47. …Snape allows no discussion
"And what…" a voice barked at Harry and Ginny, "are you two doing now?"
The two students jumped guiltily. Snape looked down his nose at this, crossing his arms
and tapping his foot expectantly.
"We were going to talk to Professor Dumbledore," Ginny said, summoning what seemed
to Harry to be a rather impressive show of strength under the circumstances. Snape glared
at her and then turned on his heel.
"Follow me. Now!" Snape said, in a tone that would allow no discussion.
"…Lucius and I both had our own horses, of course, but Lucius' hated him and would
buck him off whenever he tried to ride it." Reginald smiled wistfully at the memory, his
expression the one of a man who hasn't smiled in a very long time.
Hermione regarded the cheerfully glowing fire that was taking up most of the space in the
center of the cave. Reginald had used her wand to conjure it and had inexplicably also
summoned several marshmallows and some sticks. Hermione suspected that he was just
so happy to be able to practice magic again that he wanted to do all of it himself. She
sipped at her mug of hot chocolate.
Strange, she mused. Here I am sitting in a cave with Draco Malfoy's uncle and I'm
actually enjoying myself. Somehow that doesn't seem right.
Reginald poked the fire with one of the sticks, and then sighed. "I hope Draco and Ron
come back soon. It's been quite a while."
Hermione nodded. She had been trying to keep the worry in her stomach under control
for the past half hour, but Reginald's words freed it. "I hope they are too."
Reginald opened his mouth to say something, but before the words could come, Draco
and Ron both ran into the cave, stumbling along the way and landing in a heap of arms
and legs and…
Hermione gasped. "Ron! Where are your clothes?!?"
Ron struggled upward. "Don't ask, okay?!" He grimaced. Hermione shrieked and threw
her arms around him, squeezing tightly.
"Can't…breathe…" Ron choked out. Reginald grinned and smacked Draco on the
shoulder as if to say: Job Well Done.
"Ow," Draco muttered, rubbing his shoulder.
"As much fun as it is to sit in this cave," Ron said, glancing suspiciously at the roaring
fire and half-eaten marshmallows, "I think we should be getting back to school."
"By all means, yes!" Hermione declared vehemently.
"Oh Lord…" Snape muttered into his hands. He was hunched over his desk, and had
suddenly developed a splitting headache. "I cannot believe you didn't come to me first.
How could you have let three children go out and try to steal Draco's uncle out from
under Lucius' nose?" He sat up and stared. "Do you not possess even one ounce of
sense?"
Ginny wriggled uncomfortably. Harry had taken to studying the desktop in front of him
in great detail.
"I'm sorry, sir," he said meekly, "It's just that…"
"Just nothing!" Snape stood up, slamming his hands against the desk. "Lucius Malfoy
was just here, do you understand? He is looking for Draco!"
Ginny emitted a sound that sounded like "meep."
"Twenty points from Gryffindor for that most undistinguished noise, Miss Weasley!"
Snape spat. Harry made a sound of disgust as several globules hit him in the face.
"I have never, in all my years of teaching!" Snape ranted, and began pacing back and
forth. "Never! I…"
He was interrupted as the door swung open. Snape, Ginny, and Harry looked at it
expectantly. They could hear the sound of footsteps, and a muffled curse or two.
"Stuff it!" Draco's voice shrieked.
"Shut up!" Hermione hissed back. "We-oof!" A desk tipped over, and Hermione, Draco,
and a tall blonde man tumbled out as if from thin air, landing on the floor. Hermione
cringed and rubbed her head. Draco had landed directly on top of the man that hopefully
was Reginald, planting his elbow squarely in Reginald's nose. Reginald held his nose,
eyes glazed with pain.
"What the hell is going on?" Snape said pathetically, and threw up his hands.
"Where is Ron?" Ginny asked.
"I'm here!" Ron's voice said. Ron's head appeared, but his body was nowhere to be seen.
"I'm not taking this cloak off, either."
In spite of the pain, Reginald snickered at this. Snape pulled out his wand and zapped him
with a spell that healed his broken nose, looking perturbed at having to help a member of
the Malfoy family.
"Umm…why?" Harry asked.
"Because he has no clothes," Draco answered placidly.
"Oh." Harry said. Harry seemed to have reached his threshold for freaking out, and was
reasonably calm.
"I want young Mr. Malfoy to send a note to his father NOW telling him that he was
hiding out to play a practical joke on Mr. Potter, or something. The rest of you will please
get to Gryffindor tower IMMEDIATELY. I will see to…umm….I'm sorry, WHAT is
your name?" Snape looked at Reginald pathetically.
