Olivia didn’t respond, but continued to color, intent on her project.
“What are you making?” Morgan asked as she joined her daughter at the table.
“A picture.” “Of what?”
“It’s a surprise.”
“Well then I suppose I’ll just have to wait to see what it is.”
“Yep. I’ll show you want it is when I’m done.”
“Well you can work on it for a little while longer, but it’s almost bedtime.”
“Not before Kamen comes home, I have something to show him.”
“Serena is helping him finish moving his stuff in, they won’t be back until late tonight. And Kamen might just decide to spend the night there.” She noticed the instant pout that settled on Olivia’s face. The little one had become very attached to Kamen, and it appeared that she was not going to take his moving out well.
“But he has to come back,” she whined.
“He’ll come back to visit,” she reassured her daughter, and he’ll probably be back here to eat everyday too she added mentally.
“That’s not the same.”
“I know its not. But he’s an adult now and he wants his own place.”
“I still don’t want him to leave, he should stay here!”
“I think that if you’re going to be this obstinate it must be bedtime.”
“I don’t want to go to bed, I’m not tired,” Olivia threw down the red crayon she was holding and crossed her arms over her chest.
“I truly hope that you were not arguing with your mother,” Severus said as he joined them. He raised an eyebrow, “well?” he waited patiently for a response as Olivia continued to pout.
“No sir.”
“Well it certainly sounded like it.”
“I wasn’t!”
Severus’ brow lowered, “do not speak to me in that manner Olivia Kathleen.”
Severus and Morgan looked at each other in shock for a moment when Olivia hugged her knees to her chest and started crying. The feisty little girl had not seemed to be afraid of Severus for some time now, and it wasn’t like her to start crying for no reason.
“What’s all this about?” Morgan asked gently as she tried to place a hand on the girl’s forehead. The only thing she could think of right now was that perhaps her daughter wasn’t feeling well. But Olivia pulled away, almost knocking herself off her chair in the process. Morgan tried again, and this time succeeded in wrapping her arms around her trembling daughter, who almost instant clung to her in a near death grip.
Morgan leaned down awkwardly to hold her daughter, having no idea whatsoever as to what this was all about. “Sweetie,” she gently stroked Olivia’s hair, “is it ok if we go upstairs to your bedroom to talk about this, it will be a bit more comfortable than the kitchen.”
Olivia nodded her head as she continued to cry against Morgan’s shoulder.
Morgan sighed, she was so tired and had been hoping to just crawl into bed. But her daughter came before her own needs. Unable to easily detach the arms that were twined round her neck she tried to lift Olivia in her own arms. She had just settled the small girl on her hip when Severus took their daughter out of her arms.
“She may be incredibly tiny for her age but she is still too big for you to carry,” Severus scolded his wife, a look of disapproval clearly written on his face.
Morgan didn’t respond, she wasn’t in the mood for an argument with her husband. Even if it was just because he was being protective of her. She decided instead to silently follow him upstairs as he held Olivia easily in his arms. She trailed them into the bedroom and sank down onto her daughter’s bed as Severus passed Olivia back into her arms. “Now, let’s see if we can sort this all out. What is it that has gotten you so upset tonight?”
“Kamen can’t leave,” Olivia managed to get out through her tears.
“And why is that?” Morgan asked softly, trying to make sense of this sudden breakdown.
“Because people go away and they don’t come back.”
Morgan looked to Severus, but it seemed obvious that he was not going to interfere. She mentally cursed him. He was more than ready to come in yelling but switch to something emotional and the git retreated. She sighed, “I promise, Kamen is just moving into his own flat, very close to here, he will come back to visit.”
“My mama and papa won’t come back though.”
Morgan suddenly felt very drained. Olivia had adjusted so well and become so much a part of their family that it was easy to forget that she had watched as death eaters murdered her parents a few short months ago. “That was a terrible thing that happened,” Morgan said slowly, “but it doesn’t mean that anything will happen to Kamen. Or to the rest of this family.” She could feel the disapproval of Severus’ gaze without seeing it. She knew she was bending the truth, she had no assurance that their family would come through this unscathed, but Olivia didn’t need to know everything. There were just some things she was not going to burden her seven year old daughter with.
