Final chapter, probably should have had it out when I really finished it, but... I'm lazy. Not to mention, it confused me, too. Then again, I have the "sequel" half done chapters, 10, so... P
31 October 1981
Lucius shifted the child he held in his arms as he approached the warehouse. It had taken him quite a while to reach it, what with the numerous and intricate wards he'd had to avoid. True, the aristocrat had been given specific instructions to navigate through them, but it had still been a tedious chore to get as close as he had. Stopping at the door, he placed his palm to a space above the doorbell and whispered a name.
Moments later, the door was opened by one Severus Snape.
"Lucius, why are you here?"
"I have the little one, Severus." Lucius gently shifted his burden. "Now that he's done his work, it's past time he gets home."
Severus' visage softened as he recognized the child in his colleague's arms. Accepting the child, he carried the Percy as though the child were made of glass, an action which was as much a precaution to avoid antagonizing the injuries as it was an act of reluctant care. It was as Lucius was turning away that the potion's master caught the sly smile.
"You know something I don't."
"Of course I do," Lucius' voice was rich with amusement. "for the boy has chosen a path none would have expected. Potter will meet Riddle, but there will be a game in play far beyond the reach of either Dumbledor or Voldemort's petty imaginations when their confrontation comes to play."
Severus closed the door with his colleague's final warning ringing in his ears.
"Beware your loyalties, Severus; we would hate to see you killed."
-Ende-