(TW: Sexual scene in this one.)

Made of Scars, Stone Sour

This one came from looking
This one opened twice
These two seemed smooth as silk, flush against my eyes
This one needed stitches and this one came from rings
This one isn't even there, but I feel it more because you don't care

Yeah, cut right into me
Yeah, because I am made of scars
Yes, I am made of scars

This one had it coming
This one found a vein
This one was an accident, but never gave me pain
This one was my father's and this one you can't see
This one had me scared to death
But I guess I should be glad I'm not dead

When he regained consciousness, he was still in the little warded hut, Ginny asleep beside him in a double bed that hadn't been there before. He felt almost healed and was somewhat cleaner. Tender, unbelievably tired, but in one remarkable piece. He sat up, took in the still dark room, though there was dull light behind the panes. Narcissa was sitting at the desk, watching him, silent and frowning. He could see, his eyes and glasses repaired.

'…So…' Harry thought.

'Do not.'

'You don't know what I was going to think…'

'Don't be stupid, either.'

'…I mean, I don't think it's that stupid because you left me alone there for a good long fucking time, actually. You didn't say anything while he outed me, didn't say anything til-'

'I said don't.'

'I don't care-'

"Harry?" Ginny was sitting up and had startled him with her hand. In turn, Narcissa startled Ginny, making her jump.

"Oh," she said as she recovered from the scare, clearing her throat, "Are you okay?"

"Uh, yeah. I mean, no. But yes. Are you…?"

"Physically? Yeah."

"He didn't hurt you, did he?" Harry asked, searching her face.

"…No," she was scowling, her eyes flicking between him and the blonde woman at the desk.

"Are you here to take us back to the school?" Tom asked Narcissa.

"Back to Skulmadras," she told him.

"…Wait, what?" Harry asked, and she shook her head, obviously out of the loop. He hadn't expected to return to the gathering.

"Can we go now? Please?" Ginny asked, already climbing out of bed; her suspicion suddenly faded at the mention of returning to the festival.

"I will be taking Harry first," Narcissa said, standing.

"Okay," Ginny said, nodding, looking at Harry expectantly, "You'll put us together, right? I want to stay together. Please," she asked, and the blonde woman agreed as Harry peeled himself upright, his eyes feeling sandpapered, limbs like weights.

'Why would we be allowed to stay with Ginny?' Harry wondered.

'I suspect Cassiopeia influenced it. I do not imagine he wishes to lay eyes on us, either.'

Neither of them felt brave enough to check the Dark Lord's head.

"Good. Okay. I'll see you soon," she squeezed his hand as he passed her.

Narcissa side-along Apparated him once they were outside the wards, instantly lighting his head ablaze with a migraine. He forced his eyes open, groaning, and found they were outside a small white tent, surrounded by masked Death Eaters standing guard—not in the Ravadinovo castle.

She gestured him in, and he went. The space was massive inside, with a large sitting area, generous kitchen, pillows scattered everywhere on the couches and floor, and no less than nine doors attached to it.

"You will be staying here. Do not attempt to go anywhere without an escort," she told him, touching his arm briefly, "Rest. I will bring Ginevra."

She left him, and he fell to his knees and onto his face into a pile of pillows.

'…Tom,' Harry thought.

'Harry, no.'

'I don't know how you think I could just breeze past that,' Harry pressed.

'Now?'

'…Okay, fine. Not now. But later.'

'If you insist.'

His stomach rolled; it was not obvious who was nervous. Narcissa's nearly silent pop of Apparition interrupted his thoughts anyway, and he struggled to sit up.

Only Ginny entered. She was muffling their conversation with her wand, already speaking, pulling off her hooded red robe and sitting down cross-legged:

"I asked Narcissa to let Cedrum and the others know we're here. This is our tent; they've been out all night, but I don't think they'll be long… I'm going to lie, okay? As far as they know, I was taken to talk with you after your… Reveal. That's what I was told... So, that's what happened, okay? We just talked through the night. Otherwise, I think…"

"You are right," Tom sighed, "Unfortunately. Cedrum would not take any of that well. Nor, I think, would Eris." He watched her reaction, and she blushed scarlet.

'Oh. Ohhh. Do you think…?' Harry wondered.

'Yes.'

