Faith's jaw dropped upon entering the Slytherin Common Room. She glanced at Wesley, who was gasping from all that running through the halls, but his eyes were wide and if he'd had the breath to swear, he would've.
Connor Nelson was fighting with the demon, and really fighting it. Not just casting spells. He had two, long, though rather blunt looking swords in his hands and was taking skilled swings at the demon.
The Furiae Demon was hideous – though admittedly not the worst compared to some of the mirror-breakers Faith'd had the displeasure of encountering. And by the way it swiped at Conner with brass claws, it was lookin' to party.
"Faith, catch!" Wes called out to her.
Faith blinked for a second, wondering when her Watcher had moved. Slayer reflexes kicked in like a charm, though, as the decorative battle axe that once hung on the wall came flying towards her. Faith caught the handle in one fist, and leapt into battle a nanosecond later.
Connor hadn't seemed startled by her appearance in the fight, Wesley noted. The boy was quite a fighter, and the way he moved and fought alongside Faith suggested that he'd been fighting for a long time.
Wes turned his attention to Draco and the other Slytherins.
"Have you seen Professor Snape?" one of the girls asked. Millicent Bulstrode, Wes remembered a brief second later.
"I'm sure someone has informed him, Miss Bulstrode" Wes said, moving towards Draco, obviously the one in charge, "Who's the demon after?"
"Elliott Witt" Draco nodded towards an unconscious body on the floor.
Ah, finally, something he could take charge of. The cogs in Wesley's head spun furiously as he absorbed the entire situation, letting everything click into place.
"Miss Bulstrode, you and Miss Turlington levitate Mister Witt up to the infirmary." Wes turned to Sharina Voran and Nathan Moore "Miss Voran, Please locate Professor Snape and inform him of the situation if he hasn't been already. Mister Moore, find Professor Dumbledore and Miss Parkinson I need you to fetch Professors Winters and Rosenberg. The rest of you to the Great Hall with the other students, we don't need any more nasty accidents."
No one needed to be told twice. As soon as Witt was levitated out of the common room, Wes turned to Draco, his own wand out and aimed at the demon.
"You sent for Faith?"
"I sent for Professor Snape too" Draco sneered, keeping his eyes locked on the Demon.
"Obviously no one was able to reach him. You know what she is" Wes stated, eyes back on the demon as well.
"Ever since Diagon Alley" Draco half-snapped, suddenly feeling very irritable. He spotted an opening, "Flippendo! And it doesn't take a genius to figure out that you're her Watcher."
Wesley had half his mind on the conversation; the other half was working on their present demon-problem.
"Well, it seems there's no fooling you, Mister Malfoy. Rictusempra!" Wes saw an opening and took it, simultaneously continuing his conversation with the Slytherin, "What, pray tell, gave her away?"
"Let's just say I have a sixth sense about these things."
Seconds later, Spike and Willow burst into the Slytherin Common Room, with Dumbledore, Snape and McGonagall directly on their heels.
The next few minutes whizzed by in a blur of confusion. Spike had leapt into the fight instantly, brandishing a broadsword, Willow stayed a few feet back. The redhead reached forward, as her eyes blacked over and her hair fanned out in the non-existent wind.
The Furiae demon was suddenly flung against the wall, and pinned. Though judging by Willow's strained expression, it was not easy keeping the demon in place.
Wesley watched, as if in slow motion, as the demon broke free of its invisible shackles and slammed a claw into Connor, makinghim drop one of his swords. Spike, behind the demon, tried slicing the thing between the wings. The grind of metal on metal was deafening. Wesley knew that blades would never be able to penetrate the demon's thick hide. Suddenly a light clicked.
"Faith! The eyes!" Wes yelled.
Without missing a beat, Faith rolled, grabbed Connor's fallen sword off the floor, leapt in front of the demon and plunged the rusty blade between the eyes of the Furiae demon.
One would have thought the hospital wing would be crowded. But only those who'd suffered major injuries were staying the night. The others, with minor cuts and bruises were healed swiftly and sent back to their Common Rooms.
"This would have saved us a hell of a lot of pain back in Sunnydale" Willow chuckled, feeling a little dizzy.
"Can't say I disagree with you on that one Red - whoa there!" Spike said, supporting her as she stumbled forward, noticing she was visibly shaking, "Maybe you should sit on the bed. Madame Pomfrey, could we get some chocolate over here! I said sit, Red."
Willow grumbled slightly, but sat on the bed anyway. A second later Spike handed her a bar of chocolate.
"It was the magic, wannit?" Spike said, pulling up a stool and sitting directly in front of her. "Your eyes blacked. Used a bit more 'n your limit today, eh, Red?" Spike offered her a comforting smile.
Willow's shaking slowed as she swallowed a large bite of chocolate. "I… I… I…"
"Here now…" Spike frowned, seeing two stray tears fall, "come now, Red, it wasn't that bad." Spike was starting to look a little panicked.
Willow offered him a watery smile, "Years of being good and fighting evil and suddenly you freak out when there's a crying girl in front of you?"
"It's a guy thing, luv, we can't help it" Spike chuckled, "And it comes with being on this side of the tracks." He meant the good side of course, when he was evil, crying girls never seemed to bother him too much.
