Chapter 4 – A Midnight Stroll
Giliana walked into the Slytherin common room, quietly and carefully, hoping she wouldn't bump into Draco. There was no one there. She walked up the stairs to the Girls dorm room, and found her suitcase already there for her, with an assigned bed by a narrow, old window. She sat down, and looked out of the narrow window into the darkness. She thought about Todd. Was she out there that moment? She remembered what Snape said. "Miss Black has a habit of being out after hours. Very late. I've never caught her red handed, but..." Why was she out late? What was she hiding...?
Todd was strolling through the dark halls quietly, she had put a charm on her shoes to silent them as they stepped on the hard ground. She was wearing a black tank top that wasn't long enough, and dark blue baggy plaid jeans that were tucked into her combat boots. She had her wand out, and watched the halls carefully. Near the front of the school, she unlocked an empty classroom and walked in. Putting the tip of the wand on her head, she muttered something quietly.
Giliana got into her white Victorian-style night gown. None of the Slytherin girls were in the dorm room yet, but about 3, who were asleep. She lay down in her bed and looked up at the ceiling, her head propped up with her hands, and her elbows sticking out to her sides. She could hear distant voices echoing from the Slytherin common room in the background. She realized how late it was. She began to worry about Todd. She wasn't as worried about Snape catching her, for it seemed like Todd could easily out smart him in a game of hide and go seek. It was the grounds, and the forest that worried her. She heard about all the strange things that have happened at Hogwarts...and all since Harry Potter was a first year. A teacher in cahoots with he-who-must-not-be-named, the chamber of secrets...dementors...a student who was killed last year. She shivered. She decided to get up, and go look for her. Find out why she wanders out in the night. She got up, put on her sound-less white slippers, and her wine-colored coat. She held her wand in her hand, in case of any emergency.
A small red fox left the classroom, keeping to the shadows, watching Filtch walk from the front doors. The fox slipped out of the door that was closing just in time, sighing in relief. Todd Black was an animagus. She ran across the yard, her eyes focused on the cabin in the distance that was pumping out smoke through the chimney, and pouring out light through it's windows. When she reached the door, she closed her eyes and turned back into her human form. Todd knocked on the door quietly, and a huge man came to answer it.
"Who could tha be at this hour?" Hagrid mumbled.
"Oh, I think I have an idea." Lupin stood from his chair and watched the door. When Hagrid opened the door, Todd smiled a little.
"Hi, Hagrid..." She gave a small wave.
"Ah, righ'! Miss Black. Well, com'on in." He opened the door and stepped back.
"Heh, thanks Hagrid." She walked in, looking at the floor, then lifted her head up to where Lupin was standing. "Sir." She teased yet again.
Snape was patrolling the halls. He heard the front door close, and was about to rush there, but Filch was coming from the front, and assumed that he had closed it. He looked disappointed when he nodded to Filtch in greeting. His face filled with loathing and annoyance.
Giliana walked along the dark hallways of the dungeon. She whispered into her wand a spell that cast out a dim, but helpful light. She could hear nothing but the soft sound of the cool breeze, and the dripping of water in various places. It was hard to see there, but it didn't bother Giliana Lenore.
Snape was walking down a hall, and saw a dim light. Shaking his want, it emitted a large light, and he saw the culprit. He quickly walked up to her and grinned in triumph.
"Miss Lenore. What, may I ask, are you doing?" He shone the light in her face, like interrogators would do.
She looked up at Snape, only his face light up by the light. It reminded her of a floating head.
"I thought you would be out here professor." She said, in her blank expression. Snape bared his teeth.
"Oh?" He then lowered his wand a bit. "That is not an excuse to be out this late, no matter how noble your intentions. Come. We will go see Remus about this." He grinned. He hoped that he would catch Todd as well. He took her arm roughly and began to walk towards the entrance. Giliana just walked quietly with him, saying nothing, and worried about nothing. She knew that there was no way for Snape to find Todd, with herself as a distraction.
Todd was laying down in Hagrid's bed, staring at the ceiling. She was listening to the sounds of the dark forest. The creepy, horrifying, but incredibly intriguing noises that made her feel wonderful, but on edge. "Yes, Hagrid.. the giants will probably go to he-who-must-not-be-named's side.. and I don't know if there's anything we can do about it." Lupin took a sip of tea that Hagrid had made. Hagrid grumbled. "All righ', then... but am I still goin' on tha' trip?" Remus nodded. "We can at least still try." Todd was used to all this business talk, Lupin was a very important man in the wizarding world. She smiled quietly to herself seeing the patches and tears in his clothes, and the faint scratch scars on his face. He was very important, but his appearance sometimes suggested otherwise.
Snape opened the front door and began to walk down to the cabin, a look of triumph on his twisted face. He didn't slow the pace. He marched all the way down, wand in front of him giving them light, and let go of Giliana only when they reached the front door. Taking a moment, he cleared his throat and pounded on the door. "Open up. It's Severus." He grumbled.
Todd froze for a moment, then took the wand out of her pocket, put it to her forehead and mumbled something. Lupin quickly turned to her about to tell her to change, but all he saw was a small red fox climbing under the bed. He smiled calmly, then looked at the door. "All righ', all righ'." Hagrid opened the door wide enough for Snape to come in. "Can I help ya, Professor?"
