Chapter 30

Chapter 30

Severus finally reached the gates of the school and went through them. Turning to Disapparate, he felt a weight attach itself to his body as he spinned, but he saw nothing there. As he appeared in the woods where his safe house was, he was knocked to the ground by the weight. Suddenly Harry Potter's head appeared above him.

"Harry! What are you doing here? You should be at Hogwarts!"

Harry sneered at Severus. "He was your friend! He trusted you! I trusted you, and you killed him!" Harry said as he beat his fists into Severus' chest.

The cloak fell away, revealing all of Harry Potter straddled over Severus Snape, who was lying prone on the ground. Harry continued to beat at Severus, who tried to subdue the boy by grabbing his wrists.

"Harry, things are not what they seem," Severus shouted.

"I saw it all! I was there!" Harry screamed. "You killed him! You didn't even care, you just killed him!"

"Harry, I did not kill him!"

Harry stopped for a minute and looked at Snape. Snape was a trusted friend and mentor, but how could he trust him now? Snape had killed Dumbledore, and now he was trying to deny it.

"I saw him. He was dead!" Harry yelled furiously.

"He will survive, Harry! You must believe me."

Harry's entire body was tensed. He glared at Severus, not sure what to do. Finally, he relaxed a little bit and got off Severus. Severus sat up and rubbed his chest where most of Harry's punches had been aimed. Harry pulled out his wand and trained it directly at Severus' chest.

"You will tell me what you're on about. I will then decide for myself what to do with you," he said warily.

Severus closed his eyes for a moment. "What I tell you must be kept between the two of us. Even your friends must not know of these details. You were not to be aware of them either, but I see I have no choice but to inform you of Dumbledore's plan. Do I have your agreement on keeping this a secret from everyone?"

Harry gave a short nod and flicked his wand at Severus, motioning that he continue. Severus explained the plan to Harry, including Severus' part to go deep within the Death Eaters and spy on them.

"The spell that I hit the Headmaster with has only put him into a coma that appears to the onlooker as death. Anyone who examines him very closely will see that his heart still beats. He will come out of the coma in time. Meanwhile, I hope that the Dark Lord will think that my attempted murder will be worthy of more responsibility within the organization."

"How will you explain Dumbledore still being alive to Voldemort?" Harry asked shrewdly.

Severus cringed at Harry's use of the Dark Lord's name. "I will tell him that the spell I cast was something I created that I had hoped would not only kill Dumbledore, but also destroy his spirit. In death, he would never go to the beyond, he would just cease to exist. The Dark Lord will find that idea most intriguing. Being a new spell, he will be somewhat understanding of its failure."

"What about Draco. You left with him in tow. Won't the other Death Eaters tell Voldemort. He'll know you helped him escape."

"He will know nothing," Severus said haughtily. "I will tell him that Draco hit me from behind on the stairs and got away from me before I could bring him before the Dark Lord."

Harry stared silently at Severus for some time. His nostrils flared, and he breathed heavily. His wand trembled in his hand, still pointing at Severus, but quivering with every breath that Harry took.

"Harry, if I had truly wanted to kill him, I would have used the Killing Curse itself. Surely you can understand that?"

It took a great deal of time, but Harry finally lowered his wand. A long, slow sigh escaped his lips.

"I believe you, Professor," Harry said eventually.

The two men sat in silence for a while, not even looking at one another. Harry glanced around him and noticed a small run down cabin behind them.

"Where are we?"

Severus frowned. "This is an old cabin that has been owned by the Snape family for years. No one knows anything about it so I thought it would be a good place to hide out, now that I have no job. My home at Spinner's End will be the first place the authorities look for me. You must keep the location of this cabin a secret also, Harry, or I will be found and imprisoned."

"Do the Death Eaters know about this place?"

"No, but I'm not sure how long I can keep it a secret. They will eventually wonder where I wander off to every day."

"Can't you just make it Unplottable?"

"I think that the Dark Lord would be a tad suspicious if I lived in an Unplottable home, unless of course he was the secret keeper. No, it will remain as it is."

"Sir, can I speak to Dumbledore of all of this when he awakens?"

Severus thought about it for a while. "Let's just keep this between the two of us. Dumbledore tends to get upset when things don't go exactly as planned. There's no real reason for him to know anything about our little meeting." He looked at Harry sternly.

"You must be careful not to let your mind wander to this topic. Your Occlumency skills are not perfect and someone could break your defenses. That would be a death sentence for me, Harry, you understand that, right?"

Harry looked at Severus for a long time. They had continued to work on Occlumency together. He was able to block his mind most of the time, but Harry was never able to completely keep his mind occluded. Severus had broken into his thoughts on most of their lessons; although toward the end of their study, it had taken quite a while to get past the walls that Harry had constructed.

