Chapter Ten
On Wednesday, Rose tossed on something quick: a pair of forest green trousers and a light bell-sleeve paisley blouse, throwing an unbuttoned green waistcoat vest overtop to give a semblance of professionalism. She supposed professionalism was out the window now, but she could at least still try to pretend. She didn't know what Severus had planned for them, so chose her usual leather boots.
When she arrived in the potions classroom, Severus was dressed for the outdoors: he had his ingredient collection bag slung across his chest and was settling his sunhat, wide brimmed, black, and slightly ominous looking, onto his head.
He looked genuinely surprised to see her. "You're here."
Rose shrugged. "Apparently. What are we doing?"
"Going on a walk," he stated, brushing past her and to the door. He paused when she didn't budge.
"You called me into work for a walk?" She huffed.
He frowned from the doorframe. "Are you coming or not?"
Begrudgingly, Rose followed him out of the castle and to a southern section of the Forbidden Forest. This time, Severus didn't race ahead to lead the pace, but walked patiently beside her.
Rose had thought their brief brush with their feelings would change how they interacted in their day-to-day work; so far, it hadn't changed much.
They walked in silence for a while, at least a few kilometers, to Rose's estimation. Dappled light led their path as Rose dodged under sloped conifer branches.
Severus led them to a clearing on a rocky slope. Mosses cushioned the ground here, interspersed with small pink bell-shaped flowers which seemed to ring lightly as they walked past.
Light filtered in large beams through the trees here, so much so that for a moment Rose couldn't believe they were still in the Forbidden Forest.
A trickling stream ran down the rocky slope, coming to rest in a small pool. Quartz fragments, almost completely sheer, lined this pool neatly, giving the water a crystalline appearance.
Severus knelt at the pool, running a hand through it lightly.
Rose stood behind him, frowning. "Was something supposed to happen when you did that?"
"No," Severus said flatly. "Do you know of Wishing Pools?"
"Enough. They're said to show you a means to what you desire and … and even let you speak with the dead. But … they don't exist."
Severus laughed hollowly. "No. They don't. I spent some time thinking the Forbidden Forest held one, but I was incorrect."
He gazed steadfastly into the pool.
"Why are we here, Severus?" Rose asked quietly.
"I can't change the past. I can't speak to those who are gone. But, when I'm here, I can."
Severus shook his head suddenly, like snapping out of a trance. "It's not magic. But I thought it might help you."
"You want me to talk to a puddle?"
Rose had said this partially because of her sour mood, but partially to attempt to rile Severus. He held a calm reverence that was unsettling to her.
Severus was unfazed. "If it doesn't help you, that's fine." He stood slowly, still gazing into the pool. "I'll be around collecting ingredients. Light your wand and call for me when you're ready to leave."
Rose was about to protest being left alone in the Forest, but Severus had already walked into the dim expanse.
She sighed.
What could the harm be? I could at least try it. It's better than moping around my flat.
She sat beside the pool, settling into a comfortable patch of plush moss. She gazed at her reflection in the pool, appearing murky. She had the urge to splash the pool in rage — anger at the gaps that magic had, anger that of all the foolish and useless things magic gave, it could never give anything that truly mattered. Anger that she would never see Olivia again. But the rage had no teeth. It had been five years — the rage of her grief had faded into a pathetic, defeated creature.
Rose closed her eyes. The silence in the forest felt deafening.
"Olivia," she said quietly. "I'm sorry, Olivia. I wish I could have been there for you when you really needed me." She paused.
"But you know that. I've told you that so many times." A strange smile crept onto Rose's face. "You would've told me to shut up by now about it. I always apologize too much, right?"
"You would love to be a teaching assistant here with me. Remember we both talked about teaching together? I know you'd be with Flitwick. You were always the best student at Charms. Plus, that would have saved me a lot of trouble with the current teaching assistant."
An hour passed like this, then another half an hour. Rose found that she had a lot to tell Olivia. She couldn't believe how easy it was to speak to her again and chided herself for never trying. She could picture how Olivia would react to her stories.
