A/N: This chapter, the previous chapter and the following chapter all take place concurrently and not consecutively.

Warning: This chapter has several references to, but does not in any way portray, the sexual abuse of minors. If this bothers you, please feel free to skip this chapter.

.o.O.o.

THE PRINCES

While waiting for the full moon to see if his lycanthropy cure was successful, Severus had not been idle. He had taken the time to investigate his grandparents and found out two things: the first was that Cassius and Elbertine Prince were impoverished and the second was that they had recently received a number of visits from Lucius Malfoy.

'Hmm,' thought Severus. 'So Lucius is trying to recruit me through the Princes, and they're willing to cooperate, no doubt in part because our shop has become very successful and is therefore a possible source of income for them, and partly because Lucius is probably paying them. Oh, and perhaps because, for all I know, they actually agree with the Dark Lord's doctrine. Great! Just great. How do I tell Mum that? I know she said she was suspicious but, deep down, I think she was still hoping she might actually mean something to those blasted people.'

Severus dithered over whether or not to tell Eileen the truth, not wanting to hurt her. In the end, he went to Alex and Iris Evans for advice. He told them of his concerns regarding the Prince's financial situation but did not mention Lucius Malfoy. Alex and Iris did not know much about the war and Severus had no real proof to back up his suspicions concerning Lucius, only his knowledge of the man from his previous lifetime, and that was not something he could share.

"You're sure that Eileen's parents are only interested in her money?" asked Alex.

"Mum said they're very cold towards her. She doesn't understand why they've made contact if they don't genuinely want to welcome her back into the family. I can't judge their sincerity because I haven't met them in person yet. I'm certain of their financial situation, however. I've heard from a number of sources that they're hurting for money. Our Account Manager at Gringotts told me that they've been making inquiries as to our worth. We have three vaults — one for Mum, one for me and the third for the business — and Ironhammer says they were hinting that they should have access to those vaults."

"How certain is your Account Manager of that? If they were only hinting, how can he tell?" asked Alex dubiously.

"Ironhammer thinks the only reason the Princes didn't outright demand access to the vaults was because they were scared of the goblins' reaction. Mum's former parents were careful to be ambiguous enough that they could deny it if challenged but Ironhammer says that despite that, they were very obvious about what they wanted."

"Perhaps you ought to wait to do anything until after you meet them?" suggested Iris. "Once you've got a feel for them, you'll have a better idea if they have ulterior motives."

"I suppose so," agreed Severus, not liking it but knowing there was nothing he could do until the Princes made their move. "Thanks for the advice, Uncle Alex, Aunt Iris."

"You're very welcome, Sev," said Iris, hugging him warmly. "You're a good boy, looking out for your mother."

Severus' blush could have warmed the entire room and Iris chuckled. "Well, now that I've thoroughly embarrassed Sev, my job here is done," she said cheerily.

His opportunity to judge his grandparents' motives came sooner than he had expected. When he returned home that very evening, Eileen informed her son that they had both been invited to Prince Manor for dinner the following night.

"They want to meet their grandson," she said happily, having obviously put her suspicions of them aside for now. Severus did not want to burst her bubble of happiness and barely managed to refrain from snorting in disbelief.

The following evening, Severus dressed in high-quality dress robes, in a dark bottle green colour. In this lifetime, he was trying to introduce more colour into his clothing, to differentiate himself in his own mind from the sour bat of the dungeons that he had once been known as. Regardless, he still preferred dark colours and while he may not have been Slytherin in this lifetime, Severus thought that dressing in green rather than Ravenclaw blue might be tactful when meeting the Princes for the first time.

Severus' fears were realised as soon as he met his grandparents and saw the barely concealed sneers on their faces as they were introduced to their Half-blood grandson. Not surprisingly, Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy had also been invited for dinner. The guest who did surprise him was one Silenus Selwyn, a man approximately his grandfather's age, who had an appalling reputation. Selwyn was a drunkard who had never married but was known to have a taste for young girls and boys both—the younger the better, as far as he was concerned. If he got a Muggleborn witch or wizard in his clutches, Selwyn tended to damage them beyond repair, both physically and mentally, before tossing them out like garbage. He never took the Dark Mark but Severus knew that in his last lifetime, Selwyn had been a strong financial supporter of the Dark Lord and shared many of Voldemort's views. Severus immediately went on alert upon seeing the loathsome man present.

Dinner passed in painful awkwardness. It was clear that Cassius and Elbertine had no positive feelings towards Eileen and Severus. Even the fact that Severus had been nominated for an Order of Merlin for his lycanthropy cure (the award would only be given after the first batch of werewolves to be cured had undergone a full year with no further transformations) did not seem to endear him to his grandparents; the contempt, distaste and sneers were hovering just below the surface throughout the evening. Even worse, however, was Silenus Selwyn. Severus could not imagine what he could possibly want in Eileen, given the repugnant man's predilections, but he was making his interest clear, much to Eileen's very obvious discomfort.

Towards the end of the meal, Cassius rose to his feet and in stiff and grudging tones, spoke. "This is the first time for many years we have been able to welcome our daughter to our dinner table. Elbertine and I would like to express that we are willing to take her and her… son," Cassius almost choked on the words, "back into the family. Eileen, I have arranged a marriage contract for you with my dear friend Silenus here and I will be arranging one for Severus also. Severus, your bride will be a proper Pureblood witch, who will graciously overlook your unfortunate paternity, as long as you join Lord Voldemort's supporters. I expect you to do so at the earliest opportunity."

'Crap!' thought Severus. He looked at his mother, who appeared horrified. 'As well she might,' he concluded. As Eileen seemed to be too much in shock, he decided to speak up on her behalf.

