The Embittering of Severus Snape

Narcissa's chess pieces were gloating over the loss of Lucius' rook. She sat with her feet curled under her in the squishy armchair that he'd pulled over to the table for her. What the Daily Prophet had dubbed "The Wedding of the Decade" was less than a week away, and this was the first evening they'd managed to spend alone since school. Or, almost alone. Lucius' parents were in another drawing room, somewhere in the manor. That knowledge seemed to weigh on them, keeping conversation to a minimum. Of course, Lucius knew better than to say anything truthful in his father's house anyway. The paintings were all VERY loyal to Malfoy Sr. Just as they would one day be loyal to him.

Not in the least perturbed by the loss, Lucius considered his knight, his eyes darting to Narci's face as the firelight flickered. He might have paused just to look at her, had the light in the room not abruptly shifted to green. Instead, his eyes snapped toward the fireplace. He raised an eyebrow in annoyance. Severus Snape's head had appeared in the flames, and the expression on his face was not one that Lucius had seen there often. "Narcissa," Snape greeted stiffly before turning to Lucius. "He's in Knockturn Alley tonight."

Lucius heard Narci's intake of breath. She didn't approve of Knockturn Alley, he knew, but he'd promised his aid, and Severus would have it. He stood abruptly and summoned a robe and mask from elsewhere in the house. While he awaited the items, he kissed his fiancée on top of her head. Paintings be damned.

Narcissa knew better than to voice her concern. The set of Lucius' jaw was enough to convince her that this wasn't some childish prank, not that he'd ever indulged in such things, really. But she was curious what they were up to. "Who, Lucius?" she asked quietly. Severus had disappeared, and Lucius was donning his cloak and duplicating his mask so Severus would have one as well.

"Avery," he answered shortly. She felt anger well up in her chest. Lucius had told her what Avery had tried to do to Severus' betrothed, and though the girl hadn't ended up in Slytherin, she still felt protective of her. She'd known her since she was small, after all. Almost, she offered to accompany him, but she bit her tongue. The Ruse, as they'd come to call it, was still a top priority. There could be no show of power on her part, or the Dark Lord would be demanding her loyalty. Instead, she only nodded approvingly as Lucius snapped his mask in place. "We won't kill him," he added, sounding rather disappointed. She smiled then.

"I'll be going back to the manor, then. I need to send a letter to my sister." Lucius' eyes seemed to narrow behind the mask. When she meant Bella, she always said Bella. It was only when she was writing to Andromeda that she ever referred to her as her sister. And she knew quite well that she'd best not be caught writing to Andromeda after what the blood traitor had done. Running off with a Muggle! It was despicable!

Still, he reigned in his anger. He had learned long since that Narcissa's discretion was impeccable. She would not be caught. And regardless of her poor taste, Andromeda was her sister. After a rather heated debate, he'd determined that he had no right to forbid her to correspond. He nodded once and disappeared into the fireplace, leaving her with a small smile on her lips. She was more than pleased that he hadn't questioned her. She was thrilled. This marriage, and the Ruse they shared, it was going to work.

It had been no small feat to create a clearing in the midst of the Arnot Tower Gardens large enough for every pureblood in Europe to attend the wedding, but the Malfoy family had accomplished it. They'd had to book it for the entire month of July, and most of their more talented acquaintances had been assisting with shrinking Loch Leven to allow for an enlarged tower and courtyard garden. The house elves simply could not be trusted with such things, especially since it had to go back to normal when they left.

The Ruse was firmly in place, as Narcissa and Lucius had not seen one another, nor even corresponded, since their unfinished chess match earlier in the week. Of all the aspects of the Ruse, that part was Narci's least favorite. Lucius maintained that if no one thought he cared for her, then no one would ever use her to blackmail him. Of course it was a sound theory, but in practice, it was torment at its finest.

Narcissa stared at her reflection in the floor to ceiling mirror her sister had conjured for her. Bellatrix stood behind her, dressed rather less spectacularly than Narcissa had expected. Now that the Dark Lord had set his minions on the first resisting pureblood family, he was unable to attend such public functions, so there was no one for the dark haired beauty to impress. Where he'd desired open loyalty only a few years previous, he now desired secrecy. Lucius, for his part, had been pleased. The family honor could be restored, if only he could keep the press from learning of his nocturnal activities. Bellatrix, on the other hand, was pouting annoyingly.

