Maddie is quiet, polite, and very much lost in her thoughts as McGonagall shows her around the castle while simultaneously giving her random information about how the wizarding world works (all of which Maddie already knows). But when McGonagall takes her straight from the second floor to the fourth floor, Maddie's interest peaks.
Apparently, McGonagall has noticed this and decides to distract her from it. "You may have noticed that Professor Dumbledore did not ask you about your relatives."
Maddie sighs, wishing that she could just put this issue aside. But maybe her problems in the muggle world must be addressed before she can begin to conquer her magical ones. "I know he just didn't want to put me on the spot in front of a whole room of people."
"Yes, that's right." McGonagall speaks a bit more gently. "What exactly happened before your aunt and uncle left?"
"He was blaming my aunt for wanting to keep me for all these years. They always argued about that, but this time…This time, he decided he just couldn't handle me anymore. And she left with him and my cousin. They must have wanted to abandon the house because they knew that Professor Dumbledore knew where the house was."
"What do you mean, he couldn't handle you anymore?" McGonagall asks worriedly.
"I was showing a ton of accidental magic once I turned ten, plus I was acting up and getting more and more rebellious."
"And how did your aunt react to all of that?"
"Oh, she didn't like it. But at least she was sort of civil with me sometimes. I think she saw my mum in me sometimes, but apparently it wasn't enough." And with that, Maddie gives McGonagall a look that clearly communicates that she is done speaking about this particular topic. "Do you think that Professor Dumbledore might let me take a look at Grimmauld Place sometime, ma'am?"
"Grimmauld Place? Why on earth would you want to go there?"
"Well, my godfather would have left it to me, and it would be nice to check it out. Maybe we could even redecorate the house as a surprise for when he gets cleared of all charges," Maddie says matter-of-factly. In response to McGonagall's puzzled expression, she adds with a laugh, "He was wrongly convicted."
"What are you talking about, Potter?"
"It's a really long story…"
….
"Albus, do you really suspect that You-Know-Who is using the girl in order to spy on us?" McGonagall sits with Dumbledore in his office, Snape and Maddie having just left for Diagon Alley.
"I believe it may be a possibility, yes," Dumbledore says, not acknowledging that both Snape and McGonagall have already asked him this same question multiple times last night. "It could very well be that he is using their mind connection to his advantage."
McGonagall shudders. "But how would he have known that you were coming to the Dursley home last night? You did say that Potter had a vision of you visiting the house, correct?"
Dumbledore sighs. "It is peculiar indeed. I have theories, but I expect we will get our answers in due time." McGonagall waits for him to elaborate, but he does not continue.
"Also," McGonagall says, still intent on asking questions, "how is it that you plan on getting the truth out of the girl?"
To this, Dumbledore smiles. "I am sure that Severus will manage to find a way."
…
Maddie walks along Diagon Alley with Snape, wondering why he has not said a single word to her since they disapparated from Hogwarts. He strides along, not looking in her direction even once, and she struggles to keep up with his pace while taking in the sights around her.
Maddie may possess secrets and a destiny that she does not yet fully understand, but in this moment, she is simply a ten-year-old like any other, an excited ten-year-old who is fascinated by being in Diagon Alley and overjoyed at the prospect of entering a new phase of her life.
Once they reach a building called Gringotts, Snape hands Maddie a key and says, "Go inside of this building. Get your money, buy what you need, and meet me back here." He promptly walks away without a second glance.
Mere seconds after Snape has walked away, Maddie hears something that catches her off guard. She looks around for the source of the noise as the sound becomes louder. It is a beautiful, enticing sort of melody, a mixture of instruments she has never heard before.
Soon, it becomes all that she can focus on.
She begins to walk, searching for the source of the music that has so captivated her senses. She can no longer remember that she is supposed to be inside of Gringotts, or even what her own name is. There is no earth, there is no sky, there is no universe – there is only this melody.
