Her Frozen Heart

Chapter 3

The decrepit building loomed before her. The night air was crisp and still; she could hear the beating of her own heart.

Emma Riley stood before the meeting place for the Order of the Phoenix. Pulling her shawl tighter she ascended the crumbling stairs to the front entrance.

A brass knocker in the shape of a snake's head hung on the painted door. The sound of her knocking echoed through the house. An owl hooted in the distance and a cold breeze caused the small strands of her hair to blow across her face.

A tall pale man with sunken cheeks opened the door. His robes were tattered and dusty. "Professor Riley," the voice that came from him sounded warmer and younger than she had expected; "the meeting is in the dining room." Lupin lead Riley through the entrance hall and into a large crowded room.

A sea of colored robes stood before her. Many nodded their heads when she entered. An angered and disbelieving grunt came from the corner of the room. Riley turned her head and peered into the shadows trying to see whom the person was. "Do you have a problem?" The figure stepped closer to the table, the light hitting his face. Blood rushed to her cheeks and her pulse raced. If she had known; well that is probably why Dumbledore didn't tell her. "Snape, I never would have figured you for the type."

"What type is that?"

"Please, do not try to act innocent. Your past is no secret." She drew the words out; daring him with her eyes to do something. Lupin forced a nervous cough to break the strained silence.

"Riley, take a seat, we should get started." Many of the wizards and witches grabbed seats as far away from Snape and Riley as they could. The two of them were left sitting together at the far end of the table.

Lupin seemed to take charge of the meeting. He stood at the end of the table and questioned the other members about information that they had found. Even though Voldemort had been discovered at the Ministry of Magic and the whole wizarding world now knew that he was indeed back, there still was not much going on. Voldemort had once again gone into hiding. Spies from the Order were being placed in various parts of the world. There were several at the Ministry in case they were trying to keep things from the public eye. Snape was working side by side with several known Death Eaters trying to learn what their plans were. They had all had a feeling that he would once again be going after Harry Potter, since once again he had spoiled Voldemort's plans.

"Riley, you were asked to join because of your...close connection with several Death Eaters, many who are very high up. Would it be possible for you to once again make contact with them? See if you can get in tight with them and find out anything at all."

"If you believe it would be helpful. The majority of people that I attended Durmstrang with are now in ranks with the Death Eaters, and of course I can always go to my family for any information." Snape peered at Riley from the corner of his eye; he looked slightly surprised. Riley did not make a habit of announcing to the world that her parents were followers of Voldemort.

The meeting dragged on for what seemed like hours. When it had finally finished Riley knew no more about the situation than she had before she arrived. The Order seemed to be in the dark about Voldemort.

Riley was retrieving her shawl from the entrance hall when she overheard Snape and Lupin discussing something in the parlor. "Did you bring it with you? We're cutting it a bit close this time."

Snape's voice sounded muffled. "Yes, I brought it. If you would learn to make it for yourself it would be available whenever you need it. I do have more important things to do than take care of your....handicap." Riley stepped into the doorway so that she was in full view.

Lupin stared at her for a moment. The situation she discovered was a bit peculiar. Lupin was sitting upon a faded burgundy sofa with a large goblet in his hand. Snape was standing next to him pouring a smoldering liquid into the goblet. Riley inhaled deeply and smirked at the two of them.

"Wolfsbane potion? You are cutting it a bit close. The full moon is tomorrow night."

"Hmm.. you know your potions. How can you tell that it is wolfsbane?"

"It's very recognizable; the smell and the coloring give it away. I've made it several times."

"You know a werewolf; who?" Lupin seemed very interested in this fact. Snape remained standing next to Lupin holding a large black flask.

"A distant cousin of mine is a werewolf. He stayed at my parents' home every summer and I made him his potion. You should really have those made in advance so that you have them available when you need it."

"Snape makes it for me. I suppose he forgot." Lupin glanced at Snape. "He's a very busy man, or so he tells me."

"Yes, well I need to be getting back to Hogwarts." Wrapping her shawl tight around her shoulders she gave them a nod and headed out the door.

"Bloody ungrateful....find someone else to make your potion." Snape threw the flask down at Lupin and stormed out of the room.

The staff room was empty when Riley peered through the slightly ajar door. The room was composed of stonewalls and a vaulted ceiling. Inside there were two overstuffed brown leather sofas with various sized pillows thrown on them. A fire had been lit in the fireplace and it gave the room a cozy feeling in spite of its size.