"I understand, Professor. I will keep working on keeping my mind blank. I will not let your secret out."

Severus gave him a quick nod. "You should go back to the school. People will wonder at your whereabouts."

"Professor, may I come to visit you sometime?"

"No, Harry, you must not be seen with me again."

"Can I at least tell Ron and Hermione about this?"

"They must not know about any of this, Harry."

"But they will think you've betrayed us!"

"It is what must happen, Harry. The more people who know, the more danger I'm in. No one else must know about this."

Harry looked at Severus with sadness. "All right, I'll keep this a secret, but it's against my better judgment."

Severus nodded to him. "Thank you, Harry."

Harry stood and gave Severus a little smile. With a turn he had disappeared, leaving Severus to himself. Severus somehow didn't think that this had been part of Hermione's past, or she would have mentioned it. Somehow, a little bit of history had changed. He hoped that that little bit wouldn't spell the ending of his life.

oooOOOooo

Severus' Dark Mark burned. He wondered what the Dark Lord wanted. He had already reported the events of the night before almost immediately after Potter had left him. The Dark Lord had been extremely pleased at the 'death' of Albus Dumbledore, but furious that Draco Malfoy had escaped.

"I will kill his parents in his place!" Voldemort hissed.

Severus bowed low. "You are very wise, Master."

Now his mark burned again. He quickly Apparated to Malfoy Manor and the Dark Lord's side.

"Severus," the Dark Lord hissed.

Severus bowed low. "You sent for me, my Lord?"

"I have just heard something... disturbing."

"What is it, my Lord?"

"Dumbledore has somehow survived."

Severus feigned surprise. "My Lord, I had tested the spell on animals, it worked on them!" he said anxiously.

"Did you test it on a wizard?"

"No, my Lord!"

"You fool! How were you to know if the spell worked, unless you tested it on a human?" Voldemort screamed.

"My Lord, I had just perfected it a little more than a week ago, there was no time..."

"There's always time, Severus! Now because of your stupidity, Dumbledore lives. He is in a coma, but he will probably regain consciousness."

"My Lord, forgive me for my ignorance." Severus bowed even lower, his hand over his heart.

"Crucio!"

Severus fell to the ground in pain. He winced and cried out sharply. He hoped this would be enough punishment for him, but the Dark Lord could do anything to him at this point. He would have to take it stoically. Voldemort finally lifted the curse. Severus struggled to get up quickly.

"Your spell was innovative, but in the end, it failed. Crucio!"

A minute later, Severus was picking himself up off the floor again. He kept his head bowed and did not make eye contact with his master.

"Now I will need to wait to make another attempt on his life as both you and Malfoy have fled the school. Crucio!"

Severus rose again when the curse was lifted.

"Severus, look at me."

Voldemort swept into his mind, seeing him creating the spell and using it on animals. He saw the desire in Severus' mind to destroy not only the body of Dumbledore, but his soul also. He was appeased.

"It's unfortunate that your spell didn't work, Severus. You may go."

"Thank you, my Lord," Severus said deferentially.

oooOOOooo

There was a loud rap on Petunia's door. She rushed to answer it and found an agitated Sirius Black on the other side of it. He rushed into the house.

"Have you seen The Prophet yet?" he asked her.

"It hasn't been delivered," she told him.

Sirius brandished his copy for her to see. She looked at the front page headline and gave a gasp.

Attempted Murder of Albus Dumbledore

Petunia quickly read the article, gasping again when she came to the part that told of Severus' part in the affair. She looked up to Sirius.

"This can't be right."

"It is. I just came from Hogwarts. Dumbledore is in a coma. Poppy says he will be alright in a couple of days, but she confirmed that it was done at Snape's hand. Harry saw the whole thing."

Petunia went over to the couch and sat down, deep in thought.

"This doesn't make any sense," she muttered.

"Of course it does!" Sirius cried. "He's been on their side all this time. He is the same sniveling bat James and I thought he was."

Petunia looked at Sirius crossly. "How can you say that after all he has done?"

"He just tried to kill Dumbledore, that's how."

"There's something more to this," Petunia mused. "This isn't like him. Sirius, he was a witness at your trial. His testimony helped to free you. Look at what he did for me and what he has been doing with Harry. This isn't right. He wouldn't turn against us like this."

Sirius pulled her close to him. "I know he seemed to be on our side, but why would he kill Albus if he truly were on our side?"

Petunia shook her head as she cuddled closer to Sirius.

