Chapter 13

Stealth

Several nights after Dumbledore had agreed that the Lestranges seemed the most likely people to currently be in possession of Helga Hufflepuffs cup, Severus was preparing to find out for sure. He was in his quarters pulling on a long travelling cloak while Lily watched him from her seat on the end of his bed.

"You shouldn't be going alone," she said pouting. She had been pouting ever since Dumbledore agreed to let Severus go alone to the Lestrange house.

"We have been over this Lily, it is too dangerous."

"So what if something happens to you?"

Severus gave her a coy grin.

"You would not be caring about my welfare now would you?"

"Please let me come," she pleaded. "You'll need the help; you wouldn't even know where to look for the cup."

"I have a good idea about where to start."

Severus finished dressing and stood in front of Lily, gently placing his hands on top of her shoulders.

"It will be simple," he reassured. "I will slip in, search for any sign of the cup, grab it and get out. I intend to be back here within the hour."

"Are you sure you'll be alright?"

"Black says there are several Death Eater raids planned tonight so we can assume both the Lestranges will be kept rather busy."

"And you're trusting Sirius' word all of a sudden?"

Severus looked thoughtful.

"Well, what do you know, I guess I am."

He turned and left Lily alone in his quarters, pulling the door shut behind him.

* * *

Severus apparated in the middle of the road and quickly hid amongst a thick group of trees. He crept forward slowly until, through the darkness, he could see a large iron gate. Keeping his back flat against a nearby tree, Severus craned his neck around to peer through the gates. The lawn on the other side leading to the manor house was bare. Within the house itself only a few lights were on. Severus ducked back behind a thick crop of trees and ran down along the side of the high wrought iron fence that marked the property's boundary.

He stopped at a tall tree, his eyes scanning its length briefly, before he reached up to take hold of a thick branch that hung just above his head. Severus pulled himself onto the branch, using his legs to find a foot-hold.

As soon as he had managed to reach a branch overlooking the Lestrange fence, Severus leapt from the tree and over the fence. The drop was further than Severus had anticipated and when he hit the firmly manicured lawn on the other side, he had to curl up his body and roll to absorb the impact.

On his feet and hands, Severus scurried across the grass and stopped at the house, pressing his back against the bricks. Keeping close to the wall, Severus moved around to the back of the house and scanned the windows. Two floors above, he noted an open window and no light on in the room.

Severus pulled at a loose thread on his travelling cloak and tossed it into the air. As the thread began to fall, Severus touched his wand to it and it immediately started growing larger and thicker until it resembled a black length of rope. Severus took hold of it and was hauled up to the second floor. He jumped through the open window and took a look around the room.

In the small room sat a single bed and bedside table with a simple lamp. In the corner was a chest of drawers. Severus moved swiftly through the room and pressed his ear to the door. Once he was sure there was no movement on the other side, Severus opened the door slowly and poked his head through, looking both ways before he stepped out. He crept down a narrow passageway lined with large medieval tapestries depicting bloody battles, and stopped at another door. Severus pressed his ear against it briefly, then turned the knob and pulled the door open.

Just inside the door lay a steep staircase and Severus cautiously began stepping down. The old wooden steps creaked loudly as Severus continued down deeper into the darkness. As he hit the bottom step, a rush of air sounded beside him and before Severus could avoid it, something sharp had pierced his neck. He stumbled forward, somehow managing to avoid a trapdoor that had opened up in the floor, and landed hard on cold concrete.

Severus reached up to feel his neck; a long metal dart was embedded in his skin. He pulled it out and threw it across the room.

"Stupid!" he cursed. How could he have made such an amateurish mistake?

He took out his wand.

"Lumos."

Instantly the large cellar room was bathed in light. It didn't resemble any typical basement Severus had seen; instead of the usual clutter of boxes and furniture, a number of chairs were neatly arranged to face a large platform that stood against the far wall. Bookshelves and various cupboards and cabinets lined the length of the walls. Severus stood up and approached one of the cabinets; his knees straining slightly underneath him.

