Pureblood Dreams
By Lilybet
Chapter Twelve
"You were back late last night." commented Aaron Yaxley as he caught up with Severus on the way to Sunday lunch, "Later than normal."
"Yes." said Severus, avoiding looking over at the Gryffindor table as they walked into the Hall.
"Your project is going well?" Aaron asked quietly.
"My – Yes. In fact, I've finished it." Severus latched onto the distraction, "When is the next meeting?"
They sat down near the end of the Slytherin table, Aaron nodding to his friends and fellow prefects among the upper years. Pulling the roast beef and Yorkshire puddings towards him, Aaron leaned over to where Hadrian Roxley, the seventh year prefect, was sitting and murmured a question. Hadrian looked past him to Severus and sneered, then muttered something in return.
"There's going to be one tonight...Snape, don't mess it up." Aaron warned.
"I won't." Severus promised, determined to prove his worth beyond doubt.
On the other side of the hall Morrigan sat with her head in her hands, staring at her empty plate. Across the table Alice and Lily exchanged worried looks. Ever since she had come back to the dorm late last night, escorted by Professor Sprout, Morrigan had been distant and melancholy. Not even Sirius coming downstairs that morning with green hair and pink jeans could raise a smile from her.
"Morrigan, what's wrong? And don't say nothing, please." Lily begged.
Morrigan muttered something unintelligible into her hands, and what could be seen of her forehead started turning an interesting red.
"What was that?" Lily pressed.
"You know, Lily, I heard from Bertha that a couple were caught up on the Astronomy Tower last night." Alice said in an aside, stabbing another roast potato happily.
"Really?" said Lily, sounding like the cat that got the cream.
"Mmm hmm."
"Sooo..." Lily fixed her vivid green stare on Morrigan's dark head and waited for a reply.
Finally Morrigan looked up and took her fingers away from her mouth, "He kissed me."
"Who?" Alice jumped on the admission. She still regarded Morrigan as a little odd, but gossip was gossip, and for all her intelligence and hard work, Alice loved gossip.
"Not saying." Morrigan said, turning a violent shade of red that did not go with the light green top she was wearing. Deliberately looking away from the interested girls, she spotted Severus on the other side of the hall. Feeling her face warm up even more as blood rushed to her head, Morrigan wrenched her gaze away and muttered a quick apology before darting from the Hall.
"What was that?" exclaimed Alice, waving a fork after the girl.
"That was a very red girl." Sirius slid into the seat Morrigan had just vacated, "Don't tell me she's got the flu now. James woke up all yellow this morning, not a pretty look."
"Says the boy with green hair." Lily smirked.
Sirius reached up and tugged on a lock of his lime green hair, "I can't seem to get it out. I've tried the normal de-hexing..." A thoughtful look arrived in his eyes and he pulled out his wand, waved it around his head in a complicated pattern and said clearly, "Nulio Enchantium."
"That's not a real spell." Alice said, but a puff of fine smoke around Sirius' head and the revelation of a head of black hair suggested otherwise.
"You're right." Sirius commented, piling his plate with the Sunday roast, "It's the counter to a really idiotic spell that James came up with in second year. I can show you if you like."
"NO!" cried both Lily and Alice.
There was an eating silence as lunch was consumed, both girls keeping an eye on Sirius just in case he decided that cursing them was a good idea after all. After Sirius' third helping of beef and sixth Yorkshire pudding, Lily cleared the last of the gravy off her plate with a thoughtful look.
"You said Potter was ill..." she began, ignoring the astounded look from Alice.
"He's yellow at the moment." Sirius replied, looking over at the entrance, "Actually...he's more a yellowy-orange. PRONGS! OVER HERE!"
James, followed by Remus and Peter, came over and sat down by Sirius, a slightly queasy expression on his face.
"Pomfrey said that until I turn red I'm to stay out of the infirmary. Apparently there's so little room in there she's only taking serious cases." he said, looking speculatively around at the food.
"How does she know if you're going to be a serious case?" asked Lily, to the surprise of the boy.
"I've never had flu before." James admitted, shaking his head at Sirius' proffered potato.
"Should you really be sitting with us though?" Alice suggested, shifting down the bench slightly, away from the infected boy, "Aren't you going to make us get it?"
"I've already had it." said Sirius, with his mouth full, "Summer of second year."
"I haven't." worried Peter.
Lily looked at Remus who shrugged; he knew less about Flykers flu than he did about Dragon Pox, another disease he couldn't contract. She frowned, not liking the possibility that she could go down with the two-to-three day illness. Exams were only four months away, and these would be mock NEWTs!
