Guilty as Sin

CHAPTER 48

“It looks bigger than I remember.” Draco swallowed awkwardly as he stared up at the ivy covered stone tower that rose up in front of him. None of the trio had slept well the night before and had just been waiting for the first licks of morning sun to stream through the dirty window so that they could be out of the retched place that they’d spent the night. Harry had been almost grateful to crawl out of bed the three of them not even stopping for breakfast before abandoning the car and heading up the long path towards the ruins at the top of the hill above the village. Harry was skeptical that the house was even inhabitable as they walked slowly through the snowdrifts blocking the road. Draco had found the walk tiring and so Harry and he had lagged behind Snape who seemed almost stubbornly determined to reach the Snape House as quickly as possible. Snape had said very little all morning his mood dark and brooding. Harry had a feeling the elder wizard wasn’t in the slightest bit happy about returning to his family’s home.

Despite the sunshine shining through the thick grey cloud the wind was still bitterly cold and had whipped around them like a whirlwind as they’d reached the large iron gates of the entrance to the house grounds. Harry had felt the wards crackle as they’d approached. The boy had cautiously hung back a little farther than Snape and Draco who approached the gate easily. There was something dark and foreboding about the magic surrounding the manor that made every hair on Harry’s body stand on end. Snape removed his wand from the pocket within the folds of his robe and proceeded to perform a series of complicated Latin spells and gestures. Then from seemingly nowhere the gates fizzled and popped before fading away revealing an arched entranceway that Snape stepped easily through. Draco followed Snape inside but Harry hesitated his eyes flicking between the fizzling illusion of the ruins and the perfectly manicured archway. In the end Harry had no choice but to follow Snape but closed his eyes and braced himself for a fall as he stepped through the archway.

Harry was stunned as he stepped through the archway. Just like at the Malfoy’s Mansion the weather inside the wards was just like it should have been mid summer. The sunshine lit up the neatly tended proper English garden, with it’s gravel paths, trimmed hedges and beautifully scented roses. The garden however was nothing compared to the house itself, which despite being smaller than Malfoy’s place was still ample enough for a family of the Snape’s wealth. What caught Harry’s attention the most though was the single tower that rose up from the south end of the house, a good two or three stories taller than the main house roof. Snape was already at the front door of the house with Draco by the time Harry drew his attention from his surroundings and the boy had to run to catch up with them.

It was standing here now in the shadow of the house that it’s true magnificence loomed over the three of them.

“Unfortunately it is exactly the same as I remember it.” Both Harry and Draco looked at Snape quietly, having heard the first sentence the man had uttered all morning. “Well let us see inside.” Harry watched as Snape reached into his robes and pulled out a large rusty looking brass key. The key clattered in the lock as Snape struggled with it for a moment but then the key turned and there was a sound of successive clicks as a multitude of magical locks came undone on the other side of the door. With his full weight pressed against the stiff door Snape slowly pushed it open and stepped inside. Draco stepped inside behind the elder wizard leaving Harry to cautiously follow up the rear. Ancient magic pooled in invisible clouds around the house and Harry shivered every time he stepped into one. A chill ran down his spine as he stepped through the cloud of magic in the entrance hall and the boy pushed his way around Draco to step closer to Snape’s back in an effort to get out of the magic pool.

There was an ungodly silence that settled on the entrance hall as all three wizards stared around at the dusty room. Harry might well have been in aw of the sight if he hadn’t been paranoid about the pools of magic that crackled when he stepped through them. The hall was grand, a large stone staircase dominated the entrance but it was the stain glass of the dome above them that created a kaleidoscope of colored light on the polished white marble floor beneath their feet. Draco wandered quietly over to a hall stand where some funny looking walking sticks were resting, while Harry clung to Snape’s cloak as the man began looking around at the paintings hanging from the wall. Harry followed Snape’s gaze noting that each painting seemed frozen in time. Snape’s gaze finally fell on a large painting by the closed door leading off the hall. The painting was of an empty Victorian chair, in the background was a dresser of some sort and upon that on the left hand side was what appeared to be a pensive. Harry thought the picture was strangely lacking its focal point and the boy stepped around Snape to step closer to the painting in order to read the gold engraved note beneath it.

