Chapter 52: Suzie
'I can figure this out on my own. I know I can. I wanted to be useful. Well, now I am. Now I'm useful and, and now I'm second guessing it? This is what I wanted.'
The tattoo had told him that his father was in hiding on a property that belonged to Rowle, somewhere near Kirkwall.
Adrian snapped into existence, surprised and shivering against the absolutely horrid chill.
Lutain hissed in alarm, flailing on the snow until Adrian snatched him up with numb fingers, clutching him close to his chest.
"Why is it colder?" Lutain bemoaned, thrashing still although Adrian suspected it was only theatrics, "Why must I suffer?"
"You're the drama queen here, I think I'm the one suffering." Adrian deadpanned, his body vibrating through fine shivers.
The snow was dirty and tarnished, tousled and scooped away in large swathes. Most likely cattle, searching for a hint of green in the northern flatlands.
Adrian felt around Lutain's body, struggling to unlatch the ramshod harness and pull his wand off of his familiar. Once he double checked that nobody was in the area, he cast two warming charms and stuttered his way through a half dozen locator charms. None of them worked.
"Why didn't you think of this sooner?" Lutain bemoaned, acting as if he was still cold although he was firmly coiled in his heating ward, "How did you not think of this?"
"Well sorry, I was a bit preoccupied." Adrian snapped out sourly, rotating in place only to see a pasture of white snow and dead grass.
Lutain sniffed haughtily, although quieted as Adrian began to walk. His shoes crunched through snow, although he stuck to the cattle tracks for as long as he could.
They found a road, barely trodden and clearly muggle. It would do, at least it was better than a pasture in the middle of nowhere.
"I don't think there are any buses out here," Adrian explained unnecessary to Lutain. He opened his robe, wincing as the cold winter air kissed his exposed collarbone and shoulder.
"Nagini?" Adrian addressed his shoulder, not wanting to have to remove any more than necessary. His skin stubbornly remained blank.
"Hah," Lutain cheered, watching in amusement as Adrian cursed and began to shuck his clothing. Soon he was shirtless, shivering and ready to collapse in a snowbank.
"Nagini?" Adrian tried again, already exhausted and sniffling, "Nagini, we're here."
Nothing.
Lutain tilted his head, "Is that a cow?"
Adrian gave a groan of frustration, "Probably! We just came out of a pasture! For cows!"
Lutain's face didn't change, yet Adrian knew he was smirking at him.
"Why not try thinking?" Lutain offered helpfully.
Adrian inhaled, and exhaled.
"Lutain, I don't think you're capable of that level of sarcasm. Otherwise I'd have left you out here all alone."
"Master, the thinking, with the…" Lutain struggled with words, pausing brokenly "Nagini speaks of it. The, the thinking and whispering to your father."
Adrian blinked in surprise and amazement, "Lutain, Legilimency only works if I can see them."
"No, no Nagini does it far away."
Adrian paused and his brow furrowed, considering. "I can try? Maybe Father made some sort of connection when he made my Occlumency barriers."
Adrian shrugged and in a lack of better idea, settled down on the snow, sitting on his black outer robe. He exhaled slowly, closing his eyes and digging back into the swirl of his mind.
The barriers were holding strong, just as chaotic and confusing as ever. Whenever his father entered his mind, he emerged from the same spot; the closed eye, the flower blossom ready to open.
He found it, hidden and shifting like he was viewing it under a fast moving stream.
How hard would it be to open it, to press and slip inside? It had always opened the other way, but doorways enabled passage from both sides.
Adrian exhaled, his entire body slackening from his hunched position. Lutain watched in alarm as even the shivering ceased in one fluid motion, as if Adrian had fallen asleep.
Deep within, he pressed downwards with a mixture of curiosity and determination. It felt unique, or his mind interpreted it at unique. Everything in his walls was smoke, barely tangible to the degree of driving one insane. The tingling burn as if his entire limb had fallen asleep, an icy caress of burning metal.
The shell, for that's what it felt like, was cold and smooth. Soft yet not pliant, roughened in spots like a walnut husk and then slick like abalone.
Adrian pressed and pushed, tugging at the seal without any grace in his actions. He had seen it open before, he knew the seam could split apart.
It was frozen like marble….and then it cracked.
The very area felt different, foreign and intrusive as the hinge opened and oil slipped through. Toxic and poisoned, yet sweet like honey. Velvet like the petals of hydrangeas.
Adrian pressed inside, disoriented as the very atmosphere changed to something acidic. Different- foreign and not his
mind. He had gotten through.
Something cold attacked, biting so quickly over and over that Adrian couldn't even scream-
Then he was out, kicked out not only of the open eye but of his mind as well… The air was sharp and burned his lungs, his bones felt hollow and bruised and then he teetered over backwards into the snow.
Adrian yelped, scrambling to try and rightside himself, only to grab handfuls of slush that melted on contact. He wheezed, and his chest thrummed painfully as if he had been kicked by a hippogriff. His head ached.
Lutain watched with a degree of amusement, yet came across very unimpressed.
Adrian hadn't even managed to rightside himself before he felt something, a small touch of something changing. Then he was laying slack on the ground.
His father could enter at any time, he hadn't known that. He thought they had to be nearby.
And yet-
He choked, back arching and forcing his shoulders further into the slush as his brain burned.
"Master!" Lutain hissed in alarm, rearing and looking for threats anxiously. The prior episode was relaxed, thus one had Adrian contorting into the unmistakable body language of agony.
Adrian whimpered, something pitiful and animalistic yet he couldn't hear it. His heart was a drum, pounding an inch from his brain and rattling his skull so hard his teeth throbbed.
Something moved, digging and tearing and destroying his walls and twisting the pillars of his pride until he faltered and he was falling oh Merlin he was falling…
Adrian gasped, jolting upwards as in a single blink, it was gone.
He coughed, rolling onto his side as he vomited, thick bile and pumpkin juice that painted the snow a crude brown.
He wretched twice more, pausing and gasping obscenely for the winter's sharp air, nearly crying as it seared his throat.
He couldn't breathe through his nose, simply due to the lingering smell of bile and vomit. It trickled down the back of his throat. His mouth wasn't fairing much better.
In the distance, a cow mooed lowly.
There was a low crack in the air, like a twig breaking.
"Why are you on the ground?" Adrian's father asked, voice dry and without concern; It was layered thinly with amusement.
"Bite me," Adrian groaned out, head still swirling and aching.
His father huffed, a single sound of surprised glee that nearly bordered on laughter, "My, my. Are you already in that teenage rebellion phase?"
Adrian struggled with one arm braced in the snow to rightside himself. He squinted, only opening one eye through the bright glare of sunlight reflecting off snow, "I think that hit when you used me as a lightning rod."
His father froze, likely dumbfounded with Adrian's snark. A second of silence before a low chuckle of glee emanated from the man.
"Hello," Lutain chirped, voice meek and slightly shy.
