Disclaimer: Still not ours, which is a shame. All that money wasted in the
wishing well for nothing. Le sigh
Katie was back in class, her mind wandering. Professor Snape had been ill for the last few weeks, so Professor McGonagall had taken over his potions class. Professor McGonagall was very much interested in the theories and histories of each potion they had to make, so a great deal of the class was now lecture. Katie found it very boring, not that she had ever been interested in potions before and she never thought she'd see the day when she missed Professor Snape.
After class, she gathered up her supplies and walked with Angelina and Alicia to the Great Hall for lunch. Both girls had noticed Katie's foul mood, but assumed it was caused by the death of her parents. They hadn't noticed that it had been going on long before her parents had died. Katie was both pleased and annoyed by this. Pleased because they would ask her no questions if she didn't want to be around them and annoyed that they were impossibly dense.
"Katie, are you ready for quidditch practice tonight?" Alicia asked.
"What?" Katie was shaken from her thoughts. "Practice? Oh, yes, of course." She faked a smile and picked at her food while Alicia and Angelina continued their conversations.
"I'm glad that git Snape is sick so the Slytherin's can't monopolize the pitch anymore," Angelina said.
"How long has he been sick? It's seems like it's been ages," Alicia commented.
"About a month now, I guess," Angelina said, shrugging and taking a drink of her pumpkin juice.
Katie absentmindedly started to muse on what had happened to her in the last month. A month ago her parents were alive. Snape must have taken sick a week or so before her parents had been killed. It all clicked in her mind so suddenly that she choked on her juice. She had to get to Marcus' now.
Marcus winced as he gingerly touched his bruises.
"Pain-dulling potion my ass..." he mumbled. Maybe the potion didn't work with Unforgivable Curses. A house-elf came running into his room.
"Mr. Flint, Ms. Bell just arrived. Do you want to have her wait in the drawing room?" The house-elf squeaked.
"No, you can show her up here, thank you." He pulled a shirt on looked around his room. It was tidy enough, only the bed was unmade. He pulled the covers up and smoothed it out.
"Hello Marcus," Katie said, coming into his room. "Is this your bedroom?" She looked around at the fine furniture and the high ceilings. "It's lovely," she said, fully appreciating it.
"Why thank you, Katie," he said, sitting down on his bed. He patted the spot next to him for her to sit down. She did, feeling a little uncomfortable. They had always talked in the drawing room, where they was no bed.
"Marcus, is Snape a Death Eater?" Katie asked, not bothering to make any more small talk. "There have always been rumors about him around Hogwarts, but I need you to tell me yes or no."
Marcus nodded. "He is, Katie. Has been since the beginning. No one really knows how loyal he is, though. We have a few of our own rumors."
"Snape's been sick lately. He has been for about a week or so since before my parents were..." She couldn't say it, so she just let it hang.
"He hasn't been at any Death Eater meetings in a while, either," Marcus mused.
"So, if he hasn't been talk to You-Know-Who, then he wouldn't know about my parents, right?" Katie asked. "And if he didn't know, then he couldn't get word to Dumbledore and Dumbledore couldn't save them."
Marcus rolled his eyes at the mention of Dumbledore. Katie gave him a stern look and he stopped.
"It makes sense, Katie. This is really lucky for us," Marcus said, smiling. The Dark Lord would be very pleased with this information. It didn't prove that Snape was the spy, but it sure did incriminate him.
Katie scowled. "Yeah, really lucky. Lucky my parents had been killed or else we'd never find this out," she said sarcastically.
Marcus stared at her helplessly. "Katie, I'm sorry," he began.
"No you're not Marcus. You hated my parents. Especially my step-mother," she spat. Marcus looked at her wordlessly. He couldn't deny that he hated her step-mother. She was muggle-born, after all.
"But I'm sorry it happened," Marcus tried again, but Katie shook her head.
"No, Marcus, you aren't. If I hadn't spied for you, you wouldn't have given her death a second thought. She would have been just another mudblood who got what she deserved, right?"
"Fine, Katie!" Marcus said, standing up. "It's true. She was just a mudblood. She tainted a pure bloodline and that's unforgivable. I can't promise that the Death Eaters would have let her live after you finished your work for us, because they probably wouldn't. And your father married her! He knew what she was and he married her and he lied about her bloodline. He's just as guilty as she was."
"How dare you, Marcus!" Katie said, standing up but only coming up to his chin. What she lacked in height, though, she made up for in rage. "I loved my father and my step-mother very much! He loved Natalie so who cares if she was muggle-born?! And I loved her too, I don't care that she wasn't pureblood and no one else should care either!"
"But people do care, Katie! If muggle-borns are allowed to marry into pureblooded families, then soon there will be no pureblooded families left. That's why we hate them, Katie. They're going to ruin our way of life."
Katie stared at him, speechless. She could not believe he was saying these things.
"Marcus, they're witches and wizards just like us," she argued.
"No, Katie, they aren't. If muggle-borns are allowed into Hogwarts then soon everyone will know about us. Mudbloods have muggle relatives that know what they are. What's to keep them from telling other people that their nephew or niece or grandchild goes to a school for magic?"
