AUTHOR'S NOTE: HI GUYS, I'M BAAAAAAAAAAAACK! Today (July 1, 2011- 11:49pm ET) is the day I finally uploaded Office onto my new laptop! I couldn't do it before, and before that, my laptop crashed. It crashed in mid-April, sometime after I updated this story. I'd like to apologize to all my fantabulous readers who supported me and kept nagging me to update. You guys were never far from my mind when I kept searching for the Office installer for the past two months (I literally turned my room upside down). I hope you guys enjoy this chapter as much as I will (hopefully) enjoy writing it. OH! And the winner of the poll is…:
CASPER MALFOY! You guys won't see him in this chapter though, sorry!
Now onto the story!
Disclaimer: I love you, you love me, we're one happy family; with a great big hug…RUUUUUN! SOMEONE PUT TOM UNDER THE IMPERIOUS! HE'S SINGING BARNEY!
Chapter 17: Family and Betrayal
Nodding, the three of them proceeded to iron out the details of the plan. Smirking, he met the teen's emerald eyes. Oh, he would be having words with the teen soon.
He suppressed a grin as they ironed out the details of Kingsley's 'vacation'. The teen observed most of it, but sometimes he interjected with suggestions that, most of the time, would benefit them in the long run. He did not question the Lord's thinking, knowing that, in some ways, the man knew better than he. The Dark Lord seemed rather excited while they discussed the Auror's upcoming interrogation. From what he learned, Kingsley had been the one who had informed Albus Dumbledore about the elder two triplets. As nearly no one knew of Shadow, he had been safe from being exposed. However, the Lord wanted revenge for the discovery of two of his children.
Dark eyes turned discretely to the form on the bed, silently observing. Gently, the boy swayed in tune with the light wind blowing outside, a serene look in his verdant eyes. At peace with the world around him, this was when the boy was at his most dangerous.
As far as he knew, to be frank.
The teen's father, the Dark Lord, watched his son out of the corner of his eye, an adoring light shining in the bloody garnets. This forced him to pause in surprise; he had not anticipated that.
When he had arrived at the Dark Lord's manor, he had been informed that they would be discussing the subject with one of the manor's other occupants, but he hadn't been informed who. It had been to his eternal surprise that he had discovered the teen he had mentored, the teen he knew as Shadow, sitting up in the bed, observing the magic surrounding the silver cuff adorning his right wrist. Not a second later, the teen had raised his head, dread entering his eyes as he looked towards the doors where he stood. At that moment, he had forgone his composure entirely. He knew the teen had seen the shocked light in his eyes, and was frightened by the grin that had spread across his features, but he could not bring himself to care. The teen he had been searching for was here, here in the Dark Lord's home, seemingly kept prisoner by the Lord himself. The teen still sought his approval, although unconsciously, and it never failed to please him that he would always mean something to his little protégée.
He remembered his shock when the Dark Lord entered, and spoke fondly to the teenager, who seemed resigned to the inevitable at the time. He had not known until he heard the word 'Father' spoken softly by the raven-haired teen. He had not felt more shock in his entire life than he had in that sole moment and it had taken all his composure to keep it from showing. None of that, however, had fooled the teen.
Shadow, his Shadow, his little protégée, the boy he could consider his own son, as well as his next target, was the youngest child of the Dark Lord. A Dark Lord that all the Hunters respected and feared.
He'd be lying if he said he had expected that. Big Time.
Their conversation had lulled after the teen's input on Shaklebolt, but it did not matter to the torture specialist. He was content observing his young protégée. The boy appeared ignorant of his scrutiny, and perhaps he was, for once. He allowed a smirk to settle on his features as he observed the teen's magical aura.
It was already twice as powerful as it was when they had last met-when he had sold the teen to the experimenters. Their last meeting would haunt him to the end of his time.
Flashback
"Marcus? Where are we going?" the innocent voice asked him. He turned the thirteen year old boy next to him, and smiled the best he could under the circumstances.
