Chapter 7: Green is the Colour*

* Green is the Colour, (1969). Soundtrack from the film More, Roger Waters - writer, performed by Pink Floyd.

The last of the leaves had fallen and the Halloween Feast had come and gone. In just a few weeks the students would be boarding the train for the Christmas Holiday. The Scottish weather had turned damp and cold making patrols on the grounds and in Hogsmeade bone chilling. Thankfully they hadn't had more snow to make patrolling harsher than it already was. At least in the castle you were likely to pass a fireplace from time to time. Maya had seen Severus several times since the attack on Katie Bell, but he had taken to ignoring her completely, saving her the experience of feeling his icy glares.

When Maya and Tonks weren't patrolling in Hogwarts or Hogsmeade they were working undercover for the Order in a seedy pub called The Hangman in Knockturn Alley. The Order had received information that the Death Eater Grady was using the pub to meet and pass information to the American Connell. Tonks and Maya posed as barmaids hoping to find out anything about the information they may be passing to Voldemort.

Tonks stood behind the bar wiping a highball glass with a moderately clean towel. Her ability to change her appearance had not returned. By Halloween she had started resorting to hair dying potions. Today she had actually used polyjuice potion and a hair from a muggle woman that was sitting next to her on the tube last week to change her appearance. The stranger's chocolate eyes and gaunt features looked across at Maya. Maya tried to give an encouraging smile to her friend but her own transformed facial features with the dirty blond hair and hazel eyes just made the gesture feel false.

"Heads up, Moneypenny," Tonks whispered from her place at the bar.

Maya could hear the tinkling of bells as someone came through the door. She turned her head to see a swirl of a black cloak and platinum blonde hair. Her heart sank to her feet. The two men made their way to a corner table. Maya carried a tray of dirty glasses over to the bar.

"You gonna be okay?" Tonks asked, a look of commiseration on her face.

"I'll be alright. Maybe he won't recognize me anyway," she answered with a sigh.

"You want me to take the table and you can take the bar until they leave?"

"Nah, I got it." Maya frowned as she emptied the glasses from her tray. She didn't feel like seeing Snape tonight and certainly not the smug arrogant side of him that would be on display for Malfoy. And with this disguise she knew he would recognize her right away. Severus wasn't a regular customer at the dirty little pub or she would have chosen a different disguise. The eyes were different but the face was identical to the one she wore on her visit to Spinner's End. As soon as he took a good look at her the game would be up. She took a deep breath and tightened the strings of her apron, steeling herself for the inevitable. She made her way over to the table where the two men sat, one fair and one dark.

"What can I get you gents?" She kept her eyes down hoping he wouldn't recognize her and they could have their drinks and be gone. Maya could feel Lucius' eyes roaming the corset top to her robes.

"That depends doesn't it Severus? But let's start with two Fire Whiskies, top shelf." Malfoy's oily voice oozed as he made only a halfhearted effort to look her in the eye, his eyes skimmed across the bodice of her dress. Maya could hear Severus' non-committal humph but didn't dare look at him.

"Right, two Fire Whiskies. Anything else?" she asked, eager to get this over with and get them out of the pub.

"I'm sure we can think of something, but just the drinks for now," Malfoy said.

Maya's pause was barely perceptible as she felt the blond wizard's hand caress her backside. "Right then, I'll be back with your drinks." She quickly stepped away before he could get a better hold on her. Maya crossed the short distance to the bar and filled two glasses with the most expensive Fire Whiskey the pub carried and placed the glasses on the filthy tray.

When she got back to the small corner table she could feel Malfoy's eyes on her. Severus it seemed was content to ignore her. She risked a glance in his direction and noticed that he was focused on a piece of parchment in his hands. 'Good. Maybe he's not in the mood to be interested in Malfoy's hints,' she thought.

Maya placed a glass in front of each man. "Anything else I can get you?" And there it was, she could feel his eyes on her. She looked up to see Severus' dark eyes gazing at her, taking in the corset top to her robes and the view it gave him. It seemed to take an eternity for his eyes to drag themselves to her face. For a second, she saw disbelief flit across their depths, and then his face and eyes went blank.

Malfoy saw the Snape's brief expression but misread it completely. "Tempting, isn't she?" Malfoy said as he watched Snape take in her figure.

There was a long pause and Maya was shocked to realize she wanted to know what Snape was going to say as much as Malfoy did.

"Perhaps," Snape said in a bored voice, returning his eyes to his parchment. "A trifle plain and overused though, Lucius. I really don't think it's worth the effort."

Forget her wand. Maya wanted nothing more than to punch him in his overly long nose! The bleeding might just make her feel a little better. She knew his words were meant to be hurtful as well as maintain his cover with Malfoy, but... She felt magic crackle around her and took a breath, clenching a fist and letting it go to calm her anger.

