Dinner at Malfoys

All this time to make amends
What do you do when all your enemies are friends

They received the summons, as Sylvie liked to call it, a couple of weeks before Christmas. 'The summons' was an invitation to the Malfoy's for dinner just before they were to leave for a visit with Sylvie's parents. They would accompany Draco home.

"Do we have to go, Sev? I really don't like the Malfoys. Something about them makes me feel like I need to take a hot bath and scrub my skin."

"I don't think we have a choice. Lucius Malfoy holds a lot of power in our world, besides being a governor of the school." He also knew he could not avoid the invitation. The Headmaster would want him to find out what Malfoy was up to.

Sylvie thought it would be fun to take the Hogwarts Express, since she had never been on the train. Taking the Hogwarts Express was the last thing that Severus wanted to do but he could not think of a good enough excuse to get out of it and she was so excited about it. At least they managed to find a car to themselves.

"You know, we've never made love on a train. I wonder if the movement of the train would enhance our pleasure. There's only one way to find out." She leaned over to kiss him but was interrupted by the sound of the door opening. The bane of Snape's existence, Neville Longbottom's moonlike face appeared in the doorway.

He ground his teeth. Just when he was beginning to not regret taking the train.

"Sorry," Neville stuttered. "The train's really full. I was just looking for somewhere to sit. Do you mind if I sit with you?"

The presumption! Before he could banish him with a snarl, Sylvie piped up, "Of course, Neville. Have a seat." He glared at her but she just shrugged her shoulders as if to say, 'What else could I do?'

The door still open, another face appeared. This time it was Lupin. Was he cursed? Was Harry Potter going to appear next? Why not Sirius Black and make his day complete. This was going to be the worst train ride ever.

"Just looking for a seat," Lupin muttered.

"There's room here," Sylvie offered. He looked at her with fury but she just shrugged her shoulders again.

Lupin slid in next to Neville. Once they had settled themselves, Sylvie asked, "Are you spending the holidays with your grandmother?"

Neville smiled. "Yes, and a lot of my aunts, uncles and cousins will be visiting too."

Sylvie smiled back. "A big family Christmas. Many of my relatives will be there too. It will probably be the last time I spend Christmas in Canada for a long time. Severus and I want to set up our own traditions in London once the twins are born." She squeezed his hand and, surprisingly to Neville, he squeezed it back and actually smiled at her.

"And how about you, Remus. Are you spending the holidays with your family?"

"I'll be visiting my mother." 'And keeping an eye out for a large dog,' he thought to himself. He suspected that Sylvie's guess that Sirius had used an animagus to escape Azkaban was correct. He planned to visit the Black's abandoned home to see if there were any signs of recent occupation.

"And what about your potion?" The way Snape said the word 'potion' made Neville shiver, as if he had said the word 'poison'.

"It will be a short visit. I will return to Hogwarts in time to use the potion you made me before the holiday."

Severus cleared his throat and pulled a journal out of his bag. "Good. If you will excuse me, I have some reading to catch up with." He ignored his wife's furrowed brow and thus brought an end to any conversation. She knew full well that he had plenty of time for reading on the plane. He was just being antisocial. 'Pick your battles,' she thought to herself. 'I have the rest our lives to work on his social skills.'

Soon her head began to droop. Vehicular movement always made her sleepy. Severus produced a pillow and she gratefully lay down as best she could with her head propped by the pillow in his lap. Sleep came quickly.

Neville was surprised again by the tenderness that Snape displayed to his wife. He absentmindedly played with her hair with one hand while the other held his reading material. Individual curls wound themselves between Snape's fingers. She wore her hair loose today, something he had only seen at her wedding. Her hair was simply stunning, seeming to shimmer in the faint light coming from the window. He wished she would wear her hair down more often, but then, it was probably a good idea if she didn't. Instead of concentrating on his lessons, he would be watching her hair. When Snape looked up and glared at him, Neville became aware that he was quite rudely staring at them with his mouth open. He quickly looked away at Professor Lupin but he was sleeping too, leaning against the wall. When he had first sat with them, he thought it would be fun to sit with Professor Turner because she was usually so lively. With only Snape for company, he had nothing to do and no one to talk to. His thoughts mirrored Snape's earlier ones. This was going to be the worst train ride ever.

The Malfoy estate was extremely impressive. Snow covered the grounds, hiding what Sylvie was sure were vast gardens and landscaping. Ivy covering the walls hinted that the stone house had been there at least a century. Diamond shaped windows looked out over a long driveway, complete with an iron gate. The inside was as impressive as the outside, the main door opening up to a vast hallway, lined with portraits of past Malfoys. Their eyes followed them as they were lead by a house elf to a small drawing room. Sylvie felt like she was taking the dead man's walk. The furnishings were posh, the carpets were lush. Antiques vied for space. Upper class screamed at them from every room. It was more a museum designed for display than a home designed for comfort.

