Chapter 14

All canon characters belong to JKR.

Thank you to June for all of her help with the beta work in this story.

Chapter 14

After several emotion-filled moments, Severus and Lucius gathered themselves. Severus was at a loss. There was no doubt he would meet Bellatrix at Lucius' home at the indicated time. No, his thoughts were on Hermione. What would he tell his wife? A madwoman had their first-born, and was using him as a bargaining chip. Severus had no doubt Bellatrix would do harm to the boy if he did not show up on time. He sat across from Lucius and ran his fingers through his hair. He was not looking forward to the next twenty-four hours.

"I saw them," Lucius looked at Severus. "Bellatrix showed them to me in a charmed mirror. They were in some kind of a cell, from what I could make out. It was dark."

"Were you able to see if they had been harmed?" asked Severus softly.

"I could not see very much. Although Raven looked like he may have been in some pain," Lucius said, then noticed Severus looked worried. Lucius waved his hand dismissively and shook his head, "I do not think she has done any great harm to him. At least not yet. I couldn't even make out that it was Odette sitting next to him, but Bella told me she had caught," he looked at Severus, "the traitor's son, with a pretty young lady. I knew immediately it had to be her."

"Those two are inseparable." Severus smiled and chuckled.

"Odette adores Raven," said Lucius with tears in his eyes.

Severus leaned over slightly and placed his hand on his friend's shoulder. "We will bring them home, Lucius."

Severus stood and helped Lucius to his feet. They quickly walked to the Quidditch pitch, where he knew Harry was watching the Gryffindor team practice for the next day's match. As they approached, Harry caught sight of them, and immediately knew there was something wrong. They both looked worried, and were walking towards him much too fast. Both Severus and Lucius were normally very elegant and almost methodical in their movements. Now, they were practically sprinting towards him. Harry walked down the bleachers and met them on the ground.

"Something's wrong, isn't it?" Harry asked.

"Bella has taken Raven and Odette," said Severus.

"How did she get in here?" asked Harry, as his eyes bugged out of his sockets.

"We don't know that she did. I have a feeling the children left the castle. Isn't this a Hogsmeade weekend?" asked Lucius.

Severus slammed his fist against one of the wooden beams of the bleachers. "I told that boy never to leave the castle!" he growled.

Lucius turned his face to the sky and closed his eyes. He was trying to keep himself calm, not wanting to lose his temper. "Calm down, Severus. What's done is done. The important thing now is getting them back."

"So I'm assuming Bellatrix came to see you then?" Harry asked as he looked at Lucius.

"Yes, just a short while ago," Lucius said, nodding. "She wants me to bring Severus to my home tomorrow at two. Once there, we will all Apparate to the location, and she plans on torturing Raven in front of Severus."

Severus began to pace. His blood was boiling. He was furious that his son had put not only himself, but also Odette in such danger.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

While the three men were making their way to Harry's rooms, Hermione was leaving the castle. She left her daughter in the library, as she had received a note from Remus answering her request, and asking her to come to Number 12 Grimmauld Place. When she arrived at the Order's old headquarters, she was greated with a hug and a kiss from her old friend.

"You look wonderful, Hermione," said Remus as he looked at her.

"Thank you, Remus. You aren't looking so bad yourself. I suspect the love of a good woman is at work here, hmm?" she asked, knowing full well his blush was telling her all she needed to know.

He changed the subject and led her into the living room. As they sat and waited for the water in the kitchen to boil for their tea, Remus gathered some papers he had on the coffee table.

"Now, you understand, I helped make the Marauders' Map a very long time ago. But, I believe we can make something very much like it. You really only want to track Severus wherever he is, correct?" asked Remus.

"Yes," Hermione nodded. She reached into the small bag she had brought with her and took out a handkerchief, then handed it to Remus. "He had this with him just last night."

Remus took it in his hands, then spread it out in front of them on top of the table. He stood and walked to the fireplace, grabbed a pinch of soot, then came back and sprinkled it onto the handkerchief.

"I'll need something more personal ... maybe a lock of hair, or a nail clipping. Since this map will be to locate him alone, we will need something to take his role."

Hermione smiled. Suspecting that she might need something more personal, she made sure to take some hair from Severus' brush that morning. She handed the hair to Remus, and he placed it on top of the soot. He folded the piece of cloth over four times, then placed it atop a heavy atlas sitting on his desk. After several spells, and a few waves of the wand, he took hold of the handkerchief and unfolded it. The hair and soot had disappeared. He tapped his wand on the corner of the cloth.

