Aftermaths, Part 4

by Geri ([email protected])

Rating: Mostly PG-13, but NC-17 for overall story

Pairing: Snape/Lupin, Theodore/Blaise

Warning: AU; events that occurred at the end of Order of the Phoenix were significantly altered from the book.

Sequel to: Always, Summer Vacation, For Old Time's Sake, Three's a Crowd, Return of the Raven, Phoenix Reborn, and Phoenix Rising.

Summary: The various characters deal with the aftermath of the war, and Snape and Lupin try to build a family together with Theodore and Dylan. However, some people are unable to let go of the past...

Author's note: {} Indicates character's unspoken thoughts.

Disclaimer: Characters belong to J.K. Rowling, except Hob, who belongs to William Mayne; no money is being made off this story; consider it a little wish fulfillment on my part.
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"You only have one year of school left," Marius Zabini said to Blaise at breakfast. "It's time you started thinking about your future, son."

"With a Healing Gift, even a minor one, you could become a mediwizard," Olivia Zabini said brightly.

"Yes, but I don't know if I really want to go into medicine," Blaise replied. He had done well enough in his healing lessons, but he wasn't sure that it was something he would want to do for a living. Besides, he wasn't exactly squeamish, but he felt like he'd seen enough blood on the battlefield to last him a lifetime. "Professor Snape says that I have a 'scholarly bent,' and that I might consider becoming a teacher, historian, or researcher."

Marius frowned. "Well, I'm not sure that I really trust Snape..."

"He wasn't really a Death Eater!" Blaise said indignantly. "He was spying for the Order of the Phoenix all these years; the Headmaster said so! He's a hero!"

His parents looked startled by his vehemence, and his little sister, Allegra, who would be entering Hogwarts herself this fall, looked very eager and curious; the elder Zabinis had avoided talking about the Death Eaters and Blaise's role in the battle in front of her, and she was just dying to learn more about it.

Olivia saw the look in her daughter's eyes and hastily changed the subject, "Yes, well, I am sure you would be good at those things, Blaise, but a mediwizard earns a much better salary than most scholars..."

Blaise sighed a little, but didn't say anything. His mother was a bit touchy about their financial status, which was just barely above poverty level. They were a little better off than the Weasleys, with their obviously secondhand and hand-me-down clothes and school supplies, but just barely--and only because they didn't have as many mouths to feed. But that wasn't true anymore, come to think of it, now that Arthur Weasley had been promoted to Minister of Magic. And Blaise's parents, though poor, still held onto their Slytherin pride, and he knew how badly they wanted to give their children a better life.

"A researcher or historian is little more than a glorified clerk," Marius said in a slightly offended and haughty tone.

Blaise sighed again; his parents meant well, but what good had pride done the Malfoys and the other Death Eater families? Wasn't it their pride that had gotten them into trouble in the first place, the need to prove their superiority over the Muggle-born and mixed-bloods? But he didn't want to start an argument, so he just said mildly, "Professor Blackmore's father was a researcher, a very respected one from what I've heard, and he was the Lord of a prominent pureblood family."

"Yes, Meredith Blackmore was famous for rediscovering many long-forgotten spells," Marius said, still frowning, "but perhaps he should have left well enough alone. One of his experiments blew up his laboratory and everyone in it..."

"It wasn't an accident!" Blaise said. "Professor Blackmore said that You-Know-Who..." He paused, then forced himself to say the Dark Lord's name. "That Voldemort was behind it."

His parents gasped, and Allegra's eyes grew wide and round. "Blaise!" Olivia snapped in a frightened and reproachful tone.

"He's dead, Mother," Blaise said calmly. "We don't have to fear him anymore. And besides, Professor Lupin said that fear was what gave Voldemort power." It was a little easier to say the second time around. "He was never afraid to call Voldemort by name even when he was still alive."

"I wouldn't pay such close heed to a werewolf's words," Olivia said disdainfully.

"It's thanks to Professor Lupin's Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons that I'm alive!" Blaise said hotly. "If it hadn't been for the spells he taught us, I might be dead! I certainly didn't learn how to defend myself from Lockhart or Umbridge!"

