"Abigail? Are you not having dinner?"

Minerva gave her a curious look, taking in her muggle attire. She typically wore more muggle clothing than wizarding. Robes were a bit cumbersome compared to slacks and a blouse. More often than not she was a bit eccentric in her attire, sometimes even wearing something steam punk without going too outlandish. If she wasn't doing that she was dressed for comfort. Just the other day she'd worn a long sweater shirt with a decorative leather belt and a pair of leggings. Now she was wearing hiking boots with jeans and a thick oversized sweatshirt.

Her fellow staff members didn't seem to care about her attire, but the more traditional ones like Minerva and Snape, Bathsheda and Silvanus, tended to frown when they saw it. None of them, not even Snape surprisingly, ever said anything about it. Albus on the other hand seemed to greatly enjoy her attire; especially the steam punk. She smiled and readjusted the bag on her shoulders.

"I'm heading into the Forbidden Forest with Snape. He's asked me to help him gather ingredients."

"Severus asked you to help him?"

Abigail grinned sheepishly.

"I may have been a bit of an arse to him a few weeks ago. Now comes the payback I guess. I'm to be his pack mule for the night."

"Why so late?"

"He said it's much easier to find unicorn hair in the dark and some ingredients need to be picked in moonlight."

"I see. Well I trust you two will be careful. That forest is dangerous even for grown witches and wizards."

"Yes mother. I promise." Minerva scoffed, but she could see the smile the older woman tried to hide. "See you at breakfast, Minerva. Night!"

"Good night dear."

Snape was waiting for her when she arrived at Hagrid's hut. The half-giant was sitting outside whittling wood and Fang was doing circles around the potion's master. He snuffled the man's hands and leapt up, putting his paws on his waist. Hagrid was hiding a smile in his beard at the pup's antics. Abigail hid her own grin behind a hand and called the puppy over.

"Tell that sour man. I'm just a puppy. I just wanna play."

Snape scowled at her and held out two bags of jars.

"They're labeled so do try to match the ingredients to the correct container."

She rolled her eyes and took them.

"I don't know if you ate but I brought some food. If you feel like having any."

He just frowned and headed into the forest.

"His loss." Hagrid said. "I for one will have your cooking any day."

"Thanks Hagrid. I'll have lamb pie for my Sunday lunch tomorrow. Filius was supper excited when I told him about it."

"That sounds lovely, Abigail! If I'd have known we'd have Sunday dinners like this I'd have asked Dumbledore hire ye years ago."

She smiled and laughed.

"It's what I do."

"Are you helping or not!" Snape called. She rolled her eyes and saluted Hagrid.

"Duty calls." She feigned a hunch and drug her left foot; adopting a gravelly voice. "Yes master! Coming master!"

The forest was still and quiet that night, the only sound the dry undergrowth crunching beneath their boots. They were fairly far in now. Snape had walked for almost half an hour before finally stopping at a patch of Bursting Mushrooms. He'd handed her a small knife and the two of them spent the next fifteen minutes carefully collecting the small button like mushrooms before moving on. For two hours they worked in a companionable silence, collecting various ingredients throughout the forest.

She was quite surprised at the turn of events. They didn't speak more than was necessary. It was usually for him to instruct her in how best to collect an ingredient, or draw attention to another patch of plants. Despite that it wasn't a tense silence. It was comfortable and easy; lacking any of the hostility they'd held for each other just days ago. O'Connor was almost tempted to say the night was enjoyable. They were in her wheelhouse after all.

"I think that will do for plant life for the night." Snape stood and brushed the soil from his hand. O'Connor shrunk the potion bags to fit in her shoulder pack and checked her watch. It was just after nine thirty.

"Do you usually have trouble with the unicorn hair?"

"There is an area that they frequent not far from here. They often leave a fair amount behind."

They walked in silence for a time with Snape periodically glancing at her from the corner his eye. She gestured and he looked away.

"Ask your question." She prompted.

"You said that you couldn't fight during the first war. Why?"

