Severus Snape Meets His Match

Author’s Note

This chapter describes the emergency meeting of Ministers. Randi has her hands full after she is personally put of the operation. She’s still unsure about her feelings towards Severus, and one of the wizards over her head pulls a very nasty stunt on the unsuspecting Witch.

I hope you all enjoy.

Amelia

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When Severus woke up, he found himself in bed alone. Randi had apparently decided to leave without so much as saying goodbye or leaving a note. He didn’t know whether she was angry about having slept with him, or if her hasty exit was necessary because of the Ministers’ meeting today. After getting dressed, he looked out the window of his study to see if she was practicing her martial arts. Seeing that she wasn’t there, he decided to go to her room. As he approached, the door open, and she came walking out wearing shiny, blue and white dress robes. She had a serious and determined look on her face.

She stopped in front of him and smiled, “I was just about to wake you and see if you wanted to go to the meeting.”

“Give me just a moment.” He replied, and then headed back into his chambers. As he put on his black and red dress robes, he thought about her. She didn’t seem angry. Perhaps she would have stayed if it hadn’t been for the meeting. No one her age had ever addressed the Ministers’ Council. She was bound to be nervous.

In a few minutes, he reemerged from his chambers and offered her his arm. “Shall we?”

They apparated together to the bottom of the steps that led into Ministry Headquarters. Randi frowned when she saw that the place was swarming with carriages unloading various, well-dressed Ministers from all over the world. Reporters were being kept at bay by Aurors who were standing guard at the door. A young boy was standing almost in front of them, waving a copy of the morning paper. “Hot off the presses! Get your Daily Prophet here!” he cried. Randi paid the boy, who smiled and handed her the paper he was holding, and then bent down to pull a fresh one off of a stack of them sitting at his feet.

She looked at the headline, which read, “Randi MacKenzie, Mystery Witch!” then listened to Rita Skeeter’s annoying voice say, “Who is Randi MacKenzie, the young Auror who led Wednesday night’s raid against the Dark Lord? Why isn’t she talking about it, and receiving her just reward? In this reporter’s opinion, something very strange is amiss at the Ministry of Magic. When we arrived at St. Mungos after hearing that she had been injured during the raid, we found her room heavily guarded and were roughly escorted out. Little is known about this Witch from across the pond, but those who have seen her tell us that she looks very young…”

Randi groaned and handed the paper to Severus. “I think I’m gonna be sick.”

Severus gave the paper a quick looking-over then sneered, “Remind me to hex that nosy chit the next time I see her, will you?“

Randi began to walk up the steps and replied, “Not if I get to her first.”

“Oh dear Merlin, it’s her! It’s her, I swear it!” a male reporter cried out as he pointed towards Randi and scuttled up to her, followed by several other reporters. She put her hand over her face as cameras began to flash all around her. “You’re Randi MacKenzie, aren’t you?” the reporter continued.

“No, I’m a Princess from Camelot.” She sneered as she and Severus pushed their way through the crowd into the building. Two Aurors posted at the entrance let them in then promptly closed the door in the reporter’s face.

“For Merlin’s sake, I’m not a freak show! Why can’t they just leave me alone and be content with what the Ministry had told them already?” she hissed as she strode down the main corridor with Severus beside her.

He smirked and replied, “Because that would require good judgment and common sense. Neither are qualities a reporter possesses.”

Randi nodded in agreement. “You’ve got that right.”

Randi did her best to keep her eyes straight ahead, but she couldn’t help but notice that even the people in the moving pictures were straining to get a good look at her. Whispers of, “Oh my, she looks so young.” and “She’s the one that led it? Really?” came from them as she passed.

Once they got to the end of the hall, they were ushered into the council chamber by the Aurors posted at the doors. Half of the Ministers had already taken their seats. Randi looked out over the sea of faces and swallowed hard. Severus saw her anxiety fade as a tall wizard with short, salt and pepper hair approached them.

“That’s my girl!” he said proudly and held his arms out towards Randi.

Randi hugged him and gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek, “I’m so glad you’re here.”

The wizard smiled warmly and replied, “I got worried when I found out you’d been cursed. I wanted to make sure you were alright.”

