Chapter 76. Meeting with the Dark Lord
In the evening, the students who had left the castle for the holidays finally returned to Hogwarts. Of course, there was none of the fanfare of the start-of-term feast; they were sent straight to their rooms. Dinner was delayed by an hour to give everyone time to get ready.
After pulling on his school robes and hanging his coat in the wardrobe, Regulus left his room with a flutter of excitement. He could not wait to show Severus how far he had come, and to boast that he could finally create the third spear, not just the outline, but a real spear of fire.
Regulus also had quite a few questions about the new spell, because no matter how many times he tried, he could not cast it properly. At best, he produced only a weak flare of fire, nothing more.
So the moment he spotted a familiar back with long dark hair, his face lit up and he hurried over.
"Severus!"
Hearing his name, Severus looked slightly surprised, but he turned and smiled as usual when he saw who it was.
"I'm glad to see you too, Regulus, but calm down first. And thanks for the robe," he added, patting it. "I've wanted to replace it for a long time, but I never got around to it."
"There's no need to thank me. It wasn't expensive," Regulus said, a little embarrassed. "From our short conversation, I realized you prefer practical things to fancy artifacts, so I decided on a robe. I didn't find out until late yesterday that it was your birthday, so I didn't have time to prepare properly."
"Don't worry. I'm honestly happy with it, and you saved me a trip to Madam Malkin's shop, at least until the start of next school year."
"Then I'm glad, but next year I'll definitely plan ahead!" Regulus declared, thumping his chest. Severus's eyes brightened, and he almost nodded, but he caught himself, cleared his throat, and smoothed his face back into its usual expression.
"Of course, I'll be waiting impatiently. Let's go to the Great Hall; they'll be serving dinner soon."
"Yes, but I have some questions about the new spell. They're about pronunciation."
Regulus quickly pulled a small notebook from his inner pocket, opened it, and handed it over.
"Hm." Severus took it and flipped through the pages, frowning. Every so often he looked surprised, nodding to himself.
This went on for about a minute before he finally closed the notebook.
"Not bad. I thought you would get much less out of this spell." He said with another smile as he handed the notebook back. Regulus had been tense, but the praise made the tension vanish. "Honestly, I'm not surprised you can't go any further yet. I got stuck at this exact point myself."
"Really?"
"Yes, and the solution is quite simple." Severus grinned, almost teasing, then added abruptly, "But I won't tell you. Figure it out yourself. I'll give you a hint, though: don't focus only on fire."
"Don't focus only on fire?" Regulus repeated, frowning, and then, the next second, it hit him. "The formula. The spell is made of fire and wind, but I keep focusing only on the first part!"
"Exactly. Just don't practice it here, or you'll burn your room down."
"Hey! I'm not stupid enough to use a spell like that in an enclosed space!"
"Really?" Severus drawled in a sickeningly sweet voice, and Regulus flushed despite himself. It brought back the incident when he'd punched a hole in the castle wall with a fire spear.
"I won't."
"All right, then." Severus's expression settled again as he lowered his gaze to where Nagini had slid into view. "Morning," he murmured with a soft smile, stroking her head.
Nagini hissed something in reply, narrowed her eyes at Regulus's nervous smile, then climbed back up as if scoffing at him.
"She does not like me, does she?"
"No. Nagini does not like other people at all, and she only lets me touch her," Severus said calmly. "Come on. We will talk about the spell in your room."
But after only a couple of steps, he heard his name again and had to stop once more. When he turned, Lily was standing there, looking a little nervous.
"Greetings, Miss Evans. Did you need something?" For a moment, a chill flashed in his eyes, but Lily did not notice; she did not dare to meet his gaze.
"I wanted to congratulate you on your birthday, but I did not know where you had moved to, so here." Lily held out a small package, clearly embarrassed. "Happy birthday. I hope all your wishes come true."
"Hmm? Thanks." Severus didn't refuse. He nodded, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly as he accepted it.
An awkward silence followed. Lily couldn't bring herself to speak, and Severus stayed quiet on purpose, hoping she would leave soon.
"I'll go, then."
"Yes. Enjoy your meal."
"Thanks. You too." Lily hurried off, looking a little downcast.
"You two used to be friends, so why are you so cold to her?" Regulus asked, baffled as he watched her go. He had gathered plenty of information about Severus. He knew about their old friendship, and almost everyone knew about Severus's feelings for Lily. Behind their backs, mostly half-bloods and Muggle-born wizards joked that they were Romeo and Juliet.
"Let us not discuss my personal life. If you want, call it a grudge. Topic closed."
"Um, okay."