The cabinet, made of a thick, dark wood, had gold knobs. Behind frosted glass doors, the shadows of various items could be seen. Severus reached out and grabbed onto one of the golden handles. As soon as he touched it, a fierce charge of electricity shot through Severus' hand and arm and caused him to yell out loudly in pain. He held out his hand in front of him; blisters had already started forming. Severus struggled to maintain his balance as whatever the dart had injected into his bloodstream, began pumping wildly throughout his body. He struggled to maintain his footing as his legs weakened and the room began to spin.

"Come on Severus," he slurred, aiming his wand at the cabinet handles.

When nothing happened, he pointed his wand at the glass instead. A blue bolt raced out from his wand and touched the glass on the cabinet. A thin line pierced the glass, running its length until the whole window shattered. Severus tucked his wand away and stepped forward, crushing broken glass under his boots, and scanned the various items in the cabinet. The shelves were cluttered with random junk; phials, spell books, daggers and various other trinkets. Sitting on the middle of the top shelf, resting on a small crystal stand, was a golden cup.

"Bingo!"

Severus reached out carefully to take the cup but a sudden sharp pain in his head caused him to cry out, dropping to his knees and tightly clutching his head. Whatever the intended effect of the poisoned dart, Severus was sure it was the best anti-theft tool the sadistic Lestranges could concoct.

Severus fought against the pounding in his head and struggled to his feet. He reached out for the cup again and gripped onto it tightly. Nothing happened. Severus wearily removed the cup from its place in the cabinet and noted with relief the badger emblem painted on the side. He tucked it carefully into the pocket of his robes before another series of sharp pains shot through his body; he fell to the floor clutching at his stomach. The room began to spin, coming in and out of focus, Severus' eyes burning. He crawled forward, trying to reach the stairs. After a few paces, Severus could barely make out the bottom of the stairs, faint light shining high above through the open door. Suddenly the floor in front of him seemed to vanish and Severus felt himself falling. Remembering the trapdoor too late, he tried to grab hold of the bottom step, clawing at it with his fingernails as his legs kicked wildly. Slowly Severus lost his grip, his fingers slipped off the step and he fell several feet, hitting the concrete floor below with a thud.

Severus' howls of agony echoed throughout the basement, his head spinning as the blood drained away. In the dark he reached down to feel his leg. Amid warm blood and the torn fabric of his trousers, Severus felt sharp bone protruding from his shin. He cried out in frustration and excruciating pain, swallowing hard to keep from vomiting as waves of nausea hit.

He reached out to feel around the cramped walls of the pit but could find no openings, no form of escape. With his head pounding and vision quickly fading, Severus pulled out his wand and cast a single spell. Severus' doe Patronus shot out from his wand in a burst of brilliant blue light and raced up along the walls of the pit, disappearing over the side.

As the blue light faded into the distance, Severus' head fell to the concrete floor with a crack as he lost consciousness.

Dumbledore watched with a bemused half smile as Lily paced frantically up and down in his office.

"Stop telling me not to worry," she complained. "He should have been back by now. I knew I shouldn't have let him go by himself."

"I doubt he would have let you."

"I should have made him!"

"I should warn you Lily," Dumbledore grinned. "To a casual observer it might appear that you care about Severus."

Lily sighed loudly and slumped into a lounge chair in front of the empty fireplace.

"Well," she said. "You should be worried too; he's in the lion's den so to speak. Not the safest place to be."

Dumbledore picked up a tea pot and began pouring.

"Would you care for a cup?"

"Thanks."

"Do not worry about Severus Lily, no doubt we will be having-" Dumbledore stopped short as a bright blue doe Patronus came bounding through the closed office window.

It passed a shocked Lily and stopped at Dumbledore.

"Help," the doe said weakly before it disappeared back out the window.

"That was my Patronus!" Lily exclaimed jumping to her feet.

