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Chapter 26
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Magnificent might not describe the castle looming above them, but it was impressive. Stone steps marching up to grandiose carved doors. At first guess there seemed to be three stories, not including the towers that rose above the main structure. The entry level sat on an exposed basement, which held no ornaments but was crafted of high quality granite. Above the basement the ornaments decorating the outer face consisted of earth bound gargoyles and abstract patterns mimicking the doors.
Snape lead the way to the main entrance, denying Harry the opportunity to get a better look at the carvings above the door. He stopped at the prominent gargoyle guarding the right side of the door. Its lesser twin took up residence on the left, eyes keeping an eternal watch on the yard. while the larger turn slightly towards the landing. Its body seemed to be an elongated and deformed human like the devils out of hell. Its face resembled nothing human nor animal, a certified demon, mouth agape somewhere between ready to devour a man and a yawn.
And that was where Snape put his hand, directly on the stone tongue. Harry thought if he looked close enough he saw a ripple in the doors. "You'll need to have the wards recognize you before you enter." Snape sounded more annoyed than usual, staining to keep a civil tone. "To do so, you'll need to put your right hand in his mouth."
"So what's that thing's other proposes? Biting the hand off your enemies?" Sirius jibbed with a wild grin, as if that was the most ridiculous thing in the world. Harry wouldn't put it past Snape or his family.
"Something like that," he sneered, causing Sirius to look twice at the creature guarding the wards. As Sirius hesitated, Remus bravely took on the stone statue, calmly placing his hand in the thing's mouth and waited. For what? Harry didn't know. But he did shout in surprise as the mouth closed around his favorite Professor's hand.
Remus sent him a reassuring smile before directing questions to their host. "Haven't seen one of these before," the werewolf said. "Read about them, but they went out of popularity almost as soon as they entered. How long have you had him?"
Snape glared for a moment and answered stiffly, "The Early Renaissance." Remus nodded as if expecting that answer. The mouth open and he took back his hand whole.
"One of the originals? I'm impressed."
"That is not the intention."
Remus shrugged and turned towards them. "Well, who's next?" Harry looked to Sirius, who had just turned his gaze to Harry. The strange glitter in his eyes revealed everything. Neither one of them trusted Snape enough to actually test his seemingly "good will" as dictated by Dumbledore.
"Apparently, Gryffindor courage is nothing more than unsupported and weightless boast," came the aristocratic, demeaning drawl. Snape was sneering at them in a vicious manner. It only fueled Harry's distrust and rage at being indirectly called a coward. How dare he! He stepped towards the gargoyle only to have Sirius beat him. Apparently his godfather was more determined than himself to prove Snape wrong. Harry caught a slight hint of worry when the mouth closed around his hand.
The keying in of Sirius seemed to take twice as long as for Remus. Not to mention the increasing panic bubbling to the surface of Sirius's visage. It was completely clear that he expected his hand to be hewn off as painfully as possible. When it finally released Sirius's appendage, he was glaring murder at both the statue and Snape.
Then it was his turn. Still anxious over Snape's pseudo-warning, Harry hesitantly put his wand hand between the jaws. It closed. The stone teeth felt as solid as they looked, but the tongue. The tongue felt soft and warm. Not wet like the real muscle, but it did not feel like granite. He assumed it was the magic imbued in the thing, but the sense that the creature was truly alive lurked in the back of his brain. And that was when he felt the vibrations. Just before the jaws snapped open.
Harry felt a hand steady him as he jerked away in surprise. "Wasn't as bad as we thought, was it?" Sirius commented with his conspiratorial grin. "I'm just glad Snape didn't see either of us. That thing was banned for a reason, and you can bet that is exactly why Snape still has it."
"What is it exactly?"
"A private ward guardian. Just after they were invented, they were banned. It was determined that no private wizard should be allowed to maim trespassers. And in some instances kill. My mother always wanted one. And my father would have loved to have had one too. He just didn't publicly admit to it like my mother."
"You mean, that thing really could bite my hand off?"
"You bet. I didn't really believe it at first either. I thought it was just a saying. Proved me wrong."
"Sirius! Harry! Aren't you coming inside?" Sirius glanced up as Remus called from the door.
