Reconstruction of a Death Eater

Setup

Minerva McGonagall stared at the Auror with a glare that should have lifted his skin off. "Do you mean to tell me that monster plans to attack my children in the very village right on our doorstep? How dare he! The very idea! Of course I shall cancel the Hogsmeade weekend and confine the children to the grounds, but what is to stop the Death Eaters coming to attack us here if they fail to get anyone there?"

Shacklebolt frowned. "We will have patrols all around the area and aerial patrols out. Our main concern is that they will use a vanguard of Dementors against our forces. Our people can guard against the demons but only in limited numbers."

"Hogwarts will protect against their invasion," Minerva assured him grimly.

"Well, that is debatable. If you remember a few years ago, the Dementors were let onto Hogwarts grounds by order of the Ministry. Our greatest fear is that, in having gained legitimate entrance once, they can take illegitimate entrance this time."

"No, I helped Albus reinforce the wards and charms against them once we had cleared them out. The grounds will repel any Dementor stupid enough to approach, and if they are silly enough to press the issue, they will be destroyed, that I promise you."

"And if we press them against the wards?" Shacklebolt asked alertly.

"Makes no difference how they get there, as long as they are against the wards, they are deemed to be attacking the school, and the school will push back."

"Good!" Kingsley exclaimed in pleased satisfaction. "Now we must address the problem of the enemy within. We know there are a few junior Death Eaters amongst the student body, and they need to be contained so that they cannot be used to make a hole in the defences. Any suggestions?"

Minerva bowed her head and sighed deeply. "We only know of three marked Death Eaters, Parkinson, Goyle and Malfoy. There are others we suspect of having sympathies, but there is not a lot we can do about that. For Goyle, I think he will have detention with Filch and Pansy can serve detention with me. As for Malfoy...."

"Remus wants him down at Grimmauld Place to look after Severus while Remus is out patrolling. He said something about sending both Malfoy and Hermione down together."

"Did he now? How interesting? Miss Granger and Mr Malfoy have been keeping company in the library this past week, secretly. I don't think any of their friends know anything," Minerva mused, then frowned at Kingsley. "Do you think it wise to let them go down together?"

Shacklebolt gave it serious thought, then nodded decisively. "Yes, I do. Malfoy is slippery and tricky, but Hermione is fast and better trained as well as being just as intelligent, or even more so, than Malfoy. Besides, when it comes to judging people, I think we must both trust Remus in these matters."

"Right you are. I shall remove Mr Malfoy with some excuse or other by sending him off. I'm sure the other two will provoke some sort of trouble in the very near future."

~~*~~

"Oh, Mr Malfoy, wait a moment, won't you?" Agytha Sinistra called as the blond boy rose to leave Astronomy class.

"Yes, Professor Sinistra," he chirruped charmingly, his minions ranged at his back expectantly. While he was not happy to have the woman as their temporary Head of House, he did not want to antagonise her.

"There's been a note from your mother, and you are to report to the Headmistress' office tomorrow morning at eight fifteen."

"Eight fifteen?" he echoed in dismay, ignoring the snickers from his friends.

"Indeed. I assume you should wear street clothes rather than uniform," Sinistra returned blandly, hiding her own laughter as she strolled off. Malfoy was notoriously hard to wake up.

Draco exchanged glances with Crabbe and Goyle, ignoring Pansy's snickers. "What has my dear Mother arranged for me tomorrow?" he wondered as they wandered off down the corridor.

A group of Hufflepuff juniors coming toward them made Goyle grin as he and Crabbe moved in front of Draco. The small kids immediately tried to get out of the way of the bigger, older Slytherins, but Goyle made that impossible, even though Crabbe merely fended them off to the side. One boy managed to avoid Goyle's push only to be tripped by Pansy, who calmly and calculatedly kicked him in the short ribs.

"Miss Parkinson and Mr Goyle, how dare you attack younger children without provocation!" Madam Hooch's voice cut through the cries of pain and fear, making the two named participants freeze on the spot, exchanging grimaces of disgust. "Fifty points from each of you, and both of you will serve detention tomorrow. I am sure I heard Filch discussing some heavy moving he planned for tomorrow, Goyle; and you, Miss Parkinson, can help me clean and service the school brooms for the day."

