Chapter 77. Consequences
"Terrible person." Those were Nagini's first words as they left the manor. During their brief conversation, Tom had tried several times to force a magical connection with her through eye contact, so she still felt unwell and even a little afraid. That was one reason Severus had ended the meeting so quickly.
"Some wizards learn to speak to snakes, and others are born with the gift," Severus said quietly, smiling up at the dark sky. "The difference is that the former can simply talk to them, while the latter commands unconditional obedience from serpents, the degree of control varying with the strength of the gift. In his case, he had the Basilisk responding to his every command, which means he was very lucky. If I hadn't been with you, he would have subjugated you without any trouble. That's why you felt fear. Voldemort really does have a gift. And he is a very cunning bastard."
"I hope we don't have to meet him again."
Next time I'll leave you at home, but today I wanted you to see what happens when you encounter not merely a simple magical imprint, but a true Parselmouth, and a powerful one at that. That kind of experience won't harm you. Once I remove this curse, the serpent nature won't vanish; it will become your power.
"My power?"
"Yes." "You'll be able to shift from human to snake and back whenever you want, and become a Lamia too," he said with a lewd wink and a grin, earning a sharp poke in the side. "And your vitality will remain unchanged, meaning you'll live a couple of hundred years without any trouble, just like me."
As soon as he finished, flashes burst in the distance. Two hundred meters away, Aurors appeared, immediately rushing toward the manor.
And on top of that, he set up anti-Apparition wards around the house extending fifty meters outward. He wants them to think I'm on his side, Severus added. That was the second reason he ended it so quickly. He hadn't liked that so many Death Eaters had gathered there, and he had noticed the wards activating.
So it was a trap after all.
You guessed it, but..." Severus turned toward the manor and met the gaze of the snake on the roof. He grinned. "You should not have angered me, Tom. Remember my words: never anger a former Archmage. This is my last warning to you personally. Next time I will destroy your entire organization!" The next moment, a massive pillar of fire engulfed him, twisting into a dragon's head. With a terrifying roar, it surged toward the manor.
A moment later, a deafening explosion shook the air, and wild tongues of flame consumed what was left of the building. As if alive, the fire did not spread to the trees nearby. It devoured only the manor.
Of course, Severus did not want to cause unnecessary trouble for himself, so the flames did not harm the wizards inside. This was meant as a lesson, so they would never try to drag him into their confrontation like that again. And he aimed the strike at a spot where there were almost no people, so there wouldn't be many casualties.
No longer paying attention to the commotion he had caused, he headed back to Hogwarts.
A minute earlier.
Inside the manor, Tom watched Amon frozen in place, staring at the sky, a contemptuous smirk on his face.
"Idiot. Did you think I would simply let you go after that? And even if you noticed, it's too late," he thought smugly, watching through his snakes as the Aurors appeared. "And what will you do?"
"My Lord?" Lucius asked with concern. He had just received word that the Ministry's dogs had arrived.
"Get ready. There will be a big battle here soon." But a few seconds later, the smile froze on his face. A pair of red eyes stared straight at the snake he was seeing through. The moment the Parselmouth heard the name "Tom," his expression twisted. After the threat to destroy his organization, anger surged up from the depths of his mind, but it evaporated instantly when he saw the colossal pillar of flame enveloping the Archmage's body. "Retreat!" he snarled through gritted teeth, stunning everyone gathered there. No one dared argue. One by one, they vanished into dark swirls. Tom fled as well, but while escaping, he could still see, through the snake's eyes, the sheer power of that fire spell, and it made him swallow hard. No matter how much he hated it, Riddle had to admit that Amon was too strong. It was hardly surprising that the Ministry had chosen to yield to him. It had taken him only seconds to destroy a massive manor, and Tom could sense that this was not even the full extent of his power.
In a small building, masked wizards in dark robes began appearing one by one. They exchanged stunned glances, bewildered by the sudden urgency. They had been preparing for battle, not retreat. A few seconds later, Voldemort appeared in the center, looking absolutely furious, and the others immediately stepped back.
