Chapter 38

"So you have to be in my company at all times," I finished, as Lisa, Terry and I made our way out through the front gates, having just been signed out by Filch.

"Do I get paid for being your babysitter?" asked Lisa, laughing. "I'll have to go make a financial deal for all this with Snape."

"Oh, try," I said airily. "I'm sure a request for payment will be well received. In fact, I'm sure he'd love to discuss it with you during the detention you'll get for daring to ask."

"So Snape doesn't want you and I to be seen alone together in public?" asked Terry.

"That's right."

"But I'm allowed to…accompany to the two of you?"

"Yep."

"So do I get payment for being your bodyguard?"

"You're not big enough to be a bodyguard, Terry," I said evenly, smiling at him.

"Ow, Mill, that really hurt!" he laughed, putting a hand over his heart in mock offence.

"I'm sure she didn't mean to insult your bulging biceps," said Lisa, smiling, putting her hand in Terry's.

"Well, I do work out," said Terry, putting on an impressive voice.

"Do you really?" I asked, smirking.

"Nope. Too lazy."

We talked non-stop all the way into Hogsmeade. I had already decided that it was going to be a happy day. I was going to put all my post-Christmas worries in the back of my mind and really enjoy the morning with my friends. Terry and Lisa were both a lot more comfortable with each other now that their feelings had come to light.

"You know, I'm sorry if I'm stopping you two having time together today because of Snape's rules," I said, as we made our way towards Honeydukes.

"Are you kidding?" asked Lisa, incredulously. "You haven't been to Hogsmeade at all this term."

"And we have plenty of alone time," Terry added. "You do spend a bit of time with Snape these days."

"Well, it's only for lessons," I said. "If those lessons stop next year I guess I'll go back to not seeing him as much." There's a thought. If Snape felt that he didn't need to teach me anything new, we wouldn't have as many scheduled lessons. I'd still go to the dungeons on Friday evenings, but I couldn't imagine just turning up there on other days without it being scheduled.

"I still don't know how you're going to survive spending a whole summer with him, Mill," said Terry quietly. "I mean, I only just cope with a double Potions class with the man. You can't tell me he's totally different with you when you two are alone. It's not like you grew up knowing him. Hell, not long ago you were just another Ravenclaw student to him."

"I know," I said simply. "I was. And he's not that different when we're alone together. He still gets angry. He still sneers and he's certainly sarcastic, but…"

Terry and Lisa both stopped, looking at me closely. I didn't always tell them much about my relationship with Snape, especially lately, and I knew that they were interested.

"But?" Lisa pressed, when I didn't finish my sentence.

"But…I don't know," I said finally, not knowing where I had actually been leading with that sentence. I kind of knew how I felt, but I couldn't express it. I frowned to myself, trying to fathom exactly what it was that I was feeling. Something had changed since our weekend at Merrigan Hall.

"So are you spending the last of your pocket money from Merle in here?" Lisa asked, squeezing my hand as we approached Honeydukes. "I bet she'd agree it would be well spent. Didn't she pass on her love of orange chocolate to you?"

I smiled, thankful for the distraction from my muddled thoughts. I recalled the evenings Merle and I had spent in front of the fire when I had been little and learning to read. She'd take The Tales of Beedle The Bard from the shelf and I'd receive one piece of orange chocolate for attempting to read each page.

"No," I said softly, glad to relive that memory, "that money is still in my trunk."

Lisa grinned. "Snape gave you pocket money for today? How nice."

Terry wrinkled his nose. "Did you have to earn it? How many gutted toads to earn a galleon?"

I pulled a face. "None."

Terry shook his head. "I had to de-gnome the garden, clean the house and help with dinner to earn my spending money for the school year."

Lisa nodded. "Yeah. I had to help clean Great Aunt Esme's house and read her favourite books to her to earn mine."

They both looked expectantly at me.

I shrugged. "Well, I haven't spent a summer with Snape yet. Who knows...maybe he'll give me a list of things to do."

