Potions and Snitches
Snape and Harry Gen Fanfiction Archive

Author's Chapter Notes:
This one is intended to be a bit of recap of our plot points so far. I realized that back in Choices I always had the Order to fall to when I needed to summarize information or coordinate different character's ideas, and that's been missing here. This chapter was born because I figured if I needed a recap and I know the ending (plus the significance to all of these pieces), my readers probably do too. There's still more coming up, so hopefully this gives a nice view of where we're at so far in the non-medical plot.

You should also know that for the hospital chapters, in order to keep the word count manageable, the days don't always finish in the current chapter. Generally speaking, I try not to split days, but many of these scenes had so much information they did require it. This chapter, for example, is focused on the plot, and the next chapter will be back to the hospital with Harry finishing the same day.
The New Order

~~~~SS~~~~

Sunday 19th October, 1997

Severus absolutely despised being caught unprepared. As a double agent, being caught unprepared literally meant the difference between life or death and therefore he trained himself to be ready for anything, whether it be in one of his lessons, his work at the MLD, or even a conversation with his begrudgingly growing group of friends. To Severus, the only thing possibly more detrimental than being unprepared was being ambushed simultaneously, which is exactly what it felt like Albus had done Sunday afternoon when the professor stormed into the Headmaster's office - still dressed in his casual muggle clothing - expecting to be briefed on some emergency and was instead met with five of the most random set of eyes watching him enter.

The small candle Severus kept tucked away in his trouser pocket couldn't have started to burn at a worse moment that afternoon. Right as he went to remove it from its hidden location, Harry's nurse, Kathleen, entered the room to start the teen's second dose of his three hour chemotherapy and to deliver his breakfast for the day; a meal the young wizard had zero hope of actually consuming. While Harry continued chatting away with the nurse as she checked his vitals and changed his medication, Severus questioned the possibility of slipping away into the lavatory to take the call. Unfortunately, given the tight quarters in the hospital room, unless he wanted to risk ending up in the mental ward due to the nurse overhearing him talking - and quite possibly arguing - with himself on the toilet, he had to ignore the call.

It took him another hour or two to return Albus's call - once he helped Harry get as comfortable as possible and attempted his own breakfast - and he was disappointed not to be given a grain of information via the portable firecall. Albus only gave him a hurried and distracted, "You're needed in my office, Severus. Immediately", not said with any sense of urgency outside of the curt immediately. Severus didn't necessarily like the idea of leaving Harry at the hospital, no matter how much the Gryffindor assured him he'd be fine for however he had to be gone, but he had other responsibilities to uphold and would do what was necessary of him. It wasn't that the professor didn't believe the teen would be in good hands - the nursing staff clearly had shown him they had this under control - but more his own issue trusting anyone outside of himself. On top of his already anxious mind over his research on the flood from the previous night, being in the hospital caused the memories from his old reality to surface making him feel more paranoid than usual. The memories of the two realities became a volatile combination in his mind. Between his son's death from the cancer and this Harry's constant threat from Death Eaters, somehow he managed to convince himself his child was destined to die some way or another.

Albus would later claim his lack of response to the first candle call was the rationale for why he hadn't been given more time to prepare for the situation he walked into: Albus prominently seated at this desk with Minerva, Arthur Weasley, Auror Samson, and Lucius Malfoy seated around the room, leaving one simple looking chair supposedly left for him. With the current group of adults, his mind immediately tried to fill in the blanks regarding what could have happened; something large enough to warrant Samson's presence, and occurring between his Slytherins - like Draco considering Lucius's attendance - and one of the Weasley children.

"What's going on Albus?" He grimaced at the scenarios running rampant in his head. "Has anyone been hurt?"

"Not yet," Albus cryptically answered and gestured for Severus to take the last remaining seat, which he reluctantly did as the door to the office quietly closed behind him. Without any further explanation, the eldest wizard picked up a copy of the Daily Prophet from his desk and handed it to him.

Marked Followers of Voldemort Escape from Muggle Hospital!

A trusted source within the Ministry has recently let slip that two wizards bearing the Mark of Lord Voldemort were treated in a muggle hospital in Surrey. The names and specific location were not available at the time of print.

Regardless of their identities, the incident has left many in the magical community demanding the answer to three significant questions: how men who were supportive of anti-muggle terrorism ended up in the muggle hospital, why weren't they apprehended by the aurors, and why the Department of Magical Law Enforcement isn't doing more to protect the citizens.

