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AUTHOR’S NOTE: Well. Here it is. The last chapter. Of Part One. I sincerely hope you enjoy it. I hope to have Part Two launched by the end of next week if not before, so please do check back. It will be called Slytherin on the Wane, and is set at the same time as Philosopher’s/Sorcerer’s Stone, so you might like to read that again first, just to refresh your memory.

Just to clear up any confusion. This chapter is not the final one in the entire series. THERE WILL BE MORE! But it does mean that the Caitlin/Snape mystery won’t be cleared up yet. Have patience, gentle readers.

This is probably the longest chapter of them all - I couldn’t be bothered to make it two separate ones. Not much plotwise, just a cheery one to round everything up with. Watch out for a nice interchange between Deanna and Snape, giving the lie to Deanna’s frequent comments that she can’t stand the slimy bastard. Plus an interesting confrontation between Snape and another member of the Hogwarts staff team that sets us up nicely for Part Two. Luella puts her new-found powers to the test and Marlie realises it’s not quite all over just yet, she has one last thing to do.

Reviews:

Anita Skeeter -

Deanna will be just fine, she’s a tough little kid. I’ll state for the record now - both Deanna and Luella will be alive at the end of it all, although they’ll both have their lives threatened on a regular basis. The perils of being a Messiah and her sidekick.

It’s started. People falling in love with Snape. Why? He’s such a bastard. But a sexy one, nonetheless. Severus is pleased and very flattered by all the attention he’s getting, Caitlin less so.

It’s quite normal to be terrified of Caitlin Tyler. She’s got a bit of a reputation for being a raving psycho among her colleagues. She wasn’t exaggerating when she said she had to claw her way back to sanity. Think Linda Hamilton in Terminator 2 or Geena Davis in The Long Kiss Goodnight (two films which have had a pretty big influence on this fic, I might add). Caitlin has a lot in common with both. It’s quite amazing how she’s developed, she was originally going to be a minor character, now she’s turned into the love interest and general psycho-bitch from hell. You get to see her kick serious butt in Part Two.

Deanna and Mike- I wouldn’t call it a crush. More a temporary hormone rush. She’ll get over it. Very, very quickly.

Tyr the One-Handed -

Don’t feel too sorry for him. He did bring it on himself. He’ll get some action eventually. He is a Scorpio, after all.

Jenn -

Wow, even the non-Slyths are liking it. (Much cheering from the Green Room as nine Slytherins say "I told you so".) Caitlin and Snape will eventually patch things up. After all, she’s virtually told him to drop dead, so by the laws of fiction, that means they’ll end up in bed by the end of the series, if not before. I’ve just written their last scene together in Part Two, actually, which has a slightly less vitriolic ending. But it’s still a bit of a tear-jerker though.

Sphinx -

Ah, I thought Ch. 17 would confuse a few people! I will say this. CT and Sevi have never been an official couple. Note the word official. Deanna is definitely Caitlin’s daughter though. Caitlin isn’t that good an actress. Answers will come in Part Two.

Where we’ll also find out how Sev ruined Tyler Senior’s life. The answer will shock you.

Rosmerta - He does hate being called Sev, don’t you Sev?

Severus: Shut up, Matthews. Get on with the writing.

Touchy, isn’t he? Anyway, the boxers/briefs question. Severus, needless to say, refused to tell me, but Caitlin has confirmed that he is a boxers man.

Like I think I mentioned earlier, the Caitlin/Sevi situation will be explained further in Part Two. As for Snape/Deanna, ooh, you’re in for a treat! That little pairing is set to be one of the dominant, if not the dominant one in the fic. Lots more promised in Part Two.

Ri’s crush: Deanna knows all about the crush. But doesn’t know what Rianne actually said to Luella, and wants to find out so she can make Rianne’s life hell.

Narcissa’s parentage: She may be half-blood, but she was still the best looking girl in the year and Lucius wanted the kudos that marrying her would bring. And then something happened to give him the perfect hold over her. All of which meant he was prepared to overlook her background.

Snape ruining Caitlin’s life: It was pretty bad - the scene where it gets revealed still makes me wince even now. And if it does that to me…

The Slyth 4 meeting Malfoy and friends: Going to be an interesting set of interactions. Part Two touches on it, Part Three will build on it.

Slytherin Rising, Part One: Sleeping Death

Chapter Eighteen: The Final Victory

It did not take long for word to get around. By lunchtime, the whole of Slytherin House had heard the news, and by evening, the whole school appeared to know. Deanna found herself being patted on the back and congratulated by her fellow Slytherins everywhere she went. Members of other houses regarded her with nothing less than awe, and whispers along the lines of "Entered her dreams, apparently." and "A whole pack of Dementors? Really?" became quite commonplace.

Even the Weasley twins were impressed. During Potions, Fred leaned over to Rianne.

"Hey, Stormosi."

"Yes, Weasley?" Rianne said tetchily, annoyed at being interrupted in the middle of her Light-Footedness Potion.

"Is it true about Deanna and Marlie?"

"What about them?" Rianne sighed.

"That Marlie's awake, and that Deanna helped her by entering her dreams and fighting off a whole pack of Dementors, a couple of dragons, some basilisks, a band of trolls, four vampires, three werewolves and You-Know-Who?"

Rianne couldn't resist a grin at this. The Hogwarts rumour mill was doing it's work already.

"Marlie is awake again, yes. And I believe Deanna did enter her dreams. However, as I was not there at the time, I couldn't possibly comment. You'll have to ask Deanna, won't you?"

Fred seemed to be considering this. He evidently decided that trying to get a straight answer out of Deanna was a non-starter, for he swiftly changed the subject.

"Is Marlie allowed visitors, do you know?"

