A/N: A special thank you to Zsenya, Juliane, Night Zephyr, and especially, Yolanda for keeping me from hurling myself and my laptop computer off a cliff while I struggled with this chapter.

Chapter Fifteen: A Sticky Situation

When Harry reentered the dungeon classroom, Snape was not there, but he heard noises coming from the professor's office. Harry crept silently to the door and found Snape stuffing jars, vials and a leather bag that sounded as if it were full of money into his robe pockets.

"I know what you were planning to do," Harry said.

Snape spun around in surprise. "Really?" he said, sneering evilly. "Then I suggest you leave before I change my mind."

"You're going to go after her anyway, aren't you?"

"Mr. Potter, you are really trying my patience, not to mention my self control." Snape went back to frantically stuffing things into his pockets. "I haven't got time for this. Leave now or I will not be responsible for my actions."

"I came back because I want to help you. I don't want her to die any more than you do."

Hope swiftly clouded Snape's eyes. "Are you volunteering to be traded for her?"

Harry shook his head vigorously and backed away a few paces. "I don't want to die either, but I thought we could think of something to help her."

"Why, Potter?" he snapped. "Out for more glory?"

Harry sighed and shook his head in frustration. "If you don't want my help, fine--"

Snape rubbed his eyes in fatigue and said something that sounded vaguely like, "I'm sorry." He then reached into his cabinet and pulled out a jar which he held tightly in his hand. "Two days ago, Voldemort sent me this." He put the jar on his desk so Harry could see what was inside. It was a finger--presumably Professor Stanley's.

"Oh..." Harry looked away and took several deep breaths, afraid he would be sick to his stomach.

"Voldemort said that if I didn't turn you over to him in two days time, he would kill her, but not before he gives her to Balin for a few weeks. I don't expect you to understand what that means..."

"I understand, Professor. She told me what he did to her."

"She told you?" Snape said, astonished.

"Well, enough anyway," Harry replied sadly. "We can't let him hurt her again."

For the first time since Harry had known Snape, he looked at him without a trace of hate in his eyes, just for a second. "No, we can't."

"So what's your plan?" Harry asked, sincerely hoping it wouldn't involve his untimely death.

Snape paced his office for a few moments, then faced Harry, his black eyes flashing with inspiration. "Go get your Invisibility Cloak and, for Merlin's sake, be discreet." Harry turned to leave, but Snape stopped him. "I won't let anything happen to you--for her sake."

Harry nodded and hurried from the dungeon to Gryffindor Tower. Fortunately, neither Ron nor Hermione were in the common room. He rushed up the steps to the boys' dormitory and grabbed the cloak from his trunk. He was just about to throw it over himself when Ron walked in.

"What are you doing, Harry?" Ron asked. "Shouldn't you be pickling rat brains? Hey, what are you doing with the cloak?"

Even though they were alone in the room, Harry pulled Ron into a corner and whispered, "I'm going to help Snape rescue Professor Stanley."

Ron laughed. "For a second there, I thought you said you were going to help Snape rescue Professor Stanley."

Harry waved his hand to silence Ron. "Shhhh! Keep your voice down!"

Ron's eyes grew wide. "You're serious!"

"I need you to help me get out of the portrait hole." Harry threw the cloak over himself.

Ron reached out for him, but snatched only thin air. "Have you gone completely nutters? You can't trust Snape!"

Harry peaked his head out of the cloak. "I don't--exactly." He sighed as he struggled for the right words. "I couldn't do anything to help Cedric, but I might be able to help Professor Stanley. I know I've got to try. They cut off her finger, Ron, and they're going to kill her. You said it yourself, we have to start fighting back!"

Ron nodded reluctantly. "All right, let's do it."

Harry, now fully covered by the cloak, followed Ron down the stairs through the common room. Ron uttered the password and quickly climbed through the portrait hole, standing to one side to allow Harry out. Harry couldn't help noticing how scared and worried his best friend looked.

"Thanks, Ron," Harry whispered.

"Be careful, Harry," he mouthed in reply.

Harry smiled encouragingly before he remembered that Ron couldn't see his face. He took a deep breath, then hurried back down to the dungeon as fast as the cloak would allow.

"It took you long enough." Snape glowered at Harry when he returned to his dungeon office and pulled off the cloak. "Did anyone see you?"

"No," Harry lied.

"We only have two hours to get to Voldemort's lair, before he..." Snape trailed off. "Let's get on with it." Snape took a few steps toward him, but hesitated, a sour look on his face. Harry uneasily handed him one corner of the cloak. Snape took it and draped it over both of them. They stood there for a moment, as if getting used to the idea of having to stand so close to each other, before they took a few awkward steps towards the door.

Harry had walked under the Invisibility Cloak dozens of times with Ron, who was now almost as tall as Snape, but somehow trying to walk under it with his Potions professor was a particularly frustrating experience. It was probably the fact that they hated each other's guts that made it so difficult. Harry tried to match Snape's wide steps, but accidentally trod on Snape's foot instead.

"Will you watch where you're going, Potter!" Snape hissed.

"Sorry."

After that, Snape actually made an effort to match Harry's shorter strides as they made their way out of the dungeon and up the stone steps. They finally reached the top of the stairs and crept carefully through the entrance hall, where students were just starting to stream in for dinner. Fortunately, the Great Hall doors were on the other side of the entrance hall so they were able to avoid bumping into anyone as the Slytherin students came barreling up the steps from the dungeon. Snape's anxious sigh reminded Harry of the precious minutes ticking away, but they didn't dare rush if they didn't want to trip on the cloak and literally blow their cover.