Narcissa nodded at her elder sister's words, cringing each time Bella began talking belligerently about Muggles and mudbloods. Andromeda, covered in the invisibility cloak, which Lucius had owled to her, sat fuming on the floor nearby. When Bellatrix began spouting off about her marriage to Mr. Tonks as if it was some kind of abomination, Andromeda couldn't resist casting a quick charm to make her choke on her words. After all, she may have fallen in love with a Muggle, but she was still a Black. Narci's attention snapped to Bella as she coughed violently, and she suppressed a grin, knowing what must have happened. She quickly conjured a glass of water and handed it to her scowling sister.

"Bellatrix Lestrange, you should know better than to speak that way of your own blood," she scolded in her most superior tone of voice. "Nothing good ever comes of it. And don't get that on my robes!" she exclaimed, as Bella continued to sputter in agitation. Narcissa smoothed her robes again, admiring the deep gold fabric. After consulting her mother about several issues at the beginning of her sixth year, she had known better than to expect to be allowed to wear white as Bella had last year. (Not that she thought for a moment that Bella had deserved the white robes either.)

The Prophet would have a field day with that, she knew. Lucius' self- satisfied smirk would be all over the paper by the end of the day and everyone would know that she hadn't made him wait. But it suited the Ruse just fine. She smiled conspiratorially in the direction of her eldest sister, or where she thought her to be. Everyone might know, but no one would DARE look down on her for it. After all, in half an hour, she would be a Malfoy.

Lucius felt like a fourteen year old again as he stood beside Crouch with an artfully disinterested expression on his face. The girls were not yet ready. He idly wondered what Crouch would do if he ever found out he was presiding over a terrace filled with death eaters. Active ones, at that. His eyes clouded as he remembered the most recent exploit. Avery had deserved every hex, welt, and cut they'd given him. He was bound to be in St. Mungo's for quite some time. Particularly satisfying had been the single punch Severus had thrown. For fourteen, he'd certainly held his own, barely letting Lucius cast anything at all. He was going to do quite well in the group, once his father was out of the way.

Lucius unconsciously rubbed his thumb and forefinger together, his closed expression firmly in place as he watched Mr. Deesia and his daughter, Muriel, walking up the south stair. The girl had been more trouble than she was worth in the last year, and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it. Severus was growing steadily more proficient in the dark arts, even as his betrothed moved away from them. Not that she wasn't turning out to be a formidable witch in her own right, he acknowledged grudgingly, remembering her summoning spell. Besides, he owed her something, and, as distasteful as it was to admit it, that 'something' might very well be a life debt.

Unbidden, the thought came to him that he owed her even more than that. She had seen the mark and saved him anyway. One of three people in all the world who knew him and didn't think him a monster. He tore his thoughts away as they passed him and headed toward their chairs. Realizing that he'd begun to scowl, he carefully neutralized his expression. Disinterest rather than outright defiance was the Ruse of the day, and he would maintain it.

Music had begun playing from somewhere. Classical something or other - probably Mozart. There were so few classical wizard composers, and at the Wedding of the Decade, Muggle music would have been an inexcusable faux pas. He smirked, suddenly, wondering how Narci and Bella were getting along, and if Andromeda had yet joined them. He hoped Narcissa knew what she was doing, requesting that he give the woman that cloak. If she were caught here, she'd be dead in instants, and the Prophet wouldn't say a thing about it. The Black family was taking her betrayal quite hard.

With a few terse words to Crouch, Lucius strode from the terrace back into the scented courtyard, and they took their places before the seated guests. Behind them a huge magnolia tree, in full blossom, provided a backdrop. Where it had come from, Lucius could only guess, but he supposed perhaps old Mr. Knott had provided it. For an evil, vindictive old wizard, he did have a soft spot for Herbology. Smirking again to hide a sudden and uncharacteristic bout of nervousness, he glanced over the crowd. Severus was sitting with the Deesias, away from his parents, and both sets of people looked happier for it. He'd have to speak with the boy. It wouldn't do for everyone to know he disliked his father. How would they get away with killing him if everyone already expected them to?

