Chapter 37
Explanations
Katie paced around the living room, impatient for Snape to come. The conversation they had had by the lake was far from satisfactory. She was more confused now than she could ever remember being during her time at Hogwarts. Amber and Brittany had tried to ask her questions, but she told them that she would not say anything until the next morning. Fortunately, they accepted this as they realized how serious she was; they saw that she was safe, so they dropped the issue.
A knock came upon the door. Katie rushed towards it, hoping to finally get some answers. She opened the door to see both Snape and Dumbledore standing there.
"Good evening, Ms. Insche," Dumbledore said pleasantly. Katie glanced quickly at Snape only to see a furious expression on his face. She remembered that Sirius had just escaped, and the expression suddenly made sense. "May we please come in to speak with you?"
"Yes," Katie answered in relief. The two entered the apartment. Dumbledore sat in an armchair while Snape chose the couch.
"Professor Snape has already told me the entire story of what has happened tonight. However, both of us must discuss it with you. What you have done tonight is incredible; therefore, you must be able to understand it as fully as possible. Professor Snape said that your idea of what a Sorceress is was no different from your understanding of what a witch is. You now know that this is incorrect, yet I believe I am right in assuming you know no more than this?"
'That's right," Katie confirmed.
"A Sorceress is like a witch in her ability to perform magic, but there are many important differences," Dumbledore began, "First, the number of spells a Sorceress can perform far outweighs those that a witch or wizard can. This is due to two factors: the fact that all spells a Sorceress performs are based on ancient magic, and the fact that the majority of a Sorceress's skill lies in having an inborn knowledge of this ancient magic, which enables her to invent many spells. Second, the ancient magic I spoke of is not so much a skill as it is an entire language; this is why I said that a Sorceress can invent spells. The odd thing about this language is that it has hardly ever been written; therefore, hardly anyone knows its precise words. This means that the only way a person can know this language is if she is born a Sorceress; there is a specific type of gene that determins this—a mutation of the gene that makes witches and wizards that is passed down through the father. Third, many of the spells a Sorceress invents can only be performed by a Sorceress due to their complexity and the great amount of power it takes for the spell to be performed effectively. Fourth, the more power used by a spell, the weaker the Sorceress will be after she has performed it. No spell will kill a Sorceress; if she does not have the strength to perform it, nothing whatsoever will happen when she speaks the words. Fifth, a Sorceress has no need of a wand. Can you bring your wand to me?"
"Yes," said Katie, her mouth very dry at this point. She jogged to her room to retrieve the wand. She came back into the living room and handed it to Dumbledore.
"Accio sowrd," Dumbledore said calmly. A few seconds later, a thin rapier squeezed itself through the crack surrounding the front door. Dumbledore caught the blade, held it over the wand, and brought it down sharply, slicing the wand in two.
"What?" Katie exclaimed, reaching for the pieces.
"It is fine," Dumbledore assured, "Take a look at your wand. Did you ever discover what its core was?"
"No," Katie answered as she accepted her pieces. She put her right eye close to the hole created by Dumbledore. She could see nothing sticking out from it. "It looks like it's… hollow."
"It is hollow," Dumbledore said, "This is what is so significant. A wand with no core is completely useless to a wizard or witch. They can cast simple spells without a wand in dier need, but without a wand core, witches and wizards have next to no power. This is what sets them apart from Sorceresses. So far, the things I have mentioned to you are positive; however, there is one very important thing you must know. Although a Sorceress has extreme power, she will also be limited in three areas. I believe I know what yours are. You are visually impared. This is a self-explanitory limitation. You also have not been able, no matter what you do, to perform Occlumency. This seems to be another limitation as you have been practicing but have been unable to master even the smallest amount of this skill in nearly four years. Your third limitation is a bit more complicated. Each Sorceress has one fault that is a normal human fault, but for them it is taken to the ultimate extreme. The particular fault for you cannot be known until you take it too far."
"Do you have any idea what my fault is?" Katie asked.
"No," Dumbledore answered, yet Katie noted how quickly he responded compared to his usual manner. "We will have to wait and see what it is. Now, your being a Sorceress explains several things: why there is a portrait of you in the entrance hall, how you were able to save Professor Lupin tonight, how you were able to put him into a temporary sleep so he would not harm anyone on the grounds tonight, and why you were able to stop Professor Snape from entering too far into your mind during your Occlumency lessons. Oh, and it also explains why his wand flew in circles over his head; somehow, your subconscious mind chose that particular shape. I think I have covered everything. Do you have any questions?"
"I can't tell anyone about this, can I?"
"Absolutely not," Dumbledore said firmly, "This is of curcial importance. The consiquences of telling anyone other than the two of us, including your two friends, could be dangerous for the entire Wizarding World. If certain people knew that a Sorceress resides at Hogwarts, the whole castle could be under attack. People would want to manipulate you, convince you that they are your best friends, just so they could use your powers for their own good. This is why you cannot tell anyone. Make up whatever story you can for your friends."
"This is why I have these strong feelings, isn't it? The ones that I feel whenever someone is in danger, like I felt tonight?" Katie asked excitedly.
"Yes," Dumbledore affirmed, "In a manner of speaking, a Sorceress is a kind of seer. A Sorceress's power of seeing is based more on strong intuition rather than a specific skill though. Whenever you feel these feelings, you must act on them no matter what anyone tells you. If you don't, many people could be in grave danger. Were there any more questions?"
"Yes. A few months ago, Professor Snape and I went into the forest for our Occlumency lesson. A dementor came, so I cast a Patronus. It was a tiger, and I felt this incredibly strong connection to it, like if I only touched it I would figure out some key to myself that I am missing. I didn't get ot touch it, because Professor Snape broke my concentration, but do you know what the connection to the Patronus means?"
"I, um, have an idea," Dumbledore admitted reluctantly, "I cannot discuss it with you until later however. All of the loose ends will make sense in time, but you must be patient for the moment. Was there anything else?"
Katie did not even bother questioning Dumbledore further as she knew how stubborn he was in these matters. "No."
Dumbledore rose to his feet. 'Thank you for letting us come and explain this to you," Dumbledore said kindly, "Now, I suggest you go to bed immediately as I believe it will take you a few hours to fall asleep tonight. Thank you again. Oh, and would you please give the third book to Professor Snape when you see him tomorrow evening? That reminds me as well, there will be no need for you to continue with your Occlumency lessons. Can I pick up the third book now so you will not have to bother with going to the dungeons tomorrow?"
"Sure," said Katie, trying to keep the note of disappointment out of her voice. She wlaked ot her room, grabbed up the book, and brought it out to Dumbledore.
"Thank you," he said as he turned to the door. Katie watched as Snape walked through the door Dumbledore held open for him.
As they left, Katie wondered what the point was behind Professor Snape's presence. She knew that Duumbledore had his reasons, but the curiosity burned in her all the same. This question, along with tons of other thoughts, connections, explanations, possibilities, and queries flooded her mind in an overwhelming rush. She place her head upon her pillow, trying to sort out each intricate detail.