They inched along the wall, but stopped dead when they saw Filch walking through the entrance doors. It wasn't the sight of Filch, or even his evil cat, Mrs. Norris, that caused Harry and Snape to stop breathing, but the man walking with him:

Dumbledore!

"It was them Weasley twins that done it, I'm telling you!" Filch roared.

Dumbledore seemed as if he was trying not to laugh. "I'm sure it was one of the younger students that left the Canary Cream out for Mrs. Norris to find. Fred and George Weasley would have done something far more sophisticated and diabolical." There was a slight lilt of admiration for the twins in his voice.

"Please, sir, let me have 'em for a few hours. I got the manacles all nice and polished, so no chance of lockjaw, I promise."

"Now, now, Argus, we've been over this before. I just can't have you torturing students. I will make certain that there is an official investigation into the matter. The guilty party will be found and punished accordingly." Dumbledore started to laugh, much to Filch's chagrin. "You have to admit, it was rather humorous." He stopped laughing when Filch glared at him poisonously. "Well, she seems none the worse for it." Mrs. Norris chose that moment to cough up a large ball of feathers. Dumbledore cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Shall we go into dinner?"

Harry was just about to breath a sigh of relief, when he saw Mrs. Norris coming towards them, meowing loudly.

"What is it, my dear?" Filch asked, his tone of voice suddenly affectionate.

"I'm sure it's nothing, Argus," Dumbledore said, seeming to look directly into Harry's eyes. Harry felt his heart stop mid-beat. "She's probably still a bit shaken from her ordeal. Come along to dinner, I'm absolutely famished." Dumbledore put a friendly hand on Filch's shoulder and began to lead the caretaker, followed by his frustrated cat, in the direction of the staff entrance to the Great Hall.

Before Harry could process the strange look the Headmaster appeared to have given him, he saw Ron and Hermione tearing down the stairs and towards the entrance hall doors, no doubt in pursuit of him and Snape. Out of reflex, he almost called out to warn them of Dumbledore's presence, but Snape clamped his hand over Harry's mouth.  

"Miss Granger, Mr. Weasley," called Dumbledore, "may I see you for a moment."

Harry could see the desperate disappointment on his friends' faces as they slowly turned and  reluctantly approached the Headmaster. Snape tugged at his arm urgently, but Harry refused to move.

"Where are the pair of you off to?" Dumbledore asked in a kind but firm tone of voice. "It's time for dinner."

"Um..." replied Hermione.

"Er..." added Ron.

Hermione frowned at Ron, apparently annoyed that he couldn't think of an appropriate lie either. "We were, uh, going to the library," she blurted out, "to study for O.W.L.s."

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow. "Really? I had no idea you could access the library from outside the castle."

"Yeah, it's a new shortcut we found," Ron explained lamely. "Gets us there twice as fast."

"Your sudden dedication to your studies is admirable, Mr. Weasley," Dumbledore said wryly, "but one can overdo it."

"Well, you see--" Ron began, but Dumbledore stopped him.

"Why don't you come to my office after dinner. I can give you some pointers on the best way to study for O.W.L.s, then we can have some cakes and warm butterbeer afterward."

Hermione began to fidget nervously. "That's very kind, Professor, but we--"

"It wasn't a request, Miss Granger," he said, looking down his long nose at her. "I expect to see both of you directly after dinner."

Their faces fell in defeat. "Yes, sir," they answered in unison. Then, with shoulders slumped, they trudged into the Great Hall.

Harry gawked at Snape, who looked as completely nonplussed as Harry felt. Snape jerked his head towards the tall oak doors and they made their way more quickly, suddenly working in concert out of the joint fear of what Dumbledore would do to them if he discovered what they were up to. But Harry couldn't help wondering if Dumbledore already knew. What other explanation could there be for him not only calling off Mrs. Norris, but preventing Ron and Hermione from leaving the castle? It was very hard for Harry to believe that Dumbledore would allow him to do something so...well, suicidal, but it certainly looked as if he was doing just that.

Outside, it was very cold and dark, only a few dim stars were out to light their way. Snape lit the end of his wand so they could see where they were going. The snow beneath their feet had started to turn slushy, causing Harry to slip and almost fall, but Snape caught him by the arm. Snape's almost considerate behavior towards him was so unnerving that he almost wished his professor would yell at him. Harry just hoped that Snape would return to his familiar, nasty self once they rescued Professor Stanley.

The freezing wind came ripping over the lake and threatened to tear the Invisibility Cloak off them. Fortunately, the grounds were deserted, so they could use less care and walk a bit faster towards their still-unknown destination. Snape was leading them east, towards the Forbidden Forest, but soon it was clear that they were headed for the Whomping Willow. Of course, Snape knew as well as Harry that beyond the violent tree was the tunnel that led out of Hogwarts and into the Shrieking Shack. When they finally reached the Whomping Willow, they stood far enough away from the tree so not to provoke it into attacking them with its dangerous, gnarled branches.

"How do we get through it?" Harry asked, still nervous enough about getting caught not to speak above a whisper. "I'm not small enough to get under there to touch the knot that freezes it. Are you an Animagus?"

