ENIGMA

Plot, new characters, new magical terms and abilities etc. are my intellectual property. If you want to borrow then please kindly ask. JK Rowling's characters and Wizarding Universe are all uniquely hers.



Summary: AU: What if everything we ever read in JK Rowling’s books was real – including the people characterised? What would you do if you found yourself caught up in that reality knowing what was to come? SS, RL, OC



Fantasy/Drama



This story is rated R/M.



ENIGMA



Chapter 009: Now You See Me…



“I can’t imagine what it must be like for you… What it must be like – beyond the Stones…” Lupin said thoughtfully as he walked out of the Great Hall with Jessica after dinner one night several weeks later, stared at with the deepest of loathing by Snape.



“You aren’t missing much,” Jessica said bitterly. “We have an expression back home – but from the States: Same Shit Different Day…”



Lupin would have laughed had Jessica’s anger not been so obvious and heart-felt.



“The only difference between your world and mine is the kind of magic you people have. The morality tales are all the same. But the thing that ups the stakes is what you people are capable of. Look at my job - books that scream, books that take a bite out of you, books that make you fall into a deep sleep if you aren’t careful. You wizards just can’t leave well enough alone when it comes to your magic. You seem to take great pleasure in doing absurd and dangerous things with it just because you can.”



“I don’t think I have ever heard our world described quite like that…”



“Ah, but I am not from your world…” Jessica said quietly.



“Most Muggles here would sell their souls to be where you are… They would be crying out to be like us with our dubious brand of magic; but not you. All this time and not one word about wanting what you don’t have… wanting to be what you aren’t.”



“Correct me if I am wrong – but aren’t all people thought to have a magical core of sorts – it’s jut that Muggles have become disconnected from it? And even that’s an entirely different proposition than a Squib…quite contradictory in some ways.” Jessica said politely.



She’d read several interviews where Jo Rowling had said as much. She was taking a chance because so far she had yet to come across anything in the library that put forth that most intriguing of theories. Then again – how could she when so much of her time was spent surrounded by a backlog of paperwork when she was not sourcing materials in the stacks for Hogwarts’ resident know-it-all.



“Well… in a manner of speaking…”



Jessica quirked an eyebrow.



“Yes,” Lupin conceded. “In this world, yes…”



“In my world magic is from the realm of the spirits and its all around us in nature. We are a part of it and it is a part of us. The people who don’t have it; who don’t feel it; who don’t know it are the people disconnected from the spirits. The spirits don’t know them and they are lost. What is really sad is that they don’t realise it… Even the ones who go into Church to pray – that prayer is magic. Lighting the candles is magic. Praising their Lord in song or even by chanting – that’s magic too.



But they don’t see that; instead many of the world’s religions where I am from talk about magic being ‘negative’ and ‘dark’ – there is no light in it for them. Witchcraft to them is evil to them, but I think its because in the traditions that embrace it, the individual is personally responsible. With the World religions – you are born into ‘sin’ and need men and women to act as your intermediary between yourself and a higher power. But the old religions – we know that that what lies within us and all around us is power and it’s good and evil, dark and light all at the same time. It’s not about the nature of magic – it’s how you use your knowledge of it.”



Lupin stopped and looked at her in amazement.



“Erm – would you… would you like to meet up for tea sometime? I’d quite like to hear more about all this… I haven’t had a discussion like this – ever…”



Jessica hesitated. She wasn’t supposed to know that there was a history, a not very nice history, between Professors Lupin and Snape. Then again it was yet another assumption because of the books – and truth be told she hadn’t seen enough of them in each other’s company to gauge just how true that was in the here and now. According to fictional lore, Lupin liked to be liked – and that being his greatest fault is what caused him to sit idly by while his friends Sirius Black and James Potter bullied the young Severus Snape and used Snape’s own self-created spells on him. But why should she turn her back on him just because of what she thought she knew? Lupin had been giving her a fair chance to prove herself with him and for all his shortcomings, was actually a really nice guy.



“I’m sorry – I shouldn’t have been so forward,” the werewolf said quietly looking away from her.



He knew for a fact that the stranger wasn’t aware of what he was – the Headmaster had thought she’d enough to be dealing with without that particular situation being brought to light just yet. But it sure felt like she knew – like she knew and didn’t want anything to do with him because of it.



