Chapter 4: Deceit
Summary: The new DADA Professor has arrived, and Snape is all set to hate him. However, the new young Professor is more than he seems. Will Snape get over his jealousy in time to find out his secret, or will Voldemort get to him first?
Disclaimer: I know these really don't save you from getting sued, but no one's been sued by JKR yet, so we've got hope, right? I don't own anything except the plot and my original character, Malachai Tomaren. Go me.
Pairings: Lucius/Severus, Severus/OC later
Warnings: slash pairings, language
Chapter notes: Originally, chapter 3 was very long so I've split it into two parts; the first is the Lucius goodness and the second is where we get back to the plot. In this chapter, Severus experiences a break in and the only culprit who leaps to mind just happens to be his least favorite Professor. Biased? Noo.. and Dumbledore's insistant cheerfulness is not what Severus is looking for.
Major thanks go to everyone who reviewed, to everyone who's still reading this despite how long it's taken me, to Kay for such great feedback, and to my wonderful beta, Killer.
Once Severus reached Hogwarts, he took his time strolling back down to the dungeons. The hallways were quiet and deserted with all the students at breakfast. He was trying to relax, to distract himself from Lucius and the morning's bedroom activities, which meant resorting to counting the flagstones that passed beneath his feet. He did this for a few minutes, then gave up, reasoning that he needed to be paying attention to where he was walking in case Tomaren decided to come flying around any more corners with an armful of heavy texts. Idiot. He was actually beginning to think that Lupin wasn't so bad of a teacher after all, simply because he wasn't Tomaren. Merlin, even Umbridge hadn't run into him.
Realization hit that all he ever thought about was Tomaren these days. He'd briefly managed to immerse himself in his Potions classes, but still always in the background was the threat of Tomaren looming on the horizon. Even Lucius and the Dark Lord couldn't keep his mind away from the new Professor for very long. He decided that the next time he saw Tomaren, he was going to give the boy a piece of his mind.
This satisfied him for the moment, and he spent his time planning out exactly what he would say when the opportunity arose as the castle's bright walls melded into the dark stone corridors of the dungeons. The distant drips of water leaking made a cheerful backdrop to his echoing steps and the scathing insults he imagined. It was with a smile that he approached his office door inside the Potions classroom, reaching out for the knob and readying the unlocking charm that would allow him entrance.
He froze as he noticed something wet beneath his hand, and pulled his hand back, peering down at the knob. It was dim enough that he didn't notice anything, but there was still wetness on his fingers. He rubbed them together absently and felt a stickiness there, peering down at his hand with his brow creased in thought. There was something on them, alright, something thick and rust-colored, like paint. He raised his fingertips to right in front of his eyes, frowning in concentration. An all-too familiar coppery scent assaulted his nose, and he realized instantly what he was staring at.
It was blood.
Jerking his head up, he tried the knob, and found that the door opened just fine without his unlocking charm. Throwing the door open, Severus marched inside, wand drawn in his other hand and pointed out before him as he prepared to face the intruder.
His office was empty. He glanced around quickly for signs of movement, then stilled to listen for the slightest noise, but he heard nothing. He strode to a door across the room that lead to his workroom which was hanging open. Now he couldn't recall if he'd left it open or not. As quietly as he could, he darted inside, still brandishing the wand out before him. The room had been ransacked. Nothing was thrown about or broken, but still, everything had been moved, heaped carelessly into piles as someone had sorted through them. His equipment was left alone, nothing from his cauldron to his mortar and pestle had been moved around, but jars of ingredients were scattered around the room on tables and chairs. The shelves they normally were stored on were all but empty. Whoever had been in here had been through everything - from herbs to dried animal parts - making whatever they were looking for impossible to instantly determine.
Severus was quickly becoming angry. That someone inside Hogwarts would dare to break into his office with intent to steal a potion ingredient was shocking. His wand trembled as he lowered it to his side, and he realized that the rest of him has begun to shake as well. He was absolutely furious. Dumbledore was going to hear about this as soon as he had determined what was missing. He swept over to his main workspace, picking through the clusters of jars and stoppered vials piled there, confident in his knowledge of his stock that he'd be able to easily find out what had been stolen.
Out of the corner of his eye, the barest flicker of shadow caught his attention. He swung around to the opposite side of the room, but nothing moved. No one was in the room.. Or were they?
He peered around the room intently, searching out any tiny movement, be it even another shadow or a strange haze to the air in case anyone was using magic to disguise themselves. Nothing stirred.
After a few long moments had passed and nothing further strange had occurred, he remembered the blood on his fingertips. In his anger at seeing his workroom violated, he realized he'd completely forgotten about it. Severus turned and rushed for the office door. He really didn't think that someone would bother to break into his office if they were dealing with a substantial wound - one would think people would have the common sense to take care of that first, if only because bleeding all over everything would leave clues. And he hadn't seen any blood anywhere else in his office or workroom. Just that bit on the door. It wasn't just a drop or two, either, almost his entire palm was coated in it.
