PART ONE CONTINUED

Chapter 1 - Overdue Introduction

"Mother, where are we going?" Janus asked for the fifth time that morning. At the age of seven, he already knew how to apparate, and they had just arrived in Hogsmeade. She knew she would have to tell him, since the castle was already in sight. She pointed.

"Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," she replied guardedly.

"Is that where Uncle Macnair went to school?" Janus was somber. Only a few short weeks ago, he would have been happy to visit the school that his Godfather had always spoken of so fondly. Today, however, it was difficult to speak his name. His mother only nodded.

They sat down in the Three Broomsticks and ordered breakfast. "Tell me again about how you met him," Janus said, as they ate. His mother had been unusually quiet for the last few days. He knew that it was because of the attack on Beauxbaton, and his Godfather's death. He suspected that it also had a great deal to do with her uncle's death as well, though she hadn't spoken of him at all.

"I was eleven years old when I first saw Macnair. He and another boy from Hogwarts were taking the mark, and I was standing behind Uncle Tom, covered in an invisibility cloak." She told him the story for the hundredth time, and Janus barely listened. He had heard all this before. Today, however, he wanted to ask questions. His Godfather had given him an important piece of information before he'd left the school to join the battle, and he intended to use it.

"He screamed and fell to the ground when my uncle burned the mark into him. His father demanded that he stand up, but he couldn't, so I helped him. I think Uncle Tom knew what I'd done. I always suspected he could see right through that invisibility cloak."

"Did you have to help the other boy, too?" Janus asked, trying to seem disinterested. His mother looked at him shrewdly for a moment, but answered him nevertheless.

"No. He cried out when the mark began to burn, but clamed up and managed to stay upright. He was a brave boy." She beckoned to the barmaid and ordered another drink. Janus thought firewhiskey was a bit strong for breakfast, but didn't comment.

"And you didn't ever talk to Uncle Macnair until you came to teach at Beauxbaton?"

"That's right. He was our operative there, and I was sent to keep an eye on him. Uncle Tom was always afraid that there was a spy among his Death Eaters."

"But Uncle Macnair WAS a spy," Janus said immediately. He would never have said it aloud before, but it didn't matter now. His Godfather had died for warning them about the attack on Beauxbaton. Even if there were any Death Eaters left, they couldn't hurt him, now.

His mother didn't answer, choosing instead to pay their tab and pick up the few things she had brought along. Janus stood and gathered his things as well. They began the walk up to the castle.

"Are you sad that Uncle Tom is dead?" he asked finally. He expected his mother to say no. She had always told him that the man was evil. She'd screened every letter they sent back and forth, worried that her uncle would taint her son's beliefs and make him into a Death Eater in spite of her efforts.

"Yes," she whispered. She put her suitcase down on the grass and turned to look at him. "He was a horrible man, and he hurt a lot of people. Everything about his life and death makes me sad."

Janus threw his arms around his mother and held her as hard as he could. He couldn't remember any time in his short life when she'd been so emotional, and he couldn't suppress the urge to comfort her. She was surprised at this show of affection. Her son was reaching the age where hugging his mother was patently uncool, and she couldn't help but smile. They walked the rest of the way in silence, only to find that the castle doors were sealed.

A rather large group of people was milling around outside the main entrance. "Charmed to keep us out," someone explained gruffly as she made her way toward the door.

"Only professors and healers, no well-wishers," another woman huffed. She fought the urge to roll her eyes. Well-wishers? Try groupies!

When she finally pushed her way to the door, she took her son's hand and announced herself quietly. The crowd fell silent as the door opened. Several people tried to slip in, but only they were admitted.

It was exactly as she remembered. Apparently the fight here had not made it inside the castle. She was glad. She led Janus toward the Hospital wing. It was obvious that it had been magically enlarged. Unlike at Beauxbaton, most of the patients were asleep, and didn't appear to be in any pain.

The only exception was a woman about her own age, who appeared to have been hit with far too many curses for her own good. She paused a moment to watch. A man with graying hair, who otherwise appeared quite young, was getting in the way of two very flustered healers who were trying to help their patient. "Remus, for Merlin's sake, she'll be FINE if you'll just SIT DOWN OVER THERE!" She watched the chubby healer point to a chair on the other side of the room. The man, Remus, was obviously not going to leave that woman's side. A taller man with a long, black ponytail appeared quickly and steered Remus away.

"They were trying to take her alive, mate. She held them off really well."

Janus looked up at his mother with a small smile. "Things went well here," she said quietly. "It looks like most of these people are going to be all right."

