Beyond the Shadows of the Night

Chapter Two: Crucial Mistakes

Severus spent the rest of that week pouring over books, searching for any hint that would bring him a step closer to his aim. But without success. The Ayrin remained a mystery. One of the reasons for that might have been that Severus had preferred to go through his own books first instead of searching the library for some information. The library was always terribly crowded-- in Severus's opinion, anyway-- and he would have welcomed it if he had been spared the heaps of jabbering students around him while he was doing important research. But as it was, he probably wouldn't be able to avoid it.

Severus heaved a sigh and closed the book he had glanced over. It was no good. He would start searching in the library the next day. Students or no students, he couldn't afford to lose any more time. And come to think of tomorrow-- there was another thing that worried Severus, and very much so, to be perfectly honest. The next day he would be teaching the Slytherin and Gryffindor Fifth Years again. For the first time he would come face to face with Harry after that night six days before. So far, Severus had avoided to run into Harry if at all possible. He had made detours to get into the Great Hall, using passageways that students hardly ever crossed; all week he had taken breakfast extremely early and supper extremely late if he hadn't instructed some house-elf to bring the food directly to his private rooms. It had worked out well: he hadn't crossed Harry a single time, which he had considered as great luck. He didn't know if he could have managed to keep his cool facade in such a meeting. Which made it all the worse that there was no escape from the next day´s lesson. The thought made him shudder. He had thought over all the possible ways he could shirk the too-soon confrontation; he had gone through a list of pretexts, starting with feigning to be taken sick and ending with pretending to have received an incredibly important letter from his great aunt demanding his immediate departure from Hogwarts. Finally he had dismissed it all, determinedly deciding that he wasn't a coward and that the stunt he had been pulling all week was truly pathetic. That didn't make it any easier, though.

~*~

Monday didn't proceed well at all. Getting out of bed after a sleepless night, Severus decided to skip breakfast and rather prepare himself for the Potions lesson that was looming ahead of him like some malevolent beast. Food would only render him more queasy than he already was and so he first prepared the ingredients for the potion the students were supposed to brew for that day´s lesson; after which, he settled behind his desk, not knowing how to kill the rest of the time.

So he sat, drumming his fingers on the table and looking at the clock. One hour to go. He had to distract himself somehow or he'd go mad. He got up again, walked over to the book shelf, pulled out a random book without even looking at it, and settled behind the desk again, finally giving it´s title a glance. It read, in pink lettering, The Magical Pleasures of Love Potions. Severusgroaned. That wasn't exactly what he had been intending to read. He must have taken the wrong book. For a moment he considered exchanging it for another one, but then decided against it. At that moment, any distraction was welcome to him. At least the book would take his thoughts off Harry and the next lesson. A bit reluctantly, he opened it and started reading.

Love Potions are ancient magic and go back to the experiments of Laetitiathe Lovely who...

The letters became blurred before his eyes. What would it be like to see Harry in front of him? To look at him, knowing that he was his son? The image of Harry appeared before his mind's eye. It was smiling at him.

Severus shook himself mentally. So much for distraction. He forced his attention back to the book.

...lived around 473 B.C., and lured all men within her area to her house to...

How could he just act like nothing had happened? Nothing would be the same again.

The questions kept whizzing through his head, and as he realized that he was reading the same paragraph for the fifth time, he angrily snapped the book shut and got up. It was no use. He walked over to the tiny window and stared out of it, not really looking at anything, lost in his thoughts.

~*~

At eight o'clock sharp he opened the door to the dungeon classroom to let the students in. He tried hard not to look at them too closely, and turning, walked to the back of the room to write the ingredients of that day´s potion on the blackboard. He heard the jostling and jabbering crowd of students enter the room behind him, the scraping of chairs... A part of him wished most desperately not to have to turn around and face what he would see in the third row to his left... but reason chastised him. For God's sake, pull yourself together! it chided. If you don't even have the guts to face a fifteen year old boy, you might as well jump out of the highest window of the North Tower. It would certainly be more pleasant than what you would expect at the hands of Lord Voldemort for your cowardice.

