A/N: This is the first thing I wrote for this fic in months... Like I've said a million times before, I just type out previously written...stuff.
Shahanna: Oops. I accidentally posted my rough draft. Again… I fixed it ^^
RivanKnight: Well, this chapter is the cleanup one! I wasn't gonna put it in, but I decided to anyway! The closest thing I have to a beanbag chair is an inflatable chair with purple feathers in it…
Romm: Wow, very… Creative!
Lei: Don't you hate it when your parents kick you off the computer??
Disclaimer: I don't own Severus, Minerva, and Albus... I sorta own Cassi, though... Sorta...
*~*~*~*~* Chapter 10: Cleanup Duty, or Detention For the Staff *~*~*~*~*
The day had ended and the cleanest corner was Cassi's. Next was Minerva's, then Severus'. René's looked, if possible, worse than it had started. The four had stopped for awhile to have supper.
"Er, René... How could your corner get worse?" Cassi asked.
"Easily," René said darkly.
"The Purebloods did better than you, and this probably the first time that they cleaned without magic," Cassi stared.
"Congratulations to them," René muttered darkly, stabbing viciously at her broccoli.
"Do you having something against cleaning or what?" Minerva asked.
Severus coughed to disguise his snickers.
"Shut up," René muttered, glaring at her broccoli.
"You two haven't seen her room," Severus shook his head.
"And her room was clean," Ellen had walked in without any of the four noticing. René jumped.
"Motheeeerrr," René growled.
"I told you that you would have to learn how to clean without magic someday honey," Ellen had an I-Told-You-So expression on her face.
"What's the point? I can't even clean with magic," René grumbled.
"Really? That's pitiful!" Cassi snorted.
"HEY! You know what they say about geniuses!" René glared at Cassi.
"No, I don't know. Enlighten me," Severus said sarcastically.
"They're often brilliant in one subject but suck in the rest," René crossed her arms. She was still glaring at that offending piece of broccoli.
"So you're saying that you're a genius?" Severus asked.
"Hell no! I'm just very good at the Dark Arts and that sorta thing and crap at anything else!" René drummed her fingers on her arm.
"What a talent," Severus said while Ellen said:
"You just don't apply yourself darling."
"Don't give me that crap mother, I suck at everything else and I know it. And it is a very useful talent, Severus!" René glared at him.
"For what? Becoming a Death Eater?" Severus' face darkened.
"Professional Duelist."
"What? It's near impossible...!" Cassi exclaimed.
"Ever heard of Rhiannon?" René asked.
"Yeah... 'The ebony haired and steel-eyed beauty' to quote Witches Weekly," Cassi shrugged. Noticing her companions' looks, she added, "So I read a lot. And I can sometimes remember useless things."
"Not including passwords," Severus muttered to himself.
"Well, she isn't precisely 'ebony haired and steel-eyed'. Or a beauty," René stabbed her broccoli and held it up to her nose.
"You're her?" Cassi stared.
"Yup. I'm a brown haired and eyed thirty-year-old chick who acts like a teenager. I'm not anything the press says. Except maybe good," René shrugged.
"Modest, aren't you?" Severus muttered to himself. Cassi and Minerva glared at him.
"How did the press get it all wrong?" Minerva asked.
Before René could
answer Minerva's question, Severus answered, "Glamour. And since it seems like I'm the only one with
any common sense in this room, René you are beautiful."
"What?" The four women asked. Severus calling anyone... beautiful?
"What? It's not like I fancy her or anything... She was just basically saying that she thought she was ugly. I thought us men were supposed to be the thick ones, and here there are, three woman, one being the mother, not getting it," Severus rolled his eyes.
"Hey! I'm not fishing around for encouragement or whatever here!" René glared at Severus.
"I never said you were. Isn't it a common thing for people to respond with 'you are beautiful' or 'pretty' or whatever? Or 'you aren't ugly'?" Severus defended himself. He was beginning to regret his decision to call René beautiful already.
"So it means nothing?" René asked.
"No! It's just..." Severus moaned and leaned back in his chair, Never, never compliment women. He decided, They just make it all confusing.
"What are you trying to get at?" René asked.