"I'm sorry, but my mother and I are both of age. No contract you may arrange for either of us is binding. As Head of House, you could impose your will on us if we were actually members of the House of Prince. However, since you disowned Mum before I was even conceived, neither of us is in fact a member of the House of Prince and, as we're of age, you need our agreement to take us back into the family. I don't know about Mum, but you'll never get mine. As for arranging a contract between Mum and this pervert… Mum, if you ever want to get married again, I'll support you wholeheartedly, provided it's your decision and you genuinely want to marry," he said desperately, hoping that Eileen would not agree to be taken back into the House of Prince and marry Silenus Selwyn. Severus did not even bother mentioning the Dark Lord. Hopefully, Lucius would put Severus' rejection of Cassius Prince's commands down to the marriage issue, rather than the Dark Lord issue, even though both reasons were equally valid. The longer Severus could avoid giving the Dark Lord an outright refusal the better.

Eileen Snape may have been deeply hurt at what her parents had just done but she was stronger than she had been in the past, and this time she was not alone. Severus' support was all she needed to pull herself together.

"I should have known better than to think you might actually care about me," she said acidly. "You won't get my agreement to take me back into the family either. Severus and I have been fine on our own for all these years and we'll continue to be fine without you. If you think that I would ever agree to marry the man who molested me throughout my childhood, you must be insane. Why else do you think I married the first man who would have me and could take me away from the horrendous life you had planned for me? You think I didn't know Tobias Snape was an unsuitable match? That I didn't know you would disown me? It was still better than the alternative. I would have been dead within months at most, either at his hand or my own, had I married Silenus Selwyn. I thought you had reached out to me because you wanted to apologise, because you wanted to show that you did actually care about me, but I see that nothing's changed. Come, Severus. I believe we've over-stayed our welcome here," she said imperiously.

'Well that explains Selwyn's unlikely interest in a grown woman,' Severus mused. 'He regards her as the one who got away.' Severus immediately rose and offered his mother his arm, his wand noticeably in his hand as he escorted her away from the flabbergasted Princes and Malfoys, and the infuriated Silenus Selwyn. Much as he wanted to make a dignified exit, he could not resist going back to make a final, parting shot.

"Mr and Mrs Malfoy, if you intend on associating with the likes of him, then you'd better be very careful if you ever have any children. From what I've heard, he doesn't care if his victims are male or female, Pureblood or Muggleborn. All he cares about is that they should be as young as possible. I suggest you keep your children well away from him."

Severus turned away from the Princes and their guests, his contempt for them clear. However, he noticed out of the corner of his eye that Lucius and Narcissa were eyeing Selwyn with deep disgust. 'Message received,' he thought in satisfaction. 'Draco won't be my godson this time around but at least I know Lucius and Narcissa will protect him from the likes of Silenus Selwyn.'

"Come on, Mum. Let's go," he said to Eileen, who was waiting for him by the front door. As Severus and Eileen left Prince Manor, he could feel his mother trembling. She had put up a good front before her parents but reaction was now settling in. Severus had no idea that she had been sexually abused as a child. That, combined with her marriage to the violent Tobias Snape, explained why she had been so broken in his last lifetime. Wanting to help Eileen but not knowing how to, he side-along apparated her to Durham. When they arrived on Iris and Alex's doorstep, it was only Severus' arms holding her up that prevented Eileen from collapsing on the ground. Unable to free his hands and dig out his key while he supported his mother, Severus kicked frantically at the door. "Uncle Alex! Aunt Iris!" he yelled. Severus could hear the thunder of footsteps as they came running to answer the door.

"Sev! What happened?" Iris gasped.

Alex, however, wasted no time talking and helped Severus bring Eileen inside. They sat her down on the couch and Severus continued to hold her. Iris came over and put her arms around Eileen as well. At that, Eileen broke down, leaning into Iris' motherly embrace as she sobbed. Severus gently disengaged from Eileen and stood up. "I'll be right back," he said. Going over to the floo, he returned home and collected a Calming Draught and a Dreamless Sleep potion from the shop stores. Uncorking the Calming Draught, he coaxed Eileen to take it.

"What happened, my dear?" asked Iris kindly once Eileen appeared calmer. Eileen shuddered and began talking. As Eileen brokenly told of the nightmare her childhood had been, Iris had tears silently streaming down her cheeks. What made it worse for Severus was that according to Eileen, his grandparents had known what their so-called friend was doing to their only child but simply did not care, since they had in any case intended to marry her off to the very man who had abused and violated her. What Severus could not understand was why she had agreed to their recent overtures, despite her suspicions regarding their motives.

When Eileen's sad story had trailed to an end, Iris took her upstairs and tucked her into bed, giving her the Dreamless Sleep potion that Severus had handed her. When Eileen was safely sleeping, her devastated friend came back downstairs. Walking into her husband's comforting arms, Iris began crying again.

Alex looked at Severus over his wife's head as she burrowed into him, his eyes blazing with fury. "What are we going to do about this?" he growled.

Severus shook his head. "Nothing tonight," he replied. "In the morning, we'll see if Mum wants to deal with this through legal channels. That has to be her choice because if she does press charges, it'll become public knowledge. Mum needs to be sure she can handle that and I need to be sure she's safe against any possible repercussions. If she doesn't want to go down that route, well… then you and I will talk further, Uncle Alex. One thing we won't do, however, is go off half-cocked. Mum was sorted into Slytherin — that's the house of the cunning. We'll employ the cunning I only hope I inherited from her. An over-hasty, half-baked, ill-conceived plan won't help. When we act, we're going to do it right," he said grimly.

Alex nodded in agreement and Iris said nothing to stop them. They were all moral, law-abiding citizens but this man had hurt someone precious to them and their honour demanded that he pay. Wizarding law was different to that of Muggle law and there were many wizarding options open to Severus which would be deemed illegal in the Muggle world. Alex, on the other hand, was itching to gather up some of his old army friends and pay the vile man a visit. Alex did not advocate violence but, right now, he was ready to throw his principles to the wind. Only knowing that Selwyn was magical and that Alex would never be able to find him in the wizarding world was preventing him from acting. That did not mean that he would not help Severus, however.

As Severus pondered possible means of revenge, he concluded that legal channels or not, he would still exact his own revenge upon Silenus Selwyn, and Cassius and Elbertine Prince. 'I may be on the side of the Light, but in this instance, I won't regret letting my inner Death Eater come out and play,' he thought grimly.

