Twists of Fate

His beady eyes surveyed the clean room as if looking for something to take apart and inspect. Finding nothing misplaced, they looked into a mirror to study the reflection. Here hands tugged at the sleeves of a pressed black robe. But the eyes continued to linger upon the reflection.

Severus Snape brought his hand to his neck, mentally frowning upon the thought of leaving without his pendant. Scowling, he made his way to a table and found the pendant glimmering in the late afternoon sunlight. Severus picked it up, letting it lie flat in his palm. Rays of light reflected off of the copper-plated outside. Severus looped the coarse string around his head and let the pendant rest innocently just under the collar of his robes.

He turned from the table and once more took in the room. As before, nothing was out of place. The bed was made, the desk was dusted. Severus reached into his dresser and brought out a long black cloak. There was a hood on it big enough to hide his entire face and then some. Severus held it at arms length, letting the disgust show on his face. With a reluctant sigh, Severus brought the cloak under his arm and pointed his wand at it.

"Invisibilia!" he muttered. The cloak over his arm flickered in the light and then disappeared. Satisfied, Severus pocketed his wand and made for the door. The summer had set warmth within the castle walls. Even within his dungeon room, Severus had found it warm, if not too warm for his liking. His room was the coolest throughout the year, and stepping into the kitchens during summer was like stepping into hell.

But none of this worried Severus as he stole from the castle. No one would question where he was off to. Dumbledore had made sure of that. Severus, in part, was thankful. He couldn't help feeling as if the old man was trying to be more than he is. Then Severus would reflect that Dumbledore might already be the greatest man alive, if not ever. He had, after all, let Severus back into his trusted circle after betraying them all. Severus frowned now, remembering it all. It was not the time or place to reminisce about it. He had been a foolish boy to do such things. Severus was quite surprised that his stupid, younger self was thoughtful enough to go to Dumbledore at all. Many others didn't.

Severus rolled his eyes in a very unlike-himself way. He adjusted the invisible cloak under his arm and narrowed his eyes at the approaching Hogwarts gates. Already Severus was feeling hot in the mild summer sun. He quickened his pace and left the grounds. Now the only trick was to get somewhere where no one could see him. Luckily, that trouble was solved when Hogsmeade came into sight. Just before the bustling summer visit spot was a house crowded by vines and trees.

He ducked into the shady back door, feeling blessed for the cool shade that covered up the painful sun. Severus retrieved his wand and made his cloak appear again. The black folds hung over his arm. Severus kept his wand at bay while he pulled the cloak over him. It was a ridiculous idea in the middle of the summer, but nonetheless it was done. Severus stood, heat overwhelming him. He checked for the pendent which rested on his neck.

There was a sudden, sharp pain in his left arm. He touched it instinctively with his right, gritting his teeth. "I'm coming, My Lord," he spat mockingly. With his wand tucked into his sleeve, the end held by his right arm, Severus Disapperated from the house.

A moment later Severus felt sure ground under his feet. He stood straighter and let his breath become even. He couldn't appear nervous. As soon as his eyes focused in the dark, Severus could see two dark, wooden doors ahead of him. On each was a giant green serpent, one mirroring the other. Severus repressed a shudder and pushed the doors open. He could safely feel the pendant swinging against his chest every time he stepped out.

"Severus, nice of you to join us."

Severus didn't stop. He walked right up to the group of hooded men and women. He was supposed to be part of them, after all. The voice who spoke -Lord Voldemort- was sitting in a high throne, his red eyes gleaming. They pierced through the darkness like knives.

"Honored to be called to service," Severus replied evenly. He gritted his teeth in order to stop himself from saying anything else. Voldemort let out a low, dry laugh.

"I'm sure of it. But there are matters to discuss here far more important than whether you are honored to be here," Voldemort said, his bony fingers tapping at the arm of his grand chair. "I fear that one of us is a coward...and that her failure and disloyalty should be known to the rest of us." A shiver went through some of the Death Eater. Severus gathered that those were the females of the group.

"Reyolds!"

There was no movement for a moment, then suddenly a figure was thrust from the hooded figures. She was trembling as she stood in front of Voldemort, looking down at the ground. Voldemort, however, continued to command her. "Come to me like a servant of her Lord should," he said, his voice filled with sarcastic undertones. The woman stumbled forward, closer, and kneeled before Voldemort.

