Hidden Friends

Some warnings for the squeamish. Could and probably will begin to get gruesome and violent in coming chapters, also suggestions of violence. Though not horribly detailed, it can still be shocking so be warned. (sounds eerie) Main scenes would be torture, battle, or some nasty duelling, etc. Just to let you know.

Whew, ok. Well, this was a long awaited chapter. And I’ve gone over it so many times, I nearly know it inside out. I enjoyed writing it though, as it is a turning point in the story. More secrets and such revealed in the next few chapters. Again feel free to make any suggestions, or send me an idea or two. It would be interesting to see what other people would come up with for how the story will turn out. Though I may not use them, it’s still interesting. Hehe

Well, on with the story. Enjoy!

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Gabriel felt tired. A soft snort escaped. She felt beyond tired, downright exhausted. And sitting here waiting on Albus to finish the Order meeting was not helping. She wanted to escape to her room, to her own little bit of privacy to sort through her thoughts. So much had happened in a short amount of time, and it required sitting and going through each point individually.

Her mind was reeling, her thoughts chaos, and all she could focus on was heat of both the man sitting next to her, and the woman across the table. She didn’t have to look to know the hatred Michelle Mortuse held in her eyes. It was just one more thing to add to the chaos.

As for the heat of the man next to her. That was mildly comforting. He had stayed next to her, as close as he dared to any person, especially after hearing her answer. That brought another thought to mind. A thought that made her feel faint, dizzy from the sudden knowledge that she was to marry Severus Snape. Gabriel forced herself to push the thought aside. Now was not the time, nor did she have the emotional energy to sort through it. Not yet, at any rate. Later. Much, much later, if she could help it. There was too much for that to be a simple task.

After the commotion of Michael’s -- what was an appropriate word? Approach. Method. They both meant the same, really. -- ‘asking’ her to marry her, and Severus’ intervention, Albus had managed to calm everyone and return to the meeting at hand. For Severus, he had merely nodded once in silent acceptance of her answer, and released her to her chair.

For a split second before he did, Gabriel had the fleeting thought of him being reluctant to let go of her. She scoffed inwardly, how ridiculous. ‘Now I’m deluding myself to thinking he wants to have anything to do with me.’

She closed her eyes at feeling a pain in her chest. Her hand shook slightly as it came up to absently rub the spot where her heart lay, wondering if by such a simple gesture the pain would go away. She sighed. This pain was all too familiar when her thoughts focused on the dark and quiet man beside her. She sighed again, a more wistful sound as she wished that she was back to her normal self before anything bad had begun to happen. Before her parents death, before troubles of school and her attempts at surviving through it onto the adult world, and then the adult world itself with all its harshness and cruel reality. Before she felt like she had lost a part of herself, a part she wasn’t sure she could get back. She wanted to be carefree.

Happy again.

So lost in her thoughts, she didn’t notice the looks that passed between Order members. They could see she was getting worse, retreating into herself more and more with each passing day. When she had first joined the Order, or even when she had been in school, she had been vibrant, wonderfully kind, understanding and most of all happy. That one simple word was not to be seen in Gabriel anymore. It was as if someone had come along and had stolen the very light out of her eyes, the spark that was once alive and could brighten anyone’s day no matter how bad it seemed to be.

With Gabriel around, nothing ever seemed that bad. She would come into a room, and smile that gentle smile you couldn’t help but return, the warmth in her eyes as if everything was alright. If you couldn’t return it, she would sit and enjoy your company in comfortable silence, never asking for anything, not even conversation. She was attuned to your mood and knew when to speak and when to hold her silence. She was a good listener, and good conversationalist, her animated talking and subject of choice catching your attention even if it was only how the world worked, or why the birds flew.

