A/N Ivory Skull (2) has been updated on this site. Still working on the problem with Forbidden Tomb on my private site though...sigh. JCWriter

Chapter Three

Anisplinched

When Severus arrived at the castle, he was unsurprised to find Sagittari out by the barn taking care of the animals. Although the centaur was always solemn, never had he seen the centaur's face quite so troubled; even in the years he had still been considered an exile of his people. The moments of deep concern for his patients had long left lines around his eyes and mouth, but never had they been so deep as Severus had witnessed in that moment.

"Good afternoon," Severus said quietly. Sagittari paused in his brushing of the hippogriff and gazed over at Severus, nodding solemnly.

"Good afternoon, Severus. I hadn't heard you had returned," the centaur said.

"Only just, really. Hermione sent me a note that you wanted to speak with me," Severus said.

"Yes," Sagittari said with a nod. "I thought I should report to you that I had a strange occurrence with the Spear while you were gone," he said. Severus stared at him in surprise. "I was with my people for my son's Reading Day, when I felt strangely unsettled and it began to glow briefly. I wondered if something evil came into the forest, but the creatures did not seem to react if that was so."

"When was this, exactly?" Severus said with alarm, although the chill running through him told him that he already knew the answer.

"Two days before today in the mid afternoon," Sagittari said, Severus nodding grimly.

"Jennifer and I felt something as well that day, only…now that you mention the Spear, I begin to wonder. I should probably get in touch with Harry and see if he felt something as well," Severus murmured.

"Then it is something you believe touched all of the Sentinels?" Sagittari asked thoughtfully.

"Quite possibly, although I would say it's too soon to rule anything out. Although…I believe I will feel a little better after I've checked on the Lia Fal," Severus decided.

"I will go with you," Sagittari said. "For there is something else I would like to speak to you about."

"Oh, what is it?" Severus asked, pausing outside the barn door.

"It's of a more personal nature," Sagittari explained, opening the gate for Severus and not speaking another word until they were well within the Forest. "You have long understood the ways of centaurs, Severus, and the curious position that I have been in," he said at last.

"Yes," Severus said with a nod.

"A centaur's life is guided by the stars. Our entire culture and existence is wrapped up in both our significance with them and our insignificance compared to them. But as a wizard…what would you do, Severus, if one of your daughters had been fated to a path of despair and an early death?"

"Depending on the source, discount it or heed it as a warning, perhaps, but do everything in my power to change the path or prevent it," Severus said. "One's fate can be changed. The fact that I'm still alive right now is proof enough of that to me."

"Yes, and I relied on that in attempt to justify my own path as a wizard long ago, although now that I look back I wonder that nearly all the predictions the stars made about my fate did indeed come true in some fashion," the centaur murmured.

"Predictions always look best in hindsight," Severus said with a shrug. "We fit events around them and anything that didn't happen was simply 'misinterpreted.'"

"Perhaps," the centaur said quietly. "Of course, such a philosophical debate as this within the constellation would be quite unheard of. To even question the stars is blasphemous to their ears. But I have come to question it, especially now most of all. My youngest son has a twin sister born under a different night as she came six hours later; being breech slowed her birth…a bad omen in many cultures, including ours. If that wasn't enough, her birth reading was as dark and dismal as much as my son's was bright, and it has been every Reading Day since then…always dark, always plagued with misfortune, and always calling her to death before her time. The other centaurs, therefore, accept this as fact, including my father, of course, and Vega as well. And even though she would be the equivalent of twelve or thirteen in human years, Vega plans to have her mated as quickly as possible despite my disapproval. I believe they are doing nothing but only reinforcing the belief that something will happen to her and encouraging it rather than preventing it."

"It does sound that way," Severus agreed quietly. "Does your daughter know of all of this?"

"She does," Sagittari nodded, but then sighed. "Although I don't know if she understands the gravity of it. Often she simply uses it to her advantage. The mares are more tolerant of her misbehavior because of her fate so she gets away with practically everything. Lyra is bold and reckless, unwise, but quite intelligent. She often uses her freedom to explore the world around her or sit classes with the colts, since their teacher ignores her presence. I'm not certain if she has condemned herself to this yet. Perhaps as long as she has not, there is still some hope. Although now I would wonder what you would counsel me to do."

"There is probably only one thing you can do," Severus said solemnly, "and I believe you have already come to the same conclusion. To leave her there would simply insure what your people have seen her fate to become."

"Yes, I've come to believe that as well," Sagittari admitted. Severus nodded.

"Then my advice would simply be to go fetch her and meet me at the grove so I may evaluate her magic potential and see if she's capable of becoming a witch," Severus said.

