Chapter 52. Calm
Half an hour after Severus left, Dumbledore finally reached the cave and, seeing that the hat was unharmed, felt a rush of relief.
"Albus, you took your time."
"I only found out five minutes ago that someone had kidnapped you. I just don't understand how he managed to do it, especially from my office," Dumbledore added, stepping up to the hat and touching the barrier. It vanished a second later. "Did you figure out who it was?"
"How would I? He hid his face and altered his voice, but I don't think he's a bad person."
"I see. I'm glad to hear it." Picking up the note lying beside it, Dumbledore stroked his beard, and a few seconds later he smiled. "You never said you were so bored in my office. Why didn't you say anything?"
"Huh? What does it say?" the hat asked in bewilderment, sounding a little embarrassed by its words.
"That I am an ungrateful old fart. I exploit the labor of a poor artifact and do not care about its opinion. I give it not a shred of freedom and just make it gather dust on an old shelf among all the other junk."
"Now, now, Albus, of course he's wrong." Yet there was such irony in its voice that even a wizard as wise as he felt a twinge of embarrassment.
"I understand. Perhaps he is right. I'll think about how to resolve this." Coughing, he put the sheet away. "What did he need you for?"
"He didn't need me. He needed the Sword of Gryffindor."
"The sword? Don't tell me." The hat remained silent, and Dumbledore frowned. "So he managed to take it. How did he do it?"
"He used a weakness in the spells cast on me and on the sword."
"A weakness?"
"Illusions. He made me believe James Potter was in danger with a very realistic illusion, and the sword reacted to it." The hat didn't sound sad or angry; rather, there was a hint of amusement in its voice. "I kept telling Godric it was foolish. 'Only a true Gryffindor can pull the sword out.'"
"I see. Did he say what he needed it for?"
"He said he was fond of fencing and was looking for a worthy sword, though I found that hard to believe."
"Let's hope he doesn't use that sword for evil, and that he won't become another problem like Tom," he added to himself with a weary sigh as he picked up the hat and Apparated back to Hogwarts.
At first Severus had planned to obtain the sword by force, breaking into the Headmaster's office and taking the hat after a brief fight.
But thanks to the morning letter he received from Malfoy, warning that people would soon be coming for him, Severus came up with a new idea: simply lure Dumbledore out of Hogwarts and send the house-elf he had trained to fetch the hat. The elf could Apparate within the castle walls, while for humans it was impossible due to the anti-Apparition charms placed on the castle during the first wizarding war against Grindelwald, with the sole exception of the classroom where a Ministry instructor taught Apparition lessons, and even then only during lessons.
And everything went as perfectly as possible, to the point that Severus himself was a bit surprised. He had assumed it would be much harder to draw Dumbledore out of his office, but a single letter and a squad of Aurors arriving at the school were enough to make him act.
Returning to the shop, Severus almost immediately entered the training room and began analyzing the sword.
First, he removed all tracking spells similar to his own, along with the link between the hat and the sword. Only then did he begin studying the sword itself.
After a detailed examination, Severus couldn't suppress a smile of satisfaction; the effort had been worth it. Not only was the metal far from ordinary and quite decent for this world, but the crystals could also store magic and, at the right moment, abruptly flood the wizard's body with it, increasing his physical capabilities for several dozen seconds. The fact that there were no charms on the sword at all didn't surprise him, since he had already learned from history that Godric had mostly used this sword for ceremonies, as well as for duels and fights with Muggles.
But what was most intriguing, and did not escape his sharp eye, was the sword's special property of taking on the magical qualities of anything it touched. Thanks to the metal, it was also an excellent conductor of magic. You could even say it was the ideal sword for battle mages, wizards who employed warrior skills, not limiting themselves to magic alone but also capable of fighting in close combat, combining the two.
Severus was very pleased with his new acquisition, though he still decided to work a little on its appearance, darkening the tones.
Early that morning, the Aurors stopped by his little shop, that same group of ten, returning everything they'd taken from it along with apologies in the form of five thousand Galleons. Severus, of course, magnanimously forgave them, but not before they thoroughly cleaned the place. They even gave him back the hand they had found in his shop, wearing sour expressions the entire time.
