"Sophia?" Severus said, once he caught up to me. Stupid short legs... "Have you always been that horrible in Defence Against the Dark Arts? Such a shame."
My heart sank; he didn't even see my plan going into action! He didn't even notice! Every incorrect spell, every wrong jinx, every failed attempt. Each were in vain; he couldn't see I was doing it purposely!
"Guess I'm just horrible," I said quietly before walking away as fast as possible. Apparantly not watching where I was going, I bumped into my cousin. He scootched back a little, but being so much bigger than me, I was the one who fell back.
"Hey, watch where you're going, Malfoy!" I shouted, of course joking.
"I was watching!" Draco snapped back with humor, "I watched you walk right into me, clutz! God, you're stupid."
I just laughed, and he helped me up. "Where y'headed?" I asked, smiling at him.
"Oh, no where," he replied, then took off. I wondered what he was up to, but just kept walking. I was late for Transfiguration, after all.
When I got there, I saw a frowning MgGonagall, accompanied by a smiling Julie. I opened my mouth to speak, but MgGonagall pointed to my seat and said, "Sit, Miss Lupin. Next time you're late, you will receive a detention."
"Yes, Ma'am," I said, taking my seat.
"All right, students," said the lady Professor, "Now that we're all here, I can begin. First thing I would like to say is that I have a new helper, Juliet."
"It's Professor Volven to you kiddies," said Julie, beaming.
"She will be assisting us in our classes," said MgGonagall, "But she is the primary teacher of our first and second years this year."
My eyes widened and my jaw dropped. Julie saw this and added, "Oh what ever is the matter, Miss Lupin? Suprised I got a real job?"
I just nodded my head.
"Yeah, so was I!" Julie laughed, "But you better be good to me; I can give you detention now!" she laughed an evil laugh.
"I'm scared," I whispered to whoever it was sitting next to me.
"That's nice," the person whispered back.
"No whispering during class," MgGonagall said sternly, and my neighbor glared at me.
The next two weeks of classes went about the same. I purposely screwed up Potions, which perplexed Slughorn, as I did so well the first day, ran around doing nothing for half an hour, did everything wrong in Defence Against the Dark Arts, got glared at by MgGonagall while Julie laughed at me, and then I had Care of Magical Creatures. Ron, Hermione, and the Potter boy may have dropped Hagrid's class, but no way was I; my third favorite class! Hagrid didn't like them being gone, but I knew I couldn't fill that void. After that was Charms, a class I was decent at, though Chris was much better than me. Finally came Divination. Why I continued taking it, I didn't know; it was just fun, I guess. Trelawney was as crazy as ever, but she, too, had a new assistant; Lola. Wonderul influence on her, Trelawney was. At least Firenze was cool.
Anyway, it was the first day of the third week, and I was going to Severus' office. I hadn't been sent there, but all classes were done, and I needed someone to yell at. He always let me vent. About fifty feet in front of me was Slughorn, who, oddly, was taking each turn I was. Eventually, he arrived at Severus' office, knocked, and was let in. I'd've sworn I heard him say, "It's about one of your students." Curiousity was too much, so I had to run over and press my ear to the door.
"Well, what is it?" Severus asked. "What's going on?"
"Well, you see, it's about a student from your house," Slughorn began, "It's Miss Lupin. I'm afraid she just isn't very good at Potions."
Severus snickered, then said, "Surely you're joking. Sophia has always been excellent in Potions; top of her class every year."
"I'm not joking, Severus," he replied seriously, "She did marvelous the first day, but has been getting everything wrong since, like she's putting everything in backwards."
I fought myself to keep back a laugh; that was exactly what I had been doing.
"She'd never do anything of the sort!" Severus replied, shocked, "Are you suggesting she's failing on purpose?"
"Possibly," Slughorn replied honestly, "She's sixteen. Why would she want to fail?"
"Perhaps you aren't teaching her right," Severus said coldly.
"Severus!" said Slughorn, taken by suprise at this accusation, "You say my teaching is incorrect? I taught you, boy!"
