Chapter Seventeen

Looking Ahead

On the other side of the castle, a Hogsmeade postal owl flew to Snape's classroom window and dropped off a note as his Runes II class began to assemble. Recognizing the handwriting at once, he opened it with a frown and then pocketed it until after class. The moment their assignments were done, he strode out of the classroom and through the tunnel to Corey's shop before taking the path to Keki's Grove. Glancing around speculatively, he spied the Robin on one of the oak tree branches.

"Yes? What is it, Four?" Severus asked. The Robin morphed into a much older Quintin, who had a gentle smile that reminded Severus of his mother. "Do you mind telling me what calamity has brought you here this time?"

"I am here to rescue a wizard in distress," Quintin informed him.

"Which wizard?" Severus prompted impatiently.

"Me, of course," Quintin said bemusedly. "I am here on behalf of an interested party to make sure that you don't come down too hard on my younger self for wanting to become a Symbologist."

"I prefer to make up my own mind about such things, thank you," Severus told him curtly.

"And if you find out that Mum feels differently?" Quintin challenged him.

"Then I shall weigh both of our opinions until we come to a mutual agreement... however long that takes," he added firmly.

"Then I suggest you ask her opinion on my younger self's motivations, because you may learn something you haven't considered," Quintin said. "While you're at it, I also suggest speaking to Professor Weasley and Aunt Anna about it as well. But that's just friendly advice, and I'm not really here to talk about my career choices. I'm here to make sure that you let Jeremy and my young self to search for O'Lauren's Box."

"I hope your reason why I should allow it is better than his," Severus said evenly.

"You should allow it for educational reasons," Quintin informed him.

"Really," Severus replied skeptically.

"And for personal growth, so he can meet the challenges ahead," he added for good measure.

"Explain," Severus said.

"Well, if you haven't noticed, I did have a bit of an ego at that age..."

"Perish the thought."

"Which I inherited from a pair of very proud parents," he retorted.

"Pride and ego are two different things. Pride can be constructive," Severus pointed out. "Ego lends nothing to bravado, false confidence, and foolishness."

"Well, there's going to be all lot of all three, inside and outside of the castle," Quintin warned. "And my young self will need to learn how to deal with it... or at least acknowledge it... to prevent several catastrophes that might happen down the line if he doesn't acknowledge his faults enough that he can start building real confidence instead. The pendulum swings too far to each side when something goes wrong."

"How well I know it," Severus replied. "Anything else?"

"Not really, just... don't be afraid to push him a bit, regardless of what kind of feedback you might get from Mum on occasion. I can't tell you what's next, but I'm sure you've seen enough to know there's a long and dangerous road ahead of him, with a universal crisis like you've never dealt with before. You are going to need me capable of defending myself in the darkest of times, being as quick on my feet as you are and as tough as you are... someone that you'd trust with your life. That way, I can be there when you need me most. It would also help a lot if you'd make sure I... you know... survive until you need me most. That might be a good idea," Quintin suggested.

"Yes, obviously," Severus replied with exasperation.

"Then my part is done," Quintin said with a smile.

"Except that you have yet to tell me at what point you were sent back here so that I can write it in my Chrono Journal," Severus reminded him.

"Yes. I know. Maybe it'd be better if you just didn't write it down," Quintin suggested. "See you in another time," he added, turning back into Robin and flying away. Squinting at that, Severus decided to take out his book and wrote the encounter down anyway before returning to the castle.

Daphne sat down at the chess table excitedly, glad to see Quintin was already waiting for her.

"Hello, Daphne. What was it that you wanted to tell me?" Quintin asked.

"First thing's first... I must attend to the formalities," she protested, sweeping back her braids. "I must inform you that what I am about to say is not personal or financial advice, and is for entertainment purposes only," Daphne informed him.

Quintin stared blankly at her.

"What?" he said at last.

"My mother told me to always say that when I'm telling someone about their star charts since I'm not a trained professional. I could get sued if I don't, especially if I scare you," she explained.

"We're not in the States. You're not likely to get sued here," Quintin told her with a sigh. "Let's just assume I know that you're not a professional anything other than a centaur and move on?"

"Alright," Daphne agreed, then grew serious. "You are in terrible danger!"

"Um, what?" Quintin asked in surprise.

"Someone is watching you. Someone who wants to interfere with your quest!" she warned him.

