Path of the serpent

Title: Path of the serpent
Author: ejab
Pairing: SS/LM with a little SS/RL and SS/DM on the side
Rating: story is slash and NC-17
Feedback: highly appreciated!
Disclaimer: checking my bank account… no, J.K. Rowling still owns them
WARNINGS: FLAYING, SKEWERS, BODIES, TORTURE… Make very sure you want to read this! I already made the decision to make it less graphic.
Category: all over the place
Summary: pay back time for Lucius. Severus really IS an evil man sometimes.
A/N: an apology beforehand; there may be some mistakes left as there was no beta available for this one.

17/?

As he had predicted for himself, sending out the four invitations, Lucius was the first to arrive. He Apparated just within the grounds, walked casually towards the house and stopped before the two moaning human 'decorations'. He looked up with an amused smile playing around his lips.

"Like what you see?" Severus remained standing in the doorway.

"You know I always appreciate creative Muggles maiming, Severus. And this certainly is creative," Lucius chuckled and followed his host into the house.

"Effy will show you the dining room, since I have other guests to greet," the potions master gestured his house-elf.

"Of course," Lucius followed the old house-elf while Severus looked how they disappeared into one of the many hallways. Ah yes, how Lucius would soon hate being here… he would -

"Severus! You bloody bastard! Taking away all the fun, are you?" The arrival of Bellatrix disrupted his thinking. He smiled coldly. Circe, how he hated that stupid woman!

"Don't worry, my dear. You'll be pleased to know that there are more where those came from," Snape called Effy and the procedure was repeated. Very soon he could hear excited laughter. Bellatrix had found the other two Muggles, then.

"Leave them be for now! Consider them dessert!" he called back, knowing her only too well.

There was some muffled protest to be heard but that seemed to be about it. Good.

Within five minutes the last two guests arrived. The potions master saw how Pettigrew could, upon seeing the staked Muggles, not completely hide his horror for a moment and snorted. Such a spineless coward; always had been and always would be. The Dark Lord, on the other hand, laughed his cold laugh and congratulated Snape with the display.

"You seem to be of the right stuff, after all, Severus. I am very pleased to see this," the red snake-like eyes seemed to penetrate straight through him.

"I thought it would be an appropriate welcome, worthy of a true Dark Lord," the potions master bowed and greeted the man as always by crawling to the hem of his robes and kissing it.

"You flatter me, Severus," Voldemort smiled a smile that did not fool Snape. The start had been good but the man was still not entirely convinced of his alliance.

"Please, allow me…" He led them straight to the dining room. This time Voldemort's reaction was pure enthusiasm as he noticed the human barbecue on the large table and the two terrified Muggles chained to the walls.

"Really, Severus.. you truly have original ideas! Who would have thought of such a delightful display of all that wonderful meat!" The Dark Lord received his greetings from Lucius and Bellatrix and sat down, smiling. "This looks like a very promising evening, indeed. Come and sit next to me, Severus. And you on my other side, Lucius."

Petigrew stared at the two wizards with extreme jealousy but wisely said nothing. He and Bellatrix took their seat at the opposite side of the table while Effy made sure everyone had somethingdrindrink. The food already was on the table when Lucius had showed up and magically kept warm so they could start eating any time they wanted to. Snape had to admit - Effy really had managed to outdo himself and served only the best of the best. As always, his appreciation was a curt nod but for the house-elf it was more than enough. Effy took great pride in pleasing his Master and knowing that he had succeeded was almost overwhelming. The house-elf felt like crying from joy. Not only had his Master allowed him to serve him again after so many years, he was also extremely satisfied with the service he had been provided with. A simple nod already was more than most house-elves would get but knowing this family, one could consider that close to a miracle. The little creature bowed and quickly left the room.

"You are spoiling that thing. It will be useless soon." Lucius' voice flooded across the room.

"At least I still have one," Snape countered indifferently.

"Please, let us enjoy this great meal first - the bloodshed is always better with a full stomach," Voldemort chuckled amused and drew one skewer out of the body in front of him, carefully making sure to cause as much pain as possible in the process. The Muggle screamed hoarsely when some of his own flesh was torn out with the skewer. Bellatrix laughed and did the same with a skewer that was inbedded in the man's thigh. Although she ripped off quite a larger amount of the man's flesh. Which made the Muggle scream even harder.

"LOVE that sound!" she giggled and served herself to some greens to go with the tender meat. Pettigrew gulped when he could see the white of exposed muscles and stuck to potatoes and chicory, declaring himself suffering from 'a mild intestinal flu', which sadly forced him to be careful with what he was eating.

"I wouldn't worry too much, Peter; the food is as fresh as it can ever be," Snape said, with a hint of sarcasm in his voice. That comment earned him yet another look of approval of The Dark Lord. Well now, he seemed to be on the roll tonight…

Dinner wasn't really all that unpleasant, the potions master concluded after more than a hour of eating and talking. Pettigrew never said anything unless he was asked a question, Lucius and Voldemort joined him in some rather interesting discussions and even Bellatrix behaved rather civilized. She did occasionally cast some impatient looks towards the Muggles but managed to
withold her primal urges quite well.

