Chapter 5: Chandelier
But I'm holding on for dear life, won't look down, won't open my eyes
Keep my glass full until morning light, 'cause I'm just holding on for tonight
Help me, I'm holding on for dear life, won't look down, won't open my eyes
Keep my glass full until morning light, 'cause I'm just holding on for tonight
On for tonight
SIA - Chandelier
"Severus Snape, it is a great honour as Minister of Magic to present you with our highest acknowledgement, Order of Merlin, First Class, for your bravery and integral assistance during the Second Wizarding War. We are most honoured to offer you this token of our esteem, and to offer a hand in friendship, on behalf of the Ministry and the Wizarding world!"
The room erupted with unexpected applause as Severus stood from his seat behind Kingsley Shacklebolt, Minister of Magic, who motioned for Severus to step forward and enjoy the prestige, if only for an instant.
"May your path be filled with light and a new hope for the future..." Kingsley began, his hand resting warmly on Severus's shoulder.
"How very...sentimental..."
From the back of the crowded hall, a sneering voice rose, icy cold and dripping with sarcasm, drowning out the roaring crowd. Severus's eyes followed the sound and met cruel, silver streaks of pure hatred and loathing. He shuddered, those eyes haunted him every day, the memories being dragged to the forefront of his memory and clouding his coherency, drowning in a sudden, uncontrollable urge to run that he could not explain.
"Mrs Malfoy, a pleasure to receive your presence on this most prestigious occasion! I do hope the interruption was warranted?" Kingsley beamed at the cause of the sudden hushed awe that had engulfed the room, though the smile never truly met his eyes.
"It is always a pleasure, Shacklebolt, to see ones oldest and dearest friend alive and well..." Narcissa's blonde hair was swept into an auspicious braid across her shoulder, an unusual look for a woman who preferred to match her husband. Her long, billowing black robes engulfed her petite frame and made her appear somewhat taller than ever before, her malicious sneer directed at Severus, who now stood shoulder to shoulder with the minister, his hand gravitating towards the wand holstered at his hip.
"I received notice of your being somewhat reformed, Severus, and may I say that death suited you more than this frippery," she tossed a scathing glance from the chain hanging around Severus's neck to the parchment in Kingsley's hand, neatly tied with a golden ribbon.
In an instant, Narcissa had raised her wand and a jet of sickly green sparks erupted wordlessly. Six Aurors who had trained in on Narcissa managed to stun her in time, her wand flying from her hand and the spell redirecting to hit the large chandelier buffeted against the connection. With a roaring rumble, the chandelier swayed ominously, small shards of interrupted glass falling upon the now panicked, screaming guests who were instantly frantic, crawling aside to make room for the potential cataclysm. Kingsley flicked his wrist and wandlessly cast reparo on the fallen glass, the chandelier settling to its stoic position once again. The crowd remained agitated as the Auror's placed magic inhibiting cuffs on Narcissa, who hissed and spat like a cat in a thunderstorm. Her mane of platinum hair whipped wildly in it's now dishevelled braid and she screamed obscenities Severus was shocked to escape her once poised, calculated and controlled vocabulary and suddenly he blanched.
"Kingsley, you need to check her eyes, I do not think she knows what she is doing!"
Severus gripped Kinglsey's are and pulled him round to get his full attention. The Minister stood to his full, grand height, his presence permeating the rooms temperamental atmosphere and once again drawing a hush to the crowd.
"Gentleman and Ladies, we apologise for this interruption..."
He looked at Severus and felt the nervous grip the man had on his arm, understanding silently the message he was trying to convey.
"I am sure you all agree that we have had enough...fireworks...for the evening and I bid you all good night and a pleasant journey home. Please feel free to collect a gratuity gift from the main reception of the Ministry for all of your attendance this evening, and I hope that your discretion will be guaranteed, considering the circumstances. We once again congratulate all tonight who have received their awards, and particularly give thanks for the miraculous return of Msrs Remus Lupin, Sirius Black and Severus Snape to the wizarding community".
