Chapter 6: Memories

Disclaimer: I own nothing that you recognize.

Chapter 6: Memories

After washing up and a quick nap, Hermione was ready to work. To her knowledge, Ernie was still talking to the Headmistress. She stood for a moment trying to decide what to do. She concluded that talking to Minerva was indeed a good course of action. Hoping they hadn’t gotten too far, Hermione made her way to Minerva’s office.

Hermione arrived, gave the password, and proceeded up the moving staircase.

“Come in, Hermione,” came Minerva’s voice through the closed door.

Hermione thought, jokingly, that omniscience must come with the duty of Headmaster or mistress. Upon entering the office, Hermione noticed a Pensieve sitting on the desk.

“We have just finished watching the preliminary questions that I asked the morning after the murder,” Minerva explained.

“Since you were present for those, you haven’t missed anything,” Ernie added.

“Ernie, I don’t want to be in the way, but you know me well enough to understand that I will not sit back and let others do the work. I want to contribute all I can to Severus’s case.”

“I’ll need an assistant in this case, so I don’t see any reason why you couldn’t fill that position.”

Hermione was thankful for Ernie's willingness to accept her help. She would have something to do instead of sit around and worry day and night.

“Now that that’s settled, do we want to watch the next session?” Minerva asked pointedly from her desk.

They all gathered around the Pensieve. Hermione reached to touch the substance with her right hand and was transported into the memory from the Head's office. She had learned earlier that certain places in the castle were programmed to record whatever happened in them. Ernie and Minerva soon followed.

They had arrived in Minerva’s office. Looking around, Hermione saw Dawlish leaning against the Headmistress’s desk. He was occupying his time by sifting through the parchments on the desktop.

Minerva bristled beside Hermione. Hermione surmised that the Headmistress had not seen this memory before.

Just then, noise could be heard coming from the moving staircase. Dawlish quickly moved away from the desk and looked toward the door with an air of indifference.

Minerva entered first, followed closely by Severus, who looked like he would rather be anywhere else. Argus Filch brought up the rear, shuffling through the door. After a wave of Minerva’s hand, the door shut behind them.

The Headmistress strode past Dawlish and took a seat at her desk.

“Everyone, please take a seat,” she said.

Dawlish instantly sat; Argus chose one of the chairs across the room, while Severus made no move at all.

Minerva shot him a stern glare. Severus simply returned a look of utter boredom.

Hermione knew that Severus was shutting himself down.

“Dawlish, now that we are all here, will you please begin?”

“Of course, Headmistress,” Dawlish replied with a nod.

Turning toward Severus, he said, “Snape, did you or did you not have ill feelings toward Anna Bloom?”

“My feelings weren’t as ill toward her as they are toward you.”

The Minerva standing beside Hermione stifled a chuckle.

“Tell me, what exactly did you do the night of Anna’s murder?”

Severus stiffly recounted that he had been on his rounds and in his chambers until half past one in the morning.

“Where were you after that?” Dawlish demanded.

“I went for a walk. I traveled all the corridors in the castle then went on the grounds. I got back to my chambers at four that morning,” Severus finished.

“Then what did you do?”

Exasperated, Severus said, “I slept until Minerva woke us up with her incessant banging.”

Both Minervas shot Severus another glare. It was now Hermione’s turn to stifle a giggle.

“Did you encounter anyone on your walk?”

“The Bloody Baron was in the dungeon hall when I arrived back in my rooms. Other than him, I met no one alive or dead.”

Unbelieving, Dawlish asked, “And you didn’t meet Anna Bloom at all on your wanderings?”

“As I said, no. I saw her last at about ten o’clock. She was with one of her friends.”

“Oh, yes, we’ve already spoken to George Epps. He had some interesting things to say, I assure you.”

Hermione could see the effort Severus was putting into keeping his body language and face passive.

The Minerva behind the desk looked shocked. “Dawlish, as I told you before, Severus is a senior member of this staff, and I trust him implicitly.”

Dawlish scoffed. “Snape, perhaps a reminder is in order. You are certain you didn’t leave a fourteen-year-old girl severely beaten and raped in one of your dungeon rooms?”

“No,” hissed Severus.

“A little more help might jog your memory. Anna Bloom was found with a concussion, numerous bruises all over her body, boot marks on her sides. Those kicks resulted in four broken ribs and one punctured lung. She had two black eyes, multiple lacerations on her mouth from where her teeth had cut her lips. She had been cut with a sharp knife on both arms. The blood was used to draw patterns on her torso. She looked to have been raped twice: once before she died, and once after. Semen traces were also found around her mouth.”

“That is enough!” Minerva exclaimed. She looked as if she could cry and be sick all at once.

Hermione found herself taking deep breaths to try to calm her roiling stomach. Ernie put a comforting hand on her shoulder. During Dawlish’s appalling description, all the blood had drained from Severus’s face. Argus Filch had a hand over his mouth and was desperately trying not to be sick.

“Well, Snape, was your memory sufficiently jogged?” Dawlish asked after a minute.

“I have no memories to jog, Dawlish. I didn’t do any of those things to that girl. I did not see her after ten o’clock last night!”

“This crime has all the evidence of a Death Eater attack. There only seems to be one of those around here,” Dawlish said nastily.

Minerva stood from behind her desk. “I warn you now, Dawlish, you make one more blatant and uncalled for accusation, and you will never be allowed on these grounds again.”

Severus meanwhile was looking at Dawlish with renewed spirit. “Dawlish, there was another Death Eater here that day. Lucius Malfoy came to call earlier that evening. He never did state what his business was or find me to discuss it.”

“Mr. Malfoy is a generous member of this community,” the Enforcer said in a huff.

“He also happens to be a Death Eater gone free.”

“We’ll look into it.”

Dawlish turned to Argus and began questioning him.

Minerva pulled both of them, Hermione and Ernie, out of the Pensieve.

Once back in the present, Hermione sat down heavily in one of the chairs by the fire. Ernie stood completely still, lost in thought.

Finally, Hermione said, “Things are worse than I thought.”

“Don’t give up hope yet, my dear,” Minerva said kindly.

“Oh, I’m not giving up yet. Severus is innocent. Until I prove that; I won’t give up.”

“Hermione, we need to talk to George Epps. What Dawlish said concerning him has me a little on edge,” Ernie said quietly.

Minerva looked decidedly uncomfortable. “I’m afraid there may be a problem getting a hold of Mr. Epps. His father took him out of school late yesterday evening.”

Author's Notes: All comments are welcome and appreciated. A great round of applause for my beta, Zen Lady!