Perhaps Another Time, Severus [A Severus Snape Fanfiction]

2001

2001

"My Lord, we have found their most recent Headquarters," Shaylah said, her blue eyes locked with Voldemort's reptilian ones, "We plan to attack tonight."

"Excellent! Give them no more chances, kill them all. I tire of this cat and mouse game," Voldemort said, rubbing his temple. "Send Barty this time, since Lucius failed so miserably the last."

"Yes sir."

Lucius had been sent to lead the last party that raided the Order's Headquarters but they were ambushed much like Shaylah and her team had been when they lost Travis. Shaylah had pinpointed the location, and presented it confidently to Voldemort's fold, but it was a decoy. The building was not their base but an abandoned warehouse which she had also set up as a raid for the Order. A group of ten waited in the shadows for Lucius and his party. Brawn finally got the revenge he had sought, Lucius was the first one in and the first one down. Brawn became an unhinged war machine in the moment, taking all but two of Voldemort's own out by himself. Vex had the pleasure of finishing them and making sure they knew Cross' name before their souls left the Earth. None of them saw Azkaban.

Lucius had made it known he wanted a chance to face them, to cut down Shaylah and Sharon quickly obliged. Helping only to give him the location, leaving the rest to the Order. Since she was not given the lead from Voldemort, she was on the front line with Vex and Brawn, watching as they tore through the Dark Lord's minions. Wearing her own face.

Severus and Shaylah had reluctantly been married in Malfoy Manor, in front of the Death Eaters they so vehemently worked to destroy. They were the only ones who knew of their relationship, so they were the only ones in attendance. Though the setting was not ideal, it was worth it. There was no big ceremony, just the small gathering that marked their union.

The other members of the Order had noticed her ring but she told them she had bought it at a shop and enchanted it to change colors. The answer seemed to sate their curiosity, and it became the simple response for a much more complicated question.

With Lucius gone, Voldemort became even more intent on wiping out the Order. The vengeance Vex and Brawn had found had now been turned on them. Headquarters was being moved almost weekly, they didn't even bother settling in anymore. All their belongings were stored in trunks, ready to move at a moment's notice.

Hutch had abandoned them a month ago, the constant threat of death too much for him to handle. Vex made sure Hutch's memory was repaired so he could never give information on their identities.

Morgan, whose name Shaylah had finally come to remember, had been scouting new potential spots for Headquarters in her raven form, noting several at a time in advance. The Order had managed to stay ahead but the pressure continued to close in. Vex had been testing his tracking charm and the trials had proven fruitful. Shaylah refused to let him test it on her until he had created the counter spell. It wouldn't do to have her whereabouts known.

Prix had volunteered to test Vex's tracker, hiding in the woods behind Headquarters, safely tucked in a thick shrub. Shaylah watched as the tip of Vex's wand lit and a ball of white light flew through the wall of the house as he muttered the spell. Once outside, he muttered the spell again and again, following the ball as it flew slowly toward the thicket of trees. As they followed, the white light became a pale orange and when it found Prix it burned a fiery red before turning into a whiff of smoke and vanishing.

Vex was satisfied with his work, but it wasn't practical for tracking someone at long distances. He was determined to perfect it, to make something that could track someone continuously, and was deep in thought when Shaylah burst in, tapping his wand against his chin. "We have to be out before midnight! Morgan, where are we heading?"

"London, there's an empty flat I found there, the occupants just left a few days ago and the cleaning crew has already been in."

"Perfect. He's sending Barty this time. I saw Snape in Knockturn Alley and tracked him to a flyby meeting where he met with one of the others."

"What were you doing in Knockturn Alley?" Vex questioned.

"Listening. You know Knockturn Alley is full of gossip," Shaylah stated dryly, "Tell the others won't you? I'm sending Brawn and the brothers to raid the house Morgan found. There are only five people in it, so it should be no trouble for them." Though Shaylah had already known of the house, she left it for the others to find, advising a specific area. It had to be a group effort in some areas to avoid suspicion.

Vex nodded and disappeared up the stairs. "I want to stay," said Morgan, "Barty killed my sister and I want a chance to return the favor." Her striking green eyes were filled with a dark bloodlust.

"Alright, but you'll need backup. We don't know how many are coming," said Shaylah.

Morgan found several others willing to stay with her and Brawn and the brothers were given the location of the house they were to raid. Vex, Shaylah and the others set out for the empty apartment which would be their next temporary Headquarters, bringing along the extra belongings of the ones who stayed behind and began to sort them into rooms.

Brawn and the brothers returned from their venture quickly with four more cells filled in Azkaban. One of their targets put up an intense fight, leaving Brawn with a gushing wound in his arm, but he laughed as Prix doctored him, smiling as he told them how he took pleasure in defeating him. He had become quite vicious since Cross' murder and even though he had avenged him, he didn't take pity on his targets. Shaylah had long since given up on trying to sway him against murder, but her words fell on deaf ears. In the end, it was them or the others and she didn't want to lose anyone else. The Order was her priority, not Voldemort's fold. If Brawn killed them one by one, she wouldn't truly feel guilty, not after what they had taken. Not after seeing how they splashed in the blood they had spilled.

Morgan arrived not long after, alone. She squawked as she shifted, taking her human form as she flew through the door, covering her face in her hands as she collapsed to her knees. Everyone was on their feet, wands ready, until they heard the wrenching wails. "Morgan what-"

"We tried to take them by surprise but they set the house on fire and closed in around us," she was screaming through her fingers, voice cracking between sobs, as Shaylah knelt beside her, "I only made it out because I could shift. Hobbs tried to escape out the window but they were waiting." She was doing her best to breathe between words, chest heaving. "I got Barty though," she said, her bloodshot eyes narrowing as she spoke, "I got him while he laughed as the others burned. I choked him with his own tongue from across the street. He never saw it coming."

Shaylah placed a hand on Morgan's shoulder and wrapped her in a hug as she continued to cry with the others gathered around her. They all shed tears for their fallen comrades. Voldemort would rejoice in the news when Shaylah was forced to jovially tell him of their demise.