Disclaimer: Only Thorn and Sparkie, blah blah blah, Maken and Cade belong to Maken-Wood... blah blah blah, Celestial to Setalina Muro, blah blah blah, Tafft to my sister, blah blah blah, have I said it enough times yet?
Author's Note: Okay, despite the lack of reviews hint hint I'm still gonna post this! Woo! Yeah, whatever. As the name implies, Class with Severus!
Chapter six
Class with Severus
In the morning, Thorn was the first to awake. She had not dreamed, she never did.
She got up and dressed quietly, not wanting to wake the others. It was really early, earlier then any student in their right mind would be up.
Sparkie was sleeping under her covers, moving around in his sleep. He always did. Thorn herself wouldn't move all night, for, without emotion, she didn't dream. Sparkie, however, dreamed every night.
Sparkie! She thought to him, not wanting to talk aloud to wake her fellow Slytherins.
Eh... oaway... he muttered back to her.
She sighed and took him from the covers, laying him flat on his back in her palm, his wings and tail hanging off of her hand. She took the tip of one of his overlarge wings and picked it up. Letting it drop, she rolled her eyes a bit. He's like a rag doll, she thought to herself.
Placing him carefully onto her shoulder, she began to desend into the Slytherin common room. Midnight flew after her and landed on the opposite shoulder then Sparkie.
Very few students were in the common room, and even those who were seemed too out of it to notice her walk by. When she was on the fields, the sun was still far from rising. Sparkie stirred slightly, looked up at the sky, and moaned. Why in the world did you get me up this freaking early?
Did you forget about Shooter, Feather, and Talon? Thorn asked as Midnight began to fly ahead of the pair.
Oh... Them... Sparkie muttered and put his head back down.
Oh, Sparkie, Thorn thought silently. She shook her head and continued towards the forbidden forest. Dumbledore had said that no one was to enter the forest, but he had also said that her animals could stay there, and if he didn't think that she was going to go see them, he was quite mistaken.
At the edge of the forest Thorn halted. She wasn't afraid of what she'd find within it; after all, fear was an emotion. She was just cautious. Years of self training made her such.
She finally entered the forest, her nerves and scenes all around her, her power pulsing from her. She whistled and waited, wondering if her animals were still alive, and if they could hear her.
Thorn was about to turn and leave when she heard a shrill call. Talon, she thought.
Feh...
Oh shut up, Sparkie!
The Hippogriff, who had been flying above, landed within the mass of trees. Thorn bowed slightly, to show him that she meant respect, and he immediately bowed back. Despite the fact that he had been hers for nearly two months, she still showed him that she didn't want to hurt his pride, and he didn't want to hurt hers.
Then the white and grey forms of Shooter and Feather came forwards. They're together? Sparkie was amazed by that. Feather usually had nothing to do with the unicorn.
Hmm? Thorn looked up, and she too watched at the two of them, then she said, Perhaps she's finally accepted him as a friend.
Perhaps...
"Shooter, Feather, Talon, you all made it here in one piece." She stroked each of them in turn. They seemed fit enough, all of them seeming to have gotten enough food. "Are you guys watching out for each other?"
"Don't waist your breath, they can't understand you," Sparkie squeaked, and he batted at Midnight with his tail. She squawked and bit it. Yelping, he climbed halfway down Thorn's arm, glaring at the black owl, who had a smug look on her face.
"You never know," Thorn said as she ran her hand over Midnight's smooth feathers. "Pegasus are extremely brilliant." Then she turned back to the horse like animals in front of her and said, "We'd better get back to the castle," she rubbed Feather's forehead. "I'll come back whenever I can."
The pegasus nodded and whinnied something to the others. "See?" she hissed to Sparkie, "She understands me."
"Whatever," Sparkie shrugged and climbed into her pocket.
By the time that they got back to the castle, the sun was nearly risen. Midnight flew off to the owlery to sleep for the day. Inside the great hall, the breakfast plates were already filled, and kept refilling themselves, as the early birds ate. None of them, Thorn noticed, were first years.
She pulled her book bag higher onto her shoulder and walked to her table. Severus was at the high table, watching the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. Quirrel was calmly talking to Severus, his dark brown hair coming right to his temples.
She ate a little, and Sparkie began to feast on bacon. When she was finished, she sat reading her new book, The Worlds Dragons, to herself.
When the students began to pour in, Thorn looked for Maken among the heads of them. She saw the unmistakable figure of Taffy Trelawney, who was in violet robes today, walk by, surrounded in her Hufflepuff friends. Then Celestial came to her, Cade by her side. "Thorn, how do you wake Maken up?"
Thorn blinked, "You mean he's still asleep?" Celestial nodded and Cade laughed.
"He's unmovable! He sleeps like he's dead."