"Close friends and family only. That's her parents, teachers, brother, Deanna, Lu, and me. You'll have to wait until she gets out of hospital next week. Although I daresay a Get Well Soon card and presents would be welcome. Now stop interrupting me, this thing's liable to explode if not watched carefully." Rianne was proved right as Geoff Foxworth's blew up and drenched him and Winter Montague, who both began tap-dancing frantically. Professor Snape snarled at them both as he administered the antidote and presented them with the necessary cleaning materials. This seemed to concentrate Fred Weasley's mind on his own potion, as Rianne was not interrupted again.

That night in the Serpent's Nest, everyone was discussing the situation. As Deanna walked in with Rianne and Luella behind her, the entire house, as one, got to it's feet and gave her a standing ovation.

Deanna went bright red and turned away, highly embarrassed. She squirmed even more as Mike Lovegood got to his feet.

"Ladies and gentlemen of Slytherin House!" he cried, putting his arm around Deanna's shoulder to prevent her from following her gut reaction and running out of the door, "Most of you probably have heard one version or another of this story, but I'm going to tell you all again anyway. This first year Slytherin, this brave, courageous, heroic, devious lady we all know so well as Deanna Tyler..."

"Stop it, Lovegood. Stop it now!" Deanna muttered, dearly wishing the ground would swallow her up.

Mike continued, ignoring her. "This wonderful young lady has surpassed herself yet again. Last night, with the help of Professor Snape and Caitlin Tyler the world-famous Auror, she entered the dreams of my little sister Marlie Lovegood in order to make contact with her and help her out so that she could wake up. And as you probably all know by now, she succeeded brilliantly. Marlie is even now sat upstairs in the hospital wing, eating, drinking and talking, and it is all thanks to Deanna here! Three cheers, everybody!"

Deanna stared fiercely at the ground as the three cheers were duly given. This was followed by a rousing rendition of "For She's A Jolly Good Fellow!" Deanna glanced at Luella and Rianne, who had joined in the singing and cheering and were now grinning madly.

"Did you two know about this?" she demanded.

"Not a thing." Luella grinned.

"No, Lovegood organised this one all on his own." Rianne said.

Deanna didn't have time to respond as Mike was now calling on her to give a speech. Deanna found herself pushed to centre stage as the massed Slytherins fell quiet.

She gazed round at them, not quite sure what to say. Shuffling her feet, she began with the first words that came into her head.

"Erm, well, thank you! I never expected this at such short notice. Mike Lovegood, I'm going to torture you slowly later for showing me up like this." Mike grinned. He knew Deanna well enough to know she didn't really mean it.

"However," Deanna was continuing, "while it's all very flattering to hear all the rumours flying around about how I single-handedly saved Marlie Lovegood from trolls, dragons, Dementors, basilisks and all sorts of things that I don't remember doing for the life of me, it has to be said that I only helped Marlie. I didn't do all the work for her. Owing to a near-fatal basilisk bite, I had to withdraw from the dream at a crucial stage, leaving her to fight on on her own. In the end, it was Marlie's inner strength, power, and above all, courage that saved her in the end. And it is Marlie, not me, that you should be honouring. Which leads me to something I wanted to discuss with you all anyway, and this seems like an opportune time to do it. Marlie's welcome party."

She paused and surveyed them, her embarrassment gone and her usual self-control back. They all looked back expectantly, anticipation on the air. What off-the-wall idea was this crazy little first-year planning now?

"As you all know, Marlie has missed three months of her life because of all this. Tragic enough for anyone. Even more tragic when those three months happen to include not only Christmas but your twelfth birthday. Indeed, I was talking to Marlie only this morning, and she was saying how upset she was that she'd missed both." Looks of enlightenment were dawning on some faces, although most still looked confused. Deanna grinned and built up to the big announcement.

"Which is why the poor girl needs the welcoming party to end all welcoming parties. And we are the ones to throw it for her. And what I am suggesting is this. Seeing as she was not here for the Slytherin Christmas Party, what we are going to do is put the whole thing on again so she can relive the experience. Plus, we are going to turn it into a birthday celebration for her! A belated Christmas/birthday party! Are you with me, folks?"

A huge cheer went up from the massed crowd. Luella and Rianne gazed at Deanna in amazement. This was her best idea yet. Deanna was now turning from showman to brisk organiser. She surveyed the ranks of expectant Slytherins.

"Alright, seeing as everyone's behind me. Here's what we'll do..."

The week passed without further incident, and on Friday afternoon, Luella, Mike and Rianne went to collect Marlie.

She was fully dressed in her Hogwarts uniform, and seemed her old self again. A week of Professor Snape's strongest Strengthening Potions and Sleeping Death antidote had cleared the last of the poison out of her system and done wonders for her energy levels. Luella was amazed at how healthy Marlie looked.

Marlie was putting the last of her Get Well cards and presents into her bag.

"All set, Marlie?" Mike asked her.

"All set. I just need to make sure I've got everything. Unbelievable, really, the amount of stuff I've been given. People I barely know have been sending me things. Fred and George sent me an amusingly shaped cactus, bless them." Her smile faded to be replaced by a sharp look of reproval. "Which makes it all the more obvious that my own house have sent me nothing! Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs, even our Gryffindor arch-rivals, have been falling over themselves to send me flowers, cards, chocolates, Quidditch related things, Zonko's toys, you name it, I've had it. If even our enemies are so generous, why, pray, are my supposed friends so apparently uncaring?"

The three of them shuffled, not knowing quite how to answer without breaking their secrecy vow.

Luella spoke up, with her usual diplomacy. "I think, Marlie, it's just that everyone wanted to give you their things in person. I mean, we did ask Madam Pomfrey if we could all come up and pay you a mass house visit, but she wasn't very keen on the idea."

Mike and Rianne were nodding enthusiastically, as if to indicate that that was the intention all along. Marlie was not fooled.

