Thank you for reading! I don't own any of Harry Potter! Please let me know if you enjoy! Updates every Saturday!
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Severus stood on the edge of the stony, open overlook that allowed him to peer out over the castle's gray grounds.
A frown marred his face as he watched rows of Hogwarts students march in militaristic formations per the strict instructions given by one of the many loathsome professors Voldemort had appointed to the school.
Although Severus had been awarded the coveted position of headmaster after Dumbledore's death, he could barely show his face to the portraits in the office, knowing that he had no other choice than to act as the Dark Lord's puppet until the hour came that would allow his freedom.
His serious frown of melancholy relaxed slightly as a familiar scent hit his nose, like fresh flowers mixed with the comforting sweetness of cozy sweets being baked nearby.
Hands wrapped around him from behind.
A head gently pressed against his back.
"You're doing wonderfully, Sev." Lily whispered.
Relieved to encounter a distraction that took his attention away from his grim view and bitter musings, Severus turned around to face his darling flower.
"Oh, Lily……." He sighed as he gladly folded her in his embrace while she snuggled against him, "...When this brutal war finally ends, how will anyone…..forgive me? How will we move on?"
"You have to do what you must right now, Sev." Lily said as she looked up to press loving kisses against his cheeks, "...And when this war is finally over, which it will be….soon……you will be celebrated as the hero you are. Don't you worry about that for a second, we'll be a family and you and Harriet will be regarded as two of the most respectable people in our world."
Doubt lingered on Severus's pale face as he spoke, "There are so many that-"
"-That you've saved, you're right, Sev, there are!" Lily beamed as she slyly redirected their conversation onto a more positive focus, "Just think of all those you're saving by following Dumbledore's plan! This is what must be for now, we have to play along."
Severus frowned.
Lily took his face into her hands as she gazed into his eyes and reassured him, "...When the day comes that Harriet defeats him, it will all have been worth it, my love. It will all have been worth it."
Severus said nothing in response.
Lily took his silence as a sign of quiet reflection, but she refused to give up on her crusade to lift his spirits.
Without any encouragement at all, she stood still and held Severus up as the world seemed to crumble around him.
Lily squeezed his waist as she pressed her cheek against his chest to center him, ground him, even in that awful moment they spent listening to Voldemort's regime command Hogwarts' students in the courtyard below.
"I love you, Sev." She whispered in the cold, dark morning.
He found himself resisting the urge to weep as he listened to her beautiful confession.
There would have been no sweeter song capable of comforting him that same way.
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In the days that followed Anuman's murder, Harriet wished she could have contacted her family.
She would have traded anything for a hug from Lily, a gentle word of reassurance from her loving mother.
Harriet would have liked to have talked to Ellery, who always maintained a level-headed sensible outlook, just like their father.
Her father, whom she considered to be her father anyway, Harriet would have dearly loved to have been gifted with one of her Dad's lectures then, on grief, on moving on, on the fragility of life.
Anything would have helped.
Ron and Hermione talked to her when they could, but trapped in the middle of nowhere, with their lives on the line, and Voldemort's remaining horcruxes hidden somewhere they had not yet discovered, the Golden Trio's conversations were less vibrant than they had been before.
Tom offered Harriet a shoulder to cry on, but Draco kept himself at a respectful distance.
As Harriet relied on her current lover to mourn her dear friend, he felt more out of place than ever at the camp.
Throughout each day, he reminded himself about the purpose of his presence.
Where else in the world would he have possibly been able to do anything more noble than defend his sweetheart?
Harriet spent nights sleepless, tossing and turning in her cot as she replayed Anuman's final moments over and over in her mind.
He had been an Animagus the entire time, how was it possible she had never noticed?
……Never thought to ask?
Had she become so self-absorbed that she had failed to see her friends at all, really see them?
Harriet frowned to herself as she sat by the fire late one evening after all her companions had gone to bed.
The silence of the dark forest was interrupted only by the hooting of owls and the bright chirping of the various insects who prowled through the grass at such a late hour.
Harriet sighed as she pressed her hands to her throbbing temples.
Grief had given her a headache.
Grief had broken her heart.
She found it more and more difficult with each passing day to hold onto her motivation to keep pressing forward.
As she thought back to the many fairytales her parents had read to her during her childhood, she chuckled bitterly as she wondered…….what happened when the hero simply became…..tired?
Exhaustion gnawed at her bones.
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Far away from magical Britain, Hogwarts, Hogsmeade, and Harriet's encampment, the school of Beauxbatons entrenched itself in protective charms to insulate its faculty and students from the growing threat that lurked nearby.
Madame Maxine had offered few updates and hardly any bits of information at all on the situation in Britain.
Newspapers in magical France ignored the entire issue of Voldemort.
Most people seemed content to hide inside their own, safe country and display sad frowns only whenever the predicament was brought up by someone in conversation.
Gabrielle Delacour did not share their mentality.
Forbidden by both her school administrators and her family from contacting Ellery, her only hope was to hear some news to learn more about the perils he faced.
As she walked through the school's grounds one day, she passed by one of the sixth year girls who showed another something in her hand.
"You'll give him a lock of your hair?!" The other girl exclaimed.
"Why would I do anything else?" The first girl laughed as she held out her open hands, "He is my love, is he not? As long as he wears this on his person, he will have the protection all Veelas enjoy, the sea itself!"
"But when he touches it, the two of you can never be apart!" The other girl exclaimed.
"That's the idea, no?!" The first girl laughed, "All he needs to do is wear this and then nothing in this world can ever part us!"
"I think Madam Maxime may disagree." The other girl snickered.
As the two girls shared hurried whispers and quiet snickers while they contemplated the sobering prospect of choosing a mate, Gabrielle quickened her pace while tears welled in her eyes.
She slammed the door shut behind herself as she made it to her elegant dormitory, removed a piece of monogrammed parchment from her desk, and began to write with a quill made from a fluffy ostrich feather.
Ellery,
I'm sorry it's been so long. I've been foolish enough to be obedient and let you wait in need of my rebellion. Take the enclosed and wear it on your person at all times, it will keep you safe, until we can see each other again.
Gabrielle Delacour
Gabrielle was not accustomed to secrets and threats.
She didn't take the time to consider leaving the sender and recipient blank in her letter for safety reasons, which would have been a wise consideration.
After she folded the parchment into an envelope, she slipped her wand into her hand and promptly used a slicing spell to cut off a lock of her hair, which she stuffed into the envelope before she sealed it shut.
Not realizing the danger she had placed herself and Ellery in by sending him a simple parcel with a gift of pure, young love, Gabrielle smiled to herself as she walked into Beauxbatons' Owlery a short time later.
As she sent the letter in the beak of a speckled owl, she watched the bird fly away as more tears gathered in her eyes.
Her heart had nearly exploded with the pain of missing her darling.
Gabrielle would have gladly given up any of her worldly possessions to accompany her letter and see Ellery once more.
She couldn't bear to think of how she would go on living if for some reason, he did not live through the war.
A small smile danced across her fair face as she began the walk back towards the school.
Gabrielle knew she would sleep easier knowing she had done everything possible to ensure Ellery's survival.
