December 1993. Hogsmeade.
Sunday morning turned out to be rather frosty and sunny. And lazy. The first and second could be understood by the snow patterns covering the window and the morning rays of the sun shining through them. The third…
Tonks on his chest stirred slightly in her sleep. It was the morning's uncertain slumber, when the mind struggles with the need to wake up. Struggles in an unequal battle not for life, but for death - because when it loses, its owner will have to get up from under the warm blanket. To see unbearable people, to do hateful things...
Severus chuckled. When had he become so poetic? Even in his thoughts? Nymphadora was definitely a bad influence on him. But of course he wouldn't say it out loud: neither the girl's name (it was not worth it to run into her hissing so early in the morning), nor a guess about his state of mind.
But sooner or later the new day will take its toll: you will have to take such a warm and soft Tonks off your chest, get up, get dressed and start doing those very things. At least make yourself and your girlfriend breakfast.
They were in a bedroom on the second floor of a private house on the outskirts of Hogsmeade: Malfoy had kindly offered this property to Severus. Lucius, of course, was a little surprised that his friend Snape – the gloomy, unsociable misanthrope Snape! – needed a house for… private meetings. But what the Potions Master valued Malfoy for was his ability not to ask unnecessary questions when it was not worth doing. At least, Lucius always showed miracles of tact and understanding towards his old friend and godfather to his son.
Severus grinned. It was somehow surprising: to suddenly realize that all this time you had a real friend! Ever since school graduation, when an older friend took the lonely and poor young man under his wing, appreciating his talents. Of course, Snape understood that initially it was more of a selfish interest on Malfoy's part: to have such a talented and ambitious wizard as a debtor and, practically, a vassal - it was worth a lot! And if you introduce him to the Dark Lord, you can even curry favor with him...
But somehow it just happened that they became friends. Really! And it was a phenomenon on par with his affair with Tonks. Severus couldn't even imagine that he was still capable of some kind of warm relationships with people.
The Potion Master winced. What he had called an "affair," in an attempt to add at least a drop of his usual cynicism to their relationship, very poorly fit that definition. He didn't want to believe himself, and he was afraid of being disappointed, and at the same time he was furious at the pathos and banality of the word that came to mind. Because that word reeked of everything he had hated back in school!
Влюбленность. Мордред и Моргана, даже думать об этом было тошно!
The first thing that comes to mind is a crowd of glamorous fools, dressed in tasteless bows and other rags, and then making eyes at the dumb jocks from the Quidditch team, who are kept in school only because they bring glory and points to their faculty. The latter play with their eyebrows and muscles, instinctively fluffing up invisible peacock tails in front of females, like their ape-like ancestors.
Severus shook his head irritably, driving away the uninvited thoughts. And he chuckled again: after all, it is very difficult to eradicate the old complexes of a school "nerd". He still gets mad at everyone for looking only at the appearance, ignoring the content. Although he has long since grown from an awkward skinny teenager into a sinewy and quite stately adult man. And look at you...
His sudden movement made Tonks mumble something and lift her head, barely able to open her eyelids. And she yawned with her whole mouth in a completely unfeminine way.
"Good morning, Tonks," Severus greeted her in his ironic manner. "How did you sleep?"
"We fell asleep only at two in the morning," the sleepy girl muttered discontentedly, ruffling her already sleep-tousled hair. "And before that, we were tumbling around for hours straight. So I have a counter question: why the hell are you so disgustingly cheerful?"
Severus couldn't help but admire the face, swollen with sleep, which also pouted comically in feigned indignation. But he couldn't allow himself such liberty for long, and so, regretfully pushing his mistress away, he threw off the blanket with a sigh and began to dress.
"Will the younger students be allowed to go to Hogsmeade today?" Tonks asked, already eating the breakfast Snape had prepared.
"'Younger' years is a very strong word," Severus, who was sitting opposite him, clarified in response, simultaneously spreading jam on his toast and reading the newspaper hanging in the air before his eyes. "To be more precise, third, fourth and fifth years will now be allowed to walk in the village. Sixth and seventh years were not forbidden to do so before."
"I don't know how I would have survived three months of isolation in their situation," the girl chuckled at this. "Especially the third year – they waited for this opportunity for two whole years – and then such a bummer."
"It's okay, we somehow endured it," Snape retorted calmly.
