Disclaimer: I do not own any of J.K. Rowling's characters. I am gaining no monetary profit from this story.
A/N: This story has been a therapeutic means of coping with recent events in my life. There is hardly a person alive who has not experienced disappointment or heartache by the hand of a trusted friend. I truly would appreciate your feedback, but if I only succeed in cleansing my own soul from the onslaught of bitterness, then this story has been well worth my time. Hopefully, you will think so too…
Chapter 1: The Beginning of the End of the Beginning
Maelynn sat alone staring numbly at the bedroom wall of her flat in London. A cascade of tissues occupied a tiny trashcan at the foot of her bed, and a tear stained pillow was her only companion. It seemed an eternity that she had sat mourning this "death without dying," and now she had no feeling whatsoever. Emptiness had replaced all of the emotions that once ran ramped through her soul. The only question that remained etched in her thoughts was 'How had it all lead to this?'
Taking a deep breath, Maelynn rose to retrieve several blank pieces of parchment and a quill from her night stand. She gathered her supplies and took residence on her sofa, pulling her legs under her. Having no one to call and no trusted friends to rely on, Maelynn began pouring out her jumbled thoughts onto the parchment in an attempt to sort out the answer to her greatest question.
Flashback: Two Years Prior
Severus Snape tapped his fingers impatiently on the table. The noise did not go unrecognized by the headmaster. "Patience, Severus. Harry will be here shortly. You know as well as anyone here that sometimes missions do not end exactly when they should."
Snape glared at Dumbledore but stopped tapping his fingers nonetheless. Ron Weasley sat down near the headmaster and chuckled quietly at the Potion Masters discomfort. "He acts like he's never been late for a meeting before," he whispered to Hermione.
Hermione nodded and rolled her eyes. "True, but if Harry isn't here soon we'll have to start without him. I have to check in on my first year residents at some point in the evening." Ron made a face that clearly stated that Hermione was forgetting something. "And I still want to get dinner when the meeting is over," Hermione added playfully, knowing that Ron would kill her if she broke another dinner date to remain at work.
Snape held back the comment that wanted so desperately to roll off his tongue. Hermione Granger had been insufferable when she was a student in his classroom. The woman that sat before him now was ten times worse. Snape left his seat near the younger members of the Order with the pretense of pouring himself a drink. He regrouped at the far corner of the room and afforded himself a glance at the company gathered just as Gryffindor's "golden-child," Harry Potter, entered the room.
The Order had grown to a small but stable force in the ten years since the golden trio graduated from Hogwarts. Ron Weasley and Harry Potter were quickly recruited into the Auror's training academy, and each spent their free time playing professional Quidditch. Hermione Granger had attended the best medical university in Europe and had received her Doctorate in Medicine faster than any other witch or wizard in history. She and Tonks, who was also seated in the main room of Grimmawauld place, had become best friends while serving the Order. The Golden Trio was still as close as ever, but their schedules rarely allowed for much social activity, especially with Voldemort reaching a power peak as of recently.
Most of the members were those who had been around from the beginning of the Order. Mad Eye Moody sat in a corner scrutinizing everyone in the room. When Snape's gaze landed upon him, his glass eye whirled around, and Moody gave him a look that could have killed a Dementor. Snape frowned and continued his gaze around the room. Lupin was grinning about something that Potter had no doubt said. Minerva was busy scribbling the minutes of the meeting onto an enchanted parchment. Then there was Maelynn. She was an average witch, nothing at all remarkable about her actually. She was a member of Hufflepuff house and had graduated four years after the golden trio. She seemed to have gotten along well with most of her classmates, even most of the Slytherins. Maelynn had no remarkable powers, and she worked as a Mediwitch at the same hospital as Granger. When Albus had presented Maelynn as a potential inductee into the Order, the first question that had been asked by the other members was 'what does she have to offer?' Albus had smiled and said simply, "Well, she is a Healer, but the basis of her induction would be on nothing less than her unwavering loyalty."