She walks right on by the bustling crowds of shoppers, none of them sparing her a glance, none of them understanding that their savior is being lured away from them and into danger's waiting arms. Before Maddie knows it, she has already passed the sign reading "Knockturn Alley".
A whisper now seems to float in among the melody, slowly repeating the same words of "Madelyn…you're almost there." The words feel like a boat drifting out to sea that she has just stepped into, pulling her closer and closer to her unknown destination.
Finally, she stops in front of Borgin & Burkes, knowing in her heart that this is where she must go. She walks inside, the melody still filling her heart and her soul.
No one is inside. She walks toward the back room, when it opens suddenly, revealing a tall man with pale blond hair and cold gray eyes.
The music still plays, although not as strongly as before. Maddie stands there, waiting obediently, wanting nothing more in the world than to do as she is told.
"Madelyn." A triumphant smile breaks out on the man's face, and she wonders who he is speaking to. Is Madelyn her name? "You've made it," he says gently. "Do you want to come with me?"
She nods, feeling a deep sense of trust for the man.
His smile grows wider. "Then come." He holds out his arm. "You will apparate with me."
Then the music stops.
Maddie takes several steps backwards as she struggles to come back to her senses, just as she hears the front door to the shop slam open.
She turns around, seeing Snape. Before she knows it, he has already dashed over to the blond man.
She is startled and confused when Snape begins speaking in a calm, yet calculated, manner. "My, my, Lucius. Look how desperate you've become to be the one to kidnap Madelyn Potter. I would have expected you to do it in a much less crowded place."
"I understand that you need to pretend to be protecting the child for Dumbledore, but I am under his orders –" begins Lucius.
"What rubbish is this? What orders?" Snape's voice becomes sharper and Maddie's fear is like a block of ice melting all at once in her veins. She had been warned about many things, but never anything like this.
"He – he is back, Severus. I am in charge of bringing the girl to him by the end of the summer. Please, I know what I am doing –"
"That is impossible. The dark mark is –"
"The mark may still be faded, but I tell you, he is back! Please, he'll kill me –"
Maddie cannot see Snape's expression from where she is standing, but she does notice that he takes a few deep breaths before saying, "I promise to help you, Lucius. But you must cooperate with me. It cannot be done today, or else Dumbledore will wonder how I was not able to stop you from taking the girl."
Maddie remembers the advice given to her in her dream: "Promise me one thing, Maddie. Promise me that you'll trust Severus Snape, no matter what." It goes against her every instinct to stand here and listen to Snape, a complete stranger (and a rather unpleasant one at that), agree to assist her would-be kidnapper.
Just as she begins to contemplate forgetting the advice and making a run for the door, Snape speaks again to Lucius, this time more violently. "Well? Do you understand?"
"Yes, I – I underst –"
"Good. Then Potter and I will leave after you have done so." Snape speaks to Lucius with a commanding tone, almost as though he is the one in charge of him. He stands still, waiting expectantly.
"Very well. But you do plan on obliviating her, yes? We would certainly not want her to remember this conversation, now would we?" says Lucius.
Snape nods and Lucius disapparates with little hesitation, but only after glancing at the corner where Maddie is standing, a cold and merciless expression upon his face.
Snape stares at the spot where Lucius has just vanished and then casts a spell.
"Expecto patronum!" A beautiful silver doe emerges from his wand. Maddie feels strangely drawn to the creature and is awestruck by its beauty.
Snape concentrates on the doe for a few seconds, almost as though communicating telepathically with it, before it disappears in midair.
Less than a minute later, another silvery figure, this time a phoenix, bursts into life before them, and it too seems to communicate silently to Snape.
Once the silver phoenix has vanished, Maddie can feel herself trembling as she locks eyes with the man before her. Should she trust him? Had he really been lying to Lucius?
"If you trust Dumbledore, then you trust me, which would mean that I was indeed lying to Lucius Malfoy, wouldn't it, Potter?" he says, still concentrating on her eyes. In response to her startled look, he says, "It appears that you are not the only legilimens at Hogwarts, after all."
