Morning Vale, Kilburn, Derbyshire, England
April 7, 1987
Severus stared in confusion as Miranda Vane came sauntering into his study, escorted by his house-elf, Asphodel. The woman was dressed in pretty sapphire blue dress robes that accentuated her trim curvy figure. He was confused by her presence. She always confused him. He had failed to come up with the reason why she sought him out in social settings. The woman seemed content to spend hours talking with him about potion making, herbology, and charms. She seemed to delight in teasing him, but her way was always gentle and fond, never malicious, never cruel. It was as though she were holding out her hand and coaxing a vicious snake to come to her, to let her love it.
He shook away the very thought. It was nonsense. Miranda Vane née Montague was not pining for him. He was being ridiculous. "Mrs. Vane," he said as he rose from his desk chair. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"
Miranda smiled as she extended her hand to him, forcing him to bow over it and bestow a kiss upon her knuckles. "I've asked you countless times to call me Miranda, Lord Prince. When will you accede to my wish?" she asked him in a playful tone.
"Just once more," he assured her, as he had the last time she had asked, and the time before that.
Blue eyes stared at him critically for a moment, but she didn't call him out on his stubborn refusal to call her by her given name. "I've come to assist you in preparing for your new ward," she said as though it were obvious.
He stared at her once more in confusion. "You intend to help me prepare for Sebastian?" he asked for confirmation.
She nodded in the affirmative. "Yes, Lord Prince," she said with that teasing tone that seemed to curl around him. "I do have a child of my own, as you well know. I can therefore be said to be something of an authority on at least accessorizing a child's room properly."
"You have a daughter," he reminded her lightly. "Sebastian is a male and will have different tastes," he said and by the look she gave him, it had been unnecessary to remind her of this.
"Well naturally. No two children are alike despite their gender or even if they were born as twins," she said breezily. "The point is that I am here to help you get some of your home ready for Sebastian so that he'll feel welcomed immediately."
Severus paused at that. While he had chosen a room for Sebastian and had ordered the House Elves to make sure it was clean and ready for his cousin, he had done nothing else to prepare for Sebastian's arrival. He had thought to let the boy have more say in how his room was designed, but perhaps that was a mistake.
"Very well, I accept your assistance," Severus found himself agreeing as he looked upon the beautiful features of Miranda Vane. She was an incredibly beautiful woman, and he had no idea why she wasted so much time upon him.
Her smile was radiant. "Thank you, Lord Prince," she said. "I know it must be difficult for you to accept an outsider's help when it is such an intimate matter. You are effectively gaining a son after all."
Severus inclined his head. Her words were true. He had already made the legal arrangements to declare Sebastian the Heir Prince and he had set up vaults for the boy.
"Now, let's start by you telling me a little bit about Sebastian," Miranda said as she seated herself in the chair across from his desk. She drew a notebook out of a small purse that hung from her wrist. He swiftly realized that the small bag must have an extendable charm inside of it to hold any number of items. Narcissa often went about with such small purses. It was very fashionable among the ladies of the upper crust.
"What do you desire to know?" he asked carefully.
Miranda smirked. "I'm not Rita Skeeter, my dear Lord Prince," she reminded him. "I do need to know a few things about him so that I can design a room that he might enjoy. Such as, what are his favorite colors, or does he have colors that he despises?"
"I have been informed that he hates the color yellow," he revealed. "He doesn't have a favorite color, but he likes darker shades."
She nodded and made a note. "So, if I were to paint the walls of the room blue then I should go with darker shades of blue," she said agreeably.
"Avoid Hogwart's House colors," Severus said decisively, slowly beginning to enjoy planning for Sebastian's bedroom. "I don't want him to feel pressured into a house."
She nodded. "I understand. The color green might make him feel a subconscious pressure to be sorted into Slytherin, especially since you as well as his mother were Slytherin's."
"Indeed," Severus agreed.
She made a few more notes and then looked up at him. "Could you take me to the space that shall be his sanctuary?" she asked.
"Of course," he said, and he arose from his seat and led Miranda Vane from his office and up the stairs to the second floor. He took her to the room on the far side of the west wing that he had chosen to designate as his little cousin's bedroom suite. He opened the door for her and led her inside.
