"Wake up, sleepyhead, you've got a school to run!"
The tired eyelids lifted up, the onyx eyes blinked in confusion and found his best friend standing at the doorway of his bedroom. His best friend. His companion. The woman he cherished and protected. Once, a long time ago, he was asked to do it by the then Headmaster, but that had long since ceased to be his driving force. He felt connected to her, attached to her, he felt like she was the only one on the world who understood, who listened.
"Geez, what were you doing last night? Have you been reading all night again?" She chuckled and by waving her wand, she let the morning sun in.
"You look terrible." She said, smiling, and sat at the edge of his bed.
"You too." He mumbled and that made her laugh.
"Do I have to pull you out of the bed?" She asked jovially and getting up again, she walked to the doorway, where she turned around and said: "I'll be waiting for you in your office, an elf will get you your breakfast at once."
"Thank you," he mumbled and pulled the duvet over his head in exasperation. He noticed she was already wearing her new outfit. What he wouldn't admit, though, was the fact that he found her swinging hips in that red short skirt very, very attractive.
Half an hour later, Tara could hear his swift footsteps behind the door.
"I'm ready." Severus said and walked over to his desk where there was a big pile of parchments waiting for him.
"What's this?" He asked. "I hope it's waiting for me here?"
"You hope right!" She grinned and began to pull the huge pile apart – only now he noticed there were multicolored sticky notes attached to the bottom right corners.
"What the hell is this?!" He took one of the sticky notes and immediately regretted it because the blasted thing got stuck to his thumb.
She burst out laughing, saying: "These are Muggle office supplies – I love them! You should have seen the Muggle office supply shops! That's heaven for someone like me!"
"I can clearly see why." He smirked.
"The orange ones are the contracts we have to review, the blue ones are related to budgeting, the green ones to the curriculums…"
-oOo-
"Has Dumbledore really been doing all this by himself before he hired you?" Asked Severus in disbelief as he was unsticking a bright pink sticker from his forehead. The two of them have been buried in work for the day and scarcely found time even for lunch.
"Pretty much." She shrugged her shoulders and continued scribbling furiously on her piece of parchment.
"It's time I finally had some respect for the old lunatic." Grumbled Severus, careful that the picture of the previous Headmaster wouldn't hear him.
"By the way, any sight of Potter yet?" Asked Tara casually.
"We know– I know that the three imps hiding at the Order headquarters." Severus snapped bitterly as if he'd just had a gulp of very bitter coffee.
"Hey, just the fact that the three imps, as you like to call them, haven't been captured yet gives them some credit." Tara mused as she swung her legs over an arm of her chair. They decided to remove the wall that Dumbledore transfigured to separate his office in two – they felt that they've been working more than well together, and additionally, Severus would never admit it, but he liked to keep his eye on the lovely woman who was now his subordinate. Although he was a very private person, Severus didn't feel such need for his personal working space as Dumbledore did – unusual as it was, Tara was a very good working companion: she didn't interrupt his work, because she was as buried in hers as he was in his, and their shared breaks for tea provided some relaxation and time to discuss whatever had been going through their brilliant two heads.
"The cafeteria in London was a close call." Severus sneered.
"Yeah, but they managed, didn't they?" Tara shrugged her shoulders and amused herself by balancing her quill on her nose before their afternoon snacks arrived.
"I wonder when those idiots find out they cannot speak his name." Severus muttered, much more crossly than he actually felt about it.
"Well, it's not as if we could tell them, is it?" She said.
Then, suddenly, Severus hissed and clutched his left forearm.
"Take care." She said softly and hugged him tight. He allowed these silly ministrations of her affections simply because they didn't know whether they would see each other again – when it came to Voldemort's calls, Severus was less assured than ever, because his master proved to be angrier than ever, and the fact that Severus was installed as the Headmaster of Hogwarts couldn't be taken for granted.
"Stay here – don't go anywhere." He said, and warded the door to his office.
As he returned several hours later, he found his secretary sprawled on a settee in the corner of his office, chewing on a pencil and reading one of his advanced Potion making books.
"What news?" She asked him, looking up from the book.
"I don't want to talk about it." He snapped, threw his travelling cloak over his chair, flopped down onto it, closed his eyes, feeling much tired and rubbed the root of his nose exasperatedly.
"Okay." She said, and turned another page over, continuing with her reading. She knew that he needed time. She knew she should just continue reading, and either he would bring himself to talking, or they'll part ways later in the night.
"I thought that he would just install me as a Headmaster, and that would be it. I thought that was enough." Came a huffed voice from the table as Severus hid his face in his hands in resignation.
"But?" She suggested, seemingly still keeping to her book, letting him continue.
"But he's going to put some more followers into the castle." He huffed. "Alecto and Amycus Carrow as teachers–"
"That was expected." She said, still keeping to her book, glancing at him carefully over the rim.