His words were final, the crowd sensed this and, like zombies descending from the crypt, the crowd filed out of the hall, leaving only a handful of ex-Order members, aurors and, unknown to the crowd, a small bejewelled, jade green beetle, barely noticeable against the well chosen green brocade curtains that flanked the large stain glass depiction of the founders of the Ministry that bathed the room in kaleidoscopic vibrancy. The large doors closed on the scene, and the players decended to where the aurors now had Narcissa, seated and silenced, in one of the chairs on the back row. Her eyes darted quickly around the group of people with fear and desperation, the cold glint completely removed as she settled into stunned silence of her own volition. The auror closest to her was recognisable in an instant as he undid the charm on the now utterly ashen faced and confused woman. Harry then removed the binds from her hands, but retained her wand, not comfortable in letting her have all of her liberties.
"What happened? Where am I? Why is my hair in this hideous...thing? And why is Severus..."
Her eyes took in the sight before her and wavered, moving slowly up and down Sirius, then Remus, then lastly Severus with confusion, pain and terror.
"You...you were..."
Kingsley moved to Narcissa, then, and crouched to meet her, something that was no mean feat for the impressive mass of Kingsley Shacklebolt. His dark eyes studied her face without saying a word, silently scrutinising every line and curve.
"Severus, please, your thoughts?"
Severus cleared his throat and, like the minister, studied the face of the woman he had been friends with since their first meeting when she was a fledgling debutante and the soon to be bride of his school friend. She had aged well, but the severe lines on her face showed a haggard and exhausted woman who had seen ultimate suffering, having lost her family. The last all had been aware, Narcissa had reconnected with her sister Andromeda and was being a model aunt to her great nephew, Teddy, the son of Remus Lupin (who now eyed Narcissa with curiosity) and Nymphadora Tonks, her niece. Nothing could be said for what she had risked, and how she had herself played a role in the demise of the Dark Lord. Severus could not fathom who, or what, was behind her actions, but two things were certain. Firstly, Narcissa was no more aware of what had occurred as anyone else in that room, and secondly...
Severus suddenly, before anyone could stop him, had whipped his wand from his side and pointed it at the great windows that showered the hall in an ironically warm light, silently shooting a jet of pale blue towards what seemed to be a curtain. With a sudden screech and a diatribe to rival Narcissa's earlier exclamations, one that was undoubtedly common to the owner of the screech, a small woman with bottle blond hair and strict apparel was floating in mid-air, almost painfully thrashing against the spell holding her firmly above ground. All looked up into the furious face of Rita Skeeter as Severus slowly floated her to the ground, allowing her struggles to make her look utterly ridiculous before plopping her between aurors Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley, his godson standing behind Ron and smirking wickedly.
"Nice one, Unk, I was wondering if she would be somewhere around here earwigging on the proceedings," Draco folded his arms and positioned himself closer to his mother, inadvertently showing his full presence and calming her fear.
Skeeter surveyed her surroundings and, finding herself at a loss for a sympathetic audience, she stayed silent, but her shrewd eyes darted to everyone around her with a look of pure hatred. She straightened herself up as Kingsley draped his cloak around her, making her attempts at seeming taller fade under its sheer bulk. Not saying a word, she drew her lips into an insipid smirk, almost daring the crowd around her to speak.
"I see that I have been somewhat...um...caught, so to speak," She tried to locate a place to potentially run to, but the bodies of Ron, Harry, Hermione and now Draco seemed to close in the gaps, making a perfect circle around her.
"Well, Ms Skeeter, what a pleasant surprise! I was unaware you would be dropping in on the festivities," Kinglsey Shacklebolt oozed confidence and collected reassurance, but Rita knew full well the depth of trouble she was slowly sinking into. Her smirk faded at his words, and her eyes darted to the ground in a look of shame and dread.
"I thought I made it expressly clear that all media persons should be present outside of the hall, and that photographic and interview opportunities would be granted upon special request? Did you not receive my memo at the Prophet?" Any warmth Kingsley may have previously alluded to in his voice was now replaced by an authoritorial, dark and almost angry tone. Rita did not raise her eyes from the ground.
"Kinglsey, I think I should confess something to you now..."
Hermione stepped forwards, looking up into the warm, molten eyes of the minister. He looked upon her warmly, in an almost avuncular manner and motioned for her to continue her speech.
