Disclaimer: I believe it to be pain stakingly obvious that I did not create these character, only very few are from my brain and even they want to belong to JK Rowling... Traitors! [My characters that is] I claim that non-of the characters or scenery.. And such and such belong to JK Rowling and not to me..... *sobs*
Authors Note: Okay this is a strange chapter and I hope you all like it... Please read it and review it... I like lot of reviews. :) I shortened it a lot so you should thank me for that... lol.
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Never show a weakness.
Affiliations and Afflictions
A cold morning dawned on Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The winter sun rose from beyond the lake making the water reflect even more light into the windows. Raine looked out onto the lake and shielded her eyes from the blinding light being blasted into the windows like fire. A tall man, slim with powerful form and short black rough looking hair looked back at her, a man that she knew well. He turned his back on her and continued to look out onto the lake before heading into the forbidden forest. Raine knowing what was expected in spite of the time left her office and wandered through the building and outside to join him. She could see his powerful form more clearly, his blue eyes drilled into her mind, they were oddly haunting because they looked like they should be on a man who's features were not so dark. His shoulders were broad and powerful still in spite of his age. He looked more distinguished than old. Small circular glasses were sitting on the edge of his extremely straight nose as he looked down at her.
"Raine, nice of you to join me finally," he said his voice powerful and condescending, it oozed sarcasm doused with rage.
"What do you want Quentus?" She said looking at him obediently but feeling like she wanted to make that perfect nose of his have the largest notch in on the planet.
"I am here to check the task is being completed without any problems and that you do something else," he said looking down the whole of her form allowing his eyes to wander over the curves a slight twinkle glowing from his almost white eyes. He often did this to her and after a while Raine had learned to just deal with it like all the other things he threw at her.
"What exactly? You've already got me working here as well as that other thing I'm supposed to do at the same time, what now?" She said her tone icy as the wind that cut cross her face folding her arms in front of her to obstruct his gaze. He ceased his scan and continued fixing her with a penetrating stare.
"I need you to keep an eye on some of the staff here. They seem to have minds of their own. It's unsettling," he said looking out of the forest onto the lake where the light made him think about the trouble with people who think they have control but in fact don't.
"I know all their actions anyway. They're harmless. What more do you want? I thought you had a challenge for me," she said as she shielded her eyes from the sun again. Quentus was able to look without his eyes struggling, his eyesight was impaired so wasn't affected as it might have been by the light. "I can't fool Dumbledore into thinking I'm an innocent young lady who likes Muggle Marshall Arts because I found them entertaining. I was trained for an important task but instead you have me baby-sitting. Truth is that I'm as deadly as a pickaxe, and you know it."
"I taught you, of course I know!" He barked his voice sharp as a whip. "Are you going to do it or not?" He said eyes boring into her the blue beginning to blaze, she shivered. "Stop standing in front of me like you are not expendable. You are!" He snapped - the young woman's face became pallid.
"Is that what you have planned? You'd kill me? Your student who excelled in the Dark Arts? If you're going to do it make sure you don't point your wand at my face okay. Remember how fragile I am? I suppose you're going to claim to have taught me that as well," her eyes became menacing and he looked at her as if she were no more than an insect.
"If my business were for my own personal gain you know what would have happened to you. But then, that is what intrigued me about you, so bloody stubborn but a killer at heart," his face adopted an expression of father-like pride. "Are you going to do it or not Raine?" He said his face washed with dullness like he sudden leap in expression had not occurred.
"It won't be too much trouble I already know what they do all the time anyway. They are not too difficult to figure out," she said looking at the man who revelled in the fact he had turned a beautiful young girl into a deadly woman. She could kill without guilt if it was what was expected and was the only on of his students with guts enough to hide things from anyone and feed information back to him. A quaking feeling had rushed into her chest, Raine looked drained and washed with a sense of foreboding. "Have you heard more of Lucius?" She asked her voice weak.
"Still scared of one man I see. You make me laugh so much that I am bereft of ribs," he said letting a cruel laugh pass his thin lips as he scratched his forehead.
"It isn't funny!" She snapped as the ageing man grabbed her hair fast as lightning pulling it back and running one of his slender long fingers down her neck smoothing the soft skin with a hum of pleasure. "Stop it!" She snapped as she elbowed him in the stomach winding him. "I have classes to teach. I'd like to see you try to explain that to Professor Dumbledore," she said looking at his wheezing figure. "You've got to stop doing this Quentus!"
