Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

The next day sunlight woke Harry up. It was just starting to leak into his room, brightening the space. There was a pile of boxes on the floor by his armchair along with a note on top of them.

He got out of bed and padded to the bathroom to brush his teeth and relieve himself before reading the note.

Here's the robes Fredrick made. The muggle clothes are already hung in your wardrobe. I was interrupted by one of my idiots making a grave error this morning. I should be back shortly for breakfast.

Setting aside the note, he sat down and opened the first box so he could start to put his new clothes away.

The first box was filled with a ruby red robe and a black lining. It reminded him of Tom's eyes. When he hung it up, he searched through the muggle attire as well. Soft cotton t-shirts, even softer silk button down shirts, two suits: one grey and one black, a pair of black sneakers and a pair of black leather shoes. The next box had three sets of black robes. They all had the same filigree design sewn into them with matching linings although the lining and thread differed for each robe. A deep green, an even deeper blue and interestingly enough, a royal purple.

The next few sets of robes were similar. A new couple of robes for school with the Hogwarts crest although these looked like they would fit him much nicer than all his others. A new quidditch robe that would likely hug him closely to cut down on drag. He paused when he opened the last box, as baby blue velvet caught his gaze. The lining was the same silk that the pajamas he had been wearing was made out of, but in silver. The blue velvet practically screamed 'touch me' and Harry quickly dressed. It hung a little, no doubt the clothes had been made with the assumption that he would be filling out before school started. He practically ran to the mirror in the bathroom and gasped.

There before him was someone that couldn't possibly be him. He wasn't used to noticing how dark his hair was or how light his skin had gotten. And he especially wasn't used to thinking that his reflection was quite attractive once you got over how thin he was.

He took off the blue robes before turning his attention back to the last box. This one contained two plain robes, one black and one charcoal. The charcoal robes were slung on as they felt a bit softer than the black ones. There was a heavy winter cloak with the filigree on it to match some of the other robes at the bottom of the box.

A gentle knock came at the door from the hallway.

"Harry, could I come in?" Harry simply opened the door in response and waved him in before thanking him for the robes. "Well, I'm glad you like them. I shudder to think how well the others will look on you if the plain ones look this good. I figured we could eat some lunch and then you must focus on your studies while I finish up with these damn followers I have."

They ate in a comfortable silence, neither one of them wanting to break the quiet. Eventually, Harry's curiosity got the better of him.

"What happened to make you so upset at them?" The older man sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Nothing that can't be fixed. Apparently some of my less loyal decided to act on my behalf last night and had to be stopped by my most trusted. It gained the media's attention; however, no one was hurt. At least this will work in my favor." He continued, upon Harry's questioning gaze. "The ones that decided to act negatively were effectively stopped by people that were rumoured to be working for me in the past. This will make it easier for people to believe that Dumbledore let his followers get ahead of themselves and will further their scepticism of him." Harry nodded and took another bite of his sandwich.

"So...now that you aren't trying to kill me, what are you going to do?" Tom shrugged, a little too nonchalantly. "Oh, come off it. I've been manipulated my whole life, what is it you're planning?"

"Alright. I've reabsorbed my horcruxes, all except yours that is." Harry's mouth fell open. Of all the things he had expected to hear, that wasn't among them. It was mind blowing to him that the man once obsessed with immortality willingly made himself mortal again. Well, mostly mortal.

"Really Harry, one would think you were raised by Fenrir." A gentle hand nudged his chin so he would close his mouth. He felt his cheeks warm, no doubt being stained with a pink hue. "I believe the next step for us is to publicly announce to the press what we really want. True reform, for things to change for the better and to see them followed through. Far too many things get passed in the ministry without ever really seeing a resolution until many, many years later. Change is slow, and that bothers me with how many people work there." Harry nodded, and went back to the sandwich in front of him.

They finished lunch, both of them lost in their thoughts. But Tom couldn't help it, he was picking up loose ends of half-finished thoughts that weren't his and he was curious. One seemed to agree with his stance on the ministry, another was about the decent night of rest and suddenly the thought about last night got stronger and he followed it.

