Severus Snape, Head of Slyherin House at Hogwarts and master of Potions, found himself in the staff toilets, clutching his arm as the burning pain whipped through his forearm. He grunted - every time his Dark Lord called to him this happened, and he knew he would never get used to it.
"Constipation, Severus?" said a squeaky voice from outside the toilets. Severus recognised it at once as Proffesor Flitwick, who taught charms.
"Shut up," he moaned, before storming out of the toilets and to his office, desperatly trying to stop the pain from reaching his facial muscles.
"Severus! You didn't wash your hands!"
Flitwick's hygenic prompt went unheard as Severus continued to storm down the corridor and out of sight.
Amelia Simander, a girl recently transferred from the scottish school of witchcrafy and wizardry, had been sorted in Gryffindor the previous day. Yet a little shock came to Severus once he saw the enchanted note hanging on his office door. He said his office password ("Ebony") and quickly strode over to the fireplace.
"ALBUS!"
Almost instantly, Albus Dumbledore's head appeared in the fire, wearing the same warm smile as he usually did.
"You bellowed?"
"I give up. Explain, why has Miss Simander switched houses to Slytherin?" he said, his mouth twitching in the corners - he hated Gryffindor students, and even though she was transffering to his own house, he felt bitter towards it.
"Well, Severus, for the simple reason that SHE wanted to."
"....Um."
Albus gave a small chuckle, "She loves potions - and since you're Slytherin head, she wanted to be around you more in order to get first hand experience in potion making."
Severus sighed, "ALL my students know that whatever free time I have I spend in my office, NOT in the common room."
All this talk of Amelia had taken his mind off the strange creature he saw a few nights previous, and decided to enquire about it to Albus.
"Uh, Albus? Did you see my message on the staff notice board?"
"I did indeed."
"....So? Have you?"
Albus gave one of his mysterious smiles that always seemed to annoy Severus.
"Yes."
"When? What ha-"
But before Severus could finish his sentence, Albus' head had dissapeared into the flame.
"Damn."
After what seemed like an eternity and a day, it was night. Well, not night, it was only five in the afternoon, but with winter evenings the premature darkness followed. He stationed himself by the window, Pepped Pumpkin Juice at hand incase he felt the effects of sleepyness closing in on him.
The lake looked like it would any other evening - its ripples gleamed in the moonlight (which, again, was a full moon, which made Severus smirk), as tentacles shot out at Swupus' every now and again. Severus looked at the stars - something which he had, surprisingly, not done in a long time. He picked out a few constellations and traced them with his wand, and, for some reason, he smiled.
"Mr. Snape, please stop shooting down flies, and get back to your star gazing." came a rather dismal voice. Snape looked up at his astronomy proffesor.
"Yessir..."
"Hey Snivelly, got the answer to number four yet?" came the harsh voice of Sirius Black.
"No. And even if I did, I wouldn't give it you - HEY!"
Sirius had called Severus' parchment to him using the Accio spell. He rolled it open, and sneered.
"You bloody liar. Now I'm going to have to hex you." Sirius whipped out his wand and started to say his chosen spell...
"HEY! Don't even think about it, Black! Ten points from Gryffindor!"
But Sirius had already started the spell.
"EXPELLIARMUS!"
Snape saw the light emitt from Sirius' wand, and hit him square in the stomach. Severus rolled down the roof, his spine slamming into the hard stone tiles as he fell. He saw the end of the roof come into view, and reached out for some sort of support, something to hold onto, but to no avail...he was mere inches form the edge, he was going to die....then he fell, and he was a metre or so from the ground-
"NO!"
Severus woke with a start - another nightmare, concieved from one of the memories he forgot to put into his Pensieve....she sighed, and ran his fingers through his hair.
"....Honestly, I don't know what you want from me-"
A young females voice rang out through the darkness. Snape bolted up, knocking his pumpkin juice out of the window, making a huge shattering of glas ring out through the deadly silence.
Two figures looked up - Snape recognised one as the creature he saw last night, the Chido which Hagrid had told him about, the other was a hooded figure, with the build of a human.
