Hobson's Choice

Hobson's Choice: Part 1

Snape apparated back into Spinner's End, re-appearing with a loud pop into the dark and dank room lined with the dusty bookshelves. Wormtail was nowhere to be found, but Draco was already there, curled up on the threadbare sofa, arms tightly pulling his drawn up knees together and eyes staring unseeingly at the dusty tomes. Upon seeing Snape, he emitted a terrified squawk and shrank further back into the sofa. His silvery blonde hair, normally neatly smoothed into place, was now messily plastered to his forehead, which was pallid and covered with a sheen of sweat.

Still panting heavily from his narrow escape from Buckbeak's sharp claws, Snape only stared wordlessly back at the pale boy. Then, with a sharp intake of breath, he straightened his back, and stepped towards Draco. His voice urgent, he began, 'Draco -'.

But in one graceless leap, Draco unfurled himself up from his fetal position, off the couch, and backed away into one of the bookshelves. Raising his wand arm, he pointed his wand at the still advancing Snape, and cried out, 'What do you want with me? You did it; you killed Dumbledore, not me. The dark lord is going to murder my entire family, while you are going to get all the glory! Are you happy now? What else do you want with me?!'

Eyes wild, he waved his wand at Snape and angrily jabbed the air. 'Cruc-!'

Quick as flash, Snape whipped out his wand and parried the attack. Snarling, 'Petrificus Totalus!' he threw an immobilized Draco against the bookshelf, sending his wand clattering to the floor.

'You stupid, stupid boy! Use your brain for an instant! If I had wanted to kill you, had wanted to steal your glory, couldn't I have done it a long time ago? Why wait till now? I did what I had to. You knew - know - you couldn't have killed Dumbledore. You couldn't do it. I had no choice; I had to fulfill the unbreakable vow I sealed with your mother!'

He had reached Draco now, who was staring up at him with eyes wide with a mixture of fury and fear. Snape flipped his long black robe behind him, and bent down next to the boy. With an almost gentle gesture, he lightly touched Draco's face once, then abruptly stood up and whirled around, stalking back to his corner of the room.

'Get a hold of yourself. You're not an idiot - you alone figured a way to break into Hogwart's defenses. The dark lord will be pleased with you. After all, his wishes have been met. Dumbledore is dead.'

With a casual swish of his wand, he removed Draco's bindings, and banished the boy's wand back to him.

'Pull yourself together immediately and apparate to the dark lord. He will want to hear from you. Your mother will be there too. Go - before Fernir or the others get there and tell their version of the story.'

Draco stared back bewilderedly at Snape. Tightly gripping his wand, and seeming to draw strength from it, he bit out, 'why? Why did you help me? Or are you indeed helping me?'

'You have never killed before, Draco. You are not capable of it.'

Draco began laughing hysterically. 'I don't even know why I bother talking to you. I don't know whether to believe you or not, and I don't know whether I should. Aunt Bella was right - you could easily be a double traitor. You fooled Dumbledore. He was the greatest wizard who ever lived, and you fooled him. He trusted you, he trusted you to stop me, and you killed him.'

For a moment, a flicker of uncertainty seemed to cross Snape's eyes. He started, then recollected himself, and coldly sneered, 'you are rambling, Malfoy. Do not ever let the dark lord hear you address Dumbledore as such. He will not take kindly to it.'

'And you trust your Aunt Bella over the dark lord's judgment? I did my job didn't I? I fulfilled your mother's vow; I completed the dark lord's commands. Now leave, before I lose my patience!'

He crossed over to a bare patch of peeling wall. At a sudden, vicious swipe of his wand, the wall exploded, sending showers of shrapnel flying across the room. A shard hit his right cheek, starting a stream of ruby-red blood to course down his face. He ignored it, all the while glaring steadfastly at Draco, who cowered. 'Go!'

Draco seemed to hesitate once more, but glancing at Snape's furious face, he changed his mind. Taking a huge gulp of air, he squeezed his eyes shut and disapparated with a pop.

The silence that followed was punctuated only by the sounds of harsh breathing. Then, with a few quick flicks of his wand, Snape ensured that the room was secure before lowering himself heavily onto the rickety armchair.