Chapter Twenty-One
A Festival at Hogwarts
Time flew by for Jennifer as the festival neared. She was absorbed in preparing tests, getting with the merchants, and looking over the newspaper, while still managing to save a couple of hours on Fridays to help Minerva on the bridesmaid gowns as well as help make a dress for Christmas. Minerva had been positively flustered when Jennifer had asked her to be the witch of honor, having thought that it would have been more likely for Jennifer to have chosen Anna or even Rolanda. But Jennifer had always found it easy to go to Minerva especially when it concerned Severus, knowing that she would always get solid advice about things from Minerva whether it was personal or professional. And Minerva in turn had taken Jennifer under her wing from the very beginning, encouraging her head-on attitude while also helping to bring out the logical reasoning that always seemed to anchor Jennifer's nature. Minerva accepted, immediately offering to do the bridesmaid gowns, and they had gotten straight to work as if there were no time to lose. Jennifer couldn't figure out why Minerva wanted them done now so badly, but Minerva would just tell her that it gave her something relaxing to do and kept on measuring and marking.
It didn't seem long before Christmas was upon them, and Jennifer found herself gently chiding the students to look at their test papers and not out the window as tents, booths, and pavilions began to appear on the last afternoon of classes.
Unexpectedly Severus appeared in the doorway, looking far from happy. Jennifer quietly slipped outside the door, staying slightly to one side and keeping an eye on her class.
"What's wrong?" she asked in a low voice.
"Someone is setting up a tent for Francis Pyther, and I know he wasn't on the merchant list. Does anyone realize how dangerous that is?" Severus asked with irritation. Jennifer gazed at Severus understandingly.
"Actually, Dumbledore invited him to come and do a few portrait sittings, and Rosmerta knows about it. I guess I should have warned you…"
"Warned me? You should have stopped it! In fact, I have every intention of throwing him out the moment he arrives," he snapped as Jennifer tried to get him to keep his voice down.
"You'd better talk to Dumbledore first before you try it. He's his guest," Jennifer emphasized again. "And he trusts him. You know he's done many paintings for this school in the last five hundred…"
"From outside of the school property, where he can't make the entire school a banquet," Severus hissed.
"Look, you know I… one second," Jennifer stopped after noticing a few curious eyes and threatened the students to keep their eyes on their papers or lose them. Ratfly flew in the window and sat on the desk, disgruntled about playing babysitter. Jennifer and Severus took a few more steps back.
"I know how strongly you feel about this, Severus, and I don't blame you. At the same time, I'm sure that Dumbledore would never, ever have invited Mr. Pyther if he thought for one moment he would endanger anyone. You know that," Jennifer said, looking in his eyes. He was still frowning doubtfully at her. "However, if you want to try and talk Dumbledore into reconsidering, I will back you up. It's not worth having you worried about it all week."
Severus sighed, extremely unhappy but knowing it'd be next to pointless to try and talk Dumbledore out of something like this, even with the both of them ganging up. He did have every intention of letting him know he wasn't happy about it, however.
"Do not let him anywhere near you…" Severus warned.
"Severus, I have to do my job, you know," Jennifer reminded him, but saw the look on his face. "All right, all right, I promise I won't go anywhere near him unless another staff member is with me. As if I couldn't handle one of his sort on my own," Jennifer snorted slightly. Before Severus could say anything, Ratfly began to screech in alarm and Jennifer was forced to attend her class as one of the students had tried peering out the door again.
Jennifer took dinner in her classroom, hoping to get a jump on her marking the last of the papers so she could go ahead and post them. Severus had gone to the Great Hall to go over some of the rules that would be in place during the holiday and to hand out schedules. Minerva came into her office just after dinner, handing her a list of the students who had gotten special permission to go home over the holidays. There weren't very many; in fact, the list had gotten shorter and shorter as the festival approached and students talked parents into letting them stay.
"It looks like we're all set," Minerva smiled, excited in spite of herself. "And I must say, it looks fantastic out there. You should go wander through the courtyard before you turn in. The students are positively livid that we're not letting them outside yet, but I'm sure you'll notice the windows are full of heads when you go out there," she added with amusement. "Were you able to get an appointment with Mr. Pyther?"
"Yes, I have his second appointment on the 23rd. But Minerva, Severus wasn't very happy when he found out Pyther was coming. I'm really not sure this a good idea."
"Wasn't it Dumbledore's idea?" Minerva asked.
"I know, I know, if it was Dumbledore's idea you expect it was good enough. Severus did make me promise I wouldn't go anywhere near him without an escort though," Jennifer said.
"Now, that won't be a problem. I happen to know that Dumbledore has the first appointment on the 23rd, and he already expressed interest in staying for yours if it happened to be on the same day. I will make sure Severus is too busy to go looking for you while you have your painting done. I'm sure when you give it to him on Christmas he'll be pleased enough," Minerva reassured her.
"Well, we'll see," Jennifer said, going over to the door to post the marks. "There! All done, let the games begin," she chuckled.
Rushing up the back stairs, Corey couldn't have agreed more with her had he been there, although the games he had in mind would not have been of the sort that Professor Craw would have approved of. He tried to pace himself to keep from clinking, his robes filled with precious cargo as he dove down an abandoned corridor where a pack of students waited, frowning at him as he walked in.
"About time. I almost sent someone after you," Draco said, looking down at him suspiciously. "So? Did you get it?" Corey nodded quickly, catching his breath. "Did anyone see you?"
"No, of course not," Corey said, looking in his robe. He had carefully sectioned the phials before he had gotten there, and just as carefully picked the phials out handing one to each of them, saving Draco's for last. "There you are, every last one." Draco looked at his phial thoughtfully for a moment, then back at Corey. "Don't worry, it'll work."
