"Clothilde"

Chapter 21 "The Rendering of Curses"

You never have been wrong

You never have been sane

Though you say that you don't care

In your eyes I see the shame

Looking through the window of your mind

I see a lonely shadow running out of time

Running out of time

~ "Termite Song" Joseph Arthur

The woman stood in front of the mirror in her bathroom, her eyes followed every scar, every line on her face… the angry line that had deepened with time between her eyebrows. Where in the world had that come from? She had to hurry she realized… they were leaving tonight… and she was never coming back, although she knew the others had no idea.

Her armor was coming off her now… piece by piece… shins and legs, and bracers, shoulders and hardened leather armor for a breast piece. She looked once more at the mirror as she unbuckled her gorget… beneath this was the white satin scarf she always wore about her throat. The gorget clanked onto the tile amidst the disarray of parts, and she ran her fingers over the scarf's fluid surface… then slowly untied the bow.

The long white scarf fell to the floor as well. Now as she gazed at herself she saw the scar she'd tried so long to hide. It had been a cut that had nearly taken her life… so deep she thought at once she might die… but she'd lived, lived on somehow instead.

She buckled on her belt, sheathing her athame there, at her hip. She wore a Hogwarts sweater-vest but left her arms bare, and a simple pair of blue jeans… and boots. Clothilde emerged from the painting "Abbey in the Oak Forest" by Friedrich, she clutched the frame tenderly knowing she would never see it again… and it had been hers, her little mark on Hogwarts. She shut the door… shutting herself out.

Lupin was standing right there taking in this new version of her slender, scarred form… inhaling the scent of amber paste.

Their eyes met… his eyes were green hazel, they seemed to have a cloudy sparkling nature about them. He was looking at her forearms, covered in identical Egyptian tattoos… which emanated something magical. "Are you leaving here for good?"

She glanced down at the cold gray stones for a moment, and smiled faintly. "Do you know what that feels like?"

He weighed this a moment. "I think you know the answer to that."

Silence.

"You have a lot of scars."

She laughed a little. "You have no idea."

"Your throat…."

She followed his hand to her neck and clasped her fingers absently over that rather hideous scar. "Yes. This one nearly killed me, but you know… a person can live through a lot more than she thinks she can." Clothilde's heavy eyes met his once again and she found in his exactly what she thought she would, understanding.

Lupin seemed to sense this also, some sort of common bond they shared, and it was as if some realization hit him when he really didn't want it to at all. He took a step backward, "uhh… Harry, and Ron… Hermione…" he said absently looking over his shoulder as if he knew they were there, just hiding in the shadows. As the trio traipsed toward them, he glanced back at her quickly, "you smell wonderful."

Her eyes were dark, and flat… she appraised his long brown hair, the streaks of gray highlighting it, and yet, he was Severus' age; his petite, delicately muscled frame…. She wondered who he was… he seemed so haunted…. As they all departed, he caught her with her eyes on him, but she didn't turn away, she was all out of medicine and just couldn't care anymore.

The approached Hooch's locker rooms where Clothilde, Lupin and Hermione had to… borrow some stray broomsticks. This was not something Hermione nor Clothilde was looking forward to. This being just about the only thing… outside of Divinations Hermione wasn't very good at… and Clothilde, well, being overspecialized in one area was nice but it meant she pretty much stunk at everything else.

* * * * *

Severus awoke and inhaled the scent of cigar smoke, his body felt stiff and wracked with pain. He attempted to touch what felt like dried blood on his lip, but he couldn't move his hand… this roused him even more, looking down he found his wrists bound to an exquisite chair. It looked to be 17th century in style. Glancing about him painfully he took note of the museum-like quality this room bore, it would've been nearly sterile in it's perfection if there hadn't been a rather cheery fire blazing in the hearth… and that sweet smell of smoke. He followed the pluming trail of smoke, with dark eyes, to the man in the center of the room; his silver blonde hair hung down loose and striking against his deep green jacket. Lucius. Suddenly Severus' mind returned to the events that had led to him being in a firefight with five Death Eaters and winding up, bashed and bound to a chair in the parlor of Malfoy's home.

"This… looks suspiciously like the Malfoy estate," he said dryly.

"Oh Snape," Lucius turned around, "you're awake."

"A simple dinner request would've sufficed Lucius."

"Yes well… I am hoping my dear sister might join us. You see I've as much as written her an invitation."

Snape raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"That Muggle book? Ah yes… I supplied her with the information she needed to find you."

"And, you believe she would simply come here?"

"To rescue you? Of course…."

Severus snorted. "I highly doubt that."

"Oh Severus," Lucius chided taking a step toward him, "Charlotte might have been put into Slytherin… for… other dubious reasons, it certainly wasn't for her cunning… you, being her professor amongst other things, must've noticed that."

Her 'cunning', or lack thereof had not been something he had been questioning, but he said nothing. It was more that he really did doubt she would make any attempt to go searching for him after his initial reaction to what she had been trying to explain to him. He wanted to sigh deeply at how stupid he felt about this entire situation, but he kept up his icy mask.

"You did put up a rather good fight you know Severus," Lucius smiled, "the Dark Lord would've been impressed."

"I can't imagine," Snape quipped coldly.

"You think not?"

The potion's master waited for Lucius to say something. Malfoy had a habit of entertaining himself by simply blathering on… mainly about himself. It really couldn't have been much worse, well if he had been getting Crucioed it would've been worse, but he assumed Voldemort had actually allowed Lucius to be his little babysitter only because he knew this inane prattling would make him insane possibly faster than the Cruciatus method would.

"The Dark Lord was most displeased of course to discover you were involved with a Mudblood…."

Silence once again.