"Get out of my sight!" He barked regaining his breath quickly.
"The great Quentus Stark... Falling apart now are we?" She said looking at him with contempt. "You're only a shadow of what you used to be. All you have to look forward to is the slowly creeping death that awaits you. You think your so much more but you are nothing but an errand boy!" She said turning on her heel and heading out of the forbidden forest he hair whirling out behind her as she walked briskly to get away.
"It got you though didn't it. You never knew who I was and it intrigued you. Secretly you're still interested," he said composing himself and disapparating.
"Good bye!" She snapped to the space where he had been. She stepped daintily out of the forbidden forest back up to Hogwarts and into the Great Hall for breakfast. She hoped it would be a while until she saw him again.
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"Good morning," Raine said as she took her seat next to Snape. He looked like he hadn't slept at all. His eyes were puffed up and his face was looking completely white, the small clumsy movements he was making to get the toast told everyone that he had been away the night and done something strenuous.
"Morning," he muttered head in his hands after failing to pick up the hot bread for the fifth time in a row.
"You don't look so good. Would you like me to take you're first lesson while you sleep off what ever has got you hung over. What have you been drinking, hey?" She smiled at him and gulped down a goblet full of pumpkin juice. It was easier for her to act like she had no idea what he had been doing and make out she thought he was drunk - it saved his suspicious mind from working over time.
"Would you?" He asked, polite for once not caring what she had said about the drinking thing. It was possibly easier for him to allow her to think he was a raving alcoholic rather than a bootblack for Voldemort, neither did anything for his self-respect however.
"Why else would I offer? Severus you look like hell on legs this morning. I know that is how you usually portray yourself but I don't think the students could take you looking like you do. Don't worry it will be okay. I'll keep an eye on your class," Stark said as Snape went to his office to get some sleep. He looked rough this morning, like he'd taken the beating of a lifetime but had to keep his mouth shut, she actually felt sorry for him.
"How are you this morning Headmaster?" She asked the pleasantly smiling Dumbledore who sat with his usual twinkle in the eyes and was drinking pumpkin juice between bites of porridge.
"I'm fine thank you Raine," he said smiling at her. "You're in a good mood this morning. May I ask why?"
"No reason, I just feel jolly today that's all," she said smiling brightly but not feeling it within. Often when she bumped into Quentus it left her with a feeling that she was betraying all that knew her and it made her feel slightly sick.
"Good for you," Dumbledore said jovially. "Nice to see you smile once in a while."
"... Yeah," she said uneasily. "I had better get a Potions lesson ready. I'm not too sure what to teach them, not really my strong point but I will endeavour to teach something interesting. Severus didn't look to well this morning so I offered to cover the first lesson."
"Well I hope that you can cope. Potions can be quite dangerous. It's a sixth year class," Dumbledore said smiling at her.
"So is Defence Against the Dark Arts when Mr. Malfoy is around," she said smiling back at Dumbledore and gave a small laugh before giving a hateful stare to the boy with silvery blond hair sitting opposite her causing him to blush. He hadn't heard what she had said being over the other side of the Slytherin table but he knew she was looking at him- that was enough. "I had better go and find something for them to write about. See you later I expect," Raine got up and headed down to the cold dungeons. Leaving a pleasant breeze as she drifted past the Gryffindor table. Ron stood up all of a sudden.
"I think Professor Binns is really boring!" He shouted before getting funny looks from the whole school who turned to look at him before his ears went bright pink followed by his nose before his face flushed. Then a he received scolding from Hermione who was also lightly embarrassed by what he had said since she was his girlfriend. Professor McGonagall was trying not to smile and stood up to go and have a word with him but Dumbledore was not watching him, he was watching the witch that glided out of the Great Hall.
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"Where was Snape this morning?" Ron asked Harry as they headed towards potions his arm round Hermione whom was walking dreamily beside him. He had recovered from the embarrassment of the morning with only a short nag from McGonagall who didn't really lay into him for what he had said since she was actually guilty of thinking that herself at times.
"I don't know. He was there first thing. Perhaps he is going to give us some form of test," Harry said longing to be away from the lovebirds as they stopped and moved to the wall not listening to him at all. "I'll see you guys in potions, I think we may have a test," Harry said putting emphasis on the two important words and Hermione pushed Ron away lightly and continued to walk to the class overtaking Harry and rushing into the room to be faced with Professor Stark.
