"I've got you, come on."

It was dawn. Severus had just returned from his little excursion, exhausted and ready to collapse. He had been helping Harry in the wildness, miles and miles away for most of the night. As the locket Dumbledore and Harry had collected was a fake planted years ago, there was a question of where the original was. Severus had even visited the old Order headquarters looking for clues, as the hider was none other than Regulus Black. He had come back with an idea, and to his delight, he had been correct. It was hidden at the bottom of a pond. Severus had gone there months ago to set a charm to let him know when Harry finally happened to be within range. Tonight he finally was.

Joanna had been confused when Severus explained all this the evening before when the charm was tripped. He hadn't mentioned anything about it to Joanna per Dumbledore's written request. She was upset that he hadn't said anything, but agreed to wait for him at the Apparation point, in case something went wrong. So Severus, using his patronus, led Harry to his prize before returning to the Dark Forest just as the sky was beginning to lighten.

"How far away was this place exactly?" Joanna had not known where this one was, and Severus was not about to tell her, so he simple said, "Far enough."

They walked through the trees of the forest together toward the castle.

"So what was it?"

"The real locket."

They stayed silent the remainder of the time, and Joanna was thinking. So the locket, the diary and the ring were gone. Hufflepuff's cup was, unfortunately locked in the Lestrange vault at Gringott's, who knew where the diadem was. And no one was getting anywhere near Nagini. They weren't even halfway there. The clearing was coming, and Joanna felt an urge to tell Severus something she had planned on maybe keeping to herself. She had no idea how he would react, but Joanna stopped Severus just before they exited the tree line onto Hogwarts grounds in the early morning chill anyway. "Severus, he was here last night. He came to our quarters and railed for two hours. He's furious that still no one has found the boy."

Severus listened intently. "He didn't hurt you, did he?"

Joanna paused for a moment. "Not exactly."

"What happened…exactly?"

Severus wanted to strangle him. Dark Lord or not, no one should ever have touched Joanna but him for the rest of her…or rather Severus' natural life. Once it was out Joanna could not stop crying. Instead of teaching Severus cancelled her classes for the day, gave her a contraceptive potion and sat in his office, refusing audience with anyone and wondering precisely how Voldemort could have done what he did…

Theoretically, Voldemort hardly had a soul left in his body, assuming he had much of one to begin with. Most people feed the soul emotionally by feeling empathy, joy, or ire. Voldemort could not experience any of these. He was unsympathetic to his fellow human being, only appeared to take joy in torture, and despite appearances, he did not possess much ire. His actions were produced by a need to connect to something, anything. Severus had known for years that Bellatrix had been bearing the burden of his particular brand of connection, but in the middle of a fit it was perfectly likely that he would have taken advantage of whoever was there at the time. If Joanna had been a man, he probably would have killed her…well him. It made sense that Voldemort would go to Joanna. She was one of two female Death Eaters, and Bellatrix was currently residing in the Malfoy Manor. Not Voldemort's favorite place considering all the family's missteps over the past year and some change.

It was rational…he wanted to strangle him.

Shortly after Christmas, Joanna found herself sweeping through Hogsmeade and finding herself at a pub. Knocking on the oaken door, she asked herself for the hundredth time that day if what she was doing was right.

There was a light in the lower room; the glow could be seen through the cracks in the door. A moment after she stopped knocking, this light was snuffed. Joanna tightened her jaw and slammed on the door with an open palm this time. There was no answer, so without a second thought she hollered at the still closed door, "I know you're in there Aberforth and I have no qualms about cursing this door down if you don't let me in amicably!"

That did it. The door opened just enough to let her inside. It was pitch black until the candles that had previously been lit enflamed again and the room was bathed in a dim light. And there was Aberforth, strikingly similar to his late brother, Albus Dumbledore, tall and white haired, though not spectacled.

"I sent you several messages in the past week, Aberforth. You did not respond so you've brought this impromptu visit on yourself."

Aberforth stayed more than three arms' lengths from Joanna and responded, "Forgive me, but I do not generally accept requests for visits from Death Eaters."

