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Golden Hearts	By : BetaBloodLust Category: HP Canon Characters paired with Original Characters > Slash - Male/Male Views: 3689 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: See Full Disclaimer Below--Any chapters containing explicit material will begin with warnings for the wary

Chapter List
- 17
- 18
- 19
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor do I own the characters within the Harry Potter series. J. K. Rowling owns the Harry Potter series and all original characters introduced within the series. I make no money from this story. All noncanonical characters are fictional fabrications. They belong to me. Any resemblances to real persons or groups of people are coincidence and should be summarily disregarded, and the doppelganger perpetrators should be shot for impersonating my creations. Have a nice day.

Golden Hearts: Chapter 18: Voice of Unreason

Severus stood and led Arumus to the unused classroom. He closed the door behind Arumus once he had followed into the classroom and turned to face his pupil. "I wish to test your knowledge first, Arumus, to be entirely sure you are ready to attempt such a difficult spell. Will you consent to a friendly duel? We will bar anything lethal or permanently damaging, of course."

Arumus' mouth curved in a mischievous smile, his eyes glinting in the candlelight. "Of course."

He removed his wand from his pocket, holding it lightly, and they faced each other about seven paces apart. Arumus bowed slightly as Severus followed suit. Then, Severus moved like lightning, throwing a nonverbal leg-locking curse at him, but Arumus deflected it with a silent counter jinx, aiming a freezing curse at Severus.

Severus deflected the curse expertly and tried to stun Arumus, but Arumus once again used a counter jinx, dissolving the stun and trying to immobilize his professor. Severus deflected the immobilizing jinx, performing the bat hex, which Arumus deflected. Before he could respond, a rope flew from Severus' wand to bind him, but Arumus unthinkingly transformed the rope to a snake, which immediately dropped to the ground obediently. He flung a confounding spell at Severus, and as his teacher deflected the spell, Arumus saw his chance.

Severus had taken his eyes from him to deflect the confounding spell, and Arumus had a split second in which to act. He disarmed Severus with a whip-like movement of his wand, catching Severus' flying wand with a quick summons and snatching it from the air in a blindingly quick movement. The entire exchange had taken less than two or three minutes and had occurred amid complete silence, as neither Severus nor Arumus had used a verbal spell.

He walked calmly to face Severus, offering him his wand. He felt fairly certain his teacher had gone relatively easy on him, being unsure of Arumus' abilities.

"Very impressive," Severus commented. "It has, of course, been quite some time since anyone has disarmed me so effectively. Where did you learn the confounding charm?"

Arumus thought for a moment. "I read about it in Mind-Altering Curses, by Darian Bluesten. My uncle has a copy."

"It was particularly nasty." Severus smiled. "I admit that I've never had anyone actually try to use that particular spell against me. My congratulations, Arumus. I now see what Professor Flitwick means... You certainly do have a 'presence behind the wand,' to borrow the phrase." He paused thoughtfully, and then continued. "I believe you will be able to master Farrum Ferusus, among a number of others I will teach you this evening. Now, I will cast a shield, and you can attempt to dissolve it. After you can dissolve each shield I conjure, we will move on to Fulgeo Furtum, a rather effective blinding spell, unless you have learned it?" Arumus shook his head.

Arumus worked diligently for an entire hour to master Farrum Ferusus, and Severus conjured two plain wooden chairs and two glasses of water when Arumus finally broke each shield spell Severus knew. They sat, and Severus described the blinding spell in detail. When they stood again, Severus conjured a target for Arumus to practice casting upon.

"I have no desire to be the target of any more of your spells tonight, Arumus," He explained, his eyes flashing with the hint of a smile. "Now, observe the proper wand movement."

Arumus watched as his teacher flicked his wand. A small, dark flicker flew toward the target, hitting it with a small pop. Arumus nodded, fixing his concentration as he always did when learning new spells. The first try produced the flicker of darkness, but it failed to move toward the target.

