After our steamy shower, I went into the kitchen to make us some tea. I heard a knocking at the door. I walked to the kitchen doorway.
"Stay there." Snape instructed.
I did what I was told. Snape walked to the door with his wand drawn. He opened it up a tiny bit and mumbled something too someone on the other side of the door.
"What kind of question is that! How am I suppose to know that!" I heard Reia's voice from the other side of the door.
I smirked. It was defiantly my Reia. I ran to the door, as Snape opened it up wider.
"Reia!" I said as I hugged her on the front step.
"Kate! I missed you so much!" Reia said as she hugged me tighter.
A familiar black dog walked past us and into Snape's house.
"You needed an escort I assume." I smirked.
"More for you than me." Reia replied.
We walked back into Snape's house and closed the door. The black dog and Snape we're staring at each other. Sirius had his teeth bared.
"Play nice or leave Sirius." I said sternly.
Sirius looked at me and pinned his ear back. Snape left the room.
"I'm sorry, I know this isn't how you wanted it too be Sirius, but with Umbridge at large here… we can't afford to take any chances." I said as I bent down to Sirius' level.
Sirius let out a tiny whimper and nudged my hand. Snape came back with two glasses filled with an orange looking potion.
"You just need to get a strand of each other's hair." Snape said as he handed Reia and I a cup each.
I flinched as I pulled out three strand of hair from my head. Reia handed me a couple of strands from hers. We both put the hair in our cups and looked at each other.
"Are you ready?" I asked Reia.
"Are you kidding? I've always wanted to know what it was like to be you" Reia smirked.
We light clanked our glasses together and both took a long sip of the potion.
"Ugh Reia, even your hair tastes like cotton candy perfume." I said as I scrunched my nose.
"I would rather taste that then what your hair tastes like!" Reia complained.
My stomach felt queasy. Suddenly my bra felt tighter around me and I noticed my hair growing at an alarming rate. I looked up at Reia, rather… myself.
"Reia?" I asked.
"Kate?" Reia asked back.
We stared at each other.
"This is so weird." I said as I looked at myself.
"I know." Reia replied.
I glanced over at Snape who was looking at the floor.
"Well, might as well get out of here before it wears off." I commented.
Sirius barked and went to the door. He scratched lightly on it, indicating his need to go outside.
"Keep that up Sirius and I'm going to tie you too a tree." I said as I glared at him.
"Kate" Snape said.
"Yes?" both Reia and I replied.
"Um, real Kate." Snape corrected.
"Oh, sorry." Reia said with a slight blush.
"Can I have a word with you in private before you go?" He asked.
I glanced over at Sirius who let out a small whine.
"I'll just be a second." I said to Sirius.
I followed Snape into his bedroom. He closed the door behind him.
"What's the matter Sev?" I asked.
"Nothing, I just wanted to say good bye to you in private that's all, and to give you this" Snape replied as he handed me a flask.
"More Polyjuice potion?" I asked
Snape nodded.
"Okay, thank you. I'll see you tonight then." I said with a small smirk.
"Right, I'll see you tonight." Snape replied.
Snape ran his fingers threw my newly longer hair, distracting me from leaving.
"I miss your red hair." Snape admitted.
My stomach went cold when I suddenly remembered that photograph I seen. The woman with the red hair.
"It will turn back don't worry." I managed to say.
"I would kiss you right now, but I don't think I can." Snape said.
"I'm still me Severus." I smirked.
"I know, it's just…" Snape said.
"I get it… just don't go kissing Reia." I replied.
"I don't think you'll have to worry about that. You are the only one for me." Snape said.
"She is me." I replied.
"Not the real you." Snape added.
There was a scratching at the door.
"I'm coming Sirius! Chill out!" I yelled at the door.
I turned back to Snape. His dark eyes fixated on me.
"This might get confusing over the next couple of weeks, so maybe we should have a safe word, so I know which one is the real you." Snape suggested.
"And what would that be?" I asked.
"How about ''Snake" Snape said.