"Yeah. It's just that the kids didn't really have a choice," Tonks snorted at that.
"These 'kids' manage to find problems for their butts without any Hogsmeade!" Severus winced, folding and putting away the newspaper with a wave of his wand. "Need I remind you what happened two years ago? What's more, even last year!"
"Well, it wasn't their fault last year," the metamorph muttered uncertainly, but Snape only winced again:
- Of course! Weasley, who kept the dark artifact and didn't tell anyone. Her twin brothers, who stick their noses into everything. And Potter, who's a jack of all trades! - he hissed, almost spraying venom.
"Oh, here we go!" Tonks rolled her eyes, unsure whether she was laughing or annoyed. "Why are you always picking on the boy? It's not his fault he got into trouble as a child and now every skrewt in Britain knows him."
— Учитывая его наследственность — от него можно ожидать чего угодно, — уже спокойней произнес Северус, вернувшись к намазыванию джема. — И его первый курс это наглядно продемонстрировал!
"You're always hissing at children and picking on them - that's not the method!" Tonks continued insistently. Snape even raised an eyebrow: he, an adult wizard and an experienced teacher over thirty, was being told what to do by a nineteen-year-old girl. Even if they were... dating, that was no reason...
- And anyway! - Tonks continued. - I wonder: when you have your own children, will you hiss at them too?
Severus almost choked on that phrase. He didn't know what was worse: the hint at having children or the "when" instead of "if." For some reason, he had no doubts about who Tonks thought he would have these supposed children with. And he hoped that she had simply misspoke. So he quickly changed the subject:
— There was no news about Black?
"No," Tonks frowned. "The Aurors continue to comb the entire Island and even Ireland, but he hasn't been seen in months. It's as if he disappeared into thin air!"
The last time the escaped prisoner showed up on the Department of Law Enforcement's radar was in early September, in central London. And, like every time before, he somehow managed to slip away right from under the noses of the Aurors who had arrived at the scene. Which, in Severus's opinion, was to be expected: from his own experience and from what Tonks had told him, under the current Minister of Magic, Aurors had completely degenerated as professionals. Alastor Moody's retirement was a kind of final chord of this process, the last nail in the coffin. So the fact that a hungry, half-naked and almost insane vagabond without a wand had been leading the entire wizarding Ministry by the nose for several months did not surprise Snape at all.
But that raised another question: how were he and Tonks supposed to find Mordred's Black? Not to mention the mysterious dark wizards who hadn't made an open appearance since last summer, when Moody had last found traces of a strange ritual in the northern suburbs of the British capital.
"Black was supposed to show up in the Hogwarts area," Snape said tensely. "But for over three months, that hasn't happened! Of course, Fudge's senile musings have nothing to do with reality, but..."
Tonks just sighed at this: she herself knew all these arrangements in the Auror Office and the Ministry.
Scrimgeour, like Moody, assumed that the mad fugitive Black would try to realize the maniacal idea common to all fanatical Death Eaters: to take revenge on the "culprit" of their Lord's fall - Harry Potter. At any cost! Even if he had to cross all of Britain without a wand and get into a closed and shielded magical castle.
Minister Fudge, however, did not expect anything, preferring to live in his own politicized world, where the rating of Dumbledore and the Potter boy was much more dangerous to him than an attack by an escaped criminal on a school!
Until recently, they shared the same opinion as the head of the Auror Office and former mentor Tonks. But Black not only didn't attack, he was never seen in the vicinity of Hogwarts or Hogsmeade! What's more, he hasn't been seen in any wizarding area in recent months. It's as if he vanished into thin air!...
"...Or to a place where there are no wizards," Severus strangely continued her thought, opening his mouth again.
"You mean… purely Muggle towns and areas?" Tonks asked warily. "But he's a Death Eater! He hates and despises Muggles, which means he doesn't know about them. Even if he had such an idea, he would have shown up there on the first day!"
The potion maker responded to the girl's speech with a strange look, as if he was once again deciding for himself: is it worth being frank with his young lover? But then, turning the cup of invariably black coffee in his hands, he nevertheless said:
— To be honest, despite all my personal dislike for Black, there is one inconsistency with his... membership in the Death Eaters.
"Inconsistency?" Tonks frowned.