Severus watched twice more before he halted Arumus, stepping behind him and placing cool fingers on Arumus' wrist. Arumus was surprised at the gentleness in his touch, and he suppressed the electric shiver that ran through him at the feeling of Severus' fingers upon his skin.

"The wand movement is a stuttering flick, so move your wrist," He guided Arumus through the surprisingly complex movement, "Like so."

"Thank you, Severus." Arumus said, repeating the movement quickly and sending the spell toward the target successfully. He practiced the spell for about a half hour. Then they took their seats once more, and Severus described the next spell.

"Futilis Gravo causes the target to feel extremely heavy, slowing or immobilizing it quite effectively." He went into specific details, describing the exact methods necessary to cast the spell. "This is a particularly useful spell because it is extremely difficult to see it in motion. Usually, only those who can decipher the wand movement and know the spell have enough time to counter it, rendering it very useful, indeed."

Once again, they stood to face the target. Severus performed the spell with practiced ease, and a sudden green flash at the target spoke silently of success. Arumus then took his place. Nothing seemed to happen the first few tries, and Severus halted him after the third.

"This wand movement is very subtle, like a tiny check mark." The cool fingers touched his wrist once more, correcting ever so slightly. Arumus found that he did not wish for Severus to release his wrist. After that, Arumus practiced for another half hour. He learned three additional spells, each of increasing difficulty. Every time he learned a new spell, Severus corrected the complex flicks and whirls with his cool, gentle touch, and Arumus wished he were less quick at learning the movements.

Arumus paused after he sent Galea Gaudium, the "Helmet of Delight," hurtling toward the target for the eighth success. It was a jinx that would momentarily distract one's opponent for up to five seconds with a fleeting sense of inexplicable joy. He had paused because he thought he could hear a voice. He tilted his head, listening intently.

The voice was cold and poisonous, but he only caught the tail end of what it was saying. "Let me tear... Let me kill..." The voice hissed. Arumus realized that it spoke in Parseltongue.

"Arumus, what is wrong?" Severus asked, touching his shoulder.

Arumus spun to face him. "Did you hear that?"

"I heard nothing." Severus' eyes betrayed a flash of worry. "What did you hear?"

"I heard someone, or something, speaking Parseltongue. A cold voice. It said something I didn't catch, but the last part... Well, I don't think I caught all the words..." Arumus paused, recalling for the first time in months the conversation he had with his uncle before school started. Then, deliberately, he forced down his barriers, which he found surprisingly easy in Severus' presence, made unblinking eye contact, and said, "Severus, I think someone has opened the Chamber of Secrets."

Severus' eyes widened just a hair, but he studied Arumus' gaze with a blazing intensity for a few moments before replying. "It might be best if you told the headmaster." Arumus nodded, stowing his wand in his pocket as he followed Severus out and through the halls toward the headmaster's study. They stopped before a stone gargoyle.

"Lemon Drop," Severus murmured, and the gargoyle moved aside to reveal a spiral staircase. Arumus followed him up the stairs and waited as Severus rapped smartly upon the door at the top.

"Come in, Severus," Professor Dumbledore said in a subdued tone.

Severus swept into the room, followed by Arumus. "Good evening, Headmaster."

"Good evening, Severus, Arumus." Dumbledore nodded to them in turn.

Severus seemed to steel himself before continuing. "Arumus has a rather startling pronouncement, which I thought you might find... interesting."

Arumus moved to stand before the headmaster, feeling awkward. "Sir, please excuse the late hour."

"Not at all, Arumus." Professor Dumbledore wore a kind expression, but his blue eyes met Arumus' darker blue with that familiar intensity. "Would you care to have a seat?"

"Ah. No thank you, sir." Arumus forced his barriers down, and he was once again astonished at how difficult it was when he faced the headmaster. "I have come to you upon Severus' suggestion." Too late, Arumus realized that he had forgone formality by using Severus' name. He winced inwardly but continued. "Sir, I heard someone, some thing perhaps, speaking Parseltongue, saying something about ripping and killing. Because of information I received before beginning school, I believe that the Heir of Slytherin may have come to the school, and if not, someone else has somehow opened the Chamber of Secrets."