"I don't know, Sirius, I just have a feeling that things aren't what they seem."

oooOOOooo

Hermione sat up in her room on her bed. She had cast a Muffliato spell and pulled her curtains so no one knew she was up there. She thought about the events of the night before. Professor Snape, a man she considered to be her friend, had betrayed them all and tried to kill Headmaster Dumbledore. Thank heavens whatever spell he used backfired and Dumbledore was only in a coma.

Only! she thought; as if that was something pleasant. But of course, it was better than being dead. Somehow, she knew that Professor Dumbledore would wake up. She was at least thankful for that, but her heart ached within her.

The thought that Professor Snape had tried to kill the Headmaster was almost impossible for her to fathom. Had he been playing them all along? How could she have been such a fool to believe him all of this time? How he must have laughed at their stupidity.

Suddenly she was angry. She had trusted him, admired him! But there was nothing to admire now, he was a murderer. Well, an attempted murderer if she was to label it correctly. How could she have been so foolish? She had not been the only one, however. Severus Snape had duped them all.

Hermione sat in a fog, berating herself for being so stupid. She couldn't believe she had fallen for his act. She went over all of the times they had met to train. He had seemed to be concerned for their wellbeing. He had worked hard to train them. The whole thing just didn't make sense. Why would he work so hard to help them defeat You-Know-Who if he was just going to go back to serving him? It didn't add up. She wished she could make him appear here, right in front of her, so she could ask him what on earth he was thinking. Then suddenly it came to her. Something she read in a textbook in the library. Hermione got up and raced out of her room to find the book and research her idea.

oooOOOooo

There it was! The book Hermione was looking for. The Magic of Memory sat on the shelf between Memory Reading and Using Memories to Predict the Future. She pulled the book from the shelf and sat down at a table to find what she had read long ago.

It took her a few minutes to locate, but soon she was reading furiously.

When viewing memories in a Pensieve, it is possible to converse with the people in the memory, but only if the viewer has a close relationship to the subjects. Mere acquaintances will not be able to communicate in this way. By using the spell Memoria Pare the action in the memory will stop. This will give the viewer the opportunity to converse with anyone in the memory with whom they are acquainted. Memoria Parla will give the subject the ability to speak with the viewer and any questions may be asked at this time. The feelings and thoughts of the subject will be readily available to the viewer. This can be a useful tool when someone is not available to answer questions about a situation. To end the conversation and return the memory to normal, use the incantation Memoria Restora.

Hermione snapped the book closed, deep in thought. She would get her answers from Professor Snape, whether he liked it or not.

oooOOOooo

"Harry, can I ask you a favor?" Hermione questioned.

Harry looked up. "What is it, Hermione?"

"Can I see your memories of Professor Snape trying to kill Professor Dumbledore?"

Harry blanched. "Why would you want to see those?"

Hermione shrugged. "I don't know." She looked down and appeared troubled. "I've just had a hard time believing that Professor Snape would do such a thing. I think if I saw it for myself, I would have an easier time accepting it."

"Hermione, you don't need to see that. It was disturbing. You're fine however you feel about it."

"Please, Harry. I need to see it for myself!"

Harry studied her for a few minutes. He wished he could just tell her the truth, but Snape had sworn him to secrecy. Maybe seeing his memories would help her to come to terms with everything anyway.

"Do you have a bottle?" he asked her with a sigh.

She produced one with her wand and handed it over to him.

Harry took his own wand and extracted the memories, placing them into the vial. He handed it to Hermione.

"Do you want me to watch them with you?" he asked.

Hermione shook her head. "I think I want to see them and work through them by myself," she replied. "Thank you, Harry. I know these memories are private, and I will treat them with respect."

"I know you will, Hermione."

With that, she turned and headed for the Headmaster's office and his Pensieve.

oooOOOooo

Hermione gave the password to the Gargoyle, hoping it hadn't been changed since Dumbledore was injured. With all of the commotion, she wasn't sure that Professor McGonagall would have alerted the Prefects to the change. Much to Hermione's relief, the Gargoyle swung open, and she ascended the stairs. She closed the door behind her and warded it so she wouldn't be disturbed. Opening the doors to the cabinet where the Pensieve sat, she pulled the cork out of the bottle and poured the memories into the Pensieve. She dipped her face low to the memories and soon found herself on the roof of the Astronomy Tower, witnessing the horrible events of the previous evening herself.

She watched the whole scene through once as tears streamed down her face. Gasping, she watched Dumbledore crash to the ground, his eyes staring vacantly at the sky. She watched as Professor Snape quickly put his wand away, grabbed Draco by the robe sleeve and rushed off the roof. The memory ended with his departure. She emerged from the Pensieve, but dipped right back in. This time she watched and waited until Snape chanted the incantation. It was a spell she had never heard before. She wondered why he just hadn't used the Killing Curse.