"That doesn't explain why you three and Deanna have yet to get me anything."

"Oh, Marlie, you're so materialistic." Rianne said hastily. "We avenged you and saved your life, does that mean nothing to you? Come on, let's get you back to the Nest." And with that, she ushered them all out of the room.

Lucas Vetinari was standing in the open entrance to the common room, waiting for them to come around the corner. As soon as he noticed Mike step first around the corner, his blond hair instantly recognisable in the gloom, he darted inside.

"They're coming! Everyone take your places!"

Mike entered the room first, then stepped aside so Marlie could see for herself what was going on. As she entered, the Slytherins leapt to their feet, let off party poppers, streamers, balloons, confetti, ticker tape and whatever else they'd managed to scrounge or invent, and shouted "Surprise!!!"

Marlie dropped her bags and clasped her hands to her face in shock. "Oh my gods!" she exclaimed. "What is this?"

Mike put his arm round her. "We heard how upset you were about missing Christmas and your birthday, so we organised a little get together for you. Happy belated Birthday and Merry delayed Christmas, sis."

Marlie, lost for words, gazed around the room in shock. The Slytherins had done an excellent job. The tree was back, as flashily decorated as ever. Paper chains, tinsel and fairy lanterns were everywhere. The Slytherin banner now read "Welcome Back, Marlie!" And on a table in the far corner was a huge buffet complete with a whole roast turkey, potatoes boiled and roasted, stuffing, cranberry sauce, chipolata sausages, cheese on cocktail sticks, crisps, peanuts, Summer Montague's Special Fruit Punch and everything you could possibly wish for at a party.

"You went to all this trouble just for me!" Marlie whispered. She turned to her brother and flung her arms round him. "Thank you!"

"Don't thank me." Mike grinned. "Thank Deanna, it was her idea." Marlie turned. Deanna was standing by the fire, smiling. The Slytherins tensed. Last time they had seen Marlie and Deanna anywhere near each other for any length of time, it had usually meant much bickering and a blazing row. But a lot of water had passed under the bridge since then.

Marlie stepped forward. For a moment, the two girls did nothing but look at each other. Then, they both stepped forward simultaneously and hugged each other tightly, to the sound of rapturous applause from the onlooking Slytherins, who promptly began singing "For She's A Jolly Good Fellow".

"Welcome back, mate." Deanna whispered to Marlene.

"Thanks." Marlie whispered. They let each other go, but didn't stop looking at each other and smiling.

"You really organised all this?" Marlie asked after the singing finished.

"Sort of. It was my idea, but I couldn't have done it without this lot. Summer did her usual punch, while her, Kat, and Laetitia did the decor. Banner was me and Chris, of course, Mike and Marcus nicked the food, Jordan did the tree, party poppers and the like from Chris's dad's firm and Zonko's, with added sparkle from Lucas and Alex. And I think everyone contributed to these." She indicated the pile of presents and cards underneath the tree. Marlie gasped.

"Presents!" she squealed. She turned to Luella and Rianne. "You two, you never told me about this!"

"What, with Deanna Tyler threatening all sorts of dire punishments on anyone who spilled the beans?" Rianne snorted. "Not likely. Come on, sit down. Open them."

Marlie immediately sat down by the fire. Snowy, purring madly, leapt onto Marlie's lap and settled there. Marlie cuddled the cat, blissfully happy.

"Did you miss me, Snowy-kins?" she cooed to him. "Don't you worry, Mummy's back now. Who was looking after him?"

"Luella and me, mostly. Rianne was seen grooming and playing with him occasionally." Deanna told her. "Now, never mind the cat, let's be having your presents."

Marlie sat back as the gifts were brought for her to open. It took a long time. Finally, all but two were unwrapped. Luella and Rianne jointly presented one of them.

"We're not sure whether this really counts as a present, seeing as you designed it and all. So it's more giving back to you what belongs to you anyway. But here it is. Hope you're impressed." Rianne told her as she handed the package over. Marlie ripped it open and gasped in astonishment.

"The Walkmage!" she nearly screamed. "You... you actually built it!"

"Well, your dad did." Luella smiled. "But we were the ones who got him to do it in the first place. I'm not even going to bother telling you whose idea it was, you surely can guess by now."

Marlie, her eyes brimming with tears, turned to look at her friends. "You three are the greatest. I mean, those designs were just doodling really, I never thought it'd actually work! I never thought it'd ever get built." She wiped a tear away. "Thank you so much for making it happen, you're all wonderful!" Suddenly, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Just a second, those plans were hidden. So how did you..." She cast an accusing look at Deanna. "Deanna Tyler, have you been going through my personal belongings?!"

Deanna had the grace to look guilty before hastily distracting her. "You haven't opened my present yet, Marlie." she said, handing her a small box. Marlie took it from her extremely dubiously. It was a small velvety box of the kind used to store jewellery. Marlie flipped the lid open to reveal... "A Golden Snitch! On a chain!" she gasped.

"Look closer and you'll see it's not just any old Snitch." Deanna said quietly. Marlie peered at it. Her jaw dropped.

"Deanna, this is the Snitch from my dream. The one I brought back with me. You had it?" She looked stunned.

"I'm no expert on these things, but Dumbledore seemed to think it was a potentially very valuable talisman. So I, er, purloined it and sent it to your dad asking him to put a chain on it for me. Go on, put it on."

Marlie took it out of the box and unfastened it. The Snitch fell motionless as soon as she touched it. Deanna helped her fasten it around her neck.

"I will never take it off." Marlie promised her. "Thank you!"

"Kind of links in nicely to the next item on the agenda." Mike commented. "This one is something I got Sukey to knock out for you. Bring it in, please, boys!" Lucas Vetinari and Chris Bryant wheeled out a trolley. Marlie hid her face, embarrassed suddenly.