Dumbledore nodded, as if he were expecting news of this sort. He spoke casually. "Please, Severus, leave us for a moment."

Severus didn't move. Instead, he seemed to tense. Dumbledore glanced at him, seeming to understand. "I will send him back to you once we are finished chatting." They exchanged a silent gaze laced with meaning that Arumus was unable to decipher.

Severus uncoiled, bowing and sweeping from the room without glancing at Arumus. Neither his face nor his eyes, of course, betrayed anything, but Arumus thought his movements seemed agitated.

Dumbledore waited for a few moments, and then he turned his intense gaze back to Arumus. "How do you know the Heir has come to Hogwarts?"

"That is an educated guess based on a few books I have read," Arumus answered with honesty.

Dumbledore nodded. "And how do you know the Chamber of Secrets has been opened?"

Arumus paused. "Someone told me that it may occur during my first year at Hogwarts."

Dumbledore studied him thoughtfully for a few moments, and then he asked, "Can you tell me who?"

Arumus closed his eyes for a moment, and his barriers arose, unsummoned. He tried to force them back down, but they would not move. He opened his eyes, meeting Dumbledore's gaze levelly. "I will not."

"That," Dumbledore said sadly, "Is a shame," The headmaster's eyes gathered the feel of lightning once more, and this time, he struck.

Vague, unfocused images seemed to swim before Arumus' mind's eye, slowly coming into focus. Uncle Lucius standing and grappling with Arthur Weasley... Draco's fear, anger, and that silent, pleading expression... Aunt Narcissa's face, her blood. After the initial shock, he truly understood the use of Legilimency, understood that it was being used against him, and he put all his mental force and will behind his counterattack.

New, unfamiliar images sharpened into focus: a sweet-looking young girl with a vague expression, a coffin and a sense of unimaginable loss and pain, a teen with laughing, mischievous eyes. Arumus felt his mind forced back into his own skull with force, and the images became his once more.

Lucius, worry flickering across his face, the feel of Jordan's lips, the gentleness of Severus' touch... His eyes... The way he--No, He thought furiously, That is not allowed. You cannot pry into my deepest feelings and desires like that. Arumus banished his emotions to a small, dark corner and furiously visualized the pages of books. They were all there, every book he had ever read. Let Dumbledore sift through tedious pages until he grows sick of it! He thought triumphantly.

The intrusion was suddenly gone. Professor Dumbledore merely looked into Arumus' eyes with palpable regret. "I am truly sorry, Arumus. I will not do you the disservice of asking forgiveness. There are some things that are quite unforgivable." A tear fell from his right eye, and he did not move to wipe it away.

Arumus found that he was not angry. Instead, he experienced an answering pang of sadness. He remembered the coffin and the accompanying feeling of anguish, and he shook his head, frowning. "I think, sir, that if you can forgive me, then I must forgive you. I know that you would not have intruded upon me without a good reason."

Dumbledore looked surprised. "Of course, I forgive you." He paused. "And I do have a fine reason, but I am afraid I cannot divulge it. I can tell you that the Heir has arrived at Hogwarts, but he is not opening the Chamber. I fear this is the doing of other hands."

Arumus nodded, wondering why the Heir of Slytherin would not be the one to release the monster. Perhaps the Heir was squeamish? Or, perhaps he had no issues with muggle-borns, just as Arumus himself did not. Usually, he felt sorry for them. A wizard's child could choose to enter the muggle world at will, but a muggle child with magical talents would remain ignorant until he or she received a letter from Hogwarts.

Arumus regarded Professor Dumbledore, waiting. Finally, he broke the silence. "I, of course, will forgive you... once you have asked me to do so, sir."

Dumbledore smiled knowingly. "How is it that you can so cleverly cloak demand within a polite request, Arumus?"

