Chapter Twenty-Nine
How Snape Nails the Board
With the exception of the reappearance of Dumbledore, the Fifth House spent the entire weekend studying for their upcoming tests, oblivious of anything else interesting happening in the outside world. With Ambrose's report checked over and turned into Snape without so much as a comment other than suggesting he should go study, Ambrose dove into his work, pausing only now and then to ask Lucky a question on potion formulas or listen as Laura explained something to Lucky and Connie on their Transfiguration review.
A good night's rest was not to be had by anyone, or so they thought; they were pleasantly surprised when Mr. Carnegie's horn didn't sound until half an hour before breakfast.
"Well, either our good caretaker decided to sleep in today or the Professor wants to make sure we've gotten enough sleep so that we can't use it as an excuse," Terrence joked as he and Ambrose got dressed to go downstairs.
"Or he could just have decided to be nice," Ambrose suggested, fussing with his shoes. Terrence only thought about it for half a second.
"Nope, not likely," he said with a grin, opening the door for Ambrose and following him out. "All right, everyone! Nobody skips breakfast today! Come on! You too, Delia!"
"What is this, our last meal before execution?" she complained with a scowl, getting up off the couch.
"That's one way to put it," Terrence said.
"Look at it this way, Delia," Lindsay said. "The sooner we get it done, the closer we get to heading home for the holidays."
"Yes, that's when the executions happen," Delia said darkly.
"Just do your best, Delia, it'll be fine," Terrence said. "You don't hear Ambrose complaining, do you?"
"That's because he's been getting tutored," Delia said.
"He has not. He's only been studying with friends," Lindsay defended him.
"All right, enough all ready! Someone get the door," Terrence said as he called up to the dorms to try and get everyone moving.
"I'll get it, I'll get it!" Ambrose said excitedly, running up and opening the door wide so he could get to the Sensor Hand on the other side. "Gimme some skin, hand man!" he said, then as everyone stared he did a complicated ritual of hand slaps, hand shakes, thumb hooking, high fives and low fives, ending in a firm hand shake. Ambrose bowed to the hand who then gave him a thumbs up, then looked back at his fellow Hufflepuffs who were all standing behind them with their mouths open. "I really like that door," Ambrose declared contentedly, leading the way.
In the Great Hall, the table was laid out more like a feast than for breakfast, with a smidgen of everything from eggs and toast to pastries, and even a token amount of apples, fish and other 'mind' foods rounding it out. Ambrose tried a little of everything but knew he had to hurry since Potions started early, running up the stairs and into his seat beside Lucky, who was already in place with a coffee cup in her hand.
"Does that help?" he murmured with a grin.
"Don't hurt," Lucky murmured back. "Getting some?"
"Can't stand it," he admitted, still grinning, looking back at Connie and wishing her good luck. Lucky did the same.
"All right, everyone, get settled," Jennifer said as she stepped into the room with a stack of papers in hand. "If you're getting coffee, get it now, you're not to be getting up during the test, thank you. Everyone hand that last review homework up to the front, then we'll start. You'll be only staying a regular period today, but don't worry if you're not able to finish, just take your time and do your best," she said, watching to make sure everyone passed up their homework. "Oh, one last announcement, and don't be surprised if you hear it again," Jennifer said, pausing momentarily to pick up the homework in her off hand and sticking it on her desk. "We're not going to be posting your scores on the door this year, so um…no need to check back," she said as a murmur of surprise went up and several looked more than a little concerned. "I know we still have a few days left to bump into each other in the halls, but if I don't see you, have a good holiday."
"But, when are we going to get our marks then, Professor Craw?" Delia asked with a frown.
"When your report cards get come through the Owls, I imagine," Jennifer said.
"But we won't know what to prepare for when our parents see them!" Delia protested again, horrified. Jennifer gazed at her sternly.
