It is not me,

It is not you,

But nightmares coached in sweet

Sheranaqua snuck back in time to finish breakfast, keeping an ear out. It was not until after her midmorning tests, however, that Hedwig had apparently flown in informing Dumbledore that Harry was on the early Hogwart's Express to the school the next day. The excitement among the teacher's ensured that word got around to all the students at the school.

Sheranaqua was not sure when she would get to meet her brother, but for now, she needed to focus and try to get through her final test in potions.

Snape regarded her cooly as she read the instructions on the board and turned stubbornly to her task. "You were the one who complained about being tested from the Hogwart's textbooks, I am merely testing you on one of your own potions to test your true potential."

"I have studied many cultures and their potions." Sheranaqua responded non-committally, inwardly fuming. Leave it to her dad to make her analyze an Atlantean potion, and a death drought at that! It had been foolish of her to leave him so many clues. Sleeper had told her as much, but then she had hardly been trained in the art of subterfuge. What had he expected from her first trip back to the habitable world in half a decade?

She set up the brewing quickly. Snape must be testing how much she knew of the country, as he had listed some of the ingredients but not all, and left out the most crucial. On her trip to the supply closet, she took just one of the strange, rare wildflowers with the white and blue petals. How many wizards knew the origin of this flower, that it had been originally native only to Atlantis? Even the ones in the supply closet were sad, distant cousins to those she knew back home.

She laid out her supplies and got to work, under the increasingly intense stare of Severus Snape.

Sheranaqua measured out three ounces of the antidote into a beaker.

"Are you done?" Snape reached over her to collect the bottle, handling it carefully.

"Yes."

"How well do you think you did?" He inspected the color. It was exactly the right shade, unlike her previous potion attempts.

Sheranaqua turned to look at him, finding herself nearly speaking into his chest. "I would trust this antidote with my life, if I had too."

"Very well." Snape did not move but pressed another bottle into her palm. "Drink the death drought."

"You cannot be serious." Sheranaqua moved her chin to avoid being caught on one of his many buttons. "If I do not take the antidote, it is lethal."

"But you just made the antidote." Snape pointed out. "If yours fails, I have the antidote for the poison as well."

"You try to think of everything, do you not?" Sharanaqua glared up at him, "Very well, but administer the antidote quickly." She took the bottle of poison and drank it down in two gulps.

Snape clasped her shoulders, holding her upright while waiting for the poison to affect her.

Her eyes rolled, one of her hands seeking first the desk and then his chest for stability as her equilibrium was the first to go. She leaned into him, and Severus lost his grip, momentarily frozen as she slid to the floor.

He went to his knees and held up her head, feeling a strange sense of panic in his gut that was foreign to the thoughts in his mind. "Sheranaqua!" She was going to die! He felt like he was being pulled into a vortex. A voice was screaming at him that the girl lying on the floor was Lillian, beautiful, helpless. He leaned forward, losing to the controlling thoughts. "Lily?" Severus leaned down, moving to envelop her in a kiss, as if that would break the spell of death on her. A blast hit him as he neared, he was was forced back in shock, mouth burnt. The pain cleared his thoughts. What had he just attempted?

Horrified and mystified at what he had just tried to do, he took a deep breath. What to do now? He was the potions master, he had the antidote. He stumbled to his feet, his shaking hands reached for where he had dropped it, blindly groping the tabletop. He bumped something and sent it shattering to the floor. The antidote!

He quickly measured out some more, hands steadying with years of practice, gently pouring it down her throat. Only she was too weak now to swallow.

He needed a syringe. How stupid could he be? "Swallow, please." He turned to run for a syringe and his antidote. Time was short.

Then he felt it, again. The electricity, and a silver light was glowing behind him. He turned. The girl's front gem was emitting a silver plasma, and she started breathing normally again. Eyes still closed, she swallowed. The silver light died, and her eyes opened.

"What happened?"

"It would appear that your antidote worked." Snape responded after a moment, composing himself as quickly as he could.

"There is glass everywhere."

"I accidentally broke the first vial, but a second batch of your antidote worked as well. You may go now." He dismissed her. Snape was unsure as to how much more of her presence he could take at the moment, he needed time to think.

Sheranaqua stood and brushed herself off. Crimson stains dotted her robe and gown. "Cleasio". They vanished. She regarded her father, he was breathing heavily and looked like he was not telling her everything, and he had a very bad burn marching across his upper lip.

"Good day, then." She left, wondering what had really happened. She doubted he was telling the full story. Perhaps Sleeper would show her what had really occurred, although somehow, she felt scared to ask.