His heart ached with each step he took.
"Don't worry Shadow, we will arrive soon enough, and your curiosity will be sated." He didn't want to do this; it was a cruel thing to do to anyone, let alone the boy he considered a son. But he knew he had to, he had no other options, the offer was too much to resist.
He pulled the child to his side and kneeled down so their eyes were level. His heart beat frantically as he gazed into adoring and trusting viridian eyes, and he tried, desperately, to convince himself that he was doing the right thing.
But his mind rebelled against his wished. He knew what he was doing would destroy their relationship, the trust the teen had in him would vanish.
"Shadow, do you trust me?" he asked pleadingly. The teen stared at him, slightly shocked with the question.
"With my life, Marcus. Why?" he asked curiously. He closed his eyes, trying to hold back the tears that would crack his mask.
"I don't deserve it for what I am about to do, child." Now the boy was looking at him in alarm, and his hand encircled the teen's upper arm and began to drag him towards the door. He would do it quickly so the guilt would not tear at him so….
"Marcus X?" a cold voice inquired ahead of them. They froze, and he stepped forward, arm still gripping Shadow's. A group of twelve surrounded them. They knew what he was here for, and were there to make sure he didn't back out last minute.
"I'm here. I've brought him, like you asked." He said; the words were forced out of his mouth.
"Marcus? What's going on?" the emerald-eyed teen asked him, as he tried to move away from him. He only pulled the teen closer. He hugged the teen's trembling form to his own, tightly.
"I'm so sorry, child." He whispered softly, before raising his voice so the others could hear him, "He's yours."
Those two words had betrayal filling the two jeweled eyes he adored so much, and he could feel his inner voices yelling at him, for once in perfect unison. The teen didn't even try to fight it, merely watched as Marcus left him in the middle of the circle of eager experimenters. He couldn't have won anyways, against the twelve, he probably would've won. But never against Marcus.
Never.
The last vision he had of the teen before he disapparated, was the tears frozen in once-Innocent jade eyes.
Apparating to his hide-out in northern France, he did something he hadn't done in over twenty years.
He cried.
End Flashback
He blinked himself out of the memory he had entered, hoping he wasn't on the brink of tears as he was every time he viewed that memory. Re-focusing on the teen, he saw that his eyes were glazed over slightly. His brows furrowed, who is he communicating with? His answer came when the glazed look faded, and horror sparked in the rapidly darkening jade eyes.
Then the teen passed out on the bed, the Dark Lord's eyes snapping to his son's prone form within a second, shock in the ruby eyes.
And he was left guessing at what the hell had just happened.
Shadow
Her chocolate brown eyes slid open as the rays of sunlight hit her face. Her tanned skin glowed slightly in the sun, energy dancing hypnotically over her body, before it was gone. Sighing, she turned to watch her sleeping blond companion in the cell opposite her. Rolling her eyes in slight frustration, she relaxed slightly, her sleek inky black hair falling over her eyes and spilling down her chest. She had pulled her hair tie out a while ago.
Impatiently, she waited for the mercury-eyed blonde to rise from his slumber; she had important news that she would rather not repeat.
Especially in their current location.
Snorting in a rather un-ladylike fashion, she lounged against the cell's silver walls. Yesterday, she had been at her weakest. She had been disoriented, tired, and her emotions ruled her actions. Today, she was calm and confident; she wouldn't let them get under her skin now that she had thought over her situation. It also helped that she had talked to her brother in all but blood while she had been sleeping.
She felt a smirk lift her lips, and couldn't bring herself to feel sorry for the guards on patrol.
Oh yes, that talk had definitely helped her.
Shadow
Doe brown eyes watched the two from the roof of the opposite building with amusement and regret. He couldn't bring himself to feel jealousy towards his twin, not after everything. He saw the way his twin looked at the woman he stood next to; saw the adoration, the devotion, the love in his eyes the moment they saw her. For the life of him, he could not deny his younger twin the one being who would make him truly happy, especially after all that he had done to him.
