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Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K Rowling.
I own nothing but the original characters I make.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 375: The Lord's Manor
As soon as he felt his feet touch the ground, Snape's body was overwhelmed by an unpleasant sensation that made him dizzy and disoriented.
Luckily, there was a cabinet nearby, and he quickly used it to steady himself and avoid a bad fall.
This also gave him a moment to regain his bearings and glance around the place where he had arrived. It was a large room, and more specifically, it looked like the living room of a very elegant house.
Something about the furniture felt familiar. He had seen those before.
But before he could analyze it further, he felt a sudden urge to vomit.
"Urggggg!" He only had time to move his head down and let it all go.
Snape had never felt so ill after using a Portkey, and he had used plenty of them over the years.
"It is unpleasant, isn't it?" A melodious female voice spoke from the side.
This startled him, as he hadn't even heard anyone enter the living room, so this person must have already been inside and he had missed it.
Snape made an effort to straighten his back and look at the source of the voice. It was an extraordinarily beautiful and exotic woman with olive skin and amber eyes, looking at him with an innocent smile.
"It will soon pass. What you're feeling is just your body adjusting to the blood wards."
"Blood wards?!" Snape managed to say. He shouldn't have been that surprised by this, considering who he was visiting. But blood wards were one of the few home defenses that were illegal to use in all Britain territory, so you would rarely see wizard families being bold enough to use them anymore.
"Yes. Our Lord wanted the place secured completely. You see, this house has been breached in the past… and its previous owner was murdered," the woman commented.
Snape glanced down at the cabinet he had been using for support. A family symbol was engraved on its surface.
"Malfoy... this is Malfoy Manor!" He now realized why the furniture had felt so familiar.
He had been here many times in the past, though this living room seemed to have undergone some remodeling. The familiar pieces of furniture were all out of place.
"Correct. This used to be Malfoy Manor, but now it's our Lord's house. One of many."
Snape was feeling a bit better now and took a good look at the woman before him. He recognized her, of course. This beauty was infamous across magical Britain.
Because of the wealth she had amassed following the deaths of her many husbands, people called her the Black Widow.
"Trisha Zabini… you've been missing for months, along with your son. There were rumors that you'd left the country and gone to France."
She offered him a sweet smile that would put most men on their knees. "I appreciate the concern, but my son and I are perfectly fine. We've just been keeping a low profile so we can serve our Lord better."
Snape had to admit her act was convincing. But behind that charming smile was an unmistakable fear. She couldn't hide it from her eyes.
He sighed in relief as he regained his strength. Though still a bit dizzy, he no longer feared collapsing.
"I see you're feeling better. Then we should get moving. The Dark Lord is eager to see you in person," Trisha said.
Snape felt goosebumps at the thought of facing that man directly. This was going to be far more terrifying than speaking with one of his flesh puppets.
'Why did I let that damn boy convince me to do this?' Snape lamented.
But Potter had been persuasive. He made him understand that as long as Voldemort lived, Snape would never be free.
And if that monster won the war, there would be nowhere in Britain for him to hide.
By taking this risk, he hoped he might bring the Dark Lord one step closer to his downfall. At least, that's what he wanted to believe.
"Then let's not keep the Dark Lord waiting any longer."
Snape glimpsed at the stains he'd left on the polished wooden floor and wondered if he should clean them up before leaving. After all, this was Voldemort's house.
Trisha noticed his look. "Don't worry about it. We have many servants here. They'll clean it up." She turned and began walking out of the small dining room.
Snape wasted no time following her. He knew just how precarious his situation was. One misstep, and the Dark Lord could kill him without warning.
Being familiar with the manor, he could guess their destination after only a short walk.
The main hall was just two turns away.
Since he was being taken to the largest room in the house, this would likely not be a private meeting as he'd initially expected.
He spotted the large double doors, and as he anticipated, Trisha walked directly toward them.
What he hadn't expected was to see two familiar faces standing on each side of the door, waiting for him.
It was none other than Draco Malfoy and his mother, Narcissa.
The former Lady of the manor lifted her gaze to look at him with what appeared to be a genuine smile.
"Severus… it's been so long."
In his eyes, she looked as beautiful as he remembered, with her long platinum hair and piercing blue eyes. Yet she seemed incredibly sad.
Draco, however… was very different than he remembered.
His once-blue eyes were now a bright, unnatural yellow. His cruel smirk revealed a pair of sharp fangs. The boy was no longer hiding his dark nature.
Not that he had ever been good at it.
"So… you dare to come here… Professor," Draco sneered at Snape.
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