Spending time in the headmaster's office was never a dull experience. With Albus Dumbledore as the current headteacher, the spacious room was filled with bowls of Muggle candy and noisy, half-sentient trinkets. Those details were meant to set unruly students or upset parents at ease, but Cassie had long since learned to peer past the veil of smoke and mirrors. She was rarely in the office unless there was a matter of utmost importance to be discussed. She was sure that this Saturday evening would be no different.
"First and foremost," Dumbledore said with a crystal goblet of champagne in his hand, "I would like to congratulate the two of you on your recent betrothal." He waved his empty hand and two more goblets appeared on his desk. Severus took his with an obvious air of vexation and Cassie followed suit. "May whatever higher powers hear us bestow their blessings upon your upcoming union." The three of them drank, the sound of Fawkes preening his newly sprouted feathers seeming especially loud with the lack of dialogue. The portrait of Amrose Swott cleared his throat loudly as champagne glasses were set back down on the desk.
"You approve?" Severus asked point-blank as he eyed his superior in suspicion.
"Whatever do you mean, Severus?" replied Dumbledore with a feigned expression of naivety. Cassie refrained from rolling her eyes. "I approve of what fills you two with joy."
Severus was not convinced. Nonetheless, Dumbledore did not elaborate. "What is the purpose behind this summons?"
"Ah, you desire that I get to the point. I should have guessed that you are endlessly busy," the headmaster replied airily. "Tell me, my dear boy. Has your mark been bothersome recently?"
"You know it has," Severus snapped.
Dumbledore's blue eyes narrowed as he studied his younger counterpart. He seemed to be considering his next words carefully, and finally, he extended an upturned hand toward the Head of Slytherin. "May I?"
Severus was taken aback, hesitating as he glared at Dumbledore. He hated exposing his left arm, regardless if the person seeing it knew of the mark's existence prior. Nonetheless, he began to furiously unbutton his sleeve.
Cassie sat in strained silence as Dumbledore carefully examined the slightly more visible lines on her fiance's arm. It seemed like an eternity before he gave Severus a slight nod. Severus ripped his arm from the older wizard's hand.
"I think it goes without saying," Dumbledore said thoughtfully as he sat back in his cushy chair, "that we must be extra vigilant from now on."
"Of course," Cassie replied as beside her, Severus closed up the buttons of his left sleeve. "Have there been more signs?"
"Sirius has informed me that Harry's scar has been hurting," said Dumbledore. "He was quite uneasy about being so far away, as any parent would be - "
Severus snorted in indignation.
"We will keep Harry safe," Cassie said.
"I reassured Sirius of the same," replied the headmaster. "I have also given him the option of coming to the castle from time to time if that would ease his worries."
Severus was in a sour mood as they left Dumbledore's office. He was muttering about pseudo-parents and special treatment as they reached Cassie's classroom. Neville, who had been dutifully waiting and was currently reading the recipe for Calming Draught, nearly fell over in his seat when they crossed the threshold.
"Hello, Neville," Cassie greeted him, sitting behind her desk.
"Hello," he replied meekly as he attempted to smooth out his crumpled robes.
"Have you sufficiently prepared for remediation?" Severus asked, the bite from his recent annoyance not completely removed from his tone. Neville swallowed hard as he nodded in response. "Then it's time to attempt this draught again." He swept from the room and the young Gryffindor clamored from his chair to hurry after his Potions Master.
Hermione Granger, who had accompanied Neville to the tutoring classroom, was reading her Arithmancy textbook and so far had not acknowledged Cassie's existence. She rarely needed help with homework but tonight she looked perplexed as her brown eyes scanned furiously over the pages on her desk.
"Hermione," Cassie asked after marking the final grade on a rather dull third-year Charms essay, "Would you like help with something?"
"No," the younger witch sniffed as she turned a page. "Did you even take fourth-year Arithmancy?"
Cassie smirked in amusement at Hermione's haughty attitude. "As a matter of fact, I did."
"Did you make it to NEWT level?"
"Yes."
