Last updated on February 14, 2003

Except for Mariannah who is obviously my own creation, all the other characters here belong to J.K. Rowling.

This chapter was revised! :-) Please check out the news on "Author's Notes & News updated every now and then" (which is usually the last chapter of this story).

I'd like to thank the Harry Potter Lexicon () for all the invaluable resource, which helped me make this fan-fic. I'd also like to thank John Williams for creating such an excellent score for the Harry Potter movies. They were fuel for my imagination as well. Finally, thanks to all the other song artists and fan-fic authors. Without them, this story wouldn't materialize at all.

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Chapter 11
Mock Battle

Severus flew until he was at level with Mariannah. The Defense professor held her right arm loosely on her side, her left hand grasping the broom. The potions master had his wand at the ready. They glared at each other for a while, waiting for the other to make a move. Severus noticed the defense professor move her wand arm just before hearing "Impetus fulmen!" chanted from behind him. Lightning barely missed him as he quickly moved to avoid the attack before Mariannah could finish the spell. Severus looked at the fake Mariannah and noticed that it had disappeared. A Doppleganger charm! thought Severus.

Not a cloud can be seen. Same goes with the Defense professor. Where can she have disappeared? Unless...

"Magnus flabra!" A strong wind whipped up. Mariannah suddenly appeared. The invisibility cloak she had worn floated to the ground. "I should have known," sneered Severus. Mariannah ruefully smiled at Severus before flying off towards the turrets. The students below were amazed as the battle turned into a chase. The opponents were whizzing among the turrets, each trying to get into a strategic position over the other.

At one point, Mariannah was able to get behind Severus. Mariannah whispered something as she waved her arm in a large circle towards him. Immediately, arrows appeared and started flying towards him. "Aegis!" The arrows grew closer then seemed to explode a few feet from where Severus was. When the last of the arrows exploded, Mariannah was again nowhere in sight. Now where is that blasted girl? Then he noticed something move below him, then a boom. He looked down to see Mariannah rising towards him at top speed. "Contorqueo!" he yelled as he aimed his wand at Mariannah's broom. At that instant, the broom turned violently, making Mariannah lose her grip of the handle. Severus sneered as he saw Mariannah fall towards the ground. No, that was too easy.

"Accio Lightning!" Her broom flew underneath her. She grabbed the broom and immediately flew up. As she went up, Mariannah provided Severus with a distraction. She sent a storm of hailstones towards him. While Severus prepared a counter spell, he didn't realize Mariannah continuing her ascent in an arc. When she was upside down on top of him, she let go of her broom. The Guardian came crashing down on Severus, getting pelted by her own hailstorm spell in the process. But it was worth it. In the confusion, she had pushed Severus off his broom.

Now Severus was falling. He called for his broom, only to realize Mariannah was now riding it. "Accio Lightning!" Mariannah's broom swooshed down. Severus grabbed the broom as it swept past him and without losing momentum started to climb up towards Mariannah. A low rumble can now be heard from the broom Severus was riding. Mariannah turned her broom and flew away from Severus, trying to get as much distance between them as possible. Severus started shooting at Mariannah with his wand, Mariannah dodging each shot. One grazed her left shoulder when she didn't move in time. Mariannah clenched her teeth, trying to ignore the pain and leaned forward as far as she could go.

As she made her way back to the spot where they had started the battle, Mariannah made a sharp turn to face her opponent. "Impedimenta!" she yelled. At the same time, Severus had yelled, "Deliquesco Thunder!" The broom Mariannah was riding disappeared. Severus was thrown off as the Impediment Curse hit the broom he was riding. Now both professors were falling. Mariannah turned in midair to face the ground. "Terramacero!" Seconds later, both professors hit the earth. Mariannah had softened the ground. They were bruised and their egos broken. Severus was lying on his back, the wind knocked out of him. Mariannah, on the other hand, had fallen face down.

"You lack training, Potter," said Severus as he tried to catch his breath. Mariannah just moaned. "Are you all right?" gasped Severus, attempting to sit up to get a better view at the person beside him. No answer. He turned her face up. Mariannah grimaced as she clutched her right shoulder. She had her wand arm stretched out when she was chanting the spell. "Poppy will be bloody mad when she finds out I've dislocated my shoulder again." Severus smirked and helped the injured professor up.

Mariannah looked at her class. Each student was wide-eyed with amazement and dread. Harry looked very concerned. I'm all right, Harry. It happens all the time, she said telepathically to her nephew. "Looks like I have to dismiss you early today," she said. "Be ready for a similar activity next time we meet." Noting the suddenly pale faces of her terrified students, Mariannah turned around and headed towards the hospital wing with Severus assisting her.

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Mariannah closed her eyes and clenched her teeth as Madam Pomfrey put back her shoulder. The professor was thankful of the use of magic to put her shoulder back in place. She had dislocated that same shoulder several times in the muggle world. There she was always subjected to the pain of having to force it back to its socket. Magic now spared her the pain, but not the sickening grating of bone as it was put back in place.