She spotted Dumbledore a moment later and they made their way through the neat rows of beds to meet him.

"Hello, Headmaster. Hagrid told me – "

"Ah, Miss Slytherin!" The headmaster said, cutting her off. "You will want to know that Hagrid's information is two days old." His eyes twinkled as he looked down his crooked nose at her. She remained silent, waiting, although her heart was suddenly pounding. Did that mean he was dead?

"Professor Snape awoke yesterday afternoon," Dumbledore said, watching her carefully. From what Severus had told him, he expected to have trouble determining her response. When her eyes widened worriedly, he was surprised.

"We should go," she said immediately.

Dumbledore turned to Janus, who had been silent until now. "And what is your name, young man?"

"Janus Slytherin, sir," he replied respectfully. The old man smiled fondly at him, and Janus suddenly found himself hoping for a Hogwarts letter in a few years, rather than an invitation to attend Beauxbaton.

"Well, Janus, do you know how to cast a cheering charm?"

He shook his head. He watched his mother sit down on an empty bed and put a hand to her temple, as if to ward off a headache. Dumbledore seemed to notice as well. The old headmaster pointed to someone behind her. "That man will teach you how, if you tell him I sent you over. When you've got it, I want you to cast one on every person here who is awake, alright?"

Janus nodded and trotted away. It was nice in this place. He felt safe here. He would never have approached a stranger without his wand ready before now.

The man Dumbledore had indicated was listening impatiently to a younger man with red hair. "Hermione's really upset, and that isn't good for her right now. Isn't there something you can give her to calm her down until Ron wakes up?"

"Nothing that would be any better for her than the stress," the man retorted. With a wry expression the red head turned away. "Bill? Ask Dobby to bring up some herbal tea or something why don't you," the man said gruffly, making Bill turn back to him.

"Thanks. I'll do that."

"Pardon me, sir," Janus said politely, when Bill had gone. The tall man turned around, and they looked at each other for a moment. Janus smiled. "The Headmaster said you would teach me a cheering charm so I could cast it on the patients." Still, the man didn't speak. Instead he knelt down until their eyes were level. Janus was a little bit concerned. Perhaps the man's brain had been addled during the battle, or Dumbledore had pointed to the wrong person.

"Are you a student here? I don't believe I've seen you in any of my classes." The man's voice was hard, and Janus blinked once or twice, deciding to look a little more carefully. He sounded an awful lot like Uncle Macnair had when he was worried. But he didn't look like Uncle Macnair at all. Still, there was something familiar about him.

"No, sir, my name is Janus Slytherin. I'm not old enough to attend Hogwarts yet." He looked at the black robes the man was wearing. They were covered in dust, and the hem was separating on one side. He had obviously not gotten any rest since the battle, and that had been three days ago.

"Slytherin?" the man whispered questioningly. Something seemed to click behind his eyes, and his lips parted slightly. Then he closed his mouth abruptly and looked hard at Janus, placing a hand on each of the boy's shoulders. Janus noticed that his breathing seemed shallow. "Cheering charms it is," the man said quickly.

Dumbledore looked down at the weary form of Manasa Slytherin as she sat on the bed, staring at her hands. When she finally looked up, he was surprised at her question.

"Where's the Malfoy boy?" She had certainly put the boy at risk with her little stunt to save Severus all those years ago, and somehow she thought she should check on him. Dumbledore led her to his bed, but he was still unconscious. She glanced at the boy and girl who sat talking quietly beside Malfoy's bed. The blond girl was idly fingering two wands – one made of glass. She wasn't familiar. But of course she recognized Harry Potter. Hadn't her uncle made her memorize his face in case she got the chance to abduct him during her brief tenure as Professor? She nodded to them and turned away, noticing Dumbledore's confused expression.

"He was very important to Severus," she whispered, answering the headmaster's unspoken question. Then, as if speaking his name reminded her, she added, "We should go, he wouldn't want us here." She turned abruptly, looking for Janus, only to see him looking into the eyes of his father.

"What have you done?" she whispered, her eyes never leaving her son. "I should have been the one to tell him." It was obvious from the way Severus was looking at the boy that he knew. He'd probably known the minute he laid eyes on him.

The headmaster's eyes shone mischievously. "I seem to recall that you once accused me of matchmaking. Perhaps you understood my character better than I like to admit."

She managed a withering glance before turning to watch Severus teach Janus the cheering charm. After two tries, the boy knew it, and Severus sent him off to get started. Then he straightened up and scanned the room for her. When their eyes met, he didn't smile. By the time he reached her, Dumbledore was gone, though Manasa hadn't noticed him leaving.