Trust and Betrayal: A Prequel

13. Following Protocol

March 1980

Lily

"Mornings are the worst."

"That's for certain. But it's easing up a bit now that we're more than half-way there."

"Have you felt it kick?"

"Amazing, isn't it? He's going to be a strong one, for sure!"

"I don't know if I'm ready, though. Aren't you scared?"

"Yeah, a bit. I don't know much about babies and such...."

Lily rolled her eyes at Alice. "Can you two blokes talk about anything other than the babies?"

The two couples were enjoying a rare evening out together at The Treacle and Tart in Diagon Alley.

"I agree," said Alice. "We're the ones who have to carry them around all day, so it would be nice to talk about something else for a change. Even Quidditch would be better!"

"Anything to accommodate the mums," said James with a smile. He turned back to Frank. "So, will yours be Keeper or Chaser?"

"The wee one feels like a Keeper to me," Frank said with a thoughtful nod. "Deft hands."

The women moaned. "It's no use, Lily. They're obsessed."

"Ignore them. How long 'till Moody pulls you off patrols, Alice?" asked Lily, taking a sip of her pumpkin juice.

"As long as I'm feeling all right, pretty near until the eighth month, I reckon," replied Alice. "Of course, I'm not doing a lot of rolling around, if I can help it!"

"If you keep throwing those amazing Three Point Blocks, you can keep the baddies at bay sitting down with a drink in your other hand!" added Frank, clearly proud of his wife as he cuffed her lightly on the shoulder.

Alice cuffed him back. "You should hear Mother Longbottom go on about me working, Lily. She's been having heart palpitations at the thought that I'm not sequestered away, hiding my embarrassing pregnancy."

"She's just a bit old fashioned," said Frank in a feeble defence of his mother.

"Old fashioned!" Alice retorted. "She's completely nineteenth century, Frank! That HAT!" Alice shuddered as they all laughed at the image of Augusta Longbottom's famous vulture-topped, feathered hat.

"James' parents are pretty close behind," added Lily as James stared at the ceiling. "I know they are SHOCKED and APPALLED that I'm continuing to work. They think it must be some sort of Muggle abnormality."

"Lily!" said James, not able to avoid being pulled into this conversation. "They can't help being their age. And you know they love you."

"Yes, I know they do, even if I will always remain a bit of a mystery to them."

"Here's to the grandparents!" said Alice, holding up her own glass of pumpkin juice. "May they be available to mind the babies whenever we need them!"

They all raised their glasses. "To the grandparents!"

"Speaking of minding babies," said Frank, "you know my Uncle Algie and Aunt Enid? They've already said they'd love to look after the little one. Maybe we can leave both babies with them sometime for another evening out!"

Alice and Lily looked at each other, horrified, then burst into gales of screaming laughter.

********

After dinner, they strolled along Diagon Alley, which was mostly deserted at this late hour. The early spring night was still cold, so they huddled together for warmth, enjoying this singular night free of worry.

Until they saw Sirius' Patronus.

Easy laughter turned to silent alarm as they watched it amble towards them, finally slowing as the shape of a large dog circled James before evaporating into the night air.

James look confused. "TenPin Alley? Where's that?"

"I know where it is," said Frank. "It's not far from here."

"Is Sirius in trouble?" asked Lily, who already knew the answer by the expression on her husband's face.

Frank had already started to move. "Follow me." They pulled out their wands and followed.

Aside from the better known Diagon and Knockturn Alleys, there were dozens of other lanes, alleys and streets that comprised London's magical community. How they all managed to fit within Muggle London continued to amaze Lily as she followed Frank through places she'd never set foot in before.

"Should we notify the Aurors?" asked James as he jogged next to Frank.

"Let's get a lay of the land before we call in for back-up," he replied. "We don't want to rush into something without knowing what we're facing."

They moved silently through the maze of streets until Frank stopped them, his arm outstretched.

Lily noted a gas lamp-lit sign above them that read TenPin Alley.

They spread out, keeping their backs against the buildings, which seemed to be mostly warehouses or storage-type facilities. Luckily, aside from the one lamp at the head of the street, it was completely dark.

"There are some old rumours about TenPin Alley," whispered Frank as they neared the end of the street. "Some say treasure used to be buried here, but none was ever found. Others say there's an underground river and that some nights they can hear the sound of rushing water."

"What in blazes is Sirius doing here? And how are we supposed to find him?" hissed James.

Lily had gone ahead and gestured for the others to follow her. When they drew together at the end of the street, which appeared to be a dead-end, they stared in amazement at the sight that greeted them.

"I'd say some of those old rumours might have something to them," Alice said softly.

The street appeared to have caved in. Probably recently, Lily reasoned, judging by the way pieces of the road and pavement were still falling into the giant precipice below their feet.

At a distance of nearly fifty metres below them, they could see what appeared to be an underground room. It clearly wasn't just a hole in the ground, as the room appeared to be covered in some sort of finished stone. Frank chanced a Lumos! to glance into the cavernous space and then quickly extinguished the spell.