"A cake! Oh, you shouldn't have! Mikey!" It was indeed a giant birthday cake, shaped like a Snitch with twelve candles on it. The Slytherins spontaneously burst into "Happy Birthday", before Mike urged her to make a wish and blow out the candles. Marlie did so, after Rianne whipped out her camera and ordered everyone to assemble under the banner behind Marlie with her cake for a group photo.

Deanna breathed a sigh of relief. "Excellent, is that the rituals over with? Right, Luella and Rianne can sort out the tunes, everyone else form an orderly queue for the cake. After that, food, games and dancing, although not at the same time please."

Luella had the Walkmage assembled and Slade playing "Merry Xmas Everybody" in a moment before the Slytherins descended on the food. And with that the party began in earnest.

It went on for quite some time. Around half past nine, Professor Snape arrived to see what Deanna had managed come up with now.

"Hello, sir!" Deanna said innocently. "What brings you here? Not too noisy are we?"

"No worse than usual, although I'd like to request that whoever keeps playing that wretched Paul McCartney Christmas song stop it at once. It was irritating and banal in the Seventies and it hasn't improved with time."

"Good point." Deanna agreed. "Hey! Luella! Change the record. Put something decent on." Luella obligingly put Abba's Greatest Hits on. As "Dancing Queen" blared out of the speakers, Marlie responded by grabbing Rianne and dragging her on to the dance floor.

"None the worse for her experiences, I see." Snape commented dryly as Rianne and Marlie began miming along to the record.

"You wouldn't know she'd been ill." Deanna grinned.

Snape glanced around the room at the decorations. "Forgive me for asking, Miss Tyler, but isn't it a little late in the year for Christmas decorations? And what on earth is that supposed to be?" He indicated Marlie's new cactus, which now had pride of place in the centre of the buffet.

"That? Fred the Cactus. Present from the Weasley twins. New Slytherin mascot."

Snape was unimpressed. "Well if you think it's going on the official house badge, you are much mistaken. It looks obscene. You still haven't told me why all the Christmas decorations."

"Well, you see, Marlie was so upset about missing Christmas that we decided to recreate it for her. One of my better ideas." Deanna went over to what remained of the birthday cake. "She missed her birthday as well, so we made it a birthday party too. Rianne insisted on saving you a slice of cake." She picked up the last remaining slice and wrapped it in a napkin for him. "There you go. It's very nice. The Lovegoods' house elf made it, it's quite edible."

Snape raised an eyebrow. "Thank Miss Stormosi for me. I can quite see what a sacrifice it must be for seventy young people to leave food lying around."

"Too right, if you hadn't turned up by eleven, I was having it." Deanna grinned. The look on her face turned serious. "By the way, sir, you were absolutely right."

"You surprise me. It is most unusual these days for young people in general and you in particular to admit that their elders are right about anything. About what, pray?"

"Do you remember when you were asking me to explain why I was hanging around with Crabbe and his friends? And I told you I was spying on them, then asked if the not being able to look yourself in the mirror ever went away?"

Snape seemed to soften a little at this. "I remember. Go on."

"I just thought you might like to know it's gone." she said softly.

Deanna couldn't have sworn to this, but the ghost of a smile seemed to flicker around his lips, and his eyes seemed to take on a genuinely pleased expression.

"Good. I'm happy for you." Snape said. And meant it.

"What about yours? Has that gone yet?" Deanna asked curiously. Snape's normal sneer resurfaced.

"I don't believe that's any of your concern, Miss Tyler. However, I will state for the record that it has eased slightly. I have things to be getting on with, so I shall leave you to your little soiree. Be sure to have ended it by midnight, or I shall be back and in a far less sociable mood. You have been warned. Good evening." And with a flourish of his cloak, he was gone. Luella approached Deanna, who was left staring at the wall.

"What was that all about? You know, for someone who claims not to stand him, you were getting awfully cosy with him. Better watch out, Rianne'll be getting jealous." Luella teased.

Deanna grinned. "He just wanted to make sure that we were all in bed by midnight and to not play any more Paul McCartney if we could possibly help it."

"Ah. A John Lennon fan then. Strange, I never had ol' Snape-eyes down as the hippie type."

"Now that I would like to see. Snapey with flowers in his hair." Deanna laughed. "So, Luella. What exactly did Rianne say about Snape that's so embarrassing? You have to tell me. Please?"

Luella grinned evilly. "I'll tell you later. Come on, help me choose the next records. I'm told someone's got YMCA somewhere around here, and I want to find it. Mike reckons Marcus Flint really likes it."

"You're on." Deanna said, grinning. "Flinty dancing to the Village People? This I must see."

Professor Snape left the Serpent's Nest in a better than usual mood. Munching on the cake that Deanna had given him, which proved to be really quite tasty, he found himself heading for the Hogwarts staff room. Tonight, he felt the need for company. I wonder if Caitlin's doing anything, he mused to himself. Then wished he hadn't. Caitlin's look of fury and her oh-so-well-chosen words the last time they'd spoken were still too fresh in his mind for him to really want to remember. And the worst thing of all was that she was absolutely in the right. What he'd done to her was unforgivable. He could hardly blame her for not wanting him anywhere near her. But that didn't make it any less painful.

