Chapter 4

A/N: Well, thanks to ancientgirl and chyara who caught that I had uploaded this chapter to the wrong story. I think it will make much more sense in this context. This is a warning not to do things while tired. :)

Chapter 4

Following a brief rest in Paris, they arrived at Malfoy's hidden villa in southern France. It was secluded in the mountains, and it was very unlikely that anyone would ever find him there.

Aurelia asked, "Are you sure he's here? It looks deserted." Actually, it looked like a ruin, one that had been abandoned long ago.

"He will be here. He has nowhere else to go. I'm sure he's enchanted the villa so it looks like it has not been inhabited for some time." He began walking toward the villa, leaving Aurelia to follow.

They both shivered as they approached the villa, having obviously passed through some sort of warding, as the villa now appeared as though it was inhabited.

"I don't like this," she replied. "What if our magic is affected?"

"I have not heard of a ward that would permit one person's magic and forbid another's. I think you will be fine," he reassured.

Even before they could knock at the front door, a house-elf was waiting for them. "Master is waiting for you," it told them before leading them to a sitting room.

They did not have to wait long before Lucius entered the room. "Severus, you've survived." There was only the smallest hint of surprise and disappointment in his voice.

"As have you. I was quite surprised to see that no one from your family was listed among the casualties."

"Well, the list was not entirely accurate. I fear the stress of the whole ordeal has taken a toll on my poor Narcissa. None of the Healers have been able to do anything for her," Lucius replied sadly.

Aurelia unconsciously gripped Severus' sleeve. She wasn't sure she could help, but her Healer instinct compelled her to do something.

Lucius finally took notice of her. "You must forgive Severus' appalling lack of manners." He reached for her hand. "Permit me to introduce myself. I am Lucius Malfoy. And you might be?"

"She is Aurelia MacLean," Severus replied without considering the ramifications of giving her name to Malfoy.

"Miss MacLean, a pleasure to make your acquaintance. How is it you have come to travel with Severus? He isn't normally very social."

Aurelia was about to speak, but Severus spoke first. "She is a classmate of mine from Hogwarts. We have renewed our friendship since my injury." He knew there would be no point in hiding that as it had been well publicized.

She wasn't content to leave it at that. Malfoy might have been a Death Eater and, for all she knew, so was Narcissa, but she was still a Healer. "If I might be permitted, Mr. Malfoy, I know something of the healing arts and would like to tend to your wife."

Severus tried not to react to her statement. He did not want to be left alone with Lucius in his vulnerable state, but she had left him with no choice.

"Of course, my dear. The elf will show you the way. This will give Severus and I a chance to catch up," he said far too smoothly. He kept the smile on his face until she was gone. "Should I assume this is something less than a social call? Does she work for the Ministry?"

"It is somewhat less than a social call, but she is harmless," Severus replied nonchalantly.

Lucius raised an eyebrow. "Have you finally found a plaything?" he asked slyly.

Severus ignored the question. "I have reason to believe I am the only one that knows you are here. I think the Ministry would be very interested in knowing where you are."

Lucius scowled. "And what of it?"

"Do you recall that drink we all shared before the final battle?"

"Quite refreshing, wasn't it?" asked Lucius as he poured a glass of cognac. He raised the bottle toward Severus who waved off a glass. "What of it?" he asked innocently.

"We both know that was something more. There was a poison in that drink."

Lucius feigned innocence, "Was there? How intriguing since we all survived, at least temporarily."

"You should know that Aurelia is an expert in potions and poisons. Narcissa will not survive the night if I give the word." He was counting on Lucius thinking that as a Slytherin, Aurelia would be more than willing to do this.

Lucius didn't care if it was a bluff or not and waved his hand dismissively. "Is that supposed to mean something to me? She's been dying for weeks. Better to finally get it over with." She was no great loss. He had his heir and, in time, he would regain his place of prominence.

"You also know that we were left alone in this room for a few minutes. I know of your love of cognac," Severus hinted.

Lucius suddenly paled and set his nearly empty glass on the table. "What do you want?"

"I want to know about that poison. I know it was formulated to guarantee loyalty. As I'm sure you are aware, I failed that test."

"Yes, I was quite surprised to see you alive. I did see you fall and was sure that was the last of you."

Severus gritted his teeth. "If you wish to survive the night, I will know where you got that poison. I know that you are the only one that would have been trusted to run that errand. If you cooperate, I will see that you are given the antidote before we leave. If not, Draco will be an orphan tomorrow morning."

