"Draco! Don't be so rude!"
Narcissa Malfoy snapped softly at Draco Malfoy.
Hearing that, Severus Snape spoke slowly, "Actually, the moment you appeared at my doorstep, I already understood why you came. You want me to save Lucius, don't you?"
Draco nodded rapidly, his face full of eager hope.
"But the problem is," Snape shook his head, "according to the information I've received, he, and all those who had colluded or cooperated with the Death Eaters, weren't they all executed?"
As soon as Snape said this, the hope on Draco's face instantly collapsed, replaced by endless despair.
Tears kept falling from his gaunt face, eventually soaking his collar.
Meanwhile, Narcissa poured herself another glass of wine without a word. Only after draining it in one go did she speak, her face flushed, "That's what the Ministry of Magic announced in the Daily Prophet."
"It frightened me terribly at the time. We originally thought this time would be like before, that we could spend some money to bribe the Department of Magical Law Enforcement to help clear Lucius of his charges, or at least reduce his time in Azkaban. But we never expected…"
"Never expected Link would act so ruthlessly, leaving you no chance at all, and directly execute everyone, right?"
Snape continued along her words, a faint smile appearing at the corner of his lips. "That is exactly how Link is. He's a great leader, and when facing enemies, he never shows mercy."
"Most importantly, he reformed the Ministry of Magic, which has made it tightly united to a certain degree. That's why you no longer have any loopholes to exploit."
"But judging from your tone, Lucius might not be dead yet?"
"He's definitely not dead!"
Narcissa said with reddened eyes. "The Malfoy family has a special spell that can confirm the life status of its members."
"From the condition of the spell, Lucius has been having an extremely hard time lately, even on the verge of collapse. But he… he is still alive."
Snape sighed, poured himself a stronger restorative potion, and took a small sip.
"Then Link must be interrogating him, hoping to get more information about the remaining Death Eaters. After all, the Dark Lord hasn't completely died."
"That ambush at the Ministry by Link and Albus Dumbledore only pushed him to the brink of death. Now they must want to press the advantage… no, given their abilities, there's a high chance they've already succeeded!"
"You mean… the Dark Lord has already been…", Draco said, trembling.
The Dark Lord was the most powerful wizard he had ever seen, without question.
In his mind, even Dumbledore was definitely not his match.
Otherwise, how could Dumbledore have allowed him to rampage across Britain back then?
And now, the Dark Lord had been wiped out by Link and Dumbledore working together?
Just how powerful must Link be?
At the thought of this, Draco felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar, his whole body turning cold.
Hearing Draco's question, Snape's expression grew complicated as he grasped his own arm.
That was where his Dark Mark was branded.
It had once been the deepest pain of his life.
Not just mentally, but physically as well.
Because Lord Voldemort, who controlled the Dark Mark, could use it at any time to torment the Death Eaters.
But ever since Voldemort was ambushed by Link and Dumbledore at the Ministry, the mark had gradually calmed down.
By the beginning of last month, it had even completely gone silent.
That was why Snape had concluded that Voldemort might be dead.
But just a few days ago, the Dark Mark had begun to show signs of reawakening.
Only this time, it felt much gentler.
It no longer caused him pain.
That was clearly abnormal.
The only explanation was that someone else had taken control of the Dark Mark.
And that this new controller was far more "gentle" than Voldemort.
But how long could that "gentleness" last?
Snape didn't know, and he didn't dare to find out.
Because he understood that whatever secret lay behind it must be terrifying.
Seeing his expression, Draco swallowed hard, his face filled with fear.
"Severus, we're deeply saddened by the Dark Lord's defeat, but the most important thing now is to save Lucius!" Narcissa moved closer again, her voice choked with sobs.
"I've heard… I've heard that you have a good relationship with the Flamel family. And that Link Flamel, no, Lord Flamel, has always respected you. If it's you…"
As soon as she said this, the faint confusion in Snape's eyes instantly vanished, replaced by sharp clarity.
He cut her off, "You want me to plead with Link and ask him to release Lucius? Where did you get the idea that I could persuade Link?"
"Honestly, Narcissa, if you don't understand Link very well, I suggest you ask your son and let him tell you what kind of person Link is."
"I know, I do know. Link Flamel… he's a devil. But…"
Narcissa grabbed Snape's hand and collapsed at his feet, sobbing on the floor.
"Lucius is my husband… my most beloved husband…"
"Mother… Mother!"
Draco also lost control.
He rushed forward to help her up, but instead was pulled into her arms, and the two of them cried together.
Snape's breathing became uneven.
When he had first entered Hogwarts, Lucius had already been a Slytherin prefect.
After the Sorting Ceremony, the first Slytherin to greet him and shake his hand had been Lucius Malfoy.
And afterward, Lucius had always taken care of him during his school years.
It could be said that without Lucius, with Snape's withdrawn personality and half-blood status, he would never have survived in Slytherin.
It was only after Lucius graduated that Snape's school life gradually worsened.
James Potter and the others began to target him without restraint.
So even though Snape later realized that Lucius's kindness had been entirely because of his exceptional talent in potions, that it had all been a calculated investment, even though Lucius had behaved terribly after Voldemort's fall, even though he was arrogant, cowardly, and weak, even though he had betrayed his friends, Snape had always felt genuine gratitude toward him.
Now, seeing Lucius's wife and son crying in front of him, Snape couldn't help but recall Lucius as he had once been.
He let out a long breath.