At least one of those questions Severus himself wanted answered. He already knew how they'd managed to escape - a detail that at least hadn't made it to the reported supposed source - and he didn't believe the DMLE was intentionally ignoring the problem at the expense of the wizarding community. He wanted to know why they ended up there in the first place and who attacked them. Strangely, the article didn't seem to care that two wizards - innocent or not - were brutally attacked in a dark alleyway near their home. In the public's mind they were deserving of their injuries and, in response to that recognition, the former spy flexed his left forearm hoping he - not Lucius or Draco - never ended up on that side of the propaganda.

"Now that we're all here we can get started," Albus announced as Severus continued to skim through the article outlining, more or less, everything Kingsley had told him about at the Apothecary, luckily leaving out any details of Dr Taylor which Severus had gained from Jessica in the cafeteria over dinner. "This situation with the rising Death Eater activity can no longer be ignored, no matter how miniscule of a threat others have believed it to be." Severus peered up menacingly at the comment pointed directly at him. "Therefore, with the support of Auror Samson, I've decided to put together a target group of individuals to help the school stay abreast with the situation and ensure our students' safety. We've been too reactive in the past and we need to rectify it. I refuse to be caught off guard should these threats turn towards the school or anyone specifically inside of it."

Harry. Draco. Those two names stood out like a spotlight to every single person sitting there. Would those two boys ever get a chance to just live like normal teenagers? No, they wouldn't. Draco would forever be haunted by his past and the choices no adult should be forced to make, let alone a sixteen year old. And Harry would continue to be a prisoner of his present and have to keep fighting to live. But to Severus, the statement from the headmaster meant he had to give up the one thing he'd been trying to do since June: admit the threat of Death Eaters - in any capacity - was now real. He could no longer continue to deny something was going on out there and, like a hot ember still active from the doused fire, with enough oxygen and resources could rekindle into burning flames.

"While all of that may be true," Severus pointed out, hoping no one else heard the pure exhaustion in his voice, "I still maintain my position that this is still a matter for the Aurors, not some vigilante group."

"That's exactly why I'm here, Professor," Samson spoke up, amicably. "When Albus reached out to me after yesterday's Prophet, I emphasized as long as this is done by the books and there is no action taken, I'm more than willing to come and help connect the dots, so to say. Understand though, while you may have been used to getting certain… classified… information through our department in the past, you will not be getting any from me."

"Only by the books," Lucius taunted, giving Severus the distinct impression the other Slytherin had his own definition of the phrase and means of getting the information, "of course."

Feeling agitated and defeated from the week he'd had with Harry, and his significant lack of sleep overall, Severus sat nodded his agreement. By the books; a phrase Albus knew none of them would hold. Looking around the room, it became clear to him exactly why this seemingly random group of witches and wizards had been chosen: they had all taken a more liberal definition of "by the books'' at some point in his or her recent life. Arthur Weasley dedicated his career to controlling the enchantment of muggle objects, yet had a hobby doing that very thing, with a garage - filled to the brim, Severus recalled - with proof of his creations. Minerva wouldn't hesitate to bend the rules when they fit her needs, such as permitting first year on her Quidditch team to have his own broom. Next were himself and Lucius; the two Slytherins who, without a doubt, were the most likely to use their cunningness to manipulate any situation to their benefit. That left Albus, the leader of the secret organization responsible - at least publicly - for taking down the darkest wizard of their time and Auror Samson, the wildcard. The auror could very well mean what he said by wanting to keep everything legal, or he could be an ally - stating what's needed on the record with every intention of turning a blind eye and a deaf ear in the meetings. Until Severus knew which way he fell, though, he planned to keep his cards close to his chest.

Albus waved his wand and a large chalkboard instantly materialized to the left of his desk, on the other side of the room from Severus, giving him the perfect excuse to approach and examine the contents more closely. The professor's anger grew as he scanned the pictures magically adhered to the surface with a handwritten explanation of their importance : Diagon Alley broken apart, the Godric's Hollow street completely charred leading from the square to the old Potter Cottage, the Slytherin Common Room damaged by the flood waters, and their missing Death Eaters Ash, Talpin, Jugson, and Gibbons, the first two mysteriously killed in Azkaban and the last two currently missing after ending up in a muggle hospital - the very one Harry currently resided in - due to seemingly muggle stab wounds. In addition to the pictures, a detailed report on the newly discovered Dissolving Spell sat pinned between the three locations - connecting the previously independent events - as well as a map filled with small spheres in red and blue. Overall, the board painted a very unsightly story, one filled with destruction and death, at least in the case of the Godric's Hollow attack. And that didn't even include the pieces the majority of this group didn't know about yet - the shipping manifest he still had back at Spinner's End confirming the purchase of enough Belladonna to kill off a small village, Dr Taylor and his possible involvement, and the Obcasio he'd only discovered last night.