"You know exactly what I want. The blood that runs through your veins." The hooded figure had the deep voice of a middle aged man.
"Well, you're not getting it, you foul, you evil-"
Severus gasped. That thing could talk?
"Well, then I guess I'm going to have to take it from you by sheer force."
The figure whipped out an extremely long wand, it must have been closing in on about sixty centimetres in length.
"CRUCIO! EXPELLIARMUS!"
The Chido started to twich and writher in pain from the effects of the Crucio curse, before being slammed into a jagged rock from being blasted by the Expelliarmus spell. From where the rocks had cut into its back, blood that shone like rubies began to spill onto the grass. The figure started towards it, and even in the pitch black Severus could make out an evil smirk-
"STUPEFY!"
Severus bellowed into the night air, straight at the figure making towards the Chido. Of course, from the distance he was shooting it at, Severus missed, but only narrowly. The figure dodged it just in time, and looked towards him menacingly. He stepped backwards, and judging from the crack Severus heard after, he had dissaparated, though how, Severus wasn't sure - no one could apparate inside the Hogwarts grounds....
Severus pulled out a very aged broom from his cupboard, and hopped upon it. He angled the tip down towards where the Chido lay. As soon as he was within landing height he jumped off, and ran towards the bleeding creature.
The Chido had already started to get up, trying despearatly to cover it wound with its Phoenix wings.
Now that he was right next to it, Severus was awed by its beauty. It's fur was a silver grey, its eyes a chocolate brown. The tail, which he had controversed over earlier, was more Lion like, and its feathers did indeed trail on the underside of its tail until about half way. It Phoenix wings glistened in the remaning moonlight of the early morning.
"Stay still, let me-"
"N-no...not you...I..."
"What's going on out here?!" came the strict, ringing voice of Proffesor McGonagall.
"I'm sorry, Proffesor, but....Obliviate."
The Chido only had to use direct eye contact to use the spell. The blue light hit Severus' stomach - he doubled over and flew about 10 metres across the grass, until he finally stopped, virtually motionless, save the gentle rising and falling of his chest.
"What the - SEVERUS!!"
Severus managed to see the Chido fly away with obvious difficulty, before the darkness enveloped him.
"Uhhh...."
"My goodness, Severus, took you long enough. You sleep like a baby, you know."
Severus craned his eyes open - the first thing he knew was that he wa sin the hospital wing. Out of the window he could see the sun slowly starting to creep over the horizon. Proffesor McGonagall was leaning over him, with a relieved expression worn into her face.
"Minerva."
"Well, at least that thing only used a small dosage of the Obliviate spell. You could have lost nearly all the memories you retain, you know, had it decided to."
Severus sat up, with little ease - his head was sore, and he could feel a vein pulsating madly in his forehead.
"That...thing...A Chido. It was a Chido."
"I know, Severus. I asked Hagrid. But we have to inquire as to what it was doing in England, its far too cold over here for it to stay."
"I think I'll...go back to my bedroom....gotta...do some....stuff."
Minerva had to stiffle another giggle - using common slang was also VERY un-Snape like.
"Poppy insists that you stay."
"Poppy insists a lot of things." Severus proclamied, half way through getting up and out of bed. It was only then that he noticed that he was in his grey nightshirt.
"Who undressed me?" he said, feeling a rush of blood swell into his face.
A giggle emmitted from the corner of the hospital ward. Poppy tried to hide her embaressment, but to no avail.
"...Right." Severus walked heavily back to his own bedroom.
"Miss Simander, I am also ill, but do you see me complaining?"
Severus had had Amelia come up to him before Potions to ask if she could possibly have the day off, claiming that she didn't feel well enough to attend classes. He was extremely snappy after the events of last night. Or was it early this morning? He couldn't remember -his head throbbed too much.
"Well, you're, like, the teacher and, well....uhm, no, it....doesn't matter."
