FIC: Scars, Part 6a

[geri_chan]

Title: Scars, Part 6a

Rating: NC-17 overall

Pairings: Snape/Lupin, Ash/Tsubasa; also a little Theodore/Blaise, Dylan/Hermione, and Aric/Takeshi

Author's note: {} Indicates character's unspoken thoughts; [] indicates song lyrics.

Disclaimer: Based on the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling; song lyrics are from "Scars" by Papa Roach. No money is being made off this story; consider it a little wish fulfillment on my part.

Warning: AU. This story contains a character from Half-Blood Prince, but does not follow the HBP storyline.

Sequel to: Always, Summer Vacation, For Old Time's Sake, Three's a Crowd, Return of the Raven, Phoenix Reborn, Phoenix Rising, Aftermaths, The Revenant, Ash's Story, and Summer Vacation III.

Summary: Tsubasa has a bad day at work; Lupin and Snape discuss the past; Theodore comes home for a visit. This chapter contains an alternate history for Fenrir Greyback.

Part 5b

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

Professor Tsubasa turned up the next morning wearing a high-necked black robe similar to the ones that Snape wore, although it was made of silk instead of linen or wool, and the other teachers stared at him in surprise.

"Why, how unusual to see you in Western clothes, Tsubasa!" Lupin exclaimed. "But you look quite fetching." Snape glared at him, and Lupin added placating, "Oh, you look very fetching this morning, too, Severus."

"I wasn't fishing for compliments, Lupin," Snape said huffily. "Please, don't let me keep you from your morning fashion report."

Lupin just chuckled at his lover's sarcasm, and Tsubasa smiled politely and replied, "Thank you, Remus. My cousin Ichiro made some British-style robes for me as a going-away present, and I thought that I ought to put them to use. He's one of the most talented Weavers in the valley, and it would be a shame to let his gifts collect dust in the closet."

"Indeed it would," Lupin agreed. Then, as Tsubasa lifted a forkful of eggs to his mouth, Lupin casually asked, "By the way, what happened to your lip?"

Tsubasa slipped the fork very carefully into his mouth, obviously trying to avoid touching the swollen portion of his lower lip. He slowly chewed and swallowed his food, took a sip of tea, and then replied just as casually, "Oh, Ash hit me in the face in practice yesterday. It's a hazard of the trade."

"Really?" Lupin asked, sounding surprised. "My, Ash must be quite a talented student to be able to land a blow on a master swordsman! I'm impressed."

A faint flush spread across Tsubasa's face, noticeable only because his skin was so fair. "Oh yes, he is quite talented," Tsubasa replied. "He shows a remarkable aptitude for the sword. And I must admit, I was a bit careless." He smiled, just a touch bitterly. "I let my guard down, but it was my own fault."

"Are you still talking about fencing?" Snape whispered to Lupin sardonically.

"Why, of course, Severus," Lupin replied, with an air of exaggerated innocence; he actually fluttered his eyelashes. "What else would we be talking about?" Lupin's fingers reached up to brush against the high collar of his own robe in a seemingly absent-minded manner. Snape, of course, knew that the collar concealed several bruises from an early-morning make-out session before breakfast. Sometimes the werewolf acted like he was still a horny teenager.

The Potions Master just snorted in response to Lupin's comment. But after he thought about it for a moment, he realized that in a manner of speaking, Lupin's words were true. Lupin was a master at fencing with words, which was rather odd for a Gryffindor, since subtlety wasn't exactly the strong point of that House. It wasn't Lupin's strong point, either, but somehow he usually managed to come out ahead in their own verbal sparring matches--which was no small feat, Snape silently acknowledged with mingled respect and consternation.

Professor Tsubasa seemed to be able to hold his own against Lupin, responding to the werewolf's gentle teasing and prying with calm, polite reserve. Lupin had managed to provoke a small reaction from him, though--that faint blush.

