Play With Fire

Play with Fire

It was quite late on a Thursday evening. Justyne Jaracas has just finished correcting her student's homework in Ancient Runes. Now she was filling the marks into the class list. Rednivkus, Dante, Ravenclaw and Snape, Tracie, Gryffindor those were the last two. She sat back, and stared at the wall. It felt strange being in Hogwarts again.

It had been a difficult first week for her so far. After thirteen years she was returning to Hogwarts as a professor. Back in her school days, when she had shared a bench with Sadlier Smith, she would have never believed it. Justyne had been a good student, but by no means a special one. She had the best NEWT results in Ancient Runes and Transfiguration in her year, but still no one had ever really noticed her. She had been a Slytherin student as all her family had been in Slytherin but at heart she had thought a couple of times that she would have done well in Hufflepuff. She had never felt much pride for her house, maybe because she blamed Slytherin for turning her sister into a Death Eater, and therefore also in consequence for Jane Jaracas being in Azkaban now.

After school she had spent several months in Inverness, working for the Secret Society of Runes, before she was sent down to India to study further rune matters at the temples of the Elements, only known to a few New Delhi wizards. India had shaped her in many ways, changed her, and when she returned to Britain not much of the old Justyne was left. From a shy and underweight teenager she had turned into an elegant woman, with long black curls, steel blue eyes, distinct style and a mysterious aura. She had become one of the most important wizards in the Secret Society, and she had developed a special talent for runes to do with the element of air. She had become the leading specialist on the field of elemental runes, and now Albus Dumbledore had brought her back to Hogwarts. While the story of how she ended up in Hogwarts kept replaying in her head she suddenly heard something outside her door. One of her colleagues was obviously arguing with one of the students. She looked up from her desk annoyed as the arguing voices brought her back into the harsh reality of the day.

"Mr Black," the cold and unpleasant voice shouted, "that is 20 points from Gryffindor!".

Atticus Black, who was actually not related to the famous Black family, seemed to take it easy.

"Excuse me professor, but I think this is a misunderstanding," he started extremely calm and collected. "I was just on my way back to the Gryffindor dormitories. I am coming from a detention with Professor Tara Tuff. She kept me cleaning the trophy room for this long."

"Lies! That is another 20 points from Gryffindor! And if you do not return to your dormitory now I will make it 50. Sneaking around my office at night. I am sure you were here to steal something."

Justyne had now identified that the professor's voice belonged to none other then Severus Snape. She sniggered to herself, curiously opening the door of her office just a few millimetres so she could peak. Professor Snape was fuming in rage, while Atticus obviously did not seem to be impressed at all.
"You are making a mistake here," he said, "Please!"

Snape did not seem to like that he was still talking back. "That is another 50 points then. I hope you are proud of yourself now, losing 90 points just in one night."

Atticus turned around and began cursing under his breath. Justyne was sure she had heard the words "greasy git" and "I should have believed Delta, he is just as mean as she said."

Once Atticus was gone she pushed the door open and stepped out on the corridor. Professor Snape was still there, he had just turned around to walk to his office. She suddenly felt this warm wave of sympathy for Atticus, the poor student, who had seemed to be honest. So she decided to at least wind professor Snape up about it.

"Of course, who else would make such a fuss in the middle of the night. Severus Snape disturbing my late night working." She said this with a perfectly straight face even though she had not really been working on anything. He turned around to look at her, obviously surprised that someone had witnessed his little outburst.

"Well someone has to teach those Gryffindors how to behave properly," he said, his voice sounded absolutely icy.

"And that is why you think it is appropriate to shout through the school building in the middle of the night. One should have thought as an experienced Hogwarts teacher you would know other ways to show your authority," She chuckled softly.

If her words hadn't already wound him up her chuckle definitely did the rest. He looked at her, his dark eyes glistening like two daggers. " Of course, Professor Jaracas, you know so much better, even though you do not even teach a proper subject. Old rune rituals and all that humbug."

