Tempora Mutantur, Nos et Mutamur in Illis
Chapter 14 New Year and Beyond （Part 1）
Snape was almost certain that he would go to Hogwarts alone, again. Apparently, his date decided to stand him up, not that he had put much hope in it per se.
Just before he was about to Apparate, he heard a small 'Pop' behind him. Turning around, he found Susiel Pond in a deep V-neck red dress.
"You're right on time." He observed, "Are you sure about it?"
"Hate to give any witch the wrong idea of you being available." She quipped, only half-jokingly.
"Yeah,or they will throw themselves on me. How silly of me not see that coming."He drawled with heavy sarcasm, then checked her up and down, "Interesting dress. Trying to impress someone, are we?"
She bridged the gap between them and pecked on his cheek lightly, "And you're in your best dress robes."
"It's my only set." He told a barefaced lie, "Apart from the dress, is itwise to go in your long-term identity?"
"A decent man like Dr. Prince deserves a fair lady for company, and I highly doubt Susiel Pond is well-recognized in the wizardry society." She put her arm in his, "Besides, I do want to make my point once and for all. Side-along,shall we, darling?"
Her mischief never ceased to amuse him. Holding her tightly, he played along, "We shall, darling."
They Apparated to Hogsmeade and walked to Hogwarts. Snape had to admit that Nymphadora was a nature actress, for she acted exactly the way a muggle should be when visiting the magic world for the first time. Yet she had spent more than 30 years here. Was it another gift of being a Metamorphmagus?
As if sensing his thought track, she said in a low voice only he could hear, "It's not so hard, you know. To me, it's another life. This IS the first time for Susiel. I almost forget I was once your student."
"Just don't forget that you can't Apparate within Hogwarts." He warned her meaningfully. When things get bad, Nymphadora does have a tendency to flee.
"Darling, I don't know what you're talking about." She batted her eyelashes with the innocence of a schoolgirl.
Nymphadora's POV
I don't know why I changed my mind at the last minute. To my defense, I didn't accept his invitation. All I said was, 'Just give me the time, and I'll meet you at your place if I want to go." And I didn't want to go! I didn't think I'm ready to see HIM again.
But the thought of Severus being alone in the Gala made me sad. Few people like him and less genuinely wish him to be happy. He deserves happiness. People should know he has built adecent life from scratch. People should see him with someone. I want to make him happy. So here I am, heading to the grand hall, knowing soon I'll confront my living nightmare. Maybe it's a good thing I come with Severus.
I was rather shocked when I saw him in his best dress robes, almost to the same level that when I ran into him the first time: Severus Snape in a suit, a practicing psychiatrist, no less.
How can a man change to another identity so seamlessly wearing the same face? He doesn't even bother to introduce Ployjuice! Come to think of it, Severus has a knack of adapting. Whatever life throws at him, he always does what he must and feels comfortable of it, death eater, Potions master, Hogwarts Professor, double agent, Dumbledore's murderer,backstage hero, and now, a muggle psychiatrist. Unlike Remus or me, he never runs away when things go wrong. I want to know his trick! Maybe that is the reason why I revealed my true identity to him. I mean, I could have walked out of the door and switched to another psychiatrist, couldn't I?
I've been drifting too long, from one identity to another. As a result, my life is a bunch of scattered fragments instead of an integrated chronological record. I tend to forget who I am if I stay in one identity for too long. It fears me.
Somehow, being with him makes me feel stable. He's just like an anchor. No matter how far or how long I drift away, I always know where to find him if I want: back to the old days, his dungeon,and now, his office.
I didn't lie when I told him that for me, it felt like another life. I come here as Susiel Pond, and I still can't integrate Nymphadora's life and hers into one. I know the details of Nymphadora's life, yet I feel nothing when I'm in this shape, like I get to know her experience from a novel or something, instead of actually lived her life.
I don't need a psychiatrist to tell me it's not healthy, and according to Elder Metamorphmagus, I need to integrate all my long-term identities to cultivate the magic of our kind, to growup truly. I must know who I am.
终于大结局了，本来的计划是一次贴完，但写到一半被拉去加急Cholangiocarcinoma = =||| 这章中尝试了从NT角度，以第一人称写。因为我计划着要让她和RL见一面，然后一别两宽，各生欢喜。前面的那种分离方式，感觉太糟糕了。我也想让RL解释一下，事情为什么会那样发生。他真的是我心尖上的角色，说来可能没人信>.< 等我明天交了稿，一定会完结的，这个文章开始写的时候，NT和RL在霍格沃茨舞会上，以别的身份见面的片段就是一个完整的场景。这篇文中关于Metamorphmagus有超多的私设，我也会写一篇设定具体说的。
有没有红心无所谓，不过真的很希望有人能留言聊聊天。
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