Chapter 2: What Fate Hands You

Canon World

A/N: I decided to change this story's name. Hope that doesn't confuse too many people!

Also, thank you all, once again, for your wonderful reviews! You guys are the greatest! I hope you enjoy this one as well~ Back to the Canon world to check on AU Sev!

I do not own Harry Potter.

Please R&R~! Thanks!

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"Ah, Severus. Very good, my boy. Please take a seat," Albus said as Severus pushed through into his office once again.

"Albus, please tell me you have some idea what's going on here," Severus said tiredly as he slumped down before the headmaster's desk. Dumbledore was watching him intently and curiously, his piercing eyes seeming to dissect him more than usual. Almost on reflex, Severus raised his occlumency shields, but save for an extra twinkle in the headmaster's eyes, he continued to regard Severus as if he were some science experiment. Unsettled and becoming more impatient by the second, Severus growled "Well?"

"Yes, well Severus, I'm afraid this is going to be difficult for you to take in, but for the sake of all involved, I would appreciate if you would give this old man the benefit of the doubt and hold your judgment until I have had my say. If you would be so good?"

Severus sighed and put his face in his hands, nodding mutely. He then muttered, "That's fine, Albus. Just please…tell me I'm not going insane. What Harry said earlier…about Lily. He seemed to truly believe what he said. But…either he's going crazy or I am, because I know what I've experienced these past 15 years to be reality. So enlighten me…though," he added, a dark smile on his lips, "If you're simply going to tell me I'm suffering under the delusions of a memory charm, just have done with it and finish me here."

Dumbledore frowned. "Why, Severus. You can't mean that. I know you're too loyal and self-sacrificing to take such a cowardly way out."

Severus shook his head and offered a wry smile. "I wish I could tell you you're deceiving yourself, but unfortunately, I've been living with Gryffindors and martyrs for too damn long." Looking up and meeting Albus' piercing blue eyes, he ground his teeth and said, once again, "Well?"

Albus took a deep breath and clasped his hands before him, looking at Severus intently. "I have a test I need to perform to be sure, but if I am right, I can tell you things are both less and more vexing than you have suggested, Severus."

"I'm not in the mood for riddles, Albus."

"I'm sure. And surprisingly, a certain Riddle we are all-too familiar with is unlikely to be responsible in this case for our pains."

Severus glared at Albus in disbelief, and the old wizard sobered instantly, looking apologetic and sheepish.

"Quite right, dear boy. This is not the time for puns." He sighed and his face grew serious. "If I am correct, there is a clear explanation that would allow for both the events you remember and those that I do to be equally true. That you are here, amidst people who react to you differently than you would expect them to is evidence supporting my hypothesis. Though I am not entirely sure what has caused this to happen, it isn't the first time something similar has been recorded. Do you see what I am getting at, Severus?"

Slowly, Severus nodded, and he clenched his fists as he breathed out, "Dimension crossing. Is that what you're saying, Albus?"

"Precisely, Severus. In your world, you married Lily Evans, am I right? And…based on what I saw in this event-catcher my room has so handily supplied me with, you and Harry have quite a close relationship."

At Severus' impatient nod, Albus smiled sadly. "I'm sorry to say none of that happened here, my boy. But if you would be so good, this is what I excused myself earlier to get a hold of."

Albus lifted a vial of shimmering blue-purple liquid. After gazing at it intently for a while, Severus nodded, saying, "I see. With this you can examine my magical signature in detail, can you not?"

"Precisely. If you will go ahead, it would make things easier if we get this out of the way by the time Remus can convince our young Harry to set foot back in this room. It seems he was quite…riled when he left."

Severus didn't respond. The look of fear, confusion and hatred he had seen in Harry's eyes kept swimming before him, blocking his thoughts from arranging themselves coherently. He had to do something to make amends with the boy he now realized, with a jolt, must have no memory of being his son. With that disturbing thought, he reached out a hand and downed the solution in one.

