Chapter Fifteen
Corey and Severus
It was the day of the big game at last. Corey Willowby finished polishing his Cleansweep Nighthawk and stood up beside Doug, exchanging glances. There could be little doubt this would be a rough game. Of course, they had told Danny what had happened, and Danny had assured them as team captain she would keep things in line. Even still, Corey had little doubt there would be trouble after Longbottom reminded them yet again that they had agreed to back off since he let the mouse go.
"We don't owe him anything. He nearly got you and all our familiars killed," Doug said. "I swear I'm going to knock him straight off his broom this time."
"Save it for the game," Corey said, trying to calm him down. But now it was game time, and Doug was no calmer than he was after it happened.
Perry peeked out on the Pitch and blinked, closing the door again as the rest of them made last minute equipment checks.
"Look sharp, it seems we have a substitute referee today. Snape's out there," Perry said.
"Oh great, we're doomed for sure," Katie groaned.
"Well, Slytherin may be his house, but we've also got Corey on our team," Juniper pointed out.
"He's just as hard on Corey in class as any other non-Slytherin," Gail said, standing with Juniper and Richard. "We're going to get trounced."
"We didn't last year, and we won't this year," Perry said calmly.
"I hope it rains again," Katie said as they mounted their brooms. The others grinned at her.
Finally the gates opened and one by one they took to the Pitch. The crowd cheered wildly as they came out, waving at them as they soared past. Doug and Corey dipped down to the Hufflepuff stands to do a spin and a wave towards Essie then up for a loop near the box while Danny, watching their antics, twisted through the loop and out of the way as the two boys looked at her with surprise. Snape shook his head from where he stood in the center of the Pitch, giving a short blow on his whistle to make them take their places.
"Let's all try not to get too much blood on the Pitch this time, shall we?" Severus said dryly, picking up the Quaffle. Amadeus and Corey glared at each other from their positions then became instantly alert as the Bludgers went up, trying to keep a steady eye on their positions as the Quaffle was released. Hopping over the mob of Chasers, Corey zoomed in, his Nighthawk faithfully pulling ahead in time to knock the Bludger towards Doug. Doug smacked it towards Lisa and Liam who were carrying the Quaffle towards the other end of the Pitch.
"I take it that means you're going back on your word, Willowby?" Amadeus said, hovering above him.
"You nearly got me killed, Longbottom," Corey snapped.
"Well, we'll try to do better next time," Amadeus said, turning around to catch up.
Lisa and Liam were giving few chances for the other Chasers to cut in. Finally Juniper got the ball back, spinning under the feet of the Seekers who hovered higher to get out of the way. Doug soared past Corey as Casper flew towards the other Bludger, taking aim at Danny and Katie, who were intently watching the Chasers as Liam and Lisa tried to pull a pinch on Gail. At the last moment, Casper turned and hit the Bludger backwards, catching Doug completely by surprise when it beamed Perry, knocking him hard in the arm as the Slytherin crowd cheered.
Corey cringed as Perry signaled that he thought it was broken, still keeping his post. What were they going to do now? They knew they had a problem with Slytherin's Chasers before, but now that they had a Keeper with a broken arm, they were really in trouble. But his thoughts were interrupted by an approaching Bludger and he barely got his bat in position to smack it away. Unfortunately. he hadn't had time to take aim, and Katie had to hop out of the way as it came barreling past.
"Hey, watch it!" she barked.
Corey shrugged apologetically, but then had to move as the Chasers flew across the Pitch again. Perry made a valiant effort stopping the Quaffle with his broom but he couldn't get there in time, and Slytherin scored again.
Quickly, Perry called for a time out. Corey floated down, dodging a Bludger as they all gathered round Perry to look at his arm.
"I'm not sure how well I'm going to keep up, but better an injured Keeper is better than no Keeper," Perry said as Corey cast a spell to splint his arm. "You are going to have to get aggressive with those Chasers. There's still no sign of the Snitch yet, but at this rate it's not going to matter. They're gaining too many points on us," Perry said, looking at the 80-10 scoreboard. "Doug, Corey, you need to find a way to break up those twins."
"I'm trying, but Amadeus seems to be making me his prime target," Corey said. Perry looked over at Katie.
"You think you can handle a Wronski Feint?" Perry asked her. Katie nodded slowly. "Danny won't fall for it, she's a bit wise for that, but it might distract Amadeus enough for both of you to get a good whack at those twins," he said. "We're counting on you two, so for once, please don't mess up." Corey nodded and Doug gave Perry a dirty look as they took to their brooms again as Snape tossed Slytherin the Quaffle.
"Alright, you take Lisa, and I'll get Liam," Corey told Doug.
"I'm not hitting a girl! I may want a date someday! You get Lisa!" Doug protested as the Chasers passed them.
