"You lie." Snape responded, confused. Octillary was dead. Even for a wizard, he was far too old to be alive centuries later.

The man gave a deep, bellowed laugh in response, a laugh that had the hairs on Snape's skin stand on end as he looked around in alarm, expecting a response to such a loud sound.

When nothing changed, his eyes were back on the old man. Was he really human, as Snape had originally thought? There was something very off, aside from the fact that he claimed to be nearly 2,000 years old.

Finally responding, the man said "Indeed Severus. It is I who has given legacy to the Prince name. Have a look."

The man turned around, moving aside his ragged black robes so that Severus could see his tattoo of the Prince family crest. It was exactly how it was supposed to be, with a hippogriff on each side of a large silver shield that took up most of the man's back. The shield was divided into 3 pieces, containing a dagger, a snake, and goblet, and had a black crow standing watch atop it. It was intricately done, and highly aged, difficult to forge. Furthermore, there was no record of the black crow anywhere in history. Only the Prince line knew of its existence on the crest, as only a Snape could see it. The wonders of blood magic.

The man turned around, and Severus asked,

"How are you alive?", wand still at the ready.

Again, the man responded with a grim smile. "There will be time for that later. For now, you need to find that Bellatrix, yes?" he asked.

So the Dark Lord hadn't completely left him to his own. He was relieved. But now a new fear had arisen. Bellatrix was dangerous, did Severus really want to be responsible for the havoc she would continue to wreak?

He quickly strengthened his resolve. His work as a spy was far too useful. There will always be casualties of war.

"How do we do it?" Snape asked. Time was of the essence, he would ask his questions later.

"Bellatrix is located in the skytower. You must make it there and back to the 4th floor without getting caught."

The 4th floor, was Octillary planning on using the same escape route that he has used before? Actually, did he even truly escape?

The questions were evident on Severus' face, and Octillary decided to take pity on him.

"My son, I am not entirely human. There is nothing they could do to the wards to keep me in or out. As long as you're with me, you'll get out fine. Sector IZ is the safest place to do so." he said, assuringly.

Naturally, this only left Severus with further questions. Swallowing most of them, he asked,

"Am I correct to assume you do you not plan to accompany me?"

"Oh no, most definitely not lad. I've spent enough time in this horrid place. If you get caught you are on your own."

He was definitely a Snape, Severus thought to himself.

"Alright, so how shall I do this?" he asked the ancient man.

Pulling out a far more modern-looking map, Octillary began to go through every single detail of Azkaban. How it looked, what was where, who was where and when, everything.

Ever the tactician, Severus absorbed every word as a plan began to formulate in his head.


Elsewhere, Harry was currently begging the headmaster for a breath of fresh air.

Frustrated with the situation and needing a moment to think, Albus led Harry to one of the locked doors. Pulling out a key, he unlocked the door and a beautiful breeze immediately ran through.

Harry's jaw hung open in shock as he took in their surroundings. It was not concrete outside that door, but sand. And a few kilometers ahead, water. They were on a beach. Surrounding them were mountains, many of which were littered with small white houses. It was beautiful.

"Where are we?" Harry asked in awe.

"This is an island right off the coast of Mariathias, Greece. However, this is not where we are until we step through this door."

"Wicked!" Harry responded, excitedly.

"Why didn't you want to tell me about this!" Harry asked.

"Because, my boy, you are not to open this door alone. It will be locked, and do not try. I will know." the headmaster stared into his eyes as he said this.

Harry nodded nervously. "Might I ask why?" he dared to ask.

"This is a magic free island. It is a safehaven of sorts. It is magic free, however, because the creatures do not like it. They do not disturb the muggles, but we release magic through our very pores, and coming here too much will agitate them into action. I will not risk breaking the sanctity of the island, it is of great use to us."

Harry nodded understandingly. He was happy that the headmaster decided to tell him about it. He would enjoy it while he could.

"Shall we go then?" he asked excitedly.

Dumbledore motioned him ahead, and followed shortly, plopping down onto the sand as soon as his feet touched it. He looked ready to build a sandcastle, using a twig to mark off squares in the sand.

"You go on Harry, I'll be here when you're ready. Do not leave the beach."

Harry nodded, walking up to the water, removing his socks and shoes, and plunging his feet into the refreshing icy depths. He marveled at the beauty of his surroundings. Looking back at Dumbledore hard at work, he noticed that the door they had come through was no longer visible. Marvelous!

After about an hour of walking along the beach and taking in the sun, Harry returned to the headmaster, who was just about finished with his artwork. It was a large, featureless building, with various markings along the outside. As Dumbledore stared at it contemplatively, Harry asked,

"What is it?"

"My boy, I believe that Severus may be in Azkaban."