Harry waited impatiently as Snape stared at Dumbledore, his heart pounding loudly in his ears. He would finally learn the one answer Dumbledore had refused to share with him, to the one question he had been asking for years: why had the headmaster placed his trust in the Death Eater who had killed him?
Snape did not answer immediately, but continued to hold Dumbledore’s unusually intent gaze. Dumbledore was silent as well, as he stared into Snape’s glittering black eyes. Harry glanced back and forth between them, and realized with a start that one was probing the mind of the other. He suddenly wondered if he would indeed find the answers he sought, or if their silent communication would once again leave him questioning them both.
After a long while Dumbledore nodded, and broke the intense eye contact. Snape sucked in a deep breath and let his head fall to his chest. Harry thought the young Death Eater was fighting to control his emotions; but when Snape looked up again, his face was a passive mask, and only a lingering brightness in his eyes revealed any sign of an internal struggle.
“I see,” said Dumbledore softly, leaning back and adjusting his glasses. “I am so sorry, Severus. I know the pain you are feeling.” Snape inclined his head, his lips pressed tightly together.
Aberforth Dumbledore stomped over, interrupting the strange bond that had formed between the two unlikely men. “What’s going on, Albus? What’s he spinning for you?” He glared at Snape, skepticism written plainly across his face.
“It’s okay, Aberforth,” Dumbledore told his brother quietly. “He’s not spinning any tales tonight. I know his mind.” Dumbledore waved his wand and released the ropes binding Snape to the chair; Snape rubbed his arms, but did not get up, nor did he draw his wand.
Aberforth snorted loudly. “Albus, this boy was an accomplished Occlumens by the time he sat his O.W.L.S. and you know it. He just wants you to feel sorry enough to trust him.”
Snape glared at Aberforth, opening his mouth to retort, but Dumbledore stopped him with his hand. “No, Aberforth, you are wrong,” said the headmaster. “A man can hide his thoughts and feelings with Occlumency, but he cannot manufacture them. Severus has suffered a devastating loss, and I choose to accept his offer “ and trust his reasons for it.”
Snape again inclined his head toward Dumbledore, and once more Harry thought he saw a flicker of emotion pass across the Death Eater’s pallid face. Harry wondered what had happened between Snape and Dumbledore, what terrible loss Snape had suffered that had lead him to Dumbledore’s doorstep that night and solidified the headmaster’s faith. Harry suspected this memory was not going to answer that question, and he watched in frustration as Dumbledore accepted Snape into the Order of the Phoenix.
“I don’t trust him,” grumbled Aberforth, voicing Harry’s own thoughts. “Once a Death Eater, always a Death Eater. Voldemort won’t let him go that easily.”
“No, he won’t,” Dumbledore agreed, looking thoughtful. “Remember Regulus Black.”
Harry turned toward Dumbledore, surprised by the sudden reference to Sirius’s brother. Sirius had told him that Regulus tried to leave the Death Eaters, but that Voldemort had killed the younger Black brother himself for deserting. Was that what Dumbledore was referring to? Why?
“You aren’t suggesting - ” Aberforth began, scowling.
“No, I’m not,” said Dumbledore quickly, and Snape looked at him quizzically. “It would look suspicious. No, I think Severus is better off seen alive than presumed dead. We could use his help.”
Harry frowned, confused by the headmaster’s enigmatic words. “So what are you thinking?” asked Aberforth, apparently understanding Dumbledore better than Harry did.
Dumbledore seemed to be wrestling with his next words. “I think that it would be extremely useful to have a spy among the Death Eaters.”
Snape jumped up immediately, his eyes flashing. “I can’t go back,” he spat, his voice taut with emotion. “I won’t. Don’t ask me to, not after what they did.” He began to pace the room, obviously agitated.
Dumbledore sighed heavily. “I’m sorry, Severus, but I think it’s the best plan for everyone. We can hide you, but something tells me we wouldn’t fool anyone this time, and we’d all be in danger.”