"No," Snape replied, his lips curling up into an unpleasant grin. "But I am rather good at Transfiguration."

He pointed his wand at Harry and suddenly he was staring at Snape's feet through large eyes. He knew he was a small animal of some sort, but he wasn't sure what kind. He looked behind him and found he had a long, bushy red tail. His intense desire to go out and hunt for acorns told him he must be a red squirrel. He wiggled his nose in great displeasure at Snape, then darted under the Whomping Willow's whipping branches. He stood on his hind legs and touched the special knot in the trunk with his paw, freezing the tree in mid-swish.

Snape quickly slipped passed the gap in the tree's roots and down the muddy slope, into the narrow tunnel entrance. Harry scurried to catch up with him. As soon as they reached the safety of the low-ceilinged tunnel, Snape, bent over double, took off the Invisibility Cloak and turned Harry back into himself. When he returned to his regular size, Harry's head painfully bumped the ceiling of the tunnel. Snape snickered.

"You could have at least warned me before you turned me into a squirrel," Harry said in annoyance, rubbing the top of his head. Snape just sneered and strode as quickly as he could down the low tunnel. Well, at least he's acting like he hates me again.

They finally reached the end of the long, cramped tunnel and climbed through the small opening into the Shrieking Shack. The Shack was just as Harry remembered it, with its boarded up windows, broken furniture and peeling wallpaper. Harry sneezed as Snape's robes stirred up a cloud of dust from the Shack's filthy floors.

Before Harry could ask, "Now what?" Snape pointed his wand downward and drew a crude map on the dust-covered floorboards. "This is Voldemort's lair--what little I've seen of it anyway. Here," he said, pointing to a square in the middle, "is his audience chamber, where we will Apparate."

"But I don't know how to Apparate," Harry protested.

Snape silenced him with a look. "Here," he continued, pointing to a group of rooms to the left of the audience chamber, "are the dungeons. I will provide a distraction, while you take the Invisibility Cloak and find Professor Stanley. Beyond the audience chamber, the rest of the building is protected by an Apparition barrier, so you'll need to find your way outside before you can Disapparate. Once you've freed her, the two of you are to get out." Then he added with a smirk, "Surely the valiant Harry Potter can manage that."

Harry couldn't believe he was asking this, especially after that snide comment: "But what about you?"

"I'll manage." Snape then reached for Harry's hair and yanked a strand out of his head.

"Ouch!" Harry cried, rubbing his scalp. "What did you do that for?"

Snape took out two vials from his pocket. He took the stoppers off and handed one of the vials to Harry. He put Harry's hair in the vial he held. The mixture bubbled and frothed, turning a bright orange. He pulled one of his own hairs from his head and put it in Harry's vial. That mixture turned dark sludgy purple.

"Polyjuice Potion?" Harry breathed. Snape grunted in the affirmative. Harry watched in incredulity as Snape prepared to drink the potion that would momentarily turn him into his least favorite person on the planet.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Snape growled.

Harry continued to stare in unabashed amazement. "Wow, you must really love her!"

"Just drink it!" Snape then downed the orange mixture in one gulp.

Harry regarded the potion with Snape's hair in it with undisguised revulsion. He took a hold of his nose and drank the purple liquid that tasted like rotten fish. Harry shuddered and was afraid he'd be sick as his stomach twisted and rumbled. "That was disgusting!"

Snape--whose sharp, gaunt features were starting to bubble like melting wax--glared at him. "Yours didn't exactly taste like butterbeer either, Potter."

Harry turned away from Snape, unprepared to watch his professor transform into him. He felt the same horrid burning sensation that he'd felt when he turned into Goyle during his second year at Hogwarts. Then came the terrible melting feeling, but this time he managed to stay on his feet as he felt his skin bubble and his whole body elongate. He looked down at his hands and watched the fingers thin and stretch. His shoes soon became very tight, and his robes hung just below his knees. His black hair now hung down to his shoulders, and Harry silently thanked whoever it was that made Snape wash it. Harry took off his glasses that now impeded his sight, and was grateful for the lack of a mirror in the room.

Harry finally dared to turn around and saw--himself. Snape's ridiculously long robes hung on him loosely, covering him like a blanket. He struggled towards Harry, the robes leaving a wide path in the dust, and tried to snatch the glasses from his hands, but missed. Harry tried--unsuccessfully--not to laugh as he handed the glasses over.

Snape put them on, then sneered evilly, but it didn't have quite the same effect when on Harry's face. "Can we get on with it?"

Harry looked at him questioningly.

"The clothes, Potter!" he snapped. "I think Voldemort would be a little suspicious if we showed up looking like this, don't you?"

"Oh, yeah, sorry," he replied with Snape's voice. Harry turned away again, took off his robes and threw them over his shoulder to Snape. He tried to dress himself in Snape's robes while looking straight ahead, but he suddenly became aware of the burning on his left forearm. Harry knew Snape had been burned with the Dark Mark, but seeing it on 'his' arm was a jolting experience. Harry was ready to 'get on with it' more than ever, but there was still the problem of him not being able to Apparate.

Snape soon answered that question. "We'll use the Abducto Spell to Apparate. It's a Dark spell Professor Stanley surely knows; she'll be able to use it to get you both to safety." Snape then regarded Harry almost dangerously. "You are not to come looking for me, is that understood?"

Harry nodded, wondering how willing Professor Stanley would be to obey his order.