His parents gaped at him in shock, and Allegra asked eagerly, "What spells did you use? Did you really fight the Death Eaters?"

"Allegra!" Olivia snapped, glaring at her daughter, who opened her mouth to protest.

Blaise shook his head at her slightly and gave her a look that said, "Not now; I'll tell you about it later." Allegra subsided reluctantly and shot him a look that said he had better keep his unspoken promise.

Blaise gave his mother a conciliatory smile and changed the subject. "I'm not really sure what profession I want to go into, Mother, but I promise that I'll think it over very seriously. I still have one year left to decide, after all."

His mother looked slightly pacified. "You are continuing in Potions and Herbology next term, aren't you, dear? They're required subjects for a mediwizard. Even if you're not sure that's what you want to do, you should keep all your options open--"

"Yes, Mother," Blaise replied patiently.

"I thought Blaise was going to take over Daddy's shop one day," Allegra said. Their father ran a secondhand store in Diagon Alley, which certain Slytherins--including Draco--sometimes sneeringly referred to as a "junk shop". Ironically enough, Blaise had seen the Weasleys and Potter in there one summer when he had been helping his father at the shop. He had been working in back, though, and he didn't think that they had spotted him. He smiled a little; he was sure that Ron Weasley didn't know who owned the shop--no doubt he would be horrified to learn that he had been patronizing a store owned by a Slytherin. Percy Weasley stopped by on his own occasionally; he had become a regular customer ever since he had found a used book there called "Prefects Who Gained Power". Percy did realize that Blaise's father owned the shop, but it didn't seem to bother him, and he obviously hadn't considered it worth mentioning to his younger brother. He would even greet Blaise politely if he happened to see him in the store. Blaise had to admit that while Percy was a prig, he was a fair prig. He had never used his authority as a prefect to harass Blaise or any of the other Slytherins, nor had he insulted them the way that the other Gryffindors did almost as a matter of course. He had reported every minor infraction of the rules he came across, regardless of House, but that hadn't mattered much in Slytherin, since Snape was not about to punish his students on a Gryffindor prefect's say-so.

Marius looked uncomfortable; he was not particularly proud of his job, because he viewed it as a step down from the days when his family had been a wealthy and influential family--not quite on par with the Malfoys, perhaps, but certainly equal to the Notts, Crabbes, or Goyles. "Yes, but with Blaise's grades, and a rare Healing Gift, he can do much better than running a junk shop," Marius told his daughter.

"It's not a 'junk shop'!" Allegra said indignantly. "There's lots of great stuff in your shop; they just need a little fixing up, that's all!" She loved sorting through all the "junk" in her father's shop: used books, broken wands, chipped and cracked china tea sets, tarnished goblets and cutlery, and old toys that were stained or torn or missing pieces. Her favorite toy was a black stuffed cat that had been missing one eye and coming apart at the seams, oozing stuffing through several tears on its body. When no one bought it, Marius gave it to Allegra, and her mother had patched it up with a Reparo spell and replaced the missing eye with a blue glass button. This gave the cat a rather mismatched look, since its remaining eye was green, but Allegra claimed that this made it look more mysterious, which was perfect for a witch's familiar.

Her parents smiled indulgently at her. "Yes, dear," Olivia said, "but every parent wants their children to have a better life than they did, no matter if they're a dishwasher or the Minister of Magic."

Marius scowled a little at being reminded that Arthur Weasley was now the Minister of Magic, and that he could no longer look down on his fellow impoverished wizard. But before he could say anything, a brown and white owl flew in through the open window and dropped a letter in front of Blaise.

Blaise recognized the owl as Dylan's. "Hello, Blodwen," he said feeding the owl a scrap of sausage from his plate. She accepted the treat, and a scratch, and seemed to be in no hurry to leave.

"Really, Blaise," Olivia complained, "must that animal sit at the table?"