Lucius scowled. He hated losing, but it seemed that Severus had won this round. "Yes, then you can turn me in to the authorities and regain your place in society," he snarled.

"That matters little. My name has been cleared as much as it will be. I want to know about the poison. Give me that information, and you will never see me or hear from me again. I will not turn you over to the authorities unless that information is false. Of course, I doubt you would remain here in that case. But rest assured, I found you once, I can find you again."

"How did you survive the poison? It was supposed to be completely fatal." His intellectual curiosity was getting the better of him.

"I did not lie when I said that Aurelia was an expert in potions and poisons. She saved me. Now that I have survived the poison, I wish to know more about it." He gave Lucius a penetrating glare, hoping his old friend would think he was trying to read his mind. There was no need for Lucius to know that he was still not fully recovered.

Lucius forced himself to look away. He was about to respond when Aurelia returned.

"I can do nothing for her. What ails her is mental, not physical. Physical maladies I can heal quite easily. She has lost her will to live."

"Well, Lucius? Your decision? Do you join your wife?" Severus asked.

Aurelia tried to keep her face neutral. She had not expected violence or the threat of it.

"As you leave me no choice, I have the information in my study." He rose and waited for them to follow him. Once in his office, he unlocked his desk drawer and pulled out a vial and an envelope. Taking a clean sheet of parchment, he copied an address from the envelope. He handed the parchment and vial to Severus. "That is the apothecary that made the poison and the last remnants. Now, will you give me the antidote?"

"One more thing, Mr. Malfoy," Aurelia interrupted. "I will require a blood sample for testing."

"I really must protest at my treatment," Lucius said.

"Do you want the antidote?" asked Severus.

Reluctantly, Lucius removed his jacket and rolled up his sleeve. Out of her bag, Aurelia produced what she needed to take a blood sample. In less than a minute, she was done. "I think we have everything, Severus," she said.

Severus rose and bowed. "Lucius, always a pleasure." He then spun out of the room and escorted Aurelia toward the door.

"What of the poison?" Lucius nearly shouted.

Severus turned back and smirked. "There was no poison, only your imagination." He then led Aurelia out of the villa and through the wards.

******************

Once in Paris, Aurelia decided they should get something to eat and rest. Side-Along Apparating over long distances was quite taxing. "Did you really lead him to believe you had poisoned him?"

"It wasn't a difficult thing to do. He is quite paranoid and he knows that I specialize in undetectable poisons. I have found that fear is an easy emotion to manipulate. Since he was so cooperative, I hope that we can develop an antidote."

"So there's been no improvement from yesterday?" she asked.

"Not as of yet. This seems to be a very complex poison, and it is probable that your antidote will only partially neutralize it."

"Well, we'll see if we can solve this mystery. There isn't much left in that vial, but it should be enough. And he did give us the name and address of the apothecary."

"I somehow doubt that will be useful," he replied dryly.

"What do you mean? Surely you don't think?" she asked nervously.

"I have no doubt that he did. While it is unlikely we could interview the apothecary, it is probable he left notes. I would like to investigate that as soon as possible, just in case Lucius decides to thwart us."

While it was late, she could tell from the tone of his voice that waiting until tomorrow could be a mistake. "We can head there next."

He found himself once again amazed at how helpful she was being. A part of him kept wondering what she hoped to gain, but he reminded himself that for once in his life, he actually had a friend. He stared at her, really seeing her for the first time since they had left Hogwarts as teenagers. She had matured into a beautiful woman, and motherhood had only enhanced her beauty. She was no longer the boyish slip of a girl he remembered, but a voluptuous beauty. Her dark hair was cut short, but it was still beautiful. He found himself unable to look away from her blue eyes. He normally didn't care for light colored eyes; he found them too cold, but hers were not.

She grew uncomfortable with his stare. "Severus? Is everything all right?" she asked cautiously, afraid the he might be relapsing.

He forced himself to look away. "Yes, I am well," he replied with the slightest hint of embarrassment. She lost her husband in the war. It was wrong of him to think of her that way.

"You were lost in the past, weren't you?" She had seen that look on people before.

"If you must continue to pry, yes, I was," he replied tersely. "Are you ready to depart?"

"Of course. I just didn't want to rush you." Something had clearly made him uncomfortable, but what?

They left the bistro and moved to a secluded alley so that they could Apparate to the apothecary. They arrived on a muddy street outside a very dilapidated house that was more accurately described as a shack.

Aurelia released him as soon as they arrived. "Well, shall we see what we can find?" she asked as she pulled her wand out of her sleeve.