"What are you talking about?" Maddie asks, feeling extremely dumbfounded. "I can't do legilimency."
"Do not lie to me. You used legilimency on me in Dumbledore's office."
She has no idea what to make of this. "I didn't. How would I have done that?" Had she done it without realizing it?
Surprisingly, Snape does not question her further on this.
Her gaze unwavering from Snape's pitch black eyes, her mind wanders back to her encounter with Lucius Malfoy. "Prove it. Prove that I can actually trust you."
"Prove it?" Snape seems a bit angry with her now. "Isn't it enough proof that I have not already obliviated you?"
Maddie thinks a bit and concludes that maybe Snape does have a point there.
Snape walks toward the shop door and she follows. "Come," he says. "I believe we have some errands to take care of." A grimace crosses his stern face as he says these words.
Maddie simply stands there, looking at Snape blankly.
"What is it now?" he snaps.
"Well, it's just that I can't believe you would still want to go shopping at a time like this! I mean, my life's in danger!"
Snape glares at her. "It is not a question of what I want. Professor Dumbledore would like you to purchase your school supplies today."
Then it clicks in her mind. Dumbledore must have sent Snape a message about this using that strange silvery phoenix.
If Dumbledore does not think she is in so much danger that she cannot go shopping, then maybe she is overreacting just a little bit. Anyways, as she had been told in the dream, it is not her job to stop all of Voldemort's plans. The adults around her should be able to take care of most of that, she had been reassured. And that means that right now she must follow Dumbledore's advice.
Snape strides forward without looking back to make sure that she is keeping up, and Maddie hesitates before following him.
…
In Flourish and Blotts, Snape lingers only a small distance away from Maddie, a slightly bitter look on his face as he looks through the books on the shelves.
After a while, Snape catches her avidly examining an invisible book. "That is not on your list. Now go pay for your books."
Maddie places the invisible book back on its shelf and picks up a bright pink book, feeling mischief course through her. Now that she is no longer in immediate danger, her lightheartedness over being in Diagon Alley has returned somewhat, although she still feels uneasiness over nearly being kidnapped by a death eater.
Snape walks over to her and grabs the book out of her hands a bit roughly. "I have taken you here in order to buy your supplies, not to dawdle. I have more pressing matters to attend to once we get back to the school."
Maddie, feeling glee at Snape's annoyed reaction, makes her way over to the counter.
The cashier, a woman around McGonagall's age, ceases restocking the shelves behind the counter and turns around once Maddie greets her.
The ink bottle in the woman's hands falls and smashes. Her eyes are wide with shock, but after a few seconds, she seems to have regained her composure.
Maddie has no idea what to make of this. Even Snape seems to be concerned at the woman's reaction.
"Is something wrong, ma'am?" Maddie asks.
"Oh, it's nothing, dear. Don't worry about it."
Once they have exited Flourish and Blotts, Maddie says to Snape, "Do you know what that was all about? Did she recognize me? But how could she have if my scar's always covered?"
A dark look casts itself over Snape's face and he does not answer.
They enter the apothecary. Once Maddie has finally managed to find everything on her list, she continues to wander around the shop. As soon as Snape figures out that she is "dawdling" again, he scolds her once more, this time more harshly than he did in Flourish and Blotts.
Maddie makes easy conversation with the elderly woman behind the counter, managing to even make her laugh at one of her jokes.
The woman looks over at Snape with a kindly smile as she hands Maddie her shopping bag. "Such a darling little daughter you've got, sir."
Maddie needs to keep herself from bursting out in giggles. When they leave the shop, Snape has a scowl on his face.
When they enter Madam Malkin's, it is already filled with many customers. Snape takes a seat and begins conversing with a man with bright red hair, while Maddie is told by Madam Malkin to wait while she finishes up with some other customers.
Maddie hops up onto a stool. To her left is a slightly older boy with bright red hair and to her right is a girl her age with bushy brown hair.