Albus watched as Severus' body shone a pearlescent smoky blue, almost as if he were a ghost. With a wave of his wand, Albus drew the blue wisps from Severus' body and a ghost-like image of him was ripped from his solid body. Albus examined both the wispy gaseous Snape and Snape's body for a while, and as he did, his expression turned increasingly focused and grave. Lips pursed, he gently attempted to realign the magical impression with Severus' body, but the wispy formation rebelled, keeping away from him like a like pole of a magnet. With a nod of grim satisfaction, Albus waved his wand again, forcing the wisps back inside Severus with a flurry. The instant he was whole again, Severus opened his eyes and gasped, slumping in his chair.

Albus gently passed a cup of tea to Severus, laced with sugar and a strengthening draught and waited until the man seemed to have gained his bearings before he spoke.

"Well, Severus, we seem to have been correct. Your inner essence, and magical signature was repelled from this, your solid body. After examining both your solid presence and your inner magic, it is quite clear, my dear boy, that they are inherently different. Your magical signature has, at its core, traces of a kind of magic that exists nowhere in this world. Almost as if composed of different strains of DNA, your body and soul, shall I put it, do not currently match."

Severus took this disturbing information in stride, and simply nodded, saying, "And what effect will this have on my body? I presume the two can not coexist for an extended period of time?" He kept his voice calm and indifferent, but he could tell Albus wasn't fooled.

"You presume correctly. Unfortunately, to the best of my knowledge souls can only travel between realms at very certain instances and in very certain locations. The good thing is, these wormholes, shall we say, usually happen in pairs. What brought you here will eventually reappear to take you back. I just hope, however, that your body doesn't show too many signs of rejecting your essence before that happens."

"Though you don't bet on it," Severus finished what Albus had left unsaid. The headmaster gave a single nod.

"I see…so basically, I'm stuck here with my soul like a foreign contaminant in this body which will continue to reject it until, hopefully, a shift in the fabric of the universe arrives to take me home? How thrilling. What side effects am I to expect, Albus? And any idea when we might expect this second instability?"

Smiling sadly at the forced calm of Severus' voice, Albus said, "From what I know from past accounts of similar events, we can expect another to open within a year. It is possible that six months from the initial disturbance we might be able to send you back, but, from what I know about these sorts of phenomena, to be able to return, you will need to recover from your current magical exhaustion. Otherwise, you will be unlikely to survive the switch."

"And this is different from the signs I will feel later when my body begins to reject me, I presume?"

"Once again, you are correct. At this point, dear boy, rather than the effects of your body rejecting you will not feel more than a general tiredness due to the simple trauma of having your soul ripped from your world and instilled here. You see, currently, your body is using far too much energy to recover you from your recent crossing. Much like one's tendency to get sick only once the stress of exams are over, your body will only begin to register that something is wrong once you have sufficiently recovered. I wouldn't expect you to notice much of anything, however, for a good many months."

"I see…so if by the six-month mark I haven't begun to suffer these effects, suggesting my magic has sufficiently recovered, I won't be able to return at the half-year?"

"That is what I believe. What you will be experiencing, in truth, is your soul attempting to slip away from your body and back into its home world. If not by that point, you should certainly be able to return a year to the day you came here in the first place."

"Fabulous. Any more lovely news, headmaster?" He sneered.

Albus looked at him directly once again. "Well, the only other issue is that this will only work if both you and your counterpart are ready to return. You must both be positioned as you were when you arrived here, and both of your souls must be attempting to return. It is…certainly nothing to take lightly. I do not envy you, Severus, but I will not pity you, for I know how you would receive such gestures."

Despite himself, Severus half-smiled at this before pressing his palms to his eyes, attempting to let this all sink in.

He couldn't believe it. As things stood, it would be a miracle if he were able to make it home at all. What most concerned him, though, wasn't the prospect of some strange magical illness or how to survive in this other world for a time, but just how he could expect his counterpart to cooperate. For Severus only trusted his capacity to be self-sacrificing to a point. And he also understood what (or rather, who) his greatest weakness, as well as his greatest strength, had always been. Could he trust that his counterpart would desire to return here after having to survive alone for so long?

