UnExpected

Chapter 50

While the majority of the castle lay asleep, one man sat awake in his darkened room. Contemplating a mystery, he had been trying to solve for almost three years.

Severus Snape was a master of Occlumens and Legilimens, he could access the mind of almost anyone he pleased. Only those of tremendous power could block his admittance. And also, as it seems, one tiny girl.

The night after the incident that occurred in the Chamber of Secrets, Severus had gone into the hospital wing in the dawning hours. Once it was revealed that Ginny Weasley was the only one who was possessed by Tom Riddle's diary, it left him with a never-ending stream of questions. As he stood over the small slumbering form of Buffy Summers, he tried to intercept her thoughts to find the answers. But he couldn't. He tried harder. But nothing. She was blocking his entrance somehow. A wall had been placed around her mind that couldn't be broken through. How was she doing it? She didn't have the knowledge or the power to perform such a feat, especially not while asleep. He pushed further and further but the wall met him every time. His frustration grew along with the rising sun, and only when he felt the light against him, did he finally relent. There was no more he could do that night, and he didn't wish to be found here and be asked questions. So, with heavy thoughts, he left the infirmary, but not for the last time.

He tried again, night after night while she lay sleeping, but had made no progress. He was no further in finding answers now as he was then. The questions burned his curiosity. How was Buffy Summers able to protect her mind so strongly? What had she done? How was she able – then it hit Severus like a thousand bricks. His body jolting straight in realization, and part of him feared the true answers behind his questions when he finally came close to solving the enigma. Because maybe it wasn't something Buffy Summers had done to herself. Maybe it was something that had been done to her.

*****

"Oh my..."

"Buffy!"

"Buffy!"

"How did this happen?"

"Are you all right?"

"What did this to you?"

"Are you okay?"

"Maybe you should lie down."

"This looks bad."

"Maybe we should get her to Madam Pomfrey."

"At this time of night?"

"She'll get into trouble."

"We'll all get into trouble."

"Guys!" Buffy called out to stop their dizzying words. "I'm fine. Really. It's no big deal."

"No big deal?! You look like a walking scratching post."

"You didn't happen to run into a werewolf, did you?"

"No," she said, and then remembered the bite on her lower leg. "At least I hope not."

She limped further into the room; arms stretched around her at the ready in case she fell over. She knew they meant well, but being bitten, battered, and bruised did have a tendency to put a person in a sour, short-leashed patience kind of mood.

"Guys, I'm fine, really," she repeated. "It was just a little demon that got out of hand. Nothing major."

Four faces immediately panicked. Buffy said demons, it was supposed to be a secret. And when Fred, Ginny, George, and Neville looked at each other, not a single person had what was supposed to be a look of surprise, which meant...

"You knew?!" They all shrieked so loud at each other that Buffy winced from the noise level, and looked on as four accusing fingers pointed every which way.