"Now I know you don't believe I'm doing this for my own benefit. I know your brother told you about his plans before he died. I have a copy of the letter. He mentioned my wishes."

"Forgive me but I hardly believe anything my brother ever told me."

Joanna rolled her eyes and removed her cloak. Setting it on the back of a chair, she took a seat at a nearby table. "Well forgive me, but you haven't so much as spoken a word to him in the ninety years following your sister's death so how can you possibly know how honest a man he became?"

Aberforth didn't move from where he stood, but he did cross his arms and respond. "Fine, I know you're in this for your husband's sake. And I know you're both good people. Now what do you want from me?"

"I want your cooperation. You know this is not going to last forever. Harry Potter will find and destroy the horcruxes and Voldemort-" Aberforth shuddered. "But when he does, it is more than likely he will find his way here."

"How can you tell?"

Joanna tapped a necklace at her collarbone. The piece of the stone her father had given her. The only time it had ever done her any good was several years before just when she had accepted the invitation to the Priory. The night of Lucan's birthday, Joanna had a dream in which she saw the battle at Hogwarts to end all battles. When she awoke, the stone piece had been glowing. That day she started sending messages.

"All I am asking, Aberforth is that when this comes down, you help. I don't care that you didn't care for your brother and I don't care that you're perfectly content to live out the rest of your life watching the world go by. I don't care if you do it nicely, just help the boy. Something in you wanted to be close to your brother again, that's why you've been in this pub all this time. You missed your chance to mend that relationship, but at least put your mind at ease by helping his plan succeed."

Aberforth nodded once and Joanna stood to leave. As she was sweeping on her cloak, he said, "Just one thing, Mrs. Snape."

"Flamel-Snape," she corrected. "What is it?"

"Priory master…or Death Eater?"

"Would I be here in secret if I were truly evil?"

Aberforth sighed and smiled to himself, then he reached into his pocket and pulled out a mirror. "Matter of fact, I have been watching the boy. Through this." He extended the glass toward Joanna. She did not take it, because she recognized it immediately. It was Sirius' mirror, through which he could have spoken to Harry who had the other. Apparently the boy still did. "This was sent to me by my brother about a year ago. I only just figured out what for. I've looked in on him once or twice. He's perfectly fine."

Joanna smiled back and rested her hand on the door. Before opening it to let herself out, she said, "Thank you."

The fact of the matter is, there wasn't much going on for entertainment anymore. Joanna used to listen to the radio often, but now there were no airing channels since most of the world had been terrified into hiding. There was one evening in February though, when she was tinkering with the WWN for the hell of it when she came across one very interesting show.

Fred, George and Remus were on the air, and they were all talking about the whereabouts of Harry. They were calling the show Potter Watch. "Severus, come listen to this!"

They sat together in their secret room with the tapestry for an hour listening to the bad jokes, the updates on Death Eater activity and speculations about Harry and where he might be. When they had signed off, Joanna turned off the radio and smiled, saying, "I guess not everyone has gone and lost hope then."

Severus pulled Joanna from her perch on the arm of the chair and into his lap. He brushed a lock of hair from her face and gently kissed her lips. He let his hands roam along her collar, the swell of her breast, her tiny waist and around the small of her back, pulling the stays holding her bodice. He worked his way through her clothes, slowly revealing skin in by inch as Joanna slipped the buttons of his frock coat from their prisons. A heat wave rushed over Joanna's skin and she stood, pulling Severus up with her. They tore off one another's clothing leaving them naked before one another. Severus pulled Joanna into him and slipped a hand between her legs, feeling her wetness. He inserted a finger and with his thumb rubbed the twisted nub of nerves until Joanna very nearly collapse from the pleasure. Severus led her to the chair and watched her delicate frame as she knelt on the seat with her back to him. He stepped into her and pushed into her warmth. He thrust into her hard and fast until they both came in a manner of minutes and collapsed onto the floor in one another's arms, dripping in sweat.

