I know I haven't updated anything in absolutely ages! I know, believe me. But I've been running around like a headless chicken these last few weeks getting ready to start college, and now I'm going in a few days, and I won't be able to update anything for the next while. So, for the record, Sister 1 is officially out of the running for the next couple of months or so, so any HP fics on this profile will be on hiatus for the duration. Sorry, and hope to get back to y'all sometime soon. Till then, here's the next chapter of Knight. Enjoy.

Chapter 15: Affairs of the Heart

Molly sat in the kitchen, elbows leaning on the table, her aching head cradled in her hands. Arthur sat beside her, arm around her, his chin resting on top of her head. She leant into him, savouring the quiet moment, and the strength his presence brought her. She needed it. Right then, she so badly needed his strength and silent reassurance. She needed her Arthur, with his childlike joys, and his protective fury, and his ridiculously warm love for her. She needed him, because she was about ready to break.

"How many, Arthur?" she whispered into her hands. His arm tightened around her shoulders. "How many of them are we going to see hurt? First Severus nearly ... nearly dies, and then that bastard sends Harry those horrible nightmares, and now Remus and Sirius ... Why now? Why does it all happen now? Who's going to be next? Ron? The twins? Percy?" She paused, drawing a desperate breath. "You? Is it going to be you next? Arthur? What do I do? What the hell can I do to protect all of you? Please tell me! Please ..."

She trailed off, voice choked by tears. The vision of her boggart rose like a banshee in her mind, her children, her husband, dead and dying, in such pain, and she couldn't help them. She couldn't do one single useful thing to help them! Why was it so unfair?

"Molly, shhhh," Arthur murmured, holding her tight. "Oh Molly, please don't think that way. I'm still here. I'll always be here for you. As if I could leave you. My Mollywobbles. Shhhh. They're strong, Molly. They're all so very strong. We won't lose them. Ron and Harry, Severus, Fred and George, Percy, the Order ... They're all fighting with everything they have to survive. They'll make it. We'll make it. Please believe me, Molly."

"But I can't help them, Arthur," she cried despairingly. "I'm so useless! I'm just a stupid woman minding a stupid house!What good am I to the Order? To anyone? The Order and Harry and Severus, they can all fight, and you and Percy can spy and find out things, and Dumbledore does everything, and all I can do is cook some stupid meals and try not to go mad! What good am I! What's the point in me bein ... "

He moved. He pulled her sideways out of her chair and held her by the shoulders so he could stare her in the eyes. She gasped. She'd rarely seen him look so angry. Arthur looked furious. The muddled tinkerer was gone, and in his place was the avatar that had faced down the Order for Severus and scared the living daylights out of her twins when they went too far. He glared at her, and it wasn't just anger, but love. She stared.

"Don't you say that!" he snarled. "Don't you ever say that! You are not useless, you foolish woman! You're everything to us! Don't you see! You're the heart and soul of the Order! Why do you think we're so strong? Why do you think Ron and Harry and Percy and me have the strength to fight? Because of you. Because you're there for us. Do you think Severus would have survived if you hadn't been there? Do you think Percy could stand up to being hated if he didn't know how much you love him? Do you think I ... do you honestly think I could live a day without you? Do you think I could ever have the courage to stand up and fight if I didn't have your love?"

He cupped her face in his hands and brushed away her tears, even as his own trickled down his cheeks. "Molly," he whispered. "Gods, Molly, I love you so much it hurts. It rips my heart out to see you hurt like this. That's why I'd fight. For you, and for our children and friends. Because you mean the world to me, and you mean so much to everyone. You keep us sane. Maybe we can fight, but you give us a reason, and that makes you one of the most important, useful, people here. So don't ever let me hear you say otherwise again. You hear me?"

She swallowed, hard, and leant forwards into him. He wrapped his arms back around her, and she hugged him back, holding him to her with all the power and desperation of love. "Arthur. Oh gods, Arthur. I'm so sorry."

