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FIC: Aftermaths, Part 6
Title: Aftermaths, Part 6
Rating: NC-17 overall, but most chapters are closer to PG-13
Pairing: Snape/Lupin, Theodore/Blaise, and a few other minor pairings
Word count: ~9,920
Warning: AU; written pre-HBP
Author's notes: {} Indicates character's unspoken thoughts
Disclaimer: No money is being made off this story; consider it a little wish fulfillment on my part.
Sequel to: Always, Summer Vacation, For Old Time's Sake, Three's a Crowd, Return of the Raven, Phoenix Reborn, Phoenix Rising
Summary: Snape, Lupin, and the boys visit the Zabinis' shop in Diagon Alley.
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5
***
Two days later, Lupin and the boys followed Snape through the fireplace and emerged in a posh-looking office. A beautiful young woman rose from her desk to greet them; she was clad in sleek, wine-colored robes and her reddish-blonde hair was twisted up in an elegant knot at the back of her head. She smiled at them pleasantly, but there was something in her green eyes that made the wolf in Lupin stir and regard her with a sense of caution. Something about her reminded him of Lukas, although he didn't think that she was a werewolf...and then he realized that the wolf was recognizing a fellow predator, albeit a human one. Despite her pleasant smile, he sensed that she would be a dangerous woman to cross, and Lupin was suddenly very glad that she was on their side.
Snape didn't seem to notice anything amiss, and introduced his family to the woman. "Morrigan, this is my colleague, Remus Lupin, and our foster sons, Dylan Rosier and Theodore Nott. Lupin, Dylan, Theodore...this is Morrigan De Lacy, the lawyer working on our behalf."
"I'm very pleased to finally meet all of you," Morrigan said, still smiling, and shook their hands.
"Morrigan...De Lacy?" Lupin asked, his eyes widening. "Are you by any chance related to--?"
"Augustine De Lacy, the former Head of Slytherin?" Morrigan finished. "Yes, he was my uncle."
"I had no idea...why didn't you tell me that your lawyer was Professor De Lacy's niece, Severus?"
Snape shrugged. "You never asked. Besides, you were neither a Slytherin nor a particularly good Potions student; I didn't think you were especially close to the Professor."
"Besides," said Morrigan with a mischievous smile, "I suspect Severus enjoys catching people off-guard." Snape glowered at her, and Lupin laughed.
The name "De Lacy" nagged at Theodore's memory, and then he remembered a conversation that he had once overheard between his father and Andreas Avery. "Professor De Lacy...he was murdered by Death Eaters, wasn't he?" Theodore asked nervously.
"That is correct," Morrigan replied calmly.
"Then...why are you helping us?"
Morrigan was silent for a long moment, as if taking some time to decide how to reply. "I would not represent just anyone, Mr. Nott. Some of the imprisoned Death Eaters asked me to represent them, and I turned them down. But from what Severus has told me, it seems to me that you and Mr. Rosier are as much victims of the Death Eaters as my uncle was. Nor do I have any particular love for the Ministry; they were not very sympathetic to my family when my uncle was killed. At the time, all Slytherins were regarded with suspicion."
"You seem to get along very well with Severus," Lupin observed, "considering that most people believed he was a Death Eater himself up until recently."
"I never quite knew what to make of Severus," Morrigan said. "Of course I heard all the rumors, but Uncle Augustine always spoke highly of him; I found it hard to believe that he could have had a part in my uncle's death. And he was kind to me when I was a student at Hogwarts."
Lupin, Dylan, and Theodore all stared at Snape with identical looks of open-mouthed shock. Snape glared at Morrigan as if she were an errant student and snapped, "Ms. De Lacy!"
"Well, kind for a Slytherin and suspected Death Eater," Morrigan clarified with a laugh, not seeming to be intimidated by her former Professor. "I was a student when Severus began teaching at Hogwarts, shortly after Uncle Augustine died. He expressed sympathy to me in private, and it seemed to be sincere. As a teacher, he didn't favor me, but he treated me fairly. And he discouraged some of the students from harassing me."
"Oh, you did most of that on your own, Morrigan," Snape said, a small smile of malicious satisfaction playing around the corners of his mouth, although he still looked slightly peeved. "You were quite handy with hexes." He turned to Lupin and said, "Some of the Death Eater sympathizers were verbally harassing her because her uncle had been branded a traitor. And one of the boys tried to...ah...take liberties with her person. She cast a very nasty Stinging Hex upon all the offending parts of the young man's anatomy."
Both Snape and Morrigan grinned widely. Yes, Morrigan De Lacy was definitely not one to cross, Lupin decided. "Let me guess," he said aloud. "You were a Slytherin."
"Of course," Morrigan laughed. "I am a lawyer, after all. That goes without saying."
"After that," Snape continued, "the students left her alone. Particularly once I reminded them that her uncle was a Potions Master with a special talent for poisons. I did promise to do my best to have her sent to Azkaban if she succeeded in murdering any of them, but they didn't seem to find that very comforting."
"Fortunately, they didn't call your bluff," Morrigan said. "Because I didn't inherit my uncle's talent for Potions. I got decent grades in Potions class because I followed the instructions correctly, but I just didn't have that natural feel for it that one must have to become a Master. Uncle Augustine had no children of his own, and I think he was a little disappointed that there didn't seem to be any potential Potions Masters among his nieces and nephews. Which was why he was so pleased when you came along, Severus. He was happy to have a protege to pass his knowledge on to, even if it wasn't one of his own blood. And while I may not be a Potions Master, I am a very good lawyer."
"Indeed you are, Ms. De Lacy," Snape said. "That became apparent to me when you managed to talk Professor McGonagall out of giving you detention when you transfigured one of your harassers into a pig during her class. In fact, by the time you were done, I thought she was going to give you extra points for performing such an advanced spell!"
Lupin chuckled, and the boys looked a little bemused--both at the sight of Snape laughing with a former student, and at the thought of someone being able to talk McGonagall out of handing out a detention.
"Suffice it to say that I was never fully convinced that Severus was a Death Eater," Morrigan said. "Besides what I knew of him from my uncle and my own personal experience, there was the fact that Dumbledore hired him. While the Headmaster has a reputation as a bleeding heart, he isn't a fool. So when I heard that Severus had been working against Voldemort all along, I was relieved, but in hindsight, not surprised."
Lupin smiled tenderly at Snape and said, "So someone besides Albus, Branwen, and myself had faith in you, Severus." Snape just glared at Lupin, feeling rather miffed that his image as the sinister Potions Master and terror of the students at Hogwarts had apparently not been as convincing as he had thought it was.
"It's a good thing she wasn't a Death Eater," he grumbled, "or I'd probably be dead."
"No chance of that," Morrigan said, looking serious now. Then in a brisk tone, she said, "Well, enough reminiscing about the past. Shall we get down to business?" Snape nodded, and Morrigan said, "Please take a seat," indicating the four chairs neatly arrayed in front of her desk. Once they were seated, she took her own seat and picked up a sheaf of papers from the desk. "I have reached a tentative agreement with the Ministry, pending your approval, of course. Regarding Mr. Nott's petition, a fine of one thousand Galleons will be levied against the Nott account at Gringotts, but the Ministry will drop all further claims against the Nott estate, and confirm Theodore as the Nott heir."
"I had expected the fines to be heavier," Snape said, looking a little surprised.
Morrigan smiled in a very smug manner. "I was able to bargain them down, using the Aurors' abuse of authority during the search at Nott Manor as leverage. It could be rather embarrassing for them if that little incident were made public."
"Does the public really care if the Aurors trash a Death Eater's house?" Theodore asked cynically.
"No, but they might care if the Aurors trashed the room and personal belongings of a child, an orphaned boy who rejected his parents' teachings and courageously fought against the Death Eaters at the risk of his own life," Morrigan replied, and Theodore's face turned red. "I apologize, Mr. Nott; I do not mean to make light of your situation," she said in a gentler voice. "I know that you would not exploit your personal losses for sympathy, and that you would not want that incident to become public knowledge. The Ministry doesn't know that, however, and I have no compunctions about using it to shame them into lowering the fine and giving up their claim on your estate."
"I...see," Theodore murmured thoughtfully, the flush fading from his face.
"Of course, your friend Arthur Weasley was urging them to reach an amicable settlement, but he can only push so far without alienating all of his under-Ministers," Morrigan told Snape and Lupin.
"He's not MY friend!" Snape snapped in a waspish voice, and Lupin chuckled.
Morrigan ignored the interruption and continued, "The fine is steep enough that the Ministry will not lose face, but it still leaves a sizable balance in the Nott account, enough to keep up the estate and for Mr. Nott to live on for quite some time, providing he isn't too extravagant."
"I don't want the estate," Theodore said sullenly.
"Yes, Severus mentioned that to me," Morrigan said calmly. "If you wish, I can help you arrange the sale of the estate and mansion when the time comes. However, as you are underage, the estate and the money in your family account will be held in trust for you until you are eighteen. You cannot sell the estate before then, and in any case, I believe it would be in your best interest to wait a year or two. With the current anti-Death Eater sentiment, you would likely only get a fraction of the full market value if you sold it now. But in a year, or two, or three, things will have died down enough that you should be able to get a better price for it."
Theodore shrugged; it didn't matter much to him, as long as he didn't have to live there. "If that's what you think best, Professor," he said to Snape.
"I believe Ms. De Lacy's advice is sound," Snape replied.
"Well then, if you wish to accept the Ministry's offer--and I believe it is the best one we will receive from them..." She paused, waiting for Snape and Theodore to nod their assent. She flipped through the papers she was holding until she came to the last page and continued, "Then please sign here, Mr. Nott. And Severus, you and Professor Lupin need to sign below as his guardians; since he is under eighteen, your consent is required as well."
"Please call me Remus," Lupin said with a smile.
"Then you must call me Morrigan," she replied, smiling back at him.
Snape read through the papers carefully before accepting a quill from Morrigan and signing them. Rather than looking offended, she nodded approvingly. "A true Slytherin trusts no one," she said, then added with a laugh, "and certainly not a lawyer!" Lupin chuckled, and Snape made a noise halfway between a snort and a laugh, then handed the papers over to Theodore and Lupin to sign.
"Now, as for Mr. Rosier's petition," Morrigan said, picking up a second, thicker, stack of papers, "the Ministry is willing to cede the Rosier title and lands to Dylan--providing we do not seek further reparations, namely the money that they took from the Rosier account in Gringotts, which has long ago been spent or funneled into various Ministry accounts. The Rosiers were wealthy, and I estimate that there were at least several thousand Galleons in the account, so this bargain might strike you as somewhat unfair, Mr. Rosier. However, if we fight them in court, they will no doubt bring up the crimes that your father committed as a Death Eater, and the fact that you gave the vampiric roses that were used in the prison break to Voldemort, even though you had no choice in the matter. And they will probably argue that your father never married your mother, so therefore you are entitled to no portion of the Rosier inheritance. A specious argument, since there is ample precedent of an illegimate heir inheriting the family title if no legitimate heir exists, and you are the last living Rosier. In our favor is the fact that the Ministry literally stole the estate from an unborn baby, and believe me, I will play that up as much as possible. But I need to warn you that they will drag your name through the mud if this case goes to trial. On the other hand, if you accept their settlement, you get the estate, which remains untouched by the Aurors, since they were never able to bypass the guardian roses. I have never been inside the Rosier mansion, but most of the wealthy pureblood families keep money and items of value hidden on their estates--particularly the Slytherin families. Paranoia is, after all, a Slytherin trait, and most of them keep a secret stash in case of emergencies. I can't guarantee that such a stash exists in your case, but I am almost certain that it does. I doubt it will be anywhere near as much as was confiscated from Gringotts, but it is still likely to be a tidy sum. And you are of course still heir to your great-aunt's estate, so you will not be penniless regardless of what you do or do not find in the Rosier mansion. I would advise you to accept the settlement, but the decision is yours, Mr. Rosier. Would you like to take some time to think it over and discuss it with your guardians?"