"Hmm," said Hermione as she wrote something in her notes. Two second-year Hufflepuffs walked in, and then Draco came in behind them. Cassie, who normally would have greeted her younger cousin, wasn't quite done with the Gryffindor witch just yet.
"Why would you like to know?"
"Professor Vector said that typically, only Ravenclaws and a select few from other houses do well in her classes," Hermione said matter-of-factly.
"Find it hard to believe that someone else has got brains, eh, Granger?" Draco drawled as he sat at the desk directly in front of Cassie's. He met his cousin's eyes and winked.
"That's not what I meant," Hermione replied. She didn't bother to look at Draco although she was speaking to him. "I just wanted to know her grade since she's a professor's assistant."
Draco and Cassie exchanged an amused glance before Cassie said, "I'm qualified, don't worry."
"Granger is just cross because I did better than her on our last assignment," Draco declared with a triumphant look on his face.
"You did better by one point!" Hermione protested shrilly.
"I got the only perfect score in the class," Draco continued, ignoring her outburst. "Vector awarded Slytherin twenty house points. Said she hasn't had anyone do that well this early in the year in over a decade."
"That's amazing, Draco," replied Cassie, trying not to smile too wide, as Hermione already looked like her head was going to explode from her neck and fly around the room. "I'm proud of you!"
"Could we stop talking?" Hermione snipped as she turned a page in her textbook irritably. "I'm trying to study, and I'm not the only one!" she added, nodding toward the pair of Hufflepuffs that had their heads buried in the same Transfiguration book. Cassie nodded in acknowledgment before making her way over to the Hufflepuff pair to help them with their essays.
It wasn't long before Draco broke away from his coursework to look over at Hermione. "If you need help, you only need to ask, Granger," he drawled as he scribbled on his parchment.
"I don't need help!" she hissed back in an angry whisper.
"You will if you want perfect scores," he continued. "I'm not opposed to begging, especially coming from such an impoverished Gryffindor such as yourself."
That was the last straw for Hermione. She gathered her things and stormed angrily from the classroom, nearly smacking into Professor Moody as she rounded the corner on her way out. She apologized profusely, keeping her inquiring thoughts to herself. He was just standing a few feet from the classroom door, but it didn't seem he intended to enter. Hermione glanced at him one more time as she ascended the grand staircase.
After successfully brewing what was required of him under the Potions Master's intense guidance, Neville returned to the entrance hall. He, too, noticed Moody standing in the corridor, facing Cassie's classroom door but never not moving to approach it. The young wizard's nerves were still crackling after having spent so much one-on-one time with Professor Snape and so he jumped when Moody suddenly turned toward him.
"Longbottom," Moody barked, his normal eye boring down on him as his false eye remained fixed on the classroom door. "Where did you just come from?"
Neville gulped. "Th-the potions classroom."
"What for?"
"Remedial lessons."
"With Snape?"
"Y-yes."
Moody was studying Neville intently. He shrunk under the scrutiny, wanting nothing more than to be able to race back to the safety of Gryffindor tower or to at the very least turn invisible and escape this wizard's stare. Finally, Moody blinked. "Come with me, Longbottom. There's something I've been meaning to show you."
Neville didn't want to follow the DADA professor as he limped down the corridor, in fact, it was the absolute last thing he wanted at that moment. But, after he reminded himself that he had survived Snape's presence only minutes ago, he sucked in a shaky breath and did just that.
The warm days of September turned cooler as the month ticked on. Cassie continued with her duties, doing her best to pretend like all she had to worry about was a theoretical upcoming wedding and piles of homework to grade. In reality, she was spending many nights outside of the castle. Diolinda and Romily were searching for a healer who was skilled enough to help Bianca and simultaneously be trusted to keep secrets. They had been unsuccessful in finding the right person so far, and so Bianca was taken care of to the best of their abilities. When Cassie did go to the Lestrange estate, she stayed far away from Bianca's room. The injured seer still fell into a terrified frenzy at the sight of her and would not calm unless she was charmed unconscious.
"I do not fully understand," Diolinda said one cold night, wrapping her hands around a freshly brewed mug of hot cocoa. "You were both trained by Master Machado extensively in healing magic, were you not? You can do more."