"Well, the most insignificant," Severus said in the same neutral tone. "Of course, this may be a subtle game of the Dark Lord, but…" He fell silent again, uncertainly. Not for long, though. "I have never seen Sirius Black at a Death Eater meeting," Snape finally said. "At school, he had a terrible falling out with his parents and younger brother because of his… liberal views," he winced under Tonks's astonished gaze. "He was always an insufferable snob, a moral monster, and simply a rare goat – but there was one thing he definitely could not be accused of…"
This time the pause was a little longer, as if Severus was literally stepping over himself to say the next phrase. After playing with his jaw muscles and taking a deep breath, he finally finished:
— What he certainly couldn't be accused of was following the idea of blood purity, hating Muggles, or sympathizing with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. He was and remained a fan of Dumbledore and his liberal ideas from the very beginning!
"But how is that possible?!" Tonks was amazed, her eyes widening comically and, in turn, almost choking on her toast. "But he!... I mean, how is that possible?!... But after all!..."
When her astonished indignation... or indignant astonishment - ended, the girl plopped back down on the chair from which she had jumped up and frowned.
"I don't understand anything!" she blinked. "But he betrayed Lily and James Potter! He gave away the secret of You-Know-Who's location, the keeper of which he was!"
"Exactly," Severus nodded dryly, taking another sip of coffee. "The key words are 'betrayed' and 'guardian'. Do you think two ardent supporters of the Light side, one of whom is a Muggle-blood, would trust someone who had even slightly betrayed his commitment to the Dark? To the ideas of xenophobia and pureblood superiority? That's it."
"But it could have been… that subtle game," Tonks sniffed uncertainly.
"It could be," Snape shrugged his shoulders just as evenly. "But very, very unlikely!" he shook his head.
- How can you be so sure? - the girl frowned again. - Even I know that people change over the years. You always say that Black was a real scumbag! He could have decided after school, when he was thrown into adulthood, that it was better for him to stick with his rich relatives. And he sold his "loser" friends for the sake of his usual carefree life.
At the phrase "adult life" from the lips of a nineteen-year-old girl, Snape slightly raised the corners of his mouth in a hint of a smile. But he did not comment on it.
"Tonks, for all my dislike for Black," Severus winced instead, as if from a toothache. "So here's the thing: he certainly wouldn't betray James Potter and Lily! But even if he wanted to, he couldn't."
The girl just stared at her lover in confusion.
— О, все просто, Нимфадора, — издевательски протянул он, с удовольствием наблюдая, как начинает закипать Тонкс. — Дамблдор и Муди. Ну и еще несколько взрослых, матерых зубров, которых малолетний шалопай, которым тогда являлся Блэк, уж точно не смог бы обмануть! А защиту на дом Поттера и Лили накладывали как раз они — а значит и проверяли всех участников.
Tonks frowned. She noticed something odd about the way Severus referred to Harry Potter's parents.
Well, that's right: he never once called Lily Potter by her last name! As if... he didn't recognize her? How interesting...
Although, considering how he spat when James Potter was mentioned and his reservation that he had been friends with Lily Potter as a child... Certain conclusions could be drawn. It was not for nothing that Tonks had been Alastor Moody's student!
The girl felt a momentary twinge of jealousy towards Snape's old friend. But she only shook her head, throwing away the stupid thought: it was stupid to be jealous of someone who had long since been buried in the ground. They lived here and now - and now it was she who was next to Severus! And she, unlike that fool Lily, would not miss her chance.
"Okay, this is all just empty talk," Snape pressed his lips into a thin, irritated line. "Until we find and interrogate Black, this is all just empty talk! As for his location," he turned his gaze to Tonks, "no, he's unlikely to be hiding among Muggles. But there are other places where he can hide safely. And where, moreover, he can perform magic with almost impunity."
The girl thought gloomily for about ten seconds. Then her face smoothed out and she smiled at her guess:
— Forbidden Forest!
"Exactly," Snape commented evenly and finished his coffee in one gulp. "Yesterday, the gatherers were finally able to set out on their expedition, which means the attention of the forest dwellers will be focused on them. And Hagrid will make sure that they themselves do not enter the... areas of interest to us."
- Wow. You've already figured it all out! - Tonks said respectfully.
"If I hadn't developed the habit of carefully planning my actions, I wouldn't have been able to survive even in school," he chuckled in response. "What can we say about later times?"
