this chapter got edited big time so to those who got to see the first cut, congrats lol
Francesca Zabini had not expected for the night to go downhill.
Her time at the Three Broomsticks was a pleasant surprise considering her boyfriend, Severus Snape was there too. She noticed how Severus looked more shy than usual after noticing her but she didn't mind it; instead taking lead of their conversation and told him about Hogwarts, of how the Slytherin students and teachers including Horace Slughorn were met with shrewd, skeptical eyes from the others.
"They all thought snakes were pests but soon they will realize their mistakes," Severus said offhandedly and Francesca was surprised with his blunt yet also subtle words. She had witnessed a few times where he conversed with the Dark Lord and the other man often took his statements in high regards. Even the pureblooded families considered him a great asset that Albus Dumbledore had ignored and were convinced the Death Eaters would win the war for sure.
After sharing a quick kiss on each other's forehead (she couldn't help wondering if Severus had once kissed his childhood friend on the lips) in front of the Hogsmeade train station, Severus went to Disapparate and Francesca took out her ebony wand to unlock Hogwarts' gates.
"Avada Kedavra!" someone shouted from behind her and her heart jumped in sheer terror. Who-
Turning around, Francesca could see the telltale of the green light was approaching her fast and tried to evade her incoming death only to slip on the wet leaves strewn on the ground, letting out a whimper and close her eyes in utter defeat.
But then she heard something hum and shattered in quick succession, and wondered if she had died when she felt the cold gust of autumn wind blew by and the hot breath of her frantic gasps. Blinking hard, Francesca lowered her right arm that she had raised on instinct and saw what actually happened.
The silver bracelet Severus gave her on St. Valentine's Day was broken; its spider was split in half while the rest were barely held together by the remnants of magic. But… but it saved her from being killed. H- How? It should be impossible to block the Killing Curse, yet here she was, still alive with nary a scar.
She looked to see who was her would-be murderer and frowned upon seeing a figure lying on the ground, gripping her ebony wand tightly before creeping toward the prone form, her eyes widened in utmost horror and intense rage after acknowledging who the person was.
Lily Evans.
Her bright red hair shone under the train station's street lights and Francesca knelt beside her, briefly fearing that the Killing Curse had hit the woman instead and tried to feel her pulse. For a brief moment, she actually dreaded of going to Azkaban just as Severus feared however much to her relief, Evans' heart beat if a bit slow. She supposed the aftereffects were expected especially from her boyfriend who preferred a pacifist way to deal with things, but couldn't help wishing the redhead would actually die due to her own actions.
Sighing, Francesca grabbed Evans' hand and use the stone Portkey locket Severus had given her (how she couldn't thank him enough for protecting her) to teleport to Malfoy Manor.
Lord Voldemort's attempt of creating a flying spell was… not that great.
The numerous books and scrolls littered the main desk in Malfoy Manor's library with him at the center of it; Nagini had all but slithered away after he told her he needed complete silence. He had referred to many avian subjects and even using his own Animagus form for his research but he could only assume that it was the bird's own instincts that made it fly; namely in search for food and migrating. Not to mention the birds need immense energy to sustain themselves in the air (even if they glide most of the time) and he doubted human energy, even with magic could compare to them.
So his irritable mood rose when someone knocked on the doors, practically snarling whilst massaging his forehead, "Come in." Maybe it really was impossible for humans to fly.
Imagine his surprise when Francesca Zabini stepped in with an unconscious body behind her, alongside Lucius Malfoy who pursed his lips so tight as if his ancestral home got permanently stained by the Mudblood's presence.
"M- My Lord," the blond all but pleading him to move the conversation elsewhere, "I had told her that you wish not to be disturbed but she remained adamant."
"It's alright," Lord Voldemort spoke with a wave of his hand. "Leave us, Lucius; I doubt you will want to listen to us." He could feel what the other man felt but chose to ignore it; after all his orders were absolute.
