NEVERENDING CIRCLE

Headquarters of the Dark Lord

Unplottable

December 24, 3577 A.D.

"My Lord! My Lord!"

A lone figure shroud in darkness bent over an ancient manuscript lit by a single candle looked up with narrowed crimson eyes. He lifted a pale finger from the text while lifting his handsome face to look at the fool that dared to disrupt his activity. The look was enough to terrify the man who had rushed into the room. After all, no one wanted the aristocratic visage to look at them in contempt or displeasure for it only signaled a painful outcome.

Just as the figure pulled out his wand, the man gasped out, "My Lord, we've captured the Minister for Magic!" as he all but collapsed onto the ground. It was evident that he had ran quite a distance to relay this information.

The only sign that the man, also known as Lord Voldemort, had heard was the slight widening of his eyes. All previous plans to curse his servant forgotten, Voldemort asked silkily, "Tell me Aldwin, where is he? And how did this happen?"

The man gasped out his answer with one knee bent and both fists on the ground. With his head bent down, his position one of respect, he said, "The Minister was out shopping in Diagon Alley, my Lord! Mallory and Ghirard saw through his disguise and contacted Wissick, Marcus, Vectus, and myself. We were all able to surprise and stun the Minister just as he was leaving Knockturn Alley, my Lord! We portkeyed him back to manor and he's currently in the dungeons awaiting your orders."

Aldwin can see the Dark Lord stroking his wand from the corner of his eye. He smirked into the ground, knowing that his Lord was pleased with his work and would soon be rewarded for his hard work. He knew that the Dark Lord was merciless with failure, but very gracious with success. Aldwin was all but salivating at the prospect of riches, or even a position within the Inner Circle – the coveted prize that many would kill for.

Voldemort's crimson eyes narrowed in pleasure. He purred out, "Where are your fellow partners, Aldwin? Do they not want their rewards?"

"Mallory, Ghirard, and Wissick are in the dungeons, my Lord. Marcus and Vectus both had to see a healer. I believe they wanted to play a little bit with the Minister for all the grief that he's given them." He chuckled in both bloodlust and regret for he could be contributing to the Minister's screams right now. Aldwin missed the way his words caused the Dark Lord to stop stroking his wand but his left hand now clenched it in anger.

"They are what?" he hissed out angrily, his vibrant eyes flashing in anger.

Alarmed, Aldwin stuttered out, "M- my Lor – r – rd! They're d – d – down in the d – dungeons! Does th – that not please m – my Lord?"

Immediately, Voldemort stood up and all but glided over to the cowering figure on the ground. With his left hand, he grabbed one side of the wizard's robes and pulled him up until their faces were mere inches from one another.

"What have I said about touching what is mine, Aldwin?" he said in a quiet hiss. Staring into his eyes, Voldemort can see that the figure was deathly afraid of what the Dark Lord would do to him in his displeasure. Voldemort took pleasure in his before raising his wand.

"Errores Tenebris!" he said while waving his wand in three circular circles followed by a sharp jab.

Immediately, Aldwin's eyes clouded over as a black film-like substance covered his eyes. Lord Voldemort released his minion and backed away three paces, just in time as the man started convulsing and tearing at his forehead and eyes while screaming at the nightmares he saw.

"NO! NOOOO! P – P – PLEASE M-MY LORD! NOOOOOO!"

Voldemort smirked in pleasure. This curse would cast illusions of pain onto his servant. It would seem as if the Dark Lord was overseeing his punishment, but all of the tortures would in fact be all in his mind. As much as Voldemort would love to torture him personally with the Cruciatus curse, he had other more important things, to oversee. His red eyes glowed in anger at what his idiotic followers dared to do to his prey! Quickly, he glided out of the room towards the dungeons, his servant's screams of pain sweet parting music to his ears.

The Ministry of Magic

Office of the Minister

December 24, 3577 A.D.

Harry Potter was not having a good day.

