Jealousy, Betrayal and Hope

Hello. I don\'t own any of the characters (though I wish I did), I\'m merely just playing with them.

Chapter 1: Jealousy

Lucius Malfoy watched as Snape began is long list of excuses. He was an expert at saving his own neck. Lucius was no idiot. It was obvious that Snape was betraying the Dark Lord. It sickened him that a pureblood like Snape could turn his back on his own. He had tried to subtly get the Dark Lord to see the betrayal. But how can you tell some one as great as the Dark Lord that his right hand man was a fraud? It simply just wasn\'t done. The Dark Lord always ignored his mistakes. Ignorance is bliss.

Lucius snarled under his breath as Snape once again got away with murder. He was supposed to have brought the Potter lad to the revel; once again he conveniently failed and had an excuse ready. A good crucio should sort him out thought Lucius dryly.

\'Lucius\' came the dark, cold tone of his master. Lucius snapped out of his vengeful thoughts towards Snape and looked into his masters eyes.

\'Lucius. Tell me, how did the attack on Little Hangleton go?\' Whispered the Dark Lord in a hushed voice. Lucius cringed at the thought of the night’s events. He summoned up the courage to speak.

\'My Lord, It did not go well. I fear that we have a spy in our midst\' He shot Snape a futile glance \'Auror\'s were there and they bided there time -\' He looked at the Dark Lord. If looks could kill the Dark Lord would be standing over a stone cold Lucius by now.

\'The Damage Lucius?\' He snarled.

\'Wh-why yes of course master. You see the Auror’s; they waited for us to attack before making their move. As soon as Bellatrix spoke the killing curse they rounded on her. She did not perish quickly. Went like a true hero and she-\'

\'SILENCE!\' Shrieked the Dark Lord. Lucius took a step back in terror. Bellatrix had always been the Dark Lords favourite plaything.

\'Lucius, you mean to tell me they cold bloodedly murdered my precious Bella?\' The Dark Lord returned to his haunting whisper.

\'Yes in a manner of speaking my Lord. They had unleashed a dementor on her. She\'s now soulless\' Lucius spoke softly, not wanting to trigger off one of the Dark Lords mood swings. The Dark Lord turned round and gave a cry of anguish. He then spoke loudly for all his Death Eaters to hear.

\'I shall not forget this. Who ever are responsible will pay dearly! I shall return to my former glory. Those who object shall feel my wrath. They shall suffer fate worse then either death or a kiss from the dementors. GO all of you. Get out of my sight!\'

One by one the Dark Lords followers stumbled away from the Dark lair. Lucius spied Snape from a distance. Time for a conversation thought Lucius. As Snape swept out of the room, Lucius followed.

-@-

\'That went well\' thought Severus Snape, as he stood outside tasting the fresh air. He knew Lucius suspected him, fortunately the Dark Lord didn\'t. The untimely lost off Bella in the ranks was a bit of a surprise though. He hadn\'t expected that. He didn\'t even feel guilty. It was him that had alerted the order who in turn had alerted the Auror\'s. He didn\'t think they\'d set a dementor on her straight away though.

Severus was just about to apperate to Headquarters when Lucius collared him. Severus smirked at him and gave a curt nod. Lucius glared at him scathingly.

\'Severus, I know it was you. I can see right through you. Lucius hissed. Severus raised an eyebrow in mock surprise.

\'Are you suggesting that the Dark Lords right hand man is a traitor?\' Severus asked with a hint of sarcasm. Lucius smirked.

\'No suggesting about it. I will unmask you old friend\' and with Lucius\'s final words of warning he apperate to Malfoy Manor. Snape shook his head and apperated to Headquarters.

-@-

Headquarters was very subdued in light of the attack at Little Hangleton. Young Tonks had been seated in the window for over an hour, not saying a word. Being off duty for the night, she hadn\'t been present when the attack took place. Kingsley Shacklebolt and Mad-Eye Moody had been though. Moody was right up front and had delivered the news of Bellatrix Lestrange\'s comeuppance. The news of her relative had been a shock that much was true. But it didn\'t really bother her. Bellatrix never seemed like family.

The rest of the order had left her alone, thinking she was affected by the news. Even though it wasn\'t true, she didn\'t bother to correct them. It was far easier to let them be, instead of telling them the real reason behind her unusual quietness. The truth was she was worried about Severus Snape. Since the untimely death of Sirius, she had sort of found an understanding with him. She was one of the few people he didn’t attack with his sarcastic wit. It made her feel special in a way.

Her thoughts of Severus were called to a halt when she heard the sound of the door behind her go. She turned around to see a rugged Severus enter and watched as he sat himself down. She grinned at him and he nodded in return. Mad-Eye Moody, who was also in the room saw her grin and raised an eyebrow at her. She glanced at him and shrugged. She was saved the questions from the old auror by the arrival of the rest of the order.

Albus Dumbledore, Remus Lupin Kingsley, Mundungus Fletcher, Arthur and Molly Weasley were the first to arrive. Followed by the Weasley tribe consisting of Ron, George, Fred, Bill and Ginny. Along with them came the honorary members of the Weasley tribe, Harry & Hermione. The Youngsters had been allowed into the order after much persuasion.

After settling down the order all turned to Severus to speak. He told them how that the information of the attack that Moody and Kingsley had given them had indeed been more or less correct. He also mentioned that Lucius was onto him, but he wasn\'t too worried as the Dark Lord favoured Severus at the moment. The Order\'s meeting didn\'t last too long and eventually people slowly filtered away. Soon there was just Tonks and Severus left in the room.

Severus broke the silence and turned to the young auror. She smiled weakly; she was concerned for her friend. He noted the concern in her face and like the rest assumed it was over Bellatrix.

\'I’m sorry about Bella\' He said, watching her every facial expression. She looked at him with indifference.

\'I\'m not; she got what she deserved in the end. They always do\' She said grimly. This coming from the usually bouncy chirpy Tonks was kind of startling. Snape looked at her, she was now looking away from him. He wondered if it was true about people getting what they deserve. If it were, he\'d have perished long time ago