Meddling

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Again, many apologies to those who\'ve been waiting and asking for updates. I found my muse! It was hiding in the back of the couch cushions. I think it took offence to my cat trying to chew on it\'s ear... chapter 10 should be up soon as I know this one is short, but it needed to be written. Remember, revieelp!elp! It lets me know things are coming across the way they\'re intended and helps me keep going. Peace people, thanks for your patience. Onward and Upward!

~Faerie

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Another day, another visit from mother asking if he knew who his soulmate was yet, another psychotic stalker lost in the labyrinth that was the dungeons of Hogwarts.

After four different and apparently unrelated women had turned up during his classes in one day, he had asked the Headmaster if there was a way to prevent them from being able to gain access to the castle in the first place… Albus had merely smiled his usual secretive smile and answered that there was a way then dismissed him without anything further except that damn twinkle in his eye as he had turned away. And to top it all off he was having hallucinations.

He’d originally thought it was a Potions mishap from the previous morning, the student who had caused the explosion was still unconscious in the Infirmary after being doped up by Poppy to stop his screams about something trying to steal his eyes. Snape himself still wore a stripe of small green dots over his right cheek from his chin to his ear, thankfully the spray had missed his eye. But the few other students who had also been caught in the line of fire had reported no symptoms other then the stained skin. It seemed the potion had to have been swallowed to take effect.

Something white flickered just out of his line of vision and he cursed. It had been happening all day, he’d catch movement out of the corner of his eye but no matter how quickly he turned his head he could never see anything. He’d glance around the room while marking or changing quills, and then the next time he looked things would be re-arranged but when he blinked it would be return to normal. And he was getting a migraine to boot. He had wrenched his neck chasing one of those elusive flutters and all day he’d had a very irritating prickling over his temples which had now spread throughout his skull. This was going to be a bad night, he had approximately half an hour to finish up so he could retire alone to his rooms before he went blind in his left eye.

Striding quickly down the corridor, Snape tried to sneer in case he came across a student (or worse, an ‘admirer’). It came out as more of a pained grimace and he began to snicker to himself.

[Now I wonder why I didn’t think of this re. re. No matter how desperate these obnoxious women may be, one look at me in this state and they’ll prefer to take their chances with the Forbidden Forest] he chuckled harder as he took in the idea of one of the random floozies coming across him as he was, hair more disheveled then usual, the green dots highlighting the tick in his right cheek, his left eye half shut in pain and his mouth stretched in a caricature of agony. His vision was already starting to cloud over and darken around the edges and he thanked Merlin there were no students around to see as he stumbled and smacked his head against the stone alcove that was the entrance to his private chambers.

He struggled with the complex wards, only to be shoved firmly into the doorframe again as the entrance revealed itself. He lurched inside as something similar to a block of ice crashed squarely into his back a second time. He tripped over a footstool that was uncharacteristically in the entrance hall and landed painfully on his tailbone, only to see the vanishing tail of

‘PEEVES!!!’

The ghost in question stuck his head through the wall and blew a raspberry at the Potions Master who was still sprawled over the dark hall.

‘You rang Professor Batty?’ the ghost raspberried Severus again as he painfully stood.

‘I’m REALLY not in the mood Peeves, but never fear, you’ll be getting a lot of attention from the Baron this year.’

The poltergeist snarled happily and began raining books over the room.

‘Oooh, the Baron, Peeves is scared as a ickle Firstie.’ With a crash a copy of the Encyclopedia of Horticulture went through the elaborate porcelain bowl on the mantelpiece, sending Floo powder everywhere. ‘Baron all gone, Peeves is free to teach nasty Professor Batty a lesson of his own!’ A chair flew into the ceiling and it’s splintered pieces crashed back to the floor.

The cacophony of noises were almost enough to make him and and in time with each, a roll of thunder went off inside his skull and the corresponding lightning flashed white across the darkness in his left eye.

‘ENOUGH!’ the scream ripped his throat raw in a single second. His wand was in his hand before he knew it. ‘Manes mortalitas!’

Peeves hit the floor with an indignant thud. He rubbed his head wonderingly.

‘What’s evil Batty done to Peeves?’

Snape snarled in response.

‘You’re mortal now, for the time being anyway, I might end up killing you for this. Dumbledore can deal with you later.’ He wrapped the gangly form in a full body bind and quickly levitated him out into the corridor before collapsing inside his once-again warded door. When the waves of dizziness receded slightly he found his way to his supply cabinet and downed a shot of his own personal blend of headache cure as well as a shot of whiskey to help it along. A nip of Dreamless Sleep rounded it out and he stumbled into bed, praying for the world to end.

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