Rated R for strong language, lemon, violence
Pairings: HP/DM HP/TR
Peter Pettigrew willed his sluggish legs over towards his master Lord Voldemort as quickly as he could manage them. His heart skipping beats as he swallowed down the bile that crept into the back of his throat. Excitement and fear dusted over his face as he peered into the red eyes watching him approach.
The Dark Lord sized him up, looking for any signs of failure in the chubby, disheveled man. Frowning at his unreadable face, he pulled himself up into a tall, firm posture, preparing for the news. Wormtail cleared his throat and steadied his breath.
"My lord, we found him, just as you said we would," Peter licked his lips nervously, preparing for reward or a curse. Voldemort's lips curled into a slight, Mona Lisa-like smile, revealing nothing to the animagus.
"He is here, he came without a fight, my Lord. He is unharmed and in the cell you asked him to be placed." Peter said as he averted his eyes from his master.
Voldemort snaked his hand around Wormtail's waist and pulled him into his chest, his other hand cupping the rat's cheek firmly. Wormtail gasped in shock, and looked into his master's eyes cautiously. His master looked down at him and smiled brightly. Sharp, snake-like teeth grinning at him, hidden by near non-existent lips.
"You have made me proud, yet again, Wormtail. I shall reward you, later. First I need to visit my guest. I do hope he's comfortable, this may take a while." Voldemort said as he released his grip from his servant’s back. Peter stood quickly, bowing several times, thanking his master, as he backed out of the room.
Voldemort walked casually over to his fireplace and reached into the silver urn resting on it's mantle. Throwing in a handful of floo-powder he hissed out "Severus Snape!" Almost instantly, Snape's head appeared in the fireplace, eyes closed and looking every bit as greasy as normal. The Dark Lord snarled and spoke. "I need that potion now Snape. The time has come." beetle black eyes widened briefly, before turning calm and relaxed again. If Voldemort could have blinked, sadly without eyelids it was an impossibility, he would have missed it.
"I will floo over immediately with the potion, my Lord." Snape said as his head bowed and immediately disappeared from the green fire. Lord Voldemort looked over his robes, noting the perfection in the soft, forest green velvet. He looked down at his skeletal hands and frowned. "Well, at least I'll look human again.." he said to himself, almost grinning in thought.
Hearing the sounds of Snape in his fireplace, he looked up instantly. He quickly dusted himself off and bowed to his Lord. "Master, I'm happy to say I finished this potion this very morning and I am most pleased to tell you is my finest ever made. Drink the whole bottle, you may want to be sitting at the time, and wait five minutes. The effects will restore your human appearance within that time, but it will be painful."
Voldemort narrowed his eyes a bit before speaking. "Should I do anything else, Severus? Just drink this?"
Snape shook his head. "Nothing else, my Lord. The potion was made to regain your appearance as it should be."
Voldemort walked over and sat back into a thick, velvet plush armchair, before uncorking the bottle. "Are you staying for this, Severus?" he asked, looking into the bottle.
"My Lord, it would be my great pleasure to watch my potion work, if you don't mind me staying." he replied eagerly.
Lord Voldemort nodded but kept his eyes on the potion in his hand. He closed his eyes and concentrated. "Lucius Malfoy," he said in a soft whisper, "Come to my chambers please, I'd like you to witness my rebirth,"
Within minutes, the chamber door opened and Lucius Malfoy quickly entered the room, clutching his arm in pain. "My lord," he said, bowing low his master, before looking over to Snape with a slight scowl. "Severus,"
Snape nodded back. "Lucius,"
Both men looked back at their master as he spoke. "Today is a great day, my faithful Death Eaters. We have our *special guest* here on my grounds, and I will once again be the man I was always meant to be," Both Death Eaters bowed their heads and watched as their master tipped the bottle back, swallowing the contents.
Severus and Lucius watched in horror as Voldemort thrashed in the velvet chair, hissing and screaming, while his body transformed itself into a fair-skinned, black haired man. Lucius grew worried and fingered his wand, thoughts of Snape poisoning his master flashing before his eyes. Severus, sensing this, assured him quietly that the pain was a side-effect of the transformation, and Lucius eased his muscles back into a sturdy posture.
When it was over, Lord Voldemort gathered his strength and looked up at his two men. "Well?" he whispered, his throat hoarse from screaming.
"My Lord," Severus said, walking over and kneeling beside Voldemort's chair, "You look... perfect!" He looked into the potion master’s eyes, noting the sincerity. He looked up at Lucius, who in turn, nodded and had the same gleam in his eyes.
"Help me up! I want to see myself." he shouted anxiously.
Severus and Lucius took each of Voldemort's arms and lifted him up, guiding him to a full-length mirror against the back wall of his chambers. His eyes lit up bright red as he gazed at his beauty. He looked young, perhaps around Severus' and Lucius' age. His hair was bright black, with a slight greying at the temples. His skin was fair, but with hints of olive in the pigment. His eyes remained red, crimson flecks of evil. Looking at his body, he had filled out quite a bit, but not overly so. He was thin, and muscled, as he was before the unfortunate accident that relieved him from his body in the first place. He shrugged off the arms holding him up quickly and stood by himself, feeling all his strength return to him.
Severus and Lucius stepped back quietly, a look of admiration crossing both their faces. Lord Voldemort smiled at himself. He was, truly.. perfect. "You've done very well, Severus, you will be greatly rewarded." he said, keeping his eye to the mirror.
Snape grinned at the praise and bowed. "Thank you my Lord. It was a great honor for you to trust me with this."
Voldemort turned around and gazed at the potions master. "You may go now, before that old fool realizes you are missing, my boy. I will call upon you later to discuss other potions I will need."
Severus bowed again and walked to the fireplace. He looked at Lucius and sneered. "Lucius."
Lucius snarled back. "Severus." And with that, Severus floo'd back to Hogwarts in a flash of green fire.
Voldemort turned back to the mirror and began to straighten out his robes. "I trust my guest is quite comfortable?" He said as he tugged on a loose thread at the hem of his sleeve.
"I couldn't get him to eat, my Lord, I could send Draco down to try." He said, shifting his weight between legs.
"No, I believe it's time I spoke to him. We have so much to catch up on." Voldemort said with a chuckle, his eyes still locked on his image in the mirror. "Besides, shouldn't Draco be getting ready for school soon? His train leaves tomorrow."
Lucius nodded. "Yes, my Lord, he begins his sixth year. I cannot wait to hear the gossip he'll have to tell us when everyone discovers the boy is missing."
They shared an evil grin. "Ah yes, I can’t wait myself. This time, I won’t be foolish with hate and revenge. This time he will not get away. This time he'll stay with me, and he'll be mine." He turned away from his mirror once more to Lucius. "Take yourself and your son home. Spend some time with your boy before he leaves. I have plenty to do today, now."
Lucius bowed his head respectfully to his master and walked out the door.
Voldemort looked over his appearance once more before leaving his chamber. He felt giddy inside, small butterflies danced around in his stomach, as he walked down the corridors towards the dungeon.
As he reached his destination, he waved off the two masked Death Eaters guarding the door. They opened the door for him and bowed deep, slight gasps coming from the masks as they spotted the old form of their lord. Voldemort smiled sheepishly for a second, then regained his composure. He entered the small room, and peered around. He spotted the boy on the bed.
His head was down, his knees pulled up into his chest, and he was clutching a small pillow. Voldemort cleared his throat and the boy snapped up, looking at the man through a dazed expression. "Hello, Harry Potter,"
tbc