The Last Sanguimagus

Severus scowled at the cauldron. It seemed to mock him with its contents, which had somehow separated, despite his precise stirring. "Blast!" he said vehemently. He was nearly at the end of his list, and nothing promising had developed. "Evanesco," he hissed, watching the failed potion fade into nothingness. He rubbed his eyes. He had been brewing since last Friday, and it was now Wednesday evening, and he had nothing to show for his efforts. The other two cauldrons would not be ready until tomorrow. He cursed again. On parchment this had been one of the better variations, and its failure gnawed at him.

There was a loud knocking at the door, and he was brought out of his potion-making reverie. "Come in," he said.

The door swung open to reveal Silas, who smiled as he entered the classroom, resplendent in dark tweedy robes. "Ah, Severus," he said jovially, shutting the door behind him. "I was hoping to have a word with you."

"I'm busy."

"This will only take a moment of your time," answered Silas with a dismissive wave of his hand. "I am certain that you are aware that I am instructing some of your Slytherins in Defence Against the Dark Arts."

"And?" said Severus impatiently.

"And I must mention that I am having a few problems with a student by the name of Draco Malfoy." He fingered his goatee thoughtfully. "He apparently believes that he knows more about the subject than I do."

"I do not see the problem."

Silas moved closer to the worktable, his eye on the two cauldrons that simmered there. "He has disrupted my class on more than one occasion," he said in a peeved tone. "And his compatriots, a Mr. Crabbe and Mr. Goyle, have conspired with him to cause an altercation between themselves and a Mr. Potter during a lecture."

Severus was nearly grinding his teeth in frustration. "And what is it you would have me do?"

"Why, I expect that you will contact the parents immediately and speak to them about their highly offensive behaviour," said Silas. He examined one of the potions closely.

Severus closed his eyes and tried not to laugh out loud at the thought of Lucius's reaction to such a message. He reopened them to see Silas stirring one of the potions.

Stirring. One of his potions.

It took all of his self-control not to hex him into the next century. "What," he spat, "do you think you are doing?"

Silas, startled, dropped the spoon. "Why, obviously you have forgotten to stir it ten times clockwise! Every schoolchild knows how to make a Dreamless Sleep potion--"

"Not only was that not a Dreamless Sleep potion," said Severus, seething, "but you have destroyed a week's worth of research, and wasted expensive ingredients--"

"Oh, I'm certain that you can replicate it. You're a talented fellow." He lowered his voice slightly. "Actually, while we're on the subject...you know, I have friends...good friends...in the Ministry...and one tells me that Borgin and Burkes was the focus of a recent raid..."

Severus stopped mid-tirade, blindsided. "What are you saying?" he snapped.

"Nothing," said Silas innocently. "Nothing at all. Your potion-making skills are quite appreciated among a certain group...near legendary, actually. Some of the poisons they found in Borgin's subterranean vault were quite advanced..."

Severus was speechless. Had Silas guessed that Severus was still a Death Eater? How could his poisons have ended up in Borgin's greedy hands, and how had Silas made the connection? Few of the Death Eaters possessed them, and his own stock was quite well secured. He was growing more uneasy with every moment. "And what would this have to do with me?" he asked, looking down at the obnoxious professor, trying to call his bluff. He had to admit that blackmail was the last thing he had been expecting, but could not quite see what Silas wanted from him, excepting a hair-restorative potion.

"This new teacher," said Silas in a deceptively positive tone, apparently ignoring the fact that he had hired in at the same time. "Sarah Tanner. Perhaps she has asked you to create something for her..."

"What?" asked Severus, confused. His mind raced. "Sarah has asked nothing of me."

"I have only the children's best interests at heart, you see," said Silas in a more dangerous tone than Severus had ever expected from him. "And I must say that her presence here is, quite frankly, a hazard."

"I don't follow your reasoning."

"My Detectors--I have created a few specialised items, you see, of my own design--have sensed the presence of some Dark artefact on her person. I have my suspicions about her, and I feel that she has...talents that are not immediately apparent." He paused, looking at the ruined potion cryptically. "Seeing that you share the same...persuasion, she might find it beneficial to ally herself with your formidable skills, though of course after so many years at this venerable institution you have, no doubt, discovered the wiser course."

The veiled threat within Silas's words floored Severus. He was past the time for subtlety. "Are you saying that you wish me to eschew all contact with Sarah?"

"Oh, no," said Silas innocently. "I am simply performing my duties as a good and responsible citizen, and warning you that, should she come to you for help, any assistance you render her could be...detrimental to your own position."

Anger filled him, hot and familiar. The Dark artefact on her person was, no doubt, the lingering Dark potion that Severus had used on her so many years ago, but Silas, in his pompous manner, had already appointed himself judge and jury in her case, and decided her entire character based on this erroneous inference. He remembered Fudge's words, and guessed that he was looking at the source of the anonymous tip that might result in Sarah's expulsion. "I thank you for your advice," said Severus in his own dangerous voice. "And now, if you'll excuse me, I have some research to continue."

Silas looked at him, his watery blue eyes narrowed. "I hope you'll remember our conversation," he said stiffly.

"I'm certain you won't let me forget," snarled Severus.

Silas turned on his heel and left the classroom, closing the door loudly behind him. Severus pounded on the worktable in frustration. Intrigue, threats, power struggles...and at work, no less. The ruined potion confronted him, sending up fumes of burnt tar.

