XIX: First Steps

Chapter XIX: First Steps

Demeter was sitting on the bed in their room at the Leaky Cauldron, balancing a pillow on her bare feet. She had just taken a shower. Her hair was still wet and the light of the candle on the nightstand gave it an almost dark blue shine which clashed violently with the light pink colour of her nightgown. She had wrinkled her nose as Morgaine had unpacked it, but as it was a present from her great-grandmother, Demeter hadn't argued but put it on wordlessly. But for the better part of the next five minutes, she had looked like she was going to be sick at any moment. She seemed, however, have grown used to the hideous colour by now, as she was happily humming and now and then kicking the pillow up into the air.

'Melvin's nice,' she suddenly pointed out.

'Is he now?' Morgaine abandoned the search for her own nightgown for a moment to smirk at her daughter. The girl wouldn't be smitten, now would she?

Demeter promptly blushed. 'For a boy, I mean,' she added quickly. 'And he is very well behaved. When we were eating ice cream, he always asked me if I wanted to try first when we found a new flavour.'

'A perfect little gentleman.' Morgaine was now hiding her grin behind the lid of her trunk. It definitely seemed as if Demeter was smitten. And who could blame her? Melvin Riverbed was an adorable little boy, indeed well behaved, polite and always helpful.

'He said he would wait for me at the station tomorrow and that I could sit with him and his friends on the train because I don't know anyone else. He said it did not matter that I am only a first year.'

That was so very much like Melvin. He would take care of Demeter on their journey to Hogwarts, that was certain. And Morgaine was already planning to make sure that the boy would find an especially big slice of cake on his plate when dessert was served at the start of term feast.

'He says he has a cat,' Demeter went on. 'If I am sorted into Slytherin House, he will let me play with it. That's nice of him, isn't it?'

'It most certainly is,' Morgaine conceded. She and Demeter had had a lengthy discussion about pets a few days ago. They had agreed that Demeter wouldn't need an owl. A toad had not struck her fancy, and while they had visited the Magical Menagerie, none of the numerous kittens had meowed itself into the girl's heart. So they had decided that they would wait with buying one. But Morgaine doubted that Demeter would be able to resist Melvin's little cat. Just like her owner, the little animal was adorable.

Finally having found her nightgown, Morgaine grabbed a bottle of shampoo and a bar of soap and headed towards the bathroom. 'You are allowed to rummage through your school supplies until I return,' she instructed Demeter. 'Then you will have to go to sleep. It is late, and you have a big day ahead of you tomorrow.'

She had almost reached the door when Demeter's words made her freeze on the spot. 'Alek ... Professor Riverbed, I mean. Do you like him, Mother?'

Morgaine just about managed to banish the frown from her face before she turned to face her daughter. 'Professor Riverbed is a colleague of mine,' she pointed out. 'Whatever makes you think I would like him?'

Demeter shrugged. 'I was just thinking ... I saw he makes you smile.'

Once more, Morgaine assured her daughter that Alek Riverbed was nothing more than a colleague and then marched into the bathroom. But as soon as she had closed the door behind her, her brow furrowed once more.

Whatever made the child ask such a thing, she wondered. Yes, Alek's comments and his boyish sense of humour did make her smile. And he was a handsome young man, with dark brown hair and mischievous hazel eyes ...

Morgaine vehemently shook her head. What was she doing, thinking about those hazel eyes again?

But how could she not? Alek had been looking at her from across the room every time she had looked up from her dinner plate earlier that evening. And when he and Melvin had finished their meal, Alek had come over and asked if Morgaine and Demeter would be interested in playing a game of Gobstones. And while he had patiently been explaining the rules to Demeter, he had every now and then looked up and smiled at Morgaine. And she had been unable to do anything but smile back.

Alek had let Demeter win the first round and Melvin the second, and when the children had started to yawn and Morgaine had decided that it was time to go to bed, for Demeter at least, Alek had concurred. But on the way up the stairs, he had grabbed Morgaine's hand and held her back.

'After the children are asleep,' he had whispered so neither Demeter nor Melvin would hear, 'would you like to come back down to the bar and have a glass of wine with me? And maybe we could check out if any of the other pubs has a band playing tonight. I wouldn't mind a dance or two.'

