Visions of an Empath

Chapter 5

Severus crawled out of bed, hissing through his teeth as every muscle in his body protested the movement. As he got dressed for the day, he couldn’t help thinking about what had happened the previous night. Potter had seen the full extent of Dumbledore’s plans, shattering the boy’s image of the old wizard.

With a weary sigh, Severus left his bedroom. As much as Harry would probably rather avoid him, there were several issues that needed to be settled between them. However, as he neared the kitchen, he heard Lucius and Harry talking softly. He hid in the shadows just outside the door and silently listened.

“You don’t blame Severus for what Dumbledore planned, do you?”

“Of course not, Lucius. I felt how betrayed he felt when Dumbledore told him the truth. It’s just that he always acted as though he hated me because of my father, but that was a complete and utter lie. He loved my mother, still does, and he hates the fact that I survived the same attack that killed her. I can even understand why he feels that way. It must torment him to look at me and see my mother’s eyes staring back at him.”

Severus closed his eyes at that blunt statement. It was true, after all. He hated the boy with Lily’s beautiful green eyes. Every time he looked at Harry, it reminded him of what his choices had cost him. And, yes, he did hate Harry for surviving the same attack that had killed Lily. She wasn’t supposed to die that night.

“He doesn’t hate you, Harry,” said Lucius softly. “It’s just hard for him to be around you because you remind him of all he’s lost.”

“How do you think I feel? Snape is the one who told Voldemort about the prophecy in the first place. It was that very act that caused my parents’ deaths.”

Severus clenched his fists at the painful reminder of his part in Lily’s death. Yes, it was his fault his beloved had died, and Harry was right to hate him for it.

“But even knowing what he did, I can’t say that I really hate the man,” Harry continued. “After all, once he realised the consequences of his actions, he immediately went to Dumbledore and begged for his help. He became Dumbledore’s spy, putting his very life in danger at all times, to help put a stop to Voldemort. And despite his precarious position, he also did everything in his power to protect me, even at great danger to himself.”

“So you’ve forgiven him for killing Dumbledore, too?”

Harry sighed softly. “How can I not? Snape may have fired the killing shot, but Dumbledore and I were just as culpable in his death. Dumbledore sealed his own fate when he put on Gaunt’s ring. Snape stopped his inevitable death for as long as possible, but he was still going to die. That doesn’t even include the fact that the night Dumbledore died, he and I were away from Hogwarts earlier that night, and he forced me to feed him a poisonous potion in order to gain something very important.”

Severus couldn’t bear to listen anymore. He silently turned and left, thoughts whirling chaotically through his mind. After the way he’d treated Harry all these years and everything he’d done in the past, the teen had every right to hate him. So why didn’t he? Severus had ruined Harry’s entire life with one thoughtless deed. Nobody could be that forgiving.

Stumbling back into his bedroom, Severus collapsed wearily onto the bed. The conversation between Lucius and Harry had certainly been enlightening. What were Dumbledore and Harry doing away from Hogwarts that night? And what was the very important item they had retrieved? Severus was sure it had something to do with the secrets Dumbledore had been unwilling to reveal to him.

As much as Severus hated to admit, even to himself, Harry was proving far more emotionally mature than he was. After all, the brat had given him and Lucius a second chance despite what they had done in the past. Maybe he needed to learn to do the same.

***

After his conversation with Lucius, Harry found himself in the familiar surroundings of the library. He smiled slightly. He was getting as bad as Hermione about spending all his time in the library lately.

Grabbing a book about potent poisons and venoms, Harry settled at his new favourite table to read. The book gave detailed descriptions about the symptoms of various poisons, how quickly they began to take effect, and the antidotes for them. He sat up in surprise, though, when he came across the section for basilisk venom.

Basilisk venom can be used to accentuate the strength of a weapon. A blade created from steel and basilisk venom can cut through almost anything.

