Note: I don't own anything.

By now, some of you might notice that I've borrowed some things from Toaru no Majutsu Index aka A Certain Magical Index and placed them in the story. It's not necessary a crossover as I've changed even those additions a bit to suit my own ends. Honestly, it's kind of difficult to come up with unique Christianity-based magic.

IIII:::IIII

Three years had passed since Severus found himself in the company of the "congregation" that made up the Anglican Church of St. Paul before they welcomed him into their home. Though it was much better than Spinner's End, Severus found himself having to do quite a number of chores during the time when he wasn't studying magic, not that he had any problems as they were moderately light most of the time but have proven to be a bit taxing on some days. The inhabitants of the church were very pleasant, though Severus somewhat favored Sisters Orsola and Lucia; the former being motherly although the blond twenty-five year old nun was a bit of an airhead while the younger latter was serious and strict as those traits made her capable of exerting authority to command a majority of the nuns despite her being only eighteen. It had only been a few months ago that the Necessarius had welcomed a whole congregation of nuns that had left the Roman Catholic Church after events in Japan, which brought Orsola Aquinas to the group, and later in Italy, which later resulted in Agnese Sanctis and a paramilitary group of nuns. Severus didn't know on what went on in Japan but the Italy issue had something to do with the Queen of the Adriatic Fleet.

Throughout his stay while skipping his third, fourth, and fifth years of Hogwarts in favor of alternative education from a combination of the clergy and private tutors, Severus experienced a difference. No longer did he have to cower in fear from his good-for-nothing father at home when studying magic as he could certainly practice it freely in the presence of the monks and nuns that were also testing out their magical abilities in the church. He had even begun learning how to cast the unique spells that they knew and utilize the various inventions that they created. Taking Cataline's constructive remarks to heart, Severus placed greater effort in improving his personal hygiene, hoping to maintain the exact degree of cleanliness that the green-haired nun had done to him. He cut his hair down to a fine trim, making it easier to clean while not giving him the appearance of someone with greasy hair. Severus had even spent a longer time in the shower than he normally did back when living at Spinner's End. During his three-year absence from the magical world's public radar, Severus learned that his father was killed by Muggle robbers during what would have been his fourth-year at school while his old home was ransacked. Well, he had no reason to return and was secretly not sorry about his last living parent ending up dead.

Amidst the change of atmosphere for the better, Severus was amazed on the impression that one simple yet lengthy conversation with Ellen Hawkins had left on him shortly after his initial arrival.

"No need to rush, dear child." Ellen commented lightly as she watched Severus devour the fish and chips meal a bit hastily before sipping some tea. The meal room was empty save for the pair and minutes passed before Severus cleaned his plate and cup of tea. Ellen wandlessly banished both.

"Regarding your question earlier, what you saw was a rallying sermon for the anti-pureblood extremists that live amongst our brothers and sisters." Ellen began. "Just like there are witches and wizards that despise those that are not purebloods, there are witches and wizards that abhor those of pureblood descent as well. Hatred is never one-sided."

"How is that possible? I always thought that Christianity, regardless of the differing sects, preached about love from God." Severus spoke.

"That is true but no matter how well we follow our Holy Lord's teachings, straying and mistakes will still plague us." Ellen answered. "Many have come to understand that hatred and intolerance, no matter how undesirable, came from human nature and they exist as the antithesis to love and acceptance. We would never truly know what love is without the existence of hatred in life. I only hope that the extremists that are our brothers and sisters will understand some day on where the course of their ideals will take them. I wish I could tell you more but I'm bound by oath to never talk about the more intimate details outside the church."

Severus could somewhat grasp the gist of Ellen's explanation before eventually nodding in understanding when he thought about his parents; a loving magical mother and a hating Muggle father. At least he could understand that much when it came to his experiences with them.

"I'm still unable to truly comprehend so I'll ponder on that later." Severus spoke before asking further about the anti-pureblood group and how it arose. He even offered to take an Unbreakable Oath on his magic to keep silent on the issue.

