Severus found himself standing in the middle of the hallway at the ministry of magic with no memory of how he got there. Time was moving faster than what his mind could keep up with. It was almost as though his mind only filled in the gaps after he realized they were missing. He had no memory of going any further than just outside his doorstep, yet here he was, miles away. Severus stumbled against the wall and gripped his head as the hallway blurred around him. The world spun and was ripped away from him, replaced by a tiny room with white walls and a stench of death. His throat was in agony, the burning pain unbearable. He struggled to reach up and grab his throat, but he couldn't move his arms or hands. He was lying down and a mediwitch was leaning over him, saying something he couldn't hear. Darkness blurred the edges of his vision, creeping over him until the world went black.
Suddenly, a sharp pain in his knees jolted him back to reality. He was on his knees in the middle of the hallway, still next to the room he was supposed to enter through to meet with the board of governors. His throat burned horribly and his vision was still blurry around the edges, as though he couldn't quite bring it into focus. A pair of polished black shoes appeared in front of him. Severus's gaze shot up to their face to see who had found him, and a heavy sense of dread flooded through him. It was the same man he had seen outside his window that morning.
Severus tried to push himself to his feet, but he stumbled forward and the man stepped back away from him, letting him fall back to his hands and knees. "Who are you?" Severus demanded. His voice came out broken and not nearly as intimidating as he would have liked.
"That's not the right question." The man answered simply. He crouched down in front of Severus and tilted his head curiously. "The question is, why did she choose you? Don't worry, Severus, I will take good care of Freya while we find our answer."
"Stay away from her!" Severus snarled, stumbling to his feet and pulling out his wand.
The man in the top hat stood up and took several steps back, his eyes darting between Severus's wand and his face. Then he smiled broadly. "I bet I beat you home."
Before Severus could utter another word the man had vanished. His eyes widened and he took off down the hall. You couldn't apparate inside the ministry, but the man had vanished. Severus flew down the hallway into a long room with fireplaces lining the walls. Men and women in black robes were coming and going from all of them, but Severus rushed to the closest one. There was another man with a balding head headed straight for it, but Severus shoved him out of the way, grabbed a handful of floo powder and tossed it down into the fireplace. "Snape's Residence." Emerald Green flames burst up around Severus and swallowed him whole.
He reappeared in the parlor of his home and quickly rushed out and up the staircase. "Freya!" He called, his throat still sore from whatever had happened to him at the ministry. He didn't have time to wonder what it had been...whether it was real or he was going mad. A sickening feeling was curling his stomach and panic rose up in his chest. "Freya!"
He threw open the door to the room he shared with his wife. The man in the top hat, whoever he was, had indeed beat him here. He was leaning over Freya's sleeping form, his long fingers reaching out and caressing her cheek. "What do you think you're doing?" Severus spat furiously. The man whipped around, his eyes flashing, but Severus already had his wand pointed at his chest. "Get away from her!" Severus's eyes dropped back down to Freya, who had somehow managed to sleep through the whole ordeal...unless she wasn't sleeping at all...unless he had already done something to her. "Freya, wake up!"
"She won't wake for you," The man said simply, "At least not yet."
"What did you do?" Severus demanded, stepping closer to try to get a better look at her.
"Oh, we don't need her for this part. We'll just put her aside for a bit, somewhere safe, yes?" The man answered without answering the question. The man reached out towards her again.
"Stupify" Severus snapped, sending a bolt of red light from the tip of his wand towards the man's chest. The light reflected away from him before it ever reached him.
The stranger didn't even flinch It was as though he hadn't even noticed Severus had tried to stop him. His hand touched Freya's arm and Freya vanished.
"No!" Severus cried out, lunging at him. Morpheus stepped aside to dodge him, but Severus quickly turned with him, latching on to the collar of his dress shirt. "Bring her back!" He demanded, shoving him backwards until the man was pressed against the dresser. "Bring her back now!"
The man coughed, trying to push Severus's hands away from his neck. When he realized he couldn't budge Severus's grip, the man vanished, causing Severus to stumble forward into the dresser.
"Traumatic isn't it?" The man caughed from behind him. Severus whirled around to find him sitting on the bed, rubbing his throat. "It isn't the first time you've walked into a room and lost someone you cared for, is it?" Severus froze at the reminder. The man smirked at his reaction. "Oh yes, I know all about her."
"Who are you and what do you want?" Severus demanded, his eyes hardening and his hands curling into fists.
"If you attack me again, you will never see her again." Morpheus promised, eyeing Severus's hands. "If you do as I say, I imagine there is a good chance that you will be reunited with her." Morpheus stood up to face him. "You should make that choice before we go any further. You've had a taste of what it would be like to have her, Severus, but I still want to know, what would you do to keep her?"
Severus's expression had turned to stone, and he was quiet for a long moment. "Anything," He answered finally, "I would do anything to keep her."
"Is that a promise?" Morpheus asked, reminding Severus of the conversation he'd had with her just this morning regarding their plans for the day. He had been listening. Severus was certain of it.
"I swear," Severus answered. That's what she had said.
Morpheus's smile widened and he laughed softly. "I am Morpheus, the God of Dreams, and if you do as I ask, you might just win more than you deserve."