"Just to be safe, why don't you take the first one, Corey? After all, this is to test your trustworthiness. You shouldn't have any trouble taking your own potion. Here, you can have mine," Draco suggested, handing it back and watching him carefully.
"All right," Corey said, calmly unstoppering the phial and drinking the entire thing. He felt a tingle and looked down at his hands, and suddenly his hands faded out of view, followed by the rest of him, his robe looking as if it was walking around by itself. "Wow, it works good, doesn't it?" Corey said, taking out another phial that floated over to Draco. Draco took it and put it away, and Corey worked on getting undressed, casting a protection against cold on himself as he kicked off the rest of his clothes. "See? It works perfect. The book says it lasts for six hours, so you'll have plenty of time to do whatever you want," he said cheerfully.
"Well done, Willowby. We'll see you in a few hours then," Draco nodded to the others, and they began to file out of the room. "And don't do anything foolish that would try and give yourself away. We won't cover for you if you get caught."
Corey waited a few moments, looking around for somewhere to hide his belongings before stuffing them on top of a wardrobe and ran towards the Great Hall. Before he got too far he ran into Taylor and Doug, who were talking quietly among each other.
"Sssh, watch what you say, don't forget there might be others around," Corey said, making them leap up in surprise. "Here, I got your sleeve, Taylor, come on," he said, and carefully dragged them back into the abandoned classroom. Taylor and Doug saw a lump of clothes fly down, and two phials came out of it, hovering in front of them "Well, don't just stand there, take it and put in your robe for now. Then go back to our room and drink it. Hurry, before everyone gets out of dinner."
"Can't we go to dinner first?" Doug asked.
"Do I look like I'm in any position to go to dinner? Malfoy made me take one of the potions."
"Which one?" Taylor asked.
"Sssh! Enough questions already, let's just do it so we can go take a look. I didn't go to all this trouble to miss the fun!" Corey said. The other two boys quickly went up to the dorms, and Corey easily slipped past the Fat Lady with the other two. In no time the other two boys had also taken the potions and stripped down as Corey cast the spell on them so that they wouldn't feel the cold.
"Don't forget to get back here by midnight," Corey whispered. "It'll wear off shortly after that."
"What about bed check?" Doug whispered back.
"Well, you can always come back early, but I'm not going to leave until I see if my plan works," Corey said. "Let's wait until someone leaves and we'll follow them out." The three of them slipped downstairs and waited impatiently by the door. Finally it opened as Ginny and Harry came in, followed by Ron and Hermione.
"Just be careful, Harry, don't get caught. You know Snape's going to be patrolling the courtyard tonight, and he'd be sure to come down on you if he finds out."
"Don't worry, it'll be just a quick run around the grounds and I'll be right back up here before anyone misses me," Harry promised. Quickly the three younger students held their breaths and slipped past them, heading down the stairs.
"See? We're not the only ones," Corey whispered, hoping the other two were close enough to hear.
"Let's just hope we aren't the ones who get caught," Doug whispered back.
It wasn't long before they stepped out into the snow, looking around in amazement at the transformation. From the center fountain to the gate, colorful tents and pavilions were laid out along the path, most of them covered up for the night, the canvas glowing from lanterns inside as the merchants prepared for the day ahead. To the left of the gate the space between the outer and inner walls was filled with rides like a large toboggan slide and a fun house. To the right was set up tables and a large eating area, covered by a canopy that spanned the outer walls, providing shelter from the snow. Game booths were spread out all over, while outside the gate a carefully laid path walled with arches of ice blocks lead all the way around to the Quidditch Pitch. Corey wasn't quite sure where to look first, everything looked interesting. His nose however reminded him how hungry he was, and he followed the smell of food to its source.
An open pavilion to one side of the canopy was set up with tables and strangely enough, an ornate wooden bar as well, keenly polished as if ready for the onslaught of drinks that would be served the next day. It was intricately carved with a pattern of roses and thorns, and in the center of the bar was carved three brooms with the handles crossed. Corey, who'd never gone to Hogsmeade, would never have made the connection, nor had ever met Rosmerta who was busy situating the tables on a floor of cut ice tiles. She turned suddenly, looking thoughtfully at the ground just beyond her pavilion for a moment, then went back over to her bar, rummaging behind it. She came out with a tray of steaming meat-stuffed rolls as casually as if she were expecting company, setting it down at the end table just inside the pavilion.
"Just a word of wisdom to drift into the open air," she said, hiding a smile. "An empty stomach is a noisy stomach." She made herself busy behind the bar, pretending not to notice as Corey hastily stuffed one of the rolls in his mouth, trying not burn himself in the process. Rosmerta decided to leave the plate there for a bit, just in case she had more visitors.
Feeling better for having eaten and much more willing to explore, Corey began poking about, looking curiously in tents. As he was running towards the rides, he bumped into something hard and fell back into the snow with an *oof * sitting up quickly.
"Who's there?" Corey whispered cautiously.
"Taylor," said the other boy. "Is that you, Corey? I think Malfoy and his gang are on the slide. Look, see the toboggans go down?"
"Good, I'd rather know where they are. Boy, are they going to be mad," Corey said, standing up and finding the other boy's arm. "Have you eaten? There's some food set out for us."
"What do you mean there's food set out for us?"
"A lady in the bar pavilion put out a plate of meat rolls. Real good stuff! Come on, I'll show you," he whispered, dragging him over there. The woman had sat down with a steaming drink, setting down another mug across from her. Suddenly they saw a hand reach out and grab the drink, and it disappeared.
