Darkness Shadows Light 2

Chapter Eight - An Infallible Method Of Conciliating A Tiger Is To
Allow Oneself To Be Devoured

Harry hurried towards his husband\'s classroom. Professor Dumbledore
had just informed him that the substitute teacher had arrived.
Though for some reason, he had still refused to name him. He was
relieved that he or she had finally arrived. Severus would never
admit it, but he was finding the pregnancy hard to cope with. At
almost six months, he was increasingly tired and even more snappy
than usual. This added to his girth, which caused hilarity among the
pupils, was making life very trying for everyone, especially Harry.
Also, Matthew wouldn\'t speak to Snape whatsoever. When Harry tried,
all Matthew would ask was when he was going to wake up and realise
that Snape didn\'t deserve him. It broke Harry\'s heart to hear his
son talk in such a tone and call his own father \"Snape\" in a sneering
tone - no doubt copying his schoolmates. After all, he and Ron had
done exactly the same.

Harry walked into the Potion\'s classroom and stopped abruptly.

\'Malfoy,\' he hissed, his good mood swiftly leaving him. \'What the
hell are you doing here?\'

The blond turned away from where he was perusing the contents of one
of the storage cupboards and faced Harry.

\'That would be *Professor Malfoy* to you,\' Draco drawled. \'I thought
the reason I was here was obvious, even with your limited
brainpower. I\'m here to take over from Severus because of the
delicate condition you\'ve put him in. Though,\' he said
disdainfully, \'I really don\'t see why you couldn\'t have taken up the
extra workload. After all, Severus managed for *years* on his own.\'

Harry\'s green eyes sparked with fury. Malfoy had not changed as far
as he could see. He had only been here two minutes and he had
already insulted him! Yet, he was supposed to *work* with him!

\'The curriculum has changed a great deal since you were last here,\'
Harry replied coldly. \'It would just be about possible for one
professor to manage if they haven\'t got a life. I, however, do...and
another career.\'

\'Ah, yes,\' Draco said with a slight sneer. \'Those pathetic excuses
for novels that you scribbIt rIt really does show that some people
will buy anything. I\'m here so you can inflict more of that drivel
on the unsuspecting public?\'

\'If you don\'t want to be here, then why the hell are you?\' Harry
demanded.

Draco\'s countenance underwent a dramatic change. Harry could almost
believe he looked...humble.

\'Because I owe Dumbledore and Severus...and I guess even you,
something for stopping me from making the worst mistake of my life,\'
he said quietly. \'If you and Severus hadn\'t defeated Voldemort when
you did, then I would most likely have followed the same path as my
father. I had managed to put off being given the Dark Mark as long
as possible. However, both Voldemort and my father were becoming
impatient by the time he was finally defeated.\'

Harry just stared at the other wizard. This was the closest to civil
that Draco had been since he had turned down his hand of friendship
when they were eleven.

\'I don\'t understand,\' Harry blurted out. \'I thought you *wanted* to
be a Death Eater.\'

Draco gave him a disparaging look. \'I have no wish to submit to
anyone, least of all a sadistic bastard like our late, and not at all
lamented, Dark Lord.\'

\'Still, it doesn\'t sound like enough for you to give up your job -
which I hear you\'re quite successful at - for a part-time position as
a Potion\'s Professor alongside me!\' Harry commented, trying to hide
his shock at Draco\'s revelation.

\'Of course not!\' Draco replied, rolling his eyes. \'How exactly did
you think I escaped being sent to Azkaban? I may not have taken the
mark, but I was certainly no innocent. Your husband convinced
Dumbledore that I wasn\'t completely a lost cause. Then he,
Dumbledore that is, vouched for me with the Ministry and helped me
find a career far away from here.\'

\'How is it I didn\'t hear anything about this?\' Harry asked in
disbelief.

\'I believe you were too busy having a baby or someg,\'g,\' Draco
drawled, his smirk returning. \'Also, you were being hailed as the
hero of the wizarding world again.\'

\'But Severus never said anything,\' Harry protested.

