There is still one more chapter (the epilogue)!!

Chapter 46: The Great Snape Escape

Harry could feel himself being dragged in to the crushing darkness, but he could also feel Snape trying in vain to kick him off. Harry had done side along apparition before, but never like this.

He could feel himself and his lungs expanding as the touched down and took a deep breath, almost letting go, but felt Snape begin to turn at once. He took another deep breath and wrapped himself tighter around Snape’s leg, knowing that he had to be careful or he would end up getting spliced, not something he wanted to experience.

When they touched down again, Harry pulled as hard as he could on Snape’s leg knocking him over and preventing him momentarily from dissaperating again.

“This is ridiculous!” He yelled in Snape’s face, “Stop running and be a man.”

Harry was slightly out of breath and a little wobbly on his feet as he arose and faced Snape. He fell to his knees and his eyes landed on something as he struggled to stand again. He pocketed the item and got to his feet.

“What is wrong with you?” He asked shrilly, “Why are you running you coward? Why are you trying to take power, and why do you hate me so much you are trying to kill me?” Harry bombarded him with questions. As he looked around trying to figure out where they were.

Snape’s face was once again a mask, a sneer, as he regained his composure. “I am not a coward,” He began, “I just have a deep seated sense of survival and knew that staying greatly diminished that, no thanks to you.” He ran his fingers through his greasy hair, and Harry wildly thought that he was glad he hadn’t grabbed Severus’ hand, he would never have managed to stay on. “As for your other questions they are not important.” He sneered again and reached for his wand.

“Oh I think they are.” Harry said softly as he pulled out not only his wand, but also Snape’s. He motioned for Snape to sit down as Harry sat down under the tree.

“Why did you bring us here.” Harry asked, realizing that they were at Hogwarts at the tree right on the edge of the lake where lived the giant Squid. “And how did you get us here? You are not supposed to be able to apperate in or out of Hogwarts.” Harry said smiling to himself thinking that Hermione would be proud.

Severus seeing nothing else to do sat down next to Harry, looking out over the water. Harry took that moment while Snape was distracted to put his wand to his wrist. “I am fine, I am with him, I have his wand and we are at Hogwarts by lake. Keep your distance for the moment.” He knew they would be confused as to how they got on to the grounds and to the lake in such a short period of time, but he had to let them know he was ok, and more importantly hear the whole story. He wanted no interruptions.

“I loved your mother from the first day I laid eyes on her.” Snape said suddenly, catching Harry by surprise. “But I was a pureblood and although my family was poorer than the Weasley’s, we still had ‘standards’.” He frowned at the memory.

“I knew that even showing a hint of attraction to her would get her killed to punish me. So I did everything I was supposed to, and acted how I was supposed to act, which pushed her farther and farther away, as if I even had a chance to begin with. She hated me and everything I represented, I was a Slytherin.” He said the last word with such distaste.

Seeing Harry’s confused look Snape said, “On the day that I was sorted, the sorting hat had every intention of placing me in Ravenclaw, I begged it to put me in Slytherin, and it did. I wish I had just taken the shame of not being in Slytherin, maybe things would have been different.” Harry was appalled to see tears streaking his face.

“I never had a chance with your mother, but as long as she was not with Potter, that was all I cared about.”

“Why did my father hate you so much?” Harry asked, interrupting Snape.

Snape laughed coldly, “It was a game, at first anyway. James Potter found out of my love for Lily, and he went after her because it. He wanted to rub it in my face that he could have what I would never get even if he really didn’t want it.”

“That’s not true.” Harry said his voice dangerously low. “My father loved my mother.”

“Eventually he did, you mother was very easy to love, but at first, no at first it was a game, to show he was better than me.” Snape said bitterly. “I was seriously considering giving up being a Death Eater, and taking the consequences when I found out of Lily and James engagement. And then she had you.” He had angry tears streaming down his face. “Throwing it in my face that he had her, and not me, you should have been my son, not Potters.” He yelled, spittle flying everywhere, and Harry feeling sick was reminded of the vision he saw while trying to reach the Founders portraits.

