Severus stands behind the counter at Primrose Apothecary, his fingers drumming on the aged oak counter. Behind him, lined neatly on shelves are all of his wet specimens that he had stored in his office at Hogwarts, which he had never had a proper place to store after leaving. He found them to be fascinating, intriguing, and oddly satisfying. To be completely frozen in time, even after death, yet still so lifelike. He could still remember the first specimen he had collected; he was only sixteen years old and spotted the mooncalf fetus suspended in a pale green liquid on the front counter of Borgin and Burkes while strolling through during Christmas holiday with Lucius Malfoy and his father, Abraxas. Much to his surprise, on Christmas morning, Severus unwrapped that very mooncalf as a gift from Abraxas Malfoy, who had watched him study the thing with great interest as Lucius swaggered throughout the shop with Narcissa on his arm.
Abraxas had always treated Severus kindly; allowed him to stay summers and winters at Malfoy Manor and had even funded Severus' potions ingredients during his early days with the Death Eaters, before The Dark Lord began funding them himself. The old man had seen something in Severus, though he never divulged what it may be that he had seen. He mentored him, taught him to never stray far from potions, as he was truly gifted at it.
After that Christmas, Abraxas indulged him frequently, often for no reason at all. There was countless times while at either Spinner's End or Hogwarts, that Severus would be woken by a sharp rapping at the window by Abraxas' black-banned owl, Belladonna, delivering yet another creature suspended in liquid. These gifts continued until Abraxas' untimely death due to dragon pox during the summer of 1994. Severus had taken his death rather hard, as Abraxas had been the closest thing to a father figure he had ever had. He had been a short tempered and intimidating man, yet incredibly insightful and powerful. He had been, at the time, who Severus looked up to the most, the type of man Severus had aspired to be while he was a mere teenager.
The old man had left Severus a handsome amount of gold, his personal collection of specimens, several silver scales, and two golden cauldrons in his will. One of the cauldrons was on a high shelf in the attic brewing room at his wife's house, the other stored securely in her vault at Gringott's with a note detailing the significance of the piece. Though, Severus doubted seriously that his wife would understand the significance of said cauldron.
The Malfoy family acquired their riches from Malfoy Apothecary, which began operating in the fourteenth century when Nicholas Malfoy took the opportunity to swindle innocent Muggles and naive wizards alike out of their meager pay to protect themselves against Bubonic Plague. The Malfoy family kept this business in their name until well into the seventeenth century, when certain ancestors believed it wiser to be as close to the Ministry as possible. Abraxas, however, confided in Severus on more than one occasion that he wished to have had the opportunity to own the shop himself.
The golden cauldron stored safely at Gringott's belonged to none other than the first Lucius Malfoy. Why Abraxas had left it to Severus and not his own son, Lucius' namesake, Severus still had yet to understand. The second cauldron, the one Severus chose to brew in more often than not, belonged to Abraxas himself, and was a gift from his father, Septimus. Whether the later Lucius knew that Severus possessed these heirlooms was another story. Lucius had never mentioned them, and neither had he.
In the end, despite his best efforts, Abraxas succumb to dragon pox. Severus had been too late, much like he had been on countless other occasions. His mind drifts back to nearly three weeks ago, when Danu had been splinched returning home after one of their frequent squabbles. If he had not been there, if he had taken Lorna to the apothecary as he had briefly debated on doing that day, she would have lost her life there in the garden, alone and scared. A chill runs down his spine as he breaks out in a cold sweat. Severus ceases his strumming on the bar and strains his ears carefully to listen for any signs on distress from the back room. He can hear Danu's soft, sweet voice and Lorna's high-pitched giggle. He had not wanted Danu to come, not because he did not value her company, he simply wished for her to stay home and rest. Danu, however, insisted that she be present on opening day.
Severus had a hard time being away from here since the accident, even having her a single room away was much too difficult for him to bare at times. Had she felt this way after he had been bitten? Did she have this same primal need to protect and comfort him, as he did her?
