Wonderful chapter 24

Eileen and Toby Sitting in a Tree

"How far is this place?" Ele pictured the two of them apparating to some place far off. Toby had other ideas.

"Only a few blocks away," he told her. They were in London, not far from the Black residence. So thy walked a few blocks to a place that didn't look like anyone respectable would be caught dead in.

"We're a bit overdressed for here," Ele pointed out.

Wanting to keep her thinking he was one of her own Toby said, "I'll let you do the honor of changing that."

Looking for a place where it would be safe to do magic, Ele motioned for Toby to follow around a corner. She took out her wand and changed their clothes so thy looked like fashionable people of their age. They went back and walked down the stairs to the subterranean club. Perhaps Tobias couldn't do magic, but he had no problem making money appear that night. He paid he cover charge, then continued to pay for martinis and any food Ele may have wanted as they sat and listened to the jazz band play. After a while they even danced. As they danced, Toby got a bit friendlier. Eileen didn't object.

Eileen was having fun, but she wasn't sure what she wanted. She and Tobias had just met. After a few hours of close dancing and innocent snogs, she said she had to leave. Tobias knowing what she was knew better than to try and stop her from going home.

"Meet me here tomorrow then?" When he said this Toby looked hopeful, and those eyes were working on Ele again.

After one more kiss she asked, "When."

"Eight."

"All right."

She hadn't really kept track of the time. It was late; or rather it was early in the morning when she arrived back at the Prince fortress. This home was not meant for showing off the wealth of the family to others, it was meant for keeping everyone out. Only a close member of the family could make it into those bastions. Set on high cliffs not even the sea could reach its walls. All it could do was broil and threaten on the sharp rocks below.

Eileen thought it safe to apparate into a large hall that abutted all of the living chambers rather than strait into hers. She was mistaken. Her father awoke on hearing the sound of apparation. She knew she was going to get an earful as soon as she saw him across the room sleeping in his favorite chair.

Radu Prince, a very old wizard expounded, "I expected to find you here reading one of your books when the rest of us returned from the Avery's. You could have at least tried to mix in."

"Obviously, I was not here."

"So where has my youngest been off to all these hours?"

"Out."

"Do you really think I'm going to accept an answer like that?"

"No, but it's the one you're going to get."

The young woman wondered if she had provoked her father. He looked a bit shocked.

"Can I make the assumption that you may have been with a young man?"

"Yes Father, believe it or not."

The elder Prince said in a deep drawn out voice, "I hope it was someone worthy of your position in the wizarding world."

"I'm too tired for the cross examination right now. I'll explain tomorrow."

"I suppose."

The younger Prince went to bed with no intention of explaining anything. She didn't know if Tobias Snape was worthy of 'her position in the wizarding world.' She didn't care; he seemed good enough to her. She hated her father's idea of who she be looking at as possible suitors. Who he thought worthy; 'Julian Malfoy, that windbag; Audric Avery imbecile; Mondock Mulciber eww; Timothy Truicutt way too old; Leonid Black absolutely not.' It wasn't really as if any of these had taken any interest in Eileen Prince either.

In the morning Ele didn't even get breakfast she was off to her job brewing potions for a large apothecary chain. Work was not something Eileen really needed, it just kept her skills up while waiting to hear of one of the masters would take her on as an apprentice. All that day she found it difficult to concentrate, she was thinking of eight-o-clock. She was thinking of hazel eyes, a quick wit, soft lips, and a pair of strong hands.

Not wanting to go home before meeting up with Tobais, she did her best to clean up in the washroom there at work. That and a bit of handy wand work made her look, presentable. Eileen tried not to look in the mirror for too long, if she did, she might chicken out and not meet the young man. It was early when she arrived at the muggle club. Nervously she waited at the steps. She listened for any sound of apparating. That was something she would not hear. Looking up one time she saw Toby walking towards her. There was a flutter in her heart. It was ridiculous, they had just met, but wasn't that how love was supposed to be? Ridiculous and wonderful; that was how she felt. There was no awkward hesitation when the two of them embraced.

"You're here," Toby said.

"You thought I wouldn't be?" Ele asked.

"I was afraid."

It seemed sweet that he had been the one to worry about being stood up. Normally the opposite was true. This time, she had none of her normal fears. She knew he'd be there. This night the club did not have a live band. They played records of popular rock-and-roll. Tobias and Eileen worked up a sweat to the sounds of Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, the Coasters, Chuck Berry and other American musicians that were the rage of the day. Intermixed with the fast songs were some slow ones sung by Perry Como and Bobby Darren. The two of them laughed hard when silly songs such as the Witch Doctor or Purple People Eater were played. Ele asked if these muggles 'had ever even seen a purple people eater.' If they had, they certainly would know they all had at least three horns, even if they all did have the one eye. Toby was strangely silent.

What he did say was, "Let's go somewhere quiet. Somewhere we can be alone."

In the middle of London, there was no such thing. "I know a place," Ele came up with. They were around the corner again so they could apparate. Eileen took her wand out telling Toby the name of the beach she was thinking of.

"I don't have a wand at the moment," Tobias lied. He never did have a wand.

"Take my hand." The two young people held hands and Eileen apparated them to a lonely stretch of ocean side. The wind whipped their hair in their faces.

"April's a bit early for the beach," Toby commented as sand blew in their faces.

Ele reached for his hand and they again appparated to another place. "This better?" It was a secluded garden, closed for the night.

"Perfect."

What followed, followed every night for the next two weeks. They would spend the early evenings living the high life, then go some place quiet to get to know each other extremely well. It was about then that Eileen began to get suspicious about why Tobias never had a wand, or done the tinniest bit of magic all that time. "Toby," she asked, "Are you a squib?"

Tobias stopped kissing Eileen's face on hearing her question. "A squib - - "

"It's all right if you are. I just would like to know."

"You know I love you."

"That's not the question."

"You love me?"

"I told you it didn't matter if you were a squib."

"That's not an answer."

"I asked you first."

This was the moment Toby was going to find out if he had 'caught' Ele. He knew she would find out eventually. He was taking a big gamble. Maybe she'd be angry for a few days, or hex him seven ways to Sunday. "Eileen, I'm not a squib. But I can't keep lying to you. I'm - - a muggle."

The first thing out of Eileen's mouth was not a good sign. "Oh shhhiiiit." She sat up. Her arms wrapped around her head. "This is not happening."

"If you love me it shouldn't matter," Toby reasoned.

"It doesn't matter to me you idiot," Ele bemoaned. "But it sure is going to matter to my father. He's been asking to meet you. He'll never give us permission to marry."

"What if we just did? Then he'd have to deal with it."

How would Eileen's father deal with it? How much did She want him? She could still walk away from him, except for the feeling that it may have already been too late. She loved him, and proof of that love might be growing inside of her at that very moment.

Toby didn't give her time to over think it. "Let's not separate tonight, then in the morning we can go somewhere and get married."

"Tomorrow, morning?"

"Kind of romantic huh?"

(Flash forward)

'Kind of stupid,' Eileen thought now. Again she thought of the reason they would have to have gotten married anyway. In those days it was just what was done. In Ele's mind, she had to believe her son had been conceived in love not just passion. There had to have been some magic present those first weeks, or Severus would have been born a squib. She had to believe that, or she'd go crazy.

tbc