A Veela Family

Chapter 5: Destroy

It was the 10th of September when Severus managed to come back, in the late afternoon, with the sword of Gryffindor, and the locket. He also brought the two horcruxes which were already destroyed, to hide them just in case the Dark Lord ever actually stepped foot in Hogwarts.

The last week had been… nice. Even though Harry had been fretting constantly about the soul shard that lay in his head, the other two took to looking after him like ducks to water. He looked after them as well, of course, he managed to talk the house elves into letting him cook breakfast and dinner for his family whilst he kindly gave them other jobs to do, and he especially enjoyed the cooking when Draco joined him. Lucius often watched them with a bright smile on his face as Harry taught their kit how to cook, and Harry offered to teach him, too.

"Me, cook? No, thank you," he would chuckle.

"Why not?" Harry would raise an eyebrow at him.

"I… Cooking just isn't for me," Lucius would say.

"Dad really is terrible at cooking," Draco would laugh, "He can't even make toast without burning it, and that is with the aid of magic. Without magic he would be a complete mess,"

"That is no way to speak of your dad, kit," Lucius would growl, but the smile on his face bellied the anger in his voice.

"I'm just stating the facts," Draco grinned at his father.

Lucius would grumble for a few seconds before placing a kiss on his mate and kit's foreheads and sitting back at the island to watch.

Draco and Harry had gone flying a few times also, Lucius joining them occasionally. Or Lucius would read to them both in the living room as they all curled together on the sofa.

Of course they were scouring the books that Severus had sent them about horcruxes, too. And owl ordering ones they found in catalogues for the darker leaning shops they thought might be useful. And yet, the more they searched the more they realised that maybe there wasn't a thing they could do.

But they would find something.

They had to find something.

Right?

The goblins didn't even know of anything off the top of their heads, but they have agreed to search their own tomes for answers. And the veela nation are searching also. And yet, nothing. Not yet.

Only a week had passed, sure. But he had hoped they would make some more progress by now. Honestly, the longer he knew that he had a piece of Voldemort's soul in his head, the more sick he felt. The more disgusted he felt.

Harry breathed shakily as the four of them entered the garden in order to destroy a horcrux that wasn't the one inside him. The veela nation had said that they should still destroy the others. It will make him weaker and give them a better chance of at least subduing Him until they found their answers and were able to destroy the one in Harry without destroying him. Or, if worse comes to worse, somehow subduing Voldemort until Harry dies naturally, of old age, then someone else can kill Him.

Merlin, everything was such a mess.

Severus placed the locket on the floor in the middle of the gorgeous garden. They were circled by rose bushes about 10 metres away from them. And Harry could see the greenhouses over Severus' shoulder as they glistened in the sunset light.

Severus held the sword out to Harry and Harry blinked in shock as he came back into himself.

"Erm… you can do it," Harry said, sounding rather meek.

"You're the Gryffindor, are you not?" Severus said with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean only Gryffindors can use the sword. The way I see it is, so long as you are being truly brave, showing your Gryffindor side as it were, because we all have qualities from all of the Houses realistically, then you can use it. And you, sir, are a spy. You are being truly brave. And I feel like, since both Professor Dumbledore and I have destroyed one already, others should get the chance to also. Especially those of us who have been wronged in some way by the man we are wanting to defeat. So, sir, you should be able to destroy one also. If the sword didn't like you it wouldn't let you hold it, right?" Harry said.

Severus rolled his eyes, huffing as he looked at Harry with questioning eyes. Harry was somewhat shocked by the concern in them, too.

"Okay, I'll do it. But only if you're sure," Severus said, his voice gentle.

"I'm positive," Harry nodded strongly.

Severus sighed and they moved so that Harry was standing by Lucius and Draco in front of the bushes and Severus was standing in front of the locket, looking between it and the sword in his hands.

After a few minutes of contemplating everything Severus raised the sword and brought it down on the locket.

Nothing happened though. If anything the sword seemed to bounce off it as they all looked on in confusion.

Harry stepped forward to take a closer look at the locket. The snake in the shape of an 'S'. The metal. The hinge. It was a locket. It opened.

"Maybe we have to open it?" Harry said, his brows crinkling in thought.

"Wonderful," Severus muttered.

Harry didn't know what made him do it, his mouth moved on it's own, and a sibilant 'open' came pouring out of his mouth before he could stop himself.