"I was wondering when you were going to ask. Things are complicated. Suffice to say it wasn't an option even though I desperately wanted to. Family, school, my own ability to participate; they all played a part."

"Schooling was part of your reasoning?"

"It wasn't an option for me not to finish."

He gave her a sneer.

"It's part of the whole family thing. Grandfather would have locked me in the school to keep me from leaving to fight. I told you it was complicated."

"And your "own ability to participate"? Why would you want to participate if you didn't think you knew enough to fight?"

I never thought him the type to use air quotes.

She gave him a wry smile.

"I won't get into that with you."

He gave her an annoyed look, but if he had anything else to say she never got to hear it. An equine scream echoed in the distance and two Unicorns burst out of the darkness heading straight for them. They threw themselves in opposite directions to get out of the way. O'Connor sat up and shoved her hair out of her face.

"What the hell was that about?"

Snape held his wand aloft trying to see what had startled them. She copied him, but there was nothing there. He frowned and started forward. She followed at his heels. The edge of the clearing was silent, save for the rustling of the bushes the Unicorns had trampled over.

"Something's not right. I can feel it. There's something moving in there."

"And pray tell how can you feel that, O'Connor?"

"I just can. Don't worry about the how."

He sneered at her over his shoulder and headed into the small grove. As he passed his wand over the ground and the surrounding shrubs she could see scores of glittering strands all over the place. There were even two horns that had been shed. Snape smirked at the find, but continued to scour the clearing. He cast a few spells and examined the area, but couldn't find anything.

"Whatever spooked them isn't here now."

"Seems like it."

O'Connor shoved the two horns in her bag and began collecting hair. Snape turned sharply at the snap of a branch and they whirled to face where they'd entered the glade. The area appeared to be empty. Even so the distinct feeling that there was a person just beyond their field of vision, watching them back, was certain. Whoever they were they gave off a distinct predatory feel. Then the feeling was gone as if it had never been there. Snape didn't like it. There was something wrong about the whole event.

"I think that's enough for tonight. Let's get back to the castle, O'Conner. O'Connor?"

The woman was standing still as a statue staring skyward and looking white as a sheet. Something glistened on her shoulder and another drop just missed his face. He snapped his eyes upward to see a mammoth spider-web spanning the grove like a dome. In the center was a massive Acromantula. Above it were two smaller ones crawling closer. O'Connor made a choking sound.

"No sudden movements." Snape hissed quietly. "When I tell you to run head back the way we came as fast as you can. Understand? O'Connor? O'Connor?!"

He reached out, taking her bicep in a pincer like grip, and was unprepared for the shriek of terror that left her mouth. She flailed like a wild animal striking out at him and catching his cheek.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" His grip faltered and she stumbled back before taking off to his left. "O'Connor! Stop!"

The spider lunged.

"Incendio!"

Unearthly shrieks filled the air and he took off after his crazed colleague. She was still screaming as she ran, fighting with webs and unicorn hair that had stuck to her. The woman was in absolute hysterics. It was difficult to equate her with the sharp-tongued, iron-willed witch he was used to. If he didn't do something soon she'd have them lost or entangled in something worse.

Hell she could be leading us right to their nest!

"Stupefy!"

She dropped like a stone and Snape slid to a stop beside her. He turned quickly to see if the spiders were close and found them fifty yards back, climbing high to escape the fire. It reflected in their many eyes each of which he could tell was fixated on them. Angry spitting and hissing filled the air.

"Stupid woman!" He knelt beside her and rolled her over. There was a dirt and moss stuck to her face and a small cut over her left eyebrow. It wasn't serious. They could deal with it later. "Rennervate."

She groaned and turned her head.

"Wake up O'Connor! We need to move!" She opened her eyes blearily, gasped, and tried to sit up. He forced her shoulders to the ground, leaning over her with a sneer.

"Stop! You need to be calm and focused right now. Can you do that?!" Her eyes were wild for a moment as she presumably searched for the spiders. "They're back there, but they will be coming for us at any moment. We need to move, but you can't just run off in any direction like a mad woman. I need you to be levelheaded right now. Can you do that?"