{Chalk up one for the werewolf,} Snape thought to himself with amusement, and just the slightest bit of pity for Tsubasa.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________

Tsubasa was relieved when breakfast was over and he was able to make his escape. He knew that there was no malice in Lupin's playful teasing, but still, he had the uncomfortable feeling that the werewolf knew exactly why he was wearing a British-style robe today. Come to think of it, both Lupin and Snape usually wore high-necked shirts or robes, too. That was the traditional style, of course, but maybe all werewolves liked biting their lovers on the neck...

A little shudder of arousal ran through Tsubasa's body at that thought. He doggedly reminded himself that last night was strictly a one-time occurrence, at least for the foreseeable future, and he tried to focus on the memory of last night's cold shower and the sensation of the cold water flowing over his body and literally dampening his lust. When that was only mildly successful, he tried to further distract himself by counting to one-hundred in Japanese, English, and German.

His German was a little sketchy, having been picked up from a tengu friend who had in turn learned it from a Muggle businessman. He managed to reach twenty-five by the time he arrived at the Transfiguration classroom, and he was more-or-less in control of his body by then.

His first class of the day happened to be the second-year Gryffindors, and Allegra Zabini piped up innocently, "Professor Tsubasa, why aren't you wearing your Japanese clothes?"

Tsubasa patiently repeated the same story he had given Lupin, about how his cousin had made the robes for him. Inwardly, he sighed and thought to himself, {It's going to be a long day.}

And it was a long day, especially since his body was still slightly sore from the night before. But having lived and trained with the tengu warriors for ten years, he was accustomed to pain, and gave no outward sign of it, even in his Physical Defense classes. Allowing a few bruises and aches to slow him down would have caused his tengu instructors to smack him with the flats of their blades. And he definitely did not want any of his all too perceptive students to ask why he was moving slowly today. A few asked him about his swollen lip, but they seemed to buy the excuse that it was a sparring accident.

"I hear you stopped by the townhouse yesterday," Lukas said between lessons. Since he said it with a grin and a sly wink, Tsubasa assumed that Ash had not said anything about the letter or the fact that their potential romance was currently in a state of limbo. And although he would rather not have the entire pack discussing his lovelife, it still worried Tsubasa a little that Ash was keeping secrets from his packmates. It was out of character, from what he knew of the werewolves, and it made him uneasy to think that he might be coming between Ash and his pack.

Tsubasa sighed again; it was definitely going to be a long day.

The day didn't get any better when Laura Madley managed to corner him between classes. He had been deliberately avoiding her, which had not been difficult, since the fifth-year Hufflepuffs were not scheduled for Transfiguration or Physical Defense today.

"If I am not mistaken, you should be heading to Potions class right now, Miss Madley," Tsubasa said. "I have heard that Professor Snape does not tolerate tardiness."

"I know that, sir," Laura replied, staring at him anxiously. She kept shifting her weight from foot to foot, and was practically vibrating with nervous energy--and for once, the nervousness had nothing to do with the thought of an angry Potions Master. "But I just had to know--did you take Mr. Randolf the letter? What did he say? Will he meet me?"

Tsubasa repressed another sigh and said, "I delivered the letter, but Mr. Randolf needs some time to think things over before he can give you a response." Laura stared at him with a look of bewilderment and disappointment, and Tsubasa gently explained, "You must understand, it was quite a shock for him to receive your letter out of the blue like that."

"But if he didn't deny it, then that must mean that he is my...that he really is a Madley?" Laura asked hopefully.

Tsubasa hesitated, not knowing how much he should reveal. It was for Ash to explain why he didn't want to rejoin his family, but Tsubasa felt that he ought to prepare the girl a little for the disappointment that was to come. He had never met Laura's parents, but it was clear that she loved them and had no fear of them, and he wondered at the fact that a man as cruel and brutal as the stepfather in Ash's story could be so different with Laura. Was it merely that she was his biological child and Ash was not, or had he changed, perhaps felt regret after he believed that his stepson was killed? Even if he was remorseful, Tsubasa did not think that he could ever forgive Alden Madley for what he had done to...

