Succumb (A Severus Snape Fanfiction)

|chapter ten|

Warnings: Strong language as usual. Implied sexual content, but no actual smut.

"So.. have you thought of names for the little sprout yet?" Poppy inquired, her voice hushed with a small smile on her lips. Though I hadn't been completely open with matters concerning the baby, she had vowed to keep the news between us. It did nothing to quell her obvious excitement, despite the dreary road ahead of us all.

"I have not, but something tells me you have," I chuckled, despite the exhaustion and nausea that plagued me. 

At this point, I wasn't sure what was symptoms of the pregnancy and what was side effects of not having an outlet for the restless darkness that swirled angrily inside of me. I was beginning to fear the lack of use of my powers and my inner turmoil because of it would negatively affect the baby. Though Severus had been most reassuring when I had brought it up, there was a flicker of uncertainty in his eyes. There wasn't, after all, a guidebook for Shade pregnancies. Despite his devotion and endless nights of thumbing through countless dusty, leather-bound books that offered no answers, we still didn't know the first thing about my condition.

"Well, I suppose there are a few I'd like to run by you sometime," Poppy grinned, though her good spirits fell short as the Carrow siblings entered the corridor. Amycus' gaze slid along the length of my body as he turned to face me, stopping in tracks with a slimy smirk adorning his face , and I scowled in his direction. Alecto slowed to a stop when realizing he was no longer walking next to her and turned her head. Her eyes flitted between her brother and myself, scoffing lightly.

"Poppy, go ahead and I'll meet you there, okay?"

"I hardly think-" she began to argue.

"I promise it's nothing I cannot handle," I assured her, and though it was evident she wanted to argue with me, she huffed out a defeated sigh and continued on, not bothering to hide her distaste for the pair as she passed by.

"My, my. How restless you look this morning, Kathryn," Alecto snickered as the two of them advanced toward me. He knew Voldemort was putting me through the wringer, how he tortured me with orders to stay put. There was even a bet going on between many of my fellow Death Eaters concerning how long I would hold out before harming one of the students. "Have things finally grown stale with your beloved dungeon bat? Perhaps I can alleviate your troubles."

"As if you would know the first thing about alleviating a woman in any way," I quipped, earning a sneer from the man while his sister poorly suppressed her amusement. He shot her a glare before closing the distance between us, stepping in so close that his sour breath fanned across my face. 

"You'd do well to know your place, Shade. You're nothing but a shiny toy for the Dark Lord. I've followed Voldemort far longer than you have, and I have earned my place in his ranks. One day he will rid himself of your dreary excuse of a lover. Then he'll use you up until you are nothing but a dried out, pathetic, powerless creature, and I'll be there to catch you when you fall. And I assure you, love, that I will not be a lenient master."

"I do so enjoy our chats, Amycus. When I do finally take my place, it will make squashing you like the pathetic little bug that you are all the more enjoyable," I smirked, wearing a calm facade despite the anger that boiled beneath my unbothered expression. "Perhaps when you fall on your knees before me, begging for mercy, I will be a lenient master and kill you swiftly."

Alecto stiffened next to her brother, clearly no longer amused as she glared daggers at me and grabbed him by the arm. She attempted to pull him away, but he held his ground, his eyes locked onto mine as he seethed. "Careful, Quinn. If one didn't know better, they would think you have treasonous intentions in that pretty little head of yours."