Harry was crying - again - for the fifth night in a row. He sobbed into his pillows, Tom's voice taunting him from inside his head, constantly wandering around and pulling out memories - painful memories that Harry wanted to forget - and forced Harry to relieve them every second of every day.
It was near impossible to hide it, the fear, the constant fear that Tom would manifest out of his mind and hurt him, that Tom would find something in his mind that Harry had forgotten about and that Tom would bring it back and it would destroy him. That Tom would find a way to kill him front the inside out so he could have Harry's body for himself with none of Harry's personality left, just a vessel.
Awww, is the Boy-Who-Lived scared? Scared of his pathetic uncle, the man who beat you, cursed you- Oh would you look at this Harry, a belt, the first time he used one on you. Such a memorable moment, is that why it's in the locked cabinet? Tom's maniacal laugh echoed throughout Harry's mind.
"Harry! Harry!" Hermione's voice finally penetrated Harry's ears, unaware that Tom ripped the cabinet open from inside Harry's mind, the worst of the worst memories attacked Harry's mind.
Freak
Boy
Unnatural thing!
Filthy disgusting freak!
Harry gripped his hair, unaware of the world around him, forgetting that he was in the Great Hall, that they were at dinner and not in his bed. A particular memory, one that Harry had buried so deep, one so painful, that Harry's mind had thrown it to the end of the mindscape in an attempt to stop it from traumatizing Harry into insanity.
"You freak!" Vernon shouted, plunging the knife into Harry's hand, twisting it and grinning at the pain filling scream that Harry let out. "Think you could eat without my permission! You ungrateful piece of shit!" A cruel laugh from behind Harry set Harry off into a round of sobbing, his body shaking from on the table he was tied to. "Maybe we can do it right Pet, cut the freakiness out of him." Vernon took another knife and stabbed it into Harry's other hand, dragging it up the arm until it reached the elbow.
"Yes, oh! I can finally tell the neighbors that we've ridden of him!" His aunt practically vibrated with glee as she pulled on some plastic gloves, herding her son out of the room with the promise of all the desert he wanted.
"Lock the door Pet, we don't want to taint Dudley with the disgusting excuse of air that we can finally rid the world of him!" Vernon shouted with excitement before dragging a small razor from Harry's nipple and down to his belly button, carving the word 'FREAK' into his chest.
Harry let out a blood-curdling scream, his body remembering the pain from that night, he remembered dying, he remembered when Vernon had had him at the end of his life before pulling a gun to his temple and Harry remembered the sound of the trigger clicking.
Oh, what have we here? Tom's voice went unheard by all except himself. He brightened the corner and took a step back in surprise. The thing in the corner revolted him to no end. It was pale, wrinkled, so starved that all of its bones stuck out at disgusting angles. Tom examined the thing once more, taking in the crimson eyes, the blackened fingers, and toes. The bloodied nails and skin. It was hairless, naked and smelled worst than a troll.
Tom was pleased when he felt the familiar magic that surrounded the thing. He stepped closer to examine the weak chains that were locked around the thing's ankles, bloodied and rusted.
Help me break Potter and you will be free Tom smirked when the thing only screamed bloody murder, blood, and bile dripping from Its mouth as he abused Its own vocal cords. Good.
-----
Severus dropped his utensils when the scream let out in the hall. He looked up and glared at the reason behind the noise, his frustration and irritation increased tenfold when he saw just who was disrupting his meal.
People scrambled away from Potter, who was clawing at himself, the metallic tang of blood permeated the air enough to cause slight concern but it was beaten down when Severus reminded himself that it was Potter and was probably only looking for attention. He and Albus stood at the same time. Severus silenced the second year while Albus levitated him, they both walked out of the Hall, Harry's frozen body dripping blood as they quickly left to the Hospital Wing. Poppy on their heels.
"What exactly was that Albus?" Severus asked as he released the silencing charm, wincing at the sheer volume and fear in the sound that had to be ripping apart the vocal cords.
"I don't know, Severus, my boy, but it is concerning." Albus frowned as he warded the hospital wing closed and silenced except for injured students. He sent a Patronus off to Minerva, explaining that she was to send the student to their dormitories immediately.
"Albus, Severus, I'm going to need your help." They all three tied Potter down with magical and non-magical ropes.
The screams were cut short, his cords shredded if Severus was assuming correctly. He grimaced at the idea of the act, he lifted a hand to touch his throat gently.
"I don't know what to do!" Poppy was distressed as another diagnostic spell came up with nothing. "Nothing is wrong with him except the injuries he gave himself.
"I believe we should check him ourselves if you wouldn't mind." Albus gestured for Poppy who banished Potter's clothing, except for his undergarments.
Severus gasped at the sight, claw marks from his own nails littered his chest and arms. Scars overlapped scars upon scars, words carved into the small body, bruises fresh and old, odd bones at odd angles, fingers bloodied with bits of flesh stuck under the nail. "Salazar...." He couldn't stop himself with all the self-control he had learned throughout his life.
"Merlin...." Poppy gasped, a hand held to her mouth in her shock. "I believe whatever problem he has is in his mind." She whispered the sentence.
"Severus, you must go into his mind, resolve the problem," Albus commanded, not a second later Severus was leaned over the fearful face, eyes not seeing.
"Legilimens." Severus landed gracefully in the black mind of Harry's mindscape, a chill running down his spine at the screams, the crazed laughter and the crying, the begging and the pleads.
Someone is here Harry, someone is here! The familiar sound of the Dark Lord's voice froze Severus to the core. The realization that the Dark Lord was in Potter's mind, speaking to him nearly sent all the fight out of him.