He was reminded a moment later how difficult it is to pretend to care for a complete and utter bastard when his own father approached him. Lucius withstood the false joviality, as well as the lowly spoken reminder that the family honor must be upheld at all costs. Oh yes, Lucius would uphold the family honor. Just as soon as his father was safely stowed away in the graveyard behind the manor. In the meantime, he affected boredom and awaited his bride.

He was caught entirely unprepared when she arrived. Thankfully everyone's eyes were on her. Only she noticed the look on his face. Narcissa pressed her lips together in annoyance. Lucius Malfoy had bragged of being the most accomplished actor of the century. Why then was he grinning like a schoolboy when they were supposed to be performing the Ruse? A rather rude cough from the left caught his attention, and his eyes flicked to Severus, who was raising an eyebrow at him in warning. Instantly his face resumed its customary sneer. In the same instant, Narcissa felt a great weight lift from her chest, and a huge swell of gratitude to the Snape boy. Once again he'd covered for them.

The wedding proceeded with all the pomp and circumstance that the main participants could have hoped. The society section of the paper would speak of nothing else for nearly a month.

When they were finally and officially Mr. and Mrs. Lucius Malfoy, Lucius kissed her dispassionately and led her back down the aisle. Narcissa looked decidedly unhappy, until flashes began to go off. Then her face lit up, and her posture improved greatly. As planned, Lucius made a snide comment about her vanity, and she became remarkably cold as they led the way to the terrace for dancing and dinner.

It was a long evening, and Lucius spent most of it dancing with his relatives and sending Severus to whisper things to Narci each time he found himself with a moment of peace. Narcissa danced with the younger boy several times as he relayed her new husband's messages. She listened with a look of forced distaste on her pale face as he told her that Lucius thought her beautiful, and as he stumbled over the innuendoes that he'd been asked to repeat. They would share a hearty laugh later over the boy's discomfort, though she knew that his willingness to do such a thing meant a great deal to Lucius.

As the evening wore on, Lucius found himself growing more and more impatient. There didn't seem to be any end of the festivities in sight, and the Ruse was getting old. He excused himself smoothly as yet another busty guest he didn't recognize attempted to lure him onto the dance floor. He made his way to Narcissa, who was now dancing with a somewhat tipsy Mr. Ollivander. "Come, Mrs. Malfoy, it is time we departed," he began formally.

Narcissa lifted her chin defiantly, but excused herself politely and followed Lucius as he went to stand near the door. She stood deferentially behind him as he cast a sonorous charm on himself and bid everyone goodnight in elegant words, spoken haughtily. He did not thank them for attending. He expressed no pleasure. It was truly a masterful performance. When they reached the Apparation point, he took a sly look around. Seeing no one, he swept her into his arms in one smooth motion, and they disappeared, neither one noticing the very confused girl who'd been sitting in a window of the ruined tower, watching through tear-blurred eyes.

Muriel shook her head, her tears forgotten. Did she dare to believe what she'd just seen? To all accounts, the Malfoys had been nothing but cold and distant with one another all night. But for just a moment they had looked so happy. She wiped furiously at her tears when she heard footfalls on the decrepit stairway.

"Those stairs are in no shape for climbing, Sev. You'd best levitate yourself up here," she warned, steadying her voice carefully.

Severus floated into the open-ceilinged room a moment later and looked shrewdly at his best friend. "What're you doing up here?" Of course, it was quite obvious what she was doing, and he knew it was probably his fault. But then, he'd TOLD her he hated to dance, so she shouldn't have expected to be asked. Not that he wouldn't have asked her, of course, if he'd been available. But Lucius had kept him quite busy.

She hadn't moved from the window, her arms still wrapped tightly around her knees, in spite of the creases it made in her robes. "The fountains are lit," she responded quietly.

"Well, Papa says it's time to go."