"Think we'd better enter. Wouldn't like to be out here at night." Harry followed with complete agreement. Who knew what those monsters could do unsupervised.
If he thought the doors were huge, the entry hall was larger. Much larger. Even after the grander of Hogwarts, this was still more than he thought a private home could ever achieve. Twelve foot arches. What had to be over one hundred candle candelabra wrought in gold, casting a brilliant, magical glow across the room, illuminating the Ancient Roman mosaic spread across the floor. The picture seemed to be a man and a woman reaching for one another, cobras encircling their arms also stretching towards its opposite. It was well done, but Harry missed why it would be at the main doors.
As he marveled at the artwork, he missed the arrival of a House-elf.
"Master Severus has guests?" The petite elf was dressed in a pristine white cloth, whether it was a pillow case are another sort of cloth Harry couldn't tell because it was worn too well to be determined.
"Yes," Snape snapped rudely, but the elf paid no attention to the tone and waited for the master of the house to give instructions. "Have the guest wing prepared for three rooms. And dinner at seven. Once the rooms are finish, Totti, you are to find me."
"Would Master Severus like his room prepared as well?" Totti asked. It struck him as odd at how formal and well spoken the elf sounded. Not at all like Dobby.
"Just do what needs to be done."
"Yes sir." And the House-elf disappeared.
That was when Snape turned to face them. Unprepared for that intense gaze, Harry looked everywhere else and noticed that his luggage was missing. "I will assume you'll want to know where you will be staying." It sounded forced. As if under duress. "With the House-elves busy, I fear that it left to me. Better for me to show you where you are allowed to be than have Totti take you where you ask." Turning sharply, the sour Professor stalked past the grand arch into the adjoining room.
"So this is Ciara Aloysius," Sirius whistled. "What my mother would have given to seen this place. She never spoke of it other than a myth."
"Which is precisely how it is supposed to be spoken of." The sharp reply shocked Sirius out of his daydream. "Your mother could only dream of what your family might have been had they had enough foresight to do the same. As it is, your foolish ancestors failed to take advantage of the times."
"I take offense to that!" It was a new voice. One they had not heard before.
"To what Phineas? To being foolish or being Black's ancestor?" Snape spoke to a portrait of a sly old man, dressed in Slytheirn green and silver. Black hair adorned his head under the wizard's hat and the goatee on his chin. The brass nameplate read Phineas Nigellus.
"I would say both, but being related to that worthless great-great-grandson of mine is the worse of the two. And it is about time for you to have arrived. I was wondering if you had destroyed this portrait."
"I should have. Why are you in the formal sitting room? I had you moved to the Headmasters' Library."
"The other portraits complained. So Totti moved the frame. But with you here, it would be a good idea to have a direct, untapped line to Dumbledore's office."
Harry whispered to Sirius as this exchange took place, "You're related to him?"
"Yeah. My great-great-grandfather. Remind me to tell you about my family sometime. It's not something I can say I'm proud of, but it is amusing nonetheless."
"Don't listen to him, boy. You won't get a straight tale out of him. He's never done anything to be proud of, so being amused by those who have is idiotic."
"Oh, you're just angry I didn't follow in my brother's footsteps. Just like mother. Look at where that lead him. He's six feet under, while I'm here arguing with you."
"The wrong son, if you ask me," Phineas muttered. "And where do you think you are going?"
"I have better things to do than stand here and listen to you. The sooner this is done, the sooner I can get back to more important things." With that Snape billowed out of the room and on to the next. They had to follow quickly, not to get too lost.
The room they entered was more impressive than the formal parlor. The decorations spoke for themselves. It was a two story library. And seemed to take up most of the side of the house. Over the large fireplace, hung a stiff portrait of a young woman. She didn't move as fluidly as Phineas had, nor as naturally as most of the paintings Harry had seen in Hogwarts. Reading the nameplate explained everything. Rowena Ravenclaw. It must have been done when the art of crafting moving pictures first began.
"The main library, otherwise known as Ravenclaw's Library."
"Severus, as pleasant as usual," said the portrait. Harry had to listen closely to the voice. He could have sworn there were two voices. "Who are your guests?"
"Lupin, Black, Potter," Snape curtly waved to them in turn.
"Are they staying long?" This time Harry was certain he heard two distinct languages. One was English as he understood it, though slightly more formal than he was use to. The other was completely foreign.