"I'm meerly suggesting you try a different approach with her," Severus replied calmly, "She's not like other students, Horace; she needs to feel the teacher is her friend. Honestly, it works."
I stomped my foot down outside. Stupid Severus was so oblivious! He obviously heared me, as he asked of no one in particular, "What was that?"
Slughorn opened the door, and I stood there, mute. "It would appear to be just the girl of the hour!" said he.
"I, erm, have somewhere to b-..." I started, but Severus cut me off.
"Sophia, come in." He commanded. "Now."
I did as I was told, and plopped myself down in his chair. "Errrr.... Wotcher?"
"Sophia, what is going on?" Severus demanded, "You're failing not only Defence Against the Dark Arts, but Potions, your best subject? What's the matter with you?"
"It's as Slughorn said!" I spat, "I'm doing it all on purpose!"
"Why on Earth would you do that?" Slughorn asked.
"To get Severus to stop teaching D.A.D.A.!" I said, "He's the Potions Master! This is a protest!"
"Sophia!" Severus scolded, "Don't put your future in jeopardy as a childish protest!"
"It isn't childish!" I spat back, "It's important! You're risking your life!" I tried to fight back tears, but one got out. "I can't loose you!"
"You aren't going to," he said, putting one, big hand on my shoulder.
"I'm not taking that risk," I said, looking up at him. "Can't do it."
"I'm sorry, Sophia," said Severus solonmly, "But you'll have to; it's not your choice."
I hung my head and left wordlessly. Draco bumped into me in the hallway, and I smiled at him. "Wotcher, Draco."
"Soph, just who I needed!" he said, then grabbed my wrist and dragged me out of the hallway.
"What the hell, Draco?!" I asked.
"I need your help," Draco said finally.
"With what, y'dunce?" I questioned.
"I need you stand guard outside the room of requirement for me," he said, "Every day. And you can't come inside."
"Why?" I had to ask.
"I can't tell you," he replied.
"You can't tell me?" I repeated, "You tell me everything!"
"I know, but this is different," said Draco.
"What's going on, Draco?" I asked again. "I'm not helping anything if you don't tell me."
"I can't, Soph!" Draco said, "It's, y'know, secret? I can tell you this; it's very important."
A sinking feeling kicked in as I realized what could possibly be so important; I reached up and pulled up his left sleeve. Sure enough, there was the Dark Mark on the pale skin of his arm.
"Draco! T-tell me you d-didn't..."
"I did!" he said, pleased with himself.
"...Say it's fake. Say it's not real!" I said, tears welling up and escaping my eyes as I grabbed the collar of his shirt and shook him. "Tell me!"
"It isn't!" said he, "It's as real as the any other Death Eaters!"
"Don't say that!" I hissed, "Don't say 'any other'! You aren't one of them!"
"What, you can be one, but I can't?" This question stung me with the intensity he had meant to use. I looked him over before replying; he looked so much like his father.
"It's different for me, and you know it," I replied. Of course I told him I was a spy, and of course I trusted him. "You've got parents to worry about!"
"Parents he's going to kill if I fail my mission!" Draco snapped back.
"What mission?!"
"I can't tell you yet," He promised, "But I will. Eventually. But it's big."
Knowing this wasn't going anywhere, I just walked away. I went up to the portrait of the Fat Lady, which, I knew, hid Gryffindor Common Room. I sat down on the floor next to the portrait and leaned against the wall, tapping the floor with my feet to a beat that was only in my head. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I think I fell asleep there, because next thing I knew, I was in the Common Room. I hadn't been that tired, but I'd been horribly bored, and boredom can do things to a person. In any case, around me was Gryffindor Common Room. Sitting up, I saw Ron scratching his head, working on some homework. I leaned forward so I could read what class it was for, and saw it was Defence Against the Dark Arts.
"Y'know you spelled that wrong, right?" I said, pointing at a specific word on his paper.
"Good morning, sleepy-head," Ron laughed, then looked at the word, "It is?"