Think of something else, he told himself furiously. Someone other than dear, sweet, beautiful Caitlin with those heart-wrenchingly gorgeous brown eyes and dark blonde hair that he constantly had to fight the urge to run his hands through. He shook his head in disbelief. No matter how hard he tried, her face seemed to be everywhere. Wouldn't the woman ever leave him alone? In a desperate attempt to banish visions of Caitlin Tyler lying on his desk in a sequinned set of dark blue dress robes, purring at him, he conjured Deanna's image to mind instead. This had the effect of bringing on a whole wave of far less pleasant emotions. Not that he didn't like her, quite the contrary. But every time he saw her, every time he looked into her eyes, he couldn't help being forcibly reminded of himself at the same age. There's another one who's suffered too much too young, he thought to himself. Someone else with those same mistrustful eyes, same bristling anger at anyone getting too close, same stoic bravery masking a frightening vulnerability. Snape recognised the signs all too well, and swore there and then to make sure Deanna was taken care of. He had visions of Deanna and her mother struggling on alone, Deanna having to live with the shame of being fatherless. He didn't know the details of her childhood, but something told him it couldn't have been easy. A pang of regret struck at his heart. He wished with all his might that he'd tried harder to find Caitlin sooner. I could have helped you, he thought. Supported you. You were and still are my best friend, despite everything. Some friend I turned out to be, he thought bitterly. Well, it was probably too late to salvage anything with Caitlin. But maybe it wasn't too late for her daughter. He resolved to do all he could to help her make something of her life, if she'd let him.

He turned the corner into the staff room corridor and came face to face with Professor Quirrell.

"Watch where you are going, Samael." he snarled.

Quirrell trembled. "S-s-s-sorry, S-s-s-Severus." he stammered, trembling like a leaf. Snape regarded him with contempt. Quirrell quickly changed the subject.

"Isn't it g-good n-news ab-about M-miss Love-g-good?" he said, trying to smile. Snape did not return it.

"Good news indeed." Snape said shortly, waiting for Quirrell to elaborate.

"I exp-p-p-pect you're p-pleased to have y-your S-s-Seeker back." Quirrell said, making polite conversation.

"I won't pretend it's not a relief." Snape said. Quirrell made to move on, but was brought up short by Snape's wrist shooting out and grabbing him. Quirrell shivered with fright as Snape's eyes bored into his.

"Be careful, Samael." Snape said quietly. "Don't think I don't know who gave Crabbe, Goyle and Parkinson permission to get the Sleeping Death recipe out of the Restricted Section. Don't think I don't know who advised them on the finer points of brewing it. Or who planted ideas in Crabbe's head about how good he was at Quidditch, how that Seeker place was his by right and to what lengths he was justified in going to get it. Oh, I know," he said softly to the terrified Professor Quirrell, "that they'll never pin anything on you this time. But I am watching you, Samael. And if any of my Slytherins fall victim to Dark Arts again, then I shall make absolutely sure that whoever is behind it gets what's coming to them. Trust me, Samael, I know things that would have you practically begging to be sent to Azkaban rather than undergo them. Do you understand me?"

Quirrell trembled, but met his gaze. "I don't kn-know what you're t-t-talking about, S-s-s-Severus." he whispered.

Snape's expression did not change. "Good. Then there'll be no more trouble, will there?" He released Quirrell, thrusting the younger wizard away from him before walking away without a second glance. Behind him, Quirrell nursed his bruised wrist and watched Snape go, a look of hate on his face.

"Frighten me, would you, Severus?" he whispered. "You'll pay for that. You'll pay."

Slowly but surely, life in the Slytherin common room returned to normal. Marlie and Deanna's special status wore off, and they had to face the reality of going about classes as usual. Marlie in particular found the going tough, as she had extra classes, Quidditch training and a lot of homework to do as well as everything the rest of the year was studying. However, she was glad to report that Snape had exempted her from the end of year exams in the light of her special circumstances.

"So at least I don't have to worry about failing all my classes on top of getting all this work done." Marlie told them, her mood much recovered. "Plus I've been let off Flying classes as I'm already doing Quidditch training, so that's a little extra time. I was already ahead of most of you lot in Transfiguration anyway, so that's not really a problem. Herbology is really dealing with regular Muggle-style herbs at the moment, so it's not like I've missed too much there. Astronomy is practical stuff anyway, so I can just take up where I left off. And as for History of Magic, I very much doubt I need to put much effort in there. In fact, Professor Snape has excused me from doing any catch-up there, so I just need to leap in with you lot and get on with things. I don't think he thinks much of that subject either."

"The way Binns teaches it, I'm not surprised." Luella remarked. "You've really missed nothing. So just Charms, Defence Against the Dark Arts and Potions you need to work at then."

"Exactly, which is where you three come in. Given that you're all rather good at those subjects, you can give me a hand with all the extra work I'll need to do, can't you? Admittedly, Quirrell and Flitwick are big softies, but Snape scares me."

"Wuss." Deanna grinned. "OK, I'll give you a hand with Charms, Lu and Ri can sort you out with Potions and we'll all help out with Defence Against the Dark Arts. Right, that's your work sorted out. Now on to more important things. You are of course aware that at the end of the month, in less than two weeks time, we have the Ravenclaw match that will no doubt decide the tournament." She gave Marlie a piercing stare.

Marlie shifted uneasily. "Yes, I know. You keep reminding me, Flint keeps reminding me, Mike keeps reminding me, everyone keeps reminding me! Look, Madam Pomfrey and Professor Snape both reckon I'm match-fit, and I'm doing OK in training, so leave it."

"It's not your physical fitness we're concerned about." Rianne said firmly.

Marlie looked even more uncomfortable. "So what is it then?"

"Well, are you really confident enough yet? Are you really OK about Quidditch again? Especially after what happened after the last match."

"Rianne, don't fuss." Marlie snapped irritably. "I'm fine. We're going to go out there and we're going to win. Now leave me alone, I have work to do."

However, Marlie was not nearly as confident as she pretended. She wasn't the same as she had been before. And although it had been her flying skills that had saved her in the dream trance, her body had not been on a broom for three months and she knew it. She was woefully out of practice, and three Quidditch sessions a week was not going to remedy the situation in time. And try as she might to pretend that all was well, it clearly wasn't.