As they were leaving the cottage, Tonks looked back at the front of the house with a strange expression.
"It's a cozy little house," she said. "And it's not far from Hogwarts. And it has its own fireplace."
"Are you no longer satisfied with the spider's dead end?" Snape asked back, his face equally expressionless.
"Well…" the girl hesitated, choosing her words. "Well, uh…"
С одной стороны, последний месяц лета и половину сентября она вполне прекрасно прожила со Снейпом как раз в его доме в Паучьем тупике — и это было чертовски удобно! До тех пор, как её партнер не уехал в школу — откуда далеко не всегда ему удавалось выбраться домой. А уж когда её и саму командировали в Хогвартс — и вовсе вопрос своего угла в Хогсмиде встал ребром! Тут-то и пригодилось предложение Люциуса Малфоя, который и раньше владел парочкой домов в деревне, а теперь еще и накупил несколько сверх того в преддверии своего грандиозного предприятия в Запретном лесу.
But, on the other hand, Spider's End was Severus's home! Although it was located in a less than prosperous area, and a Muggle one at that, and although it was frankly small compared to this cottage, it was, one might say, Snape's family nest. She was afraid of somehow offending her... lover?
Considering that the "beloved" was not particularly eager to share his experiences and emotions, it was quite difficult to understand how he would react to this or that proposal.
"Hm," Snape chuckled indulgently and suddenly… ruffled the girl's hair. "I'm not particularly attached to that shack in Cokeworth, if that's what's bothering you. I've wanted to move for a long time, to be honest," he winced. He didn't bother to point out that he hadn't even thought about it before this strange affair began. "I think when this fuss with the foragers' expedition into the forest and Sirius Black is over, I can talk to Lucius about buying this cottage. After all, my savings allow…"
"I'll pitch in too!" Tonks lifted her chin.
- From what funds? - the potion maker grinned maliciously, leaning over the girl. - An intern's stipend?
"I!... Yes, I!..." was all the girl could manage to frown again.
"Okay, Tonks, we'll get back to this topic a little later," Severus rounded off the topic, looking somewhere over his lover's shoulder. "Especially since they're already expecting us."
The girl turned around and saw a man she knew from the April raid on the basilisk - Remus Lupin. Whom she also knew as the new DADA teacher hired by Dumbledore this year.
"Sorry for interrupting," Lupin smiled, blushing slightly.
Of course, it wasn't like he was witnessing a particularly intimate scene, but the closeness of Snape and Tonks to each other told him a lot. And of course, the smells. A couple who had recently been in the same bed and were doing... whatever couples usually did in bed, smelled completely different than two people just standing next to each other.
But Remus quickly pulled himself together. Of course, it was hard to imagine that the gloomy grump Snape, who was hated by most people around him even when he was a schoolboy, had suddenly found himself such a young and pretty girlfriend… But the facts spoke for themselves. And Remus Lupin was used to trusting facts, as well as his own eyes and nose.
Well, apparently it was worth being happy for the former classmate. At least someone's life turned out okay. He had absolutely no reason to dream about pretty girls - he was not in that position.
Remus sighed deeply and winced, while Snape and Tonks were still arguing in low tones. It was time to stop feeling sorry for himself! Sure, it was hard for him and all that, but there were so many options in life. Dumbledore had given him a side job with a hefty salary. Which, by the way, could easily develop into a permanent job, and that was already a pretty serious foundation for the future! If, of course, he could keep the "fluffy problem" a secret…
— …Люпин.
And then, you see, you might be able to get in touch with some more or less adequate community of werewolves and finally leave Britain. After paying off all your debts, of course: both material and moral. The same Harry...
- Lupin!
Remus snapped out of his thoughts. It turned out he had been "suspended" for about five minutes, and Snape, with his trademark expression, was looking at him, raising an eyebrow and trying to call him.
"Sorry, Se… Snape," the werewolf corrected himself, smoothing his hair in embarrassment. "I was lost in thought."
"It's obvious," the unbearable Snape answered mockingly. "But since you're back with us," the girl next to him giggled softly, "then maybe we should finally go to the lake and discuss our future plans?"
Lupin just sighed heavily and nodded. What else could he do?
