Summary: After being accused of being a Death Eater, Severus Snape is sent to Azkaban. While there he meets a familiar prisoner—Sirius Black. While in Azkaban, the two discuss an event from the past, and relive a horrible memory.
Severus Snape walked down the dark, dreary hallway of Azkaban. A guard held his arms in a tight grip, as he led Severus to a cell towards the end of the hallway.
Severus watched the other prisoners as he walked down the hallway. Most of them looked as if they had gone insane, and every now and then one of them would let out a shriek of mad laughter.
When Severus got to the end of the hallway, the guard opened the metal cell door with a clang, and roughly shoved Severus inside.
Severus stumbled and fell onto the cold, stone floor. A voice in the corner let out a bark-like laugh.
"Is that you, Snivellus? I knew I'd see you here someday," The voice said, barely louder than a whisper.
Severus got to his feet and looked to the corner.
Sirius Black was sitting in the corner, sneering at Severus. It had only been several years since Severus had seen Sirius, but Sirius's appearance had changed quite a bit. His hair had grown longer and was tangled. His face looked worn and tired and his eyes were dull. But unlike the other prisoners, Sirius seemed fairly sane. It was as if the Dementors had not affected him the way they had with the other prisoners.
"I'm less than shocked to see you're here, Black. After you betrayed and helped murder your best friends and a dozen useless Muggles. Why don't you just admit it? You sold Potter and the Mudblood to the Dark Lord. You are nothing more than a murderer and a coward," Snape said.
"I did not sell Lily and James to Voldemort! It was Peter Pettigrew who-"
"Who was stupid enough to find you after Potter was killed. That idiot never had much sense. After he found you, you killed him before he could even raise his wand. I see you've obviously lost your mind in Azkaban," Snape sneered.
"I have not lost my mind! I would never betray my friends!" Sirius said hotly.
"Please stop denying the truth, Black. It's rather boring listening to you try and convince me of otherwise. I am not stupid, despite what you may think."
Sirius glared at him, and Severus wondered if Sirius might try and hit him, but before he could raise a fist, a chilling feeling swept over them.
Severus turned around and saw a Dementor gliding toward him. The air was now very chilly, and Severus could see Sirius shivering beside him. Severus could feel the Dementor's effects. Nothing was going to be okay. He'd never feel the same again. The Dementor moved in closer, pulling Severus into an unhappy memory…
Eleven year old Severus Snape sat huddled up in a corner, sobbing while his father yelled at his mother over a letter that had arrived earlier that evening. That letter had been his Hogwarts acceptance letter.
Even though his mother almost never talked about the wizarding world, Severus did know a bit about it. He had secretly read some of his mother's books late at night. He loved to read, and the wizarding world seemed quite fascinating. From the day he learned his mum was a witch, he dreamed of attending Hogwarts. It was the perfect escape. But now, as his father yelled at his frightened looking mum he wished he would have never gotten the letter.
"We can't afford it!" His father roared.
"We could find a way," His mother said weakly.
"I will not let him turn out the way you have! Not even able to get a job because all you know is pointless magic!" Tobias yelled.
"And you've helped support us so much!" Eileen shot back
Tobias slapped her so hard across the face, that she stumbled backwards.
Severus could hardly watch his mother whimper like that. He buried his face in his arms and sobbed. He hated to think that he was the cause of this. Now, he wished more than anything that he had never even gotten the letter. There was no way he would even get to go to Hogwarts, and that stupid letter had caused another fight between his parents.
Sirius's POV:
While Severus Snape was reliving that unhappy memory, the Dementor was also reminding Sirius Black of a day he would have rather forgotten…
Sirius Black cornered Peter Pettigrew, pointing his wand in Peter's face, his own face twisted with rage. He couldn't believe that after all the time he'd known him that it had finally come to this. Part of Sirius wanted to think that it was all a mistake. That Peter hadn't betrayed Lily and James, and that it was all a misunderstanding. The other part of him wanted to cause Peter as much pain as possible.
"So, why did you turn your back on us, you filthy rat?" Sirius hissed.
"S-Sirius, you don't understand! He would have-" Peter started to explain.
"What he would have done is nothing compared to what we would have done! How could you betray us like that? Haven't we been good enough for you? Or did you finally get bored and decide to go find some new friends to follow around?" Sirius asked coldly.
"No! You see, Sirius, it's not me it's Remus! Yes, he's the one-"
"How dare you! How dare you accuse Remus of selling James to…to him! I know it was you, you coward! And you should have known that if he didn't kill you, I would have!" Sirius roared.
"YOU BETRAYED LILY AND JAMES POTTER!" Peter suddenly shouted.
"What! It was you who-"
But before Sirius could even finish his sentence, Peter quietly muttered something out of the corner of his mouth, and suddenly everything behind him was blown to bits.
Sirius gasped in shock at the horrible sight. Dead bodies everywhere, people screaming. He couldn't believe that Peter, the Peter he had known for so long, had done this.
Sirius turned his attention back to Peter, but all he saw was a rat scurrying down into the sewer.
"Come back here, you coward!" Sirius yelled. But he knew it was pointless.
Then, Sirius actually laughed. Because for the first time, Peter had actually out-smarted him.
Sirius felt the Dementor slowly back off of him and Snape, and move away to a different prisoner.
Sirius shivered. He hated reliving those memories. He looked over at Snape, who looked horrified.
"I expect you'll be here for a long time, Snivellus, so you better get used to that," said Sirius.
Snape smirked. "I wouldn't be so sure, Black. I'll have you know, Dumbledore is speaking to the whole Wizard Gamot on my behalf."
"Yeah right. Why would you get a trial? And why would Dumbledore believe you?" Sirius asked.
"Because I, unlike you, am innocent," Snape answered.
Sirius snorted. "And people think I'm insane."
Just then, the guard who had taken Snape to the cell returned.
"Severus Snape? The Wizard Gamot has reviewed your case. You are free to go."
The guard opened the cell door, and Snape got up to leave. Sirius's face froze in shock, as he watched Snape leave all his horrible memories behind, while Sirius remained in Azkaban, forced to relive his.