It just happened one day. She had escaped the torture of the Dark Lord some weeks after her own daring rescue of Severus. She had managed to escape and return to Hogwarts, collapsing at the Main Entrance. The first word she had managed to ask before she passed out was a name; “Severus…” Albus had gently replied that he was alright, safe and alive, and she had been content enough to close her eyes in peace, a relieved smile on her lips.

It had been during her time in the hospital wing for her recovery that the light had started to fade. Every time she had asked Albus if Severus had come to see her, even if it was only to see for herself that he was alright, and he flatly refused, the light faded a little more. Soon, one day before she was due to leave after being declared in good health, Albus had walked in to ask how she was. She looked up, and he had to carefully control his expression as he saw her eyes. Dull, lifeless…defeated.

He had tried to talk to her, to see how her mind was, get her to open up about what had transpired when she was captured. Her only reply was, “I’ll be alright, Albus. Do not worry yourself.” She had smiled then, but it didn’t reach her eyes.

She began to withdraw from them, her bright and cheerful nature had subdued into a quiet woman with little to say. She continued as if nothing had changed, doing her duties as required for the Order, sitting with the others for dinner just so she would appear sociable and not have anyone encourage her to participate.

It was not long after that, that Michael Fletchly had cheated on her. She had shown the first emotional burst since she had returned and it had been aimed at a man who had no care for her emotional state at the time. He, and his mistress Michelle had reacted with their own feelings brought on by being caught and having no valid excuse at the time, tearing into Gabriel’s fragile mentality and forcing her to retreat once more into herself to protect what little control she had left.

They were worried now that this latest development of attacks on her family, and this ridiculous marriage law would break her. When she had returned to the house on the verge of crying, and Severus had taken her to her room, they wondered if that was it. If she was finally gone. But once again she proved her strength by coming down for breakfast and sitting at the table for all to see.

She had looked worse than when she went up, her body slumped in defeat, her eyes dull, her expression blank as she automatically went through the movements of filling her plate. In the end, it had been left untouched as she just sat there. Then of course the letters came, and it was another blow. They often wondered how she was still standing.

Now they exchanged furtive glances between each other and Gabriel herself as she sat head in hand, eyes close and hand rubbing her heart.

“Well, everyone,” Albus suddenly said, jolting everyone from their sudden silent deliberation, “Soon we are to return to Hogwarts, the starting of the new term being near. Meetings will be held every so often, I think, should there be any news on any more attacks, or information about this new threat. Now, I believe we can adjourn this meeting, and have a pleasant night with sweet dreams.”

With that final word, the rustle of cloaks being gathered, the scrape of chairs and shuffle of feet resounded around the room as the people left the old kitchen. Gabriel remained in her seat, her body feeling like lead in her chair, the heavy weight mixing with the flutter of anticipation that began in her stomach. It was making her feel slightly nauseous, come to think of it, her hand slipping from her chest to tummy.

“Wanting a child already?” someone sneered. Gabriel’s eyes flicked open, rising to meet those envious green of Michelle’s across from her. Confusion crossed her brow.

“What?”

“You wish for a child already? Can’t get into bed fast enough to fuck your new husband to be? Look at you,” she said, a curl of disgust to her lip. “You’re pathetic. You’re sickly pale, too thin and have a horrible personality. You’re so dull. I realise now I should probably feel pity for you, being stuck with him of all things,” she said, wrinkling her nose towards Severus, still sitting beside his wife-to-be. “What the hell could Michael have seen in you, anyway?”

There was silence in the room, the only ones remaining being the older members of the Order. Among them were Albus, Minerva, Moody, Mr. And Mrs. Weasley, Sirius and Remus. They waited with bated breath to hear what Gabriel would say, too shocked by the cruel words Michelle had let fall out of her mouth. There was a long pause, a silence which grew tense with each passing second. Gabriel’s eyes flashed with so much pain and anger, and then, just as quick as it had been, it had disappeared, leaving only a bone deep ache. She was so tired. Gabriel finally answered her, and it was not at all what they expected.

