Revelations

Later that afternoon, Drake and Arista met in the clearing in the Forbidden Forest where the SR's practiced self-defense. Arista still held sessions there, but much less frequently since her father started teaching Defense. Snape was an excellent teacher and the only thing that Arista knew that he didn't was martial arts, so they still practiced that, and brushed up on spells that were proving difficult for one or the other of them.

Right then, however, there were other matters on her mind. She seated herself on a fallen log at the edge of the clearing. The log had been one of the first things they'd levitated using combination magic and they had kept it there as a small reminder of their success.

Drake seated himself next to her, first removing his robes and tossing them over the log. "Too hot for them," he said, and undid the top button of his shirt and removed his tie as well.

Arista had changed after her class and so was already comfortable enough. "It is really warm for this time of year up here," she agreed. It was the middle of October, and usually by this time the weather in the Highlands was nippy and chill. This year however, it was unseasonably warm for some odd reason. "Remember how we all levitated the log two years ago?"

He nodded, smiling. "Yeah, and that was pretty amazing then. We can do a lot more now, though." With practice, the SR's could now cast several defensive and offensive spells using combination magic, and casting that way was nearly second nature now. Ever since Voldemort's return, they'd been practicing longer with it, pushing themselves, for all of them thought the day was coming soon when their special method was going to be needed to fight the Death Eaters.

"We're going to need it one day," Arista predicted. "Anything to give us an edge against Voldy."

"Right. But you didn't bring me here to discuss strategy, did you?" he asked softly, looking right into her dark eyes. She shook her head. "Will you tell me about this soulbond? I'm guessing it's something only an empath can do, right?"

"Yes," Arista affirmed. She coughed slightly, then cleared her throat, uncertain how to proceed. At last she decided to just tell him straight out and let him draw his own conclusions. "A soulbond is like a stronger version of the empathic link I use when we're casting combination spells. Only it exists between two people, not five, and it's forever. An empath can soulbond only once in her life, and when she does it means she's found the person who is . . .her exact match, I guess you could say. The bond links them, mind to mind, soul to soul, with mental threads so strong that not even death can separate them."

"And that's what you think we share?" he repeated incredulously.

"Not think, Drake. I know. It wasn't planned or anything, what happened," she twisted her hands nervously in her hair. "It happened last summer, when I healed you after your broom was hexed. Even though I was shielded, my empathy bound us together. And that can only happen if our souls were matched to begin with. All the other times I've healed people, I've never bonded to them, not even Fireflash when he was nearly dead. It wasn't something I could control, Drake, I'd never bind anybody against his will."

"When did you realize that's what happened?"

"Just before we went to help the Tower ghosts, I realized I could almost always feel you in the back of my head. The link never fades, I can always sense you, shielded or not, near or far. That's one of the good things about a soulbonded pair, you always know if your partner is in trouble or not and to a certain extent what he or she's feeling. It's a rare thing, even among empaths, and once it occurs it can't be broken."

"What if one partner dies?"

"That doesn't matter. A soulbond transcends death. Souls can't die, Drake. Only the body can. My dad shared a soulbond with my mom, or so he told me. That's why in fifteen years he's never so much as looked at another woman. Because no other woman could ever replace my mother. When a partner dies, it leaves a wound of the spirit that even time can't mend. He told me once that Mom's death was the single most painful thing he's ever experienced and without her he was incomplete and nothing on earth could fill the empty hole in his heart. He also said that sometimes he can almost hear my mother's voice whispering advice into his ear and in dreams she always comes to him. That fits with what I've read about soulbonds, for in dreams your consciousness touches on the spirit realm, and souls can meet there, if you know how to travel it. My mom did, she was a master empath, and my dad's no novice either when it comes to mind disciplines."

Drake whistled softly. "Good God, Arista! If the bond's that powerful, how did he manage to keep on living after she died?"