"It's just..." Severus tried to gather his thoughts and make them clear in words. Ellen, Minerva and Cassi shared knowing looks. PMS. It will be very hard for Severus to get out of this one.
"Damn broccoli! I want chocolate!" René glared. The women's theory was confirmed, "And I still want an answer!"
"It's just..." Severus repeated. Cassi, Minerva, and Ellen looked at each other and slowly began to back out of the room. None of them wanted to get in the way of a PMSing professional duelist and her prey.
"Well? Spit it out! No one else is here now!" René glared at Severus and the offending broccoli.
"What?" Severus looked around. Sure enough, he could see the tail end of a black cloak flicking through the closing door.
"Come on man! Can't be that hard!" René taunted.
"Well, it's just... You are very pretty, René. It's just that I don't think of you that way... I don't fancy you or anything... You're my..." Severus looked almost pleadingly down at René, "Friend. You're my friend, René," It was the first time Severus had called someone a friend and actually meant it in a long time. He was pretty sure that up wherever he was, Albus was chuckling delightedly to himself.
It turned out that Severus said the right thing, much to the amazement of the women later. Who would have known that Severus Snape could say what a woman wants to hear and mean it? René jumped up and threw her arms around the dark man. Severus stiffened, then relaxed, Come on! You've kissed the girl before! It's just a hug! Severus yelled inwardly. Somewhat awkwardly, he wrapped his arms around her waist. René leaned against him and rested her head on his shoulder.
"Say... Is there any chance that you've got any chocolate?"
*~*~*~*~* A few hours later *~*~*~*~*
"Alright. You four delinquents can leave now. Oh wait, since Sinistra and McGonagall left without my permission, you all have to stay here overnight," Albus chuckled evilly.
"What? That's sooo not fair! Me and Severus didn't leave!" René protested, outraged. She wanted her bed. And a Mars bar.
"You both have to stay here for bad English. It's 'Severus and I'," Albus smirked.
"That's sooo not cool!" René groaned.
"If it makes you feel any better, there are two hidabeds," Albus said cheerily and walked away, "Don't forget to share!"
"I CALL A BED!" All four yelled at the same time.
"I say that René and I get a bed because it is your fault that we're staying here," Severus glared.
"I second that motion!" René put in.
"I say, no," Cassi said.
"I say, we open the beds first," Minerva said, and promptly opened one of them. It was in pretty decent condition. René quickly found the second bed and opened it to reveal a king-sized bed.
"What the?" Cassi, Severus, Minerva and René stared.
"I soooo call that bed!" René stared avidly at it.
"How about two to a bed?" Cassi supplied, "Me and Minerva get the smaller one, and you and Snape get the bigger one."
"I say I get the bed I'm lying in, and Severus gets the other one," sure enough, René was a lump under the blankets on the king-sized bed.
"Let's just go with Cassi's idea. Your bed is big enough," Minerva rolled her eyes, How much more childish could René get?
"Fine then! Severus, if you don't stay on your side of the bed, when I get my wand back I'll curse you to the London bridge!" René threatened.
"How creative," Severus rolled his eyes. René's shoes, followed by her socks and bra landed on his face, "Add to the mess, won't you?" Severus held the bra between his thumb and forefinger with a dubious air. He dropped in on top of René's shoes and socks, "You know, it could help if I knew which side was mine."
"Neither."
"René," Severus said warningly.
"Fine. The side I'm not on."
"You're in the middle," Severus pointed out. René moved over a few inches, "Alright then," Severus kicked off his shoes, pulled off his socks, removed a few layers of clothes and climbed into the bed himself, "Move over."
"You move over."
"You."
"You."
"You."
"You."
"SHUT UP! SOME OF US ARE TRYING TO SLEEP!"
"Spaz."
*~*~*~*~*
The next morning came with Minerva, always an early riser, the first up. Yawning, she got up and crashed into a corner of the gigantic bed. Stumbling, the woman pushed the dark hair that escaped her bun out of her face. What she then saw made her shake her head and hold her hair back. René was sprawled across Severus' chest and Severus had one arm around her waist. Eyes wide, Minerva promptly woke Cassi up.
