Chapter VI

The Tale of Snape

(This chapter is dedicated to the late, great Alan Rickman. He may have been taken from us physically but may the memory of him and his wonderful performances live on forever.)

Harry got up and turned to walk out of the office but only managed a few steps.

"I wouldn't leave just yet Harry," Dumbledore said. "As Lungdren undoubtedly informed you, you have two people here to see you tonight. I promised him that I would give you two your privacy, so if you'll excuse me Harry. He should be with you shortly."

With this said, Dumbledore turned and walked out of his frame and out of sight. Harry sat back down and waited patiently. Only seconds after sitting down, he heard a loud thud from the wall opposite of him, where Dumbledore's frame rested. He looked at the wall closely and noticed that it was shaking slightly.

The wall then, much to Harry's surprise, split cleanly from the center. The wall opened to reveal a small hallway, which lit up steadily from candles that rested on either side of it.

Harry stood up and stared at the hallway. In all of the years he had come into the office, this was an area he was unfamiliar with. He had known very well that the office must have been home to many secrets, but this he was not prepared for.

Harry walked towards the hallway with a slight hesitation, not quite knowing what to expect. From the outside, the hall looked small but when he reached the end of it, a right turn was revealed that led to a longer area, where many portraits hung on either side of him.

One large portrait sat at the very end of the hall. It was as tall as Harry and contained an all-black backdrop. At that moment, nothing populated the portrait.

Harry looked at the portraits around him, most of which consisted of black crows rather than people. However, one portrait stood out amongst them and it was the second to last, just sitting right of the final one.

Unlike the others, this picture did not move. In fact, it looked like an older muggle photograph. The portrait contained a young redheaded girl, no older than ten years of age. She had piercing blue eyes and many freckles.

She reminded Harry so much of Ginny but he knew it was someone else. He also knew that he knew who it was. He looked at the bottom of the portrait at the silver engraved caption to confirm his suspicion and was unsurprised to read "Lily Potter".

Harry felt a leap in his heart. He had never seen a younger photograph of his mother and certainly never a muggle photo of her.

"Good evening, Potter," the familiar monotone, yet intimidating voice of Severus Snape echoed from behind.

He turned to see Severus Snape finally within his photo. Unlike Dumbledore, Snape bore no different resemblance to what Harry remembered. He still featured his greasy, long, black and black dress robes. He glanced at the photo that Harry had been staring at.

"Before you ask," he started. "Your mother gave me that photo. She gave it to me when I defected to the Order's side."

"I didn't know she knew this," Harry said, feeling surprised.

"No one but Dumbledore knew," Snape replied. "She gave the photo to Dumbledore to give to me. While she never quite loved me as I loved her, she wanted to give it as a gift; a representation of our friendship when we first met."

"So she gave you that just before her…" Harry began but couldn't finish the question.

"Yes," Snape answered, so he didn't have to.

"I'm sorry," Harry said to Snape, he knew how much Snape loved his mother. The subject of his mother was a hard one for the both of them.

"I was too, when it happened," Snape said.

Harry shook his head to clear it out and wanted to drop the subject. "I won't lie; I was very surprised that you were the one of the two that referred me to be here."

Snape nodded at this. "I was, because I knew that you needed to be the one."

"It feels too daunting of task," Harry said. "Especially, if there turns out to be no real danger out there."

Snape stared down at Harry intently when he said this. His eyes squinted at him, as though he were reading his mind. Harry felt as if he were back in Snape's Potion's class.

"The nightmares are hitting you again aren't they?" Snape asked, but not in a curiosity tone but as a confirmation, as though he already knew.

Harry only nodded his head.

"You should know better than anyone else, that you having nightmares is not a good sign." Snape sat down in a black arm chair that Harry did not initially see due to the black background. "The Dark Lord has appeared in them hasn't he?"

Harry again, only nodded.

"Potter, while I might have overly exaggerated your lack of skills for my own personal amusement, one of the things I was honest over was your battle to shield your mind."

Harry put his head down, feeling slightly embarrassed.

"This is a skill that you are not alone in never honing. Many great wizards have lacked the ability to practice Occlumency. The only reason I was especially harsh on you was because of who you were."

"But I don't understand," Harry said. "Why is it still so important now?"

"Because…" Snape began; he stopped for brief second and looked to his left and right. "Dumbledore would not want me telling you this just yet, he would prefer to tell you himself but rather than have you find out on your own, it's probably best I tell you. You must promise me not to tell Dumbledore."

Harry nodded in agreement.

"The fact is, we may all be in grave danger," Snape said. "Maybe not now but we surely will be soon."

"From what?" Harry asked.

"We are not sure yet," Snape replied. "In the past, the dark forces that shattered our world during Voldemort's reign were large in numbers. I daresay they were larger than what we had on our side.

"Dumbledore fears that we are on a ticking clock, and once time is up, those forces will gather once again. It also may lead to the return of a familiar foe of yours."

"But he's dead," Harry said quickly.

"Harry, you must understand," Snape replied, this marked the first time ever that Snape had called him by his first name. "Voldemort channeled so many forms of dark magic, most of which were invented by him himself.

"Both Dumbledore and I feared that he had channeled a form of magic that kept him from death itself and that it is something that was not through the horcruxes; a form of magic that may have not been concerned with his body."

"What kind of magic is that?" Harry asked.

"A rumored form of magic that has been circulating for years is what's known as a Dispirited Soul. This form of magic has never been proven, let alone attempted by any wizards, or at the very least documented."

"What kind of magic does it involve?"

A Dispirited Soul is best described as a memory soul. It is a soul that travels, not as a ghost or physical being, but as a roamer of the mind. In a way, it's no different than Occlumency, where the being can invade the mind and control the victims every move. However, unlike the physical being, this form of magic cannot be detected.

"The problem with this form of magic is that it is incredibly dangerous. If the rumor is true, this person would have needed to go through an extreme amount of pain to achieve it and must have successfully completed the spell before his death."

"Unfortunately, that can't be put passed Riddle," Harry said. "He did so much to keep his life."

"That is correct," Snape replied. "Which is why I must give you this advice. Take these nightmares of yours at face value. Do your best to train your mind against the Dark Lord who appears in this. It may be more important than ever."

Harry stared at Snape with great concern plastered on his face. He had never learned Occlumency fully and had hoped there would never come another time where he would need to. Now he was faced with an obstacle that he was not sure he could overcome.