Chapter XXXVII: The Serpent’s Revenge

‘Morgaine.’

Severus’ shock and surprise seemed to have tied his tongue, and he was unable to utter anything but her name, over and over again. For some moments, he even wondered if it were possible for ghosts to go insane. Morgaine couldn’t be standing in front of him. It was impossible. Yet there she was, just as transparent as he was, except for her eyes.

Severus moved closer, still speechless, to examine the apparition of which he was certain was Morgaine. She was, if possible, even more transparent than a ghost. If he had to, Severus would describe her appearance as a mist, impossible to grasp and fleeting enough to disappear in the wind. But the eyes, they were real. Blue like the spring sky, his guiding lights in the dark. They shone like two sapphires in the gloom of the dungeon and were looking right at him.

‘How is this possible?’ Severus breathed as he finally found his voice again. ‘How can you be here?’

Morgaine didn’t answer, and Severus concluded that his mind was indeed playing tricks on him, that he was just imagining her being here, just as he had imagined seeing her eyes the night before. She couldn’t be there with him. Unless …

‘Are you dead?’ he asked, his voice trembling now. It would be an explanation. If Morgaine were indeed dead, surely her ghost would come to seek him out to take him with her to wherever she was going. After all, he had been waiting for her all those years.

But no! Morgaine couldn’t be dead. She mustn’t be!

‘I need your help, Severus,’ she said suddenly, looking slightly surprised that there were words coming out of her mouth. ‘Our child is in danger.’

Blue eyes locked on to black ones, and within seconds, Severus knew everything. All the things Morgaine had gone through since the clock had struck midnight on the last night of December were as clear in his mind as if he himself had experienced them. He knew about the enchantments that had been put around the Riverbed Manor, about Lucius and his demented plans, the snakes, the Dementors and the death of Alek Riverbed. And he knew about the danger Morgaine and Demeter were in; Demeter because she was in the hands of a lunatic, and Morgaine because she had breached the ancient laws of magic by leaving her body. She was not allowed to be where she was now.

As the connection broke, he hesitated for a moment. There was a little voice in the back of his mind telling him not to act. But he refused to listen. He mustn’t listen.

‘I will inform Minerva,’ he announced. ‘With the help of your information, the Aurors will have something to go on. It might take some time, but they should be able to find the manor.’

He never gave Morgaine time to answer, but vanished into thin air. He did not dare tell her that he would right back and that he hoped that she would wait for him.

~ ~ ~
Demeter listened carefully to everything Lucius told her about old, noble Wizard families, their values and the superiority of Wizardkind. He was passionate, and there was a gleam in his eyes that made it hard not to be fascinated. But Demeter remembered her mother’s words well. She must not be blinded by his tales.

Now and then, Lucius would pause and ask if Demeter had understood, and she would always nod and reiterate what he had said. It wasn’t hard. Demeter had always been a good listener and a quick learner. When her great-grandmother had taught her about herbs and plants in Iceland, she had never been allowed to write anything down and had therefore practised her skills of learning things by heart already at an early age. Even at Hogwarts, she rarely took notes, much to the annoyance of some teachers. From others, however, she earned praise.

Iceland and Hogwarts. Demeter felt something tighten in her stomach. Would she ever see those two places again? Or would Lucius keep her and her mother here in Estonia forever? But he couldn’t do that, could he? Surely, if they hadn’t returned at the start of term, people would come looking for them. Maybe, her great-grandmother had already wondered why they had not come to Iceland and had contacted certain people. But how would anyone find them here? Alek had said that the manor was Unplottable.

‘Demeter, are you listening?’

Oh no! Demeter anxiously bit her lip. She had been so absorbed by her own thoughts that she had lost track of what Lucius had been saying. Would he be angry with her now?

But to her surprise, Lucius was kind. ‘It’s my fault,’ he announced, crossing his hands in front of his chest and bowing in an apologetic gesture. ‘I am blabbering, and if there is something sweet girls your age don’t appreciate, then it is blabbering old men. I will have my elf bring us some sandwiches. Would you like some tea?’

Very politely, Demeter accepted his offer, yet silently wondered why on earth Lucius would offer her tea and sandwiches in the middle of the night. Surely, it must soon be two o’clock in the morning.

He told her to wait for him and left the room, and Demeter dutifully kept sitting on the sofa, looking around. For the first time since she had entered the room, she dared be curious.

