Thank you so much to the following for leaving such lovely reviews, even though I left you all with such a terrible cliffhanger: Ravenswing79, Welisarne, animechick247, szaboalexandra1991, Ussmaple, stubs1101, pineapple-pancake, hourhercrevan, d'elfe, Guest, ColdOnePaul, ILove2HearULaugh, Guest reader, Cat2k10, and Ladyxx.
Here is the next chapter - I hope you enjoy it :)
Lauren awoke with a start, a ragged gasp escaping her lips and her heart beating an incessant pounding tempo within her chest.
What in bleeding Tarnation happened? Where the hell am I?
Then the memory of Quirrell ambushing her outside Snape's classroom flooded her head like a torrential river, leaving curling tendrils of dread and terror in its wake.
Lauren's flight instinct kicked in and she tried to struggle in an upright position, but found she was unable to move a muscle. She was effectively frozen in place.
The bastard used a Full Body-Bind Curse on me! she thought with mounting irritation, her initial fear being fast chased away by righteous anger. When I get out of this, I am going to throttle his scrawny neck so hard that it will rattle that blasted turban right off his head!
"Good, you're awake," a voice sounded somewhere to her left. It took Lauren a moment to recognize it as belonging to Quirrell, as his usual nervous stuttering was now absent, replaced by a cold sharp tone. "As you may have noticed, I have taken necessary precautions."
No shit, Captain Obvious!
Suddenly her body was being levitated from the hard, stone floor and Lauren was directed into a nearby chair, surprisingly with more gentleness than she had expected. Once settled, the Body-Bind curse was lifted from her body. But before Lauren could even so much as twitch a muscle, coils of rope instantly wrapped themselves tightly around her, pinning her firmly in place.
Lauren grunted as she tested the ropes that bound her wrists to the armrests of the chair, but they were tight enough to almost cut off circulation. Quirrell, it would seem, wasn't going to take any chances when it came to her.
Though she had to wonder why he had replaced the Body-Bind curse with ropes to begin with.
Maybe Quirrell's not as skilled as Snape and doesn't know how to partially release it like him. But I'm still stuck with no way of escaping this.
Lauren slowly raised her head and levelled Quirrell with a murderous glare. He merely smirked back smugly at her.
"I couldn't risk you escaping…or using your powers against me."
"It's not my powers you're going to have to worry when I break free," Lauren growled, wanting nothing more than to break his nose with a well-aimed punch.
A villainous chuckle bubbled from him, Quirrell clearly not the least bit concerned now that she was safely secured and restrained.
"You're very powerful…what you did to those three Gryffindors…" Quirrell mused, eying her speculatively as though he were a scientist that had been presented with a particularly interesting specimen; a specimen that needed to be dissected to discover all of its secrets.
Lauren should have been afraid by that look alone, but another thought was sneaking its way into her head.
Interesting…He assumes that I cast that spell alone. That must mean he has no idea that I was channeling Severus' magic when I attacked those boys…He has no idea about the magical bond Snape and I share. Lauren's frown became less pronounced as she pondered this revelation. That's good. That's very good. Voldemort must never find out…
Their secret was safe. But for now she was still very much a captive and she was going to have to find a way out of this.
"So why exactly do you want me?"
"I don't want you."
Lauren rolled her eyes dramatically, her feigned bravado very much in contradiction with the pounding of her heart. "Silly me, I should have been more specific. Why does Voldemort want me?"
Quirrell's smirk slowly faded, his face becoming a mask of all seriousness. "You will prove to be useful. My Master very much wants your power."
Lauren frowned. The fact that Quirrell hadn't killed her yet was a good sign, but that didn't mean that what he had in store for her was going to be good either. "And in order to obtain my power, he needs to…what? Possess me?"
"No, you silly girl."
