True to her word, ever since their agreement Miss Lovegood had made sure to keep him accurately informed about the DA's latest antics. In the upshot, he was rather glad of the arrangement. Thanks to her, he was always able to beat the Carrows in catching the foolish kids red-handed and, as a result, ensure that they were punished in a way that did not leave them scarred for the rest of their lives. As such, he finally got the feeling that he was doing something to keep the Hogwarts students out of harm's way, just as he had vowed to do, instead of sitting helplessly and letting the Carrows run amok. On one occasion, he was even able to forestall the theft of the Sword of Gryffindor from his office, thus avoiding the Dark Lord's wrath had the operation been successful. Still, just to be on the safe side in case anyone ever got any ideas into their heads again, the Dark Lord ordered to have the sword moved to Bellatrix's vault at Gringott's. Snape made sure to bring it to the bank himself and use the Imperius Curse on all the goblins that came into contact with it, otherwise they would know at first sight that it was fake and alert Bellatrix. Naturally, he could not let that happen. If Potter had any chance of defeating the Dark Lord, he had to get the real sword (hidden safely in his Hogwarts bedroom under many protective spells) to him, though Dumbledore would not tell him how the brat could possibly make any use of it. However, he knew better than to question the old man. He had been secretive in life and continued to be so as a portrait. Snape could not help but resent him for it, as after all he had done for him he believed he deserved at least a grain of his trust, but that did not change the fact that Dumbledore's plans had a way of working out in the end, whether Snape knew about them or not. He could only hope this one would, too. Despite telling himself he was being foolish, he had become rather fixated on the idea of Miss Lovegood's tour.
Imagine the state he found himself in, therefore, when, on the first day of Spring term, he discovered that his friend had not made it back to Hogwarts after the Christmas holidays. He had always been so worried about his cover being blown that it had not even crossed his mind that the girl might be in imminent danger save for being punished by the Carrows, at least not until she found herself in battle. Paralysed with fear for her life, he found it almost impossible to limit himself to careful questioning that would not arouse suspicion, as all he wanted was to rush to Malfoy Manor and torture the Dark Lord (for who else could be responsible?) in vile ways until he told him all he knew. As it was, it only took him a day (which, however, was still a day longer than he would have liked) to learn about Miss Lovegood's fate – apparently, she had been dragged off the Hogwarts Express on her way home and was now being held hostage in the cellar of said Manor to make her father think twice about continuing to write articles that were not in line with the Dark Lord's worldview. Once again, Snape had the urge to simply burst into her prison and free her, but of course that would be pure suicide. Instead, he had to wait, day after day after day of being plagued by the blackest of thoughts, for a summon from the Dark Lord, as he had no reason to suddenly turn up at Malfoy Manor otherwise; the situation at Hogwarts was stable and there was nothing urgent to report. He felt useless. What good was there in being a spy when his hands always seemed to be tied when it mattered most? When he had to rely on others to save the people he cared about? As much as he hated to admit it, he was now starting to understand why Potter never stopped to think and simply chose to most direct path to helping whichever of his friends was currently in danger. He had called him foolish and reckless, but now he wished for nothing more than to be able to act like him. How the mighty have fallen.