Snape took Harry's hand and tapped it with his wand. "Abducto!" Suddenly, their hands were melded together into one. He then threw the Invisibility Cloak over them, and a second later, they Disapparated.

*

Compared to Portkey travel, Apparition was much more pleasant. There wasn't the nauseating sensation of being yanked up by one's navel, just a barely perceptible feeling of speeding forward. Unfortunately, its lack of discomfort provided no distraction and allowed Harry to think of who would be waiting for them when they arrived at their destination. He glanced down at Snape, still not used to seeing himself there instead, with a Snape-like sneer on his own face. Harry reminded himself that he had volunteered for this, but that didn't make him feel any less afraid. He just hoped he wouldn't be sick to his stomach, or worse, faint. Snape would never let him hear the end of it, but then of course, they'd probably both be dead... 

Harry's mildly panicked musings were interrupted by their sudden, quiet appearance in Voldemort's audience chamber. Snape silently tapped his wand on their conjoined hands and released them. Harry's stomach tangled itself in a knot as he took in the scene before him. Voldemort was sitting on a throne-like chair on a semicircular stone dais. He was drumming his pale, spider-like fingers impatiently on the arm of his chair, his red eyes flashing with annoyance. Sitting next to him in a plain wooden chair was Professor Balin. He looked much older than his picture in the Daily Prophet, but he still had that same maniacal smile on his face that made Harry shudder.

To one side of Balin stood a brown-skinned, dark-haired woman--the prettiest woman Harry had ever seen. Next to her stood Wormtail. On the other side of Voldemort were three masked Death Eaters. Certainly, Harry had faced worse odds the last time he'd faced Voldemort, but then that confrontation had hardly been a victory. He really started to get nervous when Nagini seemed to become aware of their presence, darting her forked tongue in and out, tasting the air.

Voldemort rose slowly. "What is it, Nagini?"

Harry, a Parseltongue like Voldemort, distinctly heard the huge snake hiss: "Potter isss here, Massster."

Harry glanced at Snape and mouthed: "They know we're here!"

Snape nodded curtly and ducked out from under the cloak. Harry scurried backward, but waited to see what Voldemort and the others would do before he made for the dungeons.

"Hello," Snape said, waving idiotically. "Looking for me?"

Voldemort, Balin and the others spun around in surprise. Snape made a very rude gesture with his hand, then ran off to the right. Harry took a few more steps back towards the dungeons.

"All of you!" Voldemort boomed, his flat nostrils flaring. "After the boy!"

The Death Eaters took off after Snape, but Balin grabbed Wormtail by the arm. "Check Veronica's cell and make certain she stays there." Harry's delay had apparently paid off, but Balin's next words made his blood run cold:

"And release the dementors."

Wormtail rushed off to the left towards the dungeons. Harry started after him, but hung back when Balin stopped Voldemort from following the others.

"My Lord, perhaps you should wait here."

"How dare you presume to tell me what to do?" was Voldemort's furious reply. "He's getting away!"

"It's a trick, My Lord," Balin explained calmly. "We don't very well want to leave this room unattended while they rescue the girl and come back here to Disapparate. Besides, it is unseemly for the Dark Lord to be seen chasing after a child. That's what you have minions for. Never fear, I will bring you the boy."

Voldemort sat back down on his throne-like chair and pulled his black robes around himself petulantly. "You had better not fail me, Rupert, or you will be Nagini's next meal."

Balin bowed, floated up a few inches off the ground, then sped off after the Death Eaters following Snape. Harry, still unused to Snape's long legs, ran clumsily after Wormtail.

*

Veronica heard a muffled voice outside of her cell, then the sound of the bolt being slid back. Her greatest fear of course, was that it was Balin. Not because of the unspeakable torment he would no doubt subject her to, but because it meant that Severus had turned over Harry and had probably lost his own life in the process. She got to her feet and began building up what energy she could for a wandless Defense Spell. Even if her resistance was ultimately futile, she'd be damned if she would let him take her without a fight. The door opened.

"Oh, it's you." Veronica almost collapsed with relief when she saw that it was only Pettigrew. Though she was certain he had slipped meat juice into her vegetable stew last night, he was relatively harmless. But then, compared to Balin and Voldemort, most Dark wizards were.

Pettigrew shot her a dirty look. "Just came to make certain you were all safe and snug in your cell."

Suddenly, Veronica thought she must be hallucinating. Behind Pettigrew, a figure was magically revealed as if an invisible curtain has risen--or an Invisibility Cloak!

"What are you looking at?" Pettigrew spun around, but before he could aim his wand, Severus cried, "Stupefy!" Pettigrew crashed, face first, onto the cold stone floor.

"Severus!" Veronica ran to him and jumped into his arms, almost knocking him over. He was trying to tell her something, but all she could do was kiss him repeatedly--but he wasn't kissing her back. "Severus (kiss), sweetheart (kiss), what's the matter?"

He did something Veronica had never seen him do before, he blushed a deep crimson. "Professor, it's me--Harry."

Veronica jumped back from him instantly, as if he was on fire. "Dear gods," she said, recoiling in horror, "I just kissed a fifteen-year-old boy! That's it, I'm a pervert."

"It's all right, Professor, I mean, how could you know?" Harry said soothingly, then the boy grinned stupidly, blushing as deeply as before.

"Harry," Veronica said firmly, "I suggest you wipe that smile off your face before I'm forced to kill us both."