"Probably not I don't know what he'd think really," she cleared her throat and shook her head, "…Harry, what happened."

"Uhhh."

She glared at him, eyes narrowing, "I heard everything. In that bubble. You obviously couldn't hear me… But…"

Harry scanned his deep-fried brain for what exactly had been said, an unreasonable amount of it in English, indicating that the Dark Lord either intended for her to leave dead or Obliviated. So far, she was neither.

'Nothing revealing, definitely things that would raise questions,' Tom supplied, and Harry nearly threw up his arms.

"Ginny- I'm going to scream."

"What?"

"I'm just… This is- did- that was-" He was suddenly giggling, not yelling as he'd intended, "And I'm still in this tent, still at Skulmadras; my head is killing me."

"Are we safe, though?"

"Ginny, no. That's what I've been saying. I-I… He's—He hates me, okay? Like, bad. He wants me to… Can you get me something for my head? Is there something?"

She stood up and rifled through the kitchen cupboards, demanding that he continue talking while he searched, his skull splitting open as his heart palpitated.

"Voldemort is my Horcrux."

She stopped, straightened, and looked at him with wide eyes.

"Pain." His hands shook, and she resumed her search. She was suddenly frantic and dropped things onto the floor.

"How!? What?" She snapped, almost a yelp.

"I don't know. He wants me to kill him. At the same time he kills me. To destroy my Horcrux. Because of the prophecy, how it says that neither of us can die unless at the hands of the other. Then he'd just… Use his Horcruxes, pop back up," he held his head together as he spoke, "But he's- the Horcrux is the only thing keeping him sane-"

"Wait," she sat back down and passed him a vial that he downed without question. "He? You said he?"

"Yeah. He's awake, like Tom. He's also—The Horcrux just… Yells. All the time. When—" He sighed as the pain receded, "When we made the Vows, I woke it up with the curse, somehow. We think."

She was frowning deeply, her lips white, "How long have you known?"

"…Look, I couldn't tell you. Just me knowing was dangerous. He found out I knew; that's what happened. He saw in my head that I'd found out about my Horcrux, among other things- and he wanted to…" He stopped to breathe, light-headed, "He was going to keep me until I wasn't useful or until he couldn't stand my Horcrux anymore, whatever came first. He didn't take what he saw well… I shouldn't be telling you now; it's… I'm sorry. I am."

She bounced her arms on her knees, chewing her lips, "You knew he wanted to kill you, then?"

"…Yeah, we had a strong suspicion. I couldn't- I couldn't tell you that either. I didn't think it would be here. I hoped it wouldn't be here."

There was hurt, plain on her face as she collected her thoughts, her arms drawn tight around her middle.

"He looks… Like a normal person. He has…" She gestured at her head, "Hair? And-"

"The Horcrux, we think."

The tent opened, interrupting her following words, and Cedrum entered first. Ginny ended her Muffling charm as Avalon and Eris followed.

"We were almost worried about you, Ginny," Avalon said, sitting beside her.

"We just had a lot to talk about," she muttered, frowning at Harry.

"It was spectacular, non? The Dragons were Cedrum's idea, but it was me who sourced them. Ethically, of course. Well, one of them was killed unethically, but not by us. What did you think, Harry?" Avalon asked. Cedrum was making tea manually in the kitchen while Eris sat down on the other side of Ginny.

"What?" He asked.

"…What did you think of the dragons?" She repeated.

"Oh. I liked them better than I like vampires. I hated the whole fucking thing, though. Sorry."

Eris stared at him, as usual, though there was a trace of a frown, and his eyes narrowed.

"Sorry," Harry repeated, "I have a migraine," he said, as though it explained anything.

"Honesty is better than lies, I suppose," Avalon huffed, "The candles?"

"Very nice."

She nodded, accepting his compliment, though still scowling.

"I would think he needs rest after a night like that. Narcissa tells me you're lumped with us? Odd?" Cedrum said, levitating a tray of tea over, setting it on the floor between them, and sitting beside Avalon.

"I don't really know why," Harry told him.

Eris watched him with a fully squinted face, and he could barely take another second; he was overwhelmed, tired, and raw.

"…Is there a bed?" He asked, already standing.

