Stormseeker: Unwanted Destiny

"So, have you decided to submit to my will now?" Tom asks me.

I groan softly and turn over in my bedroll. I'm awake, and Tom knows that perfectly well. "Let me sleep a little longer."

"You've been asleep for three days," Tom says. "At least get up and eat something."

He has a point. I sigh and sit up. "Alright, alright." I rub my eyes.

Mipsy has brought me an extra large meal today, and I eagerly dig in. Thankfully, there's not an omelette in sight. I feel a lot better this morning. Very much refreshed. I feel like I could take on the world today.

"I would imagine that you must be hungry," Tom says, chuckling. "Eat up."

"My compliments to the elf," I mumble through a mouthful of hash browns.

"Tell me," Tom says. "What made you decide to kneel to me?"

I snort softly. "I've had a lot of time to think, you know. If I intended to fight you, I should not have let you know that I'm capable of wandless magic," I say. "And inclined to try to escape."

"I already knew you could do wandless magic," Tom says dryly. "You've been practicing it in school, remember?"

"Right, of course..." I say.

"I'm only surprised that you were capable of casting it strongly enough to break my Unlocking Charm, even without a wand," Tom says.

"I could cast it strongly enough to break open Azkaban," I reply. "You have no idea how tempted I was to help you then instead of fight you."

"Does this mean you're not going to try to fight me any longer?" Tom asks.

"I really wasn't interested in fighting you to begin with," I comment. "But I still refuse to be your servant."

"I see," Tom says blandly.

"I am, however, willing to be your apprentice," I say.

"My apprentice?" Tom says, quirking his lips in amusement.

"I'll be the Darth Vader to your Emperor," I say. "Minus the idiotically trying to kill each other bit. And you're also much more attractive than the Emperor."

"I have no idea what you are talking about," Tom says.

"Didn't think so," I say. "Never mind, I'll explain later." Those explanations generally lead to people thinking I'm insane. "Anyway, look. That damned hat put me in Ravenclaw for good reason. My main priority is to learn."

"Hmm," Tom says.

I stand up and get up in his face, and lower my voice. "I will not allow you to take away my free will. If you want me to serve you, it will be on my terms."

Tom grins at me. "I think we can work with that."

I pause for a moment, looking at him. I had expected more resistance than this. A smile spreads across my face as well as it sinks in that he just agreed to my demands. A thrill of excitement as I realize that I'm going to get the chance to learn magic from the Dark Lord himself.

"Why don't you finish your breakfast?" Tom says in amusement.

"Oh, right," I say, chuckling and going back to eating. I'd gotten a little distracted there with more important things on my mind.

"We can start your first lesson when you're done eating," Tom says. "Before we do anything else, I want to make certain that you are capable of casting all three Unforgivable Curses. And I already know you are able to cast the Killing Curse."

I almost choke on my food. I swallow and look up at him. "You would have me cast the Cruciatus Curse, right after it was used on me repeatedly like that?"

"Yes," Tom says, in a tone that brooks no argument.

I take a ragged breath and shudder involuntarily at the thought. But there's no backing down, and no turning back. I've chosen this course, and the only way to go now is forward. "Very well," I say. "If that is what I must do, then I will do it."

"Excellent," Tom says, grinning.

"Who will I be practicing on?" I ask.

"The Lestrange brothers," Tom replies, almost absently.

My heart leaps at that, and I grin wickledly. "Yeah. I think I can do that."

Once I finish eating, Tom leads me out of my room and down to where my belongings are stored. I pull out the Elder Wand, glad for the feeling of having it in my hand again. Wasn't I afraid of using it at one point? I have no idea why.

"You're using the wand you took from Dumbledore now?" Tom says.

"Those assholes with the DMLE broke my own wand," I say, growling a little. Why did I not want to hurt them, anyway? Sometimes, in hindsight, I don't even understand my own actions.

"How were you planning to explain that at school?" Tom asks.

"I hadn't really been thinking that far ahead," I say. "I had other things on my mind to worry about." I smirk at him.

But then his words sink in a moment later, and I realize that he'll be letting me go to school come September. That brings a smile to my face. I've had enough of fighting him, that's for sure. See where this path will lead, no regrets, no looking back.