"I don't think you should be so concerned about it. If it's meant to work out, it'll work out. And if it doesn't, trust me, he'll get over it. Good grief, Harry, the man survived over ten years in Azkaban, he'll bounce back," she assured the space in front of her.
"I've never seen him this bad before, though. I don't get it. I mean, he seemed glad that she came back, and yet now he's avoiding her like the plague, and then he sulks about it," the voice of Harry said.
"Yep, sounds like love to me," Rosmerta smirked. She then turned to look at the far table as two more meat rolls suddenly floated up and disappeared. She turned back to the table in front of her, propping her head in her hand. "I really need to have a talk with Albus about his security."
Corey and Taylor then snuck back over to the games, hushing each other loudly as Corey got one of the booths open so they could slip in.
"Wow, is this a dunk tank?" Corey asked. Five strange colored wheels hung below a large glass tank, very much like something Corey had seen before in the Muggle world.
"No, I should think not in this weather," Taylor chuckled. "That's the Color Wheel game. Someone gets up on the ledge, and the person playing has to hit all five wheels, and then whoever is up there gets dyed with magic colors that don't wear off for hours."
"Awesome! I should rule at this game," Corey said.
"Shh, I hear someone," Taylor said suddenly. The flap suddenly rose up and lowered again.
"Is anybody in here?" Doug whispered.
"Hi Doug, come check this out!" Corey said.
"No, no, we have to clear out. Snape's out on the prowl, and I'm telling you, it looks like he knows something's up. We have to get out of here," Doug said. Corey suddenly got a hand in his face.
"Hey! Watch it!"
"Sorry, Corey, but I'm serious, let's get out of here. Malfoy and Amadeus just took off on the Soarer Coaster, and if he sees the car gone, I'm sure he won't miss it."
"Soarer coaster? I didn't see any coaster. Is that like a roller coaster?" Corey asked.
"Don't even think about it, Corey, we'd definitely be caught then," Taylor warned him. "Doug's right, we'd probably better get out of here."
"You two go ahead, I don't want you in trouble," Corey whispered.
"What about you? I don't think McGonagall will be too happy if you end up in her office again," Doug whispered.
"No. I'm not leaving until the bomb breaks. Don't worry, it shouldn't be long now, you guys go ahead," Corey insisted.
"Come on, Doug, I'm not taking chances with Snape out here," Taylor said. The flap moved up, and Corey was somewhat relieved that he was alone again. He slipped out a moment later, trying to tie the flap shut. It was as he was moving towards the rides that he saw Severus Snape approach, staring thoughtfully at the booth that Corey had just come from. Snape was just about to head for the rides when he heard his name called and looked around to see Jennifer walking over to him. Corey ran over towards the slide.
"Wow, look at all of this. I can't believe all these rides Filius put together! He must be over there, because I think I saw the Soarer go up," Jennifer commented.
"Oh really?" Severus said. He squinted at where a long car shaped like a dragon sat on a short rail. The rail curved nearly straight up in front of the coaster but then ended, only needed to hold the coaster in place. Magic propelled the rest. "You haven't been over there at all?"
"No, not yet. Not that anybody's getting me on that thing," Jennifer said with a snort.
"Definitely not," Severus agreed. "Jennifer, have you seen… or rather, have you not seen Potter down here?" Jennifer looked over at him thoughtfully.
"No, not at all. Why, do you think he is snooping around?"
"Well someone is. My chain keeps going off, and there are a ton of footprints around with no owners. Come on," Severus said, walking past the carousel. The carousel animals glanced over at them sleepily but seemed otherwise undisturbed, and the fun house was locked up tight. It was then that they walked over to the slide.
The timing, in Corey's opinion, could not have been more perfect. An hour had just lapsed from the time the Slytherins had taken their potions, and Corey, standing out of the way beside the slide, watched in silent delight as his carefully dabbled potion suddenly wore off. Luckily, Corey had the feeling that Malfoy was going to make him drink one, and had switched to one of his good ones at the last moment, making sure that Draco got one of the weaker ones the second time around. So just as Snape and Craw arrived to see several toboggans seemingly sliding themselves down the hill, Crabbe and Amadeus suddenly appeared upon them, reaching the bottom in total nude splendor. Corey bit his hand to keep from laughing as Jennifer yelped out in surprise and Snape blinked, and then glanced up in time to see Malfoy dive for cover at the top of the slide. Bowyer and Casper dove into the snow to hide their naked forms where they had been standing near the coaster. Craw took out her wand and started dropping robes on their heads as Snape barked at all of them to come over.
"You should have let them walk in like that. Perhaps they would have learned something," Severus growled, screaming at Casper to move faster.
"No thanks, I could do without the free show," Craw said, her voice tinged with annoyance. "All right, who wants to be the one to explain all this?" she demanded. Snape was still looking around suspiciously.
"Watch these, I'm going to see if there are any more to gather," he said, tapping his neck. She nodded to him and concentrated on the ones she had, looking directly at Malfoy as all the other boys had turned to him. Malfoy, she noted, was livid with anger. She also noted it was directed at Corey.
Seeing the look on Snape's face, Corey began to get nervous. Surely he wouldn't suspect he was in on this. Especially since Snape knew his potions didn't wear off…well, unintentionally. But as Malfoy started into a distorted version of the truth as how Corey was the one who had suggested the trip and that if they looked he was sure he'd not be in his bed, Corey began to get nervous. He was going to have to beat the professors there, he knew. Backing up a few steps, Corey made a dash across the courtyard and towards the door. But unfortunately for Corey, he had forgotten a detail that Snape had noticed earlier, and as Snape watched the staggered footprints appear in the snow running towards the door, Snape quickly cut him off and beat him to the chase. Corey crashed into him, falling back in the snow with a groan. Snape didn't move, nor did his expression change noticeably while Corey sat there, waiting for him to blow. Instead, Snape just stood there and ground his teeth thoughtfully for a moment, looking off into the distance.
