A/N: Well, didn't this just take forever to update? Sorry bout that. Life caught up with me.. hopefully I'll be able to get a lot of it finished up in the next few days though. As usual, I don't own it. I know it. You know it. Most of all, JK Rowling knows it. Have a good one, don't forget to review, sorry about the vicious cliffie, feel free to make suggestions for things you'd like to see happen, and have a wonderful day.

Smirks n smileys xJL

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Chapter 46

"Severus. Severus! Wake up," a soft voice said as he was being shaken, called back to the land of the living. "You're dreaming, Severus. Wake up." He forced his mind to awaken, his body still wracked with unshed tears and truly feeling like he had visited death.

"Andi?" he asked wearily, unsure if he could believe what he heard, before his eyes shot open. "Andi," he cried, sitting up quickly and wrapping his arms around her. "You're okay. Thank God you're okay."

"Of course I'm okay. Why wouldn't I be?" she asked with a loving smile, pulling away enough to brush his hair out of his face, though he quickly pulled her back and held her close, whispering in her ear.

"It doesn't matter, beautiful. You're here, that's all that matters." He said, pressing his face into the curve of her neck and never letting her leave the cocoon of his arms he had brought her into. ""I love you Andi. I know I don't tell you enough, but I love you so much. If I ever lost you…" Severus let his sentence trail off, knowing full well what he'd do, but also knowing how she would react to such a statement.

"We talked about this, Angel. You won't lose me. I'm going to grow old with you," she said, trying to comfort him before she stopped talking and pressed her lips to his; a call he answered with gentle but demanding urgency. He deepened his kiss as she pulled him on top of her, never letting their lips part as he slid inside of her. With all the pent up emotion and desperate need to hold her that he still felt from his dream, he made love to her as though their very lives depended on it.

Two hours later Andraste finally pulled herself away from the warm embrace that Severus had kept her in since he woke. He had refused to tell her what he dreamt of, but judging by his reaction it wasn't hard to figure some of the basics out. The few vague comments that he made, coupled with his refusal to let her leave his sight left Andraste sure that she had died in his dream, but she couldn't shake the feeling there was more to it that Severus wouldn't share. Andi pulled herself from the bed, her muscles protesting as she stretched. "You hungry?"

"I'll order food," he said quickly.

"No, let's go down and eat. I want to see how the kids in Unity House are doing." Again Severus objected, but eventually gave in when it was clear that Andraste wasn't going to.

A few minutes later, after Andraste insisted on dressing him because he was going unusually slow, they left for the Great Hall. Severus, though he had never been comfortable with public displays of affection, and quite the opposite, tended to maintain a professional distance from his wife in front of the schools students and staff, kept his arm wrapped securely around Andraste's waist from the moment they stepped in the hall.

"What's going on honey?" Andraste asked as he sat down next to her, scooting himself closer to her, and draping an arm around her chair. "I promise I won't run away." Severus opened his mouth to respond, but was cut short by Lupin coming up behind them.

"Morning. How are you doing today?"

"We're fine, Lupin," Severus growled before Andraste could answer for herself. "Find someone else to bother."

"Severus!" Andi exclaimed with irritation. "I'm sorry Remus. I think he got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning." Remus laid a playful hand on Andraste's shoulder and smiled brightly at Severus.

"Maybe you should go back to your room and try again."

"Get your hands off my wife, werewolf." Snape growled, sneering at Remus in a way Andraste hadn't seem him do in ages while simultaneously knocking the other professors hand away. "Now, I believe I suggested you go bother someone else." Andraste stared at Severus for a moment, so horrified by his words that the apology she knew she should offer Remus died on her lips as he headed down the table to his own chair.

"What was that?" Andraste demanded after she recovered from the shock he had given her. "No… I don't even want to know. I'm going to call it a fluke and pretend it never happened. Now if you'll excuse me." Andi pushed away her plate of untouched food and went to stand, only to find that her husband had stood faster and was pulling her chair out for her. She ignored the unusual gesture and headed towards the Unity House table with Severus just a step behind her all the way.

"Morning peoples," she greeted to the students as she came up beside Draegon, doing her best to disregard her new found shadow. "So how is everything going?"

"Pretty good. Only a few of them are complaining about the scheduled mealtimes."

"So you're going to do this permanently then?" Andraste asked, curious because she had assumed it was just for the first day.

"If it's okay with you, it'll be permanent for this group. I let them pick three of the ideas from the meeting yesterday, and this is one of the ones they chose. The next team will get to pick their own."

"So what else are they going to do?"