Amelia walked off into the dungeon classroom, taking a seat at the front. Most of the Slytherin's had, surprisingly, warmed up to her, considering that she had once been in Gryffindor.
Potions flew by, and after curing a Mr. Longbottom of swelling hands after being splattered with the Deswelling Potion they were making (Severus had clamied that he had forgotten to add the Dragon tendon, which was essential), Severus watched the students walk out of the class, of whom the last was Amelia, who had started to look tired. Severus shrugged it off, and waited for the next bunch of dunderheads to enter.
His third lesson of the day was interupted when Proffesor Sprout burst through the door.
"Severus, come. Now."
Severus gave Sprout a look of deep confusion, a look did that not grace his features very often.
Severus followed Sprout until he knew were they were going - the hospital wing. He overtook and burst through the doors.
"Severus....one of your students..."
Severus knew what was coming, and he was right.
Amelia was lying in the bed, her breathing laboured, and with virtually no colour in her face.
"What the...Miss Simander? What happened?"
"She collapsed in my herbology lesson. She had looked extremely ill from the start, but I figured that she must've been alright, as I'm sure you would have let her have the day off if she looked this ill in the morning."
Severus felt guilty, as anyone would.
"...Yes....yes, she looked...better, this morning..." he lied quickly.
Why? Why did I just do that?! he thought bitterly.
He turned his head away.
"Will she be alright?" he asked, but trying to hide his concern.
"Well, she'll need a potion that will stimluate the bone marrow to create more blood. I'll leave that down to you."
"Accio Blood Regenerating Potion." Severus said, halfway through Poppy's last sentence.
The vial flew to him, and he let Poppy catch it. She gently tipped it to Amelia's mouth, who swallowed it, and colour had already started to return to her face.
"Severus, could she have the rest of the week off? She'll be weak for a little while."
"Yes...yes, of course."
Severus strode away, not looking back.
"Sir?"
Severus looked up. Amelia was at his office door, looking much better, considering that she had only been treated a few hours ago.
"Miss Simander, shouldn't you - I mean, Madam Pomphrey-"
"She know's I've gone. She's the one who let me. Anyway, would you...I mean, did you set any potions homework today? For our class?"
Severus gave her one of his calculating looks.
"Yes."
They stared at eachother for a full twenty seconds in absolute silence. Severus resisted the temptation to delve into her mind using Legilimency.
"...So, uhhh.....could you tell me what it was? I'd like to do it."
"Well that's certainly a surprise. No ones ever said that before..." Severus thought.
"A two parchment long essay on potions that originate from Asia, their properties, and how to make them." Severus said, his lip curling into a smile.
"Okay."
With that, Amelia left, leaving a very confused Snape to watch her out of sight, before turning back to marking homework, being sure to give a lot of F's where necessary.
"Forgotten to do your homework again, Mr Malfoy? Pity. I'm afraid I'll have to take a point from Slytherin."
"A point??" Severus heard someone say, "If it was our house it'd be fifty!"
"QUIET!" Severus barked, "Ten points from Hufflepuff!"
He caught sight of a few giggles coming onto the faces of the Slytherin house. Despite not having stayed awake to see the creature again, he seemed to be enjoying taking points of houses that were not his own.
"So...no one has done theit homework?..."
It was at that moment that Amelia burst through the door, panting heavily. As usual, she looked fatigued, but not ill.
"S-sorry I'm late, sir, Proffesor Flitwick had to talk to me....I-I have a note. And, uh, my h-h-h-homework...."
She slumped down into a chair, handing the note and homework to Severus. He took the note first and read it, before saying "Very well" in his usual silky voice.
"Well, then, I guess I'll only be marking Miss Simander's homework today. A point of every Slytherin who forgot their homework, which is...five, I believe? Though, I'm sure Miss Simander's work should make up the points....I hope."
The Gryffindors and Hufflepuff's looked at eachother in shock - Snape hadn't taken any points off them!
"Oh, and ten points off every Hufflepuff and Gryffindor who forgot theirs." he added, with a look of triumph. A loud sigh emmitted from every Gryffindor and Hufflepuff in the room.