Willow shoved another piece of chocolate in her mouth and held back the tears.
"Now then, that's better. Care to tell me what's bin botherin' you?" it was a silent plea.
Willow sighed and looked down, "I can feel it."
"Feel… oh bloody hell!" Spike exclaimed quietly.
"You weren't there the first time Spike – this wont be pretty" Willow said, sniffing loudly. It wouldn't do to break down in the middle of the Hospital Wing.
"Have you told the others?" Spike said, letting out an unneeded breath as he did so.
"Faith and Dawn, the others only vaguely" Willow shuddered, "They think I'll be able to control it."
"And I say we need to prepare for this one" Spike said harshly, keeping his voice down, "I'll help if you need me."
Now Willow's eyes brimmed with tears of gratitude threatening to spill. "Do you have Xander's Crayon Speech memorized?"
"Huh?"
Willow shook her head with a smile and allowed a few happy tears to fall, "Nothing. Thank you, Spike."
"What do you suppose is up with them?" Wes asked, looking over at Spike and Willow whilst simultaneously cleaning his slayer's wounds.
Faith shrugged with the shoulder that wasn't being attended to. She shifted slightly on the bed, making Wes give her one of those 'Sit still' looks from his place beside her.
"They have an understanding," she told him, off Wes's look she added, "it's been a while."
Wes nodded; the Vampire and Wiccan had known each other for a while now. And he supposed there were some aspects of Sunnydale that would make them live on relatively the same level. Wes turned his attention back to Faith.
"You know, this cut is pretty nasty. What have I told you about watching your left?" he said with an amused tone, as he lightly bandaged the wound. It would heal itself in the next twenty-four hours anyway.
"Bite me, Watcher-man" Faith snarled.
In a lower voice Wesley said, "The Draco boy knows what you are."
"I know."
"How?"
Faith blinked "In Diagon Alley I grabbed him and Harry and it was the first thing that came out of his mouth."
Wes frowned in thought.
"Care to share?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.
He smiled softly "No just a feeling."
"A feeling I hope is not going to lead to more research. You have too many things on your plate in that department. Not to mention all your classes and stuff. And then there's patrol."
"I can handle it, Faith" Wesley sighed.
"No you can't. And I have news for you Wes ole boy, you're coming with me this Hogsmeade Weekend."
Wes blinked, "I am."
"You're my tour guide" Faith informed him.
"Why me? I'm sure Spike or even Harry would be more than happy to-"
"I'm sure Harry's showing Dawn around and Spike probably has better things to do."
"And I don't?"
Faith grinned impishly at him, "You need a break. And besides, I don't think Giles would be too happy to know you're neglecting your Sacred Duty as a Watcher."
"I don't believe showing my Slayer around a wizarding village qualifies as a 'sacred act'."
"You can't fight destiny, Wes" Faith told him.
"You don't believe in destiny," Wes reminded her.
"Well, what if I changed my mind?" Faith asked. But he wasn't moving. Time to bring out the big guns. She pouted. "I thought you were supposed to 'watch' me. I need watching."
Faith fought a grin as she saw the resolved, calm demeanor waver ever so slightly. Wes sighed.
"I don't have a choice in this do I?"
"Bingo."
"What happened?" Severus Snape demanded, pacing fiercely.
Wesley, Faith, Spike, Willow and Snape were all gathered in Dumbledore's office. The headmaster himself hadn't shown yet. He and McGonagall were tending to the students in the Great Hall.
"Um… maybe you didn't notice," Faith said, as if she was talking to a toddler "Dungeon. Demon. Dead. Or didn't you see the carcass? Would've been hard to miss considering it was on The Common Room Floor!"
"Faith" Wes said warningly, placing his hands on her shoulders and squeezing comfortingly. A silent request to curb her temper.
"The demon was summoned. It didn't kill anyone so it wasn't out for a feed" Spike said, "Someone wanted Witt to suffer."
"Well, duh?" Willow said obviously, "And whoever did the summoning was seriously not playing around. That thing was full grown."
"And someone knew we were in the school" Faith added.
Everyone blinked.
"Duh! What do you think that Demon drool in the Gryffindor Common Room was for?" Faith demanded.
"Distraction" Wesley realized, wondering why he hadn't thought of this sooner, "Obviously, whomever summoned it, made sure we would all be in the farthest place from the Dungeons."
"But the question now is, who?" Willow said, "Who would summon a demon to a school… and more importantly who could summon it. Who would have the power?"
"It might have been a Gryffindor" Snape said, or rather, he sneered "The secretion was found in the Gryffindor Common Room, was it not."
"You're jumping to conclusions" Willow snapped him, "that was planted to keep us away from the Dungeons."
"Yes – but the fact that it might be a Gryffindor isn't out of the realm of possibility" Snape responded snidely.
"They would never..." Willow protested.
Wesley cut in, "Maybe not the Gryffindors specifically. But it is possible that a student..."
"No student in Hogwarts would have the ability to summon a demon of that size, Wesley" Dumbledore's voice cut in.
The group all turned to the headmaster. Dumbledore walked through the office doors, and nodded solemnly moving towards his desk, absently petting Fawkes, his pet Phoenix, who was looking a little off color, a few months before his burning ritual, Wes supposed.