The two of them walked up to the shack. Severus knocked on the door and was not surprised when there was no answer. Cautiously, he pushed the door open. The building was dark and smelled of death.

"It seems you were right," she said soberly.

As they walked deeper into the building, Severus heard a noise and attempted to hex the source of the noise. His spell was not powerful enough to have any effect. He scowled at his impotence.

Aurelia spun around, looking for a sign of danger, but only saw a mouse crawling through the detritus of the apothecary's life. There was no sign of anything in the living room or kitchen, but the smell was getting stronger.

Severus carefully pushed open the door at the back of the kitchen. It led to the lab, and the smell was strongest there. He wrinkled his nose, and they both saw the partially decomposed body. "We know who killed him and no one has obviously missed him. If you wouldn't mind?" he asked. Normally, this was something he would have done himself.

Aurelia was more than happy to dispose of the body. While she had seen death before, the stench rising from the body was making her cough, and she thought she might be ill. "Incindio," she said sharply, and waited until the body was ashes before ending the spell. Thankfully, the laboratory floor was dirt and there was little danger of burning down the building. While the smell of death still hung in the room, it was greatly reduced with the body gone. She saw that Severus was already searching for notes. Assuming that this poison was one of the last things the man had brewed, she started examining the ingredients he had on the counter. While the house was little more than a shack, his work area was quite well organized.

"Ah, wormswort!" said Severus triumphantly.

"For the poison or the cure?" she asked. Wormswort was a very rare ingredient, one with which she was not very familiar.

"In the poison. Do you recall what neutralizes wormswort?" he asked. He was quite disappointed this knowledge was escaping him at the moment.

"I know I've read it in the past, but it's not something we commonly see." She started perusing the ingredients on the wall, hoping to jog her memory. Severus continued his own search of the workshop.

After ten minutes, neither of them had found any clues to what neutralized wormswort. "Did you hear that?" she whispered urgently, and picked up the parchment that Severus was reading.

"Hear what?" he asked quietly.

She moved next to him. "I think we should go. Right now."

"We haven't finished searching..." he broke off when he heard the sound of someone moving in the kitchen. Before he could say anything else, she had wrapped her arms around him and they Disapparated.

*************

"Did you find anything before we left?" he asked.

She shook her head. "No. I'll see what I can find at work. Who do you think that was?"

"I suspect Lucius sent someone to destroy the building before we could learn anything. I think he would have seen it as a bonus if he could have gotten rid of us as well. How would you feel about making a trip to Hogwarts? I may have information there on what may neutralize wormswort."

She saw the stack of mail on the desk, including a letter addressed to Severus. "It looks like you received a reply," she said as she handed him the letter.

He opened the letter and was thankful when Aurelia left him alone.

Oh, Severus, it was so very good to hear from you. Poppy was quite afraid when she saw you and that there was nothing she could do for you. She says your recovery is nothing short of miraculous. There are some very skilled Healers at St. Mungo's, and for that we are grateful.

The rebuilding is progressing. The west wing survived almost intact and we are configuring it for classes this autumn. The Slytherin and Ravenclaw dormitories are also intact, making it much easier for us to find temporary housing for the Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors. Unfortunately, your dungeons were not so lucky. The area has been sealed off.

He stopped reading. A part of him knew that his dungeons would be attacked. For that reason, he had placed numerous protective wards every time he left. The only question was, how much protection had they provided?

Applications are arriving for new staff. Not as many as we would like. The Ministry would prefer to have a new headmaster appointed and let that person make the staffing decisions. I haven't heard whom they are considering. The staff was interviewed, but we all declined. I think none of us feel we can fill Albus' shoes. Even after a year, his presence is missed. For me, I much prefer my greenhouses.

Pomona

He was quite surprised that she had not mentioned anything about his supposed betrayal or role in Albus' death. He had always gotten along reasonably well with her, especially since their disciplines overlapped. She had always looked for the best in people, and he was not surprised that she would be one that believed he had acted for the greater good.

He found Aurelia in the kitchen preparing a light snack. "It seems the search may be more difficult than initially anticipated. Pomona reports that the dungeons were hit hard, and I'm not sure how many of my possessions survived."

She was far too interested in finally solving this mystery to give up. "Well, it can't hurt to take a look. I have the day after tomorrow off, and I'm sure Michelle will keep the girls."

"I'll probably stay a couple of days to see what I can salvage, but I would appreciate your help. I believe I know which book I am looking for. If we find that book, you may be able to begin work on the antidote while I continue to sort through my dungeons."

