The Keeper

Chapter 37

Harry's first Occlumency lesson didn't go very well, and the next morning he was still rather upset that it had only seemed to weaken his minds resistance instead of strengthening it. As Yulisa listened, she felt a great desire to tell him about her own private lessons; to point out that in the beginning she, too, didn't fully comprehend the usefulness of her exercises. Yet, as she toyed with the idea of informing her friends, a new Educational Decree quickly made her decision for her.

Educational Decree Number Twenty-Six.

Teachers are hereby banned from giving students any information that is not strictly related to the subjects they are paid to teach.

Signed:

Dolores Jane Umbridge

High Inquisitor

Reading the notice, she suddenly felt it was safer to follow Victoria's example: any information regarding her opes will henceforth be on a strictly need to know basis. After all, not only was Professor Snape teaching Defensive magic, now he was directly disobeying the Ministry, with two separate students. With a twinge of guilt she said nothing as Harry disgustingly reported the catastrophe of his second lesson. Soon enough, it was Friday, and she, herself, made her way down to the dungeons for her own first lesson of the term.

As scheduled, today was a review. She went through hearing and feeling exercises, doing much better on the latter after her continued work over the break. She then performed every silent spell he had instructed her to practice and answered a series of conceptual questions from her Defense lessons. Included among those questions were a few pertaining not to her assigned reading, but to the book she had received for Christmas. She smiled as she assumed he was checking to see if she had read it, and answered them flawlessly. The lesson concluded with her practicing defensive application.

"Exceptional, as usual. You are dismissed." He stated, his voice was flat and detached, but his eyes held pride.

"Good night, sir." she said.

"Good night, Yulisa." He replied, again a trace of gentleness floated on the edge of his words. She smiled, noticing it. Despite his rather formal composure during the evening, she left with butterflies in her stomach, feeling she was starting to see past his usual facade.

Saturday morning, the butterflies continued to pursue her as she played with her breakfast. She spent the day with Hermione, completing assignments and preparing for O.W. L. Exams. At dinner, her hands were almost shaking as she kept a close watch on the clock.

"Another game of Wizard Chess?" Ron proposed to Harry, the four standing up to leave the great hall.

"Sure. Yulisa?" he asked, looking over to his friend.

"Oh, no thank you. I think I'm going to take a walk, maybe read a little." She explained.

"Want company?" Hermione inquired.

"No thank you. Why don't you try a round of chess with the boys?" She suggested. Both Hermione and Ron looked put off by the idea. As they passed into the Entrance Hall the three went up the stairs, back towards Gryffindor Tower as Yulisa continued down the corridor, not sure where she was going. After passing through a classroom she rounded back, this time heading downstairs.

When she approached the wooden door of his office, she smoothed out her robes, still unsure why he had called her there. Taking a deep breath she knocked. The door opened, his cold eyes peering out to see that it was her. He turned, letting the door slowly swing open as he returned to his desk.

"Shut the door behind you." he instructed, as she stepped in. She did. "Black?" he asked, his voice quiet and calm.

"Please." she answered politely before taking a seat before his desk. Silently two cups appeared. He touched the tip of his wand to both, each filling with the steaming dark liquid. A tray of sugar, milk, lemons, and small biscuits appeared. Taking his cup into his hand, he sat looking across to her. She hesitated, but then reached forward and placed a single sugar cube in her cup before setting it gently on her lap. There was a slight pause.

"Tell me," he started, "How was your break?" He asked rather casually.

She paused, still confused. Despite her usual inquiries into how his day had been, he had never asked about hers. "It was nice." She began, thinking back to its events. "I spent it with friends. Received some nice gifts." she answered smiling. She had no idea if he knew about the Order, and since she spent the majority of her time working with the opes, she felt at a loss for things to say. "How was yours, sir?" He sensed her unwillingness to share, but ignored it.

"Fine." He answered. "I appreciate the sweets you sent. Thank you." Her face lit up a little, he noticed her defenses dropping slightly.

"Of course; and thank you for the book! Very fascinating." she said, feeling some of the awkwardness slowly start to dissipate.

"You really enjoyed it?" He asked, wondering if she was sincere.