"Good morning Miss Granger, you're in a bit of a rush this morning," Raine said softly as Hermione gained her breath.
"Where is Professor Snape?" She said politely as the others rushed equally as quickly into the classroom expecting to be getting a test.
"Professor Snape isn't well at the moment, so I will be taking this lesson for him. Sit down everyone. I'll see what I can find for all of you to do," she said looking on the desk for some parchment that told her there was something she could give them to do without doing any practical work she hated Potions when she was at Hogwarts. Teaching a practical class with her skills and Neville Longbottom was going to prove interesting so she chose the written/speaking aspect, it was much easier. "Right then, today because I'm not very good at potions you are all going to tell me what you have learned over the year and I will fire questions at random people. Every question you get right will gain you a point for your house. Every question you get wrong will lose five. No pressure, would someone like to tell me exactly what you have been learning?" She said looking at the syllabus on the piece of parchment that she found on the desk. Not a single person raised their hands.
"Five points from Slytherin and Gryffindor then, since no one wants to tell me," every face in the room sank to the floor.
Every time it came for a student to answer a question. They were hit by a quaking feeling that they were going to get the question wrong. There were substantial points lost by both Slytherin and Gryffindor. Harry was hoping that she was this mean to the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff's or this year's House Trophy was going to be out of their grasp.
"I don't think Professor Snape is going to be too happy with you lot," she said glancing up from the question sheet. "Surely Mr. Malfoy you could try in one of your subjects?" She said looking up at him as he went bright red in the face and began to shout wildly at Raine who sat there and took it.
"You're a horrible teacher! I mean where did you learn to teach?! I do just fine in potions and I have got most of my questions right!" He snapped glowering at Hermione who had got all her questions right. "Mudblood!" He spat looking at Stark who just lifted her eyebrows and looked at him with disgust.
"Not all-pureblood wizards are a higher form of life," she said glowering at him her eyes glittering wildly.
"Of course they are!" He said indignantly pushing his slivery blonde hair out of his face with one of his pale hands.
"Would you all like to discuss heritage then?" She said looking around the class who didn't know how to react yet again; she was good at generating that kind of response. Stark looked back at Malfoy who was standing frozen to the spot thinking about what he had just said, he had just insulted a teacher without thinking about it, well he was thinking it but he wasn't going to say anything. "Well Mr. Malfoy? Why are purebloods better than any wizard born to Muggles or even half blood wizards? I refuse to believe that even you would be stupid enough to say that sort of thing to me without reasoning. Would I be right? You're not that stupid or would I be wrong and you would be that stupid."
"I'm not stupid!" He yelled at her, Raine just continued to sit on Snape's desk and look at Malfoy blankly.
"Well then, explain yourself, why are so-called pureblood wizards better? Miss Granger seems to be pretty smart for a Muggleborn; she out strips you at everything. Where as Mr. Longbottom who is a pureblood isn't nearly as bright and has a tendency to be a little clumsy, for want of a better word but it doesn't make him any less a wizard. Surely you all know that Filch couldn't cast a spell even if his sodding cat was being attacked by a mouse. That is one pureblood that definitely isn't what you would call capable," she stated, staring him down even though he was slightly taller, Malfoy said nothing. "Mr. Potter is a halfblood and he defeated Voldemort or to save most of your ears You- Know-Who, when he was only a year old. Don't think that there is anyone at this school who shouldn't be. Then we get people like you!" She said rounding on him. "People who think that they're cock of the walk and can't go anywhere without someone by their side to watch their backs and wipe their arse!" She snapped. The class stared at her, most were dumbfounded others were sitting with aghast expressions and some were sitting with their mouths hanging open.
"My father will be having words with you!" Malfoy snapped his mouth wide open in disbelief and his eyes equally huge. "Professor Snape will also be having a word with you as well!" He continued trying to frighten her. "And Dumbledore!" He said churning out a long list of people that would be sorting her out.
"Shut up!" She barked. Malfoy sat in his chair quickly and looked attentively towards the front of the class. "I think that Professor Dumbledore will be very interested in the fact that you called me a mudblood," she mused. "I have never heard such nonsense. You're a big lad but you've got no brains!" She shouted and the other members of the class were still nonplussed by her outburst. "Class dismissed!" She cried and the students fled like rats from a sinking ship.
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Authors note
To everyone who has already reviewed... *hugs you all* Thank you so much. :)
Bye and stuff
I.C. Fire
silver_shadow54@hotmail.com