A/N Harry Potter and all related characters, places and terms belong to JK Rowling and/or (not sure which) Warner Brothers.

I must warn you that this is a lot of talking. The conversation that takes place here starts where Dumbledore and Snape left off. Where the conversation ends is more or less the same as the end of last chapter. The cutting between stories will pick up again next chapter.

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Chapter 8: Point of no Return

Even though it was so late at night, or early in the morning, depending on your point of view, the four Marauders and little Harry were not the only ones awake. In the dungeons of Hogwarts, the Head and Potion's Masters were deep in earnest conversation.

"I have two questions, Severus. Why are you a Death Eater in the first place, and why did you decide to change sides now?"

Snape sighed. "Well, Dumbledore - "

"Albus."

Snape's eyes narrowed. "Pardon?"

"Just call me Albus, Severus."

Snapes' right eyebrow was in danger of sliding up his forehead, but he kept talking. "All right, Albus. Well, I was friends with Lu- I mean, I was friends with a Death Eater while we were still at school."

"Who was it, Severus?"

Snape stayed silent.

Albus sighed, and stood up. Looking down at Snape, he motioned for him to stand up. "Come with me, Severus. I must tell you something.

Snape stood up, and followed the Headmaster through the deserted corridors of the school. Finally stopping in front of a familiar gargoyle, Dumbledore muttered the name of, Snape presumed, another Honeduke's product, and they stepped onto the rotating staircase. Dumbledore sat down in his permanent seat behind his desk, and Snape sank into the armchair opposite.

"This," Dumbledore motioned to their surroundings, "is the safest place in Hogwarts. It cannot be broken into by any means, and there can be no unwelcome ears without me knowing it. If you ever have any news for me regarding news of the movements of the Dark, come to me here.

"What you must understand, Severus, is the gravity of the situation. You have decided to rebel against Lord Voldemort. If he ever finds out, I cannot ensure your safety. You are dangerously close to passing the point of no return, Severus, and in some ways you already have. This is where you must make your decision. You cannot sit on both sides of the fence. If you wish to join - or even just help - us, you have to do it completely. For whatever reason you have decided to come to me, it has to be more important than any friendships you may have within the Dark, or any people you want to protect. I will help you as best as I can, but you have to be willing to do the same. Now who is it?"

Snape took a deep breath, then made up his mind. "All right then, Albus." Dumbledore nodded for him to continue.

"As you probably know, I was friends with Lucius Malfoy while we were still at school. Even when we both graduated, I still kept in contact with him. Once I finished school, I took up an apprenticeship at the Apothecary along Diagon Alley. The only weakness Voldemort has is in his potion making. As far as I know, he sent Lucius out to find someone to help him with that.

"The thing you have to understand, Albus, is that Lucius is in absolute awe of Voldemort. It's respect bordering nearly on love - he does whatever he can to get closer to Voldemort, hence his marriage to Narcissa Riddle. You see, one of the Malfoy ancestors had close ties to Salazar Slytherin, and so Lucius was taught to serve and look up to anyone who carried on Slytherin's work. But Lucius also believes that the whole world should agree with him, and follow Lord Voldemort.

"He came to my house one day with a proposition. He offered me a position as one of Voldemort's elite Death Eaters. You wouldn't believe the picture he painted for me, Albus - riches and power beyond my wildest dreams. And he didn't expect me to refuse. I didn't. Voldemort accepted me, and I quickly rose up through the ranks.

"I was different to everyone else, you see. I didn't volunteer - I was asked. He needed me, so I didn't have to vie for his attention like all the others. But I didn't necessarily want to. And I didn't join out of a passion for what I was doing, or to get his favour. I wasn't like everyone else in the fact that I wasn't in awe of him and I didn't kill people because I enjoyed it. It was just a job.

