Chapter 36: Thou shall accept me

"Woah...what happened?" Shona commented an hour after her and Lucy's argument. Snape had allowed for her to sit in his quarters because she still looked like she was going to rip someone's throat out until now. She blinked a couple of times before staring at Snape. "Where's Lucy?"

"She's run off," Snape replied a little gloomily, he opened up his palm and stared at Lucy's necklace.

"A-Aren't you going to go find her? She's your daughter for crying out loud!"

"McGuire, I think we need to make a few things clear before we go any further - " and so Sape explained what had happened in the potions lesson and now Shona had violently shoved Lucy over his desk, causing a few shards of glass to embed in her skin, as well as all the other violence that has taken place. Shona looked horrified

"But I would never do something like that! Is this what your sick twisted mind thinks up to break me and Lucy's sarcastic friendship, Stephano?"

"Stephano, another nickname, how pleasing..." Snape rolled his eyes. "But unfortunately, such events took place. It was the orbs fault and to top that off Lucy tore off her necklace and vowed to not defeat Lord Zuc..."

"Oh...perhaps I pushed her too far when we were talking about it back at my house in the Christmas holidays..."

"No, it wasn't that. It was the orb, It controlled you for a while. You said yourself that you don't remember what happened."

"I suppose so," Shona nodded. "Can we go find Lucy at least?"

"Of course we - "

"She owes me an apology for trying to kill me."

*      *      *

"OK, Miss Snape, I think that's bandaged you up enough." Madam Pomfrey smiled as she finished tying up the bandages up on Lucy's arms. Unfortunately (for some reason) she could not heal the wounds with magic and could only remove some of the glass from her arm. "I think you're doing this well with visiting the Hospital wing, I can remember when you were a more regular patient. I've almost missed your company here."

"Thank you for your time, I just wish I knew how I got this glass in my arms. One minute I was in the potions classroom just taking notes from what Shona was saying and the next I was in the middle of the main corridor staring out the window."

"Oh, well, If you need any more help you can always find me."

Just as Lucy was about to get up from the chair she was sitting on, Snape and Shona burst in the room. Snap walked towards Lucy and Madam Pomfrey with a concerned look on his face, like he always had when Lucy was hurt.

"Is she OK? Has she flipped out at you at all?" Snape questioned quickly.

"She's fine, just had to remove a few shards of glass from her arms that she's not sure as to how they got there and then bandage her up. For some strange reason I can't heal the cuts on her arms but I'm positive they will heal normally." Madam Pomfey smiled as Lucy stood up, rolled her sleeves down and slipped her robe on.

"Oi! Lucky!" Shona called from the entrance of the hospital wing. "Stephano has informed me that - "

"Stephano?" Lucy repeated with a confused look on her face.

"Snivels was getting old," Shona waved the comment aside. "Stephano said that you insulted me and tried to batter me with a broom!"

Snape whispered in her ear. "She insulted you for being single, threw potions vials at you, almost strangled you and shoved you over my desk. That's why you has the glass shards in your arms because of the broken picture frames."

"I'm sorry for insulting you and battering you with a broom," Lucy sighed and then stared at her feet. "Although I do not recall any of this."

"It was the orb controlling you, controlling both of you," Snape explained for what felt like the fiftieth time today.

"The orb?" Lucy gasped. "The orb was doing this to us?!"

"Well you don't think I would really shove you over a desk, do you?" Shona laughed.

"Well..." Lucy mused sarcastically.

"Don't answer that."

Suddenly the hospital wings doors swung open, revealing Jessica who looked rather flustered. She scanned the room quickly before registering the gifted were there, she ran towards them and breathed heavily in between words.

"I...came...to see...if you...were...alright," she gasped as she threw her hair behind her shoulders.

"We're fine," Snape replied, slightly alarmed at the gasping vampire before him.

"But...the — "

"Yes the orb controlled both of them but they're perfectly fine now."

"And Zuc — "

"He's king, we know," Lucy butted in quickly before Snape could reply, Lucy suddenly looked guilty and chose to stare at the bandages on her arm.

"Such a tragic form of events," Jessica shook her head as her breath returned. Her eyes darted nervously around the room and then at Lucy's bandages.

"Is there a problem?" Snape asked, he had stared to acknowledge Jessica for a little while...up until this point. He realised what was going on.

"I-I'm fine, it's just...nothing."

Shona and Snape stared at Jessica, while Lucy peered at her from around Snape nervously. She kept a tight grip on his arm just in case, making the bandages still visible to Jessica.