“I’m fine.” She declared firmly, “Severus here looked after me and got me to the hospital. He was a big help in the raid.”

The wizard extended his hand to Severus and said, “Thank you for taking care of her, Severus. I’m Doctor Alex MacKenzie.”

He shook the wizard’s hand and casually said, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Doctor.”

Randi’s expression turned angry when she noticed a handsome, brow-haired wizard approaching them from the far end of the room.

“What’s HE doing here?” she asked distastefully.

“I’m sorry, my dear, but he insisted.” The doctor stated in an apologetic tone, “We are partners after all.”

Severus wondered why she was staring at the other wizard so hatefully as he approached them, but decided to keep silent. Randi seemed very bothered by the wizard’s presence as it was.

He stopped just in front of Randi and peered at her accusingly through his designer glasses, “Would you care to explain to me how a fifteen million galleon project goes out and gets herself hexed on her very first public raid?”

“I’m sorry, Tristan. Perhaps you should have gone in my stead. I’m sure you could have handled a fight with over twenty, armed wizards and come out without a single scratch.” she replied sarcastically.

“Do I really need to remind you how much money I’ve invested in you?” he asked in a cold, businesslike tone, “I expect better results from you next time. Now, how are your vitals?”

Reluctantly, she replied, “My vitals are just fine. The hospital gave me the proper antidote, and I’m feeling alright now.”

He grabbed her wrist and slapped a thin, golden bracelet on it, “I told you letting her out of our sight was a bad idea, Alex. Don’t you ever let her remove that tracking bracelet again! For all we know, the hospital could have misidentified the hex, or given her the wrong antidote.”

Randi looked down at the bracelet, and then stormed away towards a long table that sat behind the podium at the front of the room.

“I was there with her when it happened. I already knew the proper antidote that would be necessary. She was given the right potion, I assure you.” Severus stated half-heartedly as he looked at Randi, who was now looking sadly at the bracelet on her wrist.

The wizard looked him over, as if sizing him up, and then replied, “Oh, I suppose you’re an expert in the field then?”

An arrogant smirk came over Severus’ face. “As a matter of fact, I am. Some even refer to me as the greatest Potionsmaster in Europe.”

The wizard glared at him then turned and walked towards the table where Randi was sitting..

“I’m sorry about that, Severus.” Doctor MacKenzie frowned, “My colleague, Doctor Kelley, gets a little upset with Randi at times. No matter what I do, there’s just no getting along between the two of them. The more he tries to control her, the more she resents him for it.”

“Isn’t she a fully grown Witch, Doctor MacKenzie?” Severus asked.

“Technically, she’s the property of the American Ministry of Magic.” He stated reluctantly.

“You can’t be serious.” Severus gasped.

“I wish I wasn’t, but her abilities have become so powerful that the Ministry wants her right under their thumb.” He explained, “This time portal incident really raised their hackles. That’s the real reason Tristan put the tracking bracelet back on her. It monitors her vital signs, energy level, and pinpoints her exact location. I think Tristan’s afraid that she’s going to become too powerful for him to control one day.”

“I have no doubt he would be the first person she’d look up if that were to happen, Doctor.” Severus drawled then went to take a seat in the front row.

He could hardly believe what he’d just been told. It was no wonder Randi looked upset to have that bracelet back on. Apparently, she was no more than a dangerous weapon in the eyes of the American Ministry. He would be willing to bet this was the first time she’d gone out without it. How the Ministry could justify treating her in such a manner was beyond him. It wasn’t a weapon he had bedded last night; it was a woman, a very soft and sensual woman who had feelings and a mind of her own.

Randi watched Severus take a seat right across from her in the front row and smiled. He had surprised her last night. Apparently lovemaking was one thing he wasn’t selfish about. The pleasure he gave her had been amazing. If only she could trust him. She couldn’t forget about his plot against Albus. He wouldn’t say why he’d done it, but that made things very complicated. Her father had taught her to be honest and loyal to her friends. She expected the same in return. Loyalty was the only thing keeping her from giving Doctor Tristan Kelley a hexing he’d never forget. He held the purse strings in Project New Breed, and he never let Randi or her father forget that. She hated the bastard for the way he treated her. She wasn’t even a person in his opinion. Tristan Kelley was a pureblood wizard. In his eyes, she was a mudblood, and therefore not worthy of much consideration. It irked him to no end that the mutation had not taken place in a pureblood line. She’d wanted many times to inform him that inbreeding narrows the gene pool too much, but for her father’s sake, she endured the bastard.

