The Deceit of Man

A Vassal's Oath

After his nap, Harrison woke feeling as though he'd gone several rounds with the Whomping Willow. His head was pounding, and his limbs felt as though they'd been stretched repeatedly. It wasn't on the same level as when he'd Awakened as the new Dark Lord but he was sore. There was weight on his chest and when he moved his head to determine the source of the weight, he got a mouthful of blonde hair. Draco was curled up against Harrison with his head on Harrison's chest. Allowing himself a moment of indulgence, Harry ran his fingers through the fine blonde strands and smiled. If they had more time, Harry would love nothing more than to stay here like this for a few more hours. As it was, the almost purring noise that Draco was relaxing Harry more than anything else he had tried so far.

"'Arry, wha time izit?" Draco's voice was full of sleep and caused him to sound adorable. Not that Harry would ever admit it, being that he had a reputation to maintain. A shriek had them both shooting out of bed in an instant though and scrambling for the clothes they discarded to take a nap. Harry was only mildly upset to discover his clothes didn't fit properly again. It got pushed to the back of his mind as he focused on the need to make sure his people were okay. Another shriek and they were racing out of the room and down the stairs were they nearly bowled over the cause of the shrieks.

A dark look passed over Harry's face as he looked at the sight in front of him. Hermione was running her hands through her hair repeatedly before putting her hands in her mouth and pulling them out. Every time she pulled them out, she would shriek. He knew what was going on, what she was seeing and he enjoyed the results of the first spell he cast. It didn't have an official name, according to the Peverell ancestor who'd created it, but it would cause a person to slowly lose their mind if the counter curse wasn't said. It started off simple. The victim would begin to think that their hair and teeth were falling out. Every time they ran their hands through their hair, "more" clumps would fall out. Every time they ate something they would lose another tooth or two. Of course, they weren't actually losing any but it would drive them more and more mad as the curse got progressively worse. They would feel an intense itching that they needed to scratch to the point that it cause their skin to bleed without any relief, and then finally they would just stop wanting to do anything. They would literally just waste away. He wasn't going to let it get to that point though. He had much bigger plans for Hermione's suffering. It was not going to be a quick process.

She looked at him in that moment when he was deciding her fate and smiled serenely, like she'd just remembered a fond memory, "Did you know, Lord Potter, that there's a second shed on the Weasley property? It has a very interesting collection inside. Though I wouldn't be surprised if you didn't. Not many people do it seems as you would have to be in on the Secret to tell anyone about it so shhh... Don't tell anyone." She went back to shrieking then and Harry lifted that first curse. The second, the one that had caused her to reveal that particular Secret, was a powerful one that was both like the Imperius and not at the same time. It didn't make you do anything other than tell the truth and even that was set to a trigger. In Hermione's case, the trigger was Harry and Draco. They had to be together in the same room for the spell to trigger. What she said about the collection inside the shed though, raised his hackles. He needed to know what was inside and soon. He would deal with a little later though, now he was hungry and wanted food.

Inside the kitchen, it was shocking to find that only those Harry wanted to spend time with were inside. There also seemed to only be enough food for them. Remus and Sirius were seated near the head of the table, with Bill and Charlie seated across from them and one of the twins on either side. There was the empty head chair and the ones to the immediate left and right were open. He knew what those three chairs meant and wondered which, if either, Draco would choose. The head seat was out automatically as it was Harrison's as the Dark Lord. Which left thee left and right hand seats open, both with their own implications and meanings. If Draco chose the right, he would be taking up the position of Harry's right-hand and second in command. He would be the one to take over in the event that something should happen to Harrison. It also meant that he wasn't willing to be courted by Harry. The left, though, was something else entirely. It meant something else entirely. It meant that he was willing to be the submissive partner. That he understood that there was every possibility that he would be considered seriously if he chose to petition as Consort. It was an option that made Harry's knees weak as he walked to the head of the table. Draco followed after, not holding his hand or in his personal space but Harry could still feel the heat of his stare.