Severus recovered and rolled onto his hands, bearing over Joanna. He kissed her cheek, her forehead, her lips. It had been so long since they had felt this heat, he had almost forgotten what it was like, having sex with his wife. She smiled up at him as lovingly as ever. Severus looked at her face, and let his eyes drift to her chest. At this Joanna covered herself with her hands. "I don't like it when you look at it." She was talking about her mark. Severus shook his head. "I wasn't looking at that." He bent down and kissed the ugly tattoo that sat in the valley between her breasts. When he came up again, he freed a hand to turn the stone around her neck back to the front, resting over her mark and making it dull in its presence. The stone warded off evil. That much was perfectly clear. The thing was Severus wasn't entirely sure it was strong enough to ward off a killing curse. The way things were looking, what with the disbandment of Greyback from the group and the personal torturing and murder of Goyle a few weeks ago for an honestly minor mistake, he was beginning to think even all of Voldemort's Death Eaters might die someday. He hoped he had done enough to spare Joanna, even if he couldn't save himself.

Being the acting Master of the Priory Eric had been worried about his safety as well as Lucan's. Eric's boyfriend had left him amid all this mess and Eric didn't feel secure anymore. Joanna decided to move them to the one place she didn't think any Death Eater would go near again…the house she and her mother hid in sixteen years ago. Joanna went ahead one random night and set up as many charms as she could think of. After about a dozen the sun had started to rise and she knew she was feeling as safe as she would ever feel. There was no time to wait for Eric and Lucan to arrive later in the morning, so she left, vowing to make a long visit on the following weekend.

Joanna had no way of knowing she didn't have until the weekend.

On Sunday Joanna and Severus made their way through Godric's Hollow, which was all but abandoned now, since Bathilda Bagshot had died sometime in December. It was hard to say precisely when Nagini took over and Bathilda was gone. When they were approaching the house on the outskirts, Joanna stopped short, noting that the door was standing ajar.

Fear wrested her breath from her. When she could breathe again, she and Severus ran together to the cottage, up the porch steps and pushed the door open. Wands out, Joanna asked, "Severus, didn't you say this house was off limits?"

"It is."

It didn't take log for them to find Eric bleeding on the kitchen floor. He was alive, but barely, given all the bites and claw marks he had. After seeing the marks, Joanna uttered, "Fenrir," softly and blitzed out of the room to find her son. Severus did what he could to stabilize him and then went looking for his wife. When he finally found her, she was in the back bedroom where Lucan would have been, sobbing hysterically and crouching over something on the floor. Severus pried her away, and immediately wished he hadn't.

It took a long time before Severus could move Joanna from the room. While she sat silent in the living room, Severus removed the body of his son and carried it to the backyard. He buried Lucan among the garden flowers trying to bloom in the early spring chill. He engraved a garden stone with his son's name and dates. He placed the stone over the upturned earth, and then Severus buried his face in his hands and cried.

Just as Severus was attempting to lift his body with a heavy heart up from the ground, he noticed another engraved stone beside the one he had just set. He removed some dead leaves and moss and read it.

Miranda Flamel

March 2, 1943-April 30, 1981

Severus remembered carving this stone all those years ago after killing Joanna's mother. Now his son had perished in the same house. A house that was off limits to Death Eaters, officially. A house that was supposed to be safe.

From inside there was a yell. Severus ran in and as he burst through the kitchen door, Eric was awake and calling for Joanna. "Eric, what's wrong?"

"I tried to stop her Severus! She's going after Greyback."

Severus felt his blood run cold. There was no way she could find him; Greyback had been rogue and leading groups of misfits for months. No one knew where he was when he wasn't at the Malfoy house. Then again…Joanna still had her shard of the Sorcerer's Stone. That in itself could only show past present and future in a certain place, but she would not find him if she didn't know where to look. On the other hand there was another tool available to her that could.

"Come on Eric. I'll drop you at the hospital before I head her off. I know where to find her."

