Sorry it's taken so friggin' long to update! I graduated from high school and had to go through college preparations! (Whoo!! ^_^) Anywho! I just finished the fifth Harry Potter book (which was WICKED AWESOME, by the way! :D) and, as I hoped, it gave me to fuel to continue! By the way, bits of previous chapters may be altered to accommodate the fifth book! (I think I'll put a spoiler warning on the first chappie, too. :P) Anywho! So hear it is… the long-awaited (or not. :P) eighth chapter! Enjoy! ^_^
Chapter 8: The Nightmare and the Day After
Aeowyn quickly sat up, gasping slightly for breath. She spun around rapidly, crawling on her knees to ascertain where she was. With a simple look down, she immediately recognized the infinite pattern of stars and black space beneath her. Aeowyn sighed and said quietly, "Another dream…"
"You wish," came a voice from behind her.
Aeowyn spun around quickly, her hand balled in a fist for protection. Upon sight of the figure before her, her wary disposition turned to one of confusion and curiosity. "Who…?"
"You don't recognize me, do you?" A little girl, of about nine years old, stepped up to Aeowyn. She had short, fiery red hair and innocent amber eyes. She was dressed in blue jeans and a green shirt.
Aeowyn shook her head. "No… I don't…"
"I'm not surprised. You lost me… When you were six…" The little girl stared Aeowyn down. "Don't you remember me? I'm your past." She grabbed Aeowyn's bracelet and attempted to yank her closer. "You don't remember all that happened? …Don't you know why you're so childish…?"
"I don't know why I'm so childish!" Aeowyn snapped harshly at her younger self. "And I can't help it… I try to act older, I really do…! But there's so much to see… so much to do and it's not fair!"
"I know it's not," the little girl stated. "But you have to be older… you have to be older for his sake."
"Whose?" Aeowyn asked curiously.
"You know who I'm talking about. He cares for you… a lot. I know he doesn't show it, but…"
"Sanguis?"
The little girl stamped her feet. "Aeowyn! Use your head! No wonder no one really likes you! Just, wake up!" She slapped Aeowyn across the face.
Aeowyn sat up, sweating profusely. She swallowed hard and glanced around, taking in the familiar sight of the Infirmary and the soft feel of the Infirmary pajamas. Before her and beside her, on carts of silver were scattered gifts of candy and jokes, cards and balloons. Aeowyn sat up and stared, smiling merrily. She turned as she heard footsteps coming into the Infirmary. "Albus! Minerva!" she proclaimed.
"Ah… it is good to see you awake, Aeowyn," Albus admitted softly as he walked up to her bedside. Minerva nodded to Aeowyn with a smile.
"Oh no you don't!" squealed a voice from outside of the Infirmary. Aeowyn winced as the oak doors to the Infirmary slammed open and Madame Pomfrey scurried over to Aeowyn. Albus had a bemused look on his face as Poppy immediately grabbed a bottle that sat on a table by Aeowyn's bed. She put it to Aeowyn's lips, forcing her to drink the liquid and Aeowyn gagged on the repugnant taste. "Lie down and stay down!" Poppy ordered as she placed the bottle back down on the bedside table. "Just relax, Aeowyn, and everything will be okay!"
"Bub… bub I'b fime!" Aeowyn managed to blurb out as she attempted to wipe the nasty taste off her tongue.
"The patient telling the doctor she's fine?" Poppy asked with a high-pitched whine. "Do not undermine my authority, missy. I and I alone may inform you when you are…'fine'."
Aeowyn looked up at Poppy, her tongue sticking out of her mouth. Aeowyn's gaze lowered in compliance with the nurse. "Yes ma'am…" Fear struck Aeowyn as she remembered the events of the day before. "Albus, Minerva!"
"Aeowyn?" Minerva asked urgently. "What's the matter?"
"It's Farus… Farus is a-"
"Farus has already told us everything that happened yesterday," Albus interrupted.
"Yesterday?" Aeowyn gasped. "Oh no! The students arrive today!" Aeowyn threw the sheets off her body and started to climb out of bed. Madame Pomfrey shot her a nasty look and Aeowyn immediately sunk back down into her bed.
"Aeowyn, please do not move. You are unwell," Minerva pleaded. "Everything is already prepared for their arrival and they won't be here until tonight. Please, you must rest."
Aeowyn nodded with a sigh then turned her gaze to Dumbledore. "Albus… What did Farus tell you?"
Albus sat down in the chair that Severus had been sitting in the last time Aeowyn was in the Infirmary and began: "He told us that as he was preparing to attend the meeting, a rat and a praying mantis somehow found their way onto his windowsill. Before he could shut the window, they had transfigured into humans, the two humans you dueled with. They used the 'Imperius' curse on Farus." Albus paused, allowing Aeowyn to comment.
"The Imperius curse… the one that controls people. Makes them do things they don't want to," Aeowyn stated absent-mindedly.
Dumbledore nodded. "Farus informed us that he was under that curse when you came in the door and valiantly, he added, put them in their places. However, you also knocked him about in the process. I dare say you expected Farus was involved with these two men?"
Aeowyn exhaled her breath roughly and sat up, only to be shoved back down my Madame Pomfrey. Aeowyn glared at her, then looked back at Dumbledore. "Of course I suspected him! Wouldn't you?" she asked Albus. "How was I supposed to know he was… under the influence?" Aeowyn sat, pondering for a moment. "Wait a minute… He's the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher! Why couldn't he protect himself?!"
"No more than one of our old Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher could. Like Professor Quirrel, Farus is not the top wizard to seek defense from," Albus said in a hushed voice. "Nothing against Farus, but not even the most skilled wizard could stand up against an Imperius curse cast by an extremely powerful wizard."
