“Now I can help you, Mum said so,” Olivia beamed as she set the toy cauldron down on Severus’ desk.
“I do not think your mother thought this idea through,” Severus said, a scowl falling into place, “she should not have told you that without consulting me first.”
“Oh…” Olivia’s face fell, “but you said Dierna could help you this summer. Why can’t I help too?”
Severus sighed, “I do not have time to supervise you while you are playing Olivia, especially when I am trying to get work done.”
“That’s ok,” Olivia said, although she still looked downcast, “I can always play something else.”
She raced out of the room, leaving to toy cauldron sitting on Severus’ desk. Severus glanced at the offending toy and sighed as he resumed his seat. He just didn’t know what to do with his children, any of them.
“I can’t believe you did that.”
Severus looked up to find his wife glaring at him from the doorway. “I do not have time to baby-sit…”
“She is your daughter!”
“And I have both teaching responsibilities and duties for the Order.”
“As do I.” Morgan looked close to tears, “I can’t believe you sometimes. She came in here so excited because she got something that would let her into your world, and you had to crush that enthusiasm. With the way our family is being torn apart you should be jumping at the chance to spend more time with our children.”
“Morgan, I was merely thinking of her safety. If I am trying to work and watch her at the same time she will not have my full attention and I am afraid she might get hurt, she does seem predisposed towards trouble.”
Morgan sighed, “you’re right… you always are. I hate that.”
“I am not right all the time, just most of the time.”
“And so modest about it too,” Morgan said, still not completely appeased.
“If it will make you happy I’ll try my best to watch her so she can play with her cauldron while I’m working.”
“Sev, I don’t want you to do this to make me happy. I want you to do it to make our daughter happy and so you can spend time with her.”
~~~~~~~~~~~
“Have you finished packing yet?”
“I’m working on it.”
“That means no.”
Sophia gave an exasperated sigh, “I’m coming back here in a couple of months anyway, why do I have to pack everything?”
“Because I told you to,” Kalliope replied evenly, not looking up as she finished folding her robes.
“Why did you marry him?”
“What?” Kalliope looked up from the baskets she was packing. Although she didn’t show any emotion she was shocked. “I thought you liked Remus.”
“I do.”
“But…”
“But you’ve always told me that you didn’t need a man and that I should never depend on one myself. Why did you marry him if you’ve spent your whole life avoiding men?”
Kalliope sighed, “I have not spent my whole life avoiding men. But from a young age I realized that what they did best was cause pain. Until I met Remus… I knew that he was different from the other men I had known, so when he had to leave me I decided never to involve myself with another man.”
“That doesn’t change what you told me.”
“Sophia, I’ve not led an easy life and I’ve learned to take comfort from where I can find it. Remus is a great source of comfort for me.”
“You said it was weak to depend on a man.”
“I’ve said a lot of things in my life child, some of them in the heat of the moment, which I may not always stick to.”
Sophia leaned against the wall, “so does this mean your man hating days are over?”
Kalliope smiled, “I have never said that I hate men.”
“Yes you have.”
“Fine, I have, but it doesn’t mean that I really meant it and it did not apply to all men. I have never hated Cadmus.”
“Then why didn’t you marry him? I know Cadmus petitioned the temple several times to be taken as your consort.”
Kalliope smiled softly, “he thought he would be doing me a favor. He wanted to protect me after… well… that was a long time ago. But it doesn’t matter, Cadmus has been almost a father to me, I could never have comfortably taken him as a consort.”
“He would have treated you like a queen,” Sophia said softly.
“I thought you were glad I married Remus, why are you trying to convince me that I should have taken Cadmus?”
“No reason…”
Kalliope finished packing and looked over the room, hoping she had everything, “I am a seer child and besides that I am very adept at reading facial expressions, if not minds, so tell me the reason.”
“It’s just that you’re so happy with Remus, and I’ve never seen you this happy. I was just thinking you might have had this much joy a long time ago if you had been with Cadmus.”
Kalliope smiled sadly, “child, I gave up on having happiness a long time ago. I had grown accustomed to living a life that I could merely be content with, not one that gave me joy. It wasn’t until I saw Remus again that I realized I wanted something more. Now go pack.”
