Disclaimer:
All things not Allosia and Gabriel belong to JKR.
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"Thank you for joining us, Severus," said Lucius Malfoy insinuatingly.
"I got here as soon as I could. My wife is in labor." He said it simply, coldly. Not a hint of concern. Here, Allosia was a business transaction, she no longer had a name, she was merely his wife, and in a few hours would be merely the mother of his child. How odd it felt to say those words though. As much as they made him so much more vulnerable, he also realized they gave him a new weight. He was not the outcast, the undesirable, the one who had come to Voldemort merely because he had no where else to go anymore or ever again.
"It is good to see that your priorities are still in order, Snape," came the hissing voice of Voldemort.
"Yes my Lord, how can I be of service?"
"There is no service required of you today, Snape. You are not that indispensable, although important enough to merit this little test. And I believe Lucius has a congratulatory gift for you. I have other matters to attend to," he stood, and swept out of the room.
Snape looked towards Lucius, who chuckled.
"You know I find generosity to be your most unbearable quality, Lucius, was this really necessary?"
"Life would be little fun if we stuck merely to the necessary, don't you think?"
"Indeed. Now what's the gift?" Snape asked hoping to get whatever this was over with.
"Just a plaything, to kill some of the time, while you wait. I know how hard it is. The pacing, the screams, so little control over it all." With that, Malfoy tapped his wand against the wall revealing a small cell in which a semi-conscious, redheaded-at-first-glance girl was bound.
"Malfoy, you can't possibly take yourself and your florid ramblings seriously," he said, approaching her prison.
"I don't see why not. Everyone else does."
At this, Snape had to laugh. He looked at the girl and couldn't even find it in himself to be disgusted. He played with her hair as he informed Lucius of his displeasure. "I prefer my redheads to be both natural and conscious, Lucius. If there's nothing else needed of me, I have other obligations to attend to."
Lucius looked at him with narrowed eyes.
"Don't think I'm not grateful, old friend," he said these words with as much bite as he could muster. "Do what you want with her, consider it my thanks for your thoughtfulness."
"Generosity does not become you either, but yes, you may go, you're not needed here."
With those blessed words, Snape took it upon himself to apparate back to the Forbidden Forest, so that he could trudge back to the castle in the damp and the cold. What an immensely stupid waste of his time. The lesson however was quite valuable. Too bad it had undoubtedly cost that girl her life.
Snape rushed into the hospital wing and Madam Pomfrey caught him by the door.
"You can slow down Severus, there's still a while to go."
He relaxed visibly then. "How is she, she's not sitting alone is she?"
"No, Hana's with her, and she's fine."
Hooch. Good gods. That was just a little too surreal for his taste. Hopefully the woman would have the good sense to excuse herself, although he doubted it.
He leaned in the doorway of the room and took in the scene for a moment. Hooch was holding one of Allosia's hands in both of hers, and was telling her a story that must have been truly appalling, jugding by her whispered tones and Allosia's laugh.
He cleared his throat and both women turned to look at him and smiled. Allosia's whole body relaxed, as she closed her eyes then, and whispered something that was conspicuously between her and whatever gods she had deemed most relevant at the moment.
"How are you?" he asked, not coming any closer.
"Next time I think being in labor is a good idea, just have someone do the Cruciatus on me instead."
Snape raised his eyebrows and pondered the comparison. He found it wasn't a subject he truly wanted to consider. "Give us a moment," he said, staring pointedly at Hooch, approaching the bed and gesturing at the door.
"Of course," she said getting up hastily.
"Thank you," he said, harshly, the woman should have known better. But then he remembered his gratitude, and said, "really," softly just as she exited. She flashed him a smile as she went.
He took her chair then and grabbed Allosia's hand. "I'm sorry I had to go."
"It's alright. You should have expected it."
"You did," he said, comprehending.
"Yes. I'm just glad I got you back. What happened?"
"It was merely a test of my priorities, it seems I passed."
Allosia squinted at him then, and drew a long red hair from his cloak. "Dead?" she asked, holding it up.
He winced. "I presume. A gift from Lucius. I told him I preferred them conscious and without dye jobs and left."
"You didn't have to tell me that," she said. The fact was she didn't want to be told any of the details she didn't need. They would only help her to make presumptions when he couldn't bring himself to volunteer them.
He put his forehead down on the bed, and she petted his hair absently. "I wish you weren't so strong sometimes," he said, his voice muffled by the bedding.
"Don't," she said her voice going tight from another contraction, "ever wish that," she said when she could continue. "At least not right now."
He looked up at her and nodded.
