- - - Karma Bites

[severussnape]

"Potter! My patience is waring thin..." Severus Snape paced the room of his empty classroom, with his cloak billowing behind him. He watched the boy intently, with beady black eyes awaiting for the next screw-up from the Gryffindor. Harry Potter was serving detention, who was instructed by his teacher to make another batch of Skin-Repairing Potions, after his used his private stocks on Draco Malfoy. The little brat must have snuck in his storeroom without his permission, and now here he was, re-creating them. Of course Potter had never been shown how it was made, hence why Severus took great pleasure in 'correcting' him. Well, despite his quickly-dulling patience.

Harry mumbled a few words, and Severus quickly jumped to it, "What was that, Potter? Don't waste my time, " He pointed to a bowl, which looked like grey-colored herbs, "Greymurt. Now, " His tone was soft, was firm. Anyone who new Snape well enough, to take note of his tone of voice, not of just his words. It was somewhat, a trademark of his. Besides the dark glare he gave Potter constantly during his time in detention, which was hardly his first.

As he watched Potter carefully as tended toward his potion, Severus turned his back, which he would surely regret, to tend to his own potions he was brewing at the same time. Carefully, a slowly simmering purple and blue-colored bubbling potions was almost ready in the cauldron. He took a small vial, and a small scoop, as he filled the vial with the contents. As he popped a small cork on the top of the vial, there was a loud bang, and Severus quickly turned on his heel with a furious look on his face.

"POTTER! I said stir the potion anti-clockwise after you have added the Greymurt!" There was a thick black smoke, which quickly filled the empty classroom, and the professor started coughing along with Harry. "You stupid boy..." He withdrew his wand to try and dissipate the smoke, but instead, there was a blinding light and he was no longer at Hogwarts.

The light sent him to shut his eyes, and still clutching his wand, he could feel the atmosphere in the room change. If he was still in the room. Then, he hit solid ground, and took a few steps back to gain his footing. He blinked several times, as he flipped around in several directions. Dazed and confused, he gritted his teeth. That Potter brat did this. He was sure of it. He didn't think he even had the mental capacity to do it. But the Gryffindor succeeded. Severus Snape was no longer at Hogwarts. Hell, the school could not even be seen.

"What in Merlin's name..." He did stay slightly calm, despite his eagerness to get back and strangle the boy. The most prominant thing he noticed was the stench. Manure. Hay. Oats. And...horses? He turned around again and finally noticed that he was now standing in a stable. A horse was standing a few paces down, and seemed to stare at the teacher, unmoving. Severus frowned, and was tempted to hex the beast, but decided that was the least of his worried. He only took a few steps forward, where he felt something squishy underneath his show. With a look of disgust, he looked down to find he had stepped in a pile of horse manure, and grinded his teeth together in frustration.

"Just bloody great..." He mumbled a few words, and the manure was wiped clean off his shoes. He began walking out of the stables, to see if there was anyone else present. The first thing he needed to know, was where the hell he was. His anger was slowly building.

[tonks]

Tonks sat at her desk and filed through the paperwork in front of her. It wasn't a normal occurence for an Auror to have much time to sit at a desk and do the paperwork that came with their job. The physical part of the job was what mattered. People's lives and safety were what counted. Only after that could the dull and necessary be taken care of. Tonks always thought that if given the choice, she would rather be out risking her neck than sitting in doors and filing papers and filling out forms. "They should give us people to do this for us..." She said with a sigh as she nibbled on the tip of her quill. The Ministry never would, of course, but it was nice to wish. You'd think that the people charged with maintaining order in the Wizarding world would be given some leeway. Her dark eyes glared down at the papers in front of her; months of work that she had been postponing. She could procrastinate no longer, however. She read through the report she had been working on and hastily initialed it and signed it in the proper places. "One...out of...a whole hell of a lot." Raids and inquiries had been on a high. No one was content. Friends accused friends, family turned against family. Many of their raids had proven fruitless. Very few produced anything of interest. One case in particular Tonks could recall that the Aurors did find a particularly suspicious singing cauldron. She snorted in laughter as she signed the report of that terribly dark and operatic artifact. The cauldron did have a lovely falsetto...

