A BIG THANKS TO INVADERK WHO HELPED ME OUT WITH SNAPE'S CHARACTER!!! THANKS INVADERK!
It's Called Unorthodox for a Reason
Chapter Four:
The Tree
To celebrate surviving her first disastrous day at Hogwarts, Dusty invited the five young Gryffindors to share breakfast with her via House Elf. Surprisingly enough, every one of them excepted, even Hermione who Dusty had been sure would decline. It seemed that the uptight Gryffindor thought better of the twenty-nine year old ever since she saw the book collection.
So after Dusty was dressed and had bacon and eggs on her small portable stove, the Gryffindors knocked on the door.
"C'mon in," she called as she flipped over an egg.
The door opened and the five of them scampered in. Ginny and Hermione offered to help cook and soon the three women were busy with flipping eggs, making sure the bacon didn't burn and mixing pancakes. Dusty threw the boys an order over her shoulder and soon they were scuttling around setting the table that suddenly appeared in the middle of the room.
Once the food was dished out and glasses filled with pumpkin juice (or orange juice for Dusty) they chatted about different things that the Professors did over their years at Hogwarts. They wasted nearly the whole morning making fun of the teachers but soon (as Dusty had known) Ginny asked about her detention.
"I'm not sure if it always happens but I got attacked by leeches," Dusty said plainly. The silence in the room was overwhelming.
Finally Ron asked, "Did Snape set them on you?"
Dusty let out a laugh and shook her head. "No, no. He didn't. It was one of the potions some second years did…" After Dusty finished telling her tale, the kids were speechless.
"He actually helped you out?" Ron asked incredulously. "I don't believe it!"
"Snape actually has a heart!" Ginny cried, looking like she was going to faint. "I don't believe it!"
"C'mon guys," Dusty laughed, "He is human."
Obviously they didn't believe her if their skeptical looks was anything to go by. Wisely enough, Dusty decided to shut up about Snape and go on to a subject less hazardous. Like what they did for Christmas which was only a month away.
"I stay here every Holiday," said Harry.
"We're going to be staying as well," said Ginny, indicating to both her and her brother.
"And I should also be staying," Hermione said after she swallowed a large piece of bacon.
"What about you Neville?" Dusty addressed the silent boy.
He shook his head. "I go home to my Grandma."
"Ah."
Dusty glanced at the clock. "Class starts in twenty minutes."
"WHAT?! I've got to go!" Hermione dashed out of the room.
"What's wrong with her?" The older Gryffindor asked, pointing at the cloud of dusty that used to be the bookworm.
"I think she wanted to do some research before class," Ron answered before standing and stretching his arms.
"We should all be getting to class anyways. Mines on the other side of the school," said Ginny also standing up. The other two followed suit and Dusty bid them farewell as the door clicked closed behind them.
Dusty practically skipped to Charm class. Her second day at Hogwarts and another day for analyzing others! Sadly enough, the only thing that made her job worth going through days upon days of stuff she learned years ago was being able to watch other Professors at work. Someday, after she got tiered of traveling 'round the world, she was going to apply for a teaching job. She was more then qualified and she had lots of experience when it came to dealing with students.
Dusty was too busy being happy she didn't notice a person come around the corner until she had skipped right into them.
"Sorry!" she cried backing up and bowing several times. When she stopped groveling, she looked up and was met with Snape's sour yet mildly surprised face. Oh, it's just you, she thought. His face instantly lost all traces of surprise and darkened.
"Ms. Ellard, once again you have proven that you have no regard for rules. Ten points from Gryffindor," he said darkly before gliding past her and disappearing down the hall.
Dusty glared at his retreating back and stuck out her tongue then spun on her heel and continued to Charms.
Professor Flitwick ruled! The little man had to stand on a chair or a huge pile of books in order to be seen but Dusty thought it made him rather comical. He was also absent minded. He forgot were he had put a charms book he was using to teach with and had the whole class searching for it only to find that he had been standing on it the whole time. Dusty had to clamp a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing at his face when he realized how silly he seemed. The charms he taught seemed accurate and he made it fun. Well fun-er then the last Charms class she had taken.
Her second class of the day was Care of Magical Creatures. It was much less informative then it could have been, mostly they sat around and watched a man named Hagrid talk about an extremely weird species. It looked like it had a crab shell with spider legs and two bulging green eyes that took up all the space of its head. Dusty nearly had a heart attack when he told the students to try to feed the things. Fortunately, the animals turned out to be pretty tame and actually liked to be handled. No one came out of the class with major bites but Dusty did score one when the little bugger thought her hand would taste good.
Defense Against the Dark Arts was probably more boring then any class she had taken from the start of her magical education. Dusty stifled a yawn and wrote a small note in her tiny book, reminding her to ask the Ministry to send a different teacher as soon as possible. She crossed the Professors name out in her book and promptly fell asleep on her textbook.
