Disclaimer: This story is INSPIRED by Rowling's "Harry Potter" books. For a full disclaimer on what I've created (a few characters) and what Rowlings has created (everything else!), please see Chapter 1.

Author Note: Please be aware: this work is A/U, so I've taken some creative liberties. So those of you who are not keen on writing that deviates from canon, you are forewarned. I hope you'll still read and enjoy the story. Constructive feedback is always welcome!

Rating: R (for some sexual content and violence in later chapters)

Go raibh maith agaibh:
Lady of the Dog Star… welcome to ff.net. I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far. Hopefully you'll get more reviewers soon for your own work. Stay tuned for future developments between Serena and Severus.

Evenstar Elanor… You totally rock, my friend! Thanks for the reviews and suggestions. Please keep them coming!

Mercury Gray… As always, thank you for always answering my silly questions, and for always taking a look at my work. Glad you think there's some originality in the plot so far.

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Chapter 5: Of Bog Faeries and Boasting

The next morning's October sun did little to improve the mood at Hogwart's. Having just come from a particularly onerous Potions class, Harry was in a foul mood and didn't realize he was speaking loud enough for most of the class to hear.

"The man just hates me. I never did anything to Snape. It's not my fault he isn't talented enough to get the Dark Arts professorship. He blames everyone else and never thinks that he might be the one being a horse's ass!"

"Mr. Potter."

Harry shrank down in his chair and looked up to find Professor Castleton-Black watching him intently through narrow eyes. He felt like a mouse and wondered if she could imagine his whiskers quivering.

"You may not agree with Professor Snape. You may not even like him. However, I will not tolerate you speaking disrespectfully of any Hogwart's professor in front of me. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Professor," Harry replied quietly, embarrassed that she'd heard him. A few seats over, Draco snorted and chuckled with Crabbe and Goyle, enjoying Harry's discomfort immensely.

"Nice going, Potter," he said with a malicious grin.

Serena's body didn't move but her eyes slid to the source of the noise and narrowed even further. "It would be extremely unwise to be under my undistracted scrutiny at this moment, Mr. Malfoy."

Draco shrank down in his chair not daring to make eye contact with Serena.

"Very well," she said as she stood up, "let's get started. Today we're going to work on handling "

She had a large box on her desk, about the size of two shoe boxes. There was some strapping around it and two holes in the top. The students looked at the box with a mix of curiosity and fear as it shuddered a little.

With a swish and a flick of her wand, the box opened and out jumped an ugly little creature. It was only about a foot and a half tall with thick legs and skinny arms. The skin was a brackish color and it had long matted hair that looked like moss. It looked around the room with a squeal and leaped off the table.

"Immobulus!"

The creature froze in mid-air, bobbing like a buoy in the water. Its beady eyes were wide with surprise and its mouth slack.

"Who can tell me what this is?" asked Serena.

Instantly, Hermione's hand shot in the air. Ron rolled his eyes but made sure she didn't see him.

"I know you know the answer, Miss Granger. I'd prefer to give someone else a chance on this one. Anyone? Ah, Mr. Longbottom…"

Poor Neville blanched and stuttered. "Umm… umm…"

"Just take a moment," said Serena with a smile. "Take a good look at it."

Neville looked up and studied the creature for a moment. In any other class, he would have been a mess as the other students, especially Malfoy and his cronies, would have been snickering at his hesitation. Serena had put a stop to that during the first week.

"It is… ah, um… an… Irish Bog Faerie?" squeaked Longbottom.

"Very good, Mr. Longbottom. It is, indeed, an Irish Bog Faerie. Now, if one gets loose in your home, what will it do?"

Hermione's hand shot up again, and this time she waved it more urgently.

"Give it a rest," whispered Ron.

"You may not care about your grades, but I care about mine!" she whispered angrily.

Ron looked at Harry and mimicked the words I care about mine, and it was all Harry could do not to laugh.

"Mr. Goyle? You're thoughts?"

"Ummm… Breaks stuff?"

Serena folded her arms. "Thank the stars you have sheer dumb luck, Mr. Goyle. That was a good guess. I would, however, highly recommend you review the assigned chapters again before we reach finals. What else will Irish Bog Faeries do?"

