"The Phoenix and the Raven"
a post-final battle fanfic by Seventia Snape
Dear readers,
I am so sorry that it has taken me this long to post a new chapter. Things have been very hectic here, in planning my own wedding as well as Siobheann's, and work is keeping me busy along with a few other things that demand my time. But my thoughts have often been with you, and I have thought about this chapter often. I promise I will not wait so long next time. I am getting married in 34 days. Wish me luck, and please review!
Chapter Twenty-One, "Kicked Out"
The next few months passed without incident, fortunately. The students left for their summer holidays, and the teachers practiced magical defense every night before dinner. Then, exhausted physically and mentally, they would all trudge into the great hall and eat dinner in near silence. Typically, the evening ended quietly, and Siobheann and Severus would stroll back to their quarters, arm in arm, and conclude the evening by reading companionably by the fire, or by engaging in either a quiet discussion or more often a fiery debate over some subject or other. It was a comfortable routine, and both enjoyed it. Their wedding was a week away, but there wasn't alot of fuss. It simply wasn't their way.
The faculty of Hogwarts had set up a double night patrol, and it was Severus' night to patrol with Neville. He had grown to tolerate the younger man, who spoke little and did not try to befriend him. Severus did not approve of forced comradeship in any form, and so did not engage Neville in conversation if it wasn't absolutely necessary. They would simply walk through the halls in complete silence, and when it was time to let the next pair take over, they would simply nod to one another and head their separate ways. It was a very tolerable arrangement.
Tonight, as he finally turned down the corridor to the dungeons, Severus was looking forward to climbing into bed and sleeping off the exhaustion he was feeling. He had worked with Siobheann on magical defense privately for about an hour before night patrol, and he was tired in every conceivable way. As he turned the doorknob, he anticipated the nice hot shower he would enjoy before allowing himself to rest with his beloved. But he was to be dissapointed.
The moment he opened the door, he knew something was wrong. Light shone out into the hallway, and he could hear the sounds of feminine chatter and laughter. As he closed the door behind him, his face twisted into his typical sneer. If there was anything he truly despised, it was female nonsense. He couldn't imagine how he was hearing the things he heard. Siobheann simply wasn't the type. This was more Narcissa's type of thing.
At that thought, Severus suddenly felt a chill realization, and just as his mind was articulating that realization, Narcissa suddenly rounded the corner, nearly barreling over him. She halted and instead of cowering as any other woman would, she stood her ground and tightly smiled with amusement, as Siobheann followed a little behind. Severus glanced over at Siobheann and hooked up an eyebrow. His fiancee merely gave him a helpless look before Narcissa interrupted the moment.
"Severus, surely someone has told you by now that the groom is traditionally sent away from the bride for the week before the wedding, so that she can plan and prepare in peace. I will be staying with Siobheann, so she'll be perfectly safe, and you can go keep Lucius company at the Manor, and you shall see Siobheann soon enough at the wedding."
Severus rolled his eyes and strode to his bedchamber, where he summoned a few robes and enough books and work to keep himself occupied. He knew better than to argue with Narcissa when she went on a mission like this. He knew that she and Siobheann had gotten rather friendly, and he didn't want to cut Siobheann off from the company of other witches...and he really didn't want to be around to hear female foolishness. It would be best to make his escape now, and quickly. But he would miss Siobheann during the next few days. He scowled as he gently kissed Siobheann on the forehead and bade her goodnight before taking the headmistress' floo to Malfoy Manor.
As he strolled through the hallways in search of Lucius, Severus reflected on Narcissa a bit. She truly was a regal witch, pureblood through and through and very intelligent, but she could be infernally girlish sometimes. He was more than happy to get away from her when that particular trait showed, and he hoped that none of it would rub off on Siobheann in his absence. He tried to imagine Siobheann being girly, and the image his powerful imagination supplied made him shudder and roll his eyes.