"Thank you, Severus," Sagittari said respectfully. "I'll return shortly."

Severus grew thoughtful as Sagittari bounded off and he made his way towards Keki's Grove and over to a large stone placed near the center. It neither wept nor sang when he touched it, despite the fact he still felt the tingle of his connection to it as its guardian. But the sense of foreboding that had come over him speaking to Sagittari about his daughter followed him even in that serene, peaceful place, and he wondered why he had so much trouble shaking it. At least the stone seemed safe, he thought, but even as he thought that he knew it was wrong somehow; just as he knew that Lyra was going to have a long road ahead if she were going to fight the stigma of fate placed upon her by her own kind.

Jennifer, Andrew and Gloria easily found where the others sat in an open field between the Quidditch pitch and the children's park because Lucky was shouting at Francis for the tenth time to stop trying to use his hands to catch the ball.

"I think we ought to stick him at goalkeeper," Lucky said with exasperation to Alex.

"I'm sure Pimra wouldn't mind," Alex said with a grin. In fact, Pimra had not gotten quite the hang of batting the ball away and was instead trying to duck and cover every time it came her way. "That is, if you think she can remember the rules any better," she laughed, then gestured for Pimra to come over. "New plan! Pyther guards the net!"

"Better him than me!" Pimra quickly agreed. But before they could change places, Francis began yelling and waving and they looked up to see the others coming over.

"Welcome back!" Francis said brightly.

"Welcome back yourself," Jennifer laughed, hugging him. She then spotted Alicia holding Janus on a swing shaped to look like a broom and hurried over to greet her.

"Hello, Andrew!" Francis said, shaking the offered hand before peering in the baby carriage. "So this is your daughter?"

"No," Andrew said, shaking his head. "She's just Gloria."

"Well do you mind if I hold 'just Gloria'?" Francis asked. He picked her up before Andrew could say anything and carried her over to the blanket as well. Lucky sighed when she saw there was going to be an obvious delay as Alex walked over too, using the time to show Pimra a few more basics.

"I wonder if Pimra's parents are here," Jennifer said after they had gotten settled, noticing her over with Lucky. "I'd hate for the board to find out about Gloria the hard way."

"You're the one that wanted to bring Gloria here, Mum," Andrew said.

"Well, it's not good to have her inside all the time," Jennifer said. "And really, it's not like we can hide it forever."

"How about until the tests come back so that everyone knows for certain it's not mine?" Andrew suggested.

"You really are convinced she isn't yours, aren't you?" Alicia said thoughtfully.

"I know she isn't," Andrew said fervently. "For one thing, why in the world would they have tried to hide it from me all these months?"

"Why not? It probably wouldn't have been all that hard to do with you at school for most of that," Alex said.

"Yes, but it's not as if they had much to lose by telling me," Andrew said. "If anything, if I was to blame, I certainly could have made life a lot easier for her."

"Would you have married her?" Alicia asked.

"Probably," Andrew admitted. "Especially if it meant saving my job."

"Oh, Andrew!" Jennifer scowled at him.

"There are worse reasons, Mum. And I know what sort of position this whole thing is likely to put Father in with the board," Andrew said, taking Gloria when she stretched her arms out to him. "In fact, I wouldn't be at all surprised if this isn't some sort of stunt just for that reason alone. To get me fired and Father under some sort of control after all of that business with the board last year."

Everyone grew quiet, glancing at each other uncomfortably.

"No one would actually do something like that, would they?" Francis said, glancing at Gloria with a frown. "Not and risk the child like that."

"Gloria was never in any danger," Andrew said. "Anyone who knew us at all would know she'd be in safe hands."

"I have to admit, I think Andrew has a point," Alex said. "I mean, a lot of people know Andrew's reputation with women, and there are also a lot of people who would have reason to do something to disrupt our family, not to mention the school."

"It's a terrible thing to have to consider," Jennifer said, gazing at Gloria before glancing at Andrew. "But it'd be foolish not to consider it a possibility. Although, if that does prove to be the case, I'm more worried about Gloria than I am about what trouble this might cause."

"Finally, something we can agree on," Andrew said. "Look, in a few more days, we'll know something for certain. Can't you at least give me the benefit of the doubt until then? Besides, if I am wrong, it isn't as if I'm going to brush off my responsibilities. I think you all know me better than that."

"All right, Andrew," Jennifer said, after glancing at the others. "Are you sure you aren't just in denial?"

"If he was, Mum, how would he know it?" Alicia pointed out.

"True enough," Jennifer admitted with a smile.

