Gingerbread House

Jordan Avery and Charles Lestrange had introduced Severus Snape to Lord Voldemort. Lucius Malfoy's actions in 1978 had forced Severus to go running back to Dumbledore in a feeble attempt at escape, to try and stop the monster that he had helped to create. In his more private and cynical moments, usually after teaching his Seventh year Gryffindor/Slytherin Potions class, Severus realized that he still agreed with most of the tenets of being a Death Eater: separation from Muggles, superiority of purebloods, Potter should have been drowned at birth.

Then he remembered Voldemort's methods.

The worst part of his "redemption," he supposed, was Potter. The boy simply could not stay out of trouble. At first, Severus had been more than willing to believe (on his off time of course) that Potter's ability was latent. Then as he got older, that changed. Potter started jumping into things all on his own, without fear or thought of the consequences. Such as his heroics with the youngest Weasley.

And now this most recent escapade.

Severus sighed, tapping his fingers on the desk. He hoped that Potter wasn't taking Draco with him on this particular "adventure." Or perhaps, given the circumstances surrounding their disappearance, Severus hoped that Draco wasn't taking Potter on this adventure.

"Severus?" A light tenor accompanied the knock at his office door.

"What?" he snarled at the voice. Remus stuck his head inside and raised an eyebrow at his tone.

"No wonder you never get any visitors."

"What do you want?"

"I'm dropping off some information. According to Neville Longbottom, there was a patch of Protean Flowers near where Malfoy and Harry were fighting. It's possible we could get spell residue off of it."

"I'm familiar with the flower, Remus. Get on with it."

"I was wondering if you'd be the one to go gather them." Remus stepped into the office a laid a piece of paper on Severus's desk. He looked at it. "Neville gave me instructions."

"The day I listen to Neville Longbottom's instructions is the day I willingly wear pink lingerie and dance a tango with Voldemort in the Hogwarts dining hall." Remus laughed at that a bit.

"Well, we're off to the library, then. I'll leave you to your," Remus looked pointedly at Severus's empty desk, "work."

"We? You mean you and your multiple personalities?"

Remus laughed, rather than the scowl Severus had been expecting. The man was quite odd. "I'm helping Granger and Weasley in the library."

Severus sneered. "Well, with Granger on the task, I'm sure you'll find something. Whether it connects at all to what we're looking for is another matter entirely."

"I have the utmost faith in Granger's abilities. It wouldn't surprise me if she knew the library better than Irma."

Severus rolled his eyes. "We're not here to argue about the abilities of our students. Get out of my office." He stood, glared down at the instructions on his desk, and swept past Remus.

"Don't you want to know where the flowers are?"

He turned around and smirked. "No, I'm going to have Longbottom get them. I have to talk to the Headmaster."

He stalked off toward the Headmaster's Office. The last thing he intended was to be ordered around by the likes of Lupin. Severus could handle civility, and if circumstances had been different, Lupin might have been something resembling a friend. But of course, Sirius Black and James Potter had gotten in the way.

"Severus!" He rolled his eyes and turned back to .

"What?"

"I left the house in Albus's office." Severus nodded his thanks and stalked off.

Reaching the gargoyle that guarded the Headmaster's Office, Severus found himself confronted by a rather agitated Ginny Weasley. She was kicking the gargoyle. Severus found himself rather impressed by the quality of her shoes, given the fact that she hadn't stopped the assault. "Open! Up! Damn you!"

"That will be enough, Miss Weasley." The girl jumped and turned to glare at Severus, who just raised an eyebrow in reply.

"I need to see the Headmaster."

"I could have deduced that myself, Miss Weasley. 10 points from Gryffindor for insulting a professor's intelligence." Weasley's glare intensified. "I might recommend that you approach Professor McGonagall first."

"I don't have time."

"And what might be so pressing that you have to damage school property? And while I'm thinking of it, 30 points form Gryffindor for that as well." Severus gave her a tight smile, seeing her hands clench. It was good to be a teacher.

