When I was blind - chapter 03

Title: When I was blind
By: Mistaria
Chapter: 03 - Tea and potions.
Rating: PG. Rating might become higher as the chapters go (although I'll try my best to keep it PG).
Warning: None. Not really, unless you are really, really prudish *grin*.
Disclaimer: Nope, they're not mine. Besides, at the moment I own two knuts and some pocket lint. So you could sue me, but it'll probably get you nowhere.
Pairing: None... yet. But you can vote in a review. At the moment G/D is the most voted for. But H/D is a good second.
Feedback: Yes please!

Notes: I don't think there are any notes... Just this *grin*.

For now, enjoy the reading. And please R/R and tell me if you want
more.

~Love, Mistaria~

Hot white steam rose from the surface as he stirred the boiling amber-coloured liquid. With a steady hand he added the last of the ingredients. A transparent golden syrup and a silky, creamy white liquid.
The amber momentarily clouded with swirls of khaki until the content of the cup turned a shade of mucky brown. The clatter of silver on porcelain rang through the silent chamber as he put the spoon down.
Brewing a potion was truly a form of art.
So was brewing tea.

Severus Snape lifted the cup to his lips and sipped the hot tea, taking care not to burn his lips. After another sip he lowered the cup and stared over the rim at the person sitting at the other end of the desk. He sighed slightly frustrated. The man sitting in front of him smiled reassuringly while putting his own cup down.
"Don't worry Severus. I'm sure Poppy can keep things under control."
The potions master let out short laugh. His eyes burning with cropped up anger.
"Come on Albus, you know how they are. If they want someone..." He hesitated.
"I'm not sure even Poppy's medication can keep those dreams away. And his condition makes it even worse."
Dumbledore frowned.
"You mean what happened in duelling-class today?" And then, as though he was reading Snape's mind, "Yes, I think that does effect him, but we both knew this was going to happen eventually."
Snape merely nodded. Then, whispering as though he was talking to himself, "He's so different from his father... I don't understand him."

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow, "You mean Draco?"
"Lucius."
The headmaster merely nodded in understanding.
"Even I have had difficulty understanding Lucius. Understanding why he did what he has done, or why he is still working for Voldemort. But some choices you make for life. Fortunately there are others who change their ways..."
Snape managed to produce a small smile, an expression rarely seen from him. He leaned back and hid his face in his hands. As his shoulders started to shake Dumbledore rose from his chair and walked towards the younger teacher. As he stood next to Snape's chair the usually cold man looked up, red rimmed eyes gleaming in the candle light. Dumbledore shook his head and put a hand on Severus's shoulder.
"Don't worry, we won't let them take him. Now go, get some sleep, I believe you have classes tomorrow?"
With that he turned around and left the potion master's chambers.
He waited shortly in the cold dungeon corridor, before making his way towards his own study.

***

Severus Snape didn't sleep that night. He remained seated in the chair behind his desk and rummaged through the contents of a drawer. Finally he pulled out a small book, bound in black leather and tied up with a piece of flax string. Pieces of spellotape were used to mend cracks and tears in the binding and smears of chalk smeared the cover. Slowly he pealed of the string that held the book together and lifted the cover. The first page was empty, he turned it. The title page bore the Hogwarts logo and a number; 1980.

1980...
He had been twenty-one at the time, things had been clearer then.
Carefully he leafed through the little book, it was filled with a neat, tiny handwriting. The letters slim and straight.
Finding the passage he had been looking for he pulled a candle closer and started to read. He didn't stop until the candle had burned down almost to the end and the flame started to flicker. Cold morning light filtered through the tiny windows that lined the top of the wall on one side of the dungeon chamber. Outside he could see the reflection of the pale sun on drops of morning dew that veiled the grass that grew near the windows.

Slowly Severus Snape closed the tiny book and put it back into the drawer. He hoisted himself out of the chair and walked towards his bedroom.
Time for a shower and some clean robes.