"Don't get too close to the edge," warned Frank. "We don't want to make this hole any larger and take us down in a larger collapse." They all stepped back, following Frank's more experienced lead. "I'll Apparate down--the floor seems solid enough. If it looks clear, I'll signal you lot to follow me."

A few minutes later, they stood, back-to-back, far below the streets of London, their wands shooting out beams of light. It was an astonishing sight. It was a room covered in marble with several large indentations in the floor at scattered intervals along one side. Large Greek-style columns flanked the edges and the centre of the room, with some having collapsed in the cave-in, with their large, decorated finials broken and scattered around them.

"This was an ancient bath," muttered Lily as she shined her light along the floor. "Just like in the city of Bath." She'd been there on several occasions with her family on holiday and easily recognized the design. Her companions looked puzzled.

"The ancient Romans who lived here built these--that's where the town of Bath got its name. Muggles go and visit them. There must have been a spring here at one time," she added, moving her wand around to see if there was any evidence of water. "If there was, it's dried up long ago."

Alice's wand picked up the entrance to another room, and she had just started to move towards it when Frank stopped her.

"Stay together."

Slowly, they stepped through the rubble to make their way into the next chamber, which looked much the same as the first. This one, however, had a circular stairway in the middle of the room.

"James," said Lily, "do you have your mirror? We have no way of finding Sirius if he's down here. He could be hurt."

"It's at home," he muttered. "I can pop there and back in just a minute, though!"

And before anyone could say anything, he'd Disapparated.

Suddenly, a loud explosion erupted below their feet. The room jolted as pieces of the ceiling above them began to crack.

"Run!" yelled Frank, who led them down the staircase just as the heavy stone above them gave way and came crashing down. Frank cast a Repelling Charm at the mouth of the stairs, which prevented the larger pieces of stone from hitting them, but it didn't completely stop the dust and dirt of the cave-in from swirling about them at the bottom of the stairs, and they gagged. Fortunately, the opening above them wasn't completely sealed off, permitting some air to filter through.

"Aguamenti!" chanted Frank, who poured some water into each of their mouths, so they could rinse out the dirt.

"Everyone all right?" he asked as he spit out some dirty water.

"I wouldn't recommend that as an after-dinner drink," said Lily, coughing up some more dirt.

"Hey! Lily! Are you all right?" the panicked voice of James shouted from above.

"We're fine! Down in here!" she called up to him.

James levitated away the stones that were blocking the staircase. He ran down quickly, and pulled Lily into a rough embrace. "I can't leave you alone for a minute before you find some trouble, can I?"

He brushed some dirt out of her hair with his fingers.

"So what was that explosion about?" asked Alice as she paced around this new chamber. "And what is Sirius doing down here?"

"Sirius and explosions are not a good combination," agreed Frank.

"I'll find out," said James, who pulled out a small mirror from his robes and looked into it. "Padfoot!" he called.

Lily looked over his shoulder and saw Sirius' face appear. She sighed in relief to see him.

"Prongs?" Sirius closed his eyes and sighed as well. "Be careful," he said in a whisper. "There are Death Eaters, about two dozen, I reckon."

"Where are you? Are you all right?"

Sirius had that 'I've made a mess of things' look on his face.

"I'm fine. I can guide you to me, if I can remember how I got to this little hidey-hole. You might want to, erm, notify the Aurors."

James turned around to see that Alice had already Disapparated. "Done, mate. What's going on? What is this place? Why are you here? Why didn't you Disapparate out of--wherever it is you're at?"

"I can't Disapparate because--well--I'll tell you later. And bugger all if I know what this place is. It's a rabbit-warren of chambers and passageways. Above and below. Stretches for ages. Some look like an abandoned series of vaults. I'm pretty certain that Gringotts is their target. This seems to be an important mission. I... er... just happened to... stumble into things. They don't know I'm here. Yet. But...."

"But, what?" asked Frank, whose eyebrows had taken up residence in his hairline.

"You'll have to go through them--to get to me."

"Sirius?"

"Yes, James?"

"You know that if the Death Eaters don't kill you, I'll have to, right?"

Sirius smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, mate. I know."

"Right," started Frank, taking command. "You and Lily move towards Black. I'll wait here for Alice and company. Leave a biscuit trail so we can follow, but don't move on them until we've reached you. Understand?"

Sirius led them through a series of rooms, up stairs, down stairs, into passageways where polished marble became rough-hewn stone and Greek columns gave way to medieval archways. Lily transfigured odd bits of stones into very small, but inedible, facsimiles of chocolate biscuits, leaving a trail behind them. She had shared this idea at an Order meeting, cribbed from one of her favourite children's stories.

They were just about to round into a new chamber when voices floated up from below.

"All together on this one."

"REDUCTO!"

Another explosion rocked through the room, and Lily and James ducked. Luckily, only small bits of dust fell upon them from above.

"Well done! I think we're nearly there!" said one of the voices.