"I have tried everything I know," Romily answered with a heavy sigh. "The obstacle seems to be that her brain injury is something beyond physical."
"She is suffering from dark magic, then," Diolinda said ominously. "There are things we do not know, do not understand. Perhaps we need an expert in the Dark Arts and not healing magic."
Cassie felt Romily's gaze on her. She didn't want to meet her eyes. "No," she told her friend simply.
"He is an expert Legilimens, and you have told me he has extensive knowledge of Dark Magic - " said Romily.
"To understand what happened to her, Severus would have to enter her mind," Cassie answered, "and I will not subject anyone to that, not after what I saw!"
"Bianca needs help," Romily answered simply. "He may be the only one that can!"
"I said no."
"Then you are condemning her to this life of misery!" Romily argued. Cassie didn't need to hear it from her. She already knew it was unfair to Bianca. But if Romily or Diolinda had experienced what she had in Bianca's mind - the hellish images, the unending pain, the feeling that she could never escape and that the seer's warped mind would doom her to a lifetime of torturous insanity if she didn't escape - it was enough to send her into a panic attack even thinking back on it.
"So be it!" Cassie shouted, jumping to her feet. "I will not expose my fiance to those nightmares - those horrors - "
"How can you be so cold- "
"Enough, Romily!" Diolinda interjected. "You have promised to obey Lady Black's commands."
Romily's expression was unyielding. Cassie waited for her to say something more. Instead, the brunette witch left the room without uttering another word.
Cassie exited the Lestrange mansion shortly after the argument. The visits to her childhood home were becoming increasingly draining when it was clear that they were at a total loss as to how to help Bianca. Cassie was trying to ignore the guilt that was bubbling up, knowing that it wasn't only healing Bianca that she was interested in: they needed to know who had attacked her. They were all vulnerable until the culprit's identity was found out.
"Mistress is stressed," Boros hissed as he slithered beside Cassie in the overgrown grass.
"I am," she admitted to the transfigured basilisk. In response, the reptilian familiar wrapped itself around her ankle and swiftly climbed its way up Cassie's torso, coming to rest across her shoulders. Cassie smiled contentedly as she stroked Boros's scaled head. When she reached the edge of the Lestrange estate, she Apparated with a loud crack.
With a wave of her wand, the anti-shadowing charm she had cast melted away. To an onlooker, she would have appeared as if out of thin air, but not in an unnatural way. The charm had its way of convincing anyone watching to feel like the person had been there the entire time. Tonight's onlooker happened to be Barty Couch Jr. under the guise of Alastor Moody. He was seated near a front window of the Three Broomsticks, and with the ex-Auror's magical eye, was able to keep a close watch on Hogsmeade's streets. He didn't know how he had missed where Cassie Black had appeared from. He just knew that she was now there, and she seemed to be heading to Hogwarts.
The wizard slapped a handful of coins onto the table, an amount that far exceeded what his butterbeer plus tip was worth, and ambled out of the pub. Black didn't seem to be in any particular hurry, and for a moment he strained to try to discern what she was saying and who she was talking to. A jolt of sick surprise struck him when he realized she was speaking Parseltongue to the serpent around her shoulders.
"Pick up a stray?" he asked, wheezing as he struggled to catch up to her with his peg leg. She turned to get a good look at him, her blue eyes full of suspicion. Right of her to feel that way, he thought. As long as her subconscious didn't reveal too much.
"You could say that," she answered coolly.
"Might scare some students with that thing."
"The students have seen things far worse than a snake."
"Out for a stroll?"
"I could ask you the same thing, Mad-Eye," she answered him. They went through the gates together and she didn't bother to slow her pace as they approached the castle.
"I suppose Dumbledore has you out running errands," Crouch continued. He was growing increasingly annoyed at her obvious evasion of giving him any real information. It seemed his master's daughter was much smarter than he initially thought. He thought his disguise as Moody would guarantee her trust, but she was wary of him. He didn't know how to remedy the situation.
"Is that what you think I am? Some errand girl?"
