Chapter 411: The Same Breed of Man
In the stark white void of the Lands Between, an ink-black animal streaked across the landscape like a silent shadow. While Sean's soul was racing through the world behind the Veil, his physical body remained in a deep, undisturbed slumber in the hospital wing.
Professor Dumbledore leaned against a doorway in the castle, his silver beard twitching slightly.
"Yes... dreams are such wondrous things. They allow a soul to travel to any realm imaginable. Save, perhaps, for the dreams of another wizard."
Dumbledore held a warm magical lantern aloft. After a final check of the sleeping students, he stepped out into the drafty corridor where the nighttime wind whistled through the stone.
"But then, there are always exceptions to the rule," he murmured to himself. "It seems I might be due for a pleasant dream of my own tonight."
In the distance, Dumbledore's tall, thin frame cast a long shadow against the wall. A moment later, that shadow was eclipsed by another.
"Dumbledore?"
Severus Snape stood in the center of the hall, his face a mask of cold suspicion as he surveyed the Headmaster. For the first time in years, the old wizard looked a bit caught off guard.
"Ah, Severus. Good evening to you," Dumbledore said, fixing his usual pleasant smile into place.
Snape let out a sharp snort but offered no greeting. He turned his gaze toward the hospital wing. Aside from the infirmary, what else on the second floor would draw the Headmaster out at this hour?
I suppose our 'Saviour Potter' has gone and broken another limb, Snape thought. Hmph.
His black robes billowed behind him as he turned, the fabric looking like dark waves under the moonlight. Dumbledore remained where he was, glancing briefly at a nearby portrait of a knight before looking back at the brilliant moon through the window. The lines on his face seemed to soften and relax into a natural weariness.
Minutes passed. Dumbledore stood with his fingers interlaced, waiting. Sure enough, the silence was shattered by a low, vibrating roar of suppressed rage.
"DUMBLEDORE!"
Snape came charging back down the corridor, his fury visible in every stride.
"What in Merlin's name have you done?!"
"Severus, please. Calm yourself," Dumbledore said softly.
"He was supposed to be in the dungeons serving his detention!" Snape hissed, leaning in until he was inches from the Headmaster's face. His voice sounded like it was being squeezed through gritted teeth. "He was not supposed to be with you, and he most certainly was not supposed to be in the hospital wing!"
"It was an accident, Severus," Dumbledore explained.
"An accident? Hah! One of your 'inevitable' accidents, I take it? Since when has the Greatest White Wizard of the Age stooped so low as to use a child for his errands?" Snape's black eyes were fixed on Dumbledore's with a lethal intensity.
"You need not think so poorly of me, Severus. You know as well as I that I am unworthy of such lofty titles," Dumbledore said slowly.
"Let him go..."
A long silence followed before Snape managed to force the words out.
"Severus." Dumbledore's expression finally crumbled into one of genuine pain. "I had hoped you, of all people, would understand."
The corridor was silent. Not even the owls perched on the high ledges stirred at the sound of their low conversation.
"He is foolish enough to try, but I am not," Snape spat. "You believe everything is a matter of 'destiny,' Albus. But the truly foolish part is that the boy thinks exactly like you do."
Snape stared at the Headmaster, his mind flashing to the image of the boy's arm in the hospital bed, stained with the residue of a curse. He knew exactly whose work that was.
A wave of unprecedented panic washed over Snape. A voice seemed to whisper in his ear—the voice of a man who acted like a knight, saying: 'Ah, Severus, how can I make you see? This is what must be faced... because to love someone is to create a form of belief. It is to serve a deity that might fall at any moment...'
The two men stood in a heavy, somber silence until Dumbledore finally gave a slow shake of his head.
"In all these years, how many men and women have we seen fall? Hogwarts has been fortunate, but things rarely go according to plan." Dumbledore's gaze turned profound.
"It shouldn't be his burden!" Snape erupted.
"A fascinating point, Severus. But when an avalanche descends from a mountain, it does not stop to check if it is crushing a rabbit or a snow fox." Dumbledore tapped his own forearm meaningfully.
Another long silence. Dumbledore watched Snape, eventually letting out a heavy sigh.
"I believe that in one regard, our goals are identical, Severus. We must leave some hope for the future. I ask you once more to understand: there is no other way to ensure the danger falls on me rather than him. I am not the greatest wizard of this century. If I could, I would gladly hand the title to any wizard eager enough to take it. But Severus... you know exactly whom I wish to see inherit it.
"If this talk has given you the answers you seek, then let us part for the night. I must get some rest; an old man needs his dreams more than most."
Snape remained in the shadows of the corridor. He had understood the unspoken nuances of Dumbledore's words, yet he couldn't help one final accusation:
"If that is the case, why was he with you at all?"
"Mmm..." Dumbledore's expression turned uncharacteristically sheepish. "I was... coerced, Severus."
"You're saying he demanded to go with you? To face those struggles and place himself in the path of the most lethal magic...?" Snape began with a sneer, but as the words left his mouth, his voice dropped an octave. He realized he had just stumbled upon the truth of the boy's character.
"Exactly so, Severus," Dumbledore added, seeing the realization on the Potions Master's face.
"Sean Green..."
Snape ground the name out between his teeth.
Dumbledore popped a Lemon Sherbet into his mouth with a look of quiet satisfaction and watched as Snape turned and marched back toward the hospital wing.
When facing Severus, Dumbledore was always willing to say a bit more than usual. Severus Snape had stood by Albus Dumbledore for many years; though Snape didn't know it, his heart had long since been swayed, moving steadily in the direction Dumbledore had always hoped.
They had become the same breed of man.
When exactly that change had happened, perhaps neither of them could say. But Dumbledore believed that when the world finally shifted and the darkness returned in full, Severus Snape would be the final young wizard in whom he could place his absolute hope.
"I trust Severus." In the years to come, those words would become the ironclad testament of Dumbledore's will.
The night was clear and bright. Dumbledore turned to head toward his office, but he froze when he saw a familiar face returning from the direction of the infirmary.
"Minerva! Ah... still awake, I see?" Dumbledore said, surreptitiously tucking his bag of sweets away.
"A Ravenclaw was found out of bed tonight. Shortly after, his name appeared on a formal leave-of-absence list," Professor McGonagall said, her voice dripping with dangerous intent. "I trust you aren't going to tell me this is a coincidence, Headmaster?"
Dumbledore's joyful mood vanished instantly.
[End of Chapter 411]
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