Chapter 3: Albus Dumbledore

He hadn't been sure what he was going to see when the cell door swung open, Severus has been almost catatonic for the past month – and this was the third day he'd spent in the Ministry's holding cells. The holding cells are not nearly as bad as Azkaban but they are still not pleasant places, and Severus has been so fragile since Lily died … he'd thought, damn you, Alastor, you had my Potions master for two days before you even let me know that you'd arrested him, what game are you playing at? I've been frantic, not even Fawkes could find him, and this past month I've had to stand over Severus just to get him to eat, I've had to put him to bed every night with a goblet of Dreamless Sleep potion, he's been sleepwalking through his classes – though the students seem to be more afraid of him now that when he shouted at them. Dear god, I know how his mind works, he'll be thinking that I don't need him any more, that I've abandoned him, that I've used him as cruelly as Voldemort did.

And then he had been really angry with Alastor - if you've hurt Severus, if you've broken him, I am going to be very, very sharp with you, Alastor Moody. I know what you've suffered at the hands of the Death Eaters, Alastor, but we've all suffered ...

But from what Alastor has said, Severus has been showing fight, he's been much more like his old self, and when the cell door opened, Severus was standing waiting for them in the middle of the tiny room, his arms crossed, his face twisted in the familiar sneer, and his black eyes glinting maliciously behind those greasy curtains of black hair. Severus had acknowledged his presence with one word, "Headmaster", and then smirked at Alastor – and he'd known what was going on, Slytherin power politics, the pendulum has swung in Severus' favour and he means to make sure that Alastor knows it. Damn, damn, double damn, because he needs Alastor, too, Alastor Moody is his right hand man in the Order of the Phoenix, just as Minerva McGonagall is his right hand woman. And he trusts Alastor, trusts him implicitly … though sometimes he has been wrong to trust, look at Sirius Black, and that had hurt, it had hurt terribly to discover that Sirius was the traitor.

Sirius Black! James' closest friend, the best man at his wedding, godfather to Harry … and Severus didn't know, Merlin knows how he hates Sirius Black, but he'd never suspected him of being a Death Eater, he'd been convinced that it was Remus Lupin. He'd thought, I was sure that it wasn't Remus, and it's a sad, cruel joke - I have two tame monsters, my Death Eater and my werewolf, and I can trust them both. No, it wasn't Remus, it was the son of the Ancient and Most Noble House of Black, toujours pur, the only Black ever to have been Sorted into Gryffindor. How Voldemort must have gloated over ensnaring that recruit – and it would be like Voldemort to keep his two agents ignorant of each other's existence. Severus shouldn't punish himself for his failure, though I know he does, and the poor boy has been through seven hells this past year, trying to keep Lily and her baby safe.

Alastor talks about constant vigilance but how can Alastor know what it takes to guard your mind from Voldemort and not let him know that you're guarding it, to look into his eyes and let him in, let him in but not show him everything? Severus loved Lily, he loved her enough to betray his Dark Lord, he was nearly out of his mind when he came to me, when he came to tell me that Voldemort had chosen Harry Potter as his victim, and begged me to protect the child's mother. I don't know whether he's truly remorseful for the other things he's done, but I know that he regrets telling Voldemort of the prophecy with his whole heart. What did that Muggle poet Oscar Wilde say, each man kills the thing he loves. And now Lily, James and Peter are in their graves, Harry is in Surrey with his appalling Muggle aunt and her family, and Sirius is in Azkaban.

Azkaban! Bartemius Crouch sent Sirius to Azkaban without trial and that was wrong, very wrong, but Crouch won't listen to reason, and public opinion is behind him – and public opinion counts with Crouch, he intends to be the next Minister for Magic. He's very zealous indeed, and a good deal of that has to do with the fact that he's a Slytherin - Voldemort and so many of his supporters are Slytherin and it's put the rest of them in a very awkward position indeed. Damn, damn and triple damn you, Voldemort, you've done so much damage, your atrocities against the Muggles brought us perilously close to open war with them, and it will take decades to heal the breach between the Slytherins and the other houses ... oh yes, Crouch is very keen to show the public that he's a good Slytherin. And it's galling that not even my influence could get Sirius a fair trial, but Lucius Malfoy has only been in Azkaban a week and he'll be tried tomorrow! His father Abraxas has pulled every string at his command to get his son out of prison, and there are plenty of idiots like Cornelius Fudge who'll buy Malfoy's story, such a wealthy, distinguished, generous family … but at least Crouch has agreed that if Severus will freely confess to his crimes and show remorse, he'll be spared the humiliation and exposure of a public trial. And that will be tricky enough, getting a confession from him, and what good will it do to rake over the coals! I knew what he was and what he'd done when he came to me, I knew that he'd stepped over a dozen bodies when I gave him the job of spying for me. It would have done no good to throw his crimes in his face, it wouldn't have made him a better spy, and it wouldn't have made him a better person, either – when someone has only a flicker of life left in their soul, you have to blow very gently on the flame if you want to keep it burning, and that's a lesson I wish I had learned sixty years ago, when Tom Riddle first came to Hogwarts.