{To his own son,} Tsubasa finished in his mind, quickly shying away from the words "my mate"--because Ash was not his mate. He could not even really call Ash his "lover"; he was not sure what Ash was to him at the moment.

"It was a shock," Tsubasa repeated, without really answering Laura's question. "And..." He hesitated again, then continued gently, "His memories of his childhood are not very pleasant. To relive the past is...difficult for him."

Laura looked confused and distressed. "Not pleasant? Are you just talking about the werewolf attack, or...?" Her voice trailed off for a moment, and then she continued, "I've heard that he used to quarrel with my parents sometimes, but surely it was nothing serious. Parents and children quarrel all the time...well, I don't really fight with my parents, but some of my classmates do..."

She stared at Tsubasa with tearful, pleading eyes that seemed to be asking him for reassurance, but unfortunately, he had none to give. "You must wait for Mr. Randolf's reply," Tsubasa said firmly. "It is not my place to speak for him; I have probably already said too much."

"But--" Laura started to protest.

"You have already waited fifteen years to meet him," Tsubasa pointed out, as kindly as he could. "Surely a few days will not hurt?"

"Days?" Laura cried in dismay. "How long do you think it will take him to reply?"

"I do not know," Tsubasa answered honestly. "But please be patient and give him some time."

"Please, isn't there something you can tell me?" Laura begged.

Tsubasa shook his head, calmly but implacably. "I know it is difficult, but you must be patient. Now you had better head to Potions class." And because he felt sorry for her, he wrote her an excuse slip, so that Snape--hopefully--would not punish her for being late. Although with Snape, one could never tell. Even with the note, he might still dock her a few points if he was in a bad mood; he seemed to take a special sort of glee in punishing his students. He and sweet-tempered Lupin made an odd couple, but Tsubasa supposed that their differences balanced out and complemented each other.

Laura still looked unhappy, but she took the excuse slip and thanked him politely, then hurried off to the dungeon. Tsubasa silently thanked the gods that tomorrow was Saturday, so if he laid low in his quarters, he could avoid Laura for the rest of the weekend. He wasn't sure whether to hope that Ash would reply quickly or not, partly because his response was bound to distress Laura even more, but Tsubasa was thinking mostly of his own discomfort. It was going to be difficult for them to go back to being just friends, as if nothing had happened. As if last night had never happened...

Tsubasa sighed gloomily; things were going just great. He had nearly driven a student to tears, and she probably would break down and cry when she actually met the brother she'd been longing for and heard the true story behind his disappearance. Not to mention that the most promising relationship he'd had in years was with an emotionally damaged, commitment-phobic werewolf.

Not only was this going to be a long day, but it was shaping up to look like a long weekend, too. In fact, it looked as though it was going to be a very long year...
___________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Severus?" Lupin called as Snape rummaged through the closet. "You don't need to pack that many robes just to spend the weekend at your mother's house."

"I'm not packing robes," came the irritable and slightly muffled response from the back of the closet. "And technically, it's a mansion, not a house, and it's my mansion, not my mother's."

"I beg your pardon, Lord Snape," Lupin said with a grin as Snape emerged from the closet carrying a large cardboard box. "Although I would like to hear you tell Lady Selima that Snape Manor isn't her house."

"Mansion," Snape corrected. "And I'm not stupid enough to tell my mother such a thing to her face, Lupin."

"Of course not," Lupin laughed. "But if you weren't packing robes, what were you doing in there?"

"I thought I'd help you with your research, Lupin," Snape replied.

Lupin moved closer, nuzzling his lover's neck. "But I thought you said we didn't have time for that before we took the Floo to the Manor."

"I meant real research, you idiot werewolf!" Snape snapped, pushing Lupin away from him, but not very forcefully. Lupin took that as permission to nuzzle him a little longer before he stepped back and gazed at the box curiously.