It was the day before Yuletide but he had no idea what to get his lover. Not to mention ever since the breakout of Azkaban two weeks ago and the strengthening of the Dark side's powers, his Senior Undersecretary Marc Anaran and Head Auror Vivian Thurston had all but barricaded him inside his office. The wards of the Ministry had been strengthened drastically since the Azkaban breakout, adding on layers and layers of security to keep out the enemies.

Fearful for Harry's death, Anaran and Thurston accompanied him everywhere within the Ministry, fearful that his capture would lead to the Light's end.

Having every move shadowed for these two weeks had driven him to his wits end. Harry decided that now would be the best time to sneak out and live for a bit. After all, he had some shopping to do and Harry knew that if it got out to the public that the Minister for Magic was seen roaming around Knockturn Alley, it would not be the best image for his current position.

"Marc!" he called out of his open office door.

"Yes, Minister?" said Anaran. A middle aged man appearing to be in his mid-forties stepped into the room. His long black hair was elegantly tied back; the strands at his temple were peppered with varying shades of grey. Lines of stress on his forehead and around his mouth are the only signs of stress from recent years.

Harry rolled his eyes.

"How many times do I have to tell you to call me Harry? Anyways, I would like for you to go find Vivian and comprise a list of 20 or so aurors that can be spared. I want them to situate them in Hogwarts and Hogsmeade to protect the students from raids. Place the list with their names and their specialties on my desk in three hours. I must go speak to Hugh about placing muggleborn families under special wards or the Fidelius Charm for their own protection."

Anaran pauses slightly. Harry knew the man didn't like it that Harry was going anywhere unaccompanied, even if it was just another department within the Ministry. But to Harry's surprise, Anaran then nodded and then left after a "Right away Minister."

Harry blinked, not believing his luck. He was expecting Marc to argue some more before leaving. The man had taken onto the role of the older brother even though Harry had demonstrated time and time again that he was capable of protecting himself. He knew that he could be leading the aurors in battles instead of sitting behind a desk signing papers, but this was the only way to give the Light a fighting chance against the growing darkness.

After the door closed behind Anaran, Harry quickly changed out of his Minister's robes which would have been a dead giveaway into simple black silk robes, one of the few luxuries that he refused to give up over the years. Harry loved the feel of silk robes against his skin and refused to change back to subquality robes. Next he placed a glamour on his face giving himself clear blue eyes speckled with green and shoulder length light brown hair. The lack of glasses (as his vision was permanently corrected years ago) made his eyes appear even more startling. Harry stared at his new image in a glass cabinet reflection. 'Not bad I suppose. Although I look like a dandy' he thought with amusement. After securing his wand in a wand holster on his forearm, Harry apparated to Diagon Alley with a 'crack!'

Harry reappeared in the middle of Diagon Alley. He lost his balance after the apparition and paused slightly to regain his balance. He looked around and noticed that those in the vicinity had startled at his apparition and stared in him in fear, as if expecting him to attack them at any moment. Shoppers everywhere were traveling in packs; no one was alone. Soon, those who were observing him turned back to their own business and continued on their way. Those who read the Prophet knew that Diagon Alley was heavily warded so that those who had the Dark Mark cannot apparated directly in. That way, the only way that the Dark Lord and his Death Eaters can attack Diagon Alley was to come in from the entrances.

Harry quickly put up his hood to further cover his features before walking towards Knockturn Alley, unaware of narrowed eyes observing him.

Harry turned around corner, seeking out Faust & Farber. The store itself was like Borgin & Burke's, except it specialized in dangerous jewelry. He was hoping that the store would have something both beautiful and useful enough to be worth getting his lover. Harry spotted the run-down store next to the apothecary, tucked away in the corner. Knockturn Alley itself was rather empty. Everyone who had someplace to go quickly went there and then left, thus making it easy for Harry to navigate his way to the store.

The bell chimed as he opened the door. The wizard behind the corner turned at the sound and narrowed his eyes at the unknown figure that just walked into his shop.

