Trials and Tribulations

Harry sat on a hard wooden bench with his head cradled in his hands. He had given up on trying to reason with his two arguing friends a good ten minutes ago and was now happily thinking of the various ways he would torture Snape for getting him into this situation.

“He saved Harry’s life, Ron. He’s risked his neck repeatedly for the cause. Doesn’t that mean anything to you?”

“But he’s a complete git, Hermione. Besides, you don’t even know what he’s been doing in his spare time. If he was just acting as a Death Eater the bloke deserves a BAFTA because I honestly couldn’t have told the difference.”

“The difference is he stopped them from killing people, he relayed us information…”

“And how do you know he wasn’t doing the same for Voldemort?” There was a short silence and Hermione looked down at her feet. “Precisely. You don’t.”

Harry sighed in exasperation and stood up dramatically. “Look, you two can argue all night for all I care but if you don’t mind, I have to go shout at my old Potions Professor and find out what the hell is going on.”

Harry turned abruptly and walked towards the MLE’s holding cells. Ron caught up with him quickly and thrust a yellow folder at him. “Your copy of the evidence and exact accusations.”

Harry nodded and tucked the file under his arm. “Thanks.”

“Listen, I know you sort of like Snape,” Ron made a face like the statement gave him pain. “I mean, you fought with him in the war without complaining too much about it and stuff – but I really believe he’s guilty and he deserves to go down for this. I want you to understand this, Harry. Just because you’re one of my best friends and you’re representing him, that doesn’t mean I’m going to give you an easy ride.”

Harry’s voice was dangerously low as he replied, “Likewise.” Before walking briskly down the hallway, his footsteps echoing off the vast marble walls.

*****

“Visitor, Snape.” The familiar gravely voice of the warden called out before the door swung open and Harry walked impatiently into the room.

“Potter,” Snape began, sitting up right on the bunk.

“Don’t you ‘Potter’ me, Snape.” Harry was waving a canary yellow file around. “Just explain to me what exactly this is about.”

Harry half dropped, half threw the folder onto the bunk beside his former Potions Master and continued pacing. Snape picked up the file and read its neatly written header, ‘The Department of Magical Law Enforcement (MLE) Prosecution notes – Prof. Severus A. Snape – First Copy’. He frowned and opened it to the first page, which contained the list of charges, and skimmed over it quickly.

“What?”

“My reaction precisely. Now, if you’d like to explain…”

“But I never touched him!”

Harry paused in his pacing and frowned. He moved to stand next to Snape, reading over his shoulder. “‘Him’? I’d presumed it was a ‘her’. They didn’t mention any names and I came straight here from the hearing – no time to look over it.”

Snape raised an eyebrow at his ex-student before reading aloud from the page before him, “’Charge in the third – the Defendant is accused of physically and mentally abusing a child in his care. Witnesses and testifiers to this charge: Lucius M. Malfoy, Draco L. Malfoy, Donna P. Fudge.’ It would appear I am being accused of at least contributing to Draco’s insanity.”

Harry sank heavily onto the bunk, a sudden calm coming over him. He spoke very quietly but his words rang out in the silence of the cell, “Did you do it?”

Severus turned his head sharply and scowled at the man beside him. Then his anger at the impertinent question softened at the scared look on his face and the hollow, empty green eyes. He looked at the floor. “No. No, I didn’t.”

He heard a heavy sigh and when he looked up again he met a pair of glistening green eyes and a weak smile. “If you say you didn’t do it then I believe you. But a jury’s going to take more convincing.”

“Your old friend is choosing to call a convict and a mad man to the stand. Their case cannot be that strong.”

Harry raised his eyebrows slightly that Snape knew who was prosecuting but wasn’t really surprised. This was, after all, the all-knowing, all-seeing. “They’re also calling the Minister of Magic’s sister. That must have been the witness Ron had trouble securing.” Harry sighed heavily and pulled the folder into his own lap to start scanning over the information it held. “Listen, can you think of why they’d accuse you of this?”

Snape also sighed and leaned his head back against the wall. “More than part of it will have been Lucius’ idea. We were once very…close. It hit him hard when he discovered I was not a ‘true follower’. He obviously wanted to see me punished.”

