Severus,
Are you trying to tell me that you had justified reasons for killing Dumbledore? If so, you’re not going to convince me, so don’t waste your time. There are no good reasons for killing someone. Ever. There never has been, and there never will be. So don’t start giving me all those quotes in the hopes that I’ll think you’re actually committing noble acts by way of murder. I don’t care what You-Know-Who said, nor do I care what any of the people you’re in league with said. Don’t tell me you were pressured into doing it, or you were made to. Don’t tell lies when you know there’s no chance the person you’re lying to won’t believe you. It’s a waste of your time, and it’s a waste of mine.
Selena Snape
What was she doing? Why was she writing to him yet again? There was nothing to be gained from it. Selena frowned down at the piece of parchment.
Apollo swooped down next to her and held out his leg, waiting for Selena to tie the parchment on.
"Give me a moment," said Selena absently. She re-read what she had written several times. Apollo nudged her hand impatiently.
"Should I send it, Apollo?" Selena asked him. "Or is it pointless?"
Apollo just stuck out his leg farther.
"You don’t care if it’s pointless, do you?" she said, half laughing. "So long as you have a job. Well, it couldn’t hurt to send it, I suppose."
Selena obeyingly tied the letter to Apollo’s foot, who then hooted happily and soared out the window.
***
Selena crept up silently behind Severus, who was hunched over in a armchair in the Slytherin Common room. She peered over his shoulder as he scribbled furiously on a piece of parchment. Then he brought his textbook closer and wrote something on it.
"You’re not supposed to write in books!" said Selena indignantly.
Startled, Severus slammed the book shut and whipped his head around, cursing when he saw who was there. "What are you doing here?" he snapped at her.
"What do you think I’m doing here?" Selena asked, flopping into a chair next to him. "It’s Christmas break."
"I didn’t know you were staying," said Severus, still glaring at her.
Selena laughed. "What, did you think I’d go back home for Christmas? Yeah, right. That’d be a real merry Christmas. Anyway, I didn’t last year, why would I go this year?"
"I don’t know," he mumbled. "I just didn’t think you were watching me."
"And that brings us back to you writing in your book," said Selena, frowning at him. "Why are you doing that? It’s the school’s copy, not that you should write in it even if it was yours!"
"It was already marked."
"Two wrongs don’t make a right."
"You sound like a teacher."
"The way you act, I need to," Selena said crossly, and swiftly grabbed the textbook Severus had been writing in.
"Give me that!"
Selena dashed onto the landing of the girl’s staircase, where Severus would not be able to reach her, as any boys who tried to climb them would immediately fall down.
"Give it back, Selena!"
Smirking, Selena opened the Defense Against the Dark Arts book and began flipping through it. Words had been squeezed in between nearly all the margins, written in a small, untidy scrawl.
"D’you do this to all your textbooks?" Selena asked him curiously, turning the pages.
"Give me that!"
Selena continued to flip through the book leisurely, pleased that for once she had control over her brother instead of the other way around.
Severus whipped out his wand angrily; Selena easily deflected his spell.
"Give me my book!"
"Only if you promise to never write in textbooks again."
"Okay, I promise!"
"I want a sincere answer," said Selena, and finally finished looking through the book. Some words on the inside back cover caught her eye:
This book is the Property of the Half-Blood Prince.
"Half-Blood Prince?" Selena read aloud. She grinned at Severus, who looked positively furious. "You call yourself the Half-Blood Prince?" Selena couldn’t help it, she cracked up. Severus easily got the book from her as she was laughing too hard to defend herself.
"Shut up, Selena," Severus snarled, sitting back down and holding the book protectively.
"The – Half – Blood – Prince!" Selena gasped in-between fits of laughter. "Prince – like our – mum – Half-Blood – Prince!"
Severus shot a well placed jinx at Selena, and she immediately felt her legs quake underneath her, as though they were jelly. At that moment she couldn’t have cared less, though. Prince…!
"If you tell anyone…" Severus threatened in menacing tones.
"I won’t," Selena sniggered. "But really – Half-Blood Prince? And I thought – you didn’t – want anyone knowing – that our dad’s – a Muggle."
"I don’t. That’s why I don’t want you blabbing to everyone."
"Fine," said Selena, recovering from her giggles. "Here, take your book…Prince."
She burst into peels of laughter again, as Severus looked at her with utmost contempt. She breathed in deeply to calm herself, and headed up the girl’s dormitory staircase. Struck with a sudden thought, she turned at the top landing and called down, "Does that make me the Half-Blood Princess?"
