Chapter 35: Answers and Explanations

Answers and Explanations

"While Nag failed in his attempt to make himself a Magi, he succeeded in giving his line an edge over others. The reason those in our family have been very powerful, is that our like has not been blemished, because of that genetic anomaly. He found a way to keep his line very pure."

Sage stared at him. That was why Nag had looked so much like him and his uncle in his dream? He still didn't understand what any of it meant, but maybe he was not supposed to, yet.

Severus glared back at him, waiting for Sage to answer. "Nothing to say?"

Sage scowled darkly. "Not- as- if- I- can- really- talk," he rasped slowly.

Smirking, Severus reached to the table on his other side and picked something up. He held a cup out to Sage, the same smirk still playing on his face.

Sage eyed it warily, but knew that his uncle was not about to poison him. The look on the man's face was rather worrisome, however. Perhaps he was about to spring some more information on him? He took the cup anyway.

The liquid inside was a dark grey and quite thick. He raised an eyebrow disdainfully.

"Questioning me," the Professor asked.

Sage's lip curled before he finally huffed out, "No, sir," before drinking it as fast as his depleted energy would allow.

He hardly got down more than a few swallows before he gagged and drew the cup away from his lips.

"What- in- Merlin's- name is that? It tastes dreadful!"

Severus gave him an unconcerned look with absolutely no sympathy.

"You do not truly wish to know," he answered. "However, you can talk now, can you not?"

"Somehow, uncle, I believe you like your potions to taste abhorrent."

Sage pushed himself up against the pillows a bit, grimacing all the while as the pain reverberated throughout his body.

"No, I meerly do not tamper with the nature of things in order to make them taste better. Finish it."

Sage furrowed his brow and looked at the cup. His lip began to curl again inadvertantly and his stomach certainly made its opinion known.

"Must I?"

"Do you wish to be able to talk?"

Scowling once more, Sage drank the rest of the rank liquid, before pushing the cup away from himself as fast as he could.

"Now that you were done being insolent, I believe I can answer some of your questions."

Sage raised an eyebrow wondering how best to phrase 'Am I going to suddenly have the desire to be a blood-sucker?'

"Well, sir, what does it mean to be descended from a vampyre? I do not believe I am anything like what a modern day vampyre is…"

Severus pushed his hair behind his ears. "That is because you are nothing like a modern day vampyre. Nor are you a vampyre. You understand, Sage, that not all vampyres are the same, and not all of them are descended from Nag. Apparently, there were other ways in which to become a vampyre and ways which have proven more detrimental than others. As I have said, all you have inherited is your persistence of character. That is, genetically, you will look a certain way and your children will look a certain way. You have all of the magical abilities that Nag gained by drinking the blood of the powerful, and by countless spells no doubt.

"The traits that run in our family are due to that influence. The prescience, legilimency, and fluid movement come from him. That is as far as you should be concerned for now."

Sage frowned, "It is not common for other wizards to have vampyre blood?"

Severus shook his head, "I was a misconception many years ago, when this fact about our family was more common knowledge, that having the blood of a dark creature or vampyre could serve to strengthen your line by giving uncommonly strong powers. Many families made an attempt to follow this logic. The unfortunate miscalculation was that the blood in our veins has had thousands of years to temper itself. The minute genetical changes that have occurred since then have made the powers greater while the consequences of that power have diminished. Many families harmed their line more than helping it. The Malfoys chose to marry a son to a veela, not more than a few hundred years ago. You can obviously observe the result. They are very reactive and blood-thirsty; quick to temper and relishing in pain and death. Draco, I believe, shows the first signs of being able to overcome that tendency."

Sage looked away from Severus and stared forward into nothingness for a moment. The candle-light flickered as he thought.

"Why did you not tell me this before, sir?"

Severus raised an eyebrow imperiously, "Because you were not ready, just as you were not ready for the prophecy. Now you must be ready."

"I must be?"

"You will not be able to leave here until you are ready to know all such things."

Sage's mouth parted slightly, not sure of what to say.

"What exactly have I commited myself to, sir?"

"Becoming a Druid," Severus answered plainly.

"Well that's rather obvious," Sage retorted, almost as if he were saying it to himself.

"Don't be impertinent, Sage. I warned you before you came here that this is neither the time nor the place for such dispropriety."

Sage muttered an apology, his eyes showing his utter frustration. Even his lips were in an aggravated pout.

"Then explain to me, uncle, what is a Rite of Passage? What will be expected of me?"

Severus leaned in closer to him, "All manner of things will be expected from you. What, exactly, I cannot say. Sarmach will choose the path that he believes best for you. You will do whatever it is that he asks of you. All I can say is that it is like an apprenticeship and that you will leave here physically and mentally stronger," he paused, glaring hard into Sage's eyes. "And you had better act as befits you. You have hundreds of years of tradition behind you and you will not violate it."

Sage drew his head back, raising one black eyebrow. "Certainly not, sir."

"You may say that, but your actions as of late have not spoken in your favor. It is really of little matter, Rite of Passage is an extremely strict affair, and I am sure you will learn quickly if you disremember how you are to act."

Sage crossed his arms over his chest. All of his efforts to make his way back into his uncle's favor had not even made a dent in his uncle's contemptuous opinion of him. It was all rather disconcerting, and it certainly got underneath Sage's skin. Perhaps he really had sunk so low that it would be a long climb back, or perhaps Severus just wanted to make his point. Finally, Sage concluded that it was more likely the latter and not the former. He sighed deeply.

"What was so surprising about my vision that everyone gathered?"

Severus gave his nephew an appraising look.

"It was not so much the vision, but rather what happened while you were having it. Granted, having a vision is the most difficult proof of your Druidic blood, it was not so shocking. What you do not know is that you were under for so long that you caused the whole ground to shake with your tremors. It was like that abominable night you had that party and caused the entire Gryffindor common room to fall apart. I believe you could simply no longer contain or control your powers and they escaped into your surroundings. While I have seen the likes of that from you, no one else had. They gathered. Sarmach has been readying them for you to come."

Sage's eyes opened wide with surprise. He had shook the entire ground?

"What about how that one man, who performed the Rite, looked rather shocked that Sarmach was going to undergo it with me. I heard the others whispering."

Severus leaned back. "Ah yes, that. Well Sarmach has not taken someone on since he has been Chief Druid, and as I am to understand not for a long while before that. Why he chose you to teach, I cannot answer for him. Perhaps he will allow you to ask. My suspicion is that you need a very powerful match to keep you to your path, because you are so powerful. Possibly it is because your forefather was his master when he underwent his Rite of Passage. Or a combination of those reasons."

Suddenly Severus snorted, "Perhaps he has just taken a liking to you."

"Perhaps I simply wish to have someone to do some rather menial tasks I have been putting off for some time now," interrupted a voice from the doorway. "That is rather one nice benefit of taking someone on."

Sage jumped, causing the pain to suffocate him again. He closed his eyes and shuddered.

Sarmach lowered himself into another chair that had just appeared. Sage only noticed the ornately carved, cherry wood arms.

"I believe you were right though, Severus. It is most likely a combination of all of those things that gave me the impulse, for it was an impulse, to be Sage's master."

Severus scoffed, "I should only hope that he does not prove disappointing."

"He will not," Sarmach stated plainly, "He is very eager to prove himself I feel. Once he had become accustomed to things I am sure that he will do quite well. I feel he is much less insolent than your usual young man and not unaccustomed to hard work. You have had much time alone with him to mold him. All should be much less of a shock for him."

Sage raised an eyebrow. They were talking about him as if he was not even there. He looked forward suddenly, because he didn't want to stare rudely at the man.

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