Disclaimer: Not mine, but the property of J.K.Rowling. I just play with them!
"YOU'RE MAD!"
"Just shut up and let me finish—"
"MAD! ALL OF YOU!" Snape was bellowing, spraying anyone within a three foot radius with spittle, much to everyone's chagrin. Sirius shielded himself with the sleeve of his worn robe and grimaced.
"I swear to God, Albus, I'll turn him into a niffler if he doesn't pipe down and quit showering me with his liquid halitosis!" Albus tried to hide a grin at this before he cleared his throat gently, causing the entire room to fall silent.
"Severus. Please, just listen. If you still think it a bad idea after I have explained it, then you have every right to refuse. Unfortunately, I believe that you are the only one who could pull this off, so if you do refuse, we will have no choice but to come up with another plan." Albus' voice had calmed Snape significantly, and his face was slowly going from purple to light pink.
"That sounds fair enough, but I'm almost certain that my mind will not be changed," Snape said with a disdainful look, sitting back down in the chair he had jumped out of just moments before. Albus nodded and gave a subtle smile.
"Because you are wanted by Voldemort for your public exposure as one of my supporters, we have no insight into the inner-workings of the Death Eaters or any certain idea of what Voldemort is planning next. It would be monumentally helpful if we could regain some insight into his inner circle, and since you are well-aquainted with Lucius Malfoy it truly does make perfect sense. I will send out Mad eye and Mr. Shacklebolt to capture her as soon as you finish brewing a large batch of the potion, and the stage shall be set." Snape seemed to be mulling the idea over.
"Why do you need me to pose as Narcissa? Isn't there any other way?"
"Severus. You know Lucius Malfoy better than anyone else on our side. If I'm not mistaken, you are also well-acquainted with Narcissa Malfoy as well, correct?" Snape looked down at the floor and gritted his teeth.
"Yes," he said defeatedly, "but what if...I mean..." Snape quickly shut his mouth and blushed furiously before glaring at his shoes as if they had just bitten him.
"Will you consider doing it for me, Severus? This will only be a temporary situation, you know. Harry has been training without rest for some time now, and he is almost ready. As soon as we can pinpoint Voldemort, I am confident that we can finally put an end to him." Albus' eyes were sharp, and his voice was almost crackling with intensity. Severus sighed and sat back in his chair.
"Okay, fine! I'll do it."
"Excellent!" Albus clapped his hands together and grinned. "Now, who's up for a biscuit?"
Snape glared at him.
Snape was minding his own business, working on a batch of Pepper-up Potion for Madame Pomfrey when his fireplace crackled and a green light filled the room. He turned his head to look into the flames without putting down his stirring rod.
"Hello, Albus. To what may I owe the pleasure?"
"I wanted to inform you that I've found a suitable substitute for you." Even when his face was a glowing mass of green flames, that insidious twinkle was still quite visible. Severus sniffed and turned back to his bubbling cauldron. He was silent for a moment.
"They've captured Narcissa," his voice was barely above a whisper.
"Yes," Albus said in a suddenly serious tone. Severus looked back at him and gave a slight nod. Silence fell again.
"Hermionie Granger will be presiding over your classes until you return. I knew you'd be pleased, even if you don't voice it." Albus' twinkle jumped back to life, and Severus almost smiled. "Well, I'll leave you to it, my boy. Tonight after you've had a chance to write down a few lesson plans for Ms. Granger, would you be so kind as to meet us at the usual spot?" Snape nodded again.
"I'll bring the potion," Snape's voice was quiet.
"Good boy," Albus said with a grin before he was gone in a gutter of green flames.
"Ah, hello Snape! Or should I say, the future Mrs. Malfoy?"
"Shut your hole before I have you euthanized," Snape growled as he none too gently shoved past Sirius, causing him to stumble backwards against the wall.
"Bastard."
"Mangy cur."
Snape strode into the meeting room, almost slamming the door shut on Sirius, who had managed to stick his foot inside before it closed.
"Now, now, children!" Molly Weasley chided from her seat, only to receive looks that could have curdled milk from both men. Her eyes went wide for a second before she gave an indignant huff and settled back into her seat. Mr. Weasley discreetly rolled his eyes before trying to smooth his wife's ruffled feathers back down. Remus turned to give Sirius a slightly annoyed look.