Jessica had the faintest sense that Lupin was smarting a bit over her obvious hesitation.



“OK – you can always come and rescue me from Pince, that old hag…”



Lupin laughed, and Jessica thought how nice he looked when he had something to be happy about. But she wasn’t about to make anything of the fact that she was the reason for it.



xxxXXXxxx



Several weeks had passed before Jessica saw Severus alone again. He had blown hot, very hot and then cold with her, making it difficult to know where she really stood with him. The only point of contact had been at meals and staff meetings. Other than that their paths did not cross; the night of intimacy at the inn might well have never happened with the seeming distance between them now. It was obvious – regardless of whatever had happened and been said, the reality was that he did not want her and perhaps all she had ever been to him was a shag.



In one of her fics, once the obstacle of gaining the Potions Master’s affections had been conquered it was always full steam ahead regardless of any outside influences or interference. Once again, real life was proving far more difficult a proposition. She had listened to her heart, and it seemed that once again it had led her astray.



xxxXXXxxx



Jessica had returned to the library for more of her practical training after dinner one night when a familiar voice interrupted her work. A familiar voice laced with icy reserve.



“Miss Newkirk, I am in need of assistance,” Snape said quietly.



No, their night of intimacy, secrets and undeniable passion had not happened as far as the Potions Master was concerned – that much was obvious. Knowing all too the emotionally immature game that she thought was being played, Jessica refused to play.



“You will have to direct your enquiry to Madam Pince; she is on duty – I am not, Professor.”



She looked him in the eye respectfully and then returned to the boxes of requests for books and periodicals that had never been fulfilled by the Library Assistant in question. Jessica’s work was cut out for her and she knew she had a long road ahead – a very long and arduous road especially for one not magical. Her days and nights had been spent pouring over years of ignored paperwork. At least if they had been in some semblance of order she might have been alright; but there was no rhyme or reason, only unbelievable disarray. The last thing she needed was Snape coming around to give her a mind-fuck as only he could.



“Pince is nowhere to be found – no doubt wallowing in her Filtch-obsessed sorrows in a cauldron of Firewhiskey…”



Jessica’s face very often betrayed what she felt or thought and now was no different. She was clearly beyond her tether at doing someone else’s job for them – especially someone that went out of their way to be as unhelpful as possible.



“Then I am afraid you will have to either fill out another one of her request forms,” Jessica answered as she gestured towards the heaving boxes of said forms, “or come back when it seems likely she will be at her post doing the job for which she is paid!”



She stood up so hard and fast several large stacks of boxes fell to the floor, ruining a lot of careful cataloguing. It was hard work and she’d been doing a minimum of 12 hours a day, far more than required. Then again, the guidelines were according to wizarding standards no doubt taking into account magical assistance – and she was not from this world.



“Fuck! Fuck, fuck, FUCK!” Jessica swore, her eyes brimming with unshed tears.



She barged past Snape, not caring what he thought but unwilling to cry in front of him again. She knew from fiction that this would be precisely the type of incident that would bring out the worst of his ‘people skills’: a sarcastic, sneering and very hurtful comment or a few.



She was walking so hard and fast that she did not register Snape calling after her. She smacked into something hard and stumbled, so lost was she in her fury.



“Miss…Jessica…please get a hold of yourself…” Snape said, trying to keep both of them from falling over. He’d used a charm to propel himself forward.



“Go on – have a go at me! That’s what you do isn’t it? Go on take the piss out of me because you know you can! You don’t care about me and you never cared – you’re just like the rest of them so piss off and leave me alone!”



Snape opened his mouth, but nothing came out except for a rather exaggerated hiss. His black eyes, usually fathomless and empty, sparked with anger. He pushed her from him and turned hard on his heels, leaving her to her work – just as she’d ordered.



“Damn it,” she whispered in the dimness of the stacks near the front desk. Pince was there, pretty much in the same position as Jessica had left her in not long before Snape turned up. She was frowning and muttering over huge stacks of books that needed replacing on the shelves and haranguing students intermittently that tried to question her. And she did have a slightly pungent tang of Firewhiskey about her – she always did to anyone that cared about such things.