Lauren let out a whoosh of relief. "Oh good! For a moment there I thought he was harboring a secret desire to become female. That would have posed a problem, though, as he would then have to change his title to maybe Lady Voldemort, or Mistress Voldemort, or Your Royal Highness…"
"Silence!" Quirrell shouted, his face contorting into a mask of rage at the blasphemous way Lauren was insulting his Master.
Lauren gave him her best doe-eyed look and asked innocently, "Dame Voldemort?"
Quirrell looked as though he were going to burst a couple of blood vessels, and Lauren knew it was best not to push him any further.
"Okay, okay," Lauren said in all seriousness now. "So why does he really want me?"
"Not you," Quirrell seethed, visibly trying to calm himself, though she did notice his left eye twitching. "It's not you he wants, Miss Ward, but rather your blood."
"My…blood?" Lauren asked, sure she hadn't heard right. "Whatever for?"
A shrewd look slowly crept onto his face as he started pacing unhurriedly in front of her.
"Certain information has come to light."
"What information?" she asked suspiciously, her narrowed eyes following his every move.
"That you cheated death." He paused for dramatic effect. "That you came back from the dead after being murdered."
All the blood drained from Lauren's face.
Fuck! He knows!
Witnessing the horror that was now writ all over her face, Quirrell halted his pacing and turned to face her head-on, his eyes gleaming with an ominous light. When he spoke again his voice held an edge of superior smugness. "Oh yes, I know all about your little secret. I overheard you telling Professor Snape. Your blood holds the key to immortality!"
Her breaths started coming out in shallow gasps, and Lauren was sure she was going to hyperventilate.
Nope, this is most definitely not good!
Lauren closed her eyes tightly and breathed in deeply, willing herself to calm down, drawing on her Occlumency lessons to do so. Right now she needed to keep a level head if she had any hope of getting out of this alive.
And right now Quirrell was willing to talk. If Lauren had learned one thing from all the movies she had watched, it was crucial to keep the bad guys talking and distracted.
Blinking open her eyes, Lauren stared back at Quirrell with deceptive calmness. "So Voldemort thinks that my blood will give him the power to cheat death? He thinks that it will give him immortality?"
Quirrell hummed an affirmative.
Her brows knitted together in a frown. "So why are we here trying to get the Stone then?"
Quirrell eyed her as though he were contemplating how much to tell her. "The Philosopher's Stone will give my Master a new body; a stronger form…he is but a husk of his former glory. Your blood, my dear, will then give him immeasurable power and the ability to cheat death."
Well shit. Voldemort is, quite literally, baying for my blood.
Lauren swallowed thickly and cast her gaze around the cold barren room. "Well, you're missing the Pentagram. You're going to need that if you're planning to offer me up as a human sacrifice," she retorted dryly. Then her eyes landed on the Mirror of Erised, which was situated behind Quirrell, and she shot him a sly look. "You haven't figured out how to get the Stone yet, have you?"
Quirrell made an irritable sound in the back of his throat and abruptly turned his back on her to study the mirror.
Lauren chuckled in sardonic delight. "Oh, this is perfect! Ironic really. You're so close, yet so unbelievably far. Her Royal Highness is going to be royally pissed at you if you don't hurry up and get it."
"Shut up!"
Lauren decided to obey, but only because she needed to think of a way to get out of this mess. Right now she was safe just as long as the Stone remained hidden, but she didn't fancy sitting around waiting for a savior either.
The minutes ticked by, Quirrell's quiet puzzling now morphing into agitated pacing as he tried to figure out the riddle the Mirror represented.
Lauren tested her restraints again, but they refused to budge. She glanced over at Quirrell, who was now muttering to himself, and she decided to try the oldest trick in the book.
"I need to go pee."
Quirrell threw her a derisive look over his shoulder in reply.
"It was worth a shot," Lauren muttered mulishly.
More minutes ticked by. Quirrell's pacing had halted and he was now standing in front of the mirror, running his hand over the gilded frame, a deep frown marring his features.
"Need help?" she asked innocently.
