Livia awoke on Saturday morning to a letter on her desk in her brother's handwriting. She had only a short time to read it before having to be ready for breakfast. She got ready first, then sat down to go through it:
Dear Livia,
I have spoken recently to both Adam and John. They are both doing well and send their regards. John especially sounded pleased that you like the tape he sent.
Everyone here is well, also. Audrey and Alice wanted your Barn Owl Sydney to stay for some time. They tried to feed her to entice her, since they did not know how to keep her there. I thought they saw a mouse or something, but they told me they had never seen a prettier owl ever. Sydney's face shadowing and specked chest feathers enchanted them, I found out later. I had to explain that the first owl was a male and Sydney a female, which accounted for this different appearance as well as size – they realized Sydney was a little larger. I think they have been thoroughly converted. If ever we do see mice – possible in this town – we will try to point them out to any owl you send. I never knew how scared young women could be of mice until I lived with these two. Maybe we need you to pick us out a cat.
Gary sends his regards with all my flatmates. He would like to thank you for helping him with that Culture Club song. He did wind up entering a contest as "Boy Gary." He got a wig and makeup and totally looked the part. He won, too. He gives you great credit for that.
I hear from my family sporadically. Dad is fond of Durham and likes to invent reasons to see those who run the cathedral, as if he wants a position here. Maybe he does. I hear from Cathy now and again. She loves her post, though she wishes she could know when to let animals try to fight something like cancer and when it is time to let them go. She wishes she could ask them. It seems that dilemma is the hardest on pet owners but also on vet techs. Lydia, I hear, will leave school at 16, given that she has almost no discernable academic talent. Cathy had no idea what Lydia will do with herself in terms of work. I obviously do not directly speak to her. I saw my mother once on a trip she made here with Dad. She still does not confront herself regarding her own conduct in regard to what happened to you. She does, though, recognize that Lydia is difficult. She cannot imagine that she played any role with that, either. She just tried to concentrate on reconciling with me as her son, which is doomed because she cannot see its connection to anything else.
Until she admits all that happened as well as her own culpability as an adult, I cannot say I will be on great terms with her. Dad knows this. He does try to make amends, and he does inquire about you. Since I am not totally clear about your situation, I am pretty vague with him, too. He suspects there must be something I am not saying whereas we both know it is something you feel the need to keep to yourself. Livia, I respect you too much to question your reasoning and know you will tell me more in your own time. I admit I am mystified, though. It's supposed to be school, not rocket science. Since I get no bills or reports, I am very puzzled.
You may or may not be surprised to learn that Jake and Audrey's relationship has blossomed into more than just being friends. They seem very much attached to each other. I think they look particularly cute sometimes. They both have good family backgrounds that make the match seem right from that point of view. I am very fond of Alice West, but I think she only chose to live with us out of consideration for Audrey, rather than a real need to split expenses. Alice's family has ties to several aristocratic families, including the Russells (I think she is a distant cousin to Bertrand Russell), and some lineage from the original Bloomsbury Group.
My work marches on, but it is going well, and I will likely have summer employment here with a local practice, who may sponsor me to become a permanent part of this practice if the summer goes well, and I make progress in sitting for an exam known as the BCAT. I like this little city very much, so the idea of settling here appeals to me. The sponsor may want me to train more elsewhere at some point, perhaps even at some college of Lincoln's Inn. If I became a barrister, it would be a help to them and obviously to my own success. I would think I could really wrangle that apology out of Framlingham then, too. You would have to appear with me, probably.
Write again soon. Hope to have another tape by then.
Your loving brother,
Tom
All sounded well. Livia smiled and left the room. She told Shelley, Selene, Athena and Ted the good news. Of course, Tom's position could make her ability to tell him about herself a little complicated and asked what they thought about it.
Athena responded first: "Your caution is appropriate. It's an odd situation. I would ask the headmaster or Professor Flitwick what you should tell him – ever."
Shelley tended to agree. "At least wait until you are at least 17 if not done here. Then you will have to judge how quiet he can be, despite whatever responsibilities he has at that point."
Ted staked his view on Livia's relationship with her brother. "If he truly has defended you and stayed true to you, you should be able to figure out how much you can say and when. But we are not supposed to practice magic in the muggle world until we are 17, and he might not believe you unless you showed him. On that point, waiting until you're an adult seems like a good idea."
Selene only quietly added that everything the others said made sense, but she would especially seek out the advice of the headmaster or the head of Ravenclaw about it. "If he loves you, telling him should not be a mistake but HOW you tell him probably matters."
Livia decided the issue could wait until the following week versus bothering faculty on their down time, even if they rarely left the castle-like school. She and the other four all visited Hagrid later that day and saw his animals and, of course, met Sydney and Mel. Livia asked Hagrid how the owls acted and he saw nothing wrong, a point both confirmed, a great relief to her. She told them about what Tom wrote and the potential to find mice in Durham, which both liked.
Much of the rest of Livia's weekend was spent reading, practicing her wand work and writing out various assignments she had, with Sarah happily sitting nearby. She bumped into Professor Flitwick in the corridor of Ravenclaw and asked him a quick question about a charm she wanted to understand a little better. The question seemed simple enough to her, yet it showed to him a great deal of thought in wanting to clarify a subtle point regarding the charm's purpose and how one's technique impacted its efficacy. "You never cease to amaze me," he said. "Your questions show great thought and foresight. At some point, I have to tell the headmaster you need to not only be promoted, you should become a prefect, a tutor and eventually a professor in your right. You demonstrate the curiosity and the thoroughness needed. You only lack the experience of doing the advanced work you will ultimately master, I am sure. Your wand skills should improve with time, especially if you focus enough attention on this."
Because Livia had devoted her time to other things and had not spent that much time out of doors, especially alone, as the weather grew cooler and wetter, she made a highly unusual gaffe the following Monday afternoon. Professor Snape, in fine form (if you can call it that), had started ripping into another student's work and the class in general when Livia voice was heard for the first time in that room in at least a month.
She laughed. Though she tried to put her hand over her mouth, the sound was audible, and it did not escape notice, either from the other students, or Professor Snape himself. A few jaws dropped and eyebrows went up upon hearing it.