"Yes, sir. Why wouldn't I?" Her confusion building.

"I never took you as being interested in the Dark Arts." he admitted.

"Oh, I'm not!" she said quickly. A trace of disappointment crossed his face. "I mean, I would never use dark magic, but... I do... fancy reading about it. Familiarity with the subject is undoubtedly useful." She explained carefully.

"Very useful." he agreed. "What aspect of the Dark Arts do you most enjoy reading about?" His eyes seemed to glisten with a strong curiosity.

"Well the defense against it, sir." she stated, feeling uneasy. Admitting any real interest in dark magic seemed taboo to her. Why would anyone admit to having dark or cruel thoughts?

"Of course." he replied, a small smile appearing on his face. There was another pause. He waited, knowing she'd eventually tell him the truth.

"Actually." She began, looking down into her cup. "I find some of the practitioners quite interesting." she finally admitting, feeling she could trust him while also knowing he, himself, had a healthy interest in the subject.

"Such as..." he encouraged the conversation.

"Holmes and Legil." she said quietly, not looking up from her tea.

"Serial killers?" He didn't hide his surprise.

"What they did was horrible, of course. No excuse." she quickly declared defensively. "It's just the... thought they put into it. They were both very... organized." she explained, already regretting she hadn't just changed the subject.

"It wasn't reckless violence." He commented. "Everything was thoroughly calculated."

She smiled slightly, feeling relieved he seemed to share her sentiment. "One does have to appreciate their attention to detail." she said. He smiled, looking like he might suddenly chuckle.

"You must have quite a distaste for recklessness." He observed, it was an unusual trait for a Gryffindor.

"Not so much recklessness, just when people lash out blindly. It's not fair." She clarified. For the first time he heard a trace of bitterness pass through her voice. Her father, indisputably, must of shaped this opinion.

"So rather, you dislike a lack of control." His eyebrow raised, certainly finding this side of her intriguing.

"You mean people who hurt others simply because they can, casting their anger and problems onto those weaker than themselves, and throwing tantrums like a child? Yes... they're the weak ones." Her voice had a sense of conviction he hadn't heard from her before. "And it's disgusting." she concluded.

"Then what do you suppose we do with them?" He asked, his eyes glistening with an intense interest. Her composure instantly softened, the coldness of her own eyes immediately melting back to the gentleness they usually held.

"We forgive them..." she said looking away, her voice holding a sudden hint of sadness. He said nothing, as she resumed a formal repose. She felt a stab of regret, realizing she had just revealed a rather intimate part of herself. The way he looked at her however, was as if he was captivated. She was, as he knew, a very kind and gentle person; but her years of abuse left its scar. The mar of anger and pain; a stain on her innocence. Yet, as he looked upon her in her imperfection, seeing a glimpse of the darkness she had hid from everyone for so long, she was beautiful. He smiled, knowing with certainty she was perfect for the role he had chosen for her. All doubt fading.

"Is Defense Against the Dark Arts your favorite class, then?" He questioned, changing the subject.

"Not really. I think I prefer Potions..." she paused, realizing she liked the class because of the person teaching it, rather than the subject itself.

His smile didn't fade. "Flattering."

"Why do you fancy Defense, sir?" she asked, slightly dreading the return of the subject.

"The Dark Arts are... a worthy adversary. A very versatile and eternal thing. Defending against it is a true challenge. As ones defenses must be as flexible and inventive as the art you wish to undo." He explained.

"Like a game?" she speculated.

"Like a puzzle." He clarified.

"I love puzzles." She exclaimed. "Would you care to hear a logic one, sir?" He raised his eyebrow at her sudden excitement before motioning with his hand for her to continue. She sat up a little straighter, a wide smile on her face. "There are three boxes. One box has only apples. One box has only oranges. The last box is an equal mixture of apples and oranges. All the boxes are labeled but all the labels are wrong. Is it possible for you to correct all the labels if you reach into only one box and take only one fruit, without feeling around?"

He thought for a few seconds. "Yes." He answered calmly.

"How?" she asked, her face now beaming.

"Obviously, you take the one fruit from the mixed box. Since the labels are wrong, whatever fruit you get is what is in the box. Then, based on this and the fact that the other labels are wrong, you consequently know the contents of the other boxes." he explained.

