Round 2: Empty Shell Game

"It's me Harry. I'm Hedwig."

Harry staggered under the weight of these seemingly harmless and invisible words, hardly able to believe what he was hearing.

"What?" He felt numb and his ears were ringing, it was almost like the voice wasn't his.

The girl – Hedwig? – continued to cry. He fought his urge to comfort her and instead cast a look at what he had believed was Hedwig, lying on the ground immobilized. Eyes half-open in paralysis, the owl was staring straight ahead numbly, but Harry could sense something roiling powerfully within its small body. He put a hand to his forehead, as though trying to physically force an understanding into his brain.

"Wait here." He climbed to his feet and, against his better judgment, left the sobbing girl and immobilized owl as he sprinted up the staircase to his bedroom.

He returned shortly with Hedwig's wire cage, panting a bit. He put the large cage on the floor and, gently lifting Hedwig's limp body, placed the owl in the cage and shut the door tightly.

"I don't know what's happening here, but I need to figure it out. Please stay calm." He whispered to the owl before casting the counter-curse.

With a hiss and flash of talons, the owl slammed against the bars of its cage. When the door didn't yield, it flapped its wings madly, more out of frustration than the hope that it would be in any way effective. Like a petulant child, the owl began shrieking and continued to flap its wings, creating a noisy din.

"Calm down! Please calm down. I know you're angry." Harry tried to placate the bird by holding his arms out in a peaceful gesture.

Ginny – who was apparently Hedwig – stopped crying and approached the cage. As she neared, the owl abruptly stopped thrashing about and glared up at the girl, its mouth agape and its eyes wild. Each step closer brought a throaty growl from the bird until she had knelt before the cage. Harry could only watch in stunned confusion, his mind reeling madly as he tried to think of what best to do in this situation.

"Ginny…" The bird hissed in outrage. "Ginny, please." The girl pleaded.

The owl gave her a wary look that softened, and it perched at ease.

"I'm – I'm sorry for what I've done. It was a selfish wish, and I stole your most precious possession to get it." Tears started rolling down her cheeks again. "It's unforgivable, I know, but I want to apologize anyway. I hope you'll at least understand…" She took a deep breath. "It went on longer than I thought it would, but I was never going to take your place. I never could. He wasn't mine, Ginny. As much joy as I felt, and as much as I wanted to pretend it was real, I couldn't. The name he whispers so happily isn't mine and the girl he holds in his arms isn't me – it's you. I may be selfish, but I'm not stupid and I'm certainly not cruel. I took more than I intended to, but I'm satisfied now."

The owl gave Hedwig and Harry a meaningful look.

"She wants to be let out," Hedwig translated, knowing that look all too well.

Harry paused. "Are you sure?"

The owl screeched in outrage as Hedwig turned to him, her eyes flashing. As it beat its wings against the bars again, Hedwig started to shout,

"It's Ginny in there, Harry! She can understand every word that passes your lips. Don't treat her like a willful animal."

The owl gave Harry a fuming look and he felt his stomach twist. It was bad enough he hadn't even realized that Ginny had been acting different, but it was even worse that he was still treating her like Hedwig. His palms started to sweat nervously. He had been so sure that Ginny felt the same way…what if this had ruined everything? Would he ever be able to live down snogging with an owl if others found out? It was mind-boggling.

Hastily and clumsily, he fumbled to open the cage door as though it were searing iron. Maybe he could still pull this one out of the fire!

With a surprising amount of grace for having wings only a few days, Ginny flew from the cage and swooped gently to the ground. Her talons clicked on the ground as she carefully approached Harry, aware that her new body was an efficient hunting machine. Harry's thousands of "what if" anxieties were quieted as Ginny carefully brushed her wing against his arm in a show of affection. Hedwig looked to the ground in shame, blushing and miserable. Ginny's feelings toward Harry were mutual.

Hedwig leaned forward, letting her flaming red hair cover her face in an attempt to hide her tears.

Stupid! She thought bitterly. You knew that this was how it was going to turn out. You promised yourself you'd be happy with just one day, and now look at what you've done. She felt her arms start to shake slightly. You deserve this for getting your happiness by taking it from others!

Harry, who had been awkwardly stroking Ginny's feathers, looked up and noticed Hedwig, who had been silent for some time. He felt his heart lurch. It was hard enough to see someone crying so bitterly, especially when she looked like Ginny with Hedwig's loyalty and devotion. He looked down at Ginny, who gazed up at him quizzically with round, yellow eyes.

