A/N: I do not own the characters of the Harry Potter or Star Wars universes, save those of my own invention.

Special Note 1: For an explanation of how Harry's presence influences the timeline, please read my preface to chapter 1. For an explanation how this applies to the portraits and boggart in the Room of Requirement, please read my epilogue in chapter 11.

Chapter 44

Spinners End 1998

Severus Snape looked around a beautiful grove, the sun shining brightly in the sky and a cool breeze blowing through the grass. It was a wonderful scene, but something in the distance caught his eye: a lone woman in pure white robes with rose trim. Her red hair ruffled lightly in the breeze. Even from the distance he recognized the woman. The memories of what had transpired recently flooded his memory and he reached for his wand, convinced that this was a further assault on his mind by the horcrux. But his wand was not there. And Lily Potter simply watched him silently.

"What are you doing here," he called. "What do you want with me?" She did not answer, not with words. But she approached him. Snape tried to back away but something prevented him from.

"What magic is this," he whispered, feeling quite afraid at the moment, something he had not felt in many years.

"You may consider this an intervention of sorts," Lily answered, her voice soft and soothing, exactly as he remembered and quite unlike the demon that assaulted him before he could destroy the horcrux.

Snape stared at Lily, unable to take his eyes of her but still feeling very much afraid. "Am I dead," he asked, though he assumed the answer would be yes.

But she shook her head. "Fortunately not. The magic of Tom's horcrux had a rather unusual effect on you."

"Why? And how am I talking here to you now?"

Lily smiled. "You're not dead but you're at the crossing." She looked even more mischievous, which did not ease his nerves, though when they were kids he always loved that look. "I am not here to hurt you Severus." She reached out and grabbed his hand, her emerald green eyes holding his own tight in her gaze. "After everything you have done for Harry and his friends, I am in your debt."

Snape shuffled uneasily. He had always loathed Harry, though in honest moments he understood that he projected his hate of James on Harry. That said, until this year he dismissed Harry as yet another prodigy who would never realize his potential. But his actions this year showed Snape there was more to the boy than even he dared imagine.

Lily smiled, as if reading his thoughts. "I know you never cared for Harry, at least on the surface. You told yourself you were doing everything for me, to honor me. Whatever your intentions, you have been a good guardian, even if you are an awful professor."

He scowled at her description of his teaching. "Those children, or at least most of them, are daft," he said haughtily. His scowl deepened when Lily laughed like a loon.

"Oh come now Severus, you have many capable students. In all fairness, from top to bottom, Harry's class is probably one of the best to pass through Hogwarts, at least since our own. Just like when we were kids, you think you everyone who's not aloof and, forgive me, a bit of a bookworm, is daft." Before Snape could retort, she shook her head. "I am here because I am the person whom you would want to speak with more than any other on your deathbed." She smiled again, a dazzling white smile and led him to a bench that suddenly appeared. "So let's talk. You need to return to your body soon."

"I need to return to my body? Would that not imply I am dead?"

"As I said, you are at the crossing. Granted, you do have a choice of passing on but I swear that I will make your afterlife a living hell, as will Albus, James, and Sirius if you even consider passing on." She looked fierce, which he thought was a great look on her as well. Again, she seemed to be reading his thoughts because her eyes twinkled. But she also frowned. "Severus, you must get over me. Up until the end, I always believed in the good in you and hoped that you would come to your senses and live up to the potential I saw in you when we were kids."

Snape looked down, a sad smile on his lips. "But you never loved me," he said dejectedly.

"Not as a lover perhaps Severus. But you must remember that you were my closest friend…up until that one day." Snape looked even grimmer, remembering the day she spoke of.

"I'm sorry," he said softly.

"I know you are Severus. And I knew you were then but I also knew you were not ready to leave your housemates, even if you truly hated them. They were the first people after me to show any interest in you, even if as a tool." Lily looked upset both with how his Slytherin housemates treated him but also with Severus himself for being so weak.

Snape was lost in melancholy. "There was only ever you," he said sadly.