"Miss Woodcock, what is so funny?" he demanded to know. "Are you so superior in your own mind as to have entertained the ridiculous notion that we are here to amuse you?"
"I deeply apologize, professor," Livia said. "If I have offended anyone, it was not my intent or desire. I am sorry I have disrupted your class, sir."
"Well, we are waiting for an explanation of this insolent outburst," he said. "How long should we wait for it?" Professor Snape walked over to her and his eyes bore straight into her.
"Please, I would rather you just punished me than take up more time for a pointless explanation," she said. Livia did not flinch. Silently, she sent him a message. Rip into me all you want, deduct points, give me detention, but ask me to explain this to you in private. If I give you an honest answer, you may not like it at all.
"Now Miss Woodcock wants to be quiet again," he began. "She expects us to tolerate her silly and insulting interruption as if it did not happen. You know you have crossed a big line with me, and I do not tolerate such foolish impudence from a supposed know-it-all who comes from nothing. Ten points off Ravenclaw house, two weeks of detention and you will come to my office promptly at four o'clock to explain yourself. I will deduct an extra point and give you an extra day's detention for every minute you keep me waiting. Have I made myself clear?"
"Yes, sir," Livia said. Silently, she added: Thank you, Professor Snape. I promise I will tell you everything you want to know and maybe even stuff you rather I did not say, especially here.
The rest of the afternoon proceeded normally, though Shelley heard of her run-in with Professor Snape and asked if she was okay.
"Yes," Livia said. "I will be fine. I will do as he asked or as he will ask when I get there."
"How are you so calm?" Shelley asked. "Most students would be shaking about seeing him in private. Some say that if he stares at anything, it dies. And you got the full glare."
"I know what I am in for," Livia explained. "Few would have laughed in his class, as I did, so I can take this. You forget what I have been through."
Livia showed up outside his door at 15:55. He was not there. Professor Snape actually arrived at 16:01. Livia could not help herself. "Who do I get to take a point from for you being a minute late?" she asked, smiling politely.
"Inside. Now," he replied. I cannot remember a young girl ever being that feisty with me.
He closed the door and sat behind his desk, and Livia noticed his window seemed ajar. He had many shelves of books and bundles of papers inside his office. His desk seemed rather large and dominated the space. She realized many a student crumbled whilst being in this situation. The residue of their fear remained, but she ignored it by defying it. Professor Snape would not scare her in the least. They were idiots, she thought.
"Where would you like me to begin, sir?" Livia asked. "I usually have better control over myself, but since I was unable to spend much time alone outside, I lost some of it today. That is one thing I would not wish to confess to your class. Only a few people know I am what muggles call an empath. It takes great discipline by me to release emotions carefully in order to retain full governance over myself. I can tell you many a student has been in this room shaking in fear over what you would say to him or her. You know that perfectly well, I'm sure. I am not one of those students, however."
Professor Snape studied her carefully. No, she was not fearful at all. Quite unusual.
"Yes," he affirmed. "I realize that, and that you don't want it widely known, either. Why?"
"It is part of what prompted me to laugh, honestly, sir," she answered. "I consider you excellent in how you perform your duties. And I mean perform. It is a performance and many students would not recognize that ever. Teaching anything requires skill in a performative capacity, and you take on a commanding persona. You own the room, and if I said any of this, it could undermine you. Frankly, I find your performance epic, and I am not trying to flatter you. You know this as well as I do. If you did not do this, some might question why a man still as young as you has this responsibility. No one asks that now. I wonder if anyone ever did, actually."
"You completely puzzle me, Miss Woodcock," he confessed while narrowing his eyes. "Where is this coming from exactly? These are very odd statements for a young girl to make."
"Well, I'm not the average young girl or even young witch," she admitted. "How many students have you had who tested with an IQ that muggles rated as high as 172?"
"Very few, I would guess," he replied. "What does that have to do with your skills that make you call yourself an empath?"
"I am not sure," Livia responded. "They do not seem to correlate well in my mind. But I can understand things about people and animals like few or no one I have ever met. I know you are greatly feared by students younger and older than I am. But I told you already why I do not fear you. You cannot really hurt me. Those who tried failed and got a lot dished back at them for bothering me. I actually feel safe here. You can't take that from me."
"And how is it that you understand me?" Professor Snape inquired, still somewhat hostile.
"That is a good question, because I have to say you are the most difficult person I have ever come across as far as that goes, which makes you very intriguing to me. I find you an incredible challenge academically and personally. I did tell my brother a few things without naming you or revealing anything about my studies here – he is a muggle and I know better."
"Are you are trying to penetrate my mind?" Professor Snape snapped back at her. "That is pretty outlandish if not insolent."
"I apologize, sir – I started doing it by default," she answered. "I don't consciously try. Nevertheless, I think I recognize a few things about you that are similar to me. I may not be mature enough to completely fathom all of it, but some things come to me because of this recognition."
"It seems, then, you have me at a disadvantage, because I do not study my own students that closely. Typically, they bore me because they whine and are selfish or silly," he said.
"If you want to remedy that disadvantage, you can either ask me anything you wish, or I will give you the means of seeing whatever there is to see."
"What do you mean, Miss Woodcock?"
"I have seen the headmaster's pensieve in his office," she asserted. "I will allow you to go through everything in my past if you desire it. I don't exactly have anything to hide."
"Why would you trust me with that when you know I could use any of it against you?" he asked. "You take a very big risk here – you know that, don't you?"
"You will also see what has toughened me up and who has protected me," Livia answered. "I already told you about that Eagle Owl, did I not?"
"You did," Professor Snape affirmed. "I easily heard you, which was rather impressive in itself, particularly for a first-year student."
"I told you things I thought best not to share. And given the fact that I have some insight into you – which you will see if you can read a letter I wrote to my brother – I doubt you would risk sparring with me in a classroom beyond what preserves your reputation, if not mine. I only think it fair that I basically level the field."
"Since you are here," he began, "I may as well ask about the comment the sorting hat made to you. A few faculty members have speculated about its meaning, yet they seem to not share their full assessments with me. Your head of house says nothing, and I believe he hides something."