Minister Scrimgeour took the podium as the remaining Ministers and dignitaries took their seats. Albus came and sat beside Severus. She was happy he was there too. There was certainly no lack of moral support. Unfortunately she had to sit between her father and Tristan. Just being close to that bastard made her skin crawl.

The Minister cleared his throat and began, “My dear colleagues, I’d first like to thank you all for attending this very important and historic meeting. You have all been given a lot of information to digest in a very short amount of time, so I thought it best to have you all come here, so that you can ask questions in person. Project New Breed has been an amazing success, I’m happy to say, thanks to the hard work and dedication of Doctors Tristan Kelley and Alex MacKenzie. As you are all aware, Miss Randi MacKenzie has led a most successful raid that resulted in the death of Lord Voldermort and many of his top Death Eaters. I’m sure you’re all curious to hear about Miss MacKenzie and her unique talents, so I’d like to open the floor to Doctor Tristan Kelley from the American Department of Magical Research.”

As the audience clapped politely, the Minister sat down and Tristan got up. He stood at the podium and read a prepared speech. “Thank you for having me here today, Minister. As you all know from the information packets you received, Project New Breed was put into twenty years ago when my colleague Doctor Alex MacKenzie discovered that his adopted daughter had begun to display magical abilities that were no less than extraordinary. We began to monitor and test her abilities. As she grew, so did her skills. Our research shows that she has an unknown element in her DNA. We have no frame of reference, but our hypothesis is that this element must somehow give her an unusually strong connection to the magical energy that flows through our world. When she was thirteen, she defeated a werewolf single handedly. By age sixteen she was made an honorary Auror, though this never became public knowledge. Her talents continue to be monitored closely, as we aren’t sure what long-term effects this unknown element will have on her. Although we hope for the best, we’ve had no choice but to keep her existence a secret until recently, when her help was needed by the European Ministry. As you are all aware, the project has so far been a complete success. I’m proud to say that she has been asked to remain here in London to help the Ministry prepare to meet a new threat, a threat that she herself uncovered recently. She has also been asked to teach Defense Against The Dark Arts at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Darwin himself theorized that species occasionally make a jump in evolution, with no particular reason why.” He then gestured towards Randi and continued, “Ladies and gentlemen, what you see before today you is a new breed of Witch, courtesy of the American Magical Research Department. Miss MacKenzie has been carefully trained for the most dangerous of assignments, and over time has developed new spells that will enable us to meet the threat that we will face in a few years. That is all I have to say. I’ll now open up the floor for questions.”

One portly minister stood up and asked in a voice thick with a French accent, “Doctor Kelley, why were we not made aware of Miss MacKenzie’s existence until now? Why all the secrecy. If you ask me, she is an asset to the wizarding world.”

Tristan immediately replied, “Frankly, Minister, the answer to that is that she’s dangerous. Her powers continue to grow over time. Her recent discovery of how to conjure a time-space portal was entirely of her own devising. If she were to have fallen into the wrong hands, it would have meant disaster for our world. We kept her existence from you all so that we could train her in the best way possible. I was in charge of her physical and magical training while Doctor MacKenzie took the role most suitable as her father and taught her ethics and self control.”

The portly Minister sat back down; obviously pleased with the answer he had been given.

Next a handsome wizard with tanned skin and short, black hair stood up and asked, “Doctor, what all can this Witch do? Is there any limit to her abilities?”

“She’s not immortal, if that’s what you’re asking.” Tristan replied, “She was unfortunately subject to a very nasty curse in the course of the recent raid. Physically, she’s a strong, athletic, but very normal Witch. It is her magical abilities alone that are out of the realm of normalcy.”

The wizard sat down and a slender Witch with long, blonde hair stood up and said, “I am wondering, Doctor, because you call her Miss MacKenzie. Since she still holds her father’s name, I take it she is not yet married. Aren’t you afraid that something may happen to her?”