"God, Ron! Learn how to spell or something!"
"I'm trying!" He replied.
I glanced back at his paper. "..Is that really what you're going to hand-in to Severus? Half of your information's incorrect!"
"Well, Miss Know-It-All, fix it then!" Ron said, quite pleased with himself as he thought he was convincing me to do his homework.
"Fine," I said, and grabbed his paper from him. I re-wrote everything, taking out the mistakes, fixing the grammer, and removing all things that weren't correct.
He looked it over, then said, "..You've got really girly writing."
I punched him and laughed. "You're a real git, Ronald Bilius Weasley!"
"Who told you my middle name?"
"Your father, stupid!" I said, and hit him again.
"Whatever," he replied, sticking his tongue out at me.
I grew cold and distant as Harry freakin' Potter walked into the room. My glare was icey, and I hoped my silence stabbed him like daggers.
"Hey, Mate," said Ron cheerily, "Soph just did my homework!"
"Bet she messed it up on purpose," said Harry, disregarding the fact that I was even there, "She's a git that way. A big, stupid, Death Eater, bloody git."
I couldn't help myself; my American side took control. "You want to go, Potter?!" I demanded, holding up my fists.
"Oh, that would be a fair fight," he said sarcastically, "You're three inches tall."
I kicked his shin. "I could take you anyday, Potter! Anyday, anytime!"
"Ow! Why you littl-.." he started but I interupted him by punching him in the face. I snickered to myself thinking about the black eye he'd get.
"Sophie!" Ron was so shocked; apparantly, Harry hadn't told him about our little row. "What'd you do that for?!"
"Because Harry's a git who thinks I've turned," I spat.
His eyes went to Harry, "Seriously, mate? Why does she think that yo-..."
"Because it's true, Ron!" Harry replied, "It's so obvious! It's written all over her face; or more accurately, her arm."
"I-... She-... It's not..." Ron stuttered, but couldn't find the words.
"Are you always this articulate?" I asked, choking back tears.
"Yes," said Ron, "It's why all the girls love me."
"Get serious, Ron," I snapped a little, "Do you believe Harry? Have I turned? Because it won't matter what I say; I can't make you change your mind."
"I don't think you're a true Death Eater," Ron reasoned, "But I do think you've been acting a little odd. That's all I'm saying. There. Done. That's it."
"...I can live with that," I shrugged.
"Too bad," Harry muttered, then walked away.
Days turned to weeks. Next thing I knew, it was October. The chilly fall air had come and taken the leaves with it. On my broom, I knocked it down each and every time the Quaffle came at me. I smiled, pleased with myself. I had to rub my hands together to keep warm. Glancing across the field as I waited for the Quaffle to come down to my end of the field again, I scanned the other Slytherins. Crabbe was here, but Goyle was missing. Also absent was Draco. It must've had something to do with whatever it was he was plotting. And yet he wouldn't tell me! What did he think I was going to do, gossip about his plans with Potter? Yeah right. I wasn't that girl anymore. Besides, I never told Potter anything Draco didn't want me to. I must've been off in thought, because reality blurred back into focus when I heard shouting.
"Oh, marvelous stop, Lupin!" one of our Slytherin chasers heckled, "Play like that and we'll loose every match!"
"Yeah, you didn't even move!" Crabbe agreed.
"Y'know what?" I said, "I got distracted; lost in thought? I end up thinking a lot! Maybe you should try it some time!"
"Don't start it, Lupin," Crabbe warned, "After all, I've whiped bigger things than you off of the bottom of my shoes!"
"Pfffft," I mocked him, "You don't scare me!" With a snarl, he shot a bludger at me. I kicked it back at him, and it knocked him off his broom. Too bad he was only about three feet in the air. Darn. Once he was in control of his body, he grabbed his beater-stick, and was about to aim the bludger at me again, but an all-too familiar voice interupted the scene.
"Mr. Crabbe!" said Severus, approaching the team, "You wouldn't be aiming that at Miss Lupin, would you? She is our house's best keeper."