Snape pulled Giliana inside the house. "She was caught out of bed at this hour, do you know anything of this?" Giliana stood there, the same blank expression on her face.
He felt Todd scratch a little at his leg, meaning that she knew her. "Ah... yes, Severus. Miss... ...uh." He looked at Giliana, and saw her mouth LENORE. "Lenore. Yes, Miss Lenore was on her way to see us. She was going to demonstrate her potions skills. I apologize, professor, I should have notified you." Lupin was in fact, an amazing liar.
Snape looked like he was growling. "Oh?" He looked at Giliana suspiciously. "I see..."
Giliana could see why Todd was friends with this man. And she was grateful to him for getting her out of the mess.
She looked at Snape, slightly smiling, and had a look on her face that looked like she was about to say 'see, I was innocent all along.'
Snape gave a look of loathing at Lupin, turned, with a whip of his robes, and marched out, not bothering to close the door. "Close the door please, Miss Lenore?" Lupin stood and looked towards under the bed, wondering if Todd trusted her enough to show herself.
Giliana had a dark smile on her face as she watched Snape walk away until he was out of sight. She turned around and closed the door behind her, walked over to a seat that Hagrid offered for her, and sat down.
A small red fox emerged from under the bed, stood up on it's hind legs, and changed back into a human. It was Todd. "Hey, Giliana." She smiled sheepishly. "Out trying to find me?" Todd jumped back on the bed and sat Indian style, taking out a bar of chocolate from her pockets.
Giliana's eyes widened slightly, but looked as if she had shown no interest or surprise.
"Can I have some chocolate?" She asked.
"Oh, yeah." She threw Giliana a piece from her pocket. "Heh, Snape's so obsessive lately.." "Professor Snape, Todd." He smirked. "Heh, right, Professor Snape is becoming obsessed with finding me out this late... I guess it's because of his loathing for your old group, eh Remus?" She threw him and Hagrid each a piece of chocolate. Lupin caught the chocolate, and nodded slightly. "Yeah. My old group wasn't exactly... nice to him." Hagrid dropped the chocolate, and with a loud creak of his huge chair, got it from the floor.
Giliana raised her head slightly, and looked at Lupin. Her expressionless face remind the same.
"Wasn't nice to him?"
"Heh.. well, I can't say I'm not guilty, because I let it happen, but James and Sirius had a specialty for picking on Professor Snape." Lupin leaned back in his chair.
"Picking on him?" Giliana's expression didn't change.
"Well, there were many instances... they were incredibly cruel... but they just thought of it as a good time." Lupin bit into the chocolate.
"That's an odd way of having a good time." She stated. She sounded slightly annoyed, but it was hard to notice.
"Yes, yes it is." He glanced over at Todd, wondering what she was doing. Todd was staring out the window into the forest, chewing on a piece of chocolate. "Snape wasn't exactly innocent either. He tried to curse them every chance he could... he even tried some unforgivable ones..." She said quietly.
"unforgivable curses..." she whispered, losing herself in thought and staring into Hagrid's fireplace.
Lupin didn't even try to correct her disrespect for Snape this time. He also became lost in thought, Todd seemed to be as well. After a minute or two, Hagrid cleared his throat and stood up. "Well, 'ate to kick ya kids out, but I'm gonna be needin' my sleep." He opened the door, and smiled kindly.
"Yes, it wouldn't be right to keep you up. You're Hagrid I suppose?" Giliana looked up at him, as she got up to leave.
"Uh-huh, you're new, ain't yah?" He nodded. "I'm Hagrid, groundskeeper 'ere in Hogwarts." Todd stood and walked out the door, smiling. "Bye Hagrid." Lupin followed Todd out, nodding at Hagrid.
Giliana continued to walk through the doorway and outside, following the others. She stopped right by the doorway, turned around, thanked Hagrid, and left, leaving Hagrid to close the door.
Todd and Lupin stood right outside. "I believe you can make it back on your own, Miss Lenore? I have some things to discuss with Todd, if that's alright..."
"Of course. I'll be fine on my own." She waved to them, and walked away.
Lupin took Todd's hand and walked towards the edge of the forbidden forest, out of sight. "She seems nice." Todd followed. "Yes, she is... very mature for her age." Lupin stopped and looked down at her. "Mmhm.." "Yep.." He ran his fingers through her hair again, then leaned down and kissed her softly. Todd pressed herself against him, lost in the kiss.
Snape was standing inside the entrance hall.
Giliana walked into the entrance hall. It was dark, and quiet. She began to walk to the entrance to the dungeons.
Snape watched her from the shadows for a moment, before he walked and caught up to her.
"Miss Lenore, you may have gotten out if it this time, but if there's a next time, Lupin may not be here to cover for you. Keep that in mind." His voice dripped with hatred.
She smiled darkly at him.
"Yes Professor, I'm fully aware of that." She continued to walk humming very softly.
Snape growled, and walked towards his sleeping quarters, annoyed much more with her than he was comfortable with.