"And there're going to be some others patrolling the castle and the village."
"That was not expected." She said, and putting down her book, she came around the table and rubbed his shoulder soothingly. "What're you going to do?"
"There's nothing I can do." He moaned, and for the first time she knew him, he actually looked really, really miserable. "Muggleborns won't be an issue, because they're not allowed into the school anymore, but that damned duelling club Potter started two years ago will medddle, I'm sure of it–"
"Then I'll tell them not to." She said, trying to be reassuring.
"They won't listen to you, because you'll be my right hand now, and everyone will believe you to be Imperiused." He said. "There's nothing for me to do but watch children being beaten and tortured."
"Severus, that's not why my uncle made you a Headmaster before he left." Tara squeazed his shoulder gently. "We'll figure something out."
"We?" He looked at her in disbelief.
"Sure, I'll always be with you." Tara gave him a warm smile. "I'll never leave you."
He exhaled through his nostrils, and it was almost as if he let out a desperate sigh. Suddenly, she felt his hands groping around her waist and she let herself be pulled towards him in a tight embrace. She hunched over him, placing his head on her bosom and entangling her arms around his seated form, she pulled him close as well.
"I can feel your heartbeat." Came a voice from somewhere where her right breast was. "It's a strangely comforting sound."
"I'll never leave you." She said, stroking his hair gently, "I'll always be here with you."
"And I'll never leave you." He said, and slowly rose to his feet, taking her hand with his, and placed the two hands on the door to the office. "You'll be able to walk through these wards as easily as I can, while to everyone else, the door will appear to be locked and guarded. I've added an extra layer of protective spells on this office, so whomever would like to harm you here won't stand a chance. So I must ask you not to go outside this office unless I specifically ask you to."
"But Severus – how about my chamber?"
"It's not safe for you to live there anymore, not with Avery and Yaxley and Dolohov strutting around the castle at night. You'll live up here with me."
Her face suddenly got as red as a beetroot. Her heart began to beat frantically, her palms getting all sweaty. The butterflies in her stomach began their wild dance.
Severus Snape just asked me to live with him… What am I going to do?!
"I mean," he quickly corrected himself, "I'll transfigure the Headmaster's guest bedroom into your bedroom. I can set my Potions lab elsewhere."
"R-Really? A-Are you sure?" She squealed.
"Of course, I won't be interrupting your privacy, you can be sure of that." He said firmly.
"Sure– I mean, if they're guaranteed to stay away from me if I stay up here…" She peeped, not quite knowing what to do with her fidgety hands.
"That's settled then." He sat down to his desk, quite oblivious of her internal agitation. Either oblivious, or he decided to turn a blind eye on it.
"Now the only question for me to ask you is whether you are a good actress?"
"Why do you ask?"
"Because of the train."
"The train?"
-oOo-
"Dear students, this is the Headmaster's Secretary speaking."
Ginny and Neville's heads snapped up from their reading.
"We haven't left London yet." Moaned Seamus. "Why does she feel the need to lecture us even before we get to change into our schoolrobes?"
"Shhhhhhh!" Ginny shushed him impatiently. "Dad said that the school is going to change because of You-Know-Who. Maybe this is the first step. Maybe we'll get some useful info from her, something we can use later."
"As long as she doesn't talk about Crumplehorned Snorkarks, I'm not interested." Yawned Luna and flipped the pages of her Quibbler lazily.
"I'd like to encourage all of you to stay in your compartments during the entire journey, except for the Prefects and the Head Boy and Girl who will patrol the train in regular intervals. Any use of magic on this train is strictly prohibited, as well as the use of any magical objects and artefacts. Any patrol who spots the above mentioned transgressions has an obligation to report them immediately, as well as to assign detention. Any skirmishes will be severely punished by the Headmaster himself. Moving through the train is also prohibited. We wish you a pleasant journey to Hogwarts."
"What do you reckon it means?" Asked Neville anxiously.
"It means," said Ginny, and glanced at the corridor which was quickly getting devoid of students, "that they want to control us and that they want to leave us at the mercy of the Slytherin Death Eater kids."
Suddenly, there was the Headmaster's Secretary, a plain woman with short wavy black hair, red skirt and leather high boots, knocking on the glass of their sliding door. All of them jerked in panic.
"A quick word with you, if you please," she smiled sweetly and close the door after her. "It has come to my ears that you all have been a part of a student organization formerly known as Dumbledore's Army. Is that true?"
"Yes." Said Ginny defiantly, her red cheeks burning as much as her hair.
