𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬

10. Dig two graves

Walking down the dark empty corridor was Maeve as she waited to meet up with her new crew.

"You right there pumpkin?"

A small yelp escapes Maeve's mouths before she slapped her hand over her mouth and made a fist with the other.

"Oh my god." Maeve sighed out of relief and she relaxed her raised fists when she saw the talking portrait.

"Hi, hello... did you see... umm.. anyone walk through here within the last ten minutes?" Maeve asked, trying to sound the least suspicious as she could.

"No, but I did hear someone further that way." The posh lady replied then returning to her original position.

I whisper of thanks left dark haired girl as continued her walk down the skinny, crooked hallway.

That was until a familiar cat walked past her.

"Professor." Maeve nodded politely to the now human woman.

"Maeve, what are you doing out of class?" She said in an unamused tone.

"Ah that's a good question.." A nervous laugh left her as she lent against the wall beside her.
"You know another good question? Do you know what's going on in Hufflepuff? Seems very 'evil plotting' to me. I think you should-"

"Maeve." The tall, thin woman cut her off. "Professor Dumbledore would like to see you."

"Sure, I'll drop by his office later then, okay? Okay. Bye." Maeve try's squeeze her way away and manages to walk past but her favourite professor's words caught her.

"Immediately Maeve."

Maeve wrinkled her noses in frustration before letting out her usually moody sigh.

"Fine, I'm going."

Maeve spent the time she was going up the golden Phoenix or whatever it was, in her head.
What did he want? What did I do? Shit! Does he know? Oh no! He definitely knows! Shit!

She put on her smile and hid her shaking hand behind her back.

"Take a seat miss Ashford." The grand professor said in a surprisingly sweet voice.

She did as he asked, walking up the small set stairs to his office.

A silence fell on the two, an awkward one for Maeve, but the old man didn't seem to be bothered by it since he was to busy organising some of his papers.

"So, professor." The pale girl cleared her throat. "What did you need me for?"

"Oh right, I want to offer you a deal of sorts." He answered with his usual all-knowing smile.

"I'm sorry, is this about my grades or something?" Maeve furrowed her brows and made an almost chuckle.

He just laughed.

"No Maeve, I heard about your new crowd, and I could only assume you know they are on there way to becoming death eaters." He explained, his smile had been replaced by some other emotion, she thought it was caution, but it was something else too.
"I want you to be a spy for the order, my order of the Phoenix."

He waited, staring at her. His words said it was her choice, but his actions? They said otherwise.
But that didn't bother her, why would she say no? Dumbledore just wants to save everyone, he's just doing what's best.

"Of course professor." She smiled, being either too trusting or too naive to understand what this meant for her.

♡

"Where the hell were you?" Severus hissed a whisper as Maeve entered the dusty walk-in broom closet that was full of old carpets with south-west Asian designs on them.

"I got called to an immediate detention. I guess I missed so many that they thought to just grab me and randomly throw me in one." The girl shrugged her reply as she locked the wooden door.

Regulus, Evan, Amara, and Severus stood in a circle with room for one last person; Maeve.
A gloomy quiet filled the room as she stood in her assumed place. Maeve, who was crossing her arms and leaning her weight on one leg more than the other, had scanned over the almost distraught and disappointed faces putting pieces of the puzzle together to figure out why they were there.
That was until she noticed the Portkey they had surrounded.
A large dusty feline skull had been placed on the Circular tall-table.

Goosebumps formed over her body and her blood ran cold as a grim shock of realisation washed over her.

The secret gathering, the portkey, the fear in each of her peers eyes, the fact that none of us had been marked.
It could only mean one thing.

"Maeve." Regulus gave her a small smile out of guilt, in his mind he was the one who put her in this situation.

Evan cleared his throat in order to find his voice.
"Okay, on three."

All of the fearful teens stepped up to the skull, each reaching there hand out to the portkey.

The room around them began to spin, making a strong wind form around them.
The spinning room slowly grew darker, greener.
When the spinning began to slow she could pick out the green in her vision and realise they were trees.

It was a dark night, the teens had found themselves on the far side of the forbidden forest.

Maeve followed the group as they walked in a line with there heads hung low, bowing.
Regulus, who was at the front of the line carried a small candle lit lamp that didn't make nearly enough light, was the only one who had his head held high.

That's when she saw it, the dark mark on his forearm.
Maeve panicked quickly checking her bare arm for a mark, when she realised he must have already been marked.

Soon the group could see the light up ahead, dreading what they would find there.

When they got there a fear stuck Maeve, death eaters, maybe 40, stood in a large circle with one space where the teens knew that was the one way entrance.
That's when it was certain, Voldemort stood in the centre, waiting to talk these children to the doom.

"Evan Rosier." The cold voice called, reaching out his hand for the boy as Evan walked up to him almost shivering in fear.

The tall man took a firm grip on the boys wrist, a piercing cry escaped Evan and icy tears ran down his face as Voldemort's wand dug deep into his forearm.

Evan grabbed his wrist tight as sobs left his mouth, the man cupped his hand over Evans cheek.

"It's okay my child, your pain is over." Voldemort whispered in Evans ear.

"Maeve Ashford."

Maeve felt her stomach churn and sweat form on her palms out of fear as she walked up to him, holding out her arm ready for him to crack her perfect porcelain skin.

His cold hand griped hers tightly, as he placed his wand to her skin Maeve held her breath.

She bit down on the inside of her cheek to silence her sobs, she lifted her gaze from her forming dark mark to Voldemort, but in that moment, she didn't see some all-powerful evil wizard, she saw a man, a greedy, sad, little man.
One she couldn't wait to destroy, even if it costed her life, because she would do anything for the people she loved.