MustIBeAMalfoy: Lovely, lovely hormones. Lol Thank you. I figured it would have to be addressed at some point and time. *shrugs* That line of Lucius asking just what a condom was what had me laughing my head off on the subway train.
Prongs: ^___^ Thanks!
Immortal Memories: Oh….you haven't had it yet. *pat pat* I envy you. My mom gave me the talk when I was 13…and then she gave the same talk to my friends later on. That banana-condom bit…inspired by real life….my poor friend is still traumatized.
HPIceAngel: I know. Part of the reason why that chapter took so long was because I'd burst out laughing after every bit I wrote and have to pause for a while to get my breath and bearings back. This was honestly the hardest chapter I've ever had to write. But I am glad you enjoyed it.
Squrlie Jack: Yeah, the much dreaded sex talk. lol This chapter, we get a peek of what Voldemort has planned.
Saavik13: Oh, don't bite your nails! *authoress looks at her own mangled ones* It's a real bitch if they tear. Liquorices helps; it's chewy enough. Just don't be like me and eat it in three or four bites. ^.^;;
Jazzylady: Oh, don't worry, I'll get to Draco. All in due time, all in due time. Don't jump the gun or anything.
Bookworm: Why are you sorry? I do the same thing to. ^^;; If you think reading it was hilarious, try having to write it. There's a challenge in and of itself. As to Snape….*snicker* poor Snape soon finds himself mired in something he wants nothing of. *whistles innocently*
emeraldtwinklingstar: Erm, thanks. You'll see. ^.^
A/N: Wow, 100 + reviews. You guys are great! This chapter is dedicated to all you for the wonderful feedback you've given me.
Chapter 14
Lucius blinked a bit owlishly as he gripped his staff tighter in his hand. Even though he had been an early riser for most of his life, Lucius certainly didn't feel up at this particular time. In fact, it was late afternoon, and he had managed to plod through the day with a semblance of coherency. All he was running on at the moment was more than likely adrenaline.
Of course, Lucius' slight exhaustion could be attributed to the fact that he'd been sneaking out of the house with Harry for the past three nights. Lucius wasn't complaining all that much though; it kept Valencia an Ernesto from hearing something they obviously didn't wish to hear and Lucius learned two new things due to their excursions.
The first was that hay was surprisingly comfortable and the second was that Harry could hold his breath underwater for what could only be described as an obscene amount of time. Not that Lucius was about to complain about that particular skill any time soon.
How to give a blowjob indeed; Harry didn't need any pointers in that particular subject. The boy had a talented mouth and tongue. Lucius was a bit curious as to just how Harry got so good at it. What he wasn't exactly expecting was the hot surge of jealousy and possessiveness that accompanied that particular thought.
"Ridiculous," Lucius muttered, sneering slightly. "I have no competition here."
A sheep bleated at him and Lucius gently nudged it away with his staff. Since when had he taken to fretting like an anxious schoolgirl over a relationship and non-existent competition? It definitely had to be all the sun he was getting. Continued exposure would only addle his brains further. He looked up, noting the golden-yellow tint that was coming to the sky. Once he got back, he'd make sure to ask if there was something else he could -
"Lucius!"
Looking up Lucius saw Harry barrelling towards him up the hill, a huge smile on his face. He half rose with a puzzled expression as Harry came to a halt in front of him, breathless and still grinning his face off.
"And what are we grinning like that for?" Lucius asked as he looked up at Harry.
"Guess what?" Harry managed a few minutes later, still a bit breathless.
"What?"
"We're going into town tonight."
Lucius looked at him for a moment before he finally spoke. "What?"
"You know, I'd expected you to be much better-spoken for a Malfoy." Harry said with a small smirk.
Lucius scowled at him momentarily. "Why are we going into town for?"
"To enjoy ourselves!" Harry said. "And we're packing in early today!"
Lucius protested as Harry seized the staff from his hands and started herding the startled goats and sheep back down the hillside. He watched the brunette hurry down the hill before he simply started walking down the hill, hands in his pockets. At least he was given an early reprieve.
Harry smiled as he rested against Lucius, watching the red mountains and hills pass by. He was in an extremely good mood today. He'd been busy mucking out the barn when Ernesto walked in with a somewhat curious little smirk on his face. When Harry heard that they were packing in early for the day and heading into town, he bolted through the cleaning and hurried into the hills, herding the goats down, while Lucius simply walked after him.
And now, after some quick showers and changing of clothes, they were sitting in the back of the pickup truck as it cruised down the road.
"Really, what are you smiling for?" Lucius asked. "You've been smiling ever since we finished up early."
