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Chapter Seventeen
Map
Closing the door behind it. The hooded figure walked up to both Sarah and Severus. Severus' body became suddenly tense. He was already beginning to call the scalpel that lie on the desk a few feet away, willing it to strike. Sarah however, inspected the figure with a stone faced look before sliding the sword she still held back into it sheath that hung on her belt.
Severus frowned at his teachers actions, but relaxed slightly. Though he was not willing to admit it he was beginning to trust his teacher more and more, but not enough as to lose all his Death Eater instinct.
The hooded figure turned to Severus before dropping back its hood. Underneath the black, heavy cloak stood the person Severus most definitely did not want to see, Neil Willadawn.
The mage smiled a charming smile at Severus surveying him up and down. He then turned to Sarah, "quite uptight isn't he?" Said the mage.
Sarah let out a small airy laugh. "He's instincts seem right to me." She replied sarcastically, "Now I suppose you are going to tell us why you were sneaking around the castle in that cloak. If not I think that I have just found the perfect target for Severus to practice his scalpel throwing."
The mage put on an exaggerated face of alarm. "Oh please no!" He said in a voice full of fake panic, "At least let me take of my cloak first. Merra will have my head if I get blood on one of her precious works." He chuckle, Severus didn't.
Sarah took Neil cloak telling him and Severus to pull up some chairs to her desk. Once they were all seated Neil looked to Sarah. "Emma and I went to the Squeaky Door to do a little research before we all go."
Severus became enraged. He had, had no idea that Neil was going to be one of the people coming on his mission. A pixie would have been more help, not that he needed it. Turning to her teacher he saw no surprise toward the stupidity her friend had shown by going to the nightclub beforehand. This succeeded in making him even angrier, but what she said next finally took the last straw.
"I should have suspected you would do such a thing. I'm only sorry I didn't go with you. Making a map of the place shall be a lot harder now… Hum… I may be able to extract the memories from your brain, but of course you will have to have remembered things for me to see them—" Suddenly her head snapped towards Severus giving him a warning glare, but it was to late.
Severus felt his mind grasping for the scalpel unable to stop it. The sharp blade rose off the table before zooming straight for Neil's throat. Before Severus could even think to stop it Sarah hand snatch it out of the air mere inches from its target. After a quick once over she opened one of her desk drawers and placed the weapon inside. Closing the drawer she took out her wand and locked it.
For a few seconds the room was silent, all a bit startled by the close call. Finally turning to her friend Sarah gave a small smile. "So where is your partner in crime?" She asked, slightly amused.
Neil shook slightly as if startled out of a dream. "Oh, Emma? She's with your grandfather relaying the facts we have gathered she should be here soon. I figure we shall tell the others when were done. James and Merra weren't really interested in going. Something about the fewer that went tonight the better."
"They were right," Said Sarah throwing a quick glance at her student. "but I'm glade you went."
Working hard to keep his mouth closed and his wand out of his hand Severus surveyed his teacher. From another drawer in her desk she extracted a roll of parchment that was of a lightly tinted green and a pre-loaded quill. Laying them both out on her desk she turned to Neil, "Shall we give it a try?"
The man nodded.
"Severus, would you please change sets with me." However nicely she had put it, he as her student still knew an order when he heard one. Taking her set behind the desk he took full advantage of the top box view tantalized once again by watching his teacher at work. She wore the face he liked to think of as her work face, stern and almost emotionless, expect for the thin line of her lips pressed together in such a way and the blinding focused energy in caged in her eyes.
She spun her seat as the other mage spun his so they faced each other.
She gave Severus a sideways glance he took to mean 'be silent', but Severus was far to interested to think of causing a distraction. Sitting erect in his chair he tried not to let his interest show to the enemy sitting by his friend—'What!' Since when had he thought of her as a friend?
Wait, he didn't think of her as a friend… Did he?
Regaining composure Severus was grateful his teacher was so intent on her work that she failed to notice the battle that had played out behind his eyes. However he couldn't say the same thing for trumpet playing fool that was sitting next to his teacher-friend. The git was giving him a sort of knowing half smirk that made Severus want to go straight for his throat, curse the use of a wand. Watching his lifeless body wither from lack of air would be worth Azkaban. The though of this brought a rather satisfied smirk to his face unknowingly turning the mages attention back to his teacher.
The mage gave her a charming smile which she returned, much to Severus' grief.
"Let us begin." She said placing her hands to either of his temples. Severus listened to the silky humming voice of his teacher as his mind began to fog ever so slightly. "Relax, let you mind open. Cast your mind towards tonight. Think of the Squeaky Door, think of Emma, think of the mission, and think of what you saw… Now, let me… in…"
As metallic voice uttered the last word. Severus reached a complete state of haze, yet feeling all of the boundaries of his mind anchor him to the ground away from the voice. The warm sound as if of copper melted in the rolling bubbles of a cauldron boiling. He though of how the walls, doors, and windows seemed to reflect and vibrate in the deep humming bass of the voice as if begging to join in the song.
