Chapter 8- Summer's End (Age 9)
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot. I am finally able to update again. Warning for some abuse at the beginning.
"Ye useless woman!" Crash!
Severus jolted awake at the sound of his father's shouting. He panicked, realizing his mum was alone downstairs with his inebriated father and the crash he had heard could have been her getting hurt. Stumbling slightly, as he still wasn't fully awake, he rushed to his door and bolted down the rickety stairs, still in his sleep clothes.
The kitchen and living room were only lit by dim electric lights, but he could see his mum on the floor, slumped over the worn floorboards. He felt his heart drop and rushed to her side, hoping that she wasn't seriously hurt or worse.
"Mum?" He knelt next to her and gently pushed on her shoulder to get her to sit up. Thankfully he could immediately tell that she wasn't hurt seriously as she was alert and had been bent over a shattered teacup and saucer. Even though she was now sitting up, he watched as her hands continued to attempt to sweep the sharp porcelain shards into a neat pile. Severus looked her over, feeling his anger rise when he noticed her split lip and purple tinged cheek. In this pitiful state, he had to remind himself that his mum was indeed a witch. He might as well be muggle born with how she put up with his father.
Severus realized that he had made the mistake of not checking that his father had left the house too late when he felt his father's large hand clamp around his shoulder and forcefully yank him to his feet.
"What'd ye think yer doing boy?" Tobias slurred, spinning Severus to face him.
Severus tried his best not to cower under his father's stare, inclining his head to meet his eyes. Severus was tall for his age, but unfortunately he'd inherited his height from his father, so the man still towered over him and was several times broader than his own scrawny body. He forced his fear down, trying to focus on his anger instead. His father was just a horrible muggle!
Not breaking eye contact and trying to keep his voice from wavering, he said firmly, "don't hurt her again!"
Tobias studied him for a few moments, as if surprised, then burst out laughing.
"What're ye gonna do boy?" he mocked.
He grabbed both of Severus' shoulders, lifting him off the floor so that the two of them were eye level, his fingers digging into Severus' collar bones painfully.
Severus tried not to flinch, but his confidence had evaporated. He dropped his head, breaking eye contact with his father, letting his dark hair curtain his face. He'd really done it now, he thought. He'd be in a right state after his father got through with him, meaning he couldn't join Lily on holiday. Her family would have two many questions. And his mum too, his father would probably just hit her more to punish her for "her" son's actions.
"Look at me boy!" Tobias shouted with such ferocity that Severus felt droplets of spit spray his face.
Feeling his fear overwhelm him, Severus didn't lift his face, trying to endure the pain as his father squeezed his boney shoulders tighter. A single tear slid down his face, but he tried not to show any reaction as he had learned that only made things worse. He retreated into his mind, trying to focus on feeling nothing to numb the pain and fear.
"Pathetic." Tobias scoffed, tossing Severus to the floor. "You and ye mother both, pathetic, good fer nothin freaks!"
He shoved his boot into Severus' ribcage and kicked him towards Eileen, then turned and stormed out of the house, slamming the door behind him.
(***)
Severus laid on the floor, his ribs and shoulders throbbing, until he was sure that his father was really gone. He felt broken. Obviously his physical injuries hurt, but he wished he had a father who actually loved and supported his family, like Mr. Evans seemed to. His father wasn't so bad if he wasn't drunk, mostly just gruff and despondent, but it had been a long time since Severus had seen him sober for more than a day. Were he and his mother really so repulsive that his father had to be drunk to put up with them?
Groaning, he peeled himself up off the floor and limped over to his mum, "mum are you okay?"
She didn't initially respond, still scraping at the porcelain shards on the floor. After a few moments of silence, she murmured, "I'm sorry Severus", then went back to focusing on the floor.
Severus sighed, the more his father hurt her, the more his mum seemed to disconnect from the world. It was clear she wasn't going to take care of him or herself, so he gingerly made his way back upstairs to assess the damage his father had inflicted and get some bruise salve for both of them.