She hadn’t been in this room before, which she found odd. Melvin had said that he had shown her every room in the manor. Well, maybe he wasn’t allowed to be in this room. It looked like a kind of library, and most probably, children were not allowed there. They could, for example, break some of the curious objects that stood on the table by the window. Some of them looked very old and fragile, others just plain weird.

Demeter slid off the sofa, but hesitated after a couple of steps. She should probably stay in her seat and leave the objects alone, she told herself. Lucius would certainly be angry with her if he caught her snooping around. But he had been gone for quite some time now, and Demeter was getting bored. She would only look, she promised herself. That couldn’t hurt, now could it?

She did indeed not touch anything, but some objects Demeter examined so closely that the tip of her nose almost brushed them. But only almost. She knew better than to touch things of which she knew nothing. They could be dangerous.

At the left edge of the table, closest to the window, lay a blue glass orb. Or at least, it seemed blue at times. Weren’t there figures moving in it, Demeter wondered.

She edged closer, leaning over the table to get a better look, supporting herself against the window frame with her left hand so she wouldn’t lose her balance. Yes, there were indeed figures moving around in the orb. Some of them, she thought she recognised.

A shadow flitted by. But not in the orb. Another, right outside the window.

Demeter quickly straightened up, staring out into the dark night. Tall, hooded figures were towering outside the window. Three, four, maybe even five. They seemed to be looking at her.

Dementors.

Demeter gave a little shriek and started to back away, but it didn’t do any good. It felt as if one of those gruesome figures outside had reached through the window and gripped her heart with its long, icy fingers.

Demeter felt desperate and frightened. Suddenly, she was scared that she would never see her mother again, that she would be kept prisoner in the manor forever, and that her father would never know where she was.

‘Go away,’ Demeter whispered, her voice shaking. ‘Leave me alone. I didn’t do anything. Please, go away.’

But of course, the Dementors did not move. It is not in the nature of a Dementor to listen to pleading. Instead, they kept hovering silently outside the window, heartlessly staring down at the black-haired girl who had now crawled up in a corner of the sofa with her arms wrapped around her knees and her blue eyes filling up with tears.

~ ~ ~
Minerva didn’t waste any time with asking questions about how Severus could suddenly know all those details about the Riverbed Manor. Instead, she immediately contacted Kingsley, not caring about the late hour or the Minister of Magic seeing her in her dressing gown. And by the time Severus returned to the dungeon, Kingsley had already roused the Estonian Minister of Magic and set heaven and hell in motion. But Severus cared little about what the Ministers and their Aurors could do. His priorities lay elsewhere.

He didn’t materialise into his old study at once, but into the dark corridor outside. There he paused, staring at the heavy oak door. Was Morgaine still there, he wondered. Was she waiting for him?

He thought back at the moment when she had first appeared in front of him. He had been surprised, slightly shocked, then confused and in the end … yes, if he were honest with himself, he would admit that he had been pleased somehow. This was how it was supposed to be, was it not? He and Morgaine belonged by each other’s side, and as he would never return to a human form, it was only right that … that she would come and join him.

No! Severus mentally slapped himself. He was not allowed to have these thoughts. The apparition on the other side of his door was not Morgaine’s ghost. It was just an image, a messenger. Morgaine wasn’t dead. And if the Estonian Aurors did their job properly, she wouldn’t die that night either.

If he could make her return to her body, that was.

‘She must return,’ Severus growled, trying to convince himself and at the same time drown the little voice that was still nagging in the back of his mind. She must return! As much as Severus longed to have Morgaine by his side, he knew that her time had not come yet. And she had not come to be with him. She had come because Demeter, their child, needed their help.

‘You should not be here, Morgaine,’ he said firmly as he entered the room, half-heartedly trying to avoid looking at her. But her blue eyes seemed to be calling for him, and eventually he looked right into them. ‘You need to return to your body.’

‘I know.’

Morgaine’s voice was feeble and shaking slightly, and Severus could see in her eyes that she had similar thoughts as he had. She, too, wanted to stay. And she, too, knew that she couldn’t.

‘Come with me,’ she said quietly.

‘Come with you?’ Severus frowned. ‘How can I come with you?’

‘There are three obsidians lying in the embers. I will need them to return. If you concentrate on them, if you hold on to me ...’

‘And then what?’ Severus had to admit that he was reluctant. By leaving her body, Morgaine had already ventured into unknown fields of magic. What would happen if she went even further? What would happen if he did hold on to her? Would they ever be able to let go of each other again?

