Also, I would like to thank Fran, my beta, for taking on my insanity. She is a courageous woman. :-D

Disclaimer, Summary and Warnings are in the first chapter.

§

FERVID CHAOS
Interrogations

Dumbledore was pacing at a furious rhythm in his office, and Harry, Draco and Severina could not help but watch the Marauders' Map with amusement as the Dark Prince and his mother sat on the edge of the bed in the hospital wing.

'Do you think he is angry?' Harry asked rhetorically.

Severina gave a derisive snort. 'He knows something is wrong. He is trying to get through my barriers with a force that I have never imagined him using. It's quite annoying really.' She shook her long raven hair out and tilted her head as she stared down at the map. 'You know, I think he is going to wear a hole in the floor if he keeps up that pace!'

Draco looked at the woman. 'What do you think he is thinking?'

'Right now, everything. Before he erected his barriers, I sensed confusion, anger, hatred. He is probably furious with himself for not keeping Harry with him, for not destroying Tom when he had so many chances, for not killing me when he had the chance. He is also probably wondering why Harry could switch from Light to Dark so suddenly, why Harry would believe anything I or Tom say.'

The still Gryffindor snorted. 'Why doesn't he wonder about why I wouldn't trust him?' He noticed the Dumbledore was leaving his office. 'There he goes.'

'Probably going to my quarters,' Severina muttered.

However, as if having heard the comment, Dumbledore changed directions and began walking in the direction of the hospital wing.

'I guess I better disappear,' Harry stated.

'He would be able to see through the magic,' the witch replied.

'Who said I would be using magic?' With that he disappeared under Madame Pomfrey's desk, ignoring the coughed laughter of his fiancé then smiling when he heard Draco say to his mother, 'What? I thought it was funny!'

Severina just rolled her eyes as her appearance slowly changed, just in time as the doors burst open.

Harry was close enough that he could hear Draco whisper, "Rina", a pet name he had taken to calling her that had quickly caught on with the rest of the Slytherin gang, Lucius, Sirius and Remus. It amused Harry and Tom to no end to see how it annoyed the woman, though they suspected that deep down she enjoyed the attention.

But this time it wasn't said with any humour. Whatever expression Dumbledore currently looked wore, it must have been quite bad, because Draco rarely worried about what the Headmaster was capable of.

'Invelum Eall Trēowth!'

The Gryffindor winced. It was the same spell he had used to reveal his sister's true identity. Well, shit.

'Well, well, well. Severina Snape. How marvellous it is to see you again!' Though the Headmaster's actual words should have sound light and cheerful, they were edged in cold steel. 'How is Tom? Is he doing well?'

'Sweet Merlin!' Harry heard Draco hiss, pretending to be surprised.

'Yes, Albus,' came the soft, silky feminine reply. Harry could imagine his mother smiling pleasantly as if she were in the company of Remus, Sirius or Lucius.

'I'm assuming that you and your husband have poisoned Harry with your own twisted beliefs, which would account for his behaviour this year.'

'Actually, no, unlike some, I realise that my son-'

'Whoa! Potter is your son?' Draco shrieked, playing along as best he could. 'Harry Potter? Potty, Potter?'

'Yes, Draco, and Voldemort is his father.' There was a pause, before the witch continued. 'Albus, my son has lived through enough hell, and this would only cause him more stress. Although, if you really want to look for the cause of my son's particular behaviour, I suggest you look to yourself.' Severina's tone was still calm and light. 'If my son is anything like me, which indeed he seems to be, then I can tell you that after all the horrid stunts you have pulled that I would be infuriated too! I am not surprised he has started practicing the Dark Arts. You have failed, Dumbledore. You have failed in your quest to show him the Light; oh for awhile I am sure he would have gladly bent himself backwards for one of your little escapades, but you allowing his godfather to die killed his faith in you completely. It started dying when you kept the truth from him, when you left him with those filthy Muggles. Now it is too late. He will never trust you again, Albus.'

The Gryffindor heard the man sigh and knew that his mother had struck a chord. Go, Mum!

'And remember, Dumbledore. You can't change fate... only delay it. Harry will know soon.'

'Severina, do you honestly expect me to believe that you haven't told him?'

'Why don't you get some Veritaserum from my stores and give him some. He will tell you that he doesn't know what you are talking about.'

Under the desk, Harry's eyes went wide as saucers. What?

'Perhaps I will.'

The wizard climbed out after he heard the door slam. 'How am I going to be able to lie through Veritaserum?'

The witch shook her head. 'That is not what you need to worry about right now.' She grabbed her son and dragged him to the fireplace in the back of the wing. Throwing some powder in, she shouted, 'Gryffindor common room!' She shoved him in, watching him disappear before turning to Draco. 'As soon as I go, get Hermione; she's with Barty, Lucius and the rest at the chalet. Tell her what is going on and have her go to her common room. Send Remus to the common room, have your father get Rom and tell the rest of you meet me in my quarters in exactly fifteen minutes.' With another shout, she disappeared from sight.

