Warrington lay on the bed on his stomach with the silky pajama top off. Alyssa was gone from the room; George had sent her out before Warrington would even consent to take off his shirt. He tried not to think about the pain that might be caused by Harry's attempt to alter the Dark Mark upon his right shoulder.
Having the damn thing gone was something he had believed would never happen; he was sure that if he had gotten free of the Parkinson clan someone would have noticed it. Simply having that mark, he knew, would have made damned sure that he would be condemned to live in some dark and dank cell in Azkaban forever. If Harry succeeded in changing the mark, he could actually live a somewhat normal life... as a bondservant, anyway.
George was standing nearby, watching, and scowling in disapproval. Harry simply ignored him; Snape could put on a much better show than that any day so it was easy to do. He played for a moment with the thought of recommending that George take lessons from the snarky old potions master if he wanted to get better at his attempts to glower and scowl.
Smirking faintly and pushing the thought out of his mind, Harry returned his attention to the page in the book that held the precious information on how to alter bonding marks. It did give a method of removing the mark but that usually involved removing the body part that had been marked; not a viable solution in this situation. Further study had found a section that stated that the mark could be changed, the lines of the mark could be manipulated with this gesture and the spell of "mutare", which Harry thought meant "manipulate" in Greek.
He spoke the word with an unintentional mispronunciation, then touched the mark ever so lightly with the tip of his wand. Jerrod hissed in a barely restrained gasp of pain, his teeth clenched. The outline of the snake bulged then the snake itself seemed to take on life, rearing up and ripping itself from the flesh of Warrington's shoulder; a snake of human flesh and blood with teeth of black steel leaving a bloody channel where it had once lay. Harry instantly backed away, speaking the word to end the spell. The snake subsided back onto his shoulder, though blood trickled from the edges of the snake's form.
"Holy fuck! That was the nastiest thing I've ever seen! What the bloody hell did you do?!" George demanded.
"Oh DO shut up Weasley." Jerrod grumbled. He took a moment to pull a pillow tight in his arms; if Harry did something like that again he was sure he was going to scream. He'd be ready for it; he didn't want anyone to hear him object to pain like that. "Come on Potter, try again." he suggested.
Harry hesitated and then tried again, being far more careful with his enunciation of the word this time. When he touched the pale skin Jerrod gasped in pain as the tattoo's lines swelled up like ropes, seeming to want to burst out of the skin, and then settled into painful looking welts after a fraction of a second. The Dark Mark had come to life; the skull part of the tattoo began to move from side to side, mouth opening wider in a silent scream as the snake squirmed, slithering in through the eye socket and out the mouth, flicking its tongue and baring its fangs at Harry menacingly. Warrington had gasped, his fists clenched and eyes shut tight to endure the pain but he did not move. Harry cut off that attempt quickly and the tattoo slowly returned to its inanimate state.
"Merlin's bloody balls…!" George murmured, horrified.
Jerrod glared at Harry a moment over his shoulder. "Please. Don't do THAT again." He requested.
"I don't intend to." Harry assured, scowling at the book. "One more try, all right?" Harry was rather shaken by the fact that he was capable of bringing that thing to life.
"As many as you need Potter." He said quietly, though his shoulder now throbbed and his ankle was really beginning to ache despite the fact that George had carefully propped it up so that it did not lie at a strange or uncomfortable angle upon the sheets.
"One more." Harry said firmly. He put the book down and focused on the tattoo, his eyes narrowed so that all he could see was the mark. He raised his wand and pointed at, but did not touch, one line of the mark. He moved the wand outward while whispering "MUTARE". The line slowly responded to his guidance.
Harry worked for the next hour making meticulous alterations to the tattoo. George watched as the sickening Dark Mark with so many horrible memories attached to it was slowly transmutated into a lotus blossom, open and at full bloom. Finally he sighed and lowered his wand, stretching his back, finding he felt extremely exhausted.
George had inched closer during the process to watch as the change occurred. He eyed the results with a smile. "That's kinda pretty now... never would have guessed it was a Dark Mark... not too masculine but it sure does look better..."
"I don't care what it is as long as its not that damned bloody skull." Jerrod mumbled, feeling drained and exhausted as well. He felt like he'd been beaten all over again.
"It still holds the same properties it did before. It binds him to the children." Harry said, rising, picking his book up off the bed. "It's going to take a lot more research to change the properties and its purpose..."
"I really don't care. Honestly, Potter. I don't mind being bound to the children at all." Jerrod mumbled, looking quite pale. "You can leave it that way as far as I'm concerned. Now can I move now? Please...?"
Harry slipped his wand away. "Oh, yes, of course..." he said, unable to help noticing the thin lines crisscrossing the back of the man he had just worked on. The lines covered most of his back leaving very little skin unmarked except where the altered Mark now lay. He couldn't help but wonder just what kind of a life he had endured. He knew he might never know because he never intended to ask.