"Let me show you something that will shed light on this," Livia asserted. She remembered what the headmaster said about her wand so she used it to retrieve the letter that came with her baby basket, even though she really did not need it. She pulled it out and pointed it at her open hand and thought here and the letter almost instantly appeared.
"First, tell me about that wand," he said.
"Cedar, just under 11 inches long, with a dragon-heartstring core," Livia described.
"About the same as Professor Slughorn's, my own teacher," he revealed. He went inscrutably blank, but he was thinking about it, realizing the girl who sat before him should become quite formidable sooner or later.
"Yes, the wand maker said that, but read the letter," Livia directed.
He did. The description of the school gown made him realize what Livia meant to convey. "If I read this and what the hat said rightly, you have surmised that your father was a Slytherin?"
"Yes, that seems the only logical conclusion," Livia affirmed. "You agree, I presume."
"And it says you were born 28 August 1972, premature yet quite healthy," Professor Snape stated. "That means your father likely met your mother on winter break, maybe in his last year?"
"That's what I think," Livia agreed. "Do you have an idea about who he was?"
"Not offhand," he replied. "I do think I must have met this student because I was a first year student here in 1971. Some male students left school early for London before break, too. I may or may not have known him then, depending on who exactly he is. The letter to me suggests the motive of your mother, though. My guess is that she was a witch tutored by family, and she took the opportunity to become involved with this student to be able to study whatever potion or potions he used on her, taking her to be a muggle. She wanted to duplicate them and later use them for her own benefit. She may have wanted some rich muggle to take care of her – or a number of them, depending on her inclinations."
"Makes sense – I can believe that, also," Livia assented. "I do not think very kindly of her, except for the fact that I consider it a positive that I probably will never meet her. What you describe makes her sound like a parasite to me. Nonetheless, I believe your account sounds credible, which justifies my lack of interest in her. Her friend, though, was not clearly not a witch."
"Since we both agree that you are probably a Slytherin legacy, you have become more interesting to me," he stated. "I am curious as to what the pensieve will show, given your unusual background. You know how it works, I gather."
"Yes," Livia confirmed. "It's probably easiest if you make me cry. Tell me something horrible about my brother, Tom. That is the surest way to do it."
"Your brother was a talentless fool who allowed himself to get killed yesterday because he thought he had to protect you from a knife-wielding thief."
It worked. The thought of Tom being dead immediately broke her down, and she started to cry. She quietly sobbed and tears freely flowed, allowing Professor Snape to grab a small empty bottle and capture them as they trailed down her face. Just as he finished there was a solid tapping at his window. It was a crow that attended Livia's music sessions outside.
"Open the window fully, please," Livia suggested, still in the process of regaining her senses. The crow had landed on the exterior window ledge, then hopped to the interior side through the opened window. "Alastair wants to know if I am all right."
"What?" he asked, rather startled.
"Let me talk to him for a minute." Livia silently explained her crying was not because Professor Snape had hurt her. It had a different, intentional purpose. She would be fine and he need not stay. She clasped her hands together and bowed to him from her chair, thanking him for his kindly concern. She took out her wand and materialized some food for the crow on the ledge. With that, Alastair left the room and started pecking at the birdseed.
"I don't think I have ever seen that before," Professor Snape observed.
"Well, I told you, didn't I?" Livia asked.
"Hearing and seeing are different things," he stated, after a short pause.
"For your benefit and mine, I think I am going to demand something more from you tomorrow," Professor Snape asserted. "I am going to ask you to demonstrate making a potion that first-year students typically all have to make to pass my class. Basically, I am going to tell you that I will extend or reduce your detention time based on your performance. Read up on the Forgetfulness Potion. Be ready for a curve thrown at you. If you even act a little out of sorts, it will go well, no matter how the potion turns out. Or if I find a reason to insult you about it."
"Okay," Livia agreed. "Something has just occurred to me. You have seen me outside with the birds and my Walkman, haven't you?"
"Can you tell if I lie to you or tell you the truth?" Professor Snape asked.
"I am not sure," she answered. "Try me."
"I told Professor Bends I did not see you," he stated. "I have not."
Livia pondered for a moment. "Very challenging answer," she asserted, pausing for at least ten seconds. "Part of it is true, part of it is not. I am not sure which part is which yet."
"So far, you are correct," he replied. "Which is which?
"My best guess…hmm…you did say that to him, but you did see me. In fact, you actually listened. What did you hear?"
"The first song I heard was called 'I Wish You Were Here'," Professor Snape admitted. "Was that about your brother?"
"Somewhat," Livia replied. "I am overloaded sometimes with emotions from other people. Such a large collection of them bombards me sometimes with way too much and I can only dismiss them for so long. I have to let them go from time to time before they affect me and my peace of mind. I do not know who those lyrics fit more than me, be it you or anyone else."
"That is way beyond what faculty should discuss with a student, so I will not comment," he said. Saying that, though, and watching him, made her suspect it resonated with him more than he would ever say. Livia let it go. She had no right to ask or to know.
"I understand," Livia concluded. "I will take my leave so I am prepared for all the things required of me tomorrow. You have a good evening, sir."
After she left, Professor Snape thought he had said too much. Since he had the means to know exactly who she was and what she knew, he headed to the headmaster's office.
He knocked and Professor Dumbledore welcomed him inside. "What do you need, Severus?" he asked.
"I just had the most intriguing if bizarre conversation with your 'project' student, Miss Woodcock," Professor Snape answered. "She showed me a letter that came with her as a baby. Did you know her father was a Slytherin?"
"I did not, Severus," he replied. "It makes sense, given what the sorting hat said, how she replied and how she was sorted. Do you suspect someone in particular? Would her father have been still a student when you first became one?"
"Likely yes, but I don't know who yet," he stated. "There are at least several possibilities. If I recall rightly, a number of young men in their final year left campus early to enjoy London during much of that winter break. Whoever it was could have disguised himself in some way, too. The letter provided no name but did give specific information about the academic gown's crest and tie. With the sorting hat's comment, Miss Woodcock came to the same conclusion – that her father was sorted into Slytherin and ultimately graduated from here as one."
"Is that why you came?" Professor Dumbledore inquired.
"Actually, no," he responded. "I want to use your pensieve."
