12. Shining Through

Isadora couldn't have been happier. In a matter of weeks she had managed to bully four first years into stepping through the trick step on one of the moving staircases, leaving them to dangle awkwardly, terrified by what had just happened to them. She had received top marks on her most recent Astronomy essay (explain the significance of the North Star to Muggle and Wizarding mariners of the 18th century); and her relationship with Regulus was carrying on quite well (considering his track record). She was in such a great mood that she was actually managing to not turn her Potions class into a complete fiasco. Even Severus seemed impressed by her current concentration.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" he whispered to her at their shared workstation as he tipped chopped aloe root into his cauldron.

"Nothing!" Isasdora said for what felt like the tenth time. "I'm just having a good day is all. You should be proud!"

"Why, because for once you aren't making it seem like I can't teach my craft to another human being?" he snapped back as his cauldron hissed. White smoke billowed out beyond the rim; Isadora could just make out a smirk on his pale face as he, as usual, finished his potion before the rest of the class.

Professor Slughorn came by the table after chatting animatedly with Lily Evans. A large grin appeared on his chubby face as he exclaimed, "Top marks, as usual, Severus!" He jotted down a few notes on his parchment and waddled away. As he left, his large belly knocked the corner of the table, sending Severus' textbook to the dust strewn floor.

"I'll get it," Isadora muttered, as Severus was too busy staring longingly across the dungeon at the back of Lily's head. She had glanced over momentarily when Slughorn had announced Severus' name, but looked away as soon as she made eye contact with the Slytherin.

Isadora bent down and picked up the book, flipping through the pages. She was quite used to seeing Severus' cramped notes scribbled down in the margins, correcting the original author in some places and making changes where he saw fit in others. She turned pages to the back cover and gazed curiously down at the note scrawled towards the bottom: This book is the property of the Half-Blood Prince.

She laughed as she handed the book back to him. Severus was now adding aloe root to her own potion, which was beginning to take on a bogey-green color.

"What's funny?" he asked, his black eyes peering at her suspiciously through the fumes.

"Oh, just what you wrote in your book," she answered, stirring the potion in front of her. "'The Half-Blood Prince,' who is that?"

He was staring at her inquisitively, making Isadora wonder if he was going to answer, or if he was about to sabotage her potion for asking such a stupid question.

"My mum's maiden name is Prince," he said flatly as he bottled a phial of his potion. "You figure it out."

He left Isadora at the workstation, slowly making his way to the front to hand in his sample. Isadora stared after him, piecing together his horrifically vague clue. As he made his way back (taking a detour, she noticed, past the Gryffindor table), it dawned on her. It must have shown on her face, for when Severus returned to their workstation, he asked, "Work it out?"

She nodded, extinguishing the flame underneath her cauldron. "That's quite clever," she whispered as she bottled her own sample.

"Yes, I pride myself on my knack for clever plays on words," he replied sardonically. He pointed his wand at his cauldron and muttered, "Evanesco," and instantly the remaining liquid disappeared.

Isadora rolled her eyes as she marched her sample up to Slughorn's desk. She arrived at the same time as Lily Evans; the two girls shared a heated glare before returning to their respective tables. Isadora noticed the other Gryffindors lean their heads closer to Lily as she whispered to them and nodded animatedly towards the Slytherin end of the room.

Professor Slughorn seemed to realize that a fair few of his N.E.W.T students were now standing idly around, huddled amongst themselves, chatting quietly. "Oh, did I not mention that you may leave once you have submitted your work?" he said quite loudly, so the whole room could hear. "You know the homework! See you all next week!"

Isadora hastily crammed her book and scales into her now empty cauldron (Severus had cleared it while she was gone) and made fast for the door back to the Slytherin common room. She had a stack of books and atlases waiting for her in her usual corner and was quite desperate to get back to reading them. Her father had assigned her extra reading so she would be prepared for another summer in France, and she did not want to disappoint him. Especially now that she had her orders…

"Mind if I share your corner?" Severus asked, startling her. She had forgotten he was behind her. "The seventh years have taken over the other tables."

"Oh, yeah, sure," Isadora replied, dropping her things under the table and pulling a map close. She watched Severus out of the corner of her eye as he pulled several library books out of his overstuffed bag and spread them out over his half of the table. A long roll of parchment was peeking out of one of the books, notes crammed together to the very edge of the page. "When do you take your Apparition test?" Isadora asked as she scanned the map in front of her.