'Well, then you may as well pass on because that will never happen," she replied with a modicum of danger. "Damn it Sev, it didn't work with me. But do you believe I was the only girl who would ever have you?"

"You were the only girl I wanted."

Lily rolled her eyes. "That's very sweet Severus but in case you didn't notice, I died. And I wasn't married to you at the time. Ironically, thanks to that mad bastard you used to follow, you have another chance to make a life for yourself. Dumbledore and I want you to be happy. After everything you been through, admittedly some of it being self-inflicted, you deserve happiness."

Lily shook her head. "But we cannot discuss that now. You need to return to your body but you need to understand what you are returning to." She stood and paced in front of Snape for few moments. "It is impossible to be sure how you managed to survive Bellatrix Lestrange's fiendfyre. Dumbledore believes it is both because you are still branded with the Dark Mark but also your actions to rid Nagini of the soul in her."

Snape was confused now. "How would the mark make the effects worse?"

"Dumbledore was always suspicious of the Dark Mark. Witches and wizards have branded their followers in the past but they have merely been tattoos that stay with the witch or wizard for the rest of their life with no change to their appearance. But the Dark Mark seemed more of a barometer of the Dark Lord's life. After he was defeated, it faded and in the years of his absence until he sought the stone, it nearly disappeared. After Harry prevented him from securing the stone, it faded away again, to near invisibility."

"Then, throughout 1994, the Mark burned again, become darker until it burned hot to signal his return. This is a magic beyond any mere branding. The Mark is connected to Voldemort's soul. It is what allows him to have such power over his followers. And, for you, it is what magnified the effects of the horcrux as it defended itself."

"But what does Nagini have to do with this?"

"When you removed the soul fragment from her body, it sensed a connection to its master, through the Mark. It tried to bond with the Mark, until you were able to force it into the troll," answered Lily, looking at him sadly. "Even in failure, it communicated with the Mark, as well as your own soul. Similar to what happened when Ginny was invaded by Tom's soul fragment, your soul was tainted by his, crude cousins as it were, by soul instead of by blood. When the fragment in the locket realized a relative was attempting to destroy it, it redoubled its efforts to break your will."

Snape scratched his head. "So the piece from Nagini, together with the Mark, turned me into Tom's relative? That makes no sense!"

"You were not blood relatives. Like Ginny and Harry, his dark deeds created a connection beyond the bounds of normal magic, something nefarious that not even he intended. But when Bellatrix destroyed the horcrux, her magical fire burned you as well, despite her shield."

"So I should be dead?"

Lily nodded. "The fire should've killed you but Voldemort's magic kept you alive. And that is why you are here."

"Explain."

"The Dark Mark, fused with the energy of Voldemort's soul that you removed, effectively tethered you to Voldemort. When you return to consciousness, the Mark will be gone because the connection you share with Tom has been severed. But he will know and you, and by extension the students, will be in terrible danger."

Snape couldn't believe what he heard. He was free! "I can't believe I'm finally free," he said.

Lily smiled. "You are Sev. When this awful war is over, you will be free." She grabbed his hands, her green eyes holding his with grim determination. "Please protect Harry Sev. He needs you more than ever."

Snape shook his head. "He has become a better warrior than I could ever hope to be."

"I am not speaking of fighting. Like Dumbledore, he is going to have the weight of the world on his shoulders after the war is over. But, where Dumbledore had no one in whom he could confide, you and Harry can be there for one another."

Snape sat silently, his mind racing at the implications of being free after the war. He never cared for Potter, even if he respected him now. But was that true now? Snape looked in his conscious and found that he did care for Potter. The boy was reminded him of James but, as Dumbledore said once upon a time, his deepest nature was like Lily.

He nodded. "I'll work with Harry," he promised.

Hogwarts 1998

Snape coughed and hacked, his skin stinging and burning, though he felt his body covered with an anti-burn paste. Where am I?

As he gathered his bearings, he realized his was in his office, on a newly conjured stretcher. Near his bed chamber, he saw Madam Pomfrey talking urgently with Neville Longbottom and Tracey Davis. "Poppy," he called near silently as his voice refused to work. He tried again and again a third time. The last did the trick.