"Witches and wizards would die out if they didn't marry muggles. Either that or they'd be horribly inbred."
Marcus shook his head. "That's a lie. There are enough witches and wizards out there."
"People with the gift of magic should be able to learn how to use it," Katie said stubbornly.
"Then too many muggles will learn about us and they'd never leave us alone. We'd be at their beck and call for spells and potions to make their lives better."
Katie couldn't think of anything to say so just glared at him. He met her glare with one of his own.
"I don't want to talk to you right now Marcus," she finally said, leaving his room. He followed her down the hall and down the stairs.
"Katie, wait," he called after her.
"No, Marcus. You have all the information you need from me. You don't need me anymore. If you would please just leave me alone from now on, I'd thank you." She grabbed her robe off the couch where she had left it.
Marcus grabbed her arm, "Katie, please." He did not want her to go like this. He didn't want her to leave forever. Katie shook her arm out of his grasp and made for the fireplace.
"Good-bye Marcus. I can't say it's been a pleasure because then I'd be lying."
Marcus grabbed her hand as she was reaching for the floo powder. "Katie, don't leave like this," he pleaded. She met his eyes and lowered her hand. He reached for her other hand and pulled her close to him.
"I don't want you to go forever," he said, rubbing her hands. He let go of her hands and placed his on either side of her face. He kissed her gently at first, then harder. His arms snaked down to encircle her waist and he held her to him firmly, as if afraid to let her go. Katie murmured as if she wanted to say something, but Marcus would not remove his mouth from hers. For every little moan or murmur she began, he would only deepen the kiss. Finally Katie lowered her head so her lips were out of his reach. He then concentrated on her neck, hoping to remove all protests from her mind.
"Marcus, I have to leave," she said, sounding as if she were near tears. She clutched at his shirt and wiped her tears on his chest.
"Why?" He asked, kissing the top of her head.
"Because, if I stayed I don't know what would happen," she said taking a deep breath.
"I don't know what would happen either. But we can always find out together. And I care about you too much to just let you leave." He did not say love. He would not say love. He couldn't love her.
Katie sighed and looked up at him. She stood on her tip-toes and kissed him lightly. Marcus smiled and returned the kiss, thinking all had been resolved. She ended the kiss and reached for the floo powder. He was holding her other hand as she walked into the fireplace.
"Marcus, it wouldn't work. Please don't call for me again. And I hope everything works out for you," she said, trying to be positive. Marcus kissed her hand lightly and let go.
"Gryffindor Tower," Katie said, and vanished from the fireplace leaving Marcus alone. He stared into the fireplace for a long time, hoping she'd come back, But she didn't.
Katie was back in class, her mind wandering. Professor Snape had been ill for the last few weeks, so Professor McGonagall had taken over his potions class. Professor McGonagall was very much interested in the theories and histories of each potion they had to make, so a great deal of the class was now lecture. Katie found it very boring, not that she had ever been interested in potions before and she never thought she'd see the day when she missed Professor Snape.
After class, she gathered up her supplies and walked with Angelina and Alicia to the Great Hall for lunch. Both girls had noticed Katie's foul mood, but assumed it was caused by the death of her parents. They hadn't noticed that it had been going on long before her parents had died. Katie was both pleased and annoyed by this. Pleased because they would ask her no questions if she didn't want to be around them and annoyed that they were impossibly dense.
"Katie, are you ready for quidditch practice tonight?" Alicia asked.
"What?" Katie was shaken from her thoughts. "Practice? Oh, yes, of course." She faked a smile and picked at her food while Alicia and Angelina continued their conversations.
"I'm glad that git Snape is sick so the Slytherin's can't monopolize the pitch anymore," Angelina said.
"How long has he been sick? It's seems like it's been ages," Alicia commented.
"About a month now, I guess," Angelina said, shrugging and taking a drink of her pumpkin juice.
Katie absentmindedly started to muse on what had happened to her in the last month. A month ago her parents were alive. Snape must have taken sick a week or so before her parents had been killed. It all clicked in her mind so suddenly that she choked on her juice. She had to get to Marcus' now.
Marcus winced as he gingerly touched his bruises.
"Pain-dulling potion my ass..." he mumbled. Maybe the potion didn't work with Unforgivable Curses. A house-elf came running into his room.
"Mr. Flint, Ms. Bell just arrived. Do you want to have her wait in the drawing room?" The house-elf squeaked.
"No, you can show her up here, thank you." He pulled a shirt on looked around his room. It was tidy enough, only the bed was unmade. He pulled the covers up and smoothed it out.
"Hello Marcus," Katie said, coming into his room. "Is this your bedroom?" She looked around at the fine furniture and the high ceilings. "It's lovely," she said, fully appreciating it.
"Why thank you, Katie," he said, sitting down on his bed. He patted the spot next to him for her to sit down. She did, feeling a little uncomfortable. They had always talked in the drawing room, where they was no bed.
"Marcus, is Snape a Death Eater?" Katie asked, not bothering to make any more small talk. "There have always been rumors about him around Hogwarts, but I need you to tell me yes or no."