“You’re jealous,” she said softly, her brow creasing with thought. The other woman looked incredulous, her mouth opening to fire a heated insult. “You’re jealous because I had Michael first. You see people every day looking at me with sympathy or pity, because I was the supposed victim of a lovers quarrel. You were the person who tore apart the happy couple, the outsider no matter what. You’re jealous that people like me more because of what you did. You’re not getting the attention you want, so you lash out at the easiest target.” She paused, watching the conflicting emotions war within Michelle. “Be happy that you are who you are. There is little point in being jealous of me. You wouldn’t want to know the things I’ve been through. I daresay you wouldn’t survive it,” she finished quietly, her eyes taking on a haunted look.

Through a long moment of silence, Michelle kept her gaze on Gabriel, her mouth slack, brows drawn in anger at her words. She wondered if Gabriel was lying, even though she knew, albeit vaguely, what she had been through. But Gabriel’s expression betrayed nothing of what she was thinking, only holding the other woman’s stare.

Sighing eventually, Gabriel brought her right arm up onto the table and carefully pulled up the sleeve of her robe, revealing the pale, soft skin of her forearm. Retrieving her wand, she lightly tapped skin on the underside. A small shimmer revealed the very real evidence of torture by the Dark Lord, forcing Gabriel to clench her teeth as the memory flashed through her mind.

A collective gasp rang around the room, for in front of them was a scarred image of the Dark Mark, just as a Death Eater would have it. Skin raised, raw and burned looking, the ugly mark shone in the faint light.

Gabriel closed her eyes for a brief moment, shutting out the horrified looks and concentrated on keeping control. She didn’t miss the small hitch of breath from Severus beside her as he bore witness to the pain of the past. Slowly opening her eyes, she stared blankly at the table in front of her, her eyes distant as she let the memories flit through her minds eye.

“He branded me. Not even with the real mark, a poor image carved in iron and dipped in heat, only to burn my skin. ‘To taint me,’ he said. ‘To look like the traitor who turned his back on the dark ways.’ You, Severus,” she said, her voice hardening slightly, “were only gone for three days. He had you to torture for three days, whereas I…” she paused to swallow a lump in her throat, her eyes blurring as tears suddenly threatened to fall. She would not cry! She would not break.

“I was held for two weeks. Two weeks, in which I was beaten, cut, whipped, cursed, chained and left for days on end without food or water, naked in the cold. Tortured until I could no longer think, breathe or move. The only thing that fuelled my escape was that they were contemplating rape as a means to break me, for me to tell them anything and everything…” Her voice shook, her hands trembled as she stared resolutely at the table, the engrained wood burned to memory.

“I was paying for your sins, and you were the only thing from keeping me from letting go. I wanted to make sure you were alright, that you were safe, and the simple thought of you escaping and being free from this pain was enough to keep me sane where no man or woman would be.”

“Stop!” came the choked cry of the man beside her. She didn’t turn to look at him, she couldn’t. It would be too much.

Severus could hear no more. It was too much. He had no idea. No idea at all, yet it should’ve occurred to him. Why had he let this pass him by? Why had he dismissed this? His thoughts ran rampant through his mind, his fist clenched on the table, his wide-eyed, horrified gazed locked on the trembling woman before him.

“I think, perhaps, it is time for everyone to leave,” spoke the somber tones of Albus Dumbledore. He stood, and gave a pointed look to all but the two he wished to talk to. Everyone was quick to catch on, Michael having to pull a stunned Michelle from her seat and out the door.

The situation was too raw to deal with now. Michael had had no idea of what Gabriel had gone through, no one had. A crushing guilt settled in his chest and stomach, making the urge to vomit stay at the forefront of his mind. He had no idea, and had made it worse by his own actions not too soon after. What had he done?

As the others passed Gabriel, each felt a compelling urge to touch her, show her in the small gesture that they cared. Seeing her tense as they drew near though, discouraged their thought, and they passed without a word and out the door.

