Through the Ashes of Africa

It was a cold night on the African plains. The wind was howling and biting through my robes, making it difficult to walk across the damnable plains. I had been walking for hours, taking care to move quickly in an attempt to evade any manticores or other creatures of the desert.

Dark clouds overtook the sky and made the entire ordeal even more difficult. The rain poured down upon me, sending rivulets down my face and sending my hair into disarray. Just as I began to think that this was nothing more than a miserable joke, I spotted something up ahead. It looked like a shack with a light flickering inside. I hesitantly approached it and knocked on the door.

"Hrm?" A voice said from within. "Yes? Who is there?"

"It's... Severus Snape?" I replied hesitantly.

"Ah! Severus, come in!" A tall man with wild hair opened the door and smiled at me as he waved me in from the doorway.

"Thank you." I replied as I walked past him into his home and began drying myself off with a towel he handed to me. "So... Mr... Diggory, was it?"

"That's right." He replied as he sat down across from me at his table lit by candlelight. "How can I help you?"

"You know my name? Well... here's another one: Hermione Granger."

* * *

      We arrived at Hogwarts in time for the start of term. My time away from school had not been pleasant, but we had gained valuable information thanks to Crouch Jr. Still, Dumbledore had insisted that we stay at school for our remaining years rather than pursue career opportunities elsewhere, citing security concerns as his reason. He assured us that our safety would be guaranteed while we remained at Hogwarts due to renewed efforts to keep students safe from dangers both magical and mundane. It seemed that my personal safety was guaranteed now that I had returned safely to England, but something still felt... wrong about this whole affair.  I voiced my concerns to Dumbledore but he dismissed them, telling me that all would be well once the term started. In order for his words to ring true though, I would need some answers regarding what happened during those final days before everything came crashing down around me and Voldemort took over our world. For now though, I needed some space from everyone else so that I could get caught up on all of the events that transpired while I was away and begin preparing for my classes with Harry and Ron. That meant heading back to our dormitory and staying in there until they returned from dinner in time for bedtime at least; after all, we still had NEWTs to study for before we graduated next year!  I turned around and began walking down the hall when someone barged into me from behind so suddenly that I almost lost my balance!  I steadied myself against the wall and turned around angrily but then paused in shock when I saw who it was: Professor Snape!  I hadn't seen him since the battle ended two years ago! What on Earth brought him back here? Why wasn't he being hailed as a hero somewhere else? Why didn't he come talk to Harry or Ron? Instead, he stormed past me without saying a word as if he hadn't even recognized me! Clearly something bad must have happened during those final days before Voldemort took over our world because this certainly wasn't how things were supposed to go!

* * *

      Trying to ignore her stare became impossible after she continued doing so for what felt like an eternity. She finally broke eye contact with me, glancing away uncomfortably before pretending to look out across the magnificent landscape of Lake Geneva. I couldn't understand how much longer we were going to be stuck together like this. Surely she recognized that there was more happening than just a simple misunderstanding between Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley, who got locked in a room together unintentionally. After all, they continuously tried avoiding each other but always end up together despite their efforts. She had witnessed their countless adventures during the past several years – was she really unaware of it all?

Yet, considering her history with Ronald Weasley, maybe it wasn't so surprising. Being friends with him was challenging enough, let alone being romantically involved. When Ron abandoned her on their wedding day, she gradually retreated deep within herself, conversing only when absolutely necessary. As a result, no one attempted to reach out to her anymore. Despite my intense disapproval of Ron, I couldn't abandon someone in obvious distress. Therefore, I concluded that we should continue searching for someone who could help us unravel what went astray in recent years, since no one else seemed capable or inclined to clarify. Even Dumbledore couldn't provide answers; however, he assured us that everything would be alright once the term commenced. Nevertheless, I believed something must have gone terribly