Chapter thirty six: Are things making sense? 

Lucy skipped down the Hogwarts hallways without a care in the world, she was going to head back to the common room to find Fred. She had promised him that she would be there. But she simply had to see her father first. 

She was just passing Professor McGonagall's office when Shona came pelting towards her, so fast that Lucy was knocked off of her feet. 

"What was that for?" Lucy asked rubbing the back of her head 

"I'll explain on the way!" Shona said helping her friend up and running off again, Lucy ran alongside her. 

"Where are we going?" 

"Your dad's office! He's injured and I don't know why! I don't know any remedies to heal but I know you do so I had to find you!" Shona panted clutching a stitch in her chest 

"How is he injured?" 

"He's shaking all over, coughing and paler than usual. That doesn't seem normal to me" 

"OK" Lucy breathed as they made it to Snape's office 

Lucy ran into the office and Shona followed. Lucy bent down next to Snape and put a hand on his cheek, he was cold all over and he looked different to her. 

"Was he with anyone?" Lucy asked looking up from her father 

"Yeah, Jessica ran out of the office carrying something. I was going to follow her but I thought there was something fishy going on so I had to see if Snivels was alright" 

"Jessica!" Lucy said, "it has something to do with her! i always knew she was evil! Ever since I saw her on our first day of third year" 

"But what could Jessica of done? It's not as though she has supernatural powers!" Shona rasped 

"No...You're right, I was being silly..." Lucy whispered, she got up and then looked at Snape's wine glass. She took two fingers and dipped them inside the glass then put them on her tongue

"Hey! You're under age!" Shona whined, "well if you're having some I want some too" 

"NO!" Lucy yelled, "don't drink any of it!, It's vertiserum in it no doubt Jessica put it in there..." Lucy placed her two fingers on her tongue again and thought about why Jessica would put it in the glass, obviously to find out something but then something else clicked. "Jessica put love potion in dad's glass on the train" 

"No way!" Shona gasped, "ingenious! Why didn't I think of doing that!" 

"SHONA!" Lucy snapped, "this is serious, Jessica is up to something and whatever it is, it isn't good" 

Shona nodded then knelt down by Snape again, she looked at his neck and saw teeth marks. She frowned then looked up at Lucy. 

"Lucky, have you seen these teeth marks?" 

"Teeth marks?" 

Lucy knelt down the other side of Snape and saw two little rows of teeth marks. She ran her finger over them and narrowed her eyes. 

"OK, when I went down to Hogsmeade dad didn't have any teeth marks on his neck. And you're telling me that the last person in here was Jessica so that concludes that - " Lucy began 

"Jessica bit him" 

"That's mad! But seems the only option we have and just to make sure this isn't bad..." Lucy moved round to the side where Shona was knelt (where the teeth marks were) and studied them for a moment 

"What are you going to do?" 

But Shona's question was answered when Lucy leant over her dad's body, she lowered herself down then did something which made Shona want to throw up. Lucy was trying to suck any poison out of her fathers neck, when she was done she stood up and coughed. She spat in a bowl and continued to cough and that's when Snape's eyes opened. 

"Lucy?" Snape asked 

"Yeah she's there, get up sleeping beauty!" Shona demanded hauling Snape up

"What happened?" 

"Well Lucy's just tried to get poison out of your neck and now she's choking on it or whatever she got out of your neck" 

Lucy continued to choke but Snape rubbed her back to prevent her from doing so. Lucy looked up, her eyes watery and her face slightly red. 

"Why did you do that?" Snape asked 

"I couldn't let you die!" Lucy said her voice was hoarse and she looked quite weak, Lucy suddenly frantically rummaged through her bag until she found what she was looking for; an asthma pump she quickly used it then looked up at her dad again 

"I didn't know you had asthma, Lucy" Snape frowned 

"I was punched in the chest by you-know-who when I was four and haven't been quite the same since..." Lucy gasped for air then returned to normal 

"VOLDEMORT!" Shona yelled 

"Shona!" Lucy squealed, "don't say the name!" 

"Your scared of a name?" 

"I'd like to see who's laughing if you encountered him!" 

