Author's Notes at the bottom. Please Read. Disclaimer is in the first chapter.





"Severus," Harry called through the door to Snape's private Potions Lab. "It's lunchtime! Come eat!"

He turned to find Ron snickering at him from the small table in the living area and Hermione glaring at the red haired boy, a silent admonition in her brown eyes. Harry sighed and, with a last call for his father, sat down at the table across from Ron. He narrowed his green eyes, joining Hermione in glaring at his best friend. Ron stopped after a moment and stared at Harry with wide eyes.

"Blimey, Harry," Ron exclaimed. "You've lived too long with Snape. You've got his glare!"

Harry sighed and reached for the mustard to spread on his sandwich, "I don't think that's a bad thing, Ron."

Ron's jaw dropped and Hermione sighed. "Really, Ron. You'd think you would be used to this by now. Snape takes care of Harry now. Of course he's not going to see anything wrong with becoming more like him."

"But- but- but-" Ron stammered turning wide eyes on Hermione, "it's Snape!"

Harry rolled his eyes in unison with Hermione, "He saved my life. Remember, Ron?"

Ron looked back and forth between his two best friends before reaching out and grabbing a roll from the pile resting in the center of the table with a growl. He busily stuffed it in his mouth while Hermione sighed in disgust.

"So, what did you guys find out," Harry asked, pointing at the bag the book he had found was hidden in.

Ron nudged Hermione and took a chicken leg. Hermione's eyes brightened and she grinned, "Well, it's definitely Ancient English like you thought. It's very old and the only one of it's kind. They say that, long ago, the fairy folk did some experiments on magical creatures, sentient and non-sentient. They even used unicorns! They were horrible experiments! And not all of the fairies liked them. They joined with Wizards and Centaurs and even the Giants to fight the fairies and in the end defeated them."

"Nice, Hermione," Ron told her between bites. "Now tell him what he didn't already know."

Hermione glared over at her red-headed friend, causing him to swallow hard and pale. Harry was tempted to laugh at his poor friend, but reminded himself that he might one day face the very same glare, if not from the same woman, and wisely kept silent. Words were hard enough to swallow, laughs would probably be even worse.

"The experiments were to see if the fairies could mix their own blood with the blood of other creatures. Some results turned out to be truly awful, such as the werewolf and the boggart, and some turned out to be wonderful, like Metamorphmagi, Centaurs and House Elves. The worst creature they created, however, was even more terrible than werewolf and more frightening than the boggart. It was a creature that held unimaginable powers and could conceivably live forever," Hermione continued, sounding slightly miffed.

"Did you memorize that, Hermione," Ron asked with a grin.

Harry sighed as Hermione turned to scorch the red head with another glare. He had the distinct feeling that Ron was doing this on purpose. If that look in his eyes said anything, he was enjoying bringing up that red flush in Hermione's nicely tanned cheeks. And listening to Hermione's reply, she wasn't nearly as annoyed as she was trying to make out. Though she still seemed pretty annoyed.

"What else, Hermione," he asked, hoping to avert another love-spat. They'd been doing that almost as much as glaring lately. Harry wasn't sure if it made him sick with disgust, or sick with jealousy. Either way, he had to end it before the situation deteriorated. "What kind of animal was it?"

Hermione stopped and looked over at Harry, an embarrassed light in her eyes. "I couldn't find that out... I just know it's called a Bassil."

"Wait," Ron said, almost falling off his chair in exaggerated surprise. "There's something Hermione doesn't know?"

Hermione flushed and gave both Ron and a laughing Harry a heartfelt glare, "I do know that it's called a Bassil because it looks so much like a Basilisk."

Harry stopped laughing and stared up at his indignant friend, "A- A Basilisk..."

Hermione got that old look in her eye that Harry knew so well, "Yes, it's supposed to be very large and serpent-like, able to live for interminable amounts of time and to contain more power than the real Basilisk could ever dream of."

"Yes, but what kind of power," Harry asked her impatiently, his mind wandering back the close to four years it had been since he had fought the Basilisk. "Can it-?"

Hermione blinked over at Harry for a moment before realization hit her, "Oh! No! It can't petrify or kill anyone with its gaze." She paused for a moment. "That I know of..."

"That's reassuring," Ron mumbled around a bite of chicken. Harry silently agreed with him, deciding that anything that was capable of avoiding Hermione's super sleuthing powers was definitely not something to be taken lightly.

Hermione ignored Ron and continued, "It's powers are said to be much deadlier. In fact, from what accounts I could find, it doesn't seem to leave much of its victims behind at all. Only enough to identify the victim and know that they are dead."

Ron seemed to contemplate this as he munched on his chicken and Harry stared into Hermione's concerned eyes. "You mean..." he asked in an almost whisper.

"Yes. Just like Dumbledore," she replied in a small voice.

"What," Ron exclaimed, finally swallowing. "It killed Dumbledore."

They heard a crash in the next room and Harry sighed, calling, "Severus! Lunch!

"Don't do anything...rash, Harry," Hermione told him as he turned back around. "If this creature really exists and killed him, then we wouldn't stand a chance alone. It'll take dozens of wizards with a lot more experience to kill it!"

