The third day in the Wizarding World followed the same pattern as the second. Severus picked Sarah up in the morning, except they forwent walking in favor of apparating. Since they arrived at Hogwarts much earlier than before, the tour picked up with them covering the east side of the school. Even though she was enjoying herself, Sarah figured that there would be more to her visit than exploring different wings of the castle. She was actually hoping to learn something about Wizarding culture and their brand of magic first hand, instead of from books.
Squeezing Severus's arm, she voiced her slight impatience. She didn't mean to be rude, but if this kept going on it would last all week, and she wouldn't be able to learn about anything else. He considered his companion, thinking quickly. 'Cut to the chase,' he thought gleefully. "How about we conclude our touring with a walk around the lake? I can set up a picnic for us if you'd like.
"I would enjoy that."
They ate lunch watching the giant squid occasionally break the surface of the lake, stretching and waving its tentacles in the warm autumn sun.
"Are you enjoying yourself, Sarah?" He inquired.
"I am. I'm learning a lot, the differences are extraordinarily apparent. I can see now why you're having such trouble melding the two magics."
"Similar but different enough," he agreed.
"What about the Above- er- Muggle music? Have you had any luck with that?"
"I have." He fished inside a pocket of his coat, pulling out a coin. He quickly explained the original intent of the coin and how he had worked to alter the spell upon it. Sarah added her knowledge to this with her discovery of being able to produce clearer music in the Aboveground.
He nodded thoughtfully. "I think we could work together on this quite nicely," he said, covering her hand with his and giving it a squeeze. She didn't pull it away. Taking it as a sign of encouragement, Severus asked, "Dine with me tonight?"
Squeezing his hand in return, she smiled at him.
They spent the rest of the afternoon skirting the edge of the Forbidden Forest, collecting mushrooms for use in future Potions lessons throughout the term. Even though he knew the answer, Severus still asked about potions making in the Undergound. In his mind, it was a good way to keep the conversation flowing.
"We have Elvin healers who produce some, but none of the Fae that I've encountered do so. From what I understand, it's fairly rare there." Sarah held out her basket for another clump of mushrooms. It was almost full and the sun was beginning to set.
Hearing Sarah's stomach rumble audibly, Severus quickly filled up the rest of the basket, and together they turned towards the castle.
Sarah felt a little disorientated as, instead of heading towards the Great Hall, Severus guided them towards a set of stairs leading down. "But I thought…?" She gave him a questioning look.
He nodded towards her basket. "We need to clean them and hang them for drying before we can eat. It'll be quick, I promise."
She lost count of how many stairs and corridors they walked. Soon, the natural light wasn't enough, and each had to hold their wands aloft and lit with softly spoken "Lumnos". Even with the light radiating from the tips, Sarah had a hard time seeing what was in front of her; she stumbled over an uneven flagstone.
Severus stopped and took the basket from her, lest she drop any of the precious fungi. He then took her hand in his and pulled her along behind him. His hand was warm and strong and made her feel less afraid of her new surroundings. They continued their descent, the air growing progressively colder with every passageway, and Sarah clutched her cloak more tightly around her to combat the chill.
Severus stopped on a landing and held his wand high above him, trying to cast out the light as far as it could go. Sarah peered around him and, forgetting her cloak, did the same with hers. She felt cold air wafting upward towards them, ruffling his hair and her skirts. She looked down, into darkness. A faint outline of a spiral staircase was before them. She leaned closer, trying to make out more; it seemed to go on forever. He took her hand once again and led her down, the never-ending turning making Sarah dizzy.
Soon, the figures and the light they cast were swallowed up by darkness.
Finally, the bottom was reached and they stepped onto level ground. Sarah craned her head up in an effort to see the top, but only blackness greeted her. They walked a little while longer before coming to an unassuming oak door. Severus stopped in front of it, dropped her hand and waved his wand in an intricate pattern, saying words that Sarah couldn't make out. With a click the door opened and she was ushered inside to his office.
He waved his hand, lighting the few candles in the room, and Sarah saw slimy things in jars lining the walls behind his desk, which was stacked with various lessons. A stack of books on the floor next to the desk and was almost as tall as it was, leaned precariously, threatening to fall at any minute.
