Blossom of Magic
The bench was hard and uncomfortable, but the dim rays of blue and red light that filtered through the stained glass windows captivated her attention. Although the cathedral was a structure of stone, the secret of its architecture was the interplay of shadow and light: the sunlight as it lit the scenes in the colourful windows, the shadows obscuring the height of the arcs that carried the nave and the aisles, the flickering lights of the candles lit to carry a prayer to aloft, the darkness that lurked behind the vast columns.
Severus was right; shortly after they sat down, a boys’ choir began a rehearsal. The song of bright young voices drifted through the high halls of the church and tugged at Hermione’s heart. She didn’t understand the words, nor did she need to. What else would they be singing but a prayer or a psalm? Again Hermione experienced a pang of regret, an odd, forlorn ache. She felt like a stranger here, out of place. Because she was a witch? Was that the true reason her mother had stopped going to church with her? Without her parents to anchor her to it, Hermione realised, the Muggle world was slipping from her grasp, faster and faster.
But why should that make her sad? She had her own world. And her own…well, she supposed that you could call a husband ‘family’. Or at least the nucleus of a family.
Suddenly she wished that she could find it in her heart to pray. She had so much to pray for. Hermione glanced at her husband. The twilight softened the harsh lines of his face. Why had Severus brought her here? She wasn’t surprised when he noticed her gaze. But the understanding she saw in his dark eyes took her unawares. Quickly, Hermione closed her eyes to keep silly tears from spilling.
A hand touched her fingers, slipped under her palm, dry and cool and strong. Fingers curled around her hand and held it in a careful grip, as always mindful of the hypersensitivity his blood had left her with.
oooOooo
‘The cathedral of Chartres is also renowned for its labyrinth,’ Severus murmured, as he led her back to the entrance of the cathedral. He pointed to the floor at their feet. ‘It was integrated in the design of the cathedral from the beginning, and is one of the finest labyrinths to be found in the cathedrals of the western world. Some say it reflects the symbol of the ‘flower of life’—God at the centre, the world and the universe spiralling outwards. In the wizarding world the same symbol is known as the ‘blossom of magic’. For ages the labyrinth has meant a symbolic pilgrimage. You walk its paths in the hope of ascending toward salvation or enlightenment.’
Hermione stared at the white and black stone at her feet.
‘The white stone comes from the quarries of Berchères, the black from Senlis. The diameter—’
‘Do you believe in God?’ she asked suddenly.
Severus paused, but didn’t reprimand her for her interruption. Instead he considered her question.
‘No,’ he replied at last. ‘At one time, I might have wanted to believe in a God. But that was long ago. Now…’ He shook his head. ‘There is a Muggle who wrote a few lines about this cathedral. He is quoted in most travel guides. Orson Welles.
‘A fact of life…we’re going to die. “Be of good heart,†cry the dead artists out of the living past. Our songs will all be silenced—but what of it? Go on singing. Maybe a man’s name doesn’t matter all that much,’
Severus quoted. ‘Don’t forget that there is a world out here, Hermione. A whole world for you to see. And you belong to this world, too.’
‘And how about you?’
Severus sighed and shook his head, refusing to answer her question.
‘Come,’ he said at last and held out his hand to her. ‘Will you walk to the centre with me?’
oooOooo
They had just reached the centre of the labyrinth when a tiny old man in the black robes of a priest came hurrying towards them.
‘Ah, it is you!’ the priest smiled up at Snape. ‘I thought I ‘ad ‘eard your voice. It ‘as been a long time.’
Severus inclined his head. ‘Yes. I was busy. And then I was…sick, for a while.
’Abbé Rigaud, may I present my wife, Mrs. Hermione Snape?’
The old man beamed at her and held out his wrinkled hand. ‘Enchanté, madame! Absolon Rigaud is my name, and I am delighted to meet you.’
When she shook his hand, the priest covered her hand with his. Then he reached for Snape’s hand, and although Severus looked extremely discomfited at the touch, he allowed the old man to take it. Abbé Rigaud’s faint smile told Hermione that he was aware of how uncomfortable that gesture made her husband.
‘May the love that brought you together grow and mature with each passing year. May it bring you both ever closer to the Lord through your love for each other. Let your love grow to perfection,’ the priest intoned as he brought their hands together, joined them and covered them with his own. ‘The Lord bless thee, and keep thee: The Lord make ‘is face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The Lord lift up ‘is countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.’
‘Thank you, Father,’ Hermione whispered.
Severus wordlessly inclined his head.
‘I am afraid, young man, that this will be the last time we meet,’ Abbé Rigaud said in his wheezy old man’s voice, his accent more pronounced than before. ‘It is time for me to find my way to the ‘eart of the labyrinth.’ He turned to Hermione and smiled. ‘Madam, I don’t think you know ‘ow much joy it brings to my ‘eart to know that my friend ‘as found you. ‘e ‘as been alone for far too long.’
Oh, Chartres cathedral! What a perfect destination!
I visited there in high school when on the exchange program. It was the first cathedral I ever visited, and I shall never forget the feeling of amazement!
