Chapter Seven: Blood Magic

Georgia had explained to Katherine that she wanted to help, taking it upon herself to do potion.

Katherine looked at the green liquid, gazing at it. A potion that she was surprised she even knew how to make it. The green liquid was familiar to her, but the one ingredient that was missing. An ingredient to protect herself.

Blood.

Her blood.

The elf gave her mistress a small smile, pleased with herself. Katherine slowly reached and brushed Georgia's wrinkly cheek. Elves were masters at potions. The Wizarding world would never want to admit it, but the Potters never doubted their little elf.

Katherine grabbed the flask.

One wrong move with the liquid inside the flask could cause death. It probably was best that it was made by Georgia instead of Katherine herself. Her mind knew the ingredients that needed to be collected but to remember the exact order, she couldn't apply it. The motions of making the potion were a mystery. The last ingredient wasn't necessary for the potion, but with Snape consuming it she needed to be one step ahead.

Searching the room for a needle. Katherine needed the item to prick her finger.

Slowly moving around, her eyes scanned the desk where Snape's journals were placed on the shelf above. She found one. A small needle placed perfectly in the corner of the desk. She quickly grabbed the needle and pricked her finger. The quick stab to her flesh caused the blood to bubble on the tip of her finger. She turned her finger to the side, allowing the liquid to drip inside the glass small flask. The green liquid turned brown.

Hoping it was enough blood to protect herself, she placed the flask inside the top of her cloak. Taking a deep breath to clear her mind and relax her body.

Georgia returned to the kitchens after Katherine gave thanks.

Feeling a tickle on the back of her neck. the sensation of someone watching her itched her scalp.

Turning around she saw him.

Snape stood in the doorway. His body seemed tall and lanky leaning against the frame. Those dark eyes were watching her, his hand held a small vale with a blue hue escaping it.

Unsure what he saw, or if he just arrived.

Katherine felt paralyzed from the fear of being caught.

Neither spoke, slowly Snape allowed his pale hand to rise with the vale, stretching his arm to allow her to grab the substance.

Katherine didn't move or grab it.

"What's this?" Katherine questioned.

Knowing she had a potion in her cloak that would cause him to sleep, or worse. She didn't want to take anything he was offering. Especially knowing that he was big into experimenting and wasn't afraid to try new things on her.

Snape entered his own room.

"I gave you the first dosage last night, to help with your symptoms" his tone dry but his eyes searched her face, looking for something.

Katherine looked away, not wanting him to find the knowledge of her true nature. Grabbing the flask quickly from his hand. It was best to listen then to have her secret discovered.

It's just a potion, she reminded herself.

Contradicting everything in her mind. She forced herself to take the top off the flask.

The smell of lavender stung her nose, slowly blinking the unvoluntary watery eyes away. The rim of the flask was cold against her plump lips, tilting her head and the flask back. Wanting the liquid to miss her taste buds.

Unsuccessful, the bitter substance was hard not to activate her gag reflex. Covering her mouth with one hand she tried to keep the burning sensation down, not wanting to throw up in Snape's room.

Snape grabbed the empty flask, his eyes never left her. She could feel the burning stare on her body. He was annoyed about something. Unsure what she did now, that annoyed him.

"Thank you." Katherine whispered, knowing a hangover would not be wise for today.

Snape dismissed her thanks.

Rude.

He watched her shift in front of him, "Dumbledore knows you are here. He has asked for me to continue with your memory, hoping to see if anything unlocks. If not, I have offered to no longer take things slow, but to go full force."

His lips twisted upward into a sinister smile.

Katherine glared at his actions. Hoping the potion in her cloak would cause him pain, even death didn't seem like a bad idea.

Without warning she felt him enter her mind. Cutting away thru her present thoughts, he went straight to the past. His swiftness was not harsh like the last, a memory caught his attention.

Katherine was laying on her back, the long grass around her tickled her skin. The smell of the black pond made everything seem peaceful.

Peaceful in a time of darkness and war.