"Tell me, Reyolds, what your mission was...tell everyone what your mission was," Voldemort said, his voice silky.

The woman let out a noise, cleared her throat, then started again in a bold, clear voice that put even Severus aside. "I was to find information on the whereabouts of all the Weasley clan. It was to help the ultimate capture of Harry Potter." Severus's insides turned cold. How come he hadn't become aware of this plan? Dumbledore would need to know.

The woman, however, was continuing. "I-I slipped up and the information was fed into the Ministry."

Voldemort eyed her. "Very well...so you blundered. Yet what troubles me the most is why, during your slip up, your name was not mentioned. Thommes, Kingsley, and Porter's names were all spilled, yet yours was kept a secret." He paused, letting the chill settled upon the heads. "How interesting. Care to explain?"

"Master," she gasped. "Please, understand, that I was put under questioning and was forced -."

Voldemort let out a disbelieving sigh. His eyes gleamed with victory. "It comes to my attention that you could have lied. What came upon you to tell the truth?" He leaned forward in his throne. "I suggest that you be locked away while I decide what to do with you." Voldemort straightened, building his figure taller than before. Severus, standing halfway in the shadows, watched with mild interest. It wasn't until his name was called that Severus looked up, pulling himself from his reverie.

"Snape, Nolds, take her away to the third chamber," Voldemort said, then allowed himself to smile cruelly. "I'll kill her tomorrow. Return to me for furthur assignments." Severus parted from the mass of black hoods. From the corner of his eye he watched as another figure came forward. Obliging to the request, Severus heaved her from under one of her arms. Nolds, a man who Severus was barely acquainted with, held her up by the other arm. They made their way through the crowd. Her feet dragged.

They were silent. Nolds seemed to know where he was going, which was a good thing for Severus was concentrating on the tale he had heard. She obviously had been giving information to the Ministry, but under her own will? Severus glanced down at the figure he was dragging, then back at Nolds. He was staring straight ahead. Severus, with an self-annoyed jolt, concentrated back on the path.

Severus held her tightly by the arm as Nolds unlocked the stone door. He heaved the door open and grabbed the woman from Severus. She was thrown into the chamber by Nolds. It was quite brutal, too; her hands caught her as she fell and let out a nasty crack and blood sprouted from her nose. She forced herself into a kneeling position while Nolds laughed. Severus tried to laugh, but he felt rather sick.

Something glinted from her robes as she kneeled over, panting. The copper piece slipped from her robes and hung around her neck. She was too tired to care, but Nolds summoned it. Severus took a sharp intake of breath. "You won't be needing that," he growled, clutching the piece in his hand. She clasped a hand to her chest and looked up, her face darkened by the hood.

"Damn," she swore. "Give it back."

Severus thought fast. If she had a pendant just like his, that meant that she, too, was a spy. Who was she spying for? Was she spying for the Ministry? Perhaps just for herself, for the good of the people? Either way, she had a pendant, and that meant that she shouldn't die. Severus felt that he was obliged to let her live. It'd be like killing himself. Severus, proud of his quick thinking, had thought of a plan.

"Nolds," he commanded, "take that pendant to Master. I'll deal with her...she needs a good knocking. Tell Master that I'll be shortly." Nolds stood a moment, his statue bewildered. He gripped the pendant and stalked off into the corridor. Severus watched for a moment, his breathing ragged. He then spun on his heel and faced the woman, cowering in the shadows.

"Reyolds. Is that it?" Severus asked quietly, quickly taking off his own pendant. The woman didn't respond. "Very well, don't speak. But you're a spy nevertheless, which means you side with me."

The woman's head raised. "You're a spy?" she whispered.

"Yes," Severus replied, his voice rushed. He had untied the pendant and now walked forward. "Take this and go. You'll end up just outside of Hogwarts...you may go wherever you wish." He dropped the pendant and rushed from the chamber, praying that Voldemort wouldn't decide that he was a traitor.

Severus sat behind the grand desk in his office, muttering under his breath. His eyes wandered over the jars of pickled turtle eggs and salamander nails. The two would cause disasterous consequences if not mixed properly. Severus decided that he couldn't trust the fourth years with such a task and shook the prospect from his head. He was just wondering if perhaps the sixth years could manage when a knock came at his door. Severus was about to respond smartly, not in the mood to talk, when Dumbledore himself strode inside the office.

