Deer and Monkey

"Where’s Harry?"

Ron sighed. "For the first time in five years, I have no bloody clue."

Torianna raised an eyebrow. "Hermione?"

She shook her head. "I haven’t seen him since breakfast."

"Weasley!" Snape snapped from the front of his dungeon. "Where is Potter?"

"I don’t know, Professor Snape."

Snape raised an eyebrow. "I don’t believe you."

"That’s nice," Ron muttered. "It doesn’t change the fact that I don’t know, does it?"

"Detention, Weasley, for being cheeky. And five points from Gryffindor."

"Shit"

Snape glared.

"Shoot?"

"Just get to work," Snape growled.

"I can growl better than that," Ron muttered to himself. "That was the diet croak of growls."

"That’s diet coke, Ron," Evelyn snickered from behind him.

"Whatever."

Torianna sighed and raised a hand.

"What, Lupin?" Snape snarled.

"Hey, Teach, can I go look for Harry?"

"Do not call me Teach. And no."

"Why?"

"Because you have work."

"Why?"

"Because it’s important that you do work."

"Why?"

"Because I bloody said so!"

"Why?"

"Fine!" the teacher yelled. "Go look for Potter, but stop saying why!!!"

Torianna smiled brilliantly at her Potions Master. "Thanks, Teach!" With that, she got up and walked out, leaving Ron, Hermione and Evelyn to stare at each other in confusion.

She found him roaming around by the lake.

"Harry?"

He didn’t reply. He was looking off in the distance.

Torianna walked up to him and tapped him on the shoulder. "Hey, Potter."

He jumped nearly five feet in the air and turned to her.

He looked tired, and sad. His skin was very pale, and his eyes seemed deadened. His school uniform was wrinkled, and his tie was crooked. He’d been getting worse since Halloween. He never spoke. The Lions had lost any chance for the cup because of Ron and Harry’s frequent absences from practice, and even games.

In fact, Ron, Harry and Hermione had all become more withdrawn since Halloween. Ron spent most of his time in the company of some piano or another. Hermione had buried herself in more books than usual, she said she was studying, but most people were suspicious of what, exactly she was studying. The time she and Ron spent together as a couple was limited. Not only could they not find time to be alone, but they couldn’t figure out how to balance a relationship between their personal projects.

And then there was Harry. He didn’t sleep very much anymore. His eating habits were erratic, his grades had been slipping swiftly.

And now this.

"Harry?"

"I saw him."

Torianna shook her head. "What? Who?"

"My father," Harry replied. "He was right over there… he went that way."

"Harry, that way is the Forbidden Forest."

He shook his head and began to walk away.

"Hey!" she cried. "Wait! You can’t go in there, you’ll get in trouble, or killed or something!"

"I don’t care, I gotta find him."

Torianna sighed. "At least lemme come along?"

"Whatever."

She followed him to the edge of the forest, and looked around.

"I don’t see anyone, Harry," she voiced finally. "Let’s go back."

"No," Harry said firmly, turning to face her. "I saw Prongs."

"The deer?" Torianna asked. "Harry…"

"I saw him! And it wasn’t the time-turner or my imagination! It wasn’t! He was here!" His eyes became desperate. "I saw him. I did. You have to believe me."

"Harry… you’re tired. You’re hungry, and you’re goin insane," she said. "You have to come back with me. You’ll go to the hospital wing, you’ll get checked out, and have a week-long nap or something."

"I’m not crazy!" Harry said firmly. "Why don’t you believe me?"

"Because, Harry, your dad is dead."

He stared at her for a long moment, because dropping his head and cried.

Torianna slowly wrapped her arms around him. She didn’t know what to say, so she said nothing.

"Professor Summers, we feel that, since you and Professor Rosenberg are much younger than we are, you would be much better suited for planning the Yule Ball this year."

Buffy gave Professor Dumbledore a brilliant smile.

"What do you think?" he asked his, his eyes crinkling with his smile.

She smiled wider. "I think I could definitely get into it."

"And Professor Macclay, do you think you could organize some music?"

"I could try," Tara replied with a smirk. "I’ll need to do it fast. A month isn’t very much time to practice."

"Then you’d better get started," Dumbledore replied.

"Professor Dumbledore?"

"Yes, Buffy?"

"What would you say to a Muggle-themed Yule Ball?"