"Severus, I'm glad you were able to arrive so early," Albus said with a smile as he motioned towards two empty chairs at the large dining table. Unfortunately they were side by side, but the two sat down obediently. They had both seen Albus angry, and they both had no desire at all to see him in that state any time in the near future.
"Did you bring the potion with you?" Albus folded his hands on the table top and grinned slightly. Snape reached into his pocket and brought out a minuscule cylinder.
"Yes, it's actually a very large vat. I've shrunk it down to fit inside my pocket."
"Are you hoping to take it with you to Malfoy manor? Are you certain that you can resize it discreetly when you need to refill?"
"I hope," Snape said with a humorless grin. "The alternative would be to leave it here and have someone ship me vials of it. I would prefer to take my chances, in case of emergencies." Albus nodded and gave Snape one of his approving looks.
"Very well. Of course you're skilled in the art of secrecy, Severus. I have no doubt that you'll pull this off seamlessly." Snape's eyes softened and he looked down at the cylinder on the table. It wasn't often that he was complimented so openly, and he couldn't help but be just a little touched every time Albus gave him praise, even though he'd never have admitted it to anyone else.
"Shall we pay a visit to Mrs. Malfoy?" Albus grinned and rose from his chair.
"Of course," Snape said with a seldom seen grin of his own as he rose as well, grabbing the tiny vat of Polyjuice. "It would be dreadfully impolite to keep a lady waiting."
"Albus, are you planning on keeping her here?" asked Mrs. Weasly with a fearful look.
"No, I have a different place in mind, actually. I'm sure she will be quite comfortable." Albus' eyes were twinkling again, which was a bad sign for Narcissa Malfoy. Snape's grin broadened.
"You three go ahead, the rest of us will be discussing some other less pressing matters while you're gone," Remus said as the two men exited the room.
"How long has it been since you've seen Narcissa, Severus?" Albus didn't turn around as he led the other man to the basement.
"It's been about seven months, I suppose. Why?" Albus turned suddenly and looked Snape in the eye. His usual twinkle was gone and his eyes were piercing and serious.
"I don't want you to be startled by her appearance. Please understand that neither Moody or Shacklebolt treated her roughly. She was like this when they came upon her," he said in a low voice. "I'm sure you've never seen her in this state, so please try not to be alarmed."
"I understand," Snape said softly as he knit his brow. Albus turned back around and continued on to the basement.
When they arrived, Albus rapped briskly on the door.
"Moody? Shacklebolt? He's arrived." There were a few shuffling sounds behind the door and the sound of a ridiculous number of locks and bolts being opened.
"...bloody paranoid old man," Shacklebolt was muttering under his breath as the door swung open. Albus grinned and chuckled silently. Snape quirked a brow and frowned slightly.
"Do come in, Albus, Professor Snape," Shacklebolt said as he stepped aside and motioned for them to enter the dank, musty basement.
"Hurry up and get in here! Close the door, man!" Moody scuttled up and snapped the door closed as soon as the two men were inside, almost catching the corner of Snape's robe as he did so. The old man was muttering incoherently as he flicked all of the locks and bolts back in a hurry. Snape curled his lip as he stood still clutching the handful of his robe he had saved in one elegant hand.
"Ah, Narcissa. I see you've put her under? Dreamless sleep, I assume?" Albus was looking in the corner of the room that the light didn't fully illuminate. Snape dropped his robe and followed his gaze. There was a narrow wingback chair sitting in the corner. A thin form was sitting in it, bundled up in a dark colored robe. A main of pale, unruly hair was covering the figure's face, flowing down almost to the waist. It might have just been the bad lighting, but Snape could have sworn there were streaks of mud in the untamed hair. There were also dirty bare feet sticking out from beneath the robe. He couldn't believe it was Narcissa. Albus must have noticed his consternation.
"Yes, believe it or not, that is Narcissa Malfoy." Albus laid a knobby hand on Snape's shoulder. "Moody tells me he found her alone in the gardens of Malfoy manor like this. She was apparently in a rather hysteric state, which was why they were able to capture her with such ease."
"It's true. It's not as if it would have been hard if she hadn't been in such a bad state, but I'm not complaining," Shacklebolt said with an offhanded gesture.
"Do you have any idea what could have caused her to be so distressed?" Snape was still staring at Narcissa.