"Oh, bloody hell, your ankle...!" George cursed, moving quickly to help him to turn over and to sit up. Jerrod allowed him to help him to turn over without any complaint, too tired and worn out to argue about that.
"I think I'll take that sleeping potion now." Warrington said, reaching for his shirt, his hands shaking.
"I know it hurt when I screwed up, Jerrod, but did the change to the mark hurt at all?" Harry asked.
Jerrod frowned softly, considering his answer before he gave it. "No. It really didn't hurt; more like... itched. It was a weird kind of feeling, kind of like something was crawling around or shifting just under my skin. I didn't notice any pain, but then again my attention is kind of diverted by other pain at the moment." he shrugged into his shirt as George pulled the blankets aside, fussing over the condition of the ankle. Jerrod ignored him, laying back on the pillows. He went to put an ice pack on it and it slipped, falling a bit hard on the swollen bruised area. "Ow...! Damn and double damn! George would you just let it alone?!" he snapped.
"Sorry; the damn thing is slippery... Look at that ankle, you should have it iced...!" George retorted, leaving the ice on it.
Jerrod glared at him, then exhaled, exasperated. "Would you just give me the damned potion? I want to be unconscious!" he said, sitting up slightly as he reached for the bottle on the bedside table.
George gently pushed him back on the bed. "Lay down already, you grumpy old man. I've got it." he said firmly, taking up the bottle and opening it. Warrington snatched it and drank it down immediately. The effects of the powerful sleeping potion kicked in before he extended his arm to give the bottle back. George picked up the bottle and sighed, shaking his head with a faint grin.
Harry looked at each of them and grinned faintly. "You know, George, you two don't act like you just met."
"We haven't just met, really... he was in your class just two years behind us, remember? I met him at school loads of times. I won't go claiming that I thought anything good about him at the time. Actually..." he scratched his head. "Honestly I thought he was an absolute prat and I was sure he'd go Death Eater even if his father wasn't. Most Slytherins tried to. But I thought the same of Draco at the time." he smirked.
"Yeah. Me too." Harry admitted as he chuckled along with him.
George turned, hearing a timid knock on the door. Alyssa stood quietly at the door, looking unsure if she should be there or not. "Hey little one; he can't visit with you, he's asleep right now..."
"Lord Father Weasley, is he really asleep?" She asked softly. "Can I... Can I tell him good night...?"
George didn't see how Warrington could ever say no to this little girl; she was such a pretty little thing and all she seemed to want was love. He gestured for her to come forward. "Of course you can. Come on." George smiled.
Alyssa to the bed and climbed up on it, crawling to Warrington's side. She gently touched his face then put her lips against his cheek in a soft kiss. "Sleep well... and please..." she leaned close to his ear, whispering urgently to him. "...please want to be my daddy when you wake up." She whispered, and then bit her lip, feeling guilty for asking such a thing of him. She tugged at one of his arms and tucked her precious stuffed toy in the crook of his arm. After she kissed her toy and whispered goodnight, she pulled at the blanket and tucked it about Warrington's neck, then turned and slid down off the bed again.
George scooped the girl into his arms and held her close. "You'll always have me for a daddy, no matter what little one." He assured as he and Harry walked out to allow Warrington to rest peacefully.
Harry tracked down Lucius; he and Severus Snape were relaxing in the study chatting when he moved in. Lucius offered to get him a drink but Harry waved him to remain seated, getting his own drink before he went to go and have a seat.
"You look exhausted. I take it the alteration of the mark worked?" Lucius asked hopefully.
"I didn't get it on the first try, but yes, it worked." Harry said wearily. "And I think I have an extra twist we can use for the children, if Severus says it's possible." he glanced at the old professor, who merely looked curious. "I don't want to remove the memories and knowledge from the children's minds. None of them are mind-healers or work with the mind; I think that is what Mallek was going to be trained to do. Who better to manipulate the mind than the leader?"
"Indeed." Severus agreed; that had been Voldemort's thinking precisely. "What 'twist' were you suggesting, Potter?"
"The tattoo and the memories can be linked to specific events in the children's lives. I would prefer that the memories come to them in a natural pattern and I intend to link the mark into it."
"What did you mutate the mark into?" Lucius asked.
"A lotus blossom." Harry answered.
Harry couldn't help but notice the slow smile spreading across the retired teacher's face. "Let me understand this... now, instead of referring to them as the Dark Circle, they are to be the Flower Power Gang?" Severus asked with a smirk.
Harry chuckled, trying to give Severus a dirty look for the comical comment but failing completely. "You've been watching muggle cartoons again haven't you?" he accused with a chuckle. "NO, they're just going to be KIDS. Not a gang, not a circle, just kids."
