Disclaimer: The brilliant characters belong solely to J.K. Rowling. The plot and typos are my own. No profit is being made.
Written For: WhiteCotton's Drabble Challenge 3 on Severus Sighs.
Prompt: Severus racked his brains, but no matter how much he pondered it, he still could not fathom how he had ended up beneath this man.

~ Raison d'Etre ~

Severus racked his brains, but no matter how much he pondered it, he still could not fathom how he had ended up beneath this man.

It should have been the other way around.

With a forlorn expression, Severus looked up at the white encasement as it towered before him, a monolith even in its austerity. A familiar torrent of regret and self-loathing temporarily choked the air from his throat.

He stood alone, his only company the velvet expanse of night above him. And even then, it seemed to him the glittering dots of light were mocking his very existence.

Severus sighed heavily and lay his forehead and fingertips against the cold marble. Closing his eyes, he searched the unyielding surface for solace, just as he had done countless times before.

But tonight, it offered him none. The tomb stood insentient.

"Albus…" Severus whispered, pain riddling his voice. "Why was I so foolish as to listen?"