Of mazes and magic:
If you pick a fight with a God of Death, I cannot guarantee your soul´s safety.
Chapter 1: Midnight meeting at Headquarters
The house stood tall and dark in the cool October night, all the wood shutters closed. A few lights from the street lamps remained alight, flickering slightly and casting long shadows on the cobalt stones. Not a soul could be seen wandering in the alley below. If a passer walking by quickly with his collar turned up against the drizzle were to glance at the house, he would only see an old wall with some bricks missing. If by chance he was able to get a glimpse of the house, it would certainly seem abandoned. However, if looked close upon and with a trained eye, the mansion was clearly alive, with light showing through the splinters in the wood.
Which is why around midnight on this gloomy evening; the current members of the Order sat by the long wooden table in the old-fashioned kitchen of twelve Grimmauld place. This house from the Victorian era was presently the Order´s headquarters and meetings were to be held there. While they were usually animated, full of loud talking and angry voices; here, not a whisper could be heard. They were all fidgeting and tension was floating in the air.
Finally, one dared to break the heavy silence: "What are we waiting for again? It´s nearly midnight and he still hasn´t showed up. Are you sure he´s going to come? I mean, we all know what he´s like…" It was Sirius Black, owner of the Order´s headquarters, safely hidden until his name was cleared.
Dumbledore answered in a calm and neutral voice but with the usual twinkle in his eyes gone: "Yes I am. He was summoned tonight by Voldemort and we must wait upon his return. There is a crucial piece of information that will have a great impact on the upcoming war and we need it. He is the only one that can give it to us." The others went back to fidgeting and sighing.
A few minutes later, someone cleared his throat and all eyes turned to the doorway.
"Well speaking of the devil, here is our spy! Finally decided to show your face, huh?" Sirius said, smirking.
Said-spy stood there, looking as grim as ever with his black robes folded neatly around him. Without a word, he trudged past everyone and sat on one of the chairs, as far from everyone as he possible could. No one acknowledged him; the way he glided on the ground without a sound and the death eater robes he was wearing were making everyone uneasy.
"Severus; I trust your meeting with the Dark Lord went well. Do tell us what you have learned tonight" said Dumbledore with a wave of his hand, nodding towards his spy.
"As I have said before, the Dark Lord and his followers are on the move, preparing for the final battle. The net is drawing close and soon they will act." Snape was looking only at Dumbledore, his eyes glazing as if warning him.
"I sense the battle coming. In fact we have all felt the growing urgency of the death eaters to prove themselves worthy but I fail to see what is new here." answered the old wizard, urging his spy to go one.
"I´m warning you and the Order because from now on, things are about to get much worse. The raids are more often, the killings more vicious and he has rallied the vampires and the werewolves to his cause." His tone hardened as he said it and he glanced at Lupin, distaste evident.
"So is that what you´ve been doing all this time? Making new potions to kill and raiding innocent people´s homes?" Sirius couldn´t help himself. Knowing that their spy was of doing god knows what at the Dark Lord´s command set him on edge. That he never said anything about it even more.
Snape ignored the usual jab: "But even a great wizard such as him cannot be sure of the outcome. In order to remedy that, he has decided to make sure of his victory."
"Would you stop speaking in riddles and get to the point. In case you haven´t noticed, we´ve been waiting for you for a few hours already" growled Sirius.
"If you would only listen and not interrupt me, this would go a lot quicker." Snape sneered back.
"Really? According to Dumbledore, this war might depend on your information and you won´t even tell us how you´re obtaining it and what…"
"That´s enough! Said Dumbledore loudly. This is not the time. Please Severus, continue."
Snape hesitated, the corners of his mouth twitching. "He´s going after the locket." Everyone stared at him, obviously ignorant as to what he was referring to.
"The locket? As in the Ezekiel Locket?" Said Lupin, speaking up for the first time. All eyes turned to him.
"Care to explain? We aren´t all so knowledgeable" interrupted Black again, with a sneer towards Snape.
