Chapter 4

"No, that's not possible. I saw that thrice damned snake bite him," Lucius said. In a matter of moments, his world had been turned upside down. First finding out he had a son he didn't know existed and now learning that Severus was alive.

"Drink some of your tea. You look like you're about to pass out."

Lucius' hand was shaking as he picked up the cup and endeavored to take a sip. Some spilled over the rim, landing on the pristine tablecloth.

She reached over and took the cup from his hand just before he lost his grip on it. "Perhaps a glass of water would be a better idea," she said in a voice loud enough for the waiter to hear. Seconds later a glass of cold water appeared on the table.

"Here, my dear, use two hands and drink slowly. I know this must all come as quite a shock to you."

"You have a way with understatement, Cissy."

Lucius gripped the glass with both hands and took a drink; as he set it down, the woman and child in question were walking past the window. She must have sensed that she was being watched; she turned her head, looked in the window, and stopped dead in her tracks as she saw the all too familiar couple watching her in turn. The color drained from her face and was quickly replaced by shock, fear and panic. Bending down, she picked up the child and instantly Disapparated from where she stood.

"Oh, my," said Narcissa. "I believe Severus will know you are here any minute now." She stood up and tugged at a still stunned Lucius to follow her. "Put the tea on my bill, Maurice," she called out as they rushed past the waiter.

"As you wish, madam," he said as he watched the couple scramble out the door.

Still holding on to his arm, she dragged him down the street to the nearest public Apparition site. "Where are we going?" asked Lucius.

"To the Université de la Maîtrise Magique... to see Severus," she said as she put her arms around him and with a turn and a pop Disapparated.

Hermione Apparated to the hallway of the Potions building and rushed to Severus' classroom. In her fear, she didn't even think to knock; she just barged in and ran to him, unable to speak more than a syllable or two, as she tried to catch her breath.

"S... Syl..." Her breath catching as she tried to speak.

"Hestia? What is wrong? Calm down; you're beginning to hyperventilate," said Severus as he saw how pale she looked.

"Him..." She tried to tell Severus what had happened, but the shock of seeing him, here, in Calais was too much for her to handle. She felt that her worse fears were about to become reality.

He caught sight of his class staring at them, questioning the situation. "Put a stasis on your cauldrons; gather your things and leave. Class is dismissed for the day," he said as he guided Hermione, still holding Alex close to her into the cloakroom.

"Da?" he heard Alex call to him. With Hermione holding on to him so tightly, Severus was amazed the child was still able to breathe.

"Hestia, calm down and give Alex to me," he said as he extracted the child from her arms. Alex in turn put a strangle hold around Severus' neck. "What is wrong, son?"

"Mummy scare me," he mumbled into Severus' shoulder.

"It's all right now. There is nothing to fear." He crooned as he rubbed the child's back, trying to calm him enough so he could find out what had happened. He heard the last of students leave and turned to Hermione. "Come, let's go to my office, and you can tell me what has put you in such a state."

"NO," she yelled. "They'll be there."

"They who?"

"HIM," she said. Her eyes were begging him to understand whom she was talking about.

He thought about whose presence would cause her such panic when suddenly he realized who it must be.

"You mean Lu..."

"YES! He's here... in Calais." Tears began flowing and relief swept through her that he finally understood what she was trying to tell him.

"I want you to take Alex and go home. Do not leave and don't worry; no one can enter except you and me." He handed Alex to her and put his arms around both of them. "I'll be home as soon as I can. It'll be all right, Hestia... I promise." He kissed her tear-stained face. "Apparate from here. I'm going to my office." He released them, Hermione turned, and they were gone.

Hermione Apparated to the sitting room and immediately began pacing, completely forgetting the child she still held in her arms.

"Mummy, down. I want down," Alex pleaded. He could perceive the frenzied emotions of his mother, and it was frightening to him. He didn't understand what was wrong.

"Oh, baby, Mummy is sorry," she said as she carefully placed him down on the floor. "Are you all right?"

