Right Now, Korn
Right now
Can't find a way to get across the hate when I see you
Right now
I feel it scratch inside, I wanna slash you and beat you
Right now
I rip apart the things inside that excite you
Right now
I can't control myself, I fucking hate you
I'm feeling cold today
Not hurt, just fucked away
I'm devastated and frustrated
God, I feel so bound
He'd walked with Cassiopeia to Ravadinovo, another publicity stunt. He'd kept his hood up, flanked by a guard of Death Eaters as yet another crowd of reporters hounded them right up to the gatehouse. He was too irritated and anxious to say anything to her, and she let him walk in silence.
Tom didn't seem to think it was a good time to check the Dark Lord's head, so they went in partially blind. They knew they weren't welcome, but they didn't know how angry he was exactly.
She left him alone in a locked room, and he was too nervous to sit down, biting his tongue and clenching his gloved fists. She left him there for half an hour while he paced.
'I hate him. I hate this. Is this better than being dead? Being a Death Eater?' Harry wondered.
'Marginally.'
"Alright. Come on then," she said quietly as she collected him.
They weren't far from the dining room, a short walk down the hall. Tofa, Signy, Enos, Nagini, and Voldemort were already at the table, the Dark Lord fully concealed. Vanya was chained in the corner, under a silencing charm, flipping and apparently screaming. Tom kept their eyes on the round table, covered in food, Narcissa's name all over the extravagant feast.
Cassiopeia sat Harry between herself and Nagini, Voldemort on the other side of the Maledictus, the table painfully quiet.
"There he is!" Enos boomed, making him flinch, "The Chosen Boy! What a shock it was to see you. Didn't this man kill so many of your loved ones? What a dramatic turn of events, Signy, don't you agree?"
Signy, the one that Harry finally identified as having a bigger nose than Tofa, was whispering in Enos' ear and giggling.
"He did kill some of them, yep," Harry said, trying to keep his tone conversational even though the words were like razors in his mouth. He reached nonchalantly for the wine jug, pouring it into a stemmed glass.
"So why are you here then?" Enos asked, his eyes glittering as he leaned in.
"Cassiopeia invited me to dinner," Tom said.
Enos laughed, vibrating the glassware.
"So, you betray all your people for some duck?" The Norseman gestured at the table.
"…I've never tried duck," Harry said, and the sisters cackled.
'Good, Harry,' Tom thought, making his heart jump.
"Are you alright?" Nagini asked him in Parseltongue, and he chanced a look at her.
"Yeah, are you?" Harry saw the Dark Lord bristle beside her, his back straightening infinitesimally. He swallowed and tore his eyes from Nagini.
"…Yes," she told him.
"He knows the snake tongue too? You said it is uncommon?" Enos squinted, seemingly angry about being lied to.
"It is," Harry said, "I picked it up... As a baby." He was vague, unsure how much he should say.
The sisters whispered in his ears again, and Enos smirked, though he didn't say anything.
"Is your friend doing well?" Nagini whispered.
"I think so. I hope so," he said, sipping his wine. His face was so hot he knew it was red. He kept his eyes on the table and his Parseltongue quiet.
"Do not speak to her. Shut your mouth," Voldemort said, tone neutral but laced with warning.
Harry took another long sip and rolled his eyes shut.
'It will be over soon,' Tom thought. Harry knew he felt the bone-aching exhaustion exactly as he did. He was alone in the stomach-twisting desire that the Dark Lord's commands brought, making his insides flip-flop even though it was entirely insane—even though it made him sick.
'Til next time,' he thought bitterly.
Nagini was twisting her napkin on her lap, knuckles white.
"What are you saying to each other?" Enos shouted across the table.
"She asked me how my friend was. I said she's fine," Harry said, keeping his volume low.
Cassiopeia was piling food on Harry's plate, then Nagini's, leaning over him to reach the Maledictus. She neglected Tom's. Enos seemed satisfied with his answer.
"Conversate with me, Harry Potter. Last night, I hear you sent a spirit snake at one of those vermin. Ha!" Enos shook Tofa, who didn't react. "They are everywhere, are they not? Like roaches!"
"Oh, yeah. She… Rita Skeeter. She likes to talk about my ghosts, so I thought-"
"Show it to us," Signy said, and Enos narrowed his eyes.
Harry looked at the vampire on his right, and she spoke:
"That would be up to our gracious host," she flinched her eyebrows.
"Fine. Show it," Enos gestured and leaned back in his seat.
He took a breath, and Tom raised his left arm. He summoned the green mist to form the serpent, larger than the table. The serpent rolled above their heads and yawned its jaw wide.