"James!" hissed Sirius. "Hurry, man, they're nearly on me!"

"Where are you?"

"You're just behind them. Look down and you'll see a niche just past where Voldy's gang is gathered. It's on the right. I can hear them moving the stone they've just blasted."

Crouching low, they found themselves on a type of balcony, an elevated platform that looked down on the room below, where, as Sirius had said, a group of wizards were moving large chunks of stone. In the midst of the debris, to the right, they could make out a slight depression in the wall. They couldn't see their friend, but assumed he was hidden in the shadow. The Death Eaters weren't in their usual robes and masks, not expecting company this evening. They were, however, nearly upon the place where Sirius must be hiding.

"We see it, Padfoot. Can you Disillusion yourself?" James asked.

He didn't reply, but the image of Sirius in the mirror slowly evaporated.

"I hate that feeling," the disembodied voice of Sirius muttered.

"Our turn, now," said James. He tapped his wand on Lily's head and then on his own. In seconds, they could see only the shimmering outline of each other.

"Shouldn't we wait for the others?" Lily asked, her heart pounding so strongly she thought it might give them away.

"We will, but let's wait down there. We'll be in better position, just in case we need to move to get Padfoot out before they get here."

Lily nodded, then felt silly since James couldn't see her. "They're making so much noise that we can easily Disapparate down... to that raised platform," she said, pointing to their destination point.

"Right. Meet you there!"

Just as they reappeared on the platform, they looked up to see the shadows of Frank, Alice and a troop of Aurors, including Alastor Moody, cluster above them. Checking to see that the Death Eaters in front of them had their attention focused forward, Lily sent a small flare of red sparks from her wand to indicate their position. She saw Frank give them a 'thumbs-up,' acknowledging her signal.

One after another, the Aurors above quietly Disapparated to locations around the chamber, still unnoticed by Voldemort's men.

Lily heard James whisper, "Sonorus," and then his magnified voice echoed thunderously around the space.

"GOOD EVENING, GENTLEMEN."

The Dark wizards turned with startled yells, brandishing their wands, but they couldn't identify a target. Some began to fire random Stunning spells, but the Aurors had hidden themselves well.

"WE'RE SO SORRY TO INTERRUPT YOUR FINE WORK, BUT I'M AFRAID WE MUST ASK YOU TO LAY DOWN YOUR WANDS."

Lily didn't know whether to laugh or throttle him. The Death Eaters threw erratic spells, hitting no one.

"I SEE. NOT GOING TO COOPERATE, EH? NOW!"

At James' prompt, a flare lit into the air, and the Aurors attacked.

James helped Lily jump off the platform, and they both lay flat on the ground as spells flashed overhead. They removed their Disillusionment Charms; it was more dangerous to be invisible in the midst of a battle.

"I'm going for Padfoot," James whispered to Lily. "Cover me."

She pressed a quick kiss on his lips. "Be careful, you madman. I love you."

"Likewise, Mrs. Potter."

James scuttled off in a crouch, and Lily began to lay in Shield Charms around him. One of the Death Eaters spotted her and fired off a Stunning spell, which Lily easily deflected. She sent a Body-Bind spell in return, which hit its mark. Lily monitored James' progress as she saw that several of Voldemort's men had escaped into the tunnel they had just opened, and others were Disapparating. There were about ten or so of them remaining, who were still fighting the Aurors furiously. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that James had Sirius, both heading back towards her. Oddly, Sirius seemed to be resisting and screaming. He was yelling something about Regulus, his brother, but she couldn't make out the words.

Lily ran to help when she saw a Death Eater incant a spell that erupted from his wand in a bright, blue light, aimed directly at James. She screamed a warning and fired an Impediment Jinx that deflected the full force of the Death Eater's spell just before it hit her husband. At the same time, hearing her scream, James pulled back. Their combined actions averted the direct impact of the unknown spell, but it still hit James in his side, throwing him backwards to the ground. Lily felt ill, as if the curse that hit James had hit her as well. She ran blindly to his side while Sirius covered them.

There was blood everywhere, and James looked very pale. "Thanks for the warning, luv," he gasped.

"You'll be all right, James," Lily said, pushing aside her panic as she moved her wand over his wounds. She had to staunch the bleeding until she could get him to St. Mungo's. He'll be all right, she repeated to herself.

When the fighting ended, there were five captured and two dead Death Eaters. The others had escaped, but Voldemort's effort to compromise the security of Gringotts Bank had been thwarted. James had been hurt the worst; the Aurors had suffered only minor injuries.

It wasn't until the next day, after James' condition had stabilised at St. Mungo's, when, sitting at his bedside, they finally heard the story of what had happened from a very chagrined Sirius Black.

"I got a message from Reggie," he began, rolling his wand between his hands. "He said he needed my help, but not to tell anyone. He said he'd be at this spot in TenPin Alley and that I should meet him there. When I got there, he was in a panic. He'd only expected only one or two others to be with him that night, but it turned out that a huge number of Death Eaters were coming. He told me to leave, that I was in danger."