"It wasn't easy. Most partners choose to follow their beloved into death, they can't cope with the loss. Or else they go mad from grief. My dad . . .I think part of what kept him sane was the fact that Mom's murderer was still out there, and he wanted revenge on her. He's also one of the stubbornest and strong-willed men I've ever known and that helped a lot." She also knew that one other factor was his Unbreakable Vow with Dumbledore and his secret activities as a spy, but she couldn't tell Drake about that, Severus had told her in strictest confidence and she would never betray his trust. The soulbond was also how I was able to call her back from the dead that time, when we faced Nightshade. "I doubt if I could do what he did."

"Me either." Drake said honestly.

"One other thing. Just because we're soulbonded doesn't mean you have to love me, Drake. It's not like a love potion, that makes you obsessed with me or anything."

"Yeah, but it usually follows that if you're soulbonded, you normally do have strong feelings for each other, right? I mean, you'd never soulbond with your worst enemy. So . . ." he drew in a deep breath. " . . .then it shouldn't surprise you when I tell you that I love you. I think I've been in love with you since last summer, even before you healed me. Only I . . .was afraid to tell you because I wasn't sure you felt the same way and I didn't want to ruin our friendship . . .and well . . .Now though, I guess I don't have to worry anymore."

"You don't," she reassured him, giving him a smile that made her face glow with an inner beauty that was breathtaking. "I've always loved you, Drake, from maybe the first day I saw you."

He made a face. "Ugh! I was facedown in the dirt being tormented by Marsh and company. I must have looked like a scruffy stray. How could you say you loved me then?"

"I've always had a soft spot for strays, Drake. Especially for ones that keep fighting even when the odds are a hundred to one. Marsh might have gotten you down, but you weren't beaten."

"How do you figure that, Arista? I was getting my butt kicked royally from where I was sitting."

"Physically, yeah. But not in spirit. And that's what drew me to you. You were still fighting even without a wand, helpless, but you didn't give up. I admire that in a man."

"Was that why you helped me?"

"Partly. But it was also because I detest bullies like Marsh and her friends, who think they've got the right to hurt people because they're rich and powerful. I'd been avoiding her for weeks, but when I saw what she did to you . . .make that felt what she did to you, 'cause that's how I found where she was, by feeling what she did to you . . .I couldn't let it go. I had to do something, so I challenged her."

Drake looked thoughtful. "You felt me, you said. D'you think the soulbond was active then?"

"Hmm. It might have started to waken then, I never thought about it that way before. After I felt your pain, I got mad and that's when I went after Brittany. I wasn't analyzing my feelings for you, I just lost my temper when I saw what she was doing and the fact that everyone else there was just watching and not caring."

"I was the entertainment of the day," Drake said with a bitter smile. "It was funny to watch Marsh teasing me, since if she was tormenting Lockwood she wouldn't be coming after the rest of them. And I was such an easy target, because I couldn't say two words without stuttering, and people thought I was an imbecile because of it. Who wants to be friends with somebody like that?"

"I do. Then and always. You're worth twenty of Marsh and Hathaway any day of the week. All they've got is flash and looks, but underneath they've no more substance than a soap bubble. But you, Drake Lockwood, you've got integrity and honor and compassion. You know what impressed me the most about you that day, besides your stubbornness?"

"What?"

"The fact that you didn't resent a girl trying to rescue you. Most guys would have hated me for that, or been too embarrassed to speak to me afterwards or something."

"Now that would've been plain stupid, seeing as how a girl kicked the crap out of me in the first place." Drake chuckled. "By then I had almost no pride left, and you sticking up for me was one of the nicest things anybody had ever done for me. Like I said before, most everyone else just got out of Marsh's way when she went for someone, they were afraid of her, afraid they'd be next. I couldn't really blame them, you know how nasty she is. Then you show up, half her size, the new kid no less, and you pick a fight with her. Now that was impressive, Arista Snape."

"Too bad I lost."

"You would've won, I think, if Marsh's friends hadn't cheated and strangled you like the backstabbing scum they are." Drake pointed out. "Now how on earth could I resent you after that? If you'll recall, you were bleeding all over and looked worse than I did, but even then you had a look in your eye that said next time you were gonna kick some ass and take names too. And I thought, wow, she's something else and maybe if I'm really lucky, I can get to know her better. I sure as hell wasn't going to screw up my chances at a friend by being insulting, that's for sure." His hand moved up to caress her cheek. "In a way I should thank the Marsh Maid, because if it weren't for her, I'd have never met you or Mel, Trish, and Kit."

