Draco's Trouble
Severus had no idea what to expect as they ran through the corridors, but there was an odd familiarity in hurrying along by Minerva's side. During their years together at Hogwarts they had dealt with other crises together. He flung the door open and they stepped outside.
Moonlight reflected on the snow made it bright enough to see the Whomping Willow was thrashing more wildly than he had ever see it. Screams were coming from somewhere near it. He drew his wand and ran forward, all his senses on alert.
An explosion rent the air and the screaming stopped. Severus found himself moving forward with Kingsley and Hagrid on either side of him. He could hear Minerva and Molly panting as they fell behind. Drawing close to the huge tree, he slowed down and tried to grasp what he was seeing.
Odd shaped gold and silver metallic objects littered the ground around the Willow, some half buried in the deep snow. Huge tree limbs lay broken and twisted, some smoking as they melted down into the snow. A lone human figure lay broken and unmoving near the trunk of the injured tree.
"Bloody hell!" whispered Hagrid. "The tree's blown up!"
Severus and Kingsley looked at each other and cautiously moved forward. The tree was motionless as they drew near the body on the ground.
"It's Draco Malfoy," Severus muttered, kneeing next to the limp figure.
Hagrid held the others back. "In case th' tree's still got some life in it," he whispered.
When Draco did not respond to him, Severus Conjured a stretcher and with Kingsley's help, carefully moved the boy onto it. Kingsley Levitated him away from the tree to where Molly and Minerva waited.
"The poor boy. How did this happen?" asked Molly. She gazed down at the unconscious young man and laid a cautious hand on his icy cheek. She saw a trickle of blood coming from each ear.
Severus removed his robes and put them over the unconscious student. "I don't know. The tree looks burned as well as broken. I believe I caught a whiff of Exploding fluid, something we do not keep at Hogwarts."
"I'll ask Professor Sprout to come and examine the tree, to see if it can be saved," said Minerva.
They all headed back to the castle, except Hagrid, who began piling up the shining metal objects that were scattered around on the ground.
"Do you think young Malfoy did it?" asked Kingsley, looking grim.
"I don't wish to jump to conclusions," replied Minerva. "What about footprints in the area?"
"The younger students were outside playing in the snow all afternoon," replied Molly. "It hasn't snowed since then."
"We must get him to the hospital wing," Severus said. He gestured to Kingsley, who began moving with the stretcher back toward the castle.
"Poppy's not there!" said Minerva, looking blank. "She won't be back until tomorrow evening. Severus, will you…"
"Of course," he snapped impatiently as he hastened to catch up with the stretcher.
"Mike can help," Kingsley said softly. "They met yesterday, and while I don't know what they said to each other, his presence might help."
Severus thought for a moment, frowning. "You're right. Since Madam Pomfrey is away, he'll stay in my spare room. If someone else did this, Draco's absence may cause confusion. Can Michael stay at Hogwarts tonight?"
The Auror nodded. "Of course. Severus, I'm worried about the school."
"Why?" he snapped fiercely.
"Rumors of these disturbances are reaching the Ministry. It's only a matter of time before they try another power grab."
Severus pointed his wand and the door flew open before them. He led the way to his quarters, flung that door open and led the way directly into the second bedroom. Mercifully, he thought, Dobby had brought a bed in, although there was no other furniture. He started the fire and lit a lamp.
He pulled back the comforter. He carefully removed his robes from the patient, and then with Michael's help he moved Draco onto the bed.
"Sev, can I help?" asked Zelda from the doorway.
"Please fetch more lamps and candles. Also, if Dobby is here, send him in," he replied brusquely.
Without a word, Zelda nodded and went to do as he'd asked. It seemed there was no time to waste.
&&&&&&&&&
Two hours later, Severus and Michael joined Zelda and Kingsley in the smaller sitting room. The Weasleys and the four students had left when they realized there was nothing they could do to help. Molly had sworn the teens to secrecy for the nonce, which they seemed to take very seriously.
"Well?" asked Zelda.
Severus sank to the couch next to her. "He was badly injured by the tree, and he'd been given a potion, possibly the Draught of Living Death. The explosion perforated his eardrums. The broken bones are repaired. He did not rouse completely, but I believe physically he'll be fine. For the rest, Michael will have to sort Draco out."
Michael sat in the armchair near the fire, looking tired. "He didn't do this to himself. I got the oddest feeling that even he isn't sure exactly who did it, but he knows why." He smiled at Kingsley. "I want to stay and talk with him again. I know we had plans, King, but this is serious."