"Until the term begins." Snape definitely tolerated Ravenclaw's picture better than Phineas's. The man didn't do so pleasantly, but it seemed ingrained. He wasn't being outwardly rude as per normal, surprising everyone present, except Ravenclaw.
"Wonderful." Stiffly the dark haired woman turned to the others in her room. "I look forward to talking with you at greater lengths," she smiled. Harry wondered if this was an accurate portrayal of Rowena Ravenclaw, if so she was an enjoyable personality that should not be stuffed away in some forgotten mansion. Maybe there were other portraits of hers elsewhere in the world. They didn't have any time to reply as Snape swept out of the library back into the hall and on to another corridor. "Don't mind Severus too much," she said by way of an apology as they left. "He doesn't receive much opportunity to entertain guests."
"I think she completely missed his absolute disgust as he introduced us," Sirius whispered to Remus, careful to not be overheard. The three of them couldn't control the snickers though. Snape just glared bloody murder and gestured for another doorway to open.
"Cicero's Keep." Without any interrupting portraits, Harry finally got a good look at the room. It was the most casual room shown to them. Overstuffed furniture, a welcoming hearth, a scattering of books, a chess set waiting for the next turn, bay windows facing east. At one time the room would have been used as a morning room, taking advantage of the incoming light.
"Who's Cicero?" Remus asked politely. Harry didn't know why he bothered. Snape certainly wasn't going out of his way to be civil to them.
"Some uncle," was all they got from Snape. Abruptly they were lead down another corridor. "Cillian Cavan." The double doors opened to reveal a gigantic open area, whose obvious purpose was dueling. Muggle weaponry graced one wall, residing next more magical weapons. Most of which Harry could not identify. But he knew the sabers and foils from lances and clubs, not that he knew how to use them. "This will be where Occlumency lessons will take place."
Harry nodded dumbfounded. Snape was not speaking directly to him, but he felt as though he should acknowledge. Why would they need a room this size for Occlumency? He had better inquire that of Remus. Snape walked directly opposite of the doors to another set which opened without touch or words. Sneaking a peek inside, Harry noticed that it was filled with Muggle games from a billiard table to a wall of board-games. Interlaced between those were games that had obvious magical pictures.
"I didn't know you had a toy store," that was Sirius, speaking identical thoughts from Harry's mind.
"Take it up with my great-grandfather," Snape spat. "Though I wouldn't be surprised if there was a chew-toy in there for you."
His godfather growled, but Remus quietly told him that this was not the time nor the place. And thankfully any future brawl was interrupted by Totti, the House-elf.
"Master Severus, the guest wing is prepared."
"Finally. At seven you will see to it that they," a harsh jerk of the hand in their direction, "make it to the family dinning room." Using that as Totti's dismissal, Snape focused his attention on his forced guests. "Come."
And they were on the move, again. This time up a grand staircase. "Severus, what part of the castle did you show us?" Remus asked. Harry guessed it was the need to keep polite conversation going if only to avoid the awkward silences.
"The castle proper. You are to go nowhere other than that level of the castle proper and the guest wing." So much for polite conversation.
"And way is that?"
"I do not want you here. And keeping you detained in the castle proper will not require me to remove anymore wards than I must." After several long moments of silence, they arrived at a narrow corridor, one side lined with doors and the other with windows. Past door number one, past door number two, and stopped at door number three. "Black." Walk up to the second door. "Potter." Up to the first. "Lupin. Good day." And Snape promptly disappeared the way they came.
"Pleasant chap, isn't he?" Sirius commented once he was sure the overgrown bat was out of ear shot. "The quant tour of a legendary house. Even a small history lesson on it. I think I'll as more at dinner. What do you think, Remus?"
"Don't irritate him, Sirius. It's bad enough Dumbledore forced us on him. You don't need to add to it."
"I wasn't planing on doing that. Just some questions regarding this place."
"I would save that for a portrait. I doubt if our host would be willing to cooperate. But I am curious as to what you know about this place."
"Oh, you know. The usual."
"No, I'm afraid I don't. I've never heard of this place before Dumbledore mentioned it."
