Author's Note: Sorry this chapter has been so long in coming but I was quite shocked about the load of schoolwork this semester brought on. I'm just now getting used to it and papers are going to be due soon so writing time will be limited once again. Updates will be random, at best, and hopefully before mid-December when the semester ends.
A Memory Found
by: Mystical Dragon
Dumbledore stayed by Severus's side, waiting for him to wake. The operation had been easier than expected, no complications, but the sleeping draught had been overly powerful and Severus, twenty hours later, was still asleep.
"Is he okay?" Draco asked, worried, from the position of the doorway. "Shouldn't he be up by now?"
"He's fine, Draco," Dumbledore assured the young man. "Pomfrey was just used to Severus needing stronger doses before and didn't take into account what Ivan had done. His body is different than it used to be."
"Yeah," Draco said, "no Dark Mark. That's pretty cool. I'm just glad I was never stupid enough to get one. I was so close to getting one, though," Draco said and Dumbledore turned to him, seeing the boy shudder. "I wanted to be just like my dad. How stupid could I have been?"
"You were a son, wanting to emulate his father," Dumbledore corrected. "There is nothing wrong with that, Draco. Your father should have tried to be someone you could follow instead of what he choose to be."
Draco nodded his head, his loose hair falling into his face. "I don't know what I'm going to do about Gregory and Vincent. Their fathers are Death Eaters and they both adore them and they're not the brightest people on this planet," Draco said thoughtfully, looking like he was trying to figure something out. "Tell me when he wakes. After you've talked with him, I guess."
"I will," Dumbledore promised.
Draco left the room, reminding Dumbledore strongly of the way Lucius Malfoy left a room.
"Ivan?" Dumbledore asked, turning to the small blue elf perched on Severus's desk (Pomfrey had given Ivan permission to move Severus to his rooms where Dumbledore knew he would be more comfortable). "Does Draco still love his father?"
"Yes," Ivan said, nodding his head. "That is natural but he will not let his father sway him. Don't worry about that."
"Lucius can be quite convincing," Dumbledore said, worried. Lucius knew how to use people, exploit their weaknesses, and Dumbledore was worried he might use Draco's love for him to make Draco do something. Than again, Draco was mentally eighteen, not fifteen and Draco had a much stronger will than before. He should be okay.
"Dumbledore," Ivan said, getting Dumbledore's attention. "Do not expect Severus to tease you anymore like he did at that feast."
"Why not?" Dumbledore asked, confused. Had he done something wrong?
"Severus was just testing the waters with you," Ivan explained, sitting down on a small gold pillow. "He doesn't like to be teased and doesn't like teasing once he gets comfortable with someone."
"Ivan, how should I act around him?" Dumbledore asked, worried about messing up. "I want his friendship. I've worked on gaining it for so long and I just don't want to do anything that would jeopardize it."
Ivan grinned and Dumbledore felt himself relaxing. "You won't. Severus is no longer as self-centered as he once was...."
"You think he was self-centered?" Dumbledore asked, surprised Ivan would say such a thing.
"He had low self-esteem," Ivan said with a shrug, "people like that generally are self-centered. They see everything in terms of themselves. Severus was unable to place anyone's needs above his own or to think how anything might affect someone else besides himself. He wasn't self-centered like Lockhart, who apparently seemed to think the world revolved around him, but he was self-centered."
Dumbledore slowly nodded his head.
"Dumbledore," Ivan went on, "instead of trying to father Severus, maybe you should try to be his friend. I'm sure you could use a friend. A person you could talk to, express your concerns to, and not act like you know all the answers to."
Dumbledore stared into the Dark Elf's purple eyes. He wanted a friend. Having everyone constantly acting like he knew everything, that he never made mistakes, that he was never afraid was tiring. Dumbledore had often wanted someone to talk to, someone to admit to that he was worried about Voldemort's uprising since Dumbledore was older now. Someone who wouldn't be shocked and worried if Dumbledore wasn't as perfect as everyone thought he was.
"I'd like that," Dumbledore said quietly. "Severus...
Hearing sheets rustling, Dumbledore turned to Severus and gently laid a hand on his arm, pinning him to the bed.
"What...?" Severus mumbled.
"Hello," Dumbledore said.
"What happened?" Severus said, his voice raspy.
"Your appendix, remember?" Ivan said from the desk.
Severus's eyes blinked open and then he groaned, hands going to his abdomen. "Yeah, I remember," he said.