"I can not possibly eat more…" Bellatrix petted happily on her full stomach and turned to her host with a grin. "Can we have a doggy for for leftovers if there will be any, Severus?"

"If you insist… " Snape nodded with a sour look on his face. The whole concept of doggy bags was an insult to food, as fas as he was concerned. He called his house-elf nevertheless and instructed him to eventually take care of that issue later that evening. "And for now, clean new glasses for everyone. I do not find grease stains and blood spatters on glasses acceptable."

"Yes, Master," Effy bowed and went down to the kitchen for replacements. He could use magic, of course, but his Master preffered to be served in the old ways. He had remembered that well. And also, this request was the sign his Master had given him. He obediently poured the given potion in one of the glasses before filling it up with wine and, back in the dining room, made sure he served that glass to mister Malfoy. After fulfilling his duties, he hastily left again.

"I want the dessert now, can we start on the dessert now, Severus?" Bellatrix stared eag at at the chained Muggles.

"Business first, my impatient one," Voldemort grinned and turned to the host. "I believe you have something for me, Severus?"

"Yes, my Lord." The potions master grabbed in one of his pockets and retrieved a green vial, which he handed over to Voldemort.

"Have you tested it?" The Dark Lord caressed the vial with his long fingers and held it against the light.

"There was no time - I finished it just yesterday," Snape hesitatingly admitted.

"I see… " For a moment Voldemort was distracted by Bellatrix, who was now with a finger poking in one of the wounds of the Muggle on the table in front of her to see how far the skin would stretch. He sighed. "What do you have in mind, Bellatrix?"

"I am sorry, My Lord, …I was just wondering if there would be enough skin to make me a nice little pouch… it's just that I have never been any good at flaying."

"Ah, I am sure Lucius can help you with that. He is excellently skilled at that. Would you do her the honour, Lucius?" The Dark Lord set the vial on the table and smiled at the man to his right.

"Most certainly, My Lord," Lucius proudly stood up, picked a suitable knife with great care and turned to Bellatrix. An extensive lesson of anatomy followed, in which he slowly and meticulously explained to her how to cut and why. After making a few incisions himself, he handed the knife over to Bellatrix and guided her through the process. The best way of learning was doing it, after all. The fact that the Muggle was still alive only added to the fun. Voldemort watched with great interest. Pettigrew tried to but was turning slightly green at the same time. Severus looked and found himself extremely bored with the whole procedure. He had seen Lucius' handiwork so often that he could, without hesitation, recognise his work just by seeing then itn itself. He was good at it, though. He had to give him that. And apparently he was also good at teaching because it didn't take Bellatrix very long to flay the man's buttocks without damaging or breaking the skin. The muggle moaned, not able to shout anymore.

"I've got it! I've got it! I can make a very nice pouch of this!" With a disgusting sounding 'plop', Bellatrix pulled the skin of the man's body and stared almost deliriously at her teacher.

"Very go" Lu" Lucius nodded his approval and quickly sat down on his chair again. Snape supressed a smile and knew; the potion was starting to work.

"No - I want more skin, this one's too cut up," Bellatrix turned to the Muggles on the wall and went for the woman. In no time, horrible screams and the smell of blood were filling the room.

"Don't you want to play, Lucius?" Voldemort was curious. "You usually are one of the first to head for the toys. You and Avery always seemed to have some sort of competition as to who would be the first to get their hands on one."

"Not tonight, My Lord. I will let Bellatrix practice on her new skills. After all, she now knows how to keep them alive while flaying and that IS half of the fun," Lucius smiled politely and shifted in his chair. Again. He was shifting a lot in his chair the last few minutes.

"But you look restless to me, Lucius. You certainly look like you could use the break," The Dark Lord frowned, wondering what had gotten into the man next to him. The potions master just ed aed a bit more. He knew his lover now had an erection so hard, it would be extremely painful to keep it in its prison.

"It's nothing, My Lord, it will pass…" Lucius shifted again, clenching his fists under the table, trying to figure out what was happening and meanwhile controlling the pain he was in. That was getting very, very hard to do. He shifted again and grabbed his wineglass to take another sip and make the impression that it indeed was no big deal. The moment he swallowed the wine and for a second locked eyes with Severus, he suddenly knew. The realisation hit him like only a Cruciatus could. That bloody bastard! He - it felt like his brains stopped working for a few seconds. A complete meltdown. Oh Merlin! Oh please, Merlin… NO! He had NOT done that to him! He would never be so ruthless! Would he? Oh Merlin! Catching his breath again, Lucius stared one last time at his lover and every doubt he still had, evaporated. Yes, he HAD done it - oh damn!