Few knew or suspected it, but Narcissa was in fact about eight years older than Lucius. It had taken Lucius a good three years to convince Narcissa to be bonded to him, and even then she had been hesitant to do so for fear of gossip. When she was finally convinced that her age wasn't an issue, she had stood proudly beside Lucius and had become a veritable queen among witches, and had even managed to maintain that position while Lucius had been imprisoned briefly after the war. Many had expected her to leave Lucius, but she had stood proudly by him, and had opened his cell door with her own hand when the day of his release arrived. Severus respected her for that if nothing else.
Severus entered the sitting room finally, and found Lucius sitting by the fire, a tray with a large firewhiskey sitting nearby and a brandy in his own hand. Severus summoned the whiskey and smirked as he seated himself.
"Your blasted wife has invaded my quarters, so it is only fair that I execute a suitable revenge. I will remind you that I do not intend to rise any earlier than ten each morning, and if I see an elf anywhere near my person you will find yourself seeking new staff members."
Lucius merely chuckled and nodded as he watched his old friend sit down. He had been expecting some form of protest, as he knew that Severus had a difficult time accepting anyone's hospitality willingly. He raised his glass towards his friend, a slow smile spreading across his face.
"To the women who so competently manage our lives and allow us now and then to feel as if we have any choice."
Severus merely drained his glass and grumbled, making Lucius laugh heartily.
The next few days passed by at a strange pace for Siobheann. She felt in a daze half of the time as Narcissa ushered her around, gown shopping and flower ordering, and then other things that Siobheann honestly didn't give a care for, and she had very few private moments. One night, Narcissa had produced a few bottles of mead and announced that they would have a frivolous evening with the other women in the castle. Minerva had excused herself early, and Siobheann simply bided her time while the other witches steadily became drunker and drunker, sipping her first glass of mead as slowly as she could...
Severus was sitting in his room, reading a book, when the owl arrived. He smiled at the familiar tawny owl, and took the parchment from it's leg. As it flew away, he read Siobheann's letter with an amused smirk.
Dear Severus,
I have finally managed to sneak in a private moment. Narcissa has had me busy from sunrise to sundown with all sorts of wedding nonsense! Tonight we had a party here, rather Narcissa had one, and everyone is now passed out in our sitting room or in
the corridors. Thank heavens we have male staff here, or the place would be completelyunsecured.
I miss you intensely. Almost constantly I long to feel your arms about me, or to hear your voice. Hell, I even miss arguing with you. I cannot wait till Sunday, but tradition is tradition.
All my love, Siobheann
Severus smiled and summoned a quill, and then wrote her a reply, which he sent off with his crow.
Dear Siobheann;
I am glad to hear that you are surviving Narcissa so far. I personally would have used a Silencio on her by now. Lucius does not bother me, and I have been enjoying a quiet week so far, reading many books and getting much work done, but I also miss you. And we do not argue, dearest. We simply discuss matters without diluting our true opinions with the effort of being insincerely polite.
But I also cannot wait until Sunday, so long as there is no danger of you realizing what a terrible error you are making and heading for the hills, as you should have the first moment you saw me.
Love, Severus
As he settled back into his book, he thought of his bride to be. She was so much like him...but yet, so different. Sometimes she truly provoked him nearly beyond his patience, but she also moved him with how freely she loved.
Severus had known mostly neglect in his life. His mother had loved him, but had been so busy defending him during his earlier years that she had not had time to do the typical motherly things. Then, as Severus had gotten older, until the day that she passed, he had been her protector. He refused to think of his father at all.
Albus had professed concern over Severus, many times, but Severus felt that Albus did so purely from fear of losing a gifted teacher and a valuable weapon against the dark. Albus was often so caught up in his machinations in life that he took on a war mentality and forgot to see people as anything other than chess pieces to be moved around to best suit his ends. To give him credit, however, it worked, and Albus certainly was making up for lost time, having befriended Siobheann and continuing to be such a comfort to Minerva.
Minerva had truly cared. She had allowed Siobheann to nurse him back to health, and during what Severus thought of as his first life, she had often defended him when other faculty members had dismissed him as the batty old grump that they saw. She never allowed Severus to make excuses for himself, always driving him to be more honest and to accept himself. She was truly the closest thing to the mother he'd lacked for the most part.