"Perhaps you could claim that you won it back from Lord Voldemort in a bold confrontation, also explaining why you have been missing the past week," Tom suggests. "I'll back you up on it."

"You'd paint yourself as losing to Harry Potter?" I ask.

"No," Tom says. "I'd paint Voldemort as losing to Harry Potter."

I think on that for a moment, and then laugh. "Playing both sides?"

"Indeed," Tom says, grinning. "And when Lord Voldemort is eventually defeated, by Tom Riddle and his apprentice, Harry Potter, of course, they will feel safe, having no idea that their world has already been turned upside down."

"Very cunning," I say.

Tom brings me out to another room, where we find one of the men who I'd killed during my escape attempt.

"Hello, Rabastan," Tom says with a small grin.

"Huh, who is this?" Rabastan asks.

"This is Lexen Chelseer," Tom says. "Perhaps my apprentice, in the near future."

Rabastan looks at me dubiously. "What makes you think you can pass muster?"

"Go ahead, Lexen," Tom says. "Let's see what you can do."

"Imperio!" I say, pointing my wand at Rabastan. It slips, and I don't get a firm hold on his mind.

Rabastan snorts softly. "You'll have to do better than that, Chelseer."

"Imperio!" I cast. This was never an easy spell for me to cast, for one who believes so strongly in free will. But I know the trick to casting it. I bring forth all the will and pride I can muster.

Rabastan shudders for a moment as my spell slips into his mind. I don't have a very strong grip, but it's a grip nonetheless. I exert my own mind and power upon him, locked into a battle of wills with this Death Eater.

Kneel, I think at him. Kneel before me!

Rabastan, still fighting it, jerkily goes to his knees.

I am the Stormseeker. Heir of the Children of the Dragon's Blood. The Dark Lord's own apprentice. I deserve your respect. Bow down to me!

I have a firm hold on him now. Rabastan lets out a deep breath as his resistance fades, and he bows his head toward me. "My Lord."

"Do not be ashamed that you fell before my might," I say. "I can command dragons. What are you compared to that?"

"Yes, my Lord," Rabastan says quietly, looking at the floor.

"Make him do something he would never do," Tom says.

"That might be difficult," I say. "To think of something, I mean. I don't think he has many principles." I smirk.

Tom smirks. "I'm sure you can think of something. At least something he would not wish to do."

"Can I kill him?" I ask, looking at Tom hopefully.

Tom chuckles in amusement. "No, you may not."

"Alright," I say, a little disappointed, but I hadn't really expected anything else.

Cast the Cruciatus Curse on yourself, I command Rabastan.

"Crucio!" says Rabastan, pointing his wand at himself. He doesn't manage to keep it up for more than a few seconds before he falls to the ground twitching.

Tom's lips quirk. "Now, why did you do that?"

"Because it amused me," I reply.

"You've done well, Lexen," Tom says. "You can release him now."

I cancel my curse. Rabastan slumps to the floor, released from the spell, then gets up and gives me a glare. I smirk at him and don't bother giving him the dignity of a response. Tom and I turn and leave the room.

Once we're back out in the hallway, Tom points his wand at me and says, "Placeo."

I shudder with pleasure for a few moments, and murmur, "Thank you, my lord."

Tom gives me a small grin, but says nothing. We move on into the next room, where his brother currently is.

"Good day, Rodolphus," Tom drawls.

"Good day?" Rodolphus snaps, glaring at me. "This is the bastard who killed my wife!"

"And I'd do it a thousand times more," I reply. "Do you want to join her?"

Rodolphus draws his wand on me, and Tom steps aside. Curses burn the air between me and Rodolphus, and one of them strikes me in the right shoulder, searing me painfully.

"Expelliarmus!" I cast with such force that Rodolphus is thrown against the far wall as his wand flies out of his hand. "Incarcerous!"

Ropes spring out of nowhere, binding Rodolphus tightly. It's not perfectly cast, and I think the ropes are probably a little weak, but they'll suffice. I'm glad for practicing dueling with Cassie, since this spell won't actually be covered for another couple of years.