"Oh, thank Merlin," Poppy exclaimed. "You're alive." She pulled a small vial out of her apron and tipped it gently into his mouth. Snape hated the vile potion but immediately he felt his skin secreting a fluid that worked with the paste and he felt his skin heal quickly.

"Thank you Poppy," he said shortly. "Where is Professor Lestrange?"

The matron shared a look with the two teenagers. "She's dead," Neville answered, a modicum of satisfaction in his voice. Snape could not fault the boy; he did not know about her sudden change of heart with regards to Voldemort. Tracey pulled something ashen and melted out of her pocket. "This was found on a pile of ash we believe is all that remains of her physical body."

Snape reached tentatively for the locket, his hands shaking. He knew immediately it was destroyed and the fragment of Voldemort's soul was gone. He couldn't resist smiling.

"What are you so excited about Professor," Neville asked suspiciously. The realization dawned in his eyes. "Was…is that Slytherin's locket?"

Snape nodded. "It is. The final horcrux is destroyed. Now the Dark Lord is mortal once more."

Quite suddenly, Snape remembered the vision with Lily and jerked his left arm. He laughed with relief. The Dark Mark was gone!

Then he quickly sobered. "How long have I been out?"

"You've been unconscious for a little over 12 hours. One of the school elves found us to tell us you had been injured. We thought you were dead actually."

Snape's mind was racing. They needed to act quickly. "Poppy, gather the professors except for Lucius Malfoy at once and bring them here. Neville, return to the Room of Requirement and seal off every secret passage out of this castle you lot created. Every single one, am I clear?" He waited for the boy to nod and leave him with Tracey. "Miss Davis, find Lucius Malfoy take him to the Slytherin common room and initiate Protocol 8."

She nodded grimly. "Do you want me to stay with the house?"

Snape shook his head. "Gather your comrades. Once I see you are out of the common room, I will lock it down permanently. The time has come for the school to prepare herself for siege." The young woman nodded again and left.

When Neville arrived in the Room of Requirement, it buzzing with plans for defending the castle. In the time since Ron died, they had worked around the clock to supplement whatever protections Snape had for the castle. They still had more to go but he was immensely proud of the progress they had made already.

"Sonourus," he said, pointing his wand at his throat. "MAY I HAVE EVERYONE'S ATTENTION? I AM SEALING OFF EVERY SECRET PASSAGE OUT OF HOGWARTS WE HAVE CREATED! DO NOT LEAVE THIS ROOM! DO NOT SEND WORD TO OUT ALLIES IN HOGSMEADE! LUNA, SEAMUS, DEAN, HANNAH, ANTHONY, AND SUSAN PLEASE COME WITH ME IMMEDIATELY! Quietus."

Ignoring any questions, Neville made his way towards the room with the portraits of Dumbledore and Harry. He wished that Harry had been there but his portrait was empty. Come back soon Harry. We need you.

He found the lever on the far wall, which controlled all passages in the room, no matter what the others may request. It gave the leaders of the DA a safeguard against accidental requests or threats. A modified Marauder's Map, one that showed the passages to Hogsmeade and other off site points disappeared from the map.

His friends and fellow officers met him by the exit. "Thanks guys. We need to get back to Professor Snape."

They exclaimed. "What's happened," asked Dean.

"Snape destroyed the last weapon and his Dark Mark was lost, somehow, in the process. Voldemort will now that Snape is no longer branded and he'll probably make a play for Hogwarts."

"But I thought you said Snape already lost Voldemort's trust," Seamus said. "Isn't that why we've been working overtime to fortify the protections for the school?"

Neville nodded, never breaking stride as they took every possible secret passage down to the second floor. "That is what I thought, and I believe it was true. But this is worse. After the first war, no one was able to remove a Dark Mark. Whatever magic that monster used, it was powerful and it tied his followers to him. For it to be gone…it can't be good."

"Do you think he's going to try and invade Hogwarts soon," Hannah asked.

