The Serpent and the Lioness

Chapter 56

"It smells good. Severus." The arms around him tightened marginally.

Hermione, where are you?

Upstairs, what's wrong?

Severus turned slowly looking into the face of his beloved, only that it wasn't hers. It couldn't have been. The woman's face tilted with a dark smile across her lips.

"What's wrong? You look like you don't recognize me." Her voice sounded tight, a forced pleasant sound to it.

Severus' eyes narrowed and he took the woman firmly by the biceps, "You surprised me, that's all." His eyes flicked over the top of her head. It was a risky move but he was sure he'd heard the stairs creak. Just as he looked away he felt something cold and sharp pressed swiftly into his back.

"You always were clever." The voice changed to a much deeper, male tone, it was odd coming from her lips. Severus' body went rigid as the blade was twisted and he felt his magic being sucked back into his core as his body went into a bind, leaving only his eyes able to adjust. He felt the doppelganger pull out of his hold leaving the blade in place.

"You know, I was hoping to have a little fun with her body first, maybe go exploring?" An evil sneer formed over the fake woman's lips and Severus had never felt so disgusted.

"You'll never get her...just...take what you came for..." His voice came through tightly snapped jaws forcing what little air he had through his lips.

"Ah, but you ran from me Severus, and I warned you what would happen if you ran."

"Severus?" Who's there with you?

Severus' eyes snapped over the  doppelganger's head as Hermione came to the bottom of the steps. Her wand down by her side. She barely had enough time to register her own face staring back at her before a large knife went hurtling towards her. Hermione let out a startled scream and dodged out of the way, tripping and falling over a stack of books next to the living room doorway.

Severus' own voice came out of the doubleganger's mouth. "Not so fast darling." A dark chuckle made the room cold.

Severus felt the spell that had held him in place start to slip away, unfortunately, the blade that had been shoved into his back was tipped in a poison he recognized immediately, making the entire right side of his body completely numb. Severus had little control as he slid down the counter his eyes rolling up to watch Mathias give chase.

Hermione was just pulling herself to her feet when she saw her own face coming around the frame of the living room doorway. Startled and confused she raised her wand a bit too late and she felt her body fall back against something much warmer than the couch she believed to be behind her. With a pulsing heart, she tilted her head back to look into the face of a man that was sure to haunt her dreams for months to come. His greyed hair and heavily scarred face smiling back at her so devilishly.

"My, you are more beautiful in person than you were to make."

Hermione jerked away from the man, her wand coming up in the space between them. "Who are you and what do you want?"

"Didn't your lover tell you?"

"Tell me what?"