Charity's chirpy tone interrupted the silence "KittyKat, come on what would your wedding look like"

Charity was twirling her hair laying on her stomach waiting. She had used the nickname that stuck with the Hufflepuff.

KittyKat, Katherine thought it was childish but didn't have it in her heart to say she didn't like it.

Turning over to her stomach, matching Charity.

"I don't know, I mean I don't want to be anyone's wife," Katherine giggled.

To be a wife wasn't on her bucket list. She wanted more. Being a professor, giving young minds knowledge of the past.

"Is this really what you two spoke about" Snape interrupted the memory.

Katherine didn't speak.

His presence was much closer in person, his breathing was near her. She was consumed by the memory. Something about the memory was missing. Snape's presence never left her mind.

The interruption stopped when her face came into view.

Lily Evans tossed her bag away from them, she flopped down next to Charity.

Charity rolled her eyes but tried to keep her annoyance a secret, Katherine caught it.

Lily was liked and adored by everyone and envied by some. Katherine kept her jealous opinions a secret.

Charity on the other hand struggled, she tried but wasn't always successful.

Lily smiled, "you don't want to get married, come on Kat, if you could have the wedding you want. What would it be?" she leaned in closer waiting for the secret.

For once Charity seemed to be on Lily's side, she too leaned in closer.

Both were waiting.

Waiting on something that Katherine thought was stupid and silly. Shaking her head, she allowed her body to roll over onto her back. She stared at the sky.

"I don't even have a person in mind. This is silly," she lied.

Of course, she had a crush. He barley looked at her the same way she looked at him.

The way his touch on her arm could send butterflies to her stomach, her heart raced with each moment he looked at her.

Katherine wanted to be more for him.

But she was a friend.

Only a friend.

All the studying in front of the common room fireplace would never make him see her more than that.

Charity grunted "come on, all girls have their dream wedding."

Katherine listened as her friend went on a talking spree. She listened to her describing an outside wedding during the day, falling leaves being the main focus. Her colors reminded Katherine of the sun, moon and earth. Yellow, silver and brown. Charity was a person full of color and nature, the gift of painting was her way to relax. painting nature was something she did every time she was nervous. To escape from reality.

Charity had always told Katherine to find something to do to escape reality, to escape the stress of their time.

Time of war.

For the first time Charity and Lily were connecting about the imaginary wedding Charity planned to have. Lily had done most of the complimenting of Charity's ideas while Katherine stayed silent.

It sounded like a blast and very cozy, but it was all fake.

Katherine refused to sit and face them.

Lily's humming of a wedding tune, wasn't her strength.

Though Katherine waited to hear hers. Lily caught many boy's attention. One in particular was her brother James.

"If I could have mine, it would be at night, the stars would light the sky. Him and I would dance all night, because it wouldn't always be magical because of this war; but I would want to forget reality in that moment, to make it last. A night to remember. I'd want a long princess dress, to feel like a queen for one day."

Finally, Katherine turned to look at both of them.

Charity nodded, approving of Lily's dream.

Her 'night to remember' did seem magical.

Lily focused on the two girls, gently shoving Katherine, "Kat, if you had someone that made you feel special, a person that loved every inch of your body and soul."

The water in the lake was still.

Everything seemed still waiting for her to answer.

The girl that was persistent, was the same girl that Katherine knew the boy she liked would want to marry.

Snape adored Lily.

Lily was naive and the girl had no clue that the boy she grew up with, hoped for more. Katherine knew, the way he looked at her.

It was the way she longed for him to look at her, to notice her. To imagine a wedding that would never happen, seemed silly.

Giving it a go, "I'd want something simple. If I found someone to make me feel complete, he's all I would need. I'd wear my mother's gown, in a place that would mean so much to the both of us. I don't need the glam of it all." Katherine stated.

She felt silly to even think of something that would never happen. Standing she decided to leave her friends and head to the library, doing research on the paper that was assigned to them. She wanted to take Charity's advice and escape.

Escape in the books of history.

The memory was harmless, innocent, silly…all three had different desires.