"Thought everyone knew the legend. Ciara Aloysius was suppose to be a safe haven for Slytherin when he broke away from Hogwarts. But that's not what made it famous. One it is the oldest wizarding home in existence."
"Does that make Snape the oldest wizarding family?" Harry couldn't help but ask.
"The name Snape isn't the longest lasting, but the bloodline is."
"You sound as if this was important to you, Sirius."
"You try forgetting what was drilled into your head since birth, Remus. But anyway, the thing that makes Ciara Aloysius famous to the point of legend was that it was made unplottable hundreds of years before the unplottable charm was invented."
"But doesn't that make the inventor of the unplottable charm that wizard from Snape's family?"
"Not necessarily, Harry. No one can prove that the charm used on Ciara Aloysius is the same as the unplottable patented all those years ago. That was mainly due the lack of belief that Ciara Aloysius existed."
"From what I've gathered, Harry, the only ones who truly wanted Ciara Aloysius to exist were Dark Wizards. Everyone else either didn't care or didn't like the legend and encouraged the disbelief."
"Then why is Sirius so excited about being here?"
"That, Harry, is because I am here at a place my mother would loved to have known was real and now I can return and tell her just out of spite."
"What about Phineas?"
"Oh, him? Don't know why he never mentioned it. Certainly loved to tell stories that revolved around Ciara Aloysius. I'll get him to tell them to you while we're here. But first let's see what traps Snape decided to lay behind these doors."
"You don't really believe that do you, Sirius?" Remus sighed as he went over to his door. "It was the House-elves who prepared the rooms. Do you honestly think they would do something like that?"
"Wouldn't put it past them. You're forgetting about Kreacher. They are capable." Everyone paused. Sirius had told him about the crooked, demented elf that holed itself in the Blacks' place of residence, now the hideout for the Order of the Phoenix. "What do you think? Count to three and open?" They were now standing before their respective doors, nervous. Well, Remus didn't show it. But the mere fact he didn't enter immediately suggested such.
"Open on three or three then open?"
Sirius shared a look with Harry. "On three. One." Pause. And Harry heard an anxious swallow. "Two." This time the pause lasted longer.
"Oh for the love of . . . Three." Remus swung his door and all was silent. Similar actions took place further down the hall. "Wasn't what you expected, is it?" His rooms main colors consisted of autumn reds and golds with perfect complements of greens. There was a sitting area directly after the entrance, framing a small arch leading to the bedroom. Not only was the bed larger than he had ever used before, but also a small private bath. True, he had a private bath in his rooms at Hogwarts, but he had never expected to find the luxury as part of a guest room in the home of the man who hated him the most.
A door stood on the left side of his room. Curious, he went to open it. And found Harry's rooms. And the boy was slowly circling in place stunned by his room. The colors of which were completely Gryffindor. Scarlet and gold. "Do you think Snape even knows what these rooms look like?" he asked quietly with a hint of awe. "I wouldn't be surprised if this room was as large as our common room. Come on, let's see what Sirius thinks of his residence."
"Probably still gawking that it's not a torture chamber." Lupin grinned and open the door connecting Harry's and Sirius's chambers. The animagus was in the same state Remus had found Harry. "Enjoying yourself?" The dominate colors in this room were the deep reds and golds of a sunset.
"What?"
"Just wondering how you are coping with your cell."
"It's not what I expected."
"Think you can spend a couple of weeks here without blowing up?"
"All right, Moony. I won't antagonizing Snape any more than normal."
"I guess that's all I could expect."
"Sirs?" A high pitched voice of a House-elf interrupted. Totti stood in the middle of the room. She seemed more nervous alone in their presence. Not as confident. Perhaps it was just strangers. "Master Severus is wanting you in the dinning room. Please follow me?"
"It's seven already?" Remus asked rhetorically. "Well, we might as well go see what Severus's hospitality has to offer."
"You think we can get Snape to tell us more about this place?"
"Don't push it Sirius. I don't know why you are so interested, but I don't think it would be a good idea. Why don't you ask your great-great-grandfather? Better yet, one of the other portraits. How about Ravenclaw? She seems polite enough to answer."
"Fine. I give. I won't bother Snape."
"Good. Now shall we go?"
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Nothing forwarding the plot. Sorry. Needed to establish the atmosphere of the house and its occupants.