"Hello, Lutain." His father responded, "Shall we apparate to the estate?"
"Are we keyed into the wards?" Adrian asked, finally rightsizing himself. He spat once, a glob of mucus and phlegm tinted brown with stomach sick. It joined the puddle, already smelling acrid.
"You are. I've taken liberties already, everything is prepared."
"Joy," Adrian grimaced, stumbling to his feet and grabbing his cloak and shirt from the snow, looping Lutain around his neck for safekeeping. He reached out, looping his arm through his father's outstretched arm, and braced.
They apparated away from the northern highlands, leaving cow pastures and vomit behind.
They appeared inside a building that was strikingly different than anything Adrian had ever seen before. It contrasted sharply with the antique and well polished look of his father's old home, and didn't come close to the eerie or unsettling atmosphere of Bellatrix's home.
It was open, spacious and well lit. The floor looked polished, or perhaps cleaned regularly. The walls looked pristine, yet vacant without any picture frames or decorative tables along the hallways.
It was clinical, cold yet somehow welcoming with the polished cherry and walnut moldings along the floor and windows.
"This is Rowle's estate?" Adrian asked dryly, more out of shock than confusion.
His father made a humming noise of confirmation before he started walking, not glancing to see if Adrian was following.
Lutain contently plopped down, exploring the area with his flickering tongue. The estate didn't have the hidden passages he and Nagini frequented before, although he seemed happy with the new area and sudden freedom.
"I assume you've mastered your Animagus form?"
"Er, yes." Adrian blinked, hurrying to catch up. His shoes echoed an obscene amount, he was lucky to not have brought his boots that clicked twice as loud as normal, "A while back. I'm a snake of some sort."
His father didn't sound surprised, or if he had even heard.
"We hide in the tunnels throughout the school," Lutain added cheerfully, "Nowhere we cannot go."
His father paused contemplatively, "I was not aware the plumbing system was so expansive."
Adrian's body flushed with joy over learning something his father hadn't know, "Yes! They- I think they somehow link the plumbing to the ventilation network. Lutain and I haven't run into any water, but we're positive we're in the pipes."
His father hummed, blinking deep in thought. "That's excellent to know."
Adrian flushed once more, feeling the heat rise in his cheeks. He ducked his head, trying to hide the infectious grin which split across his face.
They ascended stairs, wide and extravagant with a thick wooden banister. On the second floor, the hallway branched into wings, separated by a single large ballroom.
"The North Wing connects to the far side of the ballroom," His father explained, not stopping his steps as he passed the large empty threshold towards the far door, just under the small balcony, "I intend for a meeting to be conducted here, your animagus form would be adequate disguise if you wish to join anonymously."
Adrian's heart beat in his chest painfully loud, pulsing almost strong enough to rattle his teeth, "I could join?"
His father didn't clarify, instead he passed through the door and into another hallway which assuredly was the far side of the North Wing.
"I have important matters to address." his father spoke sharply, already moving towards what likely was an office, "I assume you can find your quarters?"
"Yes, father." Adrian nodded happily, peering around and already taking note of their location.
His father left, closing the door behind him which rattled in its frame, silencing the hallway.
"It smells of wood here." Lutain sighed, huffing loudly as he flicked his tongue at a walnut baseboard.
"That's because you're licking wood." Adrian retorted, feeling as light as a feather with his abundant and free use of parseltongue.
Adrian explored the estate, which was barren of life. Even Nagini was nowhere to be found, although she may have been sleeping inside his father's office. Lutain followed him through his investigation, even as he ventured outside into the snow to search out the nearest owlery.
Adrian's room was in a unique location, although it was highly impractical for most. It was small, something he was sure Draco would flat out grimace at. On the far side of the room, there was a spiral staircase which looked unnervingly precarious, although it did hold a sort of artistic aesthetic with its wooden twisting design.
All of Adrian's strange collectibles he had gathered and stored at his father's manner were here as well, placed carefully in an expansive curio cabinet on the far wall. The second level had a bed, larger than any he had owned before. His trunk was near the wall, the one that stored his various cloaks and robes as well as the older version of his cerastes outfit before he had outgrown it. A wardrobe stood tall, its deep shades of red matched the cherry splashed intermittently around the entire estate. His collection of teeth and claws and skulls and other odd bits would have fit in well, he missed them.
Adrian discovered quite quickly, that the extravagant set of doors across from his bed actually led out to the balcony he had spotted in the ballroom.
"This is so inconvenient," Adrian laughed in surprise, running his fingers over the wooden railing, "What architect created a super small hidden bedroom, that leads out into a ballroom?"
"Someone who is stupid," Lutain confirmed, although his tone of voice implied heavily he didn't really understand the situation.
Adrian snorted flatteringly, rolling his shoulders and positively skipping back inside his room. The doors to the balcony closed with a shutter, rattling on the frame. Adrian launched himself onto his bed, collapsing onto the bouncing mattress before he started tearing the sheets with excited fingers.
They were nice sheets too, they flexed and barely stretched no matter how hard he tugged.
"I missed this," Adrian sighed contently, throwing one arm over his eyes as he collapsed back into the blankets, "Being here, I mean."
Lutain made a non-confirmation sound, halfway between a hiss and a hum.
"It's nice being here. I don't have to be careful, especially with Draco and Greengrass." Adrian enthused contently, sighing out in bliss as his spine cracked loudly. "I can just learn spells, do what I want, train, and just…"
Lutain slithered across the bed. He didn't say anything, he didn't need to.
Christmas passed and with it, Adrian began to fret and fumble around the house in search of wrapping paper.
Of course, there was none, yet that didn't stop Adrian's frantic search.
Nagini and Lutain watched amused, leaving dry commentary as Adrian nearly ransacked one room, only to magically repair it and move onto the next. They became a steady mantra, a calm background to his rising anxiety.
"Is that a bird?" Lutain asked curiously.
"A dead bird, humans stuff them with feathers and put them on tables." Nagini wisely interjected, both snakes watching as Adrian hurled an antique victorian stuffed finch over his left shoulder.
"Humans are so strange," Lutain added with a strange sense of fondness.
"They keep such strange things," Nagini agreed, tilting her head to taste the air, "Master keeps a bag of my skin."
Lutain looked alarmed, "What? Why does he keep your skin? Is he supposed to keep your skin? Master! Master, why do you not keep my skin-"
Adrian grunted as a wicker chair nearly fell on him from where it was stacked in the closet, "Lutain this is really not the time."
"Yes this is the time. Now is a good time. A perfect time. Answer the question."
"Answer the question," Nagini cooed on, her own lilting voice added in.
"Answer the question," Lutain continued, the two snakes alternating demands, gradually rising in volume until they were near singing it at him in tone deaf hisses.
"You don't even care about the question," Adrian bemoaned, flicking his wand to return the chaotic mess to its original place, "You just want to annoy me."