For Severus' sake, he hoped his counterpart was stronger than he was.

As Severus continued to sit quietly, lost in his thoughts, Albus briefed him vaguely on his plans for research on cross-dimensional travel before quietly clearing his throat to call Severus' attention more fully.

"Severus, I am sorry to do this to you now after such revelations, but I feel it best we push on to dealing with the reality you now find yourself in rather than looking only to escaping it."

Well, that did succeed in distracting him as he understood what his old friend meant. "Harry…" he breathed.

"Yes. I know it must be difficult, Severus, but though he is, essentially, the same, this Harry is not your son," Albus said, softly, smiling sadly. "Our Harry has been raised by his aunt and uncle ever since James and Lily Potter died when he was 2 years old."

Hearing Albus say it so definitely made the reality of the situation really hit Severus. To think that here, his Harry saw him as a stranger was just…so wrong. He felt numb, as if a big part of himself had simply fallen away. And with a cold, chilling finality, the other cold truth of this world hit him again as the strange emptiness of his living chambers fell into place in his mind.

Barely above a whisper, he said, "And Lily…she's truly…dead."

"I'm afraid so, Severus," Dumbledore sighed, and suddenly, he really did look his age.

Severus was quiet for a time, and simply sat with his face buried in his hands. Finally gathering his bearings somewhat, he swallowed and looked up to meet Albus' piercing gaze. He felt in his heart that he knew the answer to this next question already, but he felt it necessary to ask anyway. "Albus. The way Harry-the way he looked at me…am I to assume we aren't, well, close in this timeline?"

"I'm afraid not, Severus. You, that is, your counterpart has never been fond of Harry. But before you fret too much, rest assured the sentiments are quite mutual."

Severus only nodded once, numbly, before rubbing his temples with the palms of his hands. "This nightmare needs to be over," he said softly.

"Yes, well, from what I've seen of you so far, Severus, I believe you can turn this situation to your advantage. Forgive me for suggesting any added burdens, but I feel you could do much to help in this world. As far as getting you home, I assure you I will do my utmost to make the process as smooth as possible."

Severus just gave a weak nod and Albus continued, smiling slightly. "I hope you don't mind, but I had already informed Remus of my suspicions about where you had come from when I sent him to locate you, and I instructed him to fill Harry in with the most pertinent information. Hopefully, he will bring him back here not long from now. And now, once again, I must ask something of you. I'm afraid, that due to the nature of your counterpart's relationship with Harry, the bond of trust between you two is not at its strongest. It is for this reason I would like to employ the use of Veritaserum when Harry returns."

Severus scowled. "I think I can talk to my son without that, thanks," but he knew there was sense in the old wizard's words. This wasn't his Harry, no matter how he looked like him. But that didn't mean he wasn't, deep down, the same basic person with the same potential to become the boy he loved more than life itself. If a confession via veritaserum helped Harry to believe him, then so be it.

Severus nodded, and at that moment, Harry and Remus entered, the younger determinedly avoiding his gaze. Severus felt a deep pang in his chest as he watched him sit down on the opposite side of the room, back hunched and hands bunched in fists.

"Harry," Albus said cheerfully, "Thank you for joining us. I'm sure Remus has filled you in with our suspicions? That the Severus Snape we know and the one standing before us are not one and the same? That this Severus is from a world with an entirely different set of events?"

Harry nodded, but said nothing.

"And did Remus explain why this is relevant to you?"

Harry's face looked pained, as if he were being forced to admit to something absolutely vile, but he managed a stiff nod.

"Very good. I must first inform you that after further examination, I have determined our suspicions were correct. Severus is, indeed, from another dimension."

At this revelation, Remus looked up, only faint surprise in his eyes, and Harry gaped at the headmaster. For an instant, he met Severus' eyes, but the boy quickly flinched and looked away as if he'd been burned.