As soon as the door closed, Gabriel rose abruptly and backed away from the two wizards looking for all the world like she was trapped and looking for a way to escape. She was losing control; her fragile barrier that kept everyone out and everything in was splitting open one crack at a time. It felt like the shattering of ice, each crack following another until it spread from the point of weakness and broke through to the rush of water underneath. This couldn’t happen, she wouldn’t let it. Tears threatened, but she ignored them as her eyes darted back and forth, her form trembling so hard she visibly shook, her breathing became ragged and her panic was beginning to take over.

She closed her eyes against the onslaught, her eyelids squeezing to block out the light, her hands clenching into fists at her side. She fought her breathing, tried to calm herself, imagined building up another wall and cementing the old one.

“Don’t!” A harsh voice broke her thoughts. It took a second to realize it was Albus. “Don’t you dare run away, Gabriel Crenning! Don’t you dare retreat. Let it go.” His tone turned soft and gentle. “Let it out, Gabriel. Please.”

“I can’t!” she choked.

Her eyes flew open and met fathomless black a few feet away. He stood silently, his features just barely controlled as his mind flew through what she had said, what she had told him. He remembered when he had woken in the hospital wing, having no recollection of having gotten there. Albus was by his side and the first thing that was said was, “You are very lucky, my boy. Gabriel just managed to get you out with the only portkey she had. You are safe now.”

He had passed out after that, and over the two weeks had been recovering from his days of torture, along with feeling the pain of his Dark Mark when Voldemort had used it to torture him, even though he was in the safe haven of Hogwarts. He had been in agony the two weeks, the pain flaring on and off each day. At the time no one had been able to tell him where Gabriel was, or been able to explain why she had not even visited him once in the entire two weeks.

He had thought she didn’t care, merely saving him because it was her duty to as part of the Order. After the two weeks were up, he had recovered and moved on immediately to do research in removing his mark so he would not feel the torture from his old Master.

Not once, had it even occurred where she had been, or what she had been through. The next time he saw her she had returned to help Albus with Order work or anything else around the school. The most vivid thing he remembered where her eyes. Empty, dull, lifeless. The spark she once had gone, the emotions she showed so brilliantly before were not to be seen again.

Gods! She had been tortured for his escape! For his betrayal to the Dark Lord. She had taken the brunt of his punishment and had suffered two-fold what he would have in the infirmary with his burning mark. And she had bottled it all in, held it inside her mind away from everyone, and continuing as if nothing was wrong. Continued to do what was right, going on to live where many would have died, killing themselves long before hand.

“You never came.” Her whispered voice sounded so lost in the large kitchen. He looked up into her eyes, his gaze having left her during his thoughts. He felt a sharp pain in his heart with her next words. “You never came to see me. I thought…I hoped you’d come to see me at least once…I’m sorry for whatever I did to you to make you hate me. I just thought…I don’t know what I thought.”

Her soft apology nearly broke his heart. She looked so lost, so alone. She looked like a child who’d lost her mother and didn’t know what to do. He watched as her arms wrapped around her, staving off some imagined chill. He couldn’t take it. He couldn’t. So he did what his heart told him to do. He swiftly walked forward to her, her eyes following his movements, and promptly dropped to his knees. She didn’t have time to be shocked as he took hold of her arms and pried them apart as he wrapped his arms about her waist, burying his head in her middle.

“Forgive me,” came his tremulous, muffled voice. “I didn’t…I didn’t know. I’m so sorry.” His grip tightened, and he closed his eyes firmly against his own torrent of emotion. He felt anger at Voldemort, even though he was now dead, sorrow at having not known what she had been through, and relief that she was alright, that some part of her survived to be here. Other emotions tumbled together and he shook with the force of them combined.