She filled out several more reports and then, seeking an excuse to use her legs, went to file them. Opening the large cabinet, there was always one name that came to her eyes first. Lestrange. She, as well as many of the other Aurors had plenty of files that pertained to their family. Unexplained murders, disappearances, and things of that sort she normally filed under their name. The name meant something to her: Death Eater. Tonks cringed just thinking of her deranged Aunt. The two had never met formally, unless of course you counted a battle at the Ministry the summber before in which Bellatrix had landed the Auror in St. Mungos. Tonks had, thankfully, been spared that pain. The Black family had disowned Andromeda, Tonks's mother, after she had run away with Ted Tonks; a Muggleborn. Her mother didn't speak much of her sisters to Tonks, but the young Auror knew enough about them from reports, history, and those around the Ministry. Bellatrix was a psychopath. And then, there was Narcissa. Tonks had not met her either. She had seen her husband several times though. Their family had been very influential within the Ministry until Lucius Malfoy had been sent to Azkaban. They had recieved multiple inquiries in the past and had been able to buy their way out. Tonks was glad that the Ministry had finally gotten something right where the Malfoys were concerned.

After closing the cabinet she decided Tonks returned to her desk and took a look at the work that was still left for her. She stuck her tounge out, feeling that it was mocking her by sitting there in such blatant disregard for her feelings towards it. Tonks sat down and put her booted feet up on the desk, grabbing another report and skimming over it to make sure she had filled in everything correctly. Her mind wandered as she did so. She was never one for sticking to one thing at a time, especially something so boring. A smile crossed her tired face as a vision of her old mentor passed in front of her eyes. "Constant Vigillance!" She said into the silence, mocking Mad Eye Moody's gruff tone of voice. "Alright then...It's settled." The quiet in her office was oppressing and sometimes it was necessary to give voice to her thoughts, just to keep herself sane. Grabbing a few reports off of her desk she went out into the hallways, walking with a gay bounce in her step. She looked quite out of place in the grandeur of the Ministry. Her hair, which was a lovely bubblegum pink, stood out garishly in the halls. She wore a purple t-shirt with huge letters that read "The Weird Sisters" in a grungy font along with a black, long skirt that cut at a slant at her calf. Her legs were covered in leggings that had certainly seen better days while on her feet she wore a pair of oversized boots that looked to be partially undone. A lengthy black overcoat completed her ensemble. It wasn't exactly normal work attire, but Tonks wasn't what you would call normal by any means of the word. She was an entity all to herself.

For one short moment Tonks's vision brightened in an extremely violent flash of light. The sudden brightness caused her to take a step backward and she lifted her hands to try and shield her eyes. "Bloody hell!" She exclaimed, confused as she toppled over onto her backside. She expected to hit the cold, hard floor of the Auror headquarters and hear a few laughs at her clumsiness. It came as quite a surprise for her to feel gravel beneath her bottom and a welcome breeze around her. There was a strange scent in the air, earthy and wild; the unfamiliar smell of a stable. Wherever she was, this was certainly not the Ministry. She turned, looking behind her from her position on the ground and saw nothing but nature for miles. She screwed up her face in confusion, her hand wandering to the hilt of her wand. Tonks turned herself back around and started a bit at seeing a pair of black shoes before her. The shoes, it turned out, were connected to a pair of legs and then to an entire body as well. Her eyes seemed to wander in slow motion up the body of the man before her until they came to rest upon the sallow countenance of Severus Snape. A sheepish smile found its way across her face and she had the strange feeling that she had been in this position sometime in her past days at Hogwarts. "Wotcher Snape!" Tonks said as though it were the most natural thing in the world for her to be in the middle of God-Knows-Where, sitting in the gravel. If Snape was there as well maybe their was a reason for her being drawn from the Ministry. If so, it was a magic that she knew not of. Behind Snape was a stable which on its own was very strange. This was not a place that either of them were ever likely to be found. "Any idea why we've been brought here? Did Dumbledore tell you?" She looked around, starting to feel more comfortable despite the unwanted company. Tonks wrinkled her nose in distaste. "Have you stepped in something?" She glanced over her shoes and then at his. "It smells awful out here."