Soon enough, Maddie is engaged in an animated discussion with both children while they all wait for Madam Malkin.
"I still can't believe that they would have sent Snape, of all people, to take you to Diagon Alley," says the boy, who Maddie has learned is named Fred Weasley.
"Me neither. I don't know what Dumbledore was thinking," Maddie says, shaking her head.
"Anyways, do either of you two know what house you want to be in?" asks Fred.
"I hope either Gryffindor or Ravenclaw," Hermione says excitedly. Hermione had been a bit quiet at first, but had been quickly brought out of her shell by Maddie and Fred. "What about you, Maddie?"
Maddie ponders the question and then turns around to look into Fred's lively blue eyes. With a smile, she concludes, "Definitely Gryffindor."
"You seem really certain about that," says Fred, laughing.
"Of course I am. I can't be in any house that Fred Weasley isn't in," Maddie says with a playful wink.
"Because you can't resist the idea of being able to plot pranks with me and my brother in the Gryffindor common room," Fred says, grinning.
"That's not the only thing I can't resist," says Maddie quietly, looking into his eyes again.
Maddie then turns away from a confused-looking Fred to speak to an equally confused Hermione. "So, do you want to visit me tomorrow for my birthday? Assuming Professor Dumbledore says it's alright."
Hermione's eyes light up. From what Maddie has been able to gather, Hermione must not be used to receiving such invitations from anyone. "I'd really like that."
Filled with joy and having completely forgotten about Lucius Malfoy, Maddie turns to Fred. "You're invited too, Fred."
As Fred is agreeing to this, Madam Malkin walks over to him and finally begins doing his measurements.
The three of them continue their conversation, and by the time they leave the shop, Maddie finds it difficult to stop smiling.
…
"What do you mean you cannot give Potter her wand today?" Snape asks Ollivander, Maddie by his side.
Personally, Snape feels that the holly and phoenix feather wand had seemed to work very well for the girl when she had tested it out.
But Ollivander has other ideas. "Her wand must be specially crafted, Severus," Ollivander repeats again, not bothering to elaborate any further this time. Snape has rarely ever heard of Ollivander being unable to provide a wand on the spot for a customer before.
Ollivander promises to mail Maddie her wand before the start of term, and they finally leave the shop, Maddie walking ahead of Snape excitedly, her dark hair shining with faint red highlights in the summer sun.
….
Half an hour later, Snape is in his office with Maddie sitting across from him, looking very nervous.
"Surely you know why I wanted to speak with you, Potter?"
"Yes." She bites her lip to hold back laughter. "Yes, I do."
Snape feels his blood pressure rising. "What is so funny?" It seems to him that the girl is making light of the situation in order to cope with her nerves. He recalls both of her parents utilizing this same tactic in their school days.
"Because you think I'm hiding something, but I'm not. I told Professor Dumbledore everything."
"Then," says Snape, "why are you unable to look me in the eye if you are, in fact, telling the truth?"
Maddie has nothing to say to this.
Snape hesitates, wondering if he should do it now. Dumbledore would certainly disapprove of his methods, but maybe Snape has no choice.
His mind made up, Snape pulls out his wand. "Legilimens!"
Snape watches as image after image flicks by.
A brief glimpse of one particular scene catches his attention, and he pulls himself out of her mind in shock.
He glares down the equally shocked girl across from him, many questions filling his mind. "You will allow me to extract every single memory of importance from you. Do you understand me, Potter?"
"What was that?" she asks, her face turning pale. "I've never seen that one before –"
Snape ignores her, places his wand at her temple, and searches.
Maddie seems to understand that she has lost this fight, and she does not argue with Snape.
He finally finds what he is looking for. He feels several memories swimming around in her mind that almost seem to vibrate with a strange kind of magic. He pulls out several silvery strands from her temple and deposits them into an empty jar.
"You may leave now," says Snape, still thinking about what he has just seen.
But Maddie does not leave. She stands there, thinking hard. "Sir, maybe…Well, could I offer a suggestion?"
