Hunted

Chapter 15: Hoaxes and High Stakes

Ravena clutched the letter in her slender fingers. She read the contents, studying the untidy scrawl. The handwriting resembled the Potions Master's to such a remarkable degree that it was hard to tell that these marks were not made by his hand. She marveled at the skill of the forgery. But she would not fall for the same ruse twice.

The letter instructed her to meet with Snape at the top of the Astronomy Tower at precisely half past nine. The missive purported that he had important information for her, something that could not be conveyed in a letter. She glanced at her bejeweled watch. The hour was nine twenty-five. Time to get to the bottom of this hoax.

Ravena stuffed the letter in the pocket of her academic robes. She tucked her wand in her right pocket. Her eyes skimmed her desktop and came to rest on the goblin dagger. Her hand reached for the lethal blade and slipped it in a leather sheath hidden in her boot. That might come in handy. One should always be prepared.

She opened her office door and waltzed down the corridor in the direction of the Astronomy Tower. This time, she did not take any precautions to ensure secrecy. She wanted to be seen.

Her ears listened for telltale footsteps in the hallway behind her. She didn't have to listen for long. A creak from a nearby classroom door confirmed her suspicions. She was being followed. A wily grin crept across her face.

She moved down the corridor with a swift, determined step. She rounded the next corner, then ducked out of sight. In the flicker of the hallway torchlight an amazing transfiguration took place. The curvaceous form of the Dark Arts professor was replaced by that of a long-haired Persian cat with startling china blue eyes. A diamond-encrusted collar sparkled in the torchlight against the backdrop of jet-black fur.

The cat doubled back, retracing Ravena's steps down the corridors of the castle. The creature skirted the walls, lurking in the shadows where its dark fur provided perfect camouflage. She hid behind a suit of armor and watched with cunning gaze. Out of the shadows another figure emerged, a leggy blonde with a long, stealthy stride. One of Ashbury's beauties stepped into the light. Ravena's suspicions were confirmed.

Ravena watched the look of bewilderment on the woman's face with glee. The tramp froze, glancing up and down the corridor in the direction of the Astronomy Tower, searching for her quarry. The blonde hesitated, staring with an uncertain gaze down the corridor. Then she abruptly turned and walked back the way she had come. Ravena slunk through the halls in her wake. Predator had just become prey.

The woman led Ravena back down to the basement dungeons, but to Ravena's surprise she turned left into Snape's office instead of right into Ashbury's. With lightning reflexes, the black cat leapt through the doorway after her and darted into the shadows of the dungeon office. From her hiding place under a claw-footed chair, Ravena's eyes swept the room. They locked with an astonished gaze on Snape's desk. There huddled over the desk were two Severus Snapes.

One Snape lay slumped over the desktop with a large, bloodied lump protruding from the top of his greasy scalp. The second Snape hunched over the first, examining the contusion. Which was the real Potions Master?

The second Snape looked up and stared at the blonde. A leer formed on those thin, white lips.

"So did Professor Hawkins fall for it, Candi?" he asked.

"Of course," Candi said, tittering. She wrung her hands. "I followed her up to the Tower."

"Good, then I won't need to use the potion," he said, fiddling with something in the pocket of his robes. "Now you two girls take care of our unfortunate Potions Master here. Make sure that he doesn't recover." He arched his eyebrows. "I have a bit of unfinished business up in Hawkins' office."

Candi and Barbi sauntered toward the unconscious form on the desk. Ravena watched with jealous hatred, as Candi ran her fingers through Snape's hair. Then Candi's hand jerked his head back to expose the pale flesh of his throat.

"And when you're finished with him," the imposter Snape added, "take care of Professor Hawkins. Watch yourself. She's more dangerous than she looks."

"We can handle her," Barbi cooed.

The blonde flashed him a broad smile, revealing a set of lethal-looking fangs. Vampires! Severus was right about these women after all.

The imposter laughed. He reached for the handle to the office door, exited the room, and closed the door behind him with a snap. From her hiding place, Ravena's mind raced. She had to take action now or her beloved Severus would soon be dead.

The two women positioned themselves on either side of the Potions Master. Candi held his lolling head steady in her hands. Barbi bared her fangs, ready to sink them into his exposed jugular.

The cat sprang from her hiding place, leapt upon the desk, and positioned herself on Snape's chest. She emitted a feral hiss. Her clawed paw struck out at Barbi's cheek. The vampire screamed and recoiled, her hand cradling her face. Next, the feline swiped at Candi, raking her claws down the vampire's arm. Candi released Snape's head and howled. She nursed her injured arm. Snape's head drooped forward on his chest.