Morgaine had politely declined, saying that she did not like dancing. Now she was not entirely sure why she had told him that. She was indeed tired, but a glass of wine might just have done the trick to make her fall asleep a little quicker than usual. Certainly, they were colleagues, but that excuse did not hold. After all, she had never turned Filius down for a Butterbeer. As for a dance ... that would not have hurt anyone either.

Morgaine stepped into the shower, and as the warm water trickled onto her back, she rested her forehead against the cool white tiles. It was weird. The warmth of Alek's hand against her own seemed to be lingering on her skin. And so was the feeling of his breath tickling her ear as he had whispered his invitation. And Morgaine just couldn't make up her mind whether she liked this fact or not.

~ ~ ~

'Time to wake up, sleepyhead,' Morgaine called from her chair by the window shortly after seven o'clock. She herself had been up since before dawn, silently pacing the room and busying herself with checking Demeter's school supplies over and over again. The last hour and a half, she had spent sitting in the wicker chair by the window, watching her daughter sleep.

The girl had looked so peaceful with her pale features all relaxed and her black hair fanned out on the white pillow. Heavens, she looked so much like her father, even more so when she was asleep and her blue eyes did not pose any distraction.

How often had she watched Severus sleep, Morgaine wondered. She had liked to watch him sleep, especially during those nights when he had been able to relax, his breathing had been slow and regular and the deep line between his eyes almost invisible. Unfortunately, those nights had been far too few during the last years of his life. He had been tired alright, exhausted would even be a better word, but most nights his sleep had been disturbed by nightmares. But he had seldom taken a potion. Should the Dark Lord have called in the middle of the night, Severus would have needed to be one hundred percent alert. And so his face had all too often been disfigured by a scowl even in his sleep.

Demeter did not even open her eyes but pulled the blanket over her head. 'Just five more minutes,' came her muffled voice from under the blanket, and Morgaine couldn't help but smile.

She walked towards the bed and as she sat down on the edge of the mattress, she slowly pulled the blanket away from her daughter's face. 'Whoever did you get your sleepiness from, little one?' she enquired.

Demeter blinked against the sunlight and then squeezed her eyes shut again. 'I don't want to wake up. I had such a nice dream. I was at Hogwarts, learning magic.'

'If you get out of bed, you might actually be able to catch the train and really go to Hogwarts,' Morgaine pointed out.

That helped. Within seconds Demeter was out of bed and at her trunk. 'Where are my school robes?'

'Rub your eyes, little one.' Morgaine laughed. 'Your school robes are lying right on top. But you will not need them just yet. You'll get changed on the train like everyone else. Or do you want all the Muggles to stare at you on our way to King's Cross?'

'No.' Demeter scowled slightly. 'Mother, will I be the only one on the train who doesn't know things like when it is time to put on the school robes? I mean ...' She bit her lip and blushed slightly. 'Will I make a fool out of myself?'

'Of course you will not make a fool out of yourself, little one.' Morgaine went to kneel down beside her daughter and laid a sympathetic arm around the girl's shoulders. 'Many of the children on the train are Muggle-born. Twenty-seven of this year's first-years, to be precise. Most of them have never set foot into the Wizarding world before. You will not be the only one who is feeling confused. And besides, you have one big advantage, haven't you, little one?'

Demeter turned her head to look at her mother. Her scowl had turned into a questioning frown. 'Advantage?' she asked quietly.

'You'll have your own knight in shining armour by your side, won't you?' Morgaine clarified. 'I am convinced that Melvin will do everything in his power to make sure that you will not make a fool out of yourself in any way. And by the time you get to Hogwarts, you will be the best-informed first-year on the train.'

~ ~ ~

Demeter hung at Morgaine's skirts from the moment they had stepped onto platform nine and three-quarters. Suddenly, the whole situation was scary, overwhelming. She was surrounded by people she didn't know. There seemed to be hundreds of children on the platform, some her age and others some years older. Most of them were there with their parents, others were alone. There were hundreds of trolleys being pushed around, all resembling her own, all of them loaded with at least one trunk and others even with an owl cage. Some children were already on the train, and those who weren't seemed to know exactly where to go. All of them except herself, it seemed to Demeter.

'Can't you come on the train with me, Mother?' she asked and then quickly lowered her head, feeling embarrassed.

'No, little one,' Morgaine said softly and caressed Demeter's black hair that framed her pale face. 'Parents don't go to Hogwarts. You know that.'

