The sun broke over the clouds, stretching its limbs of radiance across the pale morning sky. Upon the first ray of light, the newly restored man slowly regained consciousness. Obliging to the soft caresses of dawn on his eyelids, the man tentatively opened his eyes, longing to savor the last drop of filling sleep before the world called to him once more. Sighing deeply in content, he opened his eyes, bottomless black meeting pure light, causing ruby undertones to show from the depths of his pupils. He gradually began to feel again, an ache spreading from his chest to the rest of his body. Groaning, his tried to sit up, but found that his limbs were nearly as weak as an infant's. Thirst parched his throat as he considered how to go about getting up. His fingers gingerly snaked over to the pitcher of water that lay at his bedside. In the most painstaking manner, he slowly tilted the carafe on its side and poured the ice-cold liquid into a glass. It took a Herculean effort to raise the cup to his mouth, and upon touching his lips, he greedily drank down the whole glass, not sparing a drop to vapor.
Strength flowed back through his limbs, allowing his lithe movements to return to him once again. He peered down at the glass curiously, as if suspicious that the water had been tampered with. Presuming that Dumbledore had set it out for him, the Potions Master gathered his robes and dressed, wanting nothing more than a hot bath in his chambers.
Snape strode briskly to the dungeons, feeling the new strength that had entered his bones. He felt so well he almost smiled. And he had a certain careless witch to thank for that. Shaking his head, he wondered how much more power that girl could have. In all his years of teaching, he had never seen one child blessed with so many gifts as she. Except for Potter. His eyes darkened, almost delighting in the fact that he now had a Slytherin that could surpass the blasted Gryffindor any day. He reached his classroom, gently placing a hand on the door to open it soundlessly. As he walked toward his chambers, her scent reached him before he saw any of her. Jasmine, he thought, this is not the correct season for that. His face pulled into a frown when his eyes fell on the Slytherin heir in his office, feeding her pet dragon. Part of him wanted to jump back and make a safety barrier, but the other part wanted to know how she had the nerve to come down here after nearly killing him. His curiosity got to the better of him.
"Miss Slytherin," he said dangerously, "If you have come to finish the job, I can assure you that in due time, others will do so in your place."
Natalia turned around, alarmed that there was someone else in the room. She pressed herself back against the shelf at seeing Snape, afraid that he would take his revenge on her now. Her eyes looked out at him in pure terror, expecting a dreadful death.
"For Merlin's sake, child, what do you think I am going to do, kill you?" He turned a weary eye at her before settling himself in his chair. He looked at her again, seeing that she was still scared out of her wits. He rolled his eyes, annoyed at her childish fear. "If I really wanted to kill you, I could never do it. You Slytherins have a strange history of living practically forever."
Hearing this, Natalia's eyes clouded over, and Snape saw that he had hit a nerve in her. He sighed, and quickly said,
"I did not mean it that way. Your Father was a – never mind. It is far too early for me to try to explain anything." He sat idly in his chair for a second. Looking up at the girl again, he asked quietly, "How did you do what you did yesterday?"
Natalia stayed speechless, still shocked from seeing the Potions Master so soon. Unable to control his impulses, Snape rolled his eyes again.
"Perhaps you need some time to find your tongue. Hopefully it hasn't gone to the same place your mind has." He gave her a pointed look. "By the time I get back, I expect a thorough explanation from you."
He got up, walking eagerly to his chambers for the long awaited bath.
The professor sat in a bathtub full of steaming hot water, relishing in the heat that seeped into his skin. He sank low into the water until it covered half his face. Closing his eyes, he gradually began to unwind. After a long savored moment, he raised his arms out of the water to inspect his rebuilt bones. He first checked his left arm, and seeing that everything was in place, moved on to his right arm. He examined his upper arm and then his forearm. Upon coming to the underside of his forearm, he stopped in astonishment. Pale flesh reflected in his eyes. His Dark Mark – it was completely gone. He gingerly touched his skin, afraid that it would blaze a horrid black once again. However, it did not. For the first time in years, a true smile spread across his face. Warmth crept into his heart again as he thought that somehow, something had severed his ties to the Dark Lord.
Doubt slowly crept into his mind again. No, he thought, I am just delirious from fatigue. The Mark never burns unless I am summoned. And yet, something told him that it was really gone, that he was free from the ways of Voldemort, that he could not be bound to Him again. His arm lacked the burden that it usually endured; the heaviness it had bore since the Dark Mark first appeared was gone. He smiled again. This time, he believed that the Dark Mark was no more. It was as if someone had cleansed him of everything he had done in the past. Asklepios could not have done this, the Potions Master thought, No, even he does not have the ability to free me from Voldemort's power. Could it be...He closed his eyes. All the sins he had committed, all the guilt he had accumulated – everything was washed away. He could live again, feel again, be human again. He sighed from the depths of his soul. Maybe even love...He grimaced at the word out of habit. Perhaps. But how had Natalia managed to...He quickly arose from the bath, dressing hastily, eager to get answers from one who so unknowingly freed him.
Natalia stirred her tea, watching the milky white of the cream dissolve into the dark hot liquid. She came out of her trance when she heard the professor open the door behind her. The Potions Master looked curiously at the breakfast that lay on his desk, but did not bother to address it. The girl looked at him and broke into a smile, relieved to see that his mood was fair. She could not help but grin – the Professor's unrestrained delight was infectious. Even though she had not known him for long, she knew that this was a rare occasion. Snape sat down across from her, smiling quietly at the beaming Slytherin.