"No worries," replied his partner. "Hogwarts is the most important institution in our world. This must be sorted out as efficiently as possible. I'll help too, if I can."
"Should he be left alone?" Zelda asked anxiously.
"Dobby's with him and promised to wake Severus or me if there's any change," said Michael. "Man, house elves are cool!"
"I'll go then," said Kingsley. He stood up and held a hand down to Michael, pulling him to his feet. "I'll Floo home from Minerva's office and come back in the morning the same way."
"We'll have breakfast at ten, when you get back," Michael said, smirking at his hosts.
"You got it, babe," said Zelda. She rose and hugged him warmly, and then turned to hug Kingsley as he prepared to leave.
"Does this mean you approve of me, Zelda?" asked the Auror with his most winning smile.
"You make Michael happy," she replied. "So you're okay, slippery charm and all, Shacklebolt."
Laughing, Kingsley left, and Michael went back to sit by Draco for a while. Severus and Zelda were left alone, staring at each other, feeling rather dismayed.
"This is not what I'd planned," he said irritably. "I'm sorry."
Laughing ruefully, she went to him and sank into his lap, kissing his face repeatedly. The worry in his black eyes began to fade, as her kisses grew slower and tenderer.
"You worry constantly, don't you, my boy?"
His response was to wrap his arms around her firmly, enjoying the touch of her lips on his skin.
"Draco will sleep for several hours, so come to bed," he suggested.
Severus Conjured some comfortable bedding for the couch which Zelda arranged for Michael's use. They put out all but two lamps as they went to their room, and once the door was closed, he efficiently removed her clothes and set her down gently in the bed.
"I'd hoped to spend most of the weekend in this bed with you," he said sourly.
"I'll settle for an hour with my sexy husband, if you'll risk undressing with hordes of invaders in your space," she replied.
He undressed completely, but left his trousers and his robes on a chair next to the bed. Then he climbed stiffly in next to her and let her tuck the covers over his shoulders and snuggle against him.
"It is not the honeymoon I wished for, but my life is infinitely better, having you here as an antidote for irritating reality," he murmured, pressing his nose against her neck and inhaling appreciatively.
"Your back aches, doesn't it?" she asked, feeling the tense, hard muscles. "I'll gladly rub it for you."
He kissed her neck and rolled over, moaning gratefully when her clever hands began to relieve the pain.
Gradually his body relaxed, and she knew he was asleep, so she scooted up against his back, put her arm around his waist and drifted into dreams herself.
&&&&&&&&&
"Professor Snape, sir, please be waking up," a high-pitched voice kept repeating insistently.
Severus stirred reluctantly. He was warm and exceedingly comfortable precisely as he was.
"Severus," murmured Zelda, "Dobby's here."
Instantly he was awake. "What is it?" he snapped in a loud voice, clutching the covers to his bare chest as he sat up.
"Professor Snape wished to know when Draco Malfoy woke up," said the elf nervously. "Mr. Michael Fletcher has gone to bed and Draco Malfoy is waking up." A lifetime of serving Malfoys had made him wary of raised voices and bad tempers.
"All right, return to him and I'll be there immediately," said Severus, trying to moderate his voice. He did not wish to wake Zelda, but once the door was closed and he stood up, he realized she was fully awake.
"Can I help?" she offered, watching him pull on his trousers hastily.
His expression softened as he saw her sincerity. "If I need you, I'll send Dobby," he replied in a softer voice as he put his robes on over his bare chest and picked up his wand.
He pointed his wand at her wardrobe and the door flew open. Her blue silky robe flew out and landed neatly on the foot of the bed.
"In case you need it," he said to her.
"Okay." She blew a kiss to him as he left the room.
Once outside the bedroom, he heard Dobby's shrill voice.
"Draco Malfoy must not try to get out of bed! Professor Snape is coming!"
"Where in the bloody pits of Hades am I?" asked Draco in a weak but nasty manner. "What are you doing here, Dobby?"
"Professor Snape is asking Dobby to watch over Draco Malfoy," the elf proclaimed. "Dobby is a free house elf and he is working at Hogwarts."
"So you are alive, Draco," Severus said coldly, standing in to doorway. "I am relieved to see it."
Draco stared. Professor Snape looked different to him, somehow. It seemed to be the middle of the night, and maybe it was that his hair was mussed and disordered looking. He sounded like he always had, however.
"Where are we?"
"You are in my spare bedroom, because Madam Pomfrey is currently away from Hogwarts. I did not wish to spend the night minding you in the hospital wing," said Severus. "Now, what happened to you?"
