Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Sixteen

It started like an ordinary day, as ordinary as any of their days had been there at the Manor. Lucius held court in his inimitable fashion at the top of the table, nodding to Lupin every now and again to back up his more ludicrous remarks, quite ignoring the fact that Lupin in turn ignored him and continued trying to feed Draco. Sirius and Severus bitched with one another about everything from Sirius's renewed lack of enthusiasm for finishing the cleaning of the charmed rooms, to whether it would rain later or not. Harry helped the bickering along with the odd little sounds that Sirius insisted were words, and Severus maintained were merely grunts that Sirius must have taught him to indicate that he wanted food.

Lupin stood up first, depositing Draco on the floor to scuttle away to where Snape had put Harry down too. 'I'm heading into Hogsmeade for cigarettes before my music class today,' he said. 'Anyone want anything?'

Nobody wanted anything, and the werewolf left the dining room, whistling tunelessly. Snape stood up next, and Sirius had a sinking feeling that he was going to insist that the cleaning be finished; he wasn't disappointed.

'Don't think you're going to be malingering the day away, Black,' he said over his shoulder as he left the room. 'You have ten minutes to finish that coffee you only poured so that you could waste another hour.'

Sirius made a face at his back and picked up the coffee cup to nurse it. He noticed Lucius was watching Snape's disappearing back. Malfoy waited until he heard the door close on the corridor door to the charmed rooms before he spoke.

'What was yesterday all about?' he asked.

'I think you should ask Severus that,' Sirius replied. 'It's not my place to tell you his business.'

Lucius nodded uneasily. 'I was just wondering if it had anything to do with Vernon Dursley.'

'I don't know what you mean.' Sirius didn't want to talk about this behind Snape's back.

'Suit yourself, Black.'

'Look, Lucius, I don't know what, if anything, you know of Severus's business, and I will not discuss it with you. You'll just have to accept that.'

Malfoy nodded again. 'Of course, you're quite right. It's just ... don't let him do anything stupid. We've got enough on our plates right now.'

'I won't. I promise.' He was going to leave it there, but something was worrying him; it was worrying Malfoy too. 'How much do you know, Lucius?' he asked.

'Very little,' Malfoy admitted. 'But I do know that Vernon Dursley was a cousin of Severus's father. Dumbledore told me that a while ago when he ... when he asked me whether I thought Severus would accept looking after Harry.'

Sirius masked his surprise that Dumbledore had asked Lucius's opinion on Harry's future. 'Why would he say that?' he asked instead. What he really meant was, "How would he know that?", but he supposed Dumbledore would have checked the family out, particularly for magical connections before he left Harry there. Sirius could see Lucius was struggling, but he was loath to say any more.

'I'm not sure, Black, but for some reason it was one of the reservations he had about where Harry was, one of the reasons he wanted him moved.'

'I don't think either of us know any more than the other; let's leave it there,' Sirius suggested.

'You're going to tell Severus I asked, aren't you?' Lucius asked.

'Yeah, I reckon I will.'

'Don't let him do anything stupid,' Lucius repeated.

'Why would you think he's going to do something stupid?'

Lucius looked to the door as though to check Snape wasn't standing eavesdropping. 'I'm going to tell you something in confidence, and I expect you to keep it that way,' he said quietly. 'Dumbledore had the Dursleys thoroughly checked; that was how he found out about the relationship. What he didn't know, what in fact I only found out this morning, was that Vernon Dursley almost went to Muggle prison for raping a fourteen-year-old boy in a public toilet. In fact, he only got off when the plaintiff, whose mother just happened to buy an expensive new car the week later, dropped the case. Now ... I don't know if those facts have any bearing on Severus or not, and I'm not asking you to break any confidences between you and him ...' He hesitated as though searching for the right words. 'I think that Severus may have been abused at home, and I ... Damnit, Black, I'm just worried his past is coming to haunt him when he needs it least.'

'Trust me, Lucius,' Sirius replied. 'I'll look out for him; I swear I will.' He stopped for a moment as something occurred to him. 'How did you find out about Dursley being charged with rape?'

