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54- Torch

Dumbledore didn't show annoyance about his insubordinate spy who had apparently grown a will of his own, which wasn't good. He would have preferred Severus Snape to remain begging and remorseful, trying hard to redeem himself. But it would make no sense to remind him of his guilt now since that might only feed his stubbornness.

Ah, he sowished to find out how Severus had managed to keep his father safe! He couldn't have done it all alone- on the other hand, the Slytherin was a very ingenious young wizard (especially when it came to potions research) and his creativity was praised by honourable members of the wizarding society, such as Professor O'Flaherty of St Mungo's. Well, only Professor O'Flaherty. Severus didn't have any friends- except for some other Death Eaters, perhaps, but Dumbledore doubted that. So how had he accomplished it?

There was no point in trying to use Legilimency on him since the boy was probably the most potent Occlumens he'd ever met, which was somehow a double-edged sword. It made him the perfect spy since he managed to fool Voldemort every time they met, but it could also mean Severus was fooling him, too. Dumbledore could merely trust in the boy's love for Lily Potter and hope it was still strong and... unrequited.

He had to be careful, and to not push Severus too far, therefore he gave him a warm-hearted smile before he dismissed him. "So be it. I trust you did the right thing, and your father is really safe. Now go and rest; it must have been a long, tedious day for you. Enjoy your summer holidays."

-o-

Severus grimaced at the portraits on the walls of the Headmaster's office before he left; only one of them blinked an amused eye at him. Phineas Nigellus Black, the only Slytherin Headmaster of Hogwarts.

Just outside the door, he almost collided with one of the obnoxious Marauders- unfortunately, he met the lot at Order meetings occasionally or sometimes even inside Hogwarts when they, busy with their very own arrogance, stormed past him in order to inform Dumbledore of some very important news. Usually, the guys in question were Potter or Black, but he had also seen Lupin sneaking into the castle at night. Now, however, he was surprised having run into Pettigrew of all people, the weakest and most insignificant of the four.

"Get off of me, rodent!" Severus hissed as he demonstratively brushed his robes where Wormtail had touched him.

Since his comrades weren't there to protect him, Pettigrew apologized immediately and almost politely, ignoring the insult. He seemed to be scared that Severus might hex him, but Severus was not in the mood for silly, childish hexes. All he wanted was to go home and rest, like Dumbledore had suggested.

Tired as he was, he very nearly missed how easily the servile attitude came to Peter Pettigrew. Walking down the staircase, Severus started mulling over the guy. Something was... fishy about him. Of course, he was the subordinate type, the bootlicker, and therefore he'd been attractive for Potter. Also, he was a frightened guy, not particularly skilled- Severus never took into consideration that Pettigrew might have matured and forgotten about old resentments. No, it had been plain to see that the Gryffindor still detested him and he didn't have to be a Legilimens to know that. Someone like Pettigrew would always bow and crawl to the feet of anyone who was stronger, more confident, or more intelligent. It was in his rat nature. Rats were a quite adaptable species...

Severus shook his head. It made no sense to think about the characteristics of rats now; there was nothing suspicious about Pettigrew's behaviour. Perhaps his mind was running wild because he was tired, the whole day had been extremely tedious.

The sun was already up when he crossed the grounds; smoke was rising from the chimney of Hagrid's cabin and the Forbidden Forest was looking dark and forbidding in the diffuse light of the early morning sun.

-o-

Severus longed for a coffee, a hot shower, his bed... and Raven. But when he finally arrived at the apartment he was sharing with her, he got disappointed the very moment he opened the door, realising she was not alone. Regulus Black was there, as well as Edie.

But what had he hoped for anyway? There was no point in hoping for intimacy if he had to reject it anyway (although he was very sloppy at that, as he recalled with shame) since there was just no way to allow any serious relationship to develop. He knew he was hurting her, and yet he couldn't stop longing for proximity and making things even worse.

"Sev!" Raven called out, relief in her voice. Only an instant later she was in his arms, hugging him, holding him tight. "You alright?"

Of course, she had worried about him. She always would. There was no way to stop that. And that was also the moment he realised it was good that Regulus and Edie were there, had probably been there all night, keeping her company while waiting for him to show up. Because they were friends... his friends as well, he recalled when the two of them rose from their chairs to welcome him back and the ghost of worry on their faces turned into relieved smiles.

Now, Severus felt really guilty for having been disappointed about their presence, even if that had only been momentarily. He finally registered that without their help Raven might not have been able to save his father, and he silently called himself an ungrateful git. Although he was still dog-tired, he knew he owed them a brief statement, telling his side of the story.

"Thanks to your perfect preparation, I found two dead bodies sitting peacefully in the kitchen. I don't want to know where you got them-"

"The local morgue," Raven replied nonetheless. "They were on their way to the crematorium when we... um, borrowed them- I mean, they were to burn anyway. Only the setting was different."

"Yeah, it was easy. All we had to do was to Confound the driver of the hearse, take the cargo, and place them in your father's house so you could kill them," Regulus added.

"Thank you!" Severus quipped with tight lips.