"I should think it was because of Draco's capture earlier this morning. He's going to receive the kiss, you know," Moody said with more glee than was necessary. Snape started.
"Surely not! He managed to escape the clutches of the Death Eaters he betrayed and was in hiding! Those mentally deficient bastards!" Snape put his hand to his forehead and ground his teeth together.
"Severus," Albus whispered, "I think Moody's only jumping to conclusions. Please, just calm down. I'll do what I can." Snape calmed marginally, but his eyes were still fiery. He looked at Albus and nodded. Shacklebolt shifted uncomfortably and Moody was oblivious to the entire exchange.
"So, I suppose you're leaving tonight?" Shacklebolt said, coaxing the conversation back on track.
"It would seem so," Snape said as he crouched down and set the tiny vat on a clear floor space. He stood, withdrew his wand from an internal pocket and muttered a charm. Suddenly a large four-foot tall vat appeared. Snape flicked his wand and the lid lifted easily off the metal rim, flipped over in midair and landed softly on the floor beside the vat. A putrid smell filled the air. It was like a mixture of souring milk and methane. Even Albus had to cover his nose with a corner of his sleeve.
"What in heaven's name is that?!" Shacklebolt had tears in his eyes as he covered his nose and mouth with both of his massive hands.
"It's polyjuice potion with a twist," Snape replied as he leaned his head over the potion, getting a full-face of the horrid smell. He didn't even flinch.
"Bugger me with a broom! What the hell didja add to it, boy? Raw sewage?" Moody had pulled the collar of his robes up over his nose and was glaring fiercely at the vat with his good eye. Snape ignored him.
"I've modified it to last for three hours at a time instead of one. It took a few tries, but I'm quite satisfied with it now," he said as he pulled out a ladle and a sizable stoppered vial from inside his robe. Albus chuckled at this, and Severus simply raised his eyebrows at him. Albus stopped chuckling, but his grin remained. Severus pulled out the stopper with his teeth and began spooning the sludgy potion into the vial.
"I hope you have a few more of those vials hidden away in there," Shacklebolt said, slightly muffled by his hands, which were still clasped desperately over his face.
"Indeed. I have three more. I plan on keeping at least two full vials with me at all times," He said as he stuffed the filled vial back into his robe and pulled out another empty one and repeated the process.
"I hope Mrs. Malfoy's robes are that roomy. I suppose you could always keep 'em in your knickers if not," Moody said with a perfectly straight face. Shacklebolt and Albus spluttered as they tried to hold back the laughter that threatened to overtake them. Moody paid no attention to them and Snape's eyebrow twitched uncontrollably as he tried his best to squelch the mental image of Narcissa's knickers from his mind.
"Here, let me cut a hank of her hair off for you. Suppose you'll have to find a place to stow this also. We can always send you more by owl whenever you need it," Moody said as he scuttled over to the sleeping form of Narcissa with a large knife.
"Are you certain an owl won't be intercepted?" Shacklebolt asked.
"I'll be sure to send Albus an owl giving good times to contact me as soon as I can," Snape said as he put the stopper back in the last vial.
"Can you add the hair in advance to this version of Polyjuice?" Albus asked as he came to look over Snape's shoulder.
"You can, but only forty-eight hours in advance. If you wait a second longer to ingest it, it becomes useless."
Moody grabbed a handful of the soiled hair and whacked it off nearly at the roots, leaving a ridiculous little tuft sticking up on the top of Narcissa's head, and scuttled over to shove the long lock of hair into Snape's free hand.
"Thank you," he said with distaste as he realized that there really were streaks of dried mud in her hair. He handed the ladle to Albus and grabbed his wand again. He muttered a cleaning spell at both the hair and the ladle and shoved them both into his robe. "So, when are we leaving?"
"We thought we would leave right after dinner," Albus replied. "Will you be so kind as to join us, Severus?" Snape tried to hide his sneer, but he nodded anyway. It was the first time he had ever accepted an invitation to dine with them. He had managed to avoid it so far, but it wasn't as if it was an all that difficult thing to do. With a smile, Albus turned and started undoing the unnecessary locks and bolts on the door. Snape turned and flipped the lid back onto the vat and charmed it back down to it's tiny size. He grabbed it and stuffed it into an external pocket of his robe before following behind Albus.