A textbook soared over her head in response. Selena ducked and grinned recklessly. "I guess so."
Another book came flying through the air, but Selena didn’t duck this time. The book went a foot over her head; she knew Severus would never hurt her that bad.
"Is this our castle?" Selena wondered aloud, as she skipped around the landing. "It’s rather nice, I suppose – but is it really fit for a Prince? It could do with some more writing on the walls, Severus, perhaps you could decorate…?"
Laughing loudly, Selena barely shut the door fast enough to avoid the hurtling book.
***
Selena sat on a limb of the beech tree, gazing out at the lake. Perched up there, she felt a strange sort of peace with herself that she had not felt recently. It were as though it were just her in the tree. At that moment, nothing could change that, nothing else mattered.
She was not sure how long she was up there, avoiding life, but suddenly she heard a faint meow. Selena turned her gaze down to see a gray tabby cat at the foot of the tree. The cat lightly climbed up the tree and onto the limb Selena was resting. The two sat side by side together, cat and owl, for a long while, looking out at the stillness of the lake.
Suddenly, the cat meowed again and nimbly jumped from the tree. The cat then looked up at her expectantly. Selena reluctantly flew down beside the cat and transformed back into herself, as the cat did the same.
"Good afternoon, Selena," Minerva McGonagall said.
"Hello," Selena said quietly. "How did you know it was me?"
"I recognized your markings. It’s not like I’ve never seen you transform."
"Right," said Selena distantly, her eyes focused vaguely on the lake. "I didn’t think anyone else would be here, though."
"I work here, Selena," said McGonagall gently.
"Yes, but I thought that the staff would go home for the summer."
"I’ve been back and forth," sighed McGonagall. "I’ve been rather busy even though I should be off duty…I’ve been handling certain affairs of Dum – I mean, I’ve been trying to sort out – the – "
"The murder?" Selena supplied grimly.
McGonagall didn’t respond, but she didn’t need to; they both knew the truth.
Selena silently sat down beside the lake, staring fixedly at the water, as she couldn’t trust herself to look anywhere else. McGonagall hesitated, then sat down beside her.
"Don’t be so hard on yourself, Selena," said McGonagall. "It’s not your fault."
"You don’t get it," said Selena. "And not to be rude, but I’d prefer to be alone right now."
"Maybe I don’t get it," McGonagall said reasonably, choosing to only acknowledge the first half of what Selena had said, "but I know none of this is your fault."
"I know it’s not," said Selena, hugging her knees to her chest. "But perhaps I take a part of the blame."
"No – "
"Yes," said Selena firmly. "I grew up with him, I must have influenced him somewhat, and you can’t deny it."
McGonagall didn’t deny it, whether because she agreed or because she didn’t want to argue fruitlessly, Selena did not know.
"He’s still my brother," said Selena, skipping a stone into the lake and watching the ripples. "I must have done something. I was in his life…" She watched the ripples spread outwards, farther, farther, farther, until they vanished. "I must’ve affected it in some way, even though now I’m pretty much gone from it."
"You don’t know for sure that you took a part in shaping him."
"Don’t lie to me. I did." Her words were harsh, yet she did not speak them with anger. They were said with a calm, serene sort of air to them, which made it even more eerie to listen to her; how she could be so pained and yet come off so at ease.
The two lapsed back into silence, watching the smooth lake shimmer in the sunlight.
"I’d better get going," said Selena after a while, standing up.
McGonagall stood up as well. "You’ll always be welcome at Hogwarts," she said, giving her a tense smile.
"Thanks," said Selena, shaking her hand.
"At the Order as well."
"Still?" Selena asked, raising one eyebrow.
"Of course," said McGonagall sharply. "Why not?"
"Well, I figured…I dunno, with Dumbledore – "
"Dumbledore would’ve wanted you to remain a member," McGonagall snapped. "So you’ll continue to be one."
Selena couldn’t help it; she smiled. "Alright."
McGonagall nodded curtly at her, then headed back towards the castle. Selena turned back into a owl and soared over the lake, thinking how some things would always be the same: like the way McGonagall was so strict and sharp; the way she’d always feel somewhat guilty about Severus’ wrong-doings; the way the beech tree would always stand; the way that her Animagus would always be an owl; and the way that the ripples from a stone in the water would always spread outward, farther, farther, farther, and then vanish.