[She reaches for her slate, first, and makes her way around, so she's near him, near enough that -
Okay, so the growling coming from above their heads, that's another one, isn't it? She just closes her eyes and hates her life a little, and wishes she could speak.
This should be very familiar to Severus, but to Seraphim, mistletoe is just another thing that makes her ignore most boys.]
[ As soon as Seraphim has stepped back, Severus incinerates the nearest leafy green tentacle, which prompts the whole thing to squeal and retreat in a torrent of dry rustling noises. He sees another spindly limb creeping up the back of a cabinet and blasts it before backing up to the kitchen entrance. ]
You've got to be kidding me. [ Muttered under his breath before he looks at her. ] You all right? Did it clip your face?
[ He still has his wand pointed into the kitchen, watching in his peripheral vision for signs of movement. ]
[She reaches up, and there is a little blood, smearing on her fingertips, but not a lot. She nods and wipes her fingers off on her trousers, then reaches into a pocket for a bit of chalk as she moves into the hall behind him, and presses her forehead against the wall.
She's writing something and not looking at it so it's a little squiggly but Seraphim has been doing this for four years, and not for nothing.]
I just wanted a piece of cake.
I just wanted a fucking piece of cake.
[This is the first time she's written down a curse word, ever. It's pretty clear she's at the end of her rope.]
[ He observes this behavior, feeling only mildly concerned, and then reads. Huh. ]
An inoffensive enough goal, [ he says, voice wry. Something wriggles in the kitchen, and it gets zapped with a very well-aimed lance of fire for its trouble; burned mistletoe is starting to become a notable addition to the atmosphere. He uses a spell to suck oxygen away from the area he's been blasting, preventing any remaining cinders from causing problems, before hitting the panel on the outside of the kitchen to force the doors closed. ] Do you have any allergies?
[ .. To plants. Severus is already conjuring a hand towel and a small pot of salve from where he keeps it in his laboratory. Initial fluster over what the fuck over, he is very calm. He will address cake in a moment, perhaps, but prefers to deal with bleeding faces - however minor - first. ]
[She turns and looks at him, and makes a motion like a sigh - that intake of breath and exhale is unmistakable, even if it doesn't make any noise at all. And then she shakes her head.]
No allergies.
[She runs a hand over her hair, shakes it once. Severus has always been nothing but kind to her, and very helpful - she probably owes him something of a thank-you.]
All right. Come here, then. [ As usual, he's distant and no-nonsense in his sociability - and now, focused on the task at hand. He nods and hands her the small towel so she can pat the blood away herself (minimizing the amount of poking her in the face he's going to have to do), while he pops the top off of the tiny container. ] This is going to clean the nick on your cheek and close it up. It'll take about half a minute.
[ With the ring finger of his right hand, he presses some of the ointment against the back of his left hand first. Habit. Showing pointedly that it's not dangerous. He'd leave it if the plant wasn't obviously mucked about with by magic - there's no telling what insane germs it's gathered already. ]
[If Seraphim were born in their world, she would be Ravenclaw through and through, absolutely. And so she takes a moment to look at the salve, just to see what it might be made of, but then nods and comes closer, and raises her face up a bit so he has a better look at the cuts on her face. It's not bleeding heavily, but it is still bleeding.]
[ Mouth set in a thin line - he really doesn't like having to invade anyone's personal space but it is what it is - Severus is quick and efficient about covering the cuts on her skin. It doesn't take much.
(This is where a muggle doctor or scientist would flip out about washing hands and sterile gloves and alcohol swabs but look, the salve is cleaning!!!, and wizards are crazy. Ha ha regrow all the bones in your arm overnight, nerd. It's fiiine.)
That done, he wipes his hands and puts everything away by vanishing it back to the lab. It'll feel cool on her skin, and may itch faintly when it finishes healing in less than a minute. Little superficial things caught right away are easy fixes, fortunately. Seraphim is discharged from impromptu hallway medical with a curt nod. ]
That was absolutely ridiculous. [ And he reckons he knows who's done it; Hogwarts sees at least one case of that per holiday season. ] What were you doing before you were assaulted by poorly enchanted mistletoe?
[She takes a step back and doesn't poke at her face, just looks over at the closed door the the kitchen, where the mistletoe might be back and colonizing for all she knows.]
Making "coffee" and getting ready for a slice of cake.
[Meaning getting the ingredients for microwave chocolate cake, of course.]
[ Severus pulls out his comms device while he's still looking between Seraphim and the closed kitchen doors. He pauses, because he has no idea why there are quotes around coffee; maybe because space coffee is terrible. He's started to avoid it himself, and makes his own tea blends from supplies in the gardens. (Now that I've typed this at Mici, somehow Annie will find him.) ]
Assuming the tenth floor kitchen isn't overrun, there's banana pancakes if that'll help.