The door to the storeroom squeaks open, pulling Severus from his thoughts. Lorna's demanding presence flutters into the room, catching and holding his attention as she bounces from shelf to shelf gazing at every object she knew all too well not to touch. She is truly a smart girl, inquisitive to a frustrating degree at times, and seemingly a bit of a mischief-maker. Severus ponders on the intense similarities between her and her grandfather. A piece of him truly despised that she lovingly referred to Lupin's spawn as her "best friend," yet he did not have the heart to deny her, well, anything. He could not look into that girls eyes and break her heart by forbidding her to see the boy, no matter how desperately he wished that he could. For whatever reason, despite everything he had done in life, he still had not managed to break free from Sirius Black, James Potter, and Remus Lupin.
"I think we should enroll Lorna into Muggle primary next year." Danu states matter-of-factly as she runs her long, thin fingers down his arm, causing him to sigh in content before she leans against the oak counter and surveys the room.
"Why would you want to do that?" Severus asks coldly. They had not discussed where Lorna would go to school, and if he were being honest, did not want to even think about it.
"I think it would be good for her. Plus, you and I both went to Muggle primary, and we turned out okay. She's smart, she enjoys learning."
"I attended only a year and a half of Muggle schooling beginning when I was eight years old. Anything she wishes to learn; she can learn from home."
Severus had been eight years old when he attended Muggle school and it had been one of the worst experiences of his life, but also the best. Before that year, his mother had taught her herself; Tobias, for whatever reason, as he had not cared whether Severus were literate or not prior to this, demand that he attend, before ultimately deciding before the two years were up that it was simply too expensive. He had spotted Lily on the first day as they walked into the school, she immediately caught his eye, something about her was…special.
A pain in his chest causes him to flinch momentarily at the thought of Lily. Severus had not thought of her in so long. It felt sacrilegious, scandalous. He still loved her, still missed her, and perhaps always would. Though, she did not consume his every thought as she once had. He felt guilt over this, naturally; a piece of his heart and soul would always belong to Lily Evans, for the friendship they had, the memories they had made, and the pain they had each caused one another. He understood, however, exactly why Lily had chosen not to forgive him. If the situations were reversed, he wouldn't forgive him either.
"I just want her to have choices is all." Danu's voice drags him from his thoughts once more.
"Meaning?"
"Meaning that she knows next to nothing about the Muggle world, and I want her to experience it." Danu leans forward and straightens the desk plaque proudly displaying his name and smiles to herself before turning to him and running her hand down his forearm. "We can talk about it later. I'm going to get her home and start on dinner."
"Remember what we discussed this morning." Severus warns as he narrows his eye at her before cutting them sharply at Lorna, who remained fixated on the vials, bottles, and small boxes lining the walls. "Her own bed tonight."
"We'll see." Danu stands on her toes and pecks him on the cheek, her soft, warm lips against his flesh in any capacity was always enough to melt his heart. Severus trails his fingertips down her cardigan clad arms and hooks his index finger with hers as she pulls away. Their fingers remain linked until they can no longer reach one another as she slowly makes her way towards the small fireplace behind the counter, her looking back at him with a soft smile all the way. "I'll see you in a few hours."
The last two weeks had been a nightly battle of getting Lorna to not only lie in her own bed, but stay in it throughout the night. Severus had tried nearly everything, and nothing had seemed to stick. He had even resorted to begging the insolent child to just stay where he left her. Without fail, by eleven every night, Lorna would be whimpering at her mother's bedside, and before he could object, her bony knees and elbows would be digging into his soft flesh in an attempt to burrow under the blankets he had tucked beneath his chin. Tonight, Severus decided that morning as he brushed his teeth and combed his hair, Lorna would be sleeping in her own bed for the entire night, even if he had to sleep at her bedside to ensure it.
Severus runs his finger over the edge of the bar as he watches Lorna and Danu step through the grate and disappear in a puff of grey dust. A few stray customers wandered in and out throughout the day, but not nearly enough to make any sort of living. Two bottles of Antidotes to Uncommon Poison's went to Missus Baker for a doxy infestation, three contraceptive potions to a young man with an eye that wandered a little too long on Danu's figure stretching up to reach the top of a shelf behind the counter. Severus gave the boy a snarl which sent him scampering out of the door, nearly spilling the potions and his change in his wake. They had barely made enough to cover the cost of a bundle of aconite.
