Journey to Passion

Chapter Two - Bolt from the Blue

The second dawn of November came with a crisp, cool breeze very much like the first one. The chill of the night left a blanket of white frost over the still green grounds of Hogwarts that glistened in the early sunlight. A vast vapour of thick fog hovered over the lake making it impossible to see anything beyond the water's edge.

In the opposite direction, the frost-covered trees lining the start of the Dark Forest waved their branches and flapped their leaves in rhythm with the breeze. The birds could faintly be heard singing their morning songs to each other as they welcomed the new day. Amidst it all, a thin haze of smoke could be seen rising from the chimney of Hagrid's little hut beside the Dark Forest.

Standing at the railing of his office balcony appreciating the beautiful landscape, Albus Dumbledore took a deep breath of the fresh morning air and then closed his eyes as he slowly sipped his lemon flavoured tea. When he set his teacup back on its saucer plate, it made a tiny ringing sound. At that same time, he heard his office door open softly and then close again.

The Headmaster finished the last of his tea before he turned around and stepped back inside. He set his empty teacup and saucer on his desk and then smiled as he went to welcome his visitor.

"Jessica! Good morning, my lovely dear," he greeted and held his arms out to her.

She smiled back at him and stepped into his embrace. "Good morning," she said before kissing his cheek and giving him a hug.

"How are you, darling?" he asked and stepped back to look at her. She was dressed in another long, slender gown with long sleeves and a v-neck. It was midnight blue with gold, cosmic trimming to match the golden accessories she had weaved into her hair.

"I'm quite well," she answered. "I'm not disturbing you, am I?"

"Heavens no," Dumbledore said and batted his hand to the side. "Come have a seat. I was just having a cup of tea before going to breakfast. Have you eaten already?"

"Yes, I have." Jessica sat down on the couch opposite him and then soothingly rubbed her hands up and down her arms after a gust of cold air came sweeping through the window. "The children up in the Hospital Wing are having theirs right now. I haven't seen you for a couple of days, so Madam Pomfrey said I could slip away and speak to you for a moment while they eat."

"Why how thoughtful of you," he said with a smile. "Are you still enjoying your work with Poppy?" He saw that the breeze was too cold for Jessica and pointed his wand at the window to close it. He turned his hand towards the hearth and then ignited a roaring fire with only a simple wave. The room was warmed almost instantly once the flames settled back to a normal blaze.

"Yes I am," Jessica answered. "It keeps me busy, and the children like to ask lots of questions. Except for the Muggle-born students a number of them are quite unfamiliar with the practice I use."

"That they are," he agreed. "But even the students born to wizard families are still so ignorant of all the ways magic can me used for medical treatment." He began to walk over to his desk but then stopped and looked back at her. "I hope none of them have been reluctant to accept your dissimilar assistance."

Jessica nodded and let out a sigh. "No," she said. "At least none of the students have. I had one particularly averse patient the other night. After spending a couple of minutes yelling at me constantly, he decided that he'd rather spend the night in bleeding agony than let me stitch him up."

Dumbledore chuckled softly and began to stroke the end of his long, white beard between his finger and thumb. "Well, I'm glad Severus made an effort to give you a chance to help him. It wasn't an easy decision for him to make, I'm sure. Severus can be especially stubborn and he doesn't like to show signs of weakness."

"Do you mean Professor Snape?" Jessica asked, not knowing if this was his first name.

"Yes," he said and adjusted his crescent shaped glasses.

"How did you know it was he who came?" Jessica asked curiously.

"I know many things," he said and showed her a good-humoured smile. "Severus didn't look well at all when I last saw him on Halloween."

Jessica smiled back and nodded. "I see. Then you must know all about the little accident he'd gotten himself into that evening. What in the world did that to him?" she asked and leaned forward, putting her elbows over her knees. "He was very reluctant to share anything with me. I tried my best not to pry, but I can't help but be curious."

Dumbledore chuckled again and gently bounced his foot. "I do know many things," he said again, "but whatever happened to him that night is a tale for only him to share. When he feels the time is right, I'm quite certain the mystery will be revealed."