'There's very little I can't find out.' Lucius tapped the side of his nose with a manicured finger. 'Remember I do business in the Muggle world too.' He took a letter from his pocket and laid in on the table. 'When I saw Severus's reaction to Regulus's mentioning Dursley the other day, I had my Muggle lawyer do a little Muggle checking, the kind Dumbledore doesn't have at his fingertips.'

'I'll look out for him,' Sirius repeated.

*****

Lupin wished they'd hurry up; he was hungry. It was the third time the Roundtrees had come to see the school, and once again they hadn't even brought the nephew for whom they wanted a space. Lupin had almost begun to wonder if the nephew existed, or if the couple had some weird fetish about musical instruments.

Mrs Roundtree picked up one of the small flutes. For just a moment Lupin thought she was going to play it, just for a moment though, until his sense of danger kicked in as he realised they were playing for time. He had his hand casually in his trouser pocket anyway, his wand pocket, wartime habits died hard, and he felt its reassuring length.

'Look, Mrs Roundtree,' he began, and watched her lookup sharply; he knew this wasn't good. 'Can we finish off now? Only I have other things to do.'

Mr Roundtree was between Lupin and the door; he wasn't doing much, if Lupin didn't count standing what looked suspiciously like guard. 'What's the hurry, Lupin?' he asked. 'You'll be quick enough to take our Galleons, so you can spend a little time with us here.'

'I don't think I much want your Galleons, Roundtree,' Lupin replied, 'but then I was never getting them anyway, was I?' He drew his wand, but he knew he was no match for them, not for three of them, as another man materialised from outside, a man who wasn't in disguise. Lupin was sure Barty Crouch Junior didn't have a nephew for the music school either.

*****

Lucius dusted the imaginary flecks from his black doublet for effect, just in case anyone asked him to do anything, not that they would be inclined to waste their breath. 'Are you going to be much longer?' he asked. 'Only, Lupin will be back by now.'

'He means he's hungry,' Sirius translated, as the last of a swathe of black velvet left the end of Snape's wand to drape the window.

'Why don't you make yourself useful, Lucius, if you're bored?' Snape asked. 'It would help to take your mind off food. We shall not be much longer.'

'I'm not that bored,' Malfoy replied. 'I doubt that I ever shall be. It's very bad form for a man in my position to gain a reputation for manual labour.'

'You're perfect, Lucius,' Snape said dryly.

'I know,' Malfoy replied with his expansive smile, and left them to it.

Malfoy made his way to the drawing room, wondering what was keeping Lupin; he wasn't usually as late as this, and it had been a good half-hour since Lucius had heard the infernal din the children made when they left. He seemed to remember Lupin had mentioned something about parents coming to look the place over again; Merlin alone knew why, he couldn't possibly take any more kids just now. He found he had meandered into the kitchen to where the elves were beginning to take lunch through to the dining room. It looked good, he thought, as he filched an Orkney crab claw from one of the plates.

He opened the back door and stepped outside, squinting through the still leafless fruit trees, which separated the kitchen garden from the rest of the gardens and the outhouses, to see if he could see Lupin's familiar figure slouching his way up the gravel path with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth. It was a lovely day, sparkling late winter sun just beginning to hint of spring; he'd walk down and hurry him up.

The pain was so intense when it hit him that Lucius thought he'd had a seizure. He remembered his grandfather falling to the ground in agony one day of what had later been described as a spasm of the heart; Lucius doubted that, Grandfather Malfoy hadn't had one of those. And then he was kicked over onto his back, and found himself looking up at Regulus Black's wand.

'Careless, careless, Lucius,' Regulus said with a smile like a hungry shark. 'But then you never were one of the world's thinkers.' He held out his hand and began to haul Lucius to his feet. 'You and I are going to have a little chat.'

Lucius waited until he was almost upright, and Regulus was slightly off balance from pulling him up, before he lunged himself forward, knocking the wand from Regulus's hand as he groped for his own. He would have managed too, even through the pain; he would have managed to gain control if Barty Crouch had kept his nose out of it.

*****

There was no point in accusations. It was everyone's fault: Lupin's fault for being late, and for not realising that there was something suspicious about a couple coming three times to view his school without a child; Sirius and Severus's fault for not keeping their eye on Lucius when Lupin was at the school; Lucius's fault for ignoring the one rule he had not to break; but Severus knew he should have killed Regulus Black ... he'd had enough chances.