"What can I do to help you sir?"

"I want a necklace or ring with strong protection charms on it, the strongest you have in this store," replied Harry coolly. Luckily, he'd seen how purebloods talked to those deemed below their station enough times to imitate the tone exactly.

The man shot him a suspicious look before directing him to the back of the shop.

"The ones in this case have the strongest possible charms on them, sir," he said pointing to the small glass case, "Although they are pretty costly."

"Money isn't an issue," replied Harry with the wave of a hand. He peered into the case and examined the selection. His breath caught in his throat at a golden ring of a snake eating its tail. But that wasn't what caught his attention, but the snake's eyes. One eye was a blood red ruby while the other a deep emerald green, just a few shades darker than the Killing Curse green.

"What does that ring do?" he asked pointing to his choice.

The owner followed his fingers before replying, "You've chosen one of our most expensive items in the store, sir. When worn on the wand hand, it protects the owner from being disarmed or having their wand summoned from their hands. It can also absorb minor and some major curses and hexes." Here he paused before continuing, "It can also act as a portkey. You must first go to the destination that you want to portkey to. Once there, you tap your wand to the ring three times and say 'Locus Inventus!' to mark that spot."

Harry raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. After all, portkeys can only be issued by the Ministry and all others were seen as illegal, punishable by a hefty fine or even a couple weeks in Azkaban. However, Harry was in a good mood having found the perfect Yuletide present.

He smirked at the store owner and said, "I'll take it!"

After paying for the ring, Harry pocketed his purchase and left the store. He cursed under his breath after realizing that he'd been gone for over an hour and knew that Anaran and Thurston would be in his office shortly. He quickly turned the corner, intending to go back to Diagon Alley so he can apparate back into his office with no one the wiser of his excursion outside the Ministry. But before he reached the Alley, he heard a voice behind him.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the Minister for Magic. Out for a stroll in Knockturn Alley," said a voice tauntingly.

Harry stiffened and turned around, seeing six Death Eaters in front of him, all armed with their wands.

Not liking the odds, Harry replied calmly, "I don't know what you're talking about, gentlemen."

"You can drop the disguise, Potter. These glasses can see through any illusions," said the voice on his left, who he recognized to be Ghirard. Harry inwardly cursed his luck, but at the same time, his heart pounded in excitement. This was what he was born to do – fight on the battlefield, not sit behind a desk signing papers.

With a slight flick of his wrist, the wand in his holster slid into his hands. He dropped his disguise with a slight tap to his temple. Before their eyes, the Minister for Magic appeared, his legendary lightning bolt scar appearing.

Harry grinned roguishly.

"Well, looks like I've been found out. Are we ready for some fun, gentlemen?"

The Death Eater on his right, Vectus, fired the first curse towards him. Harry jumped to the side to avoid the orange colored curse.

"Italosi!" cried Harry in retaliation as thick black mist bled out from his wand and swirled towards the Death Eaters.

Wissick cried out, "Pelle Aere!" to counter Harry's spell. While Wissick was dispelling the black fog, Harry barely had time to conjured up three glass mirrors to surround him as a shield against Marcus and Ghirard's curses. When the curses connected, two panes shattered, blinding everyone with small glass shards. Harry quickly covered his face with his left hand while muttering a "Bombarda!" while pointing his wand in the direction of the last glass pane. The last mirror shattered and glass shards flew in every direction, causing the Death Eaters to be temporarily blinded.

Harry hissed as a piece of glass cut across his left cheek, but Harry used his tactic as a distraction and quickly disillusioned himself. Once the shards settled, the Death Eaters were at a standstill, eyes darting everywhere looking for the Minister.

Before they can find out where he was, Harry brought up his wand hand and made vicious slashing motions towards all six while thinking, "Sectumsempra!"

But Mallory had already conjured up a shield with a quick "PROTEGO!"

