Disclaimer: Nothing you recognize from the HP books is mine. This plot is.
Chapter 3: No escape
When Kate awoke the next morning she felt fresh and relaxed in a way she had almost forgotten she could feel. Of course, she thought, no nightmare this time. Just this strange dream about the pub, the wizards, the wizarding school … Not exactly normal, but at least it had had its funny sides. It … "No !" Kate yelled, jumping out of her bed. That hadn't been a dream. They had brought her here, told her, that she was a witch and needed to stay and learn how to control and use her powers. A hat head told her, that she belonged to a house called Slytherin. She remembered the reaction of the man called Severus – or Professor Snape: Shock, anger (was he never not angry ?) and a flicker of surprise. Dumbledore had called the meeting to an end. Then she had been led to a room by a little figure with long ears – Me is Tipsy, the house-elf, miss – where she had fallen asleep almost immediately.
I just let them keep me here, Kate now thought with desperation and fury at herself. These people are mad. They kidnapped me ! I have to get out of here, before those freaks kill me ! She looked round to find her jeans and jacket folded on a chair next to the huge four-poster bed. Quickly she got dressed, then walked to the door. They mustn't see me, maybe I can peek out. Slowly she opened the door and gazed into the hallway. Nobody. She opened it a bit more and squeezed out. Which direction now ? On the other end of the hallway she could see some stairs leading up. She made off towards them. "May I inquire what you are looking for – woman ?" a chilly voice stopped her. Oh god, I'm caught. she winced inwardly and slowly turned round, finding herself face to face with a stern looking ghost.
At the same time Severus Snape was one futile time more attempting to dissuade the headmaster from something that he absolutely disagreed on, but as usual the older wizard would not hear any of his objections.
"Albus, I'm telling you again that we cannot take care of her. I cannot. For Merlin's sake, she's a grown up woman. Is she supposed to share quarters with the students ? This is impossible !" Dumbledore stayed quiet, letting the younger man rant on. "If you have to let her stay her, put her somewhere else. Not Slytherin ! I have enough to do, keeping my students at bay. Can you imagine how they'll react to a woman that knows as much about magic as any muggle ?" He paused. This surely would convince Dumbledore, or not ?
"She might actually be of help to you in this" was the unexpected answer. "I sent an inquiry to a friend of mine at the National Health Service." – Severus never stopped to be amazed at the range of Dumbledore's friens in places unusual for a prominent member of the wizarding world – "He could provide me with the information that she is a teacher. Apparently she has been working a different schools lately. He also happened to know a former student of hers, who told him, that she got along pretty well with her students."
Dumbledore stopped himself seeing the fury well up in his colleague. "I don't need help with MY students", the man hissed. "If you are not happy with the way I deal with them, go and appoint a different head of house." Dumbledore sighed, knowing that this bout of anger had its origin in so many deep-lying emotions that shaped the wizard in front of him: pride, a strong connection to his own house, and, never to be overcome, the hurt of never feeling fully trusted. "I have no attention to appoint a different head of house, as there could be no better than the one who currently holds this position. And I'm not implying that you need help with your students. But don't you think that somebody who apparently seems to get along well with teenagers might be able to lighten your burden ?" he said, hoping to calm Severus down.
"She's not going to meddle with my responsibilities." Severus said. He knew that he was defeated once more.
"So, what are your plans for her ?" he asked.
"She'll have to be tutored, but I don't think she should sit in the classes with the students. We'll have to organize private tutoring for her and she'll have to spend quite much time preparing on her own." Dumbledore said thoughtfully. "We should start right now, and, if you ask me …"
"What would the point of asking you be ?" Snape stated matter-of-factly. "You do what you want anyhow. And you needn't tell me any more – I fully well realize that I am the only teacher here for the summer holidays. Tell her to meet me after lunch." He turned on his heels and made for the door, his robe billowing behind him.