He changed out of his night clothes, trying not to let the pain bother him, glancing at his bare shoulders and chest. There were definitely going to be bruises on his shoulders and the left side of his rib cage where his father had kicked him. He could already see purple splotches blooming beneath his pale skin. Severus was thankful that he had recently brewed an improved bruise salve. He and Lily had been able to replenish some of the more common ingredients that it required. Rather than reading some days, they searched the wooded area of the park by the river or the nearby farm fields for common ingredients, to surprising success. He'd also gotten more proficient in his methods of chopping or crushing older ingredients from his mum's dated collection to maximize their potency. With the additional ingredients, he had been able to enhance the salve so that it also reduced swelling and inflammation, which was a regular need with his father around.
He scooped a bit of the purplish salve out of the jar and rubbed it into his side and shoulders. He sighed in relief as he felt the telltale warmth of the salve spread on his skin, followed by the numbing sensation that made the pain much more bearable. Thankfully, he thought, he could still join Lily on her holiday as none of the marks would be visible under his long-sleeved shirts and continued application of the salve would help them heal quickly and dull the pain.
Lily!
Severus suddenly remembered he'd promised to meet her at her house this morning, rather than at the park to finish planning for the holiday. He supposed he might be a bit late because he still had to take care of his mum, but the thought of seeing her made him feel better, even if he would have to put up with seeing awful Petunia too. With that in mind, he picked out the least offensive clothes from his drawer. He figured that Petunia would think he looked like a gutter dwelling vagrant no matter what, but hopefully Mr. and Mrs. Evans wouldn't find him too offensive to be in their home if he made an effort.
Feeling better, at least physically, now that the salve was dulling the pain of his injuries, he walked back downstairs to take care of his mum.
(***)
His mum was no longer on the floor when he came back downstairs. She had discarded the broken porcelain pieces and was now sitting at their rickety kitchen table, staring into the distance at nothing in particular. Severus approached her carefully, he didn't want to risk startling her after the morning they'd had.
"Mum?"
He was surprised that she responded on the first try, "yes, Severus?"
Her voice was quiet, but at least she was responsive to him. He walked closer to her and assessed the damage on her face. Her cheek was now a deep purple, and he could almost see the imprint of his father's hand. Looking at her more closely, he could see deep bags under her eyes that didn't fit someone, especially a witch, of her age. Lily's parents certainly didn't look like that.
"Here Mum, I made some salve that will help", he said, offering the jar to her.
She looked surprised, but took the jar from him and rubbed a bit of the salve onto her face. Her eyes widened slightly at the instantaneous effect and Severus was proud to note that she looked impressed.
"You really made this, Severus?"
He nodded, but he didn't know where else she thought it could have come from since there weren't any wizarding apothecaries anywhere near Cokeworth.
"You're going to make me proud when you go to Hogwarts, Severus. I should be the one taking care of you, but here you are, taking care of me," she gave him a sad smile, her voice fading to a murmur as she stared off into the distance at nothing in particular.
Severus beamed with pride, it was so rare his mum said anything at all these days, let alone a compliment. While he had her attention and his father was seemingly out for the rest of the day, he thought he'd tell her about his holiday plans with the Evans family. She might get worried if she didn't see him for four whole days.
"Mum?"
She refocused her attention away from the kitchen wall and back towards him, "what is it, Severus?" she asked softly.
"Do you remember when I told you about Lily? The girl from the park who also has magic?"
His mum made a quiet noise of acknowledgement.
He continued, "Lily's family invited me on holiday to some cottage on the sea in Yorkshire for a few days. I said I'd go with them. We're leaving this Friday morning."
Severus waited for his mum to say something in response for a few moments. It wasn't as if either of his parents really cared where he went on a daily basis, but he really hoped his mum would at least acknowledge him.
"Wait a moment, Severus," she said finally, and slowly left the kitchen.
He heard the stairs creak as she went upstairs, perplexed by what she could possibly be getting. She returned a few moments later and held out three crumpled five pound notes to him.
"I was saving these with some of the money I've kept to buy your Hogwarts supplies, but you deserve to have fun on your holiday with your friend. I know it's not much," she smiled at him softly and pushed the notes into his hand.
Severus was shocked, as this was the most his mum had done for him in years. It was almost as if he could see a tiny sliver of the person she had been when he was little again.