"Sorry, Mother," Blaise said, coaxing the bird onto his shoulder. "She must be waiting for a reply." He eagerly tore open the letter, hoping that it was from Theo, who didn't have his own owl.
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Dear Blaise,

Hi, Dylan is letting me use Blodwen to send this letter. It's a little weird living with Lupin and Snape, but they've been really nice to us, even Snape, in his own way. Dylan and I are sharing a bedroom in what used to be the basement; apparently that's where Lupin used to spend the full moon before the Wolfsbane Potion was invented because it's got all these claw marks on the wall! Lupin was a little embarrassed about that, so we covered them up with posters, but I didn't really mind.

You'll never guess who came to visit the first day we moved into Lupin's cottage: Weasley's mother! She brought us lunch, saying that she knew we would all be busy moving in and she wanted to make sure me and Dylan got "a decent meal"! Can you imagine? Weasley's mother, of all people, being worried that we might miss lunch?! I think Snape was a little offended that she seemed to be saying he might forget to feed us! But the funniest part was when she told Lupin and Snape that she thought they would make "wonderful parents"--I thought Snape was going to have a stroke! I don't get it, though; with the way Weasley acts, and the way Lucius Malfoy used to treat Weasley's dad, I figured they would all hate us. But Mrs. Weasley actually seems to like Snape; don't ask me why.

I like it here at Lupin's cottage. It's practically right in the middle of the woods, miles away from civilization (so that people wouldn't hear him howling during the full moon). You'd think I'd be bored, but it's quiet and peaceful. I've already had all the excitement I can stand, and anyway, Snape keeps us pretty busy. Dylan and I help Lupin out around the house, with the cooking and stuff, and Snape has us studying all the time ("You need to prepare for your N.E.W.T.s, Mr. Nott") or helping him make the Wolfsbane Potion for Lupin, which is actually pretty interesting. Making the potion, not studying, that is! But it's not so bad; there's not much to do around here, anyway, and Lupin makes him give us a break every so often. There's lots of room to fly out here, so Dylan and I have been practicing Quidditch maneuvers; I think I might try out for the team when school starts, now that I don't have to suck up to Malfoy anymore.

It's really, REALLY weird around here sometimes--like when Lupin starts nuzzling Snape (I kid you not!) or putting him his arm around him and acting all lovey-dovey. Snape always turns red and acts all grumpy and embarrassed, but Dylan says that it's just an act. I guess he's right, because Snape never pushes him away, and he never turns Lupin into a wolfskin rug, like he's always threatening to do. Like I said, it's really weird! But still, I like it here.

Lupin says we can have friends over if we want; Dylan's sending a letter to Damien, too. I really miss you, and there's so much I want to tell you; too much to fit in this letter. So please say you'll come.

I love you.

Theo
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Blaise felt a wide grin spreading across his face. He had been worried about Theodore, but from the letter, it sounded like he was happy living with Snape, Lupin, and Dylan. What pleased him even more was that Theo was surprisingly loquacious in his letter, and that he had said "there's so much I want to tell you". Theodore had been taciturn and guarded for as long as Blaise had known him, even after they became lovers, so he was happy that Theo finally seemed ready to open up to him. In the days following the battle, Theodore had finally admitted that his father had cast a Memory Charm on Blaise during their Halloween outing in Hogsmeade, but he had not wanted to go into detail about it. Blaise suspected there was a lot more to it than that, but hadn't wanted to press for more information when Theo was still looking so pale and haunted and fragile. And on the day before school let out, he had come back to their dorm room with his eyes red and a stunned expression on his face, and had given Blaise two shocking pieces of news: first, that Snape and Lupin had decided to become his foster parents, and second, that his father had murdered his uncle years ago when he was a little boy. Theo had not wanted to discuss his uncle's death; he only told Blaise because he said that the news was soon going to become public when Dumbledore spoke to his uncle's family, and he didn't want Blaise reading about it in the Daily Prophet. So Blaise had remained silent and simply held Theo, trusting that his friend would confide in him when he was ready; now it seemed that his patience had paid off. And that final "I love you" made Blaise smile too; he already knew that, of course, but he still liked to hear Theo say it.

"What are you grinning about?" Allegra asked. "Is it from a girlfriend?"

