Author's note: Oh, my Gods! I didn't think I'd ever get this chapter out. Please raise your teacups to my poor little Beta reader, Loaf. He's fallen ill and had to really put some effort into helping me get this one ready for posting.
Chapter Twenty-Seven: Questions
"How are you today, Miss Grey?" Dumbledore asked kindly.
She hesitated, somewhat baffled by his change in demeanor since he'd banished her from the room an hour ago. "I'm... fairly well, sir," she answered hesitantly. "A bit worried about Severus."
"Severus and I had a difference of opinion," he stated calmly, "which we have now discussed and settled. You have no cause for concern."
Blankly, she nodded, not quite certain she believed him. Severus had certainly seemed in good spirits when he left, but appearances were rarely accurate indications of his true frame of mind. Already, she was tapping, anxious to be out of that room and free of the Headmaster's intense blue eyes. He smiled indulgently at the restless hand and she ceased its movement at once, feeling like an errant student once again, caught in one of her many indiscretions.
"I don't wish to take much of your time, Miss Grey. I merely wished to pass along a bit of information."
"Yes," she prompted, trying not to sound as anxious as she was. After all, Severus had assured her that there was very little chance she would not be freed, but nothing was certain and if the Ministry decided to keep her imprisoned... well, she'd take her own life before she returned to Azkaban.
"I have brought your case before the Wizengamot, and allowed Remus to join his testimony with my appeal," Dumbledore began. "The majority seems to be in favor of setting you free, not only for your service to the school, but also your selfless actions at the lake. An official decision will be withheld, however, until your task is complete. I am almost certain that you will be freed."
There was no help for it, no matter how composed she wanted to be, in the face of such news, she couldn't suppress the laughter that bubbled up from within and escaped through the fingers pressed tightly to her mouth. In the moment it took for the laughter to come to tears, Albus was beside her, patting her hand like a sympathetic stranger. It didn't last long, just a few moments of tearful, giddy joy before she wiped her eyes and quieted again.
"Thank you, sir," she said shakily. "You can't know what this means to me."
"I hope that it means you will make a fresh start, a clean break from the past. Perhaps you will begin a new life... with all of the things I know you dreamed of as a youth."
"I'll be satisfied to just have some sort of life with Severus and sod the rest of it."
Albus smiled softly. "I believe you may have that. Now, if I may..." His face changed, sobered. "I have heard Severus' explanation of your decision to disobey Lucius. I should like to hear yours."
Emily scrubbed her face, wondering whether the blatant truth would compromise her freedom. "I didn't disobey him, sir," she answered finally. "I simply found myself unable to follow orders."
His brow furrowed only slightly, yet it changed his appearance at once from serene to menacing. "Why?" he asked simply.
"Because I'm in love."
"In love?" he repeated mildly. She inclined her head slightly, and he studied her for a long while. "Do you still consider yourself to be a Death Eater?"
"Are you inviting me to join the Order?"
"No," he answered firmly. "It is a simple question. Are you still a loyal follower of Voldemort?"
She flinched at the sound of her master's name, but if he noticed her discomfort, he ignored it completely.
"Sir," she began carefully. "I tried to explain this to Sev but he wouldn't hear it. Ultimately, my deepest loyalty is to Severus, now more than ever. If he were not involved in your ill-advised insurrection, I wouldn't be here. I would be at my master's feet - the only place I've ever felt I belonged outside Sev's company." She leaned forward and placed a hand on his arm, lightly, opening her mind completely to him, allowing him to see the truth of her words. "But, if there is even the slightest chance that my master can be defeated and Severus spared, then I'll take it, whatever the risk."
A long silence ensued in which the two enemies studied one another. Finally, Albus spoke. "Thank you for your refreshing candor," he said simply, rising to his feet. "And I do hope that you enjoy your brief sabbatical."
She chuckled lightly, surprise still holding her to her seat. "So, you're just... letting me go?"
"Not exactly," he answered mildly. "I am releasing you into Remus Lupin's care until Severus returns. Please make no mistake. You are not a free entity, yet. However," he added, opening the door as she stood, "you are reconsidering your position in this war because you are in love. There are certainly less noble reasons to do so, Severus Snape's included."
With a broad grin and a nod she crossed the room, drawing close to him once more "One last point, Miss Grey, before you go," he said, searching her eyes with what passed as a scowl for the elder wizard. "I suggest that you avoid drawing either of those wands unless absolutely necessary."
The smile melted from her face as if it had never been. How in Mab's name did he know? Surely Severus hadn't...
"Severus tells me very little," he said with a flash of anger in his eyes. "Much less than he should. Thankfully, I do not require that he do so. I also do not need for him to tell me that you have attacked him at least once since your release from Azkaban." He paused to fix her with the most frightening glare she'd ever seen from the kindly old wizard. "Because of my great respect for Severus, I will not disarm you as I should. However, if I hear of your attacking anything or anyone for any reason other than in defense of your own life, if you so much as look askance at any member of the Order, you will answer to me, personally."