"I am only going to say this once," Snape said in a cold, low, dangerous tone. "If a certain first-year Gryffindor isn't at my office door when I get there in five minutes, he'll not see the outside of his room except for classes until the end of the school year. And that includes during Christmas." He then pulled his cloak around him and took a couple cautious steps out of the doorway. Corey knew better than to disobey, and he knew better than to think for one instant that he was exaggerating. He also knew, as he went inside, that this wasn't going to be good.
Jennifer was one of the first professors to arrive when the festival opened, feeling nearly as excited as the students as she watched the booths uncovered and merchants open just after breakfast. In fact, she immediately went over to the color wheel booth to chat with the brightly clothed barker Elf, volunteering to take the first turn up on the perch.
"Come one and all to the Color Wheel! Hit five targets, color the victim and get a prize! Choose your own colors, five knuts for one color and five balls! Five knuts for any additional colors or for two extra balls!" the barker told them as a few students wandered near. Jennifer had a great view of the festival and the people passing, and pretty soon she began calling out to the students, coaxing them with names and taunts to come over, to the point that the barker didn't have to do anything but explain rules and take the money.
"Come on Julie, you can throw better than that! Jack, are you just going to stand there, or do you have a bone to pick with me too?" Jennifer grinned, enjoying having a chance to pick on them without any of them taking offense.
"Well, I have a bone to pick with you, Professor," Seamus said, stepping up with a grin, paying for extra colors as the elf handed them over.
"Show these kids what you got, Prefect," Jennifer laughed down at him. "And what bone do you have to pick with me, anyhow?"
"Going and getting yourself engaged to someone like Severus Snape instead of waiting a few years for me," he said in a clear and indignant tone. Jennifer and the rest of the students laughed, and watched as he hit the first target, and then the second, but missed the third. "Rats, I knew I should have gotten more balls instead of extra colors."
"Tough luck, Seamus, good thing you did better than two out of five on your last test," Jennifer teased him. Five of the second year Slytherins came up and took shots, and she goaded them loudly, laughing when they missed, and telling them to stick to sparring. It was as the fifth one wound up that Jennifer noticed some familiar faces in the crowd.
"Anna!" Jennifer waved cheerfully as she, Harry, Hermione, Ron and Ginny sifted towards the booth in the growing crowd. "Come give it a go, guys, these Slytherin just can't aim. Hey Hermione, I don't suppose you've read any books on how to throw have you? Ginny, you can catch... maybe you can actually get near the target once in awhile."
"Notice she didn't ask the boys to step up," Ron said. "Well, I'm going to do it. I want to get even for the fact you're one of the only teachers that gives us homework on the first day of class!" He said and stepped up, putting his money on the table. "And I want purple, ichor green, and pumpkin orange," he declared, watching Jennifer scrunch up her face as his color choices.
"Fine, no sweat, you won't even hit a target," Jennifer said, "You never had a perfect test in your life, you won't get a perfect score!"
"No extra balls, please," he said. "Well, we'll see about that," he said, and hit the first target straight on. Several of the students cheered. He then nicked the second one, but it was enough, and the target went down.
"Not bad, not bad," Jennifer laughed, "But your luck's going to run out some time!" She said, just as Ron hit the third target. "Hey Seamus, you still watching? Ron's totally trying to show you up again…" she felt a slight shudder as he hit the fourth, blinked, then looked over at him thoughtfully. "Hey, Ron, can I talk you into changing the pumpkin orange to something more my shade?"
A cheering roar went up as Ron hit the last wheel and color sprayed out from all directions over Jennifer, covering her from head to toe in the three colors. Ichor green had ended up being the dominant, with half of her face and parts of her robe in brilliant purple and the other half of her face and parts of her sleeves and hands taking on the pumpkin orange. She stepped out laughing good naturedly as the barker handed Ron a stuffed snugly bear who then handed it to Hermione as the toy started cuddling cutely into her arm. Filius, who had been watching for quite some time, hopped up to take the seat, copying Jennifer's style by taunting the students into stepping up. Jennifer walked over to Anna, taking a moment to salute Ron and shake his hand.
"That's not permanent, I hope?" Anna asked, grinning at the wild coloring.
"Nah, it wears off eventually and it's harmless. It's actually a lot of fun!" she admitted with a chuckle. "Has anybody gone down the slide yet?"
"We haven't been on anything yet, but I want to do the Soarer coaster first," Ginny said.
"Me too, I've never been on one," Harry agreed.
"We're sure that thing is safe, right?" Hermione asked, looking thoughtfully at it.
"Well, if you're going on that, I'm not joining you. That thing makes racing brooms look tame to me," Jennifer said. Just then they watched as the car, shaped a bit like a Chinese dragon, shot up the bowing track and off of it, doing a quick loop before turning on its side and soaring in a spiral around the castle before taking a plunging dive into another loop, leaning back to its other side for one last swing around the castle before heading back to its track.
"Wow. Okay, I want to try that!" Anna said, grabbing Harry and Jennifer, who were struggling to get free.
"I'm not going on that! You go. I'm going down the slide, it looks much tamer," Jennifer protested.
"I'm not touching that slide, not after what Malfoy and his gang did last night!" Ron said disgustedly. Jennifer stopped and put her hands on her hips.
"And just how exactly did you find out about that?" she asked, squinting at Harry suspiciously. He grimaced, knowing he couldn't hide the fact that he'd been out there from her. "You just be glad Snape didn't catch you," Jennifer said frowning disapprovingly at him. "Not to mention me."