The two women lunged for the cat. She leapt from Snape's chest to his desk just out of reach. In an instant, Ravena resumed her human form. She crouched on the desk with her wand drawn and held at the ready. Both attackers' eyes flew open with surprise. They stared at her with disbelief on their vacuous faces. Clearly, they had not anticipated the appearance of the Dark Arts professor.

Candi and Barbi recovered from their initial shock and surged toward Ravena. The vampire pair snarled, baring fangs and clawed hands. Whatever beauty their faces had once possessed was now concealed behind ghastly, pallid masks of loathing. And Ravena noted with shock that no blood ran from their wounds. Unlike the living, no blood coursed through their veins. They were already dead.

Terror seized Ravena. Then she spotted the jars of pickled creatures that lined the shelves behind the Snape's desk. She aimed her wand and uttered a series of incantations. One by one the jars exploded, showering the vampires with broken glass, fluid, and slimy substances. Barbi and Candi spun around to face the bursting canisters. A strong odor of vinegar and preservatives filled the room.

Ravena's left hand whipped her dagger from its sheath. She brandished the weapon in front of her to ward off any attack. The razor sharp blade would help, but Ravena knew that what she really needed was a wooden stake. Her eyes swept Snape's desk. She spotted his carved rosewood letter opener. A cunning grin erupted on her lips. Ravena skimmed the dagger across the desk. Her fist scooped up the letter opener alongside the lethal blade. Then she leapt down from the table.

The vampires turned back to their quarry and approached Ravena with evil intention. Ravena backed away from her attackers. She clutched her wand in her right hand. The fingers of her left hand gripped the handle of the goblin knife and letter opener.

"Impedimenta!" Ravena yelled.

A red flash of light from her wand shot toward Barbi's chest. The spell hit and sent the vampire maiden flying back into Snape's shelves. More jars burst from the impact, soaking the woman in viscous slime.

Then Ravena lunged at Candi. She thrust the blade of her dagger into the vampire's chest with all her strength. Knife blade and wooden shaft pierced flesh, sliding between the ribs and puncturing the heart. Ravena withdraw the blade, leaving the rosewood spike embedded in Candi's breast.

Candi's eyes flew open wide. She clutched at the letter opener and backed away. Scarlet-tinted smoke spewed from gaping flesh. Candi shrieked. Her body dissolved beneath the crimson tide, leaving behind only a pile of empty garments and the rosewood letter opener. One foe had been conquered.

Ravena did not have time to relish the victory, before Barbi countered with an attack of her own. Ravena felt the lash of a broom handle across her back. The crushing blow sent her sprawling face-forward to the stone floor. The dagger flew from her grasp and skidded across the stone pavers out of reach. Before she could recover, she felt a rough hand grab her shoulder and wrench her body around. She now stared directly into Barbi's murderous face.

The vampire grabbed Ravena's neck in her grasp. She bared her fangs, preparing to administer a deadly bite. Ravena struggled in vain, marveling in dismay at the superhuman strength of her attacker. Barbi's fangs hovered inches from Ravena's ivory neck, when a moan from across the room distracted the vampire. Barbi's head twisted to watch Snape stir behind his desk.

Ravena saw her opportunity. She jabbed her wand tip into the vampire's ribs. "Impedimenta!" The spell fired from the wand, propelling Barbi into the air.

In a flash, Ravena assumed the form of the cat. She sprang to her feet and dashed underneath the stores cabinet out of sight. From her hiding place, she watched the vampire rise slowly from the floor. Barbi's eyes scanned the stone surface, searching for any sign that would betray the location of the cat.

Ravena backed into the shadows as far as she could go. But in her haste, she jostled the cabinet. The jolt caused the phials in the cabinet to rattle and clink. Ravena watched with horror as the eyes of the vampire turned in her direction. She could see her adversary's approaching footsteps. The vampire now crouched to peer into the blackness under the cabinet.

"Here kitty, kitty," Barbi coaxed.

Suddenly, Barbi's body shook as if struck by some outside force. She gasped. Ravena watched the vampire's eyes rolled back into her head. Then the body fell lifeless to the floor.

The cat crept out from under the cabinet, eyes darting around the room. She stared at the prone form of the vampire. Barbi's body rapidly vanished in a scarlet mist. A wooden pike protruded from her back. The cat's gaze flicked to Snape's desk. Her blue eyes opened wide. Snape surveyed her, his wand still poised in his outstretched arm.