So if the person hadn't been bleeding at the time, as circumstances would suggest.. they must have put the blood there, on purpose. Which meant that it had to be part of a spell. He examined the knob again, but found that he had pretty much wiped it clean when he'd grabbed it the first time, and went back to his workroom to scrape as much of the blood as he could off his hands into an empty vial. He stoppered it, placed it into a pocket, quickly washed his hands, and left his office. He locked the door again to ensure no students became overcome with temptation, and headed for Dumbledore's office.
As he walked, he came to the conclusion that if the blood were indeed part of a spell, it had to be a teacher who had broken in. First of all, whoever it was had disarmed his locking charm, and it wasn't one that could be undone with a simple 'Alohamora'. No, he'd learned his lesson on that account two years ago, after the second break in. The charm required a second half to be completed, as well as the correct password, in order for it to unlock the door. Who could have figured that out? And Severus didn't even know many spells that involved ingredients like blood… what student did? He doubted even Ms. Know-it-all Granger had heard of such.
Of course that brought up another disturbing subject. What had the spell done? Had it done anything? Was Severus going to suddenly collapse dead at any moment because he'd touched enchanted blood? These were questions he needed to present to Dumbledore, and quickly.
He reached the large eagle statue guarding Dumbledore's staircase, took in a lungful of air, and blanked when he searched his memory for the new password. Sherbet lemon? No, he'd used that one years ago. "Merlin," he whispered furiously, glaring up at the eagle as he sought frantically to remember it. He'd used it yesterday! What was it?
This wasn't like him. He just needed to calm down, and then he'd remember it. Honestly, he didn't need to overreact now. He rubbed his hand on his robes absently, as if he could still feel the blood there. Now, calm, think. Password.
"Chocolate frog," he announced, stabbing an accusatory finger at the bronze Eagle. Nothing happened. Ok, ok, Chocolate frog had been the last password. Didn't it have something to do with Chocolate, though?
Or was it something to do with oranges? "Orange truffle," he tried this time, staring hard at the eagle as it did nothing.
"Merlin's beard!" he said angrily, wiping his hands on his shirtfront in frustration. Of course, nothing happened, and he wasn't expecting it to.
"I didn't think that was right. Isn't it usually something to do with candy?"
Severus blinked in surprise, then whirled on the voice, and came face to face with his least favorite person. Malachai Tomaren stood there, staring at him curiously. Severus stared back during a long silence, then abruptly drew his wand. "How convenient that we keep running into each other," he muttered wryly. Malachai looked absolutely shocked as Severus hurled the first spell that came to mind at him.
"Petrificus Totalus!" he growled, effectively freezing the expression of surprise on Tomaren's face. Snape smiled grimly, and the password suddenly jumped into his mind.
"Orange Cream."
The eagle statue began to move, and Severus got a good grip on Tomaren, hauling the skinny Professor onto the stairway just as it began to rise and take them up. He caught a glimpse of a few shocked looking students who had apparently just left breakfast, and hoped that Dumbledore would be back in his office now. That might've been a good thing to inquire about ten minutes ago, he thought to himself, but now that he was quite certain he had in custody the person who'd broken into his office, he felt much better.
Dumbledore's office was unfortunately deserted when he entered it, dragging Tomaren behind him. Once they were safely inside, he stepped back and cast a counter charm, keeping his wand pointed at Tomaren as the boy began to move again.
"What is going on?" Tomaren demanded as soon as he could, but Snape silenced further inquiries with a threatening motion with his wand.
"Stop that right now. Hands in the air, and don't try going for your wand, you thief."
Tomaren looked confused, but slowly raised his hands. "Severus.."
"That's Professor Snape, to you," Severus cut in, angered that the man would dare address him with familiarity. "Just because you've broken in to my office and stolen something from me doesn't mean we are in any way on friendly terms."
Malachai raised a brow, and gave a nod, as if that made sense to him too. "Well I could see that.." he said with irony, "But I don't know what you're talking about. I didn't break into your office."
"Silence." Severus growled, realizing that what he'd said hadn't made any sense. "I don't want to hear it. Just stand there and don't say anything until Dumbledore returns." Severus tightened the grip on his wand, almost hoping Tomaren would do something nasty so he could try out a few hexes on him.
Fortunately, he didn't have to wait long to hear the telltale grinding of stone that meant someone was coming up to the Headmaster's office. Sure enough, Dumbledore appeared in the doorway, looking at the both of them in complete unsurprise.
"Severus. Malachai. We missed you both at breakfast this morning."
Severus' eyes widened at this information. So Malachai had missed breakfast, as well? That was all the further proof he needed to condemn the boy in his mind.
