Of Shadow, Shine, and Shades

Ch.17 Before His Eyes

In the end Caelum had not expected their meeting to be so sudden. He had been surprised when their paths had crossed in Diagon Alley but he had not even considered he might not control the circumstances of their next meeting. Then the git pops up right when Arcturus dies and Caelum found himself frozen on the spot and his eyes glued on the tall and lanky profile. He could not even shake himself out of his stupor as he was far too overcome by it.

His robes were black - as always. Caelum had never seen his lover wear another colour and the mage had to admit that the threateningly billowing garment was as much a part of Severus Snape as his wand. These robes were of good material but not as good as Caelum was used to seeing. His eyes travelled upwards, pausing at the hands. The right one was holding a familiar wand; ash, thirteen and half inches, dragon heartstring core. He had seen that wand in action so many times that the mere sight of it being held made his heart lurch uncomfortably. Whether it had slashed across their enemies or spun delicate webs of healing magic over his overexerted body, he knew that wand. He knew that wand better than the hands that held it for these lacked so many of the miniscule scars that Caelum had not even known he expected to see. There should have been a scratch mark from Crookshanks' claws across the back of the left hand and a burn mark on the middle finger of left hand from when he had tackled his lover into the fading embers of the fireplace. They should have been there.

No. Not on this Sev. This is not mine, not the one I know. Not the one that knows me, the shocked man admonished himself and finally allowed his eyes to drink in the face of his dead lover. Except this was not how he was supposed to look.

The body was the same, the clothes and the wand were so familiar. But the face, the face screamed this to be a different person. How could he not have noticed it in Diagon Alley? Had he been this blind? The skin was sallow and pale to the point it was sickly looking. The black hair - Sev's perfect hair for running fingers through - was full of grease and hang limply on the shoulders, flattened against the skull. There was no scar running across the left eye. He was so young.

Except for the eyes. The eyes that were just as black as those Caelum remembered but did not soften with the familiar emotion as they stared back at him. They were the eyes of a weary man, of a suspicious man. Of a man who undoubtedly was beginning to question Caelum's sanity as he stayed frozen on the spot and stared without shame.

"Your arrival is as punctual as always, Severus," Lucius greeted. His hand swept over the room. "However, as you see, the meeting should be rescheduled. Unfortunately Mister Arcturus Black has just suffered a heart failure."

The words might have seemed cruel but they were enough to shake Caelum out of his shock. He stood up, and stepped closer to the Healers letting his attention seemingly leave the man in the doorway. In truth his entire body had lit up the moment the other wizard had entered and he was hyperaware of the other's position. He could not shut away his reaction but hoped it did not show.

"Excuse me, sir? You used direct channelling to Heal him?"

It was one of the arrivals from St. Mungos and his robes declared him to be a Senior Healer. He stared expectantly at Caelum who, after a moment's thought, nodded slowly. "Yes. I am Caelum Black, Head of the Black family. That is... was my grandfather Arcturus Black. I attempted to keep him stable until you arrived but the nearness of death stirred the old wounds and his life could not bear the strain."

"Have you been trained as a Healer?"

He was not certain whether the man was accusing him or complementing him. He was also nearly unbearably aware that everyone in the room was listening in on them and most of all - this Severus was listening to him. Caelum gave a neutral answer, managing to keep his voice steady, "I have picked up a skill or two in my life. However, only the most rudimentary and crude skills when it comes to Healing."