"You took the rat man. You brought this upon yourself." Nagini wisely imputed, before pointedly swinging her tail to knock a broom down to the floor.
Adrian started, watching it clatter and bounce. He blinked, lifting one hand to rub at the bridge of his nose, "Why? Why would you do that."
Nagini opened her mouth in a strange pulled expression, something uncomfortably similar to a human grin.
"Stop that." Adrian barked, shivering slightly as even Lutain seemed horrified by her expression. Nagini of course, continued her weird gummy smile.
Adrian quickly found that there was no wrapping paper in the entire building. He settled for parchment, folded carefully many times to disguise the shape of the locket.
It was strange, ever since arriving the locket appeared almost calm. It hadn't acted out in days. Adrian almost found himself missing the indiscernible whispers, the vibrating touch and the lulling sense of sedation it gave him.
All of the hassle of keeping it hidden was well worth it when he saw his father hesitantly unwrap the paper; moving disjointedly slow almost as if he knew what it was before the parchment fell away.
The gold on the outer casing almost shimmered, reflecting lamplight and scarlet eyes which hungrily took it in.
"Where did you find this?" his father asked him calmly, holding it reverently as if a precious gemstone. He held it as if the heart of something precious, beating gently like a newborn child.
Adrian smiled, and told him what he knew.
Adrian received his own present, a few books half hazardous set on his bed with no note or letter. He had expected something similar, his father wasn't one to invest in making an extravagant gift for a child he hadn't seen in a long time.
'Remus would have given you a better gift' Adrian thought to himself, hurriedly pushing such blasphemous ideas out before he could linger on them further.
Lutain wasn't interested as much in the books, instead for Christmas the snake invited him in races all throughout the manner.
Nagini joined in. Adrian spent hours chasing the two through the hallways and staircases, relaxed and finally free to do what he pleased.
Skylar Potter quietly opened Remus' door, sliding inside and shuffling over the worn rug.
Remus didn't look, instead he remained curled on an armchair, staring into a fire which burned lowly in its fireplace.
Skylar cleared his throat quietly, setting a brown paper bag on the nearest table, "Remus?"
The werewolf didn't look up, but his chest heaved with a heavy sigh.
Skylar gently lowered himself into a chair, pulling his legs up tight as if to fight off the winter chill.
"I keep thinking if I wait long enough, he'll Floo me, even though it's impossible." Remus spoke, his voice was quiet, but hoarse.
Skylar didn't need to ask as to who he was talking about.
"You know," Sylar coughed quietly, "He's...He's like a Vipertooth." Skylar spoke quietly.
Remus looked over curiously, dark circles under his eyes.
Skylar swallowed and continued, feeling more confident the longer he spoke, "Like the Vipertooth I fought. Quick, cunning, and unlike any other dragon I've ever seen."
Remus' lip twitched, encouraging Skylar to continue.
"It was tricky, and it fought unlike normal dragons, and- and in the end it's still a wild creature." Skylar licked his dry lips, "He- you could coddle it every day of its life, but in the end it's a wild creature and it bites when threatened."
Remus' hairline smile faltered as he looked back at the fire, "I keep wondering if It was something I did. Is that why he ran off?"
Skylar shifted uncomfortably, "No, I… I don't know. I was, ah, I was with him the day he ran off-"
"Apparated." Remus broke the quiet, "Albus and I decided that he apparated off the school grounds through a passageway."
Skylar froze in surprise, why hadn't he thought of that? He knew that Adrian could apparate, he had told everyone in Hogsmede that he could. Skylar hadn't thought of it as a security risk.
"He- he was upset." Skylar quietly added, "He- I saw him before. We were in the, we were in a room and something upset him. I...He can see thestrals. But he…" Skylar's voice cracked badly in the room, "Remus, I think he killed someone."
Remus stiffened very suddenly, and sighed quietly through his nose.
"Albus and I decided it was best to not tell you about our suspicions, but I feel it's hypocritical to not involve you when…" Remus sighed and rubbed at his eyes with the pals of his hands, "We know. Or Albus suspects something similar."
Skylar's blood ran cold, "What?"
"Adrian Selwyn shouldn't exist, and he doesn't in all of the registry. Sirius investigated the Ministry records before he was fired for trespassing and looking at confidential information, Adrian Selwyn doesn't exist." Remus confessed quietly, "Given what he's mentioned in passing about living with a father, and then claiming to live with Bellatrix Lestrange...there are many facts which don't line up." Remus continued as if his words weren't changing Skylar's perception of everything, "Albus checked for curse scars and...Adrian Selwyn has multiple."
Skylar felt dizzy, he didn't know what to think.
"We've speculated that there is a high possibility that Adrian Selwyn in a fit of accidental magic murdered his birth parents at a young age." Remus sighed exhaustedly, "Likely then Bellatrix or another party found him and placed him with this mysterious father of him."
"So she would continue to come back and check on him. But...but when she was in Azkaban..." Skylar trailed off, feeling as if he had been punched in the chest.
"We believe that Adrian is currently placed in a surrogate household, selected by Bellatrix herself. With that in mind, we've been investigating every household we can but we aren't that hopeful to find where Adrian is."
Skylar floundered, a wordless squeak breaking out of his throat, "I-"
"Don't worry yourself, Skylar," Remus smiled tiredly, "I have an idea of Adrian's surrogate father at this time, I had a glimpse of him during the Boggart I brought in for the class lesson."
"Adrian's boggart is his dad?"
"In hindsight I had anticipated it being Bellatrix Lestrange. This only helps our assumption that Adrian's surrogate family is equally abusive, and violent. We also believe that Adrian has, in some form, been groomed to be equally volatile."
Remus gave a small nod, staring into the fireplace quietly, "Based on this, Albus and I have already discussed the possibility that Adrian Selwyn will attempt to kill me."
"What, Moony no- you can't-"
"Skylar," Remus snapped quickly, running a hand exhaustedly over his face, "He...Albus has been keeping me notified. Do you remember your fourth year, when you, Adrian, and Draco Malfoy got in a fight on the grounds."
Skylar felt as if he was falling through the couch, "The...the one where Adrian punched Draco?"
Remus' hands clenched around the armrests of the chair, "Skylar, Adrian fractured Draco's skull with his bare hands. There were reports, hospital files, of Adrian setting other students on fire in his first year."
Skylar looked horrible, "He set the room we were in on fire also, he...he wasn't thinking. It just...I thought it was an accident."
"He's also inhibited a far greater affinity and ease with dark magic than we're comfortable with. Albus and I discussed removing Adrian from the school, for the safety of the other students."
"No, I- He's my friend." Skylar choked out in alarm, "You can't-"
"We're afraid that Bellatrix Lestrange or someone else is watching him, and removing him from the school would result in the curse scar activating. That, or whatever reason he's attending Hogwarts won't be applicable."
"Activating?" Skylar echoed weakly, "applicable?"
