Chapter 1

'You have used me.'

'Meaning?'

'... Now you tell me you have been raising him like a pig for slaughter.'

The conversation between the two former headmasters had haunted Albus Severus Potter ever since he had discovered his father's Pensieve when he was eleven. He couldn't believe how willing Professor Dumbledore had been to sacrifice not only the bravest man he never knew but his father as well, all for 'the greater good.'

***

Five years after his discovery of the memory, Albus found himself in possession of a stolen Time-Turner and the opportunity to change history. Although it was illegal and highly dangerous, he could not resist the chance to save more than one deserving life. He had broken into a fellow student's trunk, one who had permission to use the device, and borrowed it for one night. He told himself that borrowing it from a student was a small price to pay.

Before leaving his dormitory, Albus grabbed his father's silvery Invisibility Cloak from his trunk and then darted to his bedside table to withdraw a delicate crystal phial from the locked mahogany drawer. If he left without the potion, the trip would be for naught. He checked everything one last time, consulting the Marauder's Map to make sure the headmistress was asleep, and began the trek to her office. Once at the guarded entrance, he found the gargoyle fast asleep, which surprised him and made his mission easier.

Once standing in the dark, empty office, he spun the device hanging on a thin golden chain around his slender neck. He prayed to anyone who might be listening that he would arrive at the precise moment he needed to. Moving backwards through time unnoticed was an exciting thing indeed, but he had a mission...a mission he hoped would change everything.

He arrived an hour before the conversation was to take place and waited in a cramped cupboard much like his father had occupied at his aunt and uncle's house as a youth. He was waiting for Dumbledore to say one phrase: 'But this is touching, Severus. Have you grown to care for the boy, after all?'

Time inched along so slowly it seemed as though the minute hand on his watch had stopped. Soon, he heard loud, angry voices ricocheting off the walls like bullets. The younger of the two men's voices softened to almost a whisper; it sounded as though he was resigned to his fate. Albus could no longer hide in the pitch-black, spider-filled cupboard and listen to Severus Snape be verbally flayed. As soon as those words so callously fell from the headmaster's mouth, Albus threw off the Invisibility Cloak and exited his hiding place, revealing himself.

'Who are you?' Professor Dumbledore demanded of him.

'I'm someone who gives a shite about the two men you are so willing to throw to the wolves. Professor Snape has done everything for you, yet you don't care what happens to him. He's only a means to an end for you,' Albus yelled bitterly, clenching his fists so tightly they turned red.

'Things are not as they seem.' Dumbledore frowned at him.

'Spare me, Headmaster. I'm in no mood to listen to your pathetic excuses. You'll not manipulate me as you've done everyone else...the ones who should have mattered in your twisted desire for power and your so-called good intentions. Don't you understand, old man? There are greater things at risk than what you see.'

'Please sit and explain.' Dumbledore said roughly, gesturing toward the high-backed chair facing his cluttered desk.

Rolling his eyes, Albus Severus scoffed. 'I owe you nothing; I didn't come here to explain myself to anyone, especially you. My only desires were to address you and to let Professor Snape know that someone supports him, however distantly I am able.'

Severus stood dumbfounded, unable to believe anyone could see past the headmaster's façade to stand in his defense. He truly admired the fortitude the boy had, but couldn't understand why a stranger...a child...would defend him so fiercely when so many were against him.

'Why does my life matter to you, boy? You don't know me.' Severus looked at the raven-haired young man who reminded him somewhat of Harry Potter. It was the eyes that kept him from drawing the connection between the boy standing in front of him and his student.

'While it's true we don't know each other, Professor, I know enough about you to say you deserve better than this...better than the fate awaiting you.' Albus searched Severus's worry-lined, tired face, finally resting on the blue-black circles underneath his eyes.

'How do you...' Severus was cut off before he could finish his thought.

'Don't worry about it, Professor.'

Dumbledore reached out to grab the boy's arm, trying to stop him from leaving his office. He was too slow for the young man, who disappeared without another word.

***

Albus felt better than he had in years, but he didn't have time to dwell on the feeling...he still had one more mission. It was not enough to let Dumbledore know how he felt; he wanted to give Professor Snape another chance...a chance to have a better, more peaceful life.

Spinning the Time-Turner again, he leaped forward to a year later, and this time faced a very dishevelled Professor Snape who was sitting at his desk and writing.

'I wondered if I would see you again,' Severus said, not looking up from the ink-stained parchment lying on his desk.