Yes, Demeter knew. She also knew that there was no use asking. She knew that her mother would not come on the train with her. But her throat was becoming tighter by the second, and the butterflies she had felt in her stomach the day before seemed to have mutated into slimy worms that made her nauseous. She really felt like a scared little child, who wished for nothing more than her mother to stand by her side the whole day.

If Demeter thought that she was the only one feeling anxious, she was wrong. Morgaine had been chewing her lower lip for the better part of the morning, and now and then, she found herself wondering if sending Demeter to Hogwarts had been such a good idea. Beauxbatons would have been another alternative, or a private tutor. And who said that the girl needed a magical education at all? She would probably have been more than content on Iceland.

Rubbish, Morgaine chided herself. The girl was a witch, the daughter of a great wizard and the youngest member of two Wizarding families that had played an important role in the war. She had every right to become part of this world, and being educated at Hogwarts was the best she could wish for.

Morgaine took Demeter by the hand and pulled her towards a bench further down the platform, a few feet away from the bustling crowd. Once they had sat down, she cupped her daughter's chin and made the girl look at her. A pair of anxious blue eyes met a pair that was trying to look calm.

'Listen carefully now,' Morgaine started. 'There is nothing to be afraid of. None of the first-years knows what's awaiting them. Wizard, half-blood or Muggle-born, it's the same for all of them. For some, like you, it's the first time that they are surrounded by Wizard children only. They are all nervous. They are all scared.'

Demeter opened her mouth to speak, but Morgaine quickly shook her head and carried on: 'You have done your homework, and you have practised. Trust me, little one, I teach most of those children on the train. I know that your knowledge of magic exceeds some of the second-years' by far. And what you lack in magical education, you'll make up with your personality. You are your father's daughter, after all. Carry your head high and show them that no one messes with the daughter of Severus Snape.'

Oh, the irony. Sure, nobody with the tiniest survival instinct would have messed with the adult Severus Snape, but as a teenager, he had been one of the most bullied students at Hogwarts. But Demeter did not know that. In her eyes, her father was a war hero and a great man. And the way her eyes were sparkling now made it clear that she would take her mother's advice seriously and not let anyone give her a hard time.

'Shall we try and find Melvin then?' Morgaine suggested and ruffled her daughter's black hair. 'I'm sure he is waiting for you already.'

They scanned the platform for a mop of blond hair, but when they caught sight of Melvin, Morgaine wished Demeter had chosen another boy to befriend. Because beside Melvin and his uncle stood no other than Lucius Malfoy, his hair perfectly coifed as always and his long emerald cloak flapping slightly in the wind.

Morgaine felt the muscles in her neck tense up and instinctively closed her fingers around her wand in her right pocket. With her free left hand, she pushed her daughter ever so discreetly behind her back.

The children started chatting immediately, Alek made a crack about wizards being old-fashioned as they still let their children ride a steam train to school, and Lucius was as charming as ever. He talked to both Melvin and Demeter as if they were adults instead of children. And to Morgaine's utter annoyance, Demeter smiled at him.

'However could you think that people would not realise that this girl is Severus' daughter?' Lucius enquired as Alek helped the children load their trunks onto the train. He was still smiling, and judging by the indifferent look on his face, he could as well have been talking about the weather. But he was, of course, anything but indifferent. 'Two dragon eggs couldn't look more alike than those two,' he continued.

A muscle twitched in Morgaine's jaw, but she still managed to give the blond wizard in front of her a calm answer. 'Seeing as Demeter carries her father's last name now, there would be no point in denying her parentage, would there?'

'Demeter Snape?' Lucius smirked. 'Why did you decide to let her carry her father's name?'

'That is none of you business, is it, Lucius?'

His smirk turned into a charming smile, and he took a bow. 'Of course not, forgive me my curiosity, Morgaine. I am, however, glad you decided to present the child to the Wizarding world at last. Where have you been hiding her for eleven years?'

'Again, this is none of your business.' Morgaine was running out of patience. She had neither the time nor the energy to talk to Lucius Malfoy.

'I sense a certain hostility,' Lucius pointed out. The tone in his voice was still as sweet as honey, and it made Morgaine's skin crawl. 'If I didn't know better, I'd say you have been trying to withhold the child from us.'

Morgaine's eyes flashed dangerously. 'Who exactly do you mean when you say us, Lucius?'

He stepped closer, towering over her and fixing her with a gaze so cold that it made Morgaine shrink back. But he never had a chance to answer Morgaine's question, as Demeter, Melvin and Alek returned.