***

"Dragon blood, fluxweed, undiluted bubotuber pus, crushed beetle eyes, one shredded stem of wolfsbane..."
Hermione's voice droned on while Ron and Harry were checking and preparing the ingredients that lay outspread on the desk in front of them. They grabbed small vials from their potion kits, took spoons and scales from velvet pouches and placed a pewter cauldron in front of them.
Hermione put aside the list and grabbed a glass measuring cup and filled it with fresh water. She poured the water into the cauldron and grabbed the bottle containing the dragon blood. She stirred it into the water and sat down on her seat between Ron and Harry.
"Now we wait until the water starts to boil."
Her eyes swivelled over to the blackboard and she absentmindedly checked the list of ingredients that professor Snape had jotted down. Then her gaze travelled towards the professor himself. She frowned. Snape was sitting in his chair, his elbows resting on his desk. He seemed to be looking at the students in front of him, but his eyes were unfocused. And he didn't even notice when Neville dropped a full vial of undiluted bubotuber pus and the viscously liquid burned a hole in the dungeon floor. Neville gave a small squeak and sat down, hiding his face behind his cauldron.
Snape still didn't react.

A cough made her look away from Snape and just in time as the potions master looked up and his eyes searched for the source of the cough. Hermione turned her head and looked at Pansy Parkinson. The Slytherin girl was staring into her cauldron with a forlorn expression on her face.
"What is it Parkinson?" He didn't bark. On the contrary, Snape's voice sounded like his thoughts were miles away.
Pansy looked up and pointed at the boiling liquid inside the pewter, her voice a tiny whimper.
"My potion's going all lumpy professor."
Snape stood up from his chair and made his way towards the Slytherin student. He peered into the cauldron, took a ladle and spooned some of the liquid into a glass cup. Rosy lumps of dragon blood clouded the potion and Pansy looked at it with large eyes.
"I... I'm sorry professor. I..."
He stopped her by placing the cup back onto the table with a slight tinkle. This time his voice sounded tired and a little angry.
"Miss Parkinson, I suggest you team up with your fellow students Crabbe and Goyle. I advise you to reread the material in your textbook and I will take five points from Slytherin for not paying attention in class."
Pansy stared at her desk in utter bewilderment. Never before had Snape taken points from Slytherin. And never before he had been so preoccupied during his classes.

Hermione turned back to the cauldron in front of her as Ron poked her in the side. He whispered fervently in her ear.
"'Mione, the water's boiling, pay attention. We don't want to loose points now, do we?"
She shook her head and asked Harry to hand her the bubotuber pus. Ron was stirring the potion as she and Harry added the ingredients in the right order.
After adding the last bits of fluxweed and wolfsbane Hermione, Ron and Harry lowered themselves back into their chairs. Hermione turned towards Harry.
"Have you noticed anything weird about Snape lately Harry?"
He gave her a look.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, he just took points of Slytherin. He didn't notice Neville dropping his ingredients. He has been staring off into space the whole lesson..."
She noticed Harry, and heard Ron, cottoning on. The latter muttering a silent "Yes! I reckon he's finally lost his marbles."
Hermione turned and stared at Ron. "Honestly, Ron..."
"I think he's just concerned because of his favourite student, don't you think? I mean, Malfoy isn't here yet, so he must still be in the hospital wing." Harry gave Hermione a questioning look.
"Hermione, you brought him to the infirmary, you know what is going on with him."
She shook her head.
"I had to bring him towards madam Pomfrey because the spell had made him go temporarily blind. I suppose he's not well yet."
"Or he's just exploiting it again. You know, trying to make all Slytherins feel sorry for him again. Like he did two years ago." Ron smiled triumphantly at his friends. "Or he's just ashamed it was Parkinson who put that spell on him."