"I'd be a fool to free you from your bonds," he murmured, his eyes never straying from the reflective surface of the mirror.
Lauren rolled her eyes. "You're a fool anyway for letting Voldemort latch himself to the back of your head. I applaud you for your loyalty, but you have to admit that your fanatical devotion is a bit…cultish, don't you think? Not to mention it's somewhat gross."
Quirrell slowly turned around to face her, his eyes flashing with the renowned Ravenclaw intelligence. "How did you know that I am hiding my Master beneath this turban?"
"The same way that I know how to obtain the Stone," she shot back.
His eyes narrowed in suspicion. Then he reached into his pocket and slowly withdrew his wand, pointing it at Lauren.
Oh shit! I went too far. He's going to Crucio me for sure, Lauren thought as renewed fear coursed through her veins.
Instead, her rope bonds fell away like wisps of smoke and she glanced up in surprise at Quirrell, who still had his wand pointed directly at her, his hand sure and steady.
"Try anything and I'll torture you into insanity, Miss Ward. My Master doesn't require you mind, after all," he threatened.
"No, only my blood," she remarked, rubbing her throbbing wrists.
"Yes. Now get the Stone." Quirrell nudged his head in the direction of the Mirror, and Lauren took this as her cue. She rose slowly to her feet and approached him with wary caution. He, for his part, kept his unblinking gaze trained on her, his wand never wavering.
Lauren halted in front of the mirror and breathed in deeply through her nose. The last time she had gazed upon it, it had revealed nothing to her.
But when she turned her attention to the Mirror, the vision it now presented to her was very, very different.
Her adult self was staring back at her, midnight blue meeting midnight blue. There was something subtly different about her older image, though. Gone was the hard edge that usually resided in her eyes, and in its place was a radiant, almost peaceful light that Lauren had never witnessed on herself before.
A smile, one which was genuine and unguarded, crept onto her image's face, casting her entire features into what Lauren could only describe as contented bliss. She looked genuinely happy.
Happiness…Lauren realized with a start. My greatest desire is to be happy…
Then movement behind her adult image caught her attention. A figure, obscured in swirling and misty shadows, came to stand beside her, his or her features completely unidentifiable. Her adult image turned her head to look up at the mysterious person, her features morphing into that of undisguised adoration.
The misty shadow reached out enfolded her protectively into its arms. The smile never wavered from her reflection's face; in fact, her radiance seemed to intensify in the presence of this mysterious figure.
…Or could it be that I desire to find true love? Lauren had to tamp down the derisive snort that wanted to burst forth from her. She was far beyond jaded, and as such did not believe in those nonsensical ideologies.
But the more she stared at the image before her, the more she had to concede that there was something beautiful in this false promise it enticingly presented. Someone who completes me and will stand by my side through thick and thin. Someone who loves me for who I am…
Lauren shook her head. There's no such thing!
Regardless of her true thoughts, Lauren could not seem to tear her gaze away from the mirror. Who is this mystery figure?
She squinted, edging closer to the mirror, but the figure remained stubbornly obscure.
"Well?"
Lauren blinked, jarred from of her musings by Quirrell's impatient question. She had to admit to herself that it was just as well he had distracted her, for it would have been extremely easy to become lost in the powerful longing the mirror was trying to stir within her.
Right now she had bigger problems to worry about, though. It was now time to focus and get back on track; not get lost in the false hope that this deceitful mirror had shown her.
"It's showing me what I truly desire," she murmured, making sure her body was angled in such a way that Quirrell couldn't see her reaching into her robe pocket.
"It's the Mirror of Erised – it's supposed to do that. Now, you said you knew how to get the Stone."
Lauren eyed her reflection, willing her heartrate to slow down. "I do. I know how to get the Stone."
"Then get on with it."
Her hand inched deeper into her pocket as she searched for her wand, her heart sinking when she grasped at nothing but thin air. It wasn't there.
Where is it? Is it in the other pocket? Lauren was going to have to distract him in order to search for it.
