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AN/ Sadly I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters and things that you recognize. I just like to play God sometimes. Have fun lovelings!
-JazzyKat
A sudden alarm rang through the manor, causing both Ebony and Luc to start violently at the unexpected noise. Tom had jumped to his feet the moment the alarm sounded, his face paling drastically. "Tom, what on earth is going on?" Ebony shouted/screamed over the blaring noise.
"It's the ward for my inner circle. It only sounds off when one of them returns badly injured. I fear it may be Severus, as the senile old goat sent him out to strike a treaty with the Cimmerians," Tom explained.
"And who or what are the Cimmerians, pray tell," Luc drawled, seeing no real reason to panic just yet.
"I'll tell you later, right now I fear Severus is gravely injured," Tom frantically spit out as he rushed out of the torture chamber and practically ran down the hallway.
"I suppose we should follow him and see what all of this is about," Ebony sighed stalking down the hallway, pausing only to crook a finger at Avery who was standing conveniently beside a suit of armor in the hallway.
"Watch the body will you," Ebony flung over his shoulder, choosing to ignore the fact the elder Death Eater had probably been listening in to their escapades in the throne room.
"My Lord, you received a letter from a snowy white owl earlier, and the thing keeps pecking anyone who gets near it, what would you have us to do?" Avery spat out in one breath after nodding to Ebony's earlier command.
"Eh, leave her, it's probably Hedwig. Although I thought that she was with Sirius and Remus. No matter." Ebony mumbled. Luc followed along behind Ebony a little breathlessly. He had been fucked into oblivion a few minutes ago after all. Ebony rounded the corner and nearly lost his stomach at the sight. Tom had gathered Severus from the front gates, but the only way Harry could identify him was the sight of that long crooked nose.
Healers were swarming around the dark form that had been laid out on the nearest bed they could find, and a multitude of brightly colored spells reflected off of the great stained windows that kept a silent vigil of the broken man. Potion after potion was poured down Severus's throat and bit by bit his physical body healed. The only thing now was to bring Sev from the coma he had fallen into, and Tom, Luc, and Ebony had tried everything from screaming and cursing to sobbing and begging to get the usually stoic man to wake up.
"We've tried everything, Tom, Luc. I don't know what to do," Ebony sniffed.
Tom barely lifted his head from Luc's lap, ignoring the concerned glances of his inner circle.
'Ebony, come here Ebony. Come to me, you insolent brat and set my mind free so that I may cram the old goat's lemon drops down his throat and choke him before turning him into a goat and lighting him on fire.'
'Oh holy shit, is that you Sev?' Ebony thought back, a startled look on his face.
'No, it's only my reincarnated ghost in the form of Richard Simmons, and I'm here to make your life hell for all of eternity, of course it's me, idiot. Now, quit your blubbering and free me from my mind. I always thought that Dark Lord had no feelings, and I certainly never thought that a Dark Lord could cry.'
Ebony ignored the strange looks from Avery and the rest of the inner circle as he started muttering under his breath. "Well, fuck me with a spoon, he manages to ask for help and insult me at the same damn time, and how the hell did he know about the new Dark Lord status. Hmm, I wonder if I can do it from here, or if I'll have to walk all the way back up to the infirmary. Should I tell Tom or just free his mind first. Choices, choices," he grumbled as he had gotten up and started towards the door when he slammed into a very solid chest.
"Erm, hello there Avery. If you could just step to the side, I'll be on my merry way. I have some pressing business to attend to, you know, being the Dark Lord's equal and all that jazz."
"Oh, no you don't. Not without telling us where you are going and what you are doing when we still have to figure out a way to cure Severus," Avery rasped.
"That's what I'm doing. He called out to me using his mind. He's trapped and needs someone to free him."
"Ebony," Avery's gentle but gruff voice sounded, hesitantly speaking as if he were talking to a possibly volatile person, "there's nothing more we can do, our healers have already done all that they can for Severus."
"Oh for the love of- fine, you know what, fuck you and fuck all of the rest of you." Ebony said exasperated before turning on the spot and apparating through the wards to the infirmary where Severus lay peacefully.
"Really, fucking everyone and it's only been the third day that you've been here, well eighth day to the outside," Severus's deep baritone reverberating in Ebony's head.
"Oh, shut up. It's only a matter of time before they break through the barrier that I set up and try to sedate me. Now how on Earth do I get you out of your mind?"Ebony sneered.
"An immense shock, or you could delve into my mind and we'll go from there," for the first time that Ebony could recall, Severus sounded unsure and maybe just a teensy bit frightened.
Ebony sighed before reinforcing his barrier to a strength that even Tom would have trouble getting through before delving into Severus's mind. The inner landscape was trashed. Everything had a filtered golden light to it, and it felt to Ebony as if he were wading through molasses. Ebony looked around and found himself in the ruins of what appeared to be a staggering empire. It looked nearly like modern London, but everything about the perspective was skewed. Instead of being lush, busy and rainy, here it was dry, sandy and abandoned. Nothing stirred in the nonexistent breeze that whispered past Ebony's ears, calling phrases in a foreign garble that had a sense of urgency. Most unnerving Ebony was the sense of timeless eyes on him, no matter where he turned or where he looked.
