"Come away little lost / Come away to the Water. / To the ones that are waiting only for you. / Come away little Lost / Come away to the Water, / Away from the life that you always knew... / ...Come away little lamb / Come away to the water. / To the arms that are waiting only for you. / Come away little lamb / Come away to the slaughter. / To the ones appointed to see this through. / We are calling for you..." – Come Away to the Water By Maroon 5.
"For the last time, child, this is NOT optional!" She paused in her tirade, attempting to catch her breath. "The ministry will not allow Mastery of Potions to end with you!" She smacked her palm on the stone railing of the staircase.
He turned, slowly to face her, a step and a half above her. She, already shorter than him, did not quail as he towered over her, using the extra height to try and intimidate the petite witch. He should have known better.
"That won't happen, woman, and you know it as well as I. Belby is still living and well, so is McHeargton. Now that the Malfoy heir has his Mastery as well, he will soon be able to instruct and have an apprentice. I am hardly the last hope for the progression of my art." He swirled around, his cloak billowing, and attempted to stalk away. Only to find himself yanked backwards by the very same chit he had just been trying to stare down.
"Severus please!" She howled in exasperation, "You know as well as I that Belby has long since stopped taking on new apprenticeships. Malfoy will never take on an apprentice, as he can barely stand his own presence, let alone someone he believes to be of lesser intelligence! McHeargton is a drunken Irish pig and you know as well as I, Sev," Her voice softened considerably as she met his gaze, "None of them have quite your intelligence and apt for the subject. Nor do any of them have your love of it." He regarded her with respect as much as indignation.
"Yes, yes fine. You win, old bat, you win." He muttered as he turned and stalked off to his quarters.
Behind him, on the winding stairs, Minerva McGonagall smiled. She already knew, as soon as the ad went into the Prophet, some of the entries that would be sitting on his desk. She now could only hope that he accepted the best student.
The next day in the Prophet, the ad ran.
Inquiring Potions Students:
This notice is intended for students in the field of Potions who are wishing to further their knowledge, extend their reach, and continue their study and mastery of the art. If you believe yourself strong enough of mind and of will to obtain a Mastery, please submit your application to one Severus T. Snape at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
The following guidelines and rules will be followed or your application will be automatically declined:
No names. It is not your name that legitimizes you, it is your credits and successes in the field that do.
In order for Professor Snape to contact his Apprentice of choice, please apply a light Tracking spell to your application. This is to ensure that an owl may find you with the necessary paperwork upon your acceptance.
Include in your application your credits, NEWTs, OWLs, and any relevant post-education work.
Also include a minimal 4-foot Thesis on the construction or alteration of a spell. The spell MUST BENEFIT humankind; Wizard and Muggle alike. Prove the depth of your mind and the purity of your intentions.
Lastly, include a sample of your best potion achievement to date. Whether the patent belongs to you or another is of no consequence. Your best work, if you please.
If you are wishing for your application to be considered, submit only the requested items. Personal letters, affects, and spells will ensure a declination. The Professor reserves the right to change his mind of your acceptance up until 1 week before the 1st of September this current calender year. Any invasion of the Professor's privacy or personal matters will also result in immediate declination or, in the case of acceptance, termination.
Final acceptance will be determined no later than the 25th of August this calender year. Public announcement will be in the Daily Prophet on the 5th of September.
Severus scowled as he swept into his office and glowered at the parliament of owls that had taken up roost amongst his desk and belongings. "Do you see?! Minerva, look at what you have caused!"
Minerva let out a small chuckle as she glided into the room behind him. "Now, Severus, it won't be so bad. Most you will know by the second line of their thesis paper whether to chuck it or not. You best get reading though, my child. You only have two weeks left to decide."
He turned his glower on her, but upon seeing the twinkle in her eye, so reminiscent of his deceased mentor, he softened. "If I must." He nodded to her as she patted his shoulder – a stretch for the 5' 4" slight woman with him at 6' 5" - and twirled out of his chambers. He let out a sigh and sat at his desk, intent on getting through the rest of the stupid applications by nightfall.
It was sometime later when Felix, Severus' personal elf, gently reminded him it was nearing dinner.
"Yes, thank you Felix, I shall take my meal here." Felix bobbed his head at his Master and went to let the kitchen elves know. Severus, for his part, was intent on the pile in front of him. It had, apparently, taken all day, but he had narrowed it down to four. There had been nearly 200 applicants; nearly 100 of them were junked right off for idiocy or for not following his rules and guidelines. Some of the women had even included indecent photos of themselves in an attempt to sway him. And not all of them were young.
80 of them didn't have the proper credentials to even be considered for such an exhausting discipline. Several of them were too old and would never suit; they had long since passed their prime of learning. A good ten of them had yet to even finish their basic education yet and were trying to get an early in.
That brought it down to the four spread out in front of him. One, in very flowery script on some of the whitest parchment he had seen, was very obviously a female. She had a good grasp of the concepts and the hard work that went into becoming a Potions Mistress, but she seemed to be a little unstable. Her intelligence was obvious, hence her application's continued presence in the consideration pile; but the vague-ness of some of her statements and her obvious child-like girlishness, kept her firmly there as well, instead of truly being given the acceptance.
Another, obviously male by the poor scrawl, was difficult to read; the underlying genius of some of this one's ideas, however, is what kept Severus' attention. The gentleman was a modern thinker with some refreshing takes on old problems and a thirst to help improve the field. What kept Severus from accepting this one was the disorganization of the paper. It was obvious that the man would never be able to keep up.
