Tender Hooks
By: Replacement for the Stars

Chapter Sixty-four:
The Light Outside Is Blinding

He's riding hard to catch that herd, but he ain't caught 'em yet
'Cause they've got to ride forever on that range up in the sky
On horses snorting fire
As they ride on hear their cry
'Ghost Riders In The Sky', Johnny Cash

(O.o)
Year: 1972
Date: July the Twenty-third

Nessie was the only one in the living room when the fireplace flared green and Lucius stepped out, looking tall and proud, a hint of disgust at his surroundings and only the faintest hint of concern. It was almost four o'clock in the morning and Eileen was with Severus, trying to convince him not to drown himself in the bath or throw himself down the stairs. The past few days had been the worst yet, and Nessie had needed to get away from the stress and the worry and the heartache and the fear for just a few minutes.

Lucius was staring at the bookshelves directly across the room from the fireplace, a faintly amused look on his pale face. Nessie wanted to scream at him, wanted to throttle him for leaving Severus so alone and so weak, wanted to steal Severus's wand and layer some of those strange, painful spells on the blond, but didn't move except to whisper, "H''s upst'irs, L'ci's." Lucius didn't hear him and merely continued looking around for a few long minutes before stepping away from the fireplace and pacing around the room.

"I k'nd of w'nt to h'rt y'u," Nessie admitted without taking his green eyes off Lucius's concerned face. "B't Sevvie l'ves y'u, and th't m'ans I do t'o. Th'nk y'u f'r c'ming a d'y e'rly."

It took a great deal more time than Nessie was comfortable being alone with Lucius for the fire to flare again and for Abraxas Malfoy to step out and bellow for Eileen. The two blond men stood in front of the fireplace and Abraxas gruffly muttered, "He better be in poor shape, boy, or I'll have to punish you for making me come to this…hole a day early." Nessie frowned and floated up the stairs when the bookshelf slid to the side.

Severus's screams for Lucius were instantly audible, and Lucius's panic and concern filled the cramped house to the brim as he pushed past his father and rushed up the stairs. Abraxas frowned at his surroundings and sedately followed behind, but once he made it up the stairs and stopped right before Nessie, the small boy could see the masked concern on the Lord Malfoy's pale face. He looked up to see Eileen being pushed out of Severus's room and there were a few moments of awkwardness as Eileen attempted to make herself presentable with vomit soaking her clothes and nasty, bleeding scratches up and down her arms.

Abraxas sniffed but quickly cleaned Eileen up with a few waves of his wand. She attempted to apologize but he waved her off, inviting her down to her own sitting room for tea. Nessie watched them go and then floated through the wall into Severus's room. Floating through walls was always a bit strange; it didn't feel like he was moving through anything but he knew there was supposed to be something there.

He looked down to see Severus, naked, kneeling at Lucius's feet while Lucius dipped his fingers into some small pot of white potion and spread lines of it over Severus's shaking shoulders and down the line of his back and over his pale, sunken chest. Lucius was whispering under his breath and Severus was quivering, long fingers clenching and unclenching at his sides, as if it was all he could do to stop himself from grabbing onto Lucius and never letting go. Nessie settled in a dark corner and forced himself to watch.

Severus was crying once again, silently now, tears streaking down his cheeks and falling to stain the cold floor. Lucius continued spreading the white potion across his sallow skin and bent down to write his claiming on the soft skin between Severus's jutting hipbones, smirking when Severus couldn't stop from pressing a kiss to the side of his mouth. "Good boy," Lucius whispered between ritual spells, and Severus visibly brightened, leaning into Lucius's touch when the blond spread potion over the sharp lines of his face.

Once Severus had been properly covered with the Amet ritual potion, Lucius set it aside and pulled out his wand, pressing the tip to his right palm and then holding his hand to Severus's lips, smearing them with blood. Desperate for any manner of contact, Severus nuzzled Lucius's fingers and opened his mouth to allow the blood in. His magic and blood burnt and Lucius whispered, "The pet takes the blood of the master from the hand he will eat from, and the master marks the pet with the blood he will serve." Lucius took his hand from Severus's mouth and stared for a long moment at the boy's bloodstained mouth, and then briskly moved his palm over Severus's cheeks and forehead before continuing the ritual spells.

