I had this story up right after HBP came out but apparently you can't post song lyrics on FF.N so it was taken down and I was slapped on the wrists... Anyway, it is based on the song "Runaway Train" by Soul Asylum. I reworked it a little, taking the actual lyrics out of the story. Please R&R, it makes me very happy.

(And of course, I am not JK Rowling, I do not own HP)

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Dumbledore was gone.

Gone...

Long after the funeral there knelt beside the tomb one man cloaked in darkness. He neither spoke nor moved. A cricket looked curiously at this new wonder and gave an experimental chirp, but the figure gave no sign of life.

"Severus Snape! To what do I owe the pleasure of this meeting?"

He had not known what to expect when the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry opened the door, but this was most certainly not it.

"I need to speak with you Professor" Severus replied once his ability to speak returned to him. "It concerns my involvement with the dark Lord. I ... I think I need your help."

Albus Dumbledore smiled knowingly. "Come in my boy, have a lemon drop."

Thoughts swirled through Severus' mind as if propelled by an invisible current. So many things he never had a chance to say...

I know I will never be able to make up for what I have done Headmaster, but-"

"It is never too late Severus," Dumbledore interjected "as long as one is truly ready to turn from the ways that corrupted him, and is prepared to do whatever is necessary for the side of good." He gazed intently at him over his half-moon spectacles. "Are you prepared Severus?"

It seemed to the silent man that he was now in the very same place he had been in almost seventeen years ago. He had somehow allowed himself to hope that after a time his world would lighten, even a little. This sudden resurgence into darkness, however, pressed on his heart more painfully than ever.

Albus Dumbledore had been the only person who could have saved him, but in the end, he couldn't even save himself.

"I understand that there is... information you need that I can obtain for you" Severus ventured, "but in return-"

"Of course arrangements will have to be made for you" Dumbledore said with a twinkle in eye. "Perhaps you will consent to take on the position of Potions Master here at Hogwarts. You will be near enough to keep me informed, but more importantly, you will be safe here."

Sometimes he wondered if it would have been easier if he had never met the old man. The things Albus had done for him, Severus knew he would never have been able to repay, even if Dumbledore had lived for another hundred years.

The silent man stood abruptly causing the surprised cricket to flee. He quickly strode off towards the gate, clutching his left forearm, not once looking back at either the tomb or at the school he had called his home for so long. A loud crack disturbed the deathly silence of the night as Severus Snape apparated away from Hogwarts for the last time.

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I tried to be ambiguous as to where Snape's loyalties truly lie. I anxiously await Deathly Hallows to see where he will end up.

-Shadow-