"Flower Power Gang...?" Lucius repeated and chuckled softly. "Honestly, Severus, you're in quite a mood this evening...!"
Snape actually grinned, sipping his firewhiskey.
Harry shook his head; he wasn't getting involved in whatever they had been discussing before he came along. "The REASON I chose a lotus blossom, Severus, because of its historical significance. In feudal Japan, samurai warriors often had lotus blossoms engraved upon their weapons hilts and blades to remind them that life is more than war and death; there are good, true and beautiful things in the world. It represents good fortune, peace and enlightenment..."
"Sounds like a muggle movement back in the sixties." Severus half-chuckled. "A popular muggle singer made up the song 'Give peace a chance'..."
"Give me a break, will you?" Harry chuckled. "It also symbolizes rebirth."
"And these children are being 'born' into a new life... quite an appropriate choice, Harry, no matter what Severus says." Lucius smiled softly.
"That's not all I intend to do with the mark, either. Warrington's blossom will always be at full bloom, but the flower for the children will close with each memory that is locked away to be released by a future event until it is a bud. When we're done they will simply be children, free to grow and be happy. As the memories are restored, the lotus will open; it will help us all be able to track their actual progress with their powers as well..."
"Excellent idea; after all, Draco did come into his powers early and required some training before he ever reached Hogwarts." Lucius said proudly. "There's no reason that Alerick will not be capable of the same thing. I ensured when Draco showed that he was ready he had training that would help him at school including flying, karate, and gymnastics classes."
"Yeah, he told me all about the flying lessons." Harry grinned then sighed softly, looking at his drink a moment before he sipped it. "It takes so much out of me and I think Warrington was wiped out too. It's going to take me the good part of a day to get each one of these damned Marks altered. It took nearly two hours to do Warrington's, and I expect it to take at least as long for each one of the children."
"The answer seems simple enough to me; a light dose of sleeping potion to each just before you begin working on it will help to relax them." Severus suggested.
Harry nodded in agreement. "Good idea; problem is Alyssa. She's still afraid of me."
"I hope to have that resolved soon." Severus said. "Her protections are as strong as the others, but if she goes into self defense it could be far worse than anything that the others can produce. A siren's song is nothing compared to its scream when it attacks."
"Not to worry; she has a very strong attachment to Warrington, despite his misgivings about fatherhood." Lucius assured. "I'm sure she will behave with him present."
"I just wish there were some way that we could break that bastard Parkinson's ability to manipulate the mark as well. He can still use it to torture the children, were they ever to leave here..." Harry said, worried. "All he would have to do is summon them and the moment they walked out of here they'd be in horrible pain..."
Severus unconsciously rubbed his old mark, still hidden after so many years and barely visible on his arm from years of inactivity. "Yes, I'm aware he can use it for that."
"The answer is simple. We eliminate him. Once Parkinson is dead only you will be able to do anything with the mark, Harry." Lucius said simply, pulling out the scroll of his family tree again, his fingertips lingering on the name of his and James' daughter, Ariandi. "Then we can move on with our lives, and other projects that we wish to pursue..."
"Malcolm Parkinson may be utterly mad, Lucius, but he has managed to avoid even being seen since before the children had been taken. Even Pansy was not seen until she revealed herself to your manservant." Severus pointed out.
"We need to talk to him; pick his brain about anything he may have seen or heard while he was in their hands." Lucius said thoughtfully. "I'm absolutely certain that Malcolm won't stay in hiding for very long. I do believe he'll show himself at some point, trying to get revenge or even to snatch the children away once more. After all, Pansy did try to secure Warrington."
"So the children must not leave here until we are certain he's dead." Harry said.
Lucius nodded. "Just so." he agreed. "If you have the time, Harry, you can begin altering the children's marks tomorrow. Alerick will be an excellent first subject, I'm sure."
"I'll start with him then... right now, I'm going to go kiss my children good night and have dinner with my husband before I go to sleep." he said, rising and setting his glass aside.
Cormac McLaggen, Minister of Magic, was very comfortable in his position. He was good-looking, well-spoken and eloquent, and he found that the world of politics quite suited him. He didn't have much to do in order to be successful, as he was in office during such a peaceful time.
Unfortunately for him this mess with Weasley and Parkinson had come up and thrown a wrench in all his plans for the summer. He'd planned to go on vacation at the seashore and spend several weeks with his new girlfriend, and perhaps even get her to accept his proposal of marriage. Now all of that had to be scrapped.
He would be tied up now with court cases against Hermione Weasley at the very least. Once Pansy and Malcolm Parkinson were caught it would all come roaring back to life again; and he would have to decide what to do with that foreigner, the German squib that Parkinson had brought into the country. The German Minister was already demanding that he be returned to their country when he was located; it seems the man had been up to no good in his own country a well. Why couldn't they all just behave themselves and stay out of trouble while he was in office? The only thing he was grateful for was the fact that it had all been cleaned up so neatly with only a few loose ends, so far.
