The Darkness falls
Authors note: I don't own or share anything in common with JK Rowling the HP series are entirely hers. All characters themes and world that are HP based aren't mine, I'm just renting them.
A beta would be nice, as I make a lot of Grammatical and punctuation errors in my works.
Set in 5th year, non HBP or DH compliant, OOTP storyline basic points used.
Warning: instances of abuse and torture, GRAPHIC VIOLENCE AND SWEARING, If you are sensitive to such topics, or underage, please don't read…
All Other characters are mine.
On with the Story
Chapter 1.
Death….only death…. The assault on the boy's senses begins, the graves, a cauldron.
A sick feeling rises up in him, he holds it back for dear life, He can't show weakness, not now.
Cold eyes staring down at him, "Kill the spare" comes a mocking voice from above him, all instincts screaming at the boy to run, to get away now.
A moment of courage or perhaps stupidity allows the youth to raise his head and look up at the one who spoke.
All that he sees is dead eyes, cold dead hateful eyes. Cedric staring down at him, mocking him crawling into his mind as a worm would through a carcass.
"I'm sorry" rasps the dark haired youth.
A hand snakes into his hair, lifting him up from the dirt, a shooting pain hitting him, scar burning.
"I'm sorry" Mocks Cedric, his robes billowing, tattered and filthy.
"For what," A sneer forms on the deathly pale face, the dead eyes almost flaring to life, the once proud boy is no longer there.
Cedric's face snakelike, eyes blood red, staring at the trembling body before him as if he where devouring the pain coursing from Harry.
Something akin to malice and perhaps pity playing in his eyes, a slap across the face sends Harry from his mind and to reality.
Harry is on his knees; head down, as a dog before a master, broken and awaiting more pain.
"Look at me" Hisses the beast.
"I'm sorry," come's another faint whimper, tears streaming down his cheeks.
"Don't be, Potter. You not only provided me with your blood, but this fine body."
"No, it can't be, not Cedric, no I took him back, I kept my promise" Said Harry within his mind.
The thought was immediately answered with a deadly hiss, "LIAR"
Harrys gaze is roughly directed up, to see the cauldron, and Peter standing behind it with his silver hand upon the remains of Cedric's corpse.
"I can hear you little one, your promise was empty, his body is mine now," Said the creature before him.
A scream hitching in his throat comes out only as a sob.
A cold dead hand reached out and grasped him by the throat; the icy chill of the graveyard became more prominent.
His scar flaring, the pain making him cave in, the welcoming abyss drawing him in as a warm cocoon, an urge to fight flared, he tried in vain to push away, but he was too weak…always weak.
"Your mine" Rasped the voice,
The Hollow face and red eyes turned to a hooded figure, "Sleep, forever"
A scream ripped from the boy's throat, pain erupting through him coursing through his veins, shredding his soul, destroying hope.
Glistening light, a blade perhaps, a weak whimper came Harry.
'Blade, knife, pain, had to fight, had to get away, no more pain' thought the boy his voice now only a faint whimper.
He saw the shine above him again, this time a final scream came from his throat, but it went unheard.
"HARRY" screamed a woman, before everything went dark.
"EXPECTO PATRONUM" Roared Albus Dumbledore.
The Dementor fled from the shining light, making its escape through a window, glass shattering onto the floor.
"Severus see to young Harry" Said the headmaster calmly walking over to the Dursleys extending his hand with chocolate to them.
Their trembling forms and terrified eyes staring at almost nothing, they sat there as rats cornered by a cat.
The headmasters hand is swatted away briskly by the potions master.
"Severus your behaviour is quite….." Started Albus slightly offended by the actions of his potions master.
"JUSTIFIED" growled Snape.
"What on earth…" Was all that was heard from the ancient Wizard?
The only Reaction he received was Severus pointing to the cupboard with a look of pure fury on his face.
"THAT," Was all that was heard through the room, the potions masters magic was flaring at what lay within the cupboard.
With a walk that was more akin to a run, he went across the road to access the Floo network.