"Okay. Down to business."

The chorus stood in front of their two directors, patiently waiting.

"We need a band for the Yule Ball," Tara told them. "And… I know Draco plays guitar. And I know Ron plays piano."

"We all know that," Lee quipped from the tenor section.

"Oh! T-that’s another issue! Ron, you’ve got to stop leaving pianos everywhere," Tara said. "Snape is ready to kill you."

"When is he not?" Fred asked.

"Alright, you lot," Giles said.

"Anyways, we need a drummer," Tara went on. "W-who plays drums?"

Seamus timidly raised his hands.

"He plays drums?" Torianna whispered excitedly to Ginny and Katie. "I’m dating a drummer?"

"It appears so," Katie replied wryly.

Torianna let out a small squeak.

"Great," Tara said. "Any bass players?"

Evelyn raised a hand casually, which gained her a glare from Pansy.

"Great," Tara smiled. "We’ve got a band. Now, if anyone wants to sing something for the Yule Ball, just let me know, and we‘ll set it up. In the meantime, you four figure out what songs you want to do… and… it‘s Muggle-themed, so you guys are gonna have to stick to the Muggle stuff."

The room burst into chatter.

"Muggle-themed?" Seamus voiced. "Sounds good."

Pansy let out a disgusted snort, and Millicent rolled her eyes at the idea.

Tara sighed. "Well… this’ll be interesting…"

Willow couldn’t help it.

She had to laugh.

Even Angel was laughing. Loudly. In fact, he looked as if he might fall over.

"Where is Spike, and what the hell is that monkey doing here?" Buffy asked, crossing her arms.

"It’s not my fault," Angel told her, still laughing. "It was all Mad-Eye."

"Mad-Eye? Who the hell is Mad-Eye?"

"Him," Willow giggled.

Buffy glanced at the man, standing there holding a wand. He had gray hair, and very, very strange looking eyes… and a peg-leg. "Uh… Uhm… A vast ye scurvy knave?"

"Buffy, this Alistor Moody. Mad-Eye. He’s an Auror," Angel explained. "He’s come to take Spike to the ministry."

"And… And Spike was being Spike, y’know?" Willow breathed. "And.. Mad-Eye got fed up, so… so he turned him into a monkey!" She burst into another fit of laughter.

Mad-Eye looked smug. "He deserved it."

Buffy blinked. "You’re taking Spike to the ministry?"

"S’what we do with all the vampires we catch," Moody replied. "It’s law, Professor."

"Listen, Mr. Moody, I’m a vampire slayer. I can handle… Spike… the monkey, oh, god." She couldn’t help it. She cracked up. "Oh, good, sweet god turn him back! Please!"

"No!" Willow cried. "Don’t, don’t! I wanna find a camera!"

Moody sighed and flicked his wand. In a flash, Spike was back to normal.

"I hate you all."

Angel smirked. "Oh, come on, William. It was all in good fun."

"Shut your hole, Angelus," Spike snapped. "You didn’t just get turned into a ruddy fucking chimp! I’ve the right mind to kill you all!"

Buffy snorted. "Please. Spike. You might make me laugh harder than when you were a monkey. Seriously, Mr. Moody. I can deal with Spike."

"Fudge’s orders to come get him," Moody replied. "Gotta be wary of these sort of things, vampires. CONSTANT VIGILENCE!"

Buffy blinked. "Oh, boy."

"Why didn’t you tell me before?"

"I don’t know," Faith replied, shinning one of the swords the students had used that day. "Embarrassment? It slipped my mind?"

Charlie raised an eyebrow. "Snape being your uncle and getting your mum killed doesn’t just slip your mind, Faith. Or it would never slip mine."

Faith smirked. "It’s… it’s been pretty hard to figure out just how the hell I wanna treat him. I’ve been switching from treating him like crap, to treating him how I treat everyone else… besides you."

"How do you want to treat him?" Charlie asked.

"Like everyone else, I guess… but it’s hard, y’know?"

He nodded, taking her hand. "I know for a fact that this is going to sound very hokey, but I’m here for you."

"Great," she replied softly. "Come to dinner with us tonight?"

Charlie blinked. "Us? Us as in you and Snape?"

Faith nodded.

"He doesn’t like Weasleys."