Aurors were in and out of his office all the time now, reporting on what information they had deciphered from the mess at the clinic. So far everything that had been uncovered had coincided exactly with what Hermione Weasley had informed them of the night she turned herself in.
Cormac looked up to see his assistant move in, looking worried and nervous. "Minister...? You have... visitors." she said, glancing behind her through the door. He could see there were people out there but he couldn't spot anyone he recognized through the small space she had allowed it to be open.
"Visitors?" he frowned, turning his chair fully toward her. "I'm not expecting anyone; tell them to come back another time..."
She looked very uncomfortable. "I tried, sir, but..."
"But we won't go." A wizard stated, pushing the door open. Cormac recognized him; he had attended school with this wizard; his name was Ernie McMillan. He examined him a moment and decided that the years had definitely not been kind to his old school friend. "And we're not leaving until we speak with you."
McLaggen frowned; he didn't like ultimatums or being forced to do things he did not wish to. "And who exactly is 'we'?" he asked, rising to his feet.
Ernie glanced back out the door and gestured; the office quickly began to fill up with people as at least a dozen wizards and witches moved in. None of them looked happy, and they covered all areas of the Wizarding community. Purebloods, mudbloods and squibs; powerful wizards and weak wizards as well. The thing that made him the most uncomfortable was each and every one of them had a say in who remained in the office that he currently held.
"What can I do for all of you?" Cormac asked, leaning slightly on his desk and putting on a winning smile.
"We want our healer back." a woman stated in a clear tone, her hand resting on her swollen stomach. She was clearly quite well along in her pregnancy.
He gazed at her a moment. "Your healer...?"
"Yes. Hermione Weasley." she responded.
Cormac sighed softly, his smile slipping. He had been afraid this was coming. "I'm afraid that's quite outside the realm of possibility, Miss..."
"Look, Minister McLaggen." Ernie MacMillan scowled at his old schoolmate. He was clearly the spokesperson for the group, who were all glaring at Cormac and allowing Ernie to speak for them. "I know this is all a huge scandal and it has to be dealt with, but I really don't give a troll's fart about all that. All I know is my wife is pregnant after fifteen years of failure and the woman who is responsible for our time of joy is rotting away in some damned cell here in this building!"
Cormac McLaggen looked at the faces in the room; all angry and all determined to get the person he held in protective custody released back into the populace to continue caring for those she had tended. "I can't do that, Ernie. Damn it, you know what's involved, there are too many out there who want her head…!"
"Then assign her a bodyguard!" he countered. "Are you afraid she'll run and give you no one to prosecute? For Merlin's sake, Cormac, use your head and common sense! Why in the bloody hell would she run? She's not going to run! She didn't run before, she TURNED THEM ALL IN!" he snapped.
"That's not my problem and you know it! She has to be held responsible for what she's done…!"
"Just because she gave herself up she's going to take the brunt for everything that was done?!"
"You're insane!" Someone else snapped.
"She never hurt ANY of us! And from what I read in the Prophet, she didn't hurt anyone else either!" Ernie growled. "I want my healer released to care for my wife! She's in a sensitive time of her pregnancy and does NOT need to be upset! She needs to be allowed to take care of my wife and their children as well!" he gestured to the others.
"I'm sorry, Ernie, I can't…!"
"You can and you will! I swear, Cormac, if you don't, I'm not the only one whose going to make damned sure that you don't have another year as Minister!"
"Don't you threaten me!" McLaggen started.
"This isn't a threat, it's a promise. And I've spoken with Damitri Zabini; he's with us all the way." He growled eyes narrow.
Minister McLaggen paled ever so slightly. "Zabini…?"
"Yes, his partner Terry is pregnant also and is very attached to Mrs. Weasley." He answered. "He's quite a sweet fellow and Zabini is really protective of him. You'd better get something done, Cormac. We all want to see something happen."
"I will do what I can." He said, sitting back down slowly. "But you will have to give me a day or two, at least…"
"Not two days. One day." Ernie said firmly. He was done playing games. "And if your answer isn't what we want to hear, we'll find another way to get what we need, without your help."
Severus had come home in a very good mood and had spent a few hours curled up with both Remus and Tonks, quite a good night indeed. He did not usually share his time with Tonks but he had been feeling... well, playful. And the three of them had shared quite an exhaustive round of lovemaking. It had, overall, been a very relaxing and enjoyable evening.
Once everyone had started to drift off to sleep he slipped out of the bed and off to his own room, and to his surprise the others had followed him. "Going somewhere, Sev...?" Remus asked, moving to sit down on the settee to watch his lover.