"Snake? Alright." I replied.
I turned to leave the room, but Snape grabbed my arm and pulled me back to him.
"I'll regret it if I don't kiss you now" Snape said as he lower his lips onto mine.
He quickly pulled his lips away from mine.
"It's still a little weird." Snape admitted.
I chuckled.
"I bet it would be!" I commented.
"I'll see you tonight then?" Snape asked me.
"Of course." I replied.
Reia and Snape stood at the door as well left, if anybody was watching, we wanted them to see that I was still at Snape's house.
Sirius transformed back into himself once we entered his house.
"So whose idea was it for you too stay at Snivvy's house?" Sirius asked me.
"Please don't start. Not at Christmas time." I replied.
Sirius wrapped his arm around me.
"You're right." Sirius said smirking at me.
"Sirius, is that you?" I heard Lupin's voice from the other room.
Sirius walked me to the doorway into the kitchen.
"Yeah, I'm back." Sirius said back to Lupin.
"I thought you went to pick up Kate?" Lupin asked.
I laughed.
"It's me Professor Lupin. I needed a decoy in order to evade Umbridge's wrath" I explained.
"I see. What a clever idea." Lupin said smirking at me.
"It was Dumbledore's idea." I admitted.
"Reia! You're back!" I heard a voice say from behind me.
I turned around and the Weasley twins were standing there grinning.
"I'm actually…" I started to say, but they grabbed both of my arms and lead me upstairs.
I glanced back at Sirius who was sitting at the table smirking.
"I thought you said you were going to be gone until tonight." one of the twins said.
"I'm telling you I'm not…" I tried to say again, but the interrupted me once again.
"We thought we were going to go threw withdrawals waiting for you to return." the other twin said as they dragged me into a bedroom.
"Withdrawals?" I asked.
"Don't lie to us. We know we rocked your world this morning." One of the twins said as he started unbuttoning his shirt.
"Reia is sleeping with both of you!" I exclaimed.
The twins looked at each other and then back at me.
"What's going on?" One of them asked.
I started laughing. The twins looked at me in confusion.
"I'm not Reia, but thanks for telling me that she's sleeping with both of you." I smirked as I left the bedroom.
I headed back downstairs. I heard talking in the living area of the house. I peaked my head around the corner and saw Mr. Weasley in a wheel chair sitting with his family, except the twins. He still looked pretty beat up, but he looked way better then he did before.
"It breaks my heart every time I see them" Sirius said behind me.
"As one big happy family." I replied back.
Sirius placed his hand on my shoulder.
"I'm sorry." Sirius said.
I turned around to look at him.
"Don't say you're sorry… There was nothing you could have done, you were locked up! Stop blaming yourself." I replied.
"But, you were alone… for so many years. How could I ever forgive myself for something like that?" He asked me.
"I had mom for the first year of Hogwarts. And I had you for my last, that's more then some kids had." I replied, thinking about Harry.
Sirius didn't say anything.
"And I wasn't alone. I had Reia with me all those years as well." I added with a small smile.
"You're mother would always look on the bright side too." Sirius commented.
"I know, she was amazing." I replied.
"She was." Sirius agreed.
"Kate is that you?" I heard Mr. Weasley ask from the other room.
I peaked my head threw the doorway.
"Well sort of" I replied.
"Reia, I'm sorry you sound exactly like Kate!" Mr. Weasley said slightly embarrassed.
"No, Mr. Weasley, it is me… Kate…" I replied.
"Oh! experimenting with Polyjuice potion I see" Mr. Weasley said with a smirk.
"I guess you could say that." I smirked back.
"Will you be staying for dinner deary?" Mrs. Weasley asked me.
I glanced over at Sirius.
"Yes" I replied.
I stood in my old room upstairs petting Chance before I left.
"Here, I found this in her hair brush." Sirius said as he handed me a few strands of hair.
"This better be her brush." I warned Sirius.
"It is, I double checked." Sirius assured me.
"I'll try and visit as soon as I can." I told Sirius
Sirius nodded. Sadness filled his eyes.