He had been a fool to believe that he could pull this off.
The bell above the door chimes, drawing Severus once more from his thoughts. He straightens to his full height and pries his eyes from the framed picture of Lorna on the counter, and into the grey eyes of his godson, Draco Malfoy, who had grown his platinum blond hair out into a shaggy mop that hung in curtains around his sharp, pointed face. Draco smiles weakly at him and offers a small, timid wave.
For a millisecond, Severus imagines Draco's form as it was twenty years ago. Tall, lean, with slick backed hair and eyes too large for his face. Draco would run to him each time he saw him, excitedly tell him about whatever new toy or gadget his father's money had produced, and lead him by the hand to the potions room where the two of them would brew silently together for hours on end. Afterwards, a house elf would serve them tea, and the two of them would walk the gardens of Malfoy Manor together.
Draco had been Severus' first glimpse of parenthood, his first real taste of being near a small, inquisitive child. He had hated how Draco had acted as he got older; the child was downright insufferable the older he became. Now, however, he was gentle and kind, his smile reached his eyes for what seemed like the first time in his life. Severus had watched in owe at Christmas time how hearty Draco's laugh had been as he played with Lorna, and he had even gone as far to keep any snarky remarks he may have been harboring about the state of their simple, quaint cottage to himself. His wife, whom Severus had once believed to be an odd match for the boy, seemed to be humbling him.
"I heard you were opening this place up, and I had to come see it for myself." Draco says as he approaches the counter, his eyes scanning the small storefront. "Besides, I'm in need of some of your headache drought."
"You are perfectly capable of brewing a headache drought." Severus remarks, one brow raised at Draco. "It is one of the first potions I taught you, and I recall you being more than capable of brewing it yourself."
"Yours are far better." Draco smirks at Severus as he leans against the opposite side of the counter from Severus. "Astoria gets bad migraines. I remember yours working much faster than anything I've ever been able to produce."
"You are not here for headache drought, Draco." Severus remarks as he turns his back on Draco to retrieve two vials of headache drought from his personal supplies in a locked drawer beneath the shelving lining the back wall.
"Father has asked after you." Draco admits as Severus cuts his eyes at Draco over his shoulder.
"Forgive me Draco, but I have no interest in associating with Lucius." Severus admits as he turns to his godson once more and passes him two vials of headache drought.
"Yeah. I thought as much." Draco chuckles while fiddling with the cork on the vial. "I told him that I would pass on his well wishes."
The two men stand in awkward silence for a moment before Severus steps around the end of the counter and locks the front door with the slick of his wand before flipping the sign hung in the window from open, to closed. Draco plays with the golden band around his finger; spinning it around several times before sliding it up and down. Finally, Severus moves forward and clasps his hand on Draco's shoulder and looks him in the eye, man to man.
"I would like to thank you for looking after my wife and daughter while I was away." Severus releases Draco's shoulder and leans against the counter.
"I told you I would look out for her."
"You did; you kept your promise." Severus sighs and softens the harsh gaze he had held since Draco had walked into the shop. "I would like for you to be Lorna's godfather, if you will accept."
"Don't you think Potter would be a much better option as godfather?" Severus smirks at the way Draco's face contorts slightly at the sound of Potter's name on his lips.
"Still holding a schoolboy grudge?" Severus asks, the exact thing Albus had said in reference to him and Black so many years before.
"I have never hated Potter, at least not on purpose. I am trying to be a better person, with Astoria's help. I've apologized time and time again, yet, he will not accept. Not that I blame him, I was awful."
"You and I each did things in our youth that we are not proud of. You did not have much choice than to be what your father molded you to be; and I did what I needed to do to escape the same fate as mine."
"I eloped with Astoria in France the summer after she finished school. I wanted you to be there, but you were…away." Draco changes the subject and looks up at Severus, a pained expression on his face. "I always looked up to you, wanted to be just like you. After the war, when you were still hurt and in hospital, I was scared that you weren't going to wake up. Then when you came home and I saw how different you were, I couldn't handle it because I knew that you wouldn't treat her that way before. When I found out that you left, I hated you. I have loved every moment I've got to spend with Lorna though, she is amazing."