They are working on restoring the windows at the moment. I think they will be done in 2011/2012 … can’t wait to see it again then, all bright like at the time it was built.
I loved your story… so far. But Severus Snape in a church? Oh my, quite OOC, but OK, he needed someone to talk to, so I drop the topic.
BUt this punishment for Alina is rather brutal. And for what? That a half-Keazle cat disappeared for two days? C’mooooon…. And Ginny was standing there and watching? What happened to your characters? They were sooo perfect! Especially Snape, and now this chatedral, or church, or whatever…
Ok, I’ll read on, just wanted to tell my thoughts.
Thank you for spending time with my story. Thank you even more for taking the time to leave a comment! I’m glad you enjoy it so far.
Why shouldn’t Snape visit a church? And where in canon does it say he wouldn’t? 😉
Re: Alina’s punishment – I’d be shocked if you didn’t think it harsh!
However … even at “Muggle” boarding schools traditions of hazing and punishment among students are incredibly cruel and harsh in real life. JKR chose to ignore that part of public school tradition; I decided against that. The shock and revulsion you (hopefully) feel are quite intentional.
Please feel free to offer your thoughts any time, I’m always curious about what my readers think. Even if I don’t agree with them. 😉
Oh, don’t get me wrong! Of course it is not impossible for him to go a place like a church, I just feel like it’s wierd.
And as for Alina, yes, I felt shock. That was oh, ‘harsh’ is not the right word. But the most shocking thing was that Ginny was standing there and watching, without a word.
So I was relieved when she told the whole thing to Hermione.
And that part with McGonagoll, and keep your stupid cup, LOL 😀 Loved that.
That’s fine, really. 🙂 I am trying to portray Severus as a character with unexpected depths, after all.
I have read your story on fanfiction.net a while back but I really like this version better. it gives a lot more… structure? character? feeling? to the story.. I am unable to describe the exact thing.. but still.
Good work all around..
I am thrilled that you’re enjoying the way I present my story here! And what a wonderful compliment that you came back to read it again. w00t
I love Chartres Cathedral. I wrote a paper on it for Art History class and found that the Masons built many esoteric features into it. When I actually was fortunate enough to visit it in person, it had a spiritual effect on me. I visited many other cathedrals in France that trip, and none of them made me feel the way that one did.
I’m so glad Severus took Hermione there. Still not sure why he would, but your Severus seems full of surprises. I’m sure, given time, he will grow to love her as much as she does him. He is well on his way already.
Great story.
Chartres is amazing. 🙂
Re: Severus – in canon he always struck me as a man of many (surprising) secrets. So I enjoyed giving him a few more in my story!
I have never seen the Chatres Cathedral, but I have seen other cathedrals and can imagine the feeling this one can give you. Loved the pictures.
So, Alina is a Necromancer, whatever that is. I hope I don’t need more information than you give within this story. (I don’t know the books you refer there.)
That punishment was really harsh and unusual, but I can see this within the HP universe, even if it was never described. The HP universe has a lot of really cruel customs. I remember how shocked I was at the outcome of the Triwizard tournament. I think this fits with the feeling the House of Slytherin gave me as portrayed in the books.
What is a half kneazel? You just need to know cats to know they can vanish for days without anyone finding them. The castle is big and Crookshanks had years to explore the thing. It seems the students don’t know cats very well 😉 . But I can imagine how desperate poor Alina was when she noticed the cat was missing. From there on everything just spun out of control. I just hope that this incident plus the bell incident didn’t cost Alina her Slytherin friends. She needs friends in school and not just friends in other houses or among the staff.
Necromancers (the manifestation of Sauron in Dol Guldur was called a Necromancer, too) are wizards with a special affinity for the dead, to put it simply. They can talk to the dead or control zombies … depends on the interpretation, really. I was fascinated with the world-building in the “Abhorsen” books, and in conjunction with some HP death magic (like the Veil), it seemed to me an interesting AU angle to explore.
Re: the punishment, yes, yes, yes, exactly! This is one of the scenes that usually leaves readers totally shocked. But based on what I know about “normal” hazing in Muggle British public schools, I think Slytherin must have been ten times worse. And isn’t it how those things usually go? Good intentions all around and suddenly you’re sitting in a handbasket and it’s getting awfully hot and the air smells of sulphur …
Kneazles: http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Kneazle
(I think they show that JKR doesn’t really know cats, because they are like that and do all that stuff without any magic, thank you very much. 😉 )
Beautiful. As is the rest of this novel, but this was so unexpected! Looking forward to the whole unchartered territory ahead of our newlyweds.
20 years? It’s high time I saw Chartres again, and took my son (it’s ridiculously near my usual place).
And I’ll go on minding my h’s 😉
Thank you for reading! And oh, Chartres … you’re lucky to live so close. I’ve been wanting to visit again for years … the windows are supposed to be better than ever after the restoration. But unfortunately I live really, really far away. *sigh*
I’m glad you’re enjoying the story! *hearts*