After the blond walked away, Zabini shakily took her seat and went to recount the past few hours to him and even if he didn't know how Lily Evans could sneak around Hogsmeade unnoticed, he was a bit impressed by her stealth.
"Would you want me to get Severus here?" he asked softly, all the while leering at the unconscious redhead on the couch.
Zabini gulped, "I- If it isn't a bother."
He called for Libby, one of Prince Manor's house-elves and asked of Severus but it shook its head apologetically, telling them the young man had fallen asleep the moment he arrived home. From the corner of his eyes, he could see Zabini was curious of the elf especially with the insignia on its tea towel and could only hope she wouldn't search for it.
Despite his relationship with Severus Prince was slightly rocky at the moment, he was still rather selfish and only wanted the young man for himself.
"It's getting late, Miss Zabini; and you got teaching class tomorrow," he concluded, "Don't worry, I will inform this to Severus as soon as possible."
"But this…" the woman muttered and the Dark Lord's eyes widened in recognition of the silver spider bracelet. He was after all, present in his Animagus form when Severus gave the item to her. "It… it had saved me from the Killing Curse, and I wonder… can you ask him for another one?"
He took the bracelet's remains and put them inside a pouch, "I will think of it."
Severus was pale as a ghost when Marvolo and Nagini came over to Prince Manor, with the unconscious Lily Evans-Potter floating behind them. The news he received later on was also equally disturbing.
To think that Francesca would be killed moments after he left… Oh, he couldn't imagine what would happen if Evans was to succeed. He would be framed, be put on trial and got sent to Azkaban… no, no, no; he didn't want to think of his possible imprisonment. Of those dreaded Dementors that would suck out all his good memories (not that he had many to begin with) and left him with his nightmares for years to come.
When Marvolo presented him with the pieces of the silver spider bracelet and Francesca's request, Severus' heart sank as he felt Death's cold presence behind him and chose his words carefully while explaining the reasons to the other man. "You know the Grim Reaper doesn't take lightly into cheating it," he humored but could feel it fell flat, especially to the man who wanted to live till eternity.
No one could dodge their death forever. The incantations he put on the item and his mother's supposed glass bracelet (now worn around his wrist) protected them from surprise attacks alright, however they were also one-use only. He might be the Master of Death but even he knew death is a force of reckoning; that all humans' path will eventually lead to their demise and it was all a matter of time on when it would happen.
"Is that so…" Marvolo muttered, glancing at Nagini who in turn was observing the redhead lying on the couch for any sudden moves. "Do you have any idea why she targeted Zabini, though?"
Severus blinked. No, he didn't know but if he had to deduce, Francesca only knew one important thing that sent his eyes widened in utmost terror moments later.
Sybil Trelawney's prophecy back in June. And from the looks of it, Marvolo also reached the same conclusion. "…Do you think Dumbledore had ordered Evans for this?" he asked.
The other man only tapped his chin thoughtfully, "Probably not, but who knows what that old fool was actually thinking. He might be fooling us even at this moment and we don't want to have any loose ends, do we?"
"It's too risky to kill her now."
"Yes, but she's also the Mudblood who had hurt you the most, hadn't she? You may regret not doing it soon."
Severus stared at the prone form on the couch. He knew what Marvolo had meant but he also wanted to work in complete secrecy. If they kill Evans now, the Aurors and Order of the Phoenix would be on their tail especially with James Potter in their team. He might have subdued the arrogant young man with the subtle Imperius Curse, but Potter also could fight it off if he tried and he didn't want to endanger the rest of the Death Eaters due to their careless mistake.
"Let's just keep her in the stone chamber for now," he finally said, "Salazar can both guard and punish her."
Lily Evans remained unconscious for the week and after rigorously scanning the body for any internal injuries, Severus assumed the rebound Killing Curse must had permanently put her in a coma and wiped her memory for good measure before bringing her to St. Mungo's Hospital for treatment.