Too late Jessica realised that Snape’s excuse for needing to see her was simply a ruse. Severus had wanted to see her – had wanted to talk to her. He’d come straight to her; and Jessica was so convinced that she was right before giving him a chance to prove himself either way that she blew the very opportunity she had been waiting in vain for.



Unable to focus and feeling more alone than ever, Jessica decided to go for a walk to clear her head, if not her heart.



xxxXXXxxx



As it was dark out, Jessica couldn’t risk going out by herself. There were Dementor patrols outside the grounds of the school and in Hogsmeade now. It wasn’t safe for anyone, but especially her. She hadn’t appreciated how much danger she could have been in that first night in this world. She had arrived at just the right time and it saved her in more ways than one.



xxxXXXxxx



Jessica had just walked past the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom when a familiar voice called out to her.



“Jessica? Is that you?” Lupin asked sprinting to the door.



“Oh! You scared me – yes it is… Hi Remus, are you alright? Haven’t seen you for a while…”



She liked Lupin the more she got to know him. They had become decent enough friends and enjoyed walking in the grounds and occasional visits to town together. He had been very concerned that she was working herself too hard and would stop by now and then with a teapot that refilled with Earl Grey Tea along with something to nibble from the kitchens. Many were the nights when Jessica simply worked through dinner. But the werewolf’s pleasantness made a welcome change from the decided unfriendliness of Pince and aloofness of some of the other staff.



“Not too bad – been a bit under the weather…”



“Mmm hmm,” Jessica said with an appraising nod.



Whenever she looked at him like that, Lupin got the distinct impression that she knew about his affliction. But as far as he knew no one still had told her. Dumbledore had given their colleagues strict instructions not to discuss it with anyone – not even amongst themselves – so there was no way she could have heard it even on the grapevine that was the Hogwarts gossip mill.



“How about you?” Lupin asked, ushering her through the room into his office. “How is that backlog coming along?”



Jessica’s face fell. She had only gotten as far as she had because Lupin helped her. No matter how ill he must have felt or tired he really was from the rigours of teaching, he always made time to help her and she’d been most grateful. A few flicks of his wand and they had gotten through almost seven years worth of work – a far cry from what she’d been able to do on her own.



“I…Oh, Remus I’m so sorry…”



“Why would you have to apologise – and to me?”



“All our work – all our hard work – it’s been… messed up. And it’s my fault…”



“Jessica…please tell me you didn’t,” Lupin moaned.



“I know! I should have been more careful like you said – I need to sort out the archiving system along with everything else, but I just…” Jessica shrugged her shoulders and slumped into a chair by his desk.



“It’s nothing that can’t be fixed,” Lupin said cheerfully. “Come on…tomorrow is another day and we can sort it out then…”



“Why the heck are you always so bloody cheerful?”



“Because being a misery guts is too much like work…”



xxxXXXxxx



Jessica awoke to the sound of yet more rain two days later. She gently eased Harvey’s head off her shoulder and started to prepare for her day. Though still a little butterball of purple fluff, he had grown quite a bit and was now the size of a small Teddy Bear.



“Mummy leaving?” squeaked a little voice from the bed as she sat in front of her dressing table and plaited her long hair into one braid.



Jessica had tried in vain to get the Jarvey to stop calling her Mummy as much as she tried to get him to stop sleeping with her. But he persisted and Hagrid had advised her to let it go.



‘He’s just a wee tyke, Jessica,” the gentle giant had said. ‘Don’t know any better like any other kid I expect. And you’re the only mother he’s known really. Give him time; he’ll grow out of it…’



“I have to go to breakfast and then to work,” Jessica explained. “I’ll come back for a break and we’ll go out, how about that?”



Harvey’s face lit up and he held out his arms for a cuddle. The little Jarvey was too scared to venture out by himself, unlike those of his kind at his age. As there weren’t others like him or other creatures he could be friendly with, his was a very lonely existence. Jessica at least had the company of other staff members and students; the situation of her companion was not lost on her. Harvey was not a pet, nor was he her child. He was what he was and each was very attached to the other. The morning after her night with Severus she’d returned feeling extremely guilty to find him crying his little eyes out calling for her, thinking she’d abandoned him. It had taken some doing to convince him she wasn’t deserting him like his natural family had ever since. It would take some time for him to become independent, but Hagrid was convinced it could be done.