"I believe that Ms Skeeter has perhaps overstepped her boundaries, especially as she is still yet to register as an animagus, even though she was original found out in our fourth year at Hogwarts to be one by myself, Harry and Ron. But perhaps this one time we can let her go without any further embarrassment to herself."
All eyes fell on Hermione, her apparent benevolence and sudden incorporation into the surroundings making everyone look towards her in confusion. Hermione had been apprenticing under Kingsley for the past year, and had grown through her time at the ministry to become a shrewd political thinker. She had worked for a new Magical Creature initiative which now incorporated all magical beings under the same laws and governance, with the same rights as their wizarding counterparts. She had even managed, in her short time, to convince the tribes of vampires and werewolves to live in some form of peaceful accord. Of course, America was still a problem, a governance unto themselves, but England and Europe were on the same page, as were countries as far reaching as Indonesia and Australia, in terms of their treatment of other magical entities. She had also managed to bring S.P.E.W to the attention of the ministry, through she had still yet to get the department for House Elf Rehabilitation to fully cement. House Elves, Hermione had finally realised enjoyed having a family to serve, thrived in said environment, so a fostering of house elves system had been structured to allow for them to report abuse to other elves, known as the Free Elf Council, without being persecuted or feeling that they had betrayed their masters. Having achieved so much and asked for so little in return for her free reign of her small portion of the ministry, Kingsley had taken her under his wing and now, three years later, she was showing major promise. After the war, Hermione had been broken, looking for ways to stay out of the public eye. Her relationship with Ron had collapsed and settled back into a familial warmth and love, although the break up had been hard, especially considering the reason behind it. She held no malice towards Draco , well...not anymore anyway...and had moved on to take him also into her very small and protected circle of friends and family.
"I feel that Ms Skeeter will not publish whatever she felt she would, and is very sorry for her actions. Perhaps we can just let her move on quietly and get herself down to the registration office, we can forget all about this...can't we Ms Skeeter?"
Hermione's eyes shone with mirth, but there was a darkness deep within the pits of her eyes shining through that made Rita swallow hard and simply nod. Something inside Hermione Granger burned passionately, and her want for justice and peace even extended to those who were, by all others, deemed as unworthy. But, Rita realised, this did not make her any weaker than any other person within the Order of the Phoenix, but in fact pushed her ahead of all of it's members, as she almost held the countenance of a Queen amongst her people, without ever asking to be crowned. Rita disliked her even more in that moment, but she did not feel compelled to retort. She simply bowed in a simpering fashion to the minister, then to Harry and Ron, and finally she caught Hermione in a level stare and nodded her thanks before scuttling from the room at lightning bug speed.
"What did you do that for, you know that woman is a little pest!"
Ron shook his head and looked at Hermione. Draco chuckled and answered for her.
"Because, babe, now who holds all the cards?" Draco and Hermione shared a look that, if anyone had not known, was very Slytherin of the both of them. The moment was broken when a small, almost unheard cough emanated from Narcissa, who had calmly watched in a dazed silence as the scene had played itself out. Eyes turned upon her, in her dishevelled state, and she flushed uncharacteristically. Her eyes had changed colour, and the usually striking red of her lips had faded to a pinky red, matching her flushed cheeks. Draco stepped back and carefully looked at his mother, noticing that her usually platinum blond hair had faded into a dirty blond with flecks of dark brown. Before his very eyes, his mother melted away to reveal a young woman of medium build, with dark hair and an olive tanned complexion. Dark eyes circled the group around her as the glamorous Narcissa Malfoy contorted and changed, hips widening slightly and body shrinking to at least 3 inches shorter. Draco's usually jovial and playful expression became hard as stone, his voice dripping venom as he watched the woman who now sat before them cower under his stare. He opened his mouth to speak, but each word echoed danger around the hall and every person tensed, not sure of his next move. Without moving a muscle except for the expressions on his face, Draco's focussed remained on the stranger. He glanced at the wand that had been retrieved, and saw with relief it was not actually Narcissa's. That, at least, was a good sign. His questions were quiet, but still breached the silence of the room, filling the eyes of the captured woman with a deep, indescribable fear.
"Who are you? And where the fuck is my mother?"