SEVERUS
"I really think there ought to be two of us to grab Malfoy," said Lupin for the eighth time.
"He doesn't trust us," said Moody with a roll of both normal and magical eye. "He'll see Snape and think the Dark Lord's sent someone to rescue him. If he sees you or me, he'll panic and that'll start a scene and we'll never get out of there. Just stick to the plan, Remus."
"I'm not saying it's not a good plan; I'm saying that Severus might need an extra hand if he's trying to grab Malfoy and the guards or dementors are coming at him from inside the fortress instead of just outside."
"We've got the outside; Snape shouldn't have a problem holding onto Malfoy's hand and shooing off any pests at the same time."
"I still think you can hold them by yourself out here while I go with Severus—"
"If I need help, I will ask for it," said Severus to shut both of them up. "Proceed, Moody."
As one, the three of them drew cloaks over their heads and hid their faces from view.
"Expecto Patronum," said Moody with hardly any effort, and an enormous silver grizzly bear emerged from his wand. Leading on his specially designed broomstick, Moody and his Patronus charged into the storm with Severus and Lupin tailing him at close range. Rain pelted Severus's face and he cast a spell to block the water from blinding him, but it was still incredibly difficult to see as lightning flashed around them, thunder rolled dangerously close by, and the clouds thickened with precipitation.
In moments which seemed like hours, they broke through the cloud cover and Moody's bear rammed into the first dementor circling high above Azkaban. As planned, Severus dropped, pointing his broom handle down at the prison while Lupin shot ahead towards Moody to assist in keeping the dementors at bay. Severus counted the unlit windows, doing a quick calculation in his head until he was just outside a cell at least thirty levels up. A dementor closed in on him from the right but with the thought of curtains of long red hair, he summoned his own Patronus and the doe chased the dementor off, allowing Severus to peer inside the barred window and see a ragged form lying on a cot.
Casting a spell which engulfed half of the cell in darkness, Severus blew a man-sized hole in the wall and from within Lucius Malfoy yelped, scrambling for cover. Severus maneuvered his broom into the cell and slid off, raising one hand calmly to address the prisoner who was clearly frightened out of his wits as his other removed the enchantment that hid his face from view.
"Lucius, you know me."
"Did the Dark Lord send you?"
"I've been sent by someone, yes."
"Does he have my family? Is he torturing them? Are they still alive?"
Severus could almost hear Moody somewhere out in the storm mumbling, Get a move on as Lucius continued to back away from the hole in his cell.
"Your family is in protective custody. I am charged with bringing you to them for you all to go into hiding together."
"Who has them?"
"That is not relevant."
"Is this a trick?"
"Lucius, you must stop asking questions and trust me."
"You said it would take thirty seconds," said Lupin as he arrived in midair beside Severus on his broom and removed his own enchanted mask.
"Lucius is proving to be—difficult."
"Why is he here?" asked Lucius, now pressed against his cell door in terror. "The Dark Lord is testing me, isn't he? He's had you all take Polyjuice Potion to disguise yourselves. He hopes that I will flee with the Order to save myself and then he'll kill my family—"
"Malfoy, if you want to see your family again, you need to get a hold of yourself and come with us now before we're blocked off," said Lupin impatiently, but Lucius was now fumbling at the keyhole in the door.
"Oy, what's goin' on in there?" cried the voice of Dolohov from somewhere on the other side of the obscuring black fog. "Hey! Something's happenin' in Malfoy's cell!"
Severus exchanged looks with Lupin, giving an indifferent shrug. "It would seem that Lucius has succumbed to the memory loss most prisoners suffer from. He may require persuasion."
"The guards will be coming any minute now; keep them off of me if they break through," said Lupin, hopping off of his broom and running to Lucius who gave a cry of panic and kicked out at him. As Lucius made to scream again, Lupin punched him in the face before muting him with a quick flick of his wand.
Severus dismounted his own broom and went to where Lupin was struggling to hold Lucius down, raising an eyebrow at Lupin as if to ask him why he chose Muggle confrontation.
"That was for Sirius," said Lupin.
"How very touching."
"Malfoy, if you kick me again, I'll break your nose. We're here to help you, damn it."
