Otherwise known as: How Luna tore apart the fabric of reality so that her friends could get decently laid, and accidentally saved the world in the process.
A/N: Hello! Welcome to Chapter Fifty-One! A quick note to say I've never been even close to Greater Manchester so I apologize for discrepancies, but the closest I generally get to Lancashire is that one trip to Blackpool as a kid and a deep, abiding love for David Thewlis. Some centuries old conflicts live on.
Have some hopelessly optimistic Lavender!
Enjoy!
Love Always,
Eli x
Disclaimer: I do not own the works herein, all characters from the Harry Potter Universe belong to JK Rowling, and all characters, storylines, situations, plots and the like do not belong to me. I make no money from this work.
Warnings: Rated M for situations, SO MUCH swearing, violence, sexual scenes... The whole lot, basically.
Iacta Alea Est
Chapter Fifty-One
They were in the van, trundling along the roads of Cokeworth, Ginny in the passenger seat asking "what does 'SWEN' mean?", her words slow and deliberately obtuse as she tried to navigate them with an upside-down map. Remus tried his hardest not to laugh when both Lily and Hermione lunged forward from the middle row of seats, running out of patience simultaneously, demanding Ginny "give me that!" before stopping to glare at the other. Ginny obediently passed the map through the gap, smirking and winking at Remus as she did so.
"Where are we now?" Lily asked, her tone noticeably softer as she spoke to Remus, drawing a throaty growl from Hermione's direction. They had the map spread equally across both of their laps, with Hermione monopolising Eastern Greater Manchester while Lily scoured the West.
"Err…" He peered out the window and slowed to catch a glimpse of the closest street sign, jumping guiltily when his move caused a cacophony of horns to blare out from the traffic behind him. Lavender, in the back with Luna and Regulus, predictably leaned out and shot them all the finger, shouting 'shut it, you lazy buggers! It's ten in the morning! Don't you have anywhere better to be?!'. "Blenheim Road?" he said, reading the sign as quickly as he could so that he could press down on the accelerator and be moving again before the fight brewing on the road could begin in earnest and Lavender jumped out to join in (she'd been wound up all morning, the tension only increasing the closer they got to their location).
"Oh, I know it!" Lily said brightly, which, well, Remus should hope so, given she grew up two streets away. "Not far now," she continued, shoving the map into Hermione unceremoniously so she could lean forward to push her head into the space between Remus and Ginny's seats. "Third exit at the roundabout, and then it's all pretty simple back-streets from there."
"'Pretty simple backstreets'," Remus repeated incredulously five minutes later as he pulled into the first of the warren of ill-paved roads that comprised the council estates of Cokeworth, and would lead him to the more decrepit Spinner's End. The houses on these streets seemed to tilt forwards, balancing precariously with their newly-built cheap grey faces leering aggressively at passers-by, and they all looked the same. Not in a pretty suburban way, but in a grey-scale lower-class Depression way. Even Remus's delicate lower-middle-class sensibilities were offended; he was poor, but he wasn't this poor, and it shocked him that there were so many people who were. Even when his father couldn't work and his mother was doing menial jobs for little pay and all of that was going towards their upkeep, there had been food on the table, and though they'd had to sell their houses and consistently downgrade their living situation, it had always been pretty, remote cottages and never cold, grey matchboxes.
Lily, her head still wedged firmly between the headrests, smiled wryly at him. "You don't spend much time in cities, do you?"
He shook his head mutely, then focused back on the driving, tuning out the low hum of Lavender and Hermione mumbling in the back seat, Ginny's persistent teeth-grinding as she tried to figure out how to work the radio before giving up to slump into her seat, only listening out for Lily's quick directions. Eventually, the area became even more run-down, newbuilds fading into the more handsome but less healthy townhouses. Here, he paused to let Ginny and Luna out. The two of them were dressed for the area in dark, undistinguished clothing, their wands strapped to their forearms beneath their sleeves.
"Be safe," Hermione warned, watching Ginny hop down from her seat, manfully holding back a squeak of pain as Luna's foot dug into her thigh climbing over to the exit.