Then he grabbed Narcissa's wrist and pried her fingers loose from his robes.
This action seemed to shatter all of Narcissa's remaining hope.
She cried out in despair, clutching her golden hair.
But at that moment, Snape bent down, helped both her and Draco up, and seated them back on the sofa.
He poured them more wine and firmly pressed the glasses into their hands.
"That's enough. Drink this, then listen to me."
Snape said calmly, the faint glow of Occlumency flickering wildly in his eyes.
Narcissa and Draco gradually calmed down, trembling as they drank.
"Perhaps… I mean perhaps," Snape said, "I might be able to help Lucius."
Narcissa suddenly sat upright, her face pale as paper, her eyes wide.
"Severus! Merlin's beard… Severus! You're really willing to help him?"
"I can try."
The moment Snape finished speaking, Narcissa threw down her glass. She pulled Draco up from the sofa and forced him to kneel in front of Snape.
"Thank you so much, Severus! Hurry, Draco, thank him!"
Draco, kneeling on the ground, was already too choked up to speak, only able to mumble "Professor… Professor…" over and over.
Seeing this, Snape felt a wave of emotion.
He helped them up once more and let them sit on the sofa, releasing their pent-up feelings.
Then he slowly walked to the window.
Through the frosted glass, he could vaguely see the sky outside.
At the edge of the horizon, the diligent summer sun had begun to show a faint glow.
That faint light illuminated the gray sky, making the thick smoke pouring from a nearby chimney clearly visible.
The smoke twisted and tangled in the air, eventually forming what looked like a giant face, smiling at Snape.
———
[One Week Later]
[Inside Number 11 Privet Drive]
Sirius Black clumsily placed a strangely shaped fried egg and a pile of burnt bacon onto a plate.
Then he wiped his hands on the floral apron around his waist, jogged upstairs, and pushed open a door.
"Hey! Harry, time to get up. Today's the day you return to Hogwarts."
He looked at Harry Potter, who was sprawled across the bed, and unconsciously softened his voice.
"Mmm..."
Harry let out a long groan and opened his eyes.
A faint smile lingered on his face.
And when he saw Sirius clearly, that smile instantly grew brighter.
"Good morning, Sirius.", he said with a smile.
Sirius smiled as well and sat on the edge of the bed.
"Oh! Looks like you slept pretty well last night."
"It was more than just pretty good!" Harry suddenly seemed energized, stretching as he spoke. "I'd say it was the most comfortable sleep I've ever had, because I had a dream!"
"A dream? You've started dreaming again?", Sirius said loudly.
Harry quickly waved his handsz "No, no, you misunderstood. This time it was a good dream! Definitely a good dream!"
"You know what? I dreamed of someone. I couldn't see their face clearly, but they felt familiar. Like… like we were originally one. In the dream, she kept holding me, hugging me, saying, I love you, I love you, I love you…"
"Her embrace was so warm!"
"So warm that I almost didn't want to wake up!"
"Do you know what I think? I think… she might be my mother."
"Lily?"
Sirius murmured, lowering his head in pain. "It's all my fault, Harry. Really. If it weren't for my arrogance, Lily and James wouldn't have died, and you would have had…"
"No! Don't say that, Sirius!"
Harry hurriedly interrupted. "The ones at fault are Voldemort and Peter Pettigrew, not you! I'm sure even without you, they would have found some other way to attack me and my parents!"
"R… really?", Sirius said, his voice choked.
Harry nodded firmly.
They had had this conversation countless times.
Harry even felt that Sirius might have been mentally affected by endless guilt and the more than ten years he spent imprisoned in Azkaban.
After thinking for a moment, Harry added, "Actually, I think the reason I could dream about my mother is because of you."
Sirius looked up nervously.
This was something Harry had never said before.
Harry continued, "This has been the most comfortable summer I've ever had."
"You can't imagine how I felt when I found out Voldemort had been driven back, that I didn't have to live with the Dursleys anymore, that I only needed to visit occasionally, and that I could live with my godfather!"
"Sirius, I think it's because I've been so happy here that I had that dream!"
"Which means that dream is basically a reflection of my real life!"
"Harry!"
Sirius's eyes turned red as he murmured, "This has also been the happiest summer I've had in nearly twenty years."
"Harry, you might not know this, but you're actually my pillar too. Without you, honestly, I don't know how I'd keep going!"
Harry's eyes also grew moist, and the two of them hugged tightly.
After a long while, Sirius suddenly seemed to remember something. He glanced at the clock beside him, then his expression changed drastically as he pushed Harry away in shock.
"Good heavens! You're going to be late! Hurry, Harry! Quickly!"
Harry was startled as well.
After a flurry of chaotic movement, he finally rushed downstairs with messy hair and headed straight for the fireplace.
"Hey..."
Sirius called out, originally planning to have Harry eat some breakfast first.
But looking at the rather tragic fried egg and bacon on the plate, he swallowed his words.
However, Harry, who had grown up reading other people's expressions, had already noticed Sirius's intention.
He smoothly stuffed the fried egg and bacon into his mouth all at once, then quickly rushed into the fireplace.
As he threw in Floo powder, he mumbled, "Sirius, I've got to go! I'm planning to catch some sleep on the Hogwarts Express. Maybe I can even continue that dream!"
As his words fell, smoke and green flames rose, and Harry's figure disappeared completely.
Leaving Sirius standing there in front of the fireplace, smiling with quiet satisfaction.