Snape ran his fingers thru his fingers, placing his attention on the piece of wood. Guilt was written on his face.

She wanted to question it. With Snape in her mind, he saw everything, felt every emotion she felt. The crush she had on him wasn't a secret. To hear her speak of a wedding, longing for it to happen with him.

Younger her would be ecstatic to know she got the dream guy she wanted.

It was far from a dream.

"Can I ask you something?"

Snape nodded.

His head rose, giving Katherine his full attention. He seemed uncomfortable with everything at the moment.

"What was our wedding like? Did I wear my mum's dress?" Katherine asked.

She needed to know.

They didn't have a special spot that came to her mind, but her mums dress was kept for her. It was the one item that she was never allowed to play dress-up in. Her mother wanted to keep it in top shape for her future wedding.

She watched her husband glide toward his notebooks above the inn, slowly he reached for a book. It ws one of his personal brown notebooks. Flipping it open, he grabbed a small photo.

"When they searched the houses of Death Eaters, this was in the Lestrange home, they figured it was mine." Snape handed her the photo, "It's the only photo of that night, it wasn't a fairytale wedding, if that's what you want to know," he said.

She looked down at the picture, it was a typical repeated sequence. She was sitting on a stool looking in the vanity mirror. Her eyes were not filled with the sorrow she assumed she would have on this day, instead it held the same gaze she wore now.

Determination.

The photo-self was still at times but would touch the dove pendant on the veil fixing it. The lace gown that was her mums', fit like glove, she couldn't deny the resemblance she had with her mum.

On the vanity the vase held a simple white rose. It was a flower to others, but for Katherine a white rose reminded her of her mother. Every flower her father bought her, he would buy white roses for Katherine.

They were always white.

Turning the photo over.

Her questioned burned in her mind. Who did this belong to?

If it was not for Snape, why was it in a death eater's home.

Lestrange was related to Black, was this kept for Black? The thought of Black keeping it made her want to hunch over and vomit.

Flipping the photo over, she froze.

She didn't expect to see that word. A chill ran down her spine causing the hair on her neck to rise. It was not faded, but boldly written.

Darling.

Tom, the memory of the voice. Was he alive or dead?

Did he know the Lestrange family or was he locked away? If he was locked away in that home, poor thing was probably dead if not worst.

The room started to spin, swaying to keep herself up straight. Katherine's vision started to become fuzzy, darkness was trying to take over her.

Coldness wrapped around her cheeks, Snape's dark worried eyes were locked upon hers. She could feel him inside her mind, but he was trying to calm her down.

She could hear a loud scream.

It was her scream. In her mind, it felt like a fog was sliced away.

Katherine stood in the library running her fingers across the spine of each book, wanting to read in silence. To be lost in the year, 1943.

Words and stories could do just that, take her mind to another place. Selfishly, Katherine wanted more.

She wanted more than her mind to experience 1943, she took the delicate time turner from the collar of her school blouse.

Katherine's fingers did not tremble, she slowly turned back time.

The library looked the same, she stood in front of the same bookshelf. The old books in her time, looked new. She grabbed a book, flipping thru the pages.

One page caught her attention. She couldn't help but smile at the picture of the gazebo of Salazar Slytherin. The Slytherin snake was perfectly inlay on the multiple white columns. The Hufflepuff cup was engraved on the white dome ceiling.

Being memorized by the photo she was lost in time.

Katherine heard footsteps in the distance, not wanting to be seen she wished she would have taken James's cloak with her.

Turning around it was late.

The outline of an older boy stood in the shadows. He glided forward. The light shined on his face once he was out of the shadow. Even with him out of the shadows, something about him was off. His features were perfect, handsome inface. Katherine couldn't put her finger on it, turning her gaze down to the book he held in his hand.

Learning the true nature of someone by what they read. She couldn't see the title but the gold letters of the author were clear, Owle Bullock. The name did not ring a bell.

The mysterious boy, whom wore the same house colors as her, spoke "Who are you, everyone is at the game?"

