The Anti-Heroine || A Harry Potter Fanfiction

Chapter LVI

CHAPTER LVI:

Voldemort's POV:

Severus Snape looked pale and afraid. It was immensely satisfying to see that all the time his spy had spent around Albus Dumbledore hadn't done anything to diminish the boy's fear of him. Well, Severus wasn't quite a boy; not anymore.

The reminder of the lost years almost made him frown. Voldemort didn't like thinking about that lost decade with his powers reduced to almost nothing, less then the meanest ghost; just a shade clinging to existence and constantly experiencing pain and suffering as he held on to the mockery of life he'd been cut down to.

It was oh-so tempting to rage at anyone who'd played a role in his temporary (no, he refused to call it a "downfall") his temporary hiatus, such as Harry Potter for rebounding the curse, Pettigrew for revealing the location of the Potters and leading him to the boy, Severus for bring that thrice-cursed prophecy to his attention... yes, he was certainly tempted to raze them all to nothing, but he'd stilled his temper and instead focused on the puppet master responsible for pulling the strings of all three– Albus Dumbledore.

Of course, with the knowledge of Dumbledore's secret actions in the Wizengamot, he'd hit a stumbling block when it came to the old man. Without knowing Dumbledore's true goals, he couldn't completely rip everything away from the old man and destroy everything he'd ever cared about before taking his life.

It was annoying, to say the least, having his plans momentarily thwarted.

He did have Harry Potter, though, and he knew for a fact that Dumbledore cared for the boy– obviously not his wellbeing considering the muggles who'd raised him, and if Dumbledore was aware of Harry's status as a Horcrux then he certainly didn't care for his life either, but the boy did matter to his plans and for that Voldemort would shower Harry Potter with gold and gems, teach him all the magic he wished to learn and firmly seduce him to the Dark side, granting him a place of power in his ranks that most would kill for. 

Tom was certainly making the seduction to the Dark easy too, though he'd admit to have been startled by the odd little relationship that had developed between Harry, his living Horcrux, and the piece of his soul gained physical form.

He himself hadn't desired matters which pertained to the flesh for... decades now. Not since around the time he'd created his third Horcrux.

That thought made him frown but he cast it aside for now to concentrate on the terrified but desperately trying to hide it Severus Snape.

Of his many Death Eaters, Severus was one of the very few he'd be sorry to kill. Once he'd talked himself out of razing the boy– now man– to ashes for the part he'd played in the Halloween debacle, Voldemort had been able to focus on the many qualities he'd actually appreciated about the younger wizard; his skill in potions, his steadfast loyalty, his lack of bloodthirstiness and hunger for violence– often a refreshing break, considering the majority of the company he kept– and his dedication. And if he identified with the man because of their shared blood status, well, that was certainly something he would never, ever discuss with another living soul.

Of course, he was very aware of just how Severus's bone-deep loyalty could be turned against him; the man had loved Lily Potter née Evans and Voldemort knew just how stupid that ridiculous emotion could make people. Hermione Granger was a perfectly intelligent girl, for example, yet despite knowing much, much better, because of love she'd been willing to make deals with the devil– him– to keep Harry Potter safe. Ridiculous.

Ridiculous but something he'd always made sure to keep note of. And despite his original intentions and the promise he'd made, he had killed the Potter woman. Severus would, no doubt have viewed that as a betrayal and Voldemort would admit to being unsure whether the man's loyalty to the Dark would have been enough to get him to move past that– or if Dumbledore had taken advantage of his absence to dig his hooks into his Death Eater. The old bastard stealing Severus wasn't an impossible scenario, he was all too aware.