In defeating him, I've met my Fall
Chapter 6
She was engulfed in a warm embrace.
Vaguely, Sandrilene wondered why she hadn't shied away from the touch like she usually did – her senses all but screamed for her to trust whomever it was that was holding her, though there was confusion as to why the sandalwood and bergamot scent emanating from the man made her heart twinge in nostalgia. For minutes, she was held in that position as the man holding her murmured something over and over again in a language that sounded alien yet familiar at the same time…
"Salazar, stop your incessant Parseltongue babbling. She's here, and you're not helping."
This successfully stopped the rambling of the man who was holding Sandrilene, and when she was finally extricated from the embrace, emerald eyes clashed with the identical ones of the man who held her as though she were the most precious jewel in the world. The calm façade seemed to betray nothing, yet the shaky hands that still held her arms protectively and the torrent of emotions that flooded those emerald eyes told otherwise.
"Fa – father?" Sandrilene whispered in shock. There was no doubt that the man was Salazar Slytherin, for he looked exactly like the dark-haired man in her dreams. Still, the question was…
"Where am I?"
Behind Salazar, quiet laughter could be heard as a golden-haired man entered into Sandrilene's line of vision. Taller than Salazar by almost a head, the girl stared at the other mage in awe, inwardly reminding herself that Godric Gryffindor was not a man to be trifled with… all the while forgetting that he too, was her father. Her expression had Godric somewhat amused, and the man gathered his daughter in a tight hug, "Sandry, we're in the void of dreams."
"Void of dreams?" Sandrilene echoed in confusion. Her father nodded before releasing her from the bone-crushing hug, and guided her to look around. Only then did she realize that she was now in an unfamiliar chamber that looked like a common room, yet not truly like one. Instead of having many couches, there were only two, one by the fireplace, and another by a row of bookshelves. Stools and chairs littered the room – two by the chess table, and another smatter by a huge round table where a multitude of scrolls was lying carelessly on it. Mostly lined with shelves containing odd gadgets and potion vials, the room was a cozy one despite its huge expanse.
Allowing herself to be led by her black-haired father to the fireplace, Sandrilene obediently sat down on the couch as Godric explained, "Not much is known about the void… Only that the masters of the elements can converse with their counterparts of other generations face-to-face without any trouble. Since you are both a Lightbringer and Waterbearer, and Salar and I are life-bound, we were able to enter into your dreams at the same time. This had Rowena and Helga a little disappointed though…"
"Lightbringer? Waterbearer?" Sandrilene asked in confusion as the man sat down beside her, effectively placing her between him and Salazar, all the while frowning at the bruises that colored her pale arms.
"A Lightbringer is the master of the light elementals, a Waterbearer – the master of water elementals." Salazar answered absently, his attention too, turned towards her bare arms and calves. Then, remembering how Rowena had breezed through their questions on Sandrilene's health with averted eyes, Salazar realized the severity of the harm that had been inflicted on his only daughter and paled.
Pained, the man took up Sandrilene's right hand and whispered in barely controlled fury, "How dare they do this to you!"
"I'm going to kill them." Godric gritted out, amber-gold eyes burned with a ferocity that had Sandrilene wincing. She knew that her father was a powerful mage – hell, both of her fathers were formidable men – and the idea of being at the end of his wrath wasn't a thing to laugh at. Hesitantly placing her hand on her golden-haired father's arm, Sandrilene started out, "Please, fa – papa, don't…"
This effectively calmed the man down, albeit short-termed, and Sandrilene quickly withdrew her hand, suddenly feeling timid as she played with the hem of her hospital blouse. Her parents turned to her in question, knowing that she hadn't finished her sentence, causing Sandrilene to look down guiltily, "It wasn't as if I didn't deserve it."
Ignoring the concerned stares that both Salazar and Godric gave her, she continued doggedly, "The physical pain… it dulled my senses somewhat… it helped me temporarily to forget losing Si – " here, she had to swallow the sudden onslaught of grief before continuing, " – Sirius and Ron and Cedric, and all the others, be it for a short time."
Choking back a sob, she whispered brokenly, "At least it helped me live."