Jessica was very grateful to have Harvey in her life, something that never would have happened were it not for the Stones. Still, it was not lost on her that Stones or no, the real reason she had him was because of Severus Snape.



Harvey was a living reminder of the affection she’d thought she had from the Potions Master.



xxxXXXxxx



Dumbledore had called a staff meeting after breakfast on Saturday later that week to make up for one cancelled. Jessica had forgotten to bring the materials she’d prepared to hand out with her the night before and had to return to the library before the staff meeting. She looked around the room in which she’d been working the night before in shock. Shelving units of mahogany lined each side of the long room. Each unit was arranged alphabetically according to title and crossed reference to subject and the requestor. A wizarding contraption functioned as an Indexer and was set up on workstation in the middle of the room by a bank of large windows.



The job of sorting through the requests, organising, cataloguing and archiving them had been completed.



Decades of work had been done overnight.



xxxXXXxxx



Jessica and Lupin bumped into each outside the staff room and walked in together, laughing about some wizarding joke books she’d found as they took seats. Jessica noticed too late that they were sat right across from Severus. He hadn’t spoken to her since their altercation in the library, but even that couldn’t have been counted as a conversation.



‘Damn it!’ she thought to herself. There was nothing she could do but just deal with the animosity she knew was coming. Lupin leaned over and asked quietly if she would like to go for a coffee after the meeting. Jessica tried ignore the cold black eyes boring into them as she nodded ‘yes’.



“Oh – I meant to thank you when I came in,” Jessica said quietly. But not quiet enough so that Snape didn’t manage to overhear every single word.



“Me? For what?”



“Everything you’ve done… I can’t thank you enough for helping me…”



Lupin actually flushed a faint pink. “Wasn’t much…”



“Doing all that and in one night wasn’t much? Remus, you never cease to amaze me with your modesty…”



Jessica found her eyes being drawn to the dark figure across from her. Snape’s countenance was a mask of loathing and outrage. Used to being ignored by him, she returned her attention to Remus.



“It wasn’t me, honest. Pince is finally making the effort she should have,” Lupin said as he handed her a hot cup of tea and several warm scones with butter and strawberry jam melting down their sides.



“Pince my foot! That old hag did nothing of the kind…”



“You really should give her the benefit of the doubt…”



“Right…” Jessica answered with an expression and tone that let Lupin know she wouldn’t do any such thing. “I know you mean well, Remus. But there is no way that she did that – not after all these years and with me here. Come on – why let her take credit for your work!”



“If she didn’t who did?” Remus asked pointedly. “It wasn’t me, Jessica – although I wish I had thought of it. I figured we would do it together. But you’re finally getting the help you need and I don’t understand why the resistance in accepting it… Give her the chance to prove herself…”



“Leopards don’t change their spots – and certainly not overnight! You’ll need to do better than that to convince me that it was her.”



“Jessica…” Lupin said before taking two of the scrolls from a pile near them on the table and handing one to Jessica. He glanced down at the first section and was immediately sorry he’d said what he’d just said.



“I don’t believe her!” Jessica hissed to him quietly after scanning the agenda. “Now do you see what I mean!”



“I do and I am sorry,” he said ruefully. “Ready to show you up I imagine…”



Madame Pince had crossed off Jessica’s name and replaced it with her own for the Library review. Jessica ignored the looks at her and whispers flying around the room as it became clear that her colleagues had read the agenda items also.



She had a bigger problem on her hands and wasn’t aware of it: the matter of who had really been the one to help her.



…xxxXXXxxx…



The meeting seemed to drag on for an age as each of the Department Heads reviewed their needs for the remainder of the school year and highlighted any concerns.



“Last but certainly not least, the Library,” Dumbledore said to faint twitters around the room. “Miss Newkirk – if you would be so kind as to introduce yourself as this is your first official meeting and then highlight the new programme you are undertaking as our Library Sciences Administrator…”



Jessica was shocked. She had expected Dumbledore to go along with Pince’s slyness. She cleared her throat and simply spoke to her colleagues as if they were having a chill-out over some Butterbeer.



