Chapters 111-120

‘The Apprentice and the Necromancer’ by JunoMagic
Chapters 111–120

The Muggle-borns Protection Act

(A few days later, in the office of the Headmistress)

‘They are going to force us to do WHAT?’ Hermione’s eyes blazed. Her curls were literally standing on end with fury. ‘That’s disgusting. Muggle-borns aren’t cattle that can be branded for their own good!’

Minerva McGonagall’s lips tightened with disapproval. Behind her, the painted form of Albus Dumbledore was stooping in an attempt to look over Snape’s shoulder and read the parchment the potions master was holding.

Severus ignored the former headmaster. Instead he lowered his head again to peruse the draft of the new law that Potter had handed over to him.

THE MUGGLE-BORNS PROTECTION ACT

sprawled in garish Gothic letters at the top of a sheaf that was filled with the cramped writing of an unknown scribe of the Wizengamot.

The gist of the proposed law was quite simple.

All witches and wizards with one or two Muggle-parents had to present themselves to the Muggle-born Registration Commission to receive a tattoo infused with a special version of the Protean Charm. The charm would link the tattoos with a device at the Aurors’ Office. If a tattooed Muggle-born was in danger of death, the tattoo would activate and instantly summon one of the Aurors currently on duty at the office.

‘Do you truly believe that this foolishness will work?’

Harry wearily rubbed his scar. ‘I don’t, Professor. But—’

Severus frowned. As he looked at Potter, he suddenly grew aware of the fact that his perception of the wizard had altered. Unobtrusively he studied the young man while Potter proceeded to explain the motivations and expectations of the Wizengamot.

A young wizard was standing before Severus, with a shock of untidy black hair and an unfortunate tendency to slouch. Brilliant green eyes that were still far too expressive for the line of work he had chosen. His glasses were no longer round, but formed fashionable, imperious rectangles. Only when Severus put his mind to it, he recognised the family likeness in the nonchalant posture and messy hair, in those clear eyes. With faint surprise, Snape realised that when he looked at Potter, he was no longer seeing Lily Evans’ and James Potter’s son or The-Boy-Who-Lived.

He merely saw Harry Potter. Auror-in-training, youngest member of the Wizengamot. Best friend of his wife. And a man who had done his level best to save his life.

Severus scowled at the young man.

‘Severus,’ he said curtly.

Potter jerked his head up, eyes suddenly alert and quite shocked. Severus’ nostrils flared with faint amusement. ‘Call me Severus.’

The room was absolutely silent all of a sudden.

Severus’ scowl deepened. Everyone was staring at him, with varying expressions of shock evident in their faces. Then the faint, thudding sound of clapping hands broke the silence. Severus glared at Dumbledore. As a painting the man was only marginally less annoying than in life.

And whom did he think he was he fooling? In spite of it all, in spite of the old man’s Machiavellian schemes and his ruthlessness, in spite of his sometimes callous cruelty, his stubborn pride, in spite of it all, he— Severus pressed his lips tightly together. He still missed the man, most of all in the presence of his portrait. Hermione caught his gaze, and the warm understanding in her eyes was a shock all over again.

He turned back to more immediate concerns. Potter was still gaping at him like a mooncalf.

‘You—may—call—me—Severus, Potter.’

The young wizard swallowed hard, Adam’s apple bobbing. He blinked. Then he grinned. ‘Harry,’ he said. ‘Only if you call me Harry.’

Severus looked down his nose at the young wizard, irritation rising inside him. It didn’t help that he was well aware of the fact that the lips of his wife were quivering with mirth.

He sniffed, affecting his best supercilious Potions Master’s manner. ‘Very well.—Harry.’

Harry grinned. Surprisingly, he didn’t insist on having the last word in the banter, but returned to the topic at hand.

‘The law will be passed this week. People are frightened, the Wizengamot is scared, and the International Confederation of Wizards endorses the plan. Though Draco thinks that they are simply happy that the British wizards are going to play Guinea pigs. Err…Murtlaps.’ Harry looked disgusted. ‘I’m getting a tattoo, as well.’

‘You?’ Hermione asked. ‘But you’re not Muggle-born at all.’

‘But he is the perfect poster-boy of the wizarding world.’ Severus smirked at Harry’s scowl. ‘You still need to work on that expression, Pot—Harry.’

Harry snorted. ‘Maybe you can give me lessons, Severus? But yes, you’re right. They need a face for the campaign. Someone people…fancy. And I’m it.’

‘So you don’t think this plan will work, Severus?’ Minerva eyed the parchment as if it was a particularly slimy flobberworm.