‘I doubt I will have the strength or the courage to walk right past my body if I return to Estonia alone,’ Morgaine confessed. ‘And once I’m back in my earthly shell I will be no help for Demeter. I cannot leave the room. I have no wand. And I doubt that my magic would be strong enough to fight Lucius anyway.’ She reached out a transparent hand for him. ‘Demeter needs you. You promised.’

He had promised, indeed. And now Severus knew that Morgaine had taken his words and weaved them into a spell. He was linked to the obsidians just as much as Morgaine and Demeter, just as they were all linked with each other.

They moved closer, merged like two shadows and became one. Darkness closed in on them, and for some moments, Severus thought it was going to consume him. But then there was a fire, and the darkness began to shrink. And before he knew it, all that was left of the dark were three black stones.

~ ~ ~
‘Drink your cocoa,’ Lucius encouraged Demeter, looking down at her with what only could be interpreted as real concern. ‘You look peaky.’

The way Demeter felt, she doubted whether all the cocoa in the word could do her any good. But she drank dutifully. If nothing else the hot cocoa would surely warm her up a bit. She was freezing.

‘There, I had a feeling that some chocolate would go down better than tea and cucumber sandwiches.’ Lucius was beaming. ‘Your cheeks are already rosier.’

To her surprise, Demeter did feel better. She was still cold, but at least she did not feel as desolate anymore. That feeling, if she were honest, had started to disappear about ten minutes ago, when those foul beings outside the window had tired of staring at her and had drifted away. And shortly after, Lucius had come back, with hot cocoa and biscuits, and Demeter had barely been able to keep herself from wrapping her arms around him. Mother had said not to trust him, but at the moment, Lucius Malfoy was a knight in shining armour. It seemed as if he himself had driven the Dementors away and saved Demeter from eternal despair.

He continued his lecture, now and then pausing to ask Demeter about her opinion on a certain topic, and she answered him willingly and honestly, not even noticing how he twisted her answers and made them fit his expectations.

‘I won’t be long,’ he assured her an hour later, his hand already on the doorknob. ‘Smile for me when I come back, alright?’

Demeter nodded bravely, but she could not stop herself from glancing at the window where she could swear that she already saw the shadows gathering. And she desperately hoped that Lucius would hold his promise and return soon.

~ ~ ~
‘What is Lucius playing at?’ Morgaine whispered to Severus. They were standing by the window, invisible to human eyes, had done so for almost half an hour. Most probably, the Dementors had not seen them either.

‘He is trying to make Demeter trust him,’ Severus replied, his eyes firmly on Lucius. After having shared some chocolate cookies with Demeter, he had given her back her wand, and together they were now conjuring butterflies out of thin air.

‘The Dementors appear as soon as Lucius leaves the room, and when he returns, they are gone,’ Severus continued. ‘Demeter will link the two events in her mind ...’

‘And think that Lucius is the one driving the Dementors away.’

‘A clever move from Lucius’ side,’ Severus admitted. ‘Demeter is so afraid of the Dementors that she will soon do anything for Lucius, just so he will stay with her. There will be no need for him to force her or to threaten her into doing anything. She will do it voluntarily.’

‘And soon it won’t be about conjuring butterflies anymore.’

Severus nodded. He knew Lucius. He knew that the blond wizard would not rest until his goal was achieved. And if his goal was to let Demeter perform a Dark spell, a spell that would drag the girl into the depths of Darkness, Lucius would succeed. At any cost.

~ ~ ~
‘I bet you are Professor Sprout’s favourite student.’ Lucius looked admirably at the rose Demeter was holding out towards him. It was dark red, and its scent seemed to be filling the whole room already, even though it had been dead and shrivelled up only minutes ago. ‘Tell me about your wand, Demeter.’

‘The core is made up of unicorn hair,’ Demeter declared, beaming. Lucius had taken the rose she had re-awakened from her hand and was now inhaling its scent. He seemed to be very impressed by her skills. ‘Unicorn hair is symbolic for healing and eternal life. Mother told me.’

‘No wonder you can make dead flowers bloom then.’ Lucius smiled. ‘Has your mother told you anything about the kind of wood your wand is made of?’

Demeter swallowed hard. She knew almost nothing about the magical qualities of yew. Would Lucius be disappointed with her now?

