Killing and Running

Chapter 2 - War

December 31, 1979

It's cold out here.

Christmas is over and done with now, and the forest around me is covered with snow, as would be expected. That holiday, of course, has very little meaning to me, but I did receive a present from my sister, who holds it in somewhat higher esteem. I'm still not sure if I liked it. I know I gave her something useful. Don't know if she liked it, though. People don't always like what's useful. Idiots. I spent most of the day with Adam and Evan. We didn't actually exchange presents this year, but we did have a good conversation, and that means a lot more to me than getting a little box wrapped in pretty paper and ribbons.

My hand suddenly trembles a little. I hope it's not withdrawal. No, it can't be. Not this soon. Must be the cold.

I wish Hiltern were here already. I have too much money in my pockets, and I'm tempted now to just give up on him and go over to the nearby pub to spend some of it. I would have, too, had not the trembling of my hand completely unnerved me.

I must have my ingredients. Where is he?

I look up at the stars again, tiny dots of white against an overwhelmingly black sky, seeking comfort from it, but I don't get any. The only source of light now is the full moon, so there isn't much of it. I don't really feel all that intimidated by darkness usually, but tonight... I suppose I'm just all wound up because he hasn't arrived yet. It's not withdrawal. It's not withdrawal. It's only been three days since I last took some potion.

Not yet.

* * *

September 2, 1971

The school must have sent Severus's family an owl about his sorting, because the next morning he received two letters from them during breakfast.

Dear Son, (the first one read)

I must confess myself disappointed with your sorting, I truly expected you to be in Gryffindor. What went wrong? I actually had some thoughts about sending a letter asking them to reconsider, but your mother knew better than to let me cave in to my whims.

I certainly didn't expect you to be in Slytherin. That house has been the traditional rival of ours for many centuries, it's a tradition. For the record, I do not hate you for being sorted into Slytherin, you are my son, but I am nonetheless very disappointed. We'll have to talk more about this the next time we see each other face to face. In the meanwhile, please don't make a fool of yourself, and be fair to the other houses, including Gryffindor.

Still yours,

Your father.

And the other one read:

Dear Severus,

I still love you. I promised you I always would always love you, no matter what, and I meant it. I'm not going to let tradition get in the way.

Father was absolutely furious when he heard about the sorting. I had to go back home by floo powder; mother was having such a hard time calming him down. Eventually, he just ran out of energy and fainted. He can be so stubborn sometimes. However, when he woke up, he was able to calm down somewhat, and ended up sending you a much more mild version of the reprimand he was planning to send you. I suppose you must have received it by now. I hope you aren't too upset by it.

Enough about that, though. My day went very well yesterday. Wesley arrived home earlier than usual, and we were able to go out to a fine restaurant and spend some quality time together for the first time in several weeks. We had a very good night, until we were woken up in the middle of the night by mother screaming at us from the fireplace, of course. How was your day? Oh, and don't reply right away, I want to hear about how your first day is. Send me an owl tonight.

With love and affection,

Arabella

Once he had finished reading the second letter, he sighed and returned to his breakfast. He would write back to his sister later that day, but he didn't know what he would say to his father. His musings on this subject were interrupted by the arrival of Adam and Leonard, who joined him and Evan, who was sitting across from Severus.

"Good morning, Adam, Leonard," Severus said quietly, taking a drink of juice. "Get enough sleep?"

"Yep, I sure did," Adam said, sitting down cheerfully next to Evan. As Leonard sat next to Severus and immediately began eating, Adam looked at Severus for a moment and said, "Blimey, yeh don' look well, though. Did yeh get enough sleep?"

Severus nodded.

"He just got two owls from his family," Evan said.

"Oh, the Greefindors? Yer family doesn't hate you now, do they? Greefindors can be like that."

"My sister doesn't," Severus said, smiling briefly. That smile faded when he continued, "But I got the impression that my father isn't very happy."