“A blade created from steel and basilisk venom,” said Harry, staring at the page in shock. “That’s how Dumbledore destroyed the ring. And I destroyed the diary by using the basilisk’s fang.” He suddenly slammed the book closed and jumped to his feet. “I’ve gotta get that damn sword back. But how the hell am I gonna get to Hogwarts to get it?”

“Get what?”

Harry jumped in surprise and whirled to face Snape. “I need to get Gryffindor’s sword from the Headmaster’s office.”

Severus stared at Harry for a moment before stepping further into the room and shutting the door behind him. “Why do you need the sword?”

“It’s the only thing that will destroy the ho-” Harry stopped abruptly, horrified that he’d almost let the secret slip. He didn’t really think Snape would betray him, but Snape was the last person who should know the truth considering his close proximity to Voldemort.

Severus sighed and closed his eyes, his suspicions confirmed. “I’ll get you the sword tomorrow.”

“How are you going to do that? Aren’t you a wanted man?”

Severus calmly handed Harry a copy of the Daily Prophet he’d gotten a few minutes earlier. Harry hesitantly took the paper and scanned the title, jaw dropping in shock. He looked back up at Snape. “You’re the new headmaster? Has Voldemort really gained that much power over the Ministry?”

Severus nodded shortly.

“What about Professor McGonagall? I always thought she’d become Headmistress if anything happened to Dumbledore.”

“Minerva doesn’t have the power or the clout to stand against the Ministry. She really has no choice in the matter. She will, however, still be teaching at Hogwarts.”

Harry looked back at the paper and smiled slightly. “Still protecting the students.” He handed the paper back to Snape. “I can think of no one more suited for the job.”

“Why?” asked Severus abruptly.

“Why what?” asked Harry, staring at Snape in confusion.

“Why do you forgive me so easily? I was responsible for your parents’ deaths. And when you came to Hogwarts, I did my damnedest to make you as miserable as possible. And to top it all off, I killed Dumbledore right in front of you. How can you even bear to look at me?”

Harry stared blankly at Severus, surprised at the sudden query. He thought for a moment before slowly answering the man. “People make mistakes, but I’ve learned that we’re generally much harder on ourselves than anyone else could ever think of being. You think I don’t wonder how Remus can stand to look at me? It was my fault Sirius died. But I know Remus loves me despite that.”

He sighed and looked at the floor. “When I heard that you were the one to tell Voldemort of the prophecy, I did hate you. I felt vindicated for every horrible thought I ever had about you. But I also saw your face when you realised the terrible truth of what you’d done. And despite your dislike for my father, you begged Dumbledore to send us all into hiding to protect us.”

Harry looked back up at Severus. “As for making my life miserable,” aiming a cheeky smile at the other man, “I’d like to think I doled out my fair share of misery toward you, as well. As for Dumbledore, you tried your hardest to prolong his life as long as possible. In the end, though, he forced both of us to participate in his death.”

Severus was stunned. However, he could now see why Dumbledore truly thought Harry would defeat Voldemort. Severus had believed that Harry would eventually get himself killed because he acted on his emotions so much. But now, he realised it was that very trait that made him so powerful.

Harry was shocked when the stoic Slytherin suddenly pulled him into his arms, hugging him warmly. It was over almost before it began, but Harry knew that the relationship between Severus and him would be forever altered from this day forward.

“You’ll have the sword tomorrow afternoon.” Severus turned to leave but paused at the door. “I realise that Dumbledore left an important task for you to complete. May I suggest that you allow Lucius to help? He may know more than you realise.”

“Thank you, Severus,” said Harry softly.

Severus nodded shortly and left the room. Harry settled back at his table and gave Severus’ request a little more thought. Dumbledore had told him he could tell Ron and Hermione about his task so that they may help him. Should he tell Lucius though? Could he trust Lucius with the knowledge about horcruxes? The man was a Slytherin, after all, and distinctly drawn to power. And what better draw is immortality?

Harry sighed and drummed his fingers absently on the table. Lucius was a Frost Drake. Like dragons, drakes could live for several centuries. Would the idea of immortality even matter to him because of that fact?