"Ugh... What time is it?" Cassi muttered.
"6:30 AM"
"That's early, especially for an Astronomer!" Cassi complained.
"I hate to cut into your beauty sleep, but I've got something you really have to see!" Minerva had a devious glint in her eyes.
"What?" Cassi asked, curious in spit of herself. Minerva just pointed at René and Severus. Cassi just stared, then shoved her fist in her mouth to keep from laughing.
"What should we do about this?" Minerva asked.
"Blackmail," was Cassi's response.
"Is that your answer to everything?" Minerva asked.
"I have blackmail on all of the staff members, including you and René," Cassi smirked.
"I should have known. Why aren't you in Slytherin?" Minerva asked under her breath.
"I'm not cunning. I just like keeping things against people. A security blanket type thing," Cassi shrugged, "Now, let's take pictures!"
"With what camer- oh," Cassi had pulled out a camera while Minerva was speaking.
"Let's get our blackmail!" Cassi and Minerva began to take pictures from every angle possible. By the time they were done, it was seven. Neither René nor Severus had woken up through all the giggling. The door opened and Albus walked in.
"What is going on here?" he asked. Cassi and Minerva just pointed, "Let's stare at them until they wake up!"
"That's boring!" Cassi complained.
"You haven't been stared at by Albus while you're sleeping," Minerva had a haunted look in her eyes, "Since he used that on me, I tend to wake up early."
"Time to stare!" Cassi shrugged. The three stared at René and Severus. Ten minutes later, Cassi was beginning to complain.
"It isn't working! Let's just dump ice water on them or something!"
"René moved," Minerva said. Cassi shut up and stared harder. Five minutes later, a tired and bewildered René opened her eyes to see Albus, Cassi and Minerva staring at her. Much to their dismay, René just smiled and attempted to wave tiredly. She then attempted to bury her head back into her pillow, which was quite impossible, because, how could you bury your head in a person's chest? René blink confusedly, then her eyes travelled up to look at Severus' sleeping face. She looked back down, then turned and stared back at Albus, Cassi and Minerva. She blinked. Severus' arm tightened around her waist as he opened his coal black eyes and met Albus' twinkling blue ones. His reaction was more satisfactory than René's. He sat up quickly and yelled something about damn blue twinkling eyes. Needless, to say, René got thrown off of her resting-place.
"Damn you people. I was sleeping quite happily until you started staring at me!" René grumbled.
"I bet you were very happy," Cassi said with very obvious meaning. Severus looked politely confused.
"Cassiopeia..." René's eyes narrowed.
"Why do I get the feeling that I'm missing something?" Severus muttered to Albus as René and Cassi started hissing at each other.
"Because you are," Albus smirked deviously.
"And it is?" Severus asked slowly.
"You'll know when the pictures get developed," Albus smiled and turned around to leave the room, "Oh, and you four better start cleaning now. You're breakfast is an hour after you start cleaning," Albus closed the door.
The four grumbling shuffled over to their corners, René trying to trick Cassi into believing that Cassi's corner was hers. Cassi wasn't buying it. Finally René gave up and slouched back into her corner. She sat down and stared at the wall, randomly moving pieces around.
After a brief break for breakfast, the four went back into the corners, and René tried to trick Cassi again. Cassi ended up bodily heaving René into her own corner. Once again, René glared at the wall. Nobody said anything.
"René, you've really got to get some work down," Cassi told René as they walked to the same corner, "René, I know that this is my corner."
"Damn," René wandered back to her own and sat on a couch. The other three looked at each other, then at René.
"René, you really have to do some work," Cassi repeated.
"I don't know how to clean."
"Don't be stupid. Everyone knows how," Severus stared at her, his arms crossed over his chest.
"I don't."
"René," Severus warned.
"No, seriously, I don't," René stared directly into his dark eyes.
"René, it requires no intelligence. All you do is push the couches and chairs into the middle of the room and put everything into piles," Severus gestured at his area.
"I can't clean."
"René... Push those damn chairs into the middle of the room like everyone else!"
René grunted and pushed them into the middle.
"Now clean the rest," Severus turned back to his work. René stared at the coffee mugs and papers. She sat down in the middle of the floor and stared.
