'Hagrid, please calmly tell me one more time what on earth you thought having that bird would accomplish.'
Severus was livid. In front of him sat a very nervous and teary eyed groundskeeper, who was trying his best not to erupt into a fit of tears.
'I jus' thought that 'aving it around would bring some joy tah school,' Hagrid sniffed, 'I didn't know it 'ad magical properties. Thoughts it was normal!'
Severus pinched the bridge of his nose, clearly agitated and looked around his office. Dumbledore twinkled down at him.
'Hagrid, how many times have you been told not to bring any more strange creatures to Hogwarts without explicit instruction or permission from a professor or Headmaster?'
It seems that, while visiting Charley Weasley in Romania, he had stumbled upon (or rather made a drunken exchange) a rare magical fowl, the aves cupios- or literally "wish bird". While baring striking resemblance to an ordinary peacock, this bird did more than just flash plumage of ornate coloring, it had the power to appear to those whose wishes or desires were pure. Hagrid's look pleaded innocence, so Severus continued slowly,
'Luckily, there are few people who know about this creature and I believe Hogwarts houses only a handful of professors who recognize the bird. What we cannot have is a mass eruption of student knowledge. If word leaks out that a bird who can grant wishes is on the loose, we are going to have more problems than when you decided to house a dragon.' He paused, and then asked quickly, 'Did anyone else see it?'
'I mean- er- I don't believe so. No students were 'round. I 'spect they were in classes.'
Severus breathed a sigh of relief. He couldn't even imagine the trouble he would have to deal with if that bird appeared to a student.
'But,' Hagrid continued shyly, earning a deathly glare from the Headmaster, 'I- er- seem tah have lost the thing. I mean, well it ran away.'
'WHAT?' Severus jumped up out of his chair, causing Hagrid to flinch. 'What do you mean it ran away?'
'Yer know that those birds can't fly, so it just trotted away…?' He didn't even finish the sentence after meeting the dark look being thrown at him.
'Hagrid, this is serious. You must- no you will find that thing before the end of the day. Do… you… understand- why are you giving me that look?'
Hagrid had started fidgeting uncomfortably and looked up innocently at Severus.
'Er- well- oh fer bloody sake. 'Eadmaster, I'm tah be leaving shortly fer that conference thing you signed me up tah take.'
Severus had completely forgotten. After the Buckbeak debacle a few years back, it was mandated that Hagrid was to attend yearly seminars on the proper guidelines and instructions for the care of magical creatures.
'So you mean to tell me that you are going to leave this mess for me clean up while you go gallivanting off to play with unicorns?' Severus was not amused and his distaste for the situation was clear on his sharp features. This was not the first time he was left to clean up a mess made by someone else, and he found it rather exhausting now. 'I don't expect you know anything about catching or finding it, do you?'
Hagrid shook his head. 'I only know that once it's seen, it bonds tah that person. Even without seeing that person. It jus' knows.' Severus just glared at the hairy giant. Perfect, he thought, now I can add bird watching to my list of confronting the schoolgirl who saved my life.
'Very well Hagrid. I will take care of the situation, but let this be a lesson and a warning against any creatures you ever think to bring back here.' With a wave of his hand, Hagrid knew to take his leave.
Bloody perfect, Severus thought, I do hope this thing wasn't seen so I won't have to deal with any more idiocy. He knew he had to do something quickly, but to be honest he had no idea how to catch the bird. Evil wizards- yes, magical birds- definitely not. He was about to make a poor decision and seek the help of a full bottle of Firewhiskey, when a brilliant idea popped into his head, or rather a brilliant woman.
If there was anyone who could handle a sensitive issue with maturity and intellect, it was Hermione Granger. Granted, he needed to make sure she didn't see the creature, he suspected that she probably knew a thing or two about a rare bird that no one had ever heard of. Knowledge on rarity seemed to be a specialty of hers. He needed to act quickly, so he pulled out his second piece of parchment that day and wrote:
Miss Granger,
I apologize for the late notice, but your assistance is required immediately. Please come to my office at once.
-Headmaster Snape
Severus quickly called to Noir, gave the bird the note, and watched him disappear out of the room. Now he just had to wait.
Hermione was currently in a predicament. She was in the library and having quite an internal struggle trying to decide which essay she should write first. Both assignments for potions and arithmancy were due in two weeks time, and she had no clue which to begin first. I wish I could decide what to do, she thought with a huff and continued to chew on her third quill of the hour. She was about to just start the subjects alphabetically, when she spotted Noir perched carefully on the chair next to her.
'Why, what's this?' She reached over carefully and barely grasped the bit of parchment before the bird took off, 'Well I suppose no response is required this time.' Hmm, another note from Headmaster Snape- Snape! Potions! Well at least I got one wish, she chuckled to herself. She opened the note carefully and furrowed her brow. Clearly he wasn't interested in discussing this morning's events now, so what could be this important?
She gathered up her books and set off to the Headmaster's office.
She was just about to say the password, when she heard the swoosh of long robes coming from behind her,
'Ah I see you received my note. I always told Dumbledore that ravens were more efficient than owls.'
Hermione turned to find Snape now standing in front of her holding a very large book.
'Good afternoon Headmaster. What is so urgent? Are you feeling alright?' Why did I just ask if he was alright?! Of course he is or he would have called for Poppy, not me. Hermione was more than confused at this point, and hadn't an inkling why she had been called. She stopped questioning the man towering over her, and reached her hand out as if accepting an offering.
Snape raised his eyebrows, 'Ah, very good. Nothing about you surprises me anymore Miss Granger. You realize your questions were going unanswered and went straight to the source of the issue.'