Thorn sighed, "He might as well be," she muttered. "Bring me to the Gryffindor common room."
"What?" Celestial asked in shock. "Thorn, that's not right, you're in Slytherin."
Thorn shrugged, "So? We need to get him up for class, and I'm probably the only one, aside from his mother, that can do so. It doesn't really matter anyway, its not like I'm ever going to go in there to cause mischief or anything."
Celestial looked hesitant, but Cade said, "Well, come on then!" and he began to walk out of the hall, Thorn following him, and Celestial following her reluctantly.
When they got to the Gryffindor portal, Cade said, "Hippogriff," and the Fat Lady opened the portrait hole, not noticing the Slytherin crest on Thorn's robes. "Our dormitory is up there." Cade said, pointing up the stairs.
Thorn, ignoring the surprised remarks from the few students left in the common room, walked up the stairs to the dormitory. She opened the door to the dimly lit room, and saw Maken, covers tangling him, sprawled over his bed. He was lying on his stomach, his head in his pillow, breathing evenly.
"Maken!" Thorn said loudly, shaking him.
He muttered something and turned his head to the opposite wall.
"So sorry, didn't catch that," Thorn said sarcastically.
Then he turned back to her and blinked his eyes opened. They widened a bit in surprise, then he mumbled, "Thorn? This is the Gryffindor boy's dormitory... what are you doing here?"
She sighed, "Well, Maken, I was going to hop into a bed and sleep. Obviously, I'm here to wake you up, classes start soon."
He sighed and muttered something like, "First day, they'll understand."
"Ah, yes, well, you have potions first, with me."
"Mmm..." he pulled his covers up higher.
"Severus teaches potions, Maken."
His eyes snapped open. "Oh! Shoot!" he stood up and began rummaging through his stuff. Thorn stood back, with her arms crossed over her chest, watching him smugly.
"Um... Thorn? Do you mind?"
She smiled slightly and turned out of the dorm. When she got to the bottom she said, "He's up now. Well, I'd better leave before someone has a fit about the Slytherin in the Gryffindor's common room."
Cade nodded and Celestial said, "I'll go down there with you."
They left the common room as Cade walked up to his dormitory. Celestial turned to Thorn, who was staring at the ground, not talking, and said, "So... Maken tells us that Professor Snape is your... uncle, was it?"
Thorn nodded. "Yes, he is."
"Ah, okay."
Thorn looked back to her and shook her head. She had planned on not making any friends, yet it seemed like that wasn't going to happen.
When they got to the potions dungeon, Thorn and Celestial sat at the closest cauldron to Severus's desk. The professor was sitting in it, looking over papers. The rest of the students were there already, yet the classroom was quiet as ever. Soon, Cade walked in. He sighed and sat on Celestial's other side.
"Where's Maken?" Thorn whispered.
"He'll be here, don't worry."
"I know he'll be here," she replied, "I'm just wondering if it'll be on time or not."
Near to one minute before the bell rang, Maken came running in, a piece of toast in his mouth, his robes obviously rushed on, and his Gryffindor tie, instead of around his neck, was around his head. The class snickered as he sat on the other side of Thorn. Severus sighed and shook his head.
Thorn sighed, If I hadn't known him for so long I would be worried for his sanity.
I'm always worried for his sanity, remarked Sparkie, who was still in her pocket.
Thorn ignored him and looked to Maken, who seemed clueless beyond everything. "Maken..." she said quietly, and, as he looked at her, she tapped her head with two fingers.
"What...?" He said as he followed what she did, his fingers hit cloth, and a look of sudden realization came into his eyes. "Oh!" He quickly pulled his tie down and around his neck. He tightened it a bit too much and began to gag. Thorn sighed and loosened it up for him. He smiled a thanks to her, his face a bit red.
Severus stood and looked over the class. "Ah, another year, another group of mindless students that I have to attempt to teach." He began by taking roll. When that was done, he started his "First year speech."
"Potion making is an exact art, a subtle science. Many of you will not believe this as magic, for there is no foolish wand waving, or silly incantations in this class. Yet, for the few of you that understand the beauty of a softly simmering cauldron, I can teach you how to bewitch the mind and ensnare the scenes. I can show you how to bottle fame, brew glory, and even, put a stopper, in death. Though I doubt that many of you will have the brain capacity to accomplish that much."
He paused, putting the class into an unnerving silence. His eyes wandered over the students, looking for one to single out, to ask one of his questions to. Thorn? No, she knew the answers. Ah, yes... "Mr. Wood," he said suddenly, "What would I get if I added powdered root of Asphodel to and infusion of Wormwood?"
Thorn turned to Maken, who, still being only half conscience, looked dumbfounded. "Uh... I... I don't know, sir..."