"You know," Terry said to Lisa, looking bemused, "on the pocket money front, so far Snape seems more lenient than our parents."

I shook my head. "You really think Snape and lenient go together in the same sentence?"

Lisa laughed. "Definitely not."

We reached Honeydukes and joined the crowd of students inside.

"Ah ha! Mosquito Marshmallows!" Terry exclaimed, picking up a bag.

"That's disgusting," I said, turning to pick up a packet of peanut brittle.

While Terry and Lisa were examining Honeydukes' new and improved range of mini edible broomsticks, which flew around inside your mouth, I sneaked away and picked up a packet of the finest dark chocolate. It even came in dark green packaging so Snape would have to approve. I saw the chocolate stars on another shelf and couldn't help smiling to myself.

I hid the packet under my peanut brittle, orange chocolate and a bag of boiled sweets I knew Matilda liked. I thought I could buy the chocolate without my friends noticing a thing. It was just my luck that the shop assistant made a comment about the dark chocolate being his favourite as Lisa and Terry joined me at the counter.

They said nothing until we had left the shop and were walking towards The Three Broomsticks.

"You know, I would have picked Snape as a dark chocolate person," said Lisa, looking at Terry.

Terry raised his eyebrows. "Really? I would have thought he'd be a licorice person myself."

"Oh yes, you're both very cluey and clever," I quipped. "But you can't spread it around."

"As if we would," said Lisa, laughing. "It's so nice of you to buy chocolate for your brother."

"Yes it is nice of me," I said, sarcastically. "I'm a very devoted sister."

"So what would happen if we spread it around?" asked Terry, chewing on a toffee.

"Well Snape told me he would see to it that you never taste chocolate again," I said airily, peering into my Honeydukes bag with feigned interest.

"Git," Terry muttered.

We went into the Three Broomsticks and sat down after ordering three Butterbeers. We were sure to take a table in a quiet corner, where we couldn't be overheard.

I kept an eye out for Malfoy. Thankfully he wasn't anywhere inside the pub. I had told my friends about avoiding him, and having to be polite if we did have to talk. Terry had begrudgingly complied to be pleasant if the moment arose. I wasn't even sure if Malfoy had bothered to come. I hadn't seen him among the line of students being signed out by Filch.

"Here you go, dears," said Madam Rosmerta, coming by with our drinks.

"So do you know what you're doing for Christmas yet, Mill?" asked Terry, as he took a swig of Butterbeer.

I shook my head.

Lisa leaned forward. "What about a present for Snape? What did you decide on?"

"Oh apparently I am giving Snape something he wants," I said dryly. "Unfortunately I can't share the details with you because I don't know what it is."

"Huh?" Lisa furrowed her brow, looking puzzled. "Wait, did you ask him what you could get him?"

I nodded.

Lisa's eyes widened. "Oh my," she said. "I would have been petrified to ask such a thing!"

"I had to get over that," I said, shrugging. "I decided to just ask him instead of stressing about finding him something."

"But what do you mean you don't know what the present is?" Lisa pressed, her eyes still wide.

"I'm just as confused as you are," I replied, "but Snape knows what he wants and I won't find out what it is until Christmas, I suppose."

"Well that's intriguing," Terry said, leaning forward. "Do you know if he's getting you something?"

"Well that's interesting too," I said thoughtfully. "He asked me last night if there was anything in particular that I wanted for Christmas."

"Oh wow!" Lisa exclaimed. "What did you order?"

"Nothing," I replied. "I said that there wasn't anything I wanted."

"But is there anything you'd like?" Terry asked, looking serious.

I shook my head. "Not really. It feels awkward asking Snape to buy me presents anyway."

"He's your family now, Mill," Lisa pointed out. "You'll have to get used to asking him to buy you things."

I nodded. "I know."

"Besides," she went on, suddenly grinning, "what are you going to do when you actually need new things like clothes and...you know, more personal things?" She raised her eyebrows at me.

I frowned at her as Terry turned his laugh into a cough.

Lisa giggled. "Well, he is your guardian."