'And don't start that crap,' Sirius snarled at Snape as Minerva handed Lupin a painkilling potion. 'This isn't your fault.'

'Enough,' Dumbledore raised his hands. 'Every one of us is to blame, including Lucius himself. He knew not to leave the house alone, and yet he did.'

They had already been to Grimmauld Place, but no one was there, and Kreacher told Sirius that Regulus had not been back since he had gone out in the morning. Snape had stood over him as Sirius issued the elf with very explicit instructions about calling him if anyone tried to come to Grimmauld Place. Lucius was not included under the Nominatum Perpetuum Charm, so Kreacher was the only one able to allow any of Regulus's band access. Severus had listened as Sirius questioned the elf with a skill he would hardly have credited him with, dragging out the fact that Regulus had gone into a mindless fury when Kreacher obeyed Sirius's dreamlike order to get cleaning.

Snape had watched Sirius close his eyes in realisation of just what had happened to let loose the chain reaction that ended with Lucius being taken prisoner, and admired his tenacity again as he stood and squared his shoulders under the burden of his guilt. He didn't fool Severus though; he knew how he'd feel about that, and he knew better than to offer any platitudes.

They had been to Godric's Hollow too, but it seemed deserted; it didn't look as though the ruins had been disturbed at all. They were at a loss, and Dumbledore's comment that Regulus would have taken Lucius in an attempt to get his hands on Harry did little to quell anyone's anxiety. There wasn't much they could do but wait for his demands, and worry, and steep themselves in guilt that they had only had one thing to do at the Manor, and they had failed in that.

Even expecting the owl, and longing for it to appear, didn't lessen the shock of its arrival. Snape got to it first; it was heading for him anyway.

"Severus.

I am sure you are already aware that I have seen fit to take Lucius Malfoy prisoner. You may let my brother know that Malfoy will be released unharmed when I have Harry Potter delivered to me.

I am making the assumption that you know that Sirius is still alive; if you do not, it is well that you do, and if you do know, I shall be interested to know why you kept that fact from me.

Whatever the case may be, I feel that if we are to maintain any sort of trust in one another that you leave Malfoy Manor and come to me. I shall tell you where in due course.

Regulus Black."

Snape laid the scroll aside and tried to think. He couldn't recall if they had mentioned Sirius at their last meeting; he knew they had made a few references to him at Florian Fortescue's, but he thought he could brush that off if he had to.

'What are you thinking?' Lupin asked as Minerva left his side to attend to the two little boys; they had sensed the tense atmosphere and had become fractious and clinging.

'I'm thinking of where they have taken him, Lupin,' Snape replied. 'I have an idea; not one which I like very much, and for that very reason it is a possibility.'

Dumbledore looked up. 'Where, Severus?' he asked.

'Spinner's End,' Snape said quietly. 'He knows the house is empty.'

'Why do you think that?'

Snape looked round at the old man as though he'd asked him what colour of socks he was wearing. 'Have you a better idea?'

'I have no ideas, Severus. However, I want to know every last thing you are planning. I want to know that every "t" is crossed and "i" is dotted before you leave here,' Dumbledore cautioned. 'I will not allow any of you to risk your necks on a wild goose chase.' He was interrupted by the arrival of Andromeda.

'Has something happened?' she asked. 'I got a strange message from Bellatrix, telling me not to visit Grimmauld Place just now as no one would be there. She also asked me to keep her informed if the Headmaster left the castle.' She trailed off as she took in the sombre faces. 'What's happened?'

*****

Snape watched over Andromeda's shoulder as she wrote her message to her sister in her long flowing hand. He had to keep bearing in mind that it was not only Regulus who would have this relayed to him. He had to be careful; fooling Regulus was one thing, fooling Voldemort was quite another, and he certainly did not intend to compromise Andromeda's safety.

Andromeda signed her name at the bottom of the parchment and handed it to Dumbledore. The old man read it, clearly unhappy, but just as clearly grudgingly accepting. At length he nodded and turned to Sirius's cousin.