"Skylar…" Remus looked very obviously pained, "We're thinking Adrian may be cursed as a weapon to be used against you. He likely was allowed to come to Hogwarts to spy on you, or to get close to you for nefarious means. If we remove him, we are afraid that Bellatrix will no longer value him and dispose of him. If Adrian realizes that we're considering his removal, he may try to kill you."
"...dispose of him?"
"Murder. Bellatrix may murder Adrian if he does not comply to her wishes."
Skylar jumped to his feet, shaking his head viciously, "No, no. If you know anything about Adrian, he doesn't take sides. He figures out what keeps him safe, and he that stays way."
"If you're referring to the bartering system Adrian had in place-" Lupin started, cutting off his own words with a small twitch of his cheek.
"Not that! If you ever think he'd just- he'd just roll over for someone then...then you don't know him at all!"
Lupin flinched and his nostrils flared, "I like to presume that I do understand Adrian, believe it or not."
Skylar formed a glare directed at Remus. He knew that he had gone too far, that his words were uncalled for. He wouldn't feel guilty for them now; he grabbed the package he had originally brought into the room, "He's a Vipertooth, Moony. Stop treating him like something fragile."
Without any hesitation, Skylar tossed the package carefully over to the older man. Remus snatched it, cradling it questioningly as Skylar stormed out, slamming the door behind him.
The fire popped and crackled, sending small embers flying as Remus gently opened the brown paper, reaching inside with gentle fingers.
A model dragon- the model dragons from Skylar's first task.
A little Vipertooth hissed on his palm, snapping and looking as uniquely dangerous as Adrian ever was.
'I know I'm stronger. I can see it, I can feel it. There's proof, there's so much proof and somehow...I don't know. I don't feel stronger. I feel terrible.'
"I know you told me to stay away, but the more I find out the more fascinating he is." Astoria mused, holding a roll of parchment in her hands as she leant against the doorway.
"If you're talking about Selwyn, I'm going to jinx you." Daphne warned with a low huff, fastening her hair in place. Astoria turned her wide eyes on her sister, blinking in mock confusion.
"I was talking with Suzie…" Astoria trailed off before shrugging, "Actually no. I wasn't talking to her but looking around-"
Daphne gave a wordless noise of frustration, "Astoria! Stop digging around!"
Astoria rolled her eyes, "You're envious since you never had the talent-"
Daphne stood and held her quill at her sister accusatory, "Astoria, do you know what Selwyn did?"
Astoria blinked in confusion, "Uh, when?"
"He beat Draco Malfoy until his skull was broken."
Astoria nodded slowly as if still unsure, "I...I know? I heard?"
"And you aren't concerned at all about all of this? You aren't worried that he isn't going to find out and dig around for you? He attacked Draco Malfoy."
Astoria scoffed, "It's not like he know legilimency, how would he know I've been looking around? I'm curious."
"Curiosity kills the Kneazle." Daphne snapped, crossing her arms as Astoria stuck out her tongue and hopped into the room, climbing onto Daphne's bed and throwing the parchment onto the floor.
"So I was thinking," Astoria started while swinging her overhanging feet, "Selwyn is really strange, you know?"
Daphne gave a small grunt, nearly kicking the smaller girl out of the room.
"...What does his snake look like?" Astoria asked out of curiosity, "I've never seen it before."
"Big, black with yellow stomach." Daphne shrugged, "Scary fast. Always wraps around him like a noose."
Astoria stiffened, her voice was slightly strained, "That's...interesting."
Daphne paused and turned to look at her sister directly, "Astoria? Astoria what's wrong?"
She wasn't looking at Daphne, instead she was gazing off as if she had realized something horrifying. "Adrian Selwyn may...be adopted, correct?"
"...Yes? We already established this, Astoria what is going on?"
The younger girl gave a small pinched smile, "Nothing, I ah, I need to send an owl. Thank you Daphne."
And she left, nearly shaking in her steps as she left the room.
Suzie Forestar,
I am messaging you with a rather peculiar request, one that I believe will confuse you initially. I have resources that have informed me of the unfortunate end to your late brother, David.
I understand that based on the circumstances of his unfortunate death, his murderer may have been part of the Wizarding World. Due to this, and the opportunities available to the Greengrass name and house, I hope to assist you in uncovering the murderer of your late brother.
If at all possible, I ask you to tell me the name of the child who you remember from your orphanage.
Best wishes,
Astoria Greengrass.
Suzie unrolled the letter from the prim and proper owl, watching her well behaved from the windowsill of her bedroom.
Her foster parents were confused but thankfully understanding of the situation, it was incredibly easy to orchestrate her current foster family to be a registered muggleborn and squib. Although they were not as familiar with the wizarding world, they certainly were not shocked by the owl.
What was shocking, was how well behaved and obviously pureblood the owl was.
The letter itself, was something Suzie had only imagined in nightmares.
She sat on her bed, cross legged as the owl watched her movements patiently. The parchment was sprawled in front of her, crinkled already from how often she had opened and closed it.
She knew who Astoria Greengrass was, another girl in her year who bordered a line of malicious and too sly to talk with. She was...intimidating, far too innocent looking and far too dangerous.
She was nice enough, but the fact that she sent the letter to begin with meant something terrible.
She was an orphan in the eye of the Wizarding world, and since she wasn't formally adopted during the school year she was the custody of Hogwarts school. Given that she was sorted into Slytherin, technically her guardian was Professor Snape.
"Okay, okay," She exhaled, scrambling over the bland desk in the makeshift room for a decent ballpoint pen and paper, "I just...I just need to tell Professor Snape about this…"
She scribbled, pausing and crumpling the paper once to throw it behind her and to restart.
"Professor Snape.
I was given a letter recently asking about what happened to my brother, David, who died years ago in my old orphanage.
I don't know how, but somehow someone has been asking after the name of the person who killed my brother. My brother was killed by a snake, or rather, my brother was killed by a boy who told the snake to kill him. From what I've heard Parseltongue is rare, but it isn't anything like what Skylar Potter was sounding like. This sounded like actual hisses, like there was a snake in his mouth.
I know the boy's name was Harry. He was mean, cruel, he threw me down stairs and he told his snake to bite and murder my brother.
I think I remember a woman who looked like the escaped convict Bellatrix Lestrange, but I could be wrong. They set the orphanage on fire and a lot of people died.
I'm afraid that someone may be looking for me, but I don't know if this is important enough to ask the Headmaster about. I'm scared with all the questions that somehow someone is going to get me.
Thank you so much,
Suzie Forestar.
Severus Snape sighed through his nose as he looked at the paper- clumsily written with a muggle ballpoint pen.
Even more confusing, the owl that had delivered it undoubtedly belonged to a pureblood family. It was far too well trained, and looked positively expensive for any student to own, let alone a orphaned muggleborn.
The contents of the note were even worse; written in haste and in a young child's fear.
Unfortunately, the contents were incredibly concerning.