A whispered scream that sounded like an older Dark Lord sent the youthful Dark Lord into laughter. He'll never escape, we've got him trapped. The younger Dark Lord's voice echoed around the darkness.
Severus looked up and saw what looked like a Muggle Theatre Screen, a giant memory was above him. Knives, laughter, blood, puke, torture devices, excrement flashed across the screen as memory after memory played out for Severus to see. He felt sick and near faint when a fat man raised a gun to Harry's head before pulling the trigger. The screen went dark for only a moment before he watched Harry's eyes open and the skull mends itself and the brain stitch itself together.
"Dear Salazar." He whispered as he watched Harry come back to life, pleading for his 'uncle Vernon' to stop. He watched as Harry's magic healed him in seconds only for the whale of a man to begin carving into him again.
A hand fell on Severus' shoulder and it took every fiber of his being to not scream as he spun around, wand raised right at Tom Riddle's face, a disgusting white, wrinkled, slouched figure behind him, coated in blood as chains dragged after him.
"What are you?" Severus was terrified, tears in his eyes as he searched around frantically for Harry in the madness that was his demented mind.
I'm Tom Riddle, half of Lord Voldemort's soul, this is another part of my soul. Tom replied easily,
"Where is Harry?" Severus had never been so scared, two pieces of the Dark Lord's soul lived in Harry's mind.
One second, Thing, play the memory where poor Potter was drowned.
Severus felt the little blood in his face drain away as another memory appeared in the Thing's hand before It threw another memory up into the screen where it was absorbed and Severus was shocked to still to watch a fat boy drag Harry by his ankles, the latter crying, screaming for help as other boys cheered 'Dudley' on as the fat boy forced Harry underwater - a pool - and the kept under when Dudley held Harry's head under with his large foot.
Splashing, kicking, clawing and struggling started to die down until Harry drowned and all the boys laughed before Harry was let go and he came floated back up his skin blue before magic expelled the water from his lungs and Harry was forced to breathe again, raggedly and painfully.
It's wonderful isn't it, watching them torture and kill him? It's orgasmic when Lady Magic keeps reviving him only for him to be killed again. Poor Potter just wants to die and he will never get the chance.
Severus ran from the Dark Lords, gasping as sweat clung to him, darkness swallowing him as he ran and ran, finally tripping over a pale, shaking, crying body. "Potter, Potter we have to get out of here!" He shook the boy, frantic as he heard the soft screams from the Thing and laughter from the other Dark Lord.
"I'll never get out," Harry whispered, tears staining his face as his eyes seemed glazed over. "They will always be here." He whimpered at a single laugh from far in the distance.
"Yes you can, hold onto me, okay Potter?" Severus could feel the two pairs of crimson eyes on him as he lunged and held Potter close as he exited the haunted mind.
-----
Severus gasped, tears streaming his face as he found himself in the hospital wing with the Headmaster and Poppy, he clung to Harry who was shaking and crying, unable to talk due to his vocal cords he had torn earlier. "Albus, Albus y-" Severus couldn't mind his voice as he went to explain.
"Severus!" Albus gasped in shock.
"Two pieces of the Dark Lord's soul are in there." He whispered, afraid that even mentioning them would summon them to the real world. "H-His relatives have killed him, so many ti-times..." He was sobbing, not at all ashamed as fear clung to him like ash would honey.
"Severus you aren't making any sense my boy." Albus kneeled by the man and child on the floor, both clinging to each other desperately. "Drop your shields." He dove into Severus' mind, watching the experience second by second until he came out, fear and anger coursing through his veins. "Grodric...."
Poppy was spelling calming draught after calming draught into the two men and the one child, preferring not to know what they all had seen, not when it could turn Severus into what he was now and Albus into a haunted, speechless, shell of himself.
"He mustn't go to sleep." Severus didn't want to think of what would happen if Harry got caught in his mind again.
"Indeed." Albus agreed before flooing the Ministry, thankful when over fifteen Mind Healers and ten Aurors were standing in the room. He pulled the memory from Severus' mind and put it in the pensive he summoned from his rooms before he had them all watch.
Healer after Healer entered Harry's mind, cutting off the connection so Harry couldn't feel, hear or see anything that was going on in his mind. Severus held him the entire time, both of them seeking comfort from each other, both scarred by what they had seen together.
Each time a Healer came out they looked haunted, scared and fearful. By the time that all had been through three times did they manage to destroy the young Dark Lord, his soul ejected from Harry's body.
The Aurors quickly and efficiently killed him, and again killing the Thing that came out a whole three hours later.
It had been 22 hours since Severus had left Harry's mind when the Healers had stated they had sorted out all Harry's memories and put locks on most of the memories, all the deaths, the trauma, abuse, and torture.
Severus and Harry fell asleep together, both worn out and slept, dreamless, blissfully aware that the hauntings would be over.
-----
Three years later:
Severus chuckled when Harry stuck his tongue out at Draco who only rolled his eyes before pulling him into a side hug.
"Papa! What are we having for dinner?" Harry ran up to Severus, hugging him tightly, both kept an altered memory of their time in Harry's mind, the feelings they felt at the time were gone, they could only look back on it detachedly. It was good, they knew everything that had happened but they couldn't be haunted by the fear.
"I do not know, my child, what do you want?" Severus ran his potion stained hand through Harry's hair, smiling fondly. A week after the incident when they were deemed okay enough to leave the Hospital wing Severus had blood adopted Harry and since had lived happily, at first it was hard but they managed nicely.
"Hmmm...." Harry hummed in thought before hugging Severus tighter. "Pizza."
"Pizza it is." Severus stroked Harry's cheek lovingly before sending him off with Draco to fly as he ordered Muggle pizza.
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