Angelinus

Chapter 13

Consequences

The floo technician looked grim as he packed up his equipment and turned to give his report. "There are no open ended connections to the fireplace so wherever she ended up, it was a real destination and it is somewhere in the country, she didn't try for an overseas connection."

"Well at least she didn't try to connect to Australia," Remus murmured thankfully.

"Some consolation," Severus muttered grimly, his arm still firmly about Remus' shoulders. He needed the physical contact to stop him flying to pieces, a state of affairs he found totally alarming. His earlier outburst at the hapless Miss Harkness had shocked him in a fundamental way. So much so that he didn't quite trust his own basic reactions. He had always felt he was a reasoning man; calm, studied, balanced actions applied rationally to problems, not some gonad driven fool who plunged in heedless of the consequences, Slytherin, not Gryffindor. He was still shaking with the force of the unused adrenalin coursing around his body and making a mockery of his usual, disinterested and detached facade.

Remus stroked Severus' back under his robe trying to will calmness into his shaken mate. He'd only seen Severus so upset once and that was when Draco had hauled him in when he had been injured but the reasons behind that tragedy had been very different. Studying the technician carefully, Remus nodded for him to go on.

"She gave a garbled destination, not one that is on the floo system and was caught in a failsafe eddy - we have them set up at various points to catch any errors and shunt them into the nearest depot for sorting. However, before she could be brought in, she seems to have panicked and used wish-craft to take herself out of the system. The problem is, we aren't set up to track wish-craft of that magnitude, and no one is. The bottom line is, she isn't in the floo and I have no idea of where she is." The young wizard hung his head sheepishly as the two men before him clutched hands frantically.

"We will have to set up a locator spell as soon as possible," Dumbledore said firmly. "Tell me; is there any way to inhibit the floo so that a child could not use it?"

"The short answer is no," the technician said, grasping at the straw held out to him. "However, there are a number of guard charms that can be set up in front of the fireplace or alarm charms to warn of unauthorised use. Most parents use the fireguard charm and also set a password on the floo powder box as well as a warning chime on the fire itself. Kids will be kids and the intelligent ones soon figure out a way around even the best of safety charms."

"Well, young man, I think it would be best to organise a crew to come along and ward all the fireplaces in Hogwarts so we don't have a repeat of this accident in the future." Dumbledore decided, drawing the technician away and sending him off home with the order. "So, what do you want to do now? Call in outside assistance or see what we can do?" he asked of the Snapes who were still firmly fixed on the sofa.

"Well, we've established that she has been gone since two o'clock so wherever she is, they have not reported finding a stray girl or boy in their home or business. Whether that is a good thing or a bad thing, I don't know yet," Remus murmured thoughtfully. "We can start getting the things together for a tracking charm but setting one to find someone is not as easy as having one firmly fixed in the object when it is before you."

While the two wizards discussed the needs for a tracking charm, Severus held himself deep in thought, calming his mind, removing the distractions, preparing himself for the difficult task he may have ahead. As he emptied his mind, he could feel Remus' hand slowly gliding over the flesh of his torso, soothing and echoing in his chest, making an area of skin over his heart tingle and glow in harmony. He concentrated on the feeling, isolating it, analysing it, then a slow, cunning smile slid over his face.

"Forget the tracking charm; it won't work as we don't have a clue where to even aim it. However, we have something better than a tracking charm, we have a Blood Binding." He bared his teeth in a mirthless smile as he raised his head to stare at Dumbledore in calculated pleasure before turning to Remus at his side. "Are you willing?"

"Of course," Remus said instantly, not waiting for any further details.

Severus smiled a real smile that lit his eyes for a second before he grew serious again. "It won't be comfortable for you. I need to get into your head and into your skin."

"You already are, Love," Remus assured him gently, covering his mouth and receiving a kiss in the palm of his hand for his troubles. "What do you need me to do?"

Ignoring Dumbledore, Severus turned to kneel on the floor in front of his partner and flicked open the buttons on Remus' robes and undershirt exposing his heavily furred chest. Placing his palm in the centre of his breast exactly where the blood charm had been painted, Severus closed his eyes and conjured up an image of the mandala he had painted on Remus' skin in blood more than a month before.

