Chapter 39 Brother From Hell

Senna distracted herself with the Guardians of Ophidian, vol. 1. She studied the strange spells and dark curses it offered. Not everything was black magic, though. It offered the entire spectrum of magic from light to dark in a completely unbiased manner, which was very different from the spellbooks her education usually offered. Most content was thoroughly filtered.

A knock rapped on her door. Since she didn't hear thoughts coming from the other side, so she assumed it would be one of the adults. Senna closed Guardians of Ophidian and put it away before answering the door to her private room.

It was Viola, with her wild red hair, and stern green eyes.

"Good evening, Ms. Richmond." Senna said as if they were just acquaintances.

Viola rolled her eyes, which made Senna smile. If she could have a silver sickle every time Viola rolled her eyes—she would be rich.

"Let's talk." Viola said.

"Oh no, it's… the talk." Senna teased.

Viola eyed the doorway with wary eyes, "Does your Headmaster still have the barrier up?" Viola poked the empty space with her hand, and a million diamonds seemed to suddenly glisten, filling the doorway with light—which answered her question about the barrier.

"I have an idea," Senna walked into the center of the doorway, and held her arms up to Viola.

"Er—what?" Viola eyed her dubiously.

"Hug me." Senna demanded, her arms still outstretched.

To Senna's delight, Viola's cheeks turned pink. "Why?"

"Just do it."

Viola stepped forward, but paused, looking at Senna in a very suspicious manner.

"Oh for the love of Merlin, why do you have so many trust issues?" Senna complained.

Viola opened her mouth to retort with something, but Senna had lunged forward and grabbed Viola in her arms, pressing her tightly against her.

She heard Viola gasp.

With Viola intertwined with her, Senna moved backwards and through the barrier, putting them both in Senna's room.

"It worked." Senna said triumphantly.

Viola's face was red from embarrassment. She hastily swept the wrinkles out of her robes with the back of her hands, the wrinkles that Senna had made.

"I tricked the shield into thinking we were one person, since I'm so powerless, it probably diluted your magical signature."

"Clever." Viola praised, looking at the shield.

"Anyways," Senna walked over and closed the door behind them. "What did you want to talk about?"

"How are you… feeling?" Viola's expression changed, as if the word tasted bad in her mouth.

"As shitty as ever."

"Right." Viola said awkwardly. A beat of silence passed before Viola moved on to her next question "And what did that Auror want with you yesterday?"

Senna did not miss the venom in Viola's voice when she mentioned 'that Auror'.

"Oooh, Afraid I'd be charmed by her heroic acts?" Senna teased.

Viola squinted at her angrily. "This is the Auror you were friends with, before, right?"

Senna thought about it for a moment. "I guess so."

"I've heard a lot about her family, they are considered blood-traitors. Nymphadora Tonks is a half-blood because her mother married a muggle-born."

"Ew. Politics."

"They've been excommunicated by their relatives—the Blacks, Lestranges, and the Malfoys."

Senna sat up, curious about his information, Rina's face coming to her mind. "Tonks is related to the Malfoys?"

"Yes, Tonks' mother, Andromeda Tonks, and Narcissa Malfoy are sisters, which makes her and Draco Malfoy first-cousins."

Which also makes Rina and Tonks first cousins too, Senna thought. She wondered if Tonks knew about Rina.

"Anyways, are you guys friends again?"

Senna laughed. "Not a chance. She dragged me out of my dorm, interrogated me, and she's the reason I got kidnapped by Struan."

"No." Viola rolled her eyes again. "The reason you got kidnapped was because you ran into the forest like a lunatic."

Senna gasped in feigned horror. "Are you saying that it's my fault I got kidnapped?"

"Partially."

Senna deflated onto the bed, feigning shock, and just sat there.

"You know." Viola sat next to her. She had one brow raised in concern. Her voice was guarded, as if she were trying to speak to a crazy person without upsetting them. "You've gotten much more dramatic since your magic was taken."

Senna grinned at her. "Well, I have nothing better to do. Since I can't do atrocious acts of evil in my spare time, I have to do something to keep occupied. Otherwise, I'd go crazy"

Viola slapped her on the shoulder. "Shut up. You've never done anything evil."

"And how do you know that?" Senna leaned in close to her, and was then awarded by a blush on Viola's cheeks.

"Because I know you." Viola spat.

"Is that so?"

Senna leaned in and kissed the soft skin on Viola's neck. Viola shivered and Senna heard her hold her breath.

Viola tried to lean away, so Senna took her face in one hand, and held her there as she nibbled Viola's sensitive neck. She tasted so good, very sweet. Viola's scent was dizzying, and Senna wanted more of it. Senna was rewarded with a surprised whimper—

Whack! Viola's fist came down on the top of Senna's head—hard.

