A/n: Hello everyone! Did you all have a good Christmas? I certainly hope so
and I hope you have a great New Year as well. I have some future chapters
written already but it's just a matter of editing and getting everything
ready to update. *sigh* that's the difficult part! I don't have time for
reviewer notes this time but I want to thank everyone who has read and
reviewed this. Please keep doing it! Thanks everyone!
--
Dorcas eyed the familiar Quidditch pitch as she made her way to the doors of Hogwarts castle. The Slytherin team was practicing, as usual, and Dorcas had no doubt they would win the Quidditch cup again this year. Severus had told her as much as he was now Potions Master at Hogwarts, having taken up the job last year.
Dorcas breathed in the familiar Hogwarts air and smiled at the students who read beneath trees or walked by her, laughing happily. It was worth fighting this war just to save Hogwarts. The castle had been more like home than anything Dorcas had ever come close to. It had been a refuge to get away from her parent's house. Her parents who Voldemort had killed in her first year of joining his ranks.
Dorcas squeezed her way through countless students who eyed her suspiciously. It was rare that Hogwarts had visitors these days. Or so the students thought. Mostly visiting members of the Order or of the Ministry would arrive by Floo powder so as not to have to deal with inquisitive students. But Dorcas liked being back here and so she didn't mind wading through the countless throngs of pupils.
"Who're you?" a tall, broad shouldered, red-headed boy called loudly.
"Shut up Weasley," someone else replied.
"Well, she's not a student."
Dorcas smiled. "No, I'm not a student. . .erm. . . .Weasley?"
"Bill," the boy offered.
"Right. Well I'm just here visiting Bill, is that alright?"
Bill frowned but shrugged and walked on. "I really don't care to be honest. We just don't get visitors much."
Dorcas smiled and continued on her way, finally ending before the statue that marked Dumbledore's office. She muttered the password (Phoenix) and ascended the moving staircase. She knocked lightly on Dumbledore's door.
"Enter," his comforting voice said politely.
Dorcas walked into the familiar circular study to see Dumbledore bent over a pile of papers. He looked up and stood politely as Dorcas took a seat across from him, sitting only after she had gotten situated. "How are you Dumbledore?"
Dumbledore sighed, dropping his quill and leaning back in his chair. He looked tired but his eyes still held their characteristic twinkle. "I heard there was another attack on James, Lily, Frank, and Alice this morning."
Dorcas nodded her head sadly. "It's a miracle that they survived. They are among the very select few who have managed to escape his wrath twice."
"This is not the only thing that you have come to tell me," Dumbledore replied, watching her closely.
Dorcas smiled slightly. He read people like an open book, she couldn't figure out how he did it. "No. I have suspicions that there is a spy in the Order of the Phoenix."
Dumbledore sat forward, his eyes narrowing in attention. "What has led you to believe this?"
Dorcas sighed. "Many things. The Dark Lord somehow knows things that he couldn't possibly know. He knew we were going to fight a day after we had agreed upon it. Just today He told the Death Eaters that he had been notified where Lily and James would be shopping."
"This is very interesting news, have you any suspicions on who it could be?"
Dorcas shook her head sadly. "No. He or she is a secret spy of Voldemort's. A player in this game that he has chosen not to reveal just yet. Not even to his Death Eater's."
Dumbledore sighed sadly. "I knew this day would come. It is only fair that I am betrayed as well. Voldemort and I are not so different in that sense."
Dorcas flinched at the name but said nothing. Dumbledore seemed to stare off into nothing until Dorcas cleared her throat to gain his attention.
"Forgive me," Dumbledore said softly. "Is this all you have come to tell me?"
"Master is angrier than I have ever seen him. He is blinded by his fury and hatred toward James. I don't think he will worry about the other couples, not until James is killed."
Dumbledore nodded. "Yes, Severus told me as much."
Dorcas stood from his chair. "Are you busy?" Dorcas asked, eyeing the stacks of papers on Dumbledore's desk.
"I am trying to find a replacement for a Divination teacher," Dumbledore sighed. "I'm afraid old Professor Dawsny has passed away."
Dorcas never had any love for Professor Dawsny. She didn't really teach the class, simply handed them books to study from and then dozed in a chair in the corner of a room. She would awaken when the bell rang and would collect their assignments and then drift off into sleep once more. "I'm sorry to hear that," Dorcas replied untruthfully.
