A/N: I would like to thank the first three reviewers since I came back:
Lebbinin, christina, and Jeanne2. Thanks, you guys, girls, men, women,
etc!
-Anna Dearest
Chapter Twenty
"We need more time, Dumbledore," Snape said. "They're becoming suspicious of me as it is. It'll be hard to keep my cover if I waltz in there asking to see Longbottom and he disappears with the state I hear he's in."
"When do they put you on duty with him?" Dumbledore asked.
"Four days from now."
"Can something be arranged?"
"Yes," Snape sighed in deafeat.
"Good."
- - - - - - - - - -
"Is the Thresian Blood still being put in her food?" Voldemort asked.
"Yes, My Lord. She recovered for a short while, so I simply increased the amount."
"Not yet fatal, is it?"
"Not yet, My Lord. However, if you'll let me...."
"No, not yet. Do continue to torment Potter. He could use a good scare here and there."
"Yes, My Lord. I'll do so immediately."
"Good. Now return to Hogwarts. I have Longbottom to attend to."
The Dark Lord swept from the room as the Death Eater apparated with a faint 'pop.' He soon arrived in the dungeons, smirking as he watched Lestrange put he Cruciatus Curse on the boy again.
"Now, now, Bella. Not too much."
"Yes, My Lord," she said, bowing and backing away.
"Pleasant evening, Longbottom. I take it you're receiving proper treatment from your caregivers?"
"You're h-horrbile."
"I know. Yet, at the same time, I'm wonderful, am I not? Look at it this way, Longbottom. I'm powerful."
"You-You're no b-better than Fudge."
"What was that, boy?" Voldemort hissed.
"I said you're no better than Fudge!" Neville shouted. The silence that followed was deafening. Bellatrix Lestrange's eyes flickered back and forth restlessly as she shuffled her feet. Finding his train of thought, Neville continued. "You both are so short-sighted! He wouldn't believe you were back because he was a pompous, arrogant fool! And here you are, acting like you're the king of the world, while really you're a cold, cruel man in hiding! IN HIDING!
"If you were so powerful, why are you hiding, VOLDEMORT? You talk about your greatness, but I've seen none of it. You constantly talk about my parents, and how I should be ashamed of them for what they are, what they became. What do your parents think of you? Their son's a murderer!"
"Crucio!" Voldemort hissed. "You know nothing, boy! Nothing! You think I hide because of fear? No! I hide because I am not a fool, like your parents, like my mother and father. You think they're ashamed of me? No, Longbottom! You'd be dead wrong, and soon enough, you'll be dead."
The curse was lifted as Voldemort once more swept out of the room.
- - - - - - - - - - -
"This is just getting frustrating," Harry sighed as he plopped down in a chair beside Sirius.
"What's that?" Remus asked, sipping his tea.
"Ron and Hermione. They both disappear together all the time, and I can't figure out why."
Sirius and Remus both snorted into their tea cups, turning away from Harry to hide their laughter.
"No offense, Harry," Sirius said, still attempting to stifle the laughter just under the surface, "but if you can't figure out what they're up to, you might not be quite on top of things."
Harry turned scarlet as he listened to what Sirius was implying. Then, he shook his head to clear them of those thoughts.
"But...but, they bicker so much! How on earth?" Harry slumped back in his chair, stuck between being amazed and amused.
"Some couples are strange," Remus said, a faraway look in his eyes, as though recalling a fond memory.
"Understatement, Moony," Sirius laughed. "Being a dog most of the time, I sense a lot, and there is definitely a lot to sense between those two."
"Then-then, why haven't I noticed anything until now?"
"It's called being blissfully ignorant," Sirius replied with a small smile.
- - - - - - - - - - - -
"I can't take it anymore, Alice!" Frank shouted.
"You have to wait, Frank. They don't even know where he is!" his wife pleaded, hoping to reason with Frank's returned sanity.
"He could be dead, Alice," he said quietly, sitting down on the bed beside her. "Neville could be dead...and I-I don't think I could deal with that. Not after missing so much already."
"We have to be ready for the worst," Alice sniffed. "But there's always hope Frank. No matter how....no matter how...small."
- - - - - - - - - - - -
"Nothing new as of late?" Remus asked Fox at dinner that evening. She simply shook her head no and brought her fork and knife to the future victim of her hunger. Cutting off a peice of the meat, she frowned when she realized there was still blood coming from it.
"Is this supposed to be rare?" she joked. Remus looked up and quirked and eyebrow, watching as Fox dipped her finger in the blood and sniffed it. Just looking at it, Remus thought it looked a bit too dark, too close to black, to be blood.
Her eyes widened in horror and she dropped her fork. "Oh, no. Oh, no oh no oh no...." She jumped up from her chair and knocked it backwards in the process, startling Sirius. Dumbledore immediately stood from his place at the table and made his way towards them.
"Fox?" he questioned kindly. She pointed at the plate and mumbled under her breath. "Pardon?"
"Thresian Blood," she said more clearly. "I swear it."
Dumbledore brought out his wand and pointed it at the plate, mumbling "anima del cuore."
Slowly, like a stain spreading on carpet, the liquid pooled together, turning into a pitch black. "I believe someone has tried to poison you," Dumbledore said to the Polymagus, who looked at the plate, her head tilted to the side. "Go to Madame Pomfrey, please."
With that, Fox left the Great Hall, causing a confused murmur to follow her.