Severus ran right back to the school but Joanna wasn't there. She had been of course. The stone shard, which hung on a golden chain, lay on the floor in nearly dust sized fragments. The scene on the tapestry at the back wall was the Malfoy manor. Severus uttered a curse and stepped through the tapestry straight away.

When he stepped into the drawing room of the manor he came upon a very disturbing sight. Fenrir was there indeed, and so was Joanna. Apparently they had progressed well beyond the screaming match. Fenrir and Joanna were shooting curses at one another while Narcissa held her son close by in the corner, screaming for dear life. As Severus watched in shock, Fenrir had grabbed Joanna but the hair. She made to aim behind her and shoot a Sectumsepera curse. Unfortunately she cut her hair, not Fenrir. However she did get free and as she stumbled across the room to gain some distance, both the witch and wizard collapsed in pain. As they writhed on the floor, Voldemort walked into the room from the double doors leading to the grand staircase with Lucius following behind.

The room was in shambles. Broken mirrors, and lamps, furniture lay in splintered piles of wood and goose feather fluff hung in the air. "That is quite enough of that," Voldemort said coolly as the two duelers stood again, Joanna with Severus' help.

"Now, Joanna my pet, kindly tell me why you came here and attacked Fenrir."

Without missing a beat, without a crack in her voice, she answered more strongly than she appeared, "He killed my son."

Voldemort nodded once, and made his way to the remains of an armchair. After reassembling it with a flick of his wand he sat and clasped his hands together. "How do you know this?"

Joanna stepped forward and bowed slightly to Voldemort before speaking. "I left my son under the care of an old friend. For the safety of them both, he asked me to move them, and I decided on a remote cottage in Godric's Hollow. The same remote cottage I was taken from when you were in power last, my lord. The building was condemned and off limits, officially, to both Ministry officials and Death Eaters under your orders. I assumed Fenrir followed your orders as we all do, but apparently I was wrong."

Voldemort nodded and stood. He walked up to Joanna and lifted her chin. Even from his place some five feet away, Severus could see the tears finally glinting in her eyes. When they spilled over her lashes and down her cheeks, Voldemort wiped them away with a thumb and kissed her cheek. Then he turned to Fenrir. Without a word, he shot another Cruciatus curse, much stronger than the first one. "I sent you after the Priory Master, Fenrir. I did not say you could harm the child."

Fenrir howled and writhed for several minutes before Voldemort finally let up. He turned to Severus and Joanna who stood together now. "I am truly sorry for your loss. Fenrir will not be going anywhere for quite some time, I assure you."

"What a great comfort that is," Joanna shot back. "But that won't bring back my son."

A week later, Joanna was warned by word from Wormtail that she was officially on his short list among the Malfoy's and it would be wise of her to stay out of the way.

Joanna hated waiting. She knew Severus just wanted her to be safe when all hell had started to break loose inside the school, and she was perfectly well aware that her job was important, but Joanna could not help from feeling irritated and tapping her foot as she leaned against Severus' desk in the headmaster's office. She just hated waiting.

She was alone for hours. There were large explosions going on from all directions. Honestly she could only imagine the carnage going on. She hoped Fenrir had met a fitting end by now, seeing as the Dark Lord hadn't seen fit to do the honor himself for an unauthorized murder.

Joanna twirled a short loc of hair between her fingers and a bit of a growl of frustration in her throat.

Then there was nothing. Silence fell over her ears. And there it was. Voldemort's voice could be heard in ever corner of the room, calling Harry Potter to come to the glen in the forest and give himself up before anyone else got hurt or killed. And no more than ten minutes later, the door handle began to turn.

"What are you doing here?" Joanna turned around and there was Harry, same as always, if a little dirtier than usual from his life on the lam. "What the bloody hell are you doing here?"

"I'm not going to hurt you or hinder you Harry," she said evenly. "I'm here to help you. I assume that you've spoken to Severus?"

Harry's eyes glistened.

"What?"

