Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.
I own nothing but the original characters I make.
Chapter 74: Bella's Feelings
"But?..." James heard his potion making strange noises. "Tsk!" He had to hurry and lower the fire to keep it under control, then added some Murtlap tentacles before placing a cover over the cauldron.
"You should pay more attention to what you're doing," Bella said with a tinge of amusement, as she'd never seen James make a mistake.
"Kyu!" Primum seemed to agree.
James glared at her. "You shouldn't have left me hanging… Now, tell me what happened next."
Bella shrugged. "What else? My sister Narcissa showed up with Lucius Malfoy and Rabastan. They didn't hear what she said to me, but they did see her slapping me when I laughed at her."
"People associate Slytherin with snakes, but that house is a nest of lions. If you don't make yourself respected, they'll eat you alive in there. If I let that Mudblood walk away after what she did… my life would've become much worse."
"I understand the situation, but Bella…"
"Mmm?" She looked at him.
"Don't use that word in front of me again." James' tone was deadly serious.
"Tsk, why is everyone so uptight about that? My parents taught me to use it at home since I was little. Now everyone gets mad at me if I use it here." Bella rolled her eyes. "Fine, I won't say the bad word in front of you… if that makes you happy."
"I appreciate it. Wait… then what happened to Frank and Alice? They'd also been roughed up when I saw them."
"The other two? I think my sister Andy may have pushed them away when they got too close," Bella said.
'Andromeda did that?' James was surprised. The Andromeda he knew was the motherly kind...it was hard to imagine her blasting spells at students.
"Anyway… if I hadn't smacked the redhead, things would've gotten worse for her. Rabastan tells everything to his brother, and you already know how temperamental Rodolphus can be… he would've gone after her." Bella didn't want to say it outright, but she had protected Lily, in her own style. Not that she expected the girl to see it that way.
"I think Lily may have realized that." James recalled that she'd looked both regretful and embarrassed about what had transpired. Maybe she understood more than she was given credit for. Lily's mind was useful for more than just books.
"So… are you and Evans, like… close?" Bella asked with hesitation.
"Close? Mmm, I suppose we're friends now. But until this year, she couldn't even stand me being near her, so I wouldn't say we're that close."
"Oh…" Bella looked away for a moment. Then she noticed her potion station. "Did you clean it?"
James scoffed. "Of course. You left quite a mess before leaving for the break. I had to use three Scourgifys to even—"
"The break, right!" She quickly changed the subject as she recalled something. "I only came here to talk about that."
Bella took a moment to breathe and collect her thoughts. "You saved my grandfather's life… I was going to send you a letter, but then I decided I wanted to thank you in person for that. It wouldn't be proper otherwise. That's the main reason I came here today." She glanced at Primum and smiled. Seeing the little guy was the other reason.
James nodded. "It's no problem. Since my student asked me for a favor, I had no choice but to oblige." Of course, he'd also wanted to get inside the House of Black and meet its current patriarch and she just gave him an excuse to do that.
He'd hoped to change the minds of some of Voldemort's most loyal followers. So far, it wasn't going great...most Slytherin students already hated him, but there was still some hope for that house.
Bella made a complicated expression. She'd never truly expected James to succeed in healing her grandfather. It had been a wild gamble, done only because she'd followed her instinct.
She'd been truly shocked when she found out, and also when she learned James had somehow convinced her grandfather to attend the family meeting with the Dark Lord.
Bella glanced at James. There was something mysterious about him that made her want to know more. He had an aura of wisdom she'd only sensed in wizards like her grandfather or the Headmaster.
"Well, I'm not your student anymore," she finally managed to say.
A wave of sadness built in her chest. She wouldn't say it aloud, but the short time she'd spent in this lab had been the most fun she'd had in years.
"Kyu?…" Primum tilted his head in confusion. He could understand most words, but it was still difficult for him to grasp the feelings behind them.
"Sorry, I… I need to go now." As she turned to leave, James spoke again.
"Not my student anymore? I didn't hear you quit."
Bella's head snapped back. "Of course you did! I said it before."
"No, I only heard you say you couldn't attend lessons because of personal issues. If you want to cut ties and stop being my student, say it clearly. If you do, I won't bother with you any longer." James spoke calmly.
Bella, however, felt like she'd been punched in the gut. "Why do I have to say it? Why does it matter?!"
"Because only then will I know you're being genuine with your intentions...like the day you asked me to teach you."
Bella stood in silence for a good minute, until she was finally able to form the words she wanted to truly say.
"I…" Her violet eyes darted between James and Primum. "I… don't want to leave…"
"Then don't," James said simply.
"But the Slytherins… Rodolphus will eventually…" If he found this place, she was sure he'd destroy everything. That boy was capable of anything when angry.
"I understand you have issues to solve. Then solve them so you can return in peace," James told her.
"Solve them? It's not that easy! You don't know those people like I do."
"Did I say it was easy? Of course it's not. Nothing worth having ever is. But…" James scanned his laboratory shelves with amber eyes. "There may be something I can do to help. However, I'm currently lacking a few ingredients for that particular spell."
"There's a spell that can help me? If it's the Killing Curse, I already know that one." Bella's comment earned a glare from James. "Not that I've ever used it! I just know about it."
"It's not something so unrefined. I'll tell you when I have everything prepared," James said.
"Okay then." Bella felt like smiling again. "I should still go… for now."
She said her goodbyes to Primum and left the laboratory. As she did, Bella felt like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders.
'I don't have to stop coming here… I can keep seeing him.' She repeated it to herself.
Distracted by her thoughts, Bella failed to notice several figures hidden behind a half-closed door leading into the dead-end corridor she'd just left.
"Where did she come from?" one whispered.
"There's nothing there...just a painting," another added.
"Obviously, there's something hidden. This castle is full of secret rooms. And we'll find this one, even if it takes all night." Severus Snape finally allowed himself a smirk.
'I've got you… Potter.'
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