On her way back from the final training session before the match, Marlie was close to tears. Flint had bawled her out for missing the practice Snitch even though it had been almost in front of her. And the rest of the team, even Mike, were giving her looks ranging from pity to intense anxiety. I'm not up to it, Marlie thought. There is no way we're going to beat Ravenclaw with me like this.

She went straight to her dorm, picked up Snowy and lay back, feeling sick with nerves. She held the cat up and looked into it's eyes. "What do I do, Snowy? Any ideas?" She thought of flying under the stars with Morticia and how peaceful it had been. Right now, she wanted nothing more than to go back there. Morticia's words came back to her. "This place will always be part of you. In your dreams, and when you need it, this place is open to you always. I am here for you always. If you ever need me, call on me. I will come. My power is at your disposal." Well, if ever she needed Tish, it was now. Reaching inside her robes, she pulled out the Snitch and gazed into it's reflective surface. Allowing herself to relax, she whispered Morticia's name over and over again.

Morticia's face materialised in the Snitch. "What is it, sister?" Marlie heard that familiar voice whispering in her ear.

"I need your help, Tish." Marlie whispered. "I've got a Quidditch game against Ravenclaw in two days time and I'm not sure I'm up to it. Help me!"

Morticia smiled. "The Dementors getting you down again, are they? Marlie, they can't really hurt you, you know that? Trust yourself! Your body knows how to be an excellent Seeker, your body remembers how to do it. It is your mind getting in the way. You need to quieten down your mind and shut it up so your body can get on with winning."

"Yes, and? Rianne said much the same earlier! I was hoping you'd know how." Marlie snapped irritably.

"Not I. You will need outside help to fight off the Dementors. Last time it was Deanna who saved you. This time, another of your friends is the one to do it." Morticia said cryptically.

"Which one?" Marlie asked.

"The one who can control the Serpent, of course. The one who would have been able to survive a basilisk attack. You know who I mean."

"Who?" Marlie cried. "Tish, tell me!" But it was too late. Morticia was fading, and next minute, she was gone.

Marlie dropped the Snitch in frustration. So who could help, if not Deanna? Someone who could control a basilisk. No one she knew could do that. Sighing, she got up and went to the common room.

Deanna, Luella and Rianne were busy playing with a Jenga set left over from the party. Marlie walked in to find them engaged in an argument as to whether Levitation Charms were in contravention of the rules or not.

"Look, I keep telling you, there's just as much chance of a Levitated piece dislodging the entire ensemble as one pulled out by hand!" Deanna was claiming.

Rianne was sceptical. "Yes, but you have overlooked the fact that if you are not physically touching the Jenga tower, you eliminate the risk of accidentally pushing it over, don't you?"

"Not if you're bad at Levitation Charms, you don't!" Deanna told her.

"Which just happens to give you a clear advantage, doesn't it?" Rianne said scathingly. "Ah, Marlie, just the person. Give us your honest opinion, is using magic to withdraw a Jenga block legal?"

"Couldn't care less, Ri. Probably not." Marlie sat down wearily. She surveyed her friends despairingly. None of them looked like the type to call off a basilisk. Rianne and Deanna, currently squabbling like children, certainly didn't seem like powerful witches at the moment. And while Luella was without question academically bright, Marlie couldn't think of anyone more normal. Hard to believe she was the Slytherin Redeemer.

Marlie looked up and saw the banner behind Luella's head, it's twin basilisk Slytherin Serpents twisting eerily in the firelight. It came to her suddenly. The Slytherin Serpent. One who had power over it. The Redeemer. It had to be Luella.

She looked at Luella again. She was looking back at her, concerned. Marlie decided to risk it. "Lu." she began. "Can I talk to you alone for a bit?"

Luella smiled lazily. "No problem. I doubt these two will miss me. I'm just going to give Marlie a hand with something. Won't be long, you two. Carry on without me." Deanna and Rianne acknowledged her and returned to arguing, barely aware of Luella and Marlie leaving.

Luella entered their dorm and settled down on her bed with Sooty. "Well now, Marlie." she said pleasantly. "What can I do for you?"

Marlie hesitated before taking the plunge. "Well, it's about the match."

"What about it?" Luella said sharply, the warm, fuzzy attitude gone in an instant.

"I can't do it, Lu." Marlie said, shaking. "I'm out of practice, my reflexes are shot to pieces, I can't concentrate on anything, I keep imagining a crowd of Dementors turning up and making me fall off my broom, and there's just no way I can compete like this! Help me!" Marlie practically begged her.

Luella softened. "I thought there was something up. You've not been yourself lately. Can't hide things from me, you know."

"I know, I know." Marlie sighed. "What do I do, Lu? I can't back out, we'll lose for certain. We don't have a reserve Seeker any more, do we? But I can't play like this. My concentration is shot to hell."

Luella's heart bled for her. Marlie seemed so lost and frightened. Yet what could she do? I can't wave a wand and make it all better, and a Confidence Potion is beyond me. I'm not Snape, after all! she thought.

A little voice spoke quietly at the back of her mind. Oh no? it was saying. Remember Dream Weaver? Deanna didn't think she could do that either. Until you talked her into it.

Luella squirmed at the memory. She'd somehow managed to hypnotise Deanna into being brave enough to go through with it. But could she do it again? Only one way to find out.

"Marlie, there is one thing. But it may not work, I've only ever been able to do it once and it was an accident then."

Marlie leapt at the chance. "Luella, if there is anything you could possibly do to sort me out, I will love you madly for the rest of my life. I don't care what it is, just do it! I'll try anything. Please?"

"OK, I'll give it a go. Sit next to me and look into my eyes. Then just take a few deep breaths and relax." Marlie nodded and did so. Luella took a few deep breaths herself and began.

