Fic: Call Me Conrad (14/16)
Title: Call Me Conrad (part 14 of 16)
Fandoms: Buffy/Hollyoaks/Harry Potter
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Severus Snape's encounter with Nagini does not go according to anyone's plan.
Severus Snape would have preferred his passing to be less painful, and perhaps a little less futile in the end, but he wasn't sad that it was happening. His long penance for Lily's death was nearly over. It would have been nice if the man responsible was dead and gone himself, but Severus was long resigned to not getting what he wanted.
There was movement to his side, and a bespectacled face swam into view. Potter, of course. Apparently he wasn't even to be allowed the dignity of dying without the brat interfering. Still, there were things Potter needed to know if he was going to have the best chance of defeating the Dark Lord, plans of Dumbledore's that were still in motion a year after the old goat's death, and Severus knew there wasn't time to tell him. One final indignity.
He tried to be disciplined about marshalling his memories, but Nagini's venom left him too weak. Memories of Lily crept in uninvited, things that had never been meant for anyone but Severus. He found himself dwelling on them, and castigated himself for wasting time and showing weakness in front of Potter. If he could persuade the boy to leave him in peace, he might just have time to lose himself in the memories.
He was weak by the time he was finished. Not long now. Potter had the memories in a vial. Good. And his hand was being held by... "Draco?" He was hallucinating. How embarrassing.
"They're ready," a voice said. Severus couldn't see who it was. Female. Granger? It was irrelevant; Draco grabbed the front of his robes and Severus was gripped by the familiar nausea-inducing sensation of apparation.
The place they landed was poorly lit, confusing Severus some more. Not St Mungo's then. Probably just as well, the Dark Lord undoubtedly had spies there. Not that Severus would last long enough for that to matter. Normal anti-venines wouldn't work against the poison the Dark Lord had bred into Nagini, and Severus would be dead long before even the best mediwizard could analyse it sufficiently. At least, he thought as consciousness finally faded out, he had got to see his godson one last time.
Waking up was a surprise.
He was lying on grass, Severus discovered, in a clearing in some woods lit by a small number of oddly-shaped lanterns. He was sore all over, unsurprisingly, his chest feeling particularly bruised. He wasn't freezing, at least, so someone must have had the wit to keep a warming charm replenished. It must be some kind of field hospital, but it seemed too quiet. There was none of the bustle and noise Severus expected from overstretched facilities trying to cope with battle-wounded wizards, nor could he see any other patients from where he was lying. He started to struggle into a sitting position, but was stopped by a firm hand on his chest.
"Woah, Professor. Your body isn't ready for sitting up yet." The speaker was a young man - no, a boy who couldn't be older than Potter. He sounded English, but Severus didn't recognise him and he of all people should know every young witch and wizard in the country. Perhaps he had been schooled abroad. If so, Severus didn't think much of the sense of wizarding culture the school had obviously failed to inculcate; the boy was wearing distinctly Muggle clothing, not even of decent quality and style. All in all, the only impressive thing about the boy was the way he ignored the glare Severus levelled at him.
"Who are you," Severus demanded, "and what happened?" His voice sounded weak in his ears, much to his chagrin.
"You were bitten by a giant snake," the boy said, evidently ignoring Severus's first question. "A lot."
"I am all too painfully aware of that," Severus snapped. Tried to snap; it came out with much less bite than he had intended. "How am I still alive?"
"We managed to neutralise the poison, obviously," the boy said, unruffled. "It was touch and go, though. You flatlined on us a couple of times."
"Flatlined?" Evidently no one had taught this young mediwizard that it was preferable to communicate with your patients in English.
"Your heart stopped." The new speaker was also young and dressed like a Muggle, though he had a strong Lancashire accent. Severus didn't recognise him either. "Good thing Mr H know CPR."
Severus contemplated asking what that might be supposed to mean, but didn't think he could get sufficient sarcasm into his voice. Instead he asked, "When will I be allowed to leave?"
"When you can stand up without falling over," the second youth said. The first boy put his hand out again to stop Severus making the attempt.
"Strictly speaking," he said, "you can go when Justin says you're ready. That won't be for a while; he's resting after spending most of the last hour working on you, and he knows I won't let him near you while he's tired. Even then, there's still a lot of damage to fix."