"But life as a Death Eater was great at the start. I won't deny that. I was young, and I was important to Voldemort's plans, and I knew it. Lucius and I were on top of the world, no one dared to question or stand up to us. So, a few people died here and there, but what was the death of a few muggles and mudbloods for all the power and glory we were getting? But then Voldemort started to kill pure-bloods for no reason at all - people who had nothing to do with the war, not directly at least. I continued on making potions for him, but I began to avoid going out on raids. Then one time, he forced me to come along, and asked me to kill one of the witches in the house we were raiding. She was a pure-blood, and she had a baby in her arms."

Snape looked down at the floor, and took a deep breath. Dumbledore, on the other hand, let his out. He hadn't realised that he was holding it. "What happened to her?"

Snape looked up, guilt in his eyes.

"I tried to refuse, several times, but you don't understand, Albus. He's merciless, pitiless. He ran out of patience, held his wand to my head and made himself clear. It was her or me. And if I didn't do it, someone else would have. What was the point of being noble if she'd end up dead anyway?"

Dumbledore knew how wrong this statement was, and that there was a lot he could say about it. But he let Snape talk on.

"Just to show me how stupid he thought I was, and how far his contempt of life reached, he killed the child just as I was trying to come to terms with what I had done. From that moment on, we lost all and any respect we had of each other. It was my fall from grace, if you would put it that way. I was at the bottom of the barrel.
"I've copped a lot of abuse from him, Albus. He likes to see people squirm, and I've been too scared to stand up to him."

Snape looked at Dumbledore, who had set his mouth into a hard line. When he spoke again, his tone was nearly pleading.

"Please, Albus, you have to realise - I'm not like you. I'm in the business of self-preservation. Is that so hard to understand?"

Dumbledore shook his head. "Not hard to understand, Severus, just disappointing to know. So why have you changed your mind? If you were scared before, why now?"

"You're my last resort, Albus. He's after me. The next time I see him, he's not going to be very happy at all."

"What happened?"

"The last time I saw him, he was ready to kill me. I seem to have spoken back one too many times."

"What was it, Severus?"

"I had an argument with him. I've seen people die, slowly and painfully, for saying half the things that I said. I don't know what came over me, Albus. You just don't talk to him like I did. What am I going to do?"

Albus sighed. "I don't know, there's really nothing much you can do, Severus. Anyway, I would have thought you'd know better than I do. Are you willing to go back and see him again?"

"I will, Albus, but isn't there anything we can do?"

"Try to persuade him you're sorry, Severus. The best defence you can have is if he doesn't do anything at all. You can try a blocking or a shielding spell, but you know as well as I do that the Unforgivables can't be prevented." Dumbledore looked suspiciously at Snape. "Is that the only reason you came to me, Severus? For protection?"

Snape shook his head slightly. "No, Albus. I wouldn't even need your protection if something else hadn't happened. Albus, I know and he knows about the prediction Professor Trewlaney made. He's planning on killing the Potters. I've tried to stall him, but I don't know how much longer he's prepared to wait."

Dumbledore was clearly alarmed. "What? How did he know?"

"Peter Pettigrew. He's been spying here in the school somehow, and he heard the prediction."

"Do you know how?"

Snape shrugged his shoulders. "Sorry Albus, I have no idea."

Albus shook his head. "We have to get them to safety, and soon. I thought they were safe for now. We'll have to see what we can do about Mr Pettigrew and Mr Malfoy too, for that matter." Something seemed to click with Dumbledore. "Wait. You said you've been trying to stall Lord Voldemort. Why? It's not just because they're pure-blood - he isn't killing them for 'no reason', as you put it, and you always hated James."

Snape sighed. "There was a reason I hated James, Albus, and it isn't necessarily him I'm trying to save -'

Albus nodded. "Ah yes, I see. Lily."

It was Snape's turn to look alarmed. "How did you know? Does everyone know?"

Dumbledore chuckled. "Miss Evans was a very popular girl here, Severus, if you don't remember. I know more or less where my students stand with matters like this. You've had your eye on Lily for a long time, and when she began dating James, there was an alarming escalation in your hatred for each other. Professor McGonagall, Professor Silmus and I were going to intervene if it got any worse."

