By- TheGreyLady (immaculatecalypso@hotmail.com)
Chapter 6~ ConfrontationShe was walking through the Department of Mysteries, the floor scooped and curved as she took each step. As she entered the Prophesy Room, she was unsurprised to see that all of the clear orbs had turned into disembodied heads. Mindlessly, she found herself walking to the very room she'd spent so much time trying to forget. She was following the screams she'd heard in the woods the other night.
"We can't help her, Miss Granger," Snape, who was suddenly beside her, said. His face was blank, his eyes unfocused. He looked every bit the shell of a man that he had been before she came here. She didn't find his presence strange. He followed her in spite of his own words.
She found the room again. There was a twisted wooden ladder leading up to the door. It was covered in a thick, black tar-like substance. The plaque hanging over it had changed to hold an even more frightening message:
You will die here.
"Unnecessarily blatant, if you ask me," Snape said. She smiled at that; only Snape could look death in the face and make a wisecrack like that.
She shook her head and began to climb the spiraled ladder, all the while screaming at herself for blindly walking into another thing that would obviously get her killed. She looked up to see how far she had traveled and found herself staring into the night sky, the stars twinkling merrily. She put the sight out of her mind and continued to climb.
"Miss Granger." Snape said. She looked down at him; he hadn't climbed the ladder with her.
When she reached the door, she pushed it open and tried in vain to remove the filth from her hands. She was aghast to find the faceless, mangled body of a girl. It was too late. The girl was dead; her face was untouched but carried no features. Lips, mouth, nose, and eyes were missing from the makeup of her smooth, flat face.
"Hermione." Snape's voice called to her again from below, she ignored him as he chanted her name.
Enraged, Hermione drew her wand and stormed into the room. Strong arms shoved her forward into the pool. Sputtering, she came up only to see Snape standing next to Cornelius Fudge, who was wearing a turban and cackling like a maniac.
"You forgot to get his heart," Fudge said as he threw the pulsing organ at her. Failing to catch it, Hermione watched in terror as the skeletal arms began reaching out of the blood for her. She screamed. Her voice echoed and reverberated from the walls until it suddenly became a solid, tangible thing that jerked her from her subconscious.
Closing her mouth, she opened her eyes to find Snape looking down at her, worry clearly etched on his face. His hands were latched onto her shoulders. The sweet air she gasped into her lungs helped to calm her a little but did nothing for her racing pulse.
Snape pulled her into an embrace and whispered, "You were having a nightmare."
"I am very aware of that, thank you," she replied, cursing the tremor in her voice as she wrapped her shaking arms around him. Tears would not be coming; she'd cried herself out of them earlier.
She pulled back and wiped the sweat from her face, "I woke you."
"I wasn't asleep," he replied quietly, gesturing to the map and her desk, which was sporting the files Harry had left and a flickering candle. It took her a while to properly examine the map in the poor lighting but she noticed many of the green and yellow pins had been replaced with red ones and several more purple pins had been added.
He'd been in her bedroom for a better part of the night, it would seem. As if reading her mind, he said, "You worried me."
She smiled, trying to stifle a yawn. Snape smirked softly and told her to go back to sleep. So she rested her weary body against the soft mattress again, taking a startling comfort in his presence.
* * *
Nothing could have prepared her for the next day. She'd woken to the bright sun shining in her eyes. After making her way from the bed, she examined the map again. The Aurors had searched more places than she had initially thought but it did not change the fact that she and Snape had a daunting task ahead of them. Dozens of the pins had been replaced with red and several purple pins marked the map now. It was safe to assume they represented the places they should look for Flamel.
After a shower -- she only used baths for therapeutic purposes -- she headed downstairs. The aroma of bacon and eggs hit her nostrils. She deduced that Snape had discovered the kitchen and made himself at home. Funny, she felt like that should annoy her. Snape sat at the table in the living room, leisurely eating and doing a crossword.
"I made a plate for you as well," he gestured to the kitchen, not looking up from the crossword.
She smiled and with a quiet, "Thanks," went to retrieve her food. Snape had not only made breakfast, he had also cleaned up after himself. She sent a silent thank-you to the heavens as she took her plate and went to sit with Snape.
"What's a four letter word for a 'Witch's feature'?" he asked. "I've tried everything."
She bit back the smile that threatened to surface. This felt so. domestic. She warned herself against becoming used to this. "What letters do you have for it?" She asked.
"An 'R' as the third letter."
She ran through the possibilities in her mind before settling on one that made her laugh. At his puzzled look, she shared, "Wart."
"Wart? I've seen more Muggles with warts than witches!"
"That's a Muggle newspaper," she pointed out.
Snape grumbled about how the Muggles constantly misrepresented Wizards. She continued to eat in silent amusement, listening to his complaints. The food was remarkably good but she assumed being a Potions Master should allot him a degree of skill when it came to the precision of cooking. She flipped on the television and watched the morning news as he continued the puzzle.
After clearing the table, she plunked into her chair and asked, "So, it looks like we've got a lot of ground to cover. Where should we start?"
Snape folded the paper and placed it on the table, "Here." His face betrayed nothing.