Ginny shot her a mischievous smirk. "Don't worry about me, Hermione. Worry about the Death Eaters who are about to get a taste of my wand."
Hermione grimaced. "Yeah, alright, then. Don't get too carried away."
"'Carried away'? Me?" Ginny pulled the most false of innocent faces. "Hermione, darling, have a little faith."
Luna smiled absently. "She'll be fine, Hermione. She's been concocting a new hex for just this occasion."
Hermione's yelp was lost in the sound of the doors slamming shut, and Ginny blew them a kiss before disappearing into the underbrush surrounding the houses. Remus, sensing that Hermione was about to blow, kicked the accelerator and shot off down the street. "A new hex!" Hermione repeated behind him, her voice a mix of prim and shocked. "Bloody Ginny."
They crossed a river which seemed more mud and scum than water, the distinctive silver frame of a bicycle rising above the surface, and then they were cruising down a short street that ended in a grey wall topped with barbed wire, beyond which the chimneys of a factory could be seen. The street was near empty, though a few curtains twitched and a door slammed near the end.
"It's just there," Regulus said this time, for Lily had gone mute. Remus, himself, hoped the exterior was clever spellcasting and not, as he feared, Severus Snape's home. Something in his gut curdled – he thought it might be regret at how he had treated the man in the past when this was his reality.
"He wouldn't want to be pitied," Hermione's matter-of-fact voice said, next to his ear. He startled, turning to frown at her.
"I wasn't…"
"You were," she said, the ghost of a smile crossing her lips.
He studied her for a moment, reading the emotion on her face; sorrow, an old grief, regret, but no surprise. "You've been here before," he said, surprised once again. He wasn't sure why, but the knowledge that she had been to Severus Snape's house seemed to sit ill with him. More proof, he supposed, that she was foreign – from the future, a different future. When the majority of her words about the time were surrounding him he supposed it was easy to become self-absorbed, believing that he, perhaps, had been the centre of her world. A queer jealousy ran through him at the realisation that he was not, that she had visited other men in their houses, that she knew just as much about them as she did him.
"Not in much better circumstances," she murmured, then nodded to Lavender, Lily and Regulus. They were all dressed full-Muggle, with Lavender and Hermione having borrowed clothes from Lily for the occasion, looking mismatched but no worse, he supposed, than the women they had passed on the streets that did belong to this era. They prepared to jump out, but Remus reached out to stop Hermione, his hand locking around her wrist in sudden anxiety. She shot him a questioning glance, and he reached back over his seat. He wasn't entirely sure what he was doing, but he followed his instincts, thinking that with Hermione they would not lead him wrong.
He brushed a kiss against her lips then rubbed his nose down her jawline, pressing one kiss to her pulse and dragging the underside of his chin across her neck. Pulling back, he noted with satisfaction that her scent had mingled with his; her eyes dilated in the light. "What was that?" she asked with a tremulous note in her voice to which he answered with a short chuckle.
"Be safe," he mimicked her earlier words, releasing her wrist. The anxiety had been replaced with satisfaction, and he relaxed back into his chair, watching them leave through the rear-view mirror.
Regulus, the last out, smirked at him as he leaned back in to close the door. "Nice display," he teased. "Very threatening. Consider us put in our place."
He smiled faintly, loosening his grip on the steering wheel. Outside, Regulus guided them towards the rowhouses unerringly, gathering an air of authority he'd lacked the past few days. Remus had thought the anxiety would return once Hermione dropped out of sight, but it didn't, not even when he watched her melt into nothing through Severus's ward. Apparently, the wolf was satisfied that there was no danger Hermione could come across today that his scent-marking couldn't conquer.
Lavender shivered in the cold breeze, pulling her jacket closer around her. She wasn't sure what it was, but there was something about the West that made her uneasy. Ever since she was a child and her parents had taken her to Blackpool, she'd had an crippling fear of travelling any further across the country than Sheffield. Her parents called it 'irrational' but, seeing the sorts of people that skulked around these streets, she rather thought it wise. You didn't come across these sorts of thugs in her native Iken.