So he'd walked into the cell, patted Severus gently on the arm, and apologised for the delay, explained that it had been two days before he'd even known of Severus' arrest and today he'd been tied up at the Ministry all morning on urgent business, but he'd come as soon as he could. And then he'd told Severus that he'd have to provide a written confession - Severus had baulked a little, and it was Alastor's turn to look triumphant, the pendulum had swung in his favour now … so Severus had said he'd killed countless Muggles - he'd suspected that there was more to it than that, but he didn't want to push the point – and rattled off the names of the wizards he'd killed or helped to kill – while Alastor listened, seething with contempt and disgust and occasionally interjecting. Poor Severus, although he's never uttered a word of reproach to Severus, it was clear that Severus was afraid of his reaction, afraid that it would be revulsion and anger. And in truth he was revolted and angry, but he'd known that it wouldn't help to show it, it would only upset Severus even more, and at times like this, Severus' mind is like a hurricane - a centre of burning shame surrounded by howling winds of anger and aggression, there's no chance of getting through to him until the storm subsides.

There'd been a few nasty surprises in the list - Gideon and Fabian Prewett, and Regulus Black. Gideon and Fabian … they had fought like tigers, Severus had said that it took five Death Eaters to kill them, and that would be some little comfort to Molly, to know that they'd died like heroes. Regulus Black … he'd known that Sirius' brother was a Death Eater, that he'd turned against Voldemort, and that he hadn't lasted very long afterwards, but he didn't know how he'd died. Regulus and Severus had been friends when they were both at Hogwarts, not terribly close friends, it was really a mutual alliance against Sirius, but they had been friends – and Severus had executed Regulus, on Voldemort's orders; one of Voldemort's tests of loyalty, his cruelty to his followers was scarcely less than his cruelty to his enemies. And then he'd thought, if Voldemort had found Severus out, I expect that he would have had Lucius Malfoy do it, because even now Severus thinks of Lucius as a friend. It was very unfortunate, although understandable, it's a very old trick, that Alastor had put Lucius and Severus into the same cell for a while – most of Severus' old friends from his student days are dead or in Azkaban now, and Alastor had to rub his nose in the fact that he betrayed them.

Eventually, it was over, Alastor had worried at Severus until he got the admission that he wanted, the admission of the corrupting, intoxicating, addictive pleasure of the Killing Curse, and finally Severus had muttered, "I enjoy killing. I don't do it any more. I know it is wrong", and he could get rid of Alastor and be alone with Severus, try to reassure him - it will be over tomorrow, Crouch will see you first thing tomorrow morning, and I won't tell him why I trust you, that secret is safe with me, no one has to know that, and it will be quick, we'll be back at Hogwarts in time for morning tea.

And then Severus had told him – Moody broke my wand - and it had almost broken his heart to see how this had hurt Severus. Breaking an adult wizard's wand is a very serious thing, a very serious thing indeed, it is a shameful punishment, only meted out by the Wizengamot to criminals sentenced to Azkaban for life. He'd thought, I never expected Severus to be awarded an Order of Merlin, First Class for what he has done in the war against Voldemort, but why did Alastor have to give him yet another reason to hate the whole world!

And now they're waiting for Crouch, he's running late, which is most unlike him, but the Ministry is still frantic. Voldemort fell only a month ago, he's known to have disappeared and to have been stripped of his powers but he's not dead, there's no body, and despite the initial jubilation people are still very nervous. Rumours and accusations are rife, and the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement is a very, very busy man indeed.

Finally Crouch walks into the room, looking harassed and impatient, nods to him and Alastor, takes Severus' confession from the recording clerk, and unrolls the parchment. He feels a twinge of unease, hasn't Crouch had time to read it beforehand? I hope he's not going to ask a lot of questions, both Severus and Alastor are ready to explode ...