“Did you ever go and see my mother, after I was born?” Harry asked, not wanting to know the answer, but asking the question anyway.

“Yes I did.” Snape said gently, now staring at Harry, as if he could see in the man the baby of yesterday. “I told her how I felt, and how I had felt all of those years. I begged her to come with me, and to live with me, that we would leave England for ever, go someplace where no one would find us. I was a fool.” He put his head in his hands.

“What did she say?” Harry asked, mesmerized, still tightly clutching both wands.

“She said that she couldn’t of course, that she loved her family, and it wouldn’t be that easy just to leave. She told me to leave and never come back. She had tears in her eyes when she said this. She wasn’t a cruel person. She was never cruel.” He took a deep breath and continued, “I told her about the prophecy, and about Voldemort’s plan. I told her to get a Secret Keeper. I told her to get someone that she trusted. Why did she get Pettigrew, I knew he was double crossing, why didn’t I tell her, warn her.” He broke into sobs, the guilt and remorse of his past mistakes broke through the flood gates. There was no holding back his pain, and Harry could feel it.

“I could have saved her.” He whispered miserably. “I wish I was dead, like her.”

“But she is not dead.” protested Harry, “They all came back when Voldemort’s wand was destroyed.”

“I know.” Snape said, still sounding miserable, “And now I have to watch it all over again, another baby that isn’t mine.” He whispered almost inaudibly.

“What did you say?” Harry asked, his voice catching in his throat.

“You didn’t know?” Snape asked incredulously, “With Draco teaching you Occlumency and Legilimens, you are telling me you never dove into her mind?” Snape laughed sardonically, “Yes Potter, your mother is pregnant and has been for more than a month.” He paused for a moment, bitterness and cruelty in his voice as he continued. “She was pregnant when he killed her too. I don’t think that she even knew, I realized when I went to visit her, she had just conceived.”

Harry’s jaw hit the floor he was in so much shock. He almost didn’t notice Severus lunge for his wand.

“Sit down.” Harry said coldly, berating himself for loosing his focus.

“How did you apparate onto the grounds?” Harry asked, feeling he was losing his opportunity to find out how it had happened.

“You can’t apparate in or onto water, so the boundary goes to the lake, but the lake is not as full as it used to be when the spell was cast, so there is a small place where you can land if you know it is there. I found it on accident one night running from your father.” Snape told him.

“You haven’t told me what this has anything to do with you rising to power or wanting to kill me.” Harry asked.

“Don’t you get it?” Snape asked angrily, “I don’t want to rise to power, I just want Lily, and you and your father are in the way.”

“I told you no Severus.” I soft voice said from behind them.

Harry whipped around to face his mother, giving Snape the chance to grab his wand from Harry.

“Severus NO!!” Lily screamed as Snape pointed his wand at Harry.

Snape looked up at Lily, and his wand wavered for a moment, then a hard look came over his face, “If I can’t have you, neither can they!” He screamed, his face contorted in rage as he pointed his wand at Lily Potter, “Avada Kadavra!” He bellowed, and green light filled the air, momentarily blinding Harry.

“NO!!” He screamed, fear causing his heart to leap into his throat.

He couldn’t figure out why there was so much green smoke everywhere, but he continued to push his way through it unable to see, but unable to just stand still. At last the smoke cleared enough for him to see an unmoving body lying on the ground, under the tree.

“No, no, no.” He crooned over and over as he ran towards the prone form.

As he reached the figure and dropped to his knees he heard his name called softly. He ignored the phantom voice, hardly believing his eyes.

In front of him, eyes open in a vacant stare was the unmoving body of Severus Snape. He looked at peace with the world that he had so struggled against throughout his life.

“Harry.” He heard his name called again, and this time he did not ignore the soft voice. Still finding it difficult to see, he slowly made his way towards the soft voice.