"Ouch!" Senna whined. "What was that for?"

"Senna, stop it," Viola was red faced and flustered, but her eyes were determined, "This is important. I don't know what's gotten into you lately," Viola took another deep breath to resettle herself, "But things are serious."

Senna sighed. "I know."

"My mother sent me an owl this morning." Viola said. Her cheeks were starting to return to their normal color. "She wants to take me home, both my parents don't think Hogwarts is safe anymore."

"She's right. And hanging out with me is the least safe thing to do at Hogwarts."

"Shut up, you're not dangerous." Viola eyed her.

"Not me—Struan." Viola flinched at the sound of his name. "He'll use you to get to me. Don't think he won't, he's already murdered an orphanage full of children because of me."

"What?" Viola's eyes were wide with disbelief.

Senna explained her theory. She reminded Viola that Struan had seen her scars and had sworn to get revenge on those responsible. She described what she saw in Clyde's head, how the fire seemed unnatural.

"It sounds like hell-fire."

"Yeah." Senna's breath caught in her chest. It was an awful way to die. The faces of some of the children appeared in her head, and she had to shoo it away. She reached for the numbness then, she needed it to keep her from her own despair.

"Hmm.." Viola pondered this. "I think the ministry thinks the same thing as you…"

This shook Senna out of her cloud of despair. "Why?"

"Because, that unlaundered muggle boy. He's still here."

"What—first of all, his name is Clyde… and second, I thought that squirrely guy took him back."

"No," Viola shook her head, her curls bounced softly with the motion, "I saw him, walking the halls. I asked around, and it seemed like they delayed him because they thought it wasn't safe for him to return. So they're going to arrange for the muggle protection program to come get him. So it's possible they think he will come back for the survivors."

Senna took a moment to process this.

Then, abruptly, she stood up.

Viola looked at her with alarm. "What is it?"

"I need to talk to him." Senna said.

Senna wandered the corridors alone. She hoped to avoid running into any Aurors, but to her luck, they seemed rather scarce tonight. They must have been assigned elsewhere.

Senna looked outside the corridor window, the sun had already set. She only had two hours at most before curfew started.

Senna began to jog, the only sound was her footfalls on the stone floor. She slowed when a group of Hogwarts students came into view. They slowed down, watching Senna warily.

'It's her…' One of them thought nervously.

But one of the other students, a Gryffindor, smirked at her. 'She's soo cool!'

Cool? Senna was? Senna shook her head and continued down the hall.

After wandering aimlessly, she tried to think of where she would hang out, if she were a muggle, alone, in a strange place. Where would a homeless orphan spend their time?

Senna thought she would check the kitchens first. She turned down a different hall, in the direction of the kitchen, which was near the Hufflepuff common room.

When she neared the kitchen, the concentration of students increased. Hufflepuffs moved out of her way as she walked by, until she ran into a dark haired boy, who must've been a first or second year.

"Snape!" The boy yelled excitedly. Senna cringed.

"It's Senna." She grumbled impatiently. She tried to walk around the boy, but he stepped in front of her.

"C-can I have your autograph?" He stammered, shoving a notebook and quill at her.

"Er—what?" Senna was honestly surprised.

"It's for my older brother! He's a big fan! He watched the tournament with my parents Saturday. He would be so stoked!" He squealed.

Senna took the notepad from him, and paused, wondering how to do an autograph. Students stopped to stare at their interaction. "Well, if he's such a fan, why doesn't he ask for an autograph himself?" Senna asked.

"Well…" the boy paused nervously. "My brother's a squib so he doesn't go here. He really agreed with your motto, magic isn't everything, he didn't think it was possible… to defeat two powerful wizards without magic. I guess it made him realize, that it really isn't everything."

Senna stared at the boy incredulously. She vaguely remembered saying that line to Krum, and was horrified that it had become known as her motto.

Senna sighed. It was true though. "Of course it's not everything." She told him

Senna signed the paper:

To my first fan, the most important victories are not won with magic, but with cunning, wit, determination, and courage.

—Senna Severus Snape

Senna handed the note back to the Hufflepuff boy, who bobbed up and down with glee. Senna found it rather comical. She could very well spend the rest of her pathetic life as the Hero for squibs. Ugh.

Senna made her escape then, stopping in the halls where she knew the kitchen would be. But there was no door. She needed to find Clyde as soon as possible. She didn't know when the muggle protection agency would come get him, and she would likely never see him again.

"I saw a boy tickle the pear on the painting, then a doorway appeared. Later, he left with an armful of sweets, so I thought I'd give it a try too." A deep voice echoed.

Senna looked around madly, trying to figure out where the voice was coming from.

