Devils and Angels

Beggar Men


Early the next morning, Severus Snape sat in the Headmaster’s office. He had arisen before dawn and had left Harry to sleep. The dark wizard knew he would be facing a challenge to his abilities when he saw an old trunk, that looked as if it had come from Merlin’s day sitting on the floor beside Dumbledore’s desk. The Headmaster had visited him when Harry had gone roaming about the day before, and he knew what to expect for this day, at least he believed he did. Simply put, that today and perhaps for many days afterward, Albus Dumbledore was going to try to make him crack.

The old wizard was apparently still in a good mood for his blue eyes twinkled merrily as he reached up to remove a book from his shelf. Just as he palmed the book, Dumbledore quickly and silently cast leglimens at his potions master, and just as quickly Snape countered it with ease.

“Very well done, my boy. How many times is that?”

“Nine,” Snape said flatly.

“Ah, yes. You seem to be holding up very nicely, but can you do it in the face of the Dark Lord while under duress?”

“What sort of duress do you mean?” Severus asked shrewdly as he crossed his arms.

Not answering the man’s query he said, “I want you to close your eyes, and keep them closed Severus. I want you to keep them closed – I cannot stress that enough.”

Snape closed his eyes and waited. What occurred next, happened so fast that even if he were looking, he still would not have been able to fully comprehend it. The door burst open, and a shrill voice cackled, and from behind his eyelids Severus Snape could see a brilliant green flash that made his skin crawl. His eyes popped open in time to see the lifeless body of Albus Dumbledore crash to the floor. He leaped from the chair and whirled jerking his wand free.

“Well Severussss, my most faithful and trusted servant, I’ve had no reports from you – I’ve sorely missed you,” Lord Voldemort’s red eyes bore deeply into Snape’s as he prodded Dumbledore’s body with his foot. “Since half of the resistance against me has been removed, the rest should be somewhat easier – is that not true? We mustn’t give time for Dumbledore’s followers to rally behind the boy-who-lived, shall we?" He smiled malevolently, then turned to the Death Eaters that had silently appeared at the door. “Bring Harry Potter to me.”

Snape’s face remained a mask of indifference, yet his heart beat violently as he watched the scene before him unfold, and Voldemort whirled, then turned on him with the speed of a viper. “Bow down to me!”

Severus felt his knees give way against his will, and he fell heavily to them before the Dark Lord. He wanted to raise his wand and strike out, but he couldn’t despite his best efforts. He heard sounds of confusion and disturbance coming from below punctuated by shrieks of terror, and he kept his face an impassive mask as Harry was flung to the Dark Lord’s feet.

“Fight me Harry – I’ll give you a chance like I did the last time we met. Remember, just like I told you in the cemetery, we must observe the formalities.”

Harry refused to give in and shouted instead as he rose to his feet, “I refuse to fight you – not like this!”

“Even with your mentor dead?”

Harry turned his head and saw Dumbledore’s lifeless form, and his body sagged in the grips of the Death Eaters that suddenly held him captive once more, “Nooooo!” He turned his tear-streaked face back to the Dark Lord, “There’s nothing you can do to make me fight you here!”

“Well, then perhaps you should die like the spawn of cowards you are,” he raised his wand to cast the unforgivable, then suddenly paused. A leer spread itself across his evil face as if he suddenly realized something, and he slowly turned toward Severus. “What’s this I sense from you Severussss? You fear for his life?” Lord Voldemort towered over Snape as he glared menacingly down at him.

The images suddenly faded, and Snape heard a hollow sound like that of a lid to something snapping shut. His vision had tunnelled down, and the edges were blurred and darkened. His head was pounding as well as his heart, and sweat ran down the sides of his face. He felt as if the very life energy had been drained from his body. The potions master slumped at the waist and folded over to rest his throbbing head on his crossed arms as his wand hung limply from his fingers.

Albus Dumbledore knelt on the floor beside him and placed a hand between the man’s shoulders. “I’m sorry Severus, and I hope you can forgive me for unleashing that on you, but it had to be done. We needed to know, and since we do we can proceed accordingly, but I believe you’ve had enough of this for today.”

Severus nodded in response, and as he began to regain his composure he asked, “What was that?”

“That my boy,” Dumbledore cast his eye back at the trunk, “is what all mortals truly dread – the very essence of fear itself.”

Two hours later, after a dose of Invigoration Draught, Severus Snape strode through the corridors in a black billow of robes. He went directly to their chambers and awakened Harry, “Wake up – it’s time to begin your training.” He shook Harry again and commanded, “Wake up! I’ll meet you in the Great Hall.”

He left as soon as he saw that Harry was stirring, and headed to the hall to prepare the room as a training ground. He had disregarded the Headmaster’s suggestion that he had enough for one day, and he was determined to see to it that the man he loved would be able to hold his own against He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Severus decided this would be the routine until they both got it right. He would train during the mornings with the Headmaster, then he himself would take over with Harry during the afternoons. He’d be damned for a certainty if either of them would find themselves begging for mercy before any dark lord – he would not allow it, and when Severus Snape didn’t allow something, he usually got his way.