"So what's in the box, Sev?"

"The notes from my Wolfsbane Potion research," Snape replied. "If you're really serious about writing that book, I thought you might like to see them, although I know you're not much of a potion brewer."

"Thank you, Severus," Lupin said, surprised but pleased by the offer. "I would like to see them. I may not understand all the technical details, but the development of the potion is a major event in the history of lycanthropy, and it ought to be included in the book."

"I know that you don't have time to sort through all this right now, but we could take the papers with us to the Manor, and you could work on your book over the weekend," Snape said.

"And you could help me with my research," Lupin said innocently.

"Which type of research?" Snape asked dryly, and Lupin just grinned and winked at him in response.

They gathered up the box and their bags and Lupin's pet dog Cabal, and took the Floo to Snape Manor, where they had a quiet dinner with Lady Selima. She was still cool and reserved, but the icy formality she used to display when Lupin had first met her had thawed somewhat, and she seemed to be looking forward to Theodore's arrival tomorrow.

"Don't feed the dog at the table, Professor," Selima scolded as Lupin slipped Cabal a scrap of meat. Cabal had already been fed before they left Hogwarts, but like any dog, he would always stare up at the dinner table hopefully, his eyes most eloquently giving the impression that he was starving to death.

"Sorry," Lupin said, grinning sheepishly.

"He cannot help feeling a certain fellowship towards another canine," Snape drawled in his low, sardonic voice.

"I admit that I can't help begging in my wolf form when there's a nice joint of beef on the table," Lupin chuckled, and both Snapes rolled their eyes.

After dinner, Lupin and Snape went upstairs to their room, and Selima retreated to the study to go over some of the Snape family accounts. Cabal followed after her happily; for some reason, he was very fond of Selima although she regarded him as a nuisance to be put up with--much the same way that she treated Lupin, as a matter of fact. Lupin grinned to himself, wondering if Selima secretly gave Cabal treats when they were alone together.

While Snape sat at his desk, grading homework assignments, Lupin sat on the bed, leafing through the Wolfsbane Potion notes and marveling at the sheer amount of data and all the work that must have gone into developing the potion.

"When did you actually begin working on the potion, Severus?" Lupin asked.

Glancing up from the stack of homework papers, Snape replied, "Well, I started wondering if a cure could be developed shortly after I discovered you were a werewolf. But I didn't actually begin working on it until after I joined the Death Eaters. I came across an article in a Potions journal written by Professor Kamiyama, about a potion he was trying to develop that would lessen the effects of a werewolf's transformation. Dumbledore put me in touch with him, and we began corresponding and comparing notes on our research. Later, as our research progressed, I visited him in Japan from time to time so that we could work together on the potion."

"That was when you learned Japanese," Lupin murmured.

"Yes," Snape replied, although it hadn't really been a question. "Kamiyama speaks fluent English, of course, but I worried that certain concepts might be lost in the translation, so I thought that we could communicate more efficiently if we could both speak each other's languages."

"You did it for me," Lupin said with a tender smile.

"Yes, but don't flatter yourself, Lupin," Snape said gruffly, blushing a little at that admission of sentimentality. "It was also an opportunity to test and challenge my potion-making skills."

"And you love a good challenge," Lupin said, still smiling. "But it took you and Naoto over ten years to perfect the potion. How many Potions Masters would have kept at a seemingly impossible task for so long?"

"It was not impossible," Snape pointed out haughtily. "Because in the end, we did create a viable potion. It is not uncommon for difficult potions to take years to develop. If one does not have the perseverance necessary to see one's research through to the end, then one is not deserving of the title of 'Master'."

"But of course there was a certain personal motivation as well," Lupin said gently. "You wanted to help me, and Naoto wanted to help his son-in-law Seiji."

"Well, of course," Snape said huffily, and Lupin smiled. "It's not as if I was working on the potion for my own health, Lupin."