"I know, Molly. I know."

"He's right, you know." A soft voice intruded gently on them. Molly gasped, jerking up and around to face the doorway. To face Severus. "If you asked anyone here, they'd tell you the same. You're our haven, our reason. You're everyone's mother. You give us a reason to fight, and a safe place to return to when we can't. You're our hope. You're my hope. Don't forget that. Listen to your husband. He gets an amazing amount of things right, when it's important."

She blinked up at him, at Arthur beside her, swallowing. Arthur smiled at Severus, a grateful smile, answered with an acknowledging nod. Molly stared at them. Then she looked down at herself, at her hands knotted together in her lap with worry, at her deshivelled appearance from being wrapped around her husband. She could feel the warmth of her face, feel the slight stickiness from her tears.

"Oh dear," she muttered, biting her lip.

"What is it?" Arthur asked at once. She looked at him, looked him straight in the eyes, letting him see her shame and gratitude and love. His concern melted into a look of warm, confused love that sent tingles through her stomach. She smiled.

"I must look a right mess. What would everyone think, hmm? Some haven I look, sitting here blubbering like a baby. What would everyone think?" Arthur only smiled.

"They'd think that you were having a well-deserved breakdown, and do their utmost to try and cheer you up," Severus stated confidently, moving across to sit on the opposite side of the table. "After all the times you pulled each of us back together, by bullying us or cajolling us, or conspiring with portraits to distract us from our misery ... There is little any of us wouldn't do to help you feel better. Especially your family and I. We ... love you."

He looked away at that, as if ashamed that he had presumed to make such a statement. This son was still so very damaged. Molly looked fondly at him, and made up her mind. If they valued her support so very much, then she would give it to them. All of them. Her sons and daughter, her adopted sons, her friends and colleagues, and Arthur. Always Arthur. No matter what, she vowed to be there for them, all of them, and heaven help anyone who tried to tell her otherwise.

She reached out across the table and took Severus' hand in hers. He looked up, startled, and she smiled warmly at him. "We love you too, Severus. Don't you forget it, either."

He dipped his head, but she could see him bite his lip to hold back a shy smile. The warmth of love that half hidden gesture made her feel ... Ah, but what had she been thinking? Of course she belonged here! Of course she belonged with these people, and of course she had a role to play among them. They belonged to her, every single one of them, and she would never let them down, never give up on a single one of them. For better or worse, they were stuck with her.

"Are you alright, Severus?" Arthur asked quietly. "Did you need something?"

"Oh!" Molly exclaimed. "Oh, how silly of me. Yes. Were you looking for someone, Severus?"

He looked away for a minute, pulling himself together. "Uh, yes, actually. I was looking for you. But it doesn't matter. I'm sure it can wait, if you and Arthur are ... busy." He blushed slightly, and Molly bit back a wicked grin. It made him look so cute. You so rarely saw Severus embarrassed, that she just had to make the most of it.

"Why would you think we were busy, Severus?" she asked slyly. Arthur looked at her, surprised, and recognised the look in her eyes. He shook his head in exasperation, but she knew he loved her antics. Severus, on the other hand ...

"Oh, um, I thought ... That is ... you seemed so upset, that I thought you and Arthur might want to ..."

"To comfort each other?" she finished, grinning. Severus' blush deepened. "We're not teenagers anymore, you know, Severus."

"Though that never stopped us before," Arthur muttered in her ear, low and suggestively. She stiffled a giggle, a little red tinting her own cheeks. There were times when her husband put teenagers to shame, and the way his arm curled around her shoulders, one hand resting ever so lightly on her arm ...

Severus coughed, standing to leave. "Well, I'll, um, leave you ... leave you to ... it. Um, yes. Excuse me." And he turned, balanced on his toes as if ready to flee. Shaking her head, Molly called after him.

