Chapter Twelve

Two days later, Dr. Lukvar called and said that Eileen was accepted. In less than a week, Severus would help her move in to St. Katherine's. He thought it odd that he would have the house to himself for a few days before going back to Hogwarts. Thankfully, the Wizarding world had its ways of covering itself in the Muggle world to ensure no questions of suspicion would be raised. Severus would appear to be at a Muggle boarding school the next several months, and records of his mother's birth and history existed in the Muggle world as if she were a part of it. While Spinner's End was located in a Muggle neighborhood, Severus had already placed enough wards around the area to keep Muggles away, especially ones who were suspicious about an underage young man living alone there. And Tobias, of course.

For some unknown and strange reason, Muggles would have the toughest job trying to locate the exact spot of the Snape house, or they would conveniently forget why they had come there in the first place. Severus smirked at his own ingeniousness.

When the time came for Eileen to be admitted, the trip was a mixed bag for Severus. While he was relieved and glad his mother would be cared for in his absence, he was concerned as well. What if she did wandless magic? He knew she hadn't done so in years, and it seemed unlikely, but still, there was the possibility. Also, she would no doubt lapse into murmuring about magic when she wasn't lucid. Of course, that would be easily dismissed as a part of her condition, but Severus hoped she received the proper care she so desperately needed. He was entrusting his mother's well-being to a bunch of strangers, and letting go of control was not something he did readily.

Sadness also was in the mix. As they rode together on the bus in silence, Eileen seeming to have submitted to the reality of the situation, Severus held fast to her slightly trembling hand, trying to keep his own from shaking.

Everything will be okay, he kept repeating in his head like a mantra.

When they arrived, Severus stepped off the bus with Eileen at his side. Lily hadn't come with him this time. He said he needed to do this alone. Severus worried he might break down or lose it after departing from his mother, and he didn't want Lily to see that vulnerability. As much as he had opened up to her, he was still a very closed person, and it would take time before he would feel comfortable enough to completely bear his soul to Lily.

Severus greeted the lady in the reception room, and within minutes, Dr. Lukvar came and received them. He led the pair of them to what would be Eileen's room. As Severus surveyed the small room, he found it comfortable and simple. It was painted a light yellow, a calming color. If not for the bars on the window, it could have been just another bedroom in any home. As Severus's eyes rested on those bars, he was reminded that as benign as the place appeared, it was still a prison. He swallowed down the lump in his throat, feeling guilty for locking his mother up like this.

"I assure you, Mr. Snape," the doctor was saying, noticing the concern on the young man's face, "that your mother will be taken care of quite well. You will be living with your grandparents for the next week before starting school as we discussed, correct?"

Severus nodded. The lie was easily fabricated. Eileen's parents were dead, but even when they had been alive, there had been no contact between Eileen and them. They had basically disowned their only child when she married a Muggle, but with the use of a little magic, Severus had made it look like he would be in their care when he wasn't at school. What the Muggle doctor didn't know wouldn't hurt him.

Eileen was standing near the doorway, her expression without emotion. Dr. Lukvar was going on about the treatment she would be receiving, but neither Severus nor Eileen was listening. Severus went to his mother and took her hand, squeezing it gently. She blinked and met his gaze, and as the doctor stopped talking, she said, "I guess this is goodbye for now."

"Yes, Mum," Severus said softly, "but I'll see you soon. You'll be fine. They'll... take good care of you." As he spoke these last words, he knew he was trying to convince himself more than her.

Unable to say anything more, Severus hugged her one last time and left without another word. He left the facility as quickly as possible, refusing to look back. He knew if he spared one glance over his shoulder, he would change his mind about the whole arrangement. It was with great difficulty and a heavy heart that Severus got on the bus and returned to Spinner's End.

He entered the empty house he couldn't really call home and tried to remind himself that in a few days he would be at Hogwarts. He would be back at the one place he had ever called home.

x x x x x

"How are you holding up, Sev?" Lily asked the following day as the sat amongst the copse of trees near the playground.

Severus sighed. "All right, I guess," he lied.

Lily frowned and said gently, "It's all right to be upset. I couldn't imagine what you must be feeling right now."

"Guilty, sad, relieved, and a bit angry, I suppose," Severus admitted.

Feeling he didn't want to talk about the subject any longer, Lily asked, "Are you going to Diagon Alley to get new supplies? I'm going with my parents tomorrow. You're welcome to join us. They don't know about... your mum being gone."

Severus considered for a moment. "No," he finally said, "but thanks. I have my mum's old textbooks, and my robes should still fit. Besides, I don't have access to that much money. My mum's parents' money went into her account after they died, although they only left it to her because they had no other children, but I don't want to touch it." Severus wanted nothing to do with the Prince money, for they had mistreated their daughter horribly.

"Are you sure?" Lily pressed. "It might be good for you to get out."

"No," Severus insisted. "Really, Lily... I don't want to go to Diagon Alley."

He liked spending time with her, but lately, even Lily's company didn't seem satisfactory for him. Ever since sending his mother to St. Katherine's, an unbidden loneliness had settled in his heart and refused to leave. Severus tried to convince himself that he would feel better when he was back at Hogwarts, for at least he would be kept occupied with classes and homework.

Lily didn't bother him further about the issue. She knew he had been through a lot this summer and figured he would adjust to the changes in time. For now, Lily would stay with him, and for that, Severus was grateful.

In the past two months, Severus's new life had been a rollercoaster of emotions and experiences. He had tested the waters and dove in. As rough as the past several weeks had been, Severus could look at his forearm and be reminded that it was free of the Dark Mark and that his other arm was around the woman he loved.

Author's Note: I know it's horribly short, and I'm sorry:( I'm still recovering from the weekend, and I'm really tired, but I wanted to give you something, even if it wasn't much. I imagine wizards have ways of devising birth records and the like in the Muggle world, and the wards Severus has placed around his home are somewhat like the ones mentioned being around other magical areas to deter Muggles. I hope it's satisfactory!