"What damage?" Severus demanded. If he knew the specifics, he would at least know which potions he should be drinking.
"General system damage, from what Justin said," he was told. "Nothing immediately life-threatening, but your body can't take much stress right now and your magic reserves are pretty much empty. The best thing for you to do is to relax and let yourself heal and recharge."
"Young man," Severus said levelly, "my students are currently engaged in a battle that may well decide the fate of the wizarding world. The one thing I am not going to do is relax!"
The boy was irritatingly unintimidated. "Well, you're not going to do anything more strenuous than lie there for the next half hour," he said.
Severus seethed. "This is ridiculous," he said. "I have to get back to Hogwarts. There are things Potter must be told."
"Yeah," the other young man said scathingly. "Showing up at a fight where half of your side think you're the enemy and you need help standing. Brilliant plan."
"At least we can do something about getting information to Harry," the first boy said. He looked pointedly at his colleague, who rolled his eyes.
"Alright," he said in martyred tones. "I'll get out of your way and call Amy." He stood, pulling an object Severus couldn't see clearly from his pocket, and walked away.
"You might want to brace yourself," the remaining young man said with a wry smile. "I expect, uh, Draco will be here as soon as he hears you're conscious."
Severus paused, remembering his fevered visions as he lay dying. "He brought me here?" he asked.
The boy nodded. "Arrived shouting his head off, demanding that we save your life." Severus could well imagine that scene. Draco in a panic would shout and bluster and generally make things three times more complicated than they needed to be. He bit back a groan, not surprised that his godson had been thrown out.
"I'm never going to get used to that reaction," the boy said, interrupting Severus's musings. "Everyone seems to expect... We've only known him for a few weeks, but how often do you think he's asked us for anything in time?"
"I imagine he's become quite wearisome," Severus said, puzzled.
"The only thing he's asked for was fixing Harry's wand," the boy disagreed, "and I had to coax that out of him. He wouldn't even ask for the things he needed. He's changed a lot, and I like the person he's becoming."
Sever tried to imagine his godson behaving in such a fashion. He failed spectacularly. Fortunately he was spared the opportunity to embarrass himself with further doubtless inane questions by the return of the second young man. He was holding something to his ear, something that looked distinctly Muggle in construction. Was it possible that these confusing children were squibs? It would certainly explain why Severus had never met them before.
"Harry says he's pretty sure he's got everything important," the young man said flatly. "He also said to say sorry his Dad was such a twat to you." Severus stared at him, moderately sure those were not Potter's exact words. The young man just shrugged. "Oh yeah, Craig, could you...?"
"Way ahead of you, Ste," another young man said from across the clearing. "We'll close up again once Conrad's here."
"Who...?" Severus began to ask. The crack of apparation interrupted him, and he lifted his hand to see Draco striding towards him, a girl by his side. "Draco?"
"Professor!" His godson looked well, Severus decided, aside from being dressed in rather non-descript Muggle attire that was clearly the worse for the battle. He looked more alive than Severus remembered seeing him for about a year, ever since the impossibility of the Dark Lord's task had begun to dawn on him. "Thank... I mean, it's good to see you alive, sir."
Another crack heralded another arrival, this time of a Death Eater. Severus fumbled for his wand, woefully slow, but to his amazement the vicious curse simply faded out several feet short of Draco. The Death Eater - Mulciber from his build - topped forwards, an axe sticking out of his back. "Nice throw," the girl commented, rising from the fighting crouch she had dropped into. Severus silently noted that she did not have a wand drawn. Another squib, perhaps?
"We aim to please." The cheery comment came in an American accent from a small group of people apparently resting nearby.
"Someone's keeping the gates open," the one addressed as Craig shouted. He and the man with him were gesturing vigorously, to no effect Severus could detect.
"No," the first young man said grimly. "Not here, I'm not having that." He stepped forward, the other boy - Ste - falling in behind him, and stretched his arm out. "Come here," he said with startling authority, and the two of them reached, twisted and pulled. There was a horrible ripping sound from the air, and Severus swore he saw an apparation point start to form in front of the boys before it dispersed like smoke.
The young man looked down at the severed hand he was now holding. "Uh," he said, sounding shocked. Severus certainly was; he had never seen a display of wandless magic like that, not even when Dumbledore or Voldemort were showing off.