Cursing the boundaries that had now pulled him back into full consciousness. Severus realized his teacher was in a much different state then when he had first entered the haze. One of her hands with its long elegant fingers took over massaging both his temples. As the other slipped down to his chin and off his face.
He noticed her eyes were closed as she reached for the quill that lie on her desk. Grasping it she stood the quill upright in the center of the parchment and let it go. As the quill began to swerve and twirl on its own. Sometimes writing words in a delicately arched handwriting Severus was sure was his teachers.
He had spent and inter day looking at it at every lesson the day after she had helped to write his lesson plans on the board. In fact, he still had the chalk she had made from the scraps of dust off the erasers. Of course it wasn't like he had purposely discarded it to the corner draw of his desk. It's not like he thought it would be a waste. After all, it is just a piece of chalk…
Continuing to watch, eyes transfixed to the chalk as it made lines, dots, and scribbles all over that parchment. Creating a sort of makeshift map.
Finally Sarah released Neil's head from her grasp, but as he came to Sarah's eyes still remained closed. The quill still scribbling away on the parchment now over taken with blue ink.
Severus wanted to shake his teacher out of the trance. He remembered the lesson she had given him on mages who got to far into their spells, but this was suppose to just be a little thing… Wasn't it? He remembered her questioning whether she could do it before they even began, however if the third best mage in the world couldn't do it then who could?
About to accuse and strangle Neil for causing harm to his teacher the constant scratching of the quill stopped. Moments latter his teacher eyes began to flutter.
She immediately snatch the map off the table before throwing it back down in disgust. "Hopefully with Emma's contribution we can make something of this. It's next to worthless now." Taking a hanky from her belt pouch she began to wipe away the sweat that had accumulated on her forehead.
"You look worn Sarah. Perhaps we should take a break until Emma gets here. I'll flow the kitchens for some snacks and ice water.
With a reluctant nod and a frown at the parchment Sarah agreed.
Sarah and Neil did most of the talking over their light snack. Severus was content to sip the cool water. He had enjoyed explaining to Neil that the only ice ever seen at Hogwarts was what was found on the window ledge in winter. "Wizards simply charm the water cold." Severus had said with on of his finest smirks plastered on his face. He had then taken out his wand and charmed all the glasses cold.
When Sarah had refused the cold water asking him to warm it slightly Neil had turned to her. "Sarah, the cold water will enhance your remaining power, you know that. Please, at least eat something."
Sarah had refused the cheese and crackers that were both kegged in salt and Neil was becoming frustrated. After trying several threats Neil finally, with a grin that Severus was sure would make and magical camera break, found one that worked. "If you don't eat I'll be sure to tell Emma that you are in dire need of one of her salt drults."
Severus watch amazed as so powerful a woman crumbled under the mages threat. "Grabbing a cracker she shoved into her mouth followed by half-a-dozen more. Then after taking a big gulp of water she turned to her former friend. "Don't get cocky, just consider your self lucky that Emma's syrups taste like hell in a bottle."
"All great healers do." Neil replied smugly.
Then came a knock at the door.
"Please, allow me." Severus said in an exasperated voice that made a slight chuckle erupt from Neil.
After wishing the mage dead on last time Severus opened the door to yet another one of the horrid creatures. Emma smiled up at him from over the threshold, Dumbledore standing behind her.
"Ah, good evening Severus."
"Headmaster." He replied, stepping aside.
As the two entered Neil pulled up two more chairs, although Dumbledore sat in neither. Using his wand he created a plush, purple armchair.
Once seated he took the blurry, blue and green map from the desktop a smiled. "I give you an 'O' for effort, but a 'P' for the work." Pausing to once again stare at the so-called map he flipped it over. "Sarah, do you think it would be possible to use this side of the parchment or shall we need a new one all together?"
Looking at her grandfather a little oddly she replied, "There is so much magic in the paper and I doubt I can take it out without harming the magical properties of the paper… Severus, in that bottom drawer to your left would you take out another green tinted roll, please?"
Holding back a sigh he opened the mention drawer -with he found to have been magically extended- to find at least a hundred rolls of parchment in various tinted colors from lavender to beige. Choosing a green roll he place it one the table. Sarah reached to take it, but Neil beat her to it.
