Severus Snape barged into the office of Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, wrenched a memory from his own head, and flung it into the Pensieve.
"In a mood today, Severus?"
"Just-!"
Dumbledore gave Snape a moment to finish his sentence. When it was clear he wouldn't, he frowned. "That bad? I suppose I'll have to see for myself."
The two of them entered Snape's memory and Snape immediately winced at his ill luck, as they had landed in the worst possible moment.
"Ah. I see."
The memory of the Dark Lord was kissing the memory of Snape. Passionately. In front of all the Death Eaters.
"What is the meaning of this?" both Snapes said simultaneously.
Dumbledore flicked his wand and the scene froze. "Are you certain that this is not a ruse?"
"I am not even certain that this is reality! I find myself hoping that this is just a very bizarre dream that I can simply never reveal to anybody."
"Indeed. Let us continue." Another flick, and the memory resumed.
"Yes, that! What he said!" the memory of Bellatrix shouted.
"Silence, Bella." She shut up, as her Lord commanded. "My dear Severus, surely you've wondered why, lately, I have been sending you away from me at any opportunity."
"Since you always had a task for me, I assumed that was the point. As for the increased workload, well, we are preparing for a war."
"Ah, Severus. I have many servants. I did not need to send you on all of those tasks. Yet I did, because your presence filled me with a strange desire."
"Oh, dear." Dumbledore frowned. "The Dark Lord lusting for one of his servants. That has never happened before."
The memory of Snape stared at the memory of the Dark Lord in shock. "D- desire, my Lord?"
"Indeed. Such a desire has never been in my thoughts before, not at any point in my life. So I took one of our prisoners, showed it the memory of the feeling, and broke its spirit until it told me what it was. Naturally, of course, I killed the prisoner afterwards.
"And what it told me, I found most strange. It called this feeling 'love'. Dumbledore has often preached the virtues of love. I assumed he meant to distract me from purifying the Wizarding race. And yet, I find that it only redoubles my conviction."
And there the memory ended.
"What is this, Albus? I can't- there's no way-" Snape stammered incoherently.
"Indeed. I doubt that the Dark Lord truly feels love, even now. And yet, there's always the chance..." Dumbledore sank deeply into thought. "This could be the thing that ends the war."
"How?"
"I am thinking. If it is a ruse, I do not wish to tip our hand. Yet if it is genuine, I do not wish to do too little. It may be some days before I have a plan." The Headmaster looked at his charred arm. "We may not have that long."
Shortly thereafter, the Dark Lord and his Death Eaters attacked Hogwarts, and Dumbledore was killed by Snape, just as planned. All three of them went to their graves wondering if Voldemort had truly loved Snape, and if it all could have ended differently.