The air was fresh and filled with the smell of spring. Still, the air was uncomfortably cool and made Casandra's lungs ache with every breath she took. She felt controlled as if she was a marionette. Someone or something seemed to control her legs, because her brain was out of order. "Casandra! Casandra stop! Please wait!" she heard Webster yelling but she just couldn't stop. Severus, I need Severus was all Casandra could think of. Suddenly, she stopped dead. Shortly after, Webster reached her and came to a halt, too. Casandra was fixing her gaze at the moon. "Hopefully, we're not too late" she said without any emotion in her voice.
"Casandra" started Webster and placed his hand on her shoulder "would you please tell what the hell is going on? I know I'm not a great help but—" "—No!" stopped Casandra and turned to Webster, looking him right in the eye. The bright moonlight was reflected in her deep green eyes, making them twinkle. "No, Oscar. You are a great help! Don't you ever put yourself down again, do you hear me? You are amazing!" she whispered. It made Webster blush slightly and he teared his eyes away from her, staring at the floor. "Thanks..." he breathed, "But would you please tell what is going on? I'm worried about you..." "I am sorry Oscar but we don't have time for this right now. We need to enter the Shrieking Shack and rescue the others and stop Pettigrew! Please, trust me. Just follow me..." explained Casandra and looked for Webster's gaze, grabbing his hand. He shook his head silently and looked back at Casandra. "Alright. I trust you more than any person, do you know that?" he admitted and gave Casandra a surrendering smile. "But how do we get to the Shrieking Shack?" he added and let his eyes wander around the castle grounds. The only thing he could see was the Whomping Willow.
"Just trust and follow me. We're going to the Shrieking Shack through there" explained Casandra whilst pointing at the Whomping Willow. "Stay right behind me and stay quiet. That's important!" With a flick of her wand, Casandra shouted "Immobilus!" and the Whompin Willow was frozen.
The tunnel was pitch-dark and cold. The only source of light was the tip of Casandra's wand. Suddenly, Casandra turned around. Her eyes were wide open in shock. "Oscar?!" she whispered. "What? What is it?" he answered and came closer. "Oh god. There you are" she replied and let out a relieved sigh. "I...I thought I lost you. Stay close!" she commanded and reached out for his hand. With a firm grip, she pulled him closer. Webster's eyes were twinkling. For a moment, Casandra could have sworn that she saw tears in his eyes. There wasn't time to think about this further, though. Loud voices that came from the end of the tunnel made Casandra jump and turn around. She literally dragged Webster behind her, always having her wand at the ready.
When they had reached the end of the tunnel, they found themselves in a dirty and dusty old house. Slowly, Casandra walked up the creaking steps, still dragging Webster behind her. As they had reached the first floor, Casandra turned around and placed a finger on her lips. "Shush! Keep quiet, that's utterly important." She said under her breath. Webster nodded silently and stayed behind. Then Snape's deep but soft voice filled the silence with tension. "I could do it you know – Kill you. After all these years. After everything you've done to me. You didn't care whether I would die, so why should I care know? And here you are, served on a silver platter. You poisoned Casandra, betrayed your friends and killed L...them all. Just give me one reason, just one reason, why I should not kill you right here and now?!" he uttered, clenching his teeth. "Severus, please. You got this wrong —" intervened Lupin but Black interrupted him. "Ugh stop it Remus. You know Severus has always been good at jumping at conclusions and making the wrong the decision – well, except for one, I guess." "What, you insolent arse—" Snape was about to curse Black when Casandra jumped out from behind the old door, making Webster come with her. "NO! Severus stop! Please!" she cried, "You got this wrong!"
Black gave him a ridiculing smile and started to laugh at him. "Speaking of your right decision – and I must say a very hot one too – even your wife thinks you're wrong. I assume she even brought a better man with her than you are. Are you not able to satisfy her?" This made Snape even angrier. He lifted his wand and was definitely about to jinx Black when a bright red light filled the room. It was such a loud noise as if the whole house was collapsing. "Stupify!" cried Harry, making Snape fly through the air. He landed roughly on the floor. At once, Casandra rushed upon him. The back of his head was bleeding slightly. "Harry! You attacked a teacher!" cried Hermione bewilderedly. Casandra stood up, looking shocked from Harry to Snape. "How dare you?!" she cried, "HOW DARE YOU?!" she repeated bewilderedly. It all happened too fast. Before Harry could point his wand at Webster or Casandra, she snapped her fingers three times, making Harry's, Hermione's and Ron's wand fly towards her. Black and Lupin turned towards her with their eyes wide open. "Blimey! This woman is a hell of a witch!" cried Black in amazement, eyeing her from head to toe. Lupin, on the other hand, just shook his head, whispering "Casandra...I did not know you could do this...".
Casandra, however, did not look at any of them. Her face had turned as pale as the moon that shone brightly outside. Slowly, she sank to the ground and got on her knees, placing herself next to the unconscious Snape. Cautiously, she stroked his head. "Severus" she whispered. "Cassy" said Webster and broke the silence, "he'll be alright. Remember what you're here for." Casandra looked up. Her eyes were empty. They were only reflecting the moon that was almost completely full. "You're right." She answered emotionless and stood up. At that moment, everyone – except for Webster – jumped with fear. It was Hermione who spoke first. "W-what? What do you mean, Professor?" "He means" started Casandra, "that I know the truth and that I am here to stop him." "The truth?" asked Lupin in confusion. "Yes Remus, the truth. Whilst each and every one of you – including my dear husband – thought that I've become mental or that I was simply hallucinating, I was not. It was my mother who ordered someone to poison me and put me in a coma so that she could penetrate my mind. And she succeeded. Yet, she did not succeed completely. She thought that she would weaken me further by telling me about her plan, but she didn't. Quite the contrary. She made me stronger and I unravelled her secret." explained Casandra coldly. She paused a few seconds. The silence was unbearable. "When the moon is the brightest, the chances are the highest" stated Casandra, staring out of the broken window.
"What? What are you talking about?" asked Lupin. "You are bit mental, to be fair" whispered Black. Immediately, Casandra turned her head towards Black, moving so fast that her neck cracked. "Am I? Tell me, why do I believe you then? As I said, I know the truth. It's Pettigrew, just like my mother said. And he is here, here in this room." All of a sudden, Black's eyes went wide open and so did everyone else's.
Author's note: I am back! I hope that I'll be able to update soon. Please bear with me, uni is killing me :-(
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Another Hogwarts Mystery 2
FanfictionAfter surviving her mother's murder attempt and giving birth to her daughter, Casandra starts her career as a teacher at Hogwarts. After the marriage with Snape, the first years of raising her daughter, and teaching at Hogwarts, her life could not g...
