Post by Demonic Neko on Jul 24, 2005 1:14:00 GMT -5
The trip back to Hogwarts flew by quickly without any incidents. Jeremy ignored Snape for most of the trip, and when he did have to talk to the Potion's Master, he was exceedingly polite. They reached Hogwarts a few hours before dusk, and went directly to Dumbledore's office to give him a briefing on the events of Romania.
Dumbledore listened quietly as they told him about Lucius Malfoy's doings with the local vampires. He cocked an eyebrow when Snape had told him about everyone assuming that Charlie Weasley was the one who created the Vampire's Bane potion.
"So, the vampires are willing to form an alliance then?" Dumble dore asked, arcing his fingers underneath his chin.
"Yes, although things are going to be difficult," Jeremy stated, as he iddely drummed his fingers against the arm of his chair. "With what Voldemort has done, every vampire out there now has a price on their head. It won't be long before the hunters come crawling out of the woodwork."
Dumbledore mused silently for a minute or two, then rang a bell located on his desk. A house-elf appeared immediately, "Will you please find Professor Xavier and tell her that she is needed in my office? Thank you."
Dumbledore took out a fresh sheet of parchment and began to write a letter in what looked like invisible ink (it dissapeared almost immediately). When he was done, he sealed the letter and handed it to Fawkes. Fawkes dissapeared in a spray of red and gold.
Snape gave him a questioning look. "I'll explain when Professor Xavier has arrived."
Raven pushed the silky wisks of her bangs away from her face as she went though her evening excercise. She had just finished a jog around the school, and was now starting with the soothing moves of the Kata.
She had ignored the odd stares from her fellow instructors when they saw what she was wearing as she did her evening run around the grounds. It was the middle of summer and she was dressed in a pair of loose, black jeans; a long sleeved, grey sweater with a black turtleneck shirt underneath; and finally a pair of black gloves. By all rights she should have been swealtering. But ever since her change into a were-draven, temperature didn't seem to bother her. She could wear layers upon layers of clothing in 100 degrees, and stand buck-naked in a foot of snow with no effect.
As she paused breifly to readjust the band that was failing to hold her hair away from her face, she heard a small voice come from behind her.
"Excus me, Miss?"
Raven turned to see a House Elf looking expectantly at her. "Uh.. Hello."
"Miss," the house elf chirped, "Headmaster Dumbledore is wanting to be seeing you in his office right away."
Raven raised an eyebrow. "Okay.. I'll be right there."
The House Elf nodded and disapeared, it's mission done with.
Raven debated if she should go to her office and tidy up a bit, but decided against it. Albus was one the the few people she knew that didn't care about her apperance. She entered the school, and briskly walked through hallways until she reached Albus's door. She opened the door and stepped right in.
"You wanted to see me Albus..?" She began but stopped when her eyes fell on the face of Severus Snape. Any further words she might of said dried on her lips. He was still wearing his hair long, but she was alarmed to notice that his skin was red, as if from a massive sunburn. She wanted to ask him what happened, but noticed another presence in the room. A young man she had never seen before. He raised an eyebrow at her, and smiled. Raven bit her lip slightly, uncomfortable in the company of strangers.
"Raven," her head turned towards Dumbledore's voice, as her cheeks flushed slightly. She really wished she had cleaned herself up before comming here. "I wanted to do this before you went off on your jaunt to the other world, and I would have brought this up sooner, but I wanted you to recover from that ordeal first." Raven cocked her head and gave Albus a puzzled look. "I want to extend an invitation to you to the Order of the Phoenix and you as well Jeremy," he said turning to the young stranger.
Raven cocked her head slightly, brushing an unrully lock behind her ear. "Um, Albus, what exactly is the Order of the Phoenix?"
"It is a group of wizards and witches who have come together to help in the fight against Voldemort. I think you and Mr Darkur would make a great addition. So will you join us?"
"Sure, why not," Jeremy replied, shrugging his shoulders and looking mildly bored. "I got nothing better to do."
"I'd be willing to join as well," Raven replied softly.