The silence that followed was deafening as both parents glanced at one another over Sandrilene's head in upset. They had known a long time ago that their child had had a hard life in the era that she was transported into, but neither had wanted their Sandrilene to suffer so, and especially not to a point where she took abuse so readily to numb the guilt and pain she was so deeply entrenched in.
Sighing, Salazar gathered his daughter into his arms, brooking no protest from the girl as he rubbed soothing circles on her back.
"Sandry, we've been through this before, it was not your fault that people are killed." Salazar spoke gently, wiping the tears away from the girl's eyes. Tears, that she had not even realize had fallen. A hand patted her head, and Godric's voice sounded from above her, "Salar speaks the truth. Voldemort was a crazed man. He would kill anyone that defied him."
"But it had been because of me that Sirius was killed!"
"Then what would Sirius and your friends have said if they found out about the way you dealt with their death?" Salazar countered, effectively silencing his girl from any other protestation. The tears still hadn't stopped, and the dark-haired wizard sighed, "Sandry, if Sirius was anything like the one I've seen in your mind, he would most probably bring you by the rear and spank you for being so inconsiderate of yourself. He would not be pleased to see you wallowing in self-guilt, and especially not when he's most probably enjoying the company of James and Lily Potter in the other realm."
"Do you think so?" Sandrilene asked timidly on looking at her father's face. The uncertainty was still there, but it was fading… if only slightly. Smiling reassuringly, Salazar continued, "Child, believe what you may, but remember the times you had with them. Remember their laughter, their actions, their wit. Do you think they would have wanted you to suffer in grief?"
At this, Sandrilene fell silent once more, this time, she took to recounting the times she had spent with Sirius and Ron, the long chats through the nights, the adventures they had embarked on, and gave a ghost of a smile. Seeing the smile, both Godric and Salazar sighed in relief.
At least their child was thinking concretely again.
"Think about it in your spare time," Godric murmured quietly, "Mourning is inevitable, that I cannot deny it. However, it is the part of moving on that'll be the difficult one..." Giving his child a crooked smile, he joked, "Still, you are a Gryffindor after all, so I have no doubt that you'll possess enough courage to do that in time to come."
"As long as the idiocy part doesn't kick in, I suppose that's all right." Salazar sniffed, earning him a bite on the arm by his bonded. Wincing, Salazar kicked the man back at the shins, leaving a stunned Sandrilene to look on whilst the two lovers wrestled for dominance right in front of her.
"Men…" A wry comment sounded from a portrait behind Sandrilene, causing her to jump. Whirling around, she glanced at her still fighting fathers and wandered over to the portrait where a black-haired lady was having tea with a golden-haired one.
"Um… Hello." Sandrilene said uncertainly as the two women smiled at her. The black-haired woman tutted at the too-polite greeting and sighed, "Sandry, please do away with the politeness. It is rather depressing to have my only niece seem so distant to me, isn't it Helga?"
"Indeed." The golden-haired lady, Helga Hufflepuff, replied in amusement. Then, placing her teacup down, she smiled dotingly on Sandrilene and waved her hand, "don't mind those two. It seems to be their way of… ah, relieving tension."
Here, Rowena Ravenclaw bit back a snicker and turned straight-faced to her niece, "I suppose you'll not start on your training now."
"Training?" Sandrilene asked, confused.
"Yes. Your magic has matured, and not many have the power you possess. It is only befitting that your parents, as well as us, teach you how to control your magic… Though given the circumstances, only Godric and my brother can teach you." Rowena replied kindly whilst Helga continued on, "Sandrilene, I'm still researching on how to get all four of us to meet you in dreams. It'll take some time, but I'm getting on to it. Meanwhile, I suppose I can only content myself on knowing that you're safe once more."
The genuine concern in both ladies' voice warmed Sandrilene's heart, but before she could utter any word of thanks, Helga met her eyes and shook her head, "No gratitude is needed. We are family, after all."
"I agree with Helga, Sandry. You've had a long night, now get to sleep…"
Now get to sleep…
Suddenly jumping up, all Sandrilene saw was darkness before her. However, she did not even have to light up her wand to recognize where she was. The bed underneath her was exactly the same as before she had entered into the void, and the clean, antiseptic odor that was the exclusive eu de hospital wing was still lingering faintly despite the winds that blew in from the opened windows.
