Dark Tower
All characters and places belong to JK Rowling.
Chapter twenty-nine: Collective dilemma.
A few days passed and still no sign of Jessica. Pomona was getting worried and even if he wouldn't admit it, Severus was too. Remus had sent an owl to her, but no response had come yet. At breakfast, Remus asked the Severus where she had floo'ed. Severus looked darkly at him,
"Wouldn't you like to know?" He usually liked sparing with the half-breed, but today wasn't a good day for it.
Pomona stared at Snape before answering Remus. "He said..." motioning Snape, "She had floo'ed to Rebecca Browns studio. I wonder who that is?"
Remus nodded silently, "That's her sister. She lives in London if I remember well. She's an artist of some kind. She spoke to me a little bit about her."
"Yes, now I remember her. Wasn't she a couple of years older than her? She hated my classes, but still got good marks for it." She nodded; remembering how bored the girl looked while in class.
"Yes. She left Hogwarts and went to study in a muggle university. Took a degree in Arts." He was just repeating what Jessica had said about her.
Snape got up and excused himself before leaving the table. He'd go and find her. This was getting beyond ridiculous. Something was up and he wanted to know the truth.
He went down to the dungeons, picked up his winter cloak, gloves and scarf. He'd apparate in London and hopefully find her sister's studio. He could have used the floo, but it wasn't very polite to simply arrive without a proper invitation… that's if she even had a fireplace in the 'studio'.
He passed the gates of the school and disappeared with a 'pop'.
He apparated in London a short time after, and set out to search for a muggle phone box. He knew how it worked; they had this big book inside where you could find telephone numbers and the corresponding addresses for people and shops. He started searching through the book, his eyes skimming rapidly over the names he saw. He got a few odd glances from passing muggles, but didn't bother glaring back at them.
He finally found the place. After verifying where it was situated, he apparated at the door outside. He knocked at the door and a few moments later, a young woman with very familiar features, but blond with hideous red streaks among the artificially tinted hair greeted him. He lifted a brow at her. "Miss Brown?"
She gazed at him from top to bottom, finally gazing back up at his face. "Professor Snape! It's nice to see you again. Haven't changed a bit from what I see. How can I help you? Looking for some paintings to put up in the dungeons?" She grinned impishly at him.
He shot her a contemptuous glance but kept calm. "I happen to be looking for your sister Jessica, you do remember her don't you?"
She smiled sweetly at him. "But of course... girl... looks a bit like me, but shorter and quieter too."
"Well, have you seen her today?" He asked, his fuse getting shorter by the second.
She pushed the door open to let him in. "Back room... last door to your right. Mind the dog though; Incubus doesn't like strangers around his part of the hall." She laughed and disappeared in one of the adjoining rooms. Snape stared at her until she had gone then continued through the long corridor in front of him. At the last door he saw, he turned and was face to face with a rather large, shaggy looking dog.
"Incubus I presume..." he murmured as the dog growled at him. He pursed his lips and took his wand out. There was only one way of dealing with an annoying pest. "Petrifi..."
"Severus!" Jessica shouted. "Don't you dare harm that poor animal!" She came over and patted the mastodon. "Poor Incubus... he's only doing his job. Keeping strangers at bay." She smiled wickedly at him.
Snape looked a poor Incubus with a disbelieving smirk. "Would you mind putting him elsewhere? He doesn't seem to like me very much."
"Ah, don't mind him. He's like a giant stuffed toy. He'll sniff you out for a while then he'll won't mind you... much." With another wicked smile she turned around and motioned him to a small sitting area. "Come along, you didn't come all this way just to stand there and look at a dog, did you?"
He walked around the dog while undoing his cloak. He came to a sitting area that had a very odd seating arrangement. Rather than having chairs, it had a few large, over-stuffed beanbags with a low table in between. The decor had a very bohemian look and feel to it. But no matter, he wasn't there for the decor.
Jessica came back with a tray filled with cups, saucers, teapot and a few things to munch on. She served a cup to Severus. "Black, no sugar... Right?"
He nodded to her and took the cup. He looked quite incongruous, sitting on a large, squat, screaming pink beanbag. Jessica smiled at the picture it made. She sat on one of the bright orange ones, folding her legs under her bottom.
She took a sip of tea before asking. "So, why did you come today? Nothing wrong at the school I hope." She eyed him carefully over the rim of her cup.
Still trying to find some kind of balance on the bloody contraption he was sitting on, he answered her. "No, the school is standing. I came because I... we were worried about you." He changed the 'I' for a 'We' in a flash. Jessica noticed it, but didn't bring it up.
"Oh, you didn't need to. I just needed a sounding board and came to my sister for her brand of logical thinking. I'm happy I did too." She didn't mention what the problem was; she was still nervous about disclosing the information.
He gazed at her, looking for any signs of the distress he had seen that day. "Well, I'm happy to hear that. But, can I ask what had upset you so much, that you needed to run away from school?' He asked her in a casually cool voice, testing the waters to see if she would talk about whatever it was.
Her breath hitched for a moment as she lowered her eyes. She started to trace the rim of her cup with her index. "Nothing that concerns the school really. But I already explained that to Albus last night when he came here. He's accepted my resignation from the school. He wasn't pleased about it, but accepted it anyway."
"WHAT!" Severus tried to get out of his seat as gracefully as he could. "You resigned? Why?"