"Correct." she praised him.

"Let's try another..." He returned. "What is weightless, can be seen with the naked eye, and when you put it in a barrel, it makes the barrel lighter?"

She thought. "That's easy... a hole." The two continued, trading riddles and games of logic for several minutes. Her eyes warm as she admired the trace of happiness that had appeared on his face. Finally, he looked over to a clock noticing a whole hour had passed.

"As much as I've enjoyed our tea, it's time you returned to your common room." He announced. A glimpse of disappointment crossed her face as she looked down to the now empty cup.

"Thank you for inviting me, sir. It was really lovely." she said sincerely, the informality between them quickly fading.

"Would you care to join me again?" He asked, his eyes for the first time reflecting a flicker of warmth.

"I would love to." She admitted.

"Two weeks from now. Same time." He said, standing from behind his desk. She too, stood, quickly placing the empty cup gently on his desk and following him to the door.

"I'll see you on Monday then, sir." She stated, the butterflies still invading her stomach.

"On Monday." he concurred, opening the door.

"Good night, professor."

"Good night, Yulisa."

.~~~~~*~~~~~.

"Name all of Jupiter's moons." Hermione read, from the Astronomy O.W.L. Preparatory Book.

"Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto." Yulisa recalled. "Describe the geography of Io." she asked Hermione, glancing at her own copy of the book. Ron sat next to the girls in the library, his head laying on the table as he impatiently awaited Harry's return from Occlumency. "Do you want to try, Ron?" Yulisa asked as soon as Hermione completed her long analysis of Io's surface formations. The red head just grunted.

"It wouldn't hurt to study, you know." Hermione pointed out.

This time he turned his head so it rested on his chin, staring over to the brunette. "Yes it would. Don't you know I'm allergic to boring?" Yulisa giggled slightly. Hermione didn't find it amusing.

Over the next two weeks, Ron dreaded Harry's Occlumency lessons almost as much as he did, not liking being left alone with the two bookworms. Hermione, too, found his lack of devotion to his studies distracting.

In Yulisa's private lessons, they continued the feeling exercises, and she, consequently, continued practicing her own Occlumency. Both Fridays before entering the Potions classroom, she would empty her mind and release all emotion. Gradually, it became easier, but still, his body being dangerously close to hers often left butterflies dancing in her gut. She did her best to suppress it.

When the awaited Saturday came, she felt a great wave of anxiousness, constantly checking the clock for when dinner would be. Sitting at a table in the library again, she stared out a window, her leg bouncing like crazy on the ball of her foot. Hermione glanced over to her, being highly distracted from her letter by the vibrating it was causing.

"Hermione, can you read this and make sure it's right?" Harry asked, holding up his newly completed Transfiguration essay.

"I'm a little busy, Harry." she said, glancing over to Yulisa again with another annoyed look. "Why don't you ask her."

"Yulisa?" Harry's voice breaking her internal absorbance.

"Huh?" she looked back toward her group of her friends. Her leg freezing.

"Finally..." Hermione mumbled, quickly resuming her transcription.

"Could you check this?" Harry asked.

"Sure." she agreed, taking it.

Later that evening as they sat eating dinner. Yulisa stared at her plate, finishing her meal quicker than usual. Her leg resuming its rhythm. She glanced over to the staff table as soon as she noticed movement. Professor Snape stood, still discussing something with Professor Flitwick, and the two men left, exiting out a door near their table. She stared back down at her plate, taking a deep breath, assuming she should give him time to get back to his office. Her leg stopped, but her fingers instantly resumed the banter.

"Yulisa, are you OK?" Hermione asked, starting to look concerned.

"Hmm? Yeah. Why?" She said, not noticing her fingers.

"Well you've seemed to be nervous all day." Hermione pointed out. The boys looked over to Yulisa, apparently not having noticed it.

"Oh... I just forgot something... and I couldn't figure out what it was; but I think remember now." She said standing.

"Do you need our help?" Hermione asked.

"No. I'll be fine, nothing important. I'll see you later?" she asked.

"Sure." "Yeah." The three nodded. With that she turned, heading out of the Great Hall. If this happened again, she would definitely need to come up with better excuses, and not act so suspiciously.