"Oh well, at least he didn't send you an 'Owler."

"Yeah, that would have been terrible," Leonard said, between quick bites of food. "Imagine being embarrassed like that on your first day. Horrible."

Evan looked at Leonard and chuckled. "My, you sure are eating a lot this morning. What did your parents feed you when you were at home, nothing but bread and water?"

"Oh, no. I've always liked to eat. There's a saying where I come from: Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we..."

"Have big stomach aches," Adam interrupted, grinning.

"Say what you will, Adam Wilkes, I believe in the importance of being well fed," Leonard replied patting his only marginally fatty belly.

"Ay, but yeh don' see me eatin' with such greet enthusiasm," Adam replied, patting his equally big, muscular belly.

Instead of responding verbally, Leonard simply burped loudly.

"Yeh prat," Adam chuckled, shaking his head. "I..." Adam was suddenly interrupted by the sound of another, louder burp from across the hall. Severus looked over to seen Pettigrew standing up. Apparently he was the source of the second burp.

Not to be outdone, Leonard got up and burped once again, even louder than Pettigrew, which resulted in Pettigrew unleashing yet another loud belch. Leonard looked about ready to do another one, but Evan got up and shushed him, saying, "Sit down, Leonard, you're encouraging the damn Gryffindor." Leonard sat down, looking somewhat disappointed.

Across the hall, Severus could see one of Pettigrew's friends patting him on the back.

* * *

September 12, 1971

All things considered, the first two weeks of school had gone as well as could be expected for Severus.

The classes were mostly good beyond his expectations. Charms, he found, actually wasn't as insipid as he thought it would be. By the end of the first week, he and his friends had actually mastered a few charms that were quite useful (Leonard had in fact used one of them to give Pettigrew abnormally red cheeks the day of the burping contest. Severus sniggered when that happened. Pettigrew, once he noticed, had merely replied, "We'll see about that one, Avery.") History of Magic, on the other hand was the only disappointment. The Professor Harrison Binns III, was unbelievably boring, and worst of all, there was no magic in the class at all.

Potions, Herbology, and Defense Against the Dark Arts were all very good classes. However, although Severus resented the amount of homework given, and the fact that they had Potions with the Gryffindors (The day after the burping contest, Pettigrew dumped a failed laundry potion on Leonard, who's hair subsequently turned green. Leonard was actually amused by this and didn't change the color back for several days, infuriating Pettigrew and several teachers to no end).

Transfiguration was undoubtedly his favorite class. Watching the teacher turn a pile of papers into a rowboat was very fascinating indeed, and Severus's only disappointment was that Human Transfiguration would not be taught until fifth year. He wanted to master that NOW!

He was also meeting interesting people. There was the cantankerous caretaker, Argus Filch, who as near as everyone could tell delighted in punishing the students' misdeeds. And in addition to Adam, Evan, and Leonard, there was Nathaniel Lestrange, the boy with the Slytherin father and Ravenclaw mother. He was unbelievably ambitious and clearly wanted to be Head Boy eventually, so much so that he tried to enforce the rules among his fellow students every chance he got, and was thus disliked by many. (Such as when Leonard tried to turn Pettigrew's quill into a beetle during Transfiguration. It merely sprouted insect legs and crawled onto the arm of the person sitting next to Pettigrew. Most unfortunately, that person was Nathaniel Lestrange, who promptly informed the teacher. 20 points were taken from Slytherin, and Leonard got a detention for "exercising poor transfiguration skills.")

And then there was Potter, the unending bane of Severus's existence. Ever since the incident on the train Potter had often taken to making faces at Severus when his back was turned, and spreading rumors about him among the other houses that were only really half true. (Such as the notion that he hated Mudbloods; in reality Severus had not yet decided whether they were worth worrying about at all.) As a result, Severus didn't have a lot of friends outside of Slytherin.