"No," Dylan said, after only a moment's hesitation. "I don't care about the money. I am more than capable of earning a living on my own, and as you said, I am still heir to Uncle Math's and Aunt Goewin's estate. The true value of the Rosier estate to me is that it was my father's home." He turned to Snape. "I don't know if I want to live there, but I would like to go back sometime and see my father's room, see if I can find some family potraits or photographs, see if I can get an idea of what my father and grandparents were like. I don't want to risk losing it over a few thousand Galleons."
"As you wish, Dylan," Snape said, laying his hand on his foster son's shoulder for a moment.
Morrigan handed the papers to Snape. "Then if you'll all sign here, please..."
They signed the papers and handed them back to Morrigan. "Thank you," she said. "I will send them to the Ministry immediately. As soon as I receive the deeds to the estates, and the paperwork confirming Mr. Nott and Mr. Rosier as the heirs to their respective estates, I will forward them to you."
"Thank you, Morrigan," Snape said. "I appreciate everything you've done for us."
Lupin raised his eyebrows at that courteous response, and whispered into his lover's ear, "I may faint with surprise."
"Oh, shut up, Lupin," Snape hissed.
Morrigan politely pretended not to notice. "You're welcome, Severus," she said, extending her hand. "It's been a pleasure doing business with you." Snape shook her hand, and Lupin and the boys thanked her as well, then they left the office and headed for Diagon Alley.
"She seems quite formidable," Lupin told Snape. "I hope you're paying her well."
"She is, and I am," Snape said smugly. "She's a junior partner in the law firm, but she's the best lawyer they have; I wouldn't be surprised if she were running it in a few years. People tend to underestimate her because she's young and female, but I doubt they'll be doing that for much longer."
"It seems her parents chose well when they named her," Lupin said.
"Goddess of War, indeed," Snape laughed.
"How did you come to choose her as a lawyer, Severus?" Lupin wanted to know. "Have you kept in touch with Morrigan over the years?"
"No, not really," Snape replied. "Though since she was my mentor's niece, I kept tabs on her career over the years. And don't forget that I was a Death Eater, and the pureblood wizards spend most of their time gossiping about each other behind their backs. I heard a few things about an upstart young female lawyer, enough to make me want to hire her."
"A lawyer with ethics," Lupin mused. "How astonishing."
Snape let out a little snort of laughter. "You've been hanging around me too long, Lupin; you're starting to sound as cynical as a Slytherin. Morrigan's ethics are rather flexible, as are those of most Slytherins. I won't say that she would never defend a client she knew was guilty, but she does hate the Death Eaters because of what they did to her uncle. No amount of money could ever persuade her to defend one."
"Is that why she agreed to take our case?" Lupin asked. "Because the boys had also been victimized by the Death Eaters? Or perhaps because of your ties to Professor De Lacy?"
"Both of those reasons, I believe--at least in part," Snape replied. "The other part is her quite substantial fee. I assure you that she didn't grant me any discounts for the sake of sentiment."
"A true Slytherin," Lupin said, and they both laughed. Dylan and Theodore also laughed, but exchanged a solemn glance when their guardians weren't looking. They both knew that they owed Snape a great deal, and that he probably would not accept their money if they tried to pay him back for Morrigan's fee when they received control of their estates. They silently resolved to find some other way to return the favor, someday.
***
Meanwhile, Blaise and Allegra were working in their father's shop, as usual. Blaise was arranging some items on a shelf, while Allegra was sitting on a stool in the corner wrapping Spellotape around a broken wand. Just then, the door opened and Percy Weasley and his girlfriend, Penelope, walked in.
"Percy!" Allegra exclaimed happily, setting aside the wand. "Penny!" For some reason that Blaise could not fathom, his sister seemed fond of the priggish Weasley boy, as well as Penelope, who seemed nice enough, although he wasn't sure what she saw in Percy, either. Just as strangely, Percy seemed to have a soft spot for Allegra, treating her with the affectionate if slightly condescending air of an older brother. Since Percy treated his own siblings with the same condescension, Blaise didn't think that he was purposely trying to be insulting, and Allegra never seemed to be offended by it.
"Hello, Allegra," Percy said with a smile, looking more smug than usual.
"Hello, dear," Penelope said. "Are you excited about starting school in the fall?"
"Oh, yes! I can't wait!"
"How nice to see you again, young Mr. Weasley," Marius Zabini said with a slightly forced smile. He still found it galling that the Weasleys had surpassed his family in status, but he couldn't afford to offend a regular customer--and it most definitely would not be wise to offend the son of the new Minster of Magic. "Congratulations on your father's promotion. Are you continuing in your position as assistant to the Minister of Magic?"
"Yes, I am," Percy said proudly. "Dad was worried at first that it would seem like nepotism, but it was pointed out to him that it was Mr. Fudge--God rest his soul--who hired me in the first place, so it's not really nepotism if I keep on in the same position."
"That's wonderful," Marius said, without much sincerity, but fortunately, Percy seemed oblivious. "Well, what can we do for you today, Mr. Weasley?"
"Well," Penelope said coyly, "Percy's apartment is rather sparsely furnished, and I thought we might buy some things to make it look more homey. Second-hand, of course, since we're on a limited budget."
"A man who is about to be married must be fiscally responsible," Percy said in his usual pompous manner.
"Married?" squealed Allegra.
Penelope beamed, looking even more smug than Percy, and held out her left hand; on her ring finger was a small but glittering diamond set in a band of white gold. "Yes, we just got engaged; you're the first one we've told apart from our families."
"Oh Penny, it's beautiful!" Allegra gushed, and Penelope looked gratified.
"Well, it seems that more congratulations are in order, Mr. Weasley," Marius said.
"Thank you, sir," Percy said, a wide and rather foolish-looking grin spreading across his face.
"Congratulations, Percy," Blaise said politely.
"Thanks, Zabini," Percy said, shaking his hand, still with that silly smile on his face.
"I have something you'll love," Allegra said, taking Penelope by the hand and leading her to a table where a porcelain tea service was displayed. The teapot was shaped like a beehive, and the cups and saucers were decorated with a pattern of fat, comical-looking bumblebees.
"It is quite charming," Penelope agreed. She picked up the teapot to examine it more closely; there was a large crack running across it, and some of the cups were slightly chipped. "But will a Reparo spell be able to restore it?"
"Of course," Allegra said confidently. She took a wand out of her pocket, tapped the teapot with it, and said, "Reparo!" The crack seamlessly sealed itself.
Penelope stared at her in shock. "You can already cast a Reparo spell when you're only just about to enter your first year?!" she exclaimed.
Percy frowned. "Students aren't allowed to perform magic outside of school."
"But Percy," Allegra said innocently, giving him her most charming and guileless smile, "I'm not a student yet."
Percy stared at her for a moment, and to Blaise's complete and utter shock, the former prefect, who had probably been the worst stickler for rules in the entire history of the school, threw back his head and laughed, then said indulgently, "Well, I suppose we can overlook it just this once. But you should be careful, Allegra. Bending the rules can sometimes get you into as much trouble as breaking them can."
"Yes, Percy," Allegra said meekly. "I won't do it again. I just wanted to repair the teapot for Penny."
"It's lovely, dear," Penelope assured her. "We'll make good use of it in our new home." She and Percy beamed at each other. "But you had better let me repair the rest of the set myself."
Marius and Blaise stood back and watched as Allegra led the couple around the shop, pointing out "bargains" that she thought they could use. In the end, they decided to get the tea service, a set of slightly cracked china plates, some tarnished silverware that could easily be polished with a cleaning spell, and an antique rolltop desk. The desk, though marked down because one leg was wobbly and it needed to be re-varnished, was still a little pricey for Percy's taste.
"Look," Allegra said, rolling the top back to reveal a number of small drawers and pigeonholes. "It's perfect for organizing documents--just what an assistant to the Minister like yourself needs."
Percy, of course, loved to have everything organized and in its proper place. "It's very nice," he said wistfully, "but the desk I have at home should suffice, even if it is a bit small..."
"It's got a secret compartment," Allegra told him, crawling under the desk to show him the catch that caused a hidden drawer to spring out. "As assistant to the Minister of Magic, you're sure to be handling a lot of important and sensitive documents. This is a perfect place to hide them, and you could lay a concealing spell on it to make it even safer."
"I'll take it!" Percy exclaimed. Penelope looked amused, but didn't object.
Blaise whispered to his father, "You should let Allegra take over the shop instead of me when you retire, Father."
"She's quite the saleswoman, isn't she?" Marius said proudly. "She could take over right now and do fine, but school comes first."
They were just wrapping up the sale and making arrangements to have the items delivered to Percy's apartment, when the door opened and a very familiar-looking black-robed figure walked through the door.
"Professor Snape!" Blaise said, startled, as his Head of House walked into the store. "Professor Lupin!" he added, as the werewolf followed behind Snape. Blaise felt a sudden surge of hope, and sure enough, Dylan and Theo entered the shop as well. "Theo!" he cried, feeling a grin that must be as silly-looking as Percy's spreading across his face. He tried to get himself under control; he didn't want to make his father suspicious, after all. He managed to tone it down to what he hoped what was a friendly-looking smile and not a lovesick one. "Hi, Theo, Dylan, it's good to see you again."
"It's good to see you, too," Theodore said, relieved by the brief but joyful smile Blaise had greeted him with. {He still loves me,} he sighed inwardly. It was stupid to have doubted his lover, he supposed, but he had been worried ever since he had received Blaise's letter. Whatever problems there might be with Blaise's parents, at least his feelings for Theodore had not changed.
"Hi, Blaise," Dylan said with a grin. He nudged his foster brother in the side with his elbow and whispered, "I told you so."
Allegra bounded up to them and announced, "Hi, I'm Allegra, do you remember me? I met you a couple of times at the Slytherin Quidditch matches. Blaise talks about you all the time." To Dylan, she said, "I saw the game where you beat Gryffindor by knocking the Snitch into your Seeker's hand; that was great! Are you going to become a professional Quidditch player? Could you teach me to play? Blaise says he's no good at Quidditch. Can I try out for the Slytherin team when I'm old enough? Is it true that girls aren't allowed to join the Slytherin team?"
"Take a breath, Allegra," Blaise told his sister. "He can't answer if he can't get a word in edgewise."
"Oh, hello, Professor Snape, Professor Lupin," Percy said politely, looking surprised. "I didn't know that you shopped here."
"We were in the neighborhood and we just thought we'd stop by to say hello," Lupin said cheerfully. "Blaise is a friend of Dylan's and Theodore's. How are the two of you doing? Your father's not working you too hard, I hope, Percy."
"It is my duty as well as a privilege to work hard for the sake of the Ministry," Percy said, and Lupin smiled while the Slytherins tried to refrain from rolling their eyes. "But we are both doing very well, thank you, Professor." He and Penelope smiled at each other.
"They're engaged!" Allegra told Lupin, momentarily distracted from her one-sided conversation with Dylan.
"Is that true?" Lupin asked, and Percy nodded, that besotted, fatuous grin appearing on his face again, while Penelope held out her engagement ring for Lupin to admire. "It's beautiful," he told her. "Congratulations; I'm so happy for you two! Isn't that wonderful news, Severus?"
"I couldn't be more thrilled," Snape said sourly.
Lupin shot him a quick glare, then turned back to Percy and asked, "Have you set a date yet?"
"Yes, we're getting married at the end of August so Ginny and Ron can attend before they go back to school," Percy replied. "About a week after Professor Blackmore and Sirius Black are getting married, actually. Of course Mum's running around frantically saying she doesn't know how she's going to help organize two weddings at once, though Professor Blackmore says she doesn't need any help--"
"But of course Mrs. Weasley is determined to offer her help regardless," Penelope said with a hint of dry humor. Snape had a sudden vision of cheerful, idealistic Gryffindor Molly Weasley clashing with the demonic Professor Blackmore over wedding plans, and had to repress a laugh; he almost felt sorry for Black. If the mongrel was smart, he'd lie low and make himself scarce until it was time to present himself at the ceremony.
"Well, you know Mum," Percy chuckled.
"We just want something very small and simple," Penelope said. "Just a few close friends and family."