"I do. When I have no idea but we'll find out more when we get back to Snape's office."

"Professor Malfoy! Professor Malfoy," Tracey called urgently, knocking on his office door. When he opened the door, she seized his hand and pulled him with her. "Come quickly. There is a problem in the dungeons and I couldn't go to Snape." She put undue stress on that last sentence, well aware of the lack of trust Malfoy had for Snape. As she hoped, the patrician wizard stood taller.

"What's happened," he asked, freeing himself so he could grab his wand.

"Several members of the DA," she spat the name of her boyfriend's organization with suitable contempt, "were caught in the dungeons, no doubt spying on the Slytherins. How they managed to get into the dungeons without any professor noticing them…it seemed highly convenient."

The vain wizard bought it hook line and sinker. "Very well Miss Davis. Have your housemates detained them?"

"We managed to capture most, probably over half. But we were outnumbered so a few, cowards mostly, managed to escape."

"No matter," Lucius said. He rubbed his hands predatorily. "We'll soon find out where the truth lies."

In short order, they arrived in front of the entrance. "Milord," Lucius said, giving the password. He took two steps in before gaping in surprise. "What?"

Before he could cast any spell, Tracey forced her wand into his side, sending a powerful current of energy through his body. He fell to his knees with a groan, whereupon she kicked him in the head, knocking him unconscious. "I'll take that," she said, grabbing his wand and throwing it into the fire.

She bound and gagged him with temporary spells that would wear off in five minutes, more than enough to ensure they would be able to leave unmolested. The other members of Slytherin not part of her organization were similarly bound and gagged, they eyes burning with hate at their fellows who captured them.

She gave an approving nod to her allies. "Good work everyone. Were there any difficulties?"

Blaise shook his head. "No problems. What do we do now?"

"Professor Snape will lock this room down permanently in a couple of minutes. After that," she shrugged. "Let's go. Neville and his officers are probably already with Snape and the other Professors. Blaise, Rachel, and Patty you'll come with me. The rest of you lot, go to the Room of Requirement and wait with the DA."

Her fellow officers followed her to the second floor while three dozen of their friends raced up to the seventh floor. Protocol 8 went off without a hitch. She only hoped they would be able to protect the school from the Dark Lord's onslaught.

The normally spacious office was extremely crowded. Snape counted his blessings that the other professors, most of them anyway, did not try to kill him on sight. But McGonagall, Flitwick, and Sprout, the only staff members also full members of the Order of the Phoenix, defended Snape. Dumbledore was a great help as well. So while some looked mutinous, they did not leave. In fact, when Neville, Tracey, and their officers arrived, they looked very surprised.

"Good work you two," Snape said proudly. Neville and Tracey looked pleased, holding one another's hand.

"Why are you congratulating them Snape," Professor Grubbly-Plank asked.

"Over the past year, Neville and Davis have led a large number of the students in a revolt against the Carrows and later Malfoy and Lestrange. All of their efforts have been invaluable in protecting the students from the worse fates and, given current events, they have worked to supplement the protections of this school so we are better protected when the Dark Lo…when Voldemort tries to invade this castle."

"Is it wise you use the students in the war against You-Know-Who," asked Professor Vector.

"Given the circumstances, they're going to be part of this war one way or the other. I assure you I will endeavor to remove everyone from the 4th year and below from the castle when that time comes but Potter, Longbottom, Davis, and others have trained our students well. And we will be with them as well."

"And that brings me to the pending attack. I cannot be sure when he will try to breach the castle but I believe it will be sooner rather than later." Snape rolled up his left sleeve and showed them his forearm. Several Professors gasped, while others looked pleased. "The Dark Mark is no mere tattoo. It connects Voldemort to all his followers on an unnatural level. Mine has been removed, though I am not even now completely sure why. He will know and will no longer trust me. Who he cannot trust must die. And since he believed Hogwarts safely under his control with me as Headmaster, he will be doubly furious that he lost the school."