With a sad smile, she hopped down from the window ledge and Apparated to the ground, startling her father, who was waiting for them. Severus followed a moment later. It had been a good night. He'd managed to avoid his father the entire time. They Apparated home, not waiting for the rest of Severus' family, and he shook hands with Mr. Deesia and said goodnight to Mur before trotting across the lawn to sequester himself in his room.

"Everything alright?" Mr. Deesia looked down at his daughter as her eyes followed her friend home. For a moment, he thought perhaps she hadn't heard him.

"Perfect, Papa," she replied sweetly, smiling bravely up at him before leading the way into the house. 'For someone,' she added dryly as she tucked herself into bed, remembering the fleeting vision of joy on the usually sneering face of Lucius Malfoy.

Muriel ran the stretch of yard between her house and Severus', clutching her Hogwarts letter in one hand and a bright prefect's badge in the other. Mr. Snape had come home and left again half way through the summer, so she just threw open the front door and ran upstairs.

"Sev, look!" she exclaimed, reaching his room and throwing open the door. Mrs. Snape turned, grinning. She'd been fiddling with something on Severus' robes. "Dumbledore made me a prefect!" Mrs. Snape stepped aside, and Muriel began to laugh at the sight of a duplicate badge on his robes. "And you too? Merlin this is going to be a good year! The marauders are going to wet themselves!"

Severus, trying to look dignified behind his badge, snorted in spite of himself, then smiled. "I imagine I got prefect because Macnair has got no personality and Goyle has the brains of a niffler, but how did YOU get it? You get detention more often than I do!"

"Well, I think it's lovely, Mur," Mrs. Snape said quickly, hugging her and heading back downstairs. She didn't want to be around if her son was foolish enough to tease the girl.

Mur looked thoughtful. She'd been so excited that she hadn't given it any thought. "Well. I bet Dumbledore didn't want to saddle any of my dorm mates with the impossible task of keeping me in line. Maybe he thought if he gave me a little responsibility, I'd be more likely to behave responsibly."

Severus nodded, that was as good a reason as any. "What an astounding error in judgment," he said seriously. They both laughed, then ran downstairs to ask Mrs. Snape if they could go to Diagon Alley and get their things. She sent them by themselves, knowing they'd take care of each other.

When they arrived to catch the Hogwarts Express a week later, Muriel was anxious to find out which of their Gryffindor counterparts had gotten the badge. They sat together in the prefect compartment, waiting. Neither was surprised when Lily Evans and Remus Lupin came in a few moments later. Mur was glad. She hadn't gotten to talk much with Remus in the last few years, and she really liked Lily.

Severus was relieved. At least Dumbledore had chosen the least destructive of the marauders, and the least likely to abuse his power. That would give him and Mur a nice edge this year. He sat quietly while Lily and Muriel chatted. Remus didn't seem to have much to say either, at first.

"Mur, could I tell you something?" he asked finally. The other Slytherin prefect had arrived by now, and was sitting haughtily beside Severus. There were far too many mud bloods in the room for her taste. Even though there was only one. Severus felt his throat constrict as Muriel looked up at Remus, a serious expression on her face.

"We're all really sorry about that spell, second year. We didn't know it would be that bad." The Hufflepuffs and the Head Boy and Girl came in, then, and Severus didn't catch Mur's reply. NOW he had an idea what had made her so angry in their second year.

"I forgave you all for that by the end of the year."

Remus nodded. Maybe they would be able to get along this year. They listened to all the instructions the Head Boy (thankfully NOT Avery) and Girl had to give, and left for their respective compartments. Mur and Sev didn't have one yet, so they just checked each one to see if it was empty.

Ahead of them, Remus disappeared into a compartment. A moment later, James appeared in the corridor. Severus and Mur both brought up their wands. But he was only looking for Lily, who had already walked passed him.

"Lil? We've got a new game. Why don't you come and play it with us?"

Muriel shook her head. Potter was going to have to do better than that.

"No thanks, James. It's always too crowded in your compartment, what with your swollen ego and all."

He went back into his compartment muttering, and was about to close the door when Mur put her foot against the bottom and stood in the doorway. "I'll play," she said immediately, seeing the game. Peter and Sirius were sitting on the bench playing a very easy-looking version of Labyrinth. At least, it was made of wood and had only one level. She smiled her best smile as James, Peter, and Severus all groaned.