Being taken aback by the authority in his voice she wanted to step away but knew the bookshelf was blocking her from going anywhere. His eyes searched her face, and gazed her attire, she knew he was trying to figure out who she was. Especially since she was a Slytherin. Houses always knew their peers, younger and older.

"I-I'm sorry, I must go." Katherine stuttered.

His eyes fell upon the golden time turner. The boy cocked his head then looked at the book she held.

"Do not leave." He ordered. "What were you looking at?" His brow rose as his features softened. He was no longer intimidating her with his firmness. He finally looked like an average boy a few years older.

Katherine was hesitant at first but didn't see the harm, if everyone was at the quidditch game she didn't see the trouble in speaking to one person in this period. Maybe he could tell her facts that she could write in her paper.

Professor Binns would be impressed.

"The gazebo, Salazar Slytherin married Helga in this spot, it was dedicated to them. I'm sure you heard of it." Katherine's voice trailed off when she noticed the boy was not looking at the page, she tried to show him.

The boy finally nodded. "I have, and I've been to it, it has a picture of the Hufflepuff cup."

"Rumors say that it has all the items secretly engraved somewhere." Katherine babbled. Her eyes fell back to the picture, she wanted to see it, but in her time, it was no longer a glamours place.

The war had destroyed most of it, she assumed. Most important places were destroyed by You Know Who. She didn't understand the connection this place had with the Dark Lord, nor did she wish to ever find out.

But, to see it in it's prime. It would be magical.

"You know a lot about the houses and their items?" The boy inquired.

Katherine shrugged, "A little, it's interesting to me." closing the book before placing it back on the shelf. Feeling it was her time to go, she wasn't expecting the boy to step forward.

Closing her in the corner.

"Why are you interested in all these items?"

Katherine started to bite her bottom lip, trying to remind herself it was ok talking to him, that one person couldn't cause her harm.

He looked harmless.

"History is fascinating, sometimes you can escape in the past to forget the present." She said truthfully

The boy lifted his head, looking out the windowpane above them, before turning back to her. Katherine wanted to know what he was thinking about, he was still holding the book keeping the title hidden from her view. Feeling a bit uneasy, she wasn't sure if it was her nerves giving her the explosion of information, that leaked from her mouth.

"Especially with war, we have war in my time." Katherine uttered.

His brows furrowed. "Your time. What time is that?" his lips gently turned upward playfully.

Staring at his flirtatious smile, she felt like a foolish girl from admiring the boy's looks. She turned her gaze to her black school shoes.

Regretting that she also admitted she wasn't from his time. Not meeting his eye Katherine started to walk forward, unsure if he would allow her to pass.

He did, her arm gently brushed against his as she pushed pass him.

His voice was low but she could hear his whisper "We have a war now, Global war."

She knew he was trying to lure her back. He was smart, she had just admitted that she enjoyed history. The Global war was a major event in history.

Turning to face him once again, she couldn't hold her breathy chuckle inside.

He wanted to speak to her, she felt wanted. Debating on if she should leave and return to the correct time, breaking small rules wasn't against her nature but this was a crime.

He had a small smile on his lips. He succeeded with getting her attention. Allowing him to speak of the Global war, Katherine found herself sitting on the cold library floor with the boy of the past.

After he spoke of Grindelwald, Katherine couldn't help but connect the similarities in her mind of the war of her time. She spoke briefly about the Dark Lord and his followers. The boy listened in amazement, he allowed the book in his lap to fall. She saw the title briefly, Secrets of the Darkest ART. It was a book she never saw or even heard of.

Though the title spoke for itself. She was no fool when came to dark arts. Some of her fellow housemates thrived on learning the dark arts. The difference between the boy of the past, and them was simple. Fellow Slytherins were followers, something about the boy did not seem like a follower.

He radiated with confidence. Each time she heard him speak, his voice was smooth like velvet. Trancing her to pay attention.

Katherine squinted her eyes, trying to picture him much older.

Who was he?