"You'll pay for this!" Rodolphus roars. "My brother--"

"--has gotten what's coming to him, too," I say. "I'm dealing with you right now, however."

Rodolphus looks hopefully to Tom. "Are you just going to let him do whatever he wants to me?"

"Yes," Tom says, smirking. "I am testing him to see if he is worthy of being my apprentice. Be honored that you are able to be useful to me in this way."

Rodolphus grumbles under his breath, then turns his glare back to me defiantly. "So, what'll it be? What are you going to do now, huh?"

I know I can cast the Imperius Curse. I've never cast the Cruciatus Curse before, however. I know the principles behind it, however. I know that these spells require strong emotions to cast properly, along with intent. Anger alone isn't enough to cast the Killing Curse, for instance. I need to have the intent and desire to kill, as well. Which is why I could never cast it against Tom Riddle, but that's another matter.

So, in order to cast the Cruciatus Curse, not only do I need the negative emotions, but also the desire to hurt someone. It's a weapon of pure sadism, that I never had any wish to master. There's never any good reason to want to cast this spell.

But if anyone deserves this, it's the Lestranges. For what they did to the Longbottoms. For what Bellatrix did to me. She took me into the pits of despair, and all that came out of the other side was rage and hatred. I won't look back.

"Crucio!" I cast.

It only keeps him down for a second. "What, is that the best you can do?" Rodolphus mocks me.

I grit my teeth, and repeat, "Crucio!"

Another second. "You should just give up on the Unforgivables," Rodolphus says. "You clearly aren't cut out for them. What are you, some light wizard playing with fire?"

I bite back a retort of my own. No, I won't give him the satisfaction of that. I'm a damned dark wizard, and I'm not ashamed of that fact. And if I want to earn my place as the Dark Lord's apprentice, then I must cast this spell.

"Crucio!" I say.

Two seconds. Rodolphus is laughing at me more than screaming. "What's the problem, huh?"

I look to Tom and say quietly, "I've got a mental block with it that I'm going to have to overcome. I had to do it with the other two. It took me quite a while to manage it."

Rodolphus overheard me, however. "Oh, come on! It's not exactly difficult to cast that spell! I got it on my first try!" He looks to Tom. "Is this the sort of apprentice you really want? I'm sure you can find much better than this scum."

"Crucio!" I snap.

I manage to hold it almost three seconds this time before I can't maintain it any longer. I know the problem isn't with the power level or the strength of emotion behind it. I'm using the fucking Elder Wand, for Merlin's sake, and I certainly hate this bloke enough. Why could I make his brother cast the curse on himself, but it barely works when I try to use it myself?

"A mental block, hmm?" Tom drawls.

I give a small nod, glaring at Rodolphus. "Casting these spells requires some interesting mental acrobatics for me," I murmur. I laugh aloud. "Although I'll admit that it wasn't nearly as hard as getting the Patronus Charm to work. That took me years."

Compared to that, this should be easy. The only obstacle here is my own mind. I take a deep breath, and try to focus. I think on my anger at Bellatrix. How I enjoyed killing her. How much I wanted to hurt her for what she did to me. I will not be helpless again. I will not be a victim. I refuse.

But how could I subject someone else to what I was subjected to? I know that the trouble is that I don't really want to cast it, no matter how much I think I want to hurt him.

"Fucking Patronus Charm," Rodolphus spits. "You're nothing more than a light wizard wishing he were dark, who doesn't understand what the dark is really about!"

"Crucio!" I growl. Two seconds. "If you're so wise, then why don't you tell me?"

"You have to really feel it," Rodolphus says. "You have to embrace the dark, welcome it without question in all its aspects. It won't accept any half-measures. Give everything, or forget about it."

"You question yourself," Tom adds. "You doubt yourself. So long as your mind is divided, you cannot succeed."

I sigh. "I know."

Even if I don't understand why I should feel the least bit of sympathy for this monster. Am I really a failure as a dark wizard? Am I doomed to be a prisoner and a slave, simply because I cannot break a simple mental block? Is there one spell which I will just never be able to cast no matter how hard I try?

No. I refuse to accept that. I refuse to accept that.

