Snape's Secret Part XV: False Accusations
[ A/N: Thanks for your reviews, guys! Man, it looks like Voldie is winning, and with what I think I might do, I think that Everyone is going to find that very interesting. :) Still, keep voting. If the votes are close I'll eventually doing a separate ending for each group... Why am I worrying about endings?? There is still a lot to go here... :) Anyway, r/r and Vote!! ]
Issabelle slowly opened her eyes, but found herself in a room which was shrouded in darkness. Trying to stand, she found that tight ropes around her wrists and ankles made movement merely impossible. Surely, she thought, this must be another nightmare.
" Issie? " Snape whispered from a few feet away, " You awake? "
" Y... yes. " Issabelle said, struggling to find her voice and realizing that she must have been unconcious for hours. " W..what's going on here? "
" I don't know. " Snape replied, turning his head in the direction her voice had come from, " You don't think they could have -- "
" No. Don't even think that! " Issabelle said, cutting him off in mid sentance, " I am sure that there is a logical explaination for all of this. "
"Well I'm glad one of us is. " Snape muttered, " But if I know Him at all, it can not be good. "
" Hey, you still have my wand! " Issabelle exclaimed, wishing her hands had been free so she could have covered her mouth, " Look, in your robe! "
" Yeah, but what good will it do us? " Snape asked, " Neither of us can get it. "
" Wanna bet on that? " Issabelle said, a grin starting to cross her face as she rolled towards him, " Leave it to me. "
" What in the name of Merlin are you doing? " Snape asked, " Watch out, Issie. There could be traps set out. "
" I don't know about you, " Issabelle said, her face now inches from his, " But I'd much rather be the one asking questions when he comes back then the one answering them. "
" I think you mean if he comes back, Issie. " Snape said, a note of worry creeping into his voice for the first time. " He might decide not to bother. "
" With me here, Sev? " Issabelle said, faking mock-rejection, " I'd like to see him try. Now, where did you put it? "
" First pocket on the top left there. " Snape said, still pondering how she planned to get it at all. " Hey! "
To Snape's surprise, he felt Issabelle's head back away from his and carefully work its way to the pocket he had said. Finally feeling the delicate willow wand against her mouth, Issabelle grasped ahold of it with her teeth and moved once again so that she was face-to-face with Snape. " Take it. "
" Huh? " Snape muttered, finally catching on and taking the other end of the wand in his own mouth. Once she was certain he had it, Issabelle let go.
" Now, I am slowly going to move forward, Sev. I want you to nudge me when my hands are within reach of the wand and then I wand you to slowly pass the wand from your mouth into my hands. Got it? " Issabelle asked.
" Yeah. " Snape said, watching carefully and finally passing her the wand. " Now what? "
" Stay back. " Issabelle said, flicking her wrist and snapping the ropes that secured them, " Hmmm... They didn't do that properly, did they? I have a funny feeling that this is not Voldemort we are dealing with, Sev. Relecio! "
" Issabelle, if its not Voldemort, then who? " Snape asked, now getting annoyed and wondering what gave her the right to think she knew so much about the Death Eaters.
" Malfoy. " Issabelle said flatly, " He is the only one who would dare go against Tom's will and the only person here who mistrusts me. "
" How many times must I ask you not to call him Tom? " Snape spat, looking at her coldly, " Now untie me! My back is sore. "
******
Oblivious and surrounded by the warmth of the fire in his library, Voldemort sat and contemplated his latest encounter with Issabelle. She had said she would consider it, as if it was no big deal. Was nothing good enough for her? What did she expect him to do, get down on his knees and beg?
Glancing at the door for the hundredth time in the last hour, Voldemort let out a long and exasperated sigh. Where was she? With Snape, no doubt. But it still wasn't like her to not show up for their evening tea. Voldemort felt sadness envelop him as he tried to think of what he might have done wrong.
" Is something troubling you, my Lord? "
The intrusion of Lucius' voice as it broke the silence made Voldemort scowl as he turned to order him to leave, but a passing thought made him unable to help asking, " Have you seen Issabelle? "
" No, my Lord. Why? " Lucius asked, entering the room and preceeding to warm himself by the fire.
" I'm worried about her. "
" Surely, my Lord, you are not falling in love with a -- "
" Silence, Malfoy. " Voldemort said, " She is my most loyal and precious friend, and I will not have her berated by you or anyone else. "
" Loyal, is she? " Malfoy asked, a pleased smile spreading across his face, " If she is so loyal, then why did I find this attached to her owl? "
" How do you know it was her owl? " Voldemort asked, after reading the letter. Although he had his doubts about the letter's origins, Voldemort forced himself too look converned.
