The dimly lit drawing room of Malfoy Manor radiated an atmosphere of tense anticipation when Harry swept through the doorway. His black traveling cloak billowed behind him as he strode toward the solitary figure waiting beside the flickering hearth.
"Tom." Harry inclined his head respectfully toward the tall, dark-haired wizard. Though he appeared like a handsome young man, his eyes burned with ancient malice and power. This was Lord Voldemort in his fully restored form.
"You have news from Gringotts, my heir?" Voldemort's voice was soft but carried an undercurrent of command.
Lifting his right hand, Harry displayed the name still angrily blistered into his flesh. "The goblins uncovered the truth of my lineage. I am Hades Evan Snape, heir to the Houses of Snape, Prince...and Potter."
A cruel smile played across Voldemort's lips as he appraised the newly revealed information. "Most fortuitous. I could scarcely have hoped for a more ideally placed insider among the lights' forces."
With a deferential nod, Hades moved to the high-backed chair across from Voldemort and the Malfoys waiting beside the fire. "I will apprise you of all that transpired at the..."
The rest of Hades' words trailed off as the drawing room's doors opened once more. All eyes turned to the new arrival swathed in black robes that swirled like a living shadow. Severus Snape paused in the entryway, his hooded gaze sweeping imperiously over the gathered assembly before settling upon Hades.
For an endless, charged moment, father and son appraised each other across the dimly lit space. Then Lucius rose from his wing-backed chair with a silken smile.
"Severus, my friend, impeccable timing as always. We have a rather sensitive family matter to discuss regarding young Mr. Potter here."
Snape's obsidian eyes flicked briefly toward his old friend before returning to bore into Hades. "Is that so?"
Lucius' smile took on a predatory edge as he gestured to the unoccupied chair beside Hades. "Perhaps you had better have a seat, Severus."
YOU ARE READING
The Fall of Dumbledore: The White King
FanfictionThe Boy Who Lived is a well-known tale. Because that's what it is, a tale. The boy who lived never actually survived Voldemort. He never existed in the first place. The boy known as 'Harry James Potter' is actually 'Hades Evan Snape.' A product of h...