"According to Pomfrey it's only contagious in the later stages – purple-ish down to green. That's why she let Martin and me out." James said helpfully, picking a slightly cold Yorkshire pudding off Sirius plate and pulling it to pieces as he ate, "Oh, and Padfoot, you can catch it again."
"What?"
"Too bad, Sirius." Remus consoled, selecting the rarest pieces of beef he could find; his only concession to the just-waning moon.
"Damn it. Orange looks worse on me than it does on him." Sirius jerked his thumb in James' direction.
"Mmm, it would certainly clash with your trousers." sniggered Lily.
Sirius looked down at his pink jeans and then back up at Lily with a hurt expression, "Don't pick on me 'cause I'm different." he mock-sobbed.
"We don't." James consoled, "We pick on you because you're you."
The banter worked back and forth, the atmosphere oddly calm without James asking Lily out, or Sirius turning into a pumpkin. For the first time in almost six years the Marauders and their natural enemies within Gryffindor sat and laughed together. When Frank Longbottom stopped by to give Alice a kiss and remind them of their date that evening, he was invited for pudding. And though most of the cream from the sumptuous cake ended up in his hair, he didn't seem to mind. Lily even unbent enough not to give Sirius a lecture on the proper use of the levitation charm.
When the last of the puddings had been consumed, James had eaten his way through twelve jellies - claiming that since he was ill he was allowed jelly and icecream in large amounts. Sighing heartily, he smiled as Lily explained in a mildly annoyed tone that that much jelly wasn't good for anyone.
"I don't care." he said happily, "It was good."
"Well, now I've seen everything." declared Frank, his arm comfortably round Alice, "I have never seen a man eat that much jelly before."
"Potter does a lot of things that are unimaginatively stupid." scowled Lily.
"Aww, come on Lily. It's not like he's done any harm." defended Alice, "Besides I thought it was rather funny seeing him eat the one shaped like a-"
"And this is where I take my impressionable girlfriend away from the crazy Marauders." Frank interrupted, "Catch you later guys."
As Lily turned back to the table, after whispering something in Alice's ear before she left, she suddenly realised that she was sitting with the most infamous pranksters in Hogwarts. Correction: she was sitting alone with the most infamous pranksters in Hogwarts.
"You know, I think I'm just going to..." She got up.
"Hold on, Evans." Sirius said, stopping her short, and he turned to the others, "I've had an idea."
"Is it a crazy idea?" asked Peter, "Or one that involves large amounts of turpentine?"
"Turpentine?" said James, with a blank look in his eyes.
"No turpentine." confirmed Sirius, with a matching look, "And only slightly crazy. Evans, sit."
Reluctantly Lily sat down, and watched as the four boys had an argument that apparently consisted of meaningful looks and odd words. She wondered what would happen if she tried to walk away, but decided that even her Prefect status wasn't protection against the band of troublemakers. She privately doubted that James would stick up for her at the moment, even if he had been cordial towards her this lunchtime.
Eventually the debate on the other side of the table concluded, and Sirius turned to her and said, "Miss Lily Evans. We, the Marauders, do invite you to a meeting of the utmost secrecy and importance. On the occasion of your attendance you will be party to most, but not all of the secrets that we, the Marauders, hold. Do you accept?"
"Er, why?" she said while scrutinising their faces for any hint of mischief.
A hasty conference was held between James and Sirius, the result being: "For purposes that are in no way related to pranks, tricks or anything to do with the creation of chaos within Hogwarts."
"Though this may be subject to change at further notice." James added.
"What exactly is the subject of this meeting?" Lily asked, still not willing to believe that it wasn't a trap.
"The walls have ears." hissed Sirius, leaning over the table.
"What he means is that we don't want to say here. We'll tell you at the meeting. Say yes?" explained James with a hopeful look.
Normally Lily would have been able to resist that particular look; it had been used on her so often over the past few years, in fact, it had come up almost every time James asked her out. But at the moment she still felt really bad about how she had hurt his feelings in handing back the Christmas present. Somehow that look wasn't frustrating and annoying; it was actually oddly sweet and slightly...cute? Potter, cute? No. Oh, please no, she begged internally.
James watched as Lily bit her lip, clearly thinking hard, her stunning green eyes locked on his face. He dared not move a muscle just in case it disrupted her thinking; maybe she would say yes. Meanwhile, he allowed himself to wonder what it would be like for those eyes to show not confusion, but something more...sultry.