"There's no time to argue!" Corey said, veering away to get control of one of the Bludgers while Doug looked for the other one. But just as Juniper got a hold of the ball and they were heading back, Katie suddenly dove in a twisting, zigzagging pattern, Danny close behind. Corey saw Casper smack the other one towards them and dove to meet it, barely avoiding Danny who had just pulled up, realizing that Katie hadn't seen the Snitch at all.
As Corey looked across the Pitch, he saw that Doug had struck his Bludger straight up to time it with Corey. As the Chasers got near the ring, they smacked the Bludgers hard across the Pitch, one of them hitting the back of Liam's broom and the other hitting the front, sending it flying around in a dizzying spiral down towards the ground to the cheers of the Gryffindor team. Lisa glared at them ferociously as Juniper made another goal.
Doug came up to touch bats as they flew back up the Pitch, grinning.
"I don't know about you, but I'm not telling anyone that wasn't on purpose," Doug grinned at Corey.
"Look sharp!" Corey said as the Bludgers came back at them, both dodging on instinct and letting them fly past. Quickly they sped after them, diving under the Seekers who were still just trying to stay out of the way. Amadeus was faster this time, a mere two-yards ahead of them and smacking it back at Corey head on.
But what should have been a very nasty hit somehow passed through because Corey wasn't there anymore, his broom falling towards the ground. Suddenly he appeared on it again, looking a bit shaken as he tried to regain his control of the broom. The whistle blew. Corey was expecting it, but at least he saved himself from another nasty head injury. Obediently Corey flew to the penalty area for Apparating during a game, grinning nervously at Snape's glare when he came up beside him on his broom.
"You know that's not why I taught you that," he snapped.
"Sorry Dad," Corey said sheepishly before Snape moved away again.
Down below, the game was getting even more brutal. Doug was having trouble keeping up on his own, and Perry wasn't in a position to block much of anything. Still, Slytherin was down one Chaser, and when Amadeus and Casper came up beside Juniper, it was obvious that Gryffindor was going to be down one Chaser soon as well. Sure enough, the moment the Bludgers came up the Pitch, the two of them flew upwards and knocked them towards Juniper, who successfully dodged one only to fly in the other's path. She twisted to try to avoid it and it hit her back, making her lose her grip on the Quaffle as she floated down to the ground in obvious pain.
"Man, I wish Doug would knock Amadeus off his broom, then maybe we'll get lucky and he'll break his bloody neck," Corey growled.
Suddenly he felt very odd and he began to panic, realizing his mistake. He didn't mean it, not really! He wished it in anger… yes that was the trouble… and then, as if in slow motion, he saw Doug reaching a Bludger. He got ready to smack it at Amadeus, who had his back turned as Amadeus and Casper celebrated Juniper's exit.
Knowing that he hadn't a moment to spare, Corey dove out of the penalty area and zoomed across the Pitch. Everything around him seemed to be moving slower and slower as he did so, and there was a curious bluish tint around him as he pulled in front of the Bludger meant for Amadeus, trying to smack it out of the way. In fact, he hit it so hard that his bat cracked, a nasty shockwave surging through his arm. A sudden wave of power propelled Corey backwards, nearly knocking Amadeus off his broom in the process as he lost control and went crashing to the ground.
All of the sudden, time seemed to be moving at normal speed again, and he was aware of Amadeus looking at him in total bewilderment. But as Corey slowly sat up, there was a roar from the crowd as Danny held up the Snitch, the cheering echoed by Casper and Amadeus above. Corey glanced down at what was left of his broom and groaned, knowing there was little hope in repairing it.
Doug landed and ran over, grabbing him and pulling him up on to his feet. Another wave of pain hit him, and Corey realized he had managed to do something to his ankle.
"What the hell were you doing up there? I had a perfect shot, and you were supposed to be in the penalty box! You lost us the game, you idiot!" Doug yelled at him. "What were you doing Apparating again, when you're not even old enough to do that!"
"I didn't Apparate that last time. I flew," Corey muttered.
"No. One minute you were there, the next minute you were covering for Longbottom. Have you lost all your senses?" Doug screamed at him.
"Actually, I think I just gained them," Corey said coldly as Gail and some of the others came over, noticing him favoring his leg. "This is supposed to be a game, not a war," he said quietly. "Find another Beater, Perry. I quit." Corey picked up what was left of his broom and limped passed the rest of the team, ignoring Madame Pomfrey's query about his leg as he passed. Snape, standing near Slytherin on the other side of the Pitch, watched him steadily as Danny ran over to meet him, followed by Taylor from the stands.
"Corey, are you all right?" Danny said worriedly. "Did you see the ghost?"
"Only my own," Corey said.
"We know something's wrong. There's got to be some reason you did what you did," Taylor said.