'I will only agree to this if you bring your family within the walls of Hogwarts until we have dealt with the danger, Andromeda,' he said. 'Remember this, we do not know if Kreacher told Regulus that you were one of those who cast the Charm on Grimmauld Place; that being the case, we do not know if your own cover is secure.'

'I doubt Ted could get the time off work, Dumbledore. I don't think his customers would appreciate being told they can't get milk because his witch wife says a wizard might come and get him.'

'In that case, I will not allow this,' he said, unmoved by her attempt at levity.

'Very well,' she said, slightly abashed. 'Ted will understand. He'll make arrangements. Let us just hope it's not for too long.'

Dumbledore nodded gravely and turned to where Snape had sat at the table. 'And now, Severus, you have a letter to write too, and do not think for one moment that you're going to be sending it until I have analysed every word of it.'

'I was thinking of delivering my lines in person,' Snape replied.

*****

Vernon Dursley looked up at the window from where he sat, quite petrified to do anything more than squeak his occasional objection to being held a prisoner in his own home. No one had called, which was hardly surprising. The decent people in this neighbourhood were going about their lawful business at this time of day; that was why he had paid so much for the house, so he could surround himself with decency. Vernon hadn't bothered to wonder how Petunia was faring since the black-haired woman had taken her away, but he hoped Dudders was all right; Vernon knew all about prioritising, and right then his priority was his own skin.

He glanced across to where a man lay in a tangle of strange black clothes. He had ridiculously long, pale yellow hair; it must have been bleached by some poof hairdresser ... he was another one of them. The world was full of them; something should be done about it. Vernon intended to have a strong word with his local Member of Parliament once he got out of this. The blond man hadn't moved since Black and another two men had dragged him in and let him lie where he fell; Vernon thought he might be dead. He hoped not, not from any sense of compassion, but it would be one less thing to explain if it ever got down to it.

He looked at the window again, wondering if he should tell the stony-faced Black that a ruddy owl was hopping up and down on the window ledge; he knew it must be for them, respectable owls didn't come out through the day. Mind you, neither should bogeymen, but they did, and he had a feeling that Regulus Black was about as bogey as they came. He made a noise to attract attention, halfway between a cough and a squeal, and as Regulus turned to him he nodded to the window, to where the owl blinked her eyes. She looked like a large feathered cat; Vernon wouldn't have been surprised if she was.

He watched Regulus try to take a piece of rolled up paper from the owl's leg, but the bird bit him. 'Get Bella,' Black hissed, and stuck his finger in his mouth.

The woman with the black hair came into the room a minute later; she took the paper from the owl and began to read, with Black looking over her shoulder. He seemed to relax just a fraction as he read. Vernon thought it must be good news; that was fine by him, he would like Black to have all the good news he wished for, as long as he was out of his bloody life forever. He wondered if it would be appropriate to ask to use the toilet; his bladder was reminding him of the extra two cups of tea he had had, and the fact that he wasn't getting any younger. One glance from Black told him to hold on as long as he could.

'It's from Andromeda,' Black said to the other man in the room, a thin-faced, even younger man, with brown hair and slightly mad-looking eyes. 'Dumbledore's left Hogwarts; he had a bundle with him.'

'The boy?' the other man asked.

'Perhaps,' Black said, and Vernon could see he said so with some degree of satisfaction.

He watched Black stoop down to the prone blond man and grasp a handful of his hair. 'You must be very important to him, Lucius,' he said, as Vernon watched the eyelids flutter. 'Even now they are rallying to your cause. I can hardly wait.' He dropped the handful of hair, and the man's head fell to the floor again with a soft thud, causing him to groan.

At least he was alive, Vernon thought. He noticed that Black seemed to think the groan indicated consciousness too, and he stooped again. 'Tell me, Lucius, while you're awake, as I know you are... is Severus Snape in Dumbledore's confidence too?'

Vernon whimpered, as he felt a squirt of urine leave his body at the mention of the last name he ever wanted to hear again. It was just a little spurt, he was sure it wouldn't be noticed; maybe it would take the pressure off the rest, he thought, as he felt the wet patch on his outsize white cotton underpants begin to cool.