[severussnape]

Severus didn't get very far, however. He managed to walk out of the small horse stall he was apparently stuck in, and towards one of the offices stationed across from him. Well, he had to start somewhere. Perhaps where ever the Potter brat sent him, he was bound to at least know of the location. Not that he should be casting such magic at his age. Underage, he is. The Ministry would have bound to have detected this! A wizard not witch cannot send their 'victim' to a random location. They at least needed a heading, which Potter surely did not have.

He clasped his long, slender fingers over his wand which was held out to his side defensively. He took in one spot for few moments, allowing a cool breeze to hit his face and ruffle his long black cloak like a bat. A few beats later, he walked ever so slowly towards the office. Almost gliding across the floor quietly, he peeked his head through the open door, black locks falling around his face. His eyes narrowed, and clicked his jaw in thought. Nothing. No-one in sight. That was enough for him to judge, so he moved out back to the walkway next to the horse stalls. He turned on his heel, as he tried to get a full view of the location around him. There was just no human soul in sight. Save for the horses, nothing was here.

He turned to leave, but the same bright light flashed in front of him, instinctively, a hand flew to his face, opened a crack to be able to see his own wand cast out in front of him protectively. As the light dimmed then disappeared, a figure was found in front of his feet. A young female, wearing familiar robes...His mood dulled a few notches, when he saw the face of his visitor, as moved his wand ever so slightly aside. "Ah, Nymphadora..." His voice was cool and silky. He knew she disliked the name, but all the more reason to mention it. Oh, the delightful torment. "A surprise to see you here." He ignored the comment she made of something he stepped in, rather annoyed. Narrowing his eyes, he crossed his arms over his chest with his wand still tightly gripped.

"I assumed Potter sent me here, considering he screwed up the potion I had him compose while in detention -" He frowned in thought. Albus? What could he have to do with this? Then again, no surprise there. He was know for his...strange methods. He glanced down at the Aura with his beady eyes, and just glared with a hint of a malicious smile on his face, "Too bad, you're stuck with me. " He turned to walk outside, to get a better view of his surroundings. Whether the clumsy girl followed him or not, that was her choice. Severus did not want to be responsible to babysit her. He walked swiftly outside until he caught a refreshing breeze. Stopping short outside the entrance, he looked around. Clear sky. Sun high above them. Nothing else in sight, but a long row of trees, probably a forest. Other than that, a very long gravel trail leading up to it. Maybe he should observe the sight a little more. After all, who is running the stables?

[/blockquote]

[tonks]

Tonks raised an alarmed eyebrow at the wand Snape had pointed at her. He moved it aside but only slightly as though to tell her that even if they were fighting for the same cause he was not above hexing her if the mood came over him. She doubted he would hesitate. Her smile widened. If it came down to it, she'd have no problem casting a spell upon him. She'd be doing something that many had always dreamed of. If it were possible, his face seemed to fall at seeing her there before him. The feeling was entirely mutual though Tonks felt that his hatred was probably rooted deeper than her own. He seemed to care nothing for humanity, or anything else for that matter. In fact, Tonks reckoned that she had never seen the man smile in a way that didn't make one cringe or send shivers up a person's spine. He was a strange person. A strange, dark, and greasy person.

"Ah, Nymphadora..." A disgusted look crossed her face and she tensed outwardly. She couldn't stand hearing her first name, especially on his lips. Tonks had always hated the name her fool of a mother had given her. It wasn't the kind of name that one could ever forgive their parents for. It was the source of much humiliation for her as a child and she made sure that both of her parents were aware of this. That Snape used her first name, knowing her aversion to it, angered her. Her face darkened into a scowl. If one thing could change her normally cheerful mood it was the mention of the name 'Nymphadora'. "It's Tonks," she snipped at him. "As I'm sure even you are aware." His eyes narrowed at her as he crossed his arms over his chest. She was reminded, not fondly, of his classes at Hogwarts. "A surprise to see you here." Tonks shrugged noncomittally. "Believe me, I'm just as surprised as you are Severus." She didn't often use his first name, feeling it to be awkward, but now she felt it only right as he had insulted her first. An eye for an eye.