A warm body was resting on him, the weight just enough to be comforting but not smothering. A hand gently carded through his hair while soft lips met. It was nothing heated, just calming. Gentle caresses sparked a warm trail that led straight to his heart and made him lightheaded with a happiness he had never known until then. The kisses changed, occasionally the other would slip his tongue in his mouth, while other times he would do the same. Explorations were slow and thorough, while arms encased him and brought on the overwhelming feeling of safety. Neither man was in charge, but it was clear that the god on him was very gently moving things forward and keeping a metaphorical eye out for things becoming too much. It was sweet, it was safe. It was heaven. Their kiss came to a slow stop and their lips curved upwards in happiness. He gently leaned upwards-

Just before he could see who it was, the memory stopped. Tom had just enough time to regain his composure before Harry returned from the depths of his mind. His cheeks were stained red now, and his eyes held a spark somewhere deep in their depths.

"What's on your mind, Harry?" Tom poured himself another cup of tea as he waited for an answer.

"N-nothing. It's nothing."

"Come now, you don't expect me to believe that. You were so lost in your own thoughts, you practically dragged me with you. Dumbledore didn't have you practicing mind magic now did he?" His tone was light, carrying a genuine curiosity.

"No, what do you mean? What's mind magic? And how did I almost drag you with me-oh no, you didn't see what I was...did you?" Tom decided to ignore the second question and answer the first instead in the hopes that he could distract the boy.

"Mind magic is simply that: magic that you can perform with your mind. Essentially: mind reading, blocking others from reading your mind, emotional manipulation and the like."

"But, you didn't...did you…?"

"Harry, I will not lie to you. I did see what you saw. And I must say, I rather enjoyed it. I am sorry for intruding, although it is like I said-you practically dragged me there to begin with." Harry's mouth opened and closed a few times before words finally made it out.

"I...You...But, you can't have…" Tom let out an amused laugh.

"I can't what, Harry? I can't have enjoyed it? I did, immensely. It's been many, many years since I've been with anyone and even longer since I've enjoyed anything of the sort." If it was even possible, Harry's blush deepened. "Are you embarrassed because it was with another man or because I saw it?"

Harry looked down and brought his knees to his chest to wrap his arms around. "Both, I guess. Especially considering...well what's happened to me and all." Tom nodded.

"It doesn't make you weird. Or a freak. Or different. It simply means that when things are done safely with someone you're attracted to and trust, you prefer men that way. I must admit, I'm disappointed I didn't get to see who it was you shared that moment with. You must trust him an awful lot to envision such care and tenderness." He leaned forward and rested his hand on Harry's shoulder. "You are not abnormal for this Harry. You crave the feeling of being safe and loved-no one can blame you for that. I will not say anything to anyone unless you wish me to. After all, we've been keeping each other's secrets for awhile now." He stood and turned towards the door.

"Now, would you like to watch me fix up the rest of this wing? The elves may have cleaned the place up, but it is in dire need of some redecorating."

Harry watched, enthralled as Tom recarved tall pillar after tall pillar and added in touches of silver filigree in the library. This was the last room they had to do, and he was exhausted just from watching all the concentration.

He was mortified, of course, that Tom had seen what he had dreamed of the night before. But he was happy that someone was kind enough to explain to him that he wasn't a freak for wanting something like that. He didn't want to be pressured or held up to any expectations, he just wanted to be taken care of. And that was how his mind had interpreted being taken care of, apparently.

Throughout the day, house elves dressed in emerald green suits with the dark mark stitched into the breast pockets had brought him snacks to munch on as he watched Tom tackle problem after problem. It was enthralling to watch, even more so when larger projects came up and the magic was almost tangible in the air. He liked those moments best. The feeling of Tom's magic washing over him was a heady feeling, and made him feel quite warm despite there being no fires lit in any of the rooms they had repaired that day.

When they finally stopped, the sun was starting to set and a house elf was practically climbing on his master to get him to stop for dinner. It wasn't until Harry put a hand on his wand arm that he stopped repairing a bookshelf.

"Tom, it's time for dinner. Let's stop for today." He smiled up at him, hoping it would get him to see reason and allow the project to be resumed later.

It worked.

"Alright Harry. Let's eat dinner."

"Sirs, there be followers waiting for yous in the dining rooms as well." The house elf twisted his hands around, obviously not wanting to be punished for interrupting. Tom groaned.

"Oh now what? Did they say why they were here?"

"Yes, Sirs, they is waiting for yous to announce the next steps Sirs." Tom asked if Bellatrix was there, and was somewhat disappointed to hear she was, before the house elf hurried off to serve dinner. He let out a sigh and turned to Harry.

"You don't have to be a part of this if you don't wish to be. However, if you would like to come, I have had a...well, a special uniform made for you if you'd like to witness what happens. You will not be harmed or recognized, and it's only if you want to. You can leave at any time, even without an explanation." Harry nodded, deciding he didn't want to be left out of the loop anymore.