"So, I suppose we should be off," Snape said uncomfortably, blotting the corners of his mouth with an ancient looking cloth napkin. Everyone had been giving him curious looks throughout dinner, and he was starting to feel extremely out of place.
"Yes, I suppose we should be off," Albus answered in between sucking his fingers, making rather loud smacking sounds. "We should go prepare for the journey. Moody, Shacklebolt, would you mind accompanying us back to the basement?"
The two men nodded, rising after Albus. Snape stood also, laying his perfectly creased napkin on the edge of the table.
"Thank you, to all who prepared the meal," Snape said uncomfortably. He was met with silence. Turning abruptly, he jerkily followed the three men out of the dining room, thankful to get away from the awkward situation.
When they arrived at the basement, Moody flicked his wand, opening the heavily warded door.
"Go in, hurry up, get on with you," Moody was mumbling as he ushered the other men into the room. The torches were still lit, and the room looked the same as they had left it. Snape entered the room and found himself staring at Narcissa. Her face was hidden, and he wondered if her lips were painted in that meticulous style he was so accustomed to seeing her with. Going on what he could see of her now, he was fairly certain that they weren't. He grimaced as he realized he would have to paint his lips rouge also.
"Here you go, Severus. You may go behind the screen to change," Albus said as he handed Snape a bundle of burgundy clothing. The color drained from his face when he realized that it was a rather lacy set of dress robes for a witch. "She was carrying these with her when they found her," he continued as he handed Snape a rather evil looking pair of black stilettos. Snape scowled at the menacing clothing, but started towards the dusty oriental dressing screen in the far right corner of the room.
With a grunt, Snape pulled his robes over his head and rummaged around for the lock of hair and a vial of polyjuice. He picked a strand of hair out and laid the rest on a small table beside him and unstopped the vial. There was a sizzling sound and the smell of burning hair as he pushed the strand into the potion. He swallowed hard and held his nose as he took a large swig of the disgusting stuff. It tasted like valerian root smelt, which was unpleasant enough, and had an aftertaste of slightly spoiled caviar. He forced himself to swallow without gagging and he grimaced as he felt his body start to change. He felt breasts swelling on his chest, his waist narrowing and the hair disappearing from his body while the hair on his head grew. He felt as if he were shrinking down a bit also. When he could feel the tingling stop, he opened his eyes and looked down at his body before blushing furiously.
He grabbed the bundle of clothing he had laid on the table beside the lock of hair and burrowed through it for some kind of undergarments. He found an awkward looking thing that laced up the front and a pair of what he supposed were knickers. It looked to him like a bundle of strings attached to a triangle of satin. He could figure out the first piece, since it was quite obvious what the large cups on the front were for. The bottom part was a bit trickier. He reluctantly pulled down his own underpants and started to slip the foreign ones on when he realized that something was terribly wrong. He gasped as he looked down at himself and realized that he was still in possession of his male anatomy! Something had obviously gone wrong with the potion. He felt the bottom fall out of his stomach as he realized what this meant. He quickly stepped out of the female underpants and pulled on his own again, nearing panic. He grabbed Narcissa's dress robe and viciously pulled it on over his head before running out from behind the screen, nearly tripping in the process.
"My God," Shacklebolt exclaimed. "You look exactly like Mrs. Malfoy!" Albus and Moody nodded in agreement.
"Indeed! How delightful," Albus exclaimed, beaming proudly at Snape. Snape sighed impatiently.
"There's something amiss, Albus! I don't believe I've changed completely. I seem to have retained...well...certain things," Snape said, nervously tugging at the itchy lace color of the robes.
"Perhaps you just haven't transformed completely," Albus said dismissively. "I wouldn't worry about it if I were you. Besides, I'm sure you'll have no need to get too intimate with Lucius," Albus said. Snape turned crimson.
"Sweet Christ, I hope not," Snape almost squeaked. Shacklebolt was grinning. Snape gave him a vicious glare.
"Hurry up and finish dressing, Severus. I have the apparating coordinates for you right here." Albus pulled out a small piece of torn parchment from his robe. Snape rolled his eyes and stomped back behind the screen.
He found a pair of thigh-high stockings that had fallen to the floor. He ground his teeth before he pulled them on, snapping the elastic into place. The satin underpants caught his eye, and he debated whether or not he should actually try to wear them. He wasn't sure if he could actually arrange his male anatomy to stay comfortably in the device, but then again the house-elves might be a little suspicious if they found his underpants lying around someplace. With a groan, he ripped off his underpants and stepped back into the odd female ones. He pulled them on and to his surprise found that his male endowments actually fit easily into them.