Finally, after what seemed like at least a year spent in purgatory, he felt his Dark Mark burn, and while he was usually in no hurry to join the Dark Lord's meetings, this time he was the first one to arrive. Careful to keep his expression impassive, he quietly suffered through the reports of his fellow Death Eaters, barely registering a word of what was being said, as all he wanted was to get down to the cellar and make sure Miss Lovegood was safe and sound. He knew the wandmaker, Ollivander, was being held hostage there as well, and that while the Dark Lord had tortured the man into telling him about the existence of a unique wand that might finally help him defeat Potter, he had as yet been unsuccessful in discovering its location. Subsequently, he was planning to offer his master to try his Legilimency skills on the wandmaker, and perhaps hit a stroke of luck where the Dark Lord, who had preferred to use brute force, had not. He could barely hide his exhilaration, therefore, when, after the meeting was over, the Dark Lord graciously accepted his suggestion, and it took much self-restraint for him to conclude their conversation with dignity instead of immediately turning on his heel and sprinting to the cellar as if he had a pack of hellhounds chasing after him. However, not even then was the test of his self-control over, as the Dark Lord had assigned none other than Fenrir Greyback to show him the way, and for some reason the werewolf thought Snape would be interested in hearing gruesome details of what he would do to the 'pretty blondie' locked downstairs if only the Dark Lord allowed it. Perhaps it was lucky that the way to the cellar was relatively short, or Snape might have had another murder on his hands. He was relatively sure it would not even give him nightmares.
Once they had reached a heavy door at the bottom of a steep flight of stairs, Greyback finally shut his trap and unlocked the door with a tap his wand, then moved aside to let Snape in. As the door closed behind him with an echoing bang, he found himself in total darkness. He knew he had to act fast: first he cast a Silencing Charm on the door to ensure Greyback did not overhear anything he should not in case he continued to lurk nearby, then a quick Lumos to determine the position of the two prisoners, and lastly, before the man even realised what was happening, a Sleeping Charm on Ollivander to allow him and Miss Lovegood to talk freely. Only then did he light his wand again and turned to the girl, whose expression rapidly changed from confusion to one of utter delight.
"Professor!" she exclaimed. "You came!"
Relieved beyond words to see her alive with his own eyes, his thin lips stretched into a smile almost of their own accord.
"Yes, Miss Lovegood. Are you all right? They haven't ... hurt you? They are not starving you?"
"No, I'm fine. They did torture poor Mr. Ollivander though. He seems to be better now, but he looked ghastly a few weeks ago."
"I am glad to hear it. I am, in fact, here to question him further. Without torture, have no fear," he added quickly, noticing Miss Lovegood's eyes grow wide with horror. "I would, of course, much rather say I came to free you both, but the house is full of Death Eaters and it would only put you in more peril than you already are."
"I understand, Professor," nodded Miss Lovegood. "I never expected you to be able to help us. You'd be putting yourself in terrible danger, too. I'm just happy you're here, if only for a moment. It's comforting. Do you, by any chance, know if Dad's all right? I think they took me hostage because of what he'd been writing. They figured it'd make him stop. I hope they didn't hurt him."
"Not that I know of. I believe the Dark Lord's aim was to make your father change his tune and start writing articles defaming the Order, just like the Prophet is doing, so it would make no sense to harm him. He is much more useful if he appears to be working for the Dark Lord; the media are an extremely powerful instrument if used to one's advantage."
"Poor Dad. He must be worried sick about me. If it is at all possible, could you please send him an owl with an anonymous letter telling him I'm okay? I'm sure it'd make him feel much better."
Snape nodded. "I shall arrange it. Now, however, since we are running short of time, I must ask you: has anybody questioned you at all during your time here?"
In his fear for the girl's well-being it had been the last thing on his mind, but now that he had the chance he simply could not let the matter slide. While Miss Lovegood had been at Hogwarts, the worst that could have happened was somebody discovering that they were meeting, and he had always been prepared to justify his strange friendship with an explanation that would satisfy even the Dark Lord himself. Here at Malfoy Manor, however, the danger had risen to unprecedented levels. It was unlikely that the Dark Lord would waste his time questioning the girl; after all, she was but a hostage, she was not expected to possess vital information. Bellatrix, on the other hand, was a different story. She was known to get bored and play with prisoners just to kill time, and if she ever thought to use Legilimency, she might accidentally discover the two things he could never explain no matter how hard he tried: his ability to produce a Patronus, which would cast serious doubt on his commitment to the Dark Arts, and, what was probably even worse, his breakdown a few months before Dumbledore's death. The Dark Lord did not tolerate weakness in his ranks; even if he did not kill him right away, he would never trust him again, perhaps even replace him as Headmaster. What use would he be then? With no access to Dumbledore, he would no longer receive instructions when and how to help Potter, and he was convinced that, without help, the Boy-Who-Could-Not-Even-Wipe-His-Own-Arse would not last one second against the Dark Lord. The war would be lost, and all he had dedicated a better part of his life to with it. Perhaps death at the Dark Lord's hands would be preferable to watching the world crumble as the monster gained absolute power. Which is why he had to take precautions ... unless it was already too late.