"I don't want to fight, but I don't want to be held in the dark anymore either. I would like to listen." Tom nodded and they walked back to Harry's room. He walked through the door to his room, allowing Harry to look in for the first time.

It was done similarly to his room but rather than blue it was a light lavenders and lilacs that accented the cream. He watched as Tom came back with a plain robe box for him and place it on his bed. He slowly lifted the lid of the box, not sure what to expect. I wonder how they will differ from everyone else's…he did say it was a special uniform-whatever that means.

The robes were crimson, with the telltale glint of silver acromantula thread woven within it. He could tell there was black thread stitching, although he couldn't tell what it was. His attention was drawn to the mask sitting on top of the neatly folded pile.

It wasn't a full face mask, although it would look more elegant than masks you see at a masquerade. It was the color of dark blood, with silver so shiny it looked like liquid. The silver made the shape of several snakes intertwined with each other and rubies, each the size of his pinky nail, were expertly cut and glinted from below the outer corner of each of the eyes.

"My eyes are sort of distinct, you know." His voice was thick with emotion, overwhelmed at the intricacy and forethought that had to go into the designing.

"There's a spell over it that will disguise your eyes to be the same shade of red as mine. It's a show of power, that if they wish to attack you, they wish to attack me as well. Each ruby is a portkey too. When it is on, the left will take you to your room and the right will transport you to Severus's home. He has a safe room set up for you, should you ever need to use it." Harry's eyes widened at the mention of Snape.

"But...but Dumbledore trusts him, how can you be sure I'd be safe there? He hates me!" Tom gently shushed him, sensing his rising panic.

"Dumbledore and I have both made one very grave mistake regarding Severus. He is not on Dumbledore's side and he is not on my side. He is on your side, Harry, and will do what he must to protect you. I cannot tell you why, as it is not my confession to divulge; however, know this: Severus has never hated you. Oh, he tried. But he simply can't. Now, I enjoy making my followers sweat a little having to wait for me when they called upon me, but I'm afraid we must either get you dressed or I must join them." Harry nodded and went to put the mask on before he was interrupted.

"You are not obligated to stay. Just remember that. You can get up and walk out at any moment if you wish and you do not have to explain yourself. I will find you after. And the portkeys both have the same password. It is safety. Just touch the ruby that corresponds with where you wish to go and remember to do it in parseltongue or it will not work." Harry nodded and put the mask to the side, deciding to put it on after the rest of the ensemble.

Under the robes were a pair of black trousers and a black silk shirt that went higher up his neck than he was used to. He tilted his head, trying to make sense of the clasp and how it was supposed to work. "Tom, I'm not sure I know how…" his voice trailed off.

"It's alright Harry. Put on your trousers, I'll help you with the rest. It can be quite intimidating, but it's easier than it looks." The man turned, giving him a bit of privacy to change his pants before turning around once Harry's shirt was on the bed.

Tom turned and caught sight of Harry's bare chest once again. He would never tire of seeing it, even with the scars. Silently berating himself for thinking such things, he helped Harry into the shirt and did all the buttons before clipping the ruby cufflinks together and tying the crimson scarf in an intricate knot at his neck. The robes followed, with the black lining of the sleeves hugging his arms quite nicely and stopping about halfway down his hands. A slight detailing of crimson lace peeked out from the ends, giving his hands a wonderful contrast. The rest of the sleeves were larger than average robes, allowing for maximum movement with minimal hinderance should he ever need to battle his way out of something.

He clasped the robes together at the front. They started at hip height and ended just below the knot he had tied earlier. Small rubies glistened in the silver hardware they were mounted in. The black stitching, when looked at closely, made the shape of snakes winding lazily around each other. He led Harry to the bathroom, to allow him to look in the mirror.

The boy was in shock, it seemed. His face was frozen in place while he drank in his own appearance. Surprise washed across the room in waves, and it was all he could do to maintain his own emotions with it. When Harry turned to see the back, he gasped at the large dark mark that was sewn into the fabric.

"Tom…" He didn't respond, merely gazed upon his once-enemy as he gently placed the mask on his face. It didn't need ties, as magic held it in place and would be as seamless to Harry as a second skin. It wouldn't even impede his vision..

"You look incredible. Far better than I had imagined. I must say, I believe I need to update my own robes now." He led Harry back to his room and changed quickly, using magic to do his buttons and tie his scarf. They were the same design, but Tom's were all black with no glimmering in the light.

"Now. Let's go introduce you to my followers."