"What quest?" Quintin asked in surprise.

"I don't know, the stars don't give specifics. Whatever you're questing for," Daphne said with exasperation. "It shows a dangerous competition... someone is trying to get to what you're looking for first, and considering it's coming from an opposing symbol, I'd say they're up to no good. What are you looking for and how come someone else is after it, anyway?"

"I'm not looking for anything... my father wouldn't give me permission to... hey, maybe that's it? Maybe it's trying to show you that my father stopped me from looking for it," Quintin guessed.

"Impossible. Your chart shows your family being intensely supportive right now," Daphne insisted.

"Intensely?"

"Maybe that's not the right word choice. Really, though, I can't think of a better one at the moment," she admitted. "How about fiercely supportive?"

"He was definitely fierce, but not supportive," Quintin informed her. "He doesn't like the fact that I want to specialize in Symbology."

"That doesn't make any sense either," Daphne said, looking over his chart. "However, this chart does show a breakdown in communication that is quickly remedied, so maybe that's it? The chart's all a bit muddled in that house, though. It could go different ways but it's really not that important. All that's important is that you finish your quest before your competitor does, whoever it is."

"I see," Quintin said with a sigh.

"Do you know what the stars are indicating then?" Daphne asked curiously.

"Some of it. I know what I'm supposed to find. I just don't know who else is after it," Quintin said. "I suppose it doesn't matter... if someone else is after it, then I need to find it first to make sure it gets into the wrong hands. I just hate having to go behind my father's back to do it."

"I don't see why you would," Daphne said. "But of course, the charts don't tell everything. Even so, you really ought to get a move on."

"You're right. I'll talk to Jeremy about it as soon as he comes back from Quidditch practice," Quintin decided. "Anything else?"

"Oh, yes. Please remember that this reading comes free of charge without any obligations to tip me with candy or favor repayment. If you have any concerns about any star chart reading whether for entertainment purposes or not, you should consult a professional Metaphysical Adviser," Daphne recited.

"I see. Thanks very much, maybe I'll get you something during that Hogsmeade trip right after Halloween," Quintin said, getting up from the table to go back upstairs.

Daphne stayed where she was, looking quite pleased with herself.

Upstairs, Quintin had gone to his bedroom to pick up some homework to take to the Common Room. But when he got to his painting, he was informed that his father wanted him to meet him in the Headmaster's Study. Quintin stepped inside to see his father reading a few notes that had been left for him while he was in class.

"You wanted to see me?" Quintin asked warily.

"Yes, it is about our conversation earlier," Severus said briskly, not bothering to look up. "After giving it further thought, I have decided to go ahead and allow you to research O'Lauren's Box. I assume you'll want Mr. Miller's help as usual, but please do not include the entire house this time, since this is hardly doing research for a guild name, is it? I cannot have an army of students poking into every corner looking for this thing. You will need to secure several research sponsors on the staff to help, of which I will be one."

"I don't get it," Quintin admitted. "What made you change your mind?"

"As I already mentioned, I have personal reasons for wanting to secure that particular castle Artifact... to put away for a rainy day if nothing else," Severus replied calmly. "There is one caveat, however. If you do happen to acquire that box, do not under any circumstances attempt to open it. Instead, you will bring it to me or your mother so that we may look after it properly."

"Oh," Quintin said thoughtfully, but after a moment he shrugged and nodded. "Yes, alright."

"Very well. Then I will speak to your housemaster and Librarian Boulderdash, letting them know about your current project. And while you're in the library, you can also spend some time in the careers section," Severus suggested evenly.

"Yes, sir," Quintin said with a sigh, knowing at this point he was better off humoring him.

"Staying for dinner?" Severus inquired.

"Actually, I already have plans to meet up with Jeremy. It'll give me a chance to let him know we can work on the project after all," Quintin replied.

"Very well," Severus said unconcernedly. Quintin slipped through the nursery to get to his door.

As it happened, Jeremy was right outside his room, sitting in one of the armchairs in the Wizard's lobby and reading the paper.

"There you are. Did your dad call you back for a second helping?" Jeremy wanted to know.

"Entirely the opposite. He's decided that he's going to let us do it," Quintin explained.

"Seriously?" Jeremy said, completely stunned. "What a fast recovery! That must be a new time record!"

"Yes. Yes, it is," Quintin agreed, sitting down beside him and exhaling loudly.