Despite the publicity that would be engendered, Severus hoped Eileen would press charges. This would cover him if the DMLE chose to investigate the revenge he intended to exact. He could always claim that he had resolved not to act unless Selwyn avoided being convicted. That would show that he did indeed intend to avenge his mother, as would be expected, but that like a good, law-abiding wizard, he intended to give the DMLE their chance for justice first.

As he sat and thought, Severus recalled a rumour he had heard while investigating the Princes. He had ignored it previously because he had not known at that time that there was a connection between Selwyn and the Princes. According to rumour, Silenus Selwyn had finally attacked the wrong person. This victim's parents were wealthy and extremely influential Purebloods and they were not intimidated by Selwyn and his threats to keep quiet. They had apparently reported him to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and the DMLE could not brush this under the carpet, the way they had done with the Muggleborns Selwyn had attacked.

'Selwyn's probably been advised that being respectably married would make him look better to the Wizengamot when the case comes to trial,' Severus realised. 'The Princes are desperate for money, so now that the Malfoys have told them that Mum is divorced, they're trying to sell their daughter to Selwyn in return for a nice payment. They help him look respectable, he helps with their finances, and everyone's happy. Except for Mum and his other victims, of course, but they obviously don't care about that.'

Severus did not stay in Durham that night. Instead he visited the Hogs' Head Inn in Hogsmeade — Aberforth Dumbledore, the proprietor, was always a good source of information — and discreetly asked around about Selwyn. Once he had obtained the information he needed, Severus returned to the flat above the shop and stayed there for what little remained of the night but did not sleep; he was too busy thinking for that. By dawn, he had the rudiments of a plan in place. Early the next morning, he returned to the Evans home, primed with the information he had gathered. When Eileen awoke, Severus, Alex and Iris sat down with her over breakfast to talk.

"Eileen, do you want to press charges against that man?" asked Iris carefully. Eileen shook her head fervently.

Severus decided that he needed to mention the rumour. "You know, Mum, you're not alone."

Eileen looked at him questioningly. "What do you mean, son?" she asked.

"I did a bit of research about the Princes before we met them. I wanted to know if they had ulterior motives for reaching out to you. I found out that they need money and, since we have such a lucrative business, that makes it worth being nice even to their despised daughter and Half-blood grandson. I assume they were also going to get a cash payment if you married Selwyn. He's in a lot of trouble and probably needs a wife in the background to make him look respectable."

"What kind of trouble, Sev?" asked Alex.

"He's molested many others, of both genders. All children. He'd be known as a paedophile in the Muggle world. He doesn't just molest them, though. Those of 'lesser' blood, have apparently received horrific injuries from him. From what I've heard, many died and of those that survived, I don't think any recovered, either physically or mentally. I've heard that any charges that have been placed against him to date have been swept under the carpet. Where threats haven't worked, bribes in the right places have. However, he recently abused the seven year old son of Devlin Whitehorn, the Founder of the Nimbus racing broom company¹, and Mr Whitehorn isn't willing to go away quietly. Mr Whitehorn has more money and more influence than Selwyn and this time the threats and the pay-offs aren't working."

"How do you know all this, Sev?" Alex persisted.

"I asked in the right places about the Princes but when I heard those rumours about Selwyn, I ignored them because I didn't know he had any connection with my erstwhile grandparents. When we saw him at Prince Manor, there was a niggle at the back of my mind. I knew there was something about him but I couldn't remember what. Last night, I paid a visit to Aberforth Dumbledore, who's the proprietor of a slightly shady pub. Aberforth hears things and he was willing to tell me what he knew. Apparently, the damage done to Donovan Whitehorn was horrendous. It hasn't hit the papers yet but it will soon."

Severus had sent an urgent owl to Elphinstone Urquart before flooing back to Durham, warning him that precautions should be taken to keep the Whitehorns safe, and explaining that Silenus Selwyn was a financial backer of the Dark Lord and that Voldemort would not take kindly to having one of his main sources of funds cut off. Voldemort would kill the Whitehorns before he let that happen. Severus had a feeling that they were probably wiped out in the last timeline, because he knew that the company passed from their hands during the war. Severus had been overseas at that time, still completing his apprenticeship with an Austrian Potions Master, funded by Lucius Malfoy on Voldemort's orders, which is why he was not absolutely certain that they were victims of the Death Eaters. However, it was worth taking care.

Eileen gasped. "Is this my fault? Because I didn't say anything before?"

"No, Mum. It's not your fault," Severus hastened to reassure her. "If you'd tried to press charges all those years ago, the Wizengamot would have thrown it out. A rich, influential male Pureblood against a disowned, impoverished woman? Nothing would have happened; you know that. But now that there's charges they can't ignore, you might want to consider adding your charges, to lay a stronger case against him. It's your decision, though. You have to do it because you want to and not because I'm suggesting it. I'll support you either way."

"We all will, Eileen," said Iris, taking her hand.

"I need to think about it," Eileen whispered.

"Take your time, lovey," said Iris, embracing her.

Severus began to put his plans into action that very evening. Seeing Horace Slughorn in the Hog's Head Inn, Severus made a point of stopping to chat with the Slytherin Head of House. Slughorn had a habit of collecting people he thought could be of use to him and add to his supposed prestige. With the buzz about Severus having cured Lycanthropy, Severus would be a desired addition to his collection. During the course of the conversation, Severus managed to avoid committing himself to anything but he did manage to slip in some hints about Horace retiring. Slughorn had retired the following year in any case in the previous timeline but Severus wanted to advance that timetable. When Slughorn retired, the first person Dumbledore would approach to replace him would be Eileen, as he would need not only a Potions Professor but a Slytherin Head of House, and Severus no longer qualified for the latter. This would get her safely behind the wards of Hogwarts and would relieve Severus' mind immensely.

Having laid that foundation, the young Potions Master then considered who he could recruit to help him with the rest of his plan. Severus would need to be able to trust this person implicitly. In the past, he would not have hesitated for an instant to include Lucius Malfoy in his plans but that would be too dangerous to do now. Even though it was possible Lucius may agree to help Severus in this instance, it would be at a price, and Severus had no intention of taking the Dark Mark again.

