Pain. White, blinding pain. Sucking in a breath, eyes centered on a blind point in the air. The room was dark save for the fire merrily burning away in the fire place. Strange dark shadows cast the pale face into drastic relief.

A moment passed and the face was blissfully blank of emotions before once again contorting in pain. Tense seconds ticked by before the pain left. In its place was perverted glee, soon a manic laughter filled the room.

Dark, blood eyes danced with sick mirth.

"Yess, pain iss what he desservess." Again the laughter sounded. A light hissing was heard from some dark corner near the fireplace.

sSs

Encompassing darkness, blinding pain, the junction of the two walls behind his back kept him anqored to conciousness. The dark mottled shadows of bruises created patterns across his porcelin pale skin.

One eye blinked slowly, the other glued shut by blood. Blood dry and flaking fell from his face to his exposed front.

Abused vocal cords stung, "Father... please come."

Large luminous yellow eyes blinked in the dark room, a quiet hoot meet his ears.

sSs

Down the table conversation stopped, both men looked toward the two blonds down from them. Medea, unsure of what she could say to the youth looked to her husband and brother-in-law. Both looked at one another before moving down the table to sit closer.

Severus cleared his thoat, "Draco, remember what had happened the other night... what you saw?" With an answering nod he continued. "I had recieved a letter informing me of a son I never knew I had. It's because of who I am and who he is that certain measures need to be taken."

"But where am I in all this?"

"Because of your revelation last night and what it means, measures need to betaken with you as well. I spoke with both Romulus and Medea, they've agreed to take you in and... have you pose as their son for your protection." Severus finished, hesitancy showing somewhat in his dark eyes. It was sometime before the Draco finally spoke.

"What does that entail? and will Dumbledore know about this?"

"You'll have to wear a strong glamorie, re-enter Hogwarts, and as said pose as our son... though the choice is up to you... and no. Dumbledore will not know about this." This surpriningly came from Medea, all said in a calm though serious voice.

All three adults watched as Draco mulled over his decision, he looked up to Severus and finally spoke.

"What about this son of yours?" This of course had at first caught Draco off guard when he first heard of it, though having been given something else to think about forgot about it for a moment.

Severus cleared his throat a bit, "He will enter Hogwarts along with you. Though until he is brought here and spoken to, some of the plans made now will be a bit open ended." At this Draco grew quiet once again starring off into space.

"I'll do it."

sSs

The upper level held the bedrooms and bathroom as Severus came to findafter having looked about the bottom floor. The hallway was dark, though the five doors were easily seen despite the lack of light. One of the rooms was obviously the bathroom while three of them were the master bedroom, boys room, and a guestroom. So that left the last room at the end of the hall to be his sons room.

Standing in front of the door he felt his stomach drop just slightly at seeing the deadbolt and normal door lock keeping the door shut. With a whispered alohamora the locks clicked open, with steady hands the door was opened and he slid into the room.

The presentedwas small, smaller than what he'd expected, that was furnished by what looked to be a twin bed, a worn desk, a trunk, and an empty cage. Peering threw the darkness as best as his eyes could, Severus took notice that the bed was empty and that the desk chair was missing a slat fron the back. Looking further still he saw that one of the corners of the room, the furthest from the door, was darker than the orthers.

Upon stepping closer his breath stuck in his throat and his heart gave a painful jolt. There in the corner, curled as tightly and closely to the two walls as he could was his son.

His arms and legs were held close to the body, a heavy breathing was the only noise to come from the boy.

"Lumos." Soft light lit the corner to reveal more of the damage, swallowing thickly, Severus knelt down. Where bruises or blood didn't cover the skin was pale and raised with gooseflesh despite the warm summer heat. Though it was the boys face that worried him more than the prospect of a fever, if only slightly.

A dark bruise marred the right side of his face, just under the eye. The bottom lip was split and swollen, but it was the left side that worried him the most. In a jagged line, was a blood clotted gash that ran from the hairline down over the eyebrow and down, ending just shy of the jawline. The area around the gash was raised and swelling, blood keeping the eye shut. Letting out a breath at seeing that the eye escaped any real damage, he reached out a hand.

His long fingered hand very gently touched the top of boys head, feeling that the hair was oily and becoming damp with sweat. It was with that touch that one eye opened and stared with first fear, then relief.

"Father." The word was low and cracked from a voice strained from obvious misuse and undoubtlyscreams. The dark eye held Severus' own black ones before falling closed once again. For a moment, before carefully placing his sons body in a deep sleep and modified bodybind, Severus mused over the fact that the color of the eye was not an emeralde green but was an onyx like his own.