"There! Now try moving it a bit." Mariannah moved her right arm. The shoulder was still a bit stiff. "That would be expected," said Madam Pomfrey. "A week on a sling should do the trick." Mariannah groaned as looked towards the ceiling. "Well, it's all your fault! Imagine having to do wizard battles! Oh! I dread to find out how many will be injured when the students start their mock battles in your class!" fussed Madam Pomfrey. Mariannah smiled up at the mediwitch. "They'll be fine, Poppy!"

Madam Pomfrey continued berating her, pausing a bit to put Mariannah's arm in a sling. The professor scrutinized the handiwork then nodded. "Right! So, can I go now?" she asked. Madam Pomfrey sighed. "I suppose so. It will be a losing battle if I try to keep you here any longer." Mariannah kissed Madam Pomfrey on the forehead before getting out of bed. "And don't go falling off high places again!" yelled the nurse after Mariannah.

As Mariannah walked the corridors, the bell rang for lunch. Students poured into the hallway and headed for the great hall. The Defense professor rubbed her temples with her left hand. Her head was beginning to throb. Mariannah decided to go to her office for a while to let the pain pass. Once inside, she sat down in her chair and drew a deep breath, hissing through her teeth. She continued to do her ministrations as she closed her eyes. "You could have used a hovering charm for the both of us." Mariannah opened her eyes. Severus was holding both brooms. "Your broom," Severus said, holding out Lightning to her. Mariannah made a motion with her left hand. Her broom left the potion master's hand and smoothly glided towards a corner. Severus looked at her.

"Are you all right?" asked Severus, noting Mariannah's glazed look. "Oh, I'm fine," Mariannah said as she returned to rubbing her temples. "Migraine. You know."

"Are you sure?" Mariannah nodded her head.

"How many?" The defense professor closed her eyes before giving the Potions Master an answer. "I still have all four guardians, Severus."

There was a tense silence before Severus continued. "What happened to you up there?" asked Severus as he walked up to Mariannah and sat on the table in front of her.

"What do you mean?" she asked looking up at Severus.

"Your performance in the mock battle was lackluster," he said silkily. "You could have easily knocked me off my broom in a few moments. Yet you didn't."

"It's a mock battle, Severus," Mariannah said wearily. She had closed her eyes again to make the same massaging action. "We're supposed to put on a show for the kiddies, remember?"

"Then the Ground Softening spell. Why not a hovering charm?"

"I lack training, like you said a while back," muttered Mariannah irritably. Her voice seemed so far away from her. In fact, Mariannah felt that she wasn't in her office anymore. She could hear Severus drone on. But there was another voice... and another. Several voices were soon speaking all at once. They were all incoherent. Then a very familiar voice, low and malevolent, was calling her. Goading her. Beckoning her. It ached her head so. Then a sudden sharp pain tore through her head. The voices started shouting. She tried to shut them out to no avail. They were beginning to confuse her painfully. "Get out! Leave me alone! Shut up!"

"Mariannah!" Severus had been trying to talk to her and became gravely concerned when the defense professor started mumbling incoherently. When she started shouting, Severus shook her to reality. Mariannah opened her eyes, dazed for a moment. Her hands were trembling and she felt cold sweat forming on her face. She looked at Severus blankly. Then she realized that Severus was gripping her shoulders. She closed her eyes as she took a deep breath. Mariannah started feeling a numbing pain where he held her and winced. "Let... go... shoulder." Severus quickly let go but did not break his gaze at her.

"Mariannah," spoke Severus gravely. "Where were you? What's happening to you?" Mariannah opened her eyes. Severus noticed that she seemed lost. Distant. Then life slowly came back into her eyes. Mariannah forced a smile. "Nothing. I'm fine. Just... got lost in my thoughts."

Severus straightened up without breaking his gaze. "It seemed more like you wanted them out of your head, my dear," he said stoically.

Mariannah stood up. "It's just been a hard day, Severus. You know, dislocated shoulder and all." She looked at the clock. "Looks like we're late for lunch again. Shall we?" A wave of her hand made sure that she looked like nothing had happened, except for her accident. She looked at Severus for a moment before walking past him.

"Mariannah," called out Severus. He was still sitting on the table, looking at the place where Mariannah had been sitting previously. Mariannah stopped at her door and looked over her shoulder. "If there is anything troubling you -"

"I can always talk to you, Severus," finished off Mariannah. "I know."

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To be continued...

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Impetus fulmen
Roughly translated as "lightning attack". Drop me a line if you can come up with a better latin translation. ;-)
Magnus Flabra
Roughly translated as "Great Wind".
Aegis
"Sheild"
contorqueo
"turn violently"
Deliquesco
"to vanish"
Terramacero
"soft ground" or something like that.