"Reginald Malfoy," he answered.
"Whatever. REGINALD'S medical needs. And whatever happens, I do not want to know
how the four of you got back from the Malfoy estate, all right?"
Hermione glowered at him, and then turned and abruptly exited the room. A silent Ginny,
Ron, and Harry followed her. Ron pulled the cloak all the way over his head so as not to
scare passerby with his floating head.
"Psstt…Weasley…" Draco hissed at Ron, following him out the door. "Come with me to
send my owl." He grabbed at the air and by pure luck landed a handful of Ron's invisible
shirt. He pulled him in the opposite direction down the corridor, Hermione and the others
utterly unaware of what had just happened.
"What is it?" Ron whispered, trying to remain quiet.
"I have something to tell you," Draco answered out of the corner of his mouth. A group
of second year Ravenclaw girls strolling by gave him a strange look, so he glared at them
for good measure.
Ron followed Draco to Draco's now familiar room, taking great care to avoid the
Slytherins lounging about in their common room. Draco looked quite comical holding the
door open before him for a moment and then walking in himself.
Draco scratched out a hurried note on a piece of parchment after slamming the door shut,
then attached it to his owl, who hooted with gladness at being let out of its cage. It flew
out the window and presumably right to Lucius Malfoy.
Draco sat down on his bed. Ron did too, suddenly tired. He still held the invisibility cloak
around him tightly.
"Did you notice?" Draco asked, "Who was in the cell next to Reginald's?" He looked
around furtively.
"Um, no," Ron answered, "Actually, I was trying to not flash everybody, actually."
Draco narrowed his eyes. "Shut up, this is important! Father is planning something
horrible, I'm sure. Think of the worst person for him to team up with."
"He-who-must….oh, all right, Voldemort?" Ron cringed. Harry had tried to convince
him to say the name, but it was still difficult.
"No. WORSE." Draco's expression would have looked appropriate on someone whose
puppy had just stolen all the money out of his bank account and run off with a blast-
ended skrewt.
"I have no idea."
"He used to be our teacher."
"Professor Lupin?" Ron said hopefully.
"Still worse."
"I don't….wait….oh NOOOO."
"And what…" a voice barked at Harry and Ginny, "are you two doing now?"
The two students jumped guiltily. Snape looked down his nose at this, crossing his arms
and tapping his foot expectantly.
"We were going to talk to Professor Dumbledore," Ginny said, summoning what seemed
to Harry to be a rather impressive show of strength under the circumstances. Snape glared
at her and then turned on his heel.
"Follow me. Now!" Snape said, in a tone that would allow no discussion.
"…Lucius and I both had our own horses, of course, but Lucius' hated him and would
buck him off whenever he tried to ride it." Reginald smiled wistfully at the memory, his
expression the one of a man who hasn't smiled in a very long time.
Hermione regarded the cheerfully glowing fire that was taking up most of the space in the
center of the cave. Reginald had used her wand to conjure it and had inexplicably also
summoned several marshmallows and some sticks. Hermione suspected that he was just
so happy to be able to practice magic again that he wanted to do all of it himself. She
sipped at her mug of hot chocolate.
Strange, she mused. Here I am sitting in a cave with Draco Malfoy's uncle and I'm
actually enjoying myself. Somehow that doesn't seem right.
Reginald poked the fire with one of the sticks, and then sighed. "I hope Draco and Ron
come back soon. It's been quite a while."
Hermione nodded. She had been trying to keep the worry in her stomach under control
for the past half hour, but Reginald's words freed it. "I hope they are too."
Reginald opened his mouth to say something, but before the words could come, Draco
and Ron both ran into the cave, stumbling along the way and landing in a heap of arms
and legs and…
Hermione gasped. "Ron! Where are your clothes?!?"
Ron struggled upward. "Don't ask, okay?!" He grimaced. Hermione shrieked and threw
her arms around him, squeezing tightly.
"Can't…breathe…" Ron choked out. Reginald grinned and smacked Draco on the
shoulder as if to say: Job Well Done.
"Ow," Draco muttered, rubbing his shoulder.
"As much fun as it is to sit in this cave," Ron said, glancing suspiciously at the roaring
fire and half-eaten marshmallows, "I think we should be getting back to school."
"By all means, yes!" Hermione declared vehemently.
"Oh Lord…" Snape muttered into his hands. He was hunched over his desk, and had
suddenly developed a splitting headache. "I cannot believe you didn't come to me first.