\'Did you even ask?\' Draco asked, raising an eyebrow. At Harry\'s
blank look, he continued. \'Of course you didn\'t! You didn\'t give a
damn what happened to me! Not that I\'m surprised,\' he added with
what almost could be construed as a genuine smile. \'You were far too
distraught over that traitorous Weasel. Quite amusing really,\' he
mused. \'You chose friendship with Weasley over mine and he was the
one who handed you over to Voldemort.\'

\'Like you wouldn\'t have if you\'d had the chance!\' Harry spat out
defensively.

\'Not when it involved Severus dying,\' Draco denied, his complacent
drawl suddenly replaced by a heated tone. \'I\'ve always had the
utmost respect for him, despite his poor choice in lovers. Not like
that wannabe Death Eater you called your friend.\'

\'Wait a minute,\' Harry said, struck by Draco\'s last sentence. \'What
do you mean by \"wannabe Death Eater\"? Do you mean that Ron never
took the Dark Mark?\'

\'No, but don\'t get your hopes up. He wanted it. Voldemort promised
that as soon as he delivered you, he would become one of them. You
were to be given to Ron as his slave once Voldemort got rid of the
baby.\' Draco shook his head in disbelief. \'I knew Weasel was
stupid, but not stupid enough to believe *that*.\'

\'So that\'s how he escaped,\' Harry realised, finally solving a mystery
that had puzzled him for years. \'When Voldemort was killed, all
those with Dark Marks were knocked out. I guess that gave Ron a
chance to get away.\' In a way, he was glad that he had been somewhat
instrumental in saving Ron. It also allayed his worst fears that Ron
had been taken away by the mvengvengeful Death Eaters who had also
escaped. A thought suddenly struck him. If Draco still had all
these contacts, perhaps he had heard where Ron had disappeared. He
asked the question hopefully, only to be greeted by a sardonic laugh.

\'Do you honestly believe I would have kept that knowledge from
Severus if I had it?\' he asked mockingly. \'You may have forgiven the
Weasel, but I\'m afraid your husband hasn\'t. Nothing would have given
me greater pleasure than to turn him over to Severus and watch him
squirm!\'

\'God, you haven\'t changed at all!\' Harry said in disgust. \'You may
say you\'re on our side now, but you\'re still the haughty, evil person
I met at age eleven.

Draco shrugged nonchalantly seemingly unaffected by Harry\'s
words. \'I am what I am. Yet, believe me, it\'s better to have me as
a friend than an enemy.\' He held out his hand. \'Seeing as we are
going to have to work together, it would help if we at least *tried*
to get along.\'

Harry looked at the blond warily, before shaking the extended
hand. \'Just put one foot out of line...\' he said in warning.

\'Don\'t worry, Potter. Dumbledore\'s already given me the speech,\'
Draco replied, looking bored.

\'Believe me, Albus will be the least of your worries!\' Harry
replied. He managed a smile to take the sting out of his words.

\'So, how is Severus?\' asked Draco in a more friendly tone, now that
they had agreed to lay aside their differences. \'I can imagine he
wasn\'t exactly thrilled to find he was expecting a baby at the grand
old age of fifty.\'

\'We were both rather startled,\' Harry admitted, unable to hide a
smile as he remembered the look on his husband\'s face. \'But we\'re
both excited to be having another child.\'

\'Hoping to make a better job of it second time around?\' Harry gave
Draco a startled look.

\'What do you mean?\'

\'Come off it, Potter. It\'s common knowledge that Matthew Potter-
Snape has gone off the rails. From what I\'ve heard, even the
Ministry are getting worried. You know how much it takes to get
*them* riled!\'

Harry\'s face took on a worried expression. \'We don\'t know what to do
with him,\' he confessed, hardly believing he was admitting this to
one of his most hated enemies. \'Matthew was a good kid not so long
ago. I think he had trouble adjusting after he got sorted into
Slytherin. When he found out something that we had kept from him,
he felt betrayed. Then, he found out about the baby and he won\'t
talk to me, Severus or Remus.

\'Why not Lupin?\' Draco questioned.