Dumbledore collected his candy dish and held it out to them both. "Lemon drop?"
One of Tomaren's hands began sneaking for the dish, but Severus made an angry sound in his throat and it froze, then returned to its original position in the air.
Dumbledore set the dish down. "Severus, please. I don't think there's any need for that. Why don't you both sit down, and tell me what's going on."
Severus stared urgently at Dumbledore, as if he could convey his fears with just his eyes. Dumbledore raised his hand and lowered it, holding Severus' gaze with a resolute one of his own. "Lower your wand, Severus."
He allowed anger to flash across his face at the frustration he was feeling in that moment, but lowered his wand and put it away. Tomaren's posture relaxed, but he stared at the chair in front of Dumbledore's desk anxiously, as if it might be too dangerous a trek to go around Severus.
Severus glared at the young Professor, then looked back to Dumbledore. "I'd prefer to remain standing."
Dumbledore just nodded. "As you wish. Now, why don't you tell me why you were holding Mr. Tomaren here at wand point in my office? First, though. Do either of you have a class right now?"
They both shook their heads.
"Good. Don't want any students missing their classes, do we? Now. Severus?" Dumbledore unwrapped a lemon drop and popped it into his mouth.
Severus nodded at the Headmaster curtly and thrust a finger in Tomaren's direction. "This man has just broken into my office-"
"I didn't break into your office," Tomaren insisted quietly, and Severus shot him a nasty glare.
"Of course you did! Who else would have done it?"
"Hold on now, Severus." Dumbledore interjected calmly, "Did you actually see Mr. Tomaren break into your office?"
Severus let out a frustrated sigh. "No, Headmaster, but he's the only one who could've done it."
"How do you know that?" Tomaren demanded, just as meekly, and Severus whirled around to look at him. The boy was standing as if huddling away from him, his shoulders slumped, looking rather unhappy. Good.
"Who else would have done it? I have worked with all the other Professors here for a number of years, and I know I can at least trust them not to break in to my office. If they wanted something, they'd just ask. You are the only one I don't know."
"Well.. That's true..," Tomaren replied thoughtfully, folding his arms like a shield across his chest, "But it might have been a student."
"No student could disable my locking charm-" Severus began angrily, but was cut off.
"That you know of." Tomaren interjected, very softly as if he were afraid that if he spoke up, Severus was going to hex him. Well. He just might.
"Excuse me," Severus emphasized the words and raised a brow, pausing for a moment before continuing. "This is not a simple locking charm. A student would not know how to disable it. And!" he added loudly before Tomaren could cut in again, turning back to Albus, "There is something else I need to show you, Headmaster." He pulled the vial out of his coat pocket and held it out to Dumbledore. Severus glanced back to Tomaren as Albus took it from him, looking for an expression to give him away.
Tomaren did look rather guilty, but Severus wasn't entirely sure that wasn't Tomaren's normal expression. It was true that Tomaren looked about as criminal as Neville Longbottom, but that didn't mean he didn't do it. Looks, as proved to be true with many an ex defense Professor, were often deceiving.
Dumbledore was studying the vial, sucking on his lemon drop thoughtfully. He looked back to Severus. "What is this?"
"It's blood. I found it all over my office door knob." Severus folded his hands across his chest.
Dumbledore adjusted his half moon spectacles and peered intently at the jar, holding it just under his nose. "Hmm. So you think it is from the person who broke in?"
"Possibly," Severus said, "But it might not be. There was no more blood anywhere in or around my office, so it is unlikely that the person who broke in was bleeding. If that were the case, and they bandaged their wound after opening the door, they wouldn't have left the blood on the knob. Thus, I think it is easy to conclude that whoever put the blood there meant it to be there, and therefore, the blood must've been part of some spell or enchantment."
One of Dumbledore's feathery white brows lifted, but he otherwise did not react to this news. "Are you suggesting that someone used blood magic on your office door?"
"Obviously meant for me to find. And who, in this whole castle, would conceivably know anything about blood magic? I admit that my knowledge of it is very limited, but I knew enough to suspect something when I found it there. Clearly, whomever did it," he gave Tomaren a hard stare, "was counting on my ignorance on the subject."
"Well. It is very rare magic as you say, Severus. In fact, I believe that there are only a few creatures in this part of the world that practice this type of magic. There are the hags, of course.." Dumbledore raised his gaze over the top of his spectacles at Tomaren, "Though we are not sure just how potent their magic is. Obviously, it was not a hag. And that really only leaves Vampires. I am most certain we can rule Mr. Tomaren out of that category as well." Albus smiled at Tomaren, his eyes twinkling merrily.