"Maybe that's the reason she was born," Arista drawled. "To bring us together."

Drake raised an eyebrow. "If that's the case, then all the damn hexes she cast on me were worth it. Because I'd be a miserable bastard without my best friends and the love of my life." He smiled tenderly down at her. "I love you so very much, Arista. Anything you want, you only have to ask and if I can give to you, it's yours."

"You've already given me everything I want, Drake," she murmured into his ear. "Your heart and soul belong to me, as mine does to you. Forever and always." Her lips were inches from his own. "But there is one thing I want from you."

"Name it."

"Kiss me, Drake."

"I thought you'd never ask," he grinned and pulled her into his arms, kissing her slowly and gently.

As their mouths met, the bond between them flared into life, and suddenly both of them could feel the other, feel all the passion and tenderness and love they bore the other, openly without shame or fear. It was like wildfire, like lightning, all consuming and unforgettable.

"Don't stop," she murmured against his mouth when he would have drawn away.

"Wasn't going to," he answered, and kissed her back, even more fervently than before.

At last they halted, gasping for breath, and grinning like idiots at each other.

"I've never felt anything like that before!" he exclaimed.

"Neither have I," she admitted. "And that was only from one kiss. If this is how a soulbond intensifies feelings . . ."

"Heaven help the landlord on our wedding night," Drake said huskily. "He might not have a bed left after we're done."

"Drake!" Arista cried, then burst out laughing. "God, but you're right. Ours will be anything but a normal relationship, if that kiss was anything to go by."

"I'd better start shopping around for a ring. Too bad I can't make one for you, the way your dad made your mom's locket."

"That's okay. I'm sure whatever you pick out, I'll love it."

"Good, because you're going to have it on your finger a long time, Arista sweetheart. Much as I hate to, I think we should wait until we graduate to get married."

Arista nodded. "Yes, that makes sense." She sighed. "I know two years isn't really that long . . .but some days, it's gonna feel like an eternity. Although maybe that's a good thing, since it might take that long for my dad to reconcile himself to you, Lockwood."

"Maybe and maybe not."

"What makes you say that?"

"It didn't take him that long for him to agree to let me take you to the Yule Ball."

"Drake, that was one dance, and he was, like, chaperoning it for crying out loud! But this is totally different, this is for the rest of our lives, till death do us part and all that! He's not going to take this calmly, Drake, I'm his only daughter, and all fathers are overprotective of their daughters, especially mine."

"I think you're making a mountain out of a molehill, Arista."

"Yeah? We'll see what you say after you tell him you want to marry me and see if you walk away with everything still attached to you. You're forgetting, this is Severus Snape we're talking about here, and no man will ever be good enough for his little girl."

"The soulbond says otherwise, Arista Snape." Drake argued. "And if he shared one with your mother, he'll know that it means I'm your one and only. Not even Severus Snape can argue with that. Besides, like I told you a long time ago, you only need to fear his temper if you misbehave. And my loving you is not misbehaving, neither is asking for your hand in marriage. Getting you pregnant . . .then he'd be well within his rights to kick my ass to hell and back . . .only I'll never give him the chance, because I don't plan on getting you that way until after I've said I do. Now will you please stop worrying about this? It's going to be fine, I promise." He drew her into his arms and held her close.

"You sound awfully sure of yourself, Mr. Lockwood," she said, nestling against his shoulder.

"As sure as I am that I'll love you forever," he answered, and kissed the top of her head. "Feel better now?"

"Always with you, my love. You're the very best thing ever."

She remained in his arms for a very long time, until the sun slowly sank into the west, content to just be near him, reveling in his presence. She could hear his heartbeat beneath her head, and the touch of his hands on her shoulders, and the caress of his soul on hers, bound together by a magic more powerful than any spell ever cast, more potent than any potion ever brewed, older than time itself.

Right then, the future looked impossibly bright and filled with endless possibilities.

But something bad looms on the horizon. If you review, I might decide to post it today or maybe tonight.