"Back to Lucius' house." he said, opening the potions cabinet and studying its contents thoughtfully. "There's a lot to be done there."
Tonks watched Severus and decided that this was as good a time as any to bring up what McLaggen wanted her to. "Sev...? The minister wants me to talk to you..."
He looked at her curiously. "To me? What in the world would McLaggen want with me? I thought the Ministry washed its hands of me."
"They need someone who knows the medical field, and someone who knows about what was done involving the creation of all the babies..."
"Why?" he asked suspiciously.
"The Minister needs someone to keep a very close eye on Hermione Weasley while she is out in public..." Tonks began.
Severus frowned; he didn't intend to be anyone's nursemaid. "So have her work with a healer from St. Mungo's. Restrict her magic. Put a tracker on her that will only allow her to apparate back to the ministry. Chain her to a damned house elf with orders to teleport her back if she even HINTS at disobedience! You could even use Kreacher if the old beast is still alive; he'd probably love the chance to be able to discipline and watch after a witch!"
"All of that would be ways to track her, but..." Tonks began.
"Put her under the Imperious Curse if you have no other choice; I don't want to spend half my day looking after her!" Severus Snape scowled at her.
"None of that will ensure she is doing only the care that is required or appropriate for those she's tending to." Remus said softly, seeing where Tonks was going with her argument.
"Now you're ganging up on me as well?" he scowled at the two of them. "I have WORK to do at the hospital! And when I've finished there I have work to do at Malfoy Manor! I really don't need more work to do, I'm hardly at home as it stands...!"
"I'm not trying to force you to do anything, Sev." Remus said right away. "She could help you with some of your work, she was in training in the medical field. Maybe she can help you at the manor..."
"She never studied legilimency; she can't get into the minds of any of these children! She'd be all but useless!" he began.
"I don't think so; after all, she's studied psychology and the science of the mind." Remus countered. "She may be of more use than you know, simply with the work you need to do with those five kids. They have to learn how to be children, especially the oldest ones..."
Severus grunted; they were making sense and he didn't want to admit it. "They have siblings for that." he returned.
"Yes, and two of them are quite the bullies, I understand." Tonks responded. "Oh, do be reasonable, Sev! We're not asking you to look after the Queen of England, you know."
He couldn't help but smirk at her for that. "You know as well as I that the Ministry would never trust me to do that." he retorted, then scowled again. "Why are they trusting me to watch over her? I thought I was considered a dangerous wizard, only trusted to work with parents and babies and constantly watched, if I'm not mistaken?"
"Maybe they're changing all of that." Tonks pointed out. "After all, it was Minister McLaggen himself who suggested that you would be the best bet for this job..."
"More like the ONLY choice. He's got no one else that all of this makes any sense to, has he?" Severus said, realizing that he could make this work to his advantage quite well.
"It's muggle technology; most wizard healers have no idea how to even read it much less understand it." Remus commented.
"I fully intend to get everything I can out of this situation." he responded, smiling once more as he began choosing different potions to take with him.
"They could still call in Shacklebolt, you know." Tonks reminded.
Severus snorted. "Kingsley doesn't babysit." he answered. "Unless it IS a queen, or a Prime Minister. If you or those... monkeys... over at the Ministry need me, I will be at Malfoy Manor." Severus turned and a trunk floated out of a closet.
"You're going over this late? It's nearly midnight...!" Tonks objected.
"Lucius is expecting me. And the work I need to do with the little redheaded girl Alyssa must be done at night; and I will simply sleep there after my rounds at the hospital."
"What's wrong with Alyssa?" Remus asked.
"The little girl has been... conditioned... by more than just mental means to be terrified of Potter."
"More than mental...? You mean they sexually abused her?"
"Wearing Potter's likeness, yes." he answered, now packing several changes of clothing quickly. "Their conditioning has left the girl particularly susceptible to nightmares and her last nightmare destroyed a good quarter of the nursery she was sleeping in... she loses control of her power in her sleep."
"How long will you be gone?"
"Until I'm done, I suppose... you can reach me there or send our house elf Azure to fetch me if you need me." he said, closing the trunk then spelling the thing to shrink to a manageable size. He glanced at them; Remus looked a bit mournful with his big brown eyes but gave no objection.
Tonks sighed, watching him. "So what do I tell Minister McLaggen?"
"I will consider it, and get back to him." he answered. "But do tell him to reconsider that werewolf legislation while I'm considering my answer." he said, moving over to give Remus a deep kiss and then a soft kiss to Tonks as well. Severus gave them a smile, turned away and threw the floo powder into the fireplace and was gone in a flash of green flames and swirl of black cloak.