And such a house, too. She glowered up at the house Regulus was taking them to, all miserable and lonely. She could feel Snape's wards from the other side of the street, could sense them even in the damn car, they were so vicious, so distracting. Never one with any particular skill in spellcasting, she could nevertheless distinguish the layers from each other, and if asked would have been able to identify the purpose of each one.
Not that anybody asked, of course. It was the curse of her life that when she knew the answer, nobody bloody asked the question. To spite them, she started reciting them in her head; Notice-Me-Not, Blood Curdling, Protego Totalum, Animagus Revellio, Anti-Apparition… She should have been put off by the darkness of some of them but instead they satisfied a violent part of her, which did scare her, actually. Reflexively she moved closer to Hermione, not that even Hermione could protect her from her own nature.
She could give her something else to think about, though, and because Hermione Granger is ever obliging, she did. "'Mi," she whispered, because low voices seemed to be The Thing To Do. Slowly, she edged closer to make sure she wasn't mistaken. Nope, she was right. "Are you aware you stink like my Alpha's favourite soft toy?"
"What?" Hermione's eyes widened and automatically she raised her arm as if to sniff her armpits. Lavender stopped her just in time.
"Yeah, that's not – never mind." She took another deep breath through her nose. Yep, there is was, that musky, earthy scent with a sweet edge, unmistakeably Alpha. She held back a snigger because she didn't want to put Hermione on edge, but it was absolutely hilarious to her that Remus had just done the werewolf equivalent of pissing up her leg, and she hadn't even noticed. Gods; the scent was so strong for such a small gesture. "Yeah, never mind."
They hit the wards then. Regulus glanced around and started subtly adjusting them, his magic mixing with Snape's familiarly. It was like cutting good vodka with tap water in Lavender's head, though – the sharp cut of Snape's magic was dulled and violated by Regulus's, and she had to hold back a growl at the desecration. Lily kept walking without noticing their stop, and paused a few feet beyond the ward to look back at them in confusion, her face slackening when she noticed they'd all been prevented from moving onwards. Regulus made a disgusted sound without even pausing his work, sending a dark look at Lily that, if she were in her right mind, Lavender would appreciate.
Unfortunately she wasn't because, recognising what that had meant, Lavender saw red.
"No!" Hermione yelped, diving at the girl as she tried to barge past, uncaring about the vicious wards, determined to get at the woman who thought she had a claim on her mate. She was no longer Lily Evans, slightly irritating but mainly sweet girl who'd nursed her through the bite that changed her. No. Instead, she was that bitch redhead. Soon to be that bitch redhead with the gaping hole in her throat.
Regulus stepped through a second before Lavender whipped passed him, lunging for Lily, who hopped aside a second before Lavender would have made contact. Snarling, she recovered and turned for a second try. "What the hell is wrong with you?!" Lily screeched, turning panicked eyes on the others two for help. "And why aren't you stopping her?"
Regulus shoved his hands in his pockets and glanced at the front door. They were masked from muggle eyes here, so he didn't particularly feel any need to get involved. Especially when it would be to get between a possessive werewolf and the challenge to her mating. "I told you to get over her," he told the house officiously. "'Lily Evans will lead you straight into trouble', I said, and you didn't listen. Well, she's about to get mauled on your front lawn. Happy now?"
Hermione was enjoying the show rather more than she should; Lavender missing Lily by inches once again. Though she did feel a little guilt over telling Lavender about the 'always' thing, being as it had led to this catastrophe. With a sigh, she shouted Lavender's name, and the werewolf stopped in her tracks. "Leave it out, Lav," she called, much like one might a naughty dog.
Lavender glared at Lily once more before straightening up, shaking her hair back into place. Then, determined to ignore the redhead, she looked up at the house. It wasn't a nice house, she could admit easily, but if it had been more looked after no doubt it would be charming. The bricks needed washing to relieve them of their sooty load, and the windows needed replacing, but otherwise, she didn't hate it. Wincing, she shoved her homemaking instincts to the backburner – he wasn't hers yet - and stood back as Regulus swept past, his imperious stance returning to him in the familiarity of these surroundings. Without hesitation, he pushed open the door.