After him, more wizards arrived, looking terrible: scorched, injured, or completely naked. Almost all of them had made it out alive, except for two who hadn't had time to cast Protego and were buried under the rubble.
Unable to contain himself, Tom drew his wand and fired a red beam that shattered a bookshelf, leaving nothing but a hole in the wall and floor.
"Damn old man, how dare you do this?! Bastard!" Another beam shot from his wand and smashed the chairs. "Creature!" He slashed his wand again, but this time he struck a small group of Death Eaters who hadn't scattered fast enough. They were thrown aside. One of them had an arm torn off and lost consciousness almost instantly. "I will destroy you!"
Behind him, Bellatrix swallowed. It wasn't that she feared his anger. For some reason, a deeply unfamiliar, conflicting emotion twisted in her chest. Bellatrix worshipped Riddle. She would have supported him under any other circumstances, whatever he decided. But panic seized her. She didn't want to carry out his order.
Lucius didn't look happy either. He had long-term plans for Severus, and if they had to attack his teacher now, their friendship would be over. That would be far too great a loss for him.
After ten minutes, Voldemort finally regained his composure and swept his cold gaze over the Death Eaters gathered in the hall.
"You are dismissed. Remove the bodies." He glanced indifferently at the wizards lying on the floor, then turned and walked toward the door leading back to the meeting hall. No one dared block his path or even meet his eyes. Though they greatly outnumbered him, none dared even consider rebellion. Fear had long since taken root in their souls.
Not everyone remained to help their comrades. A small group followed Voldemort instead, mostly those with real power: heads of families or their representatives. Bellatrix and Lucius followed as well.
Hogwarts. An hour later.
Back at the castle, Severus restored the house-elves to their normal appearance, purged his body of the ability-boosting potion, and then turned his attention to Bellatrix to see what decision Tom would reach. His only goal for that meeting had been to plant a seed of fear in the Dark Lord and the other Death Eaters, so they wouldn't even consider dragging him into their affairs.
And, oddly enough, he succeeded. The organization was made up mostly of aristocrats who valued their lives far too much. No matter how badly Voldemort wanted revenge, he understood they would not follow him to certain death. Making an enemy of someone so powerful was foolish. Tom had to swallow his anger and think more rationally. After the meeting, he ordered everyone to leave Ichiros and his student alone, but without severing the connection. Of course, he was not one to forgive; he would remember that refusal for a long time and take revenge, but only after he dealt with the Ministry and seized control of Magical Britain.
When the meeting finally ended, Severus stopped watching. He opened his eyes wide, stretched with quiet satisfaction, and ran his hand tenderly over Nagini's smooth scales. Her head rested easily on his knees.
"Well, the problem is solved. Now I can relax and mind my own business. Hm?" Out of the corner of his eye, Severus noticed a small package and remembered it was Lily's gift. "Interesting." He beckoned, and it flew into his hands.
"What is that?" Nagini asked, eyeing the package with interest.
"A gift."
When he opened it, he raised an eyebrow in surprise. Inside lay a striped scarf.
"Handmade."
"You can tell?"
"I think so. Maybe I used to know how to knit," Nagini admitted, a little embarrassed. "But the red and green are awfully suspicious."
"Apparently she wanted to show her feelings that way, but that's stupid. If I walk around in this, my own people will laugh at me, and then the Gryffindors will too. Silly girl," Severus sighed, folding the scarf and slipping it into his pocket. "Still, refusing gifts is rude, even if I am unlikely to wear it."
"She will probably be upset," Nagini said, narrowing her eyes at him with clear disapproval.
"Let her. I hope she will leave me alone and stick to that 'deer,' and don't be jealous," he said with a grin, tapping her nose. "I am not interested in that girl."
"I know, and stop reading my emotions already!"
"All right, all right." He patted her head, flopped onto the bed, and closed his eyes. "And the endless daily grind starts again."
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