Chapter 3
Venus had to swallow her pride and go back to her room that night. Severus was sat on the couch directly in front of the door as she walked in. he was reading an apocarthery catalogue and filling in an order form at the same time. He pretended not to notice her as she walked into the room. Thankful for this she walked across the lounge to her bedroom.
"Sorry," Severus said as she was just about to open the door to her room.
"Pardon?" Venus asked astounded, she doubted if Severus ever said sorry.
"You heard what I said." He said again. All the time he talked he didn't look up form his catalogue.
"Oh erm ok." Venus said and just stood in the door way for a moment.
Then she turned and walked back to the couch and sat down next to Severus. For a moment she just watched him drag his finger down the columns of ingredients and then stop at the ones he wanted and write them down. Then without thinking she leaned over and kissed his cheek. He turned to look at her.
"Are you sure you want to do that?" he raised an eyebrow at her and carried on with the work.
Slightly insulted by the fact Severus didn't drop everything and catch her in his arms and kiss her all over Venus got up.
"I'm going to pick these things up from Diagon alley tonight. So if you'd like to come and see London, either muggle or wizarding part you're welcome to join me." Severus said as she reached her door.
She nodded and went inside her room. Despite herself she was grinning. As soon as she shut the door she ran and jumped on her bed giggling to herself. She was acting like the students did when they found out the person they liked, liked them as well.
'I'm going in on a date with Severus Snape!' she thought to herself. 'Oh my god what am I going to wear?' she thought as she mentally went through her wardrobe.
She popped her head back round the door to the lounge.
"Severus did you say you would be going into muggle London too?" she asked as casually as she could manage.
"Yes so I would suggest muggle clothes." He said absently, his mind still on the ingredients.
An hour later she was ready. She had chosen to wear black trousers and black boots with backless vest top and a black jacket that matched the trousers. He had brushed her hair until it shone and even found her lipstick. She considered herself in the mirror.
"Very nice sweetie," her reflection said, "it's casual and dressy at the same time. Go knock him dead hunny."
Venus sprayed a bit of perfume on herself before confidently walking out of the room.
Severus was stood next to the fire waiting. He looked sexy to say the least. She realised a lot of his grim appearance was not his own. His usually greasy hair was now brushed and the style was lovely. Also his teeth weren't as crooked as usual and they were very white. The stern look on his face had gone and now only mild annoyance was there. He looked smart in a casual Armani suit. Why he had that she didn't know. It was a muggle designer!
"Ah good your ready. You look nice." He said and extended a hand to her. "I suppose you're expecting me to be terribly stern and grim?" he asked and watched as she nodded meekly. "Well then I'll see you're not disappointed." He said and smiled.
He reached into a pocket and took out a bag of floo powder and threw it into the flames and gestured for Venus to go ahead.
"Just say Diagon alley and you should get there." Severus said and watched her enter the flames.
Venus stepped in and said Diagon alley clearly and then she could feel the air rushing past her. Moments later she was standing in the fireplace of a grubby pub. No sooner had she stepped out of the way then Severus appeared.
"Evening Tom," Severus said and nodded towards a gummy looking man behind the bar, the man nodded back.
Venus followed Severus out of the pub into a back alley and watched as he tapped some stones on the wall in front of him. As he did this the bricks quivered and moved back to reveal a hole through which a busy high street was visible. When the hole was visible they walked down the street.
Either side Venus could see lots of things she would adore to have. Madame Malkins robes were famous! What she would have given for her evening robes. There was Olivanders also famous. Up ahead was a huge brilliant white marble building.
"What's that place?" Venus asked Severus.
"Gringotts, I have to go and get some money changed there. I won't be a minute." Severus said and walked up the steps.
About 15 minutes later they were back in Diagon alley and they both had changed their Galleons, Sickles and Knuts for notes, pounds and pence. They made their way back up the street and back through the pub into London. It was about 6.30pm.
"I thought you had to get potion ingredients?" Venus said.