"Where's the rest of him?" Ste asked sharply.
"Spread across half the county, I think," Craig replied. He sounded faintly sick. "He lost concentration when you grabbed him, and the Ways closed as you pulled him through. I think the rest of him just didn't reform."
"Do you want to keep that, Josh?" the American asked the first young man.
"Ugh, no!" Josh replied, dropping the hand with alacrity. He stepped back, colliding with Ste in his haste.
The American grinned as he retrieved his axe. "You never know," he said, "it might-"
"Don't say it," the girl interrupted. The American gave her a mournful look. "No. Honestly," she muttered, turning to Draco who was kneeling down beside Severus. "I can't believe he's supposed to be the responsible one."
Severus did his best to ignore the byplay. "Draco," he said, "you look well."
"And you look... terrible, sir." Severus imagined he did, but he was not accustomed to hearing that sort of honesty out of any Malfoy. Both Draco and his father were flatterers, ready to say whatever would give them the best advantage. Interesting.
Deciding against probing directly - something that almost never worked on young Slytherins anyway - he said instead, "I understand I have you to thank for my rescue."
Draco flushed. "Harry saw what happened through his link with You Know Who," he said, looking down. "I just brought you here."
Severus tried to keep the surprise off his face; avoiding any praise, never mind justly earned praise, was highly unlike the boy who had disappeared at the start of summer. "What happened to you, Draco?" he asked gently.
"I ran," was the candid answer. "I had failed my task, I couldn't kill Dumbledore. I knew I would be punished, probably killed, so I ran. I thought I'd found somewhere safe to hide, but..." He paused, clearly shaken by the memories of whatever had happened. The girl put her hand on his shoulder, and he smiled up at her. "Amy and her friends rescued me," he finished.
"I see," Severus said in exactly the same tone he used on students caught out after curfew whose excuses he found similarly lacking in detail. He looked pointedly at the girl.
To his credit, Draco didn't let his momentary look of panic show in his voice. "Amy, this is Professor Severus Snape, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and my godfather," he said in proper formal style. "Professor, allow me to introduce Amy Barnes, Vampire Slayer." He paused, allowing Severus a moment to consider the outlandish claim before adding, "And my girlfriend."
"Vampire Slayer?" Severus said in lieu of anything more sensible. It was meant to be a simple question, but Severus found himself ladening it with sarcasm. Amy gave him a rather fixed smile, and the boys Ste and Josh actually snorted with suppressed laughter despite being far enough away to give the illusion of privacy. "You think my scepticism is unjustified?" he asked them.
"Oh no," Ste said, apparently unruffled by Severus's irritation. "We just recognised your look is all."
"The look that says, 'You are in no way good enough for my child,'" Josh added helpfully. "Amy's dad is an absolute master of that look. We've all been on the receiving end of it."
"If you believe that you are reassuring me regarding Miss Barnes' wholesomeness," Severus informed him, "you are sadly mistaken. At the risk of repeating myself, you are the legendary Vampire Slayer?"
"No," Miss Barnes said with exaggerated politeness, "I'm a legendary Vampire Slayer. There are another couple of dozen of us helping to defend the school, more world-wide."
Severus considered the claim for a moment. It was absurd on the face of it, and Draco was a practised enough liar to have fooled Severus in his current state. None of the others had reacted to either his or Miss Barnes's statement, though; either they were all practised at deception and expecting the attempt, or this really was nothing new to them. Much against his normally cynical nature, Severus was erring towards the latter explanation.
Regardless, there was a more important matter to deal with. "And may I ask your intentions regarding my godson?" he asked, putting as much menace into his tone as his current conditions allowed. He watched Miss Barnes carefully, ignoring the hilarity this seemed to engender in her collection of former boyfriends.
Miss Barnes drew herself up. "That's my business and his," she said plainly. It was a good act, but Severus could tell that she was not nearly as certain of herself and her position as she wished to appear.
"I love her," Draco said simply. "I want to stay here with her."
Severus raised his eyebrows in surprise. "You realise that you would be giving up your inheritance?" he asked. "Your father will never accept a bride who is not from among the best pureblood families for you. He would consider it beneath his dignity to even contemplate a Weasley. For a Muggle, regardless of her prowess, the doors of the manor would be closed to you."
