12 – Delusions of Grandeur
It was still dark when he awoke, but Snape didn't hesitate getting out of bed.
Today was the day.
He and Lily were headed to the Forbidden Forest for the doppelganger root, and they needed the early morning's cloak of darkness to sneak away undetected.
After quickly throwing on his robe and grabbing his map to Willow Gorge, he pointed his wand to a black, leather sack on his bed and murmured a few words. It was an extension charm, but there was no telling if it would make the sack strong enough to hold the size and weight of the doppelganger, rumored to be enormous. Some of his underground dark arts books mentioned a regular piece of doppelganger to feel like ten bricks.
After making his way to the dormitory entrance, he peered cautiously into the Slytherin Common Room, illuminated only by a few candles still burning in the chandelier. This time, he had a clear view of all the hand-carved chairs, and no one was there, particularly Dumbledore. But it looked like he had left his poster of Tom Riddle on the table. Hadn't he taken that with him the night before? Snape walked to the table and found the poster next to a book, Tyrants and their Followers; it was opened to a picture of Adolf Hitler. It was strange to see the two men sitting side by side. Riddle and Hitler looked nothing alike, except for perhaps something similar in the eyes, something—
Snape heard a voice and immediately turned around. No one was behind him. He stopped moving and listened for it again—it seemed like it was coming from somewhere in the Common Room, but no one was there. He was sure of it. And yet the voice became clearer as the person took on a stronger tone. "I'm sorry, Headmaster."
"Headmaster?" Snape whispered. Dumbledore was in Slytherin again? He tiptoed away from the table, slithering past the dead fire, and pressed his ear to the bookcase. Someone was behind it, likely in a secret room, and he wondered how many more secret rooms were like this one at Hogwarts.
"How long have you had the Christmas Challenge planned?" The question came from a voice that was unmistakably Dumbledore's.
"A week, Headmaster. That is all." There was a pause. "And I don't think there's anything to worry about. Riddle asked about the students. He means well." The second voice belonged to Professor Slughorn, Head of Slytherin.
Snape's ears perked up at the mention of Riddle.
"That is my fear," said Dumbledore. "There's a reason I turned him down for the Defense Against the Dark Arts position years ago. The man has delusions of grandeur about what it means to be a wizard."
Slughorn didn't say anything right away. "I still have hope for him."
"Right now, I believe Tom is trying to build an army. And I would guess that this time, he's not seeking a teaching position at Hogwarts to recruit members. He has something bigger planned."
"Should we warn Severus? And any other students he could have contacted?"
Snape's mind was racing. Dumbledore's visit the night before was anything but a coincidence. It was about searching for information. It was about influencing how he felt about Riddle—Voldemort—as a leader. It was about making him question his own views on ruling Muggles. It had absolutely nothing to do with coincidence and indulging an old man, as Dumbledore had put it.
What Dumbledore said next was something Snape would never forget.
"No we shouldn't warn, Severus. Let's keep an eye on the situation and see what Riddle wants."
"Headmaster, are you sure?" disagreed Slughorn. "Is he in danger?"
"No, I don't think so." After a pause, he continued, "I will make sure of that, but right now, I don't think Severus has the perspective to make his best decision. Our advice would likely go unheeded."
"Yes, Headmaster. I agree."
The conversation appeared to be over, and there was no telling if the two men would re-enter the Common Room. Snape rushed past the table, nearly knocking the likenesses of Riddle and Hitler to the floor, and he didn't stop running until he was out of Slytherin all the way to the black lake, where he and Lily planned to meet for their trip. The squid poked its head up from the water, hearing the footsteps break the morning silence, and then hearing Snape curse Dumbledore's name and promise that he would never be used as bait.