Crouch shot her a lofty grin when she turned to glare at him. "We both know you are much more than that."
They were in the entrance hall. It was late and no one else was around, so Cassie didn't have a problem stepping up to the DADA professor to get in his gnarled face. "It might be in your best interest to remember that when you're reporting whatever you think it is I'm doing to your boss."
Crouch faltered. His boss? How could she know about the Dark Lord, he had been so careful -
"Ah," she said, a nasty smile spreading on her features. The snake around her shoulders hissed and bared its pointed fangs at him, matching her feral energy. "I see I may have struck home. I don't know what he did to convince you that it's worth spying on me, but it must have been good. Be sure you give Fudge my regards when you give him your next report."
He let her walk away without challenging her theory. Better to let her think he was Moody acting under Fudge's orders, as it would only protect his facade even more.
"More candles on the ceiling, if you would. No, no, not those, Weasley, those are the ones that explode when they burn down to the wick!" McGonagall barked. Instead of having a lesson, the Head of Gryffindor was having her fourth-years decorate her classroom in anticipation of the Durmstrang and Beauxbaton students arriving. "I want each one spaced out evenly, but don't light any of them, I'll do that the first time they enter the room - Longbottom, get your hand away from that jack o' lantern's teeth, I don't want to send you to the hospital ward with detached fingers!"
"Here, let me," Cassie offered, grabbing the snapping pumpkin away from Neville, and attaching it to a gold hook on the wall with a flick of her wrist.
The teachers were tense. It seemed school rivalry was alive and well, and each of them was trying to better the castle in some fashion. Flitwick had been running through the corridors sticking iridescent fireflies to every bare brick he could find, and Sprout was force-feeding her humming roses Quick-Grow to get them waist high.
Severus, however, had a different audience in mind. Rather than try to impress the entirety of the visiting group of students, he was focused on making sure he had all the necessary supplies to make the most complicated potions with his new apprentice. He had spent the week leading up to Halloween pulling recipes from his rarest texts, and he had even gone as far as forbidding Cassie from doing anything in his office besides walking through it to his quarters in case she disturbed any of his organized ingredients.
"Am I going to see you after your apprentice arrives?" she asked, swiveling her head to get a better look at a large jar of glimmering griffin talons as he steered her through his office by her shoulders. "You have enough stuff in here to make a thousand potions!"
"Of course, you will see me," he answered irritably. He only visibly relaxed when they were in the sitting room and he had shut the door, effectively keeping a barrier between them and his precious ingredients.
"Good, because eventually we have to start planning a wedding, you know."
"In time, my love."
"How much time?"
Severus pinched the bridge of his nose as he sighed. "We've been over this, Cassie. Now is not the time for a wedding."
"I know now isn't the time, Sev. But we should pick a date and start planning. I want to buy a dress and book a band and pick flowers."
He grabbed her hands in his and led her to the couch, turning toward her as he sat. "There are more pressing matters, Cassie. The antecessoris praesidium is extremely complex. When my apprentice is here to help - "
"But why the urgency, Sev? You haven't told me anything about it!"
The weighted silence seemed like an eternity as he contemplated his next sentence. Eventually, he spoke, but Cassie could tell he didn't want to. "The elixir is for protection. It must be made by sacrificing the brewer's heirloom - in this case, the ring and necklace we obtained from the Prince estate - but the effects are for the person who drinks it. I am making it for you, Cassie."
"What would it protect me from?"
"From the Dark Lord, Cassie. The elixir will make it impossible for him to kill you with magic." He was so emotionless when he said it. Cassie didn't know if he had practiced telling her in his head so many times that he had become numb to the idea, or if he was convinced that she would accept the idea without question.
She was struck mute for a few moments. When was able to form words, her mouth had gone desert-dry. "Sev, you don't have to waste your time on this, I'll be fine - "
"I will be brewing it. There will be no further discussion."
"Sev - "
"Consider it a wedding present," he replied simply. She shook her head, trying to wrap her head around the topic of their current conversation. He had so little confidence in her abilities that he assumed that her father would be able to murder her. How dare he worry himself with such atrocities when all she wanted was to worry about their wedding and fantasize about their marriage and their happiness.