Cedrum pointed him to a room, and he stumbled into it, stripping his robe, boots and glasses before collapsing into the heavily cushioned single mattress, grateful for the nearly pure darkness in the otherwise bare bedroom.

He checked the time when he woke. Nearly nightfall. He could hear the necromancers in the other room, murmuring.

'Fine,' Tom thought, 'You saw it.'

'…Yeah.' Harry swallowed repeatedly, still unsure what he thought about what he'd seen. He felt too many things about it at once for him to make sense, though some of them were becoming clearer. His questions suddenly disappeared, 'I saw it.'

'And?' Tom insisted.

'You probably already know better than me, don't you?' Harry wondered how he'd lost control of the inquisition.

'I want you to tell me.'

'…I think it's messed up. I don't know how we got here. I hate the way you make me feel because you're you. And I know you're you. But you're so… I hate how… How he was there to see it because… Because I wanted to see it. Only… Only me. I hate how… beautiful it was. Hate that I… liked it. I hate that he saw me like it. Probably already seen me ask to see it again like a drunk lunatic in the healer's head. Is that accurate enough for you?'

'Yes.'

His heart was suddenly thundering; Tom summoned the curse from Harry's left hand, slipped it deftly under the waistband of his pants and gripped his already semi-hard cock, making him suck in a shocked breath.

'Quiet,' Tom thought, Harry already bucking into him and trying to keep his mouth closed, Tom putting a pillow over his face with his free hand, biting into it.

He didn't last long; the pent-up desire and rage brought him undone within a minute, panting and gasping into the fabric that he hoped had quieted him enough, desperately thrusting his hips until the pressure broke. His mind was blissfully gone as Tom squeezed him, rolling pleasure through him in waves, refusing to let him go until his whole body was twitching and he was threatening to yelp.

He was motionless for a long moment—his body aching, particularly his face— listening, pulse hammering, his throat swollen shut. The group outside was still muttering, and his muscles relaxed.

'…. I need a shower,' Harry thought. He struggled up, legs like jelly, gripping the bed rail for support and hoping clothes were waiting for him to change into. He took several steadying breaths and corrected his wide eyes before he reached for the door.

He poked his head out of the room and locked eyes with Ginny first, hoping his face wasn't red or otherwise obvious. She joined him in his room and silenced it.

"Do I have something else to wear? Here? I need a shower," he told her, trying not to frown or otherwise behave strangely.

"Oh, sure, yeah. I left your chest out here. They brought it earlier; I didn't want to wake you. We'll talk after, okay?" She left the door open, and he followed her out. She showed him his chest and the bathroom. He was desperately grateful for the opportunity to be clean and not dead.

'We're not dead. He knows, and we're not dead.'

'I know.'

He set the water to scalding and stripped at record speed. As soon as he was under the stream, he asked:

"Why did you tell him to tear you to pieces? That was in French, right? What else did you say?" In Parseltongue.

"I was having a moment of… Weakness. When you saw how I- how I feel, there was disgust in you. There still is. There is also the reality, Harry, that we are not through this. He will not make this easy. I was- I am tired."

"…I'm disgusted at myself, mostly…"

"Is that intended to help?"

"I don't know. I also thought it was- I liked it. Is that… Feeling- is that- is that love?" Harry asked, the scalding water suddenly making him dizzy, needing to hold himself on the tiles.

"I don't know. Is it?" Tom seemed to be genuinely asking.

"…I don't know."

He scrubbed himself three times over, finding that the new skin was only slightly pinker under the almost unbearably hot shower. He hadn't seen the burns but had felt them, and the outlines were extensive. His chest, arms, and legs wore fresh skin, missing hair. Perfect circles of varying sizes, his chest riddled with them, along with streaks and fist marks. He knew he'd find them on his neck and face. He thought about sending the healer a gift for saving his hide from the worst of it, although she likely wouldn't remember why.

He got dressed in a new set of robes that weren't charmed for defence. A look in the mirror confirmed the faint red marks on his face and neck, thankfully clean-shaven to begin with. Ginny followed him from the bathroom to his bedroom, sat on the end of his bed and silenced the small room.

"So, Cassiopeia knows, about your…" She waved a hand, grimacing.

"Yeah. We told her, trying to get her to help us stop him from killing us. He didn't like that either. What happened last night? After I passed out?"