"I assumed Potter sent me here, considering he screwed up the potion I had him compose while in detention -" What Tonks guessed would have been quite a dull story bemoaning Snape's misfortune at being stuck with Harry Potter, was ended suddenly as Snape thought on her words. A sense of worry and dread began to come over Tonks. It was silly, in her mind, for Snape to blame something such as this on the Boy-Who-Lived. He was an underage wizard. One, while being wholly remarkable at his defensive and Patronus creating abilities, was unlearned in such advanced arts. Tonks wondered if Snape had realized that in a way he had paid Harry Potter a great compliment, especially now that he was considering that this was of Dumbledore's doing. Still, that Snape was not sure of how he had come to be in this rural area was disheartening to her. Surely Dumbledore would have informed Severus Snape of something like this? The old headmaster was strange, to be sure, but he was someone to be trusted. If this was not his work then whose could it be?

It seemed that the professor had decided that her words had made some sense. Still, she wasn't completely sure. Snape's moment of doubt had brought about her own. He glared down at her, his dark eyes meeting her own. Tonks felt uncomfortable under his stare, as though she were in perpetual trouble. His eyes were like deep pits that one could fall into and be trapped while wishing to be entirely elsewhere. There was no hint of friendliness there. Tonks let her eyes fall to the ground, perceiving it not as her own weakness, but his. A mischievious grin played out across her face as she thought about what he had just said. She looked back up, only to see him moving at a rather quick pace towards the exit of the stables. Resolved, she scrambled to her feet and followed after him. "I suppose we should stick together Snape. I don't want you to get lost out here." Her eyes sparkled playfully, knowing that while his presence still brought her pain she could do as much as possible to nettle him. "Where do you suppose we are?" Tonks asked, wiping the dust from her long coat towards him. "Any ideas?" She followed his gaze as he looked out at the trees that lined the gravel walk. "I've never been here, that's for sure. These aren't magical creatures by the looks of them. Then again, how am I supposed to tell. That's not my job." Tonks elbowed him lightly in the ribs, a snort of laughter coming forth from her. "Are you certain that you haven't walked through something? Really? From where I'm standing the smell is particularly offensive."

[severussnape]

Oh, already his patience was waring thin. Extremely thin. Those who knew Severus enough to know, that he endured many years with the Death Eaters, putting up with the Dark Lords anger and frustration, enduring torment and utter torture, leaving his mind black from preventing him seeing his most darkest secrets, would know that he still practiced the dark arts. Yet, no one knew what lurked deep within the mind of the one Potions Master. The mind clouded by judgement and hatred, in which no-one could ever understand. And that's what kept the Half-Blood Prince from continuing with his job. If anyone had the wrong mindset to interrupt his plans, then all hell could break loose. Well, hitting everyone ten-fold, like things weren't bad enough already.

That's why many had doubted him. No-one knew the real plans, his intentions, and memories that lurked within his mind. That's why the only one that he could place his trust in, was Albus Dumbledore. Other that that, other allies were useless to him if they didn't trust his actions. Well, if he were someone else, he wouldn't either. It wasn't a path he chose for himself. No. It was a path created by his own foolish actions, and he hadn't meant for anything of this to pan out as it did. That didn't say he was innocent. Oh, anything but. It was true. He wasn't a good man, and he did horrible things. Half the time he meant it, only because he had no other choice. He did kill people. He did torture them. He did give away plans. But only by the will of the Dark Lord. He had no other choice. But no-one else understood that fact of life quite like Albus.

Yet even his time was waring thin.