"With all do respect, Headmaster, I'm sure a student with enough brains and willpower would be able to perform the summoning ritual" Wesley put in, "Arion,Valandra and myself could have done something similar, had we been that stupid."
"Watcher-boy's right, Albus" Spike nodded, "But with humans it would probably take about six of them."
Everyone swiveled to look at him.
"What!" Spike said incredulously, "I can't know things sometimes? It's common sense. Five to block each side of the pentagram and one to do the incantation!"
"He's not wrong" Willow said, "But even with humans it can be done with less. It's just more dangerous without blocking all sides of the pentagram. Because then the demon might escape before you manage to control it."
Faith raised her hand, "Umm… I'm new here, but I'm guessing this kind of witchery is against school rules, right?"
"Essentially" Snape sneered.
"You know, you really need another expression," Faith told him lightly.
Snape scowled at her remark.
"Aside from that one I mean" Faith smirked.
"As much as I delight in seeing this, can we get back to the task at hand, please? Demon. Summoning. Dismemberment" Wes cut in.
"No dismemberment" Spike said, "take it from a bloke who knows; that back there was fairly light."
"So, six students. Now, who would set a demon on Elliott Witt?" Willow asked.
"Probably anyone who met him?" Spike suggested, everyone turned to look at him, "What! He's Slytherin, ain't 'e?"
No one said anything for long moments. To everyone's surprise, except perhaps Dumbledore's, it was Snape who spoke next.
"Though it pains me to admit it, the Vampire has a point" Snape said, with a hint of his trademark sneer. "It's no secret that the Slytherins are unpopular. Several of them are, shall we say, uncivil to everyone but the members of their own house. And even then there are exceptions."
"Though I find it hard to believe that six of our brightest students all misplaced their common sense" Dumbledore said, "Unless… Willow, who needs to wield the power in conducting such a spell?"
"Only the Sixth" Willow frowned, thinking it over carefully "The one doing the incantation would be controlling everything, and would probably need to be the only one with the strength, brains and willpower."
"So, we can narrow it down to one person and a small group of loyal friends - bugger" Wes swore, running a hand through his hair in frustration.
"Now we just have to find the one that did it," Spike said.
Faith snorted, "Finding a student in a school? That's like trying to find hay – in a haystack!"
Insomnia was a bitch. A simple statement, yet one that Faith seemed to be learning six times over. Thanks to the demon attack, adrenaline was still humming through her body. Normally in a case like this, Faith would load up with stakes and maybe her favorite battle-axe and go out patrolling, in the Forbidden Forest naturally.
Of course, a second after the thought came to her, another face and name popped into her mind. Wesley. She'd promised him she wouldn't patrol, at least not without backup. And Faith was willing to bet that he was too exhausted to go hunting. And of course he'd object to the risk of further damage to her rapidly healing shoulder.
Faith sighed, knowing she couldn't sleep, pulling a black sweater over her shirt and sweatpants, she exited her room. A small growl at her feet startled her, then she realized it was only Bandit, and the little black griffin was insisting that he accompany her. With a grin, the Slayer picked her companion up and set him on her shoulder, with a quiet order to behave.
As she walked down the hall, she continued her thoughts. Patrol buddies. She could ask Willow, but the witch seemed particularly strung tonight, especially after the spells. And Faith could have sworn she saw a few tears back in the Hospital Wing.
With Willow and Wes out of the picture, that of course left Spike. When he wasn't being his normal, obnoxious, pain-in-the-ass self, the vampire was actually good company. But lately he'd seemed distant – and she had noticed. Something told her that Spike would rather not be disturbed tonight.
Then Faith wondered when the fuck all these people had become so important to her. And why she suddenly cared about their feelings. Especially Wes. She had after all promised no one else but him 'No Lone Patrols'. This just left her wondering why she was actually making good on that promise.
Was it guilt? Probably. For the torture? Was that where it had begun? Maybe it was before that. Being the Rogue Slayer, getting nothing right. Disappointing him. Faith stopped suddenly in the trek down the hall. She realized she was afraid of disappointing him. Or at least she was now.
As she quickened her pace down the hall, she recalled that night with a twisted feeling in her gut. He hadn't screamed during the torture. Not like she thought he would. And even now she remembered the look on his face. It wasn't one of fear. It was a nice blend of hatred and anger and… something else, something more. She could still see his eyes, those mesmerizing blue orbs locked with her dark brown ones. Searching. Penetrating her soul. As if seeking the reason she'd become such a failure.
Snapping back to reality, Faith realized where she was headed - The Hospital Wing. Bandit ruffled his feathers impatiently. As Faith walked through the doors she made another promise – this one to herself. She wouldn't fail him again.
And now she would try to reach out to someone that seemed as lonely, confused and guarded as she had been. Of course he was not the only one who needed it, but he was a start.
Faith moved quietly through the rows of beds, stopping in front of a certain Slytherin. Connor opened his eyes the minute she stopped.
"You weren't asleep, were you?" Faith asked, resting one hand on the bedpost and the other reached up to pet Bandit, still on her shoulder.
Connor shook his head and propped himself up on the pillows, "Can't seem to rest."
Faith smiled, and moved to stand beside him, "Know the feeling. But it's not as if you don't need it. You were really kicking ass today" Faith tilted her head to the side, locking his gaze with her own, "What happened?"