"Umm… thanks, Mum," he said, still recovering from his surprise.
"It's very kind of her family to take you, don't forget to be polite to them, my little Prince," she met his eyes and reached over to gently squeeze his hand.
Still shocked by her uncharacteristic display of parental affection, Severus nodded and mumbled something to her about having to go meet Lily before excusing himself from the table.
He mulled their conversation over in his head as he began to walk down Spinner's End towards Lily's house. The morning might have started terribly, but he was elated that his mum still seemed to have a bit of her old self locked away, and better yet, she was proud of him! He didn't want to be too hopeful, but maybe this trip could be the start of things between them getting better again.
(***)
Friday morning came all too soon, and Severus awoke early, already feeling the heat of the day creeping into his room. He could tell it was going to be hot because the sun hadn't even fully risen yet. He still wasn't sure if he was more nervous or excited for the coming trip. He got out of bed and focused on packing. He'd had to ask Lily to borrow a rucksack, as all he'd found to pack his things for the trip was his book satchel, which was much too small, or his mum's old school trunk, which was much too big. Lily had kindly provided one that had belonged to her father, and Mr. Evans had told him to keep it. Its brown canvas was worn, but it was one of the nicest things Severus now owned outside of his mum's school things.
He rummaged through his dresser, and filled the rucksack with a few pairs of worn socks and underwear before surveying which four outfits he could piece together from his shabby clothing that would make him look the least repulsive to the Evans family. He didn't own anything that looked remotely appropriate to what he imagined muggles wore to a beach, but he finally decided to bring one pair of worn jeans, a pair of faded trousers, and three long-sleeved shirts that albeit being a bit ragged and oversized were passable. He tossed a book entitled, "Plants, Herbs, and Magical Flora of Britain" to the bag as well to aid his hunt for potion ingredients when they reached the sea. Severus contemplated bringing an additional book as well, but Lily had promised to bring plenty for them to share. He zipped up the rucksack and grabbed his satchel. He had decided it would be best to bring the beautiful chest of ingredients that he had found with his mum's things in the attic. The spells to keep the ingredients fresh still seemed to be holding up on it despite its age, which would prove helpful if they found the plants he was looking for.
Severus surveyed his room to make sure he hadn't forgotten anything, stuffed the fifteen pounds his mum had given him in his pocket, and then snuck quietly out of the house before anyone else awoke.
Spinner's End was silent, save for a rat or two he saw picking at the garbage on the street. Severus planned to wait in the park until a little before he was expected at the Evans' house. He didn't want to show up too early and get chewed out by Petunia. Besides, he mused, he wasn't going to get much time to himself over the next few days, so he wanted to enjoy it before having to suffer through Petunia and her friend at all hours of the day. But, the reward was spending uninterrupted time with Lily, and that was certainly worth it!
(***)
Severus finally made his way over to the Evans' house at a quarter past seven. Mrs. Evans had told him they were planning to leave around eight, so he felt like it was appropriate. As he entered the gravel drive, he noticed that Mr. Evans was already in the process of packing the car.
Mr. Evans turned around when he heard the sound of Severus' feet crunching the gravel, "good morning, Severus! Bring over your bag and I'll pop it in the boot."
Being alone with Mr. Evans still made Severus a bit nervous, so he cautiously stepped towards him, slid the rucksack off his shoulders and held it out to him.
Mr. Evans grabbed the bag and placed it in the boot. He then turned back to Severus and asked, "is that everything?"
Severus nodded, letting his hair fall over his face. He wasn't sure if Mr. Evans had expected him to bring something else to contribute to the trip.
Mr. Evans chuckled, "I thought I was the nutty one, Severus. I've only packed a rucksack too, but you should see how much the girls are bringing," he motioned to the already large collection of bags in the boot. "Everytime I go inside, Rose sends me out with another load of things. You'd think we're moving into this place, not just going on holiday for a few days!" He laughed good naturedly and shook his head.
Severus smiled weakly and shook his head in agreement. It was so strange to be around a muggle man who was making jokes and laughing with him rather than harming him.
