The Betrayal
0o0o0o
It was a tense meeting in Albus's office – Minerva was obviously shocked at what had happened, and so was Albus. They dealt with Houston first, and then he and Minerva were dismissed – but when it came to deciding what was to be done with Draco…
Albus looked at Casey for a few moments, and then said to the Prefect, "I believe you understand the consequences of your actions, Draco, and I shall leave it to Professor Snape to find a suitable punishment for using defensive magic in the corridors. As for injuring Miss Casey–" he looked at the secretary "–our rules say that it is up to the injured staff member to decide. May I suggest that an apology is enough?"
Casey looked surprised; she hesitated, and said, "Em… yes. Yes, it would."
Severus frowned at her – she'd just been injured by Draco and was letting him off the hook? Why was Albus suggesting only an apology anyway? The standard punishment for injuring a staff member had always been an extended period of detention at the minimum – and Prefects would usually lose their Prefect badge. Casey should have suggested that at the least.
Casey looked at Draco, who glanced up at her and said quietly, "I'm sorry, Miss Casey."
It was hardly a sincere apology, and Severus knew that.
"Thank you, Mr Malfoy," Casey replied.
Severus led Draco out of the office, but remained for a moment longer outside the door to hear what was being said inside.
"I would have been tougher with Draco, but I understand you cannot be seen to be getting him into trouble," Albus was saying. "I'll write to Draco's parents anyway, but I'll make it clear you accepted the apology and do not wish anything more. He shall remain a Prefect. Don't worry: your job is not at risk."
0o0o0o
All the way through the last class of the day, Severus brooded over Albus' words, and when his curiosity finally got the better of him, he went to Albus's office to speak to Casey. She wasn't there, and Albus pointed him in the direction of the staff room.
He found Casey in the adjoining kitchen, leaning against the counter with a cup of tea clasped in her hands.
"Miss Casey?"
She didn't respond.
"Miss Casey?" he tried again, and this time she looked up. Severus sarcastically added, "How badly did you hit your head?"
"I was in another world," Casey replied, with a smile.
Severus paused, and then said, walking over, "I wanted to ask you something."
He stopped a few feet away from the secretary, who kept her hair in a delicate plait on her left shoulder, and was wearing again that pretty shade of red on her lips – but Severus didn't let it distract him.
He also tried not to let distract him what he had accidentally seen in her mind earlier – her desire to kiss him. He was here because he needed answers.
"Why did you immediately bring Draco to me?" he asked. "You've been given a copy of the staff rulebook and you know that all cases of injury inflicted on a staff member by a student are to be dealt with by the Headmaster. You have as much of a respect for rules and order as I do. But you went to my office first."
Casey kept a poker face.
"You are Malfoy's Head of House," she said, "so I believed it most appropriate that you deal with the situation."
"The rules say otherwise – besides, another House was involved – Jack Houston from Gryffindor."
"Houston didn't hit me – Malfoy did."
Casey held on a little tighter to her teacup.
"You had all the reason in the world to want Draco to be punished for his actions," Severus continued, taking a tiny step closer. "He was using his position as a Prefect to bully a Muggleborn – not unlike yourself – and then he used offensive magic against said student, and then hit you with a spell, causing you injury."
He paused. Casey's knuckles were turning white.
"The rules state that you should have immediately gone to the Headmaster – and from then it is up to you, as the injured person, to decide Draco's punishment – which normally starts at a long period of detention–"
"What are you asking, Professor?" Casey interrupted, with a trace of impatience in her voice.
"I'm asking you why you went to me before Albus when you know that that is against the rules."
Casey chewed her lip for a moment, and then said, "I felt no animosity towards Malfoy because it was an accident, so I didn't want him to get into trouble."
"You hoped I would be more lenient than Albus?"
Casey took a calculated pause, and said, "Yes."
"Would you have done the same if Houston had hit you?"
"Slytherin gets treated unfairly, not Gryffindor," Casey said.
"That wasn't my question–"
"Your students get bullied just for being in Slytherin – you got the House Cup taken out your hands in 1992 – and bearing in mind that it was up to me what happened to Malfoy, I didn't want to add to Slytherin's problems."
Her voice was beginning to shake towards the end, and Severus asked carefully, "Why did you want Draco to stay as Prefect?"
Casey didn't answer.
"Why does it matter to you what Lucius has to say? Do you… have something to fear?"
"I never said anything about having something to fear," Casey said sharply. "I simply... didn't want to see Draco's good character be tarnished by what was clearly an accident."
"You are Muggleborn, but that is not reason enough to fear the Malfoys - a family to which you have no personal or professional connection," Severus answered. "You did not even recognise Lucius in the apothecary. You cannot be seen to be getting Draco in trouble, can you? But why would you fear your secretarial job when you know that the rules protect you? It doesn't make sense..."
Casey's face shifted - Severus realised he had said too much. She knew he had overheard Albus. She wasn't going to give Severus an answer now – so he decided, in the split seconds before she might break eye contact, to find the answers for himself.
Legilimens! he thought, and immediately he was in Casey's mind.
The first emotion he picked up on was fear – but then he saw a hazy memory – that day the two of them stopped the Slytherin student from being bullied by those Gryffindors under the tree – and another emotion attached to it – anger. No, outrage.
He pried further. Another sketchy memory presented itself: Minerva's office, the framed photographs of her Quidditch team, the House Cup on her bookshelf. She was recalling how Albus had given Gryffindor over a hundred extra points so they could win the Cup in 1992, taking it right out of Slytherin's hands. He picked up on what Casey felt about that: injustice.
It seemed Casey was being truthful... Was Severus in the wrong? Had his suspicious, inquisitive mind gotten the better of him and clouded his judgement?
Before he could leave Casey's mind, another memory cropped up.
An alleyway – two girls were playing with a ball – ten-year-old brunette Casey and a taller, older blonde girl who looked about fifteen. Even though they appeared different at first glance, there was a strong resemblance between them: they were sisters. This memory was clear as day: Severus could practically feel the breeze in his hair and the traffic fumes in his lungs, as if this memory had been played over and over again, until every detail was perfected.
The blonde girl dropped the ball and it bounced out into the street – she chased after it – and Casey shouted after her, "Siobhán, leave it! The English soldiers–!"
Then there was a terrible bang – like a Stunning spell being cast, but much, much louder – it echoed horribly around the street, but before Severus could see any more the memory was hidden behind an Occlumency shield, out of his reach.
He didn't need to see anymore to know what had happened: the other girl – Siobhán – was gone. He picked up on a lingering emotion that Casey hadn't managed to hide – grief. A grief so strong Severus had only felt something to match it once in his life: when he had first found Lily's body in Godric's Hollow.
He left Casey's mind, and found himself back in the kitchen of the staff room. Casey was still leaning against the countertop, except now she clutched her wand to tightly that her hand was trembling.
Severus opened and closed his mouth uselessly, and then quietly managed to say, "I'm sorry–"
"Don't," Casey hissed, slightly breathless, and took a step closer, pointing her wand at him in a blaze of fury. He didn't try and defend himself. He had gone too far.
She glared at him for a long moment, her wand-tip inches from his neck, and he could see her lips trembling. A moment later she lowered her wand, and then put her hand over her face and hurried out of the room.
She left behind her the rosy scent of her perfume, a smashed teacup on the floor, and Severus, whose eyes were rapidly clouding over with tears.