Snape does not answer her, his mind still on the jar of swirling memories in front of him.
"Don't watch those memories by yourself. Maybe it would be easier if you watched them with Professor Dumbledore." She then makes her way towards the door and leaves the room.
He listens to her footsteps leave and then picks up the jar of memories and makes his way up to Dumbledore's office.
…
With Dumbledore by his side, Snape places his head into the pensieve.
He finds himself in a strange-looking room. Everything in the room is completely black: the ceiling, the floor, the walls.
Maddie is standing in front of a wash of silvery mist that has just appeared from the other side of the room, and when it disappears, a young man in his mid-twenties emerges. He has chestnut brown hair and deep brown eyes that almost seem to sparkle with energy. Snape feels that this man is vaguely familiar, although he cannot say why.
The man finally speaks. "Hello, Maddie. My name is Teddy Lupin." His hair changes to sky blue, then a bright orange, and then settles on a forest green. "Blimey, you're so young."
"Is this a dream?" Maddie asks.
Well, it is a dream…technically. But it's also technically not a dream." He grins at the confused look on her face. But then he sighs. "I'm here to tell you a few things."
Snape and Dumbledore listen as Teddy describes in detail several facts about the wizarding world and Maddie's past, gently reasoning with her whenever she shows signs of disbelieving that she is a witch and speaking with sympathy whenever addressing the Dark Lord's downfall or her parents' deaths. By the end of this long explanation, Teddy seems to have gained Maddie's trust.
"But why have you come?" Maddie asks, finally addressing what Snape also wishes to know.
"I'm from the Department of Mysteries, and," Teddy hesitates, "I'm also from the future, Maddie. In the future, I'm your godson. And I'm not supposed to be doing this, but I'm taking it upon myself to warn you of what will be coming in the future so that you can stop it from happening."
To this, Maddie is speechless for a moment. "You're my godson? But then, who are your parents? And what do you mean, you're warning me about what's going to happen –"
"Let me show you a few memories from your pensieve that you have in the future." Teddy's handsome face shines with great sadness..
Teddy waves his hand in the air and a movie seems to start playing on the wall.
On the screen, Minerva McGonagall stands outside of a brick house on a quiet street at the dead of night, listening to the sound of a crying baby in the distance. She moves closer to the source of the noise and ends up in the backyard.
A baby girl with jet black hair is wailing in a plastic baby carrier on the grass. McGonagall makes soft shushing sounds and picks up the baby, managing to calm her down with ease. McGonagall sends a patronus message and waits, the baby now fast asleep in her arms.
Seconds later, Dumbledore apparates onto the lawn. Baby Maddie stirs slightly at the noise.
"Don't you understand what this means, Albus?"
Even in the darkness of the night, Dumbledore's worried blue gaze is discernible. "The blood wards are down. We need to find the Dursleys and bring them back –"
"And what if it happens again, Albus?" McGonagall continues speaking even when Dumbledore begins to say something else. "And don't you dare tell me that it won't happen again! They just abandoned their one-year-old niece in the dead of night, for heaven's sake!"
"I don't trust them either, but this is the best hope we have for Madelyn's safety, Minerva. We simply need to be more stern with them –"
"I warned you that these people would not take good care of her." Snape has never seen McGonagall so upset before. "Can't someone else take her in? Molly and Arthur, Ted and Andromeda…" She looks for a second as though she is about to suggest that she herself raise Maddie.
Dumbledore's eyes grow sadder. "I wish I could do just that. But there may very well come a day in the future when the blood protection is the only thing that will be capable of saving Madelyn."
The scene changes, and this time they see a preteen Maddie in the hospital wing, speaking to Dumbledore.
"You still haven't told me what happened to Ron and Hermione," she says quietly.
Dumbledore looks at her with grief in his normally twinkling eyes. He says nothing, but she seems to understand, and her face grows very serious.