"But it's a Hogsmeade weekend," Goyle complained only to be dug in the ribs by Parkinson who looked almost pleased with herself.

"You can, all four of you, go straight to your common room immediately and don't come out, except for dinner this evening, until breakfast tomorrow. Goyle, you report to the dungeons and, Parkinson, report to me, at eight o'clock." She hurried off in a swirl of robes, leaving the four Slytherins standing in the empty, deserted corridor, the Hufflepuffs having fled without looking back.

"Well, that's a pain in the arse," Crabbe said flatly. "What am I going to do now? With you two in detention and Draco off with his mother somewhere, I'll be on my own."

"Well, just don't go into Hogsmeade, remember," Pansy said self-importantly as Draco wandered off in the direction of the Slytherin common room again.

~~*~~

Hermione nodded as she passed the gryphon that moved out of her way when she said the password. For today she had dressed herself in a neat pink knit shirt, a pair of old and well worn jeans, and a rucksack of odds and ends slung over her shoulder as instructed. She had no real idea of why she had been summoned to the Headmistress' office but had gone along willingly. The announcement at breakfast that the Hogsmeade weekend had been cancelled due to a burst sewerage main in the middle of the village had been a disappointment, but she really didn't like the idea of being contaminated with raw sewage, nor had any of the other kids.

To compensate, Professor McGonagall had announced there would be a picnic lunch served in the grounds and a games carnival with old fashioned competitions - including an egg and spoon race, a sack race and a three legged race - held on the lake shores. While Hermione noticed a lot of the kids in Gryffindor had complained bitterly, they had also been eager to choose partners for the races, and quite a few had been practising their three-legged skills in the common room. Ron and Harry had tied their legs together and flip-flopped all over the hearth rug, much to the juniors' delight.

As she entered the office, Hermione glanced toward the desk, half expecting to see a familiar silver head bent over the surface. It had been almost a year since Professor Dumbledore died, but it was still a rude shock to the system to see Professor McGonagall in his place. Shaking off the feeling of wrongness, Hermione hurried over and smiled down at the Professor who used to be the head of her house.

"You asked me to come, Professor," she said quietly as the old woman looked up and smiled.

"I did, Miss Granger, I have a job for you, and I hope you will not refuse to undertake it. I know from the Hogwarts Book that you babysit children during the school holidays and you also take care of children when you are helping out at your parents' surgery. Remus Lupin also knows you are good with children and has asked for you personally to babysit his current charge...."

"I didn't know Remus had a child," Hermione exclaimed in surprise.

Minerva sighed deeply. "He doesn't; in point of fact, what he has is a full grown man with the mental age of about nine years old to look after..."

"Professor Snape! You want me to babysit Professor Snape!" Hermione exclaimed in shock, then giggled. "Whoa, that is bizarre. Do you think he will behave for me? Professor Snape, I mean."

"My dear, Professor Snape does not exist at the moment, only Severus is there, a childish but still brilliant boy of perhaps nine or ten years of age, somewhat supercilious but still a child; a very intelligent child in a man's body." Minerva sighed and shook her head. "You are almost eighteen years old, Hermione, and a lot more mature than most of your age, so I say this to you in complete confidence. Severus' first childhood was totally horrendous, something no child should ever experience. Now, in his second childhood, we are all doing our best to care for him as compassionately and carefully as his family never did."

Hermione sighed. "I can put prejudice aside and look after Severus Snape as if he was any other nine- or ten-year-old child, I promise you."

"I hope so, my dear, but to help you in your endeavours, I have asked Draco Malfoy along, too. He is Severus' godson and has known Severus all his life. Draco is nearly as clever as Severus and just as cunning and tricky. I think, between the two of you, you may entertain Severus while Remus is away. Draco should be here very shortly. Do you feel up to sharing this task with him?" Minerva smiled as the girl before her blushed, paled, then blushed again.

"I - I think so," she stammered as the door opened and Malfoy entered as if he owned the office.

Draco was not a happy soul at eight fifteen in the morning with barely a bite of breakfast to his name. He had chosen a town outfit, very expensive, black tailored broadcloth with a black stock and a pale blue silk shirt, the sort of outfit his mother would expect her son to wear to meet her in town. There was a diamond pin nestled in his tie and a couple of rings on his fingers, including the Malfoy seal. He looked the perfect pureblood heir as he slouched up to the Professor's desk and barely managed to stifle a yawn.