The gateway symbol was still there, still open between Remus and Angelinus, still pulsing with life flowing from Remus to the child. Sighing in satisfaction, Severus began to track the flow, stretching his mind out further and further, allowing it to be carried in the trickling of power out to where a little child was lost and alone and perhaps in grave danger. For a time there was only the movement, not fast but steady, carrying him outward. He could feel Remus breath under his weight, the steady beat of his heart as he slumped further into the experience stretching him thinner and longer, wondering if he would be strong enough to follow the child. Then he was almost there, a hint of laughter, a flash of colour, a touch of scent. He pushed harder, drawing deeper on both himself and Remus, reaching out to the last few inches, and opening the small girl's eyes to see what was around her. He had it, a crest, almost as familiar as his own. Thank Salazar!

Remus only just caught Severus' long frame as he slumped into unconsciousness, easing him up onto the sofa cushions as he turned quickly to retrieve one of Sev's potions out of his robes. He knew the stubborn fool had taken to carrying the fortifying potion on his person after the last time he had collapsed and was just thankful to have it at hand when needed. Pouring the requisite drops straight into Sev's mouth, he kept him propped upright until he swallowed and began to revive.

Dumbledore - an interested but removed spectator to the cameo scene - moved forward to learn what had been discovered. Remus cast him a distracted smile as Severus came around and gusted a sigh.

"She is safe and well and playing happily at Malfoy Manor," Severus announced in disgust. "Oh, she is going to be so sorry for this piece of disobedience, I can assure you!" He vowed as he rose and pulled his robes around himself defensively.

Remus rose too, fastening his clothes and raking a shaking hand through his hair. "Yes, well, never punish in anger," he cautioned carefully, taking the opportunity to drop a little of the fortifying potion onto his own tongue. Whatever the spell Severus had been doing had taken it out of them both. "We're getting too old for these sorts of tricks and challenges," he muttered, pushing his hair roughly back into place.

Glancing down at his shorter mate, Severus grinned suddenly and dropped a kiss on his temple. "Definitely so, Old Man. But what would we do without her to keep us on our toes?" Ignoring the Headmaster's presence, they clung to each other and hung on for a long, comforting second before straightening up and smiling into each other's eyes. "Makes you know you are alive, yes? So, how do we want to go about retrieving the miscreant? And how is it that Hermione or Draco didn't floo us to let us know where she was?" Severus mused, a wave of irritation beginning to grow now that the tension was released.

"Malfoy is a big place; they could have sneaked off to play by themselves without Hermione even knowing she was there. Let's give her a call and ask the question, then we will know better how to deal with the situation. My biggest question is how did the little terror get up enough brute talent to make a wish that big? How did she know how to use the floo in the first place? And what are we going to do about Keelie Harkness? She is not fit to be in charge of a stuffed crup never mind a lively little girl."

"One problem at a time Remy, one at a time," Severus mused, giving him a final squeeze and moving across to the floo.

A handful of powder and a properly called address found Hermione in the fireplace looking pleasantly surprised to see them both in her fire. "Here? At Malfoy Manor? Oh my Lord, you must have been frantic! How long was the little beast missing? Two hours? Oh no! Are you both all right? Are you sure she is here? Hang on. Winken! Has Miss Gladriel got a friend in to play today?"

There was a confused popping of house-elf then a high-pitched squeak of ascent. Hermione put her head back into the fire and nodded grimly. "Yes, Miss Angelinus is playing dolls with Miss Gladriel and both are in the old nursery where they know they are not supposed to play. So, it seems we both have young ladies who need reminding that rules are not there to be broken at will but for their own protection." There was a hardness in Hermione's usually soft voice that brought back echoes of times past and retribution to come. "How do you want to play it?"

"Do you have any really good remember-crystals of people getting spinched in your library?" Severus asked with a smirk. "Let's be sure to scare the living daylights out of all the little beasts in case anyone decides it might be a fun thing to try for their own amusement."

Hermione nodded agreement and asked them both to dinner.

