DISCLAIMER: I do not own Harry Potter.
Thanks for the reviews...this is for anybody (and everybody) who has already finished HBP & need something else to read, as well as those who might not have it yet & need something to fill the hours...
A/N: This story will continue to follow OTP; very little if anything will be extracted from HBP; Also, due to the release of HBP, I do not have any plans (at this time or in the foreseeable future) to 'abandon' this story…that said, I guess it would now be labeled 'AU'
A/N 2: Most of this will be in Snape's POV, with snatches here & there of others (usually when those other's are in situations with SS)
MOST EVIL PLAN
CHAPTER 2 Back to Basics
"Severus, I trust everything is ready for the student's arrival tomorrow?"
"Yes, my lord."
"And the new curriculum?"
"Reviewed and approved by the headmaster," Severus smirked.
"Excellent. How I wish I could see the look on the old man's face when I put my plan into action," Voldemort gloated.
"I trust he didn't give you any trouble about admitting Potter into your class?"
"No trouble at all, my lord. Professor McGonagall has been campaigning to get the boy into my class, they simply assumed she won," Snape sneered. "Apparently he wants to be an auror."
"Too bad he won't live long enough to reach that dream."
Severus remained silent, he knew better than to respond unless asked a direct question.
"My plan will be implemented a few weeks into the school year. When it is time, I will inform you of what you are to do."
"Yes, my lord."
"Until then, act as you normally would. I will not be pleased if you cast suspicion on yourself or your new curriculum."
"As you wish, my lord."
"Tell me, what have you been telling the headmaster about your frequent visits?"
"My lord, since you did not designate a cover story, I simply informed the fool that you were disappointed at losing the prophecy and the boy.
"He has been most anxious; wondering when you would attack Potter again. I told him that you are calling frequent meetings in the hope that a plan would be devised, but at this time, nothing as been implemented."
"Very well. Is that all?"
"Yes, my lord."
"Has he asked about the link?"
"He hasn't asked, however, he did briefly mention your possession of the boy at the Ministry. He believes that you were unable to remain in Potter's mind because of his feelings of love for the mutt."
"Do you know if he mentioned that to Potter?"
"I do not know, my lord. I can try to find out if you desire."
"No need, plenty of time to find out information about Potter once we put my plan into action."
"Yes, my lord."
"My lord," Severus began hesitantly, "He did mention that he hoped Potter wouldn't give into his feelings of depression over the summer. Dumbledore suspects that as long as Potter is happy, and is feeling safe and loved, that it would be more difficult for you to possess him again, or even enter his mind."
"So that is why," Voldemort softly whispered, barely loud enough for Severus to hear. There were a few times when he attempted to enter the boys mind like he did last year. The majority of those times he had to depart immediately, due to the pain he felt but couldn't understand. Only once was he able to stay encroached in the boy's mind.
What he saw during his 'visit' were images of his godfather dying. Now it all made sense. If the boy believed he was happy and loved, than Voldemort's power over him was nil; however, if the boy was depressed, angry, or felt alone, then it would be easy to take control and dispose of him.
Another reason why his plan would succeed, Voldemort thought triumphantly.
"Severus," Voldemort said after a few moments of silence, "If I am unable to be in his mind for that reason, what must be done?"
"Change how the boy feels," Severus replied.
"Exactly."
"Headmaster," Severus greeted as he took a seat in front of Albus's desk. "I would have to say that your suspicions were correct."
"Really?" Albus asked. "Lemon Drop?"
"No, thank you. The Dark Lord did inquire if you had asked me about the link. I responded as we discussed. The next thing he asked was if you had told Potter."
"Interesting," Albus speculated as he stroked his long white beard. "What made you believe that my suspicions were correct?"
"I fed him the information regarding your suspicions on how the connection is related to Potter's emotions, the Dark Lord's reaction was a quietly spoken, 'so that is why'," Severus answered. "That makes me suspect that he has attempted to break into the boy's mind, but wasn't always successful."
"I see," Dumbledore concluded. "If Harry can keep his emotions in control, he might not need additional lessons in occlumency."
"If," Snape snorted. In his opinion most teenagers were an emotional mess and Potter more so than others.
"Anything else?"
"I can only conclude that his plan somehow involves interfering with the boy's emotions."
Severus sat at the head table in silence. He found it hard to believe that the school term had already started. Most of his summer had been spent at The Dark Lord's side.
At least that was one good thing about start of the school year, Severus thought, Voldemort wouldn't be able to call him as frequently. During the summer months, Severus had been called on a regular basis, often two or more times a week. Most of the meetings were spent answering questions about potions.
How Severus wished he knew what Voldemort was planning. Hopefully it wouldn't be too destructive, he thought. The only thing Severus could be sure of was that it involved a potion. Now all he could do was count on Potter's atrocious brewing skills to help thwart the plan.