That brought him back to Minerva. Severus knew she could be vicious in the defence of her students but was not sure the revenge he had planned would be something she would be willing to be a party to. 'Kingsley Shacklebolt might have agreed to help but I have no connection with him this time round,' Severus continued to muse.

In the end, there was only one person who Severus could trust to keep his head and his secrets. Alex Evans may not be magical but he could still help with what Severus had in mind. Severus spent some time watching his targets, while Eileen agonised over whether or not to lay charges against Silenus Selwyn. When the time was right, he approached James, Sirius and Remus. "I need your help," Severus said. "But I need you not to ask questions. I want you all to have plausible deniability."

They all shared looks, communicating wordlessly, then Sirius spoke. "Tell us what you need, Shadow."

"I need you all to go out for drinks one evening — I'll tell you when —at the Leaky Cauldron. Somewhere you can make a lot of noise and be seen by plenty of people. Uncle Alex will be with you, Polyjuiced as me, to give me an alibi. What I'm doing is borderline illegal but it doesn't quite cross the line, depending on who you ask, and I'm the only one who's likely to get in trouble. The four of you should be clear."

"I'd feel better about this if you'd tell us what you're planning," said James ruefully, "but I understand your reasoning."

"I also need you to promise not to tell anyone, not even Peter." Severus held up a hand as they began to protest. "I know he's a Marauder but I want as few people as possible involved, and only those with strong Occlumency shields. Uncle Alex has agreed to be Obliviated afterwards and you three are all Occlumens — Prongs and Padfoot from their Auror training and Remus from Moony — but Peter isn't. I know using Legilimency on werewolves is pointless — you do still have your shields, don't you?" he asked, turning to Remus.

"Test me," replied Remus simply. The three Marauders present knew that Severus had Legilimency skills because he had begun teaching them Occlumency during their final year at Hogwarts and had tested their shields regularly during the course of that year. Peter had declined the offer, probably because Lucius, Bellatrix or another Death Eater was teaching him, Severus suspected. Severus did as Remus suggested and was delighted to learn that the strong mental shields Moony had erected in Remus' mind remained intact even after being cured of lycanthropy.

When the Polyjuice was ready, it was time to act. Severus sent Serafina with word to James, Sirius and Remus. Serafina then went to collect Alex and bring him to an arranged meeting point. Severus had not been sure if Alex would need magic of his own to activate the magic in the Polyjuice but when they had experimented, Alex had been able to change without any problems. James, Sirius and Remus all collected Alex from the meeting point and went off to have drinks in the Leaky Cauldron. Alex had spare doses of the Polyjuice in his pocket, so that he could renew the disguise during the course of the evening.

As a precaution, Severus Polyjuiced himself as a random Muggle, whose hair Alex had managed to obtain from his barber in Durham. Severus apparated silently to the "Gentleman's Club" that Cassius Prince frequented in Knockturn Alley, otherwise known as a high-class brothel. Disillusioning himself, he waited for Cassius inside the private room he had learned his grandfather habitually used. Stunning the older man when he arrived, Severus silently apparated out with him, to a point he had previously scouted, in a copse of trees outside the wards of Prince Manor. The younger man poured a sleeping draught down Cassius' throat, which would keep him out until morning and which Severus had quietly adapted so that it would not leave any trace in the older man's system, and then relieved his grandfather of his wand. Severus had judged things to a nicety as the dose of Polyjuice was beginning to wear off by the time he completed that first task of the evening. Taking some hairs from the old man, Severus then Polyjuiced himself as Cassius Prince and apparated back to the brothel, whereupon he made a point of leaving noticeably in the guise of his grandfather.

"But Cassius," protested the Madame. "Aren't you staying? We have a new girl tonight who I'm sure you'll like."

"I'm afraid I can't," Severus replied in his guise as his grandfather. "I have business with Silenus tonight. I only came here to look for him. He must be at home this evening; I'll try there."

Upon exiting the brothel, Severus cast a Notice-Me-Not charm, before disillusioning himself and hiding in a corner to wait for Silenus Selwyn. Earlier that day, he had sent a brief note to Selwyn, which he had forged in his grandfather's handwriting, with the aid of the letters that had been sent to Eileen over the past few months, asking Selwyn to meet Cassius outside the brothel that night. It was not long before Selwyn appeared. All the while using Cassius' wand in case anyone checked the last spells used on Severus' and Cassius' wands, Severus stunned Selwyn and apparated to the cave outside Hogsmeade where Sirius had hidden when he was a fugitive on the run during Severus' last lifetime. The entrance could not be seen from the village and, consequently, neither could the dim light he lit inside the cave.

"Serafina, can you warn me if anyone comes up the path towards the cave?" he asked and she disappeared with a quiet trill. While Dumbledore's phoenix, Fawkes, was as flashy and flamboyant as Dumbledore himself, Serafina, much like Severus, knew how to be discreet and pass unnoticed, making her the ideal look-out. She was the reason he could do this without human backup, as she would warn him of approaching trouble and get him out of there in an instant.

Severus removed Selwyn's wand and first cast strong silencing charms at the entrance to the cave, followed by an Incarcerous, binding the other man tightly. He then took another dose of Polyjuice before Rennervating the vile man. "Cassius! What are you doing?" croaked the man, seeing who he thought was his old friend.

"You defiled my daughter!" Severus snarled in his guise as Cassius Prince.

"So what? You knew about it before. Why does it matter now?" asked Selwyn in confusion.

"That was before Eileen announced it in front of the Malfoys and that whelp of hers. You really think they'll all keep quiet? Didn't you see how disgusted the Malfoys were with you? They can make big trouble for us, especially now that Devlin Whitehorn is also after your blood. It can't be hidden any longer and family honour demands satisfaction," Severus decreed, trying hard not to snort out loud at the suggestion Cassius Prince would understand the concept of family honour.