“In loving memory of Eliza Constantina Snape…” Harry read aloud but froze as a voice rang out around the hallway.

“Well, well, well. My prodigal son returns to me at last.” Harry spun around and stared fearfully at Snape whose gaze was flicking around the many paintings on the wall again. Draco who was over at the hallstand quickly scurried back over to Snape. The woman’s voice seemed to come from somewhere upstairs and Harry instinctively stepped closer to Snape as the voice got nearer. “I had wondered when you’d come home my love, your tail between your legs and your arm ablaze with his curse just like your father.” Harry could do nothing but stare at Severus whose gaze had narrowed dangerously at the woman’s words. Harry caught some movement over his shoulder and watched stunned as a woman’s figure glided through the portraits lining the wall of the staircase reanimating the subjects as she went. Snape’s gaze never left the woman as she finally came to a stop in the painting that Harry had read the note of.

“Mother, such a pleasure to be in your company again.” Snape muttered bitterly from between clenched teeth as the woman settled in the chair of her own portrait. Harry stared at the woman. She was beautiful, her long black hair falling over her exposed shoulders like a dark waterfall, while her silk white dress fell around her figure in a gentle caress. Her features were nothing like Snape’s the elder wizard obviously getting his distinctive nose from his fathers side, but the woman’s eyes were deep and expressive just like Severus’.

“And you bring guests too, prey tell me they are not the offspring of you and that contemptible muggle born Lily Evan’s you were mooning over when you last left me.” Harry looked abruptly from Snape’s mothers’ portrait up at Severus who pursed his lips together irritably at he stared at his mother.

“Harry is indeed the offspring of Lily Evan’s but not by my hand mother. Draco here is Lucius Malfoy’s son.” Snape gestured to both boys and Harry and Draco froze as the woman’s critical gaze washed over them.

“A Malfoy you say? I hope he has better manners than his father, I disliked your choice as Lucius as your school friend he was trouble and always thought himself above us.” Harry watched as Snape sighed and rolled his eyes contemptibly having tired very quickly of his mother’s conversation.

“Mother where is my fath….” Snape changed the subject but got no further in finishing his question when his mother scoffed loudly and stood up from her chair. Harry stepped closer into Snape as the ghostly figure of the woman stepped out of the painting to hover in front of them.

“Locked in his blasted potions lab where he can rot with mildew and dust for all I care.” The apparition of Severus mother turned on her heel and began floating up the staircase back from where she’d come. “The house elves are in the workers cottage at the bottom of the garden if you intend staying here. Perhaps now you have come home they will all stop trying to get in and leave us in peace…” With the flippant remark hanging in silence the figure disappeared through a wall leaving Harry, Draco and Severus staring up at empty staircase. Harry and Draco didn’t dare say anything as each of them stare up at Snape. The elder wizard’s expression was unreadable though and so the pair had to wait until finally Snape sighed and looked away from the staircase in disgust.

“Yes just as I remember it.” Severus spat in sarcasm as he began taking off his coat, prompting Draco and Harry to do the same. “The family bedrooms are on the second floor in the west wing, you may chose one each as your own. I suggest unpacking and getting changed before you go exploring the house. Stay away from the dungeons and the tower, and don’t go beyond the wards outside. Don’t touch anything your not sure of and please try and stay out of my mother’s way. I will be in the dinning hall for lunch I expect you both to be there by 1.00. I have to go and find out how many house elves are still with us.” With a sigh Snape turned and with his robes swirling around him strode off into the familiar surroundings of his family’s home. Draco and Harry waited until they couldn’t here Snape’s footsteps anymore before both boys looked at one another in mischief.

“I bags the biggest bed!” Harry laughed as he took off up the stairs, relaxing somewhat in the new environment. After all if Snape was comfortable nothing bad was going to get them in the house, then Harry had nothing to worry about.

“Oi, no fair I’m impaired!” Draco called back in retaliation as he tried to run up the stairs like Harry but stopped half way in pain and fatigue. The blonde still wasn’t well and so Harry waited patiently for Draco at the top of the stairs before the two of them took off down the rabbit warren of corridors in search of their own bedrooms.

TBC>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>