"Um, yeah. There's a slight problem with that." she muttered, surreptitiously withdrawing her hand.
"What problem?" he asked, his voice hitching with irritability.
Lauren drew in a deep steadying breath and turned to face Quirrell. "Only the one who desires the Stone can get it. I have no desire to get my hands on it."
Quirrell's jaw clenched, a vein visibly throbbing at his temple, and Lauren hastened on.
"But you do…" she hinted, nudging her head towards the mirror.
Quirrell glanced over at the Mirror of Erised, and Lauren used the opportunity to plunge her hand into her other pocket.
Empty, she thought, a lead ball forming in the pit of her stomach at this realization.
"Looking for this?"
Her head snapped up to see Quirrell tauntingly holding up her wand.
"Nice try," he sneered, advancing towards her with quick strides, causing Lauren to back up. Her back hit the rough stone wall and Quirrell was suddenly in front of her, stooping so that he was now eye level with her. His wand was pointed dangerously at her temple.
Lauren swallowed hard, plainly scared now.
"Did you really think that lie would work with me?" he growled.
"No," Lauren whispered, bracing herself against the wall and willing herself to remain calm. "But I was hoping this would!"
She slammed her head forward, headbutting Quirrell squarely in the nose with a satisfying scrunch.
Quirrell flailed back in a howl of pain, clutching at his profusely bleeding, and obviously, broken nose.
Lauren didn't hesitate and used the opportunity to make a run for it. But Quirrell was quicker and his spell hit her right in the middle of her back, sending Lauren flying. She didn't have time to brace herself and hit hard against the rough stone wall with a sickening thud.
Lauren slumped to the floor in a crumpled heap, dazed. Blackness was quickly edging in on her line of vision, threatening to consume her entirely.
Just before she lost consciousness, Lauren spotted the small figure of Harry Potter standing at the top of the stairs, his green eyes wide at the violent scene he had just witnessed.
Oh look, the cavalry has arrived…Foolish Gryffindor. This was her last thought before oblivion pulled her deep under its spell.
~oOo~
The scent of old parchment and sandalwood permeated her senses, trying to coax her groggy mind to the land of the living. She would recognize that particular scent anywhere.
Lauren was hazily aware of strong arms enveloping her, carrying her with protective care.
Lauren wished she had never woken up for an encompassing pain was now slicing through her head. A groan escaped her lips and she blindly reached up, clutching feebly at the thick robes that encompassed the person who was carrying her.
Her magic swirled weakly, a feeble attempt to reach out to Severus' own.
"Severus," she mumbled, her words muffled as he cradled her more tightly against him.
"I'm here," he replied with uncharacteristic softness.
Knowing she was now safe, Lauren relinquished her hold on consciousness, the blessed darkness crashing in on her and chasing away the pain.
~oOo~
"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?!"
Snape's shout echoed through the quiet, effectively jolting Lauren awake with a start. She glanced wildly around, slightly disorientated, until she realized she was in the Hospital Wing, the curtains drawn tight around her bed and hiding her from view.
There was a murmured response, but Snape abruptly cut off whomever he was shouting at.
"It could have ended much, much worse!"
Who is Snape shouting at? Lauren wondered as she slowly sat up, her ears straining to catch the argument that was unravelling on the other side of the curtain.
"Severus -."
Ah, he's arguing with Dumbledore.
"I warned you about Quirrell! Miss Ward warned you. And what did you do? You completely ignored us and chose to continue on with this foolishness of testing the boy's mettle. Your folly almost cost Miss Ward her life!"
Lauren frowned. She had never heard Snape as livid as what he was right now – not even when she had tapped into his magic. He had been furious then, but that was pale in comparison to now.
There was a poignant poise.
"You have come to care for her," Dumbledore mused in his rumbly tone.
There was a derisive scoff. "Do not change the subject or play your mind games with me, old man. The fact of the matter is that you intentionally put her life in danger. Potter's as well, but we both know that you would not have let any harm come to him."
