~ Chapter six "Snape's Mission"~

A/N: *sniffles* This chapter is for the beloved Richard Harris... *sniffs* one of the good actors too... *sobs* Anyone have a tissue?
DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything... do I ever?


The next day when Harry woke up he was so excited, he couldn't wait he wanted to go down for breakfast right now! And it wasn't because he was hungry; he was actually still pretty full from dinner last night. He wanted to start his classes, he was so happy that Lupin was going to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts again, but then Harry realized something, it was still dark out. Neville was still snoring, Harry looked down on himself he was already dressed, he had done it without thinking. He looked more clearly he had on his shirt backwards!
"What am I thinking?" Harry thought. So Harry climbed back into bed and tried to go to sleep again, but his efforts were fruitless. He was up for hours, then the dormitory started to light up, and after what seemed to be an eternity someone ripped open their hangings, which Harry recognized form right across the dormitory, right where Ron's bed was.
"Oh, it's only 6 AM I can go back to bed." Harry heard Ron say.
"No!" Harry accidentally said aloud.
"Harry? Are you okay? Harry?"
"Yeah?" Harry said opening his hangings.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. It's just that I've been up since it was still dark out, and I haven't been able to go back to sleep."
"Oh, well its still quite early, breakfast won't be ready for half an hour."
"I know, but I just, well I don't know. I've got to do something!"
"Well I'm still tired."
"No! Don't go back to bed!"
"Well why don't you see if Hermione's up yet, she probably is."
"OK!"
"Enthusiastic enough?"
"No not at all!"
"I just cannot believe you didn't think of it first."
"To tell you the truth, neither can I." So Harry went downstairs to the Gryffindor Common Room. And sure enough there was Hermione. She was facing away from the stairs. (A/N: I would have said toward the portrait hole but the Gryffindor Common Room looks different for everyone else.) Harry snuck up behind her and kissed her right on the cheek like last time.
"Oh, Harry you are up," Hermione said. She looked up into those brilliant green eyes that she found so comforting, Harry was so cute she thought.
"I've been up for ages."
"You have, you should have come down earlier, I've been up for awhile too. I've been reading." Harry looked down at the book Hogwarts, A History.
"Haven't you read that already?"
"Yes, but it's always good to brush up on the basics before school starts."
"But you can quote that book, on the spur of the moment, for that matter."
"You're right Harry. What's the point of re-reading the book again."
"And again, and again and again…"
"I know and again then again and then another time."
"Again... and aga--You've really changed 'Mione. I don't know if I can handle it." Harry said in a teasing sort of way.
"I don't know, can you?" Hermione said as she put her arms around his neck and kissed him gently. Harry placed his arms around her waist and joined in the fun, if you will. Harry knew he could have lasted like this for ages, but he heard something moving from the direction of the boy's staircase.
"'Mione I hear something," Harry said pulling himself away.
"FINALLY!" Ron's voice came from behind Harry.
"Huh?" Harry and Hermione said at the same time.
"You finally figured out that you like each other, took you long enough."
"You knew!" Harry said.
"Oh yes, of course I knew, the way you took looked at each other you could so totally tell. You are my two best friends after all."
"I just can't believe you didn't tell me!" Harry said.
" I wanted you to figure it out for yourself."
"So you were spying on us?" Hermione asked.
"What makes you think that?"
"Well, oh I don't know…"
"You not knowing something that weird."
"Hey, I'd take offence to that if it weren't true!"
"Well it is so HA!"
"You guys we can go down to breakfast now, so we don't wake up everyone else."
"Good idea Harry." So the three of them walked down to the Great Hall, when they walked in they noticed something was very different. The sun had indeed started to rise but that didn't have any effect upon the light situation of the Great Hall, none of the candles that were normally lit, were not. It was dreadfully dark in the Great Hall.
"What's going on?" Hermione asked. Harry turned to look at her but he could see only darkness.
"I have no idea," said Ron from Harry's other side, and still Harry couldn't see anyone.
"Wands out, d'you reckon?" Harry asked.
"Yeah," said both Hermione and Ron.
"Lumos," Harry muttered and heard Hermione and Ron do the same thing on either side of him. They pointed their wands all in the same direction and their wandlight fell on....
"Oh, it's you Potter," Snape said from the head table. Harry noticed he was seated in Dumbledore's chair. Harry looked at the Potions master's face, he looked worried, and he didn't have that menacing look that he normally had when he saw Harry. He looked worried or ill or something. He just didn't look right.
"Are you okay Professor?" Harry asked, not knowing why he was worried so.
"Well, sort of, I'm fine in health, but mentally that's a different story," Snape said, he added once he saw the look on the trio's faces, "Well I guess you ought to know I'm leaving Potter, because it might well concern you. You know what my 'other job' is of course."
"Yes," Harry said Harry knew very well that Snape was a Death Eater but then turned spy for the good guys before Voldemort tried to kill Harry, and was stripped from his body.