"Alright." Lily said, coming to a conclusion; better to be in the know than not. Besides, she wouldn't be going in with her eyes closed, she'd be on the look-out for traps, "But, I have a condition."
"Oh?" Sirius questioned, the frown on his face matched by the one on hers.
"Alice has to come too." she demanded.
"Alice?" Peter blurted.
The boys went back into the huddle, Peter pulled in by James. A few moments went by, and Lily could see that Sirius was the most violent objector to Alice's involvement. She heard something about, "...one's bad enough...", that did not make her feel happy.
"Fine." Sirius said sulkily, as they broke from their conference. "Alice can come too. But only her, no one else. Got it?"
"Got it." she said, holding up her hands to defend against his attitude, "When is this meeting?"
"Tonight," said Remus, "We'll go for a little walk and I'll take you to it."
XOXOX
When James Potter kicked off from the ground to test out his new Quidditch tactic against Sirius and felt queasy he knew that he wasn't well. When he couldn't get more than ten feet off the ground without feeling dizzy he knew things were going downhill fast. When Sirius came over to him, as James came back to earth with a bump, and stopped five feet away, he looked at his skin. It was red.
So it was that when Remus, with Peter in tow, went looking for the pair he found them in the infirmary. James lying curled up with his eyes firmly closed, and Sirius examining his own skin under the dim lights of the infirmary.
"I've told you, Sirius, that if you've had Flykers flu already, you're more resistant to it. If you stay out of the infirmary there's a very good chance that you won't catch it." Madam Pomfrey said in an exasperated tone, "Now please leave."
"What happened?" asked Remus, as Sirius said something about not wanting to leave his friend alone.
"James went down with the flu faster than I predicted." said the matron, "And if this one would get out of my way I would be able to give him a Sleeping Draught."
"Come on Sirius, let's leave James to rest." Remus suggested. He tugged on Sirius' arm, but underestimated his strength and ended up with an armful of Sirius. Fighting the pink-jeaned boy off him, Remus scowled only to receive a cheerful grin in reply.
Peter edged towards James and patted him lightly on the shoulder, whispering, "Get well soon."
As he turned away Madam Pomfrey caught his arm, and he cringed slightly as she examined his hand, "How long have you been this colour, Mr. Pettigrew?" she asked.
Looking down at his own skin, Peter blinked in shock as he saw the orange tinge. He hadn't noticed as his skin had slowly changed colour from his normal pink. And neither had anyone else. For a moment he felt a burst of hatred and anger towards the others; they were supposed to be his friends, and they hadn't noticed he was getting ill. Just as suddenly as it had arrived the anger was gone. They had been busy: Remus was working on his homework, James on Quidditch tactics, and Sirius had been perfecting his juggling. He couldn't expect them to keep an eye on him the whole time...
"I don't think I woke up like this." he offered to Pomfrey, who immediately waved her wand over him and ordered him into a nearby bed.
"Well, that's not good." Sirius said, "We can't be two men down!"
"Sorry." muttered Peter.
"You have nothing to apologise for, Mr. Pettigrew, you can't help getting ill. Now, I'm going to get you and James a Sleeping Draught. These," she presented him with a set of infirmary pyjamas, "are for you. Sirius, Remus, I think it's time you let these boys rest."
"Yes, Ma'am." Remus agreed, half-dragging Sirius as he left the room.
XOXOX
It was not easy to see who was in charge as the two sixth-year Gryffindors entered the common room. Though Remus still had an almost bruising grip on Sirius' arm, the lupine boy was getting his ear talked off, and with his more sensitive hearing even the whispers were loud. Lily made her way over to where they were headed, near the boys staircase. On seeing her, Sirius redoubled his efforts and Remus winced, letting go of Sirius to rub his ear.
"What's going on?" Lily asked quietly.
"James has gone and got himself ill." Sirius complained.
"Both he and Peter have got to the red stage of the flu. They're confined to the infirmary for the next two days, at least." Remus said.
"Are they alright?" Lily worried.
"At the tender mercies of Pomfrey." Sirius sighed, "Which means the meeting's off. Unless..."
"No, Sirius. We are not going to sneak into the Hospital Wing. We are, however, going to wait until James is better." Remus said firmly.
XOXOX
Deep in the bowels of the castle, down in the dungeons behind firmly closed doors another meeting was taking place. Green ties mixed with a smattering of yellow, and one or two blue, conversing, exchanging information and determining status. A light cough from the front of the room drew the attention of all, and silence arrived.