"I don't know how to tell you this…Nagini-"

"Did you get some memories from him?" Harry had been trying to stammer out something, but Joanna cut him off. Harry glanced at the vial in his hand and nodded. Joanna reached out her hand to Harry. He looked at her suspiciously. "I won't bite."

He took it and Joanna led him to the chamber that was now locked tight, holding Dumbledore's old Pensieve. Severus had made sure to lock it up tight, since there was no way of getting memories out of one once they were in, and could be accessed. To keep the plan safe, it had to be cursed with protection. And only Severus and Joanna knew the counter curses. He needed to keep face for them both tonight, and Joanna was guarding after perhaps the most important tool with which to turn the tide. After unlocking it and seeing Harry safely under way in the depths of Severus' memories, Joanna left the office to make her way down to the Great Hall to do what she could to help.

She never imagined she would come across the mess she did. She found more dead than injured, unfortunately. Remus and Tonks were among them. Fred Weasley was gone. Many were wounded and as she made her way through the crying friends and bleeding folks Joanna was looking for Poppy. When she found the mediwitch, she approached her, rolling up her sleeves. "Poppy," the healer looked up from treating Firenze's flank. "Tell me what you need me to do."

Dozens of potions and tonics passed through her hands, so much blood and spell damage Joanna could swear she felt her wand overheating, or maybe it was just her. Eventually Joanna collapsed herself on the stone floor, hands over her face and hair dripping sweat onto her neck. Just as she thought she was finally about to lose it there was a commotion outside in the entrance hall. What now, she thought. Turned out it was an entourage. Voldemort and the entire entourage. Minus Severus. Joanna stood up. So it had happened. At some point Harry had done exactly what Dumbledore predicted would happen. He had gone and turned himself over, and now the choice would be up to the boy, assuming they were right about there being an in between the here and the hereafter.

And while Harry was battling his choices, Voldemort was making the announcement of his life: Harry Potter is dead. Unfortunately this caused more hell to break loose. Those who were still able to fight from both sides took to one another like rabid dogs. At one point she could swear she saw Bellatrix go down but she couldn't tell by who. Joanna was so beside herself she couldn't do anything. She couldn't fight with or against anyone. More people fell on both sides. She looked at those injured and dead lying before her. How many more?

Then she had an awful thought. It could very well kill her. But Harry clearly either needed some bought time or had thrown in the towel on his journey to the perceived in between. The enemy was vulnerable, but who would stand p to him is not she. Besides, there was a score to settle.

"Voldemort!"

Everything stopped. No more curses flew through the air. No one uttered a word and all those fighting parted like the Red Sea with Voldemort at one end and Joanna on the other. "Enough," Joanna said. "You've made a crucial mistake at last, and now you can do the honor of paying the price for your malice."

"Will I now my dear?" Voldemort smiled maliciously, and strolled up to Joanna. "Bellatrix was right about you, Joanna. You were never with us were you? You and your husband were against me all along. Well your spouse has been dispatched of, so now I suppose I shall have to deal with you."

He was now no more than ten feet away from her. Joanna tensed, not exactly raising her wand but erring on caution. She could not afford to make any mistakes here. Unfortunately his reflexes were better than she had seen them in a long time. Not one word came from his mouth, but Joanna's wand flew from her hand. As she watched it fall to the ground Voldemort was on her like a fly on honey. In a moment he was on her, lifting her by the front of her robes. They were face to face. Though she was certain it could not be seen by the crowd Joanna could feel his spare hand, not the one holding both her robes and his wand, creeping dangerously close to her womanhood, snaking through the folds of her skirts and seeking out the heat between her legs. It made her want to vomit.

"This is going to happen, Joanna Flamel. Join me for good, and live, or your life is forfeit."

Joanna took a breath and without a shadow of a doubt in her voice, responded, "Then it's forfeit."

"That's a shame," Voldemort said. He lifted the hand that had invaded her privacy a moment ago to his nose and sniffed slightly with a cold smile gracing his lips. "You were always my favorite." This came at a whisper to her ear. Then Voldemort scowled and threw Joanna from him. When she was sprawled on the floor before him, he took aim and without a hint of emotion in his cold eyes…

"Avada Kedavra."

