Albus Dumbledore knew that he could not possibly tell Severus of his assignment any time soon, realistically, in consideration of his mental state. However, on the other hand, Alastor Moody was well known for his patience, or the lack thereof. 

But Severus proved him wrong, yet again. After the last devastating night, he pulled through and shook himself out of his depression. Dumbledore, now, debated whether or not (IF he told him or not), in telling him, would push him back over the edge. But Severus, as keen-eyed as ever, knew Dumbledore was withholding something from him. And though he did not even try to wheedle whatever it was out of the old man, his glares every so often were enough to unnerve Dumbledore. Finally he told him. Instead of bursting out in rage and anger, like he so typically did, he dumbly agreed. Dumbledore, to be frank, was astonished. Though, upon reflection, he realized that maybe something like this would take his mind off of Lily – for the time being, anyways.

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Kingsley Shacklebolt was relieved. He’d been so nervous around his former Headmaster, and knew that Dumbledore wouldn’t take kindly to having Aurors asking for his beloved protégé. Of course, in his typical arrogance, Moody had told him not to worry. And right after that, Dumbledore had owled to say that Snape had agreed. Really, where did this man get his information?

In any case, right now, Severus Snape was due to meet them in about half an hour. Why was he so nervous? After all, he was older than him…and he had more…power, didn’t he? But everyone knew that Snape was the strongest of his generation – and he had chosen the Dark side. Which meant, one: he knew more vicious spells than the average Death Eater, heck, average anyone, and two, it was bad news in general to be on the other side when Snape was around. But…Dumbledore said he’d come over to the Light. Well, that still remained to be seen…

“Shacklebolt! Stop wimping around in your panties and let’s go!” shouted Moody, even more on edge than usual. He was already close to thirty years on the job. It almost made Kingsley re-consider becoming an Auror, after he saw that Moody was an absolute nutcase. Well, other than Moody, the job was absolutely worth it. Dangerous, yes, but altogether well-rewarding…for an adrenaline junkie.

Kingsley snapped out of his daydream, and stumbled off his chair. Totally not dignified, but it woke him up. Soon, they were on the Floo, on their way to Hogwarts.

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“Snape,” said Moody in greeting. Severus only nodded in response.

“Severus…may I call you that?” At Severus’s nod, Shacklebolt continued. “We are currently looking at two exchanges: one of a half-blood child – this one was kidnapped from his home, and the other…Muggles selling their child. The child is magical, obviously...what I don’t understand is why they’d…never mind. Would you like to look at the files?”

Severus took the two files, and paused to peruse the information. This one would be easy: it was Parkinson, after all. An arrogant, know-it-all Death Eater, his ego was his fatal flaw. He looked up, having noticed that Shacklebolt was talking again.

“Pardon, I didn’t catch that last bit,” said Severus. “Do you mind repeating yourself?”

“Oh, I was about to ask you if you wanted to take one of the missions,” said Shacklebolt. “Of course, Moody and I will be back-up…

“That’s fine,” replied Severus curtly, and picked up the other file. “Evan Dursley”, it was titled. Why did that seem so familiar? He opened it, and nearly dropped the file. There was no lightning bolt, and his face was slightly different, but it couldn’t be denied: those were Lily’s eyes. The age was all wrong too. But that was typical, right? Dursley. That was Petunia’s married name…which meant this child was Harry. He couldn’t let the Aurors on to it, given the secrecy that Dumbledore had enshrouded the entire situation. He calmed himself, and willed on a mental mask.

“I want this one,” he said, his voice brooking no argument. “Parkinson will be easily handled, if you flatter him enough.”

“Are you sure?” asked Shacklebolt. “These are Death Eaters, you know.”

“I am well aware of that, Kingsley. Nott and Crabbe are nothing, for all that there are two of them. I will take the boy, and you will take care of those…idiots,” snapped Severus. “If we are done, I will take your leave.”

Knowing that they were dismissed, Moody and Shacklebolt (actually, only Kingsley) exclaimed their thanks and left.

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“YOU MEDDLING OLD MAN!  How DARE you!! You knew he’d be there; that’s the reason why you sent me on that blasted mission, isn’t it?” fumed Severus.

Eyes twinkling, Dumbledore replied, as if confused, “I have no idea what you’re going on about, my boy.”

“HARRY BLOODY POTTER is one of those...on sale! You DARE risk his life, just because I refused to believe the propaganda you’ve set up! You interfering bastard!” Dumbledore had never seen Severus so angry. Not even when…well, that was for another time. He had to focus on calming Severus down.

“Listen, Severus. I never knew the Dursleys would place him in the market. And now that they have…it’s’ almost as if we can kill two birds with one stone. We can effectively capture all those involved, and take the guardianship off of the Dursleys, with no interference,” Dumbledore calmly said. “I had no idea they would ask you. But it makes it all the sweeter, doesn’t it? Lemon drop, Severus?”

“You know I hate those,” drawled Severus, then continued on. “Do I take the boy away secretly? Or do you want the public to know? You and I both know how chaotic that could turn out – Muggles selling the Boy-Who-Lived.”

“You raise a good point, Severus,” said Dumbledore thoughtfully. “We’ll have to consult with Moody – ”

“Moody and Shacklebolt have not realised that the child is Potter,” sneered Severus. “The idiots that they are. We may proceed as is, or you could inform them of our “new” development.”

“They are trustworthy, Severus, you know that. They’re both members of the Order, and if we ask that they remain silent, they will. I have absolute confidence in both of you. Now, the only problem is…who will take the child?” Dumbledore’s eyes twinkled yet again. “Ah well, we can discuss that when you come back. Have you decided on your disguise yet?”