"How romantic," she replied coldly. "Will you be picking out my casket in case it fails?"
At her cruel jab, he released his hold on her hands and stood. "Idiot girl," he sneered.
"Here I thought you might be composing your wedding vows," she spat at him from her spot on the couch, "but you've probably been working on my eulogy." Severus stormed off to the bedroom. When she realized that he wasn't going to participate in her attempt to start a quarrel, she followed him. "Perhaps your apprentice could help you with that, too?"
Severus whipped around to face her and opened his mouth to reply. His voice was stolen from him when white-hot pain seared in his left arm. A tormented gasp left his lips and Cassie watched, helpless, as he choked on his own breath.
She instinctively moved closer to him, but he took two quick steps backward before he hit the wall behind him. "No!" he croaked, his hand wrapped around his forearm. "I won't allow it!"
"I won't," she said miserably as the normally poised Potions Master was hunched over in agony. "I promise, Sev!" She wrapped her arms around him, fighting back her tears as he buried his face into the nape of her neck.
Cassie coaxed him into the bed after several tense moments, and both witch and wizard were silent as they waited for the pain to subside. Finally, Severus lifted his head from her chest to look at her. His onyx eyes glittered in the soft glow of flickering candlelight.
"Better?" she asked softly, tracing a lazy path over his upper back with her fingertips. He hummed in contentment at her touch.
"Thank you," he murmured, kissing her jaw before settling back into her embrace. She was relieved he didn't see as tears finally sprang from her eyes. All of this was because of her father, who was supposed to be vanquished, and all signs were pointing to his imminent return. Severus had just spent several moments in excruciating pain that she could not relieve, and he was thanking her.
Thanking her for nothing besides lying there with him.
Grateful for burdening him with the task of brewing a complicated potion that he would otherwise not have to waste time or resources on.
And she had scorned him for it.
A sob left her throat. It was only after she got herself under control and wiped the tears from her eyes that she realized that Severus had already fallen asleep.
October thirtieth was upon them. Filch had scrubbed the castle to a sparkling clean, and the professors had decorated every bare inch of the corridors with house emblems and colors. The students had a difficult time concentrating in their lessons and many of them had house points taken away for speaking out of turn in class. Severus demanded the same amount of discipline from his students as he always did, but ended up having to send two sixth-years to the hospital wing after they accidentally dumped over a bottle of demiguise urine and could no longer feel their upper limbs. Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons went on as usual, and Crouch cast the Imperious Curse on countless students.
Other professors tried a different approach. Cassie had a free hour and sat in on seventh-year Charms. Flitwick was having his Slytherin and Ravenclaws leisurely practice Capacious Extremis on their book bags and let them talk as much as they wanted to. When it was almost time for the welcoming feast, Cassie felt almost as excited as the chattering pupils around her.
She stood with her arm hooked in Severus's as the entire population of the school waited outside. Beside her, Dumbledore was chewing loudly on a piece of Anglo Bubbly and humming a made-up tune, appearing to be perfectly at ease with the prospect of outside students and staff arriving. McGonagall was inspecting the Gryffindors for a third time, using her wand to smooth a girl's unruly hair down and barking at Fred and George to stop shooting parchment balls with their wands at Cedric Diggory.
Madame Maxine and her candidates arrived by flying horse and the students were jittery and enlivened. When the Durmstrang ship burst from the Black Lake, the excitement grew. Then the realization that Viktor Krum was in their midst hit the majority of the students and many of them were hysterical.
Everyone was making their way into the great hall when Karkaroff spotted the newly engaged couple. "Ah, Severus. Miss Black," he greeted them with a small bow of his head. Cassie swallowed back the sick feeling in the back of her throat. She hadn't seen the Durmstrang headmaster in many years, but being in his presence again wasn't something she had ever hoped for.
"Igor," said Severus, hesitantly shaking the older wizard's proffered hand.
