Blood Traitor

6.

Ana doesn't say it often but Lily was right, Snape didn't spare her and for the second time in her years at Hogwarts Ana has detention and not on the same day no on her birthday two days later. Her eighteenth birthday shouldn't have gone like this and you guessed it Lily didn't get detention, she even got a pat on the back because she had a good excuse she was protecting a friend (Ana)...... And got ten points for her house. Lily mumbled a careful -sorry- to Ana but it was in vain at that moment. Ana has now more than forgiven her and can't wait for her detention to be over because Lily told her this morning that she had to come straight to the Gryffindor common room afterwards so they could all celebrate her birthday together.

A deep breath before she enters the lion's den "Professor Snape I'm here." Snape's head who is sitting writing at his desk on the dais in the classroom slowly rises. "You're kidding Mrs. Longbottom, maybe you didn't know but I have eyes." His monotone voice combined with his sarcasm makes it even more uncomfortable than Ana was afraid of. With a red face she walks to a table. "Up front please, you've had detention before, you should know this." Ana has indeed had detention before, also from Professor Snape and you guessed it this time it wasn't because of Ana herself but Snape doesn't care about that. "Yes sir."

Ana got detention because a pot of ink fell over and landed on Lily, despite Lily indicating several times that she didn't want to make a problem of it, Snape clearly did. Ana carefully slides onto the bench behind the table directly opposite the clearly irritated man, she throws her bag on the table and again a pot of ink falls over, creating a large black spot on the floor. "The sloppiness of your father." Ana laughs uncertainly and Snape raises his wand after which the ink rises like a large bubble and then slides back into the small pot. "We'll wait for another student and then you can start."

Ana nods in agreement and leans back while she looks at the room, it is cold and empty. Matching the man opposite her at the desk, at the back of the room is a large cupboard with all the ingredients for potions. Despite his new position, Snape has not forgotten his old one, he still loves brewing potions and is one of the best in the wizarding world.

"Riddle, you're late." In the doorway stands the boy who rolls his eyes and slowly shuffles in with his bag over his shoulder. "Better late than never." Snape stands up and shows his displeasure with his facial expression. "You and Mrs. Lonbottom can clean out my closet and re-arrange it alphabetically then you can go and no magic." He holds out his hand and Ana submissively hands her wand to the man. "You too Mr. Riddle, you'll get it back no one wants to steal your wand believe me." Mattheo scoffs and places his wand in the Professor's hand. A completely black wand with a snake wrapped around the handle whose head ends in a skeleton.

Riddle walks towards the closet and Snape walks up the stairs to the office in the classroom. "Are you coming Longbottom or do I have to do it alone." Ana looks at the boy and says nothing. "That wasn't a question Longbottom, come help." Ana shakes her head as if she has to wake herself up and walks slowly towards the closet which Mattheo opens and sighs deeply. "How many ingredients can a man have." Ana stops behind Mattheo and looks past him into the cupboard, there are more than a hundred small bottles. Ana looks at the labels and sees that they are all in the wrong place. "Shall we take them all out and put them back the right way?" Ana says shyly while her face turns red. "Good idea Longbottom." Mattheo laughs and starts to put the bottles out of the cupboard, onto the floor.

"Longbottom, even though you came up with this, you are not a supervisor." Ana laughs and reaches for the bottles to put them on the floor. Several more bottles follow before Ana starts to feel somewhat at ease and Ana has to admit that Mattheo's jokes have helped. "Why are you here?" Ana finally dares to talk and Mattheo seems relieved that he no longer has to have a conversation with himself. "I forgot to get my homework in my dorm because I helped a girl out of an awkward situation in the hallway and then forgot about it." Ana starts laughing "Thank you again for that, I don't know what Patty has against me either."

Mattheo laughs "Patty is an idiot." Ana doesn't dare laugh and looks ahead at the bottles that she places on the floor. "Oh no, you too?" Ana looks up from a bent position at the boy who now seems much bigger. "You also think I have something with her?"

Ana nods and watches as dimples form again in the cheeks of the boy who laughs and rolls his eyes. "I act normal towards her because we live in the same house, nothing more, even though she likes to make others believe we are more than that, she is let's be honest..... not exactly the smartest..... not my type, I prefer quiet girls who do not constantly ask for attention and are smarter" He winks and turns back to the closet while Ana's heart beats out of her chest as she tries to hide her red cheeks behind her hair.

"And what is your type Longbottom." Ana clears her throat to make sure that the uncertain tone is somewhat absent. "No idea, never thought about it." Mattheo hums and bends down to put bottles on the floor whereupon they tip over and he and Ana grab the bottle at the same time. Ana can't pull her hand out of his grip fast enough and smiles uncertainly at Mattheo, after which she quickly stands up and starts rummaging nervously in the closet.

"Congratulations by the way." Mattheo notices Ana's nerves and decides to change the subject, much to Ana's relief. "How do you know that...." Mattheo raises his eyebrows. "Oh yes of course....." He laughs and a silence follows.

Ana is somewhat confused, this boy with whom she is clearing out a closet does not look like the boy as others always described. He is not angry or aggressive at all, he is calm and funny, compassionate and not at all without empathy. "I am also just a human being." Ana only seems to forget sometimes that he is special in some ways. "Sorry, I did not mean to offend you."

"No, you are not offending me at all, I am used to it." Ana now only feels more guilty knowing that she is one of the many who judged him on stories and his name that he got from someone he never knew.

"The only thing I have from him are the scars on my face that I got as a baby, otherwise I am nothing like the man I am compared to but I have accepted that others will never see this." He talks so matter-of-factly about the situation as if he switches off his feelings as soon as it comes to his father or rather his progenitor. "My perception has changed a bit now, not that it means much but I wanted to tell you, even though you probably already know because you can't stay out of my thoughts which I honestly find quite annoying." Ana laughs and puts one of the last bottles back in the cupboard.

"More than you think." Mattheo laughs and takes the bottle that rests in Ana's hand. "Go celebrate your birthday I'm almost done anyway." Ana looks at the boy in surprise. "Are you sure?"

He rolls his eyes and sighs. "Hurry Longbottom." Ana laughs and thanks Mattheo ten times on the way to the door while he looks after her laughing.