"Sorry," he replied sheepishly.

The sound of approaching footsteps provided an almost welcome distraction. Harry grabbed the Invisibility Cloak and threw it over both of them. They huddled by the wall near the door, hardly daring to breathe. Veronica had to remind herself repeatedly that it was Harry, not Severus, she was pressed up against.

A few seconds later, a very pretty woman Veronica had never seen before entered the cell. She regarded Pettigrew with disgust. "You idiot!" She kicked his prostrate form in the ribs, then pulled out her wand. "Ennervate!"

Pettigrew awoke and stumbled to his feet. He regarded the woman fearfully and rubbed his side.

She cuffed him hard on the ear. "What happened, rodent?"

"It wasn't my fault, Isela," he explained quickly. "Snape snuck up from behind and stunned me."

Harry glanced at Veronica and inclined his head towards the door. They carefully inched toward it, but Harry accidentally scraped his boots on the stone floor. Isela spun around and pointed her wand vaguely in their direction. "They are using an Invisibility Cloak and I suspect they are still here. STUPEFY!" 

The red light from her wand barely missed them and hit the wall instead. Chunks of stone rained down to the floor. With another quick glance at each other, Harry and Veronica broke into a run. Isela was close on their heels, followed by a huffing Pettigrew. Harry pulled off the cloak enough so he could point his wand at their pursuers. "Impedimenta!"

Veronica couldn't help feeling a swell of pride as her student's Impediment Curse hit both Isela and Pettigrew, allowing her and Harry to duck into the safety of a deserted tunnel.

As soon as they caught their breath, Veronica asked, "Harry, where's Severus?"

"He's pretending to be me. He led most of them, including Balin, away so I could rescue you." Harry put his hand into one of Severus' voluminous robe pockets and pulled out a clean, white handkerchief which he gently wrapped around Veronica's injured hand.

She was so touched by the pained look on his face at the sight of her injuries that she had to stop herself from stroking his cheek. "You shouldn't be here."

"I volunteered. Professor Snape told me that as soon as I found you, we were to find a way out so we could Disapparate using the Abducto Spell. He also told me that we were not to go looking for him."

Veronica was deeply ashamed that she had doubted Severus. She should have known he would do the right thing. She lowered her head and nodded as she felt her heart break. "He's quite right. I've got to get you home."

"But then, I rarely do what Professor Snape tells me to do." The nervous smile Harry gave her looked very strange indeed on Severus' face. "Don't worry, I'll help you find him"

"Thank you." Veronica could resist giving him a quick hug, but was surprised when Harry suddenly went pale. "What's wrong?"

The panic in his eyes was unmistakable. "They've released the dementors."

*

Balin floated through the abbey's underground tunnels alongside the three young Death Eaters, in pursuit of the Potter boy. Things were definitely not as they seemed, but Voldemort's judgment was clouded where young Potter was concerned. At least he had been able to talk the Dark Lord out of summoning all of his followers to witness the boy's capture. Once they had the boy in hand, then Voldemort could call them to witness Potter's execution. He just hope that Pettigrew and Isela were able to stop Snape from releasing Veronica--which is what he was surely doing. The pair must have Apparated under an Invisibility Cloak. Let them run about in circles. They would never leave here alive.

"There he is!" yelled Dowson.

Potter darted out of an alcove, but instead of running away, he turned and pointed his wand at them. "AVADA KEDAVRA!"

Dowson, the Death Eater closest to Potter, fell forward--dead.

Balin held up his hand to stop the others. That's no fifth-year student, Balin thought, beginning to get an inkling of the real truth of the situation.

Potter raised his wand again, but this time Balin was ready. "Expelliarmus!"

The boy's wand flew out of his hand and into Balin's. Potter then turned and ran around the corner.

"Why didn't you capture him?" demanded Cranwell, the most irritating of the young upstarts.

Balin examined the wand carefully. It was oak, approximately ten inches in length. He broke it in half to expose the core. Dragon heartstring, not the phoenix tail feather that should have been there if this was indeed the brother of Voldemort's wand. "That is not Harry Potter. That is Severus Snape. Find him, but do not kill him unless it's absolutely necessary. Steer him towards the east wing; the others are sure to come looking for him." A lovesick Hufflepuff and a reckless Gryffindor could do nothing else. There was only one way out of the abbey and Balin would be waiting for them when they got there.

*

Harry and Professor Stanley dashed down the torch lit tunnel in order to escape the two dementors chasing after them. They had taken off the Invisibility Cloak to speed their escape; it didn't seem fool the blind, rotting creatures anyway. Harry still had nightmares about his encounters with dementors two years ago, but he didn't remember them being able to move this fast.

"You know what to do, Harry," Stanley said breathlessly as she ran. "Professor Lupin told me you know how to cast a Patronus, so do it!"

Harry tried to shove his wand into Professor Stanley's hand, but she shook her head. The horrible fainting feeling started to come over him, followed by the screaming...

Soon, the pair turned a corner and hit the end of the tunnel. Harry had no choice but to face them. My happiest thought...I can't think of one!

"Expecto Patronum!" Stanley whispered in his ear.

"I can't think..." Harry felt himself falling, a white fog clouding over his eyes...

He felt her take the wand from his hand, then he hit the floor.