“I think I have met most of you in passing and at meals. My training programme has gone well and over the past few weeks I have gotten off to a reasonable start. I’m Jessica Newkirk – I sat my Bachelor’s Degree at Temple University in the States, Magna Cum Laude – a First in Communications and Arts. I gained my Masters in Library Science at Columbia University – Summa Cum Laude – a Second. My most recent post was with the British Library in London for the past 5 years where I was a Senior Fellow responsible for Acquisitions and Collections – particularly Antiquities. I headed a team of seven and during my tenure we were responsible for some important wins, including the Nag Hammedi papers.”



“I have seen them myself,” piped up Professor Flitwick, whom Jessica knew was Head of the Charms Department and Ravenclaw House. He had a strong interest in Antiquities and had spoken to her several times about things he would have loved to have seen in the Hogwarts Library. “A marvelous addition, my dear! I saw them the first day you had them on exhibition!”



“It wasn’t just me – we all worked dog’s hours to get those scrolls…”



“Look – I do believe you are going red young lady,” Hagrid chortled.



“It’s always a team effort, at least it should be,” Jessica replied, tucking a lock of hair behind her right ear that had come undone from her braid.



“Ooo so what have you in mind for Hogwarts?” asked Professor Sprout, the Head of Herbology and Hufflepuff House.



“Well – I thought I would make a vain attempt at clearing the backlog of requests you all have had over the years…”



There was laughter all around at this. Goodness knows everyone had tried for ages with Madam Pince and then just gave up.



“…and…erm, well…all the requests have been reviewed and should be fulfilled by the start of the Fall Term. And erm… the archiving systems seems to be in place (Jessica coughed slightly, still stunned that it had been done for her). I have also started looking into Acquisitions and we have some fine ones coming in...”



“You mean I can finally get a copy of ‘Fantastic Beasts Through the Ages?” Hagrid asked excitedly.



“It will be here next week actually, a First Edition, signed by Broomhilda Mugwort herself!” Jessica confirmed with a nod. That request was one of the first that she’d handled personally. “I have identified the original Malleus Maleficarum – by the two of the most Muggle witch hunters to emerge during the persecutions…it’s due next week as well. There are also several tomes by the one and only Matthew Hopkins – Britain’s notorious Witchfinder General.”



Jessica couldn’t help but smile as Hagrid whooped and some of the other professors commented excitedly. Some of the professors didn’t give a damn about her or what she was trying to do for them, so she wisely opted to direct her attention to the ones who showed an interest.



She’d actually had plenty of experience working in libraries as a student and was in the Library Club at her junior high and high schools growing up. The experience with the Buy The Book Emporium also put her in good stead with Book Dealer and Distributors. It seemed this Muggle world was not dissimilar to her own in some respects. Those similarities were very useful indeed when it came to the matter at hand.



Severus’ countenance was unreadable now as usual – even as she noted several valuable Potions and Dark Arts texts. The Administrator then distributed a list of the books, periodicals and collector’s items she had scheduled for intake over the next couple of weeks, all of which met with the approval of her colleagues. Any doubts or resentments they might have had because of her being McGonagall’s relative was laid to rest, Madam Pince being a notable exception.



“I always knew we could rival the collections at Beauxbatons and Durmstrang!” McGonagall chortled. “It certainly looks as though we are on our way!”



“Hah – sounds like we are going to finally get one or a few over on the Ministry Libraries as well!” Flitwick enthused.



“Is there anything else, Miss Newkirk,” Dumbledore asked with the legendary twinkle in his eyes.



“Erm – yes,” Jessica said before clearing her throat. “I am hoping we can institute a world-class classification system which will aid us in re-organising the Library and yourselves in finding what you need with a minimum of aggravation or dependency. Professor Flitwick – I know you have spent a great deal of time in the British Library you must be familiar with the Dewey Decimal System?”



“Oh marvelous!” Flitwitck squeaked. “I use this Muggle contraption to look up what I want – it’s all coded you see, according a series a numbers for each category. And then I go to the aisle with those numbers and then look alphabetically by the Author’s surname. The worst bit is usually having to wait for the contraption to be available (there is almost always someone on all of them!) – but they can even tell you if something is available or not and you can reserve items on them too!”