Now, he was stuck with an insulant, clumsy Auror with no sense of seriousness for any matter, nor was she even capable of surviving on her own. If this was Albus sick take at humor, then Severus would have him to deal with when he got back to Hogwarts. Unless the old toad denied it with that twisted smile of his. It made him utterly sick to his stomach. He had other matters to deal with! He did however, display a twisted smirk of his own, when he relished the fumes coming from the young Auror when he made use of her first name. The one she loathed, and oh, he very much knew it. Then she called him Severus. Not that it phased him all that much. Most Aurors did refer to him in the first-name basis. If she was still a student at Hogwarts, then that was a whole other matter altogether. If it was an insult, it was a poor attempt at that.

He gave a small sigh, and stared at the Auror, "Albus told me of no such thing. " Dammit. He hated when Albus told him nothing. No heading, no sense of direction. The old wizard tended to throw Severus in situations unaware, without any hint of a warning. Quite frequently, too. Eeven more of a reason to fume at the man once he got back. After he stared her down, she looked to the ground. He was quite used to it really. That was the whole idea. How else did he intimidate Longbottom in class? He was surely doing his job. He frowned, as he tilted his head to one side, "I'd be careful with that cheek, Nymphadora. I can curse you fast enough, before you get to find your own feet. Mad-Eye wouldn't be able to save you." Oh, there will be no hesitation in hexing the little witch. He was still a Death Eater, and she very well knew that. There was no hesitation whatsoever on his part. Never a slight hint of regret, nor sympathy. Mad-Eye wouldn't be here to save her. The little brat then nudged his ribs, and he stepped over to one side away from her. She better no edge any closer.

He twirled the wand slightly in his hand, indicated he wanted to childish nonsence. Not that the little Hufflepuff would listen anyway. He glanced around the paddock again, studying every little detail and taking in every new sight. It was important that he got to know his surroundings, because it may be important. Ignoring the smart retorts from the witch, he began waving his wand around in small little flicks, mutting a few phrases as he did so. Edging slighlty away from the Auror, he tried to analyse his surroundings. The whole process took a few minutes, and he turned swiftly to face her. "It is rather peculiar. There is no magical residue whatsoever on this location. It is also indicated that no such witch or wizard has set foot in these parts. However...." His tone was cool, and soft, yet slightly unnerving. Like he was just as confused. He looked around again, this time to make sure no-one was watching, "There are traces of a spacial-transition. Much like an Aparition. We were brought here. Literally dragged here. By whom, I am unsure..."

There was a slight hint of worry on his face. There were things here that didn't make sense. Using some of the incantations that he knew, he could not find any trace of magic. Not even any indication of a wand from a fallen wizard, or creature. Nothing to indicate there there was anything unusual about this place. If anything, it seemed like just your ordinary stable. But he felt something in the air. And instinctive thing. Like a bad gut feeling like something was off. Almost like he was dragged too far from Hogwarts. That did pose a worry. The open fields in front of him was not familiar in any sense.

[tonks]

Whatever was going on it must be pretty important of else she would not have been suddenly removed from her work and Severus Snape would not have been abruptly taken from his monologuing Harry Potter to death. All things considered, it was a relatively nice day. The sun was shining, and the air was cool and breezy. The company could do with some improvement and the smell from the horses was quite strong to one with a nose unaccustomed to such bold scents, but Tonks prefered to look on the bright side of things. Dumbledore had called upon her. He must have a special mission of some sort planned and if that meant that Snape would have to be included then that was that. Besides, there was never any use arguing with Albus Dumbledore. He had a way of making you see things his way without you even realizing it. He was one person that she had trouble standing up to.

The man was gentle, intelligent, and kind, but there was a fierceness about him that was intimidating; a love of good and right that made one rethink talking back to him in any way. That isn't to say that the Headmaster of Hogwarts walked through life as a leaf of the wind. He was faced with opposition everywhere from witches and wizards who were far more foolish than Nymphadora Tonks. Snape had had his own problems with the man from time to time. She could see and sense a detestation from the sallow faced man whenever Dumbledore's name was mentioned at a meeting or the old man spoke his name in a soft, whispered voice. Tonks's eyes moved quickly around her as she took in the things that the stable had to offer. The nearby whinny of one of the stabled horses gave her a bit of a start and she jumped slightly, turning towards the sound. A large horse stood off a short way down the stable, nodding his head up and down, his lips flapping together as he did so.