"I'm back…" The black-haired girl sighed as she made for bed, though something, or more specifically, the gaze of someone stopped her. Glancing around, emerald eyes met curious, quicksilver ones that seemed to glow in the darkness, causing her to scream.
"Shh!" The person hissed in annoyance whilst muffling Sandrilene's scream with his hand, "Madam Pomfrey will kill me!" The voice, with its melodious tenor, had Sandry pulling back the pale hand that was covering her mouth, "Draco?"
The muttering of 'lumos' could then be heard as the eyes of one Draco Malfoy widened imperceptibly at the black-haired girl, "What did you do to yourself Harry? Had a sex change?"
Shaking her head, Sandrilene looked at the boy in confusion. Why is he still in Hogwarts? How did he…
"How did you know that I am Harry?" Sandrilene voiced out in uncertainty. Even her voice had changed, not to mention her looks, and it wasn't really possible for the blond-haired Slytherin to have seen her scar – for that was covered by her bangs… Hence the question. Draco, however, just laughed and pointed to the air surrounding the girl, "You are still colored with the waters, and the white of light. Auras do not change, Harry."
"You can see auras?"
The incredulity in her voice had Draco snickering, "I am not the Windmaker of our generation for nothing."
"Windmaker?"
"Now you're starting to act like a parrot…" The boy muttered under his breath. Still, before Sandry could utter a protest, Draco continued, "You do know that you are an elemental mage too, don't you?" At her nod, the boy continued, "There are six masters, the Lightbringer, Shadowmaster, Waterbearer, Windmaker, Firetamer and Earthwielder, for light, shadow, water, wind, fire and earth respectively. Each controls the elements with the ease of one's breath, though that is only after one's fully trained…
"My abilities awoke earlier, on my sixteenth birthday instead, and I had been seeing auras since six months ago. I was less than half-trained when the last war started though, hence my inability to help much. It had been my abilities that kept me away from death…"
Sandrilene awkwardly patted her friend's shoulder when he trailed off, knowing that he was reliving the events of the last battle. Whereas Sandrilene had only killed Voldemort, Draco had killed many in the last battle, of which had included one Lucius Malfoy – though she was only informed of this post-battle. The aftermath had been rather bad too. Draco had been placed on life-support for almost a week due to the amount of hexes the Death Eaters had thrown on him, not to mention the injuries and broken bones he sustained throughout the siege.
Heck, it had been deemed a miracle that he hadn't gone crazy given the length of Cruciatus he had suffered under his father's hands.
Several minutes passed as Draco took hold of his emotions once more, and when that was done, he gave his friend – though he was still getting used to the idea of Harry being a female – a weak smile, asking, "So why are you here? And did anyone tell you that you look like…"
"… Salazar Slytherin?"
"No. Rowena Ravenclaw. Your hair, to be exact."
"To be expected, she's my aunt."
"What!" This time, it was Draco's turn to yell. He had the decency to blush, however, when Sandrilene placed a finger on her lip to signal him to be silent. In a soft voice, she began explaining how she had just found out in less than forty-eight hours that she was actually the child of two of the Founders, and niece to the other two.
"I do not think that those bruises were by Lord Slytherin or Gryffindor's hands." Draco finally spoke out shrewdly when Sandry had finished her explanations, and the latter reluctantly shook her head.
"No. Vernon did that." The girl mumbled softly, which incited a sudden gale of wind to sweep through the entire room. Shivering, Sandry looked up at Draco's eyes and flinched at the fury that colored those glazed, silver eyes. Hurriedly, she shook her friend out of his reverie, thereby disrupting the winds that had sung along with Draco's anger.
"You know, it is nice to have a strong wind now and then," Sandrilene started wryly, "but please don't do it at night of all times."
"You're one to talk! Why in all of Merlin's name did you let them do this to you? You're more than capable to make them back off!" The ranting continued for quite a long time, and Sandrilene tuned out immediately, knowing that there was no true way of stopping the Malfoy heir when he was off on his raving spree.