For a few minutes he stared at the cauldron, his mind struggling to decipher the conversation he'd just had. It was useless. He needed to walk, to burn off some of the tension. With one last quick check of the remaining potion he went out the door, casting a few more precautions than were strictly necessary.

It was late, and the dungeon corridors were deserted. Woe betide any student that he found out after curfew while in this black mood. He ascended the stairs to the entrance hall, expecting to go up the marble staircase and take up his usual route.

Then he heard voices.

There, in the entrance hall, stood two figures, and he immediately sensed danger, as their wands were out, and they were facing each other. Late night duel between students? he wondered for a moment, but no, the figures were obviously adults, and there was something familiar about them.

One was Lucius. The other was Sarah.

Merlin, they'll kill each other, he thought in horror, striding towards them.

Lucius looked horrible. His clothing, usually impeccable, was shredded and dirty. His long blonde hair was matted and filthy, his face haggard and worn. He had come directly from Azkaban, then. He must have business with Draco, business too important to wait, and he had run into Sarah. Of all the ill luck...

Severus had nearly reached the two. "What is going on here?" he demanded in his most authoritative tone.

"I am here to speak with my son," said Lucius through gritted teeth.

"Sarah?" asked Severus, turning towards her.

She did not reply, or even move, for that matter. Her wand arm shook so violently that any attempt to cast a spell would most likely fail, though that did not immediately rule out the danger. Every muscle in her body seemed to be locked. She stared at Lucius, and upon her face was such a mix of fury and terror that Severus felt his stomach twist in fear at what she would do.

"Sarah, you cannot accost a student's parent like this," he said feebly.

She did not even seem to have heard him. Her arm still shook, and her eyes were wide with emotion. Her teeth were bared in a confused grimace.

"Severus," said Lucius in a pleading tone that surprised him.

Severus could see the exhaustion plainly on Lucius's face. He remembered his own brief stint at the wizards' prison. "Sarah, put away your wand," he said as calmly as he could. "Lucius is here to see Draco, and then he is leaving." Knowing the horrors that Lucius had visited upon her made him nervous...would she relent? Would she hex him? He supposed that if she had wanted to cast something on him she would have done it already, which made him hope that she would listen to reason.

She suddenly seemed to realise that he was there. She did not take her eyes off Lucius, though. "Let him lower his wand first," she said through tightly-clenched teeth.

Lucius, of course, looked as if he would voluntarily coat himself with stinksap before he would drop his guard in front of her. "I will stand between you," said Severus evenly, "and you will both lower your wands." It was, he reflected, the most insane thing he had done in a fortnight, but if it prevented them from rearranging each other's body parts then it was a good thing. He stepped between the two. At first nothing happened, but then Sarah's arm lowered, and Lucius reluctantly lowered his as well. "I will take you to the Slytherin common room," said Severus to Lucius, who nodded, looking fatigued. He took Lucius's elbow and guided him towards the entrance of the dungeons, leaving Sarah standing in the middle of the hall. His back itched, expecting some hex at any moment, knowing what it must provoke in her to see them both together after the horrors they had inflicted upon her. To his near-surprise they entered the subterranean corridors without mishap.

Lucius breathed a sigh of relief. "Stupid little bitch," he said, but with only a portion of his normal disdain. "I will lodge a complaint with the Board tomorrow--"

Severus stopped in his tracks. "What?"

Lucius was apparently too tired to fully process Severus's blunder. "The ignorant little snipe...the impudence..."

Severus had to proceed carefully. "She is not worth your time," he said in the most neutral tone he could muster. "And if she were to mention events in the past..."

Lucius looked at him, dazed. "They would never believe...she has discredited herself so thoroughly..." He shook his head. "You are correct. I will not bring it up. But I must see Draco now...it is urgent..."

Severus helped him to the Slytherin common room, and eased him into a chair. Draco was already in his bed, asleep, but woke at once when Severus whispered to him. The teenager ran to his father's side. If he was frightened by Lucius's dishevelled appearance, he didn't show it.

Lucius looked up at Severus. "We need a private place to speak," he said.

Draco helped pull his father up out of the chair. "We have a room here for that purpose," he said, showing him to one of the walls. He murmured a few words and a door appeared.

"Clever," said Lucius, and Draco smirked. "Severus, wait for me, will you? I would not wish to roam the halls unescorted and risk an altercation with Filch." His grey eyes connected with Severus's, who, with his limited Legilimency, picked up an image of Lucius cursing Sarah into oblivion.

"Certainly," he said, letting a faintly amused smile touch his lips, though inwardly he was disturbed at the thought. Father and son entered the room and the door glowed briefly, and Severus had to admit that it probably had not been one of his better ideas to allow Draco access to the Privacy Room, considering how badly he wanted to eavesdrop on their conversation right now. He stewed for a moment, pacing, but soon enough they exited, and Draco made his way back towards his dormitory.

Severus escorted Lucius to the Forbidden Forest, as it was the only place from which to Apparate, considering that the gates were closed and locked. Severus had suggested that Lucius stay and depart in the morning, but was met with an adamant refusal. Lucius shivered in the cool night air as they made their way through the trees, and Severus shivered as well, but not from the cold; he was wondering what would come from the events that night.

***