Disappointed in himself for not making these connections sooner, Severus turned to the group and asked, "What do the red and blue represent?"

"The red is the location of the attacks… Diagon Alley, Godric's Hollow, and Hogwarts," Samson flatly explained and in hindsight the former spy should have picked up on those. "And the blue is the last known living locations of the four suspects we have. Obviously Ash and Talpin's last known place was Azkaban, and Gibbon and Jugson were last seen at a hospital in Surrey… Guildford to be exact."

Severus didn't react to the last bit of information for two reasons: he didn't want to let any of them know he'd met with Kingsley and knew far more than the Daily Prophet reported, and he definitely didn't want to draw attention to the fact of Harry currently residing at the hospital where the two Death Eaters were treated. He couldn't explain the reasoning behind his intuition, but he had a feeling if he said something it would end up in an official report and then almost anyone could get to Harry during his treatments.

"What do we know about this new spell?"

Minerva beat Severus to the question. He couldn't deny if traces were found at all of the locations they had to be related somehow, making it the next place to explore.

"Just that we've not seen this signature before," the Auror told the group. He hesitated for a moment at his next question, but quickly regained his resolve and, glancing between Lucius and Severus, he nervously asked, "Is it… is it something either of you recognize from You-Know-Who's days?"

"No," Lucius oddly spoke up first, "his interests didn't lie with wizarding infrastructure and therefore a spell of that nature would be no more significant than say, Wingardium Leviosa."

"As if slaughtering innocent muggles was any better," Samson snapped back.

Before Lucius could respond, Severus threatened, "You asked for our help given our unique viewpoint. Don't you dare throw it back simply because it is not the answer you are searching for."

"Gentlemen," Arthur's calm voice of reason rose to the occasion, "might I suggest we focus our energy on something productive, such as keeping our kids and community safe."

Severus crossed his arms and silently walked back to his chair. They could address him directly if they desired his opinion going forward. Unfortunately, it didn't take long for exactly that to occur.

Minerva nervously cleared her throat, "If my memory serves me right-" the young professor practically rolled his eyes having no doubt her memory was in perfect working order, "-Severus had quite the talent for spell creation in his teenage years."

"And your point?" He challenged her. "We have a renowned Charms Master sitting somewhere in the castle right now, wouldn't Filius be a worthwhile addition to this little group?"

"Though you make a good point," Albus approached the board and appeared to be reading over the limited details on the spell, then pulling the sheet from the board he handed it to Severus, "we need as few people involved as possible. And currently that's the people in this room. Is there anything you can tell us about the spell, Severus?"

He sighed. Had Albus not basically admitted to not fully trusting everyone in the castle, he would have pushed back on bringing in the Ravenclaw Head of House. As it was, he felt grateful to be included in the limited group and therefore he examined what they'd discovered thus far:

Name: Unknown

Incantation: Unknown

Origin: Unknown

Description/Use: Ability to remove previously placed enchantments, including protective and structural spells.

Effective against:

  • Imperturbable Charms
  • Unbreakable Charms
  • Permanent Sticking Charms
  • Anti-Alohomora Charms
  • General Low Security Charms
  • Anti-Intruder Charms

Location(s) Discovered: Diagon Alley, Godric's Hollow, Hogwarts - Slytherin Common Room

Once again, the professor stood to examine the pictures of the damage to Diagon Alley. Although it accounted for the structures falling over, it didn't necessarily account for the shattering of the windows or the entire Apothecary stock seemingly exploding. Therefore, he concluded there had to be another blast following this new spell. Otherwise, the glass simply would have been unprotected rather than physically broken. In contrast to Diagon Alley, the Godric's Hollow attack demonstrated the spell's failure. Again, the structures leading up to the Potter House were damaged, but most of that came from Incendio. Traces of this Dissolving Spell were found along the street, but the majority of it was concentrated on the Potter home, where it could not remove the security wards. Why did they want to get into the home to begin with? Severus obviously didn't know the answer, no one did simply because they had yet to catch the people directly responsible.

"When was the last time the enchantments to the Dungeon windows were reinforced?" Severus asked without turning away from the pictures. The question would appear random, nevertheless he had a train of thought and wanted to see how far he could run with it.