"Ah, then you don't know what happened to him," Jessica concluded aloud. "Well, whatever it was, I hope it taught him a good lesson."

"Perhaps," was all Dumbledore said. "I hope that one day he'll tell you all about it."

"Sure," Jessica agreed sarcastically before leaning back into the couch. "He was quite adamant when he insisted that whatever it was isn't any of my business. It wasn't difficult to sense his disinclination. His behaviour certainly didn't suggest that he has any intention to speak to me again soon. I suppose it's mostly because he's still upset with me for tearing his pants to shreds."

Dumbledore quietly laughed again and shook his head. "Jessica my dear, behind all that intimidation and apprehension lies a truly magnificent man. You'll just have to be patient in the search for that side of him."

"What makes you think I desire to do such a thing?" Jessica asked.

"Dearest, your life has changed a lot this year," Dumbledore began. He stopped for a moment when he saw Jessica's eyes turn to the floor as she remembered how different things were before she came to Hogwarts only a few months ago. His heart began to ache when he saw that his reminder stirred up some unpleasant memories. "Adapting to change is something Severus knows a lot about," he continued slowly in a comforting voice full of love and warmth. "And until it's safe for you to return to London, Hogwarts is going to be your home. Thus, you should do your best to make some friends among the people here - unless you fancy the idea of spending all of your time chatting with Madam Pomfrey and myself."

Jessica nodded in agreement but then rolled her eyes at the thought of having to talk to him again. Part of her wanted to know the unmasked Severus Snape at a deeper level, but another part of her felt that the journey wasn't worth the effort it would take to reach the destination. "He seems so insubordinate and cruel," Jessica said aloud. "Do you know that he called his students stupid and careless last night? With one of them present nonetheless."

Dumbledore began to chuckle quietly until he saw the look of confusion appear on her face. "Jessica darling, Severus may be a quick-tempered man, but he would readily give his life to save any one of his students. He proved that the other night when he opted to take on the mountain troll."

Regardless of how difficult it was to imagine such things as that, Jessica always found herself believing in Dumbledore's judgement. After all, Professor Snape did put himself at a greater risk on Halloween night than anyone realized.

"Well my dear," Dumbledore began and stood up from his chair. "It's best I be going. We've got a busy day to look forward to."

Jessica stood up after him and began walking with him towards the door. "The Quidditch game?" Jessica asked.

"Yes," he answered with a nod. "You haven't seen a match before. How would you like to accompany me to the field this morning?"

Jessica would have liked to see a real game of Quidditch, but she knew that it would have to wait until another day. "I'd like to," she admitted, "but I told the Madam I would be available in the Hospital Wing this morning. She said that after each game is when she's most busy."

"Very well then," Dumbledore said before letting Jessica out of his office. "But if you don't find someone to bring you to the next match, I would very much like the honour."

"All right," Jessica agreed. "I'm looking forward to it."

"Good," Dumbledore said and closed his office door behind him. "Now go on dearest and get all of that practice you've been pining for."

Jessica smiled and leaned over to give him another hug. "All right," she said. "Thank you, Uncle Albus."

"You're welcome, Jessica. You're very welcome."

* * *

The Great Hall was only occupied by half its usual number of students that morning, but just by listening to the amount of chatter would have suggested it was twice as full as a normal mealtime. Only the first Quidditch game of the season had the capability to excite so many students into getting out of bed so early on the weekend.

Dumbledore smiled at each of the students as he slowly made his way up to the head table next to Minerva McGonagall. He ate his breakfast in peace and made pleasant small talk with the Transfigurations professor. When she cleared her plate, Professor McGonagall politely excused herself from the table and made way back to her quarters before going out to the Quidditch field.

The Headmaster took a few more minutes to finish his scrambled eggs before leaving the Great Hall. On his way out he wished some of the Quidditch players good luck and gave young Harry Potter an extra wink when he passed the Gryffindor Seeker's table.

Just outside of the Great Hall, Dumbledore saw Professor Snape walking towards him with a little bit of a limp. The professor smiled respectfully and nodded his head when he approached the Headmaster.