Signy clapped and gasped, rapped on the wood and looked at Enos, "It is like Jörmungandr at our feast."
"Ah, yes, the great Ouroboros, Signy. Make it bite its tail and circle the Earth!" Enos guffawed as he spoke.
Tom had it swallow its tail, met with giggles and gasps from the sisters. He didn't wrap it around the globe; instead, around the edge of the table, all three of the Norse vampires watched with wide eyes, Tofa repeatedly putting her hand through the apparition as it circled the wood. Harry glanced at Voldemort from the corner of his eye and found him as still as a statue, staring at the far wall.
"I want to hear more of the men speaking the snake tongue. You," Tofa pointed at Harry when he vanished the snake, and he bit his cheeks. A heavy exhale was the only indication that the Dark Lord was about to slip into violence.
"Well, we wouldn't want to disappoint our hosts," Cassiopeia said, more to Voldemort, who was seething tangible rage. Then she nudged Harry.
'Tom,' he thought, swallowing repeatedly, and fighting not to sink into his chair.
"Hard seeds of hate I planted," Tom began in snake language, ignoring how the Dark Lord went rigid and gripped his hands together so tightly that they shook.
"That should now be grown—rough stalks, and from thick stamens; a poisonous pollen blown, and odors rank, unbreathable, from dark corollas thrown. At dawn from my damp garden, I shook the chilly dew; the thin boughs locked behind me, that sprang to let me through."
Nagini briefly touched Harry's gloved hand, then returned it to her lap to resume wringing her napkin.
"The blossoms slept—I sought a place where nothing lovely grew. And there, when day was breaking, I knelt and looked around: The light was near, the silence was palpitant with sound; I drew my hate from out my breast and thrust it in the ground."
"Enough," Voldemort snapped in Parseltongue.
"Enough from you. You're being silly. Focus," Nagini said, and Harry fought the wild grin that was trying to take over his face at her admonishment.
Voldemort rose infinitesimally from his seat and then stopped, drumming his fingers once on the table. They understood that he was brimming with barely concealed fury. Harry nudged Cassiopeia, who cleared her throat loudly in the silence.
"Oh, ye so fiercely tended, ye little seeds of hate," Nagini continued to recite, making Tom bite his tongue to remain expressionless.
"I bent above your growing early and noon and late, yet are ye drooped and pitiful—I cannot rear ye straight."
"Nagini. Stop," the Dark Lord warned, but she didn't.
"The sun seeks out my garden; no nook is left in shade; no mist nor mold nor mildew endures on any blade; sweet rain slants under every bough: ye falter, and ye fade," she finished and straightened her napkin.
"You are repugnant," Voldemort hissed, Harry assumed it was aimed at him and not his familiar.
"You've said," he hissed back before Tom clacked his teeth together.
"Shut—your—mouth," he dropped all pretence that it was a casual snake discussion.
"They asked for me to speak," Harry said.
"…Tom," Nagini said, looking at Voldemort and wincing.
'Harry, enough,' Tom thought, picking up his glass and draining half of it.
"You will cease at once," the Dark Lord commanded.
"There will be no messes in my dining suite. If you want to fight your argument you will take it through the gatehouse," Enos said, bored, picking up on the rage in the air.
Harry bit his tongue, cheeks flaming, heart escaping. Cassiopeia looked at him, and a tiny, taunting smirk appeared on her face. She raised one eyebrow and returned her attention to the table. Tofa whispered in Enos ear again, and the vampire laughed so loud Harry felt it in his chest.
"My sister wants to fuck him. She likes how horny he is. Can that be arranged?" Enos said, pointing at him.
"Repulsive," Voldemort said in the serpent language.
"Whoa, now," Cassiopeia said, gripping his arm before he could react, "I'd be happy to volunteer, Tofa," she purred.
'Tom I want to get the fuck out of here please,' he thought.
The Dark Lord had lost some of his composure, shifting repeatedly in his seat, clenching his fists, and reaching for his robe pockets. He stopped himself each time.
"Flattered. I am gay," Tom said, making Harry exhale forcefully into his wineglass. Cassiopeia snorted beside him, and Nagini flinched.
'Why would you say that?' Harry thought, ears red.
'Do you want to be pursued by Enos' sister?'
'No, but-'
"Ah, so it is, Tofa, he is Argr. I remember when they hung men for such," Enos said. Signy gasped, then screeched a laugh.
"Wow, this is so productive," Cassiopeia said, followed by a nervous giggle.
Nagini put her hand on the Dark Lord's, stopping his fidgeting, her brown eyes wide.