Harry had no sooner entered and shut the door behind him when Severus cast a silent curse sending the young man flying backwards. “What in the hell did you do that for?”

“Because I can, and could. Now get up! You should have been prepared.”

Harry rose to his feet, and assumed a defensive posture. “I’m ready,” he said as he held his wand out before him.

Snape’s eyes narrowed until they were slits, “Are you sure you’re ready, Harry? I think not!” He lashed out with his wand, and a thin red light shot out then slammed into Harry's shoulder spinning him around and smashing him back to the flagstones.

“Ahhh!” He cried out, and clutched his shoulder. The pain was intense and felt like fire.

Severus walked over and stood over him, “I don’t enjoy doing this Harry.”

“You could have fooled me,” he grimaced from the floor.

“The Dark Lord will not give you any leniency, compassion, or even a minute to get yourself together. He does not love you as I do - you know that. Now get up!”

Harry got up with a grunt, and the sparring resumed. He wasn’t on his feet a full minute before he was flat on his back once more, “You’re supposed to be teaching me damnit! Not tryin’ to kill me!” Harry reacted angrily over his frustration.

“I’m not trying to kill you Harry!” Severus shouted back forcefully, “I’m just trying…”

“You’re trying to what?” Harry interrupted and glared at his lover.

“To not lose you,” Severus finished. All the heat of the moment faded suddenly between the two of them.

“You’re not going to lose me Severus. It’s not going to happen.”

Severus reached out and wrapped his hand around the back of Harry's neck and pulled him near then placed a kiss on his forehead. Closing his eyes, he kept his lips pressed there for several seconds, then they broke apart, “Let’s get back to it.”

“Right,” Harry said shoving his glasses back into place.

“Now concentrate,” Snape said as they circled each other. He feigned a curse with a mere twitch of his wand, and the younger wizard blocked nothing but thin air. A split second later, Harry was airborne once more, and landed in a moaning heap. “You’re not concentrating. You’re letting your fears take over.”

“I’m not afraid!” Harry protested vehemently from the floor as his anger rose once more.

“Then – prove – it!” Snape spat back.

Harry scrambled to his feet, “You’re not telling me what I need to do!”

Severus was on him in a second, painfully grasping his face, and forcing him to look into his eyes. “You – must – absorb every word I say. You must be able to distinguish between black and white, and see into the nuances and subtle changes of each move of your opponent. You have to sharpen your senses and know that there is more out there than meets the eye. You have to clear your mind of all else and see nothing in the peripheral, but what is ahead of you. Your goal is not what others would have you do, or what Harry Potter thinks he has to accomplish.”

He leaned his face near, his voice dropping low as he continued to speak, “You have to want it – desire it as much as you desire your next breath, food to eat, or even sex. It has to become a driving force within you and become your second nature regardless – of who gets hurt. You have to be able to anticipate the next moment. Everyone thinks this is a battle of good versus evil, but it’s not. It’s a gamble for power – it’s politics. Who wins, rules. In other words Harry, you can’t be the saviour of the wizarding world – you have to become an assassin for it.”

They stared intently into each other’s eyes, and then Snape slowly released Harry's face leaving behind the red impressions of his hands on the young man’s cheeks. Harry, who badly needed a break, continued to look into his lover’s face and hoping to get the desired reaction he was seeking spoke, “Gods, you look so hot.”

Snape looked at him incredulously before exploding, “Of all the impertinent – asinine – juvenile… cheek! What in the nine hells is wrong with you Potter? Why don’t we just bend over right now, and kiss our arses goodbye?” He paused to take a breath in his tirade, and Harry quickly interrupted.

“Kinky…”

Snape turned several neat shades of red, before he finally settled on a perfect purple before continuing in his rant. “Goddamnit! Haven’t you been listening at all? Can’t you think? Are there any brains behind that skull of yours?” The older man poked his lover between the eyes to emphasize his point. He began to pace back and forth ticking off every foolish mistake Harry had made in the face of good judgement.

Harry watched him in silent amusement as he agreed to each and every point Snape made, “Oh yes, that’s me entirely.”

Severus’ back suddenly stiffened, he whirled sending his robes billowing about him, and faced the younger wizard. “You did that on purpose. That was – most – Slytherin of you.”

“I’ve learned from the best. Besides, I wanted to remind you about your ‘there’s more to life than Voldemort' speech – shouldn’t there be some sort of balance?"

“You’re quite right,” Snape responded. “But not until you’ve mastered some degree of defence, then we shall work on maintaining that balance you speak of. What I am trying to teach you Harry is that you have to allow it to come naturally to you. You have to let it flow over you, through you, and learn to be its master – not its puppet.” He paused to give Harry time to swallow the information then added, “I believe that is enough for today.”



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Thank you for all the wonderful reviews! As part one of this trilogy is sadly nearing an end, be on the lookout for part two, 'As I Walked By Myself'. This has been a blast, and even made more so by all the encouraging reviews.