1059 A Quiet Afternoon

With the arrival of the Daily Prophet, the students are all abuzz about the addition of a new elective Mermish to be added to the curriculum for the upcoming school year. Even more shocking, Professor Slughorn, their potions professor would be retiring at the end of the school term. He apparently was finally going to write his biography and the impact of his life on his scores of successful students. It is certain to be a best seller.

Not the Slytherins would necessarily miss their old Head of House, but he was certainly easier to trick than their current Head of House, Professor Mortimer. Although, they just as everyone is curious about who will be the replacement for Professor Slughorn and for the new elective. They had the next school year to look forward to in that regard.

The days grew progressively warmer and drier as the students began to spend more time outside. With Easter, nearly upon them, homemade sweets arrived from their parents. Extra sweets are traded and exchanged with friends and classmates. And any less-than-savory treats are kindly gifted to Professor Slughorn, who will be departing from Hogwarts at the end of the term.

Rowan and Severus are not precluded from the tradition. The two of them receive a pair of handsome chocolate intricately decorated eggs made by Dawn. One egg is from Aunt Georgine and Rodrigo, and the other is from their grandfather, Reginald. Always shy about these types of things, the two of them find an empty classroom to enjoy their treats with a cup of o'dandelion juice not too sweet to wash down their sweets.

The two of them quietly enjoy a rare moment of silence especially this year with their Prefect duties and mounds of endless homework. Leaning back against the wall, Rowan tentatively broaches the subject. "I know this isn't my place to ask, but are you and Lily, well, being safe?"

Severus loudly chokes on his juice spitting it out. He pounds on his chest until he can properly breathe again. With eyes water, he wipes his face clean with his sleeve. "We haven't done anything like that yet!"

"I am not saying you are, Severus," Rowan replied with a healthy bit of skepticism in her gaze. Hormones are a powerful in their own way and tend to lead to very poor decision-making.

"It's just, I think grandfather and Mr. Evans will kill you if you get Lily pregnant out of wedlock. And I am fairly certain Petunia mentioned that Mr. Evans has an old hunting rifle that previously belonged to his father…" Rowan thoughtfully trailed off.

"By Merlin's baggy pants! Where is this coming from?!" Severus sputtered with a splotchy bright red flush on his face.

"I am just saying, we are getting older," Rowan plainly responded. "Whether you or Lily wait until your wedding night is not any of my business. But when the two of you decide to take that step just make sure to cast the proper spells on both of you. Because it is Lily who will carry the repercussion of the two of you forgetting a proper spell. Never mind, if she ends up pregnant or the nasty rumors that will follow, but rather the consequence may bar Lily from following her dreams."

Severus opens and closes his mouth, before becoming solemn in thought. He awkwardly rubs the back of his neck and sighs. "I am not ready to take that step with Lily," he murmured glancing down at the floor. "I care for Lily, but I cannot help remembering…"

Severus' voice trailed off, before resuming. "Even now, I cannot help but remember THEM. Grandfather says, THEY once loved each other. Yet what difference did love even make in their relationship if they hated each other at the end of it all? I don't want Lily or me to end up like that."

Rowan reaches over and ruffles Severus's head to his chagrin. Severus pulls his head away from Rowan's hand. "Good, that means, you are actually using that brain of yours," Rowan gently teased hiding a hint of worry. Being wary is fine, but overly worrying can also be fatal to a relationship.

Severus scowls at the remark and moves his head out of Rowan's reach. In retaliation, he says, "And what about you and James? Fair is fair, Rowan!"

Rowan actually startled at the question having never truly pondered the ramifications of their betrothal. The end seemed impossibly far away, but the betrothal would end in marriage and the eventual conception of a child. Then again, she is not even certain if she will even live to see that day. There is no sense in dwelling on the what-ifs.

Glancing at the floor, Rowan solemnly replies, "James and I do not share the same emotional depths that you and Lily have." She leaned her head against the wall. "And our friendship is still new in some ways after having to restart over again after James lost his memories."

Feeling as though he had stepped on a landmine, Severus glances away in remorse. It had not been his intention to point out the difference in their relationships. He knew James and Rowan were friends, but that does not necessarily imply the possibility of deeper feelings. And as much as he loved their grandfather, their grandfather had taken away Rowan's choice to choose a spouse for herself. He knew for a fact if placed in the exact same situation he would not be handling the same situation as gracefully as Rowan had.

A silence falls between them each lost in their own thought. The creaking of the door causes them both to glance up in surprise. Rowan and Severus glance at each other and communicate without a word. They had locked the door, but the door is not being unlocked with a spell.

"Aha, got it!" The triumphant voice of Sirius is heard. "Now we have the room full to ourselves," he happily said pulling Tiffany inside.

Tiffany laughs before freezing at spotting Rowan and Severus staring at them. Sirius too wrapped up in his premature victory pulls Tiffany into his arms. He glances down at Tiffany who is rigid and stiff. "What's wrong?" He worriedly asked.

Rowan delicately coughs causing Sirius to glance up and meet the arched brow of Severus. "Oh, err, well, this is embarrassing," Sirius murmured flushing a bit at being caught out.

Setting Tiffany right, Sirius runs a hand through his dark hair. "Well, what are the two of you doing here? We thought the room was empty!"

"The door was locked," Rowan drily pointed out.

Severus snorts glancing at Sirius and failing to see his wand out. "So how did you unlock the door?" He inquired with no little curiosity.

"Oh, that," Sirius brightened up pulling out a pocketknife from his robes. "Mum gave me Uncle Alphard's knife this past Christmas. She said Uncle Alphard found it useful as the knife is enchanted to open almost any lock and he would have wanted me to have it."

Rowan's midnight-indigo-colored eyes linger on the knife. It is the same knife Sirius gave to the unborn Potter years in the future. At the same time, she felt a heaviness settle upon her. The same knife had belonged to Alphard Black now departed from this world.