"Delia, if you can't tell what classes are passing and what ones you need to be worried about at this point, you probably need parental intervention," Jennifer said bluntly. "Last warning, quiet now, the sooner you come to order the sooner we call all get this thing over with."
Lucky took her test with a resigned sigh, while Ambrose took his in anticipation. Jennifer spent most of the first half of the test scanning each individual face, making sure no one had any intentions of cheating. Most of the students seemed as stressed as they had been all year; only Ambrose seemed calm and collected, while Lucky, it seemed, skipped right to the math part first, and Connie was doing what she could to avoid it. Her eyes wandered towards the wall behind them and immediately wished they hadn't, gazing at the half finished portraits of Pyther and Alicia for a long time before she saw movement and looked down to see Ambrose looking at her. At first she thought he had a question, but quick scrutiny revealed that he was done…and ten minutes early at that. Motioning him up, she took it, staring so hard at it after he left that she almost forgot to call her class off early.
"It was the same thing in all of my classes too," Reggie said when Lucky and Connie sat down to lunch. "No marks posted, have a good holiday. What are we supposed to do that last day before we go back home, I ask you? I'll have all but one of my tests done by then, and that's Madame Black's class, and she already warned us it'd be an essay question."
"After what we've just been through this semester, you could try sitting back and enjoying it," Tim said.
"Yeah, because once our father sees my marks, I won't be sitting again for awhile," Reggie said ruefully. "How about you, Connie, how deep are you in for?"
"I'm not even going to hazard a guess," Connie sighed. "But I think I did okay."
"I won't guess. I don't have Transfiguration until tomorrow," Lucky said darkly.
"At least we all know whose going to ace their Arithmantics course," Tim said to cheer her up.
"Right, true," Lucky agreed smugly. Sure, her marks wouldn't be perfect, but at least she'd made a good effort in studying. Perhaps she'd even squeak a pass on her Defense, she mused, looking over it one last time.
"I wonder how the others are doing?" Connie murmured to her.
"Maybe we ought to ask everyone to send us a note when they get back and see how many death warrants are out," Lucky agreed. Connie grinned at her.
"I'll get the word out then," Connie said with a grin before opening her history book.
Lucky turned in her Transfiguration test half finished and squeaked her last Defense question in just after Professor Tonks had called time, and the rest she decided she had come out somewhere in the middle. But it had been difficult not to linger in Tangent's class after she had finished early, hoping he would go ahead and mark it, because she was almost certain it was her one and only perfect score. But even though he looked it over, he simply smiled enigmatically at her and waved her towards the door, leaving Lucky to appreciate just how annoying it was not knowing.
The last day before they were to go back, Lucky was one of the 'lucky' ones that had no tests left. She wandered to breakfast and took her time for a change, but something seemed missing, and she wasn't quite sure what. She spent the morning packing, went to lunch, and then was near the library when she realized that there was an unusual lack of staff presence anywhere. In fact, not one had she seen all day. Still, some had classes, but even considering that, there was usually one or two lingering in the halls or around the Great Hall during meal times, even if it was to wander through on their way to the staff room. Curious now, she backtracked to the main classrooms to find all the ones that were done with class were shut tight. Transfiguration, Defense…apparently there was still one left to go in Charms, she mused, seeing a few seventh years sitting from the crack in the door. But most of the ones still testing seemed to me minor subjects…Divination, Muggle Studies, and so on. She shook her head, finding herself wondering now if the scores weren't so low they were busy doctoring the marks a bit. As she wandered back through to the staircase, she found herself stopping at the Potion Room door, finding it shut as well. She stood there for a moment, contemplating until her curiosity got the better of her. But just as she got up enough nerve to try breaking in and started to crack her knuckles, her elbow landed on someone standing right behind her.
"Don't even consider it, Miss Snape," Severus warned her, a dangerous flash in his dark eyes when she turned to look at him. Chuckling nervously at him, Lucky decided that silence and a quick retreat down the steps was the best course of action.