"For what?"
"Miss Woodcock consented to me doing this." He produced the small bottle he had.
"Tell me what you find out, for I am excessively curious," Professor Dumbledore responded. "Some things I know about but not in detail like you will see. She seems fearless at times, and I cannot fathom a young girl being that, nor why the sorting hat did not choose Gryffindor owing to it. Perhaps this will explain why regarding all of that."
"I will do my best to address this curiosity of yours. She already told me of the muggle estimate of her IQ stands as high as 172. Given her desire to skip a year, the sorting hat chose what would help her best achieve that immediate goal, don't you think?"
"True enough," he acknowledged. "I recall that. I told Filius that. Yet the hat, along with the rest of Hogwarts, has to know that you would judge her the most harshly. I tried to tell her that. In fact, other students tried to tell her that, but she did not wish to know."
"Why?" Professor Snape asked. "Where is there reason in that?"
"I guess you will discover one when you see what you have there," he responded. "She only told me she prefers her own judgements without the influence of other people. That contributes to why I called her fearless, though some might think it foolish. I do not she is foolish, though. I think she has great faith in herself. Has she shown you her wand yet?"
"Yes, I saw it," Professor Snape replied. "A little longer than Horace Slughorn's and a bit less ornate but its composition is identical. There is somewhat of a resemblance, too."
"But what did you think?" Professor Dumbledore asked.
"She is going to be most powerful someday. I will concede that now. You were right."
"I already said to her that I would tell you that I saw her as your successor someday."
"Nice one, headmaster," he replied with a biting sarcasm. "You do love to toy with me. Tomorrow, I will get to see if she has the innate skills necessary to teach. I will let you know – honestly – how she does. I do not know if I will tell the class the same thing, since they expect me to be highly critical of her."
"Yes, I heard you ripped into her today because she laughed in your class," Professor Dumbledore revealed. "She apparently did not seem fazed by your comments or glaring directly at her from a rather short distance – most unusual. You seem unable to scare or unnerve her."
"I want to know why. She did not look even remotely uncomfortable, except when apologizing for disrupting the class."
The headmaster excused himself and let Professor Snape have the pensieve to himself. Soon after he emptied the contents into it, he began to see her past. He saw her family, especially moments she spent with her brother, Tom, and his friends, including laying in the grass near the Framlingham Mere. He saw Cathy's gift to her, then he saw Lydia be abusive to her and saw her parents. He saw Farah and the crows Livia used to protect her. He saw her interview at Framlingham College and saw her foretell the incident that sent her to Colindale. He viewed the incident itself and the hearing that determined her fate, despite the petitioning of several people to gain custody of her. Two of the judges believed the legitimate child and the minimally supportive sister over an illegitimate, adopted one – no wonder why she hates prejudiced statements versus her own assessments. He then saw all the presumptions about her upon her entry at Colindale, which only solidified her feelings about biased conclusions. He saw Megan, Rachel and Patsy attack her in their bathroom, their dorm room, outside in the courtyard and in her own little room. He saw her use wandless spells to minimize the harm they did but had to admit they really tried to hurt her badly. Most muggle girls would have been hospitalized at least once.
He had to laugh when that crow sent his own poop right in Megan's face and how an Eagle Owl inflicted damage by grabbing onto her head and ear. He saw her extensively singing to her cat and Tom's picture after she soundproofed her room. He saw her perfect mimicry, her intense, independent reading all kinds of books – some of which sounded vaguely familiar – and sending letters through Barn Owls who befriended her. He saw how she directed the cat where to leave its mice and saw Sydney ask her to write a letter ultimately brought to Professor Dumbledore. He replayed her release, her attendance at Live Aid and her encounters with the headmaster and her birthday party in Durham, featuring her newfound favorite type of cake. After saying goodbye to Tom, he got to revisit her sorting, her friends there and finally, he read her letter to Tom about himself. She remembered it all and seemed to catalog it all. She forgot nothing. Yet he also realized she already knew way more than she should, even if she did not know the details.
She was right about how he would normally react to a student making those observations. He told himself he needed to brush up on his own skills so no one could ever write something like that about him again. If she could sense those things, he might jeopardize himself if anyone else could do that. Of course, he realized that she possessed uncommon skills, in part because she recognized that aspects of her own childhood related to his. He had to hope she would not figure out any more than that and no one else would even get that far into seeing him as he had been or how he now was. He realized how important her brother was to her, and that the lack of that kind of bond did lead him down a vastly different path than hers. Yet she did not judge him harshly for it. She made a very mature observation about herself, instead: without Tom's loyalty, she would have become much more like him. Again, he had to remind himself that she remained 13-years-old. Her wisdom, her spirit and even generosity went well beyond that number, nonetheless. Maybe that 172 actually had underrated her, he pondered.
When the headmaster returned, he told him about how being illegitimate made some people automatically suspect her credibility, and her sense of the injustice done to her motivated her to judge people based only on her own perception. He told the headmaster why she loved muggle music and books so much, given they with her cat were her only constant companions at that horrible place where she lived in London for nearly two years. Moreover, music formed a central part of the happiest memory in her life thus far. He also explained the source of her fearlessness. First, she had used a form of wandless magic to minimize the physical damage inflicted by those who assaulted her – and those attacks would have caused great harm had she not done this. Second, she found protection from various animals she could call silently to her aid. He even confessed that when he made her cry for this sample, a crow had tapped at his window to see if she was hurt or not. He also mentioned that seeing an Eagle Owl land on a young female bully amused him, since that girl got more than a taste of the damage she had tried to cause.
"Livia was on the floor with footprints from kicking and stomping her, but this owl almost shredded that one girl's head. The latter image will amuse me forever," Professor Snape said.
"We should all be so lucky as to have such loyalty from wild creatures, let alone pets," Professor Dumbledore stated. "My Phoenix, Fawkes, is a great friend and great bird yet he's mine."
"Yes," Professor Snape assented. "That makes her fearless, I think, though she probably needs to know that they will not be around everywhere to help her. She could become reckless."
"Agreed," the headmaster said. "Being too confident can prove fatal. We both know how and why, too. I can imagine Livia putting herself in danger and not even thinking twice about it, say if someone from our world tried to harm her brother. She would risk anything in that instance. We have to keep that in mind should we ever need to protect her."
