New Beginning

Chapter 19


Severus had himself and Darien ready before Hermione even exited out of her chamber. Darien was in a set toddler dress robe, and Severus was dressed in a black dress robe that had his family crest on it in. The back of the robe had the crest in silver it was of a wolf, with a raven superimposed over it, a serpent was coiled just below them. Severus paused when he saw Hermione walk out. She had her hair pulled up, which revealed her supple tender neck and the bush of hair that she normally had, now sported relaxed curls that cascaded down her back. The dress robe she had on were royal blue, with moons and stars in a silver pattern on it. Hermione turned and looked at Severus when he started walking with Darien towards her. Severus couldn’t take his eyes off of her, she was breathe taking. He saw the blush creep up in her cheeks and the stab of guilt that crossed her face as her eyes diverted towards the floor.

Holding his arm out to her he said, “Shall we.”

His mother had taught him manners, they were required in the house he grew up in. Hermione slipped her hand into the nook of his arm resting her palm on his forearm. They started off down the hall to a floo that would allow them out of the castle. Hermione had been just as entranced as Darien had been when they stepped out of the fireplace into the Malfoy Manor. Darien started wiggling and Severus put him down, he saw Darien head off in the direction where they had lunch earlier that day. Severus steered Hermione into the direction that Darien was headed. When they turned the corner that Darien had already gone around they stopped at the sight before them. Lucius was grinning down at Darien.

“My you sure do look like your Daddy. I’m Lucius by the way, Darien.” Lucius offered Darien his hand.

Darien was staring up in wonder at the tall man before him, when Lucius outstretched his hand; Darien had a scene that flashed before his eyes:

The room was cold and black as night, the dirt floor barren of anything but for dust mites, and tiny creatures that lived in it. The walls were of brick and had faint designs scrawled all over them. It was a crypt of death. The feeling of the walls breathing in the essence of anyone inside it. His eyes had been accustomed to the dark; he could feel the cold wall on his back as he leaned up against it. Its coldness ran to the core of him, but to feel alive it was necessary. Time had no meaning here, everything ran into one long minute to hours of lifelessness.

“Well Harry, you got yourself into something bad this time.” The feeling of sadness and longing rushed into him. Loneliness engulfed him, and the utter bitterness that had been his life. “Hero of the wizarding world, yeah right, more like a walking death trap.”

Light from the moon came from the entrance, it was unexpected and bright. A branch of a tree that was on fire was thrown inside the crypt. Looking up, the blondes face shown clearly in the eerie glow of the fire, while the moon shown on his hair and gave him the appearance of a halo, the look of relief was clearly seen on his face. His hand was extended. “Take my hand, trust me, Harry. I’ll never let anything happen to you.”

The hand that reached up, it couldn’t touch the angelic apparition that had appeared.

“Jump, Harry. We can’t use magic, the crypt will kill us both, Voldemort rigged the crypt to blow like a bomb if magic was used inside it.”

It took three tries, the hand held firm to that skinny, bruised hand. He felt his body being pulled out, while death lapped at his heels, feeling robbed again. Robbed because he had accepted it would come, and he would have been glad. The arms tightened around him as he came through the entrance, “You’re safe now.” The hand came up and pushed the hair out of his forehead. “The last curse you sent, killed him. It took us a while to find you. No more scar.”

“There are always scars.” The voice was small and weak, cracked from non-use. “They never heal.”

“Hush, don’t talk that way.” The blonde sent green sparks in the air, then turned back to the boy who defied odds yet again, he tilted his head up. “You mean more to people than what you know. You have the stuff that dreams are made of, that makes them come true. You give faith, when no more faith can be found.”

The feeling of hopelessness was fading some, the blonde had a hand in this. But it wasn’t enough to vanquish it completely away, nothing could heal that scar, the scar of just wanting to be normal. The blonde was fading, the last words came almost from a well.

“Don’t give up, Harry, you’ll find something or someone else to live for. When you do, you’ll remember my words.”

Darien stared at the hand, Lucius, the hand was the same. Slowly Darien reached out and touched the hand. The sparks flew between his hand and the other, Darien watched the magic flow between them. Lucius was assaulted with the memory that Darien just had. When Darien looked away from the hand, he met those clear blue eyes that were now on his level.

Lucius could feel everything the little boy had seen and remembered, there was no other way of describing it. He looked up at Severus. “When were you going to tell me?”

“I meant to tell you sooner about Darien, but things kept coming up.” Severus had been busy researching to help Hermione.

“Darien? Don’t you mean Harry?” Lucius looked pointedly at Severus and Hermione.

Hermione gasped, Severus just looked at his friend wondering how he figured it out, and wondering more what Lucius would do, now that he was Minister of Magic.