Chapter 26
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Magnificent might not describe the castle looming above them, but it was impressive. Stone steps marching up to grandiose carved doors. At first guess there seemed to be three stories, not including the towers that rose above the main structure. The entry level sat on an exposed basement, which held no ornaments but was crafted of high quality granite. Above the basement the ornaments decorating the outer face consisted of earth bound gargoyles and abstract patterns mimicking the doors.
Snape lead the way to the main entrance, denying Harry the opportunity to get a better look at the carvings above the door. He stopped at the prominent gargoyle guarding the right side of the door. Its lesser twin took up residence on the left, eyes keeping an eternal watch on the yard. while the larger turn slightly towards the landing. Its body seemed to be an elongated and deformed human like the devils out of hell. Its face resembled nothing human nor animal, a certified demon, mouth agape somewhere between ready to devour a man and a yawn.
And that was where Snape put his hand, directly on the stone tongue. Harry thought if he looked close enough he saw a ripple in the doors. "You'll need to have the wards recognize you before you enter." Snape sounded more annoyed than usual, staining to keep a civil tone. "To do so, you'll need to put your right hand in his mouth."
"So what's that thing's other proposes? Biting the hand off your enemies?" Sirius jibbed with a wild grin, as if that was the most ridiculous thing in the world. Harry wouldn't put it past Snape or his family.
"Something like that," he sneered, causing Sirius to look twice at the creature guarding the wards. As Sirius hesitated, Remus bravely took on the stone statue, calmly placing his hand in the thing's mouth and waited. For what? Harry didn't know. But he did shout in surprise as the mouth closed around his favorite Professor's hand.
Remus sent him a reassuring smile before directing questions to their host. "Haven't seen one of these before," the werewolf said. "Read about them, but they went out of popularity almost as soon as they entered. How long have you had him?"
Snape glared for a moment and answered stiffly, "The Early Renaissance." Remus nodded as if expecting that answer. The mouth open and he took back his hand whole.
"One of the originals? I'm impressed."
"That is not the intention."
Remus shrugged and turned towards them. "Well, who's next?" Harry looked to Sirius, who had just turned his gaze to Harry. The strange glitter in his eyes revealed everything. Neither one of them trusted Snape enough to actually test his seemingly "good will" as dictated by Dumbledore.
"Apparently, Gryffindor courage is nothing more than unsupported and weightless boast," came the aristocratic, demeaning drawl. Snape was sneering at them in a vicious manner. It only fueled Harry's distrust and rage at being indirectly called a coward. How dare he! He stepped towards the gargoyle only to have Sirius beat him. Apparently his godfather was more determined than himself to prove Snape wrong. Harry caught a slight hint of worry when the mouth closed around his hand.
The keying in of Sirius seemed to take twice as long as for Remus. Not to mention the increasing panic bubbling to the surface of Sirius's visage. It was completely clear that he expected his hand to be hewn off as painfully as possible. When it finally released Sirius's appendage, he was glaring murder at both the statue and Snape.
Then it was his turn. Still anxious over Snape's pseudo-warning, Harry hesitantly put his wand hand between the jaws. It closed. The stone teeth felt as solid as they looked, but the tongue. The tongue felt soft and warm. Not wet like the real muscle, but it did not feel like granite. He assumed it was the magic imbued in the thing, but the sense that the creature was truly alive lurked in the back of his brain. And that was when he felt the vibrations. Just before the jaws snapped open.
Harry felt a hand steady him as he jerked away in surprise. "Wasn't as bad as we thought, was it?" Sirius commented with his conspiratorial grin. "I'm just glad Snape didn't see either of us. That thing was banned for a reason, and you can bet that is exactly why Snape still has it."
"What is it exactly?"
"A private ward guardian. Just after they were invented, they were banned. It was determined that no private wizard should be allowed to maim trespassers. And in some instances kill. My mother always wanted one. And my father would have loved to have had one too. He just didn't publicly admit to it like my mother."
"You mean, that thing really could bite my hand off?"
"You bet. I didn't really believe it at first either. I thought it was just a saying. Proved me wrong."
"Sirius! Harry! Aren't you coming inside?" Sirius glanced up as Remus called from the door.