"Enos, tell me about Wessex and King Aethelred; I love that long ass story. The one where you meander aimlessly and miss a satisfying conclusion," the dark-haired vampire said, her tone bright enough for the insults to go entirely over his head as he clapped.
"Oh, that was a good day. A great battle. A slaughter! He brought far fewer men than he ought because— your baby has wrung its neck on its bindings," the tattooed vampire said, pointing behind them at Vanya.
"Oh, shit," Cassiopeia sprang to free her spawn, not choking because she didn't need air, but working steadily to decapitate herself mindlessly. She leapt on Vanya's back and uncoiled the chain from around her throat with difficulty, the young vampire scrambling to get out from under Cassiopeia and remove her own head.
Once Vanya was released, she returned to snapping silently at them, the deep red and purple marks on her neck already fading. Cassiopeia touched Harry's shoulder and gave him a small smile as she returned.
"You are very quiet and very angry, Dark Lord Voldemort. Quiet, angry ones make me uneasy." Enos clasped his massive hands together and leaned across the table, tilting it with his weight.
"We will have words and set terms. Privately," he responded, voice low, giving Harry unbidden chills.
"Good terms, I trust! In that case, hurry and eat get out of my house," he pointed at Harry and Nagini, who both picked up their forks.
He was desperate to leave before it disintegrated into madness, and if he had to eat the duck to get out, he would. He took as many forkfuls as he could, not liking it as much as chicken. The entire time he ate, Enos recited a tale that was—as Cassiopeia had predicted— entirely nonsense.
"I'm so full," Harry said mechanically, looking at Cassiopeia from the corner of his eye.
"Thank you for your hospitality, Enos. Tofa, Signy," Tom said, bowing his head and snarling inside it like a cat in a bag.
"Yes, yes, get out of here, Chosen Boy." Enos laughed at his own joke, beating his fist on the table and forcing his sisters to catch glasses with wide eyes.
Cassiopeia stood up, and he followed, hands sweating in his gloves. They let him go, and as soon as they were outside the dining room door, she side-along Apparated him to Hogwarts. He buckled in half as soon as the sensation of Apparition faded, gasping lungfuls of air as though she'd pulled him out of the ocean.
"Sorry, buddy," she said, forcing him upright, "That went well. Genuinely."
"Yeah. Great. He insulted me the whole time."
"Yeah, I thought so, but he didn't kill you!" She moved him toward the castle.
There were far more Death Eaters at the school's perimeter than when he left. He asked her why as they walked with a group of three of them along the uneven wooden bridge.
"You, of course. You just kicked up quite a lot of dust. Reporters descending like vultures, trying to sneak into Ravadinovo; two of them were dinner last night. Four more for dinner in a minute; I thought I'd save you from that. A few tried to get into your tent; those ones are prisoners. Three of them. Countless more are trying to breach the school and wait for you. Presumably in your bed? I don't know. Also, we're preparing for Order retaliation. Vigilance, etcetera."
"Order retaliation?" Harry repeated.
"Well, you're their Golden Boy. He's just announced that no, actually… They might attempt something if they're feeling tough enough."
"…How- how likely do you think- do you think they will?"
"I don't know, Harry; you're probably more knowledgeable than I am when it comes to the Order," she shoved him lightly.
He thought about what Ginny had said about Kingsley and Aberforth. Other than that, he knew next to nothing about their movements, as it had always been.
"Not really. They said I shouldn't be involved in their plans, when- anyway. Doesn't matter now," he sighed.
"I've got to head back there, but I'll see you tomorrow night," she said as they reached the clock-tower courtyard. She moved to leave, then stopped to ruffle his hair and kiss his cheek.
"You did great. Great. Alive and everything. Well done. Go on, get," she shooed him.
The three Death Eaters trailed after him silently as he walked up dozens of staircases to the Room of Requirement, where Tom ordered them away as he paced anxiously back and forth to summon his bedroom.
He'd slept well into the next morning, exhausted. It was nearly eleven when he checked the map—left in his bag in his room. He was still fuzzed in the brain from the Grave Dust. He searched for Ginny's name, ensuring she'd returned safely. He found her with Cedrum, Avalon, and Eris in the transfiguration classroom.
"What's the plan," Harry asked in Parseltongue.
"I want to assess. Use the cloak."
It was Saturday, so a good number of students were at Hogsmeade, but a few were in the hall for an early lunch, Luna and Neville among them. He decided to head there first, not keen to look at Eris for fear of strangling the life out of him.