When they stopped fifteen minutes later, having walked away from the village, on the snowy shore of a frozen lake, Snape looked around with a keen gaze at the empty space around him. And then he casually waved his wand, casually casting a warming charm on himself and Tonks - which made her sniffle indignantly, but did not say anything.
"So," the Potions Master began. "According to the information I received from Hagrid, some devilry began to happen in the depths of the Forbidden Forest, away from the territory of the Acromantulas and on the far edge of the centaur domain. What's interesting is that this is in the same direction as the collapsed ravine with the passage to the Hogwarts catacombs, but further into the forest.
Lupin and Tonks nodded at this. The furry earmuffs the girl was wearing fell comically over her eyes, causing Remus to smile and Snape to smirk. But the latter almost immediately returned to a serious tone:
- Moody and Tonks have already tried to investigate something like this before, - said the Potions Master. - In the end, Moody was dismissed and practically put under surveillance, as a mentally unstable wizard, - at these words, Tonks frowned again. - But, fortunately, the old man managed to pass on his notes and oral assumptions to Miss Tonks - which means we have something to dance from. Already discussing this among ourselves, - he glanced sideways at the girl, - we came to the conclusion that a group of unknown dark wizards trying to get close to the boy is behind the dark rituals that have been carried out around Harry Potter in recent years. How these strangers are connected with the Death Eaters and specifically with Black, we have yet to find out - but such a connection is very, very possible.
"But why won't Albus do this?" Remus asked, frowning.
"Because Albus is a busy figure. Worse, a public one!" Snape said with mild disdain. "And that means our investigation will be strictly private and will not point to Dumbledore's involvement in any way. Is that clear?"
- Eh!... - the werewolf croaked slightly annoyed. - I see.
"Excellent," Severus commented sarcastically. "Well, then, I suggest we move out. Once we enter the forest, Lupin will go first. Tonks will follow, and I will bring up the rear. Once we reach the basilisk ravine, Lupin and I will switch places – I will lead the way. Any questions? No questions. Then let's go!"
— Если честно, я удивлен, что ты позвал меня, — спустя пять минут, когда они еще шли к опушке и не выстроились в походный порядок, проговорил Люпин. Тонкс чуть ли не вприпрыжку унеслась вперед — впрочем, не настолько быстро, чтобы исчезнуть из вида. И до входа в лес Снейп готов был это терпеть — хоть и собирался высказать девушке позже пару "ласковых" слов насчет беготни в духе младших курсов Гриффиндора!
- And what's surprising about that? - Snape turned his head slightly towards his interlocutor. He, as always, was dressed in all black. Even the fur boots and warm woolen robe, put on for the trip to the Forbidden Forest, were blacker than night. The Dean of Slytherin was in his element.
"Well," the werewolf awkwardly adjusted his collar. "I thought you didn't trust me very much. And then there's the investigation, the secrets…"
"Do you have anyone else in mind?" Severus asked with undisguised sarcasm, raising an eyebrow in his trademark gesture. "Someone Albus trusts, preferably from the Order of the Phoenix. And someone who is at least something 'in the field'. There aren't many other options," he snorted.
"Well," Remus couldn't find anything to say. "Thank you for your trust…"
"Besides, Lupin," Snape continued evenly, "your sense of smell and animal abilities in the forest could be of more use than anything else."
They walked in silence for a while. Finally, Remus asked another question:
— And how did it happen that the Minister suddenly thawed and allowed this expedition of collectors?
At this question, Severus grimaced as if he had chewed a lemon.
"Lucius forced him," he said through gritted teeth. "After that incident in Care of Magical Creatures, when Silvanus somehow lost track of the hippogriff…"
In fact, Severus didn't believe right away that professional bestiologist Silvanus Kettleburn could "fail to keep an eye on" a hippogriff, much less allow a student to be injured. Just as he didn't believe two years ago that Quirinus Quirrell could fail to keep an eye on a troll locked in a dungeon as a teaching aid.
And when the Dean of Slytherin came to the Hospital Wing and looked into the honest, most honest eyes of his godson Draco - the very same "victim" - then everything fell into place.
The Malfoys were simply setting up a provocation. What a slippery family: both father and son! Sometimes you can't figure out whether to curse this snake seed or admire it. After all, it was precisely because of Minister Fudge's various restrictions, financial and legislative, that Hogwarts had been unable to find a replacement for the aging Kettleburn for several years now. Who, by the way, was himself desperately eager to retire - but it didn't work out. There was no one to teach! And there was nothing to teach with.
