Merik had walked into the basement of the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris to do some research as part of her job of looking into Dark magic. The French ministry of magic had commissioned a small group that would look into the machinations of Dark magic. Truly for once seeing what was really dark magic and what was simply old magic.
She hadn't expected to run into her former potions professor and headmaster from Hogwarts. But there he sat, nose in a book, completely oblivious to the world. Merik took a breath and quietly walked over to him and bent down low. He hadn't noticed her presence.
"Haven't seen you for years professor." She whispered. Severus jumped and was ready to through a hex upon recognition of his assailant. The voice and they eyes were a dead giveaway from who she was. The young woman pulled over a chair and gracefully sat down smiling at him.
"Merik McQueen." He said as he put away his wand and sat up. "Haven't seen you for a while too." Actually it had been about sixteen years. She was a third year during the final battle of which she fought on the side of the light. She was twenty-nine now.
Merik McQueen had been a wonder to Severus. She was one of a handful of muggleborn student in Slytherin. She had flourished in the house. Not due to her connections but due to her sheer intelligence and tact. By the end of her first year all of Slytherin knew not to mess with her. Not even Draco had the balls.
Merik had been taken in by her aunt when her magical abilities became known. Her parents were afraid of her and thus sent her to the only magical being in the family. Her aunt had schooled her from then on with wandless magic until she turned eleven and obtained her first wand. From then on during breaks and weekends away she was taught all matter of potions and spells not taught at Hogwarts. Her aunt had seen the tide turning and knew that for her niece to survive she'd have to learn offensive and defensive spells. This need came to a head though when, during the summer after her first year, Merik's parents were found and murdered in their home. Their deaths had been linked to death eaters but the muggles deemed it a simple gas explosion. Her aunt, Eva Montrose, had become her legal guardian in all things and as such was sure that if she weren't learning it in school she was sure as hell learning it at home.
She was still sent to school under the reign of Severus Snape. In her third year she had become the only muggleborn student in Slytherin and the students still refused to go against her. When time came to fight she was the only one to step forward for the side of the light. When asked why she stepped forward by one Minerva McGonagall she said this: "The ones they worship so murdered my parents and treat me like shit. Come hell or high water, I'll see them all burned." She had stalked off to a flue to let her aunt know what was happening.
A while later the final battle had started and Eva had showed herself with a whip of fiend fire over head to turn a whole swath of death eaters into ash.
Of course Severus was not there to see that last bit. He had been in the shrieking shack bleeding to death only for Hermione Granger to run back and save his life. In the time he was healing in St. Mungo's the rest of the way he had been exonerated of all charges and Hogwarts had been rebuilt. When he was healthy he had left the hospital, took his belongings, the money awarded to him for bravery, and left England for the south of France.
"What are you doing now?" Asked Merik fixing the bag on her lap.
"I'm a potions master, what else would I be doing?" he asked acerbically. He was annoyed at being interrupted but she was from his house and was one of the few of his house he actually liked. "What are you doing here?" He looked her up and down. She had dressed in a long light dark blue skirt and a light white button up t-shirt.
"French ministry business. I work in the department of Magical mysteries. Specifically dealing with dark magic and its many facets." She responded smiling. For a moment she glanced at the books on the table before him and frowned. Severus noticed.
"I'm trying to remove the monstrosity on my left arm. It seems to be ever permanent no matter the injury or spell I use." He growled out as his fist hit the table. Merik nodded her head in understanding.
"Perhaps…perhaps I can help you with that." Severus sneered.
"What could you possibly do that I haven't tried?"
"You'd be surprised." Merik noticed the time and stood as she dug into her bag and pulled out a business card. "If you're interested come find me." she said as she wrote her address on the back of the card and slid it over to him. "Bon chance." She left Severus in the library and went to the section she was looking for, found the necessary books and returned home.
Severus found himself in front of a building in the Marais. It faced south and the stone was bleached white by care and good sunlight. The white stonewall was also burning his irises so he stepped through the door and went to the top floor of the building and knocked on the only door in sight. For a moment there was no sound until he heard two locks unlock and felt the rise of a few wards. Then the door swung open. Her black hair was left long and flowing around her as a breeze came through the door and the sunlight coming into the apartment and the hallway he stood in caused her dark skin to glow.
"Good evening Mr. Snape." She crooned as she stepped aside and ushered him in. Severus walked through and watched as she locked the door and reset her wards. She had changed her shirt to a camisole but still wore the same long skirt. "I take it you're curious as to what I can do for you, no?"