"It's a long story and I'll get to it later. I do want you to know that you are welcome to make your home here with us if you desire." Ellen spoke.

Severus was at a crossroads on whether he should make the oath or refrain from asking further. Then again, the atmosphere of the church made him more relaxed and at peace such that he didn't want to leave. It seemed better than staying at Spinner's End so it didn't take him long to decide.

"I want to stay here as my new home and I will take an oath to never disclose anything pertaining to the secrets regarding the church." Severus spoke with conviction in his voice.

Ellen smiled before taking the silver Anglican Cross off and held it before Severus, instructing him to place his right hand over it.

"Do you swear on your magic to uphold the obscurity of all secrets of the church and never reveal them to the outside willingly?" Ellen asked as the cross began to glow a silver-white.

"I do." Severus answered without hesitation.

"While you are still a child, do you swear to never betray me or the church that you have accepted as your new home?" Ellen asked.

"I do." Severus answered without hesitation once more.

Ellen nodded as the cross glowed before she spoke. "I, Ellen Hawkins, accept your oaths."

The blond nun then placed the cross back over her neck. "When you reach adulthood, you'll be released from the second oath as I want you to have the freedom to choose your path in life. I don't know how long you'll be staying but I have a feeling that you have great aspirations in the magical world."

Clearing her throat, Ellen spoke. "It started a long time ago when magic was persecuted and the mundane were bewitched. From the medieval times, magical people generally held the advantage against those that sought to persecute them and so many innocents had been mistakenly killed. I'm sure you've known as much from the History of Magic class that is taught at Hogwarts. But there was one event that nearly destroyed magical Britain and that was the war started by the Necessarius, the Church of Necessary Evil."

"The Church of Necessary Evil?" Severus asked in surprise. He had never heard of this before, especially in History of Magic although Culbert Binns seemed more focused into goblin rebellions as the main staple.

"It was a group that consisted of the Anglican clergy along with monks and nuns that were part of the Church of England. Most if not all individuals were capable of using magic." Ellen replied before giving Severus a history lesson. "The group of magical clergy started during the era of witch hunts and all of its members learned magic in order to fight magic on an equal footing. Though they were a part of the Church of England, the group was looked down upon and eventually driven out by the Puritans. The group settled in St. George's Cathedral and slowly grew in power. But it was in 1585 that a group of Muggle-born witches and wizards offered their services to the Church of England on assisting in their inquisitional hunt and persecution of the magical world. After hearing their request for an audience being rejected, the magical clergy stepped in and accepted them. With their combined knowledge and fresh ingenuity, the magical clergy and its new allies not only taught and trained Anglican priests that were capable in using magic but even went further by experimenting and creating their own unique spells and inventions that greatly deviated from the mainstream. For five years, it was only development and silent monitoring of the magical world that they sought to destroy until 1590. That year, they went out and assisted in the anti-occult inquisition, following a fight fire-with-fire policy by using the very powers that were considered blasphemous in the eyes of Christianity. Calling themselves the Necessarius or the Church of Necessary Evil, they assisted in tracking down and capturing many witches and wizards prior to confirmation on authentic catches, which they later executed. Some of the Necessarius went further by engaging in acts of terrorism such that communities in the magical world were decimated and even entire family lines were wiped out. Even some Quidditch games in magical Britain were targeted by them. The Wizard's Council was thrown in disarray by the activities of the Necessarius for ten years, given that they could easily strike without warning before blending in with the Muggle clergy of the local churches. It was only in 1600 that a failed raid on Hogwarts exposed the existence of the Necessarius to the Wizard's Council, which took action against every church in Britain in order to draw the covert group out into the open. The defeat of the Necessarius came at the Battle of Canterbury Cathedral in 1610, ending in a pyrrhic victory for the fledging Ministry of Magic that became the governing body of magical Britain that we know today. Despite the defeat, the Necessarius had retreated into the shadows with a good amount of their followers before they eventually yet secretly took over the Church of England, whom had been severely weakened by the loss of their power base in Canterbury. Of course, two years later, the Goblin Rebellion came about."