"I will not say it was a pleasure, but if it helped you to perform the Killing Curse and make Lord V believe you killed your father, it was worth it- I take it the Dark Lord was pleased?"

"Only a little. He actually used the Prior Incantato spell on my wand to satisfy himself that I truly used the damnable Killing Curse, and I reckon he would have known had I not used it on people but merely shot some greenish sparks in the air. Nevertheless, he would have preferred me to turn them into charcoal first before giving them a mercy killing, but I guess he knew that would have angered Dumbledore even more and he still needs me in the Headmaster's good books."

"So how did Dumbledore react?"

"As expected..." Severus heaved a sigh before he almost grinned at Raven. "I'm not in Azkaban- thanks to you and your endless babbling about Muggle forensics, I managed to create enough doubts for him to believe I did not murder my father in cold blood." He shrugged. "Perhaps I even went a tad too far by insinuating that the Aurors investigating the incident are a bunch of incompetent fools, taking the obvious for granted and not bothering to provide conclusive, scientific facts. In the end, he decided to believe me since I'm not useful for him in Azkaban."

"Typically Dumbledore! He's such a git! He always expects the worst of you because you're a Slytherin. But did he offer any help when he knew your father was in danger? No."

"He actually offered his help to ensure father's safety after all was said and done-"

"Now, isn't he great? What a generous man!" Raven fumed. "He would willingly accept a person's death if it fits in his plan."

Severus, who still trusted Dumbledore a little more than Raven did, frowned. He wondered if she was perhaps right- Dumbledore had not offered any help and saying 'I expect you to do the right thing,' hadn't been mightily supportive either. 'Hm,' he thought, 'probably the old man wanted me to beg for help, put all my trust in him-' But that had never occurred to Severus. He had lost a lot of his initial faith in Dumbledore, so probably the mistrust was mutual. That was also part of the reason why he couldn't tell him where his father was. Well, he still didn't know.

"They're in-" Raven wanted to fill him in, but Severus interrupted her immediately.

"No, don't tell me," he said, reaching for her hand. "I am grateful for your support, but I don't want to know."

Although he was an acceptable Occlumens, he didn't want to push his luck too far, and not knowing about his father's whereabouts made him less vulnerable. Sometimes, knowledge was might. And sometimes, it simply wasn't... especially in these mad times.

Everything had worked out perfectly well. He had managed to save father from a violent death, and he really didn't care where he was right now. After all, their relationship was a troubled one, to put it mildly. Nevertheless, he was glad he hadn't had to become his assassin only because he was the favourite pawn of two egomaniac masters...

"Sev, this flat is warded like a fortress, and you certainly are an extraordinary Occlumens," Raven said, proving her own words wrong because she had easily figured him out... meaning all of his reasons. "Your father worries about you- especially since Reg came up with a plausible explanation for your absence by telling him you're sort of undercover in a terrorist organisation, which is somewhat true, but didn't really make him worry less-"

"You did what?" Severus snapped at Regulus.

"Hey, he thinks you're a bloody hero and he knew already that you're very brave. So what?" Regulus replied casually, a smile on his lips.

"You shouldn't have-"

"Ah, come on, Sev! Reg's right. Don't make such a fuss about it," Raven interjected, also in that annoyingly calm tone the young Black used."Besides,I guess your dad will call soon, and he will want to know if you're alright, and he will probably tell you how very nice Italy is."

Italy? Well, that made sense. Anna was Italian and still had family there. But neither the Dark Lord nor Dumbledore knew that, nor would any of them bother to investigate the background of Tobias Snape's mistress in order to track down his father, who- at long last- was just a relatively unimportant Muggle to both of them. Tobias Snape was of no concern for the Greater Good...

All of a sudden, Severus began to question Dumbledore's sincerity when it came to protecting a person, remembering how he'd begged him to keep Lily safe and how Dumbledore had called him disgusting because he'd only asked for her protection. Well, perhaps he really was a damnable abomination since he still gave no damn about bloody James Potter, never had, not even after Dumbledore had urged and pushed him to include the whole loving family in his wish for protection. 'Hide them all, then,' he had said, had caved in and given him something in return. Only then Dumbledore had agreed- and not because 'it's his fucking job to keep them safe,' like Raven had so rightly argued afterwards.

Then, Severus had still trusted Dumbledore. But that trust was dwindling more and more, and now he was wondering if Dumbledore ever really cared about anyone. Or did he rather consider everyone as just another pawn in a bigger scheme, the Greater Good. And what part did Lily play in that? If he thought about it, trying to see things the way Dumbledore did, he came to the conclusion that Lily was of no importance, either. She had done her job already; she had given birth to the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord... and all the fuss Dumbledore had made about protecting the whole family was just another scheme of a mastermind of manipulation.

Merlin, I'm such a fool. At that time, it had seemed to be the most sensible solution- he should have used his brain instead of letting his heart rule! So very fucking stupid! Almost Gryffindor-ish acting without thinking.

But what could he do now? Fortunately, he'd not begged Dumbledore to keep his father safe, although the Headmaster might have wished or expected just that when saying, 'I expect you to do the right thing.' And Severus had exactly done that by sending his Patronus to Raven. In the end, they had proven how very effectively she could make someone disappear from the sinister radar of evil wizards simply by using Muggle methods. A flight to another country, a new identity, and father was gone.