It was a miracle that Kettleburn could be persuaded to teach for another year, considering how old he was and how many living limbs he had left…
And so it ended with a "tragedy." Which the Malfoys had probably been preparing since the beginning of the school year, in order to force Fudge to finally make concessions on the issue of the expedition to the Forbidden Forest under the threat of inflating this news in the press.
- You'd better think about our business, - a piercing look towards the werewolf. - And I really hope you don't forget to drink the aconite potion? Otherwise, why would I brew it for you every time!
"By the way, thank you very much for it, Severus," Lupin said seriously, ignoring Snape's furious glare at his familiar address, confirming his words with a nod. "This... the opportunity to spend full moons and the days before them normally is worth a lot to me! I'll find a way to repay you for it."
Какое-то время зельевар мерил стоящего рядом оборотня нечитаемым взглядом. А потом произнес:
- I have no doubt.
"Hey, slowpokes!" Tonks called from the edge of the forest. "Are you going to chat for long?"
The men exchanged another glance and moved on. They were in for a short, but apparently very dangerous journey.
Around the same time. Deep in the Forbidden Forest.
Light gray scales, faded by winter, rustled on the fluffy snow, leaving a winding furrow behind them. The long snake body gracefully curved between the trees, almost invisible due to its new coloring against the winter landscape.
However, it was precisely "almost": the perfect skin of the giant snake crawling through the forest was marred by several scars.
One was almost invisible, but very serious: it crossed the empty eye socket, as if someone had once slashed something sharp across the monster's face, depriving it of its left eye.
The second scar was a little lower. Although, it also did not stand out much: one of the nostrils of the huge snake was flaunting melted spikes on it and an old burn around it.
The main, largest and most noticeable scar was a large mark on the left side of the giant snake. Black, as if charred, fused directly into the scales and flesh of the sign: similar to the symbol of the male gender principle, only with a semicircular stripe at the base of the arrow extending from the circle and a crescent instead of an arrow at its end.
However, it did not seem that the basilisk - and it was a basilisk - was in any way inconvenienced by these scars. Despite the absence of an eye, the snake was perfectly oriented in space, and when the terrible mark on its side touched tree trunks or snags sticking out from under the snow, it did not flinch or even stop moving.
Except that when this happened, the creature opened its mouth a little wider and its forked snake tongue began to flutter strangely and jerkily - not like that of ordinary reptiles.
If the basilisk were a human, it would have been like the blissful stretches of a stiff body: the pain caused by the scars clearly pleased the King of Snakes!
But the basilisk could not concentrate on his feelings - he had business to attend to. Business that his Master had entrusted to him!
For example, to deliver His little messenger once again to the hunting camp of strange horsemen, located far from their main habitat. And with whom the long-eared messenger had been in close contact for two months already.
On the basilisk's back rode a house elf. A real house elf: small, skinny, and long-eared. Dressed - despite the winter - in practically nothing but a pillowcase with the Hogwarts crest. Underneath, he wore a thin white T-shirt, but that hardly saved him from the cold that reigned around him.
Согревала его совсем не одежда. Но Бэзилу — так василиска прозвал его Хозяин — было на способности мелкого посланника плевать. Главное — доставить его на место.
"Rinki hears screams," the house elf said thoughtfully, looking thoughtfully at the direction of their movement.
If Basil had shoulders, he would have shrugged them. Why state the obvious? Of course, from where they were heading, there were shrill cries and broken-voiced pleas. Rhythmic squeals, characteristic of human females being tormented by lustful males. If these sounds had not been there, there would have been no need for them to crawl through the snowy forest.
However, when they appeared at the edge of the clearing where the centaurs' secret camp was located, the cries died down for a while. The horsemen gathered in the clearing turned to the basilisk crawling out of the thicket, and one of them, an old shaman painted with lime, joyfully proclaimed:
— The Spirit of the Forest sends us a sign again! His messenger and the Spirit of the Serpent have come to the sounds of the sacrifice!
The centaurs around began to hoot contentedly, and one of them, obeying the shaman's sign, slowly moved towards the strange wooden structure in the center of the clearing.
It was something between a wooden bench, trestles and a strange machine equipped with steel clamps and ropes. With which a naked human woman was tied to the structure in a bent position!