Harry was about to answer as Hermione jumped up and grabbed an empty glass bottle. "It's ready, come on!"
Ron grabbed a funnel as Harry reached for a ladle and started to pour the bright blue, syrupy potion into the bottle. After filling one bottle with the liquid Harry jammed a cork into the neck of the bottle and labelled it.
"There, finished. One bottle of yucky smelling grease remover. Can also be used as a shampoo by potion masters who seem to have lost their marbles," he whispered. Ron tried very hard not to laugh. Hermione gave them a disapproving stare.

***

After potions the trio made their way towards the Gryffindor common-room as Ron suddenly stopped and slapped his forehead.
"I promised to visit Ginny today after classes. Come on, gives us a chance to make fun of Malfoy."
They dropped their books off at their dormitory's and headed towards the hospital wing. As they arrived at the door madam Pomfrey was just coming out of the infirmary. She gave the students a stern look, but did allow them to visit Ginny.
"But keep it short, she still needs her rest. And don't disturb my other patients!"
They promised to do so and entered the room where they found Ginny sitting on the edge of her bed. Her attention completely focussed on a figure she had been cutting out of a small piece of cedar-wood. She only looked up as someone stirred in the bed beside her and moaned softly.
Ron frowned as she slipped down from her bed and walked over to the one beside her. He frowned even more as she rearranged the crumpled sheets, picked up one of the pillows that had fallen down and smoothed back a few wisps of sweaty blonde hair.
Blonde hair?
Ron was beside his sister in two gigantic steps and steered her away from the bed. "What do you think you're doing?" He hissed.
Ginny gave him a wondering look. She opened her mouth to talk but was interrupted by another agonizing moan. She shot a quick look towards the bed and, obviously deciding everything was alright despite the sounds, grabbed Ron's hand and dragged him over to her own bed. Silently she started pulling the curtains around Draco's bed shut. Ron was still staring at her, now accompanied by Harry and Hermione.
The redheaded Weasley shook himself as Hermione's voice penetrated the shocked silence.
"Ginny, are you alright?"
Ron stared as his sister smiled and nodded. "Almost, madam Pomfrey told me I'll be out of here in no time."
"So what do you think you're doing, tucking in Malfoy?" Ron's face looked flushed by now, he was clenching his fists.
She shrugged and clambered back onto the bed, motioning the three to grab a couple of chairs and join her.
Ron stared at his sister with a mixture of expectance and anger. She merely glared back at him.
"It's not what you think Ron. You know he had an accident in duelling class?"
He gave a snort that could have meant either yes or no and he mumbled something unintelligible, making his sister glare a little more. Then she turned slightly to face Hermione and Harry and opened her mouth to speak again.
"He's gone temporarily blind."
This made Ron fall silent, his head shot up and he let his eyes trailed over the features of his friends. Hermione gasped. Harry's lips formed a silent, shocked 'oh!'.

***

-

That's it for now I'm afraid. Otherwise there will not be a new chapter before I go on my holiday (which is in a couple of days, yessss!).

On the next episode of 'When I was Blind': We might see some more of Lucius. We go inside Draco's head (not as yuckie as you think) and is there more to Severus than meets the eye? Find out next time on... um... I believe I'm mixing things up again...

Just so you all know, I will be on holiday for a while (think three weeks!). After that I'll try to put up a new chapter ASAP. Until then I'll probably be writing on a whole load of cheap paper since I'm saving for a decent laptop *grin*. Last chance to vote BTW, Ginny/Draco is in the lead, but you can still vote for Draco/Ginny (um, yea, that's not a typo, just tell me who you want to make the first move, I've got both scenario's in my head... Sorta...)

Thankies to: um, Joanne K Rowling *claps*, Draco *swoons*, *inhales deeply*,

*turns slightly blueish*

*gently tumbles over*

*reaches over the edge of her desk to type Disclaimer*

Disclaimer: I don't own this wonderful world, or it's inhabitants. If I would I wouldn't make little children take their fansites of the www. *glares evilly at Warner Bros.* I do thank JKR for creating them. *gives JKR a loud round of applause and throws flowers* Hope she doesn't agree with WB on the websites...

Until next time.

~Love, Mistaria~