"It's about Harry, sir."

"You know something about Potter?" He scowled at her, recalling the incident five years before.

"I'm not going to tell you, sir." Weasley's eyes darted to Severus's arm, where his robes hid the mark. It seemed someone had been telling tales in the student body. He wondered if it was a sign that Voldemort was slowly accepting his loyalty, or a sign that security was getting lax in the Order. He grabbed Weasley's arm, quietly gave the password, and walked into Albus's office.

"Professor?"

"Ah, Severus, Miss Weasley. What can I do for you?"

"Miss Weasley says she has information regarding Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy's disappearance," Severus hissed.

"And what information do you have?" Dumbledore leaned forward, Severus could see a glint in his eyes. He briefly wondered if this would be another time in which Dumbledore knew more than what he was willing to say.

Weasley gulped a little, and looked down at the floor. She whispered something. "You'll have to repeat that, Miss Weasley," Severus said, trying to keep the impatience out of his voice. If they were going to get anywhere, he knew he'd have to stop terrifying the girl.

"I said, You-Know-Who has him." Severus studied the girl. She was one of the few people actually competent in Potions. Not necessarily a natural, like her twin brothers, but good enough to pass without help. Which meant that Severus himself had never really paid any attention to her. The mediocre students usually slipped through his gaze, overshadowed by the Longbottoms and the Potters of the classroom. Consequently, he didn't know her as well as he probably should, given her chosen group of friends. He felt his upper lip curl into a slight sneer as he pictured Potter.

"How do you know that, Miss Weasley?" Dumbledore asked. He was leaning ever farther forward in his chair. Anymore and Severus imagined he would fall out. Weasley, still staring fixedly at the ground, didn't notice. She reached into the pocket of her robes, and pulled out a slip of paper.

"This came in the Owl Post this morning, sir." Handing the paper to Dumbledore, she stepped back, out of Severus's reach. "I...I have to go back to class." Weasley dashed out of the door. Severus watched the door, considering. Seeing a Weasley running away wasn't the most common of events.

"What does it say?" He finally asked the Headmaster.

"It's a riddle, I believe." Albus cleared his throat and began to read. "Go, ye heroes, go to glory, though you die in combat gory, ye shall live in song and story. Go to immortality!."

Severus found himself stumped. "And Miss Weasley was able to relate this to Voldemort how exactly?"

"In her first year, Miss Weasley came into the possession of Tom Riddle's diary. He infused a bit of himself into her in order to live. I have the sneaking suspicion that Miss Weasley knows far more about Voldemort than anyone living besides Harry and Voldemort himself."

Severus snorted. "Unlikely." He folded himself up in the chair in front of Dumbledore's desk. "She knows Tom Riddle. Voldemort isn't exactly Tom Riddle. The magical transformations he went through changed him." He tapped the fingers of his right hand against the arm of the chair. Something bothered him about the note. "Besides, sending a riddle like that isn't the Dark Lord's style."

Dumbledore nodded slightly, and stared at him. Severus could see his eyebrows raise slightly in what was probably meant to be an interrogative gesture. "Who do you think it is, then?"

"The Dark Lord prefers to taunt his victims in person. If he had Potter he wouldn't waste time with riddles. Most likely, his time would be spent judiciously casting Cruciatus on the boy. And if he wanted to taunt us, it would be much more direct: a Howler full of screams, for example. If not Potter's dead body in front of the Ministry of Magic for all to see." Severus paused and considered. "Voldemort may be arrogant, but he's not stupid. He's never been stupid."

"Tom Riddle was the Head Boy during his time here."

Severus snorted. "That surprises me not at all." He rubbed his forearm slightly. "I don't suspect that after his past dealings with Potter that Voldemort will be doing much talking when they meet again."

"So you think this trap, while it may be on Voldemort's behalf, was not executed by Voldemort himself?"