"We both see it," Professor Snape affirmed. "Does she know anything about our world regarding what has transpired and what likely will come?"
"I doubt it," Professor Dumbledore responded. "I will do what I can to tell her and caution her. What do you have planned for her tomorrow?"
"She is going to demonstrate making the Forgetfulness Potion I usually ask my students to make as a final exam for their first year."
"Severus, we are still only in November. You want to embarrass her?"
"That could happen. I will be allowing her to see the recipe, so it will not be as difficult as I could make it. Still, she could prove that she has what it takes already, if she does it correctly, and she can discuss it as she makes it. As I said, I will let you know."
They bid each other good night and Professor Snape left. Meanwhile, Livia did all she could to memorize the potion. She realized he would be pushing her to the limit. She thought perhaps he would demand that she do it from memory to make it particularly difficult. She took a mental picture of the directions and ingredients in her head. She knew she could recall the image in his class. She hoped that would suffice for whatever mischief he had planned. Finished with the rest of her work and feeling confident she could make the potion, she retired for the night.
The next day at breakfast, the other students were all aflutter and aghast about what Professor Snape might do to her later that day. She exuded quiet confidence. "I believe that I will be ready when the time comes." Shelley, Selene, Athena and Ted all looked at each other in astonishment. They found it impossible to decipher her calm. But they had their own issues, so they let the matter drop and said very little about it at lunchtime, other than to wish her good luck.
She arrived in the basement classroom a few minutes early and Professor Snape immediately motioned for her to come forward next to him. Soon after the mischief began. "As you all know, yesterday, Miss Woodcock seemed to find our class funny, and I have decided to see just how much she has learned about potion making. So today Miss Woodcock will demonstrate a potion that in the past I have asked students to make from memory for their final exam. It is called the Forgetfulness Potion. I have left the instructions and the materials in front for her, this time. Miss Woodcock, your ability to complete this potion properly AND to discuss it as you make it will determine if I increase or decrease your detention time. You may begin."
Livia immediately cast her things aside except for her wand, which she used to conjure an academic robe for herself and then placed the wand on the demonstration table. She surveyed the ingredients and spotted the trouble. Two ingredients were missing. She pondered how to deal with this and decided to ask, "Professor Snape, is that a basement window?" she asked, pointing to a covered glass area near her and above her. He nodded.
"Professor Snape has played a joke on me to see if I would notice and I have," Livia announced in a clear voice, whilst waving the window open with her wand. "Two ingredients are not here and I will remedy this, shortly," she stated whilst calling silently to her avian friends, "but first I want to stress to all of you the importance of having everything assembled beforehand. If ingredients are not added in good time and in the right order, you get a weak, if not ineffectual, potion and your effort will waste your resources as well as your time, at the very least."
First, one crow then another entered the room and she silently asked each for two mistletoe berries. They paused, however.
"Are local mistletoe berries sufficient for this potion, Professor Snape?" Livia asked.
"Yes, especially if fresh," he answered. "How did you come up with that question?"
"I didn't," Livia answered. "The crow who entered first, Alastair, asked me, so he and Benedict, the other crow, know what I want exactly."
"I see," he said, dryly. "Still, you know you are being the quite the show-off, between conjuring an academic robe and using these crows."
Livia told the crows fresh and local would suffice, she bowed and they left. Then a Barn Owl carefully fit through the window, and she told Sevy to get two Valerian sprigs from the garden that Hagrid keeps.
"What was that for?" Professor Snape asked.
"We also need two sprigs of Valerian, and I told Sevy to get them from Hagrid's garden."
Some of the students snickered, which puzzled Livia.
"What did you call that owl?" Professor Snape asked, quite disconcerted.
"I called him what he told me he liked being called, Sevy. He chose his name. I do not understand why this is funny."
"Again, four o'clock, my office. You are not the instructor yet, so you are quite out of your depth to think you can get away with being so cheeky," Professor Snape said. Silently, he told her: Clearly, you do not know my first name and the Slytherin students here do, among others. They think you called him that intentionally, as I must as well.
Within a few minutes, the crows and owl brought the ingredients into the room, Livia bowed to them and waved her wand, to reward them with food outside the window. They left and she continued with the potion. She artfully talked through everything she did, from cleaning her hands every time she handled a new ingredient, to how she broke up and added them and the temperature she had set during the entire process. She encouraged questions at any point, but no one said a word until she had completed the potion.
At that point, students began asking things. She asked Professor Snape if she should try answering first, or if she should simply defer to him. He allowed her to attempt to address them all first. She did. He only would augment her statements to ensure they understood her comments or enhanced the subtle aspects she had only hinted upon. He never contradicted her answers.
"Now, for the moment of truth," Professor Snape said, walking forward and producing a litmus tape he said would measure the efficacy of her potion. "The color the litmus produces will tell us how well Miss Woodcock has made her potion. The lighter the color, the more effective it is. Anyone want to guess what color it will be?"
One student jokingly said blue, another green, another said pale lavender.
"Miss Woodcock, your assessment?" he asked.
"I do not know what light color it is supposed to be," Livia said. "Pale sunlight, maybe?"
Professor Snape put the litmus into the copper caldron. It turned entirely white.
"Is that good?" Livia asked.
"It is," Professor Snape said. "I will keep my word and subtract one week of detention. You still get a week – since I do not believe you regarding what you called that owl. You will explain that arrogant impudence to me later today, same as before. Do not keep me waiting, or I will restore the second week in its entirety. Any other questions? Anyone?"
No one spoke thus Professor Snape dismissed the class.
Shelley ran into Livia again before Livia headed to Professor Snape's office. She said she heard of her potion-making success, but that she had run afoul of him again. "Why did you call in an owl you named Sevy?"
"He showed up," she stated. "He told me to use that name. What is going on here?"
"You don't know?" Shelley asked. When she saw Livia blank stare, she said: "His first name is Severus. Do you get it now?"
"Oh," Livia said. "I didn't know. I am going to have to ask that owl about that, I guess."
Again, Livia arrived a few minutes early, though this time, Professor Snape showed up exactly on time. He looked very annoyed.