That evening Hermione met up with Jennifer and had a few words before the two of them hurried towards the Headmaster's Study.
"Are you going to tell him?" Hermione asked.
"No, no, not before the board meeting…he has enough on his shoulders right now," Jennifer hissed at her. "With any luck we can get rid of him quick and I can get back down to Sagitarri's office to sit with Ben before Alex delivers. The coach just dropped them off here a few minutes ago."
"Who's picking up Lucky?"
"Aurelius and Alicia, not that Alicia is a willing party, but Rel hasn't let her out of his sight lately," Jennifer explained. "Not since Pyther left her that letter."
"Is she that bad?" Hermione frowned.
"She does have her Snape moments," Jennifer explained so dryly that Hermione had to force herself from smiling as they headed up the spiral staircase.
They found him standing behind his desk in his best robes, sorting out his notes. He glanced up as they came in and held out his hand, Hermione promptly handing him a scroll, which he took a moment to look over thoughtfully.
"Did everything go out on time?" he asked.
"Exactly as ordered, although the postmaster was a little put out once he saw the size of the packages that needed delivered," Hermione said with a smirk.
"Not as put out as when his first assistant will be when he sees his daughter's marks," Severus said, frowning at Delia's scores on the scroll before glancing over a couple more, comparing them. He paused a moment, studying them carefully until finally he grabbed a quill and put an x near the Fifth House names. "Just in case it comes up," was all he would say to Hermione's raised eyebrows. Jennifer simply smiled at him as he rolled up the scroll and tucked it away, taking off his glasses and cuffing his sleeves. "So?" Severus asked his wife guardedly.
"You look fine, Severus, the handsomest Headmaster the school has ever had," Jennifer said proudly. A loud guffaw sounded behind them, and the three looked over to see Caprica quickly covering her mouth.
"She's entitled to her opinion," Severus snapped at the painting.
"Sorry, boss. Knock 'em dead, as I've heard them say," Caprica winked.
"Thank you, but I hardly think that will be necessary…tempting, perhaps," Severus added under his breath, earning a grin from Jennifer and Hermione both. "Try to stay out of trouble while I'm gone?"
"Don't worry about us. You just worry about that horrid Coventry woman," Jennifer said.
"That horrid Coventry woman had better worry more about me," Severus said as they walked out of the Study and down the stairs. The moment he was out the gate, the two women glanced at each other and Jennifer went diving for Sagitarri's hut.
"Hey wait! That's not fair!" Hermione shouted after her with a chuckle, knowing there was no way she would be able to keep up still carrying an eight-month kicker, hurriedly walking after her to join the welcoming committee.
Dealing with the board was finally becoming old hat to Headmaster Snape, not that it hadn't had its ups and downs; namely caused by the politics of the board itself as members began to shift around. For, unlike Dumbledore who had support from both of the main views on the board, Snape found that his lay solely on the reformists, where the traditionalists, alarmed by the amount of changes he had wanted to make from the very beginning, were extremely difficult to convince even in the smallest of requests. But Severus tended to excel best when he was challenged, and as he won each hard fought victory by using logic (and sometimes a bit of withheld information), the powerhouse eight traditionalists began to leave, and despite the remainder's valiant attempts, slowly reformists started to take their place.