The thought of the Dark Lord helped to give Severus new determination. Very slowly, he turned around, letting his gaze wander over the students... and finally stopping at the sight of Harry. God, this is my son! He felt his stomach twist and his heart wrench painfully. How could this ever have happened! Why had everything gone so wrong? He could have had a family of his own... But why should he be lucky? he thought bitterly. Fate had never been kindly disposed towards him, after all...

He woke up from his musings, realizingthat he had been staring at Harry far too long already. Harry was looking back at him with a puzzled expression. Severus tore his gaze away from him and addressed the class.

"Ahem... today you will be brewing the... er--" He turned to look at the blackboard, having completely forgotten what he had planned to make them do. "-- Castellus Potion. It is a simple sleeping potion named after Castellus the Cagey who invented it in the thirteenth century. It is a popular means to--" His voice trailed off as his eyes wandered back to Harry and some sort of daze seemed to settle inside his head. Would he ever be able to tell his son the truth? Would Harry ever be able to take it? He heard suppressed laughter as if from very far away. Severus started. "Erm... where was I?"

The sniggering grew louder. It came from the Slytherins to his right.

"You were just about to tell us about the use of the Castellus Potion," said Draco Malfoy in his annoying drawl. He wore a very peculiar expression indeed.

Severus hesitated a second, angry at himself. He was behaving like an idiot! If he went on like that, the class was bound to notice something-- if it hadn't already, that was. And that could be fatal. Several of the students that were present had parents in Voldemort'sinner circle. If he aroused their suspicion in any way and they told their parents, he was in very deep trouble. But his mind as well as his eyes kept wandering back to Harry, whether he wanted it or not.

"Right. The Cambi-- I mean, the Castellus Potion, is used to cure slight insomnia and procures dreamless sleep." He paused, silently cursing himself for the slip. Then he snapped: "All the ingredients you need are written on the blackboard. Spare the Fairy Wings, too many of them will render the Castellus Potion useless. You may start now."

Severus was glad to have gotten through the introduction. Now all he had to do for the rest of the lesson was sit at his desk and have an occasional look at what his students were producing. Gratefully, he sank down into his chair, rubbing his temples. At least he could watch Harry undisturbed now. Everyone was occupied with their potion and wouldn't pay any attention to him.

He watched Harry pulverising his ingredients and adding them to the potion. Severus tried to imagine what Harry would have been like if he hadn't been forced to drink the Cambius Potion. But he couldn´t quite manage to draw a clear picture of him. Pity... Only too gladly would he have liked to see it.

Well, there is a possibility, a small voice in his head pointed out slyly. But Severus silenced it determinedly. "No! It's too dangerous."

A few heads in the first row rose and several pairs of eyes looked at him quizzically.

"Sorry, Sir?" said Pansy Parkinson.

Severus started. "W-what?"

"I thought you were saying something."

"I was---?" Had he really been talking aloud? He hadn't even realized it. Christ, where was this leading to? "I didn't say anything," he snapped at her. "Keep your attention on your potion."

Pansy exchanged a look with Draco Malfoy who was sitting next to her. Severus didn't like the expression on their faces at all. It told him quite clearly that suspicions were already forming in their minds.

About twenty minutes later, Draco called suddenly from his place. "Professor -- could you come here for a second?"

Reluctantly, Severus got up and walked over to Draco. How he hated always having to help the little sycophant! Always having to give him good marks when the little git was absolutely inept at Potions and presumptuous on top of it. But he couldn't afford to have Lucius Malfoy as his enemy. The Dark Lord thought highly of him. And if his life meant anything to him, he'd play by the rules.

"Sir, could you please help me? I don't quite get the measure of leech juice and almond flower extract."

"If I remember correctly, I said one third leech juice and one quarter almond flower extract," Severussaid, raising an eyebrow. "Surely that is not too difficult for you to understand?"