"Ginny, I'm sorry." He murmured. "I need to do this. I hope you'll understand."

Ginny gave him a confused look as he slid over to sit next to Hedwig. She looked up in surprise, a single tear rolling down her cheek. She tried to turn away, deeply ashamed, but Harry pulled her into a hug, holding her protectively against his chest. Hedwig, feeling unfamiliar emotions, began to sob loudly as he stroked her hair. Ginny felt a sharp pang of envy and irritation, but grudgingly held back from making a scene. Hedwig had caused her a lot of trouble, but Harry loved her, and only loved Hedwig in a platonic sense.

Hedwig felt her heart pounding against her ribs, feeling oddly riled and at the same time soothed by Harry's embrace. She took slow, even breaths until she was able to calm down and stop crying. She gently pulled away from him and looked up at him with large, clear eyes.

"Thank you." She whispered, her voice slightly hoarse from crying.

Harry smiled warmly at her and gently kissed her on the cheek.

"Hedwig, I'm sorry that I can't love you back. You've been with me since I first became aware of the wizarding world and have been kind and loyal to me. I treasure you, and I will always care for you." He smiled in a consolatory way.

Hedwig smiled back.

"Don't apologize, Harry. I've always known – I just started to hope. It was selfish, but you've been so kind to me. These past days were so happy. Thank you."

Ginny, who felt she had been waiting rather patiently while this intimate scene unfolded, clicked her talons impatiently to bring attention back to her predicament.

"Ah. Right." Harry snapped back into the moment. "Hedwig?"

She nodded and approached Ginny.

"I know it isn't worth much, Ginny, but thank you. Even though you never agreed to it, I want you to know how grateful I've been to have these past few days."

Ginny was irritated that she couldn't roll her eyes, so she just glared fiercely at Hedwig. The entire process had been somewhat violating, and having Hedwig put her in the position where an angry response would make her look like the bad guy was insufferable! Ginny hoped she'd never be privy to an owl's thoughts again.

"I'm sorry, Ginny, I'll have to take one of your feathers." Hedwig quickly and efficiently plucked out a downy white feather.

Ginny squawked, her pent up irritation emerging in her surprise. Hedwig removed her black cloak bearing Gryffindor's crest and put it on the floor. Her eyes scanned over the garment until she finally spotted what she had been searching for. She placed the feather next to a strand of fiery red hair, further pissing off Ginny. She knelt next to the garment and placed her hands over it.

"Are you ready?" Harry asked Ginny.

The bird nodded.


"Severus." Snape flinched, concerned at the unfamiliar edge he detected in that familiar voice but maintaining his blasé composure. "Severus, I don't know what to do."

The figure stood in shadows, with its back to him. It sighed, running a hand over a smooth, bald head.

"It's unlike you to seem so uncertain." Snape ventured at length, forcing his voice to sound steady and trying to calm his rapidly beating heart.

"Indeed." Came the brief reply.

There was more silence. "What is troubling you, my Lord?"

The figure turned around, its smooth, snakelike features as composed and difficult to interpret as Snape's own expression. Voldemort walked away from the window, his eyes cold and unreadable. As the Dark Lord approached him, Snape felt his pulse quickening. The situation seemed strange, but if he was misreading it and overreacted he would reveal himself. But if he was reading it correctly…

He just had to be faster.

"Severus," came that smooth, tenor voice, "you are one of my oldest and most loyal servants." Voldemort put a hand on Snape's shoulder, and then the other hand on Snape's other as he turned to stand behind the sallow, greasy-haired man. "And you know, as much as anyone, how much I value loyalty." He whispered, his mouth just inches from Snape's ear. Snape felt a chill and held back a shudder.

"This mark," He continued to whisper, reaching down Snape's left arm and pulling up his sleeve slowly, "is a symbol of the loyalty you all swear to me." He gently turned Snape's forearm over so the dark mark showed.

Snape felt his insides go cold as his mind suddenly sharpened into crystal clarity. His mind rapidly tried to run through possible scenarios to determine his next course of action. "A loyalty that I have proven time and time again, putting myself at risk as a double agent at Hogwarts." He said calmly, standing perfectly still.

The Dark Lord's grip on his arm tightened and he violently wrenched Snape around to face him, digging his nails into his minion's flesh.