"Good morning, Sir."

"Good morning, Severus." Dumbledore returned the smile and held his hand out to stop Snape from going into the Great Hall just yet. "I was really quite pleased to hear that you have met my lovely grandniece," he said.

Snape's eyebrows arched curiously. "Your grandniece?"

"Yes," Dumbledore confirmed with a gentle nod. "Jessica tells me you stopped by the Hospital Wing the other night. I hope everything is all right."

For a moment, Snape forgot to keep breathing. He almost couldn't believe what he had just heard. Of course the relation would explain why Jessica was at Hogwarts, but it certainly didn't explain why she lacked the common knowledge of magic. How could a Muggle be the descendant of the legendary Albus Dumbledore?

"The nurse, Jessica. She is your grandniece?" Snape questioned, still blown away by how something so unconventional could be so.

"Yes," Dumbledore said and nodded once more. "She's the granddaughter of my youngest sister, Guinevere. Heaven rest her soul."

Snape knew very well who Guinevere De Marquis was, and she certainly wasn't a Muggle. She was in fact a very well known witch in her time. Of course, what witch or wizard who was or was once a Dumbledore wasn't a legend?

Jessica. That's who.

"Forgive me for being blunt, Sir," Snape began when he saw that the Headmaster was giving him a curious look. "Jessica is a Muggle, is she not?"

"Oh no, not at all," Dumbledore assured immediately.

"She told me she does not know any magic," Snape recalled. "Her ways of treatment are not like ours. If she is not a Muggle, then for what reason has she been taught their ways?"

Dumbledore slowly put his hand over Snape's arm and leaned a little bit closer to him. "For sufficient reasons," he said. "Perhaps it would be best for Jessica to enlighten you herself."

* * *

It was just as Madam Pomfrey had promised. The end of the Quidditch match brought a few more patients to the Hospital Wing. Jessica spent a couple of hours assessing each student and then preparing them for the magical works of Madam Pomfrey. By the end of it all, Jessica was exhausted. She decided to go for a walk around the castle and set her mind free while she familiarized herself with a few more corners of Hogwarts.

Although she had no idea where the corridors would lead her, Jessica leisurely made her way around admiring the assortment of decorations and furnishings that appeared around every corner. Knights in armour bowed and saluted her as she passed by, and while going up a case of stairs, a voice sounded and an unexpected greeting gave her a sudden shock.

Jessica jumped and looked in the direction she thought she heard the voice coming from. Although she saw no one in front or behind her, the appearance of an old woman in a painting caught her eye. She was standing in a field of flowers waving at Jessica.

"Good afternoon, my lady," the woman in the painting greeted again.

"Gracious," Jessica whispered to herself and almost couldn't believe she was waving back at a painting. She had seen several of the characters in the paintings move, but none had ever spoken before.

On closer inspection, Jessica noticed that a number of the paintings around her were speaking to each other! In one picture there was a man riding on horseback, and in another a young boy was tossing a stick to his pet dog in the neighbouring portrait. Jessica smiled at the enthralment of it all and then courteously continued on her way.

The chatter from all of the paintings slowly began to fade as Jessica made her way down another corridor. It was almost empty except for a narrow passage leading to a spiral staircase. It was poorly lit, but curiosity lured Jessica in its direction. It wasn't clear to her why she wanted to see what was at the bottom of the staircase, but Jessica's eagerness to give it the once-over had the best of her.

Standing at the head of the stairs, Jessica slowly leaned her head over the railing and looked for the bottom of the staircase. It appeared that the stairs only went one floor down.

The railing along the wall felt cold when Jessica touched her fingers to it. She took her first step down and let her hand glide along the stone railing as she descended one step at a time. The heels of her shoes clicked against each step and echoed against the stone walls.

Her fascination with the expanse of the castle lasted only until she reached the bottom of the staircase. It was cold, dark and empty. Nothing about its gloomy, dank corridors looked inviting. Jessica took one look around and then quickly decided to turn around and go back up to where it was less unsettling.