‘It’s quite springy,’ she blurted out. Professor Flitwick had pointed that out to her once. So it had to be of some importance. ‘And there are a lot of yew trees growing in the Forbidden Forest.’ That, she had been told by Professor Sprout. And now she could think of nothing more.

But Lucius didn’t seem too disappointed. ‘Yew trees,’ he started slowly, ‘are symbolic of death and resurrection. And your wand, dear child, will help us both to greatness.’

~ ~ ~
Once more, Lucius left, taking Demeter’s wand with him. And Severus helplessly watched his daughter crawl up on the sofa with a pillow tightly hugged to her chest and her eyes flitting towards the window. The mere fact that Lucius had left seemed to terrify her, and when the Dementors appeared, the frightened girl was easy prey for them.

‘We have to do something!’ Severus exclaimed. The presence of the Dementors affected even him, and he was a mere ghost. He could only imagine the horror his daughter must feel.

‘Materialise,’ Morgaine suggested, her eyes anxiously darting between the Dementors and Demeter. ‘Show her that she’s not alone.’

Severus nodded.

‘But don’t tell her I am here.’

‘Why not?’ Severus demanded to know.

‘This spell even frightens me, and I am the one who cast it. I don’t think it’s the right time to tell Demeter that her mother has left her body.’

No, probably not. But still, Severus was uncomfortable. Why would Morgaine want to hide?

Demeter’s sobs ripped him out of his thoughts, however, and upon Morgaine’s pleading, Severus materialised, postponing his questions.

‘Don’t be frightened, Demeter,’ he said softly. ‘You are not alone anymore.’

Demeter’s head snapped up so quickly, Severus imagined hearing her neck snap.

‘Father!’ she exclaimed. ‘What … what are you doing here?’

‘I promised once that I would always be there when you needed me. I am here to fulfil that promise.’

More Dementors were closing in on the window, Severus could see them from the corner of his eye. There were at least ten of them now. Demeter caught sight of them too, flinched and hugged her pillow tighter towards herself, trying to hide behind it. ‘Make them … make them go away,’ she brought forth between sobs. ‘Please, Father.’

Her plea seemed to rip Severus’ heart into in two. How had his little girl deserved such horror? And how could he help her?

A Patronus, he communicated wordlessly to Morgaine. Help me conjure a Patronus.

How? Morgaine asked. My magic is weak. And I don’t have a wand.

‘I need you to think of something that makes you happy,’ Severus said aloud, addressing both Morgaine and Demeter at the same time. ‘Give me the best memory you have.’

Demeter sniffled. ‘I can’t,’ she sobbed. ‘I can’t think of anything that makes me happy.’

Help her, Morgaine, Severus begged. But he wouldn’t have had to ask. Morgaine had already moved behind their daughter, and as Severus looked into their direction now, he could see two pairs of heavenly blue eyes. And in that moment, he knew at least which happy memory that he was going to concentrate on.

‘Mother,’ Demeter whispered, and Severus did not know if the girl sensed Morgaine’s presence or if she was telling him that her happiest memory was connected to her mother. But it didn’t matter. Demeter was ready, and so was he. Looking deep into the blue eyes, he cast the spell.

At first, he could not make out the shape the Patronus had taken. It was moving too fast as it was charging towards the window and making the Dementors retreat in a matter of seconds. But when it came back, Severus froze. He had not expected a serpent. It seemed absurd that his magic would have been partly responsible for conjuring such a shape. After all, he had been killed by a serpent. Morgaine seemed equally taken aback, and considering the experience she had had with snakes over the last few days, Severus could not blame her. Demeter, however, seemed not surprised at all.

‘I was thinking of you and Mother,’ she said quietly, watching the serpent curl up at her feet. ‘You were Head of Slytherin House, and Mother holds this position now. And no one has ever protected me as well as you two.’

Severus nodded slowly, observing the now slowly dissolving serpent. It wasn’t hard to imagine a fierce cobra that would hold and defend its ground, hissing and spitting at any threat, rather than retreat. And just like snakes had served as guardians for treasures and sacred sites around the world for centuries, this serpent was now protecting his daughter.

‘The Aurors are on their way,’ Severus explained. ‘I hope they will be arriving soon. But until then, keep a cool head, Demeter. Lucius is not going to harm you. You are too precious to him. There is no reason to be afraid.’

Demeter’s eyes widened in fear once more. ‘You’re not leaving me, are you? I can’t conjure that Patronus by myself.’

‘You have no reason to be frightened, Demeter,’ Severus repeated. ‘I will be right here by your side.’