Her last class was class held by the Headmaster himself. He explained to the students about the rise of Voldemort and stressed over and over that they had to be ready in case of an attack. Once Dusty got a good look around, it seemed that students from every house was packed into the great hall. The teachers who she knew would actually be useful in a battle were also present. Them being Dumbledore, McGonagall, Snape, and another Professor Dusty had never met.
Dumbledore and McGonagall paired up and demonstrated how to perform the disarming spell 'Expello Corpus' that was stronger then ant disarming spell but practically deadly. It was a combination of the disarming spell and Stupefy so it was twice as strong and could send a grown man into a comma. Snape and the other Professor paired up and demonstrated a binding spell, the 'Redimio Luminarium'. Only the person who cast the spell or someone they trusted could remove the binds.
It was quite useful when getting back at your brother and his friends couldn't help him out. She was, or course, speaking from experience.
Dusty pushed her way closer to the platforms the Professors where using. She spotted her Gryffindor friends and made her way towards them. Finally pushing through she asked her question.
"So, who's that other Professor with Snape?"
Harry tore his eyes from the mystery professor. "His name's Lupin, Remus Lupin. He used to be our DADA teacher three years ago."
"Oh really? Was he any good?"
"Oh yes," Hermione exclaimed. "He was fantastic. He knew exactly what he was talking about."
"Why isn't he still teaching? I've noticed the lack of intelligence in that part of teachers."
Harry couched which sounded really close to a laugh.
Ron sighed. "The parent's found out he's a Werewolf."
He gasped and clapped his hands over his mouth. The children's eyes darted over at her and Ron went red in the face. Dusty gave them a look.
"What? You think I mind if he's a wolf? I've spent time with both Werewolves and Vampires. Some have even become my friends. I could care less."
"Are they that common in America?" Ginny asked amazed.
Dusty nodded her head. "Yep. As common as witches and wizards are in England. America is the land of the free and crazy. We have all sorts of things there. But they're mainly in the South because they can blend in better there."
"Amazing," Neville breathed. "I've always wanted to meet a Vampire."
Dusty grinned at him. "If you guys can visit me in America this summer, I'll introduce you to all my friends. Werewolves, vampire's, giants and the like."
"Ms. Ellard!"
Dusty glanced up at Snape. He was glaring down at her menacingly with a dark look in his eyes. "Yes Professor?" she asked sweetly.
"Since you believe you are not obligated to listen to the instructions, you will show us how the American's perform the Redimio Luminarium." He spoke in a dark tone that matched his face.
Dusty beamed at him. "Certainly."
Leaving behind the snickering Gryffindors, she hopped up on the stage. She met Snape in the middle and bowed to him, making sure to keep eyes contact. She grinned at him before turning and taking the correct number of steps needed.
Three…four…five…Her hand was posed to bring out her wand. Her tense fingers twitched. The whole hall was silent as she neared the end of the platform.
Eight…nine…TEN!
Both adults spun around and shouted "Redimio Luminarium!"
Dusty dived out of the way. She rolled twice then jumped up and sent a harmless prank spell towards Snape who tried to counter attack. He ducked Dusty's spell and sent her flying with Expectimo, a particularly nasty disarming spell that sent you spinning through the air. She rolled and hopped up then sent Expello Corpus at the Potions Master. She was determined to pull this prank if it killed her. As expected, Snape countered but hesitated for a spilt second as he got his bearings back. Taking the initiative, Dusty sent three spells at him, one right after the other. He managed to dodge the first but the second hex- Redimio Luminarium- wrapped around him and made him fall back, and the third spell had a chance to hit its target: his head.
A dazed Snape pulled himself off the floor and glared at the beaming Gryffindor. A ripple of snickers flew through the hall. Confused, Snape glanced at the other Professors who looked like they were trying to contain themselves. Even McGonagall was hiding behind her hand. Snape glared at Dusty and she grinned back as she pointed to her own head.
"Nice hair Sevvy," she said, smirking before bounding off the stage.
Catching the hit, Snape glance at his reflection in a large mirror. His jaw went lax. His reflection had bright pink hair. He whipped around to face the Gryffindor but she had already fled from the room. Instantly, he was off the stage and out the doors before you could say Quidditch.
Peeves wisely flew in the opposite direction when he spotted the teacher. Filch plastered himself against the hallway wall to avoid the pink haired professor as he swooped down the front stairs and threw open the Entrance doors.
His eyes caught a flash of brown hair. Smirking menacingly, he tailed her. Despite his anger, his blood ran cold when someone let out a scream accompanied by a loud THUNK.
Dusty had been too occupied with running away from the scary professor to watch where she was running too. Unfortunately, she ran into something that was even more deadly then the pissed off teacher: the Womping Willow.
She screamed and ducked a branch that barley missed her. Her hair flew out of it's sloppy bun and fell into her face as she rolled and crawled away from another branch that smashed into the ground only a few inches from her legs. She scrambled away from the deadly branches and made a mad dash towards anyplace that the tree couldn't reach.