He didn't open it though, because this was done from the outside. "I found the Slytherin Lady wandering about the dungeons and saw it as my duty to accompany her here." the Bloody Baron said, bowing respectfully, as he guided a slightly scared looking Kate through the door. Slytherin Lady ? "I didn't know you were so quick in installing your devotion on newcomers" Severus hissed to the ghost, overcome by a feeling of betrayal. So the Slytherin house-ghost, too, had turned against him. "And I doubt lady is the appropriate wording." he added looking at her jeans, the brown boots and the dishevelled blond hair. The ghost was offended. "If you say so, sir." he returned the angry stare he had gotten from Severus and disappeared. "You'll meet me after lunch, two thirty sharp" Severus said in an icy voice and stormed out of the office.
Two hours later Kate was sitting at a desk in the Hogwarts Library, in front of her a staple of books Dumbledore had recommended her to read, to find out more about her new surroundings and magic life in general. The panic she had felt this morning had slowly given way, not exactly to comfort, but to a quiet acceptance. There was no way for her to escape right now, but there didn't seem to be any immediate danger for her, either. She'd feel a lot better, though, if she knew what all this really meant. The headmaster had sounded quite convincing explaining to her the magic world and her own abilities. And the things that had been happening lately – or, she was close now to admitting it to herself – she had made happen seemed to prove him right.
Yet it was a bit difficult to really believe in wizards, especially if they used wands, were robes, sometimes even pointed hats, in a whole looked like taken out of a Walt Disney film. It didn't help either, that she had dreamed about this place before – wandering around by the guidance of a ghost, who, after his cold introduction had suddenly become extremely polite, she had recognized the castle from her nightmare. And she had dreamed about Professor Snape, too.
She kept thinking about him. Why is he always angry ? she wondered. But somehow she felt more secure with his anger than with Dumbledore's kind way. At least he didn't try to convince her to believe in things.
Kate turned to the book in front of her. She had already discarded Magical Muggle – or how to deal with your newly found abilities by some Ethelda Spinning. The title had sounded just right for her, but she found out that the book mostly consisted of laughable misconceptions about how people without magic were living and the assurance that all this could be accomplished "with just a handy spell". Kate almost enjoyed reading about "Stopping your telephone interrupting your housework with ringing noises" and she actually thought that "Keeping your curlers in place while fulfilling your marital duties" might make for an amusing read as well, but then she started feeling disquiet.
Now she was submerging herself in Hogwarts, a history. After skimming the contents she settled for chapter 259: "Consequences of the witch trials: The final separation of the magical and the non-magical world". She didn't know that she was being observed by a dark shadow from the other side of a book-shelf.
After leaving Dumbledore's office Severus stormed along the hallways. He had known right from the first moment, that all his objections would be in vain. They always were. And probably that's as things should be, he thought desperate. For everything he did, and for everything Dumbledore kept telling him, he knew what he was. A former death eater. A spy now. A teacher for 17 years. Potion master. The youngest head of house for centuries. And still, just a former death eater. There was no way of changing what he had done and been, and there was no way his present position would give him the power to decide on anything. It was a favour, not earned but given as a chance to – what ? Rectify what could not be rectified.
He realized he had not taken the way back to his quarters, but was now facing the entrance to the library. Better to work than to keep wallowing in sorrow over things he could not change.
Years of practice had given him the ability to move almost soundless, so Kate didn't look up, when he walked into the library. She seemed calmer now, than before. And, he saw, she was really working, reading and taking notes on one of the parchments that lay ready on every desk and were hardly ever used by those unwilling children.
The seriousness she seemed to employ while reading surprised him a bit. She hadn't seemed willing to accept even the basic truths last night, and now she was sitting here, trying to work her way into this new world, by gathering knowledge. Maybe not that un-slytherin. he thought. But she does not belong there ! his anger returned. He fled the library and her presence, furious at himself for doing so.
author's note:
Snapebelongstome – first (and so far only) reviewer of this story: Cheers a lot and a big hug for encouraging me !