Thankfully, Albus seemed to catch onto his theory and offered, "Our records show Phineas Black had them inspected in 1910. We can assume they were renewed, though there is no official report of the Magical Security Council visiting the school to do it."

A pregnant pause fell over them as Severus tried to put the pieces together. Something felt off to him, but he couldn't figure out why.

Thinking out loud, he said, "I find it intriguing that the same spell could dissolve some of the most secure enchantments made to protect a window from catastrophic disaster, but couldn't touch the anti-trespassing wards on the Potter home in Godric's Hollow. And in Diagon Alley it really only worked on the oldest infrastructure enchantments. It's almost as if three different levels of the spell were used."

"Perhaps different levels of casters?" Arthur suggested.

"Perhaps," Severus agreed, "but even still, the spell itself acted uniquely in each instance. While you and I may cast different levels of Lumos, our wand tips will illuminate to some degree. Now if I cast Lumos and you Lumos Maxima, we'd obviously see different results. It's almost as if the one in the Dungeons was derived from the others."

"And this isn't something a Death Eater would typically use?" Samson questioned for the second time, irritating Severus's already fraying nerves. "Maybe to gain entry into a home or another building?"

Narrowing his eyes at the Auror, Severus explained, "We can assume since it couldn't touch the anti-trespassing wards, it would be ineffective on anti-apparation wards and honestly that's the only instance I can see any real use for it. As Lucius stated, Voldemort was not interested in wizarding infrastructure and as most of his victims were muggles or muggleborns, he had other equally effective ways to gain entry. If anything, I would think it might be something the aurors would use… or at least see."

Samson shook his head, "Unfortunately what this does goes beyond our legal rights. Hell, something like this would put the bloody curse breakers we have on staff right out of business."

That was certainly an angle the professor hadn't considered. It would be worth having Arthur check with Bill to see if he recognized any part of it. And if not, had he heard of a spell that could do what they found.

"If it's the same spell, or a derivative of it, used in all three locations," Arthur began, and Severus could hear him choosing his words carefully, "then do we have to consider the idea that one of the students is involved? At a bare minimum, someone had to cast it on the windows in the Common Room, correct?"

Samson shook his head, "If they did, it wasn't done during the study hour. Not only did we check every wand, we collected several students' memories from the flood and no one approached the windows that night. And while a victim's conscious memory may be tainted by the trauma, their subconscious holds that record accurately. Had someone cast the spell at them, we'd have known by now."

"So then how was the spell cast," Albus challenged the group, "and when? Unless we can narrow down a timeframe, once term resumed, only students and professors had access to that room."

Severus knew they were all thinking of him. If he were sitting in any of their shoes, he would be too. In fact, he probably would bet his measly vault on it being the Head of Slytherin; former Death Eater and former spy who had enough resources, knowledge, and motive to pull it off. Hadn't Minerva not so carefully announced that he had a notable reputation of creating spells of his own? Unless he wanted to continue to allow the evidence to mount against him, it left Severus only one choice: to play a card from his hand even though he wasn't convinced he wanted to share it yet.

"Obcasio." All eyes once again focused onto Severus. "Magical soil found in the Middle East which has the ability to slow time down on any object. Surely you have the broken glass in evidence-" Samson nodded, "- I guarantee if you test them, you'll find remnants of this soil."

Albus waved his wand and an orange pin stuck over the Nahr al-Kalb valley in Lebanon, opening their map up into a whole other region. In his mind, Severus added two more orange pins: one in Georgia, for Abkhazia - where the Water of Life originated - and the other in Jordan, the country where Hala Khatib was born. Though Georgia was a bit of an outlier on the map, and could be a complete coincidence, Lebanon and Jordan were practically neighbors, and Hala Khatib seemed to keep popping up in regards to the flood and her potential connection could not be overlooked, no matter how much he wanted to leave it be.

"Outside of being extremely difficult to find and even harder to obtain," Albus faced the group as he spoke, "it's a highly classified substance, making it nearly impossible to cross into the country undetected."

"You'd be surprised," Severus muttered, giving his head an almost imperceptible shake to Lucius. Under no circumstances did he want to bring up the shipping document under the current company. Had someone wanted to get the soil in, he or she would find a way. Which led him to another idea, "The Department of Mysteries is responsible for studying all unknown magical materials, correct? Not only limited to those on the continent?"

"That's right," Samson agreed, while simultaneously Arthur nodded his head. "Though no one would ever get the chance to explore their work as the Unspeakables cannot speak about it."