It was times like these that Severus was glad he didn't teach Defense Against the Dark Arts. If he did, the Dark Lord would probably want him to 'accidentally' curse Potter into oblivion, and while that was something that he often wished to do, it would be hard to instigate an accident like that without raising suspicion.
As the doors to the Great Hall opened and students entered for breakfast, Snape casually glanced around the room, his trademark sneer on his face.
Amazing how a perfectly fine day could be ruined once one catches sight of a lion, he thought a few moments later, as his eyes skimmed over the half-filled Gryffindor table.
"Ah," Albus said quietly, "looks like Mr. Potter just caught a glimpse of his schedule."
Severus just glared at Albus, not caring for the topic of conversation. Just once he would like to have a meal where no one mentioned the golden boy of Hogwarts. Yet somehow, his eyes strayed to the dream team seated at their usual seats, Potter sandwiched between his two cohorts. Potter's gaze was transfixed on the parchment in front of him, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
"I do believe he just noticed that his first class is NEWT Potions," Albus said merrily, as Harry started to bang his head on the table in front of him. Weasley and Granger looked at him in shock. Severus could hear the redhead ask what was wrong as the know-it-all pulled the schedule out of Potter's grasp. (I love this, it's hilarious, but I'd like to see more of Severus emotional reaction to it.)
The girl said something too softly for Severus to hear, but he did notice that Weasley's head shot up as he glared at his dark-haired friend.
"What? How?" Severus heard Weasley exclaim in shock.
Severus watched as the trio argued back and forth, and for the first time, he was slightly upset that the trio wasn't sitting closer to the head table.
"I don't know, but I'm going to find out," Potter said as he grabbed his schedule from Hermione's hand, jumped up from his seat and stomped over to the head table.
"Sir, I need to speak to you for a moment," Potter demanded of the headmaster, barely containing his fury.
"Mr. Potter," McGonagall addressed the student in shock, "Surely this can wait till a later time?"
"Sorry, ma'am, but it can't. It concerns my schedule," this was said with a pointed glare in Albus's direction.
"What's the problem, Potter? Not enough exceptions made for the boy-who-lived?"
"Severus, I'll handle this," Albus warned, before turning his gaze onto Harry. "Now what seems to be the problem, Mr. Potter?"
Harry looked around the Great Hall, noticing that everyone was staring at him.
"Can we discuss this somewhere else?" He asked his eyes focused on the student body.
"If we want the chance to resolve the problem before your first class, then I'm afraid not."
Upon seeing the disappointed look on Harry's face, the headmaster clarified, "However, I will put up a privacy charm so they won't hear. I trust that would be sufficient?"
"Yes, thank you, sir." Harry said, it was evident that he didn't want anyone to hear what he had to say.
"Not a problem, Mr. Potter. Now what is your concern about your schedule?"
"Potions!" The boy exploded, waving his schedule around. "You put me in potions. You didn't ask, Merlin, you didn't even tell me! I'm not prepared," Harry shouted. "I don't have the summer assignment, I don't have the book. I don't even know what the book is. Not to mention that I obviously haven't even read the first few chapters of it. Do you know how Snape is going to react to that?"
During his tirade, Harry had started pacing and moving his arms around wildly, trying to emphasize his point. "If I knew I was in the class, I would've spent some time over the summer revising the last five years class work. The man already thinks I'm an idiot and wants to get me expelled, how do you expect this to help the situation? How am I supposed to complete my assignments? You know he won't accept any excuse that I give."
Severus listened as Harry ranted and raved. Did the boy really expect him to believe that he didn't know that an exception had been made for him? Potter probably spent all summer being pampered by his relatives, enjoying the summer too much to even think about opening a book and now he had the audacity to try to blame it on the headmaster. The nerve of the brat, Severus fumed.
"Mr. Potter, I-"
"Wait," Harry interrupted, as he help up a hand, "Let me guess, you had a plan. And even though you knew you were that I would be punished and criticized for not being prepared, you made your decision. Or perhaps you cared about me too much," Harry continued sarcastically, repeating some of the phrases the headmaster had used the night Voldemort died. After all, Harry had spent most of his summer hearing those words echo in his head.
"Perhaps you thought I should just be left alone this summer. After all, his godfather had just died; surely he doesn't need to worry about homework or anything else. Just let him sit in silence as he remembers that he's all alone!" Harry shouted as he took a deep breath and shook his head.
It appeared as though Potter did not mean to let that out, Severus thought, as he noticed the look on the boy's face.
It was also clear to the potion master that Potter's outburst was not simply about the lack of notice regarding his acceptance into NEWT Potions. It might have started off that way, but judging from the look on Albus's face, the words the boy uttered had a deeper meaning to him. Of course, Severus thought, that was probably the reason why the headmaster hadn't interrupted the child yet. Severus braced himself as Potter continued; apparently there was much the boy wanted to say.