"Dumbledore is not upstairs hiding under my bed." She chuckled, knowing exactly what he was referring to but hoping to postpone the inevitable. "I already checked."
"No," he said slowly, easily catching onto her scheme. "I need to know about that room. You have to show me."
She had been well prepared for this argument and replied, "I haven't got a pensieve. Until we get one."
"I was leaning more towards Legilimens."
Bollocks, she hadn't considered that. "No," she said simply. Sometimes being blunt was the best tactic. "I don't want to do this. There's no reason to put yourself."
"If the room is as dangerous as both you and Potter are making it out to be than it's an issue that needs to be addressed. I think you've been deliberately neglecting the fact that you have one of the few intact minds versed in the Dark Arts at your disposal, Miss Granger."
She groaned. Why did the man have to make so much sense? "Point and match, Professor," she said, placing her wand on the table. "Do your worst."
He rose and moved her wand further from her and stood opposite. "Just let your mind wander where it wants. Don't try to force thinking about it. Tell me when you want me to stop," he finished and drew his wand, casting the spell.
Images jumped through her mind randomly, her first day of school, when her father gave her a tearful wave as she ran into the crowded schoolyard. the first disastrous episode of cooking. a memory of stargazing from the astronomy tower. her mother telling her a bedtime story. an image of her sitting in the infirmary with Harry.
That image spawned the memories of the room, both dreamed and real. She saw herself staring up at the ceiling again. Another image of her came, falling headfirst into the blood-pool as the skeleton hands pulled her down. Then she was screaming for Snape to come to her and he came as a shadowy figure, telling her to leave him. Fudge telling her that she had left his heart. an image from another dream of Harry being tossed into the pool by Dementors.the sight of the living hearts floating in the lake of blood.
And then it was over.
She focused her vision to see that Snape had braced his frame against the back of the sofa, breathing heavily. His wand had fallen unheeded to the floor. He was staring at her, shocked speechless. It seemed she had single-handedly accomplished what no Hogwarts student had ever been able to do.
"How much of that was real?" He said carefully after he had regained some of his poise.
She breathed deeply and tried to separate reality from her nightmares. "I was never in the pool over my hips and Fudge wasn't there, and Harry was never in the pool. everything else was real."
He shook his head again in wonder before recomposing himself, "Unfortunately, it's much more than I'd initially thought. We'll need a pensieve; with your nightmares transferring over in Legilimens, it's clouding what I see." Hermione looked as if to protest when Snape cut her off, "Not today. Maybe next week. Miss Granger, were those." he sighed, "What was in the pool?"
"They were hearts," she replied.
"Would you say that they were human hearts?"
"I wouldn't know, Snape!" She snapped. She did not want to have this discussion. "I've never seen a beating heart before!"
He balled his hand into a fist, "Was it about that size?"
"I think it was larger but I'm." She reached over and tried to wrap her hand around his to measure, "I'm not sure. As soon as I realized what it was, I dropped it. It made me sick."
His eyes darkened with something she didn't recognize as he examined her small hand wrapped around his fist. "Most people would hold the same sentiment. As of now, it most definitely is a dark ritual."
"Thank you, Captain Obvious," she said, though her heart wasn't really in the quip. She felt tired and anxious and wanted nothing more than to rest even though she hadn't been up long. She went back upstairs, hoping to catch a short nap to rejuvenate her.
Before she could shut her eyes, Snape made another appearance in her bedroom. He handed her a vial. "Draught of Peace," he said. "Harry brought it after you fell asleep last night."
He left, looking as guilty as she imagined he could. She managed a weak smile while she drank the solution, instantly feeling like she didn't have a care in the world. No longer tired, she stood up and examined the map again, praying that her finally clear state of mind would provide her with the insight she needed to figure this latest mystery out.
She stared at the map, pleased that her typical frustration did not rise. Unfortunately, that same frustration was often the thing that kept her at a problem until she'd solved it. She couldn't bring herself to be too terribly concerned about the situation. She walked downstairs again; she wanted to watch the telly. The vision of Snape, pacing the floor, greeted her.
The knocking at the door quickly alerted her to the reason behind Snape's tension. She found herself fighting for apprehension against the potion. She needed to be as alert and worried as possible. With a whispered hiss of, "Sit down and act stupid, I'll get rid of them," she went to the door and opened it.
"Padma! Parvati! Pleasure to see you!" She said, standing carefully at the door.
"Hi, Hermione. How's it going?" Parvati replied, letting herself in and followed by her twin. Hermione was glad the girl still braided her hair, otherwise she wouldn't have been able to tell them apart.
Hermione panicked. If they realized that Snape was himself again, the whole plan would be jeopardized. "What brings you two here? I'm a bit busy at the moment."
"Oh, Ron just wanted us to
drop this off to you. Pig's on the
fritz." Padma said, producing a sealed letter.
It wasn't uncommon for Ron to send messages with them. Padma worked with Arthur and would often
spend time with Ron after work.. And the twins had become practically
inseparable after the war. "What's it
about, anyway? He said it was on some
research you were doing."
