|
As they walked towards the small building with a fading
wooden sign that read "The Green Dragon", Severus tried for
Mallory's sake to push the morning's headline to the back of his mind. He was
also greatly occupied by how uncomfortable his clothes were. The shoes
pinched his toes, the shirt cuffs irritating his wrists, and he just
basically felt ridiculous.
"Severus, stop fidgeting."
"This is intolerable."
"If you love me, you'll shut up and be nice starting right now."
"You are such a wonderful motivator."
She stopped at a green wooden door with chipped paint and smlied at him.
"I know I am." She knocked, causing more paint to flake off.
"We're not opened for another 30 minutes you pissant drunks!" Came
a loud voice from within.
"You've called me many things in my life, Joseph Vaughn, but never
that!" Mallory shouted through the door.
There was a rapid sound of locks being undone. The door swung open ot reveal
a greying, bearded, plump, kindly looking man. His mouth hung open for a
moment as he looked at Mallory. "Bless my soul! For a moment I thought
it was Cerridwen back from the grave!"
Mallory luaghed. "My mother had many talents, Joe, but not
resurrection." She moved and hugged the older man around his full
middle.
Joe had tears in his eyes as he hugged her back. "Aye, lass, 'tis good
ot have ya' back. Come on, now come in, come in!"
Mallory grabbed Severus' wrist, who was staying off to the side of the entry
way, so the bartender never noticed him. "Joe, I have to introduce some
one to you." She dragged Severus in front of her so Joe could get a good
look at him. To Mallory, he looked like a child being examined by his
headmaster.
"A bit pale and thin, doesn't get out in the sun much does he?"
Behind him, Severus could here Mallory giggle. Joe continued, "Nasty
mark there, son, where'd ya' get that?" He asked, reffering to the scar
down Severus' left cheek.
"From a friend," He answered.
"Well, so the man does speak! The quiet type, like you, eh Mal? What's
your name, son?"
"Severus."
"English."
"Yes."
"You're one of them?"
"One of what?"
"Yes, he is," Mallory interjected into the inquisition.
"He makes you happy, dove?"
"Yes."
"Well then, I approve," said Joe, moving behind the bar. "The
usual for you, Mal?"
"Yes, and same for Severus."
"I didn't know I needed his approval," Severus whispered.
"After dad, died, Joe took care of me. This was the equivalent of
meeting the parents."
Severus' lip twitched annoyance. "You could have warned me. What did he
mean by 'one of them', anyway?"
"Asking if you were a wizard, like my dad."
"How does he know about your family's abilities?"
Mallory shrugged. "My father was very open about who he was, and what
his wife was. He didn't have the fear most wizards have about the nonmagics.
He trusted every patron of this pub. These were his friends, and this was my
family when I had none." She smiled ruefully. "Though I must admit
I never realised it back then, being the angry girl I was."
Mallory and Severus sat at one of the small, round, wooden tables as Joe
served them. He place two glass mugs on the table. Mallory immediatly picked
hers up and took a drink as Severus inspected his disdainfully. "What is
this?"
"Guinness, my dear," she took another swig.
Joe sat next to Mallory and placed a fatherly arm around her shoulders.
"It's been a long time, dove, what have ya been up to, lass?"
"Teaching, that's how I met Severus."
"A teacher, eh? At that school of yours apparently. So, what's your
subject?"
"Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Severus is potions."
Joe laugh. "Oh, now I see why she likes you! A shared passions for the
potions."
Severus sneered. He was not liking how knowledgable this muggle was of the
wizarding world, and how he knew more about Mallory than he seemed to.
"I would hope, that her affections toward me are based more on then just
our mutual interest in potions," he said, perhaps a little too snidely.
Mallory smacked him under the table and Joe frowned.
Finally, the graying man stood and moved back to his bar. "Must gettin'
ready," he said, "the boys will be here any moment."
Severus turned to Mallory and mouthed, "'The Boys'?"
As if on cue, the door burst open and a whole stream of men, ranging from
their twenties to middle-aged to maybe early sixties flowed in. And all at
once, the mass seemed to stop, quiet and stared at the couple sitting at the
table. Severus stood and moved out of the way of the impending rush. Sure
enough, as the Mallory stood and embraced the first man, everyone else ad to get
in. She was being passed, hugged, kiss, patted on the head, and all the time
she was all smiles. Severus, though apart from the cloud, couldn't help but
smile at the display.
"Mallory, lass, where have you been hiding?"
"It's been ages!"
"You're as lovely as your mother."
Every other word was some varitiation of those phrases from the workers on
their lunch break. But finally one phrase silenced them all, "Give us a
song!" After a second they burst back into an agreement of the
sentiment. From Severus' standpoint she didn't seem to have a choice on the
matter as the hoisted atop one of the tables.
Atop her pinnacle, Mallory suoght out Severus in the crowd, and she smiled
before she let out her first note. Then she began:
"Black is the coulour of my true love's hair.
His face is like some rosy fair,
The prertiest face and the neatest hands,
I love the ground whereon he stands.
I love my love and well he knows
I know the ground whereon he goes.
If you no more on earth I see,
I can't sere you as you have me.
The winter's passed and the leaves are green.
The Time is passed that we have seen,
But still I hope the time will come
When you and I shall be as one.
I go to Clyde for to mourn and weep,
But satisfied I never could sleep,
I'll write you a few short lines
I'll suffer death ten thousand times.
So fare you well, my own true love
The time has passed, but I wish you well.
But still I hope the time will come
When you and I will be as one.
I love my love and well he knows
I love the ground whereon he goes,
The prettiest face, the neatest hands
I love the ground whereon he stands."
She smiled and bowed once she had finished her song. A pair of hands reached
up, grabbed her waist, and helped her off the table. "Kiernan!" She
smiled at the platinum blonde young man, still holding her waist.
I was about this time that Severus decided to make his presence known. He
slid his own arm around her waist and gently tugged her out of his grasp.
Kiernan looked at Severus annoyed, but it changed to a touch of fear when he
finally took in the taller, and older, man's gothic appeaance. "P-pardon
me," Kiernen stuttered, "just offering the lady some
assistance."
"Thank you," Mallory said. Severus said nothing. Mallory sighed and
introduced them. "Severus, this Kiernan, we sort of grew up together.
Kiernan, this is Severus, my boyfriend."
Boyfriend. It was the first time either of them used that word and it
sounded odd in Severus' ears. Not wrong or bad, just odd. All in all, he had
the sudden desire to just leave. Maybe because he wasn't use to the crowd, or
maybe it was he was getting a headache by the shine off the boy's pale hair.
Either way, he somewhat forcefully led Mally out of the pub without a singel
farewell.
On the road, Mallory wretched herself away from him and glared angerly.
"That was just a bit rude!"
"It was getting stuffy in there."
"Ha! I just think you were having problems seeing other men handle me,
as innocent as it all was." He didn't respond in any way. "I'm not
afraid anymore, I don't have that silly problem of not liking human touch.
You may have been the first Severus, but now that I'm better it's not a sin
to hug another man. Bloody hell, the way you were acting in there it was as
if I was making out with Kiernan!"
"I said it was just getting a little noisy and stuffy."
She huffed and crossed her arms. "Right."
"Well," Severus said in mock brightness, "since happy time is
over already, and I've seen your precious pub, I think we're ready to go back
to Britain, don't you think?"
She stomped off ahead of him, but as she passed he heard her mutter, "I hate
you."
"Just remember this outing was your idea!" He called after her. He
shook his head and followed her. After all, there were more important things
going on than the meeting of old acquaintances, and they both knew it
|