Remedy For Guilt

Chapter Twenty Two - Happy Birthday

There wasn't a day that went by over the next two weeks where Lyra didn't receive a letter. There were Howlers telling her how despicable she was for using the Dark Arts and long winded letters detailing why she didn't deserve her position.

In fact, Lyra was surprised that Albus hadn't fired her yet, as she was sure that he too would be on the receiving end of letters requesting her dismissal. He hadn't mentioned it to her or any other staff, they all seemed to be sympathetic about the situation. None of them harboured any negative feelings towards Lyra as they all knew her and had seen her grow, the only negativity they felt was towards the authors of the article and the numerous letters she received.

Lyra didn't mind the letters, she read every one of them and took every bit of criticism, using it to train herself and her emotions for her Occlumency lessons. Severus spent every night trying to pry open her mind and despite the insults she was receiving regularly, Lyra could manage to keep her mind closed.

Not every letter was harsh and critical. In amongst the complaints were letters of warmth and encouragement from her family and friends. They all gave her different advice to deal with it; Andromeda and Ted saying to keep her head down whilst Lucius claimed he had a way to enact revenge, all she needed was to say the word. She was curious as to what it entailed but decided to follow her other Aunt and Uncle's advice, waiting for the whole thing to blow over.

She was sure that the public would soon follow the same suit of her students. They would become less afraid and forget as their mind would become occupied with a new topic of interest. For her students it was the upcoming Slytherin vs. Ravenclaw match.

Lyra was sure her reputation had been damaged by the article but it didn't shake her. A tarnished reputation was something she was used to and she wasn't going to allow that to affect her anymore. No, she was happy. For the first time in her life she felt genuinely happy.

She had a man who loved her back and cared for her. She had a job which she enjoyed and allowed her freedom.

But there was still a part of herself that craved more.

You could call it her Slytherin ambition but really it had manifested from one of the many lessons that she learnt from her family; to never be satisfied by mediocrity, to push yourself to achieve nothing less than excellence.

And oh, how Lucius dangled excellence right in front of her with those words 'Order of Merlin'.

She could envision it. She could almost taste it. She had been so close and now she wanted it.

Lyra suspected that it was his plan all along, to drop the name of a prestigious award and allow the idea to worm its way into her head but why? To get her to quit her position at Hogwarts? To deter her from pursuing a relationship with Severus? To somehow gain his family prestige?

They all seemed like viable motivations and Lyra was sure that if she took him up on his offer to enact revenge it would all somehow play into his hand. Reluctant to be used by her Uncle, Lyra ignored his offer and instead she did what she did best, throwing herself into her work, focusing on her students and training her mind.

The Quidditch Match came and went, another success for Slytherin, and February came to its end, rolling into Spring. The letters were less frequent and the article seemed to be in the past. Lyra and Severus were closer than ever as they spent every night together. He would challenge her mind's ability to keep closed during tasks such as writing, cleaning and learning advanced potion making techniques. At times he could be a harsh teacher but when the lessons came to an end they would fall into bed with one another, occasionally exchanging passion.

Lyra's birthday landed on the third weekend of March that year and she was woken up by Severus pulling her close to his body, muttering "Happy Birthday" in her ear. She smiled and snuggled closely, relishing in the feeling of his arms wrapped around her, their naked bodies pressed against one another. Her hands interlocked with his and she drifted off to sleep for a brief nap before they woke fully.