“Petunia…she’d know me right away. I haven’t changed all that much in the last ten years, and I know she still hates me for ‘taking away Lily.’ And in the file I looked, Petunia has rejected every offer. The criteria she has…is impossible, unless the person is adopting Potter, I believe. In that case, we’ll need a harshman….How can I be a man who endorses corporal punishment, Headmaster, after everything I’ve been through?” Severus was so very close to cracking.

“Hmmm…and we can’t borrow any identities of people well-known, or I would suggest asking Dolores Umbridge.” Dumbledore shuddered at the thought. “What about that cousin of yours that disappeared five years ago? You still have his belongings, don’t you?” At Severus’ nod, he continued. “Perfect. There you go. And the man was a recluse, anyways, so that should hold. As for money, I’ll take care of that. Now go, you need time to prepare the Polyjuice, don’t you?”

“I do. Are you sure of this, Headmaster?” asked Severus.

“Do I catch a hint of concern for the Potter boy, Severus?” teased Dumbledore. “Now go on with you. I’ll see you at lunch.”

With a nod, Severus swooped out of the room, his robes billowing behind him.

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Vernon was fuming. His wife had rejected yet another customer, and the sales reps (if they can be called that) were becoming testy. Didn’t she know they were in danger? God knows what those men had done before. If she didn’t take the next caller…

The telephone rang. “Hello?” answered Vernon.

“Dursley, you’ve got another one. And this one you better take, or else. We’ve got other business to be about. His name is Prince. Rainer Prince. He’ll be meeting you at the usual place today at 3. He wants to see the boy too.”

The phone slammed. Finally, a chance at redemption. Petunia should come with him as well…his sister Marge would be willing to take in Dudley. And they would probably have to make Harry presentable. His damned hair!  The last time Petunia had shaved it. And typical of the freak, it’d grown back – even longer. He had wanted to pull out his own hair that morning. In the end, they had left it. What if it had decided to grow tentacles? Vernon shuddered at the thought. No, the sooner the freak was gone, the better.

“Petunia!!” he roared. “Come down already, woman!”

“What’s the matter with you, Vernon?” Petunia stumbled down the stairs, evidently weary, having just woken up from her nap.

“We’re leaving now. We’ve got a new customer…and those people said you have to accept this one or the deal is off. I think he’s really important…so get dressed. And hurry up! And get the boy ready too!” stormed Vernon.

 “All right, all right. Don’t get your pants all wound up,” said Petunia, then sickeningly sweetly called up the stairs, “Harry dear, we need to go. Could you please come down?”

“Me come!” said Harry. That stupid boy didn’t even know how to talk. Thank God they had written that he was two, instead of the four he had just turned. The little boy scrambled down the stairs, his eyes wide with excitement. “Where we going, Aun’ Pe’uni?”

“Never you mind. Have you got your best outfit on? Hurry, boy,” said Petunia, rushed, not knowing what would happen if Vernon blew a gasket. Well, she did have some idea…and it wasn’t pretty.

“I done, Aun’ Pe’uni!” It would have to do. Maybe the customer would like messy hair? Now, that was a thought. She snapped out of her musings when she heard Vernon honking the car horn. Definitely not a good sign. “C’mon Harry. We have to go.”

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It took half an hour to get there. Thankfully, they were the first ones there. Petunia would die of shame if she was ever late to a sale like this. Though technically…this would be only a one-time thing.

After waiting for about five minutes, a Porsche drove up, and parked in the designated spot right beside their Mercedes. The man stepped out of a car, seeming to glide out. He walked over to Vernon.

`Vernon Dursley, I presume?” The man said in a high fluty tone.

“Yes. And you are…Mr. Prince?” stuttered Vernon. If they could close this deal…Vernon could just see the money pouring down.

Petunia stepped forward, and stuck out her hand. “I’m Petunia Dursley.”

Rainer Prince (also known as Severus Snape) took the hand almost distastefully. “Nice to meet you, Mrs. Dursley.”

“So Mr. Prince, why would you like to…enter into an agreement over this child?” asked Petunia. Vernon almost screamed in frustration. How could she be so stupid?

Mr. Prince laughed. “He reminds me of my younger brother…who passed on quite a while ago. And…as I am unable to have children, I would like an heir to my estate. Of course, the child will be brought up the way I was: with corporal punishment. Children often seem to need a good hit before they’re ready to behave, don’t you agree?”

Petunia’s eyes gleamed. “Yes, yes, how wonderfully adept you are, Mr. Prince!”

“Now, Mr. Dursley, how much do you propose for me to give you in exchange for this child?” asked the man.

“Umm…if you’ll please give us a second. I need to consult with my wife,” mumbled Vernon. “Petunia?”

“ask for $100 000. He can afford it; look at him!”

“Sir, for the meagre sum of $100 000, we will be willing to hand this child over to you,” said Vernon, his marketing mode on.

Behind the mental mask, Severus blanched. $100 000? “$10 000 isn’t even worth that much,” he replied, withholding his normal sneer. God, Petunia would recognize that in a second!

Vernon replied, “How about $50 000?”

Severus quickly shot off, “$20 000.” He was hoping oh-so-desperately they’d take it. Quickly too, since he could see the two Death Eaters inching towards them.

“Deal,” stated Vernon. The flow of cash changed hands quickly. As Severus turned to grab Harry, the Death Eaters rushed towards them and yelled, “Stay where you are! Nobody move!”

“Stupid Muggles,” muttered Nott. “Evan Dursley, eh? You don’t even have a nephew, Dursley!”

“But you do, Ms. Evans. Lily Evans’s son, HARRY POTTER!” cried Goyle.

Severus wished his wand was within reach…now he’d give himself away through his wandless and silent spell. But before he could, a ringing “STUPEFY!” echoed in the air.