Albus was gone- off chasing a lead that was too important to inform Severus of. It was understandable, considering that if pressed for specific information, his Occlumency barriers would never last. It was better to be uninformed than to know pivotal details.
Since Albus was gone and was impossible to contact, the contents of the letter were left to Severus to report.
The information...the fact the letter in itself mentioned Bellatrix, one of the Dark Lord's loyal followers, Severus was instantly at an obligation to share the letter to his supporters. Not only that, but the pressing matter of another parselmouth on the loose suggested that there could possibly be a young wizard with complicated abilities.
But to suggest that there was a child that was abducted by Bellatrix...no, that was impossible.
Unless...unless the false story given to the Order by that one obnoxious child was actually true. If that was the case, then Adrian was actually Harry or some other ridiculous name.
But that's preposterous, it was likely that if Bellatrix was abducting children nearly a decade ago, then she likely stole many. So far, the idea that Bellatrix captured many children and 'trained' each hoping for a single survivor was much more her style.
Albus was going to have a field day when Severus gave his suspicions, and no doubt he would search the missing child reports to try and find some sort of linkage.
But if Bellatrix had abducted children from orphanages, the search would be much much more difficult.
It was best to simply leave the letter with someone after making a copy for Albus. It was incredibly unlikely that the Dark Lord would order anything in haste, especially given that these events took place in his absence. Likely anything actually targeting the girl would be long planned out, or dismissed as a worried child.
But...if a pureblood house was drawn into the mess, then Severus would have to act fast and move quickly to deliver the letter to make sure he didn't look suspicious. He already was on shaky grounds, and was well aware that he was being kept in the dark in some fashion.
Perhaps sending this letter to the dark lord would in some way assure his position?
Severus Snape sighed, pressing one hand against his eyes as he drew his wand, already murmuring the spell to duplicate the parchment.
Almost instantly afterwards, he pressed his wand to the seared black mark against his flesh, feeling the burn as if a viper had sunk its fangs deep.
He hissed in pain, stumbling upwards and while focusing through the searing burn, apparated away.
The training room was impressive. Much better and more elaborate than the one Adrian had grown up using.
There were dummies, able to walk around and dodge with a level of animation that was quite startling. Targets and contraptions that moved at varying speeds, even devices that would shoot curses that were positively painful. Adrian had been already knicked by one dark cutting curse, falling to the ground in crippling agony. There had been an unsettlingly large puddle of blood, spewing out from his leg in pulsing waves.
There was something impossible to explain, about seeing blood leaking from his body. A comfort in knowing that what he was made of on the inside was the same as everyone else.
He had shifted into his Animagus form, blood slowing but thankfully, the wound transferred only to the lower part of his tail. He was able to slither over to the shelf abundant with healing potions. His skin had knit back together as he screamed, clutching his legs and wound bubbling with the hiss of of sulfur. Healing potions were not kind, they were aggressive and cruel on flesh.
His leg pulled strangely, like how the tattoo felt over his skin. Bits where the muscles had healed in a way different to normal.
Adrian had learned his lesson, injuries could be repaired instantly but he would always feel it.
This time, he knew better than to get hit.
He was very out of practice, it had been a long time since he had a honest dueling session with Bellatrix or Rowle and admittedly, he was hit quite often. The first day he let his confidence overshadow him, it resulted in his screaming pile. He hadn't known how to clean the blood stain, already sunken into the wooden floors and staining the cherry crimson.
It was a stain he looked at every day he entered the room, shucking off his outer cloak and stretching himself carefully.
It was a large stain. Like the stain the man bled out as Nagini tore his throat.
(He remembered it with an air of detachment. He had realized it, he had broken over the knowledge. He had killed a girl. He had killed a man. He would have to kill again.)
"Alright Lutain," Adrian breathed quietly, quelling the nausea as he pulled out his wand again- the Holly and Phoenix feather that had been hidden in his room. He had missed the feel of the warm wood, sparks leaping under his skin. "You know what to do?"
Lutain peered over lazily from the heated platform he had found for Nagini near the doorway. "If you're an idiot fetch your father."
Adrian's face twitched, but he couldn't really complain with the simplified information.
Adrian exhaled slowly and shifted into position, watching at the far end of the room the magical device which he knew would spit out curses the moment he activated it with a word.
He knew that he would likely leave the room injured, there was no way that he was going to not come out of it bleeding.
(Some part of him wanted to bleed.)
Adrian wasn't sure when, at some point a filter had lifted from his eyes. A level of childish naivety that he never knew existed had slowly slid away. Washed away in rain over his face.
"I killed Ginny Weasley." Adrian spoke out loud, the room was silent, but something heavy pressed on his chest. Lutain didn't respond, used to Adrian's talking to himself.
"I killed Ginny Weasley." Adrian repeated, breathing out and closing his eyes. He could imagine her hair, he could see her.
'I killed her,' Adrian thought, feeling sick and knowing, knowing that she too had been made of blood and bone. 'I killed her.'
He killed the man. He begged for mercy and he killed him.
(Had he really though? Had he actually killed him?)
It was Nagini who struck him down. It was the Chamber which caused the girl to starve to death.
(His father would look at him with so much disappointment.)
Adrian was an Animagus, some adults never accomplished that in their entire lives. Adrian had Occlumency barriers, he was a Legilimens. He was the Boy-Who-Lived.
"I can do this." Adrian breathed to himself, eyes still closed. The world pulsed too vibrant, too bright for him to look at.
His father always had a plan. His father had a plan and he had taken in Adrian and raised him and he had a duty to his father.
Of course, there was the fact that his father could have just taken him in to hide the fact that Adrian was indeed, the only one who had survived his father's hand. Adrian was a threat, now neutralized. With that logic, it didn't explain why Adrian had been tutored or treated well, he could have lived in a dungeon and the same would be accomplished.
But no, his father had adopted him and made Adrian his heir.
Adrian had a duty to do, and he couldn't even kill someone.
(A part of him was screaming that killing someone was unspeakable, that if he truly believed that he hadn't killed anyone, then there was time to stop.)
He had broken down, in a moment of guilt and hysteria he had broken down to Skylar Potter. Skylar Potter, who all his life he wanted to kill. He hadn't come to terms with it, he hadn't allowed himself to realize and accept the fact he ended the existence of a human being.
"They are prey, and they are no different than rats." Adrian murmured to himself, clutching his wand as he remembered what Nagini had said numerous times before. "They are rats and must be killed for us to live."
Truly, if Adrian didn't kill a rat for his own life to continue, than he himself would starve.
Was it truly wrong to kill something weaker than him to guarantee his own survival? Was murder really something so...a concept so horrid that one could never return from it?
James Potter had killed before, in the line of duty as an Auror. So had Sirius Black, and Remus even. Dumbledore had killed without a doubt, and yet they were considered good.
"I can do this," Adrian breathed, hanging his head and fighting the sick that burned his throat, "I need to do this."
Dark magic was a tool. It could be used one way or another, you could kill with light magic just as easy as dark magic.