"Double agent, indeed, but for WHO, SEVERUS?" He screamed, his voice reverberating through the room.

"My Lord, I-"

Voldemort struck him in the face, briefly stunning Snape and drawing blood, and threw him to the ground. "SILENCE!"

Snape's mind quickly arrived at his best course of action. He leapt to his feet, reaching for his wand.

"You DIRTY TRAITOR!" Voldemort roared, reaching for his wand just seconds slower than Snape had. "I WILL KILL YOU LIKE THE MUGGLE LOVING TRAITOR YOU ARE!" He roared, running forward with his face contorted in hatred.

Just as he had drawn his wand, Snape suddenly froze and gazed at Voldemort in horror. "What-"

"AVADA KADAVRA!" Voldemort screamed.

A jet of green light ripped through the body of Severus Snape and dissipated into nothingness. Snape's eyes, dark, took on a strange and empty luster. Voldemort, panting heavily with rage and exertion, watched with gleeful eyes as Snape's legs buckled underneath him, pitching his body forward. By the time his heavy body had fallen to the stone floor with a dull thud, Voldemort was already laughing with a twisted, grotesque face. After rejoicing in his deed, the reality of Snape's betrayal hit him.

His lips curled in disgust, and then shook. Voldemort began to tremble with anger. Severus had been in a valuable position, and at one point had truly been his most loyal and devoted servant. When had that traitorous dog changed sides? How many of his men could he really trust? Consumed by a blinding rage, he screamed, "SEVERUS!" and cast spell after spell at that hated, still, dark form. Spilling the dead man's blood on the floor, he laughed with manic glee as he gained his posthumous retribution and further made unrecognizable the face and form of his betrayer. It would be a lesson to any who would dare think of following Snape's example.


Harry gazed at the still forms of Ginny and Hedwig in shock. As Hedwig had cast the spell in Ginny's body, Harry had been surprised that a human was capable of making those sounds. After her bizarre vocalizations had ceased, a strange breeze had swept through the room and then the two had collapsed. It had been over several minutes and Harry, in his impatience, was starting to become concerned.

Suddenly, the owl stirred and its eyes opened blearily. It climbed woozily to its feet, seeming almost unsteady.

"Hedwig?" He asked hesitantly, reaching out his hand.

The owl turned to face him and recognition flickered across its features. Waddling up to him with awkward steps, the owl reached out and nibbled at his fingers in a familiar gesture of affection.

"Hedwig!" Harry smiled in relief. "You did it." He ruffled the feathers on her head, relieved.

Hedwig cooed in response, happy to be in her own body again. Somewhat back to her senses, she flapped her wings and lifted off from the ground, soaring skillfully through the room to alight on the back of a chair. Figuring that she had had enough time to return to herself, Harry knelt down beside Ginny and began to cautiously shake her shoulders.

"Ginny?" He whispered, "Can you hear me? Can you wake up?"

Ginny moaned and her eyebrows drew together as she slowly started to come to. With a startled gasp, she sat bolt upright and scrambled a few feet back. She was breathing rapidly and looking around wildly in alarm.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked, crawling to her and reaching out to put a hand on her shoulder.

"What are you doing?" Ginny demanded shrilly, slapping his hand away. At the sound of her own voice, Ginny's eyes widened in confusion.

"It's okay! You're back now and safe. Whatever Hedwig did worked and things are back the way they should be." Harry again reached out to put a comforting hand on her shoulder, but Ginny pulled back with a mortified expression.

"What's going on?" She looked at her hands, then at her sweater vest and skirt in disbelief.

"You're back in your own body, Ginny. Hedwig switched you back…are you still angry about that?" Harry frowned. "Are you alright?"

"Alright?" Ginny frowned, looking uncharacteristically pensive and brooding. "Uh! Yes. Yes, I'm fine." She gave a strained smile and a strange giggle. "I was just disoriented, P- Harry."

"Here, let me help you to your feet." Harry stood and offered Ginny his arm.

Ginny hesitated, looking at his outstretched arm with an anxious look on her face. As though forcing herself to do so, she took his hand and regained her footing. As soon as she was standing, she pulled her hand back as though his were something revolting.

"Ginny, you're acting very strangely. And I've certainly learned my lesson from the previous time." Harry was completely at a loss as to what was happening.

Ginny looked panicked and extremely uncertain. "Um…"

"Are you still mad about what happened?" Harry silently cursed himself for being so insensitive.

