Redemption

Part 3: Distraught

As the Great Hall filled with the chatter of returning students, Severus Snape sat quietly with his colleagues, awaiting the arrival of the first years and the impending Sorting Ceremony.

"Ah, Severus. Ready for a New Year?" Dumbledore asked brightly. Severus nodded his head slightly from his seat on Dumbledore’s right. He hated it when the other teachers, who knew nothing about his past, chose to stare at him as though he was some sort of hideous Garden Gnome. But it was too late for Severus to comment about his comrades’ behavior because McGonagall had stood up and walked out the Hall.

"Severus, I must say you look a bit tired."

"I am fine, Headmaster," Severus said coolly as he glanced along the rows of empty tables.

Dumbledore looked at him with unwavering eyes as the noise of students steadily escalated. The sound rung in Severus’ ears and he slowly forced not to cover them. The door to the Entrance Hall opened rather suddenly and McGonagall entered casting a silence upon the students. The first years followed her rather stoically, passing in between the tables.

His first impression was that they were a very small number and a rather gloomy bunch. It was undoubtedly because they were scared of the Sorting Hat, which Minerva had told them about before their entrance. One person struck him as a curious individual. She had long, raven black hair and very dark brown eyes. She looked particularly anxious yet held her head high and proud. And for some strange reason, she looked familiar.

Then suddenly, the realization came, and it filled him with dread, and memories of the friends he had forced himself to forget...

The girl glanced up at him for the briefest of moments, shattering his private thoughts, before resuming the rather ill looking face that she had worn upon entering the hall. McGonagall placed the three-legged stool and the Sorting Hat before Dumbledore and the Hat broke out into song.

Before long, McGonagall had unrolled the parchment of names and had begun reading them out. He applauded lightly for any new Slytherin that the Hat shouted at while throwing his most sour look at any new comers to other Houses. But he was simply going through the motions, as always, his actions not belying the nervousness he felt, and his ears strained to hear the name that he knew would eventually be called.

"Redgrove, Elissa."

Severus could feel the blood pounding in his ears at the sound of the girl’s name. He watched as the same raven-haired girl approached the hat rather sheepishly and placed it on her head. This can’t be happening, Severus thought to himself. Please, don’t be a Slytherin. I couldn’t stand it.

"SLYTHERIN!"

Elissa took the hat off her head and placed it back down on the stool. For a brief moment, the girl paused to look at Severus before taking of down the platform towards the Slytherin table, which was eagerly waiting for their new member. Severus was overcome with shock and he knew it was expressed freely on his face. They promised Durmstrang, they promised Durmstrang, was all that he could think. Dumbledore stood up and said a few encouraging words to the students before sitting back down and stuffing his face full of food. Severus simply sat in astonishment, staring down at the Slytherin table.

"Severus, are you alright?" McGonagall asked from Dumbledore’s left.

"No…no I’m not," Severus mumbled before standing from his seat and leaving the feast in a furl of black robes.

***

Elissa sat at the Slytherin table, still shaking hands with her fellow classmates. She could feel all her fears leave her as she sat next to a girl she remembered as Michelle Anglin.

"Hi there," the girl said. "I am Michelle. Elissa, right?"

"Elissa Redgrove," she said rather stoically as she watched George and Fred get Sorted into Gryffindor.

"You a pureblood?" asked a boy to her right. Elissa swiveled her head to lock eyes with the boy.

"Who’s asking?"

She didn’t realize her voice had been so menacing, and the boy drew back for a moment in near shock before allowing a sneer to plaster itself onto his face. "Marcus Flint. Pureblood. So are you a Pureblood or not?"

"Pureblood," Elissa said coldly before turning her head back to Michelle, who was watching her with wide eyes. "What?"

"Well, other than the fact you made Marcus Flint, the cutest second year according to my sister speechless, nothing," Michelle said, awed at Elissa’s ostentatious attitude.

"So? He was annoying me with a stupid question," she said with a small smirk on her face. "Are you from a wizarding family?"

"Yeah. Not as old as the Flints, though, let alone the Redgroves."

"My family isn’t all that prestigious, you know," Elissa said matter-of-factly. She glanced up at Dumbledore who was rising up from his seat.

"Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! I have just a few announcements to make and then I will let you all eat up. First off, as always, the Forbidden Forest is…well…forbidden. Secondly, we have a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher named Professor Quirrell."

There was a polite round of applause for the tall and gangly professor who stood and waved his hand. Dumbledore clapped his own hands together before turning his attention back to the students of Hogwarts.