The rest of the day passed in a similar fashion. At seven, Albus came and released the four. At seven the next morning, he woke them up and sent them back into the staff room. Once again, the four went to the corners and cleaned, unless you were René. Then you just stared at a bug on the wall.
"René, you really have to get some work done," Minerva said.
"You think I don't realise that?" René asked.
"Of course not, but still... You really need to get some work done," Minerva repeated.
"I would, if I knew how," René said for the millionth time.
"Look, Cassi's all most done; maybe she could help you," Minerva said.
"Er, Cass?" René asked weakly.
Cassi sighed and said,
"I will René. When I'm done."
"Yeah!" René said cheerfully and started putting the coffee mugs in a pile.
*~*~*~*~* Awhile Later *~*~*~*~*
"Alright, I'm done. René?" Cassi asked. René just grinned happily. The two began to clean up René's corner. In an hour, Minerva was done and joined the girls in cleaning René's corner.
"Done!" All four yelled at the same time.
"Jinx!" René giggled. The Purebloods looked at her confused. Cassi rolled her eyes.
"What?" Severus asked.
"You owe me five cokes!" René giggled hyperly.
"What?" Severus asked again.
"Well, I would prefer five Brisk, but if you can't manage that, Pepsi is better than Coke," René said cheerfully.
"What is she talking about?" Minerva asked.
"Muggle stuff. Neither of us would know," Severus said.
"Muggle brands of soda, to be exact," Cassi said.
"Pop is good, yup, pop is good! Ice Tea is better, though!" René danced around the now clean room.
"Alright then..." Severus said.
"Oh fuck!" René swore.
"What's the matter?" Cassi asked.
"How many days are left until the term starts?" René asked.
"Two, why?" Minerva asked.
"I don't have a lesson plan! I don't even have the foggiest idea what I'm gonna teach!" René went from being hyper to stressed in a matter of seconds, "Does anyone have a copy of the curriculum?"
"I do, but it's crap. Nobody decent goes by it anyway," Severus said.
"I still want to see it," René said, "Can I borrow it?"
"Yes, you can. It's in my office."
"Well then! What are we waiting for?" René asked. Severus, Cassi and René left the room, travelling to Severus' office. The lower they got in the castle, the more Cassi's frown deepened, while Severus' smirk widened.
"You should frown so much, Sinistra. It doesn't become you," Severus smirked evilly, "What are you doing here anyway?"
"Helping René. And the pot's calling the kettle black," Cassi glared at him.
"What are you talking about? What does cooking equipment have to do with anything?" Severus asked.
"It's a saying. About hypocrisy," René told him, "She's calling you a hypocrite."
"I got that much, René," Severus snarled.
"Whoa! Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning!" René stared at him, slightly shocked.
"I bet you know that for sure," Cassi hissed in the shorter witch's ear. René elbowed Cassi hard and glared with a pink flush that might have been from anger or embarrassment. Cassi preferred to think of it as embarrassment.
"What was that you just said, Sinistra?" Severus turned around and faced Cassi and René, dangerous confusing crossed his features.
"Er, nothing?" Cassi tried.
"Don't be stupid, as hard as that is for you, you said something about René knowing that for sure," Severus looked at them curiously.
"Er... You'll get it when the pictures get developed," René smiled nervously.
"Not again!" Severus groaned.
"I hate mad psychics," René grumbled at Severus' door.
"Great, now she knows the password," Severus glared at René.
"Then change it, genius," René rolled her eyes. Severus just glared and stalked into the room. He returned a few seconds later and threw a book at René.
"Er, thanks," she said as Severus slammed the door on her face.
"Rude enough," Cassi shook her head. René rolled her eyes.
*~*~*~*~*
A/N: GODDAMN BROTHER! My little sanctuary isn't very sanctuaryish
anymore! Damn him... Why the hell does he want to watch TV
downstairs? That's where I, er,
live! When I'm not on the upstairs
computer. Or in my room... But still, why does he have to be so bloody
annoying? Even my mother agrees, and she
isn't supposed to! She's supposed to
favour the younger one! Or so everyone
tells me...
~ Mage Kitty =^.^=