And he and Severus were thrown back by the power that erupted from within, Harry knocking into his family and falling into a mass of limbs.

"Severus," Voldemort's voice said gently from the black mass that was swirling through the air above the locket, and they all turned to look at it, and Severus who was kneeling a few feet away from the locket, "How good of you to open me. You are certainly an interesting puppet of mine, aren't you? So much pain. So much suffering. So much betrayal. So much fear. Who knew you were so weak? You put on a rather brilliant facade after all. But in reality you are weak. Far weaker than even Peter Pettigrew is,"

Severus was looking at the floor, his body trembling slightly, and Harry longed to go over to him and hug him. To help the man who had saved him so many times. The man who was looking after him and his family.

"Severus, it's not real," Harry called out desperately.

"Oh, how Harry Potter makes you hurt, Severus. It really is rather shocking how much a child hurts you. How much all of the children you teach hurt you, even as you try and protect them," Voldemort's voice says as a ghostly image of the man kneels in front of Severus, "Maybe we should tell him just how much pain he causes you,"

"N-no," Severus said, shaking his head.

"Oh, right. You want to protect him. You want to protect everyone. A right little mother dragon you are, Severus. Always protecting the children, no matter how much they hurt you. You want to protect him from the truth about his parents. His family. About what they did to you. You don't want him to hate them. That's why you kicked him out of your pensieve in his fifth year. So he wouldn't see just the beginning of the worst. You are so terribly fearful, Severus. Of everything. Of everyone. Maybe you should learn to be brave. Maybe you should tell me the truth. Maybe you should tell the world why you really became a Death Eater. Or are you scared that it would make you seem weak? I mean, you are weak, but maybe it is time people knew it,"

"Severus, it isn't true," Lucius said, worriedly, "It isn't real. You aren't weak. You are the strongest person I know, Severus. To go through all of that and still be here, fighting, protecting. Severus, you are my brother, and I love you. Please. It isn't real,"

Voldemort chuckled darkly, "Oh, Severus, all the things you don't want people to know about, especially the people you care for. Lucius Malfoy, your brother in all but blood. Just as much a traitor to my cause as you, and yet, every time you look at him you remember his father. His father who told you of your special gift when you fell ill whilst staying at Malfoy Manor one summer. His father who wanted to use this gift of yours, isn't that right, Severus?"

Harry heard Lucius gasp painfully beside him and knew he had to stop this. He started to crawl over to Severus, the sword was on the floor next to him.

"Do you remember, Severus? Do you remember what happened that summer? The reason your gift was discovered. The reason you were ill. The reason you finally accepted being a Death Eater as your only choice in this world. Yes, your housemates, most of them anyway, had been hurting you, trying to get you to change your mind. They tried so hard to get you to become one of us, Severus. You were always so talented. And yet, no matter how hard they tried, you always said no. Always. Even though the whole school thought you were one, even your ex best friend. And then the delightful events of this tragic summer happened, and you finally relented. So you couldn't be used. So Abraxas Malfoy couldn't use you to mother his children. So you wouldn't have to go through that pain again. Because I wouldn't let a Death Eater of mine get pregnant, would I? Too dangerous," Voldemort chuckled and provided a tiny image in front of Severus' eyes that Harry couldn't quite see.

And Severus growled painfully before snatching up the sword and bringing it down on the locket again, and the power, as well as the scream that was emitted with it, threw them all back again.

But soon the black mass of a cloud had disappeared and all four of them were panting on the floor as the darkness of power disappeared from the air.

The three looked at Severus worriedly as he laid on the floor, looking for all the world like he was trying not to cry, even as his body shook.

"Severus," Lucius said gently, starting to move over to his friend.

Severus shot up and looked at them all with hard eyes, "Not a word of this, to anyone," he said sharply.

"Of course not, Sev," Lucius said, Harry and Draco nodding in agreement.

Severus nodded and started stalking back to the house.

And Harry felt the need to go after him. To make sure he was alright. So he did.

He found Severus in the living room, shakily pouring himself a glass of whiskey and downing it before pouring another one.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked, and he felt like kicking himself, even more so as the man turned to him.

"I'm fine," the man said sternly, and yet there was an edge to it.

