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 7


Severus shook his head as Willow tumbled from the broom again. They had been out here for almost an hour and she still hadn’t managed to stay on the broom for more than a few seconds. This was why she hadn’t done any more than hover a few feet from the ground.

He walked over to her and extended his hand. She took his hand and pulled herself to her feet. She let go of him when she reached her feet and quickly began brushing the dirt and grass from her robes.

“Why can’t you do this?” He asked trying to hide his annoyance.

“I don’t know,” Willow sighed, “Just to annoy you? It’s not like I’ve ever done anything like this before. I like keeping my feet on the ground.”

“This was your idea.”

“I know that, but as soon as my feet leave the ground I panic and fall.”

“What is there to panic about?” He asked trying to understand, “You’re barely a foot off the ground when you fall.”

“Hey, guess what? Fear, not really rational.”

Severus stared at her for a moment. She was right, fear wasn’t logical, and she couldn’t control it. There had to be a way to get her past her fear. He walked over to the fallen broom.

“Up,” the broom jumped into his hand.

“I doubt watching you fly will help,” Willow pointed out, “Though it would be a break from falling.”

“You’re not going to watch, come here,” he motioned her closer and indicated for her to mount the broom in front of him. “Now you can’t fall.”

“Well, yeah I could,” Willow smiled, “You’d just fall with me.”

“Don’t,” he warned and the broom began to rise.

He let the broom hover close to the ground for several minutes until he felt her shoulders relax. If she was going to panic and make them both fall he didn’t want to be far from the ground when it happened.

Willow relaxed when his arms tightened around her as they hovered. She still wasn’t completely comfortable with being off the ground but at least she felt like something was holding her in place.

“Are you ready to go higher?”

“’Kay,” Willow tried to force a smile as she turned her head to answer him.

“You control the broom,” he suggested.

“Nope, not a good idea,” Willow insisted.

“Yes, you aren’t going to learn it if I do it for you.”

“Fine, but if we crash into a tree it’s so not my fault.” Willow moved her hands over his and gripped the broom tightly as he pulled his away. “What now?”

“Push or pull the broom in the direction you want to go.”

He kept his hands behind hers on the broom handle but was careful to let her control the broom’s movement. Willow relaxed again as the broom began to rise and she found she could easily control its movements around the Quidditch pitch.

As they moved she began to lean back closer to Severus. She pulled away when she felt him tense behind her. She had been so focused on him and keeping the broom in the air she hadn’t been paying much attention to what was going on closer to the ground. Pulling her attention away from her movements she saw something shining in the dark, it was too far away for her to make out what it was but she guessed that Severus knew and it was the cause of the sudden tension.

“What’s wrong?”

“Oh, uh, nothing but I think it’s best to go in now,” Severus lied. He was well aware of what he was seeing in the distance, but he didn’t want her asking questions. If he was going to bring her to the Dark Lord he would have to explain the Dark Mark to her eventually but he wasn’t ready to do that yet.

“But I was just getting the hang of it,” Willow complained as Severus lowered the broom to the ground.

“We can practice more another day,” he assured her. Right now he needed to get her back to the school and he needed to get to Hogsmeade.

“You are sure the girl is looking for a way home?” The voice hissed from under the hood.

“Yes sir, the headmaster contacted someone named Anya who is looking into returning her to her time,” Peter said nervously.

“He hasn’t found a way yet?”

“No sir.”

“Then we must speed up our plans, is Severus here?”

“Not yet sir, I’m sure he saw the mark in the sky but he was with Willow and…”

“I’m here My Lord,” Severus said approaching the circle cautiously.

“You’re late.”

“Yes sir. I arrived as quickly as…”

“Have convinced Miss Rosenberg to join us yet?” Voldemort snapped.

“No sir. I’m trying to get close to her but…”

“I’m not interested in excuses,” he hissed, “Crucio!”

Lucius smiled slightly from the corner of the circle as Severus fell to the ground in pain

“We don’t have time for this,” Voldemort said as the younger man lay on the ground panting, “The girl is powerful, I can feel her power. We need her to join us. You need to accomplish this soon.”

“Yes sir,” Severus said rising up on his knees, dark hair falling over his eyes. “I’m tutoring her and we will be working on the mind reading potion in the coming weeks. It should allow me to learn more about her.”

“Fine,” the older wizard said, pointing his wand once again at Severus. “Move quickly, if she’s seeking help to return to her time we may not have until Halloween.”