But on the whole, Severus was adapting well to his new life at Hogwarts, settling into a routine that he found quite suitable: Go to class, do his homework, spend time with his new friends, and avoid Potter like the plague except for the occasional glare, which he was getting better at. Which was why he was surprised beyond belief when Potter approached him just before Potions two weeks into the term and said, "I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?" Severus replied, trying not to betray his utter shock.

"For the... incident on the train two weeks ago, and my behavior ever since. I've clearly offended you, and you had every reason to... um, do what you did on the train," Potter said, seeming very embarrassed.

Severus briefly chuckled to himself about Potter's reluctance to mention the "incident," as he had called it. "Damn right you deserved it... moron," he replied, regretting that he couldn't have come up with a better insult.

"Watch your tongue, boy, my mother doesn't like that sort of codswallop. And I'm a moron?" Potter said.

"Is your mother coming to Hogwarts?"

"No."

"Then why does it matter?"

"Virtue is it's own reward."

"What sort of reward?"

"You Slytherin!"

"You... Gryffindor!"

"Crikey, are yeh two tryin' to argue? Yeh both have no idea how to have a bloody good row. Bloody wankers," Adam said, walking past them into the classroom. Evan filed in right behind him, chuckling. The situation might not have turned bad, though, if it hadn't been for the fact that Leonard was right behind Evan, and that Pettigrew and the other two people who him and Potter were on friendly terms with were approaching right behind Potter at the same time. The other two boys, whose names Severus did not yet know, looked completely different. One was a very tall, weak looking boy, and the other was short and muscular.

"Avery," Pettigrew said.

"Pettigrew," Leonard replied before turning back to enter the classroom. His entrance, however, when Pettigrew flung out his wand and shouted a particularly nasty curse ("Perceptio Demento!"), which resulted in Leonard falling forward and complaining that he was seeing colors everywhere.

Severus quickly pulled out his wand and shouted "Crininus Viror!," causing Pettigrew's mouth to spew bright green lilies. Potter then pulled out his wand and tried to place the babbling curse on Severus. Severus anticipated this action and ducked while saying "Tarantallegra!," which resulted in Potter's legs gaining a life of their own. Potter attempted to put another curse on Severus, which he again avoided. At that point, Potter's short friend got out his wand and subjected Severus to the Twitchy Ears Hex.

And now Severus really got upset. He had never in his life been subjected to a hex before and the boy was going to pay! But before he could dispense a suitable curse, the potions professor, Odont Tyran, arrived and broke up the fight, shouting, "Who started this!"

Severus, whose ears were still twitching, pointed to Pettigrew and said, "He did, professor. He cursed Leonard, and then I cursed him back. Potter tried to curse me twice, and I managed to avoid it and curse him, while his short friend over there cursed me."

"I see," said Odont Tyran. "Now what were the incantations, boys? I might be inclined to be a bit more lenient with you all if you help me." Everyone involved quickly started telling him their curses. "Thank you," Tyran continued after having dispensed the counter-curses to everyone in need. "Now for your punishment. I'm taking 20 points per curse from everyone involved. That's 80 points from Gryffindor and 40 from Slytherin. Mr. Pettigrew will serve detention. With me. In the dungeon. And if I ever catch you cursing anybody again, Mr. Snape, that'll be 10 lashes in public and a detention for you. Now enough of this. Get inside the classroom, everyone." He marched into the classroom, scattering the crowd of onlookers.

As Snape complied with Tyran's order, he saw Potter getting together with his four friends. As they were entering the classroom, Severus overheard a bit of their conversation.

"Remus, are you all right?" asked Potter.

"Yes, I'm perfectly fine. None of the curses hit me," said the tall, weak-looking boy, who was evidently named Remus, and if possible was looking even paler than before the fight. "Why did you have to do that, Peter?"

"I wanted to show him up, that's all," Peter said.

"And I'm fine too, James, don't you worry about me," interrupted the short one.

"Sirius Black! Why should I be worried about you, you're the one who actually managed to curse Snape!" said James.

