Chapter 37: Aftermath

Severus watched as his loving Loddie, in the form of the great panther, continued to maim Lucius Malfoy's motionless body.

"Melodia!" he called a bit louder this time. He was finally able to scramble to his feet and stumble toward the panther.

"Loddie, Stop! He's not worth it!" he said as he reached the feet of Malfoy.

When she finally moved away from her victim, the great cat sank onto the floor at Snape's feet and collapsed against his legs, Severus knelt down shakily, as she licked her bloody lips, and stroked her back.

Lucius lay unconscious in a pool of his own blood. His shoulders, abdomen and chest had been bitten, and in places, Severus noticed with a grimace, flesh had been savagely torn free. Lucius appeared to be dead, but Severus was not sure of that.

Severus shuddered when saw the claw marks along his face that she had given him as a lady, and compared them to the gashes along his arms and legs that she inflicted upon him as a panther. If Lucius was, indeed, dead, he knew that his betrothed would now be charged with murder.

He hated himself for allowing Lucius to knock him unconscious. It terrified him that Melodia had been left alone with this madman at all.

"Thank God she was not harmed," he said out loud. She must have been trying to either avenge or protect me when she did this, he thought. But he knew that regardless of this, if Lucius died, the Malfoy family would demand satisfaction.

He carefully reached over and placed a hand on Malfoy's ankle, hoping for any sign of a pulse. To his great relief, there was. It was very weak, but it was there. Severus then quickly moved to Malfoy's side and knelt beside him and began using the same incantation he had used to heal Lucius' son Draco, after being hit by Harry Potter with the Sectumsempra curse during their sixth year.

Severus traced the tip of his wand along the deep gashes and torn flesh of his enemy, while muttering an incantation. He had to repeat this song like incantation three more times until the bleeding stopped, and then an additional two times to insure that the wounds were healing. When he was satisfied that the wounds were satisfactorily stitched, he moved again toward Melodia and knelt beside her again.

"It's over Melodia. Everything is going to be fine now. I love you, darling. Come back to me now," he pleaded.

He continued to stroke the back of the panther until she transformed again. His robe that she wore was completely saturated with Malfoy's blood and her face was covered as well. Melodia shivered and cried as she lay on the tile floor at her future husband's feet.

"Allow me clean you up, my little cat," he said lovingly. Severus lifted her up and pointed his wand at her.

"Scourgify!" he said softly. All of the blood was immediately removed from her body and face. He pulled her into his arms, and she wept as he held her.

"He was going to kill you, Shaggy. He st…stood over you… and said he would f…finish you himself," she stuttered slightly.

"Shhhhhh… Melodia, listen to me. It's over, Love. Lucius is no condition to hurt anyone now," Severus said, as he kissed her lips gently.

She sniffed and wrapped her arms around him.

Melodia looked into his dark eyes. "I guess I have committed murder," she said, as tears continued to fall from her beautiful brown eyes.

"No, Loddie. Lucius is not dead," Severus assured her. "He does need medical attention very badly. I have managed to stop the bleeding and heal his wounds: however, it is possible that he may already have lost too much blood." he finished wearily.

"I'm sorry," she managed without stuttering this time. . "I couldn't let him… do it," Melodia said shakily as she wept. "I love you, Shaggy. Please don't be angry with me.

Severus cradled her against him and winced as her head rested upon his very sore chest. "I am not angry with you, little cat. I admit that I was terrified when you stepped between us. That was very foolish," he scolded evenly.

I know, Severus, but I had to do something," she said pitifully. What are we going to do with him now?" she asked as she wiped her eyes.

"Unfortunately, I have not thought far enough ahead to worry with that just now," Severus said wearily. "I imagine it would be prudent to contact your uncle. Perhaps there is room for him at Hogwarts. Taking him to St. Mungo's would only bring about unnecessary questions," he finished.

Melodia nodded and agreed with him. "I think we should contact him quickly, then. I am afraid of what he will do if he comes around," she said staring at Malfoy's motionless form.

"No. You needn't worry about that, Love. I will never allow him, nor anyone else to hurt you again." Severus promised.

At that moment a startled, familiar voice came from the doorway. "Severus! Melodia!"

They whipped around suddenly and saw Dumbledore standing just beyond them. His eyes were wide with astonishment.

"What in the name of…" he trailed off as he made his way to the grisly scene.

"Oh, Uncle. It was horrible," Melodia said shakily. "Lucius Malfoy showed up and tried to… he wanted to…"

Severus pulled her close to him as she began to weep again.