"But that was Severus' voice," Dumbledore said, looking just as puzzled. "Do you know if Severus has the same Patronus as you?"

Lily shook her head.

"I've never seen it, I wouldn't know."

"It is not uncommon for one's Patronus to change over time to resemble that of the person they… love."

Lily's face went pale.

"Mine did," she said. "James' was a stag, so mine… I know how Severus feels about me – he told me when I was in the hospital, when he thought I was asleep."

Dumbledore leapt up from behind his desk and ran to the fireplace. He pulled a small box from the pocket of his robes and tossed the contents into the flames.

"Dumbledore, this is unexpected!" In the fireplace had appeared the face of Arthur Weasley, his eerie features formed by flames. "What can I do for you?"

"Is Sirius back yet from his surveying tonight?"

"No, sorry," Arthur said. "But there's been minimal action to report on; not at all what we'd expected. I think the Death Eaters are trying to lie low after what happened last time."

"Have either of the Lestranges been sighted?"

"Yeah, as far as I know. According to Mad-Eye, Rodolphus seemed to be running the show."

"Arthur, you need to get a hold of Sirius, tell him he needs to get to Lestrange house asap."

"The Lestrange house, why?"

"Severus was there tonight on a mission for me, and he needs help."

"Oh, okay Albus, I'll try and get hold of him."

"NOW!" Lily yelled, running to the fireplace. "While we're all standing around talking Severus is trouble, maybe even dying!"

Arthur nodded and his face disappeared, the flames in the fireplace returning to normal. Lily jumped back onto her chair and began biting her nails.

"Severus will be alright," Dumbledore said reassuringly. "He always is."

Sirius stood in front of the heavy iron bars that marked the entrance of the Lestrange's grounds. He scanned the grassed front yard for any signs of life and although he did see some lights inside the house, there was no sign of any movement. Sirius took hold of the bars in his hands and tried to pull the large gates open. When they refused to move, Sirius kicked at them with frustration. He pulled out his wand and aimed it at the hinges.

"Bombarda!"

A jet of light flew from his wand and lit the gate with a loud explosion. Sirius grinned smugly at the gate as he passed through; one side left hanging by the hinges, the other lay flat against the grass.

He strode angrily towards the large house, muttering under his breath about Severus being a waste of time, before he decided to pay attention to something about the urgency in Arthur Weasley's voice when he had contacted him. Sirius picked up his pace, jogging towards the front of the house. When he reached the large front doors he didn't bother to stop, simply blasting the doors out of his way.

Inside the entrance hall Sirius stopped and looked around, there was no sign of Severus, nor of anyone else. A small glow of blue light caught Sirius' attention down a nearby passage and he ran towards it. Rounding the corner, Sirius caught sight of a blue doe Patronus disappearing down a flight of stairs. Sirius shook his head as if he were seeing things, and slowly, cautiously, followed. At the top of the stairs Sirius called for Severus; there was no answer.

"C'mon mate, you've gotta be here; who else would have a girlie Patronus like that?"

The doe stood on the stairs halfway down and as Sirius stepped down towards it, the doe moved backwards. As Sirius neared the bottom, it took him only a second to see that the doe was now floating over a large hole in the basement floor. As the realisation hit, the Patronus faded into a wisp of smoke and vanished. Sirius ran forward and knelt by the pit; he couldn't see anything inside.

"Snape," he called out. "Are you down there?"

Sirius lit his wand and tried to reach down into the pit but still couldn't see anything.

"If you're down there Snape then just hold on."

Sirius ran back up the stairs and began running from door to door in search of a bathroom.

"Yes!" Sirius said running into a green and white tiled bathroom.

He pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and wrapped it carefully around his fist.

"You owe me for this Snape!"

With a deep breath Sirius threw a punch at the bathroom mirror, glass shattering all over the sink and floor. Carefully, Sirius picked up a long shard of the mirror and ran back down the stairs to the basement. He lay down awkwardly on the staircase and leaned as far over the hole as he dared. He held his lit wand over the pit and positioned the mirror piece over the pit in order to see down inside.

