A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed. I'm sorry to those people I did not respond to, I promise I will for this chapter (life's been pretty busy lately if you can tell by the late update). I've set a goal for myself, though my odds of reaching it aren't exactly stellar: make it to chapter 30 before the HBP movie comes out. That's roughly a new chapter every three days. With your support, hopefully I can do it! :)
"Nooooooo!"
Unable to take the madness of these nightmares any longer, Lily forced her deadweight eyelids to release her from this hellish darkness. She was completely covered in pools of her own sweat, and her heart was beating so quickly that she feared it would eventually give up in exhaustion. After several minutes of nonstop blinking and gasping for air, her fazed vision cleared and she saw that she was in the hospital wing. Judging by the faint light filtering through the windows on her right, it was around mid-morning.
What a night, Lily groaned silently as she turned her attention from the impossibly beautiful scenery outside to the people sitting near her bed. Laika was slouching at the end of the mouldy mattress looking bored, and Narcissa was sitting on the bed next to Lily's where a still-unconscious Regulus was snoozing peacefully. For some unknown reason, Remus Lupin was also here, smiling at Lily as she came to her senses. He couldn't have wanted to come here on his own, could he…?
Of course not.
Lily's heart wrenched at the sight of Severus standing off in a corner, brooding as usual. Oh why did he have to come? Lily felt both frustrated and comforted by his presence; she wanted to call out to him, but words failed her. He had done enough for her lately, she didn't need to bother him with her troubles.
Last night, she had been certain that she would die in some brutal way or another, and that she would never see her friends again. Both Narcissa and Laika acknowledged her awakening with relieved smiles, but neither offered their comforts, as Severus would have…
"Oh you're awake!"
Madam Pomfrey was pleased to see that Lily was up by now, and immediately hustled over to her. Severus took notice of this as well and slowly made his way over to her bedside, though he stayed a careful distance from her as though she would bite him if he came any closer.
He thinks I'm still furious at him, Lily thought tearfully. She wanted to reach out and beckon him closer to her, but it was as though there was an invisible barrier that kept her from doing so. Deep down, Lily knew she often discarded him like a useless toy, rather than a valuable friend, and now she was paying the price for such disloyalty. If he didn't want to come up to her, she wouldn't force him to.
Still, she noticed him watching her out of the corner of his eye, and when they made eye contact, he managed to give her a small smile.
"Now you'll need to have another flask of Pepper Up…and I think some chocolate would help…" Madam Pomfrey muttered as she continued fussing over Lily's pillows, much to her irritation.
"Why chocolate?"
"Oh, they use it for people who have been traumatized, particularly by dementors—"
"— so there was a dementor in there last night?" Lily gasped, feeling sicker by the minute.
She looked worriedly over towards Regulus, who still hadn't woken up. Had he been attacked by the dementor? She didn't remember much about the night before except for the part when she discovered the bloodied body lying on the ground at her feet in that terrifyingly dark room.
"Of course not! There's never been dementors in the castle before…now mind you, I don't exactly know what was in that room last night, but you and Mr. Black have obviously been through quite a lot, Miss Evans. Oh would you please stop squirming?" Pomfrey asked exasperatedly.
Lily crossed her arms and frowned impatiently as she waited for the woman to finish. Meanwhile Remus handed her a bit of chocolate, which she took but didn't eat.
"It's not poisonous," he smiled. Blushing embarrassedly, Lily nibbled at the end of the chocolate. Her insides warmed at once, and the frightening images that were once firmly implanted in her mind melted from her memory, leaving her with happy thoughts. Just as Madam Pomfrey finished up with her, Regulus stirred.
"What happened?" he asked in a hoarse voice. His hair was a little messy, and he was paler than usual— if that was even possible— but other than that, he looked fine. Narcissa, on the other hand, thought he was near-death and was so upset by the sight of her weakened cousin that she burst into tears. Regulus, not one for coddling, pushed her away when she tried hugging him and told her to shut up.
"I'm fine 'Cissy…just dazed…is Lily okay?"
"She's fine," Severus snapped at the younger boy. Lily looked up in surprise; this was the first time she had heard his voice in a few days, and it wasn't until now did she realize just how much she had missed him. There was something off about him, though…was that jealousness she heard?
"Sev?"
Ignoring the fact that Madam Pomfrey would kill her for this, Lily jumped out of bed and flung her arms around Severus, hugging him harder than she ever had before.
