Chapter 2- Letters to the Beloved

Friendship is the golden thread that ties all hearts together.- Unknown

The Ministry was in utter chaos after Albus's death. Samantha went in to work the Monday after the funeral to people crying in the hallways and walking around like Inferi in the many offices of the MLE. She sat at her desk to read the morning's Prophet. She spit out the mouthful of tea she had just taken when she read one of the headlines on the front page.


Dumbledore's Murderer Sighted


Severus Snape, former Professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardy and murderer of the late Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, was sighted at London's Kings Cross station late Sunday night. Ministry officials from the MLE say Snape is to be considered very dangerous.


"He's just as dangerous - if not more so - than any of the other Death Eaters we have in custody," said Head Auror Gawain Robards. "If anyone has any information on the whereabouts of this or any other Death Eater, please contact the Ministry immediately."


Members of the Wizarding community have expressed continued efforts to fight against He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and his followers in the wake of the great wizard's death.


"Dumbledore was a symbol of hope against the forces of You-Know-Who," said newly appointed Headmistress Minerva McGonagall. "Without Albus, we have to do our best to continue to fight against those who threaten to take away the lives we've worked so hard to build. We will continue to educate our children in order that they may make the right choices. Albus never gave in to fear. I refuse to let him down." (ctnd. Page 3)


Will Hogwarts close its doors for good? Page 4


Albus Dumbledore: Accolades and Achievements page 7


Samantha set the paper down on her desktop. She hadn't heard from Severus since talking to him at the funeral. She hadn't thought to ask him where he was living, or where Draco was hiding. She bit her nails as she twirled her wand between her fingers.

"Ives, did you get that report I left on your desk?" said Kingsley as he passed her cubicle. Samantha dropped her hand away from her mouth and sat up straight.

"Yes sir, I'll get on it right away," answered Samantha. She began to shuffle papers on her desk, looking for the report. Kingsley looked around and leaned over the wall of the cubicle.

"Don't you worry about that article, kid," muttered Kingsley. "We'll catch him before too long. He can't hide forever."

"Right," said Samantha shakily. There was no getting around it. She was panicked. Luckily, Kingsley took it for fright at the thought of Severus finding her.

"See that you do, Ives," said Kingsley loudly. Samantha watched him walk down the hall to his office. She refolded her copy of the Prophet and stuck it in her bag underneath her desk. Shuffling the many sheaves of parchment on her desk, she located the report that Kingsley had given her. She picked up a quill and inked it as she read over the detailed account of the casting of the Imperius Curse on a house-elf.

Severus sat in his living room, drinking some coffee with his old Charms text open on his lap. He was shocked at how much he'd forgotten since he graduated from Hogwarts. Teaching Potions for all those years made him somewhat forgetful of standard N.E.W.T. level charms. But as hard as he tried to focus on the words and spells in the text, he couldn't help but think of Samantha. She was probably at the Ministry, working on mindless reports for Shacklebolt. He remembered a few times when he had talked with her after Order meetings about her job.

She had never wanted to work for the Ministry. Samantha had always talked about being a Healer while she was in school. But then her parents had died right after graduation, and she had gone to live in muggle London for a while to evade Death Eaters, her dreams of being a Healer buried with her loving mother and father. She returned after the fall of the Dark Lord, using her mother's maiden name, and applied for work in the Auror office, doing mindless editing and filing of reports. It was an insult to her intelligence.

Severus heard Wormtail creeping around upstairs. He hated having that sorry excuse for a man in his house. All the sniveling and whining gave Severus a headache. But the Dark Lord had assigned him to Severus, stating that Wormtail needed supervision. Wormtail was to assist Severus "in whatever Severus needed done." Severus shook his head at the irony of having a Marauder at his beck and call, day and night, and hating every minute of it.

A tapping on the kitchen window snapped Severus out of his wool gathering. He stood and walked into the tiny kitchen. A brown tawny owl swooped in as soon as Severus opened the window, landing on the table and sticking out its leg. He removed the letter and gave the bird some leftover toast crust from breakfast. The bird spread its wings and took off just as another owl arrived with the Prophet. Severus dug in his pocket for a sickle and placed it in the pouch on the bird's leg. He left the window open as he walked back to the living room. He tossed the paper onto the table in front of his chair and looked at the envelope in his hand. The handwriting was familiar, written in emerald green ink, but Severus couldn't place it right away. The seal was blank. Ever cautious of strange post, Severus pulled out his wand and cast several curse detection spells. None of the spells revealed any malicious hexes or jinxes. He slid a finger under the flap and broke the seal, removing the slip of paper within.

Gabriel-

Has it been dark where you are? I too enjoy nighttime strolls but caution should be employed when trains are nearby. The black genie is ever watchful. The green-eyed terror will set out on his quest within the month, along with his squire and the brain. Most likely after Fang and Phlegm make their pledge. I will have the pleasure of dining by moonlight with the green-eyed terror soon in order to discuss jewelry. I will be fox hunting until then, love.

Adieu, my black prince,

Haydyn


Severus smiled at the used of code name for Potter. They would most likely leave after the Weasley wedding. The date had been set for July first at the Burrow. Albus had talked with Arthur about security, since almost the entire Order would be in attendance, along with Potter and the rest of his merry crew. Severus had no idea if the Dark Lord knew of the wedding and the potential for attack. Severus himself had certainly not mentioned a thing, but the announcement had been in the paper a few months ago. Hopefully, none of the other Death Eaters noticed it.

