The command to disapparate came within minutes. Severus found himself on a narrow country road, torchlight flickering about half a mile away.

Their leader called them together. "When we get there – you, to the left, and you, to the right. Spread out along the perimeter. I will send out a signal when we are ready to attack. No noise."

- - - - -

The members of the Order had formed a rough circle of their own around the Death Eaters and their ghastly pile. Marya was taking shelter with Remus behind a pile of old wooden boards. Her eyes had searched the hooded figures for a familiar tall, thin frame, but she had found nothing. Severus was not here. She didn't know if she should be relieved or disappointed.

- - -

Severus Snape was thinking furiously. He had to warn the Order, somehow. Distancing himself from the group right now and running ahead would be too obvious – there was too much light from the half-moon.

He found his chance when they arrived at the spot from where they would start spreading out, the far corner of the walled field. Motioning that he would take the central position, he waved the masked figures on. They disappeared one by one, bent over alongside the low walls.

As soon as the last ones were out of range, he climbed cat-like over the wall, and noiselessly, carefully, made his way across the field. For once, he was grateful for the black mask and hood, which camouflaged him admirably in the darkness. Suddenly, he saw movement ahead. He darted behind an old wagon and stopped.

Ahead of him in the dim light, he could see Marya and Remus Lupin behind some half-rotten lumber. He sharply drew in his breath – not her. Not here.

They seemed to be having an animated whispered discussion, too low to be overheard. Marya started to rise. Lupin shook his head and, putting a protective arm around her shoulders, pulled her back down.

All of a sudden, a wave of white-hot hate rolled over Severus

Lupin, who had almost killed him, part of that murderous "prank". Lupin, who was the last of the loathsome foursome to exist alive and unbroken. Lupin, who had gotten the job Severus deserved, who had a gift for making people like him, who had his arm around Marya. The werewolf did not deserve this.

Severus had suspected when he kept seeing Lupin and Marya together, in comfortable conversation, seemingly every time he showed up at Grimmauld Place. He had suspected when he had seen Marya blushing prettily as Lupin whispered into her ear, as he had seen them laugh together at some private joke. He had known when he had watched them through the window of the Leaky Cauldron, seen her hand on his, seen her kiss that half-human good-bye, gently on the cheek, the same way she had once kissed him.

He could just kill him now. The world would be a better place. An Avada Kedavra, and it would be over. He could disapparate, back to the spot where he was supposed to be; no one would ever know. It would be easy, so easy.

As quickly as the hate had risen, it subsided, leaving an acrid taste in his mouth. He knew then he would not kill the werewolf. It came as a bitter revelation that the reason he wanted to kill Lupin was the same reason he could not kill him. Because Marya cared for that animal. She had lost enough in her life. He would not be the one to cause her more pain.

Not until that moment had he admitted to himself that nothing had changed since the day she had shown him the WinterStar. He still cared about her. As much as his pride had tried to talk him out of it, it had remained there, in the back of his mind. And so the wolf would live.

- - - -

The whole train of thought had taken no more than a couple of seconds. He shook the thoughts off with a shrug. Right now, he had other things to worry about.

Looking around, and seeing no one other than the two in front of him, Severus set out to get their attention. "Psst..."

Lupin whirled around, alarmed, wand at the ready. Marya's face looked back at him wide-eyed and pale. Heavens, she looked scared. It only took a second, and the look changed, to one of relief, of...joy?

"Remus, don't, it's Severus." He was surprised she had recognized him that quickly, even with the mask and hood on.

Severus hurried over to them. "Remus, you need to warn the Order. There are more Death Eaters, surrounding this place as I speak. This is a trap. I didn't know."

Roughly he grabbed Marya's arm. "You are coming with me."

"Wait a minute, now..." Lupin said warningly.

"We don't have a minute," Snape said impatiently. "I have been practicing dueling skills with her, and believe me, she is no match for any of the Death Eaters out there. I can keep her safe. Can you?"

"It's ok, Remus," Marya said quickly, "go. There is no time..."

With a dark look, Remus nodded, and disappeared.

Dashing back and forth, , Marya in tow, Severus made his way back to the wall, back to where he was supposed to be. Things were out of his hands now.

"Is it only Order here right now? No Ministry Aurors?" he hissed in Marya's ear.

"Only those Aurors that are part of the Order," Marya whispered back. "Why?"

Snape didn't answer. That was one bit of good news. If the Ministry Aurors showed up later, if the other Death Eaters had not realized that they were still missing, that it was a different group they had surrounded, there could be an element of surprise that could be more than useful...

Grabbing Marya's chin so hard it hurt, Severus forced her to look at him.

"You will stay right here, behind this wall. There is no one behind us, so you should be safe. Do. Not. Move. Stay here. Do I make myself clear?"

Marya looked mutinous. "I am not going to sit here like a coward. I don't ..."

"You will do exactly as I say, or I am going to cast a nice spell on you that you will not wake up from for another hour or two, understood?"

Marya was by now looking daggers at him.

"Don't go all Gryffindor on me, you don't have it in you," he snarled. Then, with a sigh, he said more calmly, "Look, you can see what is going on, you can cast spells, you can watch everyone's back, all while being able to duck and disappear if you need to. I am not expecting you to simply watch. But in a one on one duel, you would not last more than a few minutes. Here, you may actually do some good."

Reluctantly, Marya saw the logic behind that statement.

"Alright," she said bitterly. "I'll stay."

"Good girl," Severus said facetiously.

At that moment, most of the Death Eaters guarding the Muggles wavered and limply fell over. It seemed the Order had decided on some proactive action instead of waiting to be caught between two groups of enemies.

At the same time, a green light erupted, casting an eerie glow over the scene. The skull-and-serpent rose high into the sky.

"Time to go," Severus said grimly, and with a swift movement jumped over the wall and disappeared.

A/N

Morrolan - I had the chapter ending in a much worse spot, and decided to move that over into the next chapter so that the story doesn't "hang" there, just for you :-)

Thanks for wishing me luck and the encouragement - this chapter went way better!