New Beginning

Revised Chapter 23, Janus is not related to Harry, doesn\'t quite work for the next chapter.


Chapter 23


His eyes came open slowly, the smell was different. No longer the pungent odor of the box; it was quiet, typically sounds of feet scuttling across cobblestone pavement could be heard, the flapping of the plastic across the wooden box too. Not a sound, it was so quiet, almost frightenly so. The room was bright, Janus slowly sat up, and leery about where he was. Adults weren’t supposed to be trusted, Janus had learned this lesson ife ife early. He saw the blue robe, dark royal blue, and the silver emblem on the outside, this wasn’t the first time he’d seen it. He stared transfixed on the emblem, a crescent moon with a star dangling from it.

Draco watched, as Janus didn’t take his eyes from his robe. Auror Anderson said the boy reacted the same to him. Last night, at the Ministry Auror Anderson had a time with the boy, he fought the whole way, when Draco had showed up and took the boy in another room, he stopped fighting. Now the fear was back in the boy’s eyes.

“Remember me?” Draco asked. Janus looked up, but still didn’t say anything. “I took you home last night, you ate dinner at my house.”

Janus didn’t move other than his eyes going from the emblem back to Draco’s. Draco pointed at the emblem. “It means I’m with the Auror at the Ministry. Do you know what they are?”

Janus looked past Draco at the door, Severus came in and walked up to them. “Said anything yet?”

“Not a word.” Draco ran his hand across his face.

Severus walked to the foot of the bed. “I’m Professor Severus Snape, I teach potions. You’re at Hogwarts, did you read your letter?”

Janus looked up at Severus, he nodded to him. Well, at least the boy can read, Severus thought to himself. “Did you send an owl back?”

Janus shook his head.

Draco watched the boy as he responded to Severus. “Did you break into the shops in Knockturn Alley?” Draco asked.

Janus looked back at Draco then at the emblem on his robe, he didn’t say anything or give any indication. Severus asked him the same question, Janus shook his head no. Severus smirked at Draco and then took him aside beyond the boys hearing.

“He doesn’t trust y Se Severus told him.

“You think! What ever gave you that idea?” Draco spat at Severus.

“Anytime he looks at you he has fear in his eyes, he didn’t last night. What’s different?”

Draco thought back, the only thing different that he could think of was his robe. He didn’t have on his robe, it was late when he came back from talking to the researchers, and he had taken his robe off. Janus had gone somewhat willingly with him laightight where he had been fighting tooth and nail with Auror Anderson. Draco looked back over at the boy; thoughts kept resurging in his mind. “It’s the robe. Or it could be just this.” Draco thumped the emblem that covered his left breast, which distinguished Auror.

Draco took the robe off, Severus and Draco spent the next hour talking to Janus, well Janus would only answer in yes or no questions, while the boy not only one breakfast but a second one. Within that hour Draco found out that the two boys from last night were the ones doing all the break-ins. Janus could even point out which shops were broken into off of a map that Draco had of both Diagon Alley and Knockturn Alley. Janus pointed out every shop that had been broken into since the beginning of summer term. Janus didn’t know the boys, they found out he was just on the street and got caught in the sweep when the Auror descended into the Alley. There was still something plaguing the back of Draco’s mind, he picked up his robe and showed Janus the symbol again.

“Janus, did someone hurt you who was wearing something that looked like this?” Draco asked.

Janus looked away, fear and hurt, plainly to be seen in his eyes.

“That’s enough for today, Draco. Don’t push him.” Severus said.


*******


Lucius sat in his office, he sat scowling at the front page of the ‘Daily Prophet’. The headline read: Minister Blunders, Harry Potter Missing or Dead.

This reporter writes with a grave heart, for the wizarding world as we know it, has come to a close. Harry Potter, defeater of You-Know-Who, has now become the Boy-Who-Is-Missing-Or-Dead. I have from a reliable source that Harry Potter hasn’t been seen at his apartment, nor has anyone seen him at all. A concerned citizen reported matters to the Minister, and the citizen was thrown out of his office. Can a Death Eater really change their stripes? We all agreed that Fudge and his brainless antics needed to be changed. Everyone looked to Albus Dumbledore to accept the position of Minister, yet he appointed one instead. Even with all the dim-wittedness of Fudge, he never lost the Boy-Who-Lived.

Lucius sat fire to the paper, and started pacing around his office. He had been barraged with owl after owl wanting an investigation open. He patted his pocket, the letter tucked safely inside his breast pocket. Harry had one request of him, he would do this, and would love doing it. He just had to wait for Draco to get back from Hogwarts. His laughter cackled around the office, oh how the boy thought of everything.


********


Dante walked into the infirmary, he stopped when he saw the laying on the bed. Poppy running a scan over him.

“Didn’t think the new term started yet?”

