CHAPTER 7 - Departures and Meetings

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Severus Snape glided silently down the hallway next to a cloaked figure. They said nothing, but the tension between them was almost tangible. Earlier, the Headmaster had explained to Raven that there were no available guestrooms at the time, and that the only dormitory that had an empty bed was Gryffindor. There had been some turmoil within the dark sorceress when she learned she would have to share her sleeping quarters with other girls, and had almost let the reason why slip. Almost. But she had caught herself just in time before Dumbledore had noticed anything amiss. She had already divulged far too much personal information for her liking, and she felt naked to the both of them...vulnerable to exploitation, and open to betrayal. She sure as Trigon wouldn't reveal her other secrets. Secrets like why she should be alone at night and have her own space; secrets like what really happened to Azarath and why she came to Earth; and secrets like the potential for her father's return...

Raven shook herself mentally and brought her attention back to the present, where she was walking down a dark and empty corridor with the potions professor. The Welcoming Feast had ended a while ago, and all the students were already in their respective dormitories. The only sign of life was the moving portraits that adorned the walls, most of which stopped and stared at the mysteriously hooded girl that kept up with Professor Snape at this time of night. She regarded the imposing man beside her as they swept down halls at a fast, but graceful speed. He hadn't spoken to her since the Headmaster's office, but she had felt his eyes on her at several distinct times. He was still suspicious of her, but also extremely curious and distant. It was clear that he respected her power, and her past...but she held the impression that he did not yet respect her. She would still have to earn his trust and respect, and Raven accepted that...though she wasn't sociable enough to actually work at becoming respected by him. Either he would or he wouldn't in time.

"You are a follower of this Dark Lord the Headmaster spoke of," Raven stated. This was a topic of great importance and sensitivity in the young wizard, and she decided to simply discuss it with him. Raven knew this was a tender spot for the man beside her, and she had a horrible tendency to forget tact. Instead, when she saw a weakness in another, she would rip the scar open bluntly without anesthesia, and go about healing the wound properly...turning the weak spot into a strength. But the process was a painful one, and many people didn't see her efforts for what they were...a healing and strengthening.

Snape flinched at her words, and pierced her with a sharp glare. "That is none of your concern!" he snarled quietly. "You may have Dumbledore overflowing with warm sentimentality and merciful adoration towards you because of your pitiful sob story, but you have no right to intrude on my personal life!" They both were standing in the middle of the hall, facing each other; the professor with his hands clenched, teeth gritted, and eyes blazing, was towering over the young woman, who was standing serenely, arms at her sides under her cloak, and expression neutral.

"Very well," Raven said blandly, clearly not intimidated by his grand display. She turned and continued walking down the corridor. "Only I know what it is to be a pawn."

"Don't claim to know me! You know nothing of my life!" he hurled back, not following her.

"That may be, but I recognize one when I see it." She stayed silent after saying this, and only took one glance at him out of the corner of her eye.

Snape's voice was quiet, but the vehemence was gone. "Do not presume to think that this situation wasn't a result of my own doing. You don't know the circumstances surrounding my position." After this statement, he whipped around and stalked off back the way they had come from.

Under normal conditions, Raven would have let him go and saved more of their conversation for another day. But as it was, she was being led to the Gryffindor common room, and she had no idea where that was. Unfortunately, she still needed the guidance of Severus Snape, and he was currently sweeping down the corridor with his black robes billowing out behind him. With a sigh, her violet eyes turned an unnatural glowing white, and she phased through the stone floor in a pool of dark energy, which disappeared once she had completely sunk through the surface of the floor. Slightly ahead of Severus, another black pool formed on the ground in the middle of the hallway, and Raven rose up out of it directly in front of him, effectively blocking his pathway. His eyes widened significantly and he stopped abruptly, taking in this amazing sight of teleportation.

The empath's eyes quickly changed back into their normal purple, and her hair, which had been flowing in a non-existant breeze, lowered to drape around her face. "I apologize for offending you, Professor, but I still require your guidance to get me to my dormitory." She refused to budge from his path, and continued to stand there gazing up at him.