"You're not, but it's cool. I get that," Harry muttered, Severus heard him, though, and he looked at Harry with hard eyes, even as he took a deep breath.

"Why do I hurt you? I mean, I know I haven't been the best student; although I don't think that is really my fault for various reasons; and I know my dad bullied you, and all that. But… I'm sorry, I shouldn't pry. I'm sorry, by the way. I'm sorry for looking into your pensieve that year. I just… I thought I would find answers. Dumbledore had been ignoring me all year, and no one else was telling me anything. I mean, I was there, right? I was there when Vol-He came back. I was there when he told Pettigrew to kill Cedric. I'm the one they all want to fight the bastard. And no one would tell me anything. No one would help me. No one would help me. I just… I wanted to know what I was seeing in my visions, and no one would answer that. No one. Even though I had every right to know. I didn't… I didn't mean to see what I did. And I'm sorry. I just… I wasn't myself that year. Not that I really know myself, never really had the chance to figure me out-"

"Will you stop rambling?" Severus sighed in annoyance.

"Sorry," Harry said.

"I'm not going to tell you anything about your parents. I can't… I really don't want you to hate them, or whatever. They loved you enough to die for you, after all. And despite everything they did to me, everything that was said… Despite it all, they were good to nearly everyone else. They were on the right side of the war, if you can call it that, anyway. I wasn't. Although, I never wanted to be a Death Eater. I just… I had to protect myself. In any case, though, I know you didn't mean to see what you did. I know you wanted answers. And I know you're sorry. I didn't agree with what Dumbledore was doing to you that year, or any of it really. But my arguments were useless. He was content to do as he pleases and use us all like pawns on his chess board. I forgive you. Although, I guess I should be glad that you clearly weren't paying attention to that memory. Or maybe I pulled you out on time, who knows?" he muttered the last bits before gulping down his whiskey, but Harry heard it anyway and was thoroughly confused, but he didn't bring it up. He would think on it later.

"So, erm," Harry struggled. He wanted to talk to the man but he had no idea what to say.

"Harry, can I have some time alone with Severus, please?" Lucius said gently from the door, and Severus sighed shakily, looking at the floor with what was clearly pain in his eyes.

"Okay," Harry muttered, then he left the room to find Draco waiting for him with a sad smile on his face.

Harry smiled at his kit and wrapped the blonde in his arms, needing something, but also needing to provide.

"Are you okay, mum?" Draco said quietly.

"Mhm, I will be. How are you?" Harry said, just as quiet.

"I'm fine," Draco said shakily and Harry sighed knowingly.

…

"You're a bearer?" Lucius said quietly after a few minutes of silence between the friends.

Severus stayed quiet as he poured himself another drink, not looking at Lucius, his shoulders somehow both tense and shaking.

"I brought you to the Manor the summer after your fifth year, and the summer after that. And you were pregnant-"

"Shut up, Lucius," Severus said sharply.

"Sev-"

"Don't. It doesn't matter. Not anymore," Severus said, his voice both hard and soft. Cracking.

"Of course it matters, Severus. My father hurt you to the point where you became a Death Eater after everything else you had survived so far. You gave in. You were always so adamant that you weren't going to give in, then you came home with me, and you gave in. I know my father was a bastard, I do. He hurt me, too. He probably would have hurt Draco, too had he still been alive when he was born. But I didn't think he had hurt you, Severus. And I am so sorry that he did,"

"It's not your fault, Lucius," Severus said gently.

"It's not yours either, Sev," Lucius said just as gently, "But you shouldn't have had to become a Death Eater to protect yourself from what he wanted to do to you, or did do to you,"

"It doesn't matter," Severus' voice cracked.

"And yet you are still hurting," Lucius said as he wrapped his arms around his brother's shoulders.