How could you have let three children go out and try to steal Draco's uncle out from
under Lucius' nose?" He sat up and stared. "Do you not possess even one ounce of
sense?"
Ginny wriggled uncomfortably. Harry had taken to studying the desktop in front of him
in great detail.
"I'm sorry, sir," he said meekly, "It's just that…"
"Just nothing!" Snape stood up, slamming his hands against the desk. "Lucius Malfoy
was just here, do you understand? He is looking for Draco!"
Ginny emitted a sound that sounded like "meep."
"Twenty points from Gryffindor for that most undistinguished noise, Miss Weasley!"
Snape spat. Harry made a sound of disgust as several globules hit him in the face.
"I have never, in all my years of teaching!" Snape ranted, and began pacing back and
forth. "Never! I…"
He was interrupted as the door swung open. Snape, Ginny, and Harry looked at it
expectantly. They could hear the sound of footsteps, and a muffled curse or two.
"Stuff it!" Draco's voice shrieked.
"Shut up!" Hermione hissed back. "We-oof!" A desk tipped over, and Hermione, Draco,
and a tall blonde man tumbled out as if from thin air, landing on the floor. Hermione
cringed and rubbed her head. Draco had landed directly on top of the man that hopefully
was Reginald, planting his elbow squarely in Reginald's nose. Reginald held his nose,
eyes glazed with pain.
"What the hell is going on?" Snape said pathetically, and threw up his hands.
"Where is Ron?" Ginny asked.
"I'm here!" Ron's voice said. Ron's head appeared, but his body was nowhere to be seen.
"I'm not taking this cloak off, either."
In spite of the pain, Reginald snickered at this. Snape pulled out his wand and zapped him
with a spell that healed his broken nose, looking perturbed at having to help a member of
the Malfoy family.
"Umm…why?" Harry asked.
"Because he has no clothes," Draco answered placidly.
"Oh." Harry said. Harry seemed to have reached his threshold for freaking out, and was
reasonably calm.
"I want young Mr. Malfoy to send a note to his father NOW telling him that he was
hiding out to play a practical joke on Mr. Potter, or something. The rest of you will please
get to Gryffindor tower IMMEDIATELY. I will see to…umm….I'm sorry, WHAT is
your name?" Snape looked at Reginald pathetically.
"Reginald Malfoy," he answered.
"Whatever. REGINALD'S medical needs. And whatever happens, I do not want to know
how the four of you got back from the Malfoy estate, all right?"
Hermione glowered at him, and then turned and abruptly exited the room. A silent Ginny,
Ron, and Harry followed her. Ron pulled the cloak all the way over his head so as not to
scare passerby with his floating head.
"Psstt…Weasley…" Draco hissed at Ron, following him out the door. "Come with me to
send my owl." He grabbed at the air and by pure luck landed a handful of Ron's invisible
shirt. He pulled him in the opposite direction down the corridor, Hermione and the others
utterly unaware of what had just happened.
"What is it?" Ron whispered, trying to remain quiet.
"I have something to tell you," Draco answered out of the corner of his mouth. A group
of second year Ravenclaw girls strolling by gave him a strange look, so he glared at them
for good measure.
Ron followed Draco to Draco's now familiar room, taking great care to avoid the
Slytherins lounging about in their common room. Draco looked quite comical holding the
door open before him for a moment and then walking in himself.
Draco scratched out a hurried note on a piece of parchment after slamming the door shut,
then attached it to his owl, who hooted with gladness at being let out of its cage. It flew
out the window and presumably right to Lucius Malfoy.
Draco sat down on his bed. Ron did too, suddenly tired. He still held the invisibility cloak
around him tightly.
"Did you notice?" Draco asked, "Who was in the cell next to Reginald's?" He looked
around furtively.
"Um, no," Ron answered, "Actually, I was trying to not flash everybody, actually."
Draco narrowed his eyes. "Shut up, this is important! Father is planning something
horrible, I'm sure. Think of the worst person for him to team up with."
"He-who-must….oh, all right, Voldemort?" Ron cringed. Harry had tried to convince
him to say the name, but it was still difficult.
"No. WORSE." Draco's expression would have looked appropriate on someone whose
puppy had just stolen all the money out of his bank account and run off with a blast-
ended skrewt.
"I have no idea."
"He used to be our teacher."
"Professor Lupin?" Ron said hopefully.
"Still worse."
"I don't….wait….oh NOOOO."