Main Prompt: [film] Moana

Secondary Prompts: 5.[quote] 'The only difference between a conqueror and a thief is an army' — Margaret Owen and 15.[dialogue] "I'm only a monster when it's practical"

Word Count: 1147

~wWw~

"What do you want with me?" Severus asked. He was only here because the man had threatened to expose him to Voldemort. Somehow he knew that Severus was working for the Order, and not in the way Voldemort wanted him to.

"I want you to join me, you know as well as I do that neither the Order nor the Death Eaters will be fair if they win. So join me, take them both down from the inside. We are no different, you and me. The only difference is that you are alone. But with me, you could have a family again, friends," the masked man shouted.

Severus looked down at his feet, the man's words striking something deep in his heart.

He was alone. He had betrayed everyone.

"We are different. I fight for justice for a better world," Severus whispered back, not caring if the other man heard him.

"No, you don't. You fight for Lily Evans just as I fight for my wife."

Severus took a step back, unable to respond to the man. He was right.

"Think about it. I shall return in time," the man said, disappearing with a twist of his heel. Severus stood in the now deserted dock. He had spent significant amounts of time here during his childhood. This is where his grandfather had lived. It was one of the few places that had brought him peace. Severus could remember going out on fishing trips with his grandfather, they would sit in silence as they waited for something to bite. It had been peaceful, but his grandfather was gone now.

Severus hadn't always been a monster. When he was a child, he had been soft, kind. Then his grandfather had died. After that there had been no one left to protect him from his abusive father. It hadn't taken long for him to change after that.

~wWw~

Severus carefully stepped on his grandfather's boat. After his grandfather had passed he had inherited it, but he had never visited it. Even the thought of visiting it had been too much at the time.

The boat was old and falling apart, but it was still floating. Severus was a little surprised that he hadn't found the hull full of water. The wood was worn with age, nail heads poking up intermittently across the deck. Two fishing rods sat in the tiny cabin, his and his grandfather's, bringing back memories of their time together. Severus ran his hand along the fishing rod and, almost as if he was on autopilot, began to prepare the boat to leave. He untied the ropes keeping it at the dock and opened the sail. As the ship started to drift away from the pier, Severus grabbed a hammer from the cabin and carefully fixed the nails that were beginning to peel away from the boat's floor. He did all this without the aid of magic, just how his grandfather had taught him to. Magic would have been faster, no question about it, but he found the repetitive motions soothing.

Before long, Severus had lost sight of the shore and was far enough out that he could begin to fish. Just like before, it was like he was on autopilot. His grandfather's voice rang in his ears, telling him how to cast, commenting on the weather, showing him where to throw his hook, when to pull up, just like he had all those years ago. It was like his grandfather was right there with him, even though he had been gone for so long. He had forgotten how soothing fishing was, much more relaxing than potion-making, although that wasn't a hard threshold to meet.

As he fished, his grandfather's voice became clearer and clearer. He began to say things that Severus had never heard him say before.

Sev, don't join them. They don't care about you. They only care about power. You are already stuck between two, don't add a third. Aren't Dumbledore and Voldemort enough? Severus paused. It sounded just like his grandfather. The voice even used his special nickname that only his grandfather and Lily used.

"They want to help, don't they?" Severus asked out loud. It seemed a little silly for him to be talking to the voice in his head, but he longed to hear his grandfather's voice again. He carefully adjusted the rod in his hands. There was a light wind, and it seemed like his grandfather was there again, helping him.

No, they don't want to help, and you know that. They only want the power you will give them. They have nothing, no control in this war, you provide them with power, but they give you nothing. Severus knew the voice. His grandfather was right. But the offer they made was tempting. He belonged nowhere to both sides. He was a traitor, whether they knew it or not. He told lies to both of them. He didn't even know which side was the enemy anymore. Both had done terrible things. At least Voldemort was open about it.

"And what if they give me power?" Severus whispered, beginning to wind the reel as he felt a slight tug.

You don't think they will give you power. You know they won't. It's your decision Sev, but this doesn't just affect you. Doing this doesn't help anyone, not Lily, not you, not anyone.

"I know," Severus whispered as he finally pulled up the hook. Attached to it was a small eel. It struggled, fighting to get back into the water. Severus carefully detached it and brought it back to the water. It didn't deserve to suffer. It had done nothing wrong. It was innocent, just like the ones this war had killed.

~wWw~

"Have you made a decision yet?" the man asked, standing in front of Severus just like he had before.

"Yes," Severus said, staring at the man.

"Good," the man said. "Welcome to the club."

"I think you have misunderstood me. I have made a decision. I will not join you," Severus said, letting his face twist into a slight smirk.

"You are a monster. We could have helped you. We are fighting for the same thing, you and I. You're just alone." the man hissed.

"You said that before," Severus said, tightly gripping his wander under his robes.

"It's true, I've given you a chance to redeem yourself, but you didn't want it," the man said, his eyes darkening. Severus thought back to the eel, the one he had let go of. He could have killed it, he could have eaten it, but he didn't.

"I'm only a monster when it's practical." Severus flicked his wand, rushing into the other man's memories searching. He carefully erased all memories relating to him, not wanting this interaction to come back and bite him later.

"And now it's practical," Severus murmured as he apparated away.