She took one step up and then jumped at the sound of a loud slam. It echoed throughout the corridor like thunder and then slowly faded back into silence. Jessica stepped off of the staircase and peaked down the way. She didn't see anyone or anything. Not even a painting or a suit of armour.

Footsteps. Now she could hear heavy footsteps heading her way. They were quiet at first but grew louder with every step.

"Hello?" Jessica called and walked a bit further down the corridor. She made her way over to where she thought the footsteps were coming from and then came to the opening of another corridor. Small torches hanging from both walls flickered and lit the way. Jessica could see all the way to the end but still couldn't see where the footsteps were coming from, nor could she sense the presence of another human being.

Perhaps it was just another enchantment. By now Jessica knew that Hogwarts was just the place where nothing was ever what it seemed. The footsteps very well could have been a charm or sounding from the floor above or below her.

Jessica began to turn around to go back upstairs but screamed as she ran into a solid shroud of black. Her body bounced back a couple of steps and nearly fell to the floor before a pair of arms wrapped tightly around her waist and held her steady.

"Jessica?" she heard a familiar voice say.

Jessica clutched the front of his overcoat in her hands and pulled herself back up onto her feet. Once she gained her balance again, Jessica looked up knowing she'd see Professor Snape in front of her. "Oh my goodness," she managed to say as she felt a surge of dizziness sweep over her.

With newfound respect for her, Snape took his hands off of the Headmaster's grandniece and pried her hands loose of his clothing as soon as he could and took one step back. His head tilted slightly to the side and his expression twisted in confusion. "Jessica, what in bloody carnations do you think you are doing down here?" he asked her.

"It's a pleasure to see you too, Professor," Jessica said, feeling quite surprised that her presence clearly bothered him.

"You are a long ways away from the Hospital Wing," Snape told her.

Jessica pulled her dress straight and adjusted her long sleeves. "Yes, I am," she agreed. "You're quite the perceptive detective."

Although her comment didn't amuse him, Snape decided to let it slide and moved on with his investigation. "Are you lost?" he asked uncaringly.

"No. I can find my way back." Jessica felt quite confident that she did know the way back to the Hospital Wing from where she was standing. She pushed some loose strands of hair out of her face and casually looked Snape over from head to toe. In his overcoat she spotted a large deranged hole with fringed threads outlining the opening. "What the bugger happened to you?" she asked and picked up the corner of his wool overcoat to take a closer look at the mangled material.

Snape immediately pulled the overcoat out of Jessica's hands and swept it behind him. "It is none of your concern," he said. "That's what it is."

"Well excuse me, Professor Snappy," Jessica said, altering his name as she saw fit.

"Do not ridicule my name," Snape ordered, each one of his words trickling with disapproval. "I asked you what you are doing down here. You should not be wandering about in this part of the castle."

"No, I don't suppose I should be," Jessica agreed and took one more look around the gloomy secluded area. "Then what are you doing wandering around here?"

"I am not wandering," Snape assured. "This area belongs to Slytherin, my domain."

"Wow," Jessica said softly. "It's so homey," she added afterward and wrapped her hands around her arms to keep warm.

Snape resented the sarcasm in her voice and glared at her for it. "As much as you may think otherwise, your wittiness no longer amuses me." He stepped around Jessica and proceeded down the corridor. "I am going to my quarters. Be on your way."

"Gladly," Jessica said and turned around to head back to the spiral staircase. She stopped abruptly and felt a cold shiver race up her spine. "Hey!" she exclaimed and reached her hand out to touch the wall where she could have sworn the staircase had been only moments ago. "The stairs, they're gone!"

Snape merely looked back at her over his shoulder as he continued to walk. "Now who's the perceptive detective?"

Jessica opened her mouth to speak, but couldn't find the right words to say in time. She watched him walk away and felt the distinct impression he wasn't going to all of a sudden stop and go back to help her.

"Professor, wait," she found herself shouting after him. Snape didn't stop and the rhythm of his footsteps didn't halt or slow down. "Stop!" she called and began chasing after him.