Snape glared at Dumbledore. “You must realize they won’t take me back. After all that’s happened, after speaking with you “ the Dark Lord will kill me if I return.”
“Not if you bring him valuable information,” suggested Dumbledore. He waited for Snape’s reaction; he got Aberforth’s first.
“Albus! You can’t possible think to share - ” started the barman, his voice rising in surprise.
“The prophecy?” breathed Snape disbelievingly. “You wouldn’t.”
Dumbledore took a deep breath, and Harry held his: surely this wasn’t how it happened? Dumbledore had told him Snape had only heard the first half of the prophecy before being thrown out of the pub and reporting it to Voldemort. Yet from what Harry was now seeing, Snape had heard the entire prophecy, and Dumbledore himself was about to leak it to Voldemort.
“It would get you back into his group of Death Eaters, would it not?” asked Dumbledore. “Indeed, I suspect it might even elevate you to Voldemort’s inner circle. I think he would be very interested in hearing about this prophecy, and most pleased with the wizard who delivered to him.”
“Albus,” warned Aberforth. “You can’t share that prophecy, it’s our best hope now!”
“Oh, we won’t give it all up,” replied Dumbledore. “Just a bit. Just enough to get Severus back into the fold, and Voldemort worried.”
Snape was starting to look less shocked and more understanding. Aberforth, however, continued to protest.
“You’re condemning him to death, should he even consider such a reckless idea,” declared the barman. “Voldemort is a powerful Occlumens, he would break him easily.”
Dumbledore nodded as he looked appraisingly at Snape. “He might. But you’ve come a long way, have you not, Severus? Could you hold him?”
Snape nodded confidently. “I could.”
“What about the child the prophecy is referring to?” Aberforth demanded. “The couple who has defied him three times? If you hand Voldemort this information, you’re putting them all in grave danger.”
Dumbledore sighed heavily. “Yes, that is possible, even likely. However, it seems to me a risk worth taking. We can protect this couple and their child. But a spy so close to Voldemort would give us an incalculable advantage in the fight against him.”
Aberforth threw up his hands and walked away. “You’re placing too much faith in a Death Eater, Albus. It could be the end of us all, when we’ve just been given the advantage!”
Dumbledore acknowledged his brother with a gracious nod. “Perhaps we have been handed a second opportunity tonight as well, one that will prove just as important as the first. I am choosing to take that second chance, if it will lead to the downfall of Voldemort. What do you say, Severus?”
Snape didn’t even hesitate. “Of course I will. I’m your man.”
Dumbledore smiled sadly as he stood and held out his hand to Snape. Harry gaped, still slightly shocked to learn that Dumbledore had leaked the prophecy to Voldemort as a means to secure Snape as a spy. As Snape took the offered hand, Aberforth whirled around and growled, “Bind him!”
Both men looked up in surprise at the grizzled barman, who drew his wand and stalked back over to where they were standing. He glared at Snape. “Take an Unbreakable Vow, and I’ll trust you.”
“No - ” began Dumbledore sharply, but Snape cut him off.
“Absolutely. I will take the Vow.” Aberforth raised his eyebrows, startled. Harry was stunned. He knew that when an Unbreakable Vow was broken, it resulted in death. Snape was so willing to prove his loyalty that he was offering to take such a vow: he was prepared to die for Dumbledore.
Dumbledore dropped Snape’s hand as if it were hot. “I refuse your offer,” he said, his voice tight. “I require no such demonstration of Dark Magic to affirm your loyalty. I trust you now, Severus. I always hoped you would turn from the Dark path. You have taken the first steps, and I am proud of you.”
Aberforth reluctantly put his wand away, and Snape took a deep breath, as if he were relieved. He nodded, and once again his eyes glittered strangely. Harry was oddly moved by the scene; he never would have thought it was possible, but he was beginning to believe that Snape’s intentions might be genuine. It was his faith in Dumbledore which he now questioned.