"I'm not carrying them around London anyway I thought seeing as we missed dinner then we should go and get some here in town. What would you like?" Severus asked seeing Venus looking in every shop.
"Can we just look around first? I've never been to London before." Venus was looking around wide eyed at the shoes and clothes and jewellery all around her. What she loved most though was a big music shop.
"What on earth would you want cd's for?" Severus asked perplexed.
"I love muggle music! It's great! I can't use my muggle music players in Hogwarts their electrical. But I still love all this. I mean artists like Frank Sinatra! When he sang 'Witchcraft' I nearly died! I love it! I mean you'd think after that muggle's would guess he was a wizard! That and come fly with me." Venus laughed.
When Severus eventually managed to pull Venus from the shops he took her to a little restaurant in china town. Soon they were tucking into dim sum and crispy duck and a huge range of other Chinese dishes.
"So why the bad guy image?" Venus asked after her 6th glass of wine.
"Why not? I get the discipline from the kids. I don't get flirted with by staff. Well until now anyway. I had the attitude down already. I was a lonely child, always sick. I was always in bed with the flu or with some other disease so I spent a lot of time reading and playing with my potions kit. Well until about 11 I was constantly ill so I never spoke to other children. I hated them. They were selfish spoiled brats. Well that's what I thought at the time. I had grown to like solitude and I found that by acting like I do now then I was left alone. So I found it easy to get through life without them. I'm not really as cold as that. I was married at one point but that didn't work out. The woman ran off with some muggle. I never really let anyone get too close to me after that." Severus stopped and took a mouthful of wine thoughtfully.
Venus who had been listening intently opened her mouth.
"Oh that's awful. I was a lonely child but I had a lot of friends, well I grew up in France and we lived next to the beach so there was always someone to play with." Venus said and took another sip of wine.
"So I suppose you were never lonely?" Severus asked, knowing the answer. "I was always lonely that's why I did what I did." As soon as Severus said that he knew he shouldn't have.
"Why what did you do?" Venus asked hanging on his every word.
"Oh nothing of importance," Severus said and he absently let his right hand move across his left forearm.
Venus noticed what he did. Then she looked as if she had a moment of understanding. She reached across the table and pushed back the sleeve of Severus's shirt before he could stop her. There it was clear on his forearm. The symbol of evil.
Enraged she stood up and as she did sent her glass of red wine flying across the table spilling wine every where.
"You're a death eater?! No wonder you fucking didn't want me to know! Did you want to convert me to the dark side or just use me and then kill me?" Venus was so angry she could feel the tears welling up in her eyes.
"No Venus.. You don't understand." Severus said quickly jumping up too to try and stop her leaving.
"In think I understand perfectly well," she shouted and ran out of the restaurant,
Severus got up, grabbed his jacket and threw some money at the waiter and ran after her into the street. He looked both ways along the street and then he heard Venus's steps echoing and saw a figure running up the street to his left. He ran after her trying not to stumble in the dark.
"Venus! Wait!" he shouted as he followed her.
He turned a corner into the street she had run down and saw she had run into a dead end.
"Stay the hell away from me!" Venus screamed as she pointed her wand at him. "Don't come near me."
"Venus listen to me, I'm not what you think. I mean I am but not in the way you think." Severus tried to explain.
"You're a carnage loving death eater and I want nothing to do with you! You murdering bastard! Its scum like you that made me lose my parents." Venus sobbed.
"Expelliarmus." Severus said simply and caught Venus's wand as it sailed towards him.
"Give me back my wand now!" she yelled backing even further against the wall.
"Listen to me then. If I give you your wand and my wand together will you listen? I'll be unarmed, just listen to me." Severus said in a low voice.
Severus took a step forward, at which Venus twitched. He lay the wands down on the floor and backed away. Venus didn't go forward to pick the wands up but she did watch him.