"As I am sure you are all aware, another series of successful raids were carried out last night." announced the speaker to polite but enthusiastic applause. He held up his hands in a call for silence.
"But though that is an event to be celebrated, it is not the only reason we are here tonight. Our most...industrious member has completed a new spell which he would like to show us. Now, now, settle down." he said with a light sneer, "Please remember what he has already given us – new potions and spells which well prove most delightful on the day we join our brothers and sisters out there.
"Make some room in the centre. Excellent. Now, if you please, Mr Snape."
Severus stepped into the space created, his heart pounding in his chest as he held the shaking wooden crate tightly. Setting it down in the centre of the circle he prepared mentally for the task ahead. Signalling to his fellow sixth-year Slytherins, a repelling circle was set up around him and the crate. Severus leant over the crate and opened it up, letting the scared rabbit inside out. It sat beside the box for a moment, its nose twitching and ears pricked. Then it started hopping around the circle, growing more and more agitated as it was turned back from escape.
Drawing his wand, Severus followed the rabbit's erratic movements with his eyes and wand tip. When he was certain he was ready, he slashed his wand down in a sharp diagonal motion.
"Sectumsempra!" he said quietly but clearly.
The rabbit jumped and fell, writhing to the ground, its fur and flesh broken and bleeding. A single straight wound had opened up from throat to belly, and its mouth opened in a loud squeal that penetrated the murmuring excited crowd.
Kneeling down beside the animal, Severus traced his wand over the wound, muttering a long string of Latin. Before the assembled eyes of those who enjoyed the Dark Arts, the rabbit's bleeding slowed and stopped, the fleshy sides of the wound pulling together and joining up. Within a few moments the flesh had knitted and the rabbit's cries died. It sat up and washed its ears, then realising where it was, resumed its attempts to escape.
"Stupefy." muttered Severus, and the rabbit fell limp. He levitated it back into its crate and closed the lid. It was only then that he heard the whispers of praise and scattered applause.
"Congratulations, Snape." Hadrian Roxley stepped forwards, "An impressive display. And now, our speaker for the night has arrived, so if you would all take a seat..."
Severus picked up the crate and placed it carefully in the corner of the room, Yaxley, Avery and Nott joining him. They surrounded him and offered their own congratulations; they had all seen how hard Severus had been working on the spell – spending three or four nights a week hidden away in his work room at the top of the castle. They had even had to force him to get some sleep, and eat occasionally, when he involved himself so thoroughly that he forgot all else.
The sound of a gong brought them to attention, and they slipped into the last remaining seats near the back of the room. Up at the front Hadrian was looking very smug as he spoke to a hooded and cloaked man. With a last word he turned to face the avid audience and announced, "Please welcome out speaker, Mr Lucius Malfoy."
The polite applause was more than enthusiastic, and Severus was glad that there were near-permanent muffling charms on the corridor and surrounding rooms. If any teacher or other student heard and came to investigate there would be a lot of uncomfortable questions.
Lucius Malfoy bowed at the clapping, and then held up his hand for silence. Nodding to Hadrian, who had taken his seat in the front row, Lucius began to speak.
"I thank you for your welcome. We have suffered a great tragedy, yet few recognise it. We are descending into a political, ethical and moral wasteland. The highest circles of our government regard this collapse of our society as primarily an 'economic catastrophe', which can therefore be cured by economic means. The cure of a sickness can only be achieved if its cause is known, and the same is true of curing political evils.
"What is the cause of the degradation of our wizarding world? What is it that lowers our pride and bends our wills to the acceptance of the present evil? Was not the stance of this new government embroidered with the lie that it would allow the wizards of England to prevail both at home and abroad?
"It is this very government, it is their words: the sanctimonious speechifying that espouses lies and conscious falsehoods which has brought us to this. Their constant disregard for the moral and ethical well-being of their people has brought us to our ruin. Trust me when I tell you that I would not waste my words on them if their own words were not parroted by so many thoughtless people. But we deserve this government. It is only the greatest outward symptom of decay amid a whole series of inner problems, which perhaps had remained hidden and invisible to the eyes of most people, or which, like ostriches, people did not want to see.
"Since the great masses of the people in the very bottom of their hearts tend to be corrupted rather than consciously and purposely evil they more easily fall a victim to a big lie than to a little one. Their whole belief is based on one single great lie, to wit, that all men are equal."