"You played that all summer!" Severus said quickly. "And we have our own board with us." She shot him a withering glance. The point was to show these boys who was best at it, not to sit quietly and play by herself.

"Sure, Mur, come on in." Remus was glad she'd accepted his apology and wanted to be nice to her. James was looking at him like he was crazy, so he mouthed the word, 'Prefects,' at him, hoping he'd understand. He saw his eyes widen as his head snapped back to look for the badges on their robes. Muriel smirked at him and plopped down next to Remus. Severus stood in the doorway. There was no way he was going to walk into that compartment and sit down with the marauders. They all watched in silence as Sirius tried it, and then Peter. Neither got very far. Muriel smirked when Peter passed the game to her.

"So, where'd you get a Muggle game like this?" Remus asked finally as Mur finished the maze, the ball dropping neatly into the tray. She could tell that he was trying to ease the extremely tense atmosphere.

"Well, I had a spot of trouble with one of the older Slytherins last year, so Papa hired an Oriental wizard to come and teach me hand combat. He sent a board like this to me a few weeks before he came, and said that hand-eye coordination was really important in martial arts. Didn't want me hitting someone's eye when I was aiming for his nose, or something." She was careful not to look at Sirius as she spoke.

The boys nodded. They all knew why she'd wanted to learn to defend herself. She smirked. "It was really helpful. I'll show you!" She stood abruptly as James failed at the game, groaning. They looked up at her to see that she was grinned wickedly at Sirius, and holding out her wrists. Her wand lay forgotten on the bench.

Severus, who hadn't spoken all this time, was beside himself. Was she really going to give them a demonstration in these close quarters? It was nearly impossible. Sure, she'd thrown him once over the summer, but that had been outside, where there wasn't anything in her way. While she had been learning martial arts, he'd spent his time learning Occlumency, so he had no idea what she was capable of.

"What?" Sirius asked guardedly. She couldn't possibly want him to -

"Take my wrists and try to drag me into the corridor," she said, still smiling. This was going to be absolutely too much fun.

"Why me?" he asked quickly, not moving. He exchanged a glance with James, who'd set the game aside, looking worriedly at Muriel. Maybe she had figured out who'd helped her after all.

"Because, you're the one I'll most enjoy throwing to the ground, Black," she said quietly. Then, "Stand back, Sev, we'll be all the way into the corridor before it happens." Severus shook his head and moved further down the corridor as Sirius stood up and took her wrists. He stepped backward, but she didn't move.

"Black, you'll have to actually try to get me out there, I'm not going to just follow you!" Peter looked absolutely terrified, but James and Remus had amused expressions.

"I don't want to hurt you," Sirius said quietly. He was standing close to her in the small compartment, and looking into her eyes. He'd forgotten how pretty they were.

Muriel was very, very glad, for some reason, that Severus hadn't heard that. She pushed the thought away and swallowed hard as James made a noise of disgust. "It never stopped you before, Black," she said pointedly. Sirius felt something suspiciously like guilt in his chest before he narrowed his eyes.

"Alright." A moment later he was dragging her forcibly into the corridor, a playful grin on his face. It was easier than he thought it would be, though he was careful to hold her arms high enough that her wrists wouldn't come out of place.

He never saw it coming. One moment he was pulling her toward the front of the train, and the next he was on his back behind her, gasping for air. Snape was standing over him laughing. He felt someone's arms under his shoulders and scrambled to his feet to face a smirking Muriel. "Don't worry, Black. I'll promise no physical retaliation for hexes if you will."

Well, she certainly wouldn't have to worry about Avery this year. Sirius nodded, blinking a bit more often than was usual as he sat down in his compartment. Remus was grinning, but James and Peter both looked very upset.

Sirius was very relieved that Muriel hadn't figured out that he'd helped her get away from Avery. Somehow, he thought that all the fun he had at school would go out the window if she ever knew that. He'd certainly have felt guiltier about hexing her. He sat several rows behind her in Professor Tantry's class, listening absentmindedly to drivel about dementors. His mother had once told him that the foul creatures couldn't be explained, you just had to meet one if you wanted to understand. He shuddered. He'd rather not understand. James passed him something and he glanced at it, suppressing a chuckle. He nodded.