It was very much like the time she had been in the hospital wing for the necklace incident, and once again, Lily had to beg for his forgiveness.
Why can't I just be the perfect friend he deserves? Lily thought as Severus awkwardly hugged her back. Even after all the fights they kept having, Severus kept coming back, even when she didn't deserve to be forgiven. Inwardly, Lily feared that she did not possess that kind of unwavering loyalty, and wondered what would happen if she ever drove Severus to his breaking point.
I would never do that, Lily told herself firmly. Sev is my best friend for the rest of eternity…nothing can ruin this friendship…
xXxXxXxXx
As soon as Madam Pomfrey released Lily and Regulus, they had to report to Dumbledore's office. Lily didn't want to have to explain to the old headmaster what had happened the night before, but she didn't have a choice. After a quick round of goodbye hugs for her friends— even Remus— Lily followed Regulus up to the office.
Lily was thankful to hear that Dumbledore knew what had occurred, and only wanted a few details for his impending investigation of the upperclassmen.
According to him, the body Lily's foot had struck had been that of Melika Zula. Dumbledore asked Lily if she knew the girl well, and she replied that they were distant acquaintances. Somehow, Dumbledore didn't look convinced, but didn't press the issue, knowing that Lily was already emotionally harassed as it was.
Apparently the Gryffindor ghost, Nearly-Headless Nick, had heard them screaming in that abandoned Potions lab, and by the time he had floated into the right room, both Lily and Regulus had fainted. Nick informed Dumbledore at once, and the three students were transported to the hospital wing within a matter of minutes.
Melika's injuries had been so horrific that she was transported to St. Mungo's; she had been closer to death than life, but she somehow managed to keep breathing. Dumbledore believed that somebody had used the Cruciatus Curse on her repeatedly; he did not go as far as to inform the two how long he believed the Unforgivable Curse was performed for, which he guessed was in the range of fifteen minutes.
Dumbledore did tell them some of the truth, however: though he did not know the extent of the damages inflicted upon Melika's body, he was grimly aware that her mental state may never return to normal.
"Miss Zula will be a different person after this," Dumbledore said gravely, knowing that the details of such a tragedy were too much for two young students to grasp.
Lily felt horrendously disturbed by all this, and the fact that Dumbledore kept leaving out details frustrated her immensely. She had asked several questions, but the old headmaster had quieted her and told her that she was too young to understand such difficult matters. Meanwhile, Regulus was too shaken up to say anything. He felt tremendously guilty for getting his friend into this; after all, it was mostly his idea to keep going, and he had dragged Lily along even though she had wanted to turn back.
Once Dumbledore had squeezed every last tidbit of information he could procure from Lily and Regulus, he told them to return to their dormitories. Completely drained of any energy, both were glad to do so, and were secretly delighted to hear that Dumbledore would excuse them from their classes tomorrow so they could return to their normal lives.
Now the investigation would begin.
xXxXxXxXx
Three days after the attack— of which every person in the entire school knew about within a couple of hours— Dumbledore was down to his last suspects. Every fifth, sixth, and seventh year student from Slytherin had been forced to submit for questioning, lest they face expulsion for noncompliance. There was no doubt in Dumbledore's mind that the attacker had come from Slytherin; the scene of the crime was too convenient, being right across the hall from the Slytherin common room entrance, and he never knew of a Gryffindor or Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff who would do something so terrible to another human being. Of course, if he found no results from Slytherin, then he would indeed move on to the other houses.
He didn't question the younger students; no matter how Dark the families they came from were, no younger student was capable of this kind of Dark Magic. The inflictions upon the girl rivalled that of a skilled Dark wizard, not a mere student. This was what troubled Dumbledore the most.
There was also the possibility that it hadn't been a student at all. But this seemed highly unlikely. Dumbledore knew more about this castle than any other person in living memory…besides Voldemort, perhaps, but even then, Dumbledore knew more about Hogwarts than the man, having been here nearly eight times the years he'd been here. With the exception of a certain monster that required a master with the ability to speak Parseltongue, Dumbledore knew nothing could have harmed Miss Zula besides an exceptionally talented wizard.