"Yes it is true I was a death eater. I was young and it was the only way I felt I fitted in, all my friends became them and I was expected to, because I was in Slytherin. I hated it, it was degrading and disgusting, I went to Dumbledore for advice, I couldn't go anywhere else. Dumbledore told me not to give it up because I would be killed instead he had a plan. He used me as a spy. Voldemort thought he had the advantage over Dumbledore by having a death eater into the school, but he didn't know I was a spy. So I have kept the charade up all this time. Learning what was going on in the ranks of the dark forces. It wasn't easy to get back in I had the excuse I couldn't apperate to him when he called me as I was in Hogwarts and the staff or students would get suspicious so I have always had the advantage of never having to spend too much time with that scum." Severus stopped and looked at Venus.
She looked shocked and unsure. She didn't know whether to believe him or curse him.
"Why. why didn't you tell me before?" she asked.
"What so you can run round the school like you ran out of the restaurant? I think the may have caused a bit of an embarrassment." Severus said pointedly. "The reason I do this is to help people. So they know what to expect so they can be forewarned. I know it isn't the best way to help but then what is in this world?" Severus asked.
Venus stepped forward and Severus could see the tears that had left trails of water down her face.
"I'm sorry," was all Venus said.
Severus stepped forward and hugged her.
"I suppose if you have suffered directly from the bastards it's hard to accept this." Venus said. As she leant into his body.
All too quickly Severus released her as if he didn't want to be seen doing it.
"I suppose we had better get back. It's getting late." He said.
When they emerged from the fireplace in their room Venus flopped down on the couch and conjured a mug of coffee. Severus put the bags of ingredients down on the table and undid the top button of his shirt.
"I'm going for a shower; running around at night is guaranteed to get you sweaty." Severus said and walked into his room.
Venus sat on the couch for a while this defiantly had to be one of the most shocking or strangest nights of her life. I mean she was sharing rooms with a death eater who was actually a spy and had fallen in love with him. Of course she wouldn't tell him that but it was still true. She put her coffee cup down and knocked on Severus's door.
"Come in," she heard him say.
She opened the door and stopped in front of her Severus was stood dripping wet obviously just out of the shower. He had an emerald green towel round his waist and his hair was letting water trickle from the ends of it down his body. He grinned at Venus.
"Sorry let me just put something more appropriate on." He said and walked over to his wardrobe.
"No it's ok," Venus said slightly red in the face and breathing fast. "I just wanted to say sorry." Her eyes were lingering on his lean body and strong arms.
The urge to run over to him and kiss him hard and feel his arms around her was almost too much. And that's what she would have done if there hadn't been a knock on the door right then. Venus sighed to herself and retreated to answer the knock. There was an owl on the other side of the door. It extended its leg to show her the letter. She held out her arm to let it land and took the letter. It was addressed to Severus. She stroked the owl and took over to the window and let it go into the night. She took the letter into Severus, who had now swapped his towel for some black silk pyjama trousers. She handed him the letter and watched him as he read it.
"I have to go, it's a death eater thing I'll see you later." He said and waved his wand and seconds later he was dressed.
"I want to come with you! I'm the defence teacher here and there is something strange going on and I suspect it's to do with Voldemort and I want to find out what." Venus demanded suddenly her face determined.
"No" Severus stated firmly, "this is my danger and you're to stay here and protect the students."
Severus stormed past her. She knew he was going to the headmaster's office so she followed him. They hadn't walked 100 yards before they bumped into the headmaster.
"I know Severus," Albus said. "I also think it may be an idea if Venus comes with you, them we have 2 spies although she will be less easy to detect. She can be any animal. I was planning to ask her to go but she already seems resolute to go with you." Albus said and turned to Venus. "To make you even less easy to track you are now a secret animagus, you have been removed from the register it's as if you never were one ok? This way the won't know your marks."
Venus nodded; she already knew what animal to become. Before the eyes of Albus and Severus she shrank and turned into a snake, green with black marks on her back. Severus picked her up gently and put her in his pocket.
"Good luck both of you." Albus said sadly, "I shall see you tomorrow."