Snape looked back to see her running towards him and finally stopped. "Is there a problem?" he asked. "As I recall, you said you could find your way back."

Jessica finally caught up to Snape and went to stand in front of him. "Yes well, that was before my way back suddenly disappeared. How can I get back to the Hospital Wing?"

Snape looked back at the solid wall where the staircase once was. He pointed in that direction and then looked back at Jessica. A wicked smile spread across his face. "The same way you came," he said and then continued heading towards his quarters. "You are from a line of extremely powerful wizards, I have no doubt that you and your wand can easily find a way back through."

"I've no use for a wand," Jessica told him. "I've never held one before in my life."

"Then you will just have to wait a couple of hours until the staircase decides to reappear." Snape turned his head Jessica's way and turned the corner of his lip into a snarling smile.

"A couple of hours?" Jessica repeated and kept up with him. "I'm not waiting around here for a couple of hours."

"Well you're just going to have to tough it out," Snape told her. "I will not be on my way back up until I am ready for lunch."

"Then until that time, you're just going to have to put up with me," Jessica said and walked at his side down the dark corridor. "We'll sit down and you can tell me all about that silly little stunt you pulled on Halloween night or that enormous hole you've managed to burn into your clothes."

Snape chuckled at her and kept his eyes looking straight as he walked. "Right now Jessica, you are the last person I would care to spend my afternoon with."

Jessica stopped in her tracks and looked curiously over at Snape. To her surprise, he stopped as well and turned back to look at her. She scowled at him and crossed her arms over her chest. "Why am I the last?" she questioned.

Snape took two powerful steps towards Jessica and looked down at her with the darkest pair of eyes she had ever seen before. "Why?" he repeated. "Because I flat out do not like you," he said, although he wasn't quite sure if that was really true. Even Jessica could sense that he wasn't quite being honest with her. "You are annoying," he continued anyway, "you're arrogant, sarcastic, and quite meddlesome. And on top of that, I don't fancy the idea of spending the next few hours alone in my quarters with a spoiled little girl like you whose only protection from bigotry is her family tree. If you think I am going to bow down at your feet just because of who you are, you are quite mistaken. Your great uncle is accomplished, admirable and humble; nothing like you. I see nothing about you that resembles a Dumbledore. I wonder, is he proud to call you his niece? Are your parents even proud of the girl they have raised?"

He stopped when he saw the heartbroken look appearing on her face. Jessica blinked slowly and then turned her gaze away from him. "I know you don't mean all of those things you just said," Jessica assured. "But the fact that you think you can belittle anyone you please makes you the epitome of abysmal, Professor Snape." There was a long pause and then Jessica stooped herself around and began walking back. "Why did I even bother?" Snape heard her ask herself as she went to look for another way out of the repulsive Slytherin territory.

Snape watched her go and then started to think about what he had just said to her... to his Headmaster's grandniece. What would Dumbledore say if he found out his trustworthy Potions Master had said such cruel words to Jessica and then just left her alone and lost in the dungeons?

Damn it!

After all the things Dumbledore had done for him in the past, and after all the times he had bent over backwards for him, this is how Snape repaid him. By making his beloved grandniece sit alone, probably even a little frightened, and lost in the depths of the cold wet corner of Slytherin.

"Jessica," Snape called out warmly after envisioning the look Dumbledore would have on his face if he had witnessed all that had just happened.

Just as he previously ignored her, Jessica ignored Snape and his newfound willingness to negotiate with her. She walked with heavy steps, her arms still folded across her chest. Snape knew that if she turned around now he'd probably see a stream of tears flowing down her cheeks.

Snape opened his mouth to call after her again but decided against it. The damage was already done and he didn't feel that an apology would do any good right now. So with a deep sigh, Snape pulled his own wand out from his cloak and pointed it down Jessica's way. He closed his eyes and turned his head away as a bright yellow beam jolted out from the end of his wand and struck the wall where the stairs once were.

Instantly the staircase appeared, and without looking back at him, Jessica began climbing back up to a friendlier atmosphere.