They went inside and he began by asking about the owl, "What is the meaning of you calling that owl Sevy? Was that meant to be an opportunity for me to snap at you?"
"No," Livia answered. "I honestly did not know until Shelley Silver told me just minutes ago. Should I call this owl and inquire? Honestly, the owl must have a reason for his name. I do not know what it is."
"Okay," Professor Snape agreed. "Let me open the window first." After he did, he told her: "Call him now."
Within a minute or so, the Barn Owl Sevy was at the window and entered the room. Livia told him that she was confused about his name and that some students thought she was poking fun at Professor Snape by using his name. The owl had a different explanation.
"The owl likes you, sir," Livia asserted. Just then the owl went onto Professor Snape's desk and approached him, making a friendly sort of sound. "He says you would make a very successful Barn Owl because you are tough and being they are not the largest owl, they have very rough lives and need to be very savvy and courageous to survive. He also says he likes how you fly. I don't get that latter comment, sir."
"I can fly without a broom," Professor Snape revealed. "That's a long story and not all of it is good for me to relay to you. Nonetheless, you made the potion perfectly, and this owl gave me the ideal opportunity to rip into you, even if you did not deserve it. The others believe you did this intentionally, so that basically served both of us. Tell him he did well today, and I thank him for his compliments and service to you."
Livia relayed the message and bowed to him. The owl flew up to Professor Snape's left shoulder, carefully keeping his claws from gripping too tightly and extended his right wing around the professor's neck then took his leave out the window.
"Well, that was unprecedented," Professor Snape observed.
"I hope you take it as a great compliment, sir," Livia stated. "I would."
"Just do not say a word about it, Miss Woodcock. As you say, I have a persona to maintain."
"Of course, I won't."
"I did use the pensieve," he revealed. "Those girls sure got what was coming to them. That was at least one good laugh. How much did they hurt you?"
"It looked worse than it was, as you may have guessed," Livia replied. "I protected my body but allowed the school to see damage, usually to my face, so they could feel like they hurt me and that the school could have evidence as to whom the aggressors were."
"They could have killed you or put you in the hospital," he asserted. "At least, I never had that kind of abuse inflicted upon me. Still, you must be more careful. I discussed this with the headmaster. Your belief in their abilities to aid you could make you overconfident and a truly powerful witch or wizard could take great advantage of you right now. You could make a fatal mistake, because taking on a foe here is not the same as protecting yourself from muggles."
"Thank you for your concern and the headmaster's concern. I will remember."
"You must ask the headmaster to explain this concern in detail. There is a fairly recent history that lay behind it. Since you are only in the early stages of your education, you remain vulnerable should the darker forces in this world find reason to assault you. Much more experienced witches and wizards have been killed or driven insane by them. And they will return at some point. You must prepare for greater tests than even I can mete out here."
"I understand – should I report for detention now?" Livia asked.
"Yes, that is a good idea. I will alert the monitor of how long you will require it."
"Good evening to you, sir," Livia said, taking her leave.
Professor Snape watched her as she headed down the corridor. He felt something he had not experienced in some five years. He found himself oddly worried about her. He wondered if she would heed the warnings well enough. She has to keep her head down and learn this before the Dark Lord returns. Skipping at least one grade might save her life, especially if Filius can teach her dueling skills that she will need, to build a better rapport with her wand. She probably can defend herself well for a time, but that likely will not matter enough.
Livia reported to detention. Soon after she sat down a note came to the monitor. He came over to her. "Professor Snape first informed me you would be coming here for a full week. He has relented. He will release you from me after today, provided neither you nor I tell anyone about this. I suggest you make yourself scarce at this time for the next week, so no one knows." Livia nodded and when the time ended, she collected her things and headed to the Great Hall for supper.
Quite a buzz seemed to exist around the various tables for that meal and Livia quickly realized she had become the topic. It seemed her ability to make the potion correctly did not rate as significant versus the fact that she used two crows and an owl to fetch missing items. Still, the biggest aspect spoken about concerned the fact that Livia called the owl Sevy. The students barely even appreciated the role of any of the three birds compared to that. The name of the owl seemed to greatly shock many, especially that a first-year student had said such a thing in front of Professor Snape. "What was she thinking?" became a prominent refrain. Some could not account for how Livia wound up with only a week's detention over that kind of disrespect. "Maybe he likes Barn Owls," one student asserted. Another suggested: "Well, she did make the potion correctly, and had already given her two weeks, so he would have broken his word if he had not cut her at least some slack." That idea drew a simple retort: "When has Professor Snape ever been fair to any non-Slytherin student?" Another had an idea: "Remember what the sorting hat said? What if her father had been a Slytherin, and Professor Snape actually knows who he is?"
Ted overheard that assertion, and he directly asked Livia: "Livia, do you think your father was a Slytherin?"
"It is very possible," Livia answered. "Who exactly I have no idea."
"That could explain why Professor Snape did not become more exceedingly harsh with you," Athena suggested. "An owl named Sevy? He HAD to be fuming over that."
"It seems so," Livia responded. "He showed his annoyance, to be sure, but his fury seems so controlled – he contains it. Have any of you ever heard him yell?"
"No," Shelley answered. "I think that's why so many of us find him scary. He does not have to yell to intimidate or belittle. You almost wonder what he is capable of doing if he ever got to that point, and no one wants to find out."
The fact that Livia called two crows and a Barn Owl to retrieve ingredients got almost totally lost somehow, even as the owl's name kept coming up. It became a kind of cognitive dissonance that struck Livia as strange, but since it ultimately kept a decent lid on her being a "show-off," she found it a good thing.