"Sir, would you mind--?" Draco shoved a vial into Severus's hand, smirking.

Grudgingly, and with a forced smile, Severus poured the required amount of leech juice into the vial and was just about to add the almond flower extract when someone tapped him on the shoulder. For a split second the mad thought Harry! crossed his mind. He winced and dropped the vial, which shattered on the floor, spreading leech juice over his shoes. He whirled round-- it was only Blaise Zabini.

"Can't you pay attention!" he spat.

Draco and Blaise exchanged meaningful looks.

"Sorry, I just wanted to ask you something," Blaise said haughtily.

"Sit down!" Severussnapped at her. "I'll come to you in a moment."

With a sulky expression, Blaiseturned on her heel and stalked back to her place in the third row.

Severus waved his wand irritably and cleared away the broken vial and the spilled leech juice. He was furious at himself for his clumsiness.

"I suggest you try it yourself then, Mr. Malfoy," he said with just a hint of spite.

As he turned he heard Malfoy muttering to Pansy Parkinson. Severus hoped most fervently that the lesson would be over soon. At least he didn't have to fear any questions or requests for help from the Gryffindors. They were far too proud -- or frightened -- to ask anything of him.

Trying hard to focus on the lesson and not to let his mind wander off to Harry, he settled behind his desk again and took a pile of recently marked tests out of the drawer.

"Before you go, take your tests back," he called to the class, scowling at them. "They have turned out rather badly-- not against my expectations. Each of you who got under five points will hand in an essay on the various sleeping draughts and their differences by next week. And I won't accept anything under two rolls of parchment." That would keep the Gryffindors occupied as they usually got the worst marks. Giving a Slytherin bad marks, especially the child of a Death Eater, was out of the question.

Severus started calling out the names, and one student after another came forward to fetch their test.

"... Longbottom... You did very poorly indeed." He shot him a contemptuous look.

Neville stumbled forward, red-faced. With a trembling hand he took the test. Actually, Severus felt quite sorry for the boy. He knew that Neville had had a hard lot, with his parents in St Mungo's, and if he had had any other choice, he would have spared the boy the humiliation and intimidation. But he had no other choice. Showing sympathy for the son of an Auror in front of Malfoy and other future Death Eaters would be a deadly mistake.

"Granger."

As usual, no comment there. The girl was simply annoyingly perfect.

"P- Potter."

Damn it! Why did he have to stutter! He stared at the table, suddenly very interested in an ink stain on the dark wood, so that he didn't have to watch Harry´s approach. When Harry was safely out of his view, he continued:

"Malfoy."

Malfoy swaggered forward, snatched his test, and looked at the mark. His pale face contorted with anger.

"Professor, I think you must have made a mistake," he said with forced calm. "It says zero points here." With narrowed eyes, he showed Severus the big zero on his test.

Severus froze. No... not another slip! Seeing the test, he remembered dimly having marked a test with zero out of pure rage one week ago when he had been supervising Harry's detention. He hadn't looked at the name...

There was an awkward pause. The class seemed to hold its breath, waiting to hear Snape's answer. Severus could feel everyone's eyes upon him.

"My father won't be pleased about that," Draco hissed for only Severus to hear. He drew himself up to his full height, trying to look threatening.

Severus's self-control snapped at the sight of that. "No, that's perfectly correct, Mr. Malfoy," he said, lifting an eyebrow. "I'm afraid your work didn´t merit anything better than zero."

At that moment, the bell rang to announce the end of the lesson. The class pushed towards the door, chatting loudly about what they had just witnessed. Snape had snubbed Malfoy!

"I will tell my father of this," Draco hissed through gritted teeth, his eyes slits of fury. He turned on his heel and stalked away.

Severus could have slapped himself. What had gotten into him? Lucius would undoubtedly ask him what he had been thinking of to give his son zero points on an exam. And Draco had been correct: Lucius would not be pleased. Among Death Eaters there were certain rules. And one of them included not stabbing each other in the back. Lucius counted on Severus'sleniency towards Draco. It was something like a deal between them. How could he explain his breach? And that Draco would tell his father-- that he was certain of.

