Chapter 35: Control
Lily Potter smirked as she looked at Severus's prone body on the rather disgusting floor of his cottage. It had taken her long enough, but she finally had the upper hand.
She smirked at his prone form remembering just how she had taken over. He had made the error of all things by quitting his job, which in turn meant that those house elves who had been watching her were dismissed from his house.
Turns out, he really hadn't made it that big he was just using the school's servants for his own use.
Such an abuse of power.
After that, well, it was only a matter of getting the upper hand when he went on one of his errands. Surprisingly, she had handled things in a rather muggle fashion by hitting him with a frying pan when he emerged from the floo.
The bastard went down pretty quick after that. She guessed she at least learned something from those times Tuney had gotten mad at her.
She shook her head thinking of her disgusting muggle sister. She usually tried not to think of her family or this stupid little town. She hadn't been back here until….until Severus had holed her up here for the past decade or so.
Tuney was dead.
She saw that in the paper.
She saw a lot of things in the paper that Severus had decided to keep from her.
The worst being what had happened to her son. All those years and….he was gone. And Sev hadn't even had the decency to tell her for her to properly grieve.
She'd be having a chat eventually with him about that, she wasn't planning on killing him…yet.
He'd still have his uses she smirked as she yanked out some of his hair. No one needed to know she was alive just yet and she had the perfect way to assimilate back into the wizarding world.
"Are you sure my boy?" Albus Dumbledore asked her or she should say Severus a few hours later.
Ugh, she really wanted to take a shower. She wondered if it would be believable for Severus to develop a love for bathing over the holidays.
"My reasons for resigning are no longer needed," She said still amazed with how her voice was now exactly like his.
It wasn't exactly the first time she had used Polyjuice potion. She had used it plenty of times in the past to get what she wanted…it just had been so long since she had used any magic really. She was still damn weak. And need of a better wand.
She was hoping Severus would've kept her wand around as a token or something, but she had not found it in the shabby little cottage of yet. Not that she really had looked. She was more concerned if he had some Polyjuice premade in his stock. Luckily, he did though she would need to by some more at the apothecary while she brewed some.
Albus hadn't really changed much in the past decade or so, she thought. Maybe his beard got a little longer, his taste in robes a little more garish.
"I thought teaching wasn't your forte," The headmaster said. "You were only here because of the boy after all. You left, well, not that long after Harry died."
Why was Severus here because of Harry? Even if she was strong enough she wouldn't dare penetrate Dumbledore's shields. Something else to ask Severus about.
"I needed to grieve," She found herself saying. Not the real reason Severus had left his job to hold her bloody captive.
She wondered if she woke up because her son had died. She had tied her magic to him after all since she couldn't do an actual blood adoption since she didn't have consent from his bloody donors.
It taken a lot of magic to get the entire process to work. It was shame it wasn't something that could really be written up since she violated so many ethics laws to achieve her baby with James.
And he had been taken away by a troll because Albus couldn't keep his school in bloody check. She had wanted to curse the headmaster really, but she restrained herself since she needed money at the moment and wanted to get her bearings back in the wizarding world without bringing too much attention to herself.
Hence, why she was groveling for Severus's job back.
"I'm surprised your admitting much," He said. "You were so hard on poor Harry."
She wasn't surprised she didn't even have to look into Severus's head to know he hated her son by the way the looks he shot her whenever she mentioned the boy.
"The boy was a dunderhead, Albus." She said as she felt it was something her former lover would've said.
"I see you haven't changed that much," Albus said. "I will discuss it with the board. Luckily, I haven't told anyone except Lucius about your resignation so it shouldn't be too much of a big deal."
Well, at least she had secured some employment for next year.
"I used to like shopping a lot more," Narcissa said her feet numb as they had stopped for lunch while they went on a last minute shopping trip.
Claire shook her head, "You can always owl order you know."
"Then you can't try things on," she said. "And make the mistake of buying robes too small like I did a few weeks ago."
Claire shook her head. "I do like the new look for what it's worth."
Narcissa shook her head. She was wearing muggle lounge wear. An oversized fleece pullover that still did a decent job of hiding her bump with a pair of fleece maternity leggings and a pair of muggle Ugg boots of all things. It was not her, but Claire had mentioned that the village she'd be staying at wasn't exactly very Narcissa Black friendly.
She grimaced knowing just how primitive the place was going to be a part of her still didn't want to go. She knew she didn't have to. She could stay with Sirius as long as she wanted, but she also knew she had to prepare.
She was in this alone.
Well, not alone. She had her sister, her cousin, and his girlfriend, but Lucius would not be there like she had hoped.
It had been one of those days where she cried as she thought of the past and what they had. How he had treated her when she was pregnant with Draco. It was the complete opposite of this.
He had been there for every appointment she had, went to birthing class with her, would cater to every want she had…but not now.
"You're thinking of him, aren't you?" Claire asked.
Narcissa sighed. "Unfortunately, it's still a shock…"
The veela nodded. "Believe me, I know. I'm sorry my brother treated you like that."
"I still can't believe you're his sister."