Meanwhile Vectus sent a bone crushing hex in his direction, having deduced where he was from a tiny blood droplet that fell from the cut on his cheek. Harry groaned in pain as the hex connected with his left hand, effectively crushing his whole forearm. He barely had time to produce an invisible bubble shield before Ghirard's curse connected with it. The other Death Eaters knew his general direction from Vectus' previous curse. Harry quickly numbed his entire left hand so as to not get in the way of his dueling.

He narrowed his eyes in anger before lowering the bubble shield and sending out a flesh dissolving curse. The deep sapphire blue curse hit Vectus , causing him to go down screaming in pain as his skin began to dissolve as if acid was sprayed on him. Harry smirked. Just because he was the Minister for the Light doesn't mean he couldn't use some dark curses. What the people didn't know never hurt them, after all.

Seeing Vectus go down, the other five Death Eaters attacked more vehemently. Harry traded curses for several more minutes, managing to hit Marcus with a blood boiling curse. They dueled for what seemed like hours before Wissick managed to stun the Minister. Hearing the thud of a body, Aldwin muttered, "Finite Incantatem!" causing Harry's disillusioned form to become visible.

"Quick!" said Mallory, "Grab his wand," he told Ghirard, "Aldwin, go get Marcus and Vectus. We need to portkey out of here quickly before his bodyguards come looking!"

The four quickly left after vanishing the glass and all other evidence of their duel, portkeying to the dungeons of their hideout.

The first thing Harry was aware of as he woke up was the overwhelming pain on his left hand. He looked down and wished that he hadn't instantly. His hand was limp and littered with cuts. 'Darn, I can't fix this robe either. And it was one of my favorites, too' he thought in dark humor. Finally looking at his surroundings and taking in the dark, dank stone walls, he figured he was in the Death Eaters' dungeons somewhere.

"Seems like the Minster's finally awake, Ghirard!" sad a voice from outside the dungeons. Harry blinked twice to clear his vision before hearing the clang of the cell being unlocked. Two Death Eaters entered the cell, both playing with their wands. It was so dark that Harry could barely make out the gleeful glint in their eyes.

"Why Mallory, I wonder what our Minister looks like screaming. Don't you think black is a terrible color on him? I think red would suit his pale complexion better, don't you?" asked Wissick mockingly.

"I quite agree. Pity we must save him for our Lord. Crucio!"

The next thing Harry knew was the immense pain. He bit his lip hard enough to draw blood, refusing to give them the satisfaction of him screaming. It seemed as if needles were pressing in everywhere. He lurched forward, uselessly hoping that it would decrease the pain, but ended up jostling his shattered hand, which (if possible) increased his pain even more. Harry didn't know if it was seconds or minutes that flew by until the spell ended, giving him a slight reprieve. He panted, catching his breath. It seemed that being exposed to the curse over the years did not help much with tolerance.

"Come now Mallory! You couldn't even make him scream," Ghirard taunted, "Let's see if three Cruciatuses can loosen our Minister's tongue."

"CRUCIO!" all three cried in glee in unison while pointing at their fallen victim.

The pain before felt nothing like this. Not even caring about his injured arm, Harry writhed on the ground, clawing at his chest, arms, face, anywhere to stop the pain. Seconds flew by until he could stand it no longer, and released a heart shattering scream, not even noticing the Death Eaters' laughter.

Suddenly, in the back of his mind, he heard a loud bang as metal met stone. The sound reverberated in the room while the Unforgivable was suddenly lifted. Harry slumped against the wall, his vision darkening, barely noticing as the three figures of his tormentors were thrown against the wall. The last thing he was aware of was a pair of gleaming red eyes approaching him with a fierce look before Harry lost all consciousness.

Harry blinked. He was laying on his front on a huge, plush bed with green silk sheets. His upper body was bare save for the bandages wrapped around his torso. The cool silky sheets helped cool his hot skin and he wanted nothing more than to fall asleep, but instead he blinked to clear his vision some more and tried to remember how he got to this location.

"Awake now, Minister Potter?" said a voice from the foot of his bed.