Choosing to ignore the tension in the room, Albus continued steadily, "Furthermore, Severus has accepted my condition that he be under Veritaserum while we question him…therefore, there will be no reason for you to doubt his words."

Harry looked momentarily shocked, and let his gaze, momentarily unguarded, once again brush by Severus', but he again quickly returned to staring at his hands. "Okay," he said softly.

"Very good," Albus nodded, satisfied. "Severus? Are you ready?"

"If I must," he replied, and watched, with the others, as Albus took three drops of a clear liquid and dropped them into a cup of tea. Smelling it to ensure its identity and the lack of any foreign contaminants, Severus downed the tea.

After a few seconds, his eyes glazed over and his expression adopted a dull, passionless expression.

Suddenly business-like, Albus stood up and smiled at Severus. "What is your full name?"

"Severus Tobias Snape."

"And your place of residence?"

"Hogwarts, Potions Master's Quarter. On holidays, London, Spinner's End."

"Are you loyal to Lord Voldemort?"

"No."

"Do you spy on the Dark side for the Order of the Phoenix?"

"No."

Harry, Remus and Albus exchanged a surprised glance.

"Are you a member of the order of the phoenix?"

"Yes."

"I see…but you are not a spy for the light?

"No."

"May I ask why not?"

"It would be too dangerous for my family."

Harry's heart was thumping. What Remus had told him that Dumbledore suspected, it was insane! But the look in Snape's eyes, earlier, just kept haunting him…and hadn't the man even called him his…Harry shuddered, unable to even think the word in relation to that man.

"And what of your family? Who do you live with?" The headmaster continued.

"My wife, Lily Evans Snape, and my son, Harry James Snape," Severus answered tonelessly.

Harry felt as if his lungs were being constricted and trapped in a vacuum. But his world really crashed down when Dumbledore said softly but distinctly, "Where is your son, Severus?" and the man turned, without hesitation, and pointed to Harry, saying clearly, "Right there. He is my son."

"I see…and what, if you may, happened on October 31st, 1981, in your timeline?"

"Lord Voldemort came to the Potters' house and murdered James Potter. I, however, made it in time to apparate away with Lily and Harry. As my loyalties were clearly revealed at that point, Lily, Harry and I were all placed under the protection of Albus Dumbledore. Lily and I took positions as professors at Hogwarts, but after a time, she and I decided to wed, and the three of us moved to my old house at Spinner's End, which was placed under the Fidelius Charm, with Albus as secret keeper."

Harry was shaking to hold in his bursting emotions, but couldn't resist saying something. It was all too ridiculous. "You're lying! My mother would never have married you! You're too…too…" but then he trailed off, not only because he knew the potions master was speaking under the influence of veritaserum, but because he realized he really didn't know much about Severus Snape. Particularly this Snape from another world who, oddly enough, didn't seem to loathe him. Or, for that matter, did he know all that much about his mum. Voldemort had seen to that. He didn't expect an answer, but then, in the same hollow, emotionless tones as before, Snape said,

"I could not, at first, believe she would marry someone like me, but Lily Evans is a rare sort of person, who can see through to the good in someone, no matter how deeply hidden. I have always loved her, and will continue to do so. She and I have been married for thirteen years."

Harry was speechless. And welling up unbidden in his chest was an odd mixture of gratitude and anger at finally hearing something so personal about his mother's personality. But why was it that SNAPE knew his mother better than he did? It was too unfair. And it was beyond creepy to hear such passionate words about love and devotion, not only from the cold, cruel Potions Master, but in the emotionless, deadened tone supplied by the veritaserum. It was too much.

The serum was wearing off by this point, and Harry determinedly avoided Snape's gaze. Even without looking, however, he could feel the man's eyes on him, and finally risking a glance, he saw Snape watching him with a strange sort of longing. Instantly, Harry panicked, and without another word or a glance back, he fled from the room.

"Harry!" Severus tried to get up, but his body was still moderately unresponsive from the potion, and Remus helped steady him back into his chair.

