In case anyone was wondering or cares, the song that Dr. Oliver sang in the last chapter was "When I am laid in earth" by Henry Purcell, from his opera "Dido and Aeneas". Yet again, in this chapter Snape decided he wanted to say some nasty things, and I let him, because I think it's realistically the way he would react to Lupin. But you might want to cover your ears. Oh yes, and I had writer's block about halfway through this chapter, but I tried to push past the hunger (I am fasting from Good Friday to Easter Sunday), so if it seems a little delusional at times, make allowances. With that said, enjoy!
Chapter Seven
When Snape met Sylvia the next morning to go jogging, he was a little late, and when he finally caught up with her, she noted with no small smile on her face that his usually pale face was flushed and he looked unusually happy.
"What took you so long?" she asked, half-knowing the answer and half-hoping he wouldn't really tell her.
"I overslept," he said, wondering if she knew this was something of a lie.
"In Cassandra's room," she replied, having guessed as much.
He gave her a look. "What is it exactly that you accuse me of, madam?"
She laughed. "Sevy, you're in a much better mood than I've ever seen you. Something has to be going on, and I saw the way you two were looking at each other last night when you left. Come off it."
"Very well," he said slyly, "But I still admit to nothing."
"Good, because I think if you told me anything more, it would be too much information."
They jogged on in silence for a while, skirting around the lake, and then Snape said unexpectedly, "What about you and Lupin?"
"We had a long night too," she replied, but didn't sound very excited about it.
"Really?" Snape said wonderingly. "Lupin, you old dog…werewolf. I suppose it's the same thing."
"No, that's not it at all, Sevy! How your mind leaps to conclusions!" she mock-scolded.
"Then what were you doing last night?" he asked innocently.
"Oh, he was practically inconsolable. He felt awful because of what you said to him about me, and he seemed to think I should take it as some kind of personal insult. Seeing as how I really didn't, this only made him more angry, and then we had a long discussion about how things stood between us. It was good that we got things out in the open, but I told him things he didn't want to hear."
"Good lord, Sylvia, I'm sorry," he said, now embarrassed. He shouldn't have let his old nature get away with him, even though it was hard to control himself around Lupin. He hadn't meant for Sylvia to find out about it, though. "I never meant to-"
"Sevy, please," she replied. "We should say everything that we say as if we weren't ashamed to say it to a person's face. I know that what you said last night, you would not have said to me. Or would you?"
"I probably wouldn't have," he muttered, feeling very chastised.
"There you have it," she said, a bit triumphantly. "But I want you to know that it doesn't upset me. It was Remus that you upset. Don't feel bad on my account."
"Then I don't feel bad at all," he said, smiling.
"You don't even feel a bit of remorse for what you said to Remus?"
He rolled his eyes. "Sylvia, please. We spent our teenage years making fools out of each other, and it's going to take more than a concerned archeologist to make us stop now."
She sighed. "Remus is a good person, Sevy. I think you need to give him some credit. He's not the same person that he was in school, and neither are you."
"I don't need to hear this," he said, wishing that they could have avoided this conversation. He had been so happy when he had come down from Cassandra's room and now he was feeling...guilty. He usually didn't feel guilty. After this, they finished their jog in silence.
As they were walking up to the majestic front door, he said hoping to patch things up, "Why don't you come up later to my room? We can talk about Sartre, whose book I dearly hope you have finished by now."
Her eyes smiled at him. "Sure, Sevy. I'd love to do that. After dinner, you think?"
"Sounds wonderful," he replied, glad to have put the awkwardness behind them. He hadn't had his friend for long, and he didn't want to lose her already.
***
But he felt it was testing his patience when he saw Lupin, who was carrying a small traveling bag, and who was obviously on his way home that afternoon. He happened to be walking down the corridor towards the Great Hall, and couldn't avoid the other man. It seemed a confrontation was inevitable.