"Oh sod off, Tom," he grumbled into the mattress, recognizing that voice anywhere and finally realizing how he got to his current predicament.

The voice released a deep chuckle.

"Now, now Minister. You're in the presence of a Dark Lord, after all."

"Dark Lord, my arse!" he said, turning rapidly to glare at the source of the voice. The sudden movement caused a spike of pain about his left side, causing Harry to release a hiss of pain. The Dark Lord Voldemort's crimson eyes flashed momentarily in what seemed like concern before narrowing.

"Be careful, brat! Your whole left side was crushed and a couple ribs were broken. Your back has severe bruising as well."

Harry huffed out in annoyance before turning and laid his head face down on the plush pillow, muffling his retort.

"What was that?" asked the Dark Lord.

"This isn't fair! This doesn't count, I'll have you know! And don't you 'brat' me! I'm over two thousand years old!" Harry replied after tilting his head to the side. Red eyes flashed in amusement, knowing perfectly well what the young Minister meant. Harry felt the mattress give as another figure lowered himself onto the bed.

"Very well," Voldemort purred, "We won't count this. Now hold still so I can apply this bruising balm."

Harry tensed as his back was met with a cool cream before deft fingers massaged it into his back. He groaned in pleasure into the pillow as the Dark Lord continued to massage, helping the cream warm to a comforting warmth.

The voice chuckled again.

"Like that, do you?" Voldemort hissed in parseltongue.

"You bassstard, you know I do!"

"My, my Minister. What a tongue you have. I clearly need to find a better use for it. If you like this so much, my sserpent, I can alwayss give you more," he replied, trailing his hands further down Harry's back, skimming over where Harry's skin met his trousers. Harry's hitched breath and (unseen) flushed face was the only sign that he heard. Even though he's felt those hands countless times over the many years they've spent together, it never failed to send a spike of arousal through his body, centering at his lower body. 'Merlin, it's been way too long,' he thought in pleasure.

Suddenly the deliciously sinful fingers on the small of his back was lifted and the figure laid down, reclining on one hand, regarding the deceptively young man laying down next to him.

"Wha—" sputtered Harry. Voldemort smirked.

"Unfortunately we can't do much elsse with you in your current condition."

Harry released a breath of irritation before plopping down on the pillow once again. He turned to watch his lover. They looked at each other in silence until Harry remembered something.

"What happened to thossse men I met?" he asked curiously. Red eyes narrowed in anger before a spark of satisfaction appeared.

"They won't be moving anytime soon," said the Dark Lord in gleeful pleasure.

Harry smirked before asking, "How long was I out?"

"About a day and a half," said the voice in concern, "The Cruciatus left your nervous system in bad condition. Not to mention your whole hand was crushed. We had to remove the all of the bones since there was no home savaging it and just regrew all of your bones from scratch with Skele-Gro," he explained as if peeved by this whole incident.

"Merlin! Marc and Vivian are never going to let me out of their sight after this!" he groaned in exasperation.

"What makes you think I will allow you to return to them, my serpent?" he asked while sensuously trailing a finger down Harry's cheek, "I have a good mind to lock you up here for the rest of eternity. Chain you to this bed for all eternity, allowing only me to see you. To take you every day until the end of time."

Harry flushed brightly before retorting. "You said this wouldn't count!"

After achieving immortality many millennia ago, both engaged in an endless war, helping a specific side win. The victor can order the loser to do anything for a year behind closed doors. After a couple decades, they would rebel and cause another war, but both would switch sides and start all over. It was their never-ending chess battle and a way to entertain themselves as the years passed with neither showing any signs of aging. Thus far, both were almost at a dead stalemate—both winning and losing the same amount of times, although the Dark Lord was ahead by a count of two.

"Indeed, but they do not need you to continue with the war."

"Maybe not continue, but they don't stand a chance if I don't help them!"

The Dark Lord rolled his eyes. "Very well, but only because it would pose somewhat of a challenge."