At first he didn’t feel it, her touch being so soft, hesitant and his mind reeling with his own thoughts. But it became firmer and he unconsciously felt himself relaxing slightly, as her hands slowly threaded though his soft hair, her short nails lightly scraping his scalp, sending a pleasant shiver down his spine.

He felt her nudge his shoulder slightly, and he eased his grip around her waist, reluctant to let go. He was surprised however when she didn’t walk away, but rather did the opposite. As she slid down his chest and torso, he moved back onto his heels, letting her straddle his lap, her arms draping around his shoulders, hands burying back into his hair and her head resting in the crook of his neck. He increased his grip on her, allowing his own head to rest on her shoulder.

Neither knew how long they were there for, but both were too content to move. Oblivious to their surroundings, they suddenly found themselves moved to sit in an armchair in the living room next to the fire. They didn’t protest, and Severus wanted to get rid anyone who stopped her stroking his hair. It felt too bloody good. As if she read his thoughts, he could feel a small smile against his skin.

“Gabriel?” Albus said softly.

She murmured a sleepy reply.

Albus smiled gently, wishing he didn’t have to interrupt the two. “Gabriel. I have something for you.”

Sighing softly, her warmth breath tingling across his neck, she shifted on the chair to settle sideways on his lap facing Albus who now sat on the armchair across from them. She felt Severus’ arms loosely holding her waist, and settled back into his warmth.

A book appeared before her, and she reached out to take it from Albus’ outstretched hand. It was old, small and thin, the dark red leather worn from excessive use, tattered and torn. It felt soft and used, and strangely familiar. It had been a while since she had had any time to indulge in the hobby, and holding this book in her hands now was reviving an old spark of excitement. A new book to read, to soak up all of its secrets and information. But…

“What is it, Albus?” she asked quietly.

Gabriel looked across to the old man, the fire reflecting the twinkle in his eyes. She rolled her eyes at his look, and added with a raised eyebrow, “And I know it’s a bloody book. So you can save your amusement and humour me.” A soft snort sounded behind her.

Albus smiled warmly, wondering idly if she noticed that she acted and sounded more like the man she was currently sitting on every day. He chuckled fondly at the thought before answering.

“Of course, child. I am not quite sure what it is myself. It had been delivered to me in person by your…grandmother shortly after you had arrived on their doorstep.”

She didn’t miss the slight pause. Her previous contentment was leaving her, forcing her to focus on him sharply. “Yes, tell me about that.”

Her face, he noticed, was carefully blank, and even Severus could feel her sudden tension. Hoping to ease it, he let his hand trail to her thigh and began to softly caress it. She relaxed only slightly, but it was enough for Albus to see that underneath she seemed curious, yet the dread and slight fear in her eyes betrayed her. As much as she wanted to find out this information, she knew it would tear her world apart.

Everything she knew had been a lie, another secret kept, another life left in the dark.

Albus took a deep breath and released it as a heavy sigh. Glancing into the fire, he tried to collect his thoughts on the night Gabriel had come into everyone’s lives.

“About thirty years ago, a young woman arrived, broken and bloody, to the doorstep of Grace and Thomas Crenning. She had collapsed in a heap and, before passing out had taken out a small, red leather book and begged them to keep it safe. They had been the only words spoken.

“Mary, Thomas’ mother, had taken the book and watched as her son and daughter in-law cleaned the woman up and made her as comfortable as possible. Upon inspection of her, they had found nothing but the clothes on her back, and the necklace baring one word, a name; Gabriel. She had no possession of a wand, only the book, the necklace and the strange tattoo on her left wrist.

“They had retired for the night, leaving the sleeping woman alone, and upon waking in the morning found a small child of no more than five years old. Mary had no idea what they should do, and so she had come to me to tell me of the strange mystery woman. She had shown me the little red book, claiming to have read through it and found it blank. Completely void of ink, thoughts or ideas, and yet she had been begged by this strange woman to keep it safe.

