Part 46 – Unmasked

Severus was having a bad day. Quite possibly it was the worst day he'd had since arriving at Hogwart's the previous September. After all, at least on the days he'd been unconscious in the hospital wing he wasn't able to remember anything afterwards.

It had started first thing in the morning when he'd been rudely awoken by the sound of half a dozen owls arriving in the dormitory courtesy of a couple of fifth year boys. The boys had apparently decided to let off a little steam in the middle of their OWLs by pulling this particular prank. Severus had been bitten twice as he and his fellow first years had struggled to get the birds out of the dungeons and back to the owlery.

He'd missed breakfast entirely and arrived late to Transfiguration earning himself a detention for his tardiness. The only consolation in this was that the class was shared with Hufflepuff and so he'd not had to see Potter and Black snickering at him.

Normally Wednesdays were quite an enjoyable day for Severus, most especially because there were no classes with Gryffindor on that day. On a good day he could actually manage to avoid them altogether. Unfortunately today was not a good day.

Moaning Myrtle had flooded her bathroom for the second time that year and Severus had found that he, and the rest of the Slytherins, were forced to take an irritatingly long detour in order to get to Charms class after lunch. Even more irritating this had resulted in Severus crossing paths with the Gryffindors who were loitering near the History of Magic classroom, waiting for an increasingly incompetent Professor Binns to remember he had a class at all and open the door to let them in.

Naturally Potter and Black were quick to spot him, resulting in a particularly annoying itching hex being tossed in his direction.

This of course lead to his Charms work being appalling due to the constant jerking of his movements every time an itch struck him at the wrong moment. Which resulted in him getting an extra essay to do for Professor Flitwick before their next lesson, which was unfortunately the very next day.

The tripping jinx he sent at Potter when he spotted him later that afternoon did little to make him feel better, especially when Black sent his own little present at him by way of a knee-reversing hex which sent him tumbling down the stairs.

All in all the day had been a bad one, and when Severus finally fell asleep it was on top of his extra Charms essay in the common room.

The sound of footsteps on the stairs woke him and he groaned when he realised he'd spilt his ink all over his essay, and would have to start it all over again. He was about to let out a few choice curses when the owner of the feet that had woken him walked into the room. From his shadowy corner of the room Severus could see that it was Lucius Malfoy who was wandering around in what was surely the middle of the night.

Severus watched curiously as Lucius left the common room and before he knew what he was doing he had forgotten all about his Charms essay and was following Lucius out into the main school.

Severus kept to the shadows and was careful not to be seen or heard as he followed the older boy through the labyrinth of corridors and towards the entrance hall. He was sure that Lucius was up to something and he was equally sure it had something to do with the thefts from the school. His breath caught in his throat as he realised that this was probably his one and only chance to solve the mystery that had been puzzling the entire school, staff and students alike.

Severus was somewhat surprised that Lucius didn't turn down the corridor that led to the Trophy Room but he continued to follow him nonetheless.

Lucius finally came to a halt in an empty classroom not far from the library. Severus hid himself in a nearby alcove, waiting for he knew not what. He could hear Lucius pacing in the classroom across from him and just when he was about to consider returning to the Slytherin quarters he heard the sounds of a second set of footsteps heading in his way. He shrank back, hoping that he was safely concealed in the darkness.

The figure passed him without a word and Severus could see that he was carefully concealed beneath a cloak.

"Right on time," Lucius stated. "Peeves will have another delivery for you shortly. Do you understand?"

"Yes," the voice replied in a dull monotone that Severus thought sounded familiar but he couldn't quite place.

"Excellent. Now this one is to be delivered to The Cat and Cauldron in Stoke. You will need to take it at eight o'clock on Saturday night. Deliver it to the same man as before. Tell no one of this."

"Er…"

"What?"

"I…"

"Damn," Lucius swore. "Looks like you're starting to think for yourself again Professor. We can't have that now, can we?"