Though she could see the resemblance now. It wasn't pronounced but her cheekbones were similar to Lucius's and Draco's, her nose, her lips even had the same little pert look when she was annoyed.
Claire shrugged, "It's not something I really advertise. Not that he'd want me to."
No Lucius hated veelas. More than she even knew.
"I didn't…he didn't seem to be so bad." She found herself saying as she thought about that awful night.
Claire shook her head. "Don't blame yourself, I know the look."
"You're talking about the man who hurt you."
Claire nodded. Narcissa knew the basics from what Lucius had told her, but she had never heard the whole story. Claire hadn't exactly shared and Narcissa didn't blame her. Those were the sorts of things you didn't want to talk about.
It was hard enough just telling Andi and Siri what happened to her that day and she hadn't even gone into much detail.
"It helped to move on," Claire finally said.
"I'm not ready for that," she said. She had loved Lucius for so long thinking about being someone else just didn't feel right at this time.
"It doesn't have to be with someone serious," Claire said. "It wasn't for me at first, but it helps with our kind's emotions."
"You meant urges," Narcissa said feeling herself turn red.
"Essentially yes," Claire said. "I'm assuming you haven't had any yet?"
"I thought that night…" She said, "But I think that just have been me wanting him. I haven't felt anything since."
"You will," she said. "At some point."
Narcissa just shook her head. "I really don't think so Claire."
"Really?"
"It's just too soon." She said even though for a brief second she thought….no, no she would not.
Emma grimaced every time she referred to Remus as Hermione's uncle.
Her daughter deserved the truth, Remus deserved her knowing as well, but the situation was still delicate.
Hermione might've been human for longer than any other time since the incident, but her daughter's emotional state was still too raw.
She was just glad that her daughter didn't remember she and Dan were separated.
Emma hadn't even told the man yet that their daughter was recovering. They were only communicating through lawyers at this point. She had even moved out of their house in Crawley and was currently staying at that stupid wizarding inn while she was trying to find a flat. She was thinking maybe in Chelsea depending on whether not her daughter seemed like she could handle the city. She thought it might be a nice change for the two of them. Of course, that is if she decided to stay in the country. A part of her was thinking of leaving it all together because there was no way her daughter was going back to that school.
She knew attendance was mandatory. McGonagall had told them as much when she gave them her orientation on the wizarding world, though she had a bit more options a parent since she was a squib than as a muggle. Remus would even have more rights since he a wizard albeit a werewolf. They could at least enroll her in another school or possibly enroll her in home study if they could find a decent tutor.
She hadn't really been that impressed with what she saw so far about some of the other wizarding schools and how far they were away. But Hermione still was in no way ready to attend school at all at this point and they were just waiting for the other shoe to drop…
Meaning, would she turn into a werewolf? So far, she had made it through the first moon cycle with no transformation. They hadn't even bothered telling her it was a possibility. Just sedated her heavily that night in case she did transform, but she did not.
She still remembered the relief on Remus's face when she told him the good news. He looked so awful after the full moon. How did she never see it before?
He and Hermione seemed to get along quite well. It was fairly obvious that they were related. She really had taken after him. It was so strange she hadn't released that before. They had the same hands, Emma thought. Their eyes were the same tawny brown. She was going to be tall like him too. She was actually surprised how much her daughter had grown now that those potions had started reversing the atrophy from her time as a rat.
She was becoming a young woman way sooner than she'd like, but glad she was here and that she was talking. Albeit, they had to be careful what they talked to her about.
Remus mostly talked to her about books. He seemed to always have a book on him which was so like Hermione as well. She and Dan while book lovers, weren't near that enthusiastic.
"Jane Eyre?" She said surprised that he had bought a muggle book of all things today.
"Hermione mentioned it's her favorite."
"I haven't read it in a long time," Her daughter said. "I wanted something different."
Meaning something non-magical which was something Emma could get behind. Though she personally had a great distaste for Jane Eyre mainly because she was forced to watch every adaption of it with her daughter. She was just glad St. Mungo's didn't have a television because she could very easily see where this was headed.
"Different from your magic books?" Emma said, "Because otherwise I don't think it's very different. How many times have your read that book?"
"It never gets old," she said. "And it's been such a long time."
Emma rolled her eyes though it was good to see her daughter being her daughter again if only for a few minutes.
"Thank you," She later told Remus after Hermione had finished sleeping.
He shrugged. "I had a copy in my library. I can't believe you don't like Bronte."
"Try watching every adaption of said book and you grow old of it," She said with a shrug. "That's what I get for naming her after my favorite Shakespeare play."
"Ah, good taste. Shakespeare. And here I thought you named her after the character in Greek mythology.
Nope, it had been The Winter's Tale. She wasn't lying to Remus when she said it was her favorite play. It was also his. And they had seen it probably the night Hermione was conceived.
"I probably should've been a Ravenclaw," he said with a shrug. "James and Sirius's convinced me otherwise on the train. She seems to be doing a little better."
Emma nodded, "She is. She does better when that place isn't mentioned."
