Chapter Ten- Decloaking James Potter

Slytherin actually beat Gryffindor, which pleased Severus only because it displeased Potter and his mates. The chill outside was very evident as Severus sought out places to go smoke in peace. The best place seemed to be his Prefect's room. He'd taken to going there on Friday and Saturday evenings after curfew. That Friday was no exception.

"Hey, Snape, I hate chess, I hate exploding snap…you're part-Muggle, what do Muggles do on Friday nights?" Wilkes asked, leaning back on his bed with one hand behind his head.

"Um, drink…smoke…nothing special…watch the idiot box."

"Idiot box?"

"Television."

"Oh, tele-phision, interesting."

"No, it's telev…never mind…telly."

"Tell me about Muggle games," Wilkes asked.

"Um, well, my father fancied poker. I've never played, but I know the rules."

"Poker? What is it?"

"Cards; they don't explode."

"Okay, show me."

"I have no cards…guess I can transfigure these exploding snap cards into regular Muggle playing cards," Severus said, turning the magical cards into Muggle ones. He only knew five-card-stud and showed Wilkes how he thought Muggle poker was played. The two seemed to get the hang of it, over a few cigarettes.

"So, Snape, Cammy is this incredible person…what bird strikes your fancy?" Wilkes asked, taking a drag on the Muggle cigarette while trying to bluff his way into winning with a one, a three, a jack, a four, and a six.

"No one; I'll see your six Sickles," Severus said, seeing right through the bluff.

"Um…nothing?" Wilkes said, laying his cards down for Severus to see.

"Nothing is right, well, my two Jacks beats your nothing, so, thank you!" Severus said, taking the Sickles over to his pile. "You're really rubbish at this, aren't you?"

"I guess cards ain't me forte."

"Damn right," Severus said, still avoiding the earlier question.

"So, the bird?" Wilkes pressed on.

"Oh, um…none."

"None? Come on, someone's gotta pique your interest."

"Hmm…nope, none…sorry."

"Must make life boring," Wilkes volunteered.

"Nope, my life is full of adventure…and look at the time," Severus, said staring at his bare wrist and mocking himself. "Time for bed."

"Huh? It's eleven-thirty, you don't go to bed this early!"

"I do tonight…see ya later, Simon," Severus said, hurrying to the door to avoid any more girl talk. He was trying to forget that he fancied Camilla and really trying to avoid thinking about Lily. Still though, Wilkes was right, it was far too early to go to bed. He had a bunch of cigarettes to smoke and no desire to return to his room, so he snuck out of the castle into the brisk night air.

He knew as well as any good observer that the rose bushes near the perimeter of Hogwarts were often occupied by many a horny student. Therefore, he had to venture further out to the outskirts of the grounds to get some privacy. So he sat beneath a tree not terribly far from the Forbidden Forest to just be alone with his thoughts. Of course his thoughts usually terrified him. They'd terrify most normal people, let alone normal Death Eaters. He often thought of ways to kill James Potter and Sirius Black… theoretically speaking that is. He'd probably not kill them himself, though he very much wanted their demise to ensue shortly.

Of course Potter would probably leave Hogwarts and be some great Quidditch player, the kind that people all over the world loved and envied. Black would be his side kick since he had no skills or talents of any kind that Severus could discern. Severus would be the world's most notorious Death Eater - or so he hoped. Either that, or just be a huge, loner-nobody just like he was on that very night as he sat beneath the stars, smoking a cigarette under a tree of a infamously frightening forest.

"Who's there?" a voice spoke approaching Severus. Severus in an instant knew exactly who the voice belonged to. It was the Hogwarts grounds keeper Hagrid, carrying a lantern and walking the largest bloodhound Severus had ever seen.

"It's just me, Hagrid," Severus solemnly spoke, exhaling the dark smoke and waiting for a reaction.

"Oh, 'ello Severus! How are you this fine evening?"

"Oh, I'm fine. That's a big dog."

"Oh uh, yeah, Bessie is a bit bigger than usual tonight. Hey, wait a minute…it's awful late fur ya to be out, ain't it?"

"It is. I know. What do you mean, bigger than usual?"

"Oh uh…well uh, she's expectin', yer see."

"Expecting what?" Severus naively asked. He knew nothing little of animals and beasts. He never cared for animals much, and rarely read anything about them unless he had to.

"Well, she's expectin' pups of course!"

"Oh, she's pregnant…" Severus said, sounding not very enthused.

"Yeah," Hagrid spoke, pointing his large lantern up towards the night sky. "It's nasty cold out tonight, Severus, why not come inside my hut for some tea? Ya can finish your smoke in there, I don' mind," Hagrid said, turning to head towards his home.