Severus rolled his eyes. As much as the Ministry wanted to believe their secrets were just that - secret - he knew a time room existed which is where an official request for time turners had to go. It was logical to assume Obcasio would also be studied there. So then the next question became: did this soil come into the UK directly from Jordan for this purpose, or could it have already been here all along and the Department of Mysteries would find some missing? Luckily, he happened to know someone with connections in the Department of Mysteries, and Severus found himself anxious to get back to the hospital for Dr Swanson's next drop in to find out what he could about her magical brother.

As for Hala and her potential connection in all of this? There wasn't much else he could do at the moment outside of watching his young Slytherin closely. Being that Middle Eastern magic wasn't his forte, he could admit that should he need any assistance, the first year may be a resource he could utilize. While there was a high chance she wouldn't remember much of their magical culture in Jordan, he couldn't afford to leave any stone unturned. Her parents had run a geomancer shop in Aqaba, meaning they likely had texts and tomes passed down when they died, and hopefully those texts went with the young witch to her grandmother's in Britain.

The rest of the meeting didn't require much of Severus's attention. They discussed how often Albus planned to check in (too often in Severus's opinion), when they could expect the final report on the flood from Samson ('I have a few follow ups to make' the grumpy auror told them), and they each had different duties assigned to them: the Obcasio was Severus's. Although by the end they didn't make much forward progress, the meeting accomplished in getting the eclectic group working towards the common goal of identifying if a threat was imminent and to try to prevent it.

When the meeting adjourned, the room became flooded with noise as Samson went to discuss something with Albus and Minerva spoke to Arthur seated directly beside her. Lucius stealthily exited the room without anyone - outside of Severus, of course - the wiser. Attempting to follow in the Malfoy patriarch's footsteps, anxious to get back to the hospital with Harry, the professor slowly and quietly stood from his chair. Just when he felt safe from any excessive socialization, a hand clasped on his shoulder. Irrationally, he turned around ready to duel, coming face to face with Arthur.

"Sorry, it looks like we're all on a bit of an edge lately," the red-headed Gryffindor held his hands in the air at the same time he took a step backwards for safety, though Severus hadn't even drawn his wand. "I was curious what you really thought about all of this. Are the children in danger?"

Severus respected the Weasley patriarch based on the simple fact that he'd always seemed to give the professor a fair chance, which was why he didn't call him out on the lie immediately.

"I think we can't be too careful," he generically stated, too exhausted to keep up any charade with the man. "It certainly doesn't hurt to put our minds together and see if we can flush out what's happening before anyone gets seriously hurt." Arthur nodded, but didn't offer any other words of encouragement or disapproval. Ready to get out of this conversation, Severus asked, "Was there something you needed?"

Arthur shifted his weight between his feet and looked over at Albus's desk where Minerva had joined in with the other two wizards. "Ron's told us what's going on with Harry, of course-" Severus surely hoped with Harry's permission, "- and Molly asked me to pass this along for Harry… and we both wanted to see how you are."

The Gryffindor handed him a package wrapped in plain brown paper, tied with red twine. Based on its size and considerable "squish", Severus guessed it was another sweater. With Harry as cold as he'd been at the hospital, it certainly would be put to good use.

"Thank you," the professor said, then surprised even himself by adding, "we're surviving. Harry was less than enthusiastic about his situation, but we're trying to stay positive."

"That's good," Arthur replied, his voice filled with promise. "They say the mental game is half of the battle." Having nothing else to say to the man, Severus peered off towards the door, to which Arthur picked up on his not-so-hidden meaning. "Oh… well I should let you go. Please know that Molly and I are always here if you need anything, even just to give you a break or some time off. I've not been… too involved… but the times Molly's stayed with Harry, she says it's a lot of work and she doesn't want you to feel the burden alone."

Burden. The word - and its insinuation - in regards to Harry infuriated him. As his anger boiled up inside at the thought of anyone thinking of his son as a burden, he was about to lash out at the other man when he saw the familiar pain in the eyes staring back at him. Somehow stuck in his own world of mourning and grief, he'd forgotten this father had lost his son too. Only instead of his child being lost to his own biology, he'd been forcibly taken away in an act of war. At Charlie Weasley's funeral, the former spy had the impression Arthur and Molly knew of Draco's role in their son's murder, but seeing him sit so calmly with Lucius, he wasn't so sure anymore. It could be the Gryffindor had been able to put their differences aside for the task at hand, and if that were the case, Severus commended Arthur, he didn't think he'd be able to do it.