“I took it from her, and after three days of trying to understand, reveal and seek what was hidden in the book, I could not find anything. I knew there was something there. I could feel it, yet it wasn’t for me to see. So I paid a visit to the Crenning’s and the new child, to see her for myself.

“She was an odd little thing,” he said, chuckling.

His gaze returned to Gabriel to see her face still blank, paying rapt attention, her fingers tightly gripping the little red book. He reached into his robe suddenly and produced a small bag of sweets. The rustling of the ordinary brown paper sent a twitch to her cheek as her eyes flicked to the bag and then back up once more.

With a small, knowing smile, he proffered the bag and shook it enticingly. “Ah, she had a strange fondness for lemon drops if I do recall.”

It brought a reluctant twitch to her lips as her eyes flickered to the bag and back to his face again. Her fingers had eased their death grip and she could feel the slight stiffness from gripping it so tightly. Trust Albus to reduce tension with sweets.

Sighing, she made no move for the sweets, but gave him a weary look. “Albus. Please.”

A small hum was his response as he shrugged his shoulders, and brought the bag back in front of him with a contented smile, plucking out a sweet for himself. “She had a tendency to mimic,” he continued. “It was odd but very intriguing.” His tone now took on a bright note as he recalled the fascinating memories.

“You see, they had a dog called Rufus and every time she was near him she would be curious by his behaviour. After a while she began to imitate him, his barks and whines, and eventually his form. The poor dog was very confused to say the least, but he seemed to find no threat with her. She -- you, I should say -- have an affinity with animals it seems. No matter what the species they seem taken with you, and find you no threat whatsoever. Very strange indeed,” he mused happily.

Gabriel was beginning to think this conversation strange. Her affinity for animals was not new, for as far back as she could remember she has had this odd ‘gift‘. She could recall several occasions in the Forbidden Forest over the years that she would have been in danger among the more vicious animals, and yet they had never harmed her. She even remembered coming across a werewolf by accident, and he had acted like nothing more than an eager play mate. It had been a very shaky encounter to say the least, but ever since she had paid close attention to how they act around her.

“You once imitated me!” Albus said cheerfully, bringing her out of her thoughts. Her focus returned to him once more, and saw he was leaning back in his chair casually, sucking on a lemon drop. His eyes sought hers, and found her curiosity peaked, and the familiar raised eyebrow. At the back of her mind, away from this conversation, she was wholly aware of Severus’ hand on her thigh, raising goosebumps on her skin.

He smiled indulgently. “Oh yes,” he said. “I had been looking for my lemon drops actually, and when I had found them I offered one to you. You looked at me warily, yet I could see your animated and excited look. You were dying to know what they were, and I took one out to show you before popping it in my mouth. You tilted your head slightly, and I saw you were paying close attention to my behaviour. Without realising you were doing it, I saw you stand and morph into the older woman you had been, before changing once more to look like me. Then you had taken a lemon drop and popped it into your mouth, smiling and stroking the new beard as I had been doing. Fascinating!”

“I…don’t remember that,” Gabriel said carefully.

“Of course you don’t, my dear. You were, after all, only five years old!”

“But…I…I came to them as a fully grown woman. Why did I change into a five year old?” Gabriel asked, becoming more confused.

“Ah, I believe I know. I believe that you were never a grown woman when you came to the Crenning’s door. I believe that you were, indeed, five years old and had used your magical instinct to morph and change when the situation demands it. I believe, Gabriel,” he added softly, looking at her with a hint of a twinkle in his eye, “that you are a natural born shape-shifter.”

Gabriel blinked, opened her mouth to respond, but no words came forth, leaving her looking like a gaping fish. ‘Well that would explain a lot,’ she thought. She had just thought she was a very good Animagus, or like a Metamorphmagus who had an added ability. A shape-shifter had never crossed her mind actually, but it didn’t really surprise her.

“They are incredibly rare, are they not?” Severus intoned lowly.