~~<*>~~

Angelinus and Gladriel were happily building dolls houses out of the old dustsheets in the old nursery. They had brought a selection of Silky's dolls and some old toy wizards belonging to Thorn up from the new nursery so as not to be disturbed by either the house-elves or a curious sibling. The afternoon had flown and both had had real fun but now it was getting late and Angelinus was getting hungry. Going home again was not going to be so easy because she was scared. When she'd first stepped into the green flames and said Silky's house, she had been spun up and jiggled a lot but it wasn't like when the uncles held her close and safe, it was bumpy and scary and then she had sort of tumbled as well as spun and something had said 'address error, diverting to Sutherland central'. She had panicked and screamed for Silky then suddenly had tumbled out of the air onto the hearthrug right at Silky's feet!

The little girl had been astonished but not upset, hugging her friend and immediately falling in with her plans for an afternoon full of fun and frolic, without her older siblings teasing her. At five consequences didn't last too long and when Angelinus decided she wanted to go home but was a bit scared, Silky had suggested getting her Mum to send Gelin home. Hand in hand the two little girls skipped down the corridor and into the living room just as Severus emerged from the fire and straightened to clean himself of ash. With a happy giggle, Angelinus threw her arms around his leg and hugged tightly, only to be gently disengaged and stood carefully on her feet before him.

"So, young lady, what do you have to say for yourself?" he asked, staring down with hooded eyes as the child looked up in puzzled hurt.

"Hi," she muttered and glanced around but even Uncle Remy looked remote and angry and Aunt Hermione was taking Silky away by the hand. "Are you angry with me?" she asked, digging a toe into the carpet and holding her hands behind her back.

"We were frightened," Remus said flatly. "You did something very naughty when you jumped into the floo with no real place to go. You are only lucky you managed to get out alive and in one piece."

"But I was bored! Miss Harkness was sleeping again and she wouldn't let me do anything. I wanted to play with Silky."

Severus knelt down and placed both hands on her shoulders, making her look at him. "You could have been killed, or ended up in a very bad place where people torture children for their own purposes. You could have been lost forever and we would never have found you again. It was only good luck that you got here in the first place and it was only by good luck that Uncle Remus has a spell on him to attach you to him. If anything happened to you, it could hurt Uncle Remus too because of that spell and would you like that to come true?"

"NO!" Angelinus was horrified. Uncle Remy was her cuddle bug and, no she couldn't hurt her uncles, either of them, not on purpose, ever! She began to cry in earnest but Severus refused to soften just yet.

"We have some pictures to show you of what can happen if something goes wrong in the floo, just to help you understand why we were so worried. You must never go through the floo unless you are supervised or you have proper directions from an adult. Understood?"

"Yes Uncle Severus," she gulped, accepted the handkerchief he held out to her and was suddenly engulfed in the black robes still redolent in potions smells. "I'm really, really truly sorry, Uncle Sevvy, really I am."

Picking her up, he pulled Remus into a three-way hug, thankful to have his family back together again without any lasting harm. "And don't call me Sevvy," he added grumpily into her honey gold hair.

~~<*>~~

Late that night with Remus resting his head on Severus' shoulder, Severus sighed deeply. "What are we going to do, Remy? She needs someone to look after her during the day, to take an interest in her and not just keep her out of trouble by locking her up."

"I could take a leave of absence from my classes and look after her full time until the end of term. It's only a month until the summer holidays don't forget."

"No, that's not the answer either. For that matter I could take the sabbatical alternatively but we need to make some thought for next term too. Even if she is in school, she will need caring for after school and taking to school every morning. No, we need a responsible person to help us out here. Let me think on it. In the mean time, how are you coping? What a fright and upset to happen so close to full moon! You're inner wolf must have been going mad."

"Not as much as yours I would think," Remus teased gently, rising on an elbow to look down on his mate. "You realise you nearly went to Azkaban this afternoon, don't you? God Sev! You terrified me more than anything in this world. I don't think I could bear to lose you now, and that poor, sad little girl didn't deserve to die either. I don't think it was my inner wolf we had to beware of, was it?"

Severus moved impatiently. "I'm sorry, alright, I lost my grip. I never had anyone to really care about before you came into my life and now I have all three of you and quite frankly Remus, I don't know how to be logical and rational about any of you! Today it was Angelinus, tomorrow it might be you and then how would I react? Loving people is very difficult, isn't it?"

