Amelia laid on the cold floor for what must have been a full 24 hours. She watched the sun fall and rise again without moving once. Every muscle spasm, every involuntary twitch was like a hot knife being twisted under her skin. The only thing she could think of was Severus and the look of complete panic on his face as she was ripped away from her quiet day and thrown into an existence of pain and uncertainty. She hadn't slept since her imprisonment, too scared to close her eyes any longer than a minute at a time.
She willed her mind to call out to him. To urge him to come and find her. She needed to hold out hope that she would once again be free. Once again feel the wind on her face, catch a glimpse of one of his rare smiles, enjoy the deep rumble of his laugh that tasted like the darkest chocolate, feel him inside of her. She needed to hold onto that no matter what. She again tried to call out to him desperately. Her mind however was too tired and too weak to push through.
As nightfall crept closer once again, her mind finally rested. Mercifully allowing her to dream of the quiet moments she had with Severus at his apartment. Waking up to coffee, a hushed good morning and a peaceful day spent sparring, laughing and the occasional heated debate. As she slept, silent tears rolled down her bruised cheeks and a soft smile graced her face.
It had been a full two days and Severus was murderous. The order had been looking for death eaters day and night, they even had the rest of the ministry involved but they always came up short. Not a single one was brought in for interrogation. It's as if they had all vanished into thin air. Severus knew better however.
"Severus...we have been looking for the last 48 hours and have had hardly any leads...on anyone! Not a single follower has been found but we are trying. " Kingsley explained.
"WELL TRY HARDER. THEY ARE HERE, YOU JUST AREN'T LOOKING HARD ENOUGH!" Severus shouted back, tired of the conversation and lack of information. The last two days of his companion being MIA with one of the most deranged death eaters had worn on him to say the least. Eating or drinking had been only by necessity and sleep had been nearly impossible. He ran his hands through his hair as he paced back and forth in the small room.
"Severus we will find her. I have my best men on it as well as the Order."
Severus stopped in front of the window and folded his arms over his chest. "No one will know where she is until we get Alecto." he said evenly as he chewed the inside of his cheek. "The Carrows are thick but they know the risk of too many people having the knowledge of her whereabouts. I would assume... they have kept her hidden as bait. Something so valuable can't be compromised"
Lupin and Harry stood in the doorway, listening to the two argue back and forth. Severus was inconsolable at times and volatile at best. One moment he seemed completely calm and silent, another moment he was whipping a glass across the room, another moment he was screaming at everyone to get out of his face. There was no balance with him, he was a raw nerve being poked and prodded at every other hour.
"I don't know why I'm standing here listening to you people." He sneared. "I'm leaving and I don't want ANYONE...contacting me until. they have found. Alecto." With that Severus pushed his way past Lupin and Harry forcefully. No one attempted to stop him as he left the cottage and apparated away.
Harry rubbed his face aggressively and Lupin shoved his hands in his pockets, waiting for someone to say something.
Kingsley stood still with his hands on his hips, shaking his head at the ground. "I don't know what else we can do other than keep looking."
"Then that's what we do." Lupin said simply.
Amelia was woken by a bucket of something cold and wet being poured on her. She sputtered and threw her arms over her face. The movement was an involuntary reflex and left her nearly in tears as the white hot pain radiated down her torso to her broken ribs. She moaned and coughed up whatever she was nearly drowned in. 'please just be water'
"Mornin lovely" It was the same sickening voice that brought her here. Her heart fluttered in her chest like a wild bird trapped in a cage. Amelia moved her arms away from her face slowly and looked up at the man.
Amycus got down on all fours and looked Amelia over. " 'is been two days love. Don think 'es comin" He mocked. "Guess I'm jus gonna 'ave to keep ya if he don love ya no more." He moved his face closer to hers, his crooked yellow and brown teeth curling into it's usual acidic grin. "Guess I'm gonna 'ave to show you what a real man can do."
Amelia looked around the room frantically as he drew nearer. 'look for a wand! look for a wand! '
Her heart stopped as she spotted the top of what looked like her wand sticking out of his robes. Without breaking eye contact, she slowly reached for the light brown handle. She could almost feel it in her hands as his dry cracked lips found hers. They felt like sandpaper against her skin.
