Content Warning: Alcoholism

Chapter 13: In Her Element

Brixton was beyond excited and could not wait to start her day teaching her classes. She barely stopped for breakfast in the Great Hall. She told her friends that she would see them in class later that day as she swooped up a couple of pastries and headed for the dungeons. Once there, she set her things down at her desk and immediately got to work. After setting up the students' workstations she wrote on the chalk board:

Cure For Boils

1.Add crushed snake fangs to your cauldron.

2.Slice pungous onions finely and place in cauldron; heat the mixture.

3.Add dried nettles.

4.Add a dash of Flobberworm Mucus and stir vigorously.

5.Add a sprinkle of powdered ginger root and stir vigorously again.

6.Add pickled Shrake spines.

7.Stir gently, so as not to overexcite the Shrake spines.

8.Add a glug of stewed horned slugs.

9.REMOVE cauldron from heat.

10.Add porcupine quills.

11.Wave wand over potion to complete.

As the students began filing into the classroom, Brixton positioned herself at the front of the class near the chalkboard. She greeted them by name and waited until everyone was settled in at their station. Finally she said, "Hello, class. Today Professor Snape will be out and we will be brewing the Cure for Boils. It is a very simple potion to brew, however I want you to pay especially close attention to step nine. I expect to have Professor Snape come back without any melted cauldrons today. Now, you may begin. If you have any questions I will be more than happy to help."

Brixton was thankful that the class passed by smoothly; with all of her first year student's cauldron's emitting pink smoke. The rest of the morning classes went just as well, with the exception of one student in Snape's third year class knocking his cauldron off the table, causing it to crack right down the middle. Thankfully, Brixton was quick on her feet and cleaned away the mess and repaired the cauldron with a just a couple of spells.

Soon it was lunch time and Brixton couldn't wait to see her friends. She was excited to tell them all about her day. When she made it to the Gryffindor table she was happy to see that everyone was already there. Ron and Harry sat side-by-side with Hermione across from them with Luna and Neville on either side of her. Ginny was on the other side of Harry with her head resting gently on his shoulder. "Hi," said Brixton as she settled in beside Neville.

Her friends all greeted her as they piled their plates full of food and began to eat. Brixton plopped some mashed potatoes onto her plate and grabbed two slices of ham. She filled her goblet full of pumpkin juice and took a long drink. "Wow," she said, "I didn't realize how hungry I was until I saw all the food. So, how is everyone's day?" Everyone except Neville answered, who seemed to be deep in thought. "Neville," Brixton asked, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Neville said slowly. "It's just there are some things bothering me. Snape came to the greenhouses last night to talk to me and some of the things he said just got to me, I suppose."

"Yes, he said he was going to try to apologize to you for being so cruel over the years. Did it not go very well?" concern filled Brixton's voice.

"Oh, it went fine. I understand now what some of his motives were, although I don't agree with the way he treated me over the years. It's just…" Neville looked around the table at his friends, "Well, if your worst enemy came apologizing and seemed so… broken, does that mean that you have to forgive them? And if you can't what does that say about you? I'm just really wrestling with some things, you know? He also got me to thinking about my parents, which is never an easy thing to think about. I visit them several times a year, but it's never easy…"

As he trailed off, Brixton turned and wrapped her arms around Neville and gave him a tight hug. He put his arm around her shoulders and hugged her back and said, "Thanks."

The moment no longer felt right to ramble on about her day teaching Potions, so she just kept quiet and let the conversation move along as she ate quietly. Looking across the table, she could see that Harry had a particularly sour look on his face. She made note of this to ask him later, but she didn't have the chance. As Brixton was about to make her way to the dungeons with her friends, Harry pulled her to the side. "What's wrong, Harry?" she asked.

"Well, it seems like Snape is having all kinds of heart to heart conversations with everyone except me. Do you know why? I know he visited Remus and I've just got this feeling that he's never going to talk to me," Harry said.

"He's working on it, Harry. From what he's told me he very much wants to talk to you. He knows that he needs to; he's just finding it hard to reconcile his past with his future. I think the thought of talking to you makes him feel particularly vulnerable and that's not a feeling he's accustomed to."

"It's not like I even have anything bad to say to him. I want to thank him for everything he's done over the years," Harry protested.

"I know that, Harry. I will see what I can do, okay?" Brixton offered, "But I really have to get back to class. I'm teaching all of Snape's classes today."

"Oh, yeah. Why is that?" Harry asked.

Brixton froze. Her heart rate went up rapidly. She hadn't even thought of Rikkon all day because she had been so distracted by teaching. "Will you ask Hermione? You can tell her I said it was okay. I just can't really talk about it. It's too upsetting and I have to focus today." She turned and hurried off without giving Harry a second glance or opportunity to ask any more questions.