"Is it worth it?" Remus asked, reluctant to hear the answer.

For an answer he was all but smothered in a desperate, needy grip that almost suffocated him as he was drawn deeper into his partner's arms and all doubts fled as they made slow, intense love.

~~<*>~~

Severus had never been a regular visitor to the Burrow but he had been on a number of occasions during the war. He had always had the impression of bustling warmth and chaotic welcome from the cluttered, food scented kitchen to the quiet, contemplative parlour. Today as he entered the gate and knocked at the open half door, he was a little shocked at the state of disrepair and air of neglect coming from the old home. His visit was unannounced and he wondered briefly if Molly Weasley was not at home when something stirred deep in the depths of the kitchen.

Like a troll emerging from its cave, Molly hove into sight, slumped and drooping as she pulled the cardigan back up her shoulder and hitched up her apron a little. She looked as if she had slept in her clothes, her hair a bright red birds nest with threads of grey poking out in all different directions. Even her face looked crumpled and grubby, unloved and unlovely in the early morning light. Severus wondered if his mission was too late or if he was just in time.

"Who is it?" Molly asked her voice rusty with disuse. "Oh, it's you Severus. What do you want?"

"I would like to speak to you for a few moments, if you can spare the time," Severus replied at his most haughty. He waited until she invited him in before he stepped over the threshold and looked around in mild disgust. "I am wondering if you are willing to listen to a proposition I have for you."

Waving him into a chair and taking a rough swipe at the rather dirty table, Molly swung her cauldron over the fire almost by habit rather than conscious thought. "What sort of proposition?" she asked as she made tea by manual methods much to Severus' surprise. Her tone was so disinterested that Severus simply sat and studied her as she shuffled her way though the accumulated mess in the kitchen, not at all the house proud matriarch of a huge family but a care worn old woman with too much time and too much sorrow on her shoulders. Almost embarrassed, he averted his eyes and saw the clock on the wall. Of all the hands, four hung straight down, no longer alert, their animators dead and gone. One hand was snapped straight off near the base so no-one could tell where it was pointing but it seemed to be in the direction of travelling at the moment. That was Percy's hand, Percy who had almost betrayed them during the war, who had chosen to turn a blind eye to the war efforts his family were making and in the end that had chosen exile rather than the harsh criticism levelled by the few surviving members of his family. Ron's hand was at work, Ginny's hand was at home and Charlie's hand was at the pub.

Severus' contemplation was broken by the rattle of china on wood, a cup of tea and a piece of fruit pie slapped in front of him. He had to admit; no-one made tea or baked goods like Molly Weasley, even this faded and worn version of her. "Thank you Molly," he murmured, taking a bite for politeness sake before folding his hands on his lap and contemplating her carefully. "As you know, Remus and I have a child now, of five years. You met her a few weeks ago right here in the garden."

"Seemed a pretty little thing but awfully shy," Molly commented, sipping her own tea.

"Yes, well, she may be shy but she is full of mischief and is a handful to keep track of. She is driving Remus and I to despair!" he muttered, and began to relate the adventures of Angelinus, sparing nothing of their fears, embarrassments and joys at the little girl's antics.

Molly listened in fascination, watching the expressions flit across the usually so controlled face, amazed that Severus Snape would even put tongue to the words 'I feared for her'. She was even more surprised when he stopped her commenting on the child's behaviour and began to tell her about the unfortunate accident that had led to there being two souls in one body and that the child was actually twins.

"Ah! That explains a lot. I always found with those two terrors that they would egg each, each...." She burst into tears and hid her face in her apron. "Oh go away and leave me to my misery in peace!" She sobbed angrily when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"I cannot do that. Too many people have indulged you in your wallowing and it is about time you were dragged from this disgusting display of over-sentimentality. Arthur and the boys are dead and gone. They do not exist in this world anymore. All they have left here is a place in memory but my God woman you are determined to make even their memories hated for what they are doing to you and the family you have left. Look at you! The brightest, most efficient and prolific mother in the wizarding world reduced to a slattern who cannot even be bothered to wash her face or comb her hair! And this is the image of proud motherhood? Arthur would be ashamed of you." Rising to his feet he sneered down his nose at her in complete, supercilious disgust.

