To Protect

116

To Alaster Moody:

I hope this letter finds you at a convenient time as I'm in desperate need for it myself. Along with this letter, you will have a bottle of Poly Juice potion. I'll need you to round up as many volunteers when possible and make sure you keep the Potters safe for travel this upcoming Saturday.

Take them to London.

- Severus Snape

Narcissa Malfoy approaches the main entrance hall as stern knocks continue to echo throughout the mansion, her pace quick and head held high as she expects anyone else but the man who stands before her home.

"Severus?" The suprise worn on her face turns skeptical, "What are you doing here? Lucius told me you weren't coming."

Without hesitating, Severus lets himself through the doorway. "I have a date on when the Potters will be moved. Is he here?" A knowing glance was all Mrs Malfoy needed as to who he was asking for.

"Everyone's here and you're not exactly on time either. The meeting has been going on for nearly an hour." Narcissa shuts the door behind him.

To this Severus shrugs, unsure what to say to that and finding himself too exhausted to make up an excuse. "Why would your husband say I wouldn't be coming?" Severus questions in a hushed tone, curious.

A sigh of dismay escaped from her lips as she lead him up the grand staircase. "Considering that you never show up to any of the meetings, he assumed you to be busy..."

Severus felt his lip twitch downward, but kept his demeanor calm. He says nothing in response.

He felt himself becoming more paranoid recently as he hasn't been sleeping very well. Any time he had the chance to sleep he'd have nightmares keeping him awake for the rest of the night.

Every dream was the same: Watching Dumbledore fall to his death had turned into Eleanor falling to hers. There would always be that last glance of hatred in her eye before she was killed from his own wand without meaning to, everytime Severus would try to reach out to catch her before her lifeless body would fall back, but everytime she was out of reach.

She'd die the same way Dumbledore did; in Severus's accountability.

"Listen," Narcissa speaks up in a softer tone. Stopping them in the hall across the closed door that contained muffled conversations. "I wanted to thank you for what you did... for Draco and our family." Her light brown eyes grow sincere, "Lucius won't ever say it out loud, but he is grateful for what you did to keep our son away from all of this. It wasn't an easy thing to do... we are in your debt."

Severus only nods slightly before her hand softly pats the back of his shoulder, "Be careful in here." She whispers just before she walked to the door and opened it to allow him in first along with herself.

It was a spare dinning hall, one usually used for the Malfoys occasional dinner parties. Every seat of the long dark wood table was preoccupied.

The room immediately grew quiet as eyes darted towards the professor who had entered with Narcissa following behind.

"What's he doing here?" Called a voice from the near end of the table, it was Lucius who sat right beside a hooded figure whose face remained hidden and quiet.

Severus didn't need to take a guess on who that could possibly be; It was Voldemort.

Narcissa walked quickly along the table towards her husband before gesturing to Severus with a polite smile. "He says he has news on when the Potters will be moved."