"You were not here, so I let myself in," Snape said evenly, rising from the chair like a cobra. "Interesting decor you have. Not only are you a muddle-headed, Muggle-addled child, you are a hopeless romantic fool as well." And he crossed his arms and sniffed derisively.

Deveroux took in the extinguished fire and the Sonoroballs and picture on the desk, and her eyes narrowed. "Well, you've got your nerve haven't you, you nosy creep!" She strode over to the desk and held out her hand for the picture. Snape shrugged and returned the picture to her without comment.

"So what makes you think you have the right to just waltz in here whenever you please, Professor Snoop?" Deveroux said, her mouth a thin line. She stormed over to the far wall and put the picture back in its rightful place as Snape put the Sonoroballs away and came out from behind the desk. The elf then turned to face Snape and crossed her arms, her eyes flashing with anger.

The dhampire snorted in annoyance. "You are a fine one to talk about snooping! You are the one who reads my mail without my knowledge or permission! And you are the one who always has a habit of showing up at my office door without invitation, anytime you please, including at night when I am better off left alone and would very much prefer that you stayed on your side of the castle and let me stay on mine."

"That is no excuse for breaking into my office and going through my belongings! Honestly, I don't think even Draco Malfoy would be this rude, although I wouldn't put it past him to try something like this if you suggested it to him. Don't you have any notion of manners and decency, you troll? I would have thought that you had learned your lesson after you tried to take my wand!"

"You know so much about me, yet I know so little bit about you. You are always in my office whether I invite you or not, and yet you never invite me to yours. It is a little one-sided, this Watching business, don't you think? For it seems that you are always demanding explanations and answers from me, yet telling me nothing in return..." Snape replied with irritation.

Aurellia said nothing. She was still boiling with anger, but Snape had a point. She had been rather pushy at times, and nosy...and frequently evasive whenever he asked her about her past.

Snape's tone softened a little as he continued. "I only wished to know who you are. Why you are so different. Why you are still my Watcher despite all my efforts to discourage you. I...cannot resist a mystery. That is my great weakness, like your vulnerability to the Terminosa spell. Curiosity. I have been told all my life, by my mother and father, by Dumbledore, even by Voldemort, I have been told that curiosity would be my undoing. And there have been many occasions where it nearly was. In fact, ironically enough, I think the only person who hasn't told me that my curiosity would kill me is Sybill Trelawney."

"Oh, I suppose she told you that you'd meet some grisly fate at the hands of You-Know-Who? Or did she tell you that I'd kill you myself when I caught you snooping in my office?"

Snape snorted and laughed bitterly. "No, you are not even close, child. She said..." he paused, reflecting.

The youngest of the Marked ones shall break faith

And shall serve both Light and Dark, yet belong to neither

For his is a dual nature;

And he will ever be divided against himself...

He shall be made to choose whether to be counted

As servant of Darkness or Light.

And his choice shall shatter the age-old cycle of evil,

Or doom all life to a new darkness.

And Fedhamohsi, the unicorn king, had echoed the seeress' words..."You still have not made up your mind whom you serve." Snape shuddered slightly with dread. Oh, he was on Dumbledore's side currently...but not entirely by choice. The Death Eaters wanted nothing more to do with him now that Voldemort was angry with him. And the feeling was mutual. But the dhampire knew that his time of decision had not truly come yet.

As always, Aurellia was waiting impatiently for an answer. In fact, Snape was beginning to think that patience was completely counter to her nature, and he wondered if this wasan Elvin trait, or if it was something ingrained into her by her Muggle foster parents. No wonder she was hopeless at Potions! Snape decided to give the elf the answer she expected to hear ... since he had just discovered her rather interesting taste in music. "She said that I would die for love," he said, keeping his thoughts to himself.

Aurellia grinned at that, and Snape quickly changed the subject.

"Speaking of mysteries, what exactly is TPTAH? Some little in-joke with the werewolf, perhaps?" Snape asked.

The Defense teacher shot him another dark look. "You really have been busy snooping, haven't you? It's nothing important, just a little silliness on Remus' part. He can be such a tease sometimes."