"Behold, thou art my servant, and that the like may be done for you: 'ere and behold, I am your Master."

Severus suddenly stiffened, black eyes bright as Lucius finished the ritual by running his bleeding palm down the center line of Severus's chest and rewriting his claiming in blood, and then after putting his wand and the jar of ritual potion away in his robes, Lucius hauled Severus into his arms and they dropped onto the bed, Lucius stripping down to his undershorts and laying on top of Severus.

"Lucius," Severus moaned, eyes shuttering shut as he fisted his hands in Lucius's long hair, pressing himself as close to the older Slytherin as he could manage with his weakened form and trembling magic. "Oh, Slytherin, I haven't been able to breathe without you," he gasped, and as Lucius rolled them onto their sides and strong arms wrapped around him, Severus's magic sparked and burnt him and then pleasurably settled deep in his gut, burning where Lucius had inscribed his name, and Severus closed his eyes, finally able to sleep.

Lucius held his boy until he was able to move away without Severus crying out and scrabbling for him, and he pulled Severus to lean against him as he quickly dressed and then briskly searched the room for Severus's belongings. He found the crystal sphere of his magic and held in his relieved sigh. He hadn't been worried that Severus would misplace it, but it went against his nature to trust anyone with something so intrinsically valuable. Lucius pulled the robe he had sent to Severus over the small boy and then packed the rest of Severus's meager belongings in his small trunk, sliding Severus's wand in his own pocket.

After looking around the tiny, dreary room one last time, Lucius hauled Severus into his arms and left, pulling Severus's trunk behind him.

(O.o)

Eileen and Abraxas looked up at the same time as Lucius stepped down the stairs, Severus drowning in a massive robe and clearly asleep in Lucius's arms. Abraxas pushed to his feet and flicked his wand at the small trunk on the stairs behind his son, Summoning it to him and shrinking it. He put the tiny trunk in his pocket as he looked over his son and his new Amet. "You solidified the ritual," Abraxas drawled, motioning for Lucius to make himself a cup of tea.

The two Malfoys sat, but Eileen stayed on her feet, swaying slightly as she stared at her slumbering son. "May I touch him?" she whispered.

"Of course not," Lucius snapped, moving Severus so Eileen could not see his face. She collapsed back onto the couch and stared at her lap while Lucius continued, clearly irritated, "He's been separated from me for twenty-two days, the majority of which he's been suffering from a severe magical drain as well as forced separation of a magical bond. Not only can he not touch anyone other than myself in typical circumstances, but his magic is strained because of my absence and then the solidifying of the Amet bond, and his core will become permanently scarred. I will not have him damaged in any manner, Madame Prince, not even if it pains his mother or himself." Lucius swung his head around to glare at her, and Eileen nodded, appropriately cowed.

"Did he take to the solidifying well, son?" Abraxas asked as he took a sip of the sour tea.

Silver-grey eyes flashed but Lucius replied, "Of course, Father. He's recovering from our separation as well as the solidification of the bond. He'll need the next few days to recover before the Ball, however, and I'll be sure to spend that time instructing him on proper etiquette. I know he will be able to get away with a higher breach of propriety as he is now a Prince and they were always a bit eccentric"—Eileen lifted her chin proudly and met Lucius's gaze with a stern nod—"but he must know the basics and I won't have him shame our family."

Abraxas snorted rather inelegantly and Nessie realized he had toned down his usual haughty behavior to make Eileen more comfortable. They really did care about Severus, he realized, and he watched in shock as Abraxas threw Severus a faintly fond look before turning his attention to Eileen. Eileen flushed and looked down at her knees, and in shock, Nessie came to the understanding that Eileen and Abraxas had been in school together, most likely either in the same year or close to it. How well had they known each other? Had they been friends? He knew they had both been in Slytherin, but Eileen had always been a bit of a loner, a trait she had passed on to her son. He resolved to find out and continued watching them.