- The Forest God sends this meat as a gift to his people to satisfy our loins! - the shaman began to bless again when the centaur he had summoned threw his front hooves onto special stands on the machine and with a practiced movement roughly entered the tied woman, causing her to scream in excruciating pain. It was obvious who had been raping her continuously for at least several hours, having managed to turn her insides into an open bleeding wound. And only the fact that centaur penises are still much smaller than those of ordinary horses could explain that she was still alive.
However, after another push, the unfortunate woman switched from squealing to wheezing, and then completely hung limply in her bonds - only swaying in time with the thrusts of the centaur, who continued to fuck her corpse.
"The daughter of the unworthy people who came to the lands of the Children of the Forest and drove us out, is now food for the Fertile Deity!" the shaman proclaimed to the joyful cries of the assembled horsemen, rejoicing at the new sacrifice that was about to go to their Forest God. "And now - let the King of Snakes taste her flesh!"
And just as Basil, rustling his scales, crawled towards the corpse of the tortured girl, in order to accept the "sacrifice" as usual, a cry was heard:
"Bane, stop!" someone yelled from the side.
Basil and Ronki froze in surprise. In all their visits, none of the centaurs had ever dared to oppose the will of the shaman and the hunters gathering in the secret camp.
"Florence," the largest of the horsemen present winced: black-haired and bearded. "How did you find us?"
Two hunters immediately stepped forward to intercept the rebellious centaur, threateningly pointing their spears at the blond stranger, named Florenz.
"For a long time I couldn't understand where you were constantly going from the village," Firenze said sullenly, looking with disgust and horror at the bloody ground, then at the mutilated corpse tied to a wooden frame. "And then I guessed to go beyond the Cursed Border. I was also surprised when I found your tracks in that direction – after all, on that side of the Forest there are the lands of Muggle people! But then I came across a trampled clearing with a torn Muggle tent and the corpse of a man," he said in confusion. "You… you!..." he couldn't think of anything else to say.
- Follow our rituals! - Bane cut him off sharply. - For centuries, centaurs have taken human women for their entertainment - why are we worse? Why should we deny ourselves this? Especially since the damned humans have more than deserved it!
"We were driven out of Hellas and chased from everywhere precisely because of this!" the blond centaur roared furiously, waving his hand towards the corpse. "This is not the behavior of a normal being, a normal centaur! Only bloodthirsty and lustful animals act like this!"
- You called your own people animals? - the shaman suddenly broke into the conversation, not giving anyone time to come to their senses. Basil and Ronki only had time to move their heads back and forth, watching the heated argument - truly, they arrived at a very interesting moment. - Look at him! - the painted old man squealed, not giving Florence a chance to get a word in. - This friend of the little humans is always hanging around near the edge of the forest, hanging out with that two-legged Hagrid! I wouldn't be surprised if he and his bunch of horse-like philanthropists also give these wizard's fosterlings rides on their backs!
Indignant cries came from all sides, causing Florenz to look around in a hunted manner.
— They all consider us nothing more than beasts! — the shaman continued. — Until those damned wizards cornered us, we ruled our ancestral homeland and then here — and no one dared to contradict the people of the Forest! We took what we wanted: women for our pleasures and men for hard work — after all, it is unworthy of the Swift People to plow the land, we were created for freedom! But where are we now? — he looked around at those gathered with a burning gaze. — The damned bipeds have almost driven us into a stall, like dumb cattle! What next? Will they castrate us like tame geldings? So that we cannot take our own? — an angry gesture towards the machine with the girl's corpse. — That will not happen!
"Bane, please..." Florenz tried to get through to the black-haired centaur again, ignoring the painted old man. But he only looked at his blond brother indifferently and remained silent. But the shaman did not remain silent:
- Just look at him! He's probably already blabbed to the wizards, betrayed his own brothers!
At this phrase, as Basil noticed, some kind of sly sparkle flashed in the shaman's eyes, although from the outside it seemed that he was still struggling in fanatical hysteria.
- No! - Florenz answered indignantly, drowning out the cries of his enraged relatives. - I came here alone - and I didn't even tell anyone in the village! I was afraid to tarnish your honor, oh centaurs! - he tried to address the crowd. Unsuccessfully.