Malfoy swallowed down his glass of brandy and turned to the decanter for a second.

"When has the Dark Lord ever been pleased with my efforts?" Snape said dismissively.

"Perhaps he'll tell you… tonight?"

"What?"

"Didn't I mention he would be stopping in?" Malfoy sat down amused. "Ah yes well, let's think about this one shall we? Charlotte has been Harry Potter's bodyguard for months now, don't you think it highly possible that the Potter boy will follow her here? He does seem to get himself into the most trouble of any boy I've ever known."

Snape tested the strength of the rope at his wrists absently, then considered casting something to free himself. In due time.

"What I'm getting at is… Lord Voldemort is certain Harry Potter will be stopping by with Charlotte. Isn't that simply… touching?" he asked hoisting the glass to his lips.

Is he still talking? Of course he's still talking.

"It seems he has plans for Potter just as I have plans for my dear Mudblood sister," he smiled nearly serenely at this thought, "oh well… of course the Dark Lord has plans for the boy, it would be foolish to think he didn't. But I, I simply cannot wait to confront my little sister… at last."

Suddenly Snape felt the bonds holding him to the chair falling away, though… there was no one… visible. For a moment his astonishment nearly gave the situation away.

Malfoy faced him once more, looking slightly intoxicated and Snape's cold façade fell back into place. "The wards…?"

"What were you saying Lucius?"

He set down his glass hastily, "Crabbe, Goyle!"

They came barreling in from the corridor.

Lucius fought of the urge to roll his eyes at their stupidity, instead it said simply, "check the house for intruders."

They were gone in an instant.

"Well then," he said facing Snape once more, "we shall see about this shan't we? Do you have a little rescuer on site?"

Snape's eyes were foreboding as they locked on Malfoy's.

Lucius felt someone lift his wand from the inner pocket of his jacket, he grabbed for it before it had left him completely.

"Well then… I never was very nimble," came the deep sarcastic voice of a woman… from thin air.

Severus' attention went to the area it seemed to come from.

Lucius hand his wand out now, searching for her. "Certainly not," he said contemptuously. "You aren't afraid to show yourself are you?"

Muffled laughter.

"No."

"Crucio!" Lucius sent this spiraling from his wand and into a wall where it blasted a portrait of an ancestor to pieces.

"Whoopsie there brother dear."

He spun 'round, "Crucio!"

A beautiful 17th century chair sailed through a mirror.

"You missed me."

Malfoy frowned then strode over to where Severus sat, and placed the end of his wand against Snape's throat. "I won't miss this time."

There was a sudden glint of light, Snape's eyes betrayed him as Clothilde came unveiled behind Lucius. The cloak of invisibility fell away and she brought her athame down on her brother as though it wasn't magical at all… simply a Muggle tool for violence.

Malfoy saw the shocked expression in Severus' eyes but not soon enough, he felt a heavy thing hit his back. At first he thought it was someone punching the wind out of him, as it stabbed through a lung… but then as he lost his ability to stand, and the wand at Snape's neck faltered he realized it was more than just a fist. He crumpled to the lovely hardwood floor in a ball. Then someone pulled an object from him, swiftly.

Lucius forced himself to see who had done it. Charlotte stood over him, there was blood on her face… she looked strong and… emotionless. She wiped her athame clean matter-of-factly.

"You could do this… to your own… brother?"

"Oh you're so right Lucius, Crucio would've been much more humane."

"Stabbed… in… the back, by a Mudblood."

She glanced down at Severus, "certainly hasn't rendered him speechless though has it?"

"Subtle as always Miss Malfoy."

"That's Ma'am."

"How about… Charlotte?" he said sounding a bit apologetic.

She smiled slightly at him, a little tried by the entire pretense of even attempting a romantic relationship. Harry's bodyguard glanced down at Lucius who was bleeding there all over the floor, he was her brother and at the moment all she saw was a body… an annoying body at that. "I just maimed my own brother Severus, you can't understand me, and I realize that you won't; and I don't blame you…."

He stood up now… a bit light-headed from the beating he had taken, and then grasped the arm of the chair to steady himself. She took hold of his arms to help him.

"Generally," he breathed, "I am the one who is forced to explain myself."

"Does it work?"

"It depends on… to whom I'm speaking."

"Severus. So, my old friend Lucius Malfoy was right, you are involved with a dirty half-blood." The room seemed to sway and darken….

The two of them turned. It was Voldemort.

"Crucio!" Came the voice of Lucius from the spot where he lay in a pool of his own blood, this time he hit his target. Clothilde dropped the slick athame, and fell to the floor, hitting her head on a table as she went down… writhing in agony.

Snape also fell to his knees now that there was no one to help him stand.

"Severus… how you've plummeted from the position you once held at my side."

"Charlotte~" Snape couldn't catch himself fast enough, his feelings betrayed his logic this time. Then his eyes fell upon Lucius, he scrambled to retrieve his wand from Malfoy's spent form. Just as he reached it however Voldemort was before him, his wand pointed directly at the potion's master… his forearm, where the dark mark had been magically burned into him felt as if it were once again on fire.

There was something so ominous about the way he stood there, above Severus… there was a darkness about him, negative, magical energy burning madly in his eyes.

"You have no idea how much it hurt me to discover you were a traitor, no idea," he hissed.

Snape felt his heart pounding. Charlotte was screaming, writhing on the floor beside him, he felt himself torn… he had the Dark Lord hovering over him, and the woman he loved in agony beside him. He gathered up his courage~ "Finite Incanta~"

"Imperio!"

'No.' The single thought that was racing through Severus's mind. 'Gods no,' he didn't even want to imagine what Voldemort would make him do to his beloved.