"No reason," Harry said simply, smiling and tilting his head slightly to look at the blonde.
Lucius gave Harry a rather quizzical look, one eyebrow arched. Wisps of his blond hair fluttered in the wind, tickling against Harry's face slightly. He had taken on a slight tan, lending a touch of colour to his once pale skin. On his chin was a slight little goatee; Harry was pretty sure Lucius hadn't noticed it, otherwise, it would have been shaved off long ago.
"No reason at all," he said again, turning his attention back to the landscape.
"You sound disgustingly sentimental."
"You have a tendency to do that to me."
Harry stole a quick glance at Lucius' face, and found it torn between smugness and apprehension. He chuckled as he closed his eyes. Even if he was sitting in the back of a jolting pickup truck with Lucius, with the sun on his face, he'd never been happier.
The sun was just sinking below the horizon, the sky a fading crimson violet and burgeoning black indigo. The street lights had come on, illuminating the roads as much as the lights from the shops. People were either walking idly down the street or lounging around in a few outdoor patios, chatting over cups of coffee or bottles of beer about life in general. The soft babble was pleasant enough, and was just one more piece to the quaint charm the town held. It reminded Lucius a little bit of Hogsmeade, minus the flock of students that descended every so often.
"Let's pop in here," Harry said tugging gently on Lucius' hand.
And so Lucius found himself dragged into the fifth shop for the evening. When they had arrived here, Valencia and Ernesto said they were going to the restaurant down the street and that Harry and Lucius could do as they pleased, but to be at the restaurant for 10 when they were leaving. Valencia had stuck a wad of bills into his hand, which Harry had promptly taken once she was out of sight. It was just as well too, since Lucius hadn't the faintest clue of how Muggle money worked in England or here.
"What's in here?" Lucius asked; the smell of musty paper was slightly overpowering.
"It's a bookstore," Harry said as he let go of Lucius' hand. "I thought I'd pick up a book to read." He started looking across the spines, a thoughtful look on his face. "And please, don't be rude to the salesperson…like the last three times."
Lucius simply gave a displeased sound from his throat. Was it his fault that they didn't know how to do their job properly? Or that they were snippy, annoying people who hovered over him and Harry like vultures ready to swoop down? Of course not, and Lucius was not one to sit back and suffer anyone badgering him around in any shape form or fashion. Plus it had been highly amusing to see the looks on their faces when they realized he could speak and understand Spanish. Considering the number of 'colourful' things they had called him, they looked as if they wanted to die on the spot. Lucius would have been more than pleased to help them with that, but Harry always seemed to show up at the right moment, frowning with a thoroughly displeased expression on his face.
"Are you looking for anything in particular this time?" Lucius asked in a bored voice as he strolled after Harry.
Harry shook his head. "Just something to read. I'll try to be quick; I doubt you know anything about Muggle literature."
"Indeed," Lucius said simply, sneering at a book with a garishly coloured cover. "Not garbage like this, I hope." He picked the book up delicately by the corner.
"No. Why on Earth would I want to read a romance novel?" Harry paused looking at it. "A trashy one at that."
Lucius put it back quickly as if it were a hot coal.
// May I help you with anything? \\
Turning around, Lucius found himself looking at a young girl about Harry's age. She looked between him and Harry expectantly. The sooner they were out of here, the better.
// He wants something to read; something interesting and worthwhile. \\ Lucius said, inclining his head slightly towards Harry.
// I see, \\ the girl murmured. // What genre do you prefer? \\
// Um…\\ Harry paused, thinking for a moment. // Fantasy I guess. \\
// Ah! You're in luck! We just got in a new title! If you'll follow me please…\\
Lucius snorted as he and Harry started after the girl. It wasn't as if she left them much choice. They weaved through the aisles, rounding the displays at the ends of the shelves until she came to a halt in front of a rather large section. She studied the wall for a moment before she turned to Harry.
// How big a book do you want? \\
// Big? \\ Harry said in a fairly bemused voice.
// A stand alone or a multi part epic? Or do you prefer anthologies? \\
Harry looked as if he was drowning in the questions. // Just a- \\
// Multi part epic, \\ Lucius said smoothly; it would keep Harry occupied for a long time. // With plenty of intrigue. \\ And keeping Harry's mind occupied as well was a good idea.
The girl looked at Harry and he nodded his head. She reached up and pulled down a bright silver book.
// They finally got this series translated, \\ she said handing it to Harry. // I highly recommend it. You'll guess enough things right, and some other things…hoooo. \\
// So this is the first one? \\ Harry asked, turning it over and reading the short blurb on the back before he opened it and started reading.