This told her how worried he was. Of course, she would probably feel the same way if everything she owned was destroyed. "Do you think Lucius knows that you are still suffering the effects from the poison?"

"I have no idea. He didn't appear to suspect that when we confronted him."

She felt a sudden shiver run up her spine. "If he sent people to either destroy that shack or to find us... You don't think he would send someone here, do you? I mean we gave him my real name." She wrung her hands in worry.

"I will teach you how to put up protective wards that will keep out intruders. I don't think he will send anyone here, but it never hurts to take precautions."

He spent the next two hours teaching her how to protect her home. By the time they finished, she was exhausted and went to bed.

Severus wrote a short note to Pomona letting her know to expect him tomorrow afternoon. While he dreaded confronting the destruction, he knew that he could not escape it forever, would not escape it. He also knew he would have to face his former colleagues at some point. From the tone of her letter, she seemed to have accepted the truth of his situation.

He went to bed, but could not fall asleep. Once again, his mind drifted to the night of the attack. He could hear the screams and blasts of destruction all around him. As usual, he was not able to decipher specifics; it was all a blur of memories running together. Even worse, they were now coming to him when he was awake. Before, they had just come when he was asleep.

At five o'clock he decided he needed something else to occupy his mind and went down to the library. Perhaps one of her books had mention of wormswort.

***************

Aurelia made her way to the kitchen, bouncing off the walls the whole way. She hadn't gotten much sleep; thoughts of her house being attacked had kept her awake. After she put the kettle on, she noticed the light coming from the library. She leaned against the doorway. "How long have you been up?" When he faced her, she thought she had the answer. "Couldn't sleep either, huh? I've put the kettle on." When he didn't answer, she continued, "Have you found anything?"

"No, but given your unfamiliarity with wormswort, I was not surprised." He closed the book. "Let me help you with breakfast." As they started work on breakfast, he said, "I have a few tests I'd like to run on the remnants of the poison. Perhaps it would help with finding a cure since we could not find the complete formula."

"Sounds like a good plan," she replied as she stifled a yawn.

"Will it be safe for you to go to work this morning?"

"I'll be fine. After work, we can head to Hogwarts." A part of her was curious to see if it was as bad as it had looked in the Daily Prophet. The other part of her really didn't want to see it, but wanted to remember the school as it had been.

"Hopefully, I will have more information by then," he said.

***************

By mid-afternoon, he had run as many tests on the poison as he could with the equipment she had. Her laboratory was more oriented towards the brewing of potions than the analysis of potions. He assumed she did most of her analysis at work.

He decided he would go to Diagon Alley for supplies, and then he could meet her at St. Mungo's. Since he couldn't Apparate, he took the Floo Network to The Leaky Cauldron. The trip was uneventful, and there was enough activity at the tavern that his presence went unnoticed. He preferred that. Had someone noticed him, they may have questioned why he was traveling by Floo. This was a question he did not want to answer.

His purchases at the apothecary were not unusual for him. The proprietor did remark that it had been some time since he had seen Severus, but other than that, nothing remarkable happened. Since it was now half past four, he decided to head to St. Mungo's.

The poisons ward was quiet. Of the three patients in the ward, one had visitors, one was reading a book, and the third was sleeping. There was a Trainee Healer sitting at a table at the end of the ward. "May I help you?" she asked.

"I was looking for Healer MacLean. She is expecting me," he said curtly.

"Yes, sir, Professor," the trainee replied nervously and ran back to the office area.

Severus tried to place the young woman. Obviously, she had been one of his better students. Spinnet. Alicia Spinnet. A Gryffindor, but then again, she was in the same year as the Weasley twins, and they had drawn more attention than any of their classmates.

"Severus, what a pleasant surprise. What brings you here?" Aurelia asked cheerfully.

"I came into town to pick up supplies and noticed that your shift was almost over. I thought it would be more efficient to leave from here."

"Of course. I have some paperwork to finish up. Why don't you go up to the tea room, and I'll meet you up there in ten or fifteen minutes?"

"If you don't mind, I would prefer to peruse some of your reference books," he replied. He had developed some new theories, and there were things he needed to look up.

"Of course." She led him back to her office.

He read quietly as she finished up the day's reports. There were the patient status reports, trainee status reports, medicinal expenditures reports, a seemingly unending list of reports. This was the one thing she hated about having been promoted; more of her time was spent on administrative triviality than treating patients. The only time she treated patients was when the case was especially difficult.

"Are you ready?" she asked.

Severus placed the book back on the shelf. "After you."