If only she could hide Lily, too. Somewhere. Anywhere. In a faraway place, at the other end of the world-

That moment, the telephone was ringing, interrupting his thoughts before he could voice another careless request. Raven answered the phone like she always did, and after a brief exchange of words, she handed the receiver to him.

Severus took the phone and left the kitchen, knowing it was his father on the other end of the line. Luckily, the cable was long enough to make it into his own room for he didn't want his friends to witness a conversation that he wasn't sure how it might develop and he was too tired to control his emotions.

"Hello?" He finally spoke into the receiver.

"Severus, me boy! Ye alright?"

"I am. How about you?"

Father seemed to take in a deep breath of relief when hearing that, which confused Severus, but he blamed it on the distance and on Muggle technology.

"I'm fine, son, thanks te ye. Methinks I really owe ye-"

"I beg your pardon?" Disbelief was ringing in his voice since he'd half expected father to be mad about all the trouble he and his bunch of freaks had caused...

"Well, as it seems ye saved our lives by sending us away, and though I ne'er dreamed of goin'' abroad, leavin' me home-"

"I'm sorry about the inconvenience I caused," Severus interjected, only hearing the last part without really getting that his father was trying to offer his gratitude. Probably he was still not believing his own ears.

"No, no, not at all. I'm fine. We're fine- Anna sends her love, by the way- an' Italy is a nice place, really." Tobias fell silent for a moment before he asked, "But how 'bout ye, son? Yer friends told me what ye're doin' an' it sounds pretty dangerous."

"My friends tends to exaggerate a little." Severus rolled his eyes, wishing Black had not made him appear like some sort of fucking hero since he clearly wasn't one. "There is nothing to worry about as long as you stay where you are and limit any contact to me to the absolutely necessary." Which shouldn't really be a problem for father, he thought in reminiscence of the troubled relationship they were having for as long as he could remember. "I will inform you when it is safe for you to return."

"Aye, alright. An' please take care of yerself, son, will ye? I love ye, me boy."

Severus hung up the receiver promptly, glad that there was no one around who could take notice of how his face dropped in a confusion. Never before had father said anything like that. Of course he had expressed his gratitude before, but he had never hinted at nor given the slightest indication that he did possibly care for his son, the freak, the abnormal, the weirdo. The hero, now. Nevertheless, Severus was not going to change his mind about him only because of a sentimental phone call.

Trying to keep his mixed emotions at bay, he waited for a moment before he returned to the kitchen- he still had a bone to pick with Regulus for making him a bloody hero in the eyes of his father.

But the kitchen was empty except for Raven, who informed him that Regulus and Edie had gone home. It had been a very long day for them, too.

"Father's well, thanks to you. I appreciate your effort."

"No need to thank me, Sev. I'm glad I could help and the idea that we fooled both Lord V and Dumbledore gives me pleasure." She grinned at him with sparkling eyes.

"The Ministry of Magic is full of incompetent dunderheads who don't even have the faintest idea what they deny themselves if they refuse to let you to start Auror Training. You showed more cleverness today than any of them could ever muster."

Although Raven was positively taken aback by his words and his rare praise, she merely shrugged. "Well, if they don't want me I could still try to study forensics and criminology at a Muggle university."

"Or you go abroad," Severus offered since he hated the idea of Raven giving up her dream to become an Auror. Besides, it was also safer if she left wizarding Britain, even though she had just proven she could not only take care for herself but also for others. She clearly was a capable witch and that's why he didn't like her looking for alternatives in the Muggle world.

"No way!" She said resolutely, and Severus breathed a sigh of relief he was unaware of having been holding- out of sheer egoism. Of course, he didn't want her to leave, but that was an irrational wish.

"I can't leave you all alone here in this mess," Raven continued in a softer tone, which was sweet even though it bruised his ego just a little. He didn't need her to take care of him, he could do that all alone perfectly well. And yet, he did need her, needed her support, her warmth, her idealism... yes, it was egoistic to want all that without having anything to give her in return (except for some carnal pleasures perhaps) and yet he couldn't stop it, couldn't stop the needing for she was his torch in these dark times.

Still feeling dirty after having interacted with both of his masters tonight, he wished for a hot shower to wash away the memories, so he excused himself and went to the bathroom where he indulged himself in an attempt to scrub the evil off his skin. As the hot water was running down his head, he already knew that no matter how tired he was, he would probably not be able to find rest any time soon; there was still so much on his mind that would keep him from sleeping. Like his newly fuelled worries about Lily, now that he'd come to mistrust Dumbledore when her safety was concerned, simply because Lily was not important for the Greater Good. I should not have put my faith in him, I just shouldn't have put all my faith in him...

He turned off the water, shivering ever so slightly as he left the bathroom and retreated to his own room. In all the time he was living here, he'd never cared to make it more comfortable; he had simply stored his belongings in there, next to an old mattress that served as his bed. Piles of books were staked everywhere, neatly, and he had a shelf filled with potion ingredients sorted in alphabetical order. There was also a table with cauldrons and the old cassette desk Raven had once given him as a present.