Tristan smiled. “Ah, yes indeed, Madame Minister. Miss MacKenzie is well into marrying age, so we hope that soon she’ll be mated with a powerful wizard and produce children that share her abilities. I’m afraid Doctor MacKenzie is very old fashioned and will not allow for an arranged marriage under any circumstances.”

“But surely with this new threat, you see that it is vital that she marry as soon as possible!” the Witch exclaimed, “What I saw in her pensive was utterly terrifying.”

Doctor MacKenzie stood up and glared at the woman. “Madame, she’s a human being. Over the years I’ve subjected her to long hours of training, study and countless lab tests. I’ve done so out of duty to the greater good, but she is first and foremost my daughter. An arranged marriage is simply out of the question, I’m afraid.”

The Witch returned his glare and set down in a huff. Tristan cast a look of irritation at Randi’s father then said, “As I said, my colleague is very old fashioned. With times being as they are, however, I agree with you wholeheartedly. Miss MacKenzie is now twenty-five years of age. The American Ministry of Magic has been patient with her and agreed to allow her time to choose a husband. I regret to say, however, that the Ministry decided yesterday that if she does not choose a husband within the next year, we will have no choice but to choose one for her.”

Doctor MacKenzie’s mouth dropped and his face went red with anger, “How dare you decide such a thing without my knowledge then tell it at a venue like this!”

Randi stood up and looked at Tristan with daggers in her eyes. “I will NOT be bred like some…some cow!”

Her eyes began to fill with tears and she stormed out of the council room.

Dumbledore leaned over to Severus and whispered, “This would be trouble.”

“I’ll talk to her, Headmaster.” Severus replied calmly and left the room in a dignified fashion. Her father, however, wasn’t so dignified. He flung his notebook off the table in disgust and said, “She’ll marry when she’s ready, Tristan. Anything else will be over my dead body.”

Before Tristan had a chance to respond, Doctor MacKenzie stormed off as well, slamming the door to the council chamber behind him.

Severus walked down the hallway and saw Randi sitting on a small bench outside one of the offices.

“This has certainly taken a turn for the worst, hasn’t it?” he said in a gentle tone as he sat down beside her.

“He’s a pig!” she hissed. “A filthy, no-good, rotten pig!”

Randi’s father came over and took her into his arms. “There, there, dear, it’s alright. I’ll die before I let the Ministry force such a thing on you.”

“I’m not an animal, father.” She sobbed, “Can’t they see that?”

Severus frowned. If he, one of the most ruthless wizards alive, could see it, why couldn’t Tristan. Forcing a woman to marry, even at a time like this, was a cruel thing to do. He certainly had nothing good to say about Doctor Kelley and the imbeciles at the American Ministry.

The doctor kissed her on the head and softly replied, “Anyone with a heart would see that, dear. Unfortunately, Tristan doesn’t seem to have one. I suppose he intends to make quite a bit of profit under the table if he gets to choose your husband.”

No sooner did the words leave his lips than Tristan came marching over to them, looking full of righteous indignation. “What the hell do you two think you’re doing? There’s a whole room full of very important people in there who expect you to give them information.”

Randi clenched her fists as he spoke and hissed, “If you don’t get out of my face, Tristan, I won’t be responsible for what I end up doing to you.”

Tristan glared at her coldly and handed a parchment to her. “I knew you’d both be opposed to the idea, so here it is in black and white. Either you marry within the next year, or I’ll have no choice but to pick your husband myself.”

Severus stood up and drew his wand, “I believe she told you to go away, Doctor. Unless you like excruciating pain, I suggest you listen to her.”

Tristan looked at him indignantly, “Do you have any idea who I am, wizard! I happen to be a full quarter blood. My family is one of the most powerful wizarding families in America. Do not speak down to me!”

“I’m afraid your lineage doesn’t impress me, Doctor.” Severus smirked, “I happen to be one of the few remaining half blood wizards in existence.”

Tristan’s eyes widened in surprise, “Oh, of course, I knew I’d heard that last name before. I’ve heard about you. You’re the last of the Snape family, aren’t you?”