Albus smiled, his eyes twinkling. "Wonderfull! I'll let you all go now. I'm sure that Professor Snape and Mr. Darkur would like some rest after their long trip."
Raven nodded, and stepped out of the room, with Snape and Darkur following. She was just about to head back to her room when a voice stopped her.
"Raven.."
She slowly turned to see Snape standing behind her.
Now that he had her attention, he forgot what he had wanted to say to her. She looked at him expectantly and he realized he was staring. He shifted his weight to his other foot, “I have something of yours, however I left it in the potions dungeon. Do you have a minute?”
She nodded.
Severus found where he’d left his travel bag and pulled out the journal and the envelope holding the vial Hermione had snuck into his bag. He held it out to her.
She flushed crimson as she took the journal and the vial, “Thank you, but you might want to keep the vial, you know, so you can test it… if you want to, that is.”
“I don’t need to test it.” He said simply.
I already know it works. He thought to himself.
"Oh.." Raven replied softly, her eyes cast downwards, not really sure what else to say. She glaced up at his face again and inwardly winced at how red it was. Her hand instictivly raised towards him as if to brush against his cheek, but she realized what she was doing and dropped it back to her side.
"What happened to you?" she asked softly, but then quickly realized she shouldn't have asked, it really wasn't any of her buisness. "Uh, sorry. You don't have to answer. Just me being nosey." She added hastily.
“Sunburn… I’m photosensitive.” He added needlessly, feeling stupid, since she already knew he was a vampire and therefore photosensitive in the extreme, “One of Lucius Malfoy’s supporters thought he’d have a bit of fun and put me in an east-facing room.” He tried to make light of it, neither mentioning that the supporter was his uncle, nor that he was the one to turn him into a vampire at age eight, “Now that you are in the Order, perhaps you should know; Lucius Malfoy has escaped custody and has returned to The Dark Lord’s fold. I had gone away to extend an olive branch to the vampires, but only managed to stop overt war between hunters and vampires.”
“But that’s good, isn’t it?”
He snorted, “It would be, except for the fact that it only stopped an overt war. There is still a cold war of sorts that has been agitated by Malfoy’s attempts and then there’s the fact that a muggle war was not avoided. I was not alive then, but this is undoubtedly shaping up to look like Grindlewald’s Reign. He had also incited war among the muggles to confound things. Divide and Conquer…. That reminds me, if you hear that a Charlie Weasley invented Vampires Bane, don’t refute it.”
Raven's eyes widenly slightly in puzzlement. "But you created it didn't you? Why is Charlie Weasley taking the credit for it?"
"It would jepordize my position with the Dark Lord if he was to know I was the one who created the potion." he stated with a trace of bitterness.
Raven's eyes flashed with anger, her pupils narrowing a bit, to look almost cat-like. "But you worked so hard on it.. I mean.." She paused, realizing she was probably overreacting. Taking a deep breath, then letting it out again, she gave Snape a quirky little smile. "Sorry.. Again.. You're right. It's just a shame you don't get the credit you deserve."
“Yes, well, sometimes we have to choose between what is right, and what is easy.” He said sourly, recalling something Dumbledore had said to him a long time ago. He softened his tone suddenly, thinking that it might sound as if he was scolding her for thinking he deserved credit, “But thank you for saying so. At any rate, I wanted you to know.”
A silence took over in the room and he became engrossed in some potions ingredients lining the walls, he realized he had not replaced all his potions stores for next year. “I am going to be gathering some herbs and insects in the Forbidden Forest tonight,“ He said as the idea formed on his tongue, “I could use someone with an expertise in defense against the dark arts.”
Raven blinked at him for a moment. She knew his knowledge of dark arts far exceeded hers, so why would he need her to come along? A though immediatly popped into her head and another flush spread quickly across her cheeks. Could he possibly be looking for an excuse for the two of them to send time together? She quickly quashed the thought down, chalking it up to wishfull thinking. Still, it would be nice to spend a little time with him, even if nothing would come of it...
"I'd be happy to help out," she replied softly. “Good…good…Is eight o’clock acceptable? I’m looking specifically for fuzzy blue nightcrawlers and they are only out after nightfall.”
