As Snape mused over the wisdom of letting Potter’s little friends visit, Dobby set about tidying up the small cottage.
“Professor, sir,” Dobby intoned, “Dobby is needing to tell you something, sir.”
Snape paused, raising an eyebrow at the elf.
“Young master Malfoy, sir,” Dobby said, swallowing loudly, “before he disappeared, sir,” Dobby paused, fairly quivering with fear at what he was about to divulge about his previous masters.
“Yes?” Snape prompted.
“He… he has been saying things, Professor, bad things.” Dobby wrung his hands nervously, forging onward in a rush. “He is saying that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named knows where Harry Potter and The Spy is. He is saying he is coming for you, sir.”
Just then, a shriek of terror reverberated through the cottage.
“Potter, wake up. Wake up!” Snape shouted, shaking the boy’s shoulder. Potter had carelessly fallen asleep on top of his covers, not even bothering to change into night clothes. Snape looked on in disapproval as Potter thrashed wildly on the bed, caught in the talons of some terrible vision.
“Potter!” Snape yelled.
Potter’s eyes snapped open, and in the next instant, Snape found himself stumbling backward, unable to breath, as alarmingly strong fingers closed tightly around his neck. Choking, Snape tried to pry the fingers from his neck as his eyes focused on the crazed, deranged teenager in front of him. More alarming than the unexpectedness of Potter’s attack was the unnerving familiarity of the red glint that gleamed behind the dull green eyes. Snape glanced to the lightening shaped scar on Potter’s forehead and felt revulsion pulse through him; the scar was alive, pulsing and writhing as if a live snake were trapped beneath the skin.
There was a loud bang, and Potter fell to the bed.
Snape gasped for air and backed away, massaging his abraded skin as he alternately coughed and inhaled deep lungfuls of air, his pulse beating frantically as blood rushed eagerly to his brain. He swallowed once, twice, relieved that his trachea had not been crushed in the attack. He was sure there’d be heavy bruising by morning. Looking across the room at Potter, he saw the boy lying motionless on the bed, bound by some form of elf magic. Potter’s red, hate-filled eyes were trained on Snape, a promise of vengeance in their depths.
“Professor,” Dobby implored, touching Snape’s elbow and glancing toward the door with his orblike eyes.
Snape shook his head to clear it. He forced himself to look away from the boy before following Dobby into the hallway and shutting the door behind them.
“Harry Potter is not himself, sir,” Dobby said, wrapping his arms around himself in a protective gesture. ”Dobby sees evil in Harry Potter, sir. Dobby is not seeing the real Harry Potter, sir.”
“I know,” Snape replied, his voice raspy as he continued to cough and rub at his pained neck. He cleared his throat and tried again. “It appears that the Dark Lord has invaded his mind. Clearly, the Dark Lord wants to use him as a weapon.” Snape forced out, clearing his throat once again. He began to pace as he thought aloud. “If you had not been here, Dobby, the Dark Lord might have succeeded.” Snape shuddered to think what the Dark Lord might have made the boy do next.
Snape paused near a shelf of knick-knacks, picking up a sea shell and fighting the urge to crush it in his fist. Instead, he set it back down and continued pacing. He had not stolen Potter from the Dark Lord’s clutches just to have the madman destroy him from a distance.
“Dammit,” Snape cursed, anger welling within him. “The mind strengthening potion will not be ready until tomorrow evening. And the boy is unable to do Occlumency.” Snape slammed his hand against the door frame in frustration. “His chances of resisting the Dark Lord are non-existent.”
“Professor Snape is a master occlumens,” Dobby commented.
“For all the good it does. The boy cannot learn. Not on the best of days, and certainly not in the state he’s in now,” Snape lamented.
“Harry Potter doesn’t need to learn, sir, only you is required.”
“What?” Snape snapped, turning to stare incredulously at the house elf. “Speak sense!”
“Your magic saved Harry Potter, sir. And Harry Potter’s magic saved you. You two is linked together, sir. You is able to occlude for him.”
Snape raised an eyebrow in surprise. Aside from not liking the idea of being linked to anyone, much less the spawn of James Potter, Dobby did raise an interesting, if distasteful, idea. “And how do you propose I occlude for him? In case you have failed to notice, Potter is currently being possessed by the Dark Lord, who has every intension of exacting my demise.”
“Dobby is knowing the way, sir. Dobby is telling you what you needs to do, sir.”
Still cursing, Snape pushed the door to Potter’s room open, determined to get this over with as quickly as possible. Potter’s vengeful gaze followed Snape across the small room until Snape was behind Potter and out of the boy’s line of sight. Dobby’s magic still held Potter firmly in place.
With a scowl on his face, Snape waited for Dobby’s nod. When it came, Snape propped Potter up from behind, forcing the teen into a sitting position. Grunting in annoyance, he slid in behind the boy, resting his back against the wall while letting Potter’s rigid body lean back against his broad chest. Snape fought the urge to push the boy away. Never in a million years did he think he’d find himself in such an intolerable position. Exhaling loudly, he crossed Potter’s arms across the teen’s chest and then gripped the boys wrists while positioning his heels over Potter’s shins, effectively caging the teen from behind. At Snape’s nod of readiness, Dobby released the body bind.
For a moment, Potter was still; then he exploded like a caged lion. Snape gritted his teeth and held on tight, struggling to restrain Potter’s arching and flailing body and keep the boy from escaping his grasp. Snape pressed his lips together and squeezed his eyes shut, fighting to gain entrance into Potter’s mind. It seemed that the link between Snape and Potter required physical contact, as it had that first night when Snape had transferred his magic to Harry, and also when Harry had given some of that magic back. Dobby insisted that the more physical contact between the two of them, the quicker Snape would be able to get inside of Potter’s mind and occlude for the both of them.
