Title: Darkness of the Moon pt. 8/15

Author: Deathangelgw

Disclaimer: You know the drill! So hush up and no sue!

Warnings: angst, dark, sap, some humor

Pairings: saaaaame as befoooooore

Rating: PG-13

Note: Well…you got lots of Sirius and Sev in the past couple of parts so…we’ll see where this goes! ^_^ Enjoy and please review!

‘thoughts’

“What do you want, Malfoy?” Severus’ voice floated out coldly as he glared at the smirking blond who stood outside of his doorway.

“My, my…what a way to greet a classmate,” Lucius replied almost indulgently as he stepped into the house self-assuredly.  He smirked as he looked around the house, looking over his shoulder at the scowling other boy as he shut the door.  He walked farther into the house as he commented lightly, “One would think you didn’t want to see me.”

Snape snorted derisively as he swept in, his loose white shirt flapping in the slight breeze. “First of all, it is good manners to announce yourself before popping in. Secondly, I was in the middle of something,” he answered coldly as he went over to his desk and flipped some scrolls over before sitting down behind the desk. He watched silently as Lucius drifted over and sat down in one of the plush chairs in front. “Now…I repeat. What do you want, Malfoy?” he asked in a hard voice as he watched the other boy through narrowed eyes.

Lucius shrugged and grinned as he sat back, steepling his fingers in front of his face. “My father is holding a party this weekend and said I could invite some friends. We are having some special guests and I thought that you’d like to come,” he replied as he glanced over at Severus through lowered lashes.

Severus snorted softly as he rolled his eyes. “Don’t try to seduce me, Luc. I can see right through you,” he snapped as he sat back in his chair.

Assuming a wounded look, Lucius leaned his chin on his fist. “I’m hurt, Sev. One would think that you would have a bit of loyalty to your house and blood,” he stated, then cocked an eyebrow in interest.  “In fact…now that I think about it…you’ve been acting rather strange now since school started last year. Before that even. Mind telling me what has happened?” he asked archly, his gaze intent upon Snape.

Shrugging indifferently, Severus met him gaze for gaze. “Nothing at all if you must really know. I’ve just decided to focus more on schoolwork,” he replied evenly as he fingered one of the parchments in front of him. Unbeknownst to Lucius, it was the beginnings of what promised to be another long letter to Sirius and his friends. He glared warningly at the blond as he made to grab the leaflet, halting him midreach.  “Fine. I’ll go to this party of yours this weekend,” he said shortly as he sat up.

Grinning in triumph, which confused Snape even more, Lucius got up. “Excellent. You know where to come. Dinner is at seven o’clock sharp. Be there,” he instructed, grinning even more, before walking behind a resigned Severus to the door. They exchanged farewells and then the door was slammed shut.

Sighing softly as he slid down the door, Snape banged his head lightly against the wooden door. ‘I hate parties…especially formal ones,’ he thought sourly to himself. He sighed again, then smiled slightly. ‘But maybe I can have Sirius come afterwards to cheer me up,’ he thought and grinned. Getting up, he finished his letter to his Griffyndor boyfriend.

*~~**~~*

‘Why do I get myself into these things?’ Severus wondered to himself as he stood around in a corner and watched the dancers around him dance to a waltz. He sighed again as he sipped at his champagne and edged himself closer to a curtained area where he could escape. ‘I should have listened to Sirius and called over sick…’ he thought to himself sourly as he slipped in behind the curtains and sat down on the hidden bench there.  He relaxed, sipping some more of his drink as he watched the dancers for a bit before sitting up. He looked around the dark space he was in suspiciously. ‘I’m not alone…but who is it?’ “Who’s there?” he whispered as he focused on the shadows.

A shape moved into the light and the young Slytherin blinked in surprise as he saw a young man that looked to be in his twenties appearing before him, smiling lightly at him. “I’m sorry. Did you wish to be alone?” the youth asked politely as he swept his brown hair from his face.  His red eyes gazed at Severus while a sly grin played across full lips. “Or is it alright to have company to escape from this boring escapade?”

Snape felt his own lips curl in amusement as he relaxed. “Sure, it’s alright. You just startled me there. What’s your name?” he asked politely as he scooted over to give some more room.

The brunet smile as he sat down. “Tom Riddle. And you are young Severus Snape. Lucius and his father have told me so much about you. Especially your talent in the Dark Arts,” the one named Riddle mentioned as he leaned back and smiled at Severus charmingly.