"You were more perceptive back in the day. Did hanging out with the stick-wavers make you soft?" The deep voice chastised.

Senna looked up. The voice was coming from the decorative stone arch, above stone walls and decorative armor. Senna backed up and saw that the ornate stone carving had a small bit of room between its curves. From it, she could see Clyde's wispy blonde hair.

"Clyde!" Senna whisper-shouted. "How'd you get up there?" Senna asked in amazement. She couldn't see how it was possible unless he could scale up the very tall vertical wall.

"Yup, you've gone soft." Clyde sighed. Then he shifted his legs off the wall, intending to jump down.

But the height was too great, he would definitely break his bones.

"Wait!" Senna shouted.

But he pushed himself off the ledge and landed expertly into a crouch on the stone floor.

He stood then, looking at her curiously.

She took him in, too. He was cleaner than that last time she had seen him. He was wearing a fresh pair of clothes, and his hair was clean and combed. Senna never realized that he was kind of handsome in a roguish sort of way. He was muscular and broad-shouldered. His eyes were cold, and untrusting. He looked at people as if they were either a predator, or potential prey. The way he held himself, with his knees slightly bent as if he would need to take off or fight at any given moment, emphasized his delinquent bad-boy persona. It was rather intimidating.

Senna wondered if she had that persona too, and if that was the reason people were always so afraid of her.

Clyde shook his head, disappointed. "You've landed greater heights than that, I've seen you. You've become such a wussy." Clyde took out a piece of bread from his pocket, and tore a piece off with his teeth.

"Shut up." Senna snapped. She thought she was starting to sound like Viola.

"How're you going to face a dragon now that you're such a fraidy-cat." Clyde teased her.

Senna could feel the heat build up in her cheeks. She decided she didn't want to talk to Clyde after all. She remembered why they never got along in the first place, he was a bully—even worse than Viola. But something struck her as odd.

"Dragon? Why would I need to fight a dragon?"

"Some old guy came walking through here. Complaining about how the dragons have been so hard to get. Said the four champions are to fight them. Aren't you one of those? I've heard all sorts of things, you know, since they can't see me." Clyde gave her an annoying smirk.

"Oh god." Senna put her hands on her face in sudden panic. "Dragons? Are you kidding?" Senna was able to do all sorts of things without magic. But defeating a dragon wasn't one of those things. She wasn't sure she could even beat a dragon with magic.

"So dragons are real, then?" Clyde mused. "Let me guess, Santa Claus is real too?"

"Ugh... never mind that, can we talk?"

Clyde regarded her, bored. "Sure. Go ahead and talk."

"Somewhere private?" Senna glanced around at the students that passed them, who were curiously staring back.

Clyde shrugged.

"Follow me," Senna turned around and began walking towards the abandoned gym.

On the way to the gym, Senna ran into an Auror patrolling the halls. "It's nearly curfew, head back to the dorms." He ordered.

Senna pulled out her pocket watch. "We have an hour and a half before curfew." Senna told him.

The unfamiliar Auror narrowed his eyes, not appreciating being talked back to.

"All students are encouraged to return at nightfall."

"I am a Champion, I am training for the tournament. I have my Headmaster's full permission to be out and about right now."

The Auror glared at her.

After a moment, he finally gave in. "Very well. But once curfew strikes, there will be consequences."

Senna continued through the hall. She swore she felt the Auror's eyes on her back the whole time.

"This place is cool." Clyde said as they entered the dusty gym. He paced the length of the floor, and immediately hopped up on some of the training equipment.

"Clyde," Senna tried to reel him in. "I need you to tell me what happened that night."

"I already told you. There was a fire." Clyde said, now doing pull-ups. He became frustrated with the inflexibility of his button up shirt and took it off, exposing his shockingly scarred skin.

"Do you know how it started?"

"Not sure, I didn't see it happen." Clyde, now shirtless, resumed doing pull-ups on the equipment. "But I did see some cloaked folks, they were holding sticks, probably some of your kind."

"What?" Senna reached up and grabbed his ankle trying to stop him from doing pull ups, but just ended up pulling her up as well. Clyde was strong, very strong. Senna let go of his leg, landing on her feet. "What were they doing?"

"I'm not sure, Sen." Clyde let go of the bars and landed gracefully on the floor. "They were just—there, ya know?"

Another question burned at Senna's throat. She was afraid to ask him, in case he became distant again, like their first reunion on Thursday.

"How many of you survived the fire?" Senna asked.

Clyde sighed, then began to wander the gym, looking for another interesting activity to do. "Only those of us who weren't allowed back in that night. You know how the nuns get."

