Forsaken
folder
Harry Potter › Het - Male/Female
Rating:
Adult +
Chapters:
50
Views:
2,154
Reviews:
4
Recommended:
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Currently Reading:
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Category:
Harry Potter › Het - Male/Female
Rating:
Adult +
Chapters:
50
Views:
2,154
Reviews:
4
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
Going Rogue
Chapter 21 - Going Rogue
Severus stood in front of his mirror and pulled his hood completely over his head, the Council brand shining on the back of his hand. Harry leaned against
the doorframe and crossed his arms over his chest.
“It’s not like you’re not going to tell me everything anyway.” Severus sighed and walked towards him.
“I’m sorry, Harry,” he said softly as he gently moved Harry out of the way, “but I am in enough shit as it is with the Council. If I bring you, things will get ugly
quick.” Severus pushed Harry’s hair back from his face and gave him a small smile.
“I’ll be back soon,” he said. Harry nodded, watching him walk quickly down the stairs.
+HP+
Kingsley waited at the gates and pulled hard on his cigarette. He forced the smoke out his nose, glancing worriedly at the hooded and cloaked man beside
him.
“I’m sure he had to argue with Harry,” said Arthur quietly, fiddling with a small, silver disk. “He won’t be much longer.” Kingsley finished his cigarette and
threw it to the ground. They both looked up at the roll of thunder that cracked loudly overhead. Severus appeared directly in front of the gates and moved
towards them.
“Stop!” said Kingsley swiftly. “Don’t move. You’ll set the alarms off.” Arthur quickly tapped the disk in his hand with his wand, illuminating it with a pale blue
light. He tossed it through the bars to Severus, who caught it one-handed and disappeared in a brief flash of light as the first raindrops fell from the sky.
Kingsley and Arthur ran up the path towards the castle, racing the curtain of rain behind them.
Severus landed in front of the open gargoyle leading up to Minerva’s office. He took a deep breath and slowly climbed the spiral staircase. He knocked on
the door and pushed it open. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end at the look Moody gave him as he stepped into the room. A few minutes later,
Kingsley and Arthur came up the stairs and into the office.
“Severus, if you could have a seat, please,” said Minerva, waving her hand at the straight-backed chair in front of her desk. Severus glanced surreptitiously
at Kingsley and walked over to the chair. He sat down and held her steely gaze as he lit a cigarette from the pack in his pocket, knowing full well she hated
him smoking in her presence.
“I have finished compiling the list of students for next year,” she said, her tone vibrating with suppressed fury, “and I noticed that I didn’t receive an owl from
Harry telling me he was returning. I just wanted to make sure you had given him his letter.”
“He received it,” said Severus quietly. “If you haven’t gotten an owl from him, it probably means he’s found something more important that requires his
time.”
“And just what, exactly, would that entail?” asked Moody angrily. “Hexing a group of innocent reporters? Threatening the Minister inside the
Ministry? What?”
“Harry has a task to complete,” said Severus firmly, not looking away from Minerva’s steely gaze. “He will not be returning until he is finished.”
“I will not allow that boy to throw his entire future away just because you’ve talked him into a suicide mission!” shouted Minerva, slamming her palm down on
the desk. “I want to talk to him. I want to hear it from his own mouth.” Severus exhaled a lungful of smoke at her and rose from his seat, walking over to
Kingsley.
“Will you go get him?” he asked quietly. “I don’t want to mess with the wards again. He’s at the house.” Kingsley nodded and left the room. Severus met
Arthur’s wary countenance and finished his cigarette, throwing the butt into the unlit fireplace. A while later Harry walked through the door, with Kingsley right
behind him. He glanced quickly at Severus and Arthur.
“Good evening, Mr. Potter,” said Minerva. “We’d like to speak with you for a moment. Severus, if you could step outside, that would be wonderful.” Harry’s
face paled as he watched Severus silently step out of the room. He swallowed thickly as he turned back to the Headmistress.
“Now then,” she said kindly, “I want you to speak freely, Harry. I assure you that everyone here wants what is best for you.” Harry choked down his fury at
her saccharine-coated lies and schooled his face into a blank slate. He stepped forward but didn’t sit down.
“Thank you, Professor,” he said smoothly, “but I would hate to burden you and the rest of the Council with my well-being.” Minerva’s expression flickered
slightly at the dart. “I mean, it really wasn’t all that bad being with Voldemort. Oh, except for the whole torturing bit. That got a little old, to tell you the truth. And
I do think he was planning on killing me, but man, you guys would have lucked out big time if that had happened.” Minerva glanced worriedly at Moody,
who eyed Harry’s smug face with a wide eye.
