Severus and Paige arrived at Spinner's End after the green flames started to no longer surround them. Paige felt slightly dizzy from traveling by the Floo Network, but at least it wasn't as bad as the first time she had traveled in such a way. Paige opened her eyes when she felt her feet flat on the floor. She coughed slightly as dust surrounded her. She glanced at the soot, which laid in a thick layer all around the fireplace they had just entered. The soot was so thick that obviously it had not been cleaned for months or possibly even years.
The two stepped out of the fireplace and Paige continued to look around at her new surroundings. The place was very cozy, enough for a few people to live in, but not new and it appeared to be untouched for a long time. The entire house was dim because dust covered all of the windows. Paige realized Severus must like it really dark and gloomy to live in a place where it was so dark.
Paige looked at the rest of the main room, seeing a couple of couches, an armchair, table, and a bunch of books laying in different areas of the room. Apparently, Severus enjoyed reading quite a bit. Paige entered the kitchen, which was right next to the living room. Some copper pans hung over an island in the middle of the kitchen. Dust had collected on them and the pans were tarnished, like they hadn't been used in a very long time.
"My room is upstairs." Severus explained as if that really made a difference.
Paige walked over to the staircase and stepped up them. There were more shelves of books on the landing of the second floor. There was only one hallway on the second floor and three doors. These doors led to two bedrooms and one bathroom. Paige entered the one room to find just a quaint little bed, nightstand, dresser, and a lamp on the nightstand. She figured this was Severus' room since he didn't need much.
"You could stay in the guest room if you like, or in my room. It's entirely up to you." Severus mentioned as he had followed her.
"It's not like we haven't slept in the same bed before." She smirked before going back downstairs.
Severus grinned slightly and followed her. "I don't stay here often. I was mainly at Hogwarts so the place has been neglected. I need to clean it up, which I can do easily with my wand."
"Let me clean it the muggle way. I don't have much of anything else to do while staying here so I might as well clean. It will give me something to do." She offered.
"If you like. There is always something special about accomplishing something that you've done with your hands. It makes it worth while, like you've earned the finished result." He explained before sitting down on the leather sofa in the living room. It was a little dusty but he didn't mind.
"I understand what you mean. It's like when a carpenter builds something with his hands. He takes pride in the finished result because he had to work the wood to make it that way." She said before sitting down next to him.
Severus put his arm around her and sat with her. "Make yourself at home."
A week later, Severus returned to the Ministry to start his new job as an Auror. He went to the usual department and found Harry for the details. This time he wasn't in a containment room. This time he had an actual desk with a nameplate sitting on the front of it. He sat in the revolving chair and felt weird, as if he didn't belong doing this job. He knew he could be of great help, but he didn't know he would feel so out of place.
Harry walked over to Severus and stood in front of him. "How was your week?" Harry asked sincerely.
Severus felt taken aback by Harry's politeness. He didn't expect to actually be working with Harry in such a way that they would be like familiar coworkers. A part of him wanted it to go back the way it had always been: Harry being his student and him being the professor. "It was fine. Paige and I spent a lot of time cleaning." He answered with a confused look on his face.
"The real fun begins now. Some Intel has been coming in about a few Death Eaters meeting underground who are trying to revolt. They want Voldemort back even though he is dead. Some of these Death Eaters you even knew. I thought you could start by writing some letters to old acquaintances. Let them know that you are alive and are thinking about joining their efforts." Harry explained with detail.
"Writing letters?" Severus questioned as if the idea sounded stupid. "I don't think Death Eaters will respond to that. They're not the writing type."
"I don't want anyone going undercover until we know for sure that this is going on. The best way is to start conversation and see if anyone is willing to let any information slip if they write you back. I know it sounds absurd, but it's the best way to get started. If any of them write back, it will give us assurance that some of the Death Eaters still trust you. You were Voldemort's most trusted Death Eater. I'm sure a few of them will remember that and be willing to let something slip."
Severus remembered how he was Voldemort's favorite. It still stung that the man had tried to kill him and had nearly succeeded. Apparently, loyalty meant nothing to Lord Voldemort since Severus had stayed by his side from the beginning, even if it meant that he had been playing both sides. "Very well." Severus said to agree to the task at hand. "If I do go undercover at any point, will Paige be provided with some type of protection?"
"I'm not sure. The Ministry is running low on Aurors since the war. The Ministry is still trying to be put back together. I'll see if it can be arranged if the time does come." Harry explained, being honest about the situation.
Severus nodded and grabbed a bit of parchment and a quill that had been placed on his desk. A list of the potential Death Eaters in question had been provided for him so he would know whom to write. He started writing on a piece of parchment but Harry still stood in front of him, clearly not finished with his discussion.
"There is going to be a get together at The Weasleys tomorrow night if you would like to come. You could bring Paige if you want." Harry offered, acting a little awkward but his intentions were sincere.