Toward evening, after handing Karner a bag with potions for the next two weeks, Severus returned to Hogwarts.
On the way to his room, students stared at him in surprise, apparently not expecting him to return so soon. Only later did he learn from a house-elf that the Aurors had caused quite a stir at the school. They strode around the castle like they owned the place, went into the Slytherin common room, and then broke into his room and turned everything upside down.
Severus paid little attention to the students, since this was far from the first time he had encountered such a reaction; when they learned who owned the little shop in Diagon Alley, it had been much worse. A line had formed at his door, even students from other houses, and he had not had a second of peace during breaks.
When he finally reached his room and found the door still intact, he flung it open and was greeted by a pair of narrowed eyes with vertical pupils.
"My little Nagini, did you miss me?" he asked, winking as he closed the door behind him.
"As if. But I am glad you are back. I will have someone to talk to," Nagini said, keeping her composure as she lowered her head onto a cushion and closed her eyes.
"Ah, and I hurried so to reach my little Nagini, thinking you were worried about me," Severus intoned tragically, clutching his heart. After a few pirouettes, he fell down beside her. "Nellie, thank you for taking care of this layabout."
"Master must not thank Nellie. Nellie is glad to serve master and mistress," the little house-elf in a lilac dress stammered, standing by the bed with a large fan.
"From what I gather, everything worked out for you?" Nagini asked casually, trying to play it cool.
"Yes, it went as well as it possibly could." Severus raised his hand, and a moment later a rather plain-looking long, dark blade appeared in his grip, distinguished only by the dark runes along the center of the blade and the E-shaped guard. Otherwise it was an entirely ordinary sword, so it drew no particular surprise from Nagini. "For now it is the best I have seen in this world," he added silently as he put it away.
"I'm happy for you. I hope you will not expose yourself like that again."
Even though Nagini knew he sensed her emotions, she still tried not to show them. My teacher was right: "Women are the strangest creatures. One thing in their head, another on their tongue." Smiling, Severus began gently stroking her head. "I will try, of course, but I promise nothing." Through their bond he felt a flicker of displeasure mixed with a trace of joy and calm, and he couldn't help himself; his smile turned a little crooked.
But at that moment the idyll in the room was shattered in the worst possible way: by a loud knock at the door.
"Open it, Nellie, it's Professor Slughorn," Severus said. He had no trouble sensing Slughorn's magic, and the detection charms he'd placed on the door also helped.
"Yes, Master." Nodding timidly, the elf quickly went to the door, and as soon as she opened it, the somewhat agitated Head of House walked in. Seeing his student sitting on the bed, smiling and stroking Nagini, he froze.
"Severus, are you all right? I heard the Aurors took you away and accused you of possessing dark artifacts."
"Perfectly, Professor. I even managed to profit from it," Severus replied with a smile, noting the concern on Slughorn's face.
"Thank Merlin. I was about to ask my mentor for help, but apparently that won't be necessary," Slughorn breathed a sigh of relief, wiping his brow with a handkerchief. "Did you manage to find out the real reason?"
"Potions, Professor. Potions."
Slughorn frowned at once, but after a moment's thought he nodded.
"You said you only profited from this?"
"Yes. I made a deal with the Minister to hand over the recipes in exchange for a percentage of every potion sold, so I come out ahead," Severus replied with a proud smirk, and surprise flickered across Slughorn's face.
"I'm glad for you, Severus, very glad," he said with a smile, then added sternly, "But even if you make a fortune, that won't give you grounds to skip my extra classes. Is that clear?"
"Of course, Professor. I'll definitely earn a gold cauldron before I leave Hogwarts."
"I'm glad to hear it." For a moment his gaze slid down to Nagini, who, sensing it, narrowed her eyes in annoyance and hissed. "Uh, Severus, I have a favor to ask."
"I'm listening."
"Might I take a little of her venom?" Slughorn asked awkwardly. Nagini was taken aback by such a proposal, and Severus was a bit surprised as well.
"If she wants to. Otherwise, I cannot help you."
Swallowing, Slughorn looked down again at Nagini, who was watching him with a displeased squint.
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