"Dad…I love you." I said grabbing his arm.
He grabbed my hand and held it tightly.
"I love you too kid." Sirius replied.
There was a small tapping at the door. I looked over and saw Lupin standing there.
"Are you ready to go Kate?" Lupin asked me.
I looked back at Sirius.
"You're not taking me?" I asked
"Not this time. I don't want to take the chance of getting locked up again." Sirius replied
I sighed and put the strands of hair into the flask that Snape had given me. I took a big swing of the potion. I shuddered as I recapped the flask and put it back into my robe.
Sirius walked with Lupin and I downstairs.
"Take care of yourself kid." Sirius said as he messed up my now long hair.
"Same with you old man." I replied with a smirk.
"Old! I'm not that old"! Sirius replied completely offended.
I smirked.
"I'll see you soon." I promised.
Sirius nodded. Lupin and I both stepped outside. I glanced back at Sirius one last time before Lupin shut the door.
"He talks about you all the time." Lupin said as we walked down the front steps.
I couldn't respond back. I had a lump in my throat that made it impossible to speak.
Lupin knocked on Snape's door as I stood in the street in front of his house. The door opened slightly as Lupin and Snape had a brief conversation at the door. Lupin waved me over and I walked up to the house. Snape looked at me intently as he held the door open for me.
"Kate! Thank god you're back!" Reia said as she got up from the couch.
I heard Snape close the door behind me.
"Oh really? Needing to get back to someone at Sirius'? Or should I say some… twins." I smirked.
Reia held her hand over her mouth.
"They didn't!" She said threw her hand.
"They tried… until I told them who I really was." I replied with a huge smile on my face.
Reia's face turned bright red.
"Reia, it's getting late we should be heading back." Lupin said.
Reia nodded.
"I'm going to miss you" Reia said as she hugged me.
"I'm sorry I have to do this too you." I said to her.
"I'd do anything for you Kate." Reia smiled as she pulled away from me.
"Likewise." I grinned.
I watched Reia leave with Lupin into the dark chilly night. Snape shut the door behind them, but he didn't leave from the door.
"I missed you today." I admitted to Snape.
"What's the safe word?" Snape asked me, his back still turned to me.
"Oh, um… Snake." I replied back.
Snape took a deep inhale.
"How you two are friends is beyond anything I can begin to understand." Snape said turning around.
"What do you mean?" I asked
"You two are nothing alike. Almost complete opposites." Snape replied.
"Well, if I were to be friends with someone like me, don't you think it would get a little boring?" I asked.
"I suppose so…" Snape said.
"So how was your day?" I asked.
"Umbridge didn't show up, so I guess it was a good day." Snape replied as he walked towards me.
"Did Peter ever come back to talk to you?" I asked.
"I took care of it." Snape replied as he walked past me.
"Took care of it?" I asked.
Snape ignored my question and sat down in his chair.
"Who's Peter anyways?" I asked.
"Peter Pettigrew. He had a silver hand correct?" Snape replied.
I nodded
"He's the Dark Lord's faithful servant. Also the man who framed your father." Snape told me. "What?" I asked.
"Peter killed a crowd of people, so when Sirius got there, Peter cut off one of his fingers and disappeared making it look like Sirius killed those people and Peter." Snape informed me.
"So you're telling me that if Peter was caught and brought in, he could confess to everyone that Sirius didn't kill anyone." I asked.
Snape nodded.
"He was right there. On the other side of the door." I said pointing to the door.
"Kate, it was two against one. If you even tried to capture Peter… you would have had to deal with the other death eater." Snape said.
"I would have found a way, if it meant that Sirius could be free!" I exclaimed.
"You're being reckless again" Snape commented as he stood up from his chair.
"Why didn't you tell me before?" I asked.
"How am I supposed to bring something like that up?" Snape asked.
I started shaking with anger.
"Anytime! Don't you think that was something important to tell me?" I asked.
"Don't you think if we could have brought Peter in ourselves, we would have done it by now?" Snape snapped back.
