A New Body For An Old Enemy

I'd like to thank everyone who has reviewed this story so far. I appreciate the wonderful comments and an very happy at your response to this story.

I hope you all continue to enjoy it.

I thought I would update before the weekend started.

All canon characters belong to JKR. All I get are your kind words.

Thanks to June for all of her help and suggestions.

Chapter 3 – A New Body For An Old Enemy

Ten years earlier

Voldemort sat on his throne staring down at the unconscious body of his only direct contact to Harry Potter.

He knew Severus to be a powerful wizard who could hold his own, but he needed to make sure he would survive the coming battle. For several days he'd been thinking of which of his Death Eaters he would grant the ultimate honor: the honor of being his next body.

Voldemort wasn't delusional. He knew that he had to take any and all necessary precautions, in case he lost the battle, and that his Horcruxes were being destroyed by Potter and his friends. He feared that they had all been destroyed already.

Severus had always been one of his most loyal followers and he suffered daily having to deal with the twinkling old fool, Albus Dumbledore. It would be a great honor for Severus to give up his body in order for his lord to live gain, even if he didn't even realize what was happening to him. No one would ever suspect that Severus Snape was a Horcrux

"Wormtail, take Severus to the Forbidden Forest."

Peter laughed, "Shall I place him near the cave where the manticores dwell?"

Voldemort backhanded him viciously.

"You fool! I do not want him harmed further. His body must be placed in a hidden spot which I will give you directions to. He will sleep and his body will be at rest." Voldemort approached Severus' body and stroked his hair.

"If I should perish during the final battle, I shall return, Peter. I shall bury my soul inside this body and when the some time has passed, when the world thinks itself safe, I shall come back."

Voldemort didn't care if all of his followers were killed or sent to Azkaban. As far as he was concerned, he would eventually gather more. After all, Severus would most likely be welcomed back to Hogwarts with open arms. What better place to recruit new followers than a school with plenty of young minds to mold.

Peter did as he was told, to a certain degree. He couldn't find the precise spot his master had shown him on the map he'd given him. Peter was in such a hurry to get back to Voldemort that he unknowingly placed Severus' body in a spot where Hagrid often passed while walking through the forest.

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Now standing in Severus' bedroom, Voldemort was amused that he'd woken up on a bed and dressed in a bathrobe. He concluded that the half-wit Wormtail placed the Potions master's body in an open spot; the Gryffindor had never found the crypt that was meant to keep Severus' body in its pristine state.

Actually, Peter had done Voldemort a great service. The Dark Lord's plans were working out better than he'd originally anticipated. His only problem was that he, as of yet, did not have full control of Severus' body or memories. Had he been laid in the crypt, Severus' soul would eventually have weakened enough for Voldemort's soul to simply engulf and devour it. Severus would die and Voldemort would live again in the Potions Master's body. However, he was in Hogwarts; he had no doubt of that. Most probably he'd been taken care of by the staff and been given potions to keep his body healthy. The connection to the world and those around him was never severed. Those who cared for Severus kept his soul alive and grounded without even knowing it. This worked in Severus' favor.

Voldemort knew that he would have to bide his time until he could become strong enough to take over the body completely. He walked back to the bed and laid himself down, falling asleep as quickly as Severus had done so earlier.

When Severus woke after ten years, he thought that Voldemort had known of his spying, but in reality the Dark Lord did not. It was the fact that Voldemort thought him to be a faithful servant that actually put Severus in the position he'd been these last ten years. His duplicity had never been found out.

What Poppy picked up when she first examined Severus' body was in fact Voldemort's soul. She could not have known it wasn't just remnants of a magical signature; she had no experience with Horcruxes.

Severus continued to sleep for several hours. When he woke he found himself naked on his bed. He found this odd since he had been wearing his robe when he initially lay down for his nap. Shaking his head, he thought perhaps he'd just gotten restless and somehow shrugged it off while sleeping. He'd always slept in the nude anyway. Not thinking further about it, he got up and dressed for dinner.

Instead of walking into the Great Hall through the teachers' entrance, he decided to make a grand entrance. Severus really couldn't resist. He couldn't wait to see the shocked faces of the students as he walked up the aisle to the High Table. As he predicted, once the doors opened and he stalked in with his billowing robes following him, all he saw out of the corner of his eyes were shocked faces. He also heard mumblings of "we never thought we would ever see him," or "he's a scary one, just like my parents said." He smirked and continued on his way.