She hurried down the steps and into the dungeons. As she neared his door, she calmed herself, then knocked. "Enter." she heard his voice as the door magically ajarred. She stepped in, waiting to see they were alone. "Close the door, please." The room was empty, Professor Flitwick had gone. After she did what he asked, she took her seat; the tray and tea cups appearing. "Black again?"

"Yes, please."

"Or coffee? I didn't think to ask..." He mentioned, his wand pausing over her cup.

She shook her head. "Tea is fine." she said. "It's a little late for coffee." she pointed out, as it was already well into the evening.

"You don't take coffee with your dessert?" He asked, handing her the cup.

"I do, sometimes. Thank you." she answered, taking the cup and then placing a single sugar cube into it. They both sat back in their chairs, looking over to each other. "And you, sir? Do you drink coffee?"

"Occasionally." he admitted, sitting with a slight smile on his face.

"How have you been, sir?" she asked. Despite seeing each other regularly, they didn't have time for conversation.

"I've been well." he stated. She was about to respond when he interrupted her. "Formality... is not necessary here..." He added.

She stared. "Excuse me?"

"You keep referring to me as 'sir'" he pointed out. "While very respectful, this is not a classroom. This is a... private meeting."She didn't try to hide the shock that came across her face. He always insisted, quite firmly actually, that all students address him appropriately. When she remained silent, he added. "We are on more... informal terms, are we not?"

She looked down to her cup, feeling her cheeks start to burn as her mind tried to make sense of what was happening. "Yes, I guess we are." She said, looking back up and sitting strait. A small smile appeared on her lips, but he could tell she wasn't accustomed to the idea just yet.

"I wish to speak to you regarding your lessons." He started, again his tone unusually casual.

"OK."

"You've done very well, advancing quickly... you should master the feeling portion of your curriculum soon. Subsequently, we will be moving onto sensing, a rather difficult skill, but one you are undoubtedly prepared for..." She sat, listening. He had never really given her a report on her progress, though she assumed she had been moving along well enough. Both Victoria and Snape appeared equally satisfied. I was wondering, however, if you were bored?"

Her eyes grew wide. "No, sir. I mean..." she paused, not sure how to properly correct herself. She quickly gave up and continued with her thought. "I really enjoy my lessons, I find they are very useful."

"You've been using them?" He asked, slightly surprised.

"To avoid Professor Umbridge." she admitted, feeling her cheeks start to burn again. Yet, he held his relaxed smile, his eyes seeming pleased that she was already exercising her new skills. While they were intended to advance her in dueling, they undoubtedly had other applications. He felt a surge of reassurance at how quickly she had discovered that.

"I only ask, as you seem to have a strong interest in Occlumency as well." He stated, this time her cheeks did go pink. "If you would like... I could give you further instruction on the subject; even teach you Legillimency."

The smile that instantly appeared on her face was answer enough, still she spoke. "I don't want to burden you..."

"How noble." He interjected. "I'll add it to your schedule." he concluded.

"Thank you." she replied, her voice full of gratitude.

"Speaking of Occlumency, I assume you've heard of my other extracurriculars..." he suddenly mentioned, looking over at her. She thought for a moment, wondering whether she should admit she knew about Harry's lessons. Very likely he was instructed, as her, not to tell anyone; yet he confided in his friends. The thought sent another shot of guilt through her gut. "He didn't tell you?" Snape asked, not hiding his skepticism.

"Yes... he did." she finally broke down, under his gaze. "But he only told us... Ron, Hermione, and I. He's telling everyone else that asks that he has Remedial Potions." She explained, praying he wouldn't get in trouble. She hoped she and Snape had a sort of mutual confidence, and that he wouldn't soon prove her wrong. He didn't seem angry though.

"You must be close friends... if you were one of the few he chose to confide in." He pointed out.

"I guess." She said, shrugging slightly. She was friends with him, but as far as ranking goes, she would put Ron first, then Hermione. Third, however, wasn't a bad place. "And as his friend... is Remedial Potions really the best excuse? Couldn't you say he was serving detention?"

"That would tip him off to our little arrangement, wouldn't it?" He said.