Lucius pushed to his feet, Severus clasped to his chest, and he bowed slightly to his father and Eileen before announcing he was taking his leave. Abraxas replied he would be along momentarily, and Nessie clutched onto Severus's overlarge robes—that still reeked of Lucius's magic—and squeezed his eyes shut when they stepped into the fireplace. The last image he had was of Abraxas sitting next to Eileen on the couch, both of them smiling softly at one another.

Malfoy Manor was as cold and dark and faintly creepy as it had been the last time Nessie had been there, and he moved off once he saw Lucius had made sure Severus was still asleep and alright. He floated down the empty, dreary halls of the Manor for a very long while before finding himself in Abraxas's office. He had never wondered what Abraxas did for a living but found himself wondering now—anything to keep his attention off what Lucius was doing to Severus to take his pain away.

His limited reading abilities made it so he couldn't comprehend most of what was written on the parchments, but what he did understand was that Abraxas did something that had to do with curses and wards (whatever those were) and goblins and a new desk. He shrugged and then looked up when the fireplace in Abraxas's office flared green and Eileen stepped through, followed a moment later by Abraxas, who waved her to one of the chairs in front of his desk before sitting down behind it.

"I do apologize for you being unable to attend the Black Ball," Abraxas told her, as if he was continuing a conversation from before they had arrived in his office. Eileen was merely looking at him, not staring around as Severus and Nessie had done when they had first stepped into Malfoy Manor. It was clear she had been here before.

Eileen shrugged, pulling her Muggle coat tighter around her shoulders. "I understand pureblood politics, Abraxas. I wasn't invited and I've been evicted from the magical world."

"You could merely appear," Abraxas pointed out, "As my son has pointed out, the Prince family has long been known for being eccentric, and no one would find it odd that you knew of the Ball. It has been a Black tradition for many, many generations."

Eileen shook her head, clasping her hands rather primly in her lap. She looked distinctly out of place in the elegance of the Manor in her strange, worn Muggle clothes. "I only wish for my son to be happy," she whispered, and Abraxas twisted his lips.

"Of course," he replied, and moved a few of the parchments on his desk around. "I have the forms your…husband must sign to relinquish any ties to young Severus. Once he has signed them, you'll be pleased to know that your…home will be transferred to your name, as there is a magical inheritance law that dictates if there are one or more pure-line wizards staying in a Muggle-owned house, the eldest witch or wizard is automatically granted the house. You don't have to suffer any longer, dear Eileen," Abraxas murmured, and Eileen felt herself caught in his silver-grey gaze. The Prince line had always been so weak for the Malfoy charm…it was so depressing how her son had been so easily swayed into Lucius's bed, but she wouldn't have chosen anyone else to keep her precious son safe.

"I must stay in that house until Severus has graduated from Hogwarts," Eileen replied, her tone dismissive, and she reached across the desk to take the bloodline removal parchment from Abraxas's limp hand.

"May I enquire why? You should not subject yourself to such…degradation, Eileen. You are one of the last true witches of the Wizarding world, and yet you allow yourself to be defiled and destroyed by a mere Muggle."

Eileen wouldn't look at him while she retook her seat. "He gave me Severus," she whispered, and the room was heavy with uncomfortable silence before she haltingly continued, "I suppose I once wished to prove my father wrong. He hated Muggles and taught me they were all cruel and would destroy any magic they could get their hands on. He was always so insistent that each and every Muggle was a cruel waste of flesh, but I couldn't see the truth. I thought he was wrong and married the first Muggle who looked twice at me. Oh, Abraxas…I was so wrong, so unbelievably and incredibly wrong…have you seen what he has done to my precious son?"

Abraxas looked at the door behind Eileen and nodded sharply to his wife as she appeared in the doorway. "Yes, I have. Your son has been hurt by your poor choices, but you have made the best one possible by giving him to my son. Lucius cares far too much for your Severus to ever hurt him. Come in, dear."

Callidora stepped in and shut the door behind her before taking the empty seat next to Eileen and smiling gently at her. "Hello, Eileen. How have you been faring?"