Pulling her wand out, she said her own spell... Memoria Pare. Suddenly all action stopped in the memory. She walked up to Professor Snape and studied his features. He was grimacing as he cast the spell. Was this a reaction to be expected from a cold-blooded killer? There was only one way to find out.

"Memoria Parla!" she chanted.

Severus Snape snapped out of his frozen state and glared at Hermione.

"Miss Granger, what are you doing here?" he barked.

"Professor Snape, you are part of a memory. Everything that you are doing has already happened. I am just observing."

"How is it that you are talking to me?"

"I found a spell in a book that would make me able to speak with you. I have several questions."

"I am afraid I can answer none of them," he replied. His tone was aloof. His stance betrayed no feeling about what he had just done.

"But you haven't even heard them," she said angrily.

"Nonetheless, I refuse to answer anything," he responded in a clipped voice.

Hermione balled her fists up. "We trusted you! How could you do this to Professor Dumbledore? After all he has done for you, after he has been your friend, you try and kill him?"

Severus gave her a bored look. "I'm doing what I have to do."

Hermione lost all control at that point. "I trusted you! Harry trusted you! I admired you! Now I find you're just a filthy, murdering Death Eater! How could you be so callous? I thought you were my friend! I thought you were on our side!"

Tears glistened in her eyes and finally spilled down her cheeks. Hermione wrapped her arms around herself and looked down. She tried to bite back the tears, but it was no use. All of her pent up frustration, grief, and puzzlement that had been building up since the attempted murder burst forth from her. She crashed to the ground in a fit of sobs.

oooOOOooo

Severus knelt beside her and held her in his arms. She struggled for a minute, but he was too strong for her.

"Shh, it's all right," Severus soothed.

"No, it's not all right! You tried to kill him!" she cried between sobs. "You played us all. I trusted you." Her voice became deadly quiet. "You're nothing but a liar."

Although just a memory, Severus' heart broke to see Hermione so distraught because of him. He could not let her go on believing him to be so horrible.

"Hermione," he whispered and pulled her closer.

"Don't touch me," she croaked through her tears.

Again she began to struggle, but Severus tightened his grasp, pulling her flush with him. His mouth was poised at her ear.

"This memory is not what it seems."

Hermione pulled away from him and studied his face through her tears.

"What do you mean?"

"Dumbledore is not dead."

"I know that. Your spell didn't work. He's only in a coma." Suddenly realization showed in her face. "How did you know he wasn't dead? You just tried to kill him in this memory."

"I didn't try to kill him. He and I planned this. The spell I used was meant to put him in a coma that would appear to be death to the onlooker. He will revive in a few days."

"Why on earth would you two plan such a thing?"

"This was the only option to save Draco. He was commissioned by the Dark Lord to kill Dumbledore. The Dark Lord will reward me for my attempt, even if it didn't work. It will give me the opportunity to become the right hand of the Dark Lord and to find out his most intimate secrets."

Hermione searched his face, her eyes roving over it, looking for deception. She found none. "So, you're still on our side? You weren't just pretending to be spying against Voldemort all this time?"

"No, Hermione, I wasn't just pretending. I have been a spy for the Order and will remain one."

Hermione threw her arms around him in an embrace.

"Oh! Thank heavens! I... I was thinking horrible things. I'm sorry I doubted you."

"Hermione, you were supposed to doubt me. That was part of the plan. You must tell no one of our conversation. It is dangerous for even you to know about my duplicity. Will you keep this to yourself?"

Hermione pulled back and dropped her arms to her sides. "I can't even tell Ron or Harry? They are as heartbroken as I was."

Severus shook his head. "No one must know, Hermione. Please, honor my wishes in this."

"All right, Professor, I will keep your secret, no matter how difficult it will be."

Wanting to stroke her cheek, he chose to put his hand on her arm instead.

"Thank you, Hermione. You may have just saved my life."

"I know your real self will never hear this, sir, but please be careful. I value our friendship and would hate to lose you."

Severus' chest felt tight at her words. "I value our friendship too, Hermione. I will be careful. I have every intention of coming out of this war alive." ... And ready for your return to me.

Hermione smiled and stood up. Severus followed suit.

"I'm going to return the memory back to its original state now."

Severus nodded to her and stood back in the place where he had originated. Hermione stared at him for a second before waving her wand and saying the spell Memoria Restora to restore the memory. Everything suddenly was back in motion, and the memory played to the end. She watched as Severus Snape disappeared from view and knew he was the bravest man she had ever met.

A/N: Next up: Hiding away.

Thanks again for some great input from everybody. I enjoy hearing your takes on what's going on. Seventh year is finally here. I know you're all counting down the return of His Hermione. ;)