"I understand why you snuck to this time, an escape, but tell me, what is You Know Who's name?" The boy asked. Bringing Katherine's attention back to the conversation.

Shaking her head her hair fell pass her shoulders. She allowed her body to rise, gently touching the turner, it was time for her to leave.

Looking down "I would never speak it," she whispered.

Her family forbid it. The magical world, too.

The boy stood. He was taller than her. "You fear a name?"

For a second Katherine thought he seemed amused by it.

No one would be amused of fear, she reminded herself.

"Yes. I do." She exhaled.

It was silly to think, but in reality, his name was dangerous to say. It was rumored to be jinx, that if you said it, death would follow.

The young teens were lost into each other's gaze of the past and future, that neither of them noticed the door opening.

A familiar voice filled the library "Tom, is that you" Albus Dumbledore called out.

Katherine's body became stiff unlike Tom whom was relaxed.

Her eyes were large filled with worry; she knew getting caught would be terrible. The boy slowly lifted his finger to silence her. He leaned closer to her as the footsteps in the background were much louder.

"You must leave, but before please give me your name." his breath was warm on her ear.

"Katherine Carrington" she lied, not wanting him to have her true last name, she thought of a girl in her same year. Carrington was not a known family name for Hogwarts. The girl was from America and spoke of her past school all the time.

His hand gently squeezed her arm.

"Tom Riddle is my full name, but Ms. Carrington, I hope this is not the last time I see you; you make this time period less dull."

She needed to leave now. The footsteps were just around the corner before she quickly returned home by turning time forward.

She stood in the library of her correct time, realizing that the price of time travel meant she would lose the time she spent away and unable to get it back. She had missed her first potions class. Shrugging it off, missing one class was no harm she kept reminding herself.

Snape's hands were still holding Katherine's face. She placed her hands on both his wrist, the velvet sleeves were soft against the palm of her hands. Gently, she pulled his hands away from her. Her mouth was dry barley opened. She wanted to speak but nothing was escaping. Thinking of the full memory that seemed like it never left her mind, as if it was always a part of her. It didn't make sense.

Why was Tom important, important enough to have the memory of him erased?

All because she was doing a stupid project, she stayed in the past because of a boy who knew his facts about his present time. Katherine felt like she was desperate as a child, craving any attention given.

Snape was staring at Katherine; no words were leaving his stunned face.

"Did you know Tom Riddle?" she asked.

It was the first time she saw his face from a memory. Knowing Snape caught everything she just witnessed, he was extremely quiet.

"No, I never met a Riddle, I can ask Dumbledore." He muttered. Snape's fingers drummed the desk he was leaning against.

Reaching for her husband's arm, Katherine forced Snape to face her. She wanted his full undivided attention. This was her first-time seeing a past memory that dealt with time travel, still not telling him about the incidents that occurred when she must have returned from being missing. She didn't want Snape to run to tell Dumbledore of this event.

If Dumbledore found out, he would want to enter her mind more. Causing her main plan to escape with Harry to fail.

Shaking her head, "Please, do not tell him," She begged.

Seeing Tom, to see his face, she couldn't help put ponder where he was. If he was still alive.

"I must tell him about what we learned. Whomever this Tom is must be someone who worked for the Dark Lord." Snape added as he plucked Katherine's grip off his arm.

Exhaling, Kathrine crossed her arms. She couldn't believe that he felt he had control over spreading her business. It was HER own memory. Not something that needed to be shared.

Meeting Tom didn't automatically make him a Death Eater. Snape was just thinking of the wort thing possible, Katherine assured herself.

Snape always thought the worst of people, she kept repeating to herself. Her inner voice was not calming her down, but instead raising her blood pressure higher and higher.

"Do you think I sold my family?" Katherine snapped.

Turning toward the cabinet that held the liquor and glasses, she couldn't help but think what Lupin said about Black. She wanted to drown herself in the liquor before her, to think of that traitor. Katherine turned to look at her husband.

Guilt, it was written on his face. The same guilt expression he wore earlier.

