Chapter 42: Names on the Map
As much as Harry wanted to figure out what was going on with Snape, he didn’t get much of a chance to investigate over the next week and a half. In Potions, Professor Alchemina had moved from the Draught of Living Death to the most complex Befuddlement Draught Harry had ever seen. For Flitwick they were learning Disillusionment Charms and they were learning Conjuring Spells in McGonagall’s class. In the meantime, Hagrid had them learning about Dragons, and the fright that he might actually try and bring one to class was more stressful than any of the other work Harry had been assigned.
It wasn’t until the second Tuesday of February, in Defense Against the Dark Arts that Harry was able to get any information on Snape.
“Professor Lupin,” Harry asked at the end of class while the other students were finishing up their several feet of notes, “I was wondering “ have you noticed anything… well, a bit odd about Snape?”
Lupin looked at him thoughtfully.
“Always. I’ve always thought it’s a bit strange that he doesn’t seem to wash his hair, and then there’s the way…”
“No...I mean lately,” Harry said, trying not to laugh. “Odd for Snape…”
“Oh…” Lupin said. He stopped to think for a moment “I can’t tell you Harry. I haven’t seen him out of his room in weeks. He hasn’t even been to our Order meetings with Dumbledore and McGonagall “ says he hasn’t been feeling well. Dumbledore tried to send Madam Pomfrey, but he said he didn’t need ‘medical attention.’”
“You don’t think that’s a bit odd?” Harry asked as the bell rang.
“For Snape? No. He’s always moody and private. And it’s not like he can’t take a few weeks from his Order business “ I mean, take a look at the way he came back last time,” Lupin stopped and looked up at Harry seriously. “Why are you asking me this, Harry?”
Harry related the incidents from the weeks before about finding Snape lurking around in the more discreet parts of the castle.
“I don’t know Harry, I’ll look into it. But it might be nothing. In the meantime, you need to get to class…”
Harry nodded and quickly left the classroom. Ron and Hermione were waiting for him outside; they too were very interested in Snape since Harry had told them about what happened.
“So…” Ron asked as they walked quickly for the Transfiguration Department. “What’d he say?”
“Nothing, really…” Harry replied “Hasn’t noticed anything odd, but he’ll look into it.”
They slowed down a bit as they passed Dean and Lavender walking down the corridor for McGonagall’s classroom; they still had a few minutes to get to class. They walked inside and sat down breathlessly in the first row of seats. The bell rang a minute later and McGonagall immediately stood up and starting passing back their Conjuring Spell Essays. Harry was overjoyed to see he had gotten an ‘E’.
“By last class you were all able to successfully conjure both inanimate and living objects. We will now be moving on to a segment of Metamorphamagi. There will be no practical application in this subject, so it shouldn’t take long. Please take your quills and parchment out, now. Can anyone tell me what a Metamorphamagus is?”
Hermione, of course, raised her hand “ but much to her disappointment, it was Harry that was called on.
“A Metamorphamagus is someone who can willingly transform themselves to look like someone else,” he said.
“Very good, Mr. Potter “ ten points to Gryffindor.”
With that she waved her wand and bright red words wrote themselves across the air in front of the class, as McGonagall began to talk at length on the subject of Metamorphamagi. She talked all the way through the Double-Transfiguration period. Harry’s hand was cramping by the time she finally wiped the words from the air.
“You are to write an essay, eighteen inches, comparing and contrasting Metamorphamagi with Animagi. It will be due on Friday.”
The bell rang, though it was difficult to hear over the groan of the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff sixth years exiting McGonagall’s class.
“I’m going to start on that now,” Harry heard Hannah Abbott say tiredly to Ernie Macmillan as they turned into the corridor, “We still have to write an essay for Sprout’s class as well…”
Harry turned to Hermione and Ron.
“That doesn’t sound like a bad idea,” he muttered. “We have Sprout, Flitwick and Alchemina’s essays to finish by Friday not to mention Lupin and Hagrid for Monday…”
“To the library then?” Ron said forlornly.
“To the library…” Hermione sighed “ even she wasn’t looking forward to their homework.
When they got to the library they found Ginny and Katie both writing at a table in a quiet corner. They were both surrounded by piles of books “ Harry felt bad for both of them. As many essays as he might have, Ginny had O.W.L.’s and Katie had N.E.W.T’s; he could only imagine how tired they were.