“Now, to the details,” said Dumbledore, addressing his brother first. “Aberforth, this must remain our secret for now. I will not have Severus’s life placed in any more danger than it already is. We will also keep Sybill’s prophecy between ourselves. I have offered her the position at Hogwarts, so that she will be safe. No one else need know anything about this.”
Aberforth nodded curtly, and Dumbledore turned to Snape. “As for Voldemort, return to him tonight. Tell him you overheard the prophecy, but only share the beginning. He does not need to know about marking the chosen one, or the power which will defeat him; he will be worried enough by what you tell him.”
Harry watched Snape nod silently, still unable to comprehend what was happening in front of him.
“I will continue feeding you information about the Order which you can then report to Voldemort. It will be your job to do likewise.” Dumbledore looked pointedly at Snape.
“Of course,” said Snape softly.
“Good,” nodded Dumbledore. “You must be careful with what you share. You don’t want to reveal yourself, or the ruse will be over in a very deadly way. Now the last question is: which wizarding families are expecting children this July?”
“Frank and Alice Longbottom, for one,” Aberforth answered first, still looking reluctant.
“Lily Potter is expecting as well,” added Snape softly. Harry noticed that Snape did not use his father’s name, but only referred to his mother.
Dumbledore looked questioningly at Snape. “Yes, she is. That’s why you threw the fight, isn’t it?” Snape did not answer, and Harry tried to understand Dumbledore’s cryptic statement: Snape had been sent after his parents, and had failed on purpose? Harry realized that the memory Dumbledore had left him was creating as many questions as it did answers. He only hoped the other vials would provide the final pieces of the puzzle.
“We’ll have to protect them both then,” growled Aberforth. “Without alarming them, or tipping anyone off.”
“Yes, I’ll speak with them tonight,” replied Dumbledore. “I particularly want to talk to James Potter about his Invisibility Cloak.” He took a deep breath, ready to begin the charade he had just christened. “Severus, are you prepared?”
Snape smoothed his hands somewhat nervously on his robes. “I am.”
“You must protect this secret,” warned Dumbledore.
“I will,” nodded Snape, swallowing hard.
“Try,” said Dumbledore, and without warning he raised his wand at Snape and cried, “Legilimens!”
Harry saw Snape go rigid, and knew that he was fighting off Dumbledore’s attempt to break into his mind. Harry remembered his own lessons with the older man, as Snape had tried to show him how to protect his mind from Voldemort. Harry was a poor Occlumens; he was unable to set aside his feelings, and Snape had broken his weak defenses easily. It appeared Snape was indeed a strong Occlumens, and had solid defenses of his own. After a silent battle of wills, he finally threw Dumbledore out of his mind. The headmaster stepped backward, catching himself against the wall as he nodded approvingly. “Good. You can do this, Severus.”
Snape was breathing heavily. “I will not be easy,” he muttered, and Harry wondered if Snape was having regrets.
Dumbledore placed his hand on Snape’s shoulder, and smiled at him in compassion. “No, it won’t. But it will be right, in the end. Trust me.”
Snape looked at Dumbledore with the most open expression Harry had ever seen. “I do,” he said simply. Dumbledore appeared touched by Snape’s sincerity; Harry was too staggered by the scene to know what to think.
“All right, Aberforth,” said Dumbledore, gathering himself. “Let’s start this dangerous deception. Throw him out.”
Aberforth grinned, and grabbed Snape by the collar again. “With pleasure,” he growled, and dragged the young Death Eater out of the room. Snape gazed at Dumbledore one last time, his expression unreadable.
Dumbledore stayed behind. He closed his eyes and took a second deep breath, as if to reassure himself. “Merlin help me, I hope I’ve done right,” he whispered to the empty room.
Only Harry heard the headmaster’s plea, and he wanted to shout at Dumbledore that he had just made the biggest mistake of his “ and Harry’s “ life. Harry could hardly believe what he had just witnessed; he certainly didn’t understand any of it. Dumbledore left the room, his shoulders bearing the burden he would carry for the next sixteen years. An inky blackness descended on the scene, and Harry was left standing alone in the dark, just as confused as he had been when he entered the Pensieve.