http://www.geocities.com/halutirius/moonlithorizons
for spoilers on future chapters, art from the chapters and random thoughts…
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Voltora- Whoa, amazing amount of reviews… here's your next chapter… just a bit angsty!! ;)
Ramblergirl – I know! I don't like Edea either. Oh don't worry, she'll get whats coming to her. About Sirius- you'll find out in this one, although its told from Snape's point of view. We get a bit of Sirius- Snape bonding… er… kind of.. She's calm because its her job ;)
Righty… onwards and upwards.
The lyrics that are included in a lot of Snape's thoughts are from Linkin' Park's 'Papercut' and various others on Hybrid Theory.
***
Severus looked up with a sour expression as Remus Lupin barged into his office, looking strangely out of breath and very worried.
"I thought the potion I gave you would have been enough…" Severus muttered, going back to marking the pieces of first year homework on the desk.
"Severus… it's urgent… Azkaban, they've taken her to Azkaban... It's Draezyc" Remus held onto the mantelpiece for support.
Whatever Snape had been expecting, this had not been it. "Who!?" He grasped Remus by the shoulders and shook him violently, "WHO DID!?"
"Aurors." Remus gasped. "Edea."
"No." Snape let go as if he had been stung. "Not her. Not now… She can't... It just makes the situation worse…"
"I tried to reason with her…"
"GET OUT OF MY OFFICE LUPIN." Snape was clenching and unclenching his fists, breathing heavily, "NOW!"
"Severus, perhaps you should take a seat." Dumbledore had watched the altercation without Snape noticing. Snape threw Remus a glare that clearly stated he wanted Remus to leave. Remus had obviously got the message as he quickly walked out of Snape's office, closing the door quietly behind him.
No. Not now… this cannot be happening now… Draezyc… What have you done??
"Severus? Severus!" Dumbledore caught Snape's attention once more.
"Draezyc." Snape muttered.
"Yes, I am here to discuss Draezyc with you." Dumbledore sighed sadly. "it would seem that the evidence suggests she caused the death of the Minister of Magic… had you heard of his death?"
"Fudge? … She KILLED Fudge?!" Snape blinked, "How? Why?"
"She is in no fit position to say why, or to explain anything at the present time." Dumbledore looked sadly at Severus, who had buried his face in his hands. He pointed his wand at the fireplace, which roared to life, bathing the room in a golden warmth.
"She wouldn't. Albus… Draezyc wouldn't have done that."
"You know that there is nothing more than my desire to believe that… But sadly there is a lot more to it than simply your word."
"Of course… An Auror arrest, she's not going to get a trial is she… Does DuCruet not realise what a narrow path she is treading? Draezyc was providing valuable information for us…"
"Edea does not believe that Draezyc was committed to our cause, in all honesty I do not believe many people agree with what she has done, but what's done is done we will have a great deal of difficulty in reversing the damage."
"Does she not understand!?" Snape stood up and started pacing, the sneer on his face more pronounced than ever. "Did Black never tell her about life in Azkaban for those who committed no crime?"
"Severus, sit down, please."
"No." Snape grabbed at his cloak hanging on the peg and threw it over his shoulders. "There is business that needs to be sorted out. I will return in due course."
He never heard Dumbledore's reply. He heard nothing but the blood pounding in his ears. DuCruet had got her petty wish. The rivalry went back many years, but she had finally got what she had always wanted. But nobody crosses a Snape and does not live to regret it. Or not live as the case may be. Severus stormed up the dungeon staircase, narrowly missing knocking over Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle, their arms laden with cakes. It was Draco Malfoy's voice that broke the silence.
"Professor Snape, Sir!"
Severus whipped round, "What do you want Malfoy?"
"I heard the news… And bring you a message from my father." Draco cleared his throat as he saw he had his professor's attention. "Father wishes you to know he will try his best to pull strings at the Ministry to release your wife. He sends his congratulations however, on a mission well done, our Lord is pleased. He wishes to see you at the earliest available moment you have."
Severus nodded. "I was on my way at present, Malfoy." he took in a breath of the cool air. "You may thank Lucius on my behalf. His help is appreciated in such matters."
Malfoy sauntered away, looking pleased with himself. He thinks we are on the same side. He openly discusses the Dark Lord with me. But if the Phoenix side has connections with such worthless scum as DuCruet I sometimes wonder what I am doing. Is the Phoenix really greater than the Serpent? Snape sighed and hurried on his way, Voldemort wanted to see him. The Dark Lord did not appreciate being made to wait.
***
Why does it feel like night today? Something in here's not right today. Why am I so uptight today, Paranoia's all I got left…
It's like I'm paranoid looking over my back, its like a whirlwind inside of my head, its like I cant stop what I'm hearing within. Its like the face inside is right beneath my skin. The sun goes down, I feel the light betray me, betray me… betray…
"Ah, Severus… you got the message I assume?"
"Yes your Lordship." Snape bent low on one knee in homage to Lord Voldemort, who sat regally on his throne-like chair. "Lucius Malfoy has promised…"
"Lucius can achieve nothing." Voldemort interrupted, motioning for Severus to rise. "But I do not plan to let one of my most skilled assassins rot away in Azkaban… Not whilst the Dementors still control Azkaban."
