*~Chapter Two~*

"Therefore he would have already noticed you, you were one of the first to join his side," Severus pointed out as they entered the castle and headed towards the dungeons.

"True, but after he gathered others there was almost no need for me or so it seemed.  I just wanted to honor him and to be there when he needed me since he was my first friend… my only friend until I met you.  You introduced me to tons of other people who came to like me."

"And you were happy, you were glad to be my friend.  Then he fell, I turned, and you were thrown into chaos?"

"Yeah, torn between many, I always wondered what to do… it's like I was some slave, helpless without my master there." They entered the dungeons and Cora glanced in every direction, it was the same sight from way back when she was in school, the deepness, the dimly lit halls, the dust, the love for them that few could find, and the memories.  This was her favorite place in all of Hogwarts

"That's how he wanted us to be, helpless slaves that couldn't live without him, the thing is, and most of us could, so we turned our backs on him."

"Yeah, but then there's us, we grew our will back."

"Most did yes, some didn't."

"You did… and you betrayed him!"

"I did what I had to."

"To save your own skin pal…" Cora was led to a door and Snape opened it.  She looked inside to see your normal, average, everyday room.  There wasn't anything fancy or anything that fit her taste. "Thanks, I guess."

"Only doing what Dumbledore told…" Cora entered the room and Snape went to shut the door.

"Wait! I'll do it myself," Cora yelled after setting down her stuff.

"Still as cautious as ever."

"And forever will be." Snape left and Cora examined the door making sure it wouldn't lock her in somehow, kill her, or anything else that could harm her.  She then closed the door and sorted through her stuff.  She had plenty of clothes, an ominous mirror, a photo album, potion ingredients, a cauldron, and a newspaper clipping.  She grabbed the ominous mirror and put it in a pocket of her robes.

She then exited her room and wandered into Snape's classroom, it was partly accidental and partly purposeful.  She wandered down the clear aisle to his desk.  The students watched her the full way there and watched her even as she stood there, "Dumbledore need me to do anything yet?" She whispered to make sure none of the students would hear her.

"Just wander around and make sure there's no one here who shouldn't be," Snape replied without bothering to look up at her.

"And how do you suggest I do that when I know not of who is supposed to be here?" She questioned sounding rather annoyed.

"I don't know, you are quite smart, you figure it out."

"Whatever, I should have known you would care less after getting me suckered into this Severus!" Cora yelled while exiting the classroom that was now full of whispers.  She slammed the door when she left and then let out a sigh. "Things will never be the same." She entered the Great Hall.

"Cora?" A familiar voice questioned.

"It is I…" She stated while turning to meet the voice.  She saw the person standing in the doorway to the Great Hall. "Karkaroff?"

"Yes, it is I.  Why are you here?"

"Severus, Albus, and Minerva wanted me to watch the grounds to make sure no Death Eaters come to kill people… Severus is absolutely no help when I need him most!" Cora continued walking and passed Karkaroff to exit the castle.  Karkaroff let her pass without saying another word.  He continued to walk and Cora watched him enter the dungeons, "Business with Snape, eh?"

She suspiciously questioned to herself.  She shrugged it off and entered the sunny castle grounds.  She stopped once she had exited the castle.  She looked from the left to the right and back to the left; there was nothing suspicious except the large carriage and ship.  She continued to walk; she went down the stairs and stepped onto the grass.

"A gigantic carriage and large ship? Wait, they must be the two other schools here for the triwizard tournament!"

"Very perceptive…" Someone stated behind her.  She turned around to see a girl with dark brown hair, blue eyes, and disgusted face staring at her.

"Why, thank you oh so very much, to what do I owe such a kind word?" She questioned totally faking innocence.

"Oh, ha ha… ha ha," The girl dully said. "Do you mind moving?"

"Uh… ever here of walking around me you little brat?" Cora questioned with an annoyed tone.

"Sorry, no, what does that mean?"

"It means yes, I do mind moving for a rude little brat such as you, so go to the right or left of me…" Cora stated deciding this was a stupid argument.  She rolled her eyes, "Whatever… as long as you're happy my princess!"