Everything was dark. And then it wasn't. She was at a train station. There were no trains in it, but there was someone sitting on a bench as though they were waiting. It was a man. He was thin and his hair was white as snow. He turned around, and then Joanna recognized him.

"Daddy."

Nicholas Flamel stood and walked toward his daughter. "My girl." They hugged for a long time and after they parted, they sat together on the bench.

"Daddy, what is this place?"

"This is the in between. The space between the world and the world beyond. I've been waiting for you."

"Me?"

"Dumbledore's little friend Trelawny had a premonition about this. I've been waiting for you."

"But why?'

"Because there is something I need to remind you of before I go."

Joanna pulled a face and asked, "What?"

"I have no idea what this means, but I was meant to tell you to recall a conversation you had in the great hall with the Dark Lord when the Ministry failed."

Joanna shook her head sadly. "He said those with great power within them may not need to murder to impart a piece of their soul into another thing. The soul is synonymous with life force. He seemed to think I could very well save someone from death if I put my mind to it. But when Lucan died…I felt drained. I had nothing left in me for weeks."

"I'm sure you could have done something, but knowing what happened, who had ended it, it would not have been a good life. Even if you could have mustered the power, you did right by letting him go. Ah."

From the corner of her eye Joanna could see something toddling up to her. When she looked down it was Lucan. Without thinking, she fell to her knees and scooped him into her arms.

"I've kept him safe so you could see him," Flamel said. "Before you go."

"We're…not going together?"

Flamel smiled sadly. "It will take more time before we meet again, my pet. Your time isn't up. And nether is his."

Things started going dark again. Lucan dissolved in her arms and the train station disappeared. And just as the station was gone, the Great Hall came back into focus.

"What happened?"

Joanna opened her eyes. Harry was kneeling over her and there was a bright blue light shining in her eyes. Joanna looked down at her chest and saw that the amulet Severus had given her was glowing bright blue. He had been right; the amulet his mother had entrusted to him saved her life.

Severus…

He had to be around here somewhere. Her father was right, his time wasn't up. Not while Joanna was still alive. The glow died down and Joanna lifted the amulet from her neck. Powerful items like that were always short-term deals. Chances were this one had only one shot at a miracle. The stone had always had a certain brightness to it, but now it was darker than she'd ever noticed; almost a dead color. She laid it aside and started to stand and Harry made to help her but she waved him off, and when she was on her feet Joanna looked around.

Voldemort was nowhere to be seen, nothing was left but a pile of robes on the floor. There were people hugging and crying for joy. Some of the people doing so were the Malfoys. Well, they weren't crying nor did they appear joyful, but they did look relieved and that was good enough for her.

"Harry, where is Severus?"

The boy swallowed hard and said, "I tried to tell you before. Nagini got him, in the Shrieking Shack, top floor. Voldemort sicked that ugly beast-"

But Joanna was done listening. She would need to work fast. She strode over to Lucius. "Malfoy," she barked as though it were an order. "Come with me."

"Leave us alone, Joanna."

She rounded on him with a stern face. "If you ever felt an ounce of friendship towards my husband you'll come with me, now."

Lucius nodded and followed Joanna out of the hall, out of the castle and across the grounds. And while she lead on, Joanna described her plan. "Should this go badly, I'll need someone there," she concluded. "No one is going to help me now but the boy and…he's seen enough tonight."

"Right, and you haven't." Lucius was pulling faces in the dark as he picked through the underground tunnel, tripping over roots and rocks. "What do you mean if something goes wrong? It's not only possible, it's likely. Even if you accomplish this, you'll probably die. Severus might be alive, but-"

"Then I'll have paid my debt." Joanna stopped at the end and placed her hand over the trap door she had followed Severus through some four years before. "He saved my life sixteen years ago. He did it again tonight. Now it's my turn."

She threw the trap door open and climbed out onto the first level of the shack. After helping Lucius up after her, they tore up the stairs and found Severus precisely where Harry had said: top floor.