Connor's stare held for a moment, then he rested his head back on the pillow, staring up at the ceiling like it would give him an answer if he stared long enough.
"I don't know – I can't explain..." he sighed in sudden frustration "I was casting spells just like everyone else. Then I summoned the swords from the wall. And once they were in my hands, it… I… everything just sorta – clicked. D'you know what I mean?"
Faith nodded, as Bandit moved from one shoulder to the other, "Actually I do. The way you fought and the way your describing things now; that only happens when someone's had major training. You get a sense of the weapons you use and how best to throw your opponent."
Connor looked at her, his expression a nice cross between pain and confusion.
"But I haven't had any training. Really I haven't" Connor insisted, "I remember getting into a few scrapes in school, but no one ever flew into the wall. And demons were never on campus… well, except for the principal that is."
"Evil?" Faith grinned at him.
"You don't know the half of it" Connor couldn't help but smile back, he could see that once you got used to Faith's brash nature, you found there was a lot more to her than what met the eye.
"Well, just came to see how you were, I know it's hard adjusting."
"What to?" Connor asked, he could think of about a million things that he was still adjusting to.
Faith smiled softly. He knew what she meant, and she knew he knew what she meant. But she decided to narrow it down anyway.
"The hidden half of the world. This school. These people. Your uncovered abilities. Destiny" Faith said, looking at him the whole time.
Connor looked away, "Destiny?" he whispered the word like he'd just heard it for the first time and didn't know if it was something good or bad.
"It's a bitch, but you get used to it" Faith shrugged, "There's something about you Connor. Something about yourself that no one, not even you, seems to know. And because the PTB are a whole buncha assholes, there's a reason for all of it."
"Powers that Be? Professor Pryce says they're jerks too" Connor smile, albeit shakily.
"Professor Pryce is a very smart man, and that opinion is a majority anyway" Faith grinned, "Look, Connor, I'm not used to this kind of thing, so I'm just gonna say it. Being the official voice of experience on this topic, let me just say that it's not a good idea to go through this alone. And you don't have to. For what it's worth, if there's ever something that's troubling you, about your powers, the Slytherins – or even if you just need a good sparring partner… well, I'm here and have nothing better to do."
Connor bit back a chuckle. "Thanks. I'll probably have a lot of questions about my… powers – god that sounds so weird. And you would know about Destiny… you're a Slayer, aren't you." Statement, not a question.
"You know?"
"Read. Observed. Guessed" Connor shrugged, "Then I overheard Professor Pryce and Draco talking while we were fighting. I have good hearing."
"Destiny's a bitch," Faith told him, "but yeah, if you ever need to talk about it… we can both go complain to Wes."
This time, Connor did laugh. But he did it quietly "Bet he'll love that."
Faith just grinned. "Well then, that's covered. Out of curiosity, how're you getting along with the rest of our House?"
"It's confusing sometimes… and I'm muggle-born so they don't like me, but I kicked Crabbe's ass, so they leave me alone. But mainly… no offense… it's just..."
"Hard to tell the evil-guys from the pretending-to-be-evil-guys?"
"Took me a while to learn that some were pretending – so, something like that, yeah."
"You'll know, it'll take time, but you'll find them" Faith assured him.
Connor blinked, thinking back to what happened that day. "Draco really came through today, didn't he? Really took charge."
Faith smiled, "Yeah he did."
"He probably saved a lot of lives."
"I don't doubt it."
"He's an okay guy," Connor decided.
Faith nodded and stood with a half-smile "Most people are, Connor, when you finally see them."
Despite the fireworks of the day before, Tuesday's classes resumed without disruption. As if stuff like this happened all the time, and none were completely fazed. And in a sense, it did happen all the time, just not specifically with demons.
Dawn hadn't gotten the chance to talk to Connor, even though their first class with the Slytherins was Care of Magical Creatures, before lunch. But at least she managed to get him alone during divination, as he was sitting with her like he always did.
"I heard what happened yesterday," she told him, sinking onto one of the cushions and bringing out her deck of tarot cards.
Connor's cards were already strewn over the table in a simple runic cross. He never even paused from jotting down his predictions.
"Who hasn't?" Connor said.
"I was hoping for a first hand account" Dawn said, shuffling her cards, but not taking her eyes off of him.
This time Connor did stop. He looked up at her to find her looking questioningly back at him. Inwardly, the brown-haired boy sighed. He liked Dawn, he couldn't help but trust her – and he couldn't lie to her.
As both of them pretended to be concentrating on their Tarot Cards, Connor explained in a hushed tone what had happened the day before in the Dungeon.
"You could have gotten killed" Dawn told him with an unspoken 'you moron' Connor noticed lingering at the end of her sentence.
"Tell me something I don't know" Connor said, trying to concentrate more on his cards.
"My first kiss was with a Vampire" Dawn told him, the slight smirk in her voice making Connor's head snap up.
"What!"
"That's something you don't know… or didn't know, now that I've told you" Dawn shrugged.
"Hah, bloody hah" Connor said.
"HAH! You said 'bloody', you said 'bloody'" Dawn giggled uncontrollably.
Connor groaned, "I've been in this place too long."