But it was Siobheann who actually did the work of ressurecting him, physically as well as mentally. She revived his mind and his soul, and she challenged him while being his equal. She was never afraid to tell him how she felt, and he felt himself beginning to learn from this example. She was independent, but always came back to him somehow.
As he turned out the lights and closed his eyes, he saw her in his mind, and longed to hold her. The next few days would be pure hell.
The remaining days leading up to his wedding suddenly flew by at a speed that possessed all the frenzy of a cage full of pixies. Lucius took him to be fitted for wedding robes, and the two men ended up getting in a roaring argument when Lucius tried to persuade Severus to wear something a little more...stylish. Severus had finally selected his typical old fashioned robes, in a soft but still dark grey, with silver fastenings as his only nod to style. Lucius had rolled his eyes, but had not said anything else on the subject, knowing that Severus would not budge.
Lucius had not, however, made any attempts to force Severus into having any form of a bender before the wedding, having received a very threatening Howler from Siobheann the moment Narcissa had arrived. Siobheann had made it very clear that she would not tolerate her groom arriving in a hung over state. The night before the wedding, the two men simply had a good dinner and toasted the morrow with a few firewhiskeys and brandies, and then after quietly discussing a few last minute details and Lucius dryly offering Severus some advice for his marriage and his wedding night, Severus merely scowling at his friend darkly, they bade one another a good night and went their separate ways.
Severus had not slept well. Underneath his calm facade, he was spinning with panic, and had paced back and forth for hours before finally forcing himself to go to bed and do his best to meditate until he could sleep. The meditation did not work all that well either, but finally he had fallen into a fitful sleep, and woke six hours later, feeling wide awake and agitated beyond all relief.
As he followed his morning ritual of shaving, washing, and grooming, and dressed in the new grey robes, his thoughts ran rapid circles in his mind.
What if she changed her mind? He was so much older than her, and definitely not the lively sort. He enjoyed arguing and drinking and getting away from everything, retreating to barren, isolated places. And he was old fashioned beyond even his age. She was so young, and so strong and intelligent. She could certainly do better. Why on earth had she agreed to this?
What if she didn't change her mind? By now he know for absolute certain that she was a virgin, and he wanted to ensure that nothing went wrong for her...or for himself. He was a healthy man, and had no problems whatsoever in any way, but it had certainly been a very long time since he'd been in a relationship.
He also had the thought that if anyone ribbed him about it, he would promptly and willingly hex them blind. Having kept his previous relationships, two of them, a secret, he was fully aware that everyone thought he was inexperienced or even disinclined. He was simply a private man and didn't go advertising something that belonged to two people, and those two people alone.
He brought that line of thought to an immediate stop, and tried to force himself to calm down. Just at that moment, there was a knock at the door. Fearing the worst, Severus opened it and hooked his eyebrow at Lucius, who now stood in the open doorway, dressed resplendently in robes of midnight blue, with silver and gold embroidery everywhere. When Lucius smiled, Severus knew that Siobheann hadn't changed her mind, yet, but still his mind panicked. Lucius, recognizing the look that had been on his own face on his wedding day, merely addressed Severus in his usual clipped tones.
"It's time, Severus. Let's not be late or Narcissa will have our heads, not to mention your bride."
The two men flooed to Minerva's office, where the headmistress, clad in heather colored robes with tartan trimming, guided them down to the great hall, where they entered through the staff entrance. Severus' heart tightened at the sight that awaited him.
The long tables and benches were cleared out, and there were elegant, tasteful arrangements of white lilies in tall vases here and there. There were no chairs; they had decided on a quiet, private ceremony, having only a few close friends. Instead, there were two rows of benches off to the side where friends would sit.
All of the members of the Hogwarts faculty, being the only friends Siobheann possessed, were seated there, as well as Draco and his fiancee, and a few former faculty members whom Severus still corresponded with. Albus had also travelled to the hall and ousted Helga Hufflepuff from her portrait so that he would have a comfortable seat from which to watch.
Minerva took her place, and indicated for Severus to stand to her left. Lucius stood behind Severus, and suddenly the sound of a lone violin was heard, singing out a sweet but almost sad melody.
Then, the doors of the great hall opened.