"You had me worried, Severus," Dumbledore said. "You certainly took your time waking up."
Severus looked at him and yawned.
Ivan left and reappeared with a small glass of water. Severus carefully sat up, with Dumbledore's help, and gulped it down.
"I don't think I'm ever eating chocolate again," he muttered. "Why did I have to eat so much before this happened? Now the mere mention of it is making me sick."
Dumbledore smiled, having banned several foods because of getting sick around the time he ate them and the association his mind made.
"Sorry about that," Dumbledore said. "Now you can start eating a true delicacy," he said, pulling out a lemon drop.
Severus stared at the candy and then at Dumbledore. "You've been trying to get me to eat those things for years."
Dumbledore popped a drop in his mouth and waved one at Severus. "Has it worked yet."
Reluctantly, Severus took the proffered lemon drop and placed it in his mouth. Dumbledore watched him, surprised, Severus normally brushed the offer away.
"They are good," Severus conceded, "but chocolate was better," he said, his voice wistful and then he winced, rubbing his abdomen. "I can't even say it anymore."
Dumbledore laughed.
"Dumbledore, I'm sorry," Severus suddenly spoke, his words rushed together so much it took Dumbledore a minute to straighten them out.
"For what?" Dumbledore asked.
Severus fiddled with his blanket. "It's not many people who would have hired a Death Eater..."
"I pushed you into it," Dumbledore said.
Severus looked at him. "No you didn't. You had an entire school full of students and professors to worry about. Not to mention all the adults in the Magical World too. I was overlooked. It happens. I'm sure I've overlooked students. Did Ivan tell you about that dream I had? The one with me being a Peasant Destroyer?"
Dumbledore glanced at Ivan, wanting to see if it was okay to answer, and than at Severus. "Yes."
"Maybe becoming a Death Eater wasn't such a bad thing," Severus mused, "I did save some people. I never killed anyone."
"What did you do for Voldemort, anyway?" Dumbledore asked, trying not to sound pushy. "You never really told me."
Severus winced. "The Dark Lord was a bit... odd. I mainly researched for him, brewed potions, and... didnecromancy."
"Necromancy?" Dumbledore asked softly. "Why didn't you tell me? I wouldn't have told the Ministry."
"I didn't mind doing it," Severus admitted, lowering himself in his blankets.
"Oh," Dumbledore said.
Severus was staring at him, expecting reprimand or a lecture so Dumbledore decided to surprise him.
"What is Necromancy like?" Dumbledore asked, lowering his voice to sound approachable.
Severus blinked, a grin tugging at his mouth. "I don't know why the Ministry outlawed it," he said, talking slowly, expecting to be censured any moment; Dumbledore held his peace. "Summoning the dead spirits is rather easy but communicating with them is hard."
"Why?" Dumbledore asked, interested despite himself.
"Language changes so much over the centuries that I couldn't understand most of the spirits, and even the ones I could were saying sentences that made no sense with the current meanings of the words they use. It was interesting. The Dark Lord wasn't too pleased when he realized how difficult it was to understand the spirits and had me quit doing it."
Dumbledore figured part of the reason Necromancy was banned was for that reason. Deadly miscommunications with the dead were real possibilities. It was a relief Voldemort wouldn't be doing that, though, or if he tried again, benefiting from it.
"Severus," Dumbledore said, deciding to get this over with, "I want you to treat your students nicer and start thinking of all the students as your students and not just the ones in Slytherin."
Anger flashed across Severus's face but it was gone quickly. "Now that I can't blame on anyone but myself. You didn't make me treat the students badly, I choose that myself," Severus said, running a hand through his hair. "I screamed at a Hufflepuff first year for saying hello to me the wrong way once. Found out later he had a cold but I never apologized to him."
"Maybe you can apologize now?" Dumbledore suggested.
Severus shook his head. "Dumbledore, I don't deserve their forgiveness. I've been a git."
"I think the students will forgive you. If you treat them nice," Dumbledore assured him.
"I never forgave you, until a little bit ago, and you've been doing everything in your power to make up to me what you thought you had done wrong," Severus countered.
"Let's hope the kids are more forgiving than you are," Dumbledore said, shrugging.
Severus snorted. "Most of them are," he said, hugging himself. "I can't believe you've put up with me for this long."
"It was worth it," Dumbledore said.
Severus went scarlet.