Clamping her eyes and lips shut, Amelia continued to reach for her wand but a second later Amycus grabbed her wrist and pushed it into her chest forcefully. His eyes were wide as he pulled away and smacked her across her face.
"YOU'RE GONNA PAY FOR THAT!" As he yelled he grabbed her shirt and tore it open. "Tryin to get away when i was just bein nice to ya."
Amelia began kicking and thrashing as he ripped at her wet clothes. It did nothing other than cause him to move faster. "Scream all ya want girl. Makes things more fun for me." As he spoke, rancid droplets of spit hit her skin but his warning meant nothing. She continued to thrash and scream like a wild animal.
Amelia brought her thumbs up to his eyes and started pressing in as hard as she could. He shrieked, pulled her hands down and pinned them over her head. Blinking rapidly, he pointed his wand at her wrists. Another set of shackles appeared from the floor and slithered their way around her, securing them in place. The pair around her ankles tightened, causing her legs to lay flat against the wood. Amelia twisted and screamed under Amycus as he began to undo his pants.
She closed her eyes and wailed, thrusting her head back so he couldn't see her face as he entered her forcefully with a grunt. "FUCK YOU" she screamed at him. Once again, his fist connected with the side of her head and her entire world went black.
A few hours later Amelia woke up shivering. Her head was pounding and her legs ached. With her wrists no longer bound, she pulled them in and tucked them under her chin. She looked down at her broken body. He must have continued when she passed out because she was completely naked now. She could feel evidence of what he had done pooling out of her, leaving behind a cold sticky mess. Amelia choked back bile as she remembered him on top of her. Large bruising began to spread around her thighs and pelvis. The sides of her ribs were dark purple and blue, they were definitely broken.
Tears fell as she processed what had happened to her. This was truly a nightmare but Amelia knew it was unlikely she would be waking from this one. 'even if I did, what's left of me? what will I have to give?'
At the side of her head she noticed a glass of water and a slice of moldy bread and cheese.
Weakly she reached for the water and brought it to her nose. Amelia smelled no trace of anything suspicious. She brought the glass to her lips and before she knew it, the water was gone. It hit the bottom of her empty stomach like a ton of bricks. Shakily she brought her hand over her mouth to stop herself from vomiting it back up.
As her stomach settled, silent tears left dirty tracks on her face and chest. Laying her head back down, Amelia closed her eyes and thought only of a tall dark figure whispering words of comfort as sleep took her.
As the weeks wore on, it was much of the same for Amelia. On the third day, Alecto brought her a bucket to relieve herself in. She would come upstairs once a day and vanish its contents and give Amelia her "meal" for the day. What this meal consisted of was...nothing. Instead of actual food, Alecto used a torturous method. It was an archaic spell witches and wizards would cast to combat starvation during dark times when food was scarce. It would give your body just enough nutrients to sustain you indefinitely but did nothing for the hunger pains. You would suffer through starving to death but could never die from it.
When Amelia was lucky, Amycus would come up for a visit. Amelia didn't fight after the fourth or fifth time. Fighting him only broke her body more, she needed to guard her mind now. That's all she had left. After he would leave, a glass of water would appear for her along with a small food item. Sometimes bread, sometimes a piece of fruit. 'Such a softie' she would muse as she savored her possible least meal.
The prospect of her being saved was becoming more and more grim. The vision of Severus was becoming blurry as all her mind wanted to focus on now was how to survive. Coming to terms with the fact that she likely wasn't going to be saved, Amelia had two choices. Keep fighting or accept her fate. The latter was becoming more and more of a reality as the days wore on. Her mind felt like a rubber band on the verge of snapping. Things didn't seem like they could get any worse and accepting her inevitable demise was much easier.
Deep down Amelia knew she was a fighter. However bleak this seemed, she continued to fight. Each night, she would watch the sun fall through her dirty window and chant his name over and over again. Amelia needed something to focus on or her mind would finally give into madness.
A week and a half later however, something changed. Something horrifically unimaginable to Amelia.