"Er…"

"Imperio!" Lucius commanded before repeating his previous instructions. This time there was no hesitation or the hint of an argument from the other man.

Severus drew in a sharp breath as the footsteps made their way back towards him once more. Unable to resist a closer look he looked out of the alcove and saw Professor Knott-Bolt walking straight towards him.

He jumped back to hide once more and heard the sound of Lucius speaking again. Severus, even more curious, knowing that no one else had entered the classroom since the Professor had left, crept forward to see who Lucius was speaking to now.

Severus peered round the doorway and saw inside the room Lucius and Peeves. He watched in astonishment as Lucius pointed his wand at the pesky poltergeist.

"Imperio!" he commanded.

Severus shrank back slightly at hearing the unforgivable curse being used for the second time that night. He didn't move from the door though; he didn't want to miss anything that was happening inside the room.

"Now Peeves, I need you to go back to the Trophy Room," Lucius commanded. "You will need to bypass the same spells as last time, and obtain the trophy for Excellence in Defence Against the Dark Arts. Deliver it to Professor Knott-Bolt before noon on Saturday. And tell no one of this discussion."

Severus watched as Peeves nodded silently before disappearing, leaving Lucius alone once more.

"You will tell no one of this either," stated Lucius menacingly and Severus knew he'd been spotted.

"Why shouldn't I?" Severus asked. "You going to imperio me t-too?"

"That won't be necessary," Lucius replied with a cold smile. "You're practically one of us now. This is all for the Dark Lord."

"What do you mean?" Severus whispered.

"The Dark Lord asked for funds from the sale of the school cups he once won. Very few know of his name before he became Lord Voldemort. He intends to keep it that way by removing all trace of his presence from this school."

"Voldemort went to school here?"

"Of course. Though that was not the name he used at the time. Just as I have been setting you and the other potentials tasks to complete this year, so too has the Dark Lord been testing me. He is very pleased with my progress."

"What about Professor Knott-Bolt? Is he?"

"A Death Eater?" Lucius laughed. "Of course not. He is merely convenient. Were he one of us the imperius curse would be unnecessary."

"But the cups are famous and have spells on them, no one will buy them."

"Not in the wizarding world, no," Lucius agreed with a smirk. "Which brings me to the other reason you won't reveal what you've heard tonight."

"What do you mean?"

"No one in the wizarding world will buy the cups, but are easy enough to sell in the muggle community. Your father has been kind enough to assist us in this matter."

"My father?" Severus squeaked.

"We needed someone who was aware of the wizard community but also acquainted with the…er…shadier side of the muggle world."

"He wouldn't!" Severus snapped. His father had faults, he knew that better than anyone, but selling on stolen goods?

"Your father craves a position within the wizarding world," Lucius explained, even as Severus was shaking his head in denial. His father hated magic. "I have given him one."

"I don't believe it."

"Believe it or don't, but if you tell anyone about this it will be your father going to Azkaban and not me. Do you have any idea what they do to muggles in Azkaban? They can't see the dementors but they can still feel the effects. They go mad in there even faster than wizards do, because they don't know what's happening to them."

"You'd go to Azkaban too," Severus pointed out.

"The trail doesn't lead back to me and you'll find there's no proof against me if you speak out. It'll be your word against mine: a school prefect, a model student, and the heir to one of the oldest and most respected, not to mention richest, families in the wizarding world. Now who do you think they'll believe?"

He was right, Severus realised. No one would believe him without proof and Lucius had made sure that all the dirty work was done by others: Peeves, Professor Knott-Bolt, his father.

Severus nodded silently and turned to leave the room. "I won't say anything," he said quietly. Then he ducked out of the door and made his way back to the Slytherin common room.

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A/N: Thanks to everyone for reading this far and for your patience in my taking so long to complete this. The story, as you have probably guessed is now reaching it's conclusion and I hope you enjoy the ending.