I stared at her. Hm, now there was an interesting thought…

"Well, I'll just tell him I need to buy girl stuff," I said finally. "Doesn't that normally stop men asking questions?"

"Yep," Terry answered, draining his bottle.

I couldn't imagine actually saying the words 'girl stuff' to Snape, but I put that topic in the back of my mind for another day. That was certainly another can of worms.

We ate lunch in the pub and spent another hour after that in Hogsmeade. We stopped at a stationery shop so Lisa and Terry needed more quills and ink. We also visited Zonko's so Terry could buy some toys for his young cousins for Christmas. We didn't see Malfoy at all and by the time we were walking along a deserted corridor in Hogwarts back to Ravenclaw Tower, I had firmly convinced myself that the Slytherin hadn't even gone.

It was as if my thoughts drew the piece of scum into my presence, for Malfoy and a group of Slytherins suddenly appeared from around a corner in the distance in front of us. Malfoy was in the centre of the group, strutting along as if he owned the castle. Pansy was next to him, talking animatedly, while Crabbe and Goyle were shuffling along behind them.

"Oh no," moaned Lisa quietly.

"Be polite," I warned. I looked at Terry, whose face was rigid. "For my sake," I said softly.

"Ah, Armilla!" said Malfoy, as soon as we were in earshot of one another. "How lovely to see you."

"Malfoy," I said, nodding at him.

"Draco, please," Malfoy insisted, smiling politely and completely ignoring the presence of my friends. Next to him, Pansy looked green with jealously, her eyes flitting between Malfoy and I.

"Draco," I said, being careful not to say the name as if the word made me sick.

"I must say that I am thoroughly looking forward to the party your father is holding towards the end of this month," said Malfoy smoothly. "I hear that only the very elite of wizarding society will be in attendance."

I was so tempted to say then how did you score an invitation? but the memory of the welts from my father's letter was still fresh in my mind, so I merely nodded.

"I'm sure getting to know your father better will encourage you to associate with only the worthy members of our kind," Malfoy went on, his pointed face sneering slightly. "I do believe there are a number of muggleborns and blood traitors in Ravenclaw, but you would know better than to give them your attention."

I was able to keep my disgust hidden due to Occlumency, but I thought Terry deserved a medal for not having hexed Malfoy by now. I could practically feel the anger radiating from him. Neither of my friends was muggleborn, but to me, the decent members of the wizarding society would have been offended by Malfoy's attitude.

I nodded again, politely, chewing on my tongue.

"Well, I hope you have a lovely Christmas," I said, as my friends made to continue walking, a sign that they were more than ready to go.

Malfoy actually smiled.

"Why, thank you," he said, sounding as though he really meant it. "I hope you do too. I look forward to speaking with you at the party."

Now I could practically feel the fury radiating from Pansy. She stood with her arms straight and her fists clenched, glowering not at Malfoy, but at me.

"Well, bye then," I said, moving past him, pleased for my sake that I had left him with a good impression.

"Bye," said Malfoy brightly, turning to watch as I went in the opposite direction.

"Draco!" I heard Pansy hiss, sounding completely infuriated with him. I couldn't hear the rest of what she said to him as we continued further away from them.

"That was handled quite well, I must say," Lisa muttered.

"Mm," I replied, thinking how much I detested both Malfoy and Pansy. Though we were walking further away, I could have sworn Pansy's muffled angry words were getting louder.

"I think-" Terry began, turning to look over his shoulder. What he thought I never found out.

I suddenly felt something razor sharp graze my right side and I gasped, clutching my side in pain. I felt blood oozing through my top.

"Parkinson!" Terry shouted, drawing his wand and pointing it at her.

Turning slightly, I saw Pansy down the corridor, wand raised, wearing a crazed expression on her face. Malfoy was nowhere to be seen.

"Dear me, what's going on here?" came a girly voice.

I quickly stood up a little straighter, moving my cloak over the blood stain and pretending with great effort that blood wasn't oozing from my side. I shook my head slightly at my friends in warning not to mention my injury to Umbridge.

