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Wizards Honour
Part 15
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The doors to the Hospital Wing slammed shut. Poppy Pomfrey looked up from her desk and caught sight of Professor Snape in the hallway outside her office.
"Can I help you, Professor?" Poppy asked in her formal 'School Matron on Duty' voice.
"I believe I am ill." Snape replied his expression one of acute embarrassment.
"Come and sit down, Professor." Madam Pomfrey led Snape to a chair and shut the door to her office. "Now tell me what is wrong. You were quite well when I treated your broken foot."
"I have been feeling out of sorts for some time." Snape said coldly, then his cold, professional manner was broken by the sound of a loud hiccup.
"Excuse me." He continued, "For a few weeks I have been experiencing a strange feeling of euphoria, sudden hot flushes accompanied by an increased heart rate, 'hic'." Snape muttered, "excuse me," before he added, "and an unusual feeling of calm."
"And the hiccups?"
"I have had those on and off since Christmas."
"What have you been taking?" Madam Pomfrey demanded.
Snape pulled the bottle from his pocket. "Pick-me-up Potion."
"Really!" Madam Pomfrey sighed dramatically and said sharply. "Professor, that potion is a milder but longer acting version of Pepperup Potion."
"I do know that," said Snape sarcastically.
"Then you should also know that it should not be used for long periods of time. When used by perfectly healthy people it produces hiccups." Madam Pomfrey glared at him, "I do wish you wouldn't quack yourself. You should know better than that, Professor."
"Are you saying that I am perfectly healthy?" Snape demanded; he ignored the comments about his behaviour.
"The hiccups confirm it."
"But I'm sick!" Snape snapped at her.
Madam Pomfrey bit on the inside of her lip and fought the urge to make an obvious reply to the Potions Master. She knew her expression must have given her thoughts away when Snape suddenly said, "Ill. I am ill."
Madam Pomfrey nodded sagely.
"Professor," she said, "your condition is similar to the symptoms I see in a number of students each year. Only last week a fifth year Ravenclaw came to see me sure he was dying."
"Who was he?" demanded Snape. "If he was contagious -" Snape stood up and began to pace across the room.
"Professor, really! There is nothing -"
"Do not tell me there is nothing to worry about." Snape continued pacing, his mind full of questions. What if whatever he had was contagious? He could have given it to anyone. What if he'd infected Aurora? He had seen her less than an hour ago.
"You haven't infected her." Poppy said quietly.
"What? How did-?"
"It's what almost every 'victim' asks me." Madam Pomfrey guided Snape back to the chair and pushed him into it.
"I want you to listen carefully, Severus." She said in a motherly tone. "What you have is not contagious in the conventional way, although many people wish it was. You are perfectly healthy and no less sane than you were six months ago."
The Potions Master was about to interrupt her and tell her how uncomforting her behaviour was when Pomfrey said, "Severus, you are in love."
Snape opened his mouth to speak but he couldn't say a word. He wanted to snarl at Madam Pomfrey, to tell her she was insane, that she should have performed hours of torturous tests on him and found him to be suffering something with a long unpronounceable name, but he was in too much shock.
He was still sitting silent and stunned when Poppy Pomfrey pushed a cup of freshly-made sugared tea into his hand and ordered him to drink it. His mind finally began to work and talk to his brain, which had been getting bored with the silence.
Part of Snape's mind readied itself to speak. Ironically, it was the same part of his mind that he'd ordered to be silent under the mistletoe.
The School Matron sat back in her chair and smiled when a broad, goofy grin spread across Severus' face and he shouted, "Yesss!"
A moment later the grin disappeared and Snape said firmly, "You never saw that."
"Never saw what, Professor Snape?" Poppy replied dryly.
"Thank you." Snape muttered.
"Severus," Poppy looked the Potions Master square in the eye. "Don't hurt her and don't hurt yourself or I shall be very angry with you. And I don't think you've ever seen me Very Angry."
"You sound like Albus." Snape said quietly.
Poppy blushed at the compliment and watched Severus stand and walk towards the door.
"Professor."
He turned.
"You are under patient confidence and I shall not say a word. I am happy for you. If anyone deserves some happiness it's you."
"Thank you." Snape murmured and, on his second try, opened the door and left the room.
Poppy waited until he had left the Hospital Wing before she allowed herself to succumb to girlish giggles.
"Wizards!" She shook her head, "No idea at all!"
~~~~~~~~~~~
While Professor Snape was sitting stunned in his office, the school ghosts were scheming in their separate groups, and the house elves were preparing the New Year's Eve dinner, Professor Sinistra was holding a tutorial class for the Ravenclaw students who had stayed at Hogwarts over the Christmas break.
Sinistra set the students a task - the observations Professor Trelawney had requested that morning - and sat back to observe them at work and daydream.
The Astronomy Professor was looking forward to the dinner. She had already come up with a number of insults to fire at Professor Snape for the trick they were going to pull on Moody and his friends.