Severus sneered. He had chosen Maken for two reasons, he was Thorn's friend, and he wouldn't have known the answer. "Ah, I see. How about... Mr. James," he inquired to a Slytherin boy, "Where would you look if I asked you to find me a beezor?"
Thomas James stared at Severus in bewilderment, then he shrugged and looked down. "Pity," Severus said coldly, then he looked to a Gryffindor girl with dark red hair, "Miss Rees," she looked up to him, fear in her eyes, "What is the difference between Monkshood and Wolfsbane?"
She stared at him, her eyes wide in nervousness, and shook her head. "I see, does anyone, besides Thorn, know the answers to these questions?" He looked around, half of the class either looking down, or at Thorn. "No one? Well, Thorn, enlighten us."
Thorn's lips curled into a small, joyless smile and she said, "Asphodel and Wormwood make the sleeping potion called the Draught of the living dead. A beezor is a stone found in the stomach of a goat that will cure you from most poisons. Monkshood and Wolfsbane are the same plant, also with the name of Aconite." She turned to Maken, who was watching her like she was crazy.
"Is reading the only thing you ever do in your spare time?" he mouthed to her, and she nodded. Making him even more bewildered.
"Thank you," Severus said, "Class, if Miss Rose knows the answers, the rest of you can very well read the books to find them out."
The entire class, save for Maken, Cade, and Celestial, glared at Thorn like she was evil. She ignored them, however, and concentrated on what Severus was saying. He showed them the standard way to make simple potions and they began to work on one. Thorn had it finished first, and perfectly, but that didn't surprise anyone.
At the end of the class, when they began to walk to their next, Thorn, Maken, Cade, and Celestial walked together. The Gryffindor first years had Transfiguration, and Slytherins had History of Magic. "Man, Professor Snape pulls a tough first day!" Cade said.
Thorn shrugged, "So does everyone else, he's just the first that we've seen so far."
Cade gaped at her. "You mean the others might be worse?"
"Well, you never know. You'll get used to it in time. Maken? Maken!" Thorn shook his shoulder, for his head had lolled to the side while they walked.
"I'm okay!" he said in a half awake voice, "I'm awake!"
Celestial laughed. "Too bad we don't have history of Magic next, you could sleep in that class."
Maken looked to her. "What?! Who has it now?"
"Thorn," Cade stated.
Maken turned to Thorn and grabbed her shoulders. "Switch me! I wanna sleep!" He sounded so pitiful. Sparkie sighed and muttered in Thorn's pocket.
"Maken, I can't." She turned from his grasp, for her classroom had come up, and said, "Well, I'll see you at lunch."
This was an all Slytherin class, so she had no friends to share it with. She sat down in the middle of the room, avoiding her fellow students, who were mostly sitting in the back or front, yet when Antonette and Dreara came in, they noticed her. "Hello, Thorn." Antonette said as she sat next to her, Dreara on her other side. Thorn didn't acknowledge them.
"Very impressive," Antonette continued, "In potions. You'd think that you were related to the Professor."
Thorn looked up to her as Sparkie thought, Tell her now!
No. "You can believe whatever you want."
Pike Wilkes laughed behind her. "You're just a suck up to him!"
Thorn turned to look at him. "I don't need to be a suck up to pass my classes, unlike some of you."
Dreara laughed, "Just because you read so much."
Thorn smiled icily at her, "At least I know how to read, and I use the skill. It's something that I wouldn't expect from you."
Manuel Graham came up to her and stood right in front of her desk, cracking his knuckles in what he hoped was a menacing way. "How did you get in Slytherin anyway? I've seen you. You hang around with those filthy Gryffindors, isn't Roran, ah, a mudblood?"
Thorn watched him sternly, her emotions still within her, "I'm amazed that you noticed that my friends are Gryffindor. As for Cade, I don't know if he's a muggle born or not, but it doesn't matter. I choose friends for who they are, not their, pedigree."
Manuel brought his face extremely close to hers, his eyes narrow, trying to intimidate her. She didn't blink, or move away. She glared right back at him. After a while he said, "What's with you?" and he backed off.
The whole class was looking at them, Thorn hadn't blinked or anything. Manuel had a look of bewilderment, shock, and something remotely like a hint of fear in his grey eyes. "Have you never seen a child with no emotion before?" she asked calmly, "Apparently not, but I don't fear anything, which includes, using magic on a fellow witch or wizard. I won't feel regret for it either, so watch yourself around me."
"That's just not right," he said, still staring at her, as he walked to the back of the class. Dreara and Antonette went and sat with Phillis in the front.
Thorn, Sparkie thought with a grin, You do know that you're my hero.
Thorn smiled, See? I can get them to leave me alone without telling my life's story.
After History of Magic, the half conscience Slytherin class walked out into the hall. The only one of them still entirely awake was Thorn.