"The older students are matching up with younger ones to give them tutoring two nights a week… and I should add that they agreed to keep doing it at least one night a week when their stay is over." Draegon continued, spurred on by Andraste's approving smile, but slightly more hesitant. "And, of course, we need permission for this last one… but they want to start back up the dueling club and have matches with the other teams. I told them I'd have to talk to you about it," he added quickly. Andraste looked around at the table in front of her, noticing for the first time how many of them were stealing expectant glances and trying to listen to the conversation she was having with Draegon. The only exception she could readily notice was Harry Potter, who instead of occasionally looking her way, was blatantly doing it and giving her a huge smile.

"This wasn't by chance the sixth years idea, was it?" Andraste asked with a smirk.

"Potters, to be specific," Draegon said quietly. "But as much as I hate to agree with him, I think it's a good idea. We learned a lot even with the idiot Lockhart running it. And then if we had matches between the teams…" It was obvious to Andi that the normal students weren't the only ones that wanted it, Draco did too.

"I don't see what it would hurt," Andraste said after a moment's contemplation.

"Is that a yes?" Draco's face still had the expressionless mask that it usually held, but Andraste could see the excitement he was trying not to show burning in his eyes. The students had wanted a new dueling club for quite a while, but none of the teachers had felt they had the time to run it.

"That's an 'I'll see what I can do'. I'll give you an answer this evening." With a quick goodbye to all, Andraste headed towards the door, once again aware of her silent shadow as he came up beside her and slid his arm around her waist.

"What do you think?" she asked him as she pushed away the memory of his behavior at breakfast. "You know that you'll have to do the demonstrations for them, not me."

"I think that if you have made up your mind, it does not matter what I or anyone else thinks, and that you know I'll help you however I can."

"That wasn't an answer."

"And if I said I think it is a horrid idea, would it make a difference?"

"Probably not," Andraste replied honestly.

"Then I believe it was an answer."

"Fine," Andraste said, turning her attention to the classes ahead of her. After a few minutes of silently putting out the supplies for their first class, she turned to Severus again. "Would you mind starting the class alone so I can go talk to Albus?"

"I would mind it quite a bit," he said in a tone that almost made Andraste feel like a student instead of his wife. "We can talk to him at lunch."

"I bet you can probably handle it, honey," Andi said teasingly. "Tell you what, I'll make them promise to behave before I leave."

"While I am quite sure that I could easily handle teaching the prats without your momentous wisdom, you have a job to do that does not include running around worrying about extracurricular activities like some dundering first year. We will speak with the Headmaster at lunch." Andraste opened her mouth to rage at him, but was cut short by the arrival of the first few students, and soon a constant stream that filled the class. Caught between seething inside at his treatment of first Remus and then herself, and apprehensive curiosity about his sudden change in behavior; Andraste spent the following third year classes in silent contemplation, while her hands graded papers on autopilot.

"If we go now we can still talk to Albus before he leaves his office," Severus said as the last of the students drifted out.

"Actually, Severus," Andraste responded, wishing he had tried to talk to her during a curiosity phase instead of an anger one. "I am quite sure that I can handle talking to the headmaster without your momentous wisdom."

"I have no doubt that you can, which is why I have every intention of letting you badger him into this ridiculous idea by yourself. Shall we go?" Severus stood, purposely ignoring that she had basically said that he wasn't invited.

"It isn't a ridiculous idea!" Andraste exclaimed indignantly. "It's going to…"

"It is going to, no doubt, put more unnecessary strain and stress in your already busy life. But I have not tried to stop you, therefore there is no reason for you to yell at me."

"First of all, I was not yelling," Andraste said, her voice rising with each word. "Second of all, even if I was I think you have given me plenty of reasons today." Severus took a step towards her, the look on his face softening but his eyes still hard and probing.

"If I have upset you, please understand that my actions were nothing more but the unfortunate result of a sleepless night." Severus tilted her head up so that she was looking in his eyes. "Will you forgive me?"

"Will you stop being a jerk?"

"I will do my best. Now, if you want to speak with Albus before lunch we need to leave."

"Fine, but I really can handle it on my own, how about if I meet you in the Great Hall?"

"Would you deny me the pleasure of my wife's company?" Severus asked, intentionally increasing the silky quality of his voice that Andi loved so much, and letting the words roll off his tongue in a heavy whisper.

"No," Andraste said helplessly, missing the glint of satisfaction Severus had in his eyes as he slid his arm around her waist once again and led her out of the classroom.

"Albus, I'm glad we caught you." Andraste greeted as they walked into the office. It was obvious the headmaster was on his way out, but he returned the greeting cheerfully nonetheless. "To start with, I owe you an apology, Albus. I shouldn't have let my anger get the best of me."

"No," he said, waving his hand dismissively. "It is I who owe you the apology. Both of you. I shouldn't have kept what I knew from either of you for so long, but you must forgive an old man for believing that nothing is sure. Sometimes, not even that which has passed."