"Turn your water to brackish bog water," offered Lavender Brown.

"And they chew wood," said Harry after Serena pointed at him.

"Indeed. If you have any good carpentry in your house, it will be wrecked. They're worse than termites." While she was talking the Bog Faerie continued to float around the room, stopping at each table so the students could get a good look at it.

"And lastly," said Serena, "how do you get rid of a Bog Faerie?" She smiled as Hermione's hand shot up once more and the girl nearly jumped out of her chair. "Yes, Miss Granger?"

"Irish Bog Faeries, also known as Peat Padders, can't stand the smell of citrus. To get rid of one, you need to wash your house down with water that has citrus juice in it. Lemon is the best, but grapefruit works well, too. But that's not enough." She took a deep breath. "That will get them out of the house, but to drive them off the property, you need to cut up lemons, limes, oranges, and grapefruits and place the chunks in the bushes around your house. A week later, you need to put another ring at your property line. If you don't, they'll come back. Irish Bog Faeries are extraordinarily stubborn."

"Very good, Miss Granger. Very, very good. Ten points to Gryffindor for your most thorough answer."

Two hours and two classes later, Serena found herself outside heading back to her cottage for a spot of lunch before her afternoon class. She had enough time at her cottage to have some lunch, choosing to have some grapes, cheese and crackers. After class was dismissed, she hurried over to the Quidditch field. There was a special afternoon game that day: Slytherin vs Gryffindor, and she wasn't about to miss that. Partway there, she was intercepted by the Headmaster, who let her know about a tremendous brainstorm he'd had a few days before.

"I think it's a smashing idea, Headmaster," laughed Serena. Her mood had lightened considerably as the day had progressed.

Albus Dumbledore smiled at his new Defense Against Dark Arts teacher. "I though you might find the concept intriguing."

"This will be a wonderful addition to the alumni weekend. An Alumni All-Stars Quidditch tournament? Made up of the best players in each house? How will teams be selected?"

"By vote," he replied. "Professor McGonagall will be collecting the ballots and tallying them. Although, I believe we will have to ensure that Mr. Wood does not try to vote for you too many times…"

Serena laughed. "But Headmaster, I know the reunion week has been planned for some time, and this is the first I've heard of a Quidditch tournament. Will there be enough time to organize it? It is a tremendous undertaking."

"There will be time enough." Dumbledore's smile was enigmatic. "Once the votes are in it will be easy enough to see who can play in the game. The Heads of each House will see to the arrangements for lodging and other such details."

He said 'details' with such aplomb that Serena smiled again, as if finding lodging for all of these extra people would be the simplest of feats.

"Remind me again, if you don't mind, what the week will encompass?" Serena knew he'd given them all information on the Alumni week but she hadn't looked at it yet.

"Of course. It is going to be a terribly busy week. Lots of bustling. The first day is simply set aside for arrivals. We have all of the lodging taken care of but there are bound to be extra people who stop at the last minute, so we'll need to find places for them. On the second day, the Professors needed to be available all day for visitors to stop and visit with former teachers, or perhaps give parents the opportunity to meet their children's current professors."

"That's right," said Serena as she thought of a few of her students. "That will prove to be an enlightening experience."

"The third day has been set aside," said Dumbledore, "for smaller parties at each of the Houses. Its an opportunity for old Housemates to reminisce and I know that each Head of House has arranged demonstrations by some of the more adept students."

Serena could no longer wait. "Tell me, Headmaster, which day is the tournament?"

He chuckled. "Never let it be said that no one can tell what your priorities are, Serena."

She couldn't help but laugh as well and gave him a shrug that acknowledged she was guilty as charged.

"The Quidditch tournament will be on the fourth day, and then the fifth day has no specific plans. Just a free day. I wanted a day just for old friends to catch up, to perhaps go into Hogsmeade for the day."

"I see." Serena wasn't fooled for a moment. In reality, the free day was to allow the Quidditch players a chance to recover and possibly mend any injuries they sustained during the game.