Harry frowned at his friend, ignoring the concerned look Ron was giving him at Hermione's advice. He remained quiet a moment, contemplating the situation at hand before finally deciding what he should say. "So what does this have to do with the book?"

Hermione blinked and frowned at Harry, but let his avoidance tactic slide, "The book is a record of the experiments. It's where I got the idea to look up the origins of all these creatures."

"So it could tell us how to kill it," Ron asked excitedly.

"What don't you know anything about the Bassil if the book talks about them," Harry asked, knowing there was a catch to this silver lining.

"I can't translate it," Hermione told them flatly. "I can just tell enough to know what it's about."

Harry groaned and leaned back in his chair. That explained why she was so adamant he not fight this creature. But that still left one question.

"How could you know what it's about if you can't translate it?"



Hermione sighed and glared at the book, "Because it's like there's a spell to prevent me. It just teases me with a glance at the words, but just as I get a good hold on them, they dance away. I can only tell enough to know it's a record of the experiments and possible that ancient battle for freedom. That's all."

"So how do we translate it then," Ron asked, reaching out and pulling the book towards himself.

"How do you translate what, Mr Weasley ," Snape asked as he finally stepped out of his work area.

"J-just a-a book. Of Hermione's," Ron stuttered nervously, hugging the book as though his thin arms could hide it alone.

"Why don't you try a dictionary then," Snape told him, though without his usual bite.

"Why don't you eat something, Father," Harry said as threw together a plate full of food.

Snape looked sharply over at his foster son, surprised at the unusual address just as Harry had known he would be. Finally he shook his head, "No, I think I'm going to go lie down for a moment."

"Take it with you then, alright, Father," Harry told him, walking briskly over and pushing the plate into Snape's exceptionally pale hands. "You can try eating some later. It will help you feel better."

Snape went to refuse again, pushing the plate back at Harry but stopped at the look of worry that practically glowed in the boy's eyes. For just a moment he remembered why he had taken in the son of James Potter and knew that this was always going to be the one person he couldn't refuse for anything. Aside from Dumbledore, when he was finally found...

Snape nodded and, taking the plate back, walked quickly across the room and into his bedroom. He called out, "Try not to destroy the place. And don't leave the castle again! Merlin knows I don't need another visit from that mutt..." before shutting the door.

Harry watched the closed door for a moment, his stomach turning with the fear and worry it always felt whenever he saw the Potions Master these days. He glared back at Ron when he let out a low whistle and said, "Blimey Harry! No wonder you're worried! He always did look like a Vampire, but now he's more like a walking skeleton!"

Hermione hid her face in one hand while she stuffed a roll in Ron's mouth with the other, "You are so tactless, Ron."

Harry simply continued glaring before turning his back on his friends as well, "I think I'm going to take a nap as well. Wake me if you find anything else or if Severus wakes up."

"But, Harry -" Hermione began, but stopped when Harry's door closed behind him, knowing that he was no longer listening, even if he could hear her.

"He'll feel better after a good nap," Ron said, swallowing the roll and reaching for more chicken.

Hermione ignored her friend and grabbed her own leg of chicken before stuffing the book back in her bag and walking briskly off to the library. Ron shrugged as he watched her go and turned back to the food.

"The more for me!"



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Draco grimaced as the Dark Lord smiled down at him fondly. He held himself perfectly still as the evil wizard ran one impossibly long finger down his arm and pressed his Mark. Not even the agony that shot through his body could make him move through the terror he felt in the presence of his Lord. He simply held himself still and hoped he'd yet escape without being cursed.



"You've been a good servant to me thus far, Draco," the snake-like wizard said. Draco averted his eyes and nodded respectfully. "You've done all that I've asked of you. But now I will have you do something harder than anything I've ever told any of my minions to do before."

Shock shot through Draco and settled deep in his stomach. Somehow, he knew he wasn't going to like this. But then, when had he ever liked a job the Dark Lord gave him? Maybe this was why Snape turned traitor?

No! He couldn't think like that! No matter how much he detested the Dark Lord, Snape should never have betrayed them. Especially not for Harry Potter, the Boy Wonder. And even if he was tempted to leave, which Draco wasn't, why should he? He'd only be giving up his life in a losing struggle against Voldemort.

"I will do whatever you want, my Lord," Draco told Voldemort in as strong a voice as he could manage.

"Of course you will, Draco," the Dark Lord told him. "I have very high expectations of you now. Very high. And if you fail, there won't even be a body to dispose of."

Draco suppressed a shudder and waited for his orders.



Geeze! It's been SOOO LONG!!! Sorry all! Been very busy! I graduated and am now in a graduate program. I also work full time and am trying to keep up with my original writing. I have very little time for anything anymore though. Still, I think restarted this chapter over about three times at least. Just couldn't get it right!! Sorry for all of you who were waiting anxiously for this. I know there have been quite a few of you! I have the emails to prove it! Thank you very much for your support. I'll try to get the next chapter out faster.

Also, I'm no longer doing the separate chapter for Author's Notes. They and individual replies to reviews will go down here. Thanks!! Now I've a headache and wanna finish watching "Pirates of the Carribean." ::Drools at the sight of Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom::