Author's Notes: Thanks again for reading and I appreciate your comments. Another long chapter with a bit of details and odds and ends p
CrazNM: The changed scenes things is a result of an 'improvement' with – their new display system wiped out many of the section designations because they didn't recognize some characters or assumed certain groups of characters were 'filler' and simply didn't display them. I need to go back to all the old chapters and update using the [END SECTION] designation I use now. As far as your other comments, well… no comment. :lol:
Ezmerelda: Poor Harry indeed as this is a very complicated Riddle, isn't it? As for Ruedella, well what doesn't kill you can only make you stronger. Just wait and see who gets their hands on poor Snape – as they say, Karma's a beyotch…
Chapter 19: How Much is that Greasy Bat in the Window?
"Now Mum," Fred said as the Weasleys, with Harry in tow, approached Magical Menagerie, "You don't need to pick anything right now. George and I would like to take you to Eeylops too."
"Besides," George whispered, "Magical Menagerie doesn't exactly specialize in owls and we want to make sure you have a young, strong one that lasts for years. Many of the animals here are…err…"
"Second hand," Fred finished.
"Well, there's no point in wasting Galleons if second hand works just as good," Molly said cheerfully. "Arthur, aren't we just happy to get any owl?"
"Oh, of course," Arthur said as he held the door open, ushering the group inside.
"And," Ron added jovially, in a jest reference to the rat they purchased here for his brother Percy long ago, "they might have a special discount on disguised Death Eaters." He ducked as his Mother tried to smack him along side the head.
Harry had only visited the Menagerie once, many years ago. He was so enamored with Diagon Alley that he failed to take in details of some of the shops he had passed by. Looking through the window inside, he saw old wooden shelves stuffed with cages and a few animals running about. Kneazels, cats, knarls, crups and a few other lizard-like creatures, which Harry would have to get a closer look to identify, scurried about. Taking a deep breath in anticipation of the stench such an establishment would inevitably generate he stepped inside.
Harry exhaled and then breathed in, surprised that some sort of air freshening charm was in use. Instead of a stench, the room smelled quite pleasant.
"What may I do for you?" the old proprietor, an ancient witch with a shawl of spider webs stepped forward. "We have cats and kneazels…"
"We are looking for owls," Arthur said. "A larger one preferably and young as possible."
"Hmm…" the old woman rubbed her chin while absently shooing away the palm-sized hairy spiders that were approaching her face. Looking at Ron, who was about to faint, she smiled a toothless grin. "What's the matter, lad, don't care for spiders this big?"
"I've seen bigger," Ron squeaked and then turned around quickly. Without looking he took a couple of steps and ran directly into a large birdcage that was covered with a heavy black cover. The inhabitant in the cage screeched in anger and threw itself against the side, causing the cover to slip off onto the floor.
"Blasted creature!" the witch screeched as she summoned a broom. Swatting the broom at the cage and the large bat inside, she yelled, "Foul animal…" Putting the broom down she snarled at the cage. "For well over one hundred and twenty years I've dealt with animals – and a good share of bats at that. Most unpleasant, uncooperative bat I've seen. Most intelligent one too… smarter than the smartest Kneazel, that one. Nearly escaped… Doesn't get along well with other animals, although it did seem to get along with the Runespoor I kept. I had it in a cage by the bat until the Magical Creatures Department could come by and pick it up so they could relocate it to a safe area." She winked at her visitors, "Can't sell Runespoors-- quite lethal you know… but if I come across one, I make sure I take it out of circulation. Civic duty and all. Yah, that bat did get along with the Runespoor just fine he did… odd creepy thing…"
George and Fred approached the cage. The bat climbed back on its perch and hung upside down, regarding them with its deep black eyes. Occasionally it panned over to Arthur and Molly if knowing their presence would keep the twins in line. Eventually the bat focused on Arthur and began a few low screeches as if he were trying to get the wizard's attention.
"Greasy thing isn't it," George said.
"What type is it?" Fred asked the witch as he approached.
"If you paid attention in school you would have probably knew…" Molly sighed.
"Well, we'll ask the Magical Creatures expert," Fred said. "Paging Mr. Harry Potter…" No sooner did he say the name, the bat went into frenzy again, flying around the cage and beating its body against the bars.
Harry approached the cage and looked in. "Not like any bat I've ever seen."
"Well, bats are not normally greasy and they normally don't have yellow teeth," Fred observed.
"What does it eat?" George asked.
"Interested in it?" the witch asked, smiling. "Eats about anything. Prefers blood sausage pudding and some pumpkin juice. Figured it to be some sort of giant vampire bat, but given what it eats and the short teeth, I figured it might be, at best, only part." She carefully stuck her finger in the cage, trying to pat its neck but pulled it out quickly as the bat lunged to bite her. "My guess is the Mum as most other bats wouldn't let a male vampire bat mate with it – that is, when they're up to mating outside their species… Just a guess of course…"
"Plus, you don't see them around here," Harry added. "Are you sure it isn't someone's pet?"
"Boy, dare you offend me!" the witch snapped. "I make sure that every animal is homeless – I provide them a temporary home with good food and warmth until I can place them."
"And make a few sickles on the side," Harry said under his breath. Fortunately the old woman didn't hear. He said louder, "Just making the observation that it isn't native to this area."
The witch nodded and patted the boy on the shoulder indicating no offense taken.
"You don't mean to buy that!" Molly asked her twin sons as she pointed at the cage. Seeing Ginny approach the cage she warned, "Careful with your fingers dear…"
"Well, we could use a mascot in Weasley Wizard Wheezes," Fred noted. George nodded in agreement. "We'll still get you your owl…"
"And given the apparent demise of our esteemed Potions Master…" George added. The two young men took off their hats and placed them over their hearts showing a form of mock respect.
"Who was the only instructor in all of Hogwarts, save for perhaps Flitwick, who could teach you dunderheads anything," Molly interrupted. The bat in the cage folded its wings and nodded in agreement. She looked at it closely. It had climbed off the perch and was now circling the bottom of the cage. "Most greasy, ugly and foul tempered thing I've ever seen. Look how it stalks around the cage. Just scary…"
"We shall call him Severus… for Severus Snape," Fred announced.
"We'll keep him in the shop, with a bronzed plaque on his cage," George noted.
"We will tease him," Fred said.
"And torment him," George said.
"And feed him our experiments as a test subject," Fred said.
"Better than first years," George added.
"YOU DID WHAT!" Molly screeched. "Arthur, did you hear what your sons…!"
"You do not purchase an animal to torment it," Arthur said. "If you wish to have a mascot for the store, then treat it well, otherwise let it free to take its chances with the elements." The twins looked a bit guilty. "Better. It's your money but I didn't raise you to act like Malfoys." He approached the cage and the bat came closer him. "Something quite odd here…"
"Fine, we'll take good care of it," Fred said.
"We were only kidding really," George added. "But this would add a bit more atmosphere."
"The place is a zoo," Molly just about snapped. "If your store had any more atmosphere it would be a complete chaotic circus."
"Just the atmosphere we need!" the young men said in a chorus.
"Just three Galleons and one sickles seven knuts and he's yours," the witch chortled as she produced a 'Sold' sign with a wave of her wand.
[SECTION]
Weasley Wizard Wheezes was a small store situated close to Quality Quiddich supplies. Given the location and the great amount of care the twins took in making a rather festive interior, business was doing well. During the summer and holidays they were packed with students from Hogwarts and other, minor, wizarding schools. During term, they kept busy with their Owl Order, busily collecting and filling orders as they arrived and shipping out box after box using the local Owl service.
The front of the store consisted on a brightly painted front door and a large display glass where they showed their newest and their most popular goods. In the store were various multi-colored shelves, modestly packed with goods, as they were slowly making stock as their finances could afford. Scattered along the walls were posters that featured the various items and some rather hilarious enchanted cartoon captions whose inhabitants double as on the floor salespeople hocking the wares. Occasionally a few of the enchanted items leapt off the shelves and chased after the customers – the perpetual fireworks in particular had a habit of giving their own display at least twice a day while the endless bouncing balls often got loose from their cartons and there were always three or four ricocheting off the walls, floor and ceiling. The back of the store was a bit more conventional. It had a counter with a basic register and a couple of signs including: 'Muggle Cash Accepted' and '10% Discount for Gryffindors. Slytherins Pay Double.'
Today, however, the stores gay atmosphere was intensified by a generous array of colorful banners and streamers, as Hermione Granger was discharged from St. Mungo's that evening. Arthur and Molly Weasley agreed to take her to meet her Aunt and Uncle for her to stay until her parents recovered or until the new term began. But, on their way they had stopped, at least briefly, at the store for a small celebration.
"Don't think Severus here could be trained to deliver packages," Fred observed as he tapped his bottle of butterbeer against the side of the cage.
"I don't think he can do much other than stalk the cage and hiss at the customers," George agreed.
"I think he's taken to his name a bit too well," Lee Jordan noted as he approached the cage. "Pity about the other git."
"You mean Professor Snape," Molly Weasley asked, with a strain in her voice. "He is a Hogwarts professor, not a git."
"He's a Hogwarts professor who happens to be a git," Harry corrected. "Or, was a git…" He said the last softly, quite unsure how to emotionally take the apparent demise of the Potions Master. Yes, he was told the wizard was just missing, but it had been too long and Harry began to suspect, as others in the Order did as well, that Severus Snape, a major spy for the Order of the Phoenix was majorly dead. And, as much as he despised the man, he was starting to understand and appreciate his dangerous role in helping the Order.
"Well, if you didn't keep him near the window all the time," Hermione began, "the poor thing would probably be less agitated. They're nocturnal. And feeding it Bertie Bots probably isn't best for his diet."
"But he loves them," George said, plopping a red one into the bat's cage. They all watched as the bat looked at the young man and then picked up the jelly bean, taking a small bite. With a thrust, the bat threw it out the cage and spat the rest at George. "Cherry one, apparently."
"Oh for Merlin's beard!" Hermione said with disgust. "Let me see him!"
"He'll bite," Molly warned.
"Yeah, he's not nice, like House Elves," Harry pointed out. "And you know how…err…difficult your crusade is coming along."
The young witch took the bat's cage off the hanger and brought it over to a nearby table, close to the front window. The sun had gone down about an hour ago, the few remnant rays of light casting an odd glow on Diagon Alley. Addressing Lee, she asked, "Turn down the lights, just a little, will you. Enough to see, but enough to begin to quiet him."
"Hagrid's protégé," Fred sighed, pointing at Hermione.
Hermione gently opened the cage. She looked at the bat, which looked back at her. It cocked its head, as if it were considering something and then slowly started to move towards here. "That's it," she said. "I just want to figure out what you are so I can tell these dunderheads how to properly take care of you." She smiled as the bat came even closer and she offered her arm. "I won't pet you," she said, "you don't seem to be the cuddling type."
Before the bat could get out of its cage, Fred closed the door. "Try it again in a moment," he said, tapping his finger towards the window. "Looks like we have a customer."
Hermione turned her head and saw a woman with a dark cloak and hooded head leaning against the glass and looking in the store, staring directly at the cage.
"Come in, come in!" George called as he opened the door. Stepping out into the cold air, he ushered the witch in. "Care for some Canary Creams or some Snot Suckers? Miss…"
The witch pulled down her hood.
"Professor?" Hermione said rhetorically. "Erm… may we help you?"
"So, this is the famous place," Ruedella Lestrange said as she took in the room, her eyes frequently darting to the cage. "I suppose that you are the ones responsible for the Troll Dung Quills?"
"Ah, one of our most successful inventions," the twins said in unison.
"You were the ones that created THAT!" Hermione curled her lip and wrinkled her nose. "The quill looks normal but the ink, the next day, smells like Troll…erm"
"Troll shit," Ron added. "At least take off the charm that makes them explode when Prefects get them. Really, a joke is a joke, but that's disgusting."
"Now, now, we have a customer to take care of," Fred said, motioning with his hands for them to be quiet. "How may we help you? We do have some tongue taffy. Great for family get-togethers. Just put it in a candy bowl and watch the fun."
"Makes everyone's tongues gigantic," George added with a chortle. "Or, how about Canary drops?" He held up a small yellow bottle. "A variation of our Canary Creams… just a few drops in a punchbowl and all that drink thereafter are turned into Canaries."
"For a few sickles more we can put a time release," Fred said.
"After a few hours the potion takes effect. No point in having the potion work immediately as then people would be wise to the punch," George elaborated.
Lestrange walked around the shop pointing at a few items, including the Tongue Taffys and the exploding snaps before she ended up back at the table next to the bat. "Interesting pet. Professor Snape used to have one just like this when he was a boy."
"Really?" George said. "We named him Severus Snape in honor of the departed…"
"He isn't dead," Ruedella said a bit too quickly. "I expect him back quite soon now… yes, quite soon."
"They've found the body?" Molly Weasly asked, rhetorically, frowning as Arthur nudged her. Fortunately Lestrange did not hear or was ignoring her.
"We've only had him for a day. Got him yesterday," Fred said as he packed up her modest order. Nodding towards the bag, he asked, "Care for anything else?"
Ruedella was studying the cage and the bat and George's question caught her by surprise. "Err… yes. A few Troll Dung Quills and the Canary Drops, with the time release."
"Looking to have a good time in the faculty lounge are we?" Fred asked.
"The quills are for grading failing students or those," she looked directly at Hermione, "who insist on going beyond the maximum parchment length. The Canary Drops are for tomorrow night. Narcissa Malfoy is having a little party and they can be just so boring."
"Ah, a witch who appreciates our art," George bowed. "We are indeed honored."
"Well, Severus speaks of you often," Ruedella said.
"A complicated love-hate thing," George said, rubbing his chin. "Although more on the hate side… no offense to your husband."
"None taken as the feelings are mutual…" Ruedella shrugged.
"Anything else we may do? Otherwise the total is one Galleon, six sickles and four knuts…" Fred pronounced.
"Well there is just one thing," Ruedella said, approaching the cage. "I cannot help just staring at your bat. As I said … the resemblance is uncanny…"
"Resemblance to Professor Snape or to his last bat?" Ron asked jokingly.
Ruedella let out a fake chuckle and a small, strained smile. "Severus has been through so much the last few weeks and, although I did get him some interesting Yule gifts, this would really bring a smile on his face… Bring back pleasant boyhood memories."
"Didn't know Professor Snape could smile," Fred said.
"Almost forgot that he was, at one time, probably a boy too," George added.
"Of course, I would more than compensate you for your original purchase price and your time," Ruedella offered.
The twins and the witch continued to negotiate and Hermione turned and walked a few steps over to Ron and Harry. Harry was leaning on the counter and flipping through his new study guide.
"There's something strange here," Hermione whispered to her friends.
"No doubt," Harry said, flipping through a few pages showing bats. "I'm looking through the Magical Creatures guide. Even if I look at Muggle bats and the ones not just found in our world, I can't find a match."
"Well, the witch that sold him said that she thought he was a mixed blood," Ron said.
"Find the ones that understand language," Hermione said. "Reminded me of Crookshanks and he's part Kneazel…"
"None of the bats, including the giant vampire bat is sentient or semi-sentient," Harry said. "So if that one is part Giant Vampire bat and part muggle bat, there's no reason why he'd understand you." Harry looked at his friends and then over to the twins and the witch who were still talking. "And the snout. No bat has a snout that big…"
"Bats aren't greasy either," Ron added.
Hermione gasped and her eyes flew open. She looked at Harry who apparently arrived at the same epiphany.
"Monstrare Transfiguration," Harry called at the book as he tapped it with his wand.
Hermione took the book away from Harry and flipped through it. "I remember something from last summer. When we were in Grimmauld Place. Here. Here it is!" She pointed to a particular page. "Ron, go over and block the door. Make sure she doesn't leave." She and Harry exchanged a meaningful nod and she walked over to Lestrange.
"I almost had him out of the cage," Hermione said. "I was trying to show them how to properly take care of him. They leave him out in the front window during the day and feed him Bertie Botts."
"And some blood sausages," Fred offered quickly.
"Really now," Ruedella shook her head. "A creature like this does not belong in a shop. If it cannot be free – as you can see this one has been domesticated…"
"Could have fooled me," Arthur Weasley piped in.
"Well, it takes to its cage, although it prefers out and it isn't used to you yet," Ruedella said.
"Perhaps you should get it out? Show them how to handle it?" Hermione said.
"Would you agree then, if the bat-- which we can perfectly see is quite unusually intelligent-- prefers my company that you young men do the right thing and sell him to me so that I can provide him with a more appropriate home with an owner who is quite familiar with his… erm… unique needs?" Ruedella asked, cocking her head and raising an eyebrow. Seeing the twins nod, she gently opened the cage door and held out her forearm. "Now," she said to the bat, "Would you prefer to come with me and be more like your old self soon or stay here and be a favored mascot for these… err… fine young men?"
The bat stood at the edge of the opening for a second and then crawled onto her hand. She held it up, as it hung onto her arm, and she scratched it under the ear. "Yes, a bit of quiet in a dark room and a warm fire…" The bat glared at her. "Okay, no fire." She turned back to the boys. "Eight Galleons should cover it then?" Hearing the bat screech, she added, "I think he wants me to pay ten… thinks highly of himself and…"
Before she could finish, Hermione quickly grabbed the bat, pushed Lestrange out of the way and put the bat on the floor, stepping back quickly. Harry, stepped forward with his wand out and yelled, "Redux Homo," looking on as a bright yellow light flew from the tip of his wand and hit the bat.
The animal flailed on the floor as its high-pitched screeches began to turn into the more human tones of a deep-throated yell of pain. The bat enlarged and slowly transformed into a man; a dark greasy haired man in his nightshirt.
"What have you done!" Ruedella screamed at Harry. "Must you ruin EVERYTHING! Do you know what will happen! I was going to take him to Dumbledore straight away!" She knelt beside the unconscious Snape and pulled off her cloak, putting it on him like a blanket. She pulled up his head onto her lap and stroked his hair. "My gods… I am so sorry…" she whispered. "I wanted to fix what I have done… I am so sorry…"
[SECTION]
"These is no point in him going to prison for my mistake," Ruedella hissed at Arthur and Harry who waited with her in the large white waiting room of St. Mungos. "Suffice it to say that I turned him into a bat, he flew off and we located him. Harry, concerned about his welfare, took it upon himself to turn him back. A boy who can do a solid Patronus could probably do a NEWT level transfiguration as well."
"But he is an unregistered animagus," Arthur countered. "And, for a man who is not a rule breaker and abhors such behavior, I find that his little secret is quite disturbing. Makes me wonder what else he might be hiding…"
"He used this to serve the Order. If he were registered, he would have been discovered and killed long ago." Ruedella interrupted quickly. "I did a stupid thing during a situation that I am not going to discuss."
"Dumbledore knows?" Arthur asked.
"Yes," Ruedella replied. She looked out towards the window the led into the hall and saw two Aurors walking towards the door. "Just tell them that for now – that's all you know…" She pulled Arthur from the chair and pushed him towards the door. "Just buy some time until he gets here…" Watching the wizard exit the room, she slumped into a chair and covered her eyes with a forearm. She sat for a few moments until she heard the grinding of furniture on the floor. "What in gods…" she uncovered her eyes and watched as Harry finished pushing a small table across the floor to his chair. "Couldn't you levitate that?"
"Can't do magic outside of Hogwarts," Harry replied. Seeing the witch's expression, he added, "That does sound dumb given everything."
"Simply asinine," Ruedella snapped tersely through clenched teeth as she shook her head.
Harry proceeded to empty his pockets, and satchel pulling out handfuls of candy and putting it on the table. Pulling out a chocolate frog from the stack, he offered it to the witch – a kind of token peace offering. She took it and expertly opened up the package, quickly capturing the frog before it hopped out. Holding it by its leg, she opened the pack further to take out the card. "Ploggins Perkins," she said, flipping it on the table. "Interesting fellow. Skilled in charms and potions. Claimed to have made an elixir to bring back the newly dead." She rolled her eyes and looked at Harry, "A golem maker, I'd think." She nodded towards a folded piece of paper that she recognized. "Was it useful."
"I haven't looked at it…yet," Harry said. "Given that…err…your brother…"
"I don't blame people for events when they are defending themselves," Ruedella said. "There are fates far worse than death, and I feel that perhaps you released him." She grabbed the paper and opened it. "Given my condition, I wouldn't be surprised if this were the same nonsense I produced for that other clarification regarding you."
"So it WAS about me," Harry said.
"I don't' know," Ruedella said truthfully. "From the commotion, I can only assume so… You never did ask Granger did you?"
"She said it wasn't about me," Harry said. "I think she's sparing my feelings…"
"Believe what you want then," she replied flippantly, as she shook her head. Referring back to the paper she said, while tapping it, "He did not die in vain and does not believe his life was wasted."
Harry turned to the witch and swallowed hard. "But he wanted to be free… I know it…"
"Of course he did, Potter," Lestrange said. "And you did free him." She tilted the paper a bit. "You didn't free him from being a fugitive. When he left Azkaban, he traded one curse for another… but his death freed him and at the same time he believed he saved your life."
"But I caused it all! I was the one who rushed into the situation, bringing my friends into it, thinking that I had to save the day!" Harry said. "Had I listened he would still be alive."
"Like how you rushed to 'save' Professor Snape?" Ruedella shot back. "Now Weasley has to lie to the Aurors to get them off our backs so that Severus doesn't have to go to prison." She looked harshly at Harry, "Your cause has few allies; you need to take what you can get and preserve what you have."
Harry slumped in his chair, looking in the box of Bertie Beans for a few seconds before tossing it on the table. Then, he said, softly, "Is he happier now?"
Ruedella sighed and looked at the paper once again. "The question you asked was, 'Regarding the event in the Ministry earlier this year – Did I waste Sirius' life?'" She looked at the boy, "Most of his life was an idle playboy waste before you were born, but I digress…" She looked at the paper, "Now, let me see… He did not die in vain, his life was cursed and the event released him. You learned that the Dark Lord could control you and you forced him to reveal himself, turning the tide that was against you." She folded the paper, "The clarification reveals nothing more, as there was no more depth to the question you asked. However, if these events did not take place what do you think life would be like now?"
"Voldemort would have control over me, Dumbledore would still be in exile and the Ministry would still be in denial, or worse…" Harry said.
"And, of the things Sirius Black fought for would have turned for the far worse," Ruedella concluded. "This is not to condone reckless behavior, but sometimes there can be some good…"
"If I only had a time turner…" Harry lamented. "Just a few turns and I could have warned them it was a trap… we could have been prepared and still end up with the same results, but without Sirius dead!"
"But you didn't," Ruedella said. "And what is done is done. Trust me, it is a very difficult concept to deal with. Were you supposed to have the time turner, it would have been available."
Harry looked at her. "What?"
The witch held up her hand and reached for her purse, a stylish black cloth purse with a simple silver clasp. Opening it up, she dumped a few contents, a small notebook, a few self-inking quills and a fine tortoise-shell comb with the Malfoy emblem on it. Sorting through other odds and ends, she picked up a piece of parchment, and retrieving her wand, changed it into a foot long piece of string. Laying it out straight she said, "When I was a girl, my father told me a bit about fooling with time. I didn't appreciate it much until I was a bit older when someone a bit wiser explained it more fully and I had a bit of a context. Time, as most of us know it is linear. We had yesterday, then today, then later today, tomorrow and so forth." She moved her finger along the string as she spoke. "What happens, for the most part, cannot be changed. Time Turners were a device developed for very limited use – studying, research… very, very strict controls." She moved the string a bit, forming a double loop in the center. Moving her finger along the bottom of the string, where there was still a straight line, she said, "From an outsider, they would see this linear progression. To the one using the time turner, they see this…" She moved her finger along the inner loop. "This is what really happened." Then she moved around the outer loop. "This is what they had to do to make it right. When they don't make it right," she shook a bit and then added, "that's when things get unstable."
Harry rubbed his head and then took the string. "What if," he said, carefully choosing his words as he rearranged the string into a long line with a single circle. "What if you are moving along this line and think you witness something where your 'other self' was actually manipulating the events…"
"I'm not following you Potter," Lestrange said as the conjured another string. Laying it besides the first, she recreated the double looped pattern. "A person has to witness the first string of events and then go back and change them. At least, that is certainly what I understand."
"But you said that if was meant to be, a time turner would have been available because, well, say that your other self had already put itself back in time." Harry pointed at the double loop. "By your explanation, there can only be one loop, as your other self had gone back in time as you were going through the first series of events." Harry paused and took a deep breath. "For example," he tapped his chin to show feigned thought, "let's say, just for speculation, that you thought you witnessed a murder of one person and then later in that timeline went to help someone else but put yourself in great danger. It turns out that you ended up saving yourself from the danger, but of course your 'first' self doesn't know that." Harry pointed to his single loop diagram. "So, you can support part of your argument in that it was 'supposed' to happen, because… well…erm… it always happened that way." He pointed to the double loop, and said, "But here instead it looks like someone is manipulating time. That the 'real' timeline had the event take place and you purposefully went back to change it." He shrugged. "So, I suppose, if I'm right, that if I had a time turner and saved Sirius, I would be in a double loop scenario – changing something that 'should' have happened – versus participating in a series of events through time that should have taken place to right something wrong." He then pointed at the single loop and then looked up at Lestrange, who was quite green in the face. "Are you well, Professor?" Harry asked.
"Err…" Ruedella scooped up the contents off the table and threw them in her purse. "I suppose it's an interesting enough theory, Potter," she said quickly without looking at him, but her gray eyes darted around as if she were thinking. Seeing the nurse standing in the doorway, she nodded at the boy and otherwise wordlessly walked out of the room.
[SECTION]
Severus Snape sat on a restored armchair in the reading room of his bedroom suite staring into an empty fireplace. He cupped a snifter of Brandy in his left hand and gently swirled it, not taking a single sip.
"Would Master care for a fire or some food?" the young male elf, Theod, asked timidly. It shrank back as Severus turned and bore his black eyes back.
"Master is perfectly capable of starting a fire," Severus said as he twirled his long ebony wand in his right hand in a threatening manner.
The elf bowed and started to back from the room. It was a well-trained elf, Severus noted, despite it being raised most of its adult life without the company of humans. He preferred this one and its female mate to the elderly, deteriorating house elf that belonged to the Blacks. But, Kreacher did serve his purpose and for that Severus was willing to tolerate him some more. "If Master requires anything," it began.
"Master requires his wife," Severus said tersely. "Tell Mistress that she is summoned…" Before he could finish, the elf disappeared with a loud crack.
He sat silently, returning his stare to the cold, dark fireplace. He had gotten used to a lack of fire in a hearth, mainly because a roaring fire invited unwanted guests via floo. He enjoyed his privacy to pursue his darker hobbies – things that Dumbledore would have forbidden outright. And, as such, all but a few well chosen and trusted portraits hung in the Hogwarts dungeons and his private quarters and his fireplaces were always unlit to ensure that no one was exactly sure what he was up to. He became accustomed to the dark, even as a boy preferred it. He often wondered if that spurred his secret animagus form, or if it were the other way around. As he contemplated, he heard the door unlatch and some soft footsteps that approached. He flicked his wand and heard a gasp as a smaller ebony wand flew towards him and into his lap.
"Why?" he asked simply, still staring into the empty fireplace.
"Severus…" the voice pleaded, "I am so sorry. I only meant for you to go into the cage. I meant it for only a short time. To show you how it felt to feel trapped. I did not mean…"
Severus sprang from the chair and in a quick movement faced Ruedella. He threw the snifter at the wall, ignoring the loud shatter but pleased as he watched Ruedella jump. With a quick movement with his wand, he watched as the witch flew across the room and into the bookcase and sneered as she vainly tried to cover her head as the large tomes fell on her. He took a few steps towards her and grabbed her hair, yanking her head up.
"All that I have done! Saving your sorry skin and offering you a life without want and this is how you repay me!?" he bellowed, spit hitting her face with each word.
Ruedella looked at him squarely in the eye, fearful, but attempting to display some honesty. "Severus, I did not mean… I was stupid, foolish… ungrateful…" She fumbled in her pocket, gasping as Severus pulled her hair harder. "No tricks… your present…" she said in between breaths as she pulled out a small elegantly wrapped gift and held it up to him.
He snorted and grabbed it with his free hand shoving it roughly into his robe pocket. "Some small token, a minor trinket…" he mocked.
"No!" Ruedella yelled but whimpered as he tugged roughly on her hair again. "Look at me, Severus. I swear, I meant you no harm… I was stupid, foolish… you have no idea how I felt about losing you!"
"That the Dark Lord would finish you off, no doubt," Severus yelled back, a vein on his temple throbbing with each breath and his yellowed teeth bared menacingly.
"I DO NOT CARE ABOUT THE DARK LORD!" Ruedella yelled back and then shrunk back as she saw Severus' eyes flare. "If you don't believe me then look…" She pointed to her eyes. "Go ahead, if you won't believe my words…"
"Dare even try to block me," Severus sneered, "and you shall regret it…" He let go of her roughly and took a step back. "Legilimens," he said softly, under his breath. A series of images and emotions flashed through his head, including her plan of simply capturing him and letting him loose and restoring him after a short time. He cocked his head, absorbing her feeling of shame as his screaming form turned and her panic as he escaped out the open window. The endless days and nights of searching and her tireless quest to find him. And, in this all, there was an underlying emotion that he did not quite recognize; one that he had not felt himself for some time.