Now that went a bit too far for Justyne's taste. She was usually less temperamental, but his last comment had hit her in the wrong spot. "That of course can only come from an ignorant person." She grinned evilly and then added to her sentence, "maybe this is why you didn't get the vacancy in Defence Against the Dark Arts again. You simply don't know how to defend yourself against all this humbug. Such a pity." She sighed and was about to turn around an go back to her office when he countered: "Really there isn't anything about rune wizards and witches that needs to be known. They can't be a threat, even if they are working for the dark side."

At this comment Justyne just laughed softly, narrowing her eyes. "Well if we are not dangerous at all, how about a little experiment?" she asked. He just nodded not even bothering to answer Justyne. She reached behind her ear and suddenly she held a red rune stone between thumb and middle finger. "Just give me one hand," she ordered Snape.

He found the situation odd, but he did not dare to back off now. She put the red rune gently into his hand and closed his fist around it. When Snape reflected on this moment years later, he would still shudder. He had never seen or heard of a rune like this ever before. Once his fist had closed around the rune it felt like a fire was burning his hand. The stinging pain went through his whole body, touching every nerve, but somehow his pride made him hold on to it, for some reason he did not dare to drop it. The pain grew more intense, he thought his body must have been glowing, but still he held onto it. At this very moment it must have been when he actually noticed that there was something special about her, and was not just an ordinary girl. Her blue eyes stared at his, and he felt her stare went right through his soul. Thinking about it, she was quite beautiful, but she had an evil twist to her character, very Slytherin. His eyes followed the perfect shape of her body, her corseted waist and her long legs. Then pain sharply cut through his body. He bit his tongue just so he would not admit defeat in front of the new her. He closed his eyes for a moment and eventually the pain subsided and he was able to focus on the world around him again. Jaracas was gone. There was still light in her office but her did not want to knock on the door.

When he woke up the next morning he thought the weird incident in the corridor must have been a dream, and after he had showered, he went down to have breakfast in the great hall. There was no sign of the weird Runes Professor and secretly he was rather glad about it. His first lesson of the day would be the second years in potions. Even though he hated to admit it they were actually quite a good potions class. Ben Davis and Merik Malfoy from Slytherin were both amazing potion students and he was very pleased with their work. Unfortunately, there was also Amrit Mirchandani in his class, probably the worst student he had taught since Neville Longbottom had left Hogwarts.

When he came into the classroom he heard Mirchandani snigger as soon as he came in. He was leaning over to Dailys Daring from Ravenclaw, making wild gestures. Snape grumpily wondered what could be that funny. After all, he had just entered the classroom. Now Daylis Daring was laughing as well, she was pointing at him. Suddenly the whole class burst into laughter. It was Delta Frasier who eventually had the courage to reveal to him why. Snape looked down on his hands in shock, the whole class had been laughing because he has this intense red flower shaped burn mark on his hand. He had no idea how this could have happened, but then it suddenly came back to him, and he eventually figured it must have been related to the rune that evil professor Jaracas had given to him. "Oh, how dare she!" he thought and somewhat embarrassed he stormed out of the classroom telling his students to keep quiet while he went to get something he had forgotten in his office.

In his office he tried to scrub the strange mark off his hand, but it would not disappear. He tried to hex it away with magic, but is persistently stayed on his hand. He did not really have time, as his class was waiting, so he grabbed a pair of black gloves and put them on while hurrying back to the classroom. He still could not believe this awful woman would do something like this to him.

After a frustrating day of work Snape made his way to the library, trying to read up on the strange symbol on his hand, still too proud to admit defeat to her. After Madame Pince had married and become a house wife Angelina Johnson, a former student was now the head librarian. A choice Dumbledore had made that Snape had never fully understood. Out of all people Snape would have probably found someone more qualified for this job. Today, Johnson made his visit to the library more humiliating than it was already. He sat down in the restricted section, pulling a book called The Mysteries of Runes Revealed by former Durmstrang Professor Myna Fae'nar. The book seemed to contain a lot of information about lots of things Snape had never even heard of before. Even though he was looking at every page and picture closely, nothing really seemed to match what had happened to his hand. Somewhat annoyed and still fuming he left the library half an hour later. On his way back to his office he bumped into Denny Darentite and David Evans, mocking him about the gloves. Five points from Ravenclaw, five from Hufflepuff.