"What am I going to do?" He whispered, his head in his hands, and those in the room knew he was talking about much more than simply what to do about Harry. "I won't be able to return to my world for months, Albus, possible a year. Lily and Harry, they must be panicking, they-"

Albus sighed. "I'm sure they are figuring things out as we are, Severus. After all, as we've already discussed, I am certain your counterpart is now with Lily in your world. I do hope she has better luck handling him than I have," he added, wryly.

"I'm sure he'll be perfectly good to Lily," Remus said softly. "It's Harry I fear for. If he is expecting his father, and finds…him…instead-" Remus trailed off, and Severus looked up at him, worry etched into his face.

"He's that bad? My counterpart, I mean?"

"Oh, no, Severus, I didn't mean that, he's just-"

"Our Severus, dear boy, is a remarkably brave and good person in many respects. But…he has suffered. He never got to experience the life of love you seem to have had."

"From the way Harry spoke about him, or spoke to me…he must truly see me as a monster," Severus said quietly, voice thick with regret.

"I wouldn't go that far, Severus. Harry has just been through a rather miserable experience, and he is not yet over it. I'm afraid he is harboring feelings of resentment for your counterpart that are making things more difficult for him to endure."

Severus' expression instantly turned to that of open concern. "What happened to him? What kind of miserable experience?"

"Sirius," Remus began, "died, Severus. Just last week. At the Department of Mysteries. I'm afraid Harry blames himself, though he won't admit it to anyone. You see, he was led there by a trick of Voldemort's, and Sirius went after him…even though your counterpart warned us, he apparently acted uninterested when Harry mentioned Sirius might be in trouble, and Harry seems to be splitting the blame between himself and you," Remus explained, somewhat apologetically.

Severus nodded. As he thought over Remus' words, feelings both of sadness and of hope danced in his chest. For Harry to blame himself for something like this was very much like his own son, like the Harry he knew, and it made him feel a natural sympathy for this boy.

It hurt him to see the way this Harry looked at him, but he had a sick feeling that he understood all too well why. After all, he knew that he had the potential to become a vindictive person. His father had been utterly cold, cruel and abusive, and he himself had quite a temper. If it hadn't been for Lily caring for and feeding love to his injured soul all these years, he imagined he might have become quite an embittered, hard man. So that was the damage he had to deal with.

No wonder Harry hates me.

Severus knew that perhaps this wasn't his Harry, but he couldn't help but care about him. It hurt him, physically, to see his boy in pain, and this boy was no different.

Suddenly, he pushed up and headed for the door, but Remus caught his arm. "Severus, where are you-?"

"I need to talk to Harry."

"Don't you think you should give him some time alone, Severus?" He asked gently. "After all, this is a lot to take in. It won't be so easy for him to accept and when he's angry, he isn't at his most rational, you know…"

Severus deflated slightly. "Yes…yes, I know." He sighed. "It's mind boggling, knowing that here is a boy, just like my son, who I don't have that bond of trust with. It's…difficult, and frustrating. But it is as you say. He won't talk to me right now…But I don't think he should be alone out there. Will you speak with him, Remus?"

"Yes, Severus," he smiled. Then he faltered, and asked, softly, almost shyly, "So, what's our story? We're…friends, I take it?"

Severus gave him a long look, and then sighed. "I suppose that, too, is different here?"

At Remus' nod, he gave a dark chuckle. "Seems my counterpart is quite the loner."

Remus gave him a wry smile. "He is at that. Well, it's nice to meet you, Severus," and with that, he held out his hand, and Severus took it in a firm shake. With a slight half-smile, Remus grabbed the Marauder's Map, and left the office.

There's Chapter 3! Didn't get around to the Dursley talk, or a heart-to-heart, but I hope this answers some questions as to what's in store for poor Sev!

Or, our poor Sevs!

Don't forget to drop a review! Thanks so much!

Next Time: Canon World: Dursley talk, Sev heart-to-hearts with Harry. Parallel World: Lily's POV, Sev finds some eye-opening items in his chamber.

Till next time!

tess4aria