"I'm not going back to Hogwarts. My life has gotten a little too complicated over there." She said quietly.
He went next to her and bent down on one knee. He stared intently into her eyes; tears had started to well up in them. "Am I to blame for this?"
She lowered her gaze and said nothing. He snorted at her. "You can't let a difference of opinion make you resign from your work, that's insane!" He frowned at her, and then added, "Look at me, I can't stand Lupin or his snivelling comments; I haven't tendered my resignation in response to his presence. I thought you were made of tougher material than that. Come now… that can't be all?"
She opened her mouth to say something, but then jumped up and ran away, holding her hand over her mouth. He watched her go and then decided to follow her. She ran into another room and slammed the door. He came up to the door and opened it slowly. She was bent over the water closet... being sick again for what seemed like the twentieth time today.
He went over and waited for her to finish her bout of nausea. When she was finished, her brow was sweaty from the strain. She didn't look well at all.
"Jessica, tell me, what's wrong? What's making you sick like this?" He took a washcloth from a holder, dampened it with some water from the tap and gave it to her. She put the cloth over her face and wiped it every which way. She felt exhausted.
"I'm... I'm expecting a baby." She let out in a near whisper.
Severus went to sit on the side of the bathtub, his face contorted with disbelief. "What did you say?"
"You understood what I said... I'm expecting." Her eyes closed while she tried to will the sick feeling away.
"But how?" To say he was dumbfounded, would be saying it lightly.
Jessica turned to him. "The usual way." She said sarcastically, even is felt foolish about being in this predicament.
He was about to say something when his right arm began to burn. He grabbed his forearm and swore violently. "This can't be happening." He hissed darkly. "Not now!" He jumped to his feet and came to stand next to her. "I will be back... don't you dare go away." He warned her with scowl.
"But where are you going?" She asked quickly as he moved to the door.
"I'm being summoned for a meeting. I can't refuse to go or He will be displeased... I'll explain it later." With that he left the bathroom to retrieve his cloak and left without another word.
Jessica did wait for a while, but decided to take a nap. It was late afternoon and she suddenly felt tired. A nap would do her some good, she thought as she crawled into bed, falling asleep seconds later.
An hour later, Severus came back; Rebecca said she had gone for a nap, but he could wait for her in the same room he had been in earlier that day. He went in and saw Incubus again, but the dog was just slumbering in a corner of the room. He removed his cloak and tossed it on the coat hook near the door. He looked at the beanbag chairs... pursing his lips in disgust. No way he was going through that again. He took his wand out and transfigured one into a large leather chair. He breathed a sigh of relief as he sank on its soft seat.
The meeting with the Master had been uneventful; but to this very day, it still drained his energies for a little while. He closed his eyes, not really intending to take a nap, but just relax for a bit.
Jessica came in a half an hour later, yawning and stretching herself. When she saw the large chair that stood where a beanbag should be, she came around and saw him sleeping there. A gentle grin warmed her features as she turned to light a few candles in the room; the sun had gone down a little while ago. She left the room again to fix herself a very light supper, returning moments later with a tray. She sat down carefully in her favourite beanbag and began to eat slowly. The muggle doctor she had seen a few days ago, told her to eat light meals and snacks, as often as she could tolerate. (She had sought a second opinion… not quite believing what Poppy had told her.)
Severus woke a few moments later. But he simply looked at her for a moment through half closed eyes. In the candlelight, her features were smooth. Her cheeks seemed fuller, oddly enough, as well as her bosom. It was probably because she wore no robes over her muggle clothes? It fit her well, he found himself musing inwardly. He had seen pregnant women before now, but had never really paid close attention to those details before.
She finished her meal and took back her plate and cutlery back to the kitchen. Sitting back down, she noticed that he was awake. "Good evening sleeping beauty!" She quipped.
He sneered at her choice of words but didn't say anything about it. "Sleep well yourself?" He asked cautiously.
"Yes, it took the tiredness away. It gives me a chance to continue with my day." she shrugged.
"And what are you planning to do if you are not to work at Hogwarts? Sit here and do nothing all day?" He thought it would push her buttons a little bit.
"No. I'll probably be doing some private tutoring for now. Got a job offer already." She said lightly.
"Oh..." He hadn't expected her to say that. But at least she was planning ahead. He sombrely look at her, a question was quivering on the very tip of his tongue. Should he ask her? He toyed with the possible wording for a few minutes. He wasn't known for his delicate touch in these matters.
"Tell me... who fathered the child?" It came out a bit coarser than he had wanted, but it couldn't be helped. At least he wouldn't feel this dreaded weight around his shoulders anymore. If Lupin was the father… Severus felt a lick of jealousy at the mere thought of it.
She looked at him guardedly and knew in her heart and mind, which man was the father. But didn't know how he would react to the news. She closed her eyes, the feeling of hopelessness coming back to haunt her. How could she have been so stupid… so neglectful… Forgetting to use a contraceptive spell or potion when both incidents had happened. She had mentally kicked herself a thousand times before her sister had sat her down for a serious heart to heart talk.
He got up and came next to her. He took her hands and helped her to get up. Staring into her eyes he asked softly, almost like a gentle caress. "Tell me... I need to know."
I know, i know... leaving you with a cliffy. Bad, bad me. lol Though i think some of you have already figured it out... next chapter is coming later tonight. Thanks for the reviews.