A moment later class was irreparably disrupted when the legs of Marisa and Muriel's desk turned into squirming snakes. Their books scattered everywhere as the tabletop fell, and Marisa screamed, knocking her chair over as she tried to get away. Muriel stood up and turned around sharply. "Nothing poisonous this time, Black? I'm disappointed." She smirked at him as Professor Tantry hurriedly fixed the table legs and turned on the boys in the back. Black had been named, and in spite of the fact that he hadn't done it, he got the detention.

By the time Marisa and Muriel had gathered up all their books from the floor, class was over. Mur shot a victorious smile at Sirius before she and Marisa headed off to dinner, Marisa still breathing heavily.

Severus met them in the hall. "Hey girls," he said quietly, coming up behind them. Muriel jumped and turned around, swearing and drawing her wand. Sirius and James sniggered as they passed them. It was always fun to see the enemy fighting amongst themselves.

"Bloody hell, Sev!" Mur said angrily, putting her wand away. Severus suddenly felt very uncomfortable. He had surprised her. That had NEVER happened before, in all their lives. She could always sense his presence before he could speak. He wondered if she would ask him about it.

Muriel stared hard at her friend. Something wasn't right, hadn't been all summer long. She hadn't been able to hear any of his thoughts since late last term, and now his emotions were becoming harder to feel, too. Just now she knew he was standing in front of her, but it was like his body was an empty shell. She couldn't feel anything at all.

"Are you okay, Severus?" she asked finally, aware that they were the only people left in the hallway. Marisa was looking back and forth between them worriedly.

Severus put on a puzzled expression. "I'm fine. Are you okay?" He worried a bit more when she narrowed her eyes again before nodding shortly and turning back towards the Great Hall. For the first time it occurred to him that she might be less than happy that he was denying her access to his mind.

Muriel didn't bother to ask Severus to come with her to her Quidditch team tryout. She'd decided to try for keeper, but it was obvious within the first few minutes that there were at least three people far better suited to the job. She left the field alone and feeling very annoyed. Maybe next year.

Most of the Great Hall was looking raptly at the Gryffindor table when she finally dragged herself back downstairs for dinner. Sirius Black was facing a pretty, black haired Hufflepuff girl, who was turning red and smiling brightly enough to cast shadows.

"You really want to go with me?" he was asking loudly. "That's amazing, I was just trying to get up the nerve to ask you!" Sirius had really turned on the charm this time. Muriel rolled her eyes and walked the long way around to her seat as the girl giggled nervously, and sat down to have dinner with the marauders instead of at her own table.

Mur didn't acknowledge Severus as she walked past him but continued to her own table. He had been leaning over a homework assignment, and she hadn't seen him. As she sat, she watched a more familiar act play out at the Gryffindor table. James got up, practically ran down the table and whispered something to Lily, only to throw himself angrily onto the bench again a moment later. Mur shook her head. One day the girl was going to say yes. She wondered if Potter would have any idea what to do when that day came.

"James just got up to bother Lily again, I take it I missed the announcement about the Halloween ball?" she looked over at Marisa, but it was someone else who answered.

"That IS a pretty good indication, isn't it?" She looked up to see Jeremy Wood, the 7th year Gryffindor Quidditch captain smiling down at her. "I don't think we've met." He held out a hand and she stood to shake it.

"Wood, right?"

"Jeremy," he corrected. "And you're Muriel?" His eyes were a deep brown to match his hair, and he was smiling a very shy smile. Mur looked down and caught Marisa's eye. Her friend was grinning encouragingly.

"Mur," she corrected in the same tone.

"Mur, I saw you at the dance last year, and I'd really like for you to come to the Halloween ball with me." He said this all very fast, and Mur blinked at him in surprise. Her first thought was that she ought to go with Severus. But as quickly as it came she pushed it aside. She'd waited until it was almost too late last year, and she knew he'd never ask her.