"Maybe, but Remedial Potions... all our classmates will think he's stupid." She objected, showing genuine concern.

"As I'm sure you've noticed, Potions isn't exactly something he excels at..."

"Yes, but Remedial level?"

As much as he greatly wished to seize the opportunity to insult Harry Potter, he didn't, knowing it would probably anger her. "It's no surprise to find you, Yulisa, down in the dungeons. You have, after all, been serving detention every week of your entire career here at Hogwarts... even when I didn't assign you detention, you volunteered... No one thinks twice when you walk down the stairs... With Potter, however, it would be rather usual if he suddenly served detention twice a week until further notice... Despite his disregard for the rules, I doubt even I could come up with a plausible explanation." He explained. She listened, his words making sense to her. "Besides..." he added. "You're a better liar than him."

Her eyes flashed up defensively, meeting his own. "Why would you say that?" she almost demanded.

"It was meant as compliment." he stated, seeming amused.

She took a short breath. "Openly deceiving... as talented as you may think I am at it, has never been something I enjoy."

"But you are... so talented at it." Snape said, smiling. "After all, you're probably the most deceptive person I know."

She stared, shocked. "What?"

"Tell me, do any of your classmates have a single clue how your home life was like for all those years?" He asked.

"Yes." she answered tensely.

"But only your closest friends, right? And let me guess, was that before or after you showed up with bruises across your face?" He continued, still speaking completely calm. "Did you ever tell any of them a single thing your father did to you?"

"Yes, I did." She mentioned rather matter-of-factually.

"But only when they asked you, correct? Cornering you into telling them?"

"I wasn't cornered! I could have easily come up with an excuse!"

"Yes. You're honest, but only when directly confronted. Other times, you reserve to keeping it to yourself. I bet they don't even know about your lessons, or our tea..." The hurt that flashed through her eyes confirmed it for him. He had just read her like a book. "But..." he began again, speaking determinedly gentler. "Deception is a necessary evil for you... you do, above all, have an important artifact to protect." Her defenses shot instinctively up. He knew... "It's why you're naturally inclined to Occlumency. How you were able to hide the pain and anger, quite successfully I might add, for an impressively long time despite not having any formal training. Everyone sees you as so kind and forgiving, but we both know you have a mean streak." She didn't care how he tried to spin it, to her it was still an insult. When she held her silence, he concluded. "A natural deception is a highly valuable skill, Yulisa. One that cannot be taught... Don't lose it."

A sudden confusion washed over her. What did he mean?

"The point I was originally trying to make, is that you already have firm grasp on the beginning steps for becoming a successful Occlumens. Mr. Potter, as I'm sure you've heard, isn't doing too well in his lessons. So as a friend... I suggest you offer him some guidance." He said, coming full circle.

"Sure." She said shortly, still rather offended.

"Are you seeing anyone at the moment?" He asked, rather abruptly.

Again, her eyes grew wide. "Excuse me?"

"Romantically, like you were with that reclusive Ravenclaw." He said it as if it was just another casual subject. While she stared in shock, but then again... they were on informal terms.

"No. Why? Are you?" She asked, feeling her heart beat catch up with the rate her mind was spinning.

"It appears our time has run out again..." she quickly glanced over to the clock, strangely feeling disappointed despite the unpleasantry of their conversation. "If you care to, I would like for us to meet again. Same time, two Saturdays from now. That is, however, Valentine's Day, and I wouldn't want to... interfere, with any special plans you might have." He explained quite smoothly.

"No... I don't have have anything planned. Two Saturdays from now is fine. I'd like that." She agreed, feeling her cheeks burn again. He stood, preparing to open the door for her. She placed the half drunk tea on his desk, standing in turn.

"Until then." he stated.

"Until then." she mimicked. "Good night..." she thought how to end her statement, as she stepped out.

"Severus." he completed it for her.

"Severus." she repeated it back to him. He could tell it felt unnatural for her, but he liked how it sounded.

"Good night, Yulisa." he concluded, shutting the door.

{If, at any time, whether in this chapter or another, things get... out of character, please let me know. I find he's a rather difficult character to portray realistically in a casual or affectionate setting.}