"Well, Miss Weasley," the Secretary threw her a sharp glance, "let me make it plain to you all: Whomever picks up a fight will be expelled. Whomever will engage in a fight will also be expelled. One wicked word, one hateful glance at the new teachers or our special guests at Hogwarts, and you are going to receive detention till the end of the year. Is that clear?" The Secretary stared at each and everybody in the compartment, her brown eyes being a strict, merciless judge, and each student reciprocated her look with such hate that she couldn't but stretch her lips into a sly smile. "I would mind your steps carefully if I were you."
"Who are the new teachers?" Snapped Ginny, not even trying to sound polite.
"The best candidates for the job who will finally put some sense into the thick-skulled heads of yours." The Secretary smirked again and turned to walk out of the compartment. "Be good – and no one will get hurt."
She said, gave a slight chuckle, and stepped out of the compartment.
"You can intimidate us all you want." Said the dreamy voice of Luna Lovegood. The Secretary froze in her footsteps, just about to shut the door. "We will never surrender to your dictatorship."
"Detention, Miss Lovegood." Smirked the Secretary, and closed the door shut behind her.
"God, how I hate her!" Cried Ginny, and punched her first into the cushion of her seat. "They want to subdue us– silence us– scare us– but we will never– ever–"
"Isn't it weird though?" Wondered Seamus. "Last year and the year before that, she seemed to hate Umbridge as much as the rest of us, and Dumbledore had her always by his side, even at night, some people said. Isn't it strange that Dumbledore would choose someone so evil to work so close to him?"
"He did choose Snape." Ginny reminded him wryly.
"True." Seamus straightened up. "But still – rumour has it that she is even his niece. Shouldn't someone related to the Dumbledores be a good guy?"
"I don't know," Neville shrugged his shoulders, "maybe she's actually warning us – you heard her, 'Be good and no one will get hurt'.
"Nonsense, Neville." Growled Ginny, resolute to stand her ground.
Suddenly, their door opened again. But this time, it wasn't the Secretary.
"Well well well, look who's here, a bunch of blood traitors and Muggle-loving scum." Sniggered Goyle, accompanied in tow by Zabini and Crabbe.
"Have been promoted to the Moron in Chief, have you?" Sneered Dean Thomas. Goyle roared and a fistfight ensued. However, before the others had time to join in, there was a loud BANG and the train stopped.
"Those damned Gryffindors" was the only thing Tara could huff as she came running to the corridor which she had left not but five minutes before. Her eyes widened. Where there used to be Miss Lovegood leaning on the wall of the train with her magazine was now a Giant hole – an actual hole in the train. Mr. Thomas and Mr. Goyle showed signs of a fight, with one sporting a bloody nose and the one a black eye, but surely, that couldn't have given such a blast and stopped the train…
"Snape's whore." Said a man's voice. Tara turned around.
They were there.
The Death Eaters.
Slowly, Tara looked from Dolohov, to Avery, to Greyback, to Mulciber. There were four of the actual Death Eaters in the compartment, plus there were the Slytherins – Tara feared that some of them might want to join their fathers in a fight that could ensue.
"Where's Miss Lovegood?" Tara asked, and her gaze travelled from one man to another.
"Are you suggesting we kidnapped a filthy traitor's girl, whore?" Mulciber snarled.
Carefully, she said: "The Headmaster ordered me to protect the students and now I have one student missing."
"Protect from what?" Dolohov smirked. "Your precious Headmaster is one of us, if you weren't paying attention for the last dozen years!"
"Don't bother, Antonin." Mulciber growled. "She's been brainwashed."
"My master says it's the Dark Lord's wish that the pure wizarding blood shall remain protected." Tara said, hoping to sound dull and convincing enough for them to sod off.
"What would you know about the Dark Lord's wishes, scumbag?" Yelled Avery and Tara fell on her knees and gritting her teeth, she faced the Cruciatus curse without making a sound.
"Careful, Avery, you might break the Imperius." Greyback noted, then glanced at her and licked his teeth. "Although I wouldn't particularly mind if she stepped out from under Severus' wing, I could use her…"
"Out with you! This is the students' compartment – if I remember correctly, you gentlemen have taken the first class suites for yourselves, may I remind you to use them?" Tara said, and her wand was drawn ready.
This appeared to have angered them even more. Tara was frantically searching her mind for any piece of information she knew could scare them off, anything she knew would make them go away…
"You know I report directly to the Headmaster, after all," she said eventually, faking her red lips into a sweet smile, "and you surely know to whom reports he? The Dark Lord wouldn't be pleased to know you have been firing curses in all directions in a train where the Slytherin students are – many of whom are offspring of some of his devoted followers?"
"Fuck you, bitch!" Spat Avery and shoved his wand back behind his belt.
"The Dark Lord may protect the students on this train," said Greyback and gave a crooked smile, "but he sure doesn't protect you, sweetheart… And your Headmaster isn't here either… I wonder what you're gonna do about it?" He took her hand roughly, and started pulling her away with them into the first class compartments.