The professors shared looks, some looking scared but the majority, including those scared, were resolved. "This is our school and these are out students. To hell with Tom if he thinks he can get to them," ground out Professor Trelawney, to the surprise of everyone. After an awkward pause, Professor McGonagall embraced the woman.

"Are you all prepared to do what is necessary to defeat Lord Voldemort," Snape asked. Everyone nodded. "Good. While Poppy was gathering everyone, I've enacted every ward and protection I have studied this year. I've sent the suits of armor to guard the gates. I've sent several elves to the centaurs to recruit them to the fight as well. Wilhelmina, I ask that you assist them."

"Of course Severus," she said stoically. "Shall I begin training willing students to fly the thestrals as well?"

"That is a good idea. See if the centaurs can provide you with armor for them as well." His colleague nodded.

"Neville and the DA have been working tirelessly since Voldemort last came to the school to fortify weak points in the castle. I have seen their work. I recommend other professors, in your endeavors to use your own special brand of magic to protect the school, recruit students to assist you. You are all aware of your own prodigies."

"What of the Order of Phoenix," asked McGonagall.

"Those not employed by the Ministry should be brought here as soon as possible. I know it will put other areas at risk but right now the Ministry and Hogwarts are his objectives. He will not bother with other targets, not now. Send word and I will have Neville open one entrance for them."

"This war is nearly over. Soon Potter will return and when he does, the final act will begin. And we will win."

Birmingham 1998

Cyrus smiled hungrily as his prey struggled uselessly against his bonds. He was a weak, pathetic excuse for a wizard but there was a conniving mind there, something that made him more dangerous in many ways than a more powerful wizard.

He spent several days robbing the man of his mind, not merely his memories. The memory walk was a lethal technique but very useful. He felt a deeper connection with this man than if he copied a few memories. He was becoming this man, which would make him a perfect spy, until he could approach his next target.

As he prepared for another invasion, he felt his Mark burn. He hated the blasted thing but Voldemort would not allow him to refuse. He pressed his thumb to the Mark. "What is it," he hissed through gritted teeth.

Voldemort appeared opposite his window, rage radiating off him in waves. None of that showed in how voice. He was more in control of his emotions than he had ever been in school. "Your mission has changed."

Cyrus arched an eyebrow. "What happened?"

Voldemort's slit nostrils flared, his eyes blazing. "One of my followers has betrayed me," he said curtly. "He has removed his Mark."

Cyrus inspected his Mark. "So this damn thing can come off? Interesting." Before he could brace himself, a powerful blast of energy sent him flying in agony into the far wall. Only a powerful will, forged decades in the wild, kept him for moaning in agony. In spite of the cruciatus curse, he rose steadily to his feet. He could tell his old friend was surprised, possibly scared.

But not enough to be thwarted. He doubled his efforts on the curse, bringing Cyrus to his knees. To make the pain worse, he flooded Cyrus with memories of his victims. In his weakened state, he couldn't keep his body from trying to transform into several things at once. Where the curse didn't, the failed transformations made him scream.

"Do not toy with me Cyrus," Voldemort spat. "The Mark is a sign of loyalty. To remove it means death."

Cyrus vomited. "Who did it," he asked when he reigned in his stomach.

"Severus Snape, the man I appointed as Headmaster of Hogwarts." The storm of rage surrounding Voldemort grew into a tornado. "He will die. And that is your new objective."

Cyrus rose unceasingly to his feet and leaned over a counter. "What do you want me to do?"

"After you transform into that scum, you will be sent to Hogwarts. As a member of the Order, but not an employee of the Ministry, they will use you there to bolster their defenses. Do whatever you must but kill Severus Snape and subvert their defenses however you can. I will focus on the Ministry but you can weaken Hogwarts so when I attack, it will fall into my hand like a ripe peach."

"Become this man and kill Snape," Cyrus repeated. "Sounds easy enough."

Voldemort advanced on him. "Do not fail me Gold. I expect you to communicate with me once a day through the Mark. Am I clear?"

"Crystal."

His old friend and new master disappeared. Cyrus took a few minutes to gather himself then settled in for one final memory walk. He needed to become this man soon."