Nagini certainly had done a number on him. The bite was right in the neck, severing a major artery. Blood covered the floor. Joanna knelt beside Severus' body and undid the buttons of his frock coat. While she worked on his undershirt, Lucius asked, "How do you know how to go about this?"

"I don't."

The shirt was undone and the alabaster skin of Severus' chest lay bare before her. Joanna closed her eyes and searched her body, looking for that power. Was it truly there? She didn't know. There was something, the question was would it be enough.

Joanna opened her eyes and placed her palms over the exposed skin. Breathing deeply, she felt her heart grasp at something in the pit of her stomach, a warm tingling something. It churned up into her chest, out to her arms and through the palms of her hands in a sun-like glow that seemed to fill the room. Joanna felt exhilarated, like she had just started a ten-mile jog. But this didn't last. She started to wane and lightheadedness came over her. There was little more she could do without losing her own life. So she broke the bond.

The room grew dark again and Joanna, who had been sitting on her heels, fell off to the side on one hip, stabilizing herself with one hand and cradling her head in another. Lucius knelt beside her now. "Are you all right?"

Joanna nodded. "I think so…is he-?"

She couldn't look. She didn't want to find that she had poured half her own life force into him and he still lay dead. But Lucius nodded in the direction of Severus. Joanna held her breath and glanced over.

It was slight. Very slight. But Severus' chest was rising and falling ever so gently. Joanna was so relieved she let herself collapse onto her back beside him and started laughing and crying all at once. Lucius mumbled that he would run and get the mediwitch.

For the rest of her life, Joanna would remember this: worst thing that had ever happened to her was losing her son. The greatest was saving Severus' life.

SEVEN YEARS LATER

Joanna sighed as she shut the door to another room. Where on earth were those girls? Honestly there was no point in having so many rooms in an office suite. She was the Minister of Magic, not the Queen of Malaysia. Conference room, private office, public office, personal loo, dear Merlin she had half a mind to cut the place in two. At least it would make finding her children easier.

The unmistakable footfalls of a potion master sounded behind her as she stood in the circular public minister's office. Joanna turned around and smiled, arms crossed over one another. He had one little girl on each side of him, with identical dark hair and pale skin just like their father and identical sparkling eyes and the sweet expression of their mother. "Where did you find them this time?"

Severus got close and Joanna picked up one of the girls, though frankly they were getting a bit much for her to handle and she shouldn't have been lifting anything at all. Severus smiled and said, "Found them in the Magical Beasts and Beings wing, trying to find that bloody little of nifflers they brought in last week."

Joanna scowled mockingly, and said, "Little ears," before continuing, saying, "I told you they were adopted out my darlings."

"We wanted one," the girl at Severus' side said.

"Well Tinley, maybe we'll wait until this baby comes and then talk about it." Joanna stooped to put her other daughter down. "Now go on in Mummy's private office and play with the toys you brought. We'll be leaving soon, I promise."

She straightened up and smiled as the twins went hand in hand to find their dolls. Joanna rubbed her swollen stomach and walked back to her desk, the other hand at her back. She felt just about ready to bust with child, and she thought Tabitha and Tinley had been child enough in her body. She hoped this was not another set of multiples. They had been running out of room after the girls' little brother Rhys had been born three years ago. After the war the townhouse had suffered a good deal of damage from a raid that was probably the work of Fenrir and his thugs. And they hadn't really wanted to stay on Spinner's End so Severus a dJoanna officially purchased the cottage at the edge of Godric's Hollow, where Joanna had been hiding with her mother, where her son had died. It had taken forever for Eric to even be able to visit and set foot in the kitchen but he seemed to be getting over it lately. The only thing was that practically since they moved in they had been adding rooms. Now it was them, their six-year-old girls, three-year-old son, Marvin, a new house elf Bella, and soon a new child in the house Joanna had grown rather fond of despite its legacy in her life.