"Think we'd better enter. Wouldn't like to be out here at night." Harry followed with complete agreement. Who knew what those monsters could do unsupervised.
If he thought the doors were huge, the entry hall was larger. Much larger. Even after the grander of Hogwarts, this was still more than he thought a private home could ever achieve. Twelve foot arches. What had to be over one hundred candle candelabra wrought in gold, casting a brilliant, magical glow across the room, illuminating the Ancient Roman mosaic spread across the floor. The picture seemed to be a man and a woman reaching for one another, cobras encircling their arms also stretching towards its opposite. It was well done, but Harry missed why it would be at the main doors.
As he marveled at the artwork, he missed the arrival of a House-elf.
"Master Severus has guests?" The petite elf was dressed in a pristine white cloth, whether it was a pillow case are another sort of cloth Harry couldn't tell because it was worn too well to be determined.
"Yes," Snape snapped rudely, but the elf paid no attention to the tone and waited for the master of the house to give instructions. "Have the guest wing prepared for three rooms. And dinner at seven. Once the rooms are finish, Totti, you are to find me."
"Would Master Severus like his room prepared as well?" Totti asked. It struck him as odd at how formal and well spoken the elf sounded. Not at all like Dobby.
"Just do what needs to be done."
"Yes sir." And the House-elf disappeared.
That was when Snape turned to face them. Unprepared for that intense gaze, Harry looked everywhere else and noticed that his luggage was missing. "I will assume you'll want to know where you will be staying." It sounded forced. As if under duress. "With the House-elves busy, I fear that it left to me. Better for me to show you where you are allowed to be than have Totti take you where you ask." Turning sharply, the sour Professor stalked past the grand arch into the adjoining room.
"So this is Ciara Aloysius," Sirius whistled. "What my mother would have given to seen this place. She never spoke of it other than a myth."
"Which is precisely how it is supposed to be spoken of." The sharp reply shocked Sirius out of his daydream. "Your mother could only dream of what your family might have been had they had enough foresight to do the same. As it is, your foolish ancestors failed to take advantage of the times."
"I take offense to that!" It was a new voice. One they had not heard before.
"To what Phineas? To being foolish or being Black's ancestor?" Snape spoke to a portrait of a sly old man, dressed in Slytheirn green and silver. Black hair adorned his head under the wizard's hat and the goatee on his chin. The brass nameplate read Phineas Nigellus.
"I would say both, but being related to that worthless great-great-grandson of mine is the worse of the two. And it is about time for you to have arrived. I was wondering if you had destroyed this portrait."
"I should have. Why are you in the formal sitting room? I had you moved to the Headmasters' Library."
"The other portraits complained. So Totti moved the frame. But with you here, it would be a good idea to have a direct, untapped line to Dumbledore's office."
Harry whispered to Sirius as this exchange took place, "You're related to him?"
"Yeah. My great-great-grandfather. Remind me to tell you about my family sometime. It's not something I can say I'm proud of, but it is amusing nonetheless."
"Don't listen to him, boy. You won't get a straight tale out of him. He's never done anything to be proud of, so being amused by those who have is idiotic."
"Oh, you're just angry I didn't follow in my brother's footsteps. Just like mother. Look at where that lead him. He's six feet under, while I'm here arguing with you."
"The wrong son, if you ask me," Phineas muttered. "And where do you think you are going?"
"I have better things to do than stand here and listen to you. The sooner this is done, the sooner I can get back to more important things." With that Snape billowed out of the room and on to the next. They had to follow quickly, not to get too lost.
The room they entered was more impressive than the formal parlor. The decorations spoke for themselves. It was a two story library. And seemed to take up most of the side of the house. Over the large fireplace, hung a stiff portrait of a young woman. She didn't move as fluidly as Phineas had, nor as naturally as most of the paintings Harry had seen in Hogwarts. Reading the nameplate explained everything. Rowena Ravenclaw. It must have been done when the art of crafting moving pictures first began.
"The main library, otherwise known as Ravenclaw's Library."
"Severus, as pleasant as usual," said the portrait. Harry had to listen closely to the voice. He could have sworn there were two voices. "Who are your guests?"
"Lupin, Black, Potter," Snape curtly waved to them in turn.
"Are they staying long?" This time Harry was certain he heard two distinct languages. One was English as he understood it, though slightly more formal than he was use to. The other was completely foreign.