"Let her be!" Bellowed Seamus Finnegan and a few red sparks erupted from his wand which he had drawn ready, but before Greyback could spit an answer after the Gryffindor student, Tara drew her arm back and punched the Death Eater into his stomach. The blow sent the man flying through two sliding doors and through the train window, then he got caught by the turbulent wind current outside the train's window and disappeared altogether.
The small compartment of Gryffindor students broke into a loud cheer, however, Tara gave them a stern look and said: "I'm still watching you. You'll move into a different compartment. Quickly, don't dawdle. Back to your seats with you. You are to behave, or I have the right to punish you."
Then with the help of the conductor, she fixed the holes in the walls of the train, and when the train started moving again, the amplified voice of the Secretary could be heard again, ordering everyone to return to their seats.
"Did you hear it? Brainwashed!" Breathed out Neville, sparkles in his eyes, careful that the younger Gryffindor students they now shared a compartment could not overhear them.
"I don't know what makes you so excited about it, especially when Luna's gone." Mumbled Ginny and curled up on the train seat, she began to revise for her DADA classes – just in case.
-oOo-
After leading the first year students up to the front of the Great Hall, Tara put on a sly smile and kneeled before the Headmaster.
"Everything is ready. The train ride went fairly smoothly, although one student disappeared."
The Headmaster gave a deep frown, and stepped right in front of her, towering over her like a vicious vulture.
Tara suddenly felt the push of Severus' Legillimency on the outer barrier of her mind and she let him in. All Dumbledores were natural Occlumenses.
Who's missing?!
Lovegood.
What happened?
I think she was taken.
The others are okay?
Yes.
"And you call that smoothly?" He smirked, and took out his wand.
"He's not gonna– Is he?" Neville squeaked, and Ginny watched the tip of his wand nervously.
"Headmaster – I couldn't do anything, she was taken before I could get there–"
"You should have been there!" Snape rarely raised his voice. This was no exception. And yet, his half-hissed remark cut the air in the Great Hall like a sword. It was spoken with such spite and malice that all students cowered slightly, even the Slytherins. Tara yelped, still kneeling before him.
"No– please– I'm sorry–"
But Snape's wand had already been lashed through the air like a sharp knife. A long whip appeared, and– the students couldn't believe it– the whip was on fire! – and with a hissing swish, it landed on the secretary's kneeling form on the ground. She cried out in pain and covered her head with her hands.
"Get out of my sight." He hissed, and she scrambled up to her feet and hurried out of the Great Hall.
"Where was I?" Said Snape nonchalantly and half the staff table averted their eyes away, the other half pierced him through with glances full of hatred.
"Ah, the new punishment system."
-oOo-
There was a knock on the door of her room.
"Are you alright?" Severus' head appeared in the doorway.
"Of course I'm alright." She murmured and closed the book she was holding wearily.
"Do you want to talk?" He asked carefully. She just shrugged her shoulders and nodded for him to come in. As he seated himself on her chair by her bed on which she lay sprawled with the book, she noticed that his usual black overcoat and neckcloth were gone. Instead, he was dressed only in his white shirt, rolled up at the sleeves.
"I was brewing." He pointed at the shirt and his mouth crooked into an insecure smile.
"I hated seeing you like that." He said softly after a while.
"For a moment, I believed it. I believed that I was really scared of you, and then I was scared of that, too." She blushed, taking a side glance at him.
"It was a bit over the top." He smirked wryly. "I had to decline a good number of duel challenges, including one from Minerva, one from Hagrid and one from Mr. Finnegan." Tara chuckled.
"Did they swallow it, though?"
He sighed: "Yes. I told the entire school that you were Imperiused, and that any attempts to free you were futile."
"And?"
"That's where the challenge from Mr. Finnegan came." Severus chuckled darkly. "Then I told them that anybody who'll disobey me will end up like you – the fake flames didn't hurt you, I presume?"
"No, but the whip was pretty much real." Tara hissed as she remembered the gash on her back.
"I'm sorry." Severus whispered sadly. "I'll give you a Murtlap salve for it later."
"Why did you tell me to do this, anyway? Just to scare the disobedient?"
"And the followers, also." He explained. "By showing them how merciless I am as a Headmaster, it would be a suicide mission if any of our – special guests – attempted anything against the students in the near future, even against the damned Gryffindors, with me behind their necks. And it's also a sufficient proof for the Dark Lord that I have you fully under my control, which means that you don't have to see him tonight."
"I was supposed to?"
"Yes."
"If my papa finds out about this, he'll be livid." Tara sighed.
"He's already quite livid." Snape reminded her, then clutched at his left forearm and hissed.
"Take care." She said softly as he was walking out of her room. He casted her one final glance, and said:
"Tara, I'm… I'm truly sorry."