The boy's gray eyes, which had looked dazed and unguarded, suddenly became shuttered and cold. "I don't remember. I fell down, lost consciousness and had a nightmare. Where was I?"
"If you do not remember, you may sleep again," said Severus as he poured a dose of Sleeping Draught, which he handed to Draco.
"We shall pursue this further in the morning. Drink."
Reluctantly, it seemed, Draco swallowed the potion. For one moment he looked up gratefully at Severus, but then his head fell onto the pillow and he was asleep again.
"Dobby, are you too tired to watch him until the morning? He'll sleep now, but someone should stay in the room with him. If you are too weary, I shall do it," offered Severus, looking down at the small elf.
"No! Please, Professor Snape, sir, please let Dobby stay!" The huge, pleading green eyes glowed intensely.
"Sleep then, if you need to," Severus said softly. "Mrs. Snape and I are very grateful for all you have done."
Dobby smiled tentatively up at him and Severus read the elf's feelings. He'd forgotten that this ebullient elf had served the Malfoys and had been subjected to years of sadistic cruelty. He resolved to deal gently with him.
"When I wake up again, you must get some rest," he murmured. "Good night, Dobby."
"Good night, Professor Snape."
&&&&&&&&&
On the stroke of ten, Kingsley arrived. He looked rested and ready for mischief, thought Severus, envying the wizard's uninterrupted sleep.
"Is breakfast ready?" asked Kingsley, peering over Severus's shoulder. Spying Zelda, he said, "Where's Michael?"
"Come in, Kingsley," she said. "We have elf service, so breakfast will arrive whenever it's ready."
She kissed his cheek and said, "Come sit by the fire for a minute. Michael's getting dressed. This is the drag about castle living. I can't do it myself, because the kitchen's probably ten miles away and run by house elves. And I hate asking Dobby to do things I'm capable of doing."
Severus followed, listening to her. He wasn't surprised by her frustration, but he wanted her to be happy, so it depressed him. Still, they would go home to her house in a matter of hours, so it would be all right.
Zelda sat down on the hearthrug by Rowena, loving the warmth and light of it. This magical fire seemed to burn brighter than her fireplace at home, she thought.
"How's Draco?" asked Kingsley.
"He woke once and said he couldn't remember what happened," replied Severus. "Rather than interrogate him, I gave him Sleeping Potion and went back to bed. I believe Michael is a better person than I am to speak with him."
Michael entered the room and grinned when he saw Kingsley. "Hey, King, I won't ask if you missed me. Of course you did. How are the girls?"
"Surviving without you," replied the Auror dryly.
Michael blew him a cheery kiss. "Don't pout, babe. I'll be home tonight."
"Breakfast is ready, sirs and Mrs. Professor Snape," said Dobby earnestly. "Draco Malfoy woke up and Dobby brought food to him. Is there anything else Dobby must do?"
"Dobby, please get some sleep," begged Zelda. "You must be tired. Come back after you've rested, okay?"
Dobby smiled innocently at her. "Mrs. Professor Snape is a kind lady. Dobby has often gone without sleeping for days. Dobby will go, but he will return soon."
"Thank you," she said, smiling fondly at the elf.
Severus put his hands down and pulled her to her feet and into a tight embrace. He kept her there for a moment, savoring the feeling of her warm body pressing against him.
"Should we bother to leave you any food?" called Michael provocatively. "You'd probably rather stay there and grope each other."
Zelda growled irritably, an absurd little sound that made Severus happy.
"Of course you'll leave some food, idiot, my wife is hungry," he snarled dangerously.
Michael and Kingsley looked at each other, delighted.
Once they were all seated, Michael poured a cup of coffee and handed it to Zelda. He smirked at Severus.
"You're quite the high-handed master of your domain, aren't you, oh mighty wizard?" he asked mockingly. "Have you always been such a cold, controlling bastard, Severus?"
Severus gazed at him with icy disdain as he helped himself to toast and a kipper. "Do you find something wrong with that?" he asked smoothly.
"Not as long as Zelda's content being the submissive little woman," replied Michael. "She's not like that, you know."
Severus glanced through half closed eyes at his wife, his dark eyes glinting wickedly. "Perhaps she never found her master before," he suggested softly.
Seeing Michael's astounded expression, Zelda choked, and only her napkin prevented her from spraying coffee over all of them. Her husband courteously patted her back as she laughed uproariously.