There were several arched windows that had covered window seats. Riley walked over to the far wall and sat down on one of the seats, pulling her knees up to her chest. Her arms were wrapped around her legs and she stared out the window in the direction of the Forbidden Forest. The sky was dark and cloudy, a storm was coming. The rain brought back too many memories for Riley to bear.

"Emma? Emma are you awake?" Sophie poked Riley in the ribs and leaned in close to her ear. "Emma?"

Rolling onto her side Riley unwillingly opened her eyes. "What?"

"Follow me, there's something you should see." Sophie pulled back the multi-colored quilt revealing Riley's mint green nightgown. The floor was cold on her bare feet and it took her a moment to get use to it.

The two tiptoed down the curved staircase avoiding the third to last step; it always creaked.

The night air was warm and thick with dew. "Look up." Riley titled her head back and stared up. A meteor shower filled the night sky. Riley gasped, making Sophie smile. "I knew you'd like this."

Riley's favorite class at Durmstrang was astronomy. On the weekends she would take a blanket and lay out in the yard and try to name as many constellations as possible. During the week she would stay up hours past curfew reading various books about stars and planets.

Sophie, her twin, was quite the opposite. During their first year she received two weeks detention for turning the outside of the school a shocking pink. This act of rebellion made her father proud, the two were just alike.

A slight drizzle began to fall. Riley reached out her hands palms up and threw back her head again. Sophie plopped down onto the wet grass and started to giggle as Riley twirled, her nightgown flaring out slightly.

A high-pitched scream punctured her laughter. The girls swung around and looked into the woods that surrounded their home. They heard the scream again and Sophie ran into the woods. Riley hesitated for a moment and then followed her.

Branches caught her nightgown as she ran leaving small scratches on her arms. In the distance she could see Sophie sitting on the ground with her legs tucked under her. Riley approached slowly, being careful not to step on any twigs. Sophie glanced up at her. "Sshh." Reaching up she tugged on her nightgown forcing Riley to sit beside her.

Their hearts began to beat fast as they tried to take in what exactly was happening. Three people dressed from head to toe in black circled a woman. Long golden hair was plastered to her face as the rain came down harder. Blood trickled down her arm and dripped off the tips of her fingers. Each mysterious figure had a wand pointed at her.

"Just tell us the truth, Lucinda, and we will let you go. We promise." The other two laughed wickedly as he tried to hush them. "Shut up you idiots."

Riley looked down at her feet and watched a worm wiggle around her toes. The scent of blood, sweat, and fear filled the air.

"Will you tell us what we want?" Spit flew out of the woman's mouth hitting the man in the face. "You filthy mud-blood." Stepping closer to her he whispered "incendio." Flames shot out of his wand catching her golden hair on fire.

The smell of her burning hair and scalp made Riley queasy. Covering her mouth with her hand she started to gag. "Emma, be quiet." There was a hint of alarm in her whisper. Riley took deep breaths and tried to calm herself. An owl hooted from somewhere behind them causing Riley to cry out.

All three men turned and looked at the shrubs they were hiding behind. "There's someone out there." Shaking with fright Sophie jumped up and pointed her 10 inch mahogany and dragon heart string wand at them. "Stupefy!" She missed.

"Get her!" Sophie turned and ran towards the edge of the forest with Riley right on her heels. The forest floor was slippery from the rain and Sophie lost her footing. Riley reached her and tried to help her back up. "My ankle, I think I sprained it." Sophie put her arm around Riley's shoulders and they left the path to go deeper into the woods.

They dodged in between trees hoping to lose the men. The dark figures were so close now she could almost feel their breath on the back of her neck. A tall twisted tree stood before them. Riley pulled herself up onto the first branch. "Give me your hand." Sophie grabbed Riley's hand and she started to climb the tree. There was a foul smelling moss covering the trunk and it made it hard for her to get a good grip.

Riley shimmied up to the next branch and stopped to help Sophie again. "Emma my ankle really hurts." The ankle had swollen to twice its size and was turning a nasty shade of purple.

"We need to go up one more branch, there's more cover up there." Riley left Sophie sitting on the branch and proceeded to climb once again. "There, now give me your hand and I will pull you up." Sophie reached as far as she could trying to grasp Riley's outstretched hand. Their fingertips touched and the branch gave a horrible cracking sound. Sophie looked down at her feet; the branch was starting to break away from the trunk of the tree. Looking back up their eyes locked together and Sophie held her breath. "Reach for my hand."