"Nonsense Snape! You set your standards way too high. A witch doesn't have to be marriage material to be worth having a little fun."

Snape gave a haughty huff. "Marriage? Don't be ridiculous. Look at her. She's practically a squib. Why else would she be working in a place like this?"

"I'll have you know there's nothing wrong with my magic," Maya said defensively. She had to be careful. She couldn't blow her cover and knew Snape was deliberately provoking her. Well, two could play at that game.

Maya knew it was a reckless move when she stepped behind Malfoy's chair. She placed a hand on his shoulder and gave a light squeeze as she bent down. "Your friend's not very nice is he, lover?" she whispered in his ear. She could feel the wizard's pulse jump.

"Now Severus, be polite," Lucius said, but his face and eyes were turned, trying to see Maya behind his shoulder. Snape stayed silent.

She straightened and ran a hand through the loose strands of his long blond hair. Maya raked her nails across his scalp as she made another pass through his hair and took a strip of leather that had fastened Snape's parchment from the table. She slowly gathered the long strands of platinum hair at the base of his neck and secured it with the strip of leather. She could feel Lucius sigh and knew he was enjoying the attention. She risked a glance at Tonks who was doing a fair job of hiding the revulsion on her face, but not completely.

Pleased with his reaction so far, Maya was very aware that she had to stay one step ahead of this situation. Lucius Malfoy was not a wizard you could let your guard down around. No matter how angry she was at Snape, she had to stay on her toes. Lucius was a killer. She took a step back putting some space between herself and Malfoy. "Maybe you have enough manners for the both of you," she said smoothly. "Why don't I get you another drink?"

Snape's parchment had been left forgotten on the table and Maya could see it was the schematic for what looked like a wardrobe. 'What on earth would Voldemort want with a piece of furniture?' she thought but didn't have time to take in more. She made to move back towards the bar but Lucius reached out, taking her arm and pulling her back to the table. He pawed at her, snaking an arm around her waist and pulling her into his lap. The evidence of how much he enjoyed her attention was unmistakable as she landed roughly in his lap.

Severus was silent, eyes riveted to the sight of the serving girl sitting in Lucius' lap, his jaw clenched painfully as Lucius made no effort to hide his roaming hands. Severus had managed to ignore Maya since their duel. He had told himself that she was an insufferable nuisance, but in truth he didn't trust himself to speak with her or be close to her; their duel had convinced him he needed to keep his distance. It was becoming difficult to ignore Lucius' lascivious behavior though and he clenched his fists under the table in an effort to keep from throttling his oldest friend.

Maya was sure to keep an eye on the walking stick that contained the wizard's wand. She was an equal match for him if she got a chance to use magic but physically he could easily overpower her.

The jingle of the front door alerted them to a seedy looking wizard in ratty robes, caked in soot and ash. "Sorry, love. I don't have time for that kind of fun tonight. Customers you know, but maybe tomorrow, eh?" Maya welcomed the interruption of the filthy wizard. Malfoy's touch gave her the creeps.

"Let your friend over there deal with him." Malfoy took in the scent of her hair behind her ear. Maya could feel the warmth of his breath on her neck and she fought the urge to cringe.

"I would but the owner's pretty sure she pinches from the till. I'm supposed to be keeping an eye on her. He'll have my hide if we're short tonight." Maya stood, smoothing her apron.

"Lucius, don't you think it's time we were going anyway? We have somewhere to be and I would not suggest we be late," Snape said. His voice was calm but his jaw was set and his well-known scowl left a deep crease on his brow.

'Serves him right,' Maya thought.

"Yes, I suppose you're right, Severus." Lucius sounded disappointed. "It is a pity though. I think you would have been worth the distraction." He tipped her chin up with one long, icy finger and placed a cold kiss to her neck. When he was finished he reached in a pocket of his robes and pulled out several galleons, far more than the cost of the two drinks, and left them on the table.

"Maybe I'll be here when you come back," Maya said with a smile, turning to make her way over to the table where the new patron sat.

As the two wizards were moving to the door, Maya caught Severus' eye and winked. He turned quickly and followed Malfoy out the door, black robes billowing out behind him.

"Good," she muttered as she took the new wizard's order and walked to the bar to get his drink. 'Let him be mad. Let him stew in it.'

Tonks stood at the bar, mouth open. When she recovered she hissed, "What was that all about? Why in the name of Merlin's baggy Y-fronts would you flirt with Lucius Malfoy? If I could change my hair right now it would be the color of sick!"

"I know. I know, Tonks!" Maya said regretfully. "He just really knows how to push my buttons."

"Lucius?"

"No, not Lucius!" Maya hissed.