"They've been closed to me for months," Draco said with unexpected firmness. "Before I was rescued, I never expected to see the manor again, or have anything for myself. Since then... objects don't mean so much to me anymore. I've lived the last few weeks in a tiny flat, not using the Malfoy name, not even owning a wand, and I can't remember being happier. I've got friends, Uncle Severus, and nothing the Malfoy money or fame has ever done for me compares with them."
"A very impassioned speech," Severus said drily. Draco seemed entirely genuine, but he didn't imagine the boy's enthusiasm would last long. Judging from the way she held herself, neither did Miss Barnes.
"I mean it, sir," Draco said soberly. "If Josh asked me to give back my wand, I'd do it gladly."
"I'd rather you kept your wand and used it wisely," Josh said, "for all that seems to terrify you."
"I know what I did last time I had this much power," Draco complained. "I'm afraid that I'll do it again."
"Which is how we know we can trust you."
"You will need your wand," Severus observed, quietly shocked that Draco would contemplate a life without magic that seriously. "Should Potter prove victorious, there will still be public demand that anyone seen to have supported the Dark Lord be punished, and you are an obvious target."
"So are you, sir," Draco pointed out. "Please be careful."
"A lot of people are going to be very unhappy about anything like that," Josh said sternly. "Harry for starters. Amy, obviously, which would bring in the whole Watcher's Council. Then there's us, though I'm not sure we could do much beyond stop more snatch squads."
"And who exactly are you?" Severus asked. He had been unable to make any sense of the apparent power and inconsistent behaviour the young man exhibited.
Josh shot Draco a look. "Go on," he said, "you enjoy doing introductions."
The small grin that got back was fascinating on its own; Draco did not normally take any form of teasing well. "Sir," he said, "please meet Joshua Ashworth, Archdruid of the Holy Oaks, and his partner Steven Hay."
Severus gave Draco another sceptical look, which only provoked a larger grin, before turning to young Ashworth. "Many wizards are impressed by grandiose titles and outlandish claims," he said frostily. "I am not so credulous. Explain."
Ashworth shifted uncomfortably. "Actually I think 'Archdruid' is pushing it," he said.
"You're our leader, no mistake there," Hay said loyally.
"And as Professor Snape said, wizards expect over-embellished titles," Draco observed, still grinning. "Just 'Archdruid' is a bit plain, really. We'll need to think of something better if you want wizards to take druids seriously."
"Wizards are never going to take any sort of Wiccan seriously," Severus said. He certainly didn't. He had had the misfortune of being required to meet some New Age nature worshippers some years earlier. They had been less talented than Sibyl Trelawny and less well-connected to reality than the Lovegoods; speaking to them had been a waste of a perfectly good afternoon.
Miss Barnes snorted inelegantly. "I think Willow got plenty of respect when she shrank the giants," she said.
"We're a different sort of magic again from Wicca," Ashworth pointed out. "Different things are easy, or even possible."
Severus didn't bother glaring at him, since Ashworth seemed impervious. "Do you seriously expect me to believe that you can trace your magical lineage all the way to pre-Roman Britain?"
"Yeah, yeah, we've heard it all before," Hay said dismissively. "There haven't been druids for two thousand years. Now there are. Live with it."
"We think we've inherited all this from the ancient druids," Ashworth said more mildly, shooting his partner a reproving glance. "We don't know for certain. It doesn't really matter, though; the important thing is that the Grove accepted us."
"They've been doing the right thing, Uncle Severus," Draco said quietly. He looked serious but subdued. "It's been dangerous sometimes, but the place would be so much worse off without them. I would be so much worse off without them."
"I see," Severus said uncomfortably. He didn't entirely like the thought of Draco being beholden in any way to these not-quite-Muggles, but it seemed it was far too late to raise any objections. "It appears I have more than my life to thank you for," he told Ashworth grudgingly. "A lot more, if the Dark Lord's understanding of the Elder Wand is correct."
"Harry has a theory about that," Miss Barnes said.
Severus rolled his eyes. "Of course he does," he said. "Doubtless it puts him at the centre of the action. Would you care to enlighten me?"
Draco hesitated, then offered, "It's a long story."