“Fine,” Sophia rolled her eyes at the inconvenience of packing all her belongings when she was coming back in two months, but went to do as she was told.
“Did you really mean that?”
Kalliope turned and smiled up at Remus, “every word.”
“Well, just let me know if you ever find yourself hating men again, because I’d be more than happy to try and change your mind.”
“Well… I might just need a reminder of why I decided not to hate them…”
~~~~~~~~~~~
“Have you seen the post from today?”
“Sorry,” Dierna looked guilty as she handed over the copy of [I]Ars Alchemicae[/I]. She had grabbed it off his desk earlier and had become engrossed in Ptolemy al-Rashid’s latest article.
“I had a feeling you had taken it. You may borrow it after I have read it.” Severus turned on his heel and headed back towards the door.
“Dad?”
“If it is a question you know I will say no to then I suggest you save your breath and do not ask it.”
Dierna gave an exasperated sigh, “can you at least give me a chance to ask it without jumping down my throat?”
“As long as you watch that attitude.”
Dierna had to literally bite her tongue to keep from making a comment that would have gotten her in trouble, “I just wanted to know if…” she chewed her bottom lip and dropped her eyes. “Iwantedtoknowifmyworkinginthelabwithyouthissummercouldcounttowardsanapprenticeship,” she rushed through her query in one breath.
“Again and slower so that I can understand what you are asking, and I would appreciate it if you would look at me while you ask.”
Dierna raised her head, “Since I’m already going to be doing work for you in the lab this summer, I was wondering if you would take me on as part of an apprenticeship.”
Severus set aside his newly reclaimed journal and sat down across from his daughter. He wasn’t quite sure how to answer her. Apprenticeships were still widely used in the wizarding world as a means of higher education, he’d had a number of students choose that course after graduation, but few were ambitious enough to start down that path while still attending Hogwarts. “I will think about it, but I think it is only fair to tell you that my answer will most likely be no.”
“But Dad, I’ll work really hard, I’ll…”
He held up a hand to silence her, “I have no doubt of your abilities, and while I do question your work ethic at times I believe you would try your hardest. But in this case I do not think it would be a good idea.”
“Why?”
“There are several reasons. First, I do not think I am prepared to handle you as an apprentice.”
“That’s…”
“Unfair? Perhaps to you, but if you are going to sit here and argue with me while I am simply trying to tell you how I feel about this potential arrangement then that tells me that in no way will you respect my authority in an apprenticeship.”
Dierna’s shoulders slumped slightly; she had really been hoping this would work.
“Second, I do not think that it would be fair to you if I took you on as an apprentice. In the professional world people will only look at the fact that you are my daughter and will assume that I have made things easy for you.” He gestured for silence when he saw that Dierna was going to interrupt again, “we both know that I would never make things easy for you, I know I have in fact pushed you harder than most of my other students, but other people and potential employers do not look at things like that.”
“Are there any other reasons?” Dierna asked miserably.
“I think you would benefit from working under a potions master other than me. The only instruction you have ever known in the field of potions is mine, I want you to expand your horizons. You have too much potential to waste it by attaching yourself to me child; you are more than capable of making a name for yourself in the field. You have the talent and the drive to be successful, I do not doubt it.”
“Do you really mean that?”
“Of course child. I know that I am quicker to point out flaws than to hand out praise, but you are truly talented. There is no need for you to start an apprenticeship now; there will be plenty of time for that after graduation. I am sure that with your grades you will be able to all but hand pick who you study under.”
“Thanks Dad,” knowing exactly how rare her father’s praise was made it mean so much more.
Severus retrieved the journal he had come in search of and stood to leave. He knew his daughter had probably had her heart set on that apprenticeship, but he would not take her on. It would not work well for either of them. However… “If you wish to continue with the private study we started last year during school I would be willing to pick that back up.”
Dierna smiled, it wasn’t quite what she had been after, but it was still a welcome offer.
~~~~~~~~~~~
“Where are we going?”
“It’s a surprise.”
“Harry, I don’t think…”
“Just wait, I think you’ll like it.”