He so the shape of a woman kneeling over something on the ground. He made his way closer.

“Ginny!” He called out when he realized it was her, “Ginny, what are you doing – “ but the question died in his throat. Ginny was kneeling over the body of his mother, tears streaking down her face. Harry could heard a splash of water and looked up as a mermaid dove back under the water.

“She was hit.” Ginny said, her voice shaky, “She fell into the water, and sank and the Merpeople brought he back.”

Harry gingerly reached down and picked up the lifeless body of his mother, tears falling down his face. He layed her down under the tree near the edge of the water.

“I just got her back, how can she be taken from me?” He asked in pain, his tears falling on his mother’s face. Her eyes were closed and she could have been sleeping had it not been for the lack of breathing.

Suddenly he remembered what Snape had said earlier and he pulled up his mothers shirt, exposing her slightly rounded belly, just beginning to show the first tell tale signs of her pregnancy. He noticed a faint mark on her flesh, but ignored it. He put his hand on her stomach, but could feel no signs of life.

He broke down in new tears, not only for the loss of the mother he had just gained back, but the loss of the sibling he would never know. He put his head against her stomach and cried.

Suddenly he felt a sharp searing pain through his scar that caused him to jerk back in pain, his eyes open wide, and for a split second he thought she was on fire. He body was surrounded in a bright light the seemed to be coming from inside of her. The light dimmed away, and he started to open his mouth to comment on how weird that was when he saw her take a deep breath in, and then another. She opened her eyes and stared into her son’s face.

She put her hand on her still exposed stomach and Harry could now see that the mark he had failed to pay attention to earlier was a lightening bolt shaped scar. He fainted dead away.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

When he came to he was laying in the infirmary in the castle, several faces crowded around his.

“Mum!” He called out, not caring about anyone else. “Mum!” He called again.

“I’m right here dear.” She said to his left. He saw her laying on the bed right next to him.

“How are you?” How is – “

“Everybody OUT!!” Madame Pompfry yelled, interrupting him. She shooed everyone but James and Ginny, both of whom refused to leave.

“The baby is fine, Harry.” Lily said laughing.

“Good.” Harry said, “What happened?” He demanded.

“I’m not exactly sure.” Lily said, frowning.

“I am.” Ginny said, “I saw the whole thing.”

“You and Snape where facing each other, Snape was facing the water, but you were closer, you didn’t hear your mother and I apparated in.”

“How did you know where to go?” Harry asked her.

“I saw Severus do it all those years ago, James and Sirius didn’t see, but I did, and I never told them.” Lily said casting her eyes down.

“When Snape turned on her, he caught her by surprise, she was so worried about you, she never thought he would turn on her,” Ginny continued, staring between Harry and Lily, “The spell hit her in the stomach, but it was weird, it was almost like it went through her, it almost hit me.” She added softly.

Harry’s face drained of color.

“When the spell hit the water,” She continued fast before he could say anything, “It created that thick greenish mist that we couldn’t see through.”

“How did Snape die though?” Harry asked persistently.

Ginny gave him a harassed look, “I was just getting to that. As he cast his spell, I cast one too, I thought he was going for you, I hadn’t even comprehended that he had turned, that was how I almost got hit, but it missed me by a hair, I could feel it go past.”

“Ginny.” Harry said and held out his arms, and she obligingly climbed into them.

James who had been sitting by his wife’s side, got up, kissed her forehead, patted her belly and said, “You said Snape was dead?”

When both Harry and Ginny nodded, he said, “Ok, we need to go get him and bring him in, we can’t just leave him there.”

Harry told him where to find his body, then he and Ginny lay in silence. His arms still wrapped around her, thankful that she was still alive.

Several minutes later, James came walked back into the room” looking worried. “His body is gone.” He said, “No signs of dragging, I can see where it was from the impression of the grass, but it is not there now. It is gone.”

Harry looked at him, and for the second time that day, fainted dead away.