"I had to talk to Madame Rosmerta about something important," Harry explained quickly. But before Jennifer could question them further they were getting on the ride, and Jennifer backed way up then walked over to the slide. Taylor and Doug were just in front of her talking, but they quickly became quiet when she walked up, and she shook her head as she read their faces.
"Oh no, not you two as well! Good grief, I knew we were slipping, but this is ridiculous," Jennifer muttered. "What, was half the school out here?"
"Uh, Professor, you see…"
"No, no, save yourselves and don't say anything," Jennifer warned them. They exhaled as they realized she was going to let them off the hook. "But I swear, I'd better not catch you doing anything like that again."
Several other students came up behind her and she decided not to say anything else, climbing up the spiral steps to the top of the icy ramp, and belly flopping down comically on the toboggan slide as she headed down the icy slope towards the bottom of the ramp. Falling into the cushion of snow at the bottom, Jennifer rolled off chuckling and stood to dust herself off, waving to Filius who was sporting pink, blue, and white.
"That was great! Filius, these rides are super! I'm going to ride the carousel later if I can find one that won't throw me," Jennifer said.
"What, not the Soarer Coaster? It took me two weeks to make that, you know. In fact, I'm going on it now, come on!" he coaxed her.
"No way," she grinned at him. "Who's in the booth?"
"Rolanda is there, with half the school's Quidditch teams trying to get her painted in their team colors," Filius chuckled.
"I'm going to go see that!" Jennifer grinned. Rolanda was having a hard time getting anyone to hit the targets, and was laughing at them nearly uncontrollably, especially at the Chasers, goading them for not being able to throw. "Where's Justin?" Jennifer asked the crowd after no one could get past the third target. "I bet he can get her off that perch."
"Hey, Jennifer! No one said staff couldn't try, or do you throw like you ride a broom?" Rolanda said, enjoying herself way too much.
"Fine, I'll bite," Jennifer laughed, working her way up. "Blue and bronze, please, in honor of my mother. And just five balls, I like a good challenge."
"Aha, is that how you ended up with Snape?" Rolanda laughed.
"That's it, she's mine," Jennifer laughed, and threw the first ball, landing it. The Ravenclaw team cheered loudly as she wound up for the second, hitting it square on.
"Wow, she can throw and she doesn't even have to look in her mirror to do it, I'm so impressed!" Rolanda chuckled.
"Rolanda, I swear, if you don't stop I'm either going to flatten you or I'm going to be laughing too hard to throw!" Jennifer said, hitting the third one.
"Fault! Fault! Penalty for throwing over the line! Come on, barker, did you see that?" Rolanda said, pointing accusingly at Jennifer.
"Ha! This from the person who hasn't made a good call all year!" Jennifer laughed. "You really need to clean your goggles off once in awhile so you can tell the difference between a Snitch and a dirt speck!" Jennifer harped back.
"At least I know how to duck a Bludger! How many speeds does that automatic have, anyhow? Slow, super slow, and hyper slow?" Rolanda asked, as Jennifer hit the fourth target. "There! Did you see that? That ball just went faster than Jennifer's broom! Maybe you should try throwing it instead of riding it sometime! Might get farther." Jennifer looked over at Rolanda and the both of them broke out in another round of laughter to the point where the last ball thudded down the bottom of the booth as Jennifer lost control of the throw. "Looks like Professor Craw took another dive! Who's next?"
But fortunately by that time Justin had been found, and he took all seven balls, having no intention of taking any chances. But he need not have worried. At lightning speed he hit the targets while Rolanda, still trying to recover from her bout with Jennifer, tried to think of things to say before a spray of black and yellow came up around her, leaving the top half yellow and the bottom black with splotches of each on the other, the Hufflepuff team clapping loudly, and everyone giving Justin a clout on the back as Rolanda stepped down.
"I'm starving. Jennifer, how about we let the barker break for lunch? I'm in the mood for some meat rolls and butterbeer," Rolanda grinned at her companionably. Agreeing that that sounded like a plan, the barker closed up for a bit as the girls headed over to the Three Broomsticks pavilion. It was quite packed when they got there, but Jennifer spotted Dumbledore and Severus at a table in the back of the pavilion and went over. Dumbledore chuckled at their appearances.
"Ah, here come two of my more colorful professors now. Come have a seat! I see you both have all ready done your time on the wheels, have you?" Dumbledore smiled. Jennifer sat next to Severus, as he smirked at her purple face.
"I was the first one in," Jennifer said cheerfully. "It's very fun! Ron finally got me. You should get in it, Severus."
"I most certainly will not."
"He's right, Jennifer. Just think, we might lose the entire student body in a comatose state of shock to see him in anything but black," Rolanda grinned.
"Oh, come on, Severus, where's your Christmas spirit? And you'd sure to be very popular," Jennifer said flirtatiously.
"I'll spare myself the fame," Severus said, trying to ignore Jennifer.
"Well, I think everyone should get in the thing at least once," Rolanda said. "Dumbledore, can't you talk him into it? I'm sure the students would have a blast."
"I'll make a deal with you, Severus," Dumbledore said, a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "I'll go over there and stay in there for half an hour, if you go in there for five minutes."
"Five minutes? But that's nothing, Dumbledore, it took them over an hour before they nailed me," Rolanda protested.
"See? Chances are you won't even get touched, but you should at least give them a small chance at it," Jennifer said coaxingly. Severus scowled at Dumbledore, and then at Jennifer and Rolanda, then back at Dumbledore.
"Fine. Five minutes, but only if Dumbledore goes first so he can't find a good excuse to get out of it later." Severus said. "I cannot believe I'm agreeing to this," he muttered to himself.
