Chapter Six
"These are love letters."
Severus and Pythia had retreated to an isolated corner of the library where they wouldn't be disturbed. Pythia was curled up in the window frame, reading carefully through the compilation of pages browned with time, the scent of aged ink drifting from each leaf.
"There are hundreds of them."
Pythia turned a page. "From both of them. Listen to this – it's a very short one – dated late July 1943: 'Dearest Ophelia, I realize that I promised you a visit this summer, but I'm afraid that it's impossible now. I've gotten myself into a bit of a bind here, but I look forward to seeing you in a few weeks. My love, T.M.R.'" She frowned. "T.M.R. 1943 – he'd have been seventeen."
Severus raised an eyebrow languidly. "So what?"
She rolled her eyes, hissing her reply so that no one would hear, "He began using the name Voldemort when he was sixteen."
"Ah," Severus replied, quite obviously unmoved by the knowledge.
Pythia rolled her eyes and skipped ahead a few pages. "'Tom, I'm afraid that my parents know what we're up to. If they try, I know that they'll succeed in stopping the wedding. What are we going to do?' And his reply: 'Just wait, my love, there is no worth to the achievement of a goal where there are no obstacles to conquer. Be patient. My love, T.M.R.'"
Severus extracted a Sickle from his robes and began rolling it over his knuckles. "I believe, Pythia, that you are the only of our group whose parents do not have a marriage of convenience," he commented, stopping the coin and taking the book from her, eyes passing over the words without reading them.
"Cassius and Theodora are happy. Or at least seem so," Pythia replied, standing, snapping the tome shut while Severus held it, seizing the book from him and placing it in her bag. She began moving from the niche as Severus followed behind.
"Anyone can seem happy, Thia, even me."
Pythia paused in her gait, glancing back at him, puzzled, before moving again. "But you don't, Severus, so I'll believe it when I see it. But until then, by all means, please continue being as thoroughly unpleasant as you can be."
Severus followed closely on her heels. "Are you being sarcastic?"
Pythia paused again just before the dungeon staircase, pushing the strap of her book bag higher on her shoulder. "No," she answered solemnly. "If you weren't the way you are, you wouldn't be our friend. If you were all of a sudden good-natured, instead of dark and brooding, we wouldn't know what to do with you. We don't want you different, Severus, so don't be." The not-so-happy pep talk had taken a lot of sentiment that Pythia didn't possess. Yes, everything that she had said was true, but saying it aloud felt terrible saccharine. She turned on her heel and advanced yet again toward the common room.
They both reached the entrance to the common room, but before she gave the password, Pythia whirled around. "Don't tell Lucius about the book. I want to know what I'm dealing with before I bring him – or my father – into it."
Severus frowned, something dark and knowing behind his gaze. "What really happened to your eye?" he finally asked.
Pythia started before scowling. "Nothing that concerns you, Severus," she snarled, speaking the password and stalking into the Slytherin corner of Hogwarts.
Thursday, after the first class of the morning, the gang of Slytherins – excluding Evan, who was taking a test in Transfiguration after ducking it for three days in a row; and Janus, who was serving morning detention for a badly-timed hex – was loafing about in the courtyard, where many other students were getting on with various activities, most prominently of which was completing homework assignments.
"We need Evan for this," Nero announced. "He's the bloody kleptomaniac."
"You're only whining because we drew lots, and you lost," Bella sneered. "Everyone else needs to get into position."
"This is not fair," Nero muttered, stalking across the courtyard to where Lily Evans sat by herself.
"The poor boy," Narcissa jeered, rising to her feet. "Coming, Lucius?"
Lucius brushed a lock of hair from his forehead. "No, Narcissa, I don't think I am. The three of us have something infinitely more important to do."
Narcissa's blue eyes narrowed, passing between Lucius, Pythia, and Severus. "What the hell is going on with you all? What's with the sudden secrecy?" Lucius raised a graceful eyebrow, eyes piercing, letting Narcissa know that he would not deign to answer her questions. She scoffed exasperatedly and turned on her heel. "Come on, Dolph, let's leave the ménage à trois alone."
As the two stalked off, Lucius turn his icy gaze back to his inamorata and the boy who was, quite arguably, his best friend. "Narcissa's got the right questions, but she shouldn't be asking me. What the hell is going on with you two?" He looked at Severus intently. "You aren't fucking her, are you?"
Severus's eyes widened a touch. "Do you think I have a death wish, Lucius?"
Lucius's lip twitched, as though he were trying to keep it from curling. He passed his eyes to Pythia. "And you?"
Pythia glanced away. "It's none of your bloody business, Lucius. If it were, I'd tell you."
Lucius opened his mouth to reply, but seemed not to have a thing to say. He took his gaze from the two of them to Evans, who remained unassuming and engrossed in her homework. "Tell me how that turns out," he remarked offhandedly, rising and strutting away.
When he was out of sight, Pythia began fuming. "I can't believe he thinks we're . . . you know."
"He doesn't," Severus said shortly, face gone consumed in a neutral expression. "He's just trying to get a rise out of us, for whatever purpose it's supposed to serve."
Pythia frowned, still not quite understanding. What agenda could Lucius have? "Did I give him what he wanted?" she asked naïvely, meeting his eyes.
Severus shrugged. "Probably."
Pythia scowled and looked away, watching as Lily Evans followed Nero as he kept her parchment just out of reach, reading her essay aloud while walking around the courtyard, leading her away from her book bag. Meanwhile, Bella poured a tin full of molasses into it after removing all of the contents in it as Rudolphus dropped in a couple of Evans' spell books. Narcissa was cutting the handle just enough that it held by a thread, so it would break under even the slightest weight.
"I apologize for yesterday."
Pythia glanced up at Severus, distracted. "What?"
"I said, I apologize for yesterday. I overstepped my bounds, and I'm sorry."
Pythia grinned as she saw Rudolphus empty Evans' ink into her bag and place his black widow into it. Common knowledge was Lily Evan's fear of arachnids. Oh, this was going to be good.