// Yes, it is, \\ she pulled down two more books, one gold and the other a shiny blue. // This is the second one, \\ she handed Harry the gold one. // And this is the third one. \\ she handed him the blue one. // The fourth one hasn't been released in English yet. If you buy three books from one series, we give a fifteen percent discount. I'm not trying to pressure you, but I do highly recommend this series; I was chewing my nails by the end of the third one, and I'm starting to get impatient for the fourth. \\
// Uh huh… \\ Harry said as he turned yet another page.
// Anything in particular for you, Sir? \\ the girl asked, looking at Lucius. // A classic perhaps? \\
Lucius glanced at Harry who was rather engrossed in the third page. // No thank you. I believe he'll take all three books. \\
// Not a problem, Sir. I'll ring you out. \\ she said as she started for the front.
"Harry," Lucius said. "Are you done?"
"Yeah. I'll get these. So far, there's been a massacre, the captain's an idiot who got himself killed by some weird creatures and ends up as a zombie and crushes the throat of a sentry from his scouting party. If that's not a good start to a series, I don't know what is."
Lucius picked up the book, arching an eyebrow at the deceptively simple cover bearing a man astride a horse and a snowy castle in the background. "So long as you're pleased with it…"
"I am." Harry beamed as they made their way to the front and paid. "It'll be nice to have a bit of reading before going to sleep." Harry paused as he noticed something sticking out of a book. // What's this? I didn't pay for that. \\
// I know. Nice new bookmark to go with your books. Free of charge. \\ the girl said with a smile. // Have a nice evening! \\
// Thanks! You too! \\ Harry said as they stepped out of the shop. "Nice bookmark, isn't it?"
"You certainly can't lose it," Lucius replied, eyeing the bright gold lettering and mishmash of patterns on the background.
"I think that's the nicest thing you may have to say about it," Harry chuckled as he tucked it back in the bag. "All right, I've got something. Now you need something."
"Nothing from these forsaken shops," Lucius muttered. "Who knows what shoddy things they may have."
"Sheesh, it's not like we're looking in a second hand store Lucius," Harry held up the bag with his new books for emphasis.
"Fine, if you insist." Lucius said with a faint sigh of disgust.
Getting anything made by Muggles wasn't exactly his idea of a shopping trip. To hell with the proverb "When in Rome…"; Lucius wanted fine Wizarding goods that did more than simply sit still like an inanimate object. He wanted something interesting. He was rather busy fuming about this, and didn't notice when Harry stopped to look in yet another window. It took him about a minute to realize the brunette was gone and a quick look back to discover where he went.
"Were you simply going to let me continue walking like that?" Lucius demanded a bit crossly as he stomped back to where Harry was currently peering intently into a display window.
"Course not." Harry said.
"What has your attention this time?" Lucius asked.
"That." Harry said pointing.
Lucius looked into the window, finding himself greeted by the sight of jewellery. Normally he would have rolled his eyes, curled a lip in disgust and promptly walked away. However, once he saw what Harry had pointed to, he found himself looking at it rather critically. Two silver snakes were entwined but it was obvious that they were meant to be separate necklaces. One had a small onyx for an eye, the other a brilliant green emerald. The tails of each snake curled around the opposite stone, holding it securely in place.
"Nice, aren't they?" Harry said, glancing over at Lucius.
"They're passable," Lucius said finally, still scrutinizing the necklaces. From what he could see the craftsmanship was excellent and well thought out. Of course, he would need a closer inspection to verify this, and see if it was even worth his money and-
"Don't worry. I'm not going to make you stick your foot in your mouth." Harry said with a chuckle as he stood back up and started walking.
Lucius fell in step beside him. "How gracious of you." He said with a hint of wryness.
"You know," Harry began. "The Sorting Hat wanted to put me in Slytherin."
Lucius arched an eyebrow slightly. "And how did you end up in Gryffindor?"
"I asked to be put there. At the time I was under the impression that Slytherin was more or less the place not to be. That and everyone told me that Slytherins were more or less evil, with almost no chance of redemption."
"You certainly scheme like a Slytherin. Now if we could simply rid you of that tendency to rush into things…" Lucius let his words trail off
"Shut up." Harry said flushing a bit. "I know, I'm not perfect. I'm allowed a screw up…or two…or three. Let's just leave it there."
"Knowing when to withdraw," Lucius murmured. "Another fine Slytherin trait."
"Are you going to continue like this? Harry asked with a touch of sourness in his voice.
"Perhaps…" Lucius said simply, his voice betraying nothing.
