Melody Riddle and the Order of the Phoenix

Chapter 16: Keeping Up Appearances

 I felt better, and yet worse, once the tears had stopped falling. The way they fell so fast, and of their own accord, made me realize that I was probably going to cry harder and longer each time I brought a wall down. Ten more times of doing that was looking less appealing by the minute. By the second, actually.

Severus decided to take me out to the Leaky Cauldron for lunch, and said I could get as much food as I wanted. Considering the gourmet meals I was getting at Grimmauld Place, I was happy to just get a burger and some fries.

"That's not healthy," Severus mumbled as I ate.

Swallowing a bite I had taken, I said, "Having something fattening is okay every once in a while, vegetable junkie."

"I'm not a vegetarian. I do eat meat —"

"It's okay Severus, I can keep it a secret. I mean, fries are a vegetable, but I guess you don't want them because they were fried. Too fattening as you might say. So, you're a vegetable junkie and a skinny junkie."

"I forgot just how infuriating you can be sometimes." He sounded very disgruntled, but a small smile still appeared on his face.

"Doesn't stop you from liking me," I replied with an upbeat chuckle.

"Aw, how sweet," a smooth voice said. The person sat down next to me.

I turned to see, "Seraphina? Hi!"

Wow, I thought, I bet dad feels jealous of her one way or another. She's walking around like a free woman... I suppose people don't know she's his ally just yet. I would've thought I'd hear about the Order tailing her by now if she's always walking out in the open like this.

I looked around at my surroundings, and then asked, "How are you not being followed?"

"So long as he promises to keep an eye on me," she gestured toward Severus, "no one in their right mind is going to take a chance at it. Dumbledore has told them just how dangerous I am."

She sounds extra proud about that.

Severus, I realized, was frowning. "Why are you here Seraphina?"

"Actually, how did you know we were here?" I asked.

"I have my secrets," Seraphina told me with a smirk. "As for why I'm here, it's because I had to hear Lucius Malfoy beg for me to find you in a timely fashion."

"What does he need? You can say it in front of Melody."

She raised an eyebrow at him, "My, what a change in you this is. Was this girl powerful enough to put you under an Imperius Curse?"

"Ha, ha," he mocked. "Now, what is it?"

"Oh, no, you're still your sarcastic, boring self... pity," she said with a pout. But then she started speaking animatedly to the both of us. "Anyway, Malfoy wanted to tell you that the plan failed."

"Plan? What plan?" I asked.

"It was a plan to get Mr. Potter expelled from Hogwarts. Mr. Malfoy had been notified of the boy's spellcasting outside of school the moment it happened, and convinced Fudge to take the chance at getting him expelled. Considering Fudge's desperateness at discrediting him, he went for it."

"So Harry won his case?"

"Dumbledore won it for him," Seraphina quickly noted. "It was Malfoy's idea to change the time at the last minute so that the boy would be late, almost losing his case automatically, and Dumbledore wouldn't be there to help him out. All for naught, since Weasley brought him into work with him, so he was able to get there quickly without being extremely tardy. As for Dumbledore, he made it and presented a witness — some squib who lives on the boy's street."