"Did you know Reggie had taken the Mark, Sirius?" Lily asked gently.

He shook his head. "I suspected, though. He was frantic when I saw him. He told me he needed help to--to get out. I think he'd hoped I could make it look like I'd taken him by force."

"But why didn't you call for back-up then, mate? We would have helped!" James looked like he wanted to punch something.

"I know! I should have, but then a group of the bastards showed up and opened that crater in the street. Reggie had to go with them. I couldn't just leave him! So I followed. I--I guess I'd hoped I'd be able to get to him without anyone noticing. I could have, too, if another group hadn't arrived afterwards. They were coming up close behind me. I only just had time to hide and hope that I could pull Reg out of there. He saw me... knew where I was hiding, but made sure that anyone who came close was distracted. Then, when the fighting began, he got dragged into the tunnel and... was gone."

Sirius dropped his head into his hands. "I couldn't help him. He finally came to me, after all these years, and I failed him." He looked up at James. "Even worse, I put you all in danger. My other brother nearly died because of me."

No one said anything for a while. Lily felt her heart constrict with his pain and regret. She wanted to lash out at him, scream at him for his impulsiveness. But she couldn't.

"Sirius, you love your brother, and he knows it. I'm sure he'll try to contact you again. And this time we can be there to help."

"Listen, Padfoot," said James, "you did throw a nice wrench into Voldemort's plan for Gringotts. That wouldn't have happened if you hadn't stumbled on them the way you did. Just think of the chaos if they had succeeded. I bet the Dark Bugger is right livid just about now!" He managed a smile, wanting to cheer up his friend. "And I'm going to be all right, too. So it's all worked out, yeah?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Peter
He was so angry that the soup he was carrying sloshed over the sides of the bowl, soaking the bread that lay next to it. As he mounted the stairs up to James' room, Peter took no notice of the mess, as he was too busy mentally cursing Sirius' recklessness and stupidity.

That bloody arrogant, wanking arse will get us all killed. How can James be so blind? He has to see how dangerous he is!

While James was recovering well from the injuries he sustained during the battle in the caverns, Lily had still placed her husband under enforced bed rest for at least another week. Today, however, she had to attend both an important meeting at the Ministry and a pre-natal check-up at St. Mungo's. So, skiving off work, Peter volunteered eagerly to help make sure that his best friend didn't escape his confinement.

Peter entered the room, and James swung his legs gingerly over the edge of the bed.

"Has she left, Wormtail?" he asked, holding his side with a wince.

"She has, but before you try moving, have a bite to eat first." He waited until James had put himself back into bed with an exaggerated pout.

"If I stay in this bed one more minute, I may have to blast some furniture," he moaned as Peter put his lunch tray in front of him.

"Good thing, then, that you don't have your wand."

"What!" James swivelled to look at the bedside table where his wand should have been, then leaned back against the headboard, squeezed his eyes shut, and clenched his hands into fists.

"That damned, meddling woman!" he shouted to the ceiling.

"For better or for worse, eh, Prongs?" said Peter with a forced smile as he pulled up a chair to the side of James' bed.

James sighed in resignation, picked up a now-soggy piece of bread and bit into it. "S'even worse w'ormones."

"Sorry?"

James swallowed. "Being pregnant makes her even more impossible. She can be normal one minute, and the next, she's a raving lunatic. She'd make a Hippogriff run for cover." James slurped some of the soup. "Honestly, Wormtail, sometimes she scares the pants off me."

Peter laughed. "I heard she did some serious damage that night."

James nodded, tucking into his soup. "If Voldemort has any brains, he'll stay far away from my wife. She's like a vengeful Greek Goddess--one step towards her and he'll never know what hit him."

Peter chewed on the inside of his cheek and did not respond.

"If it hadn't been for Lily...." James stopped eating and visibly shivered. "Well, I certainly wouldn't be here eating this very delicious soup. What did you put in it, Wormtail?"

"If it hadn't been for Sirius, none of you would have been put in that situation in the first place!" Peter shouted, pounding his fist on the arm of the chair.

James looked up, startled by this sudden outburst. "Well, thanks to Sirius, we did manage to prevent a major disaster," he argued.

Peter stood and began to pace, agitated.

"Really, James! He could have helped without going off half-mad, like he always does, and put you all in mortal danger! With both Lily and Alice pregnant! He's a menace!"

James moved the tray to the side. "It's not like he meant for any of that to happen, Peter. He didn't expect that there would be an army of Death Eaters there! How was he to know?"

Peter sat down at the foot of the bed. He had to make James see.

"But that's the point! He didn't know! He didn't follow protocol! He should never have gone down there alone in the first place, without letting anyone know. He doesn't think, James! He never thinks before he acts. It's been that way since school, but--but the stakes are so much higher now."

James sat back and crossed his arms, competing emotions playing across his face.