“Eight it is.” She smiled at him.
“Good. See you then.” He walked out of the room feeling considerably lighter.
Dumbledore listened quietly as they told him about Lucius Malfoy's doings with the local vampires. He cocked an eyebrow when Snape had told him about everyone assuming that Charlie Weasley was the one who created the Vampire's Bane potion.
"So, the vampires are willing to form an alliance then?" Dumble dore asked, arcing his fingers underneath his chin.
"Yes, although things are going to be difficult," Jeremy stated, as he iddely drummed his fingers against the arm of his chair. "With what Voldemort has done, every vampire out there now has a price on their head. It won't be long before the hunters come crawling out of the woodwork."
Dumbledore mused silently for a minute or two, then rang a bell located on his desk. A house-elf appeared immediately, "Will you please find Professor Xavier and tell her that she is needed in my office? Thank you."
Dumbledore took out a fresh sheet of parchment and began to write a letter in what looked like invisible ink (it dissapeared almost immediately). When he was done, he sealed the letter and handed it to Fawkes. Fawkes dissapeared in a spray of red and gold.
Snape gave him a questioning look. "I'll explain when Professor Xavier has arrived."
Raven pushed the silky wisks of her bangs away from her face as she went though her evening excercise. She had just finished a jog around the school, and was now starting with the soothing moves of the Kata.
She had ignored the odd stares from her fellow instructors when they saw what she was wearing as she did her evening run around the grounds. It was the middle of summer and she was dressed in a pair of loose, black jeans; a long sleeved, grey sweater with a black turtleneck shirt underneath; and finally a pair of black gloves. By all rights she should have been swealtering. But ever since her change into a were-draven, temperature didn't seem to bother her. She could wear layers upon layers of clothing in 100 degrees, and stand buck-naked in a foot of snow with no effect.
As she paused breifly to readjust the band that was failing to hold her hair away from her face, she heard a small voice come from behind her.
"Excus me, Miss?"
Raven turned to see a House Elf looking expectantly at her. "Uh.. Hello."
"Miss," the house elf chirped, "Headmaster Dumbledore is wanting to be seeing you in his office right away."
Raven raised an eyebrow. "Okay.. I'll be right there."
The House Elf nodded and disapeared, it's mission done with.
Raven debated if she should go to her office and tidy up a bit, but decided against it. Albus was one the the few people she knew that didn't care about her apperance. She entered the school, and briskly walked through hallways until she reached Albus's door. She opened the door and stepped right in.
"You wanted to see me Albus..?" She began but stopped when her eyes fell on the face of Severus Snape. Any further words she might of said dried on her lips. He was still wearing his hair long, but she was alarmed to notice that his skin was red, as if from a massive sunburn. She wanted to ask him what happened, but noticed another presence in the room. A young man she had never seen before. He raised an eyebrow at her, and smiled. Raven bit her lip slightly, uncomfortable in the company of strangers.
"Raven," her head turned towards Dumbledore's voice, as her cheeks flushed slightly. She really wished she had cleaned herself up before comming here. "I wanted to do this before you went off on your jaunt to the other world, and I would have brought this up sooner, but I wanted you to recover from that ordeal first." Raven cocked her head and gave Albus a puzzled look. "I want to extend an invitation to you to the Order of the Phoenix and you as well Jeremy," he said turning to the young stranger.
Raven cocked her head slightly, brushing an unrully lock behind her ear. "Um, Albus, what exactly is the Order of the Phoenix?"
"It is a group of wizards and witches who have come together to help in the fight against Voldemort. I think you and Mr Darkur would make a great addition. So will you join us?"
"Sure, why not," Jeremy replied, shrugging his shoulders and looking mildly bored. "I got nothing better to do."
"I'd be willing to join as well," Raven replied softly.
Albus smiled, his eyes twinkling. "Wonderfull! I'll let you all go now. I'm sure that Professor Snape and Mr. Darkur would like some rest after their long trip."