Severus saw that Lucius still had a neck brace on and muttered a quick spell to heal the broken bones before ripping the brace away and helping Lupin to drag Lucius to the brooms. Lucius stood at the edge of his cell, staring down into the storming sea as Lupin mounted his broom again and Severus swung a leg up over his own broom
"Now, Lucius." Wincing as if he had been shocked, Lucius climbed onto Severus's broom, shivering, and placed his hands on Severus's shoulders. "Try not to panic, or I shall be forced to hex you."
"Stop!" cried a guard from behind and three dementors swarmed into the cell in front of him as the black fog gave way to the light of the guard's Patronus.
"I'll handle this; get him out of here," said Lupin as he cast his Patronus and a wolf grew from the tip of his wand to a size even bigger than Lupin when he was in wolf form. Unlike Lupin, however, this wolf was just that, a wolf, and there was no threat to it, no artificial shape of its body. The entire thing was furry and silver, yet Severus could not help but note how powerful it looked (whether this was a sign of Lupin's skill or simply the wolf's form was yet to be decided).
Severus kicked off from the cell floor and shot out into the storm. Instantly, Lucius's hold on his shoulders became tighter to where his fingernails pinched Severus's skin through his cloak, but Severus had to ignore this as he looked about for Moody's Patronus. He shot toward it, bending low over his broom handle. The rain pelted his face, blinding him to the barely discernible path through the dementors ahead, so he quickly performed the spell to clear his vision, but as he did so, his broom handle began to ice over under his grip.
The strength of Moody's Patronus, as powerful as it was, was not enough to blot out the steely grip the dementors cast elsewhere, and in order to get through to Moody, Severus would have to summon his own Patronus. Even as he pointed his wand to cast it, though, an enormous wolf figure mowed down the dementors in his path as Lupin arrived in the air beside Severus and Lucius, clearing the way to Moody. He shouted something to Severus, but over the noise of the storm, Severus could not hear his words, so Lupin gestured over his shoulder and Severus saw four figures on brooms gaining on them.
The wizards braved the storm to put Lucius back into his cell because they believed that Severus, Lupin, and Moody were loyal Death Eaters come to spring him from prison, but Severus could not very well reveal their true intentions. He sent a spell back over his shoulder, but did not wait to see if it made contact with his pursuers. Lupin's broom put on a burst of speed, cut in front of Severus, and doubled back, confronting the wizards on his own.
Unable to help himself, Severus glanced back in time to see Lupin simultaneously disarm three of the wizards before the fourth shot a spell straight at Lupin who took it to his chest. His broom continued forward without him and Lupin fell.
Suspended in midair, Severus saw Lupin plummeting down, down, down toward the unforgiving sea below and a small part of him wanted to have the satisfaction of watching Lupin's form crumple and be consumed by the waves. He wanted to watch the end of at least one of his childhood tormentors—but no, that wasn't the proper word. Of the four of them, Lupin had never actually raised a wand to him. Potter, Black, and Pettigrew had all relished his pain and humiliation, but Lupin never joined in. He never shared his friends' twisted sense of humor.
And Severus did not kill needlessly. He only allowed death to happen if there was no conceivable way to rescue the victim. He had a chance here and despite his childhood self telling him to let Lupin go to his watery grave, Severus knew that Lupin would not have let him fall to his death.
So he tilted the broom handle downward and shot for Lupin's body which moved in the air as if he were performing an intricate dance of death. As he zipped past Lupin's body to get below him and try to catch him, he knew that his broom wouldn't support the weight of three grown men, and so he called out a command to Lucius, struggling to be heard over the storm.
"On my mark, take hold of the broom handle and keep it steady. I will be back for you."
Still muted by Lupin's hex, Lucius could only shake his head in protest, but Severus ignored him, preparing for his risky plan. Trying to time it perfectly, he suddenly launched himself from the broom, calling on the aid of the difficult magic he had learned from the Dark Lord long ago. He was flying on his own, upright and focused on Lupin's body as it neared the waves until he could get right beneath his companion.
"Arresto Momentum," he cried, pointing his wand at Lupin and the latter's body slowed all at once before coming to a complete halt just above Severus.
Lucius maneuvered his broom down beside Severus, eyes widened in awe at this new form of magic, but he reached out and took hold of Lupin's wrist just as an enormous silver bear announced Moody's arrival. Moody pulled Lupin onto his broom without question, but reserved a scathing look in Severus's direction, most likely due to his ability to fly. Severus wasn't perturbed in the least; Moody could be as prejudiced as he liked against dark magic, but even he couldn't deny that it had just saved Lupin's life.