"Mr Malfoy," Professor McGonagall greeted, smiling at the blond youth with a reminiscent air. This was how the boys of her past used to dress. "I have a task for yourself and Miss Granger..."

The pale silver eyes snapped open, and he turned to stare at the girl with complete surprise. "I'm sorry, Hermione, I didn't see you there," he apologised with exquisite manners.

"That's alright, I know you don't like to keep these ungodly hours," Hermione accepted graciously. "Are you awake yet?" she asked teasingly.

"Not so you'd notice," he stifled a yawn, then smiled sleepily. "Trust Mother to get me up at dawn, she has this hang-up about sleeping in past the cock's first crow."

"I'm afraid, Mr Malfoy, I have dragged you out of bed under false pretences," McGonagall said in satisfaction as she handed the youth a note. "Your mother did not owl you, although I think that is a fair forgery of her hand, if you need to show her the note. What we have arranged for you, and Miss Granger, is a day of babysitting."

Draco turned incredulous eyes on the old woman, his lip curling into a sneer. "Malfoys do not 'babysit'," he said in disgusted tones.

"Not even for your Godfather?" Minerva met his glare with a smirk that became even broader as the sense of her words sank in. "Indeed, Remus Lupin has a task to accomplish for the Order, and he has asked that you and Miss Granger be allowed to babysit his charge, Severus Snape, for the rest of the day until he returns. Are you willing to do that, Mr Malfoy, or do you want me to Obliviate you and send you back to your dormitory with a false set of memories."

"Look after Uncle Severus, of course I will." Draco was wide awake now and leaning forward eagerly. "I... yes, of course I will!"

Professor McGonagall gave him a genuine smile as she rose and picked up a canister of floo powder offering it to them both. "Off you go then, no time to waste."

~~*~~

The floo dropped them on a hearth rug that showed Molly Weasley's cleaning efforts very clearly. Although it was threadbare, it was perfectly clean and neat. Draco stepped aside and caught Hermione's arm as the fireplace spat her out, steadying her with exquisite courtesy. Having never experienced such care from her friends, Hermione was intrigued all over again.

Smiling softly, she allowed the Slytherin to guide her out the door and into the hallway, both glancing up. A thundering pound of footsteps on the stairs made them both blink in surprise. Severus Snape jumped the last four steps and landed with a thump in front of them, an all-too-familiar sneer twisting his lips, although his words were surprising.

"Are you two my babysitters? Humph! You don't look like much!" he sneered angrily. "Remus! The bloody babysitters are here!" he bellowed up the stairs.

"Don't swear, Sev, it is unbecoming!" a voice floated down, and Severus grinned evilly as he poked his tongue out at them. "Sorry, Remy!' he carolled, the tone out of keeping with the horrendous face he pulled at the two new arrivals.

"Well, some things don't change," Hermione muttered as the tall man turned his back on them and kicked at the bottom step.

"Interesting greeting," Draco commented aside. "I could have sworn Severus had truly exquisite manners."

The back turned to them stiffened, and the man turned to glare at Draco, who merely raised an eyebrow in supercilious questioning. Hermione managed not to smile as the Potions Master turned fully and gave a low and proper bow. "My apologies, Mademoiselle, it seems I was discourteous in the eyes of your companion. Please, allow me to escort you to the kitchen." He offered his arm and forcibly tucked Hermione's hand into the crook of his elbow. They proceeded to promenade up the hall, Hermione casting frantic looks over her shoulder, Draco smothering his snickers as he followed them.

Molly glanced up and gave them a puzzled smile, hurrying forward to envelope Hermione in a hug. "Oh, my dear, I am so glad you could come. I really didn't want to leave Severus on his own today. Yes, yes, Severus, I'm quite sure you would manage very well. Do sit down, dear, and you, Draco. Can I get you coffee or tea? Severus, please don't play with the butter. Would you like some breakfast? What would you like?"

"Boiled eggs and toast soldiers," Snape replied promptly. "Can I have some coffee, too?"

"You know you never actually drink it, Severus, how about some milk instead?"

"Okay. Then can Remy have some coffee?"

"Remus does not drink coffee, as you very well know," Molly replied in fond exasperation. "Honestly, Hermione, he is worse than the twins at times. Draco, would you like some coffee or tea?"