"What, you're just going to walk straight in?" Hermione asked with a frown.
Shrugging, Regulus stepped across the threshold. "It's not like he doesn't know we're here. Severus?"
The other three crowded around the door, none of them eager to enter without an overt invitation, but they still had a good view when a scowling Severus Snape emerged from behind a door, wand extended. "What are you doing here?" he snarled at Regulus. "You're meant to be lying low!"
"If only that were possible," Regulus replied dryly, stepping aside to reveal the others in the doorway. "I'm afraid my new 'protectors' have expectations."
The colour – what little there was – drained out of Snape's face and he jerked backwards as if to run away, but had then thought better of it. "You've joined the Order," he said in a flat voice, his eyes flicking between Regulus and Lily as though they'd short-circuited. "And you brought them to my house." There was a flicker of betrayal in his eyes before they were shuttered and he stood tall again.
"We're not the Order," Hermione said brightly. She had a disturbing glow in her eyes as she looked at the younger Snape for the first time, like she'd just found a rare edition of a book she'd been hunting and she was determined to add it to her library.
Snape glowered at her, one finger pointing at Lily. "She is."
"Yes, but we're not," Hermione countered, waggling her finger between Regulus, Lavender and herself. "Majority rules, Snape."
"Let us in, will you?" Regulus said, sneering slightly. "It's cold as -" his eyes shot to the girls stood next to him and he grimaced, obviously editing. "Merlin out here, and while your house is hardly a step up, I'd rather not be overheard."
Suspicious still, he wavered, undecided whether to trust them. Lavender could understand that. Really, she preened at it – that ridiculous, irrational side of her she'd equated with her wolf was proud of him for being so careful, damn it all.
Finally, Snape waved a negligent hand and everybody trooped across the threshold, Regulus shutting the door behind them. They followed Snape's dark silhouette through the hallway into a study that had definitely seen better days, and Lavender would comment no further than that out of respect for her mate. If she whined pitifully at the state of her mate's house, that was just between her and the wolf.
And Hermione, apparently, because the other girl shot her a half-amused, half-exasperated look.
They crowded into the room; Lily, Lavender and Hermione standing awkwardly as Regulus fell onto a settee with absent grace, and Snape moved to the mantel, ignoring the others in favour of glowering at his friend. "Who are they?" he asked gruffly.
"My new friends," Regulus told him lightly, smiling faintly. "They'll be yours, too, if you'll let them. Severus, might I introduce you to Lavender Brown and Hermione Granger. Hermione, Lavender; the one and only Severus Snape. Of course, you know Lily." He added the last with a resentful lilt that informed Lavender that she wasn't the only person with a dislike of Snape's pining.
Snape turned on his heel to observe them properly for the first time, though the dim light must mask their appearance somewhat. Still, Lavender noted his paling further when his eyes lit on her. "You," he said bluntly. His voice lowered to a hiss, "what is this?"
"Way to make a girl feel wanted," she teased, ignoring the painful clenching in her stomach at his dark look. "When I imagined our reunion…"
"Mr. Snape," Hermione butted in, drawing his gaze. "My name's Hermione, and I've come to ask for your help."
He peered at her, apparently deciding to ignore Lily and Lavender, discounting their presence. Lily didn't seem to notice, gawking at him. Only the Gods knew why, it's not like he looked much different to how he did in the future, mar the lack of wrinkles, so he couldn't look too different to how he had at school.
"If you're not with the Order, who are you?"
"We're…" Hermione seemed lost then, gazing off with a wrinkle in her brow. "We're…"
"We need a name," Lavender remarked, if only to draw his attention. He stubbornly refused to look at her. She tried not to mourn the loss of his dark regard.
"Yes, well, it's hardly a high priority," Hermione snapped, then straightened again. "We're a secret society within a secret society. A name would be detrimental – people only ever get caught when they have names, see," this last part seemed addressed to Snape, as though defending their lack of preparation.
"Sev…" Lily stuttered, finally gaining her voice.
Snape flinched, turning on his heel to face Regulus. "Do they speak English or am I expected to decipher this nonsense?"