As he started pulled away from her mind, Ruedella let out a sigh. "The Dark Lord did threaten me, but all will end well," she said quietly. Severus twitched his head and looked at the witch, her eyes locked onto his. Their minds were not quite separate and he could feel her there, not prodding or poking but simply there, like a guest standing in a doorway asking for permission to enter. At that moment, a random scene passed into his mind – a series of past events that he wished he had banished to a Pensieve years ago. He was at Godric Hollow, complete in his Death Eater garb, telling James Potter that their location had been compromised and that they should leave. The next set of images showed him upstairs grabbing Lily's arm trying to get her to go with him and then the final set of images showed him standing alongside the Dark Lord looking on as the wizard took the Potter's lives.
"You… were there?" Ruedella said, as she saw everything just as clearly as he.
"How dare you!" Severus screamed, his voice echoing loudly in the chamber.
"You were the one…" Ruedella stammered. "I couldn't help but see…" She screamed as Severus slashed his wand, a bright white light swallowed her right forearm. Her eyes bulged as the curse began to consume her flesh, the spell aging the part of her body at a greatly accelerated rate. She watched as her skin began to dry and tighten on her arm and the bones in her hand became more pronounced, crackling as the spell wore its effects. Soon the skin began to flake away revealing nothing but bleached bone.
Over her shrieks, Severus heard a voice behind him. He turned to a portrait of his father, Nefarious, which hung next to the fireplace. "Well done, my boy," the painted wizard began. "I knew that I should have not wasted by time with Sirius and Regulus – spineless, weak they were. You on the other hand are a champion… there is much talk about you and I can see for myself why." He nodded to Ruedella who was whimpering in pain, her useless boned forearm lie limp at her side. "She will never betray you again. Oh her Malfoy breeding will entertain the thought, but each of them has an underlying drive for self-preservation." he said calmly, looking at the witch cooly. "If she does, you know what to do."
Severus stared at the portrait in disbelief, as these were the first civil words he had ever heard his father say to him – living or otherwise. Ever since he took charge of the house, Nefarious' portrait refused to say a word; it silently sulked and frowned in its frame. Slowing turning back to Ruedella, Severus reached into his pocket and pulled out the small gift she had given him. "For what little this is worth," he sneered and tossed the small package in his hand to get a better grip so he could throw it. As flipped it in his hand, the top of the gift came off, revealing a silver and gold glint that caught his eye. Curious, he took the box and inspected the contents – a fine gold and silver inlaid ring of a design that he had learned of through bedtime stories; stories that his mother had told him as a boy of the many fine things that their family once had and his responsibility that he regain them. Many fine things including that of cherished and prized family signet ring that now sat in his hand.
He dropped to his knees and pulled the ring out of the box. It was exactly as his imagination had envisioned it -- down to the emerald inlays and the snake detailed band. "Where did you…" he asked Ruedella, who immediately jumped and cowered at the sound of his voice. He gasped as watching Ruedella caused a flashback – that of his own mother cowering from one of his father's not so frequent but unwelcome visits. Finding the memory so disturbing given the context, he took a deep breath and then looked back at the ring. He closed his eyes and swallowed hard and then let out a primeval roar to release his anger. After he was through, he waved his wand, reversing the curse on the witch and stood helplessly as he watch as her arm slowly restore. He concluded from Ruedella's agonizing wails that the pain of the restoration was as intense as that of the curse itself.
"What are you doing!" Nefarius shrieked. "You weak…!"
Severus jumped to his feet and turned on heel to face the portrait. Placing his wand in his pocket, he tugged at the Black family signet ring that sat on his hand. "For your great-nephew," Severus said as he then held up the Black ring and put it in his pocket. Then he placed the Snape family ring on his finger. He turned his head back at Ruedella, who had passed out on the pile of books and then, with a quick movement he pulled out his wand and blasted the portrait, causing it to burst into flame. "I will not be you. Nor will I be your son. But I will happily be your heir." He said the last with a grizzled laugh of final triumph.
He watched the portrait burn, the flame purifying the canvas and his spirit. He felt lighter, released from a terrible pain that had yoked him for years. He looked down on his hand and rubbed the ring that sat on his finger. He then turned slowly to Ruedella and gazed upon her form, allowing for the first time in years for him to actually feel emotions other than hate and anger. After a short time, he walked over to her, carefully picking her up so that he could attend to her wounds.
[END OF CHAPTER]
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