"Imperio!" Watching as Selwyn's eyes glazed over, Severus unbound the man and instructed him, "Drink this potion." He handed Selwyn a vial. When Selwyn had drunk it, Severus ordered his prisoner to smash the vial on the ground. Stamping on the shards to crush them into dust so the vial could not be repaired and identified, Severus rebound the disgusting man and cancelled the Imperius.

"That was a castration potion you just drank and it's irreversible. You won't be defiling any more children now," he gloated, watching the other man's horror with pleasure. "And if you think that was bad, wait until you see what else I'm going to do to you!"

In deep concentration, Severus began weaving his wand in a highly complex and intricate pattern. As he did so, he formally and ritually recited a long and detailed incantation, ending sharply with the words, "Aufero magiam²!" This was an extremely complicated and difficult spell to perform, as well it should be. It should not be a simple thing, to remove a person's magic.

"NO!" Selwyn screamed, struggling against his bonds, but it was too late. The spell washed over the bound man and removed all of Selwyn's magic, rendering him a Squib.

Severus waited several minutes to see the realisation of what he had done sink into Selwyn. Then he took Selwyn's own wand and cast a Priori Incantatem, deleting the final spell cast from Cassius' wand. "I wanted you to be aware when I cast the spell but I can't risk you remembering it. It's not a spell I want to become common knowledge. This spell will die with me."

Severus took Selwyn's wand in his hand and broke it across his knee. "You won't be needing this anymore," he said in satisfaction, dropping the pieces on Selwyn's chest, before Obliviating him so thoroughly that the memory of the spell would not return, no matter how skilled the person trying to reverse the Obliviation may be. Selwyn's memory of the evening would end with being forced to drink the castration potion.

He then poured a sleeping draught, like the one he had administered to Cassius, down Selwyn's throat, waiting to be sure the old man fell asleep under the spell of the sleeping draught, and then removed the bonds. He wanted to see the man stagger into Hogsmeade the following morning, minus his magic.

"Serafina!" he called. "Please take this wand to Cassius Prince and leave it beside him. Then please go home or go hunting, as you wish."

Severus cancelled all the wards he had previously placed around the cave and apparated to Durham. In a park near the Evans home, he utilised the technique Hermione Granger had used in her fifth year to organise the meetings of Dumbledore's army under the nose of Dolores Umbridge. He had given enchanted medallions to all three of his friends and he used the master to tell them it was time to leave. James and Sirius both headed home to their wives and Remus apparated Alex to Severus before heading home himself.

"Well, will you at least tell me what you did to him before you wipe my memory, so I can enjoy it, even if only for a few minutes?" Alex demanded.

Severus grinned evilly. "First I force-fed him a potion that would chemically castrate him. It's non-reversible."

Alex grinned wickedly in response. "And then?" he asked.

"And then I used a spell that I created to remove his magic."

"You can do that?" asked Alex in wonder.

Severus nodded. "It's not a spell that I'm going to disseminate. I told Selwyn it would die with me and I meant it, otherwise people like Selwyn or my grandparents would use it against people like Lily. They don't believe Muggleborns deserve magic. As far as they're concerned, only Purebloods should be allowed magic. People could wreak havoc if they knew that spell."

Alex nodded grimly. "Don't ever let anyone find out about that spell, Sev," he said in understanding.

"Don't worry. I won't," Severus assured him. "In fact, I'm going to lock it away in my mind. It'll take a special trigger to reinstall the memory. Once the war is over once and for all, I'll remove all knowledge of the spell from my mind irrevocably."

"Why not do it now?" asked Alex disapprovingly.

"The war in the wizarding world is going to get a lot worse before it's over. It's highly unlikely I'll ever have a chance to use this spell against the Dark Lord but should the opportunity ever present itself to me, I'd like to have the option. It could save a lot of lives," Severus said soberly.

Alex nodded in understanding. Severus had kept him aware of what was happening in the wizarding world. The older man did not like this spell but as a former soldier himself, he could appreciate the value of ending a war quickly and cleanly. Severus, on the other hand, wondered how the spell would affect the Horcruxes. Would it negate Voldemort's ability to use them?

"Won't Selwyn remember the spell?" Alex queried.

"No, Selwyn will sleep for the rest of the night and wake up in the morning with no memory of the spell I used, I made absolutely certain of that. The disgusting old pervert will only remember what happened up until I force-fed him the castration potion and no more. Of course, he'll blame it all on my grandfather, since I was disguised as him and used his wand."

When the Polyjuice had worn off both men, they went back to the Evans home, where Severus cast the spells to remove Alex's memory of the evening, replacing it with another, innocuous memory of Alex and Iris cuddling up on the sofa with a bottle of wine and some soft jazz music playing in the background, just as they had spent many nights in the past. Implanting the same memory in Iris' mind, Severus then apparated away before they even noticed he had been there. Before he went to sleep, Severus locked away the memory of the Aufero Magiam spell, as he had promised Alex.

Severus was up early the next morning, giving himself busy work, cleaning and rearranging the displays in the shop window, so that he would have a good view of the main street. It was not long before Silenus Selwyn came staggering weakly into the village.

"Help me!" he croaked to the various shopkeepers, who were opening their shops, setting up outside displays, and sweeping steps.

He was cautiously approached by the Postmaster, who was cleaning out his owl roosts. "What's wrong, Mister?" he asked.

"My magic. I can't feel my magic anymore. I can't apparate, I can't call my house elf. I don't know what's wrong with me."

The Postmaster shook his head and ushered Selwyn towards his shop. "Well, you better floo to St Mungo's then, and see what they can do for you." The Postmaster escorted the distressed man into his premises and lit the fire, throwing in some floo powder and yelling St Mungo's, before waving Selwyn through the fireplace.

When he went back to his work, a reporter from the Wizarding Wireless Network Headquarters, which was in Hogsmeade village, came rushing up to him. "Do you know who that was?" he asked the Postmaster excitedly.

"No, sir. I've never met him before," replied the Postmaster.

"And you didn't ask him?" asked the reporter incredulously.

"I didn't see a need to. He needed medical help, so I sent him through the floo to St Mungo's. Who he is and what happened to him isn't my business."

