Dumbledore was stunned, his mouth agape, and he collected himself. "You are out of the hospital, that's good. But you are probably too weak to use Floo powder."

Remus shook his head and then said cheerfully, "Of course not. When I woke up, I felt refreshed like never before. The healer Herb was shocked. Then he cast a spell on me, and he was very shocked."

"Why?" Dumbledore asked. He was starting to have a bad feeling.

"He asked me if I had a twin because he had been told I was a werewolf. But from what the spell told him, I'm just a normal wizard with no shred of lycanthropy in me. And he said the poison was gone. It was like it was never there. He said it was amazing. Tonks was so shocked that her hair changed colour. He told me to leave the hospital. Tonks is handling the paperwork. The healer will write a letter certifying that I'm no longer a werewolf. Then I'll be able to do my business much easier," Lupin explained at length, grinning widely. "I never thought this day would come," and he turned to Snape. "All this is because of you. Thank you, Severus. If there is anything I can help you with, please tell me."

There was silence. No one dared to say anything, and Snape spoke in a low voice.

"It's okay, Lupin. I've already gotten my reward. I've been given a lifetime vacation by Dumbledore. I don't have to worry about those brainless brats anymore."

Remus turned to Dumbledore. He understood Snape's hinted meaning immediately. "You expelled him," he asked the headmaster in disbelief. "Because he helped me, you expelled him." The former werewolf couldn't contain his anger. "How could you do that?"

Dumbledore was at a loss for words, and he spoke in a voice that didn't sound like his own. "It was a misunderstanding. I thought Severus had poisoned you, so I…"

"Didn't he tell you I'd be unconscious for days?" Remus interrupted. "He told me in advance, and I was willing. If you're suspicious, you could have just put him on probation. There's no need to expel him right away."

Dumbledore turned to Snape. "Severus, I am sor…"

But Snape interrupted in an emotionless tone. "If you're going to say you are sorry, there's no need."

"Severus," Dumbledore began again.

"You kicked me out of Hogwarts at night, without even preparing a carriage for me. Then you sent me a letter, rubbing in my mistakes, mistakes I wish I could forget. And just a few minutes ago, you called me a liar and said I was worse than the Dark Lord." Snape spoke quickly. "I'm sorry, Dumbledore. The time I beg you I have nowhere to go is over."

"But you told me there was no place for you in the world," Dumbledore asked.

"Yes," Snape said carelessly. "Because where I went was is the underworld belonged to naga, and I lived as a prince. And that's not a metaphor."

"Are you telling me what you said is true?" Dumbledore asked. "That you were…"

"A snake, yes," Snape replied casually. "If you don't believe me, I'll show you." Then his body changed, becoming a giant, pitch-black snake with seven heads, each with a golden crest and red eyes.

Dumbledore was stunned, speechless.

Snape turned back into a human; he looked very pleased with himself. "Snake cannot be trusted," he said sarcastically. "You will expel it from Hogwarts immediately. You will not let it harm anyone."

Dumbledore was speechless. He could only stare at Snape in shock.

"Tell me why I should continue to work for you," Severus challenged. "What do I gain by risking my life for you? To help you win a war that I have nothing to do with. No matter how serious the human war is, it has never affected the Underworld. You have not even joined the Muggle world war. Why should I join your war?"

"Look at what you have done," Remus scolded Dumbledore. "If we lose a wizard as good as Severus..." He shook his head. "Whether he is a snake or not, losing him would be a disaster for the Order."

"Severus," Dumbledore tried to persuade him, "Please for our relationship's sake."

"When you chased me like an animal, you didn't think about our relationship at all. And I already think about it. Otherwise, Hogwarts would only be the name. A snake like us can sink an entire city, let alone a small castle like Hogwarts," Snape said calmly, contradicting the emotions in his mind that were simmering.

Dumbledore was about to speak, but Severus interrupted him first. "And don't you have to use your old trick that I don't love her anymore? Whether I love her or not, I don't have to live as a slave to the past. I have a very good life now. I don't have to be stuck in the past anymore. Goodbye." He billowed his robe and left.

"Severus," Dumbledore called, but Snape didn't even look back. He walked out of the room immediately.

Dumbledore didn't know what to say. He could tell the young man was suffering by his tone. Even though he spoke as if he didn't care, he knew how sad Severus would be because of his words and actions in the past. What could he say or do to make up for this mistake?

"I won't comfort you," Remus said without mercy. "You did it to yourself. I'll go tell Sirius the good news first. Goodbye." And he walked out.

The old man was stunned, and a tear fell down his long white beard. He had lost Severus, the man who had risked his own life for the Order, the man he had begun to love and care for. Dumbledore had lost him because he had misjudged him too quickly. Now, if there was a god, he would ask for nothing, except for Severus to look at him with the same respect as before, not with that look of contempt. He was ready to give Severus everything he wanted, everything, really, just to have him back.

"What's wrong with you, your highness?" Nathee asked. Ever since the prince returned, he had been absent-minded.

"Did I do the right thing?" Snape said absent-mindedly. "By cutting off my relationship with him like that."

Nathee became furious. "You did the right thing, your highness. He hurt you that much. Don't mourn him, your highness."