"I tried to escape," Severus whispered so brokenly that Lucius' heart tore into shreds, "I try to escape from everyone but nothing ever works," he chuckled darkly, "It's like I have a sign on my forehead saying 'break me',"

"Merlin, Sev. I am so bloody sorry for bringing you to the Manor. I just, I wanted to protect you from your parents, and Evans. I didn't think… I'm sorry. I should have fought harder for you. I should have gotten both of us out of there. I should have taken both of us away. Pretended you were my mate, anything,"

Severus chuckled again, "Then what? Draco wouldn't be here, or he would be but he would be different. And I would be forced to hate him because of Veela magic. And you probably wouldn't have met Harry either and so wouldn't have him and your future together to look forward to. And, I mean, you would have been forced to have sex with me to produce your heir, and I think that would have been hell for both of us,"

"Well, some people can fight against the Veela magics, it depends how powerful you are and whether you accept the situation, along with if you actually want kids. You might have been able to love him. You are bloody powerful, after all. And I think I know you enough to know that you want a family, even if it is a weird one. You have always been wonderful with Draco. And if it got us away from everything and everyone then I am sure you would have accepted the situation. And sex with you wouldn't have been hell. Yes, I see you as a brother of sorts, but if it saved you from more pain I would do anything for you, even having sex to produce our heir. And at least you have the right body parts. With Narcissa I had to use a lot of potions whilst we waited for her to conceive. Very expensive potions, too," Lucius sounded rather put upon.

"I know, I was the one who made them," Severus chuckled again, "But you are being ridiculous, Lucius. It wouldn't have worked. We still wouldn't be safe. Especially when it eventually came out that I wasn't your mate,"

Lucius sighed as he held Severus closer to him, "I'm still sorry. I should have protected you better, Severus. I should have fought harder for you when you announced that you would become a Death Eater. I should have asked why. I should have done something to get you away, even if it meant hiding you somewhere. I should have known something had happened. I'm sorry, for whatever my father did to you. I'm here, if you ever want to talk about it. Although I can figure out a few details already. I won't ask, though. Not unless you want to talk,"

Severus breathed shakily, "I should… I should get back to the school. I have ch-children to protect,"

Lucius sighed knowingly, "You're not weak, Severus. You are the strongest person I know, and I mean it. You are so bloody brave, even if you refuse to see it in yourself. And I love you. If you ever do want to talk about anything, I am here for you. I'm sorry,"

"It's not your fault, Lucius. I will be going to the Room of Requirement on the weekend when things have settled a little more at the school. I will let you all know if I find anything," Severus pulled away from the blonde's arms, gulped down some more whiskey and then looked at his friend with a sad smile on his face, "Look after them for me," he said painfully.

"Always, Sev. But you can't just… You can't just lock yourself away from us. You're our family. Sev,"

Severus was gone.

Hiya, I hope you are all well!

And I hope you enjoyed this chapter also, despite the pain that I emitted into it. Don't ask me why it happened, it just did. My mind hurts and I am too exhausted. I don't like hurting Sev, he is my favourite, but he is me and he will be happy one day, I promise. Whether I will or not remains to be seen, however. But hey, I have seven new tattoos now so that is something, haha. Did I get them all in the same session? Yes, I did. But did I have the best night's sleep afterwards? Yes, I did. Merlin, tattoos are so relaxing. I mean, I got my ankle done and all I felt was a very comforting warmth. Is that weird? Am I a bit fucked? Probably, haha.

Anywho, I posted an essay/petition where I (un)officially explain why I think I should be cast as my favourite character, Severus Snape, in the new HBO series, despite the fact that I am a woman. It would mean a lot if you went and read it, but no pressure. It isn't going to lead to anything, unless, by some miracle, it goes viral, but it was fun to write. It is on my AO3, Maraudering_Paige. Feel free to go and check it out.

Also, I am working on some Spotify playlists for my fanfics, so if you can think of any songs you think work with the stories as they are so far, or where you think they are going, or songs that give you the vibes you get from the stories, then please do let me know and I will give them a listen, then potentially add them to the playlists. I will let you know as soon as they are ready, though it may take a few weeks because life.

I have a Facebook group called Maraudering_Paige which you are all welcome to join if you would like to and are able to. It is where we can talk about Harry Potter, fanfics, life, share memes and more. It is also where I have somewhat of an update schedule for my fics and will be keeping you up to date on what I am working on, in regards to fanfics, original works, and more things. So if you are interested in joining then I am more than happy to accept you all.

Also, would anyone be interested in perhaps and Instagram or a TikTok, or both, specifically for my writing? This would be perfect if you can't join the group as I can keep you up to date on everything on them. I won't be able to do too much on there at the moment given my situation, but I can keep you all posted on what I am working on and such on platforms that more of you may use? I don't know. It is just a thought I have been having lately. Let me know what you think.

I hope you are having an amazing day!

Kind regards,

Paige xx