§

Draco came tumbling out of Barty Crouch's fireplace and into the living room to find the afforementioned wizard reclining on a velvet chaise with the Princess, his father sitting in a high-back chair and Remus and Sirius snuggled up on the love seat. At his appearance, they all jumped up in alarm.

'What's wrong?' Remus shot at him.

'What happened?' Lucius demanded.

Draco held his hand up. 'Dumbledore knows about Severina. He is going to her office to get some Veritaserum to give Harry to see if he knows anything or not. 'Mione, Remus, Severina wants you back in the common room with Harry. Do you understand what is going on? Do you have any clue what your mother is up too?' When the girl nodded, he sighed in relief. 'Good. Tell Harry; he is probably going crazy wondering what the hell is going on.' Not even listening to the two Gryffindors' departure, he continued. 'She wants us and Tom to meet in her quarters in fifteen minutes.'

'I'll get Tom.' Sirius disappeared.

The slightly stressed part of Draco's mind couldn't help but muse that he had never seen so many people use the Floo within such a short time space.

It was at this moment that Sirius and Tom appeared, and immediately they began discussing the events with Barty and Lucius. After about five minutes of not understanding what in the world was being said, the young Slytherin interrupted. 'What are you talking about? Will someone please explain to me what is going on?'

Tom inhaled and exhaled slowly. 'We are going to be doing some very intense magic, and to make it harder we don't have the right balance. What will happen is Harry will actually drink the Veritaserum, but someone will have to counteract Harry's will by channelling through him, speaking in his place. Now, in allcases both the channel and the one channelling have to have contact with at least two people to add extra power and force the channelling through. If possible, you should have at least one family member then either another family member or someone of an intimate nature.'

'Now, since Tom and 'Rina cannot be there, it only leaves Hermione,' Lucius picked up. 'None of use can be with Harry, meaning he has to rely on Remus.' He tilted his head. 'Channelling is rarely done with the influence of truth potions affecting one, which makes this intensely difficult. Since Harry is closer to you and Severina then it will have to be one of you that do the channelling; since 'Rina has more experience in Legilimency, I think she should be the one to do it, which is what she probably was planning.'

Draco nodded with a sigh and followed his father, Barty, Tom and Sirius into the large fireplace. In a flash of green, he was in Severina's quarters; and immediately after they stepped out, she uttered a word that the Slytherin didn't understand and strong magical barriers shot up around the room.

In a trance-like voice, Severina whispered, 'It will block everyone and everything but the connection between Harry and myself.'

It was only then that Draco realised that the witch wasn't wearing normal robes. She was wearing a flimsy white tunic, with silver bands that curled around her upper arms, wrists and ankles.

Seating herself in the floor, the woman waved a candle into existence in front of her. 'It helps me focus,' she explained after feeling the young man giving her an odd look.

Tom sat down beside his wife and placed one hand on her shoulder, the other on her back; Lucius sat down on the other side of the witch, bracing her in the same way.

Draco felt a little jealous that he was not able to help in any way, but sat down with Sirius and Barty, sighing and resigning himself to watch.

'He's ready.'

§

All the way up in the Gryffindor common room, Harry sat on the edge of his bed, Hermione sitting on one side and Remus standing beside him. Remus was barely touching Harry's shoulder (they could not tip Dumbledore off) and Hermione had her hands in the same position as those down in the dungeons. She was thankful at this point that Dumbledore did not know of her identity.

'Mister Potter,' the Headmaster began. 'It is your name, is it not?'

Harry could feel something tighten inside him. Don't say it's not. Don't say... Immediately, he began tingling. It was as though a warmer version of one of the House Ghosts had entered his body. 'Yes, it is my name.' He paused and gave Albus a bright smile. 'Is something wrong, Professor Dumbledore?' He was pleased to see the stunned look cross the old man's face.

'Your name is Harry Potter?'

Harry felt a smirk curling his lips upward against his own will. 'Last time I checked, Sir.'

'I realised today that Professor Snape is not really a spy for Light; he is working for Tom Riddle. Did Professor Snape say anything unusual to you? Did he do anything... abnormal?'

Aside from revealing the fact that he is actually a she and she is my mother? 'Abnormal in general, or abnormal for Snape?'

Albus could not stop a chuckle. 'Abnormal for Snape?'

'Well, he was angrier than normal, though I couldn't figure out why.' Because you turned her into a man, maybe?

The older man frowned. 'I see. That is all, Harry. I am sorry that I had to ask you to take the Veritaserum.' He turned glittering eyes on to the werewolf as he grinned. 'Remus, could I see you in my office?'

Well shit!

§

Review