However, the shaman was damn pleased with his answer, judging by the smile on his face.
"Well, brothers," the old man raised his hand over the noise. "It's good that Florenz didn't tell anyone where he was going. Take him!"
Before the blond had time to understand what a stupid thing he had done when he blurted out that no one knew where he was going, several of his relatives pounced on him and started tying him up.
Basil hissed derisively at this. Fool! A noble and naive fool. However, it was not his concern - after all, the Master would find a use for everyone.
- Stupid, stupid centaur! - the lop-eared messenger of the Chosen One shook his head. - They could have shared another victim with him, right, right? - smiling half-madly, he glanced sideways at the calm basilisk. - Why did you bother? You tried to save a corpse, stupid centaur!
Meanwhile, the shaman finally approached them.
"Greetings, great King of Snakes!" he bowed solemnly to Basil. "Forgive that you had to wait for your sacrifice because of that unworthy heretic! Here it is - the meat, impregnated and dedicated to the God of the Forest!" With a smooth gesture he indicated the altar from which two centaurs were already untying the bruised and bloody-legged corpse of a Muggle.
Бэзил же, неспешно стелясь по земле, двинулся к предназначенной ему жертве. В пожирании этого мяса не было какого-то особого волшебного смысла — скорее уж это был символ. Символ равноценного обмена между народом конелюдов и их Божеством. Им — утоление их вечной похоти, которую ну никак не могли покрыть малочисленные самки, а также защита и поддержка. Богу — вкусное мясо для его Зверя. Ну и так, по мелочи. Вроде душ последователей.
However, Basil really liked this ritual. Delicious fresh meat - who would refuse that?
And while the basilisk slowly swallowed the broken body, Ronki and the shaman went into the forest - supposedly for a personal meeting with the God of the Forest. No one even noticed. Only Bane followed them with a heavy look, but said nothing.
When they had gone far enough, the house elf snapped his fingers and disappeared. Only to reappear a moment later. But with a passenger: a man wrapped in a dark cloak, from under the thick hood of which two demonic eyes glowing with a green-crimson fire were visible.
- You promised that soon we would be able to get a real sorceress! - the old shaman immediately hissed furiously, immediately losing all his fanaticism and misanthropy. - You promised us! You promised me !
"I remember what I promised, venerable Doran," the stranger said in an otherworldly voice with a grin. "And I remember that you need a virgin sorceress to solve your… predicament."
At the last phrase, the figure demonstratively glanced towards the centaur's rump. Or more precisely, his groin.
The one named Doran loudly gnashed his teeth - a hint at his senile infirmity, because of which he was not only unable to participate in the past fun, but was also unable to satisfy his two wives from among the centaurs, was more than painful for him!
"I can't promise a virgin yet," the stranger shrugged. "But soon wizards will start frequenting the forest, and with them many women."
"It's… disturbing," despite the tense tone of the phrase, the old shaman's eyes sparkled with anticipation. But the hooded figure cut him off:
- You will attack only where and whomever I tell you! - the alien flashed his terrible eyes, causing Doran to swallow and take a step back. - These finders are important to me. And I will not tolerate disobedience!
"We'll make it all look like werewolf or acromantulas attacking," the centaur said hoarsely and quickly, bowing his grey head. "No one will guess anything!"
"Oh, I hope so," the figure chuckled. And then pulled out a small vial of lilac liquid from under its coat. Not as bright as the potions that the crime boss Lord had recently sold to his partner Shalom, but in roughly the same range. "Here, take this. Something from the bounty of the 'Forest God,'" another chuckle that Doran chose not to notice.
- This?...
"Something that will allow you to temporarily participate in new... entertainment," snorted the shaman's interlocutor. "It'll be enough for a couple of times. You have two more captives stashed away, right?"
"Y-yes," the centaur admitted, gritting his teeth, but still snatched the bottle from the hands of the hated man. The man who literally held him by the balls!
- Well, enjoy. And remember: if you continue to follow my instructions, the centaurs will soon take their rightful place! Now go.
As the grey-haired shaman disappeared behind the trees and Harry took Ronki's hand to teleport back to the Shrieking Shack, Sweet Tooth's chuckle rang out in the boy's head:
"The place WE believe is their due!"
Potter chuckled at this, nodded to the house elf, and he was swirled around in the funnel of elven apparation.
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