“Kid, I think you’ve been cooped up with Snape for long enough,” said Moody carefully, slowly reaching for his wand. “You’ve been exposed to a lot of
Dark magic and that messes with your head after a while. If you want, we can arrange -“
“Oh, that won’t be necessary,” said Harry, flicking his wand into his hand in the blink of an eye and aiming directly between Moody’s eyes. “If I wanted to
escape, I know a few very interesting potions and hexes. I would show you, but they’re pretty messy.” He grinned maliciously at them, enjoying the blatant
fear in their eyes. “But I don’t think you brought me here to talk about Severus. What was it you wanted to ask me, Headmistress?” He vanished the wooden
chair and conjured an ornately carved black onyx chair with a velvet red cushion. He flopped down in it and threw a leg over the arm, lounging decadently
and looking at her wide eyes expectantly.
“Where did you learn that?” she gasped. Harry shrugged a shoulder.
“Just a little something I picked up over the summer, among other things,” he said dismissively. He picked an imaginary piece of lint off his sleeve and flicked
it away from him. She sat back in her chair, stunned.
“Well,” she said forcefully, trying to regain control of the conversation, “we were just wondering if you had received your Hogwarts letter. I didn’t get an owl
from you saying that you were returning.”
“Well, I didn’t send you one,” said Harry simply. “Kind of hard to get an owl if one isn’t sent, right?” Minerva narrowed her eyes at him and clasped her
hands in front of her. She leaned across the desk towards him and stared directly into his eyes.
“I am done being polite, Potter,” she said quietly. “I want you here on the first of September. I want you on the train no later than 10:45 and I want to see
you sitting at the Gryffindor table during the Welcoming Feast. You will complete your seventh year and you will take your N.E.W.T.s in June.” Harry
lowered his foot, his face flushing in fury.
“Is that an order, Headmistress?” he growled, gripping the cold arms of the chair tightly.
“Yes, it is,” she said delicately. “And there will be consequences should you choose to disregard the Council’s wishes.” Kingsley’s jaw dropped
slightly. He glanced at Arthur, who looked equally as shell-shocked.
“And what would those consequences be exactly, Professor?” asked Harry quietly. “Let’s lay all the cards on the table, shall we?”
“Fine by me, Potter,” she said coolly. “If you choose not to comply, the members of this Council will refuse to acknowledge or vouch for Severus Snape as a
spy for the Light. We will disavow all knowledge of his actions with the Order for the past twenty years and will cut him loose from all associations from the
group.” Kingsley bit his tongue, sensing that any word he spoke would immediately condemn him.
“I see,” said Harry, his voice shaking ever so slightly. He rose from his chair and graced her with an icy stare. “I will owl you with my decision by
Wednesday. Now, if you’ll excuse me I have some business to attend to.” He turned and walked slowly towards the door, not daring to look at Arthur or
Kingsley.
“You can take Severus with you,” she said offhandedly. “We’re done for the evening.” Harry snorted softly and walked out the door. Minerva straightened a
pile of parchments on her desk and stood up from her desk. “Sorry to have bothered you gentlemen, but I needed your support. As you can see, things are
quickly getting out of hand.”
“Of course,” said Kingsley quietly. “Let me know when you’d like the Auror guard to arrive. My squadron’s ready when you are.”
“Thank you, Kingsley,” she said kindly, not noticing the fire in his eyes. “I will let you know as soon as the house elves are done arranging some living
quarters for you all. Have a good evening.”
“You too,” said Kingsley. He ducked out of the door and walked calmly down the stairs, breaking into a run as he reached the seventh floor with the hopes
of catching Harry and Severus. He reached the front doors and yanked one open. He jumped down the front steps, the rain drenching his robes as he
squinted in search for them. A bolt of lightning arced across the sky, showing him an empty path down to the gates.
+HP+
“What’s our next move?”
“Our move? No, no - the question is, what’s your move?”
“We’re going to need all the help we can get if you go on trial.”
“When I go on trial, Harry. When.”
“Right. Whatever. The point is, do we need them or not?”
“We will have the rat.”
“Shit. If he doesn’t do something stupid, we’ll have him. Otherwise, he’ll be a puddle of slime on the floor. Not very helpful, if you ask me.”
“Then what is your next move? It is entirely up to you.”
“Our move, and I don’t know. I need to think through some things first. I’ll let you know in the morning.”