The last sentence about dinner with Potter was troubling. Sam would have a hard time discussing Horcruxes with Potter without mentioning where she learned all the information about the Dark Lord's efforts at immortality. Still, it would be good to know about the locket that they retrieved from the cave. Hopefully Potter hadn't done anything stupid with it.

He pulled out his wand and tapped the letter with a muttered Evanesco. He reached over to the table and picked up the paper. Scanning the first page, he started to open the next when the sight of his name made him pause.

Dumbledore's Murderer Sighted


Damn, thought Severus as he skimmed the article. He had gone to Gringott's Sunday afternoon to transfer the contents of his vault into another vault under the name Jacob Prince, claiming to be a cousin to the murderer Severus Snape and wanting that no good SOB to have no funds to go around terrorizing the rest of Wizarding Britain. Seeing how the Ministry was going to have to freeze the account and inventory everything in the moderately-sized vault, they transferred the contents with little hassle with the side benefit of less paperwork for them. Gringott's had enough to deal with in making sure security was tight in the fright that had come with the aftermath of Albus's death.

He had been in disguise the entire time he was in the Alley. He didn't even go to Kings Cross that day. Someone must have spotted a poor muggle who resembled him. Dim-witted Ministry officials were rarely thorough in their interrogations of muggles.

The black genie is ever watchful. Shacklebolt. Of course. He was in charge of all high-level security risks. Any reports of his whereabouts would be directed to Shacklebolt and would pass across Samantha's desk eventually when they needed to be filed. He would have to be more careful, if only for her sake.

He flipped through the rest of the paper, skimming the pages briefly to catch any important announcements. McGonagall had been officially appointed headmistress of Hogwarts by the Board of Governors last Friday. Scrimgeour was ranting about increased security for Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade. Severus sighed and dropped the paper back onto the table in front of him and grabbed his Charms book. Maybe if he finished this one, he would move on to N.E.W.T. Transfiguration.

It was late afternoon before Severus's reading was interrupted by the sound of the staircase door opening behind him. He growled softly, but didn't look up, tracking the whereabouts of his unwanted housemate by the sound of his shoes scuffing the carpet. Wormtail walked into the kitchen. Severus could hear pots and pans being set on stove. He personally hadn't been hungry enough to eat in several days, and today was no exception. Severus rose from his chair and walked quietly up the stairs to his bedroom.

His small room had a very comforting feel to it. Severus relaxed immediately upon entering. His desk sat near the window, the thin curtains swaying gently from the breeze coming through the open glass. His armoire stood open, revealing nothing but numerous black articles of clothing - cloaks, trousers, long-sleeve shirts, short-sleeve shirts, dress robes - and one set of green robes for Quidditch matches. A torn and dusty set of robes lay strewn across the chair that sat near the armoire. He had never gotten around to banishing the robes from that night.

He shut the bedroom door and went to sit down at his desk, gazing out the window. The day's heat was slowly dying as the sun sank lower on the horizon. The small clock sitting on the corner of the desk chimed the hour softly. Five o'clock. Samantha would be getting home soon. As if reading his thoughts, a dark-colored barn owl landed on the window sill. It gave Severus a soft hoot and flew over to sit on the desk. He snorted as he reached up a finger stroke the feathers under the bird's chin.

"Yes, I know you're brilliant, Madeline," said Severus. "I always wondered if you were just a touch too intelligent for my liking."

The owl hooted happily and flew over to the empty cage hanging in the corner of the room. Severus shook his head and opened one of the drawers. He pulled out a blank sheet of parchment and inked a quill.


To my beloved Haydyn-


It has been as bright as day here. Nighttime strolls do not hold any appeal whatsoever, especially on Sundays, but thank you for the warning about trains and rubbing lamps. It is duly noted. I ran across some small friends in the Alley who helped me secure my funds into a safe place away from that vile murderer's greedy hands. Cousins can be such a pain sometimes.


I wanted to mention that jewelry is a tricky subject to discuss with those who are not knowledgeable about all the details concerning a piece and may pose questions that cannot be easily answered by yourself. One must also be cautious in dealing with moonlighting outsiders who do not know anything about heirlooms of such value. But having the discussion over dinner is a good idea as long as you're careful. Let me know the details of the piece and its present whereabouts. I'm sure the family would do anything to get it back. I will let you know if they become aware that the piece is missing, although they did not miss the other item of jewelry we came across.


I'm glad to hear that the green-eyed terror will not be questing alone. The squire's a bit dim, but having the brain should counter any idiocy they find themselves in. Hopefully. They always looked best in red. Green never suited them at all, unfortunately.


Have heard no word if it's going to rain on Fang and Phlegm's pledge. The Patriarch may want to make alternate plans just in case. I will let you know the weather so that you can plan the feast accordingly and perhaps prepare the little ones to assist you in bringing out extra side dishes and dessert.


Foxes only come out at night or if the ground is shaking. Don't fret if you don't spot any for a while. Too many foxes is never a good sign.


Be watchful, my love. Snakes lie still in the grass.

With all that I am, I remain,

Gabriel

Severus was about to set down the quill when his left arm began to burn fiercely. He scribbled a hasty postscript and called for Madeline.

"Get this to Samantha quickly, love," whispered Severus. The owl nipped his finger and flew out the window as Severus grabbed his Death Eater robes and the silvery-white mask from his armoire. Donning his garb, he placed a thin finger on the Mark and disapparated.