\'That\'s not really anything to do with you,\' Harry replied with a
frown. They may have put their enmity aside, but there was no way he
was revealing what had happened between his husband and Remus to
Draco. Though, from the narrowing of the blue eyes, Harry had a
sudden feeling that Draco had guessed something of what he was not
saying. The uncomfortable silence was broken by the entry of one of
the people they had been speaking about.

\'Ah, I see you have found each other,\' Snape said in an even tone as
he came up to stand beside Harry. Harry could not prevent himself
from putting an arm around his lover\'s vastly expanded waist. He had
found that as his husband grew larger, he became more protective of
him. Not something that Snape particularly approved of. Therefore,
Harry was pleasantly surprised when a reciprocal arm came around his
shoulders. \'Hello Draco,\' Snape greeted cordially. \'I hope Harry
has told you how appreciative we are for you stepping in at such
short notice.\'

\'Not in so many words,\' Draco said dryly. \'I\'m sure he would have
gotten around to it eventually.\' The younger wizard carefully hid
his surprise at seeing his formerly thin Potions master with his
large, obviously pregnant stomach. He had, of course, been expecting
it, but it was still a sight to behold. \'Actually, we were
discussing your errant son.\'

\'Oh yes?\' was all Snape commented.

\'Actually, I was about to suggest to Harry that I try speaking with
him. After all, I was never a model pupil and he might listen to
me.\' Draco said wryly.

\'It could be worth a try,\' Snape admitted. \'Though I would suggest
you get to know him first. I somehow doubt he will listen to a
complete stranger, no matter how...notorious that stranger may be.\'

Draco nodded his agreement.

\'Harry,\' said Snape, turning to look at his husband. \'If you would
excuse us, I would like to go through my lesson plans with Draco.\'

\'Can\'t I help?\' asked Harry, feeling slightly hurt that Snape was
trying to get rid of him.

\'I think it would be easier if we go through them alone first.
Anyway, don\'t you have some marking to do?\'

\'I *always* have marking to do!\' Harry said crankily. Nevertheless,
ignoring Draco\'s smirk, he gave Snape a quick peck on the cheek and
left the room.

Snape and Draco listened quietly until they were sure Harry was out
of hearing range.

\'Now tell me the reason you\'re really here,\' Snape ordered, his face
serious. \'Harry may have swallowed that story of ever-lasting
gratitude, but no Slytherin of any merit would have believed a word
of it.\'

\'Were you listening at the door?\' Draco asked with mild interest.

\'No, that\'s what Albus told me and I assumed you would be using the
same story.\' Snape lied smoothly. Of course he had been listening at
the door! Once Dumbledore had informed him exactly *who* his
replacement would be and told him that he had already sent Harry to
see Draco, Snape had hurried to hear what their first conversation
after more than twelve years was like.

Draco gave his former Potions master an appraising glance. \'I told
Albus I wouldn\'t be able to fool you,\' he finally said, admiration
apparent in his voice. \'No, I admit I\'m not here just to fill in for
you for a couple of months. When I was released by the Ministry,
thanks to Albus\' vouching for me, there were a
few...conditions...that he laid upon me.\'

\'And they were?\' Snape asked, intrigued.

\'One of them was to leave the country to show I was true in my wish
to make a new start. The second, was to keep my ear to the ground
and report any rumours to Albus about possible dark wizards or groups
that might be a threat in the future.\'

Snape looked faintly disbelieving. \'I find it hard to believe that
the headmaster would ask such a thing of you - especially when you
are living on the other side of the world. After all, how much use
could you be from there?\'

\'You\'d be surprised,\' Draco replied, with a trace of his old
arrogance. \'I\'m a Malfoy and therefore if there\'s some dark plot,
I\'m bound to want to be a part of it.\' The sarcasm was thick in the
air. \'You may also be surprised to know that, thanks to me, at least
four revenge attacks on you and Potter have failed in the planning
stages. If you don\'t believe me, just ask the headmaster.\'

Snape looked at his former pupil with a new respect. \'I believe
you,\' he replied. \'Personally, I have always been surprised that
there were no reprisals against Harry and myself. After all, far too
many Death Eaters escaped. Of course, it never occurred to Harry.\'

\'Still protecting him, Severus?\' Draco asked with a mocking smile.