As Dumbledore approached kneeling over a small bed, the cupboard door had a drawing of a boy with glasses upon it, and a scrawled note that said, 'Harrys room'.
All colour faded out of the wizard's eyes when he saw the blood soaked rags on the bed.
The form seemed to be in the form of something, almost human, looking closer, he saw Harry.
His Harry, bruises marking every inch of his skin, welts and cuts upon his back, a spine protruding from a figure that was far to malnourished to be alive.
The word freak cut into his back, as if to show the world something unsightly and twisted.
Severus returned to the Room within moments followed by Madam Pomfrey, who had travelled through the Floo across the road.
Albus Dumbledore trembled not daring to touch the child, was unceremoniously shoved out of the way by the Mediwitch and Severus.
All that was heard was "I called you as soon as I could Poppy"
Dumbledore was in far to shocked a state to register the rest of the conversation.
At that moment all he seemed to hear was white noise and static.
He had not noticed two figures walk in, Remus Lupin and Sirius.
"Albus is everything alright." Said Remus quickly.
A worried look marring his tired features, his friend Sirius approached and joined him.
Getting no reaction from the older wizard, who was now slumped against a wall in the hallway and tears streaming down his face silently.
They were answered by a Snappish remark.
"No, because of an apparent oversight, on the headmaster's behalf, about this household, the boy who lived may soon be the boy who didn't." Hissed Snape with a lot of venom directed at the headmaster.
"What have you done to my Godson Snivelus" Snarled Black racing over to Snape.
His anger faded and skipped all other emotions and went to sheer mental breakdown at the sight of Harry, suspended mid-air by Pomfrey, and blood seeping from his wounds as his vitals where indicated by 3 different glowing orbs nearby.
"How, he was….safe….Who, Safe, Harry…James I'm sorry" Was all that was heard from him.
The lingering cold in the Room from the Dementor had triggered a rather bad reaction, and what was left of Blacks Sanity was slowly beginning to unravel itself.
Severus walked over rather unceremoniously and cuffed Black sharply across the back of the head.
"SNAP OUT OF IT, MUTT, HARRY NEEDS YOU" He Yelled.
Taking a step back himself, realising that he had called the brat Harry, it had finally hit him.
Seeing the boy as he did had caused anger, which was directed towards the Dursleys, who were currently in a semi-conscious state due to the nature of Dementors.
After working as a spy for so long Sev had been able to control his emotions using occlumency and years of training.
Inside he was seething, but right now Potter…no Harry needed at least one rational mind other than Poppy to keep this little ill-gotten group from turning into a bloody madhouse.
The Mediwitch bustled in, "He's out of the woods, so I will take him to the med wing, don't worry, I have him stabilised and a stretcher charmed to travel" She informed them briskly before disappearing into the cupboard with a loud pop.
Sev merely nodded.
The look on Remus' face was dark, and wolf like, "He's right Padfoot" He said holding back a growl that threatened to surface.
Sirius snapped out of his stupor, looking hopelessly lost and afraid, the look directed at his friend was one that was seeking reassurance.
Lupin merely nodded, as he helped Black to his feet. Both looked pointedly at the potions master.
The single word that came from their lips was "who"
Understanding what would happen, he closed the lounge room door where the Dursleys where currently located and put a silent sticking charm on the door.
He was currently glad that Albus had taught him to use his wand behind his back, 'mental note: thank Albus for that before I strangle the old goat'
Sighing and suppressing the rage that threatened to leak out he said, "His LOVING relatives" Putting all his venom and Sarcasm into the word loving.
To use the term all hell broke loose would be an understatement.
"WHERE ARE THOSE BASTERDS, HOW DARE THEY TOUCH MY GODSON" Shrieked Sirius,
As if he had an epiphany he rushed towards the lounge to find it locked, Remus was shaking as if he had been doused by a bucket of ice water.
He had caught a glimpse, that was enough, he approached the cupboard and his sanity almost began to cave into the animal within.
