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Chapter 12 - Battles and Demons
As Severus Snape left the headmaster's office quite a few hours later and strode slowly down the main hall, he appeared an exhausted and beaten man. His cold mask was once more back in place, but he could not conceal the redness of his eyes. It was so hard for him to look at himself and realise all of the horrible things he had done throughout his forty-odd years of existence.
Even under Dumbledore, he maintained his dark image, forced to commit heinous acts of terror and murder so that he was able to relay back information on the plans of the Dark Lord. Though Snape regretted each deed he perpetrated while enacting the part of a loyal Death Eater, he had still committed those crimes with cold and cruel efficiency. It was after such nights of wicked revelling that Severus Snape hated himself and his life the most.
His mind deep in his own thoughts, his feet absently carried him towards the stairwell leading to the Astronomy Tower, one of the potions master's favourite nighttime haunts. It was the only place he could go (with the exception of his personal chambers) where he could think undisturbed for any length of time. The next Astronomy class wasn't scheduled for another two nights, so he was sure to have the place to himself.
With slow steady steps he ascended the staircase and opened the outer door to the cool night air. It was a beautiful autumn night, with a light chilly breeze that caused the professor's robes to billow and dance about his well-made frame, and sent his jet black hair streaming about his angular face. The stars were shining brightly with nary a cloud in the sky, the full moon rising steadily in the east, casting her silvery glow upon the slumbering world below.
Snape loved to watch the moonrise on nights like these, finding an allegory to his own character within her eternally unchanging movements. She, like Severus, always cast one pale face to the world, while keeping the other hidden in the darkness. What are your secrets? he asked silently to the glowing orb in the sky. What horrors have you seen or committed? How many lives have you ruined? But the moon kept her silence, continuing on her lonely journey.
Severus smirked slightly, his dark eyes gleaming in the moonlight as he whispered, "Ah, what a perfect pair we would make."
It was then that he heard a scuffing sound to his left, and turned, noting a dark shadow leaning against a stone bench he hadn't perceived earlier. The professor slowly reached within his robes to draw out his wand, advancing on the form cautiously from behind. It didn't take him long to recognise who it was.
"Why weren't you in class this afternoon, Mr. DeVere?" Snape inquired to his student, moving around the corner of the bench to gaze down upon him.
Julius however didn't answer, and turned his head to the left, avoiding his instructor's gaze, his eyes upon the ground before him. His long fingers wrapped his cloak more tightly about himself, obviously cold.
"I believe I asked you a question," Snape snarled sternly, taking on the definite roles of teacher and elder, demanding respect. "And I expect an answer. Now."
"I couldn't go to class, sir," Julius muttered from the bench, still not looking towards the teacher which Snape found extremely irritating.
"Why not?" Snape growled, gripping the edge of Julius's cloak forcing him to look at him. As Julius turned his head to gaze at the potions professor, his features caught the moonlight and Snape quickly released the boy's cloak as if stung, his eyes widening slightly in surprise. "Lumos!" he muttered softly, and moved the glowing tip of his wand nearer to Julius's face, Snape's own face paling slightly.
The boy's left eye was swollen shut, purple-black flesh encircling it in shadow. His lower lip had been split, an angry line of dried blood running down the corner of his son's mouth. Snape's jaw set vexedly as he continued his assessment, his wand slowly traversing Julius's form, his dark eyes taking in the ripped shoulders of his robes. The boy had put up a struggle. The potions master's frown deepened considerably as he noted the various cuts and bruises, the knuckles on his wand hand turning white as he contained his rage.
"Who did this to you?" Snape asked curtly, the tone of his baritone voice biting. His dark eyes were fiery gimlets , reflecting the light of the wand back into Julius's face.
"It doesn't matter," said Julius, his own voice rising testily, glaring back at the professor with his good eye, wishing Snape would just leave him alone to sort out what needed to be done.
"It does matter, Mr. DeVere," retorted Snape, his mouth fast becoming a menacing gash in his face. Because when I get a hold of him, he is going to wish he had never been born! "These wounds are from Muggle fighting, a distasteful and barbaric practice. Was it a Mud… Muggle-born?" Filch better have kept his torture devices well oiled, because I am going flay the one responsible alive. "Why didn't you go to a teacher?"
"This is my fight," Julius replied, his anger deepening, his face turning away from the teacher once more as if to ignore him.
"Ten points from Ravenclaw, Mr. Devere, for your insolence." Snape growled to the dark-haired boy. "You will tell me who did this!"
"You can take off as many points as you want, Professor. I will not tell you. This is something I have to handle on my own," Julius replied, standing, his own dark eyes blazing at Snape.