"Severus, Miss Ward is fine -."
"Fine?" Snape snarled. "She suffered a fractured skull, Dumbledore!"
Lauren reached up and tentatively prodded her skull with her fingertips. There was very little pain associated with her ministrations, and she had to assume that Madam Pomfrey had already patched her up as good as new.
"She would not have come to any harm in the first place if you had just heeded our warning," Severus continued in a scathing tone.
Lauren frowned at the implications of his words. It sounded almost as though he did care about her. The memory of him carrying her filtered into her brain, leaving an odd puzzling sensation within her chest.
"Your protectiveness over her is…unusual," Dumbledore stated, puzzlement clear in his tone.
Lauren could picture Snape glaring balefully back at the Headmaster at that comment.
"Am I to assume that you have come to regard her as a friend, perhaps?"
Snape remained stoically silent. Lauren held her breath at the ratcheting tension building up from the other side of the curtain.
"Or is there more to it?" There was an edge to the Headmaster's voice.
"Don't be absurd," Severus snapped disgustedly, his repulsion ringing loud and clear through the room. "She is but a child."
Lauren's frown morphed into a scowl.
I'm not a child, you bloody git! How many times do I have to tell you that?!
"In body, yes -."
"She. Is. A. Child," Snape growled, enunciating each syllable precisely and leaving no doubt in anybody's mind as to how he really viewed Lauren. "Physically, she is most definitely a child. Your insinuation that I would even dare cross that line is offensive."
"I am relieved to hear that, Severus, but I was not insinuating anything of the sort. If I had had any doubts about your moral code in that regard, I would not have hired you in the first place. But something has happened; something that has made you fiercely protective over her."
"Nothing has happened," Snape bit back.
"Ah, but I think something has…" Dumbledore trailed off, obviously pondering the odd friendship that had developed between Snape and Lauren.
"That is none of your concern," Snape warned, his tone ominously dangerous.
"From what I have observed, your interactions with Miss Ward would almost suggest a connection…" Dumbledore stopped abruptly, almost as though a light bulb had gone off in his head.
The silence that followed was almost suffocating.
"Is Miss Ward aware?"
Aware of what?
"We have discussed it, yes," Snape replied reticently.
"A discussion and a full explanation are two entirely different matters, Severus."
"I don't have time for this," Severus snapped, the sounds of his retreating steps echoing through the Hospital Wing.
"This is serious, Severus. A magical bond is -."
"I am fully aware of what a magical bond means, and I have no wish to discuss it with you. Not now. Not ever." The sound of the door slamming shut indicated that Severus had left.
Lauren sat in her bed, unmoving, and her mind buzzing with the conversation that had just taken place.
So there's more to this magical connection than what Severus had originally led me to believe…
And by the sounds of it, Severus Snape had no intentions of ever fully explaining it to her.
But why? What is it about our bond that scares him so much?
"How much did you hear, Miss Ward?" Dumbledore's voice punctured through her swarming thoughts.
"All of it," Lauren admitted, her tone oddly detached.
The curtains drew back to reveal Dumbledore in all his maroon-decked glory, his chiming bell tied around his beard. He peered down at her with kind, albeit sympathetic, eyes as he edged closer to her side.
"How serious is this bond?"
Dumbledore regarded her for a few moments, intelligence shining brightly in those twinkling blue eyes. "It all rather depends on how you look at it."
"And how am I supposed to look at it? I was merely told that this bond enables us to draw on each other's magic and enhance our power."
Dumbledore gave her a small smile, which was almost hidden by his long silvery beard, and Lauren had the distinct impression that he was feeling sorry for her.
"What does this bond actually mean?" Lauren pressed.
"In a sense, what Severus told you was correct," he replied, settling down upon the mattress near her feet with a regretful sigh passing through his lips. "The more complex nature of the bond, though, is a conversation that is best left between you and Severus, as it involves you two alone."