She stepped to the right and allowed passage for the girl.  Without saying anything the girl walked past.  Cora decided to see why the girl was off and alone so she wandered inside to see if the students were having lunch or something.  They, in fact, were, it had just started.  Dumbledore motioned for Cora to go up to the teacher's table as soon as she had entered the Dining Hall.

Cora did as instructed and looked to both sides.  On either side of her were two tables, Gryffindor and Ravenclaw on one side, and Slytherin and Hufflepuff on the other.  The tables were crammed with students who had just started eating but they still watched her.  She was quite sick of being stared at in the day, all of the time it was by the students too.  She walked up to the middle of the teacher's table.

"If I could quickly get your attention," Dumbledore told the students. "I would like to introduce to you our new guest.  Her name is Cora and she will be monitoring the castle grounds for anything strange, for, as you all know, there was a student killed just a few days ago.   It may have just been from wandering into the forest and getting attacked by some rabid creature…

"But a student who was a witness told us of a death eater.  So Cora came to our aid," Dumbledore finished.

"More like answering a call…" Cora grumbled so no one could hear. "Anyway… are there any students who aren't in here… maybe a Slytherin perhaps?"

"Yes, Piper, I sent her to go get something from Hagrid's for me," Snape replied.

"Just wondering, some rude little brat had confronted me out there, must've been Piper…" Cora said with a forced smile.  Cora turned around to leave.

"Aren't you going to join us?" Dumbledore questioned.

"No thanks, not hungry," Cora started down the part in tables again, this time she was even being taken notice of.  Guess it's just because they didn't know my name or why I was here… nosy children.  Cora complained in her thoughts.  She exited the Dining Hall and entered the Great Hall only to be greeted by Piper.

"So, you're Piper, no?" Cora stated seeing her unhappy face.

"Correct… you must be the Cora that Snape was talking about."

"Oh, so he's talking about me… what'd you go get for him?"

"That I cannot show you."

"Why not? Did he tell you not let me see or something?"

"No, but it's none of your business.  It's nothing truly important it's…"

"I know Severus, if it wasn't truly important he woulda gone to get it himself, hand over whatever it was now or I'll be forced to make you meet that Alexandria girl."

"You would never… you're an auror!" Piper glared at Cora as she blocked the way to Snape.  Cora just grew a pleased smirk.

"And it is my business since I'm supposed to make sure no one else is killed."

"You… you were a D…" Cora clasped her hand over Piper's mouth.

"Shhh, it'll be our little secret, k? Now hand over the item," Cora demanded just before she got bit by Piper. "Ah, shit, you little punk!"

"Never, I mean never, put your hand over my mouth, and don't order me around!" Piper pulled out her wand and before Cora could react, "Expelliarmus!"

Cora flew into the Dining Hall's closed doors with a loud bang.  She slid down but stayed sitting for a minute.  Dang that would be a great quality in a Death Eater… let's see what else she's got, shall we? "Expelliarmus!" She copied.

Piper flew against the wall and made a thud when she hit it and fell to the floor, "Serpen Sorsia!" A snake flew out of Piper's wand; Piper had learned the spell from Draco Malfoy.

"So, big deal, a snake," Cora shrugged it off. "Petrificus Totalus!"

Piper managed to block the attack and they pretty much just threw spells at each other and blocked but neither had noticed the mob of students and teachers who wanted to see how it would end; even Dumbledore wanted to see one win or lose.

"Ah, curses!" Cora shouted as the forgotten snake bit her in the leg. "You'll be next ya stupid snake!" She yelled as she kicked it when it let go.

"Guess it's a good thing that ones not poisonous," Piper stated gaining confidence in her powers.

"Good thing for you more like it…" Cora stated just before noticing the audience they had gathered.  "Guess we should continue this some other time as we aren't getting very far right now…"

"Scared?"

"Tired… we're both tied… not getting very interesting as I can't show full power on someone who's only a fourth year student," Cora stated turning around and walking to the dungeons.  She made sure that no spells would hit her since her back was turned by secretly casting a protection spell.