Harry nodded. “But surely it would just be your word against his in this case. I mean, there’s no firm evidence…”

“Potter, were you asleep when I read the witness list? Professor Donna Fudge is giving evidence against me. She works at St. Mungo’s and is probably treating young Mr. Malfoy. She will have evidence that the boy has been abused.”

Harry frowned. “I thought you said you didn’t touch him?”

“I thought you said you trusted me?” Snape turned his head slowly to regard the man beside him. “Not me, you insufferable brat. Lucius.”

Harry at least had the grace to look slightly sheepish. “OK. Sorry. Anyway, just how am I meant to prove this?”

Snape ran his fingers through his hair and looked up at Harry who had stood and started pacing again. “We cannot.”

Harry frowned and paused for a moment. “Of course we can. Don’t be daft.” Snape rolled his eyes at the typical Gryffindor response. “We just need to…figure something out.”

“A brilliant plan, Potter. And what is this ‘something’, exactly?”

“How they’re planning to get Draco to testify. The man’s a raving lunatic, he can’t string two words of sense together.”

“Well, that’s simple enough. He will be dosed up with Veritaserum. They used it to get the Longbottoms to testify at Crouch’s trial. There is a drawback to using it, though,” Snape’s eyes lit up and a smile began to tug at his lips. “Veritaserum makes the user speak…”

“What they believe to be the truth. Yes, I know. I did pay some attention in Potions, you know.”

“Make the most of this Potter, because it is unlikely to happen again,” Snape turned to Harry, an actual genuine smile on his face. “You are a genius and I could kiss you!”

Harry sank back onto the bunk with his jaw slack and stared blankly at the opposite wall as Snape muttered under his breath.

“Potter, do you have your wand?” The Potions Master looked up when there was no response and sighed heavily. “Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived, you have faced down Voldemort, fought dragons and seen Filch in just his underpants. I refuse to believe that my calling you a genius is really enough to render you speechless – now do you have your wand?”

“It was actually the other but never mind. No, I don’t. The warden took it before I came in.” Harry watched smiling for a moment while Snape swore under his breath, before reaching into a long, thin pocket inside his robes. “So I suppose it’s a good job I carry two, really.”

“Excellent. Give it to me.”

Snape held out his hand for the wand but Harry just raised his eyebrow. “And why would I want to do that?”

“So I can cast a spell. Do try not to be so dense.”

Harry rolled his eyes and handed over the wand. Snape spent a few minutes running his fingers over the wand and allowing it to adjust to him.

“What spell are you going to cast?”

“The Sanguinis Charm.”

Harry frowned. “The one to share blood? Why?”

“It never ceases to amaze me that within the confines of the classroom you failed to utter a single syllable unless otherwise directed and now, here you are, performing a convincing impersonation of the Spanish Inquisition. Give me your arm.”

The instruction caught Harry rather by surprise after the tirade so he held out his arm without thinking. Snape turned it over so that it rested on his lap, palm-side up and pushed Harry’s robe sleeve up to the elbow. Harry was surprised to find that even in the cold of the holding cell, Snape’s fingers were warm against his skin. Harry’s hand was stretched back so the skin across the wrist was taught. Snape used his other hand to hold the wand tip to a prominent blue vein.

“This may hurt a bit.”

Harry nodded his head once and looked up into the deep black eyes of his companion.

“Sanguinis Snape,” Harry felt a sharp pain at his wrist like an injection and jumped slightly. Then he felt a warmth spread through him, raising goosebumps on his arms and making him dizzy. He closed his eyes for a moment, waiting for the rushing in his ears to stop.

“The dizziness will not take long to pass.”

A warm, callused thumb was massaging small circles on his wrist over the spell’s point of entry. Harry didn’t push it away.

“Why do I need your blood?”

“The wards on my house will only allow those with a Snape’s blood to enter.”

“Oh,” there was a pause. Harry opened his eyes, the head rush gone and fell into two deep, obsidian pools. He gulped and drew his wrist away. “Am I going to your house, then?”

Snape smirked, “I fail to see how else you would obtain a book from my personal library.” Harry just nodded meekly, still a little woozy from the after-effects of the charm.

