Where Your Loyalties Lie - {Severus Snape x Reader}

-13-

For a moment they both stare at Remus. They haven't realized yet I'm standing right behind him. "Well, well. Lupin. Out for a little walk... In the moonlight, are we?" Snape keeps his usual dark tone. Then he lays his eyes on me. For a split second I can see from his eyes he's surprised to see me. I'm feeling little bit nervous at the moment, but having Remus with me, helps me keep calm. Potter looks so confused how are we all three professors just standing here in the dark at this hour. Remus tilts his head and takes couple of steps forward:"Harry, are you alright?". Before Potter can open his mouth, Snape snatches something out of the boy's hand:"That remains to be seen.". "I have now just confiscated a rather curious artifact." he continue. What is it? Then he hands Remus the piece of the parchment:"Take a look, Lupin. Supposed to be your area of expertise. Clearly, it's full of Dark Magic.". Dark Magic?!

Giving Potter half disappointed, half worried look:"Is this one of those Half Blood Prince books all over again?". Both Remus and Snape turns their heads at me, looking confused what did I just said. Then Remus looks at the piece of parchment again and lets out a chuckle:"I seriously doubt it, Severus. It looks as though it's a parchment designed to insult anyone who tries to read it. I suspect it's a Zonko product.". Snape is about to take it back, but Remus pulls it out of his reach:"Nevertheless... I shall investigate any hidden qualities it may possess. It is, after all, as you say, my area of expertise.". Can sense some irony here. Then, Remus looks at the boy:"Harry, would you come with me, please?". Wait..- what?! My heart skips a beat as soon as I realize they are going to leave us two here. "Professors. Good night." Remus gives Snape a slight nod. Right when he turns around and our eyes meet, he quickly mouthed:'I'm sorry.'.

Can feel how my breathing got more intense after Remus and Potter walked around the corner out of our sight. Us standing in this narrowed hallway, in the darkness... It's like there is no escape. Snape could just finish where we were left off before I ran out of the Potions classroom. For a quick moment his eyes meets mine. My heart does a weird flip. Then he just... Walks away. Huh? Not knowing what to say or do, I just stare after him. Seeing how the black, long cape just trails after him before he disappears into the darkness. With mixed feelings, I head to my chamber. Right after I got in there, I undress and jump in the shower. The feeling of the hot water against my bare skin feels great. Wonder what was that all about? Remembering how Snape looked at me in that quick second... It wasn't hate. No. It was more of like as if he was... Disappointed?

Couple days later, I walk around Hogsmeade's alleys after the classes. Needed couple things from the Magic Neep. Bargaining over overly priced seeds isn't always fun, but to be fair - they are quite pricey now a days. Looking down my notepad to see what to get next. Maybe I should..- "Professor (Y/L)!" a student spots me from further away. Lift my face up from my notes and see a familiar Hufflepuff student:"Miss Abbott.". She and her two friends - a Hufflepuff and a Gryffindor, approaches me. It's somehow weird seeing them in casual clothing. So used to see them in their school uniforms. "Do you have a minute?" she ask. "Sure. How can I help?" I smile. She and her friends starts telling me a story what they found on the outskirts of the castle and wants to have my professional opinion on it.

At the same time these students are eagerly telling me their story how they run into this specific plant, I can't help but hear these two men talking behind me, three meters away from us. "Trust me! You won't get any other change like this." one of them says. "I don't know... Such a high asking price. Hippogriffs are quite stubborn creatures, after all." the other one hesitates. Hippogriffs? The first one chuckles:"Who cares? If it gets too much to handle, you can always sell its meat.". That got the second one intrigued:"Hmm, what kind of hippogriff was it again?". "A real handsome male with white feathers. You won't see those kinds everyday." the first one describes. Buckbeak? Hagrid did tell me what his friend looks like back when I was visiting him in his hut. Slowly and very discreetly, I move little bit on to the side, so I can take a better look at those two men behind me. Still pretending to be listening the girls story.

