Inside the Blackest Heart (Edit, Not Update)

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to JKR. All situations are mine. No $$$ is being made from this fanfic.
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Chapter 53 ~ Peace Talks

As Snape destroyed the lab, his eyes fell on a small bowl on the far counter. He stopped his destruction and walked over to it. This wasn’t anything of his. He looked down at its silvery contents and curiously stuck a finger in it. He watched, his eyes widening, then narrowing. He removed his finger and picked up the bowl. The Primordial needed to see this. He walked to the door of the lab and opened it, stepping into the hallway. He set the bowl on the floor and turned back to the room. Concentrating, he let loose a powerful blast which decimated all that remained behind. Satisfied, he closed the door, picked up the bowl and headed for the throne room.

Hermione and Harry were glued to the image of Hedwig flying in search of Dumbledore. They didn’t seem to register Snape emerging into the throne room. He walked up to the pair, and watched Hedwig flying for a moment, then he looked at Hermione.

“Miss Granger, I have something here that you should see,” he said, holding out the pensieve.

Hermione’s brow was furrowed.

“I don’t need to see it. I saw what you saw, Professor,” she said quietly, then turned to look at him. “I also saw you cleaning house.”

“I destroyed the lab to keep anyone from discovering the secrets to the terrible brews I created,” Snape said, “the world’s better off without them.”

“Concern for the world, Professor Snape?” Hermione said, “How human of you.”

Snape scowled, “More like concern for myself. We’ve got rid of one menace. Have one more to go. I just don’t want to leave anything around that could help another crazy wizard with dreams of conquering the world to rise to power. Two are enough for one lifetime,” he said.

Then he looked at the image.

“Seems like Hedwig’s found her mark,” he said.

Hermione turned back to the screen. Indeed, Hedwig was descending towards Dumbledore, who held up his arm. Hedwig landed neatly on it. The Headmaster removed the message and unrolled the parchment. His blue eyes scanned from left to right, his eyebrows raised almost to his hairline. He gave a little smirk, his eyes twinkling. Then he looked thoughtful. He reached into his robe pocket and produced a quill. Holding the parchment flat in his palm, he signed it. Suddenly powerful magic swirled about them. In the scene, the parchment in Dumbledore’s hand glowed blue, then disappeared. The Oath had taken.

“Yes!” Hermione said, springing up and pumping her arm, dancing around the throne room. Snape’s black eyes followed her, and did Harry’s green ones. Neither wizard knew what the Primordial was so happy about. Albus coming to see them was nothing to rejoice about. Hermione stopped dancing and looked at their sober faces.

“Relax! I’m telling you, I know what I’m doing. You just have to trust me. It’s going to work out and no one will be hurt,” she said, trying to reassure them.

“Well at least tell us what you’re doing,” Harry said to the witch.

“No, it will work out better if I don’t. But I want both of you to participate in the talks. Tell him what you feel. Be honest,” she said. “It is important that you address each issue you have with him. Very important,” Hermione said. “It is time to clear the air between us and the Headmaster. It is our only hope.

“That’s just going to make him angrier, Miss Granger,” Snape said.

“I know it is,” she replied, “that’s exactly what I want.”

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Albus couldn’t believe it. Voldemort was dead. Dead. His nemesis was finally out of the way. He might have had some doubt, but the Oath taking assured him he was in no danger. If Voldemort had been alive and planning to ambush him, the Oath could not have been invoked. And if Miss Granger wanted to talk, it meant that she must not have come into full power yet, and was still vulnerable. She would have no need to talk to him if she were at full power, she could wipe him and the entire Order out of existence with a single thought.

He would talk to her all right. And then he would return to his ranks and order them to raze the stronghold to the ground, taking no prisoners. It was a shame about Harry having to die though, but the boy had served his purpose. The Headmaster was sure Miss Granger and Severus had turned the boy irrevocably against him. Voldemort was dead now, and Harry’s usefulness had come to an end. He would die with the rest of them.

Ron’s idea had been brilliant. Harry’s owl led the Order reconnaissance team directly to the stronghold. Now they were on the move, two thousand Order members ready to apparate en masse and attack. Once Miss Granger and Severus were out of the way, he would be free to pursue his own goals. Hell, he might even take credit for the death of Voldemort, making himself a hero. That would work out nicely.

Albus turned to the Order members, who stood at attention. They were quite impressive in their white Phoenix emblazoned robes, wands held at rest by their sides. He drew in a proud breath. They would listen to any order he gave them.

Albus applied the sonorous charm to his throat and addressed the troops.

“I must leave for a time. I want you all to remain here, and await my return. Then we will rid the wizarding world of Voldemort’s evil forever!” he said loudly, throwing up his arms. The Order members all cheered as Albus apparated. He appeared about two hundred meters in front of the stronghold.