"It's also because he's a Ministry member, Albus," she stated, smearing her face with anger. "You knew, didn't you?"
"There is no reason to slander the Ministry, Aeowyn. You owe them a great deal. As such, I thought it best not to inform you."
"You figured you would wait until I found out… or until Farus found the time to interrogate me?" she questioned hatefully, remembering when Farus what nearly choked her to death in the alley at Hogsmeade.
"Yes," Albus replied.
"But Albus… who were they?" Aeowyn asked desperately.
"Ssh, child. This is no matter for you to worry about," Dumbledore said with a wink and a calm smile. "It has been reported to the Ministry of Magic and will be thoroughly analyze. There is nothing for us to do except welcome the students tonight."
Minerva didn't seem as calm as Albus. She glared at Aeowyn motherly and asked, "Are you sure she's up to it, Albus? She was hit by one of the Unforgivable Curses…"
"I'm okay, Minerva… I'm pretty sure I can sit at the table at The Sorting Ceremony tonight," Aeowyn said with a smile. She turned to Dumbledore, suddenly remembering the day before. "What was yesterday's meeting for?"
"An announcement," Albus said without hesitation to cut off Minerva, who had started to say, 'Nothing important.' Albus stood from the chair next to Aeowyn's bed and continued, "There was an attack at the Ministry."
"What branch?" Aeowyn asked hastily.
"The International Corporation," Albus replied a little hesitantly, under his breath.
Damn! "Was anybody…?" Aeowyn asked, dreading the answer.
"Yes… a young man named Percy Weasley was seriously injured. He's in critical condition at St. Mungo's," he replied sadly. "His brother is going to be a sixth year and his sister a fifth year… I… I hope you will treat them accordingly after hearing this?"
Aeowyn nodded. "But, Albus… why would they attack him…?" Dumbledore seemed hesitant to response. "Oh… I understand… perhaps…. Maybe we can talk after the Sorting Ceremony?" With a smile, Albus nodded. Aeowyn noticed that he and Minerva had a troubled look in their eyes far worse than what she had seen yesterday. "Albus?" Aeowyn asked as she looked around.
"Yes, my dear?" he replied.
Aeowyn bit her lip and asked timidly, "Where's Severus?"
"Ah, yes," Albus hummed, smiling knowingly. "I asked him to run an errand for me at Hogsmeade. He should return in plenty of time before the Sorting Ceremony."
Aeowyn smiled. "Right…" Aeowyn turned to Madame Pomfrey with a huge grin plastered on her face. "Mother, may I leave now?" she asked brightly, making Dumbledore chuckle. Aeowyn's smile faded as Poppy's frown increased. Aewoyn glared at Albus and gave him a quiet, pleading look.
After much debating and a hesitant dismissal from Poppy ("Americans! Think they can take on any form of magic and skip away, unhurt!"), Aeowyn hopped down the stairs that led to the dungeon, thinking maybe Severus had returned. Curiosity had suddenly bewitched her brain and she pondered about that letter he had sent her a week ago. She peered into his classroom and called out, "Severus?" When she received no reply, she sauntered into the room, her hands pulled behind her back innocently. "Severus?" she drudged on. "Huh… I guess he's not back yet."
"Who is not back yet?" came a soft, silky voice from behind her. Aeowyn spun around in less than a second, her wand aimed at Severus' face. He moved his face out of the point of the wand and said casually, "You always greet fellow Professors with such animosity?"
Aeowyn adjusted her wand to match the movement of his head. "Do you always swoop about the castle like a bat?" she smirked.
Severus seemed to meet her challenge by retorting, "Coming from you, I shall take that as a compliment." He drew his wand, which was long and twisted. "Care for a small duel?" he asked. "You realize…This is going to get ugly…"
Aeowyn smiled, showing smug arrogance on her face. "That's what the doctors told your parents when you were born, huh?"
Severus' grin faded at her insult and she broke out into laughter. "That was not funny," he stated plainly, but not angrily as he lowered his wand.
"I'm sorry!" Aeowyn apologized through tears of laughter. She lowered her wand and placed a hand to her right cheek, attempting to subdue her giggles.
Severus couldn't help but letting a small smile come to his lips as he stared at her. Her laugh was melodious, an almost soothing intoxication that he wished he could hear more of. His eyes trailed down her face to her figure and he noted, which was something he hadn't before, that she had a perfectly shaped hourglass waist and the shirt she was wearing really showed off the contours of her body. A slap on his shoulder brought him out of his dreaming.
Aeowyn withdrew her hand from Severus' shoulder, swiping her nose. "Really, I truly am," she managed to choke out when her laughing had stopped. "I was just looking for you to make sure you were okay," Aeowyn spouted out quickly, without thinking. Damn it! That sounded like I care for him! Curses!
A shocked expression was painted on Severus' face as he looked at Aeowyn. "I… was… Dumbledore asked me to go to Hogsmeade to pick up some special books he had on back order, since he was preoccupied with letters from the Ministry." He paused, then looked genuinely concerned. "How are you?"
"Tip-top!" Aeowyn replied with a grin. "As a matter of fact, I came to look for you to ask when we were going to have that chat you were talking about."
"Ah," Severus broke their gaze. "I am not exactly sure if not is the correct moment to be discussing such matters where open ears can hear."
Aeowyn put her wand back in her pocket, thinking of her own reasons why this was true. "Right," she agreed. "Good point. I'm off then! I've got to get ready for the Ceremony!" Aeowyn walked briskly past Severus, only stopping when he asked:
"Aeowyn? You are… still going to sit beside me… correct?" Severus questioned hesitantly.
"Only if you promise to wear something nice!" Aeowyn shouted out with a smile. She waved goodbye and ran out of sight.
Severus looked down at his robes. "Something… nice…?"