He briefly considered playing some music but then opted against it and for something far more selfish since he couldn't stand the loneliness.

The door to her room was still open; she never seemed to close it, so he simply slipped in. Raven was in bed already, looking just as sleepy and tired as he felt, but when she saw him entering she lifted the blanket in a welcoming gesture.

He slipped under the covers.

"Good night, Sev. Sleep well," she whispered as she turned to sleep, leaving him slightly puzzled. Mind, she was not giving him the cold shoulder but she made it unmistakably clear that there wasn't more to expect than a friendly hug and the comfort of her proximity.

Although he was much too tired to even think of sexual activities now, he was a bit perplexed- mostly about his disappointment. Yes, he knew he had always discouraged her to hope for more, trying to reason that it was not the right time to start any relationship... insofar, she was reacting exactly the way he wanted. Cordially. Caring. Compassionate. Like a good friend. And all of a sudden he wasn't certain anymore if that was what he really wanted. It simply... felt so wrong.

Severus snuggled up to her, finding comfort in the warmth she radiated (probably not deserving it), then he closed his eyes and fell asleep, glad that this long day was finally over.

-o-

They woke at dusk, when the sun was already setting again. Fortunately, it was a Saturday evening and Raven didn't have to go dancing at the Red Lantern; she had cut her shifts for the summer so she could spend more time with Severus. Besides, it had been quite a while since she'd learned anything new in that club for the Death Eaters visiting were either extremely tight-lipped lately or they really didn't know much about the plans of their Dark Lord.

It had been alright with her- until yesterday. Summer was the time for festivals, concerts and fun, and in Raven's opinion, there should always be time for distraction before reality calls you back to reason.

Yesterday, however... well, yesterday, the call had suddenly become too loud to be ignored. Not only because of the immediate danger Severus' father was in (a problem they had managed to solve quite smoothly) but because of another danger no one had talked about, one that had burned deep lines of sorrow in Severus' mind. Of course, he hadn't showed it, hadn't spoken about it- perhaps part of it was even due to some thoughtfulness considering her feelings. But no matter how inscrutable his mien was, and no matter what the brilliant Occlumens tried to hide in the deepest, darkest corner of his mind (and he had perfectly succeeded in fooling both Dumbledore and Lord V,) he couldn't fool her and she didn't even have to use Legilimency. She would always know when he was thinking about Lily... call it intuition or just a vague feeling caused by rejection and blame it all on unrequited love... but she knew. It was all over his face, in the very tiniest, minuscule expression he so tried to hide, barely visible to anyone who didn't love him as much as she did.

Severus worried about Lily's safety, and he was probably right. Given that he'd put his faith in Dumbledore when it came to protecting her, he might have backed the wrong horse.

Raven should have cared less- on the other hand, she didn't want Lily to die, either, but only partly because she still remembered the good old days, when they were still friends. Mostly, and even if that was selfish, she wanted Lily to survive because only if she lived, Severus could finally choose her, Raven, one day. If Lily died, she'd forever be a substitute for his one great love.

-o-

"Reg, can you get me an official list of all the properties the Potters own?" Raven asked, apparently out of the blue, later that evening. They had agreed on Chinese take-away, and while waiting for their order, they'd met Regulus and Edie who had had the same idea. And so the had ended up in her kitchen again, with Raven asking a question that made Regulus frown while Severus arched a surprised brow at her.

She knew he'd never dared to ask (probably he did care about her feelings, if only a little) but now he seemed relieved she broached the problem without him needing to voice it.

"What are you up to now?" Regulus glanced from Raven to Severus and back.

"Well, I want to see if I can track down the Potters, because if I can, the Dark Lord will, too."

"Funny, the Dark Lord never asked that of me- so either he knows already or..."

"From what you told me about him I don't view him much as an investigative guy," Edie gave to consider.

"Believe me, he is painfully investigative when he's using Legilimency on someone." Severus said.

"Yeah, but that's the point I'm trying to make. Like most guys he's using force instead of brain, always pushing to the limits. He'd rather force his mind-reading thing on people than simply check the archive."

"The term mind-reading isn't quite precise-"

"Ah, don't nit-pick, Sev. He's violently prying about in other people's mind and I don't need a bloody precise Latin word to not like it."

Severus couldn't hide a tiny smirk; he did find Edie rather amusing sometimes. But soon he put on a more serious face again. "And you're right to not like it because it's dangerous, especially for someone in your... position."

"My position?"

"Well, you are... um, dating Regulus Black, aren't you?"

"Dating... now that sounds pretty prudish, Sev. Yes, we're having sex-"

"You don't have to elaborate on that, love," Regulus cut in, putting up a grin that didn't reach his eyes, which were as grey as steel and focussed on Severus, "because it's none of his concern. Get your own issues in order, mate, before you judge others. I love Edie, and I don't care if you call it foolish due to the times we're living in. I stand by my feelings and I stand by her since love is the only thing that differs us from the Dark Lord."