“Hey, how’s it going?” he asked Katie, sitting down next to her and gesturing to the books and parchment that littered the table.
“Would you believe that Professor Alchemina has assigned two essays in class today? And they’re due tomorrow…”
“Why two?” Harry asked incredulously.
“The Potion’s N.E.W.T’s test is extremely comprehensive, apparently…” Katie said, not looking up from her essay, which was already about twenty inches. “Thank goodness Quidditch ended early this year…”
Ron and Hermione sat down with a few books for the Transfiguration Essay. Ron shoved one in Harry’s direction: Ridiculously Difficult Transfiguration: The Guide to Finding a New You. Harry sighed and flipped through the pages. He stopped whenever he spotted both ‘Animagus’ and ‘Metamorphamagus’ on the same page.
..Now, like Animagi, a Metamorphamagus is usually born. It is possible, however it would take several years and a lot of hard work, for a reasonably powerful witch or wizard, especially one with a certain talent in Transfiguration, to learn to us this ability. It is so difficult to become one that most witches and wizards would never be bothered…
Harry scribbled down a few notes to himself, then flipped a few more pages.
…If a magical person is born an Animagus, it is easier for them to learn to become a Metamorphamagus. In the same way, if someone is born a Metamorphamagus, they can more easily learn to become an Animagus. This is because the said witch or wizard has a natural ability for self-Transfiguration. They can skip the complicated methods of learning to physically change their appearance/body, and go straight to learning the specific adaptations involved in their transformation…
Harry felt something stir in his mind at these words, but ignored it and continued to copy down notes. By the time they had to leave for dinner, Harry had written twenty inches on the subject McGonagall had assigned. He rolled up his essay, very satisfied with himself, but very tired and left with the other four for the Great Hall. At dinner, he had to fight the strong desire to put his head down in his mashed potatoes and go to sleep. After dinner, they returned to the library and by nine o’clock, when they had to return to their dormitories, Harry, Ron, and Hermione had finished their Herbology, Charms, and Potions Essays, and Ginny and Katie had fallen asleep. Harry woke them up, and they all left for Gryffindor tower “ Harry carrying Katie’s books, and Ron carrying Ginny’s.
“Where is Dean?” Ron muttered, frustrated as he tried to look over Ginny’s towering pile of books. “We’ve been with you all day, Ginny, and I haven’t seen him since McGonagall’s class…”
“I don’t know,” said Ginny, yawning. She didn’t sound like she cared much.
“Phoenix Feathers,” Hermione said as they reached the Fat Lady, who swung open at the password. The five of them went inside and straight up to bed.
Harry changed and climbed under his covers, desperate for sleep. He was just falling asleep when he remembered that he still hadn’t found anything out about Snape. Harry thought for a moment of getting his cloak and going to see if he could find Snape lurking about the castle again,but then he thought of a much better idea.
He opened the drawer on his bedside table and pulled out his map; grabbing his wand, he tapped the weathered looking parchment and said sleepily: “I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.” The ink slowly ebbed onto the page. Harry’s eyes drifted slowly over the map and rested on the name ‘Severus Snape’ which was stationary in a small room in the dungeons area. Disappointed, he pulled out his wand to erase the map when two more names near Snape’s caught his eye.
No, it can’t be, Harry thought.
Harry closed his eyes and opened them again slowly, thinking he must be seeing things. He was tired, after all “ and he’d been reading all day. The two names were still there, slowly pacing the room with the unmoving dot labeled “Severus Snape”. He got up and rushed over to Ron’s bed, desperate for a second opinion confirming he’d gone mad.
“Ron…” he whispered, glad to see he had not fallen asleep yet.
“What is it, Harry?” Ron groaned.
“Look at the map,” he said urgently, pointing out the room where Snape was.
Ron took the map grumpily and looked at it. He blinked, and his eyes widened in shock.
“Harry, does that say what I think it says?” Ron asked in an unbelieving tone.
“Yeah, it does,” Harry said. It seemed Ron, too, was seeing the same names on the map.
According to the map, right now, Snape was sitting in a room with Draco Malfoy and Peter Pettigrew. Suddenly Harry remembered the rat that had been so constantly following Harry around.
“The rat,” he whispered angrily to Ron, who was still staring at the map in disbelief. “That stupid rat “ it’s been in the castle since Snape got back. It was him. It was Pettigrew.”