Harry stirred but did not open his eyes. He felt very comfortable. Wherever he was, it was warm and soft. He had the impression that he was sleeping on a sort of cloud and nothing could ruin the moment, not even Snape.

Snape… Suddenly, everything came rushing back and Harry remembered the events of the wedding. He opened his eyes and sat upright in an abrupt manner, making his head spin. When everything fell back into focus, he saw that he was sitting in bed within a bedroom that was decorated in an antique style. Out the window, Harry could see the sun slowly starting to rise. How long had he been out?

Harry slowly climbed out of bed and headed for the door. He grabbed the handle and tried to turn it but it would not budge. He tried again and again with no success. He threw his hands up in frustration and turned back toward the bedroom. On the bed, Harry noticed, was a set of wizard robes. They were the color green in the exact same shade of Slytherin house and when Harry approached them he saw that there was silver embroidery and the Slytherin house crest was sewn to the front. There was a note lying on top of the robes and Harry picked it up.

Welcome back, Potter,

These are for you. You WILL wear these without objection since I won't have you running around in those ridiculous dress robes. Do as I say or the consequences will be severe.

Professor Snape

Harry snarled. Of course, Snape had to dictate everything he did. Reluctantly, The Chosen One began to peel off his own clothes and put on the ones Snape had provided. They were a bit big but Harry thought it was probably in his best interest not to complain. He took out his wand, his Invisibility Cloak, the Marauder's Map and the Golden Snitch Professor Dumbledore had left him – which he had stowed back at The Burrow – from his dress robes and stored them inside the Slytherin ones. Harry then sat on the bed and wondered if he was ever going to leave the room.

He didn't have to wait long for his answer. The lock on the door clicked and the door slowly swung open. Snape stepped inside the room and Harry tightened his hands into fists, glaring daggers at his former friend.

"I see that you haven't tried Alohomora on the door. How intelligent of you since it was locked with a spell that Alohomora cannot penetrate," Snape said silkily.

Harry did not answer. He waited to see what else Snape had to say.

"Now, you are not a prisoner in this room. You are, however, confined to this office. I will assure you that you cannot escape by any means possible," Snape continued.

Office? Harry thought, confused. Snape seemed to guess what he was thinking. The former Potions master motioned Harry to follow him as he swept out of the room. Cautiously, Harry trailed after him, finding him standing near a railing. Harry approached it and saw that it was a sort of balcony looking over Dumbledore's office. Confusion struck The Chosen One once again. Why did Snape bring him in the headmaster's office? Unless—

"As you can see, Potter, I was made headmaster," Snape said.

"No!" Harry yelled, his voice echoing off the walls. Snape seemed unbothered.

"How unfortunate. I was actually beginning to think that you had become a mute," he said in mock-disappointment. "The dream lives on."

Harry breathed in deeply to calm himself. This was not happening. If Snape was headmaster that meant Hogwarts was going straight to hell. Life as they all knew it was going to become miserable. Harry couldn't believe that his home was now in the care of this hateful man.

A thought occurred to him. Why didn't Snape bring him directly to Voldemort? That struck as odd to Harry.

"Where is he?" Harry asked.

"Mind telling who you are talking about, Potter?" Snape replied coolly.

"You know, Vol—"

"Do not say the Dark Lord's name!"

"Why not?"

"His name is now Taboo, which is a clever way to capture and imprison those who dare to oppose him. Unless you want to be swarmed by Death Eaters I suggest you refrain yourself from using his name."

Harry paled. Hermione called Voldemort by his name. The Chosen One prayed that his friends would soon learn about the Taboo one way or another.

"Fine, I won't risk it," Harry said bitterly. "Where is the Dark Lord?"

"Look around, Potter. Do you see him anywhere?" Snape said coldly.

"That's not the question and you know it."

"I know perfectly well what the question was, you insolent little prat. I'm saying that all I know is that he's not here. He has bigger priorities to sort out before dealing with you. Consider yourself lucky," Snape replied.

"The twin core wands," Harry murmured.

"What was that?" Snape demanded to know.

"Nothing," Harry answered hastily.

Snape's glare was cold and full of suspicion. It was a wonder to Harry that he has yet to unleash his boiling hatred upon this man. Harry eyed Snape carefully as they climbed down the stairs to the lower landing.

"I need to be absent for the time being. Don't even think about trying to escape; I have placed several enchantments that will block any attempts you make. When I return, this office had better still be in one piece," Snape said silkily before marching out the door.

When the door closed and the lock clicked, Harry's knees finally gave way and he let himself fall to the ground. He couldn't believe that he was trapped and he was trapped by Snape out of all people. Why had this happened? Harry was usually good at escaping the enemy's grasp and now he found himself caught in it with no way out. The worst part was that he was all alone in this situation.

Harry looked around the office and his heart skipped a beat at what he saw. The portrait of Albus Dumbledore was hanging behind the desk with a sleeping Dumbledore within its frames. Maybe Harry wasn't alone after all.

Snape was leaning against the office door, his heart hammering hard against his rib. He had done it. He had actually done it; he had successfully managed to bring Potter back to Hogwarts. It was hard to treat the boy coldly again but it had to be done. Part one of the plan had been executed; now he had to find a way to lure Potter to those damned Horcruxes. Snape hoped that he did not lose his cool along the way.

He walked down the stairs and along the corridor. Snape had no idea where he was going. He was most likely going to wander around the school aimlessly for a bit, pretending to keep an eye on the preparations for the new school year. He was sure that Potter had discovered the portrait of Dumbledore by now; Snape hoped that it gave the boy some comfort.

A loud crash was heard at the far end of the corridor and Snape ran toward the sound, alarmed. He wrenched a door open and froze at the threshold. The entire classroom looked as if a hurricane had passed through it: several desks had been split in halves, books were torn and shredded, bookshelves were tipped over, artefacts were smashed to pieces and portraits have been ripped off the walls. In the midst of all of this stood the Death Eaters twins Alecto and Amycus Carrow, who were laughing mechanically.

"What the bloody hell happened in here?" Snape yelled, shocked, as he stepped inside.

"We're practicing," Amycus replied, grinning.

"For what?" Snape wanted to know.

"Disciplining the students. I think we've got it covered," Alecto said proudly.

"Disciplining the – No! When I told you that I needed you to be disciplinarians I did not mean kill the students! You may get rough with them but leave them alive." It pained Snape to tell the Carrows to be abusive toward the students of Hogwarts but it was part of his job as a spy.

"Fine. We'll let the brats live. But remember, Severus, we are only doing what you tell us because you are so close to the Dark Lord," Alecto said. "He holds you in high esteem."

"I am very well aware of that, Alecto," Snape replied acidly. "Now I want both you and Amycus to return to your quarters immediately."

"C'mon, Alecto. We're finished here anyway," Amycus said coldly. As he and his sister left the classroom, Snape yelled, "And if you destroy another classroom I will have the Dark Lord deal with you faster than you can say Morsmodre!"

As the door closed, Snape sighed heavily and pulled out his wand. He gave it a flick and everything in the classroom mended and replaced itself. Snape put his wand back inside his robes and exited the room, wondering whether he could really stand having two of the most reckless Death Eaters inside the castle.