There were two doors, each situated on a wall that ran parallel to the desk. Severus went to the one on the left, carrying the basket with him. Curious, Sarah followed. It was a small workroom with various plants hanging from the ceiling. "Here." He handed her a ball of twine and a small knife. "Would you mind bundling?"
"Not at all." She freed her arms from her cloak and tucked her now unlit wand inside its pocket.
They worked silently and Sarah saw how absorbed he was in such a simple task. She had the feeling that he'd forgotten that she was even there. His hands gently rinsed the mushrooms in a bowl of water, then separated them into individual groups for Sarah to bundle. Inspecting each one closely, he cut any imperfections from the stems and caps, but only if it was necessary. Sarah felt like each plant was precious to him.
He was captivating as he worked, and Sarah remembered her initial draw towards him.
Just as they finished up with the last of the mushrooms, Sarah's stomach gave a louder rumble. She groaned a little, thinking that she wouldn't be able to make the long trek back up to the main floor of the castle. "Are there kitchens nearby?" She asked.
Severus started levitating the prepared fungi onto hooks hanging from the ceiling. By the time he needed them for the spring lessons, they would be nicely dried out. "No, but the house elves could bring food here."
She looked around the little workroom. "Sure," she agreed, thinking that this would be an acceptable place to eat.
He chuckled at her ignorance. "Not, 'here', in my rooms. We could eat in the sitting room."
"Oh." She looked at the door, wondering briefly if she could find her way to the kitchens above. Turning back to Severus, she eyed him. He looked relaxed, a little bored, even. 'He did say 'sitting room.' Just as long as he doesn't try to kiss me, I should be okay,' she thought. "Sure," she agreed once more, but with less confidence.
He led her back through his office to the other door, deactivated the ones leading to his quarters, and pulled her inside. At a hand wave, the fire blazed to life, flooding the room with warm light. 'Very masculine,' was the first thing that came to her mind. She unfastened her cloak and hung it on a hook next to the door. With the fire going like that, she knew that she'd warm up quickly. Wandering further into the room, she saw a pair of leather wingback chairs angled towards the fireplace. Small side tables sat on either end of them. Bookcases lined all the other walls in the room, the shelves stuffed to budging with books, lending a musky, dusty scent to the room. She loved the smell of old books and wished she could peruse them at her leisure.
The flagstones were covered in a muted green and silver carpet almost filled the room. It was thick and plush. Sarah's walking shoes left deep depressions in the fibers as she moved, examining all that was around her.
"Come sit," he said and offered her one of the wing-back chairs. Moving one of the side tables to sit in between them, Severus enlarged it so it could serve as a small dining table. "One moment." He disappeared into a side alcove that held an extremely small kitchen, containing a small stove with a cupboard above it. Finding that the elves had lit the fire inside the stove earlier and that the water was sufficiently warm inside the kettle sitting on top, he dug through the cupboard for tea, a tray, and two cups.
He surreptitiously looked around, making sure Sarah wasn't within sight, and pulled a vial from his coat pocket. It contained a bit of white powder. Dumping a measured amount into one cup, he poured the hot water in and watched it dissolve. Not one to rouse suspicion, he filled his own cup with hot water as well.
Putting the dried tea into two infusers, Severus let them steep while he carried the tray back to the sitting room.
Making sure Sarah got the correct cup, Severus said, "If you would excuse me, I need to freshen up. The house elves have been notified and are preparing meals for us. Are you quite all right here?"
"Yes, this tea is marvelous," she said, taking a sip. Leaning slightly to the side, she looked past him at the books, a hungered look in her eyes.
"I shan't be long. Help yourself to my private collection." He waved his hand at the bookcase in an invitation.
Walking towards another alcove, Severus paused and grabbed a bundle of clothes and a metal flask. Changing his outfit quickly, he slipped out of a side door to the main hallway. If there was an emergency meeting or something going on with dunderheads, Severus bypassed his office altogether, ensuring that the door was properly locked and warded. He cast a 'do not notice' spell to make it invisible to the general bystander. He drank deeply from the flask.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters- they are the property of their respective owners.
Betaed by AnonyMissJ. I wouldn't be able to do this without you.
A/N: I only have one chapter after this and well.. that's it. Everything wraps up, but not neatly (in my opinion). In other words, I'm still mulling over the little last bit.