By the time they had finished lunch, Jennifer was back to her normal colors, and Dumbledore, true to his word, got onto the platform. A huge crowd immediately developed in front as everyone realized who was in there, although no one seemed to want to step up and actually try it.
"Oh, come on, you guys were willing to try and hit me often enough," Jennifer said at their nervousness and put down some knuts, picking out a few colors. Strangely enough, all her shots went very wide, not even able to hit the first target. "Well, that's odd," she muttered, knowing quite well she should have been able to hit at least once. As she stood there she noticed someone else step up, then found herself grinning at Harry as he put down some coins. She turned around to wave at his three companions, and then back at Anna, who was standing with Severus. Harry, unfortunately, had just as bad luck as she did, and so Ron tried… but he too, had no luck, and neither did Justin, even though both of them, Jennifer knew, were unbelievable good shots. Dumbledore smiled and nodded as each person tried, but didn't try to goad them at all, instead he turned to a book that he took out of his pocket, reading it.
"He's cheating! He has to be," Severus snapped, looking at the Headmaster accusingly. Anna, who had been thinking the same thing, stepped over, paid the knuts, and picked one of the balls up then threw it, aiming not for the target but off to the side. It hit the target, causing Dumbledore to regain interest, putting the book away and watching her thoughtfully. Anna, thinking she figured it out, then tried the same thing with the next target, but it hit exactly where she had intended it to go. She tried hitting the target dead on, but it didn't want to hit that either. It was at that point she knew it was going to take more balls than she had to do this. No matter what she tried to do she couldn't hit the second target. Finally she stepped back and Hermione came over to her.
"How did you hit that first target?" Hermione wanted to know.
"Trying to hit it off to the side," Anna said. "But it wouldn't work on the second one." Hermione decided to try it herself, and by using the same method as Anna also managed to hit the first target, but not the next one. Suddenly she got an idea, and handed one of her balls back to Anna.
"It's a puzzle, I'm sure of it. Maybe it takes more than one person. Here, try to hit the second one now that I've hit the first one," Hermione suggested. But Anna tried and it did the same thing again. And yet, there was something right about Hermione's reasoning, and Anna knew it.
"Hermione, the way it works is a person can hit the first target by trying not to hit it, but never the second, right?"
"Right, that's why I was thinking another person would help," Hermione said.
"But if whichever target is hit first is the first target. So once that's determined, it can't be hit anymore," Anna said.
"Maybe it takes five people at once?" Hermione suggested.
"I bet that's it," Anna agreed, and went over to the table. Anna put a few sickles on the table to order her colors and getting five balls handed one to Hermione, Harry, Ginny, and Ron. "On the count of three, guys, ready?"
"Ready," they grinned back.
"Don't try to hit the targets, just try to throw at the same time," Hermione reminded them. "Alright, Anna!"
Just on the mark of three they all threw their balls and sure enough they all hit their targets at the same time as an explosion of colors went out upon the Headmaster as the crowd behind them cheered. As the color spray ended everyone laughed to see Dumbledore completely colored in rainbow stripes from head to toe, even over his trailing beard. He gently wiped his glasses clean of the color and put them back on as he stepped down, smiling warmly at the five.
"Amazing what you can accomplish when you work together, isn't it?" Dumbledore said in amusement.
"Hey, who do I give the prize to?" the barker wanted to know.
"May I?" Dumbledore asked, and the other five nodded as he took the bear. Suddenly it popped into five smaller bears in rainbow colors, jumping out and into their hands with a wink. Finally Dumbledore turned and looked at Severus, who was attempting to back away from the crowd and escape Dumbledore's searching eye.
"Your turn, Professor Snape. A deal is a deal," he said, somehow making his low voice heard above the crowd. Jennifer, who hadn't noticed Severus slipping away behind her, quickly spotted him and folded her arms. The crowd began chattering in excitement again as Severus reluctantly stepped forward, scowling at them as if threatening anyone and everyone who was considering stepping up to the counter.
"Five minutes," Severus said, "and then you leave me alone about it the rest of the festival."
"Agreed," Dumbledore said with a slight smile on his face.
"Only five minutes? But hardly anyone will get a chance, maybe two or three people," Ron said. Seamus took two steps back from the counter.
"Not me, he hasn't posted potion tests yet," Seamus said with a chuckle. Several other students, upon thinking about that, decided to back up as well.
"Well, someone try it!" Jennifer said, as Severus looked at his watch, "He's only up there five minutes!"
She looked out towards the crowd then and slipped into it as Dumbledore watched her with amusement before turning back at Julie Brim, who worked herself into trying. She was quickly surrounded by tons of encouraging voices as she tried, and managed to hit two of the targets before falling short. Next came Parvati Patil, Draco's Gryffindor girlfriend, who managed to hit three. Just then Jennifer fought her way up to the front with someone in tow, putting money down on the table and handing a ball to him.
"Don't move, Severus, he paid before the five minutes were up!" Jennifer said. "Pick a few colors, Neville."
Neville Longbottom never had a particular like for the Potion Master…in fact, he had always been rather afraid of him. It was that fear that suddenly led to his decision of colors, and a genuine smile crept across his face as he thought of his grandmother's usual wardrobe. Quickly so he wouldn't lose his nerve he threw the balls, hitting each target with such accuracy that one couldn't help but wonder if another force was involved as Severus got sprayed with the dye. Neville suddenly found himself in a cheering rush of laughing praising students, hoisting him up on their shoulders and carrying him out into the courtyard.