Severus glared at the Headmaster. "Don't insult my intelligence, Albus. You realized that as soon as Miss Weasley handed you a note and not a letter or a formal challenge."

Dumbledore laughed. "Perhaps. Perhaps not. Regardless, I would prefer you to make up your own mind on the matter. Who do you think is behind this?"

Severus made sure to intensify his glare. He absolutely hated it when the Headmaster tried his manipulation games on him. "Considering the source, Lucius Malfoy, of course. I also think the plot blew up in his face, and that's why the note. He may not have many redeeming qualities, but he does care about Draco. And when Draco was sucked into whatever was planned for Potter, Lucius is trying to scramble and protect himself on two fronts: protect himself from Voldemort's retribution at a failed and unbidden plan, and get his son back in relatively good condition."

The Headmaster nodded slightly again, and picked up his wand. With a wave, a tray of sandwiches and tea appeared. "There's liverwurst and onion, just as you like." Dumbledore gestured toward the tray.

"Albus, I hate liverwurst. We go through this every time."

Dumbledore leaned back in his chair and laughed quietly. Severus could see the damnable twinkle in the man's eyes that always infuriated him as a student. "I'm teasing you, Severus," the man said gently. He picked up a sandwich and held it out. "Ham and provolone, plain, and heated."

Severus studied the sandwich for a moment. He had missed breakfast. He stood, and took the offering. "Thank you, Albus." He sat back down and took a bite. "Lupin told me he left the house here?"

Dumbledore nodded. "Yes, Sirius brought it to me earlier this morning." Severus held back a snarl at the dog's name. "I assume you want to investigate it?"

"Of course. I prepared several potions last night for just this situation." He studied the older man for a moment. Dumbledore's face was blank, and Severus had the sneaking suspicion that the Headmaster was holding something back from him. "Have you tested it yourself?"

"I have run the house through a few simple charms. As far as I can tell, it is just as it appears: a simple gingerbread house. Quite delicious looking, I even noticed a few lemon drops as decoration!" Severus rolled his eyes, the man simply could not get past his obsession with candy. It put even his sweet tooth to shame. "The house does seem to be under an unbreakable shrinking charm."

Severus cocked his head to the side. The Headmaster was voluntarily giving information. Unasked. He was definitely hiding something. "May I see it?"

"Of course!" Dumbledore shuffled papers around on his desk, muttering to himself quietly. "Aha!" He said triumphantly, digging the house out from under a small stack of documents from the Ministry.

"Are you sure it's safe to be touching it, Albus?"

"Yes, that was the first test I ran. The spell, now that it has been activated, is dormant. For all intensive purposes, that is just a gingerbread house."

Severus reached over and took the house from Dumbledore's hand. The man was right, it did look delicious, and fit very comfortably in the palm of his hand. He suspected that Draco had cast the shrinking spell thinking that the house would be easier to conceal the smaller it was. He held up his wand, pointed it at his eyes, and cast a spell. "Videre." Blinking a bit as Severus adjusted to the influx of bright lights, he once again studied the house. There were traces of the warm yellow of Dumbledore's magic. Beneath that was a surprisingly strong layer of a muddy mauve color that Severus knew belonged to Draco. And underneath that was a very faint layer of... Severus squinted. "Have you ever heard of anyone with a magical strain that's black streaked with gold before, Albus?" He raised his wand back to his face. "Finite Incantatum."

"No, I haven't. I assume the purple strands are Mr. Malfoy's?"

Severus nodded. "Could the black-gold strain be Potter?"

Dumbledore shrugged slightly. "It's possible. He's never shown those colors before, and you of all people should know how rare it is for a person's magical strain to change. Most likely the strain comes from the person who created the house."

Severus sighed, and nodded. "Perhaps." He studied the house a few moments longer. "Draco's spell seems unusually strong. Could they be linked to the house somehow?"

"The only way to know for sure is to dispel the magic surrounding the house."