"She made a bed and took Madam Duke back to the school to get more supplies; then she came back to do the rest. You were… Still talking. You know this is unbelievable, right? You're telling me- You're telling me more insane things every time I… This is it, right? You've told me everything now, right?"

"…What did I say?" He asked, an octave higher than he intended, ignoring her question.

"Not much in English. Mostly Parseltongue. You laughed a lot. This is the last insane thing, right, Harry?"

"Probably the brain damage. How much- how much did Narcissa hear?" The Malfoy Matriarch was suddenly much more of a concern; though the damage was certainly done, he could always cause more.

"Harry."

"Yes. It's the last insane thing," he lied, "How much did she hear?"

"Most, she came before Cassiopeia left. What did you mean when you said that he read Narcissa's mind, and that was why…?"

"Oh. I-I said something in Parseltongue to Tom the morning before the feast. He thinks she heard me, that Voldemort read her mind, and that's why he checked mine."

Tom hadn't even bothered to check his theory; he was that confident.

She blessedly didn't ask what he'd said.

"What did You-Know-Who tell Cassiopeia?" She asked instead.

"…What do you mean?"

"You said it was a 'bad time?' she said she would figure you out anyway?"

"…No idea," he lied.

She raised an eyebrow but moved on, "Azkaban show? What was she talking about? To him?"

"My magic mixed with his at the prison. That light. It was," he frowned, trying to find words that didn't sound too reverent to describe it, "It was huge."

'Nice,' Tom thought.

'Shut up.'

"And the French?" She asked.

"Private," Tom answered before Harry could ask again what he'd said.

"'Circumvented the effects of the Horcruxes'?"

'She is a charmer this evening, I must say,' Tom grumbled in his head.

"He... lost the ability to love as he made more of them. And he lost his mind. My Horcrux seems to have fixed some of it. We don't know how much, exactly, but Cassiopeia wouldn't be here; he wouldn't have been able to gather the support that he has… If I hadn't—hadn't woken the Horcrux up."

He didn't want to look at her as he spoke; he still stood, arms crossed. He glanced back at her when she didn't immediately respond, chewing her thumb instead.

"…I thought you died, like three times, last night. You kept… relaxing- like- and you'd make this sound. Your eyes... Your heartbeat… And it felt like you were- she wasn't coming back fast enough." She looked away and brushed the tears from her eyes before they fell.

"I'm so sorry. I wish he didn't bring you into it. I should have known better," he sat beside her, and she leaned into him.

"Do you think he would have done it if they hadn't shown up?"

He didn't answer straight away and sighed instead. He nodded, too slight for her to see, then said:

"Yeah. He was gonna do it."

"Do you think he's still going to…"

"Maybe."

She stood up sharply, "I'm starving. Are you hungry?"

"Thirsty, mostly. But yeah," he followed her out. Eris aggressively stared him down as he exited, Avalon's eyes glittering with a smirk she withheld; both sat at the four-seater table; Cedrum was missing.

Ginny sat down with them, pulling the last seat out for him. He took it, and she poured him water and piled pastries and fruit on his plate, reminding him of her mother. It made his chest hurt.

"Thank you," he told her, draining the glass and refilling it himself; iced water was probably the most amazing gift anyone could have given him.

"…Now that you're here with us, does that mean I can convince Ginny to come out tonight?" Avalon asked.

"No. What? No. Out? Where?" Harry asked, topping up the too-small glass again. Eris scoffed but said nothing.

"…I don't really think it's a good idea," Ginny said, frowning at her pastry.

"But the big tent… Ah. Eris. I tried. We'll go together, yes?" Avalon said, nudging Eris and still grinning.

"Where will you be?" Eris asked Ginny, though he was looking at Harry.

"Er… Here, I guess. Sorry. My family… I don't want to go out without hiding my- my face," she was curling inward as she spoke, and Avalon was suddenly glaring at Eris.

"She is allowed to hold onto her family if she wants to. Stop being un trou du cul."

"They'll know one day," he said, still staring daggers at Harry, who was looking at Avalon for help.

"Leave her be now. Ou lui dire que tu veux un baiser," she giggled, and his eyes went wide. Then he shot out of his seat, bumped the table, and rattled his plate forcefully before vanishing behind a door.