"But what I want to know is, what do we do if he's not the father?" Alex asked. "Because I'm not sure turning her over to the Ministry is necessarily the best thing to do."

"No, not considering there is a chance this is some sort of frame up," Andrew agreed. "What we really need to do is find the mother. Aurelius is helping me eliminate some of the possibilities, but if I'm right, it's either not going to be someone I've dated recently, or its someone I've not even dated at all."

"In other words, it's like trying to find a needle in a haystack," Alex sighed.

"Well, perhaps Aurelius will have some news. I wonder where he is," Andrew said.

"I heard from him earlier. He's going to be at dinner tonight. I thought we could have a nice family dinner out Baker Street now that we're all together," Jennifer said with a smile. Alicia rolled her eyes behind Jennifer's back, but Alex grinned and shook her head at her sister, knowing they weren't going to get out of it. "In fact, we should probably head back so I can get started."

"Oh, but I promised Lucky one more game!" Francis protested and got up. "It'll only be a few more minutes."

"Yeah, me too," Alex said getting up. Jennifer smiled and quickly offered to take Janus so Alicia could join them, watching contentedly for a while as Lucky attempted to get everyone organized.

"It really is so nice to see Lucky actually being treated like one of the family for a change," Jennifer said contentedly.

"There is a slight generation gap problem to contend with there, Mum," Andrew chuckled, but then grew more thoughtful. "She is so stiff, isn't she, though? Even with Alex, who she's had plenty of chances to get close to. She's almost as distant as she was when she first came to Hogwarts."

"Yes, she is," Jennifer said, nodding slowly before finally smiling again. "But she is getting on a lot better with children her own age now, so it's progress. That order they started has been good for her, and so has Ambrose."

"True, but, all the same, I doubt they really know her well, at least, not like she knows them," Andrew mused.

"No…no, I'm quite certain they don't," Jennifer said, glancing at Pimra, who had gotten behind Alex long enough to steal the ball away and pass it to Lucky.

With one swift kick Lucky launched the ball at the goal, but Francis he was actually too busy taunting Alex about losing the ball in the first place to be paying attention of what was coming up in front of him. At the last minute, Francis turned with surprise to see the ball beamed towards his head and in a panic changed forms.

Instantly he knew something was dreadfully wrong as pain wracked through him in every bone and muscle, hitting the ground hard on his back as the ball soared into the net and rolled back over him.

"Francis!" Alicia cried out and ran up to him, crying out again in surprise when she saw him "Mum! Come quick!" she screamed.

Jennifer put Janus down and ran over to see what was wrong, while everyone else on the field crowded around at a loss for what to do besides stare and cringe. For Francis had turned into a strange aviary mix like nothing anyone had ever seen before with the head of a dove, the body of a robin, the left wing of a wren, the right wing of a sparrow, and the tail of a peacock.

"We had better get him to the hospital," Jennifer said trying not to look, for every time she did, she found herself wincing again in sympathy pain.

The staff only had to take one look at him before they immediately got Francis to a room. As the others filed into the waiting room, Jennifer stayed with Alicia in a pair of chairs in the hall just outside. Every now and then a doctor or nurse would roll down the scroll on the door and step in, often coming out a moment later with pained expressions on their faces. Finally, Morfinn Bliant ran up the hall in a long white coat that almost looked to big for him and dove inside with a couple of nurses in tow.

"There, now, you see, everything will be all right," Jennifer said reassuringly, despite Alicia's dubious expression. "He really is one of the best doctor's here, you know."

"I know, Mum, but every time I look at him, I still see the sniffling kid who could never find a seat on the train," Alicia said. Jennifer grinned at her in amusement, but then noticed Aurelius walking up.

"Looks like you two have been having the sort of day I've been having," Aurelius said. "Although from what Andrew just told me, Francis has us all beat. Any news?"

"None yet," Alicia sighed.

"I'm sure he'll be fine, he just had a little transfiguration accident," Jennifer said. Alicia stared at her.

"If you keep saying it enough, you might actually start believing it, Mum," Aurelius said. "Anyhow, I just got done checking the last of Andrew's names. None of them knew anything about Gloria."

"Well, that is something," Jennifer said thoughtfully.

"He probably just forgot someone," Aurelius said. "But if so, he's got to figure it out for himself. I am not getting anywhere near his Pensieve. I might get contaminated by proxy." Alicia rolled her eyes.

"I'm not sure I'm completely convinced Gloria is his anymore, Aurelius," Jennifer admitted. Aurelius frowned at her.

"Just because Andrew doesn't believe it is doesn't make it so, Mum," Aurelius said.