"Oh, very nice," she praised as she looked at the four-poster bed. It was made of rich English Oakwood and was a beautifully carved piece. "Nice and sturdy," she said as she tugged on a bedpost. "Very good for a boy that will grow into a teenager. The matching nightstand, dresser, and desk are good touches as well."
Severus didn't say anything to that, unsure of what he should do with Miranda's praise of his choices. He had merely chosen the sort of things that he would have wished for when he was a child and the sort of furniture that had been given him by Lord Abraxas when he became the man's ward.
He watched as she continued to inspect the room. "I think some closet organizers would be beneficial," she said as she jotted down a note. "I recently remodeled Romilda's closet with some and it has made it a lot easier for her to keep her closet tidy. I know that you are the sort of man who will want to teach his son to take care of his things and not to overburden the House Elves."
"It's good to respect the Elves," he explained, not wanting to go into the fact that he still sometimes forgot to call upon them to assist him because he had grown up in the muggle world without them.
"It is," she agreed. "It's something that I have taught Romilda since she was born," she said as she smiled at him in warm approval. "My cousin and I have often spoken about how character-building it has been to teach our daughters to look after themselves rather than allowing themselves to be dependent upon others. The House Elves at Hogwarts will not do everything for them after all. Best that they learn early."
Severus found he could easily agree with that. He had found many of his fellow Slytherin's to be far too reliant on their House Elves when they were at Hogwarts. "Just so," he verbally agreed.
Miranda smiled at him and then brought the conversation back to decorating. "I don't want to use dark colors on these walls," she murmured as she walked through the bedroom. "I think a soft gray will suit the suite. It'll be a nice neutral color, something that will not pressure him, and it will be restful to the eyes. He can brighten up his room with touches of flair such as more colorful curtains and bedding."
"If you think that best," he said glancing at the blue walls. He hadn't liked the color on the walls, didn't want Sebastian pressured about a Hogwarts House, but he hadn't thought of another color to replace it.
Miranda smiled at him. "If you will allow me the assistance of one of your house-elves then I can arrange this room for Sebastian."
He eyed her for a moment and then slowly nodded, choosing to trust her. "Dianthus," he called out.
There was a small pop and then a house-elf was before him. "Yes, Master Severus?"
"Dianthus, you are to go with Mrs. Vane and assist her in everything she asks of you to make Sebastian's suite ready for him."
The house-elf looked at him in awe. "Dianthus is being chosen to assist in making Master Sebastian feel at home and welcome? Thank you, Master Severus!"
Severus nodded his head, trying to keep patient with Dianthus. He was uncomfortable with the effusive gratitude being directed his way. "Yes, well I know you will help Mrs. Vane to the best of your abilities and do pride to House Prince."
"Oh yes, yes Dianthus shall Master Severus," Dianthus effused.
"Come with me, Mrs. Vane," he commanded, and then he turned striding from the room leaving her little choice but to follow him. He led the way back to his study and then settled in once more behind the desk chair. He quickly took out a piece of parchment and wrote a letter that would give her permission to place all charges for Sebastian's suite to his accounts.
He was all too aware of her eyes upon him as she watched him sign his name and then use his magic and his Signet Ring to adhere his magical seal to the document. He raised his dark eyes to look upon her and was surprised to see the desire that flickered in her eyes as she watched him. There was no mistaking her hunger. It wasn't for his power or his galleons. She desired him, truly desired him. He didn't know what to do with that. Letting himself think he could have a woman like Miranda Vane was dangerous. It was why he couldn't call her by her given name. Once he did, he'd never let her go. He was a very private and very possessive man. He would devour Miranda Vane if he let himself and she, she would own him.
"This is a document that you will use to make your purchases for Sebastian's suite. It will grant you the use of my accounts," Severus stated, his voice resolute.
She shook her head. "Lord Prince, there is no need for this," she tried to insist.
"I will provide for my Heir, Mrs. Vane," he said firmly, and he stubbornly held the parchment out to her.
He saw the moment when she capitulated, admiration shining in her lovely eyes as she extended her hand and took the parchment from him. Her fingers brushed against his and he felt as though liquid fire pooled in his gut. He fought to appear unaffected.