Venus had to swallow her pride and go back to her room that night. Severus was sat on the couch directly in front of the door as she walked in. he was reading an apocarthery catalogue and filling in an order form at the same time. He pretended not to notice her as she walked into the room. Thankful for this she walked across the lounge to her bedroom.
"Sorry," Severus said as she was just about to open the door to her room.
"Pardon?" Venus asked astounded, she doubted if Severus ever said sorry.
"You heard what I said." He said again. All the time he talked he didn't look up form his catalogue.
"Oh erm ok." Venus said and just stood in the door way for a moment.
Then she turned and walked back to the couch and sat down next to Severus. For a moment she just watched him drag his finger down the columns of ingredients and then stop at the ones he wanted and write them down. Then without thinking she leaned over and kissed his cheek. He turned to look at her.
"Are you sure you want to do that?" he raised an eyebrow at her and carried on with the work.
Slightly insulted by the fact Severus didn't drop everything and catch her in his arms and kiss her all over Venus got up.
"I'm going to pick these things up from Diagon alley tonight. So if you'd like to come and see London, either muggle or wizarding part you're welcome to join me." Severus said as she reached her door.
She nodded and went inside her room. Despite herself she was grinning. As soon as she shut the door she ran and jumped on her bed giggling to herself. She was acting like the students did when they found out the person they liked, liked them as well.
'I'm going in on a date with Severus Snape!' she thought to herself. 'Oh my god what am I going to wear?' she thought as she mentally went through her wardrobe.
She popped her head back round the door to the lounge.
"Severus did you say you would be going into muggle London too?" she asked as casually as she could manage.
"Yes so I would suggest muggle clothes." He said absently, his mind still on the ingredients.
An hour later she was ready. She had chosen to wear black trousers and black boots with backless vest top and a black jacket that matched the trousers. He had brushed her hair until it shone and even found her lipstick. She considered herself in the mirror.
"Very nice sweetie," her reflection said, "it's casual and dressy at the same time. Go knock him dead hunny."
Venus sprayed a bit of perfume on herself before confidently walking out of the room.
Severus was stood next to the fire waiting. He looked sexy to say the least. She realised a lot of his grim appearance was not his own. His usually greasy hair was now brushed and the style was lovely. Also his teeth weren't as crooked as usual and they were very white. The stern look on his face had gone and now only mild annoyance was there. He looked smart in a casual Armani suit. Why he had that she didn't know. It was a muggle designer!
"Ah good your ready. You look nice." He said and extended a hand to her. "I suppose you're expecting me to be terribly stern and grim?" he asked and watched as she nodded meekly. "Well then I'll see you're not disappointed." He said and smiled.
He reached into a pocket and took out a bag of floo powder and threw it into the flames and gestured for Venus to go ahead.
"Just say Diagon alley and you should get there." Severus said and watched her enter the flames.
Venus stepped in and said Diagon alley clearly and then she could feel the air rushing past her. Moments later she was standing in the fireplace of a grubby pub. No sooner had she stepped out of the way then Severus appeared.
"Evening Tom," Severus said and nodded towards a gummy looking man behind the bar, the man nodded back.
Venus followed Severus out of the pub into a back alley and watched as he tapped some stones on the wall in front of him. As he did this the bricks quivered and moved back to reveal a hole through which a busy high street was visible. When the hole was visible they walked down the street.
Either side Venus could see lots of things she would adore to have. Madame Malkins robes were famous! What she would have given for her evening robes. There was Olivanders also famous. Up ahead was a huge brilliant white marble building.
"What's that place?" Venus asked Severus.
"Gringotts, I have to go and get some money changed there. I won't be a minute." Severus said and walked up the steps.
About 15 minutes later they were back in Diagon alley and they both had changed their Galleons, Sickles and Knuts for notes, pounds and pence. They made their way back up the street and back through the pub into London. It was about 6.30pm.
"I thought you had to get potion ingredients?" Venus said.