"Listen, Marlene. You are the best Seeker in the school. You are an amazing flier, you have the fastest reflexes anyone here has ever seen, and you have always managed to catch the Snitch every time you've played. You are going to win on Saturday, and you are going to win handsomely. That Snitch is already yours. You will find it virtually straight away. You will find it and you will win. Do you understand me?" Luella said softly but firmly.

It worked. Marlie said nothing, just gazed at her fixedly. Then she shook herself. "Well, Lu?" she asked anxiously. "You going to do it, then?"

Luella smiled. "Depends. How are you feeling about the match now?"

"Still terrified. I mean, just the mere thought of flying..." She stopped. Luella watched with interest as the mere thought of flying weaved it's way through Marlie's mind.

"You know something, I'm not scared at all." Marlie said thoughtfully. "I mean, what was I worried about? I'm the star Seeker, aren't I? Of course I can bloody do it. Sorry I wasted your time, Lu."

"Perfectly alright, Marlie. I mean, if you're frightened, it's best to talk things over. Probably just admitting your fear cured you."

"You're probably right." Marlie said cheerily. "What were you going to do, by the way?"

"Doesn't matter." Luella said quickly.

"Oh. Right." Marlie didn't seem that interested. "Come on then, let's go and see if Deanna and Rianne have stopped arguing."

Saturday morning brought with it some of the worst weather any of them had seen for a long time. The sky was so dark that sunrise made no appreciable difference in the light levels, and the rain was lashing down almost vertically.

Luella viewed the Great Hall roof in shock. "They can't expect you to play in that, surely? How on earth are you going to even see the Snitch in this?"

Rianne laughed. "Ah, come on, it's only a little rain. You don't call off a Quidditch match just because the weather's awful."

Deanna nodded. "Quidditch is a bit like rugby, it goes ahead in all weathers. I remember one year, the All-Britain Quidditch Cup Final took place in very similar conditions. Chudley Cannons versus Haverfordwest Horntails. The Hornies ran away with it, of course. The Cannons completely unused to playing in such weather. Typical soft English bastards."

Marlie looked offended. "Just because it's always bloody raining in Wales. I still maintain that we should have had a penalty for that deliberate and unprovoked foul on our Seeker."

"Deanna, you live in bloody Surrey, why are you supporting a Welsh Quidditch team?" Rianne said curiously.

"My mum's family are from Wales. I was born there. Apparently we've got an ancestral family home out there, but it's in ruins. Maybe one day I'll get it renovated." Deanna mused absently.

Luella raised an eyebrow. This was the first she'd heard about an ancestral family home. She remembered the huge pile of Galleons in the Tylers' Gringotts vault and realised how little she actually knew about Deanna's family. How little she knew about Deanna. This was the first time Deanna had spoken about her Quidditch team or her family. Deanna had obviously been forbidden to talk about things like that before coming to Hogwarts and Luella had never thought to ask before now, assuming that she already knew that sort of thing. How wrong she was.

The weather had not improved as the teams filed onto the pitch. In fact, if anything, it had got worse. Luella, Deanna and Rianne were using the banner to shelter under.

"Do you reckon Marlie'll be OK in this weather?" Deanna asked anxiously. "I mean, she's going to have her work cut out for her. Alright for the Hornies to win when it's like this, but she's only a kid. And an out of practice one at that."

"She will be. She has to be." Rianne said, trying to sound confident. "If we win this, the Cup's ours. If we lose, then we've got to beat Hufflepuff by a pretty big margin to be certain. She'll win. She has to. Right, Lu?"

"Whatever you say, Ri, you know more about Quidditch than I do." Luella said pensively, watching the teams parade out. The announcer had finished announcing the Ravenclaw line-up and was now going through the familiar Slytherin list of "Foxworth! Flint! Lovegood! Montague! Stormosi! Vetinari! Aaaand... Lovegood!"

A huge cheer went up as Marlie was called out, and not just from the Slytherin end. All around the stadium, Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws were getting to their feet and giving Marlie a standing ovation. As the three Slytherins watched, Marlie peeked out from under her green Quidditch hat and waved back to them all, smiling proudly.

The match got underway. Ravenclaw won the toss and had possession of the Quaffle first, passing towards the Slytherin end. The Slytherins played as well as they could, but Ravenclaw worked better together, and certainly coped more with the rain. Before long, Slytherin were fifty-ten down. Deanna groaned softly, her head in her hands.

"Come on, Marlie, find the Snitch. Quickly!" Rianne whispered. Luella didn't say a word, hardly daring to speak.

"Don't suppose either of you two know any weather magic?" Deanna asked hopefully. Rianne shook her head. Deanna returned her attention to the game and promptly howled as Ravenclaw scored again and Laetitia Vetinari was almost unseated by a Bludger that Mike had failed to spot, much to Flint's fury.

Luella looked at Marlie. High up on her Cleansweep, Marlie seemed to be struggling against the wind. The Ravenclaw Seeker was male and in the fifth year, and consequently was finding it much easier to control his broom in the howling gale than Marlie, an twelve year old girl, was. Although Marlie's face was not visible, her body language said it all about how lost and hopeless she was feeling. Luella concentrated hard, willing Marlie to find her strength.

Marlie seemed to reach inside her robes at that point and pulled out a small shining object that Luella guessed must be her Snitch necklace. She seemed to look deep into it for a moment before squeezing it and tucking it away again. Her confidence seemingly renewed, she began looking rather more purposeful.

Scanning the arena carefully, Marlie was on the look out for anything that might be the Snitch. It wasn't easy making anything out in this rain, and both she and the Ravenclaw Seeker had gone after false alarms before now. Clasping her own Snitch under her robes, she felt it's reassuring warmth. Concentrating hard, she willed the other Snitch to appear. "Snitch to Snitch, brother to brother, call your twin, one to the other!" she whispered, inventing a spell on the spot. She felt the Snitch flap it's wings, and looked around hopefully.

