Chapter 9 : A Lonesome Vigil
Albus Dumbledore sat behind his cluttered desk…alone. Two spotted and wrinkled hands supported the weight of his weary head while his elbows rested on the ancient wood. He had sent a distraught Lupin away long ago, making him promise that he would try and get some sleep.
He himself had been unable to find peace this night and now with the approach of dawn, his mind was still deeply troubled. He allowed his hands to slide down his face and lie on the desk while he slowly opened his eyes and looked at his immediate surroundings.
The first thing to enter his field of vision was his ever present bowl of lemon drops. The brightly coloured, sugar-laden sweets seemed suddenly so out of place. Before he'd even realised what he had done, his right arm had lashed out deceptively fast, the heal of his palm impacted with the edge of the delicate bowl sending it flying across the room.
It landed with a loud clatter and spilled its contents out all over the floor. The little treats soon disappeared, as if hiding under the furniture to escape the Head Master's wrath while Fawkes squawked out loud in protest at the clamour.
He had only just begun to doze off and Dumbledore's momentary loss of control had disturbed him.
He glared at Albus as if expecting an apology but when none was forthcoming he made a grand show of ruffling his feathers and tucked his head back under his wing.
Several of the portraits had also been woken from their slumber, though many others had stayed awake, keeping vigil with the current Head Master.
As if oblivious to the results of his little outburst, Albus then cast his gaze to an inconspicuous looking clear crystal paper weight resting on his desk. The item looked out of place amongst all the other curiously weird and wonderful gadgets that normally adorned the room however it was the first thing Albus had sought out once Remus had left the office.
He always kept it in his personal quarters as it was much too important to be left out in public view, he could not risk anything happening to the precious object.
Once he had retrieved it from his bedroom he had laid it carefully on his desk. With a delicate swish of his wand and a softly whispered charm, the paper weight had transformed into an old rolled up parchment scroll. He had starred at it for a moment before pulling on the slender black ribbon securing the scroll. It automatically unfurled itself before him.
There was a single name written on the scroll in his own spidery scrawl.
Severus Snape.
Beside the name, a small red stain, as bright today as the day it was put there…a drop of Severus' own blood.
Albus knew that there was a way for his potions master to return to Hogwarts, he had secretly seen to it himself many years ago when he had impressed upon the young man the solemn duty of remaining a Death eater and spying on Voldemort and his activities. He knew full well that he was sending the broken man back into the lion's den and that he was putting his life at risk by doing so. Knowing this he had devised a way, undetectable by any means, for his spy to safely return should things go badly…assuming he was still alive to do so.
However Albus knew his potions master very well, Severus would never use that one chance to escape for himself, not when an innocent child's life was also at risk. He would never put his life before one of his students, regardless of house loyalties, not that he was ever likely to admit that, ever under a large dose of veritiserum.
Albus had seen inside the wizard's soul, it was wounded and pained but brave and true and certainly not as dark as he liked to make out. Severus Snape may have swathed himself in the blackest of robes but inside the man burned a core of light.
Severus would try to ensure Neville's safety at all costs even if it meant sacrificing his own hopes of escaping, he would give the child the means to freedom as soon as he could, hoping that his Head Master had made it possible for the child to return.
And so that is exactly what Albus did.
He had called Gerty, his trusty House Elf and sent her on a little mission to the third year boy's room in the Gryffindor tower. Within moments, a little had 'pop' announced her return, she had retrieved a hair brush from Neville's bedside locker.
"How is everything?" he asked her.
"All is quiet Sir, the little Masters is being sleeping…quite as door mice," she reported, then handed over the little brush.
Albus sighed gratefully, it seemed as though Poppy's draught had done the trick for Harry and Ron.
"Thank you Gerty, I shall call you if I need you again," Dumbledore replied.
"Yes Sir," she returned and with a little curtsy, she disappeared.
Dumbledore returned to his desk and examined the brush carefully then removed a single hair and placed it on the desk. He dipped a long elegant quill into a small decorative pewter pot containing ink then proceeded to write Neville's name on the scroll directly under Severus' name. He then placed the hair beside the latest addition to the scroll and charmed it into place, a quick flick of his wand and the scroll rolled up and rebound itself in ribbon, a final uttered spell and the precious document returned to former disguise.
Albus continued to stare at the little object for several more minutes, as if this act alone could conjure up his missing colleague and pupil but eventually he pushed back his chair, sighed and moved away from the desk.
He stepped down into the lower part of his office and headed towards the stone fire place, large embers still burned brightly in the grate casting a warm glow across the floor. Albus reached for the cast iron poker resting on the hearth and prodded at the fire, his blue eyes momentarily mesmerised by the minuscule sparks erupting from the coals.
"Dilys," he called softly.
"Yes Albus, what is it?" came the reply.
Dumbldore turned around to face one of the many portraits adorning the walls of the chamber, it wasn't as old as some of the paintings in the room, the oily colours had not yet begun to fade under countless decades of residue and the former Head Mistress's robes were still a vibrant blue, matching her compassionate eyes. She had been one of the few to keep vigil with Albus during the night, as she was well aware of the serious nature of the situation.
"I wonder Dilys if you would be so kind as to visit the landscape painting in Severus' private quarters and notify me at once should anything 'strange' occur."
"Ah yes…of course Albus, I shall go at once," she nodded solemnly in complete understanding.
She tucked an errant silver ringlet behind her ear, disappeared from her wooden frame and began her journey to the lower levels of the castle.
Dilys Derwent had once been a Head Mistress in Hogwarts but she had also been a renowned Healer in Saint Mungo's before she took up a post in education. Her expertise in the field of medicine had come in handy on occasion and she had oft been sent on 'secret-missions' to Severus' chambers to check on the young man's health after various Death eater meetings.
Severus had objected loudly to her presence every time she appeared, he had on one occasion removed the landscape painting from its hanging place and put it on the floor, facing the stone wall. However these actions had simply brought an overly concerned Albus straight to his quarters…he didn't make the same mistake twice…a nosy painting was less bother than a worried Head Master!
Albus sighed wearily as he looked to the glowing coals once again, if this was the only way that he could help…then so be it. He just hoped that should the Potions Professor and the young boy return, that Severus would forgive him for invading his privacy once again.
ooOoo
Author's Note: Hi folks! Well it hasn't taken as long as the previous chapter but on the down-side its not a very long one. I just wanted to show how things were going back in Hogwarts, the next chapter will focus once again on our poor duo & we'll continue on from that horrible cliff-hanger...I promise! I hope the information about Dilys is accurate, if not...sorry. Gerty is just a made-up elf & her little grammatical error was intentional.
Anyway...I hope you've enjoyed the latest little installment & as always I can't wait to hear from you.
Thanks & take care!