear them of thoughts, he needed to focus with these two before him.

They laughed before raising the elf's body into the air, both wands on the creature, he quickly turned his head before he felt the warm splatter of blood on his skin. He choked back a sob, knowing what had happened.. Just as he had seen them torture the owls.. They were twins alright, both using the same levitating spell and pulling each others wand tips away from each other until the small body tore itself in two.

He tried his best to control his own breathing but his heartbeat was in his ears, heart in his throat, hands shaking in fear. He could barely hold his wand up to defend himself, and they knew it, they were too interested in torture, pain and fear to not know when they were causing someone so much pain. They dropped the elf's body, separated from itself in a horrendously grotesque way before walking around him opposite of each other. They made him feel trapped, Alecto reached out a finger and wiped the blood off his cheek before sticking the digit between her lips, an expression of mock seduction crossed her features and he forced himself to hold back the gag.

"You passed up two callings from the Dark Lord, Slughorn.." she chirped at him before laughing.

"The dark Lord was not too happy about that but he is trying to give you the chance to join his side. He feel attached in a way.. Though not enough to try forever." Amycus joined in with his sister's laughter once again. It was the sound of his nightmares. It had haunted him since he had them as students.. Despite the horrors Tom had caused, he still felt that these two.. These two had no right to be what they were, and yet they enjoyed it.. They relished they time they were able to spend killing and torturing.

Suddenly his bell chimed, and he tensed. For the love of Merlin, they had better get away from his door before the twins got to it.

"Open the door why don't you?" Amycus sneered, pointing his wand at the door then back to him.

He paled but slowly walked forward, hoping with all hopes that they had left. He paused with his hand on the handle to take a deep breath before pulling open the door. His first thought was that he was glad it was not someone the twins could harm, the second was why in Merlin was he here?

"May I come in, Slughorn?" Severus said with a brow raised, hands clasped before him.

"I've had just about enough of you coming to my door." he growled, keeping up the pretense before stepping aside to let him in.

One foot inside the door Severus muttered, "I see you have had visitors Slughorn. Elf troubles?" he asked churlishly before pushing past Horace.

"The twins." he muttered questioningly.

The Carrows lost some of their spark when Severus looked down his nose at them. "I don't recall the Dark Lord giving the two of you this mission.."

"We were just-"

"Actually I recall him ordering the two of you elsewhere, he did not want your expertise in this matter. But obviously.." He looked down at the Elf's remains with a sneer, "You have gone against his wishes. Directly disobeying him.." His gaze lifted back to theirs and Alecto cowered slightly beneath his disdainful glare.

"We thought if we could just entice him a little more-" Alecto started before her brother interrupted.

"The Dark Lord will understand our reasoning." Amycus growled stiffly with his own glare.

"Oh really, when he just sent me to talk with the Professor? This my my duty not yours." Severus sneered pulling his own wand out. " I suppose I could call the Dark Lord to finish the matter.." he pulled up his sleeve and the twins lost their fight, disapparating there on the spot.

The threat gone, Horace fell to his knees near the Elf's remains, howling his misery. He couldn't bear to touch the elf, but he buried his face in his hands and bawled.

Severus stepped forward, placing a hand gently on his shoulder. "You must be prepared Horace.." he muttered before walking down the hall to find the linen closet. Pulling down a sheet from the shelf he returned to the pair and unfolded the sheet just enough so that he could place the Elf's remains inside before closing it over her. He held no love for the creatures, but he felt connected to Horace, a fellow potions master.. Among other things.. And he felt the pain he must have been letting out, at least his love had been in one piece, he was able to hold her.. Whereas the elf's body was an amorphous mess.

"Severus, please.. Just leave me.. Come back another time, I beg of you.. I need to.. To take care of her.." Horace sobbed, moving to stand and lift the edges of sheet together before shifting it into his arms. The blood was soaking through, but he didn't care, not anymore. He was to bury her, much too early. Much, much too early..

Severus watched in silence until Horace was pushing through two doors leading to the back yard, he then turned and let himself out of the house, that would now be tainted by fear, for always.

Author's Note

Please let me know what you think! I hope I didn't scar anyone!