Dark magic was more humane, less suffering if applied properly.
"Master?'
"Actuate." Adrian clipped out, opening his eyes and twisting to the left as something fast and purple shot towards him.
Another, this time Adrian hastily shielded, grunting with a whine as it numbed his arm. Rowle had these devices set intimidatingly high.
Adrian wasn't going to lower the difficulty. Wounds would teach him to move faster, blood would reinforce his own defects.
One curse slid past his shield, slicing through his ankle and sending him to the ground with a cry.
Lutain reared in alarm, watching silently as Adrian grunted a wordless sound of pain. The device paused a second, calibrating Adrian's location before redirecting its curses.
"Master-"
"No!" Adrian hissed out, sweat plastering along his hairline as he spat out shielding charms. Ankle limp on the ground and adding to the blood of the room, "I can do this."
Lutain lowered, watching carefully as Adrian writhed on the defense, tears slipping from the corner of his eyes.
Another slashing curse, the smallest fraction his shield didn't cover. His calf split open like finely roasted beef. He never thought his own meat would resemble raw beef.
"Master this is-"
"No!" Adrian hissed out, spine arcing although he propped himself upwards with his forearms, clenching his jaw. The spells kept coming, and Adrian was tired.
He was done with being hurt.
He hissed out something wordless, pushing invisibly and coaxing fire to burn between him and the device, halting it barrage of spells. Taking three seconds to simply breathe, he dragged himself into an almost sitting position.
Fire burned, searing the room and creating an opaque barrier. Adrian didn't need to see to know where the device was.
"Ruptura!" Adrian hissed out, snapping his wrist as the long fire whip sprouted from his wand tip, burning purple. He slashed it through the air once, twice, until he heard the device break with a whine. Adrian banished the spell, breathing heavily but with perfect clarity.
It had taken him too long to stop himself against the barrage, he shouldn't have been injured to begin with.
"I'm fine Lutain," Adrian clipped out, frustrated mostly with himself, "I'll take a healing potion and try again."
Lutain watched skeptic and with fascination as once again, the raw bloody meat of Adrian's leg knitted together until a thin lumpy seam remained. A permanent reminder of his own inabilities.
"Let's go again." Adrian hissed out sourly, swiping his wand through the air to loosen his shoulders.
"Use birds." Lutain offered, tail tip swaying slowly, "Practice on birds."
"You can't use that hex on humans," Adrian countered, not looking over as he rolled his head to stretch his neck.
"Cut them in half."
Adrian paused, a small hitch in his movements before he quietly summoned the birds. Bright canaries larger than a fist. Lutain watched, spotting a few which flapped into the rafters. One unsuspecting bird remained on the floor, chirping and glancing around curiously.
"Off with your head," Adrian muttered sourly, pointing his wand at the bird and pausing.
It was no different than bursting the birds. There was no difference.
Adrian inhaled.
(The man's throat was-)
"Abrumpo."
The bird stiffened and dropped, it's head dropping as from the blunt end of its severed neck, blood spurted like a macabre fountain.
Adrian thought there would have been a moment after that. A clean snap of rationality that would strike when he killed something. A bludger to the skull, a ringing in his ears.
The remaining birds chattered in the rafters, unsuspecting.
"That was fun."
Adrian ducked his head, staring at the floor.
It was no different than bursting birds. It was no different than slicing their heads off. The spells were no different, curses were no different.
"Lutain," Adrian's voice came out with a small, unidentifiable lilt to it, "I want to try the Imperious curse."
Rowle paused from his chair the moment he felt the wards bend- a presence following the subconscious directions given by the mark.
They had been keyed into the main ballroom where all future Death Eater meetings would take place.
He sighed, standing slowly if only to not alarm the gigantic python that was curled up in the corner. Its name was Nagini, but everyone knew that it was the Dark Lord's eyes and ears.
It's head lifted almost instantly in response, jaw dropping with a rattling hiss that make the hair on Rowle's arms stand on end.
"I- someone's apparated here." He explained lowly, making only slow movements to return the book he was reading to the side table. He made no movements for his wand. He had been told that the snake understood English, it was probably smart to let it know what he was doing. It looked far too intelligent for an animal, and watched him calmly.
Rowle hurried out from the library, the snake following him distantly before splitting and heading in an alternate direction. The idea of that giant man-eater following him all the way to the ballroom was terrifying.
Rowle opened the doors, walking through and immediately brightened with a grin, "Well well, look what the kneazle dragged in."
Severus Snape's lip curled but his expression stayed trademark bland, "Thorfinn Rowle. How...unexpected."
Rowle gave a rolling shrug of his shoulders, if Snape didn't know where he was then Rowle wasn't going to correct him. Snape had been one Death Eater that was always under suspicion, especially since his spy status with the others.
"Why are you here, Snape?" Rowle asked cautiously, crossing both arms with one eyebrow raised.
Snape's face stayed blank, "I have a message for our Lord, one that may be of concern."
"Oh really." Rowle sarcastically responded, "One of your students mixing poisons in a loo?"
Snape blinked slowly and in the patronizing way he seemed to have mastered. "Unfortunately, no."
Something heavy plopped to the ground- drawing both eyes along the floor until they saw whatever it was that had drawn attention.
The gigantic snake, Nagini, had emerged again, this time another serpent in tow. Her entire bulk slid out of a hinged vent, propped open around her girth.
The newer snake that accompanied her was smaller, although was still terrifyingly large. It likely was the right size to eat a small owl.
It was dark in color, some shade of dark green or grey that Rowle didn't care enough to know. It was fast, with a strange frill tucked firm against its neck, starting just between its eyes.
Snape's breathing stilled the moment he saw it, as if he recognized the species. He instantly averted his eyes, staring fixed at Rowle.
'That's new.' Rowle blinked leisurely, 'must not like being spied on for once.'
"The Lord isn't here right now, although I could pass along the message if it's actually important." Rowle tilted his head slightly, eyes half lidded as if mocking. The snake, Nagini, would report it for him.
"It is important, unlike your contributions." Snape responded with a dull drawl, "Information given to me which details the possibility of another parselmouth in our midst."
Rowle's eyebrows shot up, "Bloody hell, another one?"
Snape paused, halfway withdrawing a piece of parchment, "It appears so."
The smaller snake hissed, neither man looked towards it.
Rowle took the parchment, wrinkling his nose as he squinted at the chicken scratch, "Merlin, what sort of quill made this mess?"
"A pen, I believe. A muggle writing utensil." Snape sighed at Rowle's brief look of confusion, "Written to me by a student. I doubt it is of concern but as it does contain sensitive information I believe it best if brought to attention."
Rowle frowned and looked at the name at the bottom, "What sort of name is 'Forestar' anyways?"
There was a loud agitated hiss, Snape paled slightly as he forced his eyes downward.