Severus, however, made no show of interest. Dumbledore took a seat across from Severus. Severus went on jotting down neat, organized notes into his agenda. He had to have this agenda done before the school year.... Dumbledore's eyes piercing into his hair weren't helping. Severus, after a minute of agonized writing, threw his quill down with an impatient sigh.

"Did you need something, Albus?" Severus asked, eyebrows raised.

The headmaster's hands were pressed together, the tips of his slender fingers resting under his chin. Dumbledore raised his chin, smiling pleasantly. "You didn't visit me the day after your visit with Voldemort, Severus."

"Am I supposed to report after each errand? Shouldn't you punish me?" Severus replied, smirking.

"You know how essential it is that we get any imformation," Dumbledore said sharply.

"I was feeling under the wheather," Severus lied. He had been feeling fine. In fact, Severus had been so well that he had paced restlessly through his room, trying to figure out how to tell Dumbledore that he had lost his pendant. And as to how...that was another story. Severus had put off visiting Dumbledore for two days now.

"Perhaps you should see Madam Pomfrey," Dumbledore said, his voice softening. "But, if you don't mind, can you tell me anything that occured?"

Severus let out some breath he was holding. It all came down to now, he decided. Maybe he should say that he had lost it somewhere in his room. Maybe he should just tell the headmaster that all was fine...no, Severus would have to tell him about the spy, which would narrow Dumbledore's questions to whether she died, then to how she lived, then to why Severus would do something so stupid as to give her his pendant....

So the story came out and Severus found himself acting like a child, being scolded by the headmaster. Severus obediantly included everything. He luckily remembered to tell Dumbledore about the plan to get the Weasley family, something Dumbledore took note of. He had come to the point in the story where Severus had given his pendant to the woman, allowing her to flee from the chamber.

"Forgive me for asking, but aren't those chambers protected by charms to repell most other magic?" Dumbledore asked, curiously. Severus rather wished he would have let him finish. It was easy to go on talking once you got started.

"They are," Severus sighed, "but the pendants aren't 'other' magic."

"Go on, then," Dumbledore prompted.

Severus quickly ended that he had told the woman that the pendant had gone to Hogwarts and that was the last he saw of her. "Do you know who she is, Albus?"

"A woman serving, such like yourself." His answer was cryptic; it made Severus frustrated to be working with the old man.

"Very well. Is that all? I really must continue this planning," Severus said, hoping to dust the headmaster off of his shoulders.

Dumbledore nodded and stood. "One more thing," he said as he was about to sweep from the door. "Tonight at seven there is a planned teacher's meeting. I shall introduce the new Defence teacher then." With those words, Dumbledore smiled and left Severus to sit and dwell.

"Got a new professor, did he now?" Severus said, his voice mocking. "Pity he can't see there's a damn good one sitting in front of his nose."

Ella sat jangling her foot. It was part bad-habit, part that her foot had fallen asleep. She was also nervous...incredibly nervous. So nervous that her foot would jangle constantly without her permission. Ella blushed at the thought of explaining why she couldn't stop moving her foot. "Really, sir, it's just that I'm nervous..." She rolled her eyes. The afternoon was not going well.

Dumbledore had shoved her (rather graciously) into a room up high in one of the towers. Oh, it was splendid all right. The view was grand and breathtaking and all. Yes, Ella was quite pleased with Dumbledore's kindness. If only he had known that she hated heights, and that walked up and down stairs everyday was not her idea of good fun. Ella was quite near tears by the time she had fnished unpacking herself into the room that seemed crowded by her things. They smashed oddly against the circular walls. She had sat on her bed (while admiring the softness of the velvet cover) and studied the room with a sense of longing.

Not that she had much to long for.

"Ella, is there a reason why you keep tapping my knee?" Dumbledore whispered, leaning over. Ella sat up, startled. Her foot stopped moving abruptly. A million replies ran through her head, each one sillier than the last. "Please, sir, I've got uncontrollable muscles.... Didn't I warn you that my foot has a mind of its own...?"

"No!" Ella whispered, horrified. "No, sir, I'm quite sorry! I've got the nerves."

