More than a week had passed and Tom had not shown up once. Cassiopeia hated this habit of his to just disappear for days on end without any notice. She was well aware that, of course, he didn't owe her any explanation regarding his whereabouts but taking into account the many years she had been closer to him than anyone else it would nevertheless have been somehow common decency to at least leave a little message. But then again, Tom had never been common, not in this way, nor in any other.
The morning had once again been rather uneventful. There was still no news from Tom. Cassiopeia pursed her lips. He tended to walk in and out of her life with a kind of naturalness that was just so Tom but that she still disliked.
Finally, after lunch she made up her mind and apparated to Malfoy Manor. She strode up to the entrance and knocked on the door. One of the house elves opened the door and shot her a quick gaze.
"Miss Houlton.” The little elf bowed. “How can Tibby help miss?"
"Tibby." Cassiopeia smiled. "I was wondering if you’ve recently seen..." She paused. Addressing Tom in front of others remained just as strange as it had always been. When she saw Tibby looking at her expectantly, she swallowed and continued somewhat reluctantly, "...the Dark Lord?"
Tibby flinched at the mention of Tom and nodded. "Please come in, miss. Miss can wait in the living room."
Cassiopeia stepped inside and followed Tibby to the Malfoy's living room where Tom used to hold his Death Eater meetings. When she entered the living room, she saw that it wasn't empty and slightly raised an eyebrow.
"Bellatrix," she greeted unenthusiastically.
The young witch whirled around and shot her an equally unenthusiastic look. "Cassiopeia," she acknowledged.
"Are you waiting for the Dark Lord?"
An odd gleam shot through Bellatrix' eyes and she shook her head. "No, actually I'm about to leave. I just practised my wandwork a little. The Dark Lord generously offered to help me improve my skills and he showed me how to cast the Cruciatus Curse so much more efficiently. It was so fascinating, feeling his magic, experiencing his power…" The gleam in her eyes intensified. "Did you ever watch him cast the Cruciatus Curse? It’s just so....exceptional." Her voice was full of excited emotion.
"Is it?" Cassiopeia replied drily. Even without having seen Tom casting it lately, she was absolutely convinced that his Cruciatus Curse was doubtlessly exceptional in so many ways, certainly exceptionally painful, exceptionally merciless and exceptionally coldblooded.
"What does it feel like?" Bellatrix’ voice interrupted her train of thoughts and Cassiopeia threw her a confused glance. "What are you talking about?"
"Bearing the Dark Lord's mark, what does it feel like? I know you're one of the few who have been granted the honour of bearing it." She ran her fingers over her arm. "What does it feel like, being connected to him like that?"
Cassiopeia looked at Bellatrix and pondered her question. What did it feel like? Honestly to her the mark didn't exactly feel like an honour anymore. This connection that had once been so unique had lost a lot of its appeal with every single time that Tom had carved the mark into another one's arm, thus rendering it more and more common. To Bellatrix it might still seem special and rare but in Cassiopeia's eyes it had been used far too often. However, no one knew about the mark's origin, and Cassiopeia had no intention of changing that, well aware that Tom would never want the others to know. Finally, she answered evasively, "It's always exceptional to experience the mark's powers." That wasn't even a lie. It was indeed still beyond words to catch a glimpse of the true extent of unscrupulous domination, control and oppression that Tom had equipped the mark with.
"I imagine it has to be indescribable. Feeling him so close, always being connected to him, being with him, with his magic...When he touched me tonight I could feel this endless power...." Bellatrix voice trailed away, a dreamy expression in her eyes.
Cassiopeia glanced at Bellatrix, and suddenly the young witch reminded her very much of herself and the way she had always felt about Tom. For quite some time now she had been suspecting that Bellatrix had a soft spot for Tom, and obviously she had been right. Cassiopeia eyed the other's youthful appearance with a blank expression, her features betraying none of the emotions that were swirling inside her chest, to her utter dismay jealousy being the predominant one. She knew it was irrational, but then again, love always was.
Bellatrix threw another look at Cassiopeia, her gaze still sporting the slightly insane gleam of the memory of her magic being combined with her beloved master's before she finally disapparated. Cassiopeia watched her leave, a strange feeling she couldn't quite place in the pit of her stomach.