By her smirk, he believed he had failed. "Dianthus and I shall return tomorrow with all we need to make Sebastian feel welcomed," she promised him. "Have a good day, my lord," she said and there was a way that her lips curled around the last two words. She sounded possessive, possessive of him.
He watched in silence as Miranda Vane walked out of his study and he slowly released a breath he hadn't been aware that he was holding. Truly the woman was a menace to his emotions. It was difficult to pretend to be unaffected by Miranda. It was growing ever more difficult each time he spent time with her to remain cool and aloof, not showing that he wasn't immune to her charms.
Miranda Vane née Montague was one of society's great beauties. By the time they had graduated from Hogwarts, the Montague family had been fielding offers for her hand from prestigious noble families such as House Lestrange, House Rowle, and House Crabbe. Severus and Lucius had firmly believed that the Montague's would marry Miranda off to Rabastan Lestrange. Instead, they had turned down the Lestrange's, the Rowle's, and the Crabbe's. They had let Miranda have her choice of husband and she had chosen to marry Edward Royston Vane, a Ravenclaw who was a year older than Miranda. Edward already had a job working as an Unspeakable for the Ministry of Magic. From what Severus understood of things, Edward had died at the Ministry along with two of his fellow Unspeakable's stopping Death Eaters from entering a room in the Ministry. Miranda had given birth to her daughter, Romilda Miranda Vane, just two months later.
Miranda had gained quite the reputation over the years for refusing to become the mistress of several influential men of their society. If rumors were true then she had just recently turned down an offer from the Heir Bulstrode, not that he blamed her for that. Edmund Bulstrode was a crude boar and a married man. His wife, Cassandra Bulstrode née Warrington, had earned a reputation as a loving mother to her only child and as a demoness to her husband's liaisons.
If Narcissa was to be believed, and he always thought it safest to believe her since she had cultivated a vast network of information gatherers, then Miranda had also turned down the advances of Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge. Severus rather enjoyed the mental image of Miranda Vane refusing Fudge and making him feel like a fool for the attempt.
The trouble was that he was out of his depth with Miranda Vane. Though not born of one of the noble families, she was one of the greater beauties of high society. She was born a Montague, a family that had long ago sworn themselves in vassalage to the Noble House of Parkinson. The Montague's were an esteemed family line renowned for their cunning and their loyalty. Miranda's husband had died a hero, which had bought her more esteem in high society. Esteem that was not damaged despite her loyalty to her cousin Alicia Abbott neé Vaisey, a woman who was cruelly maligned by her father-in-law Lord Warrington Abbott. While Alicia's reputation had suffered, Miranda's had been barely tarnished by her continued support of her favorite cousin and dearest friend.
Severus admired Miranda's beauty, but it was her loyalty and quick wit that he found himself enraptured by. He couldn't remember ever feeling this way for a single person. It was thrilling and terrifying in equal measure.
He shook his head once more, trying to clear it of thoughts of Miranda Vane, a hard thing to do of late. He forced his thoughts back to the correspondences before him. It seemed once again Mrs. Vesper Wroxley wished to push forward the idea of him naming her daughter, Ellen, as his Chatelaine. The few times he had needed to host activities since he had assumed his responsibilities as Lord Prince, he had asked Narcissa to stand as his Chatelaine. He trusted her to handle such things smoothly and she had never disappointed him on this matter. However, the wives of his Vassals had been attempting to apply pressure to him to give the honor to one of their daughters since he was unwed and there were no females in his family to act the part of Lady of House Prince. He wished that he could just reject their proposals out of hand, but the thing was that they were not wrong. It was not practical for him to keep asking Narcissa, the Lady of House Malfoy, Chatelaine to her father-in-law to continue to act as his.
He winced when he realized that he knew very little of the ladies in question. He would have to speak with Narcissa. It was another problem that he would be laying in her lap. He hated to burden her so. Being Lady Malfoy was a burden of its own, not to mention how involved she was in her charities, and he included her assisting the rehabilitation of Sirius Black's reputation in that. It was certainly very charitable of her to spend any time at all with Black. How she could find enjoyment in time spent with him was a mystery to Severus. He and Sirius might have buried the hatchet, so to speak, but that didn't mean that Severus trusted him. If Sirius harmed Narcissa in any way, he'd rue the day. Severus would make sure Lucius kept his hands pristinely clean in the matter.