Hermione, watching the image of Albus apparating outside, turned to Harry, who was frowning blackly at the visage of the Headmaster.

“Harry,” she said with a note of warning in her voice, “Go get him. Don’t attack him, don’t tell him anything. If he asks you for details, tell him he’ll hear all he wants to know from me, okay?

Harry nodded and headed out to meet the Headmaster and bring him back to the throne room.

Snape looked down at Hermione.

“Do you think this wise?” he said, his black eyes searching her face. “Will this plan of yours work, Miss Granger?”

Hermione looked at him, her eyes narrowing a bit lustfully. Snape raised an eyebrow at this look.

“How about a little wager, Professor? I know that the moment this situation is resolved, you’re going to leave and not look back. I want to be with you one more time before you go,” she said.

Snape quirked his eyebrow at her, his black eyes glinting. She could tell he was interested.

“Be with me? What does ‘be with me’ mean?’ he asked in a low voice. “I’m with you right now,” he said, his lips pursed. He was going to make her say it.

“I want to have sex…” she began

“You mean fuck,” he amended.

“All right! Fuck! You don’t make this easy, Professor,” Hermione said, frowning at him.

“If I made it easy, Miss Granger. You wouldn’t want me so badly,” he replied. “I’ll tell you what, Miss Granger…you get me out of this mess and I will give you a farewell fuck that will keep you bowlegged for a week,” he said silkily, moving closer to her, his body inches from hers, his black eyes glittering and hot with promise. He drew a finger down her cheek and over her throat. Hermione shuddered.

Now, there was incentive.

As the witch and wizard stared at each other, Harry and Albus walked into the throne room. Both stepped away from each other and stared at the Headmaster, who frowned slightly.

“I see you two are still rutting like hippogriffs. A pity the girl threw her charms away on you, Severus. You are so unworthy,” the Headmaster observed. He took a bit of parchment out of his robes pocket and transfigured it into a chair. He looked at Hermione.

“And you pick this sorry example of a wizard to give yourself to? And you really think yourself capable of making responsible decisions, Miss Granger? Your very association with Severus proves you are not,” he commented. Albus was wasting no time trying to cow the young witch.

Snape didn’t say a word. He knew he wasn’t the kind of man Miss Granger should have given herself to, but hell, she offered. He didn’t feel bad about playing mattress tag with her at all. He’d fuck her right in front of Albus if she’d let him, just to piss the old bugger off.

Hermione didn’t expect Snape to defend her. But she defended him.

“But he was good enough to spy for you and the Order all those years,” she retorted, “good enough to be beaten and tortured for the false information you made him give the Dark Lord. He tried to get out, and you pushed him right back in.”

“Severus knew what he was getting into,” Albus said.

“You made him rape, maim and murder in the name of the Order, Headmaster. You made him into the monster he became,” she said, “you authorized everything he did. He worked for you,” Hermione said. “he gave so much to the Order, he gave information, his blood and his very soul. And now you want to kill him,” Hermione said. “Is that fair after all his service to you?”

“Severus is a liability to me. If people knew I had sanctioned his actions as a spy for the Order, and made him serve the Dark Lord, then the blame for his actions would be transferred to me, and I would be ruined, Miss Granger. He has to die. Plus, he rescued you when you should have been left to me, and brought you to my enemy. He deserves to die for his betrayal,” Dumbledore said.

“But you, you were going to kill me,” Hermione said.

“That was your fault, Miss Granger. You shouldn’t have had the Dark Lord protecting your parents! You turned on the Light!” he said.

“I turned on the Light, because the Leader of the Light tried to kill my parents to keep me under his power. If Professor Snape hadn’t pled my case to Voldemort, my mother and father would be dead! Let me show you!” Hermione snapped.

Hermione stuck her finger into the Pensieve and the scene played itself out, with Dumbledore’s glamour dropping and revealing him as himself as he stood in front of the Granger’s flat, under fire from the deatheaters. Harry was horrified.

Dumbledore smirked. “That was a good glamour if I must say so myself. Yes, Miss Granger. Your parents were expendable. It all would have been for the greater good. You would have come to me broken, and I would have comforted you, and put you to work for the Order. And you would have worked hard to design spells to destroy Voldemort and his ranks. You would have been fueled by the need for revenge. It was a perfect plan. We wouldn’t be here today if it had gone correctly.”

“Headmaster, isn’t there any way we can solve this without you trying to kill us? I haven’t done anything deserving death. And Severus was just following orders and trying to protect me,” she said. That was a stretch for a description of what Snape had done for her. But she had reason to stretch it.

“No, Miss Granger. You must die because of what you are becoming. A Primordial. I cannot have a witch exist in this world with so much power, and not be under my influence. Right now, you might not be interested in my plans to unify the wizarding world under one leader, but when you get older, you could possibly reconsider, and with one thought undo everything I worked so hard to accomplish. I can’t take that chance Miss Granger. You must die before you reach full power.