Severus rose from his chair and donned a silver demi-mask, a dark-green, velvet cloak, and a pair of well-worn leather gloves. His hair fell in a wave in front of his face, covering part of his mask, and he pushed the lock of hair back.

'Professor, I don't have long, and neither do you. I've come to warn you.'

'About what?' Severus inquired, though he already had a suspicion of what was going to happen when he left the school.

'You're about to go to Voldemort,' Albus simply stated as he rifled through the pockets of his robes. 'You need to be prepared for what you're about to face... Tonight, that evil, snake-faced bastard will try to take your life.'

'I know what awaits me. This is my last sacrifice; my life is all I have left to give,' he said, standing straight.

'You deserve better, Professor. You deserve to live, have happiness, love even.'

'The only woman I have ever loved chose someone else.' Severus recalled his last memory of the beautiful redhead with the brilliant green eyes: tears streamed down her angelic face as she walked away from him, leaving him behind to make his own, lonely way in life.

'Lily Evans was never meant for you.'

'There's no need to remind me of that. And how do you know about Lily? I've never told anyone.'

'I know many things, Professor. Like the fact that if you choose to live tonight, you will love another.'

'You're not serious.' Severus shook his head in disbelief.

'I am. I'd elaborate, but there's not much time.' Albus took a phial containing a smoke-coloured liquid and held it out to Severus. 'You have but a moment to decide. If you take this chance, you will have freedom...true freedom.'

'What does the potion do?' Severus queried, curiosity filling his voice.

'This will save your life when Voldemort sets his snake on you. When her venom hits your system, the potion will stop it. The neat thing about this is that you'll still appear to be dead even though your body will be repairing itself. You'll be in a coma of sorts for several hours, and then you'll wake up.'

'Ingenious. How do you know it will work?' He pressed the issue, stalling for time.

'I know it will work because I was the one who designed and tested it, Professor. You're not a guinea pig in an experiment.' He dug in his pockets once more, withdrawing a deceptively thin envelope and laid it on the professor's desk.

Severus hesitated, his hand trembling as he touched the oddly cold phial. 'What if you're wrong? What if I survive only to return to a world where the Dark Lord won?' He paused to consider. 'Yet, if the Light wins, I'll most likely be thrown in prison and left to rot, or someone will avenge Dumbledore's death by murdering me...whichever side wins, I'll be punished severely or killed.'

Albus uncorked the phial for Severus. 'I know you have your doubts, and you have every right to, considering the life you've led, but try to trust me. If I didn't know for certain, I would never have come to save you... and one other.'

'What makes you so certain? And did you say you were going to save another life tonight?'

'I have my reasons, Professor. And yes, I fully intend to save someone else.'

'Who?'

'Professor, you're wasting time. Take the damn potion!' Albus ordered. 'I have a letter that will explain everything you need to know after tonight.' He retrieved the envelope he had laid on the desk and handed it to the professor.

Severus drank the icy potion and felt it freeze his insides as it pooled into his stomach. Doubling over, he gasped as tears streamed down his cheeks. He felt as though all of his organs were freezing, causing him to suffocate.

'Perhaps I should have warned you about its violent effects. It'll subside, Professor.' He reached his hand out to touch Severus's shoulder, but it was pushed away, which left him feeling more powerless since he was unable to relieve the pain associated with the potion.

After several minutes had passed, Severus straightened and noticed the boy had not moved from his position in front of the desk. He also saw that the boy's teeth were deeply sunk into his bottom lip and he had tears shining in his bright blue eyes.

'I'm fine,' Severus assured the boy.

'In that case, Professor, I'll see you again, I'm certain.' He spun the Time-Turner forward and disappeared out of sight, leaving Severus standing with his mouth agape.

The Dark Mark on his forearm seared once more; Voldemort was summoning him to his death. If the potion somehow failed, this could be his last hour alive. With leaden feet, Severus exited his office and made his way to where the Dark Lord was hiding: the upstairs bedroom of the Shrieking Shack.

A/N: The three lines of text quoted at the beginning of this chapter are taken from "The Prince's Tale" in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows...p.687 in the American hardcover edition.

Prompt info: Fix a Wrong, See a Right. Someone is given a Time-Turner and instructions to use it. Only once when using it, a mistake is made in counting or a slip of the fingers, and he/she goes forward/ backward in time. Who does this person meet/see? How would he/she fix a wrong while back in the right time?