He stood from his desk and gathered the letters from Mrs. Wroxley, Mrs. Chambers, Mrs. Curzon, and Mrs. Davenant. He supposed it was rather bad when four of his eight vassal families were writing to him to complain and petition him to make their daughters his Chatelaine.
"Asphodel, I shall be at Malfoy Manor until late this evening," he told his Elf. He knew better than to believe that he could dump his troubles upon Narcissa and then refuse to dine with her. She wouldn't have it. Furthermore, he needed to see his godson. It had been a week since he had seen Draco and he wanted to reassure the boy of his affection, especially as he was now taking his cousin to live with him as his heir. Had Severus been the last of the Prince's he would have passed his property and personal fortune on to Draco while putting up for consideration the elevation of House Ravensdale or House Valmont to assume House Prince's place as a Noble House.
It was something that could have been done with the fall of House Gaunt if all of their vassal houses had not abandoned them before their extinction. More than once, Severus thought that Albus Dumbledore had rued his decision to sever his family's oath to the Gaunt's. Had he not, then he would be Albus Dumbledore the Lord of the Noble House of Dumbledore today.
"Very good, Master Sev's. You's eats better when Lady Cissa is able to bully you."
Severus stared at Asphodel for a moment, not bothering to hide his amusement. That was likely true. He found he ate better when he had a good conversation. Sitting at his dining table alone was, as one could imagine, lonely. He often took his dinner in his office so he could read and go over business reports. This meant he picked at his food more than ate it.
"Den of Flowers" he cried out after he threw the floo powder into the flames. He found himself stepping out a moment later in the Malfoy's foyer. He was still somewhat amused by the change of password to utilize the Malfoy family floo. He wondered how Abraxas felt about it. Knowing the man as well as Severus did, he probably came up with it just to rile Lucius.
"Uncle, what brings you here?" Draco's voice called out to him from the doorway of the receiving room.
Severus was not pleased to find that Draco was so near to the receiving room. It could be dangerous. Severus could have been someone with ill intent pretending to be a friend. It had happened to the Malfoy's once before. Many would like to see the Malfoy's brought low.
He was at least pleased to note that Draco was not alone. His Personal Elf, Varbey, was with his godson. Still, he would need to caution Draco. He could see where his parents wouldn't wish the boy to be afraid in his own home, but Severus must insist that Draco learn some caution.
"I came to see you and to visit with your mother as I require her assistance with a few social matters," Severus told the boy. He had long ago promised that he would answer Draco's questions whenever he could. His godchild was intelligent and curious, and he wanted Draco to always know that he would not stifle him.
Draco nodded. "Mother is currently in her solar, having tea with Lady Boot, Mrs. Bulstrode, and Mrs. Greengrass."
Severus grimaced at the news. He didn't fancy the idea of spending time with Lady Felicity Boot née Selwyn, Mrs. Cassandra Bulstrode née Warrington, and Mrs. Eschiva Greengrass née Ollivander. The last thing he wanted to do was air his business before those ladies.
"Walk with me Draco," he ordered his Godson. The boy smiled at him and immediately fell into step beside him. Severus took care to keep himself from taking long strides. His godson was growing, but he was only seven. He would grow into the height of the Malfoy's someday, but that day had yet to transpire.
"You know that you should stay away from the receiving room," he told the boy as he led them outside a side door to one of the balconies that would lead down into the east gardens. The east gardens had long ago been relegated as the playground of Draco and the Malfoy's other collection of children whether they be wards, cousins, nephews, nieces, and whatnot.
Draco sighed. "I know. Not until I am older," he said. "But Varbey told me that it was safe to look within. I felt your magic and Varbey confirmed it was you."
Severus paused at that, looking over Draco curiously. "How long have you been able to tell the feel of my magic?" he asked his godson.
