Into the Light

Who I was and who I might be

"You idiot!" Poppy said, and hit Michael over the head.

"Hey," he protested, and then laughed, rubbing the back of his head.

"Why did you do that?" Poppy asked and glanced angrily at the wizard before her.

"Severus does not like me," he said. "Because he does not trust me," revealed Michael.

Poppy scoffed, "That's nothing new to me."

"I did not like Argus' behavior towards Julie, so what could I do?" Michael explained, shrugging his shoulders, "Maybe, after all this .." Michael looked up at the ceiling as he seemed to search for the right words. "Maybe Severus will appreciate my deed and thus myself too," he concluded. "What do you think, Poppy?" He raised his eyebrows expectantly and frowned when Poppy seemed to disagree.

She just shook her head.

"Maybe not?" Michael said and his smile slowly faded. "No?"

"No," Poppy said with absolute conviction. "It takes more than eavesdropping to gain Severus' trust, even if the eavesdropping was done in his favor." Poppy said, wondering what had really been Michael's motivation when he had listened to the conversation between Julie and Argus.

"What does it take?" Michael inquired.

A part of Poppy knew that he was sincere, but why was it so important to him to gain Severus' trust? she wondered suspiciously and was worried when he asked her that very question.

"What does it take to gain Severus' trust?"

She had recognized his sincerity already, but that was not enough to draw a secret from Poppy. A moment of sincerity was not enough to make Poppy say something that could make Severus vulnerable. Poppy looked at the wizard for a moment, then sighed softly. She did not miss the sparkle that briefly flashed in Michael's eyes. Oh, that wizard, Poppy thought to herself and shook her head.

"Why is this important to you?" she asked. "Don't you think that Severus has already lived through enough in life to finally find his deserved peace? "

Michael opened his mouth to say something, but she did not give him the opportunity.

"Why do you wish to win his trust?" She asked, eyeing him from head to toe.

"I, um," he suddenly stared at his shoes, then frowned before he looked Poppy in the eye. "He .. Severus needs friends."

Poppy almost scoffed, but she decided to shake her head instead.

"Michael, Severus does not need more friends. If you are really serious about this, then give him what he really wants."

"And what is that?" Michael inquired, taking a step toward Poppy.

"If you really want to do Severus a favor, leave him alone." She told him and added, "And leave his wife alone."

This was not the answer Michael had expected, and Poppy studied his expression closely. He was obviously disappointed, but she also saw acceptance. Michael nodded slowly and looked at her thoughtfully.

"Okay, but please tell me one more thing, is there anything else I can do for him?"

Poppy looked at him sternly, but, to her disappointment and anger, she caught herself seriously thinking about his question.

"Well, maybe there is, but not right now," she said firmly. "I do not know how you do that, but you can influence people well," Poppy remarked and was annoyed when he grinned. "This was not meant to be a compliment," she warned him.