'She told him to ask her for a kiss,' Tom supplied mentally, adding substantially to his theory that Eris was interested in her.

"Tsk. Sorry, Ginny. He'll get over it. He just wants you to come with us. But I will stop pressing you. Even though it's going to be amazing," Avalon grinned at Ginny, the redhead biting into her ham and cheese pastry, frowning, before her eyes flicked to Harry and narrowed.

Tom checked the time, Avalon oo'ing at the snaking green numbers.

"I expect we will see Cassiopeia soon," he said to Ginny before he ducked into the Dark Lord's head, giving Harry zero warning.

"You asked for this, I have to repeat. 'Cassiopeia, help me with my stupid dumb idiot vampire diplomacy', that's exactly what you said. Official status report for you, my Lord, it's somehow going remarkably fine. I told you, Enos is a disaster. You're doing well enough, despite nearly fucking killing the main attraction. I still have the healer in holding," she stopped to glare at him before he could react, "I haven't Obliviated her for several reasons; here they are: She is worth more with a brain, she does excellent work, she's not super surprised at your bullshit… And I think she's funny. She needs an apprentice, a Dark Mark, and probably a Vow, not brain-rot."

His eyes rolled back into his head. "Fine. You create the Vow. I do not have the desire nor the will to give her a mark." He was swigging whiskey straight from the bottle, unmasked in the vampire's castle as they rose, still keen to get another half-bottle in before he hid his face.

'Failure you can't do ANYTHING RIGHT CAN'T KILL ME OR YOURSELF-'

"I'm going soon, after the healer, to see him. I'm bringing the Malfoy and his gaggle because they've whined endlessly. Do you need anything else? I'm definitely too mad to hear a single objection about anything from you. Just consider yourself lucky you're not required at the festivities," she continued to squint at him. "…It can't be that bad."

Anger bubbled at her words, but not enough to move his mouth.

"…Is it?" She leaned in, and he looked away.

'NEXT TIME DON'T FUCK FUCK FUCK IT UP YO-'

"I cannot take this," he forced his eyes back to hers, numbed.

"Well, I mean, I don't know all of how this works, but I know there's a way to make it quiet-"

"I would rather eat glass. Do not say it. Go and do whatever you said you were going to do."

Tom pulled them out of his head to the sound of startled gasping, Ginny, Avalon, and Eris staring at him, the latter standing, holding a toothbrush.

"…What?" He asked, heart rate immediately picking up.

"What was that? With your eyes?" Eris demanded.

"…What?" He repeated.

'Do we do something with our eyes when we do that?' Harry wondered.

'I don't know.'

"They go all green. Like they do when, almost-" Ginny frowned, stopping herself.

"Smoking, bright. You were staring. Do you get visions? Is that what that was?" Avalon asked, seeming the least shocked, sipping tea.

"Uh. No, I mean... I didn't know anything happened with my eyes."

'Good one, this is on you now,' Harry thought.

"Cassiopeia will be bringing Draco, as well as his 'gaggle', I believe that means more than Pansy and Draco. Evidently, she does not care about your secrecy, so consider this your forewarning," Tom told Ginny.

'That's not really what I meant at all.'

"Oh," Ginny said.

"So, they are visions? Of what's happening right now?" Avalon asked. Eris' eyes drilled into the side of his head.

"Sure," Harry said, while Tom said, "No," then Harry added, "It's no one's business anyway."

"…Yeah. Je suis d'accord, il y a quelque chose qui ne va pas chez lui," Avalon muttered.

"Vous avez pris votre temps," Eris told her.

'She said she agrees with him, that something is wrong with you. He said she took her time.'

'Great, thanks.'

'You are welcome.'

"Do you think she'll bring Blaise?" Ginny asked Harry, ignoring the French and chewing her thumb.

"I hope not," he said, "What are you gonna do?"

Eris and Avalon focused on the youngest Weasley—bug eying the table.

"I don't know? Is it weird to hide in my room? I think I can't breathe. They could just stay outside, right? Why is she bringing them?"

Avalon had gotten out of her seat while Ginny motor-mouthed. She beelined for a cupboard and brought the redhead a Draught.

"…Thank you," she told her, uncorking and downing the potion.

"I don't know. She said they 'whined'. I'm assuming they want to talk about last night," Harry said, frowning, not hungry anymore.