Brixton was sitting on the floor with her back against Snape's office door reading a Muggle fantasy novel. She held her wand beneath her teeth for light. She was very engrossed in a climactic scene when she heard a familiar silky voice say, "Miss Winchester, what are you doing on the floor? It is well past curfew."

Looking up, Brixton saw his outstretched hand and took it. She then tucked her book into her bag and said, "I just had to know how the trial went. I also hoped that you would look at the Veritaserum that I helped the seventh years brew. I know it takes six months for the brew to mature, but I think everyone did a good job and I wanted to see what you thought."

Shaking his head, Severus said, "Come along, then."

After entering the classroom Brixton followed Severus to the back of the classroom. Eight brass cauldrons were lined up and labeled with each student's name. One by one, the Potions Master inspected them all. Finally, he said, "Mister Potter's potion is not up to par. It will be useless, however it appears that he got very close to accurate, so you should consider that when you are giving him his grade."

"Oh," said Brixton "I didn't know I would be the one giving grades on these assignments."

"Yes, after you receive and grade everyone's essays. I wanted you to have full rein today and it seems that you were in your element. I haven't seen a class do this well overall on Veritaserum. It's usually a small percentage that gets it correct, not the majority," Severus' tone was very complimentary.

"Severus, can you show me how you knew that Harry's potion wasn't successful?" she asked.

"Yes, if you lean over each cauldron they all look the same except his. The difference is very minute, but enough to make it clear that the potion will not produce quality Veritaserum. Can you spot the difference?" he eyed her as she leaned over and looked.

Seeing the difference, Brixton said, "Tiny bubbles. Every few seconds his potion produces tiny bubbles. Everyone else's potion is still."

"Precisely, I suspect that Potter must have added the unicorn hair before removing the cauldron from the heat in order to produce such a result," Severus said.

"So, how did the trial go?" she asked nervously.

"It's been a long day and I am in need of a drink. You can join me in my office," he said as he turned on his heel and headed for his office.

Fighting off the feeling to throw up, Brixton did as she was told and followed the man into his office. She took a seat on the couch while Severus went over to a dark wooden liquor cabinet and fixed himself a glass of whiskey. She wanted to tell him that he was looking thin and that she had seen him drink on several occasions now, but had never seen him eat since the beginning of the school year. She thought better of that though, knowing she would be scolded and told to mind her own business. Instead, she waited quietly on the couch until he joined her. He sat on the couch as well, with his legs turned towards her.

"The trial went well," he said. "It wasn't as severe as an outcome as I had hoped, but it was still in your favor."

"What happened," she asked with her voice barely above a whisper.

"Brisbane and his parents, of course, protested at length. They referenced his good grades and had character witnesses. However, after mine and Minerva's testimony it was all over for the boy. They snapped his wand, stripped him of all rights to do any kind of magic, sentenced him to five years in Azkaban, and put him on a registry that will track any other wrongdoing he does against anyone."

Brixton practically leapt from her seat to wrap her arms around Severus and hug him tightly. "That's wonderful news," she said excitedly, "What more could we have hoped for?"

"Well, considering that his intention was to scar you for life, I felt that a life sentence would have been more satisfactory," Severus said, taking a drink from his glass over the witch's head.

"I'm just happy knowing that he won't be able to hurt anyone else. You have to let go of some of your need for vengeance. I am happy with the end results, and I'm safe. Is that not enough?" she asked, pulling away from the hug.

"I guess if you are satisfied with the outcome, then I shall be too. However, I do believe that life-long actions should receive life-long consequences," Severus answered, his voice thick with remorse.

"Is that why you insist on punishing yourself?" The question slipped out before she could stop herself.

Narrowing his eyes, Severus asked, "What makes you say I am punishing myself?"

She met his intense gaze with narrowed eyes of her own and said, "Tell me I'm wrong, then. I suspect you are drinking every night. You grow thinner by the week. Despite having your good name cleared, you seclude yourself in the dungeons more than ever."

"Why must you meddle in my affairs," he demanded.

"Because I care!" she spat. She reached over and yanked the whiskey glass from his hand, causing the ice to go flying across the room. She slammed the glass down on the coffee table angrily.

With a snap of his fingers the ice was gone from the floor. He leaned forward and grabbed her chin, forcing her to look at him. "Why?"

Jerking her face away from his hand, she yelled, "Because you matter. Because you are worth the trouble. Despite being a melodramatic pain in my ass, you are often the highlight of my day. Self-destruction must come so naturally to you that you don't even see it anymore."

Defensively, he muttered, "I didn't know it was such a crime for a grown man to have a drink."