"Reveal, Severus Snape," whispered Remus.

Slowly a pattern began to emerge. The lines and shapes revealed what looked like an aerial view of the Hogwarts grounds; and near the Quidditch pitch, she saw the clear shape of a dark man. It was Severus. Hermione looked at Remus and smiled.

"Remus, it worked!" she shouted as she embraced him. She pulled back and looked down at the object. She could see the dark figure slowly moving towards the castle. "It's amazing. I can't thank you enough, Remus. Knowing I have this makes me feel a little better. I know if...if anything should happen, at least I can get to him."

"I'm glad I was able to help. I wasn't sure I remembered those old spells, but for Severus' sake and yours, I'm glad I did. Would you like some tea?" He stood and made his way to the kitchens. She accepted his offer, and they spent the next hour talking and catching up on things.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When Hermione returned to Hogwarts, she felt the most calm she had experienced since learning that Bellatrix had escaped. She was humming to herself as she walked down to the dungeons. She briefly wondered why she had not seen her son all day, but then thought he was most likely with his friends, trying to keep from going stir crazy.

Upon opening the door to her and her husband's rooms, she noticed a somber scene. Severus, Lucius, and Harry were all huddled around the coffee table, drinking brandy and not saying a word.

"Who died?" she asked with a chuckle. All three men looked up at her, all with worried expressions on their faces. Her smile quickly faded, "Oh God, what's happened?"

Severus immediately stood and went to her side.

"Hermione, something's happened, love." Severus saw tears now forming in her eyes. 'Dear Merlin, how do I tell her this,' he thought. He took a deep breath and took hold of her shoulders. "Bella has taken Raven and Odette." He felt her body stiffen, then saw tears falling down her cheeks.

"What? How? They were not to leave the castle!" she frantically looked from Severus to Lucius. Lucius rose and walked to her, and Hermione grasped his proffered hand.

"We don't exactly know how she got to them, but Hermione, they are unharmed," Lucius tried to assure her, as he wrapped both his hands around hers. "Bella came to me this afternoon, and I was able to see them through a charmed mirror she had. The children are alive and unharmed." He stressed to her the fact they were still alive and seemingly fine. During their years as friends, they had each grown to love all of their children as though they came from the same place. He knew it was just as hard for her to know his daughter was in the hands of Bellatrix as it was for him.

"Did Bella give you any indication of where they are?" she asked as calmly as she could.

"No," said Severus, "She has requested that Lucius lure me to his home tomorrow." Hermione looked at him with a silent plea in her eyes. "I must, Hermione."

Harry stood and joined the three standing near the door.

"Don't worry, 'Mione. I'll be waiting outside for Bella. I've also contacted Neville, Tonks, and Ron. We'll each stake out parts of the grounds and the front and back entries. If she shows up, we'll be there."

All Hermione could do was nod. She didn't trust her voice, as she was on the verge of tears. As Harry and Lucius said their goodbyes, she took off her cloak, and walked to the couch and sat down. Severus saw the two men out and closed the door, then turned to his wife.

"She means to kill him, doesn't she? She's going to make you watch her kill Raven, and then she will kill you?" Hermione asked quietly. Severus sat down next to her and held her in his arms, not having courage enough to answer her question. It had been decided that evening, to keep what had happened from the rest of the children. They were told that Raven and Odette had been caught trying to leave the castle by Hagrid, and they were being suspended for several days.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The next day the plans were set in motion. Remus joined the other Aurors at the Malfoy Estate. Neville took the post at the rear of the estate. Remus hid in the forest, as Tonks took the gardens. Ron and Harry hid near the front door and the front gate. Every direction was being watched by one or several of them. There was no way Bellatrix would get in without being seen.

Inside the house, Lucius and Severus sat in the living room. Bellatrix had made it clear to Lucius to have Severus at his home at two o'clock. It was now almost three, and there was still no sign of the woman. This made Lucius nervous. He stood and began to pace, wondering what was keeping his former sister-in-law.

"Bella is never late," said Lucius as he looked at the clock on the mantle. "Something is not right." As Lucius studied the clock, Severus ... trying to keep himself occupied ... reached for a magazine on the coffee table.

"Since when do you read Potions Weekly?" asked Severus. As he reached for the magazine, Lucius turned quickly.

"What? No, Severus, wait!" Lucius cried. It was too late. Severus had disappeared.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I'll have another chapter up soon. I hope you enjoyed this one.