Severus found his way into the nursery that was occupied by the five children of the Circle. The room was far altered from what it had been before. It was still large and spacious; in fact, the room and its little antechambers covered at least three times as much space. The room now had four chambers that were no less than fifteen feet by twenty feet in size that led off the main chamber, each with an arched open doorway that had no door. Each chamber had been given to a child, but since no one could get Mallek to go to sleep anywhere but with Alerick in the Dragon bed in the main room one of the chambers was not occupied by a child but by two of the nannies. The twins had the chambers on either side of the door and had insisted their rooms be arranged to allow them to see the door from their beds.
A nanny sat up next to the door also in plain sight of the twins; she looked up and bowed her head to Severus when he walked into the room. She had been instructed to expect him and to allow him to proceed into Alyssa's chamber; she made no move to intercept him nor to even question his presence.
He moved into the chamber half expecting the room to be pink as most of the child's clothing was; she had insisted it had to be decorated to her liking. The walls were deepest blue and had a distinct wave pattern to them. The floor was black and seemed to be studded with stars. The floor was covered by a deep green carpet; one almost had the impression of standing outside on a hill when you stood in the room, or perhaps even of being underwater.
Alyssa lay in bed, sleeping very fitfully; she was clearly in the grips of one of her nightmares again. Severus was rather surprised to see no sign of the stuffed thing that she carried about with her everywhere.
Severus crept toward the girl and for a moment felt utterly absurd, like a cartoon villain sneaking up on a helpless sleeping princess in his long black cloak and she in her pink gown. He shook off the notion and moved closer to the bed as quietly as he was able. He knelt beside the bed and drew his wand and pointed it at the girl; he had to get into her mind to help her to get out of the throes of her current dream. "Blentan." he murmured the words and he felt the disorientation that came from the successful casting of the dream blending spell, then he was inside the girl's dream.
Everything was neat, perfect, and just-so tidy in the little castle room that he found himself in. He had not been to either of the places that this girl had been raised, but he felt completely certain that this is the room in which she spent a great deal of time studying. Alyssa looked so small, sitting on a stack of books at a desk to stare down at the pages of the book. She was clearly reading, whispering the words to herself as she read. There was no exit door to this room, only one door at the top of the stairs; somehow that door and this room vaguely reminded Severus of his own offices back when he had been Potions Master at Hogwarts. if it was, then that door there was the one that led to the Professor's private offices. His classroom, though, had never had these stark, white-washed bare walls and there had been a full wall of windows.
Alyssa raised her eyes to him and blinked, then looked completely confused. "You... you're not supposed to be here!" she whispered with a wary glance at the door at the top of the stairs.
"Oh? and where am I to be?" he asked her in a normal voice.
"Sssh!" she pleaded, her eyes filling with fear. "Please, sir, please... don't be loud, he'll come down, he'll come out..."
"He cannot hear me, little one. Only you can hear me, and only you can see me." Severus answered, but he used a much quieter tone.
She nodded, eyes on the door again. "Well... okay, but you gotta go away." she murmured, then began a soft chant of what Severus recognized as highly complex and high-level spells for enchantment and seductions; some that he himself had never had the time to learn or had reason to use.
"Why are you saying those words?" he asked to see if she knew what it was that she was memorizing.
"I'm supposed to say them so that I know them... they taught me how to say them and I practice them here... I must chant."
"Why do you do it? This is your dream... you should enjoy your dreamtime."
"I can't." she whispered fearfully. "If I don't he will come out and make me go to his office... if I do it wrong he will come out... I must study, sir..." she whispered, her fear growing. This man was making her not study and surely her Teacher would be out to correct her any moment.
"And what happens if he comes out?"
"He hurts me." she whispered, trembling at the thought. "He takes me to his office, and..."
"Why are you not studying?!" A voice snarled from the now partially open office door. "Alyssa!"
The girl flinched at the tone and the voice, tears welling in her eyes. "Please go away…" she whispered to Snape, closing her eyes and focusing down on her chants, but her voice faltered and trembled as she spoke.
Snape looked up the steps as the door on the landing opened. Framed in the doorway was a man that looked exactly like current day Harry Potter, but it was easy to tell he was not. He held himself not only with pride but with arrogance, every step a swagger, and he looked down at that little girl like a hawk eyeing a rabbit for its next meal. He had a furious snarl on his lips as he gazed down at the tiny little girl, all alone in her chair at the center of the tower room. "You lazy little useless creature! You're not doing your chants properly again…" he said as he left the door open. He started down the stairs, a smile of wicked enjoyment touching his face. "And you know what happens when lose your focus, don't you?" he was clearly anticipating what he was about to do with great pleasure.
"I'm sorry Teacher I promise I'll pay more attention, I promise…" she whimpered, gazing up at him; she couldn't even focus enough to continue her chants as he stalked down the stairs toward her at a very slow pace, menace and threat in his every movement. "Please... please don't..."
