IWSC
Severus Snape
Theme 5: Double Agent
[Occupation] Spy
THC Round 2
Ravenclaw
DADA
[Action] Sneaking around
[Event] A formal breakfast
WC: 1037
Double Agent
The Dark Lord raised his glass. The thick strawberry juice looked like blood in the wine glass. "To Severus, our slick spy."
"To Severus." They sang in chorus.
The sun was barely up and it was quiet around the table. Not a respectful, tense quiet as usual, but a tired quiet. The Death Eaters had been out until late at night and didn't get a chance to sleep before this meeting. It was the beginning of a new school year and it was the start of Severus' teaching career.
Just thinking about all the noisy brats he was going to be responsible for made him want to quit, but he had to do it. For Lily, he chanted repeatedly in his head, for her it would be all worth it.
Bellatrix was throwing porridge across the table, while her husband was trying his best not to fall asleep. He knew better than to upet the Dark Lord. The rest of the Death Eaters were sitting around the table in various states of confusion and exhaustion. Most of them didn't appreciate starting the day and having the most important meal of the day with their fellow comrades. In fact Severus himself would rather not be here.
The Carrow's were making plans about whom they were going to terrorize the next night, but Serverus wasn't paying attention. There was no way this could help Lily and nobody cared about what the Carrow's would do to Muggles anyway.
Lifting his knife, he cut his egg. The yellow yolk was running down the plate. The most positive thing, he could say about this meeting was that at least he hadn't been disturbed by the screams of torture.
After picking at his food for what Severus had deemed an appropriate amount of time, he excused himself from the table. He walked down the hallway towards the restroom. He paused in front of the door, looking out for anyone crossing his way. Once he was sure that there was nobody around, he snuck into the sitting room.
Locking the door behind him, he quickly opened all of the cabinets and drawers. There must have been something interesting in here. He couldn't go to the formal breakfast, hosted for the teaching staff at Hogwarts empty handed. His sleeves rolled up to reveal a skull and snake. He had to prove that he was actually interested in helping Dumbledore. The Slytherin knew that being in the castle under the headmaster's watchful eyes would limit his ability to act independently.
The more time he spent rummaging through the drawers the more anxious he got. How long could it possibly take to go to the bathroom? Would he be missed at the table? Shoving quills and pens aside, he became more and more desperate. How come his comrades collect all kinds of dark objects, yet when he needed to show one, he couldn't find any. Severus was seconds away from cursing something himself.
From the corner of his eyes, he spotted a shard of an ancient mirror. With a napkin, he picked it up and put it into his pocket, careful not to look in the mirror. Miss Anerbell's cursed mirror has the ability to transfer all of her suffering to you if you look into her hollow eyes. It is rumored that witches and wizards alike, have killed themself just to escape her curse.
While the shard was far from war winning, the object was powerful enough to bring to Dumbledore.
Severus tidied up after himself and returned to the table unseen. Part one of this dreadful morning finished.
Arriving at Hogsmeade, Severus was overwhelmed with the urge to leave. Hogwarts castle looked imposing from afar. He didn't want to teach, but he also couldn't refuse. A sigh escaped his lips. With his suitcase in his hand he walked up to the school.
After he had placed his belongings into his tiny quarters it was time for him to attend the formal breakfast, his second breakfast of the day.
He enjoyed the silence, on his way to the Great Hall. Hogwarts was a wonderful place without children running around. Severus could spend hours wrapped inside his robes, brewing potions in the drafty dungoes, but rather than enjoying a few moments of solitude, he was expected to socialize.
He had barely entered the Great Hall when he was warned of his impending death by a pair of bug-like glasses. Ignoring her, he sat down at the table. Large amounts of muffins and waffles were placed at the center of the table. Having just eaten, Severus couldn't help but feel sick seeing the sheer amount of food on display. Who was supposed to eat all of that?
Dumbledore gave a lengthy speech about the joys of starting a new academic year and what a great job they were doing keeping the children safe in turbulent times. Severus somehow managed to not roll his eyes despite the fact that he was getting tired.
He couldn't close his. Severus needed to pay attention, the Dark Lord wanted a report on Dumbledore's plans and whatever the Headmaster chose to disclose with his teaching staff could give a good insight into the wizards strategy.
Once Dumbledore was finished it was Professor McGonagall's turn to instruct the staff. She was very clear about the countless rules the teachers had to follow and enforce upon the students. Severus started to feel more and more like an inmate at Azkaban the longer he had to listen.
It was almost noon by the time they started to eat. He had plenty of room in his stomach again, but zero patience for small talk. Just because they would be his colleagues for the rest of the school year everyone tried to get to know him. Severus wanted nothing more than to hex them all.
With breakfast drawing to an end, he positioned himself to hand Dumbledore the cursed mirror shard discreetly. He was so tired, but had to still brief the Dark Lord and then there was the feast with all the sorting ceremony. Would this nightmare never end?