"According to Doug, it was to lose us the game," Corey said bitterly. "If you don't mind, I just want to be alone to think." Danny and Taylor stopped and watched him limp in, even more worried than ever.
Corey hadn't gotten too far in the castle before he realized his ankle was getting worse instead of better, and even a quick bandage wrap wasn't enough to dull the pain. If only his Dad hadn't changed his office password… of course, since the break-in, Rasputin hadn't been in there, so there was little reason for Corey to know it. But he also didn't feel like going to the hospital wing right now, because he really didn't want to answer too many questions about what happened. Brewing in his room on a weekend would be suspicious, but no one would probably be in the lab.
Making up his mind, he eased his way down the steps to the lab. Strangely enough, there was the flicker of candlelight coming from within the slightly ajar door. Wondering if someone was up to something they shouldn't be, Corey peered in cautiously, quite surprised to see who was standing by the back shelves.
"Well, don't just stand there. Come in and shut the door," Severus said calmly, glancing at a label.
"How did you get here so fast?" Corey asked.
"One learns a shortcut or two when you've been in this school as long as I have. If you had any sense, you'd learn some as well so you wouldn't have had to traipse so far on that leg of yours," he said with a knowing frown, opening the office door. "I still haven't replaced all of my equipment yet, so we'll just have to make do with Craw's office tonight. I need to reorganize it again anyhow. Now, get inside so I can take a look at that leg."
Corey reluctantly went into the office, sitting down and propping his leg up on another chair, Severus coming in right behind him. He didn't speak a word as he poked at Corey's leg and ankle, rolling his eyes at the obviously nasty break. Then he grabbed a potion off the shelf and handed it to Corey to drink while silently lighting some burners, not saying a word. In fact, he went so long without speaking that it was beginning to make Corey very nervous. After a few minutes, Snape finished what Corey recognized as a potion to keep down swelling and handed it to him.
"Drink half of it tonight and half of it in the morning. If your ankle doesn't hurt when you wake up, come see Pomfrey or me; it probably means something's wrong," Severus said, opening the door for him. Corey turned around, looking at him in surprise.
"That's it?"
"What do you mean is that it?"
"Well, I mean… I go and defend Longbottom in a game and break my broom and quit the team, and then try to avoid everybody and make my own potions for my ankle, and you just happen to show up in the lab to make them, and then that's it?" Corey said.
"What did you expect? A full-length interpretation of all your innermost thoughts using colorful anecdotes so that you might learn something from your failures? Who do I look like, Dumbledore?" Severus asked bluntly. "I'm treating you like I would any other student in this position."
"Do you have a lot of students that avoid the hospital wing?" Corey challenged him.
"Quite a few actually," Severus said slowly. "More than I would like. Perhaps you should try asking Miss Nelson, she has been in my office often enough, especially her first two years." Corey stared at him, finding himself respecting him even more than ever before. He also realized, more than ever, why Snape was in charge of Slytherin house. "Everyone has their own way of teaching. Most don't agree with mine, but I find it effective. Now, are you going to go up to your houserooms, or am I going to have to write you up for being out in the halls after hours?"
"Actually, I could really use a Dad right now," Corey admitted quietly. Severus shut the door, striding back over to the desk and sitting down.
"In that case, I would like to hear an explanation of what caused you to do what you did out there," Severus said so starkly that Corey immediately understood that he knew what had happened.
"I… I wasn't thinking," Corey stammered.
"Yes well, that much at least was evident."
"Really, I didn't know I was doing it until it was too late," Corey said. "And then all of the sudden, everything got blurry just like time had come to a screeching halt, and I wanted to fix the W curse so bad that I flew in front of it."
"You're lucky you didn't break your neck," Severus said. Corey looked at him thoughtfully.
"I'm also lucky I didn't break Amadeus' neck," Corey said.
"That part wasn't luck, that was me," Severus said, getting out the Tome. "Surely you've realized by now from what you've read what happened."
"You counter-wished it," Corey said, slightly amazed. "You caught it and wished something else before it had time to take effect."
"Which is why, of course, that sort of instinctual magic is no longer used," Severus said sternly. "It can easily countered by anyone else with any magical ability that knows how to use it. Modern magic is more complex and diverse, making it harder to counter without knowing the proper spell. It also makes you think before casting a spell," Severus added, eyes fixed on him. "So you don't accidentally act on pure emotion." Corey looked uncomfortable. "Being a Focus Caster, you're nearly as susceptible to those impulses as I am, and your self discipline leaves much to be desired. I'd rather you not learn that lesson in the same way that I did. Perhaps we took your wand away too soon. You'd have been better off to have learned more restraint."
"Well, maybe now that I'm older and understand the value of discipline," Corey said, ignoring Severus' dubious expression, "maybe I should try sparring again… I mean, wand style with the other students, so that I could learn some restraint."