Severus found himself unable to even affect any part of the girl's dream, forced to watch ineffectually as she was seized by the doppelganger of Harry and dragged up the stairs. Severus followed to find the room was not an office after all; it was a torture chamber with very specific devices meant to cause pain contained therein. There was only one way this little girl would even have any idea what these torture devices looked like, and that was if she had experienced them for herself. Those hanging on the south wall were crystal clear to see, sharpened blades and clamps and whips as well as other items. The north wall held more but the outlines of those items looked fuzzy; the details of each of them looking like smeared paint. From his previous work in dreams Severus knew this meant that she had never seen or felt those ones used before.
He could not bring himself watch the man torture the girl; he pulled himself free of her dream and returned to his own senses just in time to see the lamp beside the bed suddenly shatter into a million pieces of dust and powdered glass; the bed the girl was on vibrating and trembling. Snape shielded the girl to prevent her from doing further damage accidentally. Watching the dream, helping the girl to face her fears was not going to be enough.
Those damned, idiotic fools...! The conditioning of this child had been very abusive and he would have to help her to understand that she could affect the outcome of her dreams; that she could indeed have some sort of control. The way they had abused her and trained her was turning out to be a deadly combination. The abuse she had suffered was causing a lack of control in her dream state, and it would not be long until that loss of control spilled over into the conscious state. Then they would have a powerful siren on their hands with no ability to control it. Hopefully Warrington had some idea how to train the girl in her powers... they might need to begin her training all over again.
Snape heard a sound behind him and Erik was standing in the open doorway, glaring at him but he did not raise a hand toward him. Severus sighed, irritated at the boy, but he simply moved to a chair and sat, his wand in his hand. He did not need to touch the girl to re-enter her dream, but he would not enter it with her so agitated. He thought for a moment then considered the guardian again. "I need you to wake her, Erik. She is having a very bad dream at the moment." he requested.
"She has lots of bad dreams; I had to wake her all the time back at the last house." Erik said, his scowl fading a little. He moved forward and whispered Alyssa's name, touching her shoulder. The waves of unrestrained power stopped as the little girl came awake, confused and disoriented and pale. "It's okay, Alyssa... it was just a bad dream." Erik soothed her in a soft tone.
"Thank you Erik." Severus said and Alyssa looked at him, unsure of him but showing no sign of being nervous at his presence. "You may remain if you wish, but there is no reason for you to." he told the boy.
"I want to." he said, folding his arms, so Snape simply ignored him.
"You were in my dream, Sir..." she murmured.
"I was." he agreed. "And I will be again. Your dream was horrible, little one. Why do you let him hurt you so?"
"He always hurts me." she closed her eyes, swallowing hard. "I'm a bad girl. He only hurts me because I'm a bad girl. And... and daddy doesn't want me 'cause I'm a bad girl..."
"Nonsense." Snape said immediately and the girl looked at him again. "Jerrod Warrington doesn't think he deserves to be the father of someone so special. He's afraid he'll make a mistake in raising you, little one."
She looked confused, then her confusion changed to sadness as she thought about it. "Then he'll never want me." she decided.
"Again, that is nonsense. He has no confidence in his own abilities; that does not mean that he cannot learn it as you have learned control over your own abilities." Severus replied. "Come now, you must sleep; your father will need you to take care of him in the morning and you must be rested to do so." he advised.
She sighed, resting back against her pillow. "I wish I could sleep with him." she murmured. "Nothing ever hurt me when he was with me."
"I will watch over you myself, Alyssa. Sleep." Severus said quietly.
"You won't leave? You won't let him in here?" she asked timidly.
Severus didn't have to ask who she was afraid would enter her room. "No one else will enter this room." he assured her in a quiet tone. The girl closed her eyes trustingly and settled to sleep.
Erik sat by the door and watched but Snape simply just sat and watched as the girl slowly drifted back into a sleep state. Eventually Erik slipped back out of the room and back to his own; Severus suspected the boy was staying up all night on watches again. He would have to inform Lucius of that fact... perhaps a nightly sleeping potion would be in order.
Again Severus joined Alyssa in her study chamber, moving up quietly behind her desk. He did not speak, he simply moved up beside the child and knelt on one knee, eyes on the door.
"You're back...?"
"Yes. And this time I will not leave you." he said firmly.
"But you can't help me." she stared at the books under her delicate little hands.
"Not alone, Alyssa."
She looked at him. "What does that mean?"
"I can help you, but not alone. You must help me to help you." he offered her his hand. "Together we can stop this. Stop these nightmares. Stop him from hurting you or anyone else. That creature you call Teacher is not Angel's father, although he may look like him."
"But he is... they told me he is... and he's hurt me for real in my room and..."