While Dawn had Divination and Ron had Muggle Studies, Harry had a free period. And, of course, instead of doing one of his assignments (and there seemed to be quite a lot of them these days), he was busy setting a time and place for Quidditch tryouts.
He only needed five players. The Chasers and Beaters to be exact. He cleared a time for tryouts with Madame Hooch and posted the message on the bulletin board in the Gryffindor Common room, next to Neville's post about his lost toad.
Tryouts were scheduled for next Wednesday. That would at least give everyone interested time to practice. He pinned a blank parchment for sign-up's beside to his notice and then gathered his books.
Harry sighed, making his way to the library. He did have to get some work done after all.
"Malfoy, been looking for you" Connor said, jogging to catch up with the Slytherin boy who'd just come out of his Muggle Studies class.
He fell into step with the other Slytherin.
"Same here" Draco said, "For two things actually, you go first."
"Potions project, remember, the sample I made exploded – you know, literally" Connor shrugged.
"I need help with my work too, what the hell is a television?"
"TV? One of the greatest inventions ever" Connor said, "24 hours of pure entertainment. Though it's audience has a tendency to become zombies while watching."
Draco blinked.
"Not literally" Connor amended, "What was the second thing?"
Draco pulled a piece of parchment out of his pocket and handed it to Connor, "I'm posting this in the Slytherin Common Room tonight. Quidditch tryouts."
Now it was Connor's turn to blink.
"Quidditch" a semi-familiar word, Connor thought, as he tested it on his tongue.
Draco stopped dead. "Nobody's told you about Quidditch!"
His tone expressed all kinds of shock. Connor just shrugged.
"I've heard about it in passing – no one's ever explained the whole thing to me yet."
"We must correct this immediately" Draco shook his head sympathetically, "Lesson number one…"
"Heya!" Dawn smiled, plunking herself into the seat next to Harry.
From across the table, Ron looked up at her and blinked repeatedly.
"Happy classes are over for today?" the redhead asked.
"Aren't we all" Harry grinned, "How was Divination earlier? Anyone die yet?"
Dawn smiled back and pulled a few books from her bag as well as the rock she was supposed to turn into a hamster for transfiguration.
"Not today. And the lesson wasn't so bad, I just hung out with Connor, as always" Dawn shrugged.
Ron made a noise in the back of his throat, "Dawn, I don't think it's a good idea to hang out with him."
"Is this because he's a Slytherin?" Dawn demanded with a raised eyebrow.
"Which Slytherin are we talking about?" Hermione asked, as she and Ginny joined the group.
"Nelson" Harry said, shrugging.
"Connor Nelson?" Ginny asked, at their nodes she grinned, "He's really nice – for a Slytherin – and cute."
"Ginny!" Ron protested. His sister just grinned.
"I agree" Dawn said nodding.
"You think he's cute!" Harry demanded, his head snapping towards her.
"No! Well, yes… but he's not really my type. I agree to the fact that he's nice" Dawn stuttered.
"I've never spoken to him, but those who have say he's civil" Hermione nodded her agreement, "What's the problem?"
Ron scowled, "The problem is, he's on good terms with Draco Malfoy. Saw them chatting like old friends after Muggle Studies."
"So?" Ginny demanded.
"So? SO?" Ron sputtered, "If he's hanging with Malfoy the scum of all evil – this makes me rethink his 'niceness'."
"Oh, come on, Ron, you're just being paranoid" Hermione said, "If Connor wants to be friends with Malfoy - though why anyone would want to is beyond me – I don't see why he and Dawn still can't be friends."
"S'long as they don't start dating" Harry smirked, fighting the wave of jealously that flowed through him at the mere thought.
"As if, Potter" Dawn rolled her eyes, "Connor is a friend. Besides – aren't we supposed to be dating?"
Everyone else at the table blinked, "WHAT?"
Harry sighed, "I think we've got some explaining to do."
Because of the incident on Monday, Spike hadn't the chance to hand out the marked essays back to their owners until Wednesday. Though when he did, he made a point to mention things quietly to his pupils; corrections and suggestions and comments that he hadn't put on the actual papers in his marking.
"Funny, Bit" Spike said, very quietly handing her her report on the way he and Angel dealt with having souls. "I'm not really immature am I?" Spike pouted a little.
Dawn giggled, "Why do you keep asking questions you don't want to know the answers to?"
"Because I supposedly 'Take delight in annoying those around me, particularly in serious situations'" Spike quoted.
Dawn rolled her eyes, "I also said you dwell less on the past which is why you don't brood as much as a certain vamp we both know."
"Right before saying it's mostly because I blame all the bad things I've done on said vamp" Spike pointed out.
Dawn grinned impishly, "Oh yeah, that's right."
Spike rolled his eyes, and continued to pass out the scrolls. He reached the Slytherin area fairly soon.
"Malfoy, see me after class" Spike whispered quietly, handing the boy his work.
Malfoy shrugged, Spike took that as a 'whatever'. And even though Draco saw the 'O' on his paper, he had been expecting this. Researching for this paper had been interesting. But what he had found had been shocking.
After everyone had their essays, Spike proceeded to talk more about the Scourge, using what some students wrote in their essays as examples. Of course, in no time at all, it was time for their next class.
There was a rustle of paper, as people shoved books into bags, as well as quills and inks and the parchment used for taking notes during the lecture.