"Precisely. You should be down on one knee thanking me for my glorious achievement. Plus he's probably mad as hell," replied the short boy named Sirius Black. As Severus heard that he thought You're damn right I'm mad as hell. He made a mental note to scoff at Potter sometime about his friend Black's language.

"And I thought you promised us you'd apologize to Snape, not try to curse him, James," the boy named Remus continued.

"He was cursing Peter!" James exclaimed. "Besides, I did apologize to him, just as you and Sirius dared me to do."

So that's it, Severus thought to himself. He didn't apologize just because he honestly felt guilty; he apologized because he was dared to. Snape made another mental note: Don't trust Potter. By that time, they had all arrived at their seats, and he overheard no more.

* * *

September 29, 1971

For a while, nothing else happened between Severus and Potter. Leonard, of course, was upset that Pettigrew had cursed him, but he was pleased nonetheless by the fact that Gryffindor had lost 80 points and Pettigrew got a detention with the ever-notorious Professor Tyran, and that subsequently Adam and Evan had coerced Pettigrew into creating seven banners saying "I love Leonard Avery."

Severus was now mostly pleased with the way things were going. He had so far seen no sign that the Gryffindors planned to avenge the Friday Afternoon Fight, as it had come to be called. The only competition now between the two sides was to see who could get better marks. In this field Lupin, Black, and Evan seemed to be having the most success, constantly replacing each other in the teacher's eyes as the smartest students in their year. Everyone was always calling on either "Mr. Lupin," "Mr. Black," or "Mr. Rosier" for the answers.

For his part, Severus got moderately good marks on his exams and essays, and was pleased to note that on more than one occasion, he did better in some classes than Potter and his buddies, especially Potions, although he wasn't sure why that was. He certainly didn't love potions the way Professor Tyran did. Tyran was extremely passionate about his subject. Transfiguration was still his favorite.

And on this Monday, Severus was in a particularly good mood. Not only had he aced all his exams that day, he had also observed that Lupin seemed to have disappeared. He hadn't been seen at either yesterday's meals or today's. Rumor had it that he had become deathly ill, or that it had something to do with the murders that had been committed the previous Friday, when five ministry employees and their wives had been killed for no apparent reason during a social event they were holding. Authorities were at a loss to account for these deaths, except that like the murders on September 1^st, a strange green emblem, which the authorities had not yet identified, was floating over the house.

And on top of Lupin's absence, he had received another letter from his sister at breakfast. It read:

Dear Severus,

Everything's going all right with Wesley and I, except that we're both worried about those murders last Friday.

Wesley's finally chosen his best man. He's a fellow by the name of Jeremiah Black, and a fellow Gryffindor. In fact, I believe his younger brother Sirius is in your class. Have you two met yet?

Truth be told, I never cared much for Jeremiah, he and Wesley were always getting into trouble in their days at Hogwarts, pulling pranks on member of other houses. I never much cared for such things. I hope Sirius Black's not the same. If he is, I'll have to see if I can't do something about that.

Anyway, how are you doing? Everything all right?

Love,

Arabella

It was nice to know that he wasn't alone in disliking Black.

After re-reading it for the third time, he tucked it in his pocket and went back to eating dinner. He had never thought he'd miss home much when he came to Hogwarts, but he now realized that he did miss it, because receiving letters from his sister was no substitute for actually talking to her. He was glad to know, though, that being sorted into a different house did not mean that he no longer had anything in common with her.

Then all hell broke loose.

Evan was the first to notice. He jumped out of his chair quite suddenly, causing everyone at the table to look at him. Then they looked at his plate.

It was starting to turn light brown. And so were all the other Slytherin plates.

Eventually the plates became more cigar-shaped, and sprouted wings, before turning into over a hundred winged kittens, some of which began eating the food. The rest flew off the table and began causing general mayhem. Some clawed or made swipes at students and their clothing. Others spat or drooled on the frightened children.

