Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Harry Potter characters or the stories, but I do own Eileen Pierce and her pet kneazle Mephistopheles! I also own Lucas, Page, and Roderick Beowulf, Cheryl Applegate, Winnifred Miller, and any other random characters that appear in the story that were not originally in the Harry Potter series, since it's no fun if I don't have my own characters to play with. Enjoy!

Eternal Knight

By: Rachel Hajducko

Chapter One

The night air was warm against her pale cheeks, swirling lazily about her robes between the trees she hid in. It was dark in the woods but she lit her wand to see by, carefully creeping through the trees toward the encampment she knew lay on the other side in the clearing. She had not planned to attend the Quidditch World Cup but got the idea to surprise Fred and George for the celebrations, apparating into the woods to avoid being caught by a member of the Ministry of Magic. Eileen didn't fancy being hit with a rather large fine for practicing underage magic, nor did she desire a long talking to from her godfather over being caught. She preferred to keep her entry quiet but as she broke the treeline discovered that she was not arriving on such happy terms.

The scene was panicked chaos. Fires burned everywhere: in paths, on tents, on a few people who desperately fell to the ground in hopes of putting themselves out. The fires raged on, unhindered. Magic fire. Screams of terror filled the night, along with muffled cries of what she determined were cast spells as colorful explosions and darts flew in every direction. Most innocents made for the woods, seeking the shelter of the darkness to hide from the uproar and avoid being struck down. She stood still, in shock by the scene before her. What was happening? Had a brawl broken out and gone seriously awry? It didn't feel like a drunken fight, it felt terrifying. Terror, she thought, caused by people who were masters of it.

Shaking her head, she looked about wildly in hopes of spotting one of her friends running for cover. But the campsite was fairly emptied out by the time she had arrived, save for the flashes of light and shadows of wizards and witches dueling amongst the chaos and flames. Flashes of green light and screams of agony told her that dark magic was being used, causing a shiver to run up her spine. The Death Eaters were here, but why? She didn't dwell on the thought long before being spotted by a hooded figure at the far edge of the encampment. It raised its wand, shouting a command that sent a blast of green light in her direction. Blocking it instinctively, she turned and fled into the trees.

Her head swam with thoughts, terrified pondering and instinctual drive to run for cover, directing her to seek the deepest parts of the woods that may provide enough shelter from the battle to ride it out. She turned many corners, ducking under branches and tripping over roots and rocks as she fought to escape the maniacal laughter and flashes of light she could feel trailing behind her. She leaped over a rock, twisting to avoid a ditch she only saw when it was too late to pull back. Tumbling, she landed at the bottom of a small hill, letting out a small groan as she struggled to pull herself back up to her feet.

Suddenly an arm was hooked under hers, jerking her to her feet in one quick swoop. She yelped, moving to strike her attacker, panic in her every movement.

"Stay your wand!" A gruff hiss ordered her, the voice familiar. "Do you want us both to die?"

"Severus?" She gasped.

But there was no time for questions as he took her hand and ran deeper into the darkness with her. They ran for what felt like forever, her legs beginning to burn with the effort her body put forth to keep up with the hooded figure who was at least a head and shoulders taller than her. Soon they arrived at a small creak and came to a stop, panting for air and shaking from the rush of adrenaline.

"This way." The figure pulled her toward a path of stones and darted across them, crossing the stream easily and waiting on the other side for her to catch up to him. She barely landed at his side before his hand wrapped firmly around hers again and off they went. After further sprints and dodges, they were far enough away from the mayhem that it was a distant cry in the dark that barely registered against the wind.

The pair ended their journey finally at a small cluster of trees. Eileen fell against one of the trees gasping before collapsing to the ground. She stared down at the crisp bed of leaves, collecting herself before looking up at the man beside her. He was staring at a hole in the treeline, a greenish glow showing through. She could barely make out a few curves of a pattern decorating the sky when she heard him swear.