Severus waited for the last student to leave the dungeon, then he buried his face in his hands. He had let his mask slip far too often today. He wouldn't last like that. One lapse could be his doom. And he had been acting too much out of character. If he didn't watch his step from now on-- he didn't dare to finish that thought.

~*~

Tired and sweaty after an hour of Quidditch practise, Harry entered the library. Since they didn't have any classes that afternoon Harry, Ron and Hermione had arranged to meet there. They were supposed to hand in a project on Animal Transfiguration by the following week, and none of them had started it yet.

Harry saw his two friends sitting at a table at the very back of the room, talking animatedly over heaps of books. He walked over to them and slumped into a chair.

"Have you found anything yet?" he asked, slightly out of breath.

"Why, yes!" said Ron. "I've found this incredibly interesting spell that makes you talk backwards. I've just been considering who to try it on."

Hermione glared at him. "We're still searching," she told Harry. "You can help us." And she dumped a pile of books in front of him.

Heaving a mental sigh, Harry opened the first one and started to scan the pages for anything remotely useful. It was dull, tiring work and the letters soon began to blur in front of his eyes, so exhausted was he from Quidditch practise.

Not ten minutes later, Ron let out an enthusiastic shout that was instantly silenced by Madam Pince'sirritable snap of "Be quiet!"

"Will you look at that!" Ron said as quietly as possible, trying not to laugh his head off and jabbing a finger at the book he had been reading. "That guy actually---"

"Ron!" said Hermione in her McGonagall voice, slamming her book on the table. "Do you care at all to do some schoolwork?"

Madam Pince scowled at them but was too fond of Hermione to say anything more.

Ron rolled his eyes. "Do you really want me to answer that question?" he asked scathingly. "You know, not everyone is such a--"

But Harry, whose attention had been caught by something, else interrupted their little argument.

"Look there!" he whispered, elbowing Ron in the side to silence him.

Snape had just entered the library and was now walking along the bookshelves, robes billowing behind him.

"What is he doing in here?" Ron asked incredulously. "He never--"

"I know," Harry said quickly.

As far as they knew, Snapehad never set foot in the library before. Not when any students were present anyway. Snape avoided them where he could. Other teachers walked in and out of the library all the time but never Snape. So it struck them as very odd that Snape suddenly strode past tables crowded with students and disappeared in a section of historical documents.

They stared even more as he came out from behind the shelves a few minutes later, carrying several heavy volumes, and sat down at a vacant table.

Harry shot Ron and Hermione a puzzled look. "There's something fishy going on if you ask me. Did you notice how oddly he's been acting lately? Just remember the Potions lesson this morning. He seemed absent-minded and he kept looking at me in such a strange way... I mean, it's nothing unusual if he's looking at me all the time, but normally he only does it in an "if-looks-could-kill" fashion. It was different today..."

"Yes, and did you see how he treated Malfoy?" Hermione remarked. "I could have jumped for joy at that git finally getting what he deserves."

"Do you think Snape'son drugs or something?" Ron mused.

"I have no idea," said Harry.

"Maybe he got his potions mixed up and instead of his little morning draught he had a knock-out potion," Ron suggested with a smirk. "It'd serve him right!"

"Honestly, do you really think Snape the Potions Master would mix up his potions?" said Hermione. "I think he has simply had a bad day -- or a good day, rather. Depends on the perspective."

"Or someone might have slipped it to him...!"

"Could you worry about that later? This is really ridiculous! Perhaps you haven't realized it yet, but we were meeting here to do some school work. Our project is due in precisely seven days. So it would be really nice of you to--"

"All right, all right," Ron interrupted irritably. "I'm already working, okay?"