*****

Lucius tried to think through the pounding pain in his temples, whether it was better to feign unconsciousness for longer, or if he would have a better chance if he knew where he was and something of what was going on, but the only thing he seemed to be able to think about was how furious Severus was going to be that he'd moved out of the Manor alone. He hoped Lupin was all right; Sirius and Severus could look after themselves, but ... he hoped Lupin was safe.

He'd heard Regulus tell Bellatrix to write to Andromeda. He couldn't think what that meant, and he was about to try puzzling that through again when he felt someone stooping to him, felt the tug on his hair. He almost smiled to himself; he would have if it hadn't been so fucking unfunny. He'd had so many years of practice, with Severus or Sirius or someone else pulling his hair during heated bedroom games, that he had learnt not to wince, learnt that it could happen when he was blindfolded or hooded, or even just semi-conscious as he was then, and that the worst thing to do was wince. He allowed himself a tiny groan, as his head hit the floor again, not that it had been terribly far away.

Lucius had been expecting the question. Whatever had caused Regulus to make his move must have been important, and yet he was relieved that Severus's cover seemed not to be blown; he didn't intend to be the one to expose him. Lucius knew he had to make this good; he hoped he had the balls.

'I don't know,' he said quietly, pleased to find his voice sounded tired, but not laced with the dread he felt.

'Tell me, Lucius,' Regulus asked, grabbing another handful of hair and pulling his head up. 'Why should I trust a man who did not even have the courtesy to let me know that my one brother was still alive?'

He hadn't expected that one; it shocked him, but obviously denial was pointless, feigned ignorance might not be though. 'Sirius is dead, Black.'

'The elf seems to think not,' Regulus replied.

'I don't understand.' Lucius slurred his words as much as he dared. 'I know he's dead ... I paid for him to be killed ... it was in the paper, for fuck sake. Where am I?' he asked. 'What's going on?'

He felt Regulus drag him upright, and found he didn't have to fake almost blacking out with the pain in his head; it was all he could do to keep it attached to his shoulders for the time being. Black seemed to recognise the fact and let him sit for a few moments to compose himself. That told Lucius that Regulus wasn't sure; that was good. If he weren't sure, he needed him alive; if he weren't sure that Sirius was alive, he also wasn't sure if Lucius had double-crossed him. He let his eyes open reluctantly, and frowned; he had never been in such a strange room in his life. He recognised it as Muggle; he had enough dealing with the Muggle world to see that much, but the confusion of sugary-pink and peach and pale green made him feel almost sick. 'Where am I?' he asked in genuine confusion.

*****

Sirius and Severus had just arrived back from Spinner's End with Kingsley, disappointed and dispirited, when Andromeda's owl returned to the Manor after its side trip to where its mistress was at Hogwarts. Andromeda had only taken a few moments to frown at her sister's return message, before resealing it and addressing it to Dumbledore. She wasn't sure what it meant, but she was sure the others would find some meaning.

It took Severus all his time not to tear it out of Dumbledore's hands, especially as he saw the nod that meant the Headmaster had gleaned something of value. He was shocked to see the tiny tremor in his own hand as he reached for it.

"Dear Andromeda,

Thanks for the information. If anything should come to your ears regarding our late unlamented cousin, Sirius, who seems not to be as late as we had been led to believe, please write straight to Regulus. Between you and me, sister, he was bit put out when your owl bit him.

You can't come to us just now; we're in hiding for the time being until we get the boy in a swap for Lucius. Suffice it to say we're very safe, even though it's only a handful of useless males here, we're not even in the magical world as such ..."

Snape let the letter drop from his fingers, and turned to Black; he didn't need to read any more. He only realised his mouth was open when he felt it snap shut. 'The stupid arrogant bitch,' he said in triumph, as he realised Black had added two to two and come to four as well.

'Wait,' Dumbledore said firmly. 'You will stay here until I get more men here.' He'd stood up again to emphasis his point.

'What's happening?' Lupin said, jumping to his feet too. 'Tell me, someone.'