During Ellen's explanation, Severus could barely imagine what he was hearing. A Muggle-born uprising was started by a group that was part of the Church of England? Twenty years of turmoil because of this event? Oh, Severus was completely enamored and awestruck by this information, which he certainly would never reveal to anyone that wasn't part of the church.

"Why would they be so hell-bent on destroying magical Britain like that?" Ellen asked.

"Aside from the political and social injustices done to them, they had seen magic being used to manipulate others or seize control of their free will as the Imperious Curse is known to do." Orsola answered. "It wasn't uncommon for love potions to be used along with various other magical means to meddle in the affairs of Muggles. Young couples being broken up by a jealous witch that wanted the man or a wizard that wanted the woman, young virgins being raped and then Obliviated of the memories, families torn apart by enchantments that influence emotions. These were just some reasons out of many. One Muggle-born woman that was part of the original group, Helena Stuart, was claimed by the Prewitt family in her time as a concubine before watching as her family was killed to prevent her with a means of retaliating, all with approval from the Wizards' Council favoring the Prewitts. She later fled and managed to join others that shared her views before being elevated as the supreme leader during the extreme years of the Necessarius's activities up to the Battle of Canterbury where she was killed."

"All of this sounds so amazing but why isn't this in the history books?" Severus asked.

"The purebloods that hold power in the government are too embarrassed that a Muggle-born witch had gotten the better of them for so long and nearly destroyed magical Britain." Ellen explained. "Being bested by a Muggle-born is bad enough, but the fact that it was a woman as well was a double knockout to them in a magical world where men made themselves supreme. They'll do anything to keep this event from seeing the light of day in the magical world. But that doesn't mean that we don't have journals and Pensieve memories to prove that it happened. It's one reason why there are so many monks and nuns here and elsewhere to guard our respective archives." Orsola replied before adding. "Though it's unfortunate that Helena Stuart had died, some of the Necessarius had survived to continue living in the shadows without letting anyone in the magical world know that they are still alive. Though the original goal of destroying magical Britain is no longer viable, that doesn't mean that the Necessarius won't take action if the Ministry cannot stop this self-styled Dark Lord and reform their government."

Even though three years have passed since that conversation, Severus could feel that it was just yesterday when a whole new truth had been revealed to him. Even though he hadn't been to Hogwarts, that didn't mean he couldn't sit the OWLs, which he did during the winter of 1975. His results came out with Outstandings in almost all of his subjects while only his History of Magic came out with an Acceptable. Somehow, he had a feeling that some of the essay questions that he had answered with content that he had learned from the library at the church were either not well received or just flat out considered to be invalid. Despite the grade, Severus knew that the subject lacked true definite and objectively correct answers more often than others. History was generally written by the victors and viewpoints twisted objective facts.

Currently at the moment, Severus was still at the church, packing his things before he was to leave during the evening. It was September 6th and he knew that he had missed possible classes on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday due to further training and creating a convincing story involving his unexplained disappearance. With an authentic copy of his OWL results, it was time for him to head back to Hogwarts for the first time in three years. He wondered on how much had changed since his unexplained absence but the biggest obstacle would be the amount of questions that would be fielded towards him by his Head of House and possibly the Headmaster, whom the current archbishop had personally warned him to be weary of due to his habit of using Legilimency. It wasn't often that Severus would be addressed by Laura Stuart herself but he took her word with utmost seriousness. Then there would be questions from his fellow classmates, one of them being Lily Evans. Even though he couldn't reveal everything to her, Severus would at least be the most truthful to her in his answers than he would with others.

Moments later, Severus left the church before taking the Floo Network at the empty house across the street for Hogsmeade.