They worked in silence, scanning book after book and occasionally taking some notes, but Harry couldn't quite concentrate. His mind kept going back to Snape and his strange behaviour in Potions, especially to the way Snape had looked at him. Harry hadn't been able to fathom the expression in Snape'seyes, but one thing was sure-- there hadn't been the usual hatred and loathing in them.

Harry looked over at Snapewho was still sitting at the table with the pile of books in front of him, and found Snape looking back at him. Their eyes met for a second but the next moment Snape averted his eyes as if ashamed, and leafed through his book again. It was all very odd! Why was Snape avoiding his gaze? Usually, out-staring Snape was more difficult than out-staring a Hippogriff. What had happened to Snape? Why was he acting so strange?

~*~

"Hmm..." said Dumbledore with a furrowed brow. "And you haven't found anything yet?" He stopped pacing and turned to look at Severus.

"I'm afraid not," Severusreplied tersely, looking out of the window to avoid having to meet the headmaster's gaze. He should have gone straight to the library, as Dumbledore had said. It had been foolish of him not to obey the headmaster immediately. He had lost precious time by doing that.

Dumbledore gave him a sharp look and folded his arms. "I suppose it would go faster if you had some help, wouldn't it?" he asked hesitantly, watching Severus closely.

Severus looked up at him. "It might. But you surely don't want to tell anyone else of this?" he said suspiciously.

Dumbledore sat down behind his desk. "No one else apart from the person who must know anyway -- sooner or later."

"You mean Harry?" Severusasked, shifting uncomfortably. "But didn't you say we should wait..."

Dumbledore shook his head. "There is no use in delay. We only lose time. Voldemort is getting stronger every minute. It is time to take some action." There was concern in his eyes.

"You are right, of course," Severusmuttered, clutching the back of the chair in front of him hard. There was no denying that the Dark Lord was already most disconcertingly strong again.

Dumbledore sighed. "I suggest we get it over with as soon as possible. Would you please go and tell Minerva to bring Harry here? And while she's already here, we might as well tell her too. She is, after all, the head of Harry's house, and she has a right to know everything concerning her students."

"Of course, headmaster," said Severus, and he strode to the door obediently without questioning

anything Dumbledore had ordered him to do.

"Severus?" Dumbledore suddenly called him back.

Severus turned around, one hand already on the door knob. "Headmaster?"

"It is all right if Minerva hears of this too, is it not?" Dumbledore asked, giving him a searching look.

"Certainly," he said briefly. "You are quite right to tell her."

"Fine." Dumbledore smiled and his eyes twinkled in their trademark manner. "I wanted your consent first. This is, after all, a rather personal matter of yours."

"That's quite all right," said Severus, departing.

Dumbledore stared after him. Poor man! He had suffered so much in his life. Dumbledore knew all about it. Severushad grown up in a family full of dark wizards, and had been abused by both parents and siblings. He had tried to escape the darkness in his life, and for a short time Dumbledore had believed Severus would actually manage it. That had been the time when Severushad found his true love in Lily.

Dumbledore heaved a sigh. Lily would have managed it. She would have led him to the light. But it had all gone wrong. For some reason they had broken up, and Severus had slipped back even deeper into the Dark Arts. He had simply associated with the wrong people, and they had dragged him along with them, right into Lord Voldemort'sinner circle. The young boy Severus had been at that time hadn't even realized what he had submitted to -- until one day, when his mistake had become obvious to him.

Dumbledore remembered it as though it happened the day before. The young man had stood before him in that very room, robes torn, face scratched, and with dark circles under his eyes. Severushad been so disgusted at himself and tired of his life that he had demanded Dumbledore to call the Dementors immediately so they could perform their Kiss upon him. Instead, Dumbledore had made him spy on Voldemort as punishment. Severus had been useful, very useful, as such. Dumbledore couldn't have gotten a better chance to hear so much about Voldemort'splans. However, Severus had been in constant danger, and sometimes Dumbledore wondered if he hadn't been too hard on him. After all, Severus had so utterly and fervently regretted what he had done as a Death Eater, and his life had become nothing but a constant fight for survival. And at the end of the last term, Dumbledore had asked him to spy on Voldemort again, putting him into the same danger as he had sixteen years before. Did he have the right to do that? Dumbledore wondered. He was genuinely concerned about Severus. Especially now that the poor man was under even more pressure, what with this ominous task and his personal problems with Harry and everything connected with that.