Albus made the announcement to the rest of the staff just after he'd left Severus' quarters that morning. They had all been very excited and happy that he was back from his deep slumber.

Severus strode up the steps and towards his old seat. It was empty, something Albus always insisted on. No one had ever taken Severus' old seat at the High Table in ten years. Along the way he greeted Albus, Minerva, Filius, Hagrid, and the rest of the staff. When he got to his place he noticed that Hermione would be sitting next to him. Deciding that perhaps it might be good to have someone to fill him in on the happenings on the wizarding world during his down time, he sighed heavily and hoped she had matured enough to hold an intelligent conversation as an adult.

"Good evening, professor," said Hermione cheerfully.

Severus looked down at her smiling face.

'Cheerful little witch,' he thought, a bit amused.

"Good evening, Miss...I mean, Professor Granger," he said.

Severus sat down and looked up to find the entire student body looking his way. But after he gave them one good scowl, they all turned away and began talking amongst themselves. He heard Hermione's gentle laugh next to him.

"You certainly haven't lost your touch, sir."

"Just like riding a broom, you never forget," he said. They both sat in silence until a large hawk entered the Great Hall. Severus recognized it immediately; it was Hector, Lucius' hawk. Hector landed on Severus' shoulder and rubbed his head against the Potions master's temple; he'd always been a very caring and friendly bird to those he knew.

Severus smiled and rubbed Hector's head, then took the note from his claw. He gave Hector a piece of sausage and opened the letter:

My dearest friend:

Lucius

Severus folded up his note and looked towards Hermione.

"Professor Granger," he began.

"Please, call me Hermione," she said.

"I suppose there is no longer the need for such formalities. You may call me Severus then." He noticed Hector now hopped his way towards Hermione. "What day of the week is it today?"

"It's Friday," she answered as she petted Hector. "Lucius must be very excited."

"He is. How did you know this note was from him?" wondered Severus.

"Well, one, he's the only person Albus has contacted so far about your recovery besides staff, and two, I know this is Hector, his hawk."

"Hector is only taken with those he knows well. How well do you and Lucius know each other, if I may ask?" Severus was beginning to realize he'd missed more than he originally thought.

"I should probably fill you in on some things, shouldn't I?" Hermione turned her body slightly in order to face him better. "Lucius remarried about four years ago."

Severus' eyebrows shot up.

"I never expected that. After Narcissa was killed he said he would never marry again."

"Well, he fell in love," Hermione said as she smiled.

"And who is the lucky woman?" Severus hoped that his friend hadn't married someone just for the sake of company. Lucius never liked being alone, and Severus was afraid he might have married some big-bosomed tart with the IQ of a gnat.

"Ginny Weasley," answered Hermione.

Severus stared at Hermione and sat back, trying to remember the youngest of the Weasleys. Ginny was an intelligent girl, not overly studious but certainly smart enough make a way for herself in the world.

"She is very much his junior, but if she makes him happy and vice versa, then I am happy for them both." Severus laughed. "Funny, I always thought she and Potter would marry."

"Oh...um...no, they, well, Harry went in another direction when it came to relationships," said Hermione.

"Oh, and what direction is that?" asked Severus.

"The direction of Draco Malfoy," said Hermione.

Severus sighed. "I suppose that shouldn't shock me. Their fights always did look more like foreplay than anything else."

They finished eating their meal with Hermione giving Severus bits and pieces of what was happening around the wizarding world. Much to Severus' surprise, things really hadn't changed much, other than the fact that Voldemort was gone.

One thing that had changed was that werewolves and vampires were given their place in society. This was mostly due to Arthur Weasley's crusade for equality for those who through no fault of their own were turned into such creatures. It was still difficult for some people to accept, but for the most part, much of the wizarding world had always felt it unfair to treat fellow wizards like animals, simply because they were at the wrong place at the wrong time and bitten by either a werewolf or a vampire.

As they finished their meal and stood away from the table, Albus walked towards the two.

"Severus, I trust that Hermione here has given you a summary of some of what you have missed?" asked Albus, with that knowing smile Severus had almost forgotten.

"Yes, Headmaster, she has been quite the chatterbox," Severus said as he looked back at Hermione who was now scowling at him.

