Five hours later, Isabel awoke and noticed that the pain had been replaced with the feeling one gets after using muscles for the first time in a long while. It was a welcome change to the horrible pain that had bombarded her before. She eased herself out of the bed and slowly walked out to the room with the fireplace where Snape had been. She found Snape arguing with a short woman.
"I need to examine her." The old woman stated calmly, obviously trying to avoid showing the temper in her voice that was already evident on her face.
"She needs to rest. You can examine her later. I will not allow you to wake her up; especially if it's possible she is still in pain." Snape answered in a low voice. They were talking about her Isabel realized with a start. She quickly walked further into the room, making as much noise as possible without knocking into something. The woman smirked at Snape before turning to her.
"Hello, I'm Madam Pomfrey. I need to examine you and make sure there weren't any ill-effects of the curse." Pomfrey said advancing towards her, her wand drawn. Instantly, Isabel was thrown into a memory.
"You're gonna die, little girl." The man said advancing towards her holding her wand in his bruised hand. "Your own father signed your death certificate when he thought he could torture me for answers and get away with it." Isabel backed up until she hit the wall but the man kept coming.
"Farbon," her father screamed rushing into the room. "Crucio!" Suddenly the man in front of her started to writhe in pain. Isabel covered her eyes and apparated out of the house. She couldn't look the monster her father had become in the eyes. A muggle movie would help get her mind off what she had just witnessed.
"Isabel, are you okay?" Snape was standing beside her and gripping her arm. Isabel nodded and looked around while taking deep breaths.
"It was just a memory. I know what happened to Farbon. I lied to that Malfoy character." Isabel mumbled wandering towards a couch. She locked her hand between her knees to keep it from shaking. "My father has Farbon at our house. I saw my father torturing Farbon for information and I tried to stop him. As a result, Farbon got loose and tried to kill me. I left when my dad saved me from Farbon using Crucio. I went to a muggle movie and left that man to die by the hands of my father. Oh…." Suddenly her head was shoved between her knees.
"Take deep breaths until the dizziness passes." Madam Pomfrey said. Isabel complied and after awhile felt the queasy dizzy feeling passing. She sat up and pulled her hand through her hair.
"That was a weird feeling." Isabel said with a shaky voice. Snape was standing near the fireplace. He turned around and looked at her and she was amazed to see an almost apologetic look pass before his eyes. But then it was gone and he was telling her that she had to tell Professor Dumbledore about it. She stood up slowly and nodded. Snape and Pomfrey flanked her as they walked back to Dumbledore's office. He met them at the door and sent Madam Pomfrey back to the infirmary, insuring her that Isabel would be okay in his office. Isabel walked in and sat in a chair. She went to rub her arm and found that it was still down in the guest bedroom.
"Here's what I know…" Isabel started her story after Dumbledore sat down. She told of her father cornering Farbon in a restaurant, of the torturing for information, the near escape and the reason she had left. He listened carefully and when she was done he looked up at Snape who was standing behind her.
"So Farbon must know something of importance," Dumbledore commented. "He knew something that the Death Eaters were to know. Farbon must have been intercepted before he could spread the news. What was it that he knew of though…?" Dumbledore asked the air. Isabel racked her brain trying to remember all that had been said at her house, but she couldn't remember anything. Isabel yawned and quickly covered her mouth with her hand. "Do you need more rest?"
"Maybe, after some food, please." Isabel said.
"I will have the house elves bring something to her room." Snape said. Isabel stood up and Dumbledore walked them to the door. They walked in silence back to the room. Snape walked to the fireplace, threw some powder in spoke quickly into it then walked back over to Isabel who was trying to reattach her arm.
"Bloody thing…..never can get it without… could you hold this?" Snape helped her and eventually it was on. She moved the arm back and forth again then smiled at Snape. "Food's here." Snape looked and sure enough two trays had popped through the fireplace.
"I will be dining with you tonight." Snape announced formally as he grabbed her tray and brought it to her and returned for his own. They both sat down on the couch and proceeded to eat. Isabel finished and was beginning to nod off with the tray still on her lap. Suddenly the tray was lifted from her lap and there were two hands helping her lay down on the couch. One hand brushed a place on her neck and she winced. It was sore there for some reason or another but she was too sleepy to care why. Before she fell asleep she said, or whispered, "Sorry for calling you strange and lonely." Then the world of the living was replaced with the world of dreams. Snape looked at the girl lying on the couch and shook his head. What had the poor girl gotten herself into?
Meanwhile, somewhere miles away a lone owl flew against a biting wind with an urgent mission. It had to reach the girl. It was his master's last chance.
A/N: I'm out of school for the semester and that means I don't have my "Le Petit Prince" book. As soon as I find my list of quotes I made during class, chapters will go back to being titled. Until then, English.