"He is not Harry Potter. And he has only the power that you give him, little Alyssa."
She slipped her hand into his. "But he gets so mad, and when Teacher is mad I've been bad..."
"Teacher has no right to hurt you, even if you are bad." he said, covering her hand with his own, enclosing her hand. "You must fight him. Help me to stop him from hurting you."
She looked frightened. "I can't... he's so strong and so big and so angry..."
"And so helpless if you take that all from him." Severus interrupted. "I can fight him but only if you let me little one. You must help me to fight him; you have to want him to leave you alone forever."
"Alyssa?!" the voice from the room at the head of the stairs bellowed and the little girl flinched.
Severus gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "I will not leave you." he promised again.
The doppleganger slammed open the door, eyes blazing. "You worthless little bitch, who have you brought in here this time?!" he demanded.
Snape took only one step forward and to his right, shielding Alyssa from the man's sight. "You've done all the damage you're going to here."
The man began to laugh. "You can't stop anything." he snorted.
"No, perhaps not. But she can." Severus said in response, not reacting to the man's amusement, watching his every move.
"I can't..." Alyssa whimpered.
"You can. You're strong or you wouldn't be a member of the Dark Circle, would you?" Severus asked her. The man was stalking down the stairs, his wand in hand, smoke emanating from its tip, which was glowing red.
"I am... I passed the tests..."
"You can do this. Make me strong, Alyssa. Let me stop him for you." he insisted. "Give me your strength!"
"I don't know how!" she cried, hearing the man stalking closer.
"Give me the strength! Stop pushing the power away!" Severus insisted moments before the doppelganger suddenly attacked. Snape barely had time to throw up a shield spell and began firing spells back, keeping Alyssa sheltered behind him.
"I can't, I can't..." she began to sob, sinking to her knees. He was going to get her again; he was going make this man go away and then hurt her bad for letting him in...
"Make him stop so Jerrod can be proud of you!" Snape demanded, using something he thought that would influence her. One of the man's attacks nearly hit Alyssa but Severus threw himself into its path, hissing in pain as his arm blackened from the wrist down.
Seeing the injury galvanized the girl into action; he was only trying to help her. "Stop it!" Alyssa shrieked. "Stop! You can't hurt him!"
"I can do anything I want to." he laughed, raising his wand to strike again.
Severus raised a shield but waited; he wanted to see if the girl would rise to the heights he hoped. The Weasley bloodline had so many damned Gryffindors she was bound to have that in her somewhere.
She stared at the man with fear in her eyes but made a hard throwing motion; a ball of energy was released from her hand and the man was slammed backward against the white stone wall. She squeaked in surprise, staring at her hand then back at the man who now had a smoking blackened hole in his robes in the middle of his chest.
"That's it, Alyssa. Make him stop! Make him leave your dreams! He's not in your life anymore, get him out of your life!" Severus encouraged.
"You can't do anything, you useless little whore...!" the doppelganger snarled, rising to its feet. The face was so twisted with rage it no longer resembled Harry; it seemed to be swelling and growing in power the more the girl displayed fear. It stalked toward them at a run now, head low, arms held wide, ready to pounce on them with its bare hands.
"Go AWAY!" she said again, making throwing motions with both hands. It cried out as it was slammed back into the bricks, this time, making an indentation the shape of its body. "Leave me alone!"
The creature took on an unmistakable demonic look now; skin covered in nasty looking knob-like protrusions and face twisted evilly, though it had shrunk in size. It was losing power...!
"Tell it to leave you forever, Alyssa!" Severus instructed.
"Go away! Go away and never, never, never come back!" she seemed to be gaining in strength and courage, and continued her throwing motions, driving the thing back up its stairwell. She even began to chase it, going to the foot of the stairs as it reached the top; one final strike and the thing vanished into a cloud of vile-looking dust.
She stared, eyes wide, disbelieving. "I... he's gone..." she whispered.
"You can do that every time he comes, little one." Severus said softly. "Make him leave. Make him leave you alone forever, for he only exists here. That thing is not Harry Potter; that thing can never come into this house and touch you again."
She ran to him and hugged him tightly, eyes clamped tightly shut. "Thank you thank you so much...!"
"If I were you, Alyssa, I would go up there into that horrible room and make sure none of that is usable again." he suggested with a soft grin, stroking her hair tenderly. The act of destroying the things that had been used to hurt her would have somewhat of a healing effect on her. He left her to do as she wished, slipping out of her dream and back to reality.
Severus took a deep breath, opening his eyes. Alyssa lay quietly asleep now, a soft smile on her face, a pillow hugged tight in her arms. He smiled softly and rose to his feet, glancing at his left arm. As he had expected, the injury he had sustained in the dream was still there; he would need to salve that immediately. He turned and moved out to allow the children to rest; he'd had enough for tonight.