If my life is at stake, then the world can burn. If something is standing in the way of what I want, then I will stop at nothing to remove that obstacle.

Even if that obstacle is myself.

I can... almost... feel... something... cracking...

"CRUCIO!" I shriek.

Power floods through me like water rushing through a broken dam. Rodolphus is screaming. Writhing and screaming. Suffer, you son of a bitch, SUFFER!

I'm lost in the wonderful feeling of dark magic. The power is such a thrill. To know that I hold someone's life in my hands. To demonstrate my superiority so clearly.

I don't want to stop. I don't want to end it. But I feel a firm hand on my shoulder. I glance up into Tom's face, blinking a little.

"You can stop now," Tom says gently.

"Yes, sir," I say quietly, releasing Rodolphus from my curse.

Rodolphus stop screaming, curls up, panting and twitching on the floor. I look down at him blankly. Should I feel bad for him? Why should I? I can't deny that I enjoyed that. And I don't see why I shouldn't.

The walls are down. I can't put them back up. I'm just left to wonder exactly what it is that I have lost. Was it worth the price?

Tom leads me back out of the room, and I follow him blindly, lost in the tangle of my own thoughts.

"I was not certain if you were going to be capable of casting that," Tom says.

"Neither was I," I admit. "But I wasn't about to take no for an answer. Not even from my own mind."

"You did very well, Lexen," Tom says, grinning at me. "I am most pleased with you." He raises his wand and points it at me. "Placeo."

He keeps the spell up for several minutes, leaving me writhing on the floor in pleasure rather than pain.

"Expelliarmus!" cries a voice, and the sensation is interrupted by Tom's wand flying out of his hand. Cassie? What in the Abyss is she doing here? "You leave him alone!"

"Cassie!" I say, climbing to my feet.

She's standing in the double doors at the entryway, Draco behind her, and both of them have their wands pointed at Tom.

"Harry, come on, we're here to rescue you," Cassie says.

"No, we're here to see if you need to be rescued," Draco corrects.

"How quaint," Tom says, looking over at them, his lips twitching in annoyance.

"Put your wands away, guys," I say. "I'm fine. I don't need to be rescued."

"See, I told you," Draco says.

"How can we be sure of that?" Cassie says.

"Cassie..." I say. "Why did you bring Draco along?"

"He insisted," Cassie says.

"I was feeling Gryffindorish," Draco says.

"That's not even a word," I say, smirking.

"Harry, do tell your friends to stand down," Tom says in a droll voice. "I'm going to need to check the wards."

"You think those wards can keep me out?" Cassie says. "I am Cassiopeia Black!"

"Yes, yes," Tom says. "Do listen to your boyfriend."

"Cassie," I say quietly, going over to her. "Look. I'm armed. I have my belongings. I'm not being held prisoner or anything. And I can shake off the Imperius Curse."

"Then why are you here?" Cassie wonders, looking up at me, gray eyes bright with unshed tears.

"It's alright, Cassie," I say, putting an arm around her. "He's offered to make me his apprentice. He's offered to teach me."

"But... I can teach you, too," Cassie says, still looking hurt.

"Why can't I learn from both of you?" I say. "There's so much that can be learned. The whole of the multiverse is at my fingertips, and I want to learn it all."

Cassie sighs and pulls away from me, and goes over to Tom, who has retrieved his wand and is waving it about at the walls and ceiling. Tom pauses in what he's doing and looks down at her.

"Harry is mine," Cassie says. "You can't have him."

"An awfully bold declaration," Tom says. "And what does he think about that?"

"I think that I don't belong to anyone. I'm not a piece of property, and I'm nobody's slave," I reply, sighing. "Damn it, Cassie..."

Cassie looks over at me, still hurt. "I didn't mean it like that..."

"Oh, for fuck's sake," Draco says, putting his face in his palm. "Look, aren't we all on the same side here?"

"I'm on Harry's side," Cassie says.

"I'm on the Dark Lord's side," I say.

"Exactly," Draco says. "What's the problem?"

"You just don't understand," Cassie says.