The most uncomfortable year happened a year before, when the board was even at six to six and nothing seemed to get done. It was the meeting just before the holiday break…the same time of the year, in fact, that Severus was facing now and the one that set the tone for the second half of the term…that Severus first presented the entry exam and marks for Ambrose Bailey. To say it had been volatile had been an understatement, and the only thing they seemed singularly to agree on was the fact that should have brought to them sooner, and Severus' claims of ignorance to him sneaking in the school in the first place was met with utmost suspicion. It had been Dalance, not Shea, who had called the board back to order, attempting to restore some sort of semblance while offering Severus his support in the matter; citing the references Severus had brought from Ambroses' teachers as the reason. It was easy to understand the quick backing of Severus' decision, for Erik had been privy to something none of the others had; the identity of Ambrose's father. So it was then, even as Sebastian threatened to step down in the heat of the debate, that Severus realized the only way to get Ambrose safely through what lay ahead was for Erik to retake the Chairman seat. To his credit, Erik seemed to realize it himself; for in the same debate in which he had attempted to subdue a moment before, he suddenly turned into an instigator. Severus quickly jumped in, and when the smoke cleared, somehow had not only managed to keep Ambrose in school for the rest of the term, but it had been made quite clear by Sebastian that he was not likely to stay on another year.
In many ways, it was regrettable. Sebastian was a reformist and had been a good defender on Severus' policies from time to time, even though he had often expressed concern about the rapid pace on which Severus tended to change things. But politics even in such microscopic scale was never bloodless. Sebastian had wanted to retire not only from the board but his position at West of Whitehall for some time, and cutting one more tie would make it easier for him to do so. His wife, Caitlyn, had decided to stay on but had no desire in the Chairman position itself. As the traditionalists debated on who to support, Severus pounced, and some heated wheeling and dealing (that put Balmweed back as Vice Chair, the only traditionalist on the board that seemed to have even a grudging respect for Severus' policies) and even some bribery and blackmail that Severus wasn't all that proud of, Erik retook his position. Yet it had come at a steep price, for not only had it left an empty seat (filled by Coventry's wife, another traditionalist), but Caitlyn, who had always voted with her husband's views, suddenly began to vote traditionalist now that she was on her own.
Even as the traditionalists gained the majority again, Severus at least took heart that they would not go against their earlier decision and take Ambrose out of school. He should have been a bit more cautious, perhaps…more ready to act when they voted for that abhorrent list of recommended books. It was then he had realized that the fight over one student had reached unheard of extremes, affecting the school in ways he couldn't allow. It was time…past time…to get things back on track, but this time he had all the cards.
Standing by the door, Harold Gimler was boredly reading when Severus arrived, but he immediately became alert as his approach.
"Still quiet I see," Severus said in a low voice.
"Not that I doubt your word, sir, but I thought you said there would be a row out here by now?" he asked.
"It'll be here," Severus said unconcernedly. "Is that today's paper?"
"Yes, pity it was late today, wasn't it?" Harold said, a question in his voice.
"You'll keep your suppositions to yourself, thank you, just don't forget what you're supposed to do," Severus said in a low voice.
"Don't worry about that. I owed you one after that mess you pulled me out of my last year at Hogwarts," Harold said with a smile before opening the door for him.
"If this works you can consider us even," Severus told him before stepping into the room to find the rest of the board already assembled and chatting casually between themselves.
"Good evening, Severus," Erik greeted with a warm smile, followed by similar greetings from Norman Balmweed, Caitlyn Shea, and Abraxus. Most of the others simply nodded, while Regina merely gazed at him as if looking for something to criticize in his appearance. "Right on time as usual, I see," he said, walking over to his seat.
"I do my best," Severus said solemnly as the rest took their places.
"Any preference where to start this month, or shall we go in order?" Erik asked, glancing at the agenda.
"Actually, yes, I do have a preference," Severus said. Erik looked up with interest, for Severus didn't often seem to have a preference about anything except for getting out of the meetings as quickly as possible. "I was wondering about that proposal I sent last week on exchanging the second year book for one that's more accurate."
"Ah yes!" Norman immediately reacted, Erik looking slightly amused. The ex-Equinox had long had a passion for any sort of history. "I'd like to talk about that as well, Erik. That report you sent was rather intriguing, Severus. Although I always thought you preferred a more statistical style of study."
"It definitely wasn't analytical," Caitlyn put in. "And it didn't contain the normal argumentative form I'd expect, especially considering your request. A younger staff member wrote it, perhaps?"