“Indeed,” Albus replied, nodding enthusiastically.

“Well…I, um…right,” she finished lamely. ‘Very articulate, Gabriel.’ She sighed, allowing her eyes to drop closed for a moment. When she opened them again, she spotted the mark on her left wrist, poking out a bit from under her sleeve. Her tattoo.

“What about the tattoo?” she asked. “Do you know anything about that?”

He looked away for a moment, pondering his thoughts. Finally, “I’m not quite sure it’s a tattoo, per say. It seems vaguely familiar to me, but for the life of me I cannot remember. I am sorry. I will have to look it up myself to see, as I have a feeling I know where to look. I will get back to you on it.” He smiled warmly, and had to stifle a sudden yawn.

“Oh, my dear, forgive me. It is getting rather late. Perhaps we ourselves should retire to our beds.”

Gabriel nodded in agreement, but didn’t move from the confines of Severus’ lap. She glanced down at the book still clutched firmly in her hand. Before saying her quick goodnight to Albus, she called his attention.

“Albus? What about the necklace?”

The Headmaster, for a brief moment, had an unreadable look on his face, before reaching into his robes and without a word, and handing over a faded white envelope, bulging slightly at one side. Letting it fall into her hand, Gabriel felt as if a sudden lead weight had dropped into her palm. The object within hummed with a heavy power, and Gabriel felt herself drawn to it, entranced as the room around her seemed to fade. Her mind focused on the heat in her palm as her breathing slowed.

“Gabriel?”

As if a light had been turned on, Gabriel blinked, her eyes darting back up into the concerned blue of the old man before her.

“Are you alright, my dear?”

She looked a bit lost, “Yes, of course. I just seemed to have lost myself for a moment. Goodnight Albus,” she said absently. He nodded briefly, and turned to go, saying a quick goodnight over his shoulder to Severus.

Severus watched in silence as Gabriel returned her attention to the envelope, her eyes glazing over slightly. His hand shifted a bit, and her eyes drifted to him, blinking slowly as if she was coming out of a dream. She looked exhausted.

“Perhaps,” he said carefully, “you should go to your room. You need your rest, and it has been a very long day.”

It had been. For both of them. There was much more going on than he realised, and he was disconcerted that it took him this long to see it. ‘Some spy I am,’ he scoffed mentally. He needed some time to absorb this, to understand what happened. But she had already been through so much, and he didn’t want to leave her on her own.

Shame and guilt were hard to swallow. He internally winced as another thought suddenly came to mind; marriage. He had proposed to her. ‘Later,’ he admonished. ‘I’ll think of it later.’ Of all the times he wished his old friend was here. At least the wolf didn’t talk back.

“Um, yes, of course,” Gabriel said softly, trying to get her mind to focus. It was strangely blank and she wondered what happened to her chaotic thoughts. As soon as she held the weight of the envelope in her hand, her mind couldn’t seem to hold onto her thoughts for more than a few seconds.

Gently extracting herself from Severus’ lap, she hesitated, standing before him with uncharacteristic shyness. He remained seated, staring up at her through his dark lashes, and after a minute or two of silence a frown of confusion started forming on his features. It brought out a very surprising reaction from Gabriel, as all of her tension, stress, and melancholy seemed to suddenly disappear to be replaced by her old, gentle smile as her eyes danced with soft affection. Severus stopped breathing at seeing her eyes alight with such rich, warm emotion, and he wondered if she even noticed what she was allowing him to see.

He held perfectly still when her hand came up to brush back a lock of hair, before letting her thumb gently smooth away the crease between his eyebrows. “Don’t frown so much. Your face might stick that way one day.”

He had never before seen her this way, or heard her voice contain such warm amusement. How had he not noticed that before now, before everything that had happened? How could he have not noticed its absence? It was startling, and he could only stare at her as she leaned down and brushed a soft kiss on his forehead.

“Goodnight Severus.”