"Yes, I know Lupin. So, what does it stand for?"

Aurellia flushed a bit. "Oh, if I weren't supposed to be your Watcher right now, I swear I'd kill you! If you must know, it means 'The Prettiest Teacher At Hogwarts'. Now are you satisfied?"

Snape snorted, pretending to be amused, but just for a moment Aurellia thought she might have seen a flash of something entirely different in his eyes. Was it ...jealousy?

"I am not blind to the fact that you have many...admirers among the students," Snape remarked flatly after a pause. "But I did not know..." and here his tone changed and became slightly menacing, and again there was something in his eyes that Aurellia most certainly did not like, "that Remus Lupin was among your entourage."

Aurellia's jaw dropped in stunned outrage, and for a moment she could not gather the words to respond.

"It is not often that I agree with Lupin, but in this case I find his assessment ... accurate, if inadequate."

"Inadequate?!" a very-much offended Aurellia exclaimed, finding her voice at last.

"Yes," Snape continued quietly. "I have traveled far beyond Hogwarts' confines, and I have been to every continent and subcontinent. I have been down many roads that I wish I had never set foot on. And yet, in all my life I have never seen..." he looked away.

"I am a fool,” the dhampire concluded bitterly.

"What!" the elf exploded. "Are you suggesting that Remus and I ...Oh, Snape, you envious, nosy, impetuous, troll-headed fool! It isn't like that at all! Remus was my cousin Luk's best friend, and he is like a big brother to me, but that's all there is to it! You are throwing fireballs at phantoms!"

"Fireball," Snape murmured reflectively, eager to change the subject. "I cannot imagine how on earth you managed to earn such a nickname for yourself," he said sarcastically, taking in Aurellia's blazing anger and belligerent stance.

Then the dhampire's attention shifted to the picture next to the elf, the picture of Remus, Aurellia, and Luk. The picture that he had been studying when she had walked in. "That young man ... that is your cousin Luk," he said, crossing the room to where the elf stood and pointing at the young man in the picture.

"Yes," Deveroux replied, her tone sad and reflective. She was already beginning to get over being angry with Snape for intruding on her personal space, although that little insinuation about her and Lupin rankled. "Luk used to say that I burn like a fireball, fiery and scalding in my anger, but the anger usually burns itself out quickly. And you're lucky that it does because I was about ready to reintroduce you to the business end of my wand when I came in and saw you sitting at my desk."

"That picture," Snape inquired, staring at the photo, "when was it taken?"

"That was taken the day I returned from the states, about two years ago," the elf replied quietly. "I had stayed there for a year as part of an exchange program at my law school. Remus and Luk had picked me up at the airport, then we both went and celebrated that evening at Canary Wharf. Why are you so interested in him all of a sudden?"

"What happened to Luk?" Snape asked suddenly, not letting on that he had already pieced together Luk's likely fate. "You have mentioned that he passed away, but you have never told me how or why."

Deveroux looked away. "No, Snape. It's not something I want to talk about. Not with you, not with Remus, not anyone...."

"I ... I need to know," Snape pressed. "It is important to me. Aurellia, I did not want to talk to you about Wormtail, and I did so only with great reluctance. You owe me."

"Why do you need to know?" Deveroux snapped. "Curiosity again? Haven't you made enough of a nosy nuisance of yourself for one day?"

Snape merely stared back and crossed his arms, and Deveroux reluctantly backed down. The irresistible force had encountered the immovable object, and the irresistible force lost this round.

"All right, fine ... I'll tell you," Deveroux said, and she closed her eyes. "But I want you to understand that this is very difficult for me to talk about...."

Snape said nothing, merely nodded and listened intently.

"I remember that day quite clearly," Aurellia began quietly, "It seemed like such an ordinary day. I had come home for lunch one afternoon on a busy Friday. I was between trials, and for once I was actually caught up on my casework. It had been a long day, a long week for that matter, and I needed a break from the office. Luk had been away for some time ... about a week, but he told me before he had left one evening that he was going on some special, secret assignment. I didn't worry -- he was frequently away due to the nature of his job.