Soooo, chapter three was looong! o.o; I'm really having fun writing this - please RR!
"Constipation, Severus?" said a squeaky voice from outside the toilets. Severus recognised it at once as Proffesor Flitwick, who taught charms.
"Shut up," he moaned, before storming out of the toilets and to his office, desperatly trying to stop the pain from reaching his facial muscles.
"Severus! You didn't wash your hands!"
Flitwick's hygenic prompt went unheard as Severus continued to storm down the corridor and out of sight.
Amelia Simander, a girl recently transferred from the scottish school of witchcrafy and wizardry, had been sorted in Gryffindor the previous day. Yet a little shock came to Severus once he saw the enchanted note hanging on his office door. He said his office password ("Ebony") and quickly strode over to the fireplace.
"ALBUS!"
Almost instantly, Albus Dumbledore's head appeared in the fire, wearing the same warm smile as he usually did.
"You bellowed?"
"I give up. Explain, why has Miss Simander switched houses to Slytherin?" he said, his mouth twitching in the corners - he hated Gryffindor students, and even though she was transffering to his own house, he felt bitter towards it.
"Well, Severus, for the simple reason that SHE wanted to."
"....Um."
Albus gave a small chuckle, "She loves potions - and since you're Slytherin head, she wanted to be around you more in order to get first hand experience in potion making."
Severus sighed, "ALL my students know that whatever free time I have I spend in my office, NOT in the common room."
All this talk of Amelia had taken his mind off the strange creature he saw a few nights previous, and decided to enquire about it to Albus.
"Uh, Albus? Did you see my message on the staff notice board?"
"I did indeed."
"....So? Have you?"
Albus gave one of his mysterious smiles that always seemed to annoy Severus.
"Yes."
"When? What ha-"
But before Severus could finish his sentence, Albus' head had dissapeared into the flame.
"Damn."
After what seemed like an eternity and a day, it was night. Well, not night, it was only five in the afternoon, but with winter evenings the premature darkness followed. He stationed himself by the window, Pepped Pumpkin Juice at hand incase he felt the effects of sleepyness closing in on him.
The lake looked like it would any other evening - its ripples gleamed in the moonlight (which, again, was a full moon, which made Severus smirk), as tentacles shot out at Swupus' every now and again. Severus looked at the stars - something which he had, surprisingly, not done in a long time. He picked out a few constellations and traced them with his wand, and, for some reason, he smiled.
"Mr. Snape, please stop shooting down flies, and get back to your star gazing." came a rather dismal voice. Snape looked up at his astronomy proffesor.
"Yessir..."
"Hey Snivelly, got the answer to number four yet?" came the harsh voice of Sirius Black.
"No. And even if I did, I wouldn't give it you - HEY!"
Sirius had called Severus' parchment to him using the Accio spell. He rolled it open, and sneered.
"You bloody liar. Now I'm going to have to hex you." Sirius whipped out his wand and started to say his chosen spell...
"HEY! Don't even think about it, Black! Ten points from Gryffindor!"
But Sirius had already started the spell.
"EXPELLIARMUS!"
Snape saw the light emitt from Sirius' wand, and hit him square in the stomach. Severus rolled down the roof, his spine slamming into the hard stone tiles as he fell. He saw the end of the roof come into view, and reached out for some sort of support, something to hold onto, but to no avail...he was mere inches form the edge, he was going to die....then he fell, and he was a metre or so from the ground-
"NO!"
Severus woke with a start - another nightmare, concieved from one of the memories he forgot to put into his Pensieve....she sighed, and ran his fingers through his hair.
"....Honestly, I don't know what you want from me-"
A young females voice rang out through the darkness. Snape bolted up, knocking his pumpkin juice out of the window, making a huge shattering of glas ring out through the deadly silence.
Two figures looked up - Snape recognised one as the creature he saw last night, the Chido which Hagrid had told him about, the other was a hooded figure, with the build of a human.
