Snape and the Two Professors
After dealing with Petunia Dursley in a firm, but deliberately cruel manner, the three Professors walked out of No 4 Privet Drive, Snape very tired, for he had indulged the maximum inside the Dursley household, and the other two Professors slightly nervous about their fate. They were now to be given their sentences in playing their part of making the life a child miserable and abused.
"Shall we first visit Figg?" Snape asked in an uncharacteristic show of wanting to postpone a debate where he was on the right and he would be dishing it out to people who were in the wrong. This was so unlike Snape, that it stunned Albus Dumbledore for a second, before he smiled once again at the unpredictability of his young colleague.
"We shall Severus." He agreed and they walked the short distance to Figg's home. Arabella Figg was in the garden scolding a cat for something.
"Trevor," She was saying in a shrill voice. "You really mustn't eat slippers dear. You'll fall sick." The said Trevor stared unblinking at Figg, whereupon the old woman laughed gently and patted Trevor on his head. "Good boy. I'm so glad you say so."
Since all three Professors knew Figg was a squib and that Trevor was an ordinary cat, they stared bemused at this conversation for a second, before they continued towards the gate. Figg saw them as they neared her gate and she ran out to meet them, sheer pleasure shining on her face.
"Albus, Minerva," the pleasure stumbled a bit and then picked itself up with a stammer. "Sev … Severus. Welcome."
"Hello Arabella." Dumbledore said quietly.
They went inside Figg chattering excitedly, before blushing heavily as she realised that the other three were very quiet and rather sombre. Well Snape was scowling, but that was hardly unusual, she thought.
"Arabella," Dumbledore sighed, "We are here to ask about young Harry's treatment at the hands of the Dursleys."
Arabella Figg's face crumpled in sorrow.
"Oh Albus. They were dreadful to dear Harry. It was a wonderful, wonderful day, when Harry no longer returned to such horrible people. If you hadn't stressed upon me the importance of the dear lad's safety and that there was no other place, where he could be safe from You-Know-Who, I'd have demanded within a day he must be removed from there and that those dreadful, dreadful people be punished by the Law. How many days I've wept Albus. Even when he came here, I had to treat him casually, when all I wanted to do was to give him a hug."
She sobbed and the three Professors stood petrified at what they were hearing.
"I stopped myself with the greatest difficulty, telling myself that if You-Know-Who's followers get hold of little Harry, he would be tortured far worse than he was now. But let me tell you it was not a comfort and on some days I felt the Dursleys were hardly better. I cursed you so much dear Albus that you must forgive me, for placing me in a situation, where I would witness such abuse and be so helpless."
She wiped her eyes and jumped to her feet. "Look at me. Such poor manners. Let me get you all a cuppa." Saying so she ran into the kitchen and soon the three could hear the kettle whistling. Dumbledore and McGonagall sat there utterly miserable as they heard Arabella Figg. Merlin what had they done!
They could not meet Snape's eyes and they looked down, all things they wanted to ask Figg forgotten. She soon came bustling in, carrying a rather large tray and was surprised, when Dumbledore usually so considerate, did not offer to help. Instead she was startled by Snape taking the tray gently from her hands and pouring the tea. They sat there, listening to Figg chat about her cats and Dumbledore thought he must have made the right noises, since she chatted away happily and saw them out after a decent interval.
The three Professors walked down the road and their feet took them to the Park nearby. They sat down in one of the benches.
Dumbledore bent his head. "I'm so sorry. Merlin I never realised."
McGonagall could not talk to save her life just then.
After a while of oppressive silence, McGonagall slowly turned to Severus. "What is our punishment to be Severus?"
Severus did not answer for a long while. Then he sighed.
"I'm hardly in a position to condemn you Minerva. I'm no angel myself, as you well know. While I may not have indulged myself in the raping and the cruel torture, looking away as they happened made me equally if not more culpable. My justification cannot be that I was not as deranged as Bellatrix or Carrow or Avery or McNair. So I can hardly judge you. Me of all people." He laughed bitterly.
"That's not true Severus." Dumbledore said quietly. "If I've known anyone who worked for Voldemort's downfall, I'd say it was you, apart from Harry of course."
"That's hardly any comfort Albus. What I want, desperately need is to be able to forgive myself for what I did. I fail at that every day."
McGonagall's eyes filled with tears that leaked down her cheeks and dripped into her robes.
"Than that shall be our punishment too Severus." She whispered. "And I'm sure that is one thing I will find it difficult to do. To forgive myself of what I did to an innocent child who had already faced too much in its eighteen months." A choked sob escaped her as she realised what Snape's penance was.
How was she ever going to look at herself and say 'I forgive you for what you did to a small baby?' She bent down her head in acceptance.
Dumbledore sighed. "I don't think I will ever be able to forgive myself for this Severus. There are some things that will hurt even after my death. This, like so many things I've done over the years will be one of them. But I will try. And like with everything I'm sure I'll fail to do the one thing I know Harry already did. Forgave me and indeed all of us."
Saying so, Dumbledore stood up and vanished. McGonagall wiped her eyes and stood up too. She nodded to Snape, a respect in that nod that had never been there before, as she too vanished. Severus started at the spot she was standing, before he too vanished.
End