"I'm sorry Headmaster," he said inclining his head slightly, bringing the words suck up promptly into Severus' mind. "but Sarah has already done a lot of magic tonight and I think since she shall need to get up in the morning it would be best if-"
"I'm fine." Said Sarah pointedly while grabbing the parchment out of his hand. "I know when to call it quits, I'm not a baby, Neil."
"But Sarah-"
"I think Mage Neil is right." Said Dumbledore in his most Headmaster like voice, yet he still had that annoying twinkle in his eyes. "You have done an immense amount of magic in which according to Emma you have never tried in such a way before… however I believe you still have enough stamina left to continue for a little while longer." Looking at his granddaughter over the rim of his half-moon spectacles he added, "But, if you fail to tell us when you have become tired and end up making yourself ill, I will be most disappointed in you." His lips turned up into a smiled and Sarah's did too.
From his pocket Dumbledore withdrew a small stone basin about the size of a thimble. From its depths a tiny silver light was emitted. Taking out his wand he enlarged it. "This, my dear, is a Pensieve. It is made to store though and memories when one has to many on the mind.
"Neil if you would kindly turn to face me. Good. I need you to think of tonight and all that you saw that you with for Sarah to see. Once I extract the memory from your mind I shall transfer Sarah's mind into the Pensieve. That way she will be able to see things from a bird eye view perhaps even catching some things you missed yourself." Dumbledore turned to Emma, "Then if you would allow me to do the same I'm sure we can whittle out any bugs in the map and we shall be well on our way to making a plan of attack."
"We?" Sarah looked at her grandfather skeptically.
"Yes, you didn't think I would let all you young people have all the fun now did you?"
Emma let a broad smile grace her face as gazed wondrously at the Headmaster. "Well, lets get started shall we."
Hours later, tired and perturbed, Severus returned to his quarters. Collapsing on the black leather sofa in his sitting room he spotted the small wooden practice sword Sarah had told him to practice with weeks ago.
With his mind full of thoughts of both good and bad proportions of his teacher he drifted off to sleep.
As the clock struck midnight Severus woke up unable to sleep any longer for his insomnia had began to kick in. Walking to his office he curse when finding that he had left the first years papers he had been meaning to grade in his classroom. Although his office wasn't far from his classroom he hated the chance of running into either Flitwick or Sarah who were suppose to be on hall-patrol at the moment.
Using his wand to straiten his rumpled robes he began to wonder if Sarah was even able to walk at the moment. When Severus had last seen he only hours before she had been half leaning on Emma just to stand. Neil fluttering close by asking if she was all right and scolding her for letting herself get so tired.
Grinning to himself he remembered how Sarah had still maintained enough energy to snap her reply at the other mage telling his to 'bugger off'. His grin soon faded at the thought of who would tack her place in the halls tonight. He new Sarah would never openly admit she was to tired and therefore Minerva, head of the hall patrol, would not assign anyone else to take her place. Severus silently hoped that it wouldn't be Neil.
Severus had almost made it to the door of his classroom when his question were answered. Emma swept down the hall of the dungeons coming straight towards him. When she spotted his figure almost completely hidden in shadow her paces quickened. "You down their! What do you think your… Sorry Professor." Emma said realizing who he was. "I though you were a student out of bed. Sarah told me I could take her place on-"
"I am well aware of what you are doing down here Miss Emma. As you can see I am doing nothing wrong it would be most appreciated if you would please, carry on."
The mages face darkened with the anger that Severus so loved to bring upon her face. "Well, if you want to get snooty about it my formal name is Deticate Greenrose, Professor Snape. And I don't intend to go anywhere till you tell me what you doing about the halls this time of night."
Snape glared at her, but it didn't seem to faze her. "I and not a student! Therefore I don't have to answer any of you silly questions, however since you seem to have your heart set on being such an insufferable know-it-all I am only he to gather some papers for grading… So if you would, Deticate Greenrose." He said gesturing with his hand for her to turn back the way she had come.
With a huff Emma stomped off in the opposite direction as Severus shook his head in annoyance and entered his classroom.
Thanks
BlackFire: I am really sorry to hear about your computer bug and hope it gets fixed soon… Mainly so you can read my storyJ. Thanks again for everything and… yeah, that's about it.
Toma…: Thanks… I guess. I really couldn't understand your E, but… a… thanksJ !
HEY! All you reveiwers out their I want to know your thoughts on Severus in a squib nightclub. I'm not sure what chap it will be in yet but it will be soon. Mainly beause it's going to be so much fun to write I don't think I can hold out much longer.
ALSO… HEY! My signed reveiwers aren't telling me about their own stories! And frankly I getting PISSED OFF! I just reveiwed one of my reveiwers stories, but I had to find it myself. Comeon youguys you can't possibly have so many reveiws you couldn't use one more!
And I'm getting BOARD!
Bye!