"O for a voice like thunder, and a tongue
to drown the throat of war!"

William Blake (Prologue to King Edward the Fourth)

The Middle II

'This is an underground tunnel that leads to the Shrieking Shack,' said Severus in Gilderoy's mind. 'This is where they'll be taking us to see the Dark Lord.'

'I think I'm going to throw up,' Gilderoy replied. 'Or faint – or both.'

'Well, don't,' said Severus.

'How can you stay so calm, Severus?' Gilderoy whimpered.

'Years and years of practise,' said Severus. 'Keep breathing. We're nearly there – and stay still.'

Once they stopped moving, Severus caught glimpses of the night sky through the holes left by the broken roof tiles. It seemed that no matter what life he lived, he always somehow wound up back at this forsaken place, fighting for it.

'Is this him?' asked a familiar voice.

'It is,' Bellatrix answered, 'along with his little sidekick.'

The floorboards creaked as the familiar voice stepped into view. 'well well, we meet again, Yaxley,' said Severus with an air of boredom. 'Does the Dark Lord consider you to be his most trustworthy servant now?'

'Gryffindor cockiness doesn't suit you, mister Snape,' Yaxley responded disapprovingly. 'And yes, I am his most trusted servant – ready to deliver the one thing he wants most.'

'Shouldn't Cissy here get all the credit though?' said Severus, cocking his head in her direction. 'I mean, I slipped between the Dark Lord's fingers more than once, and yet, she's the one who managed to catch me.'

Yaxley shook his head. 'I don't have time for this nonsense, mister Snape. The Dark Lord wishes to speak with you.'

The ropes that were bound around Severus' body loosened up and tied his hands together, causing him to fall onto the floor with a harsh blow. He managed to push himself up with his knees and looked up at Yaxley, towering over him. 'Where is he?' he asked. 'I want him to look me in the eye when he intends to kill me.'

Yaxley stepped aside, revealing the Dark Lord sitting on the musty old couch Peter had often pulled butterbeers from. 'Heard your followers were having a hard time inside the castle,' said Severus casually.

A rare smile formed on Voldemort's face. 'One by one, they'll drop like flies, mister Snape. First, it will be the students. Then the teachers will soon follow. After that, we kill everyone at the Ministry who still dares disobeying my orders. And at last, I will turn to your family, and drown the thing that you love most in this world.'

Severus's eye involuntarily twitched. The very thought of Julia being drowned by the hands of the Dark Lord caused his heart to ache. He could feel the Dark Lord trying to enter his mind, so heavily as if he were knocking with a battering-ram on his front door. 'There's nothing hidden inside my mind for you to see,' said Severus.

'Your home, Snape,' said Voldemort. 'It is your home I want, along with all its earthly possessions that the Flamels left behind.'

'If it's the manuscripts on the creation of the Philosopher's Stone you want,' said Severus, 'I fear I must disappoint your efforts. They have been burned to ash on Nicolas Flamel's orders.'

The rare smile swiftly vanished from the Dark Lord's face and turned his gaze towards Narcissa. 'I see you've brought the sword, Narcissa,' he said.

'And I brought you the diadem, my lord,' Bellatrix added, and presented the diadem to him as if she served it on a silver platter, 'and the boy's wand,' which she tossed into a corner of the room.

'Come here, both of you,' said Voldemort as he made a gesture with his hand to the sisters. As they stepped forward, he kissed them both on the top of their hands. 'You will be rewarded, greatly – after I've dealt with him.'

'Thank you, my lord,' said Narcissa stiffly as she handed the sword to him.

'How does it feel, mister Snape,' said Voldemort, 'knowing that you've been defeated – once and for all.'

'Took you long enough,' Severus answered with a huff. From the corner of his eye, he could see Peter moving quietly among the shadows, making his way towards the place Bellatrix had tossed his wand. 'How do you intend on killing me? Slowly torture me? Use the Killing Curse one me? I'd really like to know.'

'The choice is yours,' said Voldemort as he got up from the couch, holding on to the diadem as if it were his most valuable possession. 'Consider it a final act of mercy.'

Severus could see Peter trying to haul the wand across the floor as quietly as he could. So far, no one had caught sight of it, as they were too focussed on him. 'I'd rather leave this world without too much of a hassle.'

'Very well,' said Voldemort as he opened his arms in an accepting manner. 'Any last words?'

'Yes,' said Severus. He could feel that Peter was crawling up his jeans and place his wand between his fingertips. Peter started gnawing on the ropes that bound his hands, trying to release him.

'Roy, can you hear me?' Severus whispered into Gilderoy's mind.

'Yes,' said Gilderoy.

'Can you move?' Severus asked.

'I believe I can,' Gilderoy responded.

'The diadem is just within reach for you,' said Severus hastily. 'I will undo the jinx they cast on you, and then I need you to grab it as soon as I say my final words.'

'Got it,' said Gilderoy.

Severus looked up at the Dark Lord, and grinned. 'I'm sorry for the mess.'