At the same time, a kilometer away from a small manor, a man in dark robes sat on a stone, stroking Nagini's head. At last, he stood up and hopped down.
"He will handle the rest himself, and it is time for us to meet."
"Be careful."
That is the third time you have told me that," he sighed, then strode toward the building without hesitation. But I cannot afford not to be careful right now, he added silently, staring at the entrance where two extraordinary figures stood guard. One was Lucius's father. The second was unknown to him, but the man's gaze and the weight of his magic made it immediately clear that he was experienced, powerful, a Master at his peak, equal to Hogwarts' strongest professors.
"We greet you, Amon Ichiros. Our lord is already waiting for you. Please, follow me," Malfoy said respectfully, bowing. He tried to make out the guest's face beneath the cloak, but saw only two points of red light. Even that was enough to make his skin crawl beneath the stranger's gaze.
"I do not have much time," came an indifferent, slightly hoarse old voice from beneath the hood, sending goosebumps up both men's spines.
"Yes!" Malfoy turned and opened the doors, letting Severus enter first before both men hurried after him.
They walked through the manor's gloomy corridors in silence. The two Death Eaters were clearly afraid of the stranger, especially Lucius's father. He had encountered countless people in his life, and understood at once that their guest was dangerous.
The same was true for the second man. Antonin Dolohov was one of their strongest fighters, a veteran of countless battles who had taken the lives of Aurors and Muggle-borns alike. Yet even he feared "Ichiros," because he did not know what to expect from him. One glance had been enough to tell him one thing: this man was dangerous, and it was better not to provoke him.
After a few minutes they reached a large hall. A pale man sat at the table, Voldemort himself, and behind him stood Bellatrix and Lucius, not counting those hidden in other rooms.
"My Lord."
"Don't." Lord Voldemort said calmly, waving it off without taking his eyes off the guest.
Amon did not stop. He approached the table, pulled a chair aside, and Nagini slid out from beneath his hood. Beneath the wizards' shocked gazes, she grew to five meters in seconds and coiled behind him. Amon settled onto her, silently studying the local Dark Lord while stroking Nagini, whose head rested on his shoulder.
"Interesting companion you have."
"A rare species from the heart of the Amazon. Are we here to discuss snakes?" The two red points beneath the hood flared, and Lucius swallowed, a spike of panic cutting through him. Only the fact that his Lord stood before him kept him steady.
Bellatrix frowned at the disrespect, and a cold light flashed in Riddle's eyes. He could not feel the guest's power at all, but his instincts were screaming that his guest was very strong.
"Join me. I need strong supporters. I promise that after I take this country, you will get everything you want," Voldemort said, getting straight to the point, lifting his chin slightly.
A few seconds passed, then chuckles came from beneath the hood. The Dark Lord frowned as the chuckles swelled into uncontrollable laughter. Most of the Death Eaters stared at the "mad" old man, because only a madman would behave like that right in front of their Lord, one of the most dangerous wizards in Magical Britain.
"Boy, you've got nerve. You really think you can make me your errand boy?" Severus said at last. "I'm flattered, but I refuse. I'm not interested in your children's games, and if that's all you wanted, then this conversation is over." He rose, and Nagini shrank quickly, slipping back beneath the hood. "It was a pleasure," Severus tossed over his shoulder as he headed for the exit.
"Stop!" Voldemort snapped coldly, glaring at Severus's back. Severus simply ignored him.
Strangely, Voldemort did not try to stop him. Instead he turned his gaze to the right, toward a wizard hiding around the corner, and gave a small nod.
"You bastard, how dare you speak to our Lord like that?!" someone bellowed, pointing his wand at Severus's back. "Ava."
He never finished. In an instant, flames devoured him, and less than a second later, the clatter of a wand hitting stone echoed through the hall, followed by the sickening stench of burnt flesh. Only then did Amon stop. The next moment, a dark, choking aura poured from him, swallowing the entire room within seconds.
"I am not going to interfere in your stupid civil war. I will forgive this little stunt only because you managed to obtain one of the ingredients I need, but there will not be a second chance. Remember that." The darkness faded, and he walked out just as calmly as before, but now the manor was wrapped in deathly silence.
After that, every wizard in the room watched their Lord warily. Voldemort looked darker than a storm cloud. He had not been insulted like this in a long time. Tom had to restrain himself from going after him. Only the fact that he could finally sense the guest's magic, combined with the recent display of power, kept him from doing something rash.
Even with Horcruxes gnawing at his mind, he had not lost his caution. He had become far more cruel, yes, but the old Riddle was still there.
At last, unable to restrain himself, he slammed his fist into the table. Then he drew a deep breath, looked toward the exit, and chuckled with contempt.
"Let us see how you leave."
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