Joanna sat down in her chair and Severus perched himself on her desk, pulling up one of Joanna's feet and, after removing the shoe, rubbing it tenderly. "Are you uncomfortable?"

"Some."

"We should call on healer Smythe. He said after the last two pregnancies you might not get as strong indications you're in labor until it's too near to move you."

Joanna rolled her eyes but nodded anyway. The door to her office opened and in strode Eric. "Where have you been?" Joanna asked.

"Bit of a rough full moon. Sorry."

Joanna scoffed at herself. "Seven years and I still can't keep it straight, I'm sorry Eric."

Her Senior Undersecretary shook his head at her apology. "Feeling all right?"

Joanna shrugged. "Any day now, so not really no."

"You should be home resting."

Severus let her foot back down. "See? I told you. You don't need to be here. I told you the girls would want to come, and they're one more thing to worry about when they do. Marvin and Bella can handle the lot if you're not up for chasing them around anyway and Eric will send you everything you need. It's Saturday," he pleaded. "Don't you want to be home?"

"Of course I do, but the Priory has a latest report on Greyback and I wait it in my hand and no one else's, so until Rupert gets here with the file, we can all just relax and after he does we can all go home." Both men softened. Of course it was news on Greyback. Joanna would be hunting him down forever until she captured him or was certain he was dead.

Fenrir was the only Death Eater still being chased down by the Priory. The Order of the Phoenix had been disbanded right after Voldemort's fall, but the Priory had stayed together to round up the remainders while the standard Magical Law enforcement handled getting this back to normal. Seven years later and Joanna was still the minister but had no desire to disband them. Even after Greyback was caught, she wasn't sure she would. They were useful. And as long as she was alive, she was their Master. Alastor would have wanted it.

Eric made for his own office, another room right off of Joanna's. (Merlin the suite really was too big.) Severus was called away a few minutes later by one of his employees at the Flamel Alchemic Institute, calling on the fireplace. "It's a bit of a problem," the man was saying, "and without you, professor we're not sure we can fix it." Severus sighed. Joanna knew he hated managing his potions and alchemic research company sometimes, but she also knew he had been more than thrilled to quit teaching after that last year where he served as headmaster.

"You'll be all right?"

"Go on, Eric's just next door."

"I'll be back in ten minutes, tops." And he was gone through the Floo Network. Joanna hoisted herself up out of her chair and retired to her private office. The girls were busy sitting on the couch and coloring pages in their fill-in books. On the sidewall, Joanna had hung pictures. Muggle ones that didn't move, the kind that captured a happy moment forever. Pictures of her and her husband, her children, there was one of her father. And at eye level there was an older one, of Lucan on his first birthday.

He was smiling wide with glee with cake and frosting gumming up his hair. Joanna felt a tug at her robes and looked down to see Tinley. Joanna lifted the picture down from its place and walked over to the couch, hand in hand with her daughter. Together they all sat, the picture in Joanna's hand. The girls never knew their older brother, but they loved him all the same.

"What do you remember most about him?" Tabitha asked. She asked this all the time. Joanna liked hearing herself utter the answer as much as she imagined the girls liked hearing it.

"I remember that Lucan smiled. Lucan always smiled."

Joanna snuggled in with her girls, one in each arm and they passed time taking turns feeling the baby kick inside Joanna's belly.

Joanna would not get her reports that day. While Severus was gone her water broke. Eric brought her to St. Mungos and helped watch the girls and Rhys after calling on Severus at the Institute and Marvin and Bella at home. Just before midnight, Joanna and Severus welcomed a baby boy. Nicholas, after his grandfather.

There had been so many years during her life, during the war, even after it had ended, where Joanna never felt comfortable. But now holding Nicholas while her older children piled onto what was left of her hospital bed and Severus sitting by her side, all alive, all healthy, and all safe, she truly felt as though she could breathe easy. History was full of dark times, and she would likely stand toe to toe with some nameless evil again in her life. But these were the moments that had come to define her history: the small, prefect, peaceful moments that come along so commonly, but hold fast to the heart.