Snape was about to reply, when two things happened quite suddenly.

An owl addressed to Dumbledore flew in the window. He took the letter and began to open it. Meanwhile, a burning pain shot up Snape's left forearm. Rolling up his sleeve, the Dark Mark was burning black. He swore, and whispered almost inaudibly,

"He's calling." He looked up, panicking. "Albus, what do I do?"

Albus was still reading the letter. He finished, and looked Snape straight in the eye.

"Lily's given birth. If I can dare to assume, it seems that Voldemort has found out as well and is about to go and attack them.
I'm sorry, Severus. This is it, your point of no return. Ultimately, it's your decision. If you go, remember, convince him you're sorry. This morning was a mistake. But I do need you to do this for me. Think of Lily, Severus. She doesn't deserve whatever Voldemort is planning for her."

Snape stood up, full of determination, but barley concealing his dread.

"All right, Headmaster. I'll come back as soon as possible." Turning around, he called "accio mosmore". A black robe and mask flew into his hands, and he put them on.

With that, he swept out of the door, leaving an extremely anxious Dumbledore behind.

* * *

Surprisingly, Snape was the only person there with Voldemort, aside, of course, from Wormtail. It was the last thing he wanted - to be alone with the Dark Lord. Voldemort's back was towards him, and Snape was hoping against hope that he wouldn't be noticed. As he began to quietly walk towards his normal space on the floor, though, Voldemort turned around, and Snape found himself once again looking up at the Dark Lord's face. Remembering Dumbledore's request, Snape reluctantly bowed his head then bent down on one knee.

"My Lord, I truly am sorry for this morning. I… it was a mistake. My actions were inexcusable."

Snape kept his head bowed, but felt Voldemort slowly walk towards, then around him, as if sizing him up. Resisting the urge to run for the door, Snape stayed kneeling, until, without warning, the Dark Lord took out his wand. With the faintest trace of laughter in his voice, Voldemort spoke the word that Snape had been dreading.

"Crucio"

Snape collapsed, and through the darkness beginning to fill his head, he was aware of the rest of the Death Eaters coming in from another room where they had been waiting for him. They walked around him, creating the normal circle with him in the middle.

Voldemort addressed his followers in a loud voice. "You see what happens when you disagree with me? I have some advice for all of you - don't try to cross me. In every situation, if ever you try to beat me, you will loose. And if you try to run, I will find you."

He knelt down until he was close enough to Snape to whisper. "Do you know why you aren't dead yet, Severus? I have my uses for you. Otherwise, you would have been rotting in the ground for quite a while." He twitched his wand, and Snape was released from the curse. Gritting his teeth, he slowly got to his knees, then to his feet. He stood shakily in front of the Dark Lord, using all his self-control not collapse again. He looked up at the Dark Lord, straight into his red eyes, and told him, quietly but determinedly:

"I'm not scared of you."

A slow smile crept onto Voldemort's face. The corners of his mouth turned up until he was laughing full in the Potion Master's face. Shoving his face into Snape's, he raised his wand again.

"That can be arranged."

For the second time in as many minutes, Severus Snape collapsed onto the ground. Lord Voldemort looked down on him in contempt, and, swirling his cape around him, turned around. Casually looking over his shoulder, he called down to Snape.

"I'll say hi to your girlfriend for you!"

One by one the Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters disappeared, leaving Snape unconscious on the ground.

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Double apologies go to Blue Yeti for leaving her off my thanks last chapter, and for breaking my deadline, but here it is!

Thanks go to serotonin, Lady of Arundel, Robi, Blue Yeti and Kit Cloudkicker.

For Robin, I'm sorry if my summary's a bit unclear. I actually mean that Sirius not changing to Peter picks up later than the story starts, not the other way around.

I should update soon (how many times have I said that?!)

~*Lady*~