He gripped her shoulders tightly and she closed her eyes using the feeling to ground herself. She nodded and he pulled her harshly to her feet. Snape didn't trust her. It was clear that she suffered from an extreme case of Arachnophobia and giant spiders certainly weren't helping their case. He gripped her wrist so she couldn't take off on him again and pulled her in the direction he knew Hagrid's hut to be.

They hadn't gone far when several shrieks went up behind them. The forest floor shook slightly as the biggest spider landed and they could feel the ground tremble beneath their feet as the beast gave chase. Several branches snapped and the trees groaned as the smaller ones followed through the trees. O'Connor whimpered pitifully and moved a little faster. Snape ignored her and tried to focus on the ground in front of him. He finally recognized where they were. There was a drop off nearby with a large hollow under a massive set of tree roots. If he could get them there they might be able hide until the spiders passed or maybe mount a counter attack.

Webs splattered against the tree to their right and he pulled her left, throwing two spells over his shoulder. He desperately wanted to send some fire their way, but he couldn't risk burning the whole forest down. His fingers tightened on O'Connor's wrist. She needed to do something.

"I have to watch where we're going. You need to hold them off!"

She nodded numbly and did something strange with her feet. It was an odd stumbling skip; a drag of the foot and a hop before she came down heavily on her right foot. The whole thing was hard to follow and he'd almost say she'd even clicked her heels together. A strange ripple seemed to flow out from where she brought her foot down. He could feel it under his own two feet. He swore he could even feel whatever magic she used, and it was unlike anything he'd felt before.

Before he could ponder it further there was a great crash behind them and the air was filled with the scent of greenery. The smell of pine and heather was so cloying he almost gagged. Thistle and various mushroom, magical and non-magical, burst into massive clusters all around them. He dodged around the groupings wondering just what the hell she had done.

Where did she learn such a thing? I've never heard of such a spell! Is that what she did with her feet? How?!

"Shit." She gasped. "Too much."

"How close are they now?"

He could feel the faint tremble that ran through her.

"They've fallen back quite a ways. They're going to have to go higher or around."

"Does it look like they will?"

"They're trying." She moaned in a high pitch. "There's more coming from your left."

"Damn it. What the hell is going on?" He'd never had such a problem in all the times he'd come into the forest for ingredients. The spiders were usually much further in. Now they seemed almost mad with a need to get at them.

"There's a drop off a little further ahead. We should be able to hide out there and figure out our next move."

One or even two spiders weren't a problem, but three or more was dangerous. You were likely to get caught in a web before you could incapacitate them all. With O'Connor practically useless and a liability he needed the element of surprise.

"No Snape, I think it's closer." She suddenly said. "I think… No! Stop!"

He felt her pull back and then the ground disappeared under his feet. Their momentum carried them forward and down the steep incline. Rocks and roots and thorny bushes struck out at them catching and tearing their clothes. They landed in a breathless heap and for a moment neither of them could move. Finally O'Connor pushed herself to her hands and knees.

"Snape, are you all right?" He groaned and a hiss of breath escaped from between clenched teeth. She crawled over to him. His face was tight and his body rigid. Just looking at him though she couldn't tell what was wrong.

"What is it? What happened?"

"I dislocated my knee." He growled and sat up. His face turned white with the effort and sweat glistened on his forehead. "We need to keep going."

"Not to offend, but can you?"

"Does it seem like I have a choice?" He snapped. She couldn't say he was wrong and snatched up her fallen wand. He'd somehow managed to keep a hold on his. "There should be a massive tree nearby. We can regroup there."

A sudden crash at the top of the hill told them the spiders had broken past her barriers. O'Connor scrambled to her feet and it quickly became obvious that Snape's leg would not support him. In unspoken agreement she supported most of his weight and practically dragged him into the hollow at the base of the tree. By the time they settled in and put out their wands he was ghostly pale tinged with green.