Snape turned to Nathee. "I can't help but feel bad. From Dumbledore's perspective, he must think he did the right thing."

"How is that right, your highness?" Nathee said.

"Lupin suddenly lost his consciousness after coming to see me. When the spell was cast on his body, it said that he had poison in his body. And the fact that I didn't get along with him wasn't a secret." Snape said. "If I were him, I might have done the same thing."

"You are so soft-hearted, Your Highness," Nathee said weakly. "After all he did to you."

"I'm not soft-hearted," Severus argued. "He helped me. He gave me a new life. When everyone rejected me, he welcomed me with open arms."

"But..." Nathee tried to object, but before he could say anything more, a worried voice rang out.

"Nathee, there's a human at the city gate. He said he was here to see someone named Severus."

Snape turned to look quickly. "What does that man look like?"

"He is an old man, your highness." The man turned to Snape. "I was a gatekeeper, and he came with a strange firebird. He tried to beg me to open the city gates. When I refused, he just kept on kneeling, refusing to get up, saying he wanted to see Severus. I tried threatening and talking to him nicely, but it didn't work."

Snape stood up. "I'll go see him." And he walked away.

"Severus," Dumbledore cried happily. "I thought you wouldn't come out."

Snape looked at Dumbledore, who was kneeling. "What are you doing here? How did you get here?"

"Fawkes brought me," Dumbledore said. "And I came to see you."

"Stand up," Severus said. "Why are you kneeling?"

"Aren't you a prince?" Dumbledore said. "When I speak to a prince, I have to kneel."

"Stand up," Snape said. "No need to worry about my status."

Dumbledore pushed himself up to his feet. "Thank you, Your Highness." He bowed.

Snape felt uncomfortable. "I told you, you don't need to worry about my status. You don't need to use the royal language with me."

"Alright, Severus. I'm here to apologise," the old man said without looking Snape in the eye. "I know you'll never forgive me, but what I want to tell you is that in more than the 10 years you've worked with me, it's not just you who's been attached to me; I'm attached to you too."

Snape didn't answer. Dumbledore continued. "I know I'm asking too much of you. I know you'll never forgive me again. But just this once. Give me another chance. Please."

'Please? Did Dumbledore say please to him? Could there be something stranger than that?' Snape thought.

"Severus," Dumbledore urged. "Say something to me. You can curse at me. Don't ignore me like that."

Severus cleared his throat. "How dare I curse you? You've done me such a favour. But to have me go back to work with you is a bit too much for me."

"What do you want in return? Didn't you say you wanted a lotus pond? I'll build one for you. Do you want anything else? Do you want a pay raise? Or something else? I can give you almost everything except the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor," the headmaster said quickly.

Snape raised his eyebrows. Dumbledore quickly continued. "It's not that I don't trust you, but this job is cursed. No one has taught this subject for more than a year. I'm worried about you. I'm afraid you'll get hurt. "Every day, you're already risking your life. Anything that can be less risky should be made less risky.And a Potions master as good as you is very rare. Come back, Severus. Come home, son."

"You called me son," Severus said in disbelief. "Do you want a snake like me as your son?"

"It doesn't matter if you're a snake or not," Dumbledore said. "you used to be my man and now you are my snake, if you're willing to.," he finished uncertainly.

"Dad," Sevilin's voice rang out, and the boy appeared. "What have you been doing here for so long?"

Severus turned to look at his son. "I'm here to talk about some business, son. I'll be back soon."

The Snape Jr looked back and forth between his father and the old man. "May I give my opinion?" he said. His father nodded. "I'm just a kid, but I think people make mistakes. People misunderstand each other. As long as relationships aren't completely destroyed, there's a chance they can be reconciled. I don't want anyone to cut off their relationship with me just because I made one mistake, would I?"

Severus paused to think. He thought about the day Lily refused to forgive him when he called her a mudblood. He had only made one mistake, but it was a big mistake that his friend wouldn't forgive him for. He felt so hurt at that time. He used to think that if they were friends, they could forgive everything, but he was wrong. He still hoped that Lily wouldn't be so angry that she would cut off all ties with him.

"Severus," the old man's voice woke him from his reverie. "What do you think?"

Snape turned to look at Dumbledore before saying, "This is the last time." He gave an ultimatum. "If you say or do anything like that again, you'll never see my face.

"Sure, sure," Dumbledore quickly agreed. "Anything."

Snape straightened up with self-satisfaction. "Good." He turned to Sevilin. "Will you go back with me or stay here?"

Sevilin thought for a moment. "I'd rather stay here. When Mr. Komes comes, I'll keep him company."

"Do you prefer him to me?" Snape patted his son's head.

"I don't prefer him," Sevilin grumbled. "I just don't want to go to the human world. Besides, "Are you worried about me, or just possessive of him?

"Sevilin!" Snape said loudly. "You'll get it."

Sevilin ran away, laughing. "I'm leaving, Dad."

Snape shook his head in frustration. Having a boy, er, a snakelet gave him real headache. And on September 1st of this year, Sevilin will start school. In the early stages, the nagas grow much faster than human. Three months of nagas was like a year for

humans. After that, they grow like humans.

"Let's go, Severus," Dumbledore suggested. Snape nodded. Fawkes flew down, and the two disappeared.