"Get along, you lot!" This was directed to those of the student body that were loitering.
As the room cleared, Draco Malfoy, made his way to the teachers desk.
"What?" Malfoy demanded snidely.
"I'd say from that sneer and your report on William the Bloody's family line, you know we have something in common," Spike said to him.
Draco's scowl deepened, "Aside from looks, you mean. And has anyone ever told you that talking in third-party form borders on schizophrenia. Great Uncle Spike."
Spike laughed, "Once or twice, boy, and that would be a couple more 'greats' to my name."
"Wonderful – I'm related to a bloody Vampire" Draco sneered, "We have a Slayer, a Watcher, a Wiccan, and a Vampire. Teaching. Hogwarts is going to hell, you know that?"
Spike just grinned; a look bordering on evil.
Draco sighed. "It was a stupid idea to give us that Vampire assignment," he told his uncle frankly, "Someone with half a brain is gonna see a picture, make a few mental changes to the hair and figure it out. Not to mention that people have already started asking me if I'm related to you in any way."
"We don't look that much alike, do we?" Spike said worriedly.
"Tell them that" Draco rolled his eyes.
"We're going to have to talk more later," Spike told him.
"If I said I was looking forward to it – I'd be lying."
Faith sensed something was wrong when Wes' eagle flew urgently into her room. She guessed the envelope it carried was a response from Fred, since she'd used the bird to send her first message.
Bandit screeched his protests when Horus (the name Wesley had given his mailing bird) appeared out of nowhere and circled the room three times before landing on Faith's outstretched arm, which was thankfully protected by her sweater.
Setting the eagle on the table, Faith allowed Horus to drink from her almost empty goblet of water; Faith tore the envelope open and pulled out several sheets of scribbled on paper that looked like it was torn from a spiral.
Horus looked up and ruffled his feathers indignantly at the paper.
"Don't be such a snob just because it's not parchment" Faith told him lightly.
Bandit squawked and looked accusingly at Faith and then flared his wings, pawed the air and sent a seething look in the eagle's general direction. Faith shook her head at him, the griffin growled and crawled under the bed in a huff.
Deciding to deal with her disgruntled pet later, Faith unfolded Fred's letter. It was written in Fred's tidy writing, but it seemed rushed.
...Hey Faith,
We're all okay over here… in a manner of speaking. I know this probably isn't the first thing I should be saying to you, but I'm on a roll with the rambling, so I might as well blurt it out now.
I'm worried about Angel. There I said it. He's doing a good job at running 'Evil Inc' as you so charmingly put it. Actually, things have been so busy here that we hardly see each other any more – and by that I mean ALL of us. Since we're all working in different departments… but anyway. Angel. Priority.
He's been visiting Cordelia. Everyday I think. Maybe even twice a day. Whenever he can, he'll go and see her. He's even managed to have her transferred to the Wolfram and Hart Medical Ward so we can keep an eye on her. And he feels we can do something to get her out of that coma.
He's not willing to admit that it's a long shot. He's even got the science department looking into ways of reviving her.
But that's really not what I'm worried about. He's obsessing over her – Cordelia I mean. And I mean really obsessing. He spends almost every waking moment by her side. And even his sleeping… I've caught him more than once, conked out in the chair beside her bed. Holding her hand like she was his lifeline.
Charles wasn't worried before, but I think it's starting to scare him. I'm told that Angel Obsession is something we would NOT like to see happen.
And you know that Dominatus Gem that he's been given to protect. He's hidden it. He won't even wear it. Even if it means he gets to go out in the sun. I asked him about it once, but he was almost in a trance – then I realized he was sleeping.(no don't laugh at me!). He was mumbling in his sleep – which is kinda good, cuz he doesn't breathe and if he didn't do something he'd just look… you know, dead – but anyway, he was saying something along the lines of "Cordy would know… she'd understand… she knows…" etc etc etc.
I thought you might want to mention it to Wes, see if he knows something. He has, after all, known Angel almost as long as Cordy has.
Anyway, it sounds like you've got your work cut out for you at that school of yours. Thanks for looking after Wes, we both know how he gets when he's researching. Just remind him to eat, and make sure he sleeps – though I don't think tying him to the bed is a very good idea. Unless there's something going on with you two… is there? (grin) I can see you rolling your eyes at me, you know. Just joking.
Charles and I are slowly but surely patching up our relationship. And it's working. We talked, and went out for a few dates, and talked some more. Things are getting better, and we're learning things like trust all over again. Yeah, I know this all sounds sappy, but it's true. I've missed him.
Oh, by the way, Lorne seemed pretty interested in setting up a Karaoke Bar over there, if you were serious about it being an ideal location. He said he might have to pop in to check it out. He also asked if you could take a peek at the competition. You know, other bars and stuff. Oh, and he sends great big hugs to you and Dawnie and Willow and he doubts that Wes and Spike would appreciate hugs, but he sends them anyway. Ha ha.
Well, I think that's pretty much it from this end. I'll keep a closer eye on Angel and give you the update. Say hi to everyone, and good luck with… well, whatever catastrophe has struck this week. Talk to you later.
Fred...
"Connor! Come back down, it's raining" Draco yelled into the sky, but he was grinning like a fool none-the-less.
