The Pillars Four

A/N -- Special thanks to Diamond Angel, my loffly beta. Thanks to treeperson for keeping my confidence healthy, and to Tine my soulmate!

The hooded cloak did nothing to shield his face from the glare of the fire as he worked, but it offered some comfort of disguise. Even though he was alone in his desolate workplace, he still felt the urging compulsion to cover himself from prying eyes. It made him feel safer, more secure than if his head had been uncovered.

The young girl's screams pierced his quiet contemplation, and he quickly cast a Silencing Charm on her, one that Rowena had perfected rather quickly under complicated circumstances. Rowena . . . just the name was enough to send his heart pounding wretchedly against his chest and his hands shaking. She was the cause of all this. It was her fault.

No matter. Anything she could do, he could certainly do at least ten times better. And he was going to prove it, by any means necessary.

The tiny amulet attached to his wand clinked against his hand warmly, reminding him of his larger purpose. This was not revenge. It was to see the extent that magic could reach, to stretch the boundaries of what they already knew, to reach into the darkness and pull out knowledge. And here, there was no Rowena to stop him. Nobody inching over his shoulder trying to make sure he was safe. He could take as many risks as he wanted, with nobody to care. Well, almost nobody.

He stood from his workbench and approached the quivering girl, barely seventeen and cowering on the floor. He dropped to his knees and pushed back his hood, allowing a reassuring smile to spread over his lips. It almost hurt; he was out of practice.

"Don't fret, dear," he whispered, reaching out a hand to brush her hair flat. She cringed away from his touch, as far as her bonds would allow her, "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm going to make you better, stronger, more powerful than anything you could have imagined." She closed her eyes against his touch, but he didn't allow impatience to cloud his judgment.

Those bloody Muggles. Once they had heard a wizard was in the area, they had sacrificed this girl to 'appease' him. Disgusting. The extent of Muggle stupidity never failed to cause him nausea. This girl didn't know how her own parents had betrayed her, how her entire village had agreed unanimously that she should die a horrid death at the hands of a wizard -- or witch, as the Muggles incorrectly termed. Wizards were male, and witches were female. Last time he had checked, he was certainly a male.

Male enough, he remembered with a wry grin.

Still, memories aside (some recollections are too painful) he stood and brushed off the knees of his pants. The cave wasn't exactly the cleanest of places to work, but it was the most secluded. No Muggle would dare set foot near his camp in the dark, and he got the most work done after the sun had retired. Sure the occasional trespasser would take a dare and try to speak with him, but a well-placed Jelly-Legs Jinx or Leg-Locker curse sent them crawling on their way. They never bothered him for too long.

The candles were flickering dangerously low as he began the final preparations for his experiment.

"Please come here." He released the girl but she remained where she was. His hood had gone back up, and now he pushed it back again so that she could see his face. "I'm not going to hurt you. I just need you to sleep for a few hours." He cast her a gentle smile, knowing how ignorant she was to her family's betrayal. Muggles trusted so easily all the things that were fleeting in life -- power, love, hate. It was sickening.

Her face still wary, the girl nevertheless stumbled shakily over to him, possibly suspecting no cruel intentions. He took her hand and helped her to lie on the table he had prepared, underneath the mistletoe and between the adlevice and white roses. He rested a hand on her forehead and whispered a spell that would put her to sleep -- something he had learned the hard way. He again pushed the memories from his mind. It wouldn't do for it to drift thoughtlessly while he was performing complex magic.

The girl slept soundly. She really was beautiful for the tender age of seventeen. He certainly had not slept that peacefully at seventeen. Cursing himself, he set his mind forcibly back on his objective. He had to concentrate. He didn't want to lose this girl because of his starry-eyed contemplations.

He scattered pure mint leaves across her clothed body and rested a silver coin at the center of her forehead, just above quaintly furrowed eyebrows. Then, he sat back and started reciting the spell he had created.

Much to his concern, his patient started thrashing on the bed when he was nearly finished. It was too late to stop now, though. He had to continue.

A/N - Reviewing is good karma!