Terry had pocketed his wand as soon as he had heard footsteps, but Pansy hadn't been quick enough.

"Miss Parkinson?" said Umbridge, in an even higher voice, rocking back and forth on her tiny feet.

"I…I was trying to defend myself, Professor," said Pansy feebly, pointing madly at Terry, Lisa and I.

"Oh," simpered Umbridge. She turned and gave us a nasty look. "Were you indeed trying to attack Miss Parkinson here?"

"No, Professor," we said in unison.

"But I'm glad you just came by, Professor," said Lisa suddenly, in a terribly polite tone. "By the looks of it, I think Pansy was about to attack us from behind, and we know you can't use magic at all in the corridors, let alone hexes."

Umbridge narrowed her eyes at Lisa, as if trying to work out if Lisa was really concerned or if she was mocking her authority. Thankfully, she settled on the former.

"Well at least you know the rules, Miss Turpin," she said. She turned to Pansy. "I must say I am very disappointed in you Miss Parkinson. You know what a…credit you are to me as a prefect here."

Pansy now glowered at Umbridge. "He had his wand out!" she shrieked, pointing at Terry.

"Miss Parkinson, you do not speak to a teacher that way," came a sharp voice.

To my horror, Snape had suddenly appeared behind my friends and I. He didn't look at me at all. Instead, he moved to stand next to Umbridge.

"Apologise at once!" he snapped at Pansy, giving her a withering glare.

Pansy didn't dare defy Snape. She seemed to have been intimidated into giving him the utmost respect. Also as her Head of House, Snape had the right to suspend her for hexing in the hallway, although she hadn't admitted to hexing anyone yet...

"I'm sorry, Professor," Pansy said meekly, looking at Umbridge.

"Well, Severus," said Umbridge brightly, "I got here just in time to stop Miss Parkinson from hexing these students." She gestured at Terry, Lisa and I.

"That is fortunate," Snape said indifferently, glancing at us briefly. I was chewing my tongue again, concentrating on that rather than the throbbing pain in my side. I wanted to leave so I could heal it, but Umbridge clearly hadn't finished.

"You," she said, looking at Boot. "Is Miss Parkinson correct? Did you have your wand out?"

"Yes, Professor," said Terry, "only to stop Parkinson from-" he paused, looking swiftly at me. I didn't dare make my message obvious in front of Umbridge and Snape. I met his gaze evenly, hoping Terry would take the hint.

"From what, Boot?" asked Snape harshly, his eyes flitting between us.

"…trying to hex us, sir," Terry finished, looking back at him.

Snape narrowed his eyes, but said nothing more.

"Well, as you both know that magic is not permitted in the corridors, I think that will be twenty points each from Ravenclaw and Slytherin," said Umbridge. "And to be sure that it does not happen again, you will both receive detention."

Pansy hung her head, but Terry looked outraged. He opened his mouth to protest but Lisa's indignation won over.

"That's not fair! Terry didn't hex anyone!" she exclaimed.

"Nor apparently, did Miss Parkinson," said Snape smoothly, raising an eyebrow at her. "It is not up to you to decide what is fair, Miss Turpin. Unless you wish to join them in detention, I suggest you say no more."

"Very well," Umbridge simpered. "I suggest you all go back to your common rooms now." She gave my brother a bright smile, before turning and disappearing around the corner.

Terry, Lisa, Pansy and I all made to move away. I wanted to get to my dorm as fast as possible to heal myself, especially as the blood had started to run down my right leg. Thankfully, it was still hidden by my cloak.

"Stop!" Snape hissed in an angry tone.

We all halted at once. Snape still didn't look at me, but turned to face Pansy instead.

"Miss Parkinson, that is the second time this week you have been caught hexing students in the halls," he said in a low voice. "You know the rules and I'm sure you do not wish to suffer my displeasure any more than you already have this week."

"No, sir," said Pansy meekly. "I didn't hex anyone."

"Did you not?" asked Snape, sounding incredulous.

"No, sir," Pansy repeated, turning red.