Severus left without another word spoken to the man, knowing Arthur wouldn't hold it against him. He couldn't be any more honest when he said they were surviving and he'd do whatever it took to keep moving; to navigate these murky waters and continue living. He stalked his way through the corridors, passing students who were going about their Saturday ignorant of - or choosing to ignore - the potential dangers surrounding them, longing for his own bed. Even if he weren't awake most of the night deep within his research, the hospital was far from a comfortable place to sleep. On top of his raging worries over the teen, the constant interruptions from the nurses checking in on Harry or swapping out his medications, and noises from the carts in the corridor or beeps and chimes in the room would make it impossible to fall into any kind of peaceful slumber. And this little meeting would definitely make it even harder to turn off his brain each night; at least until he could put the threat behind them.

"If you think I didn't notice you stalking me from Professor Sinistra's office, you've lost quite a bit of your skill," the former spy had suddenly stopped right outside the courtyard, tucking himself behind a column to hide from any suspecting eyes.

Lucius stepped out of the shadows, following him around the pillar.

"And if you think I didn't intentionally allow you to see me following you," the aristocratic wizard smoothly announced, "then you've become more gullible than ever."

Severus scoffed. Sometimes the Slytherin mind games were too much, and yet simultaneously he didn't know how he'd survive without them.

"You've made your point, Lucius," the younger wizard conceded, "what do you want from me?"

"Your time."

Severus gave a humorless laugh. "Get in line. There's not enough of that to go around these days."

"Surely you haven't lost all of your self-preservation," The blonde accused. It had its intended effect and piqued Severus's interest. Though he tried not to react, the small flicker of light in Lucius's grey eyes told him he'd failed to show his interest.

"Go on." Severus crossed his arms over his chest.

"It's time you start building your defense," Lucius cryptically began. "Thus far you've survived purely on circumstances and luck, but I have it on good authority you're still the leading suspect in the flood and your admission to the knowledge and ability to create and alter spells will certainly work against you. You heard as well as I did, Samson has zero intentions on bringing anything into our little group, which begs the question, what does he expect to take out of it?"

As much as he wanted to tell Lucius and his conspiracy theory to go to hell, he couldn't deny the question had its merits. Was the auror's purpose for being there to advance his own agenda? And if so, did such an agenda include continuing to build a case against him? Surely, Kingsley would have mentioned something at their clandestine meeting if that were the case?

Your name may have made an appearance several times

When it had been said to him, Severus took the statement as innocently as possible. Of course his name made several appearances; he's the Head of House for the group attacked and he was there helping with the rescue. But what if Lucius had additional insight on the contents of the final file? And if he did, should Severus heed the warning?

Grimacing, then mentally cursing himself for the display of weakness, he said, "What do you have in mind?"

Lucius's half smile almost made the professor want to keep walking.

"Draco tells me Auror Tonks is covering your classes this week," Lucius said it as a statement, not a question. "I prefer to start my mornings with the most superior coffee from a stand near the Tower Bridge, in muggle London no less. If you're interested in starting to build up your defense, you'll find me there tomorrow at dawn. Hopefully, it's for naught and we'll never need to utilize it, however this is one of those instances where you don't want to be caught off guard."

"And if I can't make it?"

Lucius didn't answer immediately, rather he took his time to gather his words properly, "As your friend, I'll offer you whatever services I can and if that means scheduling to fit your busy life, then so be it. The Malfoy Lab for Disease Research and Development, however, has a vested interest in all of our employees lives, especially where matters of… legality… are concerned. I would suggest you do everything within your power to free up your morning tomorrow."

The meaning was loud and clear. Lucius would help him, but his research position at the lab could be in jeopardy if he didn't do as requested. How had things gotten so far out of his control so quickly? Desperate to gain the upper hand in whatever he could, Severus nodded his agreement to be in muggle London tomorrow morning. Harry's day would be similar to today's and hopefully that meant the morning would be mostly uneventful.

As he continued on towards the gates of Hogwarts - leaving the Malfoy patriarch oddly behind - Severus couldn't help thinking that Lucius was right. He needed to start taking these allegations and the growing Death Eater threat more seriously, if not to keep his job… then for Harry. The young wizard needed someone here who could support him and comprehend the mass amounts of information they were being given about his muggle medications.

Halfway down the path leading towards the gates, a familiar sight caught his attention to his left. At first, he had to shake his head to release what few memories he had from his drunken escapade through the castle only a week prior, but he was sure deep within them the white kitten rushing in the grass - completely unaware of anything around it - had been present. Yes, the more he racked his brain, the more he was certain that the white kitten had practically stalked him out of the castle that night… after being seen in the corridor directly outside of the Slytherin Common Room. Perhaps his meeting only hours earlier had put the former spy on edge, but his stomach dropped at the idea of whoever had placed the Dissolving Spell on the window paraded into the castle in the form of a kitten.