"And that's why you have Lupin, Granger, and Weasley in the library, isn't it? You're not sure how the magic can be dispelled without potentially losing Potter and Draco." Dumbledore nodded approvingly, and Severus suddenly felt as if he was back in school and the Headmaster was about to give him 5 points to Slytherin. "I should go. I'll do as much testing as I can before my first class."

"Report what you find out directly to me and to Lupin." Severus stood and walked out of the office, still holding the house in his hands.

Once outside, he nearly ran into someone. Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Severus found himself wondering if he'd be able to get any work done. "Severus." He broke out of his thoughts and looked properly at the person he had bumped into. "Just one of the men I wanted to see."

"Hello Lucius. I'm afraid the Headmaster is busy right now. Why don't we go to my office and talk?" Severus tried to head off Lucius before he made it inside. "I'm sure there's much you can tell me about this," he held out the house, watching for any change of expression. Lucius's sneer dropped minutely.

"Yes. Let's." Lucius turned swiftly and began strolling toward Severus's office, having been there many times before. Lucius was one of his oldest friends; they had known each other since before Hogwarts. Victims of too many dinner parties, Lucius and Severus had grown close out of a sense of self-preservation. It was either make friends, and Lucius was usually the only one Severus's age present, or behave badly by doing something uncouth like falling asleep at the dinner table. They had found that by working together, Severus planning, and Lucius acting, they could usually accomplish anything they put their minds to. A few pranks had certainly livened up the dinner parties.

They also caught the eye of Tom Riddle.

The friendship had continued until Hogwarts, when Lucius drifted away, falling in with new friends. Severus just found other things to occupy his time: the study of Dark Arts, Potions, harassing the Gryffindors James Potter and Sirius Black. In their Sixth year, shortly after the Shrieking Shack incident, Lucius approached Severus and welcomed him into his new circle. He became fairly good friends with Jordan Avery, and through him Charles Lestrange, who was working for the Ministry at that time.

And once again, Severus found himself in the eye of Tom Riddle.

Disillusioned by the world around him, the prejudice against Slytherins, the needless banning of Dark Arts, Severus joined the Death Eaters before he left Hogwarts.

Even now, twenty years later, Severus was ashamed of that: he was a killer before he turned seventeen.

The pair reached Severus's office, and took their seats. He placed the house carefully on the top of his desk. "So, Lucius, what do you know about this?"

"It's a small gingerbread house, any fool can see that," Lucius replied coolly. Obviously he had decided that he was going to play this one close to his chest.

"That house is what was left behind when Draco disappeared."

Lucius sneered. "I was given to understand that he wasn't the only one to disappear."

Severus nodded. "Yes. Another student was caught with him."

"That's the same thing you told the Dark Lord. Care to elaborate?"

"Potter."

"So, my Draco and Harry Potter disappeared together. On Hogwarts grounds. And as far as I can see, nothing is being done to try and retrieve them."

"On the contrary, Lucius," Severus sneered back, "great efforts are being made. In fact, I was just about to take the house to my workroom and test it when I," he looked Lucius up and down, "ran into you."

"Ah." Severus noticed that Lucius's right hand was tapping against his knee slightly. The blond had never been very good at concealing his emotions; there were always clues if one knew where to look. "Proceed." Severus just stared at him in response. This was a game he always won, to see who broke and spoke first. "I want to know the results as soon as possible, staying here for the testing is the quickest way."

"Actually, Lucius, the quickest way would be for you to simply tell me what you know."

Lucius smiled. "What would be the fun in that?"

Severus scowled at his old friend and stood. He reached into a desk drawer and pulled out a bit of Floo powder. Lighting the dormant fire, he threw it in. "Headmaster?"

After a few minutes of waiting, Dumbledore's head appeared. "What can I do for you, Severus?"

"I just wanted to inform you that Lucius Malfoy has arrived and wishes to speak to you about his son's disappearance."