Aurora smiled wickedly. She was going to have a lot of fun making everyone believe that the engagement was a joke and she hated Snape. A lot of fun, indeed.
to be continued
Wizards Honour
Part 15
--------------
The doors to the Hospital Wing slammed shut. Poppy Pomfrey looked up from her desk and caught sight of Professor Snape in the hallway outside her office.
"Can I help you, Professor?" Poppy asked in her formal 'School Matron on Duty' voice.
"I believe I am ill." Snape replied his expression one of acute embarrassment.
"Come and sit down, Professor." Madam Pomfrey led Snape to a chair and shut the door to her office. "Now tell me what is wrong. You were quite well when I treated your broken foot."
"I have been feeling out of sorts for some time." Snape said coldly, then his cold, professional manner was broken by the sound of a loud hiccup.
"Excuse me." He continued, "For a few weeks I have been experiencing a strange feeling of euphoria, sudden hot flushes accompanied by an increased heart rate, 'hic'." Snape muttered, "excuse me," before he added, "and an unusual feeling of calm."
"And the hiccups?"
"I have had those on and off since Christmas."
"What have you been taking?" Madam Pomfrey demanded.
Snape pulled the bottle from his pocket. "Pick-me-up Potion."
"Really!" Madam Pomfrey sighed dramatically and said sharply. "Professor, that potion is a milder but longer acting version of Pepperup Potion."
"I do know that," said Snape sarcastically.
"Then you should also know that it should not be used for long periods of time. When used by perfectly healthy people it produces hiccups." Madam Pomfrey glared at him, "I do wish you wouldn't quack yourself. You should know better than that, Professor."
"Are you saying that I am perfectly healthy?" Snape demanded; he ignored the comments about his behaviour.
"The hiccups confirm it."
"But I'm sick!" Snape snapped at her.
Madam Pomfrey bit on the inside of her lip and fought the urge to make an obvious reply to the Potions Master. She knew her expression must have given her thoughts away when Snape suddenly said, "Ill. I am ill."
Madam Pomfrey nodded sagely.
"Professor," she said, "your condition is similar to the symptoms I see in a number of students each year. Only last week a fifth year Ravenclaw came to see me sure he was dying."
"Who was he?" demanded Snape. "If he was contagious -" Snape stood up and began to pace across the room.
"Professor, really! There is nothing -"
"Do not tell me there is nothing to worry about." Snape continued pacing, his mind full of questions. What if whatever he had was contagious? He could have given it to anyone. What if he'd infected Aurora? He had seen her less than an hour ago.
"You haven't infected her." Poppy said quietly.
"What? How did-?"
"It's what almost every 'victim' asks me." Madam Pomfrey guided Snape back to the chair and pushed him into it.
"I want you to listen carefully, Severus." She said in a motherly tone. "What you have is not contagious in the conventional way, although many people wish it was. You are perfectly healthy and no less sane than you were six months ago."
The Potions Master was about to interrupt her and tell her how uncomforting her behaviour was when Pomfrey said, "Severus, you are in love."
Snape opened his mouth to speak but he couldn't say a word. He wanted to snarl at Madam Pomfrey, to tell her she was insane, that she should have performed hours of torturous tests on him and found him to be suffering something with a long unpronounceable name, but he was in too much shock.
He was still sitting silent and stunned when Poppy Pomfrey pushed a cup of freshly-made sugared tea into his hand and ordered him to drink it. His mind finally began to work and talk to his brain, which had been getting bored with the silence.
Part of Snape's mind readied itself to speak. Ironically, it was the same part of his mind that he'd ordered to be silent under the mistletoe.
The School Matron sat back in her chair and smiled when a broad, goofy grin spread across Severus' face and he shouted, "Yesss!"
A moment later the grin disappeared and Snape said firmly, "You never saw that."
"Never saw what, Professor Snape?" Poppy replied dryly.
"Thank you." Snape muttered.
"Severus," Poppy looked the Potions Master square in the eye. "Don't hurt her and don't hurt yourself or I shall be very angry with you. And I don't think you've ever seen me Very Angry."
"You sound like Albus." Snape said quietly.
Poppy blushed at the compliment and watched Severus stand and walk towards the door.
"Professor."
He turned.
"You are under patient confidence and I shall not say a word. I am happy for you. If anyone deserves some happiness it's you."
"Thank you." Snape murmured and, on his second try, opened the door and left the room.
Poppy waited until he had left the Hospital Wing before she allowed herself to succumb to girlish giggles.
"Wizards!" She shook her head, "No idea at all!"
~~~~~~~~~~~
While Professor Snape was sitting stunned in his office, the school ghosts were scheming in their separate groups, and the house elves were preparing the New Year's Eve dinner, Professor Sinistra was holding a tutorial class for the Ravenclaw students who had stayed at Hogwarts over the Christmas break.
Sinistra set the students a task - the observations Professor Trelawney had requested that morning - and sat back to observe them at work and daydream.
The Astronomy Professor was looking forward to the dinner. She had already come up with a number of insults to fire at Professor Snape for the trick they were going to pull on Moody and his friends.
Aurora smiled wickedly. She was going to have a lot of fun making everyone believe that the engagement was a joke and she hated Snape. A lot of fun, indeed.
to be continued