Alex nodded. "Why you scared, Mummy?"

"Uh, Mummy saw someone she didn't think she'd see again for a long while," she said, hoping he wouldn't question her too much further. "But everything is okay now."

"The man wit the white hair made you scared, didn't he? Is he bad man, Mummy?"

For the first time in a long time, Hermione Granger, Gryffindor know-it-all, didn't know the answer to a question.

Severus quickly made his way up the stairs to the next floor where his office was located. As he opened the stairwell door, he could hear muted voices coming from somewhere nearby. He would bet anything he would find them right in front of his office. Casting a Silencing Charm on his shoes, he made his way towards his office and the two people he knew were looking for him. Staying close to the wall, he peered around the corner and saw Lucius and Narcissa in the midst of a somewhat heated conversation. Neither seemed to detect his presence yet, so he turned the corner and edged his way closer to the couple.

"This is all too much, Cissy. How can you expect me to believe he's still alive? I saw all the blood... No one could live through that."

"You know his body was never found. Even you spent months searching for him with no luck."

"It does make sense now why the Granger girl suddenly disappeared. What doesn't make sense is how she is now married to someone who, in all rights, should be dead."

He was within inches of them now, and still they did not sense his presence. Getting sloppy in your old age, friend, he thought as he placed a hand on Lucius' shoulder.

Lucius spun around; the wizard before him barely resembled his old friend, but the voice was one he never thought he would hear again.

"I would suggest you two cease to talk about this so openly in the corridor. One never knows who might be listening," Severus said as he stepped between them to stand in front of his office door. "May I propose we take this to a more private venue?" He opened the door, holding it for them to follow him into the room.

"Ms Bouchard, please cancel any appointments I have this afternoon, and you may take the rest of the day off," he said as he passed his secretary and went through to his office.

"Yes, Professor, and thank you, sir!"

"Sir, Madam, would you care to join me or shall we have this meeting in my reception area?" he asked with the sarcasm Lucius remembered fondly.

Lucius cleared his throat. "After you, my dear," he said, his hand gracefully waving Narcissa to go ahead of him.

As Severus closed the door, he again activated his special wards. "Feeling any effects yet, Narcissa?" he said, eyeing the blonde witch, his displeasure at her apparent betrayal radiating from his every pore.

"I didn't tell him. My oath was not broken. Lucius saw them on the street."

Severus scoffed. "I'm sure you had something to do with his being in the right place at the right time."

Her blush was enough to confirm that he had guessed right about her plan. "He has the right to know..."

"HE," Lucius interrupted her, "is sitting right here. I don't appreciate being referred to in the third person as if I weren't in the room."

He turned to Severus and said, "It's good to see you alive and well, old friend. However, I'm at a loss as to explain how you accomplished that feat."

"It's a long story, and I'm sure you're more interested in another matter at the moment," Severus said as he opened his desk draw and produced a bottle of Old Ogden's. "I'd ask you to join us, Narcissa, but I think this conversation would be best if it were between Lucius and me." With a wave of his hand, the door opened for her. "I'm sure you know the way out."

"Severus, I..."

He held up his hand, indicating she shouldn't continue her statement. "Please just go," he said, motioning to the open door.

Narcissa looked at the two wizards and sighed. "I'll see you back at the villa then, Lucius," she said as she walked out, the door shutting itself behind her.

A silent Accio and Severus called two glasses from the shelf, poured a healthy measure of Firewhiskey in each, and then handed one to Lucius. "You look as if you could use several glasses of this."

Lucius took the proffered glass and downed half its contents in one go. "I have no idea what question to ask first."

Taking a slow sip from his glass, Severus took in the sight of his old friend. He hadn't changed too much since the war... not physically anyway. No, Lucius was born with the ability to carry himself in an aristocratic manner, no matter the circumstance. The only time he had ever seen his friend 'ruffled' had been during the final battle.

"I guess the best place to start would be at the end of the war," Lucius said. "How did you survive?"

Severus sat back and relaxed in his chair. "Do you want the long version or the short?"