To his relief, however, Miss Lovegood shook her head.
"No, I haven't actually seen anyone since they brought me in. Only this plump man with a bald patch who comes here with the food tray. He never speaks, though. He looks as if he's afraid of us."
Wormtail. No danger there, thank Merlin. The man had trouble mastering basic spells, let alone something as intricate as Legilimency.
"In that case we have been lucky. However, there is a slight chance somebody might come and interrogate you in the future, and for that you need to be prepared. I presume you know what Legilimency is?"
"Yes, Professor Moody – well, the man we thought was Professor Moody, anyway – told us about it in class."
"Good, I expected as much. I am asking as there might come a time when someone, Bellatrix Lestrange, most likely, will attempt to use it on you, and there are two memories you possess that she must not find. For this reason I would like to ask your permission to Obliviate you. I must warn you, however: the mind is a delicate thing and there is always a possibility, albeit small, of the spell causing unexpected damage. I would therefore never even suggest it if there were any other options, but since you are not trained in Occlumency-" (again, Miss Lovegood looked as though she was familiar with the term, so he felt no need to stop and elaborate) "-I have no choice but to risk it. Therefore, if you would consent, I-"
"I know you would cast the spell perfectly, Professor," cut in Miss Lovegood, "but if the memories concern you, which I suspect they do, I would be sad to lose them. It's true I've never learned Occlumency as such, but I know how to concentrate my thoughts on whatever I want. It helps me when I get overwhelmed by negative emotions. You can try me if you like."
Snape looked at her in disbelief. "If you can indeed do what you claim, it would simplify things significantly. So if you really do not mind my testing you..."
Doubtful that it would really turn out to be so easy yet hoping all the same, he pulled out his wand and pointed it at her.
"On the count of three, then – one – two – three – Legilimens!"
Doing his best not to frighten her, he entered her mind gently, half expecting to see memories immediately rushing towards him as tended to be the case with untrained witches and wizards, but all he was surrounded by was a meadow in bloom with a couple of unicorns grazing in the distance. When nothing had changed even after a few seconds, he became bolder, pushing against the walls of the girl's consciousness, figuring Bellatrix would not spare her either, but still the meadow stayed, as if held in place by a Sticking Charm. Utterly amazed, Snape finally broke the connection, staring at the girl with new-found respect.
"That is truly remarkable, Miss Lovegood," he observed. "Considering you are self-taught... You were absolutely right; there will be no need to Obliviate you."
"That's nice," smiled Miss Lovegood. "Did you see the unicorns?"
"I did. As well as the meadow. Just be sure to use it if Bellatrix, or anyone else except the man bringing you food, ever decides to pay you a visit."
He did not dare dwell on the thought longer than necessary, as if he started imagining what else the deranged witch might do to his friend other than using Legilimency on her, he would not be able to resist the temptation to drag her out of the cellar right this instant, even if it meant doing so in plain sight of the Dark Lord and all his Death Eaters.
"Now, however, it is high time for me to deal with Mr. Ollivander here. Do not speak after I wake him, do not let on that I am anything but your former Professor. Do not be alarmed if I treat him harshly. You know I am here on the Dark Lord's orders, and it must therefore appear as such."
"Of course, Professor," Miss Lovegood nodded solemnly. "You must play your part."
"As you say."