"Some things are for sure," Severus interjected quietly. "She will be fine." The determination in his eyes was enough to make it clear that the topic was closed, so Andraste interrupted the uncomfortable silence with her reason for being there.

"I've drawn up the Unity House schedule for the rest of the school," Andraste said, pulling a parchment out of her pocket and handing it to Albus. "I did my best to group personalities that I thought would be most successful together." He unrolled it and let his eyes briefly skim it, nodding in approval before he tapped it gently with his wand.

"It's posted in the each of the common rooms and on the main board," Albus said, putting it in the pocket of his own robes. "Now, when do you wish dueling club? I think it would be best if we hold matches the last day of each rotation, beginning at the end of the second, of course." Andraste stared blankly at the headmaster for a moment before she began shaking her head.

"I spent all morning figuring out how to convince you. Couldn't you at least have let me get through the speech?"

"My sincerest apologies dear, by all means, convince away," he offered, the smile in his eyes as outspoken as the laughter in his voice.

"Well now I would just feel silly." Andraste sighed and returned her attention to the matters at hand. "I thought we could do it on Monday's and Wednesday's after dinner, and I think it would be best if it was only for fifth years and up. I don't want any of the younger ones to suddenly decide they have what it takes to join in a real battle." Albus nodded his head in approval as he motioned for them to continue talking as they headed out the door. "Severus and I will supervise them, and I was hoping to get other teachers to each take a team."

"I'm sure Minerva and Remus would be happy to help. Have you decided how you intend to run the matches?"

"Yeah. I want to set up an arena and have mock war games. I think the students will love it as much as I do."

"Do you intend to reschedule the training sessions you have with Harry those nights?" Severus asked, speaking for the first time since they left the classroom.

"As far as I'm concerned," Andraste responded, "this is going to be part of his training. There's a lot more to using my powers, or even his own than can be taught in a controlled environment. None of these students are going to go out in the world and find that they get fair warning before someone starts throwing curses at them. Even if Voldemort wasn't more and more of a threat everyday, they would still need to learn to think on their feet."

"Have you considered the possibility that some parents may object to their children being taught to fight?"

"There is a very fine line between teaching them to fight and teaching them to defend themselves, Severus. I plan on walking it carefully."

"It is settled then," Albus interjected as they paused just before the entrance to the Great Hall. "I will inform the staff today, and we will make the appropriate announcements after dinner."

"Who would you suggest we have handle the fourth team?" Severus asked Albus as they sat, scanning the main table for likely candidates.

"Why, you of course."

"Albus, I must insist…"

"So must I," the headmaster interrupted. "Andraste will have Draegon to assist her, you can head your own team." Andraste smirked, seeing how easily her husband bowed to Dumbledore's authority, far easier than she herself ever would.

"Actually," Andraste said, irritated by her husbands sudden over-protectiveness, but set on defending his wishes nonetheless. "I thought it would be best if the professors rotate teams instead of heading just one of them. If we do it that way the students will have the chance to learn from everyone's different perspectives instead of being limited by the strengths of just one professor." Albus stared thoughtfully at her for a moment before nodding his head in agreement. "More so, I would like both Draegon and Severus working with me since I'll be supervising the whole thing." The headmaster opened his mouth to reply, but Andraste continued anyway. "There will be times when I will not be myself, Albus. Severus must be there to supervise them. Besides, I believe Flitwick and the others would be a great help if they're willing."

"Andi," Albus said kindly, "many of the teachers have other obligations. If they all had the time to run a dueling club, we would have one already."

"Albus," Andraste's voice was barely above a whisper but deadly serious just the same. "As you well know, there is a war going on, and I'll be damned if these students are going to be left without a chance at living through it. More so, it's a war I'm expected to give my life to, they can sure as hell give up a few nights a week."

"Andraste, I would prefer if only Order Members participated." The look on the headmaster's face made it clear, even to one that regularly challenged him, that his mind would not be changed.

"Why, Albus?" Severus asked, finally rejoining the quiet conversation.

"For the sake of humoring an old man," he said with a smile, purposely avoiding the question. "Tell me Andraste, if I was to lend my own experience to the dueling club, would that satisfy you?"

"Yes, it would," Andraste agreed after a moment's contemplation.

"Very well, consider it done." Severus opened his mouth to question the headmaster again, but was stopped by Albus jovially turning and heading for his seat at the Head Table. "Who doesn't he trust?" he asked under his breath, more to solidify his thoughts in his own mind than to evoke any response from his wife. Andraste, however, didn't hear him and headed back towards the dungeons feeling for the most part triumphant. "Do you not plan on eating?" he asked as he followed her into their quarters. In response Andi quickly called a house elf and a few minutes later they were sitting on the couch with sandwiches in hand, Severus lost in his own thoughts while Andraste sketched out the arena she wanted for the war games.