"That was Silenus Selwyn. He's been accused of grievously attacking and maiming the son of Devlin Whitehorn, the owner of the Nimbus racing broom company," exclaimed the reporter excitedly.

"Is that so? Then I guess you ought to be off to St Mungo's to find out what happened to him before the Daily Prophet scoops you," replied the Postmaster, who had little patience for reporters at the best of times, and most certainly not when he was trying to get his post office set up for the day's business. He had a dozen hungry owls all waiting to be fed and watered when he had finished cleaning their roosts.

Severus decided he should carry on with his own day's business as normal to allay any suspicions of his involvement. He did not mention seeing Selwyn to Eileen when she entered the shop but just got down to work as usual. Not surprisingly, that afternoon, Eileen and Severus were visited by Aurors. Severus was just grateful it was not James and Sirius who had been sent, as he was not sure how they would react. They knew he had been doing something shady the previous night and would most likely realise that he was involved in what had happened to Silenus Selwyn. Instead, to Severus' relief, it was Kingsley Shacklebolt and his partner, Amelia Bones.

In actual fact, unbeknownst to Severus, James and Sirius did indeed have their suspicions but had chosen not to ask awkward questions. "If we don't want to know the answers, then we shouldn't ask the questions, Prongs," Sirius had said and James had concurred. The Auror Office may have been obliged to investigate but the consensus of opinion among the Aurors was that Silenus Selwyn was the scum of the earth, and no one was too upset over what had happened to him. Hell, half the Aurors wanted to shake the hands of whoever had done this! They all knew he had been castrated by potion, having reviewed his memory of the previous evening, and assumed that the loss of his magic was somehow connected to that procedure, much to their amusement. They had, after all, no reason to assume otherwise.

"Mistress Snape, Master Snape, we are here because there was a serious attack on Silenus Selwyn last night. He claims that Cassius Prince was responsible, but Mr Prince has no recollection of what occurred to him last night. Mr Prince claims that you are more likely to have been responsible, given that potions were used in tshe attack. The evidence is not pointing in your direction at this time but we have to ask you questions so that we can eliminate you from the investigation," said Kingsley.

Eileen looked worried but Severus appeared calm and composed. He had, after all, been expecting this visit. "What would you like to know?" he asked.

"Could you tell us your whereabouts last night?"

"I was in the Leaky Cauldron, having a drink with some school friends, James Potter, Sirius Black and Remus Lupin," replied Severus.

"I was at the Three Broomsticks with Minerva McGonagall, Pomona Sprout and Madam Rosmerta," said Eileen.

"Well, it looks like you're both well alibied," commented Amelia Bones. "Could you explain why Cassius Prince would try to blame you for the attack on Mr Selwyn?"

Eileen went pale. "Sev," she uttered weakly.

"It's all right, Mum. I'll explain. Why don't you go and put the kettle on?" When Eileen had disappeared, Severus turned to the Aurors.

"When my mother was young, she married a Muggle — my father. Her parents promptly disowned her for 'disgracing' them like that. Quite frankly, in my opinion, they're the disgrace, not Mum. A few months ago, they made contact with her for the first time since she had been disowned. A week or so ago, we went to Prince Manor for dinner. Silenus Selwyn was among the guests. During the course of the evening — just before we left, never to return — it came out that Selwyn had sexually abused my mother throughout her childhood. Her parents didn't care because they were planning to marry her off to her abuser regardless, hence the reason why Mum took the first opportunity she came across to leave, even though she knew she would be disowned for it."

"What were you planning to do about this, Master Snape?" asked Kingsley suspiciously. "Surely you weren't going to sit back and leave your mother unavenged?"

"I had considered seeking vengeance," said Severus calmly. "But we've heard the rumours regarding Devlin Whitehorn's son and we figured this was Mum's chance to be heard, if she decided to press charges. She wouldn't have stood a chance twenty-five years ago but she would be taken seriously now, in light of the other incident. Mum was still debating whether or not she actually did want to press charges. This is very difficult for her; it's brought back dreadful memories. I was planning to wait and see what she decided to do and whether or not he would be convicted. I felt I'd give the DMLE their chance first, before I resorted to vigilantism."

"But you thought of going after him yourself?" Amelia asked to be certain.

"I thought of it, but I didn't do it. Not yet, anyway," Severus replied.

"Will you give a magical oath to that effect?" asked Kingsley.

"No, I will not. Oaths can be dangerous things and can easily backfire on the oath-giver, regardless of the veracity of the oath. I will submit to questioning under Veritaserum, however. You can even obtain it from a different Potions Master other than myself or my mother, to be sure it hasn't been contaminated, if you like," he said humorously. Should it come to that, Severus knew he was a good enough Occlumens — and enough of a Slytherin! — to be able to negate the Veritaserum sufficiently to answer in a roundabout way, which would satisfy the compulsion to tell the truth that was inherent within the Veritaserum, but without incriminating himself.

Kingsley smiled in acknowledgement. "I don't think it'll be necessary at this time to question you under Veritaserum. However, we'll take note of your recommendation to obtain it from another Potions Master if we should need to question you further," he commented wryly.

The two Aurors left the shop and did indeed stop in at the Three Broomsticks to verify Eileen's alibi. Back at the Ministry, they followed up on Severus' alibi with James and Sirius, after which they removed both Snapes off the suspect list. "Elbertine Prince is known for having great skill with potions, even though she never pursued a Mastery," observed Amelia. "Eileen Snape and her son came by their talent with potions honestly."

"The evidence really is overwhelming against Cassius Prince and that ties up the final loose end," Kingsley agreed.

"We won't be able to get Elbertine Prince."

"No, but what sort of life will she have after her husband has been accused of castrating Silenus Selwyn through the use of potions and, in the process, somehow removing his magic?"

"She'll be completely shunned by Pureblood society," remarked Amelia.

"Perhaps not as much of a punishment as I would like, but a fitting one nonetheless," said Kingsley.

"I agree," Amelia concurred, and with that the case was closed.