"And last of all, we have a new evening activities schedule, which will be posted in both the common rooms and the Great Hall. Now, its time we begin the feast!" Dumbledore said happily as he lightly rubbed his hands together before sitting down.

The plates on the tables filled with food and soon the clinking of silverware on the golden plates could be heard throughout the hall. Before Elissa could even begin to eat, she noticed a large black blur walking hurriedly out of the Great Hall and out the doors.

"Ooh, Professor Snape looks angry," Marcus clucked from Elissa’s side.

"Hmmm, intriguing," Elissa muttered, sarcasm dripping from every word. "Eat up, will you? I’d hate to have you bug me any more than you have to."

Marcus cast a reproving glare towards her before shoveling food onto his plate and eating.

"Ice Maiden, aren’t we?" a girl’s voice asked from across the table. Elissa looked up from her plate and caught a glimpse of a rather mousy looking girl with wispy blonde hair staring at her. "Clara Bruntweiler, Pureblood and first year."

Clara stuck out her hand for Elissa to shake. Elissa did so rather hurriedly.

"I frankly don’t feel like chatting up a storm right now," Elissa said quietly while resuming her attack on the crescent roll before her. She was still venting her anger over her grandparents’ meager goodbye messages, yet she was all the same happy that she was away from them. She also didn’t feel comfortable with the way this Marcus Flint was gawking at her.

"Well then, we’ll have to see what you are like when you are more human, isn’t that right?" Clara stated bluntly before returning to her own dinner. Michelle watched Elissa for a moment.

"You can tell me what’s wrong, if you want. Not now, but soon," Michelle whispered. Elissa choked on a piece of chicken before chugging down some water.

"I’ll…think about that," Elissa struggled before closing her eyes and resuming her feeding frenzy.

After working her way through a plateful of chicken and treacle pudding, Dumbledore excused the students. The Head Boy and Girl, as well as the numerous Prefects, set off to work, herding their houses out of the Hall and towards their common rooms. Elissa and Michelle walked side-by-side, too tired to keep their eyes open for much longer, let alone start up any conversation.

After what seemed like hours, the large caravan of Slytherin students stopped before a rather odd looking stone wall.

"Metus Il Serpentum," a prefect said to the gathered students. The wall opened up and led into a rather cold dungeon-converted-common room. The ceiling was a bit lower than what was expected, and the room was long and rather narrow. There were crushed velvet armchairs and sofas in emerald green situated around the fire while dark oak tables and hard-backed chairs adorned an area that looked as if it could be mistaken for the library. Green lamps glowed brightly from every corner and tabletop as well as from the ceiling and two fires crackled away merrily. Off in the distance, Elissa could make out two doors that obviously led to their dormitories.

"Alright. Breakfast begins at seven o’clock in the Great Hall tomorrow and classes start at eight. Goodnight!" one of the prefect boys said in a breath before the crowd dispersed and went to their respective rooms. Michelle and Elissa dragged their feet down the long corridor of the Girl’s dormitory before coming across their room with the words ‘First Years’ in glittering silver letters.

After putting on their pajamas and flopping down onto their beds, Elissa stared at the room around her, quickly feeling drowsiness pour over her. Even though the day’s events had been a wonderful release from the confines of her grandparents, she was too tired to think over them, so with a loud yawn and a flick of her wand on the light, she passed into a dreamless sleep.

Fero, Severus’ raven, sat perched on his shoulder while he wrote a quick letter to Magnus Redgrove. He could feel the anger and betrayal burn into him like a double-edged sword, pouring itself out of his quill and onto the parchment before him.

He folded the letter angrily before tying it a bit too tightly to Fero’s leg and sending the bird off. Severus sat at his desk for a long while, reflecting on the night’s events, before the door to his classroom opened and Dumbledore stepped in.

"Severus, you left the feast this evening in quite a rush. May I inquire as to why?" Dumbledore asked rather calmly after settling himself into an armchair in front of Snape’s desk.

Severus was silent, tapping his fingers against his chin.

"You know," said Dumbledore thoughtfully, "sometimes it does one much good to spill their mind to another individual."

"You remember Vanessa Redgrove, don’t you?" Severus asked, his voice in a harsh whisper that clearly stated his inner turmoil before the aging headmaster.

"Yes. One of the more thoughtful Aurors in the Ministry. She was in your year, if I remember correctly."

Severus nodded his head before taking out a picture and holding it tightly in the palm of his hand. "Her ghost has come back to haunt me."