Harvest Moon

Sorry, gang, BAD week at work. I’ll answer individually next time. But to Narcissa’s Sister and CoCo.M welcome aboard.



***



I am a nightmare walking, psychopath talking



“Please, please, just let me go. I won’t say anything, I swear!” the terrified woman on the floor moaned.



A strong hand grabbed her by the jaw, forcing her to her feet. “You wouldn’t say anything if I cut out your tongue either.”



She whimpered, her glance going around the room, searching for an escape route.



“I’ll make you a bargain. I’ll turn you loose and if you can manage to get away from me, I’ll set you free permanently. Does that sound like a fair chance?”



Not really, she thought but it was better than waiting to be carved up by a lunatic. She’d heard all of the stories going around the Gilded Lily about the three women who’d been killed and their bodies cut up from the others she worked with. She hadn’t believed them. At least not until now. Now it was very real to her and she needed to find some way to get out of this. She nodded.



“Very well.” The door to the dungeon opened and a blast of cool air rushed in. “You have a head start until I get bored with waiting.”



“How am I supposed to run in this?” she asked, glancing down at the very lovely but also very tight white lace gown she’d been forced into.



“That, my dear, is your problem, not mine.” Cold, calculating eyes met hers behind a stylized mask. “I suggest you not waste what time you’ve been given.”



With those words she fled, stumbling on the uneven flooring as she went out the door as fast as she could muster. She stumbled up the steep stairs and out into the open yard surrounding her makeshift prison. She paused for a moment and ripped open the seam at the bottom of the dress so she could run better before taking flight into the woods. If she was lucky, she could find a place to hide in the trees, if not . . .



A fine pocket watch was consulted for a moment. “Five, four, three, two . . .”



I wanna get psycho

Run you little bitch





***



Hermione sat at her desk and tried to fend off the headache which had been threatening all day. It was the day of the full moon and that made her nervous. She scanned through the documents on the Dawn Morris case and felt like banging her head into the desk. All roads led back to Lucius. She sighed heavily. At least Lucius was being watched by several aurors, had been since reporting his brother’s body had disappeared. While that made her feel somewhat better, she doubted any of the aurors set to do surveillance on him would be able to actually find him if he chose to give them the slip. Lucius was a very slippery and cunning snake, she knew this from experience and if he wanted to lose his followers it would be all too easy for him to manage.



“Now, you look like a woman with entirely too much on her mind,” Arabella said from the doorway.



“That would be a correct assumption,” Hermione said, rubbing her temples.



“Come along then. We’ll have lunch. I have a few things I’d like to tell you.”



Hermione shrugged and started putting away the paperwork. She figured she might as well go since Arabella really was a force of nature when it came to something she wanted. She could see why the other woman had attained the position she had in just a few short years.



“Should I go change?” Hermione asked.



“No. I have something far less formal in mind today since it’s lunch. There’s a lovely little pub just a few blocks from here that serves wonderful shepherd’s pie.”



“The Emerald Rose?” Hermione asked.



“That would be it.”



“They really do have wonderful shepherd’s pie. I’ve heard good things about their quiche as well,” Hermione said, putting away the folder and walking to the door.



“If you don’t mind, I’d like to spar with you as well after we eat,” Arabella said, walking to the muggle entrance/exit of the Ministry. “I’m not so certain that’s a good idea right after lunch but it will have to do as we both have such full schedules.”



“I didn’t know you were a fighter, Arabella,” Hermione said, now wildly curious as to why an elegant woman like her would be interested in such a thing in the first place.



Arabella shrugged as they stepped out onto the street in muggle London. “I haven’t been for quite a while, actually. I do think I should get back into practice though, all things considered. The neighborhood where I grew up was not a good one. You learned to take care of yourself if you wanted to survive. Especially if you were a girl.”



***



Lucius wandered through the house, trying to discern if the aurors had taken anything. He simply didn’t trust many people and the Ministry had a bad habit of taking things that didn’t belong to them in the guise of “evidence” or “research”.



One door had been left ajar and as he pushed it open a rush of memories came flooding into his mind.



”What are you two doing?” Lucius asked, looking at his brother and Liren’s eventual bride, Narcissa adding various things to the cauldrons set up in the room.



Narcissa beamed at him. “We’re making love potions.”



Liren rolled his eyes at that. “No, Narcissa, my angel, you are making love potions. Why is beyond me. I am making Non Corpus potion.”



Lucius’ eyebrows went up. “Really? I thought that was illegal.”



Liren shrugged. “It is. What kind of Slytherin would I be if I followed the rules? Add to it Father has been speaking to someone who wants to rid the wizarding world of all the mudbloods. I’d like to prove myself useful if he’s ever capable of putting those plans into effect. This would be one way to do that. Father has been teaching me the proper curses as well.”



“Ah so it’s you who’s been torturing the house elves. I’d wondered about that.”



“It’s hardly torture, Luc. It’s practice.”



“Isn’t he brilliant?” Narcissa had said, coming over to kiss Liren on the cheek.



“If you say so. Just don’t complain to me or Severus when you end up missing your eyebrows.”





“You should be ashamed of letting the lab get in this condition, Lucius,” a voice said from behind him, snapping him out of his memories.



“Sweet goddess, Severus, you nearly scared me out of my skin,” Lucius said, eyeing the ghost of his friend.



“Nearly. Seeing as you are still a corporeal being. Speaking of that, could you please tell your son to try controlling his partner’s urges to fight for those who can perfectly well defend themselves.”



“Dare I ask?”



“She’s gotten the wild hair up her bum that ghosts should be termed non corporeal beings. Do you have any idea how the Bloody Baron would react to being called Slytherin House’s non corporeal being?”



Lucius chuckled at the mental picture that conjured. “Badly, I would imagine. Severus, do you remember when Liren was trying to brew Non Corpus potion?”



“Yes,” Snape said tersely. “Why?”



“The two of you were the only people I’ve ever known who were capable of brewing it properly.”



“Why do I sense something else coming up with this?”



“Because it is. Someone is stalking me, Severus. Killing the women I’ve been with. Taking them apart afterward. I’m being set up.”



Snape nodded. “And I take it they’re using Non Corpus to aid in this?”



“Yes.”



“I’ll see what I can find out.”



***Author’s Notes***



The first song used in this chapter is Colors. I believe it’s Ice-T but don’t hold me to that since I’m not a rap or hip hop fan at all. The second is Meaning Of Life by Disturbed.