The Side I'm Always On Chapter Thirtyfive: Renegotiation, a harry potter fanfic

Chapter Thirty-five: Renegotiation

Barely able to wait the few minutes it took Phillip to deal with her purchase, Rose finally apparated into Alex's room at the Connaught and slipped the piece of paper from her pocket. It was a letter addressed to Alex Borgin, but how had he known where and when to find her? She shook her head and popped the seal. Leave it to Severus to manage the nearly impossible with the greatest of ease.

Dearest Alex,
I hope that my letter finds you in good health and in Malfoy's favor, though I greatly dislike the manner in which you must regain it. There are one or two matters I wish to clarify for you. The first is my role in Lucius Malfoy's ascension to The Dark Lord's throne.
As you are no doubt aware, I have never been overly fond of the hesitation and helplessness often exhibited by the Order. I am not, as Sirius Black often speculated, a loyal member. Neither do I care for the Dark Lord's manner of rule. I, like you, have my own agenda, and it is best met within Lucius Malfoy's leadership. He has been forced into violent and unfair action by his master many times, but you must have noticed by now that this isn't representative of his true nature. He is fair and even generous to those who are loyal, though he gives no mercy to those who betray him.
Not much would change under his rule. He and the noble families have ever been the power behind the Ministry with only a few variables. Even when Lucius was sent to Azkaban, it was more a punishment for failure by his fellow Death Eaters than a Ministerial decision, though he soon convinced them of their error even from within those stone walls. I have never asked, nor do I care to discover how he managed it.
All that to explain why, when Lucius succeeds, as I am convinced that he will, I will be at his side. We will act soon, though the exact time has yet to be established. I am certain that you know me well enough to understand my personal motives, and I needn't explain them to you in detail. In fact, I suspect that you have known this for quite some time, but I did not wish to leave my loyalties, such as they are, to your speculation.
The second matter is the potion I am working on. I believe that I have found a way to more quickly catalyze the dampening agent, and we may be ready to release you in slightly less time than I first calculated. If you have any objects that you cannot part with, I suggest that you begin to relocate them immediately.
Yours always,
Severus
Ps. When you finish reading this, press your finger to my signature... carefully.

After the third reading, she did as he instructed her and the letter burst into glimmering green flames, startling a yelp from her throat as she dropped it. The parchment was incinerated in an instant, and she rolled her eyes at what she was certain he considered to be a fabulous joke. That wasn't funny, Sev.

A single finger tapped thoughtfully against the wand on her thigh, considering. As Severus had suspected, his loyalties were no surprise to her. She fully expected that he would take any chance to rid the world of the Dark Lord and live in relative comfort and safety at the new ruler's side. Her only real concern about that was where it would leave them. Lucius was unlikely to allow Severus to openly enjoy a relationship with a woman who had so often defied him, and secrecy was a danger Sev may not welcome once his life was in better order. Not to mention, her craving for Malfoy's rough treatment was getting more intense with every encounter, and Severus had never been one to share.

As for relocating any objects that might be precious to her, that gave her an idea that merited serious consideration. After all, she had won so many battles with these two that, even if she couldn't win the war, she'd be damned if she'd leave without consolation prizes.

Lazily, she ran a foot through the ashes on the floor and smiled. Soon after, she retired to the desk to write a humble, remorseful letter to Lucius from Alex.

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That night, Rose served dinner with the biggest smile she'd worn in weeks as she listened to Draco and Lucius animatedly discuss the first day of dueling lessons. It turned out that she hadn't been wrong about restocking their medicinal potions. Draco had suffered a wicked cut on his shoulder when he'd failed to block a slashing spell and Lucius had gotten a very respectful earful about 'easing up on the wand-related viciousness' where his son's training was concerned as she tended to the wound.

Draco had turned beet-red at this and Lucius had cast a secretive smirk at his heir. After much prodding on Rose's part, Draco finally admitted that Lucius hadn't used his wand at all; he had in fact insisted on wandless magic for Draco's own safety. The boy's embarrassment was only matched by Rose's horrified awe. The ability to cast that kind of spell, even a weak one, without a wand took an astounding amount of concentration and skill, and she was fairly certain that it was a newly-acquired talent. He was terribly secretive about his own dueling, though. She'd never even been allowed to see the room, and doubted he'd be very forthcoming about how long he'd been practicing this frightening new ability or how effective he'd become.

Presently father and son were playfully debating the merits of traditional dueling to various forms of muggle fighting. Draco had no taste for the latter, but his father put forth a valid argument.

"At one time I would have agreed with you, son, but a devious thief convinced me otherwise," he said without malice. "Her reversion to muggle fighting caught me completely off my guard, almost left me permanently scarred, and facilitated her escape. A long line of powerful, and formerly living, wizards were unable to place me at such a disadvantage."