IIIII:::::IIII

That very evening under a large anti-Apparition Jinx, chaos was running rampant in Diagon Alley as a group of new initiate Death Eaters were led by Bellatrix and Rodolphus Lestrange were having fun. It was by chance that Fenrir Greyback and some of his associates tagged along, hoping to revel in the carnage. While the attack was primarily diversionary as ordered to be by the Dark Lord Voldemort, whom was leading another attack of his own at the Ministry with most of his inner circle, he had also allowed both of them to have a bit of leisure of their own while leading initiates and letting them contribute in showing off power and capabilities in order to prove themselves. Curses were being fired left and right as people were running for their lives. Some were struck down and killed instantly, leaving dead bodies behind. Some people were tortured while begging for mercy before being either killed or bitten.

A few minutes into their initial attack passed before the group split up to hunt down targets in different locations. Bellatrix and Rodolphus had gone into the Slug and Jiggers Apothecary before seeing a familiar face. It was none other than Andromeda Tonks and her husband Ted Tonks alongside some of the people that were running from one direction.

"Well, hello there, Andi!" Bellatrix cackled, catching Andromeda's attention before sending the Killing Curse at her. But a swift movement pushed Andromeda to the ground before she turned to see Ted Tonks being struck by the Killing Curse. As in slow motion, the man slowly fell to the ground with lifeless eyes that showed that he was dead instantly.

"Teddy! Teddy!" Andromeda screamed, frantically shaking her dead husband. Already, the body of Ted Tonks was cold as clay before the realization that he was dead registered in Andromeda's mind. Bellatrix's cackling laughter drew her attention as Andromeda turned to face her elder sister with an expression of fiery rage written all over her face.

"You!" Andromeda screamed before she non-verbally sent the Cruciatus Curse at Bellatrix, who shrieked as she fell to her knees. Rodolphus had been momentarily stunned in seeing the sadistic maniacal look on Andromeda's face and how it made his sister-in-law look exactly like Bellatrix when his wife was having fun. Yet, hearing her screams drew him out of his stupor before he sent a Bludgeoning Hex at Andromeda, who had been too focused in putting her hate and desire to hurt into the curse that she had Bellatrix under to notice the threat. The incoming spell connected to her right knee and Andromeda collapsed on the ground, grabbing her right leg in pain.

Breathing heavily as she tried to regain herself, Bellatrix couldn't believe the amount of power and pain that Andromeda could put into the Cruciatus Curse, a first time in seeing her younger sister's dark side manifesting and being drawn out. Yet, amid being tortured, Bellatrix managed to use Legilimency on Andromeda and finding out that she had given birth to one Nymphadora Tonks before withdrawing a moment later.

"Andi, Andi. That wasn't very nice. I was just doing you a favor after all. A gift to you from me." Bellatrix cooed in a sing-song voice. "Maybe little Nymphadora might scream much louder for Rodolphus and I to see."

"Leave my daughter out of this!" Andromeda snapped. "She's innocent!"

"Oh, I'm just doing my part in pruning undesirables off the Black line." Bellatrix sneered before pointing her wand at Andromeda. "But first, I think I'll have fun with you before sending you off to meet your Mudblood husband. Crucio!"

Andromeda screamed in pain before Rodolphus joined in with his own Cruciatus Curse, causing his sister-in-law to scream even louder. Amid the excruciating torture, Andromeda's maternal instincts to protect the last legacy of her dead husband that was her child gave her strength enough to send a powerful Blasting Curse at her sister and brother-in-law. While her aim was a little short off the mark, the explosion blasted Bellatrix and Rodolphus back and, even though the shockwave wasn't enough to kill them, it was more than enough to break the combined Cruciatus Curse that they cast on her. Despite the amount of pain still on her nerves, Andromeda was running on adrenaline before she began running down Diagon Alley, intending to get out of the range of the anti-Apparition Jinx first in order to Apparate home and raise the wards.

Recovering from the blast, Bellatrix got to her feet before seeing Andromeda running off. The distance was too far for her to catch up but it wasn't too far for her to cast the Killing Curse or a Blasting Curse if she wanted to get messy. Bellatrix decided to go with the latter just as Rodolphus got to his feet while Fenrir Greyback along with three of his untransformed werewolf subordinates joined up with them.

"Aren't you going to go after her?" Rodolphus asked.