“Promise?”
“I’m not going to make any promises over something I have relatively little control over,” Morgan hugged her daughter close, “but I will promise you this, anyone who wants to harm this family will have to go through me first.”
“You won’t let them hurt any of us.”
“Not as long as I have a breath left in my body,” Morgan vowed, “now, are you feeling better about all of this.”
Olivia nodded mutely.
“Do you understand that even though Kamen is moving out it doesn’t mean anything bad is going to happen?”
“Except for what the lack wit brings upon himself,” Severus muttered under his breath. He noticed the sharp look Morgan shot in his direction, but chose to ignore it. He truly believed that Kamen would be back under his roof within a week, if he lasted that long out in the real world.
“Why do people leave and not come back?” Olivia whispered.
“That’s a difficult question. I don’t think I have an answer for you,” Morgan rocked Olivia in her arms, “It doesn’t seem fair, does it?”
“No.”
“And it hurts.”
“Why does it hurt so much?”
“Because, it means that you have a big heart and know how to love.” Morgan smiled gently, so much innocence had been lost due to Voldemort. It was comforting to know that there was still some left in the world. “I think we’ve done enough talking for one night. It is definitely bedtime.”
“Ok,” Olivia threw her arms tightly around Morgan’s neck and planted a kiss on her cheek.
Morgan got her daughter changed into her nightgown, read her a story, and finished tucking her in. All while Severus stood to the side and looked on. With one final kiss, and a check to make sure the nightlight was on Morgan extinguished the rest of the lights and headed to her own room. Not particularly caring if her husband joined her or not.
~~~~~~~~~~~
“I find that your lack of faith may be something more. Perhaps we have a traitor on our hands?”
“No sir, I swear, I am completely loyal,” the masked death eater groveled on his knees before Voldemort’s throne.
“I think not.”
“But it’s true my lord! I would never think of betraying you, my loyalty is to you and you alone.”
“Oh, I know you claim loyalty, but it appears that you have a strong lack of trust in my plans. Did you or did you not tell one of your fellow members that you do not think my plan to purge the Ministry of all who are opposed to me will be attainable?”
“My lord, I did not mean it.”
“I think you did. And I believe you have been punished for your lack of faith, yes?”
“Yes my lord, I have been,” the man cringed behind his mask as he remembered the feel of the crucio curse. He had been well punished for his slip.
“However…” Voldemort smirked wickedly, “I’m not sure it was enough.”
“It was my lord, I swear!”
“Then why do I still doubt you?”
Macnair watched the proceedings quietly from his position slightly behind and to the side of the dark lord. He was very glad he was not in his colleague’s position. It appeared that DePuma would be forced to suffer another lesson in loyalty. This time at the hands of the dark lord himself.
“Well?” Voldemort ran deathly white tapered fingers over his wand in anticipation. His red eyes glowed with a frightening light as he watched the groveling form before him.
“I would do anything to prove myself to you my lord! I only wish to be back in your good graces.”
Voldemort looked down at his wand and slowly raised it “crucio”. He watched in satisfaction for several minutes as the death eater twisted and squirmed on the floor as he screamed in pain. Once he grew tired of the spectacle he released the spell, watching closely as the shaken man managed to raise himself to his knees.
“Please my lord… is my debt repaid yet?”
“Oh, I am quite sure of your loyalty,” Voldemort watched as the man’s shoulders relaxed. “However, I can’t risk letting it happen again.” He raised his wand once more “Avada Kedavra!”
“A wise decision my lord,” Macnair said, “he might have turned again at any time.”
Voldemort showed no emotion, “have the body removed.”
“At once my lord,” Macnair quickly gestured to several scrawny and dirty house elves along the wall and watched as they scurried forward to claim the slumped body of the masked death eater.
“The spy that I have requested be placed at the school… has she been successful in gaining entry?”
“Yes my lord. She will keep a close eye on Snape for us and will let us know the right time to strike.”
“And her disguise?”