"Suddenly, I felt my locket grow warm. This surprised me a little, but I did not worry about it. It was a warm day, after all, and my mind was on legal matters. The Wizarding world barely touched my life at that time, and then only through Remus and Luk, and I had forgotten what Luk had once told me about Watching charms and my mother's guardian charm.

"Then Luk came in through the back door ...." Deveroux shuddered at the memory. "He looked awful -- filthy, bruised and cut up, as if he had been through some terrible fight. I remember thinking that it was very out of character for him. Luk was fastidious, even a bit vain about his appearance. My locket grew warmer, even hot at that point, and that was when I began to get worried. I asked Luk what was wrong, and he looked at me with eyes that were his ... and not his."

"Explain," Snape demanded bluntly.

"I can't explain it any better than that, Snape. I just somehow knew that he wasn't himself. And I can tell you it was the most frightening thing I've ever seen in my life. I hope I never, ever get close to a Dementor. I never want to see those eyes again."

"Try. Try to explain. This is important. If what I suspect is true, then I may have some answers for you. Although...you will not like the answers when you hear them."

Aurellia gave a shuddering sigh and then continued in a shaky voice. "His eyes...were dead, soulless, as if someone had removed his being and left a shell. He told me he had seen Lord Voldemort with his very eyes, that Voldemort had returned, come back to life. Then he told me he was sorry. And then...then he tried to kill me!"

Deveroux put a hand to her face. "He tried to kill me, Snape! My cousin, who had protected me as a child, gui...guided me as a teen ... he...he tried to kill me!"

She began sobbing at this point, and it was several moments before she could continue. Snape put a tentative hand on her shoulder, and she started in surprise and turned her head to look at the hand.

Snape quickly withdrew the hand and glanced away, thinking that she was offended.

"It's okay," Aurellia said quietly through her tears, "I don't mind...as long as you promise me you won't try to bite me on the neck this time."

"I only bite at night when I get hungry or lose my temper," Snape replied sardonically. "The rest of the time I'm a tame monster."

Aurellia laughed and coughed on a sob. "You're a silly monster, that's what you are, Mister Fangs," she said, wiping her eyes with a sleeve.

"I'll have you know that I consider that a mortal insult, elf child. I may be many things, but I am not silly."

"Fine, then I take it back, Mister Not-Silly Monster." Aurellia said with a grin and a sniffle.

Snape glanced away to hide a reluctant grin, then looked back with a serious expression on his face. "So what happened...when he tried to kill you? Did you fight him off?"

Aurellia sniffled and continued, "He Mindcast something. I don't know what. All I knew was that I was in agony for a moment, and then there was complete darkness. It was fortunate for me that Remus, who was living with us at the time, happened to come home right then, and he found us. Remus told me later while I was at the hospital what had happened after I became unconscious. For some reason, Luk never made a move to attack Remus. He merely told Remus that he had killed me, then ... then he turned the wand on himself."

Snape stared at Deveroux in horror as the elf began sobbing anew. "He cast a lethal spell on himself?"

"No ... worse," Deveroux replied between sobs. "He ...he stabbed himself through the heart with his wand. There was nothing the medical personnel could do once they arrived."

No, nothing could have been done, Snape thought in revulsion and pity. Such an action was as irrevocable as the Killing Curse. Snape had heard of a wizard stabbing another wizard with his or her wand, but this was considered the ultimate insult. The last wizard to kill another in this manner -- during a heated tournament duel with a bitter rival more than 70 years ago -- earned a one-way trip to Azkaban for life. Except the wizard, Cogen Leecher, never reached Azkaban. He was killed by an angry mob of wizards enroute. Perhaps only coincidentally he was a Hogwarts alumni. Slytherin, of course.

But Snape had never heard of a wizard stabbing themselves with their own wand!

Snape returned a hand to the elf's shoulder and watched with a somber expression as she continued to cry for a few moments. This was obviously Voldemort's handiwork! The results of his new curse ... what the Death Eaters had started calling the "Dementor's Kiss" and "Voldemort's Curse". He narrowed his eyes and felt the slow burn of anger building inside, and he welcomed the anger.