"Well, alright then," she said softly. She'd never been asked out before, and it was a rather frightening experience. No wonder Marisa had grabbed her hand last year when Sirius had asked her to the ball. She had a very unnaturally girlish urge to do exactly the same thing. She could hear the girls whispering excitedly to one another at the table.

"Great. Maybe you'll come to a few of our practices in the meantime and we can talk?"

"Sure," she answered, her voice still rather misty. She stood there and watched him walk away. He sat down and started talking excitedly with his friends, as if it was something great to have asked out a 5th year. As her head cleared a bit, she couldn't help but wonder why a Gryffindor would be asking her out anyway, much less one that was two years older than she.

She sat back down slowly, thinking hard. She hadn't bothered to try and read anything out of his head. Well, maybe she'd be able to pick up a little of his reasoning at his first Quidditch practice.

Two weeks later she sat in the top box nearest the goals Jeremy was defending. She was close enough to get his thoughts, and he seemed to think he was impressing her. He was really quite good. The entire team was good, actually. Potter was about the best seeker the school had ever seen. In the two-hour practice, he'd caught the snitch at least 8 times. One of the beaters, a girl she didn't know, was knocking bludgers at the chasers while Black protected them. He hit the bludgers a lot harder than she did, so she was doing a good deal of extra flying to go after them. And his aim was nearly perfect. He sent her careening out over the field to protect James every time he hit the bludger away from the chasers. Muriel could certainly see how the team had learned to play so well. Their practices were very well coordinated.

She waited outside the locker rooms for Jeremy. Potter and Black came out first and started when they saw her there. "Spying on our practices, Deesia?" James asked coldly. He still hadn't forgiven her for laying Black out on the train, and had been having a field day hexing her ever since. She fingered her wand in her pocket.

"Yes, I'm going to tell AVERY all about it later on. Don't be a prat, Potter," she said sarcastically. Sirius looked a little startled. They weren't supposed to know that she didn't like the new Slytherin Quidditch captain.

James just laughed, smooth as always. "I was actually more afraid that you'd tell your own team."

"Oh, you think I'd report to Kyle that you're going to tromp all over his dreams again this year? That poor boy will be devastated enough when it happens. He doesn't need foreknowledge." Her voice was a little sad. She really would have to be cruel to tell Kyle ANYTHING she'd seen here today.

"There's my girl," Jeremy said sportingly as he came out of the locker rooms. Muriel raised an eyebrow. That was taking it a bit far, since she'd barely spoken to him in the four days since he'd caught her in the hall to tell her when the first practice was.

James choked incoherently, staring at his captain with wide eyes. Sirius, however, had caught the look on Muriel's face and was stifling a fit of giggles. "Wood, you'd better watch out for this one. She's a spitfire."

Muriel spared him a withering look. "Sod off, Black." She watched as Sirius led a still sputtering Potter away. Then she turned to Jeremy with a wicked grin. "He's right you know. It'll be a while before I'm your girl. You're a decent keeper, but it isn't enough to make me fall at your feet."

She watched as his mouth fell open. He was about to start saying he'd never thought any such thing. "Honestly, Wood, are all Gryffindors this conceited, or just the Quidditch players?"

His mouth snapped closed and he swallowed hard. "Sorry. I shouldn't have called you my girl. I was just - er -"

"Showing off in front of your team?" she supplied. She laughed when he nodded miserably. "That's okay. If you're half as good a dancer as you are a keeper, we'll have a good time anyway."

'You'll still go with me?" he asked incredulously. Muriel was still smiling at him.

"I hang out with Severus Snape. The boy has an ego the size of the Himalayan mountain range. I think I can put up with yours for an evening. IF you dance."

Jeremy couldn't help but laugh. He even made so bold as to put an arm around her shoulders as they walked back to the castle. "We'll get along just fine."

Muriel was really pleased to find that Wood actually seemed to enjoy her company. It isn't often that someone asks you out the same day they meet you. She'd been worried that he might want a little more than a good girl ought to give. But she couldn't sense any of that in the handsome 7th year, so she let herself enjoy his company as well. She sat through every Gryffindor practice, in spite of the jeering she took from her own house team.