Frowning, Eileen stared at Callidora, a strange jealous eagerness overtaking her harsh features. Callidora had always been so beautiful, and Eileen had always been weak for beauty. She had followed Callidora and Abraxas around, like some lost pet, during their years at Hogwarts, and while she had never really been noticed by them, she had soothed herself to sleep many-a-night with dreams of what she knew could never be. She was nothing like them: ugly and quiet, with just her Gobstones and books for company, nothing like their suave skills and incessant charm.

"How are the preparations for the Black Ball coming along?" Eileen asked instead, an uncaring tone in her voice. Callidora smiled gently at her and gave Eileen one of her soft, secret smiles.

"As well as can be expected. Narcissa has spent the past two weeks or so attempting to turn me against your son as well as stepping far out of line with trying to force her father's hand in changing the betrothal contract, and Bellatrix has been fully supporting her. Those two are rather dangerous together. Poor Narcissa has been distraught over Lucius taking your Severus as an Amet, I am displeased to admit, and Abraxas has assured me he will be having a talk with Cygnus and Druella on proper wife behavior. Lucius and Severus will also be punishing her the night before the Ball on grounds of breech of betrothal propriety." Callidora smiled gently at her husband and as he nodded in return, Eileen looked down at her lap before the ugly jealous look she knew was surfacing on her face could take over. Tobias never looked at her like that.

"That's good," Eileen hedged, unsure of what answer Callidora wanted. With Tobias, it was always better to not answer at all than say the wrong thing, and she couldn't properly remember if either of them cared if she was her usual sullen self or not.

Abraxas threw her a strange, dark look and suddenly announced. "You'll be staying here for the next few days, Eileen. You need a few days away from that terrible…husband of yours, as I am certain you know."

"Oh, I couldn't…"

"Nonsense," Callidora interjected with a frown. "You know you need a reprieve from that monster you married. Don't you forget what you told me about him right before you married him. 'A controlling beast', if I remember correctly, and you said you'd never made such a mistake. You'll let us take care of you now, dear Eileen. Your son is now family and so are you."

With a nod from Abraxas, Callidora ushered Eileen out of the room and Abraxas sat in silence for a great long time, his only company Nessie, who was staring at him in shock. He'd had no idea…

(O.o)

Severus came to with a pained groan, and he found himself gasping Lucius's name before he was completely awake. He opened his eyes to see a wide expansive of pale, warm flesh, and the settling warmth of his magic told him it was Lucius, and Severus found himself pressing a few frantic kisses to the skin in front of him before he could stop himself. "Oh, Lucius," he rasped, and buried his head in Lucius's chest. "I've…"

"Hush, pet," Lucius rasped, and pressed a full kiss to Severus's open lips. Heavy hands moved over Severus's bare form and then pressed him up against Lucius's front. "We have to go wash the ritual potion off you. Can you stand?"

Severus nodded and tried to move, but retched when he wasn't touching Lucius any longer. "Ritual potion?" he gasped, throwing himself back into Lucius's arms and pressing his face back into the crook of Lucius's neck. "Lucius…" He took a deep breath and felt himself relax again as Lucius wrapped strong arms around his waist and then slid off the bed, quickly moving over to the bathroom. He tried to set Severus down in the bath but the small boy wouldn't let go, and so Lucius quickly ran the bath and once the tub was full of hot, soothing water, he double-checked that they were both naked and then slid in. Severus groaned under his breath and pushed himself into Lucius's chest, murmuring Lucius's name incessantly under his breath.

"I solidified the Amet ritual once I had you back in my arms," Lucius started without preamble, as he ran a soft rag over Severus's shaking shoulders. "No one can take you from me now." The potion turned the water white for a few minutes and then Lucius drained the tub, soothing Severus with his hands running up and down his back and thighs. Severus let out a shuddering sigh as Lucius refilled the bath, and tucked his head under Lucius's chin, reaching up to twist his hands in Lucius's long hair. "Tell me what you suffered, my own."