Back in his office he tried some transfiguration spells, a restoring potion, and a healing potion but then he finally gave up. The thought to see Poppy Pomfrey about it sprung to mind, then again, a red flower? He could hardly show her that.

In her office Justyne Jaracas was laughing to herself. By now Severus Snape must have found out what this rune does she thought. But, she also know he would have only found out half the truth about it. She wondered when he would drop by and admit defeat. The rune she had used on him was a personal creation of hers, a guardian rune that established a mental link between rune creator and user, or in Snape's case victim. She was still waiting for the right moment to show the full potential of the rune. She was well aware he had been annoyed all day about it, and she had enjoyed it through and through. She had heard all the students talking about him in the corridors and sniggered to herself constantly. She concentrated, her fingertips over a bigger master rune, apparently the same kind as the rune from the night before.

Down in the dungeons Snape dropped a bottle of verita serum. The mark on his hand stung again the pain had went right trough his spine, and worse, now as he looked at it the shape changed into a smiling face. As he watched the face winked at him. While he moved his wand to clean up the potion he realized he would have to see that Jaracas woman again. He sighed, but then a warm shudder when through his body, the next moment he felt relation, then his hand was stinging again. This time the symbol changed to the Gryffindor crest. Now his anger got the better of him, he hated how this woman played with him now. He rushed up from the dungeons, another shudder, and a few seconds later he knocked furiously at Professor Jaracas' door.

When he came in she was sitting at her desk, and as if the whole situation was not humiliating enough she was sitting behind her desk wearing the world's biggest smile. He thought it looked quite good on her, but of course in his anger he dismissed the thought immediately. He walked up to her desk, his eyes were burning like two flames, his body tense. He stared at her in disbelief. Jaracas was completely relaxed as she stood up. The green satin of her skirt fell elegantly along the perfect shape of her legs. He hated that he noticed that.

"Professor, I want you to remove this mark from my hand! I cannot believe you did..." Suddenly he stopped.

"Did what exactly?" she interrupted, looking really irritated by his request, as though she had no idea what he was talking about. A second later she added a, "I have no idea what you are talking about, professor Snape."

He could not believe this woman dared to pretend she knew nothing now. "The mark!" he exclaimed. "That awful burn mark you witched on my hand!".

She looked at him, obviously not impressed. "Am I getting you right that you suggest I would harm a fellow professor, moreover a fellow Slytherin? Professor Snape, you really disappoint me."

He was about to smash his hand on the desk so she could see the mark, but suddenly it was gone. He stared at his hand confused. "Where did it go?! The mark is gone!"

Jaracas had a hard time to stay serious now, but she still managed to produce a puzzled facial expression pretending she knew nothing. "Of course it is, because it was never there first place. Such an ridiculous accusation."

Snape was fuming he knew it was her, and he knew she had done this evil thing, but there was no way to prove it, as they had been alone. He kept accusing her of things for another minute, but finally he gave up, even more frustrated than when he walked in. He left announcing more loudly then needed that he would be leaving her office now.

Justyne smiled sympathetically and wished him a nice evening, returning to correcting Mirabel Harmer's essay about Zhyadad runes. Just before he left the door she said very lowly, "This is what happens if you play with fire: you sometimes get burned."

He had heard it, but he did not turn around. For the first time in years someone had made a complete fool out of him and there was nothing he could really do without looking silly himself. Grudgingly he walked back to his office. The whole thing had disturbed him on quite a few levels, and now he could not forget her happy little smile.

Later that night in bed he stared at his hand again wondering why the symbol had disappeared. He was expecting it to return with a stinging pain, or a warm flush, like she had played with him before. He kept staring at his hand waiting for the mark to come back, but of course it didn't. For some bizarre reason he now felt lonely.