"Good luck keeping it small and simple," Snape muttered with a hint of real sympathy. Percy was the first of Molly Weasley's brood to wed, and he suspected that she was likely to get carried away and make a big production out of it, and he knew quite well how stubborn a Gryffindor could be when they set their mind on something--and Molly was doubly stubborn where her children were concerned. Not to mention the fact that everyone who wanted to curry favor with the new Minister was likely to be angling for an invitation to his son's wedding.
Percy said they had to be on their way, so they said goodbye and Lupin wished them all the best. Then he turned back to Blaise and asked, "Is this your sister?" The little girl looked much like Blaise, with the same black hair and brown eyes, but while Blaise was usually serious and reserved, she seemed to be outgoing and talkative, practically brimming over with energy and good cheer.
"Yes, sir, this is my sister, Allegra; she'll be entering Hogwarts in the fall. Allegra, this is Professor Lupin and Professor Snape, and my friends Dylan and Theodore."
"Hello, sir," Allegra said to Snape, regarding him with a mixture of curiosity, awe, and trepidation. "I guess you'll be my Head of House when I start school."
"Well, we won't know that for sure until the Sorting Hat places you in a House," Lupin explained gently.
"Daddy says all Zabinis are Slytherins," Allegra told him, and Marius nodded emphatically, looking a little indignant at the suggestion that his daughter might be placed in another House. "And I want to be in the same House as Blaise." Theodore and Blaise exchanged a look; they were the only ones who knew that the Hat had almost placed Blaise in Ravenclaw, until he prevailed upon it to put him in Slytherin so he wouldn't disappoint his parents.
"Well then," Lupin said kindly, "I hope you'll be Sorted into Slytherin. I look forward to teaching you this fall."
"Me too!" Allegra said happily. "Blaise says your class is his favorite!" Blaise turned a little red and gave Snape a nervous look. "Will you teach us about werewolves? You're a werewolf, aren't you? What's it like to change--"
"ALLEGRA!" Blaise and Marius both snapped, looking mortified.
"I apologize, Professor," Marius said a little stiffly; he didn't relish having to apologize to a werewolf, but felt he didn't have much choice, given his daughter's faux pas. "Allegra means no harm, but she has a habit of speaking without thinking."
"A good Slytherin is circumspect at all times," Snape told Allegra sternly.
"What does 'circumspect' mean?" Allegra wanted to know.
"It means to think before you open your mouth, brat," Blaise said, but softened his words by ruffling her hair affectionately.
"It's all right," Lupin assured them. "I'm not offended; most of my students are just as curious about my lycanthropy, but are too afraid to ask. But I think it's much better to talk about it openly and clear up any misconceptions they might have." Marius was stunned into silence, and Lupin turned to Allegra and said, "I'll be happy to tell you all about werewolves in class, but right now Professor Snape and I need to talk to your father."
"Could we please speak privately with you for a moment, Marius?" Snape asked, and despite the uncharacteristic politeness of his words, his tone of voice hinted that this was not really a request.
"I beg your pardon, Professor," Marius said, in that same stiff tone of voice he had used with Lupin, "but I am working right now..."
Snape's patience ran out and he gave up the pretense of being polite. He looked around the shop pointedly and said, "I don't see any customers here at the moment, do you?"
"Severus!" Lupin scolded.
"Fine," Snape sighed irritably. He plucked an item at random from one of the shelves: an ornate but very ugly brass goblet engraved with a design of snakes coiling around the cup. "How much is this, Zabini?"
"Um, two Galleons, sir," Blaise replied nervously.
Snape slapped two gold coins down on the counter in front of Marius. "There. I'm a paying customer; now will you talk to me?"
"Please, Mr. Zabini," Lupin said in a placating tone, "if we could just have a few minutes of your time..."
Marius sighed, looking almost as irritated as Snape. "Blaise, Allegra, you stay out here and watch the shop." He motioned for the two Professors to follow him into the back room, leaving the three boys alone, but they were all very mindful of Allegra's presence and the curious look on her face.
Dylan tried to distract Allegra and give his friends a chance to talk by saying, "I've never been here before. Could you show me around the shop?" Allegra was more than happy to do so, explaining the origins of the various items in the shop.
She pointed to a very expensive but hideous-looking tapestry made with particularly garish and clashing colors. "That tapestry was a wedding gift to the Bletchleys from Mr. Bletchley's grandmother. They've always hated it, but they couldn't get rid of it while she was alive; the first they did when she died was give it to us. Daddy didn't even have to pay them anything for it; in fact, he says that they probably would have paid HIM to take it off their hands! And those books are from Flourish & Blotts, overstock that they couldn't sell, so they gave them to us dirt-cheap. Gilderoy Lockhart's books have been showing up in the bargain bins ever since people found out he was a fraud, but most of the information in them is still correct; it's just that he stole it from other people..."
"I'm really glad to see you," Blaise said softly to Theo. "I'm sorry that I couldn't come to visit you."
"You could have told me the truth, you know," Theodore told him, just as softly. "About why you couldn't come."
"Oh, was it that obvious?" Blaise asked, looking guilty and a bit sheepish. "I didn't want to hurt your feelings, and I thought maybe I could get my dad to change his mind..."
"Don't you know?" Theodore asked, and Blaise gave him a blank look. "Your father sent a letter to Professor Snape saying that he wants you to have a different roommate next term."
"WHAT?!" exclaimed Blaise, and Allegra immediately broke off her lecture to stare at him.
"Shh!" Theodore hissed. "Calm down, Snape promised he wouldn't split us up, but he and Lupin wanted to talk to your dad about it."
"I'm so sorry, Theo," Blaise said, looking very upset. "I didn't know, I swear it--"
"It's okay, really--"
"No, it's not okay! I can't believe he did that behind my back!"
"What's going on, Blaise?" Allegra asked, leaving off her tour of the shop to join them.
"It's nothing, Allegra; go show Dylan around the shop."
"Are you talking about that fight that you and Daddy had?" she persisted. "About not letting you visit your friends because their parents were Death Eaters?"
Blaise sighed and explained, "We had a huge argument at the breakfast table the day your letter came, Theo. He's afraid that hanging around with you and Dylan will affect my social standing, which is pretty dumb, because I don't have any to begin with! He's got it into his head that maybe the Zabinis can rise to prominence again now that the Death Eaters are disbanded, and he doesn't want me to ruin my chances of advancement."
"But you don't feel that way, do you?" Theodore asked anxiously.
"Of course not, you idiot!" Blaise said, sounding hurt and a little angry. "I--" He nearly said, "I love you," and just barely managed to stop himself in time, remembering that Allegra was standing right next to him--and that his father was right in the next room. His expression softened, and he told Theodore quietly, "You're my best friend. Your friendship is more important to me than playing some stupid pureblood politics games."
"I'm sorry," Theodore said, feeling his body go limp with relief; he nearly collapsed on the spot, but managed to keep himself upright somehow. "I shouldn't have doubted you. And I'm sorry that I caused trouble between you and your father."
"It's not your fault, Theo. My father can be very stubborn at times..."
"Don't worry," Allegra told Theodore earnestly. "Daddy will come around." Theodore stared at her in surprise, and she smiled. "I know you must be a good person, because Blaise likes you so much."
Theodore blushed a little, thinking to himself that he and Blaise would have to be very careful once Allegra started school, especially if she was Sorted into Slytherin. She was obviously inquisitive, observant, and talkative, and he didn't want any gossip about himself and Blaise getting back to her parents...
"And Blaise says you fought against the Death Eaters, so you must be very brave," Allegra continued. "Was it scary? Fighting the Death Eaters, I mean."
"Yes," Theodore said gravely, "it was very scary. I didn't feel very brave at the time."
"But you did what you had to do," Dylan said gently. "I think maybe that's what it means to be brave--to do what you know is right, even though you're afraid."
"I never thought of it that way before," Allegra said thoughtfully; she actually stopped talking for a long moment. "Do you think I can be brave, too?"
"I'm sure you can," Dylan said with a smile. "Your brother was very brave, too, you know."
Allegra smiled proudly at Blaise, then turned back to Dylan and Theodore. "Will you two be my friends, too?" she asked shyly. "And help me with my homework and Quidditch and stuff?"
"Sure," Dylan said with a grin. "We Slytherins have to stick together, right?"
Theodore looked a little startled by the question; he wasn't used to having people seek out his friendship, but he smiled and said, "Of course. You're my best friend's sister, after all."
"Great!" Allegra said happily. "Say, you like Quidditch, don't you?"
"Sure," Theodore replied. "I'm going to try out for the team this fall."
"I want to show you something," she said, taking him by the hand and leading him across the room. "We have a used Quaffle for sale. Of course, it's sort of deflated and the enchantments have worn off, but maybe you could re-enchant it..." Theodore looked a little bemused, but let her drag him across the room, and patiently listened to her sales pitch as Blaise and Dylan followed, laughing.
***
Marius led Lupin and Snape through a doorway behind the counter into what appeared to be a storeroom; it was filled with old furniture and boxes of junk still to be sorted through. Marius pulled up three rather rickety chairs, and Snape gingerly took a seat, as if afraid the chair might give way beneath him. Lupin and Marius followed suit, and Marius asked, "Well, what can I do for you, Professor?"
"You can start by explaining this letter," Snape said sourly, holding up the letter Marius had sent him.
"I thought I explained myself quite clearly in the letter, sir," Marius said in that tone of voice that only a Slytherin seemed capable of mastering--one that managed to be perfectly polite and yet subtly insulting at the same time.
"What Severus means to say," Lupin said before Snape could form a reply, "is that we are concerned that you seem to disapprove of Blaise's and Theodore's friendship."
"I didn't say that," Marius said.
"Ah, then you do approve?" Lupin asked pleasantly. "Then you wouldn't mind if Blaise came over for a visit sometime."
"I didn't say that, either," Marius said curtly.
"Then what are you saying, Zabini?" Snape asked impatiently; Marius remained silent. "I'm not in the mood to play word games with you. You've made it clear that you don't want Blaise associating with Theodore. Is it because he's a Death Eater's son? Or is your problem with Lupin and myself?" Silence. "Damn it, Zabini, did you really think I wouldn't see through the feeble excuses you gave in your letter? Do you really think it's wise to insult the Head of Slytherin when your son has only one year left until graduation, and I am responsible for his grades and job recommendations...?"
Marius looked frightened and angry. "Look, Snape, if you have a problem with me, don't take it out on my son!"
"Then don't take out your prejudice on MY son!" Snape retorted.
"Stop it, Severus!" Lupin snapped, angry with his lover for threatening Marius with Blaise's future, even though he knew that Severus would never follow through on that threat. But at the same time his heart filled with joy at that unconscious slip of the tongue that had betrayed the Potions Master's true feelings: he had not said "Mr. Nott" or "Theodore" or even "my foster son," but simply "my son." Severus had just admitted to himself--though perhaps he didn't fully realize it yet--that he loved Theodore as much as if he had been his real son. Severus was already close to Dylan, of course, but since Theodore had only very recently come to trust him, they were still working on building a relationship, with all the awkwardness and hesitation and missteps that came along with having grown up in families that had offered little warmth or stability. They still had a long way to go, of course, but Lupin felt that he and Severus and the boys were now truly a family.
Snape stared at Lupin, bewildered, as the werewolf first glared at him, then smiled at him tenderly. Lupin didn't bother to enlighten him, but turned to Marius and said, "Severus is bluffing; he would never do such a thing to Blaise."
Snape scowled. "You're not helping, Lupin."
"Neither are you!" Lupin said. "I thought we agreed to try and work this out in a civilized manner before bringing out the threats and insults."
Marius looked skeptical but curious. "Why are you so sure he's only bluffing? Everyone knows how Professor Snape favors certain students in his House..."
Lupin smiled. "The same 'everyone' who swore that Severus was a Death Eater and Lucius Malfoy's lapdog?" he asked gently. "Things are not always what they seem, Mr. Zabini. I know Severus, and I know that he would never ruin Blaise's future out of petty spite. He did what he had to do to keep up his Death Eater cover, but he cares about his students very much." Snape flushed, looking embarrassed, much to Marius's surprise. "He worked very hard to protect them."
