A/N: Congratulations to Reen, who guessed correctly what Disney film the
title of chapter 25 was. The answer of course, was Aladdin, where it is
spoken by the embodiment of the Cave of Wonders. None of you guessed my
hidden link to Disney though, in the same chapter. Tsk, tsk.
Muggle Plugs
As I strode on, I became less and less sure of myself. I realised that the fates were fast falling apart. Lily was inevitably going to have to pick a side; we couldn't spend the rest of our school lives sitting either side of her pretending the other wasn't there. I began imagining what I would do if this happened. Change houses? Nothing? Leave and go home?
I became so enveloped in my musings that I literally walked into Professor Dumbledore. I looked around, and realised I was on the corridor to his office, no where near the common room.
"Oh, I'm sorry sir, I...I must have taken a wrong turn somewhere, I..."
He chuckled warmly, and smiled down at me.
"My dear, I believe you have acquired your father's intuitiveness. He would often subconsciously travel to somewhere he was needed or required, and not know why or how he got there!"
I looked at him puzzled. Why was I needed or required here? In typical Dumbledore style, he read my mind.
"Come, to my office. I was just off to the hospital wing to find you."
"That would have been the last place you would have found me." I muttered, not entirely meaning for it to be said out loud.
"And why would that be?"
"Three's a crowd, I guess."
"I take it that you and Severus are still on rocky terms?" He tapped his wand on the door, and it flung open. Fawkes cawed almost politely at me, in a sort of greeting. At least Dumbledore was consistent; even his pet was madcap.
"Please, do sit down." He gestured to a big, green armchair opposite his desk.
"Thank you, sir. Yes, I'm afraid we are." I paused, and looked curiously at the old man who was busily tending to Fawkes food-bowl. "Sir, if you don't mind my asking, how did you know that we were...on rocky terms?"
"I taught both your parents, and both of his. I can see exactly what you both took from each parent, and I can read you both like books...most of the time, anyway!" He chuckled again, and I must have given him another questioning look, as he answered my mentally spoken questions once again.
"I say most of the time, because you both have a element you both take from your fathers." and he smiled warmly, looking turning to me from Fawkes' perch. "You are as unpredictable as the wind. So, most of the time I can see that you are going to do something totally unforeseen. The rest of the time, when you both occasionally choose to conform, I have no clue what you are going to do!"
It took me a few seconds to totally understand what he had said. When I did, I realised he was completely right.
"Now, onto more serious matters. Tea?"
"Uh, No thank you."
"Are you sure? It's finest Darjeeling!"
"Sure, thank you."
He poured himself a cup, and sipped it thoughtfully a moment. He then placed it onto the table, and took the teapot over to Fawkes. He then proceeded to pour it into the water-bowl, and the Phoenix eagerly lapped it up. He returned, took his tea, and sat down behind his desk. He again sipped thoughtfully, and glanced at the ceiling.
"You are a very strong young lady, Rene."
I didn't quite know what to make of this, but you rarely knew what to make of Dumbledore.
"Uh, thank you?"
"Yes, very strong. Not just physically, as you demonstrated earlier."
His eyes flickered briefly down from the ceiling to me, and back up again.
"I'm really sorry about that. I just lost my temper. I understand if..."
"Oh no, do not be sorry. You have been under a lot of emotional strain lately, and you were provoked. Perhaps, in future, you should try your best not to lose your temper quite so readily, but I cannot blame you. That Lucius Malfoy can say some frightful things, sometimes."
"Thank you, sir. If it ever happens again, I'll try not to throw anyone across a room."
At this we both laughed. It eased some of the tension, but a question still hung on the musty air.
"Sir, what did you want to talk to me about?"
He sighed heavily, and put down his cup.
"Rene, I believe the reason Severus is not talking to you is because you never told him about your true heritage, correct?"
"Yes, sir."
"He does not mean the things he says, you know. He's just in shock. He has been through quite a bit, lately."
"I know." I paused. Dare I ask him what had played on my mind since Christmas day?
"Sir?" I ventured tentatively "Why did you make me tell them?"
"That's a question I hoped you'd ask, Rene. I knew that above all people; you three trust one another. And I believe there is a special trust between you and Mr Camerson?" He smiled at this, and I am pretty sure I blushed. "All three of them, especially Mr Snape and Miss Evans, are going to need a strong friend like you more than ever now."
He paused in thought yet again, and got up to walk towards the window.