Snape gritted his teeth as Potter continued to struggle and Snape fought to find a way in. For a boy who could not occlude, his shields were relatively strong. Snape suspected the Dark Lord had more to do with that than Potter, though. Snape felt like he was trying to break through a stone fortress. Finally, he found a crack in the foundation and wheedled his way inside. As soon as he was in, Potter’s struggles increased. It was as if the Dark Lord could sense the unwelcome intrusion.
Snape found himself standing in a large, dimly lit space, with concrete floors and walls, empty of furniture. ‘Potter,’ Snape called out into the open space, walking deeper in. ‘Potter, where are you?’
A slight movement in the corner caught his eye. He strode toward it and squatted down in front of a young boy, sitting with his knees pulled up to his chest.
‘You are Harry Potter, are you not?’
The young boy nodded and wiped his nose on the arm of his dirty flannel shirt, which was at least three sizes too large for him. He sniffed and tried to blink back the tears that coursed down his grimy face.
‘How old are you?’
‘Four.’
‘Do you know who I am?’
‘No.’
Just then, a door materialized to the right of them, startling both of them.
Snape paused a moment, studying it. Then he looked back at the young boy. ‘Can you take me through that door?’
The boy shuddered and huddled in on himself, shaking his head. ‘There are bad people in there.’
‘That’s why I’m here,’ Snape said, hoping his voice sounded comforting to the child, but doubted that it did. ‘I am here to help you leave this place, go someplace better, nicer. Someplace safe.’
The Potter-child didn’t looked convinced. ‘There is no place safe,’ he muttered. ‘Never was, ‘cept maybe before mum and dad died.’
‘Well, there is now,’ Snape said confidently as he got to his feet. He held out his hand out to the boy and waited. Finally, the boy took it and Snape pulled him up. As soon as the child was standing, he dropped Snape’s hand. Resolutely, he walked to the door but then hesitated.
‘Come on,’ Snape encouraged, ‘we’ll open the door together. On the count of three, then. One, two, three.’
Young Harry had never been so afraid in all his life. He knew, without a doubt, that whatever was behind that door was out to get him. On the other hand, he knew that the evil force would come for him eventually anyway. One way or the other, he was going to have to face it. Better to do it now while he had someone with him who just might be able to fight the bad things behind the door for once.
As soon as the door opened, several things happened at once. Snape felt the Dark Lord’s presence, pervasive and evil, as well as heard his echoes of rage. The young Potter disappeared, while the real Potter in his arms went completely limp. Snape braced for a mental, rather than physical, attack, knowing that the Dark Lord had released Potter in favor of going after Snape directly. And although Snape was ready, he couldn’t do this alone.
‘Potter, get your arse out here. I need your help.’
Teenage Potter appeared and stood next to Snape. Black mist swirled at their feet, rising ominously into the air around them. And while they could not see the Dark Lord, they could clearly sense his menace.
‘Well, well, well. Imagine finding you here, Severussss, my slippery friend, or should I say, my newest enemy,’ the high-pitch voice cackled.
‘Potter, don’t listen to him. Focus on me, stay with me.’
Potter shuffled in closer to Snape, as if seeking his protection.
‘You thought you could save the boy, Severusss? How noble of you. Now you will both pay.’
‘Potter! What did you do to drive the Dark Lord out of your mind at the Ministry?’
‘I… I’m not sure…’
‘Think, Potter! What went through your head?’
‘You two pathetic do-gooders think you can fight me? ME? The most powerful wizard that ever lived?’
‘Ignore him, Potter! Concentrate!’
Memories began to swirl around them, Potter’s memories, of that day in the ministry. Snape watched as Potter ran through the Hall of Prophesies looking for Black, instead finding only a glowing orb inscribed with his name. The scene changed to a dimly lit circular chamber surrounded by doors, some with glowing red ‘X’s on them.
‘Potter, focus on the end!’ Snape bellowed, trying to ignore the closing-in feeling of the Dark Lord’s wrath pressing in on them.
Images spun out around them. Potter and his friends racing through various rooms, fighting off curses. The veil on the dais. The ensuing battle. The members of the Order arriving. Potter and Black fighting together. Bellatrix’s curse. Potter running after her. The arrival of the Dark Lord and Dumbledore.
‘You are weak!’ Voldemort shouted. ‘Your pathetic attempts at…’
‘That’s it, Potter, fight him now like you did then.’
‘You will not win! You will never win against me…’
“Potter! What did you do when he invaded your mind? What did you see?”
The memories faded away; there was nothing but mist to take their place. Clearly Potter was struggling to remember.
‘Think, Potter! Remember!’
‘You will lose!’ the Dark Lord taunted.
And there it was, a golden mist, populated by faces: Miss Granger and the youngest Weasley laughing by a fire; Molly Weasley saying “Here you go, Harry, dear,” while holding out a steaming bowl of soup; Sirius patting Potter on the shoulder, a proud smile on his weathered face; Hagrid and Fang bounding forward in welcome; the Weasley twins shooting off firecrackers in the Great Hall; Luna Lovegood skipping down the corridor—one shoe pink the other orange; the whimsical faces of Lily Evans—here Snape’s heart contracted in pain—and James Potter with their arms around each other, smiling happily for the camera; and much to Snape’s surprise, his very own face shimmering into being and saying, “I’ll thank you to remember that we are even now, Potter.”
‘Nooooooo!’ Voldemort’s voice echoed in an anguished lament.
Then, everything shattered in a dazzling display of white light. Pressure waves rippled out around them, the world tilted on its axis, and Snape found himself being ejected from Potter’s mind along with everything else.