The tree had other plans. It lashed out and grabbed her leg. Dusty was barely aware of the snap as the branch ripped her legs out from under her and dragged her back. She screamed again and flailed her arms, desperately trying to reach her wand that was only a foot from her.
The tree lifted her and reared its bough back. Dusty clamped her eyes shut knowing she was about to be whip lashed across the whole school grounds. Suddenly, a bright crack of green light hit the tree in the trunk then another hit the branch. Dusty was dropped like a sack of corn mill. She readied for the hard ground.
Her bones snapped and she groaned, tears of pain brimming under her shut eyelids.
Someone kneeled beside her then muttered, "navi corporis," and her body lifted off the ground. She gave a muffled scream and blood sputtered out of her mouth from the cut she had made by biting her lip. A hand flew to her mouth and pried it open. They muttered something like "stupid woman," which sounded strangely familiar. She groaned once again before she passed out, dead to the world.
Dusty woke with a start. That bang had to have shaken the whole school! She slowly sat up, taking notice that the Mediwitch was quickly charming the bottles of medicine to stay in the cupboard. Dusty rubbed her head and looked around. She jumped as another bang shook the school.
"What was THAT?!" she asked the witch who was busy catching falling bottles of potions.
"What? Oh, that. Potions students most likely. Are you feeling better deary?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah. What happened?"
The woman bustled over with a small vial of black liquid in her hand. "You had a nasty run-in with the Womping Willow. Miserable tree that thing is. Here drink this." She pushed the vial into Dusty's hands.
Dusty stared at the black gooey drink and grimaced. "How'd I get here? How long have I been sleeping?"
"Professor Snape brought you. It's the day after your accident. You better drink that or else," the witch warned, giving Dusty a look that said she knew what the girl was thinking.
Dusty uncorked the vial and plugged her nose then chugged it. She came up for air and gagged. "I-I think you're trying to kill me!" she sputtered. The witch chuckled but didn't deny it. Dusty stared at her suspiciously before chucking the vial and it landed right into a trashcan. She looked over at the Mediwitch and something clicked.
"Wait, you said Snape brought me here?"
"Yes. He levitated you all the way here. Why?"
"Um, was- is his hair still pink?" Dusty asked in a small voice.
The witch gave her a look. "Pink? No. It was his normal black color."
The Gryffindor let out a relived sigh. Now all she would have to do was apologize for pulling that prank. He did save her from something she caused out of her own stupidity.
The Hospital Wing doors opened and the Mediwitch sighed. "Speak of the wizard. Alright Snape, what were they making that could have possibly have caused that many explosions?"
The dark professor glowered at the woman. He beckoned the five wounded students forward and the witch forgot all about pestering him. The students were covered in boils and burn marks and a few of them had oversized limbs. The witch ushered them into a different part of the clinic and promptly forgot about anything else.
Dusty gulped and glance at the man who was burning holes into her head. She quickly looked away. Her hands fiddled with the sheets, wringing them out like she was doing the laundry. Snape spun around, his robes billowing around him, and headed for the door. Without thinking over her actions (like a true Gryffindor) she panicked.
"Professor! Please wait!" She grimaced under his intense glare but quickly scrambled to her feet. She grabbed onto the bed railing for support but managed to bow and stay standing at the same time. "I'm really sorry about turning your hair that abomination of a color! Sorry!" She remained in a half bow position hoping that he wouldn't turn vampire on her and kill her.
She waited for another second until she heard the door close with a BANG. Dusty looked up from her position and slumped onto the bed. He had left. She fell onto her back and put an arm over her eyes. She didn't think it would have caused so much trouble. He acted like she had castrated him or something!
"That man needs to lighten up," she muttered.
Thirty minutes later, all the students from Potions class had been given a potion and were resting in the hospital beds. The nurse (who was named Madam Pomfrey) finally allowed Dusty to leave the Hospital Wing. The young woman practically skipped all the way to her room, a few points being deducted from her by The Filch but she didn't care. She pointedly avoided Snape who had been walking down the hall towards her. She ducked into the nearest door and waited until the man had past before continuing on her merry way.
"Miss Ellard."
Dusty cringed at the cold tone in his voice. She had been sure he had been far down the hall when she had retracted from her safety of the empty classroom. She plastered a false smile on her face and greeted him. "'ello govna!"
Bad thing to say, she mentally berated herself. Snape's gaze would have killed her on the spot fifty times over looks could kill.
"You do remember you have yet to finish your detention with me. It is now on Saturday night and extend it for another two hours." Snape smirked at the now pouting female. He gave her a small bow then continued down the hallway, leaving an extremely pissed off Dusty in his billowing wake.
She grumbled and cursed him the whole way back to her room. She was starting to think that her statement the day before about Snape being human was indeed, very false.