"Oh, no, Severus," she laughed. "No, please don't leave. I was only playing with you, that's all. Please, come back and tell us what you need. I'm sure Arthur can wait ... ?" She smiled at her husband, playfully. He smiled back.

"Of course. So long as it's not for too long. You know I can't keep my hands off you, my Mollywobbles." He winked at her, wickedly, but she couldn't help getting the impression that he was more relieved than anything else. She had no idea it scared him so much to see her upset. In a way, it was strangely comforting. "Come back, lad. What is it?"

Severus sat back down, watching them warily, as if at any moment he expected them to start kissing like horny teenagers in front of him. Molly blushed delightedly. Oh, this would do absolute wonders for her reputation among the Order. Absolutely.

"Well, it's just ... It's probably nothing, but I keep getting ... pains, in my heart. I don't know why, and I thought that since your father had heart troubles, Molly ... I thought you might be able to tell me if something was wrong."

And, that quickly, the playfulness was gone. Both she and Arthur sat up straight in concern, a frown already appearing on her husband's face. If Severus was sick ... That was no joke. And so soon after his injuries. Oh!

"Do you think it might be because of ...?"

Severus nodded. "It only started recently. That's what I'm afraid of, yes."

Arthur nodded. "Alright. Tell us when it happens, what it feels like, how badly it hurts."

Severus looked down at the table, hands twisting in his lap. He looked nervous. "Well, you see, that's it. This is going to sound very strange, and maybe it's simply some kind of stress reaction to what happened, but ... It only happens when ... when Poppy is near. It's ... strange. It feels like ... like my heart turns over in my chest. It hurts, but in the achy kind of way that old scars hurt, you know? As if my heart always hurt around her. I don't know what it is, and I was hoping that you ..." He stopped, having looked up and caught sight of their faces.

"What! What is it?" he asked, sounding a touch panicked. She supposed she couldn't blame him, as her face must have been quite a sight, but all she could think was: Finally! Poppy had been waiting for so long, and he had never even realised ... Oh dear. If he truly didn't know what it was he felt ... How to explain?

"Um, Severus, dear ... Well. This is going to be ... rather awkward."

"What? What is it? Tell me!"

"Severus," Arthur began, frowning slightly. "I'm afraid what you have ... It's not what you think you have. It's something altogether more ... serious, I'm afraid."

He looked between them, worry and confusion on his face. "What? Tell me."

"Severus, dear ..." Molly sighed. "I'm afraid you're in love."

"What!" He looked positively affronted.

"Molly's right," Arthur confirmed. "Everything you've said ... plus the way you look at her ... the signs are all there. You've joined those of us poor saps who happen to be head over heels for some pretty face ... Ow!" He flinched back from her punch, rubbing his arm. "What I mean to say is, you're obviously in love with Poppy. And deeply too, if your heart does that in her presence without you even knowing how you feel. There's no help for it once it gets like that, I'm afraid." And he slid a glance her way, a knowing look, and she remembered how he had gone about convincing her heart that he was the one it wanted to jump at.

Now that the initial shock and affront had faded, the panic had set back in. Severus looked ready to up and flee, to Alaska if need be. For some reason, she found that both terribly funny, and horribly sad. This boy wouldn't bat an eyelid at getting tortured almost to death, would face going back among demons again and again, and at the thought of love, of happiness, he would run a mile in sheer shock and panic. That said a lot for the kind of life he'd been forced to live.

"But ..." Severus stuttered. "I can't! There's a war on, and I ... and she ... even if I was ... I've nothing to offer someone like her, and ..."

"Oh, bull!" Molly barked at him, severely startling him. "Bull! You call yourself a spy? I thought you could read people! When she brought your arm, don't tell me you couldn't see how she felt about you? Don't tell me you couldn't see how much she loved you! I didn't think you were a fool!"

He blanched, leaning back from her, looking striken. But before she could apologise, his expression changed. Shock slipped away, and a frown replaced it, a look of consideration and not a little wonder. He was silent for a long moment, thinking.

