It has now been over a month since the death of Albus Dumbledore and the wizarding world was now in a nice state of panic. If Dumbledore had not been able to survive against He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and his followers, who could? Some were finding the situation so hopeless that they were losing faith in The Chosen One and were actually giving up the fight. If things continued like that then it would truly be over.
Snape stood in the headmaster's office at Hogwarts, staring at the desk. Sitting on it were two objects: a gold cup and a diadem. The cup had a note sticking to it and when Snape took the small piece of parchment, he saw that the message came from his 'master':
Severus,
I need you to take care of these things for me. You are my most loyal and reliable servant so I know that you will keep these safe for me. Protect these with your life and don't let anyone get their hands on them. Understood?
Lord Voldemort
Snape scowled. What on earth was he supposed to do with a cup and a diadem? And why did the Dark Lord want him to guard them? Snape doubted that these objects had any value to them.
"Ah, so Voldemort wishes that you guard his Horcruxes? Excellent."
The spy jumped and looked up. Right behind the desk, the portrait of Albus Dumbledore was smiling at him. Snape approached the portrait, sensing that Dumbledore knew something that he did not.
"Horcruxes?" Snape repeated, confused. "Elaborate, Albus."
"Remember when I had told you that a part of Voldemort's soul lives inside of Harry?" Dumbledore asked pleasantly.
"Vividly," Snape snarled acidly.
"Well, those objects on your new desk both contain a piece of Voldemort's soul," Dumbledore continued. Snape bounced away from the desk with lightening speed. "Such objects are called Horcruxes; Harry is also one. It's the same principle as Harry: while those objects exist, Voldemort cannot die. What I find odd, however, is that Voldemort has pulled his Horcruxes out of their top-security hiding places and has passed them on to you. Not that it matters, it's good for us."
"Yes, well, no one questions the Dark Lord except you," Snape mumbled. He spoke in a clearer tone. "You said that this was my desk?"
"You don't think that I do not know that Voldemort has made you headmaster of this place, do you?" Dumbledore wanted to know, raising an eyebrow.
Snape sighed. "No, I do not," he replied in a bored tone. "Is there any way at all to destroy that part of the Dark Lord's soul without killing Potter?"
Dumbledore shook his head.
"I'm afraid not," he said sadly. He then smiled knowingly. "Oh, and it's okay to call him 'Harry' in front of me. I know you happen to care for the boy."
Snape felt his cheeks burn and he looked away stubbornly. He heard Dumbledore chuckle softly and Snape sighed again, this time out of exasperation. He could not keep a single thing hidden from that man. How did Dumbledore know everything? Snape would very much like to know his secret.
Eager to change the subject, Snape dug in his pocket and pulled out a locket. It was the size of a chicken egg and it had a serpentine 'S' in green emeralds on it. As Snape examined the locket closely, Dumbledore said casually, "It was interesting to see a bit of color in your cheeks, Severus."
"Don't make me throw this at you," Snape threatened menacingly, showing the locket to him. Dumbledore grinned broadly at the sight of it.
"You've got it!" he exclaimed cheerfully.
"Like you have predicted, I had to pry it off of that ridiculous Mundungus Fletcher. He would not give this up even to an alleged murderer," Snape said silkily.
"That is Mundungus for you: he will never pass on an opportunity to make a small fortune."
"Well, he won't be making any money for a while. I had to hex him six ways from Sunday and he's now lying unconscious in an alleyway in Diagon Alley."
"Severus!"
"What? You told me to do whatever it took to get this thing. I had tried to take it peacefully but the ragged fool wouldn't have it so I hexed him. I've left him sheltered and out of the Death Eaters' sight so keep your shirt on."
Dumbledore eyed Snape skeptically and Snape felt a small surge of satisfaction. It was fun to annoy the former headmaster at times.
"How did you know that Mundungus Fletcher had this locket?" Snape asked curiously.