"Moody already lit into him about it. Padfoot's on probation for a month. I'm sure he won't do something like that again."

"James," Peter sighed, "do you really believe that?" He held his breath, watching his friend struggle.

"No," James finally replied with dismay. "I suppose not."

Peter sighed in relief.

"But that just means we'll have to help him before he does," added James, perking up. "Save him from himself, as it were."

Peter groaned and dropped his head into his hands. James was just hopeless when it came to Sirius.

"He feels terrible about what happened," James continued in earnest, "and despite everything, he's our mate, Wormtail. He'd do the same for us, you know that!"

Hopeless.

********

It had been a particularly trying day at work, after a long night at the Farm searching for some misplaced potions ingredients, followed by a summons from the Dark Lord. Peter was in a foul mood and just wanted to get home, tuck into a good dinner, and crawl under his covers. His mood worsened when, just as he Apparated to the alley beside his flat, he heard his name whispered in the darkness.

He whipped out his wand, his back against the wall of the building in the alley. "Who's there?" Peter hissed. "Show yourself or I'll blast you halfway across London!"

A figure staggered forward. "It's me, Peter.... I--I need... help!"

The shadow crumbled to the ground and lay inert. Peter moved towards it cautiously, kicking its wand out of the way before he turned the figure over.

"Lumos!"

It was Regulus Black. He was a mess. His face and hands were ragged and filthy. His clothes were torn and bloodstained. Peter hadn't seen him since leaving Hogwarts, but the boy's resemblance to his brother was unmistakable.

Peter was torn. He didn't know why Reggie was here or what he should do. Leaving him in the alley seemed to be a bad idea, as he'd come to his senses eventually and perhaps make a scene in front of the house, drawing unwanted attention Peter's way. Reggie had said something about needing help. The boy was obviously in trouble, but why come to him? Instinct told him it was somehow related to the Dark Lord. He had heard a rumour that the boy had become a Death Eater, but as Peter was still in secret service himself, he didn't know if it was true. But if it was... well, Peter always needed new information to appease the Dark Lord, so perhaps Reggie could be useful.

His mind made up, he Disillusioned the unconscious boy and set about getting him into the flat.

********

"Drink this."

Reggie Black squinted through his deeply shadowed eyes as Peter poured some of the Strengthening Solution down his throat.

"Can you sit up?"

Reggie nodded and looked cautiously around the room as he tried to right himself.

"You look half-starved. Here, eat this."

Reggie took the proffered bread with shaking hands and devoured it. Peter had guessed right--he hadn't eaten anything in quite some time.

Peter watched as Reggie sated himself on the bread and cheese.

"Anything stronger?" Reggie rasped as he held up the Butterbeer bottle.

"Sorry, mate," Peter lied, "all out at the moment." The boy had a fever, and he didn't want to add alcohol into the mix.

"S'all right," the younger man muttered as he downed the drink in one long gulp. Reggie sighed and leaned back on Peter's sofa. "So tired... hungry. Thanks."

He looked like he wanted to sleep, but Peter wanted to get his information and the boy out of his flat as quickly as possible.

"Reggie, what's happened? Why are you here?"

His question seemed to prompt Reggie back to some semblance of focus. He sat up and lunged at Peter.

"I need to talk to Sirius!" he gasped. Peter winced at the foul stench coming from the boy, pushed him away, and got to his feet, putting some distance between them.

"Why do you need to talk to Sirius?" he asked, his curiosity aroused. Peter knew that the brothers hadn't spoken in years.

"Help me. He--he can help. Get away. Dark Lord."

Some of the pieces of this puzzle clicked together in Peter's mind as his eyes travelled to Reggie's left arm. From beneath the ragged folds of his sleeve, he could just see the outline of a snake's tail peeking through.

"You've been in hiding, haven't you?"

Reggie groaned and wrapped his arms about himself. "Can't do it anymore... must get away."

"You want to escape from the Dark--You-Know-Who, and Sirius can help you get away, is that it?"

Reggie nodded weakly.

"Why not go to Sirius directly, though? Why come to me?"

"No owl. Don't know where Sirius lives... too dangerous."

Peter wanted to hex the boy for being an idiot. No one escaped service to the Dark Lord, as he well knew. The fool's life was forfeit.

Out of the blue, Reggie barked a short, harsh laugh, startling Peter. "Thinks she's so high and mighty. Bitch! She'll pay for it when he finds out."

Peter blinked, confused. "What? Who's high and mighty?"

But Reggie was lost somewhere in the fever of his own mind and didn't respond to Peter's question.

"Showing it off to us... so proud!" Reggie's face twisted into something resembling a smile. "Switched it, though," he whispered with a snicker.

The snicker turned to giggles, which grew into a fit of hysterical laughter that abated as quickly as it had started. Peter was growing alarmed.

"Reggie--" Peter started, but Reggie's babbling became more convoluted.

"Looked the same... she took the wrong one! He'll read it and know!" He started to laugh again, a terrible, rasping sound. "I have it! Real one! Hid it!"