One by one a few of other the large animals joined in, answering his call with a whinny of their own. Near and far, it seemed to be infectious.A smile crossed her face at their antics, but rather than stay and watch, she followed closely behind Snape. It wouldn't be good to lose sight of him. She knew that he wouldn't wait for her to catch up and while she enjoyed an adventure, it would be better to have some back-up in case of an attack. Tonks followed behind him until he came to a halt, at which time she came up to stand beside him. There was a small part of her that wished she could see into that head of his. He always seemed to be brooding, or plotting someone's emminent demise Tonks imagined. His face was blank to her except for that stupid scowl. Why he would take such sick pleasure at tormenting her and the others that he came in contact with, she had no clue. Thinking back on her wish, that now didn't seem like such a good idea.

"Albus told me of no such thing." Tonks turned abruptly towards him. That was strange. Stranger than being magically transported to a stable along with Severus Snape at least. Surely Dumbledore would have mentioned something to him. Perhaps it had simply slipped Snape's mind or Dumbledore had simply neglected to tell him about the occasion. Somehow, even through her rationalizations, Tonks severely doubted this. She glared at him as he again used the name that she despised and set her hands upon her hips. She was not a child and she did not like to be treated as such. There wasn't a hint of doubt in her mind that he would and could hex her if he so chose. However, it was the assumption that it would be an easy task for him that vexed her. Who did he think she was, a student? "I'll have you know, Severus, that I am highly capable of defending myself. I don't hide behind Moody's robes, and I certainly don't need him to come to my rescue. Besides, I doubt that Dumbledore would be likely to sanction an attack on a poor, seemingly defensless Auror such as myself." She raised her eyebrows, looking up at him with a small grin sparked from being able to throw a jibe at him rather than for merriment.

After she nudged him in the ribs he moved away from her, obviously wanting his space. His wand twirled threateningly in his hand. He was, indeed a very dangerous wizard. While he fought upon the side of the Order, he was also a known Death Eater; a double-agent they called him. Sometimes Tonks found the lines between his alliance were somewhat blurred. In her opinion, Dumbledore put far too much trust in the man. But rather than keep her distance from him, she only stood closer at his side, trying to figure out what it was exactly that he was looking for. Snape didn't speak to her, but rather stood making little sweeps with his wand and uttering words under his breath that even standing close to him she could not make out. As Snape walked a few feet away from her, Tonks rocked back and forth on the balls of her feet as the minutes passed. It was far too quiet for her liking. Growing bored she took a few steps after him only to have him turn to face her suddenly. The quick movement caught her off guard and she stood staring up into his face, a sheepish grin across her own.

Her head cocked to one side as she listened giving her the appearance of a curious bird. She found the tone of his voice to be far more daunting for her than his words. Beffudlement was something that Snape had never shown in her presence. "You mean that...that there's no one of any form of magic who has been here?" Tonks was aware that she had asked him something that, from his former statement, should be quite obvious. Disbelief peppered her voice. "Are you positive?" Snape took a look around as though he expected someone to be watching him and Tonks leaned in closer, her mind whirled with the possibilities. She wasn't exactly sure what was meant by "spacial transition" and was glad that he simplified it without her asking. A thousand questions began filling her mind, but she was only able to ask so many of them at a time. "So we were brought here by some form of magic then, right? You don't think it was Dumbledore? Are you sure? Maybe we are here for something to do with the Order. Do you know where we are exactly? If no one with magic has ever been here before now then why was this spot chosen? It's all rather strange don't you think? Do you think the others are here? From the Order?" She looked quickly around as though expecting to see the rest of the Order pop out from behind the trees. "How long do you think we'll have to wait before everyone shows up. I hope it doesn't take long..." Tonks added, eyeing Severus.