'Severus and Sirius seem to think that Regulus is staying where Harry was sent when James and Lily died. Am I correct in my assumption?' Dumbledore asked as he looked over his glasses at them, waiting for Sirius's nod. 'I have to agree. And where Regulus and Bellatrix are, Lucius is also likely to be.'

He bent over the table and composed a short letter, suggesting that Andromeda ask Bellatrix if they needed any more Death Eaters, or if they had enough men with them, in an attempt to find out just how many they were dealing with. A couple of hours at the very most for the owl post would not make much difference; nothing worse should happen to Lucius by waiting such a short time, and another indiscretion on Bellatrix's part could make all the difference to a successful outcome.

He watched the owl fly off to Hogwarts; Andromeda wouldn't take long, she was as anxious as anyone else. He reminded himself to recommend her for the Order of Merlin once this was over; she had played a dangerous and vital part in this, and soldiers tended to forget those who prepared their way by pulling strings this way and that. It was the way of the front men, the ones who did the bleeding if it all went wrong.

Dumbledore turned as Sirius pulled on his Muggle leather jacket and began to cast Charms about himself. Instead of speaking, he removed his wand from his dusty silk robes and pointed it at the younger man; it was a much more effective way of getting his attention.

'We were just going to watch the house for a few minutes,' Sirius said lamely.

'I would prefer not to deal with you or Severus by magical means, Sirius.' Dumbledore turned to look behind him to where Lupin had begun to get to his feet again. 'And you too, Remus. But be assured that I shall, if you make any attempt to leave here without my approval.'

*****

'It's from Andromeda again,' Regulus said with a frown. At least this one was addressed to himself, he thought, as he gave the owl a superior look he suspected was wasted on it. He scanned the message quickly and paused, tapping his teeth with his index finger.

He looked to where Lucius sat with his head bowed; a thin trickle of blood ran from his mouth, and one of his hands lay in his lap, without its manicured fingernails. He had been a far tougher nut to crack than Regulus would have given him credit for. He had a sneaking suspicion that Lucius had been telling him the truth; in fact he would have suspected so a while back, were it not for the constant interference of Voldemort insisting he was lying. He would flatter Lucius back into his confidence, and together they would seek out the Potter boy, and put this unpleasantness behind them. If Sirius wanted to play at being dead, he could do so; it was a silly restrictive game as Regulus had found out to his own cost. He would just give Lucius one more try, just to be on the safe side.

'Bella, write back to Andromeda and tell her we have enough men here. Tell her where we are, and ask her to bring me some Veritaserum; there must be some at Hogwarts,' he said and sat down on the floor beside Lucius; he might as well make begin to make amends now. 'Lucius, it isn't for you,' he lied. 'I believe you. Rest now for a while.'

He looked across to where Dursley sat whimpering to himself. He would never understand Muggles. Why on earth the fat idiot had seen fit to sit in a pool of his own piss, instead of asking to go to the toilet, was quite beyond him. There was one thing for sure; they certainly weren't fit to mix with decent pure-bloods. The sooner he got out of this awful house the better. Regulus wished he'd gone to Spinner's End; at least it was empty.

It was almost another hour before there was a knock on the front door, a sharp short rap of the kind an impatient man would make. Regulus pulled the curtain aside and almost gasped in satisfaction; Andromeda was standing on the doorstep, and Severus Snape was with her.

'Barty, come with me,' he snapped to where Crouch was dozing on a fireside chair; the knock hadn't even roused the lazy dog turd. 'Do nothing, unless I tell you.'

Regulus went into the hall, drew his wand and opened the front door. 'Well, well, well,' he said. 'The mountain has come to Mohammed at last.'

'Indeed,' Snape replied dryly. 'Kindly do not point that thing at me unless you intend to use it. And may I suggest that you do not. You and I have much to discuss, Black, and that is laying aside the insults contained in your last missive, which be assured I shall return to. Where's Lucius? Is he here? Or was the Veritaserum for me again? Only I have quite gone off it.'

Regulus nodded him in, knowing he would not have missed the fact that both he and Barty still had their wands on him and his smart mouth. He nodded to Andromeda next, and took the package she handed him.

'Do you want me to stay, Regulus?' she asked.

'If you like,' he replied absently, and stood back to let her pass, without taking his eyes from Snape.

*****