All things not Allosia and Gabriel belong to JKR.
------------
"Thank you for joining us, Severus," said Lucius Malfoy insinuatingly.
"I got here as soon as I could. My wife is in labor." He said it simply, coldly. Not a hint of concern. Here, Allosia was a business transaction, she no longer had a name, she was merely his wife, and in a few hours would be merely the mother of his child. How odd it felt to say those words though. As much as they made him so much more vulnerable, he also realized they gave him a new weight. He was not the outcast, the undesirable, the one who had come to Voldemort merely because he had no where else to go anymore or ever again.
"It is good to see that your priorities are still in order, Snape," came the hissing voice of Voldemort.
"Yes my Lord, how can I be of service?"
"There is no service required of you today, Snape. You are not that indispensable, although important enough to merit this little test. And I believe Lucius has a congratulatory gift for you. I have other matters to attend to," he stood, and swept out of the room.
Snape looked towards Lucius, who chuckled.
"You know I find generosity to be your most unbearable quality, Lucius, was this really necessary?"
"Life would be little fun if we stuck merely to the necessary, don't you think?"
"Indeed. Now what's the gift?" Snape asked hoping to get whatever this was over with.
"Just a plaything, to kill some of the time, while you wait. I know how hard it is. The pacing, the screams, so little control over it all." With that, Malfoy tapped his wand against the wall revealing a small cell in which a semi-conscious, redheaded-at-first-glance girl was bound.
"Malfoy, you can't possibly take yourself and your florid ramblings seriously," he said, approaching her prison.
"I don't see why not. Everyone else does."
At this, Snape had to laugh. He looked at the girl and couldn't even find it in himself to be disgusted. He played with her hair as he informed Lucius of his displeasure. "I prefer my redheads to be both natural and conscious, Lucius. If there's nothing else needed of me, I have other obligations to attend to."
Lucius looked at him with narrowed eyes.
"Don't think I'm not grateful, old friend," he said these words with as much bite as he could muster. "Do what you want with her, consider it my thanks for your thoughtfulness."
"Generosity does not become you either, but yes, you may go, you're not needed here."
With those blessed words, Snape took it upon himself to apparate back to the Forbidden Forest, so that he could trudge back to the castle in the damp and the cold. What an immensely stupid waste of his time. The lesson however was quite valuable. Too bad it had undoubtedly cost that girl her life.
Snape rushed into the hospital wing and Madam Pomfrey caught him by the door.
"You can slow down Severus, there's still a while to go."
He relaxed visibly then. "How is she, she's not sitting alone is she?"
"No, Hana's with her, and she's fine."
Hooch. Good gods. That was just a little too surreal for his taste. Hopefully the woman would have the good sense to excuse herself, although he doubted it.
He leaned in the doorway of the room and took in the scene for a moment. Hooch was holding one of Allosia's hands in both of hers, and was telling her a story that must have been truly appalling, jugding by her whispered tones and Allosia's laugh.
He cleared his throat and both women turned to look at him and smiled. Allosia's whole body relaxed, as she closed her eyes then, and whispered something that was conspicuously between her and whatever gods she had deemed most relevant at the moment.
"How are you?" he asked, not coming any closer.
"Next time I think being in labor is a good idea, just have someone do the Cruciatus on me instead."
Snape raised his eyebrows and pondered the comparison. He found it wasn't a subject he truly wanted to consider. "Give us a moment," he said, staring pointedly at Hooch, approaching the bed and gesturing at the door.
"Of course," she said getting up hastily.
"Thank you," he said, harshly, the woman should have known better. But then he remembered his gratitude, and said, "really," softly just as she exited. She flashed him a smile as she went.
He took her chair then and grabbed Allosia's hand. "I'm sorry I had to go."
"It's alright. You should have expected it."
"You did," he said, comprehending.
"Yes. I'm just glad I got you back. What happened?"
"It was merely a test of my priorities, it seems I passed."
Allosia squinted at him then, and drew a long red hair from his cloak. "Dead?" she asked, holding it up.
He winced. "I presume. A gift from Lucius. I told him I preferred them conscious and without dye jobs and left."
"You didn't have to tell me that," she said. The fact was she didn't want to be told any of the details she didn't need. They would only help her to make presumptions when he couldn't bring himself to volunteer them.
He put his forehead down on the bed, and she petted his hair absently. "I wish you weren't so strong sometimes," he said, his voice muffled by the bedding.
"Don't," she said her voice going tight from another contraction, "ever wish that," she said when she could continue. "At least not right now."
He looked up at her and nodded.