“Harry?”

Harry looked up and smiled when he saw Lucius leaning against the doorframe. “Hey, Lucius. I was just thinking about you.”

Lucius smirked at Harry’s reply and sauntered into the room. “Really? Should I take that as a compliment?”

Harry’s smile dimmed slightly. “I don’t know about that. Come sit with me. I need to talk to you about something.”

Lucius raised his eyebrows at the sudden seriousness on Harry’s face and sat down at the table.

Harry took a deep breath. “Before Dumbledore died, he left me with a very important task to complete- a task of utmost secrecy. You see, he had discovered the key to Voldemort’s immortality.” Harry paused at this point and looked at Lucius. The blonde was shocked at the revelation, but Harry could neither feel or see any desire for that immortality in Lucius. “Do you know what a horcrux is?”

Lucius’s brow furrowed in thought. “No, I don’t.”

“Lucky you. A horcrux is an item in which Voldemort has placed a piece of his soul.” Harry smiled bitterly. “He did have seven horcruxes, but three have been destroyed. Until all seven have been destroyed, though, we have no chance of defeating him.”

“Three have been destroyed?”

“Yes. The diary you gave Ginny was the first. Dumbledore destroyed the second, Gaunt’s ring, but it ultimately killed him. The third horcrux, though, was the horcrux inside of me. It was destroyed when I transformed into an Earth Drake.”

Lucius took one look at Harry’s miserable face and pulled the brunette into his lap. Now he understood just how betrayed Harry felt because of that vision. Dumbledore hadn’t bothered to tell Harry the truth before he so blithely went about planning his pawn’s sacrificial death.

“What about the other four? Do you know how to find them?”

Harry sighed and burrowed closer to Lucius. “I was hoping you could help me with that. The night Dumbledore died, we went after Slytherin’s locket. We retrieved the locket, but it was a fake and inside was a note by R.A.B., saying they had taken the locket and planned to destroy it. Of course, who knows if they actually did? I know one of the hocruxes is Nagini, but she’ll have to be destroyed last. Dumbledore believed that Voldemort used Helga Hufflepuff’s cup and an artefact important to Rowena Ravenclaw as the other two.”

“Those initials seem familiar. In fact, I would almost guarantee that they belong to one Regulus Arcturus Black.”

Harry gasped and sat up. “Regulus Black? I knew I had seen that locket somewhere.”

“You know where it is?” asked Lucius.

“It was at Grimmauld place. We found it a couple of years ago. I just can’t remember what Sirius did with it.” Harry frowned as he tried to remember what they had done with the locket. It was hard to tell with the way Kreacher kept stashing things away. “Kreacher would know. I’m sure of it. Can I call him here? I mean, will he be able to get through the wards?”

“As long as a house elf is bound to you, it can pretty much get through any wards,” said Lucius. “Call him.”

“Kreacher!”

The house elf appeared with a loud crack. “Master,” he said bowing. He started muttering about mudbloods and blood-traitors until he looked up and saw Lucius Malfoy staring at him. “Master has finally given me to a pure-blood?”

Harry growled at the house elf. “I forbid you to call anyone ‘blood-traitor’ or ‘Mudblood,’” He took a deep breath to calm down. “I’ve got a question for you, and I order you to answer it truthfully. Understand?”

“Yes, Master.”

“Two years ago there was a big gold locket in the drawing room upstairs. We threw it out. Did you steal it back?”

Kreacher straightened up, looking Harry directly in the face. “Yes.”

“Where is it now?”

“Gone.”

“Gone? What do you mean gone?” He saw the house elf shiver and sway, trying not to answer. “Kreacher, I order you-”

“Mundungus Fletcher stole it all: Miss Bella’s and Miss Cissy’s pictures, my Mistress’ gloves, the Order of Merlin, First Class, the goblets with the family crest, and... and... and the locket. Master Regulus’ locket. Kreacher did wrong! Kreacher failed in his orders!” said Kreacher, screaming at the end.