"Snape," Lupin said as the two met in the middle of the corridor, "I'm supposed to tell you that there are no hard feelings between us." He looked as if it pained him greatly to say this.
Snape laughed mirthlessly. "Sylvia?" he guessed.
"Yes. She's told me that I need to put this behind me and learn to treat you with respect, and so I will try."
"You can try," Snape said coldly, "But I will hardly reciprocate the effort."
"And why not?" Lupin exploded, and his bag fell down onto the floor with a soft plop. "Why can't you forget our childish grudge, and let bygones be bygones? It's because you never matured, isn't it? You're still a boy! I will be more of a man than you are, and try to look past it."
"You, a man?" Snape said silkily and with great pleasure. "I think not, Lupin. In fact, it seems you were lucky that Halloween didn't fall on the full moon this year. Let's hope that none of the other holidays do, seeing as how they are the few times you get to have with your precious Sylvia. Unless, that is, she's into bestiality-"
"Bastard!" Lupin cried, losing all his self-control, and swinging a punch at Snape that narrowly missed his left eye.
"Tsk, tsk," Snape reprimanded, his eyes flashing with hatred and a certain excitement at having provoked Lupin. "You've already forgotten what you said, Remus? About letting bygones be bygones, forgetting the past? It seems you're the one being childish now. And it's all because of your precious little Sylvia." He knew now that this was the only way to make Lupin angry, and, bad as he felt for using the archeologist to bait the other man, he couldn't resist the urge to do so. "It's so touching, the way you stand up for her. Are you sure she hasn't found somebody else, somebody who could satisfy her-a...real... man?"
At this, Lupin lost his last vestige of restaint and flung himself upon Snape, punching his face, and Snape, not one to sit passively and allow himself to be beaten, retaliated with great delight. Lupin was strong (with muscles, Snape was sure, that came from transforming into a werewolf once a month), but Snape could hold his own.
They were still scuffling when Dumbledore descended the stairs towards the Great Hall, and said in a loud voice, "Gentlemen, I believe you forget yourselves."
Lupin, looking incredibly ashamed, stood up immediately, brushing dirt off of his already dirty robes. His nose was bleeding and it looked as if Snape had hit him in his right eye, which was swelling and looked altogether disagreeable. "I'm sorry, Albus. I didn't mean to lose control," he mumbled, looking down at the floor.
Snape also stood up, but still looked defiant. His black eyes were shining with malice, although his left one was blackened and a small trickle of blood was seeping from the corner of his mouth. He wiped it away impatiently. "Headmaster, forgive me," he said, also a bit abashed.
"I am reminded of two students I once had," Dumbledore said, looking both of them over. "I had hoped, however, that these two young men had grown up. It doesn't seem that they did."
"He said...things, horrible things about Sylvia," Lupin said, looking at Snape as if he wished their fight hadn't been cut off.
"It seems that that is hardly a reason to resort to physical violence," Dumbledore replied. "He used words, Remus, mere words. You shouldn't have let these words affect you. I want you both to apologize to one another, and then, Severus, I would like to speak with you."
Snape felt a sudden sinking feeling, and realized that he wanted nothing less than to be rebuked by Albus Dumbledore for his behavior, which, he now saw, had been incredibly puerile. He and Lupin mumbled their apologies and shook hands hastily.
"The two of you should perhaps visit Madam Pomfrey, who, I'm sure, will help you with your wounds." Dumbledore added. Lupin nodded at his words, and set off up the stairs towards the infirmary. "Severus," Dumbledore said, and Snape, who had been about to follow the other man, turned to look at him. "We still need to talk. Perhaps now is not the best time to tell you this, but there are many things you don't know about Dr. Oliver, and I have realized that it is time to explain them to you. So after you have seen Poppy, please come to my office."
"Yes, Headmaster," Snape replied, trudging up the stairs. He wasn't looking forward to his talk with Dumbledore, not in the least.