"Well, I think it's bestial and ineffective," Draco sniffed quietly, obviously not very comfortable with expressing a conflicting viewpoint to his father.

"And you are welcome to your own opinions," Lucius responded easily. "But, you're wrong," he added as a quiet, parting shot.

Draco laughed lightly at this, and they finished dessert in companionable silence.

Early the next morning, Severus Snape found himself perusing Alex's letter carefully, persistently aware of Malfoy's eyes boring into him as he read. The Slytherin in him was rejoicing over the masterpiece of written deception the assassin had wrought, while the lover in him was grinding his teeth at the shameless lust on his friend's face every time the maid entered the room. She was playing an almost flawless game, and for her sake, he'd need to play along. Lucius had called him over to discuss Alex's response to the breaking of the contract; meaning that, depending upon his mood, he would want either a sounding board, an advocate, or someone with whom he could debate the issue to be more certain of his own opinion. It was most likely the latter.

Snape handed the letter back to its owner and met his gaze with a practiced, neutral expression as he sat back and steepled his fingers before him. "I question both her sincerity and her motives," he began brusquely. "When dealing with Alex, it's only wise, whether you are at peace or in opposition. And even if she is sincere, she's proven to be notoriously difficult to control in the past. Her words do nothing to allay my suspicion that she'll betray us at the first opportunity." Snape laughed inwardly as the maid's eyes widened and her jaw dropped with disbelief. She had obviously not learned as much about communicating with Lucius as he had hoped. Strategically disagreeing with him was one of the most effective ways of leading him down the path one wanted him to follow.

"I disagree," Lucius argued smoothly. Severus sent a quick smile at Rose as Malfoy downed the last of the wine in his glass. "She has no safeguards, now. Her fear will keep her rebellious nature in check. She was fully prepared to submit to our will before she came up with the idea of that insufferable contract. We'll simply need to move carefully with her to ensure that she doesn't feel the need for rash action. She responds violently to threats. Perhaps we should appear to submit to her desire for concealment until she's more comfortable."

"Your thoughts are valid; nevertheless, I am apprehensive," Severus answered carefully.

Lucius released an irritated sigh. "Severus, occasionally, you are intolerably cynical."

"Need I remind you of how many times my cynicism has averted disaster?" Severus answered quietly, unmoved by his associate's opinion..

Lucius laughed lightly. "No, old friend," he answered without malice. "I would prefer that you refrain. Still, I believe that we should give Alexandria a chance to prove her worth to us. We need a separate entity to remove the obstacles in our path. Being implicated in their deaths would ruin our credibility with the others. It may even cost us our lives. The Dark Lord will only tolerate so much from us."

Severus nodded slightly. "Point taken, but may I suggest giving her one name instead of the list she requested, until she's proven herself worthy of the task?" he paused, musing. "Marler, perhaps?"

"A good choice," Lucius agreed. "I was most unhappy with his response to our proposition."

"But surely not surprised?"

"Of course not." Lucius stood and gave a slight stretch. "The man's a coward, he always has been. I'll keep you informed of our progress, Severus. As always, if you hear from her..."

"Of course." Severus made the slightest obeisance. "Until then."

My darling Alexandria,
It was both a pleasure and a great relief to hear from you. I was deeply concerned that I might have harmed you irreparably. While I cannot apologize for breaking a contract I was forced to sign, I am sorry that it was necessary to hurt you so badly in the process. I never wanted to cause you pain, but you left me with little choice.
I have considered your request, and would be most pleased to renegotiate. Your skills are invaluable to me at present, and your desire to remain hidden, while disappointing, is understandable. I am willing to compromise until you feel more comfortable. The information that you requested is enclosed, and I must insist that you act immediately. I cannot afford to delay.

Sincerely,
-L

Lucius sealed the letter with more than one fatal curse for anyone foolish enough to pry, then summoned his cloak and apparated to Diagon Alley. It was sparsely occupied at this hour on a weekday, and he strode smoothly toward the bank noticing that fewer than the usual number of witches and wizards gave him a wide berth, and several of the shopkeepers bowed and greeted him with the open admiration they had shown in years past. He nodded politely to them as he made his way, wondering what had become of his popular reputation as the most evil wizard ever to buy his way out of Azkaban.

The confusion was pushed to the back of his mind to be pondered later as he entered Gringotts. There was no show of affection from the goblins darting about him on early-morning business, but then there never had been even when his reputation had been spotless, so nothing was amiss there. A grizzled creature at the very back was available and Lucius immediately stepped forward.

"Mister Malfoy, how can I help you?" the goblin asked briskly.

"I have a letter for safe deposit."

The goblin eyed the scroll carefully, assessing the magic, no doubt. "The recipient?"

Lucius glanced quickly around just to make certain there were no witnesses, then spoke quietly. "Alexandria Borgin. I believe she left instructions."