Severus shook his head but replied, "Terrible. I was so empty, so wrong. I remember you being there but I don't think you were…it was all her fault! She touched me and I couldn't stop her and then you weren't there to make me whole again…"

"The Mudblood?"

Severus nodded, outing his friend without remorse. He no longer cared even the smallest bit about Lily, especially after what she had forced him to suffer. He had spent so long in agony because of that witch, and he swore he'd never forgive her. "She hugged me," Severus spat, and shuddered at the memory of the utter wrongness and terror that had flooded his system. He wondered how long it would take for his magic and the bond to recover what she had done to him.

"Do not worry, pet," Lucius soothed, tugging on Severus's nasty hair so the boy canted his head back to look up into Lucius's face, and then he pressed a needy kiss to Severus's mouth. "I'll do to her what I do to the Black boy," he promised, and kissed Severus again, running his hands over the curve of Severus's bum.

Severus pulled away and leaned his chin on Lucius's chest, arms wrapped loosely around Lucius's neck. He kept his dark gaze locked on Lucius's face as he slowly asked, "What'd you do to Black?"

"He hurt you, my pet," Lucius replied dismissively, and moved Severus so he was sitting on the side of the tub, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around his boy. "So I hurt him back, and removed the memory of the event."

Severus nodded slowly and moved to wrap his arms around his stomach but Lucius stopped him, opening the towel to look at the marked skin between Severus's hipbones: Property of Lucius Malfoy, written in small, sharp, black letters. "Mine," Lucius rasped, and traced his claiming. "You'll have to show people this," he offhandedly told his boy, and lifted Severus into his arms and carefully stepped out of the tub before taking Severus back to his bed. After making sure they were dry, Lucius dropped under the covers and yanked Severus back into his arms.

"What did you do to Black?" Severus asked again with a yawn, pushing Lucius onto his back and curling up on top of Lucius's chest.

"No more than what was done to Vaisey," Lucius said, petting his boy's hair with a soft hand. "The usual, really. Cruciatus, a few blood-burning curses"—Severus's eyebrows raised and he smirked with pleasure—"as well as an evidently faulty controlling spell to have him leave you alone. It's possible that the influence of that Potter brat was more powerful than my spell, as I didn't put too much power into it, as there was the possibility of Dumbledore finding out."

"You Obliviated him?"

"Of course, pet. Don't worry; I know how to keep you safe. There is no possibility of anyone finding out what I did to Black."

Severus nodded and wrapped his arms around Lucius's neck as the older Slytherin moved to lean against the pile of pillows at the head of his bed. "I missed you," Severus whispered, on the verge of sleep, and smiled when Lucius replied in kind.

(O.o)
Year: 1972
Date: July the Twenty-forth

Severus smiled gently at Nessie, who was hovering in the corner, butterfly fluttering around his head, and then turned his attention back to Lucius as the older boy searched through his supply of books for those on pureblood propriety. As Severus was bedridden until the twenty-fifth, Lucius had sworn to get him properly prepared for the Ball in two days, and Severus had reluctantly agreed, especially as he really had nothing else to do.

Lucius dropped a few books onto the bed and then crawled back in next to Severus, pulling the smaller boy into his lap and soothing Severus's magic with soft touches and gentle words. "Hush, pet," Lucius murmured, and pulled the comforter up to Severus's waist, pressing his hand to his claiming mark, causing Severus to gasp and then fall back against him, his magic shooting sparks through his body, burning white-hot and swooshing in his gut. "Calm yourself."

Severus nodded with a gasp and then turned so he was leaning against Lucius's chest, and slowly felt his magic calm down. He still couldn't feel the difference in the solidified bond than what it had been before, but he trusted Lucius's word that it had been done. "What do you have to teach me?" he asked softly, an irritated grumble in his voice, but he held in a smile as Lucius pet his hair.

"Manners, of course. My father isn't going to be very particular about how you act—"

"So then why teach me?" Severus frowned and butted his head against Lucius's hand when the elder Slytherin stopped petting him. Lucius quickly resumed his caresses as he rolled his eyes.