"Has she been bleeding?" Jessica blurted out suddenly, pointing a shaky hand to Lucy's. Lucy's hands hid behind her back quickly, Snape now completely blocking Lucy from Jessica.

"Yes..." Snape's voice trailed off, he couldn't lie...besides he'd finally decided that his theory was true.

"I think I better get out of here," Jessica decided suddenly. Swiftly turning around and exiting the hospital wing, covering her mouth and nose as she went. But Snape did not feel that their talk was over.

"Stay here," he commanded to Lucy and Shona, but they were not satisfied with the response.

"No, I don't think we will! We're not children that you can boss around, Stephano," Shona stuck her nose in the air.

Snape breathed in, this was a serious risk. "Fine, just go to my quarters and stay there - Lucy, keep her under control. I need to go somewhere."

"You're going to chase after Jessica, aren't you?" Lucy looked very concerned and upset.

"Uh — " Snape whipped around quickly and saw that he was wasting time, he wouldn't be able to track Jessica if he kept standing in the hospital wing for much longer. "Yes, I am, and I need to go quickly before - "

"Dad, I'm not letting you go."

"Lucy! Please!" Snape begged, urgency in his voice. "I need to go — " Snape was about to run when Lucy grabbed hold of his arm.

"Remember what happened the last time you two were alone?"

Snape stared at her and suddenly a sharp pain shot through his neck, he unintentially put a hand to the side of his neck and was suddenly aware of as to where the orb was. But luckily it was in his pocket.

"I'll be fine," he reassured, turning his head again to check behind him. "She won't hurt me, besides, I thought we'd already established that we can trust her?"

"So you're trusting her now?" Shona sniggered. "And this is coming from the man who looked at Jessica like she was - "

"Never mind, I need to go."

"I'm coming with you," Lucy announced. Snape stared at her. "But I'll take a slow walk behind, I'm not having you injured again."

"Fine, lets go."

Snape darted out of the hospital wing as quick as he could, Lucy following behind just quick enough so she could follow Snape's path. Of course, Snape wanted to speak to Jessica but Lucy would not allow him to go alone; she was not losing her father.

Snape followed Jessica's tracks until they lead outside of school, he could tell where she had gone just be instincts but the trail was slowly fading away.

"Damn," Snape muttered under his breath.

'No problem, if you want to find her, just follow me.'

For one strange moment, he though the voice belonged to the orb, but then he saw a little doe run past him eagerly. She stopped a few metres ahead of him.

"I'd almost forgot you could turn into a doe," he smiled.

'Kingston's curse does have its uses,' Lucy replied, her voice echoing in Snape's mind as though she was very distant. 'Follow me, I can sniff out vampire stronger than humans and — yuck! Does it reek! Do you think Jessica ever — '

"Enough, just lead the way."

Lucy trotted along quickly in her doe form, stumbling a couple of times because she wasn't used to it, but managing to lead Snape all the way to the Forbidden forest.

'I am not going in there,' Lucy stopped, her little doe ears seemed to prick up in fright and her fur turned the colour of bright red, mixed with silver. 'Some big animal might eat me! And we won't be able to track Jessica unless I'm a doe.'

"I'll stay close, you just lead the way," Snape reassured, patting her awkwardly on the head.

'Oi! What do you think you're doing! Just because I'm an animal at the moment doesn't mean to say you can go and pat me! What do you want me to do next? Roll over? Sit?'

"Lucy, you aren't a dog, you are a doe."

'A very angry one at that!'

"Just lead the way."

'I can't believe you're making me risk my lfie...some big hippogriff could come and eat me...'

"No hippogriffs eat doe's, now hurry up! You're wasting time!"

They both continued forward, the forbidden forest seemed to get worse as they ventured forward. It was as though they'd stepped into a whole new world, Lucy felt like turning around and fleeing but she couldn't abandon her father.

'Dad! Look! There she is!' Lucy pointed her nose in the direction of a little clearing, there Jessica sat on a log with her hands in her face. 'Aren't I a good little doe? Huh?'

"Thank you," Snape whispered.

'Can I change back now? I'm worried I might get fleas or something.'

"Very well," Snape muttered. Lucy wondered a little further back into the forest where she wasn't visible and returned a minute later in human form and fully clothed, the bandages still covering her arms.

"What are you going to say to her?" Lucy whispered in Snape's ear.