"Well, I'll be out here for a little while and I'm going to need some magic to get this boot to close!" Mr. Evans surveyed the stack of bags again and scratched his head. "I'm sure Lily is bouncing off the walls waiting for you. Let Rose know we should be all set to go once Petunia's friend arrives, would you?"
"Yes, sir… uhh Mr. Evans," Severus said quietly.
Glad to have an excuse to leave, he walked over to the front door and knocked.
Lily appeared seconds later with a huge smile on her face, "Sev!" She shouted excitedly and ushered him inside.
Lily led him into the kitchen where Mrs. Evans was wrapping lunch parcels on the counter, "Good morning Severus! I'm so glad you could join us, it looks like it's going to be a lovely, warm weekend to be at the sea!"
Severus thanked her and relayed Mr. Evans' message before Lily suggested they sit down at the table. They looked through the bag of books that Lily had packed for them to share, and then Severus pulled out the chest of ingredients from his satchel to show Lily. He had just opened it and begun to show Lily how she could turn a small dial on the interior lid to magically change the selection of ingredient compartments it displayed when Petunia stormed into the kitchen.
"Mum!" She wailed, "has Margaret phoned? She was supposed to be here at half past seven."
Mrs. Evans shook her head, "I haven't heard the phone ring at all, Petunia. I'll ring her house if she doesn't arrive within the next ten minutes."
"Fine!" Petunia huffed and stormed out of the kitchen, glaring at Severus and Lily, but not saying anything.
Severus noticed that Mrs. Evans looked concerned and shared a glance with Lily.
"Petunia is going to have a fit if Maragaret doesn't show up soon," Lily whispered to him.
Severus nodded in agreement. Privately, he was still contemplating which was worse, having to put up with Petunia and this Margaret girl for the duration of the trip, or having to deal with an irate, snubbed Petunia. He wasn't sure which was worse. Regardless, he planned to stick close to Lily and Mrs. Evans at all times during the holiday. Petunia would rarely say anything foul to him and Lily in front of their mum, the worst she could do was shoot them an occasional dirty look.
He was interrupted from his thoughts by the shrill ring of the telephone. He and Lily exchanged looks and sat quietly so that they could listen.
Mrs. Evans picked it up, "Hello? Oh hi, Helen… Oh dear… We're sorry too, I'll let her know. Send along our best wishes to Margaret… goodbye," she set the receiver down with a click.
Severus noticed that Petunia had made her way back into the kitchen while Mrs. Evans had been speaking.
Mrs. Evans frowned, and then looked at the three of them, "Petunia, I'm sorry dear, but that was Margaret's mum. Apparently she's come down with some sort of bug and hasn't been well since early this morning. It looks like it will just be the five of us now."
"What?! If Margaret can't come, why does he…" Petunia violently jabbed her finger in Severus's direction, "get to come? It's not fair!" she shrieked.
Clearly realizing that things were only going to escalate if all of them remained in the same room, Mrs. Evans turned to them and said, "Lily, Severus, please go wait outside in the car. We'll be out soon. Make sure you've got all your things, and Lily, send your father inside.
Lily nodded, and gently grabbed Severus by the hand, and hurried the two of them out the door and to the car to avoid the impending explosion from Petunia.
(***)
The car ride started off with an awkward silence. Despite the events of the morning, they only left thirty minutes later than planned. Severus was uncomfortable. He felt awkward as the lone guest of the Evans family with Petunia's clear ire for the situation bubbling just underneath the surface. He was also squished against the left window in the backseat of the car with Lily pressed into his side. Lily was in between him and Petunia, and even though there was plenty of space for the three of them on the bench-like seat, she had positioned herself as far from Petunia as possible. Petunia seemed to be sulking and hadn't said anything since getting into the car with her parents, which was just as well in his opinion. He wasn't sure what Mr. and Mrs. Evans had said to her, but he hoped she would leave him and Lily alone for the duration of the trip.
It was his first time being in a muggle car as his father had never been able to afford one. The sensation of flying along the motorway in a metal box was very strange to him, but he was fascinated by the landscapes flying by outside the window. Lily had offered him one of her books and she had buried herself in one to avoid any potential conversation with Petunia, but he was content to watch the green countryside whip by the window. It was enough to keep him distracted from the awkwardness of the situation for the time being.