Ravena sighed with relief and resumed her human form. She ran to the Potions Master's side, quite breathless. Snape stared at her with a look of wonder. She did not know which one of them was more astonished.

"Ravena," he exclaimed. "An animagus?"

"Yes," she nodded. "Unregistered. So I trust that you'll not bandy that information about." She cast him a wan smile. "How much did you see?"

"I witnessed the end of your little cat fight," Snape remarked. His dark eyes surveyed the destruction in his office. "Where is the other vampire?" he spat.

"Defeated." Ravena pointed to the abandoned pile of clothing and the letter opener that lay in the middle of the floor. "And that so called 'cat fight' just saved your life. If I had not intervened when I did, you would be prey to those two harpies by now."

Snape's eyebrows shot up. He stared at her with an incredulous look.

"So you don't believe me?" Her blue eyes flashed with defiance. "And where do you think that nasty lump on your head came from?"

Snape's hand reached for his head. His fingers felt the sizable contusion on his scalp. He winced in pain.

"Let me enlighten you," Ravena said. "When I came down to your office this evening, I found you out cold on the desk. Someone dressed in a set of your clothes was stooped over you and those two blood-suckers were poised to drain the life from your body." She glanced at the mess on the floor. "The formaldehyde must have revived you during the confrontation."

"And where is this imposter now?" Snape inquired.

"Bloody hell!" Ravena exclaimed. Her eyes widened in alarm "I'd forgotten about him. He was headed up to my office. Come. We've wasted too much time already."

Ravena waved her wand and summoned her dagger to her. Snape strode to his stores cupboard. His hand reached inside and pocketed a small phial. Then Ravena and the Potions Master dashed out of the office and up through the corridors of the school. When she approached her own office door, she crept with silent tread. Her ear pressed to the wooden door, listening for sounds of the intruder. She nodded to Snape. Someone was still inside.

With her wand held in one hand, she reached for the door with her other. Her hand twisted the handle. Her head nodded a signal to Snape. She threw the door wide open. They burst into the room, wands drawn, firing hexes.

The startled prowler was bent over Ravena's desk, searching the contents of the drawers. Flabbergasted, he looked up just in time to see the incoming hexes soaring his way. Both curses hit before he could react. His body went rigid and was propelled back into the wall behind the desk. His stiff frame rebounded off the wall and toppled face first on the top of Ravena's desk, knocking him senseless.

Immediately, Ravena conjured ropes to bind him. Snape levitated the unconscious form to the leather divan. The Potions Master's face wore an odd expression of surprise. Ravena surmised that he had found it strange to see himself bound and in such a state. Ravena stared from the imposter to the real Snape. She had to admit that the disguise was so well executed that she was hard pressed to tell them apart.

"Shall we get to the bottom of this?" Snape said, his black eyes flashing with a mixture of curiosity and anger.

He emptied the pockets of the impersonator: a wand, a small blade, two flasks, a wallet, a money sack, and a bag of carob and soy energy snacks. Snape's fingers reached for a flask. He pulled the stopper and held the phial under his hooked nose. He jerked to clear his head of the toxic fumes.

"The Draught of Living Death," he mused. His eyebrows shot up.

"What's that?" Ravena inquired.

"A powerful sleeping tonic," he remarked. "One wonders who that was meant for." He reached for the second flask, unstopped it, and inhaled. His face contorted in a look of disgust. "Polyjuice Potion." He glared at the imposter. "This explains how he carried out his disguise. Apparently, this pretender is the one who has been pilfering boomslang skin and powdered bicorn horn from my private stores."

Ravena cast him a questioning look.

"Those are the essential ingredients for Polyjuice Potion," he spat. He waved an impatient hand and glared at her. "It allows one person to take the form of another."

Ravena picked up the wallet. She opened the billfold and gasped. Inside was the largest collection of forged identity cards that she'd ever seen. Each one was inscribed with a different name and country of origin, but each bore the likeness of the same man. Ashbury!

"Look at this," Ravena gasped. She fanned out the cards in her fingers. "There must be one from every country in here."

She flipped through the cards. Her eyes scanned the names on each one. She plucked two from the pile and placed them on the table. One was a California driver's license issued to Haight Ashbury. The other was an identity badge from International Wizard Intelligence issued to Bilius Gnash.

"Look," Ravena remarked, pointing to the cards. "Do you suppose he's some sort of international spy?"

"Ashbury?" Snape sneered. "That incompetent idiot?"

"Maybe it's all an act?" Ravena reasoned, arching her eyebrows. "He is quite talented at forgery, you recall. He can't possibly be as asinine as he seems."