"I'm not carrying them around London anyway I thought seeing as we missed dinner then we should go and get some here in town. What would you like?" Severus asked seeing Venus looking in every shop.
"Can we just look around first? I've never been to London before." Venus was looking around wide eyed at the shoes and clothes and jewellery all around her. What she loved most though was a big music shop.
"What on earth would you want cd's for?" Severus asked perplexed.
"I love muggle music! It's great! I can't use my muggle music players in Hogwarts their electrical. But I still love all this. I mean artists like Frank Sinatra! When he sang 'Witchcraft' I nearly died! I love it! I mean you'd think after that muggle's would guess he was a wizard! That and come fly with me." Venus laughed.
When Severus eventually managed to pull Venus from the shops he took her to a little restaurant in china town. Soon they were tucking into dim sum and crispy duck and a huge range of other Chinese dishes.
"So why the bad guy image?" Venus asked after her 6th glass of wine.
"Why not? I get the discipline from the kids. I don't get flirted with by staff. Well until now anyway. I had the attitude down already. I was a lonely child, always sick. I was always in bed with the flu or with some other disease so I spent a lot of time reading and playing with my potions kit. Well until about 11 I was constantly ill so I never spoke to other children. I hated them. They were selfish spoiled brats. Well that's what I thought at the time. I had grown to like solitude and I found that by acting like I do now then I was left alone. So I found it easy to get through life without them. I'm not really as cold as that. I was married at one point but that didn't work out. The woman ran off with some muggle. I never really let anyone get too close to me after that." Severus stopped and took a mouthful of wine thoughtfully.
Venus who had been listening intently opened her mouth.
"Oh that's awful. I was a lonely child but I had a lot of friends, well I grew up in France and we lived next to the beach so there was always someone to play with." Venus said and took another sip of wine.
"So I suppose you were never lonely?" Severus asked, knowing the answer. "I was always lonely that's why I did what I did." As soon as Severus said that he knew he shouldn't have.
"Why what did you do?" Venus asked hanging on his every word.
"Oh nothing of importance," Severus said and he absently let his right hand move across his left forearm.
Venus noticed what he did. Then she looked as if she had a moment of understanding. She reached across the table and pushed back the sleeve of Severus's shirt before he could stop her. There it was clear on his forearm. The symbol of evil.
Enraged she stood up and as she did sent her glass of red wine flying across the table spilling wine every where.
"You're a death eater?! No wonder you fucking didn't want me to know! Did you want to convert me to the dark side or just use me and then kill me?" Venus was so angry she could feel the tears welling up in her eyes.
"No Venus.. You don't understand." Severus said quickly jumping up too to try and stop her leaving.
"In think I understand perfectly well," she shouted and ran out of the restaurant,
Severus got up, grabbed his jacket and threw some money at the waiter and ran after her into the street. He looked both ways along the street and then he heard Venus's steps echoing and saw a figure running up the street to his left. He ran after her trying not to stumble in the dark.
"Venus! Wait!" he shouted as he followed her.
He turned a corner into the street she had run down and saw she had run into a dead end.
"Stay the hell away from me!" Venus screamed as she pointed her wand at him. "Don't come near me."
"Venus listen to me, I'm not what you think. I mean I am but not in the way you think." Severus tried to explain.
"You're a carnage loving death eater and I want nothing to do with you! You murdering bastard! Its scum like you that made me lose my parents." Venus sobbed.
"Expelliarmus." Severus said simply and caught Venus's wand as it sailed towards him.
"Give me back my wand now!" she yelled backing even further against the wall.
"Listen to me then. If I give you your wand and my wand together will you listen? I'll be unarmed, just listen to me." Severus said in a low voice.
Severus took a step forward, at which Venus twitched. He lay the wands down on the floor and backed away. Venus didn't go forward to pick the wands up but she did watch him.