Dumbledore nodded slowly. "I see. I shall be happy to talk to you in my office, Mr. Malfoy. I believe you know the way?" he addressed Lucius.

"I will be there shortly, Headmaster." Dumbledore's head nodded again, smiled, and disappeared from the fire. Lucius stood. "There is more going on here than you think, Severus." With that, the blond turned and stalked out of Severus's office.

"That was cryptic," he found himself muttering. While he was usually anything but direct, Lucius had never been one to dissemble in quite a fashion. He glanced at his clock and snarled. Experiments would have to wait for later, he was due in his first class. Gryffindor/Slytherin Seventh years. Which meant Longbottom's disasters, Gryffindor chatter, and perhaps a fight if Granger and Weasley were actually present.

At least he could take points and give them a detention for not showing up if they weren't there. It might not improve the day, but it was a fairly good start. He walked to his Potions cabinet, where he kept the more volatile of ingredients, as well as Potions that none of the students should have in their grubby little hands and said the spell to unlock it. Storing the house inside, he shut it, reapplied the locking spell and walked to his classroom.

He arrived slightly late to the class and found the students sitting quietly. They seemed slightly subdued, Severus attributed it to the loss of their leaders, Draco and Potter. "As the N.E.W.T.s are coming up this year, we will be spending a good portion of our time reviewing until you know these potions from memory. Which means, if you fail now, Longbottom, you will fail then. Today, we will be making a simple Aggrastat." He glared at the students; the Gryffindors seemed cowed and the Slytherins just smiled.

Severus sat down at his desk, staring at a pile of Third year essays he needed to grade. Suddenly a wave of pain washed through his arm.

Voldemort was summoning him.

He resisted the urge to flinch at the pain, stood, and left the room. Flitwick would be closest, just upstairs. Carefully he walked to Flitwick's office and knocked. "Come in!" Flitwick, who was doing some grading off his own, looked up in surprise at Severus' entrance.

"Filius, I need to see Poppy," Severus lied smoothly, clutching his arm not only to help his cover, but also to help with the pain. "Would you watch my class?"

Flitwick eyed his papers thoughtfully before nodding. "On one condition, you give me a bottle of that scotch you have hidden away."

Severus sighed. That scotch was one of the few things he had managed to save from his childhood home. "All right," he ground out through his teeth. "Seventh year Gryffindor/Slytherin," he informed the tiny professor, who winced. Severus allowed himself a small smile, and headed toward Dumbledore's office. Thankfully, Lucius had left. Severus assumed that little visit was probably the reason for the Dark Lord's call.

"I didn't expect to see you back so quickly," Dumbledore said as he walked in.

"Summons. Flitwick has the class."

"Be safe."

Severus sneered, he was always as safe as one could be in the presence of the Dark Lord, but he still nodded in acknowledgement of the Headmaster's concern. He turned to the portrait of Gawain Guthpike, a Headmaster from the 1600s, and said the password. The portrait swung open to reveal a passage that lead to the Forbidden Forest, just beyond the Apparition wards around Hogwarts. He started down the passage quickly, planning what he would ask Voldemort, and indirectly, Lucius about the disappearance.

As soon as he exited, Severus centered himself, and Apparated to the source of the summons. The rest of the circle wasn't present. Standing before Voldemort was Lucius Malfoy and a small, cloaked figure Severus didn't recognize. It was too short to be Draco, but there was the possibility that the figure was one of the other Slytherins.

A private meeting with the Dark Lord was never a good thing.

"Ah, Severus, good of you to join us so quickly," the Dark Lord hissed. Severus quickly bowed as formally as could.

"I am at your service, my lord."

"Lucius tells me you have been busy at Hogwarts?"

Severus resisted the urge to flinch. "I have been working at recruiting, my lord. As well as mapping the full scope of the school's defenses in order to successfully lead an attack."