Kreacher suddenly lunged for the poker by the fireplace, and Harry instinctively leapt upon the elf, pinning him to the floor. “Kreacher, I order you to stay still.” The house elf immediately froze, and Harry slowly moved to kneel beside the elf. “Kreacher, I want the truth. How do you know Mundungus Fletcher stole the locket?”

“Kreacher saw him!” cried the elf, tears streaming down this face. “Kreacher saw him coming out of Kreacher’s cupboard with his hands full of Kreacher’s treasures. Kreacher told the sneak thief to stop, but Mundungus Fletcher laughed and r-ran...”

“You called the locket ‘Master Regulus.’ Why? Where did it come from? What did Regulus have to do with it? Kreacher, sit up and tell me everything you know about that locket and everything Regulus had to do with it!”

“Master Sirius ran away, good riddance, for he was a bad boy and broke my Mistress’ heart with his lawless ways. But Master Regulus had proper pride. He knew what was due to the name of Black and the dignity of his pure blood. For years he talked of the Dark Lord, who was going to bring the wizards out of hiding to rule the Muggles and the Muggle-borns, and when he was sixteen years old, Master Regulus joined the Dark Lord. So proud, so proud, so happy to serve...”

“And one day, a year after he had joined, Master Regulus came down to the kitchen to see Kreacher. Master Regulus always liked Kreacher. And Master Regulus said... he said... he said that the Dark Lord required an elf.”

“Voldemort needed an elf?” asked Harry in surprise.

“Oh, yes,” moaned Kreacher. “And Master Regulus had volunteered Kreacher. It was an honour, said Master Regulus, an honour for him and for Kreacher, who must be sure to do whatever the Dark Lord ordered him to do... and then to come home.”

“So Kreacher went to the Dark Lord. The Dark Lord did not tell Kreacher what they were to do, but took Kreacher with him to a cave beside the sea. And beyond the cave there was a cavern, and in the cavern was a great black lake...”

Harry felt a shiver run up his spine as he listened to Kreacher. He vaguely heard Kreacher mention a boat, and immediately the ghostly green boat flashed before his eyes. So this was how Voldemort tested the defences guarding his precious horcruxes.

“There was a b-basin full of potion on the island. The D-Dark Lord made Kreacher drink it,” continued the elf. “Kreacher drank, and as he drank, he saw terrible things. Kreacher’s insides burned. Kreacher cried for Master Regulus to save him, he cried for his Mistress Black, but the Dark Lord only laughed. He made Kreacher drink all the potion. He dropped a locket into the empty basin and filled it with more potion. And then the Dark Lord sailed away, leaving Kreacher on the island.”

“Kreacher needed water, so he crawled to the island’s edge, and he drank from the black lake. Hands, dead hands, came out of the water and dragged Kreacher under the surface.”

“How did you get away?” asked Harry, feeling sick.

“Master Regulus told Kreacher to come back.”

“I know, but how did you escape the Inferi?”

“Master Regulus told Kreacher to come back,” he simply repeated.

Harry growled in frustration and started to ask again when Lucius interrupted. “He disapparated, Harry.”

“But you couldn’t apparate in and out of that cave,” said Harry. “Otherwise Dumbledore-”

“Elf magic isn’t like wizard’s magic, Harry,” said Lucius. “How else would Kreacher have been able to apparate through these wards when you called?” A short laugh escaped Lucius. “Quite ingenious really. Of course, it would never have occurred to the Dark Lord that house elves might have magic that he didn’t.”

“The house elf’s highest law is his Master’s bidding,” said Kreacher. “Kreacher was told to come home, so Kreacher came home.”

“So what happened when you got back? What did Regulus say when you told him what had happened?” asked Harry.

“Master Regulus was very worried, very worried. Master Regulus told Kreacher to stay hidden and not to leave the house. And then... it was a little while later... Master Regulus came to find Kreacher in his cupboard one night, and Master Regulus was strange, not as he usually was, disturbed in his mind, Kreacher could tell... and he asked Kreacher to take him to the cave, the cave where Kreacher had gone with the Dark Lord...”