"Malfoy resumed his attack of Melodia. It seems he wanted to finish what he had been unable to twenty years ago, Albus. If her horse had not broken out of the stable and ran past the house, I may not have reached her in time to stop it," Severus said.

"Good Lord!" said Dumbledore, as he knelt beside his fretful niece. He kissed her forehead and then looked at Severus.

"I doubt, Severus, that he was here only to assault Melodia. Were you able to find out the true nature of his…appearance?" Dumbledore asked.

Melodia sniffled and answered. "He said that Voldemort sent him to fetch Severus. He bragged that 'his master' would deliver his ultimate wrath, and that Severus would be killed," she said in a trembling voice.

"I feared as much," Dumbledore said thoughtfully.

"Albus, I wanted to kill him. I told him that I was going to murder him for attacking Melodia, and then we fought," Severus advised him.

"Lucius wanted a fight. He called Melodia names after stripping her naked, and he struck her, Albus. I sincerely wanted him dead," he finished truthfully.

They explained in detail, the events of the evening to Dumbledore. He removed his spectacles and rubbed his face with his healing hand.

"I hated doing so, Albus," Severus continued, "but I stopped his bleeding, and healed his wounds. If I had not been afraid of Melodia being charged with his murder, I would have happily allowed the bastard to die."

"I thought he had killed Severus, Uncle. I wanted to kill him too. In fact, I thought that I had until I transformed and spoke to Severus," she said, as she held tightly to her beloved wizard.

Dumbledore replaced his spectacles and rose to his feet.

"Have you given any consideration to what should be done with him?" he asked curiously.

"Yes," Severus answered. "We were about to contact you. I suggested to Melodia that he be taken to Hogwarts. Now that Draco and Narcissa have been given a safe house elsewhere, and St. Mungo's is clearly out of the question, it seemed to be the logical place for Lucius to remain until this conflict is over."

"I agree, Severus; however, his magical powers should be removed. I doubt that neither his resolve to harm Melodia, nor his plan to take you before Voldemort has been detoured, and I do not wish to put my staff at risk with this madman," Dumbledore said firmly.

"Let me try, Uncle. My powers are faded a bit, but they seem to be stronger now," Melodia said faithfully.

"No, Loddie," Severus chimed in. "We cannot take that chance. It is, at best, an enormous gamble that your spell would be successful, and I agree with your uncle. This should be done properly, leaving no room for doubt," he said sternly.

Melodia knew that he was right. She would never be able to live with herself if Lucius hurt someone else that she loved because of her negligence.

"Very well. I understand," she said sadly. "Do either of you know the spell to cast for this action?"

Dumbledore raised his wand and pointed at Malfoy's body. His face reflected an expression that was the closest thing to rage either Severus or Melodia had ever seen from Dumbledore before. Lucius seemed to convulse slightly, and then became motionless once again.

"I shall take him to Hogwarts," Dumbledore said suddenly. "The two of you should relax for a bit before I return. I have news of the Hufflepuff Cup, and I would like to discuss that, as well as another matter with the two of you when I return," he said evenly.

"Okay, Uncle," Melodia said, as Severus assisted her to her feet, and pulled her close to him.

"I will take Melodia to bed, and await your return, Albus," Severus said firmly.

"There is no need to expect my return until the morning, Severus. I anticipate that Lucius will need to be monitored closely for tonight. Therefore, both of you should rest and put tonight behind you. I am afraid that the most difficult events have yet to unfold," said Dumbledore.

"Very well, Albus. We shall expect you in the morning," Severus said.

Dumbledore stooped beside the unconscious Malfoy, levitated him from the floor, and grasped his arm firmly. Then, with a loud pop, they were gone.

Severus scooped Melodia into his arms and winced again at the pain in his chest.

"Are you alright, Shaggy?" Melodia asked, as she noticed his slight wince.

"Yes, my little cat. I am just a bit sore from the stunners that Lucius hit me with. I will be fine. I assure you," Severus said as he kissed her lovingly.

Melodia tried to smile, but she was very worried. Severus had been attacked viciously, and she knew that he was hiding his pain from her.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply.

"I think we could both use a bath, Professor," she said slyly.

"Now, that sounded like an invitation Ms. Dumbledore. Are you certain that you are up to it?" he asked huskily.

"There's only one way to find out," she answered duskily.

Severus laughed softly as he held her, and with another loud pop, they were off to enjoy a much needed, and eagerly anticipated, romantic bath.