“This is ridiculous, where are you taking me? And what about the children?”
“The children will be fine; Ophelia is perfectly capable of watching the other two for another couple of hours. Don’t worry about it.”
“How can I not worry about them when you decide to leave them on their own with Voldemort running around on the loose?”
Harry stopped in his tracks and Ginny, who could not see due to the blindfold covering her eyes, crashed into him. “That was uncalled for,” his voice was dangerously low, “you know I would never do anything that would put the children in harms way.”
Ginny sighed, “I didn’t mean it like that, I’m just… frustrated… and wondering why on earth I let you talk me into… whatever this is you wanted to do.”
Harry didn’t respond, but he took her by the arm and led her several more steps before pushing her down to the ground. Ginny felt a soft blanket beneath her hands as she managed to awkwardly sit down without seeing where she was going.
“Now will you tell me where we are?” she asked a bit sharply.
“Only if you promise to be nice,” Harry said as he sat behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist.
Ginny jabbed an elbow roughly into his stomach, “watch it Potter, I’ve been pleasant all day, even when you tracked mud all over my clean kitchen floor. So unless you want to spend the night on the couch…”
Harry brought his hands up and untied the strip of fabric that covered his wife’s eyes, “look up,” he commanded as he tucked the blindfold into his pocket.
“Oh Harry… it’s so beautiful…” Ginny leaned back into his embrace as she looked up at the half-moon, which glowed a bright, almost orange color in the night sky.
“Almost as beautiful as you.”
“You’re incorrigible.”
“I think you like that.”
“It’s been years since you’ve done anything like this Harry. When was the last time we really acted like a couple? And I don’t just mean trying to put our marriage together, when was the last time we were truly, happily married and acted like it?”
“Until now? I’d say way too long.”
“I think we’re going to make it Harry.”
“I’ve never doubted that.”
Ginny let him feel her elbow in his stomach again, “that, my dear husband, is certainly not true. But its one of those nice little untruths that I think I can live with. I do love you; you know that, don’t you?”
“Of course.”
“Good, ‘cause I know I don’t always say it, and that for a long time I didn’t, but I…”
“The words are nice Ginny, but I don’t need to hear them to know that you still love me. Like you said, we’re going to make it. No matter what. I’m not letting you go.”
Ginny turned slightly in his arms, “I’m trying.”
“I know you are,” he traced on finger along the outline of her face, “and I still love you, very much.”
“Thank you.”
“For what?” “For saying it,” Ginny said as she kissed him.
~~~~~~~~~~~
“Dierna wanted me to take her own as part of an apprenticeship.”
“Does that surprise you?” Morgan asked as she sat down on the edge of the bed.
Severus leaned against the headboard and frowned, “yes. She has made it more than clear that she does not enjoy having me as a professor, I can’t imagine why she would want to spend further time learning under me after she graduates.”
“She looks up to you Sev, she respects you.”
“She certainly doesn’t show that respect for me.”
Morgan rested her hand on his leg and leaned in for a kiss, “that’s just because the two of you have horrible tempers that neither of you are capable of controlling when you are with each other. You two are far too much alike; I’m not sure why I put up with it.”
“I’m not sure why you put up with me either.”
“Oh Sev… maybe because I love you more than life itself, more than I ever could have imagined. You and the children are everything to me. My biggest challenge everyday is trying to coax a smile out of you.”
“I am a man with a dark past and a bleak future.”
“You are a man with a family that loves you and will stand by your side.”
“You do not understand.”
“What I understand is that I’m not going through this again! I’m tired of trying to convince you of your worth when you’re so intent on keeping yourself down.” Morgan turned away from him, hugging her knees to her chest.
Severus reached out to lay a hand on her shoulder but Morgan shrugged it off. “Morgan I…”
“For Merlin’s sake, I don’t want to hear a damn apology! I just want us both to forget, for five minutes, all of the horrible things that have ever happened to us and act like everything is right with the world.”
“You would think…” Severus began slowly, “that after all these years I would be able to start a conversation without you biting my head off.”
“I do not always…” Morgan didn’t finish her sentence.