Cocking an eyebrow in interest, Severus asked softly, “Is that so? Didn’t know I was worth talking about.” He looked back out at the dancers as he sipped nervously at his drink. He kept on trying to keep Sirius in his mind, but for some reason, his mind was becoming clouded with thoughts of the one next to him.

Smiling in satisfaction as he saw the battle within the young Slytherin’s eyes, Riddle looked forward as well before saying, “Oh yes. You have caught the eye of many here. We are looking forward to seeing what other great things we could expect from you.”

Looking back at the other young man in curiosity, Snape asked somewhat coldly, “We? And what do you mean by…expect?”

Riddle chuckled softly as he brought his hand up and caressed Severus’ cheek. Unconsciously, Snape leaned into the touch before realizing what he was doing and pulling back to turn away tensely.  “Yes…we.  And *I* think that you could put your talents in the Dark Arts to great use if you were open to how,” he replied smoothly as he grinned almost evilly while he watched the young man’s profile. His eyes slitted as he watched the play of muscles in Severus’ jaw and face from obvious distress.  He scooted closer as he watched Snape closely. “Why do you waste your time in helping others who don’t know you and don’t want to know you? You have always had a special knack for getting what you wanted through any means necessary.  Why do you allow lesser beings to slow you down and hold you back?” he purred softly as he caressed a slow hand along Severus’ back.

Snape jerked a bit under the touch, turning in surprise to gaze into mesmerizing red eyes.  He felt himself falling into their swirling depths as Tom continued to speak. “Join me, Severus Snape…allow your full potential out to use in the service of me…” The words became more sibilant as he spoke, hissing on the  ‘S’s.  Snape tried to pull back but found that he couldn’t as he gazed into Tom’s mind, finally realizing who he was. 

Screams of pain from a young boy and pleas for pity were answered with mocking laughs and jeers.

“Freak!”

“Die you disgusting weirdo!”

“You aren’t wanted!”

Suddenly, a blast of red and screams of pain….then blackness.

Gasping for air as he pulled back, Snape brought his hands to his face as he realized he was sobbing and trembling. He could feel the pain of rejection, isolation, and fear coursing through him from the flashes of memory that he had seen. “What…” he barely got out, his throat dry from sobbing and fear.

“Muggles and Mudbloods are lower beings that torture and hurt and kill those they don’t understand,” Tom’s voice, now deeper and filled with hatred and loathing, spoke in an almost soothing manner as he held Snape close to him in comfort. “They are things that should be exterminated. Have you not felt this same thing happen to you? Teased…tortured…ridiculed…all because of whom and what you are?” he asked softly as Severus leaned into his embrace, trembling.

Nodding silently, Severus could only shiver as his own past came back, the constant torments of each day because he was different. ‘Yet there are those who care for me now…those who love me…’ his mind tried to remind him, but it was a faint voice compared to the roaring of the pain he was feeling from the past.  He leaned back, looking at Tom solemnly. “Who are you…really?” he asked softly.

Tom Riddle smiled, then slowly transformed. His face flattened slightly, becoming more serpentine in appearance. His nose disappeared to become mere slits in a pale face, the red eyes glowing brightly, yet to Severus, it was a warm glow. “I am Lord Voldemort. Will you serve me, my fellow pureblood? Help us to rid the world of those Mudbloods and the ones who love them?” he asked softly as he brought his hand up and caressed Severus’ cheek gently, almost tenderly.

Snape turned away, looking thoughtfully at the floor. He frowned as he thought about what was being said, then looked up at Voldemort. Eyes stern, he nodded sharply once, then stood as Voldemort stood.  They walked silently out of the little cubby and headed for a darker hallway, walking swiftly down it into colder depths. Shivering slightly, Severus wrapped his arms around him as he tried to warm up. He was always cold, which would always amuse Sirius since it just gave them greater reason to snuggle together. He frowned as he saw his boyfriend’s face in front of his gaze, but it was swept away as they walked into a large room where a gathering of black hooded people stood in a semicircle. Voldemort swept to the center of the circle, followed solemnly by Severus as the hooded shapes watched them silently.

Coming to the center, Voldemort turned around and faced his followers with Snape by his side. “My followers…my children. We have a new member here with us this night. Severus Snape has seen the way in helping us purify this world of ours,” he declared solemnly as he gazed at each one before turning to Snape. “Step forward, my child,” he ordered in a deep, yet coldly kind voice.  Snape nervously stepped forward and faced Voldemort. The Dark Lord brought out a dagger, its silver hilt gleaming in the flickering light from the candles. The skull that held the dagger had a snake winding through its visage, trailing up the blade. Holding his hand out expectantly, Voldemort gazed at Severus expectantly. “Give me your hand,” he said in a soft command.