"I wish I could take credit for Lorna, however that was her mother's doing. She is a great girl; I am lucky to have her." Severus admits, his heart constricting at the speech Draco had given and the time he had missed with his daughter. Would she have been any different had he been there, or would she still be the vibrant, inquisitive, outgoing beauty that she was growing to be?
"Astoria has lost three pregnancies in the last year and a half. It hasn't been easy. That is why I'm here. I came to ask, is there any potion that could assist her in carrying a pregnancy to term?"
"Draco—" Severus sighs, ready to warn him once more just how dangerous it would be for his wife to carry a child to term with the blood malediction she carried.
"Please, Severus. I am begging you."
"It is far too dangerous for her, Draco."
"You don't understand how badly she wants a family, she—"
"You can adopt, use a surrogate if really necessary. There are other options." Severus objects, desperate for Draco to actually listen to him this time. It seemed the dark, ominous warning of premature death did not register the first time.
"You don't think if there were any other option, I wouldn't have already thought of and suggested it? I have done everything that I can do to try and deter her, and she will not accept any of it. If it were Danu, if it were something she wanted more than anything, would you do whatever it took to help her achieve it?"
"Within reason. This, however, is not within reason. This is life or death; I fear neither of you fully appreciate just how dire this truly is. It is not a game of house, nor is it a situation that may be avoided. She will die, Draco. Maybe not in a year, and maybe not in five, but she will, and it will be terrible. There are no potions that exist that will cure her, none that will heal her, and a limited amount that will touch the pain that she will endure. You will be signing her death warrant."
"I have accepted that my wife will die either way. No matter what I do, no matter how hard I try, I will lose her. All I can do now is make what time I have left with her as happy and loving as possible. There is nothing that I won't do to make her happy, even if it's just for a moment."
Severus shudders as his mind drifts to losing Danu. He felt every emotion Draco was feeling, every fear and anxiety. If it where him in Draco's position, if it were his wife actively dying, he would go to the ends of the world to find a cure, would give in to her every whim. There is not one single thing that she could ask for that he would deny.
"If we were to have a child," Draco interrupts Severus' thoughts. "I would still have a piece of Astoria. She would live on; I wouldn't lose her completely."
"Draco—" This is not a good reason to bring a child into the world, this was selfish and irresponsible.
"Astoria and I have spoken about it at length; we both agree that it is what we want."
"I will see what I can do." Severus finally sighs.
"Thank you, Severus." Draco smiles up at Severus with a smile so bright it lights his entire face before he grips Severus' hand tightly.
"Draco." Severus announces dryly as Draco pulls away and turns to make his way to the door to leave. "You did not answer me. Would you like to be Lorna's godfather?"
"I would be honored." Draco beams, his hand on the door to make a speedy exit.
"One more request, if you will indulge me. Will you be my best man?" Draco raises one brow at Severus from across the small storefront. "My wife and I are renewing our vows. I would like for you to be my best man, if you would accept."
"Of course." Draco beams once more before finally exiting the shop.
—
Severus enters the kitchen to be greeted by the acidic scent of tomato. Stepping forward to remove the lid from the pan simmering on the eye, he finds that Danu had made a hearty red sauce with poached eggs bubbling away on top. As he pulls the oven door open, the yeast and faint scent of garlic fills the room due to the flatbread warming on a tray inside. She is an excellent cook, he's enjoyed nearly every meal she has made for him, yet this one seems almost concerning. For the last three years he had been experiencing debilitating heartburn and indigestion, and this was certainly going to keep him up all night without the aid of several potions.
Lorna slams the kitchen door against the wall, startling him slightly. Severus looks over his shoulder to see Lorna dragging Potter by the hand, Danu following close behind them, a full basket of herbs in each hand. She smiles up at Severus warmly, causing his heart to melt at the sight as he closes the oven, the garlic scent lingering. She produces a bundle of herbs from the basket, and steps forward to remove the lid from the pan on the stove. She haphazardly rips the herbs apart and sprinkles them over the simmering tomato and egg concoction.