“You have performed admirably in spite of certain difficulties, Miss Newkirk,” Lupin said with a smile.



“Thanks to you, Professor Lupin. It’s only because of your help that I have managed as well as I have…”



She was feeling quite smug until she got a look at Severus’ face. There was a vein throbbing at his temples and his mouth was set in a thin line as his eyes flickered over his old enemy. So it was true, Snape and Lupin were enemies and there was formidable tightrope to walk between them – when Snape decided she was worth bothering with apparently.



“If there is nothing to add,” Professor Dumbledore said rising amidst a hubbub of excited chatter. “Miss Newkirk a quiet word if you please,” he said leaning into Jessica privately. They walked out of the room together and walked to his office in silence.



…xxxXXXxxx…



“Well done on your presentation. I know that your time here has not been easy so far,” the Headmaster said quietly once he had taken a seat behind his desk and Jessica sat across from him. “I myself have not been particularly helpful. But do try to understand my position; I have students and faculty to safeguard. Yours is not a situation anyone here has been faced with. But you have proven far more trustworthy than even I would have been willing to credit you with.”



“Thank you, Sir…” Jessica said cautiously, wondering what was coming next.



“I make mistakes as much as the next man; and no doubt I have made one or a few with you.”



Jessica cocked her eyebrow in a manner that even Snape would have appreciated had he been there.



“I could have been more supportive; but with the matters concerning me – I had to take care…”



“Of course you did, Headmaster…”



It was plain that Dumbledore wanted things to be right between them. It wasn’t that simple though, and Jessica wasn’t about to lose sleep over his seeming change of heart because of a guilty conscience, if indeed that is what it was.



“Hermione Granger speaks very highly of you.”



“As well she should given all of the time I have to spend telling her things she doesn’t want to hear and having to be pleasant dealing with Madam; I’ve never seen a child who thinks they know everything even with so much to learn. There is something to be said for experience – life isn’t what you read in books, it’s what you live and she has a long road ahead of her where that is concerned.”



“Very true,” Dumbledore sighed wearily. “It’s very true for all of us…”



“Including me, Headmaster…”



“Interesting…” Dumbledore said quietly resulting in another cocked eyebrow from Jessica. “How symbiotic the two of you are; yourself and Severus…”



Jessica did not move a muscle nor did she speak, but her back was up – way up. And if the Headmaster had even the slightest inkling he didn’t seem to be too bothered.



“I am not nearly the bogeyman you want to believe I am, Jessica,” the old wizard said respectfully. “But with age hopefully comes maturity; and with maturity hopefully comes the ability to forgive. I hope you can find it in yourself to forgive me for doing the right thing, which was not the easiest for me to do given the uniqueness of your situation.”



“What is it you want from me, Professor Dumbledore?”



“The difference between what is right, and what is easy, Jessica…”



A cold chill ran up Jessica’s spine at this echo in time. These were the very words that Dumbledore was likely to speak to Harry Potter later that year when the TriWizard Tournament came to Hogwarts – if the tournament came to Hogwarts.



“It is not in my nature to do what comes easiest, Professor. But I think you already know that.”



“Indeed I do. You would not be here if I believed otherwise.”



“Well – I suppose I should thank you for finally being so honest with me.”



“It is the right thing to do…”



“Even if it is not the easiest…”



Dumbledore nodded his agreement.



“This is your home now, Jessica. Oh we bicker and have our moments, as does any other family, but it is home. It is home to you and I hope you will find your situation to be more satisfactory than it has been. I have worked on a few matters which I believe will aid you significantly in your work and your life amongst us.”



Dumbledore opened a draw and took out a rectangular wooden box made of Rosewood and with mother-of-pearl inlay. He opened it, squinted, closed it and then pushed it across the desk towards Jessica.



“What is it?” Jessica asked, not wanting to touch it.



“Something meant for you, I believe…” Dumbledore said softly.



Jessica reached across with shaky hands and pulled the box to her. She opened it – and her face went pale and drawn.



“I… I don’t understand…” she mumbled numbly as she picked up the wand that lay inside.



Dumbledore’s eyes possessed a look of triumph.



“Give it a wave,” he ordered calmly.



Jessica did as she was told, but nothing happened.