"It will cause me to cancel Divination for the rest of the year. I haven't the time to properly search for a replacement. Come summer I will start my search anew."
Dorcas nodded and then stood from her chair. "I think it's time I left now. Thank you for seeing me Dumbledore."
Dumbledore stood and waved her out the door before falling back into his chair and gazing at nothing, thinking things only he could fathom.
--
Dorcas walked along the dark, familiar corridors of the dungeons. This is where the potions lessons were held and, according to Dorcas' calculations, where they would be ending in a few minutes. She found Severus teaching a class, his black eyes taking in everything as he surveyed the silent classroom. Dorcas smiled, imagining that Severus was probably a very stern teacher.
The familiar bell rang and the students nearly trampled Dorcas as they flew from the classroom. She could hear snippets of conversation as the students filed down the narrow corridor of the dungeons.
"I thought he was going to kill me," one girl said fearfully.
"He wouldn't have killed you but I hear he can put a curse on you that will drain your body of blood and turn you to a ghost," Bill, the red head she had met earlier, said mysteriously.
"Shut up Bill! You'll send poor Amelia into hysterics!" cried a girl with pigtails as she ran after her friend.
Dorcas shook her head as she edged into the classroom. "Hello Severus."
Severus started but a faint smile lined his lips when he saw who it was. "What brings you here?"
Dorcas sat on a desk, gazing around the classroom. Piles of cauldrons stood in a corner and a large blackboard blocked the front wall. Severus's neat handwriting covered it with strict instructions on how to brew a sleeping draught. "I wanted to give Dumbledore my thoughts that there might be a spy in the Order."
Severus nodded. "I thought so too though I didn't tell him in my reports."
"I figured as much. He seemed surprised by it."
"Who do you think it is?" Severus asked.
Dorcas shrugged. "I've no idea. That's why it makes me weary. We are at the mercy of whomever it is."
Severus frowned. "What do you mean by that?"
"Come on, think about it. Everyone in the Order knows about our betrayal. Whoever it is needs simply tell Master about it and we are dead."
Severus rubbed his chin. "But they haven't told yet."
"Perhaps they are stupid or maybe they are waiting for the opportune moment. We shall have to see."
Snape nodded and then watched Dorcas with his cold stare. "Do you ever wonder if we made a mistake switching sides?"
Dorcas was taken aback for many reasons. One because Severus never talked about his doubts or fears and another because of the question itself. Was he doubting his allegiance to Dumbledore? Was this his way of confessing he was the spy? "Never."
"How are you so sure?"
Dorcas shifted uncomfortably. "We are on the right side. I am willing to die for this Order and the friends I have made in it. Lily and James and Sirius are the best friends I've ever had and I can tell you that I have never been happier. I would rather die for a worthy cause and travel to whatever comes after death with a clear heart."
Severus nodded but a scowl remained on his lips. "Why are you so close with those worthless beings?"
"Why do you hate them so much?"
"Lily is a mudblo-"
"Don't you dare say it." Dorcas said threateningly.
"I apologize. How can you be friends with them? You don't belong with them."
Dorcas stood from the desk and glared at him angrily. "Who are you to say who I belong to or not? I am happy with them and they accept me for who I am. Obviously very unlike you."
Dorcas turned around and began stomping her way from the classroom. She was caught on the arm by Severus. "I'm sorry."
Dorcas scowled. "Well you should be. You've insulted me now and dirtied the name of one of my best friends and yet you will not tell me why you hate them so."
Severus shrugged. "It's something that lies between them and myself. It's not for you to know."
Dorcas sighed. "Fair enough."
An uncomfortable silence followed until Dorcas broke it with, "So how do you like teaching here?"
Severus shrugged. "I like it well enough. I applied for the Defense Against the Dark Arts job but Dumbledore asked me to teach Potions."
"I'm sure he has a reason."
Severus nodded distantly. "I'm sure he does."
Dorcas sighed. "I'd better get going. I need to talk to James about the deer thing. Did you know he was an Animagus?"
Severus face hardened. "I had my suspicions."
Dorcas then did something that took Severus off guard. She hugged him. Severus reluctantly hugged her back, as if unsure of whether he knew how or not. Dorcas could feel the tension in his muscles as they wrapped around her. This was precisely the reason she did this. He was a good man with a troubled and mysterious past. She felt pity for him.
"Goodbye Severus."
"I will see you later." Severus replied.