A sudden swell of raw power so great that it compromised her balance, swept around and through her, like an angry wind, yet disturbing nothing, not even straying a hair. The air in the room went ice-cold and caused her breath to scrape through her lungs as if she'd swallowed several shards of glass. Struggling to keep her feet as his strength coursed through her, she realized suddenly why her master was so terrified of this man. It was difficult for her to even face him as he delivered his silent warning without any apparent exertion, and after a few moments the power abated, seemed to draw itself back into the elder wizard who looked down on her now with a tranquil expression.
"Make no mistake, Miss Grey, my patience, particularly with those loyal to Voldemort, does have its limits. One hopes that you are wise enough to refrain from testing them."
A slow smile crept across her face. The stern warning almost going unnoticed. What such a noble creature would do to her was nothing compared to the threat of her master's wrath which hung over every Death Eater's head like a poised dragon. But, the power the man wielded was truly incredible. She now understood where Severus came by this hope that they may yet have a chance of defeating the most evil wizard to ever live.
"Good day, child," Albus said at last.
"Good day, sir," she returned, her voice much more humbled than her spirit.
Half an hour later, Emily was still talking about it as Remus listened patiently.
"You should have felt it, Remus," she gushed. "It was indescribable. My knees nearly buckled."
He chuckled lightly. "Albus is not a wizard to be trifled with. And you, my lady, are exceedingly obsessed with power," he remarked with a curious stare. "Is that what drew you to Voldemort?"
"Will you people please stop saying that?!"
He laughed again. "It's only a name, Emily. Fearing to speak it merely encourages the irrational fear."
"Irrational?" she spat incredulously. "Have you ever met the dark lord, Remus, face to face?"
"No," he answered quietly. "I've not."
"Then you've never called him by his name? To his face?"
He shook his head slowly, a scowl drawing lines across his forehead.
"I saw a woman do so once - a muggle - at his command." She let go a sharp, bitter laugh. "Using her as fodder in order to drive his point home to us, no doubt."
"What happened?"
She swallowed thickly, remembering the night, against her will, in vivid detail. "First he allowed his highest officers to have their way with her while she was bound and tortured. Then, he forced her to scream his name and only his name, over and over, under the Imperius, as he ripped the layers of skin from her body... one by one, very, very slowly... until finally she died in unholy agony, with his name on her lips."
"Fates preserve us," Lupin muttered under his breath.
"I had to destroy the robes and boots I wore that night. The blood refused to come out." She leaned a bit closer to his now-ashen face. "Believe me, Remus, none of us who lived through that will ever be able to hear his name uttered without a shudder, at the very least."
He nodded wordlessly, studying his hands very closely. "I understand," he whispered, then returned his pained gaze to her face. "How did you come to be involved with such a monster?"
"Severus," she answered simply.
His mouth tightened. "Severus talked you into joining Vold... the dark lord?" She smiled slightly at his desire to avoid disturbing her with the mention of her master's name. "I thought you two parted ways in school... when you were fifteen? Sixteen?"
She nodded lightly. "Fifteen. And, no. He actually tried to talk me out of joining."
Remus gave a confused look, prompting her to clarify. "Taking the Mark, for me, was an act of absolute defiance; against my father who expected me to uphold the family name by marrying a man I didn't love and bearing his pureblood children, my brother who laid that burden at my feet, and my mother who had the audacity to die, leaving me to be the woman of the house. Mostly, though, I joined him to prove myself to Severus."
"But, he didn't want you to do it?"
"No," she shook her head ruefully. "At that point, he'd been a Death Eater for over a year and, as usual, he saw the entire picture when I saw only a fraction." Her thoughts strayed for a moment, recalling her experiences as a Death Eater, a scattered few she wouldn't trade for all the world, most she would give anything to forget. With a long, sad sigh, she added. "I should've listened to him."
"Why didn't you?"
"Because I wanted to hurt him. I thought that he was being condescending, suggesting, actually telling me outright, that I had no idea what I was doing. Sweet fucking Merlin," she hissed angrily. "All that misery only to find that he was right... as usual." She laughed bitterly, rubbing the Mark on her arm. "And, now I'm trapped."
Remus ran a hand through graying hair. "Somehow, I doubt that," he said kindly. "But, you are rather stuck with my company until Severus' return. How now for the notorious Miss Grey?"
"Well... now, if it wouldn't inconvenience my warden at all, I should like to go home."
"To your family home?" he asked, somewhat taken aback.
"Well, it's only my home, now," she answered sadly, "but yes."
"'Right," Lupin began brightly, rising to his feet, "I am at my Lady's service." Crossing the room to the door, he waited, hand extended in invitation, and a wickedly sexy smile on his face.
"You are such a charmer, Remus," she chuckled, taking the proffered hand. "Just let Severus catch you trying to vie for my affections."
"Believe me, I am as afraid of Severus Snape as any wise man should be. I shall use the utmost discretion in our affair, Madam," he said dramatically. "For both our sakes."
The sound of their laughter followed them through the house and out the door.
The day passed so pleasantly in Lupin's company that Emily didn't begin to worry until Molly called them for dinner shortly after they returned home. Suddenly, she had a very real sense of the time which had obviously passed, and her heart sank in her chest as she glanced at the clock, then at Remus.
