Title: Wishes and Magic
Author: Shannon
Email: angels_soul_1@yahoo.com
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: W/Snape
Disclaimer: BtVS stuff belongs to Joss Whedon, ME, UPN, WB, FOX; Harry Potter Stuff belongs to J.K. Rowling
Distribution: My site http://dr.shadesofgrey.us/ NHA, WLS, TtH
Spoilers: Through Season 4 “Something Blue” of BtVS, and OoTP of Harry Potter
Summary: Willow makes a wish, which we all know never goes well.
Author’s Notes: Don’t know when exactly Willow’s birthday is so we’re going to assume she is 18 during season 4.
Thanks to Emmy, Zoe, and Kris for beta-ing.
Part 10
Willow pushed open the heavy door to the room she shared with the other seventh year girls, it was still very early so she was hoping everyone was still asleep and wouldn’t notice her return. She bit her lip when she bumped into a trunk at the foot of Lily’s bed as she moved past it. If she woke her friend she would have to find a way to avoid answering too many questions. She wasn’t good at lying, never had been.
“Willow, is that you?” Willow sighed at the voice coming from the bathroom on the other side of the room.
“Yeah.”
“Where have you been all night?” Lily asked in a whisper lighting her wand before going to her bed.
“Why are you up so early?” Willow whispered.
“Nice try,” Lily smiled, “Let’s talk downstairs.”
Willow followed the other girl back out the door and down the stairs, trying to come up with a way to avoid telling her the things Severus had told her the night before. She trusted Lily and was confident she wasn’t the one feeding this Dark Lord guy information, but if she didn’t know who it was she couldn’t risk telling anyone.
“So why are you up so early?” Willow asked again as they reached the common room. She was once again hoping to distract her friend from her question.
“Couldn’t sleep, but where were you all night?” Lily sat in the overstuffed chair, “I may have been awake but I was in the room. You were going to look for Severus last night right?”
“Um yeah that’s where I was.”
“All night?”
“Yeah he was…out again and he needed help.” Willow replied vaguely hoping she wouldn’t press for more information.
“Is he in trouble?”
“Yeah, sort of.”
“You can’t talk about it?”
“I can’t Lily,” Willow sighed, “I wish I could but I promised I wouldn’t.”
“Just promise you’ll talk to Dumbledore if it’s something you can’t handle all right?”
“Yeah.”
Severus paced the large office as they waited for the Headmaster to return. He and Willow had agreed it was best to speak to Dumbledore right away and had found him right after breakfast. Missing Potions wouldn’t be a problem since it was all independent study right now, and they had already begun their potion, which put them ahead of most of the class. He glanced over at Willow who was sitting calmly in a chair as if her life being threatened happened daily.
“Doesn’t this bother you at all?” he finally asked.
“Does what bother me?” Willow asked glancing around the room, “Well the Phoenix burning up a few minutes ago was a little freaky.”
“This,” he snapped, “This whole situation, a very powerful wizard possibly wants to kill you. At the very least he wants to control your power and you’re just sitting here as if it happens on a daily basis.”
“Well not daily, and not usually a wizard,” Willow responded, “I mean Ethan I guess could be considered… But he didn’t really intend to hurt anyone but Giles, oh and Buffy with that Eyghon thing, and the band candy was really more of a prank at least his part was. But um…yeah it happens a lot.”
“Eyghon?” Severus raised an eyebrow. He had read about the demon but had believed it a myth.
“Yeah, long story. It’s dead now anyway,” Willow frowned, “Well I guess he’s not dead right now. Giles and Ethan haven’t even called him yet I would imagine. Not for a few more years. In my time he’s dead though.”
Before Severus could ask anymore questions Dumbledore came through the door, “Good Morning, you wished to see me?”
“Yes sir,” Severus answered, “I believe Miss Rosenberg is in danger.”
“Danger?” Dumbledore asked as he sat behind his desk, “What kind of danger?”
Severus spent the next half an hour explaining what he knew of the Dark Lord’s plans. He didn’t know the full extent but enough for the Headmaster to be concerned.
“You don’t know who has been feeding him information?”
“No Sir, I know it must be a Gryffindor,” Severus explained, “I suspected someone from that house was involved with the Dark Lord before but no one else would have had the information on Miss Rosenberg.”