\'As ever,\' Snape replied dryly. \'But that doesn\'t answer my
question. What are you doing here?\'

\'Recently, there\'s been rumours that a group plans to try and
persuade the most powerful wizard on this earth to their side,\' Draco
said, his face grave.

\'And by that you mean...?\' Snape asked, though with a sinking heart,
as he already knew the answer.

\'Your son.\'

********

Harry walked away fuming. He knew that they had been trying to get
rid of him. He didn\'t even need the bond to tell him that! Through
the bond, however, he had sensed that his husband suspected Draco\'s
motives and wanted to question him without Harry being there. Harry
hated the fact that his lover still felt like he had to protect him.
He was thirty for crying out loud! If anyone needed protection, it
was not him, it was his husband. He knew how vulnerable he had felt
knowing that any injury that caused a miscarriage or possible death
to both of them. Suddenly a thought struck him, the amulet that had
saved their lives before. They had never given it to Matthew because
they had considered it too dangerous. Plus, with all Matthew\'s
innate abilities, he would surely never need it. So, it had been put
to the back of a cupboard when they had moved into their current
quarters.

Harry stopped abruptly when he nearly crashed into a pupil, so deep
in though had he been. He started slightly when he realised that it
was Matthew.

\'What are you doing sneaking around?\' he asked rather crossly. He
really didn\'t want to deal with Matthew at this moment. \'Shouldn\'t
you be at lunch?\' He and Severus very rarely attended lunch in the
Great Hall these days. They preferred to eat quietly in their own
rooms if they weren\'t too busy. Harry always tried to get his
husband to take a nap. It was slightly worrying to Harry that
recently Snape had not even attempted to deny his weariness.

\'I wasn\'t hungry,\' Matthew replied sulkily. He quickly hid the piece
of parchment he was carrying in his robes.

\'You have to eat,\' Harry replied sharply. \'Come with me.\'

Matthew reluctantly followed his father, realising that he was in no
mood to be argued with.

Harry headed quickly to his rooms, ushering Matthew in. He waved his
wand at the table and a plate of sandwiches appeared on the table in
the middle of the room. \'Eat,\' he commanded.

Matthew sat down, hungry despite his protestations. When the worst
of his hunger was sated, he watched wbarebarely concealed interest as
Harry proceeded to ransack what he personally called the \"junk
cupboard\". First, out came a lot of his old toys that nostalgically
brought back better times to Matthew. This was followed by various
old bits of furnishings that had lost their appeal but not their
value. Some of which the young wizard recognised and some which he
didn\'t. Eventually, Matthew\'s curiosity overcame his reticence, and
he moved over to kneel beside his father.

\'What are these?\' he asked, flicking vaguely through a pile of
parchments.

Harry looked up with surprise. He had been so immersed that he had
not heard his son approach. What also surprised him, was that for
the first time in weeks, the tone had contained no bitterness or
anger. \'That\'s some of my old essays,\' he replied.

Matthew looked at them critically. \'You weren\'t a very good student
were you?\'

Harry was amused. \'What gave it away?\' he asked. \'The \"F\'s\" on the
front, that they\'re covered in red writing or the fact I used my
largest handwriting to fill the damn three foot of parchment
required?\'

Matthew gave a faint smile. Then, he frowned as he looked at the
parchments more closely. \'These are Potion\'s essays!\'

\'Yes,\' Harry replied levelly. \'I\'m afraid my Potion skills were
rather late in developing.\' He had rarely talked about his
schooldays with his son. Most of his memories involved Ron. Even if
he could cope with talking about him, his husband could not. They
also refrained from mentioning anything about the time when Harry was
a pupil and Snape was his teacher. Although Matthew was aware they
had gotten together whilst Harry was still at school, they both
thought it was not the best subject to dwell on.