" I killed it. " Lucius said, " I saw it fly out from the window in Snape's lab. "
" And why did you not bring it to me immediately? " Voldemort demanded.
" I assumed you would not want a traitor left to roam the castle behind your back, so I captured Issabelle and Severus and imprisioned them in the dungeon. "
" Mr. Malfoy, " Voldemort began, rising from his chair and knocking Lucius across the room, " The next time you decide to 'assume' how I might do something, I suggest you simply bring the matter to me. "
" Uh... " Lucius groaned, looking up at Voldemort's angry eyes, " My Lord, I did everything in my powers to protect you. I -- "
" When you entered the room, Lucius, you told me you had not seen Issabelle. Now, you are telling me that you imprisioned her in the dungeon without my consent and utterly behind my back. "
" She is a mud-blood, so what does it matter? "
" Say that again and you will not leave this room alive. " Voldemort said icily, kicking Lucius as he paced back and forth, " Now, I think you will find it delightful to know that this is not miss McChella's hand writing. In fact, if I am not mistaken, Mr. Malfoy, this writing appears to bear a striking resemblance to your own. "
" No! " Lucius shoued, " I did not write that letter! "
" Well, " Voldemort said quietly, " Had Issabelle and Severus been concious when you captured them I am certain that they would have said the same thing. "
" What is your command, then, my Lord? "
" That's obvious, Malfoy! Release them at once! " Voldemort snapped, sitting down in his chair again, " No wonder Issabelle never showed up for our evening tea! "
The door to the library opened with a deafening crash as Issabelle entered the room, her hair still damp from a shower and a red silk robe draping losely from her slender body. Casting a knowing look at Lucius she made her way over to Voldemort, who was looking at her in astonishment.
" How did you escape? " Lucius asked, his dark blue eyes staring straight into hers.
" It is my guess, " Issabelle said, grinning mischeivously, " That you entended for me to escape, once you had spoken to Tom. Otherwise, Mr. Malfoy, I'd say that you know absolutely nothing about securing ropes, as I broke out of them without my wand. "
" What?! " Lucius said, eyeing Issabelle with disbelief, " That's impossible! "
" That is not the point. Issabelle, my dear, are you all right? " Voldemort asked, opening his arms and hoping she did not think it was him who had done this to her. Seeing the moment present itself, Issabelle ran into his arms and laid her head against him, breathing a sigh of relief.
" Nothing a hot shower couldn't fix, and I can see I was right where it counted, anyway. " Issabelle whispered, kissing his cheek.
" I hate to interupt this happy moment, but we still have a traitor in our midst. " Lucius drawled, looking at them in disgust.
" Did you sustain any injury from this incident, Issabelle? " Voldemort asked, now holding her and running his fingers through her hair.
" I was made aware of several cuts and bruises which were not present prior to the event while I showered. " Issabelle said, rolling up one of the sleeves on her robe to show a nasty cut.
" Well, Mr. Malfoy, I desire an explaination. " Voldemort said, his eyes glowing a dangerous shade of red as he looked from the cut to Issabelle and then to Lucius several times.
" Ask Peter. He's the one who tortured her. " Lucius said, yawning.
" What?! " Voldemort shouted, feeling anger coursing through his veins as though it were blood, " What did he do to her? No, wait... Tell me when she leaves. "
" Awww... " Lucius whined, smirking, " You're spoiling all the fun. "
" Fun? " Voldemort said, now holding his wand, " I'll show you fun you ignorant pig! "
" No, Tom. Its not worth it. " Issabelle said softly, " I really have no desire to see anyone get hurt. "
" Issabelle, my sweet... " Voldemort said, picking her up as he stood up himself, " I am going to take you back to your room so that you can get some sleep. I will deal with Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Petigrew. I promise you, when you wake up tomorrow morning, you will think that all of this was nothing more then a rather bad dream. "
******
As Issabelle lay in her bed that night, memories of what had happened while she was unconcious slowly started to descend upon her half-awake mind. Shivering at the thoughts which seemed intent on plaguing her, Issabelle got out of bed and took a spoonful of the relaxation potion Snape had made her. The last sound that she heard before she feel into a peaceful sleep was a high agonized scream as Voldemort cast a spell on Lucius.