Stretching further than she thought was possible she finally grabbed Riley's hand. Sophie's hand was cold and sweaty. Strands of her black hair had come loose from her pony tail and were sticking to the side of her face. The branch gave way and left Sophie dangling in midair. "Don't let go." Her voice was a whisper dripping with fear.

Before she even had time to scream Sophie hit the ground. A sickening thud echoed up to Riley. Her left leg was twisted in a way that seemed unnatural and her lilac nightgown was covered with mud from when she had fallen. A small puddle of blood appeared on the rock her head rest on. Footsteps approached from behind the tree.

A hooded figure appeared and he knelt down and stroked her hair, which was covered with blood. His body started to shake as if he was crying. Slowly he reached up and slid the hood off his head and stared up at Riley who was still sitting on the branch looking down at them.

"Daddy?"

The door creaked open and Riley jumped at the sudden noise. Reaching a hand up to her face she quickly wiped away the tears, not bothering to see who had just entered the staff room.

Snape glanced over at Riley as he took a seat on one of the worn leather sofas. Had he been mistaken or had she been crying? Riley stiffened as if she knew his eyes were on her and he hastily reached into his bag and pulled out a thick stack of papers.

Lucius Malfoy grinned from ear to ear. "Emma Riley, as I live and breath. Is that really you?" Malfoy was sitting at an iron café table outside of a small shop. Riley approached him slowly and sat down in the chair opposite him.

"Hello, Lucius. It's been a very long time. You look good." Sighing she looked around at the other wizards and witches who were enjoying the beautiful weather and doing some window-shopping in Hogsmeade. "What brings you here?"

"My son. I'm meeting him for a lunch today. He needs some new robes and quills, so I thought we would do some shopping, as well."

"Your son. Draco Malfoy?" He nodded. "Well, yes of course the resemblance is striking. I should have known he was your son."

Malfoy ordered her a cup of tea and they sat reminiscing. Being with him made Riley feel at ease for the first time since she had come to Hogwarts. The Malfoys and Rileys were good family friends. Lucius had dated her cousin for a while before marrying his wife.

Malfoy looked over Riley's shoulder and started to stand. Riley turned around to see what he was looking at; her heart sank. Severus Snape was coming down the street, the wind making his hair look wild.

"Severus, do join us." Malfoy grabbed a chair from another table. Snape slowed considerably when he saw Riley sitting there. "You are acquainted with Emma, I presume?" Malfoy looked back and forth between the two of them. "Is something wrong?"

"No, of course not, Lucius." A small smile appeared on her face. "Professor Snape, you are more than welcome to join us." If the two of them were to be spying on the same people then they would be forced to spend time together; she might as well try to be civil.

Snape nodded at her and sat down at the table. "Emma and I have known each other for quite a long time." Lucius addressed Emma, "I was unaware that you were teaching at Hogwarts. Why didn't you send me an owl when you arrived?"

"I've been rather busy, Lucius."

"I'm surprised Draco didn't tell you about her." Snape refused to look at Riley.

"Oh, punished him did you, Em?" Lucius laughed. "Well, that wouldn't surprise me. Emma has never been one to put up with anything not to her liking. Right, Em?"

"Well, somebody has to teach the boy a lesson. He hasn't been provided very good role models now has he? You for a father and Snape for the Head of House?" Malfoy stared at her for a moment and then laughed loudly.

"Too true, my dear."

Snape sat there watching the two exchange jokes at the other's expense for most of the morning. By the time Draco arrived Snape had seen Riley smile more times than he could count.

"Oh, Draco, there you are. You know Professor Snape of course. Oh, and Professor Riley has just been telling me some stories about you." Draco's eyes bulged and his face turned red.

"Relax boy. You've already been punished for your crimes."

"Father, you know Professor Riley?"

"Yes, Draco. Emma and I practically grew up together. Don't expect any special treatment from her though." The smile was wiped away from Draco's face. "She'll probably treat you even worse to get back at me, right Emma?" Riley chuckled; Snape noticed that her smiles never seemed to reach her eyes.

After they had finished their lunch Riley got up to leave, and so did Snape. When they were far enough away from the Malfoys Snape stopped her. "That was quite a show. You two seem to know a lot about each other."

"Yes, I can't stand the man. Despise him, every single inch of him." Riley walked away from Snape towards the gates of Hogwarts.

Snape turned and headed in the opposite direction. He could not understand that woman. Though truth be told she was quite the actress, he never would have guessed that she hated Malfoy. The way they were acting towards each other and the way Malfoy kept touching her arm or her hand gave Snape the impression that the two had been more than just friends.