His last suspect from the three highest years in Slytherin was Bellatrix Black. Dumbledore was not the judgemental type, but if anyone had attacked Miss Zula, Miss Black would be the first person that came to mind. And he was about to find out…
"Good evening Miss Black," he smiled calmly as Bellatrix yanked her way out of Professor McGonagall's grip and stormed into his office. She was obviously infuriated to have been called in for questioning, but she had no choice. Dumbledore would not bend the rules for any student, because if he did not find the culprit soon, then the Ministry would shut down the school to ensure the safety of the students. The Daily Prophet had already run numerous stories of how Dumbledore was losing his touch and this latest act of violence in his school— although there hadn't been any major incidents since Tom Riddle left the school— would end Dumbledore's reign as headmaster once and for all.
"What is this about?" Bellatrix demanded, slamming her coarse black nails into Dumbledore's desk, creating dents in the wood. Minerva was outraged to see such blatant disrespect and muttered something under her breath about having a talk with Horace regarding the way their students treat authority.
"I'm sure you've heard, Miss Black, that one of our students was viciously assaulted a few days ago down in the abandoned Potions dungeons?"
Bellatrix's eyes flashed dangerously. "If you're accusing me, then—"
"—I have not made any accusations yet, Miss Black. I merely requested your presence this evening so we can have a little chat."
"I didn't do it."
"Of course not. How about a Lemon Drop?"
Bellatrix was not amused by the old man's eccentricities. "I'm not here to play games, Dumbledore. You are accusing me of harming a younger student. Go on then, why do you think I did it?"
Dumbledore was a little surprised by the lack of fear behind the girl's eyes, but he knew better to think for a second that she was a better Occlumens than he was Legilimens.
"Must I repeat myself, Miss Black? I have not accused you of anything. Every student has been asked to speak with me regarding this matter—"
"—what about your precious Gryffindors?" Bellatrix spat, unable to hide the sheer contempt she felt for Dumbledore and that Mudblood-loving house. "What about them?"
"They will come in as soon as I have cleared the Slytherins' names. The scene of the crime was closest to the Slytherin common room, therefore, I am to first assume it was a Slytherin who did this."
Bellatrix snorted doubtfully. "Well, I hope you catch the person who did it."
She hated the way his blue eyes bore through her mind over those half moon spectacles. How dare he attempt to sneak into her mind! She put up her Occlumency shields at once; the old fool would not be allowed to see into her mind if Bellatrix had anything to say about it.
"Legilimency is unnecessary, Professor," she said coldly.
Dumbledore smiled serenely. "Very well Miss Black, then how about a little sip of this?"
"I'm not thirsty, sir," she replied, knowing fully well that the bottle in his withered hands contained Veritaserum.
"Miss Black, I'm afraid you do not have a say in this. To be perfectly honest, this method is much easier than the Wizengamot's interrogation techniques, which you would unfortunately have to submit to, should you refuse to this."
Bellatrix kicked the edge of Dumbledore's desk, trying to aggravate him, but he paid no attention to her actions.
"I beg you Miss Black, you truly did not commit the crime, then prove it to me."
He handed her the container of Veritaserum. Bellatrix's eyes flickered suspiciously from Dumbledore's grim expression to the vial, pondering her options.
"Every student so far has taken it. Please understand that I am looking out for your best interests. I do not wish for you to waste away in a prison cell while awaiting a trial by the Wizengamot, which may take several weeks."
Bellatrix's scowl deepened. Sure, the old man sounded convincing enough, but she knew he wouldn't just ask her about the attack…under the influence of Veritaserum, he could ask her…anything. He could ask as many questions as he wanted to, and she— against her will— would answer truthfully. What knowledge she could easily hide with Occlumency would become clear as day with a few drops of Veritaserum.
"My only mission is to learn of what happened to Miss Zula," Dumbledore said, reading her mind. "I will not ask you anything that does not pertain to this serious matter."
Bellatrix eyed him warily, but eventually slipped the cap off of the vial and held it to her nose. It was oddly odourless, though she knew it was much more powerful than it appeared. She still did not trust Dumbledore at all, so why should she listen to him now…?
