Sub Rosa

A/N - A little more action and adventure here, the lemony goodness will return in a few chapters, sorry Kate, but I will get to it!


Chapter 28 – Parvati’s Tale

Kathryn found the young woman weeping disconsolately, huddled on the cold ground.

“Miss Patil?” She knelt next to the girl and laid a hand on her back. Parvati bolted upright, rubbing her eyes with haste and plastered a look of innocence on her ravaged features.

“Sorry, uh…must have fallen asleep.” Parvati muttered.

“Tell me and don’t leave anything out.” Kathryn commanded, casting a Silence sphere around them and a warming charm on them both.

“There’s nothing to tell.” Parvati shrugged.

“Miss Patil, I’ve interrogated Death Eaters, fought monsters and dueled Dark Wizards. You will tell me what the problem is and then we will deal with it.” Kathryn kept her eyes steadily on the girl’s tear stained face. Parvati’s expression ran through a considerable number of emotions before settling on resignation.

“You’ll think I’m crazy.” She whispered. Kathryn met her eyes steadily, willing the girl to talk to her. “All I know is that I started having these dreams every night. At first the dreams were pleasant, I’m back in the Crypt, telling stories to the Guardian and we’d have these great conversations. At the end of the dream Dean would show up and lead me out.” Parvati blushed a little at that point and Kathryn deduced that more happened with Dean in the dreams than mere leading. Kathryn nodded to her to continue.

“Well, one night, as the conversation was ending, someone else showed up to lead me back.” The girl shivered. “He frightened me, but I didn’t know how to get back any other way.” She shot Kathryn a pleading look and Kathryn wrapped an arm around her.

“Go on, child.” Kathryn kept her voice gentle and comforting, although she was beginning to have a nasty suspicion that she knew what was happening.

“The next night I went to the crypt, but the guardian was gone and there was just Him.” There was a long pause, as the girl’s breathing grew labored. “He was waiting for me, he …did things to me.” Kathryn nodded, she saw what had happened and she cursed herself for not foreseeing this possibility.

“Now, He’s come out of my dreams and he’s after me.” Parvati looked into Kathryn’s eyes with horror and shame. “Do you think I’m crazy?”

“No, I don’t think you are crazy.” Parvati slumped against her and began to sob.

“I’ve been so afraid! He made me break it off with Dean and he wanted the scrolls from Hermione! He said he would kill my sister, my parents. I feel like I’m going mad.” Kathryn patted the girl softly and then pulled her wand.

“Designo adnexus.” She muttered and traced a pattern around the girl.

Light flared and coalesced, illuminating two lines from the girl that led off towards the castle. One was a sparkling path that looked like crystal and the other was twined around the first, a dark stain that glinted with an oily shine.

“What is that?” Parvati was trembling and Kathryn patted her gently “Yo “You aren’t crazy, Miss Patel. This is your proof.” Kathryn indicated the glowing lines. “Someone or something has attached itself to you.”

She rose and taking Parvati’s hand in hers she followed the lines. The spell only made the lines visible to the caster and the victim, so no one paid any attention to the teacher and student as they walked through the halls together.

Kathryn had regained much of the brisk stride she had before the accident, but her leg tired easily, so she slowed herself to match Parvati’s shorter legs. As they passed the Great Hall, she met Severus eyes were he was lurking in the arched doorway and jerked her head to follow them.

With all the stealth and silence of half a lifetime of spying and killing, he slipped after them, a shadow amongst shadows. She smiled inwardly; she loved having back up that she could really rely on. She doubted that Harry would understand how Severus’ leashed capacity for violence was one of the reasons she cared for him.

They turned the corner to the staircase and found themselves headed for Gryffindor tower. Kathryn was curious, but kept silent, after all her questions would be answered soon. They stepped through the doorway, the Pink Lady’s enquires ignored. The common room was empty, everyone down at the ball, excfor for Dean Thomas who sat forlornly before the fireplace.

His head came up in surprise as they entered and his eyes focused on Parvati with a sad hunger that tore at the heart. Kathryn nodded gently at him and then followed the cords up the staircase and into the girl’s dorm. They led to the room Parvati shared with Lavender and Hermione.

Entering the room, the cords twisted together to touch one of the beds and then the dark line vanished, while the sparkling line arched away downwards, in the direction of the crypt, Kathryn surmised.

“That’s my bed.” Parvati looking confused turned to Kathryn.

Kathryn stepped up to the bed and began searching through it. Covers were pulled off, sheets removed and finally the mattress was pulled up. There, in the center of the frame, under the mattress was a black pouch with runes stitched on it. Parvati gave a little shriek at the sight of it and reached out.

“Don’t touch it, Miss Patil.” She frowned at the bag; she would need a hex-breaking knife to dispose of it. Grand-mére had one, of course and maybe Albus or Filius might have one as well.

She stalked around the bed, trying to think. She pulled one of the bed curtains down and dropped it on top of the bag. Careful to let no part of her touch it, she wrapped it up and holding it away from herself, she left the room. Parvati trailed after her into the common room. Severus was in the shadows nearby but she doubted either child had noticed him.