Severus looked up at Harry and raised an eyebrow at him. "You're inviting me?" He questioned in disbelief.
"Yes." Harry answered. "It's a dinner and since you've just gotten back, I thought you might like to go. It might help Paige feel more welcome in our world too."
"I'll think about it." Severus stated before going back to writing a letter.
"We're meeting at 7 PM if you decide to go." Harry mentioned before walking away and leaving Severus to his work.
After work, Severus went home to Spinner's End. He entered the door to see Paige scrubbing one of the windows. She stepped down from a ladder when she heard him enter and walked over to him. "How did it go?" She asked, smiling at him.
"It was alright. Anyways, how would you like to go to dinner tomorrow at another wizarding family's house?" Severus asked.
"Sure." She replied. She stood there in a white t-shirt, overalls, and her hair was up. The t-shirt had become all dirty from cleaning and she even had patches of dirt on her face. Some hair had fallen into her face and a few beads of sweat were on her face.
Severus grinned at her and thought she looked sexy with the dirt on her face. "You've done a very good job cleaning. There is actually light in the place now."
"Thank you. I'd like to think that us muggles are good for something, even if it is just for cleaning." She joked with a slight grin.
"Well, you should be rewarded." He growled playfully and pulled her close, taking her in for a kiss on the lips. He could taste a bit of sweat on her lips, which made them taste salty. He liked it and kissed her harder.
After a few seconds of passionate kissing, Severus pushed her against the wall. His hands undid the straps of her overalls before he slid a hand up her shirt and gently caressed her breast. A moan escaped her lips and entered his as they kissed. Eventually, he picked her up and carried her upstairs to his room.
Shortly after their escapades, Severus had fallen asleep. Paige didn't mind since she figured he was tired from work and everything else. She decided she would take a shower to clean all the dirt and other things off of her. She walked to the bathroom and stepped into the shower. She turned on the water and waited for it to heat up a big before she stepped under it. Once she did, she rinsed all of the dirt and grime off of her body.
The hot water relaxed her even more and she had always enjoyed a good shower since her life had been stressful throughout the years. After she was clean, she turned off the water and grabbed a clean towel, which was hanging on a bar next to the shower. She wrapped it around her body sarong style and headed over to the mirror. She combed her hair with a brush until her hair was slick and straight.
After Paige left the bathroom, she went back to the bedroom and opened up a drawer to the dresser quietly. She pulled out a pair of pajama pants and a tank top that she had bought when she went shopping for clothes with Severus during his week off before work. She didn't have any belongings so Severus had agreed to buy her some. She had left behind the life before she had met Severus. She didn't want to go back to an abusive father and family who stood by and idly watched like it was nothing.
Paige let the towel fall to the ground and she quietly slipped on the pajama pants and tank top. Afterwards, she climbed into the bed quietly and moved her body towards Severus. She could feel the heat coming off of his body and it helped her body relax even more. Her eyes started to close when a word escaped Severus' mouth as he slept. "Lily." He muttered out loud in his sleep.
Paige's heart sank as she heard this name. She wondered who this woman was that Severus had been dreaming about. She had just had sex with Severus and he was saying someone else's name. She didn't want to assume the worst, but she just couldn't help it. She scooted over to her own side of the bed and laid there, facing away from Severus. The rest of the night she barely slept as she wondered who this other woman was.
In the morning when Severus woke up, he turned to see that Paige wasn't in bed. He heard some noises downstairs and figured she was already awake. He went downstairs quietly, rubbing his eyes since they were still groggy. He smelt something cooking so he sat at the kitchen table. He watched Paige come over to him and set a bit of scrambled eggs on a plate in front of him. "So who's Lily?" She asked without warning before sitting the pan back on the stove.
Severus stared at his eggs and felt conflicted. He didn't know how she knew that name and he didn't feel like explaining it to her. "No one." He replied simply.
"She can't be no one since you said her name in your sleep last night." Paige explained before walking back over to him.
"I don't feel like talking about it." He said as he picked at his eggs with a fork. He didn't feel like eating now.
"Well, maybe I do. Maybe I want to know who this Lily person is." Paige kept pressing for the facts.
Severus stood up. "Don't you ever say her fucking name again!" He shouted in her face.
Paige looked slightly frightened and shocked by him. Severus went to reach for her but she had walked back over to the stove, not looking at him. He didn't mean to have such an outburst like that but Lily was such a touchy topic for him. "I-I have to go to work." He mentioned before going upstairs and getting dressed. He knew that nothing he said right now would make it okay.
After Snape left for work, Paige stayed in the house. From that moment on, Paige knew she would always be the second woman. She knew that Lily would always be more important than her, no matter what. She didn't understand why considering she didn't know Lily and she was the one living with Severus, but if such an outburst came from someone over just saying the person's name, she knew she would be second forever.