Voldemort laughed. Severus really did flinch. "I'm sure you are, Severus." He brought his wand out of his cloak and began twirling between the fingers of his right hand. "Tell me about Harry Potter."

"What do you need to know about him, my lord?" Severus tried to redirect.

Voldemort laughed again, and stopped twirling his wand. It was now pointing directly at Severus. "He has disappeared. I have been informed that you had something to do with that." Severus heard a hissing sound behind him, it seems as if Nagini had arrived.

"No, my lord. I had nothing to do with the disappearance of Potter and Malfoy's son." Severus emphasized the second name in hopes of deflecting the Dark Lord's anger. "I have been charged by," Severus mentally sighed and made a mental note to follow up on what he was about to say publicly, "that old fool to find them both."

The Dark Lord stared at Severus, considering. He met the gaze without flinching. While he knew that he would be punished for presumption, the Dark Lord was more likely to believe him without the use of spells or potions this way. Plus, it gave him the nice thrill of satisfaction that Lucius would be suffering with him. "Crucio," Voldemort said simply. He ended the spell relatively quickly, only letting the pain last until Severus had dropped to his knees. "You didn't tell me your son had disappeared with Potter, Lucius."

"I arranged for Potter to be taken to a safe place, I did not expect my Draco to be taken with him." Severus sneered at the other man. "My Draco?" Lucius would have a nasty surprise coming if he ever said something like that around Draco himself.

"And why did you not see fit to inform me of this plan," Voldemort used the most disparaging voice possible, "before now?"

"I am sorry, my lord."

"You certainly are, Lucius. Crucio." Severus smirked as Voldemort held Lucius under the curse for a much longer time than he had Severus. After disengaging the curse, he turned back to Severus. "Find Potter. Bring him to me. I need him alive."

"I do not mean to question you, my lord, but why do you want Potter alive?" Severus asked slowly.

"You always were too curious for your own good. You will be contacted at Hogwarts."

"Yes, my lord," Severus sighed. No answers for today. Typical.

"Take Lucius and get out of my sight."

"Yes, my lord." Severus scowled at Lucius's unconscious form, grabbed him, and Apparated to Malfoy Manor.

He was going to get answers from the blond if he had to use Veritaserum to do it.

Author's Notes:

Videre: to see, or reveal. In this case, Snape is using the spell to sell the magical essence around the house.

The magical aura colors: getting most of my meaning from reiki theory. For those of you less inclined to research, I'll give a brief explanation of the colors I've used in this chapter.

Yellow, or the color of Dumbledore's magic, is one of the first and easiest colors to see in reiki. It's the color of mental activity, it reflects new opportunities for leaning, lightness, wisdom, and intellect. Pale yellows usually indicate optimism, while darker shades can reflect excessive thinking and a dogmatic approach to life.

Mauve, which is a sort of deep purple, and is Draco's color. Purples represent blending of the heart and the mind, the physical with the spiritual. It reflects independence and intuition, as well as dynamic and important dream activity. It can reflect one who is searching. The purple shades often reflect an ability to handle affairs with practicality and worldliness. Darker purples indicate a great strength of will, and muddy shades generally reflect a need to overcome something, as well as erotic imaginations (which is not the case here, I just threw the intrepetation in because it amuses me), tendencies to be overbearing, feeling misunderstood, and needing sympathy.

Black streaked with gold: No, I'm not going to say whom this belongs to. But I will explain what it means, and perhaps you all can figure that out for yourself. Black is the color of protection. It reflects a person who is protecting themselves and their secrets. It also indicates a new understanding of the burdens and sacrifices the individual will be facing. Gold reflects dynamic spiritual energy and a true coming into one's own power. Think of gold as the alchemical process, the transmutation of the individual from a base metal to something more precious.

Aggrastat: this actually is a drug. It's used to treat patients who are having chest pains that last longer than typical angina, and cannot be controlled by medicines used to treat angina. It prevents blood clots from forming.