"See you're getting the hang of it" Draco added as Connor touched down to the ground and swung himself off the broom.
"Man, I can't believe I never tried flying, it's the coolest thing ever!" the other Slytherin grinned, handing Draco back his Nimbus 2001.
"Glad you're coming to my way of thinking then" Draco chuckled, slinging his Nimbus over a shoulder, as the two of them walked hurriedly off the Quidditch Pitch eager to get out of the rain which was coming down a little heavier, "I don't think Monday try-outs will be a problem now. Though I'll have to get a few people to help judge, aside from Crabbe and Goyle."
"The ogres?" Connor blinked, "Won't they purposely give me a bad score?"
"They might, or they might be too scared you'll kick their asses" Draco grinned, "But they want to win the Cup this year as much as the rest of us, so I'm willing to bet they'll let you on, when they see how good you are."
Connor shrugged, "Born with lightning quick reflexes, I guess."
The two boys made it through to the entrance hall and headed towards the dungeons.
It was Draco who spoke next as they turned the corner "I'll have to ask Pansy to be one of the judges too, she's probably…"
"Drake! There you are, I was looking for you" Pansy said, coming down the hall towards them quickly - very quickly.
"…Right here" Draco finished.
"I bumped into my cousin…" She stopped when she realized he was with Connor, "Oh. Hello." The edge in her voice instantly icy, as per usual.
"Drop it, Pans, he's okay" Draco said, "Connor, Pansy, Pansy, Connor."
Pansy's iciness suddenly melted and she offered Connor a rare, bright smile, "Hi." She looked him over, and then at the broom Draco held "Learning how to fly, huh?"
Connor blinked, and then grinned, realizing he was covered in mud, "It started to rain. But I think I'm getting the hang of it."
"Pans, he's good" Draco said, with barely contained excitement, "Quidditch Cup is ours this year. Boys a natural on a broom."
The trio started walking towards the dungeons again. Both Draco and Conner were eager to change into dryer clothes. Not to mention, they didn't want to run into Filch who'd kill them from trekking mud on the recently polished floor.
"Muggle Born, right?" Pansy asked.
Connor nodded, "Problem?" he asked with a slight frown. Most Slytherins did tend to have a problem with it.
Pansy smiled, "Not between us, I'm just impressed."
"Oh, by the way, Pans, you trying out for the team this year?" Draco asked conversationally.
"Not if you paid me, Drake" Pansy rolled her eyes. She then enlightened Connor who was looking at her confusedly, "I like to keep both feet firmly on the ground if you get my drift."
Draco grinned, knowing what her answer would be before he even asked the question. "Pans here has zero talent on a broom. Falls off the instant she's on" Draco explained for Connor's benefit.
"Oh, and here I though all Witches and Wizards liked Quidditch" he sent an accusatory glare at Draco who'd told him so.
Pansy laughed, "Oh, I love Quidditch, just not one for flying."
"That's good for me then, I need you to help me pick the new players" Draco said, "I mean, you've got an eye for talent, doncha?"
Pansy shrugged modestly, "Oh, I almost forgot, we're meeting Vic and Paige at the Three Broomsticks this weekend."
"Vicky?" Connor questioned without thinking.
Pansy nodded, "Distant cousin."
"Most pureblood families are related to each other in some way" Draco supplied, he turned to Pansy, "I might be a little late though; I promised Professor Winters I'd meet with him."
Pansy wrinkled her nose in confusion, "Why would he want to meet with you?"
Draco sighed, "Oh boy, you guys are not gonna believe this."
Willow stepped nervously into the cold depths of the seemingly empty potions room. This had been Spike's suggestion, and she hated this idea – but she constantly reminded herself of the consequences if she didn't.
"Can I help you, Miss Rosenberg?" a familiar, snide voice said from behind her making the redhead jump.
"Geeze, you should wear a bell around your neck, y'know that!" Willow told him.
Snape said nothing, he just moved to the back of his desk and started rummaging through one of the many drawers.
"A charming idea, I'm sure, Rosenberg, but if you have nothing more to comment on other than my need for certain accessories, I suggest you leave."
Willow frowned, "You are hopeless you know that? You're all cranky and growly to everyone you meet, even when someone decides to brave these hideously overrated dungeons to ask for your help you"
"Rosenberg" Snape snapped, interrupting her babbling, "Your insipid chatter aside, would you care to explain what you need help with, since I am a very busy man with an actual job to do."
Willow fought the urge not to flame red in pure anger – and to not completely black over. Then, as if a switch had been flipped, Snape stared in shock when she sank into the chair across from his desk – or more appropriately collapsed in it.
It was only now that Snape noticed how exhausted and bone-dead tired she looked. And how small. Strange that such a tiny creature had the power to appear ten times her size when she was fired up.
Snape sat in the chair behind his desk and in a tone very few knew he possessed said, "What can I help you with?"
Willow looked directly at him. He was acting as if they were starting their conversation over. Deciding it better just to play along, she answered him in a soft voice, like the kind she'd once used in High School.
"Spike said to talk to you, thinks there might be some potion you can whip up, to help me control… control…" she was unable to finish, averting her eyes to the floor.
Luckily, Snape understood. "You're having a hard time controlling your power?"