"Not hard enough, apparently," Marius snapped. "My son had a Memory Charm cast on him by the Death Eaters, and he got dragged into the final battle. I blame you and the Nott boy for getting him entangled with the Death Eaters, Snape!"
Snape looked both angry and guilty, but again, before he could reply, Lupin spoke. "Please don't blame Severus and Theodore," he said softly. "Severus fought very hard to protect the children from both sides: to ensure that the Order of the Phoenix did not sacrifice the Slytherin children's safety to expediency in the name of winning the war, and he put himself at risk to divert the Death Eaters' attention away from the children in order to protect some of them from their own parents. Theodore is one of them. He was never a Death Eater, nor ever wanted to be one."
"But he hung around with Malfoy's son and the others; I saw how they swaggered around the school..."
"Theodore was only trying to protect himself," Lupin said, still in that quiet voice. "He was terrified of his father. Did you know Thaddeus Nott, Mr. Zabini?"
"Yes, I went to school with him," Marius replied reluctantly.
"Then you know he was a sadist," Lupin said. "He didn't treat his son with any more kindness than he showed his other victims."
"But--"
"It is true that Theo did not stand up against his father and the Death Eaters until the very end," Lupin interrupted. "But how many people had the courage to do even that much? How many failed to act against Voldemort out of fear?"
Marius flushed with shame, picking up on the unspoken implication of Lupin's words: that he was one of those very same people; he had stood by and done nothing, hoping that the war would resolve itself without his help. "I--"
"And Theodore did try to protect Blaise," Lupin continued in a gentle, but firm voice. "In fact, he saved Blaise's llife in Hogsmeade."
"What?" Marius asked, his eyes going wide.
"How much did Blaise tell you about his Halloween encounter with the Death Eaters?"
"Very little," Marius replied. "He doesn't remember anything about it; he only knows what Nott told him, that he stumbled across the Death Eaters when they were meeting their sons and that they took away his memory of it."
"Lucius Malfoy and Thaddeus Nott wanted to kill your son," Snape told him. "Theodore persuaded them not to, told them that it would arouse too much suspicion if a student disappeared so soon after the prison break. He implied that Blaise was a Death Eater sympathizer to save his life, which was what led Draco Malfoy to take him along to the final battle. I regret that he got involved in the battle, but you should blame me for that, not Theodore; I should have been keeping a closer eye on Draco."
"Is that really true?" a stunned Marius asked.
"I will swear it under Truth Serum if that's what it takes to convince you," Snape said impatiently, "but honestly, Zabini, do you really think that the Death Eaters are inclined to be merciful? They normally kill interlopers, not Obliviate them."
"Severus," Lupin said in a warning tone of voice.
"Thaddeus punished his son for arguing with him," Snape informed Marius coldly, ignoring Lupin. "He used a Branding Hex on Theodore, burned his handprint into the boy's wrist." Marius winced. "From what I can gather, it wasn't the first time he hexed his son, nor was it the worst hex he ever used. And despite all his fear of his father and the Death Eaters, he still took the risk of asking me to help him protect Blaise."
"Why didn't he ever tell Blaise all this?" Marius whispered, feeling very shaken by the realization that his son had come even closer to death than he had originally thought.
"Before the battle, to protect him," Snape replied. "The whole point of the Memory Charm, and the conditions for sparing his life, after all, were that he would remember nothing of the incident and be unable to leak information about the Death Eaters. If he'd given any indication that he'd regained his memory or otherwise learned of what happened, they would have tried to have him eliminated. And after the battle...I don't know. Perhaps he didn't want to scare Blaise, perhaps he was preoccupied with other matters...he did suffer quite a traumatic experience on the battlefield; his father tried to hand him over to the Dark Lord as a sacrifice, and then both his parents were killed."
"Please," Lupin said gently, "can't you forgive Theodore? He was only a child, frightened and alone, not knowing who to trust, but he still did his best to protect his friend. Won't you let the boys continue their friendship?"
"It's not just that," Marius said, looking a little shamefaced. "I have to think of my son's future. I believe you when you say that the Nott boy isn't a Death Eater, but sometimes appearances count for more than reality..."
"I don't understand," Lupin said, although he had a sinking feeling that he did.
"I do," Snape snarled. "He thinks his son will be tainted by associating with a Death Eater's son."
"The Nott boy--" Marius started to say.
"Stop calling him 'the Nott boy'!" Snape snapped. "He has a name!"
"Theodore and Dylan come from old, wealthy families," Marius said defensively. "They have enough money to secure their futures even if they are scorned for their fathers' crimes. But Blaise has nothing; he has to make his own way in the world." Marius laughed bitterly. "How ironic. My family lost our wealth and influence because we refused to ally with the Death Eaters, and now I fear that my son's chances for advancement will be ruined if people believe he is a Death Eater sympathizer."
"Perhaps you should not set so much store on 'advancement,'" Lupin said. "Those who claw their way up the social ladder can just as easily be cast down--as the Malfoys discovered. But true friendship is a rare and valuable commodity, one more important than fair-weather friends and allies who will abandon you when you have nothing more to offer them. Look." He motioned to the open doorway, and Marius peered through it.
He saw his daughter chattering away with Blaise's friends, and saw Theodore smile down at her kindly; a far cry from the sullen boy he remembered seeing in the Slytherin stands at the Quidditch matches. He saw Allegra take the startled boy by the hand and lead him across the room, and saw him examine a battered Quaffle as Allegra launched into what Marius recognized as a sales pitch. Theodore smiled, listening patiently as Allegra spoke with enthusiasm, then Dylan and Blaise came over and the four of them started laughing and talking together.
"Dylan, Theodore, Blaise, and their other friend Damien have all been loyal friends to each other these past few years," Lupin said. "They all fought to protect each other during the battle. It would be a shame to break up such a friendship. Actually, I know that Blaise wouldn't abandon his friends so easily, but neither would he want to defy his family. Please don't force him to make such a choice."
Marius sighed and leaned back in his chair, looking very weary. "I only want what's best for my son. I want him to have a future--a future that includes something besides running a junk shop."
"If you're worried about his future, I can help," Snape offered, sounding much calmer and a little more sympathetic. "I may not be as influential as Lucius Malfoy was, but I am respected in the academic community, believe it or not. I could recommend him for a teaching or research position, if he's interested. I think he would be well-suited to such a career."
"And if you are still concerned about advancement and influential friends," Lupin said lightly, "you need look no further. The new Minister of Magic happens to be a very good friend of mine."
Snape smiled sardonically at the stunned look on Marius Zabini's face. "Things have changed, you know, Zabini. The werewolf is no longer an outcast; he is a hero of the war. And Arthur Weasley is an idealistic Gryffindor; he helped start the Wolfsbane Potion distribution program, and he pushed through the bill granting non-humans equal rights. The old rules no longer apply; if you're going to suck up to someone, Zabini, you want to make sure you're sucking up to the right people..."
"SEVERUS!"
Snape just laughed at the outraged look on Lupin's face. "The werewolf may be a soft touch," he continued almost cheerfully, "but I assure you that you don't want to get on his bad side. And you should never try to come between a wolf and its cubs."
Lupin glared at his lover and said in an icy voice, "Please don't speak for me, Severus." Then he turned to Marius and said, "You must forgive Severus; I fear he's spent too much time with the Death Eaters. He seems to be unable to get his point across without resorting to threats." He shot another glare at Snape, who looked almost amused.
"Don't blame it on the Death Eaters, Lupin; it's just my natural winning personality," Snape quipped. The corners of Lupin's mouth twitched for a moment, and he almost smiled before rearranging his features back into a stern expression. {Not bad for a Gryffindor,} Snape thought. {He almost looked intimidating for a moment there, but he's still got a long way to go before he can equal a Slytherin.} Meanwhile, Marius, who was not used to the lovers' banter and playful arguments, just sat there with his mouth hanging open.
"Blaise is our student," Lupin said in a gentler voice. "And he's our son's best friend. Of course we would do whatever we could to help him, whether you asked us to or not." He gave Snape one last glare. "No sucking up required."
"What can I say?" Snape said, heaving an exaggerated sigh of resignation. "The werewolf is an idealist."
Marius thought things over; he didn't really like the idea of being indebted to the werewolf and the Potions Master, but if what they said was true, he couldn't afford to offend them, either. He hadn't been aware that Arthur Weasley was friends with Remus Lupin, but he didn't think that the werewolf was lying; the Daily Prophet had revealed that they were both--along with Snape--members of the Order of the Phoenix, and one of the first things Weasley had done when he assumed his post as Minister was to acknowledge the role that the non-humans, particularly the werewolves, had played in the battle against the Death Eaters, and pressure the Ministry into passing the equal rights bill. Lupin could prove to be a valuable ally--or a dangerous enemy.
Marius glanced through the doorway again, and saw Blaise still laughing with his friends. He knew that Blaise had been miserable after he forbade him to visit Dylan and Theodore, and he felt a pang of guilt, then a faint sense of ironic humor as he wondered how he had managed to raise such an idealistic child. Well, it ran in the family, he supposed...Marius's father had been opposed to the Death Eaters on moral grounds. When he was old enough to grasp the concept of pureblood politics, Marius had quickly realized that crossing the Malfoys and their allies was a bad idea, but as a dutiful son, he had followed his father's wishes. Besides, he hadn't trusted any of the Malfoys, but especially Lucius, who was just as likely to stab his friends in the back as he was to help them. And, quite frankly, he hadn't had the stomach for killing and torturing Muggles and Mudbloods; neither had he had the courage to fight against the Death Eaters. He felt ashamed to realize that the course of his life had not been determined by ambition or idealism, but by cowardice and apathy. His son had proved far braver than his father...
As if reading his mind, Lupin smiled and said softly, "You have raised a brave, intelligent, and compassionate son, Mr. Zabini. He is almost an adult; you should trust in yourself, that you have raised him properly, and trust in Blaise to make his own decisions and choose the right path for himself."
Marius sighed and gave in to the inevitable. "Then I will trust in you to look after Blaise, Professors. And I most humbly apologize for any offense I have given."
"You don't need to apologize," Lupin said, although Snape looked as though he disagreed. "I understand that it was not malice, but love for your son that motivated you. We all want what is best for our children. Now that I am a foster father myself, I can understand a little better all the anxiety and worry that the parents of our students go through." He smiled tenderly at Snape, who flushed.
Marius shook his head slightly, wondering what on earth had drawn that pair together; he couldn't imagine two people who were less alike or more ill-suited for each other. {Opposites attract, I suppose.}
"Then it's all right if Blaise comes over for a visit?" Lupin asked cheerfully.
"Of course," Marius said, trying to sound gracious. If he didn't quite succeed, the two Professors pretended not to notice.
"Thank you very much," said Lupin. "Theodore and Dylan will be so happy."
Well, he had given Lupin and Snape what they wanted; maybe he was pushing his luck, but Marius decided to test the sincerity of their pledge to help Blaise. "My son respects the two of you," he said, "and he still seems undecided about his career plans. Perhaps you could provide him with a little guidance."
"I'll speak to him," Snape said, settling back into his role as Head of House. "Mr. Zabini is a talented student, and he has a number of options open to him..."
"He has a Healing Gift, which is quite rare, and it would be a shame to waste it," Marius said. "My wife and I were hoping that he might consider becoming a mediwizard."
"I will of course do my best to help him achieve that goal...providing that is what he wants," Snape said, with a knowing little smirk that clearly said he suspected that was more the elder Zabinis' wish than Blaise's. "He strikes me as having more of a scholarly bent...but of course it is ultimately his decision. Mr. Zabini did sign up for both Advanced Potions and Herbology next term, so he is taking the proper prerequisite courses required for a mediwizard, if he decides to choose that profession."