A/N: I received an email asking about what language I use for spells that aren't already in the books. It's my modified, or left as is, version of Italian. - Anna Dearest
Chapter Twenty
"We need more time, Dumbledore," Snape said. "They're becoming suspicious of me as it is. It'll be hard to keep my cover if I waltz in there asking to see Longbottom and he disappears with the state I hear he's in."
"When do they put you on duty with him?" Dumbledore asked.
"Four days from now."
"Can something be arranged?"
"Yes," Snape sighed in deafeat.
"Good."
- - - - - - - - - -
"Is the Thresian Blood still being put in her food?" Voldemort asked.
"Yes, My Lord. She recovered for a short while, so I simply increased the amount."
"Not yet fatal, is it?"
"Not yet, My Lord. However, if you'll let me...."
"No, not yet. Do continue to torment Potter. He could use a good scare here and there."
"Yes, My Lord. I'll do so immediately."
"Good. Now return to Hogwarts. I have Longbottom to attend to."
The Dark Lord swept from the room as the Death Eater apparated with a faint 'pop.' He soon arrived in the dungeons, smirking as he watched Lestrange put he Cruciatus Curse on the boy again.
"Now, now, Bella. Not too much."
"Yes, My Lord," she said, bowing and backing away.
"Pleasant evening, Longbottom. I take it you're receiving proper treatment from your caregivers?"
"You're h-horrbile."
"I know. Yet, at the same time, I'm wonderful, am I not? Look at it this way, Longbottom. I'm powerful."
"You-You're no b-better than Fudge."
"What was that, boy?" Voldemort hissed.
"I said you're no better than Fudge!" Neville shouted. The silence that followed was deafening. Bellatrix Lestrange's eyes flickered back and forth restlessly as she shuffled her feet. Finding his train of thought, Neville continued. "You both are so short-sighted! He wouldn't believe you were back because he was a pompous, arrogant fool! And here you are, acting like you're the king of the world, while really you're a cold, cruel man in hiding! IN HIDING!
"If you were so powerful, why are you hiding, VOLDEMORT? You talk about your greatness, but I've seen none of it. You constantly talk about my parents, and how I should be ashamed of them for what they are, what they became. What do your parents think of you? Their son's a murderer!"
"Crucio!" Voldemort hissed. "You know nothing, boy! Nothing! You think I hide because of fear? No! I hide because I am not a fool, like your parents, like my mother and father. You think they're ashamed of me? No, Longbottom! You'd be dead wrong, and soon enough, you'll be dead."
The curse was lifted as Voldemort once more swept out of the room.
- - - - - - - - - - -
"This is just getting frustrating," Harry sighed as he plopped down in a chair beside Sirius.
"What's that?" Remus asked, sipping his tea.
"Ron and Hermione. They both disappear together all the time, and I can't figure out why."
Sirius and Remus both snorted into their tea cups, turning away from Harry to hide their laughter.
"No offense, Harry," Sirius said, still attempting to stifle the laughter just under the surface, "but if you can't figure out what they're up to, you might not be quite on top of things."
Harry turned scarlet as he listened to what Sirius was implying. Then, he shook his head to clear them of those thoughts.
"But...but, they bicker so much! How on earth?" Harry slumped back in his chair, stuck between being amazed and amused.
"Some couples are strange," Remus said, a faraway look in his eyes, as though recalling a fond memory.
"Understatement, Moony," Sirius laughed. "Being a dog most of the time, I sense a lot, and there is definitely a lot to sense between those two."
"Then-then, why haven't I noticed anything until now?"
"It's called being blissfully ignorant," Sirius replied with a small smile.
- - - - - - - - - - - -
"I can't take it anymore, Alice!" Frank shouted.
"You have to wait, Frank. They don't even know where he is!" his wife pleaded, hoping to reason with Frank's returned sanity.
"He could be dead, Alice," he said quietly, sitting down on the bed beside her. "Neville could be dead...and I-I don't think I could deal with that. Not after missing so much already."
"We have to be ready for the worst," Alice sniffed. "But there's always hope Frank. No matter how....no matter how...small."
- - - - - - - - - - - -
"Nothing new as of late?" Remus asked Fox at dinner that evening. She simply shook her head no and brought her fork and knife to the future victim of her hunger. Cutting off a peice of the meat, she frowned when she realized there was still blood coming from it.
"Is this supposed to be rare?" she joked. Remus looked up and quirked and eyebrow, watching as Fox dipped her finger in the blood and sniffed it. Just looking at it, Remus thought it looked a bit too dark, too close to black, to be blood.
Her eyes widened in horror and she dropped her fork. "Oh, no. Oh, no oh no oh no...." She jumped up from her chair and knocked it backwards in the process, startling Sirius. Dumbledore immediately stood from his place at the table and made his way towards them.
"Fox?" he questioned kindly. She pointed at the plate and mumbled under her breath. "Pardon?"
"Thresian Blood," she said more clearly. "I swear it."
Dumbledore brought out his wand and pointed it at the plate, mumbling "anima del cuore."
Slowly, like a stain spreading on carpet, the liquid pooled together, turning into a pitch black. "I believe someone has tried to poison you," Dumbledore said to the Polymagus, who looked at the plate, her head tilted to the side. "Go to Madame Pomfrey, please."
With that, Fox left the Great Hall, causing a confused murmur to follow her.
A/N: I received an email asking about what language I use for spells that aren't already in the books. It's my modified, or left as is, version of Italian. - Anna Dearest