"He doesn’t like anyone," Faith snorted. "But he’s the only family I got. Necessary evil, y’know? It’d mean a lot to me if you came with… as… y’know, the boyfriend?"

Charlie sighed. "My brothers will never let me live it down, but… well… alright."

"You want to do what with Spike?"

"Put him under the Petrificus Totalus and dump him back in Sunnydale."

Angel sighed. "I don’t think that’s such a good idea, Buffy. Dawn’s still in Sunnydale, remember?"

"He would never hurt Dawn," Buffy replied.

"We don’t know that."

She rolled her eyes. "You don’t know that. I do."

Moody sighed. "I don’t about this, Professor. William the Bloody is dangerous."

"So am I," Buffy snapped. "Why does no one here believe that I can handle a vampire? I’m a vampire slayer. This is what I do."

Moody shook his head. "Ministry sent me to-"

"I don’t care," Buffy cut in. "I’m not part of the ministry. Neither is Spike. Spike is a vampire. Again, I’m a vampire slayer. Just let me do my job."

Dumbledore sighed. "Well, Buffy, if you feel you can handle Spike, I don’t see any reason to keep you from doing your job. One request?"

"What?"

"Take Draco with you for a little while. Let him get a feel for what it is you actually do."

"Draco?" Moody asked. "As in Malfoy?"

Dumbledore nodded. "He’s a vampire slayer."

Moody looked confused. "But-"

"We know he’s not a girl. He even threatened to drop his pants to prove it." Buffy sighed. "Okay. Draco tags along to dump Spike back in the Dale."

"Good. Then we’re settled," Dumbledore nodded. "I’m sorry you had to come all this way for nothing, Alistor."

Moody sighed. "Did get a good transfiguration in." He smiled broadly. "Got a good laugh out of Liam."

Buffy blinked. "Liam?"

Moody smirked. "Your Angel. Good kid."

"Kid? God, how old are you?!"

Moody’s smirk widened, and he got to his feet. "Well, I’m off."

Buffy groaned, as Moody said his farewells, and left.

"You’d best fetch Draco," Dumbledore said. "I’ll connect your home in Sunnydale to the Floo network for easy travel."

"I hate you both."

"You’re the one who wouldn’t go to the hospital wing."

Harry grumbled. He’d never been chained to his four-poster before.

Evelyn and Torianna stood over him, arms crossed.

"Okay, Harry. Go to sleep."

"No."

Torianna began waving her arms around frantically. "This is oooonly a dream…"

"Sod off."

"Okay," Evelyn shrugged.

Both girls began to walk out of the room.

"Wait!" Harry cried. "You can’t leave me tied up!"

Torianna snorted. "Yeah, we can."

"And we are," Evelyn added. "See ya, Harry."

The two girls giggled as they heard Harry growl from his four-poster. They walked down to the common room to find Ron sprawled out on the floor, surrounded by sheet music.

"Oh, my god," Evelyn said in astonishment. "You’ve been working on this stupid music for a week straight, Weasley. Don’t you have anything better to do? Like… I don’t know… make out with Hermione?"

"She’s in the library," was Ron’s muttered reply. He didn’t look up at them.

"Well…" Torianna started. "Why don’t you grab her and show her the music you’ve got? Or play it?"

"She’s busy," he replied. "She doesn’t really care."

Evelyn rolled her eyes. "Oh, come on, Ron… she’s your girlfriend, she has to care."

He didn’t reply. He only shook his head, and went back to writing out the musical charts before him.

Ginny rushed passed them, tripping over Ron. She scowled, and turned menacing eyes on her brother. "Can’t you do that somewhere else?" she snapped.

Slowly, Ron looked up at her. "Can’t you watch where the hell you’re going?"

This was another reoccurring theme. The Ron and Ginny fights.

"Don’t swear."

He got to his feet, and got in Ginny‘s face. "I’ll swear where, and when I bloody fucking well want to!"

"Christ, Ron, chill out," Torianna ordered.

"You- You’re… you’re horrible!" Ginny spat.

"Shut up!" Ron snarled. "You have no idea what you’re talking about! I’ve not been horrible!"

"You’re a recluse!" Ginny cried. "This is all you do anymore! You’re stupid music!"

"It’s not stupid!" Ron yelled. "You’re stupid!"

"Oh, very mature, Ron!"

"Who the bloody hell said I was mature?!"

"Stop Cursing!"