"You're perfectly sure about that?" His tone was very dangerous now. I saw Lisa wince out of the corner of my eye.

"Yes, sir," said Pansy, her voice becoming higher.

"Then can you explain this?" Snape strode towards me, his face furious. He grasped my right arm and then briskly lifted my cloak to reveal the huge blood stain coming from my side. The sight of it made me feel sick.

"Oh…" Lisa murmured, staring at the stain. Terry was looking at Snape with a strange expression on his face, but he ignored all three of us.

"Well?" he demanded, glaring at Pansy.

"She must have hexed herself," said Pansy feebly.

Snape's expression grew more menacing. "Are you suggesting, Miss Parkinson," he snarled, "that my sister would hex herself for the sake of it?"

Pansy was shaking now. She shook her head and I knew that it was the best confession she was going to offer.

"For failing to own up and blatantly lying to your Head of House, Miss Parkinson, you will serve detention with Filch every day for the next week," Snape said angrily. "Understood?"

Pansy looked mutinous, but I could see that her hands were trembling. "Yes…yes, sir."

"You are dismissed," Snape snapped. "Return to your common room at once."

Pansy did not need to be told twice. She turned and fled from the corridor.

Now, I thought, seeing as we were the only students left, and for the fact that Snape was still clutching my cloak and right arm, he would have to pay us some notice.

"Come," he ordered, glancing briefly at the three of us. He let go of me and we followed him into a nearby classroom. Once inside, Snape closed the door and cast a soundproofing charm. He turned to face us, his expression still furious.

He gestured to the desks nearby. "Sit," he commanded, looking at Terry and Lisa.

As my friends sat down nervously, Snape turned to me. "Show me," he instructed.

"I can heal it myself," I whispered, terribly embarrassed.

He glared at me. "I believe I just gave you an order."

Resigned, and feeling incredibly self-conscious, I lifted the side of my top slightly to reveal the long deep gash on my waist.

Snape examined it closely for a moment and then straightened up.

"Well, let's see our hard work pay off," he said smoothly. "It's too deep to heal completely without dittany, but if you want to stop the blood flow, be my guest." He stood back and looked expectantly at me.

Wincing from the pain, I took out my wand. Though I was thankful that I was left-handed, waving my wand over my right side still proved fairly difficult. I succeeded in stopping most of the blood flow, though because of my awkward wand movement, it clearly needed another attempt.

"That will do, you have made your point," said Snape curtly, drawing his own wand as he moved forward again.

I hesitated, wanting to heal it myself.

"Put your wand away, Armilla," he snapped.

I put it away, not looking at my friends, who had wisely remained silent thus far.

Snape gestured for me to sit on the desk next to him and then raised his wand over the wound, making short work of stopping the blood flow. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see that both Lisa and Terry's eyes were fixed on my brother.

"I'll need to put dittany on it," Snape said quietly to me, wiping the blood away with a conjured cloth, "and I'll give you a potion for pain relief." He covered the angry gash with a conjured dressing. "You can wash the rest of it away and change when we go down to the dungeons," he added, nodding at the blood on my clothes.

I nodded, drawing my cloak around me again.

We watched as he vanished the cloth and pocketed his wand. He cast his eyes over my friends, before turning back to me, his expression stern. "I do hope there is a good explanation as to why Miss Parkinson felt the need to hex you."

"I didn't provoke her at all," I said earnestly. "I was polite to Malfoy and Pansy didn't like it."

"Parkinson attacked her from behind, Professor," Terry piped up.

Snape looked over at Terry. "And you drew your own wand, Boot, I believe?"

Terry looked troubled. "Yes, sir. She hurt Armilla."

Snape stared back at him for a moment, his mouth set in a hard line. "I brought the two of you in here to make it very clear to you both the…requirements...that now come with being Armilla's friends."

I looked up at my brother, alarmed. I didn't want him making my friends too scared to be friends with me. Snape didn't look at me at all; he addressed himself to my friends.