She shook her head and decided to let it be, he'd never change. Albus laughed and was then joined by Poppy and Minerva, and the rest of the staff. Everyone wanted to know how he felt and told him how much they had missed him. But soon enough Poppy was shooing everyone away.

"Now you all let Severus alone. He needs his rest still," Poppy said as she took Severus by the arm and guided him away from the others. "Severus I want you to stop by my office tomorrow morning. I need to give you a thorough checkup."

"Poppy, I am perfectly fine," said Severus as he began to walk away.

"Severus Snape, you come to my office first thing in the morning. Do I make myself clear?" Poppy now stood in his path, hands on her hips.

Defeated, Severus looked down at the witch. "Very well, I will be there at ten o'clock."

Severus managed to catch up with Albus who was walking back to his office.

"I see Poppy managed to talk you into an examination," said Albus.

"Yes, it was either agree or have her hounding me for the next week," Severus answered as he walked alongside Albus.

"She is just worried about you, my boy. We need to make sure you are better. Now, I gather you wish to speak with me about something?" Albus knew full well that Severus was going to ask him, not for his old job back, but the Defense Against Dark Arts position.

"Well, it is quite obvious that you no longer need me to teach potions, since it seems that you have a competent replacement."

"Ah, yes." Albus walked alongside of Severus and watched him out of the corner of his eye. "Professor Granger has done a wonderful job these last few years. You know, she teaches very much like you."

Severus looked at Albus surprised. He would have thought she would have been more lenient, yet he just now found out she apparently ruled with an iron fist.

"At least she's not allowing the dimwits to walk all over her." They continued to walk until they reached the gargoyle. "I actually wanted to ask you about the..."

Albus held his hand up to stop Severus from speaking.

"Severus, we currently have no permanent DADA professor. Would you like to take the position?"

Severus blinked several times rapidly.

"Yes," he said.

"Very well. There is only one week left in this year's classes, but you can begin your preparations for next fall's influx of students."

Albus took the stairs to his office, leaving the dumbstruck Severus at the landing.

"That was too easy, but I won't press my luck. I think sleeping ten years was the best thing to ever happen to me." Severus said to himself, as he smiled and walked back to his rooms with an extra spring in his step. Not only had he woken up to find out Voldemort was finally dead, but he found out his best friend survived the war, he no longer had to teach potions to dunderheads, and he got the position he'd most coveted ever since he started teaching at Hogwarts. What more could a snarky ex-Death Eater ask for?

The next morning, Severus had breakfast in his rooms, and gathered a few things for the weekend. He then went to see Poppy.

She examined him much the same way she had examined him when he was first discovered ten years earlier. She frowned when she captured the same magical signature.

Severus noticed her troubled look.

"What is it?" he asked.

"You're fine, but I'm still capturing that magical signature. It should have dissipated by now. It's been ten years." She placed her wand on the table next to the bed and stepped back to allow Severus to stand.

"Dark spells often capture the caster's essence. It's a bit different than the usual signature. Whatever it is, Poppy, I am sure it will fade in time," Severus said. "Now, if you are finished, I would like to continue with my plans for today."

"Oh, go on then," Poppy huffed. "I think I liked you better when you couldn't talk back."

Severus smirked as he walked out of the hospital wing. It was always so easy to get under Poppy's skin. He went to his rooms and gathered his things. Instead of Flooing he decided he'd Apparate to Lucius' home.

When he arrived at Malfoy Manor, he noticed the home looked slightly different. There were more flowers in the front garden, and the stones looked lighter. He walked up the stone path and knocked on the heavy doors.

After a short wait, he heard someone speaking behind the door.

Lucius was in the sitting room when he heard knocking. He immediately set his book down and ran to the door.

"It's all right, Dari. I've got it. You finish preparing lunch," Lucius told the house-elf who did as she was told as he approached the door and opened it.

"Severus!" Lucius stepped forward to embrace his friend. After several hard pats on the back by both men, they smiled and stepped back to give each other a lookover.

"Good gods, man, don't you ever change?" asked Severus.

"Well, one of the perks of having such blond hair, you can't see the grays."

Lucius and Severus shook hands, and Lucius pulled his friend inside. In his excitement at seeing his friend after so many years, Lucius decided to ignore the odd feeling he had when he took hold of Severus' left hand.

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I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I've begun writing the next one and hope to have something to post very soon. Thank you for reading.