On Halloween, he went to Hogsmeade to meet Francesca Zabini and tell her about her request of the spider bracelet, explaining how doing the protection spell for the same person was impossible and much to his surprise, she only gave him a weak smile.
"I'm bound to be on people's list of surviving the Killing Curse once anyway; and… to have a few more days with you was more than enough," she had said but Severus could tell she was frightened with the prospect of dying unknowingly from her shaky clenched fists. He glanced at the glass bracelet around his wrist and narrowed his eyes.
"You can have this," he took the item off and placed it on the table.
"But-!" Francesca spluttered, seemingly aghast of the idea.
"Just take it. I... I can make another."
"You said it wouldn't work; that the spell would know who it had protected."
"No harm in trying more than expected," he smiled somberly. He never parted from any of his Horcruxes but to protect Francesca for the second time… he would do anything he could to prevent her near-death from happening again.
And for that, he really needed to get the prophecy now.
The four days each week working in the Ministry was used to their fullest. Severus kept his distance with the Aurors who avoided his infamous piercing glare and worked diligently within the Department of Mysteries whilst not showing any interest with those who conducted new spells and items, not wanting people to know his other expertise.
Suffice to say, his patience was rewarded on Christmas Eve. With the people lulled into the comforting joy of Christmas, there was a lack of security within the Hall of Prophecies and Severus turned his satchel invisible before searching for the infamous prophecy in guise of patrolling along the shelves, marveling at the crystal orb and its secrets before replacing it with the copy Francesca had heard months ago and brought it home.
Prince Manor was his safe refuge, with its occupants gave him the space to work on his woes and plans to seek revenge. There barely were any decorations for Christmas but Severus paid no attention to those. All he could think of apart from the prophecy was the Water of Despair potion which was nearly done, and he couldn't wait to test it.
Placing the grey orb on his desk in his room, Severus was still restless with how easy it was to get the sacred item and for a brief moment, wondering if it was a trap until he remembered Augustus Rookwood's numerous tales about some people tried to retrieve an unrelated prophecy to them and got struck by some unknown curse.
And if he could get hold on the prophecy, surely it also wouldn't hurt to listen a bit of it, right? He was somehow involved with it too. Yes, it was merely a safeguard; that if Marvolo had any doubts of the legendary prophecy, he could assent on its validity. Taking out his hazel wand, he then tapped the crystal orb once to which the item turned bright blue.
"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches…" a slow yet ominous voice suddenly echoed in his head and Severus tried his hardest to focus with a quill poised in his hand, writing its every word on a piece of parchment even if he already knew who the target was.
"But he must beware of the Rogue Prince; for the Rogue Prince will cause utmost despair when he knows of the child's existence, and darkness will prevail… The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies…"
Severus froze, trying to make sense what the prophecy meant. He knew he hadn't gone mad; the fact that he was not convulsing on the floor should be enough proof that the prophecy was genuine.
Tom Marvolo Riddle's – Lord Voldemort's – supposed weakness was that Potter child.
And he, Severus Septimus Prince was that boy's weakness in return.
Severus felt like laughing. To think that there was actually nothing to worry about! Even if he hadn't retrieved the prophecy, Marvolo's plan to have him kill the Potter child remained the same! This is the perfect revenge to the Potters! He was bound to succeed; even Fate had sided with him this time around!
His deranged laughter bubbled in his chest and he howled with joy, laughing until he coughed and had a stitch on his sides, his Occlumency shields built up on instinct in attempt to regain his senses and before Severus knew it, he was simply breathing hard and looked back at the crystal orb that held the prophecy; feeling his Animagus form stirring inside his chest in eager anticipation.
Despite being thoroughly convinced the Potter boy was his foe, he should observe from afar; waiting if another possible prophesized child would be born the next year or consider to have Neville Longbottom murdered too.
"Soon," he muttered. Yes, he could be patient. That was what all snakes do, staying silent and lulls the others into safety until they had the perfect chance to strike where it hurt their victim the most.
Hidden beneath the shadows, Death smiled at its Master.