"Yes it is true I was a death eater. I was young and it was the only way I felt I fitted in, all my friends became them and I was expected to, because I was in Slytherin. I hated it, it was degrading and disgusting, I went to Dumbledore for advice, I couldn't go anywhere else. Dumbledore told me not to give it up because I would be killed instead he had a plan. He used me as a spy. Voldemort thought he had the advantage over Dumbledore by having a death eater into the school, but he didn't know I was a spy. So I have kept the charade up all this time. Learning what was going on in the ranks of the dark forces. It wasn't easy to get back in I had the excuse I couldn't apperate to him when he called me as I was in Hogwarts and the staff or students would get suspicious so I have always had the advantage of never having to spend too much time with that scum." Severus stopped and looked at Venus.
She looked shocked and unsure. She didn't know whether to believe him or curse him.
"Why. why didn't you tell me before?" she asked.
"What so you can run round the school like you ran out of the restaurant? I think the may have caused a bit of an embarrassment." Severus said pointedly. "The reason I do this is to help people. So they know what to expect so they can be forewarned. I know it isn't the best way to help but then what is in this world?" Severus asked.
Venus stepped forward and Severus could see the tears that had left trails of water down her face.
"I'm sorry," was all Venus said.
Severus stepped forward and hugged her.
"I suppose if you have suffered directly from the bastards it's hard to accept this." Venus said. As she leant into his body.
All too quickly Severus released her as if he didn't want to be seen doing it.
"I suppose we had better get back. It's getting late." He said.
When they emerged from the fireplace in their room Venus flopped down on the couch and conjured a mug of coffee. Severus put the bags of ingredients down on the table and undid the top button of his shirt.
"I'm going for a shower; running around at night is guaranteed to get you sweaty." Severus said and walked into his room.
Venus sat on the couch for a while this defiantly had to be one of the most shocking or strangest nights of her life. I mean she was sharing rooms with a death eater who was actually a spy and had fallen in love with him. Of course she wouldn't tell him that but it was still true. She put her coffee cup down and knocked on Severus's door.
"Come in," she heard him say.
She opened the door and stopped in front of her Severus was stood dripping wet obviously just out of the shower. He had an emerald green towel round his waist and his hair was letting water trickle from the ends of it down his body. He grinned at Venus.
"Sorry let me just put something more appropriate on." He said and walked over to his wardrobe.
"No it's ok," Venus said slightly red in the face and breathing fast. "I just wanted to say sorry." Her eyes were lingering on his lean body and strong arms.
The urge to run over to him and kiss him hard and feel his arms around her was almost too much. And that's what she would have done if there hadn't been a knock on the door right then. Venus sighed to herself and retreated to answer the knock. There was an owl on the other side of the door. It extended its leg to show her the letter. She held out her arm to let it land and took the letter. It was addressed to Severus. She stroked the owl and took over to the window and let it go into the night. She took the letter into Severus, who had now swapped his towel for some black silk pyjama trousers. She handed him the letter and watched him as he read it.
"I have to go, it's a death eater thing I'll see you later." He said and waved his wand and seconds later he was dressed.
"I want to come with you! I'm the defence teacher here and there is something strange going on and I suspect it's to do with Voldemort and I want to find out what." Venus demanded suddenly her face determined.
"No" Severus stated firmly, "this is my danger and you're to stay here and protect the students."
Severus stormed past her. She knew he was going to the headmaster's office so she followed him. They hadn't walked 100 yards before they bumped into the headmaster.
"I know Severus," Albus said. "I also think it may be an idea if Venus comes with you, them we have 2 spies although she will be less easy to detect. She can be any animal. I was planning to ask her to go but she already seems resolute to go with you." Albus said and turned to Venus. "To make you even less easy to track you are now a secret animagus, you have been removed from the register it's as if you never were one ok? This way the won't know your marks."
Venus nodded; she already knew what animal to become. Before the eyes of Albus and Severus she shrank and turned into a snake, green with black marks on her back. Severus picked her up gently and put her in his pocket.
"Good luck both of you." Albus said sadly, "I shall see you tomorrow."