Then, suddenly, Reggie snapped back into reality and looked at Peter with desperation. "Please... tell Sirius! Please!"

He's gone mad, stupid bugger. Probably for the best.

"Sure, Reggie. I'll tell him. Will an owl find you?"

Reggie's body slumped in relief. "Yes. Thank you, Peter," he replied before falling into the oblivion of sleep.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Severus
Two pops! broke through the quiet of the night, the sliver of moon overhead casting its milky image on the sea below.

Apparating to the designated spot, Severus and Travers moved into a defensive posture, back-to-back, wands out.

Sensing they were alone, they moved apart and took cover behind a clump of trees, one of the few on this sparsely vegetated cliff overlooking the seaside resort town of Scarborough.

"I came here once with my dad and mum," said Travers idly as they waited. "Nice swimming, but a bit crowded in the summer. Too many Muggles."

Severus didn't respond, his patience with his fellow servants of the Dark Lord having worn out long ago. He felt no camaraderie with these men or the few women in the ranks of his master. He had long ago ceased to feel much of anything other than exhaustion, impatience and irritation. He no longer paid mind to the hollowness that had taken hold of his body and soul. He did his work and did it well, and his reward was the approval of his lord and master. Sometimes this approval took the form of women thrown his way after his master had finished with them, like a well-chewed bone left by a stronger dog to the weaker ones. Sometimes he was rewarded with a few days to himself where he gratefully retreated to his grandparents' cottage overlooking the Channel. Severus also noted, with whatever remnants of pride he had managed to retain, that his master was requesting his presence with more frequency, leading Malfoy to conjecture that Severus might soon be asked to join the Inner Circle.

"He and his brother used to come here as well." Travers was still speaking.

"Who?"

"The traitor and his brother. He thinks he's meetin' his brother here," Travers said with a chuckle. "Poor bastard."

Severus frowned. He'd been called to the most recent meeting between the Dark Lord and his troops, and the experience had not been... pleasant. Voldemort was livid that his plot to undermine Gringotts had been foiled. Adding to this failure was the capture of two of his senior officers; Dolohov and Karkaroff had both been taken and now sat useless in Azkaban. Wilkes and Rosier were dead. Now there was a defector in their ranks. Even though Severus had not been involved in the Gringotts mission, his Master had taken out his displeasure on all of them. Painfully.

Afterwards, he'd gathered information about the battle in bits and pieces, and it wasn't long before he'd learned that both Lily and James Potter had not only been in the battle, but were instrumental in the defeat of the Dark Lord's forces. He was surprised to feel... something... in response to this news. An actual feeling appeared to have seeped through his state of perpetual numbness. Alarm? Happiness? Concern? He couldn't even recognise what it was, but something stirred within him. Hatred for his former school nemesis, he finally reasoned. But he was also curious. How had they come to be there? He knew that Lily worked in the Department of Mysteries, of course. Was James an Auror? It didn't make sense. A soft pop! however, pushed these questions aside. There was work to be done.

"Sirius? Are you there?" called a rasping voice.

Severus' eyes widened beneath his mask. Sirius?

Without stepping into the clearing, Travers had aimed his wand at the approaching figure.

"Petrificus Totalis!"

Severus and Travers moved in on the figure, now lying rigid, prone in the grass.

Regulus Black? A traitor? No. Deserter. He was not surprised that the boy wouldn't have the stomach for it. Stupid fool. A part of him thought he might have been able to talk the boy out of it years ago, had he thought to do so. Well, too late now. Get on with it. There was protocol to be followed.

Severus cast a simple binding spell, and just as Travers lifted the Petrificus, the boy began to scream.

"WHERE IS SIRIUS? WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH HIM?"

Travers' wand flicked a Slicing spell on the boy's torso, and blood began to spill as he screamed again, this time in pain.

"Traitor!" sneered Travers. "Your brother couldn't make it. We've come in his stead."

Regulus continued to scream, and Severus incanted, "Silencio!" The screams continued, silent in the night air.

Travers nodded his thanks to Severus and continued his taunting.

"Such a beautiful view of the ocean. I hear you used to play here as a boy. Nice to be able to see it again before you die, I'd imagine."

As Travers levitated Black towards the rocks, Severus found that his heart was racing wildly. This physical reaction surprised him. He'd lost track of the number of people who'd died at his wand, and he'd ceased caring long ago. So why was killing this one any different? Why was he having this reaction now? When he caught up with Travers, the boy was now on the ground at the edge of the cliff. Severus restored his voice, which was now whimpering.

"You have been deemed a traitor to the Dark Lord, Black," intoned Severus. "In recognition of the service you once provided, you are permitted to share your final words before your death."

"Snape? Is that you?" Regulus gasped.

"Final words, boy. Get to them," barked Travers.

The boy crawled to Severus' feet and looked up at him, tears now pouring down his face. "Please, Snape. I know it's you. Don't do this. Please!"