"We need to leave this place. Can you apparate?" He turned his attention back to her. "Nevermind, I will take us both."

Before she could say another word, she was wrapped in a cloak in a warm embrace before feeling herself pulled through a whirl of another's apparation. A moment later everything had gone quiet. The deafening silence was soon lulled into the gentle crackle of a fire. The darkness lifted, revealing the dimly lit study she knew from earlier that summer.

The figure walked away from her for a moment, hurrying to find parchment and ink, furtively scrawling out a message. She watched him in disbelief, her mind so lost in all the questions she had she couldn't force any words out of her mouth from the mental traffic jam. As quickly as he scribbled his letter, he rolled it up and took it swiftly to the fireplace. With a swipe, he scooped powder from a bowl on the mantle and tossed it into the flames. Green pillars of fire erupted before him, easing down into a dull roar as he crouched in front of the flames and bent over it. He spoke for a moment before tossing the letter into the flames. Another moment later the flames smouldered back down to the soft crackle of warmth they had been before.

Rising, the man removed his cloak, revealing his midnight garments and raven hair that shone against the fire. Hanging the cloak, he turned on Eileen and stalked over to her, taking a moment to crouch at her side. "What were you doing there? You said you were going home to check on Mephistopheles! You were supposed to go straight home!"

"I did! And then Fred sent me a letter about the Quidditch game and...I just wanted to surprise him!" She stammered, her heart still working to come down from the excitement. "What were you doing there? You told me that you had to cut our visit short for business!"

"That's not important," He grumbled, shifting and getting to his feet to pace across the room. "Did anyone see you there?"

"See me? What do you - "

"See you, yes! Did anyone see you at the campsite!" Severus demanded as he furiously paced in a rut that had already been partially worn in the wood floor.

"I don't know, maybe!" She hesitated, remembering the attacker at the camp.

Severus halted in his stride, staring at her wildly. "They did. Who was it? Who saw you!"

"I don't know!" Eileen hugged herself. "I couldn't see them, they were too far away! They just...they tried to attack me..."

"What?" He hurried back to her, kneeling once more and checking her for injuries. "Were you hurt? What did they hit you with?"

"Nothing! I mean, they missed, I ran away. Severus, what is going ON!" She pushed his hands away, staring up into his black eyes with her own disturbingly blue gaze.

He flinched at her gaze, looking away. "You shouldn't have been there. It was dangerous!" He moved to get up again but was caught by her tiny grip.

"People were being hurt out there, why? Was it them? Was it the Death - "

He hurriedly covered her mouth, shushing her. "Don't speak of them!"

Pulling his hand away, she glared at him angrily. "Why were you there? Were you fighting WITH them?"

"Of course not!" He protested angrily. "I told you I'm not - "

"YOU said once a Knight, always a Knight!" She shot back, interrupting his denials.

He hesitated before shaking his head. "I said that, yes. But I wasn't there for them!"

"Then why were you there?" She didn't want to believe he could hurt people the way the others were, torture innocent witches and wizards while laughing.

"I...I can't tell you." He hissed before gripping her arms. "I wasn't fighting with them, please just believe my words! I promise you!"

She felt her eyes welling up with tears as she felt her heart change from a race to a tight anxiety. She hung her head. "Fred and George...are they...?"

He hesitated. "I don't think so...many of them ran for the woods. Only the ministry and some adults stayed to fight. There were no children left in the camp."

"I need to know." She sobbed. "What if they were hurt? Oh what is going on, Severus? Please tell me!"

"It's...complicated." Snape sighed, standing and helping her up. "Come sit down."

She allowed him to guide her to his chair as he sat her down and draped a blanket over her shoulders. "They were them, weren't they? What was in the sky?"

"It was..." he didn't seem to want to admit it. "It was a Dark Mark."

"Dark Mark? You mean..." Her eyes widened, gazing up at him.

He nodded and strode away, resuming his pacing. "I can't believe those fools did that! They could have been caught. And to put that in the sky! They've gone insane!"