Severus motioned for Lucius to come closer and then mounted the broom, shooting off in pursuit of Moody who led the way back into the sky, hidden from Azkaban by the storm.
/ /
Dumbledore was late, but Severus didn't let that bother him, for Dumbledore showed up when he wanted and nearly always had a more than reasonable excuse for his tardiness. Given that he was extracting Narcissa Malfoy from right under the Dark Lord's nose and sneaking Draco out of Hogwarts, Dumbledore had plenty of reasons to be late, but Severus had to deal with Moody making threats to Lucius while they waited.
"I've got half a mind to turn your fingers into flobberworms," said Moody, magical eye darting around various parts of Lucius's body as if trying to find the best spot to hex.
"And you're welcome to after you've given me a wand to fight back in a fair fight if you're man enough," said Lucius in a stronger voice than the terrified tone he had adopted in his cell. When Severus had lifted the spell to allow Lucius to speak again, he had demanded that Severus provide him with the detailed truth and though Severus obliged him, he was obviously still of a doubting mind and continued to question why Lupin and Moody had accompanied them. His interrogation had prompted Moody to start a verbal battle and Severus was quickly growing tired of their bickering.
"You've got no business talking about fair fights when you've got the Dark Mark branded into your skin. Your master doesn't deal in any type of equality," snapped Moody. "But if you want a fair fight we can do that. I'll put my wand away and punch you in the nose. You wouldn't last ten seconds in a fist fight, Malfoy."
Scoffing, Lucius nevertheless eyed Moody's gnarled hands. "A Muggle fight, you mean. Barbaric."
"Being a Muggle fight won't stop it from meaning that I'll knock you flat on your arse—"
"Mad-Eye, would it be possible for you to hush up for just a few minutes?" asked Lupin from the ground beside Mad-Eye. His hands were clasped over his mouth and nose, most likely attempting to nurse his headache and nausea that followed the curse he had taken to the chest. Severus had revived him when they arrived at the rendezvous point, but until now, he had sat silently.
"I can agree to that sentiment," said Lucius.
"Now, you look here, Malfoy, I battled you in the Department of Mysteries and if I had it my way, you'd rot in Azkaban, but I trust Dumbledore and I want to see the Dark Lord fall, so if Dumbledore says you're essential to that, I have to drag your cowardly arse off to safety. If we'd wanted you dead, we would have left you to the dementors; nothing we can do to torture you will ever be as bad as that place."
Moody brandished his wand and Lucius looked like being hexed by the Auror would be a reasonable price to pay for continuing to ask questions. Luckily, no such altercation occurred as with a loud pop, Dumbledore himself appeared with both Narcissa and Draco Malfoy holding onto his arms. At the sight of Lucius, both of them gave strangled sobs and ran to him, embracing him through tears. The whole world might have fallen away at that moment and the Malfoys would not have noticed.
Lucius had no tears to shed, but his face displayed a man who had nearly reached his breaking point as he allowed his wife to bury her face in his chest. Draco was clinging to his shoulder, determined never to let his father go.
Dumbledore beamed at Severus, Lupin, and Moody as the Malfoy family continued their reunion, but when enough time had elapsed to make the silent situation somewhat uncomfortable, the headmaster cleared his throat and the Malfoys broke apart. Despite the fact that Dumbledore himself had brought the family together, Severus noted how Lucius pushed Narcissa behind him. However gutless Lucius was in the face of the Dark Lord, Severus was properly surprised at this display of courage from the man. Wandless, he still intended to defend Narcissa from any harm to come, though the fact that he expected any to come showed his ineptitude.
Most surprising of all, though, was Draco who gripped his wand in his dominant hand and stepped in front of his father to face Dumbledore. It was the same type of dumb bravery Potter possessed that Severus absolutely loathed.
"I think we are past doubting my intentions with your family," said Dumbledore sternly. "If I had wanted any harm to come to any of you, I would have allowed it to occur naturally at the hands of Voldemort. I have brought you together so that I might escort the three of you to safety. Your location shall only be known to myself for the time being unless I find it crucial that someone else knows of it and in that instance, you can most likely expect one of the gentlemen behind me."
Narcissa and Draco seemed to notice Severus, Lupin, and Moody for the first time and Severus was pleased to see the relief flood over Narcissa's face as well as the shame on Draco's. Mouthing a thank you to him, Narcissa sent her gratitude for protecting her son while Draco hung his head after the last words he and Severus had exchanged. Their reaction to Severus's companions was another story, but Lucius would surely fill them in on how Lupin and Moody were undeniably part of the reason he had made it safely back to them.