Harry watched him for a moment before he gave a small smile. Lucius was starting to become more than perplexed by Harry's sudden shifts in mood today.
"May I ask why you're smiling now?"
"You know Lucius, I've been thinking…"
"Yes?"
"It's not set in stone or anything, but," Harry paused for a moment. "What if we just stayed here and forgot about Britain?" he finished a bit hesitantly.
"What spurred that particular thought?"
"We may be on a farm in the middle of nowhere virtually, but," Harry's face went bright red. "I have no need to pretend or keep up any pretensions with you here. I can just be myself, and you can be you. We're actually ourselves, not what others expect us to be." Harry didn't say anything for a moment. "I'd really rather stay here…like this…I don't want to go back to charade Lucius."
"I see," Lucius said, feeling rather silly for his jealousness earlier in the day. Harry wanted to turn his back on the Wizarding world to stay with him. Lucius wrapped an arm around his waist, pulling him in closer as they continued to walk slowly. "Neither do I."
The room was circular and dark, save for the dull flickering of a few torches mounted in sconces on the wall. A small group of robed figures stood in a loose group, murmuring softly amongst themselves, the light catching bits of their white masks. From the imperious chair on a raised dais in the middle of the room sat Voldemort. He simply surveyed them as he stroked Nagni's head, and the snake gave a soft sibilant hiss. His red eyes darted from figure to figure with a critical light, nostrils flaring slightly from time to time.
All in all, it was a very tense atmosphere and Severus was so tense that he more than likely looked as if he was about to pass a few Erumpents. If he hadn't forced himself to remain calm and composed, he'd more than likely be sweating buckets. The enchanted eyeholes of his mask allowed him full view of the room, and, at the moment, all he really wanted to see was a small sliver of it.
When Voldemort waved a hand slightly, the entire room fell into immediate silence. "Two days from it will be three. Three months since we've been licking our wounds and searching for one Lucius Malfoy."
The soft murmurs of assent swelled against the walls reverberating off.
"If not for Nott, we still would be looking. But now, we have found Lucius," Voldemort paused for a moment. "As well that damnable brat Potter."
Mutters of discontent grew at that. Severus grew a bit uneasy but he didn't let it show. This wouldn't help in the slightest.
"But in two days we will snatch the sweet fruit of victory from Dumbledore's grasp as he did to us. Since Lucius and Potter are in the same area, we simply collect both of them."
That seemed to satisfy the other Death Eaters, of whom were making happy ecstatic noises. Severus couldn't stop the dry thought of, 'A rather orgasmic moment for the dolts; probably the only one they're likely to get.' from flitting across his mind.
"But we must tread carefully," Voldemort began, immediate silence falling once more. "We don't need the meddling old man to catch wind of our plans," he looked carefully around the room. "You may all leave now. Snape, Nott, stay a moment."
Severus' heart froze in place as the other Death Eaters filed out, leaving him and Nott alone in Voldemort's presence. There was no way that Voldemort found out what he did. There was simply no possible way.
Voldemort rose from his seat, striding down to stand in front of Nott and Severus. "Remove your masks and look at me." He said simply.
Severus removed his easily, glad that his hand hadn't shook at all. He sometimes got the shakes and it was hard to conceal something like that. He made himself look up into Voldemort's skeletal, reptilian white face. Those red eyes seemed to burn like fire with the gleam from the torches.
"You two are among the only capable intelligent in my ranks," Voldemort began quietly. "Therefore I am placing you in charge of this little….operation. I want Potter brought back here in one piece and alive. That boy will suffer."
He paused for a moment, his red eyes becoming hard with a steely glint to them.
"Should you fail in any manner, you may find taking your own life preferable to facing my displeasure."
Severus couldn't help but notice that Voldemort's eyes flickered to Nott for a long moment before shifting away. He hadn't looked at glanced at once. Voldemort turned, seating himself on the chair once more before he waved a hand in dismissal,
Severus gave a low bow and walked sedately from the room. Once he was safely away from Voldemort and Nott, he allowed his brows to crease together in anxiousness. Obviously the Dark Lord was putting Nott in charge of this operation and Severus was simply there to observe. Being a double spy certainly had its benefits. The Dark Lord couldn't be rid of him because he was too valuable as a spy. And Albus had saved him from a one way trip to Azkaban by revealing that he was a spy for the Light. Information was power.
Two days was all they had left. Voldemort must have been very sure in the information he had, since he was planning on proverbially slapping Albus in the face.
This entire mess was already sitting uneasily with Severus but now, he was not starting to like this one bit.
