Chapter 10: Breakfast, Squibs and Plans
The next morning, Genni awoke to the most unsettling feeling of something not quite being right. Then, quite suddenly, her brained kicked into gear and the memories of the day before came rushing back. Lost to the tidal wave of emotions the memories brought, Genni sat up in bed and did something she hadn't done since she was a small child; she cried. Wet, hot tears slid unhindered from beneath her semi-closed eyelids, dragging the sleep from her eyes along with them. She found herself lost in the swirl of emotions; grief , anger and disbelief being the most prominent. After a short while, which to Genni could have been days, William knocked on her door, and advised her that her guest was still asleep, and breakfast was being served. Calling out an almost unintelligible reply, she swiped her hands across her tear stained face, got out of the relatively unscathed bed, and headed to the adjoining bathroom to wash up.
Leaving the bathroom, amidst a cloud of steam and already resigned to having to wear her clothes from the day before, Genni was pleasantly surprised to find a set of finely made clothes on the bed. A mixture of clothes from both the wizarding and muggle worlds was awaiting her. Quickly deciding on comfort, she pulled on a pair of stonewashed jeans and a t-shirt, and made her way down the stairs, (which seemed more treacherous than what she remembered the night before) to get herself some breakfast. She didn't even realize that she had left the journal of Severus Snape on the edge of the large four poster.
As she stepped off the bottom of the staircase into the hallway, her foot twisted. As she realized her mistake, closed her eyes, and tried to prepare herself for the undoubtedly painful collision with the floor, she felt a hand grab her arm and spin her back toward the staircase. Her outstretched hand, with which she had hoped to somewhat lessen her impact with the rather hard floor, instead landed against something warm, followed closely by her torso. Wrapping her arms around this firm object -'firm, but definitely softer than the floor.' she thought to herself-, she fought to regain her balance. When she was finally able to get a firm footing on the deceptively narrow stair, she opened her eyes to the most disturbing sight; Draco, disheveled and half asleep had saved her from her otherwise inevitable fall, and in the process had wrapped his arms around her, bringing her rather close to him. So close in fact, that she could make out each of his eyelashes, which at this moment were half shielding his eyes from the morning light. Even more disturbing was the fact that her previously outstretched hand had somehow managed to come to rest at the nape of his neck; some of his platinum blonde hair caught around her fingers, as though she had been playing with it. Quickly disentangling herself from around him, she turned and practically ran the rest of the way to the dining room with her head down, in an attempt to hide the blush which had crept down her face and neck.
She was already seated, with William sitting a tray of assorted breakfast foods in front of her when Draco walked in. She felt, rather than saw, his eyes on the back of her neck, and her blush slightly returned. Hoping to keep her body's reaction both unnoticed and to a minimum, she turned to William and asked, "William, why is it that you're the only person I have seen?"
"I'm sorry miss?" William replied, while pouring her a cup of tea.
"You said last night that the staff didn't want to wake me. That implies there's more than just you on the staff, yet you're the only person I've seen. I'm just wondering why that is?"
"Well miss, my position is the only one which has constant contact with the family. The rest of the staff simply do their jobs, then go home to their families."
"I see." she paused, one hand resting on her chin. Draco sat across from her, looking with interest at the platter of food which had been placed before him. Selecting a piece of toast, he took a bite, then picked up a cup of black coffee and started to drink.
"William," Genni started, once again intent upon keeping herself distracted from a certain Slytherin who still hadn't taken his eyes from her for more than a moment, "has it always been that way?"
"With the staff, miss?" he replied, clearly at a loss as to what his new mistress would require of them.
"Yes, with the staff. Has it always been this way? And if it has, is there a reason why that is?"
"Yes, miss. The reason being that the Snape family has always hired squibs."
At this, Draco choked on his coffee, and Genni turned, looking at William with new-found interest.
"S-squibs? All of the staff are squibs?" Draco finally managed to choke out, sounding far more distressed than he appeared.
"Yes Mr Malfoy, squibs. There were, of course, some house elves that came with Mrs Snape from the Prince family when she came here, but as with all house elves, they died when their mistress did. The master at the time; your grandfather Miss Genni, didn't trust the house elves, so he refused to allow them to bond with his son. Therefor, when Mrs Snape passed on, her house elves went with her, so the only staff left are the squibs." William replied, stopping to pour Draco some more coffee before continuing. "Miss Genni, is there anything you'll be needing me to do today?"
Genni, halfway through a piece of toast when this question was asked, abruptly stopped eating, and looked at Draco, meeting his eyes for the first time that morning. "Draco," she began, not wanting to either upset the young man, who was clearly still exhausted, "will you be returning home after breakfast, or do you need more time?"
Draco thought for a moment. After a moment, a look of sheer panic crossed his face, before he settled it back into the usual disinterested mask. "If it's alright with you, I think I will return to the manor, however I will need to return." He passed a piece of parchment across the table to her, and noted the look of panic that graced her face just before she replied, "Of course, Draco. That's no problem. William, I am going to key Draco into the wards after breakfast, then I'll be leaving."
"Leaving Miss?"
"Yes, I need to speak to my mother about a couple of things. I'm not sure when I'll be back, but it will certainly be before school starts up again. Can you arrange for a message to be sent to Draco when I return, and have a room ready for him? It seems his inheritance is going to take more than just a day or two to sort through."
"Of course miss."
"Thank you William."
The rest of breakfast passed in silence, but Genni wasn't paying attention to the little food that she did manage to consume. Her eyes were focused on the now familiar cursive script on the piece of parchment Draco had handed to her. The piece of parchment that was going to make her life unbearable, especially if the events so far were anything to go by.
Gennevieve,
I ask that you allow Draco access to my personal library. I fear that his father maybe making a mistake with him in regards to his future, and there are many books in there which will help save my godson's life. I know this is a lot to ask, but I sincerely hope you will agree. There is another side to Draco, which you probably have yet to see.
Severus.
'Thanks a lot,' she thought. 'now I have to spend even more time with him.'
After Draco left, Genni went upstairs, grabbed her bag, and left, hoping that she would get some answers. She pulled out the first portkey from the previous day and crossed her fingers, hoping that her assumption was correct. Closing her eyes, she whispered "Portus" and felt the unsettling tug behind her belly button. Opening her eyes, she was once again home. Dropping the portkey on the nearest surface, she apparated to the one person who could give her the answers she was seeking about Severus Snape. She once again didn't realize that in her haste, she had left behind the journal which she had been unable to be separated from the day before...
AN: *ducks flying fruit* I know, I know *sigh* Oh well. Anyone pick up any clues from this chapter? As always, please r&r (even if it's only to tell me your theories on the clue)