Suddenly she heard a soft chuckle coming from behind and turned around to see Tom leaning against the doorframe.
Cassiopeia cocked her head. "How long have you been standing there?"
Tom smirked. "A while."
Remembering Bellatrix' words, Cassiopeia stated sarcastically, "I wasn't aware you've taken to educating students lately."
Tom's smirk grew wider. "Really? Is that jealousy there in your voice?" There was obvious amusement ringing in his tone.
"So what if it is?" Cassiopeia retorted and pursed her lips. "After all, you never coached me to improve my Unforgivables, even sharing parts of your power with me, did you?"
Tom deliberately arranged his features into a look of innocence. "I was under the impression that you didn't want to practice the Unforgivables. In fact I vividly remember you telling me I were atrocious enough for both of us and you'd prefer to stick with the theory." He paused. "Actually I thought you'd be thankful that I always respected your wish. That's the only reason why I never forced you to make some use of this knowledge I perfectly know you to have." He paused again, the smirk now creeping back on his face. "But if you've changed your mind and want to practice now, I'm here and I'm more than ready to coach you this very moment." Provocatively, he held his hand out for her.
Cassiopeia eyed his outstreched hand but didn't take it, and Tom lowered his hand again, his smirk back in place. "Well, seems I know you better than you expect. So where's the point in being jealous if you don't even want what the other gets?"
Cassiopeia returned his gaze and the strange feeling in her stomach slowly subsided. Deep inside she knew she was being foolish to think Tom might have been coaching Bellatrix because she was young and her own kind of beautiful with her long wild black locks. Tom wasn't that way, he had never been. And still there were times when a feeling of doubt crept into her. After all, if he was able to care for her, why shouldn't he be able to care for another?
Tom glanced back at her, somehow guessing her thoughts once again. He wordlessly quirked an eyebrow. Cassiopeia looked back into his eyes, and the sinister yet so familiar gleam in them told her all she needed to know. A smile crossed her face. "You're right, there's none." She walked closer to where he was standing. "And you're right, I don't want to practice and I'm glad you never forced me to." After a moment she added, "Seems I said some sensible things back then. And obviously you paid more attention than I thought you had."
Tom's lip twitched and he slowly pushed away from the doorframe he had been leaning against. The sinister gleam in his eyes was still surfacing but now it was mixed with a sparkle of something Cassiopeia couldn't quite place.
"I know, I'm always right." He shrugged. With a quick movement he grabbed Cassiopeia’s wrist and pulled her towards him. "Your magic and mine, they are special in a way no other will ever come close to. They run wild and free together in a way no other will ever achieve. My power is much stronger with your magic than with any other. I know you've sensed this, just as I have."
Tom's magic had been radiating from him, just as powerful and strong as always. Now he deliberately made it reach out and it immediately found Cassiopeia's magic, forcefully entwining with it, making her feel indescribably alive and content.
Tom's lips turned into one of his beautiful yet so rare genuine smiles. "I would never give up on that power," he whispered and closed the remaining distance between them, his lips possessively claiming hers.
Cassiopeia let herself get carried away by this feeling of utter happiness. To her it didn't matter if he was with her for the sake of the power that her magic was able to offer him. After all, that power resulted from this unique connection between them, no matter how Tom preferred to name it. He was there, and that was all that mattered to her.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and ran a hand through his impeccably styled hair, ruffling it up into the wavy dark mess she loved so much. Tom suppressed a smirk and leaned closer to her. He had long since refrained from trying to understand how she managed to make him feel so strangely at ease. Holding her in his arms and feeling her warmth so close to him left him content in a way that was unique. He hadn't been lying, it was true, nothing compared to her.
He concentrated on the flow of his magic combined with hers, on this strong and steady pulse that was humming in his veins, and relished the feeling of unlimited power it was spreading. How foolish he had been, desperately trying to suppress his desires when he was younger, how ignorant and oblivious to this unbounded source of magic.
Unconsciously he tightened his arms around her waist, deepening the kiss ever so slightly. Thankfully she had never ceased to challenge him, never yielded despite his reluctance, never given up even though it had taken him so long to see clear at last.
******
Author's note: Thanks so much for reading!!!