"Yes." Merik nodded. "You're going to need to get comfortable." Severus raised an eyebrow and took a step back. "Oh relax, remove your jacket and shoes and loosen your button up shirt." Severus huffed but conceded. He took off his boots and jacket and handed them to her. She placed the boots against the wall under where she hung his jacket. With a quick wave of her hand his socks and boots were freshened. "Come sit." She ordered as she motioned to the couch facing a window that looked over the rooftops of Paris.
Severus sat and absorbed the warmth of the sunlight filtering through the windows before him and felt himself relaxing. Merik had disappeared to the kitchen only to return a few minutes later with a cup of tea for him and glass of water for herself. Severus sniffed the tea.
"It's a concoction of ginger and chamomile. Should relax and warm you." Severus drank the mixture as she drank the water looking over out the window as well. Merik had grown quite well. As a student she was intelligent and strong with an uncommon kind of beauty that attracted the opposite sex as well as the same. Now she had grown into her body in an amazon like beauty but still graceful.
Severus took the last sip of tea as she placed her glass on the coffee table she sat on before him. She took Severus' cup and placed it besides hers.
"I'm going to need you to lay down and remain still but relaxed." Severus nodded and got comfortable and closed his eyes. "You can keep your eyes open. I think you'll want to see this." With a flick of her wand the shutters flicked closed making the room dark with a few beams of light filtering through. Merik took a deep breath and held her wand over his heart. She started to mumble a spell in a language he didn't know. Her wand went from his heart to the top of his head and back and then from his heart to his toes and back. In the dim light she held her left hand in prayer stance with her eyes shut. She then tapped the spot her wand was hovering over and a beam of light came out extending a foot from his chest. Her eyes were open now and the last syllables of the spell were said and she removed her wand.
"Everything is tangled." She said with a scowl. Another spell was said and the strands of magic untangled and unwove leaving a few strands alone. "Now to figure out what these strands do."
"Can you explain what's going on?" whispered Severus.
"Oh, sorry. This pillar of light that I neatly wove is your magic. The strands on their own are magic that tanged into your magic. I have separated them but now I need to figure out what they are."
"And how do you do that?"
"Simply by taping." Severus raised an eyebrow as Merik smirked. True to form all she had to do was tap each one with her wand to know what each was. "The black string is tied to the tattoo and well as the purple and light green one. The last two are the after affects of the mark and the repercussions of it removal. I take it you've been feeling not quite up to par since the final battle." Severus nodded. "Well I'll break those two and you should be fine. The black is the damage done by the dark mark on your body as well a kind of sticking charm."
"Can you break that one?"
"Oh yes. But I have to actually use the killing curse on it." Severus eyes popped. "Don't worry this magic is not attached to your magic anymore so the killing curse will only affect it. You'll be fine." And as quick as she explained that she sent the killing curse to that strand and it disintegrated.
"There are still four more strands left." Said Severus upon realizing he was still alive.
"These have to do with years of spell damage to your body. I'm guessing things like cruciatus and what not. When I break them you'll feel better but it will make you drowsy. You're body will recognize the release but will need time to rest. Is that okay with you?"
"That's fine." Merik removed the last four strands. With a mumbled spell the pillar of light representing his magic sunk back into his chest and the room was dark again.
"And we're done. Try removing the mark now." Severus took his wand out his pocket and cast a finite incantatum and the mark was gone. He sat there astounded. It had worked.
"I knew I liked you for a reason." He quipped before yawning. Merik smiled and stood.
"Your welcome. You rest here I'll make us something to eat. A minute later Severus was asleep.
When Severus woke it was dark outside and only a few lights were on in the living room giving it a dim gold light. He stood and stretched and then noticed it. There was no cracking of joints and no stiffness. He felt better from that rest. He took another look at his arm and smiled to himself.
"How do you feel?" Merik stood before him smiling with her hair up in a messy bun.
"I feel…lighter." He couldn't really describe the feeling. He didn't have a memory of ever feeling all right.
"Then I've done my job. Are you hungry at all?" she asked and in response Severus' stomach growled. "I'll take that as a yes." She took his hand and led Severus to a small dining table where they sat across from each other. They ate and talked about the work they were doing in their respective fields.
It was a while before they started dating and a little longer before they finally decided to marry.