Severus wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her back so that she was in his lap, “now that I have you where I want you… I’m going to try and act as though there is nothing going on outside of this room and that it is just the two of us. What did you do today?”
“What a nice normal question,” there was a slight teasing lilt to Morgan’s tone, “I took the girls shopping, which you already knew.”
“What did you buy?”
Morgan grinned as she played with the belt of her robe, “want to see?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“It’s nice to be back to a location where it doesn’t rain every day.”
“It does not rain every day in Britain.”
“Are you sure about that wizard?”
“Positive,” Remus said with a grin, “although I have to admit I’m looking forward to long days spent out in the sun.”
“I’m looking forward to long nights spent inside.”
“Ewwww…. You two really need to stop that,” Sophia looked thoroughly disgusted.
“Sophia, how many times must I tell you…”
“I know, I know, I’m supposed to mind my own business and not offer my opinion where it is not wanted. But that’s easier said than done.”
“I can’t imagine where she picked that attitude up from,” Remus remarked dryly as he took Kalliope’s basket out of her arms as they started up the hill towards the temple.
“Watch it wizard, it is not wise to provoke a priestess by commenting on her attitude.”
“Not even when I’m carrying her luggage?”
“I was doing just fine on my own.”
“No heavy lifting for you love, I have every intention of lavishing you with all the attention you can handle while you’re in your current condition.”
“Sweet Kirke Remus! I am pregnant, not an invalid.”
“You’re also adorable when you’re angry.”
“I’m not sure if I can put up with this all summer,” Sophia muttered under her breath.
“Don’t worry child, there will be plenty for you to do to keep your mind occupied,” Kalliope assured her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“So… this is home now,” Remus said as he set their things down on the narrow bed.
“Yes it is,” Kalliope sighed as she looked around the high priestess’ chambers. Her chambers now, she reminded herself. She managed a faint smile, “I suppose we’ll have to find a larger bed to put in here.”
Remus grinned, “That would be a nice start, do we get any other furniture?”
Kalliope looked at him in confusion for a moment before she was able to respond, “I keep forgetting how different our lives have been… I suppose this way of life must seem very ascetic to you wizard. We have few possessions here, and I must admit that I’ve never even considered having furniture of my own other than a bed.”
“Don’t worry about it love, I was merely wondering if I might be able to find myself a chair to sit in while I read the post, that’s all. I don’t think I’m going to miss all the conveniences of Hogwarts.”
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely. I have all that I need right here,” Remus said as he caught Kalliope’s hand in his grasp and raised it to his lips.
“You, my dear werewolf, are a helpless romantic.”
Remus stiffened at her words, “what am I going to do during the full moon?”
Kalliope squeezed his hand tightly, “do not worry about it, we will work something out.”
“Your duties aren’t going to be too much of a strain on you, are they?” Remus placed his hand possessively over Kalliope’s slightly rounded stomach.
Kalliope rolled her eyes, “I promise I will not over exert myself, but I do have duties to attend to.”
“We’ll have to see about that.”
“By the goddess, I am the high priestess, I cannot neglect my duties. Besides,” she gave him a cheeky grin, “you don’t have any authority over me here.”
“Well just have to see about that…”
“Are you threatening me wizard?”
“I’m just saying that if you don’t take care of yourself and our child you’re going to find out very quickly just how much authority I have over you.”
Kalliope threw her hands into the air, “I don’t have time to deal with this now. I need to unpack and visit the shrine.”
“I’ll help…”
“No, you’ll just be underfoot. I want you out of here,” Kalliope shooed her husband towards the door.
“What am I supposed to do with myself?” Remus asked as he reached the door, “I was hoping to spend time with you.”
“That will have to wait,” she gave him a not so gentle shove, “out with you. Go find Cadmus, I’m sure he can give you something to do.”
“I can’t believe you’re already this eager to be rid of me.”
“The sooner you leave the sooner I can start to miss you,” she replied sweetly as he left. She smiled to herself at the sound of his laughter as he headed down the hill. She was going to enjoy having him around, even if he did get underfoot.
~~~~~~~~~~~