"He'll be fine, Emily," Lupin said calmly, knowing immediately what brought the look of concern to her face.
"How can you know that?" she asked, already feeling the first stages of panic.
"Because he's Severus Snape, and he's always fine."
She shook her head emphatically. "I don't like this, Remus. I'm going to find him," she declared, tugging on her boots.
"And where do you propose to look?"
"Anywhere," she snapped. "Everywhere. He can't have just disappeared."
Lupin stepped forward and placed a hand lightly on her arm. "He's been known to do just that for days at a time. That's... just Severus."
"No, that's me," she argued. "Severus is the responsible one. Dependable. Reliable."
"And often unavoidably detained," he finished, his composure still unperturbed. "Did he give you no hint of what he was leaving to accomplish?"
She sighed and sank into a nearby chair. "No. None at all, just said he had something to attend to."
"Did he seem anxious?"
"No. Perfectly at ease, and certain that he'd be back in a few hours." It was that thought that started her hands shaking, the memory of his serene face as he left her. He had indeed been perfectly at ease... unguarded, wholly unprepared for the worst.
"Oh, gods, Remus, where is he? Where is he?" she breathed, covering her face with trembling hands. "Why wasn't I paying attention? What have I been doing all day? I have to go!" She was up and halfway to the door. "I have to find him!"
The smooth, quick swish of a wand being unsheathed caught her ear, but before she could even turn about, Remus had spoken... several words in succession. She felt hot, then cold, then dizzy, then became lost in the curious sensation of sinking into a wonderfully warm bath and time seemed to melt away.
She shook her head, trying to clear it.
Suddenly she remembered that Remus had spoken and she turned back from the door.
"What did you say, Remus?" she asked brightly.
"I said we should hurry," he answered with a curiously guarded smile. "Molly hates to be kept waiting."
"Well, we wouldn't want to piss off mumsy, would we?" she laughed brightly.
"It's never a good idea," he answered.
With that, they turned to go to dinner, laughing as they descended the stairs, not a care in the world.
Intel Ewok: Hi! It's good to have you back. I missed you! Hope that your stress level has now decreased and your time is freed up to do the important things like cuddle up with a cup of tea and read fanfic.
Sesshomaru's Angel: Don't worry. I'm not sure exactly how many chapters we have to go until the end, but I can tell you that the story hasn't reached its climax, yet, so the resolution is really nowhere in sight. And, after that, the last installment of the Alex stories. Fun, fun, fun! I miss Alex.
Laura: Thanks for the encouragement.
Sev lover: Hey, thanks for the compliment. I'm a much bigger fan of angst than fluff, so I try to keep the soft stuff to bare minimum. You've almost seen the last of it.
Queen of the faeries 1: Oh, my goodness! Thanks so much for the cookie. I'm still coming down from the rush over here. Those things are better than sex, I swear! As for Dumbledore, I've never seen him as the sweet grandfatherly type, so it's hard for me to write him that way. It's not that I hate the guy. It's just that, if one looks at his position and the things he does rather than the things he says, he's a much darker character. I'm intrigued by that side of him, so I'm glad you approve.
Dianatyne: I love the point you made at the beginning of your review about bleeding hearts. I've always felt that way, but until I read your words, I had no concise way of actually expressing it... so thank you. And, it's a relief to know that you'll be here when I post the last chapter. I've grown to be quite fond of you.
Captain Oblivious!: I'm glad that you approve of Dumbledore. I'm actually not in love with his character as it is spelled out in the books, but (as I pointed out to Queen of the Faeries) I think that there's a darker side there that's fun to play with. I wholly agree with you about Harry Please-Pet-Me Potter. I'm glad you're feeing better, sweetie. That's the best part about getting sick.
Lady Jenilyn: I noticed that about Sev never having any friends, as well, and that was part of the reason I just had to write this. There's a good bit of Severus' and Emily's history shared with the Weasley clan in the next chapter. Opinions will be ruined and established and fortified, so hopefully, that'll be fun. The twins should have been Slytherin. I agree. You do a great job writing Molly's nosey, over-protective, goody-goody side in your story. I love how you portray her! It's the way I've always read her, yet never seen her represented in fanfics. Go get that thesis, girl! I have great faith in you!
1 Lonely Angel: Ooohh... Sorry about your laptop. I'm glad that everything seems to be squared away now. I really want to pull all of the Order members into this one, but I have to be careful to avoid taking things to the extremes. I, like you, wanted to know much more than what was told about what goes on in that house. As for Sev, I don't think he would spend much time there at all. He's just not that interested in being with others... rather like yours truly. I don't think of myself as being modest, just honest about myself. I'm no Anne Rice or R.A. Salvatore or J.K. Rowling, but I hope I spin a fairly tolerable yarn and keep it interesting. After all, that's what fanfiction is all about. Fans entertaining other fans. If we take it much further than that, well... things start to get ugly. I'm so happy that you enjoy my work. That's why I share it.
Asha Ice: Well, Remus does like Harry, yes, but I think everyone likes him more than Severus does. I was going to delve deeper into that in this story, but I've decided to just, more or less, leave it be.