The Terrifying Truth of Elizabeth Slythe

Elizabeth walked down the street toward the apothecary. She looked around at the colorful leaves of autumn, smiling gently at the beautiful sight. She looked back ahead of her as she entered the store, smiling at the owner and her former professor. He nodded back and she grinned to herself. She walked over to the back corner and picked up three jars of Porcupine quills and two jars of Centaur blood and four bags of Hippogriff feathers. She walked to the side and picked up two new stirring rods and a small cauldron. She turned and walked to the counter. She set down the items and reached for her money. Severus raised an eyebrow.

"This is more than usual." He said. She looked up and smiled as she handed over her money.

"More supplies are needed for my current project, Monsieur." She said. He raised an eyebrow.

"What are you working on, if I may be so bold as to ask?" he asked. She shrugged.

"A simple transfer potion that allows the user to transfer magic without risks that spells have. I am thinking of using a medical potion that transfers blood as a base. I just need to find a way that the blood transfusion goes deeper into the magical core." She replied. He nodded slightly.

"I would suggest using a Sliver Beatle as a substitute for the Porcupine quills. The quills to have a bad reaction to the flubberworms in the blood transfer potion." He said. She looked up at him and practically hit her forehead.

"Why did I not think of this! Hold that thought, Monsieur." She said and jogged over to grab a jar of the Sliver Beatles. She came back and he charged the extra purchase. She smiled.

"Thank you, Monsieur. I believe you have saved me from a disaster in my precious labs." She said. He nodded and handed her the bag of items.

"Have a nice day, Miss Slythe." He said. She narrowed her eyes at him and shook her head.

"Monsieur, please call me Elizabeth. Miss Slythe reminds me of my school days. I would rather not remember such foolish mistakes on my part." She said and gave him a smile as she turned away.

"Good day, Monsieur."

"Good day…. Elizabeth."

The next day, Elizabeth was walking down the streets toward the book shop when a hand landed on her shoulder. She turned and locked eyes with a smirking Lucius Malfoy. She nodded to her.

"Miss Elizabeth! How good to see you again! I trust you have been well?" he asked. She nodded and smiled.

"Monsieur, how nice. It has been a while, no?" she said. He nodded.

"Indeed. Might I interest you in a drink?" he said, motioning to the Three Broomsticks that was across the road. She looked between the man and the building and bit her lip.

"I am afraid I must be on my way, Monsieur. You see, my boss will not be happy if I am late to work." She said. He nodded.

"I understand. Another time perhaps? Maybe we can go to dinner sometime?" he asked. She smiled.

"That would be pleasant. I have tomorrow night off, though I was planning on running a few errands." She said. He smiled winningly.

"Lovely! Shall we meet here tomorrow night, say around seven thirty?" he asked. He nodded and smiled at him.

"It was pleasant, Monsieur, but I really must be off. I bid you a good day." She said and continued on her way. He watched her go with interest. So this was the Slythe girl from the papers…

Elizabeth walked into the bookstore and moved to place her things behind the counter before going to tell her boss she had made it. He did not acknowledge, but she did not mind. She went to check to shelves to make sure there was enough of everything and wait for a customer. The bell above the door rang and she walked out from behind the counter to greet the customer. She smiled as she saw Professor Minerva McGonagall standing there. She walked over and the two women shared a hug.

"Minerva, what brings you here?" Elizabeth asked. The older witch smiled down at the girl and shook her head.

"Can I not visit one of my best and favorite students?" she asked. Elizabeth rolled her eyes.

"Now I know you are up to something. Come on, out with it, what do you want from me, you meddling old coot?" she asked. Minerva had the decency to look sheepish.

"Nothing can be hidden for long, dearest Slytherin prodigy. I came to talk to you about your relationship with Severus Snape." She said. Elizabeth rolled her eyes and started walking toward the counter again.

"You read that blasted paper? I swear to you, Minerva, Monsieur Snape and I have never and will never see each other that way. There is nothing in this world that can make him see me in that light. I got that message quite clearly when he nearly assaulted me over a rumor I loved him." She said as she cleaned the already clean counter, just to give her hands something to do. Minerva's eyebrows shot up.

"He did what?" she asked in shock. Elizabeth sighed and threw the hand cloth away from her in disgust.

"I mean he could have just asked me if it was true, which it wasn't! But I know how revolting the idea of being with me romantically is to him, so I would not take anything you read from Rita bloody Skeeter seriously ever again, my dear friend. She is a vile, disturbed woman who feeds off of the suffering of others. She is a bloody human Dementor!" Elizabeth said as she paced the ground in front of the counter. Minerva looked at the girl in surprise.

"I never thought you were the type to judge a book by its cover!" she said. Elizabeth threw up her hands in frustration.

"But she isn't a book with a cover that is closed! She flaunts her pages like Witches bloody Weekly! She is so obvious! Every official in the Ministry, every celebrity in the Wizarding World, every important figure in Wizarding Britain can vouch for me! They have all been torn down at one point in their carrier or another, by Rita fucking Skeeter!" Elizabeth hissed, yanking a hand through her hair angrily. Minerva held up her hands in mock surrender.

"I was merely making an observation, Elizabeth. There is no need to-"

"BETHY!" someone yelled as the doors opened loudly. Elizabeth groaned.

"Hello, Ginevra." She said in an undertone. Ginny Weasley rolled her eyes and hugged the solid figure of her friend.

"How many times do I have to tell you, Beth, call me Ginny?"

"And how many times must I request you please call me Elizabeth? Not. Beth." Elizabeth hissed. Ginny shrugged.

"But you look like a Beth!" she said. Elizabeth resisted the urge to hit the girl and turned away from her.

"Ah, but you look like a Weasley. Shall I call you Weasley, then?" Elizabeth shot back. Ginny scowled.

"You're just jealous because Harry picked me." She said, crossing her arms and smirking. Elizabeth rolled her eyes and moved behind the counter. She leaned against a chair there and glared at the younger witch.

"You, my dear girl, are sadly mistaken. Potter chose you because he thought I was dead. Still does if you have kept your promise to keep your giant trap shut for once in your life." She said. Ginny glared at her and stalked off to browse the fiction section. Elizabeth sighed and tossed a tired grin at Minerva.

"What I have to deal with, right?" she said. Minerva smiled.

"It's not so bad. At least you are civil to each other. More than what I can say for the new Defence teacher and half the staff." She said.

The two talked for a while, Minerva always asking if she was sure about Severus. The answer stayed the same.

"Never going to happen."

When it was time to close the store, Elizabeth took extra time to lock up, not wanting to go back to her lonely house on the edge of town. She sighed as she walked down the empty streets to get to her small house. She felt cold, tired, and her stomach sounded like a dragon. She shivered as a gust of wind blew through the town. There was something foul in the air. She didn't know what, but for some reason she wasn't looking forward to the dinner with Lucius Malfoy the next night. He seemed to take too much of an interest in her, both times she met him. She wanted to back out but she knew what everyone in the Wizarding World knew.

You never say no to a Malfoy.

A/N: Hey guys. Hope this is better, Flame. I'm really sorry if it seems like I'm jumping around. This story has been bouncing around in my head for the longest time and I just really want to get on to the good stuff. Sorry if you guys don't like that. Really. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and rest assured, this is a Sev/Eli story. Not Luc/Eli, not Draco/Eli, not Harry/Eli, just Severus Snape and Elizabeth Slythe. Okay? Okay. I'm feel better now.

Reviews would make my day if I wasn't madly in love with my girlfriend, Lola, who's every word is like new rays of sunshine to my very dark and dull life. So, reviews please! If you want that is. You don't have to…

DITF