"Such a needy pet," Lucius remarked, and smirked as Severus flushed. "Because you must know proper etiquette, even if you do not follow our rules," Lucius replied, his voice still soft and understanding. Severus nodded but still rolled his eyes, winking at Nessie when his boy blew him a kiss before leaving the room. Lucius smiled and pulled Severus's head up to press a kiss to his mouth before beginning the first lesson.

"I know you've spent a great deal of time around purebloods, my own, but knowing you, you haven't paid much attention. We are men of bad faith, we Malfoys, and I expect you'll live up to our standard. We are loyal to none but our family and those who belong to us, and we will do anything to keep ourselves safe, even betray those we serve. We are aligned with the Dark Lord because it serves our needs in keeping the Wizarding world pure. You'll do good to remember that.

"We follow a strict set of rules: one, family first. Two, self-preservation. Never go into a situation without knowing every possible outcome and the consequences of each. Third, use any possible means to achieve your goals, even if that means breaking the law or hurting someone. If it takes murder to, say, keep yourself or me safe, then you commit murder without hesitation. You'll be expected to keep a high level of decorum, as well—treat every pureblood, beside the blood-traitors, with respect, don't let your temper get away from you, and…that's all my father wishes for you to know. The others don't matter because my father and I agreed we'll have a difficult enough time getting you to follow those." Lucius smiled slightly and pulled Severus up so he was sitting next to Lucius.

Lucius pushed the covers back and moved down so he could investigate his claiming mark. Idly, he said, "You'll have to get one more of these. The Malfoy crest, and I'll have to change your Salutem. Those aren't necessary for the bond but they'll make your magic feel better. I'll have the crest done tonight and I can do the Salutem now." Severus shrugged, uncaring, and leaned back into the pillows as Lucius leaned over him to grab his wand off the nightstand.

Lucius rested back against the pillows and pulled Severus into his lap, arranging the boy until Severus was leaning back against Lucius's raised knees, their uninterested cocks pressed together. While Lucius still wanted to fuck the boy blind, the bond between them made it unable for his body to have a physical reaction to the boy's presence. Pity.

Lucius raised his wand and pressed the tip to the blank metal disk of Severus's Salutem, and merely wrote his initials in the dull silver above To keep you safe. Severus smirked and turned to curl up against Lucius's chest, bringing up his right hand to clutch his Salutem. Lucius tugged the comforter up over them and found himself regretting, just for a short moment, that he hadn't turned Severus into a companion. It would be only a short while until Severus was able to feel what Lucius was feeling, and Lucius wanted to experience the dirty lust toward his boy for as long as he was able.

Twisting his lips in a nasty smile, Lucius plucked a few hairs from Severus's head and secreted them in his nightstand drawer. If he couldn't have Severus, then, perhaps, he could have the closest thing to him.

(O.o)
Year: 1972
Date: July the Twenty-fifth

Lucius looked up when someone tapped slightly on the door to his quarters, and he summoned them in with a low call of his voice. At his feet, Severus grumbled but kept his head in Lucius's lap, the bond forcing him to be subservient until his magic settled again. The new crest on the back of Severus's neck caught Narcissa's attention as she stepped into the room, but she pretended not to notice as she curtseyed to her betrothed.

"Lucius," she murmured, and took the seat Lucius waved her into. She looked as if she was going to say something but managed to stop herself, although when Lucius began petting Severus's hair, she blurted, "So you solidified the bond?" She gaped at Severus's content smile and then couldn't look away when his hair fell away from the crest.

"Yes, dear, although that is none of your business. Now, I've been informed you attempted to break our betrothal contract by informing your parents I had made a breach of contract. Is this true?"

Narcissa stiffed and wished she hadn't worn the cloak with the Black crest upon the back. She knew Lucius would take it as a slight against the Malfoy house, which it was. "Yes."

"And what did your parents say when you attempted to break our contract?" Lucius asked, and his tone was uncaring and idle as he pet Severus's hair, as if he did not care one way or the other. But Narcissa could see the nasty glint in his eye and she knew she would not leave this room without screaming. Lucius had been bred to serve the Dark Lord after all, and was terribly sadistic.