He handed her the book: Magical Creatures and Their Myths. She looked up at him with an intense stare before opening to the first page.
She read out loud, "'The creatures detailed in this book are ones of highest magical properties. Each and every one should be approached with caution or handled by a professional, for many of the side effects are permanent. While not dangerous, the magic expelled by them can be powerful and at times, irreversible. Take caution when handling.'"
She looked up at the Professor with big eyes, 'Sir, is one of these creatures loose in Hogwarts?'
He smirked, 'Very good, Granger. Nothing slips by your nimble mind. We have a bit of a problem on our hands and I require your assistance- if you agree…'
He didn't even need to ask for her permission. He could have demanded it and she would have been ecstatic to comply all the same.
'Now, I know which creature it is and while I will inform you of its properties, when it comes down to the capture, I'm afraid your assistance will no longer be necessary.' Hermione looked at him quizzically and he added a quick, 'It's just because of some of the properties that I would never want to befall on a student.'
Hermione thought about everything the Professor had just told her and then began talking,
'Professor I accept this task and while I do promise that I will leave when I am instructed to, if anything goes amiss, I will not leave you,' she bit her tongue. Did I really just tell Snape what I was going to do? It seemed like months passed before Snape responded,
'Very well Granger. But, if I have the situation under control you…must…leave. That is an order.' There was something in his eyes that made Hermione feel protected, so she had no choice but to nod in agreement.
Snape continued, 'I must enlighten you to the situation, so if you would follow me please, we can begin,' he turned to walk away then stopped, and spun around to face Hermione. 'One last thing, Miss Granger. I do not want you to think I am neglecting our conversation. On the contrary, I believe that a little project for you might ease the transition so you find it easier to talk when the time arrives.'
Before he was able to turn around, Hermione placed a hand lightly on his upper arm as if to stop him, 'Sir, I never thought that you were neglecting it, but now that you brought it up, I am ready to talk when you are.' She gave him a soft smile and pulled her hand away.
His eyes lingered on her longer than they should have until he finally gave a curt nod and motioned for her to follow him into his office.
Once there, he gestured for her to sit across from him at his desk.
'Miss Granger, do the words aves cupios mean anything to you?'
Hermione looked blankly at Severus for a few seconds, I know you know this, silly girl, he thought. Finally she sputtered out, 'Well aves means birds, but I can't remember if cupios is 'want' or 'wish'. My Latin is not quite what it used to be,' she blushed. Oh gods, Severus thought, is she actually apologizing for having her Latin be rusty?
He interjected, 'Miss Granger, do not apologize for forgetting the correct word of a dead language. You should be most proud of the fact that you correctly identified aves as birds and that you remembered that cupios is loosely translated into wish. So, we are, literally, looking for a wish bird…,' he stopped as he saw her eyes go wide, 'is there something wrong Granger?'
She took a deep breath before responding, 'Sir, if I am correct, that bird bonds itself to whichever human spots it first and pursues that person's deepest desires, or wishes, as long as they are pure. They're very rare though I've heard, so how is one here exactly?'
He wasn't surprised that she knew exactly what was necessary about the creature, in fact he found himself proud at her knowledge. She really is the brightest witch of her age, however he made a mental note that she only thought the bird could bond to a person who spotted it, and that she didn't acknowledge the bird was just as capable at finding a human first.
'Your beloved groundskeeper thought it would make a nice pet for Hogwarts. He didn't understand the creature, and we are left to capture it while he is away. Now, you can understand why your involvement in its capture should not occur, correct?' He looked at her sternly, as if mentally conveying to her that she shouldn't do anything stupid.
'Of course sir. Magical creatures can be very unstable and their powers, while intended to be good natured, can usually result in the opposite occurring to the unlucky meddler.' She paused and looked up at him, 'I hate to be the insufferable-know-it-all once again, but they are also horribly bad at keeping predators away so we should be more concerned about those animals hunting tonight than some silly wishes.'
Severus looked at her, she was right. He hadn't considered that they would be chasing a bird that couldn't fly, while hungry and large animals lurked about in the darkness. He didn't want to frighten her, so he responded with a nonchalant, 'Do not worry Miss Granger. I take full responsibility for your safety and will ensure that nothing happens. Do you trust me?' His heart stopped for a fraction of a second as her deep chocolate eyes met his and he heard her whisper, 'Of course sir, with my life.'
At those words, she blushed instantly forgetting that his life had already been entrusted to her not too long ago. Oh how I love when she does that, he thought.
'Well then we should get started. You realize how its freedom could pose a problem to a group of first year girls who might happen to stumble upon it, so the sooner we find it the better.'
Severus stood up, 'As I am sure you are aware, the Forbidden Forest can become quite chilly once the sun sets, so it would be in your best interest to dress appropriately and meet me at the front entrance in a half hour. We will depart from there.'
Hermione stood, smoothed out her robes and gave a serious 'Yes, sir' before she was dismissed and left Severus to wonder what the night held for them.
This is your chance to make things right, even without a conversation, he reminded himself, do not ruin it. She's your only hope now.
If this was just a bird retrieval mission, then why did it feel like so much more was about to happen?
With an audible sigh, Severus picked up the library book he had borrowed and returned to the section on their soon-to-be captive. He scanned the description one more time before stopping at a part that Hermione had neglected,
'While perfectly harmless, the magic in these birds is so powerful that their human bond cannot be broken until the exact most desired wish is fulfilled. It is best to confront said wants before approaching the bird, or prepare for a new pet.'
Severus closed the book, Perfect. This is exactly what I need. Gods, please let this not end horribly.
He glanced at the clock and decided to head towards their meeting place, praying that this bird wouldn't be the death of him.