[ A/N: Thanks for your reviews, guys! Man, it looks like Voldie is winning, and with what I think I might do, I think that Everyone is going to find that very interesting. :) Still, keep voting. If the votes are close I'll eventually doing a separate ending for each group... Why am I worrying about endings?? There is still a lot to go here... :) Anyway, r/r and Vote!! ]
Issabelle slowly opened her eyes, but found herself in a room which was shrouded in darkness. Trying to stand, she found that tight ropes around her wrists and ankles made movement merely impossible. Surely, she thought, this must be another nightmare.
" Issie? " Snape whispered from a few feet away, " You awake? "
" Y... yes. " Issabelle said, struggling to find her voice and realizing that she must have been unconcious for hours. " W..what's going on here? "
" I don't know. " Snape replied, turning his head in the direction her voice had come from, " You don't think they could have -- "
" No. Don't even think that! " Issabelle said, cutting him off in mid sentance, " I am sure that there is a logical explaination for all of this. "
"Well I'm glad one of us is. " Snape muttered, " But if I know Him at all, it can not be good. "
" Hey, you still have my wand! " Issabelle exclaimed, wishing her hands had been free so she could have covered her mouth, " Look, in your robe! "
" Yeah, but what good will it do us? " Snape asked, " Neither of us can get it. "
" Wanna bet on that? " Issabelle said, a grin starting to cross her face as she rolled towards him, " Leave it to me. "
" What in the name of Merlin are you doing? " Snape asked, " Watch out, Issie. There could be traps set out. "
" I don't know about you, " Issabelle said, her face now inches from his, " But I'd much rather be the one asking questions when he comes back then the one answering them. "
" I think you mean if he comes back, Issie. " Snape said, a note of worry creeping into his voice for the first time. " He might decide not to bother. "
" With me here, Sev? " Issabelle said, faking mock-rejection, " I'd like to see him try. Now, where did you put it? "
" First pocket on the top left there. " Snape said, still pondering how she planned to get it at all. " Hey! "
To Snape's surprise, he felt Issabelle's head back away from his and carefully work its way to the pocket he had said. Finally feeling the delicate willow wand against her mouth, Issabelle grasped ahold of it with her teeth and moved once again so that she was face-to-face with Snape. " Take it. "
" Huh? " Snape muttered, finally catching on and taking the other end of the wand in his own mouth. Once she was certain he had it, Issabelle let go.
" Now, I am slowly going to move forward, Sev. I want you to nudge me when my hands are within reach of the wand and then I wand you to slowly pass the wand from your mouth into my hands. Got it? " Issabelle asked.
" Yeah. " Snape said, watching carefully and finally passing her the wand. " Now what? "
" Stay back. " Issabelle said, flicking her wrist and snapping the ropes that secured them, " Hmmm... They didn't do that properly, did they? I have a funny feeling that this is not Voldemort we are dealing with, Sev. Relecio! "
" Issabelle, if its not Voldemort, then who? " Snape asked, now getting annoyed and wondering what gave her the right to think she knew so much about the Death Eaters.
" Malfoy. " Issabelle said flatly, " He is the only one who would dare go against Tom's will and the only person here who mistrusts me. "
" How many times must I ask you not to call him Tom? " Snape spat, looking at her coldly, " Now untie me! My back is sore. "
******
Oblivious and surrounded by the warmth of the fire in his library, Voldemort sat and contemplated his latest encounter with Issabelle. She had said she would consider it, as if it was no big deal. Was nothing good enough for her? What did she expect him to do, get down on his knees and beg?
Glancing at the door for the hundredth time in the last hour, Voldemort let out a long and exasperated sigh. Where was she? With Snape, no doubt. But it still wasn't like her to not show up for their evening tea. Voldemort felt sadness envelop him as he tried to think of what he might have done wrong.
" Is something troubling you, my Lord? "
The intrusion of Lucius' voice as it broke the silence made Voldemort scowl as he turned to order him to leave, but a passing thought made him unable to help asking, " Have you seen Issabelle? "
" No, my Lord. Why? " Lucius asked, entering the room and preceeding to warm himself by the fire.
" I'm worried about her. "
" Surely, my Lord, you are not falling in love with a -- "
" Silence, Malfoy. " Voldemort said, " She is my most loyal and precious friend, and I will not have her berated by you or anyone else. "
" Loyal, is she? " Malfoy asked, a pleased smile spreading across his face, " If she is so loyal, then why did I find this attached to her owl? "
" How do you know it was her owl? " Voldemort asked, after reading the letter. Although he had his doubts about the letter's origins, Voldemort forced himself too look converned.