"My father informed me I was a blight upon the Black name and that any attempt on my part to dissolve our contract would end up in me being either disinherited or evicted from the magical world, and that I was not to attempt to meddle in the affairs of men." Narcissa threw Lucius a sharp look and felt herself melt inside at the nastily approving look. She knew how dangerous he was, even at sixteen, but he was so perfectly powerful.

Lucius nodded once, sharply, and threw Narcissa a cruel look as he intentionally swept Severus's hair off the boy's neck, baring the Malfoy crest, causing stark jealousy to race through Narcissa's veins. She should be the claimed one, not this brat of a worthless halfbred boy! She sneered at the brat but ruthlessly met Lucius's gaze when he turned his attention back to her.

"I am not irritated with your degradation of my name, not enough to punish you as I must." Narcissa stared and then looked back down to see Severus smirking haughtily at her, his head canted to the side as he kept his cheek pressed to Lucius's thigh. Horror flooded through her and she hoped her instinct was wrong. "You insulted my pet."

Narcissa was shaking her head before she realized she had even moved. "No, Lucius, I never meant—"

"Pet," Lucius snapped, and Severus was on his feet, the wand suddenly in his hand pointed directly at Narcissa, and before she could finish her sentence, Severus sneered and cried out a nasty curse.

"Morsus!"

She screeched in agony and threw herself from the chair, full-body agony wracking her system as she flailed around. It was nearly as painful as the Cruciatus Curse, but in a different manner; she could feel Severus's nasty, twisted distaste for her surge through her system, and as the curse was pulled off Narcissa, she realized with a pained gasp that the strength of the curse was powered by the strength of the hate of the caster toward the recipient.

"What have I ever done to you?" she rasped, taking herself up on her hands and knees and coughing up dark black blood. Severus gave a nasty, sharp little laugh and Narcissa choked again, peering up through her fallen-forward hair to see Severus kneel again at Lucius's feet, his dark eyes glinting at her.

"You hurt him," the boy replied simply, and leaned his weight against Lucius's leg.

"Get out, dear," Lucius snapped, and Narcissa pulled herself together enough to stagger out of the room. As the door closed, she looked back to see Lucius pull Severus into his lap and dip his hand beneath Severus's plain black slacks. She gagged and ran away.

Lucius pressed his hand to the claiming mark and felt Severus relax fully against him, moving slightly so Lucius was able to touch it easier. The boy was so easy to please, he mused, and forced Severus to bow his head forward so he could examine the Malfoy crest. It was predominately green and black, with silver accents, with spears running through the four corners and a large silver M covering most the shield, and two black dragon-type creatures intertwined with two green winged snakes, one pair on either side of the shield. There was a silver banner running across the bottom of the shield, bearing the words Sanctimonia Vincet Semper in elegant black script. Lucius pressed a kiss to the shield and Severus sighed and then was asleep in his arms a few minutes later.

Lucius smirked and held his boy close.

(O.o)
Early Afternoon

As Lucius was busy talking to both his and Narcissa's parents, Severus had gone looking for Nessie and the potions lab. He had been walking for what felt like a year and had only found Nessie messing with the house elves. It was excruciating to walk down the halls, next to Nessie and unable to reach over or talk to him because of the hundreds of painted eyes staring at him as he walked along. Only a few of the portraits would speak to him, and only then when he showed him the Malfoy crest on the back of his neck and the Salutem around his neck and the Annulus on his finger. None of the portraits that would talk to him would tell him where the potions laboratory was, though, and Severus had given up hope he would ever find it.

Severus had somehow gotten from the dungeons to the entrance hall, and was admiring the enormous chandelier hanging from the ceiling and holding back his smile at Nessie's mocking commentary of the stern-faced portraits lining the hallways around the entrance hall, when there was a loud thud and the massive front doors slammed open, revealing a giant man with glowing yellow eyes, bracketed by the wild, dark storm behind him.

"Well," the man growled, a nasty smile in his voice, "what do we have here?"

Even though it might seem like this is a Lucius/Severus, I swear this will only ever be a Snarry.