"I never said I wrote it, Caitlyn, simply that I endorsed it. And I believe by virtue of how many discrepancies there are proves to be enough of an argument in and of itself to request different material," Severus said. "However, I admit I would be in favor of having the work published, were I to get the board's support for the paper."
"I'm not sure I could support a paper that relies on ghost accounts, Severus," Norman said.
"Only the interviews of the first three hundred years are ghost accounts, Mr. Balmweed, and if you've looked over the research notes, you'll see that the majority of their claims were cross-referenced and substantiated by other means as well. As for the first hand accounts after the fact, a great deal of the corrections were made by Mr. Pyther, which of course you can dispute since he is legally dead, however I do believe you may have a fight with the Non-human Rights commission for it…"
"It isn't really Mr. Pyther's interviews we're concerned with, Severus," Erik reassured him. "But most of the board members are a little…uncomfortable…with one particular section of the earlier history."
"Very well, that is?" Severus prompted expressionlessly.
"The one about Salazar Slytherin, Severus," Norman said, putting on his glasses and turning the page with a frown. "This passage that claims that not only did he murder one of the founder's first staff members, but he himself was murdered for that very act by one of the founding apprentices."
"And which part of that are you having trouble swallowing, Norman?" Severus asked.
"All of it, to be frank," Norman said in annoyance. "That is a lot of supposition based on the testimony of one ghost who has a reputation for not always being in his right mind." A sudden flash of anger appeared in Severus' eyes.
"May I remind you, Norman, that said ghost has been a member of the school's staff since before I was Headmaster at Hogwarts, and despite Ravenclaw's temperament has been nothing but a capable and dependable teacher? Not to mention the fact that he also served as Warden of Azkaban quite efficiently when no man could have done the job. I see no reason for him to deserve such an attack on his character, especially since judging temperament has no bearing in this particular matter," Severus said firmly. "As for Salazar murdering a member of staff, that I can prove myself, for I was in the room where the victim's remains were found. And since the only one who had successfully traversed that room since Salazar's 'disappearance' until Potter was in the school was Voldemort, and the remains were much to old for it to have been caused by him, I can say for a fact there is a lot of hard evidence to support Professor Ravenclaw's claim."
"All the same, Severus," Abraxus broke in, "the official record has always stated that Slytherin left the school, you see. I'm not sure how receptive the outside world would be to a ghost professor who has claimed to have killed one of the founders of the school, and it would do a great deal of damage to undermine one of the houses that has been under great scrutiny over the years. As a fellow Slytherin, surely you can't allow that."
"I'm a Hogwarts Professor, first and foremost, Abraxus," Severus said, but the anger had left his voice as he too began to ponder its effect on the current house.
"Even saying so, Severus," Erik said quietly. "Surely you see that releasing such information may upset the delicate balance between the houses…and a house system that has worked quite efficiently for well over a thousand years."
"There are some who would disagree," Severus said calmly, but nodded. "But it is perhaps best left for another discussion, or perhaps…a theoretical paper on the subject down the line?"
"Perhaps," Erik said, after glancing at Norman who had nodded as well. "But if you plan to go ahead and submit this particular paper for publication, that section must be edited out."
"If it will get me the board's endorsement on the project, I shall be more than happy to make certain it's done," Severus said solemnly. "Especially if it helps further my own protest about the book itself."
"One thing at a time, Severus," Erik said, smiling wryly at him. "A show of hands on endorsing the article?" As Abraxus hand went up, so did Regina's, while the rest followed suit when both Erik and Norman, the two leaders of the opposing groups, approved of it as well. "Very well, onto the discussion of having the book replaced. Abraxus, since you led the recommendations committee, your thoughts?"
Severus began to listen to him ramble but paused when he heard a low murmur outside the door. Nodding to himself, he turned back to the conversation at hand.