"Andi is as good as dead and she won't be able to escape my lasting part gift to her at this range." Bellatrix replied with a sadistic tone. "Oh well. Goodbye, little sister."

But just as Bellatrix was about to cast her strongest Blasting Curse, a young woman landed in the direction of her aim. The newcomer wore a dark yellow kirtle over a brown long-sleeve undershirt with removable dark yellow sleeves and wearing a headscarf that had a headband with a crown of thorns on the outside. She was also carrying a large hammer that has as long as her own height with the head being a large thick metallic cross with pointed ends and heavily wrapped in barbed wire. The newcomer had her back turned towards Bellatrix and her cohort.

"Tck…" Bellatrix clicked before sending the Blasting Curse at the newcomer that dared to step in her line of fire. The huge purple beam of light struck home before a loud explosion along with a thick cloud of smoke and stone debris erupted into the air due to the shockwave. But as Bellatrix watched, the cloud of smoke and stone debris suddenly began to swirl away like a tornado before vanishing to reveal the unknown stranger completely unfazed, much to their shock.

"It's a shame that all of you inbred sinners have no class." The newcomer spoke before turning towards Bellatrix and the Death Eaters, revealing her face. What was once beautiful was now tarnished by the many piercings on her face and ears, which had crosses hanging off her earrings.

"And who the hell are you to even talk to us like this?" Rodolphus inquired, placing a hand on his wife's shoulder as though asking her not to speak.

"She's just some foul Mudblood." Bellatrix screeched before feeling her Dark Mark burn.

"Yet she's quite a tasty find as well." Fenrir sneered.

"Fenrir, why don't you and your associates take care of her? I'm sure you all are eager to sink your teeth into her virgin flesh." Rodolphus suggested as he too felt his Dark Mark burn before he and Bellatrix turned to leave.

"Such a shame." The newcomer spoke. "So the lovely couple has no intention of fighting?"

"We have better things to do than waste time with you." Bellatrix replied before she and Rodolphus walked off.

"Tut, tut." The newcomer spoke, watching the pair Disapparate. "Looks like those two obviously judge too quickly but then again, the purebloods are hardly ever for investigating things thoroughly. No matter, it's a small matter. I guess I will just have to take care of business now in burning the chaff that stands before me. So little doggies, are you all ready to have fun? Remember my name as Vento of the Front!"

With a sinister chuckle, Vento stuck on her tongue out to reveal her tongue piercing that had a thin chain attached to a cross such that Fenrir and his three subordinates were slightly amused by the display, unaware that there was more to their prey than meets the eye.

IIIII::::IIIII

The moment that Severus emerged from the fireplace in the Hog's Head, he noticed that it was surprisingly a student weekend going on outside before heading out of the pub. Given his short hair and clean-cut appearance along with his three-year absence, Severus looked like an unfamiliar face. By chance, he had even crossed paths with Peter Pettigrew and the latter didn't recognize him on eye-contact either. Severus didn't know if the Marauders were present before he heard a loud shout coming from a voice that had familiar words.

"NO POTTER! I'M NOT INTERESTED WHATSOEVER!"

"Come on, Evans! Can't you be reasonable for once?!"

"NOT IF IT INVOLVES YOU! SOD OFF!"

The sound of spellfire followed along with a loud shriek and Severus managed to arrive in time to see James Potter running off with a bunny tail protruding from his rear end. He then turned to find Lily leaning against the wall of a nearby store, breathing heavily with her wand still out. If Severus thought that Lily was cute back in their younger years, he had to admit that she was the true epitome of a redhead babe although he had seen beauties with crimson hair. Still, they didn't match up with his childhood friend.

"Quite the persistent fellow, isn't he?" Severus asked as he came up to her.

"You have no idea." Lily answered before she turned to look at him, a glint of recognition in her eyes yet she couldn't place a face. "Are you new?"

"Not really, Lily." Severus answered casually.

"How did you know my name?" Lily asked quizzically yet inside, she had a feeling that she had met him before.