“I see…” the Headmaster muttered, obviously greatly disappointed.



“I’m not magical… I’m a Muggle…”



“Indeed you are. But, you are the first person who has ever managed to pick up that wand since Rowena Ravenclaw was in possession of it over 3,000 years ago.”



“I… I beg your pardon?”



“Place it back in the box, Jessica…” Dumbledore said with a nod.



Jessica did as she was told (happy to do so) and Dumbledore summoned the box with a wave of his hand. Jessica watched in horror as the old wizard tried in vain to pick up the wand with its ornate Scots Celtic engraving. Unable to do so – he pushed the box across his desk once more.



“Like I said, Headmaster,” Jessica said through gritted teeth. “You know far more than you let on!”



“Not as much as some would believe. I am following an instinct and believe me; it has taken a great deal of effort to arrive at this breakthrough of ours.”



“Right. A nice ornament for my bookcase…”



“There may come a time when it will prove to be far more useful than that.”



“But of course you have no intention of just setting me straight. Tell me, is everyone so gullible such as to set stock all this empty yet meaninful rhetoric you pronounce without question?”



Dumbledore laughed and the twinkle in his eyes was undeniable.



“I am afraid that tends to be the case; as befitting one who is said to be ‘The Greatest Wizard of the Age’…they pander when it is not demanded nor expected of them.”



“There is an exception to every rule, Headmaster.”



“Indeed there is, Jessica. Indeed there is… and for me you are most certainly it – you and Severus that is…”



There was no answer as the stranger waited for the fearsome wizard to get to the point.



“Tell me, Jessica – have you any intention of ever being completely open and honest with me?”



“I have no idea what you are talking about, Sir.”



Dumbledore leaned forward and peered over his glasses as her. Jessica had one too many experiences like this with managers in the corporate world she’d left behind and therefore wasn’t as malleable as those around the Headmaster seemed to be. She didn’t care, people ought to be able to what they needed to for their own sake and not simply because Dumbledore felt it was the right thing to do given the threat of evil in his universe.



He wasn’t going to tell her about the usefulness of that wand or its significance to her. He’d leave her to find out probably at a moment when the knowledge of it would do her the most good – a moment that would probably the worst possible. Her life or someone else’s was likely to be at risk and she would either find out by accident in an extraordinary dose of good luck or when it was too late if she lived to tell the tale.



“I see,” the old wizard said sadly. “You cannot forgive any more than you can trust – something else you and Severus have in common.”



“I don’t know him, really, so I am not in a position to comment. But what little I do know of him I don’t think he’d appreciate you speaking of him in such personal terms and to someone other him.”



“You have more of a measure of him than you believe, then.”



“I just sit back and watch – as much as I listen, Headmaster.”



“Hermione Granger thinks very highly of you…”



“So you said. Is that supposed to be significant? Like a centaur, renowned for their gift in divination, commenting indirectly on how brightly Mercury is shining tonight?”



Jessica realised that she should stop with these incessant oblique references to what she’d read in the Harry Potter books, but seemed unable to get control of it. But perhaps she wasn’t meant to. So far, everything felt right and her instincts told her that what she did and what she said was right.



The Headmaster snorted ruefully. “It would see you have more of a measure of me than I would have believed too.”



“Is there anything else, Professor Dumbledore?”



“No,” the Headmaster replied sadly as Jessica rose.



“Miss Newkirk,” he called after her.



“Yes,” Jessica replied without turning around. She knew the game as much as he did.



“Your box…”



“Hmmph, my box indeed…” Jessica commented as she strode to his desk and picked it up.



“I would like to suggest that you carry that wand with you at all times, as we do in this world. You never know…”



“I understood you the first time…” came a reply as Jessica walked towards the door to Dumbledore’s office.



“Yes… I have no doubt that you did…”



“Jessica?”



“Yes?”



“I am not nearly the bogeyman you want to believe I am…”



“Right…”



‘Saying it doesn’t make it so’ Jessica thought to herself as she closed the door without looking back.



She shook her head in anger as the revolving spiral staircase took her downwards. Dumbledore had just done the very thing with her that had proved to be his undoing with Harry Potter.



The stranger could only wonder if it would be her undoing as well.