The scene changes. Maddie is dressed in a Gryffindor school uniform and sitting on her dormitory bed. She writes a very long entry into a small black book. Snape takes a look and catches a snippet of what she has written: "I can't look Percy, Fred, George, or Ginny in the eye. Everything that happened last year with the sorcerer's stone is my fault…"
And, to Snape's amazement, the page suddenly absorbs all of the ink. New words start to form as though written by an invisible hand. Before Snape gets a chance to read these new words, he is thrown into a completely different scene.
Maddie is sitting in Dumbledore's office, looking astonished. "You have to be kidding me. Sir, how could this have happened –"
Dumbledore looks more bitter than Snape has ever seen him. "After all the trouble you went through to save him, too. I'm so sorry, Maddie."
The scene changes again, and now Maddie is in an empty classroom with Dumbledore, McGonagall, Barty Crouch Senior, and Ludo Bagman.
"Yes, there may be a way to keep her from competing in the tournament. However," Barty Crouch says to Dumbledore, "it would be quite…risky, to say the least."
"We are willing to at least consider everything," McGonagall says, putting a hand on Maddie's shoulder.
To Snape's disappointment, the scene shifts again before he can hear any more details about this tournament, and now Maddie is certainly a few years older than the preteen version that currently exists in Snape's own timeline.
Maddie, accompanied by a few other teenagers around her age, stands before a veil in an unfamiliar dark room.
"Maddie, this is a trap, it has to be. Are you sure that you saw Sirius behind that veil in your vision –" begins Fred Weasley.
The last thing Snape sees before the scene shifts is Bellatrix Lestrange appearing from around a corner, a smirk playing on her lips.
In the new scene, Maddie races down the school corridors until she finally reaches Dumbledore's office. She slams the door open without knocking.
Dumbledore looks up from petting Fawkes the phoenix. "Maddie? What is wrong –"
"I've figured it out." Her eyes are alight with a strange emotion that Snape cannot pinpoint.
"Figured what out, dear?"
Still panting heavily from her running, she says, "I'm the last horcrux, aren't I?"
Dumbledore considers her for several moments, his expression not giving away anything. "How do you know this?"
"Professor, you've always known that my friends and I have a knack for figuring out all the exact things you don't want us to know about." Her tone is calm, not at all accusing.
"Yes," Dumbledore sighs. "Yes, you certainly do."
The scene changes. Maddie is now in her mid-twenties. She is sitting in a kitchen with a view of the sea outside of it. Bill Weasley, his face scarred, and a silver-haired young woman sit opposite her. The three of them are watching four children play outside, three of them with silvery hair and one of them with hair that keeps changing colors.
"Well, out with it. You said there was something you wanted to ask Fleur and I," says Bill.
"I want you two to raise Teddy." Maddie says these words rapidly and is met with a shocked silence.
"But Andromeda clearly wanted you to raise him. And didn't you promise Remus and Tonks that you would?" says Fleur with a very slight French accent.
"I was thinking it all over," says Maddie. "And I can't raise him with the knowledge that I'm the reason he has no family left." Her voice is filled with pain.
"Maddie," Bill says in a hushed voice, "Teddy would never blame you for that. You know that –"
"Oh, he will when he's older, once he finds out what really happened." Maddie sighs. "I've only ever told the two of you what happened, you know."
"You never told the others?" Fleur's eyes grow wide. Both her and Bill look dumbfounded.
"Neither of you understand! I've had nightmares every night ever since my first year of Hogwarts. Too much has happened. It's like I never really defeated Voldemort. It's like the war never ended. I just…Anyways, the point is that I can't be what Teddy needs. And if he stays with me for any longer, then he'll get his hopes up that I'm going to adopt him –"
"No." Bill speaks firmly. "I can't allow you to do this. After all these years of you telling us that you wish you could have been the one to raise him…I know you'll regret it forever if you just hand him over to us."
And with that, the memories end.
Snape's mind is reeling as he stands in the black room again and watches the ten-year-old version of Maddie and the grown version of Teddy Lupin.