Hermione instantly saw the way out that Ron had given her. Ron Weasley should be elevated to sainthood. Bore them, she thought, bore them out of her house. "It's a simply intriguing subject actually," she began, putting on her best Know-It-All face. "It's about the hybridization and transfiguration of plants typically used in potions in order to make them more effective."
The girls already looked confused. Good. She continued, trying to recite every detail of her first proposed thesis project for seventh year, "You see, some herbs and plants have inherent flaws. Weak shelf life, complicated harvesting processes, many are even dangerous. So, using incredibly complex transfiguration."
". You don't need to go into it," Parvati said quickly.
"Oh, but it's so exciting!" She was beginning to regret having not picked another topic. The faculty had shot down her initial proposal so she'd had to settle on a simpler project. When in doubt, she thought, lie. "If you focus on the inner core of the plant, since many of them have human characteristics anyway, you have to settle on finding the." Hermione couldn't think of the technical term, so she settled on another term they probably didn't know, ".medulla oblongata in violent plants and alter it to make them more complacent."
"The what?" He said. Good, it's working.
"It's the center of aggressive behavior. Then you need to."
"Hey!" Parvati said, walking into the living area and leaving Hermione in the middle of her speech. "It's good old Professor Snape. Not much of a Death Eater now, are you?" She laughed as her twin joined her in front of Snape.
"Parvati! That's cruel! He wasn't that bad!" Hermione admonished. Snape sat in silence, a carefully schooled blank expression on his face. Hermione didn't know how much taunting the professor could take before exploding into a rage worthy of his former status at school.
"Oh come on, Hermione!" Padma said, turning to her. "I've been waiting years to tell this ugly bastard where he can shove his potions lectures." She set her sights on Snape, "You thought you were so tough."
"Like scaring people half your age gave you a thrill or something." Parvati chimed in. "Professor Trelawny saw right through you."
"Look,"
Hermione said, trying to keep herself from coming unraveled, "It was great
seeing you two and all but."
"I'll bet," Parvati continued in spite of Hermione's protest, "that you hated her because you wanted her!"
Her twin squealed and snigger, "Like she would have touched him! Couldn't get a girl if your life depended on it, could you?"
"Especially with that nose!" Parvati chimed in.
Padma continued, "And that skin."
"And those eyes."
"And that hair!" The girls finished together before erupting into giggles that made Hermione want to gouge their vocal chords from their throats with her bare hands.
Hermione interrupted, "Stop it! He was a good teacher! He had to be mean, it was the only way to keep us from killing ourselves! And now you sit here and have the nerve to make fun of him in my house when he can't even understand you!"
"Oh, I wish he could!" Parvati said. "I'd tell him what a heartless rat he is, allying his sorry self with You-Know-Who!"
"What sort of deranged, sick human being would willingly work with Him?" Padma questioned before continuing, "I'd tell him."
Hermione cut her off, roughly taking the girls' hands and quickly leading them to the door. "Look, it's been really great seeing you and all but I really must get back to work. Thank you for delivering the letter. Good day," she finished, shutting the door in the girls' faces.
Turning back to the living room, she saw Snape was still sitting in silence and staring dumbly forward. She looked at him and said, "They're gone." Snape remained still but the look of quiet fury in his eyes silenced anything she could have thought to say. He rose to his feet and stormed from the room.
When she made as if to give chase, he spun on her. "Leave me alone."
She wasn't so foolish as to follow him.
Author's Notes- I've finally fulfilled that aspect of the challenge (one of Snape's students taunts him while thinking that he's catatonic) and while I'm not totally satisfied with it, I'm gonna let it stand until I can think of something better. As always, thanks to Moaning Myrtle who caught that I used "Drought" instead of "Draught" which would have embarrassed me.
Kate, you rock.
And now THANK-YOUS!
Lama- I know you're never gonna let me slack off. I just hope I can keep this pace up. And yes, there is a very valid reason why Dumbledore is not there. it didn't seem right to have him pop out of the bushes later and say, "SURPRISE! YOU FOUND ME!" But then again. maybe that's what will happen. you won't know until later.
risi- I can't tell you where Dumbledore is and I can't
tell you why he disappeared. I also
can't tell you what's in the room or why the girl was in there. I can, however, tell you that since you've
read the chapter, you already know if Hermione will show Snape what she saw.
question is, will she show him more?
LOL! Thanks for the review!
sonnybonns- I didn't think I could take the normal route with this story. I think the parameters need to be expanded in order for the reader to understand it. It's a messed up plot and it isn't getting thinner. Thanks for the review!
AnonyMiss- Cool name! LOL! Yeah. chapter 2 was pretty grotesque but if you made it this far, I think you'll be fine for the rest of the story. Thanks!
Ali- Thanks, I think the challenge left a lot of room for creativity but I'm glad you like it and think it's original. Lemme know how I'm doing!
sweetevangeline- Thanks for letting "utopic" slide. As an English major (for two weeks but I was an English major nevertheless) I felt kinda badly about making up a word. As for your question regarding Albus, no. I have no explained his absence other than stating that he's gone and nobody knows where he is. So you didn't miss anything, that's just part of the mystery. Thanks for the review and feel free to ask me any more questions.