"It is extremely important for Armilla's own safety that neither of you do anything that could put her position in danger. I do not know what details Armilla has told you of her father, but Draco Malfoy reports on any interactions they have to him. Armilla has already suffered her father's displeasure recently and I assure you, both of us do not wish to have the experience repeat itself."

Terry and Lisa's eyes were flitting between Snape and me, both of them looking at a loss for words. I was so uncomfortable...

"Therefore, as Malfoy and a few others constantly watch Armilla, they are watching her friends too. Any bad reports will result in grievances worse than this." Snape gestured to my side. "Even if you are attacked in the corridor, Boot, our father will most likely blame you, and consequently Armilla, rather than a Slytherin."

Terry nodded slightly, while Lisa looked perturbed.

"So I warn both of you," Snape went on, his eyes narrowed, "if either of you step out of line, you will have to deal with me, and Armilla will have to deal with our father." He looked sternly at each of them. "Do we have an understanding?"

"Yes, sir," said Terry quietly, looking at Snape with the same strange look that he had been giving him before.

"And you, Miss Turpin?"

Lisa nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Of course," said Snape, "you are not to repeat this conversation to anyone. Is that clear?"

"Yes, sir," they said in unison.

He nodded, seeming satisfied. "Very well. You may go."

They stood up to leave, looking at me expectantly. I still had half an hour before my lesson with Snape began.

"Armilla will not be coming with you," said Snape, nodding at the door.

Neither of my friends moved. Both had their eyes fixed on me, concern on their faces.

"Go on," Snape said harshly, looking impatient. "She will see you at dinner."

Muttering their goodbyes, the two left, looking like lost sheep.

My brother turned back to me, looking grim. "I do not apologise for doing that," he said. "It was necessary."

I didn't answer. I got off the desk, wincing a little from the pain in my side. I wasn't sure whether I was angry with him or not. I moved towards the door.

"Wait," Snape ordered.

I turned around to face him.

He was wearing a slightly guarded expression as he folded his arms. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fi-'" I paused, remembering a conversation we'd had a couple of weeks before. "Well, there's the small trouble of pain from a hex…and that doesn't qualify under fine."

He gave me a knowing look. "Indeed," he said, walking towards the door. "That can be addressed. Come."

"Pansy deserves detention for a month, you know," I said gruffly, as he opened the classroom door.

Snape raised an eyebrow at me. "You think so?"

I nodded, moving past him into the corridor. "At the very least."

He fixed me a hard look as he closed the door behind him. "Naturally," he drawled derisively, as we started walking down the deserted corridor, "I highly value your opinion on the subject of assigning detentions."

I scowled at him. "And she's a prefect."

"Armilla," Snape said warningly, narrowing his eyes.

I looked away, glaring at the floor.

Snape let out an irritated sigh. "As Miss Parkinson's Head of House," he said in a clipped tone, "assigning her a week's detention was sufficient for hexing another student."

I glanced sideways at him, still not succeeding in hiding my indignation.

He responded with a stern expression, pursing hip lips. "As your brother, however, I would have assigned detentions that spanned well into next year."

I eyed him. "More than writing lines?"

"Obviously."

"Even the worst detention won't make her regret hexing me," I said despondently.

Snape shook his head. "Probably not."

I sighed.

"But rest assured," he said smoothly, "that she'll spend the next week scrubbing bedpans without magic and sorting flobberworms." He looked down at me, sneering slightly. "Does that meet with your exacting standards?"

I nodded in satisfaction, finding that my annoyance had faded. I made no further comment, not willing to test Snape's patience further.

We were silent for the rest of the walk to the dungeons. There weren't many students about, as most were still in Hogsmeade. Most of the first and second year students were either in their common rooms or out with their friends in the snow. It wasn't often that Snape and I walked through the corridors together, but the fascination from other students still hadn't worn off. The students that we did see either averted their eyes quickly or stared for so long that my brother gave a menacing glare in response.

"Did you have a good time with your friends in Hogsmeade?" Snape asked, as he closed the door to our quarters.