At the end, Rose's eyes fluttered open, and in the dim light she thought she almost saw her, shadowed in the light beams in the rippled pool. The moment passed, and Rose became aware of her surroundings once more, feeling slightly chilled in the dark glade. She touched the water lightly with her palm.
"You must be magic after all. Thank you." She told it.
-o-o-o-
Rose didn't need to go very far to find Severus. He was seated on a large aboveground sprawling of roots, eating mushrooms leisurely out of his sunhat. He didn't move when Rose approached him, extinguishing her light quickly.
He smiled sleepily. "You found me."
"That pool is enchanted, Severus. Have you done a test on it?"
His relaxed expression faded to a serious expression. "No. And you shouldn't, either. It's a portal of some sort, but I would like to remain ignorant of it."
"What is if it's dark magic? How do you know that you're not messing with something you can't control?"
Severus snorted. "It's not dark magic. Believe me."
Rose waited for him to elaborate.
"It came to me in a desperate time, and it has always been there when I need it. When I attempt to access it multiple days consecutively, I'm unable to find it. Now, you tell me if that sounds like dark magic."
Rose blinked, slowly sitting on a knot of gnarled roots below him. "You're right."
His face was serene once more. "I may be a professor, but I don't need to understand everything about magic."
Rose hadn't expected Severus to be emotionally intelligent to this capacity.
When Rose didn't respond, Severus offered her his hat of mushrooms to snack on.
Embarrassingly, Rose wasn't familiar with any of the actual edible mushrooms; she had only been studying mushrooms for their magical properties. One, however, she recognized. She pulled out a small, unassuming, all-white mushroom.
"Did you eat one of these?" She asked, laughing. Ivory Mushrooms were known for their relaxing properties.
Severus smiled at her, eyeing her from half-lidded eyes. "Of course. Why do you think I collected another? That's for you."
Rose ate the mushroom readily, thankful for respite from her overwhelming emotions.
-o-o-o-
The rest of the afternoon Severus and Rose spent lounging around the glade Severus had found. Rose found a soft spot of particularly comfortable moss where she napped heavily and dreamlessly.
She awoke to Severus stroking her hair gently back from her face.
"We should leave before dark falls," he told her. He had tossed the multitude of mushrooms into his bag and was wearing his sunhat again.
That was enough to rouse Rose. She took his hand without thinking.
He gave her a sleepy grin, speaking to her in a low voice. "Scared? I thought you have thorns to protect you."
Rose ignored him, leading him North to the castle. Severus stood still, unmoving.
"That's not North," he said, still grinning. "This way." He began to lead them through the forest, now an eerie gold and black as the sun began to sink.
"Have you actually seen werewolves out here?" Rose asked timidly.
"That's what you're the most afraid of out here? I shouldn't tell you about what else is here." He cast a snarky look over his shoulder, but his smile fell when he saw her real concern.
"No, I haven't." He squeezed her hand gently. "You're safe with me."
They returned to the castle grounds without much excitement, save for a few unexplainable noises and shadows. Rose had tried to keep her eyes cast to the ground to avoid seeing things that would frighten her more.
Rose sighed an audible sigh of relief when they emerged into an open meadow, the sun still low on the horizon.
"Thank goodness. I hate the dark." She whispered.
Severus glanced at her, appearing amused, but said nothing. They continued toward the castle when Rose unexpectedly sat down on a small grassy knoll.
"I don't want to go back yet," she told Severus. Reluctantly, he joined her, puffing out his cloak behind him and sitting.
Rose edged closer to him, but Severus halted her, raising a hand. "We're too close to the castle." He cast a nervous glance towards the endless rows and columns of windows.
She nodded. "Thank you for everything today," she told him.
He smiled, picking at a piece of grass, but said nothing.
"I hope someday, if you ever feel comfortable, you can tell me about your person."
Severus flinched, but didn't look up. "My person?"
Rose knew she was treading into dangerous waters, but continued regardless. "Yes. Your person who you sought out that pool for. Who you drink Liquid Memory for."
Severus nodded slowly but maintained his even expression. "There will never be a time for that."
"I didn't mean —" Rose began.
"That's enough, Rose." He said sternly, standing quickly. "Let's go."
He began to stride towards the castle while Rose scrambled to get up, hurrying after him as the day sank into night.