A/N SORRY it has been ages since I've had a chance to write. I had a million different directions I was going to take this story in, but I finally just had to decide on one. I've also been incredibly busy, but now I've got a bit of time finally. xxx
Emily rewrapped the end of her scarf as she walked through Hogsmead. The students who remained at the castle over the holidays were given a hogsmead day, and although she had been to diagon ally the day before, she still seized the chance to get out of the castle. The new cloak professor Snape had purchased for her was really an amazing bit of magic, for its simplicity that is. It was a fairly light cloak, and it seemed much too light for the cold Scottish weather, but a charm was woven into the fabric to keep the wearer warm. That evening they were to meet with headmaster Dumbledore apparently to discuss what had happened at the leaky cauldron the day before. Emily knew it had something to do with whatever had happened the day with Hermione, with the threads, but Emily's significant lack of experience in the magical world left her wanting in knowledge.
"Excuse me?" Emily looked up to see a sallow faced man with whispy hair behind her. He held out a glove that looked very similar to the ones Hogwarts student wore, but Emily had both her gloves on.
"Thank you but it isn't mine."
"Miss Arden." A sharp voice cracked and Emily turned quickly to see professor Mcgoincal and Professor Snape standing outside of the pub. The professors quickly strode up to her and she looked to see the man had gone.
"come along." Her head of house instructed. Emily glanced up once at professor snape and she observed something of an impassive bored look on his face until he met her glance. It was then that she saw it soften in the slightest and nod to her. It seemed the good professor McGonigal was not privy to the knowledge of their relation. She was ushered along towards the town center where the professors could keep watch of the few students remaining after the holidays. Emily found herself in a bookshop and settled down in a chair near the window and watched. The light snow fell and it was already beginning to darken despite it being early afternoon. She made her way back to the castle nad finally back to the Gryffindore common room. Emily sat in her room and looked over the new clothing and supplies she had. The professor has seen to it that she receive all new items and they were unpacked and organized neatly in a new trunk. The generosity of the man completely astounded her. With her saved money she had purchased a Christmas gift for both Alex and the Professor. She wasn't sure what to get them because she realy didn't know them. She had settled on a book for one. A book of muggle adventure stories for Alex. But then the professor proved to be a much more difficult case, but she decided on a small envelope. Emily was still unsure of whether or not she would be spending Christmas with them. She couldn't help but feel like an intruder in their world.
Emily did not attend dinner that evening, needing time to settle down from the last two days. When she thought of professor snape, she immediately felt a short burst of panic run through her. She tried to imagine the new professor snape she knew, the one she was related to.
Emily laid down for a rest before their meeting with the headmaster letting her thoughts take over.
"Cancelled?" Alex huffed at the note his father had left. His father was always honest with him, and he trusted his father on his every work but the one thing he stone walled him on way anything having to do with strings. In the back of his mind alex had been amazed that his father was going to breach the subject with them, in one way or another is seemed too good to be true, so the vague note cancelling their meeting due to business wasn't the largest of surprises.
Alex flooed up to the empty classroom on the third floor coordior, as was the precaution alex had to take when his father was out, and he made his way down to the library. He had searched a hundred time but he had half a mind to look again on the threads, that there was something he was missing. His robes billowed out as he made a sharp turn at the bottom of the stairs as he arrived at the second floor landing when an icy wave stopped him in his tracks. When alex had been much younger, around five or six he was exploring the castle when he stumbled upon the grey lady, startling the ghost and causing the two to collide. Well, they would have collided had the ghost been a solid being, instead he passed right through her nad felt an icy chill like a bucket of ice water flow over his skin. It was this feeling now that stopped him, but he felt it in his chest, a sharp prick that made him stop and suddenly much more alert to his surroundings.
The cold castle was still and a warm glow from candles lit the hallway. A low thump suddenly registered on his senses and he followed the sound around a corner and saw a slumped form he instantly recognized.
"Emily." He said as he ran up to the small heap on the floor. She was leaning against the wall, resting her head on her arm. "What happened?" He gasped, looking her over and as he did the threads appeared, they were white but there was grey ones as well, grey ones that were much sharper and seemed to be grabbing hold of the white ones.
"Alex… I don't feel very well…madam proomfrey" Was the soft reply.
"The threads, Emily do you see them?" He whispered in a hushed panic. Her complexion was pale and she looked exhausted.
"Him, it's him. The man, his, I think I took his spell…Alex?" She whispered. He looked at her and the warm threads that scattered around them. He saw the aggressive grey threads, and they almost looked dirty, like something that had once been clean was soiled.
Without thinking he pulled his wand from his pocket and he fixated on the grey threads and said the only spell he could think of "Scourgify!" he watched as the purple light from his wand immediately found the grey threads and he watched the light travel the length of them, engulfing the grey threads, he felt the room heat up and Emily squeezed his hand, her eyes squeezed shut and as the light from his spell faded, a dark grey mist fell away nad dissolved with a low his into the stone floor. The grey threads were no more, but the number of white threads coming from Emily were more numerous than he had seen before.
Emily's breathing was stronger and she opened her eyes, dark circles still rimmed them, but she seemed brighter.
"Emily, the threads, they're our magic. We can see people's magic." Alex said. Emily stared at him, her mouth parted and she looked at him, seeing the whisps of light coming from the older boy.
"I took his magic. The death eater's" She said in revelation. Panic rose in her eyes and she squeezed alex's arm. "He's a dark man, I have dark magic in me now!" She gasped, tears rising and falling.
"No, look, it was making you sick, but I… I cleaned it?" He said unsure. Emily looked down at herself and the lick of a thread of dark murky grey was no longer visible. The constriction she felt in her chest was gone and she felt like she had just finished running a marathon. She didn't even realize how tired she had been.
"Let's go to the dungeons." He said, helping the girl up. He helped her stand, and as they walked she stumbled a few times.
"Sorry." Emily murmerd as they walked.
"Get on my back." Alex said. Emily looked up at him, too exhausted to argue and oblidged as the tall boy carried her tiny frame on his back. During the moderate walk to the dungeons alex heard her breathing even out and he knew she was asleep. While the girl was exhausted, the new found knowledge was burning bright in alex's mind. He knew he was right, that was their secret, they could see a wizard's magic, and from the lookd of things, they could control it, at least to some extent. The fear and trepredation his father treated the subject suddenly lay heavy on his chest as implication swirled in his mind.
The portrait in his father's office swung open and he stepped into the brightly lit room. His father look up, a paper spread out before him and a mug of coffee next to it.
"What happened?" He asked in a sharp voice, seeing the limp girl his son was carring.
"She's fine. Asleep. Help me." Alex said. His father strode over to him and lifted the remarkably small girl off him and he carried her down the hall to the guest bedroom. Alex sat at the table and stared blankly at the paper his father was reading. He didn't hear him return, but was suddenly aware of his presence as black fabric came into his line of vision.
"She isn't just sleeping, she's exhausted." His father said in a low voice.
"Dad. We know what the threads are." Alex said quietly. Excitement, fear, and a world of emotions swirled in his mind. He looked up at his father. "It's magic, isn't it? Emily and I can control a wizard's magic?" He said. He watched his father's eyes darken and he had his answer.