"Am I…Y-YES!" Ginny's face suddenly snapped from hesitant to angry. "How did you think I would feel after that?" She turned away from him and intended to take a few haughty and defiant steps toward the window.

However, like when Hedwig had first regained consciousness, Ginny was unsteady on her feet. Her head swimming and her legs wobbling, Ginny suddenly started to topple over. Harry wasn't a hero for nothing, and his quick reflexes saw him catching her in his arms before he had time to think and before she could land on the shards of broken glass. Ginny, much more recovered, shoved him off of her and sprang to her feet, livid.

"GET YOUR HANDS OFF ME, POTTER!" She roared, her face twisted into an expression that was foreign to her beautiful, freckled face.

Ginny's eyes widened in horror at what she had just done. Harry felt himself go numb with shock and the back of his mouth gained a strange taste. He had never seen that look on Ginny's face, but it wasn't altogether foreign to him. He looked carefully at Ginny's unusually pale face, his heart beating in his ears.

"…Snape…" Harry's face was full of pain and disbelief. "You're Snape."

Ginny looked at Harry with a hard, dark expression that seemed strange through her pale blue eyes. It could have been because the expression was articulated through a different face, but Harry swore he caught a glimpse of some other emotion. Regret? Remorse?

"Unusually swift of you, Mr. Potter." Ginny conceded. "I am indeed Severus Snape."

"Ugh." Harry shuddered. And to think I was about to try and tap that… "Hedwig, how did this happen?"

He turned to his owl. Hedwig gave a sharp glance to the cloak Ginny's body had been wearing and her expression turned fierce with surprise. Lacking her keen eyesight in the girl's body, Hedwig had missed something very important. She fluttered down next to the cloak and clicked forward, stopping where the feather and flaming red hair lay. Bending down, she picked something up in her beak and turned to face Harry. It was a black, shoulder length hair.

"Oh no." Harry's mind reeled as he imagined the crisis that Ginny would be facing, waking up in a hideous, middle-aged, male body. "Professor, where were you last?" Harry opted to be polite to increase his chances of cooperation. "We need to find Ginny so that Hedwig can switch you back."

Again that strange expression settled on Ginny's face.

"Professor, where were you?" Her eyes hardened. "Professor?" Harry started to feel sick.

Ginny hesitated, "Due to the current – unusual – situation, I will include you in matters that would ordinarily not reach your ears. But I must also speak with the Headmaster at once. Come with me."

With unusual speed and purposefulness in her step, Ginny departed from the room. Harry, still somewhat in shock, jogged after her a few moments later.


The two arrived at Dumbledore's office, slightly out of breath. Ginny knocked on the Headmaster's door with a very distinct rhythm.

After a brief pause, there was the sound of something (likely a teacup) shattering and then frantic, scrambling footsteps to the door.

"Oh, Severus, thank Merlin. I prayed there was some sort of mistake." Dumbledore's muffled voice was harried as the door swung upon.

Dumbledore stopped, staring in confusion at the young Mr. Potter and Ginny, who had clearly just knocked. His face fell and he suddenly looked greyer than ever.

"Miss Weasley." His voice was barely above a whisper. "Would you mind telling me how you have come to knock in that way?"

"Sir, if we could please enter your office, I have something of utmost importance that I must speak to you about." Ginny's voice was hushed and conspiratory.

Dumbledore looked puzzled at first, but his expression settled into one of exhaustion.

"I'm so sorry, Miss Weasley. I'm dealing with a very…unfortunate and pressing matter at the moment. Unless this an emergency, I'm afraid I must ask you to-"

"Albus, let us in." The bite in her voice was so unlike Ginny.

Confused and looking as though he had seen a ghost, Dumbledore stepped aside as Snape forced his way into the office with Harry in tow. Dumbledore closed the door and returned to the chair behind his desk, sitting down heavily.

"Miss Weasley…"

"Sir, I regret to inform you that Ginny Weasley is dead." Snape explained.

Harry froze.

"Severus?" Dumbledore looked at Ginny's body in disbelief.

"Yes." Snape confirmed it. "Potter's owl had somehow switched bodies with the girl and when it attempted to switch back, I was somehow added into the equation. The owl returned to its body, Ginny's mind went to my body, and my mind was displaced into this body."

Dumbledore looked grave.