"Until the term begins." Snape definitely tolerated Ravenclaw's picture better than Phineas's. The man didn't do so pleasantly, but it seemed ingrained. He wasn't being outwardly rude as per normal, surprising everyone present, except Ravenclaw.
"Wonderful." Stiffly the dark haired woman turned to the others in her room. "I look forward to talking with you at greater lengths," she smiled. Harry wondered if this was an accurate portrayal of Rowena Ravenclaw, if so she was an enjoyable personality that should not be stuffed away in some forgotten mansion. Maybe there were other portraits of hers elsewhere in the world. They didn't have any time to reply as Snape swept out of the library back into the hall and on to another corridor. "Don't mind Severus too much," she said by way of an apology as they left. "He doesn't receive much opportunity to entertain guests."
"I think she completely missed his absolute disgust as he introduced us," Sirius whispered to Remus, careful to not be overheard. The three of them couldn't control the snickers though. Snape just glared bloody murder and gestured for another doorway to open.
"Cicero's Keep." Without any interrupting portraits, Harry finally got a good look at the room. It was the most casual room shown to them. Overstuffed furniture, a welcoming hearth, a scattering of books, a chess set waiting for the next turn, bay windows facing east. At one time the room would have been used as a morning room, taking advantage of the incoming light.
"Who's Cicero?" Remus asked politely. Harry didn't know why he bothered. Snape certainly wasn't going out of his way to be civil to them.
"Some uncle," was all they got from Snape. Abruptly they were lead down another corridor. "Cillian Cavan." The double doors opened to reveal a gigantic open area, whose obvious purpose was dueling. Muggle weaponry graced one wall, residing next more magical weapons. Most of which Harry could not identify. But he knew the sabers and foils from lances and clubs, not that he knew how to use them. "This will be where Occlumency lessons will take place."
Harry nodded dumbfounded. Snape was not speaking directly to him, but he felt as though he should acknowledge. Why would they need a room this size for Occlumency? He had better inquire that of Remus. Snape walked directly opposite of the doors to another set which opened without touch or words. Sneaking a peek inside, Harry noticed that it was filled with Muggle games from a billiard table to a wall of board-games. Interlaced between those were games that had obvious magical pictures.
"I didn't know you had a toy store," that was Sirius, speaking identical thoughts from Harry's mind.
"Take it up with my great-grandfather," Snape spat. "Though I wouldn't be surprised if there was a chew-toy in there for you."
His godfather growled, but Remus quietly told him that this was not the time nor the place. And thankfully any future brawl was interrupted by Totti, the House-elf.
"Master Severus, the guest wing is prepared."
"Finally. At seven you will see to it that they," a harsh jerk of the hand in their direction, "make it to the family dinning room." Using that as Totti's dismissal, Snape focused his attention on his forced guests. "Come."
And they were on the move, again. This time up a grand staircase. "Severus, what part of the castle did you show us?" Remus asked. Harry guessed it was the need to keep polite conversation going if only to avoid the awkward silences.
"The castle proper. You are to go nowhere other than that level of the castle proper and the guest wing." So much for polite conversation.
"And way is that?"
"I do not want you here. And keeping you detained in the castle proper will not require me to remove anymore wards than I must." After several long moments of silence, they arrived at a narrow corridor, one side lined with doors and the other with windows. Past door number one, past door number two, and stopped at door number three. "Black." Walk up to the second door. "Potter." Up to the first. "Lupin. Good day." And Snape promptly disappeared the way they came.
"Pleasant chap, isn't he?" Sirius commented once he was sure the overgrown bat was out of ear shot. "The quant tour of a legendary house. Even a small history lesson on it. I think I'll as more at dinner. What do you think, Remus?"
"Don't irritate him, Sirius. It's bad enough Dumbledore forced us on him. You don't need to add to it."
"I wasn't planing on doing that. Just some questions regarding this place."
"I would save that for a portrait. I doubt if our host would be willing to cooperate. But I am curious as to what you know about this place."
"Oh, you know. The usual."
"No, I'm afraid I don't. I've never heard of this place before Dumbledore mentioned it."