Far below Sirius could make out the shadowy form of a crumpled body. He jumped to his feet.

"Levicorpus," he called, aiming his wand down.

In a few seconds, the body of Severus Snape came floating to the surface of the dark well. Sirius stepped aside as the unconscious man's body floated gently past him and up the stairs; his face was sweaty and his breathing shallow.

"Merlin," Sirius gasped under is breath as he caught sight of Severus' broken leg.

Lily flew down the corridor towards the hospital wing, Dumbledore close behind her. As they reached the ward door Sirius stepped out and Lily collided with him.

"What happened? Where is he?" she pleaded, clutching at her old friend's shirt.

"What, don't I even get a thanks for saving him?"

Lily pushed past him and ran into the ward, the door swinging shut behind her.

"So what happened?" Dumbledore asked a bemused Sirius.

"Snape was down some sort of well in the basement, it was most likely a trap rigged to catch anyone stupid enough to try and get in."

"Yes, well, thank you Sirius, as always I appreciate your help… and I'm sure Severus does too."

Sirius nodded then shrugged.

"Maybe, I think we're even now though. Anyhow, I must get back to HQ, no doubt the Lestranges will know by now their house was broken into and (Rud)__________ will not be happy."

"Thank you again Sirius."

Sirius nodded and left. Dumbledore pushed through the doors and into the ward. Severus lay asleep in one of the beds and Lily stood over him. Madam Pomprey approached Dumbledore with her hands on her hips.

"Yet again another collegue is in my hospital after yet another misadventure with you Albus," she grumbled. "What are you up to that keeps getting them into such a state?"

"What about Severus?" Dumbledore asked firmly. "Will he be alright?"

"He's had several broken bones from the fall – ribs, wrist and both his legs. I've given him some a potion so the bones should have already started to mend. There were also signs that he'd ingested some sort of poison, I can't tell you what, but I've given him some potions to try and ease the symptoms. Without knowing what he poison is, however, that's the best I can do for now."

"Thank you Poppy, as usual you have exceeded yourself."

She gave him a curt nod and began shuffling back into her office.

"Oh Albus, he had something with him."

She pointed to a small golden cup sitting on the table beside Severus' bed.

"Thank you Poppy."

Once the nurse had left, Lily pulled a chair over to Severus' bed and sat beside him. She took one of his hands and began stroking it gently.

"Severus is in very capable hands," Dumbledore assured her. "Poppy is a very skilled healer, he could not be in better hands."

"Puh!" Lily scoffed. "She doesn't even know what poison this is."

"I am inclined to believe that anything Severus was injected with was merely to disable an intruder rather than to kill them; he will be fine."

Dumbledore sat down on the other side of Severus' bed.

"And how do you feel Lily?"

He watched as tears began rolling down her cheeks.

"Wow," she said and started wiping the tears away. "That's unexpected."

"That you are concerned about your friend's welfare?"

"I don't know," Lily replied. "That I was so worried something could have happened to him; that something did happen. I don't know… maybe because I'm so happy that he's alive."

"It's understandable."

"I don't know how I would have felt it he'd… seriously Albus, how much grief can one woman take in one lifetime?"

Dumbledore reached across Severus to take hold of Lily's hand.

"Luckily we won't have to find out," he said.

Madam Pomprey came back into the ward and began shooing them out.

"My patient needs his rest," she growled. "How can he sleep with the two of you talking over him?"

Dumbledore stood up and picked up the cup from the bedside table.

"I have some work to do," he said, gesturing with the cup. "Do you want to help?"

Lily slowly stood up and reluctantly let go of Severus' hand. She followed Dumbledore from the ward, unable to shake the image of Severus, fragile and helpless, from her mind. As she followed Dumbledore back to his office, she replaced the image of Severus with that of Voldemort, and smiled. Now the only thing she wanted more than to see him brought down; was to be the one to do it.