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

Harry thought he heard Stanley cry out, but it was hard to tell above the screaming in his own head. Then he saw a mist form a huge, silver serpent. The serpent reared up and flicked its tongue at the dementors. It turned and glanced in their direction, its strangely-familiar black eyes flashing, before it slithered after the black-hooded nightmares. The dementors turned and retreated in the other direction.

At that moment, Isela and Wormtail came barreling around the corner. Wormtail turned tail and ran. Isela would have been wise to do the same, but she faced the retreating dementors and screamed, "Cowards! I order you to go after them!"

Instead, the dementors took off their hoods to reveal their sickening, putrid skulls, then both of them clamped a skeletal hand around her throat. They jostled each other, each trying to bestow the Dementor's Kiss. They apparently decided to share, because they both sucked her soul out through her mouth, then hurled her soulless body to the ground. Harry gasped when he saw that she was no longer the beautiful woman she'd been a moment before, but a wrinkled old hag.

Professor Stanley helped him to his feet and handed back his wand. "Carries quite a punch, that wand does." Harry noticed that the handkerchief tied around her right hand was stained with blood. Before it dissipated, Stanley's Patronus allowed them to double-back through the tunnel and dash down another.

"I didn't know dementors could do that," Harry said as they ran. "I mean, make someone old like that."

"They can't," Stanley replied. "She must have been using Beauty Spells to keep herself young and once her soul was sucked out, the spells were broken."

Harry felt his cheeks burn when he thought of himself fainting instead of casting a proper Patronus like he should have. "I'm sorry I froze, Professor."

"That's all right, Harry, I just wish I had some chocolate for you. I shouldn't have tried to make this into a practical Defense lesson--force of habit, I'm afraid. We'll work on it when we get back to Hogwarts."

Harry nodded. When we get back to Hogwarts... He wished he could feel just half as confident as Professor Stanley sounded.

*

Severus was shocked that he was almost glad to be inhabiting the body of the small and agile Gryffindor Seeker. He was able to evade his pursuers with relative ease, but so far, he had not been able to find a way out of the ancient building. It had occurred to him that he might not make it out alive; he just prayed that Potter had been able to free Veronica and that they were both safely outside by now. At least the Dead or Alive Charm he clutched in his hand still glowed pink.

Severus stuffed the charm in a pocket, then ducked into an empty room with a broken wooden door, barely noticing the tattered, but elaborate tapestry hanging on the wall. He rifled through another of Potter's robe pockets in search of the vial of flesh-eating poison he had put there when he and the boy had traded clothes. He found the vial, but hesitated--three more kills to add to his growing list. Since one of them would be Balin, any remorse he felt immediately disappeared.

"Over here!" he called to them. Severus saw the red flashes of the Stunning Spells bounce off the ancient stone walls taking chunks of stone with them.

Severus very carefully opened the vial, then waved his hand over it. The liquid flowed out of the bottle like a bright green snake, then spread out in a thin sheet. He sent the sheet towards his pursuers, hitting the two masked Death Eaters square in the face. Their blood-curdling screams were almost instantly silenced. As Severus had hoped, the poison ate away at them on contact. In a matter of minutes, their heads and torsos where the poison had touched them had been dissolved. But where's Balin?

*

Harry and Professor Stanley searched for Snape in every alcove and unlocked room they could find. They had since figured out that they must be underground, but they had yet to find a staircase leading to an upper floor, or better yet, the outside world. The rooms were mostly narrow and all were windowless, some with ancient faded tapestries hanging on the walls. They showed scenes that Harry thought might be religious in nature, but instead of angels, witches on brooms flew over the English countryside raining down magic to make the crops grow. 

Since he had rescued her, Professor Stanley was obviously doing her best to act like her usual cheerful self, but eventually even she started to look very worried. Harry's stomach contracted sickeningly. Even if they did find Professor Snape, there very well might be no way out of here. Well, at least no one's chasing after us. He soon discovered the reason why when they turned another corner and saw two mutilated corpses--actually, just their bottom halves--lying on the stone floor, surrounded by a puddle of bright green fluid.

Harry was glad when he heard Stanley let out a small scream because it concealed his own cry of surprise. The horrible sight coupled with his nauseating fear caused the contents of Harry's stomach to come up in an embarrassing fit of retching.

Stanley took several deep breaths, then put a comforting arm around his shoulder. "It's all right, Harry. I'm fairly certain this was Professor Snape's doing."

Harry's stomach finally emptied itself and he wiped his mouth on Snape's sleeve. "When we find him, please don't tell him I threw up."

She smiled kindly, then used a corner of her own torn robe to clean off Snape's sleeve. "I won't, I promise."

Harry once again threw the Invisibility Cloak over them, anxious to move passed the horrific scene. They didn't get far before he felt himself shrinking as the Polyjuice Potion began to wear off. He had to hike up Snape's robes that were soon dragging on the ground, his feet now rattling in the huge boots he wore. The worst part was that his vision suddenly blurred. Stanley obviously noticed him changing because she stopped abruptly.

"I can't see anything," he told her, once again embarrassed at his own helplessness. She took him by the hand and led him down the hall, but they couldn't move very fast because of the oversized boots on his feet. He was just about to ask her to help him pull them off, when they both jumped at the sound of a familiar voice yelling:

"Bloody hell!"

*

The Polyjuice Potion had worn off, and Severus was forced to duck into a small room in order to pry Potter's tiny shoes off of his feet. Severus had restrained the impulse to ground Potter's glasses into dust and stuck them in the boy's robe pocket instead. The robe now hung just below his knees. Please, gods, don't let me die like this.