Little did she know that she fell asleep half-way through his tirade, and Draco could only sigh in exasperation before pulling the coverlet over her and slipping back into his own bed.
She awoke to a sweet odor that seemed to fill the room… or at least, the area where she was in.
Then, something started nudging her arm, though Sandrilene tiredly threw it off. Unfortunately, it did not seem to relent in its prodding, and the girl rubbed bleary eyes before they focused on the bemused visage before her.
"Draconis Alexander Malfoy," the girl gritted out hoarsely, "Bugger. Off"
"Oh but I can't." Draco responded in amusement, gesturing to the potions that were on the side-table, "Madam Pomfrey insisted that I get you to wake up for feeding."
"Fe-feeding?" Sandrilene grimaced, now fully awake. Glancing at the sheer multitude of potions, she groaned, "Merlin. There's almost a dozen of them there!"
"Just be thankful that there's only eleven of them. Mine had been worse." The Slytherin boy retorted as he tossed a bouquet of flowers towards Sandrilene. Deftly catching the bouquet, the latter stared at it in surprise and brought startled eyes towards the blond-haired boy. For once, Draco looked uneasy, shuffling from feet to feet, and Sandrilene raised out suspiciously, "Erm, Draco, I do hope this isn't a prank."
"A-a prank?" This time, it was Draco's turn to splutter, and Sandrilene laughed at the look of indignation now apparent on the blonde's face. Said boy continued glaring at her, muttering under his breath, "I thought all girls like flowers… Hell, I even got you lilies and bluebottles!"
"Draco, I was still a boy yesterday… Do you think my preferences change immediately?" Sandrilene pointed out sardonically, leaving a hurumphing boy who then threw another thing towards her. Again, Sandrilene caught the object, though it was heavier than she expected. Glancing at the object, she returned her gaze towards Draco, an eyebrow arched in question, "Why a book?"
"Rowena mentioned sometime back that should another master awaken, this would help him or her immensely." Draco shrugged, gesturing to the History of Elemental Magi with his hand, "I can help you with whatever's written in the book, especially those rituals, but I suppose Sev would be a better option."
"Sev?" The word that rolled off her tongue was foreign, yet endearing at the same time, and Sandrilene found that she liked it very much. Somebody, however, seemed to think otherwise, "Draco, how many times do I have to ask you to. Stop. Calling. Me. That?"
Both Draco and Sandrilene jumped at those words, but the former recovered quickly and grinned at the brooding man that was standing by the entrance of the wing, "Uncle Sev!"
"Now what did I tell you about nicknames?" Severus asked silkily as he moved towards the two students, inwardly frowning on noticing the vials of potions. Wasn't she supposed to be taking those…? He thought absently as the medi-witch beside him clucked at the duo, where one had the decency to look guilty.
"Mr. Malfoy, I thought I asked you to stay in your bed?" Madam Pomfrey tutted, leaving a thoroughly confused Sandrilene. Dubious of what had happened earlier, she turned to glance at the blonde that had suddenly taken an interest in the sky outside and questioned the medi-witch, "But Draco said you asked him to wake me up to take those potions!"
"What!" Madam Pomfrey screeched - literally, "Why I never!" Turning towards Draco, the woman turned menacing, leaving a somewhat pale Draco Malfoy who seemed to be searching for a way to run away. Noticing his expression, Severus grasped Draco firmly on the shoulders despite the pleading look on his godson's eyes and murmured, "Another prank of yours Draco? I do remember feeling a mild disturbance in the winds earlier on…"Which meant you've just meddled with your element.
Those words were unspoken, but being masters of their elements, Sandrilene and Draco heard the mindspeech, causing Draco to gulp. The potions master knew him just too well… Not surprising, given how he had been the boy's mentor since even before he entered Hogwarts, and when Draco had came into his powers, the dark-haired man had become an even more important figure in his life – Severus was the father he would've killed to have.
"I just wanted see Sandry's reaction when I gave her the flowers…" Draco answered reluctantly after realizing that the potions master's glare would not relent unless he gave an answer. And by answer, it meant a true answer, for he had no doubt that Severus would use the shadows to verify if it were false. His words had the remaining occupants of the room surprised, and Sandrilene touched the bouquet tentatively, "You got this specially for me?"