"Oh, um…okay I guess," Severus said. He was slightly annoyed because he wanted to be alone, but if he denied Hagrid's request he feared he'd just go and tell on him.

It was the first time Severus had been inside Hagrid's hut; though he'd seen other students coming out offrom there before. They were mostly Gryffindors and a few Hufflepuffs. He felt fairly certain he was the first Slytherin to ever enter the hut. The hut was large and everything inside was custom- fit for a half-giant. Even the dog seemed half-giant to Severus, who'd never seen such a large beast before.

"Come on in," Hagrid said, pulling out a chair for Severus to jump onto and sit on. "I won' tell on ya but yer got to know that hangin' out at night may get you into trouble with Dumbledore now."

"I know…and smoking is bad for me too."

"Oh, well, uh, I don' know 'bout that. I smoke me self, pipe, though. If I had a Sickle for each student I've caught smokin', well…I'd be a very rich man, see."

"I'm sure…so, why do you think Lucius is up to no good again, Hagrid?" Severus asked, feeling a bit irked at Hagrid's observation from a few weeks back.

"Oh, uh, no reason, jus' something I 'eard the Headmaster sayin' to McGonagall one night…probably shouldn't 'ave tol' ya that," Hagrid said, looking as guilty as he sounded.

"And what did Dumbledore say?"

"Oh, uh…nothin' much…"

"That he's a Death Eater?" Severus volunteered. He loved the look on Hagrid's face at that moment. Surprise mixed with fear, and then he quickly changed his demeanor to that of the all-knowing adult.

"No, uh, what do you know of Death Eaters…Severus?"

"That they follow the Dark Lord Voldemort and aid his…" as soon as the 'v' sound escaped Severus's lips, Hagrid began to choke on his drink. As some of the fluid splashed against Severus's face he instantly recognized the smell as some kind of whiskey.

"Now, listen to me, you shouldn't be sayin' his name now. See, sayin' his name…well…it's bad."

"Why? It's just a name, people say it all the time."

"No, they shouldn't be. See, he's a very bad man. He kills people and he's just…well he's bad, see."

"And the Headmaster thinks Lucius is his follower? What proof does he have?" Severus asked sounding very annoyed. The last thing any of them needed was Dumbledore snooping and finding out they were Death Eaters.

"Oh, uh, now, see, Dumbledore is a great and powerful wizard, see. He jus' has a way of knowin' things. Nothing gets pastsed Dumbledore, nothin' at all."

"Oh, I see. Well, I know for a fact that Lucius Malfoy is no Death Eater. We've discussed it; he does not like the Dark Lord. The Dark Lord is bad for business and all."

"Right," Hagrid said, almost in a slur of disbelief. He had a confused look on his face and then an embarrassed one. "He's just so…pureblood this and pureblood that, his father too."

"You know his father?"

"I knew him. Spoiled bigot he was, probably still is, they say."

"Who are 'they'?" Severus asked in a harsh tone. He was very protective of his friends after all.

"Oh, uh, jus' people 'round town. I hear things down at the pub, see. Look, he may or may not be a Death Eater, but that Lucius is up ta no good! Yer mark my words. He uses people and threatens them."

"I don't think that's true at all. He's a spoiled brat, of that I'm certain. He's proud of his pureblood status, so what? What's that?" Severus said, changing the subject. He looked over to see something moving on the floor and it appeared to just come from the fire place.

"Oh, uh, that's Sherry, and over there is Sheila and that bloke over there is Tiberius."

"Are those Ashwinders?" Severus asked. He'd never seen a living one but used the dried remains and some eggs on occasion in various potions.

"Good eye! I better fetch 'em eggs up quickly now!" Hagrid said, putting on oven-mitts and rushing over to collect the eggs which were laying in a steaming heap behind a very large and old looking armchair. Soon the snakes slithered back into the fire and were gone before Severus could even blink.

"You name them? Do they live long enough for a name?" Severus said, watching as Hagrid scooped up the eggs.

"They always travel in threes and I always name them the same names. Everyone deserves a name. I uh, need some help. You bein' here is good timin' as I'm not supposed to use magic. 'Course I do but I am not so good. Can 'ya set a quick freezing…" Hagrid stopped speaking as Severus quickly cast a freezing spell on the eggs before they caught fire. He had read about how difficult it is to harvest the eggs, which are why they were so expensive. "Oh uh, good work. Never been able to save many."

"Why do you have them? They live in your fire place?"

"No, they live near the fire place. I usually can save a few here and there, in threes. Then the rest all catch on fire…oh I uh, well I got them from some bloke down at the pub, 'bout a year ago. Always wanted to use the eggs for Professor Slughorn's potions, now thanks ta you, I can!" Hagrid happily spoke. "Thanks there, Severus! Six eggs! Three for me and three for Professor Slughorn!"

"Oh, no problem. Glad I could help. When do they lay their eggs?"

"Oh, whenever, not seemin' to be on any schedule. I try to freeze the eggs but I usually can't…"

"Don't you have an ice box?"

"No, I never needed one."

"Well, Hagrid, just get one and cast a freezing spell on it or have the Headmaster do that, and then you can just store the eggs in there."

"I hate to ask for favors and all."

"It's hardly a favor. I'd be happy to cast the spell for you," Severus volunteered. Hagrid seemed to be a very proud man and Severus respected that.

"Well uh, I dunno. Perhaps."

"Well, as a thanks for not telling on me for smoking, I'll cast a freezing charm on an ice box. Just get a standard one, fill the bottom with ice and I'll charm the ice to never melt. Done."

"Well, we'll see. It's late, Severus, best get back to yer room soon."

"Okay, think about it, will you?" Severus asked. Hagrid smiled and nodded some as Severus closed the large wooden door behind him.

---

Severus returned to his room and fell asleep. He found that ignoring most people and keeping to himself was quite easy. He'd pretty much phased out Potter and Black, and Pettigrew wouldn't even look at him. He remembered what Lupin said about casting a shield charm to not show up on 'the map.' What map? Somehow they had a tracking map and that was a pretty dangerous weapon to have. It meant anyone could just be victimized by them at any time. He asked Myrtle if she knew anything about it but she did not. She did promise to keep her ears open.

It was the last Quidditch game of the year before Christmas hols and it was Gryffindor against Ravenclaw. Severus was looking forward to it, as he'd have the entire library to himself. Most students attended the games regardless of who was playing. It was the day before and he was finishing up in the library. He heard some people coming, so he gathered his books up in his bag and rose to leave. He quickly recognized the voices outside the library. It was Potter and Black.

The corridors were poorly lit and, as he left the library, he noticed they had their backs to him. They were whispering but then spoke up slightly. Severus quickly cast a shield charm and hid behind the marble bust of Salazar Slytherin to listen in.

"Enough of this rubbish, let's go taunt Snivels before Madam Pince throws him out," Black said, turning to head into the library.

"Yeah, but that coward will see us coming and get up to leave probably," Potter added, following his friend.

"Shit, James, the map says he's here right?"

"Um, let's see," Potter said opening the map that Severus could hardly see from where he was hiding. "Fuck! He was fuckin' there a minute ago, now he's not on the map at all!"

"How can he not be on the map at all? He did not leave this room or we'd seen him."

"Look for yourself, he's not on the map anywhere."

"That just makes no sense, James," Black said removing the parchment from Potter's hand. "He did not just slither by us and he can't just vanish. This thing showed him cowering in the girls' loo last week, he's always on it."

"Well, do you see him?"

"No, the twat must have gone outside, probably off the grounds to smoke, the prick. We can go get your cloak and find him outside."

'Cloak?' Severus thought to himself. That bastard has an invisibility cloak? 'God, what rule doesn't he break?' Severus turned and nearly screamed to find he was not alone. As Potter and Black were heading to their room to get the cloak, one Argus Filch was apparently standing just a few inches from Severus behind the statue.

"Them lot is up to no bloody good!" Argus said, gritting his yellow teeth and squinting his pale blue eyes.

"You want some gossip?" Severus asked. Argus smiled a wicked smile which quickly faded into a horrific gasp.

"There you are, Argy," Madam Pince said as she locked the library door behind her. She wore a seductive smile and bedroom eyes the second she saw him.

"Argy?" Severus asked, terrified at the spectacle he was witnessing.

"Care to walk me to my quarters, Argy?"

"I'd rather be raped by an Acromantula! Besides, I have to uh…uh…"

"Escort me to my common room for breaking curfew," Severus said, saving his uncle from the old and dreaded librarian.

"Right, this boy broke curfew. You miscreant!" he said, slapping Severus across the top of his head. Severus played along…some.

"What? He's only one minute late! Have some pity on the boy, he's my top customer!" she joked of the school's most notorious nerd.

"No, no pity, come, you," he sneered, grabbing Severus by the arm and heading in the direction of the dungeon. They looked back to see the disappointed librarian take her leave and head in the other direction.

"You can release my arm now, uncle."

"Good boy," he said, clearly terrified.

"Why don't you like her?"

"Have you seen her?"

'Have you seen you?' Severus thought to himself. As interesting as his great-uncle's love life or lack thereof was, he found the map and cloak to be of greater interest.

"Say, how would you like to perform some magic, Argus?"

"Huh? You know I can't…"

"I know that, but no one else does, right?"

"No, well, Dumbledore does!"

"Of course but these students all think you are a wizard, don't they?"

"What's your point?" Argus said, beginning to sound angry and taking Severus by the arm again.

"Do you still have your mum's wand?"

---

"I still don't understand how this is gonna work, Severus," Argus said, stowing his mother's wand in his pocket. In the last ten minutes, Severus had convinced Argus to perform magic on Potter and Black. He told Argus of the map and of the cloak, both of which intrigued him greatly.

"Look, I told you, first we need to wait for them outside. I think I know where they are going to go. Once they remove the cloak, boom! You hit them with the magic."

"But I ain't got none!" Argus said sounding very angry. He had to practically chase after Severus who was far ahead of him on his way out of the castle.

"I told you, just aim your wand when I poke you and say 'Accio cloak!' then 'Accio map'. I'll actually be performing the magic myself, but it'll look like you are doing it."

"Using that dismemberment charm?"

"Disillusionment charm. Now shh, you can't be seen talking to me. We'll go out to the willow and I guarantee that's where they'll be! You aim and speak those incantations; I'll be hiding behind you to actually perform the magic. You just be sure to catch the cloak and map!"

"Aseeno cloak and Aseeno map. Got it."

"NO! It's accio, not aseeno."

"Okay, oy! Where ya go?" Argus asked. He turned and could not see Severus, but Severus could see him. The Disillusionment charm was working. "Oh, okay, that willow tree," Argus said to himself. Severus followed him closely as Argus made his way in the dark. As he was no wizard, he could not use a Lumnos and Severus talked him out of bringing a torch for fear of Potter and Black seeing him coming. As they approached the tree, both Severus and Argus could hear voices. It was them. How predictable. Severus stood directly behind Argus and poked him in the back. In a flash, Argus leapt from the large rock and landed a few feet from the renegade boys. 'Brilliant, now I need to jump too!' thought Severus as he jumped and landed with a loud thump.

First Potter and Black looked stunned to see one mean-faced Argus Filch before them, and then they glanced over to see where the source of the second loud thump was. Severus had sprained his ankle in the fall but quickly limped over behind his great-uncle, who stood there, wand in hand, laughing a very evil and wicked laugh. The more Argus Filch laughed, the more pain Severus was in. So much so he had to take all of his weight off the foot entirely, so that he was leaning up against his great-uncle, which nearly caused Filch to fall over.

"Something wrong, Mr. Filch?" Potter asked as Filch nearly fell over, which caused Severus to nearly fall and break the charm.

"Tipsy, perhaps?" Black added. At that point, Severus was on his backside, leaning up against the back of Filch who probably looked like a man trying to stand on a tight rope. He was swaying all over as Severus kept leaning into him, causing him to stumble more and more. Then Severus jabbed him as the sign to get on with it.

"You boys are up to no good! I know what you are doin' out here and I know how ya got here!"

"Oh, how?" Black asked, not even bothering to put out his Muggle cigarette. Severus jabbed Filch again and watched from behind as Argus Filch aimed his wand right at the boys, who began to laugh.

"You boys got ya an invisibility cloak and a map of the school!" Argus shouted and Severus just knew he was smiling and loving every second of this.

"Oh, shit, James, hit the deck!" Black yelled, trying to run, but Argus beat him to it.

"Akrasio cloak! Alcrackio map!" Argus shouted and waved his wand in every possible direction he could think of.

'Ah shit Argus' Severus thought to himself as he turned and silently cast the charms. As soon as Severus turned he saw the map leap from inside James Potter's robes and then a cloak. They flew towards Filch who was still waving his wand left and right, right and left, up and down and everywhere in-between. He waved his wand so much he nearly forgot to catch the paraphernalia.

"Ah ha! See!" Argus screeched, grasping the cloak and map in his hands. The pain in Severus's ankle was intensifying so he jumped over behind a large tree about twenty feet away to drop the Disillusionment and check his swelling ankle. He glanced over to see his great-uncle having the time of his life. He'd never seen the man laugh and he'd never seen any man laugh quite that hard. "You two are in so much trouble! Ha ha-ha ha-ha!" he laughed as Potter and Black both suddenly looked very defeated. "Come now; let's go visit the Headmaster," the caretaker spoke as both boys actually hung their heads and followed him in silence. Severus waited until they were out of sight before turning to head back to the castle. All it took was a sprained ankle and a squib performing magic to shut up James Potter and Sirius Black once and for all. The price was well worth it.