They fell silent for a while before Eileen quietly spoke up. "Why were you so afraid they might see me?"

"You know why, Eileen," He said as if it pained him to admit it, gripping the edge of the mantle in one hand. "You're powerful. They want to use you for their own cause."

"You mean as their new leader," She spat. "To replace Voldemort!"

"Don't say his name!" Snape hissed. "I told you I wouldn't let that happen!"

"Were they looking for me at the camp?" Her tone became worried as she clutched at the blanket. "Do you think they were there for me? To get me to reveal myself?"

"No," Snape paced, chewing on his thumbnail. "No, I don't think so. They were just drunk. Having a bit of fun."

"What was fun about any of that!" Eileen gawked. "People were dying out there!"

"I don't mean - " Severus sighed. "Those people - " He shook his head. "I'll need to go soon. Can I trust you to go home and stay there?"

"You're leaving me?" A sudden fear gripped her. "But...I just got here!"

"I had to get you somewhere safe. Now I need to go find out more about what that was all about. He needs me." Severus muttered, going to gather a few things.

"He?" She thought about it. "Dumbledore...you told him what happened."

"Will you please stay put this time? I don't want to have to send someone to watch you." Snape growled, giving her a meaningful look.

"No," She shrank down in the chair. "I mean, I'll stay home."

"Swear it!"

"I swear!" She looked away. "I do!"

He paused, watching her intently before setting aside his pile and walking to her. He knelt in front of the chair, hesitating before gently grasping her shoulders in his hands. "Eileen, I don't want you to get hurt. I definitely don't want them to get their hands on you."

"Could I really be their Dark Lord?" She muttered, gazing off to the side at a dark arts book stacked precariously beside the chair. "Could I replace him?"

"What? Don't say such things," Severus scowled, but his frown had more concern in it than disgust at the idea. "I won't let that happen. I would die before I let them corrupt you like that."

"I'm not exactly a white snowflake, Severus," She looked back into his eyes. "I've hurt people, people I cared for. I've hurt you; I almost killed you."

He shrugged. "I've been through worse. You're not a killer, Eileen. You're strong and have a good heart. You even have good friends, even if I don't approve of them. Don't follow in my footsteps..."

"Severus..." Gently she leaned forward to rest her forehead against his. "I don't want to let you down."

"You won't." He reluctantly pulled away after a moment and went back to his gathering. "I'll take you back home to ensure it's safe before I leave you. Are you sure I don't need to have someone come stay with you for the night?"

"Anyone coming after me would be hard-pressed to leave in one piece," Eileen sighed, feeling the hatred in her heart for the dark witches and wizards who desired her power.

He smiled. "That's my girl." He finished packing a satchel and retrieved his cloak which had barely warmed against the fire in his cold dwelling. "Let's go, we shouldn't stay here too long."

Rising on shaky legs, she joined him by the fire and took his hand. He barely glanced down at her as he disapparated, arriving inside her small and nearly empty apartment.

A yowl came from the window as a lanky cat dismounted the sill and tottered over to his mistress, stretching on the way. He rubbed against both humans before sitting, staring up at them with his gleaming feline eyes.

"I'm back, Mephi," Eileen sighed, watching Snape light his wand tip and investigate the apartment.

After several minutes of thorough searching he returned to her side, satisfied that the room was safe. "I will return to check on you before school starts. Write to me if anything happens or if anyone approaches you on the streets."

"I will," She sighed. "Severus?"

"Yes?" He glanced down at her.

"Be careful."

Severus reached up to brush a hair behind her ear, an odd display of affection for the anti-social hermit. "You as well, Eileen."

She looked up, a little surprised, before he disapparated. Alone again in the silence of her apartment, she slunk over to her bed and collapsed into it. Joined by Mephistopheles, she spent the remainder of the night pretending to sleep, unable to find peace enough to quiet her fears and dread of the dangers to come that school year...and perhaps for years to come.