"I came by to ask if I could bring Lorna with us to Ginny's game on Saturday. I have an extra ticket, and I'm bringing the boys with me. Teddy said he'll only go if Lorna can come." Potter states as Severus places his hand on Danu's lower back as she stands over the steaming stove.
"I'm okay with it." Danu turns her attention to Severus and leans into his touch. "As long as Severus is. What do you think?"
"I was lead to believe that Lorna was on punishment and therefore banned from seeing Mister Lupin."
"It's been a few weeks, and she wrote her letter to Hermione. She's three, I think it's been enough time to get the point across."
"You set the terms of her punishment; if you believe enough time has passed, then I am fine with her going." Severus raises his eye to find Potter's eyes darting back and forth between him, Danu, and Lorna who was excitedly pushing pictures she had colored in to his outstretched hand.
"Okay." Danu sighs. "If she thinks she can behave, then she can go."
"Is it okay if she stays the night Saturday?" Potter asks from over the top of a brightly colored unicorn drawing that looked more like a misshapen rainbow with a horn. "We have a camping space reserved at the grounds, and Teddy will probably insist that she stays with us. I can have her back by dinner time on Sunday."
"The same rules apply." Severus interjects just as Danu opens her mouth to reply. "Although, they may be relaxed slightly for the occasion. No sweets after six, bed by ten, and do not misplace my child."
"There's no possible way that he will be able to lose Lorna, Severus." Danu giggles as she reaches around him to grab four plates.
"When is Saturday?" Lorna exclaims as she rushes for her designated seat at the dining table and places her napkin in her lap the way Severus had taught her.
"Three more days." Harry and Danu say simultaneously as Danu places the piping hot, egg and tomato filled plates before each of them.
Severus eyes Potter laughing with Danu and Lorna across the table, softening his brown slightly each time Lorna turns to him in an attempt to bring him into their conversations. He must accept the fact that he will never rid himself of the boy.
—
The remainder of the week goes by quickly, with Lorna not sleeping in her own bed once. Severus even slept next to her on the single bed, his feet dangling off of the edge on Thursday night. He woke alone the next morning; Lorna had deserted him and went to get in bed with her mother.
Upon returning from Primrose Apothecary on Saturday evening, Lorna was already long gone, likely having a wonderful time at her first quidditch match. Severus had thought about it all day, how he wished he had told Potter no, so as he could be the one to take Lorna to her first quidditch match, see the look of excitement etched upon her sweet face as she watched the players zoom by their stadium seats. Potter got to experience so many of Lorna's firsts, and now he was experiencing another. Danu had even stayed behind that day, opting instead to see Lorna off from the Weasley's home and do some gardening. Which left him alone in the shop all day with nothing but his own thoughts to keep him company. Business had picked up slightly as the week progressed, but nothing close to what he had envisioned for it prior to opening.
This string of jealousy and resentment was quickly forgotten when Severus walks through the kitchen door and the scent of roast chicken wafts through the room, enticing his senses and making his mouth water, and his stomach growl. As he turns at the sound of the kitchen door opening behind him, he is nearly brought to his knees with desire.
Danu sweeps through the room wearing a simple cotton dress that ends just below her knees, the deep Prussian blue of the fabric striking against his pale skin. The neckline ending in a sharp V just before her cleavage, her nipples slightly erect due to the evening chill, indicating that she was not wearing a brassiere. Down the length of the dress are large, bronze, rose shaped buttons. Despite the slight chill, her feet are bare, her short, stubby toes are painted a pale blue color, the paint chipping ever so slightly at the ends of her toenails. Peeking out of the top of the pockets on either side of the buttons on her dress are her pruning shears, and a bundle of hyacinths in an array of colors. Severus watches as she removes the flowers from her pockets and places them in an oddly shaped earthenware jug of sorts that she had left waiting, already filled with water next to the sink. She smiles up at him, the gleam of her blue eyes catching the sunlight pouring in from the kitchen window just right, then turns to place the jug on the dining table, which she had already set for the two of them.