Severus nodded, “Yes, I am, and if you’re not out of my sight in five seconds, you’ll be very, very sorry to have made my acquaintance.”

Tristan looked and Randi and said, “You forced my hand, I’m afraid. The Ministry backs my decision. You WILL marry, and that’s final.”

He then stormed off and went back towards the council room. Randi read the parchment and gritted her teeth. “Well that’s just perfect. Let’s breed the little freak and see if she has mutant babies. Her feelings don’t matter. She’s just another fucking project!”

Doctor MacKenzie held her close and whispered, “Come on, Randi, you know that isn’t true. I promise you, I’ll do everything I can to persuade the Ministry to retract this order.”

“You know they won’t!” she sobbed, “He’s a proud member of their little country club, and we’re just a couple of mudbloods. If they had any sense they wouldn’t have hired that pompous ass in the first place!”

“We’ll find a way out of this, I promise you.” He soothed, “But for now, I need you to pull yourself together. You have to tell those people about what you saw.”

“I’m afraid I must agree with your father”, Severus said reluctantly as he put his wand away, “Such a matter shouldn’t have even have been brought up today. Your job right now is to tell those Ministers what you know.”

Randi dried her tears then stood up, “I’ll do what I came here to do, but I can’t promise I won’t end up in Azkaban once I get my hands on that little weasel!”

Seething, she walked away and disappeared down the hallway.

Doctor MacKenzie put his head in his hands and sighed, “This is quite possibly the worst day of my life. I feared this would happen someday. She’s so fiercely independent that no wizard I’ve ever introduced her to has kept her fancy for long. I’ll do everything I can, but I don’t think they’re going to change the order. Tristan will see to that.”

Severus turned to face the doctor and said, “Sir, I’d like to discuss this further with you at a later time, but right now I believe our presence would be helpful in keeping your daughter out of Azkaban.”

The doctor gave a nod. “Yes, of course. I’ll have to keep those two separated or she may just do something she’ll regret.”

They went back to the council chamber to see Randi quietly talking at the podium.

“These wizards call themselves Corillians. They’re scavengers of the worst kind. They go from place to place, killing off or enslaving any society they find, then drawing the magical energy out of their world until it is gone completely.” She explained grimly, “As you could see from my pensives, they’re deadly and quite effective. If we don’t act quickly, what I saw will come to pass. The Ministry has asked me to teach some of the new spells that I’ve created, in hopes that it will prepare us to effectively counter their invasion. My spells are convenient, because they don’t require a wand. They do, however, require a great deal of energy and concentration.”

Dumbledore rose from his chair and said, “Professor MacKenzie, do you believe that you can successfully teach these spells to others?”

Randi nodded and replied, “Yes I do, Sir, though I can’t say how many will be able to use them. They’re simple to learn, but they require a strong connection to the magical current. I don’t think a normal Witch or Wizard will be able to perform all of them, but I believe the lower level spells can indeed be taught to others.”

Dumbledore sat down and a hefty, African man stood up, “Miss MacKenzie, were you able to discover any weaknesses whosoever in these wizards?”

“Their technique is flawless, I’m afraid,” she answered hesitantly, “But they won’t expect us to know that they’re coming. Perhaps if we prove enough of a challenge, they’ll decide to go elsewhere.”

The wizard sat back down then a talk, lanky wizard seated next to him stood up, “The German magical community is at your service, Miss MacKenzie. If you can teach some of your spells to some of my Aurors, I will send them to you at once.”

Randi smiled at the wizard. “Spoken like a true son of Germany, Minister. I’m preparing special training sessions for that purpose. I’ll owl you as soon as I’m ready.” A sneer came across her face as the bracelet on her arm began to glow brightly. She paused for a moment to glare at Tristan then said, “If you’ll all excuse me, it’s feeding time at the Kelley zoo. We’ll meet back here to continue the meeting in one hour.”

Severus watched her as she made a hasty exit from the room. “This has gone terribly wrong, Albus.”

Dumbledore sat there thinking for a minute then said, “Experience has taught me that politics is a very messy business, my boy. I just hope she’s able to find a way out of this.”