“Now listen closely, Potter. Go to the portkey station at Diagon Alley. Take a portkey to Graigwyn. Hardly any wizards live there any more but it is a popular wizarding tourist spot so the portkey station there is still active. From the station you will need to find Somewhere Cottage. That should be easy enough, even for you. If you do have any problems, though, ask in the Bug and Bootlace.”

“OK. I think I can remember all that. What am I to get? And, more importantly, why?”

“Five minutes, Mr. Potter.” Both men tensed for a moment suddenly worried that they were being overheard.

Snape leaned closer to Harry and lowered his voice. “The book will be in my private library. You seem to be gifted at snooping around in other peoples’ business so I doubt finding that will be a problem for you. It is called ‘Potions of the Mind’.”

“’Potions of the Mind’. Right, I can remember that. What do I do with it?”

“One minute, Mr Potter.”

Harry shook his head. “I’m sure he can’t tell the time properly. There’s no way that was four minutes!”

“I don’t have the time. Speak to your…associate. Tell her what we were discussing and show her the book. Her mind is logical enough that she will be able to work it out.”

Harry nodded and stood, picking up the almost forgotten yellow folder. “Don’t worry. It’ll all be alright.”

Snape spoke in a perfect deadpan. “Your optimism is truly touching.”

Harry smiled brightly, happy to see that Snape had not entirely given up hope – sarcasm was generally a good sign so far as he was concerned. He slipped out of the door as it opened and walked down the corridor, repeating in his head:

Graigwyn, Somewhere Cottage, Potions of the Mind…Graigwyn, Somewhere Cottage, Potions of the Mind…

*****

December 22nd 2003

“Ich heiße Harry Potter und ich bin die kühlste person im das Universum.”

Snape didn’t even bother to look up. “Beg to differ, Potter.”

The Potions classroom was colder even than usual. It looked darker than it did during term time, probably because the high windows were covered with a thick layer of snow making any sunlight that did enter seem dull and bleak. It also seemed a lot barer than usual, and was becoming barer by the second as Snape reduced bottle after bottle and placep them carefully into a large wooden trunk.

Harry perched on one of the front row desks. “Or, as you teach it, my name is Harry Potter and I am a pest who will not leave his teacher alone. I really do think Hermione is the better teacher.”

“So it is Miss Granger who has been teaching you to say such useless sentences. I really had hoped that the girl’s brain could afford her some common sense but no. Heaven forbid she should teach you to say something sensible like ‘Wo kann ich die nächste Kneipe finden? Ich werde demnächst vom Schwarzen Lord vernichtet und möchte noch ein letztes Bier!’”

Harry frowned. “Could you say that again? I’ll get Hermione to translate for me. She has a German pen friend.”

Snape just glared at him. “I am very busy Potter, and have no time for idle chatter.”

Harry looked down at his feet, suddenly quiet. “I just wanted to…you know…say good bye before you go.”

Snape looked up at him briefly. “Good bye.”

He stalked off through the usually hidden door that led into his private rooms. Harry smiled at the closing door briefly before standing and walking towards the open trunk. He peered into its dark depths. A variety of different coloured crystal bottles and jars glinted up at him.

Harry reached into one of his robes’ inside pockets and pulled out a small brown leather-bound book. He rubbed his thumb over the gold embossed title, ‘The Complete Works of Ministry Potions Research – 2003’. Percy had given it to him. As he still worked in the Cauldrons department at the Ministry he got the first drafts free, before they came out. He had originally given it to Ron, who of course didn’t want it, and it had ended up with Harry. It had struck him that Snape, going to Austria for Christmas, may not receive any presents, and he might actually appreciate something like this. So he had written a short inscription on the inside front cover – something like ‘Received this and thought of you. Merry Christmas’. He was careful, though, not to write his name.

Harry now frowned at the ‘gift’. He had never been taught a charm to wrap presents. He pointed his wand at the book and muttered, “Wrap!” Nothing happened. Hardly surprising, really. Harry shrugged and instead muttered, “Reducio!” The book shrank until it rested neatly in his palm. He leaned forward and placed it gently in the trunk so it leaned up against the side.

Satisfied, he walked towards the door. “Have a good time in Austria,” he called. A replying grunt floated through the oak.

Harry rolled his eyes and turned to leave. “Fröhliche Weihnachten, Potter.”

Harry smiled wryly. He didn’t need Hermione to translate that. “Merry Christmas, Professor.”