Blaise quickly folded up the letter and stuffed it in his pocket; he wasn't sure how his parents would react to the news that he had a boyfriend, not a girlfriend. He knew that they expected him to have children and carry on the Zabini name someday as the "heir" of the family, despite the fact that there was little for him to inherit other than that name. "No, silly," Blaise said, trying to sound nonchalant. "It's from my friend, Theo."

"The one who was adopted by Professor Snape along with your other friend?"

"That's the one," Blaise replied, then turned to his parents. "He and Dylan want me to come visit them. Can I go? Professor Lupin says it's all right with him."

His parents frowned at each other. "I don't know," Olivia said. "I'm not sure I like the idea of you going off all alone to that werewolf's house in the woods..."

"Aw, come on, Mum!" Blaise protested. "Lupin's perfectly safe; he has Professor Snape to make him the Wolfsbane Potion, and besides, he's a hero of the war! He and the other werewolves fought against the Death Eaters. And I won't be alone--Damien's going, too."

"Well..." his mother said reluctantly.

"No," Marius said firmly.

"But Professor Lupin is--"

"It's not the werewolf that I'm worried about," Marius interrupted. "Although I'm not really crazy about the idea of you associating with him. I don't want you hanging around with the Nott boy anymore."

"Theo?" Blaise asked, feeling stunned. "But why?"

"He's a Death Eater's son, Blaise!" Marius snapped. "He nearly got you killed!"

"That wasn't his fault!"

"Did he or did he not drag you out in the middle of the night to meet the Death Eaters who were carrying out a sacrifice on the school grounds?"

"That was Draco," Blaise argued. "Theo didn't want to go, either, but Malfoy forced us to--"

"I don't care!" Marius said sharply, and Blaise's heart sank. His father was normally a kind and agreeable man, but when he made up his mind about something, he could not be swayed, and right now he had that stubborn, implacable look in his eyes. "I don't trust him."

"But Father," Blaise argued, "the danger is over. The Dark Lord is dead, and the Death Eaters are all dead or in Azkaban."

"Two of those Death Eaters were his parents," Marius pointed out. "How do we know he doesn't want to carry on their work one day?"

"He's not like that!" Blaise cried out. "Please, Father, you don't know him, so how can you judge him? But I lived with him for six years, and I know he's not like his parents!"

"I did meet the boy a few times at the Slytherin Quidditch matches," Marius reminded him. "He seemed like a sullen, very unpleasant boy to me."

"He only acted like that because he was scared of his father and the other Death Eaters! He's my best friend, Father, I know what he's really like! He's a good person; if you got to know him you'd see that--"

"You are not going to visit him, and that's final!" Marius said sternly.

"Please, just give him a chance," Blaise begged. "I won't go to Lupin's cottage, but let Theo come here for a visit, and get to know him. Give him a chance, that's all I'm asking! That's fair, isn't it?"

His words didn't seem to move his father, but his mother said hesitantly, "Marius, perhaps--"

"No, dear," Marius said firmly.

"Everyone knew, or at least suspected, that the Notts were Death Eaters!" Blaise said. "But you've never objected to my friendship with Theo before!"

"We did not object," Marius said gravely, "because the Notts were an important family, with friends in high places. It would have been dangerous to offend them. But Marta and Thaddeus are now dead and disgraced, and this boy, even if he is innocent himself--and I'm not yet convinced that he is--will only hold you back."

"Hold me back?" Blaise asked numbly.

"From advancing in the wizarding world," Marius explained patiently. "Our fortunes fell, in part because my grandfather made some poor business investments, but mostly because my family chose not to ally themselves with the Malfoys and their ilk. The Malfoys saw to it that no one of importance would do business with us after that, and that is how we wound up running a junk shop and living in this little house instead of working for the Ministry and living in a grand mansion. But it was the right choice to make; Lucius Malfoy and his friends have been cast down, and we are not tainted by association with the Death Eaters. We--or rather, you and Allegra--have a chance to rise up in the world again, to become someone of worth. But that will not happen if you associate with a boy from a disgraced family, if people believe that you were involved with the Death Eaters yourself."