Severus raised an eyebrow at this last comment, a very… Slytherin… thing to say. He was reminded of his own battles with James Potter when he was his son's age, never going to the professors, but planning his own revenge. Snape paused for a moment. He would rather know who the perpetrator was, but understood how his son would wish to fight his own battles. But if I ever come across whoever did this….
Snape took a good look at the boy before him (When did he suddenly become so much like me?). "How long have you been up here?" he asked, his voice turning more concerned than angry.
"Since last night," Julius responded, shivering, his breath forming lazy clouds of mist as the temperature gradually decreased.
Snape frowned, and unclasped his own cloak, tossing it over the shoulders of the boy in front of him, so that the boy looked even more like himself, he noticed. The corners of his mouth lifted ever so slightly as he placed a hand on his son's shoulder, steering Julius to the door. "To the Hospital Wing, Mr. DeVere."
Hermione was already queued at the classroom door and when she saw Julius approach, she stepped out to greet him, concern upon her face. "Where were you yesterday," she queried, her chestnut eyes searching his own. "I was so worried when you didn't show up for Potions."
"I wasn't really feeling well," he said, not looking directly into her eyes, his head tilted to the left to hide what was left of his injury.
"Julius, don't hide from me," Hermione whispered, extending a hand to turn his face towards hers. She gasped slightly, her eyes suddenly very bright as she noticed what he had tried to conceal.
"What happened to your eye?" she inquired, her concern quite evident upon her face, her fingers delicately touching the outline of the remaining bruise.
"Peeves," Julius lied, not wanting to cause her any more concern than he had to. He reached up to take her hand gently in his and squeezed it softly, offering her a warm smile, glad just to be near her again. "I missed you yesterday."Severus Snape stood quietly within his office as he ran tests on the submitted vials of his students. His mind was not on the task, however, as inwardly he still seethed about what had happened to his son. Regardless of how Julius may want to handle the situation, Snape could not, as a father, and more importantly as a professor allow that kind of uncivilized behaviour to go unpunished at Hogwarts. He was determined to find out who was responsible for his son's injuries.
On his way back to his office last night, to his surprise he found a house elf waiting outside his office door, quivering nervously. Apparently, the house elf had found a piece of evidence to the crime, and led Snape to its location. Julius's wand was lying against the dungeon hall wall across from the stairwell. The elf had obviously known better than to touch it, for it was illegal for them to do so, and instead left it where it was discovered.
The door to Snape's office creaked open, the white-blond head of Draco Malfoy peering within cautiously. "You wished to see me, Professor?"
"Mr. Malfoy," Snape began, moving from the table of vials to his desk, and lowering himself into his chair. Gesturing to the chair opposite, he added, his voice expressionless, "Close the door and sit."
Draco hesitantly entered the office fully, closing the door behind him with a click. He hated being called into this office, never knowing what was going to come out of the Slytherin Head's mouth. With tentative steps, he made his way to the chair and sat, trying to keep his face as stoic as possible.
"Mr. Malfoy," Snape started, his nebulous eyes gazing steadily at the boy.
"Yes, sir?" Draco murmured, unable to read the expressions of his professor's face, which did nothing to sooth his nerves.
"I was on my way back to my office last evening when I came across this," setting the ebony wand neatly upon the desk before his student, "lying against the dungeon wall near the stairwell. Any idea on how it got there?" The potions master's face held a slightly curious air, though his eyes told a much more menacing story.
Malfoy stared at the wand, his heart racing. DeVere's wand, he left it. Draco took a deep breath and answered, his eyes wide with false innocence as they looked towards his teacher, his voice even, "No, sir."
Snape regarded the student before him with narrowed eyes, not quite convinced. "Where were you night before last, Mr. Malfoy?"
Draco's mind was now racing as fast as his heart as he sat there, grilled by his Head, blurting out, "Studying, sir… for your potions test tomorrow."
"Studying," the potions master repeated. Folding his arms upon the table and leaning forward menaciously, he asked. "Tell me, Mr. Malfoy, what phase of the moon would you pick Fluxweed for use in a polyjuice potion?"
Malfoy stared horrorstruck at his potions teacher, not knowing the answer, caught off guard.
Snape thought as much, glowering at the student across the desk from him. "Don't know?" he asked darkly. "Perhaps you need to study a bit harder. Now get out."
Snape knew that Draco was lying, but he also knew that the boy never worked alone. He would bide his time until he could place all three at the scene, and then the gates of hell would be let loose.
Draco stood, shaking, and quickly made his way to the door, nearly tripping over the chair in his haste.
"Oh, and Mr. Malfoy," Snape called from where he sat, causing the boy to stop mid-step and turn to face him. "Fifty points from Slytherin."
Malfoy looked at him, a confused expression on his face as he queried, "What for?"
Snape scowled at the towheaded boy, his voice grating, "Because... I... can."
A/N: Thanks for the reviews! :) Hope you liked this one.