Something was snapping and crackling, like a brute stomping through broken twigs. Rowle and Snape looked more out of fascination than concern as the smaller snake twisted and distorted before their eyes, shifting into something shapeless with a long black cloak.
Well, Merlin be damned, the kid managed it.
He hadn't seen the outfit often, but he had been drilled as to how to act.
Rowle lowered his eyes, trying to quell the sense of grudging respect at a damn Animagus transformation, "cerastes." He murmured, bowing his head.
He hadn't seen the kid in a long while. He had wondered where he had run off to.
There was a pause as Snape clearly did not follow suit, only peering at the newcomer with wide eyes.
Nagini let out a large noise, something agitated by the sight of her twitching tail.
Cerastes was walking, managing the distance from where he stood next to Nagini. Only a few strides, accentuated by the obnoxiously clicking heels of his boots. Although Rowle knew the kid was essentially harmless, something about the slow walk and clicking shot an instinctual pang of anxiety through him.
"The note." cerastes murmured, voice sliding out of Rowle's head like a notice-me-not charm on his voice, as slick as oil running off a surface. Impressive charm work, likely made by the Dark Lord himself.
Rowle held out the letter obediently, nearly biting his tongue as Cerastes (the boy!) took it from his hands with black gloved fingers. (Of course, the scars on his skin.)
cerastes read the note. He trailed one gloved black finger along the paper, under the hastily written letters. Near the end, his one hand was shaking, the other twitching as if wanting to curl into a fist.
Then with a sharp smell, the paper started to curl inwards on itself, turning black and then red as it smoldered, burning without a spell being cast.
Snape shifted his weight ever so slightly, the raising and lowering of his chest halted entirely. Rowle bit his cheek to contain the grin from spreading across his face. He knew enough of Severus' tells to know the other man was horrified at the wandless magic.
"Suzie Forestar," Cerastes murmured, turning to look at Nagini.
The massive snake looked content, flicking its tongue with low hissing noises interspersed here or there.
"Get rid of her." cerastes spoke, voice bland and cold.
Snape's eyes widened slightly, "I...Excuse my confusion, I am not certain that this should be decided without our Lord's-"
Cerastes' voice was sharp and angry, "Did you mishear me? I said get rid of her."
Rowle glanced between the two, a low light of amusement burning in his eyes, "I'm surprised Severus, you haven't met cerastes?"
Rowle knew damned well the other man hadn't.
"Charmed." Severus offered in place of a greeting, still looking at Cerastes with a level of skepticism.
"Wonderful we have that out of the way." Cerastes deadpanned, nearly making Rowle bark out loud, although he did try to muffle it into his fist, "This girl knows too much and has proven to be a loose end. I want her gone, get rid of her in some way or another."
Snape blinked in alarm before stilling, "I believe a decision of such calibre should only be made by our Lord-"
cerastes spun, the cloak flared but didn't open or reveal anything, "I'll inform my father of this when he returns but for now get rid of her."
The cloaked figure didn't hiss, but sounded very close to it. Severus stilled once more, this time it took him longer to resume breathing.
"As you wish," Rowle grumbled calmly and almost smugly, "Come on Snape, I assume you know where this girl lives then?"
Snape looked pale, uncomfortable or horrified with the turn of events, "I- cerastes I must insist-"
cerastes angled the pitch black bottomless cavern of his hood to look directly at Snape. It was impossible to look inside the darkness. It was unsettling in Rowle's opinion.
Snape choked, a quiet noise that Rowle wouldn't have heard if not for the close proximity.
Snape jerked his head down, "As you wish."
So it seemed he finally understood.
"Wonderful." cerastes breathed slowly, as if to reassure himself. He looked at the twice damned giant snake and started hissing. Unmistakable foreign sounding noises, bordering on something able to comprehend but too animalistic in truth. Real Parseltongue spoken from a source.
Snape twitched, but thankfully didn't speak.
Cerastes left the room in a flurry. Snape didn't look back once.
"You did the right idea." Nagini enthused, following Adrian closely as he left the ballroom, heading through the hallways.
"I know." Adrian bit out, tone difficult to discern with the charmed hood.
"They are rats." Nagini comforted, as if Adrian needed it.
The worst part was that he did. A small part of him was crying out, saying that it was wrong to send Rowle after her.
She had ruined everything, but knowing Snape, if she was truly important she would live. The way Adrian viewed it was rather twisted, he'd admit. Snape worked for the light, if the concept of life and not killing children was truly a concept that could never be broken, then Suzie wouldn't die.
If she did, then the idea of murder wasn't truly that unspeakable of an action.
Either he received Suzie from Rowle, and he would have the opportunity to kill her himself, or Rowle would kill her with assistance from Snape which implied that all of Adrian's concerns were entirely pointless afterall.
"I'm sure you could stri-"
"Do you know how to activate the training rooms."
Nagini stilled in her movements, lagging a few strides before she caught up smoothly. "I know how to activate for my Master."
"My father's training level." Adrian breathed out in slight resignation, "alright, help me with it."
"Are you sure? It is very advanced."
"How advanced?"
"Destruction of all. Very difficult."
Adrian nodded in thought. He would end up very injured. The training room had extensive healing potions, of course they pulled painfully when the cold outdoors caught him off guard. It wouldn't hurt to train more, to get used to that level of activity.
He only had so much time before he had to go back. (He didn't want to.)
"Alright, I need you to activate them. Only deactivate them when I need healing potions, or I'm missing a limb."
"Do you miss limbs often?"
"Bellatrix was a bitch."
Rowle knew that when cerastes said to get rid of the girl, he meant capture her.
Rowle also knew, that keeping a girl hostage especially with the information she had written in a letter, that she knew too much to be left alive. cerastes- no, Adrian was too naive to understand the complication of the phrase, or actually what it would entitle.
'Get rid of her.'
"Sorry girl," Rowle grinned, pointing his wand at the shaking and sobbing girl in front of him- likely not even fourteen yet, "but you were digging around and asking the wrong questions."
She screamed, until a flash of green and she didn't scream any longer.
Severus stood guard outside the house, lips pinched and face once more a blank mask.
"Do you have a death wish?"
Adrian didn't bother lifting his head, keeping his forehead pressed against the wooden floor. It wasn't that much colder, but it felt like pure relief against his feverish skin.
When it was obvious Adrian wasn't going to answer, his father sighed quietly and strode over the distance calmly. His shoes didn't click, it was the shadow cast from his body that alerted Adrian to the close proximity.
"If I didn't know any better, I'd assume you were trying something….reckless."
Adrian nearly smiled, pausing and grunting with the exertion required to move himself into a kneeling position. "I'm still in one piece."
Is father's eyes were crimson red, like the fresh blood that had leaked from Adrian's lesions like spilled butterbeer.
The room was quiet. It smelled like smoke and burned wood, a distinctly pungent campfire smell. Undertones of something metallic, like rust. From the potions rack built into the wall, a large number of healing potions, blood replenishing potions, and energizing tinctures were missing.