"I know, Aurelius," Jennifer sighed. "But Andrew is right in that this family has been jumping to conclusions and condemning him without any proof except for a baby on a doorstep and a note we have no owner for." Aurelius suddenly looked thoughtful.

"Where is that note, anyhow?" he asked.

"I suppose Andrew probably still has it, why?" Jennifer asked.

"I think I want to take a closer look at it," Aurelius decided. "I'm going to head to the waiting room to talk to Andrew. Let me know if you guys need anything," he said before walking back down the hall.

"Odd," Jennifer murmured.

"What is it?" Alicia asked.

"Nothing, only he was thinking of his Sherlock Holmes skit from the talent show for some strange reason," Jennifer said, but then looked up when she noticed a nurse peeking out with a smile.

"You can come in now, Mrs. Pyther, Mrs. Snape," she said warmly.

"Thank you, Gillian," Jennifer said as Alicia went ahead of her into the room, sighing with relief and exasperation at seeing Francis back to his normal form, looking a bit haggard but otherwise in one piece. "There, now, Alicia, I told you he would be all right," Jennifer smiled as Alicia hugged him, missing the wince that crossed Francis' face when she did so.

"He's likely to be sore a day or two from the experience, but otherwise he's all right unless he does it again," Morfinn said.

"Again?" Alicia frowned at him.

"I'm afraid I instinctively tried to turn into a bat just then," Francis explained sheepishly. "Apparently I can't do that any longer."

"Apparently not," Alicia agreed dryly.

"Vampire shape shifting works a bit differently than animagus shape shifting. It's instantaneous; one minute you're there, then poof, you're something else," Morfinn explained. "I'm afraid ours is less instinct and more thought provoked. Unfortunately, since Francis has been doing it for six centuries, he's very likely to instinctually try to change again. My advice would be to find yourself a new form you're comfortable with so that when the urge strikes you to change you won't injure yourself again. I'd suggest a bird, considering it seems to have been what your body wanted to change into." Francis nodded. "Other than that, you're free to go. I've prescribed a potion to dull the aches for the next couple of days, and Alicia, I'd suggest you steer him away from any situations that might provoke a change, at least until those aches go away and he finds someone to help him with his new animal form."

"I'm sure Andrew would be willing to help you with that, Francis," Jennifer suggested. Francis blinked in surprise.

"I didn't even know Andrew was an animagus," he admitted.

"Yeah, he's a real nutter," Alicia said mischievously. Morfinn chuckled and Jennifer gave her a dirty look.

"Jennifer, do you mind if we have another moment with the doctor?" Francis asked. Alicia glanced at him thoughtfully, but Jennifer simply smiled.

"Sure. I'm going to go let the others know you're all right then head home to get dinner started," Jennifer said.

"Okay, we need to check into Coven Suites and then we'll be over," Alicia promised.

Jennifer slipped out the door, smiling wistfully herself, knowing very well what Francis was going to ask about. In fact, she was so deep in thought that she practically missed the waiting room all together, and might have had Severus not been standing in the hall next to the door with his arms crossed, frowning at her suspiciously.

"I take it dinner is going to be a bit late," he said evenly.

"Only a little, Severus. Pyther's all right now. Morfinn says he simply needs to develop an animagus form to take the place of his old bat form so he doesn't get anisplinched again," Jennifer explained. "Have you been here long?"

"No, actually, I've been off talking to Harry," Severus said in a low voice, Jennifer frowning at the serious look on his face. "Something is going on, Jennifer. I'm not quite sure what, but Harry and Sagittari both experienced something similar to what we had that day in the meadow, and the Spear of Lugh reacted as well. Once everyone has settled in for the evening, I'm going to go to Stonehenge to have a look about and make certain the Twilight Arc is in tact."

"Need another wand?" Jennifer asked quietly.

"Harry is joining me, but you're more than welcome. First let's get everyone rounded up and back to the house," Severus murmured.

"I'll start working on that now," Jennifer agreed, walking into the waiting room. Severus waited in the hall, then noticed Alicia and Francis walking up from the other direction and frowned disapprovingly at them.

"Couldn't you even stand one day back without causing a major calamity, Francis?" Severus asked critically. Alicia, about to lay into him, stopped short when Francis simply chuckled at him.

"I am sorry sir. I just wasn't feeling myself today," Francis explained dryly. "In fact, in some ways I was feeling everything but myself."

"Yes," Severus mused. "Come to think of it, I've felt like that myself quite often of late," he admitted. "Although perhaps not as dramatically."

"Well, I hope for your sake it won't be as painful to correct yours as it was for them to correct mine," Francis grinned as they stepped over to join the others.