"You have a point, Abraxus, although I do agree with Severus that they need to be changed, it would be rather awkward doing so in the middle of the term like this, not to mention parent expenses of having to get new books," Norman said.
"It's only one book, Norman," Erik said. "How bad would that change our goals for this year, Severus…goodness, what is that noise?" he asked with irritation, for it had suddenly gotten even louder outside the doors. Suddenly, Gimler poked his head in the door, looking around.
"Some of the parents would like to speak with you sir, should I show them in?" Gimler asked brightly, looking first at Severus, who shook his head slightly with a frown.
"Whatever they want can wait until after the meeting," Erik decided, but hadn't missed the exchange, wondering what Severus was up to.
"Yes, sir," Gimler said, glancing at Severus before disappearing again.
"What I was trying to ask, Severus, was if it might be better to simply wait until the end of the year to replace the book," Erik finished.
"It wouldn't be too much trouble to do it now, Erik," Severus said calmly. "We keep copies of old material and tests going back several years for reference…"
"If I may," Regina interrupted, gazing at Severus admonishingly. "Going back to the old tests would defeat the entire point of changing the books in the first place, since the reason that we did so was to keep the students challenged and raise the school's standards to an acceptable level."
"Yes, that's true. We would have to go back and make new recommendations," Abraxus said. "Can't you just use the books and, you know, work around the bad parts?"
"Possibly, however, if we tried to work around the 'bad parts' of all the material given to us on that recommendation list, we wouldn't be working with any books at all," Severus said.
"I thought we were only discussing the one book, weren't we Severus?" Erik said, absolutely convinced now that Severus was indeed up to something.
"Of course, Chairman," Severus said solemnly. "I am certain that Professor Scribe would be open to alternatives. In fact, being that history is her expertise, I'm sure she would be more than happy to provide you a list of her own recommendations that you may look over to help speed up the process…"
"Yes, I'm sure, then before you know it we'll be back to the same standard that Hogwarts had before, lax and complacent," Regina said.
"You know, for someone who considers herself a traditionalist, you certainly seem very much in favor of reform," Severus said calmly, noticing Regina bristle in response. "In fact, all of you do."
"We simply want to restore the same high standards that Hogwarts has seen in the past, Severus," Abraxus protested.
"I am in favor of that myself, Abraxus, but perhaps you can enlighten me as to exactly when our standards began to slip?" Severus asked, glancing at his watch. "Perhaps if I knew that in greater detail, I could go back and assess what changes we had put into place at that point and correct them."
"I believe it was more of a gradual decline, Severus, rather than just one thing," Abraxus said uncomfortably.
"Perhaps it started with that OWL revision," Norman mused. Erik frowned at him.
"Norman, I know you never liked that revision, but I thought all the acclaim that team got for redoing them worldwide might have quelled your grudge on it."
"It seemed like a good time to say 'I told you so,'" Norman mused.
"Really? Because I have another theory as to when this 'slip' in standards supposedly happened, Norman, and it was much more recent than that," Severus said in such a change of tone that Erik wondered if a dam was about to break. "It was when a very clever and very remarkable seven year old 'slipped' into Hogwarts and proved to himself and everyone including myself that he belonged there. For that reason and that reason alone did this board decide our standards weren't what they should be, and were willing to risk not only the reputation of the school but the welfare of the entire student body just to spite a single child who did nothing to deserve the attack any more than the school itself did. What is it that scares you about him to go to such lengths? Perhaps you just don't like the fact that your children may seem 'average' compared to him? Well, then I have a surprise for you…all of you," he said, glancing at Erik as well. "And that is that up until this school year, since practically the day he was born, I have been doing everything in my power to hold this boy back so he could have a chance to mature naturally. He is, in fact, capable of much more than you saw last year when I had my thumb on him."
A look of alarm and open concern appeared on Erik's face that made even Norman wonder about it before gazing at Severus, looking for answers to what might have caused it.