"So many years," Lupin said softly, staring at the stack of papers in his hands. "And you never gave up." Snape blushed again and started to turn back to the homework assignments, but then Lupin asked, "How did you test the potions? How could you know if they were effective or safe before you gave them to actual werewolves?"

Snape sighed and said reluctantly, "There are certain chemical reaction tests that can be done, and we could get a crude gauge of the level of toxicity by testing the potion on animals, but really, Lupin, the only way to accurately test the potion was to have a werewolf drink it." Lupin's eyes widened in dismay, and Snape said, "If it makes you feel any better, the test subjects were all volunteers and none of them died, although some of them did get sick from earlier versions of the potion. I never met the volunteers face-to-face, of course, since my identity could not be revealed to them, but Dumbledore found the volunteers and arranged the sessions; I secretly observed them through an enchanted mirror so that I could see how effectively the potion worked and what changes needed to be made."

"Albus recruited werewolves to serve as test subjects?" Lupin asked, looking a little shaken.

"They were not that difficult to persuade, apparently," Snape said. "Most werewolves would have done anything to find a cure, or at least some relief from their curse. Kamiyama tested the potion on his own volunteers in Japan as well. He never revealed their identities to me, but I assume that Seiji must have been the chief guinea pig, since he was the one who first sought a cure from Kamiyama."

"Albus never asked me to volunteer," Lupin said, still looking troubled. "You were making the potion for me; I should have assumed some of the risk."

"Of course he never asked you to volunteer, you moron!" Snape snapped. "Do you think that I would have allowed you to take it before I knew it was safe? Aconite is a deadly poison, and finding the correct dosage--strong enough to prevent the madness of the change without actually killing the werewolf--was the main reason why it took so many years to perfect the potion!" Snape calmed down and dropped his gaze to the floor, avoiding Lupin's eyes. "It was an unspoken agreement between Dumbledore and myself that you would not be allowed to take the potion until I knew it was safe. I'm sure that he knew why I was working on it, even though I never stated the reason explicitly. And yes, I risked the lives of those test subjects, but I didn't care about them. I cared about you." He paused, then added defensively, "And I know that makes me an evil bastard, but after all, I am a Slyth--"

To Snape's surprise, Lupin jumped up and flung his arms around him, holding him tightly. "I love you, Severus," Lupin whispered. "I love you so much."

"You Gryffindors can be quite unpredictable at times," Snape said in a bemused voice. "I thought you would be upset that I experimented on innocent people."

"I am, a little," Lupin admitted. "But at least they were all willing volunteers. I know that I would have volunteered if Albus had asked me, even if I hadn't known that you were the one working on the potion. And I know that at some point, the potion had to be tested on actual werewolves. But most of all, Severus, I love you for working so hard on the potion for my sake, for so many years, without ever expecting anything in return, without even taking any credit for the creation of the potion."

"Until Kamiyama outed me," Snape grumbled. "First to you, and then to the Daily Prophet."

Lupin laughed and kissed him on the cheek. "I know that you like the glory of being a world-famous potion inventor," he teased. "And you certainly deserve it, my love." He smiled coyly and asked, "Will you help me with some research, Sev? Not this." He gestured at the papers on the bed. "The other kind."

"Well..." Snape said, pretending to think it over. Lupin didn't wait for him to finish his sentence, and covered Snape's mouth impatiently with his own, kissing him hungrily. "Well, since you are so insistent," Snape said breathlessly when Lupin finally broke off the kiss, "I suppose that I can help you out, Lupin."

"Good," Lupin growled, grabbing him by the front of his robes and pulling him towards the bed.

"Ah, Lupin, wait!" Snape cried as they tumbled down onto the bed together, landing on top of the Wolfsbane Potion notes, crushing half of the papers and sending the rest flying into the air. "Damn it, Lupin, the notes!"

"Sorry," Lupin said sheepishly. "I sort of forgot about them."