****
That's the end of this one, guys. In the next chapter, you will learn a bit more about Dr. Oliver from Dumbledore, but certainly not everything. I haven't yet decided if we will find out why she is called Andromache by some. At this point, I would like to thank all my wonderful reviewers, and extend a special thanks to Severa, my favorite companion in Snapishness, for reading my story endlessly! May Alan Rickman live on in your heart forever!
Chapter Seven
When Snape met Sylvia the next morning to go jogging, he was a little late, and when he finally caught up with her, she noted with no small smile on her face that his usually pale face was flushed and he looked unusually happy.
"What took you so long?" she asked, half-knowing the answer and half-hoping he wouldn't really tell her.
"I overslept," he said, wondering if she knew this was something of a lie.
"In Cassandra's room," she replied, having guessed as much.
He gave her a look. "What is it exactly that you accuse me of, madam?"
She laughed. "Sevy, you're in a much better mood than I've ever seen you. Something has to be going on, and I saw the way you two were looking at each other last night when you left. Come off it."
"Very well," he said slyly, "But I still admit to nothing."
"Good, because I think if you told me anything more, it would be too much information."
They jogged on in silence for a while, skirting around the lake, and then Snape said unexpectedly, "What about you and Lupin?"
"We had a long night too," she replied, but didn't sound very excited about it.
"Really?" Snape said wonderingly. "Lupin, you old dog…werewolf. I suppose it's the same thing."
"No, that's not it at all, Sevy! How your mind leaps to conclusions!" she mock-scolded.
"Then what were you doing last night?" he asked innocently.
"Oh, he was practically inconsolable. He felt awful because of what you said to him about me, and he seemed to think I should take it as some kind of personal insult. Seeing as how I really didn't, this only made him more angry, and then we had a long discussion about how things stood between us. It was good that we got things out in the open, but I told him things he didn't want to hear."
"Good lord, Sylvia, I'm sorry," he said, now embarrassed. He shouldn't have let his old nature get away with him, even though it was hard to control himself around Lupin. He hadn't meant for Sylvia to find out about it, though. "I never meant to-"
"Sevy, please," she replied. "We should say everything that we say as if we weren't ashamed to say it to a person's face. I know that what you said last night, you would not have said to me. Or would you?"
"I probably wouldn't have," he muttered, feeling very chastised.
"There you have it," she said, a bit triumphantly. "But I want you to know that it doesn't upset me. It was Remus that you upset. Don't feel bad on my account."
"Then I don't feel bad at all," he said, smiling.
"You don't even feel a bit of remorse for what you said to Remus?"
He rolled his eyes. "Sylvia, please. We spent our teenage years making fools out of each other, and it's going to take more than a concerned archeologist to make us stop now."
She sighed. "Remus is a good person, Sevy. I think you need to give him some credit. He's not the same person that he was in school, and neither are you."
"I don't need to hear this," he said, wishing that they could have avoided this conversation. He had been so happy when he had come down from Cassandra's room and now he was feeling...guilty. He usually didn't feel guilty. After this, they finished their jog in silence.
As they were walking up to the majestic front door, he said hoping to patch things up, "Why don't you come up later to my room? We can talk about Sartre, whose book I dearly hope you have finished by now."
Her eyes smiled at him. "Sure, Sevy. I'd love to do that. After dinner, you think?"
"Sounds wonderful," he replied, glad to have put the awkwardness behind them. He hadn't had his friend for long, and he didn't want to lose her already.
***
But he felt it was testing his patience when he saw Lupin, who was carrying a small traveling bag, and who was obviously on his way home that afternoon. He happened to be walking down the corridor towards the Great Hall, and couldn't avoid the other man. It seemed a confrontation was inevitable.
"Snape," Lupin said as the two met in the middle of the corridor, "I'm supposed to tell you that there are no hard feelings between us." He looked as if it pained him greatly to say this.
Snape laughed mirthlessly. "Sylvia?" he guessed.
"Yes. She's told me that I need to put this behind me and learn to treat you with respect, and so I will try."