"I'm asking you."
Dumbledore merely stared back at her, that infuriatingly secretive smile twitching on his lips. It was clear he was not going to cave and tell her everything.
"Do you really think Professor Snape is going to offer up a full explanation to me."
"I certainly hope so. Though, knowing Severus, he won't do so until he well and truly ready."
Lauren wanted to growl in frustration. Why couldn't these two morons be more forthcoming with her?
"When you said this bond was serious, did you mean good serious or bad serious?" she asked instead, trying for a new angle.
"Again, it all depends on how you look at it."
"You know, I think you get a real kick out of riling people up with all your ridiculously cryptic riddles."
An amused chuckle rumbled in his chest. "Personally, I think it's a 'good serious'. Severus, on the other hand, probably doesn't view it as such. But then again, he has always mistrusted anything that can be perceived as good, especially when it is directed at him…" Dumbledore trailed off, his eyes boring into her with thoughtfulness that bordered on intense. "But that is all I will say on the matter. Now," he said, clasping his hands in his lap and his demeanor now morphing to that of the powerful wizard he truly was, "we need to discuss what happened tonight."
"Yes, we do," Lauren replied. She had every intention of giving him a piece of her mind for ignoring both her and Snape's warning.
Dumbledore's eyes twinkled brighter as he observed the ire writ all over her features. "You are understandably angry. So was Severus, as you have already heard. My reasons for ignoring your misgivings were not out of folly, but rather because I needed to learn the true reason as to why Voldemort really wanted to get his hands on you." He paused here, arching a bushy brow as he patiently, almost serenely, waited for her to fill in the gaps.
Lauren decided to comply. "Quirrell…err, Voldemort, overheard me telling Professor Snape that Deacon had murdered me. He now has the ridiculous idea that my blood will somehow give him immortality, and maybe even make him more powerful."
Dumbledore nodded as though this all made perfect sense. "I take it that he does not know that you come from another world? Or that you harbor dangerous knowledge as to how future events will play out?"
Lauren cast her mind back to her conversation with Quirrell. "I don't think so. He also didn't have a clue about this bond that has formed between Professor Snape and I."
"That's good," Dumbledore murmured, stroking his beard thoughtfully. "He must never find out. But I'm afraid, my dear," he stated, his focus sharpening, "that from here on out, your safety cannot be guaranteed while Voldemort still exists. His sights are now set on you and he will try and get his hands on you again once he becomes strong enough."
Lauren sighed and shifted back so that she was now leaning back against the iron rail headboard of the bed, the bars digging in uncomfortably into her back. "That gives me three years then."
Three years of peace. And three years to learn to defend herself properly. Lauren was not some Victorian damsel in distress, and she had every intention of defending herself by any means possible.
Dumbledore's eyes narrowed behind his half-moon glasses at her comment, but he made no remark. Instead he rose stiffly to his feet and closed the distance, clasping a gnarled hand upon her shoulder. "Get some rest, Miss Ward. When you are ready, I would like for you to come to my office. There are some other matters I need to discuss with you."
"About?"
"Your family manor is move-in ready. That means that we need to discuss your potential guardians."
Lauren immediately straightened up, Dumbledore now having her full attention. "Who do you have in mind?"
Dumbledore merely patted her shoulder and flashed her his trademark secretive smile. "Stop by tomorrow morning and find out." With that parting remark, he left the Hospital Wing in a billow of maroon, his movements more agile than what his outwardly aged appearance suggested.
Lauren huffed and settled into bed, staring up at the arched ceiling. Her mind was a swirling, jumbled mess of cycling thoughts and questions.
Who does Dumbledore have in mind to be my guardian? Do I even want a guardian? No, I most certainly do not. I am not a child, goddammit! And what is Severus hiding with regards to this bond?
Lauren would get the answer to one of her questions in the morning – something she was already dreading.
As for her other question, well, Snape held the answer to that. Problem was, he had no intention of telling.
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