(***)
The hours passed quickly, and sooner than Severus expected, he overheard Mr. Evans say to Mrs. Evans that they would be reaching the cottage within ten minutes. They had gotten off the motorway a while back and were traveling down narrow country lanes. Severus noticed that this area was more rural than the outskirts of Cokeworth, as besides a few farm cottages, the landscape was an uninterrupted swath of green fields and forests.
Mr. Evans piloted the car onto a narrow gravel lane flanked by trees that became more and more sparse as they drove along. Severus was still glued to the window when he felt Lily tap his shoulder.
"Open the window, Sev!" she exclaimed.
Severus looked at the window, trying to figure out how to roll it down, not wanting to admit to Lily that he didn't know how the muggle contraption worked.
Realizing his confusion, she leaned across him, resulting in his cheeks flushing a bright red, and grabbed the crank on the door to lower the window. A salty scent unfamiliar to Severus immediately filled the car. Lily took a deep breath.
"Smell that, Sev? That's sea air! We're almost there!" she said, trying to keep her voice down to not bother Petunia.
No sooner had she said so when a small stone cottage came into view. "We're here kids!" Mr. Evans announced.
Severus immediately loved the cottage. To him, from the outside, it looked like a home where he could imagine magical families living in the countryside. The cottage was built of a rough hewn, but neatly laid, sand-coloured stone, with a slate tile roof. It had white washed shutters and a short stonewall encircled the home, with a wooden gate leading to the driveway. Within the wall, and all along the house was a chaotic abundance of all manner of flowers and plants, giving the salty air a sweet scent close to the home. There was even a wisteria vine crawling up the front of the cottage, with its large, purple blooms dancing in the sea breeze.
Severus glanced over at Lily to see her reaction and noticed that she had a bright smile on her face.
They all got out of the car and Severus noticed an elderly man in old fashioned clothing waiting by the front door and an old, rusty, blue car next to the Evans'. Mr. Evans instructed them all to grab a bag or two from the boot, and then they made their way to the front door to greet the man. Mr. and Mrs. Evans cheerfully greeted the man, and Severus gathered that he was the owner of the cottage that they were renting from. He let them into the house and gave them a tour.
Downstairs, there was a cozy living room with a stone fireplace looking out into the garden, and a kitchen facing the back of the house that gave Severus his first glance of the sea. The cottage was situated on a craggy peninsula with cliffs that led down to the sea. The view was even better from the upstairs of the cottage which contained four small bedrooms and a bathroom. Lily and Petunia each selected a bedroom as far away from one another as possible, so Severus took the one in the middle of the hall.
He settled into his room while Mr. and Mrs. Evans finished talking with the caretaker. It was a bit bigger than his room at home with a wooden-framed bed that had a cozy quilt and plush pillows on it. Severus set his rucksack on the chair in the corner of the room, sat down on the side of the bed, and peered out the window at the sea. He reveled in the moment of silence after the hectic morning. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been in the same place with so many people for so long. Lily was different. Even though she talked more than him, she was also happy to sit in a comfortable silence, reading by the river or in her room with him. And even when she talked a lot, she never annoyed him or made him feel uncomfortable like so many others did. He didn't have to worry about her judging him, or thinking he was strange, she just seemed to like him for what he was. He reminded himself that he came to spend more time with her, and tried to push thoughts about Petunia's rude comments out of his mind. He knew he was better than the bully of a muggle anyway.
A moment later, his silence was interrupted by the light wrap of Lily's fist on his bedroom door, followed by her muffled voice, "Sev, can I come in?"
He opened the door and was greeted by Lily, who had changed into her swimming costume and shorts with a wide-brimmed sun hat.
"C'mon, Sev! Get ready and let's go down to the beach! Dad said he'd take all of us while Mum unpacks", she said cheerfully. "I can't wait for you to see the ocean. Books don't do it justice."
Severus smiled and nodded, Lily's enthusiasm was infectious. It seemed like the sunshine and the sea air had cured her sadness from Petunia's antics that morning, which he was more than happy for. He grabbed a few things from his bag and joined Lily at the door. "Let's go!"
Thank you for reading!