Interlude: Master

"Why do you call me Master, Severus?" Tom asked, lying on his sofa for some unknown reason. He'd been turning up unannounced and uninvited more often as of late. "I've told you it's unnecessary."

Severus lowered his head, letting his hair fall between himself and his master. It was too complicated a thing to sum up into a single sentence, and he needed time to gather his thoughts.

Part of it was as a means of keeping his distance from the teenaged Dark Lord, emotionally. As a young man, Severus had been drawn to the Dark Lord's power and lost himself in it for far too long. Even when he knew, intellectually, that he'd chosen the wrong side, and even when he consciously wanted to leave, he hadn't been able to because his magic sang in the Dark Lord's presence. Only the threat to Lily had been enough for him to turn away, but even then it had been as a double agent. Had Dumbledore asked him to leave the Dark Lord altogether, Severus doubted he'd have been capable of it. Now, though, he had a new master, and his magic sang just as brilliantly as it had for the Dark Lord. Severus didn't believe his master's trio of girls would allow him to go down as terrible a path as the Dark Lord had, but nonetheless, Severus wanted to keep his distance. However, he had to acknowledge that he could just as well achieve the same result by other, less subservient means.

He also wasn't quite sure what else he could call his master. Tom felt too informal, and Mister Riddle both felt too formal and indicated a power dynamic that was entirely incorrect. Mister Potter was fine in public, but given his general hatred of all things Potter, it wasn't something he could use otherwise. My Lord was, of course, already taken, and his master had refused that anyway. It really didn't leave much else.

Another, smaller, part of it was possessiveness. The teenaged Dark Lord wasn't just anyone, he was Severus's master. Every time the boy allowed him to call him 'Master' without correction, it felt like acceptance that his master truly belonged to him, just as Severus belonged to his master.

It was, additionally, a victory over Black and Potter, because even if the soul was different, the body remained that of Harry Potter, and the one possessing that body belonged to Severus.

The last reason, something Severus preferred not to consider, was the sheer ecstasy he felt each time he said or thought of his master's title. The first time it had happened, he'd attributed it to his Dark Mark. Something similar had occurred occasionally when he first became a Death Eater. However, though the Dark Mark was no more, the feeling had only grown more intense. It wasn't a sexual pleasure (thankfully), but it was strong enough that it occasionally threatened to overwhelm him. For Severus, who'd had little enough pleasure in his life since Lily had gone, it was like a drug, and no matter how hard he fought himself, he couldn't help but think and say it more as time went by.

These reasons were all true, and Severus understood them, even if he didn't necessarily like them. However, he felt as though none of them truly explained the matter. It felt like there must be some other reason, but try as he might, he could think of nothing else.

There was, in fact, another reason. However, it was one of those reasons that existed deep within the soul, and only someone who was inordinately introspective might have recognized it. Severus, as a rule, avoided introspection as much as possible.

At its core, it was simple. Some people did better as followers than as leaders, and Severus was very much one of them. Without direction, he found himself lost and listless. With someone deciding upon his direction for him, however, he could and would achieve anything. The Dark Lord had wanted a Potions Master, so Severus became the youngest person to ever receive a mastery in the subject. Dumbledore wanted a double agent, and Severus perfected the art.

However, being a born follower didn't stop Severus from considering himself otherwise, which led to a level of dissonance in his life. His current master had resolved that, however unintentionally. It was unclear what, precisely, his newest master wanted from him. Because of that ambiguity, Severus found himself reaching further and working harder than he ever had in his life. It was exhilarating. Following while still deciding his own path. Though he couldn't recognize it as such, it made him feel a greater degree of loyalty to this master than he had his others, and out of loyalty, he would call his master by his rightful title.

Severus straightened and faced his master. "Because that is who you are, and I would rather not let you forget it."

His master blinked, and through the bond Severus could tell the teen didn't understand his answer at all. He smiled. That was fine. It wasn't important.