"Then again, I had just managed to escape from Voldemort again, with help for the first time in five years, I might add, surely I would be able to handle Snape and not being prepared for class. Or perhaps you just expected me to know. After all, in my first year, my friends and I found out about the sorcerer's stone and in our second year we discovered the entrance to the Chamber of Secret and the monster that was hidden inside. Maybe this was just another mystery to be solved that you didn't bother to inform me about?
"Or maybe you didn't think I was ready to hear about the change in my schedule. Or perhaps you didn't want to risk ruining one of my last summers. Perhaps you thought that I deserved to have one summer not worrying about homework before I died!"
After uttering that last word, all the fight seemed to have left Harry as he stood silent waiting for the headmaster's response, giving no visible signs of remorse or fear. He seemed to be at peace, as if a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders.
During Harry's rant, the remainder of the staff had sat silently, most in shock. Never had they heard anyone talk to the headmaster in such a way, let alone a sixteen year old student. They sat silent, waiting to see how the headmaster would handle the situation.
"Mr. Potter," Dumbledore said remorsefully, the twinkle in his eyes extinguished as he listened to the words Harry threw back at him. "I have already apologized for my past transgressions. I admit that what I did, what I believed to be best at the time, was, in hindsight, unfair to you. However, now it seems that I owe you another apology. I hope you accept my apology for not informing you of your acceptance into NEWT potions and for not giving you ample time to prepare. I will arrange for a book to be delivered to you, until then, perhaps you can share with Miss Granger? I will discuss the situation with Professor Snape."
Harry nodded his agreement. "Sir, how did you get Snap-Professor Snape," Harry corrected at Albus's look, "to let me into his class? I could've sworn that Sn-he wouldn't back down and give into the boy-who-lived attitude."
"Ah, but you see, Mr. Potter, it was not my idea. Not my idea, at all," Albus said, eyes twinkling. "In fact, he came to my office and informed me that you would be admitted into his class."
Harry stood silent as he stared at the headmaster in shock, not believing that he heard correctly.
"Is there anything else, Mr. Potter?"
"No, sir," Harry replied, still in shock.
"Then you'd best get back to seat if you want to finish breakfast before your first class."
"Yes, sir. Oh, and thank you for the privacy charm. I'm glad the students and professors didn't hear me yelling like that," Harry said before turning around and retaking his seat at the Gryffindor table.
"Albus," Severus growled, "Why did you say that?"
"What?" Albus answered, eyes twinkling. "I simply told him the truth."
"Severus, you let Mr. Potter into your NEWT class?" Minerva asked in disbelief. "I thought you said nothing could change your mind, especially since he didn't meet the requirements."
The other professors turned their heads and stared at the potion master in shock, temporarily forgetting about Potter's outburst. In all the years he had taught at Hogwarts, he had never made an exception, not even for his own Slytherins.
Severus groaned. Great, now they are all going to think that he is nicer than he actually is, Severus thought. And unfortunately, he cannot tell them the true reason why Potter was admitted into his class. No, he couldn't tell them, but Albus knew. Snape quickly enclosed himself and the headmaster in a privacy bubble and continued their conversation.
"You made it appear that I wanted him in my class."
"Don't you?"
"Only due to the fact that admitting him saved me from hours of torture," Snape replied. "Of course, I simply exchanged one form of torture for another."
"Now Severus, he can't be that bad."
"He is," Severus growled. "Why couldn't you have let the boy think that Minerva had made me changed my mind?"
"Because she didn't," Albus stated truthfully.
"I know that and you know that, but there is no reason why you couldn't have let Potter think that."
"You wanted me to lie to a student?" Albus questioned dramatically.
"As oppose to manipulate me, yes."
"You'll see, Severus, this will all work out for the best."
"What are you planning, Albus?"
"Me? Nothing," Albus stated, eyes twinkling. "Why do you ask?"
"I do not know if I should be more fearful of you or the Dark Lord," Severus muttered, ignoring the headmaster's question, as he disengaged the privacy bubble and slithered out of the Great Hall.
"Albus," Minerva asked, after being prodded by her coworkers, "Why was Mr. Potter so upset with you? And why did you allow him to speak to you like that?"
"Suffice it to say that I had been expecting that," Albus stated honestly, "Though I admit, I did not expect it to occur in the Great Hall the first day of classes. I'm afraid that the reason is something I cannot share. That is between Mr. Potter and myself. He has ample reason to be upset with me, so please do not speak to him about it. However, that is not a license for him to treat the other professors the same way. If he shows similar attitudes towards yourself or other professors, you may discipline him."
Understanding what he was saying, the professors nodded.
"Well, then, we best be beginning our day. It wouldn't do to have the professors late for their first class."
END MEP-CHAPTER 2 Back to Basics
Upcoming: Chapter 3-potions class & uh! (gasp) detention…
FYI—I have finished HBP, if anyone wants to discuss, feel free to e-mail me (address on bio);
7-16-05