“I can’t believe I ever trusted you!” Harry said, staring at Dumbledore. “I can’t believe that you are just as evil as Voldemort was. You only handled your evil better. How could you try and kill Hermione’s parents! How can you kill Hermione because of something she can’t help being? And how can you want to control the wizarding world when you fought so hard against Voldemort doing it?” Harry cried. His hands were clenched in fists against his sides. More than anything he wanted to run over to the Headmaster and start pummeling him. But he couldn’t charge him. The Oath was stopping him.

“The wizarding world needs a firm leader. There are too many inequalities. Too many heads and not enough limbs to do the work. I will be the one head, and the wizarding world will function as a perfect body,” Dumbledore said, his eyes shining.

“The Ministry will have something to say about that,” Harry said.

“The Ministry will no longer exist!” Dumbledore hissed. “Even now I am whittling it down from within, causing dissension with my accusations and demands. It will crumble in upon itself, so anxious to suit public opinion it will break its own foundation. Then who will be there to pick up the pieces and set everything to order? Me,” Dumbledore laughed horribly.

“Headmaster, I am pleading with you. Spare us!” Hermione said, tears beginning to stream down her face.

Snape shook his head. He should have known she’d turned to tears. She wasn’t as strong as he hoped she’d be. They were going to die if she didn’t use her powers and wipe the Order out. There was no other way. The Primordial would have blood on her hands after all.

Albus looked at the crying witch, his blue eyes hard and unfeeling.

“Miss Granger, try to face your demise with dignity. This ‘talk’ is over, and was a total waste of time if you ask me. By the way, how did Voldemort die?” he asked.

“He tapped into my power and took too much into himself, and kind of just disappeared,” Hermione replied, sniffling.

Albus shook his head. “And you couldn’t stop it?” he asked, looking for confirmation that she still couldn’t control her powers.

“No,” Hermione replied. It wasn’t a lie. Voldemort did take over the stream.

Albus nodded, certain Hermione was within his grasp.

“He always was a greedy bastard,” Albus said,. “Well, since no one knows he’s dead, I’ll take credit for that too, being that you three won’t be around to refute me. You have to die too, Harry. You know too much. Don’t worry, I’ll tell the wizarding world you died a hero. That Voldemort killed you, but you distracted him so I could strike the final killing blow.”

“You fucking monster!” Harry spat, almost frothing at the mouth from his desire to attack the Headmaster, and unable to advance on him. Snape watched the shuddering boy with amusement. He peeked into Harry’s mind. The boy was so upset he never felt him. Snape’s eyes widened at the numerous painful scenarios of Albus’ death running through Harry’s mind. He had quite a bit of darkness in him for a Gryffindor

Snape longed to cast the Killing Curse on Dumbledore, but he knew it wasn’t going to happen. So he just listened and waited for Hermione’s great plan to come to fruition. Albus stood up.

“I think I’ve said all I needed to say. I will return to the ranks now and give you a few moments to make your peace. There is no protection around this stronghold, it will be razed to the ground with you all in it. If you attempt to leave they will kill you on sight, believing you to be servants of the Dark Lord,” Albus said walking toward the door he entered through. He paused as he looked at Lucius and Peter, who were both staring at him in wondrous terror. Neither had known Albus was such an evil, evil wizard.

“At least you have an heir, Lucius, your family line will continue. Can’t say the same for these three,” he said, tossing a thumb over his shoulder at Hermione, Harry and Snape. He was right. They all were the last of their lines. He looked down at Wormtail.

“You finally get what you deserve, Peter. It’s long overdue,” Albus said as he walked through the door, down the corridor and out into the day. He apparated.

Snape and Harry looked at Hermione.

“That served absolutely no purpose. They will be on us in several minutes. I take it you are going to swish us all away to safety? I didn’t want to be a fugitive, Miss Granger. Expect no cock from this Potions Master,” Snape said, folding his arms and scowling at her.

Even Harry was pissed.

“Hermione, I could have at least hurt him. That’s all I wanted to do. Hurt him, cause him pain. I can’t believe he’s the man I trusted all these years!” Harry yelled in frustration, kicking at the ground and throwing a hex at the wall.

“No, I will not be taking us to safety. We are going to stay right here and watch this image,” Hermione said, as Albus returned to his ranks. He invoked the sonorous charm again.

“Members of the Order, followers of the Light, the time has come to defeat the Forces of Darkness. It is time to apparate to the stronghold and raze it to the ground, thus destroying the evil that is Voldemort forever!

“FORWARD!" Dumbledore cried, apparating for the fortress, death glowing in his narrowed blue eyes.

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A/N: Oh man. This is bad, bad, bad. Please review.