With a swish of her cloak, Dorcas retreated down the dark corridor, heading for Hogsmeade where she would be free to Disapparate.
--
A/n: Good? Bad? Let me know by pushing that pretty button down there that says review!
--
Dorcas eyed the familiar Quidditch pitch as she made her way to the doors of Hogwarts castle. The Slytherin team was practicing, as usual, and Dorcas had no doubt they would win the Quidditch cup again this year. Severus had told her as much as he was now Potions Master at Hogwarts, having taken up the job last year.
Dorcas breathed in the familiar Hogwarts air and smiled at the students who read beneath trees or walked by her, laughing happily. It was worth fighting this war just to save Hogwarts. The castle had been more like home than anything Dorcas had ever come close to. It had been a refuge to get away from her parent's house. Her parents who Voldemort had killed in her first year of joining his ranks.
Dorcas squeezed her way through countless students who eyed her suspiciously. It was rare that Hogwarts had visitors these days. Or so the students thought. Mostly visiting members of the Order or of the Ministry would arrive by Floo powder so as not to have to deal with inquisitive students. But Dorcas liked being back here and so she didn't mind wading through the countless throngs of pupils.
"Who're you?" a tall, broad shouldered, red-headed boy called loudly.
"Shut up Weasley," someone else replied.
"Well, she's not a student."
Dorcas smiled. "No, I'm not a student. . .erm. . . .Weasley?"
"Bill," the boy offered.
"Right. Well I'm just here visiting Bill, is that alright?"
Bill frowned but shrugged and walked on. "I really don't care to be honest. We just don't get visitors much."
Dorcas smiled and continued on her way, finally ending before the statue that marked Dumbledore's office. She muttered the password (Phoenix) and ascended the moving staircase. She knocked lightly on Dumbledore's door.
"Enter," his comforting voice said politely.
Dorcas walked into the familiar circular study to see Dumbledore bent over a pile of papers. He looked up and stood politely as Dorcas took a seat across from him, sitting only after she had gotten situated. "How are you Dumbledore?"
Dumbledore sighed, dropping his quill and leaning back in his chair. He looked tired but his eyes still held their characteristic twinkle. "I heard there was another attack on James, Lily, Frank, and Alice this morning."
Dorcas nodded her head sadly. "It's a miracle that they survived. They are among the very select few who have managed to escape his wrath twice."
"This is not the only thing that you have come to tell me," Dumbledore replied, watching her closely.
Dorcas smiled slightly. He read people like an open book, she couldn't figure out how he did it. "No. I have suspicions that there is a spy in the Order of the Phoenix."
Dumbledore sat forward, his eyes narrowing in attention. "What has led you to believe this?"
Dorcas sighed. "Many things. The Dark Lord somehow knows things that he couldn't possibly know. He knew we were going to fight a day after we had agreed upon it. Just today He told the Death Eaters that he had been notified where Lily and James would be shopping."
"This is very interesting news, have you any suspicions on who it could be?"
Dorcas shook her head sadly. "No. He or she is a secret spy of Voldemort's. A player in this game that he has chosen not to reveal just yet. Not even to his Death Eater's."
Dumbledore sighed sadly. "I knew this day would come. It is only fair that I am betrayed as well. Voldemort and I are not so different in that sense."
Dorcas flinched at the name but said nothing. Dumbledore seemed to stare off into nothing until Dorcas cleared her throat to gain his attention.
"Forgive me," Dumbledore said softly. "Is this all you have come to tell me?"
"Master is angrier than I have ever seen him. He is blinded by his fury and hatred toward James. I don't think he will worry about the other couples, not until James is killed."
Dumbledore nodded. "Yes, Severus told me as much."
Dorcas stood from his chair. "Are you busy?" Dorcas asked, eyeing the stacks of papers on Dumbledore's desk.
"I am trying to find a replacement for a Divination teacher," Dumbledore sighed. "I'm afraid old Professor Dawsny has passed away."
Dorcas never had any love for Professor Dawsny. She didn't really teach the class, simply handed them books to study from and then dozed in a chair in the corner of a room. She would awaken when the bell rang and would collect their assignments and then drift off into sleep once more. "I'm sorry to hear that," Dorcas replied untruthfully.
"It will cause me to cancel Divination for the rest of the year. I haven't the time to properly search for a replacement. Come summer I will start my search anew."
Dorcas nodded and then stood from her chair. "I think it's time I left now. Thank you for seeing me Dumbledore."