"I did," I replied, "until we got back, I suppose." I was looking forward to taking a pain relief potion; the dull ache in my side had reminded me of its presence all the way to the dungeons, making my resentment of Pansy only greater.

Snape led the way to his lab. "You only saw Malfoy when you got back?"

"Yes. He wanted to talk about Father's party."

My brother rolled his eyes as we walked into the room. "Of course he did." He waved his wand to cast a light and nodded at the workbench. "Sit there."

"Pansy won't hold back on firing hexes at Father's party," I grumbled, wincing as I pushed myself up onto the bench.

"That won't be a problem," Snape responded, his back to me as he looked through one of his cabinets. "The Parkinsons haven't been invited."

I frowned. "How do you know?"

"Lucius Malfoy," he said simply, turning around with a couple of potions in his hand. "He informed me recently that the Parkinsons had expressed their displeasure to him about the snub."

"But why would Father snub them?" I asked.

"Some falling out years ago," Snape replied indifferently. "Father has always been good at making enemies."

I suppressed a shudder as I was reminded once again that it wasn't long before I was going to stay with the man.

Snape uncorked the pain relief potion and held it out to me. "Here."

I drank the potion and sighed with relief as the pain lessened.

"I'll administer the dittany topically," Snape said, adopting his classroom professor voice, as he took the stopper from the small bottle, "and while I do that, you may tell me what dittany mixed with powdered silver can be used for."

I lifted my top slightly and peeled back the dressing, revealing the slightly open gash. "Dittany mixed with powdered silver," I said, wincing as Snape carefully allowed a few drops to seep into the wound, "can be applied to a werewolf bite to stop the person bleeding to death."

Snape nodded in approval as he straightened up. We watched as green smoke rose steadily out of the wound. "And why does this happen?" he asked, gesturing to the smoke.

"It's the reaction of the volatile oils from the plant," I murmured, watching as the gash knitted together to create a scar that looked several days old.

"Very good." Snape returned the stopper to the bottle. "And, as you just saw, it only needs to be used sparingly."

"The baby in The Wizard and the Hopping Pot was doused in dittany," I pointed out, as he moved to the cabinet, "though I suppose it could be an exaggeration to push the moral of the story."

"I'd say so," he agreed, looking slightly amused as he turned back to me, "otherwise it would be an egregious waste of dittany, as a little would have sufficed. That said though, it did take many centuries for potion makers and herbologists to agree on the correct dosage and administration. There's ongoing debate even now about whether it's best to consume it or apply it topically."

"What do you think?"

"It depends on the severity of the wound and how it was caused," Snape replied, looking thoughtful. "The nature of a hex can impact how a wound heals, whereas a simple injury is more straightforward."

I nodded, privately marvelling at my brother's knowledge.

"You know, The Wizard and the Hopping Pot was always Mother's favourite story," he told me, shaking his head slightly. "I listened to it as a child more times than I'd care to recall."

I smiled.

"Right," Snape said briskly, gesturing for me to hop off the bench. "Go wash the blood off, change your clothes and then come out to the sitting room for your lesson."

"Okay." I got down and followed him out of the room.

I stopped in the doorway of my bedroom, as Severus made his way towards the sitting room.

"Severus?"

"Mm?" He turned around, looking expectantly at me.

"Will we communicate every day when I go to Father's house?"

His face softened slightly. "Every day," he confirmed. "How else will I know how tedious your day has been with him?"

I nodded, feeling unsettled.

Snape's remark about my friends dealing with him if there was trouble, while I would deal with Father kept playing over in my mind. I hoped Malfoy would never cause any problems for my friends. They shouldn't have to be impacted just because I had been thrust into a different world.

Dealing with Father was another thing; living with him for days on end, afraid of being punished at any time, set my teeth on edge.

"Don't think on it now, Armilla," Snape said quietly, bringing me out of my reverie. "It won't do any good." He nodded towards my bedroom. "Go on. Get your mind focused for defeating me at duelling."

I gave him a deadpan look. "I can't beat you at duelling."

He smirked and turned to walk away. "You never know."