"Thought everyone knew the legend. Ciara Aloysius was suppose to be a safe haven for Slytherin when he broke away from Hogwarts. But that's not what made it famous. One it is the oldest wizarding home in existence."
"Does that make Snape the oldest wizarding family?" Harry couldn't help but ask.
"The name Snape isn't the longest lasting, but the bloodline is."
"You sound as if this was important to you, Sirius."
"You try forgetting what was drilled into your head since birth, Remus. But anyway, the thing that makes Ciara Aloysius famous to the point of legend was that it was made unplottable hundreds of years before the unplottable charm was invented."
"But doesn't that make the inventor of the unplottable charm that wizard from Snape's family?"
"Not necessarily, Harry. No one can prove that the charm used on Ciara Aloysius is the same as the unplottable patented all those years ago. That was mainly due the lack of belief that Ciara Aloysius existed."
"From what I've gathered, Harry, the only ones who truly wanted Ciara Aloysius to exist were Dark Wizards. Everyone else either didn't care or didn't like the legend and encouraged the disbelief."
"Then why is Sirius so excited about being here?"
"That, Harry, is because I am here at a place my mother would loved to have known was real and now I can return and tell her just out of spite."
"What about Phineas?"
"Oh, him? Don't know why he never mentioned it. Certainly loved to tell stories that revolved around Ciara Aloysius. I'll get him to tell them to you while we're here. But first let's see what traps Snape decided to lay behind these doors."
"You don't really believe that do you, Sirius?" Remus sighed as he went over to his door. "It was the House-elves who prepared the rooms. Do you honestly think they would do something like that?"
"Wouldn't put it past them. You're forgetting about Kreacher. They are capable." Everyone paused. Sirius had told him about the crooked, demented elf that holed itself in the Blacks' place of residence, now the hideout for the Order of the Phoenix. "What do you think? Count to three and open?" They were now standing before their respective doors, nervous. Well, Remus didn't show it. But the mere fact he didn't enter immediately suggested such.
"Open on three or three then open?"
Sirius shared a look with Harry. "On three. One." Pause. And Harry heard an anxious swallow. "Two." This time the pause lasted longer.
"Oh for the love of . . . Three." Remus swung his door and all was silent. Similar actions took place further down the hall. "Wasn't what you expected, is it?" His rooms main colors consisted of autumn reds and golds with perfect complements of greens. There was a sitting area directly after the entrance, framing a small arch leading to the bedroom. Not only was the bed larger than he had ever used before, but also a small private bath. True, he had a private bath in his rooms at Hogwarts, but he had never expected to find the luxury as part of a guest room in the home of the man who hated him the most.
A door stood on the left side of his room. Curious, he went to open it. And found Harry's rooms. And the boy was slowly circling in place stunned by his room. The colors of which were completely Gryffindor. Scarlet and gold. "Do you think Snape even knows what these rooms look like?" he asked quietly with a hint of awe. "I wouldn't be surprised if this room was as large as our common room. Come on, let's see what Sirius thinks of his residence."
"Probably still gawking that it's not a torture chamber." Lupin grinned and open the door connecting Harry's and Sirius's chambers. The animagus was in the same state Remus had found Harry. "Enjoying yourself?" The dominate colors in this room were the deep reds and golds of a sunset.
"What?"
"Just wondering how you are coping with your cell."
"It's not what I expected."
"Think you can spend a couple of weeks here without blowing up?"
"All right, Moony. I won't antagonizing Snape any more than normal."
"I guess that's all I could expect."
"Sirs?" A high pitched voice of a House-elf interrupted. Totti stood in the middle of the room. She seemed more nervous alone in their presence. Not as confident. Perhaps it was just strangers. "Master Severus is wanting you in the dinning room. Please follow me?"
"It's seven already?" Remus asked rhetorically. "Well, we might as well go see what Severus's hospitality has to offer."
"You think we can get Snape to tell us more about this place?"
"Don't push it Sirius. I don't know why you are so interested, but I don't think it would be a good idea. Why don't you ask your great-great-grandfather? Better yet, one of the other portraits. How about Ravenclaw? She seems polite enough to answer."
"Fine. I give. I won't bother Snape."
"Good. Now shall we go?"
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Nothing forwarding the plot. Sorry. Needed to establish the atmosphere of the house and its occupants.