Dumbledore would have released Severusgladly from the task of spying on Voldemort in order to make his life a little easier. But he couldn't. Severus was indispensable as a spy. They simply couldn't do without him.

~*~

They marched along the corridors in silence. Professor McGonagall had put a hand on Harry's shoulder and was kneading it, probably to calm herself rather than Harry. Harry had rarely seen her so upset as she had been when she came into the Gryffindor common room to tell him that Dumbledore wanted to see him. It was most alarming. Usually, Professor McGonagall was not that easily upset. But then, most people were rather strained and nervous these days with Voldemort on the rise. Maybe the reason why Dumbledore wanted to see him had something to do with Voldemort? Harry felt the uneasiness spread inside him. Surely nothing serious had happened?

He ventured a look at Snapewho was preceding them with large strides. Snapecertainly looked calm enough. What was this about? Why was he being escorted to Dumbledore´s office by two teachers? Question after question accumulated inside Harry's head.

They had reached the entrance to the spiral staircase that led to Dumbledore's office. Harry heard Snape mutter a password and the wall behind the now familiar stone gargoyle slid open. Snape proceeded up the spiral staircase with Harry, who was gently pushed by Professor McGonagall, in his wake.

Up in the office, Harry was greeted by a gently smiling Dumbledore -- no signs yet of anything severe going on.

"Why don't you all sit down," Dumbledore said cheerfully, indicating three chairs that were standing in the circular office. "Would any of you like some cake?"

"Albus!" Professor McGonagallexclaimed, refusing to sit down. "What is this all about? I was so worried!"

Out of the corner of his eye, Harry saw Snape's lips twist into a smirk.

"Severus?" Dumbledore addressed Snape, eyebrows raised. "What have you been telling her?"

"He was going on about a crisis meeting," Professor McGonagall said indignantly, her eyes flashing.

"Anything could have happened!" She eyed Snape angrily.

Snape remained unmoved. "I merely wanted you to pay this meeting all due respect," he said, a sneer playing around his lips.

Professor McGonagallsnorted, apparently trying in vain to find a response.

Harry couldn't suppress a smile, and he saw that Dumbledore's mouth also twitched suspiciously at the corners. Apparently, Snape and McGonagall were still at loggerheads with each other.

"Well, if you are ready now..." Dumbledore said gently. "Of course you may all remain standing, but there are three chairs -- why don't you sit down?"

Everyone followed this second invitation. Harry and McGonagall sat down in two chairs before Dumbledore's desk, and Snape took a seat against the wall while Dumbledore himself settled into the huge embroidered armchair behind his desk.

"Well, Harry, Minerva," Dumbledore began, folding his hands before him. "I have summoned you here because of a matter of great importance. It might sound incredible to you, maybe even ludicrous, but I must ask you to take it seriously. In these times we can't afford to regard anything as a mere game; we must believe in our victory over the dark side." He paused and glanced past Harry and Professor McGonagall at Severus. Harry wondered what was coming now. He shot a sideways glance at Professor McGonagall who still looked disgruntled with her lips pressed tightly together.

Dumbledore turned his gaze back to Harry and Professor McGonagall. "We have received word from a reliable source about a means to destroy Voldemort."

Harry could hear a surprised gasp from Professor McGonagall.

"This means is a legendary stone of extraordinary power, an emerald called the Ayrin, which was created by Salazar Slytherin and is supposedly hidden at Hogwarts," Dumbledore went on. "So far we have no clue as to where this emerald is, nor how it works. You, Harry," he peered at him sternly over his half-moon glasses, "are destined to fight Voldemort with the Ayrinwhile Professor Snape has been entrusted with the task of finding it. As yet all his efforts have been unsuccessful, and since we can't afford to lose any time in the battle against Voldemort, I ask you to help Professor Snape with his search for the Ayrin."