The next was also obviously male. The tone gave it away. There was intelligence in this one, but also a level of self-regard. The young man had all the right credentials and scores on his NEWTs and OWLs. It was the level of arrogance behind the words that had Severus scowling and setting the application aside once more.
He picked up the fourth application, once again, and read it through a fifth time.
Upon reading this one the first time, Severus had forced himself to set it down and continue reading the others. The application seemed too good to be true. If it were all true, it was the obvious choice however. The more he reviewed the last four, the more this one stood out. He went over it again;
The student had the highest NEWT and OWL scores he had seen since Albus Dumbledore's. The only higher scores to compare them to were his own. They had plenty of post-education credits to add to their list, including a Mastery of Arithmancy. That was no easy discipline. Arithmancy was one of the most rigorous arts of intelligence. Arithmancy was by far the most mentally draining and exhausting of all magical disciplines. It took a well trained mind with exceptional intelligence and brain power to truly Master the stringent discipline. Many Arithmancers rarely left the comfort of their homes, for lack of social skills. Even the Muggles recognized the correlation between true genius and a lack of social skills.
Severus peered closer at the applicants submissions. For their potions accomplishments, they had included an absolutely perfect sample of Draught of Living Death, as well as a deep crimson potion that, the note with it claimed, cured the side effects of the Cruciatus Curse. They had created it 2 years previously and the patent was pending. Also according to the attached explanation, they were running trial uses of it at St. Mungo's. The applicant called their potion Potum Corrigo, which literally translated, meant Drink of Mending.
Setting those aside for later trial and research, he picked up the essay again. It was on an Erudio spell. The paper, in great detail, explained that the spell was of the applicant's own creation and was used to auto-correct and grade student papers, or other official documents, based upon the caster's ideals and standards. Included in the paper were detailed descriptions on how to cast the spell, both on individual papers, stacks of papers, or even on a self-inking quill.
'That's an intriguing idea. Cast the spell on a self-inking quill, and walk away from a stack of papers. Allowing you to go about your day or complete other work and still have the papers graded and corrected in time for the next class. Very intriguing. It couldn't possibly work however...' Severus' thoughts slowed as he looked at a stack of third year papers from the previous school year. Their final essays he never finished grading. He shook his head after a moment of thought and turned back to the essay.
It was well thought out, thought provoking, intelligent, concise, and, so far, had been proven correct. In their background papers, it was listed that the applicant had spent one year working, directly after the completion of their NEWTs, before getting their Master's in Arithmancy. Having spent only 4 years for a full Mastery in Arithmancy, the applicant was likely aged between 21 and 25. The range being based on whether they took their NEWTs directly after their seventh year or not.
Severus, admittedly, was having a difficult time wrapping his brain around the idea of someone so young having accomplished so much. A full Mastery that normally took 8 years or more to complete, by the looks of it several spells and potions with patents pending, the highest scores since Albus himself, and an Order of Merlin first class.
The student had signed the papers as
"A Simple Student:
Order of Merlin, First Class; War Hero, Second Class; Master Arithmancer, ward of Magnus Tohku."
In a post-script, the student mentioned that all vague allusions to their identity would be clarified in their papers automatically, should he choose to accept their submission and take them on as his chosen apprentice.
Information validating any seemingly far fetched claims or awards would be included in this revelation. Another creative spell of their own, he presumed. The applicant apologized for not being able to be more forward, but had done things this way in order to be able to include their accomplishments of note without revealing who they were, as he had asked. He gave the student credit – they had done their job thoroughly in the submission process.
In a fit of sardonic disbelief, Severus stood from his desk and cast the Erudio spell at the stack of third year papers and the self-inking quill next to them. To his utter astonishment, the quill jumped up and began writing on and grading the papers. He watched for a moment, shock coloring his features, as he waited to see if the papers would indeed be graded the way he normally would have done himself.
As he picked up the first couple of papers and began to check them over, he sighed in resignation. The spell worked perfectly, as designed. He threw the papers back onto the pile in disgust. There was no way he was going to get out of this now. He would have to accept an Apprentice.
He tapped the cover page of the submission and activated the tracking spell. Scowling, he stalked over to his fire place, calling for Felix on the way.
"A bottle of Ogden's, please." The elf nodded and reappeared moments later, carrying a proper tray with the Ogden's Finest and Severus' dinner. He threw himself into an armchair and poured himself a decanter of the whiskey, as he watched his elf tie the Standard Acceptance letter, with his added notes, rules and expectations, to an owl. As the owl flew out the window, following the tracking spell, Severus wondered what he had just gotten himself into.
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Alright – so I know that Severus is seemingly a little less, um... harsh, in my story. Let's face it guys. It's finally peace time. He faced death over and over and over again. He lost so many people he cared about, nearly all of them (*wink wink*). That's bound to have a an effect on a person. He is a little softer with the people he cares about now, because he has realized that there is no time to be hiding behind a mask, especially now that he does not have to do so for his own safety anymore. If you guys have any questions regarding some of my more creative liberties, like with the spells and potions and stuff, please feel free to let me know in the comments and I will do my best to address all questions and concerns in a timely fashion.
Felix is Severus' elf, named for the lucky potion, Felix Felicis. When Severus took on the house elf, Felix thought himself incredibly lucky to be serving such a "noble and brave master," and so Severus named him for the lucky potion. Mouse, the house elf of the apprentice we are about to meet, is named for her small, quiet, stature and her love of books and libraries. The yet-to-be-introduced apprentice saved her from being homeless while studying with the Arithmancy Master, and the little thing reminded the apprentice of a book mouse.
So, here we go. Severus has been forced into accepting an Apprentice. Who could it possibly be? Well you will just have to read on to find out :).
~Genevieve.