Crouch says, curtly, "Severus Snape, you have been brought here today to answer charges that you are a servant of the Dark wizard who styles himself Lord Voldemort, that you are a Death Eater. How do you answer?"

Severus' eyes flick to him, and he answers, "Severus Snape was a Death Eater but he left Voldemort's service forever nearly a year ago. He turned spy for me and provided me with much valuable information."

Crouch asks, "Dumbledore, how do you know that Snape isn't a double-agent? How do you know that you can trust him?"

Severus turns his head to look at him, and he answers, "That is a matter between myself and Severus Snape."

Crouch is studying Severus' profile, frowning, has he met Severus before? He remembers that Severus and young Barty Crouch were friendly when they were students at Hogwarts together, they were two years apart and they weren't close friends, but he'd seen them together a few times, and he thinks, Bartemius Crouch won't like that - his son associated with a Death Eater, no matter how distantly.

Crouch looks back at Severus, asks, "When did you become a Death Eater? When did you take the Dark Mark?"

Severus' eyes flick to the parchment in Crouch's hands. Resentfully, he replies, "When I was eighteen. It's all written down in my confession."

He thinks, if Crouch is going to run through the whole of that document, Severus is going to lose his temper – and if he antagonises Crouch, he'll end up in Azkaban, if only for a few days, Crouch won't tolerate any insolence from a self-confessed Death Eater, no matter how much valuable information he's provided. Merlin's beard, where's his Slytherin sense of self preservation!

Crouch is clearly fuming with anger now - he's made the connection between Severus and Barty - he's flicking through the parchment, and something catches his eye ... Crouch crumples the parchment in his hands and looks at him, asks, "Dumbledore, was Regulus Black one of your agents?"

Regulus Black, of course! A good friend of young Barty's - and another Death Eater - no wonder Crouch is upset. He thinks, is Barty a Death Eater, too? But surely Severus would have told me, that's important information, if the son of the man who is Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and only one step away from being the Minister for Magic belongs to Voldemort, he would have told me. And I have to trust him, if he can lie to Voldemort, he can lie to me ... and he briefly wonders, can I trust him, will the tool that I have fashioned turn in my own hand one day and cut me? But he knows the answer to that question ... Severus' understanding of the difference between right and wrong may be a little shaky, but he is as loyal as a phoenix to those he loves, he was loyal to Lily, he loved her though she never so much as kissed him, and he is loyal to me because, for his sins he loves me too, though I'm not sure that he would be prepared to admit it.

He shakes his head, says, "I was unaware that Regulus Black had left Voldemort's service until it was too late, until it was too late to help him."

Crouch looks back at Severus, asks, "How did Regulus Black die?"

Hell and damnation, does he have to make Severus say it? Use your imagination, Crouch, how do you think Voldemort would kill a traitor? In the cruellest, most painful way imaginable ...

Severus looks poisonous and answers with just one word, "Crucio."

Crouch looks disgusted, a nerve starts twitching in his temple, he switches tack, and asks, "What do you know of Voldemort's attack on the Potters? Why did he choose to attack a baby? And where is he now?"

He thinks, if this goes on, I'm going to have to intervene, Crouch is pouring salt into open wounds, and there is no need for this – Severus has told me everything he knows, which isn't much, only that Voldemort has taken steps to ensure his immortality, but Severus doesn't know the details, and I'm not surprised, Voldemort would have shared those secrets only with one or two of the most loyal, the most faithful of his servants.

Severus is being openly defiant, snarling, "I don't know! The Dark Lord didn't tell me everything, and what I do know, I've already told Dumbledore! I've told Dumbledore the name of every Death Eater I ever worked with!"

Alastor is smiling, nastily, no doubt expecting his Head of Department to jump down Severus' throat, but Crouch is saying nothing, just glaring at Severus. Then is a long, tense moment and then Crouch loses interest, he turns to Alastor, tells him, "I've got no more time for this, I should have been in Courtroom Ten five minutes ago, you can release Snape into Dumbledore's custody - and give him back his wand."

He could groan, at least the examination is over, but from the expression on Severus' face he's never going to forget that Alastor broke his wand or overlook an opportunity to revenge himself, and Alastor is looking really disappointed. He thinks, Alastor is not going to forget this, either, and heaven help me if for any reason I ever have to have the pair of them under the roof of Hogwarts at the same time.