~ ~ ~
When the door opened, Demeter expected Lucius to come back and pretended to be upset again. Her father had told her that Lucius expected her to be frightened and that it was best to play along. And so Demeter once more hid behind her pillow and even managed to squeeze forth a tear.

But to her surprise, the mop of blond hair that appeared in the door was short and the eyes blue as opposed to silvery-grey.

‘Melvin!’

The two children embraced, both overjoyed to see each other. But before they could tell each other anything of how they had spent the night so far, Lucius interrupted them.

‘Touching.’ He sneered. ‘Unfortunately, we have no time for this now.’ He threw Demeter a cloak. ‘Let us go for a walk, shall we? Some fresh air will do you both good.’

Neither of the children dared oppose, and neither of them spoke as they followed Lucius down the corridor towards the big glass door that led out onto the terrace. But every now and then, Demeter cast a furtive glance over her shoulder, wondering if her father was coming along. He had promised that he wouldn’t leave her alone, after all. Oh, if she could only tell Melvin! He looked so terribly frightened.

They crossed the terrace and made their way down the stairs into the backyard. There, at the edge of the ice skating field, was a cauldron standing in the snow, and beneath it, there was a fire burning.

‘Your mother, Demeter, kindly assisted me with this potion,’ Lucius explained as he ushered the children closer to the cauldron. ‘It has been maturing for thirteen hours, and now you two are going to help me finish it.’

‘Where is my mother?’ Demeter demanded to know, but Lucius didn’t seem to want to give her an answer.

‘We don’t need your mother now, my child,’ he said instead. ‘In fact, you and I will soon not need anyone anymore.’

The potion had come to a boil, and Lucius moved closer. The flames were reflecting in his eyes, and Demeter instinctively took a step backwards. He looked mad.

‘Yes! Now, the final ingredients.’ Lucius smiled ever so sweetly. ‘Normally, this potion would require four people. But, luckily, you two combine all I need. You, Melvin, in your veins runs the blood of the father as well as the blood of a devoted servant. And in you, Demeter, runs the blood of the enemy and the blood of the Dark Lord himself. You two, my children, are perfect.’

The children looked questioningly at each other. Neither of them understood what Lucius was talking about. But neither of them dared ask. Not now. Something in Lucius face has changed. His smile seemed more like a twisted sneer, and his eyes had become as cold as ice. He looked dangerous, deranged.

‘Melvin, you first,’ Lucius said, reaching out his hand towards the boy.

‘First what?’

‘What do you think, silly child?’ Lucius hissed and grabbed Melvin by his left wrist. ‘Your blood needs to be added first.’

Melvin tried to pull his arm away from Lucius, but the blond wizard held his wrist in an iron grip. ‘Roll up your sleeve, boy,’ he commanded, pulling a silver dagger out of a pocket of his robes with his free hand.

‘No, Melvin, don’t!’ Demeter yelled, but Melvin was already doing as he had been told.

‘Good boy,’ Lucius praised Melvin in a sickeningly sweet tone. ‘You wouldn’t want me to send our friends to visit your mother again, would you, son?’

Melvin vehemently shook his head. ‘No, sir,’ he whimpered. ‘I’ll do anything. Please, don’t send them back.’

‘Send who back?’ Demeter demanded to know, but at the same time the words left her lips, she knew. She should have understood the moment she had seen the look in Melvin’s eyes. He, too, was frightened. He, too, had met the Dementors.

Melvin didn’t struggle as Lucius’ dagger penetrated the flesh of his left forearm. But he screamed with pain as the blade cut all the way from the crook of his arm to his wrist. Demeter clutched her hands over her mouth, muffling a scream. She wasn’t of the squeamish kind, but the look on Lucius’ face scared her more than even the Dementors had. He seemed to be enjoying himself, and Demeter doubted that he would even hesitate to cut Melvin’s throat. If he thought it necessary, Lucius would certainly do that, too, without batting an eyelash.

The silvery potion started to hiss angrily as Melvin’s blood trickled into it, and for a moment, Demeter thought the concoction would boil over or even explode. But after only some moments, hissing subsided, and once more, the surface of the potion was as smooth as glass. Lucius let go of Melvin, and the boy sank to his knees, clutching his arm and whimpering pitifully. But Lucius did not seem to care. He had only eyes for the potion, which he was now stirring with slow, regular motions.