+HP+
Later the next day, Harry knocked three times on a plain wooden door. It opened quickly and he stepped inside.
“Hey guys,” said Harry, lowering his hood and setting his knapsack on the floor as Fred shut the door. George waved his hand at a small card table.
“You want a drink?” asked Fred. “We’ve got a bit of Firewhiskey left, some scotch, a little vodka, mead -“
“Scotch is fine,” said Harry. He sat down and waited until Fred brought over three glasses and a full bottle of scotch. Harry took the bottle from him and
unscrewed the lid, pouring a generous measure into each glass despite his never really having hard liquor before. George crossed his arms.
“Alright, Potter, spill it,” he said wearily. “What’s going on?” Harry picked up his glass and took a drink, swallowing against the sharp burning in his
throat.
“What would you say if I told you Snape was still on our side?” said Harry casually. Fred burst out laughing.
“Good one, Harry,” he said, shaking his head. He glanced at George and scoffed at his expression. “George, relax. He’s only joking.”
“No, he isn’t,” said George softly, staring into Harry’s eyes. “He’s fucking serious.” Fred chuckled and glanced at Harry. His face fell immediately.
“Shit,” muttered Fred. He picked up his glass and drained it in two swallows. George laughed softly in disbelief.
“Ginny told us she drank a potion every week when she was gone,” he said, shaking his head as he made the connection. “And Dumbledore? How do
you explain that?”
“Dumbledore arranged everything beforehand,” said Harry bitterly. “He was acting on orders.” George shook his head and sat back in his chair. He ran a
hand through his shaggy red hair and sighed. His brother, on the other hand, flushed a deep red.
“Bullshit,” said Fred fiercely. “There’s no fucking way. You said that you saw him -“
“I didn’t know everything,” said Harry. He bent down and returned with a small box, the engraved phoenix on the lid clearly visible. He opened it and set
the bowl on the table. He pulled out the vial labeled “4” and poured it into the bowl. With a finger, he pushed the pensieve carefully across the table.
“Dive in.”
He sat back and drank the rest of his scotch as the brothers viewed the memory. His leg bounced nervously under the table as the minutes ticked by. He
poured himself a second glass of scotch just as Fred and George’s eyes unglazed and came back into focus.
“Bloody hell,” they said in unison. Harry smirked at them.
“That’s what I said,” he muttered. “So. I’m in a bit of bad spot. Wondered if you boys wanted to help me out a little.” The twins glanced at each other.
“We’re listening,” said Fred slowly, his brown eyes reflecting the same wariness in his brother’s blue ones.
“McGonagall and Moody are forcing me to go back to Hogwarts,” said Harry. “If I don’t, they’ll cut Severus loose completely, and we cannot let that happen.
He has risked too much for too long for him just to be sent to Azkaban.”
“If you believe this memory thing, that is,” said Fred skeptically. Harry ruffled his hair.
“Well, it’s Dumbledore’s memory,” said Harry. “He promised that the memories he left me had not been tampered with. Severus helped me get Ginny away
from Voldemort and has been tutoring me the entire summer. He’s relayed all Death Eater activities to the Council and has continued to --”
“Alright, alright,” said George, amused. “No need to speechify on the man. So what’s your plan for these Horcrux things? I’m assuming they’re bad and we
need to get rid of them somehow.”
“We only have two left before Voldemort becomes mortal again,” said Harry. “His snake -“
“Of course,” muttered Fred.
“-and Ravenclaw’s scepter,” continued Harry. “We don’t have any idea where the scepter is or what kinds of spells and hexes are protecting it. But I can
hardly look for it if I’m in class all the bloody time, now can I?”
“Absolutely not,” said George, grinning mischievously at him. “You’re going to pull a Weasley, aren’t you?”
“You’re damn right I am,” said Harry fiercely. “If those two geezers think they have me wrapped around their finger, they’ve got another thing coming. I’m
giving them a month, give or take a week or so. I’m also going to be taking a few others with me, if Severus and I can convince them to join us.”
“Oh?” said George. “Like who, for example?” Harry threw back the rest of his drink.
“Severus has a couple of Slytherins he’s talking to,” he said, “and Ginny.” Fred frowned slightly and glanced at George.
“And our new Head Boy and Girl?” he asked. “What about them?” Harry scoffed and shook his head.
“They would never in a million years believe that Severus was still on our side,” said Harry confidently. “They told everyone who would listen that I was
mental for going after Malfoy when I knew he was a Death Eater. I can’t trust them to back me up anymore. And besides, they’re too close to
McGonagall.”