Draco frowned in thought, a habit that Lucius had yet to break the boy of. It was a tell and all tells could be dangerous. "I cannot remember a time when I couldn't tell the feel of your magic," Draco revealed. "I've always known the feel of it, I think."
"And you feel this way with others?" he asked.
Draco nodded. "Yes," he assured. "I am not allowed to be it anymore in games of hiding and seeking because Blaise says I cheat too easily. I can tell him apart from Theo. Dane too. Leo, Harry, Dudley, Luna, Neville, Mum, Father, Grandfather," the boy listed.
Severus smirked. It was quite telling that Narcissa was still Mum while Lucius was now father. It seemed that Lucius had begun to teach Draco how to address him in public, but Narcissa was not yet ready to relinquish being mum just yet.
"I don't know strangers, obviously, but I know who I know, and I can tell the feel of them before I see them," Draco regaled.
"This is a very useful skill, Draco," Severus told him. "I would like you to promise me that you will spend a little bit of time every day practicing the use of it," he instructed and smiled as he saw Draco giving him a curious look rather than a mutinous one. It was at times like this that he wondered if Ravenclaw would be accepting the Malfoy Heir instead of Slytherin House.
"How long would you like me to practice?" Draco asked him.
"Ten minutes a day," Severus decided because it would not do to make the boy practice for an hour when he already had so many other things to learn. The boy needed time to be a child too, even if he was the grandson of one of the richest and most influential Lords in Britain.
"That sounds fine," Draco agreed. "I promise that I will practice for at least ten minutes every day."
"Thank you," Severus said. "And in the meantime, please stay away from the receiving room, even if you recognize their magical signature."
Draco frowned at this, but he slowly nodded. "You are worried about something happening to me," he reasoned out.
"I am," he freely admitted. "You are very precious to me," he stated in a rare moment of affection. He often showed Draco in little ways that he valued him, that he was precious to him, but he rarely told the child. He was not an openly demonstrative person.
Draco smiled at him as though he had just handed him the moon and all of the stars. "You mean the world to me too, Uncle Sev," Draco assured him with the easy affection of the young. He wondered if Draco would lose this easy ability to show his affection to his loved ones. He hoped that Draco learned how to hide his emotions from the cruel world, but he didn't want Draco to ever suppress them. He wanted the boy to be able to be like this behind the protective barriers of his home.
"You know that I am taking my cousin in as my Ward," he broached the subject that he needed to have with Draco.
The boy nodded. "Yes, mother told me his name is Sebastian," he said.
Severus nodded. "Yes, my aunt Elaine's child," he said not bothering to mention the name of the boy's father. The less said about Antonin Dolohov the better. "I need you to know that just because I am taking in Sebastian, doesn't mean I will care for you any less," he reassured his godson.
Draco smiled at him. "I know," he told Severus. "I won't pretend that I wasn't jealous at first, but then I talked with Varbey and I thought about it a bit," he said and he looked away from Severus toward the garden playground. "It was like when Theo came to live with me when we were babies. I don't remember a time I didn't have Theo at my side, but I do remember when Blaise came and then Dane. They needed to be here. They needed to be safe. The thing is," Draco said as he looked at Severus once more. "I cannot think of anyone better than you to keep someone safe. You are always helping father and mother and grandfather. You help me all the time when I bring a problem to you. You always make me feel safe. I know you'll make Sebastian feel safe and loved and I think that is a great thing."
Severus felt a lump in his throat as he listened to his godson speak. He gently hugged the boy to him and slowly breathed around that lump in his throat. "You keep surprising me with how kind you are, Draco," he said softly. "It is a good Wizard who is both intelligent and kind and you are indeed a good Wizard."
Draco hugged him back tightly at that. For a time, they stood there hugging, and then Draco slowly pulled back and smiled up at him. "Thanks, Uncle Sev. I promise I will try not to be a prat to Sebastian, even if I get jealous. If I get jealous, I'll talk with you about it."
Severus inclined his head in agreement. "I hope you know you can always come to me, with anything."
"I do," Draco reassured him.
Severus decided that they needed a change in subject. "Now, tell me how you are doing in your studies," he instructed only to smile at the boy's groan. He felt himself relax as he listened to Draco prattle on about his lessons and his instructors.