The letter was taken with all assurances that it would be safe until collected. Lucius almost smiled at that. Of course it would be safe. This was Gringotts. But why Alex had chosen this method of communication was beyond him. She was hiding more than he could determine. Her location, that was a given. She didn't even trust that he wouldn't track his owl, but there was something else, something niggling at the back of his mind that wouldn't let him be. Not for the first time, he wished for a mind like Severus' that could twist and turn even the vaguest allusions until they resembled something familiar. Lucius was bright, exceedingly so, but Severus was ingenious.

Because of this gift, he likely knew more than he was telling about Alexandria, but it wasn't important enough to alienate him by torturing it out of him. Besides, with the Dark Lord almost out of the picture, the potions master might take it into his head to retaliate, and that was a fearsome thought. If it were threatening to their cause or to either of them personally, Snape would tell him. He was certain of it.

The next morning, Lucius received the shortest letter he'd ever seen. It read, simply, "Done." He didn't even wonder that it wasn't signed. She knew that he'd know it was from her, and what she meant by it. He smiled broadly, elated that she'd responded so promptly. He hadn't been kidding about having very little time to waste. Now that the secret had been shared with the others, there was more danger of the Dark Lord finding out. The opposition had to be handled quickly, ruthlessly, and without casting suspicion on him or Severus.

Alexandria would be the first suspect in Voldemort's eyes, but he wouldn't go after her personally. He would command others to do so, most of whom answered only to Lucius now, and they had already been ordered to waste no more energy on her.

Everything was moving according to his design. It would all be over soon.

Rycca Wolfbane: Thanks for the cookie. Hope you feel better soon. I truly didn't mean to make you sick. Gee, if you're mad at him, now...

Quietude: Hi, there! I missed you. You have a good point about reading several chapters at once, though. I imagine that must be very satisfying, but I miss you when you're not around. Snape angst is very addictive, I agree. There'll be plenty of that in my next fic which will be a Snape, OC exclusive. As for Rose's punishment, you seem to be one of the few who approve, so thanks. "Invasive" was exactly what I was going for, and, yes, Lucius has a major soft spot for Rose. He likes Alex, too, to much the same degree, but for reasons which are almost polar. He's a complex guy. Worried about Draco, are you? That's wise. Rose doesn't worry about him nearly enough.

Lost Emerald: It's sweet that you feel badly for Draco. My heart goes out to him, too. The action is coming. Don't despair.

marry: Thanks!

Fleur K: Thanks for the cookie. I love cookies! I'm glad that my character developement is realistic. It's actually quite a relief to hear someone say so. Sometimes, I worry that I may make them move along too quickly or stay stagnant for too long. So, thanks.

Lady Jenilyn: I'm happy for Draco, as well. He needs a father as much as Lucius needs a son. Draco does indeed despise Alex. Merlin help her if he ever founf her in a dark alley. I think we'd see a very brutal side of the little dragon. And yet, he loves Rose to death. I actually never realised how strange that was until recently. It's groovy that you dig Raistlin as much as I do. Just mentioning him has tempted me to pick up the series again. Mmmmm.... Raistlin.... I think you'd be a terrific kid's writer. You should go for it. As for my love scenes, I'd never written them before either. I'd never written anything before this story, actually, so I was terrified when I did my first. But I found that I liked those as much, maybe even more, than the rest of the story. Still, I hesitate to write too much "smut." I don't want to be kicked off of the site. The last line of your review put me in mind of Alan Rickman as the Sheriff of Notingham when he told the kid, "I never knew my parents. It's amazing I'm sane." Which is really funny because he's a couple of sandwitches short of a picnic in that movie... but ever-so-fine!

silverfey: I wondered where you wandered off to, and I missed you, but I'm glad you had a nice time. Welcome home. I, too, appreciated that she managed to actually speak her mind about his treatment of Draco without becoming rude and calling down his wrath on her head again. I think she's finally learning how to communicate with him, which is a shame because now that she's found a way out, it will all be moot.

Queen of the Faeries1: Two days???!! All I can say is Wow! (Classical reference from 'Dirty, Rotten Scoundrels?' I adore that movie!) I'm flattered that it held your attention. (Insert enormous blush, here) Pull up a chair, have some tea, speak your mind. Welcome. The fact that you like Alex is so appreciated! So many people have seen only her "good" characteristics, overlooked her flaws, and snubbed her. So, thank you. I really appreciate your giving her a chance. This is the first thing I've ever written, making her my first OC, and I'm very shy about it all. My other characters I tried to play as close to canon as possible while fleshing them out in areas where they seemed underdeveloped. I, like you, assumed that there had to be something more under there. Sorry about your disappointment that I hadn't finished the story, yet. It's actually coming to a close fairly quickly, sniff but I update pretty regularly, so I hope you don't find it too terribly frustrating. Besides, I'd like to hear what you think as the story moves along, if you have the time to review again. Thanks again, and welcome.