With a screech of rage, Bellatrix flung the vial at a nearby wall as hard as she could. If it had connected with the wall, it would have shattered everywhere, but in the blink of an eye, McGonagall had Summoned it back, and Stunned Bellatrix before she could escape. Bellatrix screamed as she was knocked off of her feet, and within milliseconds, McGonagall had her pinned to the ground. Despite Bellatrix's murderous shrieks, McGonagall yanked the girl's hair back and easily shoved the potion down her throat as Dumbledore calmly watched the scene unfold before him. Unable to squirm free, Bellatrix tried kicking and lashing her claw-like nails at McGonagall, but soon found that someone— probably Dumbledore— had frozen her body and she couldn't move a muscle. Tears sprung at her eyes in this state of utmost helplessness; Bellatrix Black never gave up without a fight, and yet here she was, sitting on the ground at the mercy of her two most hated foes. It was both enraging and humiliating.
Her mind settled at once as the Veritaserum kicked in, and she felt as though someone had placed her under the Imperius Curse. Her thoughts were hazy and unclear, and in the distance, Dumbledore was asking her a question…
"Did you attack Melika Zula in any way, particularly the Cruciatus Curse?"
"I did not."
xXxXxXxXx
"SILENCE!"
At the sound of Professor Umbridge's magically magnified voice, every student in the Great Hall quieted at once. Students from all of the houses, first through third years, were gathered around a long stage in which Professor Umbridge was standing on, shimmering sickeningly in the spotlight.
Severus, James, Sirius, and Remus were on the Gryffindor side of the stage, wondering what in the world was going on. The air was buzzing with excitement, and even Umbridge's involvement in the night's unexpected event couldn't damper the younger students' enthusiasm. All they had been told was to bring their wands, upping the anticipation for the night's events.
"Students!" Umbridge began in a shrill voice, beaming at the Slytherins and glaring at the other three houses as she spoke. "As you all know, we had a tragic incident the other day here at Hogwarts, involving a young, defenceless girl."
Umbridge smiled, but it was not a sympathetic smile. While her articulate words certainly seemed remorseful for Melika's attack, her mannerisms proved the exact opposite. When her back was turned, Severus and Remus exchanged dubious looks, not so sure they liked where this was going…
"The girl's lack of defensive knowledge has now landed her in St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, and as your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, it is my duty to teach you more than just basic theory, but an assortment of defensive spells that will prevent such accidents from occurring again."
She let out a small cough and pulled out her wand before continuing: "Professor Dumbledore has instructed me to teach you how to duel properly. Now—" Umbridge sighed dramatically and absentmindedly twirled her hair with her wand, "— I am not receiving compensation for this, and I assure you I have much more important things to do with my free time…"
James snorted loudly, which earned him a rather terrifying glare from Umbridge.
"But…I have kindly agreed to do this anyway. After all, keeping my young pupils safe is of utmost importance to me."
"Who's going to duel, Professor?" a few Hufflepuff third year boys called out.
Umbridge grinned menacingly and suddenly turned her attention to Severus. He stared back at her, unable to believe that in a sea of hundreds of students, she had chosen him. People on all sides of the stage craned their necks to see her latest victim; Severus tried backing away and blending into the masses of students, but was harshly shoved forward by a few Slytherin prefects whom Umbridge had employed to keep order during this evening's duelling lesson.
"How about you, Mr. Snape?" Umbridge asked sweetly, though her ghastly hazel eyes were still narrowed into furious little slits. Severus shook his head and tried to run away, but the prefects were pushing him closer to the mad woman. Much to his displeasure, one of them was Lucius Malfoy, who wore an unmistakable look of glee on his face at Severus' impending doom.
"You don't wish to participate, Snape? Well, since you seem to know everything about defensive magic already, this ought to be a breeze for you."
She held out her arm, gesturing him forward to the stage, but he remained frozen in place. He wasn't sure what was making him feel nauseous: the amount of pink she was wearing or the fact that she was beckoning him to stand up there with her in front of half the school. Or maybe it was that rancid cologne Malfoy was wearing…
"Come now, Snape, we don't have all night," she hissed viciously. "You know, I would have been a little more lenient if you haven't been skipping my classes! Ah well, I suppose you must learn the hard way now…"
Before Severus could pull away from her, Malfoy shoved him forward as painfully as he could, hissing a sarcastic "have fun" in his ear just as she latched onto his arm— piercing through his robes with her abnormally sharp nails— and yanked him onto the stage with the strength of a giant.