"You know exactly what I want. The blood that runs through your veins." The hooded figure had the deep voice of a middle aged man.
"Well, you're not getting it, you foul, you evil-"
Severus gasped. That thing could talk?
"Well, then I guess I'm going to have to take it from you by sheer force."
The figure whipped out an extremely long wand, it must have been closing in on about sixty centimetres in length.
"CRUCIO! EXPELLIARMUS!"
The Chido started to twich and writher in pain from the effects of the Crucio curse, before being slammed into a jagged rock from being blasted by the Expelliarmus spell. From where the rocks had cut into its back, blood that shone like rubies began to spill onto the grass. The figure started towards it, and even in the pitch black Severus could make out an evil smirk-
"STUPEFY!"
Severus bellowed into the night air, straight at the figure making towards the Chido. Of course, from the distance he was shooting it at, Severus missed, but only narrowly. The figure dodged it just in time, and looked towards him menacingly. He stepped backwards, and judging from the crack Severus heard after, he had dissaparated, though how, Severus wasn't sure - no one could apparate inside the Hogwarts grounds....
Severus pulled out a very aged broom from his cupboard, and hopped upon it. He angled the tip down towards where the Chido lay. As soon as he was within landing height he jumped off, and ran towards the bleeding creature.
The Chido had already started to get up, trying despearatly to cover it wound with its Phoenix wings.
Now that he was right next to it, Severus was awed by its beauty. It's fur was a silver grey, its eyes a chocolate brown. The tail, which he had controversed over earlier, was more Lion like, and its feathers did indeed trail on the underside of its tail until about half way. It Phoenix wings glistened in the remaning moonlight of the early morning.
"Stay still, let me-"
"N-no...not you...I..."
"What's going on out here?!" came the strict, ringing voice of Proffesor McGonagall.
"I'm sorry, Proffesor, but....Obliviate."
The Chido only had to use direct eye contact to use the spell. The blue light hit Severus' stomach - he doubled over and flew about 10 metres across the grass, until he finally stopped, virtually motionless, save the gentle rising and falling of his chest.
"What the - SEVERUS!!"
Severus managed to see the Chido fly away with obvious difficulty, before the darkness enveloped him.
"Uhhh...."
"My goodness, Severus, took you long enough. You sleep like a baby, you know."
Severus craned his eyes open - the first thing he knew was that he wa sin the hospital wing. Out of the window he could see the sun slowly starting to creep over the horizon. Proffesor McGonagall was leaning over him, with a relieved expression worn into her face.
"Minerva."
"Well, at least that thing only used a small dosage of the Obliviate spell. You could have lost nearly all the memories you retain, you know, had it decided to."
Severus sat up, with little ease - his head was sore, and he could feel a vein pulsating madly in his forehead.
"That...thing...A Chido. It was a Chido."
"I know, Severus. I asked Hagrid. But we have to inquire as to what it was doing in England, its far too cold over here for it to stay."
"I think I'll...go back to my bedroom....gotta...do some....stuff."
Minerva had to stiffle another giggle - using common slang was also VERY un-Snape like.
"Poppy insists that you stay."
"Poppy insists a lot of things." Severus proclamied, half way through getting up and out of bed. It was only then that he noticed that he was in his grey nightshirt.
"Who undressed me?" he said, feeling a rush of blood swell into his face.
A giggle emmitted from the corner of the hospital ward. Poppy tried to hide her embaressment, but to no avail.
"...Right." Severus walked heavily back to his own bedroom.
"Miss Simander, I am also ill, but do you see me complaining?"
Severus had had Amelia come up to him before Potions to ask if she could possibly have the day off, claiming that she didn't feel well enough to attend classes. He was extremely snappy after the events of last night. Or was it early this morning? He couldn't remember -his head throbbed too much.
"Well, you're, like, the teacher and, well....uhm, no, it....doesn't matter."
Amelia walked off into the dungeon classroom, taking a seat at the front. Most of the Slytherin's had, surprisingly, warmed up to her, considering that she had once been in Gryffindor.