" I killed it. " Lucius said, " I saw it fly out from the window in Snape's lab. "
" And why did you not bring it to me immediately? " Voldemort demanded.
" I assumed you would not want a traitor left to roam the castle behind your back, so I captured Issabelle and Severus and imprisioned them in the dungeon. "
" Mr. Malfoy, " Voldemort began, rising from his chair and knocking Lucius across the room, " The next time you decide to 'assume' how I might do something, I suggest you simply bring the matter to me. "
" Uh... " Lucius groaned, looking up at Voldemort's angry eyes, " My Lord, I did everything in my powers to protect you. I -- "
" When you entered the room, Lucius, you told me you had not seen Issabelle. Now, you are telling me that you imprisioned her in the dungeon without my consent and utterly behind my back. "
" She is a mud-blood, so what does it matter? "
" Say that again and you will not leave this room alive. " Voldemort said icily, kicking Lucius as he paced back and forth, " Now, I think you will find it delightful to know that this is not miss McChella's hand writing. In fact, if I am not mistaken, Mr. Malfoy, this writing appears to bear a striking resemblance to your own. "
" No! " Lucius shoued, " I did not write that letter! "
" Well, " Voldemort said quietly, " Had Issabelle and Severus been concious when you captured them I am certain that they would have said the same thing. "
" What is your command, then, my Lord? "
" That's obvious, Malfoy! Release them at once! " Voldemort snapped, sitting down in his chair again, " No wonder Issabelle never showed up for our evening tea! "
The door to the library opened with a deafening crash as Issabelle entered the room, her hair still damp from a shower and a red silk robe draping losely from her slender body. Casting a knowing look at Lucius she made her way over to Voldemort, who was looking at her in astonishment.
" How did you escape? " Lucius asked, his dark blue eyes staring straight into hers.
" It is my guess, " Issabelle said, grinning mischeivously, " That you entended for me to escape, once you had spoken to Tom. Otherwise, Mr. Malfoy, I'd say that you know absolutely nothing about securing ropes, as I broke out of them without my wand. "
" What?! " Lucius said, eyeing Issabelle with disbelief, " That's impossible! "
" That is not the point. Issabelle, my dear, are you all right? " Voldemort asked, opening his arms and hoping she did not think it was him who had done this to her. Seeing the moment present itself, Issabelle ran into his arms and laid her head against him, breathing a sigh of relief.
" Nothing a hot shower couldn't fix, and I can see I was right where it counted, anyway. " Issabelle whispered, kissing his cheek.
" I hate to interupt this happy moment, but we still have a traitor in our midst. " Lucius drawled, looking at them in disgust.
" Did you sustain any injury from this incident, Issabelle? " Voldemort asked, now holding her and running his fingers through her hair.
" I was made aware of several cuts and bruises which were not present prior to the event while I showered. " Issabelle said, rolling up one of the sleeves on her robe to show a nasty cut.
" Well, Mr. Malfoy, I desire an explaination. " Voldemort said, his eyes glowing a dangerous shade of red as he looked from the cut to Issabelle and then to Lucius several times.
" Ask Peter. He's the one who tortured her. " Lucius said, yawning.
" What?! " Voldemort shouted, feeling anger coursing through his veins as though it were blood, " What did he do to her? No, wait... Tell me when she leaves. "
" Awww... " Lucius whined, smirking, " You're spoiling all the fun. "
" Fun? " Voldemort said, now holding his wand, " I'll show you fun you ignorant pig! "
" No, Tom. Its not worth it. " Issabelle said softly, " I really have no desire to see anyone get hurt. "
" Issabelle, my sweet... " Voldemort said, picking her up as he stood up himself, " I am going to take you back to your room so that you can get some sleep. I will deal with Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Petigrew. I promise you, when you wake up tomorrow morning, you will think that all of this was nothing more then a rather bad dream. "
******
As Issabelle lay in her bed that night, memories of what had happened while she was unconcious slowly started to descend upon her half-awake mind. Shivering at the thoughts which seemed intent on plaguing her, Issabelle got out of bed and took a spoonful of the relaxation potion Snape had made her. The last sound that she heard before she feel into a peaceful sleep was a high agonized scream as Voldemort cast a spell on Lucius.