I smirked at Crabbe, victory obviously going to me. "However," Severus added, and my smirk faded, "Miss Lupin, I'd like to speak to you about your slipping grades."
"With pleasure, Seve-.. I mean, Professor," I said, getting down off of my broom and following him away. The other Slytherins hated how I called him by his first name.
"You're still failing!" he snapped once we were alone, "You're failing three classes!"
"Severus, we haven't gotten report cards yet," I reminded him.
"Sophia, you haven't done one thing right in either Potions or Defence Against the Dark Arts all year!" Severus scolded, "And MgGonagall tells me you're screwing around in Transfiguration. Tell me, do you plan on graduating this year?"
"Nope!" I laughed, then got serious again. "Not if you're teaching D.A.D.A. And I've always been horrible at Transfiguration."
"You are going to stop this nonsense!" Severus commanded.
"You're trying to boss me around; bully me into doing what you want," I replied snappily, "But it won't work! I'm not eleven-years-old anymore! I've got my own mind and my own plans! After all, I'll be of age in two months!"
His facial expression told me he hadn't thought about that. "Err..." He stuttered, "True as that may be... What would your father say?! You're failing three classes, two purposely! If he could, he'd sa-.."
"He'd say, 'My dear Sophia, you're so brave! Doing what you think is right for my friend Severus! Keep doing it, dear!' And you know it," I interupted. "He'd love me doing this! Sticking up for my beliefs."
"Sophia, you've got to get this in your head: I'm not the one we should be worrying about! You're a young girl, I'm an adult," He said, nodding like he was reassuring himself he was right.
"Oh, Severus!" I rolled my eyes, "You know I'm right! Admit it!"
"I didn't want to do this, Sophia," Severus began, "But you've left me no choice... If you cannot bring up all three of your grades, you won't be allowed to play Quidditch."
"Severus!" I protested, "I-I'm our only chance at the Cup! I've got to-.."
"I'm sorry Sophia," he said, "That's how it is."
"...Y-you can't do that! You aren't captain!" I tried to find loopholes.
"But I am head-of-house, and a teacher," Severus said, "And if you aren't doing well in classes, you cannot do extra-curricular activities."
"Q-quidditch is my life..." I swallowed my tears, "Y-you can't.... You're supposed to be my friend! My godfather!"
"I've got to be teacher first, friend second," Severus replied coldly.
As I lost the fight, a couple of tears trinkled down my face, "Y-y'know, you're a real git sometimes, S-Sev!"
He turned away from me. For some reason, he couldn't look at me. I thought I saw a tear run down his own cheek. I looked in a mirror; I looked like Lily.
Changing myself as fast as I could to normal, I put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Severus," I sputtered, "I-I didn't mean to... It just.. I didn't..." It's hard to explain why for some reason when I'm heated or feel betrayed, I steal Lily Potter's face... Not purposely, of course, but I look like her just the same.
"Go," he said quietly.
"I beg your pardon?" I asked, not hearing him well.
"Go!" He practically screamed at me, and I ran from his office like I was running from death itself.
More time passed. November. I was off the Quidditch team. Draco wasn't showing up. We were losing every game. And how badly I wanted to play! It was practically murder to sit here, watching us loose. I didn't want to come watch, but Severus made me. He told me if I got my grades up, I could play again. It would be me in front of the rings. That was the worst part. Most of the Slytherins had stopped talking to me all together. Not that that was a bad thing, I hated each of them. Besides Draco, of course.
I noticed how odd our team looked; some third-year I didn't even recognize guarding the rings, my rings. An inexperienced second-year seeker took Draco's place. Strangely, Goyle was holding his beater stick, zooming around, but Crabbe was absent. Our back-up beater, a fourth-year, had seen a lot of game time. It seemed like every game one of them was missing. I figured they were helping Draco with his big secret. Those idiots didn't need to know what they were doing as long as they were told they were doing it right.