Marius nodded, looking somewhat mollified, if not completely satisfied. He supposed that Lupin was right; Blaise was nearly an adult, and he would make his own decisions whether Marius liked them or not. Blaise was usually quiet and obedient, rarely causing his parents any trouble--it was Allegra who tended to get into mischief--but he could be quite stubborn when he set his mind on something. It was a Zabini family trait, after all; in some ways, Blaise took more after his grandfather than he did Marius, with his tenacious insistence on adhering to his ideals. "Thank you, Professor," Marius said in a resigned voice, then rose from his seat and headed back to the front room; Lupin and Snape followed.
Part 7
Two days later, Lupin and the boys followed Snape through the fireplace and emerged in a posh-looking office. A beautiful young woman rose from her desk to greet them; she was clad in sleek, wine-colored robes and her reddish-blonde hair was twisted up in an elegant knot at the back of her head. She smiled at them pleasantly, but there was something in her green eyes that made the wolf in Lupin stir and regard her with a sense of caution. Something about her reminded him of Lukas, although he didn't think that she was a werewolf...and then he realized that the wolf was recognizing a fellow predator, albeit a human one. Despite her pleasant smile, he sensed that she would be a dangerous woman to cross, and Lupin was suddenly very glad that she was on their side.
Snape didn't seem to notice anything amiss, and introduced his family to the woman. "Morrigan, this is my colleague, Remus Lupin, and our foster sons, Dylan Rosier and Theodore Nott. Lupin, Dylan, Theodore...this is Morrigan De Lacy, the lawyer working on our behalf."
"I'm very pleased to finally meet all of you," Morrigan said, still smiling, and shook their hands.
"Morrigan...De Lacy?" Lupin asked, his eyes widening. "Are you by any chance related to--?"
"Augustine De Lacy, the former Head of Slytherin?" Morrigan finished. "Yes, he was my uncle."
"I had no idea...why didn't you tell me that your lawyer was Professor De Lacy's niece, Severus?"
Snape shrugged. "You never asked. Besides, you were neither a Slytherin nor a particularly good Potions student; I didn't think you were especially close to the Professor."
"Besides," said Morrigan with a mischievous smile, "I suspect Severus enjoys catching people off-guard." Snape glowered at her, and Lupin laughed.
The name "De Lacy" nagged at Theodore's memory, and then he remembered a conversation that he had once overheard between his father and Andreas Avery. "Professor De Lacy...he was murdered by Death Eaters, wasn't he?" Theodore asked nervously.
"That is correct," Morrigan replied calmly.
"Then...why are you helping us?"
Morrigan was silent for a long moment, as if taking some time to decide how to reply. "I would not represent just anyone, Mr. Nott. Some of the imprisoned Death Eaters asked me to represent them, and I turned them down. But from what Severus has told me, it seems to me that you and Mr. Rosier are as much victims of the Death Eaters as my uncle was. Nor do I have any particular love for the Ministry; they were not very sympathetic to my family when my uncle was killed. At the time, all Slytherins were regarded with suspicion."
"You seem to get along very well with Severus," Lupin observed, "considering that most people believed he was a Death Eater himself up until recently."
"I never quite knew what to make of Severus," Morrigan said. "Of course I heard all the rumors, but Uncle Augustine always spoke highly of him; I found it hard to believe that he could have had a part in my uncle's death. And he was kind to me when I was a student at Hogwarts."
Lupin, Dylan, and Theodore all stared at Snape with identical looks of open-mouthed shock. Snape glared at Morrigan as if she were an errant student and snapped, "Ms. De Lacy!"
"Well, kind for a Slytherin and suspected Death Eater," Morrigan clarified with a laugh, not seeming to be intimidated by her former Professor. "I was a student when Severus began teaching at Hogwarts, shortly after Uncle Augustine died. He expressed sympathy to me in private, and it seemed to be sincere. As a teacher, he didn't favor me, but he treated me fairly. And he discouraged some of the students from harassing me."
"Oh, you did most of that on your own, Morrigan," Snape said, a small smile of malicious satisfaction playing around the corners of his mouth, although he still looked slightly peeved. "You were quite handy with hexes." He turned to Lupin and said, "Some of the Death Eater sympathizers were verbally harassing her because her uncle had been branded a traitor. And one of the boys tried to...ah...take liberties with her person. She cast a very nasty Stinging Hex upon all the offending parts of the young man's anatomy."
Both Snape and Morrigan grinned widely. Yes, Morrigan De Lacy was definitely not one to cross, Lupin decided. "Let me guess," he said aloud. "You were a Slytherin."
"Of course," Morrigan laughed. "I am a lawyer, after all. That goes without saying."
"After that," Snape continued, "the students left her alone. Particularly once I reminded them that her uncle was a Potions Master with a special talent for poisons. I did promise to do my best to have her sent to Azkaban if she succeeded in murdering any of them, but they didn't seem to find that very comforting."
"Fortunately, they didn't call your bluff," Morrigan said. "Because I didn't inherit my uncle's talent for Potions. I got decent grades in Potions class because I followed the instructions correctly, but I just didn't have that natural feel for it that one must have to become a Master. Uncle Augustine had no children of his own, and I think he was a little disappointed that there didn't seem to be any potential Potions Masters among his nieces and nephews. Which was why he was so pleased when you came along, Severus. He was happy to have a protege to pass his knowledge on to, even if it wasn't one of his own blood. And while I may not be a Potions Master, I am a very good lawyer."
"Indeed you are, Ms. De Lacy," Snape said. "That became apparent to me when you managed to talk Professor McGonagall out of giving you detention when you transfigured one of your harassers into a pig during her class. In fact, by the time you were done, I thought she was going to give you extra points for performing such an advanced spell!"
Lupin chuckled, and the boys looked a little bemused--both at the sight of Snape laughing with a former student, and at the thought of someone being able to talk McGonagall out of handing out a detention.
"Suffice it to say that I was never fully convinced that Severus was a Death Eater," Morrigan said. "Besides what I knew of him from my uncle and my own personal experience, there was the fact that Dumbledore hired him. While the Headmaster has a reputation as a bleeding heart, he isn't a fool. So when I heard that Severus had been working against Voldemort all along, I was relieved, but in hindsight, not surprised."
Lupin smiled tenderly at Snape and said, "So someone besides Albus, Branwen, and myself had faith in you, Severus." Snape just glared at Lupin, feeling rather miffed that his image as the sinister Potions Master and terror of the students at Hogwarts had apparently not been as convincing as he had thought it was.
"It's a good thing she wasn't a Death Eater," he grumbled, "or I'd probably be dead."
"No chance of that," Morrigan said, looking serious now. Then in a brisk tone, she said, "Well, enough reminiscing about the past. Shall we get down to business?" Snape nodded, and Morrigan said, "Please take a seat," indicating the four chairs neatly arrayed in front of her desk. Once they were seated, she took her own seat and picked up a sheaf of papers from the desk. "I have reached a tentative agreement with the Ministry, pending your approval, of course. Regarding Mr. Nott's petition, a fine of one thousand Galleons will be levied against the Nott account at Gringotts, but the Ministry will drop all further claims against the Nott estate, and confirm Theodore as the Nott heir."
"I had expected the fines to be heavier," Snape said, looking a little surprised.
Morrigan smiled in a very smug manner. "I was able to bargain them down, using the Aurors' abuse of authority during the search at Nott Manor as leverage. It could be rather embarrassing for them if that little incident were made public."
"Does the public really care if the Aurors trash a Death Eater's house?" Theodore asked cynically.
"No, but they might care if the Aurors trashed the room and personal belongings of a child, an orphaned boy who rejected his parents' teachings and courageously fought against the Death Eaters at the risk of his own life," Morrigan replied, and Theodore's face turned red. "I apologize, Mr. Nott; I do not mean to make light of your situation," she said in a gentler voice. "I know that you would not exploit your personal losses for sympathy, and that you would not want that incident to become public knowledge. The Ministry doesn't know that, however, and I have no compunctions about using it to shame them into lowering the fine and giving up their claim on your estate."
"I...see," Theodore murmured thoughtfully, the flush fading from his face.
"Of course, your friend Arthur Weasley was urging them to reach an amicable settlement, but he can only push so far without alienating all of his under-Ministers," Morrigan told Snape and Lupin.
"He's not MY friend!" Snape snapped in a waspish voice, and Lupin chuckled.
Morrigan ignored the interruption and continued, "The fine is steep enough that the Ministry will not lose face, but it still leaves a sizable balance in the Nott account, enough to keep up the estate and for Mr. Nott to live on for quite some time, providing he isn't too extravagant."
"I don't want the estate," Theodore said sullenly.
"Yes, Severus mentioned that to me," Morrigan said calmly. "If you wish, I can help you arrange the sale of the estate and mansion when the time comes. However, as you are underage, the estate and the money in your family account will be held in trust for you until you are eighteen. You cannot sell the estate before then, and in any case, I believe it would be in your best interest to wait a year or two. With the current anti-Death Eater sentiment, you would likely only get a fraction of the full market value if you sold it now. But in a year, or two, or three, things will have died down enough that you should be able to get a better price for it."
Theodore shrugged; it didn't matter much to him, as long as he didn't have to live there. "If that's what you think best, Professor," he said to Snape.
"I believe Ms. De Lacy's advice is sound," Snape replied.
"Well then, if you wish to accept the Ministry's offer--and I believe it is the best one we will receive from them..." She paused, waiting for Snape and Theodore to nod their assent. She flipped through the papers she was holding until she came to the last page and continued, "Then please sign here, Mr. Nott. And Severus, you and Professor Lupin need to sign below as his guardians; since he is under eighteen, your consent is required as well."
"Please call me Remus," Lupin said with a smile.
"Then you must call me Morrigan," she replied, smiling back at him.
Snape read through the papers carefully before accepting a quill from Morrigan and signing them. Rather than looking offended, she nodded approvingly. "A true Slytherin trusts no one," she said, then added with a laugh, "and certainly not a lawyer!" Lupin chuckled, and Snape made a noise halfway between a snort and a laugh, then handed the papers over to Theodore and Lupin to sign.
"Now, as for Mr. Rosier's petition," Morrigan said, picking up a second, thicker, stack of papers, "the Ministry is willing to cede the Rosier title and lands to Dylan--providing we do not seek further reparations, namely the money that they took from the Rosier account in Gringotts, which has long ago been spent or funneled into various Ministry accounts. The Rosiers were wealthy, and I estimate that there were at least several thousand Galleons in the account, so this bargain might strike you as somewhat unfair, Mr. Rosier. However, if we fight them in court, they will no doubt bring up the crimes that your father committed as a Death Eater, and the fact that you gave the vampiric roses that were used in the prison break to Voldemort, even though you had no choice in the matter. And they will probably argue that your father never married your mother, so therefore you are entitled to no portion of the Rosier inheritance. A specious argument, since there is ample precedent of an illegimate heir inheriting the family title if no legitimate heir exists, and you are the last living Rosier. In our favor is the fact that the Ministry literally stole the estate from an unborn baby, and believe me, I will play that up as much as possible. But I need to warn you that they will drag your name through the mud if this case goes to trial. On the other hand, if you accept their settlement, you get the estate, which remains untouched by the Aurors, since they were never able to bypass the guardian roses. I have never been inside the Rosier mansion, but most of the wealthy pureblood families keep money and items of value hidden on their estates--particularly the Slytherin families. Paranoia is, after all, a Slytherin trait, and most of them keep a secret stash in case of emergencies. I can't guarantee that such a stash exists in your case, but I am almost certain that it does. I doubt it will be anywhere near as much as was confiscated from Gringotts, but it is still likely to be a tidy sum. And you are of course still heir to your great-aunt's estate, so you will not be penniless regardless of what you do or do not find in the Rosier mansion. I would advise you to accept the settlement, but the decision is yours, Mr. Rosier. Would you like to take some time to think it over and discuss it with your guardians?"
"No," Dylan said, after only a moment's hesitation. "I don't care about the money. I am more than capable of earning a living on my own, and as you said, I am still heir to Uncle Math's and Aunt Goewin's estate. The true value of the Rosier estate to me is that it was my father's home." He turned to Snape. "I don't know if I want to live there, but I would like to go back sometime and see my father's room, see if I can find some family potraits or photographs, see if I can get an idea of what my father and grandparents were like. I don't want to risk losing it over a few thousand Galleons."