Someday, Voldemort, you will pay, he vowed silently. Someday I will be free of your tethers, and you will see my hatred unleashed. Someday...

Then the dhampire blinked in surprise as two things startled him out of his vengeful musings. The first was the sudden realization that this was the first time in almost eighteen years that he had felt anger on behalf of someone other than himself. And the second thing was even more of a surprise. Aurellia moved a hand to her shoulder and covered Snape's hand with hers.

Snape nearly leaped back in shock. Part of him wanted to turn and bolt immediately, another part wanted to stay put and console Deveroux, and of course there was always the part that was thinking about feeding, but he had grown used to ignoring that part. He stood in silent indecision, wondering what to do next. Deveroux wasn't like the others. She didn't follow any of the scripts. And she was too close for comfort.

She made him think oftentimes of Lily, and it was at times like this that he wondered if history was repeating itself. For it was during dark and dangerous times such as this that he had....

Fallen.

Not again, he vowed to himself. Never again. I won't let it happen again. But...

What can I do if it is already too late?

"I was in St. Mungo’s for a week, recovering from the effect of the spell,” Deveroux concluded.

I'm going to be in St. Mungo’s myself at the rate my life is going, thought Snape.

"You have cold hands, Snape, do you know that?" Aurellia grouched dryly after a moment.

Snape gave a slight shrug. "Poor circulation, perhaps. It doesn't bother me."

"What is it with you and your mortal dislike of fireplaces anyway? And don't tell me it's a dhampire thing, because I don't believe it. Don't you ever get tired of being cold all the time?"

Another slight shrug. "I am accustomed to it." He removed his hand from beneath Deveroux's and turned away. "I like the cold."

"Oh, you are such a troll sometimes!" Aurellia groused.

"Your cousin said that he had seen Voldemort," Snape said, changing the subject again. "Did you ever think that perhaps Voldemort saw him first?"

"No," she said, slowly. "That ... that never even occurred to me."

"Voldemort has terrible, terrible punishments for spies," Snape continued, wrapping his scarecrow arms around himself at the chill of a horrible memory. "And his vigilance is almost unflankable. And he is always looking, always probing for some hint of disloyalty. It is...almost impossible...to sneak up on him. He has so many ways...of watching...." Snape trailed off for a moment, shivering slightly.

Aurellia shivered too in spite of herself, for it seemed that the temperature had suddenly dropped twenty degrees in her warm office, and Snape's sudden reverie was...unsettling, no, terrifying. Even the mere memory of such evil seemed to poison the very atmosphere of the room. Suddenly she had a very ominous feeling about where this conversation was going.

With an effort Snape drug himself back to the present and continued. "One of the things he used to do, and is doing again now..." he paused, uncertain about whether he should finish the thought.

"Go on," Aurellia said a little unsteadily, "and I'll try to forget about how you know this."

"He uses the Imperius curse on them and other powerful, lesser-known spells, in order to make them...do things."

Aurellia gasped in horror. "You think Voldemort mind-controlled Luk and sent him back to kill me and himself?"

"It is very likely, especially if he was able to catch your cousin off-guard. There are...ways you can defend yourself, but they take time and preparation--and that's why I should be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts. But you do not like hearing about that, so I'll continue. If Voldemort were to capture me somehow, he would very likely do the same thing to me, since I am no longer above his suspicion."

"I'd like to see him try. You are more stubborn than a river troll, and I very much think that he would break his wand trying to control you."

"Do not joke about things you do not understand," Snape said hollowly. And there was a deadness in his eyes that greatly unnerved Aurellia, for it seemed that the shadows of a hundred-thousand unpardonable sins were in them.

"Then you think...?" she began. She left the thought unfinished, for it was too horrible to contemplate.

"That your cousin was under Voldemort's control when he attacked you? Almost certainly, since your cousin had foolishly gotten too close to him...." he trailed off, looked away for a moment, then said in a whisper, "Or were you asking me, would he be able to do the same thing to me?"