"Lupin. Explain since you know of it" Snape suddenly sounded very tired.
"The locket takes its name after one of the angels from the Bible but it´s origin is far more ancient. It dates back to the root of Christianity and is said to be given to mankind as a last resort by the angels, in the Ancient Testament. If things were ever to be so dark and if all hope was gone for the redemption of men, they would use the locket. To make it short, it contains an enormous amount of power in the purest state magic could ever be. Used by a dark wizard, it could turn into the exact opposite. Magic so evil I´m not sure even he-who-must-not-be-named could control it. The locket is extremely powerful and just like any form of power, it corrupts the heart; which is exactly what it did to the angel Ezekiel. He tried to take the magic for himself and was cast out of heaven for it; cursed to roam the earth for eternity for he was still immortal."
"Well, well, if that doesn´t sound like a parody of Voldemort´s life…" Sirius said grimly.
Lupin continued his tale: "If he were to get that locket, use it and not be killed by the white magic, he would be unstoppable. It would give him the amount of power in nearly all the magical world and maybe give him a solid immortality, rendering the horcruxes useless. As Severus said, it would certainly assure victory."
"Wait. You said it comes from the Bible so how do we know it isn´t a legend? Do we have proof this thing exists? And what do you mean as a last resort?" asked Black, saying something sensible for the first time.
Snape chuckled drily. Trust Black to even mistrust the Dark Lord´s intentions. "Something you find funny?" snapped Sirius.
"Why do you even need proof? The Dark Lord asked me to retrieve it; of course it´s real." Snape´s face was as unreadable as ever.
"Oh yes because whatever your master says must be the absolute truth. Won´t be the first time he plays you for a fool!" Sirius shot back.
Snape was about to answer but Dumbledore silenced him with a wave of his hand: "Lupin. Would you be so kind as to answer Mr. Black´s questions?"
The werewolf nodded: "We actually have no proof of anything. There is nearly no documents about the locket but traces of it have remained through the centuries. As to what the locket actually does… No one knows either. Some say it would bring all of mankind to Heaven and others say it would annihilate the world."
"Admitting it exists, is it something we can use?" asked Sirius.
"Absolutely not. The only hope we have is to destroy it before he gets his hands on it. Didn´t you hear what it did to Ezekiel?" Snape answered quickly.
"Well, if you´re the one using it, might as well give it to Voldemort."
"Ok. That´s enough for tonight. Now that you know the basics, we will stop here. I need a word with Severus." Said Dumbledore loudly, standing up.
"Wait a minute. This also concerns us so we have the right to know of any decision you will make." Said Black
Dumbledore looked at him, almost daring him to contradict him again: "And you will. But for now, it concerns only Severus and me. We will meet again tomorrow at the same time." At that, they both exited the kitchen.
One by one, the others left; profoundly dissatisfied by their spy´s report which was about as clear as the water of a swamp. Remained only Sirius and Lupin. Sirius raked his hand through his shaggy hair: "God, this war is getting out of hand. Trusting a former death eater to find a mass destruction weapon for a mass destructor…"
"You should cut him some slack. I´m sure he´s doing what he can." Lupin answered softly. He knew there was no lost love between them and that Sirius was getting crazy with boredom, stuck in this house.
"We only have Dumbledore´s word for it. He´s always off at Voldemort´s orders. Who knows how many people he has killed? Tortured? And he might even enjoy it." Sirius said angrily.
Lupin sighed: "He´s a spy, Sirius. It´s what he does and lately, he has given us no reason to mistrust him. The information he brings us is invaluable. I´m not asking you to like him; only to show him minimal respect or just to leave him alone. It´s hard enough as it is." He knew that he was asking for a lot but they couldn´t be at each other´s throat all the time. But he also knew that if Sirius was ever to discover Snape´s biggest secret, there would be no more spying for him.
I will continue this story if you guys are interested so please let me know! Also, reviews are always welcome!