Fic: "A Deadly Grace" (HP; McGonagall/Mrs Zabini)

[miss_morland]

Title: A Deadly Grace
Fandom: HP
Pairing: Minerva McGonagall/Mrs Zabini
Rating: NC-17
Word count: 1877
Summary: The question is never which of you is going to cave first.
Warnings: 2nd person narration, not-very-healthy relationship dynamics
Notes: Written for the 2011 International Day of Femslash Challenge over at hp_femsmut. My grateful thanks to mindabbles for the beta;

Comments

[squibstress]

Oh, you naughty thing! Sending something so hot across my desk at this hour on a proper Sunday morning!

That will be fifty points to from Miss Morland for sheer cheek!

This is just letter-perfect: Minerva's neediness and her frustration at it, and of course Mrs. Zambini and her predatory approach--just exactly as I imagine such an encounter might unfold. I love how inscrutable Mrs. Zabini is here.

Loved this little snippet of backstory:

In fact, you knew it was safer to stay away from the girl, because even then you felt her pull, that indescribable something that could get a man killed and make a spinster schoolteacher lose her dignity and her career.

And there's something so frightening about this line:

She's the sort of woman for whom men kill -- or, more to the point in her specific case, are killed -- and yet she's come to you. Minerva knows exactly what Mrs. Zabini (and love that you never give her a first name, incidentally) is and what she's done, and it doesn't matter a damn. Such is the nature of obsession.

Beautifully done. Going on my favorites list.

[miss_morland]

Well, I can only excuse myself by saying it is/was Sunday afternoon where I live. *g* So glad you enjoyed this!

Minerva knows exactly what Mrs. Zabini (and love that you never give her a first name, incidentally) is and what she's done, and it doesn't matter a damn.

The name thing was one of my reasons for writing this in 2nd person, actually: it made it easier not to give Mrs Z a first name. :-) (Btw, I'm sure all those deaths were purely accidental. *cough*)

Thanks so much for your great feedback!