"Don't you try to feed me lines, Willowby. Might I remind you that I've been teaching longer than you've been alive, and I've heard them all," Severus scowled at him.
"Well, you're the one who suggested the wand. I just thought…"
"You just thought that perhaps if you were in sparring again, Nelson would actually have some competition for a change," Snape snapped.
"I thought we were supposed to be talking dad to son?" Corey reminded him.
"Releasing you from that sparring ban is as much my responsibility as Sparring Master as it is anything else," he squinted, tapping his fingers irritably on his desk while scrutinizing Corey, who sat there quietly and waited. "Oh, very well! But I swear, if I catch you even for an instant purposefully putting up a hand –"
"I won't, I promise. I have plenty of incentive not to do anything like that again," Corey said soberly.
"Yes, and if you don't have enough incentive, be sure that I will provide it for you. What of Quidditch?"
"What of it? I quit. Besides, I broke my broom, besides other things," Corey said, glancing at his leg. The swelling had already begun to go down.
"A heat of the moment decision. I doubt anyone will replace you without talking to you again. Also, I seriously doubt there is anyone from either Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw that would cause you to react in such a way. You'll never have to face Longbottom on the Pitch again, you know, he graduates this year."
"That's not why I quit. I quit because some people seem to take that stupid cup much too seriously. There are more important things in life than that damned game," Corey said.
"Yes, I tend to agree with you. But as long as you realize that, who cares what anyone else thinks?" Severus said.
"Well Doug wasn't too happy, for one thing."
"Doug has a lot of growing up to do. I'm sure even you realize by now that he's a bit immature for his age, even compared to you."
"Well, yeah…"
"He'll get over it, or not, but you shouldn't let others change your mind about things."
"But you let Mom change your mind about things all the time," Corey put in. Severus gave him such a dirty look that Corey broke out into a grin.
"Stop changing the subject. We're talking about you, not me. Frankly, I don't care one way or the other if you stay on the team or not, as long as you stay out of trouble and turn your homework in."
"If I stay on the team does that mean I get a new broom this Christmas?"
"Don't push your luck," Severus glared at him. "Borrow your Aunt Anna's. She's not going to be riding it in her condition."
"Yes, sir," Corey said.
"Anything else? Or are we done?" Severus asked, glancing at his watch and his ring.
"I just have one other question," Corey said carefully, encouraged by how unusually conversational his dad was.
"Yes, Corey?" Severus asked, tapping his fingers again.
"Do you, well, I mean, it's pretty much public knowledge that Mom became my guardian because she felt partially responsible for what happened…" Corey said, Severus' expression turning to one of surprise. "And then, of course, you married her, so you got stuck with me too, and so I was kind of wondering if you ever regretted it…"
"No," Severus said flatly. "And I do not think that's why your Mom did what she did either. Now get out of this office before I say something idiotically sentimental. And stay off that foot as much as possible."
"Yes, Dad," Corey said. "Thanks. Say hi to Mom for me."
In a way, Corey rather wished that Severus had said more, and yet at the same time, it was reassurance enough. As he carefully walked out the door and into the hall, Corey saw Professor Dumbledore step down the stairs, smiling gently at him.
"Ah, there you are. Madame Pomfrey has been wondering where you were. You took quite a nasty fall," Dumbledore said.
"Yes, sir, but Da… er, Professor Snape took care of it," Corey said.
"I see," Dumbledore smiled again. "I'll let her know not to worry then. You'd best get up to bed and give that ankle more time to heal."
"Yes, sir," Corey said, heading up the stairs as Dumbledore stepped into the office.
"Good evening, Severus. How is Corey?" he inquired.
"As much trouble as always," Severus said, taking his cloak and moving to join Dumbledore.
"Yes. You know, in many ways, he reminds me a lot of you," Dumbledore said mischievously.
"Bite your tongue, Dumbledore, I in no way resemble a Gryffindor. And he is definitely not Slytherin material," Severus grunted.
"Well, it's true that on the surface you are very different, but then the differences seem to be more stemmed from your past experiences than anything else," Dumbledore continued. "You've been a very good influence on him. And I daresay, I think he's been a good influence on you as well. You seem to have a much higher boiling point than you used to have," he observed, looking quite amused by that.
"Probably because that boy's boiled me over so many times that there isn't enough brew left to get past the rim," Severus said testily as they walked out of the office.
"At least now you can get a smaller cauldron to put it in," Dumbledore suggested.
Severus followed him towards the hospital wing, thinking on that. He knew that Dumbledore was speaking of all the extra baggage he'd been carrying all of those years; little by little, he had been putting it to rest. Helping to prevent Corey from making the same mistakes that he had made had released him from a lot of the anguish those events had caused… and perhaps now he could truly put some of them behind him for good.
