The Raven and The Snake

It had been decided that Dumbledore's funeral would take place at the school where he had requested to be buried. After a heavy crying fit on Madam Pomfrey's part, Ariadne opted to prepare the body for burial. She found it surprisingly easy to accept the death of her former Headmaster. Reconciling that what she cleaned and carefully wrapped in a shroud was nothing more than the shell. The soul, she knew, had vacated to a different form of existence.

Though it made her feel dirty, she used a small enchanted crystal ball to record the proceedings. It served as a video camera, recording everything as she confirmed the death of Dumbledore and the funeral. Thousands of people were coming in for the funeral. Ministry officials took seats at the staff table. Parents and former students flocked to the inns in Hogsmeade.

Many students were taken home before the funeral, but there were some like Seamus Finnegan who fought hard to stay for the final goodbye. He'd had a row with his mother in the entrance hall, insisting he would stay. Ariadne kept herself mainly cooped up within the hospital wing. She diligently attended to Bill who was starting to look a little a better. The scars were not as awful as they might have been had she not cared for him and used her pseudo- philosopher's stone. Madam Pomfrey, Molly, and Fleur all enthusiastically thanked Ariadne for her efforts, but she couldn't help but think that if she had been able to finish the stone in time, Bill might have made a complete recovery. Any direction Ariadne turned, people were overcome with emotions. Grief was the most weighing, though many were angry. Her head was bombarded with a mixture of sadness for loss of Dumbledore and hatred for Snape. Never before had Ariadne experienced such a large crowd that was so in sync. The many internal voices made her reel every time she stepped outside of the hospital wing. It did not improve her nausea though she now knew for certain the

cause.

Molly was taking a surprisingly protective stance with Ariadne. Be it her gratitude for what Ariadne had done for Bill or her feelings of sympathy, Molly was consistent in offering Ariadne support.

When the twins came to the school for the funeral, they reached for Ariadne with sad smiles which quickly changed to confusion when their mother buffeted them away. She informed them a little harshly that Ariadne was ill and that in the circumstances, they were not cause any unnecessary trouble.

Birdie had come back from Egypt for the funeral. She rushed Ariadne, crying mournfully. For her own self-esteem, she gave Fleur a wide birth, but took instantly to Willa who laughed with her over a play-by-play of Luna's time as Quidditch Commentator.

Tonks had cheered considerably by the morning of the funeral. Her transfiguration was back on par and her hair was bright bubblegum pink in time to see Dumbledore off. She winked toward Ariadne, letting her know that things had been rectified between her and Lupin.

The funeral itself was quite exquisite. Only one person gave a true speech, a former childhood friend of Dumbledore who had attended Hogwarts with him. He had many fine things to say about Dumbledore, but Ariadne had unfortunately been positioned close to the ghost of Moaning Myrtle and most of the speech was drowned by Myrtle's theatrical wails.

It wasn't until the merpeople of the lake began to sing that Ariadne put a jinx on Myrtle to shut her up. The song wasn't the cathartic croon of the phoenix, but it was heartbreaking in its beauty.

The centaurs paid a salute of arms from the tree line of the forest. They did not stay for words or make any attempts to mingle. Firenze watched them leave sadly. He had only taken the job and been banished from his home because of his good will toward Dumbledore. Would he even want the job come next semester?

Ariadne was one of the only people comfortable enough to get near Grawp. She squeezed Hagrid's hands and patted Grawp's knee, offering up a watery smile. Hagrid cried nearly as loud as Myrtle.

Ariadne wasn't entirely sure when she'd made her decision. She abandoned her crystal ball in a shrubbery and went to pull aside her friends. Antigone was wrapped heavily around her middle protectively, her brood, twin snakes the size of shoelaces coiled at Ariadne's neck.

She led her friends to the very edge of the forest, taking a deep breath.

Birdie, Fleur, Tonks, Merry, Fred and George were her best of friends and the closest family she had. They watched her with polite curiosity as she set up magical barriers to keep their conversation from being overheard. They weren't troubled by the precaution, they had all seen Rita Skeeter buzzing around with her quick-quotes quill, but none were prepared for what she had to tell them.

For a while now, Ariadne had wanted to confide her friends. Now, she did. She explained to them about her parentage as well as the mission Dumbledore had allowed her to undertake, being the buffer between the Order and Voldemort. While she said no words in regards to why Snape had killed Dumbledore, she did confess the relationship between herself and Snape.

The reactions were not as bad as they could have been. Birdie was aware of more than the others and she wrapped her arms Ariadne's shoulders, pointedly ignoring the snakes and glaring at the others in a silent dare to rebuke her. Fleur looked positively appalled, not saying much as her digested the information while Merry sobbed violently on the forest floor, great tears spilling over her sallow cheeks. "And so you've kept this all quiet this whole time?" Tonks asked, her voice cracking oddly.

"I'm so sorry," Ariadne said for about the hundredth time. "I've wanted to tell you. I've wanted to explain what it is I'm working toward."

The twins were oddly quiet. They kept exchanging long looks, pondering how to respond.

"So you're definitely on our side then?" Fred asked at last.

"Of course!" Ariadne reached her hand toward him. "Always."

George watched Ariadne carefully as he moved closer. "Why are you telling us now? Did you have to wait until Dumbledore had gone or because Snape's left the school?"

Ariadne shook her head. Her throat constricted as she worked to form her request. "No, I um... I'm sort of in trouble. I have to do something really crazy and I need all of you to help me."

She wasn't sure if she could manage this. The emotions were nearly eating her alive, it was a struggle just to remain standing. Merry gazed up at her with the most forlorn expression and vowed to help.

"I'll help with whatever you need." Birdie agreed vehemently.

The twins eyes had sparked at the word "trouble". Whatever it was, they would help.

It was Tonks and Fleur that Ariadne was most concerned about. They were the most necessary. Tonks's transfiguration was better than Ariadne's by a large margin and Fleur's charm work was crucial for the memory adjustments of the group. "Yeah..." Tonks said after briefly mulling it over. "I'll do what I can for you, Aria."

"Yes, I as well." Fleur agreed.

Tears started to run down Ariadne's cheek. She was so grateful to them. She laid out her plan and prayed that they would all survive to the next year.