"Since the end of June last year I've had to resume that role, and You-Know-Who,"
"Voldemort," Harry said and saw Ron shiver at the name.
"Yes him, we'll I've got to go look like a 'good Death Eater' and follow what ever he says, well you know, so I've got to leave the school until further notice," Snape said.
"Who'll be taking you position while you are gone?" Hermione asked, Harry could tell by the sound of her voice that she would hate to miss such an important class if they didn't have a replacement.
"Don't worry Miss Granger, Dumbledore's found someone, I assure you. But nonetheless, be on the look out Potter. Weasley, Granger stick close to him!" Snape ordered.
"They won't have that problem, Professor," Ron said.
"Shut up, Weasley!" Hermione and Harry snapped.
"I don't want to know, Weasley, I don't want to know," said Snape in his normal malicious tone of voice, "Keep your eyes open Potter!" Snape stood up and suddenly the Great Hall became light again.
"Nox," Harry muttered to his wand and it went out. But Harry's wand wasn't the only thing that went out; Snape went out of the Great Hall too.
"I hope he's going to be okay," Hermione said, while the three sat down.
"Me too," Harry said, "he's actually… wait I was going to say nice, that'd be stretching it a little there, good, maybe I don't know. But he's different from when we met him, he always stuck me as evil."
"What makes you think he's changed?" said Ron as Dumbledore walked into the Great Hall.
"Well, there's the reason," Harry said pointing at Dumbledore, "Because like 'Mione here says, if Dumbledore trusts him I should too."
"Good Morning you three," said Dumbledore as he sat down in his chair and the Great Hall became lighter, like it normally was. {A/N: Do you guys get it? Do you understand what the chair does? Well if you don't, not to worry. It'll be explained soon.}
"Good Morning Professor," Harry, Ron and Hermione said.
"On September 18th, you three will join me in the Transfiguration class room at 7 o'clock PM. So we can work on that thing you remember?" Professor Dumbledore said.
"Of course! We'll be there!" Harry exclaimed.
"Professor, I've got a question," Hermione said.
"Ask away."
"The Head chair, that's got magical powers doesn't it?"
"Why yes it does, have you figured it out?" Dumbledore looked completely thrilled that Hermione mentioned it.
"Well sort of, because when Professor Snape was sitting in it the Great Hall was very dark, and Professor Snape was not in a happy mood. So the atmosphere was not happy."
"You've discovered one of the few secrets Hogwarts has that is not in Hogwarts, A History," Dumbledore said. When Professor Dumbledore said this Hermione turned a nice shade of pink.
"She probably will run upstairs to make the changes now," Ron said.
"I will not," Hermione said.
"Harry's right you have changed," Ron said.
"So you were spying!"
"Here we go again," Harry said to Dumbledore. Harry saw that twinkle in Dumbledore's eyes that he hadn't seen for a long time. It was reassuring.
People were filling in to the Great Hall slowly, and Professor McGonagall came in to deliver the new schedules to the Gryffindor table.
"Here we go, 5th years," Hermione said passing one to each Harry and Ron.
"Great... we don't have Defense against the Dark Arts until Thursday!" Harry groaned.
"But at least we have Potions on Friday," Ron said.
"Not that it matters, Snape isn't here anymore."
"Yeah but when he comes back it'll come in handy."
"True, well we've got transfiguration first today, today being Tuesday and all."
"Well at least Hermione gets her favorite class today, and she gets Arithmancy today too!"
"Oh that means I get to have my death predicted again today." Hermione snorted at Harry's comment.
"Here comes the mail!" a first year said form the other end of the table.
Harry grabbed Hermione's Daily Prophet as the tawny owl came soaring down to him. "Well that's good."
"What Harry?" Hermione asked.
"Rita Skeeter's only article is a Quidditch column, that just has scores."
"That's great, because I don't need her to ruin my life too," Ron said.
"Or anybody else's for that matter."
"Hey Harry, Ron, Hermione," Katie Bell, a Gryffindor Chaser said coming over to them.
"Hey Katie," Harry responded.
"Well I'm sure that you know that we are missing two players now."
"Of course, Oliver and Alicia have graduated."
"Well, I've decided that Angelina is probably the safest person to have as Captain this year, no offence Harry. But you are the youngest."
"I totally understand, and Fred or George as Captain, no I hate to think about it."
"Exactly, well, tryouts are this weekend, and were going to do it as a democracy too, you know we are all present to elect new players."
"Sure what time do I need to be down at the Quidditch field?"
"One o'clock on Saturday."
"Great won't miss it."
"See you Harry!" Katie said and left to go to her friends.
"Ron you've got to be there too. You are going to replace Oliver, I can feel it!"
"You are Ron!" Hermione piped in.
"Thanks guys!" Ron said.
"And we don't even have to worry about buying you a broom!"
"You're right!"
"Well we've got an hour until transfiguration starts, what are we going to do?" Hermione asked.