Snape, to his credit, hid his surprise fairly well, and crossed his arms in annoyance. At that moment, another person appeared at the end of the corridor and walked toward them. This woman was dressed in tartan robes, and wore her hair in a tight bun. "Ah," Snape said, turning to face the new company, "May I introduce you to Professor McGonogall, head of Gryffindor house. She will escort you to your dormitory. And now, I take my leave. Good night, Miss Roth." He turned and swept down the hallway.

"It's 'Raven', Professor," the sorceress called after him. She recieved no reply, and soon he was gone. The dark girl turned and greeted the Scottish professor with a calculating gaze. "Good evening, ma'am."

Minerva eyed her suspiciously, giving her a shrewd once-over. "You are Raven Roth?" she asked in a clipped Scottish brogue.

"Yes, Professor, I am."

McGonogall continued to look at her with arrogent trepidation, but she opened up a little more. "I am Minerva McGonogall, your new head of house. If you will just follow me, I will show you to your dormitory." The plaid-robed woman turned and headed down the hallway, only looking over her shoulder once to make sure Raven was following. "I hear you gave my Sorting Hat a spot of trouble today," she said conversationally. Her sharp eyes glanced down to gage Raven's response.

"I apologize for that, madam. There was little I could do," the empath said evenly, keeping her eyes trained right in front of her.

The elderly woman snorted but made no comment. "The Headmaster has told me much about you."

Startled, Raven jerked her gaze onto the severe woman beside her. "How? I only just left his office."

"This is a school for magic, dear," McGonogall said sternly. "There are means by which witches and wizards can communicate instantly from a distance."

"Hmm," Raven hummed noncommittally, neither interested nor apathetic. "What is the difference between the houses of Hogwarts?" she asked blandly.

At this question, Minerva puffed up slightly in house pride as she answered. "Not all houses were created equal," she said, displaying her bias. "The school was founded by four people: Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, Godric Gryffindor, and Salazar Slytherin. They each wanted to teach a certain group of magical people, and so when they came together, they founded a school that taught everyone. However, Salazar Slytherin only wanted to teach what we call "Purebloods", or those people who don't have Muggles in their bloodline. There was controversy over this, and in the end, Salazar Slytherin broke away from the group, as did the rest, and formed their own "houses". This is where we get the four houses of Hogwarts. Slytherin holds mainly purebloods, and those who have traits including ambition, deviousness, and slyness. A rather shady house, if you ask me, and who better to lead it than Severus Snape...but I won't go into that now. Hufflepuff, headed by Professor Sprout, has all mixes...some Pureblood, some Half-blood, but mostly Muggleborn. They are known for their loyalty, good-intentions, and friendship. But unfortunately, they are also known for their gullibility, weak-will, and pacifism," she added under her breath. "Then there is the house of Ravenclaw, which is run by Professor Flitwick. They keep all those who are intelligent, witty, and studious. But they also tend to be quite boring and professional. They're never casual or relaxed, and they seem as if they are always trying to impress others. Last of all, is my own house, Gryffindor. By far the best house there is. We hold only those who are courageous and bold, brave and outgoing. Some say that we also lean towards being stubborn...that we don't look before we leap, and that we are reckless without thinking. But those who say this are wrong. There are no faults in Gryffindor."

"Apparently whoever came up with the faults forgot to include arrogance, blind pride, and refusal to admit being wrong," Raven said to herself as they arrived at the top of several flights of stairs. More loudly, she said, "Professor, why are some of the staircases moving?"

McGonogall looked around. "Oh, don't mind them. They're quite finicky and like to change every once in a while. If you get stuck, just wait for it to return...or fly," she added at the end, glancing at Raven out of the corner of her eye with a considering look.

The sorceress returned the gaze blankly. "True...if there are no students about," she said, intending for the last phrase to be a subtle request for permission.

Minerva nodded, answering her question. "You may exercise any ability you possess here. As for allowing other students to witness them, I will leave that up to your judgement. You will recieve a lot of attention if they discover it, and I know you are a private person, so use them at your own risk."

