Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, situations, etc. It's JKR's. Don't sue.
The Mark burns on his arm, and he smiles twistedly. He'd almost gotten used to its absence, those thirteen years. Almost. The Mark isn't something that's easy to forget.
It took time to get back into the Dark Lord's good graces, time and pain. He doesn't scare easily, but he was scared the night he returned to Voldemort's side. And they could see it, he knows they could. But then, who wouldn't be scared? After all, the Dark Lord had said he'd be killed. He'd been lucky to get away with a few Cruciati.
Severus shakes his head angrily, as if to clear these thoughts away. He has never evaluated his own fears on the same scale as others', and he will not start now. His position as a Death Eater is safe, and that's what matters.
And so, when the Mark burns, he simply gives a twisted smile and doesn't say a thing.
A/N: This is the product of a new and much-welcomed feature of my life: the Chem Class Challenge. My friend and I have instated this as a way to spend the most boring class in the history of the universe. We alternate each day, picking a topic on which to write a drabble during Chem class. Today, it was to write Snape. Monday . . . well, I'm thinking about it. Anyway, this isn't all that good as I had to write it while simultaneously taking notes, but please review anyway. I respond to all reviews on my livejournal (click "homepage" on my profile).