A Room With a View

Mending Fences

For the first night since they'd first made love, Severus kissed Hermione on the forehead, bade her goodnight, and returned to his quarters alone. He hoped that she understood it had little to do with her, that he'd needed some time to process the deluge of feelings and desires that had been locked behind the Incultus curse in his head.

It made sense, he supposed, that the form of obliviation used on him couldn't negate every motivation he felt; particularly as it had been so poorly cast. The look-not curse had made him disregard his natural impulses - including the desire to examine his own complacency in eradicating the effects of the obliviation - for more than seven years! It seemed nearly impossible that he, quite possibly the greatest living Occlumens, had managed to fail so completely at protecting his own mind from some amateur's bloody tampering!

He's allowed his communications with Lucius and Narcissa to fall nearly silent.

He hadn't contacted his godson since he'd returned to Britain, and only rarely whilst traveling.

He hadn't taken an active hand in managing his own finances and properties.

He had been (was still?) in love with Hermione.

Squelching the sense of panic that suddenly flooded his senses, Severus decided that this particular revelation definitely bore further examination. Later.

The bastard had hidden the few noble impulses in Severus' character and risked alienating him from the only people he had a close connection to... all to keep him from returning to Britain. What was so important about him staying away that his attacker had risked scrambling his mind? Who on that bloody list that Kingsley had sent cared so little for the bloody Dark Hero of the wizarding war that they could so callously ruin his life?

And how could he find the witch or wizard and make them pay?

A quick glance at the casement clock on the mantle showed that it wasn't yet midnight, so he moved toward the hearth and tossed a handful of floo powder into the ashes of the last fire. Severus called out "Malfoy Manor" and dutifully stuck his head in the flames.

His call was answered by an attendant house elf. "Professor Severus Snape, sir! How might Snaggy help?"

"Is the Master of the house at home? I have a need for a conversation with Lucius."

"Snaggy will ask, sir!"

Severus sat back on his haunches and waited impatiently when Snaggy's head disappeared from the fire. He was relieved when Lucius' head popped into the flames a few minutes later.

"Severus! To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Lucius, I believe I may owe you an apology."

"I see," the older wizard replied. "You'd better come through." The head disappeared from the flames and Severus stepped in after it, whirling away to Malfoy Manor.

He was greeted with a snifter of cognac almost as soon as he stepped out of the fire. It was nice to know that some things never changed.

"Lucius," he said, nodding his greeting to his long-time friend.

"Severus," the blond wizard replied with a slight smirk. "So you owe me an apology? I had to hear this in person."

"Yes, well. It's come to my attention that I have been remiss in my duties as a friend. I haven't kept in touch. I haven't visited until now. And I haven't been a terribly attentive godfather in recent years. Please allow me to extend my apologies," he concluded formally.

Lucius made a crude pffing noise and waved his hand in dismissal before seating himself on the chaise and crossing one elegant ankle over his knee. "Is that all? Severus, you went through hell during the war. It's hardly surprising that you'd want to escape from all of the lunatics - and I'm including the House of Malfoy in that assessment - for awhile. But I have to ask, what brought all this on?" He adjusted the pleat on his slacks and sipped at his own snifter of cognac.