"Why can he have coffee and I can't?" Severus immediately said huffily, as Draco opened his mouth.

"Because I'm older than you and she asked me, not you," Draco shot back with an evil grin.

"I'm taller than you!"

"You are taller than most people, but that isn't going to help you here!" Draco leaned back in his chair and smirked at his Head of House in a most challenging way.

"I hate you," Severus muttered, then grinned at the blond boy. "You're Draco, aren't you? You were a baby once. What happened?"

Draco dropped his chair back onto four legs. "We grew up."

"Humm, I did too, didn't I? But I don't remember that just now, do I?"

"That's right, Uncle Severus, but you will, in time. And you are still not getting any coffee; you know it upsets your stomach." He smirked as Severus snorted, but the issue of coffee was dropped.

Remus came hurrying in, his robes twisted, his hair still wet from the shower. Whirling through the kitchen, he grabbed a cup of tea, a couple of pieces of toast and dropped into a chair next to Severus. "You forgot to make your bed again, you lazy little stinker," he complained as he ate at a great rate. "And you left the tap running in the bathroom. Please be more careful in future."

"Sorry, Remy," Snape muttered, then grinned slyly. "I had to greet the babysitters, remember? That's Hermione, she's a bookworm know-it-all and that's Draco, he's my godson, I remembered."

Pausing, Remus stared at his charge then smiled happily, making Severus smile back with equal joy. "Well done! Although it is not polite to call Hermione names; she does know a great deal, and I'll bet if you are nice to her, she will help you with your studying. Severus is relearning arithmancy and astronomy," he mentioned to the babysitters. "And both of them are very good at potions," he added in an aside to Severus.

"No, they aren't!" Severus protested immediately. "Nobody is good at potions, they always get it wrong! Why do they always get it wrong?"

Remus just shook his head in resignation.

"Because they aren't potions nerds like you!" a new voice replied pertly, and Hermione grinned as Tonks wandered into the kitchen dressed in her Auror's robes. "Ready people, the show is about to start and we are going to miss the first act if we don't get a move on. See you, Sevvy baby, don't harass anyone and don't kill the babysitters."

"Bugger off, Tonks!" Snape replied haughtily, then they both spoiled it by poking their tongues out at each other in unison.

"I wish you hadn't taught him that trick," Remus complained as he hurried out after the metamorphmagus, his toast still in his hand.

~~*~~

Severus was lying down on his bed, snoring lightly although he protested bitterly against going. Draco and Hermione were slumped side by side on the sofa, exhausted! They had both been drained of every drop of their hard-won knowledge in the endless barrage of questions Severus had tossed at their heads, between hurling insults and giggling like a drain at their efforts.

"He is relentless," Draco complained wearily, rolling his head to look at the girl, too tired to raise it properly.

"He pretty much swallowed elementary and intermediate arithmancy, and all but accused me, me, of slacking off when I couldn't run him through advanced tertiary arithmancy. I am only just getting the hang of that now!" She rolled her head and almost jumped when her lips grazed Draco's, but she didn't have the energy to move.

"Humm, that was nice," he murmured, rolling his head closer and moving gently against her lips. "You taste like cinnamon toast and tea," he commented dreamily. "I told you Severus had a brilliant mind; nasty, but brilliant."

Hermione smiled and kissed back softly, an equally dreamy lassitude overtaking her as her head rolled a little further and landed on Draco's shoulder. "This is nice, isn't it? Pity we can't associate at school; I would like to see more of you," she said, honest in her sleepiness.

"I'd like to see more of you too, Wild Hair," Draco confirmed, sliding an arm around her shoulders and snuggling into the soft brown mass that threatened to ensnare him forever. There was not even a yawn as they both sank into a contented and gentle sleep.

~~*~~

Harry was propped against the headboard of his bed, his potions text leaning against his knees as he reviewed the latest lesson with Slughorn. While he was always careful to go along with Slughorn's very egocentric and extremely slimy ways, he was equally careful to give as little as he could away. His grades in potions were outstanding, thanks to his textbook, which he knew was Snape's and his respect for Professor Snape's abilities had grown exponentially, thanks to that text book. Slughorn, while giving him good grades and buckets of praise, never struck Harry as trustworthy.