"I made your favorite for dinner." Danu coos as she steps forward and runs her long, elegant fingers down the length of his arm before standing on her toes to give him a peck on the corner of his mouth. "Roast chicken, mash with gravy, and I even went to the little bakery in Cokeworth and got a loaf of the rye bread that you like." Danu gestures towards the table where a round loaf of brown bread rests in a wooden bowl, steaming slightly in the rays of hazy afternoon sun making its way in through the lace curtains hung from the window above the sink.
"To what do I owe the pleasure?" Severus asks as Danu leads him towards the table and gently presses him into his chair.
"I just wanted to do something nice for you." She says with a smile as she slices chicken and piles it upon his plate.
She gives him a generous dollop of mashed potatoes, and pours gravy over them from a sauceboat. There are young carrots and parsnips cooked beneath the chicken, and a side of French green beans. Severus closes his eyes and inhales the heavenly aroma as she slices the still warm rye bread and places it upon his waiting plate. An involuntary groan of approval escapes his lips as he takes his first bite of the tender, juicy chicken. If this were her idea of doing something nice for him, he could certainly get used to it.
After each of them had eaten their fill, Severus helps put away the leftovers and washes the dishes as Danu rushes to get the laundry from the line in the garden as an afternoon rainstorm takes them by surprise. She comes in, windswept and damp with rain dripping from her long, auburn eyelashes. Her cheeks are slightly pink from rushing back inside, and the thin cotton dress clings to her body. Severus can hardly contain himself as he drops the plate he was holding back down into the soapy water and stalks towards her. He removes the laundry basket from her hands and places it on the kitchen counter before enveloping her in his arm and taking her plump, rosy lips with his own.
Her body molds against his with his touch, and before he knows it she is matching his kisses with just as much greed and passion as he himself was giving. She run her fingers through his hair and tugs slightly, eliciting a deep moan from his throat as he backs her up against the warn, wooden trellis table they had just eaten at. Her right leg snakes itself around his waist as he smooths his hand up the length of her thigh, as he reaches her backside, he finds the absence of panties and must push the fabric up her body to fully appreciate his finding; he stiffens at the sight before him.
"God, woman." Severus moans as his lips make their way to her neck to nip at the tender flesh, Danu moans and presses him closer to him with the leg still wrapped around his waist. "If you only knew what you do to me."
"Then show me." She teases, her voice husky with desire as she grips him firmly through his trousers before taking the lobe of his ear between her teeth.
Severus moans deeply as he tears the neckline of her dress down to expose her breasts, ripping two of the rose shaped buttons which ting against the floor before disappearing into oblivion, likely beneath the stove. He sucks greedily at her breast, making vulgar, wet sounds as his mouth and tongue move against her flesh, her moaning and writhing beneath him on the table. Her legs lock him against her as she grinds her middle against his still clothed erection, searching desperately for any means of release. If it is release that she wants, he will give it to her.
Severus pries their bodies apart, just enough to slip his hand between them and slides two fingers through her folds before pressing them inside of her, causing her to still momentarily and let out a long, hissing breath. He moves his finger sloppily in and out of her as his thumb circles her clitoris, her hips buck against his hand, doing their best to match his movements, all while he continues to suck her breast.
It does not take long before her back is arched from the table, and her head is thrown back as she cries out beneath him and clenches around his fingers. The sweet sounds of her ecstasy is music to his ears, as he slows his pace to bring her down from her high. Before he can so much as remove his fingers from her, she abruptly reaches for his trousers in an attempt to pry them from his body. Severus hastily unbuckles his belt and frees himself from the confides of his cotton pants as she grips him firmly, pumping her fist the length of him several times. Without warning, before he can so much as step out of his trousers, she has guided him to her entrance and is bucking her hips forward, taking him for herself.
There in the kitchen against the table they eat at every day, in broad daylight, with his trousers around his ankles and her dress bunched around her waist, Severus enters her in one swift motion, causing them each to throw their heads back and cry out loudly. How long had it been since he had been inside of her? Weeks, months, years? It felt as though it had been a lifetime, it felt as though if this were the last thing he would ever experience, he would die a very happy man.