Willow quietly climbed the stairs to the unused tower. She had seen Severus heading up here again when they had finished the flying lessons. He had said he was heading to his room to study but as soon she had turned toward Gryffindor Tower he had switched directions and went to the tower again.

She had gone back to her room and studied for a while but she couldn’t let go of the idea that he was lying about where he was going and was spending so much time in that tower. She also was still curious about whatever it was she had seen outside.

Willow had asked Remus and Sirius but they hadn’t seen anything from in the common room. She considered asking them about the tower too, but Remus was a prefect and would have felt obligated to check and she didn’t want to cause a problem for Severus when she finally seemed to have him convinced that she actually did like him.

“Lumos,” she whispered when she walked into the dark room, pushing the door closed behind her. Looking around she realized he wasn’t there, but as she made her way across the room she was that he had left his school robes on the chair in the corner. “He must plan on coming back then.”

She took off her robes, placing it on the floor she sat on top of it, back against the wall to wait for him to return. She must have drifted to sleep because the next thing she knew she was being startled awake by the sound of someone coming in the window. She jumped to her feet quietly not wanting to give her presence away until she was sure it was Severus.

“Severus?” She said quietly when he turned away from the window.

Severus froze at the quiet voice. What was she doing up here?

“Severus, uh, being really still doesn’t make you invisible,” Willow moved closer to him, “I know you’re there.”

Willow reached out to touch him and froze when he flinched away from her. She raised her wand and whispered the spell to light it.

“Willow just leave please,” he whispered turning away from her.

“Not gonna happen,” Willow reached for his shoulder and tried to turn him toward her. When he resisted she walked around him so she was now facing him. Willow stared in shock at the bruises forming on his face. “What the hell happened?”

“I fell,” he muttered and moved away from her.

Willow watched him walk over to the chair he had left his robes sitting on. He was hurt, more than what she could see on his face. She had been involved in enough apocalypses to recognize someone seriously injured.

“You need to go to the hospital wing,” she insisted when she saw him wincing as he buttoned his robe.

“No.”

“Then let me see how badly you’re injured.”

“Willow I’m…”

“Yeah right fine, so we can practice flying tomorrow then?”

“Well, I…” Severus stuttered. There was no way he could fly tomorrow.

“Right, so let me see how badly you’re hurt,” Willow moved closer to him and reached out her hand for his robe.

“Do you know anything about treating injuries?” He asked handing her his robe and unbuttoning his shirt.

“Best friend of a slayer remember,” Willow gasped when she saw the cuts on his chest. “What the hell happened?”

“They aren’t that bad,” he insisted, “They’re from twigs and rocks on the ground.”

“That didn’t come from a simple fall.”

“No, I don’t want to talk about it. I have a potion for the pain and I’ll be fine in the morning.”

“So this happens often then?”

“Not exactly but it has before.”

“Who did this to you?”

“I…I can’t tell you that.” Severus sat in the chair as Willow waved her wand and conjured bandages and water to clean the wounds.

“Fine, but I don’t need you to protect me.”

“Willow he’s…you shouldn’t even be around me.” Severus sighed. He would be punished for not delivering the girl to the Dark Lord but if she avoided him and stayed close to Black and Potter he would at least have an excuse. “Just stay with Black.”

“I don’t want Sirius,” Willow said as she finished cleaning the scratches, “I thought we covered this earlier.”

“I’m not…I don’t want you to be hurt.”

“Why would I be hurt?” Willow questioned, “What are you involved in?”

“Willow you need to trust me on this…”

“No, I can take care of myself. Maybe I was sent here for a reason and…”

“This isn’t about…he’ll hurt you.”

“Who?”

“Willow, you just need to find a way back to your own time and soon,” Severus said touching her cheek. “It’s also past curfew and we should get back to the dorms.”

Willow helped him to his feet and they walked slowly down the stairs together.

“I’ll see you in class tomorrow,” Severus said at the bottom of the stairs.

“I can walk you closer to your dorm if you…”

“No, I don’t want you to be caught out after hours. I’ll be fine.”

“If you’re sure,” Willow smiled “Good night.”

She leaned forward and kissed him gently before walking toward her own rooms. Severus turned and headed toward the dungeons as she turned the corner in the opposite direction. Neither one noticing Sirius and James rounding the corner from the kitchens at the same time.




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