He raised his eyebrows as he slipped his feet one by one into the stilettoed shoes, stumbling all over the place as he did so. When he had them on, he gripped the edge of the table for balance and proceeded to rummage through his robes and take out the materials he needed. He patted down his body, trying to find a pocket that he could put his belongings into, but found nothing. He gave a snort as he thought of what Moody had said previously. There certainly was no more room in his knickers.
With a sigh, he took out a handkerchief from his pocket, and pointed his wand at it, transfiguring it into a small pouch with two strings attached. He slipped his belongings into the pouch, hiked up his skirt and tied it to his upper thigh. He then teetered back out from behind the screen, trying his best not to fall flat on his arse.
"You look lovely, Severus," Albus said with a grin. Snape pouted. "Oh, come now. Don't be so glum. Here, give me your wand. I need to transfigure it to resemble Narcissa's." Snape handed his wand over and tried his best to find his balance. This was humiliating. Albus drew his wand out of his robes, pointed it at Snape's.
"Facies immuto!" Snape's wand was glowing yellow as it slowly shrunk and turned a dark burgundy colour. "There you go, my boy. You'll be able to use it just as you always have," Albus said with a smile as he handed Snape his wand back. He noticed it was slightly warm to the touch as he slipped it up his sleeve.
"Thank you."
"On the contrary, it is us who should be thanking you, Severus. You're risking a lot, but I have every confidence in you," Albus said in a serious tone. Shacklebolt was nodding in agreement. Snape nodded once and slowly walked towards Albus, who was holding out the apparating coordinates for him. He was trying his best not to wobble or stumble, and he was getting a tiny bit better at it. He silently hoped that Narcissa had some more footwear at sensible the mansion. He gritted his teeth together as he took the parchment from Albus and studied the coordinates.
"I shall write to you at my first convenience," Snape said curtly, inclining his head towards all three men before he closed his eyes and was gone with a loud crack.
"I dearly hope everything turns out well," Shacklebolt said in a quiet voice. Albus turned to him with a smile.
"I have every faith in Severus, Kingsly. If anyone could pull this off, it's him." Albus' smile faded before he continued. "I do, however, feel as though I've asked far too much of him throughout the years. As soon as Volemort is defeated, I've made up my mind to give him the DADA post. I'm afraid I owe him far more than that, however," Albus said with regret.
Snape nearly fell flat on his face in a large, thorny bed of pale blue roses. He dug his spiky heels into the soft ground and flailed his arms about madly, trying to regain his balance. He caught his breath as he straightened himself. With a huff, he started to waddle over towards a small brick path that led up to a side door of the mansion. He hoped to God it was unlocked. He couldn't imagine what Lucius would think if he found his "wife" lurking about the outside of the mansion trying to break into her own home. He only stumbled a few times as he made his way up the steps to the large door. He released his grip on the annoying skirt that seemed to crawl up under his feet, causing him to trip and flop about in a very unseemly manner, and grabbed the doorknob. To his relief and slight suspicion, it was unlocked and unwarded. This couldn't be a good thing.
He slowly opened the door and peeked into the dimly lit interior. It was obscenely ornate, complete with crystal chandelier and baroque style loungers lining the gold-guilded walls. Snape tried his best not to growl outright at the ridiculousness of it all. He opened the door all the way and stepped onto the immaculate marble tile.
"Oh shite!" It was very slippery, as he found out when his leg flew out from beneath him and caused him to land in a very uncomfortable position. He scrabbled to get up, managing to grab on to the curvy wooden leg of a pink upholstered chair. He pulled himself up enough to sit in the chair, before he yanked the evil shoes off of his feet and threw them none too gently on the shiny marble floor. No wonder Narcissa was carrying them instead of wearing them when they found her. He was scowling about at his surroundings when he heard swift footsteps approaching. His heartrate increased, and pinched the web of flesh between his index finger and thumb to keep himself from panicking. He watched the door with wide eyes, preparing himself mentally to come face to face with-
"Good heavens, darling! Where on earth have you been all day? I've been so worried about you," Lucius drawled as he daintily offered his hand to Snape. He forced himself to accept it, and was suddenly pulled into a rib-crushing embrace. He tried his best not to squeal. "Well, nevermind, darling. I know you probably needed your time alone. It's such a disappointment. Who whould have supposed my own son would become a miserable turncoat." Lucius was still holding Snape, who was beginning to wonder if he should start struggling. "Certainly the ministry will find out what a pansy he is, and before you know it, he'll be on the same level as that wretched miscreant, Snape," Lucius spat. Snape resisted the urge to kick him in the shin.