He shook his head. ‘Those killers are experts. They pick their victims carefully. Remote camping places, detached houses. Their timing is perfect. They Apparate in, cast “Avada Kedavra” and Disapparate again. Those tattoos will accomplish exactly three things: they will afford the Wizengamot the comfortable illusion of having done something, although they haven’t done anything at all, create a false sense of security that will make Muggle-born witches and wizards less careful than is currently advisable…and it will assure that the bodies of future victims will be warm when the Aurors find them.’

‘Then you do believe there will be more killings?’ Hermione asked in a small voice.

He looked at his wife where she stood next to the Headmistress. Those silly curls. Chewing on her lower lip again. Beautiful, he thought. Brave. And Muggle-born.

Cold fear flooded him. He had to force himself to meet her eyes and reply with an honest answer. ‘Yes, I do. Why should they stop now? Their pattern is established and successful. They will continue as long as it fits their agenda. Or until they slip up and make a mistake. I sincerely doubt that the ministerial branding of Muggle-borns will accomplish that.’

‘Shit,’ Harry said succinctly.

‘Indeed,’ Severus agreed.

13 Responses to Chapters 111-120

  1. firewall says:

    Whoa! you really know how to write a cliffie!

  2. Sue says:

    Hello.
    I don’t know why I waited until this chapter to do this but here-
    This fic is wonderful! The characters are developed great and the story comes along fantastically.
    Thank you for providing me with hours of entertainment and years of inspiration.

  3. Fluffette says:

    Brilliant!! Scary Colin, simply genius, but you know what made me happiest? You’ve given Harry decent glasses – about bloody time!

  4. Birkasouce says:

    Dumbledore snogging Salazar, great :D:D
    And this Colin-inferus was really frightening. I don’t really understand why do the always get in trouble… ztkztk.
    And the part with Hermione’s parents was sooo sad. 🙁 I think Hermione would want to find a solution for them and find a way to give back their memories. It is not her type to simply give up.

    • JunoMagic says:

      Well, Dumbledore has a thing for “bad boys”. 😉

      Re: Hermione’s parents: I’m sure she did search for a solution. But in this case, there is none, unfortunately. Sometimes you just have to live with the consequences of your actions, and there’s no way back.

  5. Xexar says:

    I’m not sure if the thought of Dumbldore and Salazar Slytherin is more funny or disturbing, I guess Slytherin would play to Dumbledore’s ‘type’ if Grindlewald is anything to go by lol.

    I can’t believe I’ve read this so quickly, I just can’t seem to stop myself! Your story is lots of fun and quite entertaining.

    If I were reading this as a WIP, I’d probably be screaming the rafters down about your little cliffie, but luckily for me I only stumbled upon this wonderful fanfic yesterday and yay it was already finished!

  6. obsidianjg says:

    Whoa! That was quite a turn in the story. And what was Colin murmuring in between the abuse? Kill kittens? And watch the robes, not the wizards? I hope you don’t have to kill the kittens. Are these the clues desperately needed to end the muggle killings?

    These tattoos are disgusting. No matter how you look at them. It sounds like the Arian pureness all over again. It can be exploited in so many ways… and it is pretty irreversible. I know you can remove tattoos nowadays, but I haven’t seen any removal that got you back to pristine skin.

    I love the school atmosphere you describe. Even with all the changes…(there were never any apprentices in 6 years of the HP books), it feels right.

    • JunoMagic says:

      Indeed, those are clues. *grins* I hope they will make sense later on.

      Agreed on the tattoos. Sometimes you just KNOW that something is really bad news. And yet, in politics so many dumb things are implemented. It’s as if it’s impossible to stop idiocies once there’s a certain momentum.

      *beams* I’ve always loved the school stuff best about HP. So I really wanted to dive back into that in some manner.

  7. Dina says:

    I’m enjoying your story. I found it on ffn and was apprehensive at your initial note disparaging it as not great literature, but I’m glad I gave it a go regardless, I’m hooked 🙂
    Concerning the muggle-born tatoos, I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop. Specifically that some corrupt ministry official will use them to locate muggle-borns for extermination.

    • JunoMagic says:

      Thank you for taking the trouble to come over here to read my story, and I’m thrilled you enjoy it so far. 🙂 Even though I still think it’s mostly a virtual penny dreadful, I had tons of fun writing it a few years ago, and I’m happy that it’s still keeping readers entertained.

      Re: those tatoos … sometimes everyone knows that a political manoevre won’t end well, and still we keep walking into that dead-end on a regular basis. It’s bizarre, but you just have to watch the news to know that’s how life works.

  8. Katie says:

    Salazar and Dumbledore! Hah!!

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