2. Welcome Back

"It bit me. It bit me. It bit me. It bit me. Oh Merlin, I'm going to die, I'm going to die, Merlin, somebody help me, I'm going to die, help me, I'm going to die, oh Merlin, I'm going to die, help me, please, help me, I'm going to die, oh Merlin, I'm going to die, help me, please, help me, I'm going to die, oh Merlin, help me, somebody, I'm going to die, I'm going to die."

Severus was screaming and his hands went to his throat, feeling for the gaping hole that should be all that was left. Instead they encountered unblemished skin, and Severus looked up in surprise to find Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, standing opposite him. Severus dropped his hands and stepped forward, reaching out to grasp the headmaster's arms.

"Headmaster! Lupin's a werewolf. He attacked me. Merlin, he bit me! I've been bitten by a werewolf, Lupin's a werewolf, he atta –"

Severus' outstretched hands passed through the headmaster as if the older wizard weren't there. Severus stared at his hands in dawning understanding.

"He killed me." It was a whisper. Severus' head snapped up, and he stared at the headmaster in horror.

"Lupin killed me. I'm dead."

The headmaster nodded slowly, a grave expression on his face.

"He killed me. Lupin killed me. He's a werewolf and he bit me, Headmaster! Black told me to come. They planned to kill me and they murdered me, Headmaster. You have to punish them, they murdered me!"

Severus fell silent again and waited, expecting to hear that Black had been sent to Azkaban, that he was going to be Kissed. That Lupin was on his way to the Ministry to be put down. The headmaster, however, stayed silent. Severus took a step backwards, his sharp mind coming to the most unpleasant realisations.

"You knew Lupin was a werewolf, you had to."

"Yes. He was supposed to be able to safely transform here."

"He killed me, Headmaster. Black lured me here."

"Severus. Sirius Black has convinced me he didn't mean for this to happen; it was only meant to be a prank, it was an accident."

"A prank? A prank? I am dead. Lupin killed me. He bit me. He scratched me and he tore out my throat. You must punish them. They murdered me!" Severus was only vaguely aware of how the back of his robes were slashed open or the invisible force that closed around his leg, maiming the ghostly flesh.

"I can't, Mr Snape. I am truly sorry, but if I punished Mr Black, Remus Lupin would have to be put down. Whatever Sirius Black's motivations, I am convinced Remus knew nothing of this. He – like you – is an innocent, and while I can do nothing to save you, I can save him." There was no sign of the habitual twinkle in the headmaster's blue eyes as he looked at Severus.

"They killed me! Your precious Gryffindors murdered me. Is it because I'm just a Slytherin?" Severus lunged forward to grab the headmaster, but his bloodied and torn hands passed through the old wizard again. "I'm dead. They killed me. I'm dead. You cannot let them go unpunished. Please." Tears of frustration ran down Severus' cheeks as he tried to hit the headmaster, as he tried to convince the wizard of the injustice done to him.

"I am sorry, Mr Snape. I had hoped you would find peace in the grave, but unfortunately it was not to be. However, I cannot allow you to leave this place and tell anybody what has happened. It would mean Remus' death, and I will not lose another student. I am truly sorry, believe me." Dumbledore sighed and then turned around to open the trapdoor that concealed the tunnel that lead out of the Shack and to the Whomping Willow.

Severus shrieked with rage.

"You bastard. You sanctimonious bastard. You can't leave me here. You can't leave me like this. They killed me. They murdered me. Don't go." He tried to follow the headmaster but encountered an invisible force field.

Dumbledore pulled the trapdoor closed behind him, and Severus fell to the floor, hammering with ghostly hands at the wards that prevented him from following. Silver blood splattered the walls and floor as Severus' throat was once again torn away, the memory of his body reliving its last moments. It didn't stop his screams, however.

"Curse you, Dumbledore. Curse you!

"It bit me. It bit me. It bit me. It bit me. Oh Merlin, I'm going to die, I'm going to die, Merlin, somebody help me, I'm going to die, help me, I'm going to die, oh Merlin, I'm going to die, help me, please, help me, I'm going to die, oh Merlin, I'm going to die, help me, please, help me, I'm going to die, oh Merlin, help me, somebody, I'm going to die, I'm going to die."