Unbidden Memories

by lalaluu

Author Note: Standard Disclaimer Applies. Many thanks to bugslife for reviewing the last chapter. Glad you liked the kiss! By the way, ever since HBP came out, this story has been AU…or so my wonderful beta, cecelle, tells me. Without her assistance, you'd get a confusing and rambling chapter. Three cheers for my beta! Check out her story Mist and Vapor if you love Snape/OC fics. It's awesome!

Chapter 24

The Invitation

Draco opened the door to the small sitting room and peered into the darkness. "Severus?" he whispered.

Furniture creaked and his godfather appeared in the doorway.

"What?" he asked, irritation in his voice.

At any other time, Draco would have quailed, but too much was at stake. "It's Andrew."

Severus raised one eyebrow in silent question.

"He's outside with Lucius."

Severus swept past him, leaving Draco surprised by his speed. Adding to his astonishment, Emmaline stepped into the light.

"What is it, Draco?" she asked, appearing concerned.

Draco swallowed nervously before stepping into the room and closing the door.

Severus emerged from the manor onto the grounds. He followed the sound of spells – sizzling in the cold night – until he espied two men. They were matched for height and faced each other across an expanse of lawn.

"What is it that you want, Mr. Malfoy?" Andrew asked. Severus was surprised and delighted to hear the strength and determination in the young man's voice.

The older man was breathing hard as he replied, "Merely to see how well you perform under pressure."

There was no response from Andrew.

"Draco will be brought into the circle soon. You are good friends – best friends – We would like to extend an invitation to you as well."

"Even without knowing who my father is?" Andrew's quiet voice carried across the clearing.

Lucius shook his head. "It doesn't matter as much as you may think. It is apparent that you and Draco work well together. Severus had said as much. We'd like you to continue that partnership." Lucius dropped his wand arm.

"What if my father is a Muggle?"

Severus couldn't be sure, but by the tone of Lucius' voice, the man knew something. "We believe we are close to the truth. We can, of course, help you to find him."

Something in Andrew's voice changed. Severus understood it; he had spent enough time with his student to recognize when he began acting. Lucius had – or nearly had – something Andrew wanted, so he'd play along for a while. "I would appreciate that, Mr. Malfoy." Andrew's stance relaxed finally, and he took a few steps forward. "When would our initiation take place?"

Lucius approached Andrew until the men were mere feet apart. "The ceremony would take place New Year's Eve." He grasped Andrew's shoulders and locked eyes with the boy. "We will find him. I promise."

Severus was about to interrupt, but Lucius stepped back.

Andrew nodded once, his face stony. "I'll talk to Draco. Let him know I'm in."

"Of course." Lucius' oily voice would have made Severus shudder if he hadn't been so used to it. He now moved to intercept the boy before he entered the manor.

"What's wrong?" Emmaline asked.

She had spelled the lights on and the two had sat side by side on the sofa. Draco had seemed so distraught that Emmaline had decided to stay with him while Severus went after Andrew.

Draco stared at his hands. "I'm…I'm sorry."

"What? What for?" she asked.

"I'm sorry," he repeated in a broken voice.

"Please tell me what's bothering you," she implored, rubbing his shoulder gently. When he looked up at her, Emmaline could see he was holding back tears. "Andrew…Lucius…" He didn't seem to know how to begin.

"Draco, please tell me –"

"He wants him to be a Death Eater," he blurted.

Emmaline sat frozen in shock, unable and unwilling to process the information. It was clearly her worst nightmare come true.

"I'm sorry," Draco repeated.

Her focus came back to the boy beside her. "Oh, honey, it's not your fault." She pulled him to her and rubbed his back. Sobs rocked his body as he pressed his forehead into her shoulder. Pressing her cheek to his head, she tried to comfort him. "Andrew is strong. He'll be alright."

Draco shook his head defiantly.

"Yes, he will," she said, willing the boy to believe her.

He drew back and wiped at his eyes. "But…," he said, tears in his voice, "I want him to still be my friend."

"Why wouldn't he?"

Draco withdrew a handkerchief from his pocket at last and blew his nose delicately. "My father will make me join, and then he won't be my friend anymore."

Emmaline's face hardened. She held him by his shoulders. "No one can make you do anything you don't want to do." She looked him in the eye. "You're strong, too."

He shook his head vigorously. "No," his voice was small, "not around Lucius."

Emmaline frowned.

A rapid knock on the door sounded, and Severus entered the room.

Emmaline and Draco looked up at him expectantly from their seats on the sofa.

"It is time to leave," was all he said.