"What are you so giddy about? Don't tell me they put bloody Christmas and Halloween on the same day this year."
Natalia grinned at the Potions Master's old wit.
"They might as well have; it is not every day that you are in a contented mood."
He gave her a look out of the corner of his eyes as he poured his tea.
"That is what sleep will do for you." He smirked and looked back seriously at Natalia. "Aren't you supposed to be explaining yesterday's incidents to me?"
She looked at him over the rim of her cup.
"It is very simple," she started, matching his nonchalant tone in every way, "Dumbledore has told me that I am the bearer of the Shangri-La."
The teacup in the man's hand shattered onto the ground. He looked at her in disbelief.
"You are what?" he said in a low whisper.
She smiled sweetly at him.
"You do not have to whisper, you know, you are not going to scare me away." she said, mimicking the words he had once said to her. "The Shangri-La," she continued, answering his question, "It is the weapon against –"
"I know what it is." the professor said in an impatient tone before applying a quick cleaning spell on the broken teacup. "I never thought that is was anything more than a myth." The questions in his mind were quickly answered by the name of the weapon. He settled back in his chair, leisurely starting on his delectable breakfast.
"Professor,"
"Hmm?"
Natalia looked intently at his face.
"There is something you are not telling me."
He flicked his eyes from his toast to her.
"What are you now? Professor Trelawney?" He went back to spreading jam on his toast. "And anyway, this is your confession session, not mine."
After the girl gave him an irritated look, the Potions Master obliged to tell her. He owed her that much.
"My Dark Mark," he said quietly, "It is gone. Your wand must have broken my ties to the Dark Lord."
Natalia started in her chair.
"You – you are a Death Eater?"
Snape rolled his eyes. He never did so frequently in the morning. It must have been the girl.
"I thought Potter and his cronies would have told you already."
She stood up and began to leave.
"And where do you think you are going?" Snape demanded, setting down his butter knife.
Natalia looked at him in all seriousness.
"You are in legions with the people that are after me. If I had known this, I would have never come here."
"No, no," Snape said in an exasperated voice, "Sit down. Hysterics won't help you anywhere."
Natalia stood by the door but did not sit down. After giving her an annoyed look, he continued.
"I am a spy for Dumbledore. I act as a double agent so we can have a lead on Voldemort's actions."
The girl still did not believe him completely. Snape rolled his eyes for the fourth time that morning.
"Fine. If you do not believe me, perhaps this will be evidence for you: If I were truly one of the Dark Lord's minions, I would not be alive right now. The Shangri-La would have destroyed me completely if I was a true Death Eater."
Natalia saw some sense in this, and slowly eased back into her chair.
"Why did my wand attack you so suddenly yesterday? Why not anytime before?"
Snape thought over this while delicately chewing his toast.
"It must have reacted to Voldemort's summon for me during the duel."
The Slytherin looked at him perplexed. The Potions Master sighed. He hated having to explain himself.
"My Dark Mark had started burning while Professor Austerus was counting. Being that the Shangri-La destroys those in collaboration with the Dark Powers, my Dark Mark must have triggered your wand, therefore causing you to use the Frangocius Curse on me. Which," he added in a low voice, "I must admit, was rather impressive."
Natalia sat in silence, digesting all of the information he had just given her.
"So you are not a Death Eater anymore?"
A small smile crept onto the Potions Master's face.
"No, I am not bound to the Dark Ways any longer."
His eyes wandered curiously to the wand that was clasped to her side.
"How long have you had the wand for?"
"Ever since I was four years old." She too, looked at the wand by her side. "Professor, how am I supposed to prevent the apocalypse from happening?"
He rubbed his fingertips gently on his forehead.
"You will not prevent it, Miss Slytherin. No one can do that. You will hopefully save the world from its destruction, but not prevent it." He looked at her closely. "How much do you know of the Dark Arts?"
She thought back to her studies at Durmstrang.
"I have studied the subject, but have not had too many experiences against the Dark Arts."
Snape nodded thoughtfully. He slowly lifted the teacup to his lips, allowing the hot liquid to flow into his mouth.
"Perhaps you should look into studying it with a more...interactive approach."
Natalia looked at him skeptically.
"Are you implying that I should learn how to defend myself against Dark Creatures?"
"Not just defend, Miss Slytherin. If you are to be the protector of all life, you will have to learn to completely obliterate the Dark Powers."
The girl looked at the professor, contemplating how she would do such a thing.
"How am I supposed to go about learning how to do that?"
Snape studied her closely and saw that she was earnest in her desire to learn. He said very carefully,
"I could teach you everything you will ever need to know about the Dark Arts and how to defeat it."
She stared at the professor, realizing his proposal.
"You would do that for me?"
He smirked, allowing it to look almost like a gentle smile.
"I owe you that much." After a moment, he added, "Although, I will have to discuss the matter with the Headmaster first, and if he approves, we can begin with your training."
Before the
girl got up to leave again, he caught her eye, and said after giving her a
genuine smile, "Natalia, I expect great things from you. Your Father was not wrong to believe you to
be extraordinary."