Lucius paused, allowing the clapping to rise and the shouts of support to swell as he took a much-needed drink. This audience was very receptive to the carefully crafted speech set out by himself and his father. He took the time to note the faces he recognised in the room; representatives from all the major Pureblood supporters were here, along with a number of those whose minds would be swayed by his words this night.
In the back he spotted the dark head of Severus Snape, cheering and clapping with the rest; there was one Half-blood he would happily see on his side. Especially if his performance tonight was anything to go by. He had certainly maintained his interest in the Dark Arts throughout his years at Hogwarts, and Lucius would be prepared to speak privately to him about the cause.
Holding up his hand for silence, Lucius began again, this time with growing fire in his voice.
"We have before us the results of procreation based partly on purely social compulsion - a poisoning of the blood. Complete and utter degeneration is the only consequence. Blood sin and desecration of the race are the original sin in this world and will be the end of a humanity which surrenders to it. I am speaking of those pretenders, those tricksters and charlatans – Mudbloods! They have sullied the name of wizard, they have poisoned our way of life with their foul ways.
"Out there, beyond these four walls, are those who believe the lie which are government has told. They believe the words of the press, who told them that these wretches were just...like...us! In doing so they have allowed these Mudbloods to maintain themselves in the Ministry and gradually undermine the foundations of wizardry itself.
"This disease of magic has been further promoted by education. Our fine Hogwarts has been complicit in this. The education of young witches and wizards has been one-sided, adapted to 'ability' rather than 'worth'. Education can be a highly useful tool, but only can it be advantageous when enlightenment is provided by a serious and truth-loving party, but it is catastrophic when scoundrels and liars provide it.
"Currently Hogwarts removes people from the instinct of Nature and pumps a certain amount of knowledge into them, but cannot create full understanding. For this, industry and good will alone are no use; the necessary intelligence must be present, and what is more, it must be inborn.
"The solution to this is clear, there is only one solution: the final solution which will free us from the tyranny of the undeserving. Indeed, the demand that defective people be prevented from propagating equally defective offspring is a demand of the clearest reason, and if systematically executed represents the most humane act of mankind. It will spare millions of unfortunates undeserved sufferings, and consequently will lead to a rising improvement of the wizarding world as a whole."
Concluding to wild cheers, Lucius smirked. Every one of the students in the room would be willing followers of the Dark Lord, every one of them prepared to do what was needed to restore magic to its rightful place, and purity of blood would be the most important thing again.
XOXOX
Remus woke up suddenly at the feel of a cold damp thing pressing against his hand. Warily opening his eyes he jerked backwards; the black furry face of Padfoot was grinning not two inches from his own.
"Go 'way." he slurred, turning his head over and trying to regain his fugue of sleep.
The scrabbling sound and low whine forced Remus to open one eye. Once again the doggy face of his friend was presented to him in all its slobbery glory. Groaning, Remus lifted his head, pulled the pillows out and then flopped back down, pillows firmly held over his head.
He was just drifting off to an overly warm and airless place of dozing when a heavy weight landed on his middle.
"Get off!" Remus' voice was muffled by the pillow, and he pushed at the furry lump lying on him. Padfoot was heavier than he looked, with most of his bulk made up not from hair but from muscle. It was what made him invaluable at full moons, but right now Remus wished Padfoot was a poodle or a chihuahua.
Lifting the pillow off his face, Remus twisted round to hit Padfoot with it. "Shift, you great mongrel! Get off and leave me alone!"
Padfoot yipped as the pillow whacked him round the head. Jumping off the person-filled bed he landed securely on the floor, transforming back into Sirius as he did. It was a neat trick that he had perfected for no apparent reason.
"Remus!" he whined, sounding exactly like his doggy form, "You have to get up, it's the start of the Quidditch season! The lists will be coming out today. If we don't get down there now we won't know before anyone else!"
"And this is a good reason to wake me up and jump on me, why exactly?" Remus said, re-fluffing his pillow and placing it under his head.
"Because it's Quidditch." said Sirius stoically.
"Ah." Remus sighed at the perennial obsession which took over both Sirius and James at this time of year. He had grown used to it, though normally they had each other to bounce their excitement off. It looked like this year he was the chosen target; the next few weeks he would undoubtedly get to know more about the sport than he had ever wanted to know.
"So...Get up already!" Sirius grinned, and launched himself at Remus' duvet. Remus tried to hang on to his covering, and the tug of war would have continued for ever if he hadn't realised that Sirius was completely off balance. Letting go suddenly, he laughed as Sirius fell to his bottom, the duvet flying over his head to cover him completely.
XOXOX
Phew! Long chapter. Review.