She pulled her wand from her robes and flicked it towards the liquor cabinet. The doors swung open to reveal nearly a dozen bottles of the same kind of whiskey. She nodded towards the cabinet, "It's not. However, I don't think most people keep a whole cabinet of the same liquor. You told me that your father was a drunk, so was mine. I know the signs and so do you, so don't play dumb."

He rolled his eyes and said, "Fine. I have been drinking an awful lot in the evenings. I'm not going to stop, but I could cut back if it will make you happy."

"Yes, thank you," she said. "You could also start eating. As in right now. Dobby!"

Before Severus had a chance to protest Dobby apparated into the room just a few feet away from the coffee table. "Yes, ma'am," he asked.

"I'm really sorry to bother you, but Professor Snape isn't feeling very well. He could really use a bite to eat. I know it's late, but could you get him something?" Brixton asked.

"Right away, ma'am," and just like that Dobby was gone.

"That's twice now that Dobby has seen us under very questionable circumstances. What is the point in exercising restraint if you are just going to get us in trouble anyway," Severus sighed in the most exasperated of ways.

She leaned forward until their noses were almost touching, locked eyes with him, and said, "Then stop showing restraint."

Severus deeply inhaled and said through gritted teeth, "You don't make it easy, that's for sure." Then he put his palm to her forehead and gently pushed her face away from his. This happened just in time for Dobby to snap back into the room with a loud POP.

"Here you go, Professor," said Dobby as he sat a tray down with a small plate with a grilled sandwich on it, a bowl of tomato soup, and tea for two. "I brought you a cup too, ma'am. Dobby could get you some food as well if you like."

Brixton leaned forward towards Dobby and said, "Thank you so much, Dobby. We are friends. Please, call me Brixton. I know I have told you at least a dozen times."

"Good friends Dobby has. Is there anything else you need," Dobby asked.

"No, thank you," replied Brixton.

Dobby gave a little bow before disappearing.

"So you see how close that was," Severus demanded as he motioned to the space that Dobby had just occupied.

"In a few short months it won't even matter. Then what will your excuse be? Eat your damn food," she snapped as she poured them both a cup of tea.

"You are insufferable. You probably are going to cost me my job," he snapped back.

"Ha!" Brixton laughed, "You don't even seem to want the job. You aren't eating, you are drinking entirely too much, and you skulk around like you still have to play mister dark and brooding"

Severus gasped in an over exaggerated sort of way before laughing lightly, "Maybe the idea of you being here with me has changed my mind."

Brixton opened her mouth to say something back but before she could Severus broke off a piece of sandwich and shoved it in her mouth. They both ended up laughing heartily and it was music to her ears.

Soon they were saying their goodbyes and Brixton was walking through the dungeons to get to her own common room. She had cast a silencing spell over herself in hopes of making it to her bed without getting any unwanted attention. It was a good thing too because a small hand reached out for her as she was reaching the stairs to exit the dungeons. The scream she let out surely would have woke the whole castle.

"Dobby didn't mean to scare Brixton. Dobby just wanted to make sure you were okay," said Dobby, stepping out of the darkness.

Dropping the silencing spell, Brixton demanded, "What on earth would make you think I wasn't okay?"

"Well, Dobby has seen you with Professor Snape late at night twice now and… well… he hasn't done anything he shouldn't has he?" he asked, eyes wide.

"Oh, heavens no! You already know that he was curing me from that curse and this time I was just worried about him. I stayed up waiting on him to get back from the Ministry. He and Professor McGonagall went to the trial for me so that I wouldn't have to go."

"Oh, Dobby is sorry about meddling," he hung his head low.

Brixton knelt down and met Dobby's eyes with her own. "Don't be sorry for caring about a friend, Dobby. Now, I have to ask you something. Has Professor Snape been taking his meals privately?"

"Sometimes he does, but not every day. Why?" he asked.

"Can you do a big favor for me and just start bringing him dinner at the end of the day? We have private lessons then so I can make sure he eats. He may fuss about it, but he's losing a lot of weight and I'm worried about him," she replied.

Dobby nodded, "Of course. Dobby would be happy to help. Dobby knows not everyone does, but I believe Harry Potter when he says that Professor Snape is a brave and good man. It's good that he has someone like you looking out for him."

"I'm glad you feel that way, Dobby," Brixton smiled, "I also would like it if you could kind of keep an eye on him for me. It would have to be a secret."

"What should Dobby look for?" he asked.

"Professor Snape has been drinking too much in the evenings. He said he was going to cut it out, but I worry that he might keep drinking too much after curfew. If you see anything like that could you come find me?" she asked.

"Dobby can do that, Miss Brixton. Dobby is honored to be trusted with such a secret. Would you like me to walk you back to your common room?" he smiled.

"Thank you very much, Dobby," she said as she stood up and offered him her hand. They quietly walked to Ravenclaw Tower together and Brixton was very thankful to have someone looking after Severus with her.