There was a sulky nod at the back of Sandrilene's mind, leaving the girl part amused part contented. To say that she wasn't touched by the gesture would be lying, for Draco had quietly shown her fleeting images of how he had created the flowers with the winds through their minds… and Sandrilene knew that it wasn't easy given the injuries he had recovered only recently. Whilst they were deep in mindspeech, Severus just stared at the duo with unreadable eyes, unconsciously frowning at the scene before him.
All of a sudden, the flowers that were held in Sandrilene's arms became vaguely annoying in his eyes, and he so badly wanted to disrupt the mindspeech they were engaged in like a jealous lover. A jealous lover? Now where had that come from? Severus thought in irritation as he brushed those thoughts away from his line of thinking. Quickly controlling himself, he started, "Draco, the Headmaster will be coming over later in the afternoon to continue your lessons. Meanwhile, could you kindly vacate this place while I cover wandless magic with Ms Slytherin?"
"Of course, uncle." Draco agreed readily and jumped off the chair he had been sitting and waved goodbye at Sandrilene and Severus. Once he was up and about, Madam Pomfrey immediately took him by the shoulder to another chamber for another round of healing, all the while fussing over how he ought not perform elemental magic so soon after sedation and whatnots. Draco just rolled his eyes, though he grinned at the idea of soaking in the healing pools once more.
He was walking mid-way towards the chamber where the healing pools were situated when the winds carried a soft 'thank you' from Sandrilene, and he just shook his head and smiled.
… So much for cheering up his little brother… no, sister up.
As Sandrilene carefully placed the bouquet of flowers onto the side-table, Severus looked on patiently – or with what little patience he had – until she was ready. Eyeing the tome that was already on her bed, a faint smile hovered on his face before fading back into the mask, "I see Draco has passed you this back. It will do you well to read it thoroughly Ms Slytherin. But for now, we'll be going through this book instead."
He passed another tome to the girl, this time on wandless magic, but Sandrilene just stared at the book, not accepting it or browsing through it. Frowning, Severus stared at the girl, wondering what had transpired to bring about such silence until the girl looked up at him, "You called me Sandry last night."
"I beg your pardon?" The black-haired mage raised an eyebrow at the words. Those emerald eyes that were holding his own coal ones seemed accusing, whilst the same dulcet voice spoke once more, "You called me Ms Slytherin just now. What happened to Sandry?"
"Well Ms Slytherin, given how I'm to teach you again, it would be better to call you Ms Slytherin instead of Sandrilene." – that way, my mind won't be led astray. Once again, he growled at his own thoughts and chucked them back into the furthest recesses of his mind, only to groan when Sandrilene insisted, "Sandry."
"Ms Slytherin, I insist –"
"Please, call me Sandry?"
The plea in those emerald green orbs, doubled with that persuading voice, had Severus softening immediately. Reluctantly, he started, "Sandrilene – "
"Sandry."
"Sandrilene," The man warned, "you are trying my patience." This successfully shut the girl up, but those puppy eyes continued staring at him as if trying to wear into his soul… Hence, despite trying to maintain his stand, Severus gave up minutes later.
"All right Sandry. Now, wandless magic."
The class commenced immediately, and should anyone see the black-haired girl, they would wonder what had happened to have caused the expression she had on her face – she looked like a cat who'd gotten its paws on a pitcher of milk.
Needless to say, Severus Snape was more than disgruntled by that…
End of Chapter 6
Ta da! Phew… After such a long hiatus, this chapter is finally out! ducks all the flying artillery and glares I do apologize if the chapter doesn't meet to the usual expectations, given how I've almost (the term is almost, not totally) given up on the plot. Rest assured, I've written the entire idea down on black and white instead of remembering it in my mind.
The reviews had helped me strive to get this chapter out, so I thank all of you who have reviewed, as well as those who've read this story and thought it good enough ) Like you guys, I too, am also glad to have this chapter out – it's like a huge burden off my shoulders… Next, I'll just have to tackle awakening… :shudders: Ah well, hope you guys liked it!