Suddenly she saw it. A flash of silver over near where the Gryffindors had assembled. Marlie, seeing the Ravenclaw Seeker looking in the other direction, nonchalantly began to fly towards it. The Snitch wasn't moving, just hovering in mid-air. Marlie began to speed up slightly. The Ravenclaw captain suddenly noticed her and shouted at the other Seeker, who was now looking towards her. Marlie abandoned all attempt at subterfuge and, flattening herself against her broom, kicked it into gear and flew at the Snitch for all she was worth.

The other Seeker gave chase, and the match was on. Marlie did have a head start and a faster broom, but on the other hand, the Ravenclaw Seeker was bigger and heavier, and flew far better in the wind. And it was not long before he was gaining on her. Marlie gritted her teeth and pushed her broom with all her strength, willing it to go faster. The crowd were on their feet, screaming. Out of the corner of her eye, she glimpsed a flash of blue. He was almost alongside her now. She focused on the Snitch. Close, so close.

The Ravenclaw overtook her and reached out his hand. The Snitch would be his if she didn't do something. "No, you can't win now!" she whispered.

Suddenly, the other Seeker veered sharply to the right. A Bludger had whizzed out of nowhere, hit by Mike in an attempt to distract the Ravenclaw Seeker. It worked. As the Ravenclaw swerved to avoid it, he was caught by a gust of wind and blown off course. It was now or never. "Thanks, Mikey!" Marlie whispered with relief as she forced her broom forward. The Ravenclaw Seeker, struggling to reach her against the wind, could only watch in frustration as Marlie swooped forward and caught the Snitch deftly in the palm of her hand.

Down below, the watching Slytherins went mad. Rianne, Deanna and Luella clutched each other in a group hug. "We did it! We did it!" Deanna was shouting. "We won!"

Next to them, Lucas Vetinari and Alex Lynch were frantically trying to work out what that meant for the championship scores. "According to my calculations, the only way anyone else can win it now is if we lose to Hufflepuff by more than 200 points and Gryffindor beat Ravenclaw by 300 points which is not going to happen because the Ravens are too good, and the only way we're going to lose to Hufflepuff is if half the team drop dead and we have to play our reserves. It's as good as ours, my friends!" Lucas was yelling. The three girls held each other all the harder.

Back on the pitch, the players were coming in to land. Marlie was being hugged and screamed at by the other Slytherins, delirious with joy.

"You did it, you did it!" Kat was screaming. "We've won!"

"Don't thank me, thank Mikey!" Marlie laughed. "If he hadn't sent that Bludger over, I'd never have made it!" Kat immediately hugged Mike and kissed him on the cheek, leaving him flushed and with a slightly dopey grin on his face.

The Slytherin spectators had by this time left their seats and invaded the pitch en masse. Deanna, Luella and Rianne were the first to reach Marlie.

Deanna immediately flung her arms round her, weeping with joy. "You did it! Well done, mate!" she enthused joyously.

"Yeah, well done! We had every confidence in you!" Rianne shouted.

"Couldn't have done it without you three!" Marlie grinned, hugging them back. "You saved me from Sleeping Death, you got the ones who did it expelled, and you gave me back my belief in myself. How can I ever thank you enough?"

Deanna airily waved her hand. "Think nothing of it. We're your mates, that's what we're for!"

"Let's face it, we four make a great team, don't we?" Rianne grinned.

"Absolutely!" Deanna agreed. "Put it there, folks." She held out her hand. All four of them clasped their hands together. Deanna spoke again. "Together we can do anything. Together we can take on the world. Together we can beat even Voldemort, and most definitely Gryffindor. Can't we?"

"Yeah!" the other three yelled.

"So let's always work together. Let's not fight amongst ourselves, let's always help each other out, let's swear eternal friendship on the Great Serpent!" Deanna was getting carried away, apparently forgetting that her last encounter with a Slytherin Serpent had nearly proved fatal.

"Friends." Rianne agreed.

"For life." Luella promised.

"On the Great Serpent." Marlie grinned. The four of them shook hands and let each other go. As Marlie was immediately mobbed by hysterical Slytherins, Luella stood back in a daze. It had been an amazing six months since she received her Hogwarts letter. She couldn't believe that so much had happened since then. Back in the summer, she'd been the class outcast, nondescript, quite bright but otherwise nothing special. Now here she was, a witch, Slytherin Redeemer, apparently possessed of the ability to hypnotise people, top of most of her subjects, or at least in the top five (apart from Flying), and a member of the Slytherin in-crowd. She looked at her three friends. I've got a proper social life, she thought. Not just me and Deanna anymore. She hugged herself with joy at the thought. Of all the things to have changed, she valued this one most of all. She suddenly began to feel more confident about her eventual destiny. With these three beside her, she could accomplish anything. Even beating Voldemort. And with that, she put these thoughts behind her and followed the rest of her house to what promised to be their best celebration yet.

FINIS

Well, there it is. Sleeping Death is all over. But fear not! Slytherin on the Wane is… (drum roll) FINISHED! More or less. I need to read it through, rewrite a couple of sections, make a few changes here and there then convert it to HTML. By this time next week it’ll be launched.

Many thanks to everyone who’s read, and to all my lovely reviewers. I do love getting your comments so keep them coming! The Slyths would like me to let you know that they’re all very pleased by how popular this story has become, and to pass on their gratitude.

Until Part Two…

IMPORTANT!

Part Two is now up. If you’re reading this on Ffnet, go to my Author page for the link or do a search. If you’re reading this in the official list or the Snape Supporters’ list files, go to the main menu of the appropriate Files section. Any probs finding it, email and I’ll send you the links.

The Slyths are waiting.