And Severus saw that Black was laughing.

Severus was determined to end this.

He quickly pulled out his wand and started shouting curses at the flying kittens. Whenever the curses hit, the kittens would turn back into plates and fall to the ground and break. Meanwhile, loud orchestral music, with lots of sinister brass sounds, had suddenly erupted in the hall.

"Muggle music!" Evan yelled.

"Get away from me, yeh flyin' harbinger o' doom!" Adam yelled as one of the kittens tried to remove his robe.

Across the now chaotic Great Hall, Pettigrew had started to smile too.

And to add even more chaos, all the school owls now flew into the Great Hall and immediately became frightened by the abundance of flying kittens and started dropping excrement.

And now Severus saw James laughing.

Fortunately for the tormented Slytherins, the aging but still supremely youthful Headmaster Albus Dumbledore immediately arrived in the Great Hall. With a flick of his mighty wand, all of the winged kittens (which all of the Slytherins had now taken to calling "Flying Harbingers of Doom") turned back into plates and floated down to the Slytherin table safely, and the owls returned to their places of slumber. Dumbledore now addressed the students.

"If I ever find out who did this, that person will be punished to the fullest extent imaginable!"

No one dared to answer this decree.

"Good night, young students," he said more quietly, before leaving the hall.

Severus, of course, had a pretty good idea of who had done this. Unfortunately, he had no proof.

But he knew how to get some.

* * *

Dear Arabella,

I'm quite all right, aside from a rather horrible incident that happened at dinner today. Someone turned all the Slytherin plates into flying kittens which ate everyone's food and attempted to rob us of our clothing, and then let loose a bunch of frightened, overfed owls into the Great Hall. You can imagine the chaos this caused, I think.

And I know who's responsible. It's Sirius Black and his two buddies, James Potter and Peter Pettigrew. I saw them laughing when this happened, and given what you said about the elder Black, I'm sure it's his brother that did it. However, I have no other proof.

But there is a way you could help me. If you would be willing to corroborate what I just said, I have a plan. Remember Nathaniel Lestrange? He's really big on the rules, and if you were to send me or him a letter or do some other such action, he would be sure to report to the proper authorities what's been done and whose done it. Consider it friendly revenge on this Jeremiah fellow, who by now ought to be far more mature than his brother and able to handle it anyway.

Love,

Severus.

Looking at the letter, Severus thought, Yes, that ought to do it. He immediately went to the owlery to send it to Arabella.

* * *

September 30, 1971

The following morning, Severus received a letter from Arabella.

Dear Severus,

That incident you described sounds awful. And yes, it also sounds like something Jeremiah might have done had he had the chance or inspiration, so I don't doubt your intuition. Anyway, there's no need to fake the evidence, I've found actual proof. Me and Wesley were visiting Jeremiah yesterday, and Lord help me, I decided while they were both talking in another room to snoop a little, and I "found" a letter which implicates Sirius Black and his friends in the incident. I've sent it to you with this letter so that you may alert the proper authorities. Just make sure they get a little leniency, right? I don't want them expelled.

Love,

Arabella

Severus perused the second letter Arabella had sent to him. Yes, he thought, this will do nicely. He was about to tell Leonard, who was sitting next to him and had been particularly sore about the incident and suspected Pettigrew, Black, and Potter just as Snape did, the good news, when suddenly, an unusually troubled looking Professor Dumbledore walked into the room and called the students attention.

"I..." he started, but then he couldn't go on. No one had ever seen him this overwhelmed before. Everyone listened intently to see if he would continue, and possibly tell everyone one what had happened.

After he had calmed down, he continued, "I have just heard some very grave and horrifying news from... the ministry. There's been another attack, this time on the Knight Bus. 21 people who were then traveling from London to Hogsmeade have been killed. Once again, an unusual green emblem was found hovering above the scene of the accident.