“This is a potent hex, Miss Patil.” Dean jumped up from the couch instantly and stared back and forth between them. “Someone has tried to do you great harm.” Dean was across the room and at Parvati’s side in a flash.
“Dean, I’m sorry, I …he …it made me…” she trailed off in tears and Dean quietly wrapped her in his arms and held her. He made gentle soothing sounds as she began to weep silently.

Kathryn was wondering if she ever cried so much when she was sixteen, but dismissee the thought as uncharitable, knowing she had been distinctly atypical at that age.

“I need ispoispose of this. Miss Patil, Mr. Thomas, if you will excuse me?” She took her leave quickly, neatly avoiding any questions from the boy or the distraught girl in his arms.

Severus stepped up beside her as soon as she had cleared the portrait.

“Hex?” His voice had taken on the velvety quality that made her melt inside.

“I think it is a sympathetic magic bundle made up to exploit the connection between the Guardian and Parvati.” She murmured to him as they made their way swiftly to the Charms classroom. “You think Filius has a hex-breaker knife in his class?”

“Most certainly he will, though it will most likely be locked up.” Severus answered, his voice dropped to little more than a whisper.

“Can you fetch him then and meet me in the classroom?” He responded by breaking off and heading for the Great Hall. She used the teacher’s password to get into the unused classroom and dropped the cursed bundle on the floor in the center of the room. She dumped the bag out and tossed the curtain to one side to be dealt with later.

She grabbed candles, and some chalk from the supplies cabinet and began setting up a circle of protection. Whatever she had to do, she didn’t want it spilling out over the rest of the school. She began scribing the circle with the practiced ease of one who had been doing it since early child. Sh. She could almost hear Grand-mére’s voice in her memory, describing the proper symbols and runes. The words of the spell flowed from her lips with no conscious thought.

When she rose, the circle drawn but not yet closed, she found she had an audience. Severus, Filius and Albus all stood watching her, Filius with curiosity burning in his eyes, Albus looking grave and Severus with a quiet intensity.“I s“I see you have done this before.” Filius squeaked at her. She nodded anok tok the proffered blade from him and headed back to the circle. Severus reached out and stopped her.

“Not alone.” Was all he said, but she heard the steel in his voice and prepared herself to fight him.

“I agree.” Albus broke in and Kathryn knew that this battle could not be won. She nodded and let Severus into the circle with her. She knelt down and adjusted a rune here and there to add him into the spell and then, knife in hand, she closed the circle, locking them in with the bag.

Severus stood at the North and Kathryn took the South. They looked at each other for a long moment and then Kathryn knelt and began to undo the bag with the knife. She cut the cord that bound it at the top and as it fell open, darkness flowed into the circle. It was as if a cloud had poured out of the bag and the billowing smoke obscured her sight.

“The circle is holding.” Albus called from outside and Kathryn felt relief sweep over her. Whatever happened it would only affect the two of them.

“Thank you, Albus.” She replied. It was very hard to see in the circle now and she had to work carefully.
Severus lit his wand and Kathryn smiled up at him gratefully. Her own wand was still in her sleeve as the unbinding was more brute force than magic at this point.

Using the knife, she tipped the bag to dump out the contents and nearly vomited. A small heart, the size of a baby’s fist flopped onto the floor, fold byd by a tangle of hair, long and dark, probably Parvati’s. A tiny piece of quartz rolled out, nudged by the knife blade and lastly the scales of some sort of snake. She poked at it, puzzled.

“Nagini.” Severus breathed. “This is the Dark Lord’s work.”

Kathryn stabbed the heart and began cutting it apart, it was awkward work to use the knife without touching the heart with her hand. She drew her wand and incinerated the last bits of it, leaving a reddish smear on the floor. She carefully smashed the quartz with the hilt of the blade and then incinerated the hair.

“Could we use this scale against Moldy?” She asked Albus.

“We have something far more potent, Kathryn.” He answered mysteriously. Kathryn opened her mouth to ask and then shrugged. She pushed the quartz dust into the pile of burning hair and turned to the scale. She raised the dagger high and brought it down in one smooth stroke into the center of the scale.

There was a nt ent explosion of magic. The backlash of the impact threw her against the edge of the circle. Her head cracked against the invisible wall of force and she saw stars. She rebounded and fell forward and only Severus’ lightning fast reflexes prevented her landing on top of the remains of the hex. He grabbed her against him as she fell forwards and held her tightly.

“Are you all right?” Her vision was blurred and a sick nausea roiled in her stomach.

“Concussion.” She muttered. “Hospital Wing as as as we’re done.” Trying not to vomit, she turned slowly and incinerated the scale.

The Scale erupted in flames that washed up and over them in a roaring conflagration. Severus cast a shielding charm that protected them from the flames, but the heat was unbearable and oxygen grew scarce.

With an abrupt suddenness the flames died and the darkness lifted and the two of them stood, clinging to each other in a circle of scorched stone, gasping for breath.

“Wethatthat was dramatic.” Filius chirped.

With her last conscious thought, Kathryn dropped the circle.