The room he was in was plainer than some of the others he had seen, with not even a moldy tapestry hanging on the wall. The only ornament in the room was a statue that stood in a recess in the wall. It was of a smiling young woman in Medieval-style robes, with a wand in one hand and the scaly tail of a dragon in the other. There was an empty well at her feet presumably for offerings. He knew she was one of a dozen witch saints, but her name escaped him.

Severus finally managed to remove one shoe, but the other one refused to budge. His head snapped up when he thought he heard footsteps, but no one was there. Then he heard a sound so sweet, he was certain he must be imagining it:

"Severus?"

His breath caught in his throat. "Veronica?"

Veronica and Potter pulled off the Invisibility Cloak and revealed themselves.

She rushed to him as Severus hobbled towards her, one shoe on and one shoe off. His rage at the sight of the terrible injuries on her neck and hand was overcome by his boundless relief. He held her face in his hands and kissed her while tears streamed down her cheeks. He felt tears spring to his own eyes as he breathed, "Are you real?"

She nodded blissfully, then closed her eyes and buried her face in his chest.

He enfolded her in his arms, savoring the feel of her wild curls as he gently stroked her hair. He half-opened his eyes and was immediately brought back to reality when he spied Potter looking about awkwardly. He reluctantly withdrew from Veronica and regarded the boy with the most unpleasant sneer he could manage. "Potter, I thought I told you to get her out--"

"Oh, Severus, really," Veronica interrupted. "Since when have I ever done anything you've wanted me to do?"

He sighed in exasperation. "Sorry, I lost my head." He gave Potter his glasses back, then noticed Veronica looking him up and down. Apparently, she had just become aware of his ridiculous appearance and covered her mouth to muffle her snickers.

"I never knew you had such gorgeous shins," she giggled mischievously.

Instead of getting angry with Veronica, he decided to take it out on Potter instead. Severus glared at the boy who was starting to laugh himself. "Get out of those robes, boy, before I yank you out of them!" Potter immediately wiped the smile off his face, then quickly removed the over robe and threw it at Severus.

Veronica spotted the statue on the wall and went to examine it more closely. "That's Saint Degrabel!"

Severus took another look at it himself. "Are you sure?"

"Who else could it be? Look at the dragon's tail in her hand."

"Who's Saint Degrabel?" Harry asked

"The Patron Saint of Sticky Situations," Veronica explained. "We must be in one of the abbeys dedicated to her. That would explain the tapestries we saw. I just wish I could remember the spell to invoke her. Severus?"

"Be serious," he snorted as he started unbuttoning the boy's school robes. "Potter hurry up! If I'm going to die, I refuse to do it in robes that go up to my knees."

Potter blushed and glanced at Veronica.

"Oh dear, of course." She immediately turned her back on them so they could finish changing and continued to try to remember the spell to invoke Saint Degrabel. By the time she said, "I've got it!" they were back in their own clothes. She stood before the statue and chanted:

"Degrabel, O' Degrabel, please come to our aid;

A sticky situation we've gone and made;

If you do help us, you're sure to get paid;

"Degrabel, O' Degrabel, please come to our aid!"

Stanley then turned back to them. "Do either of you have a coin?"

Severus reached in his pocket, pulled out his money pouch and gave her a Galleon, which she put in the little well at Degrabel's feet.

The statue soon stirred and sprang to life. Degrabel yawned and stretched before she bent down and picked up the Galleon. "Oooh, very generous! The last one who called me expected me to turn his wife back into a woman for a Knut, who happened to be a chicken at the time--the wife, not the Knut, of course. Can you imagine the nerve?"

Severus was about to tell the saint to get on with it, but Veronica pressed her fingers into his arm to keep him quiet.

Degrabel looked at each of them in turn, clucked her stone tongue and put her hands on her hips. "Well, what have you three gone and done this time?" The saint's tone was tinged with the same affectionate disappointment Severus had often heard in Veronica's voice.

"Voldemort has taken over the abbey and is trying to kill us," Veronica replied. "We can't find a way out."

"Well, that is a very sticky situation indeed!" Degrabel handed the dragon tail to Veronica. "Hold this, dear, if you don't mind." Degrabel raised her wand. "Abacus Abscindo!" Then she took the dragon's tail back from Veronica. "That should do it." With that, Degrabel turned back into silent stone.

A second later, the ceiling started to crack and split, raining down bits of plaster and stone on them. Severus wondered if the roof was going to cave in on them, but instead it opened wide enough so that they could climb through--if they could just reach it. Then, he saw Veronica being lifted off her feet and through the opening in the ceiling. She was followed by Potter, who just managed to grab his Invisibility Cloak before he left the ground. As he felt himself being lifted up, Severus couldn't help thinking that this miraculous escape was far too easy.

*

Severus was glad to be back in his own body, but he was gladder still that the outside world was just beyond the old oak door and the stained glass windows of the dilapidated chapel they had been lifted into. The three of them ran to the door, but they hit an invisible wall before they reached it.

"Rather effective barrier, don't you think? Thank you for teaching it to me, Veronica." They spun around and saw Balin stepping from behind the stone arch near the ramshackle altar. Veronica let out a little cry which made Balin smile. "I'm so glad you all finally arrived, I was beginning to worry."

With impressive speed, Potter aimed his wand at Balin. "STUPEFY!"