"We've met before." Severus spoke before dropping the bombshell hint. "I remember a time when you and your older sister Petunia were on a playground where you showed accidental magic when you were nine. When I said you were a witch, you thought I was calling you a bad name."

"Sev?!" Lily gasped with shock as she looked more closely at him. She had never seen Severus with short hair before and his clean-cut appearance had made him nearly recognizable. His nose was also different, looking more well-formed instead of crooked and hooked.

"Lils, it's been a long time." Severus replied before finding himself in a bone-crushing hug as Lily literally tackle-hugged him right on the spot.

"Where have you've been all this time?!" Lily asked after she let go. "I came by but your father said you ran away. Then in fourth year, he was robbed and killed."

Lily then slapped Severus's chin before aggressively ranting. "You never called or wrote letters! Why?! Did you know how worried I was?! I thought the Death Eaters might have captured or killed you!"

Severus rubbed the redden part of his face. "I'm sorry for not staying in contact with you. I really have no excuse. Please forgive me."

Lily smiled before kissing the area on his chin that she had slapped earlier and answering with a sly grin. "You'll have to earn my forgiveness, Sev. But you look so healthy and handsome that I didn't recognize you!"

"Yeah, well. The nuns at the Anglican Church of St. Paul gave me what I think is called a complete makeover. It's hard at first for me to keep the standards but I got used to it after a while." Severus replied.

"The Anglican Church of St. Paul? You were there the whole time?" Lily asked incredulously.

Severus nodded. "It seemed a lot better than an orphanage at least. I had to earn my keep but it was much better living there than at Spinner's End."

"I felt some muscles in your arms." Lily giggled before noticing the time. "Oh, visiting hours are almost over. We should head back."

Severus nodded before he and Lily walked back to the castle. Along the way, both of them did a lot of catching up on a variety of topics. Severus kept the topic of the Necessarius out of the conversation while talking out what he had been doing during the three years that he was gone. Lily was impressed by Severus's OWL score sheet with the exception of his mark in History of Magic. But she was more surprised that the Anglican clergy at St. Paul Church were magically aware and some even studied magic independently. She then talked about how the junior Death Eaters were becoming a major annoyance but it was Potter and his cronies that were the worst ever since Severus had been gone. Severus couldn't doubt that James Potter and his gang had benefited greatly in his absence but since he was back in school, he was going to greatly disappoint them.

By the time they reached the castle, Severus and Lily found Professor McGonagall at the doors and the Deputy Headmistress was surprised.

"Mr. Snape?"

Severus nodded yet was on the edge with the Gryffindor Head of House. Nonetheless, he decided to remain as civil as he could be. "Professor McGonagall. Is the Headmaster in? I need to speak to him about my attendance for sixth year. I forwarded my OWL scores to the school back on August 31st."

"Yes, I'm very aware of that although I want to know on why you have not shown up on Sept. 1st." McGonagall asked curtly. "And there's also the issue regarding your unexplained disappearance during your third, fourth, and fifth years."

"I was feeling very ill with the flu so I stayed home." Severus answered, handing her a Healer's note. "As for my unexplained disappearance, I ran away from home and lived elsewhere. I needed a break and time to adjust to a new life."

"I see." McGonagall replied as she took the note and nodded. "In any case, both of you head to the Great Hall."

"Very well, Professor." Severus replied before he and Lily headed to the Great Hall. Once they entered, Lily kissed the side of Severus's mouth before heading to the Gryffindor table where she was swarmed by the girls.

"Lily, who was that guy?"

"For a snake, he sure was hot!"

"Is he your boyfriend?"

Lily merely smiled as she answered. "That was Severus Snape. All other questions, I plead the fifth from the English Bill of Rights."

A resounding cry of "WHAT?!" erupted from the Gryffindor table, all of whom were now aware. Sirius Black glared darkly at Severus but none more than James Potter. Even Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew were casting hateful glances at the Slytherin.

Once he arrived and took a seat at the Slytherin table, Severus found himself accosted by Avery, Rosier, and Wilkes.

"Well, the prodigal son returns to our glorious house." Avery spoke.