Just before the term ended, some of the students participated in a grand event called the Winter Ball. First year students typically did not get invited or spend much time there, but Livia found in it a very useful activity. She found an area where some students and minor staff observed it. She started making wagers on who would have a row at the event, who would leave the floor in tears, what new couples might emerge. She made a number of wagers with people willing to bet her – none from Ravenclaw, of course – thinking they knew the students better than she did. Livia won every bet, having an inside advantage they did not realize that she had. The "double or nothing" types became a staple of her building money that as a penniless unknown she never would have had. By staying in the shadows, she amassed quite a bit of money and found a way to deposit it before the term ended. Since she came from nothing, her skills at reading teenagers became a financial bonanza. Even when it later became possible for her to participate more, she still could have her "sideline business" of taking money from unsuspecting students, if desired. Every year, she could find a fresh supply to pilfer – either first-year students or overconfident Slytherins who thought they should be more cunning than she. They never succeeded, however. Hearing that Livia had taken money from his own students, Professor Snape opted to ignore it and suggested to those students that it was a valuable lesson in terms of underestimating the abilities of others there. He told them that overconfidence against an opponent in a far more important setting could be fatal, reminding them that Professor Flitwick, in his prime, was the best duelist around, in terms of professional competitions. Rivals constantly underestimated him. Losing some money counted for nothing in the long run versus losing your life, he said. They had to admit that he was right.
Professor Dumbledore took notice and told her he had seen it but would not step in to stop her, given the adage about separating fools from their money. He realized she had nothing of her own and having some money would help her, especially if the school ever stopped fully funding her education. He had suggested that, after she graduated, she might be able to reimburse the school by being a tutor or proctor. He informed her that he received a full report on her teaching lesson from Professor Snape: he rated the potion making and the teaching aspects as very promising, especially for a first-year student. Livia liked the idea of staying at the school and agreed to the concept of contributing to the education of others in situations like hers. She told the headmaster she would be honored by an opportunity to give back to the school that had given her a great deal already. She just hoped that whatever duties she received she could discharge capably.
The break saw almost all the students leave. Livia really had nowhere to go even had she wanted to do so. Her brother had gone home and also would visit friends. She knew she had to take whatever extra time she had and dedicate it towards reading ahead and getting some grasp of what Shelley and the others confronted during their first term of year two. Fortunately, for Livia, she found ample information left behind and the few skeletal staff members made sure neither she nor Sarah starved or lacked for anything. Hagrid was there to visit as were the owls and crows and her music kept her company. She had missed the two prior Christmases, so she felt no great pain in missing another. She found a taste for Dire Strait's Brothers in Arms, which Tom had sent along with an album by an American artist he liked, Born in the U.S.A. She sometimes visited the staff to make it easier for them to feed her, though she could conjure her own snacks when necessary. The headmaster returned early in January 1986 and sent her a note to come see him.
Professor Dumbledone essentially wanted an update on her progress but also wanted to warn her, as Professor Snape had, about the dark aspects of the world around Hogwarts. He gave a full account of a wizarding war and his belief that the chief force behind it would return because he had not been wholly destroyed. For the first time, she heard the term "Death Eater" and that a young boy survived an attempt by this Dark Wizard to kill him along with his parents. The mother somehow put herself in between him and the baby, ensuring the child's survival but the act led to her own death. He reinforced that he did not merely impart a history lesson because "the boy who lived" ultimately would attend the school. Livia considered that a great responsibility sat on a young boy's shoulders. She wondered what he knew and if expecting so much of him was fair. "To what end – do you know how this ends?" she asked.
"Not exactly," he replied. "Except that there will come a time when one will defeat the other. Beyond that, I cannot say with certainty. If Hogwarts will have a future, it will depend on not only who wins but who is left to continue it. I see a bright future for you if the boy defeats him and the school remains. That is, you may well be at least part of the future here, which is why I want you to become as powerful as you can be and want you to be extremely cautious so that you do survive whatever comes. Should the Death Eaters win, Hogwarts will need you to fight, though I will endeavor to ensure that by the time this boy grows up he will find a way to triumph. Regardless of who wins, there will be a great toll on many as there was the first time. Still, I think it is imperative that someone such as yourself survives."
"You want me to sit on the sidelines and do nothing?"
"No," the headmaster responded. "Do nothing that makes you vulnerable or draws attention to yourself. I think that your academic ambition keeping you here and only somewhat noticed actually will serve us the best in the long run. I know you will be powerful someday, but I saw great witches and wizards killed – the parents of the boy both died and they were members of an Order I created to fight these Death Eaters. Another boy – born at the same time – lost his parents, also members of the Order, because Death Eaters tortured them to the point of insanity. You might think in this world you have nothing to lose fighting for a cause or this school."
"That is true, headmaster," Livia admitted. "Only a few muggles really would ever mourn my loss, such as my brother."
"Make your cause to leave no trace of yourself that draws attention – for this reason I will never invite you to join that Order if the time comes for me to recreate it," he revealed. "I do not mean this as an insult. I want to intentionally hold you back. For now, work hard and become proficient in all facets of defense. Have you ever done any fighting – that is, dueling?"
"Mostly wordlessly and defensively," she answered. "Not dueling, I think."
"Since you know so little, Professor Flitwick will have to address this before you graduate," Professor Dumbledore asserted. "I may have to play a role in this, too. One more thing…"
"Yes?" Livia asked.
"You have shown an admirable degree of restraint and discretion. Your family dynamics made that aspect a problem in terms of disclosure. I also know you kept your word, and no one suspected that Professor Snape only gave you one day versus one week of detention. You must continue to remain quiet regarding anything unusual about Professor Snape. I cannot impress this upon you enough. Never attempt to defend him or anything he does to anyone, so long as you reside here. If you know anything different, keep whatever you learn to yourself."
"Does this have to do with –" Livia started.
"Do not ask, you should never ask anything about this," he demanded.
"Is this an issue that I am too young to understand?" Livia asked.
"Not quite," the headmaster answered. "This goes way beyond the issue of maturity. I must leave it at that. The time may come when you do know more, but you also may understand why I need you to vow that you will remain silent. For now, you must say nothing and ask nothing. This is most important, Livia."
"I swear it," Livia affirmed. "If it serves a greater good."
"It should, so long as you do as I say. If you want to impishly tease Professor Snape, just wish him a Happy Birthday if he is here around the 9th of January. I do something for it every year." That comment made Livia smile just a bit.