With a dramatic sigh, Lucius let go of Snape and held on to his hands, spreading him open to examine him. Snape suddenly felt like a great red beetle on display.
"My, you are lovely. My sweet pet, I can't imagine how tense you must be," Lucius was getting a frightening glint in his eye and Snape held his breath, praying to whatever deity there was that the great idiot wasn't getting any ideas. "I have just the remedy for you, of course!" Lucious let go and Snape's hands fell heavily against his sides. "I saw you apparate from the bedchamber window, and I immediately had the house elves draw us a warm bath."
"Us?" Did that mentally deficient dandy actually say "us?!" Snape thought to himself with increasing panic. His mind whirred furiously.
"Oh, erm....darling," Snape said with a strained smile, "how very...thoughtful of you. Unfortunately, I don't believe I fancy a bath at this time. Perhaps some time later," later, as in after you're dead, I could bathe in your blood, Snape thought with vitrol.
"Oh, don't be such a silly-willy!" Silly—What?! Snape's eyes widened involuntarily as he felt for his wand in his sleeve. He could always hex his balls off, and then he wouldn't have this problem any more. Of course, then he'd lose his contact with Voldemort's inner circle...which didn't seem like such a horrible thing at the present moment. "Come now, my love. You love your evening baths. Let's go." Bloody fuck! Lucius grabbed Snape by the arm and practically drug him away.
When they arrived at what Snape deduced was the master bedroom, Lucius raised his hands to his lacy cravat and daintily started to loosen it. Snape could only stand in abject horror at his current predicament.
Lucius was half-naked by the time he turned back to look at his wife.
"Well? Are you planning on soaking in your dress? Come now, why don't you slip into something more comfortable?" Lucius had a very unsettling grin plastered on his face as he stalked towards Snape, who was biting down hard on his cheek to keep from verbally flaying the other man. Lucius reached out and ran a finger down Snape's face. Snape jerked away suddenly.
"What? Are you okay?" Lucius' tone seemed concerned now. Oh, double bloody fuck. Snape shut his eyes and took a deep breath.
"I'm just a bit unsettled from the morning's events. Please pardon me," Snape managed to say.
"Yes, I can understand," Lucius said in a soft voice Snape had never heard before. It was annerving. "Please, just relax with me. I don't want to be alone right now." Lucius' eyes were pleading, and Snape wondered if it was possible to cast avada kedavra on himself.
"Okay, Lucius. I'll sit in the room with you, but I'm truly not in the mood for a bath." Lucius' disappointment and slight confusion was clear, but he nodded in acceptance. He turned back around and finished undressing before opening the door and motioning for his wife to precede him. Snape entered the steamy room and sat on a small terry-cloth covered stool in the corner of the room. Much to his horror, Lucius didn't immediately hop in the tub, but instead kneeled in front of him and took his hand. Snape tried not to cringe too much.
"My sweet pet," Lucius said in a low voice. Snape knit his brow in annoyance, and was taken completely off guard when Lucius quickly leaned down and planted a kiss square on his lips. He tried to suppress the bile that was rising in his throat, but as soon as the kiss started, it ended, and Lucius strode over to the tub and hopped in, causing the water to slosh about and spill on the floor. Snape wrinkled his nose.
It was hot in the bathroom, and the dress robes were starting to get uncomfortable as they stuck to his sweaty skin. He parried and dodged his way through a conversation with Lucius, trying his best to make it short and generic. Finally, after what seemed like days, but was in fact only an hour, Lucius stood from the water and wrapped a lush blue robe about himself.
"It's such a pity you decided not to join me, darling. I know you would have found it quite enjoyable," Lucius drawled. "You look a mess, dear. Perhaps you should use a quick cleaning spell before retiring?" With that, Lucius strode from the room, leaving Snape alone in the hot room.