"So good to see you again," Karkaroff said, baring his yellowed teeth in a strained grin. "And Cassiopeia - you don't mind if I call you by your first name, do you - ?" he rambled as he kissed each of Cassie's cheeks. She grimaced as they pulled apart. "Or should I refer to you as the soon-to-be Madame Snape?" he continued. "Lucius told me that congratulations are in order."
"Whatever," she snapped.
Karkaroff's smile faltered a bit as he noticed Cassie's unamused expression. "Yes, well, where are my manners? Let me introduce you to my niece, Kalina," he said, turning to gesture toward a blonde witch who had been standing alone, trying to stay out of the way of the flow of hungry students. She was dressed in the same sleek, silvery furs that Karkaroff had on, and one of the first things that Cassie noticed when she approached was that she was a bit tall. The second thing she noticed was her bright green, almond-shaped eyes.
"Kalina, this is Professor Severus Snape, the famed Hogwarts Potions Master," said Karkaroff. Kalina bowed deeply. "Severus, this is Kalina Karkaroff, your new apprentice."
"It is an immense pleasure to meet you, Master Snape," said Kalina. "I look forward to learning many things from you."
Cassie didn't know why her ears were ringing as they made their way into the great hall for the feast. She completely missed the rest of the conversation that was taking place between Karkaroff, Severus, and Kalina. What she did notice was that the Durmstrang headmaster insisted that Kalina be seated next to Severus at the head table, and he continually talked over his niece to keep yapping at the Potions Master throughout the meal. Kalina remained mostly silent as she pushed black pudding around her plate. She had removed her fur hat, and now Cassie could see that her golden blonde hair was swirled into an elegant bun at the nape of her neck. Her long, slender, perfect neck that matched the rest of her physique -
What am I doing? thought Cassie as she swallowed the abnormally large bite of roast she had absentmindedly shoveled into her mouth. Obviously, this witch is talented or she wouldn't be here, it doesn't matter that she's insanely beautiful. And would be working side by side with Severus, sometimes late into the night, alone -
"What?" Cassie asked stupidly. Kalina had spoken to her across Severus, who was politely listening to Karkaroff prattle on.
"I apologize, I should speak at a louder volume," said the blonde witch. "I was wondering how long you have been a professor's assistant."
"This is my second year."
"Where did you formally train?"
"I didn't. I mean, not for being an assistant. I trained in South America after I graduated from Hogwarts." Kalina was studying her intently, and Cassie didn't particularly enjoy the scrutiny. "When did you graduate from Durmstrang?"
"One year ago."
"It's impressive that you've already surpassed your master's skills."
Kalina looked down at her plate, clearly embarrassed. "You flatter me, Mistress Black."
"Please call me Cassie."
"Oh, I couldn't possibly - "
"We're going to be seeing a lot of each other. Might as well get the formalities out of the way."
It was a pleasant enough exchange. Soon, Dumbledore stood to explain the Triwizard Tournament to everyone in the Great Hall, and more excitement formed when it was announced that the champions would be drawn on the next night. Chattering students were making their way to their dormitories and the Durmstrang and Beauxbaton visitors were heading outside to retire for the evening. Cassie was more than ready for this day to be over. She and Severus did not have patrolling duties and had the night to themselves. She assumed they would be spending their free time together in Severus's quarters, perhaps to soak in the bath and discuss the day's revelations. She was taken aback when she noticed that Kalina was being led to the dungeon staircase by Severus.
Boros, who was at her heel, noticed the shift in his mistress's demeanor. He slithered up her body, coming to rest on her shoulders, and she instinctively stroked his head. It was becoming a comforting routine, to have her familiar wrapped around her person and be able to touch him.
Hagrid exited the great hall, and with a great smile and rosy cheeks, beamed at Cassie. "Want ter help me settle Madame Maxine's horses, Cass?" Severus and Kalina had disappeared to the dungeons.
"Yes, Hagrid," she replied, her hand still resting on Boros as she turned to the half-giant. "I'd love to." She went out to the grounds to tend to the elephant-sized winged palominos, doing her best to distract herself from the fact that her fiance was in the dungeons talking potions with a gorgeous emerald-eyed witch. Unsurprisingly, it didn't work.