"As you wish, Dylan," Snape said, laying his hand on his foster son's shoulder for a moment.
Morrigan handed the papers to Snape. "Then if you'll all sign here, please..."
They signed the papers and handed them back to Morrigan. "Thank you," she said. "I will send them to the Ministry immediately. As soon as I receive the deeds to the estates, and the paperwork confirming Mr. Nott and Mr. Rosier as the heirs to their respective estates, I will forward them to you."
"Thank you, Morrigan," Snape said. "I appreciate everything you've done for us."
Lupin raised his eyebrows at that courteous response, and whispered into his lover's ear, "I may faint with surprise."
"Oh, shut up, Lupin," Snape hissed.
Morrigan politely pretended not to notice. "You're welcome, Severus," she said, extending her hand. "It's been a pleasure doing business with you." Snape shook her hand, and Lupin and the boys thanked her as well, then they left the office and headed for Diagon Alley.
"She seems quite formidable," Lupin told Snape. "I hope you're paying her well."
"She is, and I am," Snape said smugly. "She's a junior partner in the law firm, but she's the best lawyer they have; I wouldn't be surprised if she were running it in a few years. People tend to underestimate her because she's young and female, but I doubt they'll be doing that for much longer."
"It seems her parents chose well when they named her," Lupin said.
"Goddess of War, indeed," Snape laughed.
"How did you come to choose her as a lawyer, Severus?" Lupin wanted to know. "Have you kept in touch with Morrigan over the years?"
"No, not really," Snape replied. "Though since she was my mentor's niece, I kept tabs on her career over the years. And don't forget that I was a Death Eater, and the pureblood wizards spend most of their time gossiping about each other behind their backs. I heard a few things about an upstart young female lawyer, enough to make me want to hire her."
"A lawyer with ethics," Lupin mused. "How astonishing."
Snape let out a little snort of laughter. "You've been hanging around me too long, Lupin; you're starting to sound as cynical as a Slytherin. Morrigan's ethics are rather flexible, as are those of most Slytherins. I won't say that she would never defend a client she knew was guilty, but she does hate the Death Eaters because of what they did to her uncle. No amount of money could ever persuade her to defend one."
"Is that why she agreed to take our case?" Lupin asked. "Because the boys had also been victimized by the Death Eaters? Or perhaps because of your ties to Professor De Lacy?"
"Both of those reasons, I believe--at least in part," Snape replied. "The other part is her quite substantial fee. I assure you that she didn't grant me any discounts for the sake of sentiment."
"A true Slytherin," Lupin said, and they both laughed. Dylan and Theodore also laughed, but exchanged a solemn glance when their guardians weren't looking. They both knew that they owed Snape a great deal, and that he probably would not accept their money if they tried to pay him back for Morrigan's fee when they received control of their estates. They silently resolved to find some other way to return the favor, someday.
***
Meanwhile, Blaise and Allegra were working in their father's shop, as usual. Blaise was arranging some items on a shelf, while Allegra was sitting on a stool in the corner wrapping Spellotape around a broken wand. Just then, the door opened and Percy Weasley and his girlfriend, Penelope, walked in.
"Percy!" Allegra exclaimed happily, setting aside the wand. "Penny!" For some reason that Blaise could not fathom, his sister seemed fond of the priggish Weasley boy, as well as Penelope, who seemed nice enough, although he wasn't sure what she saw in Percy, either. Just as strangely, Percy seemed to have a soft spot for Allegra, treating her with the affectionate if slightly condescending air of an older brother. Since Percy treated his own siblings with the same condescension, Blaise didn't think that he was purposely trying to be insulting, and Allegra never seemed to be offended by it.
"Hello, Allegra," Percy said with a smile, looking more smug than usual.
"Hello, dear," Penelope said. "Are you excited about starting school in the fall?"
"Oh, yes! I can't wait!"
"How nice to see you again, young Mr. Weasley," Marius Zabini said with a slightly forced smile. He still found it galling that the Weasleys had surpassed his family in status, but he couldn't afford to offend a regular customer--and it most definitely would not be wise to offend the son of the new Minster of Magic. "Congratulations on your father's promotion. Are you continuing in your position as assistant to the Minister of Magic?"
"Yes, I am," Percy said proudly. "Dad was worried at first that it would seem like nepotism, but it was pointed out to him that it was Mr. Fudge--God rest his soul--who hired me in the first place, so it's not really nepotism if I keep on in the same position."
"That's wonderful," Marius said, without much sincerity, but fortunately, Percy seemed oblivious. "Well, what can we do for you today, Mr. Weasley?"
"Well," Penelope said coyly, "Percy's apartment is rather sparsely furnished, and I thought we might buy some things to make it look more homey. Second-hand, of course, since we're on a limited budget."
"A man who is about to be married must be fiscally responsible," Percy said in his usual pompous manner.
"Married?" squealed Allegra.
Penelope beamed, looking even more smug than Percy, and held out her left hand; on her ring finger was a small but glittering diamond set in a band of white gold. "Yes, we just got engaged; you're the first one we've told apart from our families."
"Oh Penny, it's beautiful!" Allegra gushed, and Penelope looked gratified.
"Well, it seems that more congratulations are in order, Mr. Weasley," Marius said.
"Thank you, sir," Percy said, a wide and rather foolish-looking grin spreading across his face.
"Congratulations, Percy," Blaise said politely.
"Thanks, Zabini," Percy said, shaking his hand, still with that silly smile on his face.
"I have something you'll love," Allegra said, taking Penelope by the hand and leading her to a table where a porcelain tea service was displayed. The teapot was shaped like a beehive, and the cups and saucers were decorated with a pattern of fat, comical-looking bumblebees.
"It is quite charming," Penelope agreed. She picked up the teapot to examine it more closely; there was a large crack running across it, and some of the cups were slightly chipped. "But will a Reparo spell be able to restore it?"
"Of course," Allegra said confidently. She took a wand out of her pocket, tapped the teapot with it, and said, "Reparo!" The crack seamlessly sealed itself.
Penelope stared at her in shock. "You can already cast a Reparo spell when you're only just about to enter your first year?!" she exclaimed.
Percy frowned. "Students aren't allowed to perform magic outside of school."
"But Percy," Allegra said innocently, giving him her most charming and guileless smile, "I'm not a student yet."
Percy stared at her for a moment, and to Blaise's complete and utter shock, the former prefect, who had probably been the worst stickler for rules in the entire history of the school, threw back his head and laughed, then said indulgently, "Well, I suppose we can overlook it just this once. But you should be careful, Allegra. Bending the rules can sometimes get you into as much trouble as breaking them can."
"Yes, Percy," Allegra said meekly. "I won't do it again. I just wanted to repair the teapot for Penny."
"It's lovely, dear," Penelope assured her. "We'll make good use of it in our new home." She and Percy beamed at each other. "But you had better let me repair the rest of the set myself."
Marius and Blaise stood back and watched as Allegra led the couple around the shop, pointing out "bargains" that she thought they could use. In the end, they decided to get the tea service, a set of slightly cracked china plates, some tarnished silverware that could easily be polished with a cleaning spell, and an antique rolltop desk. The desk, though marked down because one leg was wobbly and it needed to be re-varnished, was still a little pricey for Percy's taste.
"Look," Allegra said, rolling the top back to reveal a number of small drawers and pigeonholes. "It's perfect for organizing documents--just what an assistant to the Minister like yourself needs."
Percy, of course, loved to have everything organized and in its proper place. "It's very nice," he said wistfully, "but the desk I have at home should suffice, even if it is a bit small..."
"It's got a secret compartment," Allegra told him, crawling under the desk to show him the catch that caused a hidden drawer to spring out. "As assistant to the Minister of Magic, you're sure to be handling a lot of important and sensitive documents. This is a perfect place to hide them, and you could lay a concealing spell on it to make it even safer."
"I'll take it!" Percy exclaimed. Penelope looked amused, but didn't object.
Blaise whispered to his father, "You should let Allegra take over the shop instead of me when you retire, Father."
"She's quite the saleswoman, isn't she?" Marius said proudly. "She could take over right now and do fine, but school comes first."
They were just wrapping up the sale and making arrangements to have the items delivered to Percy's apartment, when the door opened and a very familiar-looking black-robed figure walked through the door.
"Professor Snape!" Blaise said, startled, as his Head of House walked into the store. "Professor Lupin!" he added, as the werewolf followed behind Snape. Blaise felt a sudden surge of hope, and sure enough, Dylan and Theo entered the shop as well. "Theo!" he cried, feeling a grin that must be as silly-looking as Percy's spreading across his face. He tried to get himself under control; he didn't want to make his father suspicious, after all. He managed to tone it down to what he hoped what was a friendly-looking smile and not a lovesick one. "Hi, Theo, Dylan, it's good to see you again."
"It's good to see you, too," Theodore said, relieved by the brief but joyful smile Blaise had greeted him with. {He still loves me,} he sighed inwardly. It was stupid to have doubted his lover, he supposed, but he had been worried ever since he had received Blaise's letter. Whatever problems there might be with Blaise's parents, at least his feelings for Theodore had not changed.
"Hi, Blaise," Dylan said with a grin. He nudged his foster brother in the side with his elbow and whispered, "I told you so."
Allegra bounded up to them and announced, "Hi, I'm Allegra, do you remember me? I met you a couple of times at the Slytherin Quidditch matches. Blaise talks about you all the time." To Dylan, she said, "I saw the game where you beat Gryffindor by knocking the Snitch into your Seeker's hand; that was great! Are you going to become a professional Quidditch player? Could you teach me to play? Blaise says he's no good at Quidditch. Can I try out for the Slytherin team when I'm old enough? Is it true that girls aren't allowed to join the Slytherin team?"
"Take a breath, Allegra," Blaise told his sister. "He can't answer if he can't get a word in edgewise."
"Oh, hello, Professor Snape, Professor Lupin," Percy said politely, looking surprised. "I didn't know that you shopped here."
"We were in the neighborhood and we just thought we'd stop by to say hello," Lupin said cheerfully. "Blaise is a friend of Dylan's and Theodore's. How are the two of you doing? Your father's not working you too hard, I hope, Percy."
"It is my duty as well as a privilege to work hard for the sake of the Ministry," Percy said, and Lupin smiled while the Slytherins tried to refrain from rolling their eyes. "But we are both doing very well, thank you, Professor." He and Penelope smiled at each other.
"They're engaged!" Allegra told Lupin, momentarily distracted from her one-sided conversation with Dylan.
"Is that true?" Lupin asked, and Percy nodded, that besotted, fatuous grin appearing on his face again, while Penelope held out her engagement ring for Lupin to admire. "It's beautiful," he told her. "Congratulations; I'm so happy for you two! Isn't that wonderful news, Severus?"
"I couldn't be more thrilled," Snape said sourly.
Lupin shot him a quick glare, then turned back to Percy and asked, "Have you set a date yet?"
"Yes, we're getting married at the end of August so Ginny and Ron can attend before they go back to school," Percy replied. "About a week after Professor Blackmore and Sirius Black are getting married, actually. Of course Mum's running around frantically saying she doesn't know how she's going to help organize two weddings at once, though Professor Blackmore says she doesn't need any help--"
"But of course Mrs. Weasley is determined to offer her help regardless," Penelope said with a hint of dry humor. Snape had a sudden vision of cheerful, idealistic Gryffindor Molly Weasley clashing with the demonic Professor Blackmore over wedding plans, and had to repress a laugh; he almost felt sorry for Black. If the mongrel was smart, he'd lie low and make himself scarce until it was time to present himself at the ceremony.
"Well, you know Mum," Percy chuckled.
"We just want something very small and simple," Penelope said. "Just a few close friends and family."
"Good luck keeping it small and simple," Snape muttered with a hint of real sympathy. Percy was the first of Molly Weasley's brood to wed, and he suspected that she was likely to get carried away and make a big production out of it, and he knew quite well how stubborn a Gryffindor could be when they set their mind on something--and Molly was doubly stubborn where her children were concerned. Not to mention the fact that everyone who wanted to curry favor with the new Minister was likely to be angling for an invitation to his son's wedding.
