Hey all! Another day, another update! I'm really pressing to get where I was before the Big Revision, so all my previous readers (namely BURN THE R.U.M.- still luv ya! ^.^) can keep going with the story. And thank you so much to my new readers (namely dragonwing and Rae Roberts!). Y'all ROCK MY WORLD!!!
~Chapter Thirteen- Finding Duffer~
Severus Snape had been in his office, going over some reports that had been turned in to him by the first year Hufflepuffs that day in the dim light of a single candle. At least he was trying to grade them. He was rather tired and his mind kept wandering where he didn't want it to go.
He was lonely; the emptiness had really been getting to him lately. He had abated it, had fought it off for many years… when he had been a Death-eater. He was solely and whole-hearted loyal to Dumbledore now of course, but sometimes, when it was particularly dark, and he felt more acutely alone, he would think back to his Death-eater days.
Even now, though he served a much better purpose, there wasn't the fellowship there had been among the Death-eaters. He always felt separated from all the other professors, the others in the Order… He had no desire to return to the Dark Ways, he simply wished he had someone who might understand him again.
He shook his head again in disgust at himself. He really only got this way when it was late and dark… and alone. He could fend it off any other time of day. Fiercely he forced his mind back onto the horrendous work of the first years he had on his desk.
"Duffer!"
Snape's head didn't even move, though his quill stopped writing.
Oh wonderful, Severus, he thought acerbically to himself. Now you're conjuring up voices in your head. That's just won- His thought was interrupted by the sound of running footsteps echoing in the corridor just outside; of this he was certain.
"What..?" he muttered out loud, getting up to check in the corridor. It was after midnight, any student out at this time of night would most definitely pay! He could certainly use some poor student to discipline right now… maybe that would make him feel better. He stepped just outside his door to the dim corridor, inadequately lit by the faintly burning sconces along the wall. Out of nowhere, however, a student was brought sliding right to his feet making him jump. Slowly and reluctantly the face of Lindsey Wormtongue was revealed to him.
"What, do I even dare to ask, are you doing down here now?"he said, speaking as if he really didn't want to know. She didn't answer right away.
"My cat," she said quietly, staring directly back up at him with a rather hurt look in her eyes. She was tall, but Snape was still at least a head taller. He raised an eyebrow suspiciously.
"Your cat?" he said with marked skepticism.
"He's lost!" she cried, her voice surprisingly filled with emotion as she tried so hard to get him to believe her. "I've got to find him! I-" She stopped and looked down then, apparently trying to master herself.
Snape was absolutely speechless and without a thought as of what to do; he was caught completely off guard. Fortunately he was saved having to do anything, for the moment, as a sound caused Lindsey's head to jerk up and himself to turn around.
It was the sound of a cat fight.
"Duffer!" Lindsey cried happily, beginning to run down the corridor.
At the same time Snape muttered, "Mrs. Norris…" and reluctantly took off after her.
The scene that greeted Lindsey was Duffer and Mrs. Norris locked in brutal battle, scratching and hissing violently.
"Duffer! Oi!" she yelled. "Hey! Stop that!"
The scene that greeted Snape as he turned the corner was of a vicious catfight with Lindsey in the middle of it trying to separate the two irate felines. Before he could intervene at all Lindsey fell back against the wall with a strangled cry.
She was about to go back into the fight with more priorities than to rescue Duffer when Snape yelled agitatedly, "Oh, let me do it!"
Lindsey fell back once more in utter surprise at his outburst, and could only watch as Snape dove into the raging cat fight, cursing horribly until he pulled Duffer out.
Giving Mrs. Norris a kick in the opposite direction he cried, "Damn cat!" Mrs. Norris gave a final angry hiss, then slunk off down the dark hall. Snape looked down at the small, ragged bundle he had retrieved and curled his lip in disgust. Holding it as far from his body as possible he turned to Lindsey, who stood.
"This would be Duffer, I presume?" he asked distastefully. Lindsey glared at him for the swiftest of instants, then reached out to take the pathetic creature. Her hands were scathed with scratch and bite marks, dripping blood.
"Come with me," he said coldly, turning back towards his office. Lindsey followed quietly, taking a look at her cat. She had seen him sustain much worse injuries, and knew he would be perfectly fine in a day or two. She knew he could hold his own against some pampered priss like Mrs. Norris; he'd been in more alley cat fights than she could remember.
Snape entered his office and gestured for her to wait there. Lindsey watched as he went into the back store room. Shortly after Snape came out with a vial of potion.
"Here, take this," he said, making it sound like she had asked him for a healing potion. He shoved the potion rather awkwardly into her hand not clutching the Godforsaken cat, and it was then she saw his hands were in much worse condition than hers.
"What about yours?" she couldn't help asking. Despite her usual distance from people, she really was a compassionate person. However when he looked at her then, she rather wished she hadn't of said anything. But now that she started she had to go on.
"You need it much more than I do," she said quickly, setting the vial on his desk.
"Oh no, that one's for you," he said strangely, not taking his eyes off hers.
"Well, do you have more? For yourself, I mean… I-I could, uh… I could come in and help brew some…" she added rather pathetically.
"Oh you'll help me brew some," he said, a poisonous smile on his face. "When you come in for detention starting next week." Lindsey blinked once at him.
"You're to come here at seven o' clock and stay until nine everyday," he continued briskly.
Again, Lindsey just blinked at him, now with a rather confused and disbelieving look in her eyes.
She paused for a moment, then said, "Very well" and turned to walk out to the corridor.
"And ten points from Ravenclaw for being out after hours," he added cruelly before she left. Lindsey stopped but did not turn, then hastened her retreat.
Swiftly she walked down the corridor, Duffer cradled in the crook of one arm, the potion clutched in the other. She gripped it angrily until her knuckles turned white.
Ten points from Ravenclaw? That means she lost her House twenty points in one month… If it went on like this they'd never win the House Cup, and it would be because of her.
And detention? Cari was going to kill her… Cari! Instantly Lindsey forgot about the muddled events that just took place and wondered how her friend had fared. She knew if there was anything Cari hated more than getting something less than a perfect score, it was rule-breaking.
Now, Lindsey had no qualms about this. Although it was rather pathetic she had detention less than a month into her school year here, it really didn't bother her. Now Cari on the other hand… Lindsey quickened her pace even more and turned to take the secret passage up to Ravenclaw Tower to see what fate had befallen her friend.