"Okay, that’s it," Torianna muttered. She snagged Ron by the shirt, and dragged him out of the common room.

"Ginny, I think Harry wants to see you upstairs," Evelyn told the red-headed girl.

Torianna turned for a moment, and gave Evelyn a confused look, but the raven-haired girl just shrugged as Ginny stormed up the stairs.

Draco glared thickly at Buffy. "No."

"Draco Malfoy," she said in warning. "If you don’t go catch that vampire right now, I’m going to tell Professor Wyndham-Pryce to double- no- Triple your homework. And you’d better believe he’d do it."

That did it.

Draco was off like a bat out of hell.

"I’m starting to think this wasn’t the best idea," Buffy admitted as she and Willow stood in the cemetery. "He’s out of his element."

"But he’s gotta learn to deal with being out of his element, right?" Willow asked.

Buffy sighed. "Yeah… I’m just glad to be rid of Spike. Put him under the Petrificus, and no worries. It’s a nice feeling."

"That Moody guy was creepy," Willow commented.

"He reminded me of a pirate."

"Obviously," Willow snickered. "A vast ye scurvy knave?"

Buffy shrugged. "It seemed like the right thing to say at the time."

At that moment, Draco came stalking back toward them, with a taller man following him.

"He killed my vampire!" Draco complained.

Buffy’s eyes widened. "Xander?"

Both teachers launched themselves at Xander, who grinned wildly.

"What the hell are you guys doing here?!" Xander asked. "I thought you were doing your parts for the youth of Britain?"

"We are," Willow told him. "Oh, Xander, I missed you so much! I have so much to tell you!"

Draco tapped his foot, his arms crossed, a stake clenched in his hand. "He… killed… my vampire! And nobody cares!"

Xander blinked and looked Draco over. "Did Spike shrink? Please say yes. Because he looks like Spike, and he sneers like Spike, but… he’s so short."

"No," Buffy replied. "This is Draco. He’s our new slayer in training."

"That’s funny," Xander commented. "He looks suspiciously male."

"Hence the ’he,’" Willow told him. "First of his kind. He fights like Buffy, looks like Spike, and broods like Angel."

"Wow," Xander said. "That’s… impressive… impressive, and very scary."

"This does not change the fact that he killed my vampire!" Draco cried. "I want another."

And Draco Malfoy got his wish.

A very dead vampire took this opportunity to lunge out at him, and knock him over.

"FUCKING HELL!"

"Hey!" Buffy cried. "You can’t curse! You’re not injured yet!"

At this point, Willow was speaking excitedly to Xander, who made his comments and Buffy switched between helping Draco and joining the conversation.

Buffy smiled. Vampires…Xander… cemetery… she’d missed this familiarity.

"Xander, where’s Dawn?"

"She’s sleeping over at a friend’s tonight," Xander informed her. "I thought I’d take the time to… y’know try my hand at slaying a little vampire. It’s been working okay… but most of the time I have to run to Cordy and her crew in LA for help."

"I’m really sorry, Xander," Buffy replied sincerely. "I wish I could be here, but things at Hogwarts have just been really, really bad lately, and they need me."

"No… it’s all good, Buff," Xander reassured her. "Nothing big has happened here for awhile, which is… scary and surprising, but it’s nice. It’s okay. You do your school thing, just keep in touch."

Buffy nodded, and hugged Xander again.

Torianna tossed Ron into the chair opposite Hermione. "You deal with him."

Hermione put her witchcraft book down and raised an eyebrow at Ron. "What happened?"

"I got in a fight with Ginny."

"Again?"

Ron sighed. "I dunno… ever since… y’know… Halloween… she just hasn’t been the same."

"None of us have," Hermione nodded. "I don’t think we can go back to the way we were… I don’t think I want to."

Ron sighed. "So… that means we’re…"

"What?" Hermione asked.

"Breaking up?"

"What?!"

Madam Pince glared harshly at her outburst.

Hermione shook her head. "What gave you that idea?"

"Well… we don’t really spend all that much time together anymore, do we? I mean… not that my goal is being attached at the hip or anything but-"

"Ron, you’re ranting."

He sighed and looked down.

"Do you want to break up?" She asked him.

"…No…"

"Neither do I," she replied.