Both Edie and Severus were slightly taken aback. The former because of his confession and the latter since Reg had just shown him his own failure quite plainly.

He, Severus, could not say he stood by his feelings for they were too confusing most of the time, and besides, he did think it foolish to be so... emotional. Was he the only one face to face with the very unsentimental reality? Apparently the whelp hadn't met the Dark Lord recently...

"Alright, can we please return to the root of the matter, guys?" Raven interrupted, which earned her a glance of approval from Severus even though he should know that she definitely shared Regulus' point of view. But she didn't want to argue about that now. There was no way to change Severus' opinion, so why waste time? "Reg, can you get me the desired list and is doing so of no risk for you?"

"I wouldn't even mind a little risk. Of course, I don't have unlimited access to all the files hidden in the Ministry, but I spend too much useless time in the registry anyway. A little research will spare me a death of boredom."

"Aw, my poor little posh prince and his hard job!" Edie mocked him in quite a sweet, compassionate tone that wasn't all ironic.

"You know I'd rather do something more spectacular but unfortunately the Dark Lord doesn't need an ambitious monster truck driver in his ranks."

"Reg!" Raven rolled her eyes (and so did Edie), "You know I don't want you to to raise suspicion, do you? Please be careful."

"Yep. Sure. You know I'm neither daft nor suicidal. I'm pretty much aware what Lord V is capable of," he shot a quick glance at Severus, "but I also know how to hide my secrets well, thanks to you. When he calls for me, I simply bore him with the great job I'm doing for him at the Ministry, giving him just enough political nonsense to mull over to make him believe I'm actually doing a great job."

Edie alone knew that that was merely part of the truth since she was the only witness of his nightmares. Only she knew that the Dark Lord considered Regulus a complete failure, but one he still needed, because- and despite of his rhetoric skills in winning people for his bigoted cause- he was not a born politician. Otherwise he would have long attempted a coup to make himself the new Minister for Magic. But since that was not his intention, he still needed a marionette, one with a prominent name... and the Blacks were almost like royalty in the wizarding world…

-o-

Some days later, Regulus handed Raven the required list, but he didn't seem all too happy about it.

"Is there any problem?" She asked. "Did you get caught?"

He shook his head no and glanced in the direction of Severus' room. Raven followed his eyes.

"He's busying himself with a new potion experiment- it's his interpretation of summer fun. So what do you have to say, Reg?"

"What do you need this for?" Regulus waved with the list.

"Just like I said, I want to find out if I can track them down because-"

"I remember what you said. But why? Honestly, Raven, I think I sort of understand what you're up to and yeah, it is quite a logical approach- but are you aware of the fact that you're trying to protect bloody Lily Potter of all people?"

"I am, indeed. And I'm doing it because I question Dumbledore's motivation since she's just the mother of the one with the power to bla bla and therefore of minor importance to the Greater Good."

"Yes, I understand that, too," Regulus rolled his eyes. "But it's bloody St. Lily we're talking about! I would expect you to do a happy dance on her grave."

"True, but if Lily dies, Sev will never be able to choose me over her and I will always and forever be a substitute. Therefore, she has to stay alive. And since Dumbledore isn't overly reliable, someone else has got to do the dirty job."

"But Lily-"

"Reg, I know your intentions are noble but you can't prevent me from my very own fucking emotions, so don't even try. Besides, we have an agreement anyway, Sev and I. In Hawaii, when we started that mess we're in, I promised to let him go without a fight should Lily ever come to love him more than I do."

"You what?" First, Regulus was slightly appalled by her apparent lack of pride but after letting her words sink in, he suddenly understood and started laughing. "My, you are a clever witch, Raven. You pretend to be the most unselfish person in the world when in fact you are a true Slytherin, very cunning. How fat in the chance that Lily ever comes to love our dear Sev?"

Although it was a rhetoric question, Raven answered it nevertheless and didn't even bother to conceal the tiny little malicious smile that tucked at the corners of her lips. "On a scale from one to a million?"

"Wicked girl! And I almost thought you an idiot- I apologize for that, Miss Lestrange, and offer you my admiration instead. You did everything right. So now the only idiot left is Snape who still fails to appreciate what a precious gift he's been given. I could throttle him!"

"Ah, don't. You know, throttling causes a drop of blood supply in the brain, and we don't really want that, do we?"

Regulus merely grinned at her in reply.

-o-

While she was still at school, summer holidays seemed to be endless and she couldn't wait to return to Hogwarts in order to see Severus again. Now, summer ended much too soon, and she had to say goodbye to Severus some days before August ended and a new term began in September. Apparently, Dumbledore needed him at Hogwarts, and he conveyed it in typically Gryffindor-ish style.

It didn't make it any easier to bid farewell to him, knowing they still had the Patronus Charm, when he loudly thought of ways to off bothersome Patroni, like Dumbledore's annoying phoenix. Though they laughed about it, the sound of it was bitter and yet it warmed her heart, realizing he didn't want to leave either. These last weeks had been almost perfect, almost like a real relationship. Like the one they had started in Hawaii, before that damnable prophecy had fucked it all up. She even thought to have noticed some slight... alteration in his attitude towards her- which he would certainly deny, or never speak out loud, but it was there. For a short while she was actually feeling loved.