The friendly, and loud, voice of Luna Lovegood interupted my thoughts. "And Mallory Volven has caught the snitch! I do like her, she's a lot of fun."
I looked up to see across the field, my cousin was holding the snitch as she sat on her broomstick. Her name was Mallory, but Julie started calling her Mallard. We all called her Ducki. Mallory's dad was Julie's dad's brother. So really, she wasn't my cousin, but she might as well have been.
Ducki beamed, so happy with herself; it was the first time she caught the snitch. True, it was her second match as seeker, but last time, she was playing Gryffindor, and Potter got to it first. It took her a while to get onto the Quidditch team, but she had done it now, in her third year.
"Go, Ducki!" Julie boomed from the stands. "You rock, cuz!"
I couldn't take it anymore. Watching our low, defeated team sulk off of the field, hearing them bicker about whose fault it was, soaking in the fact that we lost to Hufflepuff of all houses! It was just too much. I walked away, shaking my head angrily. I mean, of course I was happy for Ducki, but I had to be true to me house.
I bumped into Draco in the hallway again. (Does it seem weird to anyone else that that's the only way I ever saw him?) He was frowing, and his eyes looked red; bloodshot, and, judging by the rings around his eyes, this was caused by lack of sleep.
"Draco, dearest," I said softly, imitating Aunt Narcissa, "You know you've got to sleep. Staying up all the time isn't good for my little boy." I grabbed his cheek and pulled affectionately.
"Geroffmyface," he said as best as he could, what with me pulling his cheek and all.
I let go, letting his cheek shoot back into its normal spot and smacked him lightly. "Still up to no good?"
"Maybe," was his response. "Maybe it isn't no good. You're horrible to judge me."
"Yeah, yeah. What's your evil mission and how can I either help or make it look like I messed it up on accident?" I said with a smile.
"Sophie, I can't tell you!" Draco said firmly.
"Damn it, Draco!" I snapped, "Why the hell not?!"
"Because if anything goes wrong with this plan," Draco shot back, "I die. Mum dies. Dad dies. End of the Malfoys. I've got to do this!"
"I told you not to worry about them!" I replied heatedly, "Do you even remember our promise? The promise we made when we were young?"
"Errr... yes?" he said, unsure.
"We were seven," I said. "We were scared. We knew it would come to this. We knew the Dark Lord would be back, if only because it was all Uncle Lucius talked about. 'A year until he's back at the most,' he'd say, remember? We promised if anything happened, if we were on opposite sides, we'd protect each other depending on the out-come."
"I'm starting to remember..." he said slowly, "How would we protect each other? What out-come?"
"You promised me," I brought into focus, "If the Dark Lord rose again, took control of everything, if he won, that you'd keep me safe. You said you wouldn't let me get hurt. You promised to keep all my secrets, because I promised to tell you them. I promised you that if he fell once more, this time for good, that I'd protect you, and Aunt Narcissa, and Uncle Lucius; I won't let any of the Order hurt you. I said I'd keep all your secrets, because you promised to tell me them. I promised you I'd die for you, should it come to it. It's the same thing you promised me."
"We promised all that?!" Draco exclaimed, shocked at what truly wonderful family we'd been to each other, "At seven?!"
I nodded. "I'm keeping my end of the promise; how about you?"
"I will tell you," he said solomnly, "I just can't right now. I will though. I promise." He smiled a real smile at me, and I couldn't help but smile back. I loved my cousin so much when he was being honest with me. I hated the boy most people took him to be. Sure, he's mean to muggleborns and cruel to "bloodtraitors". So what? We all do things that in ten, twenty years, we won't be proud of. If Hermione, or Ron, or even Potter, could see him through my eyes? They'd be nicer to him.
"I've got to get going," Draco said, ending my thoughts. "Got to work on.. Y'know.."
"I actually don't" I reminded him, "But that's the point, right?" I winked.
"Yeah," he agreed, then started to walk away. He stopped about twenty feet from where he began, came back, and awkwardly hugged me.