Severus looked around the grove pointedly. "I appear to have the time."
Fandoms: Buffy/Hollyoaks/Harry Potter
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Severus Snape's encounter with Nagini does not go according to anyone's plan.
Severus Snape would have preferred his passing to be less painful, and perhaps a little less futile in the end, but he wasn't sad that it was happening. His long penance for Lily's death was nearly over. It would have been nice if the man responsible was dead and gone himself, but Severus was long resigned to not getting what he wanted.
There was movement to his side, and a bespectacled face swam into view. Potter, of course. Apparently he wasn't even to be allowed the dignity of dying without the brat interfering. Still, there were things Potter needed to know if he was going to have the best chance of defeating the Dark Lord, plans of Dumbledore's that were still in motion a year after the old goat's death, and Severus knew there wasn't time to tell him. One final indignity.
He tried to be disciplined about marshalling his memories, but Nagini's venom left him too weak. Memories of Lily crept in uninvited, things that had never been meant for anyone but Severus. He found himself dwelling on them, and castigated himself for wasting time and showing weakness in front of Potter. If he could persuade the boy to leave him in peace, he might just have time to lose himself in the memories.
He was weak by the time he was finished. Not long now. Potter had the memories in a vial. Good. And his hand was being held by... "Draco?" He was hallucinating. How embarrassing.
"They're ready," a voice said. Severus couldn't see who it was. Female. Granger? It was irrelevant; Draco grabbed the front of his robes and Severus was gripped by the familiar nausea-inducing sensation of apparation.
The place they landed was poorly lit, confusing Severus some more. Not St Mungo's then. Probably just as well, the Dark Lord undoubtedly had spies there. Not that Severus would last long enough for that to matter. Normal anti-venines wouldn't work against the poison the Dark Lord had bred into Nagini, and Severus would be dead long before even the best mediwizard could analyse it sufficiently. At least, he thought as consciousness finally faded out, he had got to see his godson one last time.
Waking up was a surprise.
He was lying on grass, Severus discovered, in a clearing in some woods lit by a small number of oddly-shaped lanterns. He was sore all over, unsurprisingly, his chest feeling particularly bruised. He wasn't freezing, at least, so someone must have had the wit to keep a warming charm replenished. It must be some kind of field hospital, but it seemed too quiet. There was none of the bustle and noise Severus expected from overstretched facilities trying to cope with battle-wounded wizards, nor could he see any other patients from where he was lying. He started to struggle into a sitting position, but was stopped by a firm hand on his chest.
"Woah, Professor. Your body isn't ready for sitting up yet." The speaker was a young man - no, a boy who couldn't be older than Potter. He sounded English, but Severus didn't recognise him and he of all people should know every young witch and wizard in the country. Perhaps he had been schooled abroad. If so, Severus didn't think much of the sense of wizarding culture the school had obviously failed to inculcate; the boy was wearing distinctly Muggle clothing, not even of decent quality and style. All in all, the only impressive thing about the boy was the way he ignored the glare Severus levelled at him.
"Who are you," Severus demanded, "and what happened?" His voice sounded weak in his ears, much to his chagrin.
"You were bitten by a giant snake," the boy said, evidently ignoring Severus's first question. "A lot."
"I am all too painfully aware of that," Severus snapped. Tried to snap; it came out with much less bite than he had intended. "How am I still alive?"
"We managed to neutralise the poison, obviously," the boy said, unruffled. "It was touch and go, though. You flatlined on us a couple of times."
"Flatlined?" Evidently no one had taught this young mediwizard that it was preferable to communicate with your patients in English.
"Your heart stopped." The new speaker was also young and dressed like a Muggle, though he had a strong Lancashire accent. Severus didn't recognise him either. "Good thing Mr H know CPR."
Severus contemplated asking what that might be supposed to mean, but didn't think he could get sufficient sarcasm into his voice. Instead he asked, "When will I be allowed to leave?"
"When you can stand up without falling over," the second youth said. The first boy put his hand out again to stop Severus making the attempt.
"Strictly speaking," he said, "you can go when Justin says you're ready. That won't be for a while; he's resting after spending most of the last hour working on you, and he knows I won't let him near you while he's tired. Even then, there's still a lot of damage to fix."