Remus grimaced, "You really don't want her to attend that school again, do you?"
"Do you?"
Fucking Peter Pettigrew wanted to make a fucking deal with her.
Her first thought was to fucking screw that guy.
He had some information regarding some of the tactics that Riddle used to get his members in line and of course she sort of had to fucking hear them.
Not that that was going to get him out of getting fucking kissed if she had anything to say about it.
She frowned as she looked at the fucker. He had only been in Azkaban a few nights before Lestrange fucking burned herself to death after Dursley attacked her.
That had been a fucking disaster.
There had be a ICW inquiry about the British prison system since Lestrange had died.
At least Lucius had dropped out of sight. It helped that he and Narcissa had a falling out over something. He had been invisible for the past month or so. She'd feel bad for him, but it was Lucius.
The past few times she had seen him he had seemed even more obnoxious than usual. She knew in part it had been because Narcissa had wanted him to put the screws to Lestrange's death, but there was also something about him she couldn't pinpoint.
She frowned thinking she was missing something. And she might've at this point, who knew what she had agreed to in the past and what had been oblivated and altered. It was a feeling you learned to live with when working for the ministry but she still bloody hated it.
"Amelia, aren't you looking nice?" Pettigrew smirked.
She wished she could curse the little bugger but with the international community's intervention she thought better.
"I don't take comments from perverted rats," she said instead glaring at him. "Rowle, said you wanted to talk?"
"I'll talk if you get my sentence commuted." He said.
"Not a fucking chance," she said glaring at him. "We don't commute sentences for traitors, murderers, and child rapists."
She blanched at that last part. It was something they had mercifully kept out of the public sector. Rita Skeeter would've had a field day with it. Still, there were at least three families that had been affected by what Pettigrew had done in the boys' dormitories for several years.
"Then I can't talk…imagine all the innocent blood that's on your hands, Amelia."
She glared at him as his attorney, Geoffrey Rowle looked at him. "Peter, perhaps you should let me do the talking."
That was probably the smartest thing Rowle had said thus far. Turning to Amelia Rowle said, "Peter has some potential evidence that the dark lord was using mind altering potions on several of his followers."
"Like that's not something I heard before," Amelia said with an eyeroll.
She had heard all about the Dark Lord's mind potions. She remembered someone had sold a similar concoction to the Department of Mysteries years ago. They never could exactly figure out who the seller was. Probably Dumbledore's pet Death Eater if she was to guess. It was rather nasty stuff. Your mind could twist in all sorts of ways that it shouldn't be able to. You could wake up loving your wife before taking the potion and killing her after. Use of such potions were highly prohibitive. Dosing someone with one could almost guarantee a life sentence to Azkaban at least. Still though, proving that someone had been dosed was easier said than done.
"Peter is willing to provide proof of someone being given the serum," Rowle said.
Amelia looked at him, "And if you think that's going to buy him a get out of jail card, forget it. Even Lucius offers me better deals than that."
She thought about the deal she was going to make with him regarding that Lestrange bitch before she burn to death. Had Lestrange survived they probably would've given her something similar to what Pettigrew was talking about.
Rowle looked at her, "Right now we just want to keep him out of Azkaban and in the ministry cell while his appeal is pending."
Amelia glared at him.
"Consider this first memory of his a sample," Rowle said. "If you're intrigued we can talk further."
"I'm going to have to be pretty fucking intrigued," She said looking at Pettigrew the fucking disgusting lump.
"Oh, I think you will." Rowle said handing her a vile.
Amelia rolled her eyes but got out her portable pensieve and watched the memory that unfolded.
She almost vomited at what she saw as she watched Bellatrix Lestrange being dosed constantly with the potion that they were talking about.
"Can't be sure she'll come to it," Riddle said. "I can't have her fighting me at all. She reacts different than the others ones do."
"My lord, I'm not sure what happened." Snape said.
Why did Dumbledore have to get that fucker off with just a slap on the wrist?
"Well, she's coming out of her stupor again. Make it stronger." He said, "I don't want her to even question me. She's started that stupid talk about a baby again."
"Maybe she's…"
"She tried to fight me. I don't want her to fight. Make it stronger. I want her to Crucio herself by the time by the end of today."
No wonder Lestrange was so crazy. It made her sick to the stomach that essentially the dead woman had been more or less innocent and tortured into committing all those crimes. And she still couldn't get out of her head what Riddle had done to the woman.
No wonder she was so crazy.
"I see you saw the memory," Rowle said.
She glared at him. "I did. I'm taking it you provided memories of Lestrange since she's dead and not much use to me?"
"You could always pardon her post death," Rowle said. "But think about what he's offering. He could help you put away Snape once in for all."
She grimaced. She knew the past prosecutor had made a very friendly deal with Severus based on Dumbledore's interference. Nailing the bastard would be nice, but at the same time she did not want to negotiate with a murderer who was a bonus child rapist.
"Let me think on this," She told Rowle. "He'll stay here for now."
Not that he was going back to Azkaban anytime soon anyway.
Chapter 36 Preview: A slight time jump by about two months. It's summer time and Draco