"Dammit!" He swore, immediately turning on his heels and quietly stormed - an oxymoron for any other person - back to the castle, maintaining a safe distance from his subject. Despite his exhaustion, Severus was determined to get to the bottom of this creature today; he'd deal with his own guilt should it end up being an animagus and the person responsible for attempting to murder his students. After all, it wouldn't be the first time an animagus snuck into the castle intending to do harm.

Unlike any other time Severus had seen the feline in the past, it ran as if it were on a mission, and for all Severus knew, it could have been. Based on the direction he'd seen it come from, the creature could have been in the Forbidden Forest, Hogsmeade, or the Quidditch Pitch. The first two could easily have been a meeting location for whomever was behind these attacks and the latter an attempt to plan nefarious activity against the students practicing - the Ravenclaws if he remembered the schedule correctly. All the pieces fit and he hated it'd taken him this long to notice it.

The cat expertly snuck into the door seemingly undetected as a pair of students exited. Severus watched through the crack as it unsurprisingly ran to the stairs leading down into the Dungeons. This would now be the third time he'd see the animal near these specific stairs: the first being when he'd been going down for his house meeting and the second he hardly remembered from the previous weekend. The benefit to its destination into his section of the castle was he now had little reason to be discreet. Should anyone - the kitten, a student, or professor alike - see him wandering the corridors, he wouldn't look at all out of place.

He should have gone straight to Albus with his suspicions - that much he knew - but the image of him storming into the Headmaster's office trying to convey his idea of a kitten being responsible for the flood was beyond embarrassing. With his luck, Samson would still be there and he'd make himself look even more crazy than answering the candle call in Harry's hospital room would have been. No, he'd much rather trap the kitten and drag its furry hind up to the auror and reveal their culprit together. He could almost taste the satisfaction of solving all their problems the first day of their official meeting.

A half smile, half scowl crossed Severus's face as he caught up with the kitten right as it entered the Slytherin Dungeon, behind a first year whose hands were loaded down with textbooks and parchment. Following silently in their wake, Severus entered the top level of the Common Room just in time to see the ball of white fluff take the last several stairs two at a time and run to the alcove housing the only door on the right - directly opposite to the one leading to the boys and girls dormitories on the left - Draco's room. The door must have opened for the feline because as Severus stormed down the stone steps - reigning in his fear for his former protege so it wouldn't cloud his rational thinking over the situation - the cat wasn't there, only the closed bedroom door leading to the newest addition. He paused briefly to consider if invading Draco's privacy in order to catch their culprit would be worthwhile, then brandished his wand a second later and waved it over the doorway identifying himself as the Head of House to gain entry; the teen's life would be worth the potential embarrassment. Unfortunately, in his haste to enter the room, he missed the soft click of the door opening from the inside and ran, quite literally, into Draco, who'd been in an equal hurry to leave.

"Where is it?!" Severus frantically said once he got his bearings straight. Then taking a hold of the young Slytherin's shirt, he pushed the teen back into his room and slammed the door behind him in hopes of preventing the small cat from escaping.

"What the fuck, Severus?!" Draco exclaimed, pulling his shoulder from the professor's firm grasp. "What the bloody hell's gotten into you?!"

Not listening to the blonde's bellowing - and likely appearing as a madman - Severus slowly crept through the room, his wand leading the way, as he checked under the bed, in the lavatory, and just about anywhere a tiny kitten could hide.

"Seriously," Draco's voice lowered and filled with concern, "what are you looking for? I swear I don't have anything-"

"I saw a cat enter this room," the professor cut him off. Seeing no sign of the feline, he needed answers anyway he could get them, even if it meant admitting his suspicions to Draco.

Draco's face paled, "A- a what?"

"A cat," Severus slowly repeated, "a small, white…"

He trailed off as another memory flooded his mind: one of the Malfoy heir running across the corridor stark naked. Prior to that incident, the damn cat had practically killed him running between his feet. But the final piece of the puzzle, the one confirming what Severus should have picked up long ago, was the stone cold face staring back at him with the same grey eyes as the kitten in question.

"You didn't," Severus warned.

"I don't know what-"

"-do not lie to me, Draco!" He threatened. "What would make you do something so foolish?!"