"They're usually at least coherent," Regulus remarked dryly, frowning across at Hermione. "Are you alright?"
"Fine," Hermione squeaked. Looking at her, however, Lavender noticed that she was shaking slightly, and her hands were clenched into fists. By the Gods, Hermione was scared. "It's just…"
"Circe's tits, Snape, do you have to be so bloody intimidating?" Lavender burst out, protectiveness for Hermione clouding her thoughts. She wondered how that could be; with her Mate stood in front of her, surely her first loyalty was to him..?
Then she took another steadying breath, and rolled her eyes. Right; that conniving little shit. Remus had gone and rubbed his scent all over her so that she'd read the Alpha in Hermione. Something she shouldn't have to do, according to Remus, until after they were officially Mated and Hermione bore his Mark, their scents intertwined for all eternity and beyond, with Hermione taking her rightful place as Alpha female. It seemed he'd found a get-around. Prick.
Aside from the blatant manipulation, Lavender found she was actually quite grateful for the help. Protecting her Alpha's 'property', for lack of a better term, gave her something else to focus on aside from mooning uselessly after the ugly git across the room. The second he'd become a threat to Hermione, her thought processes had become sharp as a tack, and she was all ready to tear him apart.
"Excuse me?" He looked taken aback, black eyes wide. Good. She pressed her advantage.
"Drop the scowl, offer around some tea, and for Merlin's sake, sit the fuck down." She sniffed, looking around at the room, noting how it looked like a bomb had hit it. "I'll clear off a spot for us to sit on while you make drinks."
"Excuse me-"
"You are excused," she countered saucily, whipping out her wand and praying that her magic wouldn't fail her now. She couldn't bear the humiliation. Happily, when she set it to cleaning surfaces, stacking plates and glasses, and sorting books onto the shelves, it complied with a satisfying rush. Add that to the jig she was dancing on the inside at finally getting to use one of her grandmother's favourite comebacks, and she was practically walking on air.
She noticed, as she passed to walk through to the dinky kitchen, that Snape was still stood at the mantel. Pausing, she shot him as haughty a raised eyebrow as she could muster. "Is there a problem, Mr. Snape?" she purred, taking the opportunity to bask in his lovely scent. Ah, sandalwood. She'd always liked sandalwood.
He twitched, again, his face darkening, which only heightened her enjoyment of the situation. "This is my house," he told her, his jaw clenched.
"That's true, it is," she replied with equanimity. "And look at me, cleaning it for you. You don't know me yet, but when you do you'll realise what a miracle is occurring right before your very eyes. The least you can do is make me a drink."
"Make the girl a drink, Severus," Regulus goaded from the settee, his own eyes dancing as they watched Lavender whirl around. Hermione was pretty gobsmacked, so gobsmacked it had shocked her out of her well-conditioned fear response to Snape, which had been Lavender's intention. Lily, apropos of nothing, was picking her way through the debris of Snape's life as it was strewn across the floor. Nosy cow. "She's right, it really is the least you can do."
Breathing heavily through that impressive nose – and Lavender hadn't been joking when she'd idly wondered whether it was proportionate, because hoo, boy – he shot a black look at Regulus. "If I make you tea," he began slowly, pinching the bridge of his nose, "will you shut up."
Lavender considered that for a moment, weighing the pros and cons. Eventually, she gave a short, sharp nod. "Yes. But only on this occasion. You don't know this lot – a bunch of ruddy chancers, they are. If I set a precedent like this, they'll keep me in leaves just so I can never talk again."
"And what a shame that would be," Snape grunted, marching through to the kitchen.
Delighted, Lavender spun on her heel to beam at her friends. "See that?" she stage-whispered. "He knows me too well already! And you didn't think this would work." Scoffing, she sauntered on through, certain that not even his inconvenient little crush on that redheaded bitch could derail her good mood. Her Mate was here, he was talking to her, he was providing her with sustenance and he was allowing her to improve his living situation. On top of that, they were having banter of the old-married-couple persuasion! When their base chemistry was this brilliant, everything else was surely incidental?
She wondered if he'd object to her calling him 'Sevvy'...