Now I get to see what they looks like. "When and where is this action?" a tall man, who has dressed up nicely, asks. A short, shabby looking man next to him smirks:"In the Forbidden Forest. This Saturday, nine pm.". They are auctioning beasts in the Forbidden Forest? My hands starts to sweat. The thought of Buckbeak being captured somewhere, ready to be sold breaks my heart. I have to do something! Just then, 'the seller' and I make an eye contact. Shit!! Quickly, I shift my eyes back to the students, trying to act like I wasn't listening to them. But it was too late, the man got suspicious. He gives a nudge to his friend and without a word tells him to take a look at me. Oh, Merlin! What do I do now?! "Professor?" Miss Abbott asks. Trying to act like I'm not going to get murdered soon:"Y-yes..?!". "Are you coming in Three Broomsticks with us?" she and her friends are about to leave. "Oh, no! No, no. You young kids go and have fun." I force a laugh.

Right after the students turn their backs, with fast steps I start walking the other way. As expected, those two men starts coming after me. We are walking quite calmly, yet briskly, so other people around us wouldn't even realize that those two men are after me. What to do, what to do?! Then I get a glimpse of a table where they sell the newspaper of Wizarding World. "Come and get your Daily Prophet!" a woman behind the table shouts at the people who are passing by. Just when I walk past by the table, I take out my wand and do a little swing which makes all of the papers puff and they starts flying around. It distracts them for a moment and I make a run for it. The woman behind the table yells and starts collecting the papers. She holds on to the tall man's coat and forces him to help her. The short man ignores the woman and continues to go after me.

After chasing me a little while, he sees how I run behind a corner and he starts smirking, knowing it's an dead end. He slows down his steps and takes out his own wand as well. Right when he turns around the corner, I'm standing right in front of him:"Stupefy!". The man falls down and I quickly put my wand away, so I can drag him into the alley, out of other people's sight. He's little bit too heavy for me:"C'mon... Urgh!". Finally, I got his unconscious body lean against the wall. "Phew!" I sigh and take some support of the wall with one hand. Corner of my eye I see there are some old boxes and empty bottles someone has left behind. I take a bottle and put it in his hand, so it actually looks like he has passed out after a night out or something. "That'll do it." I sigh. After that, I continue running back to Hogwarts. Who knows where his friend is and if there were more of them.

Little shaken up what happened in Hogsmeade, I return to the Greenhouse to collect my thoughts. They have Buckbeak! I can't believe this! Well, it's not certain, but selling beasts in Forbidden Forest late at night, sounds highly suspicious. Having this inner battle what to do. I have to do something! But what? I can't go there alone. Bet that auction is going to get filled with Dark Wizards. I need someone to come with me. Hagrid? No. He isn't actually skilled when it comes dueling, if it ever comes to that. Minerva? No. Bet she would advice to let the Ministry to handle it. But knowing them, they wouldn't be interested or would claim they are too busy. Lockhart? "Hah!" I let out. Heck no. Hard to say what would the Headmaster himself say about this... Then it hit me and this big smile raises up on my face. Remus! Of course!

My plan is to rush to his classroom the next day, right after the classes are over. When the clock strikes three, and the class got empty, I changed the dirty from the soil robe into casual clothes - brown pants with black shirt. "See you later, Sniffy!" I give a quick kiss on top of his head before heading out. Sniffy just keeps munching happily his food without any care in the world. Rushing towards the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom. I can only pray Remus is going to be on board with this. Otherwise, I'm running out ideas. Can see other side of the hallway how two of the Slytherin students are coming out of the classroom. Seems like they were the last ones in there. Great! Speeding my walking and when I enter the room, I shout:"Remus!!". Right then, my body freezes. Snape is standing at the front of the classroom where Remus should be standing. He turns to look at me with very vague look on his face. There is no one else in here. What is he doing here?!