Percy said they had to be on their way, so they said goodbye and Lupin wished them all the best. Then he turned back to Blaise and asked, "Is this your sister?" The little girl looked much like Blaise, with the same black hair and brown eyes, but while Blaise was usually serious and reserved, she seemed to be outgoing and talkative, practically brimming over with energy and good cheer.
"Yes, sir, this is my sister, Allegra; she'll be entering Hogwarts in the fall. Allegra, this is Professor Lupin and Professor Snape, and my friends Dylan and Theodore."
"Hello, sir," Allegra said to Snape, regarding him with a mixture of curiosity, awe, and trepidation. "I guess you'll be my Head of House when I start school."
"Well, we won't know that for sure until the Sorting Hat places you in a House," Lupin explained gently.
"Daddy says all Zabinis are Slytherins," Allegra told him, and Marius nodded emphatically, looking a little indignant at the suggestion that his daughter might be placed in another House. "And I want to be in the same House as Blaise." Theodore and Blaise exchanged a look; they were the only ones who knew that the Hat had almost placed Blaise in Ravenclaw, until he prevailed upon it to put him in Slytherin so he wouldn't disappoint his parents.
"Well then," Lupin said kindly, "I hope you'll be Sorted into Slytherin. I look forward to teaching you this fall."
"Me too!" Allegra said happily. "Blaise says your class is his favorite!" Blaise turned a little red and gave Snape a nervous look. "Will you teach us about werewolves? You're a werewolf, aren't you? What's it like to change--"
"ALLEGRA!" Blaise and Marius both snapped, looking mortified.
"I apologize, Professor," Marius said a little stiffly; he didn't relish having to apologize to a werewolf, but felt he didn't have much choice, given his daughter's faux pas. "Allegra means no harm, but she has a habit of speaking without thinking."
"A good Slytherin is circumspect at all times," Snape told Allegra sternly.
"What does 'circumspect' mean?" Allegra wanted to know.
"It means to think before you open your mouth, brat," Blaise said, but softened his words by ruffling her hair affectionately.
"It's all right," Lupin assured them. "I'm not offended; most of my students are just as curious about my lycanthropy, but are too afraid to ask. But I think it's much better to talk about it openly and clear up any misconceptions they might have." Marius was stunned into silence, and Lupin turned to Allegra and said, "I'll be happy to tell you all about werewolves in class, but right now Professor Snape and I need to talk to your father."
"Could we please speak privately with you for a moment, Marius?" Snape asked, and despite the uncharacteristic politeness of his words, his tone of voice hinted that this was not really a request.
"I beg your pardon, Professor," Marius said, in that same stiff tone of voice he had used with Lupin, "but I am working right now..."
Snape's patience ran out and he gave up the pretense of being polite. He looked around the shop pointedly and said, "I don't see any customers here at the moment, do you?"
"Severus!" Lupin scolded.
"Fine," Snape sighed irritably. He plucked an item at random from one of the shelves: an ornate but very ugly brass goblet engraved with a design of snakes coiling around the cup. "How much is this, Zabini?"
"Um, two Galleons, sir," Blaise replied nervously.
Snape slapped two gold coins down on the counter in front of Marius. "There. I'm a paying customer; now will you talk to me?"
"Please, Mr. Zabini," Lupin said in a placating tone, "if we could just have a few minutes of your time..."
Marius sighed, looking almost as irritated as Snape. "Blaise, Allegra, you stay out here and watch the shop." He motioned for the two Professors to follow him into the back room, leaving the three boys alone, but they were all very mindful of Allegra's presence and the curious look on her face.
Dylan tried to distract Allegra and give his friends a chance to talk by saying, "I've never been here before. Could you show me around the shop?" Allegra was more than happy to do so, explaining the origins of the various items in the shop.
She pointed to a very expensive but hideous-looking tapestry made with particularly garish and clashing colors. "That tapestry was a wedding gift to the Bletchleys from Mr. Bletchley's grandmother. They've always hated it, but they couldn't get rid of it while she was alive; the first they did when she died was give it to us. Daddy didn't even have to pay them anything for it; in fact, he says that they probably would have paid HIM to take it off their hands! And those books are from Flourish & Blotts, overstock that they couldn't sell, so they gave them to us dirt-cheap. Gilderoy Lockhart's books have been showing up in the bargain bins ever since people found out he was a fraud, but most of the information in them is still correct; it's just that he stole it from other people..."
"I'm really glad to see you," Blaise said softly to Theo. "I'm sorry that I couldn't come to visit you."
"You could have told me the truth, you know," Theodore told him, just as softly. "About why you couldn't come."
"Oh, was it that obvious?" Blaise asked, looking guilty and a bit sheepish. "I didn't want to hurt your feelings, and I thought maybe I could get my dad to change his mind..."
"Don't you know?" Theodore asked, and Blaise gave him a blank look. "Your father sent a letter to Professor Snape saying that he wants you to have a different roommate next term."
"WHAT?!" exclaimed Blaise, and Allegra immediately broke off her lecture to stare at him.
"Shh!" Theodore hissed. "Calm down, Snape promised he wouldn't split us up, but he and Lupin wanted to talk to your dad about it."
"I'm so sorry, Theo," Blaise said, looking very upset. "I didn't know, I swear it--"
"It's okay, really--"
"No, it's not okay! I can't believe he did that behind my back!"
"What's going on, Blaise?" Allegra asked, leaving off her tour of the shop to join them.
"It's nothing, Allegra; go show Dylan around the shop."
"Are you talking about that fight that you and Daddy had?" she persisted. "About not letting you visit your friends because their parents were Death Eaters?"
Blaise sighed and explained, "We had a huge argument at the breakfast table the day your letter came, Theo. He's afraid that hanging around with you and Dylan will affect my social standing, which is pretty dumb, because I don't have any to begin with! He's got it into his head that maybe the Zabinis can rise to prominence again now that the Death Eaters are disbanded, and he doesn't want me to ruin my chances of advancement."
"But you don't feel that way, do you?" Theodore asked anxiously.
"Of course not, you idiot!" Blaise said, sounding hurt and a little angry. "I--" He nearly said, "I love you," and just barely managed to stop himself in time, remembering that Allegra was standing right next to him--and that his father was right in the next room. His expression softened, and he told Theodore quietly, "You're my best friend. Your friendship is more important to me than playing some stupid pureblood politics games."
"I'm sorry," Theodore said, feeling his body go limp with relief; he nearly collapsed on the spot, but managed to keep himself upright somehow. "I shouldn't have doubted you. And I'm sorry that I caused trouble between you and your father."
"It's not your fault, Theo. My father can be very stubborn at times..."
"Don't worry," Allegra told Theodore earnestly. "Daddy will come around." Theodore stared at her in surprise, and she smiled. "I know you must be a good person, because Blaise likes you so much."
Theodore blushed a little, thinking to himself that he and Blaise would have to be very careful once Allegra started school, especially if she was Sorted into Slytherin. She was obviously inquisitive, observant, and talkative, and he didn't want any gossip about himself and Blaise getting back to her parents...
"And Blaise says you fought against the Death Eaters, so you must be very brave," Allegra continued. "Was it scary? Fighting the Death Eaters, I mean."
"Yes," Theodore said gravely, "it was very scary. I didn't feel very brave at the time."
"But you did what you had to do," Dylan said gently. "I think maybe that's what it means to be brave--to do what you know is right, even though you're afraid."
"I never thought of it that way before," Allegra said thoughtfully; she actually stopped talking for a long moment. "Do you think I can be brave, too?"
"I'm sure you can," Dylan said with a smile. "Your brother was very brave, too, you know."
Allegra smiled proudly at Blaise, then turned back to Dylan and Theodore. "Will you two be my friends, too?" she asked shyly. "And help me with my homework and Quidditch and stuff?"
"Sure," Dylan said with a grin. "We Slytherins have to stick together, right?"
Theodore looked a little startled by the question; he wasn't used to having people seek out his friendship, but he smiled and said, "Of course. You're my best friend's sister, after all."
"Great!" Allegra said happily. "Say, you like Quidditch, don't you?"
"Sure," Theodore replied. "I'm going to try out for the team this fall."
"I want to show you something," she said, taking him by the hand and leading him across the room. "We have a used Quaffle for sale. Of course, it's sort of deflated and the enchantments have worn off, but maybe you could re-enchant it..." Theodore looked a little bemused, but let her drag him across the room, and patiently listened to her sales pitch as Blaise and Dylan followed, laughing.
***
Marius led Lupin and Snape through a doorway behind the counter into what appeared to be a storeroom; it was filled with old furniture and boxes of junk still to be sorted through. Marius pulled up three rather rickety chairs, and Snape gingerly took a seat, as if afraid the chair might give way beneath him. Lupin and Marius followed suit, and Marius asked, "Well, what can I do for you, Professor?"
"You can start by explaining this letter," Snape said sourly, holding up the letter Marius had sent him.
"I thought I explained myself quite clearly in the letter, sir," Marius said in that tone of voice that only a Slytherin seemed capable of mastering--one that managed to be perfectly polite and yet subtly insulting at the same time.
"What Severus means to say," Lupin said before Snape could form a reply, "is that we are concerned that you seem to disapprove of Blaise's and Theodore's friendship."
"I didn't say that," Marius said.
"Ah, then you do approve?" Lupin asked pleasantly. "Then you wouldn't mind if Blaise came over for a visit sometime."
"I didn't say that, either," Marius said curtly.
"Then what are you saying, Zabini?" Snape asked impatiently; Marius remained silent. "I'm not in the mood to play word games with you. You've made it clear that you don't want Blaise associating with Theodore. Is it because he's a Death Eater's son? Or is your problem with Lupin and myself?" Silence. "Damn it, Zabini, did you really think I wouldn't see through the feeble excuses you gave in your letter? Do you really think it's wise to insult the Head of Slytherin when your son has only one year left until graduation, and I am responsible for his grades and job recommendations...?"
Marius looked frightened and angry. "Look, Snape, if you have a problem with me, don't take it out on my son!"
"Then don't take out your prejudice on MY son!" Snape retorted.
"Stop it, Severus!" Lupin snapped, angry with his lover for threatening Marius with Blaise's future, even though he knew that Severus would never follow through on that threat. But at the same time his heart filled with joy at that unconscious slip of the tongue that had betrayed the Potions Master's true feelings: he had not said "Mr. Nott" or "Theodore" or even "my foster son," but simply "my son." Severus had just admitted to himself--though perhaps he didn't fully realize it yet--that he loved Theodore as much as if he had been his real son. Severus was already close to Dylan, of course, but since Theodore had only very recently come to trust him, they were still working on building a relationship, with all the awkwardness and hesitation and missteps that came along with having grown up in families that had offered little warmth or stability. They still had a long way to go, of course, but Lupin felt that he and Severus and the boys were now truly a family.
Snape stared at Lupin, bewildered, as the werewolf first glared at him, then smiled at him tenderly. Lupin didn't bother to enlighten him, but turned to Marius and said, "Severus is bluffing; he would never do such a thing to Blaise."
Snape scowled. "You're not helping, Lupin."
"Neither are you!" Lupin said. "I thought we agreed to try and work this out in a civilized manner before bringing out the threats and insults."
Marius looked skeptical but curious. "Why are you so sure he's only bluffing? Everyone knows how Professor Snape favors certain students in his House..."
Lupin smiled. "The same 'everyone' who swore that Severus was a Death Eater and Lucius Malfoy's lapdog?" he asked gently. "Things are not always what they seem, Mr. Zabini. I know Severus, and I know that he would never ruin Blaise's future out of petty spite. He did what he had to do to keep up his Death Eater cover, but he cares about his students very much." Snape flushed, looking embarrassed, much to Marius's surprise. "He worked very hard to protect them."
"Not hard enough, apparently," Marius snapped. "My son had a Memory Charm cast on him by the Death Eaters, and he got dragged into the final battle. I blame you and the Nott boy for getting him entangled with the Death Eaters, Snape!"