Severus felt confused. He was sure it had been Tomaren, but he hadn't stopped to consider that witches and wizards might not be able to effectively use blood magic. It was ludicrous to think that Tomaren was a Vampire. Vampires didn't teach Defense Against the Dark Arts. They didn't normally interact too greatly with the Wizarding world, for one thing, and for another, they tended to be dead. But something was nagging at him, in the back of his mind. He remembered that when Tomaren had collided with him, he had spilled several books on Vampires. At first, he'd dismissed it as part of Tomaren's lesson plans..
"Could a wizard learn to use it?" He asked, knuckling his chin thoughtfully. He looked up at Dumbledore with a brow arched in question. Frankly, this whole discussion was irritating him. Dumbledore wasn't even listening, he was ignoring Snape and automatically siding with Tomaren. That wasn't how things should be. Severus' years of history with Albus ought to count for something when he needed it to.
"I do not believe it is something that can be taught, Severus. In fact, I am not very certain that it was used here. Just because blood was found does not mean that it was blood magic. That, I would think, would be the least likely of all scenarios. Perhaps the person who broke into your office had a cut on his or her hand. Was anything taken?"
Severus felt defeated. Just blood, from a cut. No, he couldn't accept that solution. Maybe then he would be able to discover whose blood it was. "I don't know yet. My work room was obviously the target, however. Someone had gone through the shelves where I keep my potions ingredients. I'm assuming this means they were looking for a particularly rare item that could not be purchased in the usual Apothecary shops, because then breaking in would have been unnecessary. I will find out what was taken, and just whose blood this is," he said, emphasizing the last sentence, which had been entirely for Tomaren's benefit, and took the vial back from Albus.
He turned on the young wizard again, staring at his hands, which were tucked away under his arms. "Any injuries lately?"
Tomaren slowly held out his hands. They were completely devoid of cuts or scars. In fact, the skin was soft and unmarred by toil, a great contrast to his own potion-stained hands. Severus refrained from making a disparaging remark about that, feeling his hopes drop. He'd been so certain.. But there was still testing on the blood to be done.
"Well then. You see? Nothing to worry about. Probably just a student. I will, of course, begin conducting inquiries for you, Severus. We'll find out who it was."
Severus nodded curtly, then strode for the exit. He didn't want to be near either the Headmaster or that idiotic boy any longer. Behind him, he heard Dumbledore and Tomaren exchange a few words, but Tomaren was so quiet he wasn't sure what had been said. Then the young Professor was walking behind him to the stairs. Severus took them first, thankful when Tomaren did not go down with him.
"Professor Snape!"
Back in the corridors, it was another story. They were empty because classes were in session, so when Tomaren called out to him, he couldn't try and lose him in a throng of students. That didn't make him turn and wait for the young Professor, however, if anything he quickened his pace. "Can't you go for five minutes without turning up?"
Tomaren caught up with him anyway. "Listen," he said urgently, falling into step with Severus, "I'm sorry about your office. I didn't do it but I'd like to help you-"
Severus cut him off right there. He didn't even want to know whatever else Tomaren had been going to say. "You need to stay away from me," he said slowly, "I don't know how you got it into that tiny little brain of yours that I would ever want your help, or conceivably be interested in speaking to you in the first place. It had to be you who broke into my office. There's no one else it could be." He turned his head to glare sharply at Tomaren, "So if I were you, I would be staying away from me, and my office, permanently." He shoved all the implied threat that he could into his tone, and gave Tomaren a very murderous stare.
Tomaren stopped walking, and Severus glanced back at him to see him standing like a lost puppy in the corridor, with a wounded expression on his face. It made the potions master smile. Minerva, who was just stepping out of a classroom with a gaggle of first-years around her heels, gave his underwhelmed smile a questioning frown, but he just nodded at her as he walked past.
Behind him, he heard a familiar young girl's voice shout, "Ten points from Gryffindor for being thick as a pile of bricks!", some laughter following, and Minerva's threatening tone, "Rocelyn Borgin! What have I told you about that before? Five points will be taken from Slytherin.."
Severus wasn't sure what prompted him to turn back to face Minerva. The throng of students gave him a wide berth, and announced loudly, "Ten points from Gryffindor."
Minerva gave him an incredulous look. "Excuse me, Professor Snape? Perhaps I didn't hear that correctly.. Why are you taking points from Gryffindor?"
"Miss Borgin makes an irrefutable point, Professor McGonagall," Snape replied coolly.
Around him, the Slytherins giggled, and he glanced around to see that they had gravitated towards his presence. The students from other houses were glancing at each other in amazement and anger, and he heard the murmurings of discontent.
Minerva's lips had compressed into a thin line. "I think perhaps that we should have a discussion about inter-house relationships, Professor Snape." Hers was the tone of a woman not to be trifled with.
Severus could not have cared less at the moment. "I see no point in that," he said sharply, turning to stride off again. The students made way for him as they were expected to. He heard Tomaren strike up a conversation with Minerva, and hurried on his way lest the obnoxious pest try and catch up with him again.