By evening, Severus finally came around and, after Madam Pomfrey examined him, left the hospital wing and headed down to the Hogwarts dungeons, where the Slytherin common room was located.
After he went down the stairs and reached the wall decorated with skulls, he said, "Pure-blood," the password. The wall slid aside.
As soon as he stepped into the common room, the students who had been chatting immediately turned their attention to him, sending encouraging smiles and nods. That threw him off slightly.
"There he is, our star," a cheerful voice called. The house prefect approached Severus, the same boy who had stood up for him in front of Slughorn.
"Did something happen?" Severus raised an eyebrow.
"Do not pretend you do not know. Taking a hundred points off Gryffindor in two days, not many people can manage that." Several Slytherins nodded as well, backing up Macmillan's words.
"I see. Glad I could help." Without adding anything, he headed for the dormitories. "I am tired today. If you want to talk or discuss something, I will be in my room."
At those words, many students immediately looked at him with disapproval. They were not ordinary people, and his aloofness rubbed them the wrong way. Macmillan did not comment. He simply said goodbye and went about his business. He knew more than the others about what had really happened and where Severus had been all this time, so he kept his mouth shut. It also meant it would be easier later to win Severus over, once everyone else had ruined their relations with him.
Severus interested Macmillan greatly, and not only because of his gift for Potions. Even at their first meeting, Macmillan had sensed that something had changed in the previously quiet, downtrodden boy. The change intrigued him. And since Macmillan was finishing Hogwarts this year, another chance to build a good relationship with someone like this might never come. That was why he stayed polite, to leave a good impression.
Finally in his room, Severus quickly checked for any surveillance charms, then fell onto the bed face-first, burying himself in the pillow.
"Another day is over." Rolling onto his back, he pointed his palm at the nightstand. An inkwell, a quill, and a plain sheet of parchment floated out. "Hm, I think I will need his help."
A few minutes later, the quill stopped scratching, and the sheet rolled itself into a scroll.
"I need to find an owl." But a moment later, information surfaced in his head about the owlery in the west wing of Hogwarts. "Perfect." He got up, opened the drawer, and pulled out a small jingling pouch. Ten gold coins called Galleons spilled onto the bed, along with seven silver ones, Sickles. "Not rich. I need a way to earn money. If I had known I would end up in another world, I would have studied alchemy more seriously. I do know a couple dozen beginner potions, but there is no guarantee the ingredients exist here. I will have to look into it during the holidays, or ask Slughorn." Smiling faintly, Severus extended his hand. "Fotia." A small fireball ignited in his palm. "One word, and I make fire. And the best part is, the runes from my world work here too. Still, I will not be able to use them properly until I increase my magical capacity and take that potion. For now, I need to reach at least Magister level to feel safe, then I can gradually raise my power somewhere far from this mess. Damn war. Why could I not have been sent to a peaceful time." Yawning, he closed his eyes. "First, I need money, and not a small amount. WAIT!" He jolted upright, eyes lighting up. "That could work. If the runes function here, then. But I will need materials, and there is a forest nearby."
After he finished thinking it through, Severus decided to pursue his business idea the very next evening. He spent the whole day in the library, studying as much information as possible about the castle layout. He compared the current building plan with older ones he could find while rummaging through the regular section.
Most interestingly, after scouring the entire library under Madam Pince's disapproving gaze, he found blueprints only from 1780. No older ones turned up, which disappointed him, yet also pleased him. It meant someone wanted to hide something. They might simply have been lost, but Severus was sure it was deliberate.
He also examined the water supply and sewer blueprints. Just like before, aside from data from the 1780s, there was nothing else.
Still, he knew that things could not be hidden so easily. Besides blueprints, there were historical textbooks.
In one such book, he found an interesting note about a certain Corvinus Darke (Gaunt), who, in 1750, had been involved in installing the plumbing system at Hogwarts.
There might have been nothing special about it if not for one huge but: the Darkes were descendants of Salazar Slytherin, one of the greatest wizards who founded Hogwarts. Severus understood perfectly how arrogant pure-blood aristocrats were. Suggest to any Slytherin student that they do work like this, and they would twirl a finger at their temple and tell you to get lost. Yet Darke had no issue digging, practically, in waste, laying pipes and putting in plumbing. The idea was absurd, and that was exactly why Severus latched onto it.
And though he found almost nothing concrete, he felt he was on the right trail.
When evening finally arrived, Severus left the library. He had not taken more than a couple of steps before he stopped and looked, mildly surprised, at a gray-ash cat with dark stripes. It puffed out its chest and eyed him with a dangerous glint.
A cheerful smile appeared on Severus's lips, and the cat's fur stood on end.
At the same time, as if sensing something wrong, an elderly man hurried toward them. His wrinkled face looked menacing. His pale eyes were grim and always focused, with a flame burning in them, and he frightened every student he ran past. When he heard the pitiful meowing, his face twisted, and his speed would have made even Usain Bolt envious.
Rushing around the corner, he glared furiously at the student holding the cat in his arms.
"RELEASE MISS NORRIS!"
"So she is your cat?" Severus looked up with a smile, stroking the loudly purring animal. "Miss Norris. Good name." He nodded at the stunned man. "Can I play with her a little longer?"
"Miss Norris."
~ Meow. The cat meowed lazily, swishing her tail under Severus's hand.
Finally snapping out of his stupor, Argus Filch lifted a hateful stare to Severus's face, the boy who had dared touch the dearest person in his world. He was just about to shout again when he heard something that made him freeze.
"I can tell you take good care of her. It is rare to see cats kept this well. Her fur is soft and fluffy, with a pleasant smell and shine. Her eyes are bright, no spots, no discharge at the corners, and she is energetic. Her figure."
For the next ten minutes, Severus kept talking about the cat and giving care advice, until Filch actually pulled out a sheet of paper and started jotting down notes after him.
".But I would still review her diet."
"Is something wrong?" Filch asked, concern replacing his anger as he leaned closer to Miss Norris.
"No, she is fine for now." Severus poked her nose, and she opened her mouth slightly. "Smell that faint unpleasant odor?"
Filch sniffed and nodded solemnly.
"That already suggests an imbalance. We just need to adjust her diet a little. One second." He took the sheet from Filch and, on the other side, quickly wrote down a balanced diet suitable for cats. Severus's father had loved cats and had taught him a lot, or rather, forced him to learn it, but Severus had always liked cats anyway. "Do not let her eat too much. It will not lead to anything good."
~ Meow!
At the displeased meow, Severus smiled warmly and stroked her head again.
"Play with her more often. Your attention matters to her."
"I see, I see." Filch nodded, reading the list. As if it were the most precious thing in the world, he folded the sheet and carefully slipped it into the inner pocket of his dark-yellow jacket.
"Well, I will not distract you any longer." Severus handed the cat back to the caretaker, then turned and walked away under Filch's newly respectful gaze.
Only after a full minute did Filch come to his senses and stare in shock at the direction the boy had gone.
"He tricked me."
~ Mrrrr. meow.
Looking down at Miss Norris, Filch's face softened at once.
"Fine. Today I will pretend I did not see him. Come on, Miss Norris, we need to catch four more rule-breakers." Grinning maliciously, he set the cat down. Sensing her owner's mood, she gave an ominous meow and vanished around the corner, with Filch following her.
At the same time, Severus had already left the castle, heading toward a huge tree on the school grounds.
//===================//