“She will not be recognized. In their search for allies the order is beginning to overlook figures that they should not trust. It will not be difficult.”
~~~~~~~~~~~
“You’re awfully quiet,” Severus commented some time later as he climbed into bed next to his wife.
“And you were a fat lot of help while our daughter was sobbing her eyes out, thinking that because her parents were murdered the same thing will happen to Kamen and possibly the rest of the family!”
“I saw no need to entangle myself in a situation that you were more than capable of handling by yourself.”
“You’re a bloody bastard!”
“That sort of language is very unbecoming.”
Morgan ground her teeth together in order to bite back another sharp retort. The man was insufferable!
“Have I managed to render you silent yet?”
Morgan didn’t respond.
“Not speaking to me now?”
Still no response.
“No matter, it is not as though I will be missing much. Conversation with you is…”
Morgan threw back the covers. She was not going to sit there silently and take this when she could find quiet somewhere else. She swung her legs over the bed and started to get up. But her wrist was caught in an iron-like grip and she was pulled back down. “Let me go!” she demanded.
“Not until I’m done talking with you.”
Morgan was bristling with anger. Usually she put up with husband’s dark and sarcastic nature with fairly good grace. Tonight was not one of those times. “You can let me go now or I will hex off a certain part of your anatomy.”
Severus let go of her wrist and picked up her hand, gently running his thumb over the back of it. “I believe, that other than Lockhart, I am the only man that can infuriate you like this.”
Morgan sighed, in his own strange way her husband had just apologized. Or given as much of an apology as he was capable of.
“You know I’m not an easy man, and you know that I am useless when it comes to dealing with a crying child.”
She was shocked, “that was far more of an apology than she had been expecting. Her husband never admitted to shortcomings. It had to be some sort of miracle.
“Now, are you still intent on storming out of here?” his voice held a sharp sarcastic bite to it.
Morgan, her hand still clutched in his, lay back down, “I suppose not.”
“Good, because it would have been lonely without you.”
Morgan rolled over so that she was on her side, her body curled next to her husband’s, her head pillowed on his chest. “I wanted to tell Olivia that everything would be fine, that nothing would happen. But I couldn’t bring myself to tell her what could very well turn into a lie. Should I have?”
“I think what you told her was for the best. You made no promises, but reassured her.”
“Was it enough?”
“It shall have to be.”
“You’re still not being very helpful.”
“Maybe I can be helpful in other ways,” he let his left hand do some exploring.
Morgan batted at him, “that’s not the sort of help I need right now.”
“Fine, I will refrain from helping then,” his hand disappeared and Morgan found herself removed from her position lying half on top of him.
“I was using you as a pillow,” she glared at him accusingly as she propped herself up on her elbow.
“Such is life.”
She gazed down at him and ran the fingers of her right hand through his hair. She smiled at the few strands of grey that had started to mark it at his temples, she thought it made him look distinguished, no matter how much he complained about it making him feel old.
She moved her hand down to his shoulder and down the length of his arm, pausing slightly as her fingertips lightly brushed across the dark mark on his forearm. She noticed him cringe slightly at the contact with the mark, “it’s amazing how something so simple can cause so much emotional pain still,” she tried to read his expression, but the mask was back up, “it’s not a part of who you are Severus.”
“But it was, and if I should slip again…”
“It no better reflects the generous, loving man I married than these,” her fingers moved to the scattered scars across his torso. “I’m not worried about what the world sees, you’re not the miserable bastard that you present yourself as. You are my husband, who I love deeply.”
“I think that you put too much faith in me.”
“I think you don’t put enough in yourself.”
Severus reached out an arm and pulled his wife down on top of him, “if it weren’t for you…”
“You’d be very lonely in bed,” Morgan cut in, a cheeky grin settling into place.
“Imp.”
“Git.”
“Do you concede?”
“Never.”
“I will not stop until you surrender,” Severus warned.
Morgan dipped her head and kissed her husband soundly as his arms snaked around her waist, “by all means go ahead and try. This is a challenge I have a feeling I’ll enjoy.”
~~~~~~~~~~~