"I don't know that I want to," Draco says. "But playing tug-of-war with Harry Potter is just a little ridiculous. It's not like the Dark Lord wants to sleep with him or anything!" Draco stares at Tom's expression, and frowns. "Or does he?"

I rub my eyes. "I do believe that's the case, yes."

"Alright, you know what?" Draco says. "I'm going... outside. Come and find me when the world makes sense again." He strides back out the double doors.

"You--" Cassie says, glaring at Tom.

"Oh, please," Tom says. "You don't even know who he is."

"Of course I do," Cassie says. "He's Harry Potter. The Boy-Who-Lived, and all that dragon crap."

"Cassie..." I say.

"Aren't you?" Cassie says, looking at me questioningly.

"No," I say. "I'm Lexen Chelseer. I am not, and never have been, Harry Potter. I'm sorry that I lied to you, but it was easier if fewer people knew about it. The only one who knew about it was Dumbledore, and the Dark Lord found out after Dumbledore died."

"But..." Cassie says, blinking at me. "Where's the real Harry Potter, then?"

"Dead at the age of five," I say. "I agreed to this charade primarily to spare Dumbledore the embarrassment of admitting his mistake. You better believe I blackmailed the Abyss out of him before I would agree to do it."

"I-- I don't know what to make of this," Cassie says. "I thought we were family..."

"Technically, I'm Harry Potter's second cousin on his mum's side," I say. "So no, we're not related. But isn't that a good thing? I mean, a great-aunt hooking up with her grand-nephew seems a little creepy..."

"Sirius's parents were first cousins," Cassie points out.

"Right..." I say. "I suppose I can't say much. The Chelseers spent many generations marrying their second cousins or so."

"So, um..." Cassie looks between me and Tom, who is standing there with his arms folded across his chest, watching us. She lowers her voice to a stage whisper. "Do you... you know... like him?"

My face burns. "Cassie..."

"You do, don't you," Cassie says, sighing.

"He hasn't so much as come out and said it yet," Tom says wryly.

"Fine," Cassie says. "I can work with this. I'll just have to win you over, then!"

"Clearly, him not actually being Harry Potter doesn't bother you that much," Tom says in amusement.

"It bothers me that he lied to me!" Cassie snaps. "But I suppose I can't really say anything. I'm acquainted with plenty of students at Hogwarts who think I'm Sirius's daughter. It's not like he was impersonating anyone I actually knew, anyway. I love him for who he is, not Harry Potter."

"Do you really want to be my rival, Cassiopeia Black?" Tom says.

"I'm not afraid of you," Cassie says. "Dark Lord or no."

"Guys?" I say. "I really don't see why there needs to be any problem here..."

"You stay out of this," Cassie snaps.

I blink at her. "Right, I think I'm with Draco on this. Call me when the world makes sense again."

I step outside, finding Draco sitting on a stone bench by the garden, and slump down next to him. It's a beautiful evening, the stars beginning to twinkle in the sky in the dimming light of dusk. To think I could easily escape now, if I really wanted to. But that doesn't matter anymore. I almost have to laugh at the irony that if I had held out just one more day, my friends would have come to save me.

"Did that seriously just happen, or am I hallucinating?" Draco asks.

"That just happened," I say.

"Ugh," Draco says, sighing. "So, um, Harry, purely out of curiosity. Are you gay, or not?"

I snort softly. "Yes, no, maybe?" I shrug. "I like men. I like women, too. Provided they're badass enough, whether they're male or female."

"Just so long as you don't start hitting on me," Draco says, smirking.

"Not unless you quit proclaiming your heterosexuality quite so vehemently," I reply.

After a little while, Cassie and Tom come out. At least they don't seem to be openly starting duels to the death over me. I'd have to draw the line at that.

"Well, now that that's settled," Tom says. "Where would you prefer to spend the remainder of the summer?"

"I'd rather go home, honestly," I say. "If I were living under the same roof as Rodolphus and Rabastan Lestrange, I don't know that I could restrain the urge to murder them forever." I smirk. "Although I'd rather like it if all of you were there as well."

Tom gives a nod. "I don't like that all of the Order of the Phoenix know about it, but I can turn that to my advantage." He gives a sly grin.

"They won't know what hit them," Draco says.