"Oh, Snape. Yeah, he's pretty good at that. Do you think it worked?

"Do I think what worked?"

"Making him jealous, of course?"

"I wasn't -" Maya stopped realizing that, yes that was exactly what she had been trying to do. "Guess it was pretty obvious, huh?"

"Uhm, yeah. Unless you enjoy cozying up to Death Eaters?"

"No, I don't think he was jealous at all. Angry yes, pretty sure he hates me at this point, but jealous? No, about as far from it as you can get actually."

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The night sky was thick with clouds that shrouded the moon and the air was crisp with the smell of impending snow. The lone figure crossed the inky blackness of the school grounds by memory on a steady and unwavering course to the hidden entrance that lead into the dungeons. Severus shed his cloak, throwing it over the back of his desk chair as he went by. He moved with a sense of urgency as he made his way through the dimly lit corridors of the school. Curfew had only been an hour ago, but most of the school's inhabitants were preparing to return home for the Christmas holiday as tomorrow was the last night of the term. Severus took the stairs to Dumbledore's office two at a time and gave the office door three brisk knocks.

"Severus, my boy, what can I do for you?" Dumbledore sat in an armchair, slippered feet propped on an ottoman as he sipped spiced mead from a goblet. "Just warming my feet. Come in and sit a spell."

Snape entered the headmaster's small parlor with a sigh. It had been a long day of teaching and his head ached from the exertion needed to maintain occlumency for the past several hours with the Dark Lord. A task that was only made more difficult by the persistent images of Maya Ladon dressed in a corset that continued to invade his mind. He sat in the chair facing Dumbledore, taking a moment to rest his head on the back of the chair.

"Can I offer you a headache potion?"

"No, what I need is sleep and some peace and quiet during the holiday but neither of those are very likely."

"What brings you by so late? I assume your absence at dinner was because your other duties kept you occupied?"

"Yes, I thought you might want to know right away. There have been some … developments. The American, Connell, has been recruited to procure an artifact for the Dark Lord. A wand, a very old wand. I believe the exorbitant procurement fee will be coming out of Malfoy's vault. The Dark Lord spent a great deal of time tonight questioning certain followers about precious objects he left in their care for safe keeping before his disappearance. Bella has managed to hold on to something, I have no idea what or where it is. But Lucius had to make excuses for losing the diary. The Dark Lord does not appreciate excuses. He was furious about losing the diary, especially for such a frivolous reason."

"I trust that Voldemort has never entrusted you with any objects or artifacts?"

Severus eyed the old wizard shrewdly. "No."

Dumbledore changed the subject. "So Lucius Malfoy's punishment continues."

It was foolish to press the headmaster for more details. "Ridicule is more like it. It was advantageous for Connell though. The Dark Lord is not known for paying or bargaining for what he wants. Usually he just kills you or tortures you until you hand it over, but Malfoy was there for the abusing and Connell came with interesting information to sweeten the transaction."

"What information was this?" Dumbledore's brow creased, concern showing in his pale blue eyes.

"Connell managed to fill in the blanks that Grady couldn't in the search for the Dragon. It seems that David Putnam felt Sturbridge's death was a little too similar to the Dragon's attacks last year. Ladon has been named as a highly probable suspect for the Black Dragon. Many still doubt she is alive and no one seems to suspect that she has returned here. But if the Dark Lord goes sniffing around in America he will find someone that remembers seeing her."

"It seems I may have been foolhardy in allowing her to return to America last spring. I fear I have placed her in even more danger, Esmerelda as well."

"No more danger than she put herself in with that ridiculous vendetta."

"You know more than anyone that she had her reasons."

"Nevertheless, it was still foolish. Her risks are going to get her killed."

"Severus-"

"No!"

"You don't know what I'm going to ask."

"I don't need to! Given the current topic of conversation, I can guess and the answer is no!"

"I am very busy right now, Severus." Dumbledore put his goblet down on the table and waited until Severus looked him in the eye. "I need to prepare to travel over the upcoming holiday-."

"And you're not going to tell me why, are you? Or where you're off to? Or why the Dark Lord is hunting relics and other objects that he entrusted to his followers?"

"I need you to meet with her, Severus, to warn her of the danger." Dumbledore sidestepped his questions completely only frustrating Severus more. "You must stress the importance of her keeping her identity secret. No one must know she has returned to England."

"What makes you think she'll listen to me?"

"I'm sure you can find a way to persuade her." Dumbledore's coy smile was as irritating as his evasiveness.

"You do remember that just before Halloween she threw a dagger at my head?"

"My boy that was during a duel, I'd hardly say that counts."

Severus scowled at the headmaster. Dumbledore was not going to give him a way out. He had seen the checkmate coming and could do nothing to block it!