Aurellia swallowed and nodded. There were over a hundred wizards and witches currently on the missing list. If they, like Luk, were now in Voldemort's power, then it was only a matter of time before he sent them back... For some reason there were knots in the elf's stomach and her hands wanted to clench and unclench. Of all the things she had been least prepared to teach the students, this was it, because it was the thing she was least prepared to do herself.

"If I disappear for a time, and then return...would you be prepared to kill me to protect the students? For it may come to that."

The elf made a small terrified noise and looked away. What had happened to Luk could happen to Snape. Or to anyone. Perhaps even to Aurellia herself.

Snape watched the realization sink in, and Aurellia's confidence crack with a small, grim smile. At last she begins to understand, he thought. The Dark Side does not play by the rules. And there are no guarantees that Voldemort will not win.

"How would I know...if...?" the elf asked quietly.

Snape locked eyes with the Defense teacher for a moment and held her gaze steadily, and Aurellia thought that it was rather chillingly like looking into the eyes of a reptile.

He's gone Slytherin on me again, she thought bitterly.

"You are not as big of a fool as I thought you were when you came here..." Snape said coolly.

Coming from Snape, especially when he was in Slytherin mode, that was a compliment!

"You would know immediately, because you are very observant, and because you have learned much since you came here, and because this has happened to you once before. And I know that you will never forget it. For I know that I never will...."

Aurellia shuddered.

"And because..." he stopped.

"What?" she prompted at last when she couldn't stand the silence.

He shrugged and looked away. "It does not matter," he said at last. "You would know. Remember this warning, and be vigilant. And remember that it could happen to almost anyone except perhaps Dumbledore...and maybe Potter....

"And do not get complacent, for I doubt very highly that your own infuriating stubbornness would be any protection to you. His Vile Lordship would know enough to take that locket of yours away, and then, my dear, you would be quite defenseless."

But Aurellia was not one to be side-tracked so easily. There was something significant about the way Snape had changed the subject so quickly, and so she asked again.

"Because why? Why would I know?"

Snape was silent for a moment, and then he said, "Because, strange as it may seem, I think you know me better than anyone else here. Except for, perhaps, Dumbledore. And yet...you do not know me at all. If that is a little too cryptic for you, then it is a blessing you do not appreciate. Some things, my dear, you are better off not knowing."

"But I want to know," Aurellia protested.

"No," Snape insisted. "You do not. However, we should talk about the things you should be teaching your students, for the time is growing shorter than anyone realizes. I think that some time in the next twelve months even strongholds like Gringotts and Hogwarts may be attacked."

"Is that why you are deliberately keeping your distance from me?" Aurellia wondered. "Because the war is coming and you are afraid of making any attachments...?"

"Believe what you wish," Snape replied shortly with a flash of impatience in his eyes. "But the point is, our time is quickly running out! What happened to Luk is happening to others here in the British Isles, in Bulgaria, in France, in many other places. Even across the ocean."

So Snape suspects as I do. That Voldemort has been mind-controlling the missing, Aurellia thought in horror. But why hasn’t he sent them back like Luk? What is he waiting for? What is he doing with them?

"There is a time for planning and spying...and there is a time for acting," Snape continued. "We must be ready for our planning and spying stage to end precisely when Voldemort's does. Once his spies are in place and his army is raised, we will have to be ready. We will have no other choice."

Building an army in secret, Aurellia realized. Putting them to work in his strongholds until he is ready to send them out in force. That's what he's been doing.

"This is the other reason I came here today, Aurellia. It was not merely curiosity that drove me. I have already warned Dumbledore, and I am now warning you. I just received a fire parchment from Sirius Black today, and the news was...how shall I put it? Grim is a considerable understatement, but I suppose it will have to suffice."

"What did he tell you?" Aurellia whispered, dreading the answer.

"Sirius Black is a rash, ill-mannered fool, and Remus spends a great deal of time recovering from his monthly transformations. But when the two of them are healthy and cooperating, they can be quite effective investigators," Snape said. "And some of the news I have received from them lately is unsettling, to say the least. I know that you have kept in touch with Remus, but I doubt he has told you about the rumors he has been investigating?"