Cassius Prince was arrested and Silenus Selwyn was left destitute. Without his magic, he could not access his manor, nor his vaults in Gringotts. As he had no offspring of his own, the vaults would sit dormant until a member of a cadet branch of the Selwyn family could claim them. If this did not happen within fifty years, the vaults would be confiscated by the Ministry.

The Whitehorns pursued their court case, regardless of the circumstances — some members of the Wizengamot tried to claim Selwyn had been punished sufficiently already and, besides, since when does the Wizengamot concern itself with Muggles? Whitehorn's solicitor successfully pointed out that Selwyn had not been a Muggle at the time he had committed the crime and, in fact was now a Squib rather than a Muggle. Unable to afford legal representation, Selwyn's conviction was a foregone conclusion, much to the relief of Eileen and the discreet joy of Severus.

In the end Eileen had volunteered her testimony as well, since it was difficult to obtain a coherent testimony from young Donovan Whitehorn. It was only the fact that Selwyn had been caught in flagrante delicto that had enabled the Whitehorns to press charges in the first place, given Donovan's mental condition after the attack. Eileen felt compelled to stand up for Donovan and her testimony proved a pattern of predatory behaviour. Furthermore, once it came out that she was testifying, other victims also came out the woodwork to add their testimonies against the despicable man. It was no surprise to anyone when both Silenus Selwyn and Cassius Prince were sentenced to life in Azkaban.

However, Severus was now even more worried about Eileen's safety. He knew he could hold his own against Death Eaters but his mother could not. Quite the contrary, she would be a liability in a fight, because he would need to protect her. Given that Voldemort would not be pleased to have such a generous source of funding cut off, both the Whitehorns and the Snapes were now at risk: the Snapes, in part because of Eileen's testimony, and also because Severus had set up Cassius Prince to take the blame. He did not regret this — it's a father's job to protect his daughter — Severus thought, but he knew that Voldemort would want to punish Eileen for her father's crimes against such a rich source of funding, regardless of her family status. Much as he despised Albus Dumbledore's manipulations and machinations, Severus was very thankful indeed when he saw the meddlesome old coot enter the shop one day during the course of the trial.

"Ah, Master Snape. Is your mother available? I have a business proposition I would like to put before her," Dumbledore said.

"I'll get her right away for you, Professor," Severus replied.

Severus summoned Eileen from the lab, where she was brewing. He left them to talk while he went to oversee her potions. She looked confused to see Dumbledore. "Headmaster," she said. "Is there a problem with the brewing for the school?"

"No, no, my dear," said Dumbledore. "In actual fact, I have another little problem that I hope you can help me with. It seems that our dear Horace has decided to retire. I need a new Potions Professor and a Head of Slytherin House and I was hoping you could help me. I know that your own business is your main priority but if you wanted to train an apprentice to take over from you at Hogwarts in a few years' time, I would have no objections. As you would be Head of House, I would prefer that you live in the school, and you will be given your own suite of rooms. The Hogwarts house elves will be happy to help you decorate and furnish them as you wish. A personal elf will also be assigned to you. This is the annual salary I'm offering for the combined position," he said, putting a folded piece of paper on the sales counter in front of Eileen.

Eileen looked at the paper in shock. "That's a very generous offer but I'm sure you can understand that I can't give you an immediate answer, Headmaster," she said. "I will need to think this over and discuss it with my son."

"Yes, of course," he replied. "But I should perhaps mention that there really is no one else readily available in Britain. It would be problematic to source a suitable candidate from overseas and I will need as much notice as possible, should I have to take that route."

"I see," said Eileen, looking troubled. "In that case, I'll get back to you in a few days' time."

"Thank you, I would appreciate that," he said. "I'm sure you would be an excellent Potions Professor, Mistress Snape, since you have already mentored your son so successfully to his Mastery."

Dumbledore took his leave and Eileen spent the day in troubled contemplation. That evening, Severus asked her what Dumbledore had wanted and she explained about the Headmaster's offer.

"I see," said Severus, sitting thinking for a few minutes as he considered how best to persuade her. "I can't say I like the way he's trying to railroad you into agreeing but he has a point."

"You think I should do this?" she asked incredulously.

"Where would you have been if Uncle Alex, Aunt Iris and Master Brewyer had not helped you out when you were in difficulty?" he said logically. "It doesn't need to be long-term, Mum, but the students need you for now. Dumbledore did say you can train an apprentice to replace you. The apprentice probably wouldn't even need to reach Mastery status. To teach up to NEWT level Potions, he or she would probably only need to attain journeyman level, although you might need to clarify that with the Headmaster. Don't worry, Mum," he added mischievously. "I'll make sure the shop stays standing while you're up at the castle."

Eileen laughed. "Cheeky!" she said and Severus grinned at her unrepentantly.

'If only she knew what plans I have to make sure that the shop really does stay standing,' he thought, sobering before he added what he hoped would be the clincher.

"Mum," he said hesitantly. "There's something else to consider: my cure for lycanthropy. I seriously doubt that Voldemort regards werewolves as anything other than filthy half-breeds — and, no, that's not what I think; you know me better than that, Mum! — but they're undoubtedly useful tools in helping him spread terror. He won't be pleased with my cure. I'm a damn good dueller, Mum, and can hold my own in a fight but that isn't your strong point, I don't think?" he said with a teasing smile. Both knew that Eileen's strengths lay in other areas. "You'd be safe behind the wards of Hogwarts."

"I can't leave you alone though, son!" Eileen cried anxiously.

"Mum, I have Serafina to help me. Of course she'd help you as well, but this way she wouldn't need to split her attention. She can flash me away in a moment if need be."

Serafina trilled reassuringly and Eileen smiled at the phoenix, who drifted over to be stroked. Eileen spent a few days considering Dumbledore's proposal. She also discussed it with Minerva McGonagall and Pomona Sprout, wanting more clarification regarding the position and her duties than she knew she would get from the Headmaster. The werewolves had apparently been deserting Voldemort in droves, only the most rabid, who had almost completely given themselves over to the wolf, remained in Fenrir Greyback's pack and Severus and Eileen both knew this would make the Snapes targets. In the end, knowing it would relieve Severus' mind, Eileen agreed to take on the position and moved into the castle shortly after signing her contract.