"You can try," Snape said coldly, "But I will hardly reciprocate the effort."
"And why not?" Lupin exploded, and his bag fell down onto the floor with a soft plop. "Why can't you forget our childish grudge, and let bygones be bygones? It's because you never matured, isn't it? You're still a boy! I will be more of a man than you are, and try to look past it."
"You, a man?" Snape said silkily and with great pleasure. "I think not, Lupin. In fact, it seems you were lucky that Halloween didn't fall on the full moon this year. Let's hope that none of the other holidays do, seeing as how they are the few times you get to have with your precious Sylvia. Unless, that is, she's into bestiality-"
"Bastard!" Lupin cried, losing all his self-control, and swinging a punch at Snape that narrowly missed his left eye.
"Tsk, tsk," Snape reprimanded, his eyes flashing with hatred and a certain excitement at having provoked Lupin. "You've already forgotten what you said, Remus? About letting bygones be bygones, forgetting the past? It seems you're the one being childish now. And it's all because of your precious little Sylvia." He knew now that this was the only way to make Lupin angry, and, bad as he felt for using the archeologist to bait the other man, he couldn't resist the urge to do so. "It's so touching, the way you stand up for her. Are you sure she hasn't found somebody else, somebody who could satisfy her-a...real... man?"
At this, Lupin lost his last vestige of restaint and flung himself upon Snape, punching his face, and Snape, not one to sit passively and allow himself to be beaten, retaliated with great delight. Lupin was strong (with muscles, Snape was sure, that came from transforming into a werewolf once a month), but Snape could hold his own.
They were still scuffling when Dumbledore descended the stairs towards the Great Hall, and said in a loud voice, "Gentlemen, I believe you forget yourselves."
Lupin, looking incredibly ashamed, stood up immediately, brushing dirt off of his already dirty robes. His nose was bleeding and it looked as if Snape had hit him in his right eye, which was swelling and looked altogether disagreeable. "I'm sorry, Albus. I didn't mean to lose control," he mumbled, looking down at the floor.
Snape also stood up, but still looked defiant. His black eyes were shining with malice, although his left one was blackened and a small trickle of blood was seeping from the corner of his mouth. He wiped it away impatiently. "Headmaster, forgive me," he said, also a bit abashed.
"I am reminded of two students I once had," Dumbledore said, looking both of them over. "I had hoped, however, that these two young men had grown up. It doesn't seem that they did."
"He said...things, horrible things about Sylvia," Lupin said, looking at Snape as if he wished their fight hadn't been cut off.
"It seems that that is hardly a reason to resort to physical violence," Dumbledore replied. "He used words, Remus, mere words. You shouldn't have let these words affect you. I want you both to apologize to one another, and then, Severus, I would like to speak with you."
Snape felt a sudden sinking feeling, and realized that he wanted nothing less than to be rebuked by Albus Dumbledore for his behavior, which, he now saw, had been incredibly puerile. He and Lupin mumbled their apologies and shook hands hastily.
"The two of you should perhaps visit Madam Pomfrey, who, I'm sure, will help you with your wounds." Dumbledore added. Lupin nodded at his words, and set off up the stairs towards the infirmary. "Severus," Dumbledore said, and Snape, who had been about to follow the other man, turned to look at him. "We still need to talk. Perhaps now is not the best time to tell you this, but there are many things you don't know about Dr. Oliver, and I have realized that it is time to explain them to you. So after you have seen Poppy, please come to my office."
"Yes, Headmaster," Snape replied, trudging up the stairs. He wasn't looking forward to his talk with Dumbledore, not in the least.
****
That's the end of this one, guys. In the next chapter, you will learn a bit more about Dr. Oliver from Dumbledore, but certainly not everything. I haven't yet decided if we will find out why she is called Andromache by some. At this point, I would like to thank all my wonderful reviewers, and extend a special thanks to Severa, my favorite companion in Snapishness, for reading my story endlessly! May Alan Rickman live on in your heart forever!