Willow nodded meekly. Snape stood and walked round to her side of the desk.
"You're going to need a check up" he told her.
"What, I'll have to go to the hospital wing?"
"Not that kind of check up, Rosenberg" Snape told her, shaking his head, "And Madame Pomfrey could not do it anyway – not that I doubt her skill as a medi-witch, it's just..."
"Not her area of expertise?" Willow suggested.
"Not this particular area, no" Snape agreed, "Come, there's a couch in the back room."
He hauled her up and led her into the back office of the Potions Room, where the walls were lined with various books on advanced, and most likely dangerous, potions the students were under no circumstances allowed to touch. Most of these volumes were not available even in the Restricted Section of the Library.
The back room itself was very – Snape. It was filled with dark colors, mainly black and gray, the desk was made of beautifully crafted mahogany wood, as were the bookshelves.
The couch was black and it's velvet covering a little worn, but it was comfy enough to Willow when she sat.
"Alright, now relax" Snape instructed, examining her eyes carefully, he rested a hand on her forehead, "Have you been tired lately? Easily exhausted?"
"Yes" Willow said.
"But sometimes, late night insomnia?" Snape prodded.
Willow nodded. Snape breathed out a noise that might have indicated worry.
"You get exhausted when using even the simplest spells because it's taking all your willpower to hold your darkness down? And sometimes even the smallest spells or strong emotion bring blackness to the eyes?"
The fact that he was so accurate in his description was a little frightening. Willow just nodded again.
"Can you feel a sort of itch, in your hands every once in a while? Do you feel your Power struggling against your Will? Any uncontrollable shaking?"
She was having uncontrollable shaking now. She couldn't even answer. Snape took it as affirmative.
"Now, Rosenberg, one last and the most important question" Snape said, making her look at him. Willow looked up, she hadn't even realized that she'd been looking away this whole time. Snape took a breath, "When you're tired, really exhausted, and you're within a fair vicinity of the Forbidden Forest, does it… call to you?"
Snape awaited her answer, as he watched her eyes widen in fear and her face pale even more. If she knew what he was talking about, she would understand his choice of words. And something in him prayed to any higher beings that he was wrong.
Willow looked up at him, tears welling up in her eyes. "Yes – to all of it – it, it, it screams."
Then it's much worse than I thought, Snape thought to himself, frowning. He pulled out his wand and conjured some herbal tea. He handed the cup to her and watched her drink deeply.
"Rosenberg, no potion can be made to repress this power. It's growing inside of you, all of your magic. You're becoming more powerful, which is why it is dangerous to rely on Wiccan alone."
"Or use it in the way I have" Willow added quietly, her shaking subsiding slightly.
Snape nodded, "Mostly that. But we cannot stop it from growing. It's what power does naturally, unfortunately you're not growing fast enough to keep up with it."
Willow nodded, "I thought as much. I guess I just needed a second opinion."
"As I said, there are not potions to repress power, I can, however, brew something that will clear your head, and help you to harness a little more control. And also you'll need to let off some of that power. A Vessel."
"Like, me putting a bit of my power into someone else?"
Snape nodded, "I volunteer. I've been down this road before, Rosenberg, I assure you I'll be able to handle this," he told her before she could protest.
"Why do this for me?"
"You did come to me for help" Snape pointed out, "We'll start now. Stand. That's it. You know how big a walnut is? Concentrate that into the palm of your hand."
She did, albeit hesitantly, Willow held her hand up and a little black ball the size of a walnut floated just above her palm. Without warning Snape gripped her hand, taking all the power she'd surfaced."
Willow's eyes blacked over, she screwed up her eyes fighting the urge to scream. Snape held strong, never letting her hand go, clenching his jaw tightly. Sweat was forming on his upper brow.
Then the rushing in her ears stopped suddenly. She swayed on her feet. Snape reached out to catch her.
"Can you make it to your rooms? Do you need me to walk you?"
Willow blinked up at him, her head suddenly clear for the first time in the past few weeks.
"No, I feel a lot better actually" she gave him a smile to show her energy was indeed restoring itself.
"Good. I'll have the potion ready for you by..."
"No" Willow interrupted, "I'd like to learn how to make it myself – in case you're not around."
Snape's lips twitched in what could have been a half-smile. He had to admire her enthusiasm.
"Very well, after classes tomorrow. And in a couple of days we'll have to unload some of your power once more. Are you sure you don't need an escort?"
Willow shook her head, "No, really, it's good, I might actually be able to get to sleep tonight," she moved to leave, but at the doorway she turned, "Oh and, Severus?"
He looked at her.
"Thank you" she said quietly.
She left. And only then did Severus allow himself to collapse on the couch and shiver ever so slightly.
(Just spent the better part of an hour fixing the bloody format thing cuz the people who designed this little internet word thing gave it some glitches.)
All right, I know this was a little short. And seriously lacking in some good material (I kinda fell asleep when I wrote this).
I know I promised Hogsmeade in this one, but honestly, it really felt like it deserved it's own chapter (I have better stuff planned, I PROMISE).
The next update sooner I hope, I have some ideas scrambling to get in print, but I'm trying to slow it to a decent pace.
Internet is fixed now. And I'm re-reading and correcting the mistakes of previous chapters. Thank you for your patience.