They exchanged their farewells and Livia returned to her studies at the Ravenclaw common room. Reviewing what the headmaster said to her, briefly, she knew he sincerely meant everything he said, even if she did not find her constant silence attractive. It seemed to her she had kept secrets her whole life and hoped that at some point she would become unburdened of them – even lessening the number that seemed just to grow would be nice. She put it out of her mind and took up her own notebook to put down the things she could not write in books that she did not own. She considered trying to purchase them so she could pass the second year final exams before her second year began. The headmaster eventually found her a means to acquire her own copies later.
Livia felt fortunate to get a note from Tom, back in Framlingham briefly around 5 January saying he would return to Durham that Saturday, the eleventh. Sydney had developed a good rapport with him. Realizing her own situation, Livia only could spend a few days with him, given his own schedule as well as hers. She had to figure out how to get there and how to ensure Sarah's wellbeing. Moreover, though she could ride a broom, what would she do with it once she got there? She figured she had to ask the first faculty member she spotted. On 8 January, she spotted Professor Snape walking around a courtyard corridor.
"Hello there, sir," Livia said.
He eyed her strangely. Her politeness, if not friendliness, seemed to baffle, if not annoy, him. "Miss Woodcock, why are you here? Why are you not with your brother?"
"I never left. I have much to learn, you know. And Tom visited family and friends. I might try to see him in Durham, but I am unsure how I should attempt to get there."
"Try flying," he suggested.
"But what do I do with the broom once I find a secluded place to land? Is it possible to hide or what other options do I have?"
"I see," he acknowledged. "Do you have a soft bag long enough to conceal it with whatever else you bring there?"
"I doubt it, sir," Livia answered. "I have not attempted to put one in the bag I have. Would I damage the broom if I tried to put in something barely long enough for it?"
"Probably, unless you could shrink it," he replied. "I know you can produce things for yourself, but can you send the broom somewhere, then retrieve it when you need it?"
"I could practice sending and receiving or shrinking it since he will not return until Saturday," Livia replied.
"Ask the headmaster which is easier, since I am not certain."
"Okay, sir," Livia confirmed. "Oh, and by the way, Happy Birthday tomorrow, professor, if I do not see you."
"Who told you that?" Professor Snape demanded.
"The headmaster," Livia stated. "Hope he gives you something nice."
"Why do you think he would bother?"
"For the same reason he told me – he remembers."
"He should not have said anything," Professor Snape asserted.
"Well, he did," she said simply. "Good day now – and then."
Livia walked away. He watched her walk away, puzzled and with a wry expression that betrayed very little.
Livia practiced and found shrinking the broom was less risky. She found she could transport objects, but if anyone moved one even slightly, she would have great difficulty recalling the broom in good time. Her skills demanded a precise fix on the location of anything she wanted to bring to her. If a student came back or the house staff or her brother – anyone – even moved it slightly, she found retrieval frustrating and sometimes impossible.
After securing the aid of a staff member in watching Sarah, she arrived in Durham on Saturday evening 11 January, just dark enough to not be seen when she landed by the Wear. Livia then shrank the broom and put both it and her wand in a zippered pocked inside a backpack she used as a weekend bag. From there, she found the stone bridge near the cathedral and entered the town, making her way to Tom's residence close to the cathedral. She found only Tom and Alice there. They had been sitting on the couch, drinking some cocoa and watching a movie on something called a VCR, which Alice received for Christmas and made a gift to the household. Tom immediately had to get a copy of "Monty Python and the Holy Grail," his favorite film. At some point during Livia's stay, he made sure they watched all of it together, too, as the two sometimes viewed the troupe's BBC programme in Framlingham.
Livia greeted both warmly and they reciprocated. She asked where Jake and Audrey were, and Tom told her that the two were taking a holiday together. Tom also informed her that he believed Jake intended to propose during the trip because he had seen a ring Jake had bought in town. "How nice," Livia said. "She will say 'yes,' right?"
Both agreed that she would.
"How shall we make the arrangements here?" Livia inquired.
"I do not understand your question," Tom answered.
"I think Alice knows what I am asking," Livia stated.
Alice blushed. She had developed feelings for Tom, in part owing to how gently he treated and how consistently he defended Livia. She thought Cathy okay, she had little use for Lydia, but she saw what Tom did in Livia, which justified his unwavering support.
"Your sister thinks the two of us are now a couple," Alice said.
"Are we, Alice?" Tom asked. "I have never been sure if you harbored any significant feelings towards me at all. You also come from a quite different background. Your family surely would not approve of us, would they?"
"Thomas James Woodcock, you underestimate yourself," Alice cried out. "You have excellent prospects should you qualify to train as a barrister. My family would have no objection, even if your father is a church rector and not an earl or knight or something posh. They will care more about who their sons marry – still. Me? Not nearly as much."
"Well, you can understand my concern," Tom said. "I could easily be a college fling."
"You aren't," Alice reassured. "Livia, just take my room. Who knows? You might rub off some good luck into it. I do all right here but I wish for a little better."
Thus, no one but Livia would touch her own things for the few days she spent there. They went very pleasantly. It did seem that Tom felt freer to express warmth towards Alice in general, where he had guarded himself before. At one point, Alice confessed to Livia that his diligence regarding her and his loyalty opened her eyes and really melted her heart. As she put it, she knew then what a great father as well as great man he would become.
Livia briefly saw Jake and Audrey just before she left. All had gone as predicted and Audrey wore her engagement ring proudly. They all enjoyed a brief celebratory cake with their local friends, including Gary, before Livia announced that she had to leave.
"But it's getting dark, Livia – why not wait until the morning?" Tom asked.
"It has to be this way and I cannot really explain why presently. I will send an owl to you when I get back to where I presently belong. My classes begin a little sooner than yours, for one."
They all embraced and Livia departed, making her way back down to the Wear below the stone bridge separating the medieval part of Durham from the rest of the town. She waited there a short time until the night fully set in. Only then did she enlarge her broom and set off for Hogwarts.
Tom found a letter from her as soon as he woke up the next morning. She had safely returned and wished everyone well – including those she had not seen during her brief stay, such as Adam and John. She told him that she had much to accomplish in the time left to be ready for what lay ahead. He sent back a quick note through Mel, expressing an understanding of that concept, given the path he had set for himself. It would demand a lot of effort, especially now that his "prospects" possessed a newfound purpose – that of securing the approval of Alice's family, if the two of them would remain a couple.