"I don't believe this!" Blaise shouted, clenching his fists in anger. "You want me to abandon my best friend for the sake of power? So I can rise up in the world and become someone of worth? Do you know how much like Lucius Malfoy you sound, Father?"

"I am your father; don't speak to me in that tone of voice!" Marius snapped, but he looked a little ashamed of himself.

"I thought I had something of worth already, Father," Blaise said softly. "I have a family and friends who love me. The Malfoys had power and wealth, and what did that get them? Lucius Malfoy is dead, and Draco has to live with the knowledge that his father tried to sacrifice him to save his own life."

"Of course we love you, son," Marius said, in an equally quiet voice. "We want you and Allegra to have a better life than the one we have now."

"The life we have now is okay," Allegra protested, but in a very subdued voice.

Marius smiled at her a little sadly, and stroked her hair. "Of course it is, sweetheart. I'm able to put food on the table and clothes on our backs. But I want you to have more than the bare necessities; I want you to have a life that is better than 'okay'." He turned back to his son. "I don't want you living as a pauper and an outcast."

"But--"

"Your loyalty to your friend is touching, but only a Gryffindor can afford such high-minded ideals," Marius said.

"I don't care about--"

"Our house was attacked while you were at school," Marius said, and Blaise stared at him in shock.

"Marius!" Olivia cried. "We agreed not to tell him--"

"He needs to know," Marius said grimly. "He needs to know the dangers involved. Tensions were running high this past year, ever since the Death Eaters broke out of Azkaban. People began attacking Death Eater sympathizers--"

"But we aren't sympathizers! You just said that we lost our fortune because we wouldn't join the Death Eaters!"

"We are Slytherins, and to the ignorant masses, that is the same thing as being a Death Eater sympathizer. There was a great deal of vandalism, and a few beatings--"

"What happened?" Blaise asked anxiously. "Were you or Mother or Allegra hurt?"

"No," Marius replied. "But there were threats made, graffiti written on the house, a rock thrown through the window..."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Blaise asked in dismay.

"We didn't want to worry you," Olivia told him. "There was nothing you could do, and we wanted you to remain at school where you were safe."

"Where we thought you were safe," Marius muttered, recalling how Blaise had gotten involved in the final battle.

"It's all right," Olivia assured her son. "No one was hurt, and Dumbledore actually sent some people to put protective wards on the house and the shop. I must admit, I didn't expect that, but we were very grateful."

"Not so surprising in retrospect, I suppose," Marius mused. "My father used to call him a bleeding heart liberal; he always stuck up for the underdog. He hired that werewolf teacher and got the Wolfsbane Potion distribution program started, after all..." Then he shook his head slightly, as if reminding himself to get back to the subject at hand. "So you see, Blaise, it is for your own good that I'm forbidding you to see this boy--and the Rosier boy, too, for that matter."

"But Father--" Blaise argued, knowing it was useless.

"I don't want to hear another word on the subject, Blaise," Marius said sternly. "My mind is made up."

"Yes, Father," Blaise whispered, and ducked his head so that no one would see that his eyes had filled with tears. He reminded himself that he and Theo would be separated only for the summer; his parents could not stop them from seeing each other at school. But right now, those three months seemed like an eternity. He pushed back his chair and rose from the table.

"Where are you going?" Olivia asked, looking concerned.

"I've got to write Theo and tell him I can't come visit him," Blaise said bitterly. "I can at least do that much, can't I?"

"Finish your breakfast first," Marius said, in a gentle voice.

"I'm not hungry," Blaise snapped, and left the table; his parents didn't try to stop him. He headed to his room, slammed the door, picked up his quill, and then hesitated. Theo had already been hurt enough; he didn't want to hurt his lover further by telling him that his parents had forbidden him to see Theo because he was a Death Eater's son. On the other hand, he couldn't evade Theo for three months without arousing his suspicion. He decided to invent a plausible excuse to put Theo off for now, and hope that he could persuade his father to change his mind, although he knew that wasn't very likely. He chewed on the end of his quill for a moment, then dipped it in the ink bottle and began to write.

 

Part 5