"I cannot impress upon you enough the seriousness of this incident. The Knight Bus is a Magical Vehicle, and only the driver or a very powerful wizard or group of wizards and witches could halt it. And the Ministry has found... evidence suggesting that the attack was made by the Russians. Which is why at 5:36 A.M. this very morning, the Ministry of Magic declared war on the Russian Magical Collective. Furthermore, effective as of noon tomorrow, the Ministry will be starting a new conscription to help build up a suitable army for attacking the... enemy.

"It is likely that many of our friends and family will be recruited by this conscription, and that we all will be called upon to make sacrifices in the future. I cannot stress enough how hard the times ahead will be. We must summon up every ounce of courage we can manage to support the ministry in this time of crisis, and to... maintain our sanity. I just thought I should tell you this now. The Daily Prophet will be sending out a special edition about this today, but... I didn't think that should be how you found out about... this." At this point, Dumbledore could no longer continue, and rushed out of the room, crying.

At first, silence filled the Great Hall. After absorbing the shock, the students reacted in a variety of ways. Many started to chatter amongst themselves once again, some about the impending war and others had simply renewed their inane daily chatter. Others started crying. And some people, like Severus, simply sat in their chairs, struggling to absorb the impact that such news carried with it.

And in the horror that followed, Severus forgot to tell Leonard about the letter.

* * *

As they must, classes continued that day, although most of the students weren't in a mood to think much about anything other than the morning's astonishing news. Lupin had returned to classes looking somewhat worn down. For Severus, the rest of the day up until dinner was spent trying to get past his thoughts about the impending war and how it would affect his family. Up until now, he had forgotten the fact that his parents might be unspeakables. But now that suspicion re-emerged as he pondered whether his parents might have been the very people to cause this war.

If they had been, he wasn't sure he respected them much anymore, necessary as their actions might have been.

At dinner, though, he found something else to think about. He was reaching in his pockets to find a quill, and he found the letter he had received from Arabella that morning, before Dumbledore's announcement. And he remembered how much he still wanted Potter, Black, and Pettigrew to pay for what they had done. So when he was finished eating he decided to take the most appropriate course of action and approached Nathaniel Lestrange.

"Uh... Nathaniel?" Severus said.

"What is it now, Severus?" Nathaniel said with a sigh.

"I happened to find this letter on the floor last night, after the chaos with the plates and such... I was going to show it to you this morning but, obviously, considering what happened, I forgot about it until tonight. I just thought you might be interested in reading this letter, that's all," Severus said, handing the incriminating letter to Nathaniel.

Nathaniel read it and absorbed it's contents with a look of shock on his face. "This tells me exactly who perpetrated that incident last night!"

"Exactly," Severus said, barely containing his amusement.

As Nathaniel took in this statement, Severus noticed him starting to smile for the first time all day. "I'll show this to a professor immediately! Thanks Severus. I owe you one!" And as he left, Severus distinctly heard him say under his breath, "This'll get Dumbledore to respect me."

Severus smiled and returned to his chair at the table. Leonard was not there, but Adam and Evan were, and he decided to tell them about his new triumph.

"I'm back," he started.

"Why were you talking to Nathaniel Lestrange?" Evan asked.

"I found out who turned our plates into angry kittens last night," Severus started.

"No need to say 'oo," Adam interrupted. "Potter and Black were grinnin' like the idiots they are wen it was 'appening."

"Don't forget Pettigrew," Evan said."

"Yeah, 'im too."

"My sister was able to supply me with proof that they did it, and that's what I just gave Nathaniel. A letter implicating them in the crime," Snape said.

Adam and Evan both looked shocked. Evan was the first to speak. "Nathaniel's going to turn them in?"

"Yes."

"But Leonard just decided to get revenge on them tonight," Evan said quietly. "He's going to ambush them tonight with some new and very nasty curses he's just learned outside the staircase to the first floor." Evan looked over at the Gryffindor table. "In fact, the Gryffindors are leaving..." He trailed off as his attention returned to the table, and he noticed that Severus was gone.