While waiting for his mother's decision, Severus had strengthened the wards on the shop even further, adding extra-strong anti-flame wards and intent-based wards that would prevent Death Eaters entering with murder and mayhem on their minds. He was not worried about the anti-apparition wards the Death Eaters would erect when they came after the Snapes, as Serafina could easily flash him away, regardless of any wards erected by the Death Eaters.

Severus had also asked, Fluxy, the house-elf who had been assigned to him while he was at Hogwarts, if it might be possible to pack up the contents of the shop every night and store it all somewhere safe overnight, like the Room of Requirement, and then unpack it again each morning. Unfortunately, the elf's duties at the castle prevented him from helping with this but Fluxy did add elfin wards to the shop. As most wizards, especially the Death Eaters and their sympathisers, regarded house elves as little more than vermin, it simply would not occur to any wizard that such a thing as elfin wards existed and the Death Eaters would not know how to combat these protections on the shop.

The precautions came just in time. A week after Eileen had moved into the castle, the Death Eaters came calling. Severus felt the anti-apparition wards go up and, upon checking, saw that the floo had been blocked. Serafina immediately flashed him out the building, dropping him behind the Death Eaters, who were standing facing the shop, with their backs to him, all cackling in glee over the destruction they thought they would be wreaking that night.

"Serafina, get James, Sirius, Kingsley Shacklebolt and Amelia Bones," he ordered the phoenix, as he set off an alarm that was loud enough to rouse the entire village. Without a moment's pause, he began casting hexes. Sectumsempra, his cutting curse; bone breaking curses; piercing curses; the Reductor smashing curse, bludgeoning curses. All curses that would seriously disable but nothing necessarily lethal. Severus knew Dumbledore would not approve of anything stronger than a stunner being cast but he did not care. Severus was in no way obliged to Dumbledore and did not need to abide by the restrictions the old man had placed upon the members of his Order of the Phoenix.

The villagers came pouring out their homes at the sound of the alarms. Some screamed and ran back inside, to barricade themselves in their homes in fear, others ran to extinguish the flames on the apothecary shop before the fire could spread to their own premises and still others joined in the fight. "Come on!" exhorted Severus. "We out-number them. If we all fight together, we can beat them."

Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! The four Aurors Severus had sent Serafina to get apparated into the village and they immediately joined the fight. The tide turned against the Death Eaters, who began apparating away in a panic, leaving behind their injured to be arrested.

To Severus' disappointment, Voldemort had not accompanied his followers on this raid and so there was no opportunity to use the Aufero Magiam spell against on the Dark Lord. While Severus would have liked to have used it against some of the worst Death Eaters, he could not risk that spell becoming public knowledge; it was therefore better to save it for the Dark Lord alone.

"Don't think this is over!" screeched Bellatrix Lestrange.

Sirius sent a Reductor curse at her. "And we'll beat you again if you come back, cousin!" he shouted at her just before she disapparated away.

The clean-up took most of the night and in the morning, Eileen came running down to the village in a panic, having only just heard what had occurred the previous night.

"It's all right, Mum. I'm fine and the shop's fine, too," Severus said, catching her in his arms. "The whole village came to my aid."

"What have you done to offend the Death Eaters?" asked Alastor Moody, coming up to them.

"You mean apart from curing lycanthropy and causing Greyback to lose most of his pack?" asked Severus dryly. "Well, not only did Mum testify against Silenus Selwyn but her father somehow or another seems to have rendered him a Squib. That cut Selwyn off from his vaults and, according to rumour, lost the Death Eaters and their leader a prime source of funding."

"Good work!" Moody replied gruffly.

Severus looked around at the gathered villagers. "I suggest we set up patrols at night. We can all take turns. Then, if the Death Eaters come back, we can set off alarms again and come to the help of the intended victims. Even if Mum and I are currently the only targets, you're all at risk if the fires spread to your premises. I'll help you all ward your premises with the same wards I placed on our shop. You can see that it was scorched but not really damaged."

The villagers all agreed and Severus breathed a sigh of relief. At least he and Eileen were not about to be run out of the village by their scared neighbours.

"I'll help create the rota," said Aberforth. "If anyone can't manage a shift, let me know. It'll be less of a problem to replace you for that shift than it will be to leave the village unprotected. Anyone who has any preferences regarding their shifts, let me know sometime today, if you can."

Severus spoke quietly to him. "What are the chances we can set up a Caterwauling Charm around the village every night? Anyone wanting to come to your establishment or to Rosmerta's would simply have to floo in instead of apparating. Or we could activate them after you both close up for the night."

"That's a good idea," Aberforth grunted. Severus did not tell him that he was merely using the Death Eaters' own tactics from the second Voldemort war in his previous timeline against them.

Over the next couple of days, the plans were implemented and the villagers of Hogsmeade followed these plans religiously for the remainder of the war. Severus put his own wards on every building in the village and Fluxy discreetly added his elfin wards to each of the buildings as well, without any of the villagers realising. The Death Eaters came back a couple of times more, but quickly learned it was too costly for them to attack Hogsmeade. After that, Voldemort refrained from ordering any more raids on the village. This, of course, did not mean the Snapes were no longer vulnerable but Eileen and Severus learned to take extreme precautions when leaving the relative safety of Hogsmeade and, for now, the Dark Lord seemed content to bide his time — perhaps because a certain prophecy had been made and his attention was now focused elsewhere as a result.

.o.O.o.

¹ web dot archive dot org / web / 20110623023929 / jkrowling dot com / textonly / en / wotm dot cfm or harrypotter dot wikia dot com / wiki / Devlin_Whitehorn

² Remove the magic – at least according to Google Translate, anyway. If there are any Latin scholars reading this who disagree with the not entirely reliable Google Translate, I'm happy to be corrected.

.o.O.o.

An enormous thanks to my beta, the wonderful StrongHermione, for all her help and support. I highly recommend having a look at her stories; they're all well worth reading. In fact, although I've twisted them somewhat, a number of her suggestions were the inspiration for this chapter.