"He's dead! Honestly..." 

"You don't know that, you have no proof and besides dad knows who I'm on about and it isn't a dark wizard" 

"Yes, I know who you are talking about" Snape looked around his office all of a sudden, "where's Jessica?" 

"She ran off with something a little while ago, we don't know what though" Shona shrugged 

"And there was veritserum in your wine" Lucy said as she used the asthma pump yet again

"And Lucky concluded that Jessica put love potion in your wine on the train" 

"Nonsense!" Snape snapped, "Jessica would never so such a thing!" 

"Oh really?" Lucy frowned, she dived into her bag again and pulled out a mirror and gave it to Snape, "what's on your neck, dad?" 

Snape peered into the mirror and saw the bite marks on his neck, he ran his finger over them just as Lucy had then turned to the two girls. 

"Who did this?" 

"JESSICA!" They both said together 

"No, she wouldn't do such a thing!" 

"DAD!" Lucy yelled, "do you really think I would try and get poison out of your neck for no reason?! Do you think I would do that just because I want to use my asthma pump for the sake of it?!" 

"No...But why would Jessica do that?" 

"I don't know! But who else could it of been?!" 

"Nobody! Shona wouldn't of done it would she?! I wouldn't even dream of doing such a thing either! Or are you trying to suggest it was me or Shona?" 

"I wouldn't eat a potions Professor! They don't taste good!" Shona pretended to vomit 

"Had enough experience with that, Shona?" Lucy raised an eyebrow 

"But where did Jessica run off to?" Snape asked 

"Well she headed towards a courtyard..." Shona said 

"Lets go then" Lucy said, Shona lead the way and Lucy waited for her dad to leave but he didn't move 

"You saved me, didn't you?" He asked 

"Yeah, it was nothing" Lucy said itching the back of her head but was taken by surprise as for once Snape was the one to hug her 

"Thank you" He whispered 

"You're welcome" 

They both walked out of the room together then caught up with Shona who was heading out of the front of the castle but then she stopped. Lucy stood next to her and wondered to herself why she had stopped. 

"I've stopped because I can't figure out where they've gone anymore" Shona shook her head but then realised what she had done, "I'm sorry! I read your mind! I couldn't help it!" 

"It doesn't matter, you haven't done it in a while" Lucy said 

Just then something ran through Lucy, like she had suddenly gained a power, her heart raced and something inside her made her aware of everything. It was as though she knew everything about her dad and everything about Shona, she was about to look further into what she knew when the feeling she had stopped. But she was left with something, she could sense Jessica. 

"I know where she is" Lucy said 

"Where?" Snape asked 

"Down by the shrieking shack, follow me" 

Lucy ran as fast as she could down to the shrieking shack where she saw Jessica with Joshua just outside. Lucy raised an eyebrow at the two and they turned to look at her. 

"YOU!" Jessica pointed at Lucy, Snape was about to walk forward and step in when Shona dragged him to the ground and hissed in his ear 

"Let her handle this one alone, lets see what she can do" 

"Yes, me" Lucy said simply 

"What are you doing here!" Jessica screamed

"I thought I'd take a walk down to the Hogwarts ground, get a bit of fresh air, y'know? It's nice to do it every now and then" Lucy shrugged as she casually pulled out her wand 

"Where's your daddy then?" Joshua asked 

"Oh, I don't know, I haven't checked on him. I didn't feel the need to" 

Shona's ears perked up at this. Lucy was trying to make the impression that Snape was dying so Jessica and Joshua wouldn't suspect anything. 

"Oh that's nice of you isn't it?" Jessica sneered 

"Yes very, but the thing is Jessica, you've changed. On the Hogwarts train you were such a polite woman. Now you're just snap at people! What's gotten into you! I trusted you!" Lucy pretended to sob, "I thought you might want to marry my dad, then you'd make a perfect mother for me!" Jessica's eyes widened, she looked as though she felt sorry for the girl 

"Don't" Joshua hissed in Jessica's ear, "don't turn soft, you are not soft, Jessica Stone"  

"It's Severus' daughter!" Jessica whispered, "I have to!" 