Severus pulled out a small, tattered notebook and flipped through the pages; it appeared he actually kept a homework planner. "Sometime in April," he answered, replacing the schedule and returning to his notes.

Isadora was quite jealous of her friend; ever since he had turned seventeen, Severus had been carrying himself differently. Perhaps it was because he was finally of age and the trace had finally lifted from him, or maybe it was because he felt more confident in his abilities now that he was allowed to practice them at will outside of the castle. He had done exceptionally well in their Apparition lessons, and soon he would finally be able to travel from one place to another with extraordinary ease. Isadora was desperate to turn seventeen and be able to do the same, but unfortunately she had to wait until July.

As they sat in the corner in silence, Isadora realized she could see puffs of steam every time she exhaled. With a shiver, she excused herself momentarily and rushed down to the girls' dormitory, returning with a thick black jumper. The only downside to living in the dungeons was it was constantly freezing in the common room, no matter how large the fire.

As she made her way back to the corner table, she noticed Severus had taken an interest in the map she had left sitting out. He watched as small gusts of air blew through the evergreens that covered much of northern Europe; he was so interested that he jumped when she returned to her seat.

"It's pretty neat, isn't it?" she said as she pulled the map back to her and dipped her quill in the ink well.

"Is this what you're doing when you spend your nights in the library?" Severus asked, still watching the map move.

Isadora smirked. "For the most part, yes," she answered, thrilled that, for once, he was interested in something other than Potions or landing the Marauders in detention. "It's why the Dark Lord is so interested in having me on his side."

Severus' eyes darted from the parchment to her. "Wait," he said in a hushed voice, looking over his shoulder to make sure they weren't overheard. "You made this?" He pointed to the map sitting between them.

She laughed quietly, blushing. "No, of course not. But it's my specialty, I suppose," she whispered. "I've had quite the obsession with maps and atlases since I was young. My father has been sending me to France to learn from the masters. I was hoping to get an apprenticeship in Paris once I graduated, but now…"

"You'll be serving a greater purpose," Severus finished, although that wasn't quite what Isadora was going to say. "You should be proud, you know. I don't even understand the magic behind wizarding maps."

"Most wizards don't, honestly," Isadora said, feeling a swelling of pride as he admitted that he wasn't better than her at something. "Once you do understand it, though, it all seems quite simple."

She watched his eyebrows rise and his arms fold across his chest. "Oh really?" he said cockily. "Well then, do explain." He waved a hand across the table, as if opening it up for her to speak.

Isadora sighed and turned the map so Severus could see it better. "This is a seasonal map. So, obviously, it tells the reader the various seasons of whatever part of the world the map is made to represent. But because they're wizarding maps, they actually change with the seasons. So," she pulled out a list of what appeared to be ingredients, although they weren't things one could buy at the Apothecary in Diagon Alley, "the mapmakers have to travel to each area on the map and collect living specimens. Usually just saplings or young plants will do, but occasionally you have to collect blood samples."

Severus was resting his head on his hand; she could tell he was trying to feign boredom, but a gleam in his eyes told her he was genuinely interested in what she was saying.

"Anyway," she continued, "the samples have to be mixed into a potion, which is then added to the inks used to draw the maps." She pointed to the small signature at the very bottom of the map they were looking at. "Each map is drawn by hand and takes a ridiculous amount of time to create, simply because of how much effort has to go into making the ink. Needless to say, not many wizards choose it as a profession."

She sat back in her chair and pulled the sleeves of her jumper down over her hands; the cool dungeon air was beginning to make her fingers numb. Severus sat upright and tapped a slender finger on the map, pondering for a moment before asking, "What use does the Dark Lord have for seasonal maps?"

Isadora pulled out a different map. This one only covered the British Isles; each region had a number, rather like the tickers at Kings Cross, but the numbers were constantly increasing. Smaller numbers written underneath the larger ones were also increasing, although at a slower rate than the one above. "He'll probably want a map like this, a population map," she whispered.

The tone of her voice must have given her away, because the way Severus' eyes snapped up to meet hers told her he understood exactly what she was talking about. "Muggle-borns," he said quietly. "That would make perfect sense."

Isadora didn't like how excited he sounded at the idea. "It means I'll need blood for the ink to work properly," she said, disgusted at the prospect. "It means I'll have to kill at least a dozen Mudbloods before the map can be used."

Severus stared at her, his eyes narrowing. Isadora wasn't sure if Legilimency worked without a wand and the incantation, but it certainly felt like he was trying to read her thoughts. "And the thought of acting in the name of the Dark Lord…repulses you?" he hissed.