"But Master… the Ministry…"
"Are FOOLS." Voldemort laughed his high pitched laugh. "I can see your thoughts Severus. You feel betrayed, no? Of course you do. You have every right to feel that way. You see now who your true friends are, where your true place is in this wretched world. By my side, like your wife is… Yes… Draezyc is essential to my plans. You will have her back before the sun sets on the tenth."
"Thank you master… Could I ask how you plan to achieve this?"
Voldemort laughed. "You could… and I will grace you with an answer this time. Draezyc is held in a high security cell on the top floor of the East Wing. I believe it is the room recently vacated by Sirius Black… However we will start our plan to release Azkaban from the Dementors a few weeks early due to my apprehension at leaving her within such circumstance. I do not need a mentally unstable assassin in my inner circle you understand? The sooner we have Azkaban under our control, the better. It is unfortunate that she was caught, especially by such a failure of an Auror DuCruet. She will pay. Soon."
"Thank you master… Thank you…" Snape hated being sincere to such a disgustingly smug evil creature, but between sucking up to him and being killed by him, sucking up suddenly didn't look so bad. And right now, he didn't care what happened to DuCruet. She wasn't his problem. She would get what she deserved. DuCruet had received the sort of close minded upbringing that made many people think of the Muggle Monarchy, it made Snape sick, when he ever got small snatches of her in his memories of schooldays.
"Before you leave…"
Snape blinked, uncertain of what the glint in Voldemort's eyes would bring. "Master?"
"Make sure the Potter boy is out in Hogsmeade tomorrow. Make sure they all are. They shall pay. Every single one of them."
"Yes, my master." Snape nodded, bowing himself out of the chamber, silently wondering how he would achieve getting Potter out into Hogsmeade without the watch of his overenthusiastic godfather.
It's like I can't stop what I'm hearing within… it's like the face inside right beneath the skin… I kept everything inside and even though I tried, it all fell apart. Snape hurried out of the gothic chamber, and walked straight into a small balding man, rushing in the other direction."Oh… ohh… e… excuse me." The man stuttered, he looked up at who he had run into and Snape smirked as the small man paled slightly. "S… Severus! How nice to s… see you!"
"Charmed I'm sure." Snape drawled, sounding slightly more like Malfoy than he wanted to. "What on earth are you doing here Pettigrew?"
"I… I have a mission…" Pettigrew looked terrified at the concept of himself having a mission.
Snape raised an eyebrow, briefly looking surprised before resuming the cold, expressionless mask. "I'm sure Our Lord has his reasons,"
"I … I heard about… about your wife."
"I'm not surprised, what were you doing? Holding a glass against the door?"
"N… No! Of course not." Pettigrew blushed. "Avery… he told me."
"You must remind me to have a discreet word with him about that when I next see him." Snape muttered, more to himself than Peter. "And how is the situation with the Wolf and the Convict?"
"I… Need to talk to you… about that actually." Peter looked terrified now. More so than usual.
"Indeed?"
"Y… Yes… because they're at Hogwarts... And… and… you're there as well… I thought it might be… easier…"
"Oh for the convenience of convenience." Snape rolled his eyes, "Come then, let us discuss this in somewhere more fitting than a castle corridor."
He led the way around cold winding unlit passages, sometimes barely wide enough for a single person to walk through until Snape stopped at a bolted door. He inserted his wand into the keyhole and watched as the door swung open revealing a dimly lit library, and near the fireplace a row of tables with a fascinating menagerie of pickled creatures in bottles, each precisely labelled and indexed. This was Snape's own private chambers within Voldemort's lair. Draezyc frequented it more often than he ever did. You could always tell when Draezyc had previously been in a room, she had a habit of leaving half empty goblets of red wine near the chair she had occupied, and with the distinct lack of elves ever daring to venture into this part of the castle, they remained where she left them.
"Sit." Snape gestured to one of the many chairs beside the tables. Snape followed Pettigrew's nervous line of sight towards a jar with a dead rat floating in the formaldehyde. He smirked to himself. "Well? What is it that you wish to know?"
"I… er…" Pettigrew was glancing at a suspicious looking piece of black silk stuffed down the side of one of the padded lounging sofas.
Damn. I forgot Draezyc left that there…
"Perhaps if you could start with where they reside… normally in the day… and when they usually leave the castle…"
"Do you expect me to know their movements in a castle run by Dumbledore?" Snape asked, eyebrow raised in sarcasm
"Well surely…"
"Black, I think you will find, rarely leaves the castle unless he is suitably disguised in his canine form. And when he does, it is usually to sneak to that fool Hagrid's hut to enjoy a game of cards and general debauchery often after sunset…" Snape sighed, he could think of many things he would rather think about than the marauders right now. "And Lupin, well. He leaves the castle even less. He fusses around Potter like a mother… no… like a grandmother… I do believe he takes Black out for 'walkies' to the inn in Hogsmeade on regular occasions, but you can be sure that since the assassination of Fudge that activity will cease altogether, the wolf is paranoid…"
"Y…yes…" Pettigrew nodded. "And Potter?"
"Potter." Snape uttered Harry's name in disgust, as if Peter had just sworn at him. "Never leaves the sides of his loyal friends Weasley and the mudblood, Granger. They do tend to flaunt the rules and leave their dormitories after lights out. It is not my problem, that is all the information I can give you, perhaps you might contact Lucius' son for more information on the boy?"
Peter looked like he had just received an epiphany as he scuttled out of the door, his silver hand catching the light as he turned the handle.
Snape leant back in his chair and sighed heavily.
I feel the light betray me…
TBC