It ended all too soon, when Dumbledore called him back to Hogwarts, back to shame and disgrace, reminding him that he was still the sinner in need for rehabilitation. And Severus obeyed. But before he left, he kissed her hard with deep, dark eyes saying, 'See you soon.'

-o-

Keeping that in mind, hoping for better times and mulling over what she could do to make it all turn out right, Raven busied herself with the file Regulus had gotten her. It was easy to rule out Potter Mansion as a possible hiding place for the Potters since the house in which James had grown up had been sold shortly after him leaving Hogwarts and marrying Lily; it had been bought by a charming elderly couple that didn't support Voldemort at all but had an army of well-fed house-elves- at least she's checked that already, even though she'd been lazy with the rest due to that fickle moment of bliss she'd shared with Severus.

Now, however, he was gone, and she could fully focus on the file again. It didn't take long until she could kick herself for being so sloppy to not have noticed it before.

-o-

"Care to join me for a ride?" Raven asked Edie on a sunny September day. Regulus was at work at the Ministry, Severus was teaching potions at Hogwarts, and she was tired of being alone.

"Sure!" Edie replied in the same casual tone. She was momentarily without a job (once again) because Spike had fired her (once again). As it seemed, he had a huge problem with her being more talented when it came to the creative part of tattooing. "Where do you want to go?"

"Godric's Hollow."

"Never heard of that one. Is it a magical place?"

"Nope, but it's a mixed village." And Raven should have known all along, from the very first time she'd laid eyes on that file, that there couldn't be any other place where the Potters were hiding. After all, it was the birthplace of Godric Gryffindor! She had only ruled it out because the property in question was being described as a cottage and Raven would have expected Potter to impress Lily with something more posh- on the other hand, she really couldn't imagine Lily to order some house-elves around, which would certainly be required living in a grandiose mansion. Therefore, it just had to be Godric's Hollow, home of many famous wizards and witches. Bathilda Bagshot lived there, author of A History of Magic; a book Raven had loved at Hogwarts... even though Professor Binn's approach to such an interesting topic had been rather somniferous, to put it mildly.

"Well, sounds cool anyway." Edie's cheerful voice interrupted her thoughts. Not a single question whether it was safe for her to go, but no carefree undertone either. Edie knew the wizarding world could be a dangerous place for a Muggle, she had spent too much time with Regulus to not be perfectly aware of that, and yet she trusted Raven. They were friends. Raven would never get her into trouble.

-o-

For most of journey they remained silent (it was hard to have an animated conversation while riding a motorcycle and the V-engine of the Harley was roaring powerfully,) enjoying the ride as well as the autumnal countryside rushing by. Of course, it would have been much faster and easier had Raven simply Apparated to Godric's Hollow, but only half as much fun. Also, Apparation required a certain knowledge of the surroundings if you didn't want to raise suspicion, especially since Godric's Hollow was a mixed village. Just imagine you popped up out of thin air in the middle of a market square during the weekly market. Or in the Potter's garden of a house well-protected by Aurors or at least several members of the Order of the Phoenix. No one in their sane state of mind would want to answer their questions... Therefore it was much better to arrive the Muggle way, dressed like Muggles, and in company of a Muggle.

It was about lunch time when they arrived at Godric's Hollow. At first glance, there wasn't anything special about it, no indication that it was actually a mixed village. It was just another provincial backwater like many others they'd passed on their route.

Raven parked her Harley next to the village's only pub and took off her helmet. Edie followed her suit.

Immediately, some passersby were staring at them, but soon turned their eyes away again.

"Ignorant village idiots," Edie cursed under her breath, "so damned conservative, I guess they're all voting for the bloody Torys-"

"Let's not get political, please." Raven said, although Edie was probably right. However, that didn't matter now.

"'kay. What d'ye wanna do instead."

"How 'bout a beer in the local pub?"

"Sounds great. I'm sure it's a real fun place."

They entered the pub. Again, people were staring at them but glanced away soon after. Raven ordered two beer and piloted Edie to an empty table.

"Alright, now tell me what we're doing here," Edie asked after the first sips of beer. "Why did you want me to come along?"

"Don't you enjoy this lovely place?" Raven quipped before she got a little more serious. "I think the Potters might be living in Godric's Hollow, named after Godric Gryffindor who apparently was born here-"

"Gryffindor as in the opposite to Slytherin?"

"Right. I see you learned a lot about our world already. Anyway, I wanted your company because two girls cause less suspicion."

"Oh, well done, Raven! Great plan. Just take a look around, lass. They're staring at us 'cause we might look slightly different than the odd village girl, and I daresay it's due to our really unobtrusive hair colour. Correct me if I'm wrong."

"Of course they noticed us- but did you notice just how quickly they looked away and that no one made a silly comment? It's because they're used to weird looking people. Well, since you only know Reg, Sev and me, you have no idea how most wizards and witches are dressed. If they try to dress like Muggles, they often look like masqueraders. And therefore, we're still quite unobtrusive.