[ He's well aware by now that Draco (at least) scavenges, so when he makes something he knows people are going to want, he makes way too much and leaves everything in the fridge. Pancakes are still good cold, and syrup can always be heated. ]
[ He's a man of many failures and bad aspects, but for all of that, Severus isn't trying to bribe who he believes to be Black's girlfriend, he's just-- whatever. He was here, he made pancakes earlier to try and concentrate on something minimal.
It still feels like someone's taken an ice pick and jammed it through the middle of his head, though, so he's not going to sit around and play herbology exterminator. He's got a long list of things to catch up on. ]
[She and Sirius, anyway, it's complicated. If they're still anything, it's probably not together.
She looks over at the door, her mouth flattening out again, as if that's some real way of expressing her displeasure at it, despite the fact that it's just a door.]
[ Severus begins to walk to the lifts, and motions for her to do the same-- or at least keep away from the kitchen doors. No sense in her going back in there as soon as he leaves. ]
Merlin only knows how it got in there to begin with. It shouldn't be that bad if whomever started it cleans it up promptly.
[ And if not, yet well, more compensating for Gryffindor stupidity will be done, probably. If it is Black. If it turns out to be Draco's doing, Severus is going to be decidedly annoyed. He thumbs through the network and-- oh.
[A shrug, but she's following along. Why not? He's nice enough to her, even if Sirius has some kind of hate thing going on with the other man. It's not like Seraphim has the luxury to care.]
Somehow I don't think anyone is cleaning anything up quickly.
[ It's only thanks to years of being a spy and having to control himself that Severus doesn't burst out laughing at confirmation of Black's backfired magic. After a moment he holds out his comms device screen so she can see his post.
[She looks at the post, and there is a sudden burst of utterly irrational anger - she's upset at Sirius, at Sally, at this entire affair, and frankly, she knows exactly how it will play out if she's the one to say it. People are like numbers sometimes: the way they respond is so utterly predictable.
So she takes her device out of her pocket and responds, and then looks up at Snape, her eyebrows up.
And she types in a response for Snape, too.]
Sometimes I feel like everyone on board takes stupid pills.
[ Better her than him, even if it's awkward no matter what. For the safety and sanity of the ship, it's best that Severus honor the cease-fire as best he can, and he knows that so much as speaking to Black would be enough to set something off.
When he reads her remark, he exhales a brief humorless laugh. ] It's like that at home, too, most of the time.
[ Wizarding UK is fun. The lift doors open. ]
You can tell him I was a prick about it, if that'll help.
[ He doesn't say that's what Sirius will believe anyway, but it's there unspoken. Severus does surely want Black to fall out of a thirty story window into a pit of starving sharkeels and Bellatrix Lestrange, but mostly, he wants to continue living without anyone harassing him. It's much less of a strain on his temper that way. ]
[She knows a lot of their rivalry, and she knows that it's not blameless - on either side - but she doesn't care. She was willing to bring herself, to care, once, but so much of this just seems exhausting, ceaseless and tiring. She knows it exhausts Sirius, too, but she can't figure out why he can't just let this go, why this is so important to him.
She takes a moment, silent.]
I don't think you need to have magic to witness people doing utterly stupid things.
[ Severus is grudging, hateful, bigoted and unfair and petty. But he's also in a position where he has to remind himself, daily, of the things he's promised. Would Dumbledore decide to send me to Azkaban after all? is a hypothetical that stays his hand or his sharp tongue with some frequency. In time he'll learn to trust Albus in that way, and thank him for it by abusing the privileges he has. For now, it's still too new and uncertain.
Especially with Lily here. ]
You're right. [ About her observation. Severus has only his world to draw from, but if this place is anything to judge by, people are definitely stupid everywhere. ]
If that's you sorted, I ought to go. I might stay to supervise, but I've got someone I need to meet.
[She gives him a nod and raises a hand in a farewell, before she turns, to find something better to do with her time than worry about violent mistletoe.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Okay, so the growling coming from above their heads, that's another one, isn't it? She just closes her eyes and hates her life a little, and wishes she could speak.
This should be very familiar to Severus, but to Seraphim, mistletoe is just another thing that makes her ignore most boys.]
no subject
[ As soon as Seraphim has stepped back, Severus incinerates the nearest leafy green tentacle, which prompts the whole thing to squeal and retreat in a torrent of dry rustling noises. He sees another spindly limb creeping up the back of a cabinet and blasts it before backing up to the kitchen entrance. ]
You've got to be kidding me. [ Muttered under his breath before he looks at her. ] You all right? Did it clip your face?
[ He still has his wand pointed into the kitchen, watching in his peripheral vision for signs of movement. ]
no subject
She's writing something and not looking at it so it's a little squiggly but Seraphim has been doing this for four years, and not for nothing.]
I just wanted a piece of cake.
I just wanted a fucking piece of cake.