The castle was riddled with Death Eaters, more than the night before. He skirted past, invisible, as he made the long walk from the room to the Great Hall. He didn't need to look or wait long to hear about himself. It was all any of the students were talking about. The Daily Prophet—in front of nearly everyone in the sparse hall, bore Tom's Morsmorde, writhing on the front page with the headline:
Harry Potter: Death Eater
He didn't look at the paper for long, bile rising in his throat as he sat down near Luna, who looked at him with her usual dreamy expression. He knew she could see him—or his aura- but hoped she wouldn't say anything about his presence. She confirmed it by waving under the table as Neville spoke.
"I just can't believe it. Something must have happened. Like mind control or a potion or something, right? To make him do that. I know he's been real weird and all but…"
"You'd have to ask Harry that. The Prophet says the festival ends today, they'll be back any minute, I suspect," she said.
"Do you really think he'll be back, though? After that?"
"Oh, I think so," she said, biting into a sandwich.
He left them and snuck a copy of the Daily Prophet into his robes, heading for Ginny next—not particularly wanting to see Eris but needing to gauge the damage. The transfiguration courtyard wasn't far, so he didn't get long to panic. The door swung open as he reached it, took the cloak off, and released a breath when the mood was reasonably neutral. Cedrum and Eris were scowling—the former in general, the latter at Harry— but Ginny was happy to see him, and Avalon was only lightly frowning.
"Come in, shut the door, please," Widrich said, pipe in hand. Harry did as he was asked and sat down beside Ginny.
"Tell me again how it happened," Cedrum said, looking at Avalon.
He could feel Eris' glare drilling into the side of his head. He didn't look, ground his teeth together and forced his nails into his palms instead.
"Ah. Well. I was… Too drunk, and-"
"Too drunk? Is that why most of you looked deceased when I returned?" He questioned.
"Oui. A hangover," she looked around for support, "He knew I might drop Albert. Ce n'est pas comme si je l'avais tué, it's no big deal."
'She said it is not as though she killed him.'
"What's done is done. I am disappointed. We must work to hold a place here, Avalon," Cedrum tapped his pipe in an ashtray.
She ducked her head and grimaced.
He'd walked with them afterwards, outside of his cloak in solidarity with Ginny, though the castle was mostly empty of students. He hadn't seen Hermione on the map, and so he assumed she was at Hogsmeade. They'd soon be back.
"When do you think those new students will be here? I must see them sorted," Avalon asked as they walked aimlessly.
"Cassiopeia said by the end of the week, and it's Saturday, so," Harry said. He looked at Eris, who glared straight ahead and walked beside the youngest Weasley.
"I can't believe her dad is Ironwood," Ginny said.
She'd been quiet, somewhat pale. He wanted to ask if she'd heard anything from her family, but she already seemed upset.
"We heard about him. disgusting, non?" Avalon said, linking arms with Ginny, moving Harry to the side, and immediately irritating Tom.
As they avoided yet another group of students to exit the castle through the bell tower, they ran right into Snape. He locked eyes with Harry and seemed to be in pain.
"Potter. With me," he snarled, turning to whip his cloak and drift steadily down back the way they'd come. Harry left the necromancers and jogged to keep up with the headmaster, already halfway up the stairs in the library annex.
Snape didn't say anything until he spoke the password to the eagle. They ascended the winding staircase and entered the office, far different from the last time he'd seen it. Devoid of portraits and paraphernalia, nothing but a desk wrapped in bookshelves. It was dark, lit by a handful of candelabras and free-floating candles. He spun on Harry when the door was closed and yanked Harry's left sleeve up, breathing a sigh of relief and closing his eyes when he found bare skin.
"…Wrong arm," Harry said, and his eyes snapped open.
"What have you done?" He took a step back, mouth open.
"What have you done?" Harry snarled back, "You gave him the prophecy."
"You took the mark?"
"It was fake, you know. The prophecy. Planted by Dumbledore. In the Hog's Head?" Harry said, pleased to see its impact, "Why would they be in the Hog's Head, Snape?"
"What are you talking about?" He looked torn between anger and pleading, "I swore when your mother died that I would protect you-"
"Swear to a lot of people's mums to help their sons, do you, Severus?" Harry said, "Because Draco did a bang-up job, you should be proud; Narcissa owes you a debt-"
"I did not know specifics; when I swore to Narcissa I did not-"
"Save it, I don't even care anymore. I'll see you at meetings." He bolted out the door and down the stairs before he could hear another word, throwing the cloak over his head and heading for the Room of Requirement.
(AN: Tom and Nagini recite Blight, by Edna St. Vincent Millay.)