Snape looked up at him, his black hair falling briefly across his face as he moved. His left arm came up slowly to thus be grasped in a firm grip by the Dark Magician.  He watched as the dagger came up and the tip pressed to his elbow, drawing a small line of blood. As Severus watched in horrified fascination, the blade gleamed lightly as it was moved so that the hilt came even with that small trail of blood. He saw a flash of Sirius’ face before his eyes again as if in warning before the silver hilt touched his open wound. He hissed in pain before crying out as he felt hot fire flood through him from the contact. He trembled as it increased until he screamed in agony, falling to his knees in pain.

As he fell, the hilt came away and a dark mark was left in its place, shaped as the hilt’s own shadow. Gasping and sobbing as he rocked, Snape clutched his arm. Voldemort grinned evilly as he sheathed the blade, letting its newest victim’s blood mingle with the others in the scabbard.

*~~**~~*

Crying out as he sat up in a cold sweat, Sirius shook from the nightmare he had woken up from. He wrapped his arms around his waist as he sat in his bed, eyes unseeing as they stared at the comforter on his bed.  “Sev…what…what’s happened?” he whispered softly as he trembled, remembering the pain and hearing his boyfriend’s scream of agony ringing in his ears once more.  He bit his lip as he looked down at his clothes on the floor and the half-hidden letter there. He placed a lock of his raven hair behind his ear as he gazed thoughtfully at the letter. ‘Something’s wrong with him…that I’m certain of. I wonder…’ he thought to himself before getting out of bed. He padded out quietly so he didn’t wake James or Remus, who, like the girls, were sleeping over at his place for the week. He headed for his family’s owlery where his owl Ridgeon and Evie’s owl Midget were staying along with the family owls.

Softly, he went over to Ridgeon, smiling as Midget hooted at him fondly. “Hey Ridgeon…I need you to take a message,” he said quietly, smiling as his owl floated down onto his arm and nipped his fingers affectionately in reply. He tied the small rolled up parchment to the owl’s leg and instructed softly, “This is for Sev. Go find him.” Hooting again as he took off, Ridgeon soon disappeared from sight.  Sirius sighed softly and looked down, not even hearing the soft footsteps behind him.

“Sirius? What are you doing?” Evie’s soft voice floated out from the shadows as she came into the owlery.

Sirius looked up, surprised. “Evie? What are you doing up?” he asked as she came up to him.

“I heard you cry out and got up to see what was wrong, then saw you go here. Thought I’d follow. So, are you going to answer my question now?” she asked as she grinned.

Grinning back, Sirius sighed softly. “It’s Sev, Evie…something’s wrong. I woke up from this horrible nightmare that something had happened to him,” he explained as he looked down at his clenched fist. He blinked in surprise as smaller hands enfolded his and held it as he looked up into Evie’s eyes.

“Don’t worry. I’m sure he’s ok. Why don’t you go and visit him tomorrow?” Evie suggested as she squeezed his hand. He looked at her doubtfully and she grinned. “We could say that you, me, and Lily were going shopping for our guys and then they wouldn’t wonder!” she suggested as she tilted her head adoringly.

He snickered softly. The reason they were still sneaking around was because James along with Sirius’ parents didn’t know he was seeing a guy…much less that it was Severus Snape himself. He sighed as he hugged her tightly. “Thanks Evie…I needed that…” he murmured softly as he held her.

She snuggled against him, smiling. “You’re my brother, Sirius…and I’ll help all I can,” she declared as she hugged him back.

He nodded and grinned at her, then said, “Good thing I have a stash of Floo powder. But…where does he live?”

 

Evie cocked an eyebrow. “You’re dating him and you don’t know where he lives??” she asked in disbelief before sighing in exasperation as he nodded sheepishly. “Oi…good thing I know Lily knows….I’ll ask her when I tell her the plot,” she stated as she thwapped him on the arm.

The black haired Gryffindor grinned at her. “What? I never thought I’d get to go and see him!” he cried defensively as she mock glared at him.

“Dork…” she retorted as she grinned back and rolled her eyes. “Why me?” she muttered as she turned and they headed for the house and their beds.  Sirius smiled as he got into bed. Tomorrow…he’d get to see Severus….

TBC