"We'd like to know where you've been, Snape." Wilkes added.

"There has to be a reason for your abandonment." Rosier added.

"Gentlemen, I have nothing to say other than the fact that I was enjoying a nice vacation." Severus answered before taking a sip of fruit punch from his goblet.

"In any case, we've been getting ready to step forward and serve the Dark Lord while you were gone." Avery spoke with authority. "You've got a lot of catching up to do."

"If you think I'm going to kowtow to some cutthroat bastard, then I'll save you the trouble and make it clear that he isn't worth my time to serve." Severus declared boldly.

"Is it because of that Mudblood that you walked in here with?" Rosier sneered. "That's low, blood traitor. Mudbloods and Muggles have no place in the world."

"I'm a half-blood and I find it stupid that your chosen terminology is misused on definitions." Severus spoke before standing up and glaring at Rosier. "I think you're jealous of Lily because you have been trounced constantly by a first-generation witch in class ever since you've stepped foot into the school and you still are if my guessing the possible low scores on your OWLs are correct."

Rosier was about to launch himself at Severus only to be held back by Avery and Wilkes. But Severus, feeling a bit overconfident, decided to bait them further in a slightly louder voice. "Did your mothers had to whore themselves out just to get you better OWL scores? I bet they put the local brothels out of business if they had to resort to using Amortenia and Lust potions just to get laid and then paid big time."

Just as he predicted, Rosier broke free from Avery and Wilkes, both of whom were beyond provoked at Severus's remarks that they wanted to pound him in. Ducking a swing from Rosier while spinning out to the side in evasion, Severus delivered a vicious round-the-house kick to back of his head with his right leg before grabbing the back of his foe's robes while still in motion before using all his strength to throw him into Wilkes, knocking the wind out of him that both were on the ground. Avery tried to punch Severus only to find his wrist caught in the latter's grip. Severus wasted no time in delivering a left leg sweep that took Avery off the ground before landing a clothesline to his diaphragm with his right arm. The sudden takedown of the trio in only a matter of seconds had drawn more than just the attention of every student in the Great Hall that were on their feet.

"MR. SNAPE! JUST WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING ATTACKING OTHER STUDENTS IN YOUR OWN HOUSE?!" the unmistakable voice of Albus Dumbledore roared with authority, scaring the student population that all of them quickly sat in their seats. Yet Severus remained standing without an iota of fear in his posture and expression. Rather, his stance wasn't unlike the defiance that Lucifer had when he faced God before being cast from Heaven.

"It's only a simple case of reacting to an immediate danger that they presented, Headmaster." Severus answered calmly just as the Headmaster and the Slytherin Head of House arrived on the scene. Dumbledore's eyes had the twinkle present, a sure sign of passive Legilimency being used. While Severus didn't think his Occlumency barriers were up to par yet, he could sense the contact lenses easily repelling the Legilimency probe.

"You should've gone to a faculty member if that was the case. Violence will not solve anything." Dumbledore spoke. "Fifty points from Slytherin and a detention for all four of you."

Now Severus would've objected as he often did whenever he both lost points and gotten detention for fighting Potter and his gang, all of whom Dumbledore apparently favored. But instead, Severus merely shrugged indifferently as though saying that he didn't give a damn.

Dumbledore certainly wasn't expecting this reaction or his inability to see into Severus's mind. The once meek Slytherin that had been bullied apparently became strong and confident. Did it have anything to do with his three-year absence that his guardian said was a sabbatical? The Headmaster felt that he may need to keep an eye on him before walking back to the main table.

Severus turned his Head of House, who asked in a tone that sounded mostly serious with a hint of amusement behind it. "Who taught you all that, Mr. Snape?"

"I'm friends with a former Taiwanese Intelligence Agent that I met during my three-year sabbatical." Severus answered.

"Apparently, Dumbledore has left your detention in my hands. See me in my office after dinner as I must discuss about your behavior." Slughorn spoke before turning to Avery, Rosier, and Wilkes. "As for you three, you'll be scrubbing cauldrons for a week."

IIII:::IIIII