"I would not go as far as to say that they are heroes," continued Dumbledore, "But you may view them as such for reuniting your family. Their loyalty to me is unwavering and you can rest assured that they will assist me in keeping you safe. At great personal risk, they agreed to liberate Lucius from Azkaban, so I would ask that you show nothing but the utmost respect for them."
Moody was responsible for putting Lucius's fellow Death Eaters in Azkaban and part of the reason Lucius ended up there himself. Lupin was a werewolf not under Fenrir Greyback's command and therefore an enemy to Voldemort's cause. Both were known members of the Order of the Phoenix. As was Severus. Dumbledore was asking for a miracle in having the deeply prejudiced and judgmental Malfoy family accept an Auror and a werewolf as allies, but not for the first time that night, Lucius surprised him.
He held out his hand to Lupin.
With the glee of a child on his face, Dumbledore stepped aside so Lupin could come forward to accept Lucius's handshake, but Lupin hesitated and Severus knew why. Lucius had led the Death Eaters that night in the Department of Mysteries. He had followed orders from the Dark Lord to kill and he had taken Bellatrix Lestrange with him. Bellatrix then proceeded to murder Sirius Black, Lupin's last living good friend. Severus realized that the bigger miracle to ask for was for Lupin to accept Lucius's acceptance of him.
But Lupin was a bigger, better man than his friends had ever been, for he came forward and grasped Lucius's hand, not fleetingly as Severus and Black had two years ago, but in a strong grip that seemed to make Dumbledore proud. Moody only granted the Malfoy family a curt nod and when it came time for Severus to show that he held no animosity toward the them either, he felt his head barely move up and down.
"If you are ready, then, I will take you to your safehouse," said Dumbledore.
Grasping his wife's hand and gripping Draco's sleeve in the other, Lucius started forward slightly. "I am…not in the habit of accepting such hospitality, Dumbledore."
"It's not hospitality, my dear Lucius, it's humanity. I ask only that you remember the men who put their lives on the line so that you may be reunited without fear. Should you ever be tempted to return to Voldemort, I ask that you remember what was sacrificed for you, for I can assure you that a third chance for your family will not be granted. I see hope for you all, but fear has a way of destroying that hope. I will nurture hope forever, but only you can decide if you wish to conquer it and forever leave Voldemort's bondage."
Lucius nodded fervently and Dumbledore clapped him on the shoulder before turning back to Severus and the other two.
"In the near future, I will require your further services, Severus, and if you would be willing, Remus and Alastor, I would ask the same of you."
"You know I'm willing to do almost anything, Albus. You know how you can contact me."
"Anything I can do to help, you can rely on me, Albus," said Lupin.
"Splendid. Well, then, I think it high time I transported you to a place where you might actually have a decent night's sleep. If you'll take my arm…"
The Malfoy's all took a fistful of Dumbledore's sleeve and with another loud pop, they disappeared.
In the wake of Dumbledore and the Malfoy's Disapparation, Moody spat on the ground with a grunt that sounded suspiciously like, "Not worth a puddle of piss," before giving Severus and Lupin a farewell jerk of his head and Disapparating himself.
On the verge of taking off to return to his position at Hogwarts and await an inevitable summon from the Dark Lord, Severus saw that Lupin was looking quite uncomfortable, fiddling with a loose button on his cloak. Severus knew what was coming and found that he couldn't stand the thought of hearing it.
"Try to not fly straight into a knockback curse next time," he told Lupin.
"Flying was not one of my better subjects in school," said Lupin. "Adding in a storm of rain and dementors just made the situation as worse as it possibly could have gotten."
"You're less like your companions than I originally thought. Both of them relished in constantly reminding me how superior their flying skills were to mine. But I did manage to fly without a broomstick, which is something I don't believe either of them managed to accomplish."
"There were three of them," Lupin reminded him.
"I do not consider Pettigrew part of your posse when it comes to talents."
"I try not to either." Lupin shook his head to collect his thoughts and with as much sincerity as Severus had ever seen on his face, continued. "Severus, regardless of whether or not you want to hear it, you have my thanks. I don't know why you did it, but I'm glad you did."
Severus couldn't bring himself to recognize Lupin's gratitude with words, so he merely nodded once and with a turn of his cloak, vanished into the night while it lingered.