"I…" Draco stammered, jumping slightly when the chair at his deck behind him moved out automatically. Severus sat in the chair, then pointed to the bed silently demanding the young wizard to sit, genuinely surprised when he did and even more so when he continued speaking. "I needed to be able to live about the wizarding world with some anonymity. Being an animagus allows me to do just that."

"Who was your mentor?" Obviously it hadn't been Minerva, otherwise she would have said something by now, but Lucius had deep enough pockets to afford Merlin himself to come back and tutor his heir. He didn't allow the teen to answer though, instead lifting his hand to stop any incoming statement as another piece fell into place, "Did you say you wanted anonymity?"

"Yes," replied the blonde confidently. "Not all of us had the best of news reported over the summer and the wizarding world fawning over our every move."

Severus covered his eyes with his hand dreading to hear the answer to his next inquiry. The only way to guarantee privacy as an animagus would be to not register - as Harry's father and his gang did back in their Hogwarts days - however the offense came with an immediate Azkaban sentence. "Did you register?"

"Of course," Draco instantly answered, not even a hint of hesitation.

But did he answer too fast?

The former spy watched his protege intently. Having been the one who taught him to lie and protect his mind with Occlumency to begin with, Severus couldn't be sure the answer had been truthful or a well planned lie. Draco passed all of the surface tests to identify falsified information, yet something with the situation didn't sit right with him.

"Why didn't you inform me at the start of the year?"

"I'm not required to," Draco arrogantly answered. "Nowhere does it state that I have to announce my new status to the world and doing so would defeat the purpose, don't you think?"

Not wanting to get into a power struggle with his student, Severus nodded. Telling him at the start of the school year would have been a courtesy Severus would have appreciated and in not doing so, a small insight into Draco's lack of respect towards him at that time. After everything they'd been through, that last thought pained him, but he couldn't really blame the teen. He'd been absent in the aftermath of the Battle at Malfoy Manor dealing with his own healing as well as Harry's. Things had certainly improved, or at least he liked to think they had, but it didn't excuse his lack of presence when his Slytherin needed someone who could relate to him.

"And do your parents know?" Severus thought back on the conversations he'd had with Lucius over the last two months. His friend hadn't mentioned anything either; another proverbial red flag.

"They know," Draco confirmed. "And they're supportive of my decision and the reasoning behind it."

The professor didn't like it, but at the same time there wasn't anything else he could do about it. Hogwarts didn't have any regulations prohibiting students from becoming animagi; in fact they fully supported the attempt so long as the student had a mentor and followed the laws. Did he believe Draco had done both of those things? Not particularly, however at this point what's done was done.

Standing to signify their conversation completed, Severus said, "You are to continue to follow the rules and regulations set forth by the school in both your human and furry animagus form. This means you are limited to the locations within the castle only permitted by male students - regardless of the size of your animagus form - and you will be in the Common Room prior to the school's curfew and in your dormitory by my set curfew.

"I will also have to inform the headmaster, as well as Professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey-" he held up his hand to stop Draco's protests, "- the reasoning behind it is that should a furry, white, Persian kitten find itself injured those particular personnel will need to know it is a student we're dealing with, not an actual animal. I doubt you'd like to inadvertently end up under Hagrid's care than that of Madam Pomfrey's."

Draco quickly nodded his agreement.

"Good," Severus made to leave, but stopped short at the door. Turning half of his body around he peered back at the young Slytherin still firmly seated on his bed, in a very similar fashion as Harry would. "Congratulations," he told the teen, sincerely meaning it, "what you did was no easy feat and you deserve the recognition for your accomplishment. Also, if you're looking for anonymity, I'd hold off on learning a Patronus as they tend to take the same form as one's animagus, and Draco Malfoy producing a small kitten will definitely stand out."

Not waiting for the Malfoy heir's response, Severus left the bedroom with a smirk upon his face and his mind made up that after dealing with the new order and both Malfoys, he more than deserved to go back to his quarters for a quick nap. He'd reached the limit on his patience, and who knew what kind of condition he'd walk into with Harry at the hospital, but if it were anything like the past twenty-four hours, he knew he wouldn't be able to handle it.

Chapter End Notes:
Coming up Next: Things to Consider

You must login (register) to review.
[Report This]


Disclaimer Charm: Harry Potter and all related works including movie stills belong to J.K. Rowling, Scholastic, Warner Bros, and Bloomsbury. Used without permission. No copyright infringement is intended. No money is being made off of this site. All fanfiction and fanart are the property of the individual writers and artists represented on this site and do not represent the views and opinions of the Webmistress.

Powered by eFiction 3.5