Snape ran as fast as he could. Get away from the wretched school, away from the chaos, away from what he did. Get away from the corpse of Dumbledore. Now they would know. Someone would know.

He stashed his wand. Harry was miles away at Hogwarts. A place he recognized came swimming into view - Spinner's End. Before he knew it, Snape was back in his sitting room, Wormtail shuttering around carrying a tray of dirty glasses to the kitchen. The little man looked at Snape, examining his filthy, torn robes, the breathless face, as Snape slumped into his armchair.

'What happened?' inquired Wormtail, dropping the tray. 'I felt the Mark on my arm, but I was ordered to stay put!'

'The boy - Malfoy - Lucius's son, let the Death Eater's into Hogwarts, and a battle ensued. Only one Death Eater dead, Gibbon. And Dumbledore - he is dead. I did it.'

'That was the boy's job!' squealed the little man. 'The Great One will certainly be angry with you, Severus!'

'HE COULDN'T DO IT! THE BOY WAS TOO WEAK!' Snape snapped, rising from the chair in an angry fury, his eyes bulging and spittle flying and hitting Wormtail in the face. 'I MADE THE UNBREAKABLE VOW TO DO IT FOR HIM! SURELY YOU WOULD RATHER HAVE DUMBLEDORE GONE!'

'Y-yes, Severus.' The little man sniveled.

'I did what I was to do.'

'You will certainly anger the Great Lord, and he no longer has a spy at Hogwarts!' Wormtail sniveled again, pointing a silver finger at Snape, shrewd, leering looks on his smug little face.

'He no longer has Dumbledore to be watched!' Snape spat, resuming his seat.

'He has Harry Potter to watch!'

'Damn it! Damn! I risked it all for this, and I still have the boy to watch!' he said, slapping his hand to his forehead. 'He knows. He knows it was I. The half-blood Prince killed his best friend, what a shame. He even used my own curses on me. How did he get that book? ...'

'Which book, Severus?' Wormtail sneered.

'My copy of Advanced Potion Making. I had created curses and wrote them there.'

'What will you do now? What do we do?'

'We hide. When the Dark Lord summons us, we go to him. Go underground. Follow what the Great One tells us to do.'

'And you left the Horcrux! The Dark lord will be most displeased! It's the one the Dark One wants the most!'

'It will stay there, the thing is a bloody - '

'It does not matter! It is done, you sniveling worm!' he yelled at the little man, 'Go to your room!'

The next day was sunny and warm. The way Snape hated it.

Around noon, there was a small rap at the door. Snape answered it, to find Narcissa again.

'Thank you,' she said, her eyes streaming, as she dropped to her knees, and hugged him round his middle. 'Thank you so much - so much.'

'I did what I was to do.'

'And now the Dark Lord himself has summoned you.' Narcissa sniveled as she rose to her feet. 'He is most angered, so be gentle.'

'Where does he summon me to?' Severus asked quietly.

'Headquarters. ' She said, and he Disapparated to a tall, shabby, mansion, the white paint turned a dull grey from dust and dirt, the grass long, and half the windows broken or cracked.

Severus breathed in the scent of the nearby bog, one he enjoyed greatly. He entered the shabby entrance to a long, painted gray hall that went down the whole house, opening up into a long room that stretched from wall to wall the other side of the building. He walked down the hall, entering the door less room, painted blood red. There he stood, the Great One himself, his back to Snape.

'Yes, lord.' Breathed Severus, a shiver running down his spine.

'Why, Severus did you perform Draco Malfoy's task?'

'I had no other choice. I made the Unbreakable Vow with Narcissa Malfoy to do it for him. It was either he or I.'

'Severus,' Voldemort hissed. 'I cannot let the boy into our ranks because he hasn't proved himself worthy. Your actions have angered me. I am going to let you leave the Death Eaters - '

'NO!' Severus roared, as he fell to his knees. "No, anything but that! No, master. I will do anything - '

'Severus,' Voldemort hissed, a slight tone of bliss in his serpentine voice, pulling his wand. 'I have no other choice. I cannot have someone who does not follow my orders, and my orders were that Draco Malfoy was going to murder Albus Dumbledore for me. You must now die - '

'EXPELLIARMUS!' Severus screamed, pulling his own wand and pointing it at Voldemort's chest, and froze. He had attacked his master. He would certainly be executed now.

Severus ran. He ran far away. As far away as his scrawny legs would take him. Just get away.