A Cloud Before the Moon

Chapter 9

On a hot, sticky August midday, the underground hollow was a perfect place to stay cool and be lazy. Letha lay on a blanket, attempting to read "Through the Looking Glass" for the third time. That morning she had received an owl post from her parents; they would be coming to pick her up in less than a week. She couldn't wait. Ever since Severus had thrown her out of his house, the summer had been extremely miserable and depressing, despite Grandma and Mimi doing their best to cheer her up.

Heat and boredom made her drowsy. She lay stretched out on her side, head resting on one hand. As she stared at the book, she was startled by the sound of someone entering her sanctuary. Her pulse quickened as she looked up expectantly. Her jaw tightened at the sight of a tall, slender young man standing above her, observing her languidly, as if she were an unusual insect.

"What are you doing here?" she snapped at Lucius Malfoy.

"Forgive me," he responded with exaggerated contrition. "I was unaware that this was your exclusive enclave."

She rolled her eyes and stood up to face him. "Well it is, okay? And I didn't invite you, did I? What are you doing here, anyway?" she snarled, standing up to face him.

"I thought I might find Severus here."

She snorted. "I doubt that. You're the one who poisoned him against me, didn't you? Ordered him to stay away from the likes of me, no doubt."

He regarded her with an exaggerated expression of surprise, and flashed a Cheshire-cat smile. "I am mortified to here you say that. I never told him any such thing. The fact is, I don't believe in telling anyone what to do. I may offer an opinion, or make a suggestion, but everyone must make their own choices."

"Then you 'suggested' ...."

"I suggested nothing. Perhaps..." he paused and frowned reflectively. "He decided that he was tired of playing with little girls." As he spoke he regarded her appraisingly.

"Maybe", she replied nonchalantly, but then blushed. "So what are you looking at? She held out her arms defiantly. Nothing to see here."

Malfoy took a step towards her. "On the contrary." He insinuated himself closer to her than he rightfully should have, and lifted his arm towards her. "Here," he said, lazily running his hand across her chest, "I see the beginning of womanhood." He brazenly let his hand linger upon her breast, and Letha shoved him away angrily. "Don't you dare touch me!"

He nodded and removed his hand slowly, smiling at her with half-closed eyes. "You see? I do as you ask." He fixed her in his hypnotic gaze; she felt liker a moth struggling to free herself from the collector's pin.

"Get out of here!"

He ignored her. "Severus is not very knowledgeable about these things. I know you are not just a little girl. I felt the way your body responded to my touch," he murmured.

"It did not!"

He moved closer to her and put his hand on her knee, sliding it up under her robe, between her legs.

"Don't do that!" she gasped, and tried to pull his hand away. He brought his face close to hers. "Very well, then I won't." He began sliding his hand back down. To her horror, she found herself clamping her legs together, so that his hand remained caught between her thighs.

He brought his lips to her ear and whispered softly, "Whatever you desire." The tip of his tongue lightly flicked across her earlobe, and she shuddered. His tongue slid under her ear and flickered down her neck. Then he took her fingers in his and brought them to his mouth, grasping each of them, one after the other, with his lips and tongue.

She wanted him to let go of her.

She wanted him to stop.

She wanted him to leave.

Yet, not one word came out of her mouth.

What happened after that was not too clear in her mind. As if watching herself in a dream, she was vaguely aware of lying on the warm musty ground, her body entwined with his.

If this is what he wanted, that was fine with her.

As long as he was with her, that was fine with her.

As long as he loved her, that was fine with her.

She whispered his name. "Severus." There was no response. "Severus?"

"Open your eyes and look at me," he told her.

She opened her eyes slowly and faced a pair of cold gray eyes gazing back at her in amusement. "Oh no! Oh no! Oh no!" she panted, pushing him off of her. Her face burned with shame. "GET OUT OF HERE!" she shouted at him, too late, punching and kicking at him wildly.

He stood up and smiled at her. "Are you sure? You seemed to be enjoying yourself."

"Leave now!" She reached over for her wand.

"As you wish. And I will be sure to tell Severus you were thinking of him," he added maliciously, smiling a Cheshire-cat smile.

After he deftly slid out of the entrance hole, Letha sat for a while feeling completely numb and shaken. She had allowed- no, encouraged - that - that creature... Malfoy was right; he had done nothing against her will. She shuddered. Was he really going to tell Severus? And why should she care anyway, after the way he'd treated her?

She could not, she absolutely could never bear to look either of them in the face again; not Severus Snape, not Lucius Malfoy. Never! It was too awful to contemplate. Maybe they'd even planned it out together? After all, Snape had made it clear how he really felt about her. Maybe he'd put Malfoy up to this? Maybe he'd think it was all very amusing indeed? She would rather die than see his face again.

She never wanted to see her own face again, either. How could she even look in a mirror after this?

Perhaps she would ask her parents if she could transfer to Beauxbatons.

This had turned into the worst summer of her life. She had discovered that friendship was meaningless; Severus had turned out to be a complete liar and a horrible person. Not that she was any better; was she? How could she have allowed Malfoy to do this? She hated Snape. She hated Malfoy. Most of all, she hated herself. Her fingers ached - she had been angrily digging them into the ground. She looked down and saw that she had been tracing 'S'-shaped figures with her fingernails, which were caked in dirt.

Overwhelmed with anguish, rage and self-disgust, she stood up and began kicking the marks she had made, rubbing them out with the toes of her shoes, stomping them out with her heels, throwing rocks and sticks and dirt, screaming and cursing. Bitter tears stung her eyes and streamed down her cheeks.

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Letha's parents rejected her pleas to transfer schools. She might, possibly, have garnered more support if she had explained the reason for her sudden desire to attend Beauxbatons, but she kept that information to herself. Reluctantly she returned to Hogwarts for her third year, and managed to settle into something of a routine. Not surprisingly, she avoided Severus Snape at all costs.

Not far into the school term, an article was published in the Daily Prophet. It drew a few snide comments from some of the Slytherin students. Severus Snape, however, did not offer his opinion on the matter, though he certainly had one.

Senile Witch Dies in Unfortunate Accident

By Rita Skeeter

Oct. 13, Wiltshire:

An elderly witch living on the outskirts of this town set herself ablaze in her own house yesterday. By the time fire vanishers arrived, the house was burnt completely to the ground. Charred remains of Ephemera Faraday, and another woman who remains unidentified, were found in the rubble. Mrs. Faraday's neighbors describe her as senile, bizarre and "completely off her rocker." According to Ministry of Magic sources, the fire apparently was caused by Mrs. Faraday's slovenly habits; her stovepipe was poorly maintained, and, due to her senility, she allowed a cooking pot to catch fire.

Darius Malfoy, community leader and renowned philanthropist, has expressed his regret at the unfortunate occurrence. "I have told the Ministry again and again that there is a disreputable element of peculiar and unbalanced indigents who have been moving into the environs of our community. Respectable wizards are outraged that their safety is placed at risk by these unfortunates. Most regrettably, this witch has not only caused her own death, but that of another individual."

Coming especially under fire is the woman's own son, Walter Faraday, who is employed by the Ministry. He has had to answer questions as to why he allowed his feeble-minded mother to live on her own and place herself and others at risk. Clearly unwilling to admit his own negligence in failing to provide his mother with proper supervision, he has been temporarily suspended from his employment, and faces a hearing to determine whether he will be reinstated.