They were left alone in the drawing room. Sylvie and Severus looked at each other and raised their eyebrows. She nodded slightly at him, gave him a satiric grin and clasped his hands, squeezing them.

"Oh Severus, I am so glad the Malfoys invited us for dinner. Their house is truly beautiful and I had hoped for an opportunity to get to know them better."

He smiled back at her. She had caught on to the fact that they were being watched.

She gave a squeal of delight. "Oh my, look at this fabric." She pounced on a nearby chair and ran her hand over it as if it were gold. "Wouldn't this look positively gorgeous in our living room? And it offsets your dark looks perfectly. I've never seen such a vibrant colour. We would be the talk of the neighbourhood with this furniture." She didn't wait for a reply. A steady stream of dribble came out of her mouth, each comment more vacuous than the next.

It finally dawned on him what she was doing. She was presenting herself as a creature whose brain was as empty as the words she was saying. If the Malfoys suspected that she was stupid, they would be less guarded in what they said in front of her.

"Really Sylvie. I couldn't care less about the colour of the downstairs bathroom. I am Professor Severus Snape. You know I have much worthier things to think about. It is my job to shape young minds into great wizards and witches, even though the majority of my students are dunderheads. It is your job to consider such trifling matters as furnishings." His highhanded manner brought what appeared to be a pout to her lips but, from experience, he knew that she was suppressing laughter.

Apparently this was enough to satisfy the Malfoys that they had no other purpose in coming here than to have dinner. They appeared at the door, apologizing for not greeting them upon their immediate arrival. Assurances were given that no offense was taken. Narcissa offered to show Sylvie their albino peacocks, leaving Severus and Lucius alone.

After some idle chitchat, Lucius came to the point. "It is rumoured that You-Know-Who is in Albania."

"Is that so," said Severus, carefully.

"Have you… felt anything?"

He knew that Lucius was asking if he had felt anything via the Dark Mark. "Nothing," he replied.

Lucius walked around the room, picking up and putting down knick knacks. He seemed uncertain as to how to proceed. Finally, he just came out with it. "What will you do if he returns to power."

"My loyalties have not changed." An ambiguous answer since he had been loyal to both causes at different times but Lucius had to be satisfied with it for Narcissa and Sylvie returned at that moment. It was then announced that dinner was ready.

The rest of the evening was uneventful. Draco was fawned upon by both his parents. Discussion centered around innocuous topics such as the differences between wizarding schools, the likelihood of the capture of Sirius Black and, of course, the accomplishments of Draco. Nothing more was said about the Dark Lord.

When Snape reported his conversation to the Headmaster, he asked the same question. "What will you do, Severus, if Lord Voldemort returns to power?"

Snape raised his eyebrows. "Why nothing. I shall stay at Hogwarts, continue to teach, continue to watch over Harry Potter as I promised."

Professor Dumbledore looked at him closely. "In order to protect Harry Potter, I may need you to assume your old role as servant of the Dark Lord."

"I don't think Sylvie would agree to that."

"And do you let your wife make your decisions for you? Remember your promise. A worthy young woman you claim to have loved is dead because of your actions. Have you forgotten her?"

Snape drew himself up and said coldly, "I have kept my promise. I have protected Harry Potter while he is at Hogwarts and I will continue to do so, despite his ill manner, his braggadocio, and his unfortunate inheritance of flaunting the rules." He turned away. "I have not forgotten Lily but things are different now. I have a wife and children to consider. Do you really think the Dark Lord would allow me to keep them separate. No, he would use them for his own purposes? Do you really think Sylvie would countenance my 'defection'?"

"Regardless, I may still need you to work as a double agent, so to speak. It could come down to the difference between victory and defeat."

"Surely that won't be necessary."

"It is my deepest hope that it will not come to that. However, you made a vow to me. If it becomes necessary to collect on that promise, I will do all in my power to make sure that what needs to be done will be done."

He left Professor Dumbledore's room intensely troubled. How could he become a servant of You-Know-Who again. His family would not be safe. The Dark Lord demanded total loyalty. He shuddered to think what would happen to them if Mr. Death, as Sylvie called him, ascertained the importance of his family to him. He would surely use them to force compliance to deeds that he no longer had the stomach for.

The vow he had made so long ago held no meaning for him. Now that he was in an adult relationship, he could view his feelings for Lily in a more realistic light. She didn't like the person he was and wanted him to change. Sylvie would not have cared for him either in his Death Eater days but, if they had a friendship before coming to school, she would have done more to help her friend turn to a different path. Lily was so black and white. Sylvie was shades of grey, just like himself. And that was the difference. She loved him for himself, not trying to make him someone else. He wasn't naïve. He knew that she manipulated him on occasion but these were minor things and the main reason behind this was her concern for his happiness. When it came down to what was important, she loved him.

Harry Potter must get stronger. If only he had the Defense Against the Dark Arts position. He could force into Potter's brain all that he knew that could be used to destroy Voldemort once and for all. He would not need to play the double agent, put his family in jeopardy. His reason for existence would be safe.