"I trusted you Jessica!" Lucy pretended to sob harder 

"Er..." Was all Jessica managed to say 

"I really did!" 

"Oh Lucy! I'm sorry! I apoligise! Forgive me!" Jessica begged, Joshua sneered as Jessica walked towards Lucy and gave her a hug. 

"I'll forgive you" Lucy said then Jessica let go of her, "so what are you doing down here?" 

"Oh...Just like you, taking an evening walk. Then I just happened to meet Joshua down here..." 

"YOU LIE!" Shona yelled getting up but made sure Snape didn't move, Jessica looked up and the girl, "you lie" 

"I do not lie, I tell the truth" 

"Oh really? If you cannot lie you can tell me why you ran out of Snape's office while carrying something, what might that be?" 

"That's none of your concern" Jessica snarled, "and that isn't a lie" 

"Well what was Snape doing on the floor with bite marks in his neck?!" Shona yelled 

"Oh Shona! Do be quiet! That's impossible! Jessica would never do such a thing!" Lucy said even though she felt so guilty for being a liar 

"Yes...Jessica would never do such a thing..." Joshua said stepping forward wearing an evil grin 

"Ah Mr Son, the one who can talk to dementors is it?" Shona asked 

"Oh yes, that's me, I could call some in now if you want?" 

"Do what you wish, I don't mind!" Shona snarled pulling out her wand

Joshua uttered some strange language and then a swarm of dementors drifted towards Shona. Lucy squealed but Jessica stood in front of her, Lucy had gained her trust and so this resulted protection all Jessica told herself was 'she's Severus' daughter' 

The crowd of dementors got thicker and thicker and even though Shona had cast her patronus it wasn't enough. Shona struggled as a dementor swiped it's claws at her, she couldn't take it any more, the thing was sucking away all her happy memories and leaving her with the bad ones. Snape couldn't take it either, the dementors had found him too. Suddenly two of them picked him up and led him towards Jessica and Joshua. 

"SNAPE ISN'T DEAD!" Joshua roared, he ran towards Jessica, shoved Lucy out of the way and hit Jessica causing her to scream, "HOW DARE YOU FAIL, JESSICA!, HOW DARE YOU!" 

The dementors had found a new target now and that happened to be Lucy. Lucy winced as she was forced to see all her bad memories. She yelled in pain but no one was there to save her. Shona was too occupied with her own swarm of dementors and Snape was being held by two even Jessica had her own problems. Lucy weakly held up her wand. 

"Expecto Patronum!" She yelled, then suddenly her phoenix chased away the dementors, not only hers but Shona's and the one's which were holding Snape, he collapsed on the floor. 

"HOW DO YOU KNOW THE PATRONUS CHARM!?" Joshua roared at Lucy, he picked her up by her collar so now she was dangling several centimeters above the ground 

"Er - " Lucy groaned 

"Expelliarmus!" Snape yelled at the man, he went flying and Lucy fell to the ground 

"Ouch?" Shona asked Lucy 

"You could say that" Lucy shrugged as she got up 

Snape ran over to Jessica and helped her up, Lucy rolled her eyes but luckily only Shona saw. Jessica coughed then flung her arms around Snape, this made both Lucy and Shona to pretend to vomit. 

"And you wanted her as a mother..." Shona joked to Lucy 

"I'm starting to rethink this!" Lucy sniggered, she uttered the patronus charm and let her patronus fly around, "Harry!, Ron!, Hermione!" Lucy said suddenly waving at her friends 

"Hey Lucy! Hey...Worthing..." Ron said, "have you seen Scabbers? He ran off" 

"Who's that?" 

"Ron's rat" Shona sneered at the boy not even bothering to look at him

"Hey! There he is!" Hermione said, Ron picked his rat up but then a great big black dog also known as Sirius came bounding towards Ron, it dragged him down to the shrieking shack which left the kids confused and scared. 

"RON!" Lucy yelled, "RON I'M COMING!" And she dived down the hole then Shona, Hermione and Harry chased after them, could this be the one Sirius wanted to kill?