He'd forgotten how fast she was! Her wand drawn and a very nasty hex on its way to him before he could jump back and yell protego. A complex disorientation hex was winging out even as he pulled his black wand and cast dissolve at it, sending a tickler out after Molly, which only made her madder. He was not trying to hurt her, only force her out of her apathy but she caught him with a crudus lippio making it almost impossible to see as his eyeballs blurred and began to bleed. Angry, he cast expellarium at her twice in succession, pleased to get a reaction on the second shot and a slap in the chest by a wand.

"Damn it Molly old girl, you haven't lost your touch," he gasped, casting finite incantatem on himself and blinking hard to clear his vision. "Do you...."

She hit him with a pot and cold cocked him.

"I'd never have gotten my Arthur with that one," Molly commented as he began to rouse and realised he was lying on the sofa in the kitchen, a large compress on his head. "Now lie still you long streak of misery, while that healing charm does its work. Still life in the old girl yet, you see?" She grinned almost evilly as she picked up yet another old newspaper and stuffed it into a rubbish bin. "Right! So why is the premier Death Eater laying his life on the line to get Molly Weasley interested in the land of the living again, one has to wonder? You've spun a pretty tale of a badly done by child and a pair of old gays who have bitten off more than they can chew, but what is it to do with me."

"You're the Uber-Mother, you work it out!" Severus snapped, cradling his aching head. "Damn it Molly, did you have to hit me that hard?"

"Yes. It was fun. Oh give over you big baby, it was barely a tap."

"Arthur was a braver man than any of us knew," he muttered under his breath grimly. "Look, we need you and your abilities to raise good, strong and reliable children. You did a fantastic job with your own children and now Remus and I are begging. We love Angelinus but we aren't good for her. We don't instinctively understand what she needs, what she will do or how she will react in a given situation. She still cries for her parents at night and it's tearing Remus apart. She needs to run and play and be a carefree little child but being locked up in a Hogwarts suite is not the place for that. Here, in the Burrow, she can go out into the garden and kick gnomes or whatever you do, play on the swing and mess about in the kitchen. You have a plague of kneazles here, she can chase them and cuddle them and do whatever little girls do with kneazles instead of terrorising the house-elves and trying to get them to play dress-ups with her."

Molly burst out laughing. "So how many did she set free?"

Severus smirked wryly. "None, as yet; we sort of explained that you couldn't give clothes to elves, not even doll clothes and we told the elves that they were to just pretend they didn't hear if she did offer, stopped the hysterics, you know."

"I'm not that practiced with girls," Molly temporised as she scrubbed the table down with swift, sure strokes, the mess disappearing as the housekeeping charms reactivated to her renewing will. "Besides, she didn't seem to like me at the picnic."

"She was just shy."

"Humm, maybe she was. And what sort of things do you think I should do with this moppet?"

"I don't know. Take her out to the park; look after her as if she was another of your grand children. Maybe take her to visit Hermione's middle one, the albino girl, you know."

"Gladriel, you mean? The second youngest one who looks like Narcissa did before Lucius screwed with her mind. I don't know what it is with those Malfoys and their peculiar names."

"I think they only do it to be interesting," Severus muttered wickedly and both laughed evilly. "Look, come and meet Angelinus and see how you fare. It's only for a month until term ends and the exams are over. If it works out well then we'll think about after school next year too."

"Alright, I can't see why we can't give it a shot; see what happens, but not today. And before you go all rigid and poker up, I want to spend the day looking after this old place. I have to admit I've let a lot of things slip while I've been so down and now you've stirred me up I hate to see the mess I've created. Give me the day to tidy myself up and I'll floo in at eight o'clock tomorrow morning for breakfast."

"Thank you Molly, thank you. You have no idea how much I appreciate the effort."

"Don't get too excited just yet my lad, there's a small matter of fee for service we still need to discuss." There was a very mercenary light in Molly's eyes and Severus realised a new phase of the battle was about to be rejoined.