"They represent years of research, you know," Snape grumbled as they gathered up the papers.

"I know," Lupin said apologetically, carefully smoothing out the crumpled pages. "I really am sorry." He kissed Snape and said, "I promise that I'll make it up to you."

"And how do you propose to do that?" Snape asked archly.

Lupin unfastened his robes and unbuttoned his shirt, then struck a provocative pose. "How about some amazing, mind-blowing sex?" he asked in a sultry voice.

"Oh, stop that Lupin," Snape said, trying not to smile. "You look like you're posing for the cover of one of Prospero's ridiculous romance novels. Perhaps I should be trying to invent a potion that will control a werewolf's libido."

Lupin remained in the pose and licked his lips in a deliberately lascivious manner. "Well then," he said huskily, "won't you need to do some research on that?"

Snape swallowed hard, and the urge to laugh vanished. He decided that he would never let Lupin pose for the covers of Prospero's books, because he looked...well, he looked too damned sexy, to put it bluntly. He didn't want anyone else to even think of Lupin in a lustful manner, because Lupin belonged solely to him and he didn't intend to share Lupin with anyone else, not even in their imaginations.

"Yes," Snape replied hoarsely, and the potion notes were quickly packed away in their box, and the two Professors attended most ardently to their "research".
___________________________________________________________________________________________________

Theodore arrived the next day, and received an enthusiastic hug from Lupin, a brief kiss on the cheek from Selima, and an awkward but fond pat on the shoulder from Snape. He seemed very happy, and was full of stories about his work in Ireland.

Prospero and Blaise came over for dinner later that night, and they all talked about Theodore's research, as well as Blaise's new job. "We had to turn that moon medallion over to the museum," Theodore said. "But I made a copy of the runes, and Master Tremayne and I are still trying to decipher them. I really want to solve the mystery behind this artifact more than any of the others, because I'm convinced that it's something to do with lycanthropy."

Lupin smiled at him warmly. "We're all very proud of you, Theo. Severus says that Master Tremayne is very pleased with your work."

"I haven't gotten very far on the medallion, though," Theodore sighed regretfully. "The code is so complex. Henry Bletchley hasn't had any luck with it so far, either; he's still running some tests on it. But he has several other artifacts from the dig to work on as well, so he can't spend all his time on the medallion."

"I'm sure that you'll figure it out eventually," Lupin said encouragingly. "I hope to be able to include some of your research in my book."

"How is the book coming along, Remus?"

"Oh, quite well," Lupin replied cheerfully. "Severus has been giving me a lot of help with my research."

Snape's face turned red and he glared at Lupin. Theodore smiled, but pretended not to notice, and tactfully changed the subject. "So how are things going at Hogwarts, Blaise?"

"I was a little nervous at first," Blaise replied. "But things have been going pretty well so far."

"He's being modest," Lupin said with a grin. "He's rapidly becoming one of the most popular teachers in the school."

"I think they're just relieved to have a teacher other than Professor Binns," Blaise laughed. "And I've bribed my classes with the possibility of a field trip. The Headmaster likes the idea, but he says the students will have to get signed permission slips from their parents."

"What about that new teacher, the one from Japan?" Theodore asked. "What is he like?"

"He's ungodly beautiful," Blaise replied bluntly. "Sort of like a male version of Professor Chizuru. Nearly all the female students, and probably a few of the boys, are head-over-heels in love with him." Theodore scowled and Blaise smiled. "But he's not my type."

Theodore relaxed and smiled back at him. "So does he do anything besides look pretty?"

"Yes, actually, I think he's the one who's becoming the most popular teacher in the school, not me," Blaise said. "The Transfiguration students say that his classes are a lot of fun. And they like that he explains the reasons behind how the spells work, instead of just teaching them the incantations. I'm not sure that the Physical Defense students love him quite as much, though. Dylan says that he's a good teacher, but he won't hesitate to whack you with his sword if you make a mistake." Blaise grinned. "I'm rather glad that I've graduated and don't have to take Physical Defense class anymore."