Snape remembered the skeptical look on the other members faces as they reluctantly agreed to accept her as on of their own. He sat studying her for only a brief moment. The girl perplexed him. She was so much like his younger self and yet so completely different. There had been a time in his life when he wanted more than anything to fit in and to make friends. That day had long since passed, and he no longer trusted anyone. Maelynn, however, was young, and her desire to "fit in" could fill a room. It was for that reason alone that she had been able to dissolve into any group in which she was placed. It was the very essence that sealed her loyalty. She had the potential to be great, but she lacked the desire to stand alone in order to achieve greatness.
"Severus, do you have anything to report?" Albus' voice broke his musings and he stood to share what little information he had attained since their last meeting.
"The Dark Lord is rallying his Death Eaters to attack a small village just outside of London within the week. I have reason to believe that the attack is only meant to distract the Order from his true target."
"And what would his true target be?" growled Moody from across the room.
Snape bit back the remarks floating through his mind. "If I knew what his actual target was, I would have gladly shared it with you. I only know that there is no profit in attacking this particular town. That is, of course, unless he is planning a Dark Revel for the new Death Eaters. Given his irrefutably foul mood as of late, I highly doubt the likelihood of that being the truth." Snape sat down. He had little to contribute to the meetings in the last year given the fact that Voldemort had little trust in him as a Death Eater. He had received more severe punishments lately, and he was not given any valuable information until moments prior to a plan. He was certain that the elder Malfoy had something to do with that.
"Very well then," Albus began. "We'll need two volunteers to remain in that village as a contact and frontline defense. I'd prefer two volunteers that would not be recognized," he added noticing Ron and Harry conspiring.
"I'll go," Tonks offered. "I blend in everywhere," she said cheerfully as she changed her hair to a bright red causing several members to chuckle.
Maelynn hesitated, but only briefly. "I'll go, Sir."
Hermione looked thoughtfully across the room. "You work at the hospital, right?" Maelynn nodded. "I'll make certain that you can have the time off without anyone becoming suspicious of your whereabouts. We'll say that you're working PRN for another hospital on short notice."
"Good idea, Dr. Granger," Albus agreed.
The growl resounding through Snape's mind was practically deafening. Leave it to Granger to have to assert her "importance" on the situation. Calling her by her title while insisting that everyone else be on a first name basis was infuriating enough. He was only feeding her already bursting ego.
"Very well, meeting is adjourned."
Tonks bounced up to Maelynn. "Hey, since we're going to be working together, we may as well get to know one another better. Harry, Ron, Hermione and I are going to grab a bite to eat at that the Italian Rose. Why don't you come with us?"
"The Italian Rose? Don't you have to reserve a table a week ahead to get in there?"
Tonks grinned. "Most folks do, but we're not exactly most folks now, are we? C'mon, it'll be fun. Harry and Ron are a blast."
Maelynn smiled. She was a little nervous with the prospect of getting to eat in a ritzy place with three of the most well known people in the wizarding world, but she longed to make close friends, and this could be the opportunity that she needed to prove herself a good friend. "Sure, that'd be great. Just let me get my cloak."
Snape paused before walking outside. He caught Maelynn's eye. Maelynn grabbed her cloak and looked questioningly back at the Potions professor. "Sir, is something bothering you?"
Snape considered saying something. He kept his face neutral, betraying nothing that was going through his mind. "Wotcher! You ready to go? Everyone's waiting," Tonks said grabbing Maelynn by the arm to pull her away from Snape. Snape frowned and strode quickly out the door behind them, never giving an answer to Maelynn's question.
End Flashback: Present Day
Maelynn placed her parchment in her lap and smacked herself in the forehead. "You knew exactly what was going to happen, didn't you Professor Snape?" she said aloud in stark realization. "But why? Why didn't you try and warn me?"