"What damage?" Severus demanded. If he knew the specifics, he would at least know which potions he should be drinking.
"General system damage, from what Justin said," he was told. "Nothing immediately life-threatening, but your body can't take much stress right now and your magic reserves are pretty much empty. The best thing for you to do is to relax and let yourself heal and recharge."
"Young man," Severus said levelly, "my students are currently engaged in a battle that may well decide the fate of the wizarding world. The one thing I am not going to do is relax!"
The boy was irritatingly unintimidated. "Well, you're not going to do anything more strenuous than lie there for the next half hour," he said.
Severus seethed. "This is ridiculous," he said. "I have to get back to Hogwarts. There are things Potter must be told."
"Yeah," the other young man said scathingly. "Showing up at a fight where half of your side think you're the enemy and you need help standing. Brilliant plan."
"At least we can do something about getting information to Harry," the first boy said. He looked pointedly at his colleague, who rolled his eyes.
"Alright," he said in martyred tones. "I'll get out of your way and call Amy." He stood, pulling an object Severus couldn't see clearly from his pocket, and walked away.
"You might want to brace yourself," the remaining young man said with a wry smile. "I expect, uh, Draco will be here as soon as he hears you're conscious."
Severus paused, remembering his fevered visions as he lay dying. "He brought me here?" he asked.
The boy nodded. "Arrived shouting his head off, demanding that we save your life." Severus could well imagine that scene. Draco in a panic would shout and bluster and generally make things three times more complicated than they needed to be. He bit back a groan, not surprised that his godson had been thrown out.
"I'm never going to get used to that reaction," the boy said, interrupting Severus's musings. "Everyone seems to expect... We've only known him for a few weeks, but how often do you think he's asked us for anything in time?"
"I imagine he's become quite wearisome," Severus said, puzzled.
"The only thing he's asked for was fixing Harry's wand," the boy disagreed, "and I had to coax that out of him. He wouldn't even ask for the things he needed. He's changed a lot, and I like the person he's becoming."
Sever tried to imagine his godson behaving in such a fashion. He failed spectacularly. Fortunately he was spared the opportunity to embarrass himself with further doubtless inane questions by the return of the second young man. He was holding something to his ear, something that looked distinctly Muggle in construction. Was it possible that these confusing children were squibs? It would certainly explain why Severus had never met them before.
"Harry says he's pretty sure he's got everything important," the young man said flatly. "He also said to say sorry his Dad was such a twat to you." Severus stared at him, moderately sure those were not Potter's exact words. The young man just shrugged. "Oh yeah, Craig, could you...?"
"Way ahead of you, Ste," another young man said from across the clearing. "We'll close up again once Conrad's here."
"Who...?" Severus began to ask. The crack of apparation interrupted him, and he lifted his hand to see Draco striding towards him, a girl by his side. "Draco?"
"Professor!" His godson looked well, Severus decided, aside from being dressed in rather non-descript Muggle attire that was clearly the worse for the battle. He looked more alive than Severus remembered seeing him for about a year, ever since the impossibility of the Dark Lord's task had begun to dawn on him. "Thank... I mean, it's good to see you alive, sir."
Another crack heralded another arrival, this time of a Death Eater. Severus fumbled for his wand, woefully slow, but to his amazement the vicious curse simply faded out several feet short of Draco. The Death Eater - Mulciber from his build - topped forwards, an axe sticking out of his back. "Nice throw," the girl commented, rising from the fighting crouch she had dropped into. Severus silently noted that she did not have a wand drawn. Another squib, perhaps?
"We aim to please." The cheery comment came in an American accent from a small group of people apparently resting nearby.
"Someone's keeping the gates open," the one addressed as Craig shouted. He and the man with him were gesturing vigorously, to no effect Severus could detect.
"No," the first young man said grimly. "Not here, I'm not having that." He stepped forward, the other boy - Ste - falling in behind him, and stretched his arm out. "Come here," he said with startling authority, and the two of them reached, twisted and pulled. There was a horrible ripping sound from the air, and Severus swore he saw an apparation point start to form in front of the boys before it dispersed like smoke.
The young man looked down at the severed hand he was now holding. "Uh," he said, sounding shocked. Severus certainly was; he had never seen a display of wandless magic like that, not even when Dumbledore or Voldemort were showing off.
