"And much of Madness, and more of Sin,

And Horror the soul of the plot."

Edgar Allen Poe

***

She was kneeling next to his chair when she took his hand in hers and kissed it. She was undeniably, incredibly beautiful, and he loved her, but perhaps not enough to do what she was asking.

"Please. I can't help if I don't know what you're thinking."

He brushed the hair from her eyes and closed his own.

Then, he began.

***

It was a dark and stormy night. How wonderfully cliché, he thought, running through the never-ending expanse of forest. Branches leaped out, it seemed, just to slap him in the face. What lay ahead was terrifying, but why lay behind was unspeakably grotesque and...

Wrong, he thought with a shudder. Horribly, utterly wrong, and you knew it from the moment you let him touch you. Cold and with the smell of death and nothingness clinging to him. You were a foolish child to think anything would change.

He heard the hex before it hit the tree behind him. "Bloody, bloody, hell!" he cursed softly. He ran a few paces more then crouched behind a bush. They've found you, they know. You ran away from them. Lucius knew exactly what you were thinking, he knew exactly what had happened. Now, he'll hunt you down, he always knew you too well.

Severus could smell the sulphur rising from the ruined tree, he could also smell Lucius distinctly. Malfoy was beautiful in almost every sense. His body, his face, his hair, all perfect; his scent was no different. It was a mixture of pine needles and clear, fresh, water, but it had always been tinged by the sharp metallic odour of blood. That was what Lucius was for Severus, a paradox, and a fairly attractive one at that. He had joined for Lucius, and he had stayed for Lucius, but nothing could make him stay after tonight. He would not return to the dark lord alive, he would kill himself first.

I would kill Lucius first.

Snape shuddered again and that was when he first noticed that his hands were not nearly as steady as he would like. He put his hands down to the forest floor to steady himself and peered through the bush. The soil was cool and fresh against his hands. Lucius was closer, he could smell him even with the bush directly in front of him. He reached into his robes and drew his wand silently. Distantly, he heard a twig snap.

Snape leaped into action, jumping from behind the bush into the clearing next to it. Malfoy was fast but Snape was faster.

"Stupefy!" Lucius hit the ground hard and Snape let out a sigh of relief. He crept silently towards his fallen comrade. No longer, he thought bitterly.

Severus bent over Lucius, his long, lank hair reaching down to brush the blonde's face. "What we could have become." He closed his eyes and touched his forehead to Lucius's, "forever a brother, and always an enemy."

Snape sat back for a moment. He thought about killing him for a moment, if only to free him from the spell of the dark lord. If he were to kill him he would probably save hundreds of lives in the future. Snape closed his eyes. No matter how much he hated what the Death Eaters did, Lucius was still the boy he'd become a man with. No amount of muggles or mudbloods held a candle to him.

Snape stared at him for a moment longer taking in every last detail before he departed for the final time. He stood stiffly and thought of his home near Knockturn alley, the colours, the smells, the...

The Death Eaters who are bound to be waiting for you. Did you think you could just saunter home sans worry of impending torture and death? You're more foolish than I thought.

Suddenly the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end and he heard something move behind him. By the time he spun around Lucius was on his feet with a dagger gleaming malevolently in his hand. Severus smirked slightly and his left hand trembled perceptibly.

They stepped forward at the same moment. Both smiling slightly, both clearly without mirth.

"Muggle methods, Lucius?"

"Indeed."

He plunged the dagger into Snape, who's smile never faltered, though the pain was evident in his eyes. "My dear Lucius," he whispered, a ragged edge creeping into his voice, "I see you now believe we none of us have hearts, for you seem to have completely missed mine."

"Oh, Severus, I've only begun."

***

Eventually he managed to apparate to Hogwarts and crawl slowly to the gates. Albus Dumbledore did not recognize Severus as the young boy he'd wanted so desperately to convince of his individual worth until he looked into his eyes. No other part of him was vaguely recognizable. This would be the case for some months to come.

***

A/N: Well I hope this interests you enough to keep with it. Eventually there will be romance, as alluded to in the beginning. If you're wondering what exactly happened with Lucius and Severus and why he was even alive to tell the tale, all will be explained next chapter. Snape's reason for leaving the Death Eaters and why he came to Dumbledore will also be elaborated on promptly. One more thing, don't mistake Lucius and Snape's relationship for anything more than a strong friendship, with some odd quirks. This isn't slash, although if you've got some good Lucius/Severus stuff, don't hesitate to let me know. ;)