The stench of blood, and numerous other bodily fluids emanated from the room.
The same blood that should flow through his pups veins, through the body that should be untarnished, and safe.
A low feral growl ripping out of his throat, normally the calm one, his fist soon found its way through the Drywall.
That action surprised Snape and he made a second mental note, "NEVER PISS OFF THE WOLF"
Sirius had tried ramming the door down with his shoulder, tried to remove the wall itself by clawing at it and failed to break into the lounge window.
"Sirius are you barking mad, you'll be seen," Hissed a voice from the doorway.
Mad eye moody had appeared in the doorway standing the in all his glory.
"To hell with it, I don't care, I was sent to Azkaban for murder, and now they can get proof that I have killed muggles," He snarled, as he started biting the windowsill with his teeth as a last resort.
Mad eye simply put a body bind on the deranged man, and he unceremoniously floated into the building behind him, glaring daggers at the Auror.
"Would you open the door for me Severus" asked Moony now with a deadly calm in his voice.
"No Lupin, in your current emotional state, you may eat those damn muggles before I get a shot at them." Answered Sev in his most snide tone.
"I'm sorry how Slytherin of me" Hissed the werewolf almost silently.
Snape wanted to snap back at Lupin for that remark, a part of him wanted to be out of the room at that moment, the gleam in those yellow eyes was not a good sign.
Nearly slapping himself, he did a second glance back to check what he had seen, he convinced himself that he had not just seen a demon in human form masquerading as Lupin.
Had Potter made him delusional, impossible, just a trick of the light, after berating himself for giving a damn several times over, he came to realise, that Potter was never the spoiled brat.
Harry was simply an abused child; damage of that magnitude had to have been inflicted over several months at least.
He had seen it with his slytherins, many times over, not to this extent but still, so many pieces fell into place, the homework, and a scared boy's glances over the shoulder, the hateful stare.
By merlin what had he done, his moment of clarity was cut short by the headmaster entering the room.
"Albus" he hissed.
Dumbledore looked a hundred years older, his long silver hair was slightly matted and those eyes had lost their twinkle.
Moody having been told of the situation was the first to start on the headmaster.
"ALBUS, I thought you'd have more sense than this, bloodwards my eye," He growled.
"I thought petunia would….love him as her own, as Lily would have" Said the man quietly…"How wrong I was"
Snape's face twisted, "You left him…With Petunia."
His Lily child, was left with Petunia, he had failed Lily on so many levels, first the Dark mark, the Insult, and now after her death…this.
She would be rolling in her grave and haunting him for all that he had done to the boy in school, another wave of guilt hit him like a small boat against a cliff in a storm.
"You miserable old fool" hissed Severus.
He turned on his heel and out the door, if Potter was to have a chance at recovery, he would need his expert brewing.
Once more mentally kicking himself, this time for acting like Lockhart in regard to his work, he was a master but he knew that his ego would have to wait till the boy got better to truly be worthy of pride in his work.
The store bought product was rather low-grade and often untrustworthy in his opinion.
Albus and Moody where left to sort out the fate relatives, with Moody and the aurors behind the reigns the Dursleys would feel the full extent of punishment, legal or otherwise.
Stopping in at the bathroom to wash his hands before beginning, he realised his robes and hands where covered in blood.
Potters blood, a slight wince that was seen by no one came from the man's face as he recalled the moment before he ran to the floo.
He had seen the boy, checked his pulse, it was strong enough to have time to fetch poppy and start repairing damage.
He would not have left the boys side otherwise, he had known he was out of his depth with healing but had deemed the boy stable enough to last a few minutes with the old meddling grandfather in the room.
Heading to his potions lab to begin brewing all the necessary vials of life-giving liquid, he paused to think.
They would have to inform Minerva, and Molly, and then Albus would be in for a hiding worse than any torture that the Dark Lord could inflict.
With that thought to calm him as he immersed himself in his subtle art, and bewitching snare of a cauldron and its ingredients.
To be continued….
RNR. Will update everyday if possible. Thanks for reading