A though sudden occurred to the Minister. 'If I've been out for a day and a half, then today must be Christmas!' Looking around, he spotted his wand on the dresser. Reaching out with his right hand, he grabbed it and wordlessly summoned his , which came sailing out of his robe's pocket on the ground. Grabbing it with the same hand, he grinned and extended it to his companion.

"Happy Christmas! Sorry I couldn't wrap it. Your men caught me off guard…"

Voldemort examined the ring in his hand, taking in the symbolism behind the serpent's unique eye colors. His expression was unreadable.

Harry bit his lip in nervousness. "If you don't like it, I can –"

But Voldemort cut him off before he can finish his sentence.

"Thank you, Harry," he said softly, the sincerity in his eyes.

Harry brightened before replying, "You're welcome! Wear it on your wand hand and it'll protect against being disarmed and your wand being summoned. It'll also protect against minor hexes too. And it can also act as a portkey. You just go to where you want to portkey to and tap your wand to the ring three times and say 'Locus Inventus.'"

Voldemort slid the ring onto his right ring finger, examining how the snake's eyes caught in the light.

The next thing Harry knew, Voldemort's mouth was firmly placed over his. He moaned into the kiss, giving the Dark Lord the opening he needed to plunder his lover's mouth. His tongue swept over Harry's as they dueled for dominance. Voldemort cupped his lover's face with both hands while Harry shifted and wove his good hand into the Dark Lord's hair. They finally broke the kiss when the need for air was too great and simply stared into each other's eyes, catching their breath.

"Sleep, my serpent. You need your rest."

The last thing he was aware of before losing all consciousness was Voldemort carefully drawing him closer and the delicious heat given off by the Dark Lord.

When Harry woke up, his body felt a lot better. Although still stiff, he could feel that the bruising was almost gone and his once shattered hand was (albeit weak) fully functional once again. He checked his ribs and was glad to see that that too fully healed. Looking around, he noticed that he was in his office at the Ministry; he was laying on the formerly soft red couch which had been transfigured into a four poster bed. 'Green,' he thought in amusement, 'of course. I wonder how that bastard managed to get in here…'

Feeling a slight weight in his robe's left pocket, he reached in and pulled out a silver necklace of a griffin with a snake spiraling around it. Surprisingly, both did not look like they were battling each other, but instead merely looking at one another. 'Fitting,' thought the Minister for Magic humorously. He moved to examine it better and felt a crinkle of in his pocket. 'Must have missed that before…' Pulling it out he saw a note that accompanied his Yuletide gift.

Brat—

I see that we were thinking with one mind this year. This portkey will take you to my unplottable mansion. It's been much too long since you've visited. I am willing to call New Year's day a day of cease fire, as your side seems to be in need of one. The password for the portkey is "Slytherin" (here Harry rolled his eyes at the parseltongue password).

-The Bastard

Harry grinned and after examining it in the light one last time, placed it around his neck.

Author's Notes: SURPRISE! I'm alive! Yes, yes I know. You're all wondering what I've been doing and not having the decency to update in 4 years. I'm so sorry for my lack of updates for other my other stories. I thought I'd have more time in college, but that plan didn't work out so well… if anything, I have less time now than ever before. Not to mention I've hit a writer's block from my lack of activity. So this little one-shot is my belated Christmas and New Year's present to all my readers! :)

I've been asked multiple times if I've abandoned Darkness Unveiled, and my honest answer is I DON'T KNOW. I want to try really hard to finish it. It's sort of like my baby, but unless I pick up the motivation to, I don't know when it'll be finished. I mean, I have the main overarching plot planned out, but the actual penning it out is harder than I thought. Not to mention I want to keep it somewhat in cannon with JK Rowling's ideas, which includes Deathly Hallows. And my terrible writing style 4 years ago (grumble grumbles)… So until then, please be patient!

Disclaimer: I do not make money from this. JK Rowling owns my Harry Potter universe. I merely use my own ideas/schemes/fantasies for writing pleasure.