Once onstage, the Slytherins hooted and jeered at him, though the worst of it came when someone even went as far as to trip him as Umbridge jostled him along to the end of the platform; Severus, having always been on the clumsy side, fell right on to his face, much to the enjoyment of the Slytherins. He stayed in that position for a long time, not wanting to stand up and show his humiliation to the masses of chaotic students around him. Bedlam erupted all around him: he could hear Lily's strained voice trying to shut the Slytherins up off to his left, and the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws were screaming insults at the Slytherins along with the Gryffindors now. Figuring that he had more allies than enemies in here, Severus slowly picked himself up and at least managed to get to his knees. Umbridge was still grinning cruelly down at him, and at that moment he realized that she had tripped him.
As Severus got to his feet, it took every ounce of patience he possessed not to pull out his wand and hex the woman with every curse he knew. Never before had he felt so embarrassed, but that feeling was quickly dissolving into rage. He loathed the way Umbridge watched him; it was like she was feeding off of his mortification, and she only looked away from him when she felt he had nothing left to give.
"SILENCE!"
Her scream echoed throughout the entire Great Hall, and at once, the brawling and insulting and physical fighting stopped. Severus looked over at his friends: James and Sirius had tackled Malfoy and a fellow prefect, and even Remus had gotten so deeply into the fight that he had a black eye and bloodied lip. Lily, on the other hand, had not gotten involved, but instead looked close to tears. She knew how awful that must have been for her friend, but there was nothing she could do when her entire house was against him. Regulus Black was looking immensely satisfied to have witnessed his stumble; never had Severus felt the urge to kick someone in the face as he did now.
Ignoring the band of sneering Slytherins, he numbly followed Umbridge to the end of the stage and awaited instructions. Had he been more of a hothead like James, he probably would have slaughtered Umbridge to pieces by now, but somehow he had remained calm and obeyed her demands.
"Are you going to fight him Professor?" Laika Malfoy called out in a hopeful tone. Severus didn't bother glaring at her, knowing that this would only increase her entertainment.
"Of course not. That would not be fair, would it?"
She turned to face Severus.
"No...Snape will be facing...a student."
She snapped her fingers high above her head, and for a moment, Severus thought he had been granted a reprieve. He was wrong.
Out of the Slytherin crowd arose a girl. She was short and chubby, and for some reason, she looked oddly familiar…
She's not a second year! Severus thought in horror as he recognized the face of Dolores Umbridge, the Head Girl and daughter of the current Defense teacher, walking towards him, with her wand out.
As expected, the three non-Slytherin houses began protesting at once: pitting a second year against a seventh year in a practice duel was sheer madness. Severus felt a rush of pride for his house; at least Gryffindor wasn't hated by the other houses like Slytherin was. Although the odds were definitely stacked against him— unless Umbridge somehow levelled the playing field, which was highly unlikely at the moment— perhaps he would get through this after all. He had the support of his friends and loads of other students were on his side; what did he have to lose?
As the candles dimmed on the outskirts of the platform, Professor Umbridge backed away into a safe area, leaving her daughter and Severus alone on the brightly-lit stage, with all eyes on them. Dolores undoubtedly knew how to duel, and Severus, vaguely remembering the rules of wizard's duels, mimicked her movements from bowing to retreating. He kept checking over his shoulder as he walked down to his end, worried that some horrendous spell would destroy him any second. But Darcy Umbridge was a professor, surely she would at least lay some ground rules before starting?
"One…two…"
"Wait! How do I duel her?!" Severus yelled at her furiously just before the word "three" left her fat lips. The hall was so quiet that his words echoed for several seconds, smacking his failure into his face with every repetition. He had duelled James before, but that was back at the beginning of first year, and even with one year of experience under his belt, he was still doomed against someone with five more years of training.
"Oh, you'll see. I'm certain this will be a valuable learning experience for you," Professor Umbridge sneered at him before crying, "THREE!"
Panicked, Severus whipped out his wand and looked up at his oncoming challenger. No spells came to him, he simply stood there. If the murderous expression on Dolores' face was anything to go by, this was going to be a very painful duel…
A/N: If you want to kill Dolores' mum now, just wait. She gets worse, unfortunately. As for the scene between Minerva and Bellatrix: before DH, I predicted Minerva would kill Bellatrix. Imagine how disappointed I was when Molly Weasley killed her. Ugh!
Anyway, I hope you all liked this chapter (though feel free to point out things you didn't like), and if some parts seemed a bit rushed, it's because I'm trying to cut back on the overload of details (my main writing weakness). If things go as planned (they usually don't), second year will be done somewhere in between chapters 30 and 35.
Reviews are appreciated, even constructive criticism!! :)