"After I had died, I saw that the locket Harry and I had retrieved was a fake; someone had already taken the real locket and replaced it with a trinket. Then I had remembered Molly Weasley telling me something about throwing out a locket that no one could open when the House of Black was being cleaned out so there were chances that the house-elf Kreacher had somehow taken it back. Shortly after Sirius had died, I had received reports that Mundungus had cleared the House of Black of its valuables so he can pawn them off. I strongly suspected that he had gotten his hands on that locket," Dumbledore explained matter-of-factly.
"Why do you want this thing? I doubt there's any importance to it," Snape said.
Dumbledore gave him a look of exaggerated exasperation. "It's another Horcrux," he replied dryly.
Snape threw the locket away from him as if it had burned him. It landed on the desk with a small clang and it sat motionlessly next to the diadem. Snape glared at Dumbledore.
"I wish you would warn me beforehand when I'm handling a part of the Dark Lord," he snapped harshly.
"With pleasure," Dumbledore said, looking amused.
"How many of these Horcruxes has he made?" Snape asked, disgusted. The idea of purposely tearing one's soul horrified him beyond words.
"Seven, six were intentional," Dumbledore replied calmly. "I think you can guess which the unintentional one was."
"Harry," Snape whispered, remembering a conversation he had with Dumbledore months before. The former headmaster nodded.
"The six others are Voldemort's pet snake Nagini, a ring which I have destroyed, a diary which Harry has destroyed during his second year at Hogwarts, Helga Hufflepuff's cup, Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem and Salazar Slytherin's locket."
Snape looked at the objects on the desk. "These are the founders' personal belongings?" he said in disbelief.
"That's right," Dumbledore said. Snape examined the objects by bending over them. He recognized Hufflepuff's badger on the cup, Ravenclaw's famous saying (Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure) on the diadem and Snape wondered why it took him so long to recognize Slytherin's serpentine 'S' on the locket.
"And Gryffindor's object?" Snape inquired, straightening up.
"Behind my canvas. Since the sword only presents itself to a true Gryffindor, Voldemort was never able to get his hands on it," Dumbledore said cheerfully.
Snape approached the canvas and pulled it open. Surely enough, the sword of Gryffindor hung on the wall behind it, the rubies on the hilt gleaming in the light. Snape pushed the canvas back against the wall and faced Dumbledore.
"That sword can destroy Horcruxes so you need to give the sword and all of the gathered Horcruxes to Harry," Dumbledore said in a business-like manner.
"How? In case you haven't noticed, Albus, the boy has not just gone back to hating me; he loathes me now. He won't welcome me with open arms," Snape told him sardonically.
"I do have a suggestion."
"And what on earth would that be?"
"Kidnap him and bring him here."
"What?"
"You heard me. It would be unwise of you to take these Horcruxes outside the castle so you will need to bring Harry to them instead. There will be a wedding at the Weasley household in a few weeks and it will be held under the Ministry of Magic's protection. But you and I both know that Voldemort has taken over the Ministry so he will be able to break through the defenses and send his Death Eaters to attack the party. You must join them and take Harry away from there as soon as possible and bring him back to Hogwarts."
Snape gaped at Dumbledore. "Are – Are you insane? I can't do that!" he exclaimed. "The Dark Lord has asked the Carrow twins to teach the Dark Arts and to be the disciplinarians of this school. It's not safe for Harry here!"
"I thought that Voldemort has made you headmaster?" Dumbledore said.
"Yes, but—"
"That means that you are in charge of this place?"
"Yes, but—"
"If you are in charge of this place then you are responsible of the Carrows. Keep Harry here in the office and forbid them from entering at any time for any reason. If they wish to speak to you they must wait outside," Dumbledore told Snape in a final sort of way.
The former Potions master blinked as he processed Dumbledore's plan. It sounded nearly impossible but if it meant assuring the Dark Lord's downfall then maybe it was worth a shot.
"Fine, I'll do it," Snape groaned half-heartedly.
"Fantastic! It won't be easy but I think we can manage," Dumbledore said enthusiastically.
"We?" Snape snorted. "I think you mean me, Albus."
"Yes, yes," Dumbledore replied dismissively. "Now, let's prepare you for this task."
Snape sighed. This was going to be a long few weeks.
That's quite a plan Dumbledore's got there. Well, they've always said that he was a bit mad.
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