Aurellia shook her head. "Actually, he hasn’t owled me in more than a month, and he has never told me about his work for Dumble..."

"They have found compelling evidence that Voldemort has indeed been experimenting with reanimating the dead," Snape interrupted flatly. "Just as I had warned Albus several months ago. But he refused to address the problem until we had proof."

"Voldemort is bringing the dead back to life? But... but I thought that was impossible!"

"Not entirely," Snape refuted. "You must understand, however, that reanimation is not resurrection. It is impossible to bring back the deceased exactly as they were in life. You cannot recall a departed spirit to its reanimated body. However, it is possible, although extremely difficult, to restore a form of life to a dead creature, to animate it with very powerful Dark magic and force it to serve you. Such a creature is called nosferatu, or true undead. And it will only be a soulless shadow of its former self. It will never have a life or a will of its own. It will borrow a pale echo of life from its maker, and will do whatever its master commands it, but it will never again be truly alive."

"Undead...like zombies," Aurellia said.

"Similar. However, zombies are flukes of magical disasters, victims of certain potions..."

"Such as...oh, what was that stuff you said Runespoor venom was used in?"

"Forever Fallen, and yes, it has been known to make zombies of those who are forced to take an overdose. Vitamuere may also have a similar effect after the victim awakens, especially if the Potions maker is too liberal with the wormwood. But zombies are easier to control and easier to destroy than nosferatu. They may be slain in the traditional sense, or controlled by certain spells and potions. But true undead creatures are harder to create, and nearly impossible to control. It takes a wizard of tremendous power and ambition to even think of creating an army of such servant creatures. Only a few of the great Dark Lords, such as Ragnarok, Caliban, Borjigon, Lady Mortgona and Mephistopheles have ever attempted it. And none of these wizards were known to have succeeded at what Voldemort is rumored to be doing now. Raising a Palladiamors."

"What is a Palladiamors? I have never heard of it."

"I have only seen mention of it in a few obscure, very ancient Dark Arts tomes, and even then the Palliadiamors was spoken of only in a hypothetical context.

"But what is it?" Aurellia asked impatiently.

"In theory, it is a composite of three or more creatures. The beasts mentioned most frequently are dragons, manticores and leviathans, although I have also seen graphorns included. With the intelligence and lethal venom of the manticore, the fiery breath, wings, and tough magical hide of the dragon, and the strength of the leviathan, a Palladiamors would theoretically be almost impossible to destroy. It would combine all of the natural abilities and advantages of these creatures, and possess none of their weaknesses. Add to this the probability that the Palladiamors could not be slain by any traditional means, as it would also be a nosferatu, and you would have a terrible weapon at your command, an almost invincible creature of pure destruction."

"Sort of like Victor Frankenstein's monster, then?" Aurellia asked.

Snape laughed and said scornfully, "Victor Frankenstein was a pretender, a dabbler! He did not understand more than the most basic principles of his own craft! I do not think he even knew what it was he had created! In fact he probably knew less about reanimation than you know about Potions!"

Aurellia’s eyebrows knitted together and she pursed her lips in indignation, but she said nothing as Snape continued.

"No, Aurellia, nosferatu are infinitely more dangerous than the work of a mad, jealous Squib. And Voldemort's nosferatu will have the full might of his power behind them. And the only way to stop them will be to utterly, completely destroy their physical form, grind their carcasses into powder, or burn them to ashes. For you could sever their heads, and they would continue to attack. You could cut them to pieces, and the pieces would reattach themselves and reform the whole."

Aurellia's eyes grew wide with horror. "But I thought that such a thing could exist only in fantasies and tales to frighten children!"

"I know that Voldemort is attempting to bring such fantasies to life...or rather some corrupted shadow of life. Yet so far he has not succeeded... as far as I know. Unfortunately, I do not know much about the status of his secret experiments, and I have no idea where he is conducting them now. As I told you some time ago, there is very little that reaches my ears from inside his inner circle nowadays. None of the old Death Eaters have acknowledged my latest attempts to contact them, and I know better than to even bother with the new ones. I do, however, have other sources who tell me as much as they can, often at great personal risk."