Arumus shrugged. "Practice, of course."

Dumbledore seemed satisfied with the reply. "Very well, Arumus, though I am not a man used to complying with the commands of others..." A twinkle appeared in his eyes at this, and he asked, "Will you be so gracious as to forgive me?"

"Sir, I forgive you. However, I would request that you never again try to intrude upon me in such a way."

"Ah, Arumus, but you see, it's no use now." Dumbledore smiled pleasantly and lifted a finger for emphasis. "Once someone with an exceptional visual memory stumbles on the aptly named Book Device, it is nearly impossible to catch them unawares again."

"I see," Arumus replied wryly.

"I believe you see more than anyone gives you credit for." Dumbledore paused. "Now, would you please return to Severus and ask him to take you back to the Slytherin common room? Please, tell him that I will be awake for at least another hour or two, if he wishes to discuss... anything."

"Yes, sir." Arumus stood and walked down the spiral staircase. He met Severus after emerging from the gargoyle.

"May I ask what happened?" Severus asked softly, and something menacing hid within his voice, though it was not directed at Arumus.

Arumus strove for a casual tone, though he thought his emotional state was rather raw. "I learned the Book Device. Oh, and Professor Dumbledore requests that I ask you to escort me to my common room and inform you that he will be awake for at least another hour, if you wish to discuss anything."

Severus reached out and stopped Arumus with a vice-like grip on his shoulder. Arumus turned to catch an emotion he recognized in Severus' eyes. Rage. But it was gone in a flash.

Arumus frowned and spoke without thought. "Severus, listen. He did not want me to forgive him, but I forced him to recant. If you want to be angry, you should be angry with me." He paused and breathed deeply, trying to control his emotions. Sadness seemed to mix with rage in a most unpleasant way. "I could have told you that I did not wish to speak with the headmaster, but I did not, and would not, do so in such circumstances." Arumus hissed the last sentence through clenched teeth.

"What, exactly, are you implying, Arumus?" Severus asked, and a curious light had filled his eyes for a moment.

Arumus paused. He had, of course, spoken without thought, without using reason, logic, or even wit. And he did not want to say the things, he realized, he had so artlessly implied. "I merely wish to point out that I would be the prime suspect if I had not acted as I did."

Severus nodded, and then he turned abruptly and led Arumus through a shortcut to the dungeons without speaking. He paused several hundred feet from the common room entrance to face Arumus. "Please, Arumus, forgive me for suggesting you do that." He placed a hand on Arumus' shoulder. His touch was, once again, gentle, and Arumus could not entirely suppress the sudden tremble that seemed to quake his core. Something reared up inside him, and he could not entirely control it.

Arumus felt a tear fall from each eye as he allowed his emotions to break through the barriers for once, and they cascaded through him in a seemingly endless torrent. The coffin and the anguish he had unintentionally wrenched from Dumbledore's mind were such raw, painful things. He said, "Severus, there is nothing to forgive." He gazed directly into those dark eyes. "But I think that you might want to say those words to Professor Dumbledore, as well. I inadvertently caused him more pain than he caused me..."

A strange spasm seemed to shiver through Severus, and he suddenly pulled Arumus into a rather fierce embrace. It was, perhaps, the first real hug Arumus had received that he could actually remember. After a moment, Arumus returned the embrace with equal fierceness.

"You are a remarkable person..." Severus whispered before letting him go. "Thank you, Arumus."

Arumus whispered his reply. "Thank you, Severus."

They stood, sharing a silent exchange, deep blue eyes meeting dark brown with that wild, uncontrolled thing Severus so aptly renamed as "compassion," and Severus touched Arumus' cheek with a gentle finger, now unaccountably warm. Arumus failed to suppress a shiver. He caught Severus' hand, applying pressure because he wanted that embrace once more, but he feared the hungry feeling that seemed to empty his insides.

"Please, Severus, speak with Dumbledore before you go to sleep."

Severus smiled slyly and arched a brow. "As you command..." And he turned on his heel, striding off through the gloom.