"I don't know," Snape replied truthfully. "Perhaps I'll just go and see what's wrong."

"We'll that's a good way to get bitten," Lucy rolled her eyes and lent against the nearest tree. Snape glared at her. "Besides, I thought you said being single was better?"

"What are you talking about?" Snape almost yelled but stopped himself because he didn't want Jessica to notice them.

"You want to get back with her, don't you?"

"Of course not, like you said, she tried to kill me. I still don't fully trust her but will now at least acknowledge her because she looked after you while I was away."

"Do you want me to go and talk to her then?"

Snape paused. "I think we both should."

"Agreed."

Both Snape and Lucy stepped out into the clearing and approached Jessica, they were both very cautious. Lucy, feeling brave, made the first move.

"Jessica?" She asked. But she didn't reply. Instead, after a few moments she looked up from her hands and up at her. Snape and Lucy almost jumped back in surprise.

There was blood covering her pale face like a sheet scattered with blood, indicating some kind of murder. Her black hair had fallen out of the bun Jessica tied it in to continue her persona as Fiona Wave but she was looking too much like Jessica now, even her fangs were more prominent. 

She stood up at lighting speed and moved backwards. "Get away from me," she commanded. 

"We mean no harm," Snape stepped forward and Jessica's back collided with a tree, stunning her for a moment. 

"Please...just go," there was a lot of urgency in her voice; but she was doing it for both Lucy and Snape's own good. 

"Why do you want us to leave? We only want to help," Lucy stood next to her father loyally. 

"Just do as I say!" She ordered, her eyes ablaze, suddenly darting towards the bandages on Lucy's arm. "I am supposed to be the one who protects you, the one who makes sure that Zuc doesn't get you, the one who volunteered to be head of the Resistance because of you! And you're preventing me from doing that!" 

"Why? We just want to help you!" Snape yelled, getting as frustrated as she was. 

"You can help me by leaving!" 

"But — " 

"JUST LEAVE!" Jessica screamed put her hand over her nose. "Please...at least just Lucy." 

"Why me?" Lucy frowned. 

"Just go," Snape shook his head. 

"I don't know my way out of here, I'll get lost. Even if I do turn into a doe, I'll have no scent to follow." 

"You heard the girl." Snape looked at Jessica but she didn't respond. 

 "I'll end up eating her though." 

"You couldn't eat me, you're head of the Resistance, you're here to protect me," Lucy said matter-of-factly. 

"That's why I ran out here, to protect you. I don't think either of you understand what it's like." 

"What what's like?" 

"Being a vampire, it's not easy," Jessica almost laughed, but it was more of an unintentional grim laugh. "Sometimes you can control your thirst for blood, sometimes you just can't." 

"You look like you're doing pretty fine to me," Snape shrugged. 

"You do know I'm fighting back the biggest urge to rip your daughter to shred and drink every last drop of her blood?" 

"That's the best compliment I've had in a week," Lucy muttered awkwardly. 

"You see, I have this theory about when I was bitten," Jessica looked at the two of them. "I believe I was supposed to be made an 'evil' vampire." 

"Aren't all vampires meant to be evil?"

"No, I mean the person who bit me was working for Zuc or something like that and wanted me to be part of an army." 

"Why do you think that?" Snape asked. 

"Like I said; it's a theory." 

"But why did you drag yourself out here?" Lucy wondered. 

"Because...it's where my father said I belong." 

"What?" 

"Where nobody could find me, because I'm a monster. As soon as he knew what I was, he treated me like filth." 

"I think all of us know how that feels, even Shona." 

They came to a sick realisation; those who were trying to do something good had had the poorest of lives. 

"I wish we weren't treated like that..." Jessica sighed. 

"Yes, but if we were not treated this way wouldn't we all turn out different?" Lucy said wisely, Snape looked at her and thought this was possibly one of the most wise things she had ever said. "If you hadn't been bitten you wouldn't have met us. If Shona didn't get treated poorly by her father she wouldn't have her sense of humor, besides those who are hurt smile to help them forget the pain. If it wasn't for dad's father for mistreating him and being one of the reasons for making him so miserable, he wouldn't appreciate those whom he loves as much; he wouldn't be able to appreciate those who love him as much because he wished to be loved so much.  And if it wasn't my poor upbringing from James Potters' half-brother I wouldn't have run off and met dad." 

Both Jessica and Snape fell silent, they hadn't heard anything like this before. 

"Well I better get going," Lucy mused. "I've got homework to do."