She nodded and rose to her feet. Draco followed, looking at his godfather with a defeated and resigned expression.

Putting an arm around him cautiously, Emmaline drew the blonde boy into a hug. "It'll be okay," she whispered. "We'll figure something out – for you both." She released him and went to take Severus' arm. He nodded formally to his godson, something akin to pity in his eyes, before the couple left the room.

"Where's Andrew?" she asked as they collected their wraps from a house-elf.

"He's coming."

Emmaline looked expectantly at Severus, waiting for an explanation.

He sighed. "He is saying goodbye to Miss Reynard." Severus swung on his cloak and took her wrap. Helping her into it, he resisted the urge to keep his arms around her. However, he did aid her in freeing her hair from underneath the wrap, lifting the honey tresses up off her neck and letting them fall down against the soft silk. He abruptly dropped his hands to his sides, however, when Andrew appeared at the top of the steps.

He smiled tentatively at the adults and thanked the house-elf that brought his cloak.

"Shall we?" Severus asked as Andrew fastened the clasp at his throat.

Emmaline took an arm from each man and held on tightly as they went down the front steps.

They arrived back at the safehouse on Grimmauld Place. Silently, they ascended the staircase as it was late at night, and they didn't want to wake the others. Also, none of them felt like talking – amongst themselves or to the others – about the evening.

Andrew sighed as he entered the room he was sharing with his mom. Emmaline watched as he undid his cloak and threw it down on the bed. He was loosening his tie when Severus touched her arm. She looked up at him, her eyes questioning. He drew her into the hallway and pulled the door almost closed.

"We should talk," he said quietly.

She was surprised. "Now?" she whispered back.

He looked into her eyes and she found she could not look away. He brought one hand up to touch her face.

"I know," he began, "that this is all happening very fast."

She smirked. "Wouldn't be the first time," she murmured.

He smirked back and grasped her face, bending to touch his lips to hers. Pulling back briefly, he spoke softly, "But it is right." He kissed her deeply until she pushed him away.

"No," she denied him, breathing heavily. Frowning, she explained, "It's…it's been too long." She shook her head slightly, tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

He kept his hands at his sides and nodded solemnly. "Perhaps we should…talk…in the morning." His expression was carefully neutral.

She smiled, regret showing plainly on her face. "Make it afternoon. It's really late now." She chuckled lightly.

He nodded again.

She blushed, mumbled "Good night," hesitated, then shyly reached up to plant a chaste kiss on his cheek before disappearing into her room.

Severus made it back to his quarters in the castle, although he didn't remember the trip later. He also didn't know how long he lay awake thinking about her – how beautiful she looked that night, how enchanting her smile was, how protective he felt of her and her son. It wasn't until he woke up that it came to him clearly – he was in love. Severus smirked. When had he ever not loved that woman?

Andrew sat in the kitchen of 12 Grimmauld Place, his hands around a steaming cup of tea. It was a cold day, even though it was already past noon. He had woken to some noise out in the hallway. His mom hadn't been there. Since he didn't feel like talking about last night yet and was sure the other teenagers would ask him about it first chance they got, he waited until the hall was clear before venturing out.

Apparently, the other residents of the safehouse had already opened Christmas presents, as the drawing room was only occupied by Remus Lupin, who was reading the newspaper. Andrew had passed by quietly and made his way to the kitchen. No one was around, so he made tea for himself.

Taking another gulp of the scalding hot brew, he winced as it burned his mouth and throat. He vaguely wondered where his mom was, and that brought his thoughts back to last night. He frowned, a bit disgusted with himself for shutting out his best friend to talk to Draco's cousin, Persephone, but allowed himself a small smile when he thought of the kiss they'd shared right before he'd left the Manor. His expression turned into thoughtful concern when Lucius Malfoy's words came back to him. Hoping that both he and Draco could find a loophole that would allow them to avert Lucius' plans, he made a mental note to talk to his mom about possibilities. Perhaps even Professor Snape could help… The smirk grew large on his face as he relived his elation at seeing Professor Snape kiss his mom. His mom had never really had any other prospects so, if she was going to push Professor Snape away, maybe there was something he could do to push her back in his direction

He sat pondering the possibilities until interrupted by the Floo.

"Hello, Professor."

Professor Snape opened his mouth to speak. He paused before saying, "Hello, Andrew."

"Tea?" He thought he spied relief on his professor's face.

"That would be perfect."

"I didn't let it steep too long or anything, so it should be good."

Professor Snape nodded and fixed himself a cup. Sitting down at the table near Andrew, he took a sip before asking, "Where is your mother?"