"Me too," Theodore agreed fervently. "I wasn't really very good at it."

"Dylan is, though," Blaise laughed, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Which means that he gets special tutoring from Professor Tsubasa, since he's giving advanced lessons in swordfighting to a select group of talented students, of which Dylan is one."

Theodore grinned wickedly. "Draco always used to complain that Dylan was perfect, but I guess that it doesn't always pay to be perfect!"

"Oh, and it seems that he's been giving private lessons to one of the werewolves," Blaise said. "Ash Randolf, the one who works at the Ministry." He smiled slyly at Lupin. "Remus seems to think that they've become very...close...friends."

"Really?" Selima asked, sounding both scandalized and intrigued, and Snape glared at Lupin again.

"Honestly, Lupin, you're a worse gossip than Rita Skeeter!"

"That's a bit of an exaggeration, Severus," Lupin protested, but he did look a little sheepish. "I would appreciate it if you didn't spread that rumor around," he said to Selima politely. "I would hate for Ash and Tsubasa to be embarrassed because of my indiscretion."

"Of course you may rely on my discretion, Professor," Selima assured him.

"Until it becomes politically advantageous to do otherwise," Snape muttered under his breath. In the circle of the Slytherin elite, information was a commodity that was more valuable than gold, and Selima was a master at gathering pieces of information and gossip. She hoarded them carefully, and dispensed them in a manner that would best benefit the Snape family. Fortunately for Tsubasa and Ash, neither of them were in a position to do Selima any political favors, so they were probably safe from blackmail for now, although things might change if Ash managed to move up to a higher position at the Ministry.

Prospero looked amused, but changed the subject by saying, "I understand that you've become fast friends with the Minister's wife, Selima."

Selima's lips curved in a very self-satisfied smile. "Yes, I have been helping her to plan her son's wedding; she was a little overwhelmed at the prospect of planning a high society wedding. She is actually quite a charming woman, although a bit naive."

"Then it's a good thing that she has you to advise her and help her maneuver through society," Prospero said smoothly. "For no one does that better than you, Selima."

"You are such a flatterer, Prospero," Selima said lightly, but her smile grew wider, until she looked as smug as a cat licking cream from its whiskers.

"And what do your cohorts Priscilla Parkinson and Elaine Baddock think of your new friendship?" Snape asked sardonically.

"They do not like it, but who cares what they think?" Selima retorted coolly. "They are not married to the Minister of Magic, and their families have fallen out of favor due to their connections with Lucius Malfoy and his cronies. If they were wise, they would have cultivated Molly's friendship as well, but they foolishly let their pride get in the way. They will regret it later."

"Then perhaps later they'll try to cozy up to the Weasleys," Theodore said.

"But Molly will remember that they snubbed her," Selima said with great satisfaction. "And she will also remember that out of all the prominent pureblood families, I was the first to befriend her and make her feel welcome. And for some reason, she seems to be fond of you, Severus, so she was already inclined to feel friendly towards the Snapes."

"For some reason?" Snape muttered, wondering whether to feel more offended by the implied insult in his mother's words, or by the fact that Molly was "fond" of him.

Lupin chuckled. "Molly is first and foremost a mother, and I think that she was won over by how protective Severus was of his students in general, and Theo and Dylan in particular."

Theodore smiled at his father affectionately, and Snape bowed his head over his plate to hide the flush staining his sallow cheeks. "You never would have associated with Molly before her husband became the Minister," he grumbled to his mother.

"Well, of course not," Selima said, frowning as if she did not see the point of his statement. "But that was then and this is now."

Prospero laughed and bowed slightly in Selima's direction. "You are as practical and ambitious as always, Selima," he said, but his tone of voice was admiring rather than accusing.

"Of course," she agreed, smiling at him serenely. Lupin, Theodore, and Blaise laughed, while Snape just sighed and shook his head.

Part 6b