\'Some of these comments are really nasty!\' Matthew exclaimed, as he
started to read through the red writing. \'Snape isn\'t even this
horrible about Bane\'s pathetic efforts.\' Everything Ron had told him
appeared true.

Harry winced as he heard the scathing way he talked about
Snape. \'Your Papa and I weren\'t very fond of each other back then,\'
he managed to say. \'We really didn\'t start getting along until my
seventh year.\'

\'But you *married* him during your seventh year!\'

\'It all happened very quickly,\' Harry said uncomfortably. \'Plus, you
were on the way.\'

\'But how can hate turn to love that quickly?\' Matthew asked. It was
one of the questions that had haunted him since Ron had revealed so
much of his parent\'s past that had previously been unknown to him.
If Ron were to be believed, Snape had been using Harry. Marrying the
young and impressionable wizard to prevent him from ever tng ong on
himself.

\'I never hated your Papa,\' Harry said quietly. \'And he never truly
hated me. He hated my father and because I looked just like him, he
assumed I *was* just like him.\'

\'What do you mean?\' Matthew queried, looking puzzled. \'What did my
grandfather ever do to him?\'

\on\'on\'t speak ill of the dead,\' Harry replied firmly. \'Suffice it
to say that he wasn\'t very nice to him when they were at school
together.\'

\'I knew he and Uncle Sirius didn\'t get on. I never realised that my
grandfather was involved,\' Matthew said.

Harry kept quiet. They had kept the story of how Sirius had lured
Snape to what was nearly his death by Remus, from the younger
generation. Harry had felt it was not suitable to tell that Matthew
that his father had been nearly eaten by his godfather! \'It was all
a long time ago,\' Harry eventually said with finality. He turned
back to the cupboard. \'Aha!\' he said with triumph as he spotted a
familiar box at the bottom of a large pile. He pulled it out,
ignoring the fact that he had knocked over all the other boxes and
their contents had scattered across the floor. He took the lid off
and viewed the amulet that had been hidden for so long. He would
give it to his husband tonight, he determined.

\'What\'s that?\'

Harry closed the box quickly. \'Just an old heirloom that needed
looking out,\' he said vaguely.

Matthew\'s eyes narrowed for a moment, but then he spotted something
rather interesting in the spilled paraphernalia and the box was
forgotten. \'Shall I clear this up for you?\' he asked casually,
indicating the mess on the floor.

\'If you don\'t mind,\' replied Harry in surprise. A spell would have
done it in seconds, but he wasn\'t going to stop the first positive
thing his son had done in god knows how long. \'I\'ll just put this
some place safe.\' He headed off towards the bedroom.

As soon as his father had left the room, Matthew quickly snatched up
the item that interested him, plus a few of the parchments that had
Snape\'s scathing comments on them. Then, with a flick of his wrist,
he said a spell that soon had everything back in the cupboard.

\'I\'ve got to go now,\' he called out. \'I\'ll see you later.\' Before
Harry could reply, Matthew was gone. First, he would head to the
owlery, which had been his original intention in missing lunch, to
send a letter to Ron. He would then go to the dormitory to hide his
prize until such time that he had a *proper* chance to examine it.

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

\'So what do you hope to achieve by being here?\' Snape asked the blond
wizard.

\'My hope is that whoever is behind this latest plot will see me in
situate and seek to recruit me to their cause. With luck, we can
stop them before anyone manages to actually contact Matthew.\'

\'So you don\'t know who is involved yet?\' Snape asked, feeling
disappointed.

\'I have a couple of names,\' Draco admitted cagily. \'The problem is,
they\'re not who you\'d expect. So, I\'d like to find out a bit more
before I tell anyone.\'

Snape nodded his understanding, but internally he was frustrated.
Personally, he would like to go to the suspects and hex them until
they would never even *think* about messing with his family again!
Yet, he can\'t do that, not even if it wasn\'t an idea guaranteed to
end badly. In his current condition, he often found barely enough
energy to get out of bed, let alone hex someone into oblivion.

\'Do your best,\' he said shortly. Though he did not say it, they both
knew he had put his trust in Draco.

TBC.