With a mere flick of his wand, Severus blasted the ropes that bound Gilderoy's body away. Gilderoy rolled over and reached out for the diadem while Severus jumped to pull the sword out of the Dark Lord's hands.

It all happened very fast. Severus was able to pry the sword out of the Dark Lord's hands and swung it around to prevent Bellatrix attacking from behind. She screamed as the tip of the sword scraped her arm, leaving a nasty gash that bled heavily down to the tips of her fingers.

At the same time, Gilderoy had managed to take a hold of the diadem. From the diadem, echoes of a hollow voice could be heard, screaming and demanding to be given back. Yaxley shot a curse in Gilderoy's direction and missed as Gilderoy sprawled out on the floor.

'Bombarda!' yelled Severus. With a harsh blow, Yaxley was catapulted through a broken window and landed far away in the snow. With an elegant flick of his wrist he shoved the sword across the floor in Gilderoy's direction. 'Destroy it! NOW!'

Without thinking twice, Gilderoy wielded the sword and clashed against the sapphire the adorned the diadem. It looked as if the diadem collected all its energy within a split second, and exploded louder than any bomb Severus had ever heard. It shattered into a million blue and silver pieces, blasting everyone away in different directions.

Severus and Gilderoy were thrown hard against the wall by the sheer force of it. The screaming that came from the diadem lingered, causing them to cover their ears as well as they could. Bellatrix and Narcissa flew out of the windows, and Peter was nowhere to be seen. Neither was the Dark Lord, who seemed to have vanished into thin air.

Smoke started to rise. The old rotting wood that formed the structure of the shack had caught on fire. 'Roy, take the sword and run back to the castle!'

Gilderoy, still weak in his knees, did as he was told and jumped through the window. Severus could only hope neither Narcissa nor Bellatrix would get a hold of him again. 'Peter!' he yelled. 'Peter where are you!?'

Severus looked around frantically. The smoke made it harder and harder for him to see. It took nearly a minute until he found Peter, unconscious and still in his rat form, hiding under the couch. Quickly he stuffed Peter in his pocket and blasted his way through the wall, causing the construction of the shack to collapse.

There was no sign of Gilderoy, but Severus did find Narcissa hovering over her sister in the snow. 'What happened to her?' she asked as she looked up at Severus. Tears were streaming down her face, and her hands were covered in blood.

'The sword is laced with basilisk venom,' said Severus. 'I'm sorry, Narcissa, but there is nothing you can do.'

'Please,' said Narcissa, beggingly. 'Please, do something.'

'I can't,' said Severus, shaking his head. 'Only phoenix tears can help her now, and the only phoenix I knew left after Dumbledore died.'

Bellatrix laid in the snow, unmoving. 'I hope…I made him…proud,' said Bellatrix with a quivering voice. 'I'm sorry, Cissy. I'm…sorry.'

The little light, dark as it was, left Bellatrix' eyes. Narcissa cradled her sister's body, crying like a wounded animal. 'Bella…no, please don't leave me, please…'

'Narcissa, you need to go,' said Severus, trying to speak with a voice of reason. 'This war isn't over while the Dark Lord is still out there.'

'No,' Narcissa whimpered. 'No. I can't leave her. I can't…'

Strange as it was, Severus looked at the scene in front of him, and was briefly reminded when he had found Lily's body at her home in Godric's Hollow. He had howled in pain in the same way that Narcissa was now grieving over her sister. 'I am aware that you don't believe in the Dark Lord's teachings,' he said calmly, 'or at least not all of it. Narcissa, this is your only chance of escape. Take it.'

Narcissa turned away from her sister's body and looked Severus straight in the eye. 'End this. Please, put an end to this madness.'

'I can only try,' said Severus truthfully. 'Make your way through Hogsmeade, cross the railroad and head into the mountains. I suspect they won't come looking for you there.'

Narcissa nodded in understanding and casted a levitation charm on her sister. 'The things we do for love,' she said as she started walking. 'Now go, Severus. Go.'

Severus watched Narcissa disappear into the shadows with her sister's body floating in front of her. It had been him that had wielded the sword that grazed Bellatrix's arm, and yet Narcissa had seen no fault in him.

'Peter, are you alive?' said Severus as he patted gently against his pocket. A soft and weak sounding squeak came through. 'Glad to hear that,' he said as he rushed his way back up to the castle. 'You saved us all, Peter. But this story isn't over yet. There's one more thing that's left for us to finish, and I hope you'll be ready when it happens.'

A loud blow could be heard as the remainder of the roof of the Shrieking Shack collapsed, spreading its ashes into the wind. A place that had tormented Severus's nightmares for so long was burning down the ground, never to be seen again.

A/N If anyone wants to hear the entire poem by William Blake recited by a man whose voice sounds like a love marriage between Alan Rickman and Christopher Lee's, I recommend looking up "Lullaby" by Loreena McKennitt on YouTube. It is beautifully dark.