Contort

SEVERUS SNAPE passed by a wall of dust encrusted windows. Pacing. His hands resided against his spine and an ominous stare shelled his unmoving eyes.

“Is Nagini ready?”

“Karas,” Lord Voldemort hissed. The back of the chair he sat upon faced Snape. “Nagini is to be called Karas while in her human form.”

“Yes, my mistake,” were the words that rolled off Severus' tongue. Deep and monotone.

“And the answer to your question is yes,” Voldemort spoke, his leathery skin tingled.

Severus Snape clenched his jaw and brought his pale hands to his sides.

“Together we have entered the mind of Ronald Weasley. Giving him dreams,” the dark wizard continued.

“Creating an obsession,” Snape broke off Lord Voldemort’s lingering silence with the ending of his sentence.

Severus Snape’s body quivered, his master had followed his plan; is following his plan. Many would call it an honor to have the most powerful dark wizard trusting your word. Though, more would name it as madness. What would happen if your strategy failed to complete its course? It would be suicide.

“Infiltrating Hogwarts was as I suspected,” Snape glided to face Lord Voldemort, who had not yet taken on his full form yet. But if Severus’ plan succeeded, he would be responsible for returning Voldemort to his full glory.

“And how was that Severus?” The croaking voice of Voldemort asked.

Snape stared into the pupil-less eyes of his master, “Far too easy.”

The wooden door to their left creaked open and a hoarse chuckle uprooted from Lord Voldemort’s throat.

"Miss Karas Haylett."

"Talking about me again, Severus?" The silken voice, belonging to Voldemort's pet, interrupted. Karas stood in the doorway, her emerald eyes glimmered wickedly in the low light. For a moment, Severus thought he saw snake like slits take over the woman’s pupils.

Karas licked her bottom lip and folded her arms across her chest before further entering the room.

"I was just informing our lord about the newest Hogwarts student."

"Ah, yes," Karas breathed as she fiddled with the pendant that hung from a leather cord around her neck. "Dumbledore, that fool," she laid her arm across the top of Lord Voldemort's chair. Severus stood in the corner, watching the women closely. She was divine.

Karas laid her head on top of her stretched arm and stared down at her lover, "He will regret letting me inside that school."



"I'm telling you, mate, I'm fine," Ronald Weasley's blood-shot eyes glared back at Harry Potter, who had been questioning him on his "troubled" state.

Ron continued to swear that nothing was the matter while inwardly repeating the questions his best friend had been asking to himself.

"Have you been getting enough sleep?"

"Is there something you're not telling me?"

Ron quickly denied that question every time. What a liar.

"You can trust me, Ron."

Harry and Ronald sat at the empty dinner table in the Weasley's dining room. Supper had been held three hours before, but the two boys had yet to leave their seats.

"Ron," Harry barked after his best friend continued to remain silent. Ron's left eye twitched slightly before meeting eye contact with Harry.

"What?" Ron asked deliriously, his mouth still hung open after speaking. Ronald's mop of red hair hung unkempt around his shoulders. Dark circles had formed under his eyes and the freckles that sprinkled his body shown out against Ron's unnaturally pale skin.

"You're doing it again."

Ron popped his knuckles one by one before acknowledging his friend's comment. A voice filled his head; erasing his previous thoughts and deafening him to the world. A wave of heat rushed up Ron's spine as a sultry voice pervaded his mind.

"Ron," the seductive voice of a woman spoke. The woman he'd dreamt of every night.

"Tell me what is going on!" Harry slammed his fist on the table causing Ron to jolt and accidentally biting his bottom lip in the process.

Ron groaned and reached for his swollen mouth, blood trickled onto his finger-tips.

Blood.

Ron sharply inhaled.

"I'm sorry, Ron," Harry expressed, "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"It's alright, mate," Ronald replied while dabbing his bottom lip with a napkin.

"I'm just worried about you, that's all," Harry continued before swallowing the spit that had built up in his mouth, "Hermione is worried too."

Color rushed back into Ronald's previously drained face. Hermione.

"And where has she been?" Ron's eyes widened with sudden rage. His voice was not his own. "She won't even look me in the eye."

Ron placed his head in his hands and began to weep. "Something is happening to me, Harry," he confessed; feeling relieved at finally gaining control of his own thoughts.

"I know."