Questions exploded in Harry's head. He was destined to fight Voldemort? How could that possibly be? He was only a boy, after all, whereas Voldemort was one of the greatest wizards in the world. Admittedly, he had defeated him once -- but that had been a mere co-incidence due only to Voldemort´s failure to see the power Harry´s mother had given to her son by dying for him. But Harry was vulnerable to Voldemort now. The encounter with him at the Triwizard Tournament the year before had proven it. How could he defeat him again?

"B-but Professor," he stuttered. "why should I be the one destined to fight Voldemort?"

"It is what the source has told us. Often they give no reason for the things they say," Dumbledore said, adding apologetically: "I'm sorry, but I can't tell you why."

"Really, Albus," Professor McGonagall said doubtfully, "do you think this source, as you call it, is trustworthy? I mean, how can you load such a responsibility on the shoulders of a fifteen-year old boy? How could Harry possibly defeat You-Know-Who? And with an invention of Slytherin himself!"

"I am absolutely sure that this source is trustworthy, Minerva," said Dumbledore in a voice that would not be contradicted.

"Well, if you say so," said Professor McGonagall a bit grudgingly. "But I still say that a little boy shouldn't have such a weight to carry."

Dumbledore sighed. "We cannot contradict destiny. It is not in our power to change the future in such a way."

"I suppose you don't want to tell us who or what this source you are speaking of is?" Professor McGonagallasked, her head tilted in curiosity.

"I'm afraid, Minerva, that I can't. You surely understand..." Dumbledore said apologetically.

"I thought so," Professor McGonagall grunted, not quite succeeding in concealing her disappointment.

"Well, Harry - " Dumbledore suddenly addressed Harry, who had been sitting in a kind of daze. "I suggest you arrange with Professor Snape how you shall help in his search. That will be everything for now."

Harry turned around. He had completely forgotten that Snape was there too. How strange that it was Snape, of all people, he should be working with. Why was it Snape's task to find the Ayrin? Why not anyone else's? Harry could think of plenty of people who would have been more apt, and certainly more pleasant to work with.

"Yes, Professor," Harry mumbled. He was still rather speechless.

"Very well," said Dumbledore, and he rose to his feet, eyes a-twinkle. Everyone followed suit and got up too. "That's that. If you have any questions or need help, you know where I am. Feel free to call on me," Dumbledore said to Harry, giving him a smile.

"Oh, Professor Dumbledore," Harry asked, a thought suddenly occurring to him. "Am I allowed to tell my friends Ron and Hermione of this?"

Dumbledore gave him a swift, searching look, then turned to Snape. "What do you think, Severus? You have a large part in this, after all."

Harry turned his gaze towards Snape, who was looking at him sharply.

After almost a minute of intense scrutiny, as if he wanted to x-ray Harry, Snape deigned to actually speak. "Are they trustworthy?" he asked in a low growl.

"Of course," Harry answered defiantly. How much of an idiot did Snape think he was? As if he would reveal Dumbledore's secrets to just anyone. But then Snapewould probably believe him capable of all the idiocy in the world.

"Very well," said Snapecurtly. "But you take the responsibility."

"I think I can take that, as well as everything else. It won't make much difference anymore, will it?" said Harry angrily, but he instantly regretted it. Dumbledore and McGonagallgave him sharp looks.

Snape's expression darkened and his eyes narrowed. "Don't think you will get away easily with that insolence of yours," he snarled.

Dumbledore put an appeasing hand on Snape's arm. "I think we should all go to dinner now," he said, gently pushing Snape out of the door. "I have heard the house-elves have tried out a new variation of gooseberry pudding."

Snape shot Harry one last vicious look and snapped: "Be in my office tomorrow at five o'clock sharp," before he let himself be swept down the spiral staircase.