"So either Voldemort's grasp has once again exceeded his reach, or else he is the most powerful Dark wizard since Borjigon Kha'khan, and the war may already lost before it has begun," Aurellia remarked despairingly.

"Alas, it seems so. Earlier this week Mundungus Fletcher met up with Macnair in one of the ratholes in Knockturn Alley and persuaded him to talk about the 'Apocalypse Project'. You see, Aurellia, a little Firewhiskey laced with Veritaserum is sometimes more effective than the Memdescif's gift." And here he smirked at some pleasant memory, probably the memory of having briefly had someone just like Macnair in his power, Aurellia decided.

The elf declined to comment as Snape continued. "Macnair told Mundungus that Voldemort is indeed experimenting with reanimation, and that most of these experiments are part of the 'Apocalypse Project'. Voldemort intends to create at least four Palladiamors named after the Four Horsemen. Bellare. Pelent. Faames. Nex. War, Pestilence, Famine and Death."

Aurellia shuddered.

"And Aurellia," Snape added quietly after he let that last statement sink in, "the last thing Macnair told Mundungus before he fell face first into his goblet..." he trailed off into silence.

"What?" Aurellia prompted impatiently, while Snape seemed to be deciding whether or not to change the subject. "What did he say?"

"He said that Bellare is almost upon us."

"Did he mean that the war is about to begin, or..." and Aurellia's eyes were wide with fear as the full impact of the Death Eater's words sunk in. "Or did he mean that Voldemort has already made one?"

Snape seemed to ponder Macnair's statement for a moment before replying. "It is most likely the former," he decided, but something in his manner made Aurellia think that perhaps there was something else he was not telling. How typical of him, she thought, wondering how to get her own hands on some illegal Veritaserum and Firewhiskey or, rather, Sangui Fictosa.

"We have had indications for some time that he is moving toward open war much more quickly than we had originally anticipated. And Voldemort's forces are already more powerful than even I had feared," Snape continued. "I think that he will announce his presence to the world very shortly, certainly before the end of the term, and in a way that no one will be able to deny. After that there will be wars everywhere, all over the globe, and he will be the force behind them all. It has already begun between old rivals such as the vampires and the Order of Van Helsing, between the Alliance of Light and the Circle of Power."

"And then, once he has seized control over most of the Wizarding world, Voldemort will begin attacking the remaining high places which he did not dare assault until he had mastery everywhere else. Hogwarts itself he will not attack until the very end, unless he spots an opportunity to surprise us. So we shall have perhaps a year to prepare the defense of Hogwarts, if all goes well for us. And we will need to take full advantage of the time we have left, for we are far from being prepared for an all-out assault, especially one which will likely involve nosferatu."

"So, we have, maybe twelve months... if we're lucky? What can I do?"

“I will speak with Dumbledore tomorrow about shortening some classes and cutting other classes entirely such as Divinations, and concentrating on more important things like your class. I've seen a glimpse of what Voldemort can do, and what he is planning," Snape said hollowly. "If we are to have any hope of defeating him, we must be prepared to take drastic measures. Now." The corners of Snape's mouth turned up slightly. "But consider this: the two of us, working together on a proposal to restructure the entire educational program of this school by end of term.”

“That just might shock the others into agreeing with even the most drastic changes," Aurellia concluded with a grin. “So, what exactly did you have in mind?”

“I’ll have to talk with Albus about this first, Aurellia, but I wanted you to be forewarned that changes are coming and that your input will be valued.”

Aurellia stared in amazement at the unexpected compliment as Snape continued. “And in the meantime, we need to discuss the upcoming Potions workshop. I have several ideas that I think you will want to consider, and I would also like to know if you had any specific challenges or obstacles in mind.”

“Umm… I am meeting with a student in half an hour,” Aurellia said thoughtfully, “and I’d like to spend this evening going through my own notes and refining my ideas on what I’d like to accomplish with the next couple of workshops.”