Raven nodded, and stepped out of the room, with Snape and Darkur following. She was just about to head back to her room when a voice stopped her.
"Raven.."
She slowly turned to see Snape standing behind her.
Now that he had her attention, he forgot what he had wanted to say to her. She looked at him expectantly and he realized he was staring. He shifted his weight to his other foot, “I have something of yours, however I left it in the potions dungeon. Do you have a minute?”
She nodded.
Severus found where he’d left his travel bag and pulled out the journal and the envelope holding the vial Hermione had snuck into his bag. He held it out to her.
She flushed crimson as she took the journal and the vial, “Thank you, but you might want to keep the vial, you know, so you can test it… if you want to, that is.”
“I don’t need to test it.” He said simply.
I already know it works. He thought to himself.
"Oh.." Raven replied softly, her eyes cast downwards, not really sure what else to say. She glaced up at his face again and inwardly winced at how red it was. Her hand instictivly raised towards him as if to brush against his cheek, but she realized what she was doing and dropped it back to her side.
"What happened to you?" she asked softly, but then quickly realized she shouldn't have asked, it really wasn't any of her buisness. "Uh, sorry. You don't have to answer. Just me being nosey." She added hastily.
“Sunburn… I’m photosensitive.” He added needlessly, feeling stupid, since she already knew he was a vampire and therefore photosensitive in the extreme, “One of Lucius Malfoy’s supporters thought he’d have a bit of fun and put me in an east-facing room.” He tried to make light of it, neither mentioning that the supporter was his uncle, nor that he was the one to turn him into a vampire at age eight, “Now that you are in the Order, perhaps you should know; Lucius Malfoy has escaped custody and has returned to The Dark Lord’s fold. I had gone away to extend an olive branch to the vampires, but only managed to stop overt war between hunters and vampires.”
“But that’s good, isn’t it?”
He snorted, “It would be, except for the fact that it only stopped an overt war. There is still a cold war of sorts that has been agitated by Malfoy’s attempts and then there’s the fact that a muggle war was not avoided. I was not alive then, but this is undoubtedly shaping up to look like Grindlewald’s Reign. He had also incited war among the muggles to confound things. Divide and Conquer…. That reminds me, if you hear that a Charlie Weasley invented Vampires Bane, don’t refute it.”
Raven's eyes widenly slightly in puzzlement. "But you created it didn't you? Why is Charlie Weasley taking the credit for it?"
"It would jepordize my position with the Dark Lord if he was to know I was the one who created the potion." he stated with a trace of bitterness.
Raven's eyes flashed with anger, her pupils narrowing a bit, to look almost cat-like. "But you worked so hard on it.. I mean.." She paused, realizing she was probably overreacting. Taking a deep breath, then letting it out again, she gave Snape a quirky little smile. "Sorry.. Again.. You're right. It's just a shame you don't get the credit you deserve."
“Yes, well, sometimes we have to choose between what is right, and what is easy.” He said sourly, recalling something Dumbledore had said to him a long time ago. He softened his tone suddenly, thinking that it might sound as if he was scolding her for thinking he deserved credit, “But thank you for saying so. At any rate, I wanted you to know.”
A silence took over in the room and he became engrossed in some potions ingredients lining the walls, he realized he had not replaced all his potions stores for next year. “I am going to be gathering some herbs and insects in the Forbidden Forest tonight,“ He said as the idea formed on his tongue, “I could use someone with an expertise in defense against the dark arts.”
Raven blinked at him for a moment. She knew his knowledge of dark arts far exceeded hers, so why would he need her to come along? A though immediatly popped into her head and another flush spread quickly across her cheeks. Could he possibly be looking for an excuse for the two of them to send time together? She quickly quashed the thought down, chalking it up to wishfull thinking. Still, it would be nice to spend a little time with him, even if nothing would come of it...
"I'd be happy to help out," she replied softly. “Good…good…Is eight o’clock acceptable? I’m looking specifically for fuzzy blue nightcrawlers and they are only out after nightfall.”
“Eight it is.” She smiled at him.
“Good. See you then.” He walked out of the room feeling considerably lighter.