It was a Hogsmeade weekend, and by rights they should have been indulging in Honeydukes' sweets and the Weasley twins' joke inventions, but Professor McGonagall had called it off, thanks to a broken sewer pipe that was going to take more than magic to fix. It often surprised Harry that sometimes sheer grunt work, with a pick and shovel, was necessary to augment the role of magic in major repairs. A group of Muggle council workers was imported for the job as part of a public works project, then casually Obliviated and reprogrammed before being sent off about their usual work again. It didn't seem fair to Harry, but that was how it had always been done and would probably continue to be done into the future.

Ron was lying on his stomach, his head buried in one of his own text books. Unfortunately, his snores betrayed the fact that he was not really studying very hard. Glancing across, Harry shook his head, then realised Neville was also grinning at their fellow Gryffindor. They laughed and were about to go back to their study when a flash of light caught Harry's eye. Frowning, he sat up straighter and abandoned his text book to peer out the window in the direction of Hogsmeade. Neville came up beside him, and they both waited for the next flash.

"I don't think that is a thunderstorm," Neville remarked apprehensively.

"Not unless lightening has turned green and red and there is no thunder to be heard," Harry replied grimly, bounding across to shake Ron awake.

All three Gryffindors watched the distant flashes apprehensively while below them on the green lawn by the lake, the younger children continued to run around and join in the absurd races and contests their teachers had arranged for their amusement. The sounds of their carefree laughter contrasted ominously with the unexplained and sinister flashes on the horizon. Dean and Seamus came into the dormitory laughing at some joke, before they noticed the other three crowding into the casement and joined them. A bigger, brighter flash seemed to cast odd-coloured shadows over his companions' faces as Harry turned to study them intently.

"It's a battle, isn't it?" Seamus said softly, looking to Harry with an apprehensive frown.

"Yes. Obviously, this is why they didn't want us in Hogsmeade today," Harry muttered distractedly, as he pushed past his fellow seventh years and rummaged in his trunk.

"Hey, Harry, what are you after?" Ron asked cautiously, hoping his friend didn't have some mad scheme to join the battle in mind. It was one thing to get caught up in a fight, quite another purposely to join in a battle already started.

Grunting in triumph, Harry pulled out omnioculars and hurried back to his position at the forefront of the small group. Peering through the 'scope, he studied the flash as the roofs of Hogsmeade flashed closer, a figure running across the tiles, his wand emitting flashes of green, red and purple light before he disappeared from sight.

"Was that Remus?" Ron asked in surprise, his eyes much sharper than Harry's over distance.

"It sort of moved like him, maybe," Harry muttered, still peering through the small device. "Damn, the aqueduct is right in the way!" he muttered in disgust.

"The kiddies haven't noticed anything happening, thank God," Seamus observed softly, peering down into the games area with a rueful smile. "I guess we just have to wait."

The other three nodded distractedly but didn't move away from the window until no single flash of light happened for half an hour.

~~*~~

Hermione woke slowly, barely managing to pry her eyes open before a very familiar and yet unfamiliar voice spoke.

"You like him, don't you? You are both going to get into such trouble," the voice said softly, sadly.

Severus sat cross-legged on the hearthrug in front of them, sketching in the large book he had propped on his knees. His long hair, shiny and clean, fanned out around his face as his head moved in time to his rapidly moving hand. He peered up through the black curtain and half smiled when he caught her eye. "He's a Slytherin and you are a Gryffindork; he's a Pureblood and you are a Mudblood; he is a Death Eater and you are a Light Witch. They do say opposites attract, and you two couldn't get much more opposite if you set out to try." The black eyes seemed to pierce her skull for a second, then the thin pale lips twitched into a half smile. "Don't let his Mum and Dad find out 'cus they will kill you both. And remember, the female of the species is most often the more deadly of the two. Lucius is an evil bastard but Narcissa is a crusader, and fanatical with it. Can we have some tea soon, I'm hungry and I want Remy."

The switch from oracle to little boy almost threw Hermione, but then she smiled at the boy in the man's body, putting aside past history and other absurdities. "As soon as Draco wakes up, I'll put the kettle on. Would you like to make toast on the fork and perhaps make some roast marshmallows and chestnuts? Do you like chestnuts?"

Snape smiled, nodding his head hard enough to make his hair fly about, and she grinned at the sheer enthusiasm he showed.