One day Sarah was making dinner when her son woke up crying. With her hand she wiped her forehead and approached the crib smiling.

"Come on, my little angel, what's wrong?" She stroked the boy's nose.

She cleaned her hands and picked up the crying Lamerin.

"SSsshhhh!" She rocket but the child didn't he want to stop. "Sssshhh! It's okay! It's okay…"

She stepped to the window and looked out to see if her husband's been back. She paled when she saw the figures in black robes with torches running toward the house.

"Oh my God!" She screamed.

He closed the door and the windows then extinguished the fire in the fireplace. Then she swore because the smoke could be seen from miles. She took her son and ran toward the trap door. Then a torch flew into the house breaking the window…

Severus was carrying a big bag filled with vegetables, fruits and baby food. They ran out a few things so he made a short detour after the meeting with Karkaroff. He apparated a few times. The last time he appeared on the small hill across from his house. A terrible scene unfolded before his eyes…

His house was devoured by flames. The fire consumed the nearby trees too. And the Dark Mark was floating over his home.

He felt his feet rooted into the ground.

"Nooo!" He screamed, threw everything away and apparated in front of the house.

It was terribly hot but he lost his sense when he saw the fire. He ran into the house.

"Sarah! SARAH!" He shouted but could barely see anything.

He went into every room but found no one. He was listening carefully in case she cried for help or his son cried but only the cracking of the wooden furniture could be heard. He ran toward the trap door. He had to fight with a burning commode and he burned himself.

"Sarah!" He cried.

He tossed the little table away and found the trap door open… it was burning like everything else.

His body began to tremble and tears floated from his eyes. No one moved or cried for help.

"No…" He moaned. "No… Sarah, please, don't…"

He found two burnt dead bodies near the window.

He tried to reach them but the fire burnt his face and hair. He cried because of the stabbing pain in his body and soul and fell to the ground.

He was lying on a broken mirror. He grabbed a piece of it and started cutting the Dark Mark on his left arm. Both his hands were bleeding.

He hunched up crying, waiting for death to come for him too, but then unknown figures rushed into the house. Apparently they were not affected by the fire or the heat. They ran toward Severus, two of them dragged him out and someone used a cooling spell. They got out of the house just before it collapsed…

Severus didn't know how he ended up in the basement of the Ministry of Magic. When he opened his eyes he found his hands wrapped behind him. He fell to the cold floor and could barely move. His clothes were burnt just like his hair. Both his hands were still bleeding, but this he could handle. But the loss of his family… that he could not. He started crying again.

"We caught another Death Eater." He heard the raspy voice of Alastor Moody.

He opened his eyes.

"We found him in a burning house. He probably killed the Muggle family and sent up the Dark Mark too… We found two dead bodies, but unfortunately nothing can be determined about them…" He said.

Severus sobbed.

"He was one of your students, right Albus?" The auror asked softly.

The young wizard looked up in horror and found Dumbledore standing in front of him. The blue eyes of the headmaster penetrated Severus' soul. He could almost feel the pity in the humiliating glances. He lowered his head and started crying. To his surprise the old wizard placed a hand on his head and tried to soothe him.

"Thank you, Alastor. Please take him to the cell…

Severus couldn't sleep in the last couple of days. Since he was taken to Azkaban. He leaned against the wall and looked out into the moonlit night. He hugged his knees. He no longer had tears; he just waited for his death sentence to be with his loved ones once again.

He heard footsteps but didn't turn his head to see who it was. The swishing of robes and more footsteps could be heard. More than one visitor… Who might they be…?

They stopped in front of his cell. The door swung open. The elder Barty Crouch stepped in with a brown-haired man behind him. Dumbledore and Moody stayed at the corridor. Severus didn't even look at them.

"Severus Snape!" Crouch started in an emotionless voice. "The charges against you are…" He took out his parchment. "…taking an oath to Voldemort, vandalism, participation in murder directly and indirectly (with poisons) and the ruthless slaughter of a Muggle family. You refused to testify, which makes matters worse. A strange coincidence that we were able to find the brother of the Muggle woman…

Severus looked up and saw Patrick. He was no longer the enthusiastic young man. Unspoken question lingered in his eyes but no emotions were seen on his statue like face.

"Oh, Patrick!" The young wizard buried his face in his hands interrupting Crouch. He sighed loudly.

The strict auror paused in surprise.

"I thought you were a good man." The young man began hoarsely. "You promised to take care of her… To take care of her as long as you live… How could you do this?"

Severus knelt in front of him and begged for forgiveness.

"You know I would have never hurt them. I'd have rather died than hurt them!"

"Why didn't you tell us that you were a Death…"

"…Death Eater." Crouch helped him.

"… that you are a Death Eater?"

"She knew."

"She knew and still married you?"

"Sarah loved me!" Severus cried desperately. "She loved me in spite of what and who I was!"

Patrick's eyes narrowed.

"Why didn't you tell the rest of us?"

"Your parents wouldn't have let us get married…"

"You are right" His brother-in-law turned away in disgust.

"I loved your sister!" Then he raised his voice and shouted at Crouch bitterly. "I would have never kill Sarah Sampson and my son!"

Moody's eyes widened in shock and Dumbledore started to speak but Severus was faster.

"The house was on fire when I got there. I ran in… but I couldn't find them anywhere." He looked down with blank eyes. "No one was in to house… no one." He almost whimpered. "Why didn't you let me die?" He shouted at Moody.

"What?" Crouch stammered. "In that house…?"

"In that house lived my sister: his wife and their child, Lamerin." Patrick finished and knelt on the dirty ground. "Perselus, testify!" He said softly and put his hand on his shoulder. "Tell them about the members of this… team of murderers… Give them up and then your sentence…"

"No… no…" The wizard moaned bitterly. "I want to die. I don't need mercy…"

Patrick rose from the ground and looked at the man scornfully.

"This is what you want?" He asked angrily. "You want other families to experience the same grief? You want them to suffer like you? If you can help them, then please do! You know how horrible the pain is… At least spare others from it…"

"Prewetts… He wants the Prewetts…" Severus said quietly. "And the Longbottom couple… and the Potters… I don't know why, but…"

Then someone ran through the corridor.

"Sir! Professor Dumbledore!" A secretary-looking man rushed toward the cell. His face was pale and terror was written on it. Angry tears ran down his cheeks. "Sir… The Prewett brothers… they were caught by Death Eaters and … they were killed!" He wiped his eyes. "Someone found them an hour ago in the forest not far from their house!"

Shock was written on everyone's face.

"Come on, Barty!" Dumbledore shouted. "Bring him, quickly!"

Crouch and Patrick reached under Severus' arms and lifted the wizard to his feet. They ran out of the cell and followed the messenger. They had to notify the Potter and the Longbotton couple before it's too late…

THE END

This is it. Now back to the other story (The Boy With The Piercing Blue Eyes). I'll try to upload soon but school starts in a few days so…

Hope you liked it. Thanks for the reviews.

One more thing: the young version of Patrick was inspired by Breckin Meyer.