Disclaimer: The usual saying that it once again, is not mine.

A/N- Well, here is the next chapter! Thank you for all of your reviews!

Last Time:

"Now then, where was I? Oh yes, the poison. It happens that you were poisoned with Exitus Memoria. It is a rather rare potion that I believe that you are quite familiar with, am I correct?" I am sure that all color had left my face at the mentioning of the name, as I am sure that I could feel all the blood rush away from my face, if that is even really possible. I nodded slowly. SHIT.

Chapter 8- Revelations

"Yes, I am quite familiar with that poison." I noticed his gaze become a bit more… intense, and felt the sudden need to explain a bit further. "Exitus Memoria is a poison that destroys a part of the takers brain, as it were. It is usually taken in extremely slight doses as a more effective, permanent way to erase a memory, compared to a memory charm, which can be reversed in eventuality. It has to be made carefully, for if you give the poison too much strength, or take too much of it, it can easily be lethal. This is the reason it is no longer in use, in commonplace." I looked away from him again. He knew my secret, and I knew he would have me confess it personally to him. May I recount the fact that this was easily becoming one of the worst weeks of my life? I continued, as I seemed to be receiving the 'silent treatment' from him. "How potent was the poison, per chance?"

"According to Poppy, the amount in your system should have killed a man with a fairly good resistance to it, within two hours." His voice was low, as if he were accusing me of something. Not that he was wrong…

"I suppose that the only reason I did not notice earlier is that I am somewhat… immune… to the effects the potion creates. So I figured that it must have been a very strong dose indeed to have effected me as much as it has."

"Severus…" His voice became lower, and I gulped down the slight panic that rose in my blood, and refused to look at him, lest I actually desired to see the pain in the man's eyes. Never… I had never intended him to find out of this, especially not in this manner.

"Yes?"

"If I may ask, how is it that you can be at all immune to a poison that has the ability to kill in anything over a half teaspoon of a very DILUTED version of it?" I clenched my jaw, he knew. He knew everything, why did he insist that I spell it out for him? I tell you, this man is a sadist…

"I have taken it before. At first in smaller amounts, and then in larger doses as time went on. It was required of me after a few experiments that I had worked on in potions for You Know Who, and then later to help me rid myself of unwanted memories. I know that a memory charm for those would have sufficed just as well, but…" I faltered here, knowing the concern he would show for my reasoning to it. But it would be a simple way to die if somehow I mixed it wrong, accidentally made it too strong. Unfortunately after a time, my memory was not affected by it any longer, and I just received headaches for my efforts, so I had stopped taking it. He would have been horrified at what I had done, but now he knew… I felt his hand on my shoulder again.

"I understand Severus, though I will say once more, that no matter your opinion on this subject, you life is worth something, and though you don't believe this to be so, you would be greatly missed as well."

I kept my eyes averted from his own, not wanting him to see the sadness, loneliness and disbelief that I felt from him finding out, and his statement. I have been told this is my weakness, that my eyes betray me to those with a trained eye to it. Out of everyone, Albus has always seemed to be the best at reading me, so I looked outside the window. It was sunny outside, birds were chirping happily on the windowsill, and… Oh dear. "Albus, what time is it?" I started to panic, and swirled my head back to him. Damn my original cause, my 'reflection time', as annoying as it was, now was over with.

He removed his hand from my shoulder and began to chuckle. "It is currently about 2pm. Actually, it is precisely 2:19, if you wish to be exact." Ack.

I glared at him in horror. "Do forget the comment that I had made earlier about my statement being uncalled for, Albus, you are an old goat." Unfortunately for me, this only served to make the old prune laugh even harder than before. "This. Is. Not. Funny."

He wiped away a tear that had formed at his eye, and then sighed. "As it would seem Severus, as it would seem." A suspicious twinkle entered his eye, and I cringed, knowing full well, that particular twinkle usually was accompanied by some grand idea, or excuse from him.

"What oddities are you planning this time, my dear headmaster?"

He gave me an innocent look, raising his eyebrows lightly in surprise. "Oddities, my dear Severus? I haven't any such thing planned for you."

I raised my brow. "Are you admitting that perhaps you are planning something?"

I watched as one corner of his mouth twitched up into a brief smile. "Perhaps."

I turned back again to look out the window, with a new sense of dread. The only times that the man ever really avoided a subject, was either when he was prying me with information, as was just a few moments ago, or had a plan, or information in that matter, that he knew that I would not be very fond of. So, I stated the obvious. "I have missed my classes…" By the way, how in the world would I explain that?

"Yes, your classes have been cancelled for today, and we have contacted your replacement, so you needn't worry of tomorrow's classes." Replacement? Did that mean…? My eyes went wide in horror from his statement, and I felt my heart give a painful lurch, placing itself inside my throat.

"Albus, surely one mistake does not warrant my disbandment." He chuckled, and I swiveled my head back to him. I am sure that my horror, shock, and confusion were all quite evident on my face.

"You worry too much Severus, but alas, I do not know how I could tell your students of your… delicate condition, nor do I believe that it would go over very well with them. So, instead, I have hatched a plan…"

A/N- Just in case you are wondering, the literal translation of Exitus Memoria is End Memory in latin.