Unbidden, a tear fell from sad eyes, and he raised a tanned hand to wipe it away. Blond locks fell in front of his doe brown eyes, so different from his twin's pale blue ones, and his brown hair. With one last look at the happy, yet unknowing couple, he took off into the dead of the night.
The discretely watching blue eyes didn't dare stop him.
Shadow
Inky black lashed fluttered lightly against porcelain skin. It was the only sign that the child on the bed showed of waking. Two sets of eyes waited worriedly; one set was too dark to identify properly, while one set glowed blood-red in the rays of dawn.
Minutes later, though it seemed hours to the two men, verdant emerald eyes slowly opened, blinking several times, as if to assure the location they were in. That was enough for the red-eyed man to stand and walk over to the figure on the bed. Soft whispering was heard by the other occupant as the red-eyed man woke the raven-haired teenager. The teen blinked up at his father in slight confusion. Where am I? He asked himself weakly. His memories of the previous night entered his train of thought almost immediately. Communicating long-distance always gave him a head-ache. The first thing he saw was the concerned red eyes of his father. He must be really worried, he mused, if he was willing to display his worry in front of someone else. Needing reassurance that it was indeed his father, he spoke almost thoughtlessly:
"Father?" he did see the man tense up in the corner, but was far more focused on the triumphant gleam in his father's eyes. What had he done that would result in…oh.
He had spoken in Parseltongue.
Speaking in Parseltongue around anyone would automatically secure his position as his father's heir. Only the heir could speak Parseltongue. He had consciously avoided using the snake tongue to hopefully dissuade his father's interest in him, even going as far as to act confused whenever the man or a snake spoke in the tongue around him. Now, due to a completely thoughtless remark, he had just confirmed his father's idea that he was the heir. Not to mention that the man behind his father would be aware of this unique trait of his.
Bloody brilliant.
"Hush my child." The man whispered in the same tongue, concern overriding triumph for the moment, "Relax child, and when you recover yourself, you will inform me of what caused the horror you felt seconds before you passed out." The man informed him quietly. He was still on his bed, only now, the covers were pooled around him, mid-chest, and he held a portion of his father's black robes in a death grip. He supposed he was still frightened over what he had heard while his mind wandered. After this uncharacteristic behavior, the man was completely justified in asking questions.
Sighing, he nodded, acknowledging his father's demands, and responded in Parseltongue to avoid the dark-eyed man from eavesdropping,
"A friend of mine reached through a bond we share. She was in trouble, and needed my assistance." He explained softly, knowing his father would not accept the simple reason.
"Perhaps that is part of the reason," the man countered, eyes burning like hellfire, "but you know as well as I that it isn't the full reason you fainted, is it child?" He shook his head reluctantly.
"It is not." He admitted quietly, "But the reason is not as simple to explain. Much of it is not known outside the Hunter corps. It would be likely that I would be forbidden to tell you." He felt his father's emotions and aura surround him, demanding answers he did not want to give. A hand grabbed his chin and tilted it up so frightened emeralds met concerned rubies.
"You are frightened" the man commented needlessly, brushing a thumb over his cheek, "What scares you so, my darling child?" He did not look away from his father's concerned gaze; he could not find the energy to.
"A long lost tale passed through generation upon generation of Hunters, which will finally come to fruition, but at a price too high to pay." The teen whispered, still frightened by what he had heard. "Wards as old as creation, ones that keep the daemons of the realm below out of the Human Realm, are finally fading into oblivion. Wards that haven't been stabilized since the time of Merlin and Morgan. They seek a power source that will restore the wards at full power, permanently."
"They intend on using you as the power source." His father growled. He only nodded in response. "Who gave you this information?" the man asked him.
"My partner at the Corps. She was kidnapped in New York City, just yesterday. I was supposed to be scouting there yesterday with her, so I can only assume they were looking for me."
