Disclaimer: Everything belongs to JKR, except for the storyline and original characters.
Enjoy, and please read and review. Thanks.
Big Big World
Chapter 11 Getting down
Allison made herself comfortable on the chair with a mug of green tea. Snape sat next to her in another chair, and she could still see the pain he was going through from his rigid movements. She had a very bad feeling of what was this about.
"Severus is a spy for our side, and he had just came back from a Death Eaters' meeting tonight. They knew about you Allison," Dumbledore looked at them, the twinkle in his eyes had lessen somewhat, "but they couldn't get any information about who and where you are from. If Severus are to survive another meeting, he has to tell them something about you."
Allison looked down at her mug, and snapped, "Great... I am going to be a bait."
Dumbledore did not know what to say, and she earned a glare from Snape, "Believe me, Miss Lowe, I have no intension of exposing you, but you be careful with your language and that tone of yours."
Dumbledore stopped them before they could start another round of verbal engagement which it pained him to miss, but they had to get down to business, and he didn't think Allison would be too happy about the next news he was about to tell her, "I have a resolution, but you are not going to like it. I had contacted your father."
Allison jumped up from her chair and screamed, slamming down her mug on the desk, "YOU WHAT?!"
Dumbledore looked behind Allison, and said mysteriously, "and he is here, just standing behind you."
Allison was outraged at the turn of events, more so by her father's presence. Though she was tempted to just leave the room, she couldn't. She turned around and saw her father standing there, with his trademark smile. "Father."
Snape watched this unfolded before him, he stood up despite the spasms, and turned away to look at who Allison's father was. She walked towards his father and talked in a totally different language that Snape suspected was Welsh Gaelic.
*****************************
"Fel ach , dadogi?" Allison said, and nodded at her father slightly.
"Fel ach , ferch?" Allison's father, Gawain, asked back, but not expecting a reply. Just from her face, he knew she was in total outrage, "Bridget, eistedd i lawr. Cawn at chwedleua, na chrawn cari 'i ai peidio." Resigned, Allison took her chair again with Gawain who had conjured a chair and sat down next to Allison.
Dumbledore introduced Gawain to Snape, and went on with his resolution, "Allison, I had discussed with you father, and we concluded that you can use your younger sister's identity."
Allison looked at them, dumbfounded, "Use Bianca's identity? No way, how could it cheat anyone?"
Gawain looked at her uneasily, "Not Bianca, Aoife."
She looked at in shock and anger slowly got hold of her, "No, I will not do that."
Gawain almost roared at Allison, "This is for your safety, Bridget."
"No. I. WILL NOT DO THAT. Bringing another one into the situation? What kind of safety is this, huh? I will not accept this," she glared at her father, "I am not talking to you and I don't want to see you ever again. Ever."
She stood up from her chair, took her pendent out and knocked it on the nearest wall to summon the door to her room. Gawain was shocked by her stubbornness and shouted at her, "Bridget! This is a ridiculous time for sibling rivalry. Your younger sister had consented to it! You will do as I say."
Allison turned around and glowered, "This is not sibling rivalry, not on my part. Don't forget what she and Camilla did last time I visited to make me know I am not welcomed in the family, and I am not a Janney because my mother is not your current wife? Haven't you thought why she agreed to me using her identity? Because that would wipe me out as heir to the family. SHE will become heir." She shot her father a smile that brought a chill down everyone's spine, "Oh, by the way, for your information, I haven't had a father for a long time, and you are in no position to make me do anything. Not even Mother or Bianca." She opened the door which had appeared and disappeared from the room, with the door assimilated with the wall several seconds later.
*****************************
Allison was fuming with anger. How dare he just turn up and expect her to bow at his command?! Where is he when Bianca was teased and abused by Camilla and Aoife? Where is he when she need him? Where is he... "God dammit!" She almost snapped the pencil she was writing on.
Hermione was totally shocked by the language but she dared not say a thing. They were now in Allison's rooms, her studying for her Newts, and Allison was writing in a language she didn't understand. Anyway, she had been very grumpy and restless for a few days, and Hermione was absolutely clueless of what was going on. Truth to be told, she had never seen her like this before, like she was angry with the whole world.
Hermione went back to her studies, not daring to ask what was going on when she heard a knock at the door. Allison looked up and shouted, "COME IN!" And in came Snape.
"Professor Snape, I'll leave you and Allison alone then." Hermione grabbed all her stuff and rushed out like a dementor was chasing after her.
*****************************
Back to that night...
Gawain just looked at the place where Allison had disappeared from for a few moments, before he collapsed in the chair, covered his eyes muttering, 'what the heck am I arguing with her for?'
Dumbledore looked at Gawain with pity, "Because you don't know how to approach her. Because you are used to the way you treat Bianca, and thought she would accept it like Bianca did."
"Pardon me, Professor Snape, for the scene," Gawain looked a bit embarrassed at Snape, "Family affairs."
To Snape's surprise, he heard Dumbledore snorted, "It's way over family affairs anymore. I told you to sort it all out ages ago."
"Announced Allison and Bianca as joint heirs to get them killed? I guess not!" Gawain growled, "I don't want to lose two daughters in order to get rid of traitors who have the same blood as mine."
Dumbledore just arched his eyebrow at him, "You have already lost two daughters, didn't you notice that?"
*****************************
Snape was snapped out of his thoughts by the impatient tapping sound made by Allison's fingernails tapping on the table. "To what do I owe the honour of your visit, Professor?"
"It is about that night." Snape said, expecting her to get all worked up and shouting, but she didn't. She just looked at him and said, "Go on. I am listening."
Snape said, a bit resigned, "Headmaster said that you could use the identity as his distant relative, which he could easily make up the documents."
Allison nodded, "And?"
"The Headmaster liked to know when you are going to start translating the book. I have to be there when you do the translation, as Professor Dumbledore is worried something would happen."
Allison sighed and moved to get the box from under the coffee table, "How about now?"
Snape looked strangely at her, "It would be fine."
She laid the box on the large table that Snape had transfigured the coffee table into and opened it. She took the leather-bound book out and breathed in deeply. She was so worried to see the words again. She opened the book, and waited. No words. There is nothing on the page at all.
Snape looked intensely at Allison in case if anything that didn't seem right happened. He noticed her sudden stiffness and was about to ask to what was wrong, a light glow started illuminating from the book and getting brighter and brighter. Snape was looking at the scene unfolding before him, and he couldn't move, not even said a word, and watched the glow get stronger and stronger before it enveloped the two of them.
To Be Continued
Translations:
Fel ach , dadogi? --- How are you, Father?
Fel ach , ferch? --- How are you, Daughter?
Bridget, eistedd i lawr. Cawn at chwedleua, na chrawn cari 'i ai peidio. --- Bridget, sit down. We have to talk, no matter you like it or not.