"Michael, spare us your commentary. Severus can best you any time he wants to, and without magic," she gasped upon regaining her breath. "Or don't do it at breakfast. I almost died just then!"
"Am I the only one with any sense of decorum here?" asked Kingsley in a lofty voice.
Rowena woofed gently, and bounding up from her spot on the hearthrug, she ran toward the spare bedroom. Her actions alerted her humans in the room that Draco was slinking toward the door. He pressed himself against the wall, shrinking back from the large German shepherd, and stared sullenly toward the breakfast group.
"Rowena, come!" said Zelda firmly.
The dog trotted gracefully to her and sat by her. Zelda put a hand on her neck and watched to see what would happen next.
"Going somewhere, Draco?" Severus asked, rising from the table.
His voice was deceptively mild, but his student, who knew him well, was not deceived.
"Back to my common room," he muttered. "There's no reason for me to be here and I have homework to do."
Draco stared in grim surprise at the group. Besides Professor Snape there were the Muggle Healer, the Auror and that odd woman he'd seen once, that day in the forest.
"Draco, I'd like to speak with you," Michael said, pushing back his chair and standing up. "Severus, is there a place that we can speak in privacy?"
The calm suggestion didn't fool the young man. He knew he had no choice.
"You may use my office," Severus offered. He turned and said to Kingsley and Zelda, "I'll be right back."
He looked briefly at Michael, wearing Muggle blue jeans and a khaki colored sweater, and shook his head in disbelief. "Wait,' he said.
He went in to his wardrobe and pulled out his oldest black staff robes. Turning, he rejoined Michael, tossing the robes at him.
Michael's eyes twinkled with wicked fun, but glancing briefly at Draco, he made no comment as he put on the robes.
"Ready," he said.
Zelda and Kingsley were left looking at each other.
"Sev'll never hear the end of this," she said. "Doesn't Michael have his own robes?"
Kingsley's dark eyes were gleaming with merciless amusement. "Lucky bloke. Mike gets to dress up and play the coldest, toughest bastard in the wizarding world, for one glorious hour. Or didn't you know that about your husband?"
"He's a complicated man," she replied with a chiding frown. "The fact that he's adorable can be our little secret, okay?"
The Auror chuckled. "Gladly, Zelda. I don't think I'll be telling that to anyone. They might think I'm a bleedin' pouf!"
"Kingsley, I can't believe how perfect you are for Michael," she replied, her blue eyes twinkling merrily.
Severus entered the room again, causing her to say, "I want you to tell me all about yourself, mighty Auror, but another time, okay?"
He grinned and nodded, then turned to Severus.
"Michael's not going to want to give the robes back, Severus," he said with a suggestive smirk.
Severus curled his lip in a nasty sneer, but a faint flush appeared on his thin cheek. "I thought St. Mungo's paid their employees so they could afford their own robes," he replied acidly.
"Kingsley, has anyone noticed that you're just as big an ass as Michael? Or do you live a lie, pretending to be earnest and responsible when you go to work every day?" snapped Zelda.
"You two are adorable together," gushed the Auror, grinning. "I can't wait to see what you decide to do with the rest of your lives."
"I can't either," she said softly, smiling as Severus sat down beside her. "Severus, have I seen that Malfoy kid before? I remember you telling me about him, but he looks familiar."
"You've seen him, Zelda," said Kingsley quickly. "But don't sweat it if you can't remember yet."
She looked from his suddenly serious face, to Severus, whose face showed no expression at all.
"So he's part of the huge confusion in my head, and you both know why," she said. "It's a little frightening."
The wizards glanced at each other grimly, knowing there would be pain and that she'd grieve when it all came back.
"Do you trust me?" murmured Severus, holding his hand out.
"Uh huh," she said softly. She put her hand in his and smiled faintly. "Would you help me with one or two things? Then I'm sure you guys will have to deal with Minerva."
Kingsley watched the pair closely. Severus Snape had always appeared to be an impregnable fortress of a wizard, Master of the Dark Arts, hard and cold as they come. His vicious wit and lack of compassion were legendary among his former students, and always the black eyes had been flat and empty. Yet he found himself liking this fascinating man he'd gotten to know in the past months immensely.
"You two take a bit of time for yourselves and I'll see what's up with Minerva," he said soothingly. He headed for the door, smoothing his robes into graceful perfection. "Do I look all right?" he asked sweetly, running a hand over his gleaming bald head.
"Like a million bucks," snickered Zelda. "Now, go away!"
Kingsley salaamed mockingly toward her and swept out of the room, smiling.