"About meeting the rest of the staff?" Dumbledore asked kindly. "You shouldn't have such silly qualms. They're friendly enough."

Ella scowled. That's what they always say. Ella was just about to get lost in her thoughts again when the door to the office banged open. Ella, if she was surprised by the sudden noise, was past amazement when she noted the person...if it was a person...who had just stepped in. He looked as if he should be banned from indoors. His shaggy head was covered in black hair. Beady eyes stared from under the wads of hair, sparkling warmly.

"Aye, is this the new one?" he rumbled, a big hand patting his stomach.

"Indeed, Hagrid," Dumbledore confirmed. "Ella Yolder, meet Ruebus Hagrid."

"Nice ter meet yeh, Ms. Yolder. Be teachin' Defense, right? Good thing, too. Haven't had a sturdy teacher 'round here for a while."

Ella forced herself to smile. "Ella is fine, Ruebus."

"Then do me the favor of callin' me Hagrid."

"Hagrid."

Hagrid took his seat next to Dumbledore. The door, still hanging open, was filled up by two more people. One's appearance shocked Ella so much that she was sure she was imagining. Large glasses were perched over a nose. Her hair was tied back into a bandana and fell in brown masses along her shoulders, which were draped in shaws and scarves. Her hands were embedded by bangles and rings. The woman next to her, however, looked nothing short of the old, strict school teacher.

Dumbledore smiled. "Sibyll, Minerva, do take a seat." The two women parted and sat on extreme opposite ends of the table. The one with the strange appearance was staring intently at Ella, something Ella found unnerving. The elder, stricter woman stretched out a hand.

"Minerva McGonagall. Minerva is fine," she said, her tight face features relaxing into a bit of a smile. Hell, if that's her smile, I can't wait to see her mad, Ella thought, supressing a grin.

"Nice to meet you, Minerva," Ella replied, entertaining herself with the thought of asking Minerva to frown. "Ella Yolder."

"I'm glad you could join us here at Hogwarts," Minerva said cordially. It was formal enough to tug on Ella's lips.

"She has secrets," came the misty voice from the end of the table. The strange woman had spoken, her eyes still resting on Ella. Ella was about to stand and protest, her mouth already open in a flash of anger, when a group of voices came from the door.

"Of course she has."

"Who doesn't?"

"Bother, Sibyll, you'll scare the girl."

They came in such a rush that Ella had trouble remembering the names. Vector, Sprout, Flitwick - or was that Flitwick? - Hooch...she would get them eventually. Right now, Ella concentrated on keeping her foot still and smiling pleasantly. There still seemed to be a seat missing, and the sigh around the table signified it as nothing out of the ordinary. Ella was just going to ask who the final professor was when a man appeared in the doorway.

Ella was interested in his appearance. He was tall and dark - rather brooding. He reminded her of a bat that had been locked away, and then shoved into the light. He had long black hair that fell to his shoulders and shallow, beady eyes. They weren't as warm as Hagrid's. His complexion was white and pale. His skin stretched over his cheekbones in a way that made Ella think of him as a vampire. Ella rolled her eyes - she had to stop thinking so metaphorically.

The man sat at his chair across from Ella. His eyes scanned the group, the disgust evident on his face. The eyes came to a dead halt when they landed on Ella, though, and Ella stared right back into their cold depths.

"Is she the new jinx?" he asked, his voice deep and full of hatred. It was said in such a mocking way that Ella felt the side of that comment whiz her stomach.

"Jinx?" Ella asked, her conifdence growing in the haughtiness of the man.

The man's sneer spread from his lips to his eyes. Dumbledore, however, explained. "The job you're about to hold has been said to have been jinxed. We haven't had a teacher in the past ten years that has stayed more than one year."

"That shouldn't be a problem to overcome, should it?" Ella said. "And with bright people like you lot, we'll go along fine." As she said this, her eyes pierced the man's with such fierceness that he looked away, defeated. Ella grinned.

"You still haven't introduced yourself."

"Neither, if I'm correct, have you," he replied.

"Ella Yolder."

"Severus Snape."

Silence followed. Most were unsure of what to say. Those who did know what to say were to afraid to say it. The tension in the air between the two was so great that Ella thought sneezing might make everyone have a heart attack. At least, Minerva McGonagall would. Ella bit her tongue in order to stop herself from screaming in frustration.