Dumbledore stood and waved her out the door before falling back into his chair and gazing at nothing, thinking things only he could fathom.
--
Dorcas walked along the dark, familiar corridors of the dungeons. This is where the potions lessons were held and, according to Dorcas' calculations, where they would be ending in a few minutes. She found Severus teaching a class, his black eyes taking in everything as he surveyed the silent classroom. Dorcas smiled, imagining that Severus was probably a very stern teacher.
The familiar bell rang and the students nearly trampled Dorcas as they flew from the classroom. She could hear snippets of conversation as the students filed down the narrow corridor of the dungeons.
"I thought he was going to kill me," one girl said fearfully.
"He wouldn't have killed you but I hear he can put a curse on you that will drain your body of blood and turn you to a ghost," Bill, the red head she had met earlier, said mysteriously.
"Shut up Bill! You'll send poor Amelia into hysterics!" cried a girl with pigtails as she ran after her friend.
Dorcas shook her head as she edged into the classroom. "Hello Severus."
Severus started but a faint smile lined his lips when he saw who it was. "What brings you here?"
Dorcas sat on a desk, gazing around the classroom. Piles of cauldrons stood in a corner and a large blackboard blocked the front wall. Severus's neat handwriting covered it with strict instructions on how to brew a sleeping draught. "I wanted to give Dumbledore my thoughts that there might be a spy in the Order."
Severus nodded. "I thought so too though I didn't tell him in my reports."
"I figured as much. He seemed surprised by it."
"Who do you think it is?" Severus asked.
Dorcas shrugged. "I've no idea. That's why it makes me weary. We are at the mercy of whomever it is."
Severus frowned. "What do you mean by that?"
"Come on, think about it. Everyone in the Order knows about our betrayal. Whoever it is needs simply tell Master about it and we are dead."
Severus rubbed his chin. "But they haven't told yet."
"Perhaps they are stupid or maybe they are waiting for the opportune moment. We shall have to see."
Snape nodded and then watched Dorcas with his cold stare. "Do you ever wonder if we made a mistake switching sides?"
Dorcas was taken aback for many reasons. One because Severus never talked about his doubts or fears and another because of the question itself. Was he doubting his allegiance to Dumbledore? Was this his way of confessing he was the spy? "Never."
"How are you so sure?"
Dorcas shifted uncomfortably. "We are on the right side. I am willing to die for this Order and the friends I have made in it. Lily and James and Sirius are the best friends I've ever had and I can tell you that I have never been happier. I would rather die for a worthy cause and travel to whatever comes after death with a clear heart."
Severus nodded but a scowl remained on his lips. "Why are you so close with those worthless beings?"
"Why do you hate them so much?"
"Lily is a mudblo-"
"Don't you dare say it." Dorcas said threateningly.
"I apologize. How can you be friends with them? You don't belong with them."
Dorcas stood from the desk and glared at him angrily. "Who are you to say who I belong to or not? I am happy with them and they accept me for who I am. Obviously very unlike you."
Dorcas turned around and began stomping her way from the classroom. She was caught on the arm by Severus. "I'm sorry."
Dorcas scowled. "Well you should be. You've insulted me now and dirtied the name of one of my best friends and yet you will not tell me why you hate them so."
Severus shrugged. "It's something that lies between them and myself. It's not for you to know."
Dorcas sighed. "Fair enough."
An uncomfortable silence followed until Dorcas broke it with, "So how do you like teaching here?"
Severus shrugged. "I like it well enough. I applied for the Defense Against the Dark Arts job but Dumbledore asked me to teach Potions."
"I'm sure he has a reason."
Severus nodded distantly. "I'm sure he does."
Dorcas sighed. "I'd better get going. I need to talk to James about the deer thing. Did you know he was an Animagus?"
Severus face hardened. "I had my suspicions."
Dorcas then did something that took Severus off guard. She hugged him. Severus reluctantly hugged her back, as if unsure of whether he knew how or not. Dorcas could feel the tension in his muscles as they wrapped around her. This was precisely the reason she did this. He was a good man with a troubled and mysterious past. She felt pity for him.
"Goodbye Severus."
"I will see you later." Severus replied.
With a swish of her cloak, Dorcas retreated down the dark corridor, heading for Hogsmeade where she would be free to Disapparate.
--
A/n: Good? Bad? Let me know by pushing that pretty button down there that says review!