Marcus nodded. "He is, Katie. Has been since the beginning. No one really knows how loyal he is, though. We have a few of our own rumors."
"Snape's been sick lately. He has been for about a week or so since before my parents were..." She couldn't say it, so she just let it hang.
"He hasn't been at any Death Eater meetings in a while, either," Marcus mused.
"So, if he hasn't been talk to You-Know-Who, then he wouldn't know about my parents, right?" Katie asked. "And if he didn't know, then he couldn't get word to Dumbledore and Dumbledore couldn't save them."
Marcus rolled his eyes at the mention of Dumbledore. Katie gave him a stern look and he stopped.
"It makes sense, Katie. This is really lucky for us," Marcus said, smiling. The Dark Lord would be very pleased with this information. It didn't prove that Snape was the spy, but it sure did incriminate him.
Katie scowled. "Yeah, really lucky. Lucky my parents had been killed or else we'd never find this out," she said sarcastically.
Marcus stared at her helplessly. "Katie, I'm sorry," he began.
"No you're not Marcus. You hated my parents. Especially my step-mother," she spat. Marcus looked at her wordlessly. He couldn't deny that he hated her step-mother. She was muggle-born, after all.
"But I'm sorry it happened," Marcus tried again, but Katie shook her head.
"No, Marcus, you aren't. If I hadn't spied for you, you wouldn't have given her death a second thought. She would have been just another mudblood who got what she deserved, right?"
"Fine, Katie!" Marcus said, standing up. "It's true. She was just a mudblood. She tainted a pure bloodline and that's unforgivable. I can't promise that the Death Eaters would have let her live after you finished your work for us, because they probably wouldn't. And your father married her! He knew what she was and he married her and he lied about her bloodline. He's just as guilty as she was."
"How dare you, Marcus!" Katie said, standing up but only coming up to his chin. What she lacked in height, though, she made up for in rage. "I loved my father and my step-mother very much! He loved Natalie so who cares if she was muggle-born?! And I loved her too, I don't care that she wasn't pureblood and no one else should care either!"
"But people do care, Katie! If muggle-borns are allowed to marry into pureblooded families, then soon there will be no pureblooded families left. That's why we hate them, Katie. They're going to ruin our way of life."
Katie stared at him, speechless. She could not believe he was saying these things.
"Marcus, they're witches and wizards just like us," she argued.
"No, Katie, they aren't. If muggle-borns are allowed into Hogwarts then soon everyone will know about us. Mudbloods have muggle relatives that know what they are. What's to keep them from telling other people that their nephew or niece or grandchild goes to a school for magic?"
"Witches and wizards would die out if they didn't marry muggles. Either that or they'd be horribly inbred."
Marcus shook his head. "That's a lie. There are enough witches and wizards out there."
"People with the gift of magic should be able to learn how to use it," Katie said stubbornly.
"Then too many muggles will learn about us and they'd never leave us alone. We'd be at their beck and call for spells and potions to make their lives better."
Katie couldn't think of anything to say so just glared at him. He met her glare with one of his own.
"I don't want to talk to you right now Marcus," she finally said, leaving his room. He followed her down the hall and down the stairs.
"Katie, wait," he called after her.
"No, Marcus. You have all the information you need from me. You don't need me anymore. If you would please just leave me alone from now on, I'd thank you." She grabbed her robe off the couch where she had left it.
Marcus grabbed her arm, "Katie, please." He did not want her to go like this. He didn't want her to leave forever. Katie shook her arm out of his grasp and made for the fireplace.
"Good-bye Marcus. I can't say it's been a pleasure because then I'd be lying."
Marcus grabbed her hand as she was reaching for the floo powder. "Katie, don't leave like this," he pleaded. She met his eyes and lowered her hand. He reached for her other hand and pulled her close to him.
"I don't want you to go forever," he said, rubbing her hands. He let go of her hands and placed his on either side of her face. He kissed her gently at first, then harder. His arms snaked down to encircle her waist and he held her to him firmly, as if afraid to let her go. Katie murmured as if she wanted to say something, but Marcus would not remove his mouth from hers. For every little moan or murmur she began, he would only deepen the kiss. Finally Katie lowered her head so her lips were out of his reach. He then concentrated on her neck, hoping to remove all protests from her mind.
"Marcus, I have to leave," she said, sounding as if she were near tears. She clutched at his shirt and wiped her tears on his chest.
"Why?" He asked, kissing the top of her head.
"Because, if I stayed I don't know what would happen," she said taking a deep breath.
"I don't know what would happen either. But we can always find out together. And I care about you too much to just let you leave." He did not say love. He would not say love. He couldn't love her.
Katie sighed and looked up at him. She stood on her tip-toes and kissed him lightly. Marcus smiled and returned the kiss, thinking all had been resolved. She ended the kiss and reached for the floo powder. He was holding her other hand as she walked into the fireplace.
"Marcus, it wouldn't work. Please don't call for me again. And I hope everything works out for you," she said, trying to be positive. Marcus kissed her hand lightly and let go.
"Gryffindor Tower," Katie said, and vanished from the fireplace leaving Marcus alone. He stared into the fireplace for a long time, hoping she'd come back, But she didn't.