"Well, there is one way to find out," Snape snarled. His hand reached into his own pocket and extracted a phial.

"What's that?" Ravena queried.

"Veritaserum," Snape hissed.

He pried open the impersonator's mouth and dribbled a few drops inside. Then he reached for his wand. He pointed it at the imposter's chest. "Ennervate!" The captive's eyes fluttered open. He stared from Snape to Ravena in wide-eyed wonder.

"Well, well, well," the prisoner muttered. "If it isn't the dynamic duo. Batman and Raven. What happened to my two lovelies? They were supposed to take care of you two."

"Apparently, they tried to bite off more than they could chew," Ravena replied, arching a thin eyebrow.

"Y-you don't mean...?" the prisoner stuttered.

"You won't be seeing them again," Ravena said with a self-satisfied smirk. "I'd stake my reputation on it."

"And we will be asking the questions from now on," Snape hissed, casting him an impatient stare. "Who are you?"

"And what are you doing in my office?" Ravena added.

"I am Inspector Bilius Gnash," the captive replied. "International Wizard Intelligence. Master of disguise. Man of a thousand identities." He flashed them both a proud grin and danced his eyebrows. "And I have been tracking you, little lady."

"Me?" Ravena replied. Her china blue eyes flew open wide.

"I followed you through Greece and Turkey all last summer," Gnash said, fixing his gaze on Ravena. "I knew that you were after that emerald. But you were always one step ahead of me."

"What emerald?" Snape inquired. His eyes narrowed. His curiosity piqued.

"The Eye of the Serpent," the captive replied.

Snape's eyebrows rocketed up. A look of recognition flashed across his face. He stared from Ravena to Gnash with a suspicious glare.

"One wonders why you would want that particular gem," Snape whispered.

"Y-yes," Ravena stuttered, avoiding Snape's gaze with a guilty look. She trained a piercing stare on Gnash. "Why are you interested in that jewel?"

"Simple," Gnash replied, chuckling. "I am a jewel thief. The best in the world. I steal whatever my client wants. And I was hired to track down that jewel."

"Who hired you?" Snape hissed.

"A woman," Gnash replied. "I don't know her name and I never saw her face. I find it works best that way. As long as I am well compensated for my services, I don't ask prying questions."

"And what happened to the jewel?" Snape inquired, his lips drawn to a thin, white line.

"I never found it," Gnash rejoined. "Your lovely lady here apparently beat me to it. So I took the identity of Haight Ashbury and followed her here. I tried to get close to her. But you kept getting in my way, you nosy git." He gritted his teeth and flashed Snape a look full of contempt. "So I had to get rid of you."

Snape's head whipped around to face Ravena. He cast her a withering glare.

"Where is it, Ravena?" Snape hissed.

"I don't have it," she insisted. "I swear." She jerked her head back to face Gnash. "So you broke into my office looking for a gem that I don't even possess?"

"I never said that I was looking for that gem." Gnash sniggered. "My client gave me other assignments."

"So what are you looking for then?" Ravena asked.

"The Phoenix," he replied.

Ravena laughed. "The Black Gauntlet broke into my parent's house months ago and stole that diamond."

"No, he didn't," Gnash insisted, fixing his gaze on Ravena. "It's true that he tried. But that particular diamond was not in the safe."

"And how would you know that?" Ravena replied, a puzzled expression on her face.

"Because I am the Black Gauntlet!" Gnash boasted.

Ravena staggered backward in shock. Snape's eyes narrowed in a cunning glare. He thrust his sallow face into his adversary's. His lips turned up into a wicked grin of delight.

"It will give me the greatest pleasure to turn you over to the authorities," he snarled. "Perhaps they will even offer a reward for your capture. But nothing will compare to the satisfaction that I will get from seeing you locked up in Azkaban." Snape turned to Ravena. "Keep an eye on him. I will go and fetch the Headmaster."

Snape's gaze scanned the table. He scooped up the potions flasks and stuffed them into his own pocket. Then he swept from the room, his black robes fanning out behind him.

"You and I could have been great together, you know," Gnash hinted, after Snape had gone. He danced his eyebrows.

Ravena just glared back at him, stunned. She found his words disconcerting. She had to remind herself that the man she was watching was an imposter, regardless of his resemblance to the real Snape. She couldn't bear to hear any more. It was probably just another ruse anyway.

"Silencio!" Her spell rendered him mute. "Lie still," she warned. "And no tricks."