[This is the first time she's written down a curse word, ever. It's pretty clear she's at the end of her rope.]
no subject
An inoffensive enough goal, [ he says, voice wry. Something wriggles in the kitchen, and it gets zapped with a very well-aimed lance of fire for its trouble; burned mistletoe is starting to become a notable addition to the atmosphere. He uses a spell to suck oxygen away from the area he's been blasting, preventing any remaining cinders from causing problems, before hitting the panel on the outside of the kitchen to force the doors closed. ] Do you have any allergies?
[ .. To plants. Severus is already conjuring a hand towel and a small pot of salve from where he keeps it in his laboratory. Initial fluster over what the fuck over, he is very calm. He will address cake in a moment, perhaps, but prefers to deal with bleeding faces - however minor - first. ]
no subject
No allergies.
[She runs a hand over her hair, shakes it once. Severus has always been nothing but kind to her, and very helpful - she probably owes him something of a thank-you.]
no subject
[ With the ring finger of his right hand, he presses some of the ointment against the back of his left hand first. Habit. Showing pointedly that it's not dangerous. He'd leave it if the plant wasn't obviously mucked about with by magic - there's no telling what insane germs it's gathered already. ]
Look up. Hold still.
[ This is definitely Head of House Mode. ]
no subject
no subject
(This is where a muggle doctor or scientist would flip out about washing hands and sterile gloves and alcohol swabs but look, the salve is cleaning!!!, and wizards are crazy. Ha ha regrow all the bones in your arm overnight, nerd. It's fiiine.)
That done, he wipes his hands and puts everything away by vanishing it back to the lab. It'll feel cool on her skin, and may itch faintly when it finishes healing in less than a minute. Little superficial things caught right away are easy fixes, fortunately. Seraphim is discharged from impromptu hallway medical with a curt nod. ]
That was absolutely ridiculous. [ And he reckons he knows who's done it; Hogwarts sees at least one case of that per holiday season. ] What were you doing before you were assaulted by poorly enchanted mistletoe?
no subject
Making "coffee" and getting ready for a slice of cake.
[Meaning getting the ingredients for microwave chocolate cake, of course.]
no subject
Assuming the tenth floor kitchen isn't overrun, there's banana pancakes if that'll help.
[ He's well aware by now that Draco (at least) scavenges, so when he makes something he knows people are going to want, he makes way too much and leaves everything in the fridge. Pancakes are still good cold, and syrup can always be heated. ]
no subject
Thank you.
no subject
[ He's a man of many failures and bad aspects, but for all of that, Severus isn't trying to bribe who he believes to be Black's girlfriend, he's just-- whatever. He was here, he made pancakes earlier to try and concentrate on something minimal.
It still feels like someone's taken an ice pick and jammed it through the middle of his head, though, so he's not going to sit around and play herbology exterminator. He's got a long list of things to catch up on. ]
Perhaps leave this door shut for a bit.
no subject
She looks over at the door, her mouth flattening out again, as if that's some real way of expressing her displeasure at it, despite the fact that it's just a door.]
I hope it's contained there.
no subject
Merlin only knows how it got in there to begin with. It shouldn't be that bad if whomever started it cleans it up promptly.
[ And if not, yet well, more compensating for Gryffindor stupidity will be done, probably. If it is Black. If it turns out to be Draco's doing, Severus is going to be decidedly annoyed. He thumbs through the network and-- oh.
Nope. Definitely Black. ]
no subject
Somehow I don't think anyone is cleaning anything up quickly.
no subject
Wryly, ] Do you want to tell him?
[ Lift button is pushed. ]
no subject
So she takes her device out of her pocket and responds, and then looks up at Snape, her eyebrows up.
And she types in a response for Snape, too.]
Sometimes I feel like everyone on board takes stupid pills.
no subject
When he reads her remark, he exhales a brief humorless laugh. ] It's like that at home, too, most of the time.
[ Wizarding UK is fun. The lift doors open. ]
You can tell him I was a prick about it, if that'll help.
[ He doesn't say that's what Sirius will believe anyway, but it's there unspoken. Severus does surely want Black to fall out of a thirty story window into a pit of starving sharkeels and Bellatrix Lestrange, but mostly, he wants to continue living without anyone harassing him. It's much less of a strain on his temper that way. ]
no subject
We'll see how it goes.
[She knows a lot of their rivalry, and she knows that it's not blameless - on either side - but she doesn't care. She was willing to bring herself, to care, once, but so much of this just seems exhausting, ceaseless and tiring. She knows it exhausts Sirius, too, but she can't figure out why he can't just let this go, why this is so important to him.
She takes a moment, silent.]
I don't think you need to have magic to witness people doing utterly stupid things.
[No, that's not it. She amends.]
I mean every world, it feels the same, in a way.
no subject
Especially with Lily here. ]
You're right. [ About her observation. Severus has only his world to draw from, but if this place is anything to judge by, people are definitely stupid everywhere. ]
If that's you sorted, I ought to go. I might stay to supervise, but I've got someone I need to meet.
[ Also, Sirius would probably deck him. ]
no subject