Alecto walked into the room grinning. She stood by the door and waited. For what Amelia had no idea but she could do nothing but stare back at the horrible woman. Suddenly, the sound of heavy boots could be heard walking up to the door. As it opened, Amelia's mouth fell open and tears filled her eyes. A tall dark figure stood in the doorway, grinning maliciously at Amelia. Instead of being filled with relief, she was filled with absolute horror.
Alectos wheezy giggle filled the room as the figure began lazily walking closer, almost taunting her.
Her entire body trembled as she looked up at the man she loved. His eyes were cold and lifeless, his face twisted into someone unrecognizable. "Hello lovely."
"NO!" Amelia screamed as she attempted to climb the wall behind her. "NO IT'S NOT YOU! IT'S NOT YOU!" she sobbed as she was pulled down to the ground underneath him.
The cloaked head of Severus Snape stalked up and down Knockturn Ally and the surrounding area. For over two weeks he had been inside every pub, every dark alley, every whore house looking for any death eaters. The ones he really wanted to get his hands on were the Carrows but he would settle for any one of the slimy creatures.
The rest of the order was also looking everywhere for Ron and Amelia with no such luck. Every lead ran cold, it was as if they had vanished out of thin air.
One fateful evening, Severus finally spotted someone through a tavern window. His heart hammered in his chest and his knees nearly gave out. He took a deep breath and entered the dark establishment. To his delight, there was no one else in the place except his target and the bar maiden. The sleazy death eater was currently trying to coerce the poor girl into checking out his wand in a room upstairs. She rolled her eyes and set another drink in front of him. This type of clientele was a daily occurrence for her.
Severus walked up behind him and brought both hands down on the bar on either side of the rat faced man. The man jumped and turned his head. Severus brought his face level with his and greeted him with feign pleasantries. "Locksley" He nodded.
"What are-" before he could finish his question, Severus grabbed the back of the man's head and slammed it into the bar top. He then pulled the now unconscious man named Locksley out of his stool and began levitating him up the stairs.
"Keys!" he demanded and the young bar maid nodded frantically as she tossed him a room key. Severus lifted a finger to his mouth and walked up the stairs behind his hostage.
Once inside the small room, Severus transfigured the bed into a wooden chair and tied Locksley to it. After the now drooling death eater was secure, Severus turned around and closed his eyes. Breathing deeply, Severus began to conjure his patronus. He flourished his wand and reminisced about red hair that twisted and filled his senses. He could almost feel her standing next to him, giggling while talking about their future plans and everything they were going to accomplish in life. For a brief moment his heart soared and he knew his doe was ready.
As Severus recited the incantation, his mind began to wonder. The red heads future plans held no place for Severus. His fantasy grew sour as his mind was flooded with everything that happened in between those memories. Reality finally caught up to him. The only fantasy that he could use to escape his lonely life was now gone replaced with shame and regret.
Severus panicked and turned around to check Locksley, thankfully he was still unconscious. The stand of drool now threatened to hit the ground. Whipping his hair away from his face, Severus recentered himself. He closed his eyes and breathed deep, thinking back to the treacherous red hair.
Suddenly, there was a shift. His reminiscing began to take another form. It wasn't of a single memory but an amalgamation of many. It was a story, a story that hadn't ended yet. It wasn't a fantasy but the reality of what his life ended up becoming. Severus watched as bright green eyes turned hazel, the slim angular face became slightly rounder, quiet giggles turned into something even more meaningful and just for him. His heart fluttered as the sound of his name was whispered in his ear over and over again while he worshipped her under him.
His heart raced as he flourished his wand around himself once again. A cloudy mist burst from the tapered end of it and his once beautiful doe transformed into something much smaller and even more delicate. It was a moth. Severus watched in awe as the silvery creature fluttered around his head and then landed on his chest. Its wings began to still as it waited patiently for his message.
Quieting his now frantic mind, Severus lifted his new patronus with two fingers. He examined it curiously and spoke lowly. "Diagon Ally, Potter and Lupin. I have Philip Locksley in a room at the Fanged Toad. Come quickly."