Potions flew by, and after curing a Mr. Longbottom of swelling hands after being splattered with the Deswelling Potion they were making (Severus had clamied that he had forgotten to add the Dragon tendon, which was essential), Severus watched the students walk out of the class, of whom the last was Amelia, who had started to look tired. Severus shrugged it off, and waited for the next bunch of dunderheads to enter.
His third lesson of the day was interupted when Proffesor Sprout burst through the door.
"Severus, come. Now."
Severus gave Sprout a look of deep confusion, a look did that not grace his features very often.
Severus followed Sprout until he knew were they were going - the hospital wing. He overtook and burst through the doors.
"Severus....one of your students..."
Severus knew what was coming, and he was right.
Amelia was lying in the bed, her breathing laboured, and with virtually no colour in her face.
"What the...Miss Simander? What happened?"
"She collapsed in my herbology lesson. She had looked extremely ill from the start, but I figured that she must've been alright, as I'm sure you would have let her have the day off if she looked this ill in the morning."
Severus felt guilty, as anyone would.
"...Yes....yes, she looked...better, this morning..." he lied quickly.
Why? Why did I just do that?! he thought bitterly.
He turned his head away.
"Will she be alright?" he asked, but trying to hide his concern.
"Well, she'll need a potion that will stimluate the bone marrow to create more blood. I'll leave that down to you."
"Accio Blood Regenerating Potion." Severus said, halfway through Poppy's last sentence.
The vial flew to him, and he let Poppy catch it. She gently tipped it to Amelia's mouth, who swallowed it, and colour had already started to return to her face.
"Severus, could she have the rest of the week off? She'll be weak for a little while."
"Yes...yes, of course."
Severus strode away, not looking back.
"Sir?"
Severus looked up. Amelia was at his office door, looking much better, considering that she had only been treated a few hours ago.
"Miss Simander, shouldn't you - I mean, Madam Pomphrey-"
"She know's I've gone. She's the one who let me. Anyway, would you...I mean, did you set any potions homework today? For our class?"
Severus gave her one of his calculating looks.
"Yes."
They stared at eachother for a full twenty seconds in absolute silence. Severus resisted the temptation to delve into her mind using Legilimency.
"...So, uhhh.....could you tell me what it was? I'd like to do it."
"Well that's certainly a surprise. No ones ever said that before..." Severus thought.
"A two parchment long essay on potions that originate from Asia, their properties, and how to make them." Severus said, his lip curling into a smile.
"Okay."
With that, Amelia left, leaving a very confused Snape to watch her out of sight, before turning back to marking homework, being sure to give a lot of F's where necessary.
"Forgotten to do your homework again, Mr Malfoy? Pity. I'm afraid I'll have to take a point from Slytherin."
"A point??" Severus heard someone say, "If it was our house it'd be fifty!"
"QUIET!" Severus barked, "Ten points from Hufflepuff!"
He caught sight of a few giggles coming onto the faces of the Slytherin house. Despite not having stayed awake to see the creature again, he seemed to be enjoying taking points of houses that were not his own.
"So...no one has done theit homework?..."
It was at that moment that Amelia burst through the door, panting heavily. As usual, she looked fatigued, but not ill.
"S-sorry I'm late, sir, Proffesor Flitwick had to talk to me....I-I have a note. And, uh, my h-h-h-homework...."
She slumped down into a chair, handing the note and homework to Severus. He took the note first and read it, before saying "Very well" in his usual silky voice.
"Well, then, I guess I'll only be marking Miss Simander's homework today. A point of every Slytherin who forgot their homework, which is...five, I believe? Though, I'm sure Miss Simander's work should make up the points....I hope."
The Gryffindors and Hufflepuff's looked at eachother in shock - Snape hadn't taken any points off them!
"Oh, and ten points off every Hufflepuff and Gryffindor who forgot theirs." he added, with a look of triumph. A loud sigh emmitted from every Gryffindor and Hufflepuff in the room.
Soooo, chapter three was looong! o.o; I'm really having fun writing this - please RR!