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Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.
I own nothing but the original characters I make.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 99: The Spy
Snape walked inside the main hall of the Malfoy Manor and was immediately choked by the sheer tension concentrated in the room.
His black eyes moved left to right. He found everyone currently sitting at the massive dinner table, as if they were all waiting for him to get dinner started, even though there was no sign of any food being present, just a few bottles of wine.
Around the table, he found many familiar faces, like the disgusting Wormtail sitting near the end, or the unsettling Carrow twins.
He also saw the lords of major wizard houses like Lord Nott, Lord Avery, and Lord Yaxley, as well as a few other less important members of the Inner Circle.
The ones he was most surprised to see there were Draco Malfoy and his mother, Narcissa.
He knew for a fact that Narcissa never formally joined the organization and thus was never marked.
Draco's presence was even more surprising. The boy had been severely scarred after what happened to his father.
Snape did not have all of the details, but between the pieces that he gathered from each side, he learned that Lucius Malfoy was killed after coming into contact with some dark artifact that the Dark Lord had left in his care.
Of course, their Lord never took any responsibility for his passing and instead claimed that Lucius had only died because he had misused said artifact.
Snape doubted this was the whole story, but in the end, no one besides the Dark Lord knew the truth.
Although he was sure that Wormtail knew more than he let on. The cowardly man was the one who originally found the Dark Lord and assisted in his return, or so he claims…
Regardless of what truly befell Lucius Malfoy, his fortune and properties were now in the possession of his wife, Narcissa, but only until Draco became seventeen years old.
At that point, according to the wizarding laws of Britain, everything would then belong to him, the entire Malfoy fortune, the richest family estate in the entire country.
It was no wonder that Lord Voldemort wanted to keep the young, impressionable Draco nearby. And the fact that the boy was sitting at his right was enough to serve as evidence.
Snape stopped before the table and waited. A profound silence filled the room, a silence thick enough to make him feel like he was underwater and couldn't breathe.
This lasted for over a minute. One very, very long minute, until someone finally spoke.
"Ah…Severus. You finally decided to answer my call," said the Dark Lord with an almost tired and bored tone.
But his eyes were telling a different story.
When Snape looked at those red eyes of his, he could feel the rage hiding inside, waiting to come out and destroy everything.
He swallowed before dropping to one knee. "My Lord. I came as soon as I could."
Silence.
Snape was staring at the floor, the well-polished marble floor, not daring to raise his head until he was permitted to do so. Otherwise, a Cruciatus Curse was as certain to follow as the sun rising in the east.
He could hear Nagini, Voldemort's gigantic snake, slithering across the table and knocking against several glasses.
But no one was going to complain.
"Of course. You have a very important job at Hogwarts. I understand that. Your role as my spy is crucial for the success of our goals." Voldemort's voice sounded almost gentle.
However, Nagini was hissing angrily, reflecting the real feelings of the Dark Lord.
Snape heard the reptile getting closer to him and wondered if he was about to get bitten. Still, he did not dare to raise his head.
Voldemort continued. "It is a shame that my valuable spy was unable to bring me any useful information, and now…nine of my most devoted followers are DEAD!" he shouted at the same time his fist slammed onto the dining table.
Nagini hissed again as her head reached the end of the table and moved onto the marble floor.
Snape could now see the beast circling him until he was trapped. Its head moved a bit closer while flicking its tongue.
"My Lord…I couldn't…" Snape stammered the words. He wanted to say that he couldn't have predicted that outcome.
How was he supposed to know that Harry Potter was capable of doing something like that?
He knew the boy was impossibly powerful for his age, but summoning that ancient water spirit and killing all the Death Eaters was not something he could have anticipated.
Although, to be fair, he never paid that much attention to Potter. His distaste for the father made him want to stay away from the boy. And he was very grateful for the fact that Potter had decided not to attend classes.
Now he was regretting it. As a spy with access to the Dark Lord's enemies, he should have made the effort to gain some useful information about Harry Potter.
He had to admit that he had failed at his task.
"I can do better," Snape finally said. "I can still be of use…"
The head of Nagini was just inches away from his own. The snake opened its mouth and got ready to strike.
But then…
"Wait," Voldemort's command arrived just in time.
Nagini reacted to his order and immediately stopped, before looking back at him.
Voldemort made a gesture with his hand, and the snake moved away from Severus Snape, opting to slither to another corner of the room.
"Can you do better, Severus? Can you really be of some use to me?" the Dark Lord asked as he pulled his wand out.
"I can, my Lord." Snape then realized he had recently found a piece of information that could save his life. "I know where you can find him! I know where Harry Potter lives now."
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