"Short for now. You can tell me the more detailed version another time."

"Very well, I had been slowly making myself immune to Nagini's venom. I knew, as we all did, that Riddle was becoming increasingly unstable in his last year. What I didn't count on was almost having half my neck torn apart. Fortunately, I made it a habit to carry certain potions at all times. Once I was alone, I was able to administer a Blood-Replenishing Potion and a powerful healing potion before I bled to death. Once I was sure Riddle was dead for good, I left England. I had a small sanctuary set up in Paris for myself, just in case."

Lucius sighed. "I should have known. You always were the resourceful one. Always ready for any contingency."

"In my position I had to be."

"Mmm." Lucius nodded. "How did you end up with... Miss Granger? Mrs Snape?"

"We go by the name Sutton, Sylvester and Hestia Sutton."

"Was she part of your plan?"

"No. She was a total surprise. I found her serving drinks in a seedy pub..." His thoughts drifted back to the night he had discovered her.

Severus stealthily made his way down the dark back alley, the wound on his neck still painful at times. His contact had finally acquired the rare orchid he needed to brew the latest potion he hoped would finally cure the damage Nagini's venom had caused. As he neared the local pub, the pain hit him again, causing him to stumble. He leaned against a wall, waiting for the pain to subside. He looked up and down the alley and noticed an old pub across the way, the aged door marred by various hexes that had missed their mark over the years. 'Perhaps a shot of Firewhiskey to help ease the pain,' he thought. He slowly walked towards it, grabbed the handle and opened the door.

He nursed his drink for almost an hour, carefully watching Hermione, a million questions running through his mind. There were still four more hours until they would meet. As much as he wanted to keep watch over her, he knew he should at least go to his lab and start the potion. Draining the last of the Firewhiskey from his glass, he looked over at her one more time and walked out the door.

"I was there when she got off work, and she took me to her room. To say it was a hole in the wall would be putting it nicely. Of course, I couldn't allow her to stay there in her condition. She was stubborn about leaving. Sometimes I swear she is part mule."

Lucius laughed under his breath. "I think it's a trait all women share."

"No doubt," he agreed as he refilled their glasses.

"Eventually she saw the logic of moving in with me. I had a larger flat, and it was definitely cleaner than where she was at the time. Slowly, over the weeks, she began to open up and tell me what had occurred that night."

He observed the tension building in Lucius; obviously, he hadn't come to terms with the events of that evening. "She knows you had no choice. However, the thought of seeing you again causes her extreme anxiety."

"If I could have found a way not to do what he..." Lucius struggled for the words to express his remorse for his part in that nightmare. He studied the warm brown color of the Firewhiskey in his glass before lifting it to his lips and taking a long sip. Old Ogden's was good for calming the nerves.

"I think it may be time for the two of you to face each other again," Severus said, barely believing what words were coming out of his mouth. "Give us a day or two. I'll need time to talk to her about it."

"I think we both need a day or two before that meeting. I'll be staying at the villa in Ardres."

It was Severus' turn now to be ill at ease. "I love Hermione and Alex. I'm the only father he has ever known. I won't..."

"I have no desire to break up your marriage, Severus. I can see how much you love them both. I would... I would like a place in my son's life, and... well, I'm not sure what else at the moment," Lucius said as he drained the remaining liquid from his glass before he stood up.

"It's been a draining day for all of us," he said as he stood up and with a wave of his hand released the wards on the room. "I'll owl you soon," he said, opening the door for Lucius.

Lucius started to leave, but stopped and turned towards Severus. He placed his hand on Severus' shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. "It is good to see you, old man."

Severus returned the gesture. "It's good to see you, too."

With a small smile on his lips, Lucius left.

Severus sighed heavily as he closed the door. Now, he had to go home and calm Hermione down. He did not look forward to telling her that she would have to meet with Lucius Malfoy much sooner then she had anticipated.

A/N: Big thanks to Lady_Karelia for her infinite patience and wonderful beta skills.