Loving Lily: A Snily Story

Chapter 90 - Harriet

"Of course you are......and of course you won't." Tom said as his grin faded while a hateful scowl marred his impeccably handsome face, "I spoke of the Granger girl, Weasley.......Surely, you didn't possibly think I meant my Harriet."

"-N-No, of course not!" Ron sputtered. He silently berated himself for reaching the entirely wrong conclusion as he went on, "Well, Hermione and I've never talked about things like that, either, you see....You've taken me by a bit of surprise here."

Tom cast Ron a smug smile that suggested he knew more about Ron than Ron had yet realized about himself.

Without another word, Tom slipped off his shoes and crawled into his cot.

Ron glanced over at him warily as he watched Tom pull the thin bed covers up to his chest and close his dark eyes.

Outside, wedged between the two tents in his cage, Anuman flicked his tongue as he thought.

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Voldemort brooded alone in a distant chamber somewhere deep within Malfoy Manor's left wing when Helga Hufflepuff's cup was found and destroyed by his younger self and the Golden Trio.

An inhuman shriek of agony left his lips as his tall body jerked backwards at the impact caused by one of his precious soul pieces ceasing to exist.

Lucius and Narcissa rushed down the hallway at the sound, their polished shoes clicking against the marble floors.

"My lord!" Lucius called out as they charged down the hallway towards the door, ".....My lord!"

Narcissa's blue eyes were wide with anticipation.

Had something managed to actually wound the villain who insisted on making her home his?

Was there a chance she and Lucius could escape their doomed servitude after all?

As Lucius pushed open the door to the damask room, Narcissa peered over his shoulder to see Voldemort crouched in the corner.

His upper body had folded over until he nearly leaned against his own knees, with his head in his hands and his serpentine eyes closed.

"........My lord?" Lucius asked as he took a cautious step forward, "Are you alright?"

His heavy boots sounded against the antique wood while he took another step towards Voldemort, "Have you-"

"-BACK!" Voldemort roared in one hateful hiss as he released himself suddenly to stare at Lucius with the deadly seriousness of an angry predator, "GET BACK!.........LEAVE ME!"

Never having been particularly brave nor startlingly stupid, Lucius did not have to be told twice.

He nearly fell over Narcissa in his hurry to scramble out the door and leave his dark master to himself.

In a rolling heap, both Malfoys managed to clamber outside as Voldemort let out a low hiss while Lucius slammed the door behind himself and his wife.

Narcissa gasped for breath as her heart raced from their shock.

She looked over at Lucius and watched him raise a steady hand to his lips to signal the need for silence before he offered her his arm.

Without saying a word, Narcissa accepted and let her husband lead her down the hall.

Lucius journeyed all the way across the house, until he and Narcissa were safely housed inside the estate's garden, all the way on the opposite end of the property from Voldemort.

"What happened?!" Narcissa gasped as soon as she determined they had made it out of range where they could possibly be detected, "Is he wounded?!"

"That's not supposed to be possible, is it, my dear?" Lucius asked with a bitter smile.

"That doesn't mean it isn't!" Narcissa frowned, "Perhaps there's-"

"-It doesn't matter." Lucius interrupted. Narcissa's woeful expression worsened as she watched the pain that drifted over his face as he nodded, "I must say, the Dark Lord has never succeeded at finding the Potter child he believes survived the night of his attack, so many years ago."

"You honestly believe that child may still be alive?" Narcissa frowned.

"There are many days my dear, when I am not sure what I believe or do not believe anymore." Lucius frowned, "I only know that my goal is to ensure the survival of our family......By whatever means necessary."

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While Voldemort suffered the damage caused by the destruction of the horcrux, Harriet noticed a change in Tom while they sat at the fireside later that night, next to Ron and Hermione.

"Your hands are thinner." She frowned as she stared at Tom's palms, "Do you feel alright?"

"I've never felt better, Harriet Snape." Tom assured her with a handsome smile.

Ron frowned.

Hermione watched closely while Harriet reached out and gently took Tom's hand into hers for closer study.

While Harriet exchanged a subtle gesture of affection with her beloved, Hermione couldn't help but notice that Harriet's observation seemed to have been accurate.

In the glow of the crackling fire, Tom Riddle's tapered fingers seemed unnaturally slender, almost as if the size of his bones had been reduced.

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Severus's many potions, even the brews he himself had concocted, failed to calm the Dark Lord or ease his suffering.

Later that night, after gaining his dark master's reluctant dismissal, Severus apparated from Malfoy Manor back to the home he shared with Lily, relieved beyond measure to reunite with his wife.

"Sev! You're back!" Lily cried as she leapt from her chair and hurried over the instant he arrived directly inside the cottage's living room.

Ellery had already gone to bed, much to Severus's chagrin.

"She can do it, Lily." He exclaimed in a whispering gasp while Lily cupped his face and covered him in kisses, "Harriet can defeat him.....She will defeat him. He's injured now, weakened, with no potion or other means capable of restoring him."

"Do you think they found a horcrux? Harriet and her friends?" Lily frowned as she pulled back.

"My love," Severus said with the hint of an arrogant smirk, "It is my suspicion that they've already destroyed it."

"Oh, Sev!" Lily exclaimed.

A wide smile danced across her lips before he rushed in for another kiss.

As the two stumbled over to the sofa, clutching onto one another, they began an eager celebration of the victory that Harriet would surely bring.