Arumus entered the common room, feeling exhausted. He dropped into a chair, placing his head in his hands. Suddenly, he heard movement, and his barriers rose instinctually as he scanned the room. Percival stood, yawning, and looked at him. Arumus relaxed somewhat and stood.

"I waited for you, but it's been ages. Why on Earth did he keep you until well past midnight?"

"Spell practice," Arumus said as an uninspired explanation.

Percival studied Arumus. "Hey, listen, if you do actually have a crush on someone, you can tell us. Unless... you actually do like Jordan? In that way?" He smiled roguishly, but his smile faded as he caught the look in Arumus' eyes.

Arumus felt his rage stir, but he flattened it. "No, Percival, I do not have a crush on anyone." He sighed, and thought to himself in a mix of anger and bleakness, I believe it has gone rather further than a crush in both circumstances...

Percival frowned, approaching him. "You..." He placed a hand on Arumus' shoulder. "You have got a strange look in your eyes." His brown eyes peered closely into Arumus' own. His head suddenly darted closer, and he kissed Arumus.

Arumus let the rage break through. His open palm caught Percival in a resounding slap, leaving a red mark on his olive cheek. "You will never," He spoke in low, quiet, icy voice, "Do that again. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal, sir. I apologize, truly. I will never--" Percival had a tendency to babble.

Arumus cut him off with a gesture, his eyes winter. "Shut up. Why did you do such an idiotic thing, Percival?"

Percival looked abashed. "I didn't believe Jordan. I didn't think you could look at someone and really freeze his insides with fear. I didn't believe that you could be in a cold fury. I did not think that you could utter an order without turning it into a request or compliment. Obviously, I was wrong..."

"Percival, it's not personal. It's just a reaction I cannot, or do not, always control." Arumus sighed, but continued. "If I ever become truly enraged with you, you might not want to remain my friend."

Percival smiled. "I hope I never do anything to make you that angry." He laughed. "If I do, you might not want to be my friend..." He paused thoughtfully. "So, you don't really like girls, you don't have any crushes, you're obviously not in love with either Jordan or me, but you sometimes give us both that weird look, like someone is holding your heart hostage and you want to be saved..." He trailed off, and his eyes widened in an expression close to hero worship.

"You're joking..." He lowered his voice so it was nearly inaudible. "You... Snape..."

Arumus just looked at him. He didn't feel that the accusation deserved an answer. It certainly had little enough foundation in reality. Arumus knew and accepted the sheer impossibility of such a fantastic desire, or at least he told himself to accept it. Moreover, he was struggling enough just to deal with Draco.

"Don't worry, Arumus, your secret is safe with me." Percival spoke honestly.

"And me, of course." Jordan emerged from where he had been hiding behind a shadowed chair, smiling broadly.

Arumus looked surprised and felt a twinge of annoyance.

"Come, now, you don't actually think I'd miss something as amazing as Percival being rejected, do you?" Jordan sounded hurt.

"I suppose not... But answer me one question, Jordan. Why do you go to such insane lengths to discover the truth when you could just ask?" Arumus was genuinely curious.

Jordan looked genuinely astonished. "Honestly, Arumus, I don't understand why you even ask... I have never met anyone who could answer a question with such truth while still practicing deception. See? Even under duress, you didn't actually ever answer Percival's question... You just allowed him to assume a version of the truth. I'm sure his twisted brain is now happily imagining you giving the Professor orders just like you do to us." He caught something in the look on Arumus' face and swallowed. "You give him... orders...?"

"I have no control over whether people follow my so-called orders or not, but I cannot help actually uttering them," Arumus said, a bit defensively. He felt more than slightly ill-used.

Both Percival and Jordan burst out in gales of laughter. After a few moments, Jordan calmed enough to say, "How do you answer a question so effectively without actually addressing the question?" And he degenerated into laughter once more.

Arumus threw up his hands in exasperation and left the common room for bed.
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Golden Hearts