"I know it may have seemed an tactless and marvellously mistimed thing to do to you, but I had good reason. They need to know that you can keep secrets."
"What do you mean?"
"You have kept your deepest secret from them for five years, despite the fact that you would dearly loved to have told them the day you told them of your race, yes?"
"That would have taken a great weight off my shoulders, yes."
"They will come to realise this, and that if they have learnt anything from both that and your keeping Lily's secret," he shot me a quick glance. "Though that was perhaps not *as * wise, they can trust you. Trust you with anything. If I am correct, I believe Edward will come around to this way of thinking first, and you will be back to normality with him in a few days."
It did make more sense now he put it like that, and when I thought about it, it was indeed the most likely thing for Ed to do. I stopped to think about this for a while, and was startled when Dumbledore began to speak again.
"Of course, Miss Evans *knows * she can trust you, and can rely on you for advice. In future, I expect she will be quicker to follow it." He finished his tea, and placed it down on the table, and looked solemnly back at me.
"However, I do not think Severus will come round so quickly or easily. He will know, but not accept. There has always been a sense of suspicion in the Snape family, if nothing else remained a constant. I do believe though, without a doubt, that eventually he will come to his senses, and he will be the one who relies on you more than anyone." He paused rather dramatically, and looked over the rims of his half-moon spectacles at me with a piercing gaze. "I trust you will be there for him? He will say many things between now and then he does not mean, and he will have to swallow a great deal of pride to come to you for help."
"Yes sir, I will be. If you'd talk to him, I'm here for him now."
"No, no. He must come to his conclusion himself."
He began to ponder once again, and then looked at me questioningly.
"Are you familiar with any muggle devices?"
"Yes, a few..." Again, I could not see where he was going.
"Plugs?"
"For electricity? The things with Prongs they put into the wall?"
"Yes. That's the ones! Do you know how they work?"
I wondered for a moment myself. They put them into the wall and...
"No."
"Well, I believe there are 3 wires and a fuse. The fuse acts as a safety device if the others get out of control. Two of the wires are for the flow of electricity, and if they are mixed up can cause dire consequences. The other wire is an earth wire. It gets rid of any excess energy, and is one of the very important parts of the plug. A grounding influence, you might say."
At this he again looked over his spectacles and down his crooked nose at me. I took it as my cue to leave, as I was unsure what else to think about it. Muggle Plugs? I now understand what he meant quite clearly, and he never spoke truer words.
Muggle Plugs
As I strode on, I became less and less sure of myself. I realised that the fates were fast falling apart. Lily was inevitably going to have to pick a side; we couldn't spend the rest of our school lives sitting either side of her pretending the other wasn't there. I began imagining what I would do if this happened. Change houses? Nothing? Leave and go home?
I became so enveloped in my musings that I literally walked into Professor Dumbledore. I looked around, and realised I was on the corridor to his office, no where near the common room.
"Oh, I'm sorry sir, I...I must have taken a wrong turn somewhere, I..."
He chuckled warmly, and smiled down at me.
"My dear, I believe you have acquired your father's intuitiveness. He would often subconsciously travel to somewhere he was needed or required, and not know why or how he got there!"
I looked at him puzzled. Why was I needed or required here? In typical Dumbledore style, he read my mind.
"Come, to my office. I was just off to the hospital wing to find you."
"That would have been the last place you would have found me." I muttered, not entirely meaning for it to be said out loud.
"And why would that be?"
"Three's a crowd, I guess."
"I take it that you and Severus are still on rocky terms?" He tapped his wand on the door, and it flung open. Fawkes cawed almost politely at me, in a sort of greeting. At least Dumbledore was consistent; even his pet was madcap.
"Please, do sit down." He gestured to a big, green armchair opposite his desk.
"Thank you, sir. Yes, I'm afraid we are." I paused, and looked curiously at the old man who was busily tending to Fawkes food-bowl. "Sir, if you don't mind my asking, how did you know that we were...on rocky terms?"
"I taught both your parents, and both of his. I can see exactly what you both took from each parent, and I can read you both like books...most of the time, anyway!" He chuckled again, and I must have given him another questioning look, as he answered my mentally spoken questions once again.
"I say most of the time, because you both have a element you both take from your fathers." and he smiled warmly, looking turning to me from Fawkes' perch. "You are as unpredictable as the wind. So, most of the time I can see that you are going to do something totally unforeseen. The rest of the time, when you both occasionally choose to conform, I have no clue what you are going to do!"
It took me a few seconds to totally understand what he had said. When I did, I realised he was completely right.