Teddy immediately launches into a detailed explanation of Maddie's life story, filling in the gaps that the memories had not been able to fill.
By the end of the explanation, Maddie seems just as astounded as Snape feels. "How can one person possibly go through all of that?" She pauses. "Why didn't you show me more memories –"
"I didn't want to take up too much time, in case one of my coworkers catches me in here. But even if I did have enough time to show you everything, a lot of the more informative memories are…traumatic, as you can probably guess," says Teddy. His smile seems to take a lot of effort. "Now, it's time for me to leave."
"Teddy?"
"Yes, Maddie?"
"Can you visit again sometime? It gets really lonely at the Dursleys, and you're really good company."
Teddy's heart seems to be shattering into a million pieces at her words. He smiles again. "I'll see what I can do."
The memory ends and several more appear after it.
By the time Snape and Dumbledore have exited the pensieve, neither of them have any words to say to each other for a very long moment.
…
At midnight, Dumbledore is still sitting at his desk, wide awake and chatting with the portraits, his mind still lingering on Maddie's memories. He will discuss the memories in more detail with her the day after her birthday – There is no need to discuss such heavy topics on what is supposed to be a happy day.
"Enter," he says to the knock on the door.
In walks Maddie. "Hi, Professor."
"Hello, Maddie. To what pleasure do I owe this visit?" He is somewhat surprised that she has sought him out after her apparent anger at him earlier.
"I couldn't sleep and I just wanted to talk. I wanted to say that I don't blame you for leaving me with the Dursleys. I know the magical protection was really important for me."
Fawkes glides over to her and she strokes the bird's red feathers gently.
"You are very kind, my child. But if you had been upset with me, then you would have had every right to be." Dumbledore sighs. "Is there anything else you wanted to discuss?"
"Yes, actually. Did my scar hurt because Voldemort's back?"
Dumbledore nods. "I believe he must be."
"Then why didn't you tell me earlier?" Her tone is slightly accusing.
Dumbledore pauses and then decides that there is no point in keeping information from her anymore. It might do more harm than good. "I felt it best for you to know as little as possible about what he is up to, as I feared that he might try to spy on our interactions using the mind connection that I highly suspect you two share." He takes in her serious, yet determined expression. "But after seeing all of those memories of yours, I believe it would be best to be completely open and honest with you. And now I have a question for you."
"You want to know why I didn't tell you everything?"
Dumbledore nods, amazed at how perceptive she is for her age. From what few interactions he has had so far with the girl, he can already gather that she at least has one strength that she might be able to use to her advantage in this fight against Voldemort: a talent for dealing with people. She has an outgoing personality and an ability to read other people that reminds him strongly of Tom Riddle.
"I was going to tell you, but Professor Snape was there, and I didn't want him to know anything. He just seems…like someone you shouldn't trust, you know?" says Maddie.
Dumbledore smiles. "I assure you that you can trust Professor Snape with any information you have."
"How do you know you can trust him, though, sir?"
Dumbledore looks into her deep green eyes, eyes that are filled with a childlike innocence despite the tumultuous future that awaits her. "I'm afraid that is one secret that I must keep from you, Maddie, as it is not mine to share."
He can tell that she is nearly bursting with curiosity now, but she says nothing further. "So. Tomorrow is someone's birthday, isn't it?"
A genuine smile forms on her lips. "Professor McGonagall said that she asked you to invite the Weasleys and Hermione Granger."
"Ah, yes. I have already contacted them and they will be arriving tomorrow." Dumbledore is glad to see her smile grow even bigger. Little does she know that they are not the only people he has invited.
"And Professor McGonagall told you about Sirius Black, right, sir?"
"Yes, dear. I am working on a way to speak with him and, hopefully, have him released from Azkaban." Dumbledore looks at the clock. "You should get some rest. After all, tomorrow is a big day."
"Goodnight, professor."
"Oh, and one more thing."
"Yes, sir?"
"Happy birthday, Maddie."