Severus came out nearly completely green, with brown on his legs and specks of red scattered about making him look like a tall, spindly Christmas tree. Jennifer couldn't help but to burst out in laughing as he went over and said something quite short to Dumbledore, who managed to give him only a controlled smile in return. Jennifer tried to stop laughing but just couldn't help it, so wasn't too surprised to find Severus picking her up, carrying her over to the platform, and setting her down on it heading over to the counter. She also wasn't too surprised when he didn't miss.
After the experience of being hot pink for the rest of the evening, Jennifer decided not to get into the wheel again, and it was just as well. The next day was her day to oversee the rides and help with security, and the day after that was her scheduled appointment with Francis Pyther.
Francis, whom she had met the evening before, was a thin, pale, dark haired wizard that greeted her with a charming, gentle smile and thoughtful red eyes, instantly delighted to learn that she was going to be sitting for him. He had nearly reached out to kiss her hand when they were first introduced, but when Minerva went on to say she was Severus' fiancée, he quickly pulled his hand back apologetically and bowed nobly to her instead. Jennifer couldn't help but wonder about it, noticing from the painter's face that he had already had some words with Severus since he had arrived. However, true to her word, Minerva had sent Severus on an errand on the night of her sitting, and Jennifer was able to slip into her new blue velvet dress with elegant drop-down shoulders and a form-fit bodice, flowing out into a full, elegant skirt. As she looked in the mirror, she noticed her neck looked unnervingly bare and opted suddenly to go with a choker of white pearls that had been her mother's. Then, she walked down to the tent.
Mr. Pyther's receptionist welcomed her, showing her into the sitting room where Pyther was intensely absorbed in finishing up the final details of his picture of Dumbledore. Dumbledore, sitting at the other end of the tent, smiled warmly at Jennifer, and Pyther paused and smiled at him.
"There, that's the look I was missing! A warm, rather proud look…I definitely have to get that in here," Pyther said decidedly. Jennifer peered over the painter's shoulder, amazed at the level of artistry and precise coloring in the painting. She couldn't imagine that he missed anything; the painting had so much of Dumbledore in it all ready, and had even captured the twinkle that often appeared in his eyes. The painting suddenly looked up and winked at her, and Jennifer chuckled softly, causing Pyther to look around in surprise.
"Your work is positively amazing, Mr. Pyther." Jennifer said, smiling apologetically for startling him.
"Well! Now I know where that smile came from. Professor Craw, you are poetry in motion," Pyther said. "I look at you and see a vision of springtime that refuses to fade into summer. Please feel free to make yourself comfortable. I won't be much longer."
"You have been saying that for some time," Dumbledore pointed out to him good-naturedly. "Of course, I was planning on staying anyhow, so it is of no matter." With flourishing, exaggerated movements, Pyther dabbed on some finishing touches, and turned the painting around for Dumbledore's inspection.
"Francis, you are most definitely one of the most talented artists in the world, there is no doubt of that. What do you think of it, Jennifer?" Dumbledore asked. Jennifer gazed at the painting, which smiled warmly back at her in return.
"It's perfect," Jennifer said with a smile. Francis bowed to both of them.
"I'm quite honored, for both the opportunity and the complements," he smiled. He then set the painting back to dry and went to get a fresh canvas as Jennifer and Dumbledore switched places. His palette was filled with white paint and he took out a needle, but as he took a step forward he hesitated. Jennifer, seeing his discomfort, took the needle herself and pricked her finger, letting a few drops of blood drop into the paint which then separated on its on into colors matching her basic tones. Smiling gratefully, he took the palette back and walked back over to the canvas.
Jennifer was soon made to tell him about herself so he could begin to get a feel for her personality and emotions. He seemed to be interested in everything, from growing up and going to school, her feelings about work, her fears concerning broom riding and her experience riding on a Unicorn. Every now and then she would get to something that would make her hesitate, but Dumbledore would always smile at her reassuringly and she would continue. It was after Pyther had found out that the painting was for Severus that his questions took another dramatic turn, becoming more difficult to answer as he began to ask how they first met and how they got together.
It was at that point that Dumbledore picked up the conversation, reminding her of the Ministry Ball, and the night she woke up from Cosmic Sleep, and when they had announced Christmas morning they were engaged. She even found herself talking a little about when he proposed, and after Dumbledore's curious inquiry, gave an account of what had really happened between Peeves and them that day he decided to taunt them through the school. Jennifer, who hadn't at that point realized that Peeves had been going through the entire school singing, blushed noticeably, apologizing emphatically to Dumbledore for the trouble, which he waved off.
"Nonsense, Jennifer. I don't think the two have you have ever been indiscreet, and everyone in the school knows that Peeves only does those sorts of things to get people into trouble. Do not worry yourself about it. Be assured if I or Minerva ever had any doubts about your discretion you would have already heard about it by now," Dumbledore said.
"But in the past, I know most of the other times professors were involved or married, they kept it secret," Jennifer replied.
"Not all of them. And the reasons for the ones that I do know about, I assure you were a bit more complicated than school image. Just as Severus and your reasons for making it public is also more complicated than that, and it was not something either of you did lightly. Goodness, I've never known the two of you do much of anything without discussing it for months beforehand, or even consulting me on occasion. In fact, and don't you dare tell him I told you so, he's even come to me about your discussion about whether or not to have children."
"Professor!" Jennifer said, looking completely shocked at first. Then her face turned a deep crimson.
"And, while we're on the subject, I'd like to put your mind at ease about something that I know has been on bothering you for quite some time. If the two of you manage to find a way to reasonably handle both a family and your job responsibilities, which I have no doubt you are capable of doing, I have every intention of supporting your decision to pursue that in every way. I'm not about to let one of my best professors go just because she wants to have children, and woe to any member of the board who tries to convince me otherwise," Dumbledore said with such reassurance that Jennifer's face lit of up with relief and joy, taking a quick moment to get up and hug him warmly. He patted her back with a smile. "You'd better get back over there so Francis can finish the painting, you know."