Severus felt nauseous as the boy begged for his life. He kicked Regulus in the stomach, and the boy fell in a sprawl on his back. Gasping for breath, he spat out blood, staining the rock beneath him.

"You want my last words? Fine," he wheezed and, with effort, raised himself to make sure Severus could see his eyes. "You can kill me, Snape, but at least I'll die free of the bastard with my soul intact, which is more than you'll ever be able to say!"

"Avada Kedavra!"

Regulus Black lay quiet. Severus found he was shaking and turned away. Fortunately, Travers set himself to work, turning Black's body into a child's sand bucket, and didn't notice when Severus fell to his knees and heaved up the contents of his stomach.

"That's a nice bit of transfiguration, if I do say so, myself," said Travers, looking pleased. Then he picked up the pail by its handle and, with a turn, hurled it out over the cliff. They were too high above the water to hear the small toy splash into the surf below.

*********

It was Tuesday, just after noon, and Severus sat in a dark corner of the Hog's Head Inn, nursing a glass of whisky under his hooded cloak. The day was dreary and wet, but despite the warmth of the liquor, Severus could not shake the cold from his body. He glanced across the room towards the portrait of the man and the horse, remembering the first time he'd come here to meet Malfoy. He lowered his head and took another sip of whisky. No, he wouldn't allow himself to peer down the lane of what-might-have-been. It was way too late for that. But now, maybe now, he might chance upon a slightly new path.

The murder of Regulus Black had opened his eyes to a terrifying truth that he'd almost missed: that he was just a hair's breadth away from the edge of the abyss, brought to this point by his addictive need for the powerful, seductive Dark Magic. That Magic, even now, stood next to him, ready, waiting to push him gently, irrevocably, into a free-fall pit of madness. He could already smell the fetid odour of it; its tendrils reaching up, ready to wrap its fingers around his mind and soul. But for Reggie's hateful 'last words,' he might already have fallen. Instead, it was as if someone had shoved a torch into his mind, lighting up what had gone dark, bringing one solid moment of clarity into the hell his life had become. What it would always be. For, unlike poor Reggie, Severus knew that there was no escaping the Dark Lord's service. But, despite the loss of his soul, he still, thankfully, had his mind. And holding fast to that one small part of him that he still recognised as Severus Snape, he had devised a plan, a way to remove himself from the Dark assignments that would certainly lead him into final insanity.

*******

A week after the events on the cliff overlooking the sea, Severus had been in Hogsmeade to pick up a packet of crushed Carabine spine, a highly restricted ingredient he needed for a new potion. The transaction was completed quickly in a covert and silent, dark alley hand-off, leaving Severus a bit of time before he had to head back to his laboratory. He had just settled into a table at the Three Broomsticks when a boisterous and unruly crowd of Hogwarts students burst through the door and poured into the establishment. Annoyed at the intrusion, Severus was about to leave when his attention was diverted by the easy-to-eavesdrop conversation underway at the adjacent table.

"Galfraith is such a pathetic wanker!"

"We've never had a decent DADA teacher!"

"Haven't you heard?"

"Heard what?"

"The position is cursed! No one has ever held it for more than a year."

"Don't be daft. It's just that all the good teachers are probably all fighting in the war. Why waste them teaching students when they could be used to fight You-Know-Who?"

"I've heard that Dumbledore's already looking for someone new for next year. Galfraith's given notice."

"There you go! Cursed for sure!"

"My Aunt Sibyll told me Dumbledore's interviewing her next Tuesday afternoon at the Hog's Head."

"For the DADA job?"

"No, Divination. My mum doesn't think much of Auntie as a Seer, but I don't know. She is a bit dotty. And Dumbledore wouldn't meet with her if she wasn't the real thing."

Severus' pulse quickened. The pieces of a plan fell together in his mind all at once, like the creation of a well-crafted spell. Teaching at Hogwarts. The Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. He could be that teacher. He could set himself in position at Hogwarts as the Dark Lord's spy. While Voldemort had spies within the Ministry of Magic, he was certain there was no one in place at the right hand of his master's most hated enemy.

So he proposed this plan and was surprised that his master was favourably disposed to the idea, agreeing to the tactical advantages that it would provide. If Severus could manage to win the spot, then his master would be very pleased to have a spy at Hogwarts.

********

He planned to 'accidentally' run into Dumbledore here at the Hog's Head. Severus hadn't seen the Headmaster since he'd left school, so he thought a more informal encounter would be useful before filing a formal application for the position. He had a pocketful of sweets ready, just in case.

Just after one o'clock, the entrance door of the Hog's Head swung open, and the unmistakable form of Albus Dumbledore entered, his enormous magical presence filling the room. Severus had almost forgotten the depth of that power and was instantly reminded why his master considered this wizard his greatest enemy. He watched as the Headmaster had a few quiet words with the barman, whom, he noted, held up four fingers. Dumbledore nodded and then ascended the staircase behind the bar to the rooms above.