I hugged him back. "Thanks, Draco," I said, "For being so honest with me." He said nothing, and left, to go where ever it was he went.
"Sophia Lupin!" said a young voice behind me. I spun around to face a girl I didn't know the name of, but I had definately seen in class before. She had fine stationary in her arms, telling me she'd just been to the Owlary recently. "Professor Slughorn wants to see you."
"Goody," I muttered sarcastically before walking away. I stepped on a paper that matched her stationary on the way out. It said, "Ramilda Vane."
"Ahh!" said Slughorn when I entered his office, "Sophia, dear! We simply must talk! You never talk to me, you know. Makes me think you don't like me anymore."
"Oh, Sir," I said, "Of course I like you. I'm just horribly busy recently, I'm afraid. Lots of homework."
He waited a moment before replying. He spent that moment staring at me. "You're so amazingly like your mother," he said finally.
"I wish you wouldn't say that," I said honestly.
"Why, dear?" Slughorn asked, "Your mother was a wonderful woman, and a wonderful student. She was in my little club with her best friend.."
"..Lily Evans," I finished for him, "Yeah. I know. 'wondeful, wonderful, wonderful'. Y'know, I've never heard of another wonderful woman quite like her, Sir." It came out quite bitterly.
"Yes, she was wonderful," Slughorn went on, not hearing my bitterness, "Not one quite like her, not even her ow-.."
"'Own twin, Narcissa'," I interupted, knowing everything he was going to say, "'The only one of her sisters she was anything like was Bellatrix. After all, they were just so close. If Sara wasn't in school, she was with Bellatrix. If she wasn't with Bellatrix, she was babysitting for Andromeda while telling her parents she was at Jacob's'."
When he looked at me, mouth hanging open, I shrugged. "I've heard it so many times I've got it memorized. I've even got notes of it beneath my bed: 'Not like Narcissa,' 'Just like Bellatrix,' 'Always with Bellatrix,' 'Babysitting for Andromeda'. I've got it down to a science."
"I'm sorry, dear," he sighed, "You probably don't like being compared to her."
"I just find her weird because she was always with Bellatrix, her Death Eater sister, but her best friend was muggle-born," I said honestly, "She was so strange."
"I won't deny that one," Slughorn chuckled. "Always had to do things her own way."
"..Did you call me here to talk about her, Sir?" I asked, wanting to get back to the point.
"Hm?" he replied, "Oh! No, dear. I had alternate reasons, of course, though it does in envolve your mother."
My head perked up: I had to hear what he had to say.
"Yes," he went on, "I believe I was looking through my things when I found this, and it said on the first page, 'Do not read; give to Sophia.' I regret to say I tried to peek passed the first page, and suffered from oddly colored hair for days." As he spoke, he searched through a large trunk. "Ahh, here it is!"
He tossed out a big, heavy book. As it hit the ground loudly, a puff of dust rose into the air. I coughed as I picked it up. The inside read:
Sara Black's journal, you hold in your hand.
Should you turn the page, you'll try your luck at my games.
Turning passed this page, I don't recommend.
Passed this page there are many thoughts, dreams and names.
If you dare read my journal, I shall bring your end.
I have only one last piece of advise, should you wish to live.
Give to Sophia: Do not read.
I just stared at it; Judging by both the books apparant age and the fact that it said "Sara Black," I assumed it was her journal from her years at Hogwarts. Such a strong warning could only mean she had a very, juicy, secret life at school. I was shocked at Slughorn for even looking passed.
"Sara liked to scare people," He informed me. He apparantly supposed he should say so since the strong caution was so horrific. "She'd never do anything harmful. Change a persons hair color, yes, but nothing harmful." He smiled to himself, thinking of some pleasant memory that wasn't being shared with me.
"Thank you Sir!" I said, clutching the book close to my chest. "I'll keep it safe."
"Get your grades up!" He shouted behind me as I ran out of the room and up to Slytherin Common Room. From the sound of him, it had been his purpose for calling me there, but he had forgotten because of the journal.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________