"Now, onto more serious matters. Tea?"
"Uh, No thank you."
"Are you sure? It's finest Darjeeling!"
"Sure, thank you."
He poured himself a cup, and sipped it thoughtfully a moment. He then placed it onto the table, and took the teapot over to Fawkes. He then proceeded to pour it into the water-bowl, and the Phoenix eagerly lapped it up. He returned, took his tea, and sat down behind his desk. He again sipped thoughtfully, and glanced at the ceiling.
"You are a very strong young lady, Rene."
I didn't quite know what to make of this, but you rarely knew what to make of Dumbledore.
"Uh, thank you?"
"Yes, very strong. Not just physically, as you demonstrated earlier."
His eyes flickered briefly down from the ceiling to me, and back up again.
"I'm really sorry about that. I just lost my temper. I understand if..."
"Oh no, do not be sorry. You have been under a lot of emotional strain lately, and you were provoked. Perhaps, in future, you should try your best not to lose your temper quite so readily, but I cannot blame you. That Lucius Malfoy can say some frightful things, sometimes."
"Thank you, sir. If it ever happens again, I'll try not to throw anyone across a room."
At this we both laughed. It eased some of the tension, but a question still hung on the musty air.
"Sir, what did you want to talk to me about?"
He sighed heavily, and put down his cup.
"Rene, I believe the reason Severus is not talking to you is because you never told him about your true heritage, correct?"
"Yes, sir."
"He does not mean the things he says, you know. He's just in shock. He has been through quite a bit, lately."
"I know." I paused. Dare I ask him what had played on my mind since Christmas day?
"Sir?" I ventured tentatively "Why did you make me tell them?"
"That's a question I hoped you'd ask, Rene. I knew that above all people; you three trust one another. And I believe there is a special trust between you and Mr Camerson?" He smiled at this, and I am pretty sure I blushed. "All three of them, especially Mr Snape and Miss Evans, are going to need a strong friend like you more than ever now."
He paused in thought yet again, and got up to walk towards the window.
"I know it may have seemed an tactless and marvellously mistimed thing to do to you, but I had good reason. They need to know that you can keep secrets."
"What do you mean?"
"You have kept your deepest secret from them for five years, despite the fact that you would dearly loved to have told them the day you told them of your race, yes?"
"That would have taken a great weight off my shoulders, yes."
"They will come to realise this, and that if they have learnt anything from both that and your keeping Lily's secret," he shot me a quick glance. "Though that was perhaps not *as * wise, they can trust you. Trust you with anything. If I am correct, I believe Edward will come around to this way of thinking first, and you will be back to normality with him in a few days."
It did make more sense now he put it like that, and when I thought about it, it was indeed the most likely thing for Ed to do. I stopped to think about this for a while, and was startled when Dumbledore began to speak again.
"Of course, Miss Evans *knows * she can trust you, and can rely on you for advice. In future, I expect she will be quicker to follow it." He finished his tea, and placed it down on the table, and looked solemnly back at me.
"However, I do not think Severus will come round so quickly or easily. He will know, but not accept. There has always been a sense of suspicion in the Snape family, if nothing else remained a constant. I do believe though, without a doubt, that eventually he will come to his senses, and he will be the one who relies on you more than anyone." He paused rather dramatically, and looked over the rims of his half-moon spectacles at me with a piercing gaze. "I trust you will be there for him? He will say many things between now and then he does not mean, and he will have to swallow a great deal of pride to come to you for help."
"Yes sir, I will be. If you'd talk to him, I'm here for him now."
"No, no. He must come to his conclusion himself."
He began to ponder once again, and then looked at me questioningly.
"Are you familiar with any muggle devices?"
"Yes, a few..." Again, I could not see where he was going.
"Plugs?"
"For electricity? The things with Prongs they put into the wall?"
"Yes. That's the ones! Do you know how they work?"
I wondered for a moment myself. They put them into the wall and...
"No."
"Well, I believe there are 3 wires and a fuse. The fuse acts as a safety device if the others get out of control. Two of the wires are for the flow of electricity, and if they are mixed up can cause dire consequences. The other wire is an earth wire. It gets rid of any excess energy, and is one of the very important parts of the plug. A grounding influence, you might say."
At this he again looked over his spectacles and down his crooked nose at me. I took it as my cue to leave, as I was unsure what else to think about it. Muggle Plugs? I now understand what he meant quite clearly, and he never spoke truer words.