"Also, and that's the funny thing about mixed villages, living together in close neighbourhood with wizards, Muggles may think their neighbour is a bit strange but they tend to ignore that in order to not appear rude."

"Alright." Edie downed her beer, trying to collect her thoughts. "So a red-haired and a blue-haired girl won't raise suspicion in a mixed village. But if you're trying to find the Potters, why are we sitting in this pub then, drinking beer? And talking about beer, I wouldn't mind another one."

Raven smirked and ordered another round before she answered Edie's question. "Because there's no better place to collect valuable information than a pub, simply listening to the gossip."

Edie indicated with a wave of her hands that she could hardly hear anything but Raven's voice, due to the noise level in the pub.

"Well, that's what we witches got our funny sticks for, my dear. We can cast spells with it." For a short moment, Raven let Edie hear what she was hearing and was mildly amused by her friend's expression when all of a sudden she could clearly overhear all of the gossip from the nearby tables.

"Wicked." She grinned, but the sensation faded all too soon and then her mind jumped back to the previous topic. "Guess I've got that, now. Pretty cool trick. But honestly, Raven, why all the effort? Why are you trying to find stupid Lily? Or, to be more precise, why d'ye wanna keep her safe?"

Raven ignored her questions and posed a counter question instead. "Well, what about you and Reg?"

Edie almost spilled her beer. "I really don't know what you mean."

"Oh come on, Edie! He made it quite clear that he likes you a lot."

"Silly posh boy!" She cursed before she snapped, "Well, although it's none of your concern, I came to like him. Alright? He's not as narrow-minded and bourgeois as I believed him to be, though I still don't know how to deal with him being so fucking fond o' me. But I can handle that. Somehow."

"He loves you."

"Aye, so he says. An' I told him that your freakin' Dark Lord can never be as scary as the wrath of a woman who got fooled by a posh idiot. He just laughed and said he's never going to fool me."

"Well, I think you can trust him."

Edie rolled her eyes. "You know- and that's the most scary part- I guess I do, actually."

Raven smiled at her lost in thoughts for a moment as she contemplated the fun they could have together, she and Sev, Reg and Edie, two happy couples- except that only one of the couples was happy and she was not included. Instead, she was spending her time in a countryside pub, hoping for information to protect and save Severus' true love. Sometimes, she really felt like a masochist.

"Come on, Edie, let's take a walk in this lovely little village."

When they left the pub, Edie said, "I'm sorry we talked about me all the time so you couldn't overhear the village gossip. But you started it, Raven. I didn't want to talk about Reg."

"I know. I wanted to know because I like Reg and I like you, and besides, it was good for our cover. You know, two girls drinking beer, talking about boys. And don't worry, I also managed to collect all the information I need."

Edie shot her a surprised glance. "How?"

"Years of spying." Raven shrugged. Although information had been little, she knew now that there had been strangers roaming the streets at night, apparently wearing frightening masks. The people of the village thought they were a gang, probably from a bigger city, but Raven knew they must have seen some Death Eaters. However, these unpleasant events had taken place months ago and there had been no recent sightings- which seemed to underline her opinion that Lord V had declared the prophecy and with it locating the Potters (as well as killing them) his private affair, since none of the Death Eaters visiting the Red Lantern had ever mentioned the prophecy or how the hunt for the Potters was proceeding. That didn't mean though that the Potters were safe, or protected well enough for her to not take a closer look at the precautionary methods Dumbledore had chosen to ensure their protection.

Godric's Hollow was modest, neat and easy to find one's way around. There was a small square where the pub was located, next to the post office (you could also send owls from an adjacent building, looking deserted to Muggles as Edie confirmed) and a few shops. At the other end of the square was the local church, the Parish Church of St. Clementine, as a sign read, and behind it was a graveyard where they would likely find several graves of famous members of the wizarding society. Had Raven been interested in taking a a stroll down memory lane into the history of her kind, she might have discovered the graves of Kendra and Ariana Dumbledore, and she would have known of the Headmaster's connection to Godric's Hollow. But she opted against it when she saw an elderly witch leaving the local supermarket, carrying a pack of nappies.

Of course, it wasn't unusual even for elderly witches to have babies, but that witch in question was Bathilda Bagshot. Miss Bathilda Bagshot, author of A History of Magic, unmarried, no kids. Raven knew her history.

Anticipating a breakthrough in her investigations, she urged Edie to not dawdle as they followed Bathilda down a lane that seemed to lead out of town. Here, the cottages looked even tidier than in the rest of the village, with autumnal flowers blossoming in their front gardens, protected by neatly trimmed hedges and iron-wrought gates.

Finally, Bathilda stopped at the last house of the lane, one that was invisible for Muggles until Raven made Edie see it. A red-haired witch answered the door, holding an infant close to her chest. Lily Potter with her baby boy, Harry, the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord.. oh, but he was still way too young to do the vanquishing part.

"So that's the infamous Lily Potter?" Edie observed quite rightly, recognising her face because she had seen it before, some years ago. "My, she's such a house-wife. I don't get what Sev ever saw in her."