Balin hardly flinched as the boy's Stunning Spell hit him. Before Severus or Veronica could grab Potter's wand, Balin called, "Expelliarmus!" Potter's wand flew from his hand and into Balin's.

Balin twirled the wand in his hand and looked into Severus' eyes. "I see the Polyjuice Potion has worn off and you're back to your old selves." He then trained his sights not on Veronica, but Potter. "So you are the great and powerful Harry Potter?" Balin took a few steps towards him. Veronica tried to pull him behind her, but the boy stood protectively in front of her instead. His gesture was not lost on the Dark wizard. He grinned mockingly. "You volunteered to help Snape rescue the fair Veronica, didn't you?"

Potter nodded and glared at him defiantly. Severus shot him a look to let him know that was a very unwise thing to do, but as usual, the boy ignored him.

"I can already tell you're just like your father--reckless and arrogant," Balin said. "James Potter's arrogance got him killed, as will yours."

Potter's face flushed with anger. "Don't you dare say anything against my dad!"

Severus closed his eyes and shook his head. Shut up, Potter!

Balin burst out laughing. He then pointed Potter's own wand at him. "Quiet boy!" A flash of blue light came flying at Potter's mouth, then suddenly, he didn't have a mouth. The boy's eyes grew wide with panic as he clawed at the smooth skin on his face where his mouth used to be. Veronica grabbed Potter's hands in an attempt to calm him, but thankfully she knew better than to beg for mercy. "Don't worry, Harry, everything's going to be all right," she said, almost convincingly.

"That indomitable Hufflepuff optimism," Balin said with a chuckle, "always good for a laugh." Balin regarded Veronica lecherously for a moment, then turned back to Severus. "You know, if it were possible,  I think I would have loved you like a son--you had such tremendous potential, but I always knew that deep down you were weak and now you've proved it. It's bad enough that you're working as a spy for that old fool Dumbledore, but now you've gone and fallen in love with a Hufflepuff--an unattractive one at that."

It pained Severus to see the reflex hurt in Veronica's eyes at Balin's words, but couldn't she see that the bastard said it in order to obtain that very response? And couldn't she see just how important she was to the Dark wizard? If Severus didn't think Balin was beyond such human emotions, he would have said that the old man was jealous. "Well, apparently she's attractive enough for you to have gone to all this trouble to get her back," Severus replied. "Tell me, Professor, was it your idea to kidnap her in the first place?"

Balin's smile faded. "Tell me, Severus, what's the best way to destroy a Hufflepuff?"

Severus remained silent.

"I'll tell you--destroy the person she loves the most. But first, a little fun." He aimed Potter's wand at Severus and boomed, "CRUCIO!"

Severus was hit with excruciating, splitting pain that flooded every fiber of his body. As badly as he wanted to endure the curse silently, he writhed on the floor of the chapel, screaming. Severus had never known anyone to not cry out when being tortured with the Cruciatus Curse, but Severus' cries were drowned out by Veronica's screams. Time lost all meaning during the torture, and though it felt like it lasted for hours, Severus doubted if more than a few minutes had passed when it finally stopped. Severus looked up at Balin and saw his old professor motion for him to get up. So Balin was going to use the Killing Curse instead of torturing him to death? Thank the gods for small favors.

Severus managed to regain his feet with Veronica and Potter's help. He almost laughed when he saw the determined look on Potter's mouthless face. Balin was right, the boy was just like his father. He pushed them both behind him, but felt Veronica put her bandaged hand in his. She must have known that if she was touching him when Balin delivered the Killing Curse, she would die too, but considering the alternative, it was probably for the best. He shifted his feet slightly so that Balin couldn't see that Veronica was holding onto him. 

With a grim smile, Balin once again aimed Potter's wand.

Severus heard Veronica whisper not, I love you, as he might have expected at this desperate moment, but, "Don't resist."

Don't resist what?

"AVADA..."

Then Severus felt it. The most exquisite feeling of warmth and beauty filled every cell in his body in almost the same way that the Cruciatus Curse had filled his body with pain just a few moments before. It was a dazzling, inexplicable rapture that he wouldn't have thought possible for a mortal to feel. He knew he was grinning like a fool, but he didn't care. Severus rested his mind on Veronica's love, certain she was trying to make his death an easy one. "I love you," he breathed.

"KEDAVRA!"

A blinding green light shot from Balin's wand then...

Severus fell.

*

"Harry, are you all right?" Veronica's voice seemed so close by. Was she dead, too?

"I am now, Professor," Potter replied.

Severus' eyes fluttered open at the sound of Potter's voice. He must have gotten his mouth back. Pity. Severus then realized that he didn't feel very good, but he didn't feel particularly dead either. "Uuuuhhh."

"Don't try to talk, sweetheart," Veronica said gently, her voice shaking. "You're going to be just fine." Severus then felt several drops of water on his face--tears.

Sweetheart.

Then he heard her say, "Harry grab your wand, quickly!"

Severus managed to turn his head to the side and saw a pair of feet rushing away from him. He saw Balin lying on the ground, eyes wide open, a rather surprised look on the Dark wizard's face. Then he saw Potter pry the wand from Balin's dead hands.

Dead? Balin's dead...

"Don't worry," Veronica said, stroking his forehead, "I'll have us all home in a minute."

With those reassuring words, Severus passed out.

***

To be continued...