At a quarter past one, Severus' curiosity began to tug at him as he wondered about the interview in progress above him. Looking around, he noted that the barman wasn't at the bar, and without a second thought, he got to his feet and made for the staircase. He cast a Silencing Charm upon himself to quiet his ascent. On the first floor, he noted rooms numbered one to three. At the landing on the second floor, the number "4" was etched onto the first door.

Now that he was here, he realised he wasn't sure how to proceed. He hadn't intended on eavesdropping on the interview, but now that he was here, he supposed it couldn't hurt. He'd listen for a bit, return to his table downstairs, and greet the Headmaster as he was leaving.

Kneeling down so his head was level with the keyhole in the door, he was surprised to actually hear voices and wondered why Dumbledore hadn't put an Imperturbable Charm on the door. The woman's voice was high and fluttering. Dumbledore's tone of voice conveyed to Severus that he was forcing himself to be polite. He clearly wasn't interested in hiring this woman. Severus smirked.

Being a spy is much more fun than raiding and pillaging.

Then something very strange happened inside room number four. The high, fluttery voice of the woman changed. It dropped into a deeper register and rasped as if clawing through air. As he listened, the words etched themselves into Severus' mind as if they'd been written there with a quill:

"THE ONE WITH THE POWER TO VANQUISH THE DARK LORD APPROACHES.... BORN TO THOSE WHO HAVE THRICE DEFIED HIM, BORN AS THE SEVENTH MONTH DIES... AND THE--"

"BOY!"

Severus' heart nearly stopped in shock as he leapt to his feet to meet the angry and haggard face of the Hog's Head barman.

"I ought to wring your stupid neck, invadin' someone's privacy like that!" the older man yelled. Severus, who had faced an angry Lord Voldemort, was suddenly struck dumb in the face of this man.

"Well... I... er... was just..." he spluttered.

At that moment, to make an abominable situation even worse, the door behind him opened, and Albus Dumbledore appeared.

"Mr. Snape? What are you doing here?" asked the old wizard, looking astonished to see him.

Time seemed to stop for a moment as Severus took in his surroundings and the terrible predicament in which he now found himself.

Inside the room, the woman, rousing herself from the trance she'd been in (for surely that had been an actual prophecy he'd heard), stood and glared at him as if he'd caught her in a compromising situation, her eyes huge behind her spectacles and her many arm bracelets jangling as she clasped her hands to her breast. In the doorway, the Headmaster wore an expression of mixed confusion, suspicion, and alarm. Behind him the barman fumed, looking ready to toss Severus, bound and gagged, into the lake.

Severus was trapped. His future ruined in a stupid, ill-conceived moment of idiocy worthy of a Gryffindor.

A fine spy I'd make, if I manage to cock up such a simple plan!

"I beg your pardon, sir," Severus began, trying to pull his scrambled thoughts together. "I--I must have taken the wrong set of stairs. But when I heard your voice, sir, I thought I might take the opportunity to speak with you--"

"A rather odd way of coming to speak with me, Severus. Why not schedule an appointment?"

He knows I'm lying! But...

"I thought to take advantage of... the moment, sir, to speak to you about the position..."

"Let me toss him for you, Albus!" barked the barman.

"I think I can manage the boy, Aberforth. Give us just a minute before I hand him over to you, eh?"

The barman sneered at Severus one last time before turning and heading back down the stairs.

The Headmaster turned to the woman in the room. "I do apologize for the interruption, Sibyll. I'll be back with you in just a moment, all right?" The woman tossed her head with a great sniff of indignation and floated back down on the tattered sofa. Dumbledore closed the door behind him and turned back to Severus. They didn't speak for a moment, and Severus was careful not to make direct eye contact with the Headmaster.

"What will you do now, my boy?" Dumbledore finally asked, pain clearly visible in his ancient eyes.

He always knows. This thought pulled at Severus like an ache.

"I apologise, sir. I seem to have interrupted a very important meeting."

"It would seem so. You must go?"

Odd that it was a question.

"Yes, sir. I--I suppose I must."

Dumbledore nodded sadly. Just as Severus turned, the Headmaster put his hand on his shoulder.

"Sir?"

"There may come a time when you'll need my help. I hope you'll think of me, Severus. Please remember that."

Severus swallowed roughly, then turned and left as quickly as he could, the words of the Seer and the Headmaster ringing in his ears.

A/N:
Latin-based etymology for "TenPin Alley": balieum - a bathing place plus cuniculus - an underground passage/rabbit warren. "Balicone" Alley was its original name, based on the combined Latin derivatives. Then it became "Cone Ball" Alley. The image of this name led to its current designation. I made this up.

The switching-the-necklace-before-it-ever-got-to-the-cave theory comes from the always-clever JOdel, the very prolific Red Hen. I think it's the best of all the theories I've read. So I used it! You can read "Raiders of the Lost Horcrux" here:
http://redhen-publications.com/Horcrux.html
Thank you, J!

Hugs and many, many thanks go to my shiny betas: songbook99 and capella_black!!!