"Well, she was his best friend- his only friend- long before they went to Hogwarts." Raven answered, still observing the cottage. Lily had closed the door quickly after letting Bathilda enter.

"Yeah, but now he's got you and he shouldn't be so overly sentimental over a childhood friendship, especially since dear Lily flower is so absolutely not his kind of woman."

Raven arched a surprised brow at her friend. Everyone had always liked Lily immediately- well, except for Slytherins of course "Why do you think so?"

"'Cause I've got eyes to see, and I see a pretty, popular trophy wife who's got no style at all. And I know Severus. He's cool and he's got style- I mean, he kissed me and he kissed you, that's proof enough... oh, of course he kissed you more often, and of course I'm not interested in Severus since I'm in love with Reg- oh no, I didn't really say that, did I."

"Calm down, Edie, I won't transfigure you in a frog because you kissed him once, nor will I ever tell anyone that you actually used the nasty l-word."

"Cool!" Edie heaved a little too dramatic sigh. "Now, back to our dear Lily flower and another reason why she's definitely not his type, or can you imagine her listening to his favourite music?"

"No," Raven laughed, but soon her mien darkened again. "That, however, doesn't mean anything. I guess he'd give up his taste in music for her."

"Don't be silly! Sev's a punk rocker at heart... well, alright, he has opened his heart to let the dark melancholy of the Cure in-"

"The perfect soundtrack for unrequited love."

"Bollocks! Well, perhaps he is devastated for having told the Dark Lord about the prophecy and what it set in motion, and Faith is probably a cool soundtrack for remorse and loneliness, but he loves you. You are his torch in these dark times. Didn't he even agree to come home for the weekend so we can all go and see that hot Finish band playing at the Marquee?"

That he did indeed, much to Raven's surprise. She still didn't believe he would make it, but it felt good to know he'd give it a try.

Everything sounded so very easy the way Edie put it- although Raven would never call Severus Snape a punk rocker at heart. All that music stuff was probably just due to her influence and he could live very well without ever listening to Muggle music again. But it was irrelevant to mull over that now, since they were here for a reason. She had to find an opportunity to talk to Lily, or to protect her without having to talk to her... whatever... as long as Lily lived in the end.

"I understand why you want to care for her safety, though." Edie continued, interrupting Raven's rain of thoughts. "It's not because it's a decent thing to do, or even the right thing- it's because you want to spare Sev the anguish should something happen to her he had unintentionally caused. But shouldn't we do something- anything- then? I mean, instead of hypnotizing the bloody cottage. Why don't ye just knock and talk to her?"

"Because I don't know if there are Aurors around, observing it." Raven gave to consider as she produced her wand to perform a series of Revellio spells.

"Aurors are sort of the magical police?"

"Sort of." As it seemed, there weren't any Aurors around. Actually, there was no one around, protecting the cottage and its inhabitants, and she was really good at Revellio spells- at least they revealed the presence of Lily, Bathilda and Harry within the walls of the cottage. Where the fuck is bloody James Potter?

Raven scanned the surroundings again, and again she got the same result. No one was watching the house, there were no guards, and James Potter was not with his family. Now that would have been the perfect moment to have a nice chat with Lily, if not... She had already noticed the Muggle-Repelling Charm on the cottage and thought it absurd since it weren't Muggles the Potters had to fear. Well, except for the Muggle postman, perhaps, showering them with junk mail.

But that wasn't the only ward on the cottage. Moving closer, she soon noticed that she couldn't even touch the gate to the front garden in order to open it. The cottage was securely warded and Raven wasn't good at wards, at least not good enough to unravel the complexity of those she had to deal with now. Severus might be able to since he was a master of wards and had warded her flat like a fortress, and most certainly the Dark Lord could easily tear down the ones on the Potters' cottage, too. But she would have to wait until Lily came out again, which wasn't very likely.

Therefore, she decided it was wiser to return to London. The sun was already beginning to set, and since the Potters were friends with a werewolf, she didn't want to endanger Edie even more than she had already done by taking her to Godric's Hollow in the first place. And yet, it had been inspiring to spend a day with her friend.

They walked back to the square where Raven had parked her Harley, put their helmets on, and left the village on the only road leading in and out of town.

Just a few miles later, on a lonely country road, something strange happened. All of a sudden a motorbike came flying in on the oncoming lane, landed, and passed them at full speed, heading for Godric's Hollow.

Raven slammed on the brakes, cursing violently. Even though everything had happened very fast, she had nevertheless identified the other biker. As well as his passenger in the sidecar.

"What the fuck was that?" Edie gasped as she turned her head to gaze at the rear light of the other motorbike, and she could have sworn it had been flying mere minutes ago.

"That, my dear friend, was your future brother-in-law, the insufferable Sirius Black, on his magical motorbike, together with his most obnoxious friend James Potter." Raven had recognized them at once (there weren't many people owning a magical motorbike in the wizarding world)- but what about them? Had they recognized her?

"So Lily flower's husband and- wait, I never said I'd marry Reg. That's just too absurd, even if I happened to mention that wicked l-word."

Raven merely smirked at her with eyes saying, I gave you a fair warning, although she was silently rooting for Edie and Reg.