She remembered. The caretakers often left them outside all night in the cold if they were displeased about something. And the select few who were repeat offenders, like Clyde and Senna, spent more time outside the orphanage than inside it. It didn't matter if some died or went missing, no one would come looking for them. No one cared.

"So that's me, Bones, Ricky, and Lucy, and maybe a few others, I don't know. We all scattered when the fire came. I think they went to Innots."

Innots was another town close to the orphanage, though Senna had never gone. Any of the curious orphans that ventured there, usually never came back.

"I see…" Senna said in a defeated tone.

"I told the little man the same thing, about the stick-wavers. That's why they haven't dumped me back there." Clyde added.

"The man from the ministry who brought you here?"

"Yup. They said they are investigating, because your kind may have been involved."

"Do you know how long you'll be here for?"

Clyde shrugged. "Nope." Clyde paused. "By the way, what is with the weird tattoo? I've heard people talk about you, that you are cursed, is it because of that mark?"

Senna leaned against one of the pieces of equipment, debating. Since he'd already spend so much time at Hogwarts, they were probably going to wipe his memory once this was all over. So she might as well tell him.

She explained the kidnapping and the curse, and how she was unable to do magic, and how, for a while, she couldn't even walk.

"Some brother you've got there. Compared to him, we all look like saints." Clyde mused.

"Compared to him, you are a saint." Senna groaned. "I don't know what I'm going to do." Senna buried her head between her knees.

"Get up." Clyde stood over her.

"What? Why?"

"Stand up."

Senna stood, eyeing him warily.

Without warning, Clyde's fist flew towards her stomach. Senna drew her knee up, and moved her hands down to protect herself, but it left her unbalanced. His fist came into contact with her knee, painfully, and knocked her over. Senna landed on the dirty floor with a surprised cry, her knee throbbing horribly.

"What the hell was that for?" Senna cried, enraged.

Clyde looked down at her, his eyes cold and disappointed. "The Sen I knew never wallowed in pity, feeling sorry for herself." Clyde's nose wrinkled in disgust. "Being a witch has made you soft."

"I know, dammit." Senna tried to stand, but stumbled. Her knee couldn't hold her weight. "Believe it or not, the same set of skills you need as a street rat are very different from the skills you need as a witch. You won't make it in this world if you're such a—a—savage!" Senna spat.

Clyde lunged at her again, but Senna was prepared this time. She blocked his uppercut, and went to sweep his foot with her ankle—but he saw through her plan and moved swiftly out of the way.

"Then how did you defeat two wizards without magic, like the sniveling boy mentioned? By being diplomatic?" Clyde threw a quick kick aimed at her head, which Senna managed to block, but Clyde was so strong, even with her sturdiest stance, she was thrown aside with frightening force.

Senna's head cracked painfully against the ground, hard enough that she saw stars.

"Enough." Senna groaned.

"That one, you should have ducked." Clyde said matter-of-factly. "Want to try it again?"

"Ugh, no." Senna pushed herself off the floor, but her vision hadn't returned completely.

Clyde grabbed the back of her blazer and yanked her to her feet. Her knee was still screaming under her weight.

"If your opponent throws more force than you can handle, get out of the way. Otherwise, you block." Clyde got into a stance, getting ready to kick again. "Again!" He shouted, hurling his leg at her.

Senna did as she was told, stepping back as fast as she could, which was almost not fast enough, as the sole of his shoe caught her lip. She tasted blood.

"Now move in!" Clyde yelled. "When someone lands a high kick like that, they're left open for a split second before they can move again." Clyde got in position to kick again. "Again!"

Clyde continued to bark orders and throw himself at her, until she was so beaten, she was nearly unconscious.

Senna tapped into his mind, trying to get a forewarning of his movement—but there was none. His techniques were so engraved into his mind and body, that his attacks and counter-attacks were decided thoughtlessly on a subconscious level—a level she couldn't tap into. And even when she did hear a thought before it became an action, her body could not move fast enough to do anything about it.

She almost managed to land a blow on him a few times, but he was always faster than her, always two steps ahead.

Senna panted on her hands and knees. Blood dripped from her face, some had gotten into her eye, which burned like mad.

"That last one wasn't so bad." Clyde praised. While Senna was bleeding and dirty, Clyde had barely broken a sweat,

She got a sick sense of Deja-Vu training in this room, except the one being trained wasn't Viola, but Senna. But Senna had not been nearly this brutal with Viola.

She was sure they had been at it for over an hour and they would be in major trouble if they were caught.

"Let's hide you for tonight." Clyde suggested, as if on the same train of thought. "That hall-monitor-from-hell is probably looking for us." Senna felt Clyde's arms wrap around her and lift her off the ground as if she weighed nothing. "Lucky for you, I am great at hiding."

She lost consciousness soon after, and did not find out where their hideout ended up being.