"Where's the rest of him?" Ste asked sharply.
"Spread across half the county, I think," Craig replied. He sounded faintly sick. "He lost concentration when you grabbed him, and the Ways closed as you pulled him through. I think the rest of him just didn't reform."
"Do you want to keep that, Josh?" the American asked the first young man.
"Ugh, no!" Josh replied, dropping the hand with alacrity. He stepped back, colliding with Ste in his haste.
The American grinned as he retrieved his axe. "You never know," he said, "it might-"
"Don't say it," the girl interrupted. The American gave her a mournful look. "No. Honestly," she muttered, turning to Draco who was kneeling down beside Severus. "I can't believe he's supposed to be the responsible one."
Severus did his best to ignore the byplay. "Draco," he said, "you look well."
"And you look... terrible, sir." Severus imagined he did, but he was not accustomed to hearing that sort of honesty out of any Malfoy. Both Draco and his father were flatterers, ready to say whatever would give them the best advantage. Interesting.
Deciding against probing directly - something that almost never worked on young Slytherins anyway - he said instead, "I understand I have you to thank for my rescue."
Draco flushed. "Harry saw what happened through his link with You Know Who," he said, looking down. "I just brought you here."
Severus tried to keep the surprise off his face; avoiding any praise, never mind justly earned praise, was highly unlike the boy who had disappeared at the start of summer. "What happened to you, Draco?" he asked gently.
"I ran," was the candid answer. "I had failed my task, I couldn't kill Dumbledore. I knew I would be punished, probably killed, so I ran. I thought I'd found somewhere safe to hide, but..." He paused, clearly shaken by the memories of whatever had happened. The girl put her hand on his shoulder, and he smiled up at her. "Amy and her friends rescued me," he finished.
"I see," Severus said in exactly the same tone he used on students caught out after curfew whose excuses he found similarly lacking in detail. He looked pointedly at the girl.
To his credit, Draco didn't let his momentary look of panic show in his voice. "Amy, this is Professor Severus Snape, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and my godfather," he said in proper formal style. "Professor, allow me to introduce Amy Barnes, Vampire Slayer." He paused, allowing Severus a moment to consider the outlandish claim before adding, "And my girlfriend."
"Vampire Slayer?" Severus said in lieu of anything more sensible. It was meant to be a simple question, but Severus found himself ladening it with sarcasm. Amy gave him a rather fixed smile, and the boys Ste and Josh actually snorted with suppressed laughter despite being far enough away to give the illusion of privacy. "You think my scepticism is unjustified?" he asked them.
"Oh no," Ste said, apparently unruffled by Severus's irritation. "We just recognised your look is all."
"The look that says, 'You are in no way good enough for my child,'" Josh added helpfully. "Amy's dad is an absolute master of that look. We've all been on the receiving end of it."
"If you believe that you are reassuring me regarding Miss Barnes' wholesomeness," Severus informed him, "you are sadly mistaken. At the risk of repeating myself, you are the legendary Vampire Slayer?"
"No," Miss Barnes said with exaggerated politeness, "I'm a legendary Vampire Slayer. There are another couple of dozen of us helping to defend the school, more world-wide."
Severus considered the claim for a moment. It was absurd on the face of it, and Draco was a practised enough liar to have fooled Severus in his current state. None of the others had reacted to either his or Miss Barnes's statement, though; either they were all practised at deception and expecting the attempt, or this really was nothing new to them. Much against his normally cynical nature, Severus was erring towards the latter explanation.
Regardless, there was a more important matter to deal with. "And may I ask your intentions regarding my godson?" he asked, putting as much menace into his tone as his current conditions allowed. He watched Miss Barnes carefully, ignoring the hilarity this seemed to engender in her collection of former boyfriends.
Miss Barnes drew herself up. "That's my business and his," she said plainly. It was a good act, but Severus could tell that she was not nearly as certain of herself and her position as she wished to appear.
"I love her," Draco said simply. "I want to stay here with her."
Severus raised his eyebrows in surprise. "You realise that you would be giving up your inheritance?" he asked. "Your father will never accept a bride who is not from among the best pureblood families for you. He would consider it beneath his dignity to even contemplate a Weasley. For a Muggle, regardless of her prowess, the doors of the manor would be closed to you."