'Trunks stowed away, compartment chosen, students ready to go, madam,' he reported as if he were a soldier.

'Are you all excited then?' Lucius addressed the children. Every trace of menace had disappeared from his face 'Here, Melvin,' he said and handed the boy a shiny Galleon. 'Be a gentleman and treat your little friend to some sweets on the train.'

Morgaine had the urge to throw the coin back into Lucius' face and tell Demeter never to accept anything from that man, but making a scene would not do anyone any good. She would talk to Demeter another time.

The clock crept towards eleven, and after several bone crushing hugs and the promise that she would be allowed to visit the Potions mistress' office in the evening, Demeter boarded the train, gallantly escorted by Melvin, who insisted on carrying her backpack and opening the window for her. And Morgaine smiled at the little gentleman and walked alongside the train until it had picked up too much speed for her to follow. She would see her daughter again in a couple of hours, she knew that. She also knew that nothing would happen to the child on the train. But still, she could not ignore the knot in the pit of her stomach.

'You know, if you don't move soon, the train will be in the Lake District before you have left the station.'

Morgaine blinked and tore her eyes off the tracks. Alek was right, of course. The Hogwarts Express had long since disappeared from sight, and she, Alek and Lucius were the last persons standing on the platform.

'I forgot how nervous I was the first time I boarded that train,' Morgaine explained.

'Demeter did seem awfully quiet,' Alek admitted. 'But she'll do alright. I bet she and Melvin are munching on sweets right now and making plans on how to ditch their first History of Magic class. And who can blame them? Cuthbert is dull, even for a ghost.'

Morgaine grinned. Once more, Alek was right, about everything. Melvin was most certainly taking good care of Demeter, just as he had promised he would. And yes, Professor Binns was indeed duller that dishwater.

'What are your plans for today then?' Alek enquired. 'Are you Apparating to Hogwarts at once or what?'

'No,' Morgaine replied, finally able to focus fully on Alek. 'I am about to go back to Diagon Alley. I have some business to attend to.'

'I see. Well, I for one have been lazy over the summer and still have lessons to plan.' Alek screwed up his face. 'How a disorganised person like me ever became a teacher is a riddle worthy of a Sphinx. I guess I'll be seeing you at dinner then.'

Morgaine nodded and wished Alek a good day. Some moments later, he had Disapparated.

'Charming young man, isn't he?'

Morgaine swirled around and came once more face to face with Lucius Malfoy. They were all alone on the platform now. She could have hexed him, and no one would ever know. But neither the look on her face or the way she was clutching her wand seemed to impress or threaten Lucius in any way.

'Charming man indeed,' he repeated. 'And his nephew is lovely as well. Your daughter seems to be rather smitten.'

'Once again you are putting your nose into things that do not concern you, Lucius,' Morgaine hissed.

Lucius just shook his head. 'Tut, tut, Morgaine. Such harsh tones. I am very much interested in the well-being of your daughter. It's time you understand this.'

Now she had had enough. Morgaine drew herself up to her full height and glared at the blond wizard with a stare that would have made a troll shiver. 'I warn you, Lucius Malfoy,' she hissed. 'If you harm my daughter in any way, I swear this will be the last thing you do on this earth.'

But Lucius just tilted his head and smiled at her threat, his grey eyes glittering. 'You still don't get it, do you, Morgaine? I have no intentions of harming that child in any way. On the contrary. I will make sure that she is cherished and protected. Just like the valuable emerald she is.'

And before Morgaine had any time to react, Lucius Malfoy turned on his heel and Disapparated into thin air.

Morgaine clasped her hands over her mouth. Her breakfast seemed to be on its way up again, and the world around her seemed to be spinning. As usual, Lucius had not said anything precise, but the interpretations that could be made from his insinuations made Morgaine fear the worst.

Something had to be done.

She shook her head and then turned on her heel to Apparate. She knew where to turn to. She had made up her mind already in Iceland. To protect her daughter and get her own emotions under control, she needed magic that could not be found in Diagon Alley, nor at Hogwarts or in Iceland.

Once she had regained her balance, she let her eyes wander over the street in front of her. She couldn't detect anyone she knew. Good, no one needed to know where she was going. So she pulled up her hood and once more let her eyes scan her surroundings before silently slinking into the darkness of Knockturn Alley.