Poppy looked up, “Not yet. This is Janus, he’ll be staying till the term, and then he’ll be sorted into his house.”

“You wouldn’t happen to have my potion ready would you Poppy?” Dante smiled at her.

“Yes, sitting on my desk. Severus said he’ll brew some more, how you drink that vile stuff I’ll never know.” Poppy’s upper lip curled.

Dante shook his head as he walked past her. “Sometimes, you just hold the nose and drink, and don’t think about the taste.”

Dante picked up the potion and turned back to look at the boy. He drank the vile thing, he would need more later that month. It was the only thing that helped. He had been bitten a year ago, he was in the Albanian forest at the time, tracking some werewolves. The little vulture had caught him off guard; how he didn’t spot the thing was beyond him. The wicked little fairy, she had sunk her razor sharp teeth in him before he could react. He had a werewolf in front of him, he had been more alert to its presence then the fairy. This certain breed of fairy was dark, not the friendly little things that Muggles told their children about. They were also rare, not too many lurked about these days, mostly they stayed hidden, but he had crossed into their territory after the stupid werewolf. The venom from their fangs had set in on the third that it took him to get away from the forest. By the fifth day, he had been in bad shape, a friend had told him about a potions master who lived at Hogwarts. Dante had set out for the school, this same friend had told Albus about him. So Dante struck up a bargain with Albus, get his potions master to create a cure for Black-Droxy Fairy, and he would teach. Little did he know, that Severus had already been experimenting with these certain fairy, they had a few in the Forbidden Forest. Dante had to take the potion for three years straight in order to extract the venom from his system. It wasn’t pleasant, but it was better than your brain turning to a gray lump of goo.

Poppy finished with Janus and walked back over to Dante. “Should teach you to go traipsing around forests.”

“Where is your sense of adventure?”

“Right here, where it ought to be. I have enough adventure come walking through that door. Every year it’s different.”

Dante gave her a bow, “Touché.”

Janus watched them, Dante smiled at the boy. “I’m Professor Longfellow, I teach Defense Against the Dark Arts.” Dante extended his hand to the boy as he came over to the bed. Janus looked at it. “I won’t bite.”

Janus shook the hand tentively. Dante felt the fear, pain, hurt, longing, hatred, curiosity, hopefulness, and a few more that passed quicker than he could get. Dante conjured up a chair by the boy and sat down.

“So you’re g to to be going to Hogwarts, what do you think about that?”

Janus shrugged.

“Don’t be surprised if he doesn’t talk.” Poppy came over with Janus’s lunch that she sat down on the bed tray for boy. “Hasn’t said a word since he got here.”

“Strong silent type. Why would he need to speak Poppy? You’re catering to his every whim.” Dante grinned at her.

Janus snickered.

“Oh don’t encourage him Janus.” She playfully slapped Dante on his shoulder.

Dante turned back to the mystery boy before him. “Well, you don’t have to say anything if you don’t want too. Agreed?”

Janus nodded and plowed into his food. Dante talked about his time in the forests telling the boy about himself, about Hogwarts, watching him for any sign of him recognizing anything. He’d seen enough Muggleborns wizard and witches to know if the boy was one, he didn’t appear to be one. Wasn’t shocked when he mentioned fabled magical creatures. So it put the boy in the category of being a wizard and knowing he was one.

“Janus Ankaa Onasis-Snape.” The name was said from the doorway and Janus’s head spun to the voice.

Severus watched as the boy’s head snapped towards him. Albus and Severus had gone back through the book, that wrote down every witch and wizard that had their name written in it that would be given owls to go to Hogwarts. Took them a little over an hour to find the name. After his name was found Albus conjured the Snape family line, Janus was related to Severus, his secound cousin, but they were related. Through Severus’s uncle, that he hadn’t seen. Janus had no other family but him, but Severus hadn’t even been aware of the boy. Albus sent a letter off to Draco, stating Severus’s family relation to the boy.

“Ankaa, how interesting.” Dante said.

“Yes, he’s named after an Arabian Phoenix.” Severus sat down at the foot of Janus’s bed. “Is your parents alive?”

“No.” Came out in a very timid voice. “My father was killed before I was born. My mother died two years ago, after we moved to London. We didn’t use our full last name, mother said we couldn’t. My father was killed because of his last name, that’s what she told me, she changed our name to her’s, Onasis. I am not a Snape.” Janus stared at Severus, “I won’t go back to that orphanage.”

“Right now, the only thing you need to worry about is getting better, school starts soon. You won’t be going anywhere but school.” Severus reassured him.

“I didn’t owl back.”

“You’ve been accepted, unless you don’t want to go to school here.” Severus watched as the boy.

Janus thought about it, he didn’t want to go back to the orphanage, but he didn’t want to go back to the streets. He didn’t have much of a choice. “Then I guess I’ll go to school here.”