“Fair enough,” said George. “They’re not any fun anyway.” He looked to Fred, who kept his gaze for a few moments. Harry’s eyes darted between the two
identical faces. They looked at him and grinned.
“We’re in,” said Fred. “But we need to talk to Snape in person. We’d like his professional opinion on a few things.” Harry sighed in relief.
“I’ll send him over,” said Harry, unable to keep from smiling. “We may use the shop as a new headquarters, if you would both be agreeable.” Their grins
spread wider.
“We’d be honored to host the militant radicals,” said Fred grandly. “We eagerly await your orders, O Chosen One.”
“Oh wonderful,” muttered Harry as he replaced the memory into the vial and packed it up with his pensieve. He stuck the box back in his bag and slung the
knapsack over his shoulder. “I’ll be in touch.”
“See ya, Harry,” said George. Harry nodded and apparated back to Liverpool. George looked at Fred and picked up his still-full glass.
“What are you thinking?” he asked quietly. Fred shook his head.
“Well,” said Fred thoughtfully, picking up his own scotch, “we’re already screwed as far as the shop goes. Might as well raise a little hell on our
Ministry-appointed vacation.” George grinned mischievously at him.
“My thinking exactly,” he said. He clinked glasses with Fred and drained his drink.
+HP+
Harry strolled silently down Spinner’s End, thanks in part to the Cushioning charms he had on his shoes. The front curtains were closed as he turned the
doorknob and walked inside. He shut the door and unclasped his cloak from around his neck. He draped it over his arm and stepped into the sitting room.
He looked up and met the wary gazes of a beautiful, ebony-skinned woman and a good-looking man of about Severus’s age. Severus smiled at him and
exhaled a cloud of smoke.
“Harry,” said Severus, “how’d your appointment go?”
“Very well, sir,” he answered, feeling a little awkward. “Should I -“ he pointed upstairs.
“No, that’s alright,” said Severus, setting his cigarette in the ashtray and standing up from his chair. “We’re done.” He held his hand out to the woman.
“Portia, Mark. It’s been a pleasure.”
“Indeed,” said Mark Anthony Parkinson as he stood as well. He held his hand out for Severus to shake. “Thank you for looking after our kids. It - it means a
lot.” Severus smiled at him.
“I would do anything for either Blaise or Pansy,” he said quietly. “Harry and I will do what we can, but I can’t give you any solid promises.”
“We’ll just have to deal with that ourselves,” said Portia Spencer. “We’ve kept out of things for long enough. It’s time to take a side and fight to the end, I
suppose.” Severus waved them to the door, walking them out. Harry sat down on the sofa, getting a whiff of very expensive perfume from where Portia was
sitting. He reached over and pulled out a cigarette out of Severus’s pack on the table. He put it quickly to his lips and lit it as Severus walked into the living
room.
“I have definitely been a bad influence on you,” said Severus wearily. “Your mother would murder me.” Harry froze, waiting for Severus to say something
else. Severus sighed.
“Just go buy your own,” he said finally. “Damn things are expensive enough without me having to buy double packs.”
“Alright,” said Harry. “From what I heard of that, they seemed pretty accepting of the plan.”
“It went much better than expected,” murmured Severus thoughtfully. “We have the Weasley brothers, I take it?”
“Yes sir,” said Harry. He pulled on his cigarette and leaned back on the sofa. “They wanted to talk to you about something. I have no clue what.” Severus
sighed and rubbed his eyes with his fingers.
“No telling with those two,” he muttered. “I’ll go see them once term starts again. The Alley will be quieter.” Harry nodded slowly, finishing his cigarette in
silence. He crushed it out in the tray on the table and stood up. He yawned and stretched his arms over his head.
“I’m going to bed,” said Harry wearily. “Occlumency took a lot out of me today.”
“Alright,” said Severus. “Sleep well. I’ll see you in the morning. We’re sparring tomorrow, right?”
“Right,” said Harry, pulling open the staircase door. “And I’m not going to let you win any duels tomorrow, old man.”
“I’ll remember you said that,” said Severus, smiling to himself as he sat back down in his chair. He shook his head and picked up the pack of cigarettes,
scowling at the single stick in the package. He sighed and reached over for his still burning cigarette in the tray. Just as he lifted it to his lips, a bolt of pain
raced up his arm. He cursed sharply and stabbed the cigarette into the tray as he jumped up and left the house.