"Oh, come now, Severus," Regina snorted. "Whatever you may have everyone else believing, I know very well you and your staff have been tutoring him all year."
"Spoken like someone who has no idea just how little time I have," Severus said.
"You also have a licensed Time Turner," she pointed out. "And I happen to know that Mr. Bailey spends a great many hours out of sight in the back room of the library."
"He was put there by Librarian Boulderdash because he and his friends talked too much while 'studying' in the library," Severus said bluntly. As to my schedule…" he said, getting in his cloak and pulling out a huge book and slamming it on the table. "My appointment book. I have the three appointments I had with Mr. Bailey marked with bookmarks for your convenience, but feel free to go over the entire thing."
"Very well, the rest of your staff then," she said.
"Regina, you are putting out a lot of accusations, do you have any proof to any of them?" Erik asked quietly.
"Let me ask you this, Erik. How do you suppose Ambrose snuck into the school in the first place, and what is the real reason behind it? Don't you think believing in the story that he single handedly managed to get his name in the book, hid out for weeks with only pocket change on him, got himself from Hogsmeade to London on his own, easily found the train station and Platform when he'd never been to London before, and then conjured up a disguise that would fool even a Truth Seeker for months on end is just a little bit far fetched?" she said, triumphant at the side glances the members of the board were giving each other. "I think the more obvious answer is they snuck him in the school to hide the fact that if he did pick up any unusual talents at all, he inherited them from his father…as well as the fact, of course, that hiding the boy in the school helped protect the father's identity from leaking out to the general public."
Erik's face lost all color at that point, somehow able to maintain a stony expression, while realizing with some aggravation that Severus seemed as calm and relaxed as he had been from the moment he had come in.
"And just who do you think his father is then, Regina?" Severus asked almost casually.
"Well I think that's obvious," Regina said with a prim smile. "You are." Erik simply blinked, while the rest of the board started talking at once. Severus glanced at his watch and waited a moment before pulling out a scroll and throwing it on the table.
"You may want to look at that, Erik," Severus advised. Shaking off whatever had been bothering him, Erik reached for the scroll, glanced at the seal, opened it, then couldn't help but look amused when he read it. "I hope you don't mind. I decided to get my five-year physical a couple of years early, and at Mungo's, so there wouldn't be any question of bias," he added tersely.
"'To whom it may concern, this is to confirm that Severus Selezin' Snape has been sterile for twenty years from a self-administered potion, signed by the head resident, and several members of his staff. Want to see, Regina?" Erik offered, delighted by the fact that it was her face now that had lost all color.
"He is covering for someone! His son, maybe!" she blurted out.
"Who would have been still in school at that point," Severus reminded her.
"Well then, someone else!"
"Regina, enough of this witch hunt! Er…wizard hunt," Erik corrected, but Severus seemed unconcerned. "We are supposed to be discussing whether or not to continue this book, not to be trying to bury one another…"
"That's quite all right, Erik. I don't mind if we keep trying to bury one another," Severus said, sounding almost bored. As Erik was still trying to think of what to stay to that, there was a knock on the door and Gimler squeezed in, the sound of the crowd much louder and a looked to be a much larger crowd as well.
"Post!" Gimler said, holding up three rather heavy looking bundles, each about the size of the very book they were quarrelling over.
"Since when are these meetings ever interrupted for post?" Erik snapped, more out of anger at himself for letting things get so far out of hand as for any other reason.
"Thank you, Mr. Gimler," Severus said unconcernedly, taking the three packages. "Give me just five more minutes, thank you."
"Anytime sir," Harold said with an enigmatic smile and slipping out. But before Erik could ask about what he meant by that, Severus had glanced at the names on the packages before tossing them in front of Norman, Abraxus and Regina.
"There you are, I'd open them now, if I were you," Severus advised.
"What are they?" Norman squinted, half expecting it to be filled with Howlers. Severus smiled thinly.