* * *

Upon hearing the news, Severus leapt up out of his seat and ran out to the entrance hall. As he entered, he saw a figure, obviously Leonard, enshrouded in the shadows of the main doors. He took out his wand and ran over to the door, tackling the figure to the ground, noticing only too late that it was not Leonard, but one of the suits of armor. It fell to the floor with a loud CLANK! as Severus heard Leonard shout, "Perceptio Demento!" The curse hit Peter Pettigrew, who was now approaching the staircase behind his friends Potter, Black, and Lupin. He immediately fell to the ground as his three friends looked towards the main door to ascertain the source of the loud CLANK!

Severus, dazed, got up from the floor and rose unsteadily to his feet, noticing as he did a wand retreating into the shadows of the part-open broom closet door. That's where Leonard was, he thought quickly.

Professor Odont Tyran came running up the dungeon staircase. "Who caused this racket!" He then looked at Severus, and then Peter, who hadn't received the counter-curse yet, and said, "You!"

Severus then made a decision that would stay with him for the rest of his life.

"It was I," he said, "who cursed the damn Gryffindor. And I'm proud of it!"

* * *

September 31, 1971

The previous night had been a bad one for Severus Snape.

After taking the fall for Leonard's actions, he was taken to Dumbledore's office by Professor Tyran, who was gloating about how to punish Severus. They arrived just after Nathaniel had delivered the note to Dumbledore, and the lashings had been arranged for the next morning, to be administered by Argus Filch, the caretaker.

And now that that time had come, Severus naturally felt sick. Why hadn't he let Leonard take the blame? Anything would have been better than this terror that was coming up. His only comfort was knowing that Potter, Black, and Pettigrew were each going to receive five lashings before him for their actions.

But on another level, Severus was proud of his actions. He was not the sort of person who would snitch on a friend and he knew it.

As he was waiting in the anteroom adjacent to the Great Hall to receive his lashings, he heard the screams of the other three students as they were whipped. As much as he was glad to know that they were suffering for their misdeeds, it pained him even more to know that in a few short minutes, he would be suffering even more lashes for something that another student had done.

Severus's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Filch opening and closing the door. "Do you have anything to say to me before I whip you?" he said.

"No," Severus said, summoning all the courage he could manage and wishing that courage wasn't a Gryffindor trait.

"All right then," he said uncertainly. Then he continued, "Usually, kids are screaming for mercy by this time."

"You mean like Pettigrew? I'm not going to give you that satisfaction," Severus replied grimly.

Filch sighed. "I didn't think you would." There was a pause. "For what it's worth, I'm proud of you, taking your punishment like a man. That's uncommon courage." Another pause. "Or stupidity," he spat. "Come with me, its time for your punishment." And with that, Filch re-opened the door.

Severus walked out into the crowded Great Hall.

Filch followed him out and led him to a stool.

"Remove your robes and sit down!" he said to Severus.

Severus removed his roves, stripping down to near nakedness, trying not to notice all the students watching him, and sat down.

"This student sits here accused of the crime of cursing another student with a forbidden curse. For this crime, Hogwarts has seen fit to punish him with a sentence of no less than ten lashes, and a detention tonight with Professor Odont Tyran! Accused, do you have anything to say for yourself?"

"I did it," Severus said.

Filch uncoiled his whip and started giving the lashes. "1! 2! 3! 4!"

I won't scream, Severus thought, trying to suppress the horrible agony that came with each stroke.

"5! 6! 7! 8!"

I won't scream...

"9! 10!"

Severus screamed once, and then slid off the stool to the cold wooden floor, crumbling into fetal position. For several, the pain rendered him unable to think coherently. All he could think of was, Potter and his friends will pay for this!

But of course, once he regained his ability to think, he knew that he couldn't do anything about it. He couldn't risk more of this treatment. And that only infuriated him further, of course.