"There will be a grand banquet and gala ball on the sixth day, and then the final day – of course – will be devoted to farewells." Dumbledore looked positively delighted with the entire plan. As they arrived at the Quidditch field, Serena could only wonder what fits of apoplexy this grand affair had caused for Filch, Hogwart's cantankerous caretaker.

"Professor Castleton-Black." The voice belonged to Severus Snape. "I'm glad to see you here at the game."

She cocked her head curiously. "Indeed? Wherefore, Professor Snape?"

"After our recent conversations, I didn't think you'd be able to bear actually witnessing Gryffindor's loss this evening."

"Ah, well that is where you are wrong, Professor. I am here to see Slytherin go down in defeat."

"Then you are setting yourself up for a severe disappointment."

"I rather think not."

"The Slytherin team is stronger and faster. Wood hasn't been training well, and with three… Weasleys… on the team. Need I say more?"

"By the time the game is over, Slytherin will be too embarrassed to come to the Great Hall for dinner." Serena folded her arms and held Snape's gaze.

"Perhaps then, you'd care to make a wager on the outcome of the game?"

"I believe school rules prohibit us from wagering money on the game. What exactly do you have in mind, Professor?"

He smiled a subtly feral smile at her.

Before the start of the game, Dumbledore used the opportunity to announce the addition of the All-Star Alumni Quidditch match to the students and faculty. The reaction was overwhelmingly positive. Wood, hovering on his broom and waiting for the start of the game, was beside himself.

"I'll get to see the Professor play Quidditch!" he said. "Fred, George. Did you hear that? Do you realize all of the players who could be here?"

"You're not kidding!" said George. "It's brilliant."

"Bloody brilliant," said Ron.

Madam Hooch came out and a moment later, the game was on. Exactly one hour later Serena sat in the stands, her mouth agape at the chaos before her. It looked as if the Gryffindor team had never played together. Ever. Ron had the quaffle stripped from him multiple times. George had been knocked off his broom by the Bludger, but fortunately was only slightly woozy and not badly hurt, and Wood couldn't have stopped a goal if his life depended on it. And then, the crowning insult as Draco Malfoy beat Harry out in pursuit of the Golden Snitch. By that time, Serena's voice was hoarse from shouting at the players. She was horrified: not only had Gryffindor lost, but she'd lost her wager with Snape.

As she left the field, Professor Snape was waiting for her. "I'll see you at dinner?"

"Yes, Professor Snape, I will be at dinner."

An hour later, all of the students were in the Great Hall for dinner. As the main meal was cleared away and everyone was waiting for dessert, Professor Snape tapped his glass with his spoon, silencing the room. He shifted in his seat and looked expectantly at Serena.

"You needen't fear, Professor Snape," she said. "I am a woman of my word. A bet is a bet, and I lost." She got up from her seat and walked down to the student tables. Finding a space that happened to be between Hermione and Fred Weasley, she stood up on one of the bench seats. To the horror of the Gryffindor table, she pulled out a black and green scarf - Slytherin colors - and tossed it around her shoulders.

She took a deep breath and opened her mouth, and then closed it again without a word. After another moment's silence, she took another breath. "This afternoon, I was wrong about the Quidditch game. I realize now that Slytherin House has a superior Quidditch Team. At the next match, I will be wearing black and green and enjoy the game from the Slytherin box, courtesy of Professor Snape." Her cheeks were flushed and every word cost her, everyone could tell that.

With a smile that was forced but had no malice she looked up towards Severus at the professors' table. He gave her a satisfied nod. As she stepped off of the chair, she looked at the stricken faces of the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

"Codswollop," she muttered. "I don't believe it for a second that they're a better team." Then she turned a hard stare on the Gryffindor team. "And I suggest that you all remember how to play the game before the next match with Slytherin. I prefer to be able to back up my boasts with the truth."
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A wee bit long as transition chapters go, but I hope you found something entertaining in this chapter. Things are going to start heating up as the Alumni week starts, so stay tuned. And please, read/review… General feedback is always welcome (please be balanced!) and I certainly don't mind plot suggestions either… I'm always interested to see what ideas you all come up with!