"They've been closed to me for months," Draco said with unexpected firmness. "Before I was rescued, I never expected to see the manor again, or have anything for myself. Since then... objects don't mean so much to me anymore. I've lived the last few weeks in a tiny flat, not using the Malfoy name, not even owning a wand, and I can't remember being happier. I've got friends, Uncle Severus, and nothing the Malfoy money or fame has ever done for me compares with them."
"A very impassioned speech," Severus said drily. Draco seemed entirely genuine, but he didn't imagine the boy's enthusiasm would last long. Judging from the way she held herself, neither did Miss Barnes.
"I mean it, sir," Draco said soberly. "If Josh asked me to give back my wand, I'd do it gladly."
"I'd rather you kept your wand and used it wisely," Josh said, "for all that seems to terrify you."
"I know what I did last time I had this much power," Draco complained. "I'm afraid that I'll do it again."
"Which is how we know we can trust you."
"You will need your wand," Severus observed, quietly shocked that Draco would contemplate a life without magic that seriously. "Should Potter prove victorious, there will still be public demand that anyone seen to have supported the Dark Lord be punished, and you are an obvious target."
"So are you, sir," Draco pointed out. "Please be careful."
"A lot of people are going to be very unhappy about anything like that," Josh said sternly. "Harry for starters. Amy, obviously, which would bring in the whole Watcher's Council. Then there's us, though I'm not sure we could do much beyond stop more snatch squads."
"And who exactly are you?" Severus asked. He had been unable to make any sense of the apparent power and inconsistent behaviour the young man exhibited.
Josh shot Draco a look. "Go on," he said, "you enjoy doing introductions."
The small grin that got back was fascinating on its own; Draco did not normally take any form of teasing well. "Sir," he said, "please meet Joshua Ashworth, Archdruid of the Holy Oaks, and his partner Steven Hay."
Severus gave Draco another sceptical look, which only provoked a larger grin, before turning to young Ashworth. "Many wizards are impressed by grandiose titles and outlandish claims," he said frostily. "I am not so credulous. Explain."
Ashworth shifted uncomfortably. "Actually I think 'Archdruid' is pushing it," he said.
"You're our leader, no mistake there," Hay said loyally.
"And as Professor Snape said, wizards expect over-embellished titles," Draco observed, still grinning. "Just 'Archdruid' is a bit plain, really. We'll need to think of something better if you want wizards to take druids seriously."
"Wizards are never going to take any sort of Wiccan seriously," Severus said. He certainly didn't. He had had the misfortune of being required to meet some New Age nature worshippers some years earlier. They had been less talented than Sibyl Trelawny and less well-connected to reality than the Lovegoods; speaking to them had been a waste of a perfectly good afternoon.
Miss Barnes snorted inelegantly. "I think Willow got plenty of respect when she shrank the giants," she said.
"We're a different sort of magic again from Wicca," Ashworth pointed out. "Different things are easy, or even possible."
Severus didn't bother glaring at him, since Ashworth seemed impervious. "Do you seriously expect me to believe that you can trace your magical lineage all the way to pre-Roman Britain?"
"Yeah, yeah, we've heard it all before," Hay said dismissively. "There haven't been druids for two thousand years. Now there are. Live with it."
"We think we've inherited all this from the ancient druids," Ashworth said more mildly, shooting his partner a reproving glance. "We don't know for certain. It doesn't really matter, though; the important thing is that the Grove accepted us."
"They've been doing the right thing, Uncle Severus," Draco said quietly. He looked serious but subdued. "It's been dangerous sometimes, but the place would be so much worse off without them. I would be so much worse off without them."
"I see," Severus said uncomfortably. He didn't entirely like the thought of Draco being beholden in any way to these not-quite-Muggles, but it seemed it was far too late to raise any objections. "It appears I have more than my life to thank you for," he told Ashworth grudgingly. "A lot more, if the Dark Lord's understanding of the Elder Wand is correct."
"Harry has a theory about that," Miss Barnes said.
Severus rolled his eyes. "Of course he does," he said. "Doubtless it puts him at the centre of the action. Would you care to enlighten me?"
Draco hesitated, then offered, "It's a long story."
Severus looked around the grove pointedly. "I appear to have the time."