"When do I get to kill Skylar?"
His father shifted his weight, crossing his arms in a way that impossibly still looked fluid. "Kill Skylar Potter? My, aren't you ambitious."
Adrian's face twitched into the beginnings of a snarl. He ducked his head, neck stiff, to mask his expression in his sweat matted hair.
"My plans never counted on your involvement in Skylar Potter's death."
Adrian flinched, "I- but father I-"
"Truthfully I doubt you possess the capabilities at this time."
Adrian's jaw clenched and he kept his head ducked, "I know for certain that my magic capabilities surpass his."
Voldemort's mouth twitched, only one corner into what Adrian could only describe as a leer. "That is true. Yet the large picture is too complex for you to comprehend, child."
Adrian flushed and hid his face once again. Shame burned sourly.
"Skylar Potter functions at this time as the symbol for the light." Voldemort sighed, as if the very concept of it was unsightly. "The removal of him at this time would only cause future uprisings or complications."
"We can deal with those-"
"We?" Voldemort echoed back, a tone of disbelief sharply prominent, almost breathlessly amused, "hold your tongue, child. There is no we."
Adrian breathed slowly, closing his eyes and swallowing down the lump in his throat. "Would it not be better if I killed Dumbledore-"
"Don't make me laugh. Ridding us of that old fool is far beyond your meager abilities."
Adrian bit his cheek hard enough he tasted blood.
"I- I could surprise him…"
"No, you couldn't. Any actions against him will reveal your loyalties and cost me."
"I'm smarter than that." Adrian mumbled sourly, swallowing down mucus and iron.
"Considering I found you curled in your own blood and sweat, I truly am doubting your mental capabilities."
Adrian flinched again, knowing better than to speak.
Voldemort glanced around the training room, taking in the relative disarray of the floor and training dummies. "You've been focusing on pyrotechnical magic."
Adrian gave a small curt laugh, something dry and loathing before he lifted his head. He didn't bother looking at his father, instead he looked at one of the remaining dummies. A second passed, a thin rivulet of blood dripped down from Adrian's left nostril.
The dummy burst into fire, a contained burning fire that within moments, ate through the thick leather. The stuffing followed, crumbling to ash until the wooden support post slowly was revealed. Abruptly, the fire cut off, leaving the central post singed but intact; the dummy had burned away.
Adrian's father said nothing, yet in the strange way Adrian always knew what his father was feeling, he could tell he was impressed and surprised.
"You've improved since your lessons with Rowle," his father stated, not a question yet not a compliment either.
Adrian gave a small nod, looking down at where his nails dug into the wooden floorboards, "I've been practicing."
"Curious, why you selected wandless magic of all things. I was certain you'd follow dear Bella's...enthusiasm, for cutting curses."
Adrian gave a small roll of his shoulder, "I'm decent at those as well."
His father laughed, a low rolling noise that twisted something in Adrian's stomach. Adrian wanted to leave, he wanted to walk away very quietly.
He didn't of course, because in as long as he could remember, his father had never outright hurt him. Of course, he had cursed him and wounded him but he hadn't...hurt him.
Before, Adrian would have thought it was...no, before Adrian had longed for something as sweet as affection. He knew rationally that his father was not the sort to irrevocably adore Adrian, which meant (as much as it pained him) his father had a use for him.
"What's my purpose?" Adrian asked quietly, shifting into a seated position, staring at the burned post. The aftermath of his anger.
His father smiled ever so slightly, how had Adrian ever interpreted it as something kind?
"That's a rather...complex question. With a more intricate answer."
Adrian had thought as much. A lot of parts of his life were difficult to explain, twisted and veiled by childhood bias.
"Is it because I'm the actual Boy-Who-Lived?"
The room seemed to chill, something in Adrian's head thrummed painfully.
"You best keep that information to yourself, child. You never know if….unpleasant people may take offence."
Adrian knew a threat when he heard one. Adrian almost smiled, so that was part of it.
"You are in a unique position, child." His father spoke calmly, "a unique weapon that will shift our tide in the war positively."
Adrian once thought that meant he would be trained for fighting, an unstoppable force to be reckoned with. Serving as his father's right hand, raining punishment on opposition.
He hadn't even close to enough formal training to be a decent threat. Why would he be sent to Hogwarts if he was to be a weapon?
"I'm information, aren't I?" Adrian asked, voice bland in the quiet. "The fact I exist is the weapon in itself. I'm not meant to fight, I'm a political weapon."
"You must have been speaking with Adalonda, I had believed such insight beyond you."
Adrian twitched against the jibe, but knew it was true.
Adrian was never meant to kill Skylar, he was meant to...to...to look pretty. To exist, that's why his father instilled the Occlumency barriers, taught him shielding and dodging. Why he sent him to Hogwarts.
What use was Adrian if Dumbledore had no idea who he was? It would only make the...the great reveal that much sweeter to his father.
Adrian was a pawn.
"My animagus form?" Adrian asked, already knowing how dismissive his father would act.
"Useful I will admit, granted that it is a serpent as you have said. Convenient for spying, and staying with Nagini."
Ah, that was it. His father viewed him like he viewed Nagini.
His father did not cherish Adrian like family, he cherished him like a trophy.
(That didn't mean that Adrian couldn't make sure he was prized above all others.)
Albus Dumbledore sighed through his nose, exhausted and tired as he removed his half moon spectacles to rub a weathered knuckle against his sore eyes.
"And you're certain of this?" Albus asked tiredly.
Snape stood in half shadow of a bookcase, more pale and tired than he had appeared in a long while, "I'm positive."
Albus sighed quietly, "Then we are in a worse position then I feared."
He folded his hands, resting them gently on the worn prophet page, the fifth page without a photo to accompany the article header, Fourteen-Year-Old-Witchl-Murdered-In-Home!
"He spoke Parseltongue, Albus. I didn't mishear it."
Dumbledore nodded carefully, "Then our suspicions were correct, although I'm not positive how many threats we may be facing. I am now certain, that this...cerastes you encountered was the same threat James and Sirius encountered numerous years ago in the Forbidden Forest. Merlin knows his age, or how many...trials, came before that individual."
Snape inhaled slowly, "Your suspicions over Selwyn's eventual-"
"Nothing has changed, although I believe he may be in more danger than we originally assumed. I believe Bellatrix Lestrange's project on raising multiple...living weapons is successful. For now, we have only found two but perhaps Tom has ordered dozens to be raised."
"You still assume that we should not take custody over the boy."
"I believe acting hastily will only prompt the child into more violence. I do not believe in the morality of stealing away a child, Severus. No matter the risk."
Snape gave a sigh through his nose, "The accidental magic-"
"Oh Severus," Dumbledore shook his head quietly and sadly, "You do not believe that fate was kind to that child. It is no accidental magic, my friend."
Snape wisely said nothing.
"I believe," Dumbledore sighed quietly, "That we have made a grave error."
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