"But then we just need to find Ginny, right Professor?" Harry looked at Ginny's body, feeling as though the entire thing was surreal.

Snape's expression revealed nothing.

"Harry," Dumbledore sighed heavily, pausing as Harry looked up at him with frightened, desperate eyes. "I was just informed this morning that Severus' mutilated body was found in an abandoned house."

Harry started to shake. "But what does that mean? Where's Ginny?" His mind felt like it was spinning.

"Ginny was in Severus' body when it was killed," Dumbledore's voice was soft.

"So then what if we switch them back?" He asked desperately. Snape chose to ignore the implications.

"Ginny's gone, Harry." Dumbledore shook his head, "There's nothing to switch Severus with. If we did, we'd be sending him back to a corpse and leaving an empty body behind. If we switch them back, they'll both be dead."

Harry felt his ears begin to ring and his vision began to darken around the edges.

"Harry? Are you alright?"

Snape looked down at his decidedly female body in dismay. Overwhelmed by the shock of his loss, Harry collapsed to the floor. The last thing he heard before losing consciousness was,

"When you say 'mutilated', just how 'mutilated' do you mean?"


Dumbledore had decided that, at the moment, it would be best to hide the truth of what had happened. He had requested that all of Ginny's immediate family meet with him at their earliest convenience to discuss a matter 'of utmost importance'. Snape was not looking forward to that meeting. He had been feigning illness to avoid interacting with Ginny's friends and family – people he either loathed or knew nothing about.

Snape sat in his living quarters, reading one of the many books lining the walls for comfort. He had forgotten how good his eyesight had used to be – apparently Ginny had shared his 20/20 vision that had lapsed into far-sightedness as he aged.

Unable to hide Snape's death from the students and general public, a funeral service (with a closed coffin) was held that very evening. Although the attendees were shocked, Snape noted that few seemed terribly upset by his demise. His funeral was painfully short, and brusquely handled. He was, all in all, very disappointed with the whole thing. Even Dumbledore hadn't had much to say, although the Headmaster was under a lot of pressure. The most upset person present, much to his friends' confusion, was Harry Potter. The boy refused to so much as look at Snape, which he was grateful for, but brought up annoying questions of breakups. In private as per his request, Snape looked into the coffin after the service was over and everyone had quickly filed out, rejoicing that his funeral had gotten them the rest of the week off classes.

His eyes scanned over the words on the page of the book, but his mind didn't retain them. They trickled through as though they held no meaning. He couldn't stop thinking about it. He prayed that Ginny had been killed first, although based on what he knew about the Dark Lord, that was unlikely. Despite his general hatred for the Weasley clan, he had been somewhat fond of the girl. Although at times too sunny of disposition and having horrible taste in men, she was a bright, sharp student with a hidden edge to her personality that he enjoyed observing on the rare occasions she chose to show it. There were others more deserving to die – like Potter's stupid bird. Or Potter. Although it was no fault of his own, he wrestled with feelings of guilt that the funeral had not been for her. That, because she was in his body, those attending her funeral were disrespectful and mourning the wrong person. He also wasn't sure what he was to do now that he was trapped in the girl's body. What future could he possibly have? Should he start over? Could he live as a woman?

His conflicted thoughts were interrupted by a bold knock at his door. Snape hoped if he ignored it, it would go away. Being prickly and an adult didn't mean that he could deal with this any better than anyone else. But the knocks came again. Sighing, he closed the book and opened the door.

He was surprised to see Harry Potter standing there. Harry lowered his head, his expression dark, and spoke in a serious voice.

"Professor, I need to speak with you right now."


Authors Asides

Tomato Face: Wow... that turned out kinda dark. Er... I mean, How do ya like them apples! I think I effectively killed your romance plot!

Blonde One:... A minor set back.

Tomato Face: Minor? Are you kidding me? Hedwig just killed Ginny! There's no way that Harry could love her now!

Blone One: True love conquers all!

Tomato Face: Puhlease! I'd like to see you try and repair your silly inter-species romance after my brilliantly disruptive body switching!

Blonde One: All right I will. For my round I play: Stupid Backstory (everyone believes it and it's true).

Tomato Face: Uh... I really don't see where you're going with this.

Blonde One: You'll have to wait for my update to find out!

Has Blonde One gone off the deep end? What does she intend to accomplish? And what exactly will happen with Professor Snape now that he's become a woman? Tune in next time to find out!