Raven appreciated the warning. "Only in the worst case scenario, then," she decided.

The pair walked for several more minutes before coming to a large painting. It depicted a rather large woman, who was currently slumped over, leaning against the frame, snoring quietly. The half-demon cocked her head curiously, wondering why this particular picture was so special, but because of the statue she had seen earlier, she didn't dismiss anything as "just a statue" or "just a picture" anymore, and she waited for McGonogall to do something which would prove her correct. Sure enough, the Professor spoke a password clearly and crisply in her Scottish accent. "Amphibian!" She then turned to Raven. "This portrait is the entrance to the Gryffindor common room. You'll need to speak the password to the fat lady before she'll admit you."

Raven nodded, then raised her eyebrow when the painting didn't move.

Minerva turned back to the picture with a disgusted sigh. "Wake up!" she ordered, poking the canvas. The fat woman gave a snort as she woke up suddenly. "I said 'amphibian'!"

The painted lady scowled disapprovingly, but didn't talk back to her superior as she swung open, revealing a large hole in the stone wall. McGonogall waved Raven through, and she complied with only a small moment's hesitation. Once inside, the dark teenager could barely contain her awe. Two large fireplaces were embedded across from each other in a large room filled with dark red furniture. The stone floor was hidden beneath an extremely large rug which almost covered the entire floor. There were dark wooden tables, large, overstuffed couches, and several huge reading chairs that Raven couldn't wait to cuddle up in. Bookshelves lined parts of the walls, and stained-glass windows were scattered in between regular windows. The fires were crackling happily in both fireplaces, giving the entire common room a flickering light. She noticed that the walls were lined with torches, but they were not lit, and she assumed that they were only lit during the daytime.

Even though the amounts of red and gold were overpowering to Raven's eyes, she felt comfortable here. She knew she could at least try to get used to the bright colors. The Professor stepped through a moment later, and was steering her to a flight of stairs on the left. "These stairs lead to the girls dormatories, while the ones on the right lead to the boys'." The empath stifled a weary sigh as she eyed the stairs. "Come on, up we go," McGonogall pressed, shepherding her up the stone steps.

Once they were at the top, there was a short hall with doors on either side of her. They stopped before the third door on their left, and Minerva silently opened it and ushered Raven in. There were ten beds, five on each side of the room, with large wooden posts, headboards and footboards, and they each had bright scarlet canopies and curtains embroidered with golden thread. Raven felt a headache coming on with all of this red and gold, but she quietly moved to the only bed that was unoccupied. Her suitcase was at the foot of the large bed, and there was a small night table next to the head of it which had a gas lamp. Hers was the only lamp which was lit, and the candle-light cast dancing shadows all around the room.

"I'll leave you, now," McGonogall said quietly. "Breakfast is between seven and nine. If you need anything, just find my office...any of my students will tell you how to get there. Good night," she said, exiting through the door they had both come through.

"Thank you, Professor," she replied.

Once she was to herself, she closed the bed curtains and settled herself on the bed. Raven was concerned about sleeping in a room filled with other girls. She really didn't want them to be woken in the middle of the night by a new peer who was screaming her lungs out and thrashing about on the bed...especially when certain things occured which sometimes accompanied her nightmares. She had let go of her control that day in the Headmaster's office...and not only had it sucked the life out of a hat, it had also got a foot in the door of her self control. She needed to meditate before she could allow herself to sleep.

Raven floated herself a couple feet above her bed, and began to chant quietly. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos. Azarath Metrion Zinthos. Azarath Metrion Zinthos." She made sure her voice level was not risking the chance of her peers waking up. The sorceress continued her mantra as she slipped into her mindscape and battled internally to get the small amount of chaos under control.

After an hour or two, and once she felt that she was under sufficient control of herself, she lowered back down onto the bed. Raven undid the clasp of her cloak, and hung it over one of the bed posts. She cautiously laid herself down and burried her head in the soft pillow, finally allowing herself to surrender to sleep, while silently praying that her dreams were kept free of her father and other memories.