"Report cards," Severus replied.
"Report cards?" Abraxus said curiously, opening the one with Don's name on it. There, simply bound in leather string, was every paper that Don had turned in that year; every homework assignment and every test, with even the oral tests carefully dictated out. Along with it was each teacher's agenda in detail with specific citings of the material, along with their final marks for every student in each particular class that Don had been in and the class average. Abraxus stared at the top page, which clearly stated Don's marks in general, letting out an exclamation.
"But these are terrible! Don is a bright boy, these can't be right!" he exclaimed in horror as he found himself scanning the tests.
"Well, I think it's obvious what these are all about isn't it?" Regina said, staring at Mike's front page but refusing to look any further. "You intentionally biased the boys because you didn't approve of the material!" Severus rolled his eyes and brought out a package of his own, dropping Lucky's on the table.
"My daughter failed Transfiguration. Her brother's subject, might I add, and although she passed her final, failed Defense because of her homework incompletions. The only reason she squeaked by Potions is because of the formulas, otherwise she would have failed in that as well," Severus snapped. "Are you going to tell me now that nothing is wrong?"
"To be fair, Pimra did all right, considering the challenge of the material," Norman protested. "She did pass…most of them," he said.
"Pimra passed because she was one of the students studying with Ambrose and his friends in the library storeroom," Severus said, Norman staring at him in response. "So if you want to know for certain whether or not Ambrose was coached, why don't you ask her, because she's been back there studying with them since Halloween," he said. Just then there was a knock, and Erik, who was attempting to get a peek at Pimra's stack to see what all was in there, looked up with surprise when Harold let in a slightly round but quite lovely rosy-cheeked woman carrying a package of her own, smiling at them enigmatically.
"Mrs. Bailey, if you'd do the honors," Severus said cordially, and Ashley came up with a proud look on her face and placed her son's report card in the center of the table. Most of the board looked in every other direction but at it. But Erik, Norman, and Abraxus stared at it intently, unsurprised to see that Ambrose not only passed, but had the highest marks on every list in every class. "You'll also find he did all the homework, and without his seventh year housemates filling in the blanks for him," he added, staring fixedly at Abraxus. Abraxus made a mental note to have a long talk with the twins when he got home. "Not only did he finish it, but he also felt he had plenty of time for a side project. Of course you'll know all about that, considering you approved its publication not half an hour ago."
"Um, Professor?" Harold said, motioning to where he was trying to hold the door shut.
"Oh yes, two other quick things," Severus said, handing Ashley back her son's report card and picking up Lucky's.
"Don't tell me. You gave one of these types of report cards to all the parents," Erik said tiredly.
"Actually, I did more than that. For if those of you with report cards care to look on the back page, you will find a copy of the original list of book recommendations you sent that we had to chose from, and, as you can see, it lists everyone on the recommendation committee, as well as who voted in favor of the book change proposal and what their school and background affiliations are," Severus smiled unpleasantly. "And that is important because, for my second point…you really ought to take a gander at the gossip column of the Daily Prophet before the door gets blown out from the other side, Regina," he suggested, taking the newspaper out of his cloak and putting it on the table.
"You didn't!" Abraxus said standing up with surprise.
"Tell them that your wife is a squib? No, of course I didn't," Severus said with a thin smile. "My wife did. But you know, for some reason, I don't think it'd be wise to call her on that," he advised, nodding to Gimler who 'accidentally' stepped away from the door. The room quickly filling up with irate parents, each with a package in hand. Erik leapt out of his seat and started backing up to the wall, Severus calmly joining him. "Thanks, Erik. I'm done burying now," Severus said evenly.
"Good," Erik said with a nod, looking worriedly at the crowd. "Got a shovel to dig us out?"
"Are you giving me permission to use it?" Severus inquired.
"Be my guest," Erik agreed quickly.
"Good," Severus said with a thin smile before calling the room to order.