“Shall we hold a preliminary meeting tomorrow evening, then? I have an errand to run, but I should be back by midnight.”

“Yes, that would work for me, as long as we aren’t up until 2 in the morning again. By the way, is it…er…safe for you to leave Hogwarts? I thought that…”

“I will be traveling by Floo to another reasonably secure…facility.” Snape interrupted flatly. “The Ministry may question it, if they notice. However, I have made arrangements which should prevent them from noticing. And I will not be announcing the location of my destination nor the time of my departure to anyone who does not need to know this information.”

“Where are you going, anyway?”

“Miss Deveroux, you may be my Watcher, but I assure you, this is none of your concern.”

Aurellia’s eyebrows shot up. “Really?” she said indignantly. “And if you get killed when you get wherever it is you are going, then will it also be none of my concern?”

The corners of Snape’s mouth curled up in a reluctant half-grin. “Aurellia Deveroux, if I didn’t know better, I might begin to suspect that you actually care whether or not I come back.”

“Well of course I care!” Aurellia declared emphatically. “It’s my job!”

“And are you always so passionate about your job?” Snape queried, the reluctant grin beginning to fade somewhat. “I get the distinct impression that you had considerably less interest in your former profession, though the object was much the same as your current one…”

Aurellia hrmpfed and folded her arms across her chest. “You don’t know what you’re talking about!” she said testily. “So why don’t you just drop it?”

Snape shrugged. “Very well. I’ll send Venator to you when I have returned…or will that be unnecessary since you will be spying on me with your locket from the moment I leave until the moment I return?”

“I will be vigilant as always, and I will know immediately if you are in trouble, unless you are out of range,” Aurellia replied. “That is why I asked where you are going.”

“I did not know that distance was an issue,” Snape remarked with some surprise. “What’s the range of your locket?”

“I don’t know,” Aurellia responded. “I’ve never had occasion to test it. Nor did my mother. My…er… I never left the village when I was a child. Not until the night it was….”

“So shall I send Venator or not?” Snape interrupted abruptly, the amusement gone from his tone.

Aurellia blinked in surprise. “It would be…a courtesy, especially if you are going abroad. I may not know immediately when you have returned. Why are you so testy all of a sudden? Are you worried about this meeting? I want to know the truth, Snape!”

The dhampire thought for a long moment, then sighed. “Yes. Of course I am worried. Everyone with an ounce of intelligence is worried these days. And it is my job to tell everyone that they are not as worried as they should be.”

“Do you know,” Aurellia remarked softly, “there are many times when I resent the fact that you are deliberately keeping things from me that might help me do my job. And sometimes I think that you don’t give me enough credit—I know more about the dangers of the Dark Side than you think I do. But lately there have been times when I am almost glad that I don’t know the things you know.”

“Progress at last! There may be hope for you yet, elf princess.”

"Tok'ull Kejeeri Khandu Luhna ...." Aurellia retorted.

"Tepale Breeha."

"TEHpale, not TePAle, how many times must I remind you?"

End of Chapter 36

Notes:

Song List:

"Misty Eyed Adventures," Maire Brennan.C. 1994.

"Let Me Fall" Sung By Josh Groban. Cirque de Soleil. (OK, I know we are fudging big time with this one, since this story takes place in 1996 and Groban did not really come into the public eye until 2001 or so. We beg your indulgence, as we are huge Josh Groban fans. Besides, that line about the phoenix was too good to resist....)

"Come Together" The Beatles. Don't recall the publishing date.

"Thin Line" Fleetwood Mac. Again, don't recall the date.

In a nutshell, I own none of these songs, I'm just borrowing them for no profit to myself.

Further notes:

Palladiamors - pale death, in Latin.

Dete- child, in Bulgarian

Vulk - wolf, in Bulgarian

The name of the pub, The Red Rat, is a nod to the musical, “Jekyll and Hyde.” The name Rachne, too, is a nod to this wonderful musical (in the play, a sinister character named Spider is the owner of the Red Rat)