"But… I would like to spend more time together… I know you’re busy with… whatever it is that you do…"

"And you’re busy, too," Hermione pointed out. "I never see you without your sheet music or a piano anymore…"

"Yeah," Ron sighed. "Mione?"

"What?"

"Do you want to go to Hogsmeade with me this weekend?" Ron asked. "I’ve heard they’re thinking about making it the last one of the year because of the stuff that’s gone on."

She smiled. "I’d love to."

Dinner was not going well.

It didn’t take long for Faith to realize that Charlie Weasley and Severus Snape had absolutely nothing in common. They sat in the small restaurant in Hogsmeade in silence.

"So," Faith said clearing her throat.

"Yeah," Charlie added, picking at his food.

"Well, this was… pleasant," Snape said. He got to his feet, and was promptly dragged back down into his seat.

"Faith."

"You’re finding common ground, and you’re finding it tonight, or I’m gonna hurt you," she informed him.

"Faith, it isn’t as if I hate the boy," Snape started. "Well… Hate’s a bit strong… slightly loath would be a better term-"

"Point. Now."

"The point is that we don’t have anything in common, and he doesn’t like me, either."

Charlie sighed. "Well… you did give me detention on the first day of my first year," he pointed out. "First impressions, Professor, you understand, don’t you?"

"Of course," Snape replied. "Faith, you don’t even like me."

"Well, I’m trying, aren’t I?" she asked. "You are family… Really, the only I have, so…"

Snape sighed. "And… you are mine, but that doesn’t mean we have to like each other."

"And it doesn’t help that he doesn’t like anyone," Charlie pointed out.

Faith shot daggers at him with her eyes.

"…I’m just going to eat my food and never speak again… ever."

"He’s right!" Snape cried. "I don’t like anyone."

"So… you don’t like me."

"I never said that."

"You just said you don’t like anyone."

"But-"

Faith rolled her eyes. "This was sucky idea. Sorry." With that, she got up, and left.

Charlie put his fork down, and began to get to his feet, but Snape shook his head.

"I’ll go after her."

"So… Evelyn said you wanted to see me?"

Harry blinked. "She did?" he asked. He’d actually fallen asleep, and was actually feeling a bit better.

"She lied, didn’t she?" Ginny asked.

Harry nodded. "Reckon so."

"Harry?"

"Yes?"

"Why are you chained to the bed?"

Harry blinked and sighed. "I don’t know. Ask Evelyn and Torianna."

Ginny sighed and sat next to him, silent.

"What’s wrong?"

Ginny groaned, and leaned against the chains that were binding Harry’s legs. "Everything. I’ve been avoiding my brothers, except Ron, who I just fight with. My grades are horrible, and you’re upset with me."

Harry blinked. "Upset with you?"

Ginny nodded. "About Cho?"

He shook his head vigorously. "No! I’m not angry with you! I blame myself for what happened to Cho!"

Ginny looked down.

"Listen, Ginny," Harry said. "I know I haven’t spoken to you very much… or anyone, actually… and I did have a great bit of a freak-out today…but I think I’m thinking a bit more than I was… and I’m sorry if I led you to believe I was angry. I haven’t been. I’m not. Don’t blame yourself, because this was more my fault than yours. That curse was headed for me… and if not for you… I’d be pretty dead right now. And I don‘t think Cho would want you to blame yourself, either."

She sighed, and looked up at him, tears in her eyes. "Harry…"

"Listen, Ginny, will you just please unchain me?"

She sniffed a little, and nodded, and managed to use her wand to unhook the chains. When she was done, Harry sat up and wrapped his arms around her.

For the first time since her mother had left, she cried.

Harry held onto her tightly.

"Faith, please, you’re being irrational."

She kept walking. "I’m a chick. It’s what we do."

Snape sighed. "Will you slow down, girl? This is ridiculous?"

"So stop following me."

"I can’t do that."

"Why not?"

"Because… you’re… upset… and… as you’re family member, I’m supposed to be concerned."

She stopped and sighed. "Are you?"

"Yes… listen, I know you honestly don’t care for me, and I don’t really care for much of anyone, but you are family," he admitted. "And… I should be making more of an effort."

She turned him. "Really?"

"Well, if I didn’t mean it, I wouldn’t say it, would I?"

Faith smirked. "Yeah… come on, we’d better get back to the restaurant before Charlie eats the rest of our food."

:: On To Chapter Twenty-two ::

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