Andrew frowned. "I don't know. I woke up, and she wasn't there. When I came downstairs, I saw Mr. Lupin in the drawing room, but I didn't want to speak to him, so I just came down here – and found no one." He shrugged.

"I see."

They sat comfortably in silence for a few moments before Andrew spoke again. "I really should owl Draco. I didn't get him anything for Christmas, and I didn't get a chance to say goodbye to him last night. I couldn't find him, actually."

"That is because he was with your mother in an upstairs parlor."

"Oh," Andrew exclaimed, somewhat surprised. "You know, he really has taken to her. Most of my classmates back home think she's…well, a little intense, I guess."

Professor Snape smirked and looked sideways at his student.

Andrew fiddled with his cup for a bit before venturing to ask, "So…what did you want to talk to Mom about?" He added in a rush, "If you don't mind me asking."

"Actually, it does involve you," said the professor replied, putting down his teacup. "I think Draco needs some time away from his father. Usually, when he gets bored of home, he comes to stay with me. This time, however, I could invite him to visit me so that we may continue work on his project."

Andrew nodded, indicating that he was following along.

Professor Snape took up his cup once again, but did not drink. "I also thought that you and your mother could stay with me. It would not only provide an alibi for your whereabouts these past few days, as we cannot provide this location to either Draco or Lucius, but also you will be able to see Draco."

"And so will Mom," Andrew said, turning to look at his professor. Smiling widely, he took another sip of his tea – forgetting that it was now empty. He made a frustrated face, but dropped it as his mom stepped through the kitchen door, her arms full of packages.

"Merry Christmas!" she exclaimed, hurrying over to hug her son, packages and all

"Oomph! Mom…" Andrew whined, good-naturedly.

Putting down her packages on the table, she turned to give him a proper hug. "Have you had breakfast?"

Andrew nodded. "I had some tea."

She looked at him narrowly. "A big dinner then. It's almost four o'clock." Her eyes swept over to the professor, and she gave him a brief, nervous smile before picking up Andrew's empty teacup to return it to the sink.

Andrew noticed that she seemed a bit nervous; his mom was usually cool, calm, and collected. He thought that perhaps he wouldn't have to push too hard to get her and Professor Snape together after all. Glancing at his professor, he noticed the man was covertly watching his mom rifle through the packages. "Mom? I know last night was a bit crazy…" she paused and looked up at him. He noticed that he had the professor's attention as well. "I really need to talk to Draco…about everything."

Smiling a bit ruefully, Professor Snape said quietly, "It is a good bet that Lucius has already informed Draco of your decision."

Andrew's face fell. "Oh. Well, I should write him a letter…" he trailed off. There were some things that you didn't want to put in writing. "But I'd rather speak to him in person."

"Honey, I don't know if that's possible," his mom frowned.

Professor Snape cleared his throat. "I have a proposal to make," he said, only afterwards realizing that he had perhaps not chosen the best words.

Andrew looked at his mom, a smirk threatening to surface. She had stopped rubbing his back to look askance at the professor.

Clearing his throat, the professor continued, "I will be asking Draco to stay with me for the remainder of the holidays, ostensibly to work on his project. It would be beneficial to him if you and Andrew would stay in the castle as well. That way, word can get back to Lucius that you've been staying at Hogwarts. They do not know about this location, and we must keep it that way."

In an effort to sway his mom, Andrew added his own two cents. "I think it'd be fun, Mom. I'd rather hang out with Draco than the rest of the teenagers in this house, anyway. Plus, you'd be around to be a good influence on him. He really likes you, you know."

She wiped at her eyes. "It would be a better environment for him," she looked up at the professor, "even if it were just you, Severus. I think," she walked over and stood before him, "if the powers that be agree, it's a good idea."

Andrew broke into a grin. It became wider when he saw the two grown-ups smiling at each other.

"Can I write to him? Ask him to come?" At the man's skeptical look, Andrew added, "Come on, Professor, it'll seem more genuine if it's me asking."

Professor Snape finally nodded.

Andrew jumped up, yelling, "I'll just get some parchment and ink!" as he left the room.

Emmaline grinned at Severus. She handed him a wrapped package. "Send this with Andrew's letter." When he looked at it questioningly, she added, "It's a Christmas present for Draco, and, no, I'm not going to tell you what it is." She grinned and said playfully, "You'll have to ask him to show it to you when he gets to Hogwarts." More tentatively, she said, "Merry Christmas, Severus."

"Happy Christmas," he emphasized the first word.

Emmaline just shook her head, a smile playing on her lips.