Demeter took the opportunity to run to her best friend, pulling him some feet away from Lucius and the cauldron. The cut on Melvin’s arm was deep and bleeding profusely, and Demeter could not think of anything better to do than wrap her handkerchief around the cut.

‘Don’t worry,’ she whispered, cradling the weeping boy towards her chest. ‘This cut can be mended in no time. It will stop hurting soon.’ She cast a glance towards Lucius. He seemed busy still, and she dared to tell Melvin. ‘We’re not alone. Father says the Au...’

She didn’t get around to finishing the sentence. Lucius had come rushing towards them with swift strides, grabbed her by her wrist and was now dragging her back towards the cauldron, just as he had done with Melvin. The dagger was already in his hand.

‘It is your turn now, my sweet.’

Demeter struggled. She kicked and bit, but the only difference it made was Lucius gripping her arm even tighter. And he was laughing now, a cold, deranged laughter that made the hair on Demeter’s neck stand up.

‘There is no point in struggling, dear child. Your fate has been sealed. You will revive the Dark Lord.’

‘I will not!’ Demeter spat and aimed a good kick towards Lucius’ shin.

He, however, spun her around like a puppet, pressing her towards his chest and trapping her with his arm.

‘Don’t make this difficult for yourself, little princess. I would very much prefer to have you in one piece.’

‘Take your filthy hands off my daughter, Lucius Malfoy!’

Lucius’ head snapped upwards, and so did Demeter’s. They both gasped. In front of them stood a tall and imposing figure with a black cloak that seemed to be billowing behind him in the wind, creating the image of an enormous black bird swooping down on his prey. And his eyes! They seemed to reflect the fires of hell.

A shriek escaped Demeter’s lips. She was used to seeing the ghost of her father, and she had expected for him to show himself now that she was in danger, but what she was looking at right now was a sight beyond anything. She seemed to be looking at the devil himself.

‘Severus!’ Lucius exclaimed. ‘This can’t be. You’re dead!’

‘Let go of my child!’ Severus demanded once more, his voice like rolling thunder. And as Lucius didn’t react, he raised his hand, and out of thin air appeared a gigantic serpent. It reared its head at once and bared its fangs.

‘Now!’ Severus bellowed.

The serpent struck, and Lucius, cowardly as he was, pushed Demeter away from him, right into the beast’s open jaws. But of course, the animal did not harm Demeter. It was a mere image, a shield to protect the one it was created for. And it had indeed protected Demeter from Lucius. It could not, however, keep her from falling. The only thing Demeter could hold on to in order to break her fall was the cauldron.

‘NO!’ Lucius screamed and cast himself forward, all of a sudden ignoring the serpent he had fled only seconds ago. ‘Not the potion.’

Potions classroom rule number one: Never, under any circumstances, try to catch a falling cauldron with your bare hands.

Demeter heard her Potions mistress’ words clearly in her head as she rolled out of harm’s way.

Lucius, however, had either never heard about that rule or had forgotten about it. He caught the falling cauldron in his outstretched arms, and the seething potion scalded his hands. But he did not scream. In fact, he did not seem to care at all. Instead, he straightened up and busied himself with putting the cauldron onto its tripod again.

‘I can still carry out my plan!’ he whispered triumphantly. Obviously, he had managed to catch the cauldron just in time, and with that saved some of the potion. ‘The Dark Lord shall rise again tonight!’

He swirled around, his mad eyes darting around in the semi-darkness to find Demeter. That was when his robes caught fire. They were soaked with potion, and within seconds they were ablaze.

At first, Lucius did not seem to understand what was happening. He stood tall, his hands still clutching the handle of the cauldron. He only let go when the agony forced him onto his knees.

Some feet away, Melvin and Demeter lay in each other’s arms, tightly huddled together and burying their faces at each other’s shoulders. They never saw in what gruesome way Lucius Malfoy had to die. And thanks to Severus’ Silencing spell, they did not have to listen to his death screams either.

By the time the Aurors finally arrived, all they could find in the backyard of the manor was smouldering ashes and two crying and exhausted children, who were unable to recount what had happened that night. They never saw the two ghosts that had been watching over them.

---

A/N: The chariot-car of the Greek Goddess Demeter was drawn by a pair of winged Drakones (serpent-like beasts). The goddess also employed these monsters as guards and attendants. It seemed fitting for a Patronus conjured by Severus, Morgaine and Demeter to take shape of a serpent.

Thank you, star_girl, for pointing me into the right direction!