Damn damn damn! Why had he ever chosen to play with Sev, of all people?! That man was so truly Slytherin and so dangerous and so…

"Lucius, my dear friend… " Judging at the burning in those evil red eyes, Voldemort by now had discovered the situation he was in. "THAT pleased to see me, mmm? How touching!" The unhealthy white spiderlike fingers started to stroke over the very visible bulge in his trousers. "Or are the actions of Bellatrix turning you on?"

"No, My Lord…" Oh Merlin, how was he ever going to come out of this unharmed?

"So it is me? How nice to hear that, Lucius." The Dark Lord smiled a very predatory smile. He really couldn't care less what caused this turn of events. He did register the satisfied smirk on Severus' face, however, and made a mental note of never underestimating the potions master again, since he obviously knew more about the state Lucius was in. "And so convenient too. Having a new body again made me realise how much I missed … certain things, and lately I can not seem to get enough of it. I am making up for lost time, so to speak. You are loyal enough to let me make up for lost time, aren't you, Lucius?"

"Y-yes, My Lord." He gulped. As if there was any choice! One did not refuse The Dark Lord and live.

"How generous. Undress yourself, Lucius." A command. Cold and uncompromising.

Bellatrix stopped playing and turned around, Pettigrew looked strikingly relieved (so no guess as to who The Dark Lord normally abused, Lucius thought) and Sev merely folded his arms in front of his chest.

As proudly as he could, Lucius obeyed.

"You really are beautiful, my dear friend," The Dark Lord nodded approvingly. The next moment he flicked his wand and muttered something. Lucius instantly found himself chained to the wall, next to the male Muggle. And for the first time in many, many years he truly felt fear creeping up inside of him.

"So enchanting… " With an almost dreamy expression Voldemort caressed his torso with his wand. Knowing what the man was capable of doing with it, that was quite distressing. To say the least.

"And now for some foreplay. I LOVE foreplay, don't you, Lucius?" The smile of his Master made his victim feel sick to the stomach. Lucius held his breath while his eyes drifted to his lover, silently looking for comfort. Which he didn't find. Sev just sat back, determined to watch the show, his face completely indifferent. Gods, what had that man done?!

A scream escaped his mouth as the pain took him in surprise. Lucius franticly tried to move away from it but the manacles held him firmly in place. The Dark Lord chuckled.

"Yes, you like that, don't you?" Red eyes piercerougrough him as the pain continued. Lucius looked down, wanting to know what caused it, but all he could see was the wand travelling down along his exposed flesh. It left bleeding cuts everywhere it had been.

Another murmured incantation and the pain seemed to multiply and eat him up alive. Merlin, this was even worse than the Cruciatus! Biting his bottom lip to prevent more screams from leaving his mouth, Lucius squeezed his eyes shut and tried not to cry or beg. He would not be able to stand this for long, he knew.

"Ah yes… not as tight as I would like but good enough for me," he heard The Dark Lord say, while long bony fingers started to poke around in his arse, stretching him roughly. Lucius supressed an urge to gag and tried very hard to distance himself from his body. Not an easy thing to do with three pairs of eyes on him.

Again more pain. Excruciating and pulsingsing him until he was nothing more than a whimpering, shivering, almost lifeless form hanging from the wall. He lost conciousness once or twice, he couldn't remember, desperately trying to keep sane and not let the pain eat away at his brain. It felt like it did, though. Finally, he even stopped looking at his lover for support of any kind. It was too painful because all he could see were those uncaring eyes. Cold eyes. Lifeless eyes. Like he wasn't even there. A concept he felt evneedneed for. Detachment. Separating himself from his body. Lucius did just that the minute he was turned around, facing the wall, feeling a cock pushing against and then entering his entrance.

Time stood still. This did not happen. He did not feel the merciless pounding inside of him.

"Too quick, still so very quick…" Voldemort sounded disappointed. Lucius was not. The humiliation was tremendous. Not to mention the loathing. Which only multiplied when he felt the semen drip out of him. Oh Merlin! SO disgusting!

"Next time I insist on having your full attention, Lucius." Turning his follower around again, The Dark Lord gave Lucius a very displeased look. "I will give you a little reminder so you won't forget. Other than that, you were nice to play with. Thank you, my loyal servant." Voldemort again mumbled several incantations. Lucius was free again, falling forward on his hands and knees. His Master dismissed him and walked towards Bellatrix. Lucius just sat there for a few seconds, getting to grips with what had just all happened. He slowly looked at his body; the cuts were magically healed and gone. The pain, however, was not. He carefully dressed himself again with trembling fingers.

Bellatrix laughed at something The Dark Lord said to her and returned to her hobby. Pettigrew made sure he kept some healthy distance between himself and the battered Malfoy and went in search of a toilet. The last thing he saw out of the corner of his eye was how Lucius went straight for Severus, whs sts still sitting and smiling. Like he had done during the whole event, in a very disturbing way.