“This is to happen on Friday evening then?” Dumbledore asked. Severus nodded grateful the headmaster wasn’t going to question him anymore on his involvement with the Dark Lord. “Then we need to get Miss Rosenberg home before then.”
“How?” Willow asked. “And I don’t want to see Severus hurt because I left too soon.”
“I can deal with the punishment.”
“I didn’t say you couldn’t. I said I don’t want you to have to,” Willow responded.
“First let’s see if we can arrange for you to leave before Friday,” Dumbledore said. “I’ll contact Anyanka again. Return to your classes and I’ll summon you when I hear from her.”
Willow and Severus found themselves back in the Headmaster office after lunch. They were now waiting for Anya to arrive with D’Hoffryn. Willow was now the one pacing the room, while Severus sat and watched her from a large chair in the corner. The more she had thought about this new development the more concerned she became. It was true she was used to being in a certain amount of danger but she always had a slayer backing her up. This was new territory she was completely on her own. Severus had told her about this Dark Lord and he was powerful, she wasn’t sure why he believed she was too, but she was sure she didn’t have the power to fight a fully trained wizard. She was pulled out of her thoughts as Anya and D’Hoffryn stepped out of the fireplace.
“You are certain you don’t wish to join us Miss Rosenberg?” D’Hoffryn asked stepping out of the fire. “My trip to your future to find the cause of your plight was impressive. You have great potential in vengeance.”
“Like I’ll tell you in the future, I’m sorry but I don’t want to be a demon. I didn’t mean to hurt my friends.”
“Yes, then it is done. Although your spell that originally caused me to extend the offer is not my only reference in this new offer,” D’Hoffryn smiled.
“What?”
“I don’t think she should be made aware of future events that have not happened for her yet,” Dumbledore interrupted.
“Must you be so…Good?” Anya frowned at the wizard.
“My apologies,” Dumbledore smiled, “Shall we move on so that the students may return to class.”
“Yes, I should be able to return you home, Miss Rosenberg, by Saturday morning.”
“That’s why we need to talk to you,” Willow said, “I need to be gone by Friday night.”
“Why?” Anya asked, “What are a few more hours.”
Severus leaned forward in his seat and again explained what he knew of Voldemort’s plan. Willow then added again her desire to do it in a way that Severus would not suffer. The two demons listened quietly to the story asking a few questions here and there. When the story was completed D’Hoffryn was the first to speak, “I can get you home Friday evening if you wish.”
“Yeah I do,” Willow smiled slightly, still having mixed feelings about leaving the school.
“As for avoiding undue suffering,” Anya interjected, “I’m usually in favor of male suffering of any kind, however, what if you disappeared in front of this Dark Lord? Would he then believe that it was beyond your control?”
“He may,” Severus responded, “But isn’t that endangering Willow?”
“No,” D’Hoffryn explained, “Just bring her to the meeting as requested. Miss Rosenberg you should tell your friends good-bye on Friday morning. Tell them you don’t know when you’ll be taken back and don’t want to leave without saying your farewells.”
“When will you…?” Willow asked.
“I think it best you not know any details. The more you know the more others can find out.” Dumbledore answered, “We don’t know who we can trust right now so it’s best to not give any information.”
A short time later Willow and Severus were walking back to the Great Hall for dinner and discussing the little they knew of the plan. “I still don’t think bringing you anywhere near…”
“I’ll be fine,” Willow responded, “I’ll be gone before anyone knows what happened.”
“I know he said that but he is a demon.”
“An oddly honorable one according to Anya,” Willow said as they walked through the doors to the noisy room.
“I’m very sorry about all of this,” Severus said quietly.
“You have nothing to be sorry about,” Willow frowned, “You’re not the one feeding him information about me. Will you write to me when I go home?”
Severus frowned for a moment at the sudden change in topics. “It will be twenty-five years from now. I’ll be much older than you.”
“So?” Willow smiled, “I like you. I like the seventeen year old you and I’m sure I’ll like the older you.”
“How will I know when?” He asked.
Willow stopped at the end of the Gryffindor table and pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill from her bag. She quickly scribbled the date she left her time on it. “This is when I’ll be home.” He stuck the paper in his pocket promising to write to her.
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