"Are ... Are you sure?" he asked finally.

She would have snapped at him, told him that yes, of course she was sure, or she wouldn't have said anything, but he looked so young, so vunerable. She remembered how nervous and scared she had been when she and Arthur had been starting out, how her knees had almost given out when he asked her to go with him to graduation, how her heart had all but stopped when he got down on his knees in front of her. It was a frightening thing, love, especially at a time like this, as she herself had only just proven. But it was worth it. She knew that, looking at Arthur. It was worth all that, and a hundred, billion times more. But Severus didn't know that, and wouldn't until experience taught it to him.

"Severus," she said gently. "The only way you'll know for sure is if you try. Trust me. Love is worth so much, so very much." Arthur gripped her hand tightly. "It will make you the happiest, most frightened, most courageous person in the world, and give you something that'll keep your heart beating until the life is literally pounded out of you, and beyond. Trust me."

He looked at her strangely. "But ... it hurts?"

She bit her lip, nodding. "Yes. Sometimes it hurts. Sometimes having your heart turn over every time you see the person you love hurts. Sometimes loving someone so much that it makes you sick every time they're not there hurts. Sometimes it hurts to know that one person can hold such power over you. But it's a different kind of pain to the type you're used to. It's not like the kind of pain people like He-who-must-not-be-named bring. It's bittersweet, and it makes the warmth and love all the more precious. It's so very precious."

Arthur smiled sadly, pulling her close to him and placing a tender kiss on her forehead. She laid her head against his collarbone without looking at him, hugging him to her while she looked at her child. "Trust us, Severus. Just try. Just ask her. Trust us." He nodded, grave and serious.

"And if she reaches for a wand or a broom, duck and run, then come back later," Arthur added, cheerfully. Molly growled, pulling back a bit to thump him in the ribs. "Ooof! What? It's sound advice! A woman in the right mood can have a strong arm on her. I should know!"

"Keep at it and you'll see how strong an arm I've got, you old goat!" she growled, fist raised threateningly. Severus looked shocked for a moment, then chuckled.

"You see," Arthur smiled triumphantly. "He agrees with me." He backed away as she advanced, the smile on her face saying clearly: Keep talking if you want a nice big bruise on those jewels of yours. Severus laughed, demeanor lightened considerably. She snarled playfully at him, and he affected the same look of innocence that had served her twins so well. Damn, but he learned fast.

"Shit!" The three of them turned in shock towards the doorway, to stare at the newcomer. Sirius looked back in horror for a moment, then turned and ran back down the hall, staggering drunkenly. "Moony! Moony, help! I've lost it, Moony! That werewolf must've killed my brain! I'm hallucinating! I just listened to Snape getting advice on love from Molly and Arthur! Moony, I've gone insane! Help me, Moony!"

"Damn, shut up, Sirius!" Remus' tired voice growled down the stairs. "You've always been insane. Now get back to bed before you collapse on me again! They're gonna kill us as it is. Please don't annoy them further with your melodramatic racket!"

Arthur looked over at her while she stood there glowering after them, fists clenched. She knew she must look furious, but she was. All the time she spent worrying over the Order, over her extended family, and they run off for fun and almost get killed? Damn right she was angry. Then to top it off, they get up when they're nowhere near healed and make themselves worse! Oh, she was gonna kill 'em all right. Damn straight she was going to kill them!

"Severus, call Poppy. We're going to need her," she snarled, striding off after the fleeing Marauder. She caught his look of consternation as she passed, and wondered how wise it was to have him talk with Poppy so soon after his realisation, but they were going to need her.

Because if she had her way, those Marauders were never even going to think about running off again. They were going to be too busy trying not to get her angry ever, ever again.

xXx

That's it for now. Leave feedback? Please? And I will try to update things if I have any time at all. Just ... don't expect too much for the next while, okay? Thank you all.