Ravena settled herself into a chair facing Gnash. She trained her wand on him. Her eyes remained fixed on his bound form. Out of the corner of her eye, Ravena spotted a rat scurrying across the floor. Her gaze flicked to the creature for a brief moment, then focused back on her prisoner.

Seconds later, a red flash of light obscured her vision. Startled, Ravena caught a brief glimpse of a small man with a pointy nose and watery eyes. She was hit in the chest with a hex. Her entire body went limp. She remembered no more.

* * * * * * * *

Headmaster Dumbledore's face swam in and out of focus. Ravena blinked. She tried to concentrate on those piercing blue eyes under the snowy white brows.

"Ravena, are you all right?" Dumbledore said, staring at her over the half-moon spectacles.

"What happened?" Ravena groaned.

She mopped her forehead. Her eyes looked over to see the Headmaster and Severus Snape leaning over her. She lay sprawled on the oriental carpet in her office and could not remember how she got there.

Ravena pulled herself up to a sitting position and leaned against the base of the divan for support. She spotted the severed ropes lying on the cushions of the sofa. Her memory came flooding back.

"Gnash," she gasped. "Where is he?"

"Escaped," Snape spat. "Filch saw him speed away from the grounds on that Muggle vehicle of his. We were too late to stop him."

"I'm so sorry," Ravena said, her eyes downcast.

"Do not blame yourself." Dumbledore placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Severus tells me that he was looking for a diamond called the Phoenix. What can you tell me about this gem?"

"It has been in our family for generations," Ravena replied. "My mother has always insisted that it has no magical powers."

"And you believe her?" Dumbledore asked. Those blue eyes searched her own.

"Every other gem in her collection is vested with some magical power or curse," Ravena explained. "Why should this one be any different?" She shook her head. "No, I do not believe her. But neither do I know what it does."

"Whoever hired Mr. Gnash to find this diamond is willing to murder to acquire it." Dumbledore trained his piercing eyes on Ravena. "Do you know of anyone who would go to such extremes for this jewel?"

Ravena immediately thought of Lucius Malfoy. He had threatened her life for the sake of the trinket. But she could not tell Dumbledore that. If she did, then she would have to confess her part in the acquisition of that other gem. No. She would say nothing. Ravena shook her head.

"It doesn't matter," Ravena replied. "No one will get that diamond. I took it and hid it. And no one knows that I have it. I'll show it to you."

Ravena rose to her feet and disappeared into her private chambers, leaving the door ajar. She approached the top drawer of her chiffonier and opened it. Her eyes searched the drawer, while her fingers felt among the satin and lace for the velvet pouch. What was this? Where had that gem gone?

In her frantic search, her hands tossed lingerie and undergarments from the dresser onto the floor of her room. She had emptied the drawer of its contents, but still could not locate the diamond. She removed the entire drawer and overturned it onto the floor with a crash. Her eyes stared at the dresser in disbelief and horror.

She sprinted to the doorway, clutching the lintel with a shaking grasp. All the color had drained from her face. Ravena's tear-filled eyes flicked from the Headmaster to Snape.

"It's gone!" she sobbed.

Dumbledore's blue eyes surveyed her with pity. However Snape cast her a look of doubt.

"I swear, it was there," Ravena insisted. "I told no one that I had taken it. Not even my parents. I don't understand how anyone could have found it."

"Easy, Ravena," Dumbledore soothed. "No one is accusing you. I will look into this matter myself."

Dumbledore turned and left the office. Ravena leaned against the doorway of her private chambers for support. Her legs felt weak. Guilt washed over her. Snape's dark eyes bored into her face with an accusatory glare.

"The Headmaster may believe your story, Ravena," Snape whispered. "But I know you. I can see right through your lies. I know that you are hiding something."

"You know what your problem is, Severus?" Ravena snapped, her blue eyes flashing.

"No," he replied, his teeth clenched. "But I have a feeling that you are going to tell me."

"You can't trust anyone," Ravena blurted out. "That's your problem."

"You are absolutely right, as usual, Ravena," Snape spat, in a deathly quiet whisper. "I cannot trust anyone. There are only two people in my life that never lied to me. One is dead and the other just walked out that door. So forgive me if I do not trust."

Snape spun on his heels and stormed out of the office, slamming the door as he left. Ravena watched his departure with misty-eyed gaze. She sank to the floor of the threshold and buried her face in her hands. She shook her head. She had lied; that much was true. And she had played a shameful part in Malfoy's schemes. But she had done it all for Severus. How could he turn his back on her now? How could he be so cruel and so blind?

"You stupid, foolish man," she sobbed. "You wouldn't recognize what you need, even if she were staring you in the face."