Snape looked both angry and guilty, but again, before he could reply, Lupin spoke. "Please don't blame Severus and Theodore," he said softly. "Severus fought very hard to protect the children from both sides: to ensure that the Order of the Phoenix did not sacrifice the Slytherin children's safety to expediency in the name of winning the war, and he put himself at risk to divert the Death Eaters' attention away from the children in order to protect some of them from their own parents. Theodore is one of them. He was never a Death Eater, nor ever wanted to be one."
"But he hung around with Malfoy's son and the others; I saw how they swaggered around the school..."
"Theodore was only trying to protect himself," Lupin said, still in that quiet voice. "He was terrified of his father. Did you know Thaddeus Nott, Mr. Zabini?"
"Yes, I went to school with him," Marius replied reluctantly.
"Then you know he was a sadist," Lupin said. "He didn't treat his son with any more kindness than he showed his other victims."
"But--"
"It is true that Theo did not stand up against his father and the Death Eaters until the very end," Lupin interrupted. "But how many people had the courage to do even that much? How many failed to act against Voldemort out of fear?"
Marius flushed with shame, picking up on the unspoken implication of Lupin's words: that he was one of those very same people; he had stood by and done nothing, hoping that the war would resolve itself without his help. "I--"
"And Theodore did try to protect Blaise," Lupin continued in a gentle, but firm voice. "In fact, he saved Blaise's llife in Hogsmeade."
"What?" Marius asked, his eyes going wide.
"How much did Blaise tell you about his Halloween encounter with the Death Eaters?"
"Very little," Marius replied. "He doesn't remember anything about it; he only knows what Nott told him, that he stumbled across the Death Eaters when they were meeting their sons and that they took away his memory of it."
"Lucius Malfoy and Thaddeus Nott wanted to kill your son," Snape told him. "Theodore persuaded them not to, told them that it would arouse too much suspicion if a student disappeared so soon after the prison break. He implied that Blaise was a Death Eater sympathizer to save his life, which was what led Draco Malfoy to take him along to the final battle. I regret that he got involved in the battle, but you should blame me for that, not Theodore; I should have been keeping a closer eye on Draco."
"Is that really true?" a stunned Marius asked.
"I will swear it under Truth Serum if that's what it takes to convince you," Snape said impatiently, "but honestly, Zabini, do you really think that the Death Eaters are inclined to be merciful? They normally kill interlopers, not Obliviate them."
"Severus," Lupin said in a warning tone of voice.
"Thaddeus punished his son for arguing with him," Snape informed Marius coldly, ignoring Lupin. "He used a Branding Hex on Theodore, burned his handprint into the boy's wrist." Marius winced. "From what I can gather, it wasn't the first time he hexed his son, nor was it the worst hex he ever used. And despite all his fear of his father and the Death Eaters, he still took the risk of asking me to help him protect Blaise."
"Why didn't he ever tell Blaise all this?" Marius whispered, feeling very shaken by the realization that his son had come even closer to death than he had originally thought.
"Before the battle, to protect him," Snape replied. "The whole point of the Memory Charm, and the conditions for sparing his life, after all, were that he would remember nothing of the incident and be unable to leak information about the Death Eaters. If he'd given any indication that he'd regained his memory or otherwise learned of what happened, they would have tried to have him eliminated. And after the battle...I don't know. Perhaps he didn't want to scare Blaise, perhaps he was preoccupied with other matters...he did suffer quite a traumatic experience on the battlefield; his father tried to hand him over to the Dark Lord as a sacrifice, and then both his parents were killed."
"Please," Lupin said gently, "can't you forgive Theodore? He was only a child, frightened and alone, not knowing who to trust, but he still did his best to protect his friend. Won't you let the boys continue their friendship?"
"It's not just that," Marius said, looking a little shamefaced. "I have to think of my son's future. I believe you when you say that the Nott boy isn't a Death Eater, but sometimes appearances count for more than reality..."
"I don't understand," Lupin said, although he had a sinking feeling that he did.
"I do," Snape snarled. "He thinks his son will be tainted by associating with a Death Eater's son."
"The Nott boy--" Marius started to say.
"Stop calling him 'the Nott boy'!" Snape snapped. "He has a name!"
"Theodore and Dylan come from old, wealthy families," Marius said defensively. "They have enough money to secure their futures even if they are scorned for their fathers' crimes. But Blaise has nothing; he has to make his own way in the world." Marius laughed bitterly. "How ironic. My family lost our wealth and influence because we refused to ally with the Death Eaters, and now I fear that my son's chances for advancement will be ruined if people believe he is a Death Eater sympathizer."
"Perhaps you should not set so much store on 'advancement,'" Lupin said. "Those who claw their way up the social ladder can just as easily be cast down--as the Malfoys discovered. But true friendship is a rare and valuable commodity, one more important than fair-weather friends and allies who will abandon you when you have nothing more to offer them. Look." He motioned to the open doorway, and Marius peered through it.
He saw his daughter chattering away with Blaise's friends, and saw Theodore smile down at her kindly; a far cry from the sullen boy he remembered seeing in the Slytherin stands at the Quidditch matches. He saw Allegra take the startled boy by the hand and lead him across the room, and saw him examine a battered Quaffle as Allegra launched into what Marius recognized as a sales pitch. Theodore smiled, listening patiently as Allegra spoke with enthusiasm, then Dylan and Blaise came over and the four of them started laughing and talking together.
"Dylan, Theodore, Blaise, and their other friend Damien have all been loyal friends to each other these past few years," Lupin said. "They all fought to protect each other during the battle. It would be a shame to break up such a friendship. Actually, I know that Blaise wouldn't abandon his friends so easily, but neither would he want to defy his family. Please don't force him to make such a choice."
Marius sighed and leaned back in his chair, looking very weary. "I only want what's best for my son. I want him to have a future--a future that includes something besides running a junk shop."
"If you're worried about his future, I can help," Snape offered, sounding much calmer and a little more sympathetic. "I may not be as influential as Lucius Malfoy was, but I am respected in the academic community, believe it or not. I could recommend him for a teaching or research position, if he's interested. I think he would be well-suited to such a career."
"And if you are still concerned about advancement and influential friends," Lupin said lightly, "you need look no further. The new Minister of Magic happens to be a very good friend of mine."
Snape smiled sardonically at the stunned look on Marius Zabini's face. "Things have changed, you know, Zabini. The werewolf is no longer an outcast; he is a hero of the war. And Arthur Weasley is an idealistic Gryffindor; he helped start the Wolfsbane Potion distribution program, and he pushed through the bill granting non-humans equal rights. The old rules no longer apply; if you're going to suck up to someone, Zabini, you want to make sure you're sucking up to the right people..."
"SEVERUS!"
Snape just laughed at the outraged look on Lupin's face. "The werewolf may be a soft touch," he continued almost cheerfully, "but I assure you that you don't want to get on his bad side. And you should never try to come between a wolf and its cubs."
Lupin glared at his lover and said in an icy voice, "Please don't speak for me, Severus." Then he turned to Marius and said, "You must forgive Severus; I fear he's spent too much time with the Death Eaters. He seems to be unable to get his point across without resorting to threats." He shot another glare at Snape, who looked almost amused.
"Don't blame it on the Death Eaters, Lupin; it's just my natural winning personality," Snape quipped. The corners of Lupin's mouth twitched for a moment, and he almost smiled before rearranging his features back into a stern expression. {Not bad for a Gryffindor,} Snape thought. {He almost looked intimidating for a moment there, but he's still got a long way to go before he can equal a Slytherin.} Meanwhile, Marius, who was not used to the lovers' banter and playful arguments, just sat there with his mouth hanging open.
"Blaise is our student," Lupin said in a gentler voice. "And he's our son's best friend. Of course we would do whatever we could to help him, whether you asked us to or not." He gave Snape one last glare. "No sucking up required."
"What can I say?" Snape said, heaving an exaggerated sigh of resignation. "The werewolf is an idealist."
Marius thought things over; he didn't really like the idea of being indebted to the werewolf and the Potions Master, but if what they said was true, he couldn't afford to offend them, either. He hadn't been aware that Arthur Weasley was friends with Remus Lupin, but he didn't think that the werewolf was lying; the Daily Prophet had revealed that they were both--along with Snape--members of the Order of the Phoenix, and one of the first things Weasley had done when he assumed his post as Minister was to acknowledge the role that the non-humans, particularly the werewolves, had played in the battle against the Death Eaters, and pressure the Ministry into passing the equal rights bill. Lupin could prove to be a valuable ally--or a dangerous enemy.
Marius glanced through the doorway again, and saw Blaise still laughing with his friends. He knew that Blaise had been miserable after he forbade him to visit Dylan and Theodore, and he felt a pang of guilt, then a faint sense of ironic humor as he wondered how he had managed to raise such an idealistic child. Well, it ran in the family, he supposed...Marius's father had been opposed to the Death Eaters on moral grounds. When he was old enough to grasp the concept of pureblood politics, Marius had quickly realized that crossing the Malfoys and their allies was a bad idea, but as a dutiful son, he had followed his father's wishes. Besides, he hadn't trusted any of the Malfoys, but especially Lucius, who was just as likely to stab his friends in the back as he was to help them. And, quite frankly, he hadn't had the stomach for killing and torturing Muggles and Mudbloods; neither had he had the courage to fight against the Death Eaters. He felt ashamed to realize that the course of his life had not been determined by ambition or idealism, but by cowardice and apathy. His son had proved far braver than his father...
As if reading his mind, Lupin smiled and said softly, "You have raised a brave, intelligent, and compassionate son, Mr. Zabini. He is almost an adult; you should trust in yourself, that you have raised him properly, and trust in Blaise to make his own decisions and choose the right path for himself."
Marius sighed and gave in to the inevitable. "Then I will trust in you to look after Blaise, Professors. And I most humbly apologize for any offense I have given."
"You don't need to apologize," Lupin said, although Snape looked as though he disagreed. "I understand that it was not malice, but love for your son that motivated you. We all want what is best for our children. Now that I am a foster father myself, I can understand a little better all the anxiety and worry that the parents of our students go through." He smiled tenderly at Snape, who flushed.
Marius shook his head slightly, wondering what on earth had drawn that pair together; he couldn't imagine two people who were less alike or more ill-suited for each other. {Opposites attract, I suppose.}
"Then it's all right if Blaise comes over for a visit?" Lupin asked cheerfully.
"Of course," Marius said, trying to sound gracious. If he didn't quite succeed, the two Professors pretended not to notice.
"Thank you very much," said Lupin. "Theodore and Dylan will be so happy."
Well, he had given Lupin and Snape what they wanted; maybe he was pushing his luck, but Marius decided to test the sincerity of their pledge to help Blaise. "My son respects the two of you," he said, "and he still seems undecided about his career plans. Perhaps you could provide him with a little guidance."
"I'll speak to him," Snape said, settling back into his role as Head of House. "Mr. Zabini is a talented student, and he has a number of options open to him..."
"He has a Healing Gift, which is quite rare, and it would be a shame to waste it," Marius said. "My wife and I were hoping that he might consider becoming a mediwizard."
"I will of course do my best to help him achieve that goal...providing that is what he wants," Snape said, with a knowing little smirk that clearly said he suspected that was more the elder Zabinis' wish than Blaise's. "He strikes me as having more of a scholarly bent...but of course it is ultimately his decision. Mr. Zabini did sign up for both Advanced Potions and Herbology next term, so he is taking the proper prerequisite courses required for a mediwizard, if he decides to choose that profession."
Marius nodded, looking somewhat mollified, if not completely satisfied. He supposed that Lupin was right; Blaise was nearly an adult, and he would make his own decisions whether Marius liked them or not. Blaise was usually quiet and obedient, rarely causing his parents any trouble--it was Allegra who tended to get into mischief--but he could be quite stubborn when he set his mind on something. It was a Zabini family trait, after all; in some ways, Blaise took more after his grandfather than he did Marius, with his tenacious insistence on adhering to his ideals. "Thank you, Professor," Marius said in a resigned voice, then rose from his seat and headed back to the front room; Lupin and Snape followed.
Part 7