"Do you see now, why I refuse to have you in the Hunter corps?" the man growled, looking furious and every inch the Dark Lord he was. "You see the sacrifices you will make to save the world. I care not for the world, but you will not leave this room if I have anything to say about it." Which he did. The man did own the manor they were in, and had a tracker on his wrist. It would be nearly impossible to slip past his father this time, and now, he wasn't sure if he wanted to.
His eyes unwillingly sought out Marcus. The man was watching him curiously, and with slight concern. All the emotions vanished from the man's face when the man saw him watching. His father caught sight of the dark-eyed male in the corner and sighed.
"Barty and I will continue this meeting downstairs. You will get some sleep, or I will force-feed you a dreamless sleep potion." He added in Parseltongue, before leading 'Barty' out of his room. Sighing, he laid back on his pillow.
Sleep sounded good right about now.
Shadow
He had seen his older brother watching them, a smile on his face. It wasn't a wicked smirk, or an evil grin; it was a smile that told him that his brother was happy for him. He hadn't seen that smile in years.
Their mother and father separated shortly after they were born. They were fraternal twins, so they didn't have the problem of deciding who was who. He had brown hair and pale blue eyes to his father's chocolate brown hair and sapphire blue eyes. His brother had dirty blond hair and doe brown eyes to his mother's white-blond hair and caramel colored eyes. It had been easy to decide who would go with whom.
His name was Declan McKnight.
His twin's name was Jacques Martin.
And he hadn't seen his twin since he had joined the Hunters all those years ago. If there was one thing in his life he could regret, it was that.
He'd do anything for his older brother back.
Shadow
Molten silver eyes flickered open in the last rays of dawn, and she sighed in relief. He was waking at last. She watched her blond companion rouse himself from the land of Morpheus. His silver eyes blinked when the saw her observing. He raised an eyebrow in question, all traces of sleep gone from his face and figure. Recognizing the question, she began to talk rapidly in a language that few in the Hunter corps had perfected.
They didn't have much time.
Shadow
Grey eyes watched the figure on the bed, occasionally looking around to make sure he isn't caught. He smirked at the sleeping teen, younger than him, over ten minutes younger than him. He snorted quietly, knowing anything louder would wake the exhausted teen. He felt slightly bad for what he was doing. If his mother had taught him anything, it was that family always came first; not that she acted like it, of course. She treated her youngest like gum on the bottom of her shoe.
He turned his attention to the window, noting the sun's progress in the cerulean sky. He didn't have much time before his father came to check on his heir.
Oh, he had always known that his green-eyed brother was the heir. He may not be even close to the power his younger brother held, but years of observing his brother from a distance, had always ensured he knew what the teen was doing. He had known the ruling that his brother was a Squib had been fake. The man downstairs had been the reason for the decision. He hadn't always known his brother was a Hunter. That news came later, when they recruited him. If his father hadn't placed a power limiting cuff on the younger teen, there was no way he would've been able to complete his mission:
Kidnapping his younger brother.
He walked up to the teen silently, brushing a stray curl from his brother's forehead. Despite it all, he still cared for his brother, he felt responsible. He questioned whether what he was doing was right, but knew it would end better this way. His older brother though…Damien wouldn't think twice to kidnapping the green-eyed teen.
He noted his brother was stirring, and placed a hand over his mouth. The green eyes snapped open, and watched him in shock and confusion. He smiled at his younger brother.
"Sorry Harry," he whispered, "they want you back now." The verdant eyes only had time to widen in horror and slight betrayal before a single hit sent him into blissful oblivion.
Leaving a saddened grey-eyed teen to ponder his younger brother's fate.
Completed on: Saturday, July 02, 2011 at 11:39am
3,362 words
Hi guys, I hope you're not mad at me for the long wait for this chapter. I had hoped to get it up last night, but I ended up writing till about 1:37am, and I fell asleep. I woke up about half an hour ago. Hopefully you guys will enjoy this. I'll try to get another chapter up as soon as possible.
Love, Em =D