Severus stands straight and pushes her thighs further apart in an attempt to press them against the table, watching himself move in and out of her, his movement choppy and sharp. Hs fingers dig into the tender flesh of her thighs as she moans with each sharp thrust inside of her. Without being prompted, Danu trails her hand down her exposed breasts, past her ribs and the soft flesh of her lower stomach. He watches as she spreads her index and middle finger, slides them around his shaft for a brief moment as he stills inside of her, wondering what it is that she is going to do, then watches in awe as she brings those fingers back up to expertly rub herself. He continues his movement, although slightly slower than before at the salacious act before him.
"I love you." Danu whimpers beneath him, nearly causing him to leap from the edge as he buries his face in her neck and breathes in her scent. "Don't stop. Don't stop. Please, just like that." She begs as he rocks in and out of her, her hand still moving between their bodies.
One hand moving between their bodies, the other locked tightly in the fabric of his button down, Danu finds release once more and screams so loudly he is for a moment afraid that the Weasley's would be able to hear her all the way from their burrow down the hill. She clenches him tightly, enveloping every inch of his erection within him, which proves to be much too intense for him to handle, for he spills deeply within her with a sharp cry of his own against her neck. Severus stills himself, still jerking slightly inside of her as he pants against her neck, his hair and forehead stuck to her flesh with sweat and rain. Her hand still clings to the fabric of his shirt, the other makes its way up the opposite side of his back to cradle his body against hers as they each pant in as they come down from their high.
Long after the sun had set and the two of them should be fast asleep, they lie locked in one anthers embrace in bed, whispering I love you's and sweeping the hair from one another's faces. Severus had fed her a contraceptive potion, which she finished in one long gulp, and showered with her before combing her long hair before the vanity in Lorna's bedroom. The two of them retired to the bedroom shortly thereafter to lie nude atop the yellow quilt on the bed, the sound of rain on the roof and the candlelight dancing in the otherwise darkened room relaxing them. The cottage felt far too quiet and empty without Lorna there, but the two of them had desperately needed this night alone.
"Have you thought of a date?" Severus asks as he rests his chin on the top of her head and pulls her even tighter against his body.
"Hmm?" She replies through sleep, her breath tickling the fine hairs on his chest.
"We have not discussed it since I asked, but I do wish to have an actual wedding. Have you thought of a date?"
"We're already married though. What happened to not needing theatrics? I'm happy, you're happy, we don't need an audience." She yawns deeply against his chest and trails her fingertips up his stomach, leaving a trail of goose flesh.
"No, we do not. However, I wish to see you in a proper wedding gown, not eight months pregnant, and walking down the aisle to meet me. Something I should have done the first time. Is that not what most young women dream of?"
"I suppose it is, but nothing about our relationship has ever been conventional."
"So set a date, invite Rose and whichever hoard of Weasley women you wish to help you choose a gown. Make an old man happy for an evening, even though he is most undeserving of it, and allow me to show the world how deeply I love and appreciate you."
"You mean it?" Danu asks as she pries herself from his chest and gazes up at him with those big blue eyes that made his heart dance with delight each time they fell upon him.
"I mean it." Severus answers honestly.
"Then what about your birthday?" Severus raises a brow at her, indicating that she should go on. "You told me that's when we were fake married the first time, let's do it then."
"Our legal marriage date is twenty-eighth of December, yet you believed the initial date to be seventh of February. Why not do it then, or any other date, for that matter?"
"I just want to do it that day."
"If that is what you wish, then so be it. Call Rose tomorrow, you have not spoken to her since I had the blasted telephone installed, which is the entire reason for having it, and invite her dress shopping."
"I will call her tomorrow. She still hasn't met Lorna, maybe we can invite her round to dinner some time."
"We will likely need to travel to Surrey for that, darling. Muggles don't particularly like to travel that great of a distance just for dinner. It's over three hours by automobile, besides, we run the risk of her, or her family, inadvertently witnessing something that they should not. Ask her to dinner, we can travel to Surrey for the day, maybe take Lorna to visit some museums in London beforehand. Make a day of it."
"You're right." Danu yawns once more against his chest. "I sometimes forget that they travel by car, especially living way out here away from any other Muggles. I'll ask her tomorrow."