"This is the first and last time I'm going into this forest with you." Snape groused.

"Shut up. It's not my fault they were there in the first place."

She moved to the entrance and placed her hand on the roots. Her fingers tapped lightly against the wood. Snape was having trouble focusing at this point, the edges of his vision darkening slightly, but he was sure of what he saw. The wood grew and shifted until they were incased in a massive cage of roots. Even if the spiders saw them they could not get in without a great deal of effort. Heather grew over the gaps and the scent was almost overpowering.

Who is this woman?

O'Connor came to kneel beside him again. He couldn't see her expression with the small amount of moonlight peeking through the gaps.

"Episkey should work, right?"

Rhetorical questions should be outlawed. Snape thought as she cast the spell and his knee realigned itself. It took everything he had not to cry out and for a moment everything went black. When he could see again she was shaking like a leaf and pointing her wand through one of the holes in the roots. Something was screaming and hissing as it flailed around outside.

That's right. We're hiding from the spiders.

After her earlier reaction he was shocked to see her firing off spells at them. A well placed Everte Statum sent one of the spiders sailing. Snape could hear it crash against a tree. He stared at her, surprised. She seemed to be doing all right now that she had some semblance of control back. He pushed himself up and gripped his wand. Moving carefully lest he jar his knee or risk startling her he moved to one of the openings.

Only two spiders were standing outside now. A third was stumbling away up the hill, and two more lay immobilized in the distance. Their eyes were swiveling madly in her wandlight. The remaining arachnids were warily watching their hiding spot. He was taken aback that she had left them alive. Did she know Hagrid cared for them? He certainly hadn't had time to tell her.

"Any bright ideas? They're quite adept at dodging. Those two will be regaining their legs soon."

"I may have an idea."

He pointed his wand at the massive heather flowers wondering yet again where she'd learned such magic. She wasn't making them larger with an engorgement charm. They had grown out of the soil to massive proportions like any plant would.

"Avifors."

The flowers swayed and twisted themselves into massive white doves. He needed them even bigger.

"Engorgio." They doubled in size and he smirked. "Oppugno."

Like missiles the giant birds began dive bombing the spiders.

"They won't kill them but they also won't last long. We need to move." She nodded and with her whole body trebling helped him to his feet. Carefully and quietly they exited the roots and snuck off through the forest. He glared at her and promised a life of misery if she told anyone about it.

"You're too prideful, Snape." She panted. Her trembling was slowly reducing to mild shivers. "Everyone needs help sometimes."

"Yes well we wouldn't be in this mess if you had just kept your head."

"I'm scarlet about it enough all ready, all right?" She snapped. "I can't help it. I've been that way since I was a child. It doesn't matter how big or small. They all scare me shitless."

"Scarlet?"

"Embarrassed." He nodded in understanding.

"Frankly, I'm amazed you got it together enough to fight them off in the way that you did."

"Well when I fixed your leg you went kinda ashen and just dropped. I had to do something or else we were both done for. They were big enough to get through those branches eventually."

"So you can maintain control when it counts. I'm shocked." She rolled her eyes and gave him a sour look. "I've never seen magic like yours before; that strange skipping and the tapping on the roots. Where did you learn that? Is it an Irish magic."

He was aware that some countries had their own types of special magics that they were born with. For instance those with enough German in their blood could weave magic using music or by singing.

"Don't worry about it."

"Another secret for me to hide? You're asking a lot of a man you don't trust."

"It looks like it, because for some strange reason I just keep revealing bits and pieces of myself in front of you."

An image of the smashed tea set and Sybil's words flashed in her mind. She eyed him skeptically. He was watching her with the same scrutinizing expression. The seer had to be crazy. It was inconceivable, and yet she had revealed three very important facts about herself to the ex Death Eater. If the woman was right though, it meant she had indeed been wrong in her assumptions about the man. Very wrong.

Dammit. I hate being wrong. I'll definitely have been a right ass eating his head off then.

"Perhaps if you can yet prove yourself to really be on our side, I will tell you more."