“And he made you drink the potion?” asked Harry in disgust.

Kreacher, however, shook his head and started crying. “M-Master Regulus took from his pocket a locket like the one the Dark Lord had, and he told Kreacher to take it and, when the basin was empty, to switch the lockets.”

Kreacher sobbed harshly. “And he ordered Kreacher to leave without him. And he told Kreacher to go home and never to tell my Mistress what he had done but to destroy the first locket. And he drank all the potion, and Kreacher swapped the lockets and watched as Master Regulus was dragged beneath the water and...”

“So you brought the locket home, and you tried to destroy it?” asked Harry softly.

“Nothing Kreacher did made any mark upon it,” moaned Kreacher. “Kreacher tried everything, everything he knew, but nothing, nothing would work. So many powerful spells upon the casing, would not open. Kreacher punished himself, he tried again, he punished himself, he tried again. Kreacher failed to obey orders, Kreacher could not destroy the locket! And his Mistress was mad with grief because Master Regulus had disappeared, and Kreacher could not tell her what had happened, no, because Master Regulus had f-forbidden him to tell any of the f-family what happened in the c-cave...”

Harry sighed and looked down at the house elf. “I don’t understand you, Kreacher. Voldemort tried to kill you. Regulus died to bring Voldemort down, but you were still happy to betray Sirius to Voldemort. You were happy to go to Narcissa and Bellatrix and pass information to Voldemort through them...”

“Harry, Kreacher is a slave. He is loyal only to family and those who treat him fairly. Besides, he’s not the first house elf to betray their ‘master’ in favour of someone more kind to them. I’m a little ashamed to admit that Dobby was right to place his loyalty in you because I treated him very badly,” said Lucius softly.

Harry nodded in understanding. He looked back at Kreacher. “Kreacher, I want you, please, to go and find Mundungus Fletcher. We need to find out where the locket- where Master Regulus’ locket is. It’s really important. We want to finish the work Master Regulus started, we want to ensure that he didn’t die in vain.”

“Find Mundungus Fletcher?”

“And take him to Grimmauld Place. Do you think you could do that for me?” Kreacher nodded and got to his feet, and Harry suddenly remembered the fake locket he’d been carrying around with him. He pulled it out of Hagrid’s purse and placed it in Kreacher’s hand. “Kreacher, I’d like you to have this. It belonged to Regulus and I’m sure he’d want you to have it as a token of gratitude for what you...”

Lucius snorted and turned away to hide his laughter as Kreacher took one look at the locket and started crying. Once Kreacher calmed back down, though, he bowed to Harry and Lucius and apparated with a loud crack.

Harry turned to Lucius. “I need to floo Ron and Hermione and have them meet us at Grimmauld Place.”

Lucius scowled slightly when he heard their names. He wasn’t looking forward to spending his time with the little know-it-all and her pet weasel, as Draco called them. He just knew they would spend most of their time trying to convince Harry to come back home with them.

Harry saw the look and sighed. “Lucius, I know you don’t like them, but they’ve been helping me much longer than you have.”

Lucius scowled even more. “I don’t care about them helping, but they better not try to take you from me. You’re mine!”

Harry grinned and stepped closer to Lucius. “I’m sure Hermione has already researched all about Frost Drakes and Psychometrics and has come to the conclusion that we belong together. And she, in turn, will make everyone else aware of that fact. Don’t worry so.”

Lucius stared solemnly at Harry as he pulled the brunette closer to him. “I hope your faith in her is rewarded..” He placed a chaste kiss on Harry’s lips and stepped back. “I need to go tell Draco that we’re leaving, and then I’ll be ready.”

Harry nodded, smiling softly at the feelings that had accompanied that innocent kiss. A warm glow settled in his chest, and he absently rubbed the skin above his heart.

A/N: As you can tell, I borrowed heavily from the dialogue in Deathly Hollows.