"He was right here at your door step!" I argued back.
"It's more difficult then even that! He can turn into a rat." Snape explained.
I opened my mouth to argue back, but I couldn't think of anything to argue that.
"If I thought something could be done about easily about catching him, I would have told you before." Snape continued.
I nodded slightly.
"There will be a time when Peter drops his guard and he will be brought in to clear Sirius' name." Snape said as he placed his hand on my shoulder.
"I hope so." I replied quietly.
"It will happen." Snape assured me.
"I'm sorry I snapped at you like that, but just seeing Sirius cooped up in his house all the time… it breaks my heart." I replied.
"No need to apologize, I know how protective you get over Sirius." Snape said.
"I know he would do the same for me." I smirked.
"So you had a good visit then?" Snape asked me.
"Yeah, it was nice too see everybody again." I replied.
There was a loud sharp knocking at the door. Snape motioned to me to go into the bedroom. I slowly walked over to the bedroom as Snape walked to the door. He peered out the peep hole.
"It's Umbridge." Snape said to me.
"I still look like Reia!" I whispered to Snape.
She knocked again on the door.
"I know you're in there Severus, open the door." Her voice said from the other side of the door.
I closed the bedroom door almost all the way, leaving just a small crack to peer out of. Snape opened the door.
"What are you doing here?" Snape asked coldly.
"I was just in the neighbour hood and just wanted to 'pop' by for a friendly visit." Umbridge sneered.
"It's a little late to be out visiting isn't it?" Snape asked
"Oh, really? I didn't even check to see what time it is." She lied.
Snape went to close the door in her face, but she held out her hand to stop the door from closing.
"But, I am curious at where Ms. Black is." she said.
Snape opened the door again.
"She's sleeping." Snape told her.
"Really? Wasn't her friend just here, I don't think she could have possibly fallen asleep that quickly." Professor Umbridge replied.
"You're watching my house?" Snape asked angrily.
"No of course not. Like I told you, I was in the neighbour hood." She smirked.
"That's very unlikely." Snape replied.
I felt my breast start to fit nicely into the bra I was wearing. I picked up some of my hair and watched it shorten and turn back to a red color.
"I think you're lying about her being here Severus." Umbridge accused.
I quickly changed out of my robes and started looking threw my bags. I forgot to grab my tank top and shorts from the washroom. I didn't pack anything else to sleep in. I kept digging in my bag looking for something that looked remotely like something I would sleep in.
"It would be in your best interest to tell me where she is Severus, even if she is with Sirius Black." Umbridge said. "She's sleeping, I told you." Snape replied bitterly.
"I'll make you a deal, you tell me where she is and I won't tell the Ministry you're helping hide Sirius Black." Umbridge continued.
I grabbed the shirt that Snape had given me the night of our first kiss. I pushed my arms threw the sleeves and started buttoning the front.
"You're a fool to not take a deal like that Severus. But now you can rot in Azkaban with her." Umbridge informed Snape.
"Wasn't there just a mass break-out there?" Snape asked
"You're making a huge mistake." Umbridge replied with her voice slightly raised.
"I think it's you making the mistake Dolores." Snape replied.
I left the upper buttons un-done. I swung the bedroom door open.
"Are you coming to bed or what Sev… oh Professor Umbridge. I didn't know you were here." I said innocently.
Snape quickly turned around. He smirked as soon as he saw that I was back to myself again.
"She's here?" Professor Umbridge asked.
"I told you she was." Snape replied coldly.
Professor Umbridge walked away from the front door without another word. Snape shut the door and locked it.
"That was a close one." I said with a sigh.
"Too close." Snape replied, his eyes locked on me.
"Honestly, does she have nothing better to do during the holidays?" I asked.
Snape came towards me and pushed his lips against mine.
"You look so sexy in that shirt." Snape commented.
Before I could reply, he picked me up and threw me over his shoulder again.
"Not this again! Put me down!" I demanded.
Snape again ignored my plea to put me down and carried me into his bedroom.