She placed her attention back to the liquor, grabbing the brandy bottle from the cabinet. Katherine reached for one glass only. Slowly she pulled out the small flask from her cloak, debating with herself.

Was it worth it?

Katherine hesitated, "Do you know something?"

Silence.

She didn't pour the liquid but waited. She waited to see if he would respond. The longer she waited, the longer she debated on her own morals. Doing blood magic was never done by her, she was almost certain. Unsure if it would even work.

Snape still did not answer.

"Tell me, please" she pleaded.

Snape's voice was low "There was a prophecy I heard it. Not fully hearing it all, but I thought I heard enough. I went to the Dark Lord and told him the information."

Katherine listened as he explained the prophecy that he heard. A prophecy that he overheard that was told to Dumbledore.

Snape continued to explain "it was two families; I had no idea why he picked yours."

Clinching the glass with her right hand she could see her knuckles become white, it was as if he ripped her heart from chest himself.

Her heart was aching. She couldn't remember how to breath for a moment.

It was because of him, because of Snape.

Her nephew had no parents, was stuck living with those muggles. All because of a stupid prophecy that he went run to tell his master.

Opening her mouth to inhale, her tongue was dry. She was stiff unable to move.

Staying in the same spot.

Snape muttered, "I didn't want him to murder her" he paused.

"Them, I feel guilty about it all." he confessed.

Keeping her back to him, she heard what he first said before correcting the word.

"You said her, did James and Harry ever matter to you Snape, or was it only about Lily." She was surprised her voice did not crack. Staring at the glass cabinet she could see his reflection; he was facing the opposite direction.

"I gave my full loyalty to Dumbledore when he promised to save them all!"

Katherine shook her head in disgust.

"The thing is Snape if he would of chose the other family it was still a baby he was planning to murder. An innocent child, you had a choice not to speak a word of it to him, but you would allow a child to die, a family to die." Katherine spat.

"I was foolish and wanted to get in his good grace again, I had fallen out of it." Snape explained.

She could hear regret in his tone.

It was late. They were already dead.

"Really, what made you fall?" Katherine probed with a hint of sarcasm.

"You, trusting you. I'm not saying we can make this work perfectly, but we can at least try. Dumbledore and I set the past aside to work together."

Katherine watched his reflection turn to her direction, to think that he wanted to start all over. After this confession, she couldn't understand how she could begin again with him. Yet everything was coming back to another person, Dumbledore.

It was his game of chess that everyone was becoming a pawn in.

Snape made his choice that night, and now Katherine knew she needed to decide on hers.

Her mind was made up.

Tilting the flask, she allowed the brown substance to mix with the brandy she began to pour. Swirling it around, she turned to finally face her husband.

The man that led her family to their death by repeating a prophecy. Yes, it was positive that he told Albus, but none of it would have happened if he would have been silent. She kept thinking of his words over and over.

Raising the glass.

"A drink to a new beginning" she whispered.

Allowing herself to consume the first sip, even though she couldn't explain how she knew it was safe for her to drink it.

Katherine was confident.

She knew that with it having her blood, it kept her protected. Blood Magic would never harm the owner.

Stretching her hand out for Snape to grab the glass. He looked relieved before he too, took a sip.

Unlike her, he started to sway side to side. His dark eyes locked with hers and she knew he figured it out before his body made a loud thump on the ground. His eyes were closed as his breaths became deep. Knowing she didn't have much time, Katherine reached inside his robe pulling his wand out. She reached for his greasy black hair, hoping he could feel the pain as she pulled a bit from the scalp.

Her heart felt pain everyday because of him. She wanted him to hurt, even if it was for a second. Just so he could know how it felt.

All it took was for Snape to pull his guard down, Katherine was successful in pulling the rug out from under him.

Katherine scurried to search for a second pair of robes to hide under her cloak before she headed toward his fireplace in his office. She left him sleeping in the bedroom on the floor, as she escaped to his home to drink the Polyjuice potion she had been making in her closet.

NOTES: THANK YOU FOR READING

Chapter Eight: The Switch