"Great stars, I totally forgot!" Jennifer said, flustered, apologizing emphatically and wiping the tears out of her eyes as Francis chuckled.
"That is quite all right, Professor Craw. The more emotions I can see, the better the painting, you know. And you, my dear, are a diamond of emotions, each one having many facets, yet as clear as crystal and as brilliant as firelight."
"Are you a painter or a poet?" Jennifer laughed, trying to regain her composure on the stool.
"Both! Amazing what five hundred years of time can do to help encourage someone to improve more than one skill at the same time. You see? I can even paint and talk at the same time. What good is it to be cursed if I can't get something out of it in exchange for the misery it brings me?" he asked glibly. "If it weren't for my art, I probably would have lost my soul and turned cold and heartless, more monster than man. But I am who I am, and I've learned to be content with that, despite what challenges it throws at me."
"Tell me, Francis," Dumbledore asked, "wasn't your father a painter as well?"
"Yes, of course. Very famous in fact, and quite a famous man in general too. He did several of the paintings in the school as well, you know. I used to hang around the sitting room and watch him paint. I'd always known that was what I wanted to do when I grew up…to make an image, to capture in it the heart and soul of the person so clearly that hundreds and hundreds of years later someone might look at them and know them…I don't think I'd really care to be anything else. It was what I was meant to be. One shouldn't fight destiny when it looks you in the eye, it can be a mean enemy. Better to have him as a cautious friend," he smiled.
"Very true," Dumbledore nodded. "And yes, I think I've seen your father's work. I was wondering if you might know or remember if Mallus Craw was ever one of his portrait subjects?"
"Oh, my goodness, yes. I will never forget that sitting, even if I was a small boy at the time," Francis nodded, noticing with wonder at Jennifer's stony expression. "Well, there's a new look. Ah, but then, he was a relative of yours wasn't he, Professor? Yes, I suppose all of the Craws are. He frightened me terribly as a child. I was so sure I would be his next victim, you know. He was a master of Dark magic, and also of sound…the Screamer, they called him, or was it the Shrieker? But he could do more than the banshee cry he was known for, yes much more; the cry of a siren, the call of a lost soul…ah, no doubt about it, he was the most powerful wizard of his time. Perhaps not as powerful as You-know-who, but quite close indeed. And he too hated Muggle kind very strongly. Perhaps not as much as those of Salazar's blood; but then, Mallus hated them as well. Something about an old feud between the two Dark magic families caused it…I'm not sure what started it… I only know that the hatred was there.
"Anyhow, Mallus began attacking Muggle villages all over Europe, posing as a banshee to cover his tracks, even though everyone in wizard society knew who was doing it. But then he cast the plague spell on a town and captured their children, slaughtering them like cattle. That's when a group of wizards formed a posse and went after him, and he finally met his end. He was a very frightening, horrifying wizard. You are very fortunate never to have known him."
"We actually did meet a semblance of him in my very office just two months ago, believe it or not," Dumbledore said. "A part of his ghost was captured in the mirror behind your father's painting." Pyther glanced between Dumbledore and Jennifer.
"I'm terribly sorry! I wasn't aware that something like that was done, or I definitely would have warned you the moment I had heard a Craw had come back to Hogwarts! Good heavens, I hope he wasn't released!" Pyther exclaimed.
"Do not worry, Pyther, he is gone now," Dumbledore assured him, and Pyther relaxed noticeably. "I only bring it up because Jennifer is looking for the Forbidden Tomb, because there is some great concern that Voldemort is looking for it."
"Salazar's tomb. Well, he must not find it!" Pyther said, pausing from his painting. "Do you think that Mallus Craw's burial place might have a clue? Because you see, I do know where that is. It's in Germany. I'd be happy to show you where it is if you think it'd be any help."
"That would be most helpful," Dumbledore said after seeing Jennifer nod. "Perhaps you would be willing to escort Jennifer and Professor Snape there just after Christmas before classes start up again?" he suggested. Pyther froze, the fear now evident in his eyes.
"Sir, no, I couldn't possibly even consider it. As much as I would like to help this good cause, you can't ask me to go anywhere with Professor Snape."
"Jennifer would be with you. I'm sure she'd make sure you both kept it civil," Dumbledore said gently.
"Professor, I really do think that would be taking things too far. You can't possibly ask Severus to do this. You know how he gets about Pyther's kind," Jennifer said worriedly.
"Vampires, Jennifer, just say the word, please," Dumbledore said. "And I quite assure you, Francis, that he feels the same about you as you do of him. But the fact remains that if Jennifer must go then you must take her, and I very seriously doubt that Severus will let her go alone with you. Besides, now that you have seen him through Jennifer's eyes, don't you see that he's not a bad sort of wizard after all?" Dumbledore asked. Dumbledore got up, glancing over at the painting of Jennifer, nearly complete in front of the Pyther. Dumbledore nodded at her portrait, and gently towards Jennifer, and both of them were looking extremely concerned. "You do know it, Pyther. It's already there in your painting. And I'm tired of you avoiding the school and trying to do everything through Rosmerta out of fear. I really think you should honor your offer to help Jennifer find what she needs to find. And Jennifer, Severus is never going to be able to trust himself unless he gets over this. It has to start somewhere," Dumbledore said, sitting back down. Jennifer looked thoughtfully at Pyther who met her gaze in return before changing the conversation to happier thoughts so he could finish up the painting.