I don't own Harry Potter or anyone else J.K. Rowling invented, nor do I wish to...with the exception of Snape! Read and review as you like and I'll try to actually finish this!

The Boy Who Died

Back to the Hogwarts Express

"He doesn't know. I never told him. I could have, and he would have married me and loved you. But he didn't really love me. It wasn't that sort of relationship. We were friends, and nothing more. I don't think he could have loved any girl. His heart belonged to James.

"I know everyone thinks he as good as killed them. And the papers say he killed Pettigrew and those muggles too. But it's not true. I know it's not. Don't ask me how, I just know. Women's intuition. You understand.

"I'm sorry for lying to you all these years. It was wrong of me to tell you your father was some heartless muggle. You're pureblood. You're powerful. I'm sorry you'll never know each other, and I'm sorry I'll never see him or you again. I love you."

Marley shook her head viciously. She told herself to stop thinking about the subject; about her mother's death. It was too painful. She had work to do, or so she thought. Perhaps this was just the Ministry's way of giving her some time off; getting her moping self away from the office. She'd become so depressed that her co-workers could no longer stand to be around her.

Why shouldn't I be depressed? Marley thought bitterly. Only three years after graduating from school, my mother dies and I find out my bloody father is an accused murderer. Mother says he didn't do it, but I don't know what the hell to believe. It's not like I can just talk about this to someone. They'd probably have me locked up for just being related to the man.

She sighed. Why did things have to be so complicated? She had gotten used to the fact of not having a father. Now that she had one, there proved to be problems. For one thing, she didn't even know the man. For another, he'd been sent to Azkaban for murder. And yet another thing, he'd escaped and the Ministry still hadn't caught him. How many years had it been now, seven, since he'd escaped? And for a time they'd even thought him dead, but no, he was still alive and at large.

Shaking her head she concentrated on the scenery rushing past out the train window. For a moment she felt like a kid again, sitting there in a black robe (muggle clothes underneath of course) a trunk at her feet and her midnight owl, who she'd named Death just to bother her mother back when she was in school, in a cage on the seat behind her.

There weren't as many first years so Marley was able to get a room on the train to herself. She was thankful for that, because it wasn't often that someone who wasn't attending classes at Hogwarts was on the train. She didn't want someone asking her too many questions as to why she was at Hogwarts. She herself wasn't totally sure.

"Listen, things here at the Ministry have gotten very...busy. It's not that we...don't want you here right now, Miss Black, it's just that we have all the people we need working on certain projects. We feel...well the Malfoys will be able to handle their own mail for a bit...It's just best if you weren't here. What with the death of your mother and all, it will be good for you to have some time off." Cornelius Fudge said while wringing his hands. Marley frowned while he spoke to her feet.

"So how long am I to stay home?"

"Well...we can't exactly say. But you'll continue to be paid. And...you won't exactly be staying at your house. It would be best if you stayed at Hogwarts...you shouldn't be alone at such a time. And Dumbledore said he was glad to have you there. We'll send you an owl when we need you to return." That said he left before she could complain.

She had gone home to pack and received a letter from Dumbledore that very night.

Miss Black,

I and the rest of the staff at Hogwarts are happy to have one of our best students back to visit. We have a private room ready for you in the Slytherin wing. You may be pleased to hear that Mr. Harry Potter, Ms. Hermione Granger, and Mr. Ronald Weasley are also staying at Hogwarts.

You may also be pleased to note that because you are our special guest, you and the others will have seats at the staff table. The Hogwarts Express leaves as it always has on September first. I trust you remember the platform.

Enclosed are your train ticket and a lemon drop. I do so love lemon drops.

-Albus Dumbledore

So now here she was, on the train to Hogwarts, but as a guest now instead of a student. To take her mind off things she thought of why Harry and his friends might be at Hogwarts as well. She knew for that Harry's parents were dead already (possibly because of her father) and she thought it unlikely that Hermione and Ron's mothers died too.

Then she remembered that Voldemort was still at large (had she ever really forgotten?). No doubt Harry and his friends were in danger. Everyone in the wizarding world knew Hogwarts was the safest place to be (besides Gringott's, but you couldn't very well lock the three of them in a vault).

Marley had never met Harry Potter, though she'd heard just as much about him as everyone else, and she'd been a year ahead of him in school. She felt bad for him actually, growing up in a muggle house as "the boy who lived" and not knowing anything about the wizard world that awaited him. All the publicity he got made it hard for him to lead a normal life.

Was anything normal anymore? Dark wizards were slowly taking over the Ministry of Magic, slowly moving into positions of power for the great return of Lord Voldemort. Half-bloods and Muggle-borns were in a worried frenzy, and many were sending their children to other wizarding schools such as Durmstrang and Beaxbatons. Marley herself did not know what to do. She was slowly tiring of the magical world, and began to use her magic less and less.

Perhaps it was because of the death of her mother and the fact that her father being magical had landed him in Azkaban. Voldemort was nothing but power hungry because of his magic and it seemed to Marley that magic did nothing but cause trouble. Sure it made things easier, like cooking and cleaning, but to her, it was no longer a necessity. Often she dreamed of moving to Paris, and living a full Muggle life.

If you want that so much, why don't you just do it? What are you doing on a train to Hogwarts? She asked herself. Well for one, she answered, I get paid way too much money just to write and receive letters for Lucius and his son. Who wouldn't want an easy job with great pay? I make almost as much money as they do.

Why else?

Well...

You're afraid to live without magic.

Yeah, kinda. I mean, I've never heard of anyone else renouncing the wizard world to live as a muggle. Half the wizards and witches look down upon muggles.

She was brought out of her thoughts when the train screeched to a halt. She grabbed her trunk with one hand and her owl with the other and quickly stepped off the train, grabbing a carriage and getting to the castle as quickly as possible. She did not want to be caught in the rush of students heading into the school.

Once inside the main hall she set her trunk and owl cage down and just stood there, memories flooding back to her. But she had no time for thought; she had to get out of the way before the students arrived, but where to go? Twenty-one and back in school, she thought bitterly.

She heard footsteps coming from her left and was greeted with the sight of Dumbledore walking with Professor Snape. Severus, she reminded herself, I'm not a student anymore, I can call him by his first name, or at least drop the professor.

"Ah, Marley! I was just telling Severus how glad I was to have our top student back." Dumbledore said brightly, before clasping both Marley's hand in his own and shaking them slightly. Snape nodded, his usual emotionless expression plastered to his face. Marley managed a weak smile. Suddenly she wanted to be home very much.