"Wait! Cora… can we talk, privately!" She heard Piper yell behind her.  Cora turned around.

"Sure, why not, come with me," Cora signaled for Piper to follow her and so Piper did.  They went into the dungeons and Piper looked around, she expected to go into Snape's classroom but when they passed it, she grew slightly concerned.  Cora led her into her room and closed the door. "I still have to unpack all of my stuff so don't worry if you break anything, it's not mine." She had grown a gentle smile as she looked at the girl that now sat on her bed.

"Hey, sorry about early outside, I've been pretty ticked off lately."

"Heh, no prob, I've been treated worse… much worse, trust me.  So, what did you wanna talk about?"

"You're a Death Eater right?"

"That I am, why do you ask?"

"My parents are Death Eaters and…"

"Really, what are their names?! Are they looking for Lord Voldemort too?!" Cora questioned getting childishly excited.

"No… they say if he rises he rises and they'll go back, otherwise they don't care."

"Oh… heh, I shoulda known I would be pretty much all alone in my search…"

"… Anyway… do you think I could become a Death Eater?"

"Only Lord Voldemort himself can decide that… I say you could, but it's up to him," She let out a sigh of sorrow and looked at the ground. "You see, we could only recommend people, half of the time he said he had other things to worry about…"

"Well, that sucks…" Cora laughed at Piper's comment.

"Nah, he always had his reasons."

"You loved him didn't you?"

"Clever… got over that when I realized he never noticed me any more… though I always did try to impress him."

"Why didn't you tell him?"

"What?! Are you insane?! It was a trivial matter; he didn't have to be bothered."

"With the way I see it, you were too scared… and are."

"One, you don't know me, two, you don't know what being a Death Eater is like!"

"Amazing, you can kill people without feeling anything and then you're too scared to tell someone your feelings!"

"No…"

"Heartless yet scared…"

"That's it, get out!"

"Whoa, hang on…"

"Get out, now!" Cora demanded; she turned around as if to say she would say no more.  Her hand darted into one of her pockets and pulled out the mirror.  She held it up and turned back around.  She concealed it from Piper's sight but kept it out, "I thought I told you to leave now!"

Piper got up and walked out of the room.  The moment Piper's back was to Cora, Cora held up the mirror, the back faced Piper, and she looked into the face, "What the hell?!" She angrily questioned to herself when Piper was out of earshot. "This thing busted or something? Eh, either way, it's too valuable to just dump."

She gently fell onto her bed after walking over to it.  She groaned as she realized it was dusty and rather hard, "What'd I get myself into?" She lifted her hands arm length above her and held the mirror in her right.  She studied her reflection on the clean, shiny face.  She studied the rim; it had Red and Gold swirling all over it.  She turned it over to look at the back.  SP was engraved into it.

SP stood for Samantha Paine; Samantha Pained had been a tall, beautiful woman.  She stood six feet even; she had blonde hair that reached down to her shoulders, and deep green eyes.  She had also been Cora's mother.

"I wonder what you say about me…" She told the mirror. "What was it you said about my mother…? I can never remember when I want to." Cora felt her eyes slowly start to water up.  She closed them to keep the tears from leaving them and then she quickly stood up. "What's gotten into me? I never cry I don't care about what happened to my parents, it was there fault… I couldn't do anything anyway…"

She shook the feeling of it being her fault away; she went through her stuff again until she came to one particular article of clothing.  It was a pair of old, black, biker gloves that muggles wore.  She only remembered them from when her father would wear them.  Once he had died, she got the gloves, his motorcycle, and most of his and her mother's things.  She slipped her hands into the old gloves; they were black leather, they had no fingers but covered the